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Fellowship: BY GRABTHAR'S HAMMER! The Dwarf is tough. Really tough. Dwarves are always tough - the most solid, grounded people. The Dwarf is a defender, who can clear through any path and keep on going no matter what. They can take anything, outlast anything, and the only problem? Well, dwarves are often very greedy, too. Dwarves also get a unique stat: Iron, which they get at +2. Agenda The Dwarf picks one of:
All Dwarves get the following Moves: People of Stone You have a sixth stat, Iron, and an additional +1 to assign between your other stats. Iron represents your dwarven toughness - your armor, survivability, grit, iron gut and stubbornness. When you Overcome by taking it on the chin, shrugging something off or using pure physicall toughness, roll +Iron. When you share this move with another, their Iron stat is +1. Unbreakable When you Fill your Belly, you also heal your Iron stat. Clear the Path When you charge through something standing between you and where you're going, roll +Iron. On a 7+, you charge through and leave a path for your allies to follow. On a 7-9, your reckless charge causes problems. You have to go alone, or you leave yourself open to danger, or you damage something important, your choice. What is a Dwarf? The Dwarf chooses one of the following to represent their people:
The Dwarf gets dwarven hardtack (food, 5 uses), and some kind of solid protection they describe (1 use, Armor). They also get one of:
The Dwarf starts with 4 initial Bonds with the Fellowship. Suggestions: I owe ______ a life debt. ______ knows my secret shame. I would shear my beard for _______. ________'s forefathers and mine knew one another. The Dwarf also selects two Dwarven Customs: All That Glitters... When you enter a place and something isn't right, you may ask the Overlord if there is a trap or ambush here. They will answer honestly, yes or no. Dig Deep Your people are famous for their ability to dig quickly and safely. You can Clear the Path right through earth and stone, digging out a tunnel anyone can use. It takes some time, but not as long as anyone else would expect it to. Earth Friend You can speak to the stones and hear the words of the mountains. When you Look Closely at an area with natural or worked stone, you may also ask, "What secrets has this earth seen?", regardless of your roll. Good for What Ales You When you use an item with the Drunk tag, act as though it had the Healing tag instead. Greed Is Good when you desire a treasure or valuable item you have seen or heard of, you may declare it the object of your greed. When you act directly to secure the object of your greed for yourself, you are filled with Hope. You cannot choose a new object of your greed until you have acquired your current one, or it becomes unobtainable. Half-Dwarf You are not fully dwarven. Gain a Core move from any basic playbook. You may also gain an Agenda from the chosen playbook. This move cannot be shared. Let Me See That When you take a few moments to handle or examine an interesting item, vehicle, or architecture, ask the Overlord two of the following questions. They must answer truthfully.
Warrior's Pride When you let out a roar of challenge, tell us who you are challenging and roll +Blood. On a 7+, they accept, approaching you for battle and dropping whatever they were doing. On a 10+, they don't bring any backup with them. Dwarven Fellowship When you get Fellowship with a Dwarven community, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: Dwarven Hospitality When you leave this community, two Dwarven Defenders come with you. Two members of the Fellowship each gain one Bond with one of the Defenders. Dwarven Training The Fellowship is taught the ways of being tough and strong. Everyone in the Fellowship gains the Iron stat at +1, if they do not already have it. Minecarts You have been given access to the vast underground network of dwarven mining tunnels, and you can use the minecarts in them to rapidly reach other dwarven settlements, or any other settlement the dwarves are particularly friendly with. Legendary Generosity Weapons, armor and alcohol you purchase here cost you nothing, no matter how much you need. Each player adds one of the following as Gear:
Our Forge Is Your Forge The dwarves here will replace or reforge as many of your weapons or vehicles as you like. All such items in any players' Gear gain the Dwarf-Made tag, making them effectively indestructible. The Secret To Success The dwarves were hiding a special project down here. And even if it isn't entirely complete yet, there is no one better to give it to than you. You are given a Powersuit. The Guzzler, btw? It's an experimental mechanical car that runs on beer. Next time: ELVES!
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Sep 16, 2015 06:26
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Mors Rattus posted:You can Use your explosives to create an explosion, wherever you need it For some strange reason I doubted whether to back it. No more.
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Sep 16, 2015 07:00
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theironjef posted:
What you guys were saying about how there's a Luck mechanic to add a die roll when the die roll is already supposed to represent an element of chance reminds me of yet another rule in 3.5 Unearthed Arcana: "what if you rolled a d20, but then you had to roll a d6 or something on top of that?" quote:If static modifiers for attack rolls, checks, and other d20 rolls has made the game too predictable, you can try using variable modifiers instead. And then of course this was partially copied by 5th Edition's DMG: quote:PROFICIENCY DICE
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Sep 16, 2015 08:43
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Night10194 posted:(the example knight character is even a woman in disguise and the book makes it pretty clear that that's quite common) Because I think it'd be hilarious if officially it's not allowed, but it's also considered very, very rude to even try to see through it.
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Sep 16, 2015 10:09
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Well, part of the joke is that Brets' idea of gender is so bound up in your trappings and work that unless a woman explicitly reveals she was in disguise, there's no rolling to get caught, etc. And if you are caught, the legal punishment for a woman caught dressing as a man is to be sent on a quest to redeem herself, so if you do get dramatically revealed, the punishment is having a plot.
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Sep 16, 2015 10:14
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Night10194 posted:Well, part of the joke is that Brets' idea of gender is so bound up in your trappings and work that unless a woman explicitly reveals she was in disguise, there's no rolling to get caught, etc. And if you are caught, the legal punishment for a woman caught dressing as a man is to be sent on a quest to redeem herself, so if you do get dramatically revealed, the punishment is having a plot. My mental image is that by this practically all of the knights are women, all of them keeping up the pretense of being male, and somehow no one's caught on yet.
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Sep 16, 2015 16:38
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PurpleXVI posted:My mental image is that by this practically all of the knights are women, all of them keeping up the pretense of being male, and somehow no one's caught on yet. This is the plot to my favorite Terry Pratchett novel.
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Sep 16, 2015 16:41
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Fellowship: The prettiest elfs! The Elf is graceful and perfect. Elves, universally, are more than able to dance around their foes, show them up and be cool and flashy. The Elf is stylish and mysterious and magical, and often quite arrogant. All Elves get Grace +2. Agenda Choose one of:
All Elves get the following moves: Elder Arts When you draw upon the eleven power that humans sometimes call magic, choose a spell from below, then mark it. You cannot use a spell while it is marked. When you Fill Your Belly, remove a mark from one spell. When you Recover, remove all marks on your spells.
Touch the World Lightly You can safely walk on top of snow, across thin tree branches, along precarious ledges, or on top of held weaponry. You can also run along walls, up trees, and across treacherous surfaces safely, although only for short distances. You do not need to roll to Overcome when performing these feats, although you may still need to Get Away. What is an Elf? The Elf chooses one of the following to represent their people:
The Elf gets elven bread (Food, 4 uses) and a hunter's bow (Ranged, Elf-Made, 3 ammo). They also get one of:
The Elf starts with 4 bonds with the other members of the Fellowship. Suggestions: _______ distrusts me and all my people. _______ once helped me with a hunt, and I know we shall hunt again. _______ knows why I truly left home, and why I stay away. _______'s name is well-known among my kin, because _______. The Elf also selects two Elven Customs: Elfsight Your eyes are unnaturally good, and you can see the fine detail even through the darkest night or densest fog. When you Look Closely, you may study any location you can see, no matter how distant, as if you were standing right there. Elder Might When you wish to use an Elder Art you have already marked off, you may do so by marking off a different Elder Art. Enemy At The Gates When you fire upon your enemies with a ranged weapon from a hidden position, roll +Grace and use 1 Ammo. On a 10+, deal damage to a stat of your choice, and you reveal your location. On a 7-9, you've caught them off guard and thy are surprised. If you act quickly, you and your allies can take the advantage. Half-Elf You are not fully eleven. Gain a Core move from any basic playbook. You may also gain an Agenda from the chosen playbook. This move cannot be shared. Enchanting Performance When you perform an Elven art for an attentive audience, roll +Grace. On a 10+, you may Forge a Bond with as many audience members as you'd like. The Bond should relate to how much they adore and appreciate you. On a 7-9, you may only Forge a Bond with a single listener. On a 6-, no one cares. Poetry in Motion When you Get Away, you may choose an extra option from the list, even on a 6-. Special Stardust Add the following option to the Elder Arts list:
Way With Words When you Speak Softly to someone who respects or fears you, you may roll +Grace instead of +Wisdom or +Sense. When you Speak Softly, you may also ask, "What do they desire most?" regardless of the result of your roll. Elven Fellowship When you get Fellowship with an Elvencommunity, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: Bountiful Harvest When you leave this community, each member of the fellowship is given some Elven Bread (Food, 4 uses) Elven Hospitality When you leave this community, two Elven Archers come with you. Two members of the fellowship each gain one Bond with one of the Archers. Elven Training Everyone in the fellowship chooses a single Elder Art you know - they gain the ability to use that Elder Art. When they use the Elder Art they have been taught, they cannot use it again until they Recover. Finer Goods You'll Never See EAch of you receives an elven treasure - an item of such extreme value that many would give their lives just to look at it once. Describe the gift you were given. IT is Precious and Elf-Made, in addition to any other properties it has. The item you were given considers you a friend of elves and will not harm you. The Elven Secret Each player learns a single secret of the Elves. You will tell us the secret you have learned when the time is right. The elven secrets can be anything, but they must be related to the wilds, the stars, the hunt, or elven mythology in some way. We Name You Elf-Friend Everyone in the fellowship is considered a friend of the elves, and can use Elf-Made items without harm. In addition, they will upgrade or replace as much of your gear as you'd like with improved Elf-Made version. You may add the Elf-Made tag to the weapons, armor, and tools that are in your Gear. Next time: The Halfling!
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Sep 16, 2015 17:11
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Fellowship: Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins! The bravest little halfling of them all! The Halfling causes trouble. They're small, tricky and unexpected. They sneak around, trick foes and find alternative solutions, as well as keep everyone happy with parties and food. All Halflings get Courage +2. Agenda Choose one of:
All Halflings get the following moves: The Little Folk When you do something clever or sneaky while no one is looking, roll +Courage. On a 7+, you do it, and no one will notice what you did until later. On a 10+, they won't even think to blame oyu for it unless they know you quite well, or you personally tell them you did it. Sting Like A Bee When you Keep Them Busy by getting in close and get a 7+, choose one. You can only Sting Like A Bee against those who are larger than you.
What is a Halfling? The Halfling chooses one of the following to represent their people:
The Halfling gets a trusty handheld weapon (Melee) and a halfling packed lunch (2 uses, Food, each Use feeds three people). They also get one of:
Halfling Pipeleaf also has a special note: When you Use it by sharing it with another, you Speak Softly with them as if you rolled a 7-9. The Halfling starts with 4 bonds with the other members of the Fellowship. Suggestions: _______ really enjoys the finer things in life. I was caught trying to steal from ______. _______ overlooks my stature and treats me as an equal. _______ dragged me from my home and on the road to adventure! The Halfling also selects two Halfling Customs: A Friendly Face You are small and easily trusted. So long as you show a friendly face, anyone not already actively hostile towards you will treat you as a friend, until proven otherwise. Bottomless Belly Whenever you Fill Your Belly, you may Use as much food as you like, and you heal an equal amount of damage. Anyone trying to compete with you can also Use one extra food to heal an extra point of damage. Half-A-Halfling You are not 100% halfling. Gain a Core move from any basic playbook. You may also gain an Agenda from the chosen playbook. This move cannot be shared. Lived In A Shoe You can change size at will, shrinking down to the size of an apple or growing as tall as The Dwarf, but you usally stay at a happy medium you're comfortable in. Small Target When you Overcome a threat by getting out of the way, on a 7+, you manage to get completely out of sight - your attacker loses trakc of you, although you must still pay a price on a 7-9 result. On a 12+, everyone loses track of you - tell us where you went, and you're there. Talk Nonsense When you use an unreasonable argument to get someone to do something for you, roll +Courage. An unreasonable argument is one they cannot deal with, either because it is something they never expected to hear, too impossible to be believed, or it strikes at something they hold dear. On a 7+, you must make them a promise - they'll tell you what - and then they'll do as you ask. On a 7-9, the promise alone is not enough: you must also pay a price for them, right here, right now. The Courage of Halflings You are never in Despair when rolling Courage, even if it is damaged. This move cannot be Shared. Who's The Tough Guy Now, Tough Guy? When you Overcome someone with a 12+, you may Sting Like A Bee. When you could Finish Them, you may Keep Them Busy as if you got a 10+ instead. Halfling Fellowship When you get Fellowship with a Halfling community, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: A Halfling At Heart Everyone in the fellowship gains the move Sting Like A Bee. They can sitll only use it against those who are larger than they are. Bring The Whole Family When you Forge a Bond with a new companion here, you also Forge a Bond with a second, identical companion with a different first name. When you first gain this move, the player who picked it can Forge a Bond with a Halfling Brave, Chef or Fast-Talker right now, for free. Elevensies When you leave this community, each member of the fellowship leaves with a Halfling Packed Lunch (2 Uses, Food, each Use feeds three people). Halfling Hospitality The Halflings have everything for sale that you could ever want, and they'll go out of their way to find it for you. Each player chooses another option from any of their Gear lists, and adds that to their Gear. The Pleasures Of A Nomadic Life The community has decided to come with you, traveling behind you for the rest of your adventure. You gain all thge benefits of having a community within an hour's walk of you at all times, and they can always provide you new mounts and a safe place to rest, should you need them. To War! When you leave this community, you do so inside a Halfling War Wagon. Next time: The Harbinger!
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Sep 16, 2015 18:11
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PurpleXVI posted:My mental image is that by this practically all of the knights are women, all of them keeping up the pretense of being male, and somehow no one's caught on yet. This sounds like that stoning scene in "Life of Brian". Serf posted:This is the plot to my favorite Terry Pratchett novel. I feel like I have to get this novel.
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Sep 16, 2015 20:00
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The book in question is Monstrous Regiment.
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Sep 16, 2015 20:07
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Fellowship: I'mma be Gandalf! The Harbinger is the prophet of doom. Harbingers are rare, powerful and magical beings. They never show up in good times. They have a lot of raw power, but tire quickly, make friends badly and definitely can't handle this alone. They are the mentor, with potent magic, gloomy and a bit of a loner. They get a unique sixth stat: Doom, always +2. Agenda Choose one of:
All Harbingers get the following moves: Doomed Soul The harbingers are keepers of prophecy and magic, and their soul is unlike any other. You have a sixth stat, Doom, and you have an additional +0 to assign between your other stats. When your Doom stat gets damaged, you must immediately damage another one of your stats as well. When you Overcome using magic, fate, prophecy, or folklore, roll +Doom. When you Share this move with another, their Doom stat is +1. Doom and Gloom Your Doom makes you hard for others to relate to. You can never have more than one Bond with someone, and others can never have more than one Bond with you. This move cannot be Shared. Do Not Trifle With Wizards Your magic is dangerous and powerful, for both you and your enemies. When you conjure a spell to inflict harm, pay a price, describe your spell for us, and then roll +Doom. On a 10+, you deal damage to stat that makes sense. On a 7-9, you Keep Them Busy for a time, as they must deal with the effects of your spell. On a 6-, you Keep Them Busy, but you are also kept busy, and must stay still to hold them. On a 12+, you are stronger than you know - you destroy them. Tell us what that means, and take 1 damage as the spell takes more from you than you wanted to give it. Wizardry When you draw upon the magic inherent to your people, choose one option from below. You may use these spells as often as you need to. When you use one of these magical effects, tell us how it manifests - what does it look like, what does it sound like? What do you need to do to make this happen?
What is a Harbinger? The Harbinger chooses one of the following to represent their people:
The Harbinger gets just enough good (2 Uses, Food) and some wizardly baubles (2 Uses, Useful). Every Harbinger's gear is unique, and none carry exactly the same things. They also get one weapon:
 The Harbinger starts with 2 bonds with the other members of the Fellowship. Suggestions: _____ has much to learn about the ways of the world. _____ will be of great importance in the events to come. The Harbinger also selects one Harbinger Custom: Angel's Touch You can heal the wounds of an ally with a touch, although it takes a lot out of you. When you magically heal an ally, they heal one damaged stat of their choice. You may damage one of your stats to heal another of their stats. Once you've used this move, you cannot use it again until you Fill Your Belly or Recover. A Wizard's Word When you make a promise to someone and they promise something in return, you may leave your mark upon them. So long as you do not break your promise, they cannot break theirs. Write a Bond with them describing the promise you share. The mark is undone when they fulfill their end of the promise, or you break your end of it. Cultural Appreciation You have spent a lot of time among one of the peoples of this world, and their culture has rubbed off on you. Gain a Core move from any basic playbook. You may also gain an Agenda fro mthe chosen playbook. This move cannot be Shared. Dark and Terrible When you could Destroy Them, you may leave a curse upon them. Tell us the nature of this curse, and what must be done to lift it. Mysterious Fires Add the following option to the Wizardry move:
The Evil Eye Above Doom follows you, but you are ready for it. When the minions of the Overlord approach, the Overlord's player must tell you before they arrive. When you know the Overlord's plans, you may ask them, "What is one way I could stop this?" They must answer truthfully. Wildspeaker You speak the language of beasts and monsters. When you try to speak to such a creature for the first time, they will always pause to listen and reply, and you always have a chance to Speak Softly with them. You Shall Not Pass When You Keep Them Busy by standing directly in harm's way, roll +Doom instead of +Courage. When you take a stand in defense of someone you have a Bond with who also has a Bond with you, you are filled with Hope. Harbinger's Fellowship When you get Fellowship with a Harbinger community, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: One Ring To Rule Them The harbingers know much of the Overlord's inherent strengths and weaknesses, and by performing taxing, difficult rituals, they may create an item of power to defeat the Overlord with. The item they create becomes a new Weakness for the Overlord, and using it on the Overlord will take away one of their Threats ot the World for the rest of the scene. A Touch of Magic The Harbingers have shown you the secret of their power, and though your bodies were not built to use it, you have gained the ability to ry. Everyone in the fellowship gains your Wizardry move, along with any extra options you have, but each time they use it, they must pay a price. Blade of Darkest Night You are given a powerful, cursed weapon. It has the tags Melee and Necrotic, describe it. It whispers dark and terrible secrets to whoever holds it, giving them insight in to the world, but also driving them slowly mad. The holder of this weapon can Command Lore about dark and terrible things, and they gain the Agenda Always Dig Deeper: You need to know every secret and find every treasure, and you despise secrets. Something Evil This Way Comes When you flee from an enemy by retreating into this community, that enemy will suffer a horrible fate if they do not immediately turn back. To Dance Among Stars When you leave this community, you ride the winds to your next destination, arriving swiftly and safely. A Beast Most Foul When you leave this community, you are given a pair of Strange Beasts. Two members of the fellowship each gain one bond with one of the Beasts. The player who gained a Bond with a beast gets to decide what its stats are. Next time: The Heir! Mors Rattus fucked around with this message at 20:43 on Sep 16, 2015 |
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Sep 16, 2015 20:15
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You have some harbinger's stuff duplicated below the halfling.
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Sep 16, 2015 20:35
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PurpleXVI posted:My mental image is that by this practically all of the knights are women, all of them keeping up the pretense of being male, and somehow no one's caught on yet. You know, I was getting ready to run a Norse campaign for my regular group but I might suggest Monstrous Errantry to them instead, now. I should really just bite the bullet and review WHFRP2e. I have like, all the books. Night10194 fucked around with this message at 20:40 on Sep 16, 2015 |
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Sep 16, 2015 20:37
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wdarkk posted:You have some harbinger's stuff duplicated below the halfling. Should be fixed now.
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Sep 16, 2015 20:43
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Night10194 posted:You know, I was getting ready to run a Norse campaign for my regular group but I might suggest Monstrous Errantry to them instead, now. I have fond memories of WHFRP2e, probably because when I first played the game my knowledge of the setting was lacking, so I had no idea how ridiculous some of the things I was attempting to do actually were. Fortunately the dice absolutely adored me, or someone filed them down so 01 showed up more often than not.
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Sep 16, 2015 20:47
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Kurieg posted:I have fond memories of WHFRP2e, probably because when I first played the game my knowledge of the setting was lacking, so I had no idea how ridiculous some of the things I was attempting to do actually were. Fortunately the dice absolutely adored me, or someone filed them down so 01 showed up more often than not. I admit a lot of my love for it is that one of my best friends just absolutely clicks on running the game and loves to do it, so we've had some really great campaigns. Like, on its own the system is pretty unremarkable (though serviceable) but I've had a great GM for it and so it's one of my favorite RPGs.
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Sep 16, 2015 20:49
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Fellowship: The once and future king or queen! The Heir is a leader, the one that everyone looks up to. Their people are versatile and strong, and their rank gives them much power. Their name is known in the halls of the powerful, and few will mistrait them or their allies. They lead, they are consistently versatile and they are surrounded by powerful friends and full of conviction. They can, however, be more worried about their own kingdom than the world. They always get Wisdom +2. Agenda Choose one of:
All Heirs get the following moves: Royal Treatment When you visit the ruler of a place and introduce yourself, you and your friends are all given a room for the night and a hot meal to Fill Your Belly, free of charge. Yes, My Liege When you give an order to non-hostile NPCs, roll +Wisdom. On a 10+, they obey you to the best of their ability before they can even think about it. On a 7-9, the Overlord chooses one:
What is the Heir? The Heir chooses one of the following to represent their people:
The Heir gets some food (Food, 4 uses), poultices (2 Uses, Healing, Slow), a warhorse they have one Bond with, and a beautiful blade with a long and storied past (Melee, Precious). They also get:
The Heir starts with 4 bonds with the other members of the Fellowship. Suggestions: I shall take _____ under my wing, and teach them all that I know. ______ has served me well in the past, and I can only hope they continue to do so in the future. ______ would do well to heed my words. ______ thinks me an arrogant fool, feh. The Heir also selects three Heir's Customs: Foraging When you forage for herbs or food, roll +Wisdom. On a 10+, you gain some healing herbs (2 uses, Healing, Slow), or some berries and meat (3 uses, Food), your choice. On a 7-9, choose one:
How Dare You When someone insults you to your face, you may immediately attempt to Finish Them or Speak Softly to them. If you try to Finish Them, you do not need an advantage. If you Speak Softly, ask two questions without rolling. Their outburst told you everything you needed to know. Foreign Exchange You have spent a lot of time among the allies of your nation, so much so they practically raised you. Gain a Core move from any basic playbook. You may also gain an Agenda fro mthe chosen playbook. This move cannot be Shared. Long Live The Queen When someone rolls to defend you from harm, they are filled with Hope. When you take damage while a companion is with you, they will always take the damage for you. Noble Bearing Your comamnding presence is second to know. When one of your companion's stats would become damaged, you may damage one of your stats instead. Once per scene, when you are in dire need, you may erase one of your Bonds to have the person listed in that bond appear at your side. This move cannot be Shared. Parry! Counter! Thrust! When you fight an enemy one on one in melee, you may Keep Them Busy as if you rolled a 10+. Quiet! Don't Move... When you duck aside and stay silent and still, enemies will never spot you until you leave your position. You may hide an ally as well, so long as you hold up a hand, warning them to silence, and they do not speak. Strike True When you could Finish Them in combat, instead of rolling, you may strike a decisive blow. Choose one, and tell us how you do it:
Heir's Fellowship When you get Fellowship with a community of the Her's people, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: Allies of My People A neighboring community is allies with this one, and you gain Fellowship with them as well. You will receive that Fellowship and Recover as soon as you get there. Ancestral Spirits Your deeds have awakened the spirits of your ancestors, who had been laid to rest here. These ghostly spirits will haunt any minions of the Overlord who attempt to enter this place, driving them out and causing them great harm. This place will never fall to the Overlord. Granted Nobility You have been given a villa within the city limits. The villa comes with a small contingent of servants to watch the place while you are away. Decide which of you owns the villa - that player gains a title, such as Duke or Countess, and they hold political sway within this community and among those that respect this community. Many Died For This Information You are told the location of a Source of Power that hte Overlord doesn't have yet, and you are also told the location of a Source of Power that the Overlord has already. One of them is quite close by, your choice which. Royal Protection When you leave this community, each member of the fellowship leaves with a Bodyguard. Each player has one Bond with one Bodyguard. The Lost Histories Every player learns a single closely guarded secret of your people. You will tell us what you learned when the time is right. These secrets can be anything, but they must be related to the law, the old legends, the empires of the world, or this community's culture in some way. Next time: The Orc! Mors Rattus fucked around with this message at 21:01 on Sep 16, 2015 |
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Sep 16, 2015 20:50
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gradenko_2000 posted:What you guys were saying about how there's a Luck mechanic to add a die roll when the die roll is already supposed to represent an element of chance reminds me of yet another rule in 3.5 Unearthed Arcana: Because that's what a game with a base d20 mechanic needs: more randomness.
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Sep 16, 2015 21:23
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Kurieg posted:The book in question is Monstrous Regiment. Mors Rattus posted:Fellowship!
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Sep 16, 2015 21:50
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Kurieg posted:The book in question is Monstrous Regiment. Ah, thanks for the title drop! Alien Rope Burn posted:Because that's what a game with a base d20 mechanic needs: more randomness. What if you roll another d20 and cross-refrence the result with your total modifier to find out which die to roll on top of your original d20?
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Sep 16, 2015 22:27
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Falconier111 posted:You're really enthusiastic about this game, aren't you? It's not my kind of game but I kind of want to buy it anyway now. So much so that I'm running it right now, yes.
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Sep 16, 2015 22:50
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Fellowship: Blood and honor! The Orc is a fighter. Orcs are never happy to just leave things be, and orc society is always about progress. The Orc is a warrior with the tools to fight and win. They can destroy anything, they're creative and spontaneous, and they often lash out at those who have wroned and judged them. Also, they are big and violent. Orcs always have Blood +2. Agenda Choose one of:
All Orcs get the following moves: The Fires of Industry As long as you have enough time and destroy something in the process, you can always craft an orc-made weapon of your own design. Orc-made weapons are Clumsy in any hands but an Orc's, and they are ugly to all but Orcs. The weapon is Melee. Weapons you make are not added to your Gear - they are temporary and must be replaced if lost or damaged. Dishonor Before Death When you strike out against an equal with intent to kill, you may roll to Finish Them without holding an advantage over them. If you do, break your weapon. What is an Orc? The Orc chooses one of the following to represent their people:
The Orc gets some strange jerky (Food, 3 Uses) and two Orc-Made weapons, as per the Fires of Industry move They also get one of:
The Orc starts with 4 bonds with the other members of the Fellowship. Suggestions: ______ seeks power like mine, but is not yet ready. ______ and I are bound by blood, shared or otherwise. I have destroyed something that ______ loved. ______ thinks me a savage. I will show them how savage I can be. The Orc also selects three Orc Customs: Bloodhound When you follow a trail or track someone whose trail isn't cold, roll +Blood. On a 10+, you find them quickly, and they do not know they were followed. On a 7-9, choose one: Either you find them quickly, or they do not know they were followed. Brutally Cunning When you Keep Them Busy by lashing out with your weaponry, roll +Blood instead of Half-Orc You are not completely Orc. Gain a Core move from any basic playbook. You may also gain an Agenda fro mthe chosen playbook. This move cannot be Shared. Smell Fear When you Look Closely at a person, so closely it makes them uncomfortable, intimidated, or uspet, you may ask questions from both the Speak Softly and the Look Closely lists, and you can ask one more question than your roll would normally allow. Iron Stomach You can eat things no one else would ever try to. When you Fill Your Belly, you may spend Uses from anything as if they had the Food tag. Self-Orctualized Choose two options from the final list of your GeaR (strong as an ox, tough as nails, scary as hell, or cunning as can be). Both of those options are added to your Gear permanently. You cannot choose an option you already took during initial Gear selection. Shaman When you draw upon the hidden power of the orcs, choose a spell from below, then mark it. You cannot use a spell while it is marked. When you Fill Your Belly, you may use 1 extra Food to remove a mark from one spell. When you Recover, remove all marks on your spells.
The Sweat of Your Brow When you create a weapon for yourself, choose an enhancement for the weapon from this list:
Orcish Fellowship When you get Fellowship with a community of Orcs, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: Orcish Hospitality When you arei n this community, you find that orcs will follow you everywhere you go. They watch your back, shut doors behind you, and will make sure you are never followed. If they spot anything fishy, they let you know immediately, and if you want, they'll ctake care of it for you real quick, no sweat. It is impossible for you to be attacked or caught off-guard as long as you are here, and an instant militia will show up if you ever get in trouble. Don't Knock It 'Til You Try It The fellowship can use orc-made weapons as though they were all orcs - they are not clumsy in your hands, and while they may not be beautiful, you can admire their effectiveness. The orcs here will also give you as many orc-made weapons as you like, free of charge. Shady Dealings You've got an in with the most powerful orc(s) in town. They can get you just about anything you need, if the price is right. At any time, you can revoke your Fellowship here to cash in and get anything you want from them - a major favor, a massive vehicle, serious funding, anything - and they will make it happen. If you somehow manage to pay them back, regain your Fellowship here. The Secret Weapon You are given a Siege Tank, to do with as you please. Tusks of Steel When you leave this community, you are given a fully outfitted war elephant, with a riding platform, armor and bladed tusks. War Boyz When you leave this community, two Big Lugs come with you. Two members of the fellowship each gain one bond with one of them. Next time: The Squire!
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Sep 16, 2015 23:07
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Falconier111 posted:You're really enthusiastic about this game, aren't you? It's not my kind of game but I kind of want to buy it anyway now. It can be yours! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1552912590/fellowship-a-tabletop-adventure-game
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Sep 16, 2015 23:52
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I love that nearly every human in Fellowship is a black woman. It's an excellent change of pace.
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Sep 16, 2015 23:59
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Fellowship: Taters! The Squire is unique because they're not unique. They share the culture of one of the other heroes of the Fellowship. They also weren't supposed to be here. They tagged along, maybe to carry bags or track horses. They look out for everyone, make sure the trip goes well and is always getting in over their head. They're the underdog and unlikely hero, a support type and often the quiet one in the back until they're needed. The Squire shares ownership of the culture they're from with the other hero from that culture, but from the other direction - where the other hero is from the top, the Squire is from the bottom, the poor and the undertrodden. They always have Sense +2. Agenda Choose one of:
All Squires get the following moves: Quick to Judge When you meet someone for the first time, you may immediately gain a Bond with them based on your first impression of them. This includes the Fellowship - write a Bond for each of them sometime during the first session, in addition to the four Bonds you start with. Please, Just Listen when you Talk Sense to someone, you may erase a Bond with them instead of making a strong argument, or instead of paying a price for them on a 7-9. It's Dangerous to Go Alone When you follow someone into danger and keep your eyes peeled for trouble, roll +sense. On a 10+, gain 2 Safety points. On a 7-9, you gain 1 Safety point. You can spend 1 point of Safety to protect them from harm - shove them out of the way, warn them just in time, block an attack, that sort of thing. On a 6-, you gain 1 Safety anyway, but when you spend it, you take the harm that they avoided. You lose all of your Safety points as soon as you get through the danger or they choose to stop moving forward. What is your purpose? The Squire chooses one of the following to represent why they joined the fellowship:
The Squire gets some simple food (Food, 5 Uses), traveler's gear (3 Uses, Useful) and a simple sword (Melee). In addition, choose one Gear option from the playbook whose People you share. Also, they brought one thing to keep them safe:
The Squire starts with 4 bonds with the other members of the Fellowship. Suggestions: I have _____'s back, no matter what. I am of _____'s people, so they look out for me. I hope I can trust _____, but I have my doubts. I've never seen someone like ______ before. The Squire also selects two Squire's Customs: Apprentice When you work alongside someone you have a Bond with, you can dedicate yourself to making them look good. They are filled with Hope for all rolls as long as you stick right by their side, but whenever they pay a price or roll a 6-, you must pay a price as well. I've Got A Bad Feeling About This When you're certain something's wrong here, you may ask the Overlord to tell you the safest way out, and also the quickest way out. They will answer truthfully. I Won't Let You Down! When you Keep Them Busy and get a 7-9, you may pay a price to take the 10+ result instead. My Heritage Gain any move from the playbook whose People you share. You may also gain an Agenda from their playbook. This move cannot be Shared. Power of Friendship Your Bonds have the tags Precious and Useful, and you can Use them by erasing them. This move cannot be Shared. Run For It When you run right through trouble and hope for the best, roll +Courage. On a 10+, you get through completely unharmed. On a 7-9, choose one:
Voice of Reason You alone are the voice of reason in this insane world. When you offer advice to another player and they ignore it, you take +1 to the next roll you make to bail them out of whatever mess they got themselves into. We'll Make It When an ally would Fill Their Belly while they have no Food, you may erase one of your Bonds with them. If you do, they heal as though they had spent food. A Stranger Fellowship When you get Fellowship with a stranger community, the game suggests the following possible Fellowship moves: Big Friend The Ogre who lives here has grown attached to you, and decided to come with. One of you has two Bonds with it. Blessings of Fire The fire elementals who live here have given you their blessing. You all gain supernatural resistance to heat and flame, enough to survive far greater temperatures than you should be able to. In addition, one of you is given a powerful weapon of fire (Ranged, Dangerous, Reload) that ignites whatever it strikes. Dedicated to the Cause When you leave this community, a Small Army comes with you. Everyone in the fellowship has one Bond with them. When you Fill Your Belly, you may Use 1 Food to heal the Small Army. Ghost Town When you gain the Fellowship of sole person in this community, they fade away into nothingness. The entire town is now yours, with all its fortifications and riches, but the ghosts still linger here to attack those who would mean you harm. Upgraded Flesh The cyborgs of this community have agreed to share their gifts with you. They will give robotic prosthetics to any of the fellowship that need or want them. The prosthetics function just as well as the old flesh did, but they have abilities that the flesh simply does not. Anyone who gains a prosthetic adds Robotic Bits (2 Uses, Useful) to their Gear. Zombie House When you leave this community, each member of fellowship has two Zombies leave with them. These zombies will not attack anyone in the fellowship and they will follow your commands, but no one has any Bonds with them. If any zombie's Simpleton Hivemind is damaged, all their Simpleton Hiveminds become damaged. Next time: The Fellowship in play!
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Sep 17, 2015 00:44
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Thanks Mors Rattus you fiend  This F&F was so entertaining and Fellowship sounds so cool I backed it.
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Sep 17, 2015 01:01
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If you're really interested in playing Fellowship, check out the game thread I linked above! Fellowship: Incompletion!  The next chapter isn't actually finished being written yet, but it discusses how the group should flesh out the world and their home cultures, and how much depth you want to go into for that, with the extremes being 'draw actual, literal maps' and 'do just enough to get a feel for it.' It then talks about three potential ways to open the game. The first is In Media Res - you start in the middle of the first exciting encounter of the quest, whatever that is. It's good for jumping in, but not so great at setting initial stakes or tone. The second is The Forming - the game starts with the meeting that brought the fellowship together, with formal introductions and discussing what everyone knows of the Overlord, what has to be done, and what the plan is. It's good for establishing things, but kind of a slow open - though it's a good way to turn establishing lore into part of the game. Last? The Dire Threat. The game opens before the fellowship forms, with the Overlord attacking somewhere with at least half the fellowship in it. Players can try to fight, but divided and against a fully powered Overlord, they will lose, period. The Overlord won't even care about them. It's good for establishing the Overlord and their motives...but it also opens on a definite loss, which is a downer.  The next chapter discusses Destinies. When you go on your quest long enough, you'll start to find your true self. You become something more than you were, something legendary. You get a Destiny - an advanced playbook, which you can't take until you've had four advances (and so are level 5). You also have to meet its requirements, but you can take any Destiny whose requirements you do meet - so you don't have be the Dwarf to become the Ur-Dwarf, as long as you meet its normal requirements. You only get one Destiny, though, so choose carefully. Once you do, you can take that Destiny's advances when you level instead of your normal ones, if you want. You can never go above level 10, though! The Ascended has become more than they were, having taken a Source of Power into themselves. To become one, you must have taken a Source of Power for yourself. They start with the following move: Font of Power You have become a Threat to the World. When you unleash the massive power contained within you, you may take two damage to Destroy Them. Tell us what this means and what this looks like. No other Ascended moves exist yet. The Chosen One, meanwhile, requires that everyone agree that you're plot-important to success. They get the following move: Destiny Child You never need to pay a price when facing a Threat to the World. You can also Command Lore about the various prophecies and legends about you, letting us know more details as they become important. No other Chosen One moves yet. The Cyborg requires you to have a prosthetic limb or other body part which you have decided to tinker with. They start with the following move: Robotics You have improved yourself. You have many Useful Robot Bits (4 Uses, Armor, Useful) added to your Gear. No other Cyborg moves yet. The Elven Elite requires Grace +2 and Touch the World Lightly. They start with the following move: Serenity When you walk calmly without causing any harm, wild beasts, dangerous monsters, enemy soldiers, hazardous terrain, treacherous traps, and surly dwarves cannot harm you. Elven Elite Customs can be taken as you level: Champion of the Old Ways Elven communities will always welcome you with open arms, granting you Fellowship immediately with them if you do not already have it. Evil's Bane You are a Weakness for the Overlord. Whenever you make a move against the Overlord, you can ignore one of their Threats to the World. Hand of Silver You are capable of crafting glorious magical items. It will be expensive and require exotic materials, but it can be done, at great personal cost. When you forge such an item, describe it to us, then choose two:
Hypnotic Command Requires Elder Arts Add the following option to the Elder Arts list:
Perfect Grace Requires Poetry in Motion You move without effort, anywhere you need to be. You can walk or run along any surface, including sheer cliffs, ceilings, lava, or drops of rain falling from the sky, and you always roll with Hope to Get Away. Next time: This can't possibly be a bad idea!
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Sep 17, 2015 02:01
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Fellowship: Incompletion! The End of Days requires Doom +2 and Do Not Trifle With Wizards. It gets the following move: Are We Not The Same, You And I? You are a Threat to the World, just as dangerous as the Overlord, if not more so. Choose one:
While you have this move, you cannot harm the Overlord. If they make you An Offer You Can't Refuse, you must accept it. When you are exposed to the Overlord's Weakness, you lose this move for the rest of the scene. When the Overlord Twists the Knife on you, you will always both stand down and pay a price. End of Days Customs can be taken as you level: Devil's Toys You are capable of crafting terrifying magical items. It will be expensive and require exotic materials, but it can be done, at great personal cost. When you forge such an item, describe it to us, then choose two:
It's The End of the World as We Know It You are never in Despair when rolling Doom, even if it is damaged. Twist The Knife When you speak to someone you have a Bond with, you can erase that Bond to cause them great pain. They must immediately pay a price, stand down and get out of your way, or attack you, right now, their choice. Wall of Force Requires Wizardry Add the following option to the Wizardry list:
We Are Not The Same When you challenge the Overlord or one of their Generals, you can choose to take a pyrrhic victory. If you do, damage all of your stats and permanently remove one of their Threats to the World. Tell us about the incredible display of power this requires of you, and what this looks like in action. After you use this move once, it is gone forever. The Firebrand solves problems with fire. In fact, that's the requirement: you have solved at least three problems with fire. They start with the following move: Firestarter You always have the materials and fuel for creating a fire. You can produce flint and steel, matches, fuses, rags, molotov cocktails, small kegs of black-powder or oil, and fire arrows on demand. You can always declare that something suddenly bursts into flame, if you could have conceivably planted fuel and materials beforehand. No other Firebrand moves yet. The Halfling Sheriff requires Courage +2 and Sting Like A Bee. They start with the following move: Slippery Bugger You can squeeze out of any chains, ropes, or handcuffs binding you, through any small windows, jammed doors, or tight spaces in your way, and away from any grabby hands, clumsy orcs, or monster's jaws trying to catch you, all without making a roll to Overcome them. Halfling Sheriff Customs can be taken as you level: Look Over There! Once per scene, when no one's watching you, you can simply disappear. Tells us where you went, and you're there. Mean With A Sling When you Keep Them Busy with a ranged weapon and get a 7+, choose one. You're only Mean With A Sling against those who are larger than you.
Sheriff Material Halfling communities will always welcome you with open arms, granting you Fellowship immediately with them if you do not already have it. Size Matters Not As long as they underestimate you because of your size, you take +1 to your rolls against them. Wonder Chef You can cook up a meal from almost nothing, and you make every meal count. Whenever everyone Fills Their Belly, one person doesn't need to spend any Food to eat. Next time: Even more!
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Sep 17, 2015 03:17
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Fellowship: STILL INCOMPLETION! The Knight requires Sense +2 and It's Dangerous To Go Alone. It gets the following move: You Have My Shield When It's Dangerous To Go Alone, you can erase a Bond with the person you are protecting instead of spending Safety. You can use this move even if you haven't rolled for It's Dangerous To Go Alone yet, so long as you are within arm's reach of them and you desire their safety. Knight Customs can be taken as you level: A Proper Knight Add a knight's shield (1 Use, Armor), a Proper Title (2 Uses) and a Warhorse to your Gear. You have one Bond with your Warhorse. You can Use your Title to be instantly recognized as "kind of a big deal." Field Treatment When you treat someone's wounds to the best of your ability, roll +Sense. On a 7+, they heal 1 damage. On a 9-, it doesn't go smoothly - either they damage another stat of their choice, or you take damage to one of your stats from the psychological effects. You can only use this move once per scene. Think It Through When you Overcome a threat using +Sense and get a 7+, one or two of your allies can safely Overcome the threat as well without rolling. On a 12+, everyone can Overcome them without rolling. We Need Your Help! When you go to find help, the Overlord will tell you who you find. If you ask for their aid, roll +Sense. On 10+, all four. On a 7-9, choose two, or pay a price and take all four. Regardless of your choices, they will help you, and they are sufficient to help in a way of your choosing.
You Must Keep Going! When an ally within arm's reach rolls a 6-, you may take all consequences of that roll in their place. If you do, they act as though they got a 7-9 result. The Lord of Beasts is required to have at least three Bonds with animals and Fellowship with a community of animals. It starts with the following move: Queen of the Wild You can Command Lore about the beasts of the wild and their societies. You may Forge a Bond with any wild animal or monstrous beast you meet, describing your first impression of them, and they will serve you. No other Lord of Beasts moves yet. The Orc-Boss requires Blood +2 and Self-Orctualized. They start with the following move: Orc Smash! You can smash through any furniture, wooden doors, simple walls, barricades, weaklings, cowards, and halflings that stand between you and where you wish to go, all without rolling to Overcome them. Orc-Boss Customs can be taken as you level: Defiant To The Last When you are Taken Out, you don't go down until the end of the scene. You can continue to act as you please, and further damage against you does nothing. This does not stop the Overlord from making An Offer You Can't Refuse. Evil's Heart Your attacks are Necrotic and Dangerous. Sixth Sense When you pause to pay attention, you always know exactly how many people are around you and roughly what direction from you each of them is. This sixth sense will detect people in hiding and even invisible or incorporeal presences, although not their exact locations. You always know when you are being watched. Slash and Burn When everything around is chaos and fire, you are filled with Hope. The Biggest and Smashiest Orc communities will always welcome you with open arms, granting you Fellowship immediately with them if you do not already have it. The Rebel requires you to have had at least three moves shared with you, and is about rejecting your people and their ways to carve your own path. It has no moves yet at all. Next time: Almost to the Overlord!
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Sep 17, 2015 04:00
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Fellowship: HAIL BIG FIRE! ALLEGIANCE OR DEATH! The Ur-Dwarf requires Iron +2 and Clear A Path. It gets the following move: Mountain Stance When you defend a choke point by yourself and resolve to let no one through, no monster, vehicle, army, boulder, explosion, dragon, Overlord, or elf can get past you, so long as you remain standing and alert. Ur-Dwarf Customs can be taken as you level: Dig Too Deep Requires Dig Deep You can Clear the Path to create a tunnel through any material, no matter how impossible - steel, lava, diamonds, fog, water, the open sky, a boat, anything. Foehammer When you could Finish Them, instead of rolling, you may simply destroy something your target holds - their armor, their weapon, their pride, a few of their bones, or something they carry, your choice. Forge Master You are capable of crafting magnificent magical items. It will be expensive and require exotic materials, but it can be done, at great personal cost. When you forge such an item, describe it to us, then choose two:
Greed Is Eternal Requires Greed Is Good When you absolutely must kill them yourself, you can declare a person's life to be the object of your greed. When you choose an object of your greed, you heal 1 damage. Lord Under The Mountain Dwarven communities will always welcome you with open arms, granting you Fellowship immediately with them if you do not already have it. The Warlord is required to have Wisdom +2 and Parry! Counter! Thrust!, and starts with the following move: The Warrior's Path You move effortlessly through the battlefield, your enemy's movements as predictable as pawns on a chessboard. When you Overcome a battlefield, a war zone, or enemies trying to stop you, you always take the 10+ result, without rolling. Warlord Customs can be taken as you level: Fell Blow Requires Strike True When you could Finish Them with a melee weapon, you may choose to kill them instead of rolling. Invincible General You never take damage from ordinary physical attacks. A Threat to the World can still physically harm you, and high powered explosives or artillery can also harm you, but anything short of that is useless. The Fellowship's Armies Choose an option from the Overlord's Armies list. You have taken command of an army of the chosen option. Wherever your Army goes, it negates the ability of a single Threat to the World in its location. It can stand toe-to-toe with the Overlord's army, it can hold off a General indefinitely, and it can weaken the Overlord themselves if need be. To The Gates Of Hell Itself Your Companions will never erase their last Bond with you. You Will Not Die This Day When an ally gets Taken Out and you dramatically rush to their side, you may share words with them, and nothing will interrupt you. Afterwards, they choose one:
 Meet the Overlord. The Overlord isn't like other playbooks. You need someone to play it, for one, every game. It can never be unplayed. Being the Overlord's a lot of work - it's a lot like being the GM, really. The Overlord has their own Principles and Agendas. The Overlord never rolls dice - ever. The Overlord can use several Cuts, whether or not they are around. Cuts, in this sense, are tools to shape the story, the world and the fellowship's journey, and it's the Overlord's job to use them whenever the fellowship looks to them for what happens next. However, the Overlord uses the same rules for leveling up as everyone else. The Overlord is included in the count of who the highest level player is, and can't be chosen to level if they're higher level than anyone in the fellowship. The Overlord doesn't have the same stats as everyone else, though. Instead, they have Threats to the World, and when they are damaged, they temporarily lose a Threat. Their goal is to gain more Threats to the World, and the Fellowship's goal is to cut them off from their Threats and stop them. The Overlord need not be present to influence the scenes of the game, and will in fact be off-screen most of the time. Oh, and one more thing. The Overlord is going to lose. The Fellowship wins, at the end of the day. But the Overlord's going to make them fight for it and it's going to take some heroic sacrifices. Agendas
And one more, selected as part of the playbook. We'll talk about the Overlord's Cuts and Principles in a bit - they get listed here, but described in more detail later. The Overlord's Plan The Overlord's got a mission. Each gives them an Agenda an extra Cut to use. Pick one.
All that gives you an overarching goal and a rough outline for what you do and why. The players are going to run into the aftermath of your poo poo a lot, so keep it consistent with the game plan. As long as tragedy or change will further the plan, you can justify anything. When the players go where you've caused trouble, make sure it's immediately apparent. Let them know something's wrong, and how things have been changed by your power. Let them see the consequences of letting you run amok, and then see what they do about it. Next time: The Overlord's Moves.
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Sep 17, 2015 04:38
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Yes, okay, I don't think there's any real question about the team name. Age of Worms, The Champion's Belt   All the modules start out with these full-page illustrations. I just wanted to share this one, in particular, because it suggests that, if this was really based on the Paizo team's test campaign, they screwed up rather badly. More on that later. So: our heroes have a dilemma. Their plan of "killing anyone not-themselves mentioned in the correspondence of people they've killed" has only one entry left, and that entry is Raknian, who turns out to be a rather well-liked public figure, a former gladiator who's running the annual Champion's Games. Oh, and the champions last time? Our rival adventuring team. This is the first time He-Man and Evil Wizard have been relevant, so I should probably mention their names are Auric and Khellek, respectively. Auric the fighter is the team leader and well-loved recognized champion of last year's games. Khellek is literally an evil wizard and has little other distinguishing features. Rather than immediately attack Raknian, the PCs are going to have dinner with Eligos and his (N male elf expert 2) servant. Eligos shares what he's learned and gives back the random detritus the heroes have determined are Clues. Short version: the Age of Worms is the End Times with a fancy name, Kyuss is a minor deity of undead, Kyuss is the source of several types of weird undead, and all this is mentioned in some dark texts like the Necronomicon and the Apostolic Scrolls. Yes, same Apostolic Scrolls the PCs discovered Raknian purchased.  So it's time to join the Champion's Games and use them as cover to investigate Raknian. Luckily, he's going to be too distracted trying to kill the heroes and run the games to notice that the heroes are joining the games. No, really, that's the logic. Eligos puts the PCs in contact with his friend Celeste (who, incidentally, made a cameo in the last adventure path, Shackled City, and I believe has a larger role in the next, Savage Tide), and Celeste puts them in contact with her friend Ekaym. She then runs out of the campaign and will not be seen again this game. Thanks for your invaluable contribution, Celeste. It couldn't have worked without you. Ekaym is loud and upfront about his desires here: he wants a team of gladiators who might win, because winning will give him money and let him meet women. He wants 50% of the prize, but a fairly easy Diplomacy check later and he's willing to take just a share, same as any PC. Hm, that was suspiciously easy. Oh, well, I'm sure it's nothing. The Games, luckily, are fairly varied. It's five days long, with the fighters doing something on four of the days: first day is a four-team free-for-all, second is rest, third is a single match, fourth is an exhibition against a monster, and last is the final, another single match. Ekaym goes over the rules (no flying higher than 40 ft, no killing people who surrender (it's okay if they die first), no looting the dead, don't shoot at the audience, find a team name), and they go off to join the dinner event that kicks this off. At the dinner, Roger takes a moment to look at Raknian, and makes his Sense Motive check. Raknian has an unusual interest in them! No poo poo, Sherlock. Of more interest is when Roger looks at Ekaym and realizes Ekaym has some hidden interest in Raknian. And then Tirra shows up. She's in an evening gown this time, and isn't here as a fighter; she's here as a member of the Thieves' Guild, offering a 2500-gp-now-and-we'll-pay-you-7500-when-you-win deal. It's actually upfront; they just need the money to run it through bookies. She also makes a personal appeal that the PCs not actually kill Auric and Khellek. She might not want to brawl for no reason, but they're her friends. All of this is good stuff for roleplaying. I like this scene. Gladiators have to remain on the premises during the Games, so after this they're led to their rooms underneath the arena. The PCs get to hear bits of gossip and rumors about other teams and their abilities and exploits, and another bit that suggests that at one point there were ghouls in the south area of these tunnels, but Raknian dealt with them and plugged up the entrance to their lair. Now it's time for the another scene, one with more combat relevance. The PCs meet the three other teams they're going to be brawling with. There's a team of four elven archer women who are surly when approached by men, a barbarian/druid with a couple of gnolls who's got a mild ecoterrorist thing going on, and a swashbuckler janni with a couple of mercenaries who's the most approachable and friendly of the groups. The elves and janni are both potential allies, in a "let's deal with each other last" sort of way. The janni, Korush, just wants to show off, and he's willing to teach the PCs a spectacularly lame feat they can add to their possible options next time they level up:  But he's here to show off, especially to women, and when the elves brush him off, he tries to ply his charm on Cleo, instead. Cleo is equally dismissive, and with Roger to support her, she goes to make friends with the surly elves. Korush accepts this with admirable good humor, and the ecoterrorists don't really care any which way. The time comes to battle. Now, why did Cleo insist on trying to ally with the elves, rather than the easier-to-team-up-with Korush? Because they're more powerful and more numerous. The battle proceeds pretty much as you might expect: elves and Cheese Dudes take down the other teams, as a couple of gnolls and a mounted team aren't going to carry the day, and that leaves a raging wildshaped crocodile as the sole target for seven people. When the Cheese Dudes turn to the elves, all they have to deal with is a handful of fighter 5s and one arcane archer leader. The Cheese Dudes are ninth level, and this free-for-all is their only fight of the day. It's kind of a foregone conclusion.  After the fight, the party meets again with Ekaym, who shares his story. His sister, Lahaka, disappeared last year. She might have been Raknian's lover before that, in his brotherly suspicions. He's hit a dead end, and needs someone to dig in the areas under the arena. He's able to bring in a lot of free daily healing magic for the PCs, run to Ye Olde Magic Shoppe if they need, and will turn over his share of the winnings, too, if they'll just look for Lahaka. Sounds good. The party has the second day of the games free, since during this day the show is more like a circus than bloodsports. So, while the party is also free to do this before or after their fights on days 3 and 4, the PCs head off to explore the arena underground on day 2. Officially, they can't be here, but a pretty hefty Diplomacy check (DC 35) or a pittance of money (50 gp) will let them get past guards without being turned in, as would actual stealth. I'm not going to lie: the maps here are confusing me. I'm not sure if that's a problem on my end or the fact that the maps are unintentionally confusing or if the map is intentionally confusing because the PCs are supposed to prowl around the warrens to find the interesting things while hiding from guards and balancing time pressure for the actual games, and the whole thing is sprawling and several repurposed things stacked on top of each other to make that hard. Also... much isn't very interesting. Out of necessity, then, we're going to assume that the PCs find their way to the Shrine of Kyuss. Yes, there's an actual mini-dungeon here. The party comes upon three spawn of Kyuss, a clear sign that a) yes, Raknian is really in deep on something very bad and b) hey, dig around more here! How about a mohrg and six more spawn?  Okay, time for the boss fight of the dungeon. Raknian's copy of the Apostolic Scrolls are here. The Scrolls are generating a weird sphere of force that's holding a strange undead monster a little further on. And Raknian has a tiefling cleric ally here, who's meditating on the scrolls and communing with the giant undead worm in a magic unhallow/silence field. That sounds like Roger's cue! Assisted by the villain's own Silence effect, said cleric is pretty effortlessly ganked. Could be a very rough fight for a party that came up on him when he wasn't distracted and could buff himself before a fight properly. A level 11 cleric is a pretty impressive bruiser if given a chance for Divine Power and so on. In his room, he has a trunk warded with a pretty impressively overpowered trap: Will DC 20 to only suffer 2 Con damage instead of suffering a nasty protracted death phrased such that you can't be raised. He also has a zombie. It's Lahaka. She was personally strangled by Raknian (for reasons the party couldn't ever reasonably uncover, but which comes down to "another man, the whore") and the evidence is tremendously clear; it even has a perfect print of Raknian's identifying ring on her throat. Well, resurrecting her is rather far beyond the party's capabilities. But they can de-animate the zombie and give Ekaym the body, at least. He might eventually be able to pay for her resurrection. If only he wasn't spending all his money on the PCs, haha. Cripes, this is a pretty miserable subplot and I think it's getting to me. There's also a demon in another room that's been called as a planar ally, and it ambushes the PCs with the aid of a symbol of fear trap. To the annoyance of the party, though, the only further thing in this direction is that after the demon's room there's a lavatory where the party can loot a 30 gp silver pitcher. Eh, money's money. The only thing left, now, is the urgulstasta, the giant undead worm. The Apostolic Scrolls summoned this, and now it's being kept here until the climax of the games where it'll burst out and enact its foul ritual. Or it would have, if the tiefling cleric weren't killed before releasing it. Now the only way to get it out of there is high-level arcane magic or a tolerably simple turn undead check. The party, starting to get worn down on resources, considers what to do. Cleo very reasonably points out that it's stuck behind a loving wall of force, also known as "you can't get past it by anything but magic". Haha, it's stuck. Why not rest up and come down here tomorrow to finish it off? So, in another classic shoutout to their first adventure, the party drags Lahaka's corpse up to present to Ekaym next time they see him. Well, it's time for the next round of combat. The Cheese Dudes are up against Pitch Blade, a pair of dwarven barbarians with a pretty humorous strategy: they'll quaff potions of flight, rage, and fly at the PCs like little dwarven death copters, whirling around their +1 flaming adamatine bastard swords. This team was specifically chosen by Raknian to kill the party, and these two know to focus on the toughest PC, Cleo, since they want to take out the party healing since they're a tough enough fight that... wait, Will +4? Wally waves his hands and the dwarves never even touch her.  A cheer goes up "Cheese! Dudes! Wal! Lee! Cheese! Dudes! Wal! Lee!" Raknian is angry about this and somehow also surprised. Ekaym drops by again, the heroes hand over their grisly find, Ekaym is devastated but at least satisfied that the Cheese Dudes have given him closure. Once he's properly left to his grief, the heroes go kill that urgulstasta. Raknian has no idea what is happening there; his deal with the cleric didn't include any interaction until the urgulstasta was supposed to burst through the arena floor at the final battle and eat Tirra's friend Auric, which would spread hideous amounts of undead throughout the Free City due to a fell ritual and transform Raknian into a death knight. That will no longer be a concern. Day 4 arrives. The Cheese Dudes are slated to fight a giant monster in an exhibition match. The evening before/the morning of, guards in the sleeping chambers stage a deliberately-overheard conversation about the frost salamander that is vulnerable to fire that the party will face. The PCs go out the next day ready to fight a frost salamander. The handlers of the monster, known as Madtooth, have to delay; Madtooth is intractable, and the time it takes is deliberately timed to let buffs expire on the PCs. Finally, Madtooth is released onto the field. Madtooth turns out to be a FROGHEMOTH.  It's remarkable resistant to fire, as you might have expected. This monster has +14 fort and +17 will, so it's comparatively resistant to Wally's wiles. Luckily, it's not immune to fiendish giant crocodiles and other flashy summons from Wally, and Cleo didn't deploy her Divine Power and Righteous Might until right when the monster was being dragged in, so given that this is the only fight the PCs will have today this is still a pretty foregone conclusion, but the spectacle is certainly what the crowd paid to see, and they are going crazy for Wally and the Cheese Dudes. Auric's team defeats Dom's pick of the other teams, the last one in contention, (he picks Druken Devilry, a team that's EL 6 and... that's all we know about them) in what was probably a hellish experience. Since we don't know the team's stats, we can't even beer to watch. One last night. The PCs wouldn't know about it, but Raknian goes to check on his cleric ally now, and is rather horrified to find that all his effort to get undead immortality has gone for naught, so he actually just packs up and... leaves. We might see him again later, but the poor man is so crushed he doesn't even see the games through to their completion.  Pictured: someone who crossed the PCs and walked away alive Now it's time for the final showdown. He-Man and Evil Wizard have leveled up from when the PCs first met them; they were level 5 then, but level 10 now, and they've got the backing of three flesh golems to make for a real fight. This could actually be a show-stopper, to be honest; if Khellek the wizard gets a feeblemind off on Wally, the party might have no choice but to back down and take a loss. Of course, going the other way, Khellek has the sort of bad saves that means he'd go down without too much difficulty if that didn't happen. And Wally can throw on some spell resistance or what-have-you as a solution. A fighter isn't going to win after that, even with some golems on his side. Not against a party dumping summon monsters or Walls of Whatever on him. Auric gives in. Raknian's plot has been defeated. The heroes are feted as the gladiator champions, the undead threat was never even discovered by most people, the rivals have been thoroughly shamed, and this time it looks like evil has gone down for good. There's no more looming threats to take care of now! Smug with triumph, the heroes return to their friend Eligos, anxious to show off their winnings and... oh, drat, Raknian had him killed while the Games went on. And his (N male elf expert 2) servant. The fiend! Well, the heroes go through his notes. Yes, of course they read his mail. He's dead, what else do you do with dead people? Raise them from the dead? Cleo asks Dom if she can. Dom's brow wrinkles. He reads the relevant page a couple of times. Finally, he shrugs. No, don't raise your friend, even though you know he'd be good for the material component since, you know, he's rich. Nope, let's just take his notes and ominous, half-written letter to Allustan back to Allustan. That's better than letting him finish up and having him be alive to answer questions. The idea of raising Eligoes and/or (N male elf expert 2) servant is never brought up, which is really weird given that this is the first adventure where the PCs are supposed to have access to that capability. Oh, well.
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Sep 17, 2015 05:50
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PurpleXVI posted:My mental image is that by this practically all of the knights are women, all of them keeping up the pretense of being male, and somehow no one's caught on yet. The Knight That Was Thursday Also, Mors, your write-up of Fellowship is great as well as your other write-ups. Keep up the good work!
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Sep 17, 2015 08:19
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Have you ever noticed that almost every adventure for stuff like Pathfinder never takes rezzing into account?
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Sep 17, 2015 08:22
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Heck, there's a pretty large chunk of adventures that don't even take basic healing spells into account. How many times has the adventure hook been something like "critically wounded knight/adventurer/dragon/etc) begs PCs to accept his important quest shortly before dying", ignoring the possibility of the cleric slapping them in the face with a CLW mid-speech.
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Sep 17, 2015 08:25
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How does Self-Orctulized actually work? The items you get have uses, but it makes two of them permanent? So you can just keep using them? Or you still have limited uses but they recharge somehow?
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Sep 17, 2015 09:10
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Cypher System Corebook, part 4 Spending XP Just as the game tries to innovate on how XP is awarded, it also tries to innovate on how XP is used. That is, it's not just used to advance in You can spend 1 XP to reroll any result. You can go back and use the first roll if that was better, or you can even use more than 1 XP to reroll the same task multiple times. The fact that you can spend XP by itself carries certain design issues, but this use of it in particular is interesting to say the least. We established previously that a player should supposedly gain about 6 XP per session, and now you’re spending a sizable chunk of that and you’re not even guaranteed that it’s going to work. To compare, there’s a Military Occupational Specialization mechanic in Night’s Black Agents where you can invoke a once-per-session automatic success for one specific skill that you’re specialized in, and even that says you can’t use it to automatically succeed at something supernatural. To bring it back to Cypher, by its own description not even a task difficulty 10 should be able to defy physics, so there is by implication a similar limitation even if you used this 1 XP feature to automatically succeed at a task, and you’re spending a precious resource to do it. You can spend 1 XP to prevent the GM from making a GM Intrusion. One exception to this is when it comes to certain Descriptors, when the GM can make an Intrusion based on your Descriptor and you cannot prevent it by spending XP. You can spend 2 XP to declare that you're skilled in a particular something for the short- or medium-term. In keeping with what I've said earlier about Cook's hangups regarding setting target numbers: quote:She spends 2 XP and says that she has a great deal of experience in using these. As a result, she is trained in operating (and breaking into) these computers. This is just like being trained in computer use or hacking, but it applies only to computers found in that particular location. The skill is extremely useful in the facility, but nowhere else. This last use of XP I’ll let the book speak for itself: quote:In many ways, the long-term benefits a PC can gain by spending XP are a means of integrating the mechanics of the game with the story. Players can codify things that happen to their characters by talking to the GM and spending 3 XP. For example, a character named Jessica spends a long time working in a kitchen in a restaurant that she believes is owned by a man who works for shapechanging spies from another planet. During that time, she becomes familiar with cooking. Jessica’s player talks with the GM and says that she would like the experience to have a lasting effect on her character. She spends 3 XP and gains familiarity with cooking. Other examples include conjuring an NPC contact, buying the TRPG equivalent of player housing, a title or job, wealth, or an artifact. And then finally the more traditional use of XP as a means of progressing a character’s tier, except even this isn’t designed traditionally. You spend 4 XP to gain one of these features: * 4 points to add your stat pools * Add 1 Edge to any single stat * Increase your Effort by 1 * Either become Skilled at something (reduces task difficulty by 1) or Specialized at something you’re already Skilled at (reduces task difficulty by 2) * Reduce the speed penalty for wearing armor by 1 * Add 2 to your Recovery rolls Once you’ve acquired 4 of these features (or a total of 16 XP), you go up one tier. That unlocks a bunch of new special abilities based on your Role and Focus, and then you get to start over again with acquiring these 4 features. Normally, I’m all for “bennies” that players can spend to make rolls that they really want to succeed at, or to exert narrative control over the story, or to pull a rabbit out of their hat when they really need it, but putting it on the same level as the stuff you need to advance your character in tier just seems both awkward and punishing. I’m not going to dwell on this too much because most reviews of Numenera, including Tulul’s own F&F, have already talked about this, so instead I’m going to talk about how right after this Experience section, we get to the Optional Rules chapter, and nothing happens. That is, Numenera was released in 2013. The Strange was released a year later. The Cypher System Corebook was released this year. The two preceding games already had these issues: having to spend points from your pool and having the pool represent your health didn’t sit well with some players. Having to spend XP to gain in-session benefits fought against wanting to bank XP to level-up your character didn’t sit well with some players. But they never tried to address these issues, even as optional rules. I can see that they merged and imported material from both Numenera and the Strange and their respective supplements into Cypher, but there’s still no mention of what might be done with regards to these fairly divisive design elements within the games.
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Sep 17, 2015 10:50
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How do the Half-Dwarf, Half-Orc ect. moves work? What constitutes a 'core move'?
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Sep 17, 2015 10:59
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They're the ones you always start with if you pick a class, like the Dwarf's Iron stat and the Heir's Royal Treatment or the Orc's Dishonor Before Death.
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Sep 17, 2015 11:12
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So, hold on a second. If star signs in part determine social class, then it follows that higher nobility never have children of certain star signs, or at least do so much more rarely than others. In order to become the firstborn child of a baron, you need a social ranking stat that is high enough to be (baron rank - 1), but the star sign prevents that from happening or at least makes it less likely. Therefore we can infer that barons simply don't have firstborn children of "bad for your social rank" star signs. Right? 
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Sep 17, 2015 11:40
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