I am currently running a Savage Rifts game for some very good friends that I have been gaming with for over a decade. We end up telling lots of good stories together. Last nights game was a reminder why I love this hobby.
The players started the session outside of a walled city on the shores of the Missouri river. The city is controlled by a self proclaimed Baroness of the Black Market cartel. She controls the only bridge within a couple days travel. She is keeping the gates to her city shut and forcing the refugees from Tolkeen to wait outside until she allows a few groups through at a time. She charges insanely high tolls to use her bridge, or she takes one member of the group into indentured servitude for a year as the price for the rest of the group. Then has her soldiers capture the rest of the groups on the other side of the river.
The party comes up to the city and the refugee tent city that has sprung up on the outside the gate. They use their Know a Guy edges to get access into the city. They put on a small performance of pre-Rifts Jazz music for the Baroness and reduce their toll with an a amazing performance. The Face character due to hindrances attempts to seduce the baroness and follows her around as she decides which refugees get to use her bridge.
This is where the fun starts. The players decide to stay the night in this mercenary Black Market town. I was not prepared for this. I let them take the lead and create elements of the story as they ask whats in the town. While the Face character is seduing the baroness, and trying to get her to change her evil ways admist the nights pillow talk, the other players are in a hotel bar trying not to kill all the mercanary slavers in the city. Of course as a good GM I throw a match into the powder keg.
One player is a Burster, a pyrokinetic psychic, is the most agitated. I have a couple thugs mistreat a servant girl. That was the breaking point. He ends up using his powers to ignite parts of the hotel on fire while threating the owner to get him to unlock the electric collar the servent girl is wearing. They find out the Baroness controls all the collars. All the while our driver/robot armor character starts taking out thugs with his Techo Wizard lighting machinegun. and the new member of the group, in his aweosme stolen glitter boy killer power armor, is rounding up a couple thugs that ran from the hotel trying to alert the Baroness.
While the three of them are planning how to bring this city down around them. The Baroness is alerted to the situation and sends her troops, pretty much the entire town, to take care of the situation. She, along with the pacifist Face character, approach the hotel. Out front of the hotel the Burster, robot armor and power armor pilots are prepared to fight the horde of mercenaries. Then the Face character goes first in the combat rounds, he gives a speach to warn the barnoness this whole town will be destroyed if she does not let him and his friends leave now. He then gets multiple raises on his presuasion roll. thoroughly convinced she tells them to get out of her sight and never come within miles of her city. Then the Face character uses a magic device of his and mind controls the Baroness to give him the handheld computer that releases the slaves collars. Her people are so terrified or trusting of her that they watch in shock as she hands it over.
The party drives out of town a massive combat avoided, a powerful enemy made, and over a hundred slaves are released to escape into the wilderness.
This town was simply supposed to a quick stopping point and a little flavor on their journey to their final destination. It turned out to be one of the most memorable game sessions I have ran. This is what happens when all the players are interested in creating a great story together. That desire to create stories together is why I love this game.
Sunday, June 3, 2018
Sunday, October 15, 2017
when changes lead to the better
I had recently made a One Sheet Setting for Savage Worlds called Age of the Imaginals. I am very excited to expand on this project and take it to the mini setting.
One of the first major changes I had to make was taking the super power companion elements out of the setting. Which in turn has made it much stronger.
I was making a premade character and used the Street Fighter power level. It was way stronger than what I wanted to the setting to be. I pictured how fights would go and it was a bit to much. I wanted powers and intense combat but not four attacks around dropping a bunch of damage.
I then brainstormed on how to just use the Deluxe rules.
I started by using the racial abilities to make the mutations for the Imago. This will keep the power down and allow for a whole host of innate powers and abilities. Each Imago has two default negative racial modifiers, racial enemy and cyber resistant. The player then has 4 positive racial modifiers to create their unique character.
This also allowed the vision I had of not all Imago having powers. The coolest part is i came up with a Arcane background that is Magic but trapped so Imago can consciously allow them to manipulate their Cellular structure to create super powers. These individuals have come known as Imaginals.
By definition of the word it means interference to the Imago. In the setting word it is based off of their ability to manipulated their Imaginal cells. Every Imago begins as a normal looking human child. As they mature they begin to have incredibly vivid dreams picturing them selves as their future Imago self. This is caused by the Imaginal cells laying dormant in their body. When they begin the chrysalis those cells begin to wake up and replace the previous human cell structure. Once they emerge they have become the being that they created in their childhood dreams.
I knew I wanted cybernetics and advanced technology to play a role in the setting. Mostly it was humanity's attempt to balance the field with the power of the Imagos. It ended up becoming an attempt for humanity to adapt to the new verdant world. The final product is a group of scientists and corporations formed a group called the Promethean Project. They advanced technology greatly and gifted all the technology to the world. This included robotics, nano-tech, cold fusion. When I dropped the power level I included the Arcane Background Weird Science as a way to represent the next stage in advanced technology.
Then I needed a Arcane background for humans to use as well. I absolutely love the idea of psionics. So I had to include them.
I came up with psionics have always existed but in a very limited capacity. With the millions of deaths caused by the plague it caused a massive accumulation of psychic energy in the world. This energy has become known as the Collective. Those with the psionic potential are able to draw energy from the Collective and manifest their will upon the world. There is always a danger that they will fail drawing energy and cause a powerful backlash, wink wink, in the Collective harming those around them. This has made them very untrusted and deemed as dangerous as the Imago by the human authorities.
Next I wanted a way to create full conversion cyborgs. Mostly because my son really wanted to play a robot, and it is a major part of cyberpunk, well in my opinion at least.
I ended up making a Mechanoid race. This sets them apart as more than a basic cyborg and different than a robot. Mechanoids are people that have uploaded their consciousness/soul into a robotic frame. Unlike a standard robot they use cyberware to modify themselves instead of the modification point system.
I ended up making a Mechanoid race. This sets them apart as more than a basic cyborg and different than a robot. Mechanoids are people that have uploaded their consciousness/soul into a robotic frame. Unlike a standard robot they use cyberware to modify themselves instead of the modification point system.
This has left the surviving members of the Human race in a tricky situation. Millions of their species are dead. The world has quickly become overgrown in plant life. Weird mutated animals roam the forests. Mutant humans are now a reality and almost as great as numbers as themselves. Powerful dangerous psions are among them. Then there are traitors to humanity that would rather become a glorified machine instead of staying a human and help the species survive.
The surviving governments and the newly formed city states rule viciously in an attempt to keep the humans safe. This safety has stolen away the rights and freedoms of many, but they are distracted with all the shiny baubles of fancy technology in their attempt to cope with the changes to their world.
I am finally satisfied with the base structure of this setting. I know this because my creative mind wanders are no longer focused on the races and history. They have now wandered into developing city states, adventures, and how these people interact with their world in this new Age.
Below is a link to the current document
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Creating a Homebrew Supers Setting
One of my favorite parts of creating a story is the creation of the world. What you come up with is a mash up of ideas that end up being a type of Frankenstein's monster. Bits and pieces here and there brought to a cohesive whole.
I am working on a setting to run for my kids. My imagination has been in overdrive fleshing out a world. I know I wanted to use the Savage Worlds Supers Companion for a game. I didn't want superheroes just empowered beings. I really like Rifts and post apocalypse settings in general. I wanted less desert atomic wasteland and more of a there just aren't a lot of people around any more. Ruins of cities with verdant forests surrounding them. City states and kingdoms as the main civilization centers.
The players play mutant heroes while the bulk of humanity fills the adversary, stole that from X-Men. I love the idea of getting your powers by going through an actual chrysalis stage. When the character emerges from the cocoon they are transformed and now their true self, knicked that from the Inhumans and Agents of SHEILD.
Now how to destroy the world so I can rebuild it. I am reading the 5th wave with my daughter. I love the idea of a massive plague taking down the bulk of humanity. The catalyst for the change is caused by an Eco-terrorist group that creates a super bacteria that wipes out humanity, stole that from 12 Monkeys. Then I have to figure out a way to dispose of the bodies and create a planet over run by forests and wild life, watching the History channel show The Days after Humans helped fuel this.
Then Wikipedia and Google searches to learn more and research all the various ideas I have come up. The best part is the stumbled across information that fills the gaps of ideas I was having hard time tying together.
Now I have the basic ideas for my desired setting. Now I insert them all into the creative centers of my brain stir it, seal the lid and let the fermenting process begin. This is what I got after letting the process sit for a bit.
I think I'll call the setting Imaginals, or the Chrysalis Event. I don't know still hashing that one out
In the year 2018 Earth took a dramatic change. A mysterious terrorist organization called the Green Corp created and released a super bacteria upon the world. They believed that humanity had ruled for too long and abused Earth in their tyrannical reign. The called the bacteria Gaia's Vengeance. It caused the infected human's body to break down at a rapid rate. With in weeks of infection the victims body would begin a rapid process of decay. Ultimately the entire body would end up as nothing more than a mass of nutrient rich matter. The remains became an excellent fertilizer. Plant life would be able to grow in a more stable environment, allowing and ensuring, the plants to retake the planet.
Two unforeseen situations came from the spread of Gaia's Vengeance. There were actually humans that were resistant to the bacteria. They watched as millions of their fellow humans dissolved. With in a decade millions upon millions of humans perished. A year after the last reported death the Chrysalis Event happened. Thousands of humans began to fall into coma like states. Their bodies exuded a thick liquid that hardened into a cocoon. After roughly a month of being in the cocoon they emerged. They were no longer human. They emerged as a form of mutated human. Some how the bacteria had interacted with the DNA of these humans and mutated and changed their entire genetic code.
All were drastically physically transformed: Some looked like animals or insects; others had multiple or less limbs; other simply had different colored skin and maybe a horn or two. All of the mutants had developed some sort of super human ability. The ability to change shape, psychic powers, create blasts of energy or matter, the list goes on and on.
It has been one hundred years since the release of Gaia's Vengeance. Those that have changed have called themselves the Imago, or the Imaginals as many of the younger generation call themselves. The Imago race is a viable species. When an Imago child is born they appear as a perfectly normal human child. At a point in their pubescent period they create their chrysalis and emerge a fully formed Imago. It is possible, yet difficult, to determine if a child is human or an imago. An Imago child has various Imaginal Cells throughout their bodies. A blood and tissue screening can possibly determine the presence of Imaginal cells. Many of the screenings provide a false negative in determining the presence of the Imaginal Cells leading parents and doctors to believe the child is a human. It is guaranteed that two Imago parents will created an Imago child. A human and Imago coupling still has a good chance. There is still even a chance that two humans can create an Imago child. Some human societies have made the mutant screening test mandatory for all newborns. Some of them will give the child to Imago parents to raise. While others will exterminate the child.
The majority of Humans and Imagos live in agrarian or nomadic societies. Those that do not flock to the larger cities. Humans have made their cities centers of technology and advancement. The larger cities have advanced technology. Even going as far as creating robotics and cybernetics as a way to level the playing field with the inherent abilities of the Imagos. There are many Imago established cities. While some enjoy the fruits of technological advancement they do not have the same level of robotics and cybernetics. The humans have made a point to keep those advancements to themselves.. Also Imagos are unable to sustain cybernetics. Something about the physiology will always reject the implant.
Some cities have been established that are quite tolerant of both species. While some completely forbid the rival species from existing in their space. As of yet there has never been a full scale aggression between Humans and Imagos. There have been many heated skirmishes and attacks, but never a war. The majority of the Earths population simply wants to just exist, rebuild and survive in the wilds and ruins of Earth.
Now for the Setting Rules.
All the Setting Rules in the Supers Companion except for Death and Defeat and Finishing Moves.
Blood and Guts
Jokers Wild
Critical Failures
Character creation use Rising Stars rule. they start with 10 power points
The Power limit is set at 15 points per power.
I am working on a setting to run for my kids. My imagination has been in overdrive fleshing out a world. I know I wanted to use the Savage Worlds Supers Companion for a game. I didn't want superheroes just empowered beings. I really like Rifts and post apocalypse settings in general. I wanted less desert atomic wasteland and more of a there just aren't a lot of people around any more. Ruins of cities with verdant forests surrounding them. City states and kingdoms as the main civilization centers.
The players play mutant heroes while the bulk of humanity fills the adversary, stole that from X-Men. I love the idea of getting your powers by going through an actual chrysalis stage. When the character emerges from the cocoon they are transformed and now their true self, knicked that from the Inhumans and Agents of SHEILD.
Now how to destroy the world so I can rebuild it. I am reading the 5th wave with my daughter. I love the idea of a massive plague taking down the bulk of humanity. The catalyst for the change is caused by an Eco-terrorist group that creates a super bacteria that wipes out humanity, stole that from 12 Monkeys. Then I have to figure out a way to dispose of the bodies and create a planet over run by forests and wild life, watching the History channel show The Days after Humans helped fuel this.
Then Wikipedia and Google searches to learn more and research all the various ideas I have come up. The best part is the stumbled across information that fills the gaps of ideas I was having hard time tying together.
Now I have the basic ideas for my desired setting. Now I insert them all into the creative centers of my brain stir it, seal the lid and let the fermenting process begin. This is what I got after letting the process sit for a bit.
I think I'll call the setting Imaginals, or the Chrysalis Event. I don't know still hashing that one out
In the year 2018 Earth took a dramatic change. A mysterious terrorist organization called the Green Corp created and released a super bacteria upon the world. They believed that humanity had ruled for too long and abused Earth in their tyrannical reign. The called the bacteria Gaia's Vengeance. It caused the infected human's body to break down at a rapid rate. With in weeks of infection the victims body would begin a rapid process of decay. Ultimately the entire body would end up as nothing more than a mass of nutrient rich matter. The remains became an excellent fertilizer. Plant life would be able to grow in a more stable environment, allowing and ensuring, the plants to retake the planet.
Two unforeseen situations came from the spread of Gaia's Vengeance. There were actually humans that were resistant to the bacteria. They watched as millions of their fellow humans dissolved. With in a decade millions upon millions of humans perished. A year after the last reported death the Chrysalis Event happened. Thousands of humans began to fall into coma like states. Their bodies exuded a thick liquid that hardened into a cocoon. After roughly a month of being in the cocoon they emerged. They were no longer human. They emerged as a form of mutated human. Some how the bacteria had interacted with the DNA of these humans and mutated and changed their entire genetic code.
All were drastically physically transformed: Some looked like animals or insects; others had multiple or less limbs; other simply had different colored skin and maybe a horn or two. All of the mutants had developed some sort of super human ability. The ability to change shape, psychic powers, create blasts of energy or matter, the list goes on and on.
It has been one hundred years since the release of Gaia's Vengeance. Those that have changed have called themselves the Imago, or the Imaginals as many of the younger generation call themselves. The Imago race is a viable species. When an Imago child is born they appear as a perfectly normal human child. At a point in their pubescent period they create their chrysalis and emerge a fully formed Imago. It is possible, yet difficult, to determine if a child is human or an imago. An Imago child has various Imaginal Cells throughout their bodies. A blood and tissue screening can possibly determine the presence of Imaginal cells. Many of the screenings provide a false negative in determining the presence of the Imaginal Cells leading parents and doctors to believe the child is a human. It is guaranteed that two Imago parents will created an Imago child. A human and Imago coupling still has a good chance. There is still even a chance that two humans can create an Imago child. Some human societies have made the mutant screening test mandatory for all newborns. Some of them will give the child to Imago parents to raise. While others will exterminate the child.
The majority of Humans and Imagos live in agrarian or nomadic societies. Those that do not flock to the larger cities. Humans have made their cities centers of technology and advancement. The larger cities have advanced technology. Even going as far as creating robotics and cybernetics as a way to level the playing field with the inherent abilities of the Imagos. There are many Imago established cities. While some enjoy the fruits of technological advancement they do not have the same level of robotics and cybernetics. The humans have made a point to keep those advancements to themselves.. Also Imagos are unable to sustain cybernetics. Something about the physiology will always reject the implant.
Some cities have been established that are quite tolerant of both species. While some completely forbid the rival species from existing in their space. As of yet there has never been a full scale aggression between Humans and Imagos. There have been many heated skirmishes and attacks, but never a war. The majority of the Earths population simply wants to just exist, rebuild and survive in the wilds and ruins of Earth.
Now for the Setting Rules.
All the Setting Rules in the Supers Companion except for Death and Defeat and Finishing Moves.
Blood and Guts
Jokers Wild
Critical Failures
Character creation use Rising Stars rule. they start with 10 power points
The Power limit is set at 15 points per power.
Other than that characters start as a normal human.
Super Karma has been modified
Each Imago has some sort of physical sign that they are an Imago.
Each Imago begins a modified version of the Distinctive Appearance Hindrance at either the minor or major level. This hindrance is taken in addition to standard hindrances.
Both levels give the Imago a -4 charisma when interacting with humans. At the minor level the Imago is able to conceal their appearance in some fashion. At the major level the Imago is not able to conceal their appearance at all.
If a character takes the minor version they gain an additional 5 power points at character creation. If the hindrance is taken at the major level they begin with 10 additional power points. As per the Super Karma rule this does not increase the power limit for a power.
Super Karma has been modified
Each Imago has some sort of physical sign that they are an Imago.
Each Imago begins a modified version of the Distinctive Appearance Hindrance at either the minor or major level. This hindrance is taken in addition to standard hindrances.
Both levels give the Imago a -4 charisma when interacting with humans. At the minor level the Imago is able to conceal their appearance in some fashion. At the major level the Imago is not able to conceal their appearance at all.
If a character takes the minor version they gain an additional 5 power points at character creation. If the hindrance is taken at the major level they begin with 10 additional power points. As per the Super Karma rule this does not increase the power limit for a power.
Disallowed powers
Copycat
Invent
Super sorcery
Construct
Undead
Well that is all i really have to share about this setting for today. I hope you enjoy and if you have any questions or comments feel free to let me know.
“This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group at www.peginc.com. Savage Worlds and all associated logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle Entertainment Group. Used with permission. Pinnacle makes no representation or warranty as to the quality, viability, or suitability for purpose of this product.”
Well that is all i really have to share about this setting for today. I hope you enjoy and if you have any questions or comments feel free to let me know.
“This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group at www.peginc.com. Savage Worlds and all associated logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle Entertainment Group. Used with permission. Pinnacle makes no representation or warranty as to the quality, viability, or suitability for purpose of this product.”
Friday, August 25, 2017
Saga of the Zombie Horde.
I am a big fan of Richard Woolcocks Saga of the Goblin Horde. Seriously if you haven't checked it out yet you need to.
I was thinking about the Meat Sheild setting rule he has in the setting. It allows you to use one of your adjacent goblin henchmen to take a wound for you by spending a bennie. It got me thinking what other settings it could be used for.
I ended up thinking how fun it would be to play a zombie Lord with your pack of zombies and terrorize a town of humans.
Here is what I came up with, after a day of musing and pondering.
Hella the Queen of the Underworld has decided it is time to conquer the world of the living. She has unleashed her army of ghosts and undead upon the living. She has given life to certain corpses to be the leaders of her army. The players are these leaders.
Each player has a small squad of zombies to lead and destroy humanity.
Create characters following standard human character creation. Then give them the Harrowed edge (from the stone and a hard place players guide), ignoring the grit rating, and advance them to seasoned. Instead of fighting an evil spirit for dominion over your character you are fighting the soul of your previous life. The players will struggle with being loyal to Hella or slowly becoming a good person wanting to save humanity.
Each player starts with 5 stock zombies, from the horror companion.
Setting rules are.
Blood and guts
Meat sheild (from saga of the goblin horde)
Raise the Dead.
- a player can spend a bennie to raise a corpse as a zombie minion, to a maximum of five. The game begins with each player having five zombies. The GM can also determine at the end of a story arc, or a logical time that the number of minions can be refreshed.
Well that's all for now. Thanks for reading my thoughts on a mini setting. I would love to hear any ideas or thoughts you have about this.
Stone and a Hard place players guide
https://www.peginc.com/store/stone-and-a-hard-place-players-guide/
Saga of the Goblin Horde players guide
http://savage-stuff.blogspot.com/2017/02/saga-of-goblin-horde-players-guide.html?m=1
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Saga of the Rift Goblins
I am currently obsessed with Pinnacle Entertainments Rifts for Savage Worlds. I never played the original Palladium Rifts, in fact I made a point of avoiding because of all the stories I heard about the gross imbalances in the game. Thankfully i put those biases aside and looked into Savage Rifts and it has quickly became on of my favorite setting. I love the fact that i can put anything into Rifts Earth and it adds to the gonzo nature of the setting.
This adding anything gave me the idea of adding elements of one of other favorite settings for Savage Worlds, Richard Woolcock's Saga of the Goblin Hordes, to Rifts. It is a hilariously twisted game where you play vicious goblin gang bosses that are fighting off human adventurers. Its a great setting if you haven't check it out i highly recommend it. Plus, you will need it to make sense of the rest of this post.
https://savagepedia.wikispaces.com/Saga+of+the+Goblin+Horde
I used five of my favorite goblin archetypes from Saga of the Goblin Horde and applied Rifts Iconic Frameworks. Here is the link to the filled out character sheets of those goblins.
Here is a song by talented Harrison Hunt, of Tabletop Twats fame, to get you in the mood.
https://youtu.be/96FwqGgjV4E
****update*****
After I shared this blog post a fellow Rifts and Saga of the Goblin Horde acquaintance of mine, Patrick Greenlaw, wanted to join the fun. He created the Goblin Mystic, Mindmelter, and Wilderness Scout archetypes. Now there are eight nasty little goblin bosses to cause mayhem and mischief on Rifts Earth. Thanks again Patrick.
Plus I updated the Goblin Crazy. Chainswords are my favorite Rifts melee weapons, but it bothered me that I had two characters wielding the Great chainsword. I recently discovered the Juicer chainsaw in the Palladium Juicer Uprising book. It was so cool I had to update it to Savage Rifts. I gave the Goblin Crazy the WI-C8 multipurpose. Because a goblin with a chainsaw with a freaking laser on it is just five levels of Awesome!
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8KlotSf6Qj5eE5GV3RmOC1rNjg
These Goblins are intended to either be used as characters for a player to use in a Rifts game, or as a GM to use in their game as NPCs.
For anyone that would like to use this gaggle of goblins here is some backstory for you to use and manipulate as you deem.
Our goblins are not originally from Rifts Earth. They came from a planet where the various goblin clans have carved a niche for themselves on the edges of civilized lands. They and their gangs of flunkies were playing one of their favorite games, Pigstickers. This game consisted of them running through a human town and stabbing a long sharpened pole in the town's inhabitants and seeing how many they can fit on one pole. The game was going quite well, lots of poking and screaming. This all changed when a large glowing portal opened up in the middle of the town. The humans ran into the portal in an attempt to make the game more exciting. (That was quite nice of them). Our goblins of course followed not wanting the game to end.
Sadly the fun came to a quick end, on the other side of the glowing portal was a group of humans wearing black metallic skeleton armor and large weapons that shot bolts of burning light. These armored humans decided to protect the towns people and opened fire on the goblins. The goblins barely survived. They had to sacrifice their flunkies to the burning light blasts in order to escape. After a time the skeleton armored humans left in their large horseless wagons, taking the townspeople with them. By this time the portal had vanished trapping our goblins in this new world.
Thankfully goblins are excel at three things killing humans, eating humans, and surviving so they can do more killing and eating of humans. Surviving is just what our goblins did. It took a while but their fortunes turned. It began when Reggie Furtongue was able to steal a suit of NG-V61 Gunwolf armor. Once he figured out how to control this giant metal beast he was able to lead his fellow goblins on a mission vengeance against the Coalition for ruining their game.
Big Chief Furtongue, as Reggie is now called, led his goblins into a the mercenary lifestyle calling themselves the Redfang Mercenary Company, in honor of their old clan. They made frequent attacks against Coalition patrols and accepting jobs from various D-Bees willing and able to pay for their services.
The Redfangs established a fortress in the north eastern Ozarks called Gob-Town. Their fortress resides on the top of a forested hill. The walls of their fortress are composed of reinforced salvaged metal sheets. The walls are decorated with trophies of their revenge against the Coalition. Impaled coalition soldiers line the ground leading up to the fortress. Suits of Dead Boy armor hang from the walls. When the wind blows they create an eerie clanking sound. On the front two corners of the fortress repurposed Coalition Spider walkers serve as weapon turrets.
Now that the Redfangs have a permanent base Big Chief Furtongue has wanted to recreate the glory of Clan Redfang. Unfortunately the lack of goblins on Rifts Earth that are willing to be the subjugated flunkies has forced Big Chief Furtongue to seek alternative methods. Big Chief Furtongue as enlisted his Techno-Wizard Krusty Snaggletooth to create goblins for him.
After a series of experiments Krusty has perfected magically enhanced nano bots, powered by energy siphoned from the nearby ley line, that can reform human DNA to a more pure goblin DNA. The procedure has been endearingly called, "Putting some goblin in ya." The procedure has varied levels of sucess. One out of three times the procedure works and the human becomes a perfect hybrid of goblin and human. The new creation is a proper Flunky and has been had their brains reformed to ensure they are completely loyal to the Redfang bosses. Flunkies will give their life to protect their bosses with no question. Use the Soldier from the Foes of North America adding darkvision and the Major version of the Vow hindrance.
The other two times the procedure does not work as well. The result is a Feral hybrid. With animal intelligence and horribly deformed and twisted bodies the Feral are the prefect cannon fodder. They are completely loyal, perfectly subservient, and almost seem to enjoy being slaughteres. Use the Mindless Minion from the Foes of North America adding darkvision and the Major version of the Vow Hindrance.
Big Chief Furtongue has been satisfied with his new minions. Sure they have the taint of human to them, but some times sacrifices must be made. Big Chief Furtongue finds great satisfaction on mainly using captured coalition soldiers to create his minions. That will teach them to ruin his fun.
Each of the goblin bosses are able to throw their minions in harms way. Once per turn when a goblin boss receives a wound they can spend benny and transfer the damage to an adjacent minion. when encountered out side of Gob-Town a goblin boss is usually accompanied by 1-2 flunkies and 3-4 Ferals.
The Tomorrow Legion has heard of the Redfangs and is still assessing their threat level. Yes they are twisted and malevolent little creatures, but their focus on attacking coalition troops has been their saving grace. They are not aware of the "Putting some goblin in ya" procedure. If they were to ever find out it may change their opinion.
The Redfangs can be encountered in a few ways. The players could come across the Redfangs as their are traveling off to their next job. They are not known for traveling discretely. Their resident Crazy, Squiggle Mushroomhead, loves riding on top of the lead truck playing heavy metal riffs on his guitar piping the music through loud speakers.
If the players are confronting Coalition Forces the Redfangs could show up and help with the destruction and capturing of the surviving troops to take back to Gob-Town.
Well thanks for reading over this idea of mine. I hope you enjoyed, and if you end up using any of this i would love to hear how it went.
Friday, April 21, 2017
A bit of fiction i am writing
“I hate it when i’m too late.”
Drake chided himself as he released his concentration on the glowing shaft of psychic energy emanating from his hand, causing it to fade away..
The flickering fluorescent lights in the dilapidated apartment entryway intensified the gore and carnage that lay at his feet. The rent and bloody corpses of a young man and woman decorated the walls and floor in crimson.
Drake kicked the artist of the couple demise. The massive waxy skinned monstrosity shuddered. Drake reflexively crouched and blue fire like energy flared from his eyes as he prepared for the corpse to rise up. The corpse returned to lying still. Drake,now content the emanation was properly defeated, waited for it to dissolve back to the energy and emotion that it had composed itself of. Drake watched as the thing dissipated, studying his foe. Its naked warped body a despicable mockery of hatred and fear. This being like all emanations that were born in the realm of Earth’s collected consciousness grew outside of physical reality, collectively known as the Anibus. From Anibus, these entities born of thought watched the physical world and fed off of humanities emotions, until they grew strong enough to manifest a corporeal form. Then wreaked havoc on Earth treating humans as a never ending food source. Reveling in the high of unfiltered direct sustenance from the source of all emotion.
“Hurry up you bastard. I really don't need to be caught in the middle of your mess. I wish i hadn't been so distracted. I would have felt you much sooner and may have been able to save at least one of these poor souls.”
Within moments the emanation finally dissolved back to its state of pure mental energy, leaving no trace of its physical existence. Except for the remains of its meal.
Drake leaned over the couple's remains and solemnly whispered, “may your energy quickly travel to its place of rest. I am truly sorry could not have done more for you.”
Drake turned towards the entrance of the gore splattered entryway. He pulled the hood of his jacket over his head and walked into the night filled streets. He walked into the alley that ran along the building. He stopped halfway and closed his eyes. He focused his consciousness on the center of his thoughts, until he reached a point of heightened clarity. He then sent his soul out of his body and into the all enveloping realm of Anibus. Existing in both worlds at once he raised both sets of his hands, the astral and the material, in front of his selves. IN mirror like unison extended his arms outward. In the wake of his hands a tear in the fabric of reality spread. He stared at himself and welcomed his soul home. Once again his full self he stepped through the rift and entered the Anibus. The glowing rift sealed itself shut behind Drake revealing no sign of his passage from Earth.
From a rooftop a cross the street Agent Moore put down his camera.
“Damn it not another Traveller. This will make my life so much more difficult.” He sat down on the rooftop and reached into his backpack, and pulled out his laptop. He connected his camera and began uploading his documentation of Drake’s fight with the emanation and his opening of the rift. He clicked on an icon and opened a video feed. The logo of the Office of Psionic Affairs filled the screen. It was replaced with the tired face of an older gentleman in a tidy black suit and tie.
“Agent Moore what can I do for you. You are aware of the time, aren't you.”
“Thank you for answering Director Stoke, I know it's late. I just uploaded photos of another Psion illegally using his abilities to the database. I would not have normal called you, but this one is a Traveller.”
The look of frustration and fatigue faded from the Director’s face, replaced with intrigue and excitement.
“Were you able to get a picture of him traveling?”
Unable to hide the pride from his voice, “Yes Director I was.”
“Fantastic son. You have done the O.P.A. proud. Now go home and rest. I will contact you when we have finished going through the photos and running this Psion through the system.”
“Thank you Director.”
The window closed on the laptop and Agent Moore packed up his belongings. He stood on the roof top staring at the spot where he watched the rift appear. He lit a cigarette and let his mind wander. Agent Moore smirked to himself as he fantasised about he could make this aberration of humanity pay for his crimes.
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Time for a rework and a new take on bennies
I have been giving Anibus a major rework. The setting as I was approaching it was feeling very redundant and a bit boring to me. It was lacking quite a bit of soul.
I have decided to strip it down to core ideas and redress it.
Animus is now, for a lack of better words a PsiPunk setting. It is set on a modern Earth after a massive psychic awakening. Humans began awakening to their psychic potential in mass. Which quite reasonably freaked out the masses quite a bit. The use of psionics has become illegal. All psions must register with the O.P.A., the Office of Psionic Affairs, well in the USA at least. After this all psions are monitored and must report their travels.
A side affect of the awakening of humanity, is the creation of a realm of collective thought and energy that encompasses earth. Think of it as Earth' s aura. This realm has become known as the Anibus. Closest to earth it is a mirror image. Buildings can be seen and so can blurred shadows of earth denizens. In Anibus strong emotional energy created by humans spawns spirit like creatures called Emanations. Relations sit In Anibus and are drawn to the energy that created them. Then the feed on that energy growing in size and power. Eventually emanations grow strong enough they can materlize on Earth and depending on there energetic makeup cause havoc.
Further from away from earth there are realms of collected dreams and stories. This is where reality travelling ended up.
Mechanically I wanted to shake up how bennies are portrayed in the game.
Still working on a name but I want the usage of bennies to manifest in game. They represent a psions exerting their will on reality and rewriting it to their favor. When a Benny is used it's effects manifest in the world. If used to reroll there could be a glitch in the matrix if you will. Reality seems to correct itself. A bullet that missed suddenly changes direction and hits it's target. For a basic example. Soaking a wound either the wound is dealt and instantly heals, or the psions hardens their skin and the attack simply bounces off. It is up to the player to describe how their bennie usage is reflected.
I also wanted to add a temptation Bennie. I was inspired by Sean Patrick fannon's dark side bennie in his Star Wars setting. Every player starts with an extra bennie called a madness bennie. This bennie represent a a psion being able to dip into the dark chaotic places of their mind. This madness bennie works like a normal bennie but provides a +2 to the roll it is used on.
When a madness bennie is used the player makes a spirit roll. The roll has a -1 for each madness bennie they possess. If the roll is failed one of their three starting bennies is replaced by a madness bennie. Plus the player rolls on the psychosis table in the horror companion. As long as they possess that new madness bennie they have the new psychosis.
When the players have four madness bennies they have one more chance. If they would ever end up with a fifth psychosis and madness bennie they have become a Gnawed one and are irredeemable insane and become a NPC for the GM.
Well that is where I am at for now. Ill post more as I think of anything .
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