Members of the Guard basic setting overview

 

Members of the Guard

Setting overview

The setting is that of a fantasy world where humans are the only dominant race. There are no elves, dwarfs or anything like that. Most of the land that the PC's will be in is part of a sprawling kingdom under religious rule. Their main mission will be to travel among townships and cities fighting back against the very real demons that exist and their influence among the populace. These traveling protectors are known as the Guard to most common folk and as Chevaliers by the more educated.

At the base level the Guard are made up of three general types of members. The Cavaliers, who are those skilled mainly in fighting. They make up the bulk of the members. Then there the Clerics, who are gifted in the ability to perform minor graces of God. They are also skilled in fighting as well but not as much as the Cavaliers. Then there are the Priests, the ones who are the most knowledgeable of the faith and can perform powerful graces. Most characters will be either Cavaliers or Clerics as most Priests are NPC's that may be in charge of multiple groups of the Guard. Basically they are the ones giving the orders such as “Go to this town and find out why their crops are being blighted”.

More on the basic world. The entire kingdom is ruled by the church, there is no other secondary form of municipality. Everything major decision is made by them and carried out by their devoted followers. The next closest thing is the various guilds sat up among the merchant and artisan classes of the society. While they have no actual say in governance they can attempt to sway their local leaders or attempt to set the markets how they want. Land ownership is a very gray area, all the farmland is owned by the church and the workers are given a very basic rate of payment for their work. While individual homes and businesses are considered to be owned by specific people. However at anytime a high ranking church member can order the property to be seized with very little the occupants can do about it.

I'll flesh out the details more as I go along in future posts.

Jaded Gamer - Cyberpunk RED

Well Cyberpunk RED is finally out in digital with the print book available within a few days afterwards. Happy to see it finally arrive although I'm going to have to give the game a pass. I've been a big fan of Cyberpunk in both the original 2013 and 2020 releases and still have a large collection of books from that series. But I feel that I am no longer part of the target audience for the game anymore.

More and more it feels like they are going after the folks who are heavy con goers, the ones who run big podcasting set ups and those who broadcast live streams. Which I can't blame them that's where the money is. But when I saw them giving the discounts to the people who have plenty of extra spending cash at cons but not to any of those who can't afford that it made me step back. The jumpstart kit, when purchased at the con, had a discount for the pdf and free downloads for music. Not to mention convention only special dice and other swag that were also available just at the con. Those of us who are tight on cash and can't afford trips like that were left out.

Being a cash strapped gamer has really been a bitch these last two years. With people blaming those of us with shallow pockets for piracy and all sorts of other nonsense. Shaming us when we say something is out of our price range. Hell I got outright dog piled when I said Invisible Sun was to expensive for my budget. They scream at us about how much it costs to make the product but mother fuckers can't get grasp the base concept that if the money isn't in my wallet then I can't spend it.

Then we saw folks going up against those who offered free or cheap product. They were shamed and blamed for bringing down the ability for others to make money in the tabletop roleplaying game market. Several folks who supposedly promote inclusiveness were quick to jump on this bandwagon. Those who shouted against gatekeeping were setting up their own gates to keep people out if they didn't pass the income barrier. 

So I'm out. I'm done. They can offer the discounts to the people with all the extra cash to spend. While I'll set over here and stop getting excited about any release what so ever. I'll make my own little products and offer them up cheap so others like me can afford them.

Cash Strapped - DnD 5th edition

 

Time for a Cash Strapped post folks. For this one I'm linking to a hell of a good deal for those who are interested in picking up Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition for a nice discounted price. Oh and what a deal it is. 

The three core books with special edition foil covers, a DM screen and a slipcase to hold them. For a lot less than the three core books by themselves. This special slip case edition comes in at almost 78 bucks off the regular price. Can't beat that with a stick. 

Get this deal over at Amazon before it's gone. Oh and yes I do get a little kickback if you buy it through this link. 

Vampire the Masquerade Winter's Teeth issue 3 review

Winters Teeth 

Issue 3 

Vault Comics

Pick it up on DrivethruComics 

Pick it up on Amazon

Pick it up on Ebay

This issue hits the stand with quite a bit of action between the covers. The story picks up with Cecily's investigation into the slaughter of the Nosferatu that occurred last issue. Showcasing the brutality of what happened while bringing along her Ali whom she is still declaring as her childe. We get to see some build up, some story stings coming together and even a fight with the surreal looking bad guys who did the massacre. Don't get attached to anyone by the way. Also we discover something bad has happened to Prince Samantha while all this was going on.

The Anarch Tales secondary storyline also picks up quite a bit. We get a bit more details on one of the group members and their motivations. Then their escape from the hunters which captured most of them last issue. So it's going together nicely as well. Still wondering if this will tie into the main story or not. 

In the back we get more material for the roleplaying game. Information for the Wolves in Sheeps clothing bad guys, some new powers and another group of villains called the Nictuku.

The art continues to be at the same quality standard as the previous issues. I feel the writing is maybe a little bit better than the first two issues. Still giving us necessary details for the story without dumping a ton of setting information in order to do so. 

So once again, two thumbs up and recommended for fans of the new and old versions of Vampire the Masquerade. Heck even those who are not fans may enjoy this story.

Narrative design - The Archer

 

Thinking along the lines of narrative game design elements and mixing a few in with a more traditional system for Kainis. One idea I've toyed around with is that each player has a number of 'Story Points' to spend on special abilities. These abilities are determined partially by a rough character class outline and the rest through choices made during character creation. Here are a few I came up with for The Archer.

First off The Archer does not keep track of arrow count unless the GM deems it necessary in a 'limited resources' type of game. So running out is something that needs to have impact in the game.

"My Last Shot" - This means The Archer is using their very last arrow on their character. Done at a time when it really needs to count. It results in gaining an improved chance of success and and improved amount of damage to the target. Cost: 1 point.

"Scrounging for Arrows" - Usable after The Archer runs out of arrows in one way or another. They spend a few rounds looking over the bodies of enemies or through a suitable location that may logically have a few laying around. For every story point spent they get a single arrow. Keep track of these because when they are used you have two choices. Use the arrow normally and you gain the story point back OR use the arrow with an increased chance to hit and you lose the story point you spent for that arrow.

"For your consideration" - This is done to perform a trick shot in a non-combat situation. By spending one point you automatically succeed in making a simple trick shot while not under any sort of duress. 

"Using what is at hand" - Used during close combat where ranged attacks aren't very feasible. The Archer is able to use an arrow as a stabbing weapon using their ranged attack skill although the damage is half of a normal arrow hit. Cost: 1 point.

The ritual of chosen traits.

 

The Ritual Of Chosen Traits

This is a ritual that allows the caster to choose specific physical traits for the child within their womb. Each drop of blood they shed at the end allows them to make one choice, however each one reduces their chance of surviving the childbirth. The only thing that can not be requested is the gender of the child.

The ritual must take place in a private wooded area after a fresh snow has fallen on the ground. No other person may have walked through the snowfall around her before the ritual begins. The caster must wear the cloak of the cabal that taught her the necessary magic and nothing more. While kneeling in the snow she must recite her ancestors names going back three generations and praising each one for their achievements. Then calling upon Astoria the Goddess of Life for the permission to grant her child the traits that are desired. While bargaining with Aedarius the God of Death for what may be the cost of these traits. The calling out takes about fifteen minutes and must not be interrupted.

Then the caster pulls out the dagger that is to be used for cutting the umbilical cord and drives it into the ground before her. If it falls over immediately the offspring is to be a girl, if it sinks into the ground it will be a boy. Next she must slice the tip of a finger for each trait bargained for. Letting the blood from each to fall into the snow. She then thanks the Goddess and God for listening to her request, cleans the blade and leaves the area where the ritual was performed.

The caster does not know if the ritual was successful only the birth of the child and it's growth will tell. Also she doesn't know if the God of Death will take her during childbirth or not. But the less that is asked the more likely she is to survive.

Inspired by the origin of Snow White in the original Bothers Grimm story. 

Cash Strapped for 9/23/20

 

Haven't done a cash strapped post in a while so I figure it's about time. So here are some cheap, free or pay what you want gaming items for those who don't have a lot of cash in their pockets. 

The Pugmire Core Rulebook phone pdf - A post apocalyptic game where dogs have inherited the world. Get the phone pdf version of this game for absolutely nothing. 

FEAR the DARK - A fanzine for Heroquest, the fun boardgame of fantasy adventure. It's currently at Pay What You Want. 

Engine & Empires core rules - A OSR gaslamp fantasy TTRPG. A rather large tome indeed, and it's priced at Pay What You Want. 

Guildhall Goods - A nice little fantasy location made to be tossed into a game with ease. Priced at Pay What You Want.