Been fighting creative blocks for a while now — I mean, a lot of folks are, I daresay — and it’s been frustrating getting stuck in cycle after cycle of have idea -> ponder idea -> get stuck -> stew in own juices -> get another idea to add to pile -> infinitum.
But this one, I got through the block! Yay!
So here are 48 rules-light-style spells; twelve spells for each season.
(these are the seasons as I think of them; I’m not claiming some season-primacy here yo)
They’re formatted for pocketrpg but it should be pretty easy to suss them out and adapt them to other level-less rules light systems — and if you don’t want to take the seasonal route, just mix em’ up anyway —
Options: Someone who learns from a season cannot learn its “opposite”; someone who learns from a season can learn no other season’s magic, but may acquire non-seasonal magics freely
Winter
01. Coldsleep: The chill of the season falls. Living beings Nearby fall asleep until warmed.
02. Be Still: Sorcerous cold stiffens flesh and unliving matter both, forcing target into frozen stasis for 1d4 hrs. (spend Essence to extend duration; 1/day – week – month)
03. Hoarfrost: Coats an area up to Far Away in glittering frost; reveals illusions, spirits and invisible creatures, and places tests against Winter magic at Disadvantage for 1d6 actions.
04. Icedrop Clarity: Target must still for at least one action; then an actionable answer to one question, decision or puzzle unfolds in mind’s eye. Advantage on next related action.
05. Night Unending: Cloaks area no larger than one farm in cold darkness, as if the sun never rises. 2d4 days. 1 Essence.
06. Shivering Cloak: Wraps subject in silvery white aura, halving all harm from heat, fire, or mental addling for 2 hrs.
07. The Calm Of Snowfall: Beings Nearby are overcome by the still silence of winter and must make Psyche checks at Disadvantage to act. 2d6 actions.
08. Diamond Dust: Flurry of glittering icy particles, sharp as razors, inflict 1d4 damage on 2d4 targets that are Nearby.
09. Icereaver: Conjures a sword or other bladed weapon of steel-strong ice, which deals an extra 1d2 damage from cold in addition to normal damage or stuns a struck target, costing them their next action. 2d6 actions.
10. Frozen Poise: As cool and precise as an ice sculpture, the subject gains +2 for all attributes when testing in social interactions where poise and calm clarity are of value. 2 hrs.
11. Long Cold Winter: Extinguish all sources of heat and light within visual range. They remain extinguished for 24 hrs. 1 Essence.
12. Whiteout: Cloak all in visual range in a blizzard that makes travel impossible and limits vision to 1d6x10′ at any given time. 4d4 hrs. 1 Essence.
Spring
01. Refreshing Flutter: In a rippling breeze, the subject is like new: cleaned, groomed, small blemishes or hurts healed, and energized to boot, with +1 to their next action.
02. Hope Brings Rain: Calls the rains down within visual range for 1d8 hrs; choose the rainfall amount wisely! — with a 1-in6 chance of a destuctive downpour regardless of intent.
03. Awakening: Pale rose-green energies invigorate up to 2d3 allies, granting them an extra action.
04. Verdant Renewal: Cause plants (even seeds) which are Here to gain a month’s growth, or a tree to burst into foliage and blossoms.
05. Brightbolt: Sudden lightning strike deals 1d8 damage to chosen target, even Far Away.
06. Mists Of Springtide: Cloaks an area up to Far Away in gentle mists that grant Advantage on cover and sneaking to all within them. 1d4 hrs.
07. The Sweetest Draught: Draw from a blossom or cluster of blossoms at least the size of one’s fist enough nectar to fill a small waterskin. Becomes alcoholic by the next day.
08. Threads Of Beginnings: Glance at a living creature and divine its place of origin and either two facts about its ancestry or what action it is currently likely to take in the future.
09. Whims Of Life: Cure, or cause, disease in one living being.
10. Cleansing: Immediately discern (by caster’s standards) the subjective and objective value, usage and proper placement of all objects within one room or equivalent area — and have them sorted, if needed.
11. Sprightly Returns: Energize self and up to 2d3 allies to travel twice as far before needing rest. Yes, this cerulean-green enchantment will also affect vehicles. 1 Essence.
12. Flowering Whispers: Whirls of creamy petals and golden dust leave 2d6 targets Nearby coughing and sneezing for 2d4 actions, able only to defend (and they still feel miserable for 2d6 hrs afterward).
Summer
01. Endless Day: Cloaks area no larger than one farm in warm daylight like high noon in summer. 2d4 days. 1 Essence.
02. Wildfire: Choose — either 2d6 Nearby targets take 1d8 damage from fire, or terrain up to house-size ignites. You cannot control the latter once unleashed. 1 Essence.
03. Heatwave: Addle 1d4 targets with warmth, leaving them confused and disoriented for 2d10 minutes or until cooled.
04. Tending Bounty: Designate one discrete location or subject. For the next 24 hrs, be aware of the condition of your chosen subject, and what it might need, whenever you wish.
05. Venomscourge: Burn out a poison or toxin.
06. Castles In The Sky: Create a detailed illusion that covers as much as 50′ cubed, or convince up to 8 subjects of a vague mirage off on the horizon. 1d6 hrs.
07. To Your Health: Subject heals 2d3 Essence.
08. Zenith: Subject impresses all who see them, appearing as in the prime of life; grants +2 to relevant attributes on tests involving raucousness, joyful gatherings, and jocularity in general. 2 hrs.
09. Sunstroke: Inflict fever on a subject, leaving them at Disadvantage for all tests for 2d4 hrs or until sucessfull treated.
10. Raise The Roof: Breath of tawny-green energies infuses up to 8 individuals; work produced is completed in 1/3 of normal rate, if it involves constructing or creating physical objects or the net result could be considered ‘bounty’ in any form. 24 hrs. 1 Essence.
11. Sky-Devouring Swarm: Calls swarm of terrible tiny bitey bugs (blackflies, skeeters, noseeums, midges) which promptly descend, like they do. Designated Nearby targets lose an action and 1d2 Essence, and itch like the blazes afterwards.
12. Sunshiny Day: Create a brightly coloured token reflective of a pleasant memory, which may be shared with or gifted to another to share that memory. Being so reminded eases any mental or emotional malisons for a day.
Autumn
01. Witherblast: Bolt of orange-red energy deals 1d4 Essence to chosen target and halves effective Body until target consumes a day’s worth of sustenance (not necessarily all at once).
02. Hunter’s Thread: Choose a general subject, bunnies to boletes, with token in hand (or make one); for the next 8 hrs, sense the direction of the closest example of that subject.
03. Concealing Brilliance: Clashing enchanted colours paradoxically make the subject effectively invisible. Or, simply change the colour of an inanimate object. (2d10 minutes/permanent)
04. Galeforce: Summon tempest-strong winds to batter and scour up to 10 miles for 1d6 hrs. 1 Essence.
05. Scarlet Wisdom Prudence: Envelop up to 2′ cubed of material in conjured, dull-scarlet stoneware-like material. The contents will remain fresh as the moment they were stored until the seal is broken and the lid lifted, then time proceeds as expected.
06. Knackery: Convert any carcass into 3d6 meals’ worth of portable, completely edible, nondescript “iron rations”. Carcass choice may cause some commentary, depending.
07. Cull The Weak: Determine the most vulnerable of all Nearby being, ranking all present. Learn the exact vulnerability of the weakest.
08. Stitch-In-Time: Divine answer to one question, so long as it involved preparation against the future or future events.
09. Scarecrow: Conjures a phantasm of shadow and broken straw, painted bones and tattered rags; 3d4 Nearby subjects flee or cower in fear.
10. Golden Sacrifice: Blood a willing subject; another subject heals the amount of Essence the subject loses. Willing subject may be the caster.
11. Flicker: Choose up to three general subjects, spirits included; subject becomes a beacon or lure for them for 4 hrs.
12. Harvest Token: Infuse a small object with crimson-gold sorcery, producing one of the following when token is used: sustenance (a full meal); comfort (protection from environment, 12 hrs); blessing (reroll once, or otherwise escape one dire circumstance). 1 Essence. You cannot possess more than one enchanted token at a time.
Tag: tables!
Most Precious Beauty
Twinkling and glimmering, shimmering and shining; atop a massy pile of golden coin, perhaps, or the brilliant crowning glory of the head that wears that heavy burden.
Or perhaps that gleaming gem came prized from between a dragonlord’s lyre-curved horns; or drawn from the throat of a frozen phoenix; or
… Whether gathered from a bloodied altar, gifted from a a dying spirit’s grasp, conjured from strange wombs by witchcraft or willpower, some jewels are unique in their oft-strange beauty.
This 4d20 table offers a quick route to generating unusual gemstones. Roll more than once and combine, if desired, for chaotic results.
of course, since gems can show different colours at different angles (pleochroism), like water sapphire, or sport multiple colours, like rainbow tourmaline or banded agate, the more colours the merrier — and what about some of those other things, aha
Or perhaps that gleaming gem came prized from between a dragonlord’s lyre-curved horns; or drawn from the throat of a frozen phoenix; or
… Whether gathered from a bloodied altar, gifted from a a dying spirit’s grasp, conjured from strange wombs by witchcraft or willpower, some jewels are unique in their oft-strange beauty.
This 4d20 table offers a quick route to generating unusual gemstones. Roll more than once and combine, if desired, for chaotic results.
| Colour | Form | Descriptive | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01. Lemondrop | 01. Orb | 01. Pearlescent | 01. Angel’s tears |
| 02. Oxblood | 02. Pyramid | 02. Adamantine | 02. Petrified organ |
| 03. Sooty | 03. Cabochon – round | 03. Vitreous | 03. Unicorn’s brow |
| 04. Ultramarine | 04. Cabochon – oval | 04. Oily | 04. Daemonheart |
| 05. Orange-Violet | 05. Teardrop | 05. Iridescent | 05. Rose’s heart |
| 06. Moonsilver | 06. Cushion | 06. Opaque | 06. Coagulated ichor |
| 07. Bile | 07. Brilliant-facet | 07. Twinkling | 07. Divine breath |
| 08. Osseous | 08. Lenticular | 08. Glowing | 08. Solidified dream |
| 09. Smaragdine | 09. Eyeball | 09. Pulsing | 09. Marrow of the earth |
| 10. Golden | 10. Spiral | 10. Waxy | 10. Last emperor’s soul |
| 11. Heliotrope | 11. Uncut crystal mass | 11. Twinned | 11. Worldfire flashpoint |
| 12. Carmine | 12. Egg | 12. Bearing inclusions | 12. Six overlapping magics |
| 13. Smoky | 13. Figure – humanoid | 13. Frosted | 13. End of the rainbow |
| 14. Starlight | 14. Figure – bestial | 14. Chatoyant | 14. Death’s gift |
| 15. Ember | 15. Scale | 15. Starred | 15. Seven-generation curse |
| 16. Chartreuse | 16. Amorphous | 16. Murmuring | 16. Dragon brain |
| 17. Verdigris | 17. Cylindrical | 17. Shivering | 17. Cobra’s wisdom |
| 18. Bronze | 18. Shard | 18. Warm | 18. Imperial honey |
| 19. Tyrian | 19. Plume | 19. Cold | 19. Witchbond |
| 20. Cerulean | 20. Cross | 20. Snowflake-scattered | 20. Martyr’s fallen blood |
Planes In A Pinch
You’re spinning up a new idea (or trying to), and you’re stuck.
Your players just found a way to yeet themselves into a random plane.
You are a player and you want some way out there place to call home.
You can’t think of a new idea for a plane D: Curse that brain block! DX
For all the folks who’d just like a bit of inspiration once in a while — or need a few planar hooks fast — these tables are for you. A little bit of quick theming to hopefully get the ol’ creative juices flowing again.
roll on each category as much as you like, really
Your players just found a way to yeet themselves into a random plane.
You are a player and you want some way out there place to call home.
You can’t think of a new idea for a plane D: Curse that brain block! DX
For all the folks who’d just like a bit of inspiration once in a while — or need a few planar hooks fast — these tables are for you. A little bit of quick theming to hopefully get the ol’ creative juices flowing again.
| d20 | Theme: Composition | Theme: Nature | Theme: Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | fire | utopian | divided |
| 02. | cosmic | illusory | serene |
| 03. | cellular | punishing | jaded |
| 04. | air | labyrinthine | pleasure-seeking |
| 05. | earth | still | mercenary |
| 06. | shadow | entropic | dying |
| 07. | aether | generative | riotous |
| 08. | water | deathly | bureaucratic |
| 09. | light | cyclical | repressive |
| 10. | celestial | bountiful | artistic |
| 11. | cththonic | dystopic | dreaming |
| 12. | pastoral | wandering | legalistic |
| 13. | hellish | isolated | courtly |
| 14. | wilderness | reptilian | baroque |
| 15. | barren | fungal | violent |
| 16. | void | avian | industrial |
| 17. | urbanized | mammalian | sleeping |
| 18. | icy | spiritual | anarchic |
| 19. | metallic | seasonal | fragmented |
| 20. | verdant | mechanical | contemplative |
Dicember 2021 – food
Oh what a wonderful day! Your latest exploits have gone well, you’ve licked your wounds, you’ve got freshly-acquired coin burning a hole in your stash, and you’ve just come across a whole new tavern. New to you and yours, anyway.
In fact, it looks like the place might have a few specialties on the menu alongside the usual wholemeal loaves, eternal stew, cheese wheels, seasonal veggies and the local poultry. Why, they might even have more than just water and four different kinds of ale on tap!
So, what does this wondrous find have on offer?
1d4 rolls per table for extra fun!
Drinks
01. winterbite perry
02. dandelion wine
03. drakesbreath wine
04. duskberry cordial
05. fern broth
06. lemonbalm tea
07. moonmead
08. angelsblood
09. hail ale
10. six-saint cider
11. mint-and-violet tea
12. silver smallbeer
Small Eats
01. treerabbit skewers
02. roasted garlic with peppergrass
03. bloodrose fritters
04. pan-fried nightquail
05. marrowbones with salt-dust
06. grilled muskmelon
07. mixed candied locusts
08. bacon tartlets
09. golden boar trotters
10. poached peaches
11. blue moon cheese and oatcakes
12. herb-stuffed mushrooms
Big Eats
01. blood pudding and parsnip chunks
02. venison pie with broth and ryebread
03. grilled whole mooncarp on greens
04. drakewing soup with doughboys
05. dark-spiced beef roast with baked pudding
06. jeweled-lentil soup with walnut bread
07. hand-pulled noodles and greens in mushroom broth
08. pearltrout and pin-mussel chowder
09. mincemeat pie and roasted apples
10. glazed golden boar ribs over floral rice
11. rosemary and garlic-seared chicken with diced potato
12. softshell emerald crab with butter biscuits
Trail Eats
01. ash-pickled eggs
02. vegetable medley pasties
03. maple-salted jerky
04. vinegared blood
05. roasted hazelnut-currant mix
06. smoked eel braids
07. poppyseed honeycakes
08. pumpkin seed bars
09. herb-salted golden boar fatback
10. pepper pork dumplings
11. cherry rice cakes
12. smoked mussel packets
In fact, it looks like the place might have a few specialties on the menu alongside the usual wholemeal loaves, eternal stew, cheese wheels, seasonal veggies and the local poultry. Why, they might even have more than just water and four different kinds of ale on tap!
So, what does this wondrous find have on offer?
1d4 rolls per table for extra fun!
Drinks
01. winterbite perry
02. dandelion wine
03. drakesbreath wine
04. duskberry cordial
05. fern broth
06. lemonbalm tea
07. moonmead
08. angelsblood
09. hail ale
10. six-saint cider
11. mint-and-violet tea
12. silver smallbeer
Small Eats
01. treerabbit skewers
02. roasted garlic with peppergrass
03. bloodrose fritters
04. pan-fried nightquail
05. marrowbones with salt-dust
06. grilled muskmelon
07. mixed candied locusts
08. bacon tartlets
09. golden boar trotters
10. poached peaches
11. blue moon cheese and oatcakes
12. herb-stuffed mushrooms
Big Eats
01. blood pudding and parsnip chunks
02. venison pie with broth and ryebread
03. grilled whole mooncarp on greens
04. drakewing soup with doughboys
05. dark-spiced beef roast with baked pudding
06. jeweled-lentil soup with walnut bread
07. hand-pulled noodles and greens in mushroom broth
08. pearltrout and pin-mussel chowder
09. mincemeat pie and roasted apples
10. glazed golden boar ribs over floral rice
11. rosemary and garlic-seared chicken with diced potato
12. softshell emerald crab with butter biscuits
Trail Eats
01. ash-pickled eggs
02. vegetable medley pasties
03. maple-salted jerky
04. vinegared blood
05. roasted hazelnut-currant mix
06. smoked eel braids
07. poppyseed honeycakes
08. pumpkin seed bars
09. herb-salted golden boar fatback
10. pepper pork dumplings
11. cherry rice cakes
12. smoked mussel packets
six tables of unusual kit
Or, what happens when I’m hauled to work four hours early with a likelihood of working 60+ hours in a week if complete catastrophe’s finally landed *coughs*
So I found six table headers with no tables in an otherwise full-up notebook. And I may have gone a little ham, or something, lol. In any case here’s some options to roll or choose for your fighty things, for your magicky things, and what fancy healing (it’s healing, right? you sure?) enchantments you’re sticking in your system — none of this is written to have fancy mechanical effects attached (that weird thing still stabs like a sword, or an arrow, or whatever), but feel free to extrapolate whatever you like.
| d12 | Edged Weapons |
|---|---|
| 01. | ancient jawbone lined with razor teeth, grip wrapped with reddened silks |
| 02. | solid-light prismatic-plane array; winged blade-saint |
| 03. | alabaster sabre that regenerates chips, cracks and splinters |
| 04. | a shard of the moon; pale, creamy, glowing softly |
| 05. | gnarled twist of organic iron, black and sporting staring blue carbuncles |
| 06. | angel’s feather, bright as dawn and sharp as betrayal |
| 07. | hovering porcelain talons, hooked and vicious, that follow your hands |
| 08. | fused kaleidoscape of wickedly sharpened glass from a dead sanctuary |
| 09. | spiraling horn snapped from one of the Ten Great Beasts |
| 10. | a frozen flame, blue-golden and ragged |
| 11. | fae-circuited folding fan of rainbow shards, thin as a breath |
| 12. | the ghost of a blade, a colourless hollow limned with pale burning |
| d12 | Non-edged Weapons |
|---|---|
| 01. | orbiting sphere, glowing like bright glass, the size of two fists |
| 02. | an eternally-flowering branch of blood cherry |
| 03. | a stiffened silversteel limb, shedding clockwork dust, claw clutching a brass disc |
| 04. | fingerless demonhide gloves lined with bloodiron plates engraved with hymns |
| 05. | coiled lash of braided crystal filaments retractable to a heavy donut-shaped wristlet |
| 06. | ectoplasmic beast that screams and charges then dissipates until called again |
| 07. | fluttering red and gold ribbons that waft weightlessly in the breeze but strike like lead |
| 08. | a dead star core encaged by the claws of a bluesteel chain |
| 09. | a slab of black basalt, holes for gripping roughly hacked out |
| 10. | a calcified plume of phoenix’s breath |
| 11. | a perfectly calibrated steel orb of the skies, in a golden frame and grip |
| 12. | piston-driven arcanosteam impactor, gleaming moonsteel and glowing crystal |
| d12 | Distance Weapons |
|---|---|
| 01. | bioenamel implant on limb that exudes sharp, detachable and aerodynamic scales |
| 02. | deep blue teardrop on golden thread that quivers in light and casts darts of colourless flame |
| 03. | folding crossbow like great wings, of intricate ivory and gold clockwork |
| 04. | flickering lightning chain that flashes away and returns in an eyeblink |
| 05. | razored butterfly wings, as broad as one’s forearm is long |
| 06. | a dragon’s gleaming whisker stringing a bow carved from its spur |
| 07. | battle halo that launches bolts of scintillant light |
| 08. | a swarm of copper-and-emerald clockwork dragonflies |
| 09. | thorned diadem that calls translucent hell-ivy from the earth |
| 10. | delicate golden technotiara that burns like the sun when thrown and returns with a thought |
| 11. | blue ice flute whose music becomes notes of shimmering solid sound |
| 12. | necrotech sangrecaster, ghostly icicle of crystal formed around blood-droplets core |
| d12 | Protective Gear |
|---|---|
| 01. | articulated bone carapace that surfaces when a threat arises |
| 02. | delicate gossamer robe woven from angel’s ichor |
| 03. | array of whirring, flying sapphire orbs that intercept blows |
| 04. | network of runic circuitry inlaid into the skin |
| 05. | carpet of ever-shifting, ever-moving emerald ants |
| 06. | ruby carbuncles embedded at all pulse points, absorbing misfortune |
| 07. | ivory plates linked with golden hair, carved from an idol’s flesh |
| 08. | maille carved of martyr’s bone and prayer-amber |
| 09. | four hovering, glowing, rotating phantasmic shields |
| 10. | a watchful ghost-guardian; plasm and foxfire eyeshine |
| 11. | whirling, whispered ashen secrets of a fallen faith |
| 12. | black iron and tears forged into an elaborate technowork carapace |
| d12 | Spell Repositories |
|---|---|
| 01. | shards of cranial vault engraved with blood-red ochre |
| 02. | sealed crystal ampoules of strange fluids in jewel-bright colours |
| 03. | greenstone plaques embossed with notation in gold and silver |
| 04. | waterfalling strings of tiny beads of all material, making tactile patterns |
| 05. | hard-light glyphs weaving in slow orbits unless contained |
| 06. | tissue-thin scarves soft as moth wings and rippled with watermarks |
| 07. | organic jewels in burning colours that adhere to the pineal eye |
| 08. | patterns in the fur of moon-eyed cats |
| 09. | congealed prayer-jewels stolen from a holy font |
| 10. | an infinitely-unfurling rose blossom |
| 11. | miniscule glass idols embedded into the skin |
| 12. | thumbnail mirrors polished from pearlshell and sewn to bright linens |
| d12 | “Potions” |
|---|---|
| 01. | indigo oyster |
| 02. | runic marrowbone |
| 03. | blood pastille |
| 04. | iridescent extract-pebble |
| 05. | softly glowing dust |
| 06. | honeyed earthgrub |
| 07. | jewel-urchin gonads |
| 08. | crystal ampoule injection (do not confuse with spell repository or vice versa) |
| 09. | viscous mirror-silver eyedrop |
| 10. | crushed pearl (take with wine) |
| 11. | skystag musk-paint |
| 12. | hundred-year fruitcake |
d100 treasures and trinkets
Here we go again with another list of shiny things to sprinkle around a dungeon or put in a character’s possession, and this time it’s a long one. (I don’t guarantee another one this long for a while, lol, although I do have some other bits simmering.)
No values attached, because those rightfully vary by campaign —
| d100 | |
|---|---|
| 01 | rope of semiprecious beads, jasper and agate and carnelian, carved in the shape of leaves |
| 02 | pair of soft russet-red leather gloves, stitched with golden sigils on the backs of the palms |
| 03 | brass spittoon embossed with scenes of plowing fields and reaping giant ears of wheat |
| 04 | boar’s-tusk phial, capped with an oval nugget of amber set in silver |
| 05 | worn blue linen pouch containing a dozen tumbled fire agates |
| 06 | veil of delicate black iron maille suspended from a black silken cord |
| 07 | ivory locket the size of a thumb’s first joint, carved in the shape of a rosebud and containing a sliver of bone |
| 08 | antler-beam sickle, polished with generations of use, edged with greenstone bladelets |
| 09 | dozen willow-wood arrows, fletched with swan feathers, tipped with crystal heads, and wrapped in rough woolen homespun |
| 10 | conch-shell trumpet, polished to glassy pink inside and out, with mouthpiece and mountings of gold |
| 11 | hoard of two pounds of hacksilver and three grand cloak-pins of bronze and bright red enamel, sealed with wax into a terracotta amphora |
| 12 | delicate silver necklace with ten crystal teardrops suspended from it, like glistening rain |
| 13 | stamp-seal carved from carnelian in the shape of a leaping fish; the stamp pattern is of running spirals around ancient glyphs |
| 14 | knee-length tunic of white, softened linen; neckline, lower hem and cuffs all sport inch-wide bands of polychrome embroidery |
| 15 | slim silver circlet sporting a crescent-shaped sliver of garnet in its exact centre |
| 16 | bleached birchwood case containing two dragonbone dip-pens and a glass vial of dark crimson ink |
| 17 | paired tortoiseshell combs carved in the shape of grape leaves with gilded details |
| 18 | copper statuette of a wolf-headed figure wrapped in a shroud, its eyes inlaid with moonstones |
| 19 | palm-sized silver disc mirror, engraved with lilies and serpents on the rear surface, with a loop for suspension |
| 20 | five perfectly matched cabochons of topaz tucked in a screw of crimson silk |
| 21 | burnished human skull completely covered with etched runic spirals tinted with indigo and cinnabar |
| 22 | heavy golden ring decorated with golden grains, inlaid black iron, and a cabochon of dark ruby the size of a thumbnail |
| 23 | set of diviner’s sticks, rowanwood, worn from use and stored in a dappled salt-grass basket |
| 24 | wooden fox toy, stained with ochre; pull a string and its tail wags |
| 25 | forest-green cloak of thick felted wool, lined and trimmed with black wolf fur |
| 26 | lantern of black iron frame and windows of pale amber horn |
| 27 | alabaster candle-lamp of stemmed bowl shape; if the wick in the bowl is lit, the sides of the bowl glow with paintings of birds and butterflies |
| 28 | flat coffer of ebony the length of a forearm containing, on a cushion of white velvet, a silver dagger still stained with blood |
| 29 | palm-sized puzzlebox of red and yellow cedar containing a tiny abalone-shell carving of a falcon |
| 30 | thin parchment folio bearing four pressed starlilies between its pages |
| 31 | small box of tawny lacquer, carved with spirals of stylized leaves and lined with white felt |
| 32 | feline half-mask of white velvet, with mirrored glass in the eye-holes, and trimmed with silver thread |
| 33 | pocket-box made from a pair of polished oyster-shells trimmed, hinged and clasped with delicate steel |
| 34 | worn, stained parchments containing an arcane tower’s blueprints |
| 35 | teardrop-shaped pendant of amber the size of a robin’s egg that flickers like flames |
| 36 | girdle-book bound in soft brown leather, each of its darkly crimson pages a meditation on the blood |
| 37 | black iron axe of broad blade, both faces inlaid with silver crescent moon and trailing stars, hafted in oak and bronze |
| 38 | circlet of intertwining golden wires spangled with tiny flowers made from seed pearls |
| 39 | sturdy, square wooden chest containing several dozen ceramic tiles glazed in bright polychromy with flower-and-blade patterns |
| 40 | twin bracelets in the shape of dragons biting their own tails, bronze with turquoise eyes |
| 41 | life-sized violet, carved of amethyst and jade, tucked in a tiny whiteoak box |
| 42 | courier’s satchel scorched by flame, containing a long-lost royal pardon |
| 43 | six teacups, each molded from a single golden dragon scale |
| 44 | three strings of glistening azure cowrie shells, a hundred shells per string |
| 45 | cedar reliquary-box lined with unbleached wool on which rests a unicorn’s carbuncle-stone |
| 46 | glass paperweight in the shape of a frog with a sunburst etched on its back |
| 47 | ten pale wax candles shakily engraved with holy sigils, tied up in a bundle with golden ribbons |
| 48 | three throwing blades of amber-pink glass as hard as steel |
| 49 | a sooty black woolen greatcoat lined with hidden pockets; one contains a tiny scrawled street map |
| 50 | stylized death mask in painted plaster whose eyes have been inlaid with blank, blood-red glass inserts |
| 51 | shawl of crimson and rust, trimmed with tassels, woven from a dragon’s mane |
| 52 | ragdoll with blue button eyes, long sooty woolen hair, and a forest-green dress, sporting a wooden sword picked out with gold paint |
| 53 | two dozen grey squirrel pelts sewn into a burlap package |
| 54 | tin box embossed with entwined ivy and skeletons, containing a dozen blocks of earth, unidentifiable incense |
| 55 | black waistcoat picked out with curlicues of mother-of-pearl buttons |
| 56 | ornamental shortsword mounted in a hilt of brightly enameled silver, the blade inscribed to the one soul who gave honour for love |
| 57 | polished drinking-horn engraved with battle sagas, sporting silver fittings and a hinged lid engraved with a sunburst |
| 58 | folding fan of cherry-wood, the webbing of pure white silk, the fan ribs tipped with glittering facets of pale pink glass |
| 59 | courtier’s handwritten diary of two generations back, bound in lambskin and sealed with silver-infused wax and orange ribbons |
| 60 | oval, steel locket, inlaid with carnelian-chip phoenix design, holding a tiny phial of dry, red-black blood |
| 61 | immense bed coverlet of grey sheepskins faced with quilted green velvet stitched with gold |
| 62 | string of freshwater pearls with pink coral spacers, meant to be double-looped around the neck |
| 63 | wax-sealed amber juglet of myrrh oil |
| 64 | hand-sized ebony statuette of a rearing heraldic leopard |
| 65 | matching finger-rings, thin electrum bands inlaid with turquoise and carnelian lilies |
| 66 | white wolfskin mantle, its jaws the clasp, edged with woolen tassels |
| 67 | wax tablet with red cedar frame, a lost noble’s crest burned onto the back |
| 68 | earrings of golden hoop-and-wire supporting dangling falls of dozens of iridescent blue beetle elytra |
| 69 | cloak-pin of copper gold mounted with a carving of a rosebud in pink coral |
| 70 | drinking cup of translucent bright green jade in the shape of a stylized leaf |
| 71 | archer’s ceremonial thumb-ring, carved all of massive emerald crystal mounted with enamel and gold filigreed floral ornaments |
| 72 | necklace of round beads of ivory interspersed with amber claws |
| 73 | dozen unstrung cobalt blue eye beads tucked in a rough leather packet |
| 74 | storage casket of red cedar, its panels completely covered in fine herringbone marquetry of ivory and ebony slivers |
| 75 | flute made from a crane’s wing-bone, tucked in a foxfur sleeve |
| 76 | astrologian’s starcharts; folding codices sandwiched between blackthorn covers and heavily annotated in coppery green |
| 77 | scroll of black-dyed vellum scribed with a masterpiece of song in silver and gold notation |
| 78 | traveler’s cutlery set in polished steel, enameled with green leaved and stored in a small lacquered box the colour of rust |
| 79 | thumb-sized jasper carving of a deer-headed man in a sleek gown |
| 80 | breastplate of silver-etched steel and russet leather straps, with a prayer for protection and victory inscribed on the inner surface |
| 81 | six delicate glass bangles, ruby and emerald, edged with gilt |
| 82 | fist-sized puzzlebox of goldenoak in the shape of a sleeping stag |
| 83 | hollow bone tube, capped with ivory finials, filled with shimmering dawn-coloured butterfly scales |
| 84 | perfectly polished lace-agate egg the size of a hen’s egg |
| 85 | bolt of cloth-of-gold woven from byssus, carefully wrapped in an outer layer of linen |
| 86 | five pearlescent prisms, each a hand long, snug in a grey wool pouch |
| 87 | mahogany box with tight-fitting lid, 1′ square, lined with wax and filled to the brim with rose conserves |
| 88 | brass lantern in the shape of a plump, ribbed squash, with green and blue glass panes |
| 89 | necklace of garnet beads shaped like pomegranate pips |
| 90 | nine white rose petals, eerily preserved, each with a short prayer bloodily brushed onto it |
| 91 | sabre of plain oak-and-brass hilt whose blade appears to be of razor sharp, translucently white stone |
| 92 | golden finger-ring sporting a brilliant jacinth engraved with a tiny hellglyph |
| 93 | shield of blackoak overlain with white and black oxhide reinforced with bronze edging and bosses |
| 94 | tiny, hollowed sphere of red coral filled with with ambrosia and stoppered with bone, hung on a hair-thin golden chain |
| 95 | shallow box covered with scuffed burgundy leather containing a dozen brittle love letters exchanged between two sages |
| 96 | wolf’s jaw, engraved with tiny, gilded whorls of prayer and polished by years of handling |
| 97 | parade tack for a horse, of russet leather and mirror-bright steel trimmed with golden tassels and seed pearls, with leopard-pelt saddle and feather-patterned, multicoloured caparison |
| 98 | folded parchment, repaired by careful blue-thread darning of holes in the hide; a devoted follower’s elegy to a fallen ruler |
| 99 | round electrum brooch inlaid with amber and cairngorm depicting the sun being eclipsed by the moon |
| 00 | coiled braid of silver hair, tied with lapis blue ribbons and strings of amber beads |
friends and foes: another d66 factions and orgs
I just couldn’t help myself, I needed to write up another pile of odd folks for PCs to join, NPCs to represent, and plot hooks to fall off of.
And then I took ages to actually get to writing them because that’s how I roll, alas. Lol.
Just like the last time around, each faction/organization/guild/whatever has a name, a slogan/quote, a line or two explaining them a bit more, faction colours and symbol, and a list of five bits of gear. Also like the last time around, don’t limit a PC’s starting stuff to just the kibble listed here; this is for flavour. Give them half (or all, why not?) beginning funds, or “rations+bedroll+backpack+clothes+1 weapon if desired+2d10 [currency]”, or a starting character package, whichever you’re using — having a few more gribbles won’t break anything.
| d66 | Faction Name | Faction Details |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Glass Tears | “Life, like glass, is both fragile and wounding, beautiful and wrought from common stuff. As our craft, so goes the world.” Lampworkers and glassblowers, dedicated to perfecting their craft and using it as an allegory for improving themselves and the world – coal black and orange; phial – handful of glass billets, several glass bottles and baubles, blowpipe, shard collection, heavy leather apron |
| 12 | Icemeisters | “The cold soothes well, delights well, preserves well, hides well.” Tenders of ice-houses and hidden freezes, caterers of frozen confections and whispered repositories of other, more concerning objects needing kept on ice – silver and pale blue; icicle – winter cloak, ice-knife, sweet syrups, logbook of requests, coded lists and map of hidden ice-houses |
| 13 | The Lion’s Paw | “Be mighty. Be proud, not prideful. Most of all, be aware of those who look to you when you roar.” Hedge-knights and self-proclaimed heroes happy to step up for a flower as much as for riches and glory – gold and brown; lion’s pawprint – tawny mantle, flashy outfit, letter of recommendation from high or noble house, signet or seal, token of favour |
| 14 | The Flicker | “The shortest moment, the tiniest crumb can be of the utmost importance. Don’t blink.” Gatherers of secrets and connectors of dots, organized into loose cells with connections in the wildest of places – white and orange; candle-flame outline – pouches of small trinkets and bits, scrollcases of scribbled notes, deadletter drop-box, vial of lemon-ink, glass lens |
| 15 | Absolution | “May darkness be cleansed, may the spirit be lifted on milky clouds heavenward.” Confessors and confidantes who offer listening ears without judgement and a release from secrets and emotional turmoil – amber and milk; loose spiral – brazier, charcoal, paper twist of myrrh, pouch of amber nodules, chapbook of blessings, exorcisms and wardings |
| 16 | Coiling Path | “Whisper and tend, carry prayers and curses, and leave no tether behind you as you move on.” Wandering tenders and menders of consecrated locales in out of the way places, ever ready to replace stones, touch up paint, or murmur a re-dedication – grey and green; shrine-rune – node-map of shrines and holy sites (work in progress), skin of pure water, carpenter’s or mason’s tools, carved bowl, holy oil |
| 21 | Crucible | “Disparate parts, and peoples, are ever stronger when combined.” Sweet-tongued courtiers and middlemen, dedicated to fostering links between individuals, groups and communities — and ever ready to remind others of existing links – bronze and blue; crucible – bronze brooch, folio of observations, invitation to society function, copy of historical treaty, puzzlebox |
| 22 | Greentouch | “Not to worry, I’m sure I have something for what ails you.” Herbalists, with all that that can imply; one man’s meat is another man’s poison, after all. Sometimes literally. – pale green and dark green; sprout – paper-twists of seeds and dry herbs, sleepmint, silvered snips, kettle, toxic blossoms |
| 23 | Farwander | “There’s always more to see.” Sometimes people just want to travel to the horizon and beyond just to make the trip and tell about it. These are those people. – brown and violet; footprint – sturdy footwear, well-patched shoulderbag, several packets of letters, cairnstone, coloured cords |
| 24 | The Letterflies | “Everything opens up with the written word, so spread it — secretly if necessary.” Staunch believers in literacy and what it unlocks, happy to teach letters, draft texts, carve typefaces, and create all manner of small, useful, and sometimes contraband documents to do it – dark green and white; butterfly – satchel of pamphlets and lesson sheets, slate and chalk, writing kit, portable press, current ciphers |
| 25 | Wardens of Years | “The march of time must never be forgotten.” Keepers of history’s events and the passing of days, dedicated — some might say obsessed — with the passing of time – sand and silver; timepiece – annals logbook, personal diary, hourglass or hour-candles, year-staff, tally cords |
| 26 | Knights of the Brine | “There’s nothing like the quest for the perfect pickle.” Pickle enthusiasts united in sharing samples, locations of excellent fruits and vegetables or salts and spices, and iterating on endless recipes while caching crocks across the countryside – yellow and green; crock – pickling crock, pouches of salt and bran, bottle of vinegar, pickle samples (extra rations), twists of spices |
| 31 | Fireheart | “In the flame, find yourself.” Adherents of a meditative philosophy centred around silent self-contemplation while gazing into a single flame, believing it to soothe emotion and reveal one’s future – orange and red; tongue of flame – lamp and oil, brazier, personal notes, small pouch of ashes, charcoal |
| 32 | The Queen’s Hands | “Look to the bee, and know grace and gratitude.” Beekeepers and harvesters of wild honey who wax lyrical about the virtues of the bee and its produce at the drop of a pin; often distributors of both hive produce and new colonies – gold and golden-brown; bee – logbook of wild hives, bee skep, satchel of beeswax blocks, crock of honeycomb, dozen beeswax candles |
| 33 | The Last Dance | “Save the last dance for me.” These are dancers, yes, and sometimes singers and sometimes musicians, united in the goal of bringing liveliness and entertainment (and maybe a pointed tale or two) to any who offer a coin or a wish, whether in taverns, high halls or the open road – medley of any colours; ring – bright outfit, musical instrument or dancer’s rings, weighted shawl or scarf, hidden knife, shoulderbag with secret pocket |
| 34 | Scrapsnipes | “There’s nothing that can’t be repaired, reused, or repurposed.” Scavengers of discards and maestros of rusted metal who don’t turn up their noses at any object, no matter how broken or battered; if it can’t be reused, it can be remade. And they often think the same about living beings. – rust and black; broken nail – sack of metal bits, tiny anvil, mallet, sewing kit, crock of lacquer, patchwork cloak |
| 35 | The Scarlet Bough | “The days grow short and we must all prepare for what’s coming next. in order to see the days grow long again.” Harvesters and preservers who descend on a crop to help with the reaping and butchering one day, string up drying fruits and meats the next, and know reliable ways to prepare and preserve nearly anything edible – scarlet and orange; treebranch – smoked joint, sickle, knowledge and access to several storage caches, sack of seedcorn, portable quern |
| 36 | The Silver Key | “Swift, and proper, application of all law is the only just application of law.” Whether barristers or archivists, self-informed sages or those who learned in the trenches, all members agree on one thing; that the law of a land must be just, and it must apply to all equally, or it is no law at all. – silver and white; key – law codes for several cities and kingdoms, packet of letters, set of skeleton keys, cipher book, carrier pigeon |
| 41 | Openers of the Way | “There are worlds beyond this one, and it’s just a matter of finding where intersections are.” Tracers of essence-lines and mappers of weak barriers between existences, whether for curiosity, wariness, power, or simple verification – colour spectrum; rainbow – homemade map of lines and nodes, pendulum, glass bell, iron wand, silver-tipped wand |
| 42 | Heartweave | “Have you heard the latest from the Grey Wind? Or received a copy of their writings? What did you think?” A network of poets and storytellers committed to spreading their works by written copy and formal gatherings both – cream and lavender; eight-petaled flower – hand-bound collection of poems, seal engraved with pseudonym, letter of introduction, packet of fancy papers, writing gear |
| 43 | Heaven’s Blood | “I’ll do what you cannot.” Sin-eaters, pursuers of vengeance, and upholders of the most visceral of oaths – crimson and gold; droplet – sealed contract, consecrated balm, black razor, crimson veil, sinner’s chalice |
| 44 | Daysend | “At the border between day and night lie revelations.” Mystics and muses fascinated with the flow of colours and light in the twilight hours and the inspiration — the tingle of spirit, some day — that those hours grant the fervent – pink and orange; disc – sitting-cushion, prism, dew-collecting cloth, twilight-dyed sash or scarf, scroll of personal revelations |
| 45 | Walkers at Midnight | “None who prey on heart’s blood will be suffered to exist. I swear it.” Dedicated hunters, these, targeting the worst of the blood-drinkers, soul-eaters and others of their ilk. Those who feed lightly and with care are spared … usually – black and moon-yellow; dagger – silvered resin, rowanwood stakes, holy water or oil, warding charm, wineskin |
| 46 | The Winding River | “Tell me who someone is, and I will tell you where they hail from.” Tracers of genealogies of all sorts — bloodlines of people, of beasts, even of crops — and ever dedicated to noting every side-branch, secret and dead-end – grey and blue; water braid – salvaged letters, work ledger, illuminator’s gear, maps to several catacombs, copy of chosen genealogy |
| 51 | Wyrmstouch | “We claim the great beasts’ mark as our own.” Dragon hunters of a different stripe, linked to the wyrms — and, for some, to each other — through being anointed with, or consuming, dragon’s blood – dark red and midnight blue; flame – dragon scale, wax-lined drinking horn, packet of soothing herbs, tally-notched torc, map to dragon’s lair |
| 52 | Garden Eternal | “Somewhere out there lies the source of eternal life; waiting to be plucked, perhaps even in plain sight.” The fruit of eternal life grants immortality, these folks believe — but which fruit, and consumed in what manner? And where will it be found? The quest continues — – rose and emerald; stylized fruit tree – lidded basket, several kinds of fruit (fresh and preserved), scraps of pomery manuscripts, cutting from fruit tree, scrawled recipe notes |
| 53 | Eyes of the Cat | “Where the cat leads, we follow; what we discover, the cat must know.” Not quite cat worshipers but not far from it, being staunch believers in feline wisdom — and feline bestowing of secrets and curses – bronze and black; cat’s eye – cat companion, riding satchel (for cat), pouch of smoked fish, tiger’s eye amulet, libation dish |
| 54 | Bonescribes | “The departed live again through the new voices we give them.” A tightly-knit organization of copyists, scribes and illuminators who create their works with bone black pigments and pens carved from bone, all obtained from those who were lost – ivory and black; skeletal hand – pouch of bone black cakes, inkstone and water well, case of bone pens and styli, sheaf of parchment, femoral scrollcase |
| 55 | Canticle | “Inspiration, composition, at any cost.” These poets, songsmiths and authors chase after dreams and visions, throwing themselves into the pursuit of new enlightenments with which to feed their ravenous muse – teal and gold; teardrop – draft of current work, skin of spirits or poppy, pilgrimage badge, instrument or manuscript, diary of revelations |
| 56 | Black Heralds | “None so mighty once they’ve been laid low in mud and blood.” Battlefield scavengers who bring rough mercy and mercenary gain in equal measure, trading trophies and mementos as readily as they ransom their catches to the high folk – black and grey; raven – sturdy carry-pack, chopping dagger, bloodstained noble’s blazon, collection of battlefield oddments, pennant |
| 61 | The Verdurance | “Bring the entire world into the comforting embrace of all green things.” Planters of seeds, couriers of sprouts, grafters of limbs; if a plant can be encouraged to grow wherever they pass, these dedicated souls will place at least one before moving on – leaf green and brown; sprout – seed pouches; sheaf of cuttings; small shears; folding trowel; logbook of plantings |
| 62 | The Stone Egg | “We find what sleeps within the stone.” Carvers of alabaster and greenstone, chert and serpentine, who divine deeper meaning in the forms that their work creates – dark gray and white; egg – small chisels, mallet, grease-stick, satchel of stone nodules, finished statuette |
| 63 | Roaring Mice | “Everything ends, but only if we allow it. Fight back.” Doesn’t matter if it’s crumbling structures, corrupted infrastructures, or the forces of entropy itself; these would-be rebels push against the notion that there’s nothing that can stop the fall – violet and flame; mouse – bead-code, chirurgeon’s satchel, purloined document, shining-knife, crafter’s toolkit |
| 64 | Tomorrow’s Rose | “Lessen pain by sharing it, redirecting it.” Artisans of roses, yes, and every rose symbolizing a scar that’s been shared, accepted, and assimilated; for them people, like roses, continue long past being cut down – burgundy and dark green; rose – skin of rosewater, vial of attar, rose petal preserves, briar torc, bundle of rose seedlings |
| 65 | Imperishable | “The heavens hear those who give their hopes and dreams to eternity.” Instead of searching for fates amongst the stars, these dreamcrafters choose to chart their own chosen destinies and hang them on the jewels of the night sky – royal blue and silver; scatter of stars – star charts, miniature orrery, collection of notes, paper twist of starcrystal, dream scrolls |
| 36 | The Final Light | “We will lead them home.” Psychopomps bearing a soft glow and a quiet wish through the dark — whether true or metaphorical — to grant wandering spirits their final rest. – pale gold and dark grey; pumpkin – lantern staff, shroud-shawl, foxfire candles, chalice, pouch of consecrated ashes |
combine them with whatever class (or whatever) you wish, it’s cool that way
to drive back the dark: emberlight
The world has known destruction.
The world has known war, and want, and withering.
The world is cold and crumbling.
But you.
You have a morsel of warmth, a tiny beacon of hope.
It glimmers in your hands like warm, rippling glass, like tears of joy.
Look how it glows.
Look at its colours.
It calls ever so softly to your heart.
Perhaps …
Perhaps if you can kindle this tiny beacon …
Perhaps the world will live once more.
Will you take up that burden?
Will you share your tiny hope?
Will you try to mend a broken world?
Once, the world was brighter. All the grandames’ stories and minstrel’s tales say the same, at their roots; that, in the time of their grandfather’s grandfathers, there was no need to scratch at crumbling soil ceaselessly in a wish for just enough corn to survive. That watercourses did not wither and dry with no warning. That the bleak skies above were not crowded out by clouds the colour of lead and the clawing limbs of blackened forests. That illness and injury was not, so often, a maiming or a death sentence without recourse.
That the days were not filled with the threat of banditry and strange beasts and growing, mad ritual.
That the nights were not filled with the tread of insectile, bird-clawed nightmares wrought from cold metal and stolen dreams, broken bones and the blood of the very earth.
What the Silent Emperor wrought in madness and pain — what was called from a wild, grieving heart and fed with the life of the land itself — ended the War, but at great and terrible cost. The world survived the War Of Twin Fires, the grandames and minstrels say, only to die thread by thread with each passing year. No mercy, this. The wind is capcrious, the summers scorch while winters freeze their pound of flesh, and the earth beneath one’s feet dries and drifts on the wind. Those who were left — who are left — huddle in villages and broken keeps, behind tumbled stone and blackthorn, and their worlds are very small indeed. The land has fragmented into a hundred hundred tiny, warring fiefdoms, all squabbling over what remains.
But.
As the world withered and faded, there were those who did not give up. Who offered what they had, little though it might be; shared what they could; fought off marauders and malaise. Many of them, most of them, gave their lives in the process. Some grew disillusioned, even as others struggled to pick up their banner.
And now, as time has marched on, and in the face of darkness and travail, those hopes have kindled and caught. Now dead morion’s smoky depths may cradle an ember of hope — a soft glow of hearthflame, those fragile hopes made manifest — and with it, a fighting chance to heal, to renew, to feel the warmth from the promise of a better life.
It’s a chance to push back against the nightmarish talon that ravage the world. And it’s going to take sacrifices big and small. But even a little victory is a victory.
He’d never been much for children. ignored them at best, actively avoided them when possible, though to his credit not once had he ever lifted a hand in anger. No call for that, ever.
But this was different. This was children — a village’s children, all that were left — laid low by want and privation brought on by pitiless warring lordlings. He suspected, at that, his own guilt in the matter. After all, hadn’t he been part of the iron-shoed bands that attached themselves to one petty knight or another?
But no more of that. He’d had enough of iron in the flesh, ashes in the gullet; enough of feeble crops under the torch and blooded boots and children whimpering for what their parents could no longer give them.
He clutched the sliver of warmth close; he felt the pull. The comfort it promised. He’d never knitted up so fast. Maybe it could help the kids, the villagers. Maybe he could find another.
He would bring life back to this village, at least.
It was the least, the very least, that he owed.
Hearthflame
It’s said that the first to find themselves in possession of an ember of renewed hope was the leader of a roving band of scavengers and would-be road protectors; that she fought off one of the Silent Knights, or a pair of bone nightmares, and in her hand a chipped knife of morion-stone became, that evening, a soothing beacon of the hope she refused to let die.
Others say these are lies, and the first shards were found in the ashes of a hearth-fire kept fed twig by twig through a long and bitter night to keep warm the survivors of a village that lost everything.
It doesn’t matter, really, who was the first.
What matters is that they exist. That they can be found. That they can be given freely away, if desired; they are not bound to one and only one. Even, new tales say, they might be pooled together, though the means are never said.
What matters is that the hearthflame’s ember can soothe, can calm, can warm. Its presence allows for healing without drawn-out agonies, and rest that is true, and more besides. It drives the nightmare back.
Hope for the future, life for the world; like all things, it can be hoarded, or shared, or gifted to another.
Remember, though, that like the fire, hope may also be smothered.
– how did you come by your ember? –
01. woke from a dizzying whirl of dreams with it in hand
02. plucked it from a pile of mouldering bones
03. was bequeathed it from someone’s unexpected largesse
04. found it embedded in the heartwood of an ancient tree
05. saw it dropped from the sky by a dying blightraven
06. found it, as morion, in a hoarder’s unclaimed cache under some fieldstones
07. it was lying mysteriously in the middle of a barren field
08. a frantic stranger pressed it into your hands, then fled
09. it was amongst your payment for services made
10. it appeared in a shrine as you prayed (or cursed, or begged)
Some whispers say that if one searches long enough, if the need is great enough — if the hope and the will is true enough — one might find a hallowed place where an ember of hearthflame, or several, might even awaken a mass of morion into a hearth-heart and rejuvenate all the land around it … Is it possible that such a thing could exist? Could vitality be brought back beyond that gifted, traded, sacrificed from hand to hand, pooled together against the dark?
Perhaps. Perhaps.
If it did, it might be seen as:
01. a translucent statue long overgrown by moss
02. a shimmering pillar in a hidden stony chamber
03. a fissuring passage that opens up into a softly beating geode
04. a standing-stone, worn smooth in parts by the touch of a thousand thousand hands
05. a swelling outcrop of smooth chert half-hidden in a cliffside
06. a dusty altar, hidden by years of ornaments and pleas
07. an ancient tree-bole, its heartwood not quite wood at all
08. a massive teardrop of shimmering facets floating in the midst of an abandoned High Hall
09. crushed and under pressure in the core of a decrepit war-cathedral
10. circling in slow gyres around a mountain peak like a luminous, half-solid cloud
The world has known war, and want, and withering.
The world is cold and crumbling.
But you.
You have a morsel of warmth, a tiny beacon of hope.
It glimmers in your hands like warm, rippling glass, like tears of joy.
Look how it glows.
Look at its colours.
It calls ever so softly to your heart.
Perhaps …
Perhaps if you can kindle this tiny beacon …
Perhaps the world will live once more.
Will you take up that burden?
Will you share your tiny hope?
Will you try to mend a broken world?
Once, the world was brighter. All the grandames’ stories and minstrel’s tales say the same, at their roots; that, in the time of their grandfather’s grandfathers, there was no need to scratch at crumbling soil ceaselessly in a wish for just enough corn to survive. That watercourses did not wither and dry with no warning. That the bleak skies above were not crowded out by clouds the colour of lead and the clawing limbs of blackened forests. That illness and injury was not, so often, a maiming or a death sentence without recourse.
That the days were not filled with the threat of banditry and strange beasts and growing, mad ritual.
That the nights were not filled with the tread of insectile, bird-clawed nightmares wrought from cold metal and stolen dreams, broken bones and the blood of the very earth.
What the Silent Emperor wrought in madness and pain — what was called from a wild, grieving heart and fed with the life of the land itself — ended the War, but at great and terrible cost. The world survived the War Of Twin Fires, the grandames and minstrels say, only to die thread by thread with each passing year. No mercy, this. The wind is capcrious, the summers scorch while winters freeze their pound of flesh, and the earth beneath one’s feet dries and drifts on the wind. Those who were left — who are left — huddle in villages and broken keeps, behind tumbled stone and blackthorn, and their worlds are very small indeed. The land has fragmented into a hundred hundred tiny, warring fiefdoms, all squabbling over what remains.
But.
As the world withered and faded, there were those who did not give up. Who offered what they had, little though it might be; shared what they could; fought off marauders and malaise. Many of them, most of them, gave their lives in the process. Some grew disillusioned, even as others struggled to pick up their banner.
And now, as time has marched on, and in the face of darkness and travail, those hopes have kindled and caught. Now dead morion’s smoky depths may cradle an ember of hope — a soft glow of hearthflame, those fragile hopes made manifest — and with it, a fighting chance to heal, to renew, to feel the warmth from the promise of a better life.
It’s a chance to push back against the nightmarish talon that ravage the world. And it’s going to take sacrifices big and small. But even a little victory is a victory.
He’d never been much for children. ignored them at best, actively avoided them when possible, though to his credit not once had he ever lifted a hand in anger. No call for that, ever.
But this was different. This was children — a village’s children, all that were left — laid low by want and privation brought on by pitiless warring lordlings. He suspected, at that, his own guilt in the matter. After all, hadn’t he been part of the iron-shoed bands that attached themselves to one petty knight or another?
But no more of that. He’d had enough of iron in the flesh, ashes in the gullet; enough of feeble crops under the torch and blooded boots and children whimpering for what their parents could no longer give them.
He clutched the sliver of warmth close; he felt the pull. The comfort it promised. He’d never knitted up so fast. Maybe it could help the kids, the villagers. Maybe he could find another.
He would bring life back to this village, at least.
It was the least, the very least, that he owed.
Hearthflame
It’s said that the first to find themselves in possession of an ember of renewed hope was the leader of a roving band of scavengers and would-be road protectors; that she fought off one of the Silent Knights, or a pair of bone nightmares, and in her hand a chipped knife of morion-stone became, that evening, a soothing beacon of the hope she refused to let die.
Others say these are lies, and the first shards were found in the ashes of a hearth-fire kept fed twig by twig through a long and bitter night to keep warm the survivors of a village that lost everything.
It doesn’t matter, really, who was the first.
What matters is that they exist. That they can be found. That they can be given freely away, if desired; they are not bound to one and only one. Even, new tales say, they might be pooled together, though the means are never said.
What matters is that the hearthflame’s ember can soothe, can calm, can warm. Its presence allows for healing without drawn-out agonies, and rest that is true, and more besides. It drives the nightmare back.
Hope for the future, life for the world; like all things, it can be hoarded, or shared, or gifted to another.
Remember, though, that like the fire, hope may also be smothered.
– how did you come by your ember? –
01. woke from a dizzying whirl of dreams with it in hand
02. plucked it from a pile of mouldering bones
03. was bequeathed it from someone’s unexpected largesse
04. found it embedded in the heartwood of an ancient tree
05. saw it dropped from the sky by a dying blightraven
06. found it, as morion, in a hoarder’s unclaimed cache under some fieldstones
07. it was lying mysteriously in the middle of a barren field
08. a frantic stranger pressed it into your hands, then fled
09. it was amongst your payment for services made
10. it appeared in a shrine as you prayed (or cursed, or begged)
Some whispers say that if one searches long enough, if the need is great enough — if the hope and the will is true enough — one might find a hallowed place where an ember of hearthflame, or several, might even awaken a mass of morion into a hearth-heart and rejuvenate all the land around it … Is it possible that such a thing could exist? Could vitality be brought back beyond that gifted, traded, sacrificed from hand to hand, pooled together against the dark?
Perhaps. Perhaps.
If it did, it might be seen as:
01. a translucent statue long overgrown by moss
02. a shimmering pillar in a hidden stony chamber
03. a fissuring passage that opens up into a softly beating geode
04. a standing-stone, worn smooth in parts by the touch of a thousand thousand hands
05. a swelling outcrop of smooth chert half-hidden in a cliffside
06. a dusty altar, hidden by years of ornaments and pleas
07. an ancient tree-bole, its heartwood not quite wood at all
08. a massive teardrop of shimmering facets floating in the midst of an abandoned High Hall
09. crushed and under pressure in the core of a decrepit war-cathedral
10. circling in slow gyres around a mountain peak like a luminous, half-solid cloud
Kith and Kind
Maybe you don’t want to play a human character today. Or you want to give this NPC something more than “this human duder”. But the game you’re playing or running doesn’t offer non-human options, or you don’t want to deal with “race-as-class”, or you just want some flavour, etc etc etc …
That’s where these two tables come in.
The first table offers a selection of other species — kiths, if you will — with a few suggestions for appearance and two traits or quirks, positive and negative. The second table instead presents variants, whether from environment or accident or intervention or what have you — the “kinds” of the kiths — and this table works similarly to the first.
You can, of course, only roll on the second table to find out what kind of human your character is.
The positive and negative traits have been left vague; you can probably assume most that are a do-a-thing type (like making or destroying something) can require some kind of test or check for success, if you like.
| Kith | Appearance? | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01. Sidhe | tapered ears, slender bones | perfect recall | get lost in memories |
| 02. Sauros | scales, tail, fanged muzzle | surprise action | cold vulnerability |
| 03. Mafdet | bipedal feline | nightsight | distractable |
| 04. Dama | digitigrade, hooved, plumed tail | speedy | fragile |
| 05. Dvergr | short, burly, shaggy-haired | sense flaws | treasure-tempted |
| 06. Boggart | 1/2-human-size, gnarled | ironguts | redcap’s retaliation |
| 07. Asterion | broad, tall, bull’s horns and tail | direction sense | geased |
| 08. Gruagach | 1/2-human-size, pointed ears | stealthy | overlooked |
| 09. Wilder | large furred ears, tail or fangs | jury-rigger | magic vulnerability |
| 10. Gigas | towering, sculpted, tusks or horns | crusher | slow reaction |
| 11. Seshen | enfolding “blossom” on back | blossom hibernation | flame vulnerability |
| 12. Talking Beast | animal with odd mark or colour | magic resist | no hands |
| Kind | Possible Apperance? | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01. Cerulean | blue spiral-and-line markings | spirit sight | poison vulnerability |
| 02. Sanguine | sharper features, fangs | sustained on blood | blood need |
| 03. Damned | hoof(s), lopsided horns, scaled tail | evil eye | blessed object bane |
| 04. Hallowed | aureola, stigmata, bright plumes | bestow tranquility | defiled object bane |
| 05. Aquatic | smooth flesh, gill slits, webbing | breathe water | require immersion |
| 06. Lunar | white/silver hair, pale/luminous eyes | magic resist | easily influenced |
| 07. Umbral | coiling shadow wisps, blacked eyes | light extinguishing | sun aversion |
| 08. Nuadan | parts replaced by metal/porcelain | inbuilt weapon/tool | elemental vulnerable |
| 09. Grave | deathly looks, cauled eyes | illness immune | halve healing |
| 10. Verdant | green tint, tiny plant growths | half food required | need sunlight |
| 11. Warp | “cracks” in flesh glow | call object to hand | magic may fail |
| 12. Wyrm | scales, horns, odd exhalations | venom breath | treasure-tempted |
| 13. Espri | organic jewel in flesh | mindspeech | frail-bodied |
| 14. Celestian | starfield eyes, star-markings | sense fate | destined death |
| 15. Abyssian | retractile tentacles | omnidextrous | increased hunger |
| 16. Fae | odd colours, mismatched eyes, long ears | lucky | iron bane |
| 17. God-kin | divine aura, golden flesh, holy mark | divine instrument | geased |
| 18. Runic | marked with runes/glyphs/sigils | spell storage | fickle fate |
| 19. Luminous | bioluminescent markings, soft glow | candlelight | darkness poison |
| 20. Skinwalker | silvery mark, pelt of other shape | shapechange | lose pelt, lose gift |
a little variety in your ration options
Ever wonder what’s sitting in your ration sack? Or if you even have a “ration sack”?
Here’s a few tables to spice up your character’s meal options ~
| First Ration | Second Ration | Third Ration |
|---|---|---|
| 01. Mincemeat hand-pies | 01. Biscuit | 01. Waxed cheese rounds |
| 02. Smoked salmon slivers | 02. Apple rings | 02. Oatcakes |
| 03. Yoghurt grains | 03. Vegetable pickles | 03. Parched corn |
| 04. Beef jerky | 04. Cracked wheat | 04. Raisins |
| 05. Pounded rice cakes | 05. Dried persimmons | 05. Mixed lentils |
| 06. Salted locusts | 06. Hardtack | 06. Peach leather |
| 07. Salt pork backfat | 07. Peppered sausages | 07. Cornmeal |
| 08. pemmican with berries | 08. Candied melon | 08. Milk balls |
| 09. Smoked ham | 09. Dried figs | 09. Hazelnut meal |
| 10. Meat jelly | 10. Potato hand-pies | 10. Dried cranberries |
| 11. Blood sausages | 11. Oat groats | 11. Algae cakes |
| 12. Jerked duck | 12. Dried dates | 12. Fish pickle |
| What’s your grub in? | Condition? |
|---|---|
| 01. Hollowed horn | 01. Bit salty(ier) |
| 02. Leather sack | 02. Average grub |
| 03. Rawhide satchel | 03. Little stale |
| 04. Willow basket | 04. A bit past prime |
| 05. Waxed cloth wrap | 05. Fresh as it gets |
| 06. Burlap sack | 06. Average grub |
| 07. Tin box | 07. Tasty! |
| 08. Bark box | 08. Oddly sweet(er) |
| 09. Grass basket | 09. Definitely past prime |
| 10. Cloth bundle (stick optional) | 10. Average grub |
| 11. Wooden box | 11. Rancid … |
| 12. Dried gourd | 12. Grub of the gods |
Another Hamsterish Hoard 