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ICON playtest doc, p. 6-7 posted:Long ago, the cruel and prosperous Arken Imperium crushed the nations of Arden Eld. With its military might and its command of magitech and ancient etheric sorcery, it slew the Titans who held up the four pillars of the world and cast them down, proclaiming itself an eternal empire. It spread itself from sea to sea, altered the land itself with great projects, raise mighty cities of iron and stone, and bent the elden magics to its will, setting its sights on the seat of the makers themselves. The Arkenlords became swollen with power that drove them far beyond the concerns of petty men, and made them blind to their own rapidly approaching doom. When it finally came, it was as rapid as it was inevitable. A great inexorable destruction wracked the empire, shattering it, and scouring the land. In its wake, monsters crawled from great pits to feast on its remnants, and in time retreated to the deep earth, leaving only smoldering ruins. Welcome to ICON! ICON is an RPG by Tom Parkinson-Morgan, of such wonderful projects as Lancer and Kill Six Billion Demons. Based in a mythic fiction setting, the game revolves around larger-than-life characters performing heroic feats, though in this case "heroic" doesn't have to mean "altruistically motivated". It is currently in playtest, at least until Lancer's additional Kickstarter content is finished. The playtest doc is available for free on MassifPress's itch.io, if you'd like to get a look at what I'm working off. I'm planning on mostly sticking to narrative play until things will warrant switching to tactical combat, which will give me more of a chance to learn the game. I also intend to use the first few posts for character creation, then after that the dice rollers come out. Let's have some fun!
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 03:05 |
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# ? Apr 27, 2024 17:46 |
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THE CAST
GLOSSARY
THE STORY SO FAR....
Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 01:10 on Aug 16, 2021 |
# ? Jul 30, 2021 03:05 |
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"Hey, wake up. C'mon, we gotta move!" You slowly open your eyes, squinting through the headache, trying to remember what happened. It was an afternoon like any other in Merebrook, until the earth rumbled and suddenly split open. You remember sailing through the air, a flash of pain, then nothing. It's evening now, silent aside from the crackling of small fires throughout the village. Occasionally, the silence is broken by bestial snarls. Toward the central plaza, an unfamiliar structure juts into the sky at an unnatural angle. Is that an arkenruin?! The thought of Merebrook sitting on top of a disaster for hundreds of years is too much for your aching brain for now, so you shove it to the back for later. A familiar fuzzy face comes into focus, his long ears down his back in an expression of sincere concern. Your long-time friend, Pasha, a Lopen. His Leggio merchant clan has passed through Merebrook for generations, more frequently than other caravans, such that the village is basically home to them as well. You grew up playing with him and his many siblings on their stops. The last few times through, he's been allowed to take the lead on decisions for his clan, to prepare for when he eventually takes over. "Are you okay? We have to get to my caravan, then maybe we can do something to help." Pasha holds out his hand to pull you up. You stand with his assistance, then look down at your hands and arms to check for injuries. ►What do you see?◄
(This choice has literally no bearing on statistics, as all Kin are people. Their cultures, and more heavily their Bonds and Jobs, define their numbers.) Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 10:34 on Aug 1, 2021 |
# ? Jul 30, 2021 03:05 |
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B, because Troggs are rad.
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 03:42 |
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G become the bugman
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 05:41 |
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Fly, you fools.
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 16:01 |
Thri-kreen or birdfolk? Thri-kreen or birdfolk? HMmm. Birdfolk! F
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 18:56 |
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F
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 22:34 |
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F
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 22:59 |
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(It seems F is pretty popular, so unless something changes in the next, oh, 2 hours, we'll go with that option when I'm home from work! The next choice will be for our Bond, and the one after that will be for our Job.)
Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 23:28 on Jul 30, 2021 |
# ? Jul 30, 2021 23:25 |
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A for funsies
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# ? Jul 30, 2021 23:56 |
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You shake the dust out of the feathers on your head and smooth them back into place, and nod an affirmation to your friend. "I'm glad you're alright," Pasha says as he brushes some debris you missed off your shoulder. "Not everyone made out as well." He turns his focus toward the plaza, and the new structure looming above it. "I've never seen an arkenruin surface inside a village. Even a day's travel away is dangerous." You follow his shift in gaze to the west, away from the plaza to the north and the river to the northeast, toward the colorful banners fluttering above and beyond the houses. You recognize these banners from the top of the caravan your friend has traveled in for as long as you've known him. He beckons for you to follow and trudged off in that direction, eyes open and ears now up and alert. As Pasha rounds the corner of the last house between you and the caravan, he stops and scrambles back behind the corner, then creeps back around slowly, hiding behind a barrel. You peek around the corner and see three beasts pacing between you and the enormous, two story wagon, gnashing teeth and snarling. The team of oxen that would have pulled it are on the ground, dead and half-eaten. "Damnit," Pasha cursed, almost breaking a whisper. ►"How are we getting past those things?"◄
(Whichever one has the second-most votes will help determine what our Bond Gambit will be, when we get to that point. Birdman/Birdlady will be fun! Also, I haven't decided on a name for our character, so if you have any ideas feel free to add a vote for that as well.) Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 10:44 on Aug 1, 2021 |
# ? Jul 31, 2021 01:17 |
B Kestrel
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 02:11 |
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Big Bird says this thread is brought to you by the letter C.
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 04:38 |
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A Corvo
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 06:58 |
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Bird Croak
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 07:29 |
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(Another question while I'm thinking about it. Are we a silent a protagonist like Link or Crono, or do we have dialogue as well?)
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 09:10 |
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Hmm. B - what do our keen bird senses see? Also, Kestrel (Kes for short?) is a fine name. (I'd say have some dialogue - I find silent protags a bit boring.)
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 16:49 |
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A For being the eyes of our party... And, yeah, Kestrel, is cool.
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 20:45 |
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B for out-thinking opponents. I dig Kestrel.
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 21:07 |
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B is for bird.
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# ? Jul 31, 2021 21:22 |
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(Looks like B is the clear choice, followed by A. I'll write the next post tomorrow. I'm thinking Argus for our starting Power, unless anyone has another idea. Once we have our Job picked, I'll put together a character sheet. Argus - You get a knack for sensing danger, hidden traps, or ambushes, and can use this knack on any action when surprised.)
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# ? Aug 1, 2021 10:41 |
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You know you're at your best when you take your time to learn. After taking a few minutes to observe the beasts between you and the caravan, you notice that their eyes are poorly developed, if not basically vestigial, and they primarily navigate by sound and smell. Fortunately, even though the fresh ox carcasses have driven them into a frenzy, the stench of blood also seems to be overwhelming their olfactory senses. They're dangerous, but effectively blind. You put your finger to your beak to signal silence, and motion for Pasha to follow. You gently slink around the barrel and creep around the edge of the clearing, sticking to the shadows and behind obstructions, until you make it around to the opposite side, with the caravan now between you and the monsters. You were able to avoid them this time, but you might have to deal with them soon. Pasha slowly opens the back door to the caravan and climbs in, and you follow. Nobody else is here. The rest of Pasha's family must have been caught outside earlier, and were not able to get back. "Where do you think they are?" Your whisper hangs in the silence of the darkened caravan. Your friend, trembling slightly, lights a candle and hands it to you, motioning toward a curtain on the wall in the corner. "Pick something you like," he hisses, clambering into his loft. The rattles and clanging of someone frantically tossing miscellaneous objects and trinkets aside soon follow. "We're going back out, Kestrel. I have to find them." You pull back the curtain, and the light from your candle glints off a surprising array of arms. A few of the items stand out much more, as if they are somehow calling out to you. ►What catches your eye?◄
(Sorry for the delay, guys! Had to give the new Jobs a once-over and add them to the list. We're almost to the fun part!) Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 01:08 on Aug 16, 2021 |
# ? Aug 3, 2021 02:40 |
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Hell yeah, goth barbie!
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# ? Aug 3, 2021 02:50 |
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BBBBBBBBBBBbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb
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# ? Aug 3, 2021 03:04 |
J
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# ? Aug 3, 2021 05:02 |
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Ah, a lot of these are tempting. But I have to throw in a vote for G.
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# ? Aug 3, 2021 06:59 |
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Hell to you who stand in our way
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# ? Aug 3, 2021 07:54 |
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F for shenanigans.
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# ? Aug 3, 2021 08:44 |
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B is for bird.
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# ? Aug 4, 2021 00:53 |
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I'll throw some more support behind H
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# ? Aug 4, 2021 01:39 |
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(3 for H, 2 for B, and 1 each for F, G, and J. I'll start working on our next post tomorrow after work, I have some other stuff to do tonight. Anything we're missing before we get into it?)
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# ? Aug 4, 2021 23:21 |
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(So if we are going Scythe, is that our only weapon going forward? Or do you get to have a secondary set?) E: Does help if you finish writing the post before hitting Submit, doesn't it.
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# ? Aug 5, 2021 18:17 |
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Serpentis posted:(So if we are going Scythe, is that our only weapon going forward? Or do you get to have a secondary set?) (The Scythe is really the symbolic weapon of the Harvester job for the Mendicant class, which hands out Blessings for curing and clearing status effects, and has plant based magic for healing and damage. Kinda like a Nature Cleric I guess. If we get up to Chapter 2, which starts at Level 5, we can either pick a whole new Job or get a Master Talent for one of our Harvester abilities. If everyone wants to take a look at the Jobs and maybe change their votes, I can wait for that. All of them except C and H are in the playtest doc in the link on the first post, and the .pdfs for C and H can be found there as well. EDIT: I made a couple sample images for each job, they're linked in the choices.) Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 04:26 on Aug 6, 2021 |
# ? Aug 5, 2021 18:37 |
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(Sorry everyone! I've been kinda dealing with some stuff lately.) You've spent your entire life working in the fields of Merebrook, you know what causes the grain crop to succeed or fail like the back of your claw. Naturally, you reach for the greatscythe, being the most familiar of the myriad of implements on the wall. The moment your talons touch the haft, feel a rush of energy pass through you. You catch a potted flower sitting on a nearby shelf out of the corner of your eye. A young mereblossom, grafted onto an old root, likely a scion of the original plant gifted by your family to Pasha's. You shift your focus to it, and feel a much deeper connection to the plant than you've ever felt before. You concentrate your will, and the blossom matures and wilts before your eyes. A change in your concentration, and the flower returns to life, back to its original state. "I'm a bit rusty with my Enochian, but now's a good a time as any to pick it back up, eh?" Pasha says as he hops down from his bunk, holding a book similar to the one you noticed on the wall. A quick glance back at the wall and nothing stands out as unique, merely a collection of standard weaponry. "Wait," he whispers, ears pricked up. Silence. He motions for you to follow him out of the caravan. You notice the creatures are no longer snarling and pacing. They've consumed the remainder of the oxen, and are now sleeping near the caravan, letting out the occasional burp or fart between snores. Pasha looks to you for an idea on how to proceed. ►What do you want to do?◄
(I'll have an actual character sheet up this weekend.) Doc Dee fucked around with this message at 03:19 on Aug 13, 2021 |
# ? Aug 13, 2021 03:15 |
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B
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# ? Aug 13, 2021 03:27 |
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B
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# ? Aug 13, 2021 03:49 |
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B is for bird.
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# ? Aug 13, 2021 04:29 |
A
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# ? Aug 13, 2021 07:10 |
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# ? Apr 27, 2024 17:46 |
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A!
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# ? Aug 13, 2021 08:07 |