Mythic Bastionland actual play

[pemerton]

I had reviewed the site creation rules yesterday evening, and I applied them now. And during the session, I had reviewed the information about the Born Seer - who lives in this Sanctum:

The Born Seer
VIG 6, CLA 6, SPI 8, 1GD
• An infant, large eyes, boundless energy, destined to be the most powerful Seer.
• Sees the future in childlike simplicity and gives clumsy guidance, refusing to elaborate or explain themselves.
• Wants to go somewhere new.​

It was my reading of the Born Seer description that had prompted me to narrate the basket in the reeds.

I quickly drew up my map and made some notes:

1. Entry into the tunnel via the stream.
2. A "secret" entrance, hard to find because it is under the roots and earth.
3. An earthen "cave", reached by a tunnel running away from the stream; it may collapse.
4. The cave where the Born Seer is; to get through the tunnel from (3) requires pushing through the earth, while getting through the tunnel from (5) requires swimming through the water that flows from the pool in (5).
5. A pool, with a risk of drowning.
6. To get to this area requires finding the underwater passage from (5); it is where a treasure can be found.

At this point I hadn't decided what the treasure would be.

 

[pemerton]

In my other Mythic Bastionland thread, I posted tis complaint:

Where I found the rulebook weakest was in describing some of the basic elements of play outside of the Omens: how to frame scenes (including the starting scene), and - related to that - how to establish unrevealed fiction for non-Omen contexts, which is pretty important for a hex crawl-y game.

And as another example, the rules talk about "sites" and the "treasure" they might contain:

<snip>

Sites can be created as areas that warrant more detailed exploration, whether ancient tombs, hostile castles, twisting caverns, or misty woods spanning the entire Hex.​

But the rules have nothing more to say about when and why there would be the "need" to provide this sort of site-level treatment of a place of interest.

I still think that there could be better advice on this stuff; my reason for putting a site into the Whispering Brook was not really based on any rule or procedure, but simply a thought that it might be fun!

And it was; or at least I thought so.

The PCs left their steeds with the farmer Etane, lit a torch, and started wading down the tunnel. I narrated the tunnel running left from (2) as going up slightly, than down, and being muddy on its floor (and probably flooded when the brook was up; but there had been no recent rain). They proceeded on to (5). The Chain Knight was in front, and I asked his player for a CLA Save: this succeeded, and so he noticed the drop away before falling into the deeper pool. With two successful VIG Saves in a row, he was able to use his chains to successfully pull himself and the other PCs across the pond, and then through the flooded tunnel to (4).

In (4) they met the Born Seer: a baby about 12 months of age, but able to speak. I can't remember all of this conversation, but the Seer was able to tell them that the orchard was burned by the Inferno. They also learned that the Seer had been born here, from the brook. (It didn't seem to understand their questions about its mother.) One of the knights conjectured that, as a baby, this Seer must be destined to grow into one of the greatest seers; the Born Seer confirmed this conjecture. And by taking guidance from a Seer, the PCs recovered their lost CLA.

It wanted to leave its cave and go to the Eldermass, at the Sanctum to the west. They tried to leave through the non-watery tunnel, but the VIG Save failed: and I narrated the tunnel and "cave" beyond all collapsing as the Chain Knight tried to push his way through. So they had to leave the way they came, through the water but with a baby. The Mirror Knight had brought the basket with him, however, and now placed the baby in it. With a successful CLA save, he was able to float the baby through the flooded tunnel without too many problems.

As they were going to leave, the Seer asked them if they were going to take the baby's birth gift with them. Birth gift?, they asked. In the underwater tunnel, the Seer explained. The Chain Seer swam down, using his chains to help feel his way through the water while remaining anchored to the other PCs. He failed his VIG Save but lost only 1 VIG, as his lungs started to feel the strain of holding his breath.

At this point I decided what the treasure was - a casket of golden scales.

Once the PCs were outside, they opened the casket that the Chain Seer had found, and saw that the treasure was, literally, scales of gold. It wasn't clear whether they had been forged, or come from a being of some sort. The Born Seer explained that they were a gift from the brook itself. The Chain Knight carefully packed them away, to be carried with the company.

Etane was shocked by the talking baby. The PCs suggested that they could take him to Annick, who could then take him to the camp by the spire where he would be able to work as a labourer. He liked this suggestion. The group had no trouble travelling back to where Annick was, and she agreed to take Etane to the camp. But night was falling, and so it was time to sleep first. All the players thought it was a good idea for Annick to take the watch - I joked that at least they knew she was well-rested!

 

[pemerton]

Day 17, night: The Wilderness Roll turned up another Omen from the Inferno:

A smouldering rift in the ground yawns open, the Red Serpent emerging, writhing through the hot air like a great eel. It demands gold and will engage in no other topic of conversation.

The Red Serpent, Guivregule
VIG 18, CLA 10, SPI 10, 10GD
A4 (blazing scales, strips of golden mail)
Snapping jaw (2d10), whip tail (d10), flaming breath (3d10 blast, once per phase).
Regal voice. Wants gold above all else, and is willing to play the long game to get more.​

Annick succeeded on her SPI Save to stay awake on watch. And so saw the rift opening. She woke the PCs, and they saw the Red Serpent. To try and convey its evident power, I mentioned some of its stats. The Hive Knight quickly determined that the PCs had no chance of fighting the dragon, and had to flee.

They succeeded on their VIG Saves for their horses, but the Serpent made its Save also - and so it was able to match their pace, writhing through the forest and incinerating the small trees and branches that got in its way.

In its regal voice, it demanded the knights hand over their gold. They denied that they had any, but not entirely convincingly. Then the Free Knight decided to release the storm from his Tempest Chest. We recalled that this storm was a fierce storm that had occurred on the side of the mountain: wind, sleet, snow, and shards of ice. This gave the company the chance it needed to escape, fleeing west to the lake. VIG Saves were required VIG loss from the storm; some saved, some didn't. There was also CLA loss for not sleeping, and SPI loss for travelling at night. But the PCs had survived, and had kept the golden scales.

Annick was exhilarated by all this (I described her as responding a bit like Sean Bean's character in the film Ronin) - Is this the life of a knight errant? Free Knight, did you call that storm? The Free Knight answered yes, and Annick offered to renounce her oath to Sir Leon and enter into his service instead. The Free Knight accepted this; and recovered SPI for having released her from an unwanted bond.

 

[pemerton]

Day 18, morning: The PCs returned to the spire. Things were not as good as they had been: it had been visited by both the Serpent and the storm.

The Serpent had killed some of the soldiers who tried to fight it; and had taken all of Helena's surveying instruments made of gold (because it is resistant to corrosion; and, being ductile, can be fashioned into precision tools). And the storm had brought down much of the scaffolding.

When the Hive Knight told her that it was the PCs who had released the storm, her attitude toward him changed noticeably, and she insisted - calling upon her bowmen to reinforce the point - that the PCs come with them now to the fortress, to answer to Sir Leon.

The Hive Knight resisted, but the Born Seer wanted to go to the fortress. And so the PCs did (recovering more CLA for taking the guidance of a Seer), but - led by the Hive Knight - insisting that they were not under arrest (and saying they didn't want to have to kill the bowmen). As they travelled, there was some discussion of the gold, and its relationship to the inferno. The Born Seer suggested that the inferno was caused by the heat of the hearts of men that lust for gold - and suggested the Chain Knight as an instance. Paolo overheard this, as the Chain Knight noticed with a successful CLA Save - I offered the Save as an option to gain more information about the social situation, and had it failed I was ready to penalise in SPI for a mixture of self-realisation and fear of what Paolo might do, when they got to the fortress, to try and take the golden scales).

Day 18, afternoon: The whole group - the PC company with Annick, Etane, the Born Seer, and the Hive Knight's crag cat; and Helena, Paolo, and their surviving soldiers and labourers - travelled into the northern forest hex once again. The Wilderness Roll decreed another Omen from the Inferno (the fifth):

A stone watchtower, two guards within, slowly sinking into the ground. The stone appears to be melting as the ground opens up, swallowing the tower in a pit of flame.

Watchtower Guards, Hendon, Terone
VIG 10, CLA 12, SPI 9, 3GD
A2 (gambeson, helm)
Warfork (d10 long), packed lunch (see below)
Wants a quiet life and respectful work.​

(The roll for their packed lunch indicated raw cabbage and pond water, the latter presumably from a pond fed by the brook.)

I narrated that, compared to last time the PCs were in this hex, this time they were following the wall (towards the east of the hex), and that this watchtower was a part of the wall. (It's helpful when things fit together like this.)

The PCs decided to rescue the guards - the players' were confident that they could do something useful with the materials being carried by the surveying party (timber, rope, cords, etc). I required a SPI Save from the Hive Knight to bravely run along the boards that had been laid down, as they smouldered and burst into flame - the Save succeeded, and the guards were rescued. Helena's hostility to the Hive Knight relented a little as a result of this display of bravery.

I mentioned their lunch, and that the poor food - raw cabbage - seemed consistent with the effects that the Mountain's shadow had had on growth of food in the Realm.

Day 18, night: The group camped on the edge of the forest, and another Omen was rolled: the first Omen from The Hound:

A search party. They’re looking for an elderly woman, a herb gatherer. She’s been missing for days.​

The search party had seen the group's campfires. As they explained to Helena, who in turn explained to the Hive Knight, the missing woman - Iserith - was a herbalist from Sir Leon's fortress. The searchers, who had been unsuccessful, joined with the PCs' group to rest.

Day 19: In the morning, the group crossed the meadow, with no events of note occurring. In the afternoon, they entered the fortress. On the map, the way from the meadow into the mountains - where the fortress is - is impassable due to Barriers (cliffs). But there is a secret pass - as I told the players, a bit like Gondolin - and Helena knows the password to get the guards to open the hidden gate. The PCs impression of Sir Leon grew, as his fortress seemed more and more like Minas Tirith.

 

[pemerton]

Day 20: The PCs spent the day in the fortress. A roll on the Local Mood table showed that all seems well enough - the Serpent hadn't yet come here, and Iserith having gone missing didn't seem to be widely known, or at least hadn't yet caused widespread concern.

Helena arranged for the PCs to be introduced to Sir Leon. I rolled on the People (Appearance, Physique) table and got Sickly: I described Sir Leon as looking drawn and gaunt. And wearing his brass armour (from the Meteor Knight entry). I rolled his stats as d12 + 6 and did very well: VIG 15, CLA 17, SPI 16; and a 2d6 roll gave 6GD. I also rolled again on Personality (because I'd forgotten I'd already done that) and got serene - so he started calm, but was liable to angry and/or revelatory outbursts, due to being unstale and having authenticity as his passion. When the players asked how old he was, I answered that he was in his early 40s - this fitted with my rolling his stats as a mature knight.

The PCs spoke with him. They had brought the Born Seer in the basket, but I failed a Save for the Seer (maybe SPI?) and so the Seer slept through the audience. Sir Leon wanted recompense, in the form of service - and when it came out that the Free Knight was the one who had released the storm, and so the insistence on recompense became directed at him. He was arguing, in return, that the PCs' actions in releasing the storm had helped drive off the Serpent and reduced the destruction it had wrought - though Sir Leon was sceptical of this, as there was no evidence it wanted lives, and it had taken all Helena's gold instruments.

The compromise reached was that the PCs agreed to find Iserith and bring her back alive. It was only when they had left the audience that the Born Seer woke up, and told them that Iserith was already dead! The PCs asked how she had died, and the Seer told them she was a victim of the Hound. The PCs asked the Seer to tell them more about the Hound, and the Seer replied that the Hound is in shadow, on the wind, and in flesh. And when in shadow, is vulnerable only in light (being unable to be hurt in darkness).

The PCs kept this to themselves. As had been suggested by Sir Leon, they went to the Halls of Healing to speak to the people there who knew Iserith, a physician and an alchemist. They learned that Iserith gathered herbs in the meadows. They decided to try and get some magnesium or something similar, to create light - and the alchemist wanted to help them, but also wanted to sell them something. So for a quarter of a bag of jewels (so half of their half-bag) they acquired Sustenance and an Alchemical Flare good for one encounter. (The could have acquired Stimulant in lieu of Sustenance, but were carrying the Seer with them and so were not so worried about CLA recovery.) They also acquired material for a litter, as they put it to help carry her home in case she had twisted her ankle or similar - but in fact wanting to bring her body back in a dignified manner.

The Seer wanted to leave the fortress now, having become bored with it. And the PCs have promised to take him to the Eldermass. But like parents to a child, they told the Seer that they had something else they had promised to do first!

Day 21, morning: They went down the secret pass, and through the gate, to the meadow. The Chain Knight succeeded on a CLA Save, and - as per Primacy of Action, which means that the players don’t have to wait for an Omen to appear if they take action themselves (pp 16 and 18 of the rulebook) - they found Iserith. But not in a state that could be returned in a dignified manner on a litter:

First a patch of blood, then pieces of flesh, gradually becoming clear as the remains of the missing elderly woman.​

Day 21, afternoon: The PCs wanted to try and find whatever had done this, and so another CLA Save was called for - this time from the Mirror Knight, who failed. The PCs had been looking for places of dark or shadow that the Hound in shadow might hide in or strike from, and I narrated a stone outcrop from the based of the cliff, with a cleft - where the Mirror Knight saw

Another heap of torn remains, this time some sort of deer. All present must pass a CLA Save or else feel compelled to sniff and paw at the remains. They now have the Hound Within . . .​

The Mirror Knight had already failed his Save, so didn't get another one. The Free Knight and Annick both saved; but the Hive Knight and Chain Knight did not. A roll on the Day Effect table dictated that the affected PCs had grown powerful jaws (a d8 weapon).

The session ended here, with the players discussing whether this was a curse or a buff; but conjecturing that it might have more consequences than just giving them a powerful werewolf bite.

 

[pemerton]

I think this session hit a lot of the high notes of this system:

*The map mattered, especially when the PCs escaped the Red Serpent by fleeing to the lake;

*The quirky PCs that are the cast of the various Myths came into play, and the random tables that accompany the Myths also did their work (eg it was the roll that indicated the Wall was being inspected that led to Helena and Paolo, the surveyors);

*I drew up a site quite quickly, and the players explored it successfully;

*The PCs interacted with NPCs in a Holding, including offering service and acquiring goods, and getting caught up in domain politics;

*The PCs took guidance from a Seer;

*The players prompted Omens via "primacy of action".​

The PCs didn't earn any Glory, but two Myths - the Hound and the Wall - have now progressed through 3 Omens, and the Inferno has only one Omen left. So a next session should see some Glory accrued.

The players' plan is still to take the Seer to Eldermass in the hills to the west, and then to return to the Fortress for winter. How this will interact with their quest for the Hound, I'm not sure.