Dragonbane general thread

[Aldarc]

By the way, I haven't really updated this thread with a new play report because my partner has not had any time to play. They switched jobs, and as the newcomer they got saddled with a number of weekend shifts at the hospital. On the weekends we had free, we usually also had something else going on, such as going to see musicals. Play reports may have to wait until March.

 

[MacDhomnuill]

Quoting myself here for context:

But this homebrew project is coming along slowly. I think that I have settled on my core group of kin:

• Human: a monkeyfolk kin that somehow survives
• Bugling: the alien insectoid kin a bit like thri-kreen
• Leorin: lionfolk, mok, wookie sort of furry bestial kin
• Newt: your reptile-like amphibian or amphibian-like reptile kin
• Shrooman: weird, short mushroom people

However, I am taking a slightly different approach to them from the core rules. Most of these kin will get to choose their starting ability from a small list of kin-based abilities. Then when the PC gets a heroic ability, they can alternatively choose to take another kin-based heroic ability.

The bugling, for example, can choose at character creation between Carapace (spend up to 3 WP for armor), Four-Armed (pick things up from ground or inventory without an action), Tough (see Orcs), and Wings (see Karkions).

With humans, I am probably swapping out the standard Adaptive, for an alternate ability that I saw in another homebrew called Tenacious; however, I am renaming it to 'Perseverance.' The gist of the ability is that humans can activate the ability for a boon on their pushed rolls. I prefer this as it gives a sense of humanity's desire to survive in this world and to push on despite all of their hardships. At this point, I don't have any alternative or further kin abilities for humans.

so when are you going to publish this under the 3rd party rules? It looks like a lot of fun.

 

[Aldarc]

so when are you going to publish this under the 3rd party rules? It looks like a lot of fun.

Can't. I make changes to the game that fall outside of the licensing agreement. So it is strictly homebrew.

 

[Von Ether]

The 3pp licensing is pretty easy to use (A disclaimer and a logo), but the core guideline is that a 3pp can't change core rules. We can only add, not replace a core rule.

It's more flexible than one assumes and the goal is that all 3pp will be compatible with core game.
For example:

• Instead of a whole set of gun rules, Introduce a Secondary Skill (that is exactly why Secondary Skills are there for) and create new weapon features.
• Instead of introducing psionic points and Psionics, create a new magic school (Mentalism is mostly there already)

FL has also been accepting about Additional monster attacks for the same creature and treasure cards.

 

[Aldarc]

The 3pp licensing is pretty easy to use (A disclaimer and a logo), but the core guideline is that a 3pp can't change core rules. We can only add, not replace a core rule.

It's more flexible than one assumes and the goal is that all 3pp will be compatible with core game.
For example:

• Instead of a whole set of gun rules, Introduce a Secondary Skill (that is exactly why Secondary Skills are there for) and create new weapon features.
• Instead of introducing psionic points and Psionics, create a new magic school (Mentalism is mostly there already)

FL has also been accepting about Additional monster attacks for the same creature and treasure cards.

My hack replaces and renames skills, reworks some heroic abilities, and changes some professions. I have no interest in publishing this anyway, as people will just tell me to play Cloud Empress instead.

 

[Von Ether]

My hack replaces and renames skills, reworks some heroic abilities, and changes some professions. I have no interest in publishing this anyway, as people will just tell me to play Cloud Empress instead.

Which itself is a 3pp spin on Mothership. A little bit of irony there.

 

[Aldarc]

Riddermound (spoilers): "Barely Made It"

My partner was able to play again this weekend, so we resumed where we had left off: Riddermound. Last time, the PCs had defeated the vampire bats and were ready to enter the doors at the bottom of the mound.

The PCs were cautious. They saw the lights through the portcullis and the mummy sitting at the table. They also heard that clanking of metallic steps and the sound of metal being dragged across the floor. After realizing that they could not go through the portcullis, and not attempting the direct approach through it, they decided to take a left. So they went into the area with the servant's tombs.

My partner declares that Makander was staying vigilant while Aodhan and Krisanna were searching the room. Although both made their Spot Hidden checks, Aodhan was the closest to where Grub the Goblin was hiding, so I ruled that Aodhan spotted him. My partner began trying to persuade the goblin that it was safe. Then my partner asked me about goblins in this setting and whether they were kill on sight. I said that there was some hostility and mistrust but cooperation and trade was not unheard of between the playable kin and the nightkin. I was happy that my partner didn't resort to violence first, so I certainly wanted to reward behavior that I wanted repeated. Aodhan made a successful Persuasion check, and he managed to trade the keys to doors for information and letting Grub go free. I asked if they went with Grub when they let him run away. They didn't. So I decided to roll to see if the Wight would kill Grub on his way out: 50/50 odds. I said that there was only silence, which my partner correctly took to mean that Grub made it out.

Throughout all of this, I was rolling the d12 for random events for each stretch, but all 7+ (i.e., nothing happens). When the two party members rolled for Spot Hidden (a stretch), I rolled a 6 for a Draconic Vision. However, I wanted to finish up things with Aodhan and Grub before narrating the Draconic Vision. I gave the Vision to Makander since he was trying to be vigilant. He made a successful Willpower roll, which my partner declared was due to his own knightly mettle. So they decided to move on and into the Lady's Hall.

My partner thought that whatever was haunting the Riddermound was a ghost. So when they reached the mummified corpse of the Lady, they already assumed that she was a ghost. However, my partner declared that Makander marched to the door to try opening it. The Lady came alive at that point and began talking. Only Aodhan and Krisanna succeeded at understanding key fragments of what the Lady was saying. Aodhan even successfully made a Persuasion roll (with a Bane!) to try calming the Lady down. However, Makander didn't care. He barged through the door. Initiative!

Krisanna was first and she attempted to Backstab the Lady. Despite doing high damage, her daggers passed right through the ghost. The Lady was literally unphased. She teleported right in front of Makander and gave him a ghostly embrace, which dealt damage and left him Dazed. Aodhan rolled a successful Myths & Legends roll and knew that only magic or fire would damage the Lady. He had earlier deduced that the weapon on the table was magical, and he let Makander know. Then he summoned as much Willpower to make the biggest fireball he could. Success! A massive chunk of the Lady's hit points were now gone. Makander used his action to run the table for the magical axe (it's a hammer in the book). He failed to Evade the attack from the Lady, but made a successful Willpower roll to avoid Fear. Krisanna then decided to use the Torch (improvised weapon) to make an attack against the Lady. Lady attempted to Evade the attack; however, she rolled a Demon. I couldn't really find anything about what happens if anything, when monsters roll Demons for their Evades, so to keep the game moving, I decided that Krisanna basically killed the Lady since she was 1 HP shy of killing it with the Torch.

Makander now had a magical weapon and he decided to also take the armor too. But I told my partner that they could still hear the sounds of something lurking the halls. They took a stretch to heal. Nothing again. Aodhan and Krisanna decided to go into the tomb. Aodhan saw that there was a statuette piece and unwisely grabbed it without looking for traps. Despite his foolishness, both him and Krisanna successfully Evaded the trap.

However, the Wight was now coming. The party decided to flee as quickly as they could using the way that they came. I was ready to let them go but they had also used a stretch of time. This time I rolled a 4: the Wight attacks! So I ruled that while they made it to the area around the guardhouse near the entrance, the Wight took a shortcut and walked through the portcullis. The party decided to try fighting since the Wight caught them. Makander went first and hit for 13 damage with his magical axe, except the Wight has 10 armor, so it was only 3 damage. Aodhan's fireball likewise had troubles bypassing the Wight's armor. Even Krisanna failed to do barely anything to the Wight. Then I rolled a 6 for the Wight for a massive power attack, which knocked Makander to exactly 0 HP. The Wight then knocked Krisanna back against the wall. My partner was scared. Makander was doing good with death rolls, and Krisanna managed to drag him past the doors with a successful Strength check. Aodhan also booked it quick past the doors. He was far enough from the Wight anyway, so the Wight couldn't attack him. Aodhan then used his action to heal Makander and get him back on his feet. The Wight pointed at Krisanna and knocked her back some more. Aodhan had somehow avoided damage, but Makander and Krisanna were feeling weak.

At this point, the PCs scrambled up the rope and out of the mound as quickly as possible. The Wight refused to go past the double doors of the catacomb. The party had a statuette piece. And that is where we stopped.

 

[The Soloist]

Riddermound (spoilers): "Barely Made It"

My partner was able to play again this weekend, so we resumed where we had left off: Riddermound. Last time, the PCs had defeated the vampire bats and were ready to enter the doors at the bottom of the mound.

Excellent. One of my guys killed Grub because he found him annoying. The other players were really upset by 'his D&D mentality.' I explained, again, how humanoids are people in Dragonbane and not monsters. Fortunately, he self-corrected afterwards.

 

[Aldarc]

Excellent. One of my guys killed Grub because he found him annoying. The other players were really upset by 'his D&D mentality.' I explained, again, how humanoids are people in Dragonbane and not monsters. Fortunately, he self-corrected afterwards.

I also wanted to at least open the possibility and plant the seed for negotiation when/if my partner ever does the adventure involving the orc chieftainess Maladûk.

However, my partner already has leads for Temple of the Purple Flame and the Troll's Spire from their first time in town, so I doubt that Bothild's Lode will be soon. I hope that they pick the Troll's Spire because I've heard amazing things about that adventure.

 

[Von Ether]

I also wanted to at least open the possibility and plant the seed for negotiation when/if my partner ever does the adventure involving the orc chieftainess Maladûk.

However, my partner already has leads for Temple of the Purple Flame and the Troll's Spire from their first time in town, so I doubt that Bothild's Lode will be soon. I hope that they pick the Troll's Spire because I've heard amazing things about that adventure.

I think part of the allure of Troll's Spire is how much love you have for this character:

Spoiler: Spoiler

On that note, my table has met so many oddball trolls in this campaign that when they met an average troll, it was a rude awakening!