Sand and Cyphers - Running Dark Sun with the Cypher System

Homecoming 

I fell in love with the Dark Sun Campaign Setting in September 1994.  I was spending the weekend at my friend Andy's house, and he had this old SSI game on his computer:  Dark Sun Shattered Lands.  The idea of playing a gladiator-slave desperate to achieve freedom felt so very different from typical fantasy settings.  I put in a few hours on the game while staying with Andy, and asked to borrow the game before heading home.  

By the middle of the following week I found myself completely enthralled by the world of Athas.  So I got my mom to drive me to the Oxford Valley Mall, where I traded several weeks worth of allowance for the Dark Sun Campaign Setting Boxed Set and the Brazen Gambit by Lynn Abbey.  I still have that same boxed set, worn to heck with exposed cardboard breaking through the busted corners and edges.  As I look at the box right now I am amazed...

... can you imagine that it was only $20 for the setting?  

I explored the Dark Sun setting with AD&D 2nd Edition all throughout high school and college.  My players threw off their chains and ventured out into the Great Alluvial Sand Wastes.  Since one of our player characters was a Templar, we spent countless sessions involved in the bitter disputes between Gulg and Nibenay.  Later on our Trader led the party on grand caravan ventures to Urik, Raam, and Draj.  Athas truly became our sandbox.  

Years later I returned to the wastes with D&D 3rd Edition.  At the time I was a convert to the new D&D system, and had no interest in playing the game with the older ruleset.  Fortunately, I discovered Athas.org!  Like thousands of other Dark Sun fans, I found the fan-made rules perfect for running another excursion across the sands.  That campaign would last three terrific years, and wrapped up in 2007.

Since then, I've had only a few brief trips back to the Dark Sun Campaign Setting.  I ran a short D&D 4th Edition mini-campaign in 2011, but found the drastic changes to the source material off-putting.  I'm sorry, Wizards of the Coast, but Thri-Kreen have elongated abdomens, and Half-Giants are quite different from Goliaths.  

My most recent trip to Dark Sun was when I used Athas a recursion for The Strange last year.  We came up with a few basic rules for the recursion, and used Foci to match our agents of The Estate to familiar race and class combinations.  It worked really well, and left me wanting more.  

With the Cypher System Rulebook I think I'm now ready to deliver... 

Conversion Notes

Before we move forward, I want to be clear about what I've thrown together.  I'm not one for full conversions.  Sure I could come up with a dozen custom descriptors, and another half-dozen new foci, but why bother?  

Want to play a Mul Gladiator?  A Tough Warrior who Fights With Panache fits quite nicely!

Those Gith raiders are Level 2(6) creatures, level 3 speed defense due to their springing ability.  

It really doesn't take much to Cypher this stuff... that's why I'm such a fan.  

So what I've got here is a list of quick conversion notes that you can use to run Dark Sun this weekend using the Cypher System Rulebook with very minimal effort.  To do this right you'll just two, maybe three things:

• Obviously you'll need the Cypher System Rulebook.  Pretty much a given.
• You can get the Dark Sun Boxed Set PDF on DrivethruRPG for $9.99.  You'll need this unless you've already got a copy.  Speaking of, I may need to go get one.    
• The rules for Wild Talents are based on mutations that can come from either the Numenera or The Strange rulebooks.  I've got an alternative method as well... we'll get to that soon enough.

For this post I'll be covering character generation and some basic rules for general gameplay.  I may do another post with some creature conversions, but I trust most of you reading this can do these on the fly.  Actually, if you come up with any conversion materials, or comments on what I'm sharing, I'd love to see them!

Races of Athas

Any character race from the original Dark Sun boxed set can easily be emulated using the right combination of descriptors, types, foci, or even just flavor text.  The Cypher System Rulebook goes as far as to point players towards using stock descriptors to describe an elf or dwarf.  Not every dwarf needs to be rugged, nor does every halfling have to be stealthy.  It's your game, and your character.  

So when you read my suggested descriptors and some decent foci, don't get bogged down with these being "required" in your game.  Even the Half-Giant and Thri-Kreen, each of which I've created slightly customized descriptors, could be created using alternatives.  When we played Dark Sun using The Strange our Thri-Kreen was a Lucky Paradox who Hunts with Great Skill.  

These suggestions probably work best with players who are unfamiliar with the Dark Sun setting.  Any die-hard Dark Sun fan will tell you that this isn't the world where you'll find a Jovial Elf or a Kind Halfling! 


Dwarf 

• Descriptors:  Dwarf, Driven, Mad, Rugged, Perceptive, Strong-Willed, Tough, Vengeful

Elf  

• Descriptors:  Charming, Elf, Dishonorable, Fast, Graceful, Mystical, Sharp-Eyed 
• Focus: Moves Like the Wind

Half-Elf  

• Descriptors:  Appealing, Empathic, Jovial, Mysterious, Spiritual
• Focus:  Controls Beasts

Half-Giant  

• Descriptor: Half-Giant (Custom, modified "Strong")
• Extremely Powerful: +6 to your Might Pool
• Skill:  Trained in all actions involving breaking inanimate objects.
• Skill:  Trained in all actions involving lifting or carrying objects at great lengths.
• Inability:  The Half-Giant's constantly shifting alignment causes cracks in their personality.  The difficulty of all Intellect Defense actions are increased by one step. 
• Initial Link to the Starting Adventure
1. You served as a caravan guard during one of the other PC's trips across the wastes.
2. You are an ex-slave who served in an elite unit hired by another PC's friend's or family.
3. You are paranoid that your fellow PC's will come to distrust you based on your shifting alignment.
4. One of the PC's has been able to help sooth your transition from one alignment to another.  
• Focus:  Performs Feats of Strength

Halfling

• Descriptors:  Clever, Cruel, Impulsive, Inquisitive, Lucky, Stealthy, Swift

Human  

• Descriptors:  Brash, Craven, Doomed, Impulsive, Intelligent, Noble, Wealthy

Mul  

• Descriptors:  Strong, Hardy, Naive, Resilient, Tongue-Tied
• Focus: Never Says Die

Thri-Kreen  

• Descriptor:  Thri-Kreen (Custom, modified "Tough")
• Carapace:  +1 to Armor
• Dextrous:  +2 to Speed Pool
• Skill:  You're trained in jumping and leaping
• Additional Equipment:  You begin play with a Chatkcha
• Initial Link to the Starting Adventure
1. You see all of the PC's as part of your clutch.
2. You consider only one of the PC's as part of your clutch, and have a distrust of the others.  
3. One of the PC's has watched you consume an elven friend of theirs.  
4. You have spent time teaching one of the other PC's how to use your Thri-Kreen weapons, and the experience has been very rewarding.
• Focus:  Hunts with Great Skill

Classes of Athas

To create the feel of traditional character classes from the original AD&D 2nd Edition Dark Sun campaign setting, you'll need to consider combinations of Type, Flavor, and Focus.  

Types

Warrior, Speaker, Adept, or Explorer... the "Type" is the core of a Cypher System character.  But if you are looking to emulate the "feel" of the original AD&D 2nd Edition Dark Sun, don't get too hung up on this aspect of the character.  Your Druid may be a powerful Adept with a deep connection to a guarded land, or an Explorer with a nature-related focus.  A Templar could be an Adept or a Speaker, and a Gladiator a Warrior or an Explorer.  

If you are a game master reading this post, looking to run Dark Sun as a campaign, work with your players.  Decide amongst yourselves how closely you want to link the player characters to the original builds allowed in the Dark Sun Campaign Setting Boxed Set.  They're your sands.  

Flavors

Combat, Stealth, and Magic fit best.  

Builds

What I've done is pulled out all of the traditional AD&D 2nd Edition classes found in Dark Sun, and suggested the best Foci to come up with the right builds.  You'll note that I suggest the Types and Flavors for each, but this is another place where you can have fun!  If you remember, back in the original Dark Sun there was a lot of multi-classing.  

When I played Shattered Sands, my party included a Psionicist/Thief, a Ranger/Preserver, and a Fighter/Cleric.  In a Cypher System game, my Dwarven Fighter/Cleric could be a Strong-Willed Warrior who Channels the Elements.  I certainly like the sound of the Cypher build more than the old AD&D title.  

Bard (Speaker flavored with Stealth, remember that Dark Sun Bards did not cast spells)

• Entertains
• Infiltrates
• Murders

Cleric (Adept flavored with Combat, consider the original weapon restrictions found in the Dark Sun rule book)

• Channels the Elements
• As Channels Divine Blessings with minor modifications
• Trained in all tasks related to the Cleric's chosen element
• Blessing of the Gods (Elements): Must choose Earth/Stone, Sky/Air, Sun/Light/Fire, or Water/The Sea.  Cannot choose two elemental blessings.  
• Bears a Halo of Fire (Fire Cleric)
• Blazes with Radiance (Sun Cleric)
• Works Miracles (Water Cleric)
• Throws with Deadly Accuracy (Air Cleric)
• Stands Like a Bastion (Earth Cleric)

Defiler/Preserver  (Adept)

• Bears a Halo of Fire
• Casts Spells
• Consorts with the Dead
• Crafts Illusions
• Rides the Lightning
• Wears a Sheen of Ice

Druid  (Explorer flavored with Magic)

• Controls Beasts
• Lives in the Wilderness
• Masters the Swarm
• Speaks for the Land

Fighter  (Warrior)

• Carries a Quiver
• Defends the Weak
• Looks for Trouble
• Masters Defense
• Masters Weaponry

Gladiator  (Warrior)

• Fights Dirty
• Fights with Panache
• Masters Weaponry
• Needs No Weapon
• Rages
• Wields Two Weapons at Once

Psionicist    (Adept)

• Awakens Dreams
• Commands Mental Powers
• Focuses Mind over Matter
• Sees Beyond
• Separates Mind from Body

Ranger  (Warrior flavored with Stealth or Explorer flavored with Combat)

• Hunts Nonhumans
• Pick from an Athasian dedicated foe, such as Gith or Dray
• Hunts with Great Skill
• Lives in the Wilderness
• Wields Two Weapons at Once

Templar  (Speaker flavored with Magic)

• Channels the Sorcerer-King/Queen 
• As Channels Divine Blessings with minor modifications
• Trained in all tasks related to knowledge of the Sorcerer King or Queen
• Blessing of the Gods: Must choose from Authority/Law/Peace, Knowledge/Wisdom, Protection/Silence, Trickery/Greed/Commerce,  or War.  
• All "divine" aspects are reskinned as coming from the Sorcerer King or Queen
• Leads

Thief (Explorer)

• Explores Dark Places
• Infiltrates
• Moves Like a Cat
• Works the Back Alleys

Gear of Athas

Weapons

Some of these are from The Complete Gladiators Handbook

• Light Melee:  Quabone, Wrist Razor, Singing Stick, Puchik
• Light Ranged:  Chatkcha
• Medium Melee:  Carrikal, Impaler, Alhulak, Forearm Axe, Talid
• Medium Ranged:  Dejada
• Heavy Melee:  Gythka, Lotulis, Trikal, Double Bladed Spear

New Mechanics

Wild Talents (courtesy of +Scott Robinson)

Psionics permeate all of Athas, and so every character, when upon completing translation, gain a Wild Talent, a single random psionic ability.  To generate this random ability, use the  rules for Powerful Mutations, found on page 241 of The Strange core book.  Each player gets one roll, and is given a psionic-skinned version of that power.

Or...

For each character in play, roll one random cypher.  This will be their Wild Talent.  Once used, the character can roll another cypher after a 10 hour rest.  

Sure, this isn't the most canonical version of how cyphers work, but its a way to enjoy Wild Talents in your campaign without having to buy anything other than the Cypher System Rulebook.  

Cyphers

Potion fruit, scrolls, arcane trinkets, pretty much the same as the regular Cypher System Fantasy fare.  

Defiling Magic (courtesy of +Marc Plourde)

Using magical abilities on Athas requires the spell caster to draw the life from plants and creatures around them.  While most creatures can take a small drain on their soul, and just experience a bit of nausea, plant life is another matter.  If a caster is not careful, they defile the land, causing all plant life to turn to dead ash.  This is, of course, the easiest and most direct way to cast spells.  Preserving the plant life is far more difficult, but leaves no permanent harm to the world around them.  Of course in Dark Sun, there is no "grey area", and spell casters must make a tough choice:

• When using a magical revision, or focus ability, should the player character choose to "defile", the difficulty is lowered by 1 step.  
• When using a magical revision, or focus ability, should the player character choose to "preserve", the difficulty is increased by 1 step.

Inferior Materials    (created with the help of +Jeremy Land)

Due to the relative scarcity of metal, most weapons and tools are made of bone, stone, or wood.  When using one of these items as a weapon, any roll of a 2 when using an inferior weapon means that the item breaks, and cannot be used until repaired.  If the player rolls a 1, not only do they suffer the GM Intrusion, the weapon also breaks permanently.  

Tools are often made of non-metal as well.  Non-metal tools cannot be used as assets, but merely give the user a +2 modifier to the result of the roll.   

Survival Mode (created with the help of +Jordan Cwang)

This applies to any encounters that may occur in the open wastes.  

Traveling across the sands of Athas is very dangerous, and should always be treated as an arduous ordeal worthy of careful consideration.  Similar to Horror Mode found in the Cypher System Rulebook, Survival Mode increases the Intrusion Range. 

Any journey across the sandy wastes of Athas begins with an Intrusion Range of 5.  A character who just walks out into the wastes, unequipped and unprepared, will suffer a GM Intrusion whenever they roll a 5 or less on a d20 during all actions...

... yeah, it's that dangerous!

Obviously there are ways to decrease the Intrusion Range, and all of the following should be considered as ways to move the Intrusion Range down by a step:

• Accompanying or employing a guide trained (1 step) or specialized (2 steps) in survival.  This can include a party ranger or scout.
• Traveling on a road.
• Being part of a caravan.
• Carrying adequate food and water.

So walking from Tyr to Altaruk with adequate food and water grants an Intrusion Range of 3, while journeying as part of a caravan with a guide reduces this to 1.  There is safety in numbers, my friends.

Your Journey Awaits

So that's my take on character creation and basic rules for running Cypher System campaigns on Athas.  I may do another post covering monsters, but I think this is enough to get you started.  If you have any other suggestions or rule tweaks let me know!  I'd be happy to make some modifications and give you credit!

DCCRPG - Perils of the Sunken City - Part Two

Great SCOT!

The SCOT stands for "Sunken City Omnibus Tour," and what makes this series of events "Great" is that we plan on running through all four of +Jon Marr's amazing adventures one by one:

 The Sunken City Omnibus comes with four adventures:

• Perils of the Sunken City
• The Ooze Pits of Jonas Gralk
• A Gathering of the Marked
• Lair of the Mist Men

Last night we finished Perils of the Sunken City, in a game that I will remember for years to come!  It was one of those very special tabletop evenings.  The adventure was perfect, the players came ready to role-play their characters, and the overall level of comedy and humor was delightful but never derailed the gameplay.

I'd call it "outlandish" without being too "over-the-top" campy.  

When we wrapped up our session last month I allowed every player to advance one character to 1st level.  Some of the players still had multiple 0-level commoners at this point, but I thought the game would move faster if we didn't have an entire mob of 1st level characters in the game.  Since the adventure is written as a 0-level funnel, I figured that five 1st level adventurers would still fare well against the terrors of Madazkan's Dungeon.

I should also point out that one of our players, +Michael K, opted to choose an alternate class for his dwarf: a Dwarven Priest, written by +Jeffrey Tadlock and featured in issue #10 of the Crawl! Fanzine.   After witnessing the character class in play, the Dwarven Priest reminds me of a Fighter/Cleric from AD&D 2nd Edition.  There was a Kit featured in the Complete Book of Dwarves called a Champion that resembled the Dwarven Priest.  The Dwarven Priest gains a Mighty Deed die at higher character levels, and has a few less spells than a Cleric.  But they still gain the Infravision and Underground Skills of the rest of their dwarven brethren.  The only thing the Dwarven Priest really lacks is healing ability... but who needs that?

After reading the class in full, this is definitely something I would play if given the opportunity.  

Perils of the Sunken City, Part Two

The Free Company chose its five strongest souls to explore the depths of Mazkadan's Dungeon, facing off against undead, slimes, and a giant catfish named Whiskers.  The five encounter Malloc, the Dark Creeper, and one of their own dies in an outlandish attempt to appease a newly formed Patron Bond.  

Die Rodney!

Dramatis Personae 

• Nicodemus - Thief, played by +Alex Perucchini 
• Mason - Elf, played by +andrew lyon 
• Watson - Wizard, played by +Craig McCullough 
• Bellows - Dwarf, played by +Marc Plourde 
• Ramson - Dwarven Priest, played by +Michael K 

Adventure Summary

The Free Company began the next phase of their adventure in the lowest depths of Madazkan's Dungeon.  The long drop from the arena ended with a plunge into a healing pool of water.  The room containing the pool was circular, and consisted of one doorway to the west.  Five members of the Free Company chose to further explore the dungeon's depths.  Nicodemus, Mason, Watson, Bellows, and Ramson all felt adequately "advanced" enough in their understanding of basic adventuring protocols and etiquette to stand as a bastion against the fell creatures that inhabited the darkness.

[*cough* Level Up *cough]

[Judge's Note:  While dealing with basic campaign management, the topic came up of Dwarven Gods.  Michael was putting the last minute touches on Ramson's Dwarven Priest class, but since this is a mini-campaign, I didn't have a list of deities available.  So I thought I'd let the players choose.  Marc came up with Igneous, so he earned his character a point of Luck.  Igneous the Stoic is now the Lawful Dwarven Deity of Stone and Smithing in this world.  Let the Campaign Mythology begin!]

The stones walls surrounding the pool were full of cracks, revealing an eerie green light.  Mason's keen elven eyes were able to see through the cracks, and he described that the Free Company was in the middle of prisoner cells, each containing piles of bones covered in chains.  Knowing that they had to move forward, Nicodemus checked the door to the west and gave the all-clear.  The party opened the door, and everything remained still and serene.

But as soon as Nicodemus stepped into the larger chamber all of the chain covered skeletons started to rise.  In addition, a terrifying Minotaur skeleton appeared from a corner, clutching a steel pickaxe riding a spectral mine cart...

... it was the dreaded skeletal Mine-o-taur of myth and legend, spoken of only in the wicked far, north-eastern corners of the Great City.

[Mine-o-taur: same stats as the Chain Skeleton, but with a Pick Axe that does 1d8 damage, 13 hit points, and the ability to do a Spectral Mine Cart Charge (+2 to hit and damage)]

[Judge's Note:  Just before this happened the topic of Minotaurs came up, and Marc revealed that he pronounced them "Mine-o-taurs."  It must be a New England thing, but I had to twist the knife and put one of these terrible creatures into the game!]

Nicodemus ran back into the pool room and slammed the door, but the Mine-o-taur just used its spectral mine-cart to slam through the portal.  But Bellows was ready!  The dwarf announced that he was readying his spear to make the first strike.  As soon as the Mine-o-taur came through the door, Bellows stuck his spear into the wheels of the spectral mine cart, causing the creature to fly through the air and land in the enchanted pool.

[Achievement Unlocked:  MIGHTY DEED!]

With the Mine-o-taur taking damage in the water, THE Free Company turned their attention on the chain skeletons that were pouring through the doorway.  What happened afterward was a blur, so here are some of the highlights:

• Knowing full well that the Stick of Smite attained during their first quest could cause extra damage against anyone or anything with a name starting with the letter "R", Mason the Elf screamed out "DIE RODNEY!" when attacking a skeleton.  It was Mason's hope that the skeleton had a name starting with "R" before it found itself amongst the ranks of the undead.  Unfortunately the skeleton's name had been Horance, but "DIE RODNEY" became The Free Company's new motto.  

• During the battle, Watson cast his Magic Missile Spell against some of the chain skeletons on the other side of the doorway.  While most Magic Missiles appear to be bolts of fire, or blasts of ice, or maybe just enchanted arrows flying in mid air, Watson's spell had a very different manifestation.  Upon casting the spell, a giant eagle appeared and flew into the skeleton with a piercing shriek.  The stories of this spell would become so legendary that "Watson's Eagle-Eyed Magic Missile" would become the basis for a show called The Colbert Report hundreds of years in the future... on another plane of existence.  

• After a successful casting of Mason's Runic Word spell, the doorway to the rest of the dungeon became blocked by an enchanted barrier.  The rest of the battle played out like a scene from the movie 300, with a lot of slow-mo spear and sword action.  Nicodemus even shouted out "Die Rodney" a few times, in solidarity with Mason.  

Once all of the skeletons were defeated, the party gathered some of the chains, as well as the Mine-o-taur's pickaxe, and explored the next series of chambers.

The central chamber of Madazkan's consisted of a dozen or so ancient prison cells, doors to the east and west, and a large archway leading to a chamber to the south.  Using his keen elven eyes, Mason managed to find a secret doorway to the north.  Knowing that they would need more gear and equipment to survive the horrors of the underworld, the party picked the rooms clean, grabbing everything they could find.  

One of the more unique artifacts was in a closed chamber to the northeast.  Nicodemus found a chain skeleton with a pierced skull.  Apparently the Mine-o-taur had become annoyed with this skeleton, and rightly so.  When the Thief lifted the skeleton, turning the face towards his own to reveal a mouth full of gold teeth, the skull began to speak!  

His name was Cedric of Redwater... or at least he said that was his name, as Cedric was a bit of a liar.  Not just a casual liar, but a blatant, over-the-top, compulsive liar.  He wouldn't even admit to being a skull trapped in a dungeon, but insisted that he was selling produce in a South Redwater market.  He certainly didn't give The Free Company any help in exploring the dungeon. 

[I should point out that "Cedric" sounds like "Mick" from Rocky.]

Unsure of whether he would keep Cedric for his gold teeth or as future entertainment, Nicodemus threw the skull in his backpack, and continued searching the room.

Eventually the party tired of the prison cells and approached the secret door that Mason found.  On the opposite side was a weird den of wicked desires and debauchery.  Leather straps and buckles.  Plush yet worn benches.  If the Mad Necromancer Madazkan were there he would tell the party that he didn't do romance, and that his tastes were very... singular.   

There were four doorways out of the secret room, and a bookshelf with one remaining intact tome.  The party took down the secret door (it was just a series of stones), and entered the chamber.  The leftover tome was definitely a spell, and Watson greedily grabbed the book.  Not happy with remaining unarmored, Mason took all of the straps and belts and covered himself with a weird, jury-rigged leather armor resembling a gladiator's manica.

But it wasn't what was "in" the room that got the attention of Bellows and Ramson, but what was beyond the doorway to the northwest:  Gold!

The dwarves could smell the rich substance, and wanted it immediately!  The rest of The Free Company agreed, and followed the dwarves through the doorway and into a long corridor until they all came to a sudden, terrifying stop.

The next room was a great, circular chamber with a giant stone tree sporting an organic, living mouth in its trunk.  The teeth of the tree moved and manipulated the body of some poor bloke who must've found his way into this chamber only a few hours earlier.  But at the tree's edge rested a golden cup filled with jewels, so despite the grotesque and otherworldly entity, The Free Company didn't flee the scene.

Eight deep holes circled the stone tree, each situated at a compass point.  Nicodemus approached the nearest hole, but a great tentacle-like root sprung up from the void, grasping the Thief and throwing him against a nearby wall.  The Thief was knocked into unconsciousness, and the party feared him dead.  Mason started to approach, but found himself contacted by the tree... 

... but it was not truly a tree...

... it was Malloc, the Dark Creeper!

Malloc called to Mason, offering a bargain if only the Elf would submit and cast the appropriate spell [Patron Bond]  Mason agreed, cast the spell, carving the images of trees into his arms and legs [Spellburn], and felt himself deeply connected to the somewhat alien entity.  The casting was quite successful, and Mason felt as if he could almost call the Patron his "friend", or at least a very dear acquaintance.  

So when instructed to surrender either the dying Nicodemus or another party member as a blood sacrifice to Malloc the Dark Creeper, Mason felt very comfortable asking for a few minutes to think the decision over while he dragged the thief to safety.  At this point the rest of the party had run back down the hallway to another chamber, quivering in fear that another tentacle root would appear.  There was some discussion as to whether or not one of The Free Company's other members [the remaining 0-level characters] would be sacrificed to Malloc, but everyone hoped that they could find another sacrifice somewhere in the chambers.  

The Free Company continued their search, discovering several interesting chambers in Madazkan's Dungeon:

• The very next doorway actually led to the dungeon's exit.  A trapdoor in the ceiling of a long stone hallway revealed a ladder leading to the surface outside of the arena.  Mason considered climbing up, but got the feeling that Malloc would disapprove.

• Another hallway to the east of the "Singular Taste" room led The Free Company to a skeleton wearing a golden medallion.  "Gold!" screamed Bellows, but when he reached the skeleton there was a partial cave collapse.  He took some damage, but survived with an amulet depicting Malloc.  

• To the west of the central chambers the party discovered a strange altar with ten clay vases.  Smashing open several of the vase the characters released single electrum pieces one by one [each worth 10 gold pieces].  Pushing their luck, one of the vases exploded in a noxious gas.  Rather than risk any further damage, The Free Company stashed two of the vases.

• Everyone loves singing slimes!  South of the "Press Your Luck" room was a dungeon bathhouse, featuring several tubs for washing, a few pits for crapping, and a well crafted chest with Malloc's symbol on the outside.  Covering the walls of this chamber were thousands of tiny purple slimes, each one singing a song of praise and worship.  The Free Company tossed two of their remaining vases into the room, unleashing a horrific poison that killed off all of the little slimes, but caused two large purple slimes (singing, but with much deeper voices) to reveal themselves.  A combination of Watson's Choking Cloud and Mason's Sleep spells took one of the slimes out of action, while Nicodemus bashed the remaining one with a flask of oil [he had asked Cedric the lying skull to pass him a sword, but was instead given the bottle.]  

Four passages, and still no blood for Malloc.  The Dark Creeper was growing impatient, and Mason started to fear for his own life.  There was just one chamber remaining in Madazkan's Dungeon, located behind the large archway on the southern wall of the prison cell room.  

Passing through the archway, The Free Company came to a great underground pond filled with thousands of tiny glowing crayfish and a twenty-foot long mutant catfish...

... wait...

... yeah, I read that right.

In the middle of the pond the party saw a small island covered with loot, but getting there required swimming through twenty-foot long mutant catfish infested waters.  Mason approached the edge of the pond, and dipped a pole in the water.  From out of the depths, the great catfish [let's call him "Whiskers" since that's his name] jumped up and took a bite out of the elf's shoulder.  

For most adventuring companies, the scene of an orca-sized catfish chomping down on, but not killing, a fellow party member would end the encounter.  But not The Free Company!  They decided to strap a bunch of chains to Mason and use him as bait, with the hopes that they could all get attacks off on the catfish.  Once dead, they could drag it's bloated body back to Malloc and quench the Dark Creeper's thirst for blood.

Let's just say now that the plan worked, and only caused the party 20% casualties.

Twice the party goaded the creature into jumping at Mason, and each time they nailed the beast with spears and swords.  But on the second "fishing attempt" Whiskers succeeded in getting all of Mason in its mouth before dying.  By the time the party made it to the elf, pulling on his legs, all they got were legs.  The rest of the now dead elf was inside the great catfish.

With not a moment to waste, the four remaining members of the adventuring party dragged the catfish (and Mason's body) back to Malloc, flopping the two right in front of the strange entity.  The stone tree statue consumed the blood of the catfish, and pulled Mason's legs into its circular mouth, chewing until satisfied.

"Do you seek the blessing of Malloc?" the Dark Creeper asked.

It seemed like a loaded question.  

Ramson backed away, fearing that he could anger Igneous the Stoic [wise choice, +Michael K!] but everyone else stood their ground.  Watson requested the golden chalice, and was given permission to approach and grab the cup.  Nicodemus and Bellows both wanted that "blessing", and each was given a boon granting improvements to their core attributes at a minor cost.  Nicodemus grew a tree-shaped mark on his face and Bellows would never be able to cause harm to a tree again.  

Biding Malloc adieu, the party returned to the island and grabbed the remaining swag before collecting their commoner allies.  The portal to the surface was located just a few hundred feet from the Sending Stone that teleported The Free Company back to the entrance of the Sunken City.

Die Rodney!

  

Quotes?

"I say it's foul sorcery!" - Ramson is not a fan of foul sorcery.  

"I've always pronounced it with the long 'a'." - Marc pronounces Minotaur "MINE-o-taur".

"DIE RODNEY!" - Mason's war cry.

"There's some wicked lahge MINE-o-tars in heere." - Jim mocking poor Marc.

"We've got a compulsive liar, disembodied head... awesome." - Craig mocked Cedric's appearance in the adventure.  

"You know, I'm an elf, it's a tree, we can make that thing work out." - Andy's all about the upside.

"Given Andy's outfit, is this gonna give him Patron Bondage?" - Marc needling Andy's choice of armor outfitting.  

"So... I made a deal... with an evil tree... it's a nature spirit." - Mason to Nicodemus, trying to rationalize the whole situation.

Alex - "Can we make a fishing reel out of the chains?" 
Jim - "Sure."
Alex - "Well, I'm not smart enough to suggest that."

In Memoriam 

• Mason - used as bait for Whiskers the Catfish

Cypher System Fantasy - Sailors on the Starless Sea - Part Two

This is a continuation of my Cypher System Fantasy quick conversion of the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG adventure, Sailors on the Starless Sea by +Harley Stroh.   I truly believe this to be one of the greatest adventures ever written, especially after running it with the Cypher System.  Designed for a DCC "0-level funnel" (low-level character grinder), this adventure scales perfectly for higher level play.  

Definitely worth picking up, no matter what system you use to play fantasy games!

Worlds of the Cypher System

Before we move into the meat and potatoes of this post, I need to bring up Monte Cook Games' current Kickstarter campaign:  Worlds of the Cypher System!  

The first Kickstarter supporting the Cypher System Rulebook, Worlds of the Cypher System (already funded) is going to introduce three new and interesting settings:  Gods of the Fall by +Bruce R Cordell, Predation by +Shanna Germain, and Unmasked by +Dennis Detwiller.

Here's the descriptive blurb by MCG covering the three:  

"Awaken your divine spark, claim a dominion, and become a god in a fantasy world in which the heavens smashed upon the Earth like a vengeful star.

Or find yourself trapped in the dark and dangerous world of the Cretaceous Period. First you'll have to figure out how to survive using the tech you brought from the future—modern weapons, advanced science, and bioengineered dinosaurs. Then you can worry about the asteroid that history says wipes out most life on earth.

Or drift to the edge of insanity. They'll say you're dangerous. Insane. That you suffer from Dissociative Mask Disorder. Your parents and the doctors and the press and the military—they can’t believe what’s happening. They can’t believe what you can do. And they wouldn't believe the price you pay."

In full disclosure I'm backing to get all three settings.  Even though I'm not sure if I'll play each of these completely as written, given the cross compatibility of the existing Cypher System settings (Numenera and The Strange), I'm sure I'll have a use for everything.  

While this Kickstarter directly supports the Cypher System Rulebook, fans of The Strange should be especially geeked, since each of these would make for an exceptionally robust Recursion!  This is the main reason that I'm a backer, since I'm always looking for recursion fodder for my games of The Strange.  You never know when you might need a new world for your agents of the Estate.  

Come to think of it, I really miss running The Strange...

... hmm... I have an idea... 

... don't wait for me, just go read the adventure recap and we can discuss The Strange later.  

Living 4 Crits Presents

A Cypher System Fantasy Campaign

Ardeyn: Land of the Curse

Cast

• Sister Sariety, a Charming Speaker who Works Miracles, played by Frank
• Zamani, a Spiritual (Ugallu*) Explorer (Magic) who Masters Foot and Fist**, played by Andy
• Shenuesh, a Rugged Adept (Combat) who Wields Two Weapons at Once, played by Jeremy
• Yaren, a Foolish Warrior who Stands Like a Bastion, played by Craig
• Verrenn, a Spectral*** Adept who Casts Spells, played by Marc

** Masters Foot and Fist is from Worlds Numberless and Strange by Monte Cook Games
*** Spectral is a new and original focus written by Marc Plourde and featured on his blog, Inspiration Strikes

Our Story So Far… 

• Episode 1:  Dream Patrol
• Episode 2:  Ribs
• Episode 3:  Skull
• Episode 4:  Glitch
• Episode 5:  Starfall in Ardeyn, Part One
• Episode 6:  Starfall in Ardeyn, Part Two
• Episode 7:  Starfall in Ardeyn, Part Three
• Episode 8:  Through the Night
• Episode 9:  Sailors on the Starless Sea, Part One

Episode 10: Sailors on the Starless Sea, Part Two

Following the epic battle with the bestial humanoids, the brave adventurers from the Citadel Hazurrium needed a few moments to rest and catch their breath. Fortunately Sister Sariety's healing abilities cured many of the wounds.  Once everyone was ready to move forward, the troupe chose to finish exploring the upper level of the fortress before delving into the underworld.  

Hoping to find some new relic or artifact, Verrenn the Spiritual Adept dragged everyone to a rune covered coffin on the northern side of the courtyard.  After careful examination, Verrenn read the runes aloud:

"... and death shall pass."

At first the party tried dropping Verrenn's disembodied head on the coffin, thinking that perhaps it would pass through.  

It didn't.

Zamani noticed that the lid of the coffin could potentially be pushed open with the right amount of force, and Yaren was glad to be off assistance.  The warrior shoved the lid off the coffin, revealing the withered remains of an ancient Ugallu.  Yaren quickly jumped back as a puff of deadly mold spore wafted up out of the coffin, while everyone else looked on in horror.

"Nabakaani, the Ugallu Lich!" Zamani exclaimed with fright, backing away unable to look at the remains any longer.   The Ugallu monk knew that his ancestor Furrcani destroyed Nabakaani the Warlord while he was still alive, but there were many tales of horror that still haunted Zamani's family.  He wanted no part of the lich, even if he were no longer a walking undead.  

But since the lich wasn't moving, Verrenn and Yaren had no problem digging through his remains.  There was a sword with a bejeweled scabbard, a satchel of dust (a slave creating cypher), and a very special tome...

... The Spellbook of Ineffable Evil!

[Right out of the Encyclopedia of Impossible Things!]

Verrenn opened the book, and realized that it was one long set of directions on how one could become a lich.  Such a book could come in handy, especially if one wanted to reverse a similar process.  

Satisfied that the coffin's contents were properly looted, Verrenn led the party over to a nearby well.  Much like the coffin, runes also covered the well's stones, and Verrenn began to read them aloud...

... or so he thought.  

[Verrenn's player, +Marc Plourde, rolled a natural "1" which means a GM Intrusion in the Cypher System.  As a joke, +Jeremy Land said "So Verrenn reads out what he 'thinks' are the runes on the well, but actually recites words from the book he just read, now implanted in his brain."  I decided to let this be the GM Intrusion!]

When Verrenn recited words of power from within the Spellbook of Ineffable Evil, the dark magicks of... darkness... arose from the depths of the underworld and transformed the well into a Well Golem!

[Yeah, I just used the Golem from the Cypher System Rulebook, reskinned to appear like a giant walking well.  It was my "Gazebo Moment" for the day.]

Zamani used his wind punch to shove the Well Golem away from the party, but it just charged back into combat, now wielding the lid from Nabakaani's coffin.  The team tried sword and claw, spell and fist, and nothing seemed to cause any considerable damage to the golem.  The construct's stony armor was just far too strong for conventional attacks.  

Verrenn decided to try attacking the monstrosity's power source, rather than its body.  Using a countermeasure incantation, the spellcasting undead rolled up a ball of inverse magical energy, and targeted the Spellbook of Ineffable Evil.  The attack worked!  With the book destroyed, the Well Golem crumbled into dust.  One by one the party members scooped up bits of Well Golem after realizing that they could possibly use them as Enduring Shield cyphers later in their quest. 

With the courtyard completely cleared, the adventures gathered themselves and headed down the long staircase into the depths below Baezedaar Keep.  Traversing several hundred staircase, eventually they came to a long room covered in grand mosaic carvings.  A murky pool rested in the center of the room, and a portal on the opposing wall led to more stairs.  Verrenn and Zamani examined the mosaics, trying to make sense of the strange images.  The pictures told the tale of how a great dragon would be summoned at a tiered-pyramid, commanded, and then sent to a world full of illuminated spires to perform acts of destruction.  

The party briefly considered sending one of their own into the pool to explore its depths, but eventually moved on to the next series of stairwells.

[Crap!  There went my chance to introduce the Cypher System version of Sezrekan's ring!]

At the bottom of the stairs the adventurers found a small beach adjacent to an enormous underground sea.  A large stone alter rested at the edge of the water, and an ancient, oared longship floated fifty feet offshore.  In the distance, far across the sea, the sound of drumming, moaning, and screaming could be heard.  With no time to lose the party lit a candle on the altar, causing the longship to come to shore.  Each adventurer boarded the vessel and set off for the terrifying sounds.  

After a half hour of rowing the crew of the magic longship discovered an incredible site.  A large, tiered pyramid, similar to the mosaic, rested on a small island in the center of the sea.  Crazed bestial humanoids covered the pyramid, many appearing to be drunk or in a daze.  Looking closer, the party also saw many dead humanoids, as well as normal humans, covering the pyramid.  Most looked partially consumed, or torn apart. At the top of the pyramid a small group of beastman cultists were concluding the rites of dark ceremony.  

Whatever happened here was over, and the party was too late.  

Hoping to find out more, Shenuesh jumped from the boat to the shore, and quietly investigated the scene.  Zamani didn't want to be left behind, and figured that his cat-like form made him look a little like a beast man.  The monk followed the lycanthrope and donned some of the cultists' clothing.  Climbing to the top, Zamani could make out what appeared to be claw marks covering the dead cultists and humans.  Some had been bitten, with their remains nowhere to be found.  

Once at the top of the pyramid, Zamani was mistaken for another initiate.  The high priest was praising something called "Rhilon" while he commanded the other initiates to clean up after the ceremony.  Just to the left of the main alter was a large ornate box, with five bracers nested in velvet.  Judging by the indentation, there was a place for a missing sixth bracer.  

Zamani went to steal the chest, but accidentally knocked it off of the platform.  The great box tumbled down the tiers of the pyramid, bowling past bestial humanoids and captive slaves, until it struck Shenuesh.  The weight of the chest dragged Shenuesh down into the murky waters, but the lycanthrope's adaptive nature allowed him to exist quite comfortably beneath the waves.  At first Zamani was relieved that his friend was alright, but then he noticed that the cultists had all turned their gaze to the Ugallu.

The bestial cultists were clearly outmatched.  Zamani threw the first punch, using his inner energy to launch the high priest fifty feet out and away from the top of the pyramid.  Yaren played crossbow target practice with the remaining cultists, and Verrenn set several on fire with his arcane flare.  Even the typically pacifistic Sister Sariety let loose a few crossbow bolts.  When the last beastman fled, Zamani returned to the longship.  

Shenuesh arrived not long after, bearing the great chest.  Verrenn looked at the strange artifacts, and remembered them from the histories of Ardeyn.

"The Baezedaar Bracers," Verrenn exclaimed. 

According to Ardeyn lore, these bracers had the power to transport the wearer somewhere spectacular, quite possibly a lost moon.  If the cultists used the missing bracer on "Rhilan", no doubt the terrible entity was on its way to this unknown world.  

Verrenn wasted no time putting on one of the bracers, and he immediately disappeared! 

Shenuesh wanted nothing to do with these artifacts.  The weretouched warrior wasn't about to visit a lost moon anytime soon, and he was dumbfounded at the gullibility of his fellow adventurers.  Yaren followed his undead grandfather, stirred by words silently whispered by Sister Sariety.  

Shenuesh's mouth fell open in horror as he watched the Sister next whisper in Zamani's ear.  Immediately the Ugallu placed the bracer on his wrist, disappearing in a flash.  

What was the Sister doing? Shenuesh thought.  Foul treachery!

Smiling, the Sister next whispered in Shenuesh's ear. 

"I think you should wear the bracer," she stated.  

But Shenuesh refused.  The lycanthrope backed away, unwilling to fall for the Charming Speaker's poisoned words.  That's when she pulled out the small pouch of slave-making powder discovered earlier in Nabakaani's tomb.  Sister Sariety threw the powder in Shenuesh's face, and then commanded him to wear the bracer.  

As soon as Shenuesh disappeared from Ardeyn, Sister Sariety followed.

Maybe we are not to late, she thought.  

*     *     *

Agent Evan Calders of the Estate lay bleeding on the ground.  The sound of gunfire continued all around the young operative, drowning out the roar of the great dragon as it tore through the roof of the small nondescript office building in Alexandria, Virginia.  The terrible beast came through the gate unhindered by the standard physics of Earth.  There was no translation, no shift to a more Earthlike form.  There was just the dragon, rising into the night sky, it's escape covered by these maniacal, gun wielding cultists.  

Just then, there was another flash... then another... and another.  More souls coming through the inapposite gate.  The first was a spectral undead creature, oozing with ectoplasmic form.  The next a stout knight, clad in great armor wielding a sword and shield.  A robed lion-man then appeared, followed by a rather docile looking werewolf.  

Finally Agent Calders saw her: a plain, ordinary sister of some fanciful monastic order.  The cultists turned their guns away from the dying agents of the Estate, opening fire on the fantastic newcomers.  Agent Calders watched as the sister covered her face with a stone bracer just in time.  The shock of the bullet shattered the bracer, causing an amazing transformation of light and magic.  

Where there was once a simple, middle-aged nun, there was now a young blond teenage girl.  It was Gabbie!  

"Gabriella," Agent Calders screamed out just before taking another bullet.  "You're too late.  Run!"  

Quotes

"Andy, use your magical abilities to help him out." - Frank to Andy, another "Zamani is a mage" inside joke.

"Now listen, if anyone wants to touch me now, appropriately..." - Frank begins a statement.

"That's something about 'and death shall pass.'  Maybe we can just drop Verrenn's skull on it and it will drop through." - Jeremy reasoning.

"It's the U-Haul Trailer all over again." - Jeremy brings up a scene from our very first playtest of The Strange, where I had a golem translate to Earth from Ardeyn as a U-Haul

"Did we just walk into a Japanese horror movie?" - Marc thought the GM's art looked like Godzilla and not a dragon.

"It's not as powerful as a 'Well Golem,'" - Words Marc never expected to hear before this game.

"I could just see all five of you standing in line at Starbucks." - Jim on the actual characters going to Portland instead of Alexandria.

Parting Shots

Hi honey, we're home!

After several months, and ten play sessions we are back in The Strange!  I guess to be technical, we've been in The Strange all along but only two of us really knew the truth: me and Frank.  Frank's concept of Gabriella (a teenage character he's played in several other systems and settings) formed the basis of Sister Sariety from the beginning, and the two of us have been waiting for this reveal for quite some time.

I've wanted to do an Ardeyn native campaign in The Strange ever since the corebook arrived at my house in the summer of 2014.  But since I play with a crew of Cypher System veterans, I thought it would be impossible to spring any kind of surprise.

Cypher System Rulebook to the rescue!

Some of my players admitted that they thought something was up, as I had dropped hints here and there, but for the most part I think I pulled off a successful reveal.  To make the game even more interesting, I have the Baezedaar Bracers acting as miniature "gateways", transporting the magic from Ardeyn into the characters so that they do not translate but still retain all of their powers.  I love the idea of fantasy characters running around a modern Earth, wielding crazy arcane magic... its just so "Highlander" or "The Last Witch Hunter."

Eat your heart out, Vin Diesel...

... or better yet, come find me on G+ and I'll run you through an epic game of Cypher System Fantasy or The Strange!