Words of Replicant Jesus

It’s back and I am glad to have it back.  I really enjoy Legend of the Five Rings and want to continue playing it but I am absolutely chomping at the bit to run a Dark Sun game in the near future.  I missed ye olde Dark Sun and I am glad to have it back in my life.  I have so much stuff for D&D 4th Edition as well that I really want to utilize it.  I am also intrigued by this Essentials line of products especially the Monster Vault and the DM’s Kit, both look rather awesome and will be available in October I think.

I really like the map tiles as well I have two sets of the Athas Desert tiles ready to go for the campaign I am building and itching to use them.  The Dark Sun Campaign Guide and the Creature Catalog are awesome and are worth the money.  I picked up the Demonomicon as well and really enjoy it and hope to incorporate some of the ideas into my Dark Sun game to give it a sinister twist.  Also as a totally frivolous want, I want this Ravenloft boxed game like whoa.

So yeah I love D&D.

I picked up Dark Sun and I love it so far.  I am not sure I will get a chance to run it any time soon with my Legend of the Five Rings game going quite well we just added a third player.  But when I get the chance I do want to try and run this game.  It seems a lighter version of the original but with plenty of room and rules to make it fairly bleak and ruthless.  Now if only Enemies of the Empire would come out for L5R 4E I would be set.

16^th of the Dragon 1172 IC, Pale Oak Castle, home of Asako Shizu, Phoenix Daimyo

The Isawa karo speaks firmly, “If anyone has any information about this murder please speak up, the honor of the Phoenix is at stake.”

A stalwart Lion clan samurai Ikoma Katsu speaks, “Hai, Isawa-sama I did see Mirumoto Rai-san leaving Asako-sama’s chambers.  He had a green cloth about his head.  Hida Fuya-san saw it as well.”

Hida Fuya, a stern rugged crab bushi nods, “Hai, I will vouch for Ikoma-san’s testimony.”

Mirumoto Rai arrives just as he hears his name tied to this ghastly murder and protests his innocence, “No!  I could not have done it!”

“Mirumoto-san if you claim innocence, then where were you?” Shiba Reikun scowls, “Answer that!”

The Isawa karo nods glaring at the young Dragon.  Rai-san glances down, “I… I was wandering the halls alone.”

“Did anyone see you?” the Isawa karo demands.

“I don’t think so,” the Dragon bushi replies defeated.

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[This is point that most of the rolling began with some Stealth rolls, Sincerity and such as the two samurai-ko attempt to steal, ahem, get inspiration for the poetry contest in the morning.  I learned that being unskilled is very, very bad and that a TN of 15 is pretty hard to hit with two dice, so I kept most of the checks relatively low for this part.  It was still entertaining though. – GM’s note]

16^th of the Dragon 1172 IC, Pale Oak Castle, home of Asako Shizu, Phoenix Daimyo

It was three in the morning as Shiatari stood silently outside the Suzume Takeshi’s chamber.  It was rather chill this morning as she waited for her companion to arrive, Mayako was running late.

For Mayako’s sake, she was doing her best to sneak away from her family and thought she was doing well until…

“Where you going?” Sukime whispered following her big sister.

[Mayako failed a Stealth roll and so I decided instead of running into a guard, she would have to deal with her nosy and mischievous little sister, Sukime.  This was fun.  – GM’s note]

“I… Sukime what are you doing here?” Mayako retorts freezing in place.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Sukime shrugs.

(more…)

15^th of the Dragon 1172 IC, Pale Oak Castle, home of Asako Shizu, Phoenix Daimyo

The crowd of samurai was abuzz with activity, samurai from various clans all across the empire milled about in conversation.  Amidst the crowd was Bayushi Shiatari looking painfully out of place and hoping to stay unnoticed as she tried to find Agasha Ayame, husband to her new lord and master for the next year or so.

“Excuse me lady?” a young girl’s voice called up to her, tugging on her kimono sleeve.

Shiatari glances down, her scorpion styled mask, covering the upper part of her face.  She sighs inwardly and replies tersely, “Leave me alone, child.”

“Are you a Scorpion?” the little girl asks.

“Yes, now leave me alone,” Shiatari hisses.

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First session of the game, plus an NPC interlude.  Characters described here.

8^th of the Dragon, 1172 IC, Home of Bayushi Shiatari

Candles flicker, illuminating the dark chamber.  Bayushi Shiatari’s father sat in silence reading over missives from across the empire.  His jet black hair pulled back into several braids, his face covered by a green jade mask giving him a monstrous visage.  He glances up as his daughter enters the chamber.

“Greetings father, why have you summoned me,” she replies quickly with a bow, she was never one for formality.

Her father stands, “Your loyalty to the clan is in question daughter, ever since your failure with the Crane.”

“Failure!  It was not my fault!” she replies bitterly.

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I started running this campaign this week and I hope to continue it, I currently only have two characters and may get a third but not sure. Both are relatively new to gaming and all three of us are new to Legend of the Five Rings, I am the most experienced and this is my first time running the game since I tried the D20 version probably 4-5 years ago. I am running the 4th Edition and I am very impressed with it so far, very lightweight and easy to run thus far. I do need to encourage raises though, but that will come with time. Our first adventure was purely role playing and social with no combat, I ran the Tournament of Samurai, a fun little adventure I rather enjoyed with some modifications to fit it into my larger campaign framework.

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I had a blast last night running Legend of the Five Rings (L5R) with my two new players and I think they had some fun too.  It was fast and easy to run and I plan to document the game as best as I can for as long as I can keep running it.  In other news I saw Inception and it was amazing the sound track is also fantastic so yeah, not much to say there.  I am still kind of baffled by the new Protection changes for Cataclysm, but Wigglylight will soldier on once they get all the kinks worked out.

Anyway quick update, next post will be for my new L5R possible campaign, hopefully long term campaign.

These are just some of my notes on the village of Ravendale, it’s a quaint little place on the edge of a primordial forest filled with ruins, mysetry, and humanoid tribes.  It serves as the starting point for my campaign for the summer and I wanted to share my ideas.

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Just posting some of my general notes I have for my forthcoming summer campaign:

Origin Hooks Notes

• Noble Blood: Last born in a noble family you had little chance of gaining anything other then a small inheritance and perhaps a title.  You could choose a life living in the shadow of your elders or take the path of the Rusty Legion and forge your own path.  The Legion grants you the opportunity to see the world, adventure, and most importantly find your own place in the world.  Despite your “newfound” freedom you still have ties of blood that could entangle you in the politics of court.
• Outcast (Primal Classes): You were responsible for some terrible act by your people.  You were spared from execution by the Rusty Legion, instead you were exiled, a fate worse than death for most but you are made of stronger stuff than most.  Before you left your tribe the shaman of the clan/tribe read your future and saw that you would be responsible for great change to your people, but the signs were mixed on the outcome being harmful or beneficial.  Now you have dreams that plague you of your terrible destiny.
• Blank Slate: Your first memories are waking up in a small village not far from the main settlement.  You did not remember who you were or where you came from.  The village was attacked and you sprang into action using you skills you had no idea you possessed.  Luckily a local Rusty Legionnaire was in the area and heard of your prowess and condition; you were recruited and given a name and a place in society.  But your lack of memories gnaws at you.  Your only clue is a tattoo of a two coiled serpents over a black disk on your left shoulder.
• Strange Bloodline (Psionic Classes): You were born different, always touched and always aware of the psychic energies that course through the world.  From a young age you knew things that children should never know, some say you got it from your missing parent, raised as an only child by the surviving parent you were always told that the other died before you were born.  It was not until a terrible plague took the life of your surviving parent that you found out the truth, that the parent you thought was dead could still be alive and had at one time been a Rusty Legionnaire.  Emboldened by this you sought membership to track down this parent who abandoned you and find out more about your bloodline.
• Plague Born: You were born during a terrible plague and were the only child to survive the terrible sickness.  Orphaned and alone you grew up fast and did what you had to do to survive.  It was not until you were much older that you heard of the prophecy of the Plague Child, one who would be born into an age of strife surviving when others would not and destined for a future that could usher in a reign of darkness.  Some religious orders seek your death, to avert this tragedy making your life needlessly difficult.  You joined the Legion for protection and a chance to do some good with whatever power may or may not be inside you.
• Sins of the Father (Martial Classes): The hero’s father or mother was once a Rusty Legionnaire, an individual of worth who was both skilled and well respected.  But the name was tarnished when they betrayed the order, becoming an outcast and criminal… eventually becoming one of the monsters that the Legion is sword to destroy.  Now the parent is an unliving monster an object lesson in the fall from grace.  The hero joined the legion to clear the stain from the family name.  The character has an uphill battle to earn the respect of his peers as the parent casts a long and bitter shadow.

More notes after the jump:

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