Atheria: The Barbarian Lands

   For today, it’s the next bit in the Introduction to Atheria series – a quick-start guide to the Barbarian Lands. .    The Barbarian Lands are infused with totemistic magic – a power which infuses those born there with animalistic abilities and instincts even as it twists their forms into those of anthropomorphic beasts. [...]

Federation-Apocalypse Session 24: The Evil Grand Vizier

   With the group still in Londinium, and with the Power Filtering Rooms (at least that was what the sign on the door said they were) throughly mined, Marty, Smoke, Arkus, Kevin, and Kevin’s Thralls, continued on through the tunnels under the Crystal Palace while Jarvian bombarded the city. They’d be deep inside the Ministry [...]

Realms of Atheria: Chelm

   Today it’s Chelm, one of the lands with a really poor reputation in the rest of the world – known for it’s treachery, poisons, creation of undead, enslavement of souls, and many other practices that no right-minded individual would put up with – unless, of course, they happened to be from Chelm.    Chelm (Blood [...]

Overview of Atheria

   Today, it’s an overview of the (known and nearby-unknown) World of Atheria.    Actually, this represents rather more information than will be available to any single character: the outer magical domains (shown in blue), quite a lot of the more distant political groupings (shown in red), and a many of the major geographical features [...]

Atherian Ritual Magic

   First up for today, it’s a brief discussion on the Ritual Magic of Atheria – where every knowledge skill carries with it a certain amount of magical lore. In a world founded on magic, it’s hard to avoid it. .    Knowledge is power.    This is more literally true in worlds of fantasy, [...]

The Alarian Imperium

   For today, it’s the start of a series of introductory articles on major countries and social groups of the Atheria campaign, since we may be rotating back to it relatively shortly.    The Alarian Imperium (Order Birthright) controls most of the fertile territories around the Sea of Jade and – currently – extends it’s outlying [...]

Link Updates

   First off for today, the index pages and index sub-pages have been updated again (and I’ve made sure that it went through properly this time). I’ve also put in a subpage navigation menu at the top of the general index page. With any luck that will help people find what they want.

Federation-Apocalypse NPC Update

   Today it’s an update on the various NPC’s of the Manifold. In this case, they’re arranged by their realms of origin where possible, since that’s the likeliest spot to find clues about them. . Singular NPC’s:    Singular was an almost purely-technological world, founded on 21′st century physics. While that led to great (and [...]

Glitch Located

   As a note, I found a glitch on a couple of the Scion Legend Cards: the last line got pushed off a couple of them somehow during the .PDF generation process. This has now been fixed and the corrected file uploaded, so anyone who downloaded the file with the glitch in it should redownload. [...]

Scion: Hero Legend Cards

   For today, I’ve completed the Scion Legend Cards for White Wolf’s Scion trilogy (Scion: Hero, Scion: Demigod, and Scion: God). They’re designed to let the players influence the plot, build up to single mighty attacks rather than slowly whittling away at epic menaces, and to make odd plot twists and cinematic effects a part of [...]

Projects Underway

   OK, there won’t be any real update for today: I’m working up a set of Drama-Whimsy cards for Scion, as well as a set of cardplay rules and combat cards for the game master. Overall, that should be about 25 pages: it will probably be ready tomorrow.

Current Strategic Positions

   First up for today, it’s a quick summary of the likely positions in the spring campaigns. Note that – as usual – these are subject to change if the player characters either pull off some really impressive stunt or (almost as likely) manage to grossly offend someone. . On the Imperial Side: The Dragon. [...]

Scion Disadvantages

   Per a special request, here’s a quick Disadvantage system for Scion. This is actually a slightly cut-down version of my old Amber disadvantage system:    Disadvantages can provide a Scion character with up to six additional Freebie points to spend – although they’re generally more trouble than they’re worth. Characters generally cannot “buy off” [...]

Keziah bat Samoel / Jael

   First up for today, it’s another Scion character. Why? Because the idea occured to me. Human beings aren’t stupid, and if there are people like this running about, groups and organizations will have seen them before and will be prepared to take advantage of them. . Keziah bat Samoel / Codename Jael    Scion [...]

Maur Wachiru, Scion Shaman

   For today, it’s the third member of our little Scion team – Maur Wachiru, their mystic and social engineer. Maur is – at least for Scion – an extraordinarly versatile, if relatively low-powered mystic and prefers to be a noncombatant. To make up for it, he has minions. In fact, he has lots of [...]

Arnor Vandurin / Hatchetman

   And here’s the second character of our little Scion team: the melee specialist. . Arnor Vandurin / Hatchetman    Scion of Huitzilopochtli    Arnor was a child of Brazilian wealth and privilege; his human “father” never knew that he’d been cuckolded by a god. Unfortunately, while the boy was talented in sports, quick-witted, and [...]

Dernulf Moringlem, Scion of Odin

   For today, and for no particular reason, it’s a character for Scion: Hero. A couple of his associates will be going up next. . Dernulf Moringlem, Scion of Odin    Dernulf never knew his father, and got an early education on the streets after his mother died, mostly at the hands of “The Marvelous [...]

Occultechnics

   For today, it’s another section of the Dragonlore for the Champions campaign – in this case, something that the kids often play with despite parental disapproval.    Technology is hardly a draconic “speciality”. On the other hand, most of them grow up among species that use it and have to deal with it every [...]

Federation-Apocalypse Session 23 Log: Under Londinium

   Back in the New Imperium, Jarvian, Jaiden, and the Mirage had completed the combat-program upgrade. Now the Mirage had some protocols for close-quarters combat, instead of assuming a minimum range of several miles – and the consequent freedom to use massive amounts of explosives. Getting back to Baelaria required booking passage on a seedy [...]

The Mandates of Heaven

   For today, it’s a selection from the Dragonlore Multipower – the slots which make up the Mandate of Heaven.    These are the some of the powers that get adult dragons worshiped as gods. The “mandates” are not necessarily dramatic. In fact, their manipulations are comparatively minor; it’s just that they cover a massive radius. [...]