D&D Vikings: The Dragon is the World

[Poh Tun Kai]

Hi everyone! Thanks to some very enthusiastic recruitment in the Dungeons & Dragons in Malaysia Facebook group, I'm glad to be running a low-magic alternate history Viking D&D game for a bunch of new gamers. We'll be starting this Thursday at All Aboard Cafe. An exciting adventure for me. I've been inspired by Gregor Vuga's Sagas of the Icelanders RPG, the Northlanders comic book, the Banner Saga computer RPG, the King of Dragon Pass strategy game, Michael Crichton's novel Eaters of the Dead and its film adaptation The Thirteenth Warrior, and the science fiction novels of Stephen Baxter.

As such, I hope we'll have an epic saga of survival and kingdom-building, with an epic geological backdrop and a fantastic pseudo-historical culture to play around in.

* * *

You are Northlanders. You live in the Lands of Green and Gold. It's a poor name, a liar's name chosen to attract settlers to a wild frontier far from the King's lands. You and your parents before you have spent decades scratching a life from the cold, cruel lands.

Some of you are steadholders, working the land and sea to build something out of nothing. Here, far from the King's tax collectors, you are your own king, and your wood-and-stone stockade is your stronghold.

Some of you are steersmen, and your true place is at the head of your longship. With your stout crew, you guard the coast from raiders. Sometimes, you sail the coast and find far towns to trade with - or to raid yourself. Because your ship is your home, you will never truly rule in your own steading, although you might have one to your name. Perhaps your spouse or your child rules it in your place.

Some of you are seers, and your role is to hold the community together. Perhaps you provide counsel and midwifery, or perhaps you settle disputes as a lawgiver. You cast the runes to speak with the gods. And when dark times come, perhaps it will be time to call in some favours from the gods to protect your people.

Some of you live as outsiders, because you don't fit into the roles the community has for you. You may visit the community, watch it from afar, but you do not live within it. You might have connections with wild beasts of the forest, or the strange people of the mountains, or with the gods.

Each of you is strong in your own way, strong with a weapon and strong in your own lores and skills. But you must come together if you are to survive this turbulent age.

There are many threats close to hand, for this land is not an empty one. Your own neighbours are ready to draw swords over insults of honour and matters of petty greed. Traders and explorers who come to your shores offer their rare treasures and resources, but betrayal can often be just a knife's edge away. In the woods, bright-eyed predators are ready to pull down lone travelers who stray too far from the paths.

And then there are stranger things. The singers in the sea who sometimes slide onto shore on a moonless night to steal an unfaithful husband - forever. The scuttling, fur-clad wendols who dwell in the darkness beneath the mountains. And somewhere in the tundra to the North, monstrous giant things stride the ice, bellowing to one another across dozens of leagues.

Now, the seers say that the world is changing. A great dragon turns in its sleep, coughing fire, threatening to awaken. That dragon is the world. This is a time for heroes to discover their fates. Perhaps you will live as heroes. Perhaps you will die as heroes.

* * *

The tree of life Yggdrasill shakes.

The dog Garm barks from its den at the top of the mountain.

The Midgard Serpent makes the waves rise.

[Poh Tun Kai]

THE DRAGON IS THE WORLD

House Rules

This is an alternative-world low-fantasy Viking campaign for D&D 5th Edition. It uses extensive house rules to drive a story-focused game based on the themes of community-building and Icelandic-style culture. The house rules are heavily inspired by Gregor Vuga’s RPG, Sagas of the Icelanders.

Creating a Character

• The only race option is human (variant human traits are allowed). In this campaign, humans do not get an extra language. Thieves’ Cant does not exist.

• The only class options are barbarian, fighter and rogue. Eldritch Knight and Arcane Trickster are not allowed. Totem Warrior is available but only with the nature-oriented Outsider background (see below).

• Ability scores are generated by allocating the standard set (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8).

• There are no alignments in this game. Humans are complex creatures, with both good and bad tendencies. That is not to say that certain actions cannot be easily defined as good or evil. But we won’t be playing a game where any character has that label from the start.

• There are six custom backgrounds available in this campaign: Steadholder (male or female), Sturlanger (male only), Outsider (male or female), Shieldmaiden (female only), Goði (male only) and Seiðkona (female only). There may be any number of Steadholders and Sturlangers, but there should not be more than one of the other backgrounds. It is recommended that there be at least one Steadholder to provide a backbone for the community (and ensure everyone doesn’t freeze or starve during winter!).

Languages

Most people in this era speak only one language. Some backgrounds may offer more.

• West Norse - the dialect of Northlander language spoken from the Green land to Arndoray. This is the default first language for all PCs.

• East Norse - a dialect of Northlander language spoken in the Daneland and Varangian lands. East and West Norse are close enough for a speaker of one to recognise general meaning and intent in the other tongue.

• Sachsen - the language of the majority ethnic group of the Albi Peninsula.

• Etxelur - the language of the ruling people of Midland, the Albi Peninsula and a good portion of Frankia.

• Frankish - the language of Frankia and the now-defunct Carolin Empire.

• Latin - the language of the Constantin Empire and the Bedlemite Church, a language of learning.

• Wendol - the language of the Wendol. Not a written language.       

Bonds and Bond Tokens

Please note that Bonds are very different in this campaign. All characters start with 4 Bonds instead of 1. As your character evolves, relationships may change. At the start of a session, you may speak with the DM to ask to change one or two Bonds to different targets that make sense for your character. Bonds can be a source of inspiration, but they also provide bond tokens in this campaign.

At the start of each session, you gain a bond token with each person or entity that you have a Bond with.

Bond tokens represent the strength of a relationship with another character, or even another entity such as a god or a longship. Every bond token has the name of a person, a god, or certain creatures or entities that it is associated with. Bond tokens may be generated from Bonds at the start of a session, or they may be gained in other ways.

• Gain a bond token with someone whenever you give a gift to them and they accept it. Generally it should be something valuable and it should not be exchanged for something else – a trade is a trade, not a gift (although you can give and accept gifts in return). Worthless, cheap or mocking gifts can be considered insults instead.

• Spend a bond token with a person to automatically succeed in an Insight roll targeting them as though you rolled a natural 20.

• Spend a bond token to gain advantage on a roll to aid or hinder this character or entity.

• Spend a bond token to give disadvantage to a roll made by this character or entity.

• Spend a bond token at the start of a combat round to move your initiative to just before or just after this character or entity.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Wealth and Equipment

Classes do not provide any additional starting equipment or wealth, only backgrounds do. If a character does not start with a weapon, they may take a knife (dagger) or hatchet (throwing axe).

Do not use the coinage system in the PHB. Instead, characters all have wealth measured at one of eight levels.

1: a bit of silver pays for

enough homespun wool for a complete set of clothes, enough common furs to make a piece of clothing, a good metal tool, a month of food for a family, the fee to land a ship

2: a few bits of silver pay for

a finished piece of clothing (like a cloak), a small farm animal (like a pig), a weight of bog iron, a quality spear or axe, once-off skilled or professional work

3: many bits or a handful of silver pay for

an ounce of gold, a season of labour, a minor fine, a falcon or dog, a small feast, the fine for a minor offence, an unremarkable slave, the bride price to make a marriage legal

4: a few handfuls of silver pay for

a larger metal tool, weapon or implement (like a cauldron, helmet or mail shirt), a regular slave

5: many handfuls or a pouch of silver pays for

a healthy cow or horse, a sow with many piglets, a small flock of sheep or goats, the fine for lesser outlawry or a serious offence

6: a few pouches of silver pay for

an exceptional slave, the fine for lying in court, a common sword, a plot of land, a golden arm ring

7: many pouches or a chest of silver pays for

eight cows, a free man’s weregeld

8: a few chests of silver pay for

the weregeld of an important man, like a goði, bishop, foreign prince or nobleman, a legendary sword or great treasure

Honour

The Norse concept of honour was the main measuring stick and regulating principle of male behaviour. Losing honour was in some ways worse than death, because it meant people weren’t willing to deal with you as a reliable person anymore.

A man may insult another man by saying what they lack and rolling an Intimidation check. On a 20 or more, the target must either bear the insult (putting his honour in question) or take immediate action to prove the insult false. On 10-19, the target may resort to a duel or demand apology. On less than 10, the insulting party comes off as a fool or the target may turn the insult against its source.

Goading was a woman’s main weapon in those times. Perceived as a passive gender, they could apply pressure to the men’s rigid sense of honour and act through them.

A woman may goad a man to action by rolling a Persuasion check. On a 20 or more, the target gains a bond with the woman if he takes the suggested action and places his honour in question if he does not. On a 10-19, the woman may offer the man a bond with her if he takes the suggested action, OR he places his honour in question if he does not.

When a man’s honour is in question, he must find a way to prove his honour or become treated as having no honour by his peers.

Winter Downtime

When the sunless winter begins, the DM and players may agree to enter Winter Downtime to skip ahead to spring.

• Anyone who resides in a well-maintained and supplied longhouse makes it to spring without harm.

• Any other player character must find their own food, shelter and warmth during this time. They must roll a Survival check. On a 20, they make it to spring without harm. On a 10-19, they make it to spring with four levels of exhaustion due to starvation and cold. On less than 10, they are found outside the nearest steadhold with six levels of exhaustion and must immediately make death checks to stabilise or die.

[Poh Tun Kai]

STEADHOLDER

The hard-working, land-owning steadholders are the backbone of Northland society in the Land of Green and Gold. In the steadholds, men tend to be in charge of outside work and workforce - managing the farm, fishing, hunting, going Viking; whereas women will generally be in charge of the inside work and workforce - cooking, cleaning, sewing, although they can and do take on the outside management in the absence of their men-folk. More than any other role, the steadholder is most likely to have a family and a workforce behind them, and a well-run steadhold is likely to grow to become a great hall at the heart of a booming community. Skill Proficiencies: Choose two from Animal Handling, Insight, Medicine, Persuasion Tool Proficiencies: One type of artisan’s tools and either another type of artisan’s tools or vehicles (land or sea) Possessions: Warm woolen clothes, cloak, knife or hatchet, sewing kit, a set of artisan’s tools, handful of silver, an old weapon, 1d10 head of livestock (cattle, goats and sheep). Comfortable lifestyle. FEATURE: STEADHOLD You own a longhouse and some land on which you live and toil. At the start of a season, roll a Wisdom+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, the steadhold is in order and you have a bit of silver in excess from managing your land. On less than 20, you don’t get the excess silver OR some aspect of the steadhold has a supply shortage (food, drink, fabric or tools) or needs to be repaired.

Choose two terrain types (fields, marshland, water, seaside, wilderness). You may add more land, buildings and defenses through expansion. Also: You always gain inspiration when you defend your loved ones or steadhold from violence. Gain a bond token whenever you act as host for someone. When you make a bargain or collaboration with anyone and they accept, you gain a bond token with each other. When you bargain with someone, spend a bond token to reduce the cost by one level. Personality Trait (choose one): Bitter, cheerful, honest, melancholy, proud, stoic Ideal (choose one): Community, family honour, independence, outward appearances, power, respect Bonds (choose four): Spouse, child, sibling, elder, neighbour, old friend, secret lover, rival, target of your jealousy Flaw (choose one): Arrogant, heavy drinker, lustful, mistrustful, overconfident, spiteful

OUTSIDER

You are an outsider. Perhaps you are only half-Northlander. Perhaps you refuse to follow religious tradition, or rebel against your gender role. Whether different physically or socially, you live apart from the community. Surviving on your own in the wild would be nearly impossible if not for your unique connections. Whether you have a way with animals, friends among the Wendol, or a destiny touched by the gods or Fates, you have abilities nobody else has. Skill Proficiencies: Choose two from Animal Handling, Nature, Stealth, Survival. Tool Proficiencies: One type of musical instrument or thieves’ tools Languages: One of your choice Possessions: Strange clothes, tattered cloak, ragged furs, a knife and spear. Squalid lifestyle. FEATURE: THE OUTSIDER RETURNS Once per season, when you leave the rest of your companions, you may disappear from the story. You will not reappear until you spend a bond token with someone to appear suddenly before them - you are assumed to have followed them in secret all along, without needing to make any other rolls. When you return, roll a Dexterity+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, you have surprise.

Also, choose three of the following additional features: You always have proficiency bonus when disguising yourself. Spend a bond token with an animal to automatically find it in its environment. You may use Animal Handling in place of Insight when encountering any animal. You have Wendol blood. Spend a bond token with a Wendol to automatically find them in their environment. You can see normally in dim light. Your honour may never be questioned by insult or goading because you have none. You are not permitted to participate in community rituals. Spend a bond token with a god as if you were a Goði. Spend a bond token with the Fates as if you were a Seiðkona. Personality Trait (choose one): Alert, guarded, inquisitive, loyal, polite, weary Ideal (choose one): Constant change, freedom, nature, self-understanding, solitude, strength Bonds (choose four, at least two Northlanders): The one who cast you out, the one you desire, the one who was once a friend, the one who owes you, your Wendol kin, a type of animal, a god, the Fates Flaw (choose one): Argumentative, bloodthirsty, incautious, mistrustful, secretive, unforgiving

STURLANGER (STEERSMAN)

Male only. You are a free man, a soldier, a hired sword, and a captain. While other men work the land, you have the freedom of the sea. You typically take the silver of a family or powerful individual to provide protection (or aggression) when needed. You command a small shallow ship, suitable for raids, and have the service of a few men willing to sail with you and follow you into battle. Skill Proficiencies: Choose two from Athletics, Deception, Intimidation, Survival. Tool Proficiencies: Vehicles (sea) Languages: One of your choice Possessions: Clothes made of wool and animal furs, a drinking horn, a shirt of mail plus one set of weapons (bow and spear; dane axe and throwing axe; sword and shield). Modest lifestyle. FEATURE: LONGSHIP Your longship can carry up to 40 men, but you will need to spend a bit of silver per season to maintain both the ship and men. Either you have to maintain them yourself, for a bit of silver a season, or someone else pays for them, in return for your services. At the start of  summer raiding season, roll a Wisdom+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, your ship and crew are safe, and you have a couple of handfuls of silver worth of goods. Otherwise, pick only one of those two.

Also: Of all the men who follow you into battle, 4x (your level) of them count as 1st-level fighters; the rest have no real impact on the battle. Gain a bond token with someone present in a fight if you both survive. When you speak to inspire your fighting men, roll a Charisma+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, gain three bond tokens with them and they begin battle with inspiration. Otherwise, gain one bond token with them. Personality Trait (choose one): Calculating, disgruntled, humble, man of few words, merry, savage Ideal (choose one): Commerce, freedom, personal honour,  power, respect, strength Bonds (choose four): Employer, relative, lover, trusted sword-arm, gracious host, object of desire, target of a grudge, your ship Flaw (choose one): Cruel, death wish, filthy, gluttonous, hated, offensive

SHIELDMAIDEN

Female only. You’re a woman who took up weapons, perhaps because your household lacked men, perhaps just because you wanted to. You take what is seen as a male role, protecting and fighting for your family or the people you serve. While your way of life is not forbidden by society, you nevertheless have to deal with the prejudice and conflicting expectations of many who think they know better. Skill Proficiencies: Choose two from Athletics, Intimidation, Medicine, Persuasion. Tool Proficiencies: One type of artisan’s tools and either one type of musical instrument or vehicles (sea) Possessions: Warm woolen clothes, a cloak or animal skin, a shield, a spear or sword, a few bits of silver. Modest lifestyle. FEATURE: PICKER OF THE SLAIN You have a special affinity for the fallen. Whenever you go through the corpses after a battle, roll a Wisdom+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, you find that someone thought to be dead is still alive and well. On 10 to 19, you find that someone thought to be dead is alive but permanently disfigured or disabled.

Also: Men are not used to being challenged by a woman fighting under arms and armour. When you reveal your true nature for the first time to a male opponent, the opponent has disadvantage on their next roll. Gain a bond token with someone present in a fight if you both survive. You may roll an additional weapon damage die when determining the extra damage for a critical hit with a melee attack. If you do so, the Fates take an interest in you. The Fates gain a bond token with you that the DM can use at any time. Personality Trait (choose one): Angry, confident, fierce, honest, idealistic, merciful Ideal (choose one): Community, family, freedom, glory, justice, respect Bonds (choose four): Blood relative, the one who disapproved, the one you saved, the one you spurned, the one you love, the one who trained you, the one you fear, the Fates Flaw (choose one): Can’t resist a challenge, drinks like a man, haunted by nightmares, impulsive, ruthless, stubborn

GOÐI (LAW-PRIEST)

Male only. You’re one of the goðar, a leader of the community, someone people approach when they need representation, but you’re not a noble, your title can be sold away and people can always take their business elsewhere. Your title comes from keeping one of the temples built by the early settlers and acting as one of their religious leaders. These functions gain you wealth and respect, from the fees you charge and the judgements you deliver. Skill Proficiencies: Choose two from History, Insight, Persuasion, Religion. Tool Proficiencies: One type artisan’s tools or one type of musical instrument Languages: One of your choice Possessions: Rich comfortable clothes, warm furs, a ritual arm ring, a handful of hidden silver. Comfortable lifestyle (in a host steading). FEATURE: JUDGEMENT When you are asked to pass judgement on a legal dispute, if both parties are satisfied with your decision, gain bond token with both of them. If one or fewer parties are satisfied, one of them gains a bond token with you and demands a concession or compromise. For NPC parties in a legal dispute, roll a Wisdom+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, you make all NPC parties happy. On 10 to 19, you make one NPC party happy.

Also: You have claim to some consecrated ground, maybe just a grove of trees or a small field with a worship pole or perhaps a small building, providing you with the title of goði, a religious and judicial position. You can pass this title on to your heirs or sell it off for a good price. When you’re in your temple you always gain inspiration when defending it against enemies. Sacrifice any amount of goods to gain a number of bond tokens with the gods equal to the wealth level of the goods. Once per season, you may call the people to bring forth at least 1d4 wealth levels of sacrifices (DM may provide more). Spend a bond token with a god to ask them a question and roll a Wisdom+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, you get an answer. On 10 to 19, you get an answer but you must agree to pay a price to the gods. On less than 10, you either don’t get an answer or you get an answer but the gods take a price without asking. When an oath is sworn beneath your ring, both parties gain a bond token with each other. Personality Trait (choose one): Eccentric, generous, highly organised, jolly, long-winded, stern Ideal (choose one): Aspiration, charity, humility, power, responsibility, tradition Bonds (choose four, at least two Northlanders): Trusted ally, least trusted follower, younger relative, older relative, potential threat to the community, favourite student, a god, the Fates Flaw (choose one): Detail-obsessed, inflexible, judgemental, petty, temperamental, too trusting

SEIÐKONA (SEER)

Female only. Sorceress, witch, seeress...the skills and powers the people attribute to you are both a powerful and useful tool for the community and a feared and shunned practice. You can foretell the future, mend bones and influence outcomes of battles and arguments. It’s up to you how you’re going to use those powers. Skill Proficiencies: Choose two from Insight, Medicine, Nature, Religion. Tool Proficiencies: Herbalism kit Languages: One of your choice Possessions: Tattered rags or a rich gown, a warm cloak, a weaving wand (distaff), sheep knucklebones carved with runes, a pouch of herbs, a bit of silver. Modest lifestyle. FEATURE: SPELLWEAVER You may perform rituals to affect the Wyrd (fate) of a willing subject. When someone asks you to help them with your magic and you agree, gain 3 bond tokens with them. You can spend those tokens to assist or hinder their actions even at a distance.

Also: You may roll the rune-carved bones to read the future. Spend a bond token with the Fates to ask them a question and roll a Wisdom+proficiency bonus check. On 20 or more, you get an answer. On 10 to 19, you get an answer but you must agree to pay a price to the Fates. On less than 10, you either don’t get an answer or you get an answer but the Fates take a price without asking and the Fates gain a bond token with you that the DM can use at any time. You may use your Herbalism kit as a Poisoner’s kit that you are proficient in. When someone tries to hurt you or harm you for the first time, you become aware of it (negates surprise) and immediately gain a bond token with that person. When you try to stop a fight where you have at least one bond token with someone on each side, spend those tokens to halt the fight for a full round per token. You may speak freely during that time. If the combatants continue fighting afterward, you may re-order initiative in any way you wish. Personality Trait (choose one): Boastful, dramatic, empathetic, jokey, speaks in whispers, straightforward Ideal (choose one): Community, control, family, knowledge, survival, tradition Bonds (choose four, at least two Northlanders): Browbeaten relative, the one who does not fear you, casual lover, co-conspirator, oldest friend, the one whose destiny you envy, a god, the Fates Flaw (choose one): Condescending, easily distracted, lecherous, moody, shy, thinks she is doomed by the Fates

[Poh Tun Kai]

Bah, formatting problems galore.

[Ban]

Wah, you've been busy!

Bah, formatting problems galore.

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[Poh Tun Kai]

Last Thursday we had our first session of D&D 5e Vikings: The Dragon is the World. I was DM, and the players were Douglas Larke,Simon Blow Snow, Luc Mahsun, Joshua Nicholas Aeria and Navin Nathaniel Innasi, playing pre-generated characters.

In the community of Skogafjordur, Southern District of the Greenland:
Kanoveig (female fighter/steadholder), played by Douglas, was the bedrock of the community, who had taken over her household after the disappearance of her husband Rollo during a raid on the Midland Wall.
Ragnus (male barbarian/sturlanger), played by Joshua, was the captain of a raiding ship, the Dark Wolf, and was a charismatic leader of a warband.
Einarr (male barbarian/outsider), played by Luc, was the community outcast, born with dwarfism and relegated to a life in the Shattered Forest. He communed with animals, traded with Wendol hunters and prayed to Odin. He wanted more than anything to join Ragnus' warband.
Sigurd (male rogue/steadholder), played by Navin, was Kanoveig's neighbour across the river, heading up a household of his siblings ever since his father, the famed warrior Heimdall, passed away. Sigurd was a famed brewer of drink, and was working on starting his own forge.
Sven (male fighter/sturlanger), played by Simon, was Sigurd's warrior brother, a raider who was reluctant to use violence, yet had to live up to his father's reputation. His ship was called the Maiden.

We also generated a web of relationships, Hillfolk-style, by going around the table and having everyone name two Bonds with fellow PCs.

Kanoveig had friendships with Ragnus (who used to sail with Rollo) and her neighbour Sigurd, and she was also the target of a lot of other relationships. Sven was in one-sided love with Kanoveig. Sigurd was well-disposed to her. And Ragnus also returned her friendship.
Meanwhile, Sigurd and Sven had mutual strong Bonds due to their brotherhood, and Ragnus was also friendly to Sigurd in order to try to get closer to Sigurd's sister Freydis. 
Ragnus was also the target of Einarr's Bond because the outcast wanted to join his crew, while Einarr disliked Sven (which also counts as a Bond).

Nobody had Bonds targeting Einarr. Poor lonely Einarr.

Other NPCs included:
Haakon son of Thengen, a not-too-bright steadholder who inherited his wise father's treaasure.
Harald, Haakon's teenaged brother.
Skum and Freydis, Sigurd and Sven's younger brother and sister.
Helga and Orm, Kanoveig's little children.
Ulf, one of Ragnus' men.
Snorri, the slow and conflict-adverse goði.

And in the nearby forest lived the Wendol Two Sticks, a thief.

[Ban]

So its 5e with Hillfolks system thrown in! I'm guessing it isn't your first time running 5E?

On Tue, Mar 29, 2016 at 10:09 AM, Poh Tun Kai <ptik...@gmail.com> wrote:

Last Thursday we had our first session of D&D 5e Vikings: The Dragon is the World. I was DM, and the players were Douglas Larke, Simon Blow Snow, Luc Mahsun, Joshua Nicholas Aeria and Navin Nathaniel Innasi, playing pre-generated characters.

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[Poh Tun Kai]

Actually it's totally my first. I bought the Player's Handbook a day before the game!

[Ban]

Well, you must be pretty confident if you threw Hillfolks systems in. I'm surprised you didn't throw in systems from 13th age.

On Tue, Mar 29, 2016 at 3:43 PM, Poh Tun Kai <ptik...@gmail.com> wrote:

Actually it's totally my first. I bought the Player's Handbook a day before the game!

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[Poh Tun Kai]

Actually, 13th Age systems aren't a great fit for what I have planned. 5e has a very different flattened modifier curve, along with the ubiquity of Advantage and Disadvantage rerolls. And the Bond rules fit very nicely with Relationships from Hillfolk.

[Ban]

Huh. To clarify: Due to the flattened modifier curve and advantage/disadvantage, 13th age systems not good in general or just for what you had planned for your campaign?

On Wed, Mar 30, 2016 at 12:22 AM, Poh Tun Kai <ptik...@gmail.com> wrote:

Actually, 13th Age systems aren't a great fit for what I have planned. 5e has a very different flattened modifier curve, along with the ubiquity of Advantage and Disadvantage rerolls. And the Bond rules fit very nicely with Relationships from Hillfolk.

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[Poh Tun Kai]

Both, but more towards my campaign not needing most of that stuff.

I'm not going to have long involved combat if I can help it. I'm going to be zooming out of stuff that would normally bog down a game, like shopping, detailed tactical situations, etc. Partly this is because I suspect the characters are going to spend long periods apart and these are the uninteresting parts of the game that I want to skip past.

[Ban]

... Holy crap. Read your campaign summary. I think you've just invented a new way of running campaigns.

On Wed, Mar 30, 2016 at 8:15 PM, Poh Tun Kai <ptik...@gmail.com> wrote:

Both, but more towards my campaign not needing most of that stuff.

I'm not going to have long involved combat if I can help it. I'm going to be zooming out of stuff that would normally bog down a game, like shopping, detailed tactical situations, etc. Partly this is because I suspect the characters are going to spend long periods apart and these are the uninteresting parts of the game that I want to skip past.

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[Poh Tun Kai]

No, not exactly. Hillfolk and Malandros already do something very similar, minus the epic scale. There are plenty of indie games that do these things.

And a lot of what I've taken for the Vikings setting is from the Sagas of the Icelanders RPG.

I've just described the campaign framing and pacing based on my own personal style, that's all.

[Ban]

It's that pacing and framing I'm talking about. But it sounds tricky for other folks to emulate what you do: would need experience to pick and choose which moments to zoom in which the players find most relevant and are interested in.

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[Poh Tun Kai]

That's why, if you want to practice running games with a story focus, don't take more than two or three players. Place a laser focus on the players' issues and goals, and have players who are genuinely engaged and interested in one another (not just their own part of the story).

That will get you the experience before you try going up to four or five players. With more than five, you can forget about being able to share enough story time among the players.

On Friday, 1 April 2016 19:42:35 UTC+8, Dan Ban wrote:

[Poh Tun Kai]

Reposting what I wrote on the Facebook groups about zooming in and out in The Dragon is the World.

Zoom in. Zoom out.

At today's D&D 5e Vikings game, we resolved a fight between 20 indigenous Thule Fire-Bearer Wendol Tribesmen and about 15 Northmen (including five player characters). And I managed to articulate, in word and deed, some of the techniques I'll be using to run my story-focused campaign.

In the older RPG traditions, the player characters are (at least at first) a group of mission specialists who go together on journeys and missions, whether clearing out monster-infested dungeons or confronting corruption and evil in towns and settlements. There's a time scale for round-by-round combat, modelling each attack and spell and action with one or more dice rolls and result calculations. Dungeon travel and overland travel get zoomed-out timescales in terms of minutes, tens of minutes, hours and days. So, we've had tools to zoom in and out of different scales of action for a long time. Learning when to zoom out of a detailed tactical turn sequence, when to skip ahead, and when to zoom back in are all important skills for any Dungeon Master or Game Master. For some people, there needs to be versimilitude and detail. For me, it's more about dramatic pacing. A solid shot taking down an enemy leader can turn the tide of battle, so you can skip further rounds of combat and narrate the outcome of the fight like I did tonight.

I'm not running a game that's focused on mission specialists who need to keep together in detailed tactical scenarios. These are leaders of a community who will go their own way to do their own sub-plots, explore new lands, go raiding on longships, represent their settlements at the regional parliament, and parley with kings. So for me, "never split the party" doesn't apply. A single player character might have an entourage of half a dozen loyal warriors, or a handful of farm servants. They can get a lot done by themselves, and there's no need or desire for me to make them roll again and again just to accomplish menial tasks.

I zoom out, skip ahead to important moments, then zoom in for just the key scenes. Zoom out again, move on. We've got a saga to tell, and we can't get bogged down in shopping lists and combat minutiae.

Today, Sven, Sigurd, Ragnus, Einar and Kanoveig led the defense of Skogafjordur against a Wendol warband, held a shield wall at an outlying farm and slew the enemy leader, routing enemy lines. It took about one and a half combat rounds of zoomed-in action - I only bothered with the segment of the battle that matters. The Legend of the Five Rings mass combat system inspired the way I ran it, but I improvised a lot more thanks in part to my experience with these kinds of things. Then the player characters spent much of the session dealing with the aftermath: Tracking the enemy back to their mountain home and determining that a punitive raid in return would be too difficult, rebuilding a ruined shrine, holding a celebratory feast (and an impromptu wrestling match over a matter of honour), interrogating friendly Wendols, finding the relic-thief who started the whole holy war in the first place and putting him back in the hands of his parents, inadvertently creating their community's first religious convert, and sending two of their own to the regional capital as representatives for a summit. Oh, and three of them had scenes where they had introspective conversations with the voices in their heads (dead or missing loved ones, and in one case the Aesir Odin).

So far, this structure is working well, aided by the multiple community Bonds between player characters (and we just added a new one between Sigurd and Einar today, so things are getting tighter-knit). People used their Bond Tokens to skip around in initiative and inspire their allies in combat, to call upon their own inspirational relationships to win arguments and wrestling matches, and so on.

The real test will come in future sessions, when the sturlangers go on sea voyages lasting months while the steadholders spend the summer building political alliances and strengthening their community for the dangers to come. We'll see larger time-skips, and strategic zooms in and out of the action, select skirmishes and action sequences interspersed with personal drama and intrigues. Nobody will have long-distance communications and I expect the group could get quite scattered for a while. But I hope the Bonds will keep it all tied back together, and the plots will keep bringing them back to their hub, the settlement of Skogafjordur.

[Poh Tun Kai]

Strange and fun antics included the strange halfheartedness of our vicious vikings. After Sven gunned down the Wendol warleader White Bear with a borrowed bow, Ragnus chased down the target and chopped off his head. Sigurd mounted it on a pike to terrify the defeated enemy.
All well and good. But later they had a change of heart and returned the Wendol holy relics as well as the remains of White Bear in an attempt to reduce tensions. Hey, it's legit I say, if a bit odd.
Also, Einarr the devout follower of Odin sneaked into Haakon's home to return a stolen gold crucifix (loot from a raid by Haakon's late father Thengen) and when Haakon found the treasure returned, he instantly converted to the God of the Cross.
"Nice going," says Odin grumpily.

[Ban]

>> "That's why, if you want to practice running games with a story focus, don't take more than two or three players. Place a laser focus on the players' issues and goals, and have players who are genuinely engaged and interested in one another (not just their own part of the story).

That will get you the experience before you try going up to four or five players. With more than five, you can forget about being able to share enough story time among the players."

Good advice! Thank you, will consider strongly.

[Poh Tun Kai]

Worldbook

The world of The Dragon is the World is like our own of 900 AD, but the landscape is different.

Thule and the Northlanders

In place of Iceland, the vast island continent of Thule or “The Land of Green and Gold” stretches 1,500 miles across, with a mountainous coastline around its southern edges and a vast tundra lowland in its center. Because of ancient ice-and-land bridges, prehistoric North American fauna migrated to the land long before humans did, making it far richer in wildlife than our own Iceland or Greenland. The human hunters of the Ice Age made an impact on animal populations, but a series of cataclysms appear to have stunted the spread and development of the Thule natives, who today are called Wendol, which means “people.” The southwest, south and southeast of Thule’s coastline have been settled by political refugees from Arndoray.

The Vikings of this world call themselves Northlanders and can be divided between the West Norse of Arndoray (Norway today) and the East Norse of Daneland (Denmark), Scania (Sweden) and Varangia (Norse-occupied Russia). Arndoray remains pagan under the old Norse gods, and is dominated by the Arndor kings. Daneland is currently undergoing a gradual change as its kings are beginning to tolerate the influence of missionaries of the Cross. Varangians are known to have ranged far and wide in search of treasure and adventure; a number of them have become royal guards in the distant Constantin Empire to the far south.

The Midland Realm

Because of the rise of Midland, the Northlanders face far stronger enemies and rivals on the waves than their historical counterparts.

Doggerland and the English Channel never flooded. Some time around 6,500 BC, the native Etxelur people of Doggerland built a series of dikes to keep their holy sites from flooding. This gradually developed into the eight wonder of the ancient world, the Midland Wall. This enabled the Etxelur and several successor peoples to build Midland into a powerful nation that spans the entire Channel Valley and controls portions of what would be England, Brittany and Normandy.

Today, Midland is ruled by the Christian descendants of a thousand years of successor princes of the Brettony-Etxelur. An invasion by Danelanders a couple of hundred years ago resulted in a number of Dane-blooded princes entering the chains of succession, but the Midland-Dane ethnic group has fallen from power in recent years and political ties with Daneland have been severed.

The two cyclopean Midland Walls guard the Channel Valley from flooding at the east and west end. West Midland (Bretonny)  is more sparsely populated but has an extensive canal network connecting its inland towns and monasteries. Kirke, the ancient capital of East Midland (Etxelur) is a port city built into the East Wall. Midland’s powerful fleets of fishing boats, trading cogs and Dane-style longships make them a naval power to rival Arndoray. Midland also keeps a wary eye on Frankia to the south, where the once-powerful Carolin kings still have some waning influence.

The Celts and Sachsens inhabit the Albi Peninsula to the north of Midland and are imperial subjects of the Midlanders. The largest Albion city outside of Midland is Lundewic, a Sachsen capital on the Thames River.

[Shift244]

I don't do FB, but I feel like an upvote is in order for this.

[Poh Tun Kai]

Thanks for the comments. I'm just really happy running games like these. :)

[Kumiko Yamazaki]

Kanako's theme song

================

Within a dark and starry night

The moon flower silently floats

Through this world

That shines and sparkles

This is the place

Where I belong

A smile touches my face

As I feel a warm hand on my back

My power shines within the darkness

Causing my heart to blossom

"I will never allow for anyone to get hurt"

For within my heart is a light

That burns for all eternity

This sorrow

Is never ending

I know the pain better than anyone else

For I carry its symbol

For those who are filled with hatred

They will be unable to see the tomorrow

Using my trust as a shield

Willingly I go

Day by day and all through the night

I wait for the dazzling morning to come

While the moon flowers blooms

And casts its light upon me

[Poh Tun Kai]

The settlers, natives and visitors of Thule are the heart and soul of the campaign. In the typical D&D game, you explore a dungeon filled with threats and opportunities. In this campaign, the dungeon is the people.

SOUTH DISTRICT (SKOGAFJORDUR)
Rollo has been absent for more than a year, but his wife Kanoveig manages his steadhold with a strong hand while raising the children Helga and Vigdis with the help of some teenaged farmhands. Kanoveig is the heart of the community and provides her insight and compassion for all who are in need.

Rollo's friend and fellow sturlanger Ragnus leads a small but fierce warband aboard the longship Dark Wolf. Ragnus is one of Kanoveig's trusted friends.

The family of the late Heimdall is also well-respected. Sven is a sturlanger, the captain of the longship The Maiden, and he has much to prove as he walks in the footsteps of his warrior father. His brother Sigurd runs the farm as well as a successful brewing business. Their younger siblings Freydis and Skum will soon find themselves embroiled in the trials and tribulations of adulthood as well. Their old mother Tora quietly advises the family from the shadows, and has recently formed a questionable alliance with her enemy Freya Ravensbride, an outcast seiðkona who has designs on Sven.

The late Thengen was the chief goði of South District and a community leader. His sons are Haakon, a would-be Christian convert with more wealth than sense, and teenaged Harald.

With the passing of wise Thengen, the slow and conservative goði Snorri is now the senior priest and lawgiver in the South District. Snorri's main concerns are the conversion of Haakon Thengenson, and the rogue shrine of Odin in the Shattered Forest.

Guided by the voice of Odin and his own willful nature, Einarr was born a dwarf and seems to have both Norse and Wendol blood. He guards and leads the Forest Wendol tribe in the Shattered Forest and has appointed himself the keeper of the stone shrine of Odin. He also has the loyalty of a local wolf pack. A visiting young goði called Little Arn has agreed to teach Einarr and the Wendols about the Norse gods.

The leaders of the outcast Forest Wendol are Flintfinder, a middle-aged woman, and Bram, a former warrior of the Fire Bearers who was exiled with his men and their families for their failures in battle. Flintfinder's husband is Redstone, and their son, Two Sticks, is a translator and a keen student of comparative religion in Thule.

The leader of the dominant Fire Bearers of Reykjokull is Faceless, the high priestess. Her son, White Bear, was killed while leading Fire Bearers against Skogafjordur.

Prince Hamden of Midland is a proud young nobleman of a Dane bloodline. His exile from Midland has driven him mad with rage. He has a God complex, a bizarre attraction to Flintfinder, a calendar, a map, and a plan to raid Kirke, the capital of Midland. His right-hand man, Findar, is the liaison to the Northlanders of Thule.

EAST DISTRICT (FIRST LANDING)
Olaf Egilson is probably the richest man in the East, if not in all of Thule. He has the most breweries. He has the most hunting dogs. He has the most huscarls and thralls. He has the most silver. And he knows how to talk and bargain and deal better than just about everyone. He is supported by his aged mother Neri, his brother Egar, his oldest son Frordi, and the powerful goði Big Arn (a relative of Little Arn).

Asgrid, an influential steadholder, preaches caution in supporting Olaf, but has in fact been doing so because her small daughters were being held hostage by Ingolf.

Ingolf, an old friend/enemy of Sigurd from Skogafjordur, was until recently leading a Royalist movement seeking to curry favour with Prince Bjorn of Arndoray. He is now a rapidly cooling corpse. His wife Bera has been a strong leader of the Royalists as well, until her attraction to Sigurd proved to be her husband's downfall. Ingolf's other allies include Seggi the Black, a matriarch of the Fisherman's Hall and leader of the local sturlangers, and The Old Varangian, a strange old Christian mercenary.