Marsden is Here

It is the last few hours of 2022. There is no KAOS party this year, and as D has come down with something flu-like we are also not venturing out to either of the drinkies we have been invited to.

I am not feeling positive going into the New Year, even less so than going into this year. Hanging over me or settled in my gut is something like generalised anxiety, but not exactly. I suspect it may be some type of self loathing, born of having given more than I intended or wanted to over this year physically, emotionally, financially with nothing to show for it myself and precious little to show for anyone else.

Let's take a look back in bullet points
( snip )

So one of the side effects of being a temporally challenged DM/Player is that I often have stray character backgrounds and worldbuilding ideas running around in my head. This one is currently not letting me get the sleep that Covid recovery is demanding of me, so I'm going to inflict it on all of you.

[Scene: a group of adventurers sharing background stories]
"So I had a comfortable upbringing you know, wealthy and important family, indulged in pretty much anything I wanted while being prepared for my eventual role in the family empire. When I came of age the suitors also started calling, and that's all I expected, a comfortable marriage suiting both family's business interests.

My most persistent suitor was also someone I thought was a real jackass, you know? And there's a history of bad blood between our kin. Then it turned out they had been quietly challenging any other suitor who seemed to be gaining my favour and either maiming and forcing them to leave the city as a condition for their life or outright killing them.

So I challenged the evil [spits] myself, in public with the proof, and when they condescendingly refused my challenge I ran them straight through their hateful little heart.

So that's how my family ended up owning their family the cost of a Raising and I ended up exiled until I pay my family back. Which is proving harder than I thought, because there's a lot of people out here who need that treasure a more than my family."

Unsurprisingly there's a lot that hits my high points as a DM looking at player background here. Firstly there's some very clear reasons why the character is out adventuring and why that goal might be hard to accomplish. Bonus points for a treasure sink which isn't going to destabilise the local economy.

There are connections to other parts of the world: possibly-mixed loyalties to a family trading business, a potential rival or nemesis, a tendency to get involved with the less well off; all of which could be drawn on for story hooks or provide resources the character might turn to but only by advancing that aspect of the story. These aren't presented in a way where they have to feature immediately or regularly. (If I really want that level of connection, I'll mention it before character creation).

And while good at heart [I would expect that their] actions are going to be strongly influenced by growing up with
- a legal system which they were mostly immune to and
- where duelling (fantasy staple anyway) may or may not be formally acceptable but happens (especially given)
- the standard fantasy RPG availability of healing and even death-reversing magic to those wealthy enough exists,
... in a way which may well lead them into conflict with the laws and customs of the cultures they now find themselves in.

Finally this is a character that can function not only in the dungeon but also at some level of society. (In the general case it doesn't have to be /high/ society, but some people skills, please).

( real world introspection )

( A later scene )

For the first time in many many years (since 2006) I attended KapCon. It's something I've been meaning to get back to but if money wasn't an issue then it was finding the spoons to organise travel and accommodation. This year I had additional incentive and logistics assistance :) (And an ice cream container of home-baked gluten-free chocolate chip cookies to help sustain me over the weekend <3 )

I was skeleton crew at work for the first week back, so I was not able to travel up early and help set up. Flying in Friday night I simply taxied to meet D. at our hotel. The accommodation was nothing fancy, but it did at least provide the opportunity for a cooked breakfast on site Saturday morning before heading to the venue.

Although I recognised quite a few faces, and got to put faces to some names, I didn't really spend much time over the weekend actually talking to people. I did get to play several systems I have heard of but not experienced before.

( games played and other activities )

Jotting down an idea which was a plot point in one of my quite complex dreams. Dewdrops (or some accumulation of moisture which strongly resembled a dewdrop) exposed to certain magical conditions for an extended period of time[1] (in this instance accidentally caught in the scales of a wounded dragon) can grow entire miniature worlds inside them. From these worlds energy can be drawn in this instance there was a symbiotic relationship between the growing world which, unnoticed, drew magical and emotional energy from the dragon to form and returned a different sort of energy which aided in his healing[2].

[1] extrapolation: or if properly collected and nurtured
[2] an ability just asking to be exploited by an ambitious spellcaster

This was really just a side note about history in the dream itself, which was about a sort of druidic order of fae native to the tiny world dealing with some sort of impending doom to said world. But it was close enough to the end of the dream that it stuck with me. I remeber a few other snippets.

- The dream was one of those things where sometimes you are reading it in a book and sometimes you are right in there where it is happening.
- The book had been written by the lady in Wellington I've mentioned in a few posts recently ;)
- the pages of the book were incredibly intricate wood carvings illustrating the scene which was written about in the words woven through the pages
- occasionally an early-readers note of encouragement had slipped into the text, seeming quite out of place but also sweet
- there was some beautiful stained glass in there somewhere, but I think that was only when "I" was fully immersed in the world
- I was really clumsy and the wood carvings were really fine and fragile; decorative pieces kept breaking under my fingers :(
- depending on the scale at the time the book sometimes doubled as a storage cabinet; for example a wagon was full of chests of valuables; the chests could be opened and contained ("real" world) board games and puzzles.
- the particular goddess of the world whom the druidic order were trying to awaken/summon to ask for help/advice/to warn all the inhabitants of the world was some form of force of nature
- the druids themselves (including the main characters of the book) were humanoid on the upper half and varying animal/fish/squidlike in the lower half, but could switch to a form with human legs and the other part resembling a skirt at will depending on what environment they found themselves in. Some had wings but not all.
- The main characters ranged from the leader of the order to some sort of wild urban child with a /very/ loud voice to a recent initiate who despite being amazingly talented in a number of areas had shunned them in favour of an area she? did not excel in and it had taken years of hard study before graduation (the order was large enough to run some sort of university); because of this they were "looked at sideways" by most of the of the order, but were nevertheless the one in correct place in the order hierarchy to perform much of the ritual.

Over the weekend a young acquaintance mentioned his desire to play a (D&D3) minotaur paladin, and some resistance he had met to the idea. I took the time to explain that the resistance was probably not to the idea as such, but the extra work that would be required to align the DM's world such that any minotaur character and their companions would not be confronted by torch-and-pitchfork wielding mobs / local adventurers / bounty hunters / heroes of the realm in every dominion and at every outpost of civilisation.

By the time the conversation had finished however my worldbuilders brain had come up with an outline for how a larger race with a reliable number of relatively peaceable members would probably be incorporated into a fantasy society without ending up in charge. I present a minotaur version of that below as a plug-in suitable for dropping into a fantasy world, but first would like to take off on a couple of tangents.

( chaaanges )

( availability )

( balance )

( Place in civilisation )

Most people are probably aware that over the past going on 24 hours NZ has been hit by another series of major earthquakes starting at very just after midnight Sunday/Monday. I had not long gone to bed when it hit so after about 10 seconds of "aftershock" and then ~ 1:20 minutes of "nope, crap, that's a BIG quake inland just getting here" and some minutes on FB checking that no-one in Christchurch itself was reporting major issues I went off to sleep, thus not seeing the tsunami warning and evacuation notices (which didn't affect me anyway) until checking again during a wake around 4am. I figured if anyone needed transport or to shelter at my place I would get a message or txt directly so I slept for another few hours, starting the day feeling not significantly tireder than usual. That wasn't to last.

Fortunately I had already booked the day off work to recover from attending a 48 hour charity event over the weekend (more on that below). The first hour or so I spent touching base with various people by FB and phone before starting on my pre-existing chores list. I didn't get through as much of this as hoped - a somewhat overdue cleaning of the bathroom leaving me physically exhausted and attempting to set the ball rolling on a safety inspection of the Hall further soaked up energy. I eventually spent 2-3 hours napping - in part to shut down some nervous energy and generalised anxiety - before setting out to help a friend with transport and hugs, do the grocery shopping and after a simple dinner deliver some care packages. (One of which had already been on my to-do list but which under the circumstances I bulked up a bit more ;) ) I could tell that I probably shouldn't be driving well before I got home, and if I wasn't waiting for a better time to take my meds I would be back in bed already.

~~~
Friday / Saturday I spent about 24 hours total at SAGA's now-annual 48-hour gaming event to raise money for charity (this year AVIVA). I'll just copy and paste from my FB statuses here ...

---
Saturday 4:30pm
Plays so far:
Colony Wars (obliterated by Daniel Starky's base spam strategy)
Thurn & Taxis (resounding win)
Dominion w. Prosperity (barely last but a long way from the winner)
Broken Eagle the Learned Nano who Combines Words of Power is about to set out into the world of Numenera in search of greater knowledge.

Saturday 10:50pm
After Numenera finished off for the day with a game of Tiny Kingdoms. Didn't do particularly well but probably OK for a first time.
I'd liked to have stayed longer but it is patently obvious that it would be a very bad Idea. If I can get a good sleep tonight I may be able to stay later tomorrow night.

Sunday 3:20am
Didn't get to games until after 2pm but then stayed somewhat longer than expected. Still 3am is no later than I get home from a good party. Cat seems unimpressed by my long absence.
Plays today (pretty sure I have forgotten something)
Tiny Epic Kingdoms
Settlers of Catan
DC Heroes
Colony Wars
Zombie Dice
Biblios
Kingsburg
Seven Wonders
Istanbul (new)
---

... preliminary reports are that we raised well over $1000 if everyone comes through on their pledges. I enjoyed myself - overly much so without really realising it, on the Friday in particular which left me stuck in bed until much later than I had planned on Saturday. I did spend more time and energy than I had hoped taking the lead in deciding on and teaching games; the teaching not so much of a problem (I was actually recommended, to my face, and later even messaged thanks for the fun time someone had as a result). I also made sure one person who probably otherwise would not have made it but I knew would benefit greatly from getting out of the house got both there and home.

As always I experienced more downtime between games than I would have liked, but I had gone prepared for that also with things to do.

Sunday afternoon (you noticed the status update at 3:20AM above?) was spent on a few chores and Sunday evening instead of my usual game we chilled and watched Guardians of the Galaxy which a couple of our members had missed at the theatre. (I am really enjoying the new projector.) I actually went to bed feeling uncommonly relaxed and happy ... and then the quake hit.

~~~
That has filled in the time nicely; shortly I will be abed and hopefully will feel much better in the morning. Because otherwise I am /not/ looking forward to work tomorrow.

There are a few leftovers from the previous couple of posts on healing in D&D3E that I wanted to express.

( A quirk of abstraction )
~~~
( Variant damage system )
~~~
( Alchemical/herbal healing items )

A few items my Sunday Broken Kingdoms group have just come across, for their reference.

Wand of Lesser Transfer Wounds
This slim wand is made of a pale wood carved to resemble a forearm ending in an outstretched hand.

Wand of Touch of Disruption
This slim wand is made of a dark wood carved to resemble a forearm ending in a clenched hand with one finger extended.

Leather Coat of Sneaking
This magical leather coat was removed from the burnt corpse of the undead named Esolith. It is filthy (with chunks of his flesh still adhering in places) and will need a /very/ good clean and minor repair before it is again fit for use by the living.
(Leather Coat +1, +5 to Sneak skill)

Ring of Ramming (modified Ring of the Ram)
This heavy iron ring is carved with the head of one of the massive mountain sheep the hill tribes use as livestock and mounts.

"The wearer can command the ring to give forth a ramlike force, manifested as a vaguely discernible shape that resembles the head of a ram or a goat. This force strikes a single target, dealing 1d6 points of damage if 1 charge is expended, 2d6 points if 3 charges are used, or 3d6 points if 3 charges (the maximum) are used. Treat this as a ranged attack with a 50-foot maximum range and no penalties for distance. The ring has 5 charges per day.

The force of the blow is considerable, and those struck by the ring are subject to a bull rush if within 30 feet of the ring-wearer. (The ram has Strength 25 and is Large.) The ram gains a +1 bonus on the bull rush attempt if 2 charges are expended, or +2 if 3 charges are expended.

In addition to its attack mode, the ring of the ram also has the power to open doors as if it were a character with Strength 25. If 2 charges are expended, the effect is equivalent to a character with Strength 27. If 3 charges are expended, the effect is that of a character with Strength 29."

Boots of Stomping (from the Magic Item Compendium)
"When you stomp your feet and activate boots of stomping, you generate a 15-foot-long cone-shaped burst of psychokinetic force that travels along the ground, toppling creatures and loose objects. The shock wave affects only creatures standing on the ground within the area. Creatures that fail a DC 13 Reflex save are thrown to the ground, prone, and take 1d4 points of nonlethal damage.

Boots of stomping function three times per day."

About 200 pairs of these boots were originally commissioned by an Old Kingdom Duke for the front rank of his army. The range and vigour of the effect is said to be increased for each adjacent pair being activated. Unfortunately many were lost or destroyed when in the midst of a major battle the vibrations caused by their use attracted a terrible worm-like beast from deep underground which proceeded to crush or consume the bulk of the forces present.
A number of prototypes and attempts-at-duplication are known to exist - the effect of these may include but are not limited to
- affecting also (or only) the wearer.
- creating their effect in a random direction relative to the wearer
- Creating a Muddy Ground spell effect centred on the wearer
- One particularly powerful pair known as "The Boots of Earthquakes" generated a strong enough force to demolish small buildings nearby and could be felt for some distance ... these were lost when a crack in the earth opened beneath the user and closed over again moments later.

Viper bolts
These 10 +1 crossbow bolts came carefully wrapped in soft leather and are fashioned in an extremely fine likeness of a tiny snake from the tail at the point to the head at the butt. On a hit they transform into a tiny viper which makes one attack on the target struck before falling to the ground and wriggling off (100% non-recoverable).

Tiny Viper +5 To Hit, 1 point of damage, Poison DC 10 1d6 CON Primary, 1d6 CON Secondary.

On the event of a natural 1 being rolled to hit the bolt animates before it is fired and attacks the wielder of the crossbow instead.

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Upon returning to Murdered Bow Markos made good his promise to the ki-rin and removed the last of the metal bindings. Sa paid a visit to the baker's widow discovering that business had not been good since the death of her husband; something he remedied by buying a round for everyone in a local drinking house and pronouncing the greatness of her wares. The word of such a great hero soon had people flocking to the bakery.

Zenon had been busy in the intervening time and presented the other members if the party with a number of useful one-shot items such as tokens of Obscuring Mist and powder of See the Invisible.

The treasure ships were investigated for an item of power suitable for a new member of the party and Val chose to replace one of her bladed gauntlets with the one name Mageslayer - a bleak, black iron piece with a taste for the blood of spellcasters. Markos replaced some of the blades on her other gauntlet with ones of meteoric iron; the better to face Anthony's never-ending creations.

( Back to the caverns )