@Wastrel: perhaps a little GM fiat could be allowed here to help distinguish Violetta and Kyra? Either let Kyra not have tinker, or maybe let Vioetta have 2 tinker and 1 sway while Kyra has the opposite? Just to help with the variety.
That's fair. @Kyra, as long as you end up with 7 dots and no more than 2 dots in any single action, you don't have to put a dot in Tinker :)
I hope you at least figured out which historical figure Constantin is in my head. ;)
I'm in the USA at the moment so have no books but consensus seems to be for:
Ability: The Waters in Which We Swim (Most popular)
Strength: Intelligence (Violetta approves wholeheartedly!)
Reputation: Ambitious or Daring (They both fit well so dice it unless someone has a strong feeling one way or the other?)
Upgrades: The Lady's Favour and...(again I have no books so I'll leave the final decision to the rest of you!)
Added.
You need a Name, a Reputation and one additional Upgrade.
Thanks for spotting that, updated my profile to remove the stray second dot in Survey.
I hope you at least figured out which historical figure Constantin is in my head. ;)
Yes, it was good work and I look forward to having fun with it.
Which reminds me: @Elisabetta - Lucretia was the target of the assassination attempt which claimed your sister. It has never been fully explained exactly what she was doing out on the canals at that time of night with just the one personal guard. You look enough like Serena that the first time Lucretia saw you wearing your house colours, she turned absolutely white and had to sit down. Even now, she has difficulty making eye contact with you.
Thanks for spotting that, updated my profile to remove the stray second dot in Survey.
I've updated your character sheet accordingly.
I hope you at least figured out which historical figure Constantin is in my head. ;)
I have not. =/
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I hope you at least figured out which historical figure Constantin is in my head. ;)I have not. =/
But
Otherwise,Regarding the
Game we're in
I think we're
Almost ready to go?
Daring it is!
Name: The Eyes? The Whispers? The Five Crowns/Crows?
@Kyra, try looking at Popes c.1500.
The first gameplay post will be up either later this evening or more likely tomorrow morning (UK time).
We can finish the housekeeping stuff as we go.
OK, 2 of you are up and the rest are in progress.
The plan here is to do a session zero in play - no dice rolls, think of this as the cold open in, say, an episode of Leverage where you get to see the protagonists at their utmost, competent best. That doesn't mean you can accomplish the impossible ("I reach out with one arm and stop the sun" yeah no) but think of it as though you roll a six automatically on every action roll.
Get into your character's skin, be awesome, be vulnerable, and show me who you are!
EDIT: I'm hoping this makes sense and you know what to do, but it's very different from the way most games start so if you have any questions please do fire away.
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May I just say congrats to Wastrel - this looks like a thoroughly excellent beginning to the campaign!
Should those of us not called out by name be RP-ing right now or not? One is not entirely sure...
How about The Chimeras for a coterie name? We're a bunch of misfits with vastly different skills and goals, but the aspiration is that we will come together and work as one organism. Also, fire-breathing.
Violetta does not approve of being named after an ugly mythological beast! The Hand perhaps? We can be open and reaching out for diplomacy or closed and ready for violence...
The Misfits would work too, even if it is less complimentary!
Or The Harlequins. We seem motley and a mess to others but we always get the job done and when the dust settles the laugh is always on someone else...
The Hand is perfect, five fingers and everything. Perhaps with an adjective, like 'reaching' or 'gloved'. The latter would fit better if gloves are used for formal challenges.
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@Kyra: I think we get to decide if they are or not. ;) The Gloved Hand, unless someone objects?
As for our beloved Prince... is this about right for where we are?
Constantin, the Old Lion
The new Prince of House Bastien has devoted his life to change, to raising up the poor of Ilrien and rebuilding the city into somewhere where anyone can dream and those brave and skilled enough might even make their dreams come true.
Change has come slowly, so slowly that Constantin's one lifetime has almost not been enough, but with the fortune that is bestowed only on the lucky or the truly good events conspired to hand Constantin the perfect opportunity.
Now he sits among the Esultare, a Prince at last but the Lady always has another cheek and now Constantin's faculties are beginning to fail him. He will live for some time yet and even in death will be remembered as one of the most spectacular individuals for centuries, but much of his legacy is yet to be written, and it may yet be written by others.
Cesare, the Butcher of Bastien
Young, strong and unashamedly violent Cesare is Constantins oldest child and his heir apparent. Powerful and capable he is not a man to cross but is definitely a man who can be led. He never loses a fight, but not every battle in the Game is fought with blades, a truth that his sister Lucretia knows all too well. She plays the Game in its purest form, where a fluttering fan or a carefully chosen word can bring ruin and disaster far beyond a blade.
Lucretia, Lady of Lusts
Unfortunately Lucretia plays the Game as she does because she loves both comfort and ease. Carrying on her fathers work is easier than charting her own path and doing so on the social scene is far less effort than he brothers more... rigorous methods. That being said she is still the Old Lions daughter and ambition runs thick in her blood. The prospect of just stepping back and handing their fathers great work to Cesare is not something this proud young woman can stand so she schemes and politicks, both to protect her fathers work and do her brother in the eye.
Calliope Cagliara, the Crouching Jackal
No-one who values their limbs would use Lady Calliope's nickname where she knight hear, but it is fitting. Calliope sits beneath Constantin, between his siblings and behind them all. To most she simply keeps the family running on the day to day but to those who know better she keeps both of the young lions in line, trains them to succeed their father and slowly amassed her own power. Her motives may well be pure, but for a woman that has already abandoned her house and position to join Bastiens rise... well, can people really be blamed for having suspicions?
I wasn't quite sure how far to go with it. I hope that's okay.
That works, although it's better if you let me play the NPCs otherwise I don't have anytging to do :(
@Violetta - feel free to post at the New Year Ball, but hold off on 8 Gennaio until your ticket is called :)
Sorry about that. I'll show more restraint next time. :)
Apropos of nothing: timestamps on these boards are a complete mess on my end, and outside of post order it is next to impossible to keep track of when precisely something was posted. A brief search suggests this was a known issue years ago, possibly related to time zones, but apparently remains unfixed to this day. So that's lovely.
But enough kvetching! For our coterie name I have no issue with The Gloved Hand; I do perhaps prefer the adjective-less a tiny bit (association with a certain Marvel comics ninja organisation notwithstanding).
Luciana: The Groan forges people in its dark, twisting alleys and hovels furnished with nothing but desperation and the need to survive to see another sunrise. For a child, the heat of the furnace is hotter and the pounding hammer of the smith even stronger. Just like the artisans of the finest blades are recognized in each lethal length of steel, the Groan leaves it own telltale marks of its craft. On those rare occasions when someone truly escapes the depths of the Groan they usually do everything they can to put that past behind them. But like recognizes like. So it is that despite all the various personas or layers Sasha wears despite the fact her job is to hide her true self, you can see her anyway. Of course, this is a two way street and thus Sasha often sees you not as you are, but as you want to be. It means the world to you.
This works for me! Though I am honestly not sure how much of a meaningful difference there is between Luciana-as-she-is and Luciana-as-she'd-like-to-be. (The closest thing to a definite ambition for her that has occurred to me thus far, if it even applies in this context, is avenging herself on the people who brought about the ruin of her family-troupe way back in the day. It is not as though she perennially lusts for the kind of power/influence required to make this happen, though.)
Kyra suggested that maybe she helped you enter House Bastien, so maybe This isn’t my world. I look to Kyra when I need advice.
Unfortunately Violetta got to Luciana first as a sponsor. This suggested bond still could make sense, though, if only because their shared Iberican heritage might make Luciana a little more likely to trust Kyra's take on House business and all that extremely fun and not at all opaque or tedious stuff.
Elisabetta has a past as a youthful delinquent, maybe your paths crossed back then? Thus, Elisabetta and I used to run together back in the good old days. Look at us now!
I am not actively opposed to the idea, though it hinges on Elisabetta's idea of slumming it involving particularly insalubrious locales like the Twist. If it does then that's OK by me, of course!
The Gloved Hand works for me - delivering either the velvet touch or a mailed fist, as appropriate.
Work today is crazy busy so I may not get all the posts done in-game until tomorrow.
One thing I realised when I was writing Elisabetta's post is that we haven't really discussed your allies and rivals - I made something up about Blair that hopefully isn't too far off the mark from how Elisabetta intended him to be, but if any of you have particular thoughts on your NPC allies then feel free to let me know.
Likewise for your rivals - and note please that "rival" does not mean "nemesis" in that they are not someone you need to confront and defeat (if you ever do, you will need to get another rival). They are supposed to be a source of frustration, possibly even a source of work (although the reward you get for working for them is that they will dislike you slightly less), maybe even someone you have to work with on occasion (through gritted teeth) or possibly even ask for help every now and then!
I am not actively opposed to the idea, though it hinges on Elisabetta's idea of slumming it involving particularly insalubrious locales like the Twist. If it does then that's OK by me, of course!
That totally works for me! Elisabetta's long ago youth (As in, you know, a couple of months ago) was filled with numerous escapades in the worst parts of the city.
One thing I realised when I was writing Elisabetta's post is that we haven't really discussed your allies and rivals - I made something up about Blair that hopefully isn't too far off the mark from how Elisabetta intended him to be, but if any of you have particular thoughts on your NPC allies then feel free to let me know.
Likewise for your rivals - and note please that "rival" does not mean "nemesis" in that they are not someone you need to confront and defeat (if you ever do, you will need to get another rival). They are supposed to be a source of frustration, possibly even a source of work (although the reward you get for working for them is that they will dislike you slightly less), maybe even someone you have to work with on occasion (through gritted teeth) or possibly even ask for help every now and then!
Elisabetta's ally, Blair, is fine. I think I had originally intended for them to be a dowager, but this works as well. No worries. I haven't really given much thought yet to her rival.
Hi all, work caught me off-guard after Easter but I'm now all caught up and posting the rest. Thanks for bearing with me.
I found a map of Ilrien here and I'm thinking that something similar might be useful for us as well, a place to mark where everyone lives, where our friends, rivals and paramours live and any other places of interest.
Any thoughts on the best platform that supports thesee kinds of custom markers and annotations?
Probably Google Slides?
Semi-pertinent thought: if our coterie is collectively known as the Gloved Hand, does that mean its individual members should be referred to as the Fingers? :]
Semi-pertinent thought: if our coterie is collectively known as the Gloved Hand, does that mean its individual members should be referred to as the Fingers? :]
Heh.
@Kyra - never apologise for writing a long post - especially one that good!
On the subject of maps - the map of Ilrien provided in the rulebook is more of a schematic, showing where everything is in relation to everything else. It's not intended to be to scale, else the Groan would be the largest area by far. That said, if there's general agreement it would be helpful, I can put it onto Slides so you can mark it up.
Semi-pertinent thought: if our coterie is collectively known as the Gloved Hand, does that mean its individual members should be referred to as the Fingers? :]
I nominate Elisabetta as the middle finger. :)
Semi-pertinent thought: if our coterie is collectively known as the Gloved Hand, does that mean its individual members should be referred to as the Fingers? :]I nominate Elisabetta as the middle finger. :)
I think according to custom, the Couth gets first dibs on that. Otherwise you're likely to have a Hand composed almost entirely of middle fingers...
I can see Kyra as the ring finger. Now, the question is, who is Littlefinger?
Now, the question is, who is Littlefinger?
I think that's Violetta
"Do you have 1 or 2 people you can trust?"
"Yes."
"Wrong!"
I might be the thumb, the one you have to keep outside the fist before punching or else you break it...
Likely no post from me until I'm back in the UK c. Wednesday, I might manage something before then but posts at length are tricky without my comp.
I might be the thumb, the one you have to keep outside the fist before punching or else you break it...
Likely no post from me until I'm back in the UK c. Wednesday, I might manage something before then but posts at length are tricky without my comp.
Thanks for the update, there's no hurry, this isn't a 1/day posting rate. I will look to post something for Sasha, Elisabetta and Kyra later today or tomorrow.
I suppose Middle Finger might be an appropriate choice for Luciana due to its obvious connotations. Then again, with the Little/Pinky Finger arguably being the lowliest and least loved of digits hand-wise, I could see that working as well…
I nominate Elisabetta as the middle finger. :)I think according to custom, the Couth gets first dibs on that.
Quod Erat Demonstrandum
@Kyra - you wrote a great post, but I'm not sure why you/Olivio are headed to the Docks and/or what you plan to do when you get there so I'm leaving this one open for you to take the lead.
EDIT: @everyone - if I set up a Discord channel for this game for quick catch-ups and OOC chat, would you guys use it? Or would you prefer to have the discussion in this thread? I'm easy either way.
I am not crazy about Discord, but if the majority opinion tended towards using it I suppose I'd suck it up. :)
For ooc discussions, I prefer Discord as it usually has a better uptime %. :)
Second a preference for discord. The only issue I can see is if there becomes confusion about what should be posted where.
Not a fan of discord or having a second place to check for information about the game. And since I am on US West Coast time, I'm not sure how often I'd actually be online at the same time as others.
I think with 2 no/reluctant, we keep ooc discussion here. I'm on Discord and anyone who wants to contact me that way, can.
@GM - I'm putting Kyra in the Docks area as that's where I understood Sasha to be and I'm hoping to meet up.
Going to hold off on posting the next round to give Violetta and Luciana a chance to post and get caught up.
I hope I am not taking too many narrative liberties here. You did say we're not yet in full roll-to-find-out mode. :)
Works for me!
Thanks for bearing with me - busy weekend spilled into Monday but I'm back now.
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A quick note on the faction guide I put a link to in the campaign heading - the various factions of Ilrien are divided into categories: each of the Houses Major, the Houses Minor, the Citizenry, the Outsiders and the Uncouth.
You can accumulate Favour with each faction type, and House Bastien starts with 1 Favour from the Citizenry. That said, each individual faction may have its own opinion of you. At the start of the game, most factions haven't really taken much note of House Bastien, with the following exceptions.
House Corvetto, for its own mysterious reasons, seems to be pleased that you have upset the status quo. Your actions in rising to the Esultare have not harmed them, and have caused the other Houses to squabble among themselves. You have +1 status with them, meaning that they will help you if it does not get in their way. They expect the same from you.
House Elanda, on the other hand, strongly dislikes you for entirely non-mysterious reasons. Many of their former holdings are now outside their grasp, and their standing is greatly diminished. You have -2 status with them, meaning that they will look for opportunities to hurt you provided it does not cause them serious problems.
The First Court represents not merely the interests of what passes for justice in Ilrien, but also the maintenance of the status quo. You have upset this, and the First Court has had several instances of having to restore order. House Bastien is seen as a disruptive influence, giving the commons ideas above their station. You have -1 status with them, meaning that they will look for opportunities to cause trouble for you, or profit from your misfortune, if it causes no difficulties for them.
The Bakers' Guild feels - not unjustly - that they were used as a pawn in the recent upheaval that resulted in House Bastien being promoted to the Esultare. Feelings are hurt. You have -1 status with them, meaning that they will look for opportunities to cause trouble for you, or profit from your misfortune, if it causes no difficulties for them.
The Broadsheets are very happy for now at House Bastien's actions, which have resulted in the editor audibly regretting at times that he has only one front page. You have +1 status with them, meaning that they will help you if it does not get in their way. They expect the same from you.
She shakes her head. "Probably doesn't really matter." Using the rusty knife as best she can, she rips off several lengths of her blouse and expertly knots the silk strips together.
@Kyra - I don't think you're getting that shirt back!
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Correction: I don't think my mother is getting that shirt, which is fine by me! :D
Just a reminder that this is session zero, which is a chance to get under your character's skin and work out what makes them tick - if it turns out they're going in a slightly different direction than you anticipated and you're now thinking maybe you'd rather take a different special ability, or perhaps move some action points around from where they currently are, let me know and we can do that.
I'm falling a little behind as I've been busy, although I also confess that I don't know what to do with Kyra at this point. My initial thought was to help Sasha, but she seems to have things figured out. Kyra is out of her element and on her own; the only thing I can think of is backtracking and investigating that Margravine Octavia business.
Fortuitously walk past the sewer grate as she crawls out of it?