Superstar practice


RPG Superstar™ General Discussion


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Superstar 2013 will start around December with R1 being around January. Now would be a good time to start warming up.

This thread will be a chance to practice. I will post a different challenge each Monday. The community will (hopefully) respond to your entries with an eye towards helping you get ready for Superstar.

I'm planning Superstar practice challenges to require creativity, detail, as well as mastery of game mechanics. So, some of them will be different than you've seen in previous challenges.

First Challenge
Two Parts, both parts must be answered
In less than 100 words each, create and describe a non-theistic (i.e. godless) religion/cult in Golorian
1.) which is villainous
2.) which can support a group of PCs
note 1 and 2 refer to two distinct religions/cults

Please post your replies in this thread. On the first line of your post, type the phrase ENTRY SEPTEMBER 16 CHALLENGE (in caps) then hit the enter key and start on a new line.

Your reply will be judged by the community. Their feedback will be posted in this thread. Your entry probably will be compared to other entries, so do your best work! :-)

RPG Superstar 2012 Top 16 , Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Dedicated Voter Season 9 aka motteditor

Not sure if these were quite what you were looking for, but it was a fun challenge nonetheless. That 100 word limit's tough but I think I get a good sense of the groups across with hopefully enough to inspire a hypothetical GM.

ENTRY SEPTEMBER 16 CHALLENGE
The Great Game
While many gnomes turn to the Wonderseekers to fight the Bleaching, those with a more sinister bent find entertainment in the Great Game. Overseen by The Judges, 13 masked gnomes, the annual competition resorts to extortion, kidnapping and murder — and that's simply to force unwilling players to participate. The sinister contest sends hapless victims worldwide to perform dark deeds solely for the cruel amusement of the Great Game's members, who bid for the chance to assign trials. Players meanwhile can merely hope to survive the year, winning free of whatever hold the judges have on them.

The Society of Epicurean Delight
For some, true adventure is a perfectly poached roc egg on darkmantle veal, topped with a dab of hippocampus caviar. Founded in Oppara, the Society of Epicurean Delight spreads across Taldor, extolling the virtue of fantastic cuisine. Originally restricted to nobles, membership now extends to anyone who can help fund a network of hunters and gatherers, often providing magic to ensure only the freshest products reach opulent kitchens staffed by masterful chefs. Despite reports of a dark underbelly, members dismiss tales of meals made from intelligent creatures — a never-ending troll steak, for example — as vile slander.

Star Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Marathon Voter Season 9

oops... have two groups, but neither is a cult... ah well some tweaking tomorrow and I should have it. :)

Sovereign Court RPG Superstar 2014 Top 32 , Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 9 aka Netopalis

Villanous Cult:
The Order of the Free Mind:
This cult is based upon the teachings of the mad Galtan revolutionary and alleged prophet Raymond Vonk. Vonk believed that, in order for the sentient races of Golarion to evolve, they must eliminate all forms of societal control. He taught that all governments must fall, all organized religions must cease to exist and all laws must be abolished. Now, twenty years later, the cult operates in secret, attempting to infiltrate powerful organizations and tear them apart from the inside.

PC cult:
The Church of Parmonda
Parmonda is the deity of riddles and the solving of puzzles. Parmonda's services generally involve her followers exchanging new and innovative puzzles, either from Parmonda's holy scripture or of their own creation. Many churches of Parmonda set themselves to the task of unraveling ancient prophecies and following them to their conclusion, trying to uncover long-lost treasures and secrets.

Star Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Marathon Voter Season 9

ENTRY SEPTEMBER 16 CHALLENGE
Nightsparrows
These assassins earned a reputation for two things: their dark-feathered gear and their gruesome marks. To hire the Nightsparrows attach a note to any wild bird at dusk in one of Magnimar’s parks. The Nightsparrows respond with a tiny figure wearing a feathered mask and winged cloak. Gnome and halfling druids make up the band and use the city’s animals to stalk their targets. A Nightsparrow takes flesh from each kill to feed raptors in the city. A flock of sparrows provides an excellent blind for studying targets. A sparrow one moment becomes a death-dealing Nightsparrow the next.

Dragonflies Druids
To prevent large groups from trampling through protected swamp, the druids in Dragonfen employed their powers to get travelers to the other side. Their enlarged vermin companions give the group their name and their buzzing travel is recognized and respected in bordering villages. Other druids, particularly those near urban areas soon joined the group. They befriend local giant animals and call beasts through their magic to transport people. The strongest druids take the shape necessary to carry adventurers themselves. The Dragonfly Druids maintain a religious ferocity about only carrying individuals and never maintain their areas.

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 32 , Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Marathon Voter Season 9 aka theheadkase

ENTRY SEPTEMBER 16 CHALLENGE
Pocket Watchmen
Time is money—especially to the members of the Pocket Watchmen. The various trades comprising membership exemplify their non-exclusionary motto, "Time ticks for all." Equally representing all races, professions, and sexes, the Pocket Watchmen work towards one goal—perfecting a means of paradox free time travel allowing them to rewrite history to further their riches. Each member is tattooed with an open pocket-watch with lines of arcane power coming from the edges.

Traveling Inn Company
The Traveling Inn Company supports its members' decadent ways with the exorbitant fees they charge adventurers for their service. The right price can buy a token of safety from this group. The token itself can be used to call one of the amazing and safe inns to any location on the Material Plane—rumor has it they are researching other planes. Adventurers can rest assured unless they didn't pay enough for powerful enough protection!

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 32 , Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Marathon Voter Season 9 aka theheadkase

OK, never critiqued an organization before so here goes:

Jacob
The Great Game - Wait a minute, I've seen this movie. This reminds eerily of the movie The Game (Also Hunger Games to some extent). Which I think is bad because reading over the plot synopsis to remind myself...it IS eerily close. Otherwise, it is a great evil organization with lots of hooks. I especially enjoy the 13 masked gnome judges. Dare I say potential First World connection?!

The Society of Epicurean Delight
Hmmm...not entirely sure how this group could support a PC group other than the loose association with hunters...and therefore rangers. The group itself has a great hook with the intelligent monsters underbelly...but I don't know that it fits the assignment of "supporting a group of PCs".

Netopalis
The Order of the Free Mind
I'm not generally a fan of "OF" names. This would probably be better served to be called something like Free Mind Organization or Freeminders. For real life examples, the Knights Templar or the Freemasons. Having said that...this is pretty close to current religious groups already in Golarion. Sure, there's always room for more anarchy, but for something like RPGSS it's a little bland.

The Church of Parmonda
Excellent...didn't know about Parmonda and now I do! Plus, a group dedicated to solving riddles. Yes, that can support groups of PCs. Are there other groups already like this though?

Overall, I think you need to really sell the groups in your writing. I come away reading it with a mentality of "Cool...I could finagle that into something fun" instead of "AWESOME! Can't wait to lift this!"

Curaigh
Nightsparrows
Love it. Details of the group and their habits are intricate yet leaves enough to allow me to fill in a bunch. "Gnome and halfling druids make up the band" I would drop the "band" and use a different term. It breaks the atmosphere you set with the rest of the writing and makes it a little silly. Great group...but is it necessarily villainous...or can it just be used to villainous ends? That'd be the biggest sticking point to this...the group itself isn't villainous which is what the assignment asked. Although I could see an argument that assassins ARE villainous by nature.

Dragonflies Druids
Interesting. The dragonfly transport reminds me vaguely of the same type of transports in the Book of the Malazan series...but not enough to be a detracting thing. I like this organization and it certainly could support a group of PCs. That said...what about level progression characters would normally gain by travelling through the area? I like this group though.

RPG Superstar 2012 Top 16 , Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Dedicated Voter Season 9 aka motteditor

Re: The Great Game. Never heard of "The Game," so can't really speak to it. It definitely has similarities to "The Hunger Games," but IIRC I first thought it up before I knew anything about "The Hunger Games." (It was the third concept I had for the organization round of Superstar 2011, but never got developed after I focused more on the Unfettered and the other group that I may still use somewhere, sometime.)

I figure the Society can "support" the group by being a source of quests and whatnot. You're right that it's probably not a perfect choice for the challenge, but I had a lot of fun coming up with it. Definitely could see playing with it in an urban module at some point.

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