The Gods are Watching

Shrines to various Gods are built throughout the world. These serve as overlaps between our world and the next one. A crossing point of divine power.

Those who pray at a shrine can enter into a contract with the God there- receiving a temporary benefit based on the God's domain in exchange for service, sacrifice, or obedience.

The God of war may help your success in a coming battle but he may ask for you bloodstained weapon afterwards or to taste the heart of your foe. Likewise, running from a battle while under his guidance will not only remove the benefit but could result in moral backlash from the divine. Expect further loses as the fate of your fights turn against you.

Mechanically speaking the boons can vary from straight bonuses to different die rolls, the ability to reroll unfavorable results or it could something more interesting like being able to use mundane items as effective weapons, never being without light, or really anything.

Generally speaking the Gods do not prefer those who ask for too much or too often unless the person is very loyal. The greater the boon the greater the cost and, as the petty things they are, Gods often refuse service for past transgressions or working for their rivals. Divine characters who are devout to the particular God will have an easier time negotiating but will also suffer a greater backlash if they go back on their word.

Finally, here's some shrines. I was going to make this a multi-level chart with items that can mix and match, but I'm tired so that might come later. Feel free to use these to dress up your dungeon a little.

Instead:

1- A trickster God, one must put on a jester's hat and say there prayers in the forms of jokes in this shrine.
2- A statue of the God/Goddess of love, lust, and sex. Prayer consists of sexual favors to be performed on the statue.
3- A statue with a gaping mouth represents the God sustenance. One must "give back" to the God by vomiting their stomach contents into the statue before prayer. Where the vomit goes, no one knows.
4- A shrine of the God of drink and brewing- do not even think of entering here sober. Be prepared to do shots. Feel free to pair this with 3 since people will probably be puking anyway.
5- The God of flame is represented by a bonfire that must never go out. Staring at the fire allows one to enter into communion.
6- Killers who enter into the God of life's shrine must have their hands and faces painted red for a day before entering the shrine so all may know of their deeds.
7- The God of death does not enjoy birth, those with children must cut their hands on his scythe.
8- Those praying to the God of the hunt must shoot targets while doing so.
9- They say the rain God's shrine can only be found while water falls from the sky and sometimes just afterwards while the air is filled with petrichor.
10- The God of conquest also doubles as a prison. Those there are actually praying and submitting themselves to their lords will. They do not know when they will be released and must trust him.
11- The Goddess of the wilderness does not enjoy shrines. But any hallowed tree is said to house her. Her followers often prayer there and leave her gifts.
12- You will never walk out of the shrine of the God of change the same.

Yup, you only get twelve right now because I'm going to go to bed.

"This sounds like an epic dream."

This is what a friend of mine said when me and my girlfriend first introduced her to our game.

It was really difficult to tell her about it as well. Not a single adventure could really be explained simply, there was always more to talk about. We had to talk in a breaking and self-interrupting fashion so that she could understand everything the party had gone through. All that they had achieved, and lost.

As a GM this is possible the highest compliment she could've given me and she didn't even realize she did it. Until she said that I never realized this is pretty much exactly how I want my game to be.

Of course I have my players to thank for that. Obviously I couldn't even run a game without them, but they do so much more than act as an audience for whatever I've created. They're just as responsible for many of "the plot's" twists and turns. Their decisions make the game so much better than if it was just me writing out events.

I want my game to be fun (of course) but also cool, and extreme. It should be bizarre, beautiful, creepy, deadly, and rewarding.

I've wanted to achieve all of these things in past games I've ran, but I've never been satisfied with how it played out. Until now.

I'm not sure if it's my current group, the different system, the different genre, reading so many blogs, or my growth as a GM. I don't really care though, I'm really happy with how things are going.

This is the best campaign I've ever ran, and I feel blessed because of it.

Answers for Zak

Zak, who you've probably heard of, posted some questions for GMs to answer. Here are my answers.

1. If you had to pick a single invention in a game you were most proud of what would it be?
The Road Tripping table for modern fantasy games. It's not perfect but it creates fun.

2. When was the last time you GMed?

Friday the 13th, January 2012

3. When was the last time you played?

Sometime early January 2012

4. Give us a one-sentence pitch for an adventure you haven't run but would like to.

The St. Louis Arch is secretly a trans-dimensional gateway that cultists are trying to open.

5. What do you do while you wait for players to do things?

Sometimes I'm hooked with suspense. Other times I roll on random tables or think about what is likely ahead.

6. What, if anything, do you eat while you play?

Pizza mostly, but also sandwiches and all kinds of junk food. 

7. Do you find GMing physically exhausting? 

I used to but not so much anymore. I find it depends on the group and their collective attitude that day.

8. What was the last interesting (to you, anyway) thing you remember a PC you were running doing?

I had my guy chop off one of his own fingers to confuse a bunch of cultists. Look it's kind of a long story, it did grow back though.

 

9. Do your players take your serious setting and make it unserious? Vice versa? Neither?

They do both. Things that threaten them they usually take seriously but not always.

10. What do you do with goblins?

Goblins haven't showed up in my current game and I'm not sure if they will. In the past I've had them ride giant insects and fight with poison.

11. What was the last non-RPG thing you saw that you converted into game material (background, setting, trap, etc.)?

I guess this would either be the weeping angels from Doctor Who (an instant puzzle monster) or the secret-door magic from the Chronicles of Chaos.

12. What's the funniest table moment you can remember right now?

One of the players switched genders, there were jokes about it for the rest of the night.

13. What was the last game book you looked at--aside from things you referenced in a game--why were you looking at it?

Vornheim, it even works for modern cities and the players are in New York.

14. Who's your idea of the perfect RPG illustrator?

As much as I love good drawings I don't have too many opinions on the subject I guess. But if I could get Kevin O'Neill from League of Extraordinary Gentleman to illustrate some books that'd be awesome.

15. Does your game ever make your players genuinely afraid? 

 One of my player's, Katie, I'll often overhear saying, "That's so scary!" so at least sometimes. My group is also terrified by any old woman in my game. Though based on their experience this is probably a good thing.

16. What was the best time you ever had running an adventure you didn't write? (If ever)

I definitely prefer writing my own. I've definitely had good times with pre-mades but as a GM it's so much fun for me to watch players succeed or fail against things I've made.

17. What would be the ideal physical set up to run a game in?

I want one of those custom game tables where everyone has slots and stuff to keep their own stuff. I've always wanted to play outside on a nice day with no wind. Or how about a holodeck from star trek?

18. If you had to think of the two most disparate games or game products that you like what would they be?

GURPS has like a bunny supplement I've always wanted to try. Also Nobilius seems pretty interesting.

19. If you had to think of the most disparate influences overall on your game, what would they be?

American history and geography and old world myths (Greek, Norse, the Bible, it's all good)

20. As a GM, what kind of player do you want at your table?

Someone who is smart and pays attention. They cooperate well with other people and they are willing to try new things. 

21. What's a real life experience you've translated into game terms?

 Various road trips and my time spent working at a newspaper for creating investigation-based adventures.

22. Is there an RPG product that you wish existed but doesn't?

A product I've made. I should probably get on that.

23. Is there anyone you know who you talk about RPGs with who doesn't play? How do those conversations go?

This used to be my girlfriend but she's an active player now. Both of my brothers often listen to me and give me ideas about games but I can't get them to play for some reason.

Entropic Adaptation

Note: This entry is specific to Villains and Vigilantes rules which consists of players rolling random powers anyway. Those who don't know or play that system may find it still useful especially if they have or are considering a supers game.

Upon rolling this power the player rolls a different ability from the Power list (or some other list if you like) and makes the decisions concerning it as normal.  The next time they go rest for the night (6 hours or more) they lose this ability and awake to find a new power in its place (roll again).

For groups who do not wish to stop in the middle of a game for the player to work out how exactly their new power will work (such as chemical power, size change, or poison/venom) they can have the player roll each game session rather than each night of rest.

If the player rolls an ability they already have they can either roll again or strengthen their power as per the normal rules.  This ability is intended for player's who wish to play a hero with random if sometimes unreliable powers.

If player's wish for their abilities gained through Entropic Adaptation to be more specific the GM should be encouraged to come up with new charts more tailored for that character's 'theme'.

So energy characters could have something like this:
1-10: Power Blast
11-20: Disintegration Ray
21-30: Flame Power
31-40: etc.
and so on...

or animal characters:
1-10: Natural Weaponry
11-20: Poison/Venom
21-30: Pet
31-40: etc.
and so on...

Depending on what other powers are available to the player they may wish to tie this ability to death such as the Resurrection man.

Steampunk Dice

 

These are so cool!

11.50 seems relatively cheap for something with such fine detail, but it's also only for a single die. It'd be amazing if they had all the polyhedrons required for standard adventuring dice. If my group were to ever do a steampunk setting (at least seriously) I think I might have to get at least one of these.

Season 2 and stuff I plan to do

So break is winding down and I'll be getting back to school soon. This means a lot of things but one of the things I'm looking forward to is picking up with the gaming group I've set up there.

We left off on a pretty epic, holiday-themed adventure. It kind of served as a season finale episode and I was pretty happy with it.

But now we're coming back so I thought I would list some things I want to introduce or move forward with. I find it nice to have some clear goals to keep campaign momentum going.

• Their Modern Fantasy adventure is heading to New York City, one of the most diverse cities in the world. I'd like the magic their to reflect that. There should be magic from all kinds of cultures.
• A few places in the city should reflect this magic taking hold. This can get weird, strange gravity, mutations, people talking backwards, whatever. Everything's strange but no one notices. It's a dark secret people sweep under the rug. Like stereotypical New Yorkers when most normal people see something strange they ignore it and keep on about their business.
• The player's are investigating a dark and mysterious business called the Nero Corporation. I should make ways for them to infiltrate the place. Something like a fancy party filled with intrigue, masks, and assassins.
• I kind of want the players to get betrayed, arrested, and taken down by someone with no visible powers but can exploit their weaknesses. Maybe all at once? hmm...
• There's a drug called Läesh they've run into before. It has varying effects, one of which is boosting the crap out of supernatural abilities at a cost. There should be something with this in the bad parts of New York, or the good parts.
• One of the players has a weeping angel trapped in his visual cortex so that's gotta change. Maybe he can make a deal with it?
• Another player has a burning hole of the apocalypse in her brain. This has to do with the Nero Corporation as well so that can probably come up then.
• Maybe something with New York's art scene?
• All the players just got new powers which they still need to pick.
• I might be getting a new player, she wants to be a belly-dancing Gypsy pirate which sounds like it could be the coolest thing ever.
• One of the players wants someone from her past to show up. She's an experienced treasure hunter and ship sinker (siren) so maybe something like from Indiana Jones where they are allies/rivals/enemies all simultaneously for the same artifact.
• One of the players has family in New York, they are not on good terms, something about stolen technology.
• I think some sort of fish king might show up demanding the fish-person in the party be his bride.
• The mad scientist should show up again.

Okay that is a lot. More than I expected I guess, I've got some planning to do. But I'd love to here your thoughts.