Helms and Armor for Electric Bastionland

In TTRPGs, we often find special weapons, but not as much special armor.

For use with Electric Bastionland.

1. Egotist Helm, a nearby ally takes 1 STR damage you should have taken instead.

2. Commercial Helm, a1 if you spent £100 or more during this session.

3. Curtained Helm, a1 against opponents with a secret that you know.

4. Coiled Helm, a1 but you always fail saves against being captured, grabbed, etc.

5. Noxious Helm, a1, while wearing it, you are immune to poison but fail all STR saves.

6. Sprouting Helm, a1 only under the sunlight.

7. Heroic Helm, a1 against detachments or giant opponents.

8. Photographic Helm, a1 against someone you have taken a good picture of. Blurry pictures taken during combat don't work. Needs film, 6 pictures and 1£ per roll.

9. Soft Armor, bulky, a2 but you feel sluggish: in a combat round, you can move OR attack.

10. Boxy Armor, bulky, a2 only when you’re cornered.

11. Urban Armor, bulky, a2 only in Bastion.

12. Arthropod Armor, a1, avian creatures attack you on sight.

d10 Bastion diseases

1. Councilor's Mouth — deprived, but you can vomit acid once per day (d6 damage, ruin 1 held/worn item of target on a 5+)

2. Bolton's Disease — deprived, in your junctures appear nuts and bolts that can be unscrewed and screwed back on, allowing you to detach your limbs without harm

3. El Muerto — deprived, your appearance can make you pass as a corpse

4. Tickle Ticks — pass a CHA Save to not laugh at inappropriate moments

5. Eel Skin — deprived, your body produces a slippery substance

6. Saint Trembol's Dance — shaky hands cause ranged attacks and delicate tasks to be impaired

7. Gardener's Disease — deprived, a flowery grass field grows on your body

8. Trench Mouth — deprived, but you can perfectly imitate the sound of heavy artillery

9. Jazz Lungs — your breath is as loud as a trombone, making hiding impossible

10. Polar Pox — deprived, but immune to cold damage

Using Mythic Bastionland's Landmarks to fill your setting, and more Landmark types

Mythic Bastioland achieves a super-fast setting creation by providing ready-made content in Myths, and repeated content in Landmarks.

How can we apply Landmarks to a classic OSR DnD-ish setting?

In a way, Dungeons, Lairs, and Strongholds are already a kind of Landmark. But what can we add to that?

1. Waypoints. Especially useful in an open table / West Marches type of game because it allows players to skip parts of the map and go back to a safe heaven by the end of the session

A similar concept to Waypoints is Rainbow Bridges. Two hexes connected by a rainbow bridge that appears after storms.

2. Shrines dedicated to different deities

3. Giant beanstalks that can lead to Sky Islands

4. Magical painted Caves that ward off all monsters, or a specific type of monster

5. Meteor craters. Touching them could confer abilities, or the star-metal can be harvested to create special weapons

6. Paladins' tombs

7. Hermit's dwellings. Maybe a Master Musician lives there

Instead of having one lair per monster type, you could also repeat them. Like having multiple Graveyards around the map where undead monsters appear at night, multiple Giant Ants' nests, etc. The players are going to learn what to expect after a few encounters

Foreground growth for Cairn, part 4: the Mountain River School of fighting

These orders allow PCs to gain additional abilities and resources in a class-less and level-less system like Cairn. As a general rule, an order shares their secrets with a donation of 1000gp, or if they believe you align with their cause.

The Mountain River School Dojo

Carry no possession besides your robes. Partake of no luxury or desire. Proudly shout the names of your techniques before using them.

1. Mountain Crushing Fist: Carry weights on your arms and legs at all times for an entire expedition. You are Slowed: in a combat round, you can either move or attack. After you remove them, you have 1 Armor point if you're not wearing any other piece of armor, your unarmed attacks deal d8 damage, and you get a +d6 bonus when using an improvised weapon.
2. Sonic Fists (2d6 Blast): to master this technique, challenge the dojo and take out at least 3 other fellow students in combat. Trickery is allowed, but it should be clear you are the main responsible for their defeat.
3. Exploding Heart-Release (d6): To master this technique, defeat and kill your teacher in a duel. It ignores Armor and it always results in Critical Damage when it deals STR Damage.
4. Soul Cleanse: Seek the Spirit Waterfall and meditate on your past actions for a day, without moving, under its raging waters. You become immune to poison, sickness, and mental charms.

Trust goes both ways

Don't trust him though

One of the main tenets of the FKR style of play, or

maybe its core, is “high-trust gameplay”.

When discussing this, major emphasis is put on the trust that the players should give to the GM and their rulings.

I want to argue that, in addition, giving more trust to the players can free up a lot of design space, and possibly create a more enjoyable experience.

There is a portion of fantasy tropes that designers and GMs struggle to translate mechanically in order to achieve the experience that they want. Stuff like mental control, love filters, side-effects of wounds, hunger, heat, poisons, drugs and alcohol, etc.

Stop it. Just describe the situation to the players and trust them to portray their character accordingly.

If they were wounded, make sure to describe the wound and trust them to bring it up when it matters.

If they ate the fruits of the fae and cannot enjoy the flavor of anything else, trust them to play their character as growing sad and frustrated with human food.

If two of the PCs are siblings, lovers, etc. Don't give them a +1 if they fight together or something like that. Just let them roleplay it.

I started implementing this principle in my games and adventures, and I want to experiment more with it in the future. If it resonates with you, or if you disagree, please tell me your experiences and maybe share it around!

Armature ed elmi per Electric Bastionland

Nei gdr si trovano spesso armi speciali, ma non abbastanza armature speciali.

Da usare con Electric Bastionland.

Armatura artropode, a1, le creature aviarie ti attaccano a vista.

Armatura urbana, ingombrante, a2 solo a Bastion.

Armatura spigolosa, ingombrante, a2 solo quando sei con le spalle al muro.

Armatura morbida, ingombrante, a2 ma ti senti pigro: in un round di combattimento puoi muoverti O attaccare.

Elmo egoista, puoi fare un tiro salvezza su CARisma per reindirizzare un dado attacco, rivolto a te, verso un alleato vicino.

Elmo germogliante, a1 solo alla luce del sole.

Elmo venefico, a1, finché lo indossi sei immune al veleno ma fallisci tutti i tiri salvezza su FORza

Elmo eroico, a1 solo contro distaccamenti o avversari giganti.

Elmo fotografico, a1 solo contro qualcuno di cui hai scattato una bella foto. Non è possibile farlo durante un combattimento, uscirebbe mossa. Necessita di batterie.

Elmo commerciale, a1 se hai speso 100£ o più durante questa sessione.

Elmo occultante, a1 contro avversari di cui conosci un segreto.

Elmo attorcigliato, a1 ma fallisci sempre i tiri salvezza contro l'essere catturato, afferrato, ecc.

Foreground growth for Cairn, part 3: Paladins

Seven legendary paladins rest in the earth, seven oaths etched on their tombstones. As soon as someone recites an oath in full, the text vanishes. The oath takes up an inventory slot until fulfilled, as it burdens your soul.

Tomb of Karolin the Paladin - Oath of the Hands
You swear to bring back Karolin's hands*, a relic stolen from her corpse. After fulfilling it, your attacks get enhanced when fighting undead and demons. Undead creatures defeated this way go to the afterlife and can't be raised again.

*Karolin's hands: Heal d4 STR to the touch. Recharge: keep them close to your heart during the night of the last day of the week.

Tomb of Roma the Legion - Oath of Conquest
You pledge to become a ruler through force.
After fulfilling it, while fighting a detachment or a colossal creature, you count as a detachment yourself.

Tomb of Harpar the Hero - Oath of Glory
You pledge to make your quest echo through the voice of the bards.
After fulfilling it, you gain a winged steed who'll answer your call for help anywhere.

Tomb of Ambros the Great - Oath of the Crown
You pledge to restore order in a place where chaos rules.
After fulfilling it, you learn how to cast a geas on a target who can understand you. A geas goes "you shall not [blank] or you'll die". You can't cast another one as long as the target of the geas lives.

Tomb of Shepard the Peaceful - Oath of Redemption
You pledge to make a powerful but wicked creature change its ways.
After fulfilling it, you begin to emanate an aura of peace. You can always try to pacify a creature, no matter the context. If it would normally be impossible to even make the attempt, they get to roll a WIL save.

Tomb of Ulfred the Black - Oath of Vengeance
You pledge to deliver punishment without mercy to a powerful, wicked creature.
After fulfilling it, your attacks against the designated foe are enhanced. Moreover, you can always feel their general direction and proximity. Even when fulfilled, this oath takes a space in your inventory as a burden.

Tomb of Agnus the Light - Oath of Mercy
You pledge to defeat a foe who is tormenting the weak, but show them mercy.
After fulfilling it, a light encases you. It makes you immune from magical effects. Allies close by also can take part in this protection, and magical attacks against them are impaired.