Shadow & Fae

  "The Underworld" - From Mythic Bastionland's Quickstart Mythic Bastionland  captured my attention when the quickstart came out, and—having now run a few games in it—it's amazing how simple and versatile it is. That said, all characters are knights sworn to Seek the Myths, Honor the Seers, and Protect the Realm. While this does create fun stories that swing from Monty Python's Quest for the Holy Grail to something like Elden Ring's crumbling world, there certainly remains some room for new ideas. One that's pecked at me for awhile is the idea of Sorcerers or Mystics. Here's a quick crack at it.  Mythic Bastionland - Sorcerers All sorcerers begin with a pony and a staff (d6, shatter to  deny  an attack).  Instead of gaining glory, sorcerers gain  wisdom . 0 Wisdom - Novice - Worthy to learn. 3 Wisdom - Mystic - Worthy to speak. 6 Wisdom - Magus - Worthy to teach. 9 Wisdom - Archmage - Worthy to lead. 12 Wisdom - Seer - Worthy to ascend. Performing your...

    Beware what you wake in the dark... At some point last year I bought Mothership, and after reading through the player's survival guide I decided to give it a shot. I ran some friends on the GLoG server through a space station as they tried to rescue... someone. There were lots of laughs along the way (My ma' was a robot!), but I'd hardly call it horror. A little disappointed, I put it back on the shelf. Still, I've been meaning to come back and read through the Warden's Manual for some time, especially as I keep hearing it called one of the best referee books in the Old School vein. Friends and foes, I was not lied to. The Warden's Manual is punchy, blunt, and full of hands-on guidance about how to create situations that are already bad, and destined to get  really bad  before the get better (and some day even worse). The usefulness of the manual extends beyond sci-fi into the realms of all role-playing games. A few items that I found especially good were: T...

"What if all the Ghibli movies—or stories very like them—were happening in the same world?" That was the question behind West of Lune , a setting I've started to poke a little bit. No doubt it will evolve beyond this initial question, but a rich world of spirits, nature, and growing up in the shadow of war is a vibrant seed to begin with.  Also it has a forbidden tea shop in the middle of the map. West of Lune 200 years ago, spirits were first trapped in the city of Carav. Spirits began to hide from humans. 150 years ago, steam was mastered in the city of Kaisil. The city holds an annual Festival of Iron, in which young inventors show off their latest creations. 100 years ago, Kaisil demanded fealty from Carav. When Carav refused, the Great War began. 80 years ago, Carav destroyed itself while experimenting with a spiritual weapon, creating the Poisonwood. 10 years ago, Varis was captured by Kaisilian troops wielding rifles. 9 years ago, the city of Ashir was destroyed by...

  I 've been desperately trying to get this out before Halloween, and HERE IT IS! https://shadowandfae.itch.io/harwood This idea struck me a few weeks back while I was watching Over the Garden Wall and reading "Where the Dark Stands Still" I knew if I didn't get on it soon, I'd never finish it at all. It's been a very fun little hex crawl to write, but I must confess it is not fully play-tested.  Things I'm Proud Of A complete mini-hexcrawl, dungeon, and human-made art! A little village with its own history, holiday, and hauntings! A solid adventure scenario with some interesting possibilities. Things I'm Not Sure About I think the village could be fleshed out with a bit more intrigue, but it's probably sufficient for play. I hope you enjoy... A Walk in the Harwood!

Death & Divinity Artist Unknown Look upon the world, how rain falls, trills down the hillsides, pours into the rivers and seas, and rises again as mist in the air. If our world is so careful to conserve the stuff of rivers and seas, how careful shall we suppose it to be with the stuff of souls? And yet, as one can never step in the same river twice, it is known that no being is ever truly reborn. The stuff of their soul melds into the great Will of all things, blending with the immaterial essence, the Materia Animae, of all other souls, and from this great sea, new souls are drawn. And they are born into the world we leave them. Our lust for divinity will not lead to life, but to an eternal lingering death, in which nothing is renewed, and all things fade. The Fault of Eternity Immortality is not agelessness.  All things fade, crumble, and give way in time. Though some have achieved immortality through binding their souls to arcane constructions known as “Bastions”, even those ...

You're Hex-Crawling.  Each night and day the Referee rolls a handful of dice, waiting for the opportune moment... There it is! She rolls the d12, because  bell-curves are for cowards , and peers down a sheet of notebook paper to see which  interesting encounter  she's about to throw at her fatigued, over-encumbered party on their way back from her dungeon . She rolls a few dice, smiles, and announces: "As you walk through the flowered woods, sunlight streams through the branches. You climb over a fallen log in the path. Just then, you hear an odd sound—the squealing of a pig followed by dozens of unmistakably goblin voices shouting screaming threats and insults from behind it. The noise is headed directly toward you." A Model for Regional "Scene" Tables You may grab the Google Doc for the above example  HERE .  Save a copy by clicking file > Make a Copy, and edit to your heart's content. How do I use it? Once per day, roll a d6 for weather and a d4 to...

  GLoGtober continues! The first challenge I rolled, but second I've now completed, is "Anime-Inspired Content".  While I watch a little anime, I've never considered writing anything strongly inspired by it.  I wrote about 3 half-baked generic systems before giving up and watching an anime I've never seen before. The show is about an MMO guild-master who finds himself pulled into the game after the servers are shut down. The NPCs his guild has created to fill their guildhall spring to life and bow to his every command. But what if he was just gone, and those generals were left to themselves? Thus was born the premise for  DARK POWERS: ARISE!