Ponies have continued to be a fairly popular topic – so here’s an updated subindex for pony-related material. There’s a fair amount of background and three major categories of ponies in the herd though – d20 ponies built using the Supheroic World Template (everyone gets free Mana equal to their Con Mod each round), Ponies built to Alzrius’s standards (compatible with 3.5, Pathfinder, and Ponyfinder), and Hero System Ponies (we use 4’th edition, but it’s not like NPC’s need a lot of updating).
Eclipse d20 Ponies (My Versions):
Background Material:
- Basic Pony Capabilities – and the awkwardness of a d20 conversion when you’re dealing with characters who are basically minor superheroes. Commentary: Notes on Magic Items in Equestria and experience / level gains through the series.
- Aging Patterns, Education, Gender Ratios, and Families. How does the pony lifecycle go? And how does it affect their society?
- Magic Items in Equestria, Cutie Marks and Names, Pony Alignments. Why Equestria is a world of Charms, Talismans, and Relics – a standard Literary Magic Item world. Commentary: Building the Tree of Harmony, the Fires of Friendship, and the Cutie Map.
- Government, Law Enforcement, and the Legal System of Equestria: How Equestria’s “legal system” (or general lack thereof) works and why being scolded is actually a serious penalty. Commentary: Social Stratification, Crime and Pony Names.
- The Size and Population of Equestria, Economics, Professions, and the Victorian Era (Speculative). Continues with Building Fantasy Cities: Ponies and Nature, the Affluence of Equestria, Transportation and Trade, Cutie Marks and Professions, Invention and Development, Natural Disasters and Religion, Organization and Politics.
- Ponies Versus Physics: How long could people turning into ponies – or pony abilities on their own – pass under scientific rationalizations? Mutagens, Nanotech, Bioagents, and Impossible Pony Powers. Commentary: Equestrian Time Travel, Experts In Ignorance.
- Ponies Versus Physics II: Calculating the power output of ponies and when to stop the nonsense. Commentary: Comparative Cuteness, Twilight and Mind Control.
- Guns Versus Equestria: Why physics doesn’t compromise, nuking dragons, Galactus versus Mayberry.
- Eclipsing the Shows – World versus Marketing and My Little Pony: Translating marketing decisions into game reality, more possible origins for Discord. Commentary: Tirek versus Cloudsdale, Varieties of Magic Drain, and Rarity versus Geometric Optics.
- Cursed with Awesome; Dark Magic and You: Magics effects on the mind, worldbuilding, and how this relates to various pony villains. Commentary: Extensive discussions of lovecraftian magic, reality-shaping magic, and various other styles.
- Joining The Stampede – Ponies, Bio-Arcana, and Eclipse: Magical pony biology and Alicorn Ascension.
Building Pony Characters / Examples:
- The Basic Pony Build and Earth Ponies including Music in Equestria, Special Effects, and Homesteading Magic.
- Pegasus Ponies, their evolution and Build. Commentary: High-Altitude Adaption and escape plans.
- Unicorn Ponies and their Build, Child Surges, and the reasons for the “Unicorn Aristocracy”. Commentary: Sunset Shimmer, Discord and Child-Chaos.
- Rainbow Dash and her development from a filly through the end of season two. An examination of Ponyfinder versus Eclipse Ponies and why they’re so different.
- Alicorns, Princess Luna’s Abilities, the Cosmology of Equestria, and Tirek. Commentary: Speculations on Tirek and Nightmare Moon. Continues with the full build for Princess Luna, along with some information on governing Equestria, the Dominion of Dreams, and the powers of Nightmare Moon. Commentary: Discord, Equestria Girls as Mystic Artists, and Changelings.
- Changelings (Speculative): Their Build and Society, Chyrsalis’s Plans, What is Love, Farming Ponies, Goo Splat and Mastery, Kinetic Aura, and Feeding on Love. Commentary: Chrysalis the Conqueror (Alternate Future), Thorax the Changeling King, Perpetual Motion Love, Antimagic Thrones, and lots and LOTS of plotholes.
- Queen Chrysalis (Speculative): A build for the Changeling Queen consistent with the events of the show.
- Tirek and Discord (Speculative): Building Tirek and Discord, the Lord of Chaos template, Discordant Starswirl, and Discord as a “normal” d20 character. Commentary: Multitasking.
- Equestrian Dragons and Building Spike: Ponies and Virtues, the Discordant Powers, the Equestrian Dragon Template, and the Discordant Channeling. Commentary: Cheese Sandwich.
- The Discordant Powers Details: Part I (Gluttony, Lust, Greed, and Wrath) and Part II (Pride/Cruelty, Sloth, Deception, Envy/Treachery, and Chance).
- Granny, The Secret Overlord: Racial Template Free – but what if, say, Granny Smith was an ancient witch-queen, and one of the secret founders and powers of the realm? Why ARE Celestia and Luna only “princesses”? Part II: Skills, Skill Tricks, and Skill-Related Abilities, Part III: Architectural Wonders, the Witch-Mazes (or “Training Dungeons”), Experience by Study, the Thieves Guild, the Defense of Greendale, and her Legendarium Panoply, Part IV: Witchery, Poisons, and the Ruinous Powers, Rulership, Miscellany, Investments, and Equipment. Granny and Player Characters,
Hero System Ponies:
Thanks to terribly bad luck and some summonings, some ponies from the (normally imaginary) magical land or Equestria are running about in the current Champions game. Oh well. Superheroic Mages have turned lose much sillier and more destructive things.
- Prince Blueblood and the Cartoon Powers Package: Prince Blueblood the Navigator, standard “Toon” powers, and why Celestia tolerates him.
- Apple Bloom: Alchemist, trap-maker, and (very) minor earth-mage. For when you want to film “home alone” in Equestria.
- Scootaloo: Scout, weathermage, and junior speedster. Note that – since normal humans with no wings at all can learn flight magic in the setting, this version of Scootaloo CAN fly. She just can’t steer too well yet…
- Sweetie Belle: Junior sorceress, singer, and just too cute to stop. For all the Cutie Mark Crusaders “Awwww… We’re not in trouble are we?” moments.
- Trixie Lulamoon and the Alicorn Amulet: Trixie the Minor Sorceress, a discussion of Traveling Performers – and the power of the Alicorn Amulet.
- Apex – Prince Blueblood Escapes From My Little Pony: An upgraded Prince Blueblood as a hero of the Apex setting. The role of the nobility in the government of Equestria. Blueblood finds his purpose – and it’s being an arrogant ass.
Alzrius’s Eclipse d20 Ponies:
Alzrius built his ponies so as to fit into “standard” d20 games – whereas I used the “Superheroic” world template because it would allow my builds to reproduce the things that the ponies did on the show. Of course, that means that my builds will only work well in games based on the assumptions of Equestria; they won’t do so well in basic games. For those, courtesy of Alzrius, we have…
- The Pony Races: Earth Ponies, Pegasi, and Unicorns.
- The Elements of Harmony: Built as Eclipse Relics.
- Rarity: Starting off the series at level one! Commentary: Using the Elements of Harmony to cover the characters occasional incredible stunts.
- Princess Celestia: As she generally appears on the show – as a ninth-level mentor-type who explains why she can’t handle things.
- Adagio of the Sirens: Unreformed, still at large, and needing only an enchanted gem to make a comeback.
- Lex Legis (And his Picture): Alzrius’s original character – and a very “gray” potential opponent. He has an upgrade here: The Dark Side of the Horse
- Notes on Zecora: A discussion of just how much power – or lack thereof – is needed to build Zecora. Comments: My take on Zebras.
- The Journal of the Two Sisters – and lapses in logic therein. Comments: Unicorn populations and birthrates, basic demographics – and why the “Unicorns losing their magic” story makes no sense in any terms.
- Iliana, the Ponyfinder Queen: An examination of how to use Eclipse to customize – and slightly upgrade – a Ponyfinder queen to fit her history.
- Lashtada, Ponyfinder Goddess: As set up using The Primal Order for second edition.
- Sonata Dusk: As appearing in his Fanfiction.
- A Magical Medieval Society: Equestria: Building equestrian society using “A Magical Medieval Society”.
- Baby Got Backlash: Flurry Heart and Magical Surges
- Tempest Shadow: The movie antagonist escapes into d20, rather than remaining to face the friendship…
My Alzrius-Styled Eclipse Ponies:
- The Great And Powerful Trixie, Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, the Alicorn Amulet, and the Ursa Minor: Pretty much what’s on the label. Commentary: Upgrading the Ursa.
Alzrius Pony Notes:
- Tails of Equestria – Character Levels and the Mane Six: The Tales of Equestria game.
- Tails of Equestria – Suggested Errata
- The Magic of Equestria Girls: What rules magic seems to have in the Equestria Girls series. Commentary: Equestria Girls as Magical Girls.
If and when additional pony-related material gets posted on this blog or Alzrius’s blog, I’ll try to link it here.
Eclipse: The Codex Persona is available in a Freeware PDF Version, in Print, and in a Paid PDF Version that includes Eclipse II (245 pages of Eclipse races, character and power builds, items, relics, martial arts, and other material) and the web expansion. Here’s a Featured Review of it and another Independent Review.
The Practical Enchanter can be found in a Print Edition (Lulu), an Electronic Edition(RPGNow), and a Shareware Edition (RPGNow). There’s an RPGNow Staff Review too.
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