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Welcome to Dvreem, a simple, diceless "pencil and paper" storytelling game for two people. The sample setting of Creagadier blends fairy tale, steampunk, and Wuxia themes. The rules and setting are both designed to encourage fun and memorable adventures involving only a single protagonist. Playing the game requires these rules, paper and pencil, and two people eager for stories of adventure and humor.
Dvreem and Creagadier form a kid-friendly introduction to role-playing games. They work equally well with adults, experienced gamers, or more than two people. The rules of Dvreem work with settings other than Creagadier (only the four skills that describe how characters interact with technology might need changing).
The two people playing Dvreem have different roles. One acts as narrator and the other is in charge of the protagonist. The narrator describes the setting and controls everything in the story except the main character. The other person makes all of the choices for the main character.
For historical reasons, this type of cooperative storytelling game is called a role-playing game or RPG, the narrator is called the Game Master or GM, and the other participants in charge of the protagonists are called Players.
Consider a short example:
Wilpan Clankwell Explores as a Mouse
GM: The footprints lead around the house, to a set of old bulkhead cellar doors against the back wall. What does your character do?
Player: Are the doors locked? Can the lock be used from inside? Wilpan wonders if the kidnapper could be inside.
GM: The doors are locked, and lock is a fancy one, beyond Wilpan's ability to pick or break. The lock and handle are new, in contrast with the doors, which are so old the edges are weathered and the paint is peeling. It's not a padlock on a latch, but a locking handle more appropriate for the front door of a wealthy manor house.
Player: Interesting. Time to be sneaky and see what is inside. Surely the yard has a big bush or some other good place for Wilpan to hide things? Are the doors worn out enough for a mouse to slip inside?
GM: There are plenty of hiding places, for it is very dark. None of the district's street lamps reach here. As for entering as a mouse, yes, but it will be a tight squeeze.
Player: So Wilpan does his usual change routine. He hides his stuff, drinks a slow-acting healing potion and a quickness potion, and then pets Mister Mouse, taking his shape.
GM: Wilpan is tired after changing but feels the healing potion restoring his energy. Mister Mouse sniffs a farewell from inside his little cage, on top of your hidden belongings.
Player: In mouse form, Wilpan squeezes through the bulkhead doors. Once inside he will stop and try to listen carefully, and then if possible dash to a hiding place from which he can see the cellar.
The final two standard RPG acronyms uses in this document are calling the main characters are called Player Characters or PCs, as opposed to the characters controlled by the GM who are called Non-Player Characters or NPCs.
The game is diceless so it can be played anywhere. No need to gather a big group of game-playing friends: you and your best friend or spouse should be able to play it when on a walk, relaxing in the spa, or wrestling with giant snakes while exploring lost ruins. Alternate rules that use dice are provided because some players (especially young ones) really enjoy how dice contribute to suspense and the thrill of victory, and because colorful sets of polyhedral dice are nifty.
The game is still being developed and experiences frequent additions and occasional revisions.
Reading this document correctly requires a web browser that knows how to display embedded .svg files.
The word Dvreem is a play on words, combining the English word "dream" and the Hebrew word d'vareem. This game is a dream-thing made of words.
The word Creagadier is a play on words, combining "Crag", "Creag", and "Brigadier" with echoes of "gear". The main location in the setting is a mountain (named Arlinac Mountain) that has been fought over for centuries, on which is a steampunk town (named Arlinac Town).
Inspiration to try diceless role-playing came from Amber Diceless by Erick Wujcik.
Playtesting thanks go to my wife and to Nathan Brown. Thanks for helpful writing feedback go to D.J. Mckenna.
This work is not public domain, but I will almost certainly grant permission to other game developers wanting to steal from my ideas if they promise to give credit (to this and their other sources). That is how good RPG design works, and what I have endeavored to do!
Diceless RPG storytelling is a special art keeps the story flowing smoothly, allow drama and suspense within a cooperative conversation, and enable a Player to portray a character with very different experience and background knowledge from real life.
The topics and techniques in this sections are guidelines, not rules. May they be thought-provoking and helpful to both new and experienced RPG gamers!
Notice that in the example above the GM and Player take turns talking. How long is a turn?
Usually a GM turn lasts until the Player (and thus the PC) learns new information. There might be a lot of information (the GM provides lengthy description after the PC enters a new place occupied by strange people) or very little information (the GM shares that the PC can tell about an opponent during the first few moments of a fight). Often the information includes what all the NPCs do, what the PC perceives, and any hunches the PC has.
A good GM will alter the length of his or her turn to help the pace of the story. The GM will slow down the pace by providing more detail when the PC has the luxury of slowly looking around and thinking. The GM will foster a sense of urgency when the action is rushed by sharing less detail and concluding with phrases such as "What is your character doing?" or "How does your character react?"
Usually the Player turn lasts until the Player picks a skill, item, or situational advantage to try using and describes the PC's intentions (not actions). Usually the PC's plans or desires are immediately successful and might as well have been phrased as actions. But assuming success is actually crowding out the GM's turn; using intentions provides the GM with better opportunities to inject details and complications. Furthermore, intentions are easy to make sound exciting and realistic, and details often make plans more interesting.
The Player's turn normally ends when he or she cannot continue the story without information from the GM about what the PC perceives or what an NPC does. If the PC is alone and in a familiar place, the Player's turn could be quite lengthy since the Player can continue the story without new information.
Silmyn has a Plan
GM: The thug draws his sword and rushes towards Silmyn. How does Silmyn react?
Player: Silmyn wants to subdue him but not kill him. He needs to find out who is sending these assassins, and he can't question a corpse. So Silmyn moves into a compact stance, ready to use his own sword to bind. He hopes to gague his opponent's strength and skill, then disarm.
GM: The thug's swings are forceful but not skilled. Silmyn parries two blows, and on the third has an opportunity to bind. The thug tries to free his blade but Silmyn presses in and twists it out of the thug's hand. The thug is definitely stronger than Silmyn. What does Silmyn do?
This was interesting and exciting. The Player used details to make his plan more fun. The GM was able to build off what the Player said and use a combat turn to share information about the thug.
Silmyn Assumes Success
GM: The thug draws his sword and rushes towards Silmyn.
Player: Silmyn stabs him in the arm, causing the thug to drop his sword.
GM: Okay.
This was boring. The Player stole the GM's turn and weakened the story by doing so.
Silmyn Uses Excessive Detail
GM: The thug draws his sword and rushes towards Silmyn.
Player: Silmyn turns so the right side of his body faces his foe, and steps back to put his weight on his left leg. He keeps his sword's tip high, ready to block. His left hand is poised, ready to help maintain perfect balance when lunging. He smiles at the thug, letting the lamp light gleam off his gold tooth...
GM: Arg! Enough!
All that detail makes no contribution to the encounter. The GM has almost nothing to make use of when contuinuing to build the story on his/her turn. The story's flow is ruined.
Notice that the Player can get a free turn by asking questions. The Player's turn lasts until he or she describes how the PC intends to move the story forward, and questions do not do this.
Questions are important because the PC will certainly have different background knowledge and experiences than the Player. Usually the GM knows more about the setting than the Player, so the Player benefits from asking the GM for aid in brainstorming how the PC would perceive or evaluate a situation.
Therefore smart Players often ask the GM questions such as "What does my character see?", "What does my character think are his best options?", "How does my character evaluate this situation?", or "Does my character think this might work?". More detailed questions about the setting are also appropriate, for example "Does my character remember if these creatures can climb trees?" or "What does my character think is a fair price for selling the gem?"
It is also polite for the Player to use questions to double-check the PC's limits whenever the Player is uncertain: asking the GM about issues of skill or strength up front maintains the story's flow better than creating a plan that the GM deems unworkable because the PC has insufficinet skill or strength. So smart Players ask questions such as "Is my character strong enough to force open that door?", "Does my character think she could defeat both of them without getting wounded?", or "Does my character think an aggressive Press might work, or does remaining defensive seem necessary?"
To keep the story flowing smoothly, both the GM and player need to contribute to describing the setting.
Officially the GM is responsible for creating the story's setting. But the story would drag along at a snail's pace if the Player had to check every detail with the GM.
A Player Refusing to Share the Setting
GM: The restaurant is cleaner than most Kyvron has been to, and the food tastes quite nice. Could this be a relaxing night for a change? Ten minutes later it appears Kyvron has no such luck: a fight breaks out on the other side of the room.
Player: Can Kyvron hide under the table?
GM: Yes, it is big enough and right now no one else is under it.
Player: Suppose he tries to leave by the front door but becomes caught up in the fight. Is that path clear? Are there chairs between Kyvron and the front door he could pick up to defend himself with?
GM: Certainly. The restaurant is only half full. There are plenty of empty chairs.
Player: Perhaps it would be strategic to hide in a corner after dousing the nearby light sources. Does the restaurant have a fireplace? Does it use lanterns, or lamps, or torches for illumination? How many are near the corner farthest from the fight?
GM: Arg!
However, the other extreme is equally disruptive. A player with a habit of assuming too much hinders the GM's ability to plan suspenseful encounters. Monsters are less threatening if the Player assumes his or her PC can always find a place to run or hide. A group of enemies is much less dangerous if the Player assumes his or her PC can always fight strategically using a doorway or stairs.
The solution is to maintain a balance by using language intentionally.
When assumptions are safe because of precedent and shared expectations about the setting, the Player may unashamedly make assumptions about the surroundings and may describe a sequence of intentions.
(In the following examples also notice how the Player describes PC intentions rather than completed actions. This is often done using phrases such as "try to...", "want to...", "like to...", "will look for...", etc.)
Safe Assumptions When Sharing the Setting
GM: ...a fight breaks out on the other side of the room.
Player: Are any of the restaurant staff in trouble?
GM: Not currently. Most are heading towards the door to the kitchen. One has grabbed a large club from somewhere and is striding towards the four combatants.
Player: Kyvron strides to the front door. Since it opens inward, his plan is to hold it open in a calm and gentlemanly manner for those patrons who are trying to leave while still studying the fight. He wants to grab two chairs while walking to the door, so he can use one to prop open the door and keep the second ready to shield himself if the violence comes near.
The GM never mentioned which way the front door opened, or how clear is the path to the door, or how many chairs are unoccupied. Yet the assumptions the Player made are reasonable for most restaurants and do not trivialize the situation, so they do not interfere with the game's flow by frustrating the GM. The Player describes a somewhat lengthy set of actions without waiting for GM approval of each step, while politely using intentions ("his plan...", "he wants...") to provide the GM with opportunities to interrupt.
When assumptions might be unreasonable because the GM and Player have little precedent or shared expectations, the Player should mention likelihood or chance when phrasing the PC's intentions. Usually the Player will also share only the next one or two actions in his or her PC's plan, to allow for more GM feedback.
Iffy Assumptions When Sharing the Setting
GM: ...a fight breaks out on the other side of the room.
Player: I expect the stairs to the upper floor can provide cover. Kyvron tries rushing to them while fitting an explosive blot to his small crossbow. There is probably a chandelier or some other equally dramatic target. Kyvron plans to shoot from the stairs, get everyone's attention with some loud and flashy (but hopefully inexpensive to repair) property damage, then demand and end to the restaurant brawl.
GM: The chandelier uses candles, not glow-moss or lamps. Causing it to fall might start a fire. But Kyvron sees a metal pail of cool ash by the fireplace, which is not lit on this warm evening. The metal pail makes a wonderfully loud noise, and the ash cloud provides several seconds of confusion where people are blinded or unsure where to look. Kyvron can to time his demand more precisely: is he using Wonder or Etiquette when he speaks?
Notice the Player used "I expect..." and "There is probably..." because assumptions about the restaurant's floor plan and light sources seemed more iffy than the previous example's safe assumptions about a clear path to the front door and a couple unoccupied chairs. Because of the Player's language, the GM was able to add interesting details while respecting the Player's plan.
When assumptions are probably unreasonable, the Player should emphasize desire when phrasing the PC's intentions. Often this technique is emphasized by describing the Player's desire out-of-character rather than a desire of the PC.
Wild Assumptions When Sharing the Setting
GM: ...a fight breaks out on the other side of the room.
Player: How many people are fighting? How far apart are they positioned?
GM: Four, currently. They are all grappling and hitting, not throwing things, so all four are close together.
Player: I sure hope this restaurant is one of those classic low-class stuffy and smoky ones, since having all the windows open would make Kyvron's sleep potions nearly useless. Kyvron swaggers over, one sleep potion in his left hand and a second handy in a pocket. "Take it outside!" he hollers at the brawlers, trying to look a lot dumber than he is. "Starting to rain now. Some rain will help yer smell, and some mud will pretty up yer faces."
The Player has something dramatic and fun planned, or is temporarily low on creativity and can only brainstorm a single workable plan. Saying "I sure hope..." is the Player's cue that begs the GM to let the plan at least start out smoothly for the sake of the game's flow.
The GM is responsible for preparing each adventure, but the Player can contribute as much as he or she desires.
The easiest way for the Player to help plan future adventures is by requesting plot elements he or she would enjoy. These requests could be very specific or quite vauge. They could happen outside of the story or through things the Player inserts into the story.
A Specific Plot Request, Made Outside the Story
Player: My character's background never mentions her parents. Let's do an adventure featuring them. How about they live a few days distant in a small village, and my character is going to visit them. She visits a few times a year for a few days. The whole village enjoys the news and fun trinkets she brings from the 'big city' as they call Arlinac Town. But this time something is wrong: the village is being troubled by a monster, and a child has gone missing. Then it turns out the two problems are related: someone is manipulating the monster, and the child is either specifically wanted by the villain or the villain's kid or something. And my parents are somehow especially involved. But not the villains, please.
A Vague Plot Request, Made Inside the Story
Player: Visiting that chem painter is definitely the next thing to do. But as long as my character is going to the Cart User's district, he will take a quick detour to his brother's shop.
GM: He has a brother?
Player: Yes, but they have almost nothing in common, and my character always resented how mom and dad paid more attention to him since even during his toddler years it became clear he would become a gifted transmutist. My character is a bit jealous, but also a bit proud that his sibling is slowly becoming respected and well known in Arlinac Town.
GM: How does he make a living with transmutery? Why does he have a shop?
Player: He is good at glass blowing, and uses transmutery to enhance his glass creations. They are both more elaborate and more sturdy than what glass blowing otherwise creates.
Notice that in both of these examples the Player invents new NPCs. Plot and characters typically weave together.
Sometimes the Player will request being in charge of these NPCs instead of the GM. The GM should try to allow this, but have the story develop so that any situations of conflict (especially combat) happen when the Player is only controlling the PC. The Player should also honor this dynamic: adding to the story a conversation between the PC and a Player-controlled NPC works well, but having the PC offer to give the NPC a three-day tour of the city would unfairly restrict the GM's flexibility.
To avoid confusion and hurt feelings, the Player should also make very clear to the GM if a player-controlled NPC will forever remain the Player's responsibility or will eventually turn into a normal GM-controlled NPC. In the latter case, the Player and GM should establish clear guidelines for when the NPC becomes a normal NPC (such as "after this conversation", "after this adventure", or "after his favorite hat gets ruined").
Transferring NPC Control
Player: Walking to the docks, Wilpan sees his old childhood rival, Gurtok Lugdark. The big kid who used to live a couple streets away, and would beat him up or break his toys.
GM: Um, okay. Are you controlling this NPC?
Player: Yes, and any other time they meet. But the next time an adventure involves a monster that gruesomely kills random people, make Gurtok one of the victims. Then Wilpan can deal with the angst from feeling partly pleased and relieved when someone else suffered terribly.
GM: Okay.
Player: The street is fairly busy, but Gurtok stops as if he and Wilpan are alone and taunts, "Hey, it's Little Chisel and Big Hammer again! Does Little Chisel still think he's pretty sharp, even though it's time to be hit by Big Hammer?" Wilpan replied, "Those days are past, Gurtok." Gurtok chuckles. "Why, because you have a sword? You're not going to draw a blade in what should be a friendly bit of wrestling? I'm sure my friends in the district watch would be upset by that..."
Even though both the GM and Player want the adventure to flow nicely, sometimes the story's flow is threatened merely because cooperative storytelling allows so much creativity. What techniques help smooth over complications?
The main idea is that PC zaniness or failure leads to complications instead of halting the story. When the Player makes a choice that takes the adventure in a new direction, the GM should salvage nifty ideas that are now irrelevant to the story by filing them away to reuse in another adventure, and salvage the story's momentum by thinking of how the Player's decision can produce more tension and opportunities for problem-solving.
There are two main ways that Player creativity and freedom can threaten the story's flow.
The first is when the Player's decisions steer the story in a totally different direction than what the GM had considered or prepared.
A Player Decision Causes Complications
In this example, the adventure began when the PC was hired to find two missing people. Halfway through the adventure the PC discovers that that the killer is a vampire who lives in a certain house. GM has planned an exciting conclusion involving the PC sneaking through an eerie house made dangerous by mechanical traps and the vampire's accomplice, trying to find the sleeping vampire before sunset.
GM: So you have the address of the house, but no information about what is inside. What does Meldela do?
Player: There is only half an hour before sunset? The vampire is about to kill again. She does some quick but discreet shopping for supplies, goes to the house, and tries to burn it down without being seen.
GM: Are you sure? If you are seen your good intentions will probably not protect you from severe punishment. This town is as densely built and vulnerable to fire as any walled town of its era. Its officials have no mercy for arsonists.
Player: I'm sure. Meldela is really sneaky. She understands the risk to other buildings, but expects that her deed will not lead to any loss of innocent life because so many townsfolk know Transmutery and Alchemy. The town must deal with fire somewhat regularly, so there must be established uses of those fantasy technologies to put out fires.
GM: Very well. Let's take a five minute break while I figure out what happens next.
The GM could veto this plan. Perhaps the weather has so rainy lately that the building would not catch fire quickly, or the neighborhood is busy enough that even a very sneaky arsonist would surely be noticed, or the vampire's accomplice is keeping a careful watch while hidden within the building. But a good GM tries to avoid vetoing any plan because that halts the game's flow. There is almost always a way to change the story to preserve the game's flow.
The GM could allow the plan to proceed but declare it a complete failure. Perhaps the vampire sleeps two stories underground so the fire does not reach that inner sanctum. But this also halts the game's flow.
A good GM will respond to a crazy Player decision by adding complications to the plot. The GM humbly abandons his or her prepared plot and allows the story to move in a new direction that is usually even more interesting and exciting.
GM: The plan starts without a hitch. Meldela is indeed able to start the house on fire in several places without being seen, and even finds an convenient abandoned building across and slightly down the street in which she can hide while watching the fire to make sure the vampire perishes.
Player: Yay!
GM: Moreover, your hunches about fire-fighting were correct. Very soon after the fire is noticed, many people are not only forming a bucket line to move water, but also using Transmutery to shrink the fire.
Player: And the vampire?
GM: Patience... After five more minutes Meldela hear screams, of several voices. There are people on the second floor, captives of the vampire bound hand and foot. A few of the townsfolk stop passing buckets and are trying to arrange rescue.
Player: Fewmets! Meldela rushes over to help the rescuers.
GM: The rescue is quick and mostly successful. There were four capives, and they are alive. All have suffered from smoke inhalation, and two are badly burned. One of the other rescuers twisted an ankle while navigating the burning building. Just as the rescuers are catching their breath another, louder, inhuman scream echoes from a basement somewhere. That scream is painful to hear and lasts much longer than seems possible. Meldela gets goosebumps, but is confident the vampire is destroyed.
Player: Hooray! A reign of terror nipped in the bud, and no one is killed by that fiend tonight.
GM: Then a tremendous explosion knocks everyone down. A belch of fire roars from the basement. Many colors of smoke begin billowing from cracks in the ground floor's boards. The vampire must have been an alchemist.
Player: Eek!
GM: Fortunately, the fire seems spent. The explosion was vertical enough to not complicate the fire fighting. The risk of spread to other buildings has indeed been prevented by the quick work of the townsfolk. Unfortunately, that colored smoke is clearly bad news. Meldela has only breathed a few breaths and already her eyes are watering, sharp pains are starting in her lungs, and her vision troubled by wierd shapes.
Player: Ick! She gets away as fast as possible.
GM: Everyone else is also fleeing the colored smoke. Meldela does, but sees the cloud hovering low and thick, blowing slowly downwind, and growing visibly larger each minute.
Player: Oops.
Naturally, the GM should still keep the story focused on the Player's preferred styles of play and the PC's strengths and weaknesses even when the Player's choices radically change the direction of the story. For example, if the Player enjoys mysteries and the PC is primarily a suave and sneaky spy, the GM should keep the adventure focused on solving a mystery using diplomacy and investigation. If the Player wants a story about a PC who will become famous for collecting small monsters as pets, the GM should try to guide the plot back in that direction.
The second way that Player choices can threaten the story's flow is when the Player makes uninformed or foolish choices that lead to the PC's failure. The GM must redirect the situation to avert the story reaching a dead end.
For example, what happens when a villain unexpectedly defeats the protagonist in combat? Usually the story would be ruined if the PC is simply killed. Thus every hero from James Bond and Frodo Baggins knows that the protagonist will instead be captured, confined, taunted, and/or humiliated and yet somehow find opportunity to escape, heal, regather resources, and eventually foil the villain's plans.
Normally PC failure creates complications, uses up resources, causes delay, leads to capture, or summons trouble. Here are a few examples of what a GM could say after the PC fails in various situations.
A few stories do work even if PC failure leads to the PC's death. This dynamic depends upon the people playing the game more than the adventure, however, so the GM and Player should discuss the issue of PC death long before it might occur in the game to avoid hurt feelings.
Some Players strongly feel that the PC should never be killed. These Players often enjoy the game's story more because they know the PC will not be killed, exactly the way many books are more enjoyable because the reader knows the main character will survive to the end. When this is true the game usually replaces the tension of character death with a threat of another equally final yet more gradual kind of failure. Perhaps the PC knows that failing a quest would give him a reputation of cowardice that would greatly hinder his adventuring career. Perhaps the PC's friends or family members are in danger if the PC fails.
Others who are equally fond of their PC are willing to allow PC death in reasonable and avoidable circumstances. Some Players simply need to know that the GM had prepared many successful options, so they can feel the blame for the PC death is entirely theirs and not the GM's. ("So entering the dragon's lair alone was not the best choice, huh? What had you planned on my character doing instead? Yeah, visiting the nearby town first would have been smart.") Other Players want their PC to only die in rare and extremely valiant circumstances and appreciate this potential even in adventures they choose to survive.
A few Players only accept PC death if the PC remains an influence in the game world. Perhaps the story continues with the next PC being a friend or relative of the first PC who quests to somehow restore the first PC to life. Perhaps the first PC died from mortal wounds inflicted while defeating an important evil villain whose monsters had overrun a large region, and the new PC is leading a group of settlers to establish the first new village in that region.
Dramatic tension in a RPG story requires uncertainty about the PC's skill, limits, and luck. If the Player knew precisely how capable the PC would be in any situation then the game would degenerate from an adventure story into a puzzle of exploration and resource management. For example, the PC might know that he or she is skilled with a sword and should be able to survive a combat with a single thug from the Ox Nose Gang: but will the character be wounded during the fight, or be really unlucky and defeated? Or the PC might surely be sufficiently silver-tongued to fast-talk a palace guard but have no idea how long it will be until the guard realizes he's been duped.
Most role-playing games use dice to create the uncertainty required for dramatic tension. Perhaps fast-talking lasts twice as many minutes as the sum of a die roll and the rating of the PC's fast-talking skill.
In contrast, a diceless role-playing game find some other way to give PC ability realistic and suspenseful uncertainty. For Dvreem the solution is allow most situations to be approached using many skills.
Many situations are contested. Two characters oppose each other: bargaining, fighting, or racing; shooting arrows at a target, telling conflicting accounts to a judge, or one searching for the other who is hiding. These situations only require suspense when opposing skills are nearly equal. For example, there is no need for dramatic uncertainty when the PC fights a clumsy bandit, but and the end of the story, when the PC finally crosses blades with the bandit leader, we want suspense!
Having freedom to apply many skills to a situation allows suspense in contests because each turn the Player must chose a skill to use without knowing which skill the opposing NPC will use. For example, in a sword fight, will the villain fight normally with Melee, energetically advance with Press, try to bind swords with Wrestle, feint with Provoke, retreat with Block, act imposing with Wonder, or flee with Exit? The Player knows what these skills do, and which counter each other, and may even know the villain's favored strategies. But suspense happens (unless the PC has noticeably greater skill in everything) because the Player does not know what the villain will do next turn.
Other situations are uncontested. A fixed situation determines if the PC's action is successful. Is the PC strong enough to break down a door, quick enough to avoid a trap, or skilled enough to pick a lock? These situations again require suspense when the character's ability is nearly equal the task. For example, a PC fleeing from a monster through the woods sees a tree she could climb--but can she climb quickly and high enough to escape danger? The GM will predetermine the difficulties for using Climb normally, scamper up with Acrobatics, use Dodge while climbing, or use Wilderness to look for a better tree. Uncontested situations are usually less suspenseful than contested situations, but some tension exists because the Player is not sure which options are most beneficial.
The GM can help a story have dramatic tension and suspense by following a few guidelines.
First, remember that the GM should portray how the PC is under pressure by asking for confirmation and reactions. In a tense situation do not allow the Player many calm choices in which the PC has initiative. Repeatedly ask the Player questions such as "How is your character reacting", "Is your character taking advantage of this?", "How is your character handling this?", or "Is that all your character is doing?"
Second, remember that the GM should be prepared for player questions about the PC's background and hunches. Both PCs and NPCs often use their surroundings advantageously to temporary boost skill proficiency (picking up a chair to help block a dagger, making a joke about someone's apparel or appearance during verbal sparring, mentioning an interesting other piece of jewlery in the display case while haggling, etc.). So a good GM is always ready to add appropriate details to the setting.
Third, detailed conflicts should be meaningful. Many conflicts are unimportant or trivial: these are resolved quickly with a sentence or two, because suspense is ruined if every incident of bargaining, fighting, and racing has lengthy detail. Keep insignificant contests brief so that significant conflicts stand out as challenging and exciting. Also ensure every conflict with detail advances the story as characters learn, become weaker or stronger, lose or gain resources, strengthen or damage friendships, or make moral decisions.
A corollary to the previous point is that any time the PC is in danger the situation should advance the story. Suspenseful adventuring is hindered when the PC is forced to fight an unimportant foe of nearly equal skill, or when the PC is threatened by surprise or ambush for no significant reason. In real life people randomly get mugged; in adventure stories the mugger always turns out to be a wicked cultist, member of the gang the PC is looking for, or a giant ardvark in disguise.
A second corollary is that everything meaningful happens because of people. All threatening situations, perilous locations, or malign enchantments were created by someone for a reason. Any important item becomes a conflict magnet as people search for it, fight for it, or unlock its secret powers. All the clues a PC finds and help a PC receives also have a character behind them. In real life business rivals usually have no shared history and have never met before; in adventure stories the cult leader turns out to be the same person who insulted the PC at the festival early in the story, who hired the Drunk Duck Gang to hunt the PC, and who years ago stole a family heirloom from the PC's grandmother--and the enchanted gardening clippers which the PC finds several stories later eventually turn out to have been made by this cult leader too!
Fourth, allow dramatic and memorable actions to succeed as readily as safe and boring actions. There is never really a time when swinging from a chandelier helps in combat, but in adventure stories at least does not hinder the hero.
Fifth, allow any plan at least a small chance of success, perhaps with refined situation and timing. A GM halts the story's flow by telling the Player, "No, that won't work." Better to reply to infeasible plans by suggesting improvements. "Confronting the evil queen in her throne room, where her elite guards surround her, without any evidence that would prove her guilt to the attendant nobility, is certainly one approach this early in the adventure. But perhaps your character should first obtain some evidence of her crimes, or an invisibility potion to allow a quick escape?" And if the Player insists of carrying out a foolish plan think of how it can enhance rather than diminish the story. (For example, the PC is laughed out of the castle and the evil queen decides the PC is annoying but not a threat; she sends a third-rate assassin after the PC, forgets about the PC entirely, and underestimates the PC later in the story.)
A corollary to the guideline that any plan might succeed is that no obstacle is truly insurmountable. Engaging stories often contain problems that cannot be immediately resolved. However, the PC should always have multiple chances to escape from no-win situations. For example, the main villain is usually too powerful to confront directly until a certain item or ally is obtained, but it is no fun if the PC is killed because he or she tried to confront that villain too early. Better if the GM says the villain captures the PC, or there is an opportunity for the PC to flee, or the villain leaves the fight because something more threatening to the villain's plans suddenly demands attention.
Sixth, during conflicts with physical danger the GM should have the injuries get worse as the situation goes on. This is not realistic, but is an important part of the rule that each GM turn lasts until the Player learns something. In a contested situation a greater difference in skills (modified by how skills counter each other, item use, and situational advantages) will correspond to a quicker progression from minor injury to severe wound. Yet even when the threat is serious or one combatant is incredibly more skilled, any encounter important enough to merit detail should still include one minor injury so the out-matched character has a chance to realize he or she is in trouble and attempt escape. When the hazard is small or contestants are about evenly matched then several minor injuries will precede any severe wound--the GM and Player will take many turns before the conflict reaches a conclusion.
Minor injuries are a kind of information. A character is made wary by a scratch, bruise, shallow cut, minor burn, or other small hurt. Dizziness after being hit on the head or after inhaling smoke or fumes serves as a warning.
Severe wounds are both information and complications. The PC learns the extent of his or her trouble and acquires penalties for subsequent actions. Cuts, impacts, and burns can impede use of a limb until healing is obtained. Crushed ribs or continued smoke inhalation limit breathing. Blows to the head or severe blood loss will cause unconsciousness.
Normally a severe wound ends the conflict. Either the two characters are unequally matched (in which case the severe wound says that the loser has used up his or her one "minor injury" chance to escape or alter the situation) or the two characters are roughly equal in skill (in which case the penalty from the severe wound becomes the conflict's deciding factor). However, some characters have the special fortitude to endure more numerous serious wounds before defeat.
Some gamers prefer that the GM and Player share the responsibility for describing PC injuries. Stories with this style of play have the GM present the extent of a PC's injury (for example, minor injury, wound, severe wound, or utter defeat) and then the Player describes the injury in more detail.
The final GM tip for adding dramatic tension is including narrative choices that correspond to either genuine or false modifications of success. For example, a PC being pursued through the city's streets and alleys is asked to chose between turning left, right, or going straight. Or a PC exploring a dungeon reaches a room with three exit doors, each painted a different color. Such choices add suspense, and only the GM knows if there really are different outcomes corresponding to each choice. (A good GM can use this technique as a diceless random number generator. For example, the pursued PC wants to use Acrobatics to help escape and the GM is not sure how helpful this skill would be. So the GM decides that there is a one-third chance that using Acrobatics will make a difference, offers the choice of direction, and predetermines that "turning right" will lead to an alley with a fire escape so that the story really fits using Acrobatics successfully to escape.)
Parents will notice that these same tips apply to parenting young children when the child is confused or worried.
- Use questions to help a young child find words for what he or she wants to do or how he or she is feeling.
- Consider which questions to answer in detail and which to answer briefly.
- Realize children seldom purposefully try to be difficult: usually they are reacting badly to a situation caused by another person's actions.
- When a child wants something unreasonable, instead of simply saying "No" help the child formulate a better plan or patiently wait for better timing.
- When a child is busy reacting, remove the child from the source of conflict to help the child switch from reacting to thinking and acting with initiative.
This does not mean that the GM and Player have a parent-child relationship. Instead, the lesson is that the same careful use of language helps in both real and imaginary stressful situations.
Watch for all these issues and techniques about suspense in the follwoing two-part example. In this example the GM and Player mention the names of skills from the Dvreem rules, because that is part of a realistic example. But the example is carefully worded so the rules do not need to be read first.
Initially, the incident has conflict about who dominates a conversation:
Garx Meets a Mer
GM: Looking around the corner, Garx sees that the passage opens into a small room. It is irregular in shape like most of these caves. A Mer squats in one corner, faintly illuminated by glow moss, between Garx and the only other exit. Garx has never seen one before, but recognize it from stories. It's slightly taller than Garx, muscular, has pale green skin, and has webbing between its fingers and a beard like fine seaweed. The Mer and Garx startle each other. The Mer was looking at something on the ground, but quickly stands. He holds a long knife in his right hand. What is Garx doing?
Player: What does Garx know about Mer?
GM: Not much. Garx has never met one. The stories he has heard always portray them as raiders or bandits, working in groups. No idea why one would be alone. It might be a sentry, guarding the other passage. Or it might really be alone, on a quest for one of the Powers or an exiled criminal. It's wearing no armor, only thick trousers and a wide belt. The knife looks like a large fishmonger's blade: quite dangerous, but more utilitarian than sturdy for combat. What is Garx doing?
Player: Garx stands up straight, not in a combat stance but ready to move into one. He asks, "What is your name?"
GM: The Mer frowns. He shifts to a wary stance, putting his knife between him and Garx. In a distrubed tone he says, "We have just met and you ask my name?"
Player: Hm. Apparently the wrong way to start a conversation in Mer society. Garx looks puzzled by the Mer's reaction. He tries a different question: "What do you want?"
GM: Now the Mer looks puzzled too. "I am on a quest. I follow duty." Does Garx have a quick reply?
Player: Garx... no, nothing immediate.
GM: After a brief pause the Mer adds, "Ah, you measure me. I understand. I want to swim again, to feel fresh air against my face, to eat fish instead of mushrooms and crawling things. Great is my desire, but I master it." The Mer looks at Garx's sword.
Player: Garx keeps it ready.
GM: The Mer suddenly stands up very straight. His eyes flash coldly, and his countenance becomes like iron. Sternly, loudly, he demands, "Leave now! This room in mine. Many of these places are mine!"
Player: Garx backs up a step or two, but does not break eye contact or turn his back to the Mer. Does the Mer calm down?
GM: Quite the opposite. He throws down his knife, and yells, "Stop! You asked my name. You cannot leave."
Player: Huh? I don't get it. Let's try Provoke. Garx is getting flustered, a bit red in the face. "What now?" he demands, while squaring his shoulders.
GM: The Mer frowns again. His body is still tense, but the anger leaves his face. "Are you so young? We must prove each other: our strengths, our skill with blades, our grace when wounded." What is Garx doing?
Player: Garx is still standing tall but ready. He twirls the tip of his blade, not explicitly threatening, just showing he is willing to fight. I guess Garx is using Dodge instead of Ettiquette, trying to be ready to avoid problems if the Mer gets agitated again.
GM: A funny expression comes over the Mer's face. "Young one, what do you want?" he asks.
Player: Does Intuition prompt Garx towards any reply? As the Player I can't figure out what all this is about.
GM: Garx has already asked him, "What is your name?" Garx have a hunch that repeating that question would be a good answer, but not the best answer.
Player: Does the Mer look impatient?
GM: No, he is calmly waiting for a reply.
Player: Let me think... Ah, I have it. Garx stands even taller but also more causually, and sets down his backpack and coil of rope. He keeps eye contact with the Mer, and never stops twirling the tip of his sword. When unencumbered, he moves into his most defensive fighting stance and says with a firm voice, "I want you to know my name."
GM: The Mer laughs and salutes Garx, touching his blade's handle to his forehead and then extending it towards him. Then the Mer adopts a similarly defensive stance and begins to slowly step forward.
At this point the conflict changes from conversational clarity and dominance to melee combat. The commentary for this half of the example is postponed until the game rules are described.
Garx Fights a Mer
GM: The Mer is slowly advancing, holding the point of its long knife high away from its body. What is Garx doing?
Player: Garx is staying defensive. He'll use Block/Dodge.
GM: The Mer is also beginning the fight defensively. He and Garx circle each other a few times, inspecting each other's movements. He seems slightly more nimble than Garx. No chance yet to learn how strong he is, or how he uses that knife.
Player: No sense waiting until Garx trips or gets maneuvered into a corner. Garx will start attacking, but cautiously. No risks, just normal opportunistic Melee.
GM: The blades clash once, twice, thrice. More circling. A failed feint. A parry and riposte, but the riposte is dodged. Garx and the Mer appear to be quite equally matched, and Garx does not notice any flaws in the Mer's style to safely exploit. What is Garx doing?
Player: Sigh. I had hoped this would be easy. Well, during the conversation the Mer got aggressive early on. Garx will try to Provoke, assuming the Mer will Press as soon as he realizes we're evenly matched. Garx purposefully hits his toe against a rough spot of the rocky floor, pretending he has tripped and trying to look slightly off balance. But it's a ruse: if the Mer tries to take advantage of the false opening, Garx is ready to get him.
GM: That trick works beautifully. The Mer lunges, and Garx avoids it while scoring a hit on its arm. Only a scratch, but first blood. The Mer looks surprised, and leaps backwards somewhat awkwardly to avoid Garx's next thrust. The Mer smiles at Garx as he tries to move into a new stance, but Garx's attacks keep the Mer reacting monent-to-moment.
Player: Has Garx gauged the Mer's strength?
GM: Uncertain. Garx's blade is much heavier, so the Mer has been avoiding contests of strength and focusing on quick thrusts and feints. Perhaps the Mer is weaker, or perhaps he has been holding back.
Player: I don't think I want to risk a real Disarm attempt yet. I know Garx is equal in Melee. So Garx will keep using Melee, but will beat aside the Mer's knife more often and more forcefully. If Garx does disarm the Mer, that's great. But I'm mostly hoping the Mer will get a really sore arm, which will give Garx an advantage.
GM: That tactic works well: the Mer recovers his balance but is unable to do anything but react to Garx's blows. Garx smashes his sword against the knife again and again; each of the Mer's parries is slightly weaker. Once Garx even sees an opening, and cuts the Mer's arm a second time. After a dozen or so clashes of steel, Garx feels like the Mer is slowing as well as parrying more weakly.
Player: Great. But he probably expects me to Press, since that is his own style. For something different let's try using Wonder and Provoke to see if the Mer can be bowled over by sheer presence. Garx looms tall and shouts, "Do you have the strength of a child? Do you deserve to know my name?" Also, Garx is holding his sword almost too far to the side, feigning vulnerability; he hopes to riposte and thrust if the Mer closes, and is counting on the Mer being worn out and a bit slow.
GM: The Mer ignores Garx's show. The Mer draws a dagger from a sheath behind his left hip. He flexes his arms, then steps back into a defensive pose.
Player: Drat. He might cut Garx with the dagger if Garx goes back to using his sword to beating aside the big knife. Time to keep the Mer at a distance. Garx hollers, and shifts to a two-handed grip on his sword, holding its point back above his shoulder.
GM: Suddenly the Mer throws both of his blades at Garx's chest. How do you react?
Player: Garx tries to block them both.
GM: Succeess, but Garx realizes too late that the large knife, and perhaps also the dagger, would have struck hilt first, harmlessly against Garx's soft leather amor. The Mer was distracting Garx as he rushed forward to grapple, and now the Mer has a good grip on Garx's sword arm. The Mer is trying to move behind Garx, but Garx might be able to prevent that if he wants.
Player: Hm. Garx is wearing his enchanted jumping boots. Can Garx bend foward, move so the Mer leans above him, and then leap upwards to squish the Mer against the ceiling?
GM: Probably. Those boots are not designed for indoor use. Are you sure you want to do that with the roof of the cavern only five meters up?
Player: Yes. Garx is wearing hard leather armor. That will protect some, and the Mer should cushion the impact enough.
GM: Okay. Garx leans forward and tries to move to lure the Mer as desired. But then everything goes wrong. The Mer wiggles or twists or something. Before Garx notices what is happening, his right arm is completely pinned behind his back. Yet the Mer is leaning over Garx.
Player: Ouch. Well, I leap anyway. If Garx dislocates his shoulder it will use up a major healing potion, but that is acceptable.
GM: Crack! Garx leaps and hears the back of the Mer's head hit the ceiling hard. The Mer has hard bones: Garx feels bruised even through his armor. The Mer immediately stops fighting. Garx's arm is released, sore but not needing healing.
Player: Hm. Garx steps back, makes a quick and formal bow, then hurries to his backpack for a minor healing potion for the Mer.
GM: The Mer accepts the offered healing potion. It compliments Garx's strength, skill, and behavior during their fight. Garx has won himself an ally.
So far all of the examples of game play show the GM and Player referring to the PC in third person. In actual play, many Players enhance suspense and aid the story's flow by instead using first person. This is harmless and is something people naturally do when assuming any role, whether acting on stage, playing make-believe as children, or controlling a video game character. Consider how it makes the beginning the previous example more succinct and exciting.
Garx Fights a Mer (First Person)
GM: The Mer is slowly advancing, holding the point of its long knife high away from its body. What are you doing?
Player: I'll stay defensive and use Block/Dodge.
GM: The Mer is also beginning the fight defensively. You circle each other a few times, inspecting each other's movements. He seems slightly more nimble. No chance yet to learn how strong he is, or how he uses that knife.
Player: No sense waiting until I trip or get maneuvered into a corner. I'll start attacking, but cautiously. No risks, just normal opportunistic Melee.
GM: The blades clash once, twice, thrice. More circling. A failed feint. A parry and riposte, but the riposte is dodged. You two appear to be quite equally matched, and you don't notice any flaws in the Mer's style to safely exploit. What are you doing?
Player: Sigh. I had hoped this would be easy. Well, during the conversation the Mer got aggressive early on. I'll try to Provoke, assuming the Mer will Press as soon as he realizes we're evenly matched. I'll purposefully hit my toe against a rough spot of the rocky floor, pretending I've tripped and trying to look slightly off balance. But it's a ruse: if the Mer tries to take advantage of the false opening, I'm ready to get him.
As a concluding note about suspense, both the GM and Player should realize that trust trumps drama. There will be places in the story when the GM could add suspense in ways that might threaten the GM-Player storytelling relationship. Avoid this hairy pitfall!
The first trust issue is sensory input. Because the Player relies on the GM for this normally factual information, the GM should almost always give the Player abundant clues and hints when the PC's senses are about to become unreliable. In a book the protagonist might not realize until after the fact that his or her perceptions were altered due to hallucination, illusion, disguises, and so on. In a RPG the Player almost always knows that this is happening (even if the PC does not).
The second trust issue is background knowledge. Again, the Player relies on the GM for this normally accurate information. The PC know all sorts of things from having grown up in the fictional setting. Many of these "facts" will be based on stories, rumors, or second-hand knowledge. So some of the PC's background knowledge is wrong. But the GM should almost always tell the Player when the PC's memories are unreliable or biased. For example, the PC is trying to remember if a certain kind of monstrous snake spits poison or acid, based upon an account from the famous ballad Dirth the Dungeon Delver: the GM should report what the PC remembers, and also hint whether the ballad would be a trustworthy source for that information.
This section contains references to popular stories.
- The phrase "a story about a PC who will become famous for collecting small monsters as pets" refers to Pokémon.
- The phrase "hairy pitfall" refers to the Pitfall computer games.
Dvreem uses "skill-based" rules. Unlike many RPGs, characters do not advance through "levels" but instead increase their proficiency with certain skills and talents.
For purely aesthetic reasons the skills are sorted into four categories of Brawn, Brains, Harmony, and Technology. These categories normally have no effect on game play. (However, they could. For example, the GM could put into the story an enchanted belt that grants whomever wears it a +1 bonus to Brawn skills.)
The embedded .svg file above is here. This is the game's only "character sheet"! Resize and print this on whatever paper you wish to use, and use the bottom or back of the page for the character's description, background, inventory, known recipes, and other notes.
There are only sixteen skills (with sixteen corresponding talents) because this mimics the exaggerated prowess of protagonists in classic "heroic opera" pulp stories and films. In this genre, heroes and heroines demonstrate unrealistic expertise at broad categories of real-life skills. For example, Yu Shu-lien fights expertly with any melee weapon, James Bond uses all pisols with equal mastery, Benedict of Amber optimally leads any army on any battlefield, and Buckaroo Bonzai can expertly drive any vehicle he comes across.
Because characters are described with only a few statistics, the GM can readily improvise NPCs. This helps the story flow and encourages a focus on creativity and exciting actions instead of limiting strategy to a character's best types of attacks or spells.
These rules sometimes refer to half of a skill's name when doing so aids contextual clarity. For example, these rules might discuss "the Wrestle skill" instead of "the Wrestle/Disarm skill".
Acrobatics/Climb: This skill is used to safely and successfully jump, fall, roll, climb, etc. Acrobatics is used when moving along or onto horizontal surfaces; Climb is used when moving along or onto vertical surfaces. Characters with higher skill can jump farther, fall safely from higher distances, and climb trickier surfaces. This skill is also used to avoid threats or obstacles that impartially affect a large area, such as diving away from an explosion, racing through a crowded street, avoiding harm in a rockslide, or leaping from an out-of-control mount (in contrast, Block/Dodge is used when threats specifically target the character).
Note that Acrobatics and Block/Dodge are used to escape dangerous situations unscathed, the way "saving throws" are used in other RPGs.
In settings other than Creagadier this skill may be too general. For example, adventures in a mountainous land covered with snow and ice might benefit by having additional and distinct skills for Ski/Snowshoe and Ropes/Ice-Climbing. There is nothing sacrosanct about having sixteen skills!
Melee/Press: This skill is used for hand-to-hand combat with sharp or blunt weapons. Melee refers to fighting with a normal balance of offense and defense, attempting to cut or bludgeon the opponent without leaving one's self vulnerable. Melee can also be used with weapons that ensnare (net, whip, bolo, etc.) Press refers to a brief aggressive and forceful advance that provides an advantage if the opponent does not react appropriately to the extra intensity, but can be disastrous if the opponent is prepared or handles the pressure effectively. Press applies to situations beyond combat. As examples, a surprising and energetic push might also help while haggling, debating, racing on foot, or picking a jammed lock.
Shoot/Throw: This skill is used for distance attacks. Shoot is used for bows, crossbows, and small, simple devices created with Machinery. (Seige weapons are operated with Machinery instead of Shoot.) Throw is used for throwing either sharp or blunt objects.
Wrestle/Disarm: Wrestle is for attacks without weapons, whether intending to inflict damage or grapple. It also measures the general physical strength of a character, and a higher skill rating denotes deeper reserves of physical endurance. Disarm is for attacks (with or without a weapon) that try to knock away what the opponent is holding.
The rules are purposefully vague about whether Disarm can be used at a distance. Perhaps the GM and Player favor the drama and plot device of a very skilled character being able to shoot a weapon (or doomsday device) from an opponent's hand. Or perhaps they prefer realism, realizing that even professional target shooters cannot reliably do such a feat in the face of danger.
In general the Wrestle skill is used for feats of pure strength and the Acrobatics skill is used for activities involving both strength and coordination. Grey areas certainly exist, but the GM and Player should be able to agree which skill to use. For example, running on a clean street might use Wrestle, whereas running through a forest heavy with underbrush and branches might use Acrobatics, but which skill would govern a foot race on a track with hurdles? (Also note that fleeing from a pursuer involves much more than simply being a faster runner, and is governed by the Exit/Escape skill.)
Although many skills can be used in combat, Dvreem has only four skills specifically about combat: Melee, Shoot, Wrestle, and Disarm. Different combat skills may be needed in settings other than Creagadier. Perhaps a science fiction setting needs Blunt Weapons, Blades, Projectiles, and Lasers. However, a GM altering the combat skills should do so carefully if leading adventures for only one PC, to preserve how combat focuses more on choices about distance and tactics than always using the PC's most damaging type of attack.
Bargain/Wonder: Bargain is used to haggle over prices or otherwise steer a conflict of interests to a workable compromise. When haggling, prices usually change by 5% for each difference in opposing Bargain skill rating. In a receptive sense, Wonder takes in the grandeur and drama inherent in a situation and produces practical attitudes and understandings: awe and amazement can be a form of thinking, and insight and wisdom can spring from encountering the indescribable. Aggressively, Wonder can be used to startle, intimidate, or awe someone with impressive solidity, energetic charisma, and stunning force of presence.
Identify/Lore: This skill measures the likelihood a character knows helpful and relevant facts. Identify refers to appraising gems and jewlery, recognizing famous cultural artifacts, recalling which nobility owns certain jewelry, verifying the authenticity of a signature, and other situations of recalling information about a particular item. Lore refers to knowledge of general cultural information: details about history, society, laws, notable families, religious practices, and so forth. Skill with either can help a character fabricate reasonable-sounding falsehoods.
Intuition/Provoke: Intuition refers to confidently reaching correct conclusions despite having neither the facts for logical deduction nor an encounter with grandeur and power to provide awe-inspired wisdom. A practiced intuition includes both experience with accurate hunches and well-developed habits of calming the mind, looking at the big picture, and acting purposefully instead of reacting to circumstances. The skill of Intuition can also be used to instill a false sense of intuition in someone else by subtly planting ideas that the victim will mistake for his or her own insights and hunches. Provoke is the opposite of Press: a brief display of passivity or weakness intending to draw out the opponent. Provoke provides an advantage if the opponent reacts to the provocation, but can be disastrous if the opponent ignores it. Provoke applies to situations beyond combat: a tricky feint might get an opponent to do something foolish during a debate, chase, or search.
Stealth/Track: Stealth is used to hide, move quietly, walk tracelessly, use a disguise, or be physically sneaky in other ways. Note that a character using Stealth usually does not know if the skill is used successfully until someone attempts detection. Stealth is also used for sleight of hand and pickpocketing. Track attempts to follow someone's trail, which often involves the same knowledge and tricks as Stealth.
Animals/Wilderness: Animals applies to training, riding, taming, misdirecting, or caring for any animals, as well as maintenance of a riding animal's tack and other gear. Contested skill use is used for racing on mounts of similar speed. Wilderness applies to swiming, fishing, locating food, setting snares, navigation, and other tasks related to surviving in the outdoors, both above ground and underground.
Block/Dodge: This skill is used defensively to avoid a threat aimed specifically at the character. Block uses a shield, weapon, or other item to ward away harm. Blocking is favored by those weighted down, especially guards wearing heavy armor. Dodge nimbly avoids the danger and is difficult to do when encumbered. Both are normally only effective against one oppoent's threats each combat round.
For a solo protagonist, Block/Dodge is of limited use during combat. If a fighter never attacks then he or she cannot be victorious! However, certain beasts are slow and only attack on every other of their turns. A fighter who Blocks or Dodges these attacks can safely do his or her own attacks in between. Also, Block/Dodge can be useful if the opponent has a limited number of special chances: only two enchanted arrows, only one stun potion, only three poisoned darts, etc.
Exit/Escape: Exit refers to safely or gracefully getting out of a bad situation. Examples include fleeing from combat, becoming lost in a crowd, using an acceptable excuse to leave a tense conversation, or safely removing a lockpick after noticing the lock is trapped. When fleeing, having a much higher Exit than the pursuers' skill allows simultaneously shaking off multiple sources of pursuit. Escape refers to gaining freedom from physical confinement: a trap, net, wrestling hold, etc.
Perception/Etiquette: Perception measures alertness, awareness, and attention to detail. It is used for all searching, whether a small item carefully hidden in a room or a special plant growing somewhere in a large forest. Etiquette is used to successfully navigate social situations, including clarity in conversations, ease in making a good impression, skill at getting attention at parties, and success when gambling. It also measures the ability to deal well with unfamiliar cultures, and to impressively manage domestic tasks such as cooking or gardening.
The sample setting of Creagadier has a steampunk theme, and so these four fantasy crafting skills allow the creation of inventions which behave like fantastically enhanced versions of real life constructions. If the Dvreem rules are used with a different setting, the Technology skills should be changed or removed. For example, in a futuristic setting the four Technology skills might instead involve computers, robotics, vehicle maintenance, and bioengineering.
The Technology skills require more explanation than the previous twelve skills because they are not modeled after real-life activities, but this detail is appropriately postponed to the discussion about technology in the setting of Creagadier.
Using any of the four Technology skills requires the character to have both hands free, because the character using a Technology skill constructs his or her creation by hand.
Alchemy: This skill is used to create potions and gasses that enhance a friend or incapacitate an enemy. Potions and gasses commonly work for healing, vigor, sleep, hallucination, glue, acid, poison, poison antidote, speed, and paralysis.
Chemstry: This skill is used to create and control golems. It includes knowledge of golem construction and also the use of the papers (chems) that give a golem animation and purpose. (Notice that there is no i in Chemstry!)
Machinery: This skill is used to create clever clockwork and steam-powered devices, toys, and vehicles, and also primitive electric lamps and weapons. It also is used to create or bypass mechanical locks and traps.
Transmutery: This skill is used to manipulate an elemental material (earth, air, fire, or water) using only willpower and mental command. The four elements can be detected, softened, stretched, shaped, purified, heated, cooled, solidified, made mist-like, or altered in other ways--but not created from nothing, duplicated, destroyed into nothing, or made to levitate or otherwise move around unassisted.
Ability with the skills and talents is normally rated between 1 and 8:
| Rating | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 | Fumbling - An inexperienced person mimicking what he or she has seen others do. |
| 2 | Clumsy - Peons, pawns, flunkies, mooks, and expendable allies wearing red shirts. |
| 3 | Rough - Guards, thugs, laborers, and others who get rough practice. |
| 4 | Polished - Veterans, diplomats, craftsmen, and others showing fine experience. |
| 5 | Notable - Guard captains, bandit chiefs, master craftsmen, and other experts and leaders in their fields. |
| 6 | Superior - The local celebrity, someone who is the best in the local region at this skill. |
| 7 | Heroic - Most people only meet someone this skilled once or twice during their life. |
| 8 | Legendary - Most people only tell stories of this degree of skill. |
Using the nicknames for the numerical ratings is optional. They are included for the GM's benefit: hopefully the skill ratings for most NPCs are immediately obvious from either the adjective nickname or the accompanying stereotype examples.
Notice the four pairs. Fumbling and Clumsy are for skills rarely or never practiced during stressful situations. Rough and Polished denote skills used almost daily, often as a professional to earn a living. Notable and Superior are special and elite, probably unique to any town or region, respectively. Heroic and Legendary skill ratings do not appear in most adventures.
Skills in SPECTRE
Consider the novel Goldfinger. The common SPECTRE agents employed at Piz Gloria were easily fooled and fought by Bond (Clumsy in most skills, perhaps Rough in Melee/Push). Blofield is far more clever, perceptive, dangerous, and even athletic than these men (Polished or Notable in most skills). Since Blofield does not employ a mercilessly tough or trained bodyguard like Odd Job or Jaws, the story lacks a villain who can match Bond's Superior skill in Melee and Shoot. Tracy does match Bond's Superior skill in driving, as well as proving his equal in courage both before and during their brief marriage. Probably no character is Heroic at any skill, although it could be claimed that Bond developed Heroic skill in Perception or Intuition during the previous ten novels.
The GM may allow a rare skill of 0 that represents complete ignorance. For example, a NPC visiting from a distant town, who has never seen a clockwork machine or the Machinery skill used, could have a 0 in Machinery. A NPC who grew up in a peace-loving commune might never have been in a fight, seen a serious fight, or studied martial arts, and thus have a 0 in Melee. But it is rare to lack even second-hand experience with a skill or its products.
Newly created PCs are more skilled than most of the population, but not yet of heroic caliber. As the PC adventures, he or she increases in skill and talent, and becomes capable of attempting greater challenges. It is recommended that a new PC has 40 points to distribute among his or her sixteen skills, with at most one skill rated at 5 and no skill rated above of 5.
Skills slowly increase as the PC completes adventures and gains experience and practice.
The simple method for experience simply allows the Player, after a successful adventure, to increase any one of the PC's skill or talent ratings by 1.
The shopping method for experience requires "spending" many experience points to increase a skill or talent, but awards many such points after each adventure. Typically, increasing a ski ll by one costs as many experience points as the new rating, and increasing a talent costs twice the new rating. Successfully completing an adventure awards between 4 and 8 experience points, depending upon the adventure's length and complexity.
The GM may change how many points a new PC has or alter the starting limits if the GM prefers stories in which the PCs begin their adventuring career as already extraordinary individuals.
Notice that with any character's overall experience can be calculated by subtracting 40 from the sum of all skill and talent ratings. Also be aware, as will be mentioned later, that a talent's rating can never exceed the corresponding skill's rating.
Skill ratings are boosted by 1 or 2 because of special equipment or situational advantages. For example, a nameless pirate crew member (Clumsy in Melee skill) with excellent armor and an elevation advantage might fight as well as his pirate captain (Notable in Melee skill) who lacks those benefits.
Equipment of excellent quality provides a bonus of 1 to the rating. Examples include a musician playing a notable instrument, a gladiator wearing custom-made metal armor, or a machinist with an unusually well-stocked workshop.
Equipment that is beneficially enchanted provides a bonus of 2 to the rating. Examples include an archer using enchanted arrows or a blacksmith using an enchanted anvil.
These equipment increases may boost a skill rating above 8. To make it simpler when a character does not have access to his or her special equipment, please denote on the character sheet any skill ratings normally affected by equipment using the format a + b, with a being the character's innate ability and b the bonus provided by the equipment.
Valtor and his Sword
Valtor has a Melee/Press skill of 3. He normally carries an enchanted sword, which is his preferred weapon. So on the character sheet the Player writes 3+2 for Valtor's rating in Melee/Press.
Situational advantages can be almost anything. They could come from features of the location, such as a foot race along streets your character knows very well, fighting from higher ground, or flanking an enemy warrior who is already fighting an ally. They could be based on character background, such as someone trained as a locksmith using Machinery to create or pick a mechanical lock. They could come from what other people are doing, such as soldiers aided and inspired by their commander's superior tactics and shouted commands. They could take advantages of an opponent's weakness, such as a surprise attack or warding off a very flamable zombie with a torch.
Situational disadvantages also abound in contested skill use. It is more difficult to sneak when encumbered, to win an archery contest with an injured arm, and to race on an unbroken horse than a trained one. As with situational advantages the penalty is usually 1 or 2 points.
Note that an equipment bonus (of 1 or 2 points) can combine with a situational advantage bonus (also of 1 or 2 points). Thus the maximum effective rating is 12.
Talents are special ways to use skills that set experienced characters apart from other people. Having a talent allows the corresponding skill be used differently, achieving a distinct kind of benefit that can never be acquired through normal skill use.
(In most other role-playing games the primary differences between a knight, a woodsman, and a thief would a represented through a set of bonuses and restrictions called a "character class". In Dvreem the talents serve the same function in a more natural manner while adding a Wuxia flavor.)
Talents are also given a numeric rating. All talents start at zero and a talent's rating may never be increased beyond the rating of the corresponding skill. A new PC has no talents.
The numeric rating of a talent often provides a situational advantage for certain skill use. When this happens, a talent rated between 1 and 4 provides a +1 situational advantage bonus, and a talent rated between 5 and 8 provides a +2 bonus.
Acrobatics/Climb: Talent in this skill grants faster movement. Climbing speed can eventually be increased to normal running speed, and running speed can eventually be doubled. When moving fast matters, this talent's rating has priority over higher Acrobatics or Wrestle skill rating. (If a numeric movement rate is needed, such as a chase scene enacted with minatures on a grid, then for normal characters use rates of 8 for running, 2 for climbing a ladder, and 1 for climbing a wall. A character with this talent adds its numeric amount to all three movement rates.) This talent provides a situational advantage in attempts to flee combat, and in some Melee situations when fast footwork helps.
Melee/Press: Talent in this skill allows using the Melee skill to perform powerful, sweeping attacks that can injure many foes with each blow. Often this secondary damage is not as injurious as damage to the attack's primary target (reduce the Melee skill rating by one when using the opposing skill use spectrum to determine damage). This talent's rating determines the maximum number of secondary targets, assuming that many enemies are within weapon reach.
Shoot/Throw: Talent in this skill represents using either Shoot or Throw to quickly interrupt what an opponent is doing. The talent's rating is treated as a skill rating for this new skill. If successful, the opponent will not be substantially injured but might drop an item or shift focus to the interruptor. Interrupting shots happen first in a turn and force that turn to end early: the PC and NPCs then begin a new turn with new declarations of intended actions.
Wrestle/Disarm: Talent in this skill denotes toughness and fortitude that allow a character to endure more hurt during combat. When using the opposing skill use spectrum to determine damage, this talent's rating grants the character that many additional "severe problem" steps before a final defeat. Additionally, the character may hold a stationary "sanctuary pose" that doubles this talent's effective rating by focusing internal energy; this pose can be useful while being rescued by allies or to survive environmental damage such as a rockslide or collapsing building.
Bargain/Wonder: Talent in this skill shows development of wonder so advanced that the character can perform wondrous feats of physical prowess. The GM has final authority on which feats are possible as this talent's rating increases. As an example, consider these traditional Wuxia feats:
Identify/Lore: Talent in this skill represents knowledge of herbal medicines. The talent's numeric rating is used as a multiplier, by which the body's natural healing rate is boosted if the rights herbs are available. This talent provides a situational advantage to the Wilderness skill when searching for wild herbs. (A rating of 1 thus helps finding herbs, but does not yet help with healing.) Unlike healing potions, healing herbs are effective even after some time has passed since the injury, and only herbal healing is capable of curing disease or paralysis, or speeding the healing of broken bones or mental afflictions.
Intuition/Provoke: Talent in this skill represents the special kind of interpersonal intuition that alows more effective fast-talking, with the beneficial result that people who are fast-talked remain duped for hours instead of only minutes. This talent's rating shows the number of hours that fast-talking lasts.
Stealth/Track: Talent in this skill allows a character to blend into shadows with amazing ability. It provides a situational advantage to the Stealth skill when shadows are usable. This talent also allows a character to squeeze into shadows with remarkable ease: the rating also measures how many fewer centimeters thick a character appears to be when trying to hide in a shadow (for example, if a character flattened against a wall is actually 10 cm thick, a talent rating of 4 would allow that character to hide in a shadow normally only able to hide something 6 cm thick). Finally, some stories claim that "shadow stepping" is possible: teleportation from one shadow to another. If these claims are true, then each meter of stepping takes one minute of preparation, and this talent's rating measures the maximum number of meters traveled. (The GM and Player should agree if "shadow stepping" or other shadow-related powers are actually granted by this talent, or whether such abilities are merely features of folk tales created to justify people's inadequate perception when surprised by a sneaky character.)
Animals/Wilderness: Talent in this skill allows a character to control tame animals. The rating measures three factors: the maximum length of a sequence of steps the animals will perform, the numer of animals that can be simultaneously controlled, and the maximum difficulty of any requests. For example, with a rating of 1 a character could ask one pet mouse to go eat a visible piece of cheese in an empty, safe room. With a rating of 4 the character could ask four pet mice to each go to a new room, find some cheese, and bring it back instead of eating it, and moreover the mice would attempt this even if it required slightly more courage than they normally exhibit.
Block/Dodge: Talent in this skill shows defensive combat habits of positioning and evading damage that allow a character to ignore one or more opponents when fighting a group. The size of the opposing group is effectively reduced by the talent's rating, perhaps allowing the character to focus on a single opponent at a time.
Exit/Escape: Talent in this skill allows ending or escaping from combat by striking an opponent's "vital spots" to momentarily paralyze or cause nausea. This talent provides a passive situational advantage to using Exit to flee combat. Actively, this talent's rating can be used by an unarmed character fighting an unarmored character as a new kind of attack skill that, if successful, automatically places the target one step from defeat on the opposing skill use spectrum.
Perception/Etiquette: Talent in this skill shows a normally heightened awareness that prevents the character from being completely surprised. Any surprise attack directed against this character has its skill diminished by this talent's rating.
Alchemy: Talent in Alchemy allows the alchemist to identify potions by appearance and smell. All potions have a minimum Alchemy skill required to create them; a character can identify a potion whose difficulty is equal or lesser than this talent's rating.
Chemstry: Talent in Chemstry allows creating golems that move quickly than the typical rate of one act every other turn. The talent's numeric rating is used as a multiplier to the golem's speed. To benefit from this extra speed, both the golem and its chem must be created by a character with this talent. A talent rating of 1 only allows identification of golems or chems that have this potential (but are currently idle or moving normally).
Machinery: Talent in this skill allows creating machines that work for more than a few hours. This talent's rating measures the number of additional hours a machine will work. Machines constructed without using this talent can still gain extra duration if repaired using this talent.
Transmutery: Talent in this skill allows manipulating materials at a distance instead of by touching them with both hands. This talent's rating measures the maximum distance, in meters.
How does skill use work?
First, recall the earlier discussion about taking turns. Normally the GM's turn lasts until the Player gains new information, and the Player's turn last until the Player picks a skill, item, or situational advantage to try using and describes the PC's intentions.
Therefore in each of the Player's turns one skill is used. This can include all sorts of "extra" actions that do not affect the outcome of the contest.
The Busy Archer
An archer who uses the Shoot skill one turn actually does many things. She readies an arrow, leans from behind cover, selects a target, aims carefully, shoots the arrow, and ducks back behind cover. Perhaps she also shouts something to her ally, insults the enemy, prays for luck, and touches her lucky manticore foot. All those actions that do not affect the situation, and are bundled into that turn's use of the Shoot skill.
If those other actions did affect the situation then they would require their own turn.
Perhaps the insult could demoralize the enemy: it would needs its own turn and a use of the the Provoke or Wonder skills.
Perhaps the lucky manticore foot is not merely cherished but is actually enchanted and would grant a +2 skill bonus to the archer's next attack: each time the archer touched it would then require a seperate turn.
Next, recall the earlier discussion about contested versus uncontested situations.
Uncontested situations are simplest. The GM knows or improvises the minimum skill rating required for success. The character succeeds if his or her skill is equal to or greater than the required amount.
A character who fails can often find another plan that allows success: either the originally used skill's rating can be boosted by using better equipment or a situational advantage, or the characters could attempt to use a different (but still appropriate) skill.
Jandiz and the Door
Jandiz needs to get past a sturdy, thick door in a castle's basement. Forcing open the door requires a Wrestle skill of 3 or more. Unfortunately, Jandiz is not sufficiently skilled in Wrestle. But he need not give up.
He can gain an boost to Wrestle by using appropriate equipment: perhaps a lever will help force that door. He could find some way gaining a situational advantage when forcing the door open, such as weakening the hinges with acid. Or he could try using a different skill: perhaps he stops pushing and gets out an axe, switching from Wrestle to Melee.
Note that most situations are uncontested and have trivial difficulty. Skill use is automatically successful and not even mentioned by the GM or Player. A PC does not need to formally use the Leap skill to jump a short distance, the Animal skill to calmly ride a pet horse, or the Perception skill to notice obvious features and items in a room.
Contested situations involving comparing the skill ratings for the skills the opponents use each turn. Examples include haggling over prices (Bargain versus Bargain), following a hidden trail (Track versus Stealth), searching for a deliberately hidden object or person (Perception versus Stealth), and arm wrestling (Wrestling versus Wrestling). Characters can still increase their skill ratings by using appropriate equipment or situational advantages, or by changing which skill they use.
For many skill contests both characters compare the skill ratings of the skills they intended to use that turn.
An Honest Archery Contest
Two characters, standing side by site, both shoot at the same target. The contest compares which Shoot skill rating is higher.
Other skill contests only make sense with one participant (usually the defensive one) getting to use an appropriate skill "for free".
A Crooked Archery Contest
Two characters, standing side by site, both shoot at the same target. But one archer tries to use an enchanted arrow, which is against the contest's rules. The cheater uses Stealth to attempt switching arrows unnoticed. The other character intended to use Shoot: he or she is "out of sync" because there was no reason to expect that anything other than shooting arrows would happen the first turn. That other character gets to use Perception to notice the cheating even though he or she planned on using Shoot.
How long does a contest last?
Many contests last only one turn. If the situation is not meaningful to the story, simply compare skill ratings to find the winner.
Kyvron Haggles
Kyvron wants to buy a dagger. The GM looks at the price chart and sees that a normal knife costs 61 coins. This dagger is of above-average quality, so the GM decides a fair price is 70 coins.
Kyvron has a Bargain skill of 5. The merchant has a Bargain skill of 4. Kyvron's skill is greater so he wins the contest. Since Bargain allows the better haggler to gains a 5% benefit per point of skill rating difference, Kyvron buys the dagger for 66 coins.
If Kyvron and the merchant had the same Bargain skill, then Kyvron would have paid 70 coins for the dagger and both characters would have considered the situation successful.
Any meaningful contest should last at least two turns. For example, the PC has cornered an enemy spy that is only Fumbling in all combat skills. The PC has notable Melee skill. If the PC attacks the spy, the GM should remember to give that foe a minor injury the first turn, so the spy has a chance to realize the extent of his trouble and attempt escape.
But most conflicts with such such extreme difference in skill do not deserve any detail. Usually super-brief description is most appropriate when the skill difference is so large.
Valtor and the Snails
GM: Valtor falls down the pit, and lands amidst a bunch of hungry giant snails.
Player: Has Valtor heard of such creatures? How dangerous are they?
GM: They are as long as his forearm, but move very slowly. He can easily avoid their bites.
Player: Ick. Valtor kills them all.
GM: Okay.
As an example of a situation deserving more detail, let's revisit the conversation between Garx and the Mer, this time analyzing it turn by turn to consider the skill use and skill ratings.
Notice that, unlike in some RPGs, the PC and the NPC do not take turns separately attempting actions. Instead, the GM privately decides what the NPC will attempt before the Player says what the PC will attempt, and then compares the two corresponding skill ratings to decide which character is successful and to what degree.
Garx Meets a Mer (Analyzed)
GM: Looking around the corner, Garx sees that the passage opens into a small room. It is irregular in shape like most of these caves. A Mer squats in one corner, faintly illuminated by glow moss, between Garx and the only other exit. Garx has never seen one before, but recognize it from stories. It's slightly taller than Garx, muscular, has pale green skin, and has webbing between its fingers and a beard like fine seaweed. The Mer and Garx startle each other. The Mer was looking at something on the ground, but quickly stands. He holds a long knife in his right hand. What is Garx doing?
Player: What does Garx know about Mer?
The GM looks at Garx's Wonder skill, which is low. So the GM decides that this encounter with the unkown does not inspire any insights. Next the GM looks at Garx's Perception skill and decides that Garx would have noticed a few details even in that quick moment, but nothing very useful because of that failed use of Wonder. So the GM provides an answer that is informative but lacking hints or clues.
GM: Not much. Garx has never met one. The stories he has heard always portray them as raiders or bandits, working in groups. No idea why one would be alone. It might be a sentry, guarding the other passage. Or it might really be alone, on a quest for one of the Powers or an exiled criminal. It's wearing no armor, only thick trousers and a wide belt. The knife looks like a large fishmonger's blade: quite dangerous, but more utilitarian than sturdy for combat. What is Garx doing?
Player: Garx stands up straight, not in a combat stance but ready to move into one. He asks, "What is your name?"
Both characters are engaging in normal conversation, which uses Etiquette. They are not yet in opposition: both want to learn about the other. However, since neither is skilled enough in Etiquette to deal especially well with foreign cultural norms, the GM decides the conversation is productive but hindered by potential misunderstandings, and chooses what the Mer says accordingly. If Garx was more skilled in Etiquette the GM would let the Mer speak more clearly or offer hints about how to understand what the Mer says.
GM: The Mer frowns. He shifts to a wary stance, putting his knife between him and Garx. In a distrubed tone he says, "We have just met and you ask my name?"
Player: Hm. Apparently the wrong way to start a conversation in Mer society. Garx looks puzzled by the Mer's reaction. He tries a different question: "What do you want?"
GM: Now the Mer looks puzzled too. "I am on a quest. I follow duty." Does Garx have a quick reply?
Player: Garx... no, nothing immediate.
GM: After a brief pause the Mer adds, "Ah, you measure me. I understand. I want to swim again, to feel fresh air against my face, to eat fish instead of mushrooms and crawling things. Great is my desire, but I master it." The Mer looks at Garx's sword.
Player: Garx keeps it ready.
The GM decides the Mer now wants to take control in the encounter, and thus switches from Etiquette to Press. Recall that Press yields an advantage if the opponent does not react appropriately to the extra intensity, or a disadvantage of the opponent handles the extra pressure well. So if Garx ignores the Mer's change of tone the conversation will go badly for him; if Garx reponds well, he will benefit.
GM: The Mer suddenly stands up very straight. His eyes flash coldly, and his countenance becomes like iron. Sternly, loudly, he demands, "Leave now! This room in mine. Many of these places are mine!"
Player: Garx backs up a step or two, but does not break eye contact or turn his back to the Mer. Does the Mer calm down?
Garx neither matched the Mer's display of dominance nor clearly submitted. This GM decides this lack of clear reaction made the Mer's Press successful. The GM starts using language for the Mer that is deliberately confusing to the Player, and in other small ways helps the Mer control the encounter. This will continue until a significance pause resets the conversation's momentum or Garx is the character more succeessful with skill use.
GM: Quite the opposite. He throws down his knife, and yells, "Stop! You asked my name. You cannot leave."
Player: Huh? I don't get it. Let's try Provoke. Garx is getting flustered, a bit red in the face. "What now?" he demands, while squaring his shoulders.
Recall that Provoke is the opposite of Press: the advantage comes if the opponent ignores the provocation. If the Mer speaks normally, using Etiquette, he will retain dominance. If the Mer reacts to the provocation, with his words or by using Press, then Garx will benefit.
However, for this exchange the GM had decided that the Mer is back to using normal conversation with Etiquette. According to the Mer's cultural expectation the conversation should lead to a sparring match, and since the Mer is already guiding the situation that way it sees no reason to Press again or try Provoke.
GM: The Mer frowns again. His body is still tense, but the anger leaves his face. "Are you so young? We must prove each other: our strengths, our skill with blades, our grace when wounded." What is Garx doing?
Player: Garx is still standing tall but ready. He twirls the tip of his blade, not explicitly threatening, just showing he is willing to fight. I guess I'm using Dodge instead of Ettiquette, trying to be ready to avoid problems if the Mer gets agitated again.
Garx is relatively inactive, which edges the conversation towards neutrality, removing some of the Mer's advantage. It also provides time for the Mer to use Intuition successfully, to recognize an especially helpful question to ask Garx.
GM: A funny expression comes over the Mer's face. "Young one, what do you want?" he asks.
Player: Does Intuition prompt Garx towards any reply? As the Player I can't figure out what all this is about.
The GM decides that Garx has enough skill with Intuition to be of some help, but not reveal the optimal answer.
GM: Garx has already asked him, "What is your name?" Garx have a hunch that repeating that question would be a good answer, but not the best answer.
Player: Does the Mer look impatient?
GM: No, he is calmly waiting for a reply.
Player: Let me think... Ah, I have it. Garx stands even taller but also more causually, and sets down his backpack and coil of rope. He keeps eye contact with the Mer, and never stops twirling the tip of his sword. When unencumbered, he moves into his most defensive fighting stance and says with a firm voice, "I want you to know my name."
GM: The Mer laughs and salutes Garx, touching his blade's handle to his forehead and then extending it towards him. Then the Mer adopts a similarly defensive stance and begins to slowly step forward.
What happens when a skill contest is both meaningful and quite competitive? In the previous conversation both the PC and NPC could be successful. What about zero-sum situations in which one character's success requires the other character's failure?
Recall the earlier discussion about injury severity. Minor injuries are a kind of information. Severe wounds are both information and complications. Normally a severe wound determines the winner of the conflict, even if the conflict does not completely finish that turn.
This perspective on injuries can be generalized to all contested situations. The following opposing skill use spectrum helps the GM keep track of the progress during meaningful contested skill use.
(The .svg file is here)
The contest normally starts at "neutral" unless the situation involved an ambush or some other unfair advantage. Each turn the outcome shifts left or right one place for each difference in skill rating.
The Opposing Skill Use Spectrum
A combat begins with both Bortan and Carmok using Melee. They have Melee skills 2 and 4, respectively. The difference is 4 - 2 = 2. Two shifts along the spectrum show that the turn ends with Bortan suffering a minor setback.
During the second turn Bortan decides to Press, with skill 3. Carmok continues to use Melee. Bortan's Press skill is less than the Melee skill by 1, but in most situations Press gains a situational advantage against Melee. Perhaps the turn ends with Carmok only having sente. Or perhaps in this situation the advantage gained from Press grants an effective bonus of 2, and the turn ends neutrally.
The term "sente" means dominating the situation so the opponent is forced to react rather than act with initiative. Minor setbacks work like the minor injuries described earlier: they provide information that one opponent is winning but without yet causing a significant effect on the contest or lasting handicap. Severe penalties both provide information and give one opponent a lasting disadvantage.
When defeat happens, the victor often choses the type of defeat. For example, a swordsman could say he backed his foe against a wall with the sword pointed at his neck, knocked down his foe until he or she was too beat up to rise, fought until his foe was disarmed and exhausted, or simply killed his foe. However, in some situations the GM decides the type of defeat.
Notice that a numerical difference of 4 (Notable versus Fumbling, or Superior versus Clumsy) is enough to end the contest in one turn. Four shifts will go from neutral to sente, from sente to minor, from minor to severe, and from severe to defeat. Thus expert warriors can dispatch one enemy flunky with each swing of their sword, and expert merchants can out-haggle inexperienced shoppers in one turn.
Valtor and the Zombie Rats
GM: Valtor looks across the huge room. He must wade through a long pit filled with zombie rats to reach the mad scientist. Individually the rats are not significant foes, but there are a lot of them and the mad scientist is holding some kind of ray gun.
Player: Valtor can kill one zombie rat per turn?
GM: Yes. But he doubts that is the best plan.
Most often the skill difference is less than 4. Then the contested situation lasts for more than one turn, and on each turn all the characters get to attempt a new plan of skill or item use.
Let's examine the fight between Garx and the Mer, analyzing it turn by turn to consider the skill use and skill ratings.
Garx Fights a Mer (Analyzed)
For the first turn of combat, the GM decides the Mer begins with Block/Dodge. Remember that the GM always secretly picks what the NPCs will do before the Player says anything.
GM: The Mer is slowly advancing, holding the point of its long knife high away from its body. What is Garx doing?
Player: Garx is staying defensive. He'll use Block/Dodge.
Garx has a Block/Dodge of 3. The Mer has a 4. The Mer is slightly better, but it would take a long time for him to injure Garx while both are being so defensive. The GM decides the Mer will use Block/Dodge once more, then switch to Melee unless Garx scores an early hit.
GM: The Mer is also beginning the fight defensively. He and Garx circle each other a few times, inspecting each other's movements. He seems slightly more nimble than Garx. No chance yet to learn how strong he is, or how he uses that knife.
Player: No sense waiting until Garx trips or gets maneuvered into a corner. Garx will start attacking, but cautiously. No risks, just normal opportunistic Melee.
Both Garx and the Mer have Melee skill of 4. If Melee is used for the remainder of the combat then it would eventually turn into an endurance contest. But most balanced fights are resolved quickly because one participant uses other skills, uses items, or makes use of situational advantages.
GM: The blades clash once, twice, thrice. More circling. A failed feint. A parry and riposte, but the riposte is dodged. Garx and the Mer appear to be quite equally matched, and Garx does not notice any flaws in the Mer's style to safely exploit. What is Garx doing?
Player: Sigh. I had hoped this would be easy. Well, during the conversation the Mer got aggressive early on. Garx will try to Provoke, assuming the Mer will Press as soon as he realizes we're evenly matched. Garx purposefully hits his toe against a rough spot of the rocky floor, pretending he has tripped and trying to look slightly off balance. But it's a ruse: if the Mer tries to take advantage of the false opening, Garx is ready to get him.
The GM was indeed planning on having the Mer Press, with a skill of 4. Garx has only a 3 in Provoke, but Provoke is always very successful against Press. The GM decides Garx gains a +3 bonus, boosting his skill to 6, which exceeds the Mer's skill rating by 2. Two shifts on the spectrum, starting at neutral, means that Garx gains sente and inflicts a minor setback or injury.
GM: That trick works beautifully. The Mer lunges, and Garx avoids it while scoring a hit on its arm. Only a scratch, but first blood. The Mer looks surprised, and leaps backwards somewhat awkwardly to avoid Garx's next thrust. The Mer smiles at Garx as he tries to move into a new stance, but Garx's attacks keep the Mer reacting monent-to-moment.
Player: Has Garx gauged the Mer's strength?
GM: Uncertain. Garx's blade is much heavier, so the Mer has been avoiding contests of strength and focusing on quick thrusts and feints. Perhaps the Mer is weaker, or perhaps he has been holding back.
Player: I don't think I want to risk a real Disarm attempt yet. I know Garx is equal in Melee. So Garx will keep using Melee, but will beat aside the Mer's knife more often and more forcefully. If Garx does disarm the Mer, that's great. But I'm mostly hoping the Mer will get a really sore arm, which will give Garx an advantage.
The Mer is exaggerating his loss of control, hoping Provoke will entice Garx to overextend himself. Since Garx is using Melee, and doing so in a way that does not risk overextension, the Mer fails and the contest goes even worse for him. The Mer has a Provoke skill of 3. Garx's skill in Melee is 4, so the spectrum shifts one more step to a serious penalty for the Mer. The GM decides that instead of a wound, the penalty will be exhaustion for the Mer.
GM: That tactic works well: the Mer recovers his balance but is unable to do anything but react to Garx's blows. Garx smashes his sword against the knife again and again; each of the Mer's parries is slightly weaker. Once Garx even sees an opening, and cuts the Mer's arm a second time. After a dozen or so clashes of steel, Garx feels like the Mer is slowing as well as parrying more weakly.
Player: Great. But he probably expects me to Press, since that is his own style. For something different let's try using Wonder and Provoke to see if the Mer can be bowled over by sheer presence. Garx looms tall and shouts, "Do you have the strength of a child? Do you deserve to know my name?" Also, Garx is holding his sword almost too far to the side, feigning vulnerability; he hopes to riposte and thrust if the Mer closes, and is counting on the Mer being worn out and a bit slow.
The Player choses to use two skills together for a combined effect. This is legitimate; the GM decides, based on the specific situation, whether the action uses the higher or lower skill rating. In this case the GM decides the effective skill rating is 3, which is Garx's rating in Wonder.
Here is an example of a conflicts that needs a "free" defensive skill use. In this case, the Mer was not planning on using Wonder, but his Wonder skill is used to check the success of Garx's effort. Unfortunately, the Mer has a much higher Wonder skill of 5. The spectrum shifts twice back to Garx having sente. The GM decides that the Mer is not cowed by Garx.
Moreover, Garx tried Provoke and the Mer did not fall for it by doing something aggressive that turn. The spectrum shifts one more step to netural. Now the Mer, although still exhausted, is no longer reacting to Garx and has a chance to drastically change tactics. The GM decides it will attempt using Wrestle to grapple, hoping Acrobatics will suffice to prevent a big wound as he closes. (Again two skills are used for a combined effect.)
GM: The Mer ignores Garx's show. The Mer draws a dagger from a sheath behind his left hip. He flexes his arms, then steps back into a defensive pose.
Player: Drat. He might cut Garx with the dagger if Garx goes back to using his sword to beating aside the big knife. Time to keep the Mer at a distance. Garx hollers, and shifts to a two-handed grip on his sword, holding its point back above his shoulder.
GM: Suddenly the Mer throws both of his blades at Garx's chest! How do you react?
Player: Garx tries to block them both.
All of this dagger action was part of the Mer's attempt to safely close to grappling range. The GM's last question had no right or wrong answer; the GM expected the Player's response to not affect the story. However, if the Player had Garx do something especially interesting then the GM would now redirect the story appropriately.
GM: Succeess, but Garx realizes too late that the large knife, and perhaps also the dagger, would have struck hilt first, harmlessly against Garx's soft leather amor. The Mer was distracting Garx as he rushed forward to grapple, and now the Mer has a good grip on Garx's sword arm. The Mer is trying to move behind Garx, but Garx might be able to prevent that if he wants.
Player: Hm. Garx is wearing his enchanted jumping boots. Can Garx bend foward, move so the Mer leans above him, and then leap upwards to squish the Mer against the ceiling?
GM: Probably. Those boots are not designed for indoor use. Are you sure you want to do that with the roof of the cavern only five meters up?
Player: Yes. Garx is wearing hard leather armor. That will protect some, and the Mer should cushion the impact enough.
That was all one turn! Garx's attempt at blocking did not matter and thus was not actual skill use. So Garx's plan to use Wrestle for close maneuvering is the PC's first stated intention of skill use.
The Mer is ranked 2 higher in Wrestle/Disarm than Garx. The spectrum shifts twice, so the Mer has sente and inflicts a minor injury.
GM: Okay. Garx leans forward and tries to move to lure the Mer as desired. But then everything goes wrong. The Mer wiggles or twists or something. Before Garx notices what is happening, his right arm is completely pinned behind his back. Yet the Mer is leaning over Garx.
Player: Ouch. Well, I leap anyway. If Garx dislocates his shoulder it will use up a major healing potion, but that is acceptable.
The GM decides that even with the Mer's superior Wrestle skill, the surprise leap is a sufficient situational advantage for Garx's attack to succeed. The enchanted jumping boots allow Garx to leap fifty feet straight up. The GM decides the Mer is severely wounded, based prefuly upon the situation instead of shifts along the spectrum.
GM: Crack! Garx leaps and hears the back of the Mer's head hit the ceiling hard. The Mer has hard bones: Garx feels bruised even through his armor. The Mer immediately stops fighting. Garx's arm is released, sore but not needing healing.
Player: Hm. Garx steps back, makes a quick and formal bow, then hurries to his backpack for a minor healing potion for the Mer.
GM: The Mer accepts the offered healing potion. It compliments Garx's strength, skill, and behavior during their fight. Garx has won himself an ally.
Notice that even though in this example the Player usually did mention which skill Garx was using, mentioning skills is rarely necessary. The GM can nearly always tell what skill is being used if the Player describes the PC's actions with language that ignores the game mechanics.
Similarly, in this example the GM does not explicitly tell the Player each turn the PC's position on the opposing skill use spectrum. Some Players instead prefer each of the GM's descriptions of combat to explicitly include "you now have sente", "the opponent suffers a minor setback", etc.
Also notice how this example demonstrates that the situation determines which skills counter each other. Some pairs are almost always counters. (For example, someone who uses Provoke almost always succeeds greatly if the opponent uses Press, and someone who uses Press almost always succeeds greatly if the opponent uses Melee.) But some situations reduce the extent to which skills counter one another, alter which skills counter other skills, or might even allow both contestants so succeed. Consider these three examples, in which different situations cause a skill rating difference of 3 points to produce three different outcomes.
Valtor Flees from an Archer
Player: Valtor runs from the archer. He uses Exit to get out of here.
GM: Good idea, but it does not work. Out on the open plain the archer has too great an advantage. Her effective Shoot skill is 3 more than Valtor's Exit. Valtor is severly wounded: one then two arrows hit him, and he can no longer run.
Player: One arrow is deep in the back of his left thigh, and the other nicked a forearm. He stumbles but does not fall, then stops and holds up his hands in surrender.
Player: Valtor runs from the archer. He uses Exit to get out of here.
GM: Smart idea. Valtor runs through the streets and after six quick turns does manage to lose her. However, she is a very good shot and that bow is something special. Her effective Shoot skill is 3 greater than Valtor's Exit. She severely wounds him during the chase.
Player: Valtor stumbles into a shop's back door and closes it behind him. His right hand presses a cloth hard to his left side, soaking up the blood from the arrow wound so it will not leave a trail. "Beg pardon!" he says to anyone inside, before collapsing.
Player: Valtor runs from the archer. He uses Exit to get out of here.
GM: Easy to do. She was down in the gorge, and by the time she runs out of it Valtor is hidden in the nearby forest. He has heard stories about her incredible skill with a bow, but from down in such a deep ravine her prowess in archery cannot help her.
Player: Whew. Remind me to use this adventure's experience to increase Valtor's skill rating for Exit.
Sometimes contested skill use involves a group of characters simultaneously attempting the same thing. For example, five archers might try to shoot a common enemy. When this happens the group combines their attempts and uses a single skill rating in the skill contest. Usually the group's combined rating is higher than any of their individual ratings. For example, five archers with Rough skill shooting arrows after a fleeing hero will probably hit as well a single archer with Polished or Notable Shoot skill versus Exit skill comparison.
Meldela Hides
Meldela is hiding in the forest from a group of bandits. Each bandit has a Perception skill of 3. The GM decides that cooperation only helps slightly, so the entire group is given a joint Perception skill of 4. Meldela is quite sneaky and has a Stealth skill of 5. Her skill is greater, so the bandits do not find her and eventually go away.
As a concluding note, only use the spectrum when there is genuine competition, contest or struggle. A character who wants to kill an unconscious or bound prisoner with a dagger can almost always do so quickly and easily.
Dvreem needs few rules about equipment. Most inventory issues are already taken care of by the game's narrative focus, careful design for skills and skill use, and diceless style.
The GM may create more rules about heavy or bulky items causing encumbrance that penalizes skill use. The only standard rule is that a character who is carrying a lot will have trouble using Dodge. But encumberance could logically also hinder Acrobatics/Climb, Melee/Press, Shoot/Throw, Wrestle/Disarm, Exit/Escape, and Stealth/Track.
Weapon and armor types can realistically affect combat. For example, chain armor defends against cutting much better than impacts, and polearms are very effective against an enemy's mount. If the GM and Player wish, they can include such details as situational advantages and disadvantages to skill use.
Missile weapons are realistically more accurate at close range, but there is no need to formalize this in the rules beyond how situational advantages and disadvantages affect combat.
Any fantasy setting will have siege devices designed to knock down walls or towers, which do tremendous damage but are not accurate enough to use against moving targets; in typical adventures the PC never uses siege devices or is targeted by them. Most fantasy settings also have a few weapons or devices that do extraordinary damage (explosives, poisons, etc.) but these are very rare, often illegal to possess, and usually have a cultural stigma that associates them with butchering pirates and mad inventors who have no interest in survivors. A new PC is a fledgling hero or heroine, so he or she has probably never yet encountered any such "evil" weapons.
The description of Creagadier includes price lists, other economic information, and other discussion of equipment.
Characters in an adventure can become affected by both beneficial and harmful conditions. How these conditions affect the story is a matter of common sense. As always, the GM and Player should both contribute, with the GM having the deciding word about how skill use is modified. Context determines the extent, severity, and duration of skill use modification.
Two Quite Different Examples of Weakness
A prince drinks a mild poison that weakens him. His muscles feels achey and his muscular strength is slightly reduced. He can recover after two days of healthy eating and rest. Meanwhile, the skills Acrobatics/Climb, Melee/Press, Wrestle/Disarm, Block/Dodge, and Exit/Escape suffer a -1 penalty.
A princess catches a severe disease that increasingly weakens her as the weeks go by. She will only recover after the disease is cured. Each week all of her skills are penalized by a further -1, until she is bedridden and eventually comatose.
Note that the conditions affect the rules, not their source. A character that is dizzy will have a penalty to use certain skills. A character that is slowed will not be able to attempt skill use as often as normally. Whether the dizziness or slowing was the result of a potion, trap's gas, disease, poison, mold spore, dragon's breath, Witch's magic wand, or Gemback's fart is important to the story but not the game mechanics.
Some monsters are always associated with certain conditions. For example, Yarnspinner's Foreshadows and Shades cause unease, and dragons hypnotise and move quickly.
Here is a sample list of conditions with opposites. Many might at first seem atypical for a RPG, but an emphasis on storytelling instead of combat can make potions of cheerfulness or a cursed hat of overly-outgoing-ness interesting items.
Physical Conditions: energized vs. tired, hale vs. sick, hydrated vs. dehydrated, satiated vs. hungry, sensitive vs. numbed, strengthened vs. weakened, hastened vs. slowed, free vs. ensnared, mobile vs. dazed or paralyzed, focused vs. dizzy or headachey or nauseous, breathing freely vs. coughing or choking, cooled vs. overheated or burned, warmed vs. chilled or frozen, grounded vs. shocked (electrical), true form vs. polymorphed.
Mental Conditions: serene vs. uneasy, relaxed vs. nervous, decisive vs. befuddled, patience vs. impatience, informed vs. confused, self-disciplined vs. hypnotized, wary vs. charmed, cheerful vs. depressed, outgoing vs. withdrawn, courageous vs. fearful, dominating vs. dominated, merciful vs. bitter, caring vs. angry, mindful vs. amnesiac, critical vs. paranoid.
The list of conditions was aided by this discussion at Story Games.
Many people enjoy enhancing role-playing game combat by using miniatures and maps with a square or hexagonal grid. These maps are generically called "battlemaps". (Paizo publishes some pretty ones.)
Although there is no need to modify the Dvreem rules when using a battlemap, there are four simple changes that allow miniatures and battlemaps to add tactical choices as well as being a visual aid to what is happening during combat:
The "Hurry, Hurry Rule": If possible, turns are still simultaneous with each character using one skill. However, during tactical combat the opponents do not wait for each other, so turns include less time for observation and movement that often happens in a purely dramatic combat. Some behaviors that do not involve skill use may "count" as a character's action for that turn, such as drinking a potion or loading a crossbow.
The "Sticky Melee Rule": Any character using Melee or Wrestle is "sticky". An opponent who becomes adjacent to a "sticky" character must stop movement, which may or may not require forfeiting skill use that turn. Opponents who start a turn adjacent to a "sticky" character may only move away if using Dodge or Exit.
The "Slow Stuff Rule": Some actions will require more time than one combat turn; examples include picking a tricky lock, repairing worn-down machinery, setting up a trap, climbing a high wall, or bandaging a badly hurt ally. Some squares require an extra step of movement to enter, such as navigating through large rubble or climbing onto a table.
The "Tactical Skill Rule": A character's skill use determines what he or she does that turn. Furthermore, there are more clear-cut rules about how opposing skills can provides situational advantages. Here is an example of how this might work on a battlegrid with squares of five-foot side length:
Battlemap Tactics
Melee: May move one or two squares and then attack. Melee characters are "sticky". At an advantage to Provoke and Wrestle, and a disadvantage to Press.
Press: May move up to four squares in as straight a line as possible and then attack. At an advantage to Melee, Disarm, and Escape, and a disadvantage to Provoke, Dodge, and Wrestle.
Provoke: May attack and then move one square backwards. At an advantage to Press, and a disadvantage to Melee, Wrestle, and Escape.
Wrestle: May move one square and then attempt to throw or pin the opponent. Wrestling characters are "sticky" At an advantage to Press, Disarm, and Provoke, and a disadvantage to Melee.
Disarm: May move one square and then attempt to cause the opponent to drop something. At a disadvantage to Press and Wrestle.
Dodge: May move up to four squares, with no attack. May move away from "sticky" opponents. At an advantage to Press, Shoot, and Throw.
Block: May move up to four squares, with no attack. If the Blocking character has a large enough shield, he or she has an advantage to Shoot and Throw
Exit: May move up to three squares, with no attack. May move away from "sticky" opponents. May move through occupied squares, but must finish movement as usual in an empty square.
Escape: May move up to five squares. Character leaves combat if it reaches the edge of the battlemap. At an advantage to Provoke, and a disadvantage to Press.
Shoot: May not move. Attack has a disadvantage to Dodge and perhaps Block.
Throw: May move one square forwards and then attack. At a disadvantage to Dodge and perhaps Block.
Perception: May move one or two squares, with no attack. Gain a situational advantage next turn.
In the above example diagonal movement is allowed, but movement through an occupied square is only allowed if using Exit.
The GM and Player may, of course, agree on other "house rules" to make battlemap combat more tactical or interesting. Perhaps flanking an opponent earns a situational advantage only to Brawn skills, or certain polearms allow a character to attack non-adjacent opponents.
There are many reasons to use dice with a RPG. For those who enjoy using dice, a diceless rule system like Dvreem can be a solid foundation to build upon.
How to use dice depends upon why dice are desired. Five examples are discussed below.
Some people enjoy how the traditional mechanic of Hit Points allows the Player to feel suspense and excitement during combat.
Adding Hit Points to Dvreem is very simple.
First, decide how many Hit Points a normal, healthy adult has. Try using 8 or 10 to start, although the GM and Player can agree on any number. In some stories the PC has more Hit Points than other characters because the Hit Points represent luck and skill as well as health.
Second, measure combat damage with dice instead of the opposing skill use spectrum: each difference of skill corresponds to a greater size polyhedral die. (A difference of 1 uses a four-sided die, a difference of 2 uses a six-sided die, a difference of 3 uses an eight-sided die, etc.)
Some people enjoy how chance adds a little bit of suspense and thrill. They prefer stories in which an unskilled protagonist can be lucky enough to accomplish what is probably (but not certainly) beyond his or her usual ability. They prefer combat spiced by the danger of knowing even a weak foe might get lucky and severely wound the hero or heroine.
For this style of play, simply add a die roll to the skill rating when attempting to use a skill. For a tiny amount of unpredictable chance (+1 or +2) flip a coin or use a die only to determine odd or even. For a bit more chance, add a four-sided die. If the GM and player want luck to be almost as significant as chance, use a six- or eight-sided die.
For contested sitations nothing changes: all opponents add a die to their skill rating. For uncontested situations the GM must adjust how a situation's difficulty is measured: the GM will soon develop a habit of mentally increasing the number required for success by half the maximum die roll.
A further option is for each PC, and some significant NPCs, to be unusually gifted in one of the four skill categories. For skill use in that category the character uses the next-bigger size die than otherwise. For example, a character gifted in Harmony would use a six-sided die on those skills if normal skill attempts used a four-sided die.
Some people feel confined by having skill ratings only range from 0 to 10. Or they desire a more complex system for granting experience after an adventure.
For this style of play, expand the skill ratings and also use a die as described above. For example, a moderate amount of chance happens if skills range from 0 to 30 and when a skill is used an eight-sided die is added to the skill rating. As a contrasting example, if skills range from 0 to 100 and a ten-sided die is used then luck only matters in situations of very similar skill.
Once again the GM must adjust the difficulty number for uncontested situations, and the option remains of characters gifted in Brawn, Brains, Harmony, or Technology. Now the experience system must also be changed. (Perhaps each adventure rewards several "experience points" that can be distributed among any skill used during that adventure?)
Some people really like the polyhedral sets of dice common in many RPGs. For these people a delightful option is to have both skill ratings and the difficulty of uncontested situations measured not with fixed numbers but with die types.
First adjust the skill ratings:
| Rating | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 or 2 | Fumbling - An inexperienced person mimicking what he or she has seen others do. |
| four-sided | Clumsy - Peons, pawns, flunkies, mooks, and expendable allies wearing red shirts. |
| six-sided | Rough - Guards, thugs, laborers, and others who get rough practice. |
| eight-sided | Polished - Veterans, diplomats, craftsmen, and others showing fine experience. |
| ten-sided | Notable - Guard captains, bandit chiefs, master craftsmen, and other experts and leaders in their fields. |
| twelve-sided | Superior - The local celebrity, someone who is the best in the local region at this skill. |
| twenty-sided | Heroic - Most people only meet someone this skilled once or twice during their life. |
Next, the GM must learn the habit of also measuring the difficulties of uncontested situations with die types. A nearly trivial situation would use "1 or 2" (flip a coin or use a die to find even or odd). An easy situation would use a four-sided die. An amazingly difficult situation would use a twenty-sided die. A nearly impossible situation would use percentile dice.
This is a delightful way to use dice, not only because all of the different standard polyhedral die shapes are used but because there is always a tiny chance that luck steer the story in a surprising way.
Finally, some people like RPGs in which combat has great detail, including game mechanics for parrying, ranged attack distnaces, etc. This requires drastic changes. Please refer to Guilddom Adventures Made Easy, the earlier version of this RPG that used dice, for an example of how to make combat work well by using slightly different skills and talents, fatigue points, and fairly complex combat rules.
The world of Creagadier is ruled by three Divine Beings and ten Powers.
The Divine Beings are the Creator, Victor, and Vigor. All three work together to shape the world according to the Creator's plan. The earliest created Power is Yarnspinner, who appeared with the creation of the world. The transition from the First Age to the Second Age began with a conflict initiated by Big Blackie, who is afterwards counted among the Powers. During the Second Age four of the animalfolk, henceforth called the Four Royals, were made Powers to rule their kind: Speleoth, Kitsunay, Pooka, and Old Man River. During the Third Age the merciless conquests of Frosty Kostkey and the gluttonous ruthlessness of Gnash brought new kinds of evil into the world. Finally, two new Powers were created during the current and Fourth Age to restore balance. The Lamia appeared after some Foxes repented of joining Frosty Kostkey, and continues aids those who are violent yet repentant. Little Humble was created before the creation of the eight younger races, to extol the benefits of simplicity as the world became more complex.
The Divine Beings use no visible forms, and are referred to with masculine pronouns, although they have neither masculine nor feminine identity or traits. They are never seen, not when awake nor within dreams or visions. They cannot be physically touched or hurt. Yet they can observe any place and still speak to the people of Creagadier, for they remain active in shaping destiny. The Creator's voice is heard by many although in deeds he prefers to remain subtly hidden: his hand is typically only recognized in hindsight. Victor and Vigor embody conflicting philosophies about how to develop the world according to the Creator's plan, but their actions are restrained by structures established by the Creator so their rivalry does not affect living creatures too directly or alter the world too quickly.
The Powers are unique creatures that have power and status beyond all but the Divine Beings. The Powers have physical bodies and each can only observe the location in which it is present. All can teleport to instantly travel to any place they have previously been. They cannot be killed, but can be wounded if cut by bladed weapons made of the mineral Jadeite. Although very different from one another, they share five similarities:
The Powers are very rarely encountered. They are the forces that shape the world, not among the world's curiosities and obstacles. They hide far within the deepest layers of intrigue, seeking more influence over Creagadier's races, lands, kingdoms, guilds, and famous families.
Unlike many fantasy role-playing game settings, the Powers do not correspond to character races or classes. Many Dweorgs worship Speleoth, but not all Dweorgs do and there is nothing Dweorg-like about Speleoth. Many healers serve Kitsunay, but not all healers do and (with a few exceptions) Kitsunay does not empower or help healers. This allows more subtle and realistic conflicts. For example, the people involved a legal dispute might argue about which Power's temple to take their case: one party might favor Old Man River's strict justice, another the Lamia's acceptance of repentance, and a third Kitsunay's desire for a peaceful and enduring resolution. As another example, a couple in love might have trouble if one person is petitioning the Lamia for romantic yearnings and the other is devoted to Little Humble and sacrificial love. As a third example, three brothers seeking happiness might encounter unexpected conflict if the first wants to obtain a great wish in Yarnspinner's Enchanted Forest, the second wants to seek his dreams by serving Kitsunay, and the third wants to satisfy longings by worshipping Pooka.
Note that none of the Divine Beings are evil. One has the created purpose is to slow down the pace of the Creator's plan, and remains faithful to this purpose: it never tries to thwart that plan or establish an alternative, nor does he oppose virtues by promoting vices. Because the world of Creagadier has Divine Beings that disagree without being evil, the world is planned yet uncertain, noble yet corrupt, and overseen yet dangerous: a setting ripe for heroism and adventures!
The Powers help make Creagadier ripe for adventuring through what they oversee: heroes and villains, secret societies and types of monsters, dungeons and temples, artifacts and quests. They also have slightly overlapping interests and authorities, most of which converge at the geographical focus of the setting, Arlinac Mountain. Thus the Powers promote adventuring as they vie for influence over the mountain, its town, and its inhabitants by trying to convince, manipulate, trick, or coerce the city's residents. Finally, the Powers allow the setting to help teach spiritual truths and ponder virtues: issues such as contentment, temptation, pride, faith, and doubt can be woven into adventure plots and background stories. This cannot be done using the Divine Beings, for the realities of knowing and following the divine contradicts the types of suspense and uncertainty necessary for a fun RPG adventure.
Creagadier has a background of myths rooted in fact. Its people know many stories of ages past that grant them a sense of identity and purpose. Although these stories may have details that are inaccurate, overall they are trusted because they involve Divine Beings and Powers that are still active today. Thus religion is an integral part of the lives of the people of Creagadier. Many are actively devout. Their motivations for giving devotion, service, and/or worship arise from the core of who they are. Through religious activity individuals find comfort, experience joy, and receive guidance. Religion gives many organizations identity and purpose, and occasionally reasons for conflict (for example, the concept for Victor's followers that living as a witness that virtues work better than vices even in rotten situations is really useful for RPG plots, and taken from the book of Job and Ephesians 3:10-11).
Jadeite is one of the two minerals commonly called jade. According to some Chinese legends, jade weapons can harm mythical or immortal monsters and people. Some (but not all) of the monster types that serve the Powers are also vulnerable to specific material.
The Creator has ultimate authority and patience. He is the most friendly of the Divine Beings or Powers, and the one with a clearest sense of humor. He is the source of all prophecies because his plan for the world will inevitably be fulfilled in every detail. But his plan is his own secret, and questions abound. Which events and circumstance are among the plan's details? When will prophetic events unfold? At what pace will the plan progress?
The Creator enjoys when his creations speak to him aloud or through art. He is chatty and often replies privately, using a quiet tone that seems very like normal thought except that it could never be mistaken for anything but the Creator's voice. Many of his replies are humorous truths the hearer would never have otherwise deduced or imagined.
The Creator abhors temples, shrines, or altars built in an attempt to serve or worship him. He knocks them down with lightning, small meteors, or a well-aimed giant watermelon. He chooses no champions, maintains no dungeons, establishes or oversees no organizations, and gives no gifts besides an occasional conversation.
A group of strange yet similar legends describe a special doorway through which the Creator will some day enter the world in bodily form. Differences among these legends include what the doorway is made of (diamond, gold, pure light, etc.) and where it is located (various famous or holy places).
Victor attempts to finish creating the world as soon as possible. According to Victor, the reason this troubled world exists is so the superiority of virtues in both good and evil situations can be sufficiently demonstrated. Once this witness is complete, the world will end and be replaced by a new world that is a paradise of unblemished virtues untroubled by vices. Thus Victor creates small experiences that prove how virtues are superior to vices.
Once each year Victor may appoint another champion. This person is under a geis to act virtuously in a certain way. The champion usually only has a vague idea about his or her mission, knowing which virtue is under Divine scrutiny but now when or how. Yet there is a confidence that Victor will arrange circumstances to allow the geis the maximal chance of successful fulfillment.
Victor is much more interested in virtue than people. He neither protects his followers nor spends time with them as a friend. Victor maintains no dungeons, establishes or oversees no organizations, and gives no gifts.
Vigor attempts to prevent completion of the world through destruction, ruin, and decay. Vigor agrees with Victor that when the world is in some sense "finished being created" then the Creator will immediately replace it with a new world. But Vigor believes that this world is valuable and should be sustained as long as possible.
Vigor teaches his followers that the purpose of this imperfect world is to establish one's self in this world during the time granted. Each person should be creative, look out for him- or herself, make an impact, enjoy the fruits of his or her own labors, and establish a legacy. According to Vigor, his own existence and calling prove that the new world, even if it will be considered a paradise by its people, should wait for its turn.
Once each year Victor may give a gift. These gifts are the most powerful of items, with potency beyond any enchantment, and each aids either conquest, destruction, or protection; they can only be destroyed by another of Victor's gifts. Vigor appoints no champions and neither establishes nor oversees any organizations. He maintains no dungeons but does watch over battlefields and tournament fields: many of his deeds manifest at at these fields, and many of his gifts are the final reward of quests that eventually lead to these fields.
Take a drink, take a seat, listen to my tale.
Dangers loom, bravery shines, unfortunates prevail.
Hope and justice win again, it warms you like your ale.
"Life should be like that!" you say,
Then I agree and start my play.
Enjoy your stay. Pray do not fail.
- on a painted sign at an entrance to the Enchanted Forest
Yarnspinner is the oldest Power. He is worshipped by people from all the intelligent races, and no Power minds of their worshippers also worship Yarnspinner.
Yarnspinner loves stories and oversees the Enchanted Forest. Within the Enchanted Forest he takes on numerous forms, often appearing as characters in the stories and adventures he creates within its borders (often these people are wearing a gold brooch to signify their dual status as character and narrator).
The Enchanted Forest has impenetrable borders except for a few paths that are sunny and clear. Those who enter without focusing on a desire or goal will travel along a boring path while encountering nothing, or perhaps find that the path engages in twists and turns that soon lead out of the forest. Travelers who enter with a desire or goal in mind soon have an adventure, whose difficulty corresponds to the size and significance of their objective. Yarnspinner will also structure the story they follow and challenges they meet so that they learn and grow more than they intended.
Most adventures in the Enchanted Forest are completed (or failed) within a single day. The interior of the Enchanted Forest is never the same on two different days.
Yarnspinner seeks to promote self-efficacy in his followers. The concept of obedience is foreign to his worship: his followers either enter the Enchanted Forest seeking adventure or they do not.
Yarnspinner is primarily worshipped with personal shrines, at which his followers dedicate to him items of historic value recovered from abandoned buildings, neglected attics, and old ruins. Yarnspinner will often appear in a dream or vision, to tell the worshipper what to do with the item: usually take it into the Enchanted Forest so that recovering cultural artifact or returning it to its rightful owner can become the goal of someone else's quest.
Yarnspinner has no allies or enemies, although he is in many ways the opposite of Old Man River.
Yarnspinner's champions are people commissioned to be "Story Finders". They sometimes see visions of past acts of heroism or villainy when they enter a location or touch an item. A few Story Finders are given a quest to find or complete a specific, historically significant story. Most Story Finders are unsure why they have been granted that ability: these often try to ignore it, but might start working as detectives.
Yarnspinner's grants his worshippers good fortune. After the morning's devotional time the worshipper picks one skill to receives a +1 bonus the first time it is used that day.
The annotated maps that some Foreshadows deliver are a second kind of gift.
People have entered the Enchanted Forest to quest for all manner of items. But Yarnspinner calls these earned rewards, not gifts.
Yarnspinner's most devout followers in each settlement are called his Stagehands. Yarnspinner asks them to work with the Foreshadows to communicate to the town warnings and messages, and to encourage people to make a pilgrimage to the Enchanted Forest.
Many urban hoodlums have formed Single-Weapon Gangs because Yarnspinner inexplicably favors groups of thugs who all wield the same melee weapon.
Most of Yarnspinner's strange creations, including monsters, are the unpredictable inhabitants of the Enchanted Forest.
But sometimes Yarnspinner desires to send emissaries outside the Enchanted Forest, and in these situatioins he uses three strange creatures.
The first are the Foreshadows, who are pale, red, humanoid shadows seen outside the Enchanted Forest when Yarnspinner wishes to communicate warnings, clues, or other messages about the future. They cannot be touched or fought, and usually vanish after sharing their message. In some stories they leave behind an annotated map after vanishing. They give a deep sense of unease to any who see or hear them, and feature in many stories that Therions tell each other at night by firelight. (Some scholars say the often-changing signposts in the Enchanted Forest are a type of Foreshadow.)
The second are the Shades, who are pale, blue, humanoid beings even more transparent than the Foreshadows. Shades look as much like smoke or haze as shadow. Each Shade represents the essence of a past idea, place, or person. It is fixated on one goal and is driven to attempt to convince the living to make that goal happen.
Shades are "echoes" of the past that are unable to clearly see the present. They are not truly continuations of what existed in the past or evidence of an afterlife. As one example, a recently demolished orphanage might be reflected in a Shade that desperately wants to make sure the orphans find homes, prompting it to proclaim the childrens' merits to any who will listen. As another example, the murder of a merchant by his business partner might produce a Shade that yearns for the crime to be punished and who points out evidence to help the victim's family prosecute the murderer. Shades produce a sense almost as eerie and unsettling as Foreshadows.
The third of Yarnspinner's emmisaries are the Witches. Witches are also creatures with a mission. A Witch looks like a woman from one of the intelligent races. Some are old, wrinkled and gray; others are young, strong, and beautiful. Witches usually travel alone.
Witches have fearsome powers (or perhaps the channel Yarnspinner's power) and many tales tell of Witches turning a person into a frog, turning vegetables into vehicles, or instantly creating a house made out of cupcakes. Yet three restrictions limit a Witch. She may only act to directly accomplish her mission's goals. She must hold a specific item (usually a wand or ring) to perform supernatural feats. Her powers cannot affect herself, only other things or people (thus the stories of witches flying through the air on household items, since they cannot grant themselves the ability to fly).
Most often a Witch's mission is to initiate a story. Examples from legends include a Witch who kidnaps an oppressed princess to introduce her to valiant suitors, a Witch who arrives in a town disguised as a traveling apothecary charlatan but whose lotions and balms have amazing effects, and a Witch who moves to a city and turns an abandoned building into an apparently innocent pet store but which sells monsters each day at midnight.
Stories about Witches agree that Witches are never benevolent, but usually mischievous instead of malicious. Witches have no sense of self-preservation, since they are ephemeral monsters who only exist to attempt a brief mission; they always prefer a dramatic death to abandoning their purpose.
The adventures that Yarnspinner creates for seekers in the Enchanted Forest are perhaps a type of dungeon. These adventures are always isolated from the real world: a new problem or crime is being caused by a villainous person or creature. The quest's internal logic is clear: all goals, conflicts, and puzzles are clear and the solution is always sensible (even if not obvious). Most conflicts are short and involve familiar monsters and predictable tropes. Any enchanted items will be useful to a hero or heroine who finds them.
Yarnspinner's more traditional dungeons are his story towers. Most of these towers are created as rewards for people who have impressed or served Yarnspinner. A few are unowned and contain a unique item potentially worth more than the cost of exploring the tower and overcoming its traps and guardians.
Yarnspinner is not based on any legendary figure. But a Power in charge of stories, focusing on traditional fairy tale tropes and settings, is worth including!
The profession of Story Finder is taken from Sean Russell's Swans' War trilogy.
My favorite RuneQuest setting was Griffin Island with its large player's map delightfully annotated with handwritten rumors. Yarnspinner's annotated maps are a tribute to that masterful game supplement.
The Single-Weapon Gangs poke fun at video games in which all of an enemy group's flunkies have identical equipment, and sometimes identical appearance!
How is Yarnspinner involved in adventures? The Enchanted Forest can be an unlimited source of small adventures. The PC might also be hired to help someone who entered the Enchanted Forest but has become stuck or captured by villains. Similarly, the PC could help someone who has run into trouble with a Witch. An unowned story tower might need exploring. Someone might want the PC's help acquiring an item of historic value to offer to Yarnspinner.
Burn. Plunder. Steal. Hoard.
Dragons laugh in discord:
"By enough change he'll be restored:
This horde will free our ancient lord."
Chanted. Promised. Sang. Roared.
- very old song
Big Blackie is the greatest of all dragons and the only black-colored dragon. During the First Age she led most of the dragons in a plot to seek dominance over all the animalfolk. She destroyed the Six Splendid Trees before her striving for power failed. She was then imprisoned by the Creator under the rock named Pillory.
Although physically trapped, Big Blackie can communicate mentally with other dragons. She rules and guides the Dragon Dominion. Many tales foretell a day when the Dragon Dominion will free its Lady from Pillory. The details about when and how vary between these tales, just as the location of Pillory has been forgotten over the centuries. One story even claims that Big Blackie sleeps far underground all other dragons are merely her dreams--and thus all dragon treasure hoards are really part of one hoard owned by Big Blackie.
Before Big Blackie's striving there were both good and evil dragons, but under Big Blackie's guidance all of the good dragons have been corrupted or killed by their evil brethren of the Dominion. Big Blackie's personality mirrors this darkness: more cruel and ruthless than majestic, personifying all that is greedy and terrible about dragons and nothing that is grand or noble.
Because Big Blackie has always been trapped, her abilities are untested. She is acknowledged as a Power because the Creator calls. her a Power. Scholars argue about whether she became a Power when imprisoned or in the middle of the Second Age when the Four Royals were made into Powers.
Big Blackie's hoard of treasure is immense and hidden in many locations. Any dragon can dedicate treasure to Big Blackie using a short ritual that transfers ownership. Thus by revealing the location of one of these stashes of treasure Big Blackie can give her treasures to her followers even though her own location is unknown and apparently inaccessible.
Big Blackie is seldom worshipped by members of the intelligent races. Those who claim to do so are usually insane and their "religion" suspect as an imagined excuse for depraved actions. A few dark stories describe evil people who dedicated powerful enchanted items to Big Blackie in exchange for her aid. The exception are the Unseemly: since the Trooping Wars most Unseemly worship Big Blackie, and perhaps the Unseemly did before their change and downfall.
The Dragon Dominion seeks more wealth for its hoards, but its dragons do cooperate to ensure that all young dragons in the Dominion have a large enough hoard to provide an acceptable minimum of intelligence and power. Sometimes Dominion dragons work together to accomplish larger goals, such as sacking a city or hunting a Grim Animal. The Dominion hunts the Lamia's reptiles, which its dragons claim are false pretenders to dragon-ness.
Big Blackie is opposed by the Lamia. Big Blackie has no allies.
Big Blackie's champions are people given a specific task to accomplish to help the Dragon Dominion. If successful, they are rewarded with significant items from Big Blackie's own hoard.
Most stories about these evil people portray them as sneaky liars, enticing adventurer to follow their lead (after equipping themselves with expensive arms, armor, and echanted items) on a quest that is actually a trap, helping one or more dragons to ambush the adventurers and claim their belongings.
Big Blackie grants many gifts. The most common is a golden tongue: all Etiquette or Provoke skill attempts for persuasion, oration, or fast talking receive a +1 bonus.
Big Blackie may also give items from her hoard. Dragons may be given an elaborate lair. People who follow Big Blackie are sometimes given demi-dragon help, which makes many people leery of anyone with a demi-dragon pet.
Thankfully, organizations led by Big Blackie probably exist only in rumor. In Arlinac Town most such rumors whisper of an evil cult named Freedom that is trying to help the Dragon Dominion free Big Blackie.
Big Blackie's monsters are the remaining dragons. These large, thick-skinned lizards can breathe fire, steam, frost, gas, or flower scent. Dragons are initially slow and ponderous, only attacking half as fast as most creatures.
Dragons do not age normally, but gain power from hoarding treasure:
Contrary to many children's stories, intelligent dragons do not simply push their treasure into a pile to sleep upon. Instead, they are careful to hide their treasure effectively and keep useful enchanted items accessible.
Dragons, when awake, are intuitively aware of the contents of their hoarded treasure and the location of each item. However, an item stolen is no longer owned by the dragon, who immediately loses the knowledge of its nature and location. Therefore an alert dragon can notice much about what looters at its hoard are doing, but a sleeping dragon is only able to realize upon waking that items are missing. (If the missing items were especially valued, the waking dragon would quickly deduce which they are.)
Many unintelligent dragons are immune to Therianthropy. This could be due to hoarded armor, but stories also say this most unintelligent dragons are actually Therion Snags who have been in the form of a dragon for so long that their own personality and intelligence has faded away and been replaced by a dragon's.
A Therion using a dragon's shape retains that shape (including whether it has wings, its speed, and its resistances) irregardless of how the dragon's hoard subsequently changes. Draconic breath and hypnotization are not copied with therianthropy.
Many intelligent dragons enjoy forcing villages and towns to give up young maidens. No one knows what happens to these girls. Most people assume that the dragons eat them, since dragons eat almost any animal, and many stories describe dragons eating the warriors they defeat in combat.
Big Blackie creates perhaps the most traditional of dungeons: large, sprawling cave-lair homes for her most faithful and active members of the Dragon Dominion. These lairs are much larger and more elaborately guarded than typical dragon lairs.
Most are in remote and dangerous areas, such as mountain peaks or the middle of the Ognost Frontier, with false trails leading potential dragon-slayers on wild goose chances through these dangers. These lairs also have traps, creatures, and other hazards not normally found in dragon lairs. The resident dragon has multiple sleeping-rooms to prevent trespassers from knowing where the dragon, if asleep, would be sleeping. Secret passages hide the hoard, and hidden escape routes allow a besieged dragon to flee and get help from other Dominion dragons (legends warn of "successful" treasure-hunters being killed during the return trip across that remote area as multiple dragons swoop down from the sky).
Additionally, Big Blackie donates much gold to the dragons for whom she makes these lairs, often attracting treasure-seekers despite the enhanced peril: thus Big Blackie's apparent generosity actually leads to the Dominion collecting more new treasure, from the captured gear of slain treasure-seekers.
Big Blackie is in some sense a tribute to the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons I played as a child, in which dragons were the ultimate opponents, representing both the greatest danger and the largest treasure.
The nifty collection of qualities of a worthy dragon lair is mostly taken from this discussion at You Met in a Tavern.
How is Big Blackie involved in adventures? An adventure might require the PC to oppose on of Big Blackie's champions or a member of Freedom. The PC or a friend of the PC could have a demi-dragon pet, and struggle with the prejudice directed against people with demi-dragon pets. A PC might be hired as a scout, to locate and explore a dragon's lair: the PC should avoid meeting the dragon and instead create maps and strategies for a larger group to use.
Picks and hammers make a crashing profound
Far--below the wind's calls, below our dear halls.
Mine for the ores who joy we spread 'round
Far--in our cavern home, to Dwoergs dwell alone.
Ours be the toil of those builders who dream,
Our ancestors' tools and sharp blades ever gleam.
Glory to delving, dark earth will astound
Far--the shine of each vein, the fruit of each seam.
Far--the shine of each vein, the fruit of each seam.
- Dweorg work song
Speleoth is the embodiment of the joys and thrills of exploration, especially exploration that is not searching for anything in particular but only follows curiosity. He is associated with caves and caverns for in those places every passage, formation, and gem is unique and potentially beautiful.
Speleoth was a Badger during the First Age, who led many animals underground searching for new nourishment after the destruction of the Six Splendid Trees. During the Second Age, he was changed into a Power to be one of the four animalfolk kings, ruling over the Badgers. He is also worshipped by most Dweorgs and Kobalts, and many Bergtrolls.
Speleoth now only visibly appears as a huge grin, the universal grin of joyful discovery. He watches over all who live in caverns, caves, or tunnels (except for the Unseemly, who favor Big Blackie). Racial tensions and even hatred during warfare is dulled between these digging races because they remember their shared values and their shared devotion to Speleoth. He also aids miners. However, Speleoth's spontaneous and disorganized perception of the world often makes his aid difficult to apply.
Speleoth is worshipped in "temples" that are large rooms and caverns in the underground dwellings of his followers. The Dweorgs are especially fond of building rooms dedicated to him: these are often the first rooms completed in a new excavation. Dweorg temples usually have rows of pews facing an altar and/or dais at the front of the room. Kobalt temples normally have circular floor plans and are focused around a central pit for ecstatic dancing.
Speleoth has no allies among the Powers. His main rival is Frosty Kostkey. Sometimes he also has conflicts with Yarnspinner when the latter's stories involve retrieving items hidden in underground caverns or lost in abandoned underground settlements. Speleoth claims authority over all the caverns in Arlinac Mountain, although other Powers contest this claim.
Speleoth has one champion at a time, someone chosen to defend a cave from invaders (usually the minions of Frosty Kostkey). The person Speleoth appoints as his champion is able to walk through earth and does not need to sleep.
Speleoth gives his devout followers alertness: all Perception skill attempts to avoid surprise receive a +1 bonus.
Speleoth also gives some of his most devoted worshippers a dungeon of their own to explore. Some underground ruins are remnants of these dungeons that have already been explored and looted.
Speleoth aids the Cave Breeders, an eccentric group of his worshippers that attempts to breed and cross-breed troglobites, troglophiles, and trogloxenes (centipedes, millipedes, bats, beetles, flies, spiders, crickets, salamanders, rats, swifts, mites, snails, bears, foxes, raccoons, wild cats, fish, snakes, and frogs) to create new and exciting monsters.
Speleoth creates the Gembacks, monsters with an organic gem protruding from their spine.
Gembacks always combine the anatomy of two or more normal animals, most often cave-dwelling animals. Although Speleoth delights most in creating new types of Gembacks that have never yet been encountered, he also has some favorites: centipedes with bat wings, bears with beetle carapice over their torsos, rats with spider spinnerets, and raccoons with a thick snake's neck and head. Most Gembacks have only normal intelligence and size for their kind of animal, but some are especially monstrous and/or clever.
Although most Gembacks live in Speleoth's dungeons, they are also commonly encountered elsewhere. The examples of these most prominent in stories are the Griffins and Pegasi that Speleoth sends as his eyes and ears to observe important events.
Each Gemback has a random power. The creature might be able to turn invisible, levitate slowly through the air, breathe fire, move twice as fast for a short time, communicate telepathically, or do anything else. All Gemback powers affect the monster itself, giving it some supernatural ability. If the creature is killed, its gem may be removed and powdered to make an alchemy ingredient. This powder is required for any alchemy recipe that strongly bestows that same effect. (Alchemists may have developed an herbal recipe that weakly duplicates the effect, but herbs are never as potent as powdered Gemback gems.)
All Gemback gems are indistinguishable, and the monster's appearance has no reliable correspondence to its gem ability. Therefore a gem's use would not be known unless the creature was observed using its ability. Alchemy shops sometimes sell unidentified Gemback powders greatly discounted, since attempting to use them is probably a waste of time and other ingredients. Purchasing gems or powder from a stranger is similarly risky, since the buyer has no guarantee that the seller really knows what he or she is selling.
Legends claim that blades coated with the mythical potion alkahest are extra damaging to Gembacks.
Speleoth creates many dungeons, for he delights in constructing for his cave-exploring followers new challenges with new rewards. Perhaps he also has a primary dungeon greater and older than any other, but if so it is only known in fables.
Speleoth's dungeons often lack a dramatic concluding encounter and seldom contain any powerful items, for exploration should be its own reward.
Speleoth is another Power not based upon any traditional creatures from myth or legend. However, a being that oversees cave-like dungeons is simply too useful to not include in the religion of a fantasy RPG!
The word "speleology" means the scientific study of caves and the cave environment. I could not think of a suitable name for this Power based on the word "caving", and the word "spelunker" has acquired negative connotations.
Speleoth's song is a modification of the Pomona College song Torchbearers.
Yes, Kobalts worship with mosh pits.
Recall that Yarnspinner's Witches can potentially do almost anything to other creatures. In contrast, Gembacks can potentially do almost anything that affects themselves.
That advanced alchemy requires Gemback gems is significant to game balance: a PC who creates or purchases potions must devote significant financial resources to becoming thus prepared for the next part of his or her adventuring. Note that Gemback gem powder does not degenerate over time, and can be safely stored indefinitely without any loss of potency (unlike finished potions).
Alkahest is indeed a mythical universal solvent, although the "real" version would have more uses than fighting certain kinds of monsters.
How is Speleoth involved in adventures? His dungeons inherently have a goal or purpose, can be of any size and complexity, and can be be found underground nearly anywhere the GM desires: they are useful locations for adventures! Also, the PC could temporarily be one of Speleoth's champions, tasked with defending a cavern.
Kitsunay, Kitsunay, whom will you hold?
Your heart ever warm, your days ever old.
You may bring him joy, but he'll bring you grief,
Illusions and fires give comfort so brief.
- Therion nursery rhyme
Kitsunay is the oldest of Foxes. She has nine tails. She can change her form to appear as any humanoid. Her touch gives refreshment. She values beauty in contentment, health in relaxation, refreshment in serenity, and the virtue in feeling ready to care for others.
Kitsunay was a Fox during the First Age, who survived the destruction of the Six Splendid Trees. During the Second Age she was changed into a Power to be one of the four animalfolk kings, ruling over the Foxes. She is also worshipped by many Therions.
Many stories tell of Kitsunay's desire to shed her powers and live humbly as the wife of a Fox or Therion farmer. In these stories she is able to enjoy a few months or years of happy matrimony but eventually her identity is revealed by her idealism or immortality.
She is protective of grain fields and any poor farmer treated unfairly by wealthier neighbors. But she avoids fighting directly even on their behalf, instead creating illusions and throwing glowing orbs that contain fire or lightning.
On nights with a new moon Kitsunay becomes dangerously mischievous--never towards a family she has joined, but often frightening or harming others in that village or town. She later regrets this behavior. She has never explained her lack of self-control on these nights: bards hypothesize that it relates to a traumatic event in Kitsunay's long history.
Kitsunay is very fond of noodles. She dislikes dogs, which are able to smell her foxish nature and usually attack her.
Many rural merchants worship Kitsunay and raise their prices when a customer does not.
Many Foxes and Therions treat any woman they meet alone in farming land as Kitsunay: speaking very respectfully and offering her aid while remaining a safe distance away. Some Foxes and Therions build small shrines to Kitsunay in their homes, in which are fragrant candles and a steamy bowl of savory noodles. A large city may have a hospital staffed by her followers; most towns have a healing shrine dedicated to her with a staff of one or two healers.
Kitsunary has no real allies or enemies, except that she occasionally helps her followers fight the monsters of other Powers who are troubling their homes or fields.
Kitsunay's champions are people appointed to help restore peace and rest.
Most are chosen after a civic trauma such as fire, flood, or siege. They are granted the ability to heal minds of emotional injuries. A willing recipient can be freed of even deeply rooted bitterness, anger, denial, doubt, prejudice, false understandings, and other mental burdens.
Much more rarely, Kitsunay appoints champions to oppose the curse of necromobility in a certain place. When necromobility is caused by an emotional pain that the deceased suffered and cannot escape from through death, then Kitsunay's champions can use their ability to heal minds to remove the curse.
With her most devout worshippers Kitsunay shares the gift of refreshment: once each day these worshippers can touch someone else to erase all fatigue, hunger, and thirst.
In the past, many organizations have tried to serve or honor Kitsunay, but few last more than a handful of years. There are currently two in Arlinac Town, one she ignores and one she enjoys.
The first is a group of men who have romantic idealizations of Kitsunay, and have formed the Suitor's Club, in which they compete to be the most charming fellow, hoping to attract her attention. Perhaps Kitsunay has yet to take notice of them, or perhaps she has noticed them and is dilligently avoiding them.
The second is the Secret Tea Party, a group of children who have invented an elaborate tea drinking ceremony in honor of Kitsunay. These children claim Kitsunay herself has twice appeared and joined them in their play, but the parents do not believe them.
Kitsunay's monsters are all sorts of amazing plants. Some are mobile, able to walk on stubby root-like legs. Others are aggressive and attack with strong, grasping vines. Many have pollen, spores, or scent that mimic alchemic effects. Her plants often guard her temples, hospitals, healing shrines, and dungeons.
Kitsunay's "dungeons" are places of rest or refuge that only exist for short times. Many travelers tell stories in which they came across an empty waystop, tea house, shrine, park, or inn that vanished as soon as they left. When found by children, these ephemeral places are not empty but are occupied by a Fox-like woman who acts as their guide and host. A few, untrusted, stories describe children accidentally finding such a place not during travels but when exploring a home's dark cellar or armoire.
Sometimes Kitsunay's ephemeral buildings only provide rest and refuge after a visitor has passed some sort of test. This happens only to adults, and usually to people who have no habits of worshipping Kitsunay.
Usually Kisunay's ephemeral buildings provide no physical aid to those who visit. However, some bdo contain a special object that the visitor takes from the building (perhaps without realizing it).
Kitsunay is obviously based on a blend of the various Asian stories of kitsune fox-spirits.
Her nature prompts questions about the extent to which contentment and rest are achievable or virtuous in a setting with villains to fight and heroic deeds to be done.
Letting children visit a fantasy place by traveling through a wardrobe is an obvious reference to Narnia.
How is Kitsunay involved in adventures? A PC in a city might make use of Kitsunay's healing shrine in Arlinac Town if healing from a serious wound. The PC might be asked by Kitsunay to remove necromobility from a place.
Cute Pooka, tough Pooka, with nine eyes you see.
Kind Pooka, rough Pooka, please do not touch me.
Fearful Pooka, brave Pooka, who guards Fair-Be.
Silly Pooka, grave Pooka, misleads so we may see.
- Bergtroll playground rhyme
Pooka was a Squirrel during the First Age, who survived the destruction of the Six Splendid Trees. During the Second Age, he was changed into a Power to be one of the four animalfolk kings, ruling over the Squirrels. He is also worshipped by a few Pixies and Mer, although what this worship involves is unclear because Pooka has never taught what attitudes or actions he would consider worshipful. However, his aid is often requested with heartfelt prayers, and he is protective of forests and any forester treated unfairly by urban neighbors. He appreciates shiny coins but not other treasure; he keeps a hoard of coins that he does not enjoy himself but rather uses to protect people who live in the forest by helping them purchase land and use hired mercenaries to chase away robbers.
Pooka probably never changed his appearance since his existence as a Squirrel: he still looks like any Squirrel from the First Age. He is normally silent. When he does speak, his voice is deep and keen, changing to a vivid screech when angered.
Pooka can be cute and cuddly or frightening and dangerous. He is both compassionate and mischievous, well-meaning yet sometimes threatening. Although he remains deeply loyal to his causes and his own nature, many stories reveal a pattern of Pooka becoming increasingly flightly and distractible as the centuries go by.
Pooka is very fond of tea. He dislikes birds, which sometimes attack him.
Pooka does pranks and thefts that intend to teach a lesson or build character. He visits people whose physical or social isolation pevents them from growing and maturing through life's daily challenges, and with disguise or dreams disrupts fixed habits, disturbs tranquility, or undermimes security. As examples, he might take a noble used to the comforts of city life into the forest and abandon him, he might lead a spoiled child through the slums, he might trap a reclusive coward in a place with a predator he must fight alone, or he might put a proud merchant into circumstances requiring him to rely on the generosity of strangers.
Pooka is guardian of the realm of Fair-Be, a mystical world of health and joy. Few people and creatures are allowed to enter Fair-Be. None who enter ever return, for only Pooka can leave Fair-Be. Yet Pooka delivers enough messages and tokens from its inhabitants to prove the realm's existance and character.
Pooka has no enduring allies or enemies, although in his flightiness and moodiness he sometimes decides another Power is a temporary but urgent ally or enemy.
Pooka's champions are people entrusted with proclaiming judgment and woe to settlements where most inhabitants have become blinded by wealth, ambition, or desires. Understandably, they often get into trouble with the local authorities. To compensate, these champions cannot be harmed by normal weapons and Pooka is likely to directly intervene if their suffering becomes too extreme.
Those people most favored by Pooka are given the gift of unusual endurance. Hurt enhances rather than impedes them: when wounded or entering a state of shock they receive a +1 bonus to all skills for several minutes.
Most people believe Pooka is too scatterbrained to lead any organization. Nevertheless, near Arlinac Town a group known as the Jester-Rogues has recently begun protecting, surprising, and harassing travelers on the main road, claiming to be acting on Pooka's behalf.
Pooka loves animals, especially woodland animals. His monsters are the Fell Animals, larger and stranger versions of normal animals which Pooka uses to teach that excess can disrupt habits, tranquility, and security as effectively as lack.
Fell Animals can breed, but most are newly changed by Pooka. Usually Fell Animals appear in small numbers. Occasionally a large number of Fell Animals will roam together.
As a Fell Animal ages it grows and gains further exaggerations of its animal-ish nature and personality. Fell Animals progress through three developmental stages: Giant Animal, Shadow Animal, and Grim Animal. Besides acquiring increasingly exaggerated traits, the animal gains a visible aura and resistance to cold, heat, and therianthropy.
A newly Fell Animal is simply called a Giant Animal. It is much bigger and tougher than a normal animal of its kind, but not especially more aggressive or dangerous. For example, a Giant Rat is as large as a normal wolf, and a Giant Wolf is as large as a normal horse.
As a Giant Animal grows it becomes a Shadow Animal, which is even bigger and tougher. Because of its huge size it is resistant to ensnaring unless the trap is especially designed to catch such a huge target. Shadow Animals also radiate a visible aura (usually green or grey in color) and are resistant to therianthropy.
Furthermore, a Shadow Animal gains exaggerations of its innate animal abilities. Shadow Snakes are unnaturally able to detect heat and hypnotize. Shadow Worms and Moles can dig at incredible speed. Shadow Crows have a shriek that causes pain and panic. Shadow Centipedes have nearly impervious chitin.
Similarly, a Shadow Animal has its personality exaggerated. A predatory animal becomes especially vicious. A Shadow version of a pet dog becomes dangerous in its desire for attention. All Shadow Animals gain a little intelligence: all are at least as clever as rats.
The largest of Fell Animals are called Grim Animals. These are often even larger, but not always. More consistent is the completion of the animal's changes. Grim Animals are incredibly tough, most are quite clever, and nearly all have rocky/bony protrusions or additional horns that develop as their bones grow denser. Grim Animals are very resistant cold and heat. Their shadow aura is now also tangible and causes weakness in living creatures who are next to the Grim Animal. They are completely resistant to therianthropy.
The physical and behavioral changes a Grim Animal develops as it finishes evolving are related to the animal's normal personality, but otherwise unpredictable. In some cases the result is much less aggressive than when it was a Shadow Animal; well-known examples are Grim Horses, also known as Unicorns, which stand 40 hands tall (over 4 meters) yet are tamable and naturally peaceful around unarmed and non-aggressive intelligent females who feed them enough apples. In contrast a Grim Iguana (also called a Stegosaurus) is more aggressive than it was as a Shadow Animal, perhaps because it is larger and needs to eat more. Other Grim Animals are quite predatory but not towards the intelligent races: one famous incident involved a Grim Blue Anole that ate all of a Bergtroll Kingdom's chickens before it was finally killed.
Fell Animals of all kinds are valued by Unseemly, who put them to sleep with enchantment and use them as guards for treasure chambers.
Pooka loves ruins that are being reclaimed by nature. He often sends his Fell Animals to guard them, especially if the ruins contain any libraries or other records of lessons learned by the old inhabitatns. Pooka has also been known to claim abandoned buildings in cities and large towns.
Some of Pooka's ruins and abandoned buildings are turned into his dungeons. In these dungeons the Pooka places a prisoner: someone he has decided needs to learn a lesson. The prisoner is seldom in actual danger, but is often made fearful or uncomfortable. In some of these dungeons the prisoner is expected to manage his or her own escape; in other dungeons the prisoner is supposed to be rescued, so the Pooka tells others where the missing person can be found.
Pooka is built from the many versions of a Puck, Pooka, or Hobgoblin: the most active or the king among fair folk.
Fair-Be is an idealized heavenly place whose name is a word play on Faerie, the place fair folk live, of which naturally many versions also exist.
How is Pooka involved in adventures? He can be the source of small adventures for a new PC (for example, the PC might be asked to rescue a noble's child from the woods after Pooka kidnapped it or lured it away). The PC might also be appointed one of Pooka's champions, asked to rescue someone from one of Pooka's dungeons, or asked to deal with the Jester-Rogues.
Down from the peaks the river falls,
Crashing down high, stony walls.
In froth and roar to us it calls
As it starts its journey.
Swiftly it dives down under ground,
Tunnels of water slam and pound.
It fills the hill with damp and sound
Halfway along its journey.
To the ocean deep it flows,
Wide and deep and strong it goes.
We hear new songs and old echoes
As it completes its journey.
- Navigator song
Old Man River was a brave yet grumpy old Beaver during the First Age. During the destruction of the Six Splendid Trees he pleaded to the Divine Beings and the Arlin River, and then was killed fighting Big Blackie. During the Second Age he was returned to life, made a Power, and appointed as one of the four animalfolk kings, ruling over the Beavers. He is also worshipped by many Bergtrolls and most Unseemly.
Old Man River cares for and has authority over the Arlin River. All along the Arlin River the members of an organization named the Navigators follow his rules and receive his protection.
Usually Old Man River communicates by deeds, not words. He values plain speech and unambiguous deeds. He also desires his followers to adhere to a detailed moral code, but has seldom explains these rules. Over many years the members of the Navigators have attentively studied and codified these laws, and named them the Water-Way. The Water-Way includes prohibitions against commonly understood vices such as lying, unprovoked violence against people or their property, and gluttony. It also prohibits thefts of property and thefts of honor: insulting someone is a crime unless the person insulted admits the truth of the slur.
The most important rule in the Water-Way is to promptly confess any crimes; during the night, Old Man River might take away any of his worshippers who have committed an unconfessed crime. Most members of the Navigators are distrustful of non-Navigators because these outsiders may have unconfessed crimes.
Normally Old Man River may only reward or punish people who have covenanted with him and vowed to follow his rules (such as the Navigators). However, Old Man River may act (and is often blamed) when people disappear after committing a crime against the Arlin River, such as badly overfishing or polluting it.
Those who worship Old Man River prefer to build a home that touches the Arlin River. Whether the home is a boat, house, or even temporary encampment these homes always include a shrine to Old Man River on a small dock. (Usually this is a "ritual dock" too small for actual boat use.)
Old Man River once represented the nobility inherent in both barbarism and lawfulness. However, in recent years he has degenerated, exchanging his admirable legality for heartless legalism. Old Man River is now fixated on unreasonable expectations of moral purity; he has not changed the Water-Way, but now takes more pleasure in manipulating circumstances to show people that they cannot live up to his standards than in celebrating his followers' obedience. This decay has caused extreme distress to his followers and conflicts among those governing the Navigators.
Old Man River is the only Power to decree certain calendar days are holy days. These days are both appointments for worship and instructions for optimal fishing, agriculture, and animal husbandry along the Arlin River. Even people who do not follow Old Man River appreciate his calendar's guidance. For example, the Day of Flax Planting is a day when all farmers know to plant their flax, although only Old Man River's followers congregate to pray for a good harvest. Originally each holy day featured a few ritual things to do. Over time, Old Man River has added to each day a host of prohibitions that now overshadow the positive requirements.
Long ago Old Man River was firmly allied with the Lamia against Big Blackie. That alliance has not been tested for centuries and is probably broken: Big Blackie has remained imprisoned; the Lamia has few dealings with the Arlin River; Old Man River has changed for the worse, distancing himself from the other Powers.
Old Man River's champions are Beaver-like humanoids named Berkles. Scholars debate whether the Berkles are an ancient Beaver-ish lineage and culture secretly preserved by Old Man River, or some of Old Man River's Beaver followers who have been changed as a reward or punishment.
Berkles are sturdy warriors who are skilled in Machinery and wear animal pelts instead of armor. Berkles will fight to defend the Arlin River and its plants or animals. They sometimes fight outsiders for no reason at all. Berkles believe that if they kill enough enemies they will be granted a flying mount and allowed to join what their legends describe as the Wild Hunt. When not fighting they enjoy making loud music in drum circles, usually singing about how today would be better if someone foolishly attacked them.
Berkles make their shields from a dark, hard wood named hariy. When in battle, the Berkles light the edges of these shields on fire: inhaling the smoke and biting the charred edges causes them to enter a trance of strength and fury. Berkles decorate their bodies by shaving their fur in odd patterns and by acquiring meaningless tattoos and piercings in any part of the body (as opposed to Therions, who use specific tattoos to identify clan and family, and use piercings only to wear earrings and nose rings).
Old Man River gives his worshippers energy in destruction and barbaric fury during combat: they immediately receive a free attack each time they defeat a foe in combat.
To his most devout worshippers he also grants the ability to walk safely on the surface of the Arlin River.
Besides the Navigators, there is rumor of a second organization of Old Man River's worshippers, named The Paddle, which helps enforce the punishments earned by violations of the Water-Way.
The most famous (and most common) of Old Man River's monsters are the Arzens: small, frail humanoids that travel in groups.
Arzens are intelligent and all members of their group will have matching armor and weapons as well as other equipment appropriate to their task. Arzens use teamwork and group member will act in roles such as scouts, messengers, raiders, and captains.
Historically, Arzens resembled bipedal frogs half the height of a Therion that had bumpy green skin and regenerated incredibly quickly from wounds. However, after Kobalts armies attacked Arlinac Mountain sixty years ago, Old Man River changed the Arzens so they resemble degenerate Kobalts.
Modern Arzens still are half the height of a Therion, with bumpy green skin, and incredible regeneration. However, now they have leathery skin, pointy ears, and long, sharp teeth. Their frog-like faces have a hint of Kobalt bone structure. Furthermore, as an additional insult to Kobalts, each family of Arzens shares an animal feature. Common examples are the Swine-Headed, Mouse-Faced, Snake-Mouthed, and Ram-Footed. The size of Arzens varies: some are scaled so that their humanoid parts are Kobalt size, others are scaled so that their animal parts are of normal size. None are shapechangers, although some behave like bears and use both bipedal posture (for standing and tool use) and quadrapedal posture (for running).
All Arzens have an extreme and mutual animosity with the animal whose feature they bear. The Arzen and animals of that type can smell each other with unusual sensitivity, and normally attack each other on sight.
Arzens often hunt with trained animals (usually dogs or wolves, but sometimes large lizards or cats). Perhaps the Arzen's own pack-like nature aids in working with these animals? When Arzen lairs are found near the Arlin River they are always guarded by the Arzen's trained animals.
Arzens do take captives, but captives are never ransomed or released. What happens to prisoners is a mystery that even those prisoners that have been rescued cannot answer. Arzens never bother to frighten prisoners with foreboding threats of their upcoming fate, and whatever that fate might be was scheduled to happen to all of the prisoners at the same time, so either all prisoners were rescued or all perished. Most people believe that either the Arzens eat their prisoners, or that the Arzens feed their prisoners to their trained animals.
An Arzen is so frail that receiving one or two solid hits during combat always defeats it. (Either all Arzens in the group are one-hit creatures, or all in the group are two-hit creatures.) Unfortunately for those trying to fight Arzens, this vulnerability is difficult to explot because Arzens never travel alone and fight with wily group tactics.
In recent years, Old Man River has created a second type of monster: the Wights. These strange humanoids that look like normal people and cause problems.
When a Wight is first encountered it will look like a normal person from any of the intelligent races. It will appear to be in need of help, or useful as a potential ally. It will initially be genuinely helpful to whomever it meets. However, as time goes on it will become more and more demanding. As soon as any demand is not met, the Wight reverts to its true appearance. It takes back any remaining sources of aid it has bestowed to its former companions, fighting to reclaim them if resisted. Then it flees and disappears forever.
In its true form a Wight looks like old, tall, thin man with a wizened face, two small bat-like wings, and two thin tails. Despite its apparent physical frailty it possesses great strength and fortitude. Wights seldom have weapons, for in their true form their fingernails are sharp and very poisonous. Wights especially enjoy appearing to priests and others who are devout, especially while interrupting religious observances or rituals.
Old Man River does not create traditional dungeons that are new places apart from normal life. Instead he creates problems and puzzles in villages, towns, and cities.
Old Man River sometimes inscribes a Rune on a wall or piece of furniture. A Rune is usually hidden: on a dark basement wall, up in an attic, on the underside of a table, etc. Many old Runes probably exist in Arlinac Town, never found even years after their intended work was complete.
Runes disrupt normal life by distorting people (and sometimes places) near where they are inscribed. Runes bring out the worst in people who dwell near them by influencing thoughts and emotions to inflame old grudges, rekindle old fueds, heighten worries and mistrust, and/or worsen interpersonal misunderstandings and miscommunication. A few Runes also effect places: some distort the laws of nature in the room or building or create a frightening, sneaky, and unique monster that uses the room as its lair.
Old Man River uses his Runes in ways he perceives as aiding justice. For example, he might punish a man who mistreats a servant by inscribing a Rune that exaggerates that man's cruelty until it affects his family and colleagues. Most Runes do indeed achieve the justice Old Man River desires, but also cause extensive tangential suffering.
The only way to remove a Rune is using the solvent azoth, an expensive potion that very skilled alchemists can create. The Rune will vanish with the wall or furniture on which it was inscribed restored with no damage or lasting mark.
Old Man River takes his name from a famous song, but unlike most of the Creagadier setting is not otherwise based upon older fairy tales or myths.
The Navigator song is a modification of the prologue from the musical Into the Woods.
Old Man River's blend of barbarism and lawfulness allows exploration of the virtues of organization, civilization, and technology. His protectiveness for the Arlin River and its inhabitants allows exploring when group loyalty is virtuous and when it masks prejudice or greed.
Gaining a free attack after killing a foe is similar to an ability in other game systems commonly called "cleave". Its historic root is Dave Arneson's similar "Chop Til You Drop" rule.
Berkles are based upon beserkers and the city of Berkeley in California. The wood hariy pays tribute to the Harii warriors of Roman legend.
Arzens are named after the metal arsenic, just as Kobalts are named after cobalt. Arsenic is what made cobalt mining dangerous: because the primary ores of cobalt contain arsenic, smelting them creates dangerous arsenic oxide. By extension, Arzens represent what is poisonous about Kobalt society.
Arzens fill the otherwise missing role of hybrid-men in common folk tales. Therions have no half-animal state, whereas Arzens have no other option. The GM is encouraged to create Arzens based upon common figures of speech. Four example are above: the insults pig-headed (stubborn), rat-faced (sneaky hypocrite), snake-tongued (sweet-talking swindler), and goat-footed (sexual predator). This presents the NPC with a possibly misleading visual clue: will these Arzens behave according to the figure of speech they represent or not? Of course, other traditional fantasy hybrid-men such as Lizard-Men and Frog-Men are definitely options.
Arzens also poke fun at the traditional Advanced Dungeons & Dragons trolls, which are known for green, bumpy skin and rapid regeneration (but are tall and thin).
Arzens are one-hit or two-hit monsters. I first heard of two-hit monsters in a blog post by ChattyDM. One-hit monsters are (I think) an invention of the Fourth Edition Dungeon Master's Guide, which names them "Minions". Two hit monsters are especially useful as a conflict encounter early in the adventure, for the GM can always have the surviving monsters flee just before the PC becomes dangerously low on defensive or healing resources, allowing an aftermath of grateful recovery plagued by unanswered questions.
Wights are based upon the wights of old legends, not the undead creatures of other role-playing games. Their true appearance is loosely based on rakshasas and melusines.
The solvent azoth is based upon the legendary azoth, one name for the material for which ancient alchemists strived.
Note that the situations created by one of Old Man River's Runes are in many ways the opposite of the adventures created by Yarnspinner in the Enchanted Forest. The setting is a normal location, in which normal behavior is distorted to change what is natural. The root of the conflict is hidden, the plot is a web of past and present events, stife happens when normal people to do bad things, and sometimes the bizarre or eerie intrudes inexplicably into normalcy. If the Rune creates an enchanted item it will be too corrupt, dangerous, or limited to be useful to the hero who finds it.
How is Old Man River involved in adventures? Holy days are always opportune times for adventures, as many people are busy with rites or celebration. Before the holy day the preparations might include challenging tasks, and during the holy day devout merchants may need hired help to guard their shops. Also, the PC can help untangle the problems caused by a Rune, or might even be directly targeted by one. The Navigators and The Paddle might also be involved in political intrigue or other kinds of adventure plots.
Biting Cold wants your despair.
Weep and moan for Winter Glare.
Abandon hope, for don't you know?
None escape from Kostkey's snow.
- hiker's chant
During the Third Age two types of animalfolk rebelled against the Four Royals. The first rebellion happened when many Foxes left Kitsunay's rule and traveled to the cold, northern mountains. There they found a new Power to serve. They named it Frosty Kostkey, and it made them the Arctic Foxes.
Frosty Kostkey is in many ways the opposite of Speleoth. His domain is above ground. He embodies the bleak despair of freezing cold, the morbid uniformity of a snowstorm, and the frantic search not for something new but merely for a means of survival. His common visible appearance is a huge pair of wicked fangs or eyes that hover in wind-blown snow: the fangs are nicknamed "Biting Cold", and the eyes "Winter Glare".
Frosty Kostkey is the most skilled of machinists. He builds mostly weapons for this army, but occasionally will build elaborately fierce contraptions.
Frosty Kostkey is not normally worshipped by any members of the intelligent races except for his Arctic Foxes. Certainly no one would admit to such depravity.
His temples create regions of Winter around them, in which his monsters and armies flourish. Some ruins are his destroyed temples, which no longer cause this effect.
The Frosty Kostkey has no allies. He is often opposed by Speleoth, and sometimes by Kitsunay when his minions invade her followers' homes or fields, or Pooka when Winter creatures attack forests or Fell Animals. Like many Powers, Frosty Kostkey is jealous of Arlinac Mountain and the town upon it, and desires to establish Winter under and upon the mountain.
Frosty Kostkey's champions are those (fortunately rare) machinists that have dedicated their lives to his service. They are taught much of Frosty Kostkey's expertise in this skill. Frosty Kostkey supernaturally changes many of their machines, enabling them to function unceasingly without maintenance.
Traditional children's stories about these champions often, for no apparent reason, feature male Pixies as the villains. Scholars debate why young minds so enjoy hearing about short, malicious, green-clad workers busy building deadly machinery in hidden laboratories in snowy lands.
The main gift Frosty Kostkey gives his worshippers is the ability to construct his temples.
His most devout followers can also walk across snow and ice without sinking or slipping, are immune to cold and snow, and receive a +2 bonus for using Stealth in Winter areas.
Frosty Kostkey may also give physical gifts to his followers, most commonly a deadly machine but sometimes a steam-powered, flying sleigh.
Fortunately, no organizations serving Frosty Kostkey are known to exist. Sometimes tavern tales and campfire stories describe fictional ones, because most people have a great fear of Frosty Kostkey's worshippers and champions who, even working alone, can create his temples and regions of Winter and then lead a Winter army into battle. How much more terrifying would be an organized cult whose many members serve Frosty Kostkey under his methodical and detailed guidance!
The cult that appears most in these stories is named Frostbite. Its members infiltrate towns and cities to use rumor and terror to sow gloom and despair, attempting to distract the other Powers from Frosty Kostkey's champions who have secretly also arrived in that place and are busy preparing careful plans of conquest.
Frosty Kostkey creates all sorts of wicked and cold-related servants and soldiers. These Winter Creatures always appear in the zones of Winter around his temples.
Winter Creatures are large and intelligent versions of normal animals, including winter wolves, grumpy and growly white bears, ice drakes, cunning ermines, carnivorous deer, and ambushing porcupines.
Frosty Kostkey often organizes his monsters into armies and equips them with machinery before sending them out to feed and conquer. Tales tell of sturdy caribou with siege equipment strapped upon their back, silent lynxes with sonic devices, wily foxes with shrink rays, and waddling penguins wearing mind-control helmets.
Frosty Kostkey's dungeons are ice castles or fortresses that eventually form around his temples if the local spread of Winter is not countered. These fortifications are maze-like in layout and help Winter monsters guard the temple. Locating and demolishing the altar (or altars) in a temple stops the creation of a zone of Winter and will soon cause the ice castle or fortress to melt.
Frosty Kostkey is obviously a parody of Santa Claus, Jack Frost, and other Winter characters in Western stories. Frosty Kostkey is also based on Koschei the Deathless, a villain in Russian fairy tales with some ties to Winter through the name Crnobog.
Most stories of wolves or bears that prey upon people happen during the hungry winter months, making it natural to categorize "Winter" as a category of evil similar to undead or dragons.
Frosty Kostkey's two themes of winter and machinery allow exploration of how machinery can become bad when its uses are cold, impersonal, and monotonous.
Note that the machines constructed by Frosty Kostkey's champions might remain functional for centuries. This allows the GM to create locations populated by machines.
How is Frosty Kostkey involved in adventures? The PC might need to stop a temple of Frosty Kostkey from being built, or find a hidden, newly built temple to halt the spread of Winter; either task may involve fighting one of Frosty Kostkey's champions. Alternately, a PC might need to sabotage one of the potent mechanical items Frosty Kostkey has given one of his followers, or foil the newest scheme from Frostbite. Frosty Kostkey's dungeons can be of any size and shape, and are suitable locations for a powerful PC to raid. Frosty Kostkey is normally a force of evil, but his technological expertise might be required to bring down a mad scientist.
Fie! Fume! What do I hear?
A man who hurts what he should hold dear.
He beats his child and calls it love.
I'll take them both and drink their blood.
- Ogre nursery rhyme
Gnash is a being from another star, brought to the world during the Third Age to rule the Spiders, who alone among the animalfolk were not created until the Third Age. Hungry and predatory, the other animalfolk never trusted the Spiders. So the Spiders, because they were shunned and persecuted, pleaded for a fifth Royal to rule and help them. But no Spiders was fit to become a Royal, so the Creator brought Gnash to Creagadier and presented him to the Spiders. Gnash rallied the Spiders and taught them to live in cooperative packs that fed on those neighbors who abhorred them. "Cannibals!" cried the other animals. "Justice!" cried Gnash.
Today, in the Fourth Age, few animalfolk Spiders remain. Those still surviving have become so twisted that they are more like monsters than an intelligent race. Most of Gnash's worshippers are now Ogres. Ogres show their devotion to Gnash by sacrificing ruthless intelligent creatures (including other Ogres) in an attempt to please and empower Gnash.
Gnash is so rarely seen that stories and songs disagree about his appearance. Some claim he looks like an enormous spider. Others claim he has the upper body of an Ogre and a spider-like lower body. Other claim he has no true form but impersonates people as Ogres do. Some non-Ogres even believe Gnash is actually a fictitious creation of the oldest Grand Ogres, invented as part of their complex game to control Ogre society in which the winners feast upon the losers.
Gnash is worshipped at the altars that Ogres build for him. These altars are usually kept secret, hidden inside buildings or caves. Adventurers sometimes discover that a ruin is actually an Ogre old altar site whose owner has moved away or been killed.
Gnash's worshippers secretly distribute religious texts that explain how to worship Gnash. These texts promise both ecstasy and peace of mind to those who properly offer Gnash ruthlessness. Such texts are mostly pleasant proverbs, oddly interrupted by short stories featuring acts shockingly calllous and dreadfully brutal, or eerily malevolent.
Gnash has no use for alliances and holds no grudges. Other Powers may consider Gnash an enemy, but Gnash has no interest in the other Powers: he is aware of them but seldom considers them.
Gnash's champions are the Horrors that he sometimes creates from the spirits of deceased Grand Ogres. These shadowy, incorporeal beings possess people to and drive them to acts of corruption, debaseness, intrigue, and eventually sadistic madness. When a Horror's host dies, the Horror possesses someone else nearby. (Horrors are disposed of by killing their host when the host is isolated: the person is chained and taken to a barren and never-traveled location and either left to starve or killed with a slow-acting poison.)
As with many of Gnash's activities, the suffering and ruthlessness caused by Horrors extends far beyond what is directly caused by the few Horrors that actually exist. (There are very few Grand Ogres and only some become Horrors.) Just the concept of Horrors can enable evil even if no real Horror is present. As examples, a serial killer might be a madman who has falsely convinced himself that the motivation for his crimes is possession by a Horror, or an influential guild leader might be framed for a crime in such a way that people falsely suspect he or she is possessed by a Horror.
Usually a Horror must do its evil through the person it posseses. But Gnash has given Horrors a final, terrible gift: the ability to speak with and control Undead. Those Horrors who are able to gather Undead servants are especially dreadful and formidable. All Horrors long to eventually control an army of Undead with which they can rule a large region.
Gnash gives his worshippers the ability to construct and his altars. Often this allows them to create Undead.
Gnash also gives tomes of forbidden knowledge to his most fanatical servants. Reading these unlocks a strange and fantastic ability, but at great cost to health and sanity.
Ogres are powerful and feared, but at least they are solitary. Perhaps more dreadful are organizations who worship of Gnash as an evil cult. Although non-Ogres cultists cannot use semblancy, they can twist their other racial abilities to serve Gnash. Ironically, cults that worship Gnash can be the most racially diverse groups because pursuing destruction and vengeance unitles the normally cooperative races (Therions, Dweorgs, Pixies, and Bergtrolls) with Kobalt criminals exiled from ther Superfamily, Mer pirates eager to pillage, and the normally unwelcome Unseemly.
In Arlinac Town, the largest Gnash cult is named Up Link. Its members consider themselves a "higher link" on the food chain and ladder of city power, and seek to live their lives as did the ancient Spiders by preying upon those who live near them but are not like them.
Gnash creates the curse of necromobility: the Undead are his monsters. Necromobility can affect any creature that dies in certain circumstances, although only with intelligent humanoids does the curse fully develop.
The circumstances that cause necromobility are widely varied, but all lead back to Gnash. Known causes include being sacrificed on one of his altars, dying near a famous meteor in the Ognost Plains said to be from Gnash's star, or dying while praying to Gnash with an especially intense desire for vengeance or destruction. No one knows the cause of the many Undead in the Fortress atop Arlinac Mountain, nor if Gnash has plans involving the mountain or town.
An Undead is often especially vulnerable to something related to the source of their necromobility. For example, an Undead created at one of Gnash's altars might be vulnerable to a weapon made from the stones of that altar, to the cloth worn by the Ogre who did the sacrificing, or even proximity to the altar after it was ruined. A noble who prayed to Gnash to become an Undead as he was killed by a rival noble family might be vulnerable to the dagger the killer used, or seeing the coat of arms of the rival family, or hearing the voices of his children whose safety was foremost in his mind as he died.
As an Undead feeds to satisfy its specific needs its changes drastically, progressing from an initial stage in which it is a mindless creature animated by magic through developments of metabolism, strength, special abilities, and intelligence. Less advanced stages of Undead ignore each other; more advanced Undead can control lesser Undead. Undead can appear in any size group. Lesser Undead are nearly mindless, and are thus usually found near the source of their necromobility.
All Undead have glowing white eyes. Undead do not age. Whatever evil power animates them prevents natural decay. Lesser Undead do not heal, so these are often badly wounded or sometimes even skeletal. Undead animals cannot be affected by therianthropy. An Undead who was once a member of the intelligent races can still be the target of semblancy (an Ogre can to impersonate one).
Among animals and most other creatures the stages of necromobility are Zombie, Ghoul, and Vampire. However, among former members of the intelligent races a final stage can happen: Lich.
A newly created Undead is a Zombie. Zombies are not intelligent. The power that animates them is primitive and works sloppily: they move slowly and jerkily, are almost mute (able only to groan and wheeze). Zombies are vulnerable to cold, fire, and light. They are easily frozen, unusually flammable, and shun sunlight. Hacking a Zombie into small pieces makes it no longer a threat, effectively destroying it since it does not heal.
The only desire a Zombie has is to eat the brain of living or recently killed creature. If it does this it becomes a Ghoul. Zombies are supernaturally aware of nearby living brains. A Zombie that is not following the orders of a more advanced Undead will be idle unless it notices a brain to pursue. Zombies cannot sense brains through walls or glass-paned windows.
Zombies are unable to use any tool requiring more coordination than a club or thrown rock, and even with these they are not very accurate. Even though they are individually not skilled at combat they can still be dangerous when in groups. They have no sense of self-preservation and attack relentlessly without tactics or defensive actions. A group of Zombies will lack teamwork, and if there is enough room an adventurer can often lead the group so it pursues single-file.
After eating a brain, the Zombie becomes a Ghoul. Ghouls seeks more flesh. But Ghouls do not mind long-dead flesh, and often find graveyards where they can satisfy their craving. Ghouls remain vulnerable to fire and light, but are no longer especially vulnerable to cold. A slain Ghoul that is not burned becomes dry and brittle over the next few days and eventually crumbles.
Ghouls stay in groups if possible, aware of their slow and weak state. They are no longer mindless, but their intelligence is blunted by being very slow to make any decision. Ghouls gain coordination as they feed, until they only occasionally betray the jerky and staggered movements to which they were once limited. They also begin to regain a metabolism, and can slowly heal.
Ghouls lose all their hair and many carry disease. Ghouls sweat and have saliva: their sweat is poisonous and accumulates under their fingernails, their saliva causes temporary paralysis. When a group of Ghouls attacks, each Ghoul will have a large rock and most will have a club or other one-handed weapon. The rocks are thrown first, if possible from an ambush. Then the Ghouls scratch or bite unarmored prey, or strike at armored prey with their weapons. Wounded Ghouls retreat to allow others to take their place.
A Ghoul that has become satiated with flesh becomes a Vampire. Now it wants to drink blood from living creatures. Vampires have developed a fully functional metabolism. They heal normally and have regrown a little of their hair. They no longer have poisonous sweat or paralyzing saliva, but develop a strangely disorienting breath: those they breathe upon become dizzy and sleepy, usually succumbing to a brief, hallucinogenic stupor. Vampires remain vulnerable to light, but are no longer especially vulnerable to cold or fire. In contrast, they radiate a slight aura of cold. Since they are now "alive" because of their metabolism instead of the source of their necromobility they can be reliably destroyed with weapons (even arrows, whose perforations do very little to Zombies or Ghouls). A slain Vampire quickly turns to powder in only a few moments.
Vampires have regained the coordination and agility they had before death, and may even be extra quick and dextrous. They can masquerade as a normal person if they wear thick clothes to hide their aura of cold and avoid social situations that would reveal their disorienting breath. If they were a member of the intelligent races they are cunning and predatory, use weapons and tools, and often plan ambushes. They will flee combat if they loose their initial advantage. Vampires develop a keen ability to track living prey, and have an excellent sense of smell. Vampires may travel in groups, but often prefer to travel alone or in pairs to better rely on stealth. They often set traps, realize that even a shoddy trap can distract someone long enough to facilitate an ambush.
A Vampire who was once a member of the intelligent races can become a Lich by drinking enough fresh blood. A Lich is an ironic Undead, for it has lost its old life but has developed new hopes and dreams. Vigorous in metabolism, it now wants to blend into society to rule or accomplish other objectives. Liches are no longer especially vulnerable to fire, cold, or light. They radiate cold and light, yet can lessen this affect to an almost non-existent amount to allow themselves to better pass unnoticed among the intelligent races.
Some Liches hate their Undead existence, but most view necromobility as a slowly-realized benefit they enjoy and celebrate in twisted ways. If a Lich has a weakness it is in its cruelty: most Liches that are discovered are identified because there are needlessly and inexplicably sadistic and cruel. Killing a Lich is difficult because they heal quickly from most wounds, poisons, disease, and any other damage; the only sure way to kill them is beheading, which causes their eyes to briefly flare brightly with light.
Liches are keenly intelligent and strong-willed. They completely regained their original appearance, including losing the Vampire's disorienting breath and regrowing their hair, except that in darkness their eyes can still be seen to glow slightly white. Since they never age, the can invest their years becoming expert in many skills and talents. Many regain the use of their racial ability, and use it in creative ways. A few stories tell of a Lich able to mentally command animals (most often rats but in one story beetles) but these accounts, although frightening and memorable, are unreliable.
Gnash has many dungeons shaped like enormous mansions, which if unoccupied can appear or vanish like a mirage. Within are huge rooms decorated with shining artwork and dark rooms furnished with grim instruments of terror and pain. The only books in Gnash's mansions are cookbooks for which reading even a single page causes irreparable madness.
Most of Gnash's dungeon-mansions are a source of necromobility. Adventurers are often hired to explore these dungeons, to find and destroy whatever inside is causing creatures to become Undead.
Gnash is based upon the Great Old Ones of the Lovecraft Mythos: an evil creature from outer space who thrives on devouring and destruction.
Gnash differs from the Great Old Ones because he prefers experiencing that devouring and destruction second-hand, by enticing normal people to "accumulate" deeds of ruthlessness before metaphorically consuming them. Three similarities remain: knowledge relating to Gnash can be found in obscure and foreboding arcane books, pursuit of such knowledge causes depression and insanity as the reader learns that in strength and intelligence the eight intelligent races are insignificant on the cosmic scale, and adventure plots may still center around a fanatic Gnash-cult that is planning an evil and maddening ritual.
Gnash allows philosophical musing on the "otherness" of ruthlessness and harmful consumption: people's inclinations towards actions their own consciences know are overly merciless, self-interested, or gluttonous can sometimes resemble an external influence rather than an internal desire.
Gnash's nursery rhyme ponders Fee-fi-fo-fum. Do the "Fie! Fume" belong to the villainous father or the speaker? This version is perhaps less gruesome than what Jack's giant chants, but irrationally offends more by its blatant unfairness (Jack's giant would also have eaten both father and daughter).
How is Gnash involved in adventures? His followers are often fanatic plotters of evil. The scheme of a Grand Ogre might need countering before the Grand Ogre earns becoming a Horror after his death: the hero's work is to both prevent a crime and limit that Ogre's evils to his mortal days. One of Gnash's dungeons might need "completing" to destroy a source of Undead. As a last resort, Gnash might be petitioned to help overthrow a ruthless tyrant.
Slither, hiss, trouble, and woe:
Where the Lamia reaches, none else will go.
If bitterness has drained your cup to the dregs,
The Lamia will refill it, in exchange for your legs.
- Kobalt rhyme
Long ago the Lamia was a normal snake. She was present when the Six Splended Trees were destroyed by Big Blackie. During the Second Age she was the first creature to feel repentant for doing wickedness. The Creator offered to make her a Power after she died. During her life she neither accepted nor refused this offer, and for centuries after her death she was gone. But she reappeared as a Power, with a new form and authority, after a few of the Foxes that had left Kitsunay to follow Frosty Kostkey repented and tried to return to their homes, but were not welcomed back. Now the Lamia cares for people of any intelligent race who, in repentance, seek to turn from violent to virtuous lives.
The Lamia appears as a very beautiful woman. She may turn her lower body into that of a snake. She watches over the Serpentine Swamp, a long east-west region of swamp, marsh, and wetland forest that extends from the Broad Plans to the west of Arlinac Mountain all the way to the western edge of the continent.
The Lamia's worshippers build her temples to guard her relics. Most relics are one of her scales, but some are pieces of her scintillating shed snake-skin.
To her surprise, the Lamia's love of twilight and moonlight have endeared her to many young lovers. She is unsure how to respond, except for encouraging those doing courtship and marriage to leave behind their bad habits as they try to forge a new identity together. People who are outcasts also often worship the Lamia in hope that their lives are in transition.
The Lamia hates Big Blackie. The Lamia is bothered by Gnash, who promotes violence among the unrepentant, but she has trouble opposing Gnash's secretive followers. Long ago the Lamia was allied with Old Man River, but Old Man River is now distanced from other Powers.
The Lamia appoints females as her champions, and those appointed need not be her worshippers. The Lamia's champions usually have the task of fighting a dragon, but may also be assigned other quests involving minimizing civic unrest or violence.
Her champions are given an intelligent reptile as a companion. They are also granted incredible ability in archery: nearly all Shoot skill attempts for bow use against stationary targets will succeed.
The Lamia gives an odd gift to her worshippers: they are immune to poisons when their eyes are closed and covered.
The Lamia occasionally gives her followers enchanted items that help communicate with or control serpents. She also gives small statues of herself called nagarath-women that absorb poison if touched to a poisoned wound.
The only group demonstrably sponsored by the Lamia is The Hiss. Those of her worshippers who have lived violent lives but intensely desire to increase in virtue are changed by the Lamia so that from the waist down have a snake's tail. Becoming one of the Hiss is part of how the Lamia helps people who have lived violent lives but are intensely repentant to work together to increase in virtue.
The Hiss form societies based upon five cardinal virtues: honesty, loyalty, charity, integrity, and humility. Members advance through five stages as the cardinal virtues are mastered. All newly created Hiss have black tails and are selfish but will always keep their word. Those who have mastered loyalty are no longer selfish when pursuing their community duties and their tail color changes to deep red. Those who mature further develop charity and will sometimes give beyond what duty requires; these have orange tails. Those who develop integrity are generous and kind in all situations and have yellow tails. The most mature, the elders among The Hiss, have mastered humility and always looks to others instead of themselves; these have green tails. The changes in tail coloration are gradual as spots, stripes, or speckles of the next color slowly appear and become more dominant.
Among The Hiss many stories attest that those who obtain humility are approached by the Llamia, who offers to restore them to their old bodies. But the offer is always refused because the elders prefer to remain in The Hiss society to help others follow the path of virtues.
A few legends claim that The Hiss have the ability to put their virtues in physical form. One of The Hiss who has developed loyalty, charity, or integrity can enter a trance and shed its snake skin. This causes the loss of that highest-obtained virtue; the individual immediately beings acting less mature. However, if the shed skin is eaten by another of The Hiss who is ready to obtain the crystallized virtue then the eater will effortlessly gain that virtue.
Societies of The Hiss exhibit a beautiful yet strange culture and craftsmanship. Members of The Hiss retain their memories and intelligence, but also aquire snake-like temperament and habits. They initially only cooperate with other Hiss whom they know. They are fond of eating eggs and freshly hunted game animals. As hunters they become skilled at archery and the use of poisons, but they prefer to flee from melee combat. Many of the Hiss keep small snakes as friends: more than pets, for the Hiss can speak with all snakes and many other reptiles.
The Hiss are supernaturally gifted at languages, and can learn an unfamiliar language in only a few hours. They are also able to mimic any voice they have heard, as well as sounds from nature.
The Lamia rules over the animals of the Serpentine Swamp and the large sea creatures that live where the Serpentine Swamp and ocean meet. Many of these Swamp Monsters are granted exceptional size and intelligence, and sometimes other special abilities. (The Dragons claim that the Lamia is envious that Big Blackie has powerful children and in mimcry is trying to create powerful reptiles of her own. The Lamia disagrees, saying that Dragons are brutal, barbarous, and not worth emulating.) However, the Swamp Monsters seldom leave the Serpentine Swamp, and travelers avoid it, so accurate information these creatures is rare. All stories agree that the the Lamia cares equally for her gigantic and diminuative subjects.
The Lamia also uses a strange race of servants, who travel outside the Serpentine Swamp to gather information. These are the Troggles: stout, winged humanoids made of the kinds of rocks or woods found in the Serpentine Swamp. All Troggles can fly nimbly and speak with reptiles and Swamp Monsters (Troggles sometimes organize reptiles or lead them in combat).
Troggles neither eat nor sleep, and look down upon "lesser" humanoids burdened by these needs and unable to fly. All Troggles also grow stronger and tougher under a certain sensory condition (in the dark, when making noise, when stinky, while eating, when very hot or very cold, etc.)
Troggles actively serving the Lamia usually have weapons and armor, to help them on their assignments.
Troggles have two great loves which can temporarily distract them from their assignments: eating turnips, and stealing any item they see someone else enjoying to try playing with it themselves. If pursued, a Troggle thief can usually be convinced to peacefully return the stolen item.
Troggles are freed from the Lamia's service after completing their assigned duties, but do not live long. Most build homes, returning to the Serpentine Swamp or moving to another wetland location.
The Lamia's dungeons are the famous and feared Grayscale Adventures. These adventures begin with someone waking up into a strange world without color. Only the adventurer still has color, although no one else notices or can perceive this difference. The adventurer's bedroom is otherwise unchanged, but outside that room the town or city is a distorted place of dream-like views, situations, betrayals, and technology. This "Grayscale World" is a maze of streets and buildings marked by stark contrasts: darkness and light; heroism and evil; urban decadence and barbaric violence; blunt, harsh men and deceptive, mesmerizing women; someone with amnesia and someone who knows too much.
To escape from the Grayscale World the adventurer must defeat a villain who is motivated by greed, jealousy, or revenge to acquire or destroy a fanciful technological device or resource. The villain will be the only other person with color, and the only person exhibiting great intensity, animation, and drive in a setting otherwise saturated with ambivalence: apathetic authority figures, ignored morals and honor, uncaring fate, and depressed people surrendered to depressing circumstances. Key clues about the villain's plans or personal weakness can be found by asking the right questions in places intended for relaxation that instead have tense atmospheres ready to erupt into violence--usually these clues can be found in taverns, lounges, theatres, or gambling dens. While searching for these clues the adventurer should try to avoid fighting with seedy thugs or powerful crime lords, but the end of the adventure will feature an inevitable and destructive confrontation in an building of industrial construction--often a factory, cart repair yard, or power plant.
What happens after a Grayscale Adventure varies, except that the adventurer always returns to normal life with greater knowledge about avoiding unnecessary violence, less regret about necessary violence, and more skill in both differentiating and doing these.
In very rare circumstances, the person subjected to a Grayscale Adventure brings someone from the colorless world back with him or her to the normal world. This "rescued" person is often initially grateful for being elevated from a temporary and imaginary creation of the Lamia's to a "real" person. However, these "Moorlost" never adapt to the world of color: they remain colorless, apathetic, and depressed. Most soon degenerate into lethargy or reckless behaviors.
The Lamia is loosely based on a Greek myth, but without the theme of child-eating that is central to that myth, and without the evil sorcery that has since become almost synonymous with Lamiae. This Lamia is also free from the gluttony, stupidity, and cannibalism associated with the Lamiae of modern Greek folk tradition.
This traditional figure has been changed into a heroine to underscore her purpose: she represents and oversees those who have repented from habits of evil and violence.
The nagarath-women statues are based on stones called nagarathnam or naga mani, "snake stones" or "cobra pearls", described as being able to absorb poison and bring good fortune.
Troggles are based on both gargoyles, Fraggles, and the various types of troglodytes popular in other role-playing and computer games.
The Grayscale Adventures make use of certain famous elements from Noir films. (If the GM and Player wish, other characteristics not appropriate for children can also be incorporated, such as the Hardboiled treatment of violence and sexuality.)
The name "Moorlost" sounds similar to "Moorlocks", perhaps the most famous humanoid monster known for a colorless existence. However, there are no actual similarities between Moorlocks and minor characters from Noir films.
How is the Lamia involved in adventures? The PC could be one of the Lamia's champions, appointed to fight a dragon (this could even happen without the PC's knowledge if the PC receives anonymous help from the Lamia). The PC could also be one of the Lamia's outcasts, someone who had lived a selfish and violent life but "hit bottom" and is now genuinely repentant, and with the Lamia's aid is trying to turn over a new leaf. (It would be difficult to run adventures with the PC being one of The Hiss, because members of The Hiss are not accepted in Arlinac Town and have trouble disguising themselves. However, there might be a member of The Hiss in or under Arlinac Town for an important reason, whom the Lamia asks the PC to protect and help.) The Lamia, like all Powers, is not omniscient and cannot teleport to any place she has never been; thus she might need assistance locating and apprehending a formerly-repentant criminal whom she had been mentoring but who has recently backslidden into violent deeds and unsavory habits. The PC might become involved with Troggles, or have reason to enter a Moonlit Zone. Lastly, perhaps the PC needs to enter the Lamia's dungeon to retrieve an item that helps fight dragons or prove himself or herself to a group of the Lamia's followers to earn their respect and aid.
What's the way to gather the clouds away?
Life's bitterness can be changed to sweet.
Little Humble dances on, down the Subtle Sublime Street
Every girl and boy can learn to rest in joy.
Don't own, prize, or strive, but love all you meet.
Little Humble dances on, down the Subtle Sublime Street
- Therion children's song
Little Humble was the last Power created by the Creator. She woke up, smiling, a few days before the eight younger races were created.
Little Humble looks like a young girl, usually a Therion child. Her clothes are plain. She wears neither shoes nor jewelry. She enjoys being lent a pretty hat, and from the time the hat is returned to its owner until the next sundown gently touching the hat will cure any disease.
Little Humble is the patron of the Subtle Sublime Street, a philosophy aiming to impart peace and purpose whose four tenants can be summarized as:
She has worshippers from most if not all of the intelligent races, and shares many worshippers with Kitsunay.
Little Humble cannot lie. Her name is used to enforce a vow. Even people who do not worship her or follow her teachings swear by saying, "If I do not do such-and-such may Little Humble punish me." This vow, if broken, can cause misfortune.
Little Humble has no allies. Her enemy is Gnash, whose active ruthlesness directly opposes her passive serenity.
Little Humble's champions are children who are given the ability to speak with animals and detect lies. This ability is lost the first time the champion tells a lie or otherwise purposefully speaks so that a listener reaches false conclusions.
Little Humble's most devout followers recieve help finding hidding objects. When searching for any hidden object the Perception skill attempt is increased by +1 or more.
Little Humble may also give one of her long hairs as a gift: when held it imparts boldness, and when dissolved in tea it creates a drink that restores sight if the tea is completely and promptly drank.
Little Humble organizes her worshippers into communes named Meek Manors. These large homes for communal living to allow people to meditate and pray about the Subtle Sublime Street and together act upon its truths. The manors, functioning as a small business, own all of the property except that each Meek Manor member owns his or her own two sets of clothes. All Meek Manors grow their own food, but otherwise rely on charity for income. When Meek Manor members are skilled craftsfolk, the items they produce are given away to the needy instead of sold for personal or Manorial income.
Together, Members practice unarmed martial arts to develop the body, and memorize poetry and philosophy to develop the mind. Most of they day is spent quietly or doing community service. When a town or city has a Meek Manor, senior members are often asked to judge legal disputes as well as officiate trials, coronations, confirmations, marriages, and burials.
There are rumors of certain Meek Manors members who have achieved fantastic abilities through their personal perfection of meditation, prayer, and martial arts. When investigated, none of the rumors bear fruit: those few rumors that do include the name of a Meek Manor or member always use names eventually proved fictitious.
Little Humble has adopted the Puddle Creatures as her monsters: oozes, puddings, jellies, molds, and slimes. These creatures are actually colonies of single-cell units which are each barely visible to the eye.
Puddle Creatures are the least intelligent monsters. Their only activities are resting or looking for food: they have no other goals, and own no wealth or equipment. They are normally solitary, except when a Puddle Creature has been very recently split into parts.
All Puddle Creatures are semi-transparent and puddle-like. They are usually encountered when resting motionless. They can slowly undulate across the ground or creep along a wall or roof. In bright light they are easy to see, but in poor light they are difficult to notice unless moving: outdoors they may be covered by vegetation they have not yet digested, and underground they can be mistaken for dampness. As a Puddle Creature ages it becomes even more difficult to see.
Puddle Creatures are able to detect heat and can track warm-blooded creatures by their footprints.
Puddle Creatures are completely resistant to therianthropy. Alternatively, some stories say that therianthropy works but entering a body that lacks a brain causes the Therion to go mad.
Puddle Creatures attack by Ensnaring prey. The portion of the prey Ensnared suffers acidic damage each turn. The amount of damage depends upon how much of the prey is Ensnared (very large Puddle Creatures cause extra damage).
The five traditional ways to attack Puddle Creatures are by cutting, smashing, burning, freezing, or electrifying. For a particular Puddle Creature two of these will especially effective, two do nothing, and one will cause the creature to split into smaller, unharmed pieces. Furthermore, each particular Puddle Creature will have a dangerous "death throe". As examples, as it dies it might splatter, explode, or expel spores. Adventurers who attack a Puddle Creature should try to kill it from a distance.
Puddle Creatures age through six lifecycle stages, nicknamed Compost, Outhouse, Nuisance, Dangerous, and Deadly. These correspond to its maximum colony size: the single-cell units need to age before being able to effectively network in larger numbers. A Puddle Creature advances a lifecycle stage about anually. Puddle Creatures are often kept by members of the intelligent races for waste disposal purposes, placed safely in the bottom of outhouses or garbage pits. These "household puddles" need to be destroyed before their third year, for by that age a colony can be dangerous.
The smallest Puddle Creatures (Compost size) can only dissolve cellulose (plant material). They are often purposefully put in compost piles. Slightly larger colonies (Outhouse size) gain the ability to also dissolve proteins, but can still be safely kept in a metal container or at the bottom of a rock-walled pit. When an colony has grown to about three feet in diameter (Nuisance size) it gains the ability to also dissolve fats, making it a threat to sleeping animals. An even bigger Puddle Creature (Dangerous size) gains the abilities of dissolving rock and releasing spores that cause sneezing and dizziness. The largest Puddle Creatures (Deadly size) can release spores that paralyze and/or cause hallucinations.
Oozes are the most acidic Puddle Creatures. When killed they splatter acid. They are hurt by fire and cold, immunte to both cutting and blunt attacks, and split in two if attacked with electricity. Jellies spit flammable goo at torches or other fires they sense.
Puddings are the most dangerous Puddle Creatures. Besdies ensnaring prey they can make a deadly sucking noise that causes erratic nerve impulses in the brain. They are hurt by fire and blunt impacts, immune to cold and electricity, and split in two if cut with a sharp object. When killed they emit bolts of electricity.
Jellies are Puddle Creatures that glow. Their ensnaring does extra damage because they can make parts of their puddly bodies freezing cold, causing frostbite as well as acid damage. A bright light shines from them when they are killed, which can cause temporary blindness. They are hurt by electricity and cuts by sharp objects, immune to cold and blunt objects, and split in two if burnt with fire.
Molds are very slow moving Puddle Creatures. They seldom ensnare moving creatures, preferring to first attack by sucking in a tremendous amount of air to extinguish fires, asphyxiate. When killed they blow out mildly poisonous spores. If burned, the smoke is toxic. Molds are hurt by fire and cold, immune to electricity and being cut with blades, and are split in two when impacted by blunt objects. An unintelligent animal who eats part of a living Mold will become a mindless slave of the Mold colony.
Chartreuse Slimes are the most dangerous of Slimes. They cannot move and only spreads slowly across cavern roofs and high on walls. However, they cannot be fought except by patiently burning, freezing, or scraping it off the roof or wall. Chartreuse Slimes sense vibrations and drip onto prey (living or metal) which then quickly dissolves, releasing a gas the slime colony takes in for nourishment. If Chartreuse Slime is boiled it makes a harmless and valued alcoholic beverage.
The dungeons of Little Humble are strange worlds entered through small doorways (such as mouse holes, doll house doors, and holes between tree roots). A person walking towards an entrance to one of Little Humble's dungeons will notice himself or herself shrinking; the effect reverses if they move away from the doorway.
Almost all of her dungeons contain Puddle Creatures, and most contain other traps and monsters as well. Those who enter must overcome their own fears and desires, but can always find a treasure of great significance yet little monetary worth.
Little Humble exemplifies what the Tao Te Ching calls "non-Ado". But her philosophy has differences from the Way of Taoism, so the words "Way" and "Path" were avoided when inventing the name Subtle Sublime Street. And once that phrase was invented, it seemed unavoidable to make Little Humble's poem fit a modification of the Sesame Street theme song.
The line "gather the clouds away" is a tribute to Sean Russel's masterpiece, the two Initiate Brother novels.
Little Humble represents truth: she cannot lie, her champions can detect lies and must avoid lies, her name makes a vow binding, and her dungeons allow adventurers to seek truth. Note, however, that there are no oracles in the setting of Creagadier: completing an adventure in the Enchanted Forest is normally the only way for a person to beseech a Power to answer a specific question.
There is an option of allowing not only talents but also the practices of Meek Manor Members to empower characters to move and fight like fictional protagonists of Chinese Wuxia literature. Or perhaps these two options overlap, and Meek Manor members together practice those talents.
The dungeons of Little Humble are purposefully vague. Are these doorways portals do distant locations, or are special "pocket universe" places on the other side? Are the doorways one-way, so that people passing through step into in a place that has no doorway behind them? Do they lead to alternate universes that may have completely different laws of physics?
How is Little Humble involved in adventures? Politicians and judges often send an adventurer looking for one of Little Humble's champions, hoping the champion will be willing to help resolve a crime or mystery by detecting who is lying. Alternately, the PC might need to help one of these champions who has gotten stuck in a tricky social situation because he or she refused to lie. The PC might quest for one of Little Humble's hairs, to restore sight to a blind person or help a new, young ruler or military leader have boldness. Alternately, someone wealthy may be dying of a disease and offering a reward for any adventurer that can find Little Humble and petition her to visit the wealthy person and try on hats. Perhaps the PC needs to find and explore one of the Little Humble's dungeons.
The world of Creagadier has twelve intelligent races. The four oldest races are the animalfolk. At the beginning of the Fourth Age the Creater posed a question to the four animalfolk races. Based upon the response to that question, each animalfolk race had many of its members changed into two new races. (The word "person" can refer to someone of any race.)
The Foxes were asked how to serve the Creator by giving him energy. Those truly content to exhaust their own energy in the Creator's service became Therions. Those who said they were, but really were not, became Ogres. Those who did not answer the Creator's question remained Foxes.
The Badgers were asked how to serve the Creator by giving him joy. Those truly willing to sacrifice some of their own joy became Dweorgs. Those who said they were, but really were not, became Kobalts. Those who did not answer the Creator's question remained Badgers.
The Beavers were asked how to serve the Creator by giving him time. Those truly pleased to spend their own time for the Creator's sake became Bergtrolls. Those who said they were, but really were not, became the Unseemly. Those who did not answer the Creator's question remained Beavers.
The Squirrels were asked how to serve the Creator by giving him wealth. Those truly eager to give from their own wealth became Pixies. Those who said they were, but really were not, became the Mer. Those who did not answer the Creator's question remained Squirrels.
Why do most fantasy settings have multipe intelligent races? These provide helpful stereotyping for NPCs. Cooperative storytelling is handicapped in a fictional world, because in real life we can make many reasonable guesses about a person's job and skills by their appearance. For example, age and clothing generally distinguish college students, lawyers, soldiers, and delivery men. But a fictional world lacks these social clues. A common replacement is to stereotype about make-believe races, so that when a PC meets a new NPC the player then has at least a few informed guesses about what kind of person the PC is meeting, to take the place of the knowledge of appearances learned by someone who grew up in the setting.
What stereotyping is present? Most members of a fantasy setting's race share similar clothing, foods, building types, and family structures. Each race will favor certain arts when living peacefully and have a distinct style as warriors. Often each race has a distinct religion and/or patron diety. Sometimes each race uses new roles and responsibilities for gender and age.
The world of Creagadier uses old sources in new ways. Traditional elements of fairy tales and folktales are (hopefully) used in a manner novel enough to be interesting and thought-provoking, yet still somewhat familiar.
Intelligent animals are one staple of old stories. Creagadier has four animalfolk races: Foxes, Badgers, Beavers, and Squirrels. Please imagine them as similar to the animal folk of Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows or C.S. Lewis’s Narnia novels, not like the nearly human animal folk of Disney's Robin Hood. These four kinds of animalfolk loosely correspond to the major divisions that have been popular since Tolkien: the agile race, the sturdy race, the industrious race, and the numerous race.
As is normally done, intelligent animal races are larger and slightly more bipedal than in real life. For the animalfolk of Creagadier, the animal's length is doubled (except for squirrels, which is quadruples) and the weight increased two-and-a-half times (except for squirrels, which is increased fivefold). Gestation time and old age are doubled. Age to adulthood is tripled. Diet, number of offspring and mating loyalty are kept as realistic as sensible. (Determining an average length and weight of the real animals is slightly subjective due to regional and species differences. The following sizes were used as average "real" values: foxes of 85 cm and 3.5 kg, badgers of 70 cm and 10 kg, beavers of 90 cm and 25 kg, and squirrels of 30 cm and 0.6 kg.)
Another common type of character in folklore are people able to turn into animals. Creagadier's Therions are a new version of that theme. They get their name from the Greek word therion, the root of the word therianthropy.
Evil humanoids that disguise themselves and eat people are a staple of scary stories. Perhaps the oldest such stories call such creatures ogres. Modern fantasy ogres are more often stupid brutes, but ogres that masquerade as humans remain traditional as Japanese oni and Gloranthan ogres, and Creagadier continues this ancient tradition.
Since the popularity of Narnia and Middle Earth, most fantasy dwarves have resembled the dwarves of one of those settings. But older folktales feature dweorgs (an Old English word from the Old Norse dvergar) that were competitve raiders.
In early Medieval European mythology there was only one underground humanoid, dangerous to miners, whose name and nature varied from region to region but was based on the Greek koba'los (rogue) and the German kofewalt (room spirit). Modern concepts of kobold, goblin, hobgoblin, orc, knocker, bluecap, coblynau and perhaps even pixy and brownie all branch from this ancient root. The metal cobalt is named after these creatures, and the color "cobalt blue" is the reason Creagadier's Kobalts are blue.
The Bergtrolls of Creagadier are loosely based on the huldra and bergtrolls of Scandinavian folklore. They look human (except for a tail), are expert crafters, and live elegantly in underground castles. A few, rarely met, are gigantic. Removed are the trolls' beguiling of captives (this has been altered into the Bergtrolls themselves being captivated by artistic fads) and the kidnapping or exchanging of infants. The artistic skill and haughtiness of these Bergtrolls is also inspired by the Ska of Jack Vance's Lyonesse Trilogy.
The Unseemly of Creagadier are drawn from the fairy stories of many cultures, emphasizing what is common among older, traditional tales. The Unseemly are corporeal, tall and radiant, wingless, and nearly human in appearance. They live underground below mounds, barrows, or small hills. They kidnap both infants and adults. They use illusion (especially to improve their own appearances, and counterfeit gold) and archery. They are strong at dusk, weak and dawn, and can be repelled with cold iron or stale food. (The Unseemly of Creagadier are not said to use changelings, but a GM may chose to include this complicated yet traditional aspect of fairy lore.) Scottish Fairies have traditional classifications. The word Unseemly is a word play on the term "Unseelie Court" and the common practice of referring to fairies by nicknames. The phrase "Trooping Wars" is a play on the phrase "Trooping fairies".
Historically, pixies were different from elves, a fact Wikipedia briefly describes. The name Pixy (among the many words for household fairies and elves) is used here because of its appropriate connotations: not especially good or evil, fond of children, enjoying music and dance, helping with housework, and in temperament both eager to please and easy to please.
Different cultures have widely varying mermaids/mermen: in some Greek stories they are blended with the sirens; in most Arabic stories they are always humanoid. Common themes to use as a foundation for Creagadier's Mer are few, but include a knowledge of arts or medicine unknown to humans, and danger when met from either intentional aggression against mariners or unintentional perils for kidnapped visitors to underwater cities.
Adult Foxes average 1.7 meters in height and 10 kilograms in weight. They are the most bipedal of the animalfolk, comfortable standing erect to walk or rest but usually dropping to all fours for running. Foxes are very agile, and often have astonishing grace in feature and motion. They have tiny ears but keen hearing; in Winter places they can hear through snow and walk on ice. Foxes are haughty by nature but usually quiet about it. Many are either notably active or excessively lazy.
Foxes have a love-hate relationship with large bodies of water. The most talented among Creagadier's sailors and shipwrights are Foxes, but no Fox swims for pleasure.
Foxes love the thrill of mild danger. They do not shun the unknown or unpredictable, and enjoy fun activities involving small risks.
Since the Second Age their diet has been meat, eggs, fruit and berries. Most set snares or nets around their homes to catch rats, rabbits, lizards, frogs, and other such small animals. Foxes do much net fishing in rivers and the ocean, and many herd goats for milk and fleece.
Almost all dogs are aggressive towards Foxes, at least barking if not fully attacking.
Foxes may marry more than once; couples often separate after their children are grown. Fox pregnancies last four months, with an average of five pups per litter. Adulthood is reached in three years. Old age begins at twenty four. Foxes do not hibernate at all during the winter.
Foxes usually live in large family groups, led by a matriarch. Nearly all Foxes live in villages and towns. Their homes are small straw buildings. Their shops are usually of wood or brick, although very few Fox-built structures achieve the quality of construction of the most commonplace Beaver buildings.
There are many Foxes in Creagadier, but most avoid contact with the eight younger races.
Although Foxes dabble in most types of art they are most drawn to weaving, embroidering, and dance. Most Fox entertainers are troupes of acrobatics and musicians who perform together. As a culture, Foxes are the race least concerned with their history: their culture has few legends about groups of Foxes. Instead, most fox stories are songs told by a single dancing bard, featuring metaphors involving weaving to recount a Fox's search for his or her place within the world.
Foxes adore hats, and most Foxes own several and are always wearing one (if you want to deeply insult a Fox, damage his or her hat). When Foxes are not wearing armor they usually dress lightly in a close-fitting short shirt and drawstring pants. For festive occasions many layers of clothing are worn: shirts with sleeves of varying length, and either skirts of varying sizes (for the women) or pants with elaborate ruffles (for either gender).
There are only a few Foxes living in Arlinac Town, but they are well known for their sport of "Park Running", which involves racing acrobatically along a predetermined route that connects two or more of the town's parks. Racers are allowed to throw or wield blunt objects to slow down competitors. The sport is tolerated by all guilds and noble families, in part because the Foxes that participate always make generous financial compensation for any damage done to property. The Foxes avoid discussing the sport's history: some scholares hypothesize that the activity is an urban version of a traditional Wilder-ness pasttime.
The sport of "park running" is a tribute to Parkour and free running.
Fox philosophy claims that each person has an optimal place in the world: a predestined role including social status, profession, nobility, family size, and other factors. Fox culture has developed many rituals and styles of prayer, both private and corporate, used by Foxes in their attempts to each discern their optimal place. Foxes are the most quietly meditative of animalfolk.
Like all animalfolk, Fox religion focuses on the Divine Beings and almost ignores the Powers. Animalfolk cultures had established their oldest legends during the First Age, when Yarnspinner was the only Power.
Traditional Fox legends say that the Creator resembles a Fox, Victor a Beaver, and Vigor a Squirrel. To Foxes this seems obvious. Only a being like a Fox would have the wit and grace to create a world so rewarding and respectful of wit and grace, and only a being like a Fox would design the world and then rest afterwards while appointing someone else to keep the plan in action. Similarly, only a being like a Beaver would so happily toil to create what someone else had designed, and only a being like a Beaver would remain focused on nature and uncaring about people (thus sunshine and rain treat good and evil people equally). Finally, only a being like a squirrel Squirrel would promote individualism for its own sake. Fox religion has unconsciously encouraged Foxes to collect stories in which animalfolk act in the religiously stereotypical ways.
Foxes tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Acrobatics and Track.
Foxes traditionally use bows and swords when fighting. Like all animalfolk they shun armor or shields.
At the start of the Fourth Age, the Creator asked the Foxes how they might serve him by giving of their own energy. Many Foxes thought of worthy replies. Yet the question was intended to measure their hearts, and their answers were not immediately significant. Those Foxes who indeed desired to give up their own energy to serve the Creator became Therions: their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
Therions are the majority population in all the above-ground cities, towns, and village of Creagadier. They generally live their lives with little desire for excitement or heroics. Most of the inhabitants of Arlinac Town are Therions.
Therions value peace and quiet more than any other intelligent race. Most have no desire to amass wealth or social influence, seeing these as distractions from the peaceful contentment and addictive delight of caring for family and pets. (However, in a settlement as large as Arlinac Town there are quite a few exceptions who do covet wealth and power.)
Therions use tattoos to identify clan and family, and piercings (primarily earrings and nose rings) to identify meritorious deeds. Piercings are decorated with short ribbons whose colors describe the meritorious deeds in more detail.
Some Therions have the ability to change their shape into the shape of an animal they touch. This ability is called therianthropy. Using therianthropy makes a Therion temporarily exhausted. This intense fatigue causes all skill use to be penalized by -2 for five minutes and then by -1 for five further minutes. (Wealthy Therions sometimes escape the exhaustion by drinking a slow-acting healing potion just before using therianthropy.) A Therion that is already exhausted cannot use therianthropy.
Not all Therions can use therianthropy. About one-quarter never develop the ability. Over half only have a lesser version that works with a single type of animal (songbirds, rodents, etc.) rather than all animals.
When using an animal's form the Therion changes to the animal's size and mass. The Therion's clothing and possessions are unaffected by the change: typically these are previously stored or hidden to avoid leaving behind an awkward and vulnerable pile of items. An exception are the Therion's tattoos and piercings, which are enough part of a Therion's body that they disappear when a shape change happens and reappear when the Therion reverts to his or her true form.
A Therion using an animal's shape retains its own intelligence, mind, and memories but also gains the animal's abilities in perception, movement, and (if applicable) fighting with tooth, beak, or claw. However, these innate animal abilities are unpracticed unless the Therion has previous experience in a similar form. Therefore, although Therions can take the shape of animals who are strangers to them, most Therions befriend one or more animals as pets since this provides easy opportunities for repeated practice in adopting the pets' forms.
Therianthropy only works with a "normal" animal. A Therion cannoy copy the form of an animal by touching another Therion already using therianthropy. Nor can a Therion copy the shape of an intelligent creature or a humanoid. A Therion may take the shape of monster but doing so is obviously dangerous because of the need to touch an awake monster. A Therion using a monster's shape does not gain the monster's special abilities (breathing fire, teleportation, etc.)
Many folk tales warn about staying too long in an animal's form. After a few days in an animal's form, the Therion's own intelligence and personality will begin to dwindle, being replaced by the animal's. In these tales a Therion stuck in an animal's form is called a Snag.
A Therion in an animal's form will revert to his or her own form if killed, but does not automatically change back if unconscious or asleep.
Note that a Therion is either in his or her natural humanoid form or in the form of an animal; there is no possible "halfway" form of a bipedal monster as seen in traditional werewolf movies. The change is physical, not illusionary.
Also note that an Ogre's semblancy is almost the opposite of therianthropy. Therions give up their own energy to copy the form of an animal. Ogres take somoene else's energy and copy their form.
Therions can live 80 to 100 years and slowly gain vitality as they age. They normally form monogamous marriages and have several children.
The decade of a Therion's age is important in Therion society: individuals are expected to socialize with members of their own decade and defer to "elders" of older decades.
Most Therions are not able to use therianthropy until the second half of their second decade.
Therions are gregarious and prefer to live in large villages or towns. Many of these are deep inside large forests, but Therions live equally well in settlements outside of forests along rivers or roads.
Nearly all Therion settlements are walled for protection from invading Kobalts and other dangers. A walled Therion settlement is quite resistant to being beseiged since its inhabitants can bring in food and harass the attackers by assuming the forms of birds or other flying animals. Those few Therion settlements without walls are built up in the trees and a set of caged animals at ground level allow only Therions to travel up to the trees' heights.
Therions are the race who keep the most livestock. Only Bergtrolls also raise livestock, and in the mountains most Bergtroll herds are small groups of goats or sheep.
Therions consider animal breeding and training to be an artistic endeavor far more worthy than workmanship with unloving materials. Therions also enjoy storytelling, theatre, poetry, music, and dance.
Therions dress simply. Most seldom wear jewelry aside from their ribboned piercings, although in Arlinac Town the influences of Bergtrolls and Dweorgs have made jewelry more commonplace.
In their fondness for pets, some Therions have learned how to breed animals and even monsters. Those who do so consider it an art, but most other Therions view this activity with distrust or abhorrence.
When Thereons wear armor they favor Hard Leather on the torso, either Hard or Soft Leather on the limbs, and a Soft Leather hat. Metal armor is normally avoided because of its bulk and the care it takes to prevent it from rusting when worn outside extensively.
Therions believe that this world has troubles so that individuals can build and leave behind a significant legacy. Usually this legacy is measured in heroic deeds or scholarship, not physical wealth.
Therion literary traditions emphasize memorizing and retelling "wisdom stories". There are many such stories, most of which describe the First and Second Ages. Some of these stories are believed to be historically accurate, while others are recognized as fiction. The general theme of the stories is how the four animalfolk races increased in wisdom before demanding the Four Royals, and it is now the duty of Therions to gather this wisdom together and preserve what was learned in the years before the Powers.
Therions tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Animals/Wilderness and Throw.
Therions have no typical style as warriors, except for training with bows and crossbows in time of war. They tend to be proficient with spears and nets but often this skill is used to capture animals rather than in combat against humanoid opponents.
When the Creator asked the Foxes how they might serve him by giving of their own energy, a few Foxes were unwilling to make any sacrifice yet pretended they wanted to serve the Creator by giving from what they had. The Creator punished them by making them Ogres. Their physical appearance became larger and ugly, and they gained a new ability that used theft instead of sacrifice.
Ogres are large, muscular humanoids who live to eat and prefer the flesh of other intelligent creatures. Many Ogres are unable to control this desire to eat members of the intelligent races, which is known as the Ogre's Hunger.
Ogres are intelligent manipulators as well as devourers. Ogres may appear in adventures not only as disguised assassins and kidnappers, but as an apparently helpful advisor or friend to influential people, subtly encouraging the moral decay of a community's elders and leaders.
Ogres are able to change their form to resemble any humanoid, an ability known as semblancy. An Ogre using semblancy drains a touched humanoid's energy: the humanoid becomes extremely fatigued and collapses, unconscious. A victim of semblancy will sleep for almost twelve hours before waking, unless woken earlier using alchemy.
As with therianthropy, semblancy is an actual physical change, not an illusion. It does not affect the ogre's clothing and is limited to forms smaller than the ogre's natural form. Killing the Ogre will cause it to revert to its natural form, but not knocking it unconscious or making it sleep.
Ogres also have the ability to "store" ruthlessness: calming themselves when angry and agitated to later release a raging fit of silent cunning or berserk fury. An Ogre storing ruthlessness forfeits one "step" on the opposing skill use spectrum: he or she begins any conflict at a disadvantage with the opponent enjoying sente. An Ogre releasing ruthlessness gains an extra "step" on the opposing skill use spectrum, allowing it to be severely wounded an additional time before defeat.
Nothing is known about female Ogres. Ogres very seldom have children and do not die of old age.
Ogres progress through three (sometimes four) different lifecycle categories as they age. Ogres believe they age more quickly if they kill intelligent creatures and eat them.
Young Ogres are "Tusked Ogres". They cannot disguise themselves effectively since any humanoid form they adopt retains the large tusks they have instead of lower cuspid teeth. They are normally outcasts from Ogre society who must survive on their own in the Wilder-ness until adulthood. When Tusked Ogres meet they may temporarily partner together, but even then will consider the other a threat and a potential meal (and source of coveted age). Tusked Ogres spend much time practicing their combat skills: unarmed, with a few favorite melee weapons, and with ranged weapons. Unknown to non-Ogres, if a Tusked Ogre is fed by an intelligent creature then the Tusked Ogre must obey that creature's commands until the next full moon; this is the source of the similar false rumor about Kobalts. Tusked Ogres grow to a size of roughly 50 kilograms.
When an Ogre is mature it loses its tusks and grows horns, which also are retained when using semblancy. The "Horned Ogre" often tries to blend in to town or city life. Horned Ogres have developed numerous tricks for hiding their horns, ranging from finding jobs that allow hats or helmets (guards, tavern bouncers, etc.) or using semblancy to have tiny horns under curly hair. Some Horned Ogres even work in partnership with evil members of the other intelligent races: the partner befriends people while clearly not an Ogre, then the Ogre wears the appearance of the partner but with a hat or helmet as he or she waits for the right moment to attack the partner's new "friends", and finally the Ogre and his or her partner share the spoils. Horned Ogres grow to a size of roughly 200 kilograms.
When an Ogre is old enough it changes into a "Grand Ogre". Grand Ogres are rare. They lack tusks or horns, and their natural size can be up to 400 kilograms. Some Grand Ogres maintain a staff of Tusked Ogres they control by feeding. As a group, the Grand Ogres try to keep secret this ability to control Tusked Ogres so only they can make use of it.
Some Grand Ogres progress to a fourth stage after they die; this is valued in Ogre society as a great honor for the family. The dead Ogre's spirit turns into a Horror: a champion of Gnash, an incorporeal creature of shadow that can possess people to continue a legacy of ruthlessness.
Ogres are thought to be almost always solitary, with no known natural habitat. Some live alone in the Wilder-ness. Most of the Ogres so far discovered were hidden among the population of large towns and cities, disguised as their previous victims and preying off the local inhabitants.
Ogres usually own many sets of clothing and wear little or no armor, to allow the most freedom in disguising themselves. Their use of any art besides warfare, like most of their culture, is either a mystery or the fictitious dreams of scholars who hope that Ogres might be more than the embodiment of a treacherous hunger.
When expecting violence, Ogres will wear as much armor as their disguise allows--or as much armor as possible if they are no longer in disguise.
Most Ogres worship Gnash. They listen for reports of greedy and ruthless individuals, whom they sacrifice on special altars so that Gnash can "feed" upon the victim's ruthlessness.
Ogres believe that dedication to Gnash is what earns some Grand Ogres the ability to become Horrors.
Ogres tend to have more experience than average in the skill and talent of Wrestle/Disarm.
As warriors, Ogres prefer a combination of a blunt melee weapon and a ranged weapon. Ogres are usually expert with many kinds of weapons, even those which the Ogres never plan to use in combat.
Adult Badgers average 1.4 meters in height and 25 kilograms in weight. They are quite bipedal but cannot stand while running. They do not consider standing restful. Badgers are unparalleled diggers, and use their huge claws in many situations where members of the other races would use tools. They are exceedingly tough and strong, with skin as thick and sturdy as hard leather armor.
In temperament Badgers tend to be gruff, especially the males. They can mellow this to adopt social graces and politeness when required.
Since the second age Badgers eat some fruit, with the bulk of their diet being the meat of the animals they hunt.
Badgers marry only once and a couple remains together for life. Badger pregnancies last four months or more; Badgers have one or 2 children at time. Adulthood is reached in four years. During the latter half of its childhood a Badger youth is physically mature and works for its parents, but is still being educated and is socially considered a partly-mature child. (No other animalfolk have the concept of adolescence.) Old age happens between forty and forty-five. They hibernate much of the winter, but compared to Beavers begin hibernation late and awaken early.
Badgers live in underground homes which may be large and elaborate with many doors and windows to the outside. Some live by themselves in the forest, but most live at the outskirts of a village or town for ease with trade.
Those Badgers who produce goods to sell use their burrow as both home and workshop, and set up a pavilion in the village or town market to sell their wares.
Badgers are very territorial with respect to other Badgers. They divide up all the land (even Arlinac Town) into plots, each considered the property of a certain Badger. Thus to a Badger's mind any piece of land has two owners: the legal resident that claims it in "Upper Society" and the Badger who actually owns it.
Most towns and cities of Therions have a few Badgers living nearby for trade and news.
Badgers shun most arts, but admire singing and consider hunting an art. Most Badgers employ themselves hunting, mining, and woodcutting. Nearly all Badgers families maintain personal fruit trees. A very few Badgers farm for a living; these also specialize in fruit.
Nearly all Badgers entertainers entertain by reciting their culture's famous legends. The males speak these stories emotionally with dramatic inflection, amusing voices, and artful cadences. The female entertainers are even more effective, especially for an audience of mixed races, as they sing these legends.
Badgers not wearing armor normally wear what they call a "full set" of clothing: a jacket or vest over a tunic or shirt, drawstring pants, and a belt to hold pouches. Fancy dress for a Badger is of this same array, but of higher quality material and with many colors instead of the plain earth tones of everyday garb. Badgers shun hats, and, like all animalfolk, never wear gloves or shoes.
In combat Badgers favor big shields, their claws, and crossbows. They are the only people who wear armor on their tails. Male Badgers spend more time practicing with weapons than females, and females spend more time with herb lore. Nevertheless, the saying is "Nothing is more dangerous than a Badger woman trapped in her home."
Like all animalfolk, Badger religion focuses on the Divine Beings and almost ignores the Powers, since there were Badgers back when Yarnspinner was the only Power.
Traditional Badger legends say that the Creator, Victor, and Vigor are best represented by elements. The Creator is like air, which is present but not visible and sustains people although most of its effects are not obvious. Victor is like earth, which is solid and hearty, and of which homes are dug. Like earth, Victor is sometimes dry and rigid in his ways and sometimes moist and flexible. Vigor is like fire and water, which in large and moving amounts eat away at all other things. Badger religion emphasizes stories in which people act in these elementally stereotypical ways, either because of personality or due to serving a Divine Being.
Badgers tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Block and Press.
When the Creator caused much confusion among the Badgers by asking them, at the start of the Fourth Age, how they might serve him by giving of their own joy. Many Badgers pondered unsuccessfully what "giving joy" could mean. Other Badgers interpreted the question as a request for volunteers to do unpleasant duties. Only a few thought of worthy replies, although many more felt willing although confused. The Creator's question was intended to measure their hearts, and regardless of thier own answers all those Badgers truly willing to give up their own joy to serve the Creator became Dweorgs. Their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
Dweorgs are short, stout humanoids with phenomenal endurance who are skilled at mining and all kinds of metal use. Dweorgs are able to hike or march quickly without becoming fatigued, and can carry almost their own weight without becoming fatigued.
Dweorgs believe there is an intrinsic and beautiful connection between delving and smithing, and no Dweorg feels complete without having established a legacy in both (or currently working towards that goal).
A Dweorg crafting a tool or weapon is able to sacrifice his or her own morale to imbue it with extra sturdiness and keenness. This process is called tempering. A tempered tool or weapon grants a +1 bonus to the appropriate skill when used. The Dweorg who did the tempering becomes gruff and grim, and will be stuck in that depression for several days.
Note that tempering only allows unusual excellence of material and craftsmanship: there is no magic or enchantment involved. Therefore tempered tools or weapons are not vulnerable to effects that remove enchantments from items.
Most Dweorgs use tempering rarely: to create their personal tools of their trade, to enhance a gift they hope will become a cherished family heirloom, or to elevate a prized personal artistic creation. However, during times of war a great number of tempered weapons are forged.
Dweorgs also know how to use tempering (or a different but similar process) on the walls of their underground settlements. A tempered wall increases security: it becomes too hard for most burrowing animals to dig through and also immune to Transmutery. Since tempering all of a settlement's important walls takes much time and effort, clans of Dwerogs seldom change where they live (as opposed to Kobalts, who often abandon one cavern-complex to live in another with a more strategic location).
In ages past, Dweorgs knew how to use a more potent form of tempering to create even more powerful weapons and tools. These artifacts are known as Sthelmi and are now highly prized Dweorgish treasures. They grant a new ability to whomever uses them, enhancing a skill's use far beyond what is naturally possible. (For example, a Sthelmi hammer might allow its attacks to impact distant foes, or a Sthelmi anvil might bend cool metal as easily as if it had been heated.)
Dweorgs live to be one hundred and sixty years old. They progress through four different forty-year lifecycle stages. They do not change much in size, but their beards grow longer, their skin becomes more wrinkled, and their bones become denser.
The youngest Dweorgs are "youth" and live deep underground in high-ceilinged cavern complexes. Dweorgs do not discuss with others what their early life is like, except that in involves both "sweatwork" (crafting, smithing, mining, warfare) and "smilework" (playing, solving problems, inventing). Since female Dweorgs are never seen, many suppose they either stay in these deep caverns and/or never age beyond the "youth" stage.
On his fortieth birthday a Dweorg becomes a "raider". Raiders still live underground, but not as deep and in cavern complexes that include both vast halls and small rooms. The raiding Dweorgs get food for their own use and that of the deeper-dwelling youth. Dweorgs do farm mushrooms underground but these are supplemented with fruit and meat raided from the orchards, poultry farms, and ranches of people who live above-ground. Yet raids are not only a means of acquiring food: raids are also a culturally important source of esteem for successful raiders. A Dweorg raider can gain important honor by fighting impressively or committing effective acts of precision theft. Similarly, being forced to flee or hide is a great source of shame. Dweorg raiders who are not directly part of a specific raid may involve themselves by betting on the successes of those who are directly participating or by helping prepare and equip those who directly participate. After a raid, the clan chief is responsible for archiving all the raiders' heroic deeds so these will never be forgotten. A raider who consistently fails to accrue honor becomes shunned and will no longer be invited to participate in raids; henceforth he only supports the clan by hunting small animals or by gathering wild fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
On his eightieth birthday, at his physical prime, a Dweorg becomes an "artist". Artists stop raiding and no longer live with their clan. They move aboveground and build a workshop-home, usually a free-standing cottage but sometimes a dwelling built inside a shallow cave or within the base of a large tree. A few move to a town or city: all the Dweorgs who live among the other races, including the Dweorgs of Arlinac Town, are of the artist age. Dweorg artists seek to perfect one or more metalworking skills and thus create works of art that will be treasured forever. An artist may study alone, join a commune, or participate in a city guild. Artists sometimes retain a bit of their former raiding mentality; city Dweorgs suffer from a stereotype of occasionally sabotaging or stealing from business rivals (including other Dweorg artists). Although Dweorgs do not consider "artistic" the work of a merchant, a few city Dweorgs give up metalworking for trade. Since Dweorgs may have large families, a group of brothers occasionally will immigrate to a city together after the youngest reaches Artist age.
On his one hundred and twentieth birthday a Dweorg becomes an "elder". Elders return to the deep caverns to raise the youth. Elders are very rarely seen by non-Dweorgs. Elders are treated with great respect in Dweorg society, and although they have no special powers they do have a greater chance of owning or carrying interesting or powerful things. The oldest Dweorg in a clan is the clan chief who settles disputes, archives the historical records of that settlement, and authorizes warfare.
A Dweorg secret is that once or twice in a century an entire clan will go to war. Usually an army is formed to conquer a Kobalt settlement, but occasionally the attacked settlement is of another intelligent race, including but most rarely another Dweorg clan. A war begins when a clan chief declares that his clan has amassed enough honor. Fighting in a war is the highest possible honor among Dweorgs, and only those raiders, artists, and elders with the most personal honor may participate in the fighting. The rest of the clan serves by supplying the warriors.
Some clans of Dweorgs delight in flying and build all sorts of flying contraptions. These raiders are especially dangerous. Such clans tend to also use kites and fireworks at nearly all celebrations.
Dweorgs are equally comfortable living aboveground or underground.
Dweorgs that do not live in cities among the other intelligent races live in clan-sized groups. Clans usually relate peacefully, but may feud.
Most Dweorgs dress similarly: shirt, knee-length pants, tall boots, thick belt, and either a tabard in clan colors or a heavy leather apron if the latter is appropriate for their work. Dweorgs do not wear hats, except when armored, in which case their metal helmets cover less than the helms worn by Kobalts and Bergtrolls.
Dweorg jewelry follows themes of jewels and carving on an iron background. It is the most culturally important Dweorgish art form. Associated with each Dweorg lineage and family is a unique pattern of color and inlay identifies and establishes a pincipal virtue for that family. Dweorgs will speak of their jewelry "requiring" or "demanding" acts of bravery, generosity, loyalty, courtesy, or so forth. Although most Dweorgs attempt to behave virtuously by all of Dweorgish morality, a violation of their jewelry's principal virtue is completely unthinkable and would require ritual exile or suicide to atone for the deep loss of family honor. Also, these jewelry-determined virtues, unlike other Dweorgish moral rules, remain equally significant when dealing with members of the other intelligent races; for example, a Dweorg merchant who might normally depart from honesty or loyalty when relating to Therions or Bergtrolls but still be willing to give his life in battle to defend one because "selfless valor" is his jewelry-determined virtue.
The cultural importance of Dweorg jewelry is taken from the Emblem Men of Jack Vance's Planet of Adventure.
Other Dweorg fine arts focus on metalworking, continuing the theme of jewels and carving on an iron background. Dweorgs prize heavy yet finely wrought sculptures of precious metals, decorated with gems. Instead of painting they create intricate inlaid murals of precious metals and gems on a darker iron background. Their important pottery is similarly decorative metal containers rather than clay or wood objects.
Tool making is also considered an art form, although tools are usually not inlaid, gilded, or bejeweled.
Dweorgs do not consider weaving an art form but are proficient at weaving and sewing for utilitarian purposes. They do very little theatre or dance but love ballads, and more than any other intelligent race enjoy singing: they compose and memorize long, rhyming adventure stories set to a simple yet catchy melody.
Most Dweorgs are devoted to Speleoth, expressing this by offering donations to his temples of cherished art: tools, weapons, murals, and containers finely wrought and exquisitely decorated.
Dweorgs tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Machinery and Provoke.
As warriors, Dweorgs tend to wear scale or chain armor and use large hammers and picks as weapons. Dweorgs are the only race that has experience using explosives in combat.
The Creator, at the start of the Fourth Age, asked the Badgers how they might serve him by giving of their own joy. Many Badgers, deep in their hearts, had no desire to do so. These unwilling Badgers became Kobalts. Their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
Kobalts are an intelligent race of ill-tempered humanoids with blue, leathery skin, long pointy ears, dark eyes, and sharp teeth. They are smaller than the other intelligent races, never more than a meter tall. Kobolts heal from wounds very rapidly, recovering from even severe wounds in a few hours.
Kobalts prefer to live nocturnally. They have keen night vision.
Kobalts have the ability to drain the morale of a nearby enemy for an few hours, an ability they call sapping. A sapped enemy suffers a -1 penalty on uncontested skill use and a -2 penalty on contested skill use. Kobalts can each use this sapping ability once per hour. (Someone who is sapped suffers no additional penalties if sapped again, but will stay demoralized longer.)
Furthermore, sapping negates magic-like effects. It removes enchantments (from musing or the Enchanted Forest), ruins potions made with alchemy, and disrupts active transmutery near the person being sapped. It even removes the special nature of some gifts from the Powers. Sapping does not affect technological items such as golems, chems, machinery, or Dweorg tempered tools and Sthelmi. Sapping also do not affect the gifts of Vigor.
Note that sapping is almost the opposite of tempering. Dweorgs give up their own morale to create items that boost skill attempts. Kobalts lower somoene else's morale to hinder skill attempts.
Because Kobalts are a vicious and argumentative race whose wounds heal rapidly their extremities often bear the signs of many past scuffles: missing fingers, torn ears, broken noses, and scarred skin. These wounds and an increasingly vile disposition make them appear more and more grotesque as they age.
Kobalts can progress through five distinct social stages. Young Kobalts are a pale, almost pastel blue and are called Workers. Workers are given all the laborious jobs and are treated harshly even by their mothers. They are not allowed to leave their settlement or to use weapons or armor. They have short tempers but seem subdued and calm compared to older Kobalts.
Once they have grown larger and their color has darkened they become Hunters who hunt for food and join the military. The goal of a Hunter is to take a member of one of the other intelligent races prisoner, which promotes them socially to the role of Warrior.
The more prisoners a Warrior acquires the greater his or her status in Kobalt society. Prisoners may be male or female: both genders are used for slave labor if not kept as the Warrior's unwilling "concubines". The Warriors with the largest number of prisoners and thus the most social influence are Captains that command a platoon of 64 Warriors. Through successful intrigue a Captain can attain the highest social rank by becoming the current Ancestor of his Superfamily.
Kobalts live both underground and above ground, apparently equally at home in cavern-complexes or buildings. Because Bergtrolls patrol many of Creagadier's mountains, most Kobalts live in or under hills or forests.
Kobalts prefer to steal homes than dig or build homes themselves. They do not care well for their dwellings. Since the damage done while capturing the site gets augmented by months or years of neglected maintenance, most Kobalts live in dirty, broken, worn dwellings.
Kobalts live in large groups called Superfamilies. Each Superfamily is strictly ruled by a monarch called the Ancestor, who is the only male in the group allowed to breed. All the Kobalts in a Superfamily consider their Ancestor to be their great-grandfather (irrelevant of the difference in ages) even when this is not literally true; when a new Kobalt becomes a Superfamily's Ancestor the rest of the group immediately modifies their family identity for all practical and emotional purposes.
Unlike all other humanoid races, Kobalts have four digits on their hands and feet. Their mathematics is based on eight instead of ten. For example, the army of a Superfamily is considered full when it has 512 (=83) members.
Kobalts are carnivores who usually only eat freshly hunted meat. They will hunt wild animals but prefer the ease of preying on stolen livestock. They also cannibalize those they slay in combat. A popular rumor teaches that anyone who feeds a Kobalt gains its obedience to every verbal command, but no one can recall ever meeting a person with a Kobalt slave.
Male Kobalts are skilled at woodworking, weapon crafting, and engineering. They also have developed (or perhaps stolen from the Dweorgs) a rudimentary skill with explosive powders. Female Kobalts work at skinning and leatherworking, and also make extra meat into jerky to save for days when no fresh meat is available. Kobalts are the only race to consider leatherworking an art: not only is almost all Kobalt clothing leather but most Kobalt clothing contains at least a few artistically decorated or woven leather components.
According to Kobalt history the race is in its third era. During the First Kobalt Era, all Kobalts lived in small clans led by leaders who ruled not by lineage but simply by amassing a following. These clans spent most of their time fighting each other. This era ended when an unusually powerful and charismatic Kobalt named Tirk Heavyhanded rallied together all of the clan leaders through a desire to create racial pride. A Kobalt legend states that Snarspite had heard a Bergtroll call the Kobalt race "a despicable body that eats its own hand", and he vowed to put and end to Kobalts fighting (and eating) each other. Through the force of his personality and his skillful leadership he succeeded in structuring Kobalt society into Superfamilies that were large enough to successfully attack the settlements of other races.
The Second Kobalt Era stretched from the time of Tirk Heavyhanded to the Day of Undead. That year, on the night of the winter equinox, a large number of dead Kobalts became Undead. If an explanation for this has been discovered, it is a Kobalt secret. The Day of Undead caused trouble to all peoples, but was of course especially traumatic for Kobalt settlements. Kobalt society was thrown into chaos until a new charismatic leader, Grackt Longfang, led the purification of Kobalt territory and again established the political balance of the Superfamilies.
In the current and third era of Kobalt society, Kobalts only war against the other intelligent races. Although Ancestors have lives of intrigue and corruption there is never war between Superfamilies. The largest remembered organized Kobalt military force fought sixty years ago, when three Superfamilies allied together and combined their armies in a nearly successful attempt to conquer Arlinac Mountain.
Kobalts tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Melee and Shoot.
As warriors, Kobalts tend to wear hard leather armor. For missile weapons they use crossbows or devices that launch harpoons using springs (either small hand-held versions or larger ones like wheelbarrows). At melee range they fight with claws and teeth, or with a variety of weapons.
Adult Beavers average 1.8 meters in height and 65 kilograms in weight. They are the only race whose thumbs are not opposable, and they act the least bipedal. They seldom stand, preferring to sit up--and with their short legs there is not very much difference.
Beavers are vegetarians, and can live off grass, clover and bark, but prefer their more tasty fruits, vegetables, and herbs they cultivate. They hibernate the entire winter.
Beavers normally marry only once, with couples remaining together for life. Beaver pregnancies last eight months, with three to five children per litter. Adulthood is reached in three years. Old age sets in quickly, shortly after turning twenty.
Beavers live along rivers and streams. Beavers are the only animalfolk that decorate their dwellings' exteriors: their dams and lodges feature engraved patterns and built-in sculpture.
Beavers normally settle in "neighborhood" groupings of 10 to 20 families. The chief two or three families will build a dam and lodges; other families will dig burrows in the stream's bank or a nearby riverbank. Beavers live with one family per dwelling, although all dwellings have multiple rooms (at least a damp foyer and a dry room).
Sometimes these neighborhoods are isolated communities of Beavers. In other instances the Beavers settle beside an established settlement of another race, or another race settles next to the Beaver neighborhood. Mixed communities were the norm during the first three Ages, when the Beavers were the primary farmers among the animalfolk races. During the Fourth Age there are fewer Beavers, and other races that farm, which removes the need for mixed communites.
Beavers are unsurpassed at architectural theory, so many non-Beaver settlements hire a Beaver to design fortifications, guild halls, religious buildings, etc.
Most towns and cities of Therions enjoy visits from Beavers living in a nearby river or steam, eager for trade and news.
Beavers appreciate all arts, but are most fond of farming and sculpture. Only Beavers consider farming an art, and Beavers tend to value skill in cooking more than any other race.
Almost all Beavers work as farmers, with large plots of garden vegetables and herbs as well as fields of fruit trees or corn. Beavers are unrivaled farmers, aided by their need for few (if any) tools and their instinct for optimal irrigation design. A few Beavers also work in other professions, most notably spicers.
Beavers are the least aggressive of the animalfolk races. Most Beavers normally carry neither weapons nor armor, but they will arm and armor themselves to defend their dwellings. Because they swim so much, Beavers normally go unclothed except for a belt to put pouches upon. But all Beavers own clothing for "dressing up".
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Beavers tend to have more experience than average in the skill and talent of Intuition.
In combat Beavers use spears: short spears inside and long spears outside.
At the start of the Fourth Age, the Creator asked the Beavers how they might serve him by giving of their own time. Most Beavers were truly willing, and thought of worthy ways to dedicate their time to the Creator's service. Yet the question was intended to measure their hearts, and their answers were not immediately significant. Those Beavers who indeed desired to give up their own time to serve the Creator became Bergtrolls: their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
Bergtrolls are humanoids with mouse-like tails who live under or above the mountains of Creagadier.
Bergtrolls enter adulthood at a similar size to adult Therions, although they grow to be much larger. They are quite similar to Therions in appearance, and many Therions tales tell of Bergtrolls who hide their tails and pass as Therions amidst Therions society.
Bergtrolls can enter a meditative trance that allows them to create or embue artistic works with magical properties, an ability called musing. To use musing a Bergtroll must sacrifice of his or her own age: the Bergtroll will age a year or more, with more age drained to create a more powerful enchantment. To limit the power of the item (and thus lose less age) many Bergtrolls create items that have a limited number of uses, or can only be used once per day or week.
With musing a Bergtroll can create any sort of enchantment, as long as it is fitting the topic or theme of the work of art being constructed. Common examples include earrings that aid hearing, clothes that repel dirt and water, gloves that provide immunity to cold or heat, musical intruments that keep other instruments in tune, and paintings that transport people to the pictured location.
Bergtrolls only rarely have children. They age slowly and never die of old age. Bergtrolls tend to double in weight (and almost double in height) every 80 years. Thus, for practical reasons a Bergtroll settlement is home to only Bergtrolls differing by no more than 160 years in age. A Bergtroll who outgrows one settlement will move to a physically larger one. The largest known Bergtroll was 561 years old and almost 13 meters tall (having reached seven 80-year "doubling birthdays"). Bergtrolls of this stature are the probable source of stories of giants in the mountains.
Even though they do not die of old age, Bergtrolls strive act as young adults, and to remain young as long as possible. (Within Arlinac Town some respected adult Bergtrolls even continue to use the childhood versions of their names.)
Bergtrolls always live under or on mountains. They believe living elsewhere would slowly and fatally weaken their constitutions.
An underground Bergtroll dwelling consists of a single passage down to an enormous cavern in which is built a castle of elaborate and fanciful architecture. Each such dwelling is called a "kingdom" since it is ruled by a monarch who swears no outside allegiance. An aboveground Bergtroll settlement is also centered around a castle (even more elegant and airy than those underground) but will also include a small village and its surrounding farmland and pastureland; aboveground settlements are usually part of the kingdom ruled from a nearby underground castle.
Bergtrolls are the only race beside Therions that domesticate livestock. Most Bergtroll families living aboveground raise poultry and own a few sheep and/or goats. A very smal number of Bergtrolls work on ranches (often with Therions) to raise horses, cattle, llamas, and/or camels. Around Arlinac Town members of other races have observed and copied Bergtroll habits of animal husbandry.
Some Bergtrolls live in harmony with Therions and allow them into their dwellings. In these places the Therions usually build around the Bergtrolls settlement, and the Bergtrolls consider their inner area an oasis of high culture with art museums, sculpture gardens, and of course the castle. The Bergtrolls of Arlinac Town similarly (and usually correctly) see themselves as the pillars of the town's artistic endeavors.
All Bergtrolls consider themselves artists. Most Bergtroll art is focused on what they call the "solid arts" of painting, pottery, sculpture, architecture, candle making, metalworking, and weaving, although some Bergtrolls are fond of the "airborne arts" of poetry, music, and theatre.
Bergtrolls value gems and jewels. Most are hoarded in castle treasure vaults, but some are made into elaborate and delicate jewelry. Bergtrolls also value precious metals, both for jewelry and to make gold, silver, or platinum threads for the embroidery in their elegant clothing.
Religious activity in Bergtroll society is part of their artistic culture. Besides worshipping the Divine Beings or Powers, Bergtrolls have personified the "Muses" granting inspiration and skill of each art form and developed a rich tradition of meditative activities (involving thought, breathing, and movement) believed to help the artist imitate or identify with the appropriate Muse to optimally create each art form. Even though Bergtrolls do not believe these Muses are real creatures, Bergtrolls act so much as if the Muses are real that a casual observer would think the actions or artistic creation were genuine religious worship.
Bergtrolls tend to excel at whatever they attempt and often act with a confidence that members of the other intelligent races find haughty.
Bergtrolls are easily affected by fads and temptations. In Bergtroll society it is more honorable to be an "Outsider" with perfected self-control and independent rationality of opinion, but many Bergtrolls succumb to their natures and become "Insiders" who are part of the homogenous crowd. Insiders are believed to lose access to the Muses, becoming fit for only farm or ranch labor instead of art.
Bergtroll society is equally comfortable with violence as with luxury. Bergtrolls are known for their strict legal codes and unwavering senses of justice. When prompted, Bergtrolls will leave their settlements to fight as an army.
Bergtrolls tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Bargain/Wonder and Perception/Etiquette.
Bergtrolls have no typical style as warriors, except for fighting with beautiful skill and finesse.
At the start of the Fourth Age, the Creator asked the Beavers how they might serve him by giving of their own time. Most Beavers were truly willing, but a few only pretended to be willing to give up their time for the Creator's sake. The question was intended to measure their hearts, and those Beavers not truly willing give up their own time became the Seemly Ones. Their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
The Seemly Ones are physically tall and radiant. Until old age they are lovely of face, but when old their features become hideous. However, Unseemly prefer to maintain a constant illusionary disguise that makes them appear to be an exceptionally handsome or beautiful superior version of Therions or Bergtrolls.
For most of the Fourth Age the "Seemly Ones" (saying their true name was avoided) were a minor nuisance, a source of trouble avoidable by anyone with enough caution and knowledge.
Then, one hundred and six years ago, all the Seemly Ones united in an enormous war against the other intelligent races. That war was named the "Trooping War" because of how the Unseemly marched in formation, apparently flaunting their solidity and activity compared to their traditional reliance on illusion and sleep.
The Seemly Ones won many victories in that war. But the war concluded with the Seemly Ones being nearly exterminated. The survivors have since been called the "Unseemly".
Occasionally trouble is still caused by one of the few surviving Unseemly. However, when this happens the interference of the Unseemly is seldom discovered. The surviving Unseemly have taken to extreme secrecy while competing in games that use members the other intelligent races as pawns. The Unseemly are practiced at working from the shadows to sow confusion and discord.
The Unseemly are able to create illusions by draining time from members of the other intelligent races. This ability is called chronistry. The victim must be asleep or unconscious. The Unseemly decides upon an illusion to create before initiating chronistry: the illusion's duration equals the twice amount of time drained from the victim. Chronistry also keeps the victim in a deep and dreamless sleep, a trance in which the victim ages very slowly and needs no nourishment.
Historically, chronistry was most commonly done by luring members of the other intelligent races to visit an Unseemly settlement, where the visitor was treated to splendid entertainment before being offered drugged food to put them to sleep. Chronistry then caused the visitor to enter a suspended state for three to five years: the visitor would awaken outside and outdoors, shocked to discover the rest of the world had experienced years gone by, and with pockets full of gold coins or disturbing jewelry that would turn into dust at the next sunrise.
Less commonly, an Unseemly would steal babies and use chronistry on them all the way to adulthood. When finally awake, these "tall babes" would be mature in body but still a newborn in mind. They would either remain in the Unseemly settlement permanently as servants, or be returned to their homes decades after their parents' generation had died of old age.
The Unseemly are immune to poison and disease. They are hurt by contact with iron, and have a phobic dislike of stale food. The Unseemly are notably stronger at dusk and dawn, and try to do most of their work then.
Note that chronistry is almost the opposite of musing. Bergtrolls voluntarily sacrifice their own age to truly enhance artwork. Unseemly take someone else's age to create illusionary beauty.
Unseemly have few children. Most births are twins. Children develop quickly compared to the other younger races: an Unseemly is fully mature at a dozen years of age.
Once mature, the passage of time does not age an Unseemly. Instead, it physically ages as more and more lies are believed about it. These lies must be "facts" someone else cares about and for which no one knows the truth.
Long ago the first Seemly Ones enjoyed eternal youth by kept nothing secret: with no truths hidden, the Unseemly could remain young forever. However, the Unseemly now desire old age more than youth and use illusion and guile to create lies whenever possible.
Older Unseemly become ugly, bent, and physically frail--but also develop impressive strength of mind. They can focus their thoughts so well they become resistant to distraction, interruption, and hypnosis.
Before the Trooping War, the Seemly Ones lived in large settlements under barrows, mounds, and small hills, often deep inside large forests. The interiors of these settlements were decorated by illusion much more than crafted items. Those who visited these places before the war were only shown a few faniciful and illusionary hours of entertainment before being put to sleep as victims of chronistry.
Since the Trooping War the Unseemly are often hunted, so they have become very secretive about their dwellings. Few, if any, still live in the traditional large settlements under small hills. The Unseemly take especially great care to keep the location of their dwellings secret when they lure home a befuddled visitor.
Unseemly settlements, even abandoned ones, will invigorate nearby wild animals but sicken nearby domesticated animals.
Unseemly art is enignmatic because the Unseemly enhance their appearance and dwellings with illusion.
No one knows why the Seemly Ones "went bad" and started the Trooping War. A powerful and mischievous invidivual might slowly become malicious and cruel over time, but what could quickly change an entire race?
Regarding the few Unseemly who survived the Trooping War, who can say how twisted they are? They are untrusted and stay hidden.
The only significant clue is the recent discover that, at least after the Trooping war, most Unseemly worship Big Blackie. However, this information is incomplete and unreliable--based upon what is proclaimed or confessed by those few Unseemly who have been captured during the past hundred years.
The Unseemly tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Stealth and Exit/Escape.
As warriors, the Unseemly tend to use blunt melee weapons disguised by illusion to look like graceful and jeweled rapiers and daggers. They wear any type of armor.
Adult Squirrels average 1.2 meters in height and 3 kilograms in weight. They are quite bipedal but do not stand up for resting or running.
Squirrels have exceptional small-motor coordination and are unparalleled climbers. They tend to be especially vain about their tails, which they keep meticulously groomed.
Squirrels are collectors by nature, and find jewels and gems especially worth hoarding. They especially value having employment as jewelers or gemcutters.
Most of their diet is nuts and berries, although they enjoy eggs and will at times eat meat. Squirrels hibernate sporadically during the winter, sleeping for a few days at a time but otherwise normally active and social.
Squirrels may marry more than once; couples sometimes separate after their children are grown. Squirrel pregnancies last three months, with an average of four children per litter. Only Squirrels are able to have two litters in one year, although this does not happen often. Adulthood is reached in one year, and old age at forty.
Squirrels live in treehouses. Their other buildings are also in the trees. Depending upon the building's use, it may be little more than a floor with a short railing or it may be a sprawling structure with many rooms, floors, stairways, and corridors.
Squirrels have treehouse shops for selling goods to other Squirrels. Like a Badger, a Squirrel crafter or merchant often sets up a pavilion in the nearest village or town to sells his or her wares to non-Squirrels.
Most towns and cities of Therions have numerous Squirrel residents, living in small treehouses near the settlement's walls or outer borders (either just inside or just outside, as the Therions request).
Squirrels consider themselves the most fashionable of all the races, with the defining taste in any art. During the first three Ages they somehow established themselves as the leaders and connoisseurs of every art form, with the exception of sculpture (much to their annoyance). Squirrel taste dictated what was the fashionable and proper styles for hunting, weaving, clothing, dance, etc. During those centuries the most heated debates of artistic propriety involved painting, the art form of which the Squirrels themselves are most fond.
Squirrels seldom wear armor, preferring to flee into trees and attack with ranged weapons than to face a foe in melee combat. Wealthy Squirrels often wear colorful clothing of various styles, although never of a style that would restrict movement. Poorer Squirrels, especially those farming, usually only wear a tunic.
Squirrel society features many fancy social events at which guards are hired to dispel the fear of wearing clothing that restricts movement. Words cannot justly describe the sight of a party of wealthy Squirrels dressed in pompous extravagance.
Among Squirrel entertainers it is most socially acceptable for males to be acrobats and females to be musicians. Squirrels are the only race that considers limners (sign painters) to be highly respected artists, and even today the most sought-after limners are Squirrels.
Like all animalfolk, Squirrel religion focuses on the Divine Beings and almost ignores the Powers, since there were Squirrels back when Yarnspinner was the only Power.
Traditional Squirrel legends say that the Creator, Victor, and Vigor resemble animalfolk. The Creator is like a Fox, which is why the world seems so haphazard, full of dangers, and in general messed up. Victor is like a Beaver, and Beavers are so industrious because they share Victor's desire to build according to a plan. Vigor is like a hungry giant weasel. (At this point the other animalfolk normally ask, "Huh? There are no intelligent giant weasels." The Squirrels reply, "This one is.") Squirrel religion features stories in which opposing characters are haphazard, industrious, or destructive.
Squirrels tend to have more experience than average in the skills and talents of Climb and Dodge.
As warriors, Squirrels tend to use slings and thrown hatchets, attacking from the safety of trees or roofs.
At the start of the Fourth Age, the Creator asked the Squirrels how they might serve him by giving of their own wealth. This confused the Squirrels, most of whom would be happy to give things to the Creator but were unsure how to physically do that. A few Squirrels thought of worthy answers, but the question was intended to measure their hearts and their answers were not immediately significant. Those Squirrels who were truly willing to give from their own wealth to serve the Creator became Pixies: their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
Pixies are tiny humanoids who change appearance and gender as they mature. Most live symbiotically in the settlements of Therions.
Pixies love children, will play with a child for hours, and are very distracted by seeing or meeting an unfamiliar child.
Pixies are naturally nocturnal, but if they live near children will become diurnal to be awake when the children are playing. This change takes several weeks, so there are many stories of homes with a new Pixie enduring hardship because the Pixie wakes up the children (or sometimes only the youngest child) frequently during the night with music, sing-song, or tossing toys into the crib.
Pixies are almost immune to discomfort or harm caused by cold or heat. They never develop frostbite and are substantially fireproof.
Pixies are able to cooperate to accomplish a laborious task much more quickly than logically possible. They call this ability laboritry. Laboritry can only be used to create a gift or perform a service for a non-Pixie. Each Pixie is only able participate in laboritry once per month.
Laboritry has a greater impact when more Pixies cooperate. As examples: three Pixies could use laboritry to sweep every room in a castle in an hour; a dozen Pixies could use laboritry to mend every piece of clothing in that castle overnight; a hundred Pixies could use laboritry to build a castle in one day.
Newly "born" Pixies hatch from a nut from a special nut tree. All Pixies are born as tiny females, about a centimeter tall, with long hair and butterfly-like wings.
Female Pixies mature because of selfishness. Every minute they spend nurturing or enjoying a selfish thought or desire ages them greatly. They grow larger, yet compared to their size their hair shortens and their wings shrink. Their features also become more masculine. Eventually, after many cummulative hours of selfishness, the female Pixie changes into a male Pixie.
Most female Pixies find the idea of becoming a male repulsive. Both to minimize selfishness and because life has extra challenges for someone so tiny, they seek work as a domestic servant in the home of a Therion.
Male Pixies no longer physically change in size or facial bone structure as they mature. Usually this means male Pixies are about two feet tall and have somewhat androgynous faces. Male Pixies age as they travel any distance. To stay young, most male Pixies are lazy and sit around all day. However, male Pixies will travel a reasonable distance to be near one or more female Pixie. The tolerance and affection female Pixies show towards these freeloading and often rude males is enigmatic to non-Pixies, especially considering how female Pixies always speak of masculinity as inferior.
As male Pixies they age they become gnarled and even stronger. Their skin becomes slightly wood-like. They grow long, white beards and hair. Male Pixies are incredibly strong for their size, and will fight fiercely if attacked. They will even shed their reluctance to travel and organize into an army if such behavior is required to defend the settlement in which they live.
When a male Pixie has aged so much that his beard touches the ground, he dies. From where he is buried (a Pixie would say "planted") a nut tree quickly grows in a single year. The tree's first crop of nuts (typically in the tree's second year) yields only a few nuts, all of which hatch into newborn Pixies; afterwards it is a normal nut tree. Most male Pixies want to be planted in a yard or park near where they lived, but some desire to be a tree far away, by the seashore, or a waterfall, or high in the mountains.
Pixies avoid showing affection except in extreme circumstances. Female and male Pixies never show affection to each other; non-Pixies are unsure if Pixie reproduction even involves physical contact between females and males. But a few stories share that a very aged male Pixie may give a farewell kiss to the Therion(s) whose home or yard he has lived in, to express a lifetime of thanks for kind hospitality. Other stories say a female Pixies may kiss a Therion who saves her life.
Most female Pixies live in a Therion home. Usually the Pixie helps with domestic chores in exchange for food and clothing, and occasional respectful gifts of a special dessert or some brightly colored ribbon. Some Therion families pay the Pixie by giving her time to play with the family's children.
But these arrangements vary from place to place, based upon what a female Pixie has heard from other Pixies about how such arrangements are properly made. In some locations female Pixies only help with gardening, and in certain place giving a special gift to a Pixie is perceived as a serious insult and would cause the Pixie to seek a new home. The female Pixies in Arlinac Town believe they should each have a small room of their own; they are quite proud of their rooms even if most are a windowless section of an attic or basement.
Female Pixies are faithful helpers and industrious housekeepers, and can be very picky when choosing a home. Female Pixies approach their domestic work by breaking down tasks into small pieces: they enjoy setting small goals and crossing items off a to-do list. A few female Pixies chose the home of a Bergtroll or Dweorg who lives above ground, with a similar relationship with their host family.
Most people who enjoy the domestic or gardening help of having a female Pixie in the home also suffer the imposition of one or more male Pixies loafing about in the dwelling or yard. Usually the help of the female Pixie, gifts of wine from the male Pixies, and the future promise of a nut tree are enough to make Pixies welcomed in any Therion settlement.
Legends tell of some Pixies living in the forest in settlements comprised only of Pixies. These "Tree Folk" wear little or no clothing and use laboritry much less than their urban cousins.
Pixie clothing styles vary greatly from place to place, depending upon what local Pixie culture considers appropriate.
Pixies of both genders value Transmutery, and view it as the highest form of art. Male Pixies also consider brewing and distilling to be arts. Pixies are especially famous for their mushroom wines.
Male Pixies have invented many games and mental puzzles to occupy their time while sedentary. The most widely played game, Board of Battle Hammer Craft, involves storytelling using brass miniatures, hand-drawn maps, and dice.
Pixies are very secretive about their stories and philosophies. A few times each year all the female Pixies in an area will travel to a nearby forest for religious reasons; what happens is never divulged to non-Pixies.
A few non-Pixie legends describe wars between Pixies and Mer, and tell of an entire of grove of nut trees flowing into battle on behalf of the "Tree Folk" Pixies.
Everyone knows that male Pixies are fearless warriors. Very often the act of going to war has enough travel to age them mortally: they perceive it far more honorable to die in combat than to survive the war with only a few days or weeks of steps remaining. In combat Pixies use any type of weapon, provided it is small enough for them. They almonst never wear armor.
Pixies tend to have more experience than average in the skill and talent of Transmutery.
At the start of the Fourth Age, the Creator asked the Squirrels how they might serve him by giving of their own wealth, and most Squirrels were very willing to do so (although confused about how). The Creator's question was intended to measure their hearts, and those Squirrels unwilling to give from their own wealth became the Mer: their physical appearance changed and they gained a new ability.
The Mer are a race of amphibious humanoids. Mer have gills in addition to lungs, and can breathe water as well as air. When breathing air they are humanoid. When breathing water their bodies change from the waist down: their hips and legs become like the tail of a large eel.
Mer have pointed teeth, webbing between their fingers, and widely varying height. (They average the same height as Therions, but many are much smaller or larger.) Their skin is a pale yet bright green: the color of ocean water over a reef or a lake with the smallest amount of algae. Adult males are hairless except for a beard like fine seaweed. Adult females have hairless faces and long scalp hair like fine seaweed. The bones of an Mer are very light and strong, allowing them to swim quickly when in the water as well as move with great agility when on land.
Most Mer live underwater and never have contact with members of the other intelligent races. Those Mer that are encountered by non-Mer are usually treasure hunters, or pirates and bandits seeking to raid and steal.
Mer have sweet voices that can lure unsuspecting members of the other intelligent races. This ability is hypnotic, not magical.
Mer are also able to sacrifice other people's wealth to hoard luck. They call this ability fortunosity.
To use fortunosity, a Mer must have wealth that more properly belongs to someone else: valuables stolen, plundered or unearthed. The Mer displays these before another Mer in an elaborate ritual. At the ritual's conclusion the wealth vanishes and the Mer performing fortunosity gains luck: the Mer picks one or more skills to each receive a +1 bonus the next time they are used. One additional skill is made lucky for each 100 coins of wealth (roughly two months' unskilled wages). Each skill can only be given one bonus, and each bonus will individually expire in a month's time: the Mer must use it before then or it is gone. Mer can instinctively feel their fortunosity state: it requires no effort for a Mer to mentally keep track of how many bonuses he or she has remaining and when each will expire.
The second Mer who witnesses the fortunosity ritual must be awake but does not actively participate. Evil or outcast Mer can perform fortunosity in front of a chained captive. Because fortunosity requires another Mer's presence, Mer who leave Mer society to travel as pirates, bandits, or treasure hunters always work in small groups.
The word fortunosity pokes fun at how the English word "fortune" describes both wealth and luck.
Fortunosity adds an element of unpredictability to an encounter with a lone Mer. The PC cannot estimate how dangerous a Mer is by studying his or her weapons, armor, and physical stature.
A GM who is careful not to abuse the plot device can have an NPC Mer make use of skill bonuses to subdue or escape from the PC. Classic "heroic opera" pulp stories and films are full of villains who use some trick to capture the protagonist, or to slip away to return and fight another day. Indeed, having some trick prepared often justifies why the villain does not kill the hero or heroine, or why the villain refuses to delegate and must be personally present at the scene of the crime.
The GM may wish to change the rules so that a Mer can hoard sequential bonuses for a skill, as long as each use of fortunosity only provides one bonus to any skill. For example, a Mer could use fortunosity three different times duing a month to give his or her Exit/Escape skill a +1 bonus the next three times that skill is used.
Note that fortunosity is almost the opposite of laboritry. Pixies voluntarily do great work to give wealth to someone else. Mer take somoene else's wealth to empower themselves.
The Mer are a secretive race. Most live their entire life in an elaborate city deep underwater. They are known to reproduce like fish, using eggs. They have many children. But how they form families, raise their children, or grow up is unknown.
Mer children are never seen by members of the other intelligent races. Only extremely rarely do Mer women leave their underwater cities.
Most scholars believe that Mer society contains a majority of peaceful members and an active, aggressive minority. The peaceful Mer only use fortunosity once, sacrificing the "donations" of willing relatives as part of an arrival-of-adulthood ritual. The aggressive Mer use fortunosity as often as possible and fight viciously to claim and hold positions of authority in Mer society. However, even the normally peaceful Mer are temperamental: like the oceans and seas they inhabit, they can be moody, sensitive, and unpredictable.
Mer underwater cities have a beauty and splendor generously described in Mer ballads and stories. Occasionally a non-Mer hears these songs and stories while a captive of a pirate or bandit group.
The Mer are great net fishers, and Mer settlements also keep schools of domesticated fish. The Mer eat primarily seafood and strange vegetables grown in underwater gardens. Some Mer who live near where rivers join the sea also domesticate fowl.
The Mer do no mining. They make little use of precious metals.
Mer culture values "common art" that involves creating beauty and narrative from common materials. It focuses on pottery, sculpture, cooking and weaving. All Mer are proficient with a variety of tools and consider themselves crafters.
Complimenting "common art" is "liquid art": in Mer culture the greatest art is alchemy, and if legends are even partly true then the Mer alchemists who live in underwater cities have alchemy expertise far beyond the members of other races.
Mer feel disdain towards accumulating personal treasure or using rare materials in art. Perhaps they view fortunosity's sacrificing of wealth as a noble act that purifies the world?
Mer bred very quickly and believed the world has troubles because everyone is competing to fill it.
Mer tend to have more experience than average in the skill and talent of Alchemy.
In combat the Mer usually wear no armor and use nets, spears, and crossbows. Their fortunosity bonuses help compensate for their lack of metal weapons and armor.
Each guild independently governs its own district within Arlinac City. In many ways the city is effectively five smaller adjacent cities. For example, within each guild district are different zones of governance, trade, entertainment, industry, warehouses, education, parks, residences, and the guard: these zones fit together within the district as would be expected within a distinct city.
Matters that concern the entire city are dealt with by a City Council that consists of one member of each guild and one member of each noble house. Since there are five guilds but only four noble houses, the guilds can out-vote the nobles.
The five guilds are The Cart Users, The Plain Folk, The Navigators, The Glittering, and The Obsidian Association
Note here
The Cart-Users is a guild of inventors, heavy industry, and servants. It includes braziers (bronze smiths), copper smiths, iron smiths, armorers, weapon smiths, stone quarriers, carters, and janitors/servants.
Nearly all of its members are Dweorgs. A few are Therions.
The guild derives its name from its heraldic symbol which is worn on tabards by guild members on formal occasions. The symbol is a grid ("table") of four squares, each square representing one of the four elements. In each of the four squares are two symbols: a large, centered symbol that depicts the "raw form" of that element (earth, air, fire, and water) and a small symbol in the lower right corner for the "more useful form" of that element (ore, wind, electricity, steam).
Most members of the Cart-Users see their work as altruistic. They purpose to improve life through crafting, building, and keeping industry going. They desire to help protect the city by supporting the manufacture of arms and armor.
The guild loyally supports research in alchemy, electricity, machinery, and transmutery. Fame and status in the guild are primarily based upon how helpful a member's inventions have proven to be towards improving city life, although a few of the guild's metalsmiths have such skill that they have earned great esteem in the guild even though they are not inventors.
The Cart-Users is the only guild with guild-funded education for both youth and adults. Poor members can receive free training in the etiquette and skills needed for servant or janitorial work. Apprenticeships in the more esteemed guild crafts are available for a fee.
The Cart-Users makes few formal alliances, believing that it is prudent to avoid antagonizing potential allies. Its current leadership believes that even temporary trade treaties bring as much trouble as help.
The guild's land is the district on the northeast slope of the mountain, above the Tournament Grounds. A large number of shops face the main roads along the edges of the district.
The Cart-Users, like the other four guilds, does have an "inner district" surrounded by a wall. However, the Cart-Users' wall is a thick, low stone wall with many breaks that serves primarily as a symbolic border of private guild space. A large amount of pedestrian and cart traffic crosses between the inner district to the outer district during the workday as ores are brought in to the smiths and their products brought out to the shops.
The guild also has claimed the steep slope north of their district (but south of the Theatre) as its "launch slope". Mechanical siege engines and other elaborate devices are tested on this slope.
The Cart-Users guild governs itself completely democratically. Every decision is made using a vote of all members present at the guild meeting. Those in the guild who are often away from Arlinac Town to sell their wares complain about this system, but have not yet proposed a better replacement.
The judicial system of the Cart-Users reflects its professions' focus on weapons and armor. Trials are settled by ritual combat, sometimes with proxies ("champions") allowed to fight in someone's place. The conditions of the combat vary: the guild magistrates follow traditional precedents to decide how the combat should be unbalanced to fairly reflect the most probable justice within the situation (including evidence if a formal criminal investigation has occurred). For example, if Dwardit claims Vrughin stole his goat on a certain evening, but Vrughin has a well-supported alibi, Dwardit can force a trial by combat to legally determine Vrughin's guilt but Vrughin would be given an advantage in options for weapons, armor, and use of a champion.
The guild has no systems of punishment: no jails, fines, etc. Instead, the magistrates meet again after a trial to decide upon a specific, sanctioned method of private vengeance or collection of compensation. For example, if Dwardit killed Vrughin's brother then Vrughin might be authorized to hunt down Dwardit and kill him. Or Dwardit stole Vrughin's ring then Vrughin might be authorized to get back the ring or a specified equivalent monetary compensation.
There are a handful of Kobalts living in Arlinac who have left their race's way of life and evil behavior and have secretly joined the Cart-Users. (false)
If you want to buy a Sthelmi, the Cart-Users is as useful a place to ask around as the Obsidian Association--and definitely better than the Grate Family, which might shun you for such an inquiry into Dweorgish history! (true)
The Cart-Users has been pressing the Field Family to start including combats between clockwork monsters among the Stadium's attractions. (true)
A notable member of the Cart-Users lost his wife to illness, but then build a mechanical wife to replace her! (false)
The Cart-Users is having trouble dealing with a rash of recent thefts: someone has been stealing "clockwork golems" both from unguarded machines and by knocking out the person using a golem-powered machine. (true)
A surly group of Dweorgs within the Cart-Users only will speak to each other. I've heard they are from the other Dweorg family who occupied Arlinac Mountain during the Age of Dragons, and are part of a scheme to someday recapture the mountain for their family! The other Dweorgs know this but allow them to participate in the guild to better keep an eye on them. (true)
Most stone quarriers excavate stone from within Arlinac Mountain, and sometimes they meet an underground monster that pursues them back towards the surface. (true)
The Plain Folk is a guild of crafters and farmers. It represents house painters, chandlers (candle makers), laundrers, scribes, soap makers, textile workers, barbers, bakers, plumbers, confectioners, limners (painter of signs and heraldic devices), dressmakers, locksmiths, sculptors, midwives, farmers (including beekeepers, vintners, and spicers), leather workers, house builders (of wood and stone), thatchers, and all manner of entertainers.
Therions, Dweorgs, and Bergtrolls are about equally represented. A few members are Pixies.
The Plain Folk rightfully see themselves as the backbone of the city. This guild oversees both farming and the light industry professions. It values keeping Arlinac a large, safe city. It is by far the most populous guild: even though Arlinac imports much of its grain its farmers still outnumber those who live within the city walls.
The Plain Folk encourage politics at both the city and guild level to be "less squabbling, more shopping".
The Plain Folk say they cooperate with the other guilds, but this "cooperation" often involves deals that favor the Plain Folk. Nevertheless, a lopsided deal with the Plain Folk is often better than no deal. Thus woodcutters from the Navigators harvest lumber for Plain Folk farmers and house-builders, and carters from the Cart-Users transport goods for Plain Folk shop owners. Much of the Plain Folk's influence in city politics is from their potential threat of imposing sanctions against upon guild.
Most Plain Folk value an honest and simple life, which they call "down to earth".
The guild's land is the district on the west slope of the mountain, below the Glittering and above the Caravan Grounds. A broad street with two long cul-de-sacs allows travelers through the city to make a small detour off the main road and have access to most of the Plain Folk shops.
The district has walls around its inner area. This inner area is mostly residential but also contains guild houses, warehouses, and parks. The walls are high and monitored from several watch towers, for they have proved useful in preventing trespassing from the Caravan Grounds during trade festivals. Only guild members, or visitors escorted by guild members, are allowed within the walls.
The Plain Folk is governed by a council of seven. Each Autumn a contest is held within the guild to grow the largest healthy examples of seven vegetables (pumpkin, zucchini, watermelon, carrot, tomato, cabbage, and pepper). Active members of the council are given titles corresponding to their winning vegetable (The Honorable Pumpkin, The Honorable Zucchini, etc.)
The council has established a list of crimes with corresponding punishments: the more preventable the crime, the harsher its consequence. The actual judicial process of investigating crimes and enforcing punishments is handled by the district watch, which also polices the district during trade festivals. Members of the district watch with nothing else to do have been known to help other Plain Folk carry goods from place to place, to the disgruntlement of the Cart-Users carters.
In recent years the Plain Folk have been criticized by other guilds for using exile as a punishment too often, simply to avoid investigating criminal cases thoroughly.
The Bergtrolls and Dweorgs of the Plain Folk often keep their wealth in the banks, since they worship Speleoth. But the Therions usually keep their wealth at home or in warehouses. This is part of why the guild's walls are high and patrolled. (true)
The farmers are planning to extort the city! Next wheat harvest they will export or burn all the new grain, and charge the city high prices for the warehouses full of stored grain. (false)
The chandlers are very happy that glow moss has become rare and expensive. The lamps built by the Cart-Users were hurting their trade. (true)
Some of the Bergtroll soap makers use musing to create enchanted soap. It can clean any mess! (true)
The Navigators is the guild of outdoor professions based on land or water: woodcutters, carpenters, bowyers, fletchers, hunters, herbalists, scouts, pet collectors, shipwrights, sailors, appraisers, fishermen, and divers that collect sponges and oysters.
Almost all of its members are Therions.
The guild is politically weak, having neither notable numbers nor wealth. The Navigators seem content despite their lack of influence, and prioritize hunting, fishing, and drinking over political involvement.
The Navigators are the only guild which existed as a group before becoming a guild of Arlinac. Previous to the reign of Gara Gara they were an association of river-men and boatmen who made a living along the Arlin River.
Their district lies at the southern base of the mountain. Some land north of the main road is surrounded by the official district walls. The land south of the main road has no walls, and goes steeply downhill to the river and a network of floating docks and warehouses.
All of the docks have a thick wall and gate that separate the dock from the rest of the city. These protect the city from slavers and pirates, and protect river merchants from city-dwelling thieves and spies.
The foundation of the Navigators' society is their relationship with a magical being named Old Man River. Many members of the Navigators are deeply distrustful of outsiders since outsiders are not under Old Man River's jurisdiction and thus unaccountable for their secret crimes. On rare occasions a Navigator must travel away from the Arlin River; among the group's traditional songs are laments about separation from Old Man River his beautiful waters.
The Navigators, through experience, have codified the morality enforced by Old Man River. They have named it the Code of Harmony. The Code of Harmony includes as crimes both thefts of property and thefts of honor. Insulting someone is a crime unless the person insulted admits the truth of the slur. Insults about sailing or fishing skill will often provoke a duel.
The guild collects few taxes and has correspondingly scanty services (a pitiful wall, a tiny district watch, etc.). Some people claim that most of the guild's tax money goes to support forestry camps outside the city.
Social standing among the Navigators is based upon renown at hunting and fishing. A small home with an impressive display of trophy heads upon the walls is more esteemed than a large home lacking such trophies.
Every six months Old Man River appoints a new Autocrat to rule the guild. Judicial matters are handled by volunteer teams of four judges, approved by the Autocrat, who usually keeps his predecessor's judges unless a judge wishes to leave the office.
A farmers whose land is troubled by a monster is supposed to go to the Block Family for help. But often it is faster to get paid help from the hunters in the Navigators. (true)
The Navigators do not have a permanent guild hall. Guild business happens aboard a different boat each meeting. (true)
Strange lights have come from a large boat that has sat at the western dock for the past month. A mad scientist owns the boat and is doing dangerous experiments. Why don't the Navigator's send him away? (false)
The largest warehouse in the Navigators district is guarded by a trophy head of a basilisk mounted on a wall. (false)
The Glittering is the smallest guild, consisting of goldsmiths, silversmiths, illuminators, jewelers, portrait painters, gemcutters, and glass blowers.
Most of its members are Bergtrolls but a few are Dweorgs or Therions.
As the creator of luxuries for the wealthy, the social structure of the Glittering expects all of its members to have earned or inherited affluence. Thus this guild has great economic influence despite its small population.
The wealthy of Arlinac see the Glittering as a vital source of luxuries. The poor of Arlinac see the Glittering as an abhorrent collection of stuffy, well-to-do snobs famous for violent internal political rivalries. Both cases of stereotyping are more emotional reaction than practical: those with political authority rarely love or hate the Glittering, which happily makes its share of short-term trade treaties.
The Glittering district is along the upper south face of Arlinac Mountain. It is the only guild that surrounds all of its district within walls. The Glittering is the only district whose walls are wide enough for a district watch to walk atop them on patrol.
The architecture inside the Glittering district is a great contrast to their blocky, whitewashed, fortified wall. The guild's coffers are funded by a tax on property. Since one of the many unwritten rules of Glittering society is that everyone must be too wealthy to politely talk about how wealthy they are, yet property taxes are public record, fanciful architecture for homes and shops has become the primary method of flaunting wealth. Unlike the Plain Folk, members of the Glittering own a distinct home and shop. Both are ideally in a tall, airy building with sweeping curves and large windows, expressing frivolity through bright colors, extensive ornamentation, and an overall shape that appears to defy gravity.
The Glittering is run by its own parliament, which appoints a "Borderminister" who oversees maintenance and defense of the guild's walls and watch. The seven-person parliment consists of the most skilled practicioner of each of the guild's seven crafts. During one month each year, anyone living in the Glittering district is allowed to challenge one parliament member to a contest of skill. The remaining six members of parliament judge which contestant demonstrates the most skill in that craft.
The guild has few laws. Most crimes have punishments that involve heavy fines, with exile from the guild to those not wealthy enough to pay.
Anyone alone at night on Glittering streets is probably a thief. People that live in the Glittering don't walk alone after dark, nor do any business schedule deliveries after dark. (perhaps true)
Here's what I think. Gara Gara said he was after wealth, right? And the Glittering folk are all wealthy, right? I bet most of them are Gara Gara's descendants in disguise. Probably not all, one who isn't better watch out! (false)
The city's merchants' and bankers' guild has become increasingly involved in organized crime and the black market. Now the Obsidian Association has both an official wing--the guild for legitimate merchants and bankers--and an unofficial wing--the organization for thieves, fences, and hired brutes.
Therions, Dweorgs, and Bergtrolls are about equally represented in both the official and unofficial wings of the Obsidian Association.
Because the city of Arlinac is so dependent upon imports (including much of its food) the other guilds cannot limit their dealings with the legitimate merchants of the Obsidian Association despite opposition to the criminal wing of the guild.
The Obsidian Association loves to make temporary trade treaties. It is not trusted by the other guilds, but not all of its offers of privileged trade status can be ignored.
The legitimate merchants in the Obsidian Association live in their guild's district on the southern slope of the mountain, below the Glittering and above the Navigators. The lower third of the district, along the main road, is outside the district walls and is has the guild's public shops and banks.
The criminal wing of the Obsidian Association evolved slowly, and has always promoted its own kind of law and order. The entire city is unofficially divided into small Wards, each the territory where one Warden oversees any organized crime, discourages other crime, and charges protection money to vulnerable businesses. The number of Wardens and Wards is not known. Needless to say, the Noble Houses and other guilds strongly oppose having the city divided up in a second, criminal layer of governance.
Many Wardens do not promote crime but instead encourage spying and espionage. Collecting information useful for blackmail is valued, especially if the victim is unaware that his or her secrets have been discovered. Simple burglary is frowned upon. For example, entering and leaving a building undetected while leaving a note would bring small esteem; better would be to break into a building only to gimmick its locks and security system to allow easy future access to those who know the right tricks.
The guild is ruled by a council of merchant chiefs named The Ranseur because of a play on words implying both strength and political nonpartisanship.
The Obsidian Association has a literal "underground economy". It is famous for its large, underground meeting halls full of weapons, trade goods, and provisions. These are occasionally discovered and dismantled by another guild watch. The Obsidian Association then retaliates by dishonoring some above-ground buildings (shaming the buildings and/or their owners in a creative and financially damaging manner). The Obsidian Association maintains an extensive black market. Members may purchase nearly anything for the right price, and when on assignment from the guild may be loaned or given all sorts of equipment.
The word "partisan" refers both to a type of polearm similar to the polearm design named "ranseur" and the formation of rival political parties.
Careful what you say about the Obsidian Association. The walls have ears, and some Wardens don't like rumors or slander. (false)
At least one Warden is a Therion who spends most of his day as a large flying bug. A beetle, I've heard. I don't believe the walls have ears, but they do have bugs. (partly true: non-Wardens spy as bugs)
The setting of Creagadier blends three themes to promote kid-friendly adventures for a single protagonist: fairy tale, steampunk, and wuxia. What is meant by a fairy tale theme?
Although there is no correct answer to the question "What makes a fairy tale?", most fairy tales share four characteristics which Creagadier adopts.
One trait of both fairy tales and fables is that the protagonist meets "people" who talk and are intelligent but not human. Common examples are fairies, elves, giants, and talking animals. Creagadier has four animalfolk races and eight "younger races", as well as a few types of talking monsters.
That main difference between fairy tales and fables is that in a fairy tale the protagonist strives for self-improvement. (Fables, in contrast, usually teach a moral without the main character changing.) Some fairy tale heroes or heroines helping their families escape poverty or the influence of an evil stepmother. Others protagonists experience personal transformation by finding a new role in life or more mature identity. Adventureres in Creagadier experience many types of self-improvement. The most basic PC changes are acquiring new equipment and increasing skill and talent ratings, but stories provide many other kinds of improvement and transformation.
Another difference between fairy tales and fables is that fairy tales feature villains with a small area of influence: an evil stepmother plagues a family, a wicked witch's house darkens a forest clearing, a giant threatens a tiny kingdom, etc. The benefit of keeping the setting so small is that the story can use archetypes without glaring oversimplification. The eldest sibling, who normally has the majority of the responsibility of caring for his parents and a correspondlingly greater inheritance, is never as responsible or fortunate as the youngest sibling. Royalty, even if benevolent, does not end up "ruling" (keeping people in line by example and enforcement) as effectively as the impovershed farmhand or goose-girl. The false hero who tries to steal credit for the true hero's good deeds always has his deceit exposed by a talking cow or fairy godmother who is exactly what she seems. (If the setting was larger, we would wonder where the successful eldest siblings, royalty, and tricksters were.) In Creagadier the villains threaten a family, a building, a guild district, or perhaps all of Arlinac Town; the story is never about saving the entire world. The PC is always the adventure's central character, but in many stories the PC assists a surprisingly successful quest begun by a poor widow suffering injustice or a virtuous but oppressed child.
Fairy tales also have a unique plot structure. Instead of the novelistic stages of exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and dénouement, a fairy tale has a sequence of episodes typically linked to a sequence of characters, challenges, or items. Within each episode the action is also less logical and predictable than in most novels. Protagonists in fairy tales usually use wonder more than logic, courage more than strength, and integrity more than strategy. In fairy tale settings many horrible things exist, but these can be overcome by observation, valor, and following the advice of good helpers. Creagadier need not be special with respect to this trait: most RPG adventures feature stories structured more like fairy tales than novels or fables.
How are the rules of Dvreem and the setting of Creagadier designed to promote fun and entertaining adventures for a lone PC? The setting's three themes contribute in complimentary ways.
The fairy tale theme encourages PC exploration and serendipitous NPC assistance.
Exploration can be a tricky aspect of RPG adventure, because both delight and confusion arise from encountering something strange and wondrous. Most Players enjoy meeting the the inexplicably fantastic, but too much that is inexplicable interferes with problem solving.
Many memorable stories include unique aspects of setting (often flora or fauna) that are never explained and do not relate to the larger setting. Why do three dogs with big eyes live under a tree? What makes some footwear immune to the stroke of midnight? Where did the stone-giants that hurl rocks above the Misty Mountains come from? Stories that include the inexplicably fantastic should almost always keep it as decorative setting rather than a potentially useful as a tool by PC or NPC. (The soldier neither needed to blind the dogs nor grant big-eyed-ness to another creature. Cinderella did not flee a second ball naked after leaving all of her fancy clothing and carriage on the palace steps to make their changed states permanent. The giants, so out of place in Middle Earth, only were scenery for Bilbo's travels.)
In other words, stories that include exploration and finding the inexplicably fantastic should give the PC sufficient safe time to observe it, but neither opportunity to tame it nor the need to counteract it.
How do adventure stories make use of the unique and fantastic? There are three basic methods. For all three, things that are unique and apart can contribute to a sense of grandeur, sublimity, or charm. Any effects on skills are readily apparent. Any clues are obvious in hindsight.
Strange environmental effects are common in fairy tale stories: odd terrain, furnishings, or effects. This category of the unique and inexplicable is safely observable, untamable, yet significant. Many stories have featured walls of ice, rivers of lava, rooms filled with mystical darkness, landscapes decorated with levitating stones or buildings, inexplicable winds, gigantic or tiny furniture, thick and demoralizing tendrils of frigid mist, fanciful and floating colorful lights, eerie sounds, or uplifting or nauseating smells. Creatures that are never fought, instead serving as landscape decorations, also fit this category.
Puzzles are another common use of the inexplicably fantastic. The sphynx of Thebes is the most famous example: a unique monster that lives apart from any ecosystem who guards a city (but defeatable by answering a riddle). The West-gate to Moria is another example, since nowhere else do spoken words cause a response in architecture. Puzzles need not be riddles: role-playing games have a lengthy tradition of grim and toothy traps that are as fun to outwit as unrealistic to construct. An infuriating but traditional type of puzzle is the creature that when fought without the proper techniques becomes stronger when wounded or turns into something fiercer when killed.
A third category of the inexplicably fantastic is prophecy. Stories almost never explain where an ancient prophecy came from, or why drinking from a certain stream or fountain grants dreams or visions.
Illusions can fit any of the previous three categories. A ruined tower still decorated by ghostly banners bearing the heraldic devices of its ancient occupants is an environmental effect. A treacherous bog whose strange flowers create an illusion of an idyllic meadow except when music is played is a puzzle. A message written on a cliff face in three-meter tall letters of illusionary fire could be prophecy.
The phrase "grim and toothy traps" pays homage to the series of Grimtooth's Traps books published by Flying Buffalo.
Although in most cases the unique, wondrous, and inexplicable is not usable by PC or NPC, many traditional stories make a single exception that is integral to the story's plot. The protagonist aquires a vitally important item (or, more rarely, an ability) with limited uses through the serendipitous assistance of a helpful NPC.
The items limitation's are a vital part of the story: the protagonist must remain clever and resourceful because his or her special item will only help in a few situations. The lamp provides only three wishes. The elaborate gown vanishes at midnight.
In many computer adventure games, a similar dynamic involves items powered by various elements. As an example, a hero initially fights small, mundane monsters while hearing stories about a nearby fiery dragon. The treasure found after defeating the "boss" small monster contains a Frost Sword that finally allows the hero to fight that dragon. The dragon's hoard includes a Fiery Bow that allows the hero to attack the castle of ice giants. In that castle is a Shocking Mace that is deadly against watery creatures. And so forth. In these stories the monsters are fought by a lone hero instead of the kingdom's army because the hero goes around collecting a small weapon shop's worth of special items, each of which happens to be especially effective in the next stage of the adventure.
Creagadier replaces such elementally-themed items by having most of its monsters associated with a Power. The many monsters created by the Powers have religious origins and are thus best battled with guidance, gifts, or other aid from the Divine Beings or Powers (as well as courage, strength, guile, and skill). If monsters could be fought with only arms and armor then a local militia or other group of warriors would be a better choice for monster extermination than a solo PC. But it is the PC who has been properly equipped, and thus has the chance to become a significant hero or heroine. Yet this equipping (whether guidance, gifts, or other help) is limited, so PC does not grow too powerful too quickly.
Fairy tales seldom include details of political intrigue, but do commonly involve disguises.
The setting of Creagadier includes many common flavors of fairy tale disguises. Some people can wear the appearance of animals (Therions) or other people (Ogres). Some monsters look like normal people (Witches, Wights, and people possessed by Horrors). And even completely normal people might secretly be servants of an evil Power (the champions of Big Blackie or Frosty Kostkey), living apparently boring lives while undermining their town or city.
The GM and Players directly decide and control most of what makes a role-playing game kid-friendly. But the game's design can also help.
The Dvreem rules are simple. Notice that the Player does not even need to be aware what skills his or her character is using! This allows an adult GM to play the game with a child.
The setting of Creagadier involves types of conflict understandable by and important to children. Fairy tales have demonstrated for centuries how children find it reassuring to know stories in which wicked deeds are punished, hurtful secrets are revealed, and wounded people recover and become strong.
The types of evil, violence, and crime in Creagadier are appropriate for a children's adventure story. For example, the majority of monsters and monstrous humanoids are evil because they eat people (Ogres, Kobalts, Arzens, Spiders, dragons, Undead, Puddle Creatures, and most Fell Animals, Winter and Swamp creatures). This is a simplification that many adults find vile and repetitive but most kids find sensible, sufficient, and preferable to motivations involving prejudice, slavery, lust, oppression, or other forms of domination and control found in fiction for grown-ups.
Specific issues that children enjoy are purposefully included. The Player can embellish his or her PC's adventuring with collecting, pets, and robots. Enchanted items of all kinds can exist, most of which are works of art instead of weapons.
Chemstry is a Technology skill that creates "robots". Golems may be entertaining to players who enjoy logical thinking, or useful for parents who want to teach logical thinking to their children. If the GM desires, the chem symbols might even include block-structured programming commands such as a FOR loop, IF conditional, or GOTO statement.
As a child I had a simple robotic toy named a BigTrak. I imagine golems as quite similar simple robots, but potentially dangerous and much more expensive.
The setting's description focuses on topics children have trouble inventing themselves. The setting describes economic and political issues, and encourages the GM to consider many types of dungeons and monsters. Topics that children enjoy inventing themselves, such as new kinds of monsters or dungeon layouts, are given gentle guidance and a blank slate.
The setting purposefully lacks those issues that cause some parents to avoid other role-playing games. Creagadier does not have spells, necromancy, the occult, demons, sexually predacious vampires, or any creatures that draw power from cruelty or bloodshed. The religious themes in Creagadier allow a parent to GM stories that explore vices and virtues, but lack explicit metaphors from actual faiths.
Fairy tale characters usually match one of seven archetypes. In many stories a character fills more than one role (for example, a father could send his daughter on the quest and give her enchanted boots, acting as both patron and item-giver).
An adventure story need not include all of these types of NPCs. However, if the GM is designing a story that includes all but one NPC type, try including an NPC of that missing type as a comic relief character.
The most famous analysis of the roles of fairy tale characters is by Vladimir Propp. This list is strongly based upon his list, but modified to be more appropriate to a role-playing game.
What types of heroes become adventurers in a large town like Arlinac Town? As the GM designs adventures, he or she should consider four typical kinds of urban solo protagonist. The adventure will be more robust and interesting if it includes reasons for all four types of adventurer motivation.
Fairy Tale villains are often complex characters, even in a short story. To create an interesting villain, combine a submotive and motive with a villainous method.
A motive is the villain's general goal. What is this villain trying to do that is causing a problem?
Villainous Motives
Some motives can equally well be physical, social, emotional, or monetary. Building security can be about fortifying a building, becoming socially established, finally dealing with a long-standing annoyance or bad habit, or starting a new business. Ending a threat can be about a threat to body, home, social standing, peace, or finances. Satisfying a need can focus on a real or imagined physical, social, emotional, or monetary need. Gaining freedom can involve escaping imprisonment, succeding despite prejudice, dealing with a festering worry or fear, or establishing financial independence.
Other motives can be applied to family, friends, race, or guild. Each step in the progression from struggling for survival to gaining favor or status to cementing an advantage can be an individual or group effort. Showing off to gain recognition can be done by one person or many. Overcoming or humiliating a rival or a prejudice and ending persecution are best done with allies. Seeking purification is traditionally done alone but can apply equally well to a group.
Others villainous motives are philosophical or religious. A villain might be trying to share a cure in an inappropriate way. The villain might strive to spread a truth but either have a false understanding or be acting wrongly. Some villains even desire to help the needy but do so through immoral methods or see some evil change as "help".
Submotives explain why the villain wants his or her goal. Many are emotional or personality-based excuses use to justify immoral behavior. Usually a fairy tale villain has only one submotive, but an unusually complex character may have more than one.
Often the submotive, not the motive, dominates the villain's personality and the story's conflict. For example, Cinderella is opposed by her step-family's attitude rather than her sisters' plan to acquire socially advantageous marriages.
Villainous Motives
Wicked submotives include anger, conquest, greed, hatred, jealousy, lust, madness, obsession, prejudice, recklessness, revenge, superiority, and vanity.
Other submotives are only evil when acted upon in a rude, immoral, cruel, or manipulative way. Submotives made evil by method include ambition, confusion, desperation, error, fear, foolishnees, illness, justice, loss, rivalry, shame, wealth, and zealotry.
Just because a character has one of those motives and submotives does not make the characte a villain. The "flawed hero" who does good despite suffering from a vice is a very traditional character. For example, both a hero and a villain might be prompted by fear to repaying a family debt before harsh consequences happen. What makes villains stand out is how they strive for their goal. Villains use methods that heroes would shun.
Villainous Methods
Common villainous methods include assasination, blackmail, extortion, theft, slander, planting false evidence, framing the innocent, spreading rumors, creating a mood of mistrust and suspicion, and subverting enemy assets.
Many other methods can in theory be done heroically but are done in much a different manner by villains: eavesdropping, making promises, securing an item or location or flow of resources, breaking and entering, using disguise, wooing romantically, and fortifying assets against enemy subversion.
Next, develop the villain into a more complex character by considering his or her styles of villainy.
Villainous Styles
Is the villain a public or private figure? In many stories the villain is someone the hero has heard of and met, with or without knowledge of the villain's evil ways. Haughty nobles, corrupt guild officials, wealthy merchants, obsessed scientists, and gang leaders make great urban villains. In some stories the PC even has obligations to meet with the villain repeatedly in a non-confrontational setting until evidence is gathered for a final confrontation and challenge.
Does the villain work from the shadows or enjoy public attention?
Is the villain a mastermind, average criminal, or clueless pawn of a bigger villain?
Are the villain's intentions evil, or is the harm done through unintentional consequences?
Does the villain enjoy political or religious authority, or excuse his or her evil deed with political or religious reasons?
Does the villain believe one deed will suffice, or does he or she have a lengthy plan?
Is the villain becoming more evil over time? Is the villain a different kind of evil in disguise?
Finally, determine the villain's timeline and short-term objectives and plans. The PC should earn experience for foiling the villian's short-term plans, not necessarily finding or fighting the villain.
In a RPG most characters are somewhat defined by their skills: in what skills does this villain excel? A suave diplomat, beloved orator, deadly fighter, sneaky spy, famous archer, intelligent master of lore, or skilled tinkerer with machines?
However, the villain's success so far is due to more than skill. What other factors have helped the villain rise to become a threat? Social rank, wealth, beauty, intelligence, generosity?
Whom has the villain rallied by being competent and having a few tricks up his or her sleeve? What are these followers or flunkies like, and how did the villain rise to leadership?
Memorable villains have a primary goal. Usually he or she wants wealth, power, justice, vengeance fame, lust, or some sentimentally valuable property.
The big goal is often secret. Examples...
The villain is involved in more serious schemes than at first appearance. The plans include alibis or methods of escape to avoid responsibility or capture until cumulation when the goal is accomplished.
An unstoppable RPG villain is no fun.
Often the villain's fatal flaw is an addiction that helps defines the villain's personality.
The distinction between submotives, motives, methods, and details of style is my own invention. However, it was the excellent book Heroes of Horror that helped generate such lengthy examples of each.
In general, adventures are made up from six types of events, each fulfilling a specific role.
Scenography events enrich a location by artistic description. These encounters establish a mood, introduce an important building, describe what NPCs are doing or wearing, let the PC overhear a conversation, provide the Player with information as the PC looks at the paintings in a noblewoman's entryway, or in other ways enhance the immediate setting. They encounters add interest, nurture the Player's sense of connection with the story, and help establish a willing suspension of disbelief. They also often provide the clues needed to get through puzzle encounters as safely and effectively as possible. Some Players thrive on scenography encounters, and will needlessly explore simply to see new things.
Dramaturgy events establish links and connections between scenes and events. Many dramaturgy encounters help tie the PC's adventures together. (Perhaps a strange dagger found at the end of one story is recognized by a nobleman in the next story, who asks the PC return it to its rightful owner as the start of a third story, but the recipient turns out to be an oppressed enemy of the nobleman who understands the dagger's presentation to be a threat of Ogre-ish ritual sacrifice!) Other encounters of dramaturgy lay a broader foundation as the Player learns about far-reaching elements of the setting (not immediate enough to be scenography, not yet part of any story): rumors of an upcoming war, news of a terrible approaching storm, information about the behaviors of a religous order, conversations highlighting simmering social unrest caused by changes in taxation during the past decade, a book providing a summary of how noble families have fought over the throne. Most Players prefer short and infrequent dramaturgy encounters, but some are needed for the Player to feel that the PC has a concrete place in a solid fantasy world. Many adventures begin with a dramaturgy encounter: the PC hears a bard sing about a nearby dragon while resting in a tavern, or is summoned to talk with a priest, or witnesses gangs fighting in the streets.
Puzzle events require the Player (or sometimes the only PC) to solve a problem using clues instead of engaging in combat or using the PC's initial inventory items. Puzzles can be physical, such as a dungeon room with traps or a door that will only open if a certain word is spoken. Puzzles can also be social, such as how to gain an audience with the king. A special kind of puzzle encounter is when the PC has the option to build or acquire something that will soon be helpful. Most puzzle encounters should allow the story to continue if the puzzle is not solved, but failure will either lead to an extra red herring encounter or handicap the PC in the next puzzle or combat encounter. Some Players thrive on puzzles. Other players prefer puzzle encounters to be an uncommon change of pace.
Red herring events tempt the PC to waste valuable resources. The PC will have fewer healing potions if he or she fights three extra groups of monsters. The PC might be forced to leave behind a golem if an underground passage goes up a steep staircase instead of directly to the final cavern. The PC might use up an enchanted spyglass's daily power to look through doors only to learn the contents of a storage room. No Players enjoy red herring encounters, but most stories should include one or two so that resource allocation remains a suspenseful part of strategy.
Conflict events involve fighting, whether it be sparring with words, crossing blades, wrestling in a street, or ritualized combat in a gladiatorial ring. Traditionally the most dangerous conflict encounters only appear after scenography or puzzle encounters (allowing the PC a chance to gain one or more situational advantages through previously sucessful observation or problem-solving) and red herring encounters (allowing the PC a chance to loose the advantages provided by his or her limited-use inventory items). Many adventures start with a small conflict encounter: the PC returns home to find a burglar in his house, or saves a young noble from a mugger, or in the streets is attacked by a strangely glowing orange dog. Nearly all adventures feature at least one conflict encounter, for few villains surrender without a fight.
Concluding events serve to transition from one story to the next. They often involve a little bit of every other kind of encounter. But if they include multiple events these lead very quickly from one to another in a quite linear manner, so the Player may not notice that the GM's preparation and actual time spent in storytelling is about equal to any other encounter.
Example Concluding Events: Pursuing the Eloped
After the climactic fight against the bandit leader, the PC finds an underground treasure room with a captive (scenography), but the treasure is gone! The room only holds a hungry prisoner.
After he is released, the former prisoner explains where the treasure went. The bandit leader's daughter recently eloped and stole her father's treasure to pay a ruthless local lord (dramaturgy) the weregild price for her lover's crime. The former prisoner thanks the PC and returns home, lacking the strength to accompany the PC even if promised a share of the treasure.
Tracking the couple requires putting together a few clues in the bandit camp (puzzle). But a misguided attempt (red herring) would break the PC's golem's leg and also slow pursuit so the couple will have reached a town to rest, heal, restock on arrows, and meet with a friend.
If the couple is caught they will put up a brief fight (conflict) and then surrender. If they made it to the town, then whether or not the PC hurts them or takes any treasure their local friend will follow the PC as he or she travels onward and ambush the PC that night (another conflict).
Because of my age, I cannot type "A special kind of puzzle encounter is when the PC has the option to build or acquire something that will soon be helpful" without thinking of The A-Team.
The original list of events types was the Five Room Model from RoleplayingTips.com. Philippe-Antoine Ménard extended this into his Five by Five Method.
The phrase "fantasy steampunk" is nearly meaningless. Many creative authors and illustrators have invented settings that blend magic and technology. In some settings magic fuels technology so that tiny fire elementals power steam engines, or airships are luxurious cabins mounted underneath dragons. In other settings technology fuels magic so that factories churn out not only steam but a magical shield around the city, or mass production allows even beggars to ride flying carpets. In yet other settings either magic or technology is forbidden or carefully guarded lore used only by a few. Perhaps magic or technology are forgotten lore from the ancients whose artifacts are a mysterious alternative to familiar; perhaps an invading army using one must be repelled by the locals using the other.
Nevertheless, through this great diversity of creativity a few themes do give some meaning to the phrase "fantasy steampunk".
Metaphorically, the introduction of machinery and golems into a fantasy setting symbolizes change, romantic scientific dreams, and wierd devices both impossible and replicable. Most of all, the setting needs heroes who are more than warriors: a lone PC is equally valuable if he or she can help society adopt, adapt to, overcome, or recover from a new kind of technology, and constructing or tinkering with technological wonders becomes an important method of problem-solving.
Visually, a fantasy steampunk setting is almost always urban. The city's machines and buildings have brass and rivets, boilers and gears, pipes, valves and thin smokestacks. In some areas of the city streets and machines are especially grimy and sooty, contrasted by other districts where the streets and machines are proudly polished and spotless. A few buildings seem almost alive, especially when deserted at night, because of the soft hum and rattle of lighting, heating or ventilation systems. A city full of politics, intrigue, and crime is better suited to solo PC than a maze full of traps and monsters.
Culturally, a fantasy steampunk setting usually echoes the genteel etiquette of Victoriana, following after the earliest precedents of alternate history steampunk. Any character living outside the slums values art, and in public will comport him- or herself with appropriate propriety. Yet the world is not prim and proper, for there is also an undertone of zaniness: absurd gadgets stand beside (or fly circles around) machines of gleaming grandeur. In other words, a PC artist, craftsman, or noble who dabbles in adventuring can easily make both aspects of his or her lifestyle important to the story.
Economically, a fantasy steampunk setting allows traveling merchants to thrive. In a setting without machinery, most settlements have craftsmen that make all common goods locally, which means only rare and luxury items are worth transporting between towns and cities. However, in a fantasy steampunk setting a "rare" item can be any local inventor's specialty. Suddenly traveling merchants have all sorts of marvels to hawk and peddle. Small quests can focus on non-magical items: a family's unique and sentimental gadget built by granddad is stolen by orcs, or an important prototype device plays a role in political intrigue. Economic issues can form the foundation of adventures very appropriate for a lone PC.
Like fairy tales, steampunk stories often feature things are not what they seem. However, a special steampunk slant to this lesson is that certain forces (often wealthy people) want to turn the city into a big machine and push common people into the role of only being cogs in that machine.
GGG - things are not always what they seem
Creagadier as an Example of Fantasy Steampunk
In Creagadier each Build skill affects society differently. Alchemy is common, but with powerful recipes kept as carefully guarded secrets. Chemstry is a new technology becoming widespread, with more golems working and chems discovered each month. Machinery is shunned, unpredictible, and currently the source of more rivalries and elitism than social benefit. Transmutery is familiar yet challenging, mastered by a respected few.
Transportation, for most people in Creagadier (including Arlinac Town), is unaffected by technology. The common and economical methods of travel are still walking, riding an animal, using a wooden cart on a road, and sailing by boat on the river. Although trains and zeppelins are iconic in steampunk settings they are currently absent.
In many steampunk settings magic and technology both exist and are equally unreliable. In Creagadier, the danger of Kobalt sapping make most enchantments temporary. (Kobalts are common opponents, and any Kobalt can remove all the enchantments from the items an opponent carries.) Unlike most fantasy settings, which are describable as either "high magic" or "low magic" by the commonness of enchanted items, Creagadier is "temporary magic". Enchanted items, especially those made by Bergtroll musing, can be common in Arlinac Town if the GM desires, but most enchantments are expected to be temporary because Kobalts are common foes.
Adventures within Arlinac Town often focus on social tensions, criminal elements, genteel leaders, zany inventors, secret machines, and need for PC problem-solving.
The introductary chapter to the book Sorcery and Steam by Fantasy Flight Games (also reproduced at the end of the excellent City Works by Mike Mearls) was invaluable for writing the above summary of what "Steampunk" means. I have only minimal interest and experience with steampunk, and have not read many books nor seen many movies to personally gain an broad impression of the genre.
How are the rules of Dvreem and the setting of Creagadier designed to promote fun and entertaining adventures for a lone PC? The setting's three themes contribute in complimentary ways.
The steampunk theme allows resource management to replace teamwork among a team of PCs.
The big issue is breadth of character ability. The protagonist(s) in a story should neither be too weak nor too powerful. On one hand, frustration replaces fun if the heroes are too limited to handle many situations. On the other hand, opportinities for suspense vanish if the PCs are too powerful to ever feel challenged.
Most role-playing games solve this problem by focusing on teamwork. A team of adventurers must work together so one PC's weaknesses are covered by the strengths of the other PCs. What a team looks like varies with the setting. In a fantasy setting, the team might need a stout warrior wearing heavy armor, fragile healer who dabbles in exorcisms, and sneaky scout with hairy feet. In a science fiction setting, the team might need a ship captain, weapons expert, engineer who can cook, and telepathic alien whose speech patterns often switch subject and predicate.
An adventure for a solo PC lacks this nice teamwork feature. Yet replacing the entire team with a super-powered PC does not work. The rules and setting must allow a PC with only typical breadth of ability to adventure by providing other methods of covering the character's weaknesses.
The setting of Creagadier uses technology instead of teamwork to help a lone PC overcome a wider breadth of problems without being too powerful.
To start with, the PC can create his or her own technology. The PC can use Alchemy and Machinery to create a "bag of tricks" based upon rumors and guesses about the upcoming adventure. The PC might be able to take over technological resources found during the adventure using Chemstry and Machinery. Creativity is rewarded by Transmutery, especially ideas that subtly combine minor effects.
Technology is a very important factor in a RPG designed for a single PC. Why? In a story with many PCs, the PCs have abilities that work well together and form a solid team. For example, the adventuring party might have a sturdy warrior, a serene healer, a sly scout, and a suave diplomat. A story with only one PC needs a different way to round out the protagonist. Simply allowing the PC to excel in all areas removes too much challenge and suspense. A much better solution is for the PC to go shopping and during the adventure use a limited supply of equipment to compensate for his or her weaknesses.
Skill and experience are much more significant than technology. This is larglely due to the game's rules about skills and talents (for example, combat damage is based on skill instead of the weapon used). But the setting also helps. Industry is handicapped because the price of ore (due to Arlinac Mountain's isolation) and alchemic ingredients means time-consuming construction usually produces fragile clay golems, flimsy machinery, and mediocre potions. Transmutery is quick to use and flexible, but its effects have extremely short duration. There are no magic spells and only three kinds of enchanted objects (art pieces made with Bergtroll musing, tools made with Dweorgish Tempering, and items made by the Powers or Vigor). The special ore Illithium, the healing herb Athathas, and glow moss are all potent natural resources, but are rare and expensive.
The different kinds of technology are equally useful. Golems need no upkeep, but in practice they can only be instructed to be useful in a physically small area (guarding or moving objects in a room or hallway, for example). Machinery requires frequent, skilled maintenance. Alchemy potions are expensive and fragile. Musing and Tempering take hours and cost the character using them. Only Transmutery can be done quickly, but at personal cost for effects that only last moments.
The restriction against affecting metals is necessary to prevent characters from bypassing locks and door hinges, from trying to catch swords, and from gouging holes in an opponent's armor or smearing a helm's visor into mush.
Metaphorically, the introduction of machinery and golems into a fantasy setting symbolizes change, romantic scientific dreams, and wierd devices both impossible and replicable. Most of all, the setting needs heroes who are more than warriors: a lone PC is equally valuable if he or she can help society adopt, adapt to, overcome, or recover from a new kind of technology, and constructing or tinkering with technological wonders becomes an important method of problem-solving.
Visually, a fantasy steampunk setting is almost always urban. The city's machines and buildings have brass and rivets, boilers and gears, pipes, valves and thin smokestacks. In some areas of the city streets and machines are especially grimy and sooty, contrasted by other districts where the streets and machines are proudly polished and spotless. A few buildings seem almost alive, especially when deserted at night, because of the soft hum and rattle of lighting, heating or ventilation systems. A city full of politics, intrigue, and crime is better suited to solo PC than a maze full of traps and monsters.
Culturally, a fantasy steampunk setting usually echoes the genteel etiquette of Victoriana, following after the earliest precedents of alternate history steampunk. Any character living outside the slums values art, and in public will comport him- or herself with appropriate propriety. Yet the world is not prim and proper, for there is also an undertone of zaniness: absurd gadgets stand beside (or fly circles around) machines of gleaming grandeur. In other words, a PC artist, craftsman, or noble who dabbles in adventuring can easily make both aspects of his or her lifestyle important to the story.
Economically, a fantasy steampunk setting allows traveling merchants to thrive. In a setting without machinery, most settlements have craftsmen that make all common goods locally, which means only rare and luxury items are worth transporting between towns and cities. However, in a fantasy steampunk setting a "rare" item can be any local inventor's specialty. Suddenly traveling merchants have all sorts of marvels to hawk and peddle. Small quests can focus on non-magical items: a family's unique and sentimental gadget built by granddad is stolen by orcs, or an important prototype device plays a role in political intrigue. Economic issues can form the foundation of adventures very appropriate for a lone PC.
Stories featuring intrigue are ideal for adventures with a single PC. A solo protaginist can be expected to solve a mystery, gather key information, or expose fraud. When situations involve intrigue, usually blades are only drawn or physically dangerous traps sprung after someone's desperate plan has failed. In contrast, if a large bandit group is causing problems then the nearby local authorities have no reason to hire a lone adventurer to deal with the problem since they can usually muster a militia, seek help from the nearest city guard, or plead that the king send his troops. If a gigantic and fearsome monster is attacking a city then the city will ask a group of soldiers or adventurers to fight it rather than trusting their fate to a single individual. Certainly the PC could join or lead such team efforts, but adventures are usually more fun when the Player has more control over the story's pace and the PC does not need to share the glory with so many NPC party members.
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A fantasy setting should provide some historical background that explains how widespread are inventors, gadgets, and factory infrastructure. Has machinery revolutionized travel and warfare? Has mass production entered the economy? Which technologies are secrets guarded by one group, common only in specific cultures, or everywhere commonplace? Which are restricted by the government or considered taboo by the cityfolk? The following description of the four Technology skills includes this information for Creagadier because this information is as much about rules as setting: a character who works with technology must both have both personal skill and societal access!
This "technology" can be either industrial, natural, or magical. Fighting can be done with ray guns, metals forged of special ores, or enchanted weapons. Healing can be done with a doctor's bag, herbal poltice, or magic ointment. Sneaking can be done with a hologram suit, camouflage outfit, or invisibility potion. Attacks affecting an entire area can be explosive grenades, noxious gasses, or a song of sleep.
The following guidelines about game balance help make settings interesting and full of narrative potential.
First, the setting should have skill and experience matter more than technology. The PC who uses equipment to help compensate for a weakness should still retain a disadvantage, weakness, or vulnerability: perhaps ray guns require expensive fuel cells, clockwork robots require contant maintenance, and potion vials break if the character is wounded by a blunt weapon. Often equipment solves one problem while causing a new worry: townsfolk shun anyone owning a golem, and some monsters are drawn to magic scrolls.
A setting in which technology is usually the second-best option has two benefits: that kind of world has more need for heroes and heroines (the rancher troubled by giant squid-wolves will not just buy a Harvester Battle Droid to deal with the threat himself), all kinds of heroes and heroines have their place (a warrior is not made obsolete by a healer with a big ray gun), and impressive machines will be more interesting (each steam-powered vehicle is an exotic pet project of its inventor). Another way to say this is that mass-production, with its implications that ruin most fantasy settings, will be avoided because there will be little demand for technology when it is more reliable to hire or beg for heroic help.
Second, the setting should ensure different kinds of technology are equally useful. For example, if building robots helps in nearly every predicament but alchemy is only useful for mixing healing potions then all PCs will be robot builders instead of alchemists. The setting is also stronger when different kinds of technology are useful at different points in the story: some items or skills are part of preparing for an adventure, whereas others are useful for improvising a character's way out of a sticky situation.
Third, technology should focus on skill, not reverse engineering. New power is gained through apprenticeship and practice, not salvage. Just as a gladiator improves from experience rather than learning the ultimate secret sword techniques, an engineer must increase in ability through practice instead of acquiring better designs. In other words, steam-powered robots will be so fantastical and wondrous that no engineer can learn to build a robotic armored battle lizard by studying the broken remnants of the example that just attacked him. Notable examples of technology will be the private or pet projects of their creators, who are the elites among those few city occupants posessing the skill required maintain and direct technological creations.
Fourth, technology should not scale when building or buying it. It would upset game balance if a character could gain power just by building a bigger bomb, armored vehicle, or sleep gas vial. This is the appeal of "Steampunk" settings that avoid gunpowder and dry cell batteries and force characters to deal with springs, steam, and capacitors instead. Any setting whose villains use wagon-sized war machines or person-sized golem servants should have reasons why these villains cannot use towering war constructs or centimeter-tall golem spies.
All four of the above issues tend to be standard parts of fantasy settings. Having an enchanted sword or magic scroll is never as generally useful as being accompanied by a warrior or mage. Diplomats do not become the most powerful adventurers because all problems of strength or magic are best solved with equipment. Mages cannot create arbitrarily huge fireballs or learn to cast a spell just by watching another mage do so.
In other words, in a RPG story with only one PC, technology of any kind (industrial, natural, or magical) should be a reproducible source of the wondrous, unique, and bazzar that is inexplicable yet partially understood, arbitrary yet useful--just the way magic normally is in most fantasy settings.
Creagadier as an Example of Balanced Fantasy Technology
Skill and experience are much more significant than technology. This is larglely due to the game's rules about skills and talents (for example, combat damage is based on skill instead of the weapon used). But the setting also helps. Industry is handicapped because the price of ore (due to Arlinac Mountain's isolation) and alchemic ingredients means time-consuming construction usually produces fragile clay golems, flimsy machinery, and mediocre potions. Transmutery is quick to use and flexible, but its effects have extremely short duration. There are no magic spells and only three kinds of enchanted objects (art pieces made with Bergtroll musing, tools made with Dweorgish Tempering, and items made by the Powers or Vigor). The special ore Illithium, the healing herb Athathas, and glow moss are all potent natural resources, but are rare and expensive.
The different kinds of technology are equally useful. Golems need no upkeep, but in practice they can only be instructed to be useful in a physically small area (guarding or moving objects in a room or hallway, for example). Machinery requires frequent, skilled maintenance. Alchemy potions are expensive and fragile. Musing and Tempering take hours and cost the character using them. Only Transmutery can be done quickly, but at personal cost for effects that only last moments.
Moreover, Alchemy, Transmutery, Machinery, and Bergtroll musing are seen as arts, not magic or industry. Using these involves all the synergy, intuition, elegance, and beauty of any real-life art; different practitioners will accomplish the same effect with results that differ as much as any two real-life artistic creations. Alchemy is as mundane yet special as baking or painting, Transmutery is a difficult discipline of willpower but no more inexplicable than learning to fast joyfully or quiet one's thoughts, Machinery creates the eccentric devices of eccentric minds, and Bergtroll musing enhances artworks with enchantment through a special process of poetry, song, and dance. Only Chemstry and Dweorg tempering are seen as industrial crafts with no freedom for artistic flavor or flair. Only items bestowed by the Powers or Vigor would be called "magical" or "mystical".
Characters cannot abuse reverse engineering for skill-specific reasons. Alchemy requires following a recipe, which in turn has a minimum required skill rating. Chemstry involves knowing symbols, which also have minimum required skill rating to use. Machinery does not use recipes, but any machine's active life is limited by the skill of its builder.
Needing to know recipes or symbols makes Alchemy and Chemstry not scalable. Chemstry and Machinery need certain skill ratings to build more powerful creations. Transmutery, musing, and tempering are not scalable because each physically drains the practitioner in some manner.
Arlinac Town, despite being a large town, remains a "frontier" setting, sharing certain qualities with many traditional stories set in the American West, Edo-period Japan, and other frontiers where a lone protagonist can make a difference.
Understanding this aspect of the setting will help a Player pick a race for his or her new PC.
First, the land around settled and governed territory is a frontier inhabited by dangerous animals and people. Nevertheless, most settled locations have a few loners living on the outskirts due to temperament, profession, or outcast social status. These loners are often in need of help from a single individual, or able to assist a single individual in efforts to clean up trouble in the nearby settled location.
Second, most adults (or perhaps only adults of one gender/class) carry weapons, because of the frontier's dangers. Also, most people cannot afford the price or encumbrance of significant armor, and wounds can be exacerbated by infection. Thus wounds from weapons are often fatal; a doctor near a conflict can only sometimes help the wounded. A lone protagonist need not be able to inflict tremendous harm to win most brawls and fights: being quick and agile enough to avoid being hit while hurting a few attackers will normally cause the rest of the attacking group to flee. Traditional frontier lone protagonists often have special options for effective healing involving rare medicines, herbal remedies, or meditative practices.
Third, society focuses on honor as much or more than law, because so many adults are armed with dangerous weapons. As a corollary, big government exists but does little, because it is annoying for big government to deal with an honor-focused, armed society at the geographical outskirts. Most adults pay little in taxation and receive little in services. When big government is present it is often an interruption to normal life (installing a trade route, chasing a criminal, claiming a resource, etc.). Local government is also of small scope, primarily doing law enforcement, because without big government bringing in wealth redistributed from a non-frontier location there is insufficient funding for local government to do much more that the basics. (Managing utilities, travel routes, and education may or may not be considered governmental basics.)
Fourth, most adults belong to multi-family social groups to provide support in crisis situations (births and deaths, loss of home or livelihood, natural disasters, etc.). Without government social services, people team up in other ways for protection from life's troubles. These social groups may be secular or religious; the various local groups may be peaceably cooperative or antagonistically competitive.
Fifth, corruption can control a settled location, because government is small and people are reliant upon social groups. A social group that grows into a dominating organization can often reign unchallenged. This allows for heroes to be "anti-heroes" who remain personally troubled and/or un-virtuous but are nonetheless able to save a settled location from local corruption or from dangers invading the settlement from outside.
The Dvreem rules can be easily adapted for other settings: outer space science fiction, current day detective or spy stories, etc. GMs who adapt the game mechanics should keep in mind the five elements of a frontier setting which will help the game work well with a GM and a single player.
How are these five elements of a fantasy frontier setting present in the sample setting?
Arlinac Town is isolated from other populated areas. The lands around it are dangerous because of monsters, bandits, evil lone Ogres or groups of Kobalts, and raiding Dweorgs. Yet Arlinac Town is strong enough militarily that the land just outside its city walls is the home of farmers, nobility, woodsmen, and others.
The culture of Arlinac Town allows carrying weapons. In theory alchemy can cure wounds very well, but only if a healing potion or balm is used promptly. Also, for most people alchemic healing is not reliably available or affordable. Fighting is accurately regarded as dangerous.
Arlinac Town lacks an effective central government. The city council claims to represent both the guilds and the nobility but in actuality does very little. Because the guilds maintain peace in their districts and the nobility on their manors, laws differ slightly throughout parts of the city and punishments can vary widely. Thus laws are few, government services are few, and the city's culture focuses on living a life that is respectable and honorable (at least when in public view) using broad terms.
Guilds, racial loyalties, family lineages, and religious groups provide support and security.
Most guilds and noble families govern their lands fairly. These factions compete with each other for power but treat their own members honestly and well. However, some leaders are corrupt and take advantage of their own people.
Alchemy is used to create potions and gasses that enhance a friend or incapacitate an enemy. Potions and gasses commonly work for healing, vigor, sleep, hallucination, glue, acid, poison, poison antidote, speed, and paralysis.
Alchemy in the Culture of Creagadier
Alchemy is an old, diverse, and widely-studied art whose roots have flowed together from many cultures. Some recipes remain carefully guarded secrets, and a few have effects considered illegal or taboo. But alchemy itself is well-accepted everywhere. The healing provided by alchemists has helped almost every family. Professional alchemists are respected unless their business practices are unethical or their prices are unusually high. Amateur alchemists are common: knowing just enough alchemy to help heal scrapes, enhance a garden, or put a fussing child to sleep provokes neither distrust nor stereotypes.
Using alchemy requires a kitchen or laboratory, and all potions and gasses must be stored in glass containers. These are the main disadvantages of alchemy for adventurers: the potions and gasses desired for an adventure must usually be created or purchased before the adventure beings, and throughout the adventure's perils the glass bottles, vials, and spheres must be kept intact. All alchemy involves following a recipe, and all recipes have required ingredients and a minimum required skill rating. There is no room for improvisation in Alchemy: the recipe always produces the same result and the required skill rating corresponds to the number of days the potion or gas remains potent.
Healing potions are a commonly created and purchased item. Some work instantly, whereas others prompt a regenerative effect that lasts for several minutes. However, all alchemical healing must be applied promptly to be effecting, and no alchemical healing can cure disease, paralysis, broken bones, missing limbs, dementia, or other afflictions that are more serious and complex than wounds and burns.
Alchemy is a Technology skill that allows the player, based on rumors and guess about the upcoming adventure, to create a "bag of tricks" for his or her PC.
A new PC with Alchemy skill will know only low-intensity recipes that are made from inexpensive and commonly available ingredients. During adventures the PC will find new alchemy recipes and gather rarer alchemy ingredients. Thus the Player slowly gains options about how the PC can be prepared at the start of a new adventure, and the PC gains a different type of power than measured by skill ratings or talent levels.
There are many possible recipes for each kind of potion. Consider "poisons" as an example. The simplest poisons are only fatal to small animals, act more slowly, must be eaten or drunk by the victim, and are quite noticeable by sight, smell, and taste. Slightly more advanced poisons would have one fewer limitation: they could kill large creatures or act almost immediately or be difficult to detect or be effective when inhaled as a gas (if a gas) or absorbed into the bloodstream through a wound (if a liquid). The most potent poisons would have none of these limitations, but would require very expensive ingredients and could only be made by an alchemist of great skill.
Chemstry is used to create and control golems. It includes knowledge of golem construction and also the use of the papers (chems) that give a golem animation and purpose.
Chemstry in the Culture of Creagadier
Chemstry is an ancient science whose use was lost until recently. For most of Creagadier's history, golems were simply other "monsters" that lived in ancient tombs and storerooms. But then archeologists discovered tablets under Arlinac Mountain whose inscriptions revealed the basics of Chemstry. Golems quickly become a part of Arlinac Town's economy, helping with agriculture and industry. As explorers find more tablets, more chem symbols are understood (although most remain the secret property of an individual or organization). As news of golem use and construction spreads across the continent, golems and chems have become trade goods exported from Arlinac Town. Within the town, golems are used but not trusted: many people are wary as stories spread of golems with poor chem design ruining irrigation systems, furnaces, and doorways. No modern chems instruct a golem to aggression: if anyone did learn how to make warrior-golems then the people of Arlinac Town would quickly become opposed to all Chemstry (although people elsewhere in Creagadier might then take even more interest in golems!).
A golem is a hollow humanoid made from a single mass of material. Most golems, including all the ancient ones unearthed by archeologists, are made of clay. Only since the invention of thermometers for furnaces could sturdy, metal golems be reliably created. Golems become animated when a chem is put inside their hollow body. A chem is a paper on which are painted certain symbols that give the golem step-by-step instructions. For example, a golem could guard a hallway with a chem whose symbols say, "Attack anyone who does not wear a red hat. Until you see someone, repeatedly walk straight forward until you reach a wall and then turn around 180 degrees."
Golems are not intelligent and have no creativity. They are clumsy and not able to do any task requiring small-motor coordination. Golems follow their instructions until they are destroyed, get stuck, or the ink of their chem fades with age (which usually takes centuries). Destroying a golem only requires enough damage to make it no longer humanoid (for example, loss of a limb) or no longer hollow (for example, filling it with water).
Golems often accompany adventurers, usually to carry lanterns or bags of equipment. Crafting an entirely new golem is usually impossible during the middle of an adventure, but an adventurer who knows Chemstry can paint a new chem or add symbols to a chem in a only few minutes if he or she has peace and quiet.
Paintng a chem requires knowing the symbols having the skill to painting them. Many chem symbols are carefully guarded secrets, requiring the golems using them to also be guarded. Putting more than one chem in a golem unanimates it.
Painting a chem requires slightly more skill if it includes a longer sequence of instructions. Furthermore, the symbols for more complex or abstract instructions require much more skill as well as more rare and expensive types of ink. Novice skill rating (2) is required to pain the symbols representing completely robotic instructions: walk forward so many steps, turn so many degrees, raise your arms straight up, pick up the item in front of you, etc. Pro skill rating (4) is required for the symbols whose instructions involve perception or comparison: walk until you reach a wall, pick up the largest item in the room, etc. Notable skill rating (6) is required for the symbols whose instructions require judgment: attack the most dangerous opponent you see, break the bar you expect to be most brittle, etc.
Due to limitations inherent on how a chem works, golems must be at least 18 centimeters tall. The smallest golems are usually "clockwork golems" used to power machines by turning cranks or pedaling. Most golems open up so that the chem can be added or removed. The nature of this hatch depends upon the particular golem: many golems have small, locking doors to discourage tampering, and some golems are created without an opening. Note that the hatch is usually a second piece of material and this not actually part of the golem: damaging it does not harm or disrupt the golem.
Within Arlinac Town, vandals called "hackers" make sport of using hacksaws to open golems working in public, such as those used to maintain public utilities, and replace the chem. The hackers are usually not intentionally destructive, but sometimes the sewer system is disrupted when golems that maintain it are instead found playing dice games or writing poetry with sticks of chalk.
The word "chem" seems to be an invention of Terry Pratchett for his Discworld setting. I happily steal it to build an awful pun.
Note that a skill rating of 1 in Chemstry allows creation of primitive golems, but no ability with chem papers.
Machinery is used to create clever clockwork and steam-powered devices, toys, and vehicles, and also electric lamps and weapons. It also is used to create or bypass mechanical locks and traps.
Machinery in the Culture of Creagadier
Machinery was invented hundreds of years ago by an isolated group of scholarly Dweorgs, led by the genius inventor Vilt, who lived under Arlinac Mountain during the three centuries that rival Dweorg clans fought over Arlinac Mountain during the Great Dweorg Wars. Machinery spread to other Dweorg societies, but only recently, as Arlinac Town has become a unique place where Dweorgs and non-Dweorgs live side by side, has machinery been seen or used by non-Dweorgs. Most of Arlinac Town is still unaffected by machinery: its buildings and streets are lit by lamplight and served by pedestrian and cart traffic. The city's few electric lamps and steam-powered vehicles are either owned by Dweorgs or are the exotic toys of people both wealthy and eccentric. Most people of Arlinac Town do not trust Machinery, because it is so new, so unpredictable, and so clearly useful for evil deeds. Even the Cart-Users, who use machines the most, realize that machines are tricky; hopeful inventors abound but significant inventions are few. Machinists are shunned everyone in the town except the Cart-Users district, although some are employed by the Grate family. So far, all talk of exporting machines from Arlinac Town to the rest of Creagadier has been quieted by Dwerogs upset by that proposal.
There are no recipes for machinery: machinists are tinkerers. Clockwork and steam powered contraptions come in all shapes and sizes. These have splendid variety because the secrets of their construction are carefully guarded. Most machines must be actively controlled: its springs and engines might propel it across a floor or along a track but no machine has a golem's ability to autonomously follow instructions. Some machines are powered by a small golem instead of using a steam engine or springs for power. Machinists have not yet invented either wet or dry cell batteries, and thus do very little involving wires. However, with golem-powered dynamos (generators) and/or capacitors they build tasers, flash bombs, rail guns, and lamps.
Any machine only actively functions as many hours as the Machinery skill rating of its builder. Springs, valves, gears, and bearings wear out quickly (much more so than in real life), but a skilled machinist can to some extent compensate by building a more efficient machine. Note that traps and complex locks are machines which possibly wait idly for years before being triggered into active operation. Other machines (flash bombs, for example) not only wait idly until used but have an unusually dramatic effect that uses up their energy almost instantly. A used-up machine can be repaired by a machinist of skill rating equal or one less that the skill rating originally used to build the machine. The skill rating of the repairer determines the new number of actively functional hours.
Using machinery requipres approprate tools and materials, and sometimes a workplace. Adventurers normally buy or build their machines before the expedition begins. However, a working machine whose duration expires can be quickly repaired by a Machinist of sufficient skill who has a toolbox and is able to tinker without interruption for a few minutes.
Building more large and powerful machines requires more time, skill, and tools. Novice skill rating (2) and a small toolbox are sufficient to build machines that only affect their surroundings in a small manner that is usually easy to undo. These effects are negligible in combat and only apply to a small area in a minor way. (Examples of such machines are clockwork toys, small motors, weak lamps, quiet clocks, etc.) Pro skill rating (4) and either a small workshop or very large toolbox are required to build machines that affect their surroundings significantly. These effects are as significant in combat as a successful blow or strategic positioning, and apply to a larger area in a major way. (Examples of such machines are clockwork traps, steam powered wagons, flash bombs, rail guns, tasers, etc.) Notable skill rating (6) and a large worshop are required to create machines that majorly affect their surroundings. These effects are often irreparable, significant enough to decide the outcome of combat, and may apply to a huge area in a stunning way. (Examples of such machines are frienzied yet blind clockwork warriors, enormous steam-powered vehicles, lights bright enough to temporarily blind everyone they shine upon, sonic weapons that force everyone in a room to flee with ears covered, etc.)
Machinery is the Technology skill providing both flexibility and advance planning. In can do more than Alchemy while sharing the limitation of normally being part of adventure preparation. It is not as versitile as Transmutery, but is needed to deal with locks, traps, and run-down machines.
Note that a skill rating of 1 in Machinery allows repairing machines but not building new machines.
In many ways Creagadier was inspired by the setting of the two Thief computer games created by Looking Glass Studios; those games modeled well how a single protagonist could survive in fun adventures in a fantasy world. The flavor of steampunk I imagine in Arlinac Town strongly resembles that of those two Thief games, but I purposefully leave the details vague enough that other GMs could use a different flavor.
Transmutery is used to manipulate an elemental material (earth, air, fire, or water) using only willpower and mental command. The four elements can be detected, softened, stretched, shaped, purified, heated, cooled, solidified, made mist-like, etc., but not created from nothing, duplicated, destroyed into nothing, or made to levitate or otherwise move around unassisted.
Transmutery in the Culture of Creagadier
Transmutery is an even more ancient art than Alchemy. It is viewed as comforting and respectable. Its roots are so far in the past that they have been lost, and all that remains of the history of Transmutery are legends that differ among the the intelligent races. Transmutery is widely used, with many people learning enough transmutery to help use kindling to light a fire or check if water is safe to drink. But the techniques of Transmutery are so difficult to master that few people know more than the basics,and masters of Transmutery are often venerated as calm and stable individuals who have conquered the mind's flightiness and needless worries.
The skill rating of the transmuticist measures the number of minutes that the effect lasts: the elemental material then reverts to its normal state and properties, although if a solid it retains its shape. Transmutery only affects the four elements in their natural state. An transmuticist, no matter how skilled, cannot manipulate metal instead of earth, smoke instead of fire, gasses instead of air, or liquids other than water. (Steam that is pure water vapor can be manipulated, since it is merely airborne water droplets. Glass can be manipulated because its structure is so similar to sand.)
Although transmutery uses no materials it "costs" the transmutist mental effort and fatigue. Using Transmutery causes a type of exhaustion called Drain. Drain rating increases for larger effects, and its amount, minus the transmuticist's Transmutery skill rating, becomes a temporary penalty to Transmutery skill. If the character's Transmutery skill is reduced to zero then he or she falls unconsciousness and the intended effect fails. The effect of Drain heals at a rate of one point for every hour of sleep.
Affecting a tiny volume of material, the size of an acorn or less, causes 0 Drain. Affecting a volume between acorn and fist sized causes 2 Drain. Affecting a volume between fist and horse sized causes 5 Drain. Affecting a greater volume cuases 8 Drain. To these volume-dependent raings are added a second number based on effect intensity. Miniscule effects that do not extend at all, are easily reversible, and are negligible in combat cause 0 more Drain. (Examples include growing lit kindling into a fire, detecting if water is pure, or hardening rock.) Small effects that do not extend far, are reversible, and are negligible in combat cause 1 more Drain. (Examples include expanding a candle flame into a fire, purifying air to breathe, cooling air, or making rock as pliable as clay.) Medium effects that extend far, are hard to reverse, or in combat are as significant as a single attack or strategic positioning cause 2 more Drain. (Examples include casuing water to boil, blowing a person over with a gust of wind, transforming fire to be as safe to handle and pliable as clay, causing a rock to reshape or stretch itself, sustaining a small fire to burn without fuel, or solidifying a wall of solid air to block a hallway). Major effects that extend to a huge area or are significant enough to decide the outcome of combat cause 9 more Drain. (Examples include creating a windstorm capable of blowing many people over, making a small pond extremely hot or cold, having the earth under a foe open into a pit and then close, expanding a torch fire into the size of a large bonfire, or solidifying the air to trap a huge monster or small group of people.)
If a player and the GM disagree about an appropriate Drain rating, the Player must follow the GM's decision. A GM may decide to include an extra degree of Transmutery difficulty between "Medium effect" and "Major Effects"; the large jump in intensity is purposefully yet solely there to help the GM and Player easily assign Drain ratings.
Transmutery is the Technology skill that requires no advance planning. The player's creativity is rewarded instead of his or her preparedness.
Note that skilled transmuticists can create minor effects repeatedly with no measurable strain, but one large effect will cause problems. Transmuticists learn to pace themselves, and to do work in small steps.
The restriction against affecting metals is necessary to prevent characters from bypassing locks and door hinges, from trying to catch swords, and from gouging holes in an opponent's armor or smearing a helm's visor into mush.
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Exiting a perilous situation is usually possible. Both heroes and major villains take advantage of this rule. The Joker's goons, even when numerous, have trouble overwhelming and capturing Batman, just as the Gotham police cannot catch the Joker.
Talents enable an experienced warrior to dominate less experienced opponents. Li Mu Bai is a fearsome swordsman not because he has a dumpload of health points, but because he avoids his foe's attacks while using astounding talent.
Recall that in the Frontier setting of Arlinac Town most adults carry weapons, cannot afford the price or encumbrance of significant armor, and avoid combat because the wounds from weapons are often fatal...
In many stories the PC has a climactic fight with the main villain or a monster created by the villain. The Dvreem rules make one-on-one fights work well by ignoring what weapons and armor each combatant uses. As in traditional "heroic opera" pulp stories and films, the protagonist regularly defeats his or her enemies because he or she is a little bit quicker, more skilled, and more clever in taking advantage of circumstances. In other words, victory should be more dependent on how the PC fights than what weapon he or she is wielding. Similarly, powerful monsters such as dragons are interesting foes not because their attacks do more points of damage but because they have greater skill, more situational advantages, and usually several impressive talents.
In some stories the PC must fight a small group of low-skilled enemies. The Dvreem rules require a group attempting the same action to combine all their efforts in contested skill use as a single action. As long as the PC can keep control of the situation so that the opponents are limited to one strategy, the PC can succeed if the enemy group is small.
This mimics fights in "heroic opera" films. Han Solo confidently out-shoots two Storm Troopers without any trouble, but dives for cover when opposed by three or four, and flees when confronted by a larger group. Robin Hood aggressively fences with a couple guards, seeks the advantage of a stairway when fighting several, and flees from a room full of enemies. According to the Dvreem rules a bigger group of Cumsy enemies gains a bigger skill bonus, and the heroes recognize when the opponents gain an effective combat skill equal to their own. The heroes also take advantage of furniture and cover to keep their foes acting in unison.
What makes a fun and exciting combat location?
The are should have a brief description that includes sensory details and ambience.
Some inclusion of fairy tale, steampunk, and wuxia themes. Examples...
The area should have a z-axis. Any fantasy town has buildings and rooms with balconies, stairs, raised alcoves, high shelves, bell towers, watch towers, etc. The steampunk theme helps since it adds ladders, walkways, platforms, scaffolds, big table or workbench, and climbable pipes. The wuxia theme allows most surfaces to be climbable if a character has skill and talent.
The area should have usable terrain. Examples include light sources (a chandelier is a classic example), furnishings, artwork, books, curtains or tapestries, a gong, a pool or fountain or flowing water, loose masonry, machinery, or a golem.
A GM can design an story featuring political intrigue using a simple, step-by-step process.
Upcoming subsections about government intrigue and political intrigue will provide numerous examples of possible targets of intrigue. It is also true that political intrigue often aims at non-political targets: money, hierlooms, recipes, enchanted items, important documents, favors.
Now the adventure's plot is partly complete: the GM knows the target of the intrigue, and has developed a few villains who are in competition. The next step is to make a timeline. How would the story develop if the PC was absent? The GM should consider a few alternatives to prepare for unexpected Player decisions. What if the city watch is active or passive? What if the town council declares a curfew or quarrantine? Would any of the villains ever confront each other, and how?
Finally, the GM completes his or her preparations by putting the PC in the story. This turns the timeline into a mystery and adventure. The GM should decide where in the timeline the PC enters the action and adventure begins. Then the GM should prepare several likely encounters. Planning these encounters in advance will allow the story to move quickly when suspense is high; if the Player's choices make any encounters irrelevant to the story then the GM can always make small changes and recycle the encounters into upcoming adventures.
To ponder government intrigue, simply consider what governments do and how each function of government can be corrupted.
Government positions are obvious targets of intrigue. Who will be the king? the mayor? the captain of the watch? Often the subtle competition is about the rules or details for appointment. Which heir has the greatest claim? Who is allowed to vote? Is it coincidence that the job requirements for a newly hired Royal Falconer changed shortly before the old one died? Nepotism reminds us that no all government positions are political. During lean times merely being able to provide menial jobs to family and friends can be legal yet resented. The strife surrounding who will be the next captain of the watch might actually be happening because different groups want their agent to be appointed Watch Archivist. A fight for a city council seat could focus on who the new council will hire to build the town's walls. Finally, presitigious positions might be desired for their status instead of their power. Perhaps most Assistant Royal Chefs leave the palace after a few years to found lucrative restaurants in the capital city, and the Queen's Perfumer never has political power but always enjoys countless mistresses.
Government services are also easy to fight over. Water, sewer, food, oil, lights, roads, walls, schools, medicine, police, fire, and courts are always limited. How do these services change from neighborhood to neighborhood? How much do they cost? Who has priority when demand is high? Who is protected when civil unrest flares up? There is no need to bribe a judge or assasinate a witness if intrigue can keep a court case perpetually at the back of the cue for which cases will be heard.
Governments tax and spend, and in a large town or city some corruption is probably inevitable. Who is taxed? What are the tax rates? Which guilds or firms does the govenrment hire to do certain jobs? Who controls the Royal Mint and its policies? Which expenses will be adjusted in the next annual city budget?
Legal records can be devious targets of intrigue. Adjusting a historical account can change who has noble blood. Adjusting tax records or land deeds can impoversh or enrichen, frame someone for embezzlement or take away their livelihood. Perhaps the queen makes notes in her diary about whom she owes favors to. Why were the guild leader's seal and wax stolen?
Legal rights and permits can make nice targets. Who is allowed to own land, weapons, armor, or technology? Who is licensed to sell certain goods? What is required to obtained a license to practice alchemy, and who influences the direction of the city's alchemy research?
Personal secrets are a final type of target of intrigue. If your guild cannot control who will be the next mayor, can you instead find the new mayor's embarassing or ruinous secrets?
A special category of political intrigue is what happens within and between religious organizations. Even if a religious organization has no influence with the local government it is still burdened by its own internal politics and it probably interacts with other religious groups.
To ponder religious intrigue, again consider how common priestly behaviors can be corrupted. A religious official's daily devotions may be private, but everything else is public enough to become infested with intrigue.
Religious officials often offer advice, either to nobles to whom they are assigned as advisors or to supplicants. A special kind of advice is when religious officials interpret omens and prophecies. Any activity of this kind can become corrupted, with the religious official speaking lies intended to accomplish an ulterior motive, including pretending to have received visions. Bribery and power struggles within the religious organization are common sources of this kind of intrigue. Alternatley, an agent provocateur might have infiltrated the religious organization intending to slander and ruin it.
Sermons are more than advice offered to a large group: speaking from the pulpit is an ideal way to libel enemies, both outside or within the religious organization. Perhaps the speaker (or even the organization) has even gone so far as to frame the targets before villianizing them.
Many religious organizations oversee ritual events: trials, coronations, confirmations, marriages, and burials. These occasions are ripe for intrigue. A religious official can extort and embezzle extra payment, use blackmail to force noble families to enter certain arrangements, or refuse to work with certain noble families.
Some religious organizations collect tithes. The official in charge of collecting, recording, or depositing the funds might pocket some. Tithes can be collected over-zealously.
Finally, religious organizations (as well as Powers) often send their members on missions. Such assignments are often made without explanation, and are occasions open to intrigue.
The early chapters of the 2nd Edition D&D book The Complete Priest's Handbook by Aaron Allston provided some ideas for this section.
First, both settings use plots with layers of influence. There is always a deeper layer of control. Because of this "onion of influence" the hero or heroine is never sure which NPCs are pulling which strings; sometimes it even seems as if every opponent is actually manipulated by someone else. Chapters in the story follow a progression as each adventure's dénouement includes a clue about a deeper layer (not always the next layer, some clues foreshadow distant revelations). This makes victories into limited successes, for the hero or heroine does meaningful and satisfying good but only very slowly learns about or defeats the setting's entrenched evils (for example, someone can be rescued from a corrupt official but the official remains in power). Usually the core layer arrives climactically after the PC returns to his or her city after travels (to a distant ruin, ancient temple, abandoned sewers, etc.)--the PC returns home and witnesses that corruption has spread among political leaders; often there is a new traitor among old allies; the reality of the city's steady decay is abhorrently clear; and the PC finally progresses from saving people as small victories to saving the entire city in a climactic finale.
Second, many stories begin on a personal note. The PC notices some small, intriguing situation that is gradually revealed as an introduction to a larger scheme. Sometimes this is a freakish thing that happens to the PC (the PC wakes up inexplicably deaf, or after breakfast notices his or her shadow is missing, or arrives home at night just as someone flees the home). Other times the PC's friends or loved ones are kidnapped, swindled, or the victim of the freakesh thing. Similarly, many stories end on a personal note: the mastermind turns out to be a loved one, old rival, or employer of the PC. This initial (and final) personal issue begin (and conclude) a mood that builds slowly with few releases of tension: eeriness, helplessness, desperation, or confusion.
Third, many problems cannot be solved with a physical confrontation. Tensions abound, but very few become violent. Most opponents cannot be initially confronted: the PC can only visit, bargain, or fight with that opponent after a special weakness is found or or need is identified. Some interpersonal tensions can be calmed or prompted to flare into violence, but the PC does not know which course is best. Many opponents that are flunkies with good intentions but who are following villanous orders; the PC should ideally stop the evil plan while fighting a minimum of these flunkies. Now matter how knowledgable the PC is about different kinds of monsters, there is always a chance that a newly encountered monster is subtly and differently powerful, forcing the PC to cautiously treat any monster as a possible unknown.
Fourth, deep evil forces are drawn to people of evil heart and deeds. Thus purity has real value in evading evil influence and the PC must not only deal with evil but also remain pure to avoid attracting the wrong kind of attention. Physical locations can become infused with vice or virtue: not haunted, but innately affecting the motivations or emotions of people there to strain relationships and inflame tempers. Secluded or hidden evils make brief appearances to mock the PC. Yet despite the near anthropomorphism of evil forces, there is always a corrupt person at the core of the layers of control; monsters exist, but are always subordinate to villainous people or escaped from a person's control.
Fifth, the typical creatures of the horror genre mimic the kinds of corruption that affect politicians or other leaders. Sprinkle these archetypes among the nobles, politicians, or guild leaders!
Despite all these similarities, there are important differences between intrigue and horror. Foremost, a constant atmosphere of dread is a halmark of a well-made horror setting but foreign to a setting of political intrigue, in which the Player will often feel fear for the PC's safety but not looming dread. Second, even if terrible things happen to the PC or his or her loved ones, the PC will never need to do despicable acts to survive. Horror delights in moral dilemnas and no-win situations; political intrigue allows the protagonist to shine by remaining more pure than the surrounding evil influencers. Third, the Player is not uncertain about what is real: the PC will have doubts about what people are doing or thinking, but not doubts about if something is only an imaginary creation of a horrific force. Finally, political intrigue focuses on social influence, reputation, leverage, and arrangements, whereas horror seldom has people vying to discredit each other, cement control over an economic endeavor, or arrange marriages or social affairs.
Creagadier as an Example of Intrigue
First, Arlinac Town has many public and secret organizations vying for power. Each guild has both public and secret interests, and each guild suffers from several groups fighting to dominate and use it. Each noble family has a multiple-part agenda, and is part of the agendas of other organizations. Each Build skill has at least one organization seeking to control how that Build skill is used, by whom, and which directions its research extend. And most of the Powers care about Arlinac Mountain and subtly work to shape Arlinac Town.
Second, most monster types in Creagadier allow for flexibility. If the GM desires, a monster can be creepy because its general type is apparent but that gives no information about its origins, strengths, weaknesses, and plans. For example, a player whose PC has dealt with normal Deadly Oozes many times would still find interesting a unique and mysterious Deadly Ooze, apparently created in the sewers by an alchemist held captive by criminals, with different strengths, weaknesses than any Ooze yet encountered.
Third, the Runes of Old Man River are a source of physical corruptions that exaggerate nearby vices.
Finally, Creagadier is designed so that each layer of the "onion of influence" has plenty of possible options.
The Powers are often at the center (or people who mistakenly believe they are serving a Power) since they influence many things while being difficult to influence.
Inner layers need entities that can be influenced but more often or extensively do the influencing. The twelve intelligent races, the four noble families, and powerful rampaging monsters all fill this role. Nearly outer layers are the opposite: the five guilds, secret societies, and Arlinac Town's many official and unofficial social positions and roles of authority are all frequently the target of intrigue and occasionally the movers and shakers.
The very outer layers are only influenced, never an influencer. Most members of the guilds and noble families, the innocent and public faces of guild political decisions, the servants and lackeys of political or criminal leaders, and small monsters provide a plethora of targets for the outer layer of influence.
I first read about the similarities between intrigue and horror settings at the website Roleplaying Tips. The excellent book Heroes of Horror helped me generate my lengthy list of similarities.
Create a character is easy to do. According to the Dvreem rules the player distributes the character's initial 40 skill points, with at most one skill rated at 5, and no skill rated above of 5. All characters start without zero for all talent ratings.
But a interesting character is more than a collection of skill ratings. What else is required depends upon the setting.
When using the sample setting of Creagadier, a character background includes its race, name, and a brief personal history that provides one or more good reasons for adventuring and helps determine its starting armor, weapons, and other possessions.
The first step in creating a character is to pick its race. Any race can work for a PC. For a PC the choice of race does not affect skills or personality. It should have at least minor impact in the PC's personal history. It might affect the PC's starting equipment. If the PC is one of the eight younger races the PC will have the race's special ability.
Many GMs will prohibit a PC from the stereotypically evil races (Ogres, Kobalts, Unseemly, and Mer). A new Player should probably choose a Therion, who tend to make the most flexible PCs since they can use animals forms to scout or flee combat.
If the GM is creating an NPC it helps to remember which skills are atypically high for each race. These skills are probably rated at least 3 (Rough) and are often 4 or 5 (Polished or Notable).
If a Player has not read the earlier descriptions of the races, the GM can summarize some of this information by sharing how the races fill the roles of several frontier character archetypes.
Therions act as the everyman. They look like real-life people. Many lack their race's special ability.
Ogres often fill the role of the desperado: a loner who is tough, dangerous, quick to take offense, willing to take or earn money illegally, slow to forgive a grudge, and sometimes torn between wanting to be left alone and wanting to be famous and feared.
Dweorgs resemble the Edo-period samurai: individuals deeply committed to the local clan chief, following a code of honor and service that makes perfect sense to them but is easily misunderstood by outsiders as absurdly violent and impractically reckless.
Kobalts fill the role of a criminal family: a violent, vicious and highly organized group that is usually too dangerous for a lone protagonist to attack directly and impossible to infiltrate in disguise, yet whose individual members and crimes can be opposed successfully.
Beavers fill the role of the wise hermit, who is able to survive alone but often lives slightly outside a small village. The hermit may be sought out for advice or a recipe, and is likely to cause trouble or be a magnet for trouble while offering aid to the protagonist.
Bergtrolls act as the wealthy class: individuals who spend their time amid luxury and fancy, looking down upon those who must devote each day to sustenance and survival.
The Unseemly help fill two roles: criminal masterminds manipulating others from the shadows, and a nearly-extinct civilization whose ruins are a source of puzzles and power.
Mer are stereoptypical violent criminals, acting alone or in a small gang: predatory, well-armed, incapable of repentance, and eventually captured or killed.
Names are another important way that people in real life gain some information about each other when they first meet. Both the sound of the name and the degree of formality can impart helpful information.
Once you know your character's race you need to pick its name. Here are the rules for creating names in Creagadier.
Fox, Therion, and Ogre surnames sound like traditional made-up names that many fantasy settings use for fighters and commoners. This helps Therions be the common people of Arlinac Town. The surnames have a silly Victorian feel, common to many fantasy steampunk settings. The use of titles allows easier use of social rank in Arlinac Town.
Badger, Dweorg, and Kobalt names sound short and gruff, like the temperament of these races. The Kobalt use of ancestral titles emphasizes their mafia-like society.
The initial long vowel sound tries to makes Beaver, Bergtroll, and Unseemly names sound more creative and sophisticated, just as these races attempt to be more elegant and sophisticated.
Squirrel, Pixie, and Mer names also sound like many made-up names from fantasy settings, but like those names most often used for wise wizards and clever thieves. This helps Squirrel and Pixie names sound common yet intelligent.
Most Fox and Therion names (and presumably Ogre names too, although Ogres never share their true names) are built of a two-syllable root.
Therion names start with a single consonant, usually B, C, F, L, M, N, P, R, S, W, X, or Z. Fox names omit this initial consonant. Next is a digraph surrounded by two single vowels: for Fox names the initial vowel always has a short vowel sound, of which the shortness is often emphasized with an H. Then a concluding consonant ends masculine names, while feminine names end with a consonant and the suffix -A, -NA, or -NE.
As examples, the names Burlaw, Fithoc, Nelten, Parmoz, and Woshil are masculine Therion names. Burlawa, Fithoca, Neltenne, Parmoza, and Woshilne are feminine Therion names. Uhrlaw, Ithoc, Elten, Ahrmoz, and Ohshil are the corresponding masculine Fox names. Uhrlowa, Ithoca, Eltenne, Ahrmoza, and Ohshilne are the corresponding feminine Fox names.
Therions in Arlinac Town also use surnames constructed by pairing a prefix and suffix from the following lists:
Foxes and Therions will precede their names with appropriate honorifics, such as Lord, Lady, Elder, or Guild Leader. Thus a examples of full Therion names are Elder Coftan Grandbrass or Lady Rannane Sunnydale
Most Badger, Dweorg, and Kobalt names are built of a single-syllable root.
Their names start with a single hard consonant (usually D, G, J, K, T, or V) or digraph (usually DR, DW, DZ, GS, GW, GZ, JR, JW, VM, VN, VR, VW, VZ, ZM, ZN, or ZR). The initial consonant is followed by any vowel sound. The vowel is then followed by any consonant blend or digraph (usually GH, KH, KM, KTH, LD, LTH, ND, NTH, RD, RK, RG, RN, RS, TH, or ZH). The suffix -AH is used for feminine names.
As examples, the names Kark, Drikth, Gworg, Vrelth, and Znald are masculine. Karkah, Drikthah, Gworgah, Vrelthah, and Znaldah are feminine.
A masculine name's final letter is sometimes doubled for reasons relating to clan identity. (For example, Karkk or Fsorgg.)
Badgers, Dweorgs, and Kobalts do not use surnames. When a single name is not sufficient in clarity, parents are referenced. (For example, Kark son of Zrelth and Jweldah.)
Kobalts use ancestral titles (Father, Mother, Grandfather, Grandmother) to show respect for other Kobalts, as well as to normally describe their families. The title "Great-Grandfather" is reserved for the current Ancestor of the Superfamily.
Beaver, Bergtroll, and Unseemly names begin with a long vowel sound (AY, EE, IY, O, YU). The second part of the name squishes together a digraph, a very short I/Y sound, and a final consonant--the result is almost a consonant blend. The most common digraphs are CR, CT, LT, RD, ST, TR, TR, or TZ, and the concluding consonants are nearly always K, L, N, R, S, or T. Feminine names use an apostrophe for the central I/Y sound and have the suffixes -ETTE or -INE.
As examples, the names Aycril, Iystin, Otzyr, and Yustis are masculine. Aycr'line, Iyst'nette, Otz'rine, and Yust'sette are feminine.
Bergtroll children are commonly referred to by "youth names". The name is cut off at the I/Y sound, and a suffix vowel is added: -O for boys and -Y for girls. For examples, Aycril and Itz'rine would be called Aycro and Otzy when young.
Only rarely do Unseemly use their true names. Normally they only know each other by positive-sounding adverb nicknames (Gracefully, Goodly, Nicely, Quickly, etc.)
Squirrel, Pixie, and Mer names have three vowel-consonant syllables, always starting with a short vowel sound. All consonants are used with equal frequency. Masculine names end with a short vowel sound, and the second vowel is accented. Feminine names end with an accented long vowel sound, ephasized with a final -E, and for historic reasons needlessly double the first consonant.
In written records, the first and second consonants are usually doubled when the preceding vowel is short, and a final -E is appended when the third vowel is long.
As examples, the names Aloden, Efarrim, Isalen, Onirip, and Uvitis are masculine (remember the short initial and final vowel: All-ODE-ehn, Ehf-AHR-ihm, Ihs-ALE-ehn, On-IRE-ihp, and Uhv-ITE-is). Allodene, Effarrime, Issalene, Onniripe, and Uvvitise are feminine (All-ode-ENE, Ehf-ahr-IME, Ihs-ale-ENE, On-ire-IPE, Uhv-ite-ISE).
Squirrels and Mer nearly always use honorifics. Even children's names are usually preceded by Lil (for boys) and Lilly (for girls).
Squirrels and Pixies use as surnames a combination of a plant names and a plant part. (For example, Willowbark, Rosethorn, or Oakleaf.) However, with Pixies these surnames do not refer to ancestry; many non-Pixies suspect they are simply chosen for the sake of vanity.
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Although there are no official rules for how much a character can carry, the GM may impose limitations based upon the character's Wrestle skill rating.
Potions that heal or cause humanoids to sleep are very useful. PCs should create or purchase these.
It is best for a PC to carry two types of healing potions: the kind that heals FP instantly and the kind that restore FP for several turns. Healing potions work better if used immediately, before body chemistry is changed by any swelling, internal bleeding, or entering a state of shock. Herbal remedies administered by someone talented in Identify/Lore are needed if the injury is more than a few mintues old.
A set of potion vials worn on a bandolier might seem handy, but more potions will survive a combat when stored in a padded box than worn exposed.
A small golem to carry a lantern is a significant help when exploring the caverns within Arlinac Mountain. Having a second pair of golem and lantern is even better.
Members of the intelligent races use four kinds of armor: none (normal clothing made of cotton or soft leather), light (hard leather armor or ringmail), heavy (scale or chain armor), or bulky (plate armor).
Hard Leather is soft leather armor, boiled in oil and wax, shaped, and dried. Ringmail is soft leather sparsely covered with metal rings, which provides equivalent protection with slightly greater mobility but more weight. These light armors are primarily worn by people living at the edge of civilization, or by adventurers needing freedom of movement. Hard Leather has either 0 or 1 ENC, depending upon its quality (and thus its cost). Ringmail always has 0 ENC, and is much more expensive than Hard Leather.
Scale armor is leather backing covered with overlapping metal scales of various sizes. Chain armor is an entirely metal suit of linked rings, providing equivalent protection to scale while being slightly more comfortable and expensive. These heavy armors are worn by soldiers, bodyguards, and others who fight for a living, with chain used by the wealthy among these professions. Heavy armor has 1 ENC. Because of its stiffness and weight, in heavy armor it is impractical to do tracking, leaping, sneaking, unarmed combat, dodging, parrying, and projectile combat. Scale and Chain armor have similar cost even though they have such different techniques for construction: Scale requires more skill to create, whereas Chain requires more metal and time.
Plate armor is solid plates molded to the body, held together by leather straps which are covered by metal. This is the most protective of armor, but is incredibly bulky and expensive. It is only used by gate guards and other warriors who spend most of their time standing still. Bulky armor has 2 ENC. Because of its extreme stiffness and weight, in bulky armor it is impractical to do any of the actions impractical in heavy armor, and also hiding, escaping, or throwing.
Sleep is not restful (or providing of healing) if the sleeper wears armor.
