We'll use this space to fill out characters and get started!
Okay, so I've begun making a Masked character. Got the vague stats organised and a picture in my head of who he is and what his go is, but yet to get his backstory etc down in words. I'll get that together over the next couple of days; want to get inside the setting first.
Durance: Agent
Skills:
• Compel
• Deceive
• Resist
• Sneak
Domains:
• Crime
• High Society
• Order
Resistances:
• Mind +1
• Silver +1
• Shadow +4
Equipment:
• Mask (describe)
• Two sets of nice clothing (describe)
• Servant Mask
• Dagger (Dmg D3, Concealable)
Refresh:
Show somebody they should not have underestimated you.
Abilities:
Core
• Smell Status
• Servant to the High Ones
Advances (Low)
• Citizen's Mask
• One of the Staff
Bonds:
• Street-level bond with servants of my old master (3 servants).
• Bond with another PC, who I assisted during their durance.
Looks great!
Just floating an idea, on p 109 it mentions that some of the wealthiest aelfir are in fact humans or drow who have stolen or bought a true mask from a luckless high elf and are impersonating them. This inspired the thought that after my durance I may have stayed on working for my master, who is in fact a drow and a member of the Ministry incognito. This would be rather dangerous, as I imagine if they were ever discovered the whole house could be destroyed, but would make a cool story, and a tool for you to feed us Ministry directions (or stir up intra-Ministry intrigue if the party's handler is another Ministry operative).
Does that work for you?
Edit: Having said all that, I kind of like the idea of working for a master that I completely despise, attempting to manipulate him/her to their detriment and the benefit of the Ministry. So I haven't really decided either way yet!
Oh, just found the initiation rites on pp 160-61. A couple of them are fairly brutal, and they have questions at the bottom for nascent characters to answer, fleshing out their backstory and detailing what they went through to become members of the Ministry. Cool stuff.
My character's backstory is that he was an assassin for a Lord and his Durance was completed early because he lost his arm during a mission to kill his master's rival (he did succeed in his mission however).
He joined up with the Bound because he was basically drinking himself to death until they offered him a purpose.
Little Hewy: Either option sounds super cool. Go with whichever you feel most connected to.
Vrog: That sounds very interesting. Tell me more about how someone who specializes in climbing adapts to only having one arm?
I haven't heard back from our third player. Do we want to go looking for additional players or just start with you two and see how it goes?
Regarding other players, I'm easy either way. Three would probably be better, but with a game like this I'm sure we'd get along with two.
In the meantime, why don't we get started with some background questions?
First off: How did you first discover the Ministry of Our Hidden Mistress? The Ministry doesn't recruit new ministers. They prefer proactive agents, so you'll need to discover the Ministry first, then contact them with your interest. How did you learn about the Ministry? How did you make contact? Why did you decide to join the rebellion?
Then, after your induction come the initiation trials:
THE RITE OF TENACITY: The initiate is taken deep beneath the temple of Our Hidden Mistress, itself beneath the Cathedral of Our Glorious Lady, and must survive three days without supplies or aid in the labyrinthine catacombs that hang heavy with the stench of death and old bones.
What thought kept you alive, down amid the dead?
THE RITE OF FURY: The initiate is told to act as their blood decides, and to exact vengeance for wrongs against them with violence; to spread fear of the drow, and show their unjust masters that the Blood Moon still shines. Many magisters supplant this rite with a cocktail of mind-altering drugs, such as the notoriously grimy stimulant known as dagger, to encourage the initiate to act in accordance with their true emotions, leading to one brutal night of retribution that may – entirely coincidentally – see the subject cut off from their previous life.
Who did you hurt when you demonstrated your fury?
THE RITE OF GRACE: The initiate is provided the name and location of a target who they must study over time and, eventually, become. While the magister will generally select a target who at least bears passing resemblance to the initiate, the matter of their close friends and family must be accounted for, and so begins a protracted period of subterfuge that ends with the target ostracised by their community, allowing the initiate to supplant them utterly. (And, of course, the target themselves must be dealt with: many initiates balk at the idea of killing an innocent, and so kind magisters will select a target who they feel is worthy of death.)
Whose life did you steal?
THE RITE OF VIGILANCE: The initiate will be instructed to meet a magister – never their own – deep in the crushing din of the Works. Here they will be administered a draught that will knock them unconscious and told, once they awaken, to track down the magister before the next sunrise. The sheer volume of people moving through the Works is enough to throw off most tracking attempts, and deft magisters will spread false information around to keep initiates off their balance.
What mistake did the magister make that helped you track them?
THE RITE OF COMMUNITY: The initiate is told to approach a group of drow with which they share a bitter enmity and to help them sel essly for a full lunar month. This can be in any form the initiate desires, so long as there is visible evidence of the assistance – while some approach openly and beg for forgiveness, others operate as shadowy benefactors who hunt down and punish wrongdoers or donate money and resources to their once-enemies. (If the initiate in question does not have a bitter enmity, one will be provided.)
Who did you help?
THE RITE OF SAGACITY: The initiate is handed over to an agent of the Ministry who specialises in the stranger elements of the city and the drow race - a spider-blooded matriach midwife, a dimension-shearing Vermissian sage, one of the zoetrope horrors bearing sickness from the Heart known as blood-witches, deep apiarists who whisper prayers of protection to sacred swarms of sightless bees, and so on – and told to study under them for a lunar month.The Ministry ensures that the initiate’s eyes are opened to the realities of Spire, and few survive with their sanity and stability fully intact.
Who did you study under, and what did you learn?
Subject to change, but it's a starting point...
While a 13 year old Thusiax was cleaning a storeroom at the Blue Mushroom one night, he heard whispered voices, and one word stuck out: "Ministry". Leaving his broom, he managed to tail one of the speakers to her house, all the way up in the Middle City. For the next three days, barely eating or sleeping, he stalked her, but learned little. In desperation, he finally confronted her in her own home. The drow woman instantly restrained him, and when she tried to question him, he simply blurted out, "You're in the Ministry!" Then he broke down.
The woman, Keira, was tempted to slit the street urchin's throat and dump his body, but something restrained her; was it pity, a recognition of his obvious talents, or the whispering of destiny? Whatever it was, rather than kill him, she took him to her Magister. Upon hearing the boy's story, the Magister, truthfully or not, told Thusiax that he had known his father, that he had indeed served the Ministry, but was betrayed, then tortured and killed by the Paladins. The boy was given a choice: die, or leave your world behind, follow in your father's footsteps, and serve all drow by serving the Ministry.
Thusiax didn't die that day, but from then on the boy's life as he had known it was effectively over. He was groomed to become a tool of the Ministry, and when Keira was promoted to Magister, he went through the Initiation. Soon after, the Ministry managed to organise for him to see out his durance with an influential aelfir master in Amaranth.
Fascinating. So you were in the Ministry your entire time of your Durance? Did you serve your former master faithfully or did you perform acts for the Ministry in secret?
That's the bit most subject to change... In the end, I figured they'd want to ensure my quality and loyalty before sending me off for four years.
I was sent off as a sleeper, to live as any other young drow performing my durance, and learn all I could. Upon completion, I was instructed to apply for permanent employment, which I did successfully, and then begin cultivating the aelfir as a blind asset.
This has not been too difficult, as my role for the aelfir has been as his agent in the shadows. Though still young, my impeccable service has gained me much trust from my master. My skills lie in subterfuge, remaining unseen, untraced, except when I wish. Thus, I have many opportunities to exploit my position for the benefit of the Ministry.
Okay, so my story has evolved a little while responding to the initiation rite questions above. I don't usually write this much, but I had half a day off today, and couldn't think of anything I'd rather do! Hope you enjoy the read.
******************************************
After meeting Keira, the boy from Derelictus became nameless, shedding his entire life. He was now nobody but that who he would create for himself, or that which he would be moulded into. He was simply the boy. His initiation rites changed all that. Here are the stories of his initiation rites, in the order he completed them.
When the boy was presented with the Rite of Fury, he knew exactly upon whom to exact his revenge. Stealing into the warehouse complex one night, he isolated the high elf, tormented him by hunting him through the empty, darkened warehouse, and finally trapped him just as the aelfir thought he was about to escape. He then tortured the high elf until dawn, leaving his broken, lifeless body hanging in front of the building in the morning light.
The boy found his old one-eyed enemy easily, and discovered that where Soriost had once been a tall, strong, and clever lad for his age, since his injury he had become something of a wretch. His prospects looked poor, and his durance was likely to be as horrible as possible.
The boy kept watch over the one-eyed boy for the full month, attempting in all ways to make life better for him. In the end, he approached Soriost, presenting him with a bag of sten and an alternative to the terrible durance that loomed ahead of him. The boy had organised for Soriost to study with Parinya the Vermissian. It would require Soriost fleeing his life, much the way the boy had, and not serving any durance, but the boy was sure Parinya could keep Soriost hidden and safe until he was well-prepared enough to go his own way. The boy then left Soriost with his own decision to make. He has since enquired discreetly, and found out that Soriost did indeed take up the offer, going into hiding and studying the way of the Vermissian Sages.
Young Thusiax Talimat was kidnapped by Crimson Vigilantes five weeks before he was due to begin his durance. Fortunately, the cell of Vigilantes was uncovered and destroyed before they could finish torturing and killing the lad. However, though the overjoyed parents did not notice, the Thusiax that returned was not a descendant of House Aliquam, but a son of Derelictus, the boy who was no one.
In reality, the Vigilantes were manipulated by the Ministry into kidnapping the lad, and Thusiax was in fact killed and replaced by the boy. The commoner drow then served his durance in place of the original Thusiax. While he has appropriated the life of Thusiax Talimat permanently, he is known by his Ministry contacts as Kourkash, which is the name of a bird that knocks eggs out of other birds' nests and replaces them with its own.
And so the boy became Thusiax, and Kourkash also. As it stands, he is only four months into his work as a free man for his master, who I will detail further soon. He is also a devotee of the Masked God (p 199) as well as Lombre.
I'm looking forward to playing this guy!
To climb he uses a modified harmess that allows him to do so one handed (as an aside, I am an air assault trained army veteran, and I can tell you that I've done Aussie repels one handed).
Clive is simply too mean to die. He refuses to give any Aelfir the satisfaction of his death, as he assumes that they all want to kill him, so he is willing to return the favor.
Clive killed the son of the person who was his master after he was cast aside to die. He left a calling card pointing it at another house, hoping that his former owner will stupidly go to war with them.
Clive infiltrated the life of an alchemist by the name of Delvane. After killing the man and taking his place using a prostetic arm, he began selling poisons, which is how he was eventually ostracized from the community.
The magister slipped up with administering instructions and used his native accent, which led Clive to a particular area of the city where it is used extensively. From there, it was only a matter of looking.
Clive aided the guard by stealing evidence and leaving it where it would be found on those that their investigators knew were corrupt but couldn't prove it.
Clive studied under a Vermissian mage by the name of Micle. Micle's great work involves what he calls a "timeline of the multiverse". Clive didn't understand much of it, but he did learn about alternate realities based on choices he makes in this one.
To climb he uses a modified harmess that allows him to do so one handed (as an aside, I am an air assault trained army veteran, and I can tell you that I've done Aussie repels one handed).
Are you an Aussie too Vrog?
Both of these write ups are excellent!
Go ahead and make your aliases!
Spire is a game that encourages self-direction. Your goal is to make changes to the city, to subvert rather than destroy and ultimately to drive the Aelfir from your home.
Are there any areas in the city that you’re especially interested in interacting with? If not, I can leave some hooks and let you two choose which to bite.
Awesome :) Yep, I think one thing we really need to work out now is how the two of us have ended up working together. Have we worked together a lot, never, somewhere in between? Plus, we both have bonds with each other, we should probably detail those.
Also, who is our magister? I have Keira there, who could be our magister, but happy for other ideas too. Do they give us much direction, or perhaps a bunch of hooks like you suggested, GM?
Most importantly, do we call ourselves Clive & Thusiax, or Thusiax & Clive? The default is alphabetical order, so Clive & Thusiax perhaps?
No sir, I'm an American.
Also, Clive & Thusiax sounds like a used bookstore.
Good thing we're a clandestine group and don't need to advertise then :)
So my bond says I helped you out somehow while you were serving your durance. How do you think that might have been? I guess you might've needed some assistance when you lost your arm... Any other ideas spring to mind?
Well, I was a killer for a while before I lost my arm, so you could have helped me out on one my missions.
As far as that goes, my Bond says I rescued you from a dangerous situation. Any ideas there?
Keira is a perfect choice for your Magister. The Ministry prefers Ministers who are self directed, but Keira is always happy to point you in the right direction if you’re at a loss. If you want a mission to start out with, I can get you started in the gameplay thread.
What do you think Vrog? Do you have a specific mission idea or even just general plan you want to explore, or are you happy to follow a lead for our first time out?
So Vrog I noticed we both did our rite of sagacity under a Vermissian seer. So perhaps it was around the same time and I got into strife somewhere in the Vault with some kind of extra-dimensional horror that crawled through the rents in space/time created by the Vermissian project. It may have had me cornered, and maybe you happened along and managed to distract it. That could have been the beginning of a solid friendship. I would have been 15 at the time. How old were you when you did your initiation?
And your durance would have happened before that, maybe when I was 10 or so. Perhaps you had a target down in Derelictus, but it went wrong and you were in serious trouble. A little drow boy may have helped you hide in an abandoned cellar or something, while your enemies searched the district for you. You probably could have escaped yourself, but you appreciated it. Then, in the Vault, you recognised me as that little boy when I was about to get eaten by some freaky interdimensional monster. You rescued me, and that was that.
What do you reckon?
I'm fine with both getting a mission assigned and your idea of our bonds littlehewy. I'll get an alt created shortly so we can start.
EDIT: Alt created.
Okey doke, all set.
I see Clive has doted in the gameplay thread. I want to make sure that Thusiax knows to check out the post as well.
Great mission summary, love it!
GM, could we get a little bit of background on the particular company Laroche worked for? Was it a hydro farm or a dark one? Hope you don't mind me making up locations like the Dark Farmer's Rest :) If anything won't work as I've suggested (eg taking only three hours to prep a disguise etc), just let me know.
Also, starting to detail my employer and the employees who make up my NPC bond in case we need them soon.
Question for you, Karkoush. You continue to work for your Aelfir employer as a go-between for the criminal elements of Spire. In his employ, is your role openly known or do you have a cover identity provided by your employer? In other words, are you known as his Fixer, or are you a Minister pretending to be a fixer pretending to be a more conventional member of his staff?
Also, did you describe your other masks? I can't find it if you did. You have three, one that you wear during your operations, one that you've described already that you wear while in service to your employer and the citizen's mask. What do the other two look like? How do they make you feel while wearing them?
Good questions! Thinking on them now.
Okay, I think I've answered those questions on my profile now. To summarise his employment situation and reputation, only those who treat with the criminal world know of Thusiax's role as Lord Cornell's agent in the underworld.
He's one of my bonds, detailed under the bonds spoiler.
Very well done. I missed that one!
Ha no, I only put the reference to the bonds spoiler after you asked who he was :)
So do questions about the organisation include things about its employees? Eg, "Does/did a man named Laroche work for the company?"
Sure! That’d be fine. Remember, you’re not asking staff the question, you’re asking me. I give you information that you gleam from rumors and gossip among the staff
Oh here's a thing. I have a couple of powers, One of the Staff included, that I can use "once per session". Obviously that doesn't really work with pbp. How do we want to define that? Once every two days, or a week? Once every page, or every three pages of posts? I'm easy, just thought maybe you should lay that down now before it becomes important!
So Clive, you have a knack on stealth so you get to roll three dice when you're hiding in shadows, right? That's pretty sweet. I don't even have mastery over anything.
Edit: Or is that four dice?
I think we can be flexible with "per session" I don't want to base it around real time or number of posts, obviously because those can vary wildly. I think it will be context-based, when we all agree that enough time has passed to do it again. It will be at least three situations, but it could be more if you have like, five situations in a single day.
Part of games like this is that we all trust each other to not take advantage of the rules to "win." If it doesn't make sense for you to infiltrate another organization so soon after the last, you won't. If some time has passed and there's no reason why you couldn't pop One of the Staff, you can. We'll let the fiction be our guide.
I think we can be flexible with "per session" I don't want to base it around real time or number of posts, obviously because those can vary wildly. I think it will be context-based, when we all agree that enough time has passed to do it again. It will be at least three situations, but it could be more if you have like, five situations in a single day.
Part of games like this is that we all trust each other to not take advantage of the rules to "win." If it doesn't make sense for you to infiltrate another organization so soon after the last, you won't. If some time has passed and there's no reason why you couldn't pop One of the Staff, you can. We'll let the fiction be our guide.
I like it.
So Clive, you have a knack on stealth so you get to roll three dice when you're hiding in shadows, right? That's pretty sweet. I don't even have mastery over anything.
Edit: Or is that four dice?
It's 3 dice, since I do have mastery for hiding in shadows. Meanwhile, you have a greater depth of skills than I do (as I have only fight, stealth, and pursue).
So GM, I'm thinking about tailing Duella after she finishes work tomorrow. Depending on where she goes and what she does, an opportunity to approach her should arise. Would that be a Stealth roll, something else, or no roll necessary?
(I'm assuming some roll, but just checking...)
Is it very important to you that you follow her and make contact without anybody seeing you? Then make a stealth roll.
Are you just concerned about guards seeing you? Add 1d for your Order domain (but know that other people might spot you talking.)
Is discression less important and you’re more interested in getting her talking? You can hop over to meeting with her and rolling to get her to tell you what she knows.
Oh no, I guess not. I had it in my head that I'd follow her without her seeing me, and if she went home that would lead to one sort of approach, if she went to a bar or to see Michael then I'd work another angle. If the way I approach her doesn't matter too much, then just tell me where she goes and how the meeting starts :)
I know we've only just started, but this mystery is already under my skin... dying to know what's going on.
Just getting started with an Idol here...
Velas
Class: Idol
RESISTANCES:
Blood
Mind +3
Silver +1
Shadow
Reputation +2
REFRESH: Someone feels deeply moved when they
witness your art.
Durance: Sage (+2 Mind, Academia)
Domains: High Society, Occult, Academia
Skills: Deceive, Compel
Bonds: 3 NPC fans
Bond with a PC—ha!
Equipment:
Several dazzling outfits tbd
Webbing, brushes, Lakris spiked fiddle
Ancient poetry
Gifts and trinkets
Knife (D3 damage, Concealable)
Core Abilities:
LIFE AND SOUL OF THE PARTY: People flock
to be near you. Once per session, so long as there
are people nearby and a place to have it, you can
create an instant gathering with dancing, games,
drinking, eating and chatting. The party gives you
mastery to persuade, deceive, or distract actions
performed within it.
GLAMOUR. Black magic and poise let you become
whoever they want you to be. Once per situation,
choose an NPC. Using a cocktail of charm, practiced
poise and semi-legal black magic, you change
your appearance to represent their ideal partner.
ADVANCES
CENTRE OF ATTENTION. When you stride into a
room, people take notice. Gain +1 Reputation. Roll
with mastery when you attempt to get everyone
in a situation to focus on you and you alone. In
addition, describe three incredible outfits that you
now own.
INSTILL EMOTION. [Occult] Your art drives others
to excess. If you succeed at a Compel+Occult check
when you perform or exhibit your art for an hour
or more, you may drive a receptive crowd into one
of the following: debauched excess, utter sorrow
or mind-
Velas will be your typical 5-octave throat singing to sopranist falsettist post structuralist performance artist, specially trained and...modified...by aelfir masters. Once performing solely for rarefied academiae, he has become fashionable to the masses and even the transgressive underground, which amuses his masters..for now. He intends to use all he has learned to twist the ways of the aelfir, not caring if it means his life in the end.
More later! :)
Looks hilariously cool! Nice work Axolotl :)
Oh by the way GM, I'm starting a 5e Forgotten Realms game here, set before 4e screwed it up with the Spellplague. Check it out if it sounds like something you'd be interested in playing :) Vrog's already got a sweet concept in mind.
I'll pass. PbtA broke me forever. I can't run with anything with too much crunch (though I'm giving it my best try with L5r).
Velas, when you're ready, scroll up to Wed, Mar 14, 2018, 08:33 am on this thread and read my post about the Rites. Answer the questions and I'll slide you in.
P.S. If you'd prefer to not create a romantic bond with another PC (largely against their will) those "feelings" can be admiration or respect that they want to keep secret. I could imagine Clive being in awe of your poise and abilities without wanting to admit it: after all, there's no time for art of any sort when your entire home can come sliding off the side of a mile high tower at any moment. Thusiax could also be a good fit. He keeps his cards close to his chest and I don't think he'd demean himself by showing sincere appreciation or reverence when he's spent so much of his life faking it.
Or one of the PCs could agree that they have "feelings" for your character. I'm comfortable with that as long as both sides of the interaction are ok with it.
(BT dubs, I'm not doing that just because it's a homosexual relationship. I'd get consent from both sides before forcing any party members into a romantic relationship)