Feng Shui and Fireborn

Are there any games for you that after you encountered them, the way you looked at games in general had changed? Where they showed you a new perspective and it simply resonated? That is what Feng Shui did to me. I played it well over a decade ago and it was my first real encounter with a game that really tried to make things feel cinematic - really cinematic - and empowered players to build on the scene. 

I recently concluded a Feng Shui mini-series and I must confess: it is still one of my favorite games. The system is very fast, incredibly simple to pick up, and can produce some suspense like few others. You know that feeling when you drop box cars? Yeah, that's the one. The initiative has been replicated in various ways over the years, but the shot clock is still classic and visceral like few others.

Most of the players in this game had never encountered it before and it took them a little while to grasp it. This game is different than others, it operates on different assumptions. Once you've done something ridiculously stupid/awesome in Feng Shui, it's hard to not want to bring that into other games. Well, that is if Feng Shui is for you in the first place (I firmly believe that not everything is for everyone, nor should it be).

This is by no means to say Feng Shui is without problems. It has them in a big way. I could run down a big list of all my personal gripes with it and how I have gone about trying to fix them, but that would be long and not what I'm after with this. If that is something you would like to see, drop a comment and let me know. The fact is that I love it, warts and all. Normally I'm not a fan of classes/archetypes, but they work in Feng Shui. They direct your attention away from carefully constructing the supreme badass back to the action. If you want to play that character, it's pretty simple and even encouraged - just find the character with the biggest combat skill. They aren't hiding from you.

Now, one of the things that I both like and don't is the setting for Feng Shui. I will typically run this game as a straight contemporary action game and slowly add in supernatural elements, maybe bringing in the Secret War, maybe not. It lends itself extremely well to running episodes in whatever crazy setting you want, not bothering with events in-between sessions, and even handles time travel in a way that doesn't make you go cross-eyed. The problem is that's just not how I plan things. Good news - it's incredibly easy to scrub that from the game and cook up whatever else you want.

Which brings me to Fireborn. Here we have a game that has the most amazing premise ever - you play a dragon that has been reborn into a human. Um, YES. More of that. Throughout play you will relive events from your past lives in the mythic age that probably have significance to what is playing out in the contemporary setting as magic returns to the world. Oh yeah, in those past lives you are a dragon - not just a human with the soul of a dragon, but a straight up dragon. Suffice it to say, you are pretty awesome.

The system to this game is interesting. I cannot bring myself to say good. It's interesting. There are some very neat things that it does, such as fighting styles and the ability to build the actions you want to take from various moves. The Active D6 element, where you move your dice pools around, is also neat. But man, is it complicated. If everyone at the table doesn't get this on a pretty fundamental level, play is going to slow to a crawl. It certainly doesn't help that the rules have significant errata and could use better explaining in the first place.

But you get to play a freaking dragon. So, there's still that. A lot to like in this game, a lot more to be frustrated about.

Where this is going should be pretty obvious at this point. One of the players in my recent Feng Shui mini-series figured it out. Drop Fireborn into Feng Shui. I've done it a couple of times now, and man does it work. Feng Shui gives Fireborn the mechanics to really be what it wants to be. The mechanics of Feng Shui on the GM side are about as easy as you could ask for to build whatever you need.

With the system of Feng Shui and premise of Fireborn, the resulting game is awesome. The players were excited by the end of it. The actual mechanics of fitting the supernatural powers of Fireborn into Feng Shui are already there in the form of Creature Power and Transformed Animal Schticks. Since you play the Dragons in Feng Shui, the game is asking for it, right? I do mean premise instead of setting for Fireborn. I don't use all of the default assumptions (for example that it is set in London - I don't know London and my players like to use guns... a lot) because that's just the person that I am.

I ran Fireborn with the mostly default setting (I cannot help myself, okay?) once. The weakest part in the end happened to be that I just was not familiar enough with London to be comfortable. Even if I was more familiar that the rest of the players and they were more than willing to go along with anything just for the ride (seriously, that was an amazing group, I don't know what I would give to bring you all back together), I wasn't content with running things as I normally would be. They didn't seem to notice, or were cutting me slack, but I did and that is what counts.

The recent mini-series itself was run as the prelude to what could be a much longer game; it essentially put the setting into motion. When it fits and is possible, I often like to put those events in the player's hands. To give them ownership of all the terrible things that just happened. It makes the subsequent plots where they go to fix it feel more natural. It also gives them a stake in what happens, which is important. Cleaning up someone else's mess isn't quite as satisfying as cleaning up your own mess.

A side effect of that is there are less NPCs running around that have critical information, but only respond in cryptic answers. Sometimes that's the game, but those are more "let's resolve this big mystery" games. Feng Shui isn't that game. It's "let's go punch the mystery in the face until candy comes out!" The players pretty much killed everyone, especially Dr. Lucky, and released a Pandora's Box of crazy onto the world. There were some deep themes about the price of revenge, to what length will you go to be reunited with your family, the cost of power and immortality, they were probably justified in throwing her off the force, and how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop - but mostly they crashed helicopters into things, ran a SWAT team over, and destroyed the part of the city in a chase that went horribly right.

If you haven't played Feng Shui, do yourself a favor and look into it. It is a great game by an amazing author, Robin D. Laws. Fireborn is also worth looking into if you dig on the idea of playing a dragon.

Earthdawn: Adventure Log 12 - It Begins in Flames

This is the twelfth Adventure Log in an ongoing series about Earthdawn.Introduction and Index.

The Grim Legion has always been an element that I cannot help but introduce into every Earthdawn game in some fashion or another. Each time I make them different, particularly with regard to what is printed, just to keep them mysterious and interesting. But mostly mysterious. This particular game is no different on all accounts.

I'm going to keep the specifics of what they are up to here under wraps because it is a major theme that I have been slowly working on. Also a significant source of questions that have no answers, and I very much enjoy watching that particular player struggle with puzzles when he knows he doesn't have all of the pieces, but still tries to fit things together. The various puzzles I have given him over the years could fill a blog.

In this particular game, the Grim Legion has significantly less presence over Barsaive as a whole. They tend to operate in smaller groups, some with a complex version of a Group Pattern that is tied to a greater Group Pattern. The nature of how that works is a closely guarded secret. Their primary function is still to hunt Horrors across Barsaive, complete with a healthy side of moral ambiguity - the ends justify the means.

There is no doubt that they had done good by eliminating threats, not just Horrors, but at the same time, they have little regard for those that are hurt along the way. In their minds, they simply would have been victims regardless and if the Legionnaires are willing to give their lives to protect the people of Barsaive, then the people of Barsaive should be willing to give their lives as well. This also extends to taking the resources that they need - if it were not for their actions, there would be no one to produce these resources.

Not all of the Grim Legion are quite so callous, some are generous with all that they have, taking their Oaths very seriously (the nature of these Oaths is a closely guarded secret). Others may seem to be little better than criminals, but even they are still driven towards the overall goal. Ultimately, each Group is semi-autonomous and operates in a fashion they see fit, even if directed by a central authority.

While all of their efforts seem to be directed at eliminated Horrors, a task which they are incredibly effective at, there are indications that they may have other goals they are slowly working towards. Not all of their activities seem to be motivated by Horrors and their many Nethermancers have a great deal of interest in some of the research conducted in Wyrm Wood during the Scourge.

Adventure Log – 12 It Begins in Flames

Recorded By: Honeysuckle Sunspray of Glenwood Deep

Date: 01 Strassa – 07 Strassa, 1507 TH
Group Name: Mismatched Steel

Group Members

Elmod the Nethermancer
Honeysuckle Sunspray the Windmaster
Jak'Tak the Weaponsmith
Ontheros the Horror Stalker
Sogun the Messenger
Ting the Swordmaster

New Year’s party time! Elmod and Sogun start off the new training. Ontheros has returned to Bartertown on his hunt for Horror tainted items that may be showing up during the festival(1). I have started training Thistle(2) so that he can fully embrace the ways of the Windmaster. Bartertown is being occupied by a number of different mercenary groups and Sogun has been hired by the Fist of Thystonius(3) to uncover information about the other mercenary groups. Ting has been approached by Tarr, who offered her a chance to do what she does best: create mayhem, and rob a drug den that is a plight on the city. The catch is that she can’t cause casualties(4); I’m not sure if she can do that. Elmod and I were both requested at different times to meet a mysterious figure at the Juggling Shadowmant where we too were offered positions to assist in the robbing of the drug den. Ontheros and Jak go out to help Maguk(5) (world’s largest troll) with other things happening around the city.

Heist night! We were given this creepy grease paint stuff to put on our eyes (ewww). It turns your eyes black and then allows you to see in the dark(6)! I’ve never been able to see in the dark before, it’s so exciting. With much flourish Ting and some thugs burst onto the scene and successfully rob the building of money and drugs. At the same time, Sogun said he had to deliver a message to the head of the consortium that happened to be dining with Maester Bleys. Jak and Ontheros were heroes that night and saved people from the burning building. Maguk and the rest of the patrol took care of heckling Swordmasters who were accusing the patrol of starting the fire (the nerve of them)(7).

Given some time to look at the drugs that Ting stole, Elmod and Ontheros discovered that they were Horror tainted! This drug is called krokodil(8) and it super icky. This had been the last drug house in the area and people had begun making this stuff on their own. Maester Bleys has charged us with finding whoever is teaching people how to make this junk(9).

I continue my mission to capture messages written in or’zet code. Elmod finishes his training and is kidnapped by goons that want to know about his mentor. Have no fear! We are able to rescue Elmod before any real harm is done to him.(10)

Elmod uses his scary magic to talk to the spirit of an ork that died because he was using the drugs and we found that Margin, a curio shop owner, is the one that is selling the drugs and teaching people how to make them.

Plan time! We need to get Margin to reveal that he is the one involved with the drugs. Jak and Elmod volunteer to go in and use the code word to get Margin to sell some drugs. Without much fuss Margin is captured and turned over to the authorities(11) in Bartertown. With Margin gone, Ontheros says that there are Horror tainted items in his shop. So in a style that is uniquely us we break everything in sight and find some Horror tainted coins that need to be destroyed(12).(13)

(1) The festival is a New Year tradition that Maester Bleys organizes as a martial counterpoint to the artisan festival that happens half a year from then. It's a lot more fun than most of the dwarfs will admit. Also, many orks that are easy on the eyes.
(2) Thistle the "Prickly" is associated with Adventuring Groups: Miscellaneous: The Briars; I wish I was making this up.
(3) Mercenary group, veterans and adepts, making a Name for themselves and particularly belligerent. Competent and whatever they lack in competence is compensated with aggression; though they are not as good as they think.
(4) That is an interesting insight into Tarr - warrants further investigation.
(5) A member of Maester Bley's mercenary Group/police force; see entry cataloged under: Adventuring Groups: Miscellaneous: Mismatched Steel - 004.
(6) Investigate what this "creepy grease paint" is.
(7) And now we know the origin of that incident.
(8) We've been getting a spotty reports of this stuff from around the province. We need to know more; it sounds like very bad news.
(9) For all of his issues, Maester Bleys has cracked down on drugs in Bartertown recently.
(10) What is this all about?
(11) This word should be in quotes.
(12) This is very bad news. We need to get control of that cesspool outside the gates.
(13) Received and edited by Ela Pono.

*     *     *

Overall, this session went very well - at least from where I sat. There was a lot going on and this adventure log only touches on quite a bit of it. To be perfectly fair, it would be difficult to record everything in detail and play at the same time. Also, some of the important details may not have seemed like it at the time. Many seeds planted long ago started to bear fruit and others were planted.

In the background of what was "really" going on was a festival to introduce some characters and color into the world. Part of it was to get people invested a little more in what was going on and make things seem more vibrant. Also to show that there is always a bigger fish (this was not directed at the players) - particularly in the form of a obsidiman Warrior brotherhood, The Immortals.

One of the major events was the escalation of conflict between the two groups vying for control of Bartertown. The players have thrown their lot in behind one of the factions, but are starting to find out some of the reasons they have been obliquely warned about him. His dedication to the community is absolute, but in a "ends justify the means" way.

The robbery on the drug den involved all of the characters in some capacity, which worked well. It was also a flash point for relationships within the Group: characters began to realize what exactly they were getting themselves into. It was also something of a setup: the entire thing went sideways, an opium den burned, many died within it and it was something of a PR fiasco. One side got to be the hero and the other was blamed for causing it.

That was just the beginning of some the dark places that events were starting to explore. During the robbery, they stole some opium suspended in alcohol. While investigating, they gave some of that to a junkie for information. By gave, I mean administered because he was going through withdrawal and suffering from burns. It was a very intense scene at the table. The ends justified the means.

During all of this, a plot that has been at the edge of things forces itself to the forefront: that one of the characters (Elmod) may be involved with Horrors in some fashion he does not understand. The goons are the Grim Legion and this was a chance to rebuild some Group cohesion that had been fraying. Everyone came to Elmod's rescue and he also go a chance to show off a little. After a series of body blows, this was a victory they could rally around, even if it involved one of their number abducted and tortured.

The drugs introduced in this session are part of a much larger plot that was put into motion much earlier. It is part the complete banal horrors of life that normal Namegivers inflict on themselves and there is no panacea for, and part the insidious way that Horrors can insinuate their influence into society completely undetected.

Earthdawn: Adventure Log 11 - Fighting Against Time

This is the eleventh Adventure Log in an ongoing series about Earthdawn.Introduction and Index.

The primary Thread Items that the players have been finding up to this point, and mostly go unmentioned, are the Bands of Fortune. They really should get their own write up, but I am almost entirely cribbing them from the books - some of the Ranks have been altered slightly, additional Ranks have been added, and the history changed completely.

I have always been a fan of these kinds of group items - they give everyone something to bond over. It becomes a shared point of history between everyone as they are working to the exact same goal. Through them I can also reveal a larger story that connects everyone together in an obvious way. These are some of the elements that I am using to tie into the overall meta-theme, fixing the mistakes of the past. This particular set of items is powerful for their costs and the Ranks, but fun and generic, which means they are good for everyone and since everyone (hypothetically) has equal access, there aren't any balance issues to be concerned about. Well, other than dealing with players that have impressive access to Karma.

Each of the bands is being introduced slowly and the Group has been invested in tracking them all down, so each character gets one. There have been hiccups with that particular bit, one intentional on my part, others unintentional (players unable to make the game). A cast change adds another twist. Part of the fiction that I introduced for them is that they will twist events to bring all of them together, which will frequently go very poorly if you happen to be on the short end of that pull.

There is one prominent NPC that has one of the bands (in the form of a formal sash of some kind), who they cannot help but really like, not matter how much they discuss murdering him and taking it. Some of those discussions got pretty serious. That NPC (Arthu Paen'drag) keeps meeting up with them during the course of events, with increasing levels of violence surrounding the events - always in the background, however. All of this is pointing to the inevitable conclusion of that NPC's arc, which I would hope has been sufficiently foreshadowed that it won't come as a surprise.

Adventure Log – 11 Fighting Against Time

Recorded By: Sogun the Messenger of Ayodhya

Date: 23 Doddul – 30 Doddul, 1506 TH
Group Name: Mismatched Steel

Group Members

Elmod the Nethermancer
Honeysuckle Sunspray the Windmaster
Sogun the Messenger
Ting the Swordmaster

We spent most of the day with the tailor and death moth wings(1). Ting seemed to complete her look of being a pirate with her dashing hat and bandoleer while Honeysuckle decided for something a little more refined and elegant with a blouse. Elmod went with the more practical route and got a vest to hold his alchemy tools and other creepy things a Nethermancer would need. I choose to honor tradition with a horkla.

While I was seeking something of a more personal manner, Elmod was once again proving indispensable by researching a few of the items that the Group had picked up along their travels. After my morning endeavors I took some time to visit my brother Omasu(3). It’s not very often we obsidimen find ourselves in the same town as a brother. So to not stop in to chat would have been very rude.

There seems to be some kind of Swordmaster tournament in town. I’ll have to go early in order to get a good seat because if Ting hasn't already signed up, I’m sure she will. As I wait for the tournament to begin I can’t help but notice that the guards seem to have a rather unusual manner about them. Some shops are patrolled while others are not. I’m sure it’s nothing but it might be worth investigating later.

Currently there are 40 Swordmasters entered in this tournament. The decor for the tournament is a rather garish display of color something I would expect from t’skrang rather than the dwarfs(4).

The Group bets heavily on Ting. I would have though such high stakes an unwise practice if I haven’t seen her fight before. Her opponent practically dwarfs her with his size. As the fight begins Ting seems to be outmatched in both strength and skill. As her foe moves closer to snatch his victory with a final blow, I catch a small smirk from Ting. For some reason I couldn't help but think of a cat playing with a mouse just before it finally kills it. Ting finally stops playing coy and ends the match with a decisive and skillful slice through her opponent. Leave it to Ting to not only best her foe but to play to the crowd as well.

Honeysuckle and I have been noticing a lot of disappearances around town lately. Mainly the people that have recently participated in the Swordmaster tournament. While out trying to track down one of the missing Swordmasters our young “tiruplaxi”(5) stumbled across a dead body in an alleyway. Which seems to be something that could prove quite useful to a Namegiver like Elmod. Elmod used some creepy magic to relive the death of our new friend. He learned that our dead dwarf was involved in some kind of slaving ring. Upon further investigation, it was revealed that the whole Swordmaster tournament was some kind of slaving hoax. It turns out that a few of the Swordmasters that claimed to be from Jerris, were in fact slavers from Vivane(6).

Before they could leave with their captives, we manage to put the pieces of their plot together and track down their airship and free the slaves(7).(8)

(1) See entry cataloged under: Adventuring Groups: Miscellaneous: Mismatched Steel - 009.
(2) I don't know what someone who travels with a friend of Fastoon Julari Makanth Phunkot would consider creepy.
(3) Omasu is kinda a big shot and this might shed some light on why he is chummy with this lot, that and his strange association with Maester Bleys. I'm certain that Zamrica would go on and on with this one...
(4) Because dwarf color schemes are the opposite of garish.
(5) No one has any idea what this means. Maybe some obsidiman thing?
(6) I had to walk away after reading this. It fills me with incandescent rage. Also, that is incredibly risky. Therans had to have someone operating within Bartertown already to set anything like that up. Maybe I can convince the dwarfs to actually do something about Bartertown for once.
(7) This makes me happy in a way that is difficult to articulate. Strange.
(8) Received and edited by Ela Pono.

*     *     *

A considerable amount of time was spent figuring out what clothes to make out of the death moth wings. Really, it was quite a while. This was entirely intentional on my part since one of the player's was absent, so I removed their pieces of the plot and I needed some padding to fill out the session and keep the pacing for the back end.

The primary goal for this session was to develop the events in Bartertown more, specifically the deep animosity between what are becoming the two dominant factions. There was considerable foreshadowing for the looming conflict and what is coming, but also for greater events and where some loyalties may truly lie. There was a lot of subtle maneuvering, from the existence of the tournament (to upstage the rival tournament), using it to gather slaves (not just any slaves, but ones that would support a particular group), dire warnings (not recorded here), and sides being picked. A great deal happening in the background.

It was also a chance for many of the players to show off a little bit. The Nethermancer spent some time researching the various Thread Items that had come their way. Despite what the log records, the fight was actually incredibly close and fell the way it did due entirely to luck, but that is what the dice are there for. Never underestimate the troll Swordmaster that uses "you're smaller than me!" as a taunt. The Group leaned more on contacts than in the past, following leads and gathering information to put all of the pieces together. The actual assault on the airship at the end took some considerable planning, that mostly fell apart because only the windling can fly. In all, they also got to feel like heroes at the end of it, which is going to be important given some of the events which will soon transpire.

Earthdawn: Adventure Log 10 - A Tear for Jaspree

This is the tenth Adventure Log in an ongoing series about Earthdawn.Introduction and Index.

Jaspree is the Passion of nature in Earthdawn, and has grown in importance since the ending of the Scourge. Many Namegivers have turned to Jaspree for help in reviving the corrupted landscape to what it once was, restoring farmlands and forests to support life. In turn, the Passion has aiding in restoring the land to what it once; Barsaive has steadily turned green and seen the bloom of life return in those years. The ideals of Jaspree are care of the land, growth, and love of the wilderness.

Most commonly referred to as "he", I also prefer to associate Jaspree in the form of a windling; in my game each of the Passions has a common Namegiver to be depicted as, when not in the form of the viewer or artist that is. When not a windling, he is invariably shown as half animal and the gender depends on the role - male most commonly for protector and female for nurturer. The common elements associated with Jaspree are farms, flowers, forests, seeds, trees - really, any indication of animals or plants growing and alive. Namegivers are not associated with Jaspree, that is the domain of Garlen.

While the text depicts Jaspree as valuing plants over animals, I prefer to have Jaspree involved in protecting the natural order over just plants. This generally means questors will lead solitary lives away from most other people, perhaps in small and dedicated communities, tending to a particular area and defending it violently from despoiling. They may be sought for advice regarding the land by those who respect their ways. More social questors will be actively involved in communities that owe their existence to the land and rely on the questor to help them ensure that balance is maintained between their needs and the land's needs. Others, generally adepts who have considerably more power, travel to enact Jaspree's will and spread his teachings. All questors prefer peaceful measures, but part of nature is violence and death, which they will not shy from if required.

Adventure Log – 10 A Tear for Jaspree

Recorded By: Jak’Tak the Weaponsmith

Date: 01 Doddul – 22 Doddul, 1506 TH
Group Name: Mismatched Steel

Group Members

Elmod the Nethermancer(1)
Honeysuckle Sunspray the Windmaster(2)
Jak’Tak the Weaponsmith(3)
Sogun the Messenger(4)
Ting the Swordmaster(5)

Ting teaches her students and Jak and Sogun advance in circle. We return to Bartertown. Sogun receives a gift of living armor. Fastoon(6) brings us up to speed on the local color. Bleys(7) has cornered the espagra market(8). He is a clever dwarf. Honeysuckle bought a comfortable hammock. We visit a tailor “Hardly Fitz”. He needs us to check up on a possible espagra supply. The town “Safeway” has a tanner, Urzon. We agree to take the job. A consortium is forming against Bleys. Tol the Warrior gives advice about the scorchers around Ardanyan. Nine days into the journey, we are attacked by a swarm of espagra. We find a clearing with a statue of Jaspree and a white espagra(9). The statue holds a copper bowl, the water gives life(10). We heal the creature’s wounds. Someone approaches. Dwarfs. They go for our espagra, but they are insufficient for the task. They appear to be craftsman – peasants, not bandits. Safeway is a small village in the process of being fortified. The locals are friendly. The tanner’s wife tells he is missing. The tannery is deserted, with signs of a struggle. The innkeeper is friendly and gregarious; Ting and Elmod pump him for information. We track Thom to his home. The apprentice is there. He tells a tale of kidnapping. The local weaponsmith may be involved. He leads us to a farmer, who points us to some woods. Honeysuckle and Sogun are approached by a pretty elf who claims to be trying to get to the bottom of the espagra issue. The white espagra seems to like him. We regroup, then strike off to the forest. We find some dwarfs in the midst of tenderizing(11) an espagra. One challenges us to a duel, and Ting answers. The contest is over in one blow. Beogard’s brother has a plan: to poison small animals, thus weakening the espagra. He kidnapped the tanner to preserve the hides. Beogard leads us to the camp. We speak with the thief, and come to an agreement. The trappers leave and the espagra are released. The tanner is freed, the deal is brokered and we return to Bartertown.(12)

(1) Known associate of Fastoon Julari Makanth Phunkot of Iopos. Trained under Mestoph, if that information is possibly correct.
(2) An uncommon Discipline, particularly in this part of Barsaive, the Windmaster is a community guardian, similar to a Warrior, for Windlings of Glenwood Deep.
(3) Known associate of Maester Bleys and Omasu.
(4) Part of the Ayodhya Liferock and Brother of Omasu by the way obsidimen measure such things.
(5) Known associate of Tarr. Trained under T’Skee “the Magnificent”, Swordmaster of V’Strimon. See cataloged: Adventuring Groups: Exploration: Fourfathers.
(6) Fastoon Julari Makanth Phunkot of Iopos. Nethermancer and representative of the Denairastas within Bartertown. Operates a storefront.
(7) Maester Bleys, origins unknown. Warrior and Weaponsmith, operates the largest Forge within Bartertown. Suspected associate of Tarr.
(8) During this time there was a shortage of espagra skins due to a fashion trend originating in Iopos.
(9) Incredibly rare. Espagra are primarily blue in color, though variations have been found depending on the environment. Of those, green is the most common from jungle areas. White would be from the high mountains and there is rumored to be red around Death's Sea.
(10) Entirely uncertain what this refers to, but bears investigation.
(11) Is this an ork euphemism; investigate.
(12) Received and Edited by Zamirica One-Knee.

*     *     *

This session followed on the heels of what was the low watermark for the campaign and turned things around considerably. The pacing was tight, always something going on, the fights were interesting, and the overall events revealed more about the world as a whole and some nuances. It was an excellent session and it introduced espagra, who are one of my favorite creatures in Earthdawn. During conflict with them, the players realized they may be in over their heads. The final confrontation was diffused through social interaction rather than combat, which was a different kind of victory than this particular group was accustomed.

Events in Bartertown have started to develop and the stage is being set for a conflict that will begin brewing and getting ugly. Much of that is long-term and those events will span a considerable amount of time. Some NPCs get more development and details on the character is shared, along with hints as to the roles they will play in things yet to come. In all, there was a considerable amount of foreshadowing regarding future troubles that our intrepid heroes will face.

The creature trophies that were made for this session were my most ambitious project: espagra scales. To start with, I got variety packs of sequins. Those were sorted by color, including the slightly off colors (which are important). There were four types of espagra that I wanted to make trophies for: blue, green, red and white. The blue espagra used blue and purple sequins; green used green and a turquoise off-color; red were red and gold; and white were white opalescent and silver. The second color was to give some additional depth and variation to the main color, make them look more like something you may find in "nature". The sequins were sewn to cross stitch fabric in an overlapping scale pattern. That was glued to a piece of soft leather then cut out when dried. This gives it a tanned animal skin look and feel and protects the sewing from overhandling (having met my players, this was important). I think the end result looks great, though my players have only gotten blue and green skins thus far. Hopefully, they will meet some red espagra sooner than later - for me, hopefully for me. 

Earthdawn: Adventure Log 09 - Kept in the Dark

This is the ninth Adventure Log in an ongoing series about Earthdawn.Introduction and Index.

The Servos Jungle is my favorite locale in the Barsaive setting. It borders a number of other important locations, including Kratas and the Serpent River, and is rather huge. I prefer to think that it is even larger than can be depicted on a map. That it contains so plateaus and vistas that have not been seen by a Namegiver since the Scourge began. This is a place of wonder and darkness, where rivers flow uphill and within the boughs of the trees. Where predators that have not yet been given a name dwell. Where lost civilizations and the Horrors that brought them to an end wait to be discovered.

Despite how much I enjoy the Servos, like many things it is best not to over use it - it will lose it's mystique at that point. My goal is to instill in my players a distinct sense of fear and excitement over venturing into its depths. The jungle t'skrang and Cathan tribes are some of my favorite. The former because they are enormous, savage cannibal lizard people, and the latter because, well, they deserve their own paragraph. There will be danger, excitement, treasure, things to explore and legends to be made. Above all else, it cannot be boring. There is always something within the Servos that is bigger than you, and they are always hungry. 

The Cathans are a small and wiry ethnic group of humans that lived out the Scourge within the Servos. Given Blood Wood, this should make everyone who knows anything about them at least a little nervous. Each campaign I try to give them a different backstory and will inevitably have them feature in some way (I cannot actually help myself). For this particular game they are nearly peerless Nethermancers (just don't tell the Iopans) and certainly talented Elementalists and Shamans. How exactly the rode out the Scourge remains a mystery, but there was not a jungle in the middle of Barsaive prior to the coming of the Horrors.

If you are looking for a place to hide a citadel and a lost empire without resorting to extensive magical hoops (this is in no way a condemnation of magical hoops for such things), the Servos is an excellent place to start. It possesses water and once had easy access to the rest of Barsaive. The interior has been poorly explored at best (it's not very safe, to put it lightly), and even then mapping a nearly trackless jungle darkened by an extensive canopy is not a simple task. This is one of the finest places in the setting to develop as you see fit and any Group will almost certainly pass by at some point, moving through the glowing waters of Lake Pyros on the way. Adventure, excitement - an adept craves these things.

Adventure Log – 09 Kept in the Dark

Recorded By: Ting V’strimon the Merciless of Urupa

Date: 25 Teayu – 18 Borrum, 1506 TH
Group Name: Mismatched Steel

Group Members

Elmod the Nethermancer
Honeysuckle Sunspray the Windmaster
Jak’Tak the Weaponsmith
Sogun the Messenger
Ting the Swordmaster

As always after a big problem is solved, it is now a time of a lot of puttering around. I spend most of my down time swimming in the river and throwing various nasty things at people looking like they deserve it. After a while we make our way to Bartertown. Elmod is doing stupid wizardy(1) stuff in the library, while Jak is… fixing random crap. Figured I would check out the arena again(2). Got myself a fight with some dwarf who spends way too much time on his face. Invited my friends to come watch me show off. The fight was drawn out and quite invigorating, and after much persistence, I managed to make him yield, making me and friends some cash. All is well. Also got an awesome eye cross scar. Spend some time healing up, and met Sogun, who seems to get dumped on us.

Elmod also is wanting to get us killed going into the woods so he can find out more about his creepy-ass doll; so I spent all my winnings on poison preventing potions and rations. Broke again. Hoping I can take training money out of the party treasure.

Took a riverboat into the jungle, to talk to some dudes from Throal. In the middle of nowhere. One was a windling(3). The other had a task that we could do. Something plant-like and glowy. In a temple somewhere. The dwarf is old, not sure I would want to travel the jungle with this guy. But he’s insistent and has money. So we go into the jungle. Windlings buzz around, old dude is on a donkey. And I don’t sweat. Everyone but the rock guy(4) is getting stinky. Got attacked by a howling wooly bear-like(5) critter that night. It’s blue(6) and probably really hot with all that fur. Honeysuckle chased it off and I went back to sleep. Nothing really happens in the next day except we keep seeing something spying on us. Next day we manage to make contact. They did not seem impressed by my greeting, which was a shame. Threatened us vaguely, and let us know that others were traveling in the area, don’t sound like anyone we want to encounter. After some charting, we manage to get lead back to the village by giving them some spare weapons. Guys have some cool tats(7), but they don’t want to talk about them.

Notable village! Most people here tend to shy away from he, though there was some crazy great dancing. Got as may tips as I possibly could! Elmod got his talk in with the elders. When I saw him the next time, he still looked pretty high. After that we go back out into the woods. Old dude starts getting sicker. We met some t’skrang with the scary masks the villagers warned us about. Wrested a promise not to hurt them or reveal their location. Which we made. Seemed cautious, but seemed willing enough to let us go on our way. They did take us to their village for the night. Swapped some stories and techniques on murdering.

Traveled a day, and got attacked by some pretty moth creatures. Huge with awesome wings, we cut them off once we murdered them(8). Next day’s encounter was a giant mantis creature which turned out to be a guy from Theran Empire(9). Offered to share camp, which we were awkwardly led to, be we declined and left the group. We met the ork, pretty boy, two t’skrang(10), six soldiers, several elf slaves. Left at that and made camp a couple miles away.

We traveled a bit and found the temple. There was a suspicious pile of red gems(11) at the entrance we grabbed, and then went inside the courtyard. Found some fancy looking water we filled a skin with water, know when that might be awesome. Inside the temple was fucked up. The flower fungus was found as well as this really trippy Horror skeleton(12). With faces and screaming bones. Jak found a huge sword made of solid water. Super wicked looking. We left the temple, we go to make camp. Old dwarf made tea out of the mushrooms, which we all drink. Next day we find a different t’skrang village that was deserted, that an elf slave that escaped was hiding. Jak made heal checks and we chatted him up. But Therans crashed in, saying t’skrang are after them. Where they were. I was all for the t’skrang to finish them, but Elmod managed to convince them to take Blood Oaths from the surviving slavers, never take slaves again. They then accompanied us the rest of the way out of the forest. We met up at their airship(13), and they gave us a ride out, as well as a shit-ton of gold. Beautiful, beautiful gold. I’ve been sleeping with it ever since.(14)

(1) Most likely stupid Nethermancy.
(2) Ting is a known associate of Tarr, see entry catalogued under: Adventuring Groups: Miscellaneous: Mismatched Steel – 004. We have had little success in tracking Tarr and his fighting rings.
(3) These would be Wivun and Skreet, my condolences.
(4) Or obsidiman if you don’t like offending the Namegiver that weighs half a ton and can do pull-ups.
(5) A brithan, not to be confused with the caterpillar.
(6) This is very doubtful, but if it is blue, we’ll all hear all about it from Wivun. Part of his theory of adaptation due to environmental stimulus or some-such.
(7) This makes me suspect Cathans. You have no idea how cool.
(8) Death moths.
(9) WHAT!?! This needs to get kicked upstairs.
(10) We need more information on these t’skrang. Are they K’tenshin?
(11) Curious.
(12) Good thing Zamirica didn’t receive this one!
(13) A vedette this far East? This is bad.
(14) Received and edited by Ela Pono.

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Without any sugar coating, this particular adventure (in conjunction with the previous session) were the low water mark of the campaign. The adventure itself was adapted from a published adventure and it was not without problems from the beginning, which were compounded by mistakes on my part and some of the players having little desire to engage with the events. It was a trifecta of issues that worked out in the end.

The Therans, as presented originally, are totally and completely unsympathetic. Why anyone would ever want to interact with them beyond the initial meeting is beyond my understanding, let alone protect them in the end. Given the time period of my campaign (pre-Triumph), the presence of Therans is rather unusual, so I used that to announce future badness. The composition of the group was altered and made friendlier in general, though I included two t'skrang of the K'tenshin arapagoi as part of the deeper plot. They also weren't simply a hunting and slaving party, but actively looking for something.

All of this may have gone well, but the ultimate decision was to not interact with them at all. There was the fear that the Therans would simply try to kill them outright, coupled with an outright hatred of them by some characters that I didn't know about. Which was when things started to fall apart. There is a valuable lesson about communication and knowing your audience in here, as well as fostering healthy group dynamics. Above all else, communication; it is the most difficult and most important part of gaming.

One piece of loot was the suspicious red gems they found are blood gems. An element of my setting that exists on a meta level as a warning: something bad happened here. They are produced from blood magic that a Namegiver died for. Whether that was from a dying act to save a friend, or as an unwilling sacrifice, is impossible to determine. Sometimes the droplets of blood from that act will crystallize into small, faceted gems that always look slick and sometimes gleam with an inner light. Their monetary value is minimal (there is something of a taboo in openly trafficking in them), but they do have some value in magical creation. They can be used as an ingredient (no more than half of the cost in ingredients), or to provide a bonus to the enchanting process - just not both. So far nothing has been done with them, but I strongly suspect no one actually remembers all of this no matter how many times I repeat it.

The other piece of loot introduced was death moth wings. For these I used a yard of crushed tulle and cut it into triangular sections in an effort to replicate moth wings. Since they still needed to fit in the boxes, I decided to keep it simple. The downside to this is the tulle has interacted poorly with later introductions into the boxes. Particularly jehuthra webs, which is really just fitting. These would later become one of the favorite pieces of loot to decorate. It got... elaborate and expensive. More on that in a future adventure log.