Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Creatures Mundane & Supernatural

I have created a short bestiary for my players.  The formatted PDF is available in the link to the left, an example in plain text of what is included is below:


The Restless Dead
There are times when the souls of the dead are not accepted into either Heaven or Hell, nor do they spend their time learning from their sinful ways in Purgatory, but some souls are so vile and reticent that they refuse to leave their decaying bodies and drag themselves from their graves and either attempt to follow some twisted semblance of their previous existence or seek vengeance upon the living.

 These dead, or Undead as some priests have called them, take many forms, from rotting corpses dripping bits of flesh from their decaying bodies, to those so long passed that they are naught but animated skeletons, occasionally wearing some bits and rags of their former garments and possessed of a malevolence that betrays itself with eye sockets in the empty skull that glow with a glimpse of pure hellfire and twisted evil.

 There are said to be the occasional individual whose will to defy death was so strong that their bodies do not decay as normal and that they maintain a semblance of life by draining the very blood of the living to sustain themselves. The peasants of lower Prussia and the Transylvania region call these creatures “Wamphyr”.

 It is said that the Restless dead cannot stand the touch of holy items, pure sunlight, silver and that the force of faith of a truly faithful man can render them fearful and cause them to recoil away from the proof of true goodness.

 Salt and running water are also defenses against these vile creatures, and dogs, cats and horses will oft give warning of their presence as they find them as repulsive as any living, thinking creature should.  

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Possible NPC's or Pregens

I created three characters this afternoon using my rules.  I'll post the highlights below (common skills with no additional skill points I won't bother adding)

Fernando Estavello,  Courtier from Toledo, Castille
Str: 15  |  Con: 11  |  Siz: 14  |  Int: 12  |  Pow: 11  |  Dex: 15  |  Cha:  14
Age: 23    Move: 11     Damage Modifier: +1d2    Hit Points: 25
Wound Threshold: 7    Strike Rank: 14    Magic Points:  11

Boon: Fernando has a knack with the spell: Tongue Tied (Mag2) (p22 of the chargen pdf) skill: 32%

Native Language: Castillian
Skills of Note:
Athletics: 39%  |  Close Combat: 50% [Fencing 70%]  |  Dance 49%   |  Evade  60%
Evaluate  41%   |  Firearms: 50%   [Pistol 57%]   |   Influence 50% [Seduction 58%]
Insight 53%  |  Persistence 32%  |  Resilience  42%

Advanced:
Language: [Anglish 56%] [ Frankish: 46%]   |  Courtesy: 56%   |  Lore: Law 44%   |  Culture: Francia  34%

Third son of a tailor who had the good fortune of being the preferred tailor for a Don at the royal courts, Fernando's manners, looks and poise caught the eye of the don at an early age.  Arranging patronage so that Fernando could be schooled in the 'courtly' manner, Don Lorenzo introduced Fernando to the Court when he turned 16.   Fitting in and enjoying the refined live of the court, Fernando quickly learned his way around.  From an Anglish ambassador, he learned of the Atlantean colonies and learned to improve the Anglish he had learned from the tutors.   From the daughter of the Francian Consul, he learned much about the Frankish tongue and customs.  Unfortunately, from the Francian Consul, he learned the lesson, too late, of course, of choosing the time and place of assignations with a bit more care.   After narrowly escaping the palace and praying that the lovely Jacquliene would not tell his name, Fernando inquired of Ambassador Lockwood if perhaps he could visit the Atlantean Colonies with him, as he heard the Ambassador was leaving the following dawn.    Now if he can just get some of his belongings and dodge the Franks until dawn . . .

==================================================================
Donnchaidh "Donny" Brooklaw - Caledonian Hunter from Argyll                 Strike Rank:   13
ST: 17  |  Con: 13  |  Siz: 12  |  Int: 13  |  Pow: 10  |  Dex: 13   |  Cha: 11
Age:  21   |  Move:  10   |  Damage Mod: +1d2   |   HP: 25    |  Wound Threshold:  7  |  MP: 10

Boon: Always knows when someone is near +10 to Evade / No penalties to defend against flanking or rear foes

Native Language:  Caledon

Skills of Note:
Animals: 33  |  Athletics  50%  [Climb 70%]  |  Close Combat 50%  [Dagger: 60%]  |  Evade 56%
Resilience: 51%  | Stealth 71%  |  Unarmed: 50%  [Punch  70%]  |  Firearms 50%  [Long gun 71%]

Advanced:
Language [Anglish] 44%  |  Survival  53%  |  Tracking 46%  |  Lore: Animals  46%

A hunter and tracker like his da' before him, Donny often led the gentry and nobles on hunting trips when they came to Argyll.  He had been doing it for 6 years, before Lord Willowborough and his snot-nosed 17 year old pantywaist of a son came to Argyll.  Willowborough had requested his Da's services as he had every fall for the past ten years.   This year he insisted that Donny take his son, Gilbert, on his very first trip and took him aside and told him he would pay him an extra 10 Sterling should Gilbert manage to kill something more sizable than a squirrel.   Make the twit look good, Donny figured he could do that, until they get into the wood and Gilbert begins loudly complaining and ordering him about.   Donny was asking him for the fifth time to please lower his voice as not to spook the animals, when suddenly, a huge boar shot out of the brush, knocking Gilbert off the ground and wheeling for a charge.  Donny managed to kill it, taking a large deep cut from it's tusks in the process.  When he turned to help Gilbert up, he realized the other sounds he was hearing was Gilbert screaming in pain, the lower half of his right leg mangled beyond repair by the charge of the boar.    Donny tied off the wound and carried Gilbert back to the house, shouting himself hoarse for help.   When the others arrived, they took Gilbert off to a surgeon and Ma stitched up the wound in Donny's side.   A few days later, Da came out to the woodshed, handed Donny his traveling pack and Don's favorite Musket and a few coin he had and told him to be off and quickly.  Gilbert was claiming that Donny pushed him in front of the Boar and Lord Willowborough had called for Donny's arrest.    Donny caught a ride with a neighbor heading to market and hopes to land a job on a ship heading for Atlantis, hopefully there he would be out of Lord Willowborough's reach

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

Winton Edwards - Anglish Spy from Londoun                      SR: 12
Str: 16  |  Con: 13  |  Siz: 12  |  Int: 12  |  Dex: 11  |  Cha: 17         Age: 22       Move: 9
Damage Mod: +1d2  |  HP: 25  |  Wound Threshold:  7  |  Magic Points: 12

Boon: Acute Hearing - Winton can isolate individual sounds by concentrating and can hear soft conversations up to 100' away in the open.

Native Language:  Anglish

Notable Skills:
Athletics: 37%  |  CLose Combat: 50% [Dagger 67%]  |  Evade: 52%  |  Evaluate: 44%
Firearms: 31%  |  Influence: 44%  |  Insight: 54%  |  Perception  34%  |  Persistence: 29%
Sleight: 28%  |  Unarmed: 37%

Advanced:
Language: Castillian 59%  |  Culture - Castillian  44%  |  Craft: Gunsmith  43%  |  Mechanisms  43%
Lore: Poisons  44%  |  Courtesy: 49%

Middle son of a Master Gunsmith, Winton wound up taking service with the Diplomatic Corps when he was 16.  He has acted as courier and also watched and reported upon things he's seen while traveling as an aide to Lord Ambassador Sean Lockwood.  While in Toledo, Winton had become quite enamored of Dona Maria Elana Rivera, daughter to one of the Guardia Commodante at the Court.  Their visits had remained quite innocent, after all, Winton was a representative of His Majesty, and she was a Lady.  He was devastated when Ambassador Lockwood told him that they were being transferred to the Colonies in Atlantis in a few days.  He went to see Maria to tell her that he was having to leave and to ask her permission to write to her, when young Lord Alexander Westchester suddenly burst into the library, trailed by Maria's father and several guardsmen.   Lord Alexander made several untrue accusations and the Commodante informed Winton in no uncertain terms that were it not for his position on the Ambassador's staff, he would find himself in a pillory.  Westchester smirked as he left, flattering the angry Commodante.   Ah well, he'll enjoy finding himself in severe gastric distress for several days after he opens his next bottle of his private stock bourbon, and the Ambassador told him that a young Castillian Courtier with whom he had spent some time with was joining them on their trip to Atlantis.





Monday, April 16, 2012

Timeline of Recent History

Just a brief timeline hitting the highlights of the past 125 years.

NOTE:  Atlantis is North America / Lemuria is South America in our world, in case you didn't see the maps on the previous post :)


A short Timeline of recent History

This  timeline will give an overview of what has happened in the past 120 years.  

1620 - Pilgrims arrive at Plymouth

1625 - A treaty is signed between King Robert III of Caledonia, Queen Virginia of Angland and King Conall X of Eire, creating the Confederation of Briton

1636 - Oliver Cromwell killed in Corbie, Francia when Castillian ships begin bombarding the town
Cromwell was in Francia on a diplomatic mission for the Queen of Angland

1637 - Ferdinand III ascends to throne as Emperor of Roma

1638 - Treaty of Hamburg signed by Cardinal Richelieu of Francia and the Representative of the young queen Cristina of Nordland Johan Salvius.

1640 Queen Virginia Abdicates throne of Angland in favor of her son, Reginald due to failing health.  Reginald I crowned King of Angland and her colonies.

1655 - King Reginald marries Princess Caitlain of Eire, uniting the two houses beyond the terms of the treaty.  

1670 - Conall X of Eire dies in his sleep, Princess Caitlain becomes Queen Caitlain I of Eire

1670 - Castillian explorers set up a colony in 1650 called Amazonia on the North Eastern coast of Lemuria, but the colony is found abandoned by a supply ship, and the settlement is overrun by snakes and reptiles of various types.   The Arch-Bishop of Toledo, declared the land of Lemuria as the home of Satan himself and tried to raise a Crusade to pacify the land.

1675 - King Reginald dies from injuries sustained during a hunting accident.  Caitlain becomes Queen of both Eire and Angland.

1676-1685 - First Lemurian Crusade

1700 - Confederation of Briton allies with Nordland in war against Francia and Castille

1705 - 1725 - Second Lemurian Crusade

1706 - John V crowned King of Iberia

1715 - Louis XIV crowned King of all Francia

1720 - Peace Treaty signed in Habsburg, Prussia between Confederated forces and Francia, Briton and Nordland remain at war with Castille.

1725 - Charles II of Castille dies, and is succeeded by his widow, Maria Anna, who becomes Queen Maria I of Castille

1730 - Castille establishes fortified colony at location of old Amazonia colony.
Robert III dies - is succeeded by his Grandson, Lachlan Bruce, crowned Lachlan I

1735 - Queen Caitlain of Angland and Eire abdicates her thrones to her Daughter and Son, who become Queen Elaine I of Eire and King Arthur I of Angland, respectively

1740 - Frederick II succeeds his father as Emperor of Prussia

1745 - Present Day

The World Maps

These are the overview maps that I will be using for Swashbucklers of Atlantis.
One shows the overview of Europa and North Afrika and the Eastern coast of Atlantis.
The other is a close(r) view of the Eastern Coast of Atlantis.



Welcome

Welcome to the Swashbucklers of Atlantis Blog.

I'm about to start running a bi-weekly game set in an alternate history version of our world, circa 1745.

This will hopefully be a fun, high action game with political intrigue, exploration, hidden horrors and lots of derring do.

The system will be a bastardization of the Legend/d100 general ruleset.   I'll put a widget over on the sidebar so you can download the character generation rules if you are interested.

I don't really expect this blog to get a lot of traffic, I'm creating it primarily as a place for my players to record their adventures in the form of an online journal, but if you stop by and enjoy what you are reading, feel free to follow.