OOC: Fantasy Peril Game System

[LucioCurious]

Hello all,

I haven't visited these forums in a long time, and I'm glad to see they're still going strong. I wanted to share a game I've invented with a broader audience that might be interested, so I've come here.

I love perilous fantasy-themed adventures, and specifically, I love playing the storyteller and side characters while others play the main characters. I come up with my own game systems and settings because I like to build the world around the characters my players want to play, and because I find it thrilling to have their fates depend upon the roll of dice. Even though it's all for sexy fun, I also take building a balanced role-playing game very seriously, and my goal is to make one in which fighting, charm, and sexual pleasure or punishment are all viable ways to, uh, resolve conflict.

I've been working on this version of the game on and off and I think I'm onto something good, so I'm curious what others think and if it excites them. I'll split up what I have so far into a series of posts, and I'd love to hear feedback.

* * *

SETTING SUMMARY

Once the earth was ruled by splendid civilizations, kingdoms and empires that stretched across the known world and flourished in culture and the arts of magic and alchemy. But the lust and avarice of men turned them against one another, and the grotesque monstrous races that had been forced into the shadows emerged to exploit this discord. Over the last hundred years, humanity has been tumbled from its throne by marauding barbarians, secrets and wisdom lost to ruins and darkness. The scattered remnants of once proud peoples now suffer under the yoke of tyranny and slavery, and some foretell that within the next century, humankind is doomed to be bred out of existence.

Amidst this chaos, ambition and greed still know no bounds, and the few remaining city-states are unable to band together and rally in the face of imminent destruction. But for those adventurers or opportunity-seekers determined to make it on their own, grand mysteries and possibilities await in a land yet to be reclaimed from the blight of savagery.

SYSTEM

This game system aims to integrate the possibility of kinkiness into combat, for those who, like me, thrill at the risk of rolling the dice to determine whether one dominates or must submit. Ideally, this system is as capable of resolving violent confrontations as sensual competitions, while being at its best when the two are intertwined in erotically-charged conflict. It aims to be structurally simple and balanced with its only complexities designed for titillation and well-integrated with the whole.

Character creation involves determining your attributes, selecting your equipment and temperament, and coming up with some active and passive abilities. Thus, I've separated the explanation into three parts: on attributes, on resistances and armor/mood categories, and on special effects and abilities. Lucio's character sheet is available as a reference.

ATTRIBUTES

There are seven attributes that govern your character's main strengths and weaknesses. In addition to these attributes is Vitality, which represents how much physical and psychological damage you can endure, and Reserves, which represents how many special abilities you can use before resting. The seven attributes are as follows:

Strength: Determines the accuracy and damage of physical attacks, which target Agility and Fortitude, and the likelihood of inflicting status effects with physical attacks.
Charisma: Determines the accuracy and damage of psychological attacks, which target Wits and Will, and the likelihood of inflicting status effects with psychological attacks.
Aptitude: Determines the accuracy and damage of magical attacks, which may be either physical or psychological depending on the active ability or tool, and the likelihood of inflicting status effects with magical attacks.
Agility: Determines evasion of physical attacks, initiative, and accuracy of touch attacks.
Wits: Determines evasion of psychological attacks, initiative, and damage of touch attacks.
Fortitude: Determines damage reduction of physical attacks, the likelihood of resisting status effects from attacks which target Fortitude, and reserves.
Will: Determines damage reduction of psychological attacks, the likelihood of resisting status effects from attacks which target Will, and reserves.

Your Vitality is equal to your total attribute points. An average person has 70 points, allowing for a score of 10 across the board, and a talented person might have 80 to 90, but no starting character should have higher than 100.

Your Reserves are equal to (Fortitude / 5) + (Will / 5), rounded down. For example, if you have 16 Fortitude and 8 Will, you would have 4 Reserves, allowing you to use 4 active abilities per rest.

GAMEPLAY

Challenges are resolved by rolling 1d10 and adding the relevant attribute and ability points to the result, and then testing it against a difficulty rating. For example, moving a boulder might have a difficulty of 30, and a character must succeed a Strength check by exceeding that number with their roll.

In combat, an attacker tests their accuracy against a defender's evasion, and if they are successful, they roll for damage as well and that number is passively reduced by the defender's defense. For example, Lucio brandishes a spear and attacks a goblin, rolling a 7 on the 1d10. If he has Strength 15, a spear with a +4 accuracy bonus, and a passive ability that gives him +6 accuracy with spear Striking attacks, his accuracy roll is 32. If the goblin has 20 Agility and +5 Striking resistance, he needs to roll a 7 or higher to avoid Lucio's attack.

To continue the example, if Lucio hits the goblin, he then rolls for damage and gets a 2. Given that his Strength is 15, if his spear has a -2 damage penalty but his passive ability gives him +3 damage, he adds 16 to his roll, resulting in a value of 18. If the goblin has 8 Fortitude, he takes 10 damage.

The exact same rules apply, with different attributes and abilities, if Lucio begs and pleads with the goblin to be spared. In that case, he would test his Charisma against the goblin's Wits, and if he succeeds, he will add his Charisma to a damage roll that will be reduced by the goblin's Will. If the goblin is 'defeated' in this way, he is so thoroughly appeased that he ceases to participate in the fight.

The goblin is an ugly and inarticulate creature with a low Charisma, but it is cunning and experienced at enslaving hapless humans, with high Wits. If it attempts to molest Lucio and subdue him with raw shame and pleasure, then this will be counted as a "touch attack," which is the one circumstance in which defensive attributes become offensive attributes. The goblin's Agility is used to determine his accuracy and his Wits are used to determine his damage. Lucio uses whichever of his evasive stats is higher to try to avoid (in his case Agility), and whichever of his defensive stats is higher to mitigate the "damage" if grasped (in his case Fortitude).

What happens when someone loses all their Vitality depends upon how it's occurred. If Lucio defeats the goblin with his spear, then the goblin is knocked unconscious. If Lucio charms the goblin with social skills, the conflict is defused and the goblin, being swayed, can no longer attack and may even give assistance, though some give-and-take may still be involved. If Lucio is molested into submission by the goblin, he loses his will to resist and is as vulnerable to being exploited or looted as he would be if he were unconscious.

If someone is knocked unconscious and continues to suffer physical damage, they can be killed. If someone is psychologically swayed into ending the fight, continued negotiations could result in them being recruited. And if someone is sexually pleasured until their will fails and then continues to be ravaged, they can be tamed and temporarily become the slave of their tamer. In this world, this state lasts from a few days to a week on average before the will recovers, but continual "training" can extend this state indefinitely. Such is the fate of many hapless adventurers. But there are those who bind monsters to their will this way.

Some notes:

* All forms of attack, whether physical or psychological or sexual, deplete Vitality in the end. This encourages using a variety of abilities in combat, especially since what someone is resistant or vulnerable to can change if they are Stripped of their equipment.
* Aptitude is more versatile an attribute than Strength and Charisma, but in exchange, it requires you to use active abilities and thus your reserves. Both Strength and Charisma, in contrast, have 'normal' attacks, like striking and talking, which can still target specific resistances.
* A defender rolls to evade both because it is engaging and because defenders have other options, such as counter attacks, discussed later.
* While pleasuring an adversary can depend on Charisma, low-Charisma characters can also inflict serious 'damage' through molestation touch attacks. The disadvantage of touch attacks is that those targeted by them get to use their best defensive attributes, but this is only fair, as otherwise a character could put all their points into Agility and Wits, become untouchable, and molest everyone into submission. It sounds good, but it'd be a short game.
* The main reason why there are separate evasion and defense attributes but not separate accuracy and damage attributes is: although distinguishing between damage and accuracy for physical attacks makes sense, like if someone is strong but imprecise, it's harder to explain how that works for Charisma. It's simplest to either use a heavy weapon, which tend to increase damage and lower accuracy, or create passive abilities that increase your damage without raising your Strength.

 

[LucioCurious]

RESISTANCES

There are three physical resistances and three psychological resistances which affect evasion against these types of attacks. The amount of armor your character wears will adjust their physical resistances and the mood your character is in will adjust their psychological resistances. Thus, stripping a character of their armor and forcibly changing their mood can be a good tactic.

The physical resistances are:

Striking: Affects accuracy of weapons and blunt impacts.
Grappling: Affects accuracy of wrestling holds and other entanglements.
Elements: Affects accuracy of heat, cold, and electricity.

The psychological resistances are:

Fear: Affects accuracy of intimidation, bullying, and brute aggression.
Shame: Affects accuracy of insult, provocation, and domineering behavior.
Desire: Affects accuracy of seduction, bribery, and eager service.

Resistances are affected in increments of five, typically ranging from +10 to -10 and only under special circumstances reaching +15 or -15. Some attacks are resistance-neutral, like persuasion that appeals to reason or ethereal magic.

ARMOR CATEGORIES

While it's fun to gather treasure and manage gear, rather than worry overmuch about the specific effects of each piece of equipment, this system determines a category of how armored your character is and uses that to suggest your resistances. These are the standard categories:

Nude: Wearing no more than shoes and accessories. Grappling +10, Striking -5, Elements -10.
Barely Garbed: Little more than bottoms. Grappling +5, Striking -5, Elements -5.
Lightly Garbed: Top and bottoms. Striking -5.
Fully Garbed: A long robe or travel gear. Elements +5, Striking -5, Grappling -5.
Barely Armored: A single piece of armor, leather or chain. Grappling -5.
Lightly Armored: Top and bottoms of leather, chain, or mail, however scanty. Striking +5, Grappling -5, Elements -5.
Fully Armored: A full set of leather, chain, or plate mail. Striking +10, Grappling -10, Elements -5.

The numerical levels on these categories are flexible depending on the character or the specific equipment being worn (fur might defend more against the elements and less against strikes than leather), but they should serve as good guidelines. No matter what you're wearing, there should be some vulnerability.

MOOD AND TEMPERAMENT

Just as every character has their armor category which determines their physical resistances, every character is in a mood which determines their psychological resistances. Likewise, just as armor can be swapped, moods can change.

Each character has a temperament of two or three common moods which they default to and which can be swapped between upon resting, and characters can also change each others or their own moods with active abilities, both supportively and to create useful vulnerabilities.

Some example moods are:

Brash: Fear +5, Desire -10.
Proud: Fear +5, Shame -10.
Shy: Desire +5, Fear -10.
Serious: Desire +5, Shame -10.
Greedy: Shame +5, Desire -10.
Cowardly: Shame +5, Fear -10.
Overbearing: Fear +10, Desire -5, Shame -10.
Peaceful: Desire +10, Shame -5, Fear -10.
Voracious: Shame +10, Fear -5, Desire -10.

Just as one might find magical or cursed armor, it is possible to enter special moods that skew toward overall positive, such as Heroic, or deeply negative, such as Humiliated, but these moods are to be applied at the discretion of the GM.

Some more notes:

* Although it requires some suspension of disbelief, I've designed it so that wearing armor doesn't affect overall defense and wielding a weapon doesn't necessarily make you do more damage than if you were fighting bare-handed. There are so many different ways to "damage" people that general bonuses don't fit as well. Moreover, as a fantasy peril scenario, it's ideal that it's equally feasible to fight naked or fully armored, and that the middle ground is a chainmail bikini.
* Rather than subdivide Striking into Slashing, Piercing, and Crushing, as other games do, some weapon types sacrifice accuracy for damage and others the reverse, and you can pick passive abilities that further specialize.
* Each armor category and mood sums up to -5, not 0, both to help distinguish them and to ensure that everyone always has a weakness even in the most balanced situation.
* The psychological resistances can be interpreted liberally. Someone weak to Fear may not be a coward but may simply enjoy submitting to ferocity; someone weak to Shame may be shy or they may be very vain.

 

[LucioCurious]

SPECIAL RULES AND STATUS EFFECTS

To liven up confrontations, there are a few special mechanics. Together these allow for the possibility of interesting abilities and tactics without being overly complicated or risking imbalance.

Touch and Ranged Attacks: If a character tries to make physical contact without physically attacking, as when groping or pinching, use Agility to determine the actor's accuracy and Wits to determine the actor's damage, rather than Strength. While ranged weapons that rely on physical power to fire, like bows and slings, use Strength, technical implements like crossbows and whips or magical artifacts with offensive power rely on Aptitude instead. Most technical weapons target Agility and Fortitude, but there are exceptions that target Wits and Will, in keeping with the inherent versatility of Aptitude.

Multi Attack: A character who wants to attack multiple times, whether because they are wielding multiple weapons or wants to assault in a flurry, suffers a cumulative penalty to their accuracy depending on how many attacks they attempt up to a maximum of -15. If attacking normally has a +0 adjustment, attacking multiple times applies -5 to the first attack, -10 to the second attack, and -15 to the third attack. Passive abilities can reduce this penalty somewhat and thus eventually allow for more attacks in a single round.

Counter Attack: A counter attack attempts to negate an enemy attack and inflict damage to the enemy instead, and may be used as long as a character hasn't yet acted that round. Most importantly, a counter attack effectively treats the enemy attack's accuracy as the enemy's evasion. For example, if an enemy has Strength 10 and Agility 20 and physically attacks you, attempting to physically counter them tests your Strength against their Strength, not their Agility, thus having a better chance of hitting them. Whether or not it succeeds, countering uses up your turn for that round. You may decide in advance to counter and bide your time, or opt to counter instead of doing whatever you were planning when an enemy attacks.

Critical Rolls: Every time you roll 1d10, whether to determine accuracy, evasion, damage, or effect resistance, if you roll a 10, you get to roll again and stack the next roll on top. In addition, an attack has a chance of inflicting a status effect associated with its type if it did not already.

Status Effects: It is possible to temporarily raise or reduce attributes, typically in increments of 5 and for 3 turns, using active abilities. But there are also a few special effects that are loosely associated with different attack types and which can be inflicted by active abilities.

Stun: Reduce all Accuracy and Evasion by -10 for one turn. Typically inflicted by Striking and Fear-based attacks.
Pin: An pinned character cannot evade, even psychologically, and suffers a -5 Accuracy penalty. Each turn roll either Agility or Wits to escape or hit the one pinning you to break out. Typically inflicted by Grappling or Desire.
Wound: A wounded character suffers 1d10 damage every time they take their turn. Recover by rolling Fortitude or Will, whichever was targeted. Typically inflicted by Elements or Shame.

When resisting a status effect or an attribute debuff, the defender rolls Fortitude or Will + 1d10 against a difficulty rating determined by the attack's damage roll. For example, if Lucio is hit with a stunning blow that would have done 22 damage but is reduced by his Fortitude and armor to inflicting 11 damage, he must roll higher than 22 (not 11) to resist the stun.

Strip: An attacker targeting Agility/Fortitude may accept a -10 Accuracy penalty in exchange for the chance to disarm or disrobe a target of their weapon or a category of armor when attacking. The attacker may do this at any time during their turn. If this attempt succeeds, the target suffers 1d10 additional damage in shock. Characters who cannot evade cannot prevent this.

Mood Change: An attacker targeting Wits/Will may accept a -10 Accuracy penalty in exchange for the chance to forcibly change the mood of a target. If successful, the attacker gets to pick one vulnerability that the defender must end up with, but the defender gets to pick the mood. Only an active ability can have the power to specifically determine a target's resulting mood. Also, like Strip, this inflicts 1d10 additional damage in shock.

ACTIVE AND PASSIVE ABILITIES

Each character starts with from five to seven abilities. Active abilities are those which a character chooses to use and which deplete Reserves. Passive abilities are always in effect and usually enhance a character in specific ways.

Passive abilities can be bonuses to the damage, accuracy, evasion, or defense of Striking, Grappling, Elements, Fear, Shame, or Desire type attacks; reducing Multi Attack accuracy penalty with particular weapons or attack types; increasing Counter accuracy or damage; or increasing touch attack accuracy or damage. The more specific the ability, the more bonuses it can give: for example, a passive ability can increase the accuracy of all Striking attacks, or it can increase the accuracy and damage of all Striking attacks with axes. If two passive abilities intersect, apply the strongest applicable one, not both.

Active abilities have increased accuracy and damage and have a chance of applying an effect, but because they deplete your Reserves they can only be used a limited amount before resting. If your ability doesn't have accuracy (e.g., a healing spell), it can apply two effects; if it has neither accuracy nor damage (e.g., a blessing), it can apply three effects.

The effectiveness of passive abilities and long-term buffs apply in increments of +3. The effectiveness of active abilities and short-term buffs/debuffs apply in increments of +5. Leveling up your abilities allows you to raise one of those effects by that increment again. For example, Axe Combat Level 1 might raise accuracy +3 and damage +3, and Level 2 might raise accuracy +6 and damage +3; Stunning Blow Level 1 might have Accuracy +5 and Damage +5, and Level 2 might have Accuracy +5 and Damage +10.

Some sample abilities are:

Crippling Strike: Active ability, physical Striking type. +5 Accuracy, +5 Damage, chance of reducing Agility by 5 for three turns.
Buoy Spirits: Active ability, magical support type. Restore Vitality by Aptitude, raise Will by 5 for 3 turns, and shift mood to Proud.
Flame Mastery: Passive ability. Increase accuracy and damage by 3 when attacking with the fire element.
Aura Spark: Active ability, magical Elements type (targets Fortitude). +5 accuracy, +5 damage, chance of reducing target's Elements resistance by 5 for three turns.
Fascination Hex: Active ability, magical Desire type (targets Will). +5 accuracy, +5 damage, chance of Pinning target in place.
Condemn: Active ability, psychological Shame type. +5 accuracy, +5 damage, chance of Wounding.
Intimidating Tackle: Active ability, physical Grappling type. +5 Accuracy, +5 Damage, targets either enemy's Grappling or Fear resistance, whichever is lower.
Commanding Touch: Passive ability. Increases molestation touch attack accuracy and damage by +3 against Nude or Barely Garbed opponents.

These are only a small array of what could be many possibilities, but hopefully they demonstrate how the ability system is designed for balance and creativity.

ADVANCEMENT

Every time a character completes a quest or scenario, they raise a level, gaining five attribute points and an ability point. Ability points may be used to acquire new abilities or enhance the benefits of current abilities. Also, GMs are encouraged to award up to two ability points, one active and one passive, per adventure as credit for special achievements or as consolation for harsh lessons learned.

Some notes:

* If it isn't obvious, Multi Attack and Counter Attack are designed to oppose each other. If you Multi Attack recklessly and throw out inaccurate attacks, you will set yourself up to be punished by a counter. If you try to counter at a risky time, you will end up eating an attack and losing your turn too!
* Countering with psychological and magical attacks is also possible, but typically, you must counter with the same kind of attack you're being targeted with. As with all magical attacks, counter spells must be active abilities.
* An attacker who rolls a critical on their physical accuracy may opt to Strip their opponent even if it wasn't their character's original intention. This can be explained any number of humorous ways.
* To escape a Pin, you don't have to hit the one pinning you with a physical attack. Shaking them up psychologically works as well. But keep in mind your general Accuracy penalty from the stress of being pinned. It is viable to Pin someone and then Counter their attempts to hurt you.
* I wouldn't say the synergy between Pinning and Stripping is the entire purpose of this combat system. Maybe like 80 percent of the purpose.

 

[LucioCurious]

SAMPLE CHARACTER

Lucio, Prince of the Ensorcelled Glen
Level 1

A lithe young man spiritually bound to a mysterious crystal formation by a limpid pool, he is meek and agreeable by nature, well-liked by the sentient denizens of the forest. But when he dons the mask that marks the ruler of the glen, he is endowed with the swaggering confidence of a conqueror, a sensation which he finds at once troubling and addictive.

Vitality 75
Reserves 2
Strength 10
Charisma 15
Aptitude 12
Agility 15
Wits 9
Fortitude 8
Will 6

Main Weapon Base Accuracy: 16
Main Weapon Base Damage: 11
Armor: Barely Garbed (Grappling +5, Striking -5, Elements -5)
Temperament/Common Moods: Shy (Desire +5, Fear -10), Gentle (Shame +5, Fear -10), Tensed (Fear +5, Desire -5, Shame -5), Princely (Fear +10, Shame -5, Desire -10, only when wearing Mask)

EQUIPMENT
* Rude Spear: Weapon, Striking type, +3 accuracy, -2 damage.
* Bare Garb (loincloth, sandles)
* Glenwood Mask: When worn, locks the wearer into the Princely mood and renders them immune to mood change until the mask is removed.

ABILITIES

* Beseech: Active ability, psychological neutral type, Level 1. Persuade the adversary to abandon resistance with a rush of eloquence. Damage +5, accuracy +10 against targets capable of language and -5 against those not.
* Grovel: Active ability, psychological Desire type, Level 1. Abases himself to flatter more dominant types in order to calm their fury. Accuracy +5, Damage +5, chance to reduce Wits by 5 for three turns.
* Condemn: Active ability, psychological Shame type, Level 1. Insult and lambast those who fight for injustice. Accuracy +5, damage +5, chance of Wounding.
* Soothing Massage: Active ability, touch support type, Level 1. Used at the end of a rest. Increase an ally's Desire, Fear, and Elements resistance by 3 until the next rest.
* Spear Combat: Passive ability, Level 1. Increases accuracy and damage by 3 when wielding spears.
* Aura of Courage: Active ability, magical support type, Level 1. Shift your own mood to Brave (Fear +10, Shame -5, physical accuracy +5) and immediately act again. Mood also lasts for three turns, becoming Tensed when it expires, or until forced to change.
* Crystal Channeling: Active ability, magical support type, Level 1. Restores Aptitude in Vitality to an ally and restores one unit of Reserves.

* * *

This is all that I've written so far, but if there is interest, I have much more in mind. I have more details of the setting hashed out, such as the pantheon and the non-human races, and I have ideas for sample unorthodox "character classes" that are possible within the system, like nude grapplers that specialize in pinning opponents to make them vulnerable to ally attack, or summoners that use silken whips to control the wills of others and use their Reserves to call up allies, or camp followers that work like batteries by focusing on defensive attributes and abilities that recover their allies' Vitality and Reserves.

If anyone has comments, questions, or ideas for characters, please feel free to post in this thread!

 

[KattDclaw]

Showing some interest in the idea. Has a lot of promise, I think.

 

[asetikish]

needs a bit more clearing up, I think...or maybe I just have to play to understand everything, but very interesting.

How do you allocate points for attributes? And what are the max number of points you can attribute? or is this where you have to roll for each attribute?

 

[Armphid]

I find the concept intriguing. There's a lot of potential, though I admit I don't quite understand how it all quite comes together. But consider me interested in play testing.

 

[LucioCurious]

Thank you for your interest, everyone. I know I just posted a lot of technical information all at once, so I wasn't sure if anyone would bite, but I'm glad that some people are finding it engaging.

I note under the attributes section that an average person has 70 attribute points, which is 10 for each of the seven, so depending on how experienced or powerful you want your character to be, you can increase that number to your satisfaction. I do recommend that no one starts with more than 100.

I've played through a few adventures using systems like this and it actually ends up being pretty straightforward. The biggest adjustment is the players understanding how flexible the system is -- like that they can "beat" their opponents by doing "damage" through conversation or seduction -- and as soon as they understand that, everything becomes very fun and improvisational. It's only so detailed because I wanted to make it robust enough to support the requests of my players (like dual-wielding). But I do think it's fundamentally simple once you get used to what it's trying to do, which is integrate a real fantasy adventure with playful kinkiness.

My next post will offer more details on the setting as I've envisioned it, including information on the pantheon and the races, since that was requested via PM. I'm open to adjustments on that front to accommodate for people's character ideas. The guiding idea is that the mechanics and narrative reinforce each other: it's a world where people's wills can be "tamed" by force, where the effects of persuasion are quantified in terms of "damage" dealt, only to eventually recover and allow for a new adventure to begin.

I'm hoping for an initial party of three for short adventures, just to make sure that it works and that people enjoy it.

 

[Guillotine]

Thank you for your interest, everyone. I know I just posted a lot of technical information all at once, so I wasn't sure if anyone would bite, but I'm glad that some people are finding it engaging.

I note under the attributes section that an average person has 70 attribute points, which is 10 for each of the seven, so depending on how experienced or powerful you want your character to be, you can increase that number to your satisfaction. I do recommend that no one starts with more than 100.

I've played through a few adventures using systems like this and it actually ends up being pretty straightforward. The biggest adjustment is the players understanding how flexible the system is -- like that they can "beat" their opponents by doing "damage" through conversation or seduction -- and as soon as they understand that, everything becomes very fun and improvisational. It's only so detailed because I wanted to make it robust enough to support the requests of my players (like dual-wielding). But I do think it's fundamentally simple once you get used to what it's trying to do, which is integrate a real fantasy adventure with playful kinkiness.

My next post will offer more details on the setting as I've envisioned it, including information on the pantheon and the races, since that was requested via PM. I'm open to adjustments on that front to accommodate for people's character ideas. The guiding idea is that the mechanics and narrative reinforce each other: it's a world where people's wills can be "tamed" by force, where the effects of persuasion are quantified in terms of "damage" dealt, only to eventually recover and allow for a new adventure to begin.

I'm hoping for an initial party of three for short adventures, just to make sure that it works and that people enjoy it.

What sort of characters are you looking to recruit for these adventures?

 

[LucioCurious]

Hello again, all, and sorry for the delay. In this post I'll write out some further details on the setting, starting with the pantheon and the associated demihuman races, and then continuing on with some possible starting scenarios and examples of what sort of characters could be played. Out of necessity, I'll be brief, but if anyone wants more details on a specific aspect (or has suggestions!), please post and let me know.

The Origin Story

The theme of this world is that of a post-apocalyptic fantasy: the civilizations of humanity, once the chosen people of the gods, have crumbled in the last hundred years, and the secrets of magic and alchemy have been lost. The upheaval on earth is the consequence of chaos in the heavens. An alien deity has conquered the realm of the gods, revoking humanity's divine protection and causing monstrous races to flourish.

Legends say that this world was born when a singular principle divided into two. These two ur-deities are colloquially known as the Mother and the Father, though gendering them may be misleading, as no earthly beings have ever had contact with them. But soon springing from these powers were their six children, three gods and goddess who emerged contemporaneous with the formation of the planet. Each of these six deities crafted their own race of servants to represent their domain in the world. Then, obeying the will of the two principles, the six combined their wills and powers to produce their final creation: humanity. Humanity flourished and expanded with the guidance of the six servant peoples.

No one knows for certain what changed. But the story goes that some terrible marauding force, perhaps the wandering creator of another world long since lost, burst upon this idyllic plane. Cruelly it obliterated one of the two ur-deities and took its place, dominating the other and so seizing control of the very fabric of this world's reality. The three gods and three goddesses were enslaved, and monstrous beings rose up in all corners of the world. The children of the gods, for the first time unable to hear the wills of their creators, fell into disarray and were unable to guide humanity, which turned against itself rather than rally against the oncoming threats until it was too late.

Today, those human civilizations that have not already submitted to the monstrous hordes eke out a precarious existence, whether in secret tribes or in a few remaining great cities. The demihumans are scarce and scattered, retaining their gods-given talents and qualities but lacking purpose. Growing more common are the beastkin, hybrids of human or demihuman and the monstrous humanoids who now seem destined to conquer this world.

The Six Deities and the Demihumans

The Goddess of Battle: A proud and mighty woman who values honor and cunning alike, called upon for strength of arms and tactical insight. Many popular myths center on her rivalry with the Trickster God, who lacks her fortitude but sometimes surpasses her in long-term strategy.

The servants of the Goddess of Battle are the Valkyries, the demihumans who most resemble humanity, a tall and regal people who are mostly but not exclusively female. Traditionally, the Valkyries would live secluded lives high in the mountains and follow a strict regimen of training and rituals to produce close bonds with each other and with their chosen mounts, the Pegasi. Valkyrie warriors riding pegasi would watch over conflicts between humans to ensure that the rules of war would be followed honorably. Now the Valkyries are scattered and their traditions may be lost, but stubbornly, these noble warriors still sometimes emerge to fight for the values of a now-silent goddess. It is said, however, that though their wills are nigh unbreakable, if a Valkyrie can be tamed, they will be tamed for life.

The Trickster God: The god of travelers, diplomats, merchants, and thieves. A many-faced hero of many well-loved stories who is known for being able to turn the worst situation to his own advantage. Even so, since the rise of the monsters, he too has been silent.

The servants of the Trickster God are the Oni, a physically-capable people notable for possessing diverse animal traits, like horns or tails. Some are agile and lithe, some are massive and strong, but all are talented fighters and have the reputation of being selfish, capricious, or indifferent to the problems of others. This tendency has been exacerbated with the fall of humanity. Many Oni have joined with the monsters or profit from enslaving the humans they once tolerated. This means also that those Oni who do not mean harm are often treated with fear and suspicion by others.

The Harvest Goddess: Sweet and kind, the patron of medicine and crafts, she loves nature in both its domesticated and wild forms. Farmers seek her blessing and hunters seek her permission to tread in her forests, and she gives it requiring only that the balance not be disturbed.

The servants of the Harvest Goddess are the Fae, most prominently the Elves of the forest, who have historically had the closest (if not always harmonious) relationship with humanity, but also various faeries, dryads and nymphs united in their predilection for designating a sanctuary and rarely straying far from it, resisting any incursions. After their goddess went silent, the Elves mostly intermingled with the remnants of humanity, while many of the other Fae struggled and failed to defend their territory alone against the monstrous hordes. Now many toil in servitude so that nature may yield sustenance for growing armies.

The Goddess of Time: A cool beauty with snow-white hair who rarely interferes with the doings of her siblings, who all generally treat her with respect bordering on fear. She does not often appear in myths, but when she does, she never loses.

The servants of the Goddess of Time are the Undead, or more properly the Undying, a broad term for those who do not live but who still crave the flesh or life-energy of the living. The Undead are quite diverse in appearance and ability, encompassing skeletons and ghouls as well as the mighty vampires. Unlike the other demihumans, the Undead do not reproduce by normal means but either use ritual magic to produce more of themselves or prey upon humans or other demihumans to render them Undead. One would think that their needs would put them in a fundamentally antagonistic relationship to humanity, but the Undead are very patient. Few have joined with the monsters of their own volition, and the most powerful have retreated to hidden abodes, willing to wait as long as it takes until they hear from their goddess again. It is possible, however, for those who are not themselves Undead to become necromancers, learning the rituals to produce Undead themselves.

The God of Order: A stern and wise figure, patron of judges and sovereigns, who in myths is the de facto leader of the six siblings. He is also called on by those seeking to master any methodologically orderly discipline, like alchemy or academic wizardry.

The servants of the God of Order are the Dwarves, small of stature and who prefer to live in caves underground. Masters of technological innovation and the indirect harnessing of magical energy through alchemy and the crafting of artifacts, it is said that in their wisdom they predicted the fall of the gods and retreated beneath the surface. Dwarves are a rare sight these days, but it is thought that of all those who have suffered from the rise of the monsters, their civilization remains the most intact. Little is known of where they now dwell, and those who walk the surface aren't telling.

The God of Love: Lovely and androgynous, at once passionate and refined, the God of Love is the patron of arts and music. It is said that the God of Love can take the form of whoever one desires, and much mischief has been thus wrought, but whenever these wiles fail to get him his way, he casts away his dignity and throws a tempestuous fit.

The servants of the God of Love are the Djinn, magically-gifted entities with striking skin tones (most often blue, red, or green) with a penchant for fulfilling the desires of others in a way that ensures ironic consequences. Although powerful Djinn will have the power to bind themselves to artifacts in the way that Fae bind themselves to natural locations, young Djinn wander as any human would in the hopes of seeking novelty and gaining in magical power. Unlike the other demihumans, the Djinn, who were already rare to begin with, have little fear of being captured and enslaved, as whenever they are, they typically take pleasure both in fulfilling the wishes of their captors and in eventually bringing about their downfall. That being said, there are some Djinn who mean well and strive to bring inspiration to the honest-hearted; these come to be known as Muses.

 

[LucioCurious]

I prefer to build the environment around the characters that my players want to play, so I'll refrain from inventing named locations in advance. But to give a sense of where an adventure might begin and what it is to inhabit this world, I'll describe three possible scenario settings: a city, a town, and the wilderness.

Scenario Settings

City: Any city in this world lives on borrowed time. Some cities endure as fortresses, valiantly waging war against the monstrous hordes, but these places tend to be inaccessible to adventurers and suspicious of strangers in general. Most cities that remain have struck some sort of temporary accord with the monsters, typically through a combination of paying tribute in the form of valuables and slaves and by remaining powerful enough to be too much trouble to attack. Such cities retain a semblance of the everyday life that was common a century ago, where artisans still labor and academics struggle to recover fragments of the knowledge that has been lost. But this seeming tranquility is shot through with breathless danger. The city's elite withdraw into internal politics, ignoring the hopelessness of their broader circumstances, and the poor are at the mercy of the thugs and slavers that stalk the streets. The level of complicity between the aristocracy and the criminal underground depends upon the city, but typically their relationship is symbiotic: the latter produces wealth by any means necessary, and the former pays off the monsters with it, maintaining the precarious order. Humanity thus adapts to its circumstances. Given that there is some awareness that the effects of "taming" someone tends only to last a week unless reinforced, there are even official markets of "indentured servants" or brothels where those who have been temporarily dominated by slavers are sold off with the guarantee that when their will recovers, they will be able to go free. Hapless adventurers occasionally find themselves in this situation, sometimes more than once.

The most common work for adventurers based in a city and who intend to venture outside its walls is the defense of caravans, as trade has become a perilous business, and with that peril all the more profitable. Taking a job as a caravan guard is a good way to see what remains of known civilization, though the secrets of this world lie off the beaten path.

Town: There are two kinds of village or town: those that are known of and those that are hidden. At this point, any town that a human knows of is known of by monsters as well, and lacking the defenses of a city, most towns that are visited by caravans have already submitted to some monstrous overlord and have arranged a method of paying tribute. In such towns, it is not uncommon to see monsters walking among humans, lording it over them, and it is dangerous for adventurers to defy the monsters under these circumstances, as it is unlikely the townsfolk want any trouble themselves. But any uneasy peace that exists typically depends on the fact that monsters rarely stay in one place for long, typically traveling in roving bands of raiders, still working to crush the remnants of human civilization. When a town is only being watched by a token force of monsters, tough-looking adventurers will typically be left alone. There nevertheless remain villages secreted away in the wilderness, and most remaining communities of demihumans fall under this description. It is in such places that information about the lost secrets of this world can be uncovered.

But some secrets are open knowledge. Stories of the ruins of fallen cities, legends of toppled temples and hidden shrines, and rumors of caches of bandit treasure can be heard of anywhere. The question is who possesses the tenacity or foolhardiness to brave the treacherous roads and seek them out.

Wilderness: Although monsters are decisively winning the war, the war is not yet over, and this means that many riches remain forgotten by the rampaging hordes. The lost knowledge of great cities, the treasure of lords and pirates, the artifacts of fallen gods and demihuman settlements, and communities of peoples cut off from the rest of the world can all be found by adventurers who march off in search of them. One can safely assume, however, that hostility is likely to be found in any corner, and an adventurer must keep their wits about them and remain strong-willed if they are not to fall to roaming monsters, covetous bandits, or even treacherous villagers eager to sell off the unwary or force them into servitude. Opportunities for such encounters are plentiful in this world.

Example Characters

At first I intended to present some example Abilities to go with these example character concepts, but I'm running out of steam, so I'll stick with the descriptions, and if anyone decides to riff off of them and wants some suggestions for Abilities, I'll be happy to help.

Unarmed combatants: The Monks of the Still Fist are an order that defies the times. Cultivating intense self-discipline and inner peace in the face of outward chaos, the Still Fist aspire to attain pure bodies and pure hearts. Garbing themselves in full robes, their training not only endows them with powerful martial arts techniques that stun and debilitate their foes, but enhances their psychological resistances when they are clad in the garments of their order. However, should they be forcibly stripped of their clothes, their minds fall into disarray and their training fails them.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Oni Grapplers maintain the tradition of wrestling that, as the name suggests, is said to have been passed down from the servants of the Trickster God. These grapples fight completely nude, the better to avoid the grip of their foes, and are experts in pinning opponents and resisting attempts to counter their holds. When a grappler teams up with a warrior trained to attack in rapid flurries, they make a fearful combination capable of isolating, immobilizing, and decimating opponents one at a time.

Armed combatants: Though rare now, there remains a tradition of Knights Errant, founded by a group of warriors inspired by the rituals of the Valkyries. Though this society long since lost any direct connection to that aloof people, the virtues of honor, loyalty, and the defense of the innocent remain the guiding principles of those who take on this mantle. It is a quixotic role, as there no longer exists an official network of paladins, but those who aspire to it train their Strength and Charisma in equal measure, learning techniques to compel adversaries to attack them instead of others and to support their allies with encouragement.

More common are mercenaries and bounty hunters who specialize in inflicting debilitating effects upon their foes both close-up and at range, temporarily depleting the Strength and Agility of their targets before unleashing flurries of rapid attacks that can no longer be properly defended against.

Magic users: Specialists in Aptitude tend to be either seekers of lore or sorcerers and hedge witches who have come by their magic intuitively. Loreseekers train their Aptitude not to unleash magic but to gain the capacity to use powerful tools and artifacts with a variety of effects, and learn abilities that focus on their survival, training Agility to avoid danger and Wits to detect ambushes. Sorcerers use a mix of elemental magic that targets Fortitude and hexes or hypnotism that targets Will. But there still exist true wizards and enchantresses, trained at academies with the fundamentals of arcane knowledge, combining what the loreseekers know and what a magic-user can do. These days, though, it is rare that such a promising person is allowed to wander the dangerous wilds unattended.

Social specialists: Among those who win confrontations with Charisma alone, it is not uncommon for cities and towns to train diplomats to represent them, masters and mistresses of persuasion and seduction who can talk their way out of violence and even recruit their would-be adversaries. The power that comes from controlling the wills of others means that charismatic person can be as dangerous as a warrior. Diplomats in particular specialize in abilities that cause Mood Changes, manipulating opponents to expose different psychological vulnerabilities. Wandering storytellers or performers often cultivate the same skills and abilities, but it is most prudent for even the most silver-tongued savant to surround themselves with some physically or magically competent friends, as a single stunning blow may render one quite tongue-tied.

There are, however, those who elect instead to use their Charisma to become monster trainers, often with the aid of light-weight whips that rely on Aptitude to target Will rather than Fortitude. Trainers can rely on the strength of their monstrous allies to protect them, but must constantly renew their domination, or risk having the tables turned upon them at a most inopportune moment. Perhaps due to the likelihood of this eventuality, successful monster trainers are rare.

Other: There are those who do not specialize in Strength, Aptitude, or Charisma, but instead focus on defensive attributes. The two most common types of these are camp followers or body slaves, and the slavers themselves. Camp followers specialize in Fortitude and Will, allowing themselves to take a lot of punishment and have a high Reserves capacity, and take abilities that heal their allies and transfer Reserves to those who have depleted them, such as through restorative massages. While camp followers are often useless in combat except as fodder, they can provide invaluable support to someone with powerful abilities but limited reserves.

Slavers specialize in touch attacks, having high Agility and Wits to avoid and resist attacks and then to molest and Strip others. An unfortunate adventurer can be undone without taking a single blow when faced with an agile opponent with nimble fingers who will not take "no" for an answer. Monsters commonly take this route in their abilities and attributes, but humans too can effectively triumph in confrontations this way.

I hope these example "character builds" serve as some inspiration. Once again, feel free to post in the thread with comments, questions, or character concepts!

 

[Armphid]

I've all manner of questions; I'm not sure where to start! But first, let me say that I find what you've outlined to be great. There's so much potential! I love the setup for a kinky adventure where sex and both temporary and possibly risk of permanent sexual slavery are around the corner! I switch but I have strong sub tendencies so a lot of this source material is very appealing.

As far as the three scenario settings, there's so much possibility in each. I think city and wilderness would be the two that most interested me. I like the idea of the the tension of being one of the last holdouts and the dramatic possibilities of action in and outside the walls are just terrific. Of course, it feels like it'd be easy to slide between all three, depending on how long things went.

I'm curious if there's an overall arc for your story. It seems like humans and the servant races of the the gods are pretty much done for, which has lots of good story seeds and potential, but how much room is there for the characters to make an impact on the outcome of history? Although, I also realize that isn't really the point.

I won't say I'm not kicking character ideas around. I'm intrigued by both the Order of the Still Fist and the Knight Errants that you talk about; I like to play characters who are virtuous but have hidden desires and end up either corrupted or transforming their virtues through the exploration (not always willing) of those desires. I would be interested in playing in this, though I don't want to stake a claim to anything before others have spoken up.

 

[LucioCurious]

Thank you, Armphid! I appreciate it. You're welcome to PM me as you work on a character, if you like, and that goes for everyone. I wouldn't worry about taking up a spot in the party; go for it! I was thinking we could run short scenarios at first to allow different people a chance to play and try out the system, and people who aren't on the "main quest" could RP with each other in the meantime. Of course, it depends on interest, but it's just a thought.

I confess that the setting is mostly window dressing for sexy and perilous fantasy scenarios, but as for how the world might be changed in a long-term adventure, I imagine that it would involve going up against the alien deity itself by trying to free the gods from their captivity. Perhaps individual gods might be empowered at their holy sites and have their capacity to communicate with their servants restored, thereby unifying the demihumans around a common purpose again. But then, after this taste of freedom, it might not be that simple ...

Ultimately, the tide can only fully turn if the alien deity is overthrown, but even just rediscovering the holy sites of the gods would involve earning the trust of the demihumans (no doubt multiple factions of them, even within a single race, at this point) and making one's way through what is now enemy territory. I suppose since one ur-deity has been slain, there's no going back to humanity's blessed past, but the situation could still dramatically improve. I doubt we would get to something like this, of course, but I know how it can be meaningful to have a long-term vision even when one is running a one-shot.

 

[Kenzie63]

Super excited for this thread. Love the idea and I hope it gets of to a great start. Already have a character in mind that I would like to use. I can post the basics if I get permission.

 

[Armphid]

I will PM then. A side question that occurred to me, it would make sense that most equipment would really just be "scenery," correct? Meaning a sword verses a whip or something doesn't take either weapon into account, it's the characters actions and stats that create the outcome. With the roll, of course.

 

[LucioCurious]

Kenzie, you and everyone are more than welcome to post to this thread. If you'd prefer to communicate your idea with me privately, you're welcome to PM me too. I'm just happy when people bump the thread.

Armphid, yes, that's basically true, but it doesn't have to be. Different weapons are supposed to have a balance of increasing damage versus accuracy (so quicker and weaker, or heavier and slower), just so people can fight with whatever they want and still be effective. Passive abilities are a good way to keep getting stronger with a chosen weapon type or set of equipment (like Lucio's "Spear Combat"). But it's entirely possible to create or find enhanced or magical equipment that has an overall positive benefit.

So the system doesn't preclude fussing over your equipment, but it allows you to not have to worry about it if you'd rather spend your time describing your outfit and not statting it.

 

[Armphid]

Great! I'm happy to have gear be more of an abstraction. It makes it easier to get into the RP and the actual game.

I'm a little curious about some of the monsters that are out there. Obviously you mention goblins above and I'm assuming they're small, green, big ears, sharp features goblins. What are other common monsters you think our characters might know about?

 

[Aussie_Wolf]

I am open to the idea of this thread but was wondering if all the adventurers had to be human? As you said in the beginning most humans had been almost wiped out and other creatures had risen to take their place. Now surely not all of these would be inherently evil. Some would be willing to Adventure alongside humans for profit and gain.

Also I am assuming you will be doing all the dice rolls and posting the results at the end of a combat turn. Is there any chance for advancement in the character or is what we pick at the start locked in and that is what we adventure with for the entirety of the thread?

 

[LucioCurious]

Hey there, I've been a little scarce over the holidays but I'll try to reply to the messages I've gotten soon.

Aussie, good question: I should have been clear that demihumans and "beastkin" (half-monsters) are certainly playable. Playable monsters would be a bit complicated, so I'd prefer to avoid that, but it wouldn't be impossible either (they can certainly be recruited, at least).

When I have some more time, I'll try to get into the kinds of monsters that are most common.

As for the other questions: Me doing the dice rolls would be the simplest way, but there are other methods too, so we can settle on that latter. And yes, advancement is essential to the adventure. Gaining new abilities and improving the ones you start with is a lot of the fun and helps players to adapt to the scenario as it evolves. As I write above, it typically happens at the end of every adventure.

 

[Kenzie63]

Kenzie Macleod

(WIP. Just don't want to loose what I have. Did that once already. If anyone has comments on what I have down just let me know. )

Vitality: 73
Reserves: 2
Strength: 15
Charisma: 17
Aptitude: 4
Agility: 19
Wits: 8
Fortitude: 5
Will: 5

Main Weapon Base Accuracy:
Main Weapon Base Damage:

Armor: Lightly armored. (Striking+3, Grappling-5, Elements-3)

Temperament/Common Moods:
Proud: Fear +5, Shame -10
Shy: Desire +5, Fear -10
Peaceful: Desire +10, Shame -5, Fear -10

EQUIPMENT:
Armor: Fur armor with a leather chest piece.
Weapons: Bow and a pair of knives.

ABILITIES

 

[Katamari Roller]

I am interested in this, but I find mood combat a fair bit too complicated for my tastes (my tastes generally go against using rules, so take my opinions with a pinch of salt).

Personally, I would use "fixed" mood parameters, where a character starts with a specific mood and the bonuses and penalties coming with it. Then, either they become stronger/weaker according to how situations fit their mood (a cowardly rogue may be vindicated in their behaviour by a trap being sprung, and receive small bonuses to resist mental attacks due to the confidence they gain from this), or their mood is changed by the situations (a heroic paladin may grow overconfident and be very strong against intimidation, but find him/herself weaker to sensuality and persuasion, or viceversa, grow more cowardly due to facing stronger, evil enemies and failing, but become more cunning because of this).