First Impressions - Desert Moon of Karth - Mothership RPG (ZineQuest3)

Welcome to the new frontier...

Desert Moon of Karth (hereafter DMK) was one of several ZineQuest Kickstarters for Mothership. It's fair to say that it breaks the mould somewhat, and gives a hint of what Mothership can be if it steps away from the bug hunt and horror genre.

DMK is a black and white staple-bound zine, with 52-pages of content. It has a full-colour cover and the pallet is such that I only realised that the interior was monochrome when I picked it up to write this. It is packed with information, extremely well laid out and well-edited.

Karth is a small moon orbiting the blue gas giant Tabernas, passing into an eclipse phase every 21 days. It is unusually dense, has a breathable atmosphere and shows evidence of both previous human and alien settlements. The moon is a frontier world, mined by the Manian Expeditionary Force (MEF) for the coral-like fossilised remains of an alien species which can be chemically processed for longevity drugs. So not unlike some of the hooks around the planet Poseidon in the Blue Planet RPG. Except that's wet. And much more heavily settled.

The longevity drugs are extremely valuable, and the main settlement, Larstown, has a frontier feel. It's a company town, with the MEF taxing prospectors and buying up their product. They control access to the world, via a small space elevator. You can't land a ship on Karth because there is an automated planetary defence system that shoots down anything between low orbit and 600m altitude. Indeed, this is used as a feature by local law enforcement who shoot people into the air on crude rockets to execute them. The MEF don't control this as it's an Oldtech remnant.

There are two groups surviving from the original human civilisation; the Dawnseekers, a cult that harvests organs to give their leaders extended lives, and their enemies, the Valley Rangers. Naturally, they are rivals and have no love lost. The Dawnseekers are neutral towards the MEF, whereas the Valley Rangers want to prevent damage to the ecology by the newcomers.

So DMK has a great set-up with rival factions that all want something done. Naturally, succeeding at one of these is inevitably going to start to upset the apple cart. There is a fourth faction, in effect, but it would be a spoiler to reveal it; potentially, it will present an ethical dilemma, or the route to a small fortune if you were to survive long enough.

The world is set up as a point-crawl, with random encounter tables. The locations are all interesting and illustrated to a good standard. NPCs are well developed. There are rules for duelling if you fancy a 'High Noon' Western-style gunfight.

There are useful tables (Oldtech artefacts, 'I search the body') to use and inspire. The NPCs and locations have plenty of hooks. There's some guidance on setting up as a one-shot or a more extended mini-campaign.

Overall, this is great. It wouldn't be out of place using Traveller, or even a cyberpunk style RPG. It's a well developed, nicely laid out and evocatively illustrated mini-campaign packed with ideas and potential. Excellent stuff!

30 November 2021

First Impressions - The Dee Sanction: Adventures

The Dee Sanction package as it arrived.

The Dee Sanction: Adventures is a collection of scenarios set in Elizabethan London and beyond which can be linked together into a loose campaign. Funded by Kickstarter, the book is an attractively presented 48-page softcover, with full colour throughout. There are some evocative full-page illustrations and a selection of maps including an annotated two-page extract from the Ossulstone Hundred map that's available separately. Perhaps the only thing that's missing from the collection is page numbering; I'm not sure if it's an oversight or an aesthetic choice but it was more noticeable than I expected. The adventures are short enough that it really doesn't matter.

The six adventures included scratch the itch I had remaining having read the core rules - they give examples of play in England, and London, rather than overseas. This is the heart of the game to me, defending the realm from threats supernatural. "Lost in Translation' always felt like it was more like a special operation rather than the normal bread and butter of an Agent's life.

Each of the adventures presents a unique threat or horror to perplex your Agents and threaten the realm. 'Window of the Soul' deals with corruption and taint and the machinations of a condemned man. 'The Gong Scourer's Baby' deals with an occult threat to the Queen. 'In Fertile Soil' takes the Agents outside London to deal with a case of witchcraft (the crime of which many of them may have been accused).

'The Monk's Cowl' sees the Agents travelling to a market town to address a monstrous threat facing travellers through Waltham Forest, one of the Queen's favoured hunting grounds. 'The Harrowing of Harlow Hall' sees the Agents dispatched on an urgent mission after Dee receives a disturbing letter from the wife of a former Agent. The scenario reaches into body horror and the threat of hell on earth.

The final scenario, 'Ex Libris', sends the Agents in search of a missing volume, stolen when Dee's residence of Mortlake was sacked when he was away travelling in Europe. The School of Night presents an additional threat, as they become drawn into the plot.

Overall, this is an essential addition to the Dee Sanction line, as it gives inspiration and examples of both the breadth of threats Agents can face and how they can manifest. The book is nicely illustrated, well laid out for reference, and provides some great ideas for an ongoing campaign.

Oh, and it's unusual for a Kickstarter as it was delivered early.

Recommended.

28 November 2021

First Impressions - Let Us In (Neo-70s horror in the Lastlands)

Let Us In is very orange!

'Let Us In' is a short (16-page) scenario designed as a one-shot by the author & illustrator of the Ultraviolet Grasslands, Luka Rejec. Published in an unusual size, this is a zine format, 3-colour (black, white and orange) release. It's attractively styled with two decent maps. My copy came with a postcard, showing the opening scene.

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a young student in want of a good inheritance, must visit their rich relatives for the harvest festival.

But what will be the harvest this year?"

'Let Us In' contains a very light system with some pre-generated characters. It's suggested that you tailor them to the system of your choice, but the reality is that there's enough there to run this out of the book.

The setup involves a journey to a remote town to check on Aunt Vira, an older relative who has sent a series of concerned letters to the family in the City.. The family want to be sure that she's alright and that there is no risk to the estate she lives at, so they send a young family member who was raised by her to visit.

Being well-heeled, the family member is sent with a driver, a bodyguard and a friend. The motivations and unique abilities for each are good and should ensure an interesting game session.

There's enough here for a good evening of fun, although I expect that it is unlikely to end well for the characters. It's a fun Halloween release which I may well bring out at a convention at some point. It has a feel of remoteness and isolation. There's a playlist of musical influences that I need to explore on Spotify.

Recommended (print copies via Exalted Funeral).

20 November 2021

Edit - here's the Spotify Playlist from the scenario.

Curse of Strahd - S4 Interlude 2 - On the Nature and Environment of Barovia, notes.

  

A summary of the book which the party found on the Fanes...

On the Nature and Environment of Barovia, notes.

The valley of Barovia was long an uncivilised backwater with a population split between the nature-worshipping Forest Folk and small settlements with a few families present, both surviving against a harsh environment. There was, and still is, a dangerous tension between the townsfolk and Forest Folk which is often stirred up when the imported worship of the Morninglord and the long-held druidic worship of the Three Ladies conflict.

This conflict led to a split in the native population; there were those that tried to coexist (‘the Forest Folk’) and those that retreated to the more remote parts of Barovia (‘the Mountain Folk’) to avoid the newcomers, especially after Count Strahd’s ascendance as a Dark Lord.

When the Von Zarovich’s conquered Barovia, they brought settlers with them, and the newcomers became the majority; however, the holy places of the Forest Folk remained unmolested by the worshippers of the Morninglord. There were three holy places, each reflecting one of the Three Ladies. The term ‘Fane’ is used by the Forest Folk to refer to a specific Lady, and also to the environment over which they hold sway. It is also used to refer to the locations where they are worshipped. It is a concept not easily translated into a civilised tongue.

It is likely that the Fanes are Archfey. They are the Weaver, the Huntress and the Seeker. Their centres of worship are located at monolithic structures set in the environment each Lady controls. As far as I can ascertain, one fane is located in the stone circle in the swamp near Berez, another on the hill beside the Old Windmill, and the final one on Yesterhill near the Vineyard. The Weaver is associated with the swamp, the Huntress with the Mountain, and the Seeker with the Old Mill.

The Ladies seldom manifested directly. More typically, they would appear in dreams, omens and auguries. Sometimes they would speak through animals or their voices would be heard on the wind. Their worship was generally benign, with blood sacrifice being rare although not unheard of. Worshippers would often commune with nature in the environment that the Fane represented.

The power of the Ladies was broken when the Devil Strahd fell to Darkness. He performed rituals that desecrated the shrines in the Fanes and seized their powers for himself, making him literally ‘The Land’, indistinct from Barovia itself. Barovia and its Mists are as much the Dark Lord as Strahd himself. He has twisted the beliefs of the Forest Folk, but not the Mountain Folk, to believe he is a messenger of the Three Ladies.

It is a logical conjecture that if the shrines could be reconsecrated, and the missing Ladies somehow be found to re-manifest, Strahd would lose the aspects of power that came from them, leaving only the Dark Powers of Vampyre. He would be weakened severely.

I’m putting these notes into the library before we set off on our mission to try and reconsecrate the shrines, or at least to find out what if the Ladies are still present, in case others need them in the future.

Based on work by MandyMod and Dragnacarta on the Curse of Strahd subreddit

Gaming Update November 2021

 

45 games so far

Updating now as it's unlikely that I'll be running or playing any more this month. Forty-five games this year, with D&D 5e edging ahead of the massed ranks of Gumshoe (18 sessions to 17), and likely to further increase its lead as the year draws to an end. That's entirely due to Curse of Strahd. I'm still hoping to get some other games to the table before the end of the year (Mausritter, I'm especially looking at you) but the calendar is starting to look packed.

19 November 2021

Sounds that Can be Made (Marillion, The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester)

Marillion in full flow... awesome!

So, Nathan and I went to our second gig of the month, this time in Manchester to see Marillion. Don't expect unbiased reports of the show, as this was an opportunity to see my favourite band of all time after far too long. The show was at the Bridgewater Hall, which is the home of the Halle Orchestra, and as a result, is a fantastic auditorium. It was the first Marillion gig that I'd been to where I was seated. This was part of the COVID-19 control for the event; it was noticeable that the security was more interested in what we were carrying rather than whether we had evidence of vaccination or LFT testing. Very different to the O2 Academy earlier in the month with Public Service Broadcasting, but I suspect a reflection of the attack at the MEN Arena and at Liverpool Women's Hospital recently.

Mr H strutting his stuff.

We set off from Wetherby around 1630 and crawled through the Leeds-Bradford section of the M62 but made good time, stopping for a cheeky visit to Burger King at Birch Services for dinner. We found the car park and venue without much of an issue, and Nathan was pretty impressed with security in the car park. It took perhaps five minutes to get to the show, walking through a pretty upmarket looking refurbished area with lots of bars and restaurants. Left me wishing I wasn't driving and could get a pint!

Easter - a favourite...

We got queued for the merchandise stand to get T-shirts only to get to the front and find that they couldn't take cards because their reader had failed. That was a disappointment, as I'd not brought a huge amount of cash with me because the venue had stated that contactless was preferred. I have a side mission to get Nathan a T-Shirt as he was a bit down about it.

Splintering Heart...

Our seat was in the Gallery, the third level up and nicely in the centre. Although we were higher up, we had a clearer view of the stage than earlier in the month. The support band, Antimatter, a dark rock duo, looked worth checking out and I saved them onto Spotify for later. They played a 30 minute set, and we had half an hour's break before Marillion came onstage.

They played the first three tracks of Brave...

The sound was loud but clear, and the drums blew me away; I'm used to Mark Kelly's keyboard or Steve Rothery's guitar catching my attention, but this time, it was Ian Moseley. The drums were loud but they didn't overwhelm the rest of the music and singing.

Dark Angel Friend...

The band were clearly on a high, the audience response fantastic and Steve Hogarth was exhilarated, cheeky and energised, and occasionally playing the fool with Pete Trewavas on bass. The set was a mix of favourites and rarities, along with a single new track (Be Hard on Yourself) from the album which is being released in 2022, An Hour Before it's Dark. The album is done, just suffering the supply chain woes that seem to be afflicting everything (especially cardboard shortages). There was a rare outing of 'The Release', which was really catchy.

A setlist that mixes favourites and rarities...

They played from 2030 to 2245, with two very short breaks. I felt that the crowd would have happily spent the whole night there listening. There was a lot of love in the room.

We slipped away at the end, stopping for coffee (me) and chocolate (Nat) on the way home. We got home around 1am in the morning; it probably took me another hour to come down off the high from the energy at the show. And then it was up and about for school and work the next day.

Leaving the venue...

A wonderful gig! It confirmed Nathan definitely loves live music!

19 November 2021

Update: After posting this, I remembered that I'd seen Marillion in Manchester in 1998 on the same date (18th November 1998). Twenty-three years later, the experience was much better. The concert was great the first time, but it was sandwiched between the news that my Grandmother had died in earlier in the day, and being told the relationship I was in was over as we got to the car after the concert. Glad that the ghosts of 1998 are finally put to bed! 

Curse of Strahd - S4E4 - Back into the Stygian Darkness

  

Our heroes have just emerged from the depths of a very strange library, potentially an inter-dimensional space. Unfortunately, they didn't find what they were looking for, so they are planning to go back in.

Our dramatis personae:

Ser Adon de Rouge of House Starbright (a half-orc Paladin, from a knightly background, with two human retainers and a priest), played by Paul (dr_mitch). Lawful Good. Married to Ser Alys.

Kelwarin (Kel) (a half-elf Sorceror flush with the powers of wild magic, an outlander), played by Graham (First Age). Chaotic Good.

Gaddock Teeg (a halfling wizard and former prizefighter), played by Alex (Doggetay), Neutral Good

Ser Alys de Adon-Rouge of House Starbright (a half-orc Fighter with a soldier background, currently the leader of the town militia of Daggerford), played by Tom (Guvnor). Lawful Neutral. Imagine a slightly greener take on Grace Jones... Married to Ser Adon. 

also featuring: 

Ireena Kolyana (a human warrior, daughter of the Burgomaster of Barovia, Twice-Bitten reincarnation of Strahd's unrequited love, Tatyana) - upgraded as a sidekick.

with : 

Alexei the Vistana (a young human expert, sent to pay off his debt to the party by his Vistani elders after they rescued Arabelle from certain death when Alexei lost her in town. A late teenager who is so taken by Ireena and the excitement of the adventure that he's forgotten he planned to be sulky and surly for his 13 moon exile) - upgraded as a sidekick.

All characters are presently 6th level, including the sidekicks.

1st December

Having exited from the library and closed the door, the party rested, asking Clovin to take the refugees from the library to the Abbot for food and lodgings. With a cackling laugh he obliged, muttering 'more mouths to feed, it never ends!' as he walked off with them. Gaddock used his magical powers to understand what the magic was on the items they found. The large axe-like item was designed for use in bookbinding to cut pages and covers and was incredibly sharp. It also aided the person using it to see in low light (like the rooms of a library) [1]. The pen and ink set was even more fascinating; dedicated to an unknown god, Bol'shivik, the ink could only be read by people who didn't have legal authority. Ser Alys and Ser Adon were both convinced the pen did not work when Gaddock showed them some test writing.[2]

Rested, our heroes decided to re-enter. This time Ireena and Alexei stayed behind and Ser Alys joined her husband leading the way boldly into the library. Very quickly, they realised that it had changed. The gallery full of maps had gone, and instead, the first chamber had arches around the walls filled with glass display cases full of the skeletons of what looked to be like children. The roof was covered in glass tubes, running like pipes with opaque liquids and possibly water. They gave off heat. warming the cold air of the library. Entering properly, they noticed a small figure, translucent white, perhaps sobbing, hidden by one of the cases. Whispering to each other, they decided that this was nothing to do with the books that they wanted to find, so pressed on, ignoring the crying.

The next chamber had dust and cobwebs (a bit different from the rest of the library) and the walls were lined with funeral urns. Ser Adon noticed something odd about the floor and realised that a section wasn't solid and there was a hollow space below. Lifting it, he saw eight eyes glinting at him, and suddenly was enveloped in web and pulled in by some kind of spider which was hiding beneath a trapdoor. The door slammed shut, startling the rest of the party, and Ser Alys realised that something had stolen her husband. She tried to desperately open the door but it seemed pulled tight. Below there was the sound of struggle as the giant spider repeatedly bit at Ser Adon. Fortunately, his constitution was strong enough to resist the venom despite being bitten three times. Ser Alys broke through and struck the creature, then Ser Adon finished it off with his spear that seemed to suck the life and taint out of the creature.[3] He spotted a long dagger or short shortsword that glowed slightly and picked it up. Throwing it to Gaddock to identify, he was startled when the wizard didn't react and was hit hard by the blade; Gaddock had been watching the route behind with his owl's senses so wasn't aware of what was going on in the room and no one thought to tell him! Adon apologised: "It was a clever idea, I forgot".

They carried on through more bookshelves into a corridor and arrived in a large chapel, perhaps one of the biggest spaces they'd encountered, with a lamp-post at the entry. There were pews and an altar with an X-shaped cross of silver with a body inverted upon it. There were religious items and a pulpit with a large book chained to it. There were also a number of curious creatures, in yellow robes with palid faces and wide eyes who were cleaning and carrying out repairs. They soon left the way that the party had come from; Gaddock checked with his owl and watched them start to repair the damaged room, looking unimpressed. The book on the pulpit was chained to it, and a quick review established that it was 'An Atlas of Extradimensional Spaces and Other Worlds'. Many of the maps were similar to those which had been in the map gallery. Looking through, Gaddock found a slight reference to Barovia and the danger of the Mists, but no new information. The party started to head off again, leaving behind some interesting magical candles and the book as they didn't want to risk offending the library helpers. 

Gaddock suddenly had an idea and went back to the Atlas. His suspicions were confirmed; the book described the Stygian Library, an inter-dimensional space like the one that they were in. It described the ritual to enter which could be used in a library large enough not to see the exits where someone had died, and something of the nature of the place. Their idea to delve deeper, keeping what they wanted to find in the front of their mind seemed to be a good one. They carried on down.

The side area of the chapel opened to a large stairwell, turning with the opposite had to the one that they had entered only an hour or so before. Heading down they found the gallery full of stuffed animals and creatures that they had avoided previously. They had a look this time and found a taxidermied vampire. There was a discussion on whether it was actually dead or not, but they decided not to check out their speculations, heading deeper.

The staircase opened onto a large landing, a mausoleum with a sarcophagus like the one that they had disturbed before when they found the axe. They confirmed it was the same so quickly headed further down. 

The stairs ended in a room that had one wall full of thirty five-foot-tall tubes, many of which had glowing ghostly shapes and faces. The tubes were connected to dials, illuminated by gas lamps on the walls behind. As they watched, one of the shapes dials dropped and then it was sucked out of the tube. Soon after, another arrived. There were some manuals that were full of calculations and algorithms; a quick skim indicated that this was some kind of system for drawing energy from souls. Perhaps the library drew upon them as a power source.

Heading further down, they came to an antechamber; it had a backpack and a half-written letter from Ez D'Avenir to Rudolph Van Richten, describing how she had found a source on information about their common enemy and that she planned to obtain it and come and find him to help slay the Enemy. Looking into the chamber, it was huge, with stars showing above. 

Entering, they found walls of books, seating spaces and what was in fact a planetarium with a massive clockwork orrery in the middle. They noticed that it was moving, with the stars shifting. Gaddock started to draw on his powers to check for magic. Ser Alys was walking around bored and stumbled upon a book nailed to the wall, a book which was trying - half-heartedly - to flap its wings and escape. It was a tome all about vampires, one of the things that they had been searching for. Eagerly, Ser Alys pulled the nails out and secured the book in a piece of tarpaulin tied down with her belt and stashed it in her bag. Kelwarin searched the other shelves and soon found an old, thin volume on the Three Ladies. Skimming it established that this was - in fact - about the Fanes. Again, this was what they were seeking. He secured it.

Gaddock cast his spell and realised that the orrery radiated conjuration, abjuration and divination magicks. There was also a hint of necromancy. He looked closely and saw a woman strapped into the orrery which was slowly moving. He approached and saw a table with calculations for two horoscopes; Rudolph Van Richten and Strahd von Zarovich. 

Ser Alys realised that the young woman in the orrery was moaning lowly for help. He could feel the pulse of life force being drained and so went and pulled her clear; she was bleeding profusely and he fed her a healing point to restore her. As he pulled her clear, the orrery shuddered, the lights went out and the ceiling dropped plaster. The room suddenly became sinister, the only light cast by Ser Adon's javelin. He turned to the young lady and said 'Come with me if you want to live'. They quickly gathered their stuff and started out.  As they exited the planetarium, they heard faint alarm bells. They also noticed a small antechamber with a book-sized parcel in it. It was addressed to the original party, including Roscoe Tosscobble. They grabbed it and ran as fast as they could.

As they reached the mausoleum they encountered the first sign of resistance; the large blob of ink-like material they encountered there was menacing on the steps. Gaddock tried to drive it off with the illusion of fire but it ignored it as if it was being compelled. Kel cast light on it, but it did nothing except to make it look pretty. They tried to get past it by jumping, but Ser Adon didn't make it across. Gaddock cast a levitation spell and somehow they tipped it over the edge of the stairwell.

They were unmolested until they reached the chapel, where the two librarians awaited them with a large origami construct that menaced towards them. Kel blasted it with a fireball (accidentally on purpose vapourising the librarians), and Ser Adon finished off the origami golem. Ser Alys broke the Atlas free and they head up, and out.

The door slammed shut as they exited, and the portal glowed white-blue, then faded, leaving a black nothingness where the entry to the library had been. They sat down and recovered. The woman introduced herself as Ezmeralda D'Avenir (or 'Ex') and apologised for dragging the party to this godforsaken place. Ser Adon quickly assured her that the party was already in Ravenloft and they agreed to work together against Strahd. 

Unwrapping the parcel, they discovered it was a handwritten journal, the diary of the Dark Lord of Barovia himself. In it, it was revealed the dark deeds that he had done as he slipped towards becoming a vampire; slaying his brother and losing the woman he loved, his brother's wife, Tatyana as she jumped to her death. Reading it, Kel stated 'He's an utter bastard, we need to destroy him'; all plans of saving the vampire abandoned. Upset and distraught, Ireena speculated that she'd be better off dead and perhaps she should throw herself off the monastery walls. Kel looked into her eyes and talked out of it, reminding her that people cared for her[4], and that although she may be the reincarnation of Strahd's unrequited love, she was cared for. Ser Alys pointed out that there was a weapon, a Sword of the Sun, owned by Sergei which would be a nemesis for Strahd.

A discussion was held about what to do next; Gaddock proposed they left, but Ser Adon said that they needed to understand whether the Abbot was some kind of fallen celestial and deal with that issue.

GM Notes: Thus ends the journey into the Stygian Library, which was a fun side trek. The party have secured one of the Treasures of Ravenloft and important books which have background on Barovia and their enemy. They just need to read them. We have a break next week, but we'll be back.

[1] serves as +2 magical axe with power to see in darkness
[2] enchanted ink that cannot be read by those in authority
[3] Another failed Wisdom save, another point of corruption
[4] Kel succeeds at his third check to come closer to Ireena. This is an extended skill challenge that we're running low key in the background. With this win, he has overtaken the darkness that her being bitten by the vampire had imposed.

17 November 2021

First Impressions - Rebel Scum RPG (ZineQuest 3)

Rebel Scum looks like it should be hanging up in a toy shop display.

Queue the credit scroll and dramatic, stirring music!

"It is a dark time. Baron Deathray and his Killtroopers hunt down all dissension from the evil Killstar Republic. Fascism and terror rule the star system!
In the darkness, a motley band of revolutionaries, traitors, criminals, robots and other REBEL SCUM are trying to fight back.
You are our only hope."

I honestly don't think you need any more background to this game, which riffs of the most popular SF property out there to provide "an antifascist space opera" roleplaying game.

REBEL SCUM takes its trade dress and looks from the plastic figures made for that favourite SF space opera. It has a price ticket and a mock punch-out to hang from a display. It looks wonderful, and the character sheets and sample characters are presented the same way.

Part of ZineQuest 3, this is a full-glossy colour 74-page perfect-bound zine written by 9th Level Games. It uses their 'polymorph' engine, which defines each character with a single dice type. There are some minor typos, but overall it's a fun and well-presented package.

It's big on safety tools(*), but it also wears its antifa beliefs on its sleeve. You gain 'shining stars' for taking action against space fascists (usually by punching them). The GM controls 'the Government', the 'enemy of the players'. The characters are 'The Next Rebellion'. The bad guys are the Killstar Republic (aka Republicans). Some people aren't going to like this but that's okay.

Only players roll dice - you're either taking an action or making a save. You roll one dice determined by your role. You can be:

• The Expert
• The Vanguard
• The Fighter, or
• The Tank.

Experts roll a d4, Vanguards a d6, through to Tanks who roll a d10. Each dice type favours certain styles of play by making the probability of succeeding at certain moves higher.

You also have a class; this determines the card back you use for your character sheet. Classes are;

• The Ronin (questing for peace)
• The Revolutionary (challenging the status quo)
• The Robot (seeking self-expression)
• The Renegade (seeking justice)
• The Rogue (freeing people)

If you've got a shining star from punching space nazis then you can spend it to succeed automatically at your classes' focus. You only ever have one shining star at once, so you'll need to act against the Republic's evil plans against the people again to get another.

Each class starts with two edges. These are focuses for the career which enable the character to gain knowledge or do something without rolling (in most cases).

The moves and the dice ranges.

All characters have the same set of core moves, although sometimes they're called different things. for example, a laser sword wielder may have 'blades' as a move, whereas a smuggler may have 'blasters'. The moves reflect four action types; mental, physical, violence & strength. Because of the dice type each role has, they are biased towards which move they will be more successful at carrying out. There are two other results possible when making a move, Key and Ultimate. Key is a roll of 1. If you roll this and it is something your class can do, then you succeed. it's really a focused critical, and will often be a roll outside the move's range of target numbers.

If you roll the maximum on your dice type (Ultimate) different things happen, dependent upon the state of the game. The state starts as 'bright' but can move through 'twilight' to 'dark'. If it's bright, you succeed. If it's dark, you fail. The level of darkness increases as the team suffers failures and setbacks. The darkness level is tracked and can trigger the Climax for an episode if it reaches the maximum. The Climax unlocks the ability to defeat the named enemy completely, but it also means that the characters can suffer serious setbacks or even death. The players can also call for the Climax when they feel they're ready for it.

Damage etc. is abstracted as a Danger rating. If you gain Danger, you need to roll above it to carry on. If you roll lower, you take a consequence and then clear the danger rating. Consequences take characters out of the current scene and more the balance towards the dark. During the climax, consequences can be fatal. If you roll your danger rating exactly, you get a clutch move, which dramatically resets your danger to zero.

You can also gain vantage, which is good or bad. You roll two dice in these situations. If you have advantage, either dice roll can succeed. If you have disadvantage, you fail unless both dice succeed.

The game feels very cinematic and wears its heart on its sleeve. It looks like it would be fun, especially for a one shot. I do suspect that it may offend some, but they aren't the target audience for this.

(*) There's also an O-card, to tap if you're enjoying what's happening and want more of it!

14 November 2021

 

Cthulhu Hack Role VTT support now unlocked

 

The news I was waiting for

The Role VTT character sheet I created has been unlocked as part of the Cthulhu Hack 2.0e kickstarter. You can find it here: https://app.playrole.com/sheet-templates/1b3a0313-cthulhu-hack-character-sheet/edit

It actually happened earlier in the week but it's been a bit busy!

13 November 2021

Curse of Strahd - S4E3 - Into the Library

  

We left our heroes having dinner with Abbot at the Abbey of St Markovia, a holy man, perhaps angelic in Ser Adon's view, but there was definitely something suspect with him...

Our dramatis personae:

Ser Adon de Rouge of House Starbright (a half-orc Paladin, from a knightly background, with two human retainers and a priest), played by Paul (dr_mitch). Lawful Good. Married to Ser Alys.

Kelwarin (Kel) (a half-elf Sorceror flush with the powers of wild magic, an outlander), played by Graham (First Age). Chaotic Good.

Gaddock Teeg (a halfling wizard and former prizefighter), played by Alex (Doggetay), Neutral Good

Ser Alys de Adon-Rouge of House Starbright (a half-orc Fighter with a soldier background, currently the leader of the town militia of Daggerford), played by Tom (Guvnor). Lawful Neutral. Imagine a slightly greener take on Grace Jones... Married to Ser Adon. 

also featuring: 

Ireena Kolyana (a human warrior, daughter of the Burgomaster of Barovia, Twice-Bitten reincarnation of Strahd's unrequited love, Tatyana) - upgraded as a sidekick.

with : 

Alexei the Vistana (a young human expert, sent to pay off his debt to the party by his Vistani elders after they rescued Arabelle from certain death when Alexei lost her in town. A late teenager who is so taken by Ireena and the excitement of the adventure that he's forgotten he planned to be sulky and surly for his 13 moon exile) - upgraded as a sidekick.

All characters are presently 6th level, including the sidekicks.

1st December

The party ate a convivial meal with the Abbot, enjoying simple fare, washed down with good wine. The Abbot's companion was quiet through the meal, occasionally instructed in points of etiquette by her master. Kel noted that she reminded him of Ireena, perhaps a distant relative? He also noted that she had what looked like embroidery or fine stitches on the wrist of her arm which were momentarily revealed when she reached for something on the table. After the meal, the Abbot called out to Clovin, an assistant, and the haunting violin music stopped. The Abbot told the party that they were welcome to check out the library, which was two flights up.

On reaching the first floor which was very cold, Clovin met them, dressed in a monk's habit. Short (4ft 7") with a goat-like face and what looked like rams horns under the hood, Kel spotted that he appeared to have a second head. He offered wine and lanterns for the library, but they declined. Ser Adon spotted a body on a stone slab with what looked like packed snow and ice under it. He asked who it was, and Clovin explained it was someone who had died before the Abbot could save them. They were being prepared to be put to rest. Ser Adon pulled the veil back and found a young girl, dead of what seemed like natural causes. There were no signs of vampire bites, but a patch of skin had been lifted from her back, carefully. When asked, Clovin said it was useful, for dealing with burns. Feeling an increasing sense of disquiet, Ser Adon blessed the girl.

They talked some more, and Clovin offered to show them the hospital the next day. He said many of his relatives were there, and they could get disagreeable and rowdy at mealtimes. He also mentioned that they had emptied the old children's rooms to create more space for patients. 

The party headed up to the library. It niggled, feeling wrong; aurally, it was like a much larger space than the 50 ft square room that they expected. It was full of books and detritus from a children's schoolroom and nursery. You couldn't see the other side of the room and the space seemed bigger than it should be as they tried to wend their way through the stacks. Kel established that they were definitely still in the North tower at the Abbey by looking out of the windows. Gaddock detected for magic and established that there was magic all around, especially in the centre of the room. Working their way through the stacks which took longer than it should they came upon a glossy black, almost ebony, wooden door with a surrounding frame covered in silvered sigils and formulae. Nestling in the middle of a run of shelves, books were almost nestled against it.

Gaddock detected Abjuration and Conjuration magic; he suspected some form of warding was present and that it could be dangerous. They got Alexei to check for traps while everyone else sheltered in the magical hut Gaddock conjured. He didn't find any, so Kel gently opened the door with a mage hand. Nothing happened, and Gaddock's familiar flew in, tendrils of mists touching it, a loose-leaf from a book fluttering in after it. 

Inside, darkness, shelves, books and a welcome deck with visitor cards and registration books. A Shelved corridor carried on in. Leaving Alexei and Ireena to mind the entrance, they went in. Following the corridor, it opened up into a map gallery, full of maps and charts. Some they recognised; the Realms and Barovia, others were new to them. Gaddock had heard of some of them at his alma mater. There were tomes of building designs and atlases and more. Searching, they found sixty assorted gold of different types in a box marked petty cash, plus a vial of a magically ink-like liquid. More usefully, there was a box of candles, which they subsequently used to mark their path in the darkness. Looking for exits, they found an archway which more stacks of books heading away and a dangerous-looking locked gate. Kel failed to pick it, using a nail file and the gloves of thievery he'd found in Graenseskov. Ser Alys went back to the entrance and swapped out with Alexei, who came and expertly picked the gate. The padlock on the door behind the gate radiated magic, which Gaddock neutralised with a Dispel Magic spell.

Beyond the door was a shaft with a ladder, with bookshelves all around the walls. Gaddock carefully dropped a candle down, lighting it. Fifteen to twenty feet below, there was an exit, so they decided to go down to see what was there. They'd already decided that this must be either somewhere else in Barovia or an extradimensional space.

They found themselves at the top of a large spiral staircase that was going downwards. On the landing they had come out on was a stone sarcophagus, with an inscription that Gaddock translated as the tomb of a Chief Catalogist. They decided to open the tomb to see if had any clues, finding a shrouded body, a pen and ink set that radiated magic, and a library tool for bookbinding which was effectively like an improvised battleaxe. It was definitely magical as well, so a debate ensued as to whether they should rob the grave or not. Eventually, Gaddock wrote an IOU and Ser Adon said a prayer and ritually drew images of the items just in case the corpse needed them in the afterlife. As they lowered the sarcophagus lid back into place, Kel and Alexei heard a flapping noise. Suddenly a flock of what could only be described as animated books burst out from the stairwell; Kel cried out in excitement and startlement and they shied away, almost nesting on the roof supports above.

Our heroes carried on down; the next level opened into a large space with the staircase continuing down. It was filled with taxidermied animals and they decided that discretion was the better form of valour and carried on down to the next level, where they were surprised. 

They discovered a cosy room with warm tea, scones, jam and clotted cream and sandwiches on a side table labelled 'early evening refreshments'. The room was warmed and lit by many candles and they started to discuss whether to rest, return or press on. As they did, something black/blue, shimmering with iridescence, flowed out from the shelves at the back. At least as large as the sofa, it started to flow at them. Gaddock activated his mage armour and cast an illusion of fireworks in front of the party. The blob flowed away, avoiding the display, followed by several smaller blobs, perhaps its children. It didn't seem to like heat and fire and continued away and up the stairs. They debated what it was; perhaps a form of Ink Elemental. Deciding not to rest, they carried on down to the bottom of the staircase that opened into another library space full of statues, some made of silver.

In the depths of the space, they discovered some lost adventurers, who had run away from a tall paper-like giant which had attacked them. Two of their party had been lost to it. They soon ascertained that the group had not come from Barovia, but from the Great Library in Waterdeep and had performed a ritual to get here. Reading between the lines, they decided that they were perhaps some kind of cult. After a discussion, they agreed to guide them out so they could rest. They explained about Barovia so the other party were keen to re-enter the library as soon as possible after resting. Heading back out, Kel stumbled on some abandoned letters, correspondence between a Van Richten and an Ez d'Avenir who seemed to be planning to hunt and destroy Strahd. Or rather, Van Richten was planning to do it himself and telling d'Avenir that it was too dangerous for her. 

They exited to the library, planning to re-enter it soon as they were certain they could find the information that they sought.

GM Notes: This was where I started to blend the Stygian Library into Curse of Strahd. They can't escape Barovia from here (and indeed, the four people they 'rescued' are now trapped by the Mists). The information is there if they want to delve deep enough - they want lore on vampires, Strahd and the Fanes. They were smart in not fighting the ink elemental, and know that this is a dangerous and weird space; after all, it is an OSR adventure!

10 November 2021

Role VTT - Template Editor updates

New interface showing dropdown options

The Role VTT recently rolled out an update to the template sheet editor. This is the online tool that lets you visually create character sheets. It's simple but very powerful, and the latest update brings drag and drop for elements and a number of new modules that people have been asking for, such as the ability to create a clock as a timer (as commonly used in Powered by the Apocalypse games).

If you have existing characters built with sheets that are updated, you will get an alert next to them that there is a sheet update. There's no need to update them, but if you do, any elements that have been removed will be carried in a separate sheet so you can roll them back in. For example, the initial spell book sheet I built for Warlock! had ten fixed entries as the previous version of the template builder wouldn't let you build duplicatable groups with mixed content. The updated sheet that I built does this, but you'll have to manually cut and paste the details back in from the rollover sheet.

Four pane view in the template editor.

The template builder effectively has four panes; the left-most is the title and section link heading. This is a bit more intuitive in how it displays. The section headings are also now case sensitive even though they show as upper case in the main part of the sheet. The next pane is a live preview of the sheet so you can see what it will look like. The third panel shows the elements in their relative positions. The sheets can display two columns, and most elements work in either mode. You build a sheet by dragging and dropping elements into it. If you want to be able to duplicate groups in a live sheet, you place a group element and then enable duplication by clicking the cog that shows in the top right of the element and selecting the duplication option in the final rightmost pane.

The general elements.

Elements are split into two types - general and gameplay. General elements are more about words and formatting. The dropdown list is a useful addition to this. Gameplay elements support the dice roller and other mechanics.

Gameplay elements.

Here's a brief run-through of the game elements supported:

• A Buff is a number that can be clicked for a dice modifier.
• Field & Buff gives the ability to add a name or description to the related Buff.
• Clocks allow you segmented counted, as used in the PbtA games. You can click in play to shade them in. There's also the scope to change segment numbers.
• Points gives a points tracker. This can have a set maximum. Used for hit-points, stamina etc.
• Pool allows you to set a clickable dice set to add to the roller. This can be preset or editable. I usually build these into character sheets to speed play.
• Reference gives you a target number. This may be something you want to roll over or under, for example an attribute or a Skill%.
• Slots give you a visual set of point trackers. These are individual elements you can click on rather than a number bar. I use this for XP in some games, consumables (for example arrows) and more.

All the elements can be dragged into the editor and moved around within the restrictions that two columns give. 

This is a really easy and powerful tool to use; combined with the excellent AV that Role has, it makes it my preferred VTT.

7 November 2021

A step towards normality (Public Service Broadcasting, O2 Academy Leeds)

The end of the show...

Monday night (1 Nov 2021) saw me go to a concert (hard pop / soft rock according to the band) for the first time in a long time. I went to see Public Service Broadcasting at the O2 Academy with my eldest. This was his first proper concert like this; he'd been to a Doctor Who musical event, but PSB are one of his bands so it was a bit special for him. The show was spectacular. I especially loved the rawness that the live show gave the music compared to the highly polished presentation that the albums have. 

Everyone on stage - PSB, EERA and the wind section!

COVID controls were good - I had to show my pass and Nat had to show his LFT result from the same day (as he's under 16); people seemed to be spacing sensibly on the balcony, although there was less mask-wearing than I expected. It felt safe, although more subdued than when standing and singing along. Although a lot of PSB tracks are probably more talk along to!

The Other Side (If I remember right)

We sat next to a man attending with his 8-year-old son. Apparently, his son listened to PSB's Race for Space album regularly going to sleep, and they were joking that he may fall asleep. This amused me, and I mentioned that Nathan was also at his first proper concert and we were lucky it wasn't Faithless, because he used to go to sleep with the album 'To All New Arrivals' playing. That was the bit where I found out that the man was involved in the Faithless fan club and they were his other band. It's a small world.

The Setlist (original here)

The new album Bright Magic - which is far more instrumental than previous releases - went down brilliantly. The show was definitely full-on son et lumière, with a spectacular light show. Being in Yorkshire, they chose to play more of the songs from Every Valley due to the coal mining link than they had elsewhere. If you listen to the album and like it, I recommend the associated podcast, where they deconstruct it and explain how it was made and the influences on it. The tracks from Race for Space and Inform - Educate - Entertain like Spitfire and Go! brought the house down, and the final sections where People, Let's Dance segued into Gargarin was awesome.

All in all, a great evening out.

6 November 2021

Curse of Strand - S4 Interlude 1

  

Camera cuts up away from the Abbey of St Markovia, through the light snow and into the looming clouds, pans to the east. Through a break in the cloud, the moon lights Castle Ravenloft, silently waiting for visitors. Tracing back, the camera drops down, down, into the town of Vallaki.

The Bell of St Andral's tolls, over the light fog and cold air that covers the town. A light burns at the town council. Around the table of the deceased Baron, the Ring of Five meets, discussing preparations for the lean times, as winter falls. Pragmatic debate, mulled wine and an almost convivial atmosphere fill the room.

The meeting ends, progress made, with a hope that perhaps this could work, that a council is the right way forward. The councillors depart, heading to their homes with their assistants, steps quick against the cold.

Reisen Munin, Sen Alys' deputy and acting holder of the Right to Law, breathed a sigh of relief. This wasn't so bad. When Ser Alys had departed he'd been worried about Lady Wachter trying something on. Quite the opposite had happened, indeed, she'd helped him to settle some points of contention. He locked up the meeting room, and turned, surprised by the sudden appearance of Lady Wachter's attractive young friend and assistant. She smiled warmly at him, her eyes melting his heart, and she invited him to walk with her back to the Wachterhaus where Lady Wachter was planning a nice stew and drinks. He found himself agreeing with little hesitation. The young ladies' arm slipped into his as they started into the fog, and it was all he was aware of. The closeness of her, the teasing laughter and the way she looked at him like she was hungry for him. Her flirtation set his heart a flutter...

Suddenly, she stopped, giggled and said "Race you to the Wachterhaus! I bet you can't catch me!" and like that, she was gone to the mist. He started after her, calling, his voice deadened against the fog. He heard laughter ahead. Or was it to the side. His heart raced. She called, he followed, plunging through the mists which were thickening quickly in pursuit of her. 

"Anastrasya, wait for me!", he called.

Fog surrounds. Laughter peels, perhaps a little more sinister. The camera pulls up, and away from the now fog laden town.