Tag Archives: tabletop rpg

Wanderers of the Waste Pt.2 – Under the Dragon Sun

Debris from the fallen adobe fort walls lay scattered everywhere along with bits of shattered wood. Burning wooden beams, probably of Westland import, choked the entire scene with smoke. Large crimson stains quickly turning black in the desert sun spattered the pale compacted dirt of the courtyard. Strewn everywhere were the corpses of at least a dozen humans almost all Ivoran with a few Hyvalians amongst them). Some were dead from weapons others burned to death. An absurd amount of spent sling stones littered the spaces between the corpses. Arrows feathered the remnants of walls and more than a few of the dead.

There was a collection of large, rusted iron cages dominating the center of the courtyard. All were empty, their doors creaking in the breeze. The locks apparently broken with great force. The acrid stench of burning human flesh and the shear high temperature of the air was overwhelmingly sickening.

Kazoo (Isis’ character) wandered around looking for anything as did the other two. He could see that all the soldiers and guards were burnt to the bone from the waist up implying that they had been blasted with extremely hot fire from above. Moderately skilled in dragon-lore, Kazoo determined that a dragon, most likely an adult Yellow Fang was responsible. Bloodfang (Gil’s character) found a single massive footprint. He confirmed that a 5-toe Yellow Fang dragon left it.

Bloodfang (to Kazoo): “Would you know why this dragon would kill these people?”

Canica (Jenn’s character): “Because they were SINNERS!”

Bloodfang: “As good an answer as any I guess.”

The southern barbarian slithered over to the well in the courtyard for a drink and a splash of cool water. They collectively decided to stick around as most things give dragons a wide berth so they reasoned that anything out there would avoid the ruined fort for at least the night. They also decided to search the area for any loot. Eventually, against the odds, Bloodfang discovered an intact cellar underneath a pile of rubble.

They found 2 hogsheads of cheap wine, 1 carboy of water, 1 carboy of high-quality mead, and 2 empty casks. Bloodfang and Canica filled the empty casks with well-water.

Bloodfang (to Kazoo): “So. Are we going to stay here?”

Canica: “We’re staying here, we can barricade the doors and drink up. There’s plenty of wine and mead!”

Kazoo: “Um, yeah. I need a rest anyway.”

Later that night Canica was spending the first watch drinking, Kazoo snored away, and Bloodfang exited out into the night defeating the purpose of the barricade. He found a place to coil in the courtyard and prayed for the souls of those who had died that day.

The next day they were back on the road with Canica in the lead. The day was uneventful, by night they had traveled approximately 10 miles. They bivouacked in a depression just off the main trade road (1 on the map).

As they settled in for the night, they set up watches. As usual Kazoo took the third and as soon as he was unobserved, he was fast asleep in his knapsack under the endless night sky.

The sense of a soft cold pad and furry claws clamping his mouth shut woke Kazoo. His eyes widened with fear as he saw the fierce snarling face of a white lion, its hideous yellow eyes glowing in the dark, its hairy lips drawn back into a nasty grimace revealing dripping black gums and razor-sharp fangs.

A hideously deep yet feminine voice hissed into his ears: “I’m going to strip your flesh bit by bit, suck out your eyeballs, you will feel every crunch of bone as I eat, and then I’ll drink your blood.”

Kazoo was unable to wriggle free. Fortunately, Bloodfang was awake after spotting the creature stalking the camp but was currently distracted from Kazoo’s plight as he was quietly sneaking up on where he had seen the creature before which was directly opposite of the current situation. Canica was fast asleep in her tent.

The creature realizing Bloodfang was up and moving took its paw from Kazoo’s mouth as it went to sink its yellow fangs into his neck. Kazoo threw a handful of sand into its face temporarily blinding it (via dirty fighting) causing it to rear up and away. Bloodfang saw this. Recognizing the creature he shouted, “Ilimu!” He charged and struck with all his might (power attack) at the monster’s neck. His Guan Dao crashed into its face with a loud wet crack as it sliced straight through its ugly skull. He had slain it in a single stroke.

Canica stumbled out of her tent buck naked with a broad axe in her hand. Seeing all was in hand she ducked back inside. Kazoo, now unable to sleep, decided to finish his watch duty while Bloodfang explained what the creature was as he skinned it.

The Ilimu is a therian creature, a predatory supernatural lion that can change into the human form of their victims. They often seek shelter with the relatives of these victims and at night return to their animal form and then murder them in their sleep (pg.132 MMI).

Come morning Bloodfang found that the Ilimu hide he had taken previously had rotted and was falling apart, the naked corpse of the monster was missing.

Kazoo: “Um.”

Bloodfang: “That is probably not good.”

Canica: “What? We can’t eat it now but so what. It’s gone.”

Later, just before striking camp, Bloodfang polled the others to see if they had any rations or water left. They were all out of food, but they still had some water, however there was only a single water cask left as Canica’s horse easily finished one per day as do all three of them. They struck camp and got out onto the road.

Jenn: “Oh, I still have the mead. But I think I wanna trade it… for a better weapon or some armor – maybe a shield.”

After a single hour of travel, they saw the old stone water well ahead of them (see Wanderers of the Waste Pt.1: Thirst).

Kazoo (just after washing the road dust from his face with a full waterskin): “Hey! Are we going in circles!?”

Canica: “Remember. We had to back track when the spirits guided us to water.”

Kazoo (emptying the waterskin to wet his hair): “Oh yeah.”

Disgusted, Bloodfang decided to go off the road East past the well and hunt for food, they had no idea how far away they were from any kind of settlement, as there were no other markings aside from the city of Ziwen. His companions accompanied him though Kazoo wanted to wait by the well. He was easily convinced to join the group after the subject of the missing Ilimu corpse was brought up.

So, they moved into the desert seeking prey, the punishing sun above glaring at them from an empty blue sky, not even the birds dared the heat of midmorning. After an hour of seeking, Bloodfang finally found some tracks, several kangaroo tracks – many of them. It appeared a fair-sized herd of kangaroos were heading East, maybe Southeast. He began stalking the trail with Kazoo and Canica, leading her horse, following.

After about an hour they came upon a vast patch of cactus. The dense tangle of spines and green flesh covered a large area over the hard packed rocky desert floor and was high and long enough to obscure vision North. They contemplated going around along the Southside of it, but Bloodfang found a wide enough winding dirt trail through it peppered with tracks. It took another hour, but they found their way out and traveled into an open area of desert.

The air danced angrily in the distance along the blazing sand and stone. Their backs burned as the sun beat down upon them. There were pale sand dunes along the Northeastern horizon. To the Southeast hills rose up surrounding a massive and tall red-orange mesa. To the South the desert floor angled down into a hill rimmed valley. However, the trail led into the valley, the floor of which as they neared the entrance from the high ground was populated by various desert bushes, orange-white-yellow flowers, and a few trees as well as several yuccas.

Canica stayed on her mount just behind the cover of the high ground as it sank into the valley while Bloodfang led Kazoo down into it staying low and hidden by the thickening vegetation. Time passed and the pair of hunters found their quarry, a kangaroo herd grazing on the clumped grasses and cactus flowers. Meanwhile, Canica as she fed her horse a handful of gathered grass, spotted what at first, she thought was a large bird in the distance above the giant mesa. She watched as it swerved and turned towards the valley, it was larger than she had at first thought. As it turned, she could see its underbelly, its bright yellow belly and leathery wings and its black horns and claws. It was a Yellow Fang dragon.

The hunters saw it right when it dove down into the valley snatching two large kangaroos in its claws and hoisting them up into the air. The panicked mob immediately turned and charged up towards the high ground and out of the valley. Bloodfang and Kazoo lunged from their cover into the choking cloud of dust raised by the fleeing animals. Bloodfang managed to ambush and kill one kangaroo while Kazoo managed to rope another, but it pulled free and got away. Canica pulled her horse to cover behind some cacti as the kangaroos blasted through the pass into the Northeast. The hunters waited till the dust settled to drag the carcass back to Canica’s location.

Jenn (glaring at me): “Oh no! I’m protecting my horse! He better not come for my horse!”

Isis: “What?”

Jenn: “In the Dragonslayers campaign the dragons kept eating our horses!”

The GM (me): “It doesn’t notice you at all.”

Canica: “Was that our dragon? The one that burned the fort.”

Kazoo: “I dunno. Maybe.”

Bloodfang: “No. The one that burned the fort was at least an adult probably a great adult, that one was a young one.”

Canica: “Oh damn.”

Gill (his nose in the Monster Magnus Vol.I): “Well, at least Yellow Fangs are medium weight dragons and not heavy weight.”

Bloodfang skinned and butchered the carcass and divided the fresh meat between them evenly (2 portions), there was a seventh portion left.

Kazoo: “I will be the better man and prevent any disagreement between you two and take the last portion of meat. You’re welcome.”

Bloodfang: “Um no, no you’re not.”

Kazoo: “Please sir, thanks for saving my life, but I am still very much wounded…”

Both Canica and Bloodfang folded their arms and scowled at him.

Kazoo: “…so I need the extra rations.”

They argued back and forth for some minutes before Kazoo turned on the charm and Bloodfang relented. It was early afternoon by time they got moving again with Canica in the lead.

After about 2 hours, the group realized they were in unfamiliar territory and Canica had to admit that she had forgotten how to get back to the road. Fortunately, Bloodfang remembered, and he took the lead. About three hours later they arrived at the stone well after passing through the narrow path between a pair of rocky hills.

Kazoo: “ARE WE GOING IN CIRCLES!?”

Canica: “Maybe.”

The GM (me): “It was more like a horseshoe.”

They continued along the road for another hour until they spotted what looked like a walled village.

Canica: “Yes! I am out of water, and so is my horse.”

Kazoo (spitting out a mouthful of water, a small wooden bottle in his hand): “So am I!”

Bloodfang sighed.

Eventually, as the sun finally began to drop in the sky and the searing air of late afternoon softened into the heavy, warm atmosphere of evening, they could clearly see tall adobe wall that encircled the nearing village. Relieved, they approached the sturdy wooden gates, the guards appeared above the battlements directly over the front gates when hailed. Two of them immediately pulled their javelins and aimed them at the desert-scoured adventurers.

One shouted: “BARBARIANS AT THE GATE!”

To Be Continued…

Wanderers of the Waste Pt.1 – Thirst

It was late afternoon, and the blazing white sun was high above, blasting down on the three thirsty adventurers with waves of intense heat. Canica (played by Jenn) had been walking her horse to ease its labor and keep pace with her other two companions: Kazoo (played by Isis) and Bloodfang (played by Gil). The last drops from their sagging water-skins had been emptied.

They were officially completely out of water, but the Paladin was adamant that by evening, they would find the water source alluded to by the spirits. At least, she desperately hoped so. Consequently, thirst was taking its toll on Kazoo. Meanwhile, Bloodfang (played by Gil) spotted a large plume of black smoke rising into the blue steel sky somewhere to the north, presumably a location near the dust-choked road that they had strayed from. Not long after, they took refuge under the shadows of some tall, large boulders, possibly remnants of druidic standing stones, to take shelter against the sun.

A few moments later, Kazoo was lying in the shade, and Bloodfang sat coiled beside him as he had been dubbed (by Kazoo) “official bodyguard of the prophet”. Canica was standing guard next to her horse, feeding it a handful of yellow grass found at the base of one of the standing stones.

Kazoo: “Hey, does anyone else smell that?”

Bloodfang (uncoiling and brandishing his Guan Dao): “On your feet! Harpies!”

Being a native of the general region, he knew that particular stench.

From atop one of the tallest rocks, a hideous harpy sneered at the three adventurers. The thing had the face and naked upper body of a hideously elderly human woman with bulging eyes and pointed teeth. Its long, tangled gray hair and slate gray feathers were besmeared with dirt and offal. It shrieked and then dove at Canica from its roost talons first. The paladin was able to parry the claws easily with her shield.

A second harpy crawled to the top of the same standing stone. Bloodfang immediately slashed at her with his Guan Dao, utilizing its reach, wounding her badly. The foul blood ran down to the ground. Kazoo slashed with one of his claw weapons at the first harpy, missing badly and scraping stone. Canica whipped out her battle ax and hacked into the first harpy. Blood splattered on the ground, and feathers flew as it flapped her wings in panic. The second harpy shrieked and rose into the sky above the stones out of the PC’s reach.

The first harpy also rose into the air, beating its wings desperately, scattering dirty feathers everywhere slashing Canica with a talon, wounding the paladin severely. Bloodfang stepped in and hacked the monster in two with a single powerful stroke. A wad of soupy dung splattered onto Kazoo’s head and shoulders, thrown by the second harpy as it fled. The creature flapped into the distance, cackling maniacally. She was long gone by the time Canica had pulled out her bow and nocked an arrow.

Bloodfang: “I think we better keep moving.”

Kazoo stopped Canica’s bleeding before they started once again heading toward the water source. By sundown, they had passed between some very low hills and then came upon a cliff edge. In front of them, at least another day’s travel away to the south, were more high steep rocky hills, but Canica said they should be at the water.

Canica: “It’s got to be at the bottom of the cliff. Right?”

Kazoo: “Well, I’m really bad at climbing. Hey, can I ride you?” He pointed at Bloodfang, who, of course, said, “No.” It took a couple of minutes for Kazoo to convince him otherwise.

As Bloodfang slithered down the 20 ft. cliff with Kazoo riding on his back, Canica rappelled down after. They found themselves at the bottom of the cliff and decided to use Canica’s instincts to follow the ridge further west. She led the way with no torch or lantern to light her way. They had been walking up a rise as they continued southeast, then Canica walked straight off a 15 ft. ledge.

Isis: “What!? Why don’t you have a lantern or torch or anything!”

Jenn: “Oh yeah, what do you have?”

Isis (flipping her character sheet over to the equipment sheet): “Um, a candle. That’s it.”

Jenn: “Oh, wait. I have a torch!”

Isis: “Only one torch?”

Jenn: “Yes!”

The GM (yours truly): “Sorry, you already fell. The dice were already rolled.”

The fall had nearly killed her (1 H.P. left), so Bloodfang decided to lead the group at a more careful and “slower pace”. They turned due south, following the cliff’s edge as the land turned to a lowering hillside. It was almost dawn by the time they found a cave on the rocky hillside in a narrow canyon between the steep humps of sand and stone.

The cool, moist breeze that blew from the cave was all that it took for them to run heedlessly in and down a gravel slope towards water. Only pausing for Canica to light her single torch. As soon as they crested the lip of gravel at the mouth of the cave, Canica slipped and slid down the gravel slope into the darkness. They witnessed her lit torch flying into the air and sparking out as they heard the thumps of her body and the sliding gravel.

Bloodfang (his voice echoing off the cave walls): “Hey! You okay!?”

Canica (dusting herself off): “Yeah, I’m okay.”

Isis: “Are you sure, sis? You were already hurt.”

Jenn: “I healed up a little, but yeah, I’m back to what I was. Um, on K-O points.”

Gil: “Aw, man. Okay, I guess my guy will take the lead. Again.”

They found the stone ramp that went deeper down into the cave, deciding to follow the cavern wall, working their way from west around to the east. Moving silently in the dark, with no torches or lanterns or any other light source, they came to a niche in the wall, and the best they could make out in the dark was that there was a collapsed statue in it. Kazoo then pulled out and lit his candle stub (1 hr of light left).

It was the broken remains of a female naga statue, from what they could tell from the fragments. The fragments appeared to have been smashed with tools. They continued feeling their way, eventually finding a rounded recess that led to a stone door with the carved image of an eye at its center. Remaining cautious, Bloodfang picked up a stray stone and tossed it at the door as the other two ducked back behind the corner of the cavern wall. A giant stone arm emerged from the stone of the door and, snatching the stone before it hit, crunched it into sand.

Isis: “I cannot wait to find out what’s behind that door!”

However, they decided to leave the door for another day and continued their circumspection of the cavern wall. Soon enough, they came across another destroyed statue and then came to a 5 ft. ledge under which was a sand bank along a small body of murky water. They immediately drank their fill and filled as many waterskins as they had. Canica took the time to fill her helmet with water and took it to her horse. She then led it into the cave and over the gravel slope towards Kazoo’s candlelight without incident. They decided to camp next to the water.

Bloodfang: “Alright, I’ll take the first watch…”

Kazoo: “I’m gonna sleep through the night. I’m not taking a watch, so you guys figure out…”

Bloodfang: “You’re taking a watch.”

Kazoo: “What do I need to take a watch for?”

Bloodfang (almost speechless): “Um, well… um, for stuff, man!”

Immediately giving up trying to talk sense to the half-breed Bloodfang intimidated him: Natural 20.

The watches were quickly decided, and the first two had Bloodfang and Canica on guard while Kazoo took the last. Of course, by the time the third watch came around, all three were fast asleep. Suddenly, a loud bubbling burp and the sound of gushing water awoke them. They found that large air bubbles were burbling up from somewhere deep under the water. But nothing else happened.

Bloodfang was livid: “That could have been serious! And you were SLEEPING! Sleeping on duty!?”

Canica: “Hey, I sat my watch.”

Bloodfang: “I’ll be taking Canica more serious than you from now on. And I carry my people’s beliefs, not yours! I do not even know what you believe!”

Kazoo: “I believe things! Many things!”

Bloodfang simply ignored the wannabe prophet. Not much later, he led them back out of the cave and managed to navigate them back onto the road. They found a stone water well right next to where they had walked onto the road from the hills.

The players let out an exasperated sigh (teehee).

Bloodfang (suddenly having an idea): “Now there’s a fort marked on the map, right?”

Canica (unfolding the map): “Looks like it.”

Bloodfang: “Keast was taking us there, so we should go to the fort. You can guide us since it’s day.”

He indicated Canica.

She realized that they would have to travel back north from the location of the well. It would take them most of the day to arrive at the fort. It was late afternoon when Kazoo spotted the fort and realized it had been burnt to the ground.

Kazoo: “Um, guys?”

Bloodfang: “I don’t want to hear it.”

Kazoo (riding on Bloodfang’s shoulders as if he were a mount): “The fort’s burned down.”

Canica (from the back of her horse): “Sure is.”

Bloodfang: “Aw, man.”

Gil snapped his fingers.

“This is where that plume of smoke was coming from that I saw yesterday!”

To Be Continued…

Wanderers of the Waste Intro

map of southeastern Ar on Arvan - The Crown-Mesa Desert

The lockdowns happened and we were unable to continue the Cabal of Eight campaign due to limitations involving Cris. He has no internet or smartphone. However, three of us were able to get together in the dining room, my wife Jenn of course, and my sister-in-law Isis as we had remained isolated since the quarantine first began. Gil though, came through via a laptop at the other end of the table as he was still in quarantine. It would take another couple of weeks for me to set up a new game and finish my game materials but soon enough we gathered around the dining room table again. Well, for the most part.

The new campaign taking place in the Eastern Frontier of Arvan in a desolate region named The Crown-Mesa Desert. The characters would be the survivors of a doomed caravan traveling along the main trade route to the southeast. For the first time, all the players had their characters completed and ready to go at the first session.

Jenn’s character is a Southlander human female paladin named Canica armed with a bastard sword and broad-axe. She also had a loyal mount. A horse named Draica. She also happened to be a new convert to Kazoo’s cult granting her the Smite clergy ability. This happened over the months the two had spent together on the road in the hire of the caravan. Jenn’s character’s flaw of gullibility and a paternal (maternal in this situation) personality played heavily into her conversion.

Isis’s character is a young 19-year-old male half-naga-human outcast from somewhere in the Eastern Frontier. He’s Dragon Shaman named “Kazoo” (but spelled the Arvanian way – Khazu). His personality: “FYO emotional vengeful loudmouth maniac with more bark than bite”. Kazoo worships the dragon deity Agbyzz’Tallasch (see Arvan Ch.12, the Draeken Gods). And is an aspiring dragon-cult leader and wielding a pair of iron claws.

Gil’s character is a male Southern Barbarian Naga Totem Warrior nicknamed Bloodfang. He’s armed with a Guan-Dao and was also a fresh (though reluctant) convert, his spirit animal being a dragonsaurus. He’s another native of the Eastern Frontier, although his adventure-seeking had taken him into the Eastern Woods and eventually the small lawless city of Skullhead.

All three (Canica, Kazoo, and Bloodfang) had been hired by Keast, a caravaneer almost over-eager to get his goods and wagon-train to the Great Delta selling along the way through the Eastern Frontier to finance and supply it. He was a short, fat, bald, and moderately successful Westlander merchant. He had hired several guardsmen though the best armor among them was studded leather and weapons being short spears with a few crossbows here and there. However, Keast’s reasoning was that he was able to hire more than enough warriors to make up in number the shortfalls in experience and quality arms. The caravan was carrying mostly jars of honey, a few barrels of high-quality Hill-Lander whiskey, several sacks of oats & grain, several loads of wood-ware, and a few carboys of noxious Poisonwood herbs as well as many amphorae of fragrant oils and perfumes.

The trip had run smoothly up until they passed over the borders of the Eastern Frontier and passed into the Red Pillar Pass, following the trade road into The Crown-Mesa Desert. The long, rich caravan was a day into a deep chalk cutting where white dusty cliffs rose on both sides when they came into a section where the cliffs became low and melted into an uneven ridge.

It was from this ridge that a howling mass of arrow & javelin-slinging savages spilled over into the cutting and overwhelmed the trapped caravan its inexperienced guards. These were the warriors of the Scrub-Tribes, probably from the Eastern Woods having tracked the caravan along the road waiting for the right time to pounce. The paladin, Dragon-Shaman, and Totem Warrior happened to be next to the caravan-master’s wagon at the time, which was in the lead. They were able to defend it against attackers and clung to it when fleeing the massacre. The three had observed a few Scrub-Tribesmen who were large, muscular, with the heads of bulls. Beings that they had never seen before.

Days later, the four wanderers were moving slowly finally reaching the end of the chalk cutting as the ridges to their northeast and southwest sank quickly. They had run out of water, there had only been a small barrel in the wagon. The repetitive creak of the wagon wheels was the only sound the heat-exhausted group could hear in the utter silence on the arid plain unrolling before them as they finally stumbled into the Eastern Frontier.

The chalk dust covering them stained their bodies white. All could feel it sucking out the moisture from their already parched skin. The oxen pulling the caravaneer’s covered wagon suddenly stopped, moaned, and then collapsed. Bloodfang rushed over to the animal finding it stone-cold dead. It had taken a couple of arrows to the belly during the ambush days ago and none of them had noticed. Bloodfang lamented the poor animal.

Suddenly, a loud dust-raising plop centered their attention on the caravan-master Keast. He had fallen face-first to the ground from the driver’s seat. Canica turned him over. He too was dead. They inspected his corpse. It seemed he had been dead for about a day. However, finding no wounds they could not tell what had killed him (it was a heart attack). Bloodfang pulled the folded map from the dead man’s hands and stretched open the stained parchment. Immediately Kazoo snatched at the map, missing and earning a scowl from the Totem Warrior. The Dragon-Shaman went into a screed and eventually convinced the naga to hand over the map. Kazoo then poured over the map for several minutes then handed it back to Bloodfang.

Kazoo: “Now you can prove your worth to me by guiding us with the map!”

He had realized the map had several labels on it and he was illiterate.

Bloodfang: “Whhat!? Prove myself to YOU?”

Again, Kazoo worked magic with his quick wits smoothing over the potential argument. Bloodfang was sure where they were, at the end of the Chalk Ridge on the map somewhere in the burn hole. The information on the map for their location was missing; long ago, the paper had had a hole burned through it. However, he had the same problem as Kazoo, he was illiterate as well.

Canica: “*sigh* I can read, give me the map.”

They looked over the map and realized how big the entire area was. In addition, they realized how thirsty they were, their tongues were like sandpaper and starting to swell. They tossed the wagon but found only the empty water barrel. The adventurers had to find water quickly or face dying of thirst very soon. They remembered that Keast had mentioned the next stop was to be a fort. It should have been just beyond the mouth of the Chalk Ridge. But they could see no fort in the distance and had no idea how far away it lay.

Canica used her Spirit Contact skill to converse with the spirits of the desert. She was able to gain some guidance and visions of where she could find water. It was off the road immediately south in a small cluster of low rocky hills. After a chorus of sighs, the trio began to move with the paladin in the lead.

To Be Continued…

The Cabal of Eight II – Pt.23: Home Sweet Safehouse

The group was rushing through the streets with Fauna in the lead. They wound south taking alleys and turning whenever there was a corner trying to keep from making too straight a line through the city. They soon passed beneath the shadow of the great southwestern guard tower, a castle in and of itself, as they ran deeper into the Southwest District. Fauna came to a halt before a tall three-story apartment building with three small shuttered slit windows per floor. The street was narrow, and the only traffic was street beggars and a leper ringing a bell as they limped past. Fauna walked up to the mildewed wooden double doors and fitted a key, given to her by one of Vor Jetl’s servants before she met up with her fellows at the White Prong. Excor observed the terra cotta tile roof, it appeared in ill repair. She opened the doors, and they went inside.

They found themselves in a small rundown foyer with an open roof and a shallow rain-catching pool of murky green water in the center of the floor. Everything was water damaged and the plaster was falling off in great patches on the walls exposing bricks. Fauna walked to the bronze double door. They could see patches of corrosion all over it. She reached up to the bell pull and rang the bell.

Excor: “Yup, just like I thought it would be.”

A small square hatch in the upper portion of the right-side door opened and they could see a rheumy eye look them over and without a word the doors swung open on unexpectedly oiled hinges. An old man welcomed them in. He was completely bald with a brass hoop earring in one drooping earlobe, a pair of brass bracelets on his wrists, leather sandals on his feet, and wrapped in an off-white toga fastened with a dull bronze brooch at the shoulder bearing the insignia of a dragonfly.

The Servant: “Ah! My mistress I’ve prepared for your return. There is food and drink on the table, I will return shortly with the meats.”

Excor & Szoo (together): “Whoa! What. The. Hell!”

They had wandered into a large room of white marble pillars and floors and smooth, white-washed walls. Censors hung from the ceiling of the square mezzanine that bounded the room opening into both floors above allowing the light from the skylight in the roof to bathe the room in bright warm light. Other censors stood around the perimeter by the walls, all smoking with a sweet mild scent. The center of the room was depressed and lined with embroidered silk pillows and three couches bounded the dropped floor. At the center of the dropped floor and mess of pillows was a glass top table set with trays of fresh fruit, three loaves of bread, a pot of butter, and two clay decanters of strong brown ale. They could see the top of a fully loaded hookah next to the table and the grand staircase beyond. Fauna’s three companions stood agape while she rushed over to the table and plopped down.

Excor: “Hey! Wait a minute! You need to answer some questions!”

Szoo: “Yeah, I think you need to explain some stuff.”

Fauna: “Like what?”

Szoo & Excor (together, both motioning to their surroundings): “Well. All of THIS!”

Fauna remained cheeky, so Excor and Szoo began to grill her about how she had these kinds of resources. Eventually, the druidess came clean as she realized trust was wearing thin within the group. She confessed to them that she was the head priestess of a secretive druidic cult that meets within the subterranean labyrinths under the city. They’re called the Brotherhood of the Rope. The groundskeeper of the Grove, Anishi (see The Cabal of Eight Pt.2: Wagon Ho!), was a high-ranking member and had brought her in, Virtra Wefa, the woman who had hired them in a failed scheme was at the time, the high priestess of the cult (see The Cabal of Eight Pt.24: Plate of Scorpions). This “safehouse” was owned by the merchant, Vor Jetl, “The Dragonfly”, another high-ranking cult member. Excor asked how long this had been going on.

Fauna: “I dunno, I became high priestess a few days ago…”

Both Szoo and Excor nodded in acceptance.

Fauna: “…but I guess I’ve been a member for like, uh, a month I think.”

Excor: “WHAT!? We could’ve used your cult to our advantage this whole TIME!

Cris, went ballistic going on a diatribe at the table that lasted for about 10 minutes. When he finished Fauna replied with a snide, “Well, we’ve got this place for now. Vor Jetl said we got it for as long as we need it. Wow, I’m really stressed.”

Fauna rolled out a line of yellow lotus on the glass table.

Szoo & Excor (together): “NO.”

Fauna: “Aww.” She put it away, pouted for a bit, then poured herself an ale in one of the gold-leafed red-clay wine cups as a salve.

After eating and drinking the group was settled in and Szoo and Fauna took turns pulling on the hookah. Excor kept the wrapped wand next to him, Jirek stayed close by babysitting a cup of dark wine that the old servant had brought out after supper. Excor reached into a pocket and pulled out the letter and sheet of aged sheepskin that had accompanied the wand’s case (see The Cabal of Eight II – Pt.20: Hideaway). He took it upon himself to cast clairvoyance on the letter, twice, to try to glean some answers.

Excor sat on a pillow in a meditative pose aside from the lounging group save for Jirek who remained his constant companion. After a few minutes…

Excor: “Sh*t!”

Szoo: “Wha? What’d you, see?”

Excor: “The ‘distinguished blue steward’ from the note.”

Fauna: “Yeah?”

Excor: “He was the arbiter at our trial.” (see The Cabal of Eight Pt.23: Trial of the Cabal).

Szoo: “Crap.”

Fauna just shrugged. She got up from the pillows and dropped herself onto a couch. Then as she stretched herself out, she realized something. She had spilled the beans about her cult to not only her dear companions Szoo and Excor but also to Jirek.

Jenn: “Guys, Jirek knows about the cult, I think I’m going to have to kill him.”

Isis: “What!? Nooo, why are you obsessed with killing Jirek!?”

For the past several sessions Jenn had been suggesting that they needed to kill Jirek for some reason.

Cris: “Naw, don’t kill a member of the cabal. We’ll figure it out later.”

They went back and forth between the three of them about what to do about the wand. Excor was vague but everyone figured out he wanted to keep it which caused Szoo to give him the side eye. Fauna talked about possibly destroying it, Excor agreed, but only if the Ocean of the Desert was about to get it. Szoo seconded that motion. Otherwise, they could not really figure out what to do with it as everyone after it wanted to cash-it-in to the dragon and they were loath to deal with a higher-up in the Sapphire guild. So, delivering the wand to him was out. Essentially, they did not reach a solid decision other than the Ocean of the Desert could not get her blue claws on it.

As night approached and the old servant went around lighting candles as well as the chandelier which hung from the ceiling two floors up from the center of the skylight as well as those in sconces in each of the bed chambers. They decided they needed to have two watches. Jirek and Fauna would be on the first watch, Szoo and Excor would be on the second. The reason was that they could not trust Jirek and though they didn’t say it out loud, they didn’t really trust each other at this point either.

The first watch commenced as the other two lay down amongst the pillows in the main room rather than the bedrooms prepared for them on the upper floors. An hour or so passed as the vast place became dead quiet then the servant passed the pair of watchers apparently on his way outside. He explained to Fauna that he had to run some errands for his master and would be right back. He asked her if there was anything he could get her, and when she said no, he left.

Show your appreciation for what we write and take a look at our Catalog or Buy Me A Coffee!

Fauna: “Sooo, Jirek… What’s up?”

Jirek: “Um, not, nothing really. Hey, you got some lotus on you?”

Fauna: “Hell yea…wait. So, you wanna do some?”

Jirek: “Well, ladies first…”

Fauna (suspicious but successfully playing it off): “You go ahead we’re on watch, it’s alright, I got this.”

She passed a small leather pouch to him. He denied it with an upturned hand, “That’s okay, it’s no fun alone.”

Jenn: “Yup, I really don’t trust this guy!”

Isis: “Oh, Jirek, man…”

Cris (mockingly): “Pfft! Oh yeah, I don’t trust him – No sh*t! He wants the wand, we all want the wand, it’s bad*ss!”

The first watch passed quietly, “too quietly” for Fauna, and the second began as Jirek and Fauna took their places amongst the silk pillows. After about an hour, Fauna was snoring, but Jirek was laying as if waiting for something pretending to be asleep as noted by Excor. He managed to whisper this info to Szoo without Jirek catching it. Another hour passed and the black night as observed through the skylight above had lightened to a deep star-specked purple.

Both Szoo and Excor were drowsing their heavy-lidded eyes rhythmically shutting and then opening when suddenly the lights dimmed throughout the room. Both mages shot to their feet.

Szoo: “Oh boy, here we go!”

Excor: “EVERYBODY UP! WAKE UP!”

A mass of black shadows coalesced into a large black cloud opposite the two watchers and on the other side of the sleepers. The cloud hardened into a blob that split into three human-like silhouettes with long wormy tentacles in place of arms.

Jirek leaped up and jumped behind Excor. Szoo charged forward and struck with his naginata, a rubbery whip-like tentacle parried the blade. Excor cast a shield spell on himself in time for a tentacle to stretch from the second shadow as it moved forward trying to entangle him. Fauna was still snoring as the third shadow’s tentacles oozed toward her sleeping form. Szoo’s shriek finally caused her to shoot up from a dead sleep. Jirek appeared to ready himself but did nothing. Szoo struck again but again was parried. The first shadow struck at Szoo, he dodged, and the tentacle cracked like a bullwhip. Excor backed away but tried to keep within reach of the wrapped wand. The second shadow advanced on him. Fauna dodged a tentacle and ran up the grand staircase. Jirek again readied himself, however, he did nothing save stepping closer to the wand. Excor cast a stun bolt at the creature on him, but it had no effect. Jirek looked around and seemed to root himself to the spot.

Excor: “Wait a minute. I think my spell hit a higher level of magic. Hm.”

Excor turned and cast paralyze II on Jirek who froze in place next to the wand. Szoo, in turn, struck home with his polearm, but it passed harmlessly through the monster.

Excor: “They’re shadow creatures! Watch out!”

Szoo: “I think these guys are illusions!”

Szoo reached out with confidence and his hand passed right through it as the illusion faded. Excor kicked Jirek and told him to dispel them. They disappeared.

Szoo: “Is Jirek even that powerful?”

Jirek (after the paralysis was lifted): “It was a scroll.”

Fauna: “WHO’RE WORKING FOR!?”

Jirek: “Myself! Myself! I just wanted the wand.”

Fauna: “Oh yeah! WHY!?”

Jirek & Excor (both at once): “Because it’s awesome!”

They decided not to kill Jirek after a two-to-one vote, but he was now on outs with the trio although they made it clear that he was now to consider himself a prisoner, at least until this wand debacle was over. If he gained the wand, he would then easily lose it to the Ocean of the Desert or the pirates and thus the dragon would get it anyway. That was not even taking Xanto the Wasp into account.

Excor (under his breath): “Gawd-dammit.”

Szoo: “what?”

Excor: “We need to finish this! We need a plan.”

Fauna: “Seconded!”

The three adventurer-mages were just about to huddle when the bronze double door burst open. Several armed guards poured into the room. Behind them followed the corpulent Vor Jetl, the old servant who stood just behind him.

Vor Jetl: “Ah, my dear priestess,” he bowed, “I see you found a great prize for the brotherhood. Our coffers will be overflowing!”

To Be Continued…

The Cabal of Eight II – Pt.22: The Wasp’s Nest

They easily made it through the mirror into the Wasp’s strange extra-dimensional hideout guided back to the mirror in the library closet by Fauna.

Szoo (mesmerized by the vaulted ceilings more than 20 ft. above him): “Whoa.”

The trio had the previous instant just been in a tiny closet and walked through an out-of-place mirror as if it were a thin veil of shimmering mercury and found themselves here. The walls were nearly featureless vast swaths of smooth cold beige. The magic sconces, large dragonflies of colored glass mosaic far up the walls lit by flickering golden magic flames. They lit the hall before them well enough though they were all made nervous by the fact the magic light also seemed to deepen the numerous shadows.

The trio looked down each side of the cross-hall, it seemed to continue both left and right into unlit sections which prevented them from seeing how far the cross-hall went. Jirek, the cabal scribe, was close but apart from the group.

Cris (Excor’s Player): “Crap, that’s right. Jirek’s still with us.”

Before them was a set of winding ivory stairs that rose to a spacious mezzanine, all the floors were a polished marble tile mosaic. In a niche under the stairs were stacked books and piles of scrolls, several of which were strewn about the floor along with several open books next to an oblong case.

Excor (to Fauna): “That it?” He pointed to the case.

Fauna: “I dunno, probably is.”

Excor looked at the green lacquered double door under the mezzanine ledge.

Fauna: “That leads to a library… I think.”

They turned around. Behind them was a large built-in mirror rimmed in gold with a sapphire and emerald dragonfly at the top edge. This main hall area was of considerable size.

Excor, not wanting to appear over-eager to get the case in his hands, starts questioning Fauna about what’s here – bedrooms up there and a bath, a kitchen somewhere (she had no idea), the library there beyond those doors, and that’s all she knew.

Szoo: “Should we start exploring this place?”

Excor: “Yeah, yeah… pick a hallway, there’s three ways to go. We kind of know what’s up there.” He pointed at the mezzanine and the main hall. He turned around to face one of the side hallways.

Szoo: “Um, the right one?”

Then as a group with Excor in the lead, they started to go down the dim hallway, the lights began to light up as they moved down. They continued for several minutes only noticing after they had made a long distance that the lights were progressively dimmer than the previous. They pushed on eventually stopping about a dozen feet or so from a virtual wall of darkness.

Excor: “Holdup.”

The trio each in turn tried to penetrate the impenetrable shadows with their eyes. Neither the druidess nor the naga could see a thing. Excor, however, thought he saw “something moving in there”. It was shapeless.

As a result, They began lighting torches and lamps, casting light spells, and trying to penetrate the supernatural darkness. It was as if they had come face to face with a brick wall but of solidified shadow instead of masonry. Fauna was prodded to “poke” her torch into it. When the flame submerged into its depths, its light was completely obscured. It came back out extinguished.

Excor: “Great. It probably has energy drain on it or some sh*t like that.”

Fauna: “What do you think it is?”

Excor: “A wall of shadows or something…”

The four mages, the trio of adventurers with Jirek following far behind, went in the opposite direction to the same result.

Excor: “Man! There’s gotta be something good back there. Ah! Do we wanna die trying to get it?”

Cris looked over at me with an accusing glare. I could only shrug and signal a “who me!?”, then wave my hands helplessly in the air.

Cris: “Yeah, yeah, I thought so.”

Excor (aiming his question at his companions): “So, do we try to get through this thing?”

Szoo & Fauna (in unison): “Screw that!”

Excor: “Cool, cool. We’re getting sidetracked, let’s get that f@*#’in wand!”

 They retreated to the box.

Cris: “Yeah, I don’t want to mess up my royal clothes!”

Excor was still in his royal duds; an embroidered silk robe with a black silk sash at the waist over a buttoned undershirt, black silk shoes on his feet, a black felt pork-pie hat with a peacock feather on his head, and the magic blue cape on his back.

Cris (to me, the GM): “Yeah, I need to get back into my adventuring gear, I need to keep my noble clothes clean.”

Isis (Szoo’s Player): “What!?”

Jenn (Fauna’s Player): “Oh! He’s a fancy lad!”

That’s when they noticed that Jirek, who was with them when they entered the Wasp’s strange extra-dimensional hideout, was already on the case trying to suss out how to open it.

Excor: “Hey! You get back from there!”

Szoo: “Don’t make me burn you, man!”

Fauna: “Yeah!”

Jirek backed off with his hands up, “Just curious, this is it though!”

Excor: “No kidding!”

Then Excor sidled up next to the case and began carefully inspecting it. Shortly after a concerted effort, they spotted a white outline of a keyhole under a seal. Excor had the other three stand back while he used his magic platinum key (see Cabal of Eight – Pt.17: Fight for Sleep) to temporarily open the magically sealed case. They were all stunned for a moment standing transfixed as he gazed upon the treasure within.

There, sitting within the small but long black case, was the wand that every power player in Ezmer was desperate to get their hands on. The scepter was almost as long as a short spear with a shining pearlescent twisted alicorn consisting most of its length.  The horn was set in a polished platinum horse-head guard with a polished jet grip and large polished azurite pommel stone.

Both Jirek and Excor grabbed the wand. They stared each other down for a moment, then Jirek reluctantly let go after Szoo threatened him.

Excor: “Okay. We need something to wrap this in.”

The case snapped back closed. They could all hear the locking mechanism reengage.

Fauna: “Got it!” She darted up the stairs and then after a few brief minutes ran back down the flight of stairs with a delicate silk blanket pilfered from an upper bedroom bunched in her arms. Then as they wrapped the glorious object in silk, they noticed that Jirek followed every movement of the wand with his eyes.

Isis: “Aw man, the wand’s got Jirek!”

Jenn: “Oh no, do we have to kill him?”

Cris: “Naw, we just have to keep an eye on him, don’t let him be alone with it… Damn.”

Jenn: “What?”

Cris: “We’re all wizards.”

Isis: “So.”

Cris: “None of us can really outrun him, if we were faster, we could lose Jirek on the way.”

Szoo: “Wait. Where are we going?”

Fauna: “Duh, the safehouse man!”

Isis (to Cris): “Wait. Why did you invite Jirek anyway?”

Cris: “…”

Jenn: “Well.”

Cris: “I forgot.”

Without analyzing anything further they fled back through the mirror leaving the empty case behind. They were going to run all the way to the safehouse set up for Fauna by Vor Jetl hoping that they could avoid the Blue Dragon’s servants, the two pirate crews, and the Wasp.

To Be Continued…

Tabletop Meditations #19: Murder Hoboes Inc.

Your player group has just slaughtered an entire village for the hell of it, they kill every other NPC thatMurder D20 has any words with them, and they loot every corpse. In fact, loot is just one excuse they use to participate in the slaughter of unfortunate NPCs. What you have on your hands is every GM’s nightmare, a gaggle of Murder Hoboes.

The problem of murder hoboing is as old as fantasy roleplaying games themselves. A problem best dealt with directly in-game though out-of-game preparation can help to mitigate its appearance. The term itself comes from the commonality that most adventurers are essentially homeless wanderers looking for wealth and power through fighting enemies, participating in expeditions, and general adventuring.

Murder hoboing is a problem because it can derail an adventure by killing off of important NPCs thereby disposing of any important information they were to relay to the PCs, cause utter chaos in game rendering all the prep work a GM has done fruitless, and may squelch the fun of those actually trying to engage the game world. Ultimately it rests with the GM to work with the offender to get things back on pace. However, direct confrontation might not be the best or effective way to go about things instead attempts from within the game should be tried first to gently coerce the Player through their character. Every group has had a player that has done this and often groups do go through these types of phases early in their existence.

However, not all adventurers are Murder Hoboes though the majority seem to be itinerant by their very nature. A Murder Hobo is essentially an adventurer that simply goes around killing everything in their path in order to reap experience points (XP) or to loot the corpses of their victims. They often do not discriminate between villains, allies, monsters, animals, innocents, and criminals. If it exists within the game, worth is broken down into loot or XP.

On the other hand, Murder Hoboing is the behavior manifesting from the previously mentioned outlook by a Player using their Player Character (PC). A player may hold this simplistic view due to boredom, a long lull or inactivity in the game, or lack of immersion leading to said boredom. This can also come from playing a character that has been built solely for combat and nothing more in a game that consists of little or no combat or has long stretches between the actual fighting and the other RPG elements.

There are three major strategies or courses of action that can be used to mitigate murder hoboing that do not directly target the Player. The first called the Session Zero approach strives to construct a set of rules and understanding that will set up the boundaries for Players and the GM. This is a preemptive strategy.

The second strategy is to require a Backstory from each Player for their character in an effort to invest the Player in the fate of their character. Hopefully inspiring them to not misuse them to derail the game. The last approach is to Bait the offender and essentially use the potential fate of their character to send a warning to them that their attempt at having fun stomping all over everybody else’s’ will only end in frustration for them. This is still an indirect approach but is very close to being directed at the player him or herself and if misused that is exactly what it will feel like to them, so use this last approach with caution.

Session Zero is the pregame where the group gathers to generate characters and where the general rules and expectations of the group can be discussed establishing a general code of Player behavior. The GM can give their input in character builds so that players can create characters that can participate in as much of the play as possible thereby avoiding the boredom and over-specialization that can lead to the adoption of the murder hobo mindset. Typically, a Session Zero is a meet up to generate characters and discuss table manners before the next actual play-session. This preliminary session also gives the players a chance to come up with and write backstories for their characters.

Players that have worked on a backstory will have more invested in their characters. Thus, they are less apt to go on uncharacteristic killing sprees or randomly murder NPCs. Granted that their character is not actually a homicidal maniac. A backstory also allows a GM to integrate a character into the game world and even into the main thrust of a campaign by linking elements in their backgrounds with adventure and campaign elements. This also gives the GM ammo when a PC does go berserk and needs to be reined in allowing for in-game story options to do that if only as a distraction.

This brings us to baiting. This strategy involves using a situation or NPC that appeals to the worst nature of the Player(s) in order to lure them into a confrontation. The bait of course is much more than can be seen, they are characters designed to prey on the weaknesses of the offender(s) as well as defend against their strengths. Either this forces the offender’s compatriots to join them or back away during the fight. If they survive that encounter then bait them again to send a warning shot across their bow in order to let them know they may not be able to tell a bait-NPC from the average NPC.

Whereas the previous strategies do not directly target the offending player(s), remember the bait tactic means the player(s) has to take it, there are effective strategies that do. These techniques directly oppose the PCs in game and if over-used may cause players to resent the GM. They may come to believe the GM is laying tracks (as in railroading) or just deliberately beating up on their characters, so try not to over-use these techniques. I suggest that these strategies should be utilized when the characters start exhibiting or carrying out murder-hobo behaviors. These tactics are the Boss Strategy, making use of diegetic Power Structures, and deploying an Avenger.

A one time-tested strategy to handle murder hoboing has been to insert increasingly powerful NPC’s (paladins are common) to act as adjudicators and avengers essentially using the Video-Game Boss Strategy. A boss in this context is an NPC that functions as a roadblock to the endeavors of the players. Sometimes they can also function as a landmark, especially as an indicator of player power level. An example is an NPC showing up early in the PC’s career that beats the hell out of them and gets away.

Eventually the PC’s catch up to this NPC and are able to defeat them in a later confrontation allowing players to demonstrate not only their characters’ increased powers and abilities but also (hopefully) their better teamwork and maybe ability at planning and strategy. Bosses are ideally effective combatants up to the point of defeating the players, that is they are hard to defeat but are not overwhelmingly or impossible to knock down.

The Boss strategy can keep the murder-hobo(es) on their toes focusing their attention. It also has entertainment value so eliminating murder hoboing due to boredom. The Boss should inspire the PCs to track them down where NPCs with information become important to that goal. A murder hobo would lose the ability to get their claws into the Boss by not sparing the “throw-away” NPCs.

A better strategy, one that increases the depth of the setting, is to impose a socio-political hierarchy (feudalism etc.) that is defined and useable in game with the NPCs holding these positions not having to be super-charged or even particularly unique. The structure will ensure that even the players eliminate those in charge there is always a replacement and all the powers above them will see the players as threats to their persons as well. Thereby hiring and sending out the boss-types not only reinforced with the authority to deal with them but with back-up coming from all angles which includes ordinary citizens as informants or even poisoners or entrappers. These people who not only believe in the system which can by themselves be enough but those who also have stakes built into the system or at least those who believe they do are very dangerous.

Overarching structures are more effective being very big and complex such as the Feudalist Hierarchy, which is basic but can be complex very quick as can succession to any of its offices. Smaller self-governing structures such as Guilds are more common but are also attached in some way to the overarching political structure by agreements, contracts, laws, and money. Meaning certain parts of the system will awaken to protect the whole as well as those parts that will see the murder-hoboes as their answer to political expediency and try to use them as such. This method can turn murder-hoboes into true role-players very quickly especially if they care anything about their characters. If the PCs still randomly murder the NPCs then an avenger may be called for.

An Avenger or Nemesis type NPC has the power and resources to hunt down and be a definite threat against the offending PCs. This type of NPC will definitely try to get them alone in a duel-like situation and will have no mercy convinced that they are the good guy and may very well be in this situation. It should be obvious to the Players that this character is too powerful to confront directly and there should be clues dropped in the game to demonstrate this and clue the Players in. There should also be in-game moments when the PCs know a superior enemy is stalking them. This helps to focus the murder-hobo(es) on something other than murder hoboing.

Murder Hoboing can drag a game down into pure boredom with the GM paralyzed due to a vital tool being broken. The ability to put clues and raw information into the mouths of NPCS is extremely important to running a game. It also boils roleplaying games down to simple number crunching as murder hoboing often involves greed for XP but this is not always applicable. However, there a ways to mitigate and fight this lazy approach to RPGs that some players have or may fall into.

The more passive and preventative approaches are running a preliminary session (Session Zero), require character backstories from each player, and do not be afraid to bait troublesome player characters.  These should be attempted before the more direct methods are used. The more direct methods to combating murder-hoboes are employ increasingly powerful NPCs as adjudicators, make use of in-game power and political structures, and sending out avenger or nemesis type NPCs directly at the PCs. Note that the GM should never overuse these direct tactics as players may take it as direct attacks on them by the GM, so use sparingly.

Of course, if all else fails maybe it’s time to let go of the troublesome player or try to adjust to the group’s method of play if it is the entire group and a new one is not an option. Maybe such a group is better at being the villains.

[do_widget id=”cool_tag_cloud-4″ title=false]

Tabletop Meditations #18: Disease

The Player Characters (PCs) are traveling through a fetid, sweltering swamp. Halfway through their Potions and Medicines to combat diseaseadventure the expedition begins to fall sick with fever. At first, just a few torchbearers were sick and then a few porters. Eventually almost the entire adventuring party is sick even a few PCs are ill. The danger made apparent before the expedition. However, they assumed it couldn’t be that bad. After all, they had healing magic at their disposal. Now stranded at the center of a monster-infested morass they are bogged down with a sick and dying expedition. In addition, the longer they stay, the more likely more will fall ill. An invisible tiny enemy has brought them to their knees.

Disease has stalled even killed some of the toughest, persistent, and well-provisioned adventurers in history. Strange fevers, boils, sores, pox, food poisoning, parasitic worms, STD’s, and animal born infections have plagued adventurers and military campaigns throughout history. With disease being such an important factor concerning exploration and conquest, a clever Game-Master (GM) would be foolish not to make use of that side of nature.

Disease is an underutilized tool in the GM Toolshed and can add to the danger and feeling of a setting. Disease is a world-class force. It can thwart adventurers, jamb the wheels of imperialism, stop the machines of war dead, and even curtail history. However, with all things in the game world, diseases need to be broken down into a few basic ideas.

There are three aspects to diseases in respect to roleplaying games that are important. These are Contagion Rate, the Incubation Period, and the Disease Vector(s) through which the sickness perpetuates. The Contagion Rate refers to how contagious the disease is, percentiles can easily represent this. This represents how easily the disease can transfer to an individual. The percentile rate would mean that the exposed character is potentially infected. After this determination, the GM should refer to the game mechanics for what happens next. If the character succumbs to the infection then the symptoms of the disease are often not immediately noticeable.

Symptoms and the main effects of the disease will appear after the Incubation Period of the specific disease has passed. Incubation Period refers to how long the disease remains dormant in an infected host; it can still be contagious at this stage. After exposure a character can walk around apparently unaffected for however long the Incubation Period lasts which can ranged anywhere from a few hours to days even years! They can remain infectious during this period as well. Often the more infectious a disease is the shorter the incubation time. A highly infectious disease that has a short incubation time is a plague in the waiting although the quicker the incubation then the quicker the outbreak is likely to burn itself out.

Finally, the third idea is the Disease Vector. A vector is the agent that carries the disease to its living host, which can be a living organism or a medium like dust. The infection vectors that can spread a disease are many but the main ones to keep in mind are those that travel through wounds, insect bites, animals (feces & diseased individuals, corpses), and those that are airborne or hide in improperly prepared or stored food. Adventurers need to make sure their food has not spoiled or been contaminated. They should beware of corpses they have not killed themselves. Adventurers also need to care for their wounds even small scratches especially when traversing bodies of water or marsh areas. Of course, they also need to learn how to deal with biting insects especially mosquitoes and flies.

Infection can get into open wounds through direct contact with such vectors as dirty clothes, water, mud, and general filth. The improper cleaning of deep wounds is begging for infection. A good example of the result of an infection through wound contamination with serious consequences is gangrene. Gangrene results in fever and possibly the loss of limbs and death not to mention the stench of rotting flesh. Note that gangrene also results from a lack of circulation but the form we are concerned with is the result of bacterial infection.

Animal and insect bites are another major vector for diseases. The most obvious one is rabies, if the animal is foaming at the mouth its bite is something to avoid. However, certain animals that are carriers are not so easy to avoid. Vampire bats prey upon sleeping warm-blooded victims. Another infamous example is of the Tsetse fly and its transmission of sleeping sickness not to mention the mosquito born malaria and dengue and yellow fevers. Even such hard to avoid insects such as ticks that can carry lime disease.

To finish off the potential vectors of interest to GMs are airborne infections and of course food poisoning. Spoiled food is a major hazard and may transmit mild to severe effects. This usually depends on the type of food, where it came from, and how it was prepared. Also, food contaminated through contact with other vectors such as insects or contaminated water becomes a medium for disease. Another way food can shelter the enemy is by eating infected animals, which may be still within the incubation period.

Airborne vectors come about when inhaling germs in miasmatic environs such as gas spewing swamps or burbling cesspits. This includes sharing space with infected individuals with no contact other than breathing the same air. Here, the disease uses the medium of air launched in aerosol form by a cough or sneeze. Good examples of the types of diseases that can spread via these vectors are influenza and the Hanta virus via the dust from rodent droppings. In certain cases, even the wind can become a vector. Another medium that is worth visiting is that of water.

Waterborne infections can afflict individuals that drink spoiled or stagnant water. Contaminated water can also infect food that comes into contact with it especially during preparation. Examples of the diseases that travel via water are Dysentery, Typhoid fever, and Guinea Worm. Adventurers should always be suspicious of bodies of water they encounter and not just because of leeches and piranha either. However, in fantasy roleplaying games there are a few mitigating factors even in the more primitive of settings.

In RPGs, certain game aspects can mitigate the disease factor. These three disease negating factors are characters that have the ability to heal others aka Healers, potions or elixirs, and magic.

Healers are characters that have the ability to heal other characters of both damage and cure diseases or at least ease their symptoms. They can achieve this mystically or with some version of medicine. If disease is a major feature in a setting, these characters become very valuable party members. However, even when Healers are traveling with an expedition that party may want some backup in the form of potions.

Potions when consumed heal damage and some can even cure disease. These are usually of a magical nature but sometimes the fantasy separates chemistry, alchemy, and magic into separate areas. This separation does not concern us here, as the mere existence of potions is effective in combating disease. The only factors to consider are availability (who makes them and how long does it take) and cost in both time and money. Meaning the majority of people will not be able to afford these life-saving potions. Alternately, if they can it still might be a rare thing. This is especially true if the disease requires a specific cure or type of potion. As the nature of potions often falls into the realm of magic so magic itself must be taken into consideration.

Although healing abilities and potions fall under the purview of magic, they are different strategies due to availability and cost. Unless someone has access to a healer they do not have the luxury of the healer’s abilities and if they cannot find a supply of potions then the same. The same can be said of magic items that may offer protection or even healing abilities to their wielder. These are more accessible to the makers of such items and fall into adventurers’ possession more frequently than others’.

Magic items are more accessible than a Healer’s abilities. This is simply because all one has to do is wield the item instead of becoming a healer. They are also more durable than potion bottles thus granting a more portability. Also they are more than likely good for more than a single use. Frankly, the advantage of a disease fighting magical item is so great that it becomes a necessary piece of kit. This is not to diminish a mage or wizard that has disease curing spells but again access is the issue, there must be such a spell-caster present.

In a world of limited scientific knowledge and where magic is known to exist  how would disease be treated? Just as importantly, how is the welfare of those unfortunate enough to be suffering from infection handled? Historically, disease shaped communities and whole eras of civilization (syphilis, HIV/AIDS, Black Death, leprosy). This includes the formation of colonies and places meant to isolate and imprison diseased individuals. A bustling snake oil industry and quack businesses will spring up. A historical parallel would be the patent medicines of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Disease shapes affected communities especially if there is no cure. How society deals with and treats the so affected is important. The example of lepers is especially notorious. Lepers were made to ring bells warning the healthy members of society that they were coming whenever they were traveling in towns and cities if not barred from entry. Lepers were even forced (occasionally voluntarily) into colonies often on small faraway islands or isolated facilities.

With laws and forced isolation imposed on victims of disease also comes scapegoating. This being applied to not only the infected but also those that were believed to carry the infection. This includes those accused of deliberately planting the sickness by contaminating water wells or poisoning food by means of witchcraft.  These scapegoats may be particular creatures or locations, enemies, social minorities, or newly arrived adventurers or adventurers in general. This also may include a belief that a specific disease is particular to a certain community.

The efforts to prevent infection will range from reliance on certain organizations (religious, mages, alchemy, charlatans, etc.) to enforced cleanliness or misguided efforts thereof. Cities and towns could forbid certain types of individuals from entering due to the belief that they are carriers.

Disease is a world shaping force that stops invasions dead, halts the movement of goods, money, and troops, altering history. The outbreak of plagues can sweep over the entire planet wiping out whole swaths of civilization leaving an indelible mark on the surviving culture. There are Plagues (an extreme version of a specific disease) that can alter the world as it circulates the globe wiping out towns and cities.  International trade can even become a vector such as in the case of the Black Plague and medieval Europe. Small outbreaks can stall wars, halt invasions, wipe out small communities, and kill kings.

However, disease, especially plagues, can not only negatively affect the population but also have severe economic repercussions and even present new opportunities. Patent Medicines (real or snake oil) can come about to fill the need effective or not. Quacks may proliferate. The collapse of trade may occur with the isolation of cities or rural areas needed for trade. The reduction of the work force by extreme measure is not only a tragedy but also thereby giving them more power to demand better treatment and pay.

In June 1381, 35 years after the Black Death had swept England, the Peasant Rebellion occurred led by Wat Tyler from Kent. The peasant army from Kent and Essex marched on London and captured the Tower of London. One motivating factor of this peasant force was that during the plague they had been granted their freedom and paid to work the estates of the aristocracy. The aristocracy did this in order to keep them from leaving during the labor shortage created by the plague. The peasants were afraid that they would lose these newly won privileges. Plagues damage the laborer population, which leads to a downturn in production of materials and crops for at least a decade and increases the economic and political clout of labor and the lower classes. It actually turns the world upside down.

Diseases in RPGs are of value to the GM. Diseases can act as an obstacle to PCs, give certain specialized Healer characters an important role to play, and alter NPCs in dramatic ways. The knowledge of the potential diseases they may face may give the PCs pause and even alter their travel routes. A diseased member of a PC expedition may slow down or stop the group dead especially if more than one of their number is infected. This in and of itself presents its own challenge. That challenge being to find shelter and/or a place to recuperate and recover their bearings.

Introducing these illnesses into your world allows the Healer character to do something seemingly small. However, do not be afraid to demonstrate to the other PCs that disease can take quite a toll even if it only is stalling them for a while. Sickness can also alter infected NPCs in a way that can engage players and give the GM more tools to work with. Examples are lepers, sick and dying kids as a source of empathy/sympathy or an adventure hook, dying beggars, the dying and kind old person but for a cure scenario.

Making use of diseases can help a GM to enhance their game. They have a tool that can halt armies, delay or kill adventurers, alter the functions of an NPC, and put up a barrier to egress in a remote area. It can add to the flavor of a game as well as engendering some mild danger or at least another sum that the Players will have to calculate. Not to mention the fear factor built up via dialogue delivered by the NPCs to the Players.

Microorganisms can stall adventuring parties and armies alike as well as strike down the lowliest peasant as well as the mightiest king. Adding disease to your campaign world can enrich the background as well as alter the roles of NPCs, Healers, and mages. In this same scenario potions and magic items that house healing and disease fighting abilities become more useful and therefore valuable. Certain vectors especially certain insects may become a symbol of terror to PCs who become cognizant of the risk and the need to prepare for an excursion beforehand. Disease as a part of a living campaign world is an invaluable tool for the discerning GM and a valuable source of drama and immersion for Players.

[do_widget id=”cool_tag_cloud-4″ title=false]

Tabletop Meditations #16: Old Empires

In any given fantasy RPG, but by no means all of them, a remnant empire or a landscape littered withRuins of an empire the bones of an ancient empire sometimes mysterious oft times still vaguely powerful. Old empires appear throughout fantasy and thus many fantasy tabletop roleplaying games. Using this trope makes it a little easier to begin to build your own setting using this as the basis for a dark age or at least an age where the empire is in a state of decline this loss of power being vital to adventuring.

Ancient empires lend a sense of history, which can still be seen and sometimes experienced to a game world. They can provide explanations for some of gaming’s oldest tropes, especially for the ubiquitous dungeon, and present adventure hooks in the forms of artifacts, lost knowledge, and explorable ruins. The old empire (or empires) that may be present in a given fantasy world also carry their own tropes and various resemblances to those of real-world history. Old empires are useful to the GM in the context of RPG campaigns but also carry certain disadvantages.

When speaking of empires there are certain terms that are inseparable in most incarnations of this fantasy trope. These are Empire, Imperium, and Citizen.

The word empire carries with it some baggage in and of itself due to actual history and it conjures a very specific type of image. In the popular imagination, the word empire often conjures to mind the imperial wonders of the ancient world, marble statues massive multi-columned buildings and/or massive armies that could drink lakes and inland seas dry. Of course, in the modern context however it also brings to mind the subjugation of indigenous peoples, the snatching of land, and constant wars of conquest.

Today the word empire is used to describe an extensive state made up of several ethnic groups but ruled by only one of them.  It has, at least since the early 20th century, also carried the suggestion of tyranny and brutality, inherited from the practices of modern European colonial powers. [Grafton, Anthony, ed. 2010. The Classical Tradition. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Cambridge, Mass. Empire. pg.310]

The imperial entity also means the mass rule of law and an enforced order over a given territory. An empire allows for widespread civility allowing the gentler aspects of civilization to take hold as well as providing the structure for the crueler aspects of humankind to prevail (the argument for barbarism as told by R.E. Howard). Education and philosophy blossom as well as giving a chance for cults and even gangs (a criminal underworld) to appear.

Imperium refers, in common use, to the empire and its forces sometimes with exclusion to its people. Here it serves more as a reference to its machinery rather than its people or possessions. More often, it is synonymous to Empire and often it is used for both. However, it is actually a reference to the territorial reach and extent of the empire. “One thing all the various meanings of the word imperium have in common is the association between extended territorial dominion and military rule.” [Grafton. 310] This basic definition is as old as Rome and is less vague than the casual usages. “As early as the 1st century BCE, the Roman historian Sallust had used the phrase Imperium romanum to describe not merely the power but also the geographical extent of the authority of the Roman people.” [Grafton. 310]

When it comes to the term Citizen when speaking of empires this refers to those individuals that the Imperium sees as the core of its existence often making official capacity to accommodate that (or those) group(s) cultural traditions and to those that it has a legal and/or philosophical responsibility. Note also that there will be some legality involved with citizenship handled by an imperial bureaucracy. The reality of citizenship however is always an unpredictable affair and will vary throughout the history of the empire. In game terms, imperial citizens are often snobby and serve as exemplars of over-civilized fops that are incapable of not getting themselves killed not just in the wilds of the world but in the rural farmlands as well.

IMPERIAL CITIZENS are so civilized that they have given up WAR in favour of POLITICS and POISON. The Management considers this effete and will direct you to feel contempt for most of these people, except the Emperor, until you come upon the elderly man who retains the old virtues of the Empire. A former General, he is totally trustworthy and warlike and scorns politics too. He will become a staunch supporter of the Tour and of great help either on the QUEST or in SAVING THE WORLD. [Jones, Diana Wynne. 2006. The Tough Guide to Fantasyland. Revised and Updated Edition. pg.95]

An empire from the POV of a player in an RPG setting on the other hand is one of a civilizing force that carries with it a corrupting force as well as the violent force of law. It seems a bit libertarian but when it comes to a group of often somewhat individually powerful freewheeling adventurers their world view is one of reaping the benefits by hook or by crook from the landscape, evil forces, monsters, and its people. A functioning empire of course impedes this ravenous impulse of the rapacious adventurer with its far reach, armed authorities, and system of laws not to mention a potentially oppressive and faceless bureaucracy.

Even in its different phases an empire always affects the Players. A dying empire is an impediment to be overcome and its authorities avoided if possible. A long dead one presents opportunity in its corpse where adventurers can pick its bones clean. Of course, this can also happen with a dying empire in its last throes with players aligned with the barbarians at the gate perhaps riding the barbaric tide as it were, or following in its wake, or caught between a desperate authority and a savage horde.

In fantasy worlds, old empires typically have a single seed from which they are grown, a trope that helps to characterize the nature of the empire and what role it is itself to play within the game. The most common tropes are the Ancient Empire, the Lost Empire, the Evil Empire, and the Vestigial Empire.

The Ancient Empire often long gone, if not it is often senile and rapidly disintegrating, is a very common trope. It concerns a long existent imperial power that either has passed or is passing. Most of the world shares a common origin from within this type of old empire and if not from its peoples then from among its knowledge and maybe customs. These types of old empires help to build a historical foundation for a setting laying in a base layer of information in the setting giving the players a sense of history as they experience its artifacts and their characters share in its heritage. Heritage being writing, architecture, and economics, which may live on long after the empire, has died.

As this Ancient Empire was wide reaching and of course would have been involved in large engineering projects, it has left an indelible mark on the landscape not just the people and their cultures.

ANCIENT ENGINEERING PROJECTS tend to litter the landscape in some parts of the continent. Most of them are quite mysterious, and all of them are made of some substance not known to the present inhabitants, often of a greenish colour, or a matte black, though white is not unknown. They will be gigantic. Most of them will be pillars that touch the clouds, but ROADS and broken BRIDGES are common too. It is unknown what challenge caused earlier peoples to make things that were so very large. Most of them are no use to anyone. [Jones. 4]

Lost Empires on the other hand are often not as far reaching and are widely believed to be extinct.  Within the game, they serve as a foundation for mythoi, as hidden enemies or saviors, or holders/discoverers of special knowledge.  A lost empire is an empire that has somehow disappeared from history and any information on it lay in vague historical accounts, clues in place names and legends. It seems only to exist within the odd bit or curiosity that can be found by the players within myth and folklore or that they simply happen upon in the course of an adventure.

An important aspect of a Lost Empire found in fantasy RPGs are Remnant (Lost) Cities. These lost cities are tracked down through a string of clues and can exist as still functioning locales though in complete isolation a la Shangri-La or as hidden and mostly intact i.e. not pillaged ruins. A Lost Empire can also serve as a mythic foundation for stories and the explanation for any strange anomalies such as dungeons as well as certain exotic places and anomalous peoples (not always human) of the world.

In addition, a Lost Empire can serve as a nebulous threat or even enemy striking from the shadows from beyond the mists of history. These enemies must be detected, discovered, and ferreted out by the PCs. These hidden people may also serve as secret saviors to be sought, or a secret repository of special knowledge that lays hidden for the PCs to quest for.

This brings us to the unavoidable Evil Empire, which always serves as an active villain sometimes doubling as an end of the world trope. This is most often the active type of empire though the Evil Empire can also be a disintegrating ancient empire though now evil if it has not always been so due to degradation and always a definite threat. This type of ancient empire is an active villain for the players to confront and maybe even try to topple. These sorts of powers often play into the end-of-the-world trope as well sometimes possessing the power of the apocalypse other times seeking it. Usually the McGuffin said world-ending power (often an object or artifact) could instantly put an end to the evil empire instead when the PCs get involved.

Finally, we arrive at the Vestigial Empire, an empire that serves as background and mood than anything else. It is just a contrast to the wilderness and its citizens the opposite of adventurers.

VESTIGIAL EMPIRE. […] This Empire occupies an area usually slightly larger than most other COUNTRIES and you will know you are in it because the ROADS will be well made and patrolled by Imperial GUARDS in HELMETS and SKIRTS. Rest-houses line the way, a day’s march apart. The LANDSCAPE will be full of prosperous farmlands, vineyards, and olive groves, and you may even see a little light INDUSTRY, such as pottery and carpet-making. White villas crown the hills – in fact, most BUILDINGS in the Empire are white. When you reach the imperial CITY, you will find TEMPLES and colonnades as well as streets of decent houses, drains, and public Baths. The aura of civilization extends to daily life too. The Vestigial Empire is the only Country on the Tour to have POLITICS. It has a parliament and a senate and many noble CLANS to jockey for power. This keeps all Imperialists very busy, very noisy, and very likely to POISON one another. They also […] understand MONEY in a truly civilized way. [Jones. 216]

This does not mean that the Vestigial Empire was always as it is it could be the remnant of a once great ancient empire and the relics of its greatness strewn across the land. Essentially a Vestigial Empire is exactly what its name implies it often serves little actual purpose to the setting and is not necessarily any kind of impediment to the PCs, an annoyance perhaps or a place to trade but that is all. Essentially, the Vestigial Empire serves as a rest stop for the PCs and marks the line separating civilization and barbarism (according to imperialist thought).

Now if I may digress a little, there is a seminal fantasy world where old empires as an explicit idea simply do not really exist though an argument can be made for the Elves. In J.R.R. Tolkien it does seems that world lacks an Old Empire.  I have always felt this lacuna when confronting the Legendarium. It seems to need at least one Old Empire in order to stitch together some of the cultures in that world.

An example being the Rohirrim, only a single regional kingdom codifies their culture. As a people, they simply descended and gathered from other people through time. Their consistency of culture seems hard to achieve in that manner alone. However, where this cultural glue seems to lack the most is with the Easterlings. Granted they follow Sauron though he seems to function more as a god or object of reverence and worship than an actual king or lord. It seems they would need unification by a powerful overlord. Joined into a single cultural force before being forged into a war machine by a powerful overlord that rules them rather than influences them from afar.

Tolkien’s world is filled with ruins but ruins of the fortresses of petty kings and lords, there is no Alexander, Rome, Ch’ing, or even Attila to serve as a basis for a united regional culture just individual heroes. His Legendarium is more concerned with lineage and personal family histories rather than politics or even major cultural diversity except where it comes to language and race. The Legendarium is more a collection of heroic stories, songs, and tales documenting the plight of certain families and individuals than a world history. So in that respect Old Empires are basically completely absent, the Elves are very similar to the Rohirrim though the ruins of their younger days tend to be more widespread.

Concerning RPGs, Old Empires are useful to Game-Masters especially with the values that can be drawn from the historical. The GM can draw from history to provide not just inspiration but also some basic facts about what an actual empire was capable of not just in temperament but technological innovation and in the development of the arts. Instead of making up value and legal systems from scratch, the GM can obtain them from history already fully laid out and time tested in both practice and enforcement.

Examples of this historical wealth are found with the Roman and Chinese empires. From the Roman the primary points being the military machine, its extreme emphasis on order, running water, a senate or discernible governing body later to be usurped by an emperor. With the Chinese its vast armies and their military organization/logistics, the capability of the mass production of goods especially arms, the development of writing, philosophy, and medicine. These are all various civilized developments, systems and discoveries that can only be advanced or even made within a stable civilization of a certain level of advancement.

The Prime Uses of an Old Empire within an RPG campaign are many. Building an Old Empire into the past of a setting can help to explain common gaming tropes like dungeons, make its heirs desperate to reclaim their “heritage” creating wider conflicts, and provide a foundational layer to the history of the world deepening its history.

Injecting History via an Old Empire provides an easy framework on which a GM can build a setting and giving their new world a sense of historical identity or lineage. This can drop clues for PCs to follow to long lost cities, leave behind valuable artifacts, and leave lost knowledge behind ripe for rediscovery. The places the adventuring PCs visit may have a visible lineage and unique identity linked to the old empire distinguished by architecture, place names, familial lineages, and political organizations.

Imperialism can serve as a motivator to both Players and the NPCs. Either can see the old empire as their heritage and want to reclaim some of that former glory. It can motivate NPC (sometimes Player) villainy through imperialism. “Just as the Roman empire had become the embodiment of the Stoic notion of the koinos nomos, the universal law for all mankind, so its heirs sought to impose their own legal and religious order on all the peoples they overran.” [Grafton. 310] An aging empire that is rapidly disintegrating may try to forge outward under new leadership or try to transform itself into a new power providing a dynamic changing backdrop where the PCs could stand to benefit from the ensuing chaos.

Old Empires can explain away Dungeons, Ruins, Artifacts, and other such RPG commonalities as its relics or ruins. As well as set the mood when traversing the ruins of its lost glory.

RUINS of former days, like ANCIENT ENGINEERING PROJECTS, litter Fantasyland. Only the large kind are important to the Tour, and even most of these will be just setting the mood. You are not expected to be happy on this Tour. The Ruins make you think of the sad losses of former days. But cheer up. Just occasionally you will find TREASURE in a Ruin. [Jones. 164]

Using old empires as a foundational component of your game world does have a few drawbacks. These disadvantages are Imperialist concepts inherent in an empire can overwhelm a game, the Players may become resentful of being restricted by existent imperial law and power, and old empires tend to be over-used in fantasy fiction.

This idea, old empires, is cliché territory when it comes to fantasy fiction but if the cliché is fun why not use it in an RPG campaign. As long as it doesn’t bore the Players or inhibit their characters to the point of strangling the fun out of the game it’s fine.

Imperialist concepts can begin to take hold of the game and cause certain in game tensions to become uncomfortable in real life. One of these concepts being slavery when based on certain superficial aspects of characters such as race and culture, which might get construed as stereotypes where characters may start expositing certain lines that smack of real world racism just with different names. Another example is the justifications for theft or domination, which may group certain characters together and the previous can happen the same way and may end up in slavery that then can proceed even further into the overlap.

Lastly, the PCs can become hateful of civilization within the game world and run amok if it becomes too oppressive of a force within the game. Players as well can simply become bored or frustrated with an empire that constantly boxes them in and thwarts their plans without fail. There has to be some holes to room to breathe even in a very powerful and extremely oppressive power’s demesne. Players will work hard against the odds if there is at least a glimmer of hope of success.

In conclusion, Old Empires are tropes of fantasy fiction but in terms of tabletop RPGs, they are still useful and hold some fascinating avenues to explore. Old Empires are useful to GM’s when building a history for their world and providing an explanation for the origins of some fantasy RPG tropes such as dungeons and monster haunted ruins. There are disadvantages of course when using old empires in your game. You run the risk of tramping on old clichés, letting imperialist thinking to overwhelm your fantasy, and alienating your players through the over-application of imperial will.

However, the advantages of a successful implementation of an old empire (or empires) in your game can outweigh the negatives. A successful implementation takes some lessons, inspiration, and facts from history, avoids the standard tropes though a twist on or subversion of the idea, and makes sure it enhances the fun at the table!

[do_widget id=”cool_tag_cloud-4″ title=false]

The Cabal of Eight Pt.44: Betrayed at Last!

Nighttime – the four mages stumbled into camp, beat-up and dirty. Gornix (played by Gil) was nursing a gut wound. On their way out from the treasure vault, they had backtracked to a few rooms that they had missed. Gornix had been gored by an animated obsidian rhino statue. Szoosha (played by Isis) and Fauna (played by Jenn) had been trampled but their shield items had saved them from everything but a dirty floor. Excor (played by Cris) emerged relatively unscathed from that encounter.

The porter and Arcan the wanderer were waiting for them with a hot dinner. Behind them, there was the carriage and three other wagons painted with the college arms with draft animals. They had found two more wagons hidden around the area.  In answer to an innocent “how long have we been here” he answered that “tomorrow will be the first of Late Summer”. The four mages also found that the pair hadn’t heard from the others since their departure days ago. Soon after eating, they settled in to sleep and the night passed peacefully.

Come morning the four mages began to patrol the perimeter hoping to get a bead on their lost companions. Fauna used her cabal medallion to try to contact the others but she got nothing. As they rounded the eastern portion of their clockwise run, Gornix tried his medallion. He got a static obscured reply with a faint voice that seemed to sound from a great distance. They continued south and as they came to the southeast corner, Szoo spotted a large red dune and a young swordtail dragon slithering over the crest towards them.

Excor got the drop on the beast and snared it with his Shadow Ribbons spell. From there on the fight was a slaughter until Gornix knocked it out of the ribbons with his Force Ram fortunately in the process killing the dragon. It had even managed to resist about half of the spells they had slung at it but the mages had attained a plateau of power that was beyond the unfortunate creature.

They wandered west then north, Szoo used his medallion and got a stronger signal. The words, “Yeeeargh! We’re comin’ through! WATCH OUT!” blasted into his head. At that moment, Gornix found a half-buried stone door and wanted desperately to get it open. Excor used his medallion to try to contact them. He was able to find out that they were fleeing a cave-in down a long hall that slanted steeply upward towards a stone door. However, they were all out of spells.

They backed off from the door and Gornix smashed the stone doors in with a well-placed Force Ram spell. Suddenly, through the door, their companions ran up and out one after the other. Belrae in dirty purple robes a green frog on his torn breast, Riahm his tattered half-brown half-green cloak flying behind him, Jirek in his shabby robes nursing a broken arm,  and Xanto the Wasp and his apprentice Bumble followed by two large wasps each hauling a large sack of booty.

Out of breath Belrae turned a finger towards the Wasp and shouted “we were almost KILLED because of THAT GUY!”.

The Wasp: “What me? No. I was looking out for all of our welfare, what would this little venture of yours be without the wealth I collected? We are all now very rich, celebrate my friends, we have all survived!”

Just then, a blast of sand, pebbles, and dust engulfed them from the open passageway. Later the four adventurers led their companions back to camp. They later prepared for dinner and were ready to ship out come dawn.

As they ate they talked excitedly amongst themselves with the Wasp being mildly ostracized, his apprentice next to him. She was somewhat reticent to talk to Fauna when the druidess tried to strike up a conversation. Gornix left the group for a quiet rock a ways outside of camp, a place where he could “see the stars”.

He sat lotus style on the pale stone in an area of hardened red waste and gazed at the endless Elysian field above. Studying the stars he used his astrological knowledge trying to divine whether their passage home would be a safe one. He also gathered some mana points and stored them in the crystal that topped his staff, just in case.

Seeming about to make an announcement the Wasp stood up, the two bags of loot just behind him and Bumble.

The Wasp: “Well, my friends though I regret to leave this little party despite the undue treatment, Adieu!” He waived his hand and both bags and Bumble all teleported away.

Cris: “F@#k’in Wasp! I should ‘a grabbed Bumble!”

Excor had tried to beat the Wasp to the punch and made a snatch for his arm. Unfortunately, he had been just a hair too slow. Cris was right though. With his roll, he could have easily grabbed Bumble leaving the Wasp in a precarious position when he arrived back in town sans pupil. Her father would have killed him. However, Excor went right for Xanto and thus missed, not by much, but missed all the same. The mages were disappointed the villain had flown. The missing loot just added insult to injury.

Paradoxically the players actually seemed quite relieved that Xanto the Wasp had finally betrayed them even as they griped about it.

About one week later, the mages arrived back in Ezmer sans Arcan. He had parted company just before they hit the headland. As they pulled the wagons to the city gates, they saw the city bulwarks singed and blackened. In places, they were nearly completely demolished. Dozens possibly more Wher dragons laid in several rows and clumps, most dead some still twitching and being speared by the legion of guardsmen cleaning up the battlefield.

Fauna: “What the hell happened here!?”

Isis: “Yeah, geesh!”

Cris: “Oh yeah, it’s a Dragon Summer. They converge on the Ezmerian Headlands to mate.”

The crowded corner of Silver Circle street and Western Avenue was bustling with wagons, carriages, pedestrians, and horse riders. A group of agile street urchins weaved through them all before disappearing. Szoosha ineffectually watched the scene coursing around the street level of the Red Helm tavern from the window above in the cabal clubroom.

Fauna, Gornix, and Excor were sitting around the table dividing the loot that they had won. Each of the four had received a gold ring and necklace with a bee motif as well as a gold dagger as their share. Fauna claimed the gold skullcap that granted a +4 bonus to I.Q. when worn. Gornix took the bracers that granted +2 STR. Szoo claimed a gold ring that granted the Fearsome Form I spell and a constant +5 bonus to resist poisons. Excor took the ring that granted the Verminous Might (Winged Flight) spell and a necklace that granted the Sting spell 3 times per day (after a roll-off between the players).

Excor pulled the small silver chest from the portable hole and found it empty; it had a felt lining that had an indentation in it that fit the Amber Bee. They left the lotus mirror, an intelligent item, hidden in the cabal room, as none of them wanted it. They hung the lotus maces that they had captured on the walls of the tiny chamber as trophies.

After that had been accomplished, Excor pulled forth the first large chest that Gornix had holed up from the lotus vaults. The chest was oak banded with black iron. In place of a lock, there was a polished gold skull with a large ruby, citrine, and emerald in the eye sockets and nasal cavity. The jaw was jointed. Showing restraint Gornix “clairvoyanced” the lock finding out that the gems were buttons and to unlock it, the correct two must be pressed. However, the wrong combo would unleash a blast of toxic Grey Lotus spore.

Suddenly the mechanism unlocked and the top popped open as Fauna pushed the yellow then green gems without prompting. They admonished her lightly and then turned their attentions to the contents.

Within were a high quality nega-steel bottle with an aquamarine stopper carved into a flower that contained three doses of water charged with anti-magic energy. There was also a phoenix feather cape (Level 7 item, fire proof, Charm Against Evil (constant), Temporal Jump (1 x day), Seal of Health (10 charges)), a copper armlet with a large emerald carved into a lotus (level 8 item, grants a +1 I.Q. to wearer), 10 platinum talons, an alligator hide sack filled with gold bee husks (approximately 10 lbs. of gold), and a Drake hide sack filled with 100 pieces of tiger’s eye.

They each took 2 platinum talons leaving 2 for the cabal coffers. Finding that the locking mechanism could reset itself they closed it intending to leave it in the cabal room. Excor then withdrew the second chest.

It was another large iron-banded oak chest. Its locking mechanism was a solid gold faceplate inscribed with a honeycomb pattern where four of the cells had holes and three were buttons. Each button was inscribed with a black wasp, a gold bee, and a gold lotus. They argued a little back and forth about which two buttons to push after Gornix used his clairvoyance to confirm that was what they had to do.

Isis: “I got this! Um, the people there had a religion centered around gold bees and lotuses so…”

Szoo pushed the gold bee and then the gold lotus buttons. The chest popped open. The naga released a held breath.

Within the chest were a pair of highest quality leather gloves with amber buttons (level 7, +8 to sleight of hand, Quickness (constant), Counterspell: Curse: Affliction by touch 1 x day), a highest quality mirror-polished mithral priestess figurine (level 8, a command word grants a +9 to diplomacy and Owl’s Wisdom (1D4 + 3) 2 x day), and a highest quality stiletto with a clear quartz pommel stone, a blue-dragon-hide grip and decorative runes along the starmetal blade (level 14, +1D6 acid damage, keen weapon (18-20 critical)). There were also 10 talons of ice-steel, a silk sack filled with 100 pieces of obsidian, and a superior quality silk sack filled with 100 emeralds.

From that hoard, each mage got as their share 25 emeralds, 25 pieces of obsidian, 2 ice steel talons, and 25 pieces of tiger’s eye. Szoosha took the phoenix feather cape (after a player roll-off), Excor the armlet (after a roll-off between Cris and Gil), Fauna the gloves (after a roll-off between Jenn and Gil), and Gornix took the stiletto. They left the cabal coffers with 2 ice steel talons and the priestess figurine.

The following day the mages decided to finish off their reading of Vordan’s Tome. They picked up at the fourth section. The section began with a brilliant full-page illuminated gold lotus illustration. The section goes on to discuss the gold lotus giving a location where it could be found describing the location as “southern ruins alongside a billabong overseen by a warlord’s red edifice by a river at the foot of a bloody spire far southeast of the old black temple”.

Cris: “Well, there it is. Guess that’s next?”

They read on. Several gold gilded pages made up the meat of the section. They described the spell of legend Alchemical Gold but it was incomplete. The pages following those were from an old accounting ledger with pictures of various types of gold coins.

The fifth section was composed entirely of more entries from Vordan’s diary. All lamented or cursed something. The most interesting parts were of Vordan lamenting the loss of his ladylove to a lying, handsome, & corrupt official followed by several bad poems, revenge fantasies, and laughable schemata to win her back. There was a potion formula however of Allure and the spell Eatables to Maggots.

The sixth section consisted of several pages of reproductions of familial heraldry, only some of which were recognizable as those still in use. Vordan’s personal arms occupied a page. A black, white, grey, green-eyed Karkadann head on an orange lozenge like a longshield with an open book at helm and crossed green-leaved branches at bottom composed the wizard’s arms. Following were some more accounting pages with an address in the Market District. They also found the Luminescent Sigil and Harmless Beam spells. A large illustration of a key was on the page with the latter.

The seventh section was a beautifully illustrated catalog of mystic lotus types. Its final page was about the gold lotus and mentioning, “The royal jelly of that certain bee is required to grow them”. The section ended abruptly however cutting off the text. A few almost incoherent poems in a loose and sloppy hand occupied the margins. The section also talked about the refinement and use of the mystic lotus in alchemy. When using this section to identify lotus flowers the reader would get a +3 to identify and a +2 skill bonus when using alchemy.

The eighth and final section was simply a fusion of three sections taken from Vordan the Magnificent’s autobiography. The three sections concerned a torrid love story, a wizard’s duel in which Vordan lost, and the laments of an aged shop-keep. There were also three amateurish sketches of an alley shop front, an old man, and a small room with a chair in front of a strange circular window. There they found the spells Alarm, Amulet of Power, and Tele-Location.

They had heard that the twin swans had left on a ship with their brothers in arms in pursuit of a Creschan vessel, something to do with Creschan Fire. They had also heard that their former benefactor Virtra Wefa had poisoned herself along with her grim servant when faced with arrest by the black and white swan knights.

Later that week they tried to track down the Wasp at his house behind the Nezorik family mansion. He wasn’t home. So Szoo and Excor deposited the animated armor in the portable hole in his living room and left.

The mages found that Bumble became scarce at the next few meetings. Also the two ‘leaders’ were becoming ever more secretive as they seemed to get closer to Draega Skullshine the publican. However, Jirek was still chummy with them.

As the Dragon Summer ended, the mages prepared for fall. Fauna readied to make certain necessary political maneuvers involving the Brothers of the Rope. The other three were gearing up their operation for the rat fights, which would go into high swing come winter.

End of the Campaign (played between June 2016 and June 2017).

The Cabal of Eight Pt.43: The Final Room

The sound of stone grinding against stone filled the mages’ ears as the solid black-stone door slid the monster in the final chamberdown into the floor stopping with the finality of a thud. That door would never close again. A large central fire lighted the oblong octagonal chamber before them. The walls were of the same dull black stone as the rest of the place and floors were polished white marble tile. The ceiling was flat and very high.

Directly to the south was an elevated platform with white stone steps leading up to its top where sat a small silver box with wood panels. Supporting the western and eastern walls were a pair of thick but plain black pillars. Against the southerly diagonal walls, one to the east and the other to the west sat large iron-banded oak chests.

Gornix (played by Gil) immediately prepared to run in to one of the large chests and Excor (played by Cris) was eyeballing the small silver box.

The GM (me): *Exasperated Sigh* “Make a spot check.”

Gil: *Roll*Roll* “Nope. I go to the first chest.”

Fauna (played by Jenn) and Szoosha (played by Isis) stopped the Salt-Lotus Wizard from blindly charging into the newly opened chamber. They pointed out the giant lion-like creature lying at the center of the room, the firelight being at the tip of its tail. Its three heads were rousing but still groggy. In a rumbling voice that they felt more than heard, the central head spoke. However, the mages did not speak its language nor did they want to “waste” any spells trying to understand what it had said.

Cris: “It has three heads!? And it can TALK!?”

Fauna immediately charged in casting Lightning Bolt. The bolt struck the beast with no effect. Gornix on the other hand, moved in cautiously to the side and using his Dark Secret wizard ability was able to let the others know that it was immune to electricity. He also gave them a pointer on how to take it out which was mostly an educated guess. Meanwhile, Excor cast Shadow Ribbons and amazingly bound the monster. The creature struggled against the shadows. All three of its heads roaring a horrific bone quaking roar of rage and confusion but the mages were unshaken. Szoo cast Elemental Half-Plate Armor (fire) on himself.

While the players all yelled at Jenn that the monster was immune to electricity, Fauna cast Lightning Bolt on it yet again. Gornix cast Amplify Magic his spell easily penetrating the monster’s resistance. Excor cast Slow on it, his magic also penetrating its resistance easily. The beast spat a fireball from its central head catching Fauna, Excor, and Gornix in the ensuing blast of swirling flames. Fauna stumbled but was saved by her Mage Armor, which was dispersed. Gornix took half damage having forgotten to engage his Shield and Excor’s Mage Armor absorbed the damage but was greatly weakened (not many Hit Points left). He had used an item to don it just before Gornix had opened the vault door. Szoo summoned his flaming naginata and charged in.

Gornix cast Force Ram at the creature crunching in some of its ribs wounding it horribly. Excor cast Paralyze II at it, his magic again easily penetrating its resistance to magic. Szoo put all his strength behind his blow as he rammed his weapon into its battered and bleeding side. However, the flame born weapon couldn’t penetrate its hide.

Gornix slung another Force Ram at the creature dealing it a crushing deathblow. The beast’s massive corpse slowly faded into nothingness. The battle was over. The mages assessed the damage, only Gornix had been wounded in that fight but he dismissed it as “nothing”. They spread out inspecting but not touching the chests and box.

Fauna checked the stairs leading to the top of the platform for traps, seeing none she ascended to the box.

Fauna (eagerly): “Should I open this chest guys?”

In response, Excor stepped out of the room and prepared to duck behind the stone jamb. Fauna took her time inspecting the box and the platform upon which it was resting. She found that the box had already been opened a long time ago and it was definitely trapped. She figured that it sat on a pressurized crevice that if it were removed would unleash poisonous gas from a hidden reservoir. Gornix tried to sense magic on it but was unable to get anything so instead he got a little frustrated.

Consequently, he cast Breath without Air on himself. Fauna backed off to the bottom of the stairs. Szoo left the room and ducked behind the doorjamb opposite Excor. He tried to identify the box but it was just a box. Therefore, he attempted to disarm the trap. Fauna retreated to the others. He failed to disarm it. Suddenly, a large several inches thick blue-steel door started to slide down over the lone entrance. Thinking quick, Excor tossed Gornix the Portable Hole. A second later, the door slammed down sealing the room airtight. A vast amount of gas billowed from the square hole the box had formerly concealed.

Gornix was now at the center of the room with the hole in his hands. He tossed the silver box in as the billowing gas snuffed out the last vestiges of his vision. The gas was sickly green and very thick. It blotted out all light blinding all normal vision. He was in pitch black even though he tried to light his way with his staff.

Cris: “Man! You’re totally blind in there! Be careful!”

Gornix carefully felt his way slowly around the room to the first chest. He holed it up suddenly feeling and hearing a huge torrent of gas blasting into the room causing his ears to pop with the pressure.

Gil: “Aw man, I’m glad I got breath, breathe without air on me!”

He slowly moved across the room to the other chest. Almost tripping at about the center of the room, he was able to maintain his balance. He edged ever closer but had a little bit of a struggle to feel out the second chest. The gas chilled his skin. He could feel it billowing through his hair and between his fingers. Eventually he found the second chest and holed it up as well. Once again, he triggered the trap concealed by the chest and again a huge ice-cold gust of gas hissed into the room. Consequently, Gornix felt the building pressure in his lungs now and the gas was leaving a sticky residue over his skin, in his hair, and on his clothes.

So, he moved quickly towards the metal door keeping his hand on the wall after he felt past the pillars. He made it easily to the now freezing blue-steel and used Ghost Step to exit the gas-filled chamber.

Fauna: “I wonder if there were any concealed doors in there?”

Szoo: “Oh yeah, we never checked!”

Gornix: “Well I don’t think anybody is going to be able to go back in there ever again.”

He “prestidigitized” himself clean. Fortunately, the toxin did not seem to be a contact poison.

Excor (shrugging): “Whatever let’s get outta here! And give me back my hole.”

Jenn and Isis burst out into hysterical fits of maniacal laughter. Gil just clinched his eyes shut and put his hand over his face. Cris flipped the two women the bird.

To Be Concluded…