LinCon 2022

Centuria at LinCon 2022? Absolutely!

https://app.lincon.se/events/the-great-hunt/

From near and far hunters assemble in the northern wilderness. Here the lords of Cenovar are arranging an annual hunt. Some join for the challenge, others for fame or glory. But there are many dangers lurking... Which hunting team will emerge victorious?

The Dragon's Offer

 They hade been travelling with Nepthys in the lead heading towards the lighthouse that could be seen in the distance. Echan's Folly a proof of divination gone to far...
They jumped off their horses and waded the last bit through the shallow water towards the derelict buildings. When they entered it seemed like time suddenly slowed down to a stop and Julian looked around.
His companions around him looked like they had been frozen in time...

Suddenly, in front of him, a woman had appeared as from thin air. She was wrapped in a fine white elven dress, not leaving much to the imagination, and showing her pale, almost white skin. In contrast her hair flowed red like fire around her face, but what grabbed Julian was the eyes. Green like emeralds and almost glowing, expelling something far from human... The Woman was beautiful but still had an aura of danger although the eyes and the smile was friendly, almost smug... Her voiced seemed to be quite quiet, but at the same time rich and reached Julian in full clarity.
"Welcome Julian Cornelius, I am the Eternal Queen, the Lady in White, the White Dragon. I am Halomyr, and I have an offer to you. I have seen your endeavor to transform this country and found it worthy. I am willing to offer you My help. In exchange, I ask that when you change your country, you give my people - my followers - a place. Do not you stand in the way of those who wish to follow my bid. Do you accept my offer, magos? Can I expect you to stand by my side?"
Julian hesitated for a moment, the smugness, there was something to it. But still they where working for a free open Damasa, for eveyone... Julian gave it a quick thought and then spoke.
"If they give freedom and space in the same way and do not get away for us and the rest, they will have a place on our side. Our pursuit is freedom, unity and equality. Is this acceptable? Will we stand on each other's sides?"
That last bit, thought Julian, might be pushing it but the smugness from her part made Julian want to push back...
"You are negotiating with a god? I do not know if you are stupid or just brave, mortal. But it does not matter. What I ask for leaves nothing to negotiate: either you support my chosen the right to follow their faith or you do not. You are free to choose here and now, but know that the reward I offer is great. Which is also the punishment if you would later let me down."
Julian though to himself and looked around at his companions frozen in time. This was a moment he would have liked their advice, this was something they where three to decide...
The where three... They didn't decide alone, even if Julian supported the other might object, and still it was about choice, it was about freedom. Choice and freedom was what the where working towards for Damasa. For everyone... Julian nodded to himself and gathered himself.
"If all goes well, everyone is equal in our future Damasa and they have as much space as we, side by side. Those who want, of their own will, will have the right to follow their own faith."
"You try my patience, mortal. I do not ask for your opinion - I ask for your faithfulness. A cheap price for what I offer. Few mortals get this opportunity. Do you want to waste it with more talk or do you have a decision?"
Julian sighed discreetly to himself, he had to stop thinking like a politician, at least abit...
"Yes, I will let those who want to follow their faith to have a place in our new country."
She seemed satisified, for the moment...
"Then it's sealed. As a first acquisition, I say to you, in the forests of Ossina, where you sent your spies, the clan Maximora conceals a secret army - an army with firearms. With that, they intend to attack Mafar-Eldio to the east and take back these lands, thus taking Molos place as Damasa's war clan. The only thing in their way is that they need a navy to move their army. Get them one so they can leave the forest behind them. Their presence disturbs those who are close to me."
After she spoken time seemed to speed up and she was gone. Julian noticed that it seemed like Nepthys just had said something.
Julian shook himself and turned his attention towards Nepthys.
"Excuse me, I lost myself in someone else's thoughts."
Nepthys just smiled back at Julian...

On the road again

 The second day of traveling is always the heaviest. You have gotten away, sat and frothed around in the cab or in a saddle all day. The body has not yet got used to the everyday comforts that life in the capital provides. Although Edward does not live a life of superfluous luxury, he still enjoys many comforts. Above all, he is very happy to have a short travel time to work. It's enough to cross the threshold and he's in his study. This study is not only an office but also a scientific laboratory. An achievement to feel proud of. It has taken many years of hard work to put together the most basic things, but now it is available. Some people, colleagues and acquaintances sometimes thought that it was borrowed equipment that for some unfathomable reason was expected to be returned. Edward found this amusing and completely misunderstood such claims. In addition, they were clearly not as talented as him, thus making the equipment more useful to him. This view of the whole thing had unfortunately led to some messy arguments.
A new lab assistant would not have been completely stupid, but competent people with the same passion as himself was elusive. So far, Hertig had to fill in as an assistant and companion in the experiments, unfortunately cats have a tendency to make a mess sometimes. Go and stroke against things they should have known enough to stay away from. The lack of a capable assistant had led Edward to learn a spell in order to be able to freely dictate a quill while he worked. This turned out to be a good choice as the pen itself had a nicer handwriting than Edward's twisted letters.
The passengers were elated and in a good mood when they heard the sound of the driver's whip fluttering in the air. The draft horses snorted a little in the cold morning air and the carriage started moving. Edward had been awake for a while the night before, contemplating the nature of the mission. It was not like Inquisitor Ramiero to be so secretive. After all, it was very important that they were given information to start investigating, otherwise it was easy to look blindly for misleading clues and incorrect clues. By all accounts, the others in the party had had time to think about the assignment after they parted the night before.
Edward leaned a little closer to Miss Leclair, who was sitting opposite him in the cab. She sat in the usual order and read a book. The book was quite thick to take on the road, but it did not seem to worry the young lady. Edward broke the silence.
"So, what are the Miss' thoughts on the mission? I lay awake last night after I turned off the light and thought about it."
Adelia looked up from the book and looked at Edward before speaking. "At the moment I have no theories with any support, but I think this is mysterious and at the same time exciting."
Edward leaned back on his side, glanced in Mr Falco's direction. He seemed immersed in his own thoughts and not in the mood to discuss the mission. Once the body and mind have found peace in being on the move, everything immediately became much easier. Even the weather got a little better. In fact, it was not so, but it was happily experienced that way. Despite the pale spring sun, the road to Karalis was empty for travelers this year. The day flowed by slowly and was largely uneventful. 

Epic backstory

 Three centuries. Three centuries he had battled spirits, wrestled arcana from the long dead and maintained as much connections to the mortal realm as he could manage. And now he was asked to stand aside? Once this would have angered him, but one of the advantages of an incorporeal form, the emperor had noted, was how all feelings appeared dull and dim - as through being memories rather than actual experiences. It was probably an observation very close to the truth. No, he wasn't angry. Thinking further the feeling that actually came to his mind was relief. He had never questioned what he would do once he returned, but here was an opportunity; someone asked him to stand aside, to not take interest - to not be held responsible... Yes, there were other things to life, he knew. Perhaps it was time... But first he must settle with his past - and what remained of it in the world of the living...

Morion placed the Soul Key in the heavy lock. As he let go the mechanism started to turn on its own - and at the same time his protective spells suffered an assault that would definitely have slayed a less-prepared character, but his time in Damasa had helped him think like a wizard. The seal was broken. Now to head for the actual resting place...

The emperor blinked, but it mattered little in the darkness. Feelings came rushing to his head and his first breath in 300 years felt like sharp needles throughout his body. He tried to summon light, but his powers felt drained, distant... it felt like forever before one of the crystals sparked to life and illuminated the old chamber. He was naked and rather cold, so hurriedly he donned the amulets and other artifacts layed out around the casket. Then, using one of the wands he reached into a pocket dimension and produced a set of clothes. Nothing to fancy; simple yet elegant. His head spun slightly - the thought of food came to his mind like a long forgotten, not entirely welcomed, old friend. The next few hours were going to be unpleasant.
"Feeling alright?"
The voice came from the other side of the locked iron gate. As the emperor turned around he saw the same young man he had once seen back in his palace - so many years ago.
"You haven't aged a day. I'm impressed."
"Yes, it has its advantages."
"So what now?"
"You have a promise to fulfil. And a country to save, I believe."
The emperor stared hard at the man in the doorway. Oh, the feelings, now that he had them back again. Envy. Admiration. Fear. He was surprised over them; he had not realized this was how he had been.
"You take a great risk in releasing me, you know that."
"Your enemies are not as spry as they once were. And neither are you."
"I will recover quickly."
"I know you will. But I also know what its like to return from the dead after so many years."
The emperor raised one eyebrow.
"So you succeeded at last?"
"Yes. Yes, I did."
"And you still love each other?"
"Very much."
There was silence for a moment.
"When we first met you were but a young man. I found your wishes foolish then and expected them to mature with age. But here we are again, and I think it is I who look the fool. I will remember this lesson well. And I will honor my promise - if I can have but one request."
"Yes?"
"I wish to meet your friend. Just see her; to speak to her. It would seem we both owe her a great deal."
Morion smiled.
"It shall be my pleasure - tough expect no kind words for a start."
"I will not - though I will strive to deserve them. What a curious turn of events..."

A Sorcerer in the Inqusition

 The whole family was supposed to do inventory at the shop all day, going through all ingredients, salves and bottles making sure everything was accounted for. But as always, my brothers had taken my youngest siblings and ran off as soon as they had the chance. Not that I could blame them though, doing inventory was tedious work.

The hour was late, and I was stuck in the basement sorting through a shipment which had just come in when suddenly a loud banging on the front door could be heard upstairs. As I walked up the stairs I could hear my  brothers, being the curious devils as they were, rushing down the stairs from our living quarters down to the shop to see who it was as my parents made their way to the door. Given the late hour, Adelia was a bit curious herself and started walking up the stairs and into the shop. The bell on the door chimed as my parents opened the door, a messenger said, “A message for Miss Adelia LeClair!” and then the bell from the door chimed once again as the door closed a short while later. As she entered the store area of their house Adelia turned towards her parents and brothers who stood by the door. They stood frozen all four of them studying the seal of the letter, my parents were visibly pale. Without even seeing the letter I knew who had sent it and thoroughly cursed myself for trying to wait for a good time to tell them about my new employer. Hoping against all hope that it wasn’t the Inquisition that had sent me a letter I made my way over to my family. I could see the look of worry as I met my father's eyes as he wordlessly handed over the letter. My brothers had questions written all over their faces though they were uncharacteristically quiet right now, no doubt realizing the severity of this moment.  Seeing that it was indeed the seal of the Inquisition I carefully opened the letter without breaking the seal and glanced at its content. Realizing that I would have to go I felt a slight moment of relief followed by a sense of guilt. “I… I must go... to… to work... I’ll explain later. This seems urgent” I said as I carefully folded the letter and put it in my satchel.

Adelia grabbed her coat and quickly made her way outside onto a dark street, knowing that when she came back, she would have to have a difficult conversation with her family.

Loot!

After the meeting and report they had some items to sort through and some things to get straight. Lily raised the question about the dead.
"One of them seemed to have hurt himself and bleed out abit in the cave, the other obelisk seemed to glow red when there was blood close by..."
"Could some magic been activated and killed the three?"
Max looked horrified and said "If that is correct Lily, I'm not going to be cloose by to test it."
Adelia looked some what sceptical and stated "I would rather guess that they have been lured down as a trap, for the poison to take effect, and they will be away so they couldn't get help..."
At the same time Edward mumbled back "I don't care about the dead bodies, but that medallion should be mine!"
That peeked Arthurs reaction and he exclaimed "And why would you need a medallion of courage?, Courage? Would i be better Use for me so next time we face a demon i don't have to be afraid and cover behind a bar, yes yes, not one of my proudest moments..."
Edward simple answered "But you see Mr Schwarz the medallion should belong to me, it would be best for all of us. I can trade it for a potion of courage instead. You know courage is to overcome fear, not to be without it."
Arthur looked rather sceptical at Edward: "Are you serious, trade a single use potion of courage for a medallion? Why do you even need it?"
Bosco, clearly tired of the discussion, mumbled "If it's that important we can sell the other stuff and buy another one..."
In the middle of the rising argument Adelia chipped in: "Well if you're willpower and courage fail while casting magic a demon can tear out of your chest, like the one you mentioned at the bar Mr Schwarz, or something like that i think i read some where in a book..."
Arthur looked a bit sceptical but at the same time shocked: "Is it true Edward, that better courage and will make you better to deal with this magic stuff?"
Edward, a bit annoyed, answered "Yes! Or well better..."
Arthur sceptical frown turned into a smile while he interrupted Edward "Well great! Settled then, then you actually have a need for it and don't just WANT it. Damn man why didn't you just say so! Sometimes it seem that Miss Adelia here knows more about magic than you but you are the one casting the spells... Are you reading the right books?"

Encounter at the Ball

 “I am going with someone to the ball!” Adelia said while the tailor was adjusting the dress.
“What?” Lily quickly turned herself towards her friend. The unexpected movement made her own tailor flinch. Who narrowly avoided to put the needle in her customers back.
“Please, madame could you hold still?”
Lily however was to preoccupied to notice.
“Who is it? He better not hurt you or I will break his neck!!” She said in a rather protective voice. Adelia however just gave her a mischievous smile.
“Well you will find out soon enough aren’t you?”
Lily looked like she was about to say something more when a rather flamboyant dressed Arthur entered the room.
“Ahh, my ladies you looking radiant as ever!”
Lily’s mouth fell open, was it possible to have so many plumes and feathers in one hat?
“Well thank you Arthur, you’re looking rather dashing yourself!” Adelia said smiling broadly.
Arthur beamed and made a deep bow.
“So what’s the next stop ladies?”
“I need to go to the wig maker, I could need the opinion of your both. Since I never bought a wig before... but I don’t want to be recognized!” Lily said the last somewhat hesitantly.
“Ooh, who are you hiding from?” Adelia asked curiously, Arthur also looked on with a peeked interest.
Lily dragged out the answer before sighting and answering.
“My cousins!”

GM Diary: The Primagos Chronicles

Undoubtedly one of the best campaigns I've ever played, the Primagos Chronicles also set the stage for one of the most extreme (called Cybermage - there will be another post for that one). It was a campaign that, for me, really made the Age of Knowledge come alive in its own right, rather than simply just exist as a middle ground between the two other ages.

Setup

I must admit: despite all my rulebook writing where several settings are laid out in detail I often opt for a completely different setting when creating a new campaign. Perhaps this is because the prewritten settings are already done in my head; I have a mental image of them already in my head. Thus choosing another setting lets me - as well as the players - explore something new.

In this campaign I went all the way on that thread as the players take the roles as mages ("magos") within the declining nation of Damasa. Various wizard clans are bickering over power and though new technology is somewhat of a hallmark of the Age of Knowledge it was quite absent in the characters' home city of Hermis, situated at the root of the Othos Mountains. 

I invented 12 wizard clans/houses that wrestled for control over the nation and placed the characters as belonging to Ikalos - a craft-oriented clan with fairly good reputation and relations with just about everyone - to give them a fresh start. As for where the campaign was going I had only a very vague idea: one of house Ikalos' master craftsmen (or "artificer") would go missing (because another mage was trying to involve him in national politics) and the characters were to be tasked to find him. Where it went from there was a blank sheet.

Now the player group at my disposal was a bit smaller than usual: just three players. It was also three players that knew each other well, enjoyed playing with each other and, very importantly,  could handle internal conflicts both in and off game in a amiable manner. 

From a GM perspective this is really my ideal situation: to be able to let go of group dynamics and let the story write itself by expanding on the subjects the players choose to engage in. Of course, the choice of characters lay the very foundation for this journey - so here comes an introduction. The only requirement I placed on them was that they should have the ambition to reach the primagos rank - which meant they would gain access to more powerful spells and allies but be forced to involve themselves in Damasan politics.

Mehred

A complicated character, somewhat of a mix of Sybill Trelawney (divination teacher from Harry Potter) and Indiana Jones, Mehred is the son of a merchant family and is the character most skilled in the social arts. As it would appear he follows the rules of the nation, but when no one is looking he is more than happy to break them when he has cause to do so. While a bit distrustful he generally helps others throughout the campaign - though on most occasions he manages to do so and still turn a profit.

Julian

With a skillset combining biomancy (healing arts) and necromancy, Julian is somewhat at odds with himself right from the start. His family are mages too and they generally have good relations. It is a different matter altogether with Julian's (former) master - whom he betrayed for a chance at gaining power. This is a political side of him that is dormant for much of the campaign - but which comes back as very important towards the latter stages.

Vespian

A pure blood wizard aristocrat, Vespian comes out as a mixture of Lucius Malfoy (from Harry Potter) and Captain America - if such a combination is possible... Staunchly loyal to his motherland he has volunteered as a fighter against rebels in Damasa' colonies (something magos are generally except from) and believes that the magos' dominance of Damasa must continue - though the different houses should put their quarrels aside and unite against external enemies.

Development

The campaign started as planned with an expedition for the characters to find the missing artificer, after spending a few sessions establishing everyday life and a few of the characters' local contacts. As a central theme in the campaign was built around the fact that Damasa had been the enemy in several other campaigns and scenarios I wanted to continue to challenge the players in this perspective by offering opportunities to join with various factions whose ultimate ambitions would not be known to them from the start (thus possibly turning themselves into suitable antagonists in other campaigns). 

The artificer the characters were looking for had withdrawn to an old hideout deep into the former Damasan colony of Javasia - now a full-fledged rebel nation. I had already planned for the following campaign developments:

• The characters involving themselves in house Ikalos politics (as it was a high ranked Ikalos mage who had given them the task). House Ikalos had a strong incentive to unite the various houses as they had business with most of them - though it possessed little power to achieve this. Ultimately the characters didn't show interest enough to submit themselves to the machinations of the plot giver and this path was not to be.
• The characters involving themselves in the colonial conflicts. This could mean siding with the rebels to form a faction of their own or to pick the side of one of the clans trying to reclaim Damasa's influence in the colonies. There were three clans trying to do so; house Dakyr through diplomatic means, clan Molo through arms supported by magic and house Aedanu through numerical superiority. The characters would sort of get around to this later in the campaign, but as a group showed limited interest to making this their chief concern.
• The characters involving themselves with the mysterious mage which had caused the artificer to go into hiding to begin with. This mysterious mage, named Nepthys, had connections to a reoccuring protagonist (yes, you can have those too) called Morion whose goal was to unite Damasa to lay the foundation for the Union in the Age of Information. This would be the path the characters choose.
• The characters would encounter a powerful necromancer who in turn served the lich-lords of the fallen Zhengdi Empire (situated in the jungles bordering the rebel nation they were visiting). The lich-lords were looking to gain knowledge about the world beyond their domains so would have been interested in making some sort of deal with the characters. Alas, the characters did what most people probably would do when encountering necromancers and undead and left the place with some haste. 

As stated above the characters choose to engage with the mysterious mage Nepthys. This allowed me to elaborate on a new story. 

Long story short, Morion and Nepthys are two characters at the heart of Centuria lore. They are rebelling against the dragon Halomyr's plans to shape the society of Umarald into a powerful puppet state which she can control. Their main issue with Halomyr's plans being that she doesn't care much for individuals or methods - she's only concerned with the "greater good", a sort of statistical judgement of success. While certainly not evil this can at the very least make her callous in her dealings with mortals. Morion and Nepthys resent this and tries to improve the world through more humanitarian methods. 

With this in the back of my head I set out to design a plot. Now, the whole setting was already evolving around the fact that Damasa was getting a bit behind its main competitor (the nation of Gothia) and there was need for reform - but what if there was a reason this reform was not happening, beyond the bickering of the wizard houses?

In the Age of Steel Damasa is led by a nigh-invincible mage-emperor who was assassinated prior to the Age of Knowledge. Well, powerful mages tend to be hard killing - so having the emperor seek to return to life (to save his beloved country) seemed a nice touch. Now, any foe skilled enough to actually kill him would probably have anticipated this - so what if the country's state was a consequence of a status quo the most ancient and powerful mages of the nation did not dare to change?

Thus I invented the story of a demonic pact sealed by those who wished to get rid of the emperor. The plan had been to grant the emperor's soul to a demon - forever preventing his return - but this was not to be as one of the emperor's closest friends, a mage named Zalazar, assassinated him instead, part to save his soul and part because he knew a Damasa led by the emperor would stagnate even more than one without. Now, this created a conundrum for the original plotters - the pact with the demon had been made and it required the soul of a powerful mage. They tried to change the deal, to which the demon agreed, but such things rarely end well... thus one of the plotters agree to become the demon's mortal host and in the return the demon would be tasked with keeping the emperor from returning for all eternity. Only now the plotters would become preoccupied with keeping the demonhost at bay, seeking to limit its influence while still allowing it to do what the pact required of it. And this was the power struggle that kept Damasa from moving forward - none of the mighty wizards dared risk a change in the status quo that could give the demon the upper hand.

The plan of Morion and Nepthys was to slay the demon and have Damasa move forward again, ideally taking steps to becoming more egalitarian. While they did possess firepower enough to challenge the demon itself they needed a smoke screen to prevent other mages from meddling and also they needed someone to reform the country - as they didn't themselves like to be like Halomyr by deciding what was best for other people.

The story continues

Nepthys would task the characters with trying to find allies among all the wizard houses to start a revolution. As she didn't want fighting in the streets going directly from a magicracy to a democracy seemed a bad idea. Instead the goal was to level the playing field among mages and prevent only a few ancient wizards from deciding the fate of the country and people they had little to no interaction with. 

This suited the characters' goals and personalities rather well, but they had some issues with Nepthys keeping them in the dark regarding the context of the revolution. There was a reason for this; the demon had the power to hunt down people who knew about the emperor or its own existence and thus, keeping the characters unaware of this Nepthys was in reality protecting them.

Eventually they of course found out - through the appearance of the emperor's assassin and former friend Zalazar who sort of high-jacked part of the plot (being an extremely impulsive character as a means to remain unpredictable to his enemies I decided for him to unravel the entire plot as a result of one of the characters asking a particular question). From there it was an epic story with the characters seeking to achieve their political goals while at the same time avoiding the servants of the demon and those who wished to keep the status quo. 

In the end they were victorious - though time would wash away much of the sense of victory. More on that when I write about "Cybermage"!

Developer Diary: Magics!

Its been quiet here for a while now. Summer times and new habits means Centuria is currently a little less prioritized - but certainly not forgotten!

As a small proof of this: here is an additional module - adding some new magic rules to the game! These rules deal with advanced rituals (beyond level 10), add some rules for large research projects (can be this other than magic) and also introduce improvised magic and performer magic skills! As usual you can find it on the downloads page.

https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/440086194829604208/?lp=true

LinCon 2018: The Message

Time for another update on preparations for LinCon 2018. The idea for next year is to host one adventure for each age. Standard roleplaying but each adventure introducing a campaign which will be available for download after the event. That said the intention is of course that it can be enjoyed as a stand-alone experience.

Second adventure is for the Age of Knowledge and is called The Message:

The pleasant journey on the train felt far away as the scenery of the grand Merdonia station was shifted towards the narrow streets of Merdun’s Novella district. It hadn’t yet acquired the true grime of the city but there were already signs that the polished facades wouldn’t stay new for very long. Inquisitor Cathrine hadn’t been very clear on why she had sent you here, but thankfully her local informant had provided some more worthwhile information. There had been some… disturbances. Killings even. But it was senseless actions – regretted as soon as they were done. Why was it happening? It smelled like sorcery and if so it was doubtful that the local police would be able to get to the bottom of that question. But if anyone could it was the agents of the inquisition. That meant you – and the others of course. You looked around at your companions; it had been some time since last time. Indeed, this could get interesting…

Update for the Age of Knowledge

It's been quiet here for some time and that is due to work being put into proof reading the Age of Knowledge rulebook. It has been dreadfully dull and boring so I am glad to announce that I'm finally done with that. Sure, there are bound to be some errors still but at least they had to fight for survival...

The updated version can be found at the downloads page!

Summer heralds the Age of Knowledge

The feeling hasn't quite set in yet; but today the trilogy of rule books was completed. Still there's some way to go before there are any prints ready (proof reading for one thing) but just to have the content ready is a true milestone. 

The Age of Knowledge book weights in at 335 pages (slightly shorter than the 351 pages Age of Information book) and covers such things as seafaring, gunpowder weapons and of course a new political setting. As with the other books it is freely available at the downloads page. 

Now, just because all the books are nearing completion it doesn't mean that there's no more work to do. There's still a few continents to pull off (http://www.centuria.se/2015/12/creating-world.html) and new adventures and settings to be described in detail - not to mention a lot of plot exposure of the machinations of this world. 

So don't fret - there'll be more. But for now here's the first chance to enjoy the full set of Centuria rule books!