ZEITGEIST [ZEITGEIST] The Continuing Adventures of Korrigan & Co.

Andrew Moreton · Jan 27, 2020

The last time I had a game session of that length was back when I was young and in university when sleep did not seem as important

gideonpepys · Jan 28, 2020

200000 views!

Nicely timed. And still the mystery of who the hell reads this persists. (Other than a handful of very welcome regulars, of course.)

gideonpepys · Jan 29, 2020

Session 255, Part One

The Great Planar Debate

DM's Notes and Intro

Knowing that we would soon reach the point when Linia told the unit which planes their Gyre selves had chosen, we ran the start of this session a bit differently. Everyone arrived ready to take part in the big debate (or Convocation?) they had held with their allies on Teykfa (which we elided over at the time). All the relevant information had been sent out by email, and we spent about half the session talking things over.

I made the decision not to track things too closely, or make copious notes, so that I could follow the conversation at the table and join in as NPCs at relevant moments.

Of course, I regret that decision now, as the debate itself was great fun, and it would have been nice to be able to report on the ebb and flow in a bit more detail. There was an initial surge of agreement, leading to a line-up of planes that remained solid for a while, before the whole thing shifted again, and ended up looking very different.

Once the final decision was made and everyone was happy with it, we left the debate behind and returned to the story in Lanjyr (though we would switch back to the Gyre at the very end of the session for a cliffhanger ahead of our 'semi-final Sunday').

Here, confusingly out of context, are some random notes I jotted down:

Uru arrives with detailed notes. Challenges others if they haven’t prepared their own ideas on paper: "Oh, yeah? But have you got it written down?!?" (Waves notes in face of baffled opponent.)
Bhalu and Kieran Sentacore, for an intellectual exercise, have designed and present a number of extremes: Utopian, Pastoral, Technological and God-like.
Rumdoom says very little. Uru's initial plan includes Dunkelweiss, knowing Rumdoom is set on it. (Uru is always keen to foster allies.) Dunkelweiss is later removed from the line-up. Rumdoom remains silent. Uru points out the omission repeatedly, but Rumdoom says nothing. Eventually, Dunkelweiss goes back in as a minor plane, but no one is sure if this is enough for Rumdoom.
Uriel is keen to include Apet to block off the multiverse. Korrigan isn't as happy with this idea; he never liked it - it seems cowardly to him. (And Gupta says they should be more able to deal with threats than the Ancients were). Uriel resigns himself to his, as if confirming a private resolution.
William Miller puts in a kind word for the benefits of Ascetia. (Gupta seconds this.)
Quratulain points out that they will still have to look after whatever version they create, or it will "all go tits up just like last time".
Gupta asks if it is a good idea to be able to mess with time. Leon says no. (He’s the expert.) Teykfa is taken off the table. Kai asks how they can hope to get help 'through time' like they have been if they can't manipulate it. Uriel says none of the help they've had has come from the future. Kai says, "How do you know?" Teykfa goes back in as a minor plane.
Gupta wants to see Reida removed. “The time for prophecy is over.”
Just when a solution has almost been reached, Korrigan throws Etheax into the mix. (Uru throws his hands into the air. "Why didn't you say that an hour ago?!?") Korrigan likes the traits, but also wants to help out the goblins. This persuasive argument sees Jiese moved over to Life, with mutliple knock-on effects. They end up with a very satisfying cluster of complementary benefits around Life, Earth and Fire.
After another half-hour of tinkering, everyone is happy with the outcome. Except Rumdoom, who says nothing.
Once everything is done, Amielle Latimer says, “I like the fact that we’ve rescued all the people we met. I made the right decision. You really are the good guys. ”

gideonpepys · Jan 29, 2020

I should add, I took a note from RangerWickett and ran with it, allowing the unit to include certain planes as minor planes, tagged on to another. But the difficulty of doing so during the final encounter would increase with every one they tried to insert in this way, encouraging them to prioritise the ones they really wanted (and save others for later in the process, just in case it didn't work). They couldn't resist the temptation, and included three.

gideonpepys · Jan 29, 2020

Here, for reference, are Uru's initial choices;

FIRE - Jiese - Industry
LIFE - Av - reflects the world
AIR - Caleoon - people endure hardship
TIME - Teykfa - long-term consequences and time magic
DEATH - Nem - spirits are stronger (a bit of self-interest here)
EARTH - Urim - 'because the are earth ones are naughty word'
WATER - Mavisha - Islands hold secrets

Not being an expert in matters arcane, Uru forgot Space. Dunkelweiss is Uru's only minor plane. So, from the very beginning, Rumdoom's only request was sidelined...