New Wicked Age

[BlueSlime]

In a Wicked Age...

...A ghoulish eater of dead flesh, driven by unusual lusts.
...A vicious gang of cutthroats and alley-thieves.
...The celebration of a day sacred to the city's chief cult.
...The daughter of an emperor, denied nothing, prey to fleeting whims, craving discipline.


The Nest of Vipers Oracle has spoken.

Players for this new redux of Wicked Age are:

Farren
Aztlan
GargantuaBlarg

The first thing is to determine from the four plot hooks above what our cast of dramatis personae will be. I'll start by putting out the obvious, but players should feel free to suggest more for the list if they want. It's from this list that you will choose your character for the first chapter.

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

-The lustful ghoul who eats the dead.
-The hunter of this ghoul.
-Someone wronged by the ghoul.
-Leader of the Gang of Cutthroats and Alley-thieves
-Any member of the gang
-Officers of the city guard
-Member of a rival gang
-Chief Priest/priestess/prophet of the city cult
-Cultists of any level in the cult
-A sacrifice for the cult??
-The imperial princess
-Member of the princess' entourage
-Imperial guards
-Sibling of the princess.
-Governor of the city
-Other members of the local aristocracy

Feel free to add anything to this list that makes sense or comes to you. And welcome to the game!

 

[Aztlan]

Re: New Wicked Age

I guess I'll go with "the daughter of an emperor, denied nothing, prey to fleeting whims, craving discipline."

I will pick the princesses name to be, Lilian.

I also have an idea. There could be a smaller rival gang, so gang wars would be over the city.

 

[Farren]

Re: New Wicked Age

Few more ideas kicking around.

I'm pretty interested in the role of the potential cult sacrifice, seems like it'd be a rather fun role. I guess it'd also be possible that some people are not so keen to see the sacrifice followed through, either family or perhaps those that follow other beliefs, potentially the city guard as well so I'll leave any additions up to you.

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: New Wicked Age

You can combine rolls... maybe the sacrifice to the cult is also a member of the gang? Maybe the cult sacrifices to the ghoul?

Aztlan, feel free to name the princess.

 

[Farren]

Re: New Wicked Age

Hmm, in which case I think I'd shoot for the sacrifice being the Princess's sibling or a member of the aristocracy then.

I quite like the idea of the cult sacrificing to the ghoul, might be interesting. Do we ideally need to tie all these threads together? I'd be happy to have the sacrifice being tied up to another group like one of the gangs or some such instead to spread the attention some.

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: New Wicked Age

Yes, we should seek to tie them together. But we'll do so mostly during play and during the goal setting round. First, choose and name your character. Then you must assign six die types to the six different attributes.


Example:
(Farren's PC Name), the sacrifice to the cult.

Directly: d12
Covertly: d10
With Violence: d4
With Love: d8
For Myself: d6
For Others: d6

You get a d12, d10, d8, d4, and two d6s to assign however you like. Whenever you do a contested action in the game, you'll choose two of those attributes that apply and roll those dice, trying to get higher values than your opponents.

You'll also get a particular strength. Each PC and some NPCs get one. It will give you an extra die to roll when using it and helps define your character a bit more. Particular Strengths can be anything, you name it, define it, and assign it a quality. We'll get to particular strengths after all three have chosen, name, and assigned dice to attributes.

 

[Farren]

Re: New Wicked Age

Dalian, the sacrifice to the cult.

Directly: d6
Covertly: d8
With Violence: d4
With Love: d12
For Myself: d10
For Others: d6

 

[Aztlan]

Re: New Wicked Age

Lilian, daughter of the emperor.

Directly: d8
Covertly: d6
With Violence: d4
With Love: d10
For Myself: d6
For Others: d12

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: New Wicked Age

>d4 violence

Lenka Ramal, a member of The Gang
(An Unquiet Past)
Directly: d10
Covertly: d8
With Violence: d12
With Love: d4
For Myself: d6
For Others: d6

Strength: Bloody Mess
When Lenka fights, carnage stalks her as though it were a living thing. Wounds cut deeper, and are far more lethal when Lenka is around - not just for herself but for others with her or even those fighting against her.
Significance: 1
- Potent - d8 > d10
Form: With Violence//Action

It's in Lenka's best interests:
to make her gang top dog in the city. More booze, more gold, more jewels! Beating up the guards is just a happy coincidence.

to overturn the monarchy and this weird cult that throws people into a hole fulla zombies. Power to the people!

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: New Wicked Age

Excellent. Now each of you can make a particular strength for your character.

So what you'll need to do in any order is:

Give the strength a name.

Describe the strength.

Describe its special effects, what it requires, and how it appears in action.

Choose a form (directly, covertly, with love, with violence, for myself, or for others). To use the strength, your character must be acting accordingly. Choose an NPC form as well (action, maneuvering or self-protection) as those will be what an NPC will use if they gain that strength.

For now your strength will have a Signficance value of 1. That means you get to pick one option from this list:

-It's Broad. Choose a second form. The strength can be used when acting with either of the two selected forms.

-It's Potent. The strength's die is upgraded to a d10, rather than being a d8.

-It's Unique. While your PC has this strength, no other person in the world may have it.

-It's Far-Reaching. The strength is capable of being used beyond your character's normal human reach. (This is a useful one to have if you want magic or powers that can affect things that normally one wouldn't be able to affect.)

-It's Consequential. List a form of your choice, as well as an NPC form. When you use this strength, you're threatening others in that form above and beyond. (Which means you can damage other PCs stats, or NPCs stats.)

****************

After you've chosen your particular strengths and listed them with your character sheet, we'll move on to best interests. And I'll be defining the important NPCs.

 

[Aztlan]

Re: New Wicked Age

strength: Warrior possession
When in a pinch the spirits of her ancestor rise, this gives Lillian extra power when she fights, bringing her weak violence up to something good.
Form: Violence (action)
Significance: 1
Strength: Potent d10

 

[Farren]

Re: New Wicked Age

Dalian Estelle, the sacrifice to the cult.
-----
Directly: d6
Covertly: d8
With Violence: d4
With Love: d12
For Myself: d10
For Others: d6
------
Particular Strength: Self Preservation
When feeling threatened with violence, the user's survival instincts kick in, giving them a burst of energy that might help hem escape the situation.
Form: For Myself (or Self Protection)
Significance: 1
Consequential: Targets With Violence (or action)
Die Type: d8

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: New Wicked Age

Strength: Bloody Mess
The gang knows it can count on her to carve her way past as many adversaries as need be. As the numbers against her rise, so does the amount of blood painting the walls in her wake.
(whenever used, deaths get way messier than they need to or should be)
Significance: 1
- Potent - d8 > d10
Form: With Violence//Action

How's that?

I wish to be the little

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.

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: New Wicked Age

I'd like to rewrite your strength as the following, if you're not opposed to it, Blarg:

Bloody Mess - When Lenka fights, carnage stalks her as though it were a living thing. Wounds cut deeper, and are far more lethal when Lenka is around - not just for herself but for others with her or even those fighting against her.

Signficance 1 - It's Potent. It's die is a d10. It must be used With Violence. For NPCs it's good for action.

--------------------------

Okay I'll start working on the NPC list now. It's not an exhaustive list, it's just going to be the major NPCs that stick out at me right now.

By the way, you shouldn't be thinking of each other as party members. You might end up on the same team, or you might be working against one another. Your goals are encouraged to be incompatible, so as to make for a more interesting story. NPCs are there to guarantee impasses.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: New Wicked Age

Sounds good.

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: New Wicked Age

NPC List

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

- Nirar - Ghoul, eater of the dead.
Action: d10, d6
Maneuvering: d6, d4
Self Protection: d12, d8
Particular Strength: Strength of Flesh - When having feasted from the dead within the past day, Nirar gains knowledge and strength. It requires that he eat until full from a fresh corpse. It is Potent, it's die is a d10. It must be used For Myself, for NPCs it's good for Action.
It is in his best interest to consume Daliane.
It's also in his best interest to protect Daliane from the cult.


- Hadir Eil - Leader of the Gang of Cutthroats and Alley-thieves
Action: d12, d8
Maneuvering: d10, d6
Self Protection: d6, d4
It's in his best interests to sow discord and anarchy throughout the city.

It's in his best interest to steal the ring which is proof of Lillian's authority.

- Zain, member of the gang, murderer by trade
Action: d12, d8,
Maneuvering: d6, d4
Self Protection: d10, d6
Particular Strength: Assassin's Contract - It requires that Zain accept a contract on the life of a victim. When pursuing a victim under contract, Zain makes no sound, and blends into shadows. Trailing them until they are most vulnerable. It is Consequential. It threatens For Myself (Self Protection). It requires that you use it Covertly (for NPCs it's good for Maneuvering). Its die is a d8.
It is in his best interests to assassinate the Emperor's daughter, Lillian.

- Dem Ashur, Captain of the Guard
Action: d12, d8
Maneuvering: d10, d6
Self Protection d6, d4
Particular Strength: Dem Ashur's Sword - It requires that Dem Ashur be fighting with a sword. He is an expert swordsman. It is Potent. Its die is a d10. It must be used With Violence, for NPCs it's good for Self Protection.
It's in his best interest to imprison Lenka.
It is also in his best interest to bring Dalian to the governor.

- Nidintu-Bel, High Priest of the Cult
Action: d12, d8
Maneuvering: d10, d6
Self Protection d6, d4
Particular Strength: Hypnotic Voice - It requires that the target be able to hear the speaker. It may implant desires and suggestions into a person. With enough repetition, it may recondition a person's mind. It is Consequential, it threatens For Myself (for NPCs it threatens Self-Protection). It's die is d8. It must be used Directly. For NPCs, its good for Action.

It's in his best interest to feed Dalian to the ghouls in the Pit, to appease the god of the dead.

It is also in his best interests to brainwash Lillian into becoming a member of his cult.

- Simta, imperial valkyrie, guardian of the princess
Action: d12, d8
Maneuvering: d6, d4
Self Protection: d10, d6
It's in her best interests to convert Lenka to the side of law and justice.


- Ipqu-Annun, Governor of the city
Action: d6, d4
Maneuvering: d12, d8
Self Protection: d10, d6

It's in his best interest to take Dalian's virginity.

It's also in his best interest to marry his son Kurigalzu to Lillian, as both he and the Emperor desire.

- Beletsunu, the governor's daughter.
Action: d10, d6
Maneuvering: d12, d8
Self Protection: d6, d4
Particular Strength: Seductive Beauty - It requires that she maintain eye contact with the target. Her beauty is unrivalled, and she is able to gain her way through the promise of her physical favour. It's Broad. It must be used With Love, or For Myself. For NPCs it's good for Action. Its die is a d8.

It's in her best interest to involve the princess Lillian in scandal.

It's in her best interest to overthrow her father and rule with Lenka as her consort.

- Kurigalzu, the governor's son
Action: d6, d4
Maneuvering: d10, d6
Self Protection: d12, d8

It's in his best interest to marry Lenka.
It's in his best interests to prevent Lillian from deposing his family.


*****************

Edit: D'oh, and I forgot to explain this part. Right, since we've named our characters, assigned values to their six forms, and named a particular strength, what remains is for us to define their Best Interests. These are the goals that will propel them forward. You don't need to know why something's in your character's best interest at the beginning. What you SHOULD want to do is name a best interest that will make your character go up against people who have stronger stats than you in an area that you think they'll contend with you in. This can and maybe even should mean that you should seek conflict (not necessarily lethal conflict) with other PCs, who on the whole are generally more powerful than NPCs.

We'll do this in an around the table order. I've given 4 NPCs a best interest each, now each of you should name one best interest for your character. When someone else's best interest names your character, you should feel free to REACT to it. I certainly will be reacting to what you give me.

To help you out, I've assigned stat values to the NPCs. The have Action, Maneuvering, or Self-Protection. These terms are deliberately catch-all and vague, but a rule of thumb is Action is overt and proactive, Maneuvering is covert, or round-about, or simply pertaining to literal movement, and self-protection is for anything that has to do when the motive is self-preservation. This is often a fight value, though sometimes the other categories can be used for fighting as well, given the right situation.

I've also begun to give out particular strengths to some of the NPCs. I will edit more in as I think of them.

 

[Aztlan]

Re: New Wicked Age

Lillian's best interest will be, bringing order into the city. Through getting rid of cults, gangs, and any corruption in the nobility. This will be done through operations conducted by the princess, and her royal guards.

 

[BlueSlime]

Re: New Wicked Age

Your GM demands (gently) that you be more specific.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: New Wicked Age

It's in Lenka's best interests to make her gang top dog in the city. More booze, more gold, more jewels! Beating up the guards is just a happy coincidence. I am BAD at aggressive characters why am I doing this

[nope]It's in the player's best interests to instill a fucking massive city-wide riot. He loves those![/nope]
[nuhuh]It's in Lenka's best interests to find skilled opponents and beat them. To be the best you gotta stab the rest![/nuhuh]
[ellissweetie]It's in Lenka's best interests to kill all sons of bitches.[/canthiswait]

 

[Farren]

Re: New Wicked Age

It's in Dalian's best interest to stay out of the cult's hands as to avoid being fed to the ghouls.