Looping the Hen Games

Rodney and I had talked a while back about hit points, going negative, dying and the like. I've been thinking about it, and having only 10hp between unconsciousness and death might be a little low. It seems that higher level monsters have more of a chance of outright killing someone if they are at low HP at the beginning of a round. Whether this is 'realistic' is less of a concern for me than whether it is fun. I always want there to be a chance for player death because without that there's no true risk, but having a very small margin disallows me as DM from allowing other things to happen to the players.

For example, BBEGs (Big Bad Evil Guy or somesuch) in many books, movies and other fantasy literature love capturing people for their schemes or just to attempt to gather information. Being captured could also provide a different type of roleplaying, as well as allowing for some interesting escape attempts. It also gives any surviving party members a conundrum as they attempt to figure out whether to finish a quest or attempt a rescue. However, at least to me, it seems these things are unlikely to happen when one slight wrong move on an NPC's part can kill someone.

One other aspect of this for me is that in the new campaign, blood debt, ransom, honor and servitude will be part of the warrior culture (Similar I think to some of Feist's work), where capturing an enemy provides a valuable resource where killing someone is only something one does to the dishonorable or on a battlefield.

So anyway, my basic thought is to come up with a formula to extend 'death's door'. My initial thought is to allow players to go negative = 2*constitution+level. Fighter classes would also get a bonus of 5 or 10 additional hp. Players would still go unconscious at 0, they would just not die quite so quickly. For example, this would allow a 10th level rogue to not die until -40, assuming a 15 Con.

Now, all this assumes people think this rule needs modifying. If folks don't mind the rules as written, I am ok with keeping them, but I wanted to offer an alternative. Please let me know what you think!

Posted by at 3:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

I haven't looked at the 3.5 flying combat rules, but if they are as bad as 2nd edition, we'll have to do some work on them.

I can foresee alot of aeriel combat in the new campaign, whether mounted on (or playing) flying critters, dirigibles and the like, or regular fly-type spells, so it would be good to start thinking about it now. I am wondering if there is a way to still use minis and have good visualization of a particular combat. There will need to be additional rules on to hit and damage from diving, good turning rules, etc.

Anyhoo, just something for everyone to think on. If anyone can come up with a good system let me know!

PS: (my initial thought is to find some good stackable components, like legos or something. I might use a 1"=10' or 1"=20' scale so combats can take place in a reasonably large scale. Alternatively, every creature in an aerial combat might just have a 'altitude dice' or something, though that might lose some of the flavor and possibly get confusing.)

Posted by at 1:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

This comes from Raistca as another country idea (and thus a little dark!). One of the things I will do when I get a chance is come up with a basic history calendar by year so important past events can be documented and so the game ends up internally consistent. Eventually the relations between the countries we come up with will have to be documented as well.

Dhak-Mal

Narrative:
This isle was once home to a benevolent king who said the wrong thing at the wrong time. This led to that king’s quick demise at the hands of an assassin. The assassin, a man named Khamar, decided that he liked the little isle and stayed there. Over time, he took many apprentices under his wing and when profits increased because of the extra help, Khamar made the situation permanent, starting the Schule Dhak, or school of death. Schule Dhak grew exponentially until eventually the whole of the small isle was a part of the Schule Dhak compound. At this time it became known as Dhak-Mal and its former name and the name of the benevolent king were lost to time. Today Schule Dhak is a massive sprawling compound, home to the majority of professional assassins in the sphere, and covering about half of Dhak-Mal.

Name – Dhak-Mal
Continent Size – Small, 18 miles in diameter, 1 mile thick.
Terrain – A totally flat isle, covered by fertile, grassy plains (largely covered by the buildings of Schule Dhak).
Population – 100,000. The assassins tend to frighten away most people, but a few small communities still exist and farm the land. The assassins pay very well for the food they provide.
Arable Land – 95% (Not including that covered by buildings. After that, about 50%)
Climate – Temperate
Revolution – 112 days
Main Export – Death
Minor Exports – Wheat, Flour
Unexploited Resources – A few veins of silver run through Dhak Mal toward the bottom.
Number and Size of Populations Centers – Schule Dhak (60,000), 10 Small farm villages (5,000 or less)
Notable Organizations – Within the Schule Dhak there are many smaller groups, divided into most preferred execution methods (poisoners, archers, knifemen, etc.) Schule Dhak owns two small, five man dirigibles, and pays a hefty fee for other transportation services to stop at Dhak-Mal in order to take the assassins to their marks and to keep their mouths shut about where the assassins came from.

Country Age – 300 FSY
Country Alignment – Lawful Evil (Despite their profession, the residents of Schule Dhak adhere to a strict code of honor, one point of which is to never slay without a writ of execution from the Minister, unless defending oneself).
Government – Ruled by one man, known as the Minister. He oversees progression through the ranks, writs of execution, etc. He is the one exception to the rule stated above. The assassins can kill him without a writ of execution whether he attacks them or not. This ensures that the Minister is intelligent, cunning, diplomatic, and an able fighter.
Standing Army – None
Militia – If trouble arises, which it rarely ever does at the Dhak Mal, the assassins are quick to defend their land.

Main Race – Human
Class types available – Any (Schule Dhak does not discriminate against anyone. They know that any skill can be utilized to kill)
Stance on Magic – Magic is accepted in all forms, though magic users must adhere to the same code of honor as everyone else in Schule Dhak.

Main Religion – None
Tolerance of Religion – Very High (Nobody on Dhak Mal really cares about stuff like that, one way or the other).

Calender – High Sphere Standard (333 days)
Holidays – Day of Cleanliness (No killing, anyone who desecrates this is slain the following day), Day of Decision (The day following the death of a Minister. This is when the new Minister is selected by vote, and is also a day of no killing).

Historical Events – When Khamar slew the benevolent king, and made Schule Dhak. Nothing else was recorded in any way before Khamar came to the isle. After that there was the fall of the warrior-priests of Light, noted below.
Important Battles – At one point the isle of Light floated by Dhak Mal, a never before seen event, and the warrior-priests of the Light, having foreseen this, came together in a major assault on Schule Dhak. They found nothing but shadows before they were all slain from behind, never seeing their attackers.
Customs – A writ of execution can never be made against another inhabitant of Schule Dhak. All inhabitants must pay a yearly tithe to the treasury of 1,000 gold, to show that they are still active.

Adventure Types – (Political, Stealth) Show your dedication to learning the art of stealth and execution to apprentice in Schule Dhak. Participate in assassin to assassin rivalries, since they cannot kill each other. Perform a writ of execution if you are of high enough status. Find the hidden grave of Khamar and the tools that helped make him such a great assassin.
Adventure Locations – Just about everything on Dhak Mal takes place in Schule Dhak.
Secrets Revealed – The Minister is plotting the overthrow of a nearby isle, that rotates at the same speed and location as Dhak Mal, but in a different elliptical pattern, so they come to within a few hundred feet of each other, the other isle slightly below Dhak Mal, a dozen times in a year. The rest of the time, the other isle is several miles away.

Posted by at 11:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I actually kind of like it, even though I intended it as just a test...will need some more fleshing out, but this is the type of outline that spurs my brain and say 'well, what about this...' and 'Oh, that would probably mean that this had to happen also...'

Narrative – The Isle of Stone and Wind was originally named Ferk-Fern by the Dragonlords’ cartogprophers. In early history, it was occasionally a landing point for armies traveling up and down the layers, but it was never inhabited until the First Han used it as a refuge during the Purge of Erin-Shalea, the Dragonlord Inquisitor. The Inquisitor had a prophet (actually a corrupt wind spirit) tell him that a great warrior and follower of the Silent Way would eventually doom him, and so he began a purge not only of the Silent Way, but of all the mystical religions that did not see the Dragonlords’ as supreme. (even those religions embraced by other Dragonlords). Prior to the Battle of White’s Peak, the Dragonthief (another of the Han’s titiles) stole into the royal hatcheries and stole some drake eggs and had followers secret them away on Ferk-Fern. (Dragon eggs are easily locatable due to the intelligence and magic of the contained dragons, whereas drakes are more beasts of war and burden). It is unclear how the First Han escaped the battle, but the Inquisitor thought him dead. Marshalling his strength and resources, the Founder of Contemplation created a stronghold deep in the barren rocks of Ferk-Fern. Once his drakes came of age (long after the destruction of the Inquisitor by another follower of the Silent Way), he was able to consolidate his strength and build the First Temple of Contemplation on the newly named Isle of Stone and Wind.

Name- The Isle of Stone and Wind
Shell Layer -
Continent Size – Small, 10 mile diameter x 3 mile; thicker than most continents, (3 miles)
Terrain – Mostly rocky, dormant volcanoes
Population – 150,000
% Arable Land – less than 5%
Climate – Dry, hot
Revolution Speed – 156 days
Main Export – Mercenaries/Bodyguards
Minor Exports – Gems, stone
Unexploited Resources – Obsidian
Number and size of population centers – 3 major cities (40,000, 25,000, 15,000); 6 small towns (5,000 or under)
Notable guilds, organizations, universities or other important factions – Many monastic temples and martial orders; the largest are The Order of the Whitefeather Crane (LG), The Morituri Serpent (LE), and The Contemplation (N). A large mercenary placement guild, the Chi-Ri Barracks (owner of one Danara-Ri 30-person airship)

Country Age – 230 FSY (Full Sphere Years)
Country Alignment - N
Government – Greater and lesser councils. The Greater Council is made up of representatives of the 3 martial orders, the Stonecutters Guild and The Facet (gemcutters guild) and the Minor Council of a dozen minor orders, the placement guilds, the Highmasons and the Order of Draw and Shot (special guild responsible for defense of the isle)
Head of Government – None; however, the leader of the Order of Draw and Shot has martial authority during times of engagement.
Other Government Officials - Lee Lee Mu (head of the the Morituri Serpent); Swift High Crane (head of the Order of the Whitefeather Crane), and Han (head of the Contemplation)
Standing Army – Yes, 1000
Notable Units of Army – The Stray (Ronin and other failed members of the orders)
Notable Members of Army – Steel Gray, High General of the Order of Draw and Shot and rider of Gail-Gan (fire drake)
Militia – Each order is considered a standing militia in times of trouble
Notable Members of Militia -

Main Race – Human (Chi-Re)
Racial Stats - +1 wisdom, +1 Dex, 24 points of martial feats at character creation; no magic-users
Secondary Stats - +2 diplomacy, -2 bluff (LG), +2 intimidate, -2 diplomacy (LE), Contemplation Feat (N)
Race Alignment - Any
Secondary Races – Human (Hexkin; aka The Six-Fingered)
Racial Stats -+2 dex; either arrowcatching (as monk) or +4 gemcutting and +2 craft jewelry
Race Alignments – Any lawful
Race Relations -
Main Language – Sphere, Wind
Secondary Language – Some orders have their own dialects or code languages
Historical Languages - None
Class Types Available – Any martial
Stance on Magic – Martial magic only (such as Book of Nine Swords)
Stance on Combat Magic – Stand against combat spells and buffs (by others), as is seen as dishonorable; prefer one-on-one ritual combat

Main Religion(s) – The Silent Way
Heresy of Main Religion(s) -
Tolerance of Secondary Religions - High
Secondary Religion(s) – Stone Spirit cults
Head of Religion – Se-Han, (also High Magus of the Contemplation)
Hierarchy of Religion – The Seven Steps; all people can journey the steps and advance in the order of the Silent Way
Religiousness of Population - High

Calendar – High Sphere Standard (333 days); Isle Standard (156 days, a little less than half a standard year)
Festivals – The Festival of Ascendence (named after the Ascendant, a religious figure who mapped the movement of the Sphere to determine the calendar; now is used as a festival of sport to determine which order is Ascendent Minor for the year), the Leaving Ceremony (each Fest-Day that is not a Day of Ritual marks the time when others come to the isle to bid for order members as bodyguards and mercenaries; time of service is always 3 years)
Holidays - The Days of Ritual (the 3rd Fest-Day per Prime Month) – Silence, Wind and the Day of Stone and Fire
Number of Days in Year - 333
Division of Days in Year – 3 Tri-Une’s (111 days), 3 Prime Months (37 days), 3 Fortnights (12 days) and 1 Fest-Day

History –
Establishment of country- During the Purge of Erin-Shalea, 1142 SS (Sphere Standard)
Famous historical figures-The First Han, Dragonthief, Founder of Contemplation, Prophet of the Silent Way -
Important Battles- Although the army of the First Han was defeated by Erin-Shalea at the battle of White’s Peak in the 2nd shell, he managed to steal a number of drake eggs from the royal hatcheries of Athel-Felia and ferret them away in the caverns of the Erk-Fern (empty rock). He secretly founded the Contemplation and recruited many from the downcast of the dragonlords. Other religious outcasts of the Purge also made their home on the Isle of Stone and Wind. (It’s historical name is Ferk-Fern (barren rock)
Cataclysms-
Royal Lineage-
Other cultures involved in history-
Customs- Persons of low rank or birth should address their betters first; if no response is made within 15 seconds, they should move on. Only outsiders where shoes, as all the orders use the heat and sharp rocks to strengthen their bodies and teach them to overcome pain.

Adventure Types-(political, economic, military, exotic)- Perform tasks to prove one’s worth to join one of the orders. Journey to the Silent Mount and meditate for 2 Prime Months to attain the first step of the 7 steps of the Silent Way (+1 wisdom; +2 persistence bonus to all skill checks failed the first time)
Adventure Locations- Find and explore the ruins of Erk-Fern (once the First Han had the strength, he left the caverns…throughout the Sphere, darkness is shunned and those who must dwell in it are thought cursed). There are obsidian caves underground that would bring great wealth to those who could clear the caverns of the Fire Spirits and dark creatures who dwell in them.
Level-
Enemy Type-
Secrets Revealed- Drakes Cave – The Order of Contemplation secrets away one drake egg from every clutch, and they are hidden somewhere on the isle.

Posted by at 1:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

For anyone who wants to help craft the new campaign world, this is my first draft of a country template that contains most of the information I will need to install a place into the new world of Sphere. Anything I forgot also please let me know so I can include it. I will do a sample country in the next day or two and post the results. Eventually, these, along with any associated maps, should help to build an almanac for the world prior to ever playing; I think that would help everyone! Shell layer is not necessary, and will probably be built nearly last. Also, not all places will need all of this information, particularly if it is a small citystate or the like.

I am looking for the world to be 8 or 9 major continents/countries, 2 'unexplored' and 'wild' continents, a dozen citystates, several cities at the core, and as many free-floating points of interest as we can all come up with.

It's important to remember that resources are going to be very tight on this world, with each country doing all it can to protect its valuables. Also, countries that provide food will almost be untouchable politically (except in the case of huge world events or cataclysms). Generally, this also means that there will be few 'horde' type creatures such as found in most games, and there will be more unique or rare creatures. Due to low populations, heroes (and anti-heroes!) and higher-level equivalent characters or the like will make up a higher percentage of the total population, hopefully lending to the 'high-fantasy' type feel I am striving toward.

Also, anyone is free to suggest classes (Many NPC's will still have classes, even if the players use a point-buy system, as its most likely easier to manage that way), races or the like also. For the most part, any fighter-types should be more mystical, a la Book of Nine Swords or any type of Monk over any basher-types and barbarians.

Country Template, Draft 1

Shell Layer -
Continent Size -
Terrain –
% Arable Land –
% Wilderness -
Climate -
Revolution Speed -
Main Export -
Minor Exports -
Unexploited Resources –
Number and size of population centers –
Notable guilds, organizations, universities or other important factions -

Country Age -
Country Alignment -
Government -
Head of Government -
Other Government Officials -
Standing Army -
Notable Units of Army -
Notable Members of Army -
Militia -
Notable Members of Militia -

Main Race -
Racial Stats -
Race Alignment -
Secondary Races -
Racial Stats -
Race Alignments -
Race Relations -
Main Language -
Secondary Language -
Historical Languages -
Class Types Available -
Stance on Magic -
Stance on Combat Magic -

Main Religion(s) -
Heresy of Main Religion(s) -
Tolerance of Secondary Religions -
Secondary Religion(s) -
Head of Religion -
Hierarchy of Religion -
Religiousness of Population -

Calendar -
Festivals -
Holidays -
Number of Days in Year -
Division of Days in Year -

History –
Establishment of country-
Famous historical figures-
Important Battles-
Cataclysms-
Royal Lineage-
Other cultures involved in history-
Customs-

Adventure Types-(political, economic, military, exotic)-
Adventure Locations-
Level-
Enemy Type-
Secrets Revealed-
Random Monsters -
Unique Monsters -

Posted by at 2:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)