tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46011711035068396922024-02-19T11:37:26.203-05:00The Rune Under WaterRunequest, Glorantha, D&D, and a tiny slice of libertarianism.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-6574199522874207822018-06-03T15:45:00.000-04:002018-06-03T15:45:25.028-04:00Returning to the Scene of the Crime...A lot of water has flowed down the River Styx since I last posted. In particular, Mongoose Runequest 2 became <a href="http://thedesignmechanism.com/">The Design Mechanism's</a> wonderful Runequest 6 (and I am the proud possessor of a slipcase edition from the Kickstarter). The incredible <a href="https://www.chaosium.com/the-guide-to-glorantha-slipcase-set/">Guide to Glorantha</a> also came out (which I also helped Kickstart) and for a brief, wonderful period, there was the possibility of these two giving birth to Runequest: Adventures in Glorantha. And the Elder Gods returned to Chaosium to rescue it from its own Call of Cthulhu Kickstarter oblivion. In the process yet another Kickstarter allowed for the reprint of the much-loved Runequest 2nd Edition as <a href="https://www.chaosium.com/runequest-classic/">Runequest Classic </a>(and a project to re-issue all the old 2nd Edition supplements and adventures in cleaned-up PDF format is ongoing).<br />
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Sadly, however, Runequest: Adventures in Glorantha was not to be. The creative decision was taken by the team at The Chaosium to bring Runequest back in house, and retool the rules set. Runequest 6 became <a href="http://thedesignmechanism.com/resources/TDM110%20Mythras%20Imperative.pdf">Mythras</a>, and spawned a host of excellent supplements and adventures, including providing a new home for <a href="http://thedesignmechanism.com/Thennla.php">Thennla</a>, the splendid world of Mongoose's Age of Treason.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7yJj0N6wwHMIy_7H7v-iD-xL52dF08wjkvKUCFKwIJes7sDaERgGTbbKa1Qs_eVFvCuhroJ3No66tOirBv-E1xhm1mxXJTExQp4bNR5eqw7jtSeTeuq3hQi21awnRBGEKHoPSIOi-oPo/s1600/mythras.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="288" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7yJj0N6wwHMIy_7H7v-iD-xL52dF08wjkvKUCFKwIJes7sDaERgGTbbKa1Qs_eVFvCuhroJ3No66tOirBv-E1xhm1mxXJTExQp4bNR5eqw7jtSeTeuq3hQi21awnRBGEKHoPSIOi-oPo/s320/mythras.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mythras: A truly excellent rules set</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Meanwhile, Chaosium and Pelgrane Press teamed up to create <a href="https://www.chaosium.com/13th-age-glorantha-pdf/">13th Age in Glorantha</a>, heretically bringing a d20 class-based system to Greg Stafford's world (I kid, I kid). Set later in time than previous Glorantha-based games, the heroes of a 13G game are facing a world where the Hero Wars have unleashed chaos back into the world, and the power levels of higher-level characters would put the days of Super-Runequest to shame.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9aOaFctktr2r4CuqYNIBlSSZ72IWswBhhTtpFN1GojqiXXalP3bb9lGJoq_MItFdZ6pCWwrDzi8QatDhZfVcMi-kfqa0eugTMDq5ks10QYh7EFVkI4_SD_5by6yN884XmUhZ15EEhfk/s1600/13th_Age_Glorantha_-_Front_Cover_-_700__49876.1518646331.500.659.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="647" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9aOaFctktr2r4CuqYNIBlSSZ72IWswBhhTtpFN1GojqiXXalP3bb9lGJoq_MItFdZ6pCWwrDzi8QatDhZfVcMi-kfqa0eugTMDq5ks10QYh7EFVkI4_SD_5by6yN884XmUhZ15EEhfk/s320/13th_Age_Glorantha_-_Front_Cover_-_700__49876.1518646331.500.659.jpg" width="247" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">13th Age in Glorantha: A new approach</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Yet Gloranthan Grognards (Gloragnards?) were still left without the system they had been waiting for since the end of the 1990s "Runequest Revival" - a fully-supported modern edition of Runequest allowing them to play in the 3rd Age. A taste was given of what could be with the 2017 Free RPG Day <a href="https://www.chaosium.com/runequest-roleplaying-in-glorantha-quickstart/">Runequest: Roleplaying in Glorantha Quickstart</a> (which you can pick up for free in PDF <a href="https://www.chaosium.com/content/FreePDFs/RuneQuest/CHA4027%20-%20RuneQuest%20Quickstart.pdf">here</a>). But the release date of the full game appeared to be like the old Chaosium Heroquest - any year now.<br />
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Finally, on June 1st, the Gloragnards' patience was rewarded when Chaosium released the full rule set of <a href="https://www.chaosium.com/runequest-roleplaying-in-glorantha-pdf/">Runequest: Roleplaying in Glorantha</a>. The new edition was intentionally designed to be compatible with the Runequest Classic line, meaning that those adventures and supplements could be used with minimal retooling from the gamesmaster.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG_J9eQtY2QAHocoNLSA0jUkQpyAKbipr-jKduzet1SF6QYJ-VAycYJrpe6ZFoRjeUAkJJchd_4HXRK561PpPv7DLDgG5mLmcP3fdlrOp9KR7bfb8IqF58gNVue1313a2twiGdjUbPvdQ/s1600/CHA4028_-_RuneQuest_-_Roleplaying_in_Glorantha_-_Front_Cover__32219.1527803232.500.659.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG_J9eQtY2QAHocoNLSA0jUkQpyAKbipr-jKduzet1SF6QYJ-VAycYJrpe6ZFoRjeUAkJJchd_4HXRK561PpPv7DLDgG5mLmcP3fdlrOp9KR7bfb8IqF58gNVue1313a2twiGdjUbPvdQ/s320/CHA4028_-_RuneQuest_-_Roleplaying_in_Glorantha_-_Front_Cover__32219.1527803232.500.659.jpg" width="245" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's here!!!</td></tr>
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I will have a full review of RQ:RiG in the very near future, along the lines of my ancient <a href="http://runeunderwater.blogspot.com/2010/02/review-runequest-ii-core-rulebook.html">review</a> of Mongoose RQ2. My initial impressions are that this is a good system, with some excellent additions to the Runequest Classic rules, but that some enhancements to the old system made on the road to Mythras were ignored that could have made the rules even better. I imagine that GMs with experience in running Gloranthan adventures using MRQ2 or RQ6/Mythras will be doing a lot of house-ruling, and I'll be writing about my decisions along those lines here.<br />
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I'll also take the opportunity to tidy up this blog a bit, including the incredibly-out-of-date sidebar. Chaosium have kindly given permission to use some of the art from the new games in social media postings - and I hope a blog qualifies as well. I'll also try to throw in a few reviews of Design Mechanism games too.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-27898368728280992762012-03-19T19:04:00.000-04:002012-03-19T19:04:00.954-04:00Further Thoughts About Martial Arts in Legend<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_1Xbs_WdDBwLyeZgrPCAaQGy0_GpJZ0OA7t8m3_fKoCBOQ2bPXOc89kaPCef-cMgCDLcL-m0kDgkCxKd4EsilQhTM-L4in3tjvEvfDOaL13cY345pUo2aKkGj44lJpPgneKzE_JI2wZs/s1600/buffy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_1Xbs_WdDBwLyeZgrPCAaQGy0_GpJZ0OA7t8m3_fKoCBOQ2bPXOc89kaPCef-cMgCDLcL-m0kDgkCxKd4EsilQhTM-L4in3tjvEvfDOaL13cY345pUo2aKkGj44lJpPgneKzE_JI2wZs/s320/buffy.JPG" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martial Arts (Vampire Slayer) in action</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Let's face it, my <a href="http://runeunderwater.blogspot.com/2011/04/martial-arts-combat-maneuvers-for.html">first attemp</a>t at representing Martial Arts in Legend/MRQII didn't work very well. I've been trying to come up with something better and have been attempting to flesh out a system. As someone else had very similar thoughts, I just posted these to the Mongoose Forum, and thought I really ought to post them here. Comments etc are very welcome.<br />
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By the way, it looks like RQ6 approaches this through its new Mysticism rules, and they'll probably be much better than these anyway, but for the nonce...<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal"><b><u>Martial Arts</u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Each Tradition or School teaches a Combat Style, the Martial Arts skills, probably a few other skills, and a variety of Techniques that help modify the Combat Style by adding Combat Maneuvers, abilities and effects through the Martial Arts skill. It may also teach Heroic Abilities.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Martial Arts (Specific Tradition) skill (POW + DEX)</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Martial Arts skill is used to apply martial arts techniques to a Combat Style. Each ten percent of Martial Arts skill allows the martial artist to apply 1 point of technique to his/her combat style for the combat action (round?). </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">This skill is not rolled against when fighting. Its value merely limits how much the martial artist may modify his/her combat style.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">In fantastical worlds, each Technique used may cost 1 Magic Point.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><b>Techniques</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A Technique modifies or affects a combat style. Techniques come in three general forms: combat maneuvers, effects, and abilities.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Combat Maneuver Techniques</i>: Ordinarily, a fighter using Unarmed skill cannot for example, use Bleed. However some martial arts teach the ability to use a combat maneuver as part of the technique. Thus the follower of the Rhino Style tradition may use Bash, for example. Using a Combat Maneuver as part of a Martial Arts attack or defense is not automatic. It must be declared as part of the Martial Arts skill use with each combat action (round?). Each combat maneuver potentially used costs 1 Technique point. It costs 2 Improvement Rolls to learn a Combat Maneuver Technique.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Additional Combat Maneuvers</i>: Choke Attack – the martial artist grabs his/her opponent and begins to choke him. Damage is immediately established as per the suffocation rules (Legend p. 76) except per combat action of the attacker rather per round. The opponent rolls his resilience in an opposed test against the original successful attack roll. Damage continues until the opponent is able to Slip Free or the Martial Artist drops the hold.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">[More to come]</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Example</i>: Dark Cloud is just learning the Shadow Boxing martial arts technique and has 30% in his Martial Arts skill. He has learned three combat maneuver techniques: Bypass Armor, Bypass Parry, and Disarm Opponent. He nominates all three for his Techniques this action (round?). He has an unarmed combat style of 67% and succeeds in his attack against his opponent, who fails to parry his attack with his dagger, and therefore gains a combat maneuver. He cannot choose Bypass Armor as that is a critical-only maneuver so chooses Disarm Opponent to represent him grabbing his opponent’s sword arm and applying pressure to cause him to drop his dagger.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Effect Techniques</i>: These are techniques that affect the results of combat directly. The most basic Effect Technique is Increase Damage which adds 1pt of damage per point (2 points?) of Technique devoted to it through the Martial Arts skill. Other damage techniques may add magical damage or environmental damage. Other techniques modify combat results in some way. For example, Precise Strike allows the martial artist to bypass 1 point of regular armor per technique point used. Example techniques are:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Increase Damage: +1 damage per point of Technique</div><div class="MsoNormal">Precise Strike: Ignore 1 AP of normal armor per 2 points of Technique</div><div class="MsoNormal">Mystical Strike: Ignore 1 AP of magical armor per 2 points of Technique</div><div class="MsoNormal">Flaming Fist of Fury: Adds fire damage at a rate of 1 fire level per 2 full points of Technique (so 2 points are required to simulate the 1 pt damage of a candle, 4 points to simulate the 1d4pt damage of a brand, and 10 points to simulate the 3d6pt damage of lava)</div><div class="MsoNormal">Cobra Strike: Adds a snake venom effect to the attack at 10 points of POT per point of Technique</div><div class="MsoNormal">Charging Rhino: Adds the equivalent of +2 SIZ per Technique point for the purposes of determining the results of a Bash maneuver</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Example: TBD</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Ability Techniques</i>: These are techniques that enhance other skills used by the Martial Artist. They generally enhance another skill for a specific purpose for the duration of the combat action (round?) by +10% per Technique point. For example, Leaping Frog adds +10% to Athletics skill for the purposes of jumping. A martial artist may use these techniques in non-combat situations as well, and will therefore generally enhance their skills by the maximum Technique amount possible in those circumstances leading to the extraordinary feats often associated with Martial Arts masters. Example techniques are:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Crouching Tiger: Adds +10%/TP to Evade skill for the purpose of ducking an attack</div><div class="MsoNormal">Leaping Dragon: Adds +10%/TP to Acrobatics skill for any purpose</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Etc, etc...</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Note: It should also go without saying that under this system, an unarmed attack cannot use any combat maneuvers. A simple Martial Arts (Street Fighting/ Boxing/ Wrestling/ Dirty Infighting) skill would be needed to use maneuvers like stun and bash.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Note #2: I have eschewed the use of "Ki" as these rules are intended for use in Kralorela in Glorantha, and the idea of Ki seems very un-Gloranthan to me.</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-48225170979118428022012-03-17T11:19:00.000-04:002012-03-17T11:19:38.419-04:00RIP Firu ba Yeker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVG0PHbaI5er3JsAS4jZ7QwvEIP34fj6qe-uaLWyVzQUuPzPoQ1DquJsVj8QrXU-j8kjWneB_h4gFUTGdlQzNgqNu12_G380xuwm1JpDbV-0iYtkd2Mk9qObl1p3htNu-jUq7K1_eLTiU/s1600/eptbox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVG0PHbaI5er3JsAS4jZ7QwvEIP34fj6qe-uaLWyVzQUuPzPoQ1DquJsVj8QrXU-j8kjWneB_h4gFUTGdlQzNgqNu12_G380xuwm1JpDbV-0iYtkd2Mk9qObl1p3htNu-jUq7K1_eLTiU/s320/eptbox.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I was deeply upset to hear of the passing of Professor MAR Barker, the inventor of Tekumel and what must surely be the first dedicated RPG setting, the Empire of the Petal Throne. I am a proud possessor of the original EPT box set, even if it is rather more battered than the one depicted here. Some of my earliest gaming memories are of composing notes and props in the amazing Tsolyani script. And my box set still contains my version of the first level of the Jakallan underworld, made from 4 sheets of A4 scientific graph paper taped and stapled together. I even have several pages of the key. Sadly, I only ran the system for a few sessions, because then Runequest 2 came out and we all switched over to that pretty quickly (apart from a few diehards who decided Chivalry & Sorcery was their "improved" game of choice.)<br />
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I never had any personal interaction with the good professor, but the great Dave Morris did. His moving tribute is <a href="http://fabledlands.blogspot.com/2012/03/professor-m-r-barker.html">here</a>.<br />
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Sandy Petersen, creator of Call of Cthulhu and long-time Chaosium guru, created some RQ3 rules for Tekumel, which are available at <a href="http://www.tekumel.com/downloads/RQtekumel.pdf">the Tekumel site</a>. They should be convertible to Legend with a few tweaks.<br />
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As I've mentioned before, my vision of Glorantha's Kralorela has more in common with Tekumel than the official version. I shall now spend more time trying to bring Lur Nop to life in homage to Jakalla.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-27406590240597570232012-03-12T19:51:00.000-04:002012-03-12T19:51:21.202-04:00Whirr... Click... ResettingWell, last Summer I had a book come out. It's about American politics from a libertarian viewpoint, so for the few of you who might be interested, the link is <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stealing-You-Blind-Government-Getting/dp/B006J4036W/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0">here</a>. What knocked me for a loop is that since my last book came out, I had to work four times as hard to sell a quarter of the copies. Life is extremely hard in the mainstream nonfiction publishing world at the moment, and the gap between the quick (the best sellers) and the dead (everyone else) is bigger than my publisher has ever seen. Add to that new management responsibilities at my work and something had to give. It was gaming. Apart from a brief and hilarious foray into OD&D run by one of my group, and starting and then scrapping three different iterations of a Gloranthan side-campaign set in Kralorela, I have had little interaction with the gaming world. So all the rash promises made below about a fanzine and so on fell by the wayside, and I did nothing to rectify the situation when it became apparent I would have to drop them, and for that I apologize to everyone. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.<br />
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Things are slowly returning to normal. So I hope to restart semi-regular updates. Here are a few brief links to begin with:<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1UDSRsamDk9XV320ZdMmc5pOsSf6FHrwrfiHhfaiscACg3s-ZjZ7g0frvnGsfp1xoEKY4VDnPvqQYqIW4ajghxbiPqYnzj26hfINNhQ9Ha-_FLEEo9Gj46_VC2bW3ehwndakICJ1nGMA/s1600/Flame_Sword_by_GrimAngel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1UDSRsamDk9XV320ZdMmc5pOsSf6FHrwrfiHhfaiscACg3s-ZjZ7g0frvnGsfp1xoEKY4VDnPvqQYqIW4ajghxbiPqYnzj26hfINNhQ9Ha-_FLEEo9Gj46_VC2bW3ehwndakICJ1nGMA/s1600/Flame_Sword_by_GrimAngel.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Flamesword</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<ul><li>Jamie "Trotsky" Revell has self-published his Heroquest book on Glorantha's Seshnela:<a href="http://jrevell.blogspot.com/2012/02/kingdom-of-flamesword.html"> Kingdom of the Flamesword</a>. If you liked his <a href="http://d101games.co.uk/books/the-book-of-glorious-joy/">Book of Glorious Joy</a>, you'll love this. It treats the Gloranthan west in a much more medieval fashion than the current official interpretation allows for (and I have to admit I am somewhat disillusioned with the current direction of Glorantha, however excellent the Moon Design products are). Highly recommended.</li>
<li>Design Mechanism have made the excellent products written by Pete Nash and Lawrence Whitaker for the Second Age of Glorantha available for the <a href="http://www.thedesignmechanism.com/products.php">bargain price of a buck each</a>. If you've somehow missed this, dive in. The late MRQ1 and entire MRQII era of the Second Age books included some really excellent stuff, and at the very least they'll provide some great inspiration for a homebrew Legend/RQ6 campaign. I hope the Second Age is not dead and would love to see Tenets of the Inner Dragon appear at some point.</li>
<li>In OSR D&D, I'm really excited about <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/142014231/dwimmermount">Dwimmermount</a>. I recently purchased <a href="http://www.autarch.co/">Adventurer Conqueror King</a> and between that and <a href="http://www.lotfp.com/RPG/products/lotfp-weird-fantasy-role-playing">LOTFP</a>, I think there are two really workable early-D&D-inspired rules systems out there that could persuade me to run a D&D campaign again.</li>
<li>And, of course, the Heroquest <a href="http://moondesignpublications.com/blog/2012/02/12/pavis-previews/">Pavis</a> book is due <a href="http://moondesignpublications.com/blog/2012/03/07/pavis-gateway-to-adventure-is-off-to-the-printers/">any day now</a>. I will be getting a copy as soon as I can, and I shall be interested to see whether it is as compatible with my vision/plans for Pavis as I hope it will be.</li>
</ul><br />
<br />
I thought that the way I would get myself back into gaming mood might be to review some of the great products I've picked up over the last few months, like Legend's <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/us/rpgs/legend/legend/arcania-of-legend-blood-magic.html">Blood Magic</a> and the brilliant <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/age-of-treason-core-book.html">Age of Treason</a>. So I hope to produce one review at some point this week.<br />
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And who knows, I might produce some original content at some point too.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-59851623647932276612011-07-30T23:25:00.009-04:002011-08-03T21:06:03.789-04:00Murder at Ronegarth<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, times, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT0nsf7y6-OkuWqNeR8vk3YMdcxX-FfO8ORYQKk35b5pT4dPLkAG_QKkYCi-VaXFIp_1ioWcFqLZu29X3yEguO_uF0Rd_eqNGgMi6AVPOptzrViYMulkzn4Yc8_zMPr1CXgQRb8obOHaU/s1600/amon+amarth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT0nsf7y6-OkuWqNeR8vk3YMdcxX-FfO8ORYQKk35b5pT4dPLkAG_QKkYCi-VaXFIp_1ioWcFqLZu29X3yEguO_uF0Rd_eqNGgMi6AVPOptzrViYMulkzn4Yc8_zMPr1CXgQRb8obOHaU/s320/amon+amarth.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image from <a href="http://northernwarriors.blogspot.com/">this site</a>. Reminded me of Storm Bull...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The heroes returned to <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/Ronegarth/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Ronegarth</a> via <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/Horn%20Gate/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Horn Gate</a>, where they dropped off the women of Black Rock, to find the small settlement in a state of excitement. The famed trader <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/biturian" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Biturian Varosh</a> was soon to visit Raus Fort with his caravan, bringing with him exotic goods such as the poor settlers of Weis Domain had not seen for a very long time.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Soon the fort began to fill up. First to arrive were the <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/Thunder%20Bison/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Thunder Bison</a>, a warlike branch of the Bison People. To<a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/xaraya" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Xaraya’s</a> dismay, they were led by <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/moharo" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Moharo Blessed-by-Waha</a>, to whom Xaraya had been engaged at birth. Moharo expressed great delight at seeing Xaraya again, and complemented her repeatedly on her beauty, the fullness of her bosom and the length of her leg, much to the chagrin of one <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/karnyne" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Karnyne Widehips</a>, who, it transpired, was Moharo’s current fiancee. Moharo repeatedly made lascivious advances to Xaraya, suggesting that even though she could no longer be his wife, having no tribe, she could enjoy a privileged position as his most favored concubine. Xaraya rebuffed Moharo on every occasion. With the Bison was <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/kagrunner" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Kagrunner</a>, a Storm Khan and warrior of renown. He insulted every warrior in the Fort, including <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/grom" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Grom</a>, who bridled and looked forward t a chance to duel the bully.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Next to arrive was the <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/LPST/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Lunar Provincial Survey Team</a> led by <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/hazphar-pharates" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Hazphar Pharates</a>, who proceeded to flirt with Xaraya in front of Moharo. He said he had news for <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/duke-raus-of-rone" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Duke Raus of Rone</a>, who came out to meet Hazphar, whom he greeted like a long-lost nephew. Hazphar told the Duke that <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/stalethia" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Stalethia the Moondancer</a> was on her way to the fort. The Duke immediately smiled with delight – a smile that soon turned into a rictus of terror as he realized the implications.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Next to arrive was a mysterious stranger from the Far East, <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/hu-bao-yi" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Hu Bao Yi</a>, who was looking for <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/silver-whispers-descending" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Silver Whispers Descending</a> and his dragonewts. The Tailed Priest told our heroes that he was looking for “the Dragonfriend,” who he was sure was here right now, but not yet (once again, the party were mystified by something <span class="caps" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">SWD</span> said). Over the next couple of days, the party observed him practicing his weird oriental combat styles with the dragonewts. <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/skye" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Skye</a> was particularly interested in his scimitar-like sword, which the priest called a Katana. Xaraya took the opportunity to learn the rudiments of the Kralori language, and was eventually able to learn that Hu (whose name meant “timely rain”) had obtained his weapon from the School of Celestial Defense in <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/Lur%20Nop/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Lur Nop</a> in <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/Kralorela/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Kralorela</a>, but that such fine weapons were not given easily to foreigners.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Next to arrive were a dozen newtlings, led by Flysnapper, emissary of Quicktail, lord of <a class="create-wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/Five%20Eyes/new" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: red; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Five Eyes Temple</a> and the Reverend Cho’och, Priest of Zola Fel, his negotiator. It seemed that they had a grudge against Duke Raus and spent much of the next few days in heated discussions with the Duke.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Also arriving were a troop of baboons, led by Tsetse, their warrior champion, and a pair of Morokanth brothers dressed like traders, called Creechkol and Kra’hatcha, who kept trying to trade with the various parties at Ronegarth but always seemed to come off poorer. Soon afterwards <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/chaku-ironspear" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Chaku Ironspear</a> turned up, with the ten awakened herd men the characters had left with him a while back. The party decided that they should go to Rabbit Hat as freeholders. Another Agimori had also arrived, but this one had very strange clothing and a thick accent. He called himself <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/amur-an-zed" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Amur An Zed</a> and was looking for help of an as-yet-unspecified nature that he hoped to find at the market.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Another lone stranger was a man clad in black hoplite garb, most unlike the hoplites of Dara Happa that formed the backbone of the Lunar military. He called himself Harmo, or <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/harmodius-the-stepson" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Harmodius the Stepson</a>, a member of a mercenary band from far-off Refuge, who was looking for a desert trader who might help him find who killed his partner. He was hoping that Varosh was that trader.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The day before the market a delegation from Sun County arrived, led by the beautiful but stern <a class="wiki-content-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/secrets-of-pavis/characters/vega-goldbreath" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #4fa6ce; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Lady Vega Goldbreath</a>. Among her honor guard was a very strange sight – a baboon with shaven skin, painted yellow, who called himself Melo Yelo. Tsetse’s baboons teased him mercilessly, but his soldierly demeanor stopped him responding. This added another factor to the already combustible mix of Lunars, Bison warriors and Duke Raus’ men. Kagrunner in particular continually insulted the Lunars for worshiping chaos, the Yelmalions for being led by a woman, the Agimori for being “ground men,” Grom for following a cowardly god and everyone else for whatever crossed his mind at the time. Tensions were running extremely high and the Duke ordered Daine and Xaraya to be on guard for violence.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Eventually, Biturian and his caravan arrived, with his wife Norayeep of the Flower Bison, his shaman Idrith, and his warrior guards The Five, supposedly the last survivors of a tribe destroyed by the Lunars. Biturian seemed upset to see the Yelmalions, while Kagrunner seemed to have encountered The Five before and ridiculed them as losers. Biturian, however, set up camp professionally.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Finally, as the Duke’s guests were enjoying a pre-market feast, A lone horsewoman arrived. As she flung back her traveling cloak, everyone gasped. She was a short woman, clad in scarlet and silver, barefoot, with a pile of silver hair secured by jade pins. Heavily tattooed, she was nevertheless of surpassing, exotic beauty, perhaps second only to the healer Marcilla in Grom’s eyes. She swept in to the tower, but soon emerged on the arm of Duke Raus and took her place at his side for the feast. This was Stalethia, and she entranced every male present – and many of the females – when she danced for the crowd at the Duke’s request. Even Hazphar stopped flirting with Xaraya for the evening. Kagrunner got wildly drunk and insulted everyone present. The baboons disappeared completely. Finally, Silver Whispers Descending portentously announced that something terrible was about to happen and that he would Futurequest to find out what. With a Tailed Priest standing in the center of the feast area surrounded by Beaked Warriors looking klanths at anyone who came near, the feast broke up in subdued fashion.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Xaraya chose to stay up to keep an eye on things. Early in the morning, she heard a scream from over by Biturian’s tent. She roused Grom and Skye and they went to investigate. They found the body of one of The Five, slain by an axe. The other members of the Five soon appeared, demanding vengeance, although Norayeep soon calmed them down. Xaraya found tracks, and followed them to the West rampart of the fort, where they simply stopped. Grom started asking questions. It soon became apparent that Kagrunner was nowhere to be found. A naked Hazphar was found sneaking back to his tent. One of the Five said that he saw Stalethia creeping around the Bison yurts. A bizarre sequence of events saw the Morokanth brothers paying Xaraya for giving her the information that Kargunner was last seen arguing fiercely with Chaku, who refused to say why. The baboons were nowhere to be found. Varosh announced that some items had been stolen from his stash – mostly amber necklaces and iron spearheads.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Harmo the Stepson revealed that he had advanced scouting and offered to help look to Kagrunner and/or the baboons. Moharo was found sleeping naked through the commotion in his yurt, but Karnyne immediately accused him of sleeping with Xaraya, slapping her and kneeing Moharo where it hurt. Xaraya decided to go searching with Harmo and a couple of Raus’ men, while Grom continued his investigations. Skye threw up her hands and went back to bed.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Grom managed to get Hazphar to reveal that he had been enjoying relations with someone when the murder occurred, but discretion forbade him revealing who. He also discovered Kagrunner’s helmet in Lady Vega’s tent. She was at a loss to explain why. Hu Bao Yi’s katana was missing. The newtlings told Grom a variety of things:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">*One of the Duke’s mercenaries threatened to kill Kagrunner last night.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">*The short painted female mated with Kagrunner and killed him.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">*Kagrunner attacked one of the survey team.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">*The red moon people, fire worshippers and the Duke have reached a secret deal to hunt nomads and newtlings alike.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">*This market was a trap! We will never leave here alive!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Grom left the newtlings more bewildered than before, although the Zola Fel priest did tell him that one of the newtlings, Longtongue, had gone missing.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Xaraya and Harmo searched the ramparts, and found tracks of a large Cliff Toad above where the previous tracks had stopped. Thoughts of a lycanthropic toad started going through Xaraya’s mind. They followed the tracks to near the river, where they found the headless body of Kagrunner. His head had been removed in a single swipe. The katana was found nearby. Who could have decapitated a Storm Khan in one go? At this point, a lycanthropic toad seemed like the least of their worries.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Harmo noticed that the tracks continued to the river. As he was investigating, a huge tongue emerged from the river and struck him. Xaraya raised the alarm and Grom and his men started towards the river. Harmo and the mercenaries started into the river while Xaraya cast Project Sight. She discovered a newtling riding a toad under the water. As one of the guards collapsed with glazed eyes she realized the newtling must be a shaman. Harmo sliced the toad’s tongue off the next time it attacked, leaving it a race to disable the shaman before he and his fetch dragged everyone to the spirit plane. Xaraya was able to use magic to disable the newtling before Harmo and eventually Grom slew the toad.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">They dragged the newtling to the bank, where, after unsubtle “persuasion,” it told them what had happened. The newtling, Longtongue, had been sent by Quicktail of Five Eyes to cause war between Duke Raus and the Thunder Bison. While they had initially planned to kill Karnyne and frame Xaraya, the excesses of Kagrunner had provided a better option. Kagrunner had killed one of the Five in a drunken rage, then staggered off. Longtongue had summoned a Traskar, an awakened Cliff Toad, and had stalked him on the ramparts before having the Traskar entangle him in its tongue and swallow him. They came down to the river, where the Traskar vomited up the Storm Khan, whom Longtounge’s fetch then destroyed on the spirit plane while Longtongue beheaded the body with the katana, which he had obtained from the thieving baboons.</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">After further investigation, it transpired that Stalethia had seduced Moharo. Karnyne, on seeing this, had sought out an all-too-willing Hazphar for the night. Kagrunner had clumsily attempted to seduce Lady Vega, who threw him out (he forgot his helmet), making him so angry he killed the next person he met. Chaku and Kagrunner had been arguing over Kagrunner’s behavior, nothing more. the baboons took advantage of the Fiver’s death to raid Varosh’s stash before fleeing (they were never found).</span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">With embarrassment extremely high all round, the newtlings left with Duke Raus’ formal declaration of war in their possession. Biturian cast his Create Market spell and the market began. The party were able to acquire some useful items, particularly armor. In return for clearing up the mystery, the Issaries priest gave the party his copy of <a class="wiki-page-link" href="http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/secrets-of-pavis/wikis/federang" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: blue; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">The Journal of Federang Sandpiper</a>. The Bison riders left to head for Moharo and Karnyne’s wedding, with both extremely annoyed with each other, and Xaraya for that matter. As the Lunar survey team left, Hazphar warned Xaraya to keep an eye on Stalethia. Biturian was forced to admit that this was his most eventful market since his own wedding.</span></div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-29493936300731939772011-07-16T09:22:00.000-04:002011-07-16T09:22:18.474-04:00RuneQuest Comes HomeIt has just been announced that Pete and Loz, the team that brought us Mongoose Runequest II/Legend have acquired the license to produce <a href="http://www.thedesignmechanism.com/runequest.php">RuneQuest 6</a>, in collaboration with Moon Design. Here's the announcement:<br />
<br />
<br />
<blockquote>We are delighted to announce our agreement with Issaries Inc, allowing The Design Mechanism to produce a new edition of RuneQuest and supporting supplements. You can read the full Press Release by clicking on the link to the right.<br />
The way all this will work is as follows: </blockquote><blockquote><ul style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 1.5em; margin-right: 1.5em; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">The Design Mechanism will be producing the sixth published edition of RQ for an early 2012 release.</li>
</ul><ul style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 1.5em; margin-right: 1.5em; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">We will be publishing the core rules and all future supplements in partnership with Moon Design. This allows us to call upon their resources for a wide range of things that would be too costly for us to develop singly.</li>
</ul><ul style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 1.5em; margin-right: 1.5em; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Working with Moon we also have access to Glorantha, meaning that RuneQuest material for both Second and Third Age Glorantha will be not just possible, but a reality.</li>
</ul>Work on the 6th edition of the rules has begun but the hard work will be between September and December as we prepare for the release. More information on the actual release date will be given nearer the time. </blockquote><blockquote>We're anticipating RuneQuest fans will have a lot of questions, and so we've prepared an FAQ sheet that should address most queries - see the 'RQ FAQ' PDF document link on the right. However, we also have our discussion Forum here at thedesignmechanism.com and will be establishing a dedicated RuneQuest forum over at Moon Design. </blockquote><div style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;"></div><div style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;"></div><br />
<br />
This is fantastic news. Third Age Glorantha, it seems, will be supported once again. I expect the rules system to be a further significant improvement on MRQ2 (which was pretty close to perfect, but has some issues that only really come out after repeated play, like the charging rules), so color me excited about this one. Best news of all is that there will be an Open Licence.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-81901093698723858552011-06-01T20:24:00.000-04:002011-06-01T20:24:40.782-04:00Mongoose Matt's Statement on the Future of "Wayfarer"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtgRJtIHqEtWP9e5sqP2cFGvH-6jTGQn4FNRId965Fk-gH5qaQYdF0IlIhavZZ9aWxaSI4a2eqituyalCdBVZM1NHX8UTAWUgNmjFC3HfW59ZWNu_EtbEPYPlAUefB3leLrX0T02v7xNY/s1600/rq2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtgRJtIHqEtWP9e5sqP2cFGvH-6jTGQn4FNRId965Fk-gH5qaQYdF0IlIhavZZ9aWxaSI4a2eqituyalCdBVZM1NHX8UTAWUgNmjFC3HfW59ZWNu_EtbEPYPlAUefB3leLrX0T02v7xNY/s1600/rq2.jpg" /></a></div>Is <a href="http://blog.mongoosepublishing.co.uk/index.php?blog=2&title=rumour_control_1&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1">here</a>.<br />
<br />
I think the most important point is this:<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">We have been asked whether we will make Wayfarer OGL. This will be a decision made later but, at this time, we are leaning towards it. However, I don't think it will be the usual OGL/logo licence combo, as messing around with SRDs is very time-consuming for us. If we go ahead with this, it is more likely to be a case of everything in the core book range is ripe for picking, just stay away from the setting books - aside from using a 'Wayfarer Compatible' logo, there will be nothing to sign or register for. Just pick up the rules and use them.</span></blockquote>If that's the route they follow, I think this excellent system will survive. The approach they are leaning towards is refreshing too - there's been such confusion over the status of the MRQ1 SRDs following the end of the RuneQuest license that it will be good to have a, dare I say it, more libertarian approach.<br />
<br />
I am now confident that RuneQuest will survive as a living game system.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-14674183739090836762011-05-25T22:08:00.005-04:002011-05-27T12:31:38.120-04:00Heroic Abilities for Magic Specialists<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2q-E8UwQXezGXc6-5Pcx0nE2vOydh7L-NJCCY7s7MrS3YW0v5GgEOi_Fq4113Jwa1xHyRRwwrDDwa9VDHAJsHiOQlVm9VYalfazAumiWCHHimThVnyCZ6c5EKcoi56GaizEmttVfGXVg/s1600/merlin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2q-E8UwQXezGXc6-5Pcx0nE2vOydh7L-NJCCY7s7MrS3YW0v5GgEOi_Fq4113Jwa1xHyRRwwrDDwa9VDHAJsHiOQlVm9VYalfazAumiWCHHimThVnyCZ6c5EKcoi56GaizEmttVfGXVg/s200/merlin.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Normal service is resumed with some Heroic Abilities for TGFKA* MRQ2, aimed at spell users, courtesy of Chronos:<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Efficacious Caster</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Requirements: POW 16+, Spellcasting skill 90%+</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Hero Points: 12</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Magic flows efficiently through your practised fingers. Reduce the cost to cast spells by 1 magic point. This ability is passive; you do not need to expend a magic point to activate it. However, you cannot reduce the MP cost to cast a spell to below 1.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Relaxed Mind</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Requirements: POW 16+, Spellcasting skill 90%+</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Hero Points: 10</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">When not stressed, your mind easily attunes to the magic that surrounds you. Double the rate at which you regain magic points. However, if you encounter a stressful situation such as combat, magic points are regained normally during the hour in which the stress occurred. This ability is passive; you do not need to expend a magic point to activate it.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><b></b></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Spellslinger</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Requirements: INT 16+, Spellcasting skill 90%+</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Hero Points: 12</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Your facility with magic makes you able to cast spells quickly under pressure. Reduce the number of CAs to cast spells by 1. You cannot reduce the number of CAs to cast a spell to below 1.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">For example, Urgath casts Bladesharp 3 on his greatsword. Normally, this would take 2 CAs, but since he is a Spellslinger, it only takes 1 CA to cast. Next, Urgath attempts to cast Disruption 2 on his opponent. Even though he is a Spellslinger, it still takes the minimum 1 CA to cast.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Clear Minded (for Sorcerors)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Requirements: INT 16+, Spellcasting skill 90%+</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Hero Points: 8</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Double the critical range of the player's spellcasting ability for the purpose of determining whether the spell is cast at no MP cost.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Comments welcome!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">*The Game Formerly Known As</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">UPDATE: Some very valuable comments after the jump from Deleriad:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">In general:<br />
* the abilities are irrelevant for divine spell casters (spells don't cast MPs) and spirit magicians.<br />
* "Passive" heroic abilities were removed from RQ1 because they tended to devolve into d20 style feats. Putting them back in is one of those things that tends to lead to bloat, complication in play while players deal with lists of abilities and also makes them less "special" because they are always on.<br />
<br />
The abilities listed seem fine but not especially heroic. There is no cinematic moment of use about them. To my eyes they look gamist. As an example of a different route these are ideas partly inspired by the list. These are off the top of my head so are not properly thought through yet. They also try to reward mages who go beyond the normal magic skills.<br />
<br />
Blood Potency. POW 16, Resilience 90%, Hero Points: 10<br />
Duration: 1 spell<br />
When you invoke this ability the spell you are casting has its Magnitude increased by half-again (rounded up). Immediately after the spell is cast, you lose one level of Fatigue.<br />
<br />
Spell Slinger. POW 16, Spell casting skill 90%. Hero Points: 8<br />
Duration: 1 spell<br />
The spell's casting time is reduced by 1 Combat Action. This ability can be used multiple times on a single spell. If the casting time would be reduced to zero Combat Actions then the spell can be cast as a reaction to another character's action (like Countermagic) but still requires a single Combat Action.<br />
<br />
[Runic] Connection. POW 18. Runetouched [rune]. Lore (Rune) or Grimoire (linked to rune) 90%. Hero Points 12.<br />
Duration: instant<br />
The character must be runetouched and choose a substance linked to that rune. Once per day the character may touch that substance and spend 5 minutes of total concentration attuning to the substance. At the end of 5 minutes the character regains all their Magic Points, including the one spent to activate the ability.<br />
<br />
Mental Potency. INT 18. Spell casting skill 90%. Hero Points 12.<br />
Duration: 1 spell<br />
The critical chance with the spell is doubled. (This cannot be used multiple times on one spell.)<br />
<br />
The idea is to ramp up the drama and special nature of the abilities so that invoking them is memorable. If you want to add these to the blog please feel free to do so.</span></span>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-87013086676465917052011-05-24T22:16:00.001-04:002011-05-24T22:24:17.473-04:00Bargain...of Sorts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTRV8j6wR5-gMmKC_lUBqyerIGxeP_Vyfz_VGc6Abm858XsFuN-BDvcPVp6i9DLKJ4k7PMV74O9AmKnJUIh3OdeAhBSGbWWxrlX98NthuztEEgJ2j65eWEr6pl0yACZ_TP7MNC7rcMdB4/s1600/bundle.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTRV8j6wR5-gMmKC_lUBqyerIGxeP_Vyfz_VGc6Abm858XsFuN-BDvcPVp6i9DLKJ4k7PMV74O9AmKnJUIh3OdeAhBSGbWWxrlX98NthuztEEgJ2j65eWEr6pl0yACZ_TP7MNC7rcMdB4/s1600/bundle.gif" /></a></div>The first domino in the chain of Runequest 2 becoming Wayfarer (golly, how I hate that name!) has fallen. All MRQ2 products are now on <a href="http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/index.php?cPath=161_5353">deep discount at DrivethruRPG</a>, including product bundles.<br />
<br />
So, you can get all the Gloranthan products in PDF for under $30. Same with the core rule books.<br />
<br />
What a bargain! Or at least it would be if I hadn't spent, by my reckoning, about $150 plus shipping for a mixture of books and PDF for the core rules, and about $180 plus shipping for the Glorantha books (I got the limited edition Abiding Book) - ALL SINCE JANUARY 2010!!!<br />
<br />
This is the second time Mongoose has done this to me. At least with MRQ1 I'd only got about half the collection and completed it with the bargain books Mongoose sells by Ebay.<br />
<br />
Yet having read <a href="http://fabledlands.blogspot.com/2011/04/serpents-and-mongooses.html">this</a> from the great Dave Morris, I'm now concerned that buying the discounted books on Ebay might be doing the creators a disservice.<br />
<br />
If you want to pick up these <i>great</i> products now, you should do so at these prices - at least the creators will get something from that, I imagine. I'm more and more convinced that Wayfarer will be an orphan system at best. Noted RQ forum inhabitant PrinceYrkoon has some interesting thoughts on this <a href="http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?576620-The-end-of-Mongoose-RQ&p=13930368#post13930368">here</a>.<br />
<br />
PS <a href="http://akraticwizardry.blogspot.com/">Akratic Wizardry</a> is also covering this - and is about as optimistic as I am. Same with <a href="http://sorcererundermountain.d101games.co.uk/2011/05/24/so-no-more-mongoose-runequest/">Newt</a>.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-50071895430158607192011-05-23T21:14:00.000-04:002011-05-23T21:14:10.564-04:00MRQ2 RIP<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiDCZvkb3FnYqb-oA6T7IS3pvUI41qQ3wF3lZjoCuBuhNwbmeCjNzGXNVCa0U5t8diO13U6vZCpiYHN1YwlC6qMDB_6w_ip6_MfsC58QiB4bbQABfj4AkpIjHT4epBH3-uAesxXgj3Hlc/s1600/rq2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiDCZvkb3FnYqb-oA6T7IS3pvUI41qQ3wF3lZjoCuBuhNwbmeCjNzGXNVCa0U5t8diO13U6vZCpiYHN1YwlC6qMDB_6w_ip6_MfsC58QiB4bbQABfj4AkpIjHT4epBH3-uAesxXgj3Hlc/s1600/rq2.jpg" /></a></div>This morning, Mongoose Publishing and Issaries Inc <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/news/news_item.php?pkid_news=496">announced</a> the mutual termination of Mongoose's license to the Runequest and Gloranthan Second Age properties. The Game Formerly Known As Runequest 2 will become Wayfarer (and I have to say that is an awful choice). Gone are the handsome A4 leather-bound editions. In their place will be pocket-sized rulebooks at a much more affordable price. All the promised expansions like Monster Island appear to have been canceled apart from the potentially brilliant <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/detail.php?qsID=2065">Age of Treason</a> (which, from what I've seen, looks fantastic). Mongoose will send the next 6 months selling off existing stock, it appears. The reason for the split appears to be simply disappointing sales of the Gloranthan line, and a feeling that Glorantha's undeserved reputation as "weird" has been holding back sales of the generic books.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, the authors of the MRQ2 rules, Loz Whitaker and Pete Nash, have <a href="http://moondesignpublications.com/blog/2011/05/23/moon-design-welcomes-aboard-lawrence-whitaker/">both</a> <a href="http://moondesignpublications.com/blog/2011/05/23/welcome-pete-nash-to-the-moon-design-team/">been</a> hired by Issaries/ Moon Design to write new Gloranthan publications. Mongoose's loss is Moon Design's gain. The timing of the Moon Design announcements, we are told, is coincidental.<br />
<br />
What does this mean for MRQ2 fans? I fear it means an orphan system. The reaction of the RQ Gloranthaphiles has been one of dismay, while those who like the system but who have nothing invested in Glorantha have been sanguine, but regret the loss of Loz and Pete. I think there are three possible outcomes:<br />
<br />
1. Mongoose is serious about the system becoming a generic rules system. They release it under the OGL and allows outside publishers to use it (they are apparently <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=47370&start=15">considering</a> this option). In house, Age of Treason is a success and other writers of the caliber of Loz and Pete are commissioned to produce great material. The system reaches its potential.<br />
<br />
2. Mongoose releases the system as promised, but without the OGL. It withers on the vine and is canceled after a couple of years and some half-hearted new releases. The system is orphaned.<br />
<br />
3. The promised Wayfarer system never materializes. The system dies.<br />
<br />
I think at the moment it could go any of these ways, but I fear <a href="http://sorcererundermountain.d101games.co.uk/2011/05/24/so-no-more-mongoose-runequest/">Newt is right</a> when he suggests that people aren't going to shell out again. Mongoose has expended significant amounts of goodwill in the way they have handled the system. In my opinion, release of this excellent system under the OGL is the only way to regain that lost goodwill.<br />
<br />
But I could be wrong. Perhaps Glorantha and the Runequest name were truly albatrosses around the neck of the system, but given where Loz and Pete have ended up, it suggests that the game designers don't think so.<br />
<br />
What does this mean for the fanzine, which I've been doing feasibility work for over the past few weeks? I don't know. We've picked a name - Impale! - and assembled an editorial team, and even got some content being written, but if the system is to be orphaned I'm not sure whether the project is worth us investing time and money in. I'll be seeking assurances from Mongoose about this. Otherwise, there are other options.<br />
<br />
We d100 gamers live in interesting times...Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-75938348700399344262011-04-29T20:38:00.001-04:002011-04-30T19:15:17.377-04:00An MRQ Fanzine?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcPu21qJIaMGfTVlyDaPtOJ35EtgRckWsvfLetrxax3pGCL3ZUQWf86SmFWvUcoG8t-WKEVJTKW6oUkuUyGrhm7cCxeg4ok0h8OIcSzj7tU2TfY-g-zX0U0rEfvjqI69A3nZaagOHSfw/s1600/totrm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcPu21qJIaMGfTVlyDaPtOJ35EtgRckWsvfLetrxax3pGCL3ZUQWf86SmFWvUcoG8t-WKEVJTKW6oUkuUyGrhm7cCxeg4ok0h8OIcSzj7tU2TfY-g-zX0U0rEfvjqI69A3nZaagOHSfw/s1600/totrm.jpg" /></a></div>I'm taking the first step, and have official blessing for it, to develop a Mongoose Runequest 2 (and perhaps other d100 systems) fanzine. In many ways, I want to develop a Tales of the Reaching Moon for the new millennium! You can read the details and offer to contribute at the <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=47115&sid=66d93973bea99f8dd5fe5020260f7e8d">Mongoose Forum</a>, but here's the post in full:<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">I mentioned elsewhere, and have the go-ahead from Matt to develop, a Fanzine dedicated to MRQ2.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">At this early stage, my immediate concern is to put together an editorial team. So if you're interested in helping to develop this product, please PM me. Being part of the editorial team would require one article or piece of art as a contribution per issue, or contribution in kind like copyediting or layout. As the initial release schedule I have in mind is quarterly, this should not be too big a commitment.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">My model for the fanzine would be the excellent OSR fanzine</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><a class="postlink" href="http://www.fightonmagazine.com/" style="color: #990000; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Fight On!</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">, but I'd suggest a rather more organized set of regular content. This is an example of ideas for the regular content:</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Runerites: (in honor of the great White Dwarf column) New rules ideas or general concepts</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">The Coliseum: new monsters</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Foes: Fully developed NPCs with tactics and motivations</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Plunder: Magic items, unique or generic</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Elder Secrets: New spells and magical abilities</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Cults: Fully developed cults</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Blood and Souls: Specific items for the Elric setting</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">God Willing: Specific items for the Deus Vult setting</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Major Arcana: Specific items for the Wraith Recon setting</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Njallsaga: Specific items for the Vikings setting</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">I still haven't ascertained whether this could include Glorantha, but I'll work on that.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">In any event, if I can get enough interest in this, I will go ahead and work out the business side of things. I imagine the first issue at least will be free to download to gain interest, but there will be costs and those will need to be addressed. Having said that, I'm an MBA so I should be able to deal with that.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">The main thing however, is to assemble an editorial team. Please PM me or post here if you're interested.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">The other thing we'll need is a title. Very grateful for ideas for that!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Finally, I understand some of you may be skeptical. I don't think this thread needs that. I can be skeptical enough about the realities of this to kill it if necessary. So positive contributions only, please!</span>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-44140088830303429512011-04-23T20:10:00.004-04:002011-04-24T14:32:29.394-04:00Martial Arts Combat Maneuvers for Mongoose Runequest 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrRePbs_60oHJ_i36fAVEoZ1_Iqm2dci5RZbwXT3xo1Uc2yDXEl2-l9zMGRlysEcYvs3XC2n5k9rZ6iywkqinH4UAZcTbUMhLpE_sSyHKZlL-ciTA3vmQCkmho89i08x-z5IZRRtC2xOQ/s1600/buffy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrRePbs_60oHJ_i36fAVEoZ1_Iqm2dci5RZbwXT3xo1Uc2yDXEl2-l9zMGRlysEcYvs3XC2n5k9rZ6iywkqinH4UAZcTbUMhLpE_sSyHKZlL-ciTA3vmQCkmho89i08x-z5IZRRtC2xOQ/s320/buffy.JPG" width="216" /></a></div>One of the recognized shortcomings of MRQ2 is that there isn't really a good way to reflect unarmed Martial Arts. Here's one idea, to allow a special set of combat maneuvers to those who are trained in a Martial Arts combat style. I'd be grateful for any comments or critiques.<br />
<div><br />
</div><div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Break Neck</b> (Critical Only) – On a successful attack to the head only, the attacker may undertake an opposed test of Brawn skills with the defender. If successful, the attacker immediately inflicts a Major Wound on the defender’s head [Note – this is a devastating attack, and hence is difficult to inflict – the attacker must get a critical hit, hit the head and win a brawn v brawn opposed test]</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Choke</b> – in the event of an attacker establishing a grapple to the head or chest (see p.92), the attacker may choose this combat maneuver to attempt to asphyxiate the defender. The defender must make an opposed Resilience roll against the original attack roll or start to asphyxiate (see p. 54). The defender must continue to make resilience checks every round against the original attack roll or take damage, until they slip free or the attacker drops the grapple.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Jump Kick</b> – using this combat maneuver the attacker may roll 1d10+10 for hit location rather than 1d20. No grapple may be established. EDIT: In addition to damage inflicted, the attack also counts as a Leaping Attack (p.91) but may affect targets up to the attacker's SIZx2. The Opposed Test is the defender's Evade vs. the original attack roll.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Slam Tackle</b> – this combat maneuver is a variant of Bash useable only on an unarmed charge. The effects are as Bash except as follows: the defender must make a difficult Athletics skill test to avoid falling prone (hard if knocked into an object), and if the defender does fall, the attacker falls with them unless they succeed in an Acrobatics check. The attacker may establish a grapple, as usual.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Spin Kick</b> – using this combat maneuver, the attacker delivers a devastating kick attack. The attacker may roll 2d3 plus Damage Modifier for damage. No grapple may be established.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Throw</b> (attack and defense) – a combatant may use this Combat Maneuver to throw an opponent in a powerslam, judo throw or other such maneuver. The combatant defending against the maneuver must succeed in a test of Brawn against the original successful attack or parry or be thrown 1d3m, taking falling damage if appropriate. The thrown party will be prone unless they succeed in an Acrobatics test.</div></div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-23970813171068592642011-04-21T22:40:00.000-04:002011-04-21T22:40:33.813-04:00Found Items<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKwhQUbjzXAancsY0UXUTKRf2UqzF2y8kyG_AbZgGre_jusUXaY2rUI9dQ8x4n_cv-tQt7TinkJ0zamqRdtZRxE2AtX0bFzuPeaPpXo4e8vSgQ9OytSK74R70wnVXQB-GoHwkiDe2J9SU/s1600/the-famous-golden-rhino-mapungubwenationalpark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKwhQUbjzXAancsY0UXUTKRf2UqzF2y8kyG_AbZgGre_jusUXaY2rUI9dQ8x4n_cv-tQt7TinkJ0zamqRdtZRxE2AtX0bFzuPeaPpXo4e8vSgQ9OytSK74R70wnVXQB-GoHwkiDe2J9SU/s320/the-famous-golden-rhino-mapungubwenationalpark.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Golden Rhino of Mapungubwe - could easily be a Found Item!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Found Items were a curious form of random additional "treasure" found in early Runequest scenarios. In each room description, there was a percentage chance of a Found Item that could be revealed by a Spot Hidden roll in a full search of the room. Some of the items were useless, some powerful, but all intriguing.<br />
<br />
For instance, two of the Found Items from Snakepipe Hollow show how the flavor of the typical table:<br />
<br />
"4. An arm of a small statue. The arm is 30 cm long, magical and made of copper. The arm is very old and is heavily tarnished so that it is totally green. If the arm touches the bare skin of a person with a disease, it will cure him. The arm can only cure 1 disease per week and after curing 4 more diseases, it will have used up all its power and it will fall to pieces."<br />
<br />
"15. A shredded leather jerkin, covered with old blood."<br />
<br />
Each of the Found Items could be an adventure seed or plot item in its own right. Do the Chalanna Arroy Sisters revere the statue arm? What statue did it come from? If it can be identified, would restoring the arm to the original statue have extra magical effects? Who did the jerkin belong to? What happened to him? Is it a warning? And so on.<br />
<br />
So here is a table of Found Items for <a href="http://d101games.co.uk/books/openquest/">Openquest</a>, designated as Open Game Content under the Open Game License, reproduced below under the break.<br />
<br />
<ol><li>A rusted and pitted iron sword blade. It radiates faint magic. This was once a magic sword like the Holy Sword of Zunder, but it has been buried and ill-treated long enough that the magic has worn off. If it is cleaned and given a hilt, it will act as a brittle long sword, doing 1d8-2 damage and has a 25% chance of breaking on a successful parry. It will, however, store up to 4 magic points if filled.</li>
<li>A bag of beans. If cooked and eaten, they are exceptionally tasty. If planted, they will grow into Kuragu plants, sacred to healing cults. The leaves of the Kuragu plant will automatically stop bleeding when used with the Healing skill.</li>
<li>A pamphlet written in an obscure dialect of a local language that describes some interesting techniques for unarmed combat. Anyone studying it for a week uninterrupted can add +10% to their Unarmed Combat skill.</li>
<li>A well-folded, magnificent, silken woman's dress, of the latest style, worth at least 1000SP. It has a small cut in the back that could have been made with a knife, but there is no blood, nor any sign of whoever was wearing it.</li>
<li>Three tiny gold figurines - a rhino, a stag and a polar bear. They appear to be worth 100SP for the set, but a critical Trade roll will reveal them to be of exceptional interest to a collector who, if she can be found, will pay 10,000SP for them.</li>
<li>An ornate-looking bronze helmet with a horsehair plume. The helmet is strongly reinforced, giving +1 Armor Points to any armor suit.</li>
<li>Half a bronze breastplate, obviously from the same armor set as the helmet in 6, but cut in half by a remarkably clean blow.</li>
<li>A map of the surrounding area, in great detail, but about a hundred years out of date.</li>
<li>What looks like the fossilized remains of a large octopus, wrapped around an impossibly old harpoon.</li>
<li>A strange wooden bat, actually an implement used in an Elvish game not unlike cricket.</li>
<li>A human finger, clearly bitten off.</li>
<li>Two brass coins, each worth a quarter of a Copper Piece.</li>
<li>Seventy-five marks carved into the wall, as if counting the passage of time.</li>
<li>A skeletal hand protruding from the earthen floor. Digging deeply enough will reveal a full skeleton reaching out of the ground. It is unclear, except perhaps to a critical Natural Lore roll, whether the skeleton was buried like this or whether it was trying to dig its way out.</li>
<li>A terracotta pot, sealed with a set of a magical symbols. If opened, there is a rushing sound, but all it contains is a bunch of rocks.</li>
<li>A set of very heavy shackles and chains. All the shackles are locked. There is no key.</li>
<li>A wolfskin cape.</li>
<li>A velvet pouch in poor condition. Inside are what looks like pulverized gemstones.</li>
<li>A note written on human skin. It discusses a plot to assassinate someone who has the same name as one of the party.</li>
<li>Inside a broken statue head is a gold-plated tongue. If used to replace the tongue of someone who has lost theirs, it will allow them to speak again. The recipient can speak 1d3 additional languages but may no longer speak the words of sorcery spells.</li>
</ol><br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<h1>OPEN GAME LICENSE</h1><div class="chaptersubheading">Version 1.0a </div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc (‘Wizards’). All Rights Reserved.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">1. 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COPYRIGHT NOTICE <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Modern System Reference Document Copyright 2002, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Bill Slavicsek, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, Charles Ryan, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Richard Baker, Peter Adkison, Bruce R. Cordell, John Tynes, Andy Collins and JD Wiker.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">System Reference Document Copyright 2000–2003, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich baker, Andy Collins, David Noonan, Rich Redman, Bruce R. Cordell, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">RuneQuest System Reference Document Copyright 2006, Mongoose Publishing; Author Matthew Sprange, based on original material by Greg Stafford. </span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">RuneQuest Companion System Reference Document Copyright 2006, Mongoose Publishing; Author Greg Lynch et al., based on original material by Greg Stafford.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="Default" style="margin-bottom: 2.85pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 120%;">RuneQuest Monster System Reference Document Copyright 2006, Mongoose Publishing; Author Greg Lynch et al., based on original material by Greg Stafford.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.0pt;">OpenQuest Copyright 2009, D101 Games ;Author Newt <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Newport</st1:place></st1:city>.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Candara","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-13411776544668940102011-04-19T22:56:00.001-04:002011-04-20T12:29:41.066-04:00Classic Runequest Dungeon Format<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiToD-yAjZEGwQkvhi0C2x9i73t5CjV4pF6rgbMl10SPZhyyd7c1DhoiF3YdVJwVCpMermEomP3AU4D4ywZbQkaB5QidNEwGXYvtodEDqYqd7uncrTyqLOtiJiuQ3IlnbCJOJOHzCW45tU/s1600/snakepipehollow4007color.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiToD-yAjZEGwQkvhi0C2x9i73t5CjV4pF6rgbMl10SPZhyyd7c1DhoiF3YdVJwVCpMermEomP3AU4D4ywZbQkaB5QidNEwGXYvtodEDqYqd7uncrTyqLOtiJiuQ3IlnbCJOJOHzCW45tU/s1600/snakepipehollow4007color.jpg" /></a></div>When Runequest was at its height under The Chaosium, before the disastrous link-up with Avalon Hill, I always thought that the "dungeon" adventures had the best format of any of the modules out there, whether from TSR, Judges' Guild, Games Workshop or any of the others. Every room or encounter area had a set format, and it was so well-designed a GM could basically run the adventure straight out of the shrink-wrap, although in most cases this would have missed the really cool things about the work. Paul Jacquays adopted it for his Judges Guild Runequest adventures like Hellpits of Nightfang and Duck Tower. For the sake of those who haven't come across it before, here it is.<br />
<br />
Each room description is organized as follows:<br />
INITIAL DIE ROLLS: This determines the occupants of the room. Most Chaosium dungeons were living places, with the inhabitants moving between rooms, catching up on the latest news, going for a meal or sleeping. So the initial die rolls would determine where the inhabitants were. Most GMs that I knew did these in advance to work out what the inhabitants were doing. Earlier rolls took priority, so a monster/NPC could not be in two places. Occasionally, the roll would have some special happening in them (for instance a room that had spirits in it might have the spirit attack someone the instant they set foot in the room, but would otherwise be peaceable until attacked).<br />
FIRST GLANCE: This told the players what they knew about the room the first instant they set foot, like dimensions, obvious features and, in a cave for instance, what sort of rock the room was carved out of.<br />
CLOSER LOOKS: This would include all the significant elements of the room beyond a first glance, some of which, it was noted, could be misleading or unimportant - and boy, did people fall for those.<br />
EXITS: By listing the exits from the room, it was easy for a GM to keep the players informed without drawing a map for them or anything. Several of the Chaosium dungeons were mapping challenges. They would also note where any keys were located.<br />
HIDDEN SPOTS: Chaosium Runequest 2 had a specific skill for Spot Hidden items. This section also indicated how long it would take for one person to search the area, and also the chances of a Found Item being there (I'll come on to Found Items later).<br />
TRAPS: Being old school, traps were common in Chaosium dungeons. This section would describe the trap in full, including any mechanics and how to circumvent it.<br />
DENIZENS: Whatever monsters or NPCs live in the room, if they aren;t of the meandering type normally favored.<br />
TREASURE: What it says on the tin.<br />
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES: Anything that didn't fit in elsewhere went here.<br />
<br />
As said, I think this format worked really well. I'm currently designing a MRQ2 dungeon - which I don't do very often - and I'm using this format, remembering The Alexandrian's <a href="http://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/4263/roleplaying-games/random-gm-tips-the-art-of-description">excellent description tips too</a>. So I've added a section under closer looks simply called "Three Senses and Two Cool Things."Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-43888004496731178802011-04-18T23:11:00.000-04:002011-04-18T23:11:41.472-04:00Pavis Campaign: Muriah and the Mistress Part II<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOOFQlMpsI7AFTk8KuDQNiwZ4L769oFWo2I5MBGpb4h7kwDdJSfD9k9EVgPPTAYkp5kXpjc1bqWww9xjKHewir1zkBELsrkidnwSHhO0S4XTu_EIUDhYgzU5OVaFZI1G72hdnO0dNdXU/s1600/sun+dome.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOOFQlMpsI7AFTk8KuDQNiwZ4L769oFWo2I5MBGpb4h7kwDdJSfD9k9EVgPPTAYkp5kXpjc1bqWww9xjKHewir1zkBELsrkidnwSHhO0S4XTu_EIUDhYgzU5OVaFZI1G72hdnO0dNdXU/s1600/sun+dome.jpg" /></a></div>(GM note: I didn't take good notes during this and the next few adventures, so apologies that they aren't as detailed as the previous recaps)<br />
<br />
Our heroes realized that not all of the vision had been accounted for in their expulsion of the broos from the Vilnar headwater caverns. They discussed the visions with Leotychidas, Homophilus and Cleombrotus, who said that all clues pointed towards a village called Black Rock, on the western outskirts of Sun County. The party marched through the heat of Fire Season to the village, moving through dead fields, a deserted village and past up dried up streams. At Black Rock they were greeted as emissaries of the Count by the village headman Fethal, a former Sun Dome templar, and his cocky son Varloz. They pronounced a feast in honor of the visitors that night, and Fethal insisted that the militia would drill for the visitors the next morning.<br />
<br />
At the feast, the party noticed some strange things. Grom noticed that the youths of the village were unruly and uncouth, particularly for Sun Domers, although he was distracted by an attractive young widow. Xaraya noticed that there were few young men, as opposed to teens, and that Varloz spent much of the time leering at her. That night, Leo and the other Domers were asked to sleep in Fethal's hut, while the unbelievers were asked to sleep outside. Suspecting something was up, Xaraya, Skye and Grom split up watch duties. When Grom was on watch, he was approached by the young widow, bearing her child with her. She said her child was sick, and she needed to take her to the Earth Temple, but wanted a strong man with her to keep her safe. Grom agreed, because there was something threatening about the place. They proceeded to engage in increasingly affectionate conversation. After she left the child with the crone at the Earth Temple, she asked Grom to retire with her, but Grom, though tempted, refused.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
The next morning, Grom and Leo supervised a drill session. They declared the Black Rock militia in severe need of discipline and proceeded to start knocking it into shape. While they were doing that, Xaraya, Skye, Homophilus and Cleombrotus searched for information, with Varloz acting as their guide along with two militiamen. They found the crone in the Earth Temple had lost her wits, although she did try to show them writings in a language no-one understood. Climbing the rock slide to the waterfall above the town, they found a shack that housed the village shaman, a woman who seemed compltely and utterly terrified by something. Xaraya tried reasoning with her, but failed.<br />
<br />
Looking from the top of the cliff, they spied a pool and barn in the distance. Remembering the presence of a pool in the vision, the party insisted on going to investigate, despite Varloz complaining that it was just some fields and a barn. Xaraya called Grom to join them, while Homophilus went back to join Leotychidas in training the militia. They made their way along the cliff top and down to the barn area. Varloz looked more and more agitated. After Grom opened the barn, they suddenly came under magical and missile attack from hidden opponents in the grain fields. On top of that, Varloz and the militiamen turned on them and shut the barn behind Grom, locking him in. Varloz killed Cleombrotus with what was obviously a magical spear. Skye faced off against Varloz while Xaraya dealt with the other militiamen. Grom failed to reach the barn skylight, so took the simple expedient of ripping down planks from the barn wall and made his way back out.<br />
<br />
Eventually Skye killed Varloz, who had failed to control the magics of his spear (and took the spear for herself), while Xaraya and Grom finished off the other militiamen. They then turned their attention to their hidden assailants, by firing burning arrows into the fields. The assailants fled, and the party noticed they looked like children. The children were fast, and made off over the plains to the southeast under cover of the smoke. The party managed to find tracks and followed them.<br />
<br />
After a while, they lost sight of the children, and then lost the trail. Recovering it, they found that the children appeared to have been picked up by a band of Sable riders - Xaraya's tribal enemy. Continuing on, the party indeed encountered a band of Sable Riders - a Lunar provincial survey team, headed by a charismatic young officer named Hazphar Phraates, and an Iron Centurion named Dalmades. Xaraya and Hazphar, a sorcerer, proceeded to flirt, while Dalmades and Grom sized each other up and agreed to duel the next time Dalmades visited Ronegarth. Hazphar revealed that his command had indeed come across children in the plains, and out of charity had taken them off to the southeast, where they appeared to know some settlers. Hazphar did not know where they had gone precisely. Despite their mutual attraction, Xaraya was sure Hazphar was not being totally level with her.<br />
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Reaching what seemed like a dead end, the party decided to return to the barn, which they explored. They found a horrific sight, with mutilated corpses hanging in the barn and evil phrases carved into the roof. They also found a series of pouches that Xaraya recognized as fetishes - including a male testicle and a lock of hair that Xaraya realized had been taken from the shaman in a ritual of spiritual castration. They also realized that the pond had been artificially created by a small dam of rocks, and that this had caused the drying up of the fields and stream below. They removed the dam, and as the pool emptied, they discovered a skeleton of a young teen.<br />
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First, the party returned to the shaman. With her lock of hair returned, she seemed to gain in spiritual strength, and was able to speak. She revealed that the village was beset by a particularly evil and chaotic spirit, one that had carnal power, that had tortured her, taken her spirits and killed her fetch. The shaman was too weak to help, but begged the party to destroy the spirit.<br />
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The party girded their loins and set back for the village. There was no-one to be seen. The party first explored Fethal's hut, where they found more obscene carvings and a blood-stained dagger stuck in the roof. Skye secured the dagger in her bag and the party searched the other huts. They found cowering woman after cowering woman, most of them pregnant. One of the women was the widow Grom had met the previous night, with her baby, but she looked much less attractive than she had. Questioning revealed they were all pregnant by the same male, but it was not Fethal or any other man the party knew of. The women were all terrified of "The Mistress" above all.<br />
<br />
The decided to explore the Yelmalio temple next. As they filed over the bridge in the center of the village, Fethal and his men came out of the temple in battle formation, while Skye felt something moving in her bag. Skye looked, and found a tiny naked woman attempting to pull the dagger out of the bag. When Skye moved to pick up the woman, the tiny figure grew in size to twice the height of any of them. Grom swung his sword, hit the woman in the head, and, miraculously, she disappeared. (GM note: critical hits against unarmored, even if mystical opponents are extremely useful)<br />
<br />
Fethal's militia fired bows ineffectively. Xaraya responded using her new legendary ability of Deadeye - and skewered Fethal through the eye. Another healed him, but Xaraya promptly did it again! Others had been brought down by Skye's missile fire and Grom was closing, looking like an Avatar of Humakt the God of Death. The rest of the militia fled, but Xaraya found Fethal was still alive and conscious, though dying. Fethal confessed that he had brought the curse upon the village by killing young girl by the pond in his youth. She had returned as a vengeful spirit, and had mastered him, and the rest of the town, killing the men who resisted and fathering a gaggle of children from hell, Varloz being the first. He then expired.<br />
<br />
The party entered the temple, where they found a bound and gagged Homophilus, and a naked Leotychidas, crucified above the altar. Homophilus revealed that the Mistress had spent hours writhing with Leo, who was now exceptionally weak. They rescued their friends, and went to the Earth Temple. By careful interrogation of the crone, they were able to ascertain that she had a blessed shovel, which would put angry spirits to rest by proper burial. Using the shovel, they buried the skeleton they had found. The shaman said that she believed the spirit had departed.<br />
<br />
The party was left with a village with no men and a host of pregnant women, likely carrying chaotic children inside them. They resolved to take the women to Horn Gate, where Skye believed the healers could remove the chaos inside them safely. As they left, they burned the cursed village and marched back to Ronegarth full of regret and sorrow at what had befallen the people of Black Rock.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-62214654368806686462011-04-15T20:53:00.000-04:002011-04-15T20:53:45.515-04:00Nga!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi44AmzHFKRZbx4GmVCx8fSyUeED02nt9YH6EpAB2vSx5tsNzirdeHQ0rvNKAxfqVEjVO-rFHDuH_CLpVj7pvbCk-fMdwfDIoOlWP5z4ugQ6nqIUJq3fwxNApBFinxRSLWoh5u4YBRIUw0/s1600/tekumel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi44AmzHFKRZbx4GmVCx8fSyUeED02nt9YH6EpAB2vSx5tsNzirdeHQ0rvNKAxfqVEjVO-rFHDuH_CLpVj7pvbCk-fMdwfDIoOlWP5z4ugQ6nqIUJq3fwxNApBFinxRSLWoh5u4YBRIUw0/s320/tekumel.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>I've been delving back into Tekumel recently, searching for inspiration for my version of Glorantha's Kralorela. I find the "vanilla" canon version of Kralorela pretty boring - it's far more Gloranthan China than the Lunar Empire is Gloranthan Rome or the Sartarites are Glornanthan Vikings. I'd much rather my Kralorela echo the themes of Tekumel - decidedly oriental, but also decidedly weird. My Kralorela is limping to the end of a long period of stability, and so the decadence of Tsolyanu seems most appropriate as a model. A very distant model, I hasten to say - there's enough of canon Kralorela in there to make it recognizable - but I want to evoke the sense of alien wonder in Lur Nop that new Tekumel gamers get when they first set foot in Bey Su or Jakalla.<br />
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To this end, I'm running a couple of characters through the solo adventures released by TOME a while back. I've never played them before and I'm loving them. Character generation, especially for the priest, was a chore, and I can see why <a href="http://tekumel.com/gaming_rulesG.html">Gardasiyal</a> bombed as a rules system. However, once I got to crack open the actual adventure book, <a href="http://rdushay.home.mindspring.com/Museum/Fantasy/Tekumel/AoT%20Pt%20Two.html">Coming of Age in Tekumel</a>, I was hooked again. I'll write up my characters' adventures here soon.<br />
<br />
All this is a prelude to saying that there's a new Tekumel blog out there. By my guest and check out <a href="http://joyfulsitting.blogspot.com/">The Eye of Joyful Sitting Among Friends</a>. I'll be checking in there regularly. In the meantime, you can get Sandy Petersen's unofficial conversion of RQIII to Tekumel <a href="http://tekumel.com/gaming_unofficialrules.html">here</a>. I might jot down some notes for updating the rule set to MRQ2 here.Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-503370412910035092011-03-27T23:48:00.000-04:002011-03-27T23:48:31.827-04:00The Cult of Ehla (Outline)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_RLzhEZ5i3T3l1aWfo6ZsxIhkKeDC1pE5rQu1wPw_6uEztf_b1WxoPw1leFNluxZhyphenhyphenmEClMXMMOjaUaGsmVV2g5Ezuo_OVJGqXDoIOmiZEIX482X9GTrd4DQOwgIhEIV4ifL5tDWfno/s1600/ASC2410.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_RLzhEZ5i3T3l1aWfo6ZsxIhkKeDC1pE5rQu1wPw_6uEztf_b1WxoPw1leFNluxZhyphenhyphenmEClMXMMOjaUaGsmVV2g5Ezuo_OVJGqXDoIOmiZEIX482X9GTrd4DQOwgIhEIV4ifL5tDWfno/s320/ASC2410.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>Description: Ehla is the Mother Goddess of Ehlaar. She gave birth to all the native species and her wisest children, the Demon Princes, ruling benignly over all of creation. Then Prince Vazo led his brothers and sisters in rebellion against their mother, imprisoning her in the Dreaming. Ehla's thoughts of escape and vengeance warped the Dreaming, turning it into the Nightmare Realm. She toiled in pain for thousands of years until, towards the end of the Time of the Outsiders, a Native hero named Shensta derived a plan to free her. Aided by the faith of ten thousand natives, she entered the Nightmare Realm through the City of Flying Silkworms. She freed Ehla, who exploded out of the Nightmare Realm and destroyed the City of Flying Silkworms, leaving a massive crater in her wake. She moved faster then the eye could see to the stars, where she took her place as the brightest star in the sky. Shensta founded the Queendom of Gla, which is the center of her cult as well as a political force. Ehla sends her goodwill to her worshipers across the continent and has regained her place as the most prominent God in the world. [Unbeknownst to most, Ehla has two aspects, Ehla the Creator and Ehla the Destroyer.]<br />
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Runes: Sky, Harmony and Fertility (Ehla the Destroyer has Darkness, Chaos and Death)<br />
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Mythos and History: Ehla created the world from a thought, then walked upon it. In the Valley of Gla, she lay down and birthed her twin firstborn, Prince Kazed and Princess Sarriad. Then she birthed many more Princes, then Sorgith, the First Man, and Frozin, the First Woman, plus the Mother of Trolls and all the Native animals. She reared them, as we rear our children and animals today, and brought life and joy wherever she trod. But the Princes grew jealous. Lord Vazo persuaded all his siblings that they should rise up and imprison their mother, so they could divide her power between them. Kazed and Sarriad remained loyal to their mother, and were slain by Vazo. The rebellious Princes dragged their mother through the world, creating the Pit of Lecrass, and imprisoned her in the Nightmare Realm, binding her four arms and two legs with links of each element (air, earth, fire, water, darkness and aether), such that everything had a stake in keeping her confined.<br />
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Central Myth: Shensta frees Ehla (Mythic Resonance 120%) - Ehla lay in the Nightmare Realm, bound by every element and able only to think. She thought of Shensta, who was born in the Valley of Gla. Shensta raised herself, defeating all manner of creatures that sought to devour her. She grew to womanhood and took the memory of Ehla throughout the Outsider empire. She converted ten thousand men and women, who gave their magic to Shensta, enabling her to enter the Nightmare Realm. She journeyed through the Mountains of Falling and the Plain of Hate, defeating the Lady of Disdain and the Forgotten Child. Eventually, she came across Ehla, and she talked to each of her bonds. She persuaded Aether and Darkness to help, and they became part of Ehla. She scared off Earth and forced Water to flee, while she fought Air and Fire, and defeated them. Now Ehla was free, she took Shensta in her hand and revealed her truths to her, then forced her way out of the Nightmare Realm, destroying a large part of the land, and made her way to the sky. Shensta woke once again in the Valley of Gla. Behaviors/Insights: Never surrender, conquer impossible odds, resist fear, conversion is the beginning of greatness.<br />
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Lesser Myths: Ehla confronts her Children (Mythic Resonance 80%) - Ehla realized her firstborn children had died, and went to find out why. She found Vazo and the others clustered round the bodies of Kazed and Sarriad and asked what had happened. All were cowed, and wept, and begged for forgiveness, all save Vazo of the Hard Heart. Ehla slapped him, and he yelped, and slunk away. The children laughed at him, but all the time they grew in hatred of Ehla, desiring her power. Behavior/Insights: Defiance, impose authority, face down the Demon Princes, love is balanced by hate.<br />
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Ehlaar the Destroyer only: Ehla Rends the Soul of Prince Cathris (Mythic Resonance 60%) - The Queen of Gla conquered the City of Cathris, and forced Prince Cathris to manifest. She and her followers bound the Prince, and sent his soul to Ehla the Destroyer. She breathed her Chaos Breath on his soul, and it was made flesh. Ehla ripped him with her claws and bit him with her fangs, swallowing the gobbets of his flesh and spilling his blood back as Blood Rain on to the city of Cathris. What remained of his soul she bound to her service.<br />
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To be continued...Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-2813017793673281872011-03-27T16:47:00.000-04:002011-03-27T16:47:04.748-04:00Blank Cult Template for MRQ2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPzZ9M7M-aODxE4NFUU89v3o8po3uxEpJvd_WN4VdAZo1itY_kByWBxkzgwXhYwKPfkCfktGfNlgXyxypRGccFNX9b14-M5Fkl1p3UsBSCnsxQNg7iysEEjNiwU_4_zj0-5WWaZpu2R3U/s1600/cult.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPzZ9M7M-aODxE4NFUU89v3o8po3uxEpJvd_WN4VdAZo1itY_kByWBxkzgwXhYwKPfkCfktGfNlgXyxypRGccFNX9b14-M5Fkl1p3UsBSCnsxQNg7iysEEjNiwU_4_zj0-5WWaZpu2R3U/s320/cult.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>(There isn't really a blank cult template anywhere, so I put this one together to help in designing the Cults of Ehlaar, and Third Age Gloranthan cults.)<br />
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Description: Put here what everybody knows about the Cult. It’s what a successful Culture check would tell someone about the Cult.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Runes: Greater Gods or powers have three runes, lesser gods two and minor gods one.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Mythos and History: Put here the basic mythology of the cult</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Central Myth: The most important myth in the cult. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It should have a resonance of 80-100% or above for a Greater God, 60-90% for a lesser god and 40-70% for a minor god.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The resonance, remember, represents the difficulty of recreating the myth in a Heroquest. It may help to describe the behavior that will be forced on a worshipper as a result of the myth, as well as any rewards for mastering it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Minor Myth(s): Greater Gods will have 0-2 minor myths and lesser gods 0-1. Minor gods will tend not to have them.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Nature: Put here who the cult appeals to and its social role, as well as attitudes to it from inside and outside the local culture.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Organization: Describe how the cult organizes and operates, the size of it temples and so on.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Membership: Put here any special requirements for membership and/or promotion to higher ranks within the Cult, beyond the standard.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Common Magic: List the common magic spells the Cult teaches its worshippers. A good rule of thumb is that the Cult should be able to teach any worshipper 6 points of magic, so variable spells can count for more than 1 point. Describe any special spells the cult teaches.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Higher Magic: List the cult’s divine magic spells (including new or special spells), sorcerous Grimoire(s) or examples of special cult spirits.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Gifts and Compulsions: Describe any special duties the cult imposes on its worshippers and any gifts and/or secrets the cult bestows. Some cults ill bestow random gifts or demand random compulsions, so tables may be used here.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Cult Skills: List the five or more skills the cut teaches or otherwise demands its worshippers learn.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Allied Cults: List any cults with which the cult has special relations, including any spells or other boons given it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Enemy Cults: List any cults singled out for special enmity, together with any bonuses or penalties involved in interacting with the enemy cult.</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-55432009466282716522011-03-07T16:06:00.001-05:002011-03-07T16:07:05.449-05:00Rules Framework: The Making of the Storm Tribe Heroquest<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxVC_4f_3AfZjrR_YN3EZRH7mkjeqx5MI496W02Jz0_Jk2F2iPzIFBtSC8XdbAr56S_U150rapFGbEtkaSFjDRabEYV8CN2Z2H2krCe2aUWMdK6LslH177jHYH8baWSTkmWfRZBhiagU8/s1600/HeroQuestE002.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxVC_4f_3AfZjrR_YN3EZRH7mkjeqx5MI496W02Jz0_Jk2F2iPzIFBtSC8XdbAr56S_U150rapFGbEtkaSFjDRabEYV8CN2Z2H2krCe2aUWMdK6LslH177jHYH8baWSTkmWfRZBhiagU8/s320/HeroQuestE002.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image from King of Dragon Pass: <a href="http://a-sharp.com/kodp/">Buy it!</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">As indicated in the previous post, for each station the Orlanth substitute must make a choice of which of the three main Orlanthi tenets to follow: NCMYDA (No one can make you do anything), VIAAO (Violence is always an option) or TIAAW (There is always another way). To successfully complete the Heroquest, the player must succeed in demonstrating each of these tenets at least once.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I allowed other PCs to accompany the main quester as disembodied "spiritual advisers." They could augment the quester's skills with their critical range of the appropriate skill and cast magic where appropriate (sorcery at a -20% disadvantage owing to this being a divine quest.)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">FMTSE = Failure means try something else (ie choose another option). In the event of failing all three options, the quester falls out of the Heroquest and suffers the Backlash indicated. Backlash effects are permanent until erased by a successful Orlanthi heroquest.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I ran this myth under MRQ1 rules. I'd put the Mythic Resonance at 60% to reflect the 6 stages, but it could be upped by the addition of more stages for more powerful questers. Each additional stage should reflect having to convince another skeptical god. Whenever a roll needs to be opposed, used 60% as the resistance, therefore, or more if you have added more stages.</div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">This myth may be used by Orlanthi to achieve an objective that concerns community building, like ending kinstrife, protecting a defenseless village (by winning it a Wyter, for instance) or gaining/cementing a leadership position like Clan Chief or Tribal King. It may be undertaken by followers of Orlanth at no penalty, followers of other Storm Tribe gods at -20% penalty to skills and by non-Orlanthi who know the myth at -40%.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>The Heroquest</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal">Orlanth stands before Ernalda, who manifests as the most beautiful woman Orlanth has met recently (Orlanth’s choice). She tells him to make a tribe and become King so that he can challenge the Emperor.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u>Station 1: Doubting Wheel</u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The wheel is being pushed by strange figures dressed in wooden masks. It tells him he should not make a tribe and rolls towards him.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">NCMYDA: Orlanth stands firm and discovers a net in his pocket. Successful throw will catch the wheel and shrink it down to tiny size such that he can put in his pocket. FMTSE</div><div class="MsoNormal">VIAAO: Orlanth draws his sword and must shatter it by inflicting 10HP of damage, overcoming 6AP. Each combat round gives the Wheel a chance to inflict bludgeoning damage: 75% att, 1d10 damage. Orlanth is wearing light leather armor in the HQ (1 AP). Failure means falling out of the HQ.</div><div class="MsoNormal">TIAAW: Orlanth ignores the wheel and addresses those pushing it. Successful Inf/Orate roll persuades them to call back the wheel and push it elsewhere, to afflict another tribe (random roll 1=Plant Tribe, 2=Night Tribe, 3-6=Tribe-Not-Appearing-In-This-HQ; if afflicts tribe in HQ, they will be less effective). FMTSE</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Backlash: Afflicted by doubt. Must make persistence test to back up any major choice.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u>Station 2: Yinkin</u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Yinkin the cat god is fighting with the plant tribe over the hunting grounds. Orlanth explains his wish to bring together his friends and relations to make a tribe. Yinkin says he might come to the moot if Orlanth helps him against Rustling Vines.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">NCMYDA: Orlanth stands before RV and calls it a coward. He says that is seeks to invade Yinkin’s hunting grounds because it is afraid of the Emperor and the Fire Tribe. Successful Inf/Orate roll and RV slinks off to invade the lands of the Fire Tribe. FMTSE.</div><div class="MsoNormal">VIAAO: Orlanth fights RV, which turns into a standard Elf from the rule book or Vronkali from Monster Coliseum. He has as spells Heal 4, Speedart, Countermagic 2, Repair. They will start 30m apart and the elf will have its bow drawn. Yinkin will help (use a shadow cat's stats or a small panther if you don't have them). Defeat=fall out.</div><div class="MsoNormal">TIAAW: Orlanth bargains with RV over sharing the hunting grounds with Yinkin. RV will agree after successful Inf test, but will demand an exchange of items, with Orlanth giving one more item for each failed Inf test. In return, RV will give an Aldryami Lancet, enchanted to allow a human to use it. FMTSE</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Backlash: Fear of elves (as demoralize spell when dealing/fighting with them).</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Yinkin says he appreciates Orlanth’s efforts and may bring the Cat Clan to his moot, but he walks by himself and all places are alike to him, so he may not.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u>Station 3: The Knowing God</u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Orlanth finds the Knowing God, captured by the Stone Tribe (dwarves). He has been imprisoned in a cube of iron. The Stone Tribe look warily on.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">NCMYDA: Orlanth recites a poem to the cube about how square things become round. With successful Orate roll, the Iron Cube’s sides bend, breaking the bolts, and freeing the Knowing God. FMTSE.</div><div class="MsoNormal">VIAAO: Orlanth needs to bend the iron bars. Brawn at -20% or smash through 2 bars each with 4AP/8HP, with appropriate damage to weapon. FMTSE</div><div class="MsoNormal">TIAAW: Orlanth recites a never-before-heard poem to the cube, which disappears on a successful Orate roll. FMTSE</div><div class="MsoNormal">Failure to release the Knowing God sees him carted away by the dwarves, but Orlanth can continue on.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">If freed, the Knowing God agrees to make the Marks-on-Barks Clan part of the tribe, as long as it has fierce warriors.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u>Station 4: Vadrus</u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Orlanth comes upon his wild brother Vadrus, who has vowed to seek out Yinkin and the Cat Clan, and fight them.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">NCMYDA: Orlanth challenges Vadrus to an arm-wrestling contest. Vadrus has the same stats as the Orlanth quester. Brute force opposed test. See below.</div><div class="MsoNormal">VIAAO: Orlanth fights Vadrus to first blood. See below.</div><div class="MsoNormal">TIAAW: Orlanth promises Vadrus wine, women and song at the moot. Successful Influence roll works. FMTSE.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">If Vadrus bests Orlanth, he laughs at him and goes off to fight Yinkin, who will no longer show at the moot.</div><div class="MsoNormal">If Orlanth wins, Vadrus will say, “You have bested me, so I am obliged to do as you wish, Vadrus said, I will seek a foe other than Yinkin, and may even attend this confederation moot of yours so long as that accursed cat is not among the chieftains there.”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u>Station 5: The Moot</u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><br />
</u></div><div class="MsoNormal">Orlanth and Ernalda stand before the moot. There are many other chieftans there, such as Issaries, Chalana Arroy, Humakt, Vinga, Elmal and others, but they are all squabbling. It appears Orlanth/Orlanth gave them contradictory promises. Orlanth must gain their attention. All tests are at -10% for each failure to have Yinkin, LM or Vadrus attend.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">NCMYDA: Orlanth shouts loudly and recites a poem to them about the virtues of unity. Successful orate roll works. FMTSE.</div><div class="MsoNormal">VIAAO: Orlanth picks out a god to chastise. Whoever it is, Vadrus will attack Orlanth back. This will be a fight to unconsciousness. Failure means falling out of the quest.</div><div class="MsoNormal">TIAAW: Orlanth asks Ernalda for help, and she brings the Tribal Regalia. She brought the Chest of Torcs, with which he could gift the clan leaders. She brought the Hall of Understanding, where people would settle their differences by talking them out. She brought the Crown of Authority, which made people respect his sacral powers and pledge allegiance to him. This is an automatic success.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Backlash: Influence skill is halved.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">With success, most of the clans agree to make the tribe, but there are still some who are stubborn.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u>Station 6: The Attack</u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The warriors of the Night Tribe come and attack the quarreling clans. Orlanth directs the clans in their defense and everyone fights together to defeat their common enemy. Orlanth must fight a massive troll, or (in my case) a savage spirit monster. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Spirit Monster<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal">Characteristics</div><div class="MsoNormal">STR 3D6+6 (15)</div><div class="MsoNormal">CON 3D6 (11)</div><div class="MsoNormal">DEX 2D6 (7)</div><div class="MsoNormal">SIZ 4D6+6 (20)</div><div class="MsoNormal">INT 2 (2)</div><div class="MsoNormal">POW 3 (3)</div><div class="MsoNormal">CHA 2 (2)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><i>Hit Locations<o:p></o:p></i></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>D20 Hit Location AP/HP<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal">1–12 Body 2/12</div><div class="MsoNormal">13–14 Tentacle One 2/6</div><div class="MsoNormal">15–16 Tentacle Two 2/6</div><div class="MsoNormal">17–18 Tentacle Three 2/6</div><div class="MsoNormal">19–20 Tentacle Four 2/6</div><div class="MsoNormal">Weapons</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Type Weapon Skill Damage/AP<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal">Tentacle 60% 1D6+1D4</div><div class="MsoNormal">Special Rules</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Combat Actions: </i>2</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Strike Rank: </i>+12</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Move: </i>4m</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Traits: </i>Regeneration</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Skills: </i>Perception 20%, Survival 70%</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Armour: </i>Rubbery hide (2 AP on all locations, no Skill Penalty)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Regeneration<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal">The monster can completely re-grow severed tentacles and flesh, restoring lost hit points in all locations at a rate of 1 point per round. If killed, it ceases to regenerate.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Losing to the troll or monster means complete failure of the Heroquest. All concerned suffer the equivalent of a major wound to a random location and lose reputation or renown, depending on what form of reputation system you are using.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p>In my Heroquest, the defeated monster became a Wyter of a local town after successful bargaining.</o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p><br />
</o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">All taking part in the Heroquest may take an appropriate Heroic Ability if they have the requisite Hero Points and skills. Otherwise, they can raise any one skill by +5% for each success at a test. They will also gain reputation and succeed in whatever community-building objective they had for the myth.</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-34216046427311509932011-03-06T23:25:00.001-05:002011-03-06T23:34:09.768-05:00Pavis Campaign: A Brief Interlude on the Hero Plane<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbaSNHU7eVaZqnwdEhyphenhyphenDNnut_N6vQFaiNvXCGzNfWWcM9aDppFfYuU6V7WLSKVs7I_Zbjp3MBrRTDKrd_0DvmCfq7LxCfhOfCPHlgw2rNcX4YtcZWBDATdlPg1R_VtZM4XkdxBS-yvFbU/s1600/HeroQuestA001.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbaSNHU7eVaZqnwdEhyphenhyphenDNnut_N6vQFaiNvXCGzNfWWcM9aDppFfYuU6V7WLSKVs7I_Zbjp3MBrRTDKrd_0DvmCfq7LxCfhOfCPHlgw2rNcX4YtcZWBDATdlPg1R_VtZM4XkdxBS-yvFbU/s320/HeroQuestA001.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Illustration from the excellent King of Dragon Pass</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Our heroes and the Templars returned to Ronegarth, to deliver the news that the broo who had poisoned the Vilinar had been dealt with, but there was no sign of their leader, the witch Muriah. The Duke took this news with equanimity, but was distressed by the news of what had happened to Weis. He took his leave of the party, saying he had much to think about.<br />
<br />
Ronegarth had had some visitors in the party's absence. First was Jodred, a Sword of Humakt from Pavis. He interviewed Grom, whose deeds he had heard of, and consecrated him as an Acolyte. He reminded the new trainee priest that he had promised to bring the way of the sword to the trolls of the Gundahaak clan. Grom promised to get round to it.<br />
<br />
The other visitors were far stranger - dragonewts! The party saw a Tailed Priest, standing on one leg, singing, guarded by two watchful beaked dragonets with klanths drawn and ready, while half a dozen crested dragonewts walked round him in a circle, occasionally switching direction. Daine told them that the priest was called Silver Whispers Descending (“no, I don’t know what it means either”) and that they came looking for the "fierce females of Fort Rone." Silver Whispers [SWD] had been standing like that for a day without moving.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Eventually, SWD stopped his song in mid-note and came over to the PCs. He looked at the women and said one of them was the one he had been dreaming about, but he was not sure which, as all humans looked alike to him. He grabbed each woman by the shoulders and let his dragon tongue flick all over their faces, something neither particularly appreciated. He sad that Xaraya is not the one but Skye was - a dragontouched woman, he said. At this point, Skye suddenly realized she had no fear of dragons and that she could understand some of what the other dragonewts were saying. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The priest continued by saying that he had seen Skye's future and that she would be present at the Dragonrise. Unless she wasn’t. (Huh?) At this point a Crested Dragonewt tried to interrupt; SWD drew his klanth and beheaded him in one move. He asked, “Was that impatient? I must decide whether that was Right Action” and went back into his guarded trance.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Duke Raus then reappeared and said that he had been consulting with Daryli and Jodred, and they had come to the conclusion that Weis was such a sorry place because it lacked a Wyter. They had agreed that Grom should, if he were willing, perform a Heroquest, the Making of the Storm Tribe, to bring strength to the village and secure it a guardian spirit. As a Humakti, Grom was not ideal for the role of Orlanth, but with Xaraya and Skye supporting him in spirit, he might be able to finish the quest.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">That night, a grand feast was held, a combination of wake for Lady Varna and a celebration for the victory over the broos. Lady Jezra had rather too much to drink and expressed affection to Grom, but he had eyes only for the unattainable Marcilla. After the feast, Grom stepped forward and everyone began the incantations to propel Grom and his companions on to the Hero Plane.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Daryli told Grom that there were <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">three things to remember: No-one can make you do anything, violence is always an option and there is always another way.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">Grom would have to demonstrate understanding of each of these principles as he gathers the tribe. He also reminded Grom of the legend: </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">Orlanth overcame the doubting wheel, then helped Yinkin against the Plant Tribe, freed Lhankor Knowing from the Stone Tribe, defeated Vadrus in a test of strength, gathered the tribe and made them listen to him, then led the tribe in battle against the Night Tribe, after which they all acknowledged him as King. With a final wish of good luck, Daryli faded from sight and Grom found himself on the Hero Plane once more.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">Grom found himself standing before Ernalda, who looked uncannily like Marcilla, and the Earth Mother told Grom-as-Orlanth to form a tribe from his friends and relatives so that he could challenge the Emperor.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">First Grom faced the Doubting Wheel. </span>The wheel was being pushed by strange figures dressed in wooden masks. It told him he should not make a tribe and rolled towards him. Grom remembered that no one can make you do anything and found a net in his pocket that he used to ensnare the wheel, which shrunk down so far that Grom put it in his pocket and walked on.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Next, Grom found <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">Yinkin the cat god fighting with the plant tribe over the hunting grounds.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">Grom explained his wish to bring together his friends and relations to make a tribe.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">Yinkin said he might come to the moot if Orlanth helps him against Rustling Vines. Grom remembered that violence is always an option and drew his sword. The Vines manifested themselves as an Aldryami warrior with a wicked-looking bow. Grom charged the elf and dispatched him quickly. The elf left behind a sharp "lancet" as the Aldryami spears are known, but Skye said she didn't need it. </span>Yinkin said he appreciated Grom’s efforts and might bring the Cat Clan to his moot, but he walks by himself and all places are alike to him, so he might not.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal">Grom traveled on and found the Knowing God, captured by the Stone Tribe (dwarves). He had been imprisoned in a cube of iron. The Stone Tribe looked warily on. Grom considered trying to bend the bars, but Xaraya reminded him that there was always another way. Inspiration came to Grom to sing a song no-one had heard before. The bars of iron disappeared. The Knowing God agreed to make the Marks-on-Barks Clan part of the tribe, as long as it had fierce warriors.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Next Grom found Orlanth's wild brother Vadrus, beating the bushes, looking for Yinkin to fight. Grom asked Vadrus to attend the moot, but Vadrus told him to get out of his way. Grom recalled that no one can make you do anything and challenged Vadrus to tests of strength. Vadrus, it seemed, was of equal strength and skill to Grom, and although the challenge could have gone either way, Grom won. Vadrus agreed to come to the moot "as long as that blasted cat wasn't there."</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Soon, Grom and Ernalda stood before the moot. There were many other chieftans there, such as Issaries, Chalana Arroy, Humakt, Vinga (Skye manifested as the Loyal Daughter), Elmal and others, but they were all squabbling. It appeared that Grom/Orlanth had given them contradictory promises.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Grom was tempted to beat sense into the quarreling gods, because violence is always an option, but he decided that there was always another way, and asked Ernalda for help. She brought forth the Tribal Regalia and adorned Grom with it. The gods stopped fighting and many of them bowed before the majestic figure of Grom-Orlanth, although Vadrus and others snorted.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">At this point the Night Tribe attacked, accompanied by a great Hell Monster. Grom and Skye stood against it, with Xaraya adding magical support. They defeated the monster handily and it agreed to serve Grom however he wished.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal">This was the point where the Heroquest should have ended, but as Grom was born aloft by his tribe in celebration, a great dragon appeared. Somehow, the PCs knew that Silver Whispers Descending had entered the HeroQuest. The dragon looked at all 3 PCs, even the ones that weren’t really there, and they saw a fast montage of images:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A beautiful woman with leathery wings</div><div class="MsoNormal">A naked male vampire, with runes and grime all over its body</div><div class="MsoNormal">A wizard’s tower at night, with lightning behind it</div><div class="MsoNormal">Deep dark caverns, with a glistening forest of fungus</div><div class="MsoNormal">A black broo with a bear’s head, its fangs drooling</div><div class="MsoNormal">A small girl full of malice</div><div class="MsoNormal">A bubbling pile of chaos</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Lunar hero Vindrman Sol Veir, decapitating someone</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Lunar Coders, staring at them</div><div class="MsoNormal">The baby they found suddenly growing into a golden adult, a god</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Lunar governor of Pavis shouting at them</div><div class="MsoNormal">A gigantic cradle floating down a swollen river, bearing a gigantic baby</div><div class="MsoNormal">A severe winter, bringing snow and ice even to the plains of Prax</div><div class="MsoNormal">AWyrm’s Friend and a God Learner, staring at one another</div><div class="MsoNormal">A striking red-haired Orlanthi Queen (Grom recognized her as Kallyr Starbrow)</div><div class="MsoNormal">A ship rising up to the heavens</div><div class="MsoNormal">A vast Dragon’s head, rising up and breaking out of a hilltop, devouring a huge building</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Shocked by this vision, the heroes returned to the feast at Ronegarth. Daryli soon announced that a spirit was present, and wished to bargain with its conquerors. Xaraya undertook the negotiations, and the spirit agreed to protect the village of Weis, serving as its guardian. The spirit showed signs of terrible spiritual wounds in the past, and Xaraya felt she recognized it, but could not say how.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>GM note: the heroquest was taken bodily from King of Dragon Pass. I worked out other options for success and failure for each section, but curiously the PCs took the route that leads to success in the computer game in virtually every case! I'll post the Heroquest rules as I drafted them soon.</i></div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-56482940760725994882011-03-03T22:15:00.003-05:002011-03-04T21:03:26.986-05:00Pavis Campaign: Muriah and the Mistress Part I<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrlygH1p-rZKcIjXiOuqp0rEPGMMGLuktHzBDsXlA3VAfYAX8ZM2JF4Gw1rh3pn726Fm-QexgN2vFX2puYVMKamWSvT97UvfJShH3ozUdRWtUbiPMvuvarptfmsfvgwy-Oj5hmnyVKoII/s1600/broo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrlygH1p-rZKcIjXiOuqp0rEPGMMGLuktHzBDsXlA3VAfYAX8ZM2JF4Gw1rh3pn726Fm-QexgN2vFX2puYVMKamWSvT97UvfJShH3ozUdRWtUbiPMvuvarptfmsfvgwy-Oj5hmnyVKoII/s1600/broo.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Broo picture via <a href="http://sweed84.deviantart.com/art/RuneQuest-Broo-76028000">Deviant Art</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Returning Lady Jezra to Ronegarth, our heroes discovered that further tragedy had befallen the Duke in their absence. The Duchess Varna had died suddenly of her illness and Marcilla was back from Horn Gate to stop it from spreading further. As Skye, Grom and Xaraya filed in to the Duke's parlor to pay their respects, they found it draped in black. Also present were three Sun County Templars, including their old friend Leotychidas. It transpired that the High Priest of the Sun Dome Temple, Gaumata the Strange had been sent a vision, about two twisted children that threatened to defile the Zola Fel valley. Gaumata was convinced that one of these children was active in the Vilinar area of Weis Cut and had sent Leotychidas to warn Duke Raus. Too late.<br />
<br />
The Duke was not sure what to do about the Sun County delegation, but told the party that his scouts had found signs of Broos operating in the Vilinar headwaters and was certain they had something to do with it. Leo said that Gaumata was sure that one of the children was active in that area, the other in the remote village of Black Rock, and offered to help the party if they would also help him investigate the Black Rock area. The party agreed. Leo introduced his companions, Homophilius ("It doesn't mean what you think!"), a young scholarly type, and a grizzled old scout called Cleombrotus. The group paused only to consult with Daine and Marcilla. Daine was ill himself, and suggested a likely area for the investigations to concentrate on, while Marcilla gave the party medicinal herbs and treated linen gloves with which to handle Broo remains.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
The party first paused at Weis, where one-armed Tarnak had ridden without stopping off at Ronegarth. The village was rank with the smell of rotting corpses and all the doors were shut except one belonging to an old woman. She told Xaraya that Tarnak had shut himself up in his hut and had not been seen out since his return. At her most conciliatory, Xaraya persuaded Tarnak to open up and let her in. Tarnak told her that he was now merely half a man, and had no chance of winning Jezra. Xaraya proved so soothing in her response that Tarnak looked at her with a look in his eyes that suggested he might no longer regard Jezra as the object of his affections. He said that Xaraya was his only hope now and he looked forward to her return.<br />
<br />
In scouting out the headwaters, the party's scouts quickly found broo tracks leading to the cave from which the river flowed. The party discovered that the Vilinar had two sources, one warm and one cold, which caused steam to rise where they met, obscuring vision. They entered the caves stealthily to find two broos on guard, one of which proved to be somewhat of a handful, especially because he seemed able to reflect magic. Eventually, sheer numbers brought them down, and Xaraya gleefully pocketed the crystal the tough one carried.<br />
<br />
The party did not feel like wading up either stream, so they found a tunnel leading off the entrance cave and followed that. A crude pit trap was avoided, and the party came to a bridge over the warm branchthat was covered in green slime. A broo stood atop the bridge, but fled as the party approached - the broos were now warned! The party took care to cross the bridge so that no-one slipped into the stream below and then inched forward carefully, anticipating ambush.<br />
<br />
Our heroes soon came to a larger cavern, where the light of a fire flickered at one end, and which was filled with natural stone pillars of varying sizes. Leo and the Templars took one wall, inching round with spears and shields ready, while Grom with sword and board took another wall. Skye and Xaraya stood ready with their bows to lend support. Three broos sprang from behind a pillar to attack the Templars. As Grom tried to outflank them, he found himself in combat with a strange broo who moved extremely quickly and had a confusing appearance such that even weaponmaster Grom found it difficult to hit.<br />
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Trusting that Grom could handle himself, Skye and Xaraya aided the Templars. Homophilius and Cleombrotus suffered for lack of armor, but the broos were dealt with eventually. The fast broo disengaged and ran when its comrades fell. A search of the cavern found a long timber plank and a trapped chest. Skye disarmed the trap and the chest was found to contain some vials of an unidentified substance and a jeweled dagger. Leo advised his colleagues to stay behind to tend to their wounds, and the party inched down another tunnel, again expecting an ambush.<br />
<br />
The party came to a high cliff over the cold branch of the Vilinar. There were three ropes hanging from the cave roof, one secured on the party's side, one secured on the other side and one being held by the strange broo, who was regarding them cautiously. It was flanked by two broos with bows. Skye and Xaraya raised their bows and began firing. The two missile users were easily dealt with, despite one being extremely strong and the other having one massive leg. Each of them went down with a leg wound, as it happened, before being finished off. The swift broo's confusing nature made it difficult for them to hit, but the two women were no slouches with their bows. The broo returned fire with magic, causing Leo to dissolve into a fit of sneezing. The others shrugged off further magical attack and the broo, now with a couple of arrows sticking out of its hide, took the fateful decision to swing back across, trusting to its chaotic abilities. Grom swung his shield at the beast as it sailed through the air and caused it to miss its footing. It slipped, but clung to the cliff such that it could have regained its footing, had not Grom managed an athletic move that knocked the broo down off its tenuous hold, and the fiercest adversary the party had yet faced fell into the stream below.<br />
<br />
The party returned to the previous cavern and got hold of the timber plank, using that to cross the stream, rather than relying on the slippery ropes. The sandy tunnel widened into another larger cavern, which proved to be empty. The party inched further forward until they came to a chamber with a rock floor, rather than sand. It was occupied by a fearsome-looking broo clad in black plate armor, covered with chaos and death runes, bearing a massive sword that glowed with the Bladesharp enchantment and a black shield. The fight was a long one, with Grom at one point landing a mighty critical hit to the chest that would have killed any other opponent, but which the broo shrugged off as a minor wound. Skye and Leo contributed with their spears, and Xaraya managed a few good hits with her bow, but the broo started dealing mighty blows itself. Eventually, another blow inflicted a wound to the chest, and the broo was forced to try to use magic to heal itself. The party concentrated their attention to the chest and eventually brought the fearsome beast down.<br />
<br />
The creature wore a valuable medallion studded with rubies around its neck and a key, and further investigation found more items of interest: the chest that matched the key, made of fine camphorwood, a set of phials that reeked of disease, presumably to be added to the river water, a set of manuscripts written in Auld Wyrmish, and a portentous letter. A chimney led out of the chamber upwards to the cliffs above, easily climbable to someone with some skill, it seemed.<br />
<br />
Battered but triumphant, the party picked up their wounded and limped out of the caves. On the banks of the river as it left the cave, Xaraya found freshly-made broo tracks. Their fast foe had survived the fall, it seemed. They led to a cliff, which the broo had apparently climbed. Given its speed, the broo was presumably long gone by now.<br />
<br />
The party staggered into Weis, where the wise woman informed them that Muriah was an unfortunate girl whose family, twenty years ago, was dying of disease and who had been denied aid by the villagers for fear that she too carried the plague. Her parents died, and Muriah had returned to the village to tell everyone that a day would come when all the doors of the village would be shut by Death, and then disappeared. Xaraya avoided Tarnak's attentions.<br />
<br />
The letter read:<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">To Muriah the Blessed,</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It appears you have a sister in Sun County. Someone else wronged as you were. I fear she may not be easy to approach, but I believe she will recognize a kindred spirit.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Despite your best efforts at Rabbit Hat, things have gone awry there. Pumpkinhead was slain and his altar purified. We believe his slaughterers also did away with Polybius, for we never heard the expected announcement from him, and work is progressing to rebuild the settlement. Nevertheless, GG’s plans continue unabated. The Waiting Mouth and the Changer dwell unnoticed yet.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Things progress well here, however. Our exploration of the caverns is proving most effective. We owe the discovery of your sister to the Talon’s kin.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Finally, the Great Vampire has made itself known to us, as GG said it would. It shall ensure we conquer the valley and befoul the River.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I look forward to your return. In your absence, I shall deal with Qad as you suggest.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">D.</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-26686027094992002832011-02-13T11:12:00.001-05:002011-02-13T13:04:57.352-05:00Shallek-za-Kuza’an<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTWVUpzOFtQNexrrp2BFL4PGPvJpoJ_RtkHP3SEI40uk7_2Mkpi5UugE6PL9trymlzi7VquFyvkYsknXEfJcReuE9Y1tH3aeCNNNfC_IDTVGJ_6kzO0lFkBb6PFvMt4iPmG6ExqsQLJLk/s1600/Wand2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTWVUpzOFtQNexrrp2BFL4PGPvJpoJ_RtkHP3SEI40uk7_2Mkpi5UugE6PL9trymlzi7VquFyvkYsknXEfJcReuE9Y1tH3aeCNNNfC_IDTVGJ_6kzO0lFkBb6PFvMt4iPmG6ExqsQLJLk/s320/Wand2.jpg" width="276" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">When the Outsiders came to Ehlaar, they brought with them seedlings of Kuza’an-ne-Qarzenn, the “tree-that-is-the-sinews-of-the-Infinite.” These seedlings grew into trees, heavily guarded in the courtyards that form the holy places of the church of the Infinite. From branches of the trees are carved the Shallek-za-Kuza’an, which the Natives style “wands.” Without a wand, a follower of the Infinite can use the Infinite’s power only in its raw form, as an immediate burst of power. In game terms, a sorcerer cannot use the Manipulation skill without a wand in his or her hand. This practically restricts the magician to the use of one-handed weapons if they wish to use magic in combat.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Wands range in size from the standard size of about a foot to great staffs wielded by the Zilaths and Pa-Zilaths of the cult/empire. The Qarmezinn-Pa-Zilath, the “Grand Theosophist” of the Outsider Empire, bore one carved from the wood of the Kuza’an-ne-Qarzenn itself. In game terms, larger wands give bonuses to the Manipulation skill.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A follower of the Infinite is traditionally given a wand at initiation. However, the number of wands is decreasing since the fall of the Outsider Empire. Sometimes a new initiate may be required to find a wand as a condition of initiation. The Queendom of Gla and various other jurisdictions despise Outsiders so much that they ritually burn wands when they find them. On the other hand, the Caravan Lords may have started stockpiling them, knowing that they can extract Outsider gold for them.</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-38442423586503704752011-01-30T21:08:00.001-05:002011-01-30T21:10:11.987-05:00Pavis Campaign: Jezra's Rescue<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfh_LgbDEgpdJUG0dym8ZjvmM7dt5UkRyyNCx5pL6KLqZK7MxMV3dpGGQzCPQq0HzPjaUAIrpFzmTmBQ3vKb2rYXk6VMKTudNOs3TKxufnBPV5Vi5HuDb_fhi-cnxCkeT75NJ1fxqpkM/s1600/damsel_in_distress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfh_LgbDEgpdJUG0dym8ZjvmM7dt5UkRyyNCx5pL6KLqZK7MxMV3dpGGQzCPQq0HzPjaUAIrpFzmTmBQ3vKb2rYXk6VMKTudNOs3TKxufnBPV5Vi5HuDb_fhi-cnxCkeT75NJ1fxqpkM/s320/damsel_in_distress.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">After the Heroquest to restore Darnbar Chaosknower to life, Marcilla the White Healer suggested to Xaraya, Grom and Skye that they come with her and Darnbar to Horn Gate to see if the Sisterhood could attempt to cure Darnbar of the Unlife Sickness. The Duke’s wife, Varna, was unwell, and Lady Jezra asked to accompany the group to see if she could purchase some herbs that she believed would cure her mother.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The journey to Horn Gate was interrupted by another encounter with the Morokanth, in this case Visishwaw Windclaw, a follower of Storm Bull and his gang. After an initial period of feeling each other out, Grom earned the Morokanth’s respect and Visishwaw offered Grom some Kvass, which Grom had to turn down owing to his geas. Visishwaw found it odd that a god would require a worshipper not to drink, and took this as a sign of Humakt’s weakness compared with the Bull. They spent the night camped on the plains, sharing the watch duties with the Morokanth.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The party found Horn Gate still controlled by the Sables. Xaraya bristled at this, but Marcilla asked her not to cause trouble. They delivered Darnbar to the Hospital and Jezra purchased her herbs. Not wishing to stay where the Sables ruled, the party set off back for Raus Fort via Weis Cut, aiming to overnight at Weis Village.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><a name='more'></a>Arriving at Weis, they discovered the old Headman had died and been replaced by the arrogant young “Mayor,” Tarkan, who proceeded to attempt to flirt with Lady Jezra, ignoring the PCs. Jezra rebuffed him bluntly and demanded a hut to herself. Tarkan offered the hut of the old headman and set his “best men” to guard it.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The PCs were awakened by a might ruckus in the middle of the night. They heard Lady Jezra scream, but by the time they had gathered their weapons they found Jezra’s guards dead and the lady screaming for help from a distance on the back of a mighty riding beast of some sort, with others flanking her.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Xaraya loosed an arrow and hit one of the beasts in the leg. It slowed and the party was able to catch up. Its rider was an ugly sort, looking like a three way cross between a man, a troll and a pig. He put up a fight, but was slain by Xaraya’s arrow. The beast, a giant hog of some sort with enormous tusks, kept attempting to charge, but was brought down by Grom.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">By this time, the rest of the beasts were out of sight and Xaraya lost the trail when they crossed the Weis river. The party knew they had no choice but to report the loss of his daughter to the Duke. Tarkan came with them. Daine informed the party that the beasts were Tuskers and their riders Aramites, or Tusk Riders, holed up in an ancient stone tower to the southwest, and they had already received a ransom note from them. The Duke was thunderous in his anger and ordered the players to kill these Tusk Riders who were defying his authority. Daine told the PCs after the Duke had left that they had better bring back Lady Jezra as well, although the Duke would not admit that this was more important to him. He suggested the party take Tarkan along, as his skills in hiding, sneaking and climbing would probably come in handy.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">On the way to the tower, the party surprised a patrolling Tusk Rider and his beast. The rider was young and inexperienced and put up much less of a fight than his mount. The party made it to the tower without further incident, only to find it impregnable. An attempt at a frontal approach was answered by arrows fired from window slits. Tarkan suggested going round the back and climbing the tower, which proved to be much more weathered and craggy than it looked. It was very old indeed.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Tarkan and Xaraya made it to the top. While they were pulling up Skye and Grom, they discovered that what they thought were two statues were actually two gargoyles, one of which ripped off Tarkan’s right arm. A hard fight ensued, which the party won without further loss. Xaraya treated Tarkan’s wound so he would not die, but the man simply sat and cried, holding his severed arm. A quick search of the roof revealed a secret niche, where they found a valuable-looking necklace.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The party found the way down and made their way into the filthy tower. They quickly found, surprised and dealt with a pair of Tusk Riders who had fired arrows at them earlier, the searched what appeared to be the main floor of the tower, discovering a disgusting altar as well as the quarters for half a dozen riders. They could not find the remaining two riders, nor Lady Jezra.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The party decided to go down another floor. The worked out that the next floor was the ground floor and, judging by the smell and the noise, the stable. Attempting to proceed stealthily, Skye triggered a trap and fell about thirty feet, fully armored, into a deep pool of water. Heroically, Grom immediately jumped in to rescue the Vingan. It appeared he had forgotten two things – first that Skye, blessed by the nymph Kinope, was an excellent swimmer and second, that he was not and also more heavily armored than Skye! Skye ended up saving her would-be rescuer, dragging him eventually to the shore. Xaraya followed and was able to make it to the shore as well.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">As the PCs stood there dripping in the wet and darkness, they heard some shuffling and creaking from around them. A skeleton lunged at them out of the darkness. Grom was delighted at a chance to destroy undead and drew his sword. The skeleton proved to be no match, going down at one blow from Grom’s sword. Grom followed the noise and dispatched six skeletons in all. Eventually the PCs found a source of light and to reveal a natural cavern surrounding the pool, with six graves from which the skeletons had emerged. A search uncovered some burial goods, including some silver and copper and an iron spear head.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It also transpired that there were steps leading up from the cavern. Despite his prowess against the skeletons, Grom was still suffering from nearly drowning, so Xaraya took point. The steps led to a sliding trap door, which Xaraya inched open. Peeking upwards, she found herself looking up at the legs of a Tusk Rider who appeared to be wearing only a bloody apron. He was taking something from a stone structure above the trapdoor. A few yards away, Xaraya could see Lady Jezra chained against the wall, her clothing in some disarray, but screaming blue murder at her captors, using words Xaraya had never heard before. An armored Tusk Rider stood grimacing at her.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Xaraya reached for her only stabbing weapon, an arrow, and jabbed it upwards between the legs of the Tusk Rider in the apron, dealing him a fearsome wound to the abdomen. He staggered backwards, allowing Xaraya to move the trap door further aside and climb out. The other Rider drew a wicked looking sword and cast a spell. Grom was able to make it out of the stairs before both riders attacked. Xaraya was able to take the torturer down with her battleaxe but Grom had a stiffer time with the Riders’ leader, who appeared magically protected. Eventually Skye was able to make it up the stairs too and joined the fight. With some appropriate use of magic and a few lucky blows, not to mention vocal encouragement from Lady Jezra, the Rider fell. The key to Jezra’s chains were quickly located and the Duke’s daughter released. After a few choice words about how long it had taken for the PCs to rescue her and a swift kick or two at her late tormenters, Lady Jezra demanded to be returned to Ronegarth NOW.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The party made their way up from the torture chamber to the stable, which was filled with four cantankerous Tuskers. The party decided simply to open the door and shoo the Tuskers out, there being no farmland for them to ruin in the vicinity. They then retrieved Tarkan from the roof, still sobbing, especially about what Jezra would think of him now. Jezra indeed looked disgusted at Tarkan’s new state, and remained aloof from everyone on the way back to Ronegarth.</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-32590385860890673292011-01-24T22:14:00.001-05:002011-01-24T22:15:15.833-05:00History of Ehlaar<div class="MsoNormal">Items in [Parentheses] are part of the Secret History – events that happened but are not general knowledge. Some are known only to a very few researchers, historians and priests. Highlight to read, unless you are possibly going to play in this world. (The observant may notice some elements taken from the excellent scenario <a href="http://www.lotfp.com/RPG/products/hammers-of-the-god">Hammers of the God</a> by James Raggi. Don't read the Secret History if you intend to play this. Here's the <a href="http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-hammers-of-god.html">Grognardia review</a>.)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Comments are welcome and may well be incorporated.</div><h1>Cosmology</h1><div class="MsoNormal">There are four worlds with four stars and four moons that revolve in complicated fashion around the Sun, or perhaps the Sun revolves around them (no-one is quite sure and astrologers and other wise men argue about this incessantly). In one world, Kanosza, gods ruled – the gods of the celestial bodies and the Afterworld. In another, Jaruusz, a seemingly omnipotent principle, The Infinite, governed the mundane world and the Ether. On Ghildra, spirits roamed the world and the Guinee, the spirit’s home. On Ehlaar, the goodess Ehla and her children were the creators, ruling both Ehlaar and the Dreaming, until her children rose up and imprisoned Ehla in the Dreaming, which became the Nightmare World. [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The Afterworld, the Ether, the Guinee and the Nightmare World all share characteristics, and otherworldly beings can seemingly operate through all these planes, even if they do not interact with each other</span>.]</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Kanosza is a world of continents, Jaruusz a water world with a giant archipelago, Ehlaar is a Pangaea, with just one continent, while Ghildra is a desert world with no seas, few lakes and many oases.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">On each world existed a major species of humans and another intelligent species: on Kanosza, dwarfs, on Jaruusz elves, on Ghildra dragonmen and on Ehlaar trolls.</div><h1><a name='more'></a>Prehistory of Ehlaar (The Time of Doomtower)</h1><div class="MsoNormal">After the Rebellion of the Children and the imprisonment of Ehla, the intelligent species of Ehlaar learned how to summon and negotiate with her grandchildren and, in some case, her children directly, for magical boons. Her grandchildren became known as Demons and her children as Demon Princes/Princesses.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">One Prince, Lord Vazo, soon became pre-eminent. He left the Nightmare Realm and raised a mighty fortress called Doomtower.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">At some point, the people of Kanosza discovered the secret of travelling between the worlds. Many arrived in Ehlaar and brought with them the worship of their gods. Dwarves also arrived with them, together with their earth god. The humans of Kanosza became known as Colonists as opposed to the Natives.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Kingdoms began to form, each with their own patron Demon Prince. Some colonists began their own kingdoms, although there were never enough to be a major force. The dwarves began to delve into the mountains.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Doomtower sent out armies to demand tribute from these kingdoms. All complied but the city of Zyman. Prince Azra, patron of the city, stood up to Lord Vazo and formed an alliance. Vazo reciprocated by gathering his subjects. Azra’s army laid siege to Doomtower, finally toppling it after a hundred years. Many legends are told of the siege of Doomtower but no-one now knows where it stood.</div><h1>Time of the Ancients</h1><div class="MsoNormal">Slowly at first, then quickly, the Kingdom of Zyman, began to absorb or conquer its neighbors. [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The first emperor, Guto, had made a major deal with Prince Azra that involved massive sacrifice in return for great temporal power for Guto and his successors.</span>] While Azra allowed pacts with his brothers and sister to continue (indeed, his favorite siblings were allowed to keep their kingdoms), he asked for the destruction of the theist cults that the Colonists had brought with them. The Colonist kingdoms were systematically exterminated and their temples thrown down. In the absence of organized religion, the Colonists were forced to resort to Blood Magic.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Ancient Empire discovered the route to Ghildra, and brought back slaves – both human (who quickly became known as Brutes) and dragonmen. They brought their spirits with them, but the Demon Princes did not regard them as a threat and tolerated them.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Dwarves shut themselves in their mines, content to wait for more tolerant times. [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">They also took the Trolls to their heart following widespread famine and empire attacks in troll lands, and shared their tunnels with them.</span>]</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After the defeat of the last independent kingdom, the Empire ruled unchallenged for a thousand years [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">which was the terms of the deal with Prince Azra.] Over the last few hundred years, however, central rule began to collapse [because Emperor Bebb, last of the descendents of Guto, died without issue.</span>] Local Moguls became de facto rulers of local kingdoms and began to war with each other as Princes demanded more from their conjurers.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The end of the Empire and the coming of the Outsiders was presaged by a series of natural disasters – earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and whirlwinds.</div><h1>Time of the Outsiders</h1><div class="MsoNormal">[<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">A thousand years to the day after Guto’s deal with Azra,</span>] the Outsiders came. From the world of Jaruusz, the Outsiders were on a holy mission to conquer worlds in the name of The Infinite. They had already conquered Kanosza and Ghildra (to the extent that the latter world was able to be ruled) and brought slave armies with them too. Their strange weapons and powerful sorcery swept the Ancient Empire aside. They destroyed many cities, and erected their Ziggurats in the center of others. Demon summoning was outlawed, and the Outsiders proved to have powerful magics to prevent summonings as well. The Natives were enslaved just as they had enslaved the Colonists. The new Colonists despised their Blood Magic-using predecessors, and were often appointed their masters, and cruel masters they proved to be.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Elves also arrived. They were ancient rivals of the Outsiders and had been running a guerilla war against them for centuries. [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">They joined with the dwarves, who aided them in their struggle.</span>] Their greatest triumph was a Brute rebellion, where thousands of the primitives escaped into the Great Desert of Ehlaar, whence they organized many debilitating raids on the Outsider’s Holy Empire.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Outsiders were ruled by The Great Theosophist from the Holy City of Infinity. He brought in many more Colonists and Outsiders, leading to a massive population in the Khultan river plain. Natives were the majority only on the fringes of the old Ancient Empire.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">[<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The Dwarves began to be jealous of their allies and started to move against them. The priests of their old Earth God protested. The Dwarves made new gods to replace him and called the Old God a demon prince. They shaved off their beards and changed in appearance and nature.</span>] Wars erupted between the Dwarves, Elves, Trolls and the hereto peaceful Giants.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">[<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">The Great Theosophist became intrigued by Demonology and began to dabble in it. Slowly knowledge of demon summoning spread among the Hierarchs. The Name of the Infinite suffered a secret schism.</span>]</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A Native conspiracy set about a plan to free the creator goddess Ehla. It succeeded, and a massive, continent-wide earthquake set off another series of natural disasters. Ehla took her place in the sky as a bright star, visible in daylight.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Grand Theosophist died [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">slain by a Demon Prince</span>]. With his death and the new presence of Ehla, the ability to travel between worlds disappeared and has never been rediscovered. Brutes and elves invaded the empire. Natives and Colonists alike rose up in rebellion. The Outsider Empire collapsed.</div><h1>Time of Chaos</h1><div class="MsoNormal">[<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">War erupted between Ehla and the Demon Princes</span>]. A further disaster afflicted Ehlaar – the Chaos Plague [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">unleashed by Ehla</span>]. This killed most people and animals it infected. Most of those who survived became tainted by chaos. Farmers and their animals merged to form the hated Broos and other beastmen. A small number of survivors gained in health, intelligence and stature, gaining a golden hue. They are the Chosen. With the massive number of deaths, whole dioceses of the old Outsider Empire were laid waste. Successor Kingdoms rose in other areas, less affected by the plague, and fell just as quickly.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Cult of Ehla spread quickly through the Natives, as did resurgent Demonism. The human races began to interbreed of necessity, and a final race, the Halfbreeds, was the result, and quickly became the majority.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A strong Kingdom arose centered on the port city of Endeavor. Dominated by the Colonist gods, a trinity of the War God, Healer Goddess and Fire God became important owing to their powers in fighting Chaos and the Plague. This became the Kingdom of Endeavor.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A horde of Brutes and Dragonmen riding dinosaurs swept in from the Wastes. Led by Ngezhor the Brutal, they established order of a sort, demanding tribute in return for protection from chaos. The Brutal Horde rules over a host of petty vassal kingdoms.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Outsider province of Trasis had managed to retain its territorial integrity, but found itself at the mercy of dwarves who ruled mountain fastnesses in the Iceteeth range. Successful negotiation between the Lady of Trasis and the Dwarven Emperor led to the formation of the Empire of Dwarves and Trasians.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Along the Iron Coast and the banks of the great River Vaun, Native and Halfbreed cities formed a great trading league, which was able to hire mercenary forces that soon gelled into a mighty army. The Iron League and its prime city of Millanea became the richest lands of Ehlaar, owing much of their success to their patron Demon Princes.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Cult of Ehla established a series of matriarchal Queendoms in the valleys of the Vaun headwaters and along its tributaries. The great Queendom of Gla remains the center of the cult.</div><h1>Our Time</h1><div class="MsoNormal">Lord Providence rules the Kingdom of Endeavor and directs operations against chaos from his stronghold, Castle Might. The lords of Endeavor worry about the waste of military spending and dream of rivaling the Iron League for trading riches.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Brutal Horde has settled down somewhat. While still possessing a formidable force, the descendents of Ngezhor have settled in the City of the Gilded Hides on the edge of the Wastes, and some other forms of worship than totem spirits have begun to spread, much to the disgust of the Shamans of the Horde. The Qaghan Zayakhagu has reached out to the Dwarves and Trasians but has received little response.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Parsyatis is the Great Queen of the Dwarves and Trasians. Her father, Meti, reversed the dominance of the Dwarves to become Great King, leaving the title of Emperor to the Dwarf Gad-Kazun. Parsyatis is building a great new capital at Metiapur. She looks to the Iron League to the north with dreams of absorbing its cities.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Iron League and its demon patrons continue their intrigue with one another, secure behind their mercenary legions. Ukhaantu the Brute commands the armies, but many believe he has gone soft.</div><div class="MsoNormal">The Queendom of Gla and its associated lands conduct an ongoing magical war and an on-again off-again physical war with the Iron League. The Queen offers citizenship to all Chosen [<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white;">and is secretly breeding a new super-race, with the aim of exterminating all non-native races and returning Ehlaar to its original state</span>].</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4601171103506839692.post-70907866215841097652011-01-24T19:48:00.004-05:002011-01-25T14:01:19.986-05:00Questworld 2.0<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczQ5-uWmm9mrujqLXEAy73_C5di_KcWeKCCEMh0MqiOsrp-BbuimwaClpOUIRkdyVphQjq795t9YyqfkQypcZSWjV0mPwzkVqrWQUvSQYphjgPudrtZCfG5rmZMrEseMCbeW_zxOLxtI/s1600/kanos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczQ5-uWmm9mrujqLXEAy73_C5di_KcWeKCCEMh0MqiOsrp-BbuimwaClpOUIRkdyVphQjq795t9YyqfkQypcZSWjV0mPwzkVqrWQUvSQYphjgPudrtZCfG5rmZMrEseMCbeW_zxOLxtI/s320/kanos.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>If I'd written this post a few days ago, it would have been very different. Like James from Grognardia, I'm fascinated by <a href="http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2010/08/path-not-taken.html">the road not taken for Runequest</a>, to wit, the project called Questworld. This project aimed to provide an alternate world for Runequest adventures other than Glorantha, where everything had to go through Greg Stafford's approval process. Developers were free, however, to use Gloranthan gods. In a particularly interesting idea, the Chaosium took one continent to develop (Kanos, pictured) but allocated others to the big players in the Runequest industry at the time like Judges Guild. Another was to go to Britain's own Games Workshop, several years before that group became obsessed with Warhammer.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>At the time - the early 1980s - GW's White Dwarf was going through a golden age, with multiple useful articles and scenarios in every issue. In WD #38, the magazine's Runequest luminaries explained their plans for the continent, Theelar, and these guys knew what they were doing. I was entranced. I wanted to learn more about this project and be first in line to snag a copy when it came out. For the next dozen or so issues, fascinating tidbits of the world came out. A truly magnificent set of rules for demon summoning, complete with stats for demons and the demon lords, was the highlight, followed by our first glimpse of the geography and culture of Theelar. The scenario Lone and Level Sands was one of the best ever published for Runequest, and it set out a conflict between a decadent and corrupt Ancient Empire and the Invader Race from Glorantha. Rudimentary character generations rules for Ancients were included. It all looked like exactly the world I was waiting for.<br />
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Then it all stopped. References to the forthcoming Questworld set became few and far between and eventually ceased, with no explanation given. Whether the licensing deal got caught up in the disastrous transfer of Runequest to Avalon Hill or whether there were creative differences with Greg Stafford who was antipathetic to Glorantha having links to other worlds, I just don't know.<br />
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Nevertheless, for thirty years the possibilities of Theelar have intrigued me. Until a few days ago I had a plan in mind. I was going to catalog every reference to Theelar I could find to provide a skeleton of the GW Questworld project and then reconstruct a campaign setting from that. I had spent months extrapolating from what I already knew, and had many seeds ready to plant.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1TrSjnEpIMT11jHPCzT7Nj6U54hyULBF6AX7sZfmshVcvKMkzuWa46XNFKawC35mwWt4DHLsFsoQGaxngxmuFSyeYgakd8cWkcHEVu4n3FXWJc52HBLnwLvussFasx8VC6Nj_e4fWwYk/s1600/Ophis-map-002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1TrSjnEpIMT11jHPCzT7Nj6U54hyULBF6AX7sZfmshVcvKMkzuWa46XNFKawC35mwWt4DHLsFsoQGaxngxmuFSyeYgakd8cWkcHEVu4n3FXWJc52HBLnwLvussFasx8VC6Nj_e4fWwYk/s320/Ophis-map-002.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Then this weeked, in researching the work of Dave Morris, one of the authors of the project, I discovered that the GW Questworld <a href="http://fabledlands.blogspot.com/2010/02/invaders-ancients.html">files still exist and may even be collated and published for his Dragon Warriors game</a>:<br />
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<blockquote>The premise in brief: pilgrims from the known lands of Legend sail west seeking an earthly paradise as the millennium approaches. They arrive at another continent, which many are convinced is their reward from God. Some centuries later, few still believe that in their hearts, though it is still the official teaching of the Church and the capital city is called Deliverance. Inland, a decadent civilization known to the Coradians as Ancients, shored up by a slave army of creatures called habdigars, continues to oppose the newcomers' expansion along the great river Ophis. Think Legend meets <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aguirre,_the_Wrath_of_God">Aguirre </a>with a dash of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Showboat_world">Showboat World </a>and you're not far off.</blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 18px;">If you're a DW fan, don't expect this stuff to be rolling out overnight. It was originally written for Questworld, so much of it uses <a href="http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/rpg/series.php?qsSeries=39">Runequest</a> rules. Typewritten pages are not so convenient for re-editing as Word documents. Some of it is too close to other ideas we've used since. Role-playing has moved on (well, changed anyway) in the intervening years, so it would need updating. And editing material Oliver and I wrote over two decades ago has to take a back seat to projects like the Fabled Lands e-gamebooks. But in spare moments we'll tinker with it, and eventually, you never know...</span></span></blockquote>Dave has included some mouth-watering tidbits, including a description of the city of Deliverance (perhaps originally Port Diaphos?) in his blog, which you can find by <a href="http://fabledlands.blogspot.com/search/label/Ophis">searching for Ophis</a>, which I think was originally the Issaries River. There's one splendid scenario outline in there already.<br />
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While delighted to hear this, this obviously squashes my beloved project, which I was just gearing up to after twenty-five years of thinking about it. Yet the prospect of finally seeing this wealth of imagination, even in a non-Runequest form, makes my mouth water.<br />
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So back to the drawing board for my project. I imagine that the basic geography of Theelar, if not the name or the specific geography of Tamary and the Wastes of Gizen, is still part of the Questworld project, so I can at least use that as the basis of my non-Gloranthan world. And the idea of invader races whets my appetite. So I have come up with a new name, cosmology and history for my Questworld idea. I'll develop that here on my blog, as I use it to hone my thinking on Runequest mechanics as well. Watch this space for the history of Ehlaar, coming very soon!Swordsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05144171573448751890noreply@blogger.com4