Hari Ragat Games

The Madness Strikes Again ...

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Sat, 13 Jun 2020 17:46:00 +0000

SOM: Invasive Fauna on Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Fri, 15 May 2020 02:31:00 +0000

I'm fascinated by the problem of invasive fauna -- creatures from elsewhere being introduced into a new habitat and causing havoc in their new home. This element occurs in the world of Maruzar thanks to the Azhir, its former ruling race.

The Azhir have always been extremely fond of hunting, finding release for their naturally high aggressive instincts in this blood sport. During the height of the Iridium Empire many offworld creatures were brought to Maruzar for the hunting pleasure of its nobles, or as exotic pets, or for the arena. Now some of these alien fauna still haunt Maruzar. Moreover as the spaceways are now open again, importation of exotic beasts has resumed.

Some samples of the exotic beasts introduced:

Gamilan Dragon-Eel
Gamilan dragon-eels are large, bioluminescent serpent-like fish from Gamilan, deadly and intelligent predators with venomous bites. The only known specimens on Maruzar are those kept in the throneroom of the Imperial Palace in Khayr Coronnar. These inhabit a tank that runs the length of the throneroom, so that all seeking audience with the Emperor must walk over the glass top of their tank. The throne has a hidden button that lets the Emperor drop the covers open at any point, pitching those standing there into the water with the dragon-eels.

Gamilan Siren
The Gamilan Siren is a creature of Gamilan's abyssal trenches, sometimes exported to Maruzar as a curiosity and performing pet for decadent nobles. It is a bizarre creature, a grotesquely beautiful fish with some humanoid features but a nightmare face of fanged jaws and huge staring white eyes, writhing barbels on its chin, and spiky fins. The pectoral fins are lobed and jointed so that they resemble stubby arms with oversized webbed hands. Its flanks and face are studded with bioluminescent photophores, the facial photophores forming unique patterns on each individual.

Like the sirens of legend, however, the power of the Gamilan siren is song. The siren sings from underwater, but so loudly that it can clearly be heard across a room when it’s kept in a glass tank. It can accompany this song with a sort of underwater dance that incorporates use of its photophores to create an absolutely spellbinding performance. There are rumors that sirens can actually hypnotize with their performance, and use it to manipulate their listeners’ emotions. Strange incidents and disappearances are said to have occurred in the homes of lords who owned a siren, and at least one lord had his siren escape its tank without his having any memory of it.

Karkushan Draco
The Karkushan Draco is a large reptilian predator with twin sailfins, finlike head crest, and erectile fins on throat and tail. It lurks hidden in high places, such as rocks or abandoned towers, using its color-changing ability to blend in with the surroundings. When it sees prey it spreads its sailfins horizontally to glide down on its victim, attacking with teeth and claws. When excited or angered, the draco changes to its brilliant fighting colors, revealing markings of malachite green, electric blue, gold and red.

Karkushan dracos are a popular import, as they are considered excellent hunting and provide a colorful, thrilling spectacle in the arena. They are the primary predators of the Glider folk, and some Imperial lords have imported them for release into the wild to drive the Gliders into their domains.

Torquandian Scorch Toad
The Torquandian scorch toad is a small reptiloid predator with a unique ability. When capturing prey or fighting off predators, it can trigger a reaction of its stomach acids to belch forth a blast of superheated steam. The scorching blast is often enough to drive off much larger predators, as it can cause third-degree burns. Originally imported as exotic pets, scorch toads escaped into the wild in the Shattering and easily adapted to Maruzar, having come from another arid planet. They are now found all across the Drylands, particularly in abandoned cities and tunnels, and are considered major pests.

SOM: Adventure Frameworks

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Mon, 13 Apr 2020 02:21:00 +0000

Sword and planet is no longer a familiar genre to younger generation gamers, as I've found out from my recent playtests. So I came up with a set of pulpy-sounding adventure framework titles that GMs can design their games around, and players can use as springboards for making characters.

Outlaws of Maruzar
The characters are heroes covertly resisting the tyranny of the Aryamehran Empire and the Spaceclans. The characters may come from diverse origins, but are united by a common enemy. Because the Empire and the Spaceclans have influence on many rulers all over the planet, the characters may have prices on their heads and have to live a life on the run. Think Robin Hood, Flash Gordon, or the original Star Wars trilogy.

Warlords of Maruzar
The characters are heroes protecting their city-state from would-be conquerors and barbarian hordes, getting involved in dynastic struggles and intrigue, espionage, commando missions and battles. Think Prisoner of Zenda, Game of Thrones, Bulmer’s Krozair of Kregen, The Three Musketeers, and Kurosawa’s Ran.

Swarm Winds of Maruzar
The characters are heroic members of the same Dryland or Inland Kingdoms community, which is imperiled by the yearly incursion of the Swarm. Or they may have been hired by the community to defend them from the Swarm. The sheer savagery of the struggle for survival on Maruzar is showcased in the defense of remote settlements and epic sieges versus myriads of giant insects. Think The Seven Samurai meets Starship Troopers!

Tomb Robbers of Maruzar
The characters are lowlife scoundrels who live by looting ancient ruins of artifacts and selling them to the highest bidders. This adventure framework should feel really familiar to veteran gamers. Stephen Sommer’s super-pulpy remake of The Mummy is the perfect peg for tomb robber adventures; also Brackett’s The Sword of Rhiannon, and The Secret of Sinharat.

Sky Pirates of Maruzar
The characters control a flying vessel from which they raid caravans, merchant airships, and any other target that offers tempting loot. A heroic take on this could have the characters acting as privateers for their own home city, or raiding only targets belonging to the Empire as part of the resistance to it. Think Captain Blood or Pirates of the Caribbean, but in the sky!

Sorcerers of Maruzar
A villain with mad ambitions has gained a prehuman artifact that gives powers beyond human understanding or control, and the characters must stop this menace. Think the stories of Conan the Barbarian and King Kull, Karl Edward Wagner’s Bloodstone, the stories of H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, or Stephen Sommers’ remake of The Mummy.

The Viridian Deep
The Viridian Deep is the great crater/rift plowed into the southern hemisphere of Maruzar by a fragment of the destroyed moon Varan, and the source of the alien Swarm. The characters get lost in the ultra-hostile alien jungle of the Deep, and must run and carve their way out! Think King Kong: Skull Island, Lost World, Jurassic Park, and throw in the giant insects from Starship Troopers.

Blood Moon Cult of Maruzar
The characters must save a city from destruction by the Red Moon cultists on the upcoming Red Night season, and stay sane themselves despite the powerful telepathic sendings of the Demon Moon. Sinister cults are a staple of the pulp science fiction; think the stories of H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith.

Marooned on Maruzar
The characters are all or mostly from Earth, stranded on Maruzar after some accident that transported them to the planet. Now they must learn the ropes of life all over again, survive a myriad alien threats, and either find a way home or make a new home on this strange world.

SOM Items: Armor

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Fri, 10 Apr 2020 01:20:00 +0000

The main limitation on armor is social class. Good armor requires professional production, which in turn is monopolized by the rulers and nobles. Thus a character who is but a lowly mercenary or bandit likely can’t afford even medium armor, while better armor is simply part of the default Outfit for soldiers in the service of a lord.

Light Armor
The lightest or partial armors have a protection rating of 1-2. Particularly well-made suits of light armor can have a rating of 3. Light armor can consist of padded cloth, leather or hide garments, or pieces that only cover a small part of the body like the gladiator’s manica.

The most typical armor across Maruzar is the hunting coat, a thigh-length, sleeveless garment of leather reinforced with scales or small plates of some hard material like lacquered leather, chitin, metal, horn, or other hard animal parts.

Those made with chitin are considered the best, being both light and durable, while the use of colorful, iridescent kinds of chitin adds beauty and shows off wealth. Originally made to be worn by nobles hunting dangerous game, the hunting coat has become the commonest form of armor on Maruzar. Hunting coats usually have a rating of 2.

Medium Armor
Medium armor has a PR of 3, and usually consists of a coat or corselet of lacquered leather or chitin scales, helmet, and armguards. This is the standard for most Maruzarian soldiers serving a state. Particularly well-made suits of medium armor can have a rating of 4.

Heavy Armor
Heavy armor has a rating of 4-5, where 5 describes the complete, high quality panoply of an Azhiran lord. This consists of a coat or multi-piece suit of lacquered leather, chitin or metal scales, helmet and armguards, all of better material and workmanship than average. A few exceptional suits may have a rating of 6.

Shields
Shields have a rating of 2-4, based on size and sturdiness. As a rule the shields of the barbarian tribes are rated 2-3, while the big and heavy tower shields of the Empire’s Drujan infantry are rated 4. Most Maruzarian warriors don’t use shields, as most melee weapons like the Maruzarian longsword are used two-handed.

SOM Items: Weapons

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Wed, 08 Apr 2020 01:12:00 +0000

Sword
A wide variety of sword types are used on Maruzar, most of them curved cut-and-thrust blades. The most typical blade is about 30-36 inches long, curved, and broadest near the point of percussion for greater cutting power. Old-style Azhir sabers on the other hand have slim blades. Both come with a long hilt, suitable for either a one- or two-handed grip, and a simple plate guard.

Drujan Falchion
A short sword with a curved, cleaver-like blade broadest near the tip. It is a powerful cutting and chopping weapon that is typically issued to Drujan infantry, but it’s become popular among nomads and barbarians for its brutal simplicity and utility. Falchions are suitable as tools for butchering game, cutting open the tough roots of desert succulents for water, and so on.

Jandaharian Temple Sword
The signature sword of the Jandaharian warrior monks is a straight, two-edged weapon with a large ring pommel, through which are looped several brass rings that clash and chime with every movement. This noise affirms the Jandaharian ethic as defensive fighters who will never attack by stealth.

Keshai Longknife
The Sand Marud and Hill Marud tribes use long, heavy knives, 16-24 inches long, as tools and weapons. Each tribe has its signature blade form, hilt and pommel design, and ornamentation style. The blades are usually single-edged and may be straight, curved like a saber, curved inward like a sickle, or S-curved.

Dagger
Daggers also come in many varieties, each culture making its own signature forms. They are the typical weapon of last resort for the warrior, but they are also an important part of Maruzarian attire as they display the wearer’s cultural identity and status. Many but not all daggers can also be thrown. Close Range when thrown.

Spear
Spears on Maruzar are typically eight to twelve feet long, and used two-handed by infantry as pikes. Barbarians use shorter spears, often made of scavenged materials. Close Range when thrown.

Lance
Lances are common cavalry weapons across Maruzar. The typical lance is 10-12 feet long, and the butt is a spiked metal ball for for balancing the weapon. Sometimes the spike is long enough that the weapon is effectively double-ended. Close Range when thrown.

Halberd
Maruzarian halberds have heavy, curved cut-and-thrust blades mounted on the end of a short pole. They are used by elite infantry and guardsmen, and by the Zomiin sand monks. Halberds cannot be thrown.

Battle Axe
Battle axes of various forms are common throughout Maruzar, but are specially popular amongst the Jakharan reavers, who often make theirs from cut-down Imperial halberds. Battle axes can be thrown. Close Range when thrown.

Zhar Greataxe
This massive two-handed axe can only be wielded by Zhar, Vashtians, or Beastmen. Characters of any other race trying to wield one do so at a serious disadvantage, at least 2 Adversity dice. Created as much to intimidate as to cleave, the Zhar axe typically features an oversized, fancifully shaped blade, big spikes, and other visually impressive features. Despite the show, they are truly formidable weapons in the right hands. The Zhar axe cannot be thrown.

Zardonite Shocksword
This lightweight rapier-like weapon was designed as part of the Spaceclan envoys’ outfit, when the Zardonites realized the Maruzarians would respect them better if they wore weapons. However the shocksword can neither cut nor pierce, but instead delivers powerful electric shocks on contact. When parrying a metal weapon such as a sword, the shock can be transmitted through the attacker’s weapon and so to the attacker’s hand.

Slugbow
The slugbow is one of the commonest ranged weapons on Maruzar, used for self-defense and small-game hunting by caravaneers, nomads, farmers, merchants and other civilians. Slugbows are small crossbows that shoot slugs made of baked clay, stone, or lead. The weapon is favored for its low cost and even cheaper ammunition. You could get several hundred clay pellets for the price of a quiver of arrows. When a head hit is scored the slugbow may stun the target. Short Range, ROF 1/1, Stuns on a Crit

Javelin
A short, lightweight spear meant for throwing. Javelins with bone shafts are much used by the barbarian tribes, who do not have the means to make barsalite bows. Short Range

Bow
The typical bow is a bow made of resin-bonded barsa cane fibers, there being no more wood on Maruzar. Cheap and easy to produce, bows are among the commonest hunting weapons. However, they are far outclassed in power and range by galvanic bows. Bows are made only in the cities due to the lack of wood on Maruzar. (Nor do any Maruzarian animals produce horn of the right flexibility for Mongol-style horn bows.) Nomads and barbarians must either trade for them or acquire them as loot. Medium Range

Galvanic Bow
The powerful galvanic bow is the weapon of the elite on Maruzar. The bow’s limbs encase synthetic myofibers that lets the bow deliver more power than its draw weight, giving excellent penetration and range. Most Azhir nobles are trained to shoot galvanic bows, using them in both hunting and war. Long Range

Crossbow
Crossbows are common military weapons. Because learning to use a crossbow is much easier than mastering a bow, crossbows are often issued to aeronauts and city guards, and many mercenaries and gangsters also use them. Short Range, ROF 1/2

Hand Crossbow
A pistol version of the crossbow, meant to be used one-handed. A favorite tool of assassins, this weapon is easily hidden beneath a cloak. It’s also popular with civilians such as merchants. Close Range, ROF 1/1

Arrows and Bolts
The ammunition for bows and crossbows, respectively. They’re made of barsalite, there being no more wood available, and tipped with steel. Maruzarian arrows are not fletched with feathers, but instead are made with spiral grooves along the shaft which impart spin to their flight. A typical quiver holds 20-30 shafts.

Flintlock Pistol
Flintlock pistols are muzzle-loading, single-shot pistols that use a black powder or firespore charge to propel a ball at the target. The powder is ignited by a device using flint and steel which strike together when the trigger is pulled. Short Range, ROF 1/3, Ignores Armor, Misfires

Flintlock Musket
Flintlock muskets are muzzle-loading, single shot firearms where the powder is ignited by flint and steel. Medium Range, ROF 1/3, Ignores Armor, Misfires

Matchlock Musket
Matchlock muskets are muzzle-loading, single shot firearms where the powder is ignited by a lit match cord. Medium Range, ROF 1/4, Ignores Armor, Misfires

Powder and Shot
Ammunition for flintlock pistols and muskets. The Aryamehrans standardized calibers for both muskets and pistols, and because most other firearm makers reuse Imperial musket barrels, bullets from anywhere can be used in most guns. The typical kit has enough powder and bullets for 10-12 shots.

Gunpowder is expensive on Maruzar, there being no wood for charcoal and few sources of sulfur. Instead, both carbon and saltpeter are sourced from animal dung. Others substitute firespore, the highly inflammable spores of certain fungi, but it takes twice to thrice as much firespore to equal a charge of gunpowder. If less firespore is used, the range drops by a full band, e.g. from Medium to Short.

Flamelance
Flamelances are incendiary weapons consisting of a long tube with a nozzle and igniter at the business end, and a trigger and bulbous fuel tank at the butt. When the trigger is pressed, a jet of flame shoots out up to 10 feet from the nozzle, for a total range of 15 feet.

You may expend more than 1 shot in a round to roll Advantage, +1 die per extra shot spent.

Flame Pistol
Flame pistols are small versions of the flamelance that can be used with one hand. The bulbous butt contains pressurized fuel, which is released and ignited with a pull of the trigger. The flame can reach 10 feet.

You may expend more than 1 shot in a round to roll Advantage, +1 die per extra shot spent.

Throwing Knife
Throwing knives of various forms are used throughout Maruzar. They are specially favored by those who need to use concealed weapons, such as assassins and other criminals, for they are small and easy to hide. Close Range.

Springknife
The springknife is a Jakharan invention, a detachable knife blade on a spring-loaded hilt. When the trigger stud is pressed the blade shoots out like a dart. It looks like any other fighting knife, and so often surprises its victims. Close Range.

Zakra, Jakharan
The zakra or boomerang blade is the signature weapon of the Jakharan bandit tribes. Every man fashions his own from scrap metal, so they appear in many forms: some are angled pieces of steel, some are crescent shaped, some are trefoils, and so on. Most zakra are made to fly straight, but some Jakharans also use a returning zakra, which is thrown beyond the target and strikes it from behind on the return.

Bad Return: a Jinxed roll when throwing a returning zakra can result in the zakra returning to hit you, or an ally, instead of your target. It scores Hits equal to all the ones rolled.

Zakra, Irajin
The actual inventors of the zakra are the Irajin. Like the Jakharans, the Irajin forge their zakra from scrap metal found in the ruins, but the resemblance ends there. Irajin zakra are always finely made, five-armed, and hinged at the spoke to fold for carrying. The Irajin use them both for throwing and as left-hand parrying weapons. Irajin zakra are never made as returners. Short Range

Fulgurator Rifle
The fulgurator rifle is an Iridium Empire artifact weapon that fires ball lightning. The lightning balls explode on impact, burning and electrocuting the target. Very few fulgurators remain, and present-day Maruzarians are no longer capable of repairing or manufacturing them. Ownership of fulgurator rifles is restricted to Azhir lords.

You may expend extra shots to fire a barrage of lightning balls, +1 bonus die for every extra shot spent.

Fulgurator Pistol
The fulgurator pistol is a one-handed version of the fulgurator rifle. It also fires lightning balls, of equal power to the rifle but with less range and far fewer shots. Ownership of fulgurator pistols is restricted to Azhir lords.

You may expend extra shots to fire a barrage of lightning balls, +1 bonus die for every extra shot spent.

Sonic Stunner
Most Zardonites who leave Port Tartessos carry a sonic stunner for defense. This pistol-like weapon fires a blast of ultrasound that can knock out most animals of human scale or smaller. The power can be dialed up to stun larger creatures, or to increase the chances of an instant stun.

To stun large creatures, the GM may require a certain number of charges. For example, the GM says the Vashtian zaurgon will take 5 charges to stun because it’s so big and ornery.

Laser Pistol
Laser pistols are the usual armament of Zardonite security forces, and may also be carried by some of their explorers. Maruzarians sometimes capture laser pistols from Zardonites who meet disaster in the wild, and from defeated space pirates. Smugglers also sell them, though at astronomical prices. The Spaceclans will always try to repossess any laser weapons they find in Maruzarian hands, by force if necessary.

Bolas
Some hunters, specially the Jakharans, use bolas, a set of cords knotted together and with stone or lead weights at the ends, for hunting and for taking captives. Victory with a bolas entangles the target, either at the legs to cause the target to trip and fall, or at the arms to disable weapon use, or even the neck, which causes choking. Often Jakharan bola cords are lined with broken glass or metal spikes, making them grip more tightly and more difficult to remove. Close Range, Entangling, Spiked cords (for the Jakharan version)

SOM Items: Survival Gear

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 01:10:00 +0000

Item lists can say a lot about a setting. Even if players don't read up on the world, they can get some idea of the tech levels by browsing the item lists. I'm also writing in cultural cues to the items so my players will have an idea where the items come from and who uses it. This is my item list for Swords of Maruzar, as of now (Part 1):

SURVIVAL GEAR

All Maruzarian player characters are assumed to possess the minimum required gear to survive in Maruzar’s harsh and dangerous environment. (Terrans may be a different story!) These include at the very least a robe, boots, water flask, and knife. Well-prepared travelers usually have:

Desert Robes
The best desert robes are made of weaver beetle silk, which reflects away the sun's heat by day but makes a good insulator against the freezing nights.

Headcloth
Most Maruzarians wear a wrapped headcloth when going outdoors for protection against the sun by day and the chill of night. The end of the headcloth can be wrapped over mouth and nose to keep out dust.

Sand Goggles
These goggles protect the eyes against windblown dust. Most are made with lenses of transparent chitin, the best ones from the Spaceclans chemically treated to be photochromatic, automatically darkening in bright light to protect from the sun's glare. They are also considered essential equipment for aeronauts.

Dust Mask
Dust masks are shaped masks of leather with replaceable filter pads. They keep you from inhaling too much dust, and from losing too much water to the extremely dry air. Some dust masks are made as full face masks that incorporate sand goggles. Dust masks are an optional comfort for most Maruzarians, but health necessities for most offworlders and those from subterranean environments.

Filter Straw
These metal straws have a pointed end for punching through the tough shells of desert succulents such as stonebuds and macemelons, and a built-in filter system to keep mud, microbes, and mashed pulp out. With the most water-rich plants, the straw can act like a spigot for filling your water flask.

Sunstone Hearth
This portable hearth consists of a piezothermal sunstone crystal and a metal cradle with a tympanum, plus a little mallet. Striking the tympanum causes the crystal to release its energy as heat and light; the harder you strike, the hotter the crystal becomes. Of course, it’s rather noisy. The chiming of a sunstone hearth however is the sound of home for nomads and caravaneers. Sunstone crystals absorb energy from sunlight, so to recharge them they only need to be left in the sun for a while. Smashing a sunstone releases all its energy as a burning blast of heat and light.

(This was inspired by the Philippine indigenous instrument, the kulintang. They remind me of stoves, and then I remembered reading how in the Arabian coffee ceremony the servers would add musical rhythms to their pounding of coffee in brass mortars.)

Flint and Steel
Sunstone hearths are expensive, so many Maruzarian travelers instead rely on fires fed with dried dung, moss, or fungi. To light these, they carry a lighting kit containing flint, steel, and dried moss for tinder.

Suya Powder
This spice is not only the favorite hot condiment across Maruzar, it is also an effective antiseptic and antifungal and so is used for treating injuries. When burnt, the smoke can be inhaled to stave off lungspore infection.

I Have Converted to Heresy And It Is Good

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Sat, 22 Feb 2020 04:40:00 +0000

I mentioned in my playtest report that Marc had suggested a revolutionary mechanic that I wanted to adopt, and while implementing it I had another huge insight: rolling dice as a GM was a sacred cow I could sacrifice.

What? Heresy! Blasphemy! :-) I know, I love tossing dice myself. But the attraction was just too great. As the game had progressed, I realized I would have been comfortable and happy as purely a narrator and invoker of player rolls when needed. I could save time spent determining how many dice to roll, rolling them, and processing the results. I could also be tougher and more honest with the players, as there'd be no temptation to fudge*.

Marc had brought up the idea of a player-facing system before, which I resisted -- I do like making rolls. And one of Vivid's core mechanics, Advantage Dice, was premised on the GM making opposed rolls with the players for most conflicts. Funny enough, though, during the playtest I found that the game was moving at such a fast pace that stopping to roll was just another speed bump.

Last week I finally decided to take the plunge and modify Vivid into a fully player-facing system like Cypher. It proved easier than I thought it would be, as I just had to translate the opposed roll results matrix into a read the highest die mechanic. Now 1-2 is a Defeat, 3-4 is a Stay with option to succeed at a price, and 5-6 is a Victory. The big challenge was what to do with the Advantage Dice mechanic. Finally had a breakthrough yesterday: Advantage for the GM -- that is, Disadvantage for you -- knocks down the result of player's highest die, applied in sequence to the current highest die.

For example, you rolled two dice, with 2 Disadvantage, and got 5, 5. The Disadvantage knocks down your results as follows: 5, 5 > 4, 5 > 4, 4.

Disadvantage is now something to really fear, which should help put players on their toes and get them thinking how to corner all the available Advantage. Which is good for me, because that drives them to give me quality input, which entertains me as much as playing a character myself. It's like getting to watch a movie. And that's the reason I made Vivid.

Now to see if this will survive contact with the en ... I mean, my players.

*I never fudged dice during the playtest, but I did lower the ability rating of a threat on the fly because the party had split at that point and only 2 PCs were up against the beastie I'd rolled as an encounter.

Adventure Frameworks for Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Thu, 20 Feb 2020 04:47:00 +0000

The sword and planet genre has been sadly neglected in recent times. Answering the question, “What do we do in this game?” may not come as naturally to players and GMs less familiar with sword and planet stories, so this section introduces some suitably pulpy leads and frameworks you can use for building characters and adventures on.

Sorcerer of Maruzar
A villain with mad ambitions has gained a prehuman artifact that gives powers beyond human understanding or control, and the characters must stop this menace. Think the stories of Conan the Barbarian and King Kull, Karl Edward Wagner’s Bloodstone, the stories of H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, or Stephen Sommers’ remake of The Mummy.

Swords of Maruzar: First Playtest Results!

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 03:41:00 +0000

Finally! As my now-favorite sword and planet character Teyud za Zhalt would put it, event and randomness at last allowed me to run a game, the first in what must be four years. I felt very rusty and creaky as a GM, but somehow eked through and got positive reactions from my players. It was also great to see old friends Marc and Adrian again for the first time in years, and make new ones.

The game was Swords of Maruzar, my current sword and planet project, and the adventure, Escape from Mandator, a one-shot I'd written as a playtest of the game. Players were Adrian, Marc, Adrian's wife Jonette, Marisse, and madcap raconteur Derek. All played the following pre-generated characters:

Connor O’Brian, Texan gunslinger, ex-Confederate cavalryman turned treasure hunter - Derek
Sally-Ann Mossey, circus sharpshooter turned treasure hunter - Marc
Ferala, Vyari courtesan, telepath and spy - Jonette
Balan Zais, Zhar ex-gladiator turned mercenary - Adrian
Garn Dakar, hotshot Marud aeronaut and swordsman - Marisse

After Action Report:
Escape from Mandator is an adventure set in the deserts of the Inland Kingdoms, with a small band of Maruzarians racing to the city of Mandator to bring warning of a treacherous plot against its Jerdayin, its ruling princess. There was an option to have two Terran characters, for players who wanted either a familiar character concept or to roleplay the stranger in a strange land angle.

Act 1

Connor and Sally are transported from Earth to Maruzar, from an Anasazi ruin rumored to contain Conquistador gold to an ancient laboratory inside a half-buried tower in the Drylands of Maruzar. They explore the tower, not fully realizing they're on another world for a while. Connor finds a fulgurator rifle and test fires it twice, the second time handily incinerating the portal mechanism and so rendering unnecessary any excuses for it not working to let them return to Earth.

On exiting the tower, they spot the airskiff with Ferala, Balan Zais and Garn Dakar on board, desperately fighting off a vaspid flock. The Terrans decide to help without any prodding -- mostly because Connor "sees a hot lady."

On board the airskiff, the Maruzarians find out it's a race against time to get to the ground in one piece. Garn succeeds at all his rolls to pilot the airskiff, keeping it level and eluding the attempts of more vaspids to get on the craft. Ferala shoots a vaspid, and Balan Zais takes out two vaspids at once with his orruk gun.

The Terrans shoot and both succeed. Sally gets the last vaspid on the airskiff, and Connor blasts the flock to cinders with the fulgurator. Afterward it gives a warning beep and starts heating up, so Connor chucks it away; it explodes harmlessly in the distance.

On the last piloting roll, Marisse (Garn) rolled a Stay with me; I ruled that she barely achieved a controlled crash, necessitating the other characters to jump out.

The Maruzarians and Terrans try to communicate, with hilarious results. Sally (Marc) says that Balan Zais resembles a purple, sauroid circus menagerie creature that they call 'Barney.' The Maruzarians on the other hand take 'Barney' to mean the Terrans' name for themselves.

Ferala (Jonette) tries to help communication by using her telepathy. She is nearly traumatized by the very plain and very graphic images she gets from Connor's mind regarding his intentions toward her. Eventually the Terrans learn Marazhiran language, but Connor due to his proclivities learns nothing but inappropriate words and phrases.

Act 2

The party was split during most of this act. While Garn worked on repairing the airskiff's gravomagnetic drive, Balan, Sally and Connor went in search of food and water. They found the carcass of a dead maulhead, together with its wrecked howdah and evidence of a caravan that had fallen afoul of Yarguun raiders. Balan Zais considered the Yarguun cowards and a minor threat except in numbers (heh heh), fortunately for them I did not roll a Yarguun encounter. They found some supplies still in usable condition, and evidence that the Yarguun had raided the caravan not so much for loot as for fresh meat -- the caravaneers' corpses all had been hauled off.

Balan then took Connor and Sally to search for the lost levitator spheres, and took 2 days to find them and bring them back. On the way they encountered a bloodfinder and followed it, Balan hoping it would lead them to game, but instead it led them to a dying caravan guard in a cave. He gave them his weapons in return for a last drink of water, and they found the spring in the cave and filled all their skins. They also got the mount.

I may be unclear on this - they may have gone out thrice, first for water, then the levitators, then again for supplies. I also recall they encountered a moon spider, which in its final phase of life hunts from the air, its abdomen enormously expanded and filled with hydrogen gas to become a living balloon. Connor shot it down, but it detached from its abdomen and attacked Balan Zais. I rolled a crit on this, resulting in the spider getting behind Balan and biting him on the neck; I then ruled that being a Zhar and huge, he could resist the venom for three rounds before becoming paralyzed. He eventually killed the moon spider, but not before its spiderlings hatched and swarmed the two PCs. Connor used his enormous whiskey stock to set the spiderlings on fire, but got bitten also. Both spent some time lying paralyzed in the desert -- cue the Ranma poses and jokes!

In the meantime, Garn finishes repairs on the airskiff, and attempts some romance with Sally. Marc declares that his character thinks Garn is a prince and roleplays his character as a gold digger; she believes she can buy her way to the life she wants with gold.

Ferala then receives a telepathic warning from Djana Zaor that Lemius Ras, the evil and ambitious Jerdun of Sarissa, has hired the notorious pirate Delok Shan to intercept them. They decide begin the last leg of their journey to Mandator by night, going flat out.

Act 3

The party has a roll-off vs the lookouts of Delok Shan at dawn, and win. They emerge from the Shangari Badlands with the sun at their backs and hidden in the shadow of the mountains, spotting Delok Shan's dirigible from afar. It is between them and the safety of Mandator.

The players decided on an end-run strategy. Ferala would try to keep them lookouts from spotting them using her telepathy, Sally and Connor together would fire the orruk gun, and Balan Zais if necessary would board the airship to distract the pirates.

Ferala succeeded at confusing the lookouts with multiple sixes, allowing the party to get a free shot from a good range. Sally scores a hit, again with sixes, causing the dirigible to start deflating. I roll for a chance to set the hydrogen on fire, and the result is positive. They close in and get above the dirigible. Delok Shan's crew fire, but all miss. Six pirates in wingcloaks jump out of the airship and try to close in with the airskiff. Sally freezes because she's being shot at - she'd never been in real combat before and has problems shooting at people.

Next round: Balan Zais aborts his intention of jumping into the airship due to the fire. Ferala and Garn roll Stays vs the wingcloakers, hitting none but keeping them from closing in. Connor shocks Sally out of her fugue by grabbing her butt; she slaps him.

Next round: The wingcloakers should've boarded on this round, but again were repelled by the shooting of Ferala, Garn, and Connor. In the meantime, Balan secures everyone for boarding combat by tethering them to the airskiff with ropes so they can't fall off.

Next round: Ferala, Garn, Connor and Sally wipe out the wingcloakers. Delok Shan abandons hope of accomplishing his objective, and abandons the airship using a wingcloak.

The airship crashes, and the party reaches Mandator in safety. They are challenged by aerial patrols, but the commander of one ship recognizes Garn and knows he was a favorite of the Jerdayin, and so escorts them to the palace himself. They are welcomed by Miria am'Amaris, who is established as having visited Dor Amaris when a teen, assigned Garn as her escort, and a budding romance between them had been in the air. Garn and Ferala deliver the message of Djana Zaor, and the game ends with Miria calling a conference with her generals and rewarding the PCs.

Epilogue:
Balan Zais gets the money and a place to establish a tavern of his own (established as the character's dream). Ferala is taken into the Jerdayin's court as a free retainer. Garn is treated with honor and also attached to the Jerdayin's court, until his home city of Dor Amaris is freed. Connor's inappropriate language and ignorance causes Ferala to advice Miria that the 'Barneys' belong in nursery school, and that's exactly where the Jerdayin sends them.

Evaluation
The players thankfully enjoyed the adventure despite my rustiness, liked their characters, found the world interesting and the system easy to understand and use. They liked how they could influence things with clever play and their characters' traits, and Marc specially liked the Advantage Dice pool mechanic wherein players and their opponents compete for shares of a fixed pool of 3 Advantage Dice. He later suggested another mechanic that could totally revolutionize this game so now working on how to implement that.

I'm giving myself only fair marks on GMing though: there were some mechanics I forgot to elucidate and use, which in some cases led to the players getting easier victories. In one case, I forgot to mark the transition from long rounds to short rounds during the final aerial battle, allowing the PCs to fire their orruk gun (basically a jingal), more frequently than they should have been able to. Perhaps running the game with all my text in my iPad wasn't optimal; scene notes might be better on index cards right on the table so I don't forget them. Then again, I think this is more a matter of my personal GMing technique than the game system.

Overall -- I think the playtest was a success. But now I really wanna play more!

Creatures of the Shrunken Seas

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Wed, 05 Feb 2020 04:31:00 +0000

Cliff Kraken

The cliff kraken, like its relative the cave kraken of the Drylands, is a terrestrial cephalopod and may be an ancestor of the latter. It lives in the cliffs of several isles and coastal mountains of Orokkonda, where it feeds on the marine lizardbirds that nest there. It may be encountered by those scaling the cliffs to gather eggs and nestlings (important food items for the Orokko), or searching for the treasure-filled ruins and buried hoards said to be hidden in those heights. Cliff krakens reach only 6-8 feet long, but unlike the cave and kelp kraken, the cliff kraken has a virulently venomous bite. Cliff krakens are largely responsible for the astronomical price of lizardgull egg soup, a famed delicacy of Orokko cuisine.

Lizard-ray

The lizard-ray is an eight-limbed marine reptile whose first four limbs form broad, winglike flippers. It ‘flies’ through the water with these, achieving speeds that make it one of the fastest swimmers in Maruzar’s seas. Lizard-rays reach up to 12 feet long and will attack anything they can overtake in the water; they’ll even jump at people in a boat to knock them into the water. Lizard-rays however are widely hunted for their skins, which is favored for wrapping sword hilts because of its nonslip texture.

Saber-toothed Screamer

Saber-toothed screamers are large predatory fish of abyssal origin, reaching up to 20 feet long, with armored bodies and disproportionately big skulls, the jaws of which are armed with two pairs of saber-like fangs. These ambush predators also have a sonic weapon: a vibratory organ in their throat can produce sound waves so strong they can damage the hulls of boats, and instantly stun any human in the water. They have even been seen to bring down low-flying lizardbirds, and at least one airskiff. Screamers like to lurk in shallow waters, camouflaged by their multicolored, armored scales which they allow to become overgrown with algae, then attack targets on or just beneath the surface, always opening with their sonic weapon.

Seafolk

Seafolk are descendants of humans who had themselves Reshaped to live in the sea after the War of All Planets. They have gills, thickened skin, webbed fingers and fins, greater than human strength, and no body hair at all. Their fingers are tipped with sharp, inch-long claws. Descendants of a radical back to nature cult who renounced technology and learning, the seafolk have become primitive savages. This may be the very same cult that gave rise to the Feral Men of the Drylands and the Beastmen of the arctic, or there may have been many such cults.

The seafolk constantly raid the desalinator plants of the Aryamehran Empire, blaming these for the increased saltiness of the Opaline Sea and the decline in fish, and they often attack fishing boats or even merchant and naval vessels. Fortunately they use no weapons, relying entirely on their strength, claws and ability to drown human victims. The seafolk will always try to carry off at least one victim alive every time they attack, to sacrifice to the abyssal god they now worship.

Reconceptualizing the Yarguun

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 03:03:00 +0000

I've rewritten the concept for the Yarguun, the alien barbarians of Maruzar, to give them an edgier feel. I think it'll make them more memorable, and give GMs more of a handle on adventures involving the Yarguun.

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

The Yarguun race is very old. Originally a servitor race of the Old Ones, perhaps even the very first race the Old Ones enslaved, they are now savage warriors, roaming the arid lands on both sides of the Opaline and Nacreous Seas in small nomadic bands. From time to time these bands come together and launch surprisingly massive raids for captives and plunder, and these raids have been growing in strength.

All mankind on Maruzar fear the Yarguun, but they do not fear them enough: the nomad bands are not simple barbarians, but merely the scouts and hunters of subterranean kingdoms hidden beneath remote mountain ranges. And the Yarguun warlords are on a holy war to reclaim a planet that was once theirs. The few who have escaped slavery in the Yarguun cave strongholds tell of great and ever-busy forges, hatcheries containing thousands of eggs, and other evidence their barbarian masters once had an advanced civilization that may be in revival.

Yarguun stand about 8 feet tall when standing erect, but have a naturally stooping posture; they have a gaunt, practically skeletal build, are gray-skinned and totally bald, with huge red eyes, no external ears, four short tusks curving out from their jaws, clawed hands and feet, and long, whip-like tails. Their hind legs are jointed like a heron’s, and their feet are clawed. Like birds, their bones are hollow. They are also completely immune to telepathy.

In combat, the Yarguun rely on stealth, speed, and sheer ferocity. They never wear armor, and as they can run as fast as a gannor for hours, they never need mounts. Most Yarguun warriors carry only a couple of sharp iron boomerangs plus a two-handed clawsword, a serrated, hooked blade on a long hilt that is used to trip or snag foes and prey. Some tribes have stolen firearm technology from humankind, and now make their own extremely long muskets.

Maruzar: Attack of the Frustrated Marine Biologist!

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Thu, 02 Jan 2020 02:10:00 +0000

I've always been fascinated by marine life, and scuba diving and snorkeling are two of the pastimes I can never get enough of nor afford as often as I like. As a kid I was hooked on the Jacques Cousteau docus, and as a kid five decades later I'm an avid follower of BBC's excellent ocean documentaries. One of the creatures that fascinates me most is the Bobbit worm, which inspired this innocuos little thing from the world of Maruzar:

Eunice aphroditois, by https://www.flickr.com/people/26598370@N00

Bathoris
The bathoris or vampire worm is one of the most dreaded predators of the Opaline Sea. This giant marine worm is strangely beautiful with its deep maroon coloring, marked by patterns of iridescent yellow, orange, and metallic hues of blue and green. Its form however is both horrible and full of deadly features. At rest, the bathoris is about nine feet long and only as thick around as a man’s bicep; on the attack, however, it swallows water or air to swell to its full size of twelve feet and a diameter of nearly two feet.

Its head terminates in a quartet of sharp mandibles, with which it bites gaping wounds in its prey; it then inserts its toothed tongue into the wound to rasp out gobbets of flesh and blood, feeding while the prey is still alive. It eats only the guts and other organs in the stomach cavity. The four, foot-long antennae on its head, the pair of setae at its tail, and the sharp bristles running all along its back, are coated with a poisonous slime that causes local numbness and paralysis on contact. Should the bathoris come under heavy attack, it escapes by ejecting all the water or air it swallowed out through the spiracles all along its sides, thus shrinking rapidly back to a size that can easily wriggle away into the water or into whatever narrow cranny it can find.

Vampire worms sometimes get caught in fishermen’s nets, but they have also been known to come ashore or climb into boats and ships in search of warm-blooded prey, which they prefer over fish. Seafolk have also been known to plant vampire worms on ships and the platforms of the desalination plants to wreak mischief, sometimes even to provide diversion for an attack; it sometimes backfires on them, though.

Khayr Coronnar, Capital of the Empire

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 04:51:00 +0000

The chief city in the Opaline Sea basin is magnificent Khayr Coronnar, capital of the Aryamehran Empire. Khayr Coronnar has a population of about two million, with perhaps two hundred thousand more living unrecorded in its prehuman, subterranean bowels.

Location

The city is located by the excellent harbor of Hydralis Bay, and northeast of it is the Port Tartessos spaceport. On a hill to the east is the ruin of Old Hydralis, whose subterranean undercity reaches all the way to the Khayr Coronnar. All around the city for many miles stretch the plantations of the nobility, worked by legions of slaves. Together with the heavy tributes the Empire levies from its conquests, this fertility has concentrated here a level of wealth unmatched anywhere else on Maruzar and enabled the city’s rulers to build lavishly in the style of the First Empire.

Architecture

The capital is a vision of soaring white towers, many with landing pads for skyships, magnificent palaces, fountained gardens, the pyramidal temples of the Primogens, and tall, stern monuments to past Emperors. All this is surrounded by a triple wall bristling with both cannon and ancient energy weapons. The Imperial Palace alone is the size of nine city blocks. All the major buildings of Khayr Coronnar are faced with white marble, and the palaces and temples have walls inlaid with onyx, malachite and gold.

Beside the Imperial Palace is the gigantic Grand Arena, which is domed over with tinted glass and climate-controlled with machines provided by the Spaceclans. It is considered a wonder of the age. Nevertheless, all this is but a shadow of the First Empire’s capital, Az Coronnar. The highest finial of the Imperial Palace stands four hundred feet high; the tallest tower of Az Coronnar was over a mile high. The rest of the city is occupied by residential towers, the first two floors of which are occupied by shops and markets.

The Imperial Palace

The largest edifice in Khayr Coronnar is the Imperial Palace, which occupies the northern quarter of the city and forms its strongest bastion of defence there. It is made up of five towers standing over a common base, the central tower four hundred feet tall while the the flanking towers are a hundred feet shorter. Notorious for its extravagant opulence, the Palace is not just the dwelling of the Imperial family and the center of the Empire’s government, it is a statement of power in every stone and chamber.

The cyclopean-scale throneroom is lined with captured banners on the walls and First Empire statuary plundered from various dead cities, while the walkway to the throne is now a massive glass-topped pool stocked with iridescent, twenty-foot long Gamilan dragon-eels, telling the world that the Emperor controls enough water to use it extravagantly and claims rule of planets beyond Maruzar. There is of course provision for abruptly dropping unwelcome visitors into the water, an event the intelligent and ever-hungry dragon-eels greatly enjoy.

The Grand Terrace above the throneroom is occupied by five glass-domed gardens. One houses a large bathing pool, surrounded by exotic Vashtian and Karkushan jungle plants. Another houses a vishra, the Maruzarian sand dragon; another is the personal fencing salon of the Emperor; and yet another is a sealed menagerie of zoa-trees and savage insectoids from the Viridian Deep, for Imperial scientists to study.

The central tower contains the Imperial family quarters and those of their servants, complete with kitchens, banquet halls, conference rooms for the Imperial council and favored petitioners, private libraries, and so on. The flanking towers house the Imperial Guard and hangars for the Emperor’s personal warships. Stables, food storage, and machinery are located in the basements. Access to the towers is by external stairs or lift shafts with levor disks. The grounds are a magnificent public garden with fountains under glass domes.

The Grand Arena

The Grand Arena is the second-largest structure in the city. It is not only a coliseum for the bloody games beloved by the Azhir nobles, it is also their favorite playground, for the structure surrounding the arena is made up of tiered galleries housing luxury shops, restaurants, pleasure houses run by the city’s most famous courtesans, and so on.

Beneath these are quarters for gladiators, trainers and guards, and armories, and below these, kennels for the many kinds of beasts made to fight in the arena. The inner rim of the arena is entirely taken up by seats, with the Imperial box at one end. Combatants enter the sands from the tall Gate of Valor located right opposite the Emperor’s box, giving the ruler the pleasure of seeing the gladiators first.

The wealthy citizenry love novelty in the arena, so they are always demanding more exotic beasts and new fighters. There are many ways to make a fortune here — as many as there are ways to die on the sands.

The Grand Temple

The Grand Temple is the main Primogenist temple in Khayr Coronnar. It stands on the north side of the Plaza of Glory, in the very center of the city. The temple is a huge step pyramid of nine levels, crowned at the top by a quincunx of towers which form the temple proper. At every tier are statues depicting the Primogens, the First Men and Women, while the sides of each tier are carved with reliefs depicting the history of the First Empire and the founding of Khayr Coronnar.

The pyramid interior is honeycombed with chambers, and it is here that the city’s mentalists are trained by Primogenist priests. A great library is housed deep within the pyramid, and some say there are secret chambers within the library of which not even the Emperor knows, hiding curious experiments or forbidden knowledge.

The Shrine of Aryamehr

Princess Aryamehr, the founder of the Empire, is honored in a shrine opposite the Grand Temple. The shrine is a vaulted dome, the top of which is open as a skylight shining down upon the thrice-life size golden statue of Princess Aryamehr below. Many military rites are held in the shrine, such as awarding recognitions for valor and the swearing of fealty to the city’s lords.

The Undercity

Beneath all this are the labyrinthine tunnels and reservoirs of the Undercity, the prehuman ruins atop which Khayr Coronnar was built. Many aliens, denied a place in Imperial society, live underground and may not see the sun for days on end. The Undercity is a hotbed for the cultists of Balaor, the Mad Moon, who periodically stage sudden, violent bacchanals and grisly sacrificial rites. The complex reaches all the way to the abandoned city of Old Hydralis, and despite attempts to seal off the tunnels running below the city walls, the tunnel dwellers have always managed to dig through or find other ways yet unknown to the authorities.

The Waterfront

West of the city lie the marinas, warehouses, and fishermen’s towers of the waterfront, practically a town in its own right, surrounded by its own walls. This lively district never sleeps, for half the population works all day, and the other half works all night to cater to carousing sailors, fishermen, marines, and dockhands. There is a large Orokko population here, which is carefully watched because of recent rebellions in Orokkonda, their homeland. Seafolk sometimes infiltrate this area, causing havoc and panic before they are driven off.

Desalination Plant

To the southwest of the marina is the complex of glass domes, pumping stations and pipes of the Hydralis Desalination Plant, the largest of the desalination facilities on Maruzar. Every day this plant yields enough fresh water to supply the entire city, and the surplus is pumped inland to Port Tartessos and Khayr Coronnar’s satellite cities. The plant is now guarded day and night from watchtowers and patrolling galleys against Seafolk attack.

Types of Lost Cities on Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 13:22:00 +0000

First Empire Cities

First Empire cities are sprawling, unwalled, complexes of colossal towers often more than a thousand feet tall and several hundred feet on each side. The towers are built of fused stone and glass, in an airy and open style with clean flowing lines, elaborate surface decoration, and terraced landing pads for private aircraft on most floors. Many towers are built with complex polygonal cross-sections, and delicate-looking yet sturdy aerial bridges link many of the buildings. The cities however extend as much downward as upward, for their foundations are honeycombs of tunnels, machine rooms, armories, and reservoirs. Quite a few of these ruins still contain a water supply in their depths -- not enough for resettlement, but enough to sustain some Dryland wildlife and even tribes of feral humans. Save for some battle damage incurred in the Nightfall Wars, First Empire structures are usually preserved in excellent condition.

Latter Empires Cities

Ruins of the Latter Empires are either walled imitations of First Empire architecture with its towers and terraced landing pads, or partially, even fully, subterranean. Many are set into remote and hidden or easily defended locations -- hanging off a vertical cliff face, built into a mountain, hidden in the walls of a chasm or sinkhole, and so on. The structures are of stone or brick, with a wide range of quality and decoration -- some towers look like rude bandit strongholds, while those of the rulers may be entirely faced with marble, their delicate windows, minarets and buttresses rife with carvings and inlays of semiprecious stones. Latter Empires towers are always square or round, with a massive, heavy look instead of the towering delicacy of First Empire architecture.

Bandit Kingdoms Strongholds

Bandit Kindom strongholds are usually quite small, built on easily-defended heights or in desert oases, and of crude, blocky architecture as befitted their builders. Many were abandoned when their sole water supply was cut off, and so are good for no more than a night's shelter. A few lost strongholds however may hold interesting surprises. Because of their crudeness, Bandit Kingdom era strongholds are usually found in terrible condition, with many collapsed and dangerously unstable sections.

Lairs of the Sorcerer Kings

The palaces and fortresses of some sorcerer-scientist kings still lie inviolate in the remotest corners of Maruzar. Most date back to after the Shattering, but some are even older than the First Empire. These ruins vary widely in architectural style, often hinting at the madness of their builders and rulers, and may still hold working arcane technology, stockpiles of treasure or weapons, or even living remnants of the sorcerer-scientists' breeding experiments and transdimensional trapping. Some may even have automated defense systems that still work.

Anuuran Cities

Anuuran cities, built by slaves for the apparently amphibious Anuuran race, are entirely subterranean save for monuments and possibly religious arrangements of black monoliths at ground level. In most Anuuran sites these monoliths have been cast down or destroyed without a trace, as many human settlements are built over Anuuran warrens. Surviving monoliths are often said to give off disturbing psychic resonances or worse. Belowground, Anuuran sites are confusing mazes of curving and criss-crossing tunnels, many with canals built into them, and there is always a massive reservoir at the very bottom. Some Anuuran cities have never been fully explored or destroyed, and there are persistent, hushed rumors that this evil race of telepaths may not yet be extinct as most of Maruzar believes.

Neshemite Necropolises

The Neshemites were a pre-First Empire human culture that dominated what is now the northern Drylands. While the cities the Neshemites lived in are now gone or built over by other cultures, many of their necropolises, on which they seem to have lavished most of their art and energies, remain. These necropolises are always set in remote hilly areas and are composed of massive flat-topped pyramidal tombs hewn out of the native rock. Monumental statuary, specially of mythical guardian beasts, surround each tomb and mark the gates of each. Unless previously looted, Neshemite tombs will be found hermetically sealed and guarded by devilish traps and sometimes even by robotic sentinels.

Eshkorian

Eshkorian ruins are among the most haunting on all Maruzar. Once a mighty coastal empire, Eshkor's cities line the old shorelines of the Opaline Sea. Their simple, elegant architecture can still be seen in what were once verdant garden temples, colonnades, and sprawling palaces artfully blended into the landscape, with many courtyards enclosing pools and fountains -- stark reminders of Maruzar's gentler, wetter past. Eshkorian ruins are considered holy sites in the Irajin, Keshai and Marazhiran cultures, but Spaceclan greed for artifacts has led to renewed exploration and plundering of the ruins.

Warfare on Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Fri, 03 May 2019 04:36:00 +0000

Maruzarian tactics are shaped by the arid environment, the strong fortification of cities, and the limited availability of aerial transport. On the defense, airships form the first line to detect the enemy from afar and prevent their landing troops in the city. If the enemy gets into the city, they are met with all available ground forces. If they mass outside to lay siege or scatter to raid the plantations, the ground forces sally out and may fight a pitched battle outside the walls.

Pitched battles rely on a complex interplay of combined arms. The usual object of the defender is to destroy the enemy artillery or command. To do this, infantry and artillery are used to fix the enemy while cavalry first destroy or rout their counterparts, then assault the foe’s main body with the aid of warbeasts. It is usually these titans which actually destroy or capture the enemy artillery. While all this is happening, the aerial forces of both sides do what they can in support; if one side gains aerial superiority, they can bomb the other’s ground forces and artillery.

On the attack, Imperial generals prefer to make surprise aerial landings aided by agents within the target city. When a landing cannot be made at acceptable cost, and no other means of assault is feasible, the attacking commander may try to lure out the foe by raiding their herds and plantations, or if he has enough artillery, lay siege with his heaviest cannons and catapults.

As Aryamehran and Inland Kingdom cities have strong walls, and the Inland Cities are often built in highly defensible locations, the defense always has a formidable advantage. Moreover, sieges are limited by the availability of aerial transport. A single siege cannon can weigh more than a thousand men, and so takes the largest airships to transport. Only when an attacker has enough of the ancient heavy weapons to destroy the defenses does a siege stand good chances of success.

The pace of warfare on Maruzar is suprisingly fast despite the archaic weapons used due to air transport. Surprise is truly achievable, and large forces can be massed quickly by airship. Likewise, airships can ferry supplies far and fast, and can only be stopped by other airships. Even when the whole army cannot be transported by air, shipping supplies by air allows for much more rapid marches.

Not all warfare though is against opposing armies. Small units of cavalry must periodically sweep the deserts and nearby ruins to seek out and destroy dangerous wildlife, particularly feral humans and Swarmlings, as well as bandits and raiding nomad bands. The jerdars of both the Empire and the Inland Kingdoms consider this a sport, going out in gay parties bedecked in rich trappings, followed by their children, concubines and retainers on floater-chariots or on ranagors fitted with luxurious howdahs.

In the meantime, a grimmer kind of campaign is always going on in the Undercity, where infantrymen must hunt dangerous subterranean creatures in the dark. No warrior can ever keep his sword sheathed for long on Maruzar.

Maruzar: The Keshai Tribes

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 08:18:00 +0000

The Keshai or Sand Marud tribes claim to be the oldest nomadic culture on Maruzar, dating back to even before the First Empire. Their tribes, they say, survived intact through the Shattering and the following Age of Chaos, retaining their old names, languages and ways. This history makes the Keshai extremely proud, even arrogant.

The Nine Tribes

Only nine tribes of Keshai survive, but all of them, save one, claim to descend in continuous line from their forebears of the same name. The tribes are: the Shanur, which defeated and absorbed two other tribes to become the largest tribe, but is riven with feuds between its member clans; the Zoai, who nurse an ancient feud with the Shanur; the Ammatar, who have taken over the dead city of that name, wiping out the Irajin who lived there; the Illuar, who occupy and farm the Jerafan Sinkholes; the Jerafa, who were driven from their homes by the Illuar; the Zikandar, who claim their leaders used to be high kings over all the tribes; the Keshvar, who are notorious marauders; the Isali, who say their ancestors used to live by a great lake, and were pirates; and the Gozashtar, a ‘new’ tribe that took shape only after the Shattering.

Keshai Culture

All the nine tribes have some variant of the basic Keshai culture, which is based on pastoral nomadism, matriarchal clans, and equestrian warfare. All Keshai wear white robes and headcloths when outside their tents, each tribe differentiating its members by the color of their sashes. Every Keshai wears up to five finely-made knives, Honor Blades, which are given as signs of accomplishment and respect.

The tribes are notorious for their propensity to raid settled folk, caravans, and each other, and for their long-burning feuds, some of which have lasted more than a thousand years. Keshai tribes are extremely territorial, jealously guarding their precious wells and water caves and demanding tributes for safe passage.

Keshai warriors are always in high demand as mercenary light cavalry. They are excellent riders, often with some of the best gannors, masters of the lance and javelin, adept at scouting and ambush, and loyal as long as they’re paid. Their great weakness however is their tribal feuds, which seem to follow them wherever they go. Keshai mercenaries of feuding tribes will often fight inspite of orders, and Imperial patrols have been ambushed merely because they passed through the land of a tribe who had a feud with one of their nomad scouts.

The tribes are ruled by councils of Clan Mothers, who between them own all the herds and tents. Each Clan Mother appoints a warchief for their clan, who may be of either sex.

Barbarians of Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 03:26:00 +0000

The aftermath of the Shattering saw the highly civilized, technology-dependent Maruzarians uprooted from their cities to wander in search of the basic necessities. Billions died. The survivors lived any way they could, the strong and aggressive taking from the weak. Many who fled to the remotest regions never managed to rebuild their societies but instead formed savage and insular tribes; they became the new barbarians of Maruzar.

As a rule these barbarians live only in village-sized settlements, wear only hides and furs, and live by hunting and gathering, some crude farming, and raiding. Their technology is crude, many tribes not even knowing how to make iron. Barbarian tribes are scattered across the western shores of the Opaline Sea, and both sides of the Nacreous Sea, where they are beyond the reach of the annual Swarm. A few hold out in mountain fastnesses between the Inland Kingdoms, at heights too cold for the Swarm. Indeed, most barbarian settlements are in hidden dales among high mountains.

Other than these common characteristics, barbarians are highly diverse, each tribe different in some way from every other. There are dark and fair barbarians, giants and pygmies, warlike and peaceful tribes and so on.

The Karanthori

The Karanthor Hills were once an island chain fringing the coast; now they are a range of hills on the mainland, but the easternmost hills face the Opaline Sea. These hills are honeycombed with enormous sea caves now left high above the water, and these are inhabited by the numerous Karanthori barbarians. These warrior tribes live most of the year in scattered cave settlements, but when the drift kelp rises they gather by the sea to hunt the giant sea lizards from leather coracles.

The Karanthori sometimes cross the equator in coracle fleets to raid the Empire's coastlands. Most Karanthori wield weapons tipped with sea lizard teeth, and wear armor of scaly sea lizard hide. However many of them now have swords and other metal weapons, thanks to visiting traders who bartered these for sea lizard glands and ivory.

The Barutar

The Barutar are a barbarian tribe who settled near the site of an ancient air-space battle, littered with the wrecks of ancient skyships. Their ancestors salvaged the metal of these and a single working power plant, and with it crafted enough wondrous suits of armor and weapons to equip all their men before the power plant died.

Now the Barutar treasure these items as precious heirlooms, proudly passing them down from father to son along with a tradition of an egalitarian warrior republic. They rule a swath of the Zireyan Hills from their citadel at Castle Akumon, but because they forbid intermarriage with outsiders they are in decline. Many suits of armor no longer have any to inherit them. Quite a few Barutar have left the tribe with their armor to serve as mercenaries.

Barutar armor is a full-body suit of plate, all black cerametal and gleaming like glass, but every suit has now been customized and barbarized by generations of barbarian warriors. A Barutar's armor may be decorated with garish painted patterns -- usually crimson, beast claws and teeth, and worn with a mantle of fur.

The Sigkari

The Sigkari are a barbarian tribe renowned for their skill with javelins. These equestrian hunters live at the edge of the Karboulian Marshes far to the north, where they spear lizardbirds in flight, and also harvest the marsh lotus for the southern drug markets. They have frequent conflicts with the Beastmen, to whom the disappearing marsh lotus is a necessity for winter hibernation. The Sigkari are normal humans and do not have the ability to hibernate, so when winter comes they migrate south to their winter homes in the caves beneath the Sigkarran Mountains.

The Guoroon

The Guoroon tribe lives beneath the Abaddai Mountains, in a labyrinthine cave system that stretches for over a hundred miles and with many hidden exits. Widely feared as cannibal bogeymen, the Guoroon are said to be pallid, hideous pygmies, mutated by centuries of isolation and their cannibalistic diet; few have ever seen one as they attack only by ambush, and rarely leave survivors. It's believed that they are led by mentalist 'wizard-priests,' who also lead the hunts for human prey and subdue the victims by telepathy.

The Vanavar

The Vanavar tribes live amid the high crags of the Comyrium Mountains. A powerful warrior tribe, they live by hunting and raiding. They are alternately the terrors and the leaders of neighboring tribes, who sometimes join them for big raids against Alcyonis. The Vanavar are tall and muscular, bearded, and because of their rocky highland environment are excellent climbers.

Once, they liberated some Gliders from an Alcyonian merchant who was going to sell them as slaves, and inspired by the Gliders' ability to fly they began experimenting with crude hang gliders. Now they often soar for sport, and some Vanavar warriors enter battle on hang gliders.

Mount Zom

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 14:10:00 +0000

Mount Zom is an extinct volcano some 12,000 feet high, with a horseshoe-shaped caldera four miles wide. The inner face of this caldera is pocked with hundreds of manmade caves, along with enormous relief carvings of anthropomorphic and esoteric figures. This is the home of the Zomi Order, where its Ten Immortal Masters live and teach the novice Zomiin warrior monks. The Ten Immortal Masters are not literally deathless, but instead whenever one passes on he or she is immediately replaced by another who takes his or her name. Thus the Zomi Order appears to be led by the same ten masters that founded it centuries ago.

The mountain is located nearly in the middle of the Sepulchral Plains, in the southern Drylands -- that is, in the middle of nowhere. Those who wish to join the order must either find their way to the mountain on their own, or convince a sand monk to bring them there. Aspirants are advised to prove their humility and commitment by coming on foot.

Novices can expect to spend up to ten years on the mountain, hardening their bodies by walking around the mountain daily, learning to use the halberd, and and doing manual labor. The monastery has fungus and hydroponic farms, forges, and all it needs to be self-sufficient. It is defended from the Swarm by a sonic defense system that uses the unique acoustic properties of the caldera; the monks have been unable to duplicate the effects anywhere else.

Visitors other than aspirant sand monks are not welcome at Mount Zom. The monks will succor any who are shipwrecked, lost or fleeing from attack, but even such supplicants are sent away as soon as they can travel again safely. Nor are such visitors allowed freedom of the complex, particularly the chambers deeper inside the mountain. The Zomi Order it seems has secrets it will not share.

Forgotten Gods of Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Fri, 08 Mar 2019 09:59:00 +0000

While Primogenism, or veneration of the First Men, has become the sole religion officially practiced on Maruzar a number of ancient cults still survive among secret pockets of followers -- in hidden cities and tribal villages, among secret cabals, and in the criminal underworld. Many of these gods and cults have disturbing, even horrifying aspects.

The Old Ones

The Old Ones are worshipped as the true masters of Maruzar by some secret cults, and by communities of feral men. Worshippers sacrifice humans at ancient altars hidden in the wastelands or deep underground where the Old Ones were supposed to have lived, hoping by these offerings to bring the Old Ones back. The cult of the Old Ones harbors a special hatred for the Azhir race and the Azhiran Empire, and by extension the Aryamehran Empire its avowed successor.

Great Yargul

Great Yargul is the god of the Yarguun race, depicted as an eight-armed Yarguun with a different weapon in every clawed hand. Little is known of this god, save that all Yarguun seem to worship him and that Yarguun tribes occasionally come together into ravaging hordes in his name. Apparently the god promises to return the Yarguun race to their lost glories, and the uprisings are led by warriors who are able to claim that Great Yargul has spoken to them.

Zorgorath

Worshippers of Zorgorath believe he grants them good fortune and protection if they aid in restoring him to his original status as the primary god of mankind on Maruzar (he never was). To this end worshippers preach, make pilgrimages, and try to acquire ancient artifacts connected with his cult. The truth is Zorgorath is an extradimensional being trapped somewhere on Maruzar, and started this cult in order to get worshippers to find his prison-tomb and liberate him from it.

Gozairon

Gozairon is believed to be a unique colossal beast that once roamed Maruzar, crushing tyrants beneath his clawed feet. His worshippers pray to free him so he can rise again and destroy the Aryamehran Empire, the rule of the Azhir, and the Spaceclans. Proof of his existence is shown by incredibly ancient carvings deep in the subterranean ruins of previous civilizations. The cult of Gozairon is unsurprisingly popular among slaves.

The Speakers of Oro

The Speakers of Oro are a septet of immortal priestesses living in a secret temple somewhere in the mountains of Orokkonda, or some say beneath the sea. They claim to have contact with the spirits of all dead Orokkon kings, and act as oracles. Officially the Orokko people no longer believe in the Speakers and the spirits, but some still secretly send offerings and prayers to the Speakers for oracular advice. What's disturbing is that the priestesses really are immortal, and know things beyond human ken. Where does their power really come from?

Mardammor

Mardammor is an ancient god of wealth who continues to be worshipped by some merchants. His cult is two-faced: The benign side worships with offerings of food and wine, and festive processions of dancers and musicians, and is tolerated everywhere as an excuse to feast and make merry. The dark side of the cult involves child sacrifices, performed in secret at hidden locations. Most worshippers of Mardammor know nothing at all about the cult's secret side. Mardammor is depicted as a fat, grinning, bearded and robed humanoid sitting cross-legged; the dark version of the cult however adds a fanged, gaping mouth in Mardammor's abdomen.

The Chained Gods

Chained Gods cultists believed that the Azhiran Empire 'enslaved' the ancient gods and imprisoned them in hidden tombs scattered across Maruzar. A brainwashing campaign then led the rest of mankind to forget about these Chained Gods, so their powers remained in the hands of the conquerors. By reviving the worship of these deities the cult hopes to free them, an event that will trigger an apocalyptic war and liberate all oppressed peoples of Maruzar. Cultists explore ruins hoping to find artifacts of the ancient gods and uncover lost religious practices, and practice human sacrifice.

Ahriazar

Ahriazar, the Black Sithan, is an ancient god secretly worshipped with human sacrifice and ritual cannibalism. The cultists believe they gain power through consumption of human flesh, particularly those of telepaths and Azhir.

Designing the Yarguun

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Wed, 06 Mar 2019 04:02:00 +0000

My personal brief for designing the Yarguun was simple but formidable: create a barbarous humanoid alien capable of standing toe to toe with a Thark or Warhoon, even Tars Tarkas himself, and make him worried. Have I succeeded? You be the judge.

The Yarguun are an ancient species that pre-date man's arrival on Maruzar by eons, and they are perfectly adapted to its arid wastelands. Originally a servitor race of the Old Ones, they are savage warriors, periodically launching massive raids from their subterranean strongholds in the mountains to seize captives and plunder. They usually eat captives in sacrificial feasts; only a few useful individuals are kept as slaves.

Yarguun stand about 10 feet tall when standing erect, but have a naturally stooping posture; their bodies and limbs are gaunt, almost skeletal, gray-skinned and totally bald, with huge red eyes, no external ears, four short tusks curving out from their lower jaws, clawed hands and feet, and have long, whip-like tails. Their hind legs are jointed like a heron’s, and their feet are clawed. Like birds, their bones are hollow. This lithe, long-legged build makes them fast and tireless runners, moving everywhere at a run and never using mounts.

Holy terrors in battle, most Yarguun use only one weapon, a curved blade on a long haft that is somewhere between a sword and a polearm. They seem to be everywhere at once as they fight, running and making soaring leaps, so it's very hard to defend against one. Worse yet, only a few know that Yarguun are immune to telepathy. Many a telepathic warrior has fallen when they relied on their talent to predict a Yarguun's moves as they would a human opponent.

World of Maruzar: Living with a Mad God

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Sun, 03 Mar 2019 22:21:00 +0000

Every few years, the crimson moon Balaor comes close enough to Maruzar to blanket the planet with its telepathic sendings. These can fill unguarded minds with dark and perverse visions, inciting dreams of malice, cruelty and violence. This psychic plague can last several nights in a row, during which violent crimes of passion, bouts of madness, and the blood-mad Ravenings of Red Moon cultists are rife.

Guarding the Mind on Red Nights

The Red Moon's malevolent sendings fortunately cause far less damage than they could thanks to a variety of defensive measures. In the cities, the Primogenist priests muster all their telepaths to broadcast calming thought-waves whenever Balaor approaches. This is not one hundred per cent effective, but it does reduce violent incidents during Red Nights by a great deal. The Irajin tribes do the same thing, as do most of the Sand Marud. The Zomiin sand monks make sure to be alone in the desert so they can face the Red Moon in meditative trance, but have no nearby targets in case they should lose to Balaor’s sendings.

Those without these psychic safety nets can mitigate the Red Moon's influence by drugging themselves into deep sleep. Yet others find that it's easier to guard their minds while awake, and so stay awake all night, sleeping only after moonset, when Balaor’s influence is no longer felt. Many will spend these nights at the temples, chanting and meditating under guidance of the priests. The sendings also don’t seem to reach far underground, so those living in the deep subterranean cities are usually not disturbed.

But there are also those who, instead of trying to resist the Red Moon, use its influences to heighten their dark pleasures. Such practices are banned but popular among some bored nobles and wealthy merchants, who get together on Red Nights to watch illegal gladiator fights (banned at these times), or to watch slaves being tortured, while sipping wines steeped with powerful and exotic drugs. The Red Moon cultists recruit actively in these circles, knowing these decadent folk to be easily enticed into greater heights of madness.

Ravenings

Worshippers of Balaor secretly get together on Red Nights to offer blood sacrifice, and pray for their dark god to cleanse the world of unbelievers. The masked priests will harangue the cultists with fiery sermons, feed them maddening drugs, and make them share in the horror of sacrifice by torture.

The priests’ intent is to whip the cultists into an insane, ecstatic, suicidal fury; if this happens, the priest then leads his flock on a murderous rampage through the city, killing, breaking, and burning, until they are all killed or sunrise ends the spell and the cultists scatter, dazed and not daring to recall what they had done. These bloody uprisings are called Ravenings by most Maruzarians, but captured priests of the cult often refer to it as the March of the Worm.

The spell does not seem to affect the priests themselves, who remain clear-headed throughout and usually manage to disappear before the Ravening is destroyed or sunrise ends the madness. The priests then rebuild their flocks, to have a new army ready for the next approach of the Red Moon.

The Wakening of Balaor

While the Red Moon has been around since before the First Men arrived on Maruzar, it was just another celestial body for millennia, a big airless rock in space. Scholars still debate when Balaor the errant minor moon became Balaor the dreaded demon-moon, some tracing the change to reign of Ilharion the Accursed, last Emperor of the First Empire.

What happened? No one knows. Some say the Accursed awakened Balaor with his unholy rites, and it was Balaor’s influence that led to the Nightfall War. Yet others say Balaor only awakened after the Shattering. Most are agreed, though, that the Red Moon’s influence is getting stronger over time.

Theories about the alien intelligence responsible for the sendings are also divided: some say it’s the last of the Zhurakarians, others say it’s a powerful extradimensional being trapped in the moon, some say the entire moon is one titanic prehuman artifact, and yet others say that the Old Ones fled to the Red Moon when defeated by the Azhir Crusade.

The Red Moon and Other Races

Only Maruzarian humans, and races descended from humans, are affected by the Red Moon. The Seafolk, the Beastmen, and feral men are specially susceptible, and may continue acting on Balaor-given impulses for days after the moon has receded from range. Most Vatborn are only mildly disturbed, easily assuaged with drugs, while it seems the Yarguun, Sammari, and Gliders, are not affected at all.

The Spaceclans dread the Red Moon. Shortly after their arrival in the system they tried to explore it, but every attempt met with horrible disaster on nearing Balaor; computers and engines failed, crews went mad, and the Directorate destroyed the one exploratory vessel that came back in fear of what it carried. Not even the fully robotic landers worked. Convinced that there is nothing in their power they can do about the moon, the Spaceclans choose to flee it, retreating into deep underground shelters or taking off in their ships to park on the other side of Maruzar from wherever the red moon is shining.

It is partly this fear of Balaor that drives Spaceclan research on psi. Of all the psychic feats the Maruzarians have accomplished, it is the mind-shielding broadcast of the Primogenist telepath-priests that impresses the Spaceclans the most, and they want it for themselves.

World of Maruzar: Food!

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 11:10:00 +0000

I'm the kind of player who likes to know what my character eats, and I like describing food for my players. I've even been threatened with massive damage if I kept on making my hungry players' mouths water a few times, heh heh. And so since the world of Maruzar feels so alive in my imagination, I couldn't help but make a list of the stuff a Maruzarian PC could eat:

Bread

The usual staple is barsa bread, a flatbread made from the starchy piths of the barsa cane. This is supplemented with blackbread, the purplish-black cap of a common fungus. Blackbread varies widely in quality, at best being soft and nutty with meaty hints, but at its cheapest it is fibrous with a dank odor.

Meat

Breads are eaten dipped into savory stews which may contain the meat of garzah, a flightless reptavian that is the commonest meat animal on the planet, or young gannor, sand cray caught wild or cultured in underground pens, or maybe even sweet canal clams, canal crays, or cavefish. In season the meat is often game, as hunters harvest the migrating herds and fresh meat becomes plentiful. In the coastal cities there are fish and various mollusks, but more popular are the meats of certain marine reptiles.

Fungi

Fungi are a major crop across Maruzar, as every city can produce them by recycling organic wastes and water. For cities without irrigated fields, fungi take the place of barsa as the primary staple. Fungus farms also provide some measure of food security when attacked, as the farms are protected underground. Many varieties are grown, and many cities boast of varieties unique to their tunnels. Some taste like cheese, or meat, or seafood, some are sweet, and some are mildly toxic, giving diners a euphoric buzz in small quantities, but are dangerous when over-indulged.

Wine

Meals are often washed down with a pale yellow wine made from mace melons, or the sweet and heady wine from thorncrown palm fruit, or foamy barsa beer. The nobility indulge in more exotic tipple such as nineflower wine, made from the nectar of nine different jungle blossoms found only near the Viridian Deep, or wines steeped with expensive spices or psychoactive fungi.

Street Foods

On the streets, you can find numerous stalls selling sand crays and other arthropods roasted in their shells, dumplings and buns of barsa with different mushroom fillings, bowls of noodles in soup, and skewers of grilled meat slathered with suya, a hot spicy paste made from a cactus fruit. Some meats and fish are eaten raw, with a dip of fiery dried suya or marinated in hot spiced wine.

Suya

Every Maruzarian traveler carries a pouch of dried suya powder to flavor their meals, and to treat injuries as the spice is also an excellent antiseptic and antifungal. When injured in a damp environment such as the lower tunnels, suya is vital for preventing parasitic spore infections.

The Vatborn Races

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Thu, 21 Feb 2019 12:31:00 +0000

The Maruzarians of the Inland Kingdoms and the Empire breed several kinds of genetically engineered humanoid servitors, rearing them from ovum to maturity in 'vats.' These Vatborn races are stronger and hardier than humans or better suited to certain tasks, but with generally low intelligence. Most Vatborn are created male and sterile so they cannot reproduce themselves. Since most Vatborn are bred to be low in intelligence, “Vatborn” and “spawn of the vats” are used as insults across the planet.

Zhar

The Zhar are a Vatborn humanoid species bred for battle. Derived from reptilian stock, though warm-blooded as most reptiles of Maruzar are, Zhar stand eight feet tall but with broad wrestler’s physiques, blunt-snouted heads, and four arms. Like most Vatborn servitor races, Zhar are all male and sterile, and of lower intelligence than human average. They are of course incredibly strong and are fierce combatants. Zhar are always given big, heavy weapons - halberds, axes, huge two-handed swords, or huge maces.

They are also bred for loyalty and courage, and in fact are selected for a very low self-preservation instinct. This doesn’t mean a Zhar won’t defend himself in combat, but his sense of risk and response to it are very different. It’s a desirable trait for the purposes of shock troops or elite bodyguards, but Zhar need a leader or a friend to restrain them at times. Rare and expensive, they are almost exclusively employed as elite bodyguards by Azhiran lords.

Vyari

The Vyari are the most tragic of all the Vatborn races, for they have full human intelligence, look and act human, but are never considered fully human. Bred to be perfect concubines, Vyari of both sexes are always exquisitely beautiful, tall and perfectly formed, with mellifluous voices, and trained from childhood to beguile.

Vyari come in all combinations of skin, hair and eye color, sometimes bred to specification by their owners. All of them however are indelibly marked as nonhuman by their large-irised, nearly whiteless eyes, pointed ears, and birthmark patterns that look like delicate tattoos. They have also been bred to be sterile, partly to ensure that only Vatmasters can make more Vyari, and partly because the Vatmasters’ aristocratic clients want concubines who can never complicate the succession.

All Vyari start life as slaves, but some gain their freedom by escape or manumission by their masters. These free Vyari often end up as freelance courtesans or performing artists, often with ties to the criminal underworld or as secret agents for a lord. They also excel as physicians and surgeons, instructors of the arts, merchants, or any profession that requires high social aptitude and empathy, or fine physical coordination. There have been Vyari swordmasters, assassins, heads of merchant guilds or crime syndicates, skyship captains, and so on — but they’re always rare.

Druj

The Druj are genetically engineered laborers. They appear as short, stocky, hairless humanoids, with carrot-orange skins and dark, whiteless eyes. They are much stronger than a human, but are generally peaceful and timid. Their minds are so simple that they are given only the simplest tasks to perform alone. Druj will rarely ever fight, but they have been known to charge with clumsily flailing fists to protect someone who’s been kind to them. Such treatment however is tragically rare.

Drujan

The Drujan are larger, more intelligent versions of the Druj, bred to be soldiers. Like the Druj they are squat, hairless humanoids, with dark, whiteless eyes, but have dark, rust-red skins. They are very strong and have a stolid, stubborn nature which makes them carry out orders with great determination and perseverance. This makes the Drujan ideal as defensive infantry and guards. Drujan soldiers are usually issued spears or halberds, plus heavy falchions. Their role in battle is to protect the human archers and arquebusiers, and to support assaults by human swordsmen and cavalry.

Dirinn

The Dirinn are small, furry humanoids bred to be companions and domestic servants. They have big ears and big eyes, bushy tails, and a peaceful, affectionate nature. They are also quite intelligent, sometimes much more so than their masters think, though their minds are more given to play than anything else. Most noble households in the Empire and the Inland Kingdoms keep a bevy of Dirinn servants. These beings will only ever fight in self-defense, and then only by throwing small objects to distract their attacker so they can get away.

Monstrous Experiments

Individual vatmasters sometimes create unique Vatborn creatures, sometimes as deliberate experiments, sometimes by mistake. Sometimes a living human is genetically Reshaped as punishment for a crime, or for some sadistic purpose. Often these creatures are impaired in some way, usually sterile, diseased, or mentally unstable, but have strange and powerful abilities. The worst part of this experimentation though is that the genetic base used is always recognizably human. GMs should feel free to create unique Vatborn or Reshaped creatures for their adventures. A couple of examples of such experiments are given below.

Ophidian

The Ophidian is a blend of human genes with those of Maruzarian serpents. This creature has a serpentine body and head, but it has six humanoid arms on which it crawls. It can rear up on its last pair of arms and its tail, enabling it to use the first two pairs to manipulate objects or wield weapons. Its fangs carry a powerful venom. Ophidians may be bred as guards, as hunters — they are excellently adapted for the tunnels — or for the arena. It’s also possible to have an Ophidian PC, if the GM allows it, for players who want to explore the stigma of being a monster.

Homunculus

The Homunculus or Psislave was created by a mentalist vatmaster to amplify his powers and act as a psionically capable servant. It is said to resemble a fetus, enlarged to the size of a ten-year old child, with a hideously enlarged and deformed cranium and open eyes that are black, unreflecting pits entirely without whites. It can help its master with psi work by allowing the master to tap its Power. However, the homunculus is permanently dependent on an elaborate and expensive life support system, unable to ever leave its glass sustainment tank. Homunculi would make interesting ‘familiars’ for mad scientists or would-be tyrants, or can be played up as strangely innocent villains causing havoc through their willful manipulation of minds.

Atavar

An atavar is a human that has been Reshaped in a gene vat to undergo a reversal of evolution, progressively losing intelligence while becoming increasingly ape-like over a span of several months. In the early stages the atavar is painfully conscious of what is happening to him or her, and fights to stay at a human level of mentality. Over time the atavar loses the power of speech, forgets how to use tools and operate devices, and acts increasingly on raw instinct. The torture of experiencing this fall will usually madden the atavar with hate, so at the last stage, when all ability to reason is gone, the atavar is nothing but a savage beast that will automatically attack any human being. Final stage atavars are often sent to the arena.

The Zomiin Sand Monks

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Tue, 19 Feb 2019 13:44:00 +0000

Mysterious, ascetic wanderers of the desert, the Zomiin sand monks are a puzzlement to people of the cities, an icon of hope to the oppressed, and a nightmare to outlaws and marauders when the monks’ aid is sought against them.

Zomi Motives and Ethics

The Zomi order is single-mindedly dedicated to pursuing the Answer to some metaphysical question that is not well understood by outsiders. To this end the sand monks wander alone or in small groups through the desert, sometimes stopping to contemplate a ruin for days or weeks on end. Questions about the order’s true purpose and its practices are met only with cryptic answers. The main tenets of the order appear to be self-abnegation, cultivation of the mind, body and spirit through asceticism, benevolence, compassion, and justice.

Individual monks however are free to interpret the order’s teachings regarding interaction with others as they will, and since compassion is a tenet of the order, a monk is free to act in whichever way seems best to alleviate suffering or achieve justice when asked. The monks are strictly bound to help only when asked — they must not interfere on their own whim. This has led to some interesting situations where Zomiin monks find themselves opposing each other in the name of aiding different people.

The Zomiin as a rule will not aid Inland Kingdom princes or the Emperor, nor their officers and servants, nor the Jakharan bandit tribes; they are likely however to aid small communities, travelers in distress, Harrani, and the Irajin. When the Zomiin decide to lend their aid it is a point of honor and a spiritual commitment to see the matter to the end, which has led to some epic last stands.

The city of Myphune in particular still secretly honors the Seven Faceless Champions, who accepted a request to aid the city in its rebellion against the Empire and were all slain in the long siege that followed. Myphune is still part of the Empire, but the Seven are commemorated on the anniversary of the siege’s end with breads stamped with the Seven’s masks, and the city’s lords have never been able to stop it.

Zomiin Abnegation Masks

As part of their abnegation of the self, Zomiin sand monks wear full-face masks. Each monk designs and makes his own mask, and so despite their purpose the masks highlight individuality through their designs. Zomiin masks must all follow the basic form of a human skull; beyond that, all the features are up to the monk. Monks are only allowed to remove their masks when absolutely necessary or when told to do so by a senior monk.

The masks are made of thin metal sheets, sometimes sewn or riveted onto a close-fitting leather hood. Additions that show vanity are forbidden, so no mask may have plumes, crests or horns, nor use precious metal or gemstones, nor use surface markings that have no practical purpose. Designs thus revolve around variations of the skull, the shape and arrangement of eye and ventilation slits, articulation of the plates making up the mask, rivets, and calligraphic inscriptions identifying the wearer.

Syndics eagerly collect Zomiin masks as art objects. There is thus a strong black market in these masks. As the Zomiin monks never part willingly with their masks, there’s only one way to get them.

The Rings of Maruzar

noreply@blogger.com (Dariel) — Fri, 15 Feb 2019 13:29:00 +0000

One of the core concepts of Maruzar is that the planet has rings like Saturn (or rather Boazania, heh heh), formed from the shattering of its closest moon. A fragment of that moon hit the planet, creating the Viridian Deep (aka the Amazon Basin of Hell). At first the rings were just cosmetic -- but then I started to realize that there should be more to it than that.

Thanks to this excellent article on Mythcreants, I got some good leads on what the rings should be for Maruzar:

Maruzar’s rings are the most outstanding feature of its skies, one of the first if not the very first things an offworld visitor would notice. Not only do they look amazing, they are also a major factor in daily life and culture. Nor do parents allow their children to forget that the rings are the result of the cataclysmic Shattering, a constant reminder of why life on the planet is so difficult now.

The rings are made up of rocky fragments from the moon Varan, which was destroyed during the Nightfall War. These fragments orbit Maruzar exactly above its equator, but it’s not a stable orbit so meteor showers are frequent in the equatorial region. While most fragments simply burn up completely, larger bolides sometimes strike the Opaline Sea causing destructive tidal waves, fish kills, and even sink unlucky ships. For this reason there are no cities in the equatorial zone except deep underground. Travel through the equator is risky, so crossings are made as quickly as possible. The meteors have also ruined aqueducts, damaged ancient monuments, and worst of all infested some oases with Varanite life.

The rings are visible day and night, forming a luminous arc from horizon to horizon: silvery by day, crimson at dusk and dawn, golden at night. They are so bright that nights on Maruzar are brighter than full moon nights on Earth, and only the brightest stars can be seen against their glow. They are brightest on summer nights, so ring-viewing parties are a cultural fixture of summer in both hemispheres. Since they’re exactly above the equator and always visible, the rings have become the main celestial reference for navigation. Latitude is determined simply by checking the height of the rings’ midpoint — at the poles this point is just above the horizon, at the equator it’s directly overhead.