Amongst the Ruins: Vayra Asks (10 Setting Questions)

I have yet to post a comprehensive entry about my system and setting. In the meantime, let me answer some questions.

Klaus Pillon

1) What class knows the most martial arts? Are they real martial arts like kung fu, or made up ones like krav maga?

There are no classes in Amongst the Ruins, but if you are keen on delivering devastating melee blows, you should choose Brutality as your Nature and negotiate some cool potentials to unlock with your DM. With time, you could even develop your own melee style!

2) Can I start out having already made a deal with the devil or do I have to do that in game?

There is no devil to speak of, but if you insist on surrendering your soul to a superior power, you can choose Witchcraft as your Nature or Tendency and join the campaign as a Strega. Their description reads as follows: "The soul of the world suffers beyond comprehension. Wield its pain and preach its agony." As a Strega, you are inextricably linked to the Nightmare. It will offer you power in many forms, and it will use your body and soul to invade this world, eroding your sense of self in the process. Accept its offer and the Ruin will consume you whole... eventually. In the meantime, the world is your playground.

3) Do you want me to write an 8-page backstory? Can I write an 8-page backstory, if I want to? If I write something down in it like I'm the timelost princess of the brass city and the daughter of the sun and I commanded legions in the Hell War but was betrayed by my father's vizier but I don't know that, or that I'm elf conan and cooler than everyone else, will that be true?

About the backstory: by all means, go ahead, as long as it is supervised by me. I like players that engage with the world and try to fit their characters in it. Your questions and doubts will help me further develop the intricate relationships between Gaúl and the Colonies, as well as better comprehend the dormant mysteries of the Wild. If you want to be a timelost whatever, I think we can make that work somehow, but you'll have to tone the epicness down a notch, since the tone of the game is more on the gritty, survive-at-all-costs side. You can have a blind, decrepit dog who never seems to get older as a companion, though!

4) If I eat someone's heart, will I gain their powers? What about their brain?

Many of a Ferox's powers become increasingly more powerful and versatile as you devour other creatures' hearts and flesh. Otherwise, simply treat yourself to a wondrous feast and enjoy!

5) These classes are boring, can I be one from somewhere else? What about from a different system entirely?

The six initial options (Brutality, Discretion, Erudition, Hunt, Leadership and Witchcraft) should offer plenty of room to develop (almost) any desired playstyle, so if you have a character concept in mind, I can help you find your way. If your suggestions are too tone-breaking, I'm afraid you'll have to find another game that suits your needs :(

6) If I make a sword, which one of us gets to name it?

Probably me. Or maybe you. Swords are a symbol of law and civilization. They can only be wielded by members of La Castra, and their different sizes, shapes and types determine your position within their ranks. A Lictor, for example, wields a hand-and-a-half sword, while a Carnifex carries an executioner sword and a Iudex wears a knightly sword and a war gavel. As a result, swordsmithing is highly supervised and has a ritualistic and solemn air to it. If you ever merit the bestowal of a sword, please be respectful of naming tradition (or not, break it and make history!).

7) Am I allowed to kill the other player characters? What would I have to do to be allowed to? Do I win if I kill them all? Actually, how do I win in general?

No, you are not. If you want to enact the murderous culmination of an emotional crescendo or a vaguely foretold betrayal, everyone involved must agree to it and, above all, EVERYONE involved must be at least ok with the possibility that a PC dies, including theirs. I'm all for some good and intense roleplaying, but only as long as everyone else is on board. About the winning... you win when you feel you are winning. This isn't a videogame with a definite ending, so I'd say it depends more on the short and long term goals that you set for yourself and those that are derived from the campaign itself.

8) What language stands in for 'Common'? Or what are we all talking to each other in? Like the party, mostly, but also everyone else?

I'd say Gaulish, or Urban as mostly everyone knows it. The language of the city is the most commonly known language and it is the one used in the relationships between Gaúl and the colonies. Some colonies have developed their own dialects, and some of them are so far removed that they could even be considered languages in themselves, but unless you are a scholar or a Lex, or chose Erudition as your Nature/Tendency, I don't think it's going to make much of a difference.

 
Some trades an occupations, however, have developed their own cants. The Inquisitorial Branch of La Castra, highly diminished after the Castra Vencida Accords, speaks the Luminous, a convoluted maze of circumlocutions in which no lies can be told and no truth remains untold (or so they claim...). The Fishwives, on the other hand, speak an utterly indecipherable mixture of fish names, price lists, water types and fish parts to convey secret messages to their members in public (it is an inside joke of theirs to simply speak gibberish to boggle down the minds of those who listen). 

9) How do I learn how to talk to rocks? No not once a day just, like, normally?

I'm afraid rocks are simply rocks in this setting, but if you are an Andanti you can learn to read, smell or hear the psychic impressions left on a rock used as a murder weapon or interrogate a rock in the middle of a clearing to see whether it knows anything about the people you are chasing. In the first case, the rock may demand more blood to answer your questions, but that is merely an echo of the murderous impetus imprinted on the stone... or is it?

If you spend enough time in the Wild or find an experienced Trailblazer willing to teach you, you may be able to learn the Verdant Tongue, which allows you to interpret the overwhelming stimuli of the forest and break it down into comprehensible bits of information. This is abstracted as a conversation, an exchange between the hunter and the Wild, but it is actually happening all in your head... or is it?

10) Which kinds of wizards get to serve kings and live in towers and shit and which ones are run out of town or stoned to death in the streets? Can I be both? At the same time?

It all depends on the when and where, really. If you have been born within a Hierarch family and your powers prove to be useful, you may be treated as a necessary evil, depending on the degree of your usefulness and the nature of your powers. Andanti tend to enjoy a higher status than the rest, as they are capable of experiencing and manipulating other people's emotions or even project their own, and as such they make excellent negotiators and lie detectors. Given their ability to shape and twist shadows and their dominion over the Veil, Umbra are highly sought after when it comes to spying and infiltration. As a result of their bestial nature and their enigmatic link with the Wild, Ferox born within the walls of Gaúl usually end up as exiles in the Roots. There are rumours, however, of communities beyond the walls led by Ferox that obey neither La Castra nor the rule of man.

Regardless of the nature of your corruption, you can always join the Trailblazers and live your life as a glorified courier running errands in the Wilds for a city that neither knows nor cares about you. Your life will be short and brutal, but at least no one will try to murder you in your sleep out of fear or ignorance when, as a Cinis, you conjure up a pillar of flame or make of the forest your offering to the Undying Fire.

Klaus Pillon

1d6 Encounters in Garum Firs (as imagined by Maggie Tulliver)

The resolution that gathered in her mind, after Tom and Lucy had walked away, was not so simple as that of going home. No! she would run away and go to the gypsies, and Tom would never see her anymore.

Maggie Tulliver

a sixpence

"superior" knowledge

a cape

a bonnet

a silver thimble

She was getting out of reach very fast, and she would probably soon come within sight of Dunlow common. It was not without a leaping of the heart that she caught sight of...

1. Two shabby-looking men with flushed faces, one of them carrying a bundle on a stick.
2. A highwayman with a pistol.
3. A small pair of legs sticking up, feet uppermost, by the side of a hillock.
4. A blinking dwarf in yellow with a mouth from ear to ear.
5. Apollyon, the foul fiend from the Valley of Humiliation.
6. The diabolical blacksmith in his leather apron grinning at her with arms akimbo.

At the next bend of the lane, Maggie actually saw the little semicircular black tent with the blue smoke rising before it, which was to be her refuge from all the blighting obloquy that had pursued her in civilised life.

Four Secrets to a Wondrous Feast - Modular Cooking Rules

"I sometimes think the most wonderful achievement of our tremendous civilization was food—its inconceivable abundance, its infinite variety, its marvellous delicacy. O my grandsons, life was life in those days, when we had such wonderful things to eat." ~

The Scarlet Plague by Jack London

Travel rations are useful. They take up inventory slots, they cost resources and, more importantly, they keep the PCs from starving. 

Travel rations are necessary. In my system, PCs reduce their Exhaustion by 1d3 if they take a quick break, or 1d6 if they decide to eat a ration while resting. Regarding long rests, the PCs need to have a meal (a travel ration will do) and a good night's sleep in a safe place to completely eliminate their Exhaustion (if they don't eat dinner, they only reduce 1d6 Exhaustion ).

Travel rations are boring. They can be dull and gamey and can quickly become another checkbox to tick.

Skerples and his Monster Menu-All solve the third problem by providing some texture to the act of eating while encouraging players to experiment with anything remotely edible. If you have ever wondered what the taste of owlbear meat is or what the consequence of munching on a Beholder's eyestalk are, go check his pdf now.

Similarly, Occultesque's rules for eating good in the dungeonhood provide a solid framework that account for the healing aspects of eating. In addition, his approach encourages the players to hunt or find different kinds of unique ingredients, increasing thus the potential for meaningful gameplay and memorable experiences.

However, quite often food is only a part of the experience of eating. A pleasant location, stimulating conversation, the company of others, all these elements can enhance a good meal and turn it into a feast... or ruin it completely. Additionally, eating can be a wonderful opportunity to introduce some world-building into the sessions: where does this wine come from? Where can we find more of this spice? Who can fix our lovely tablecloth? 

For these reasons, I present to you...

Four Secrets to a Wondrous Feast

Paul Mafayon

(the following is a system with many fiddly bits, if you want a more approachable version go check the condensed rules at the end)

Preparing, cooking and eating a feast usually takes a half watch (between 2 and 3 hours). The feast must be consumed immediately, so no leftovers. In order to make a feast, you will need  food and at least one of the following elements. Each element provides its own benefits to the revelers:

1. Food

Freshly picked, from a recent hunt or very well preserved. For every unique ingredient in your feast, roll 1d6. Reduce your Exhaustion by [Highest]+[ingredients]. A feast requires 1 serving per reveler. Use your judgement, but here's a suggestions: a handful of berries-> 1 serving, a rabbit -> 2 servings, a wild boar -> 4 servings

Note: instead of HP, my system uses Exhaustion, which works more or less like inverse HP. When a PC suffers damage, they accrue Exhaustion instead. Once Exhaustion has reached a certain Threshold, they start to suffer injuries. If a PC accumulates Exhaustion equal to double their Threshold, the next hit kills them.

2. Preparation

Each method has its own advantages and quirks. Be ready to fill your backpack with pots, pans and more strange utensils.

3. Spices

Rare herbs, scented oils, powerful salts... they enhance taste and awaken the senses. Typically come in small tubes of metal (1/3 Inventory slot). Each container can store up to 3 servings.

4. Luxury

A song, a poem, a nice table cloth, a lute concert... Luxuries ease the mind and are usually expensive.

If all four elements are present, the ultimate gastronomical experience is achieved and each player can choose one of the following:

• Reduce 1d6 Exhaustion.
• Reduce 1 stress.
• -1 Severity to one of your wounds.
• Unlock the FEAST benefit of one of the Foods for the next vigil (12 hours)

Elements of a Wondrous Feast

Maarten Hof

1d6 Foods - Delicious and Nourishing

1. Crimson Serpent Stripes. Tough and sinewy, faint sanguine taste. FEAST: You can smell blood with your tongue in a 30' radius.
2. Salamander Tail. Rubbery grey meat with a crunchy core. Smoky flavor with an ashen aftertaste. FEAST: You can breath a smoke cloud the size of a small cottage. You can do this once.
3. Dire Opossum Liver. Rock hard and bitter. FEAST: +4 vs poison.
4. Twin Beasts Cerebellum. Unnervingly soft and bland, slight feeling of déjà vu. FEAST: If two or more people share this meal, they can see and hear what the others experience for the next watch. This can be quite overwhelming for the untrained mind.
5. Tucuran Gossamer Wings. Brittle and flexible, faint pleads for mercy flood your ears as the wings melt in your mouth. FEAST: You can let out an otherworldly screech (everyone, including you, must pass a Presence test or become stunned for one round, roll for encounters). You can do this once.
6. Wild Winterberries. Ice blue and hard, they pop in your mouth releasing a wave of cold. FEAST: Keeps you warm regardless of weather or environmental conditions.

1d6 Preparations - Tools & Utensils

1. Pots & Pans. 3 Inventory slots, can be carried by multiple people. Your run of the mill cooking utensils, although somewhat chipped and rusty. 
2. Cauldron. 2 Inventory slots. Heavy and solid, requires water to work. 
3. Spit Roaster. 2 Inventory slots. Requires someone to be working the spit all the time.
4. Iron Steam Cooker. 3 Inventory slots. Healthy food wherever you go. Reduce 1 exhaustion.
5. Cooking Pit. A hole in the ground with some rocks lining the walls. Takes a half watch (2 to 3 hours) to build.
6. Smoker. 4 Inventory slots. It can also be used to smoke meat and other foods to turn them to travel rations. While these don't provide the benefits of a feast, they still keep you alive and fed.

1d6 Spices - Awaken your Senses

1. Wild Fennel Pollen. Bright yellow, anise-flavored. Enhances sight and awareness. +1 Intuition for the rest of the day. You cannot be surprised.
2. Nightspice. Deep black seeds, tiny as a mote of dust. Taste of bitter deception and then nothing. +2 Stealth and deception rolls for the rest of the day.
3. Crushed Boldo Leaves. Stark green, release a pale watery substance when crushed. Counts as your daily water intake.
4. Powdered Pensive Root. Made with the indigo roots of an elusive mnemotree. Clears the mind and expands your thoughts. +1 Memory for the rest of the day.
5. Dried Saffron Stigmata. Harmless, unmoving scarlet stalks. Taste of oxide and remorse. +1 critical chance vs vascular creatures for the rest of the day.
6. Purple Cosmos Petals. Strangely cold and eerie, taste of sweet licorice. For the rest of the day, you can fight in the dark without penalties as long as at least one star is visible in the night sky.

1d6 Luxuries - A Memorable Experience

1. Embroidered Tablecloth. 1 Inventory slot. Flowery motives, exquisitely woven by the Scarlet Daughters from the Weaver's Burg. Reduces 1d3 stress. When the feast is over, everyone roll Skill. On a failure, someone dropped some sauce on the tablecloth or wiped their hands with the seams. Cannot be used again until properly washed.
2. Bottle of Frisian Blood Wine. 1 Inventory slot. Made with wild grapes from the Frisian colonies. Extremely expensive (1 solidus) due to the deadly process of harvesting the mega grapes in the untended Frisian wine yards. Blood red syrup, tastes like survival and triumph. Gain +2 Attack and 1 Inebriation Die for the rest of the day.
3. Box of Cinerean Custard Puffs. 1 Inventory slot. Preserved in box of sturdy ashwood from the Cinder Groves. Deafeningly sweet, thick and creamy custard. Paper-thin flakes of ash from the disintegrating box crown the puffs. Tastes like honey and smoked timber. -1 stress. Pass a Vitality roll or suffer 1 Bloat (takes up 1 inventory slot, goes away at the end of the day).
4. Lyrical Ballad. 1 Memory slot. Typically a tale of ancient hunters and their inspiring deeds, describing a fierce battle against a Dreadful Beast. The singer must roll Presence. On a success, everyone is pleased and reduces 1d3 stress. On a failure, everyone reduces 1 stress and you gain 1 stress.
5. Book of Tales. 1 Inventory slot. The stories tend to share a common theme and their tone may range from cautionary to humorous. It typically contains 1d6+1 tales, although length may vary from author to author. Each story takes 1 watch to read (between three and six hours) and every listener reduces 1 stress. When all the tales have been read or heard, an additional effect takes place depending on the book. This can only happen once.
6. A Beautiful Vista. A silent clearing in the forest, a mossy overhang overlooking the dense canopy, an ancient mural or tapestry, the awe-inspiring ruins of a long gone era... These require more improvisation on the part of both players and GM, but should typically involve an ability test or the use of resources to reach safely and without further complications. Reduce 1d3 stress. Each vista may have its own unique benefits.

Julien Gauthier

Feast Condensed Rules

If you can't be bothered read all of the above or your players are more action inclined, here's a more manageable version of the ruleset. A feast usually takes a half watch (between 2 and 3 hours). The feast must be consumed immediately, so no leftovers. In order to make a feast, you will need  food and at least one of the following elements. For every element you include in your feast, reap the corresponding benefits.

Food

Freshly picked, from a recent hunt or very well preserved.  A feast requires 1 serving per reveler. Use your judgement, but here's a suggestions: a handful of berries-> 1 serving, a rabbit -> 2 servings, a wild boar -> 4 servings

Benefit: For every unique ingredient in your feast, roll 1d6. Reduce your Exhaustion by the highest result.

Preparation

Be ready to fill your backpack with pots, pans and more strange utensils.

Benefit: reduce 1 Exhaustion for every unique ingredient.

Spices

Rare herbs, scented oils, powerful salts... they enhance taste and awaken the senses. Typically come in small tubes of metal (1/3 Inventory slot). Each container can store up to 3 servings.

Benefit: Advantage on your next Initiative roll.

Luxury

A song, a poem, a nice table cloth, a lute concert... Luxuries ease the mind and are usually expensive. Benefit: -1d3 stress.

If all four elements are present, the ultimate gastronomical experience is achieved and each player can choose one of the following:

• Reduce 1d6 Exhaustion.
• Reduce 1 stress.
• -1 Severity to one of your wounds.

Thoughts & Design Notes

As usual, this feels way too bloated and fiddly, but then again, GM and players can choose to engage with these rules in however fashion they prefer. If you like the idea of spices but you can't find a place for the other elements in your campaign, then choose or create your favorite spices and throw the rest out the window. Similarly, if you like the idea of rewarding exploration with something other than experience points or loot, you can expand on the vistas.

While at the beginning I was worried that preparing a feast would slow down the flow of the session, I now believe that to be a key part of the experience. Let the players decide who is going to start the fire, who should prepare the dishes, think about the best spices to use or whether they should try to climb that cliff to have lunch on top of that mossy outcrop. Let them pause and enjoy.

Regardless, this has been a fun and creative exercise that has motivated me to think about world-building in a more down to earth way. Until I wrote this post, the Cinder Groves were a nebulous thought in my mind and the Frisian Colonies weren't even a thing. Now they are definite places for the PC to adventure into, with their own set of troubles and tribulations and, of course, rewards. On another note, I can definitely see a lateral advancement system built around the idea of felling perilous beasts and consuming their flesh in a ritual to unlock the wondrous magics trapped within their flesh.

Anyway, thank you for reading, reveler.