First Impressions - Through Sunken Lands (Bronze Limited Edition)

The limited Bronze Edition

I previously reviewed Through Sunken Lands and really liked it, enough that I ran it at Furnace in 2021. We had a blast playing it and it's a game that I will return to in the future. When I saw that Black Oath Entertainment were releasing a limited edition version with a lovely slipcase, ribbon and high quality production (not unlike their Warlock Limited Black Edition I've previously covered), I couldn't resist it.

The key details of this edition:

• This an exclusive collector’s edition, limited to 200 hand-numbered copies. A free PDF is included.
• 170 x 230 mm (6.7 x 9 inches)
• Hardcover bound in faux leather with the TSL logo embossed in bronze foil on the cover
• Luxurious hard slipcase bound in a unique bronze-like material
• Amazingly illustrated end-papers
• Plenty of full-color illustrations
• A ribbon bookmark 
• 241 pages

 

Unlike the Warlock book, this does include extras. There is another scenario pack - Intrigue in the City - which drops the characters into the middle of a three way factional fight, and two new character playbooks. These are a warrior-mage, the barbaric beast-master and a warrior-rogue, the daring adventurer. Both look fun to play. As a GM, the extra scenario pack is of more interest, but both the playbooks are genre appropriate. They aren't enough for me to justify the purchase, but I was never looking for theme to be. I wonder if they'll come out in a future expansion for the core book.

Bronze slipcase

Overall, I really like this. It's nicely done. Of course, you could just use the core book, but this is a lovely size and beautifully made with some extras. I've copy 116 of 200. At the moment, it still seems to have some copies available on the Black Oath Entertainment website which I linked to above. Good stuff.

30 April 2022

 

On Rings of Power...

Hope endures - my TOR 1e character from Darkening of Mirkwood

After the session of The Yellow King this week, Dr Mitch and I got talking. He's just started to read the Starter Set for the second edition of The One Ring, and we got to talking about campaigns and how nice it would be to dive back into Middle Earth. We'd always talked of a follow on mini-campaign where my character, Nalí, led some of his colleagues and kinsfolk back to their hall in the Grey Mountains to slay the dragon and recover the treasure, including a rumoured Ring of Power.

As we chatted, we realised that the Darkening of Mirkwood game had run for long enough that it would have been into the new timeline of the second edition. Dr Mitch then observed that it was a shame, as Nalí had four points of Shadow and it was likely that he would fall to the darkness if he succeeded on his quest (especially as he suffers from the Dragon sickness). Strangely, that didn't put me off. I think it would be very apt, and very Tolkien. Let's be honest, many of the Professor's tales didn't end that well for the protagonists; death, corruption and life with the consequences were more common. To hold that candle and cast some light, if only for a while.

There's a sorrow that runs through Eriador and Gondor, and the places that the Elves and Dwarves were. A sense of loss prevails. Strangely, the Mirkwood campaign didn't really have that feel; it was more of a desperate battle against the creatures of the dark. It was more primal and raw; this wasn't a civilisation that was an echo of the past, threatened by a darkness it thought it had defeated. It was young, with joy and hope. It made when we ventured to the dark places, the lost places, so much more terrifying.

A quick skim of the new Ruins of the Lost Realm book for TOR 2e suggests that the sense of loss is back, with the ruins across Eriador casting a shadow on the present. I love this, as it was the vibe that brought me into gaming in Tolkien's world with MERP (ICE's Middle Earth Role Playing). 

And yet, hope endures. Digging my character sheet out, I realised that Nalí only had one point of permanent Shadow, plus some temporary. Plus I'd raised his hope up higher. I'd seen that threat, and moved to stop him falling to the dark. Telling Dr Mitch, he messaged me back. There was hope for the quest to succeed without it ending badly. Perhaps the road will go on?

28 April 2022

 

Curse of Strahd - S4 Interlude 5 - Before they face the darkness

  

Picture the scene. A roaring fire, warmth against the dark, cold and frosts of an earlier December night. Around it all four of our heroes, but not their Barovian allies. The mood is downbeat, a certain weariness and perhaps fear. But perhaps there's also an undertone of excitement, or at least energy. Having returned from Argynvostholt, the discussion is all about where to go next.

Three options are being seriously considered; to Old Berez to face Baba Lysaga and perhaps liberate the swamp fane and retrieve a dragon's skull. Or to head south to the mountains and the dark temple that lies there, perhaps finding knowledge of how to defeat Strahd and of Roscoe Tosscobble's fate. 

But in their hearts, they know that they probably should take up the Count's invitation to dinner at Castle Ravenloft, looming dizzily high above Barovia. A place with a reputation of death and darkness. A place that people don't tend to come back from. Allegedly. To face the dark lord and vampire of this realm in his lair. Safe conduct has been promised, but do they trust him to keep his word?

Ser Alys opened, trying to make light of past mistakes, joking that an unplanned frontal assault would be the best way forward, before suggesting that the most important thing is to understand the tithe that Vallaki needs to pay in just over a fortnight. They need to understand whether it is possible to to avoid the tithe in a contractual fashion, or not. Perhaps they'd discover that it's all fine and there is a generation of well fed servants at the castle who can tell how the tithe was a blessing in their lives, but somehow, she didn't really believe that.

Kelwarin interjected with the assumption that their goal was to violently agree with him, not promise anything, and look to find as many weaknesses that we can exploit for later.

Alys was musing; she is actually quite ambiguous about Strahd. If he is lawful and consistent she could justify him. However he seems to be capricious and work for his own interests in an inconsistent fashion. She definitely is lawful before everything else and she's interested to listen and see if he actually views himself as a steward of the 'Rovia or that it is simply his playground.

Kelwarin stated that he'd be surprised to see if Strahd can convince him that his rule, for such it is, is the best for Barovia. He has already seen too much that persuades him otherwise. Mostly he will be looking for any weaknesses and happy to dissemble during the short stay at the castle. That said, he stressed it was very important that what they need to be joined up on what their goals are and how we see our future - at least for the purposes of this invitation.

Ser Alys agreed, telling the elf, "I think you are right, K, this is a smile nicely, prevaricate, try and find out any obvious weaknesses: don't split up and get involved with any spawn brides...".

Ser Adon broke his silence, stating that the key is polite cool courtesy. Adon can do that. Looking for weaknesses, yes, and also trying to make a firm argument against the tithe (unless it is as Alys hopes), the argument being it has already effectively been taken by the spawn. Anything around the castle we can see to look at later is useful. Not going off to explore, but marking particular locations. Strahd’s obsession with Ireena is an issue, but we should not even mention her name, and prevaricate if it comes up. 

Outside the meeting's discussion, Adon wonders at a reply to the letter to the Abbot.

Kel responded that his expectations may even be less than Adon's. Unless Strahd is wanting to engage in a debate, is it really for the party to comment on the way he chooses to govern his lands? On one level, Kel doesn't really care, because he isn't going to be the ruler for that much longer, or we will fail and he is. It is useful to know about the tithe and the expectations of the realm for when Adon and Alys take over s beneficient rulers.

Ser Alys reiterated that they should not take Ireena or Alexei. There were too many problems there with the Devil's predilections and prejudices. Her husband strongly agreed.

Gaddock listened on. From his perspective, the party are just teetering on the edge between being too fun to kill, and too annoying to be left to live. Gaddock still thinks it's a dumb idea to visit the Castle with his rational brain, but being the little thrillseeker that he is, he's actually quietly excited to go to Strahd's castle. He's interested to see whether he's there alone, or he has help, as Gaddock knows that eventually they'll have to barge through the castle gates uninvited, so it helps to know what kinda extra firepower Strahd's got to play around. Gaddock's plan was to make polite conversation, to try and let Strahd explain himself in a villainous monologue, and perhaps let slip something of value, some kind of weakness or thread that can be exploited.

The debate continued; the only certainty being that a black carriage would arrive tomorrow to collect them and take them to the Castle for dinner with a powerful vampire dark lord.

26 April 2022

Curse of Strahd - S4E12 - At least the combat didn't drag on...

 

Our heroes have just entered a ruined study and are face to face with a ghostly dragon that grew from a cold ember, the Silver Dragon Argynvost, who they're soon to find out was the founder of the Order of the Silver Dragon, crushed when resisting Count Strahd's conquest of Barovia and turn to darkness.

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. 

5th December, mid afternoon

Ser Alys continues to put Vallaki straight as described in the previous entry of the blog. The remainder of our brave heroes are on the third floor of the ruined manse of Argynvostholt where, battered and bruised from the combat with the Revenant Knights, they now face a substantially larger dragon, silver, ghostly, with frost forming where it touches the floor. Quite a presence and also probably not at its full natural size.

Respectfully, they questioned the spirit of Argynvost about what had happened and why it was in the state it was. The dragon-spirit explained that his order had resisted Strahd as he turned to evil and that they had been defeated. Argynvost had been slain on the battlefield and his body brought back to be laid to rest. But something had happened; he could no longer talk to his knights, but could feel that they had become cold and consumed with hatred. Something had corrupted them and made them unable to rest. Argynvost was convinced that if they could remove whatever had corrupted his connection to his Order and stopped the silverly light of the beacons shining out then he would be able to reach out to his knights again and bring them to their rest. He knew that several hundred years had passed since he had died, but not the exact number as he had been diminished. He also mentioned that Strahd gained his powers from a temple to Dark Powers to the south; they had granted him unlife and power over the valley and realm. 

At the end of their conversation, a gust of wind blew through the room, and Argynvost collapsed back to an ember in the hearth in the room, preparing to endure after the lift that the party's hope and optimism had brought. With the wind blew the final page from the dragon's journal, revealing more about his passing.

My knights have fallen, and this land is lost. The armies of my enemy will not be stopped by sword or spell, claw or fang. Today I will die, not avenging those who have fallen, but defending that which I love—this valley, this home, and the ideals of the Order of the Silver Dragon.

The evil surrounds me. The time has come to throw off this guise and who these heathens my true fearsome form. Let it spark terror in their hearts! Let them tell their stories of dark triumph against the protector of the Balinok Mountains! Let Argynvost be remembered as a dragon of honor and valor. My one regret is that my remains will not lie in their rightful place, in the hallowed mausoleum of Argynvostholt. No doubt my bones will be scattered among my enemies like the coins of a plundered hoard, trophies of a hard-won victory.

I do not fear death. Though my body will die, my spirit will live on. Let it serve as a beacon of light against the darkness. Let it bring hope to a land wrought with despair.

Now, to battle!

They also found a burned and damaged book under a collapsed armchair. Titled The Oath Celestial, it was partially burned, and its cover slashed by a sword. Leafing through the crumbling book revealed that it was a devotional text for knights from a place called the Holy Empire of Valentia, a place that they hadn't heard of but it seemed that most of the Order came from that land.

There was a damaged painting that showed the house in better days, completely with a silvery beacon of light shining from the top of the tower above the chapel where they'd found the three revenants. Behind the house were mountains that could no longer be seen because of the walls of mists that surround Barovia.

They decided that they'd find the beacon and try and re-light it. They'd no plans to fight, so they didn't rest up. Instead, Ser Adon laid his hands on Alexei and healed him through the power of his faith. Gaddock looked out the window and noticed that there were two stairwells to the east which would probably be the best way up. They decided to make sure that this floor was clear and safe before they headed up. They entered the turret room where they'd seen a figure when they first arrived and found noting except plenty of bedding arranged in a next. This could well have been Argynvost's bedroom.

Searching further, they found a gallery above the chapel with beautiful stained glass windows of Saint Andrew, the Morninglord and Saint Markova. They passed through a ruined bathroom with a collapsed roof, open to the sky above, and then found themselves back at the large chamber near where they initially met Argynvost on this level. Looking ahead, they could see a large receiving room with a throne, with collapsed and damaged walls around. There was the body of a knight in plate armour seated on the throne with one hand on the arm of the chair and the other grasping the hilt of a beautiful greatsword with a dragon hilt and black jewel.

A whispered conversation followed - perhaps the issue was that this individual needed to be properly laid to rest. Ser Adon walked over and prayed for the repose of the corpse, and then reached out to pick it yp and carry it out to be buried. Before he could, a steely hand intercepted his and the corpse opened its eyes, explaining that 'a corpse should be left alone to rest' and demanding to know who they were. 

Gaddock launched into a respectful spiel that they were seeking assistance to destroyed Strahd, and was surprised to see the creature becoming angry. It argued that anyone who did something about the vampire-lord's punishment was trying to release him from the personal hell he was in, perpetually having to repeat his failure and losing his true love again and again. Barovia was a punishment for the Dark Lord and this knight, the former leader of Argynvost's hosts, had sworn to make sure that the vampire suffered eternally. Anyone who opposed this would face his wrath. Kel and Adon tried to convince the knight - Vladimir Horngaard - that this was wrong, but he was adamant in his views. Ser Adon became increasingly angry and attacked the knight with his radiant blade. He landed two solid blows.

The knight then stood up and looked at Ser Adon with piercing, terrifying blue eyes. It disquieted the knight, freezing him in place in terror. The knight then drew its blade, and in three shot blows had Ser Adon on the floor, bleeding out. Preparing to risk their lives to save their colleague, Sir Vladimir gave the party and chance to denounce their foolish plans and take the body of their friend. They quickly acquiesced, with Kel and Ireena dragging Adon's body out. They managed to poor a healing potion into him and get him breathing. They retreated into the turret with the soft furnishing, blocking the doors behind them, and preparing to spend the night there.

6th December

Fortunately, they recovered well overnight, as discretion seemed to be the better part of valour. The next morning, they followed Gaddock's advice and headed up to the roof. They found the entrance to the beacon tower was locked, so Alexei started to pick the lock. Suddenly, something was firing ghostly arrows at them; Kel spotted phantasmal creatures with long bows in the stair well windows, Adon confirmed that they were undead. They quickly entered, with Alexei managing to avoid being hurt. He found a sign carved into stone:

Here lie the bones of Argynvost,  lord of Argynvostholt and

founder of the Order of the Silver Dragon.

The stairs wound up two floors, and they were dominated by the corpse of a dragon, or rather, the skeleton of Argynvost. Gingerly heading up, Gaddock established that the skull was missing, and that the dragon claw they had found was from this body. Ser Adon identified that it was likely the corruption was an after-effect of the theft of the dragon's skull. Gaddock drew on the legend lore spell he had a casting of; it established that the tomb and beacon tower were overrun by blights led by hags. The skull was located in marshland, with a crude rudder, where it was being used as an unnatural air boat. It was resting beside a hut on legs; Gaddock realised that this was Old Berez and Baba Lysaga.

They decided they'd learnt enough, so quickly exited the mansion and headed back to Vallaki, which they reached unimpeded just after noon. They were reunited with Ser Alys, and all seemed to be well.

GM Notes: An interesting session which brought the season to an end a session earlier than I'd planned. It's clear that no lessons have really been learnt over the last three battles, with Ser Adon being taken down brutally hard. He was lucky to survive. This is a really dangerous location for level 6 characters. However, they've levelled up after concluding this session, so are now Level 7.

There are three real routes from here; follow the links to Old Berez, face the Dark Powers in the Amber Temple or take up Count Strahd on his invite to dinner. The latter is probably the safest provided they mind their Ps & Qs. The Amber Temple is extremely dangerous, Old Berez a little less so.

The new scripts in Roll20 - Aura/Tint, StatusInfo, CombatTracker and GMsheet all worked really well and were worth spending the time investigating and implementing.

Whether or not we return next week will depend how quickly the players make their mind up on the next stop on their journey.

20 April 2022

Return of the Yellow King

 

Tonight we're starting the second part of Pelgrane Press's Carcosan mythos game, The Yellow King. The Chambers material has long been a favourite of mine and when Dr Mitch offered the chance to play the roleplaying game, I jumped at it. We played the first part in Paris, and now we're in the next century, in the Wars, with characters that have links back to the story we explored in the first game.

That story really grabbed the feel of Chamber's books and I'm fascinated how this will go. We've lost one player but the core of the group continues. I'm intrigued whether there is any meta-story that we're playing through, or whether we will just experience the emergence of Carcosa into what was our reality. I could try and find out as I have the game on my shelves and Dr Mitch said I'm welcome to read it, but I actually want to find out by playing. 

I am hoping that this doesn't become a game like Night's Black Agents, where I ended up playing the Dracula Dossier and never returning to it because I couldn't see anything that I could do to top what I experienced.

Edit: actually, I could live with that.

19 April 2022

First Impressions - Gravemire

TL;DR: Gravemire presents a darkly horrific game set in the Louisiana Bayou in 1894 following a supernatural event known as 'The Convulsion'. It is beautifully illustrated and well laid out with unique mechanics for play beyond the Border in the Bayou and during downtime in the isolated settlement of Scarstone. There's much to love, but overall I found it undercooked; there just isn't enough about handling or depicting the Bayou and the supernatural threat within. This is a real shame as there is much to like here, especially as it gave me echoes of the Southern Reach Trilogy, albeit in a different century.

Gravemire is a 150-page full colour roleplaying game which is gorgeously illustrated and laid out. It is well edited and proofed (I saw a single typo and it was clear what it should have been) and an easy read. It is set in the the Louisiana Bayou, in the isolated town of Scarstone. Scarstone has suffered a supernatural event, referred to as "the Convulsion". Surrounding towns and settlements have disappeared, monsters roam, and weird magical effects take place. Scarstone is the last refuge before the Border, beyond which lies the Bayou, twisted and strange and full of death. Not unsurprisingly, the town has fallen into decline and many people have left. Scarstone's only connection to the outside world is the daily river boat.

Throughout reading this, Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach Trilogy came to mind. it has a similar vibe, although this is set in 1894.

The game has two modes; carrying out contracts (missions) beyond the Border in the bayou, and times of recovery and and preparation in Scarstone. Detailed description is given on running a session zero. it starts with lines, veils and highlights. There is good flavour text that gives an example of a group working this through. It makes sense when playing a game focused on isolation, grief and loss along with horrifying creatures. There's also a good discussion on how to deal with the more problematic aspects of the location and time period, and recommends discussion on how you will handle such bigotry at the table.

Characters are defined by their name, health points, willpower, aversions, skills and any items or traits gained in play.

You start with a pool of 15 skill points which are used to buy skills or health points. You cannot raise willpower. A player can choose that their character takes an aversion to gain extra skill points.

Aversions represent specific fears that a character may have. If you face them in an encounter, it means you will automatically lose willpower. They're graded in three tiers. Tier 3 are the worst, as they are very broad, whereas tier I are very specific. Similarly, skills are ranked in the same kind of tiers. You can gain a maximum of a +3 bonus from a skill, but it costs you three times more to get that for a broader skill than it does for a narrow one at tier 1. There are no set skill lists - your choices here really define your character.

Character generation ends with each player being asked four questions about why they are at Scarstone and what fears or motivations they have.

It's recommended that the first session starts as you cross the border, putting the characters straight into a contract rather than exploring Scarstone. Not quite "in media res" but certainly a good way to start a campaign. The core mechanic used is the skill check. You identify the goal and roll 2d12. You can add up to two skills as bonuses to the check. You can use one skill that doesn't perfectly apply, as a tangential bonus, for half effect. You only get one chance at a check.

Success and failure is graded. Full success needs a roll over 17, below that there are ranges for partial success and failure. If you roll particularly low, you will get a negative twist. High rolls will get positive twists. Twists are potentially significant boons or penalties to the action. A compounded failure will give a skill point to spend later on. If you deal with something beyond your knowledge, it can be defined as an unfamiliar check. Your normal skills are treated as tangential, and tangential skills are not applicable. 

There are no mechanics to assist other characters on skill checks.

Willpower represents a character's resistance to the stresses that come from travelling beyond the Border into a place that is weird and alien to normal human experience. It can never exceed ten points, and will deteriorate in play. You can recover it by making it back to the safety of Scarstone, and also by spending skill points that you may obtain from contracts. However, you can never have more than ten points. Willpower checks are made on 2d8. If you roll more than your current willpower, you reduce its score by a point. If you encounter or experience something for which you have an aversion, you make a willpower check immediately. On a fail, you lose two willpower points, on a success the cost is just a single point.

When your willpower hits five points, you will gain an aversion to whatever caused that. Unfortunately, this doesn't give you skill points. You also become "pressured". This means that tangential bonuses cannot be applied. At three will power points you gain another aversion, and are "crushed". The pressures of the land beyond the Border are getting to you and all combat or skill checks are treated as unfamiliar. 

If you ever reach zero willpower, you become "pushed to the brink". Any subsequent willpower loss is applied to your health instead. Until this happens it's possible for a character with appropriate skills to help you recover a small amount of willpower, but characters that have been pushed to the brink are incapable of treatment beyond the Border.

Health measures your physical wellbeing. It can be lost through combat, magic, willpower loss and other encounters. It is recovered by resting at Scarstone, but medical aid can be attempted beyond the Border. However, this can make things worse. If your character reaches zero health, they die. There's no way back.

The game has a formal "ritual to honor death", a narrative moment of reflection on the character by their player and the other characters. Magic exists beyond the Border. It is dangerous but powerful. it falls into two types - Substance and Soul. Substance affects matter, and Soul magic affects the minds and souls of its victims: Using magic comes at a cost to the individual wielding it. Substance draws on your Health, whilst Soul magic draws upon your willpower. Magic is tiered, in a similar manner to skills.

The rules:

• Substance magic cannot directly affect an entity in possession of a soul.
• Soul magic can only affect an entity in possession of a soul.
• Magic only works beyond the Border.

The easiest magic manipulator type is the transfiguration - affecting a change on the target of the magic. The second tier involves destruction, in the case of soul magic, this is all about instilling a want or need that is a compulsion. The third tier is creation. This is the most exhausting. In the case of Soul magic, this is "possession", the ability to completely control or dominate another.

(The text on the initial PDF release has the same headings for tiers for the two magic types, but the description in the table suggests Soul magic's ties should be titled dissuasion/compulsion/possession.)

Magic use is quite narrative- the player describes the effect that their character wants to achieve and the Dealer (GM) assigns a difficulty rating between 1 and 3. Casting magic reduces your willpower or health by the difficulty multiplied by the tier of the magic. Clearly, hitting zero health is fatal, and zero willpower means any remaining losses are doubled when applied to Health. The Dealer can require a skill check to succeed; however this should be used rarely, in the cases when a character is pushing to extremes.

Combat is handled in a more structured manner than normal encounters. The mechanic could be used in other situations, such as social challenges, should the dealer feel that it is appropriate.

Combat begins with everyone making a willpower check if they're facing something horrific. Turn order is then determined by the players rolling an "upper hand" check. This is a skill check where no tangential bonuses are applicable. The check doesn't use the normal success criteria, but instead just takes the total rolled. Higher is better, going earlier in the tum order. I couldn't see any guidance for the Dealer in rolling initiative for monsters or opponents that may be encountered.

You can make a regular move and a tandem more each time you act. Each round represents about ten seconds of time; tandem moves are those you can do while doing something else (eg talking, moving, using some objects). There is an option to take a reckless move (a second regular more taken immediately), but that allows the Dealer to take a move out of turn order immediately. Attacks are a skill check. However, they can use some of their skill bonus as a modifier to damage if they want to hold it back (and are successful).

Combat isn't especially crunchy, and fits the feel of the game well.

The next section of the book details life in Scarstone. It's a very deliberate contrasting downtime sequence of recovery and growth.

Returning from a contract back to civilisation will always give you willpower back. Conversely, setting back out beyond the Border now you know what's out there will immediately force a willpower check for your character and they may lose some of what they've recovered.

When they get to Scarstone, each character gets four "let-ups". There are five different kinds of "let-up"; you can do them more than once, but you need to treat each one as a unique incidence, playing through the questions related to the activity you're doing each time. Characters can rest or recover to regain health or willpower (but not both in a single let-up scene). They can also learn from their mistakes; this is a period of introspection for the character which leads to a new skill, at the cost of a new aversion. Skill points gained from contacts are spent to "learn something new and get stronger". This allows you to raise your health, recover your will power maximum and upgrade or gain skills.

There's also an activity that lets characters explore Scarstone and learn what is going on in the community and discover the history of the town by how it interacts with them.

Finally, characters can try to get something that they need, a new item of equipment. There's a short list of example items.

The approach used for let-ups gives a rich roleplaying experience for players when their characters return to civilisation; it will definitely make the feeling of loss when a character passes away for more impactful.

The next downtime step is to bid for contacts for the next mission beyond the Border. There are eight different types given as examples. The bidding represents the level of risk that the players are willing to have their characters face. Higher risk leads to more skill points in the payout, should they succeed. The Dealer isn't obliged to honour the level of risk the characters face, but it does represent the minimum payout. If they face a higher risk, the payment increases.

The next sections of the book provide guidance for the am (dealer). it outlines the agenda (core tenets) of the game as follows:

1. Encourage bold choices.
2. Bring the hammer down hard.
3. Punish characters, not players
4. Share in the Party's joy, and mourn with them in turn.
5. Create doors, present crossroads.

The advice is sound, and gives a clear steer on the playstyle the game is aiming for. It's dark, with real horror and risks, but there is light coming from the character's relationships.

Monsters are presented using a tier system, linked back to the tier of the contact bid upon. There are three examples given at each tier (so twelve in total, as there is a tier 0), and all are quite evocative and give a feel for the setting.

The book ends with some advice on running online, running one shots and how to make the world your own. They're very short sections and the ending feels very abrupt. Reflecting on Gravemire, I find myself a little underwhelmed and disappointed. The book looks gorgeous and is well laid out. There are some errors, but very few, and nothing that affected game play. The game engine is simple and intuitive, and the downtime activities will work really well (based on what I've seen in other games). So what's missing?

The Bayou. The land beyond the Border. That's what's missing.

I'm not expecting to see a gazetteer, or maps, or pages of setting materials; rather, I was expecting to see some guidance on how to evoke the feel and horror of the Bayou. The nearest thing to this came with the monster examples.

When I look at the Liminal RPG (for example), that game focuses on the supernatural elements and how to bring them into play in a modern world setting. I could take what's presented in that game and use it in most modern-day developed countries without an issue. Gravemire deals with a supernatural twisting of the Bayou in the 1890s. This is a distinct setting (the 1890s) and a unique place and culture (the Louisiana Bayou) yet there's nothing there to hang a game on. 

Part of me wonders if the author is very familiar with the setting and didn't realise they'd not addressed this. It should have been picked up in editing. It could have been addressed by expanding the contract examples with elements to draw upon or even by providing a starter contract to play as an example.

Overall, this is a miss for me. There's a lot I like (game engine, layout, artwork, concept) but I feel that it failed to land successfully. That's a great shame. That said, something about the game niggles me enough that I may well come back to it. I think it would work well for a game in a setting like Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach Trilogy, and I'm tempted to hack it around. Three stars out of five.

16 April 2022

Second Thoughts - Mausritter

Mausritter, running on playrole.com

Tonight I finally got to run Mausritter, which is something that I've wanted to do for quite some time. I originally wrote a post about it back in November 2020, but both times I wanted to organise a game it just didn't happen. Tonight, I got another chance, as half the Strahd players weren't available (either being interviewed on TV in Canada, or with other commitments). Alex and Dr Mitch were up for trying the game, so I agreed to run.

I decided to use the Honey in the Rafters scenario which came with the box set. Reading the game was swift and a delight, and the quick reference material detailed most of what I wanted. I decided to use Role as the VTT as I'd created an official Mausritter sheet some time ago and wanted to test it out. You can find details of the sheet here in a past post here on the blog. Neither Paul or Alex had used Role before, so we had about 15 mins orientation before we ran. The VTT was stable throughout (better than my internet connection as the kids were both streaming and gaming) and was just right for the rules-light approach for the game.

We had three characters in play - Saffron, Ada (an upgraded drunken hireling torchbearer) and Stilton. They were all generated using the online tools at mausritter.com which are excellent.

I used two of the scenario hooks; they were looking for a missing farmer and also to get some honey. They arrived at the deserted garden and shack and went unerringly straight towards the sunflowers with a daring plan to drug a bee and milk it for honey. Stilton was certain that was how you get honey. Fortunately, a well handled encounter with a skunk (warband scale so pretty much the equivalent of a dragon in effect) led to information that milking bees was unwise. They snuck into the shack, past the hive's messenger corps and infiltrated the mouse sugar cult that was present. A desperate escape followed with them losing a chase and then being drawn into a short and brutal fight that left Saffron injured, two cultists down and the rest ran away. Our heroes escaped with their ill-gotten gains by a squeak.

The game ran like a dream; the only issues were my lack of familiarity when I fumbled to find the page to check a rule. The combat is brutal, but clever play avoids it. The sandbox was dangerous, but the players picked up well on telegraphed threats. 

In summary, a fun evening of play and I'd like to revisit this again, perhaps once the Estate boxed set arrives. 

13 April 2022

 

2 April 2022

Photo from 5 years ago of my Mum watching the grandkids messing around on holiday at Overbecks in Salcombe.

It would have been your 80th Birthday today Mum, but I'm sure you're still keeping an eye on us and the grandkids somewhere, even if it's only in our hearts and memories.

2nd April 2022

RPG update March 2022

The latest doughnut.

End of March sees the present normality reasserting itself with D&D 5e moving into the lead with the most games played, passing Trail of Cthulhu (as we have finished the gaming run for Eternal Lies while we move over to The Yellow King for the next part).

Beyond that, the games are all from Revelation. I played or ran five games at the con and had great fun!

That means just under a third of my games have been face-to-face. On the virtual side there's been 6 games using Roll20 and 5 using Zoom.

2 April 2022

 

VTT Set Up

Ready for Curse of Strahd.

With the move back to a Mac for my main computer, my set up for gaming tabletop roleplaying virtually has changed. Previously, I was using an ASUS Chromebook CT-434 as my main machine. It was a lovely Chromebook, and did everything I needed for 80% of what I wanted; however, I ended up going back to a MacBook because its where my heart is and - more importantly - it lets me get the other things I want to do done.

The ASUS had a lovely 14" screen in a 13" body. The MacBook does the same, but there's a world of difference. The ASUS was touchscreen, the Mac isn't. The ASUS was Full HD (1920 x 1080) and the MacBook is much higher resolution (3024 x 1964) with higher refresh rates (120 Hz) and mini-LED technology. I'd paired the ASUS with a second screen as it felt tight running Roll20, but the MacBook doesn't feel as cramped. I could use the second screen, but so far I haven't felt a need to do so.

I will split screen when I'm playing rather than GMing - video on one side and the game's character sheet on the other.

I'm still using the external Anker USB-C dongle. It adds in USB-A, HDMI and more. Ironically, all I want is a USB-A so I can use my Jabra 510 Speaker Phone. This is one of those noise-cancelling business bluetooth and wired devices designed for conference calls. It is great for playing RPGs online though, as it  frees you from the headset.

If I'm playing on Roll20, I'll tend to use a mouse (Logitech MX Anywhere 3) to handle tokens; if I'm on Role or using Meet / Zoom I won't bother. The mouse is an upgrade from the previous one (Logitech Pebble) because I wore the microswitches out. I've deliberately gone to higher spec mice and external keyboards since I've worked from home, as they definitely make a difference.

At least there is a video image behind the triangle (Roll20).

For Curse of Strahd, I'll usually be running Roll20 with Chrome as the browser, with the Discord app for audio. We do run video through Roll20, but it's still flaky at times. I will play any music via Roll20, but I'm experimenting using Loopback (virtual audio piping) and Farrago (Sound Board) to raise my game here. I need to take a bit of time and upload the sound effects properly to see where this gets me.

I'll generally use Safari if I'm on other platforms; if it gets flaky Chrome is the fallback.

For Strahd, I'm mainly referencing the D&D Dungeon Master's screen (which has some post it notes on for quick reference), and more recently the Lazy DM's Workbook since I printed a spiral-bound copy. I do have the Player's Handbook there, but rarely pick it up. I've the Player's Handbook, Monster Manual and Dungeon Master's Guide on Roll20 so will tend to pull up the compendium. I do assume that the players will look after their own stuff, but it's really useful having two players who really know fifth edition. Alex is very knowledgeable, and Tom also helps out. Graham tends to find this hardest as he's also running fourth edition and they're a bit similar which causes confusion.

I'll have the Curse of Strahd book at the table for quick reference, and usually the parts of the MandyMod and DragnaCarta remixes that I'm drawing from printed out and highlighted. I tend to translate the various motivations and plot triggers in the more social locations (especially Vallaki) into Dungeon World style Adventure Fronts for quick reference. I tend to create these on the reMarkable, but print them out for use and ease of references. I'll also usually have hard-copies of the map for the location printed, often with quick notes.

I use Travis Savoie's "Into the Mist" music for Curse of Strahd, and always start and end the game with the same introduction piece. It's a nice collection of music. It's available on Bandcamp, and I recommend his other pieces. When I ran the Carnival section, I used the music from the Disney 1980s film version of "Something Wicked This Way Comes".

In all cases, I use the reMarkable for notes, which I write up here on the blog at the end of the session. That usually takes 45 minutes to an hour to complete. It's been vital with the length of the campaign, as I've been able to go back and check what happened.

The final element is the ring light (set on warm for atmosphere).

In the case shown here, I also have a nice glass of Jura...

2 April 2022