The Weaponmaster

Many years ago, I bought a copy of the AD&D 1e Oriental Adventures book with my own money. I loved it dearly, and as a 14 year old in Montana, I was completely unaware of all of what we would now call "problematic". It lit the imagination of a teen right in the middle of a Japanophile phase. I already loved the Monk from the original, and this was more, and with a more sensible setting for them.

Out of that book, the Kensai caught my eye. It absolutely held me in rapt attention, and many college ruled notebooks were littered with unplayed characters I made. It drove me to read Eiji Yoshikawa's Musashi (again, unaware of anything about the author) and eventually code up a Kensai guild on a MUD (hey there Lost Souls fans). Clearly, I was pretty obsessed.

The Weaponmaster here is built with that in mind, but less tied to any cultural tropes. It has a relatively standard progression, but the addition of Art as a required skill at all levels makes them "level" slowly. This, of course, can be swapped out with another skill, but I would recommend something reflective of the social aspects of culture and not clearly applicable to conflict. Another Art, Singing, Acting, or Oratory would make good alternatives.

It is also worth noting that the restrictions placed on the Weaponmaster are fairly stringent. No weapon other than their chosen type, no armor, and no shields, as well as a requirement to practice every day for a significant amount of time as well as have a duel with another Weaponmaster before they can advance is tougher than most of the cults I've put up here. These are clearly based on previous iterations of the Kensai, but I think work well with a cult that teaches them to augment their combat style as well as enhance their action points.

The Aura of Mastery is something there to give the Weaponmaster a way to avoid a fight. It should impress bandits, scare of rabble, and cause those who respect the martial arts to pause. It will not work on everyone, and may work in unexpected ways if used in the wrong situation.

Masters and Sages also have the ability to add a second weapon to their combat style. This is inspired by Musashi's Niten Ichi style (which uses the katana and wakizashi) and is intended to lift the restriction that a second weapon wielded must be of smaller size. There should be some creativity by the player, but also the GM should pay attention to what fits in his game.

Mythos and History

Warriors come from many places and times, and often learn many weapons. Weaponmasters, on the other hand, dedicate themselves to the mastery of a single weapon type. History notes their skill, recording it in revered tones and awesome (and sometimes exaggerated) feats.

Nature

Because of their distinctive dedication to a singular weapon, weaponmasters are rewarded with supernatural abilities and students hoping to learn at the feet of a master. They are also rewarded with duels from others, hoping to gain fame because their weapon style is the best in the land. 

Organization

Weaponmasters are not known for elaborate hierarchies. Aspirants and Students are normally attracted to a master or a sage who teaches themselves or delegates the responsibilities of teaching their school to their disciples. Sometimes a student or disciple from another school will wish to join and will have to prove themselves worthy by defeating an appropriately ranked member - often senior, but sometimes the master will choose someone of lower rank so the prospect gains membership and the master can learn from them. 

It is not uncommon for disciples to leave the tutelage of their master and go out into the world, honing their skills and forming their own school. 

Membership

Standard. In addition to the standard progression (five skills at 50% for Students, four skills at 70% for Disciples, etc.), all students must have an Art (Calligraphy) skill of at least the level necessary for the next rank. Thus, Students must have all six cult skills at 50% or greater, Disciples must have four skills in addition to Art (Calligraphy) at 70%, and so on.

Restrictions

Weaponmasters abide by a strict training regimen, which manifests as a taboo That requires them to practice at least two hours per day. If they break this taboo (voluntarily or involuntarily), they are required to make up that training time in addition to the time they must maintain normally before they are allowed to spend experience in Weaponmaster skills.

When advancing to a new rank, weaponmasters must defeat another Weaponmaster of the rank he is striving towards in a duel. If he loses the duel, he may try again in 1 months’ time. These duels need not be lethal, and often are not. Masters advancing to sage do not need to duel to gain the new rank.

Weaponmasters also have Geasa against using any armor, shields, or weapons outside of their combat style as a spiritual restriction over their powers. Any violation of Geasa will remove access to Mysticism abilities until atoned for. Practice weapons emulating ones they are dedicated to do not violate this geas. 

Skills

Art (Calligraphy), Evade, Meditation, Mysticism, Willpower, Weaponmaster Combat style (weapon type of choice, Daredevil)

This single weapon type should be narrow (longsword, short spear, etc.) but need not be a single weapon (“this spear forged by my father”).

Magic

As Mystics, Students may learn Invoke Indomitable and Enhance Damage Modifier. Disciples may learn Invoke Arrowcut as well as Invoke Awareness. Masters learn to Augment (Weaponmaster Combat Style) and demonstrate an Aura of Mastery (Combat). Sages reach the pinnacle of their skill and learn to Enhance Action Points.

Masters and sages may only augment the combat style for their unique weapon. 

Gifts

At each rank above Aspirant, they may choose one Combat Style Trait as appropriate to their weapon and the campaign. The GM should feel free to make up new ones, use other Mythras source books, or take ones from the Mythras Combat Style Trait Encyclopedia (https://notesfrompavis.blog/2022/06/11/combat-styles-combine-and-go-encyclopaedic/).

Students gain the ability to Meditate to recover their magic points. A successful Meditation roll will allow the Weaponmaster to recover twice as many magic points as normal for that period of recovery. Note, they must remain tranquil and still for the duration.

Disciples are gifted with incredible reflexes, gaining the Alacrity gift (Mythras, p202).

Masters attract a number of students equal to their critical range in their combat style. These students are dedicated and will fight for the master, though it is often considered bad form if the master is challenged to a duel himself.

Masters also may add a second weapon to their combat style. This weapon must be of Small or Medium size (and can be the same size as the original weapon), one handed, and different from their original, intended to be used in conjunction with their primary weapon. This is the only weapon that may be added to their combat style. This does not allow them to use two of the same weapons.

Shaman of the Land

Some artwork © 2015 Dean Spencer,
used with permission. All rights reserved.

Animism is probably my second favorite magic system in Mythras. I love that the spirits themselves are wholly separate individuals, potentially with their own desires and wants, that they have multiple ways of manifesting their power, and that they can do so much. I like animism enough that I've done at least three podcasts on the topic.

It really helps to think of animism as a contacts system - a way for someone who is social to exercise power. After all, negotiating services from a predator spirit is not really much different than negotiating a contract with an assassin. When you bind them, you've effectively hired them for a job and they are right there. Otherwise, you have them on retainer, available at a call.

For the GM, it is easy to control the powers of an animist in many ways. If they don't have knowledge of the spirit, or never run into it, that spirit can't help them. They can't "learn" the spirit without something in the game world. This lets you discuss with the player what they are looking for, put something into the world at the right time, and have some dramatic tension as they struggle to gain mastery over it.

While Mythic Britain has one take on a druid, I wanted to do another one that would help bridge  the gap for AD&D 5e players looking to try Mythras for the first time. This one is not for all of a geopolitical boundary, but based on an environment, similar to the Circle of the Land druid. Instead of just gaining abilities, though, they gain knowledge of the spirits of their area. They also can gain knowledge of a host of other spirits in Mythras such as elementals, guardian spirits, or any ancestor spirits you may wish to include. This gives them a level of flexibility far beyond a set spell list and a few abilities.

None of these is intended to be especially "balanced" with the others. They are just simply sets of powers that are associated with types of spirits. The locations where they can learn about them are fairly limited, which should help it from going too far out of control. You also will note that as part of the spirit abilities I again make use of Chaos Features, as I did with the Seekers of the Great Void. These are pretty handy for putting in more supernatural abilities.

Mythos and History

Since sentient beings walked the land there have been those who have sought to protect the nature and environment around them. Through ritual and careful offering, long standing relationships between the spirits of the land and these shamans have formed and grown.

Nature

Shaman of the Land deeply believe in protecting their chosen domain, warding off those who would harm the environment and dishonor the spirits. In return, those who mean no harm often gain the aid of the shaman in responsibly harvesting the bounties and protection from dangers.

Organization

Most Shaman of the Land form very loose organizations, often no more than a senior shaman and an apprentice or two. Occasionally, shamans from differing areas may meet, but it is uncommon for them to cooperate against more than the gravest threats.

Membership

Standard. Though not strictly required, it is almost unheard of for a Shaman of the Land to not be from the area they protect. Most have a Passion towards the area (though not specifically to protect the land but see the Geas below) and sometimes the friendly locals within the area.

Restrictions

All Shaman of the Land take a Geas to protect one of the common land types - Desert, Forest, Littoral, Mountain, Steppe, Swamp, or Tundra. Any infraction on this Geas will make any friendly spirits neutral until atonement can take place. Atonement normally involves a month of caring and tending of animals and plants in the native region. A second infraction while the spirits are neutral will make them hostile, requiring a full year of penance. Offending this way twice will make the spirits of his chosen land irrevocably hostile.

Skills

Binding (Spirits of their chosen Land), Insight, Locale, Lore (Nature Spirits), Survival, Track, Trance, Willpower

Magic

Shaman of the Land learn Animism, as well as a few folk magic spells. Shaman of the Land learn 1 folk magic spell per 10% of their folk magic skill as part of their initiation as Spirit Worshippers and may learn others by spending 1 week and 3 xp per spell.

Folk Magic - Alarm, Beastcall (any animal native to their region, each animal requires a different spell), Bypass, Heal, Pathway, Pet, Repair, Spiritshield, Witchsight

Shaman of the Land learn knowledge of where to find spirits within their region without limit but are advised that powerful spirits must be courted carefully. Initially, they have a number of friendly spirits allies (Mythras, p 134, “Spirit Negotiation”) equal to 1/20th of their Lore (Nature Spirits). These spirits can be of any intensity, but it is rare (and agreed to by the GM) to give a Spirit Worshipper knowledge of spirits beyond Intensity 1.

• Friendly - Nature (areas that they protect), Predator (as predators in their region), Shape-Shifting Spirit (animals in their region)
• Hostile - Bane Spirits, Haunts, Sickness Spirits, Undeath Spirits, Wraiths
• Neutral - all others

Nature spirits have one power per intensity. A shaman may have relationships with multiple spirits, even those who grant similar powers. Some example powers include, and are not limited to:

• Desert - Demesne over Deserts, Endow Chaos Feature (Obfuscating), Endow Burrower, Endow Cold-Blooded, Bless (Survival)
• Forest - Demesne over Forests, Endow Camouflaged, Endow Intimidate, Endow Leaper, Bless (Athletics)
• Littoral - Demesne over Coastal Waters, Endow Blood Sense, Endow Hold Breath, Endow Swimmer, Endow Chaos Feature (Obfuscating)
• Mountain - Demesne over Natural Rock and Stone, Bless (armor points), Endow Adhesion, Endow Earth Sense, Bless (Athletics)
• Steppe - Demesne over Steppes and Grasslands, Bless (Movement Rate), Endow Leaper, Endow Chaos Feature (Droning), Endow Chaos Feature (Roaring)
• Swamp - Demesne over Swamps and Wetlands, Endow Night Sight, Endow Poison Immunity, Endow Swimmer, Endow Chaos Feature (Stench), Endow Chaos Feature (Poisonous, potency equal to Binding skill) 
• Tundra - Demesne over Tundra, Endow Immunity (Cold), Endow Camouflage (Tundra), Bless (Hit Points), Endow Chaos Feature (Icy, treat Intensity as the roll for damage die listed for Icy)

Shaman of the Land do not gain Fetches but will utilize fetishes.

Sandalwood RPG - Part 5 - Combat Interlude

Sandalwood Combat Interlude

Just before shadowfall Darius is making his way down a Gutterway when he is accosted by a group of 4 thugs, demanding his money. The odds are not good for him but Darius is not in the mood to run, even if he carries the aura of the Doomed.

Darius

Physicality 45%: Brawn 1, Combat Style 1 [Brutal], Athletics 1, Vigour 1
Personality 13%: Influence 1
Knowledge 22%: First Aid 1
Innate Traits: Agile, Clever, Coarse, Doomed, Hardy, Muscular
HP8, Action Points 3, Dmg +1d4
Club, Dagger

Thugs

(Physicality 50%, Personality 18%, Knowledge 12%)
Physical Threat 1
No Resists
HP 4, Action Points 2
Knife, Club

Round 1

Darius Acts ...

In Sandalwood there is no initiative and Player Characters always act before the GM unless interrupted. None of the thugs have the Interrupt ability, so Darius makes his move. 

Darius has 3 Action Points to use. He can use all actions on his turn, or save some to defend himself during the Thugs' Turn.

Darius' 3 Action Points permit him one Major Action (like an attack) and 2 Minor Actions (like a defence) He takes a minor action to draw his club, then a major action to attack.

Working out Darius' chance to succeed ...
Darius' Physicality is 45%, adding +10% for Brawn and +10% for his Combat Style. He decides to use his Clever Trait to add another +10%, spotting a vulnerability in one of the thugs. This makes his adjusted skill chance to 75% so far.

The Thugs have a Physical Threat rating of 1, so Darius takes a -10% penalty to his roll, he has to roll under 65% (75% -10) to succeed.

Resolution ...
He rolls a 62 -  a hit on the Thug - and he wins a Gambit from the success. Darius decides to use the "Follow Up" Gambit to make an immediate following attack, but first he rolls for damage. 

Rolling Damage ...

Rolled together:
                                1d6 for the club                                ...Rolled a 4
                                1d4 for Darius' damage bonus         ...Rolled a 1   
                                1d6 for the location                          ...Rolled a 6

The weapon damage is 4, and he rolled a 1 for damage bonus - his Brutal Trait allows him to add 1 to the roll as long as it does not exceed the maximum damage bonus possible, which is 4. Since the +1 takes the roll up to 2, he is within the limit.  (The Trait Brutal adds one point of damage per point of the Combat Style, which for Darius at the moment is 1) 

This makes his damage total 6 (4+2).

Knockout ... one Thug down
The location was the thug's head (location roll 6), which has no armour and HP of 4, taking it to -2. The thugs have the "No Resists" trait, so any hit which goes to zero or below is a knockout. Three thugs remain.

Using a Gambit
Darius has another attack since he chose the Follow Up Gambit, this attack uses his last Action Point. He used his "Clever" trait with the previous attack, and since a PC can't use the same Trait consecutively, Darius has to use another trait if he wants to continue to boost his skill. 

As it happens Darius has no other Traits he could legitimately use, so he is back to 65% minus 10% for the thug's Physical Threat rating of 1, an adjusted target roll of 55%. 

Resolution 
Darius rolls a 13 for his attack, another successful hit. 

Another Gambit won
Darius is out of Action Points so he can't choose another Follow Up, so he decides on "Defend" as his Gambit - this will buy him one action point which may only be spent to defend against an attack this Round.

Attack Damage ... and Knockout Thug number Two
For the attack he again he rolls 1d6+1d4 plus the location die of 1d6. This time he rolls a 2 for the club, a 3 for damage bonus (increased to 4 due to his Brutal Trait) and a 1 for the location (left leg). This is another total damage of 6, which hits the Thug's unarmoured leg and again is a knockout.

Summing up Darius' Turn 
Darius spent a minor action to draw his club, a major action to make the first attack, then the Follow Up Gambit permitted another immediate attack which cost another action point. This has cost him 3 action points in total. Ordinarily this means he would be out of Action Points for this Round, making him vulnerable to attack. Since he chose Defend as his Gambit, he has bought himself an additional action point to make a defence against any one attack which comes later in the Round.

The Thugs Act ...

Now that all PCs have taken their turn (in this case it is just Darius), the NPCs get to act. Darius has knocked out two thugs, leaving two remaining. Despite having their numbers halved, the thugs stay to make their play.

Creatures and NPCs do not make rolls to attack. They are assumed to hit the PC they are attacking, unless the PC successfully resists the attack. If the PC has no Action Points to resist the attack, the results of the Action Table are applied directly to the PC.

The GM rolls 1d6 on the Action table to determine the action of the first thug, rolling a 1d6 location die at the same time:

The GM rolls a 3 and reads the table result - the Thug is effectively attempting a Disarm Gambit against Darius, who will take damage and lose his weapon if he fails his resist roll.

Darius needs to roll his Brawn or Combat Style with a difficulty penalty of the thug's Physical Threat of 1. 

He has a better chance using his Combat Style -  Darius' Adjusted Roll is 45% for his Physicality skill, +10% for Brawn, +10% for his Combat Style, and now he can use his "Clever" trait, adding +10% which totals 75%. Then he takes -10% penalty for the thug's Physical Threat, a final Adjusted Roll of 65%.

If Darius fails the roll then 1 point of damage will go through his light armour of 2 points to his weapon arm, but he is more concerned about dropping his club.

Resolution...
Darius rolls 42, under the 65% adjusted target number, a success, so he completely resists the effects of the thug's attack, both the damage and the disarming Gambit. Darius also wins a defensive Gambit, he choses Trip to knock the thug prone. Since the thugs have the "No Resists" trait, the Trip automatically succeeds, and the thug slips over prone into the Gutterway.

The Last Attack - Don't Lose your Head...
The last thug makes an attack, the GM rolls again on the table this time with a result of 1. Darius is out of Action Points, so he can't resist the thug's attack - the GM's location roll was a 6, Darius' head. 

The GM tells the player Darius' helmet is ripped off to clatter against the Gutterway wall, his head takes damage of 1, taking his head hp from 8 to 7, just a scratch. 

Losing his helmet is a worry now, his head exposed and vulnerable.

Summing Up
Two thugs lie knocked out on the ground, a third has been knocked over and is rolling prone in the Gutterway but remains very much active. Darius and the last thug standing are facing off.

End of Round 1.

Copyright Bilharzia 2023

Sandalwood - RPG Part 1 - Core Skills
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-this-is-first-part-of-series.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 2 - Statistic Arrays
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/statistic-arrays.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 3 - Derived Statistics
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-3.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 4 - Specialisms
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-4-specialisms.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 5 - Combat Interlude
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-5-combat-interlude.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 4 - Specialisms

Specialisms

Sandalwood uses the Core Skills of Physicality, Personality, and Knowledge as the basis for all actions attempted by the player - as detailed in Part 1 - https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-this-is-first-part-of-series.html "The Core Skills".

Specialisms represent the training and experience which improve upon a particular Core Skill. Specialisms define what a character can do, and how well.

Each Core skill grouping subsumes a number of Base specialisms which are learned by every character growing up, largely through practice and experience. Even with a zero rated Base specialism, a character may roll the associated Core skill to use that specialism. 

Base Specialisms
Base specialisms are rated from 0-5 and may be increased through Experience Point spends during play. Base specialisms are intrinsic to all characters and do not need to be learned.

Career specialisms
Career specialisms are acquired either during character creation, or learned from a teacher during play. They have a rating from 1-3.

Expert specialisms
Expert specialisms are not additional specialisms, but should be regarded as capstones to a Career specialism, they represent a character attaining the highest level of ability of that Career specialism. The Expert specialism, if acquired, has a rating of 1 and will grant a trait in addition to the skill increase.

Actions not covered by a Base or Career specialism may be attempted using the closest appropriate Core Skill.

Prerequisites and Limits

Characters are assumed to know all Base specialisms in every core skill category at a rating of 0. Base specialisms may be learned up to a rating of 5. 

Career specialisms may be learned if the character has the prerequisite Base specialism at a rating of at least 1. Career specialisms may be learned up to a rating of 3. 

How Specialisms work

To use a Base specialism, the rating is multiplied by 10 and added to the Core skill.

For example, Darius has a Brawn of 3 and a Core Physicality skill of 45%. This means his adjusted skill for a Brawn check is 75%. If he increases his Brawn rating to 5 through experience point spends, his Brawn check goes up to 95%.

When attempting a Career specialism skill check, the first point of the Base specialism is added to the Career specialism. Rating points of the Base specialism above 1 do not factor into the calculation.

For example, Darius has a Brawn of 3 and a Combat Style (Kurgan Raider) of 1. His Physicality skill is 45%. This means his adjusted skill is 65% (45+10+10), ie. 10% from Brawn, 10% from his Combat Style. Through experience he could increase his Combat Style to a rating of 2 and later to 3. To go further to earn the Expert specialism of "Veteran" requires acquiring higher status in the game.

Increasing Specialisms

Each session played generates 1 Experience Point (xp) for each PC played. GMs may award additional extraordinary xp gains at significant moments during the game, such as after the group achieves a major objective.

Specialisms are increased by paying the xp cost of the next rating up, multiplied by either 1 or 2.

Base specialism increases:

Base specialism Rating of 0 to 1    -    1 xp

Base specialism Rating of 1 to 2    -    2 xp

Base specialism Rating of 2 to 3    -    3 xp

Base specialism Rating of 3 to 4    -    4 xp

Base specialism Rating of 4 to 5    -    5 xp

Career specialism increases:
Learning a Career specialism to 1    -    2 xp plus 3 months in-game time learning a new career.

Career specialism Rating of 1 to 2    -    4 xp

Career specialism Rating of 2 to 3    -    6 xp

Acquiring an "Expert" specialism may only be earned during the game, and not through xp spends.

Copyright Bilharzia 2023.

Sandalwood - RPG Part 1 - Core Skills
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-this-is-first-part-of-series.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 2 - Statistic Arrays
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/statistic-arrays.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 3 - Derived Statistics
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-3.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 4 - Specialisms
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-4-specialisms.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 5 - Combat Interlude
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-5-combat-interlude.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 3 - Derived Statistics

Derived Statistics

Hit Points (HP)
For most human PCs, HP is measured per location at half Constitution (Con), rounded up. Each hit location uses this HP value, with damage tracked separately for each location. Most creatures have multiple locations, and an associated location die. For humans this is a d6:

Armour Points and current Hit Points per location are tracked on a chart like this, with the type and weight of armour listed. Armour is either Heavy (6 AP, 3 kg), Medium (4 AP, 2 kg) or Light (2 AP, 1 kg). A character may wear up to their Strength in kg, so that a max Strength 18 character can wear 6 AP heavy armour in all locations. A Strength 6 character could wear a full set of light armour such as a full suit of padded armour, or two locations with Heavy armour like a helmet and a cuirass, and so on.

Action Points (AP)
Action Points start at Dexterity (Dex) divided by 6, rounded up. Characters may take actions up to their Action Points per round. Having less than 2 AP makes characters in combat vulnerable.

Damage Bonus

A character’s Strength (Str) determines their Damage Bonus. This bonus die is applied to melee attacks and ranged attacks which rely on a character’s strength for striking power.

Followers

Followers start at Charisma (Cha) divided by 6, rounded down. This attribute is the maximum number of followers a character may maintain at once. Although they are not treated or played as full characters, players may call on a PC's followers to use their abilities during play.

Healing Rate

Healing rate starts at Constitution (Con) divided by 6, rounded up. This is how many HP are regained each period of rest. The length of this period depends on the severity of injury.

Wyrd

Wyrd starts at Power (Pow) divided by 6, rounded down. Wyrd may be used to alter or re-roll dice results, and to bend the rules in favour of the characters. Although having a Wyrd score of "0" is risky for a PC, there are ways of gaining points of Wyrd during play. There are also advantages to having zero Wyrd - the character is harder to perceive by spirits and unnatural creatures.

Stress

Stress starts at zero but has a soft upper limit equal to Power. A character’s Stress increases when magical abilities are used or when experiencing other trauma. Magicians exceeding their Stress limit may risk harming themselves. Stress is most easily reduced through rest.

Copyright Bilharzia 2023.

Sandalwood - RPG Part 1 - Core Skills
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-this-is-first-part-of-series.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 2 - Statistic Arrays
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/statistic-arrays.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 3 - Derived Statistics
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-3.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 4 - Specialisms
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-4-specialisms.html

Sandalwood RPG - Part 5 - Combat Interlude
https://d100-workshop.blogspot.com/2023/07/sandalwood-rpg-part-5-combat-interlude.html

The Jarlsworn

Some artwork © 2015 Dean Spencer,
used with permission. All rights reserved.

The Jarlsworn is a relatively simple Brotherhood based on the social structures around Viking Era Scandinavia. It doesn't require a lot of design explanation, but I will make some comments.

I've taken a very traditional tack on the skill selection, including many social and artistic skills. Some of the most famous people in the sagas were not warriors, but lawspeakers like Njal, and Egil himself was known for his poetry as much as his prowess. Leif the Lucky was known for his sailing and navigation. Yes, we do have Bersi the Dueller, of course, but the really big names are outside of their fighting ability.

Renown allows the game to measure the fame of a particular member of the cult. I've left the details of what gets you renown deliberately vague, but would encourage deeds of daring, gift giving, and great acts (i.e. critical successes) on Art (Poetry), Lore (Law), and Oratory checks. One could give specific experience to increase it at the end of successful adventures, and perhaps a point on the aforementioned critical successes. The point is, it should be something that allowed the Jarlsworn to make a name for themselves.

The Gifts are mostly temporal in nature - actual physical objects. But it is important to note, the Norse culture at the time was a gift giving one. You gained renown by giving gifts as much as anything, so getting a sword from a Jarl was as much about his generosity and image as it is about the Hirdman hacking down the Jarl's foes. 

I should note that this is also intended to be a "light" cult. It should mesh well with others, not overly influence the game, etc. It provides a social backdrop for someone who doesn't necessarily want to mess with magic (though they certainly can) and how they might grow in power. With a bit of alteration, it could easily fit into just about any setting - a space empire, a crime family, and so on.

Mythos and History

In the great northern forests and coastlines, many jarls (or chiefs) rule through charisma, power, and generosity. Farmsteads in their lands give gifts to the jarl, hoping to gain renown, while the jarl gives gifts as well for the same reason. Successful jarls are often the most generous, and attract warriors, skalds, and lawyers from far and wide, hoping to benefit from his generosity.

Nature

The Jarlsworns goals are simple - earn renown for himself, and by extension, his Jarl. Whether by raids and acquisition of wealth, successful duels, lawsuits brought before the Thing, or poems extolling the bravery and generosity of the Jarl, each move of the Jarlsworn demonstrates honor and worth. This, in turn, reflects on his jarl and grows the number of his lord’s house.

Dissatisfied Jarlsworn sometimes leave their Jarl, and sometimes they kill the Jarl and take his lands. This is more common as they rise in ranks, as land, gold, and glory attract hirdmen and their families.

Organization

Jarlsworn have no real structure beyond all being sworn to a Jarl. There is no formal military or social rank within their midst, other than what may be cleaned from their Renown. All are there to gain silver and glory, making a name for themselves. 

While it is generally frowned upon to kill other Jarlsworn from the same Jarl, it is not forbidden. If there is a duel, or there is cause identified and the murder is declared to the first nearby settlement, it can often be settled with compensation (silver, livestock, etc.). A duel may even be what honor demands and be considered just.

Membership

Standard. In addition, Thingmen must have a 50% in their Renown, huskarls must have a 70%, thegns must have a 90%, and jarls must have a 110%.

Restrictions

Every Jarlsworn must swear and maintain an Oath to someone of Jarl rank. This Oath is normally done in person, where the Jarl invites the prospective candidate to become one of his Hirdmen. This Oath starts at 30%+POW+INT.

Skills

Art (Poetry), Athletics, Boating, Endurance, Insight, Lore (Law), Navigate, Oratory, Seamanship, Combat Style (Spear, Broadsword, Hand Axe, Battle Axe, Shield, Shield Wall, and choose one of Glaive, Two Handed Axe, or Bow)

Gifts

When initially swearing fealty to a Jarl, a Jarlsworn becomes a Hirdman and gains a Renown score of 20%. This may then be increased via deeds and actions which show his bravery, cleverness, honor, prowess in battle, or otherwise bring honor to himself and his Jarl. This could be as simple as composing an exceptional poem praising the jarl, negotiating a treaty, defeating an opposed jarl in battle, collecting taxes from difficult to reach areas, or bringing back riches and giving them to the jarl as a gift.

Renown can often be used to gain hospitality and friends, as well as other situations where a high status may be helpful. Augmenting Influence skill checks should be the very least that this can do, but other uses should be discussed between the player and the GM.

Upon gaining enough skill and renown, a hirdman may become elevated to a Thingman (Apprentice rank). The Jarl praises them, asks them if they would like to become his thingman, and gifts them with an item of great value upon acceptance. This item, often a sword but can be many things, has two enhancements (Mythras, p67). This item is named and associated with the Thingman throughout the sagas.

Huskarls (Journeyman Rank) show their worth via their skills, their Oath, and their Renown. Once they reach this rank, their Jarl gifts them with an item, often a coat of mail (AP6, covers chest, abdomen, arms), with 2 enhancements. As with their previous item, this item is named and associated with them throughout the sagas.

Thegns (Master rank) are trusted members of the Jarls retinue, and may represent him to foreign dignitaries, and may occasionally negotiate on his behalf. They gain a ship and crew. The particulars of the ship and crew are left to the campaign, but a Viking longboat (Ships and Shield Walls, p8) with 20 men is considered typical. Thegns also have their social class raised to Gentry, if it was not already.

Once the Thegn has gained enough renown and skill, he is gifted thralls, as well as lands and the taxes he can collect from them. A portion goes to his Jarl, of course, but he also becomes a Jarl (Grand Master rank) in his own right and may gain his own Hirdmen. This raises his Social Class to Aristocracy, if it was not already.

The Path of Summoning

The Path of Summoning came about after looking over the AD&D 5e wizards and thinking they were pretty bland. While they had a few small tricks of their own, they were just that - tricks. Nothing very defining as a class in my opinion. So I wanted to do something that could take some of the concepts there and extend them out a bit.

With the summoner, it follows a progression. They start with the ability to sense things across distances (Mark), then move to summoning those things on this plane (Banish, Summon), then to moving entities between planes and across planes (Evoke, Teleport), then finally gain the ability to open long term portals between planes.

What you will find with most of my Sorcery schools is that they are fairly focused in theme. There are few, if any, spells that everyone gets. That's by design. I like my sorcery schools to be dedicated to pursuing a particular avenue of magic, like you might see in a modern day academic or scholar. This has the added benefits of allowing a great deal of distinction between them as well as giving a character clear paths that they can pursue. 

The summoner gets even more distinct, as it has several gifts that hold it distinct from other sorcerers. Like the Four-Fold Battle Wizard they gain extra abilities with their spells they cast with their school's Invocation. Putting in this sort of bonus and restriction will prevent unexpected interactions and disagreements at the table. Their Gifts (Familiar, Possessor, and Ritualist) really set the tone for a sorcerer who oozes summoning.

These also give the summoner an incredible amount of flexibility. Summoning a chest of armor or a box of potions could be handy to any adventurer, but being able to summon a box of products to sell at a market would avoid any bandits on the road. Marked items can be targeted (likely with another sorcery school) with all sorts of nastiness.

No summoner would be complete without the ability to Banish, and this school teaches it before they teach their students how to Evoke other planar entities, fortunately. It is worth noting that the Evoke given here is substantially altered from the core rulebook Evoke, allowing a certain number of services to be performed without any containment. This grants them great power, as demons, elementals, and other sundry extraplanar beings tend to be quite strong. 

Mythos and History

Since the first sorcerer witnessed a shaman reach through the Barrier between worlds, they have tried to duplicate the animist’s power. Beginning with inaccurate views of what space was, they practiced moving objects around the world before reaching into the great beyond. Eventually, demons took notice and offered them knowledge and power for whatever ends they pursued. 

Nature

Summoners are hard to pin down into one motivation or goal. Some seek power from demons, some from angelic beings. Some merely from nature spirits, and some from eldritch horrors from beyond. All, with sufficient experience, learn of the twisted multidimensional nature of space, how to reach through it, and how to pull out whatever is on the other side. 

Organization

Many of this cult are scattered in small cells, often only a Master and an Apprentice together pursuing power by reaching across the worlds. Occasionally though, a group gathers with a common goal - often to exploit some extraplanar being of immeasurable power.

There are no lay members of this cult.

Membership

Standard. 

Restrictions

None, though many summoners have very strong passions that drive them to seek the help of extraplanar entities.

Skills

Insight, Invocation (Path of Summoning), Lore (Extraplanar Beings), Shaping, Willpower

Magic

Apprentices are taught the Folk Magic spells Beastcall (one animal type), Dishevel, Glue, Grease (Mythic Constantinople, p78), Perfume, Protection (manifesting as a shimmering layer over the conjurer), Repair, and Shove. Apprentices also learn the sorcery spells Mark which, when cast with Invocation (Path of Summoning), has a duration measured in days rather than turns and may be visible or invisible. In addition, they learn Summon which, when cast with Invocation (Path of Summoning), may be used to summon a container (of SIZ up to the spell’s intensity in cubic meters) containing inanimate objects.  

Adepts quickly learn to Banish demons, spirits, and other extraplanar entities. Their Banish (cast with the school’s own Invocation skill) may be used to return Summoned items if cast at a greater Magnitude than the Summon spell. 

Mages are granted the privilege of learning two important spells: Teleport at the cost of 5xp and Evoke at a cost of 10xp per kind of entity (fire elementals, earth elementals, ifrit, Mi-go, etc.). The Evoked entity will willingly perform one task asked of it per magic point given to it, and each request requires a proactive action by the caster and may, as a whole, take no longer than the duration of the spell. The sorcerer must have cast Evoke with their Invocation (Path of Summoning) skill.

Archmagi learn Teleportation Circle (Portal). Their Teleportation Circle, when cast with the school’s Invocation skill, Combined with Evoke, and 10 shaping points are applied to the Range component, does not summon a creature, but instead opens a portal to the plane native to that creature.

Gifts

Adepts gain a Familiar, a natural animal with Average SIZ not exceeding the character’s POW. It also gains an INT score. The conjurer and familiar can understand each other’s speech, and the familiar understands the native tongue of the conjurer.

Mages learn mastery over objects with the Possessor ability. The mage may perform a day-long ritual on a single non-living, inanimate object. This object is treated as if it had been Enchanted with the Mark spell, without impacting the conjurer’s magic points or regeneration of them. The conjurer allocates Shaping points as desired and can have as many items Marked with Possessor as one third his POW score.

Archmagi learn to become Ritualists. The archmagi may increase their base casting time to cast his spells from turns to days. They may then use the Further Extending Duration Table for Duration (Mythras, p162). These spells may not be Combined with spells from other schools of sorcery.