Let the Quest Begin! Mythic 1 Page Adventure Crafter

 Mythic has a bunch of material for developing your games before you play, or even while you are. One of them is the Adventure Crafter, which helps you build up the plots of your games while giving you a framework. While I do have the full AC version, I tend to use the One Page version because it's quicker. I do plan to cover the full version in the future, but for this, I'll just keep it simple.

The 1P AC divides your adventure (Called a Turning Point) into 5 Plot Points. You can think of these as Acts 1-5 or even combine them. Plot Points are then organized by Themes: Action (combat, quick escapes, etc.), Tension (suspense and horror), Mystery (there's something unknown to solve), Social (requiring you to interact with others), and Personal (affecting one or more major characters).

After rolling a Theme, you roll on the table and get a single word. Combining the Them and the word then gives you what happens in that Plot Point. Of course, this leaves a lot of room for interpretation, and I'll admit to staring at the page more than once while being completely stuck. But you can then add to it by asking Fate Questions.

For this, I'll be using 1P AC to just create a few quick adventure ideas. I'll even shift the genre a few times to show the different options.

So let's get started with our first one:

I'll start with medieval fantasy (D&D and similar titles).

- Overall Theme:  Tension.

Plot Point 1: Tension: Night.

PP 2:  Action:  Pursued.

PP 3:  Personal:  Personal (Oh, that helps a lot).

PP 4:  Action:  Damage.

PP 5:  Mystery:  Cryptic.

I feel like combining the first two into a single plot point. 

(Q)  Is the party being chased?  (Very Unlikely)  No.

(Description)  Who is being chased?  Loud, Official.

(Q)  Is it male?  (50/50)  No, Random Event.

(Event)  Create, Increase.

(Description)  Who is doing the chasing?  Dark, Disagreeable.

(Q)  Is it human?  (Likely)  Yes.

Okay, here goes;

Late, one cool, foggy night, the party hears screaming and notices a woman running down the path. Throwing a glance behind her, she hides behind a tree but then vanishes. A few seconds later, a man wearing all black and holding a sword appears. Not seeing where the woman went, he approaches the party. If they don't offer information but stay pleasant, he takes off in a random direction.

A minute later, the woman reappears. Thanking the part, she mentions she works in the town keeping records. Discovering some information about mysterious disappearances, she found herself chased by the man they had scene. Now she's trying to understand the information and solve the mystery.

If the party helps, they learn one of those who vanished is close to one of them. Eventually the man in dark clothing returns with some friends and a fight breaks out. 

If the party investigates more, they learn that the town has kept this terrible secret for some time. The question is, what secret has caused the man in dark to want to kill people?

Not bad for a first generated adventure.

Here's another.

This time, I'll go with Science Fiction. The characters are part of an exploration vessel.

Overall Theme:  Social.

PP 1:  Social:  Rural.

PP 2:  Action:  Travel.

PP 3:  Mystery:  Explore.

PP 4:  Social:  Gathering.

PP 5:  Tension:  Death (Wow, no subtly there!) 

(Q)  Has the party encountered the village before?  (Likely)  No.

(Q)  Are they friendly?  (Very Likely)  No.

(Q)  Are they having a celebration?  (Very Likely)  X-No.

(Q)  Do they know the party is there?  (Likely)  No.

(Description)  What is the village like?  Natural, Rotten.

The party is investigating life signs on a planet. Discovering a village in the middle of a massive graveyard, they observe that the people have built their homes into various massive graves made of mud and stone. 

If the villagers notice the party, they give chase, with weapons drawn. The party then learns that the villagers believe in a balance of nature. For every birth, there must be a death. A bunch of babies have been born recently, so they see the party as the perfect sacrifice. 

If the part escapes, the villagers will just find something else to sacrifice, even if it means invading another village. 

What does the party do?

Wow, a little morbid, even by my standards, but I love giving players choices.

One more. Let's make this one a game set in the Pulp Era.

Overall Theme:  Tension.

PP 1:  Tension:  Resource.

PP 2:  Personal:  Incapacitation.

PP 3:  Social:  Servant.

PP 4:  Personal:  Mundane.

PP 5:  Tension:  Conclusion.

So a suspense or horror story that starts with resources.

(Q)  Is a lack of something involved?  (Likely)  Yes.

(Q)  Is it medically related?  (Very Likely)  No.

(Detail)  What is the Resource?  Strange, Disagreeable.

The PC learns that a local pulp magazine that produces stories of mystery and horror has been robbed. No money has been stolen, but all of the paper and part of the machinery to print the magazines are missing. 

While investigating, the PC is attacked and knocked out. Waking up in his apartment, he finds a note, saying to stay away because the perpetrators are heroes trying to return to city to normal without the 'trash magazines.' 

If the PC continues to search for answers, he/she will feel eyes watching from every direction. Who is involved? How many people? And how far will they go to end these 'evil pieces of lit?'

There you go, three separate adventures from a few dice rolls. Next time, I'll try out the full version of the Adventure Crafter. However, I'm debating on only rolling 1 adventure and just adapting it to different genres because the full AC is over 30 pages long.

I'll decide by next time.

Ready for some Football? No, not that one! Not that one either.

Mythic Magazine #33 includes rules for Mass Combat, where you can have multiple opponents on both sides. I thought I'd try and use it for a team sport. Usually that sport would be Hockey, but I want to attempt something different this time around, at least for now.

One of the Discworld books I got for XMas is titled Unseen Academicals, and is about wizards forming a football teaming, only they're not allowed to use magic. Now this isn't like modern football, or European football (i.e. soccer to many of us), or rugby, or anything like that. 

Instead, it resembles Medieval Football, also called Mob Football and a few other names. Since no names have been set in stone, I'm going with Mob Ball. I just find it to be a cooler name. In short though, it's a form of football that was played back in medieval times.

The main rules for Mob Ball are here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval_football

But here's a summary:

Mob Ball is played between 2 teams, usually from two different towns, such as the home team and away team. They start in the center of a town, with any number of players, and try to get a ball (or pigs intestine, but let's go with the word Ball) to one end of the town to score a goal. The goal can be an actual set of posts, where the ball either hits or passes through. However some games had a church balcony used instead. Holding the ball, throwing, kicking, punching, scratching, and tackling were allowed. In fact, anything was legal short of manslaughter, and even that's sort of a gray area.

There are no downs, no safeties, no colored cards, and no time limit. First team to score a goal, wins.

Seems simple enough!

For my game rules, I'm mostly using the Mythic Mass Combat rules, but with a few tweaks. First, After each roll, I'll also roll on the Character Action (General) table to see what happens. If an Exceptional result is rolled, I'll use the Character Action (Combat) table instead. If Doubles are rolled (Even for Home team, Odd for Away Team), I'll treat that as a possible injury and roll on the Clash Incapacity table. Any injury (or worse) results in an additional Rout Point for the losing time. First team to score a number of Rout Points equal to the opponent's Power score is said to get the ball to the gal and wins.

I'm going with two English teams, since this mostly took place in England. Harrow is the Home Team while Acton is the Away Team (See what I did there?  Heh heh!). For Descriptors, I'll roll randomly on the Army table that comes with the Mass Combat rules. Then I'll use 1 Page CC for stats.

So let's do that now.

Acton:  Ruthless Problems, Persecute Enemies, Pursue Victory.

- Ruthlessly pressures opponents:  +1

- Treats opponents as mortal enemies:  +1  

- Relentlessly plays to win:  +3

Total Power:  +5.

Harrow:  Ceaseless Large, Start Tired, Large Trust.

- Large number of players:  +3.

- Low stamina:  -1.

- Teamwork:  +3.

Total Power:  +5.

So let's get started.

It was a sunny early morning in the town of Harrow. However, shops were closed, farms were mostly ignored, and the main road through town was empty as carriages parked either in stables or on the side of the road. Instead, a group of people gathered in the center of town. As some of them hung the town flag from a post at the far end of town, the rest stretched and awaited their opponents.

A few minutes later, more carriages and horses appeared, and a number of young men and rushed up, setting up their own post and flag while confronting the people of Harrow.

One young man, with short fiery red hair, got right into the face of the tallest Harrow player. "You Harrs are gonna get hurt today. We're spilling your blood all over the road."

The tall Harrow player's eyes went wide. "Calm down, this is only a game. Remember? We set these up to stay in shape in case we're invaded."

"The only shape you'll be in is a corpse," said the Acton player. "You challenged us, and now you'll pay with your lives."

The two teams positioned themselves on the line at the center of town, and one woman brought out the ball. Standing off to the side, she hurled the ball into the air, and it landed between the teams, who lunged forward for it.

First Clash:

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (50/50)  Yes.

- 1 Rout Point to Acton.

(Action)  "Move," "Careful."

The Acton players charged forward, but the Harrow team surrounded the ball, keeping it safe. They then moved forward like a human wall.

Second Clash:

(Clash)  Does Harrow in the Clash?  (+1 = Likely)  No.

- 1 RP to Harrow.

(Action)  Defiant, Simple.

Several Acton players darted through, using their shoulders to wedge past the wall. Catching the Harrow players by surprise, they snatched the ball.

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (50/50)  X-No.

- 2 RP to Harrow, for 3 total.

(Action) Disrupt, Break.

"Is that all you got, you twigs?" shouted an Acton player as he balled up his fist and smashed the jaw of a Harrow opponent. 

Several other Acton players began brawling with their foes, while two players rushed towards their goal.

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (-2 = Very Unlikely)  No.

(Action)  Helpful, Nice.

- 1 RP to Harrow for -4.

"Yeah, sorry about that," said the lead Acton player with a snicker. Holding the ball under his arm, he ran full speed to his goal. Only a few feet until they won.

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (-3 = Nearly Impossible)  Yes, Possible Injury to Away.

(Action)  Struggle, Frightening.

- 1 RP to Acton for -2.

(Incapacity)  Is the player Incapacitated?  (+3 -2 = +1 or Likely)  X-No.

Collectively roaring like prides of lions, the Harrow players burst forward, knocking the Acton player to the ground and snatching the ball. The player roll aside, avoiding the stampede, but he was clearly shaken.

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (-2 = Very Unlikely)  Yes.

(Action)  Fiercer, Careful.

- 1 RP to Acton for -3.

The tall Harrow player held the ball inside the grip of his enormous arms and dart back to his own goal. Reach his feet, the red headed Acton player chased after him.

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (-1 = Unlikely)  Yes, but barely.

(Action)  Antagonize, Nice.

-1 RP to Acton for -4.

The tall Harrow player dodged and faked his opponents, who fought to steal the ball from him. "So sorry. Strongest apologies. Oops, close one there."

(Clash)  Does Harrow win the Clash?  (50/50)  Yes.

(Action)  Loyal, Pleasures.

Acton reach 5 RP.

Harrow wins!

A dozen Harrow players surrounded their leader as he charged away from his opponents. Several Acton players did their best to break through, but the Harrow formed an impenetrable wall. With a smile on his face, the lead Harrow player ran at top speed and passed the goal line, giving his team the win. 

Spinning around, he hooted and hurled the ball back into the air.

The two teams met again in the center of the town. The lead Acton player got right back into the lead Harrow player's face. For several seconds, the two teams said nothing but exchange glares.

Then the red headed Acton player held out his hand. "Good game, friend."

The tall Harrow player accepted the hand. "Oh good, we're friends now?"

"Of course," said the Acton player, "until next time, anyway." He winked.

With a chuckle, the Harrow players invited their opponents to the tavern, where the two teams drank, laughed, and danced throughout the night.

At least until they tried to kill each other again, next time.

I'm glad the game went back and forth. It could've turned into a one-side slaughter quite easily. Now i'm debating on staying with English teams or going right in with Discworld locations, races, and characters.

 

Look! Monsters! D&D/Mythic Game

 When we last left our heroes, they had arrived, via portal, in a new land. I then put the game aside until I got a few more Mythic magazine issues that would help me with this next part. So let's get right into it.

The first table I'm using is the World Generator, which is used for new worlds. Now normally this is used for planets, dimensions, or other time periods. However, I'm going to make it just another country and continent so it's a little easy for the heroes to get home. I'll still used the Planet category though.

So here goes:

Story Descriptors: Exotic, No other Descriptor.

Region:  Thick with lush plant life, flourishing plants and animals.

Name (Using the Name Generator):  Military, As, On, Th.

I think I'll be interpreting this a little loosely. 

Kithre and her friends walked out of the colorful forest and found themselves at the main entrance to a town. The town had buildings of all kinds of shapes and people walked around wearing clothing of all kinds of colors.

(Q)  Do the colors themselves hold any meaning?  (Likely)  Yes.

(Q)  Are they some kind of social ranking or caste? (Likely)  No.

(Q)  Are the meanings official by town law?  (50/50)  No.

Let's find out a bit about the town itself.

Town Descriptor:  Seat of main government, Friendly Population.

Region Descriptor:  Sleepy and quiet, Unusual color palette. (Well that worked out nicely.)

Name:  Ei, Fah, Dah, Emotion.

As they entered the town, a woman wearing a yellow, white, and purple dress walked up to them. All smiles, she shook their hands. "Welcome to East D'Joy! We're always glad to meet visitors."

"I'm Kithre," said the halfling, "and these are my friends; Ovak, Sutha, and Mitchell. Is there a place we can get supplies and then rest."

The woman pointed. "The inns are all on that street, and we have a variety of shops along this and the two roads down the block."

"Thank you." Kithre looked around. "What's with the different colors?"

"I'm pleased you noticed." The woman beamed. "Each color represents different families, whether by blood or heart. Mixing colors is the way our people show that we welcome everyone, as long as they welcome us."

"Does this land have a name?" Sutha asked.

"Amarinth," the woman replied.

Sutha perked. "Amarinth?" she nodded.

Kithre looked to her. "I don't understand."

"Amarinth is just a few days from here by boat," the orc answered. "We can get home easily."

"Well I'm sure you can find transport home in our harbor," the woman said, "but I do hope you stay a but longer. We're always eager to learn about new people and their homes."

"First," said Kithre, "I want to find an inn and sleep for a bit. We've had a rough couple of days."

Next I'll have our heroes visit a dungeon. I just need a story for one. So that is next.

Dungeon Story:  No one who went in has come out, Source of a mystery.

Region:  Near a body of water, Mossy and fungi.

The next morning, the four sat in a tavern eating breakfast when the woman approached them again.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but I must ask. Are you adventurers?"

"I guess we are." Kithre looked to the rest and they all nodded.

The woman revealed a scroll and handed it to Kithre. "Our jarl asks for your help. The Red Moss Mines are where we get our dyes for all the colors you see in our clothing. Unfortunately, everyone who has gone in has disappeared. The jarl is willing to pay you to investigate as even the help we hired never returned."

Kithre opened the scroll and read it. Then she showed it to her friends. "What do you think?"

"I'm in," said Ovak."

"Me too," Sutha replied.

"These people need help," said Mitchell, "so let's help them."

I had ordered a box of D&D Monster cards, but unfortunately, they didn't come in. I still have the other cards, but since we're in a new land, I'm going to try something else. One of the Mythic Magazines I bought (#34) has a 1 Page Creature Crafter. I'm going to combine that with the Monster Generator in the D&D DMG (Page #274) to create my opponents. Now they might differ from their previous stats (I tested it and ended up with one very strong giant rat), but we're in a new area so it's understandable that creatures and humanoid opponents could differ.

So, getting started, I'm going with another Small dungeon for this session, which makes sense since it is a mining cave. Oh and in case anyone is wondering, I am aware that you normally don't get dyes from a mine. But this is a new land so you never know.

First Location:  

- Object:  Stolen, Crude.

- Expected, Return.

- Location:  Deliberate, Flora.

Entering the cave, the four noticed a large amount of moss in all sizes and colors. A size path disappeared into the darkness.

Kithre approached some moss and stared at it. "Nice trick."

"What do you mean?" Mitchell asked as he reached her side.

"This moss was placed here," the halfling answered. "Someone wanted to avoid suspicion."

"Look at this," said Sutha, pointing to the wall. "Someone ripped moss out of the cracks in the wall."

"And just placed more here instead?" asked Ovak.

Kithre shook her head, touching the colorful moss. "This is all fake, probably kelp or something easier to find. They're stealing the real thing."

Ovak growled. "The people seem nice. If someone stole from them, I'll teach them a lesson."

Sutha nodded. "Agreed. Let's keep looking."

Connector:

- Expected.

The cavern snaked slightly but remained a straightforward path.

PP: +4.

Next Area:

- Encounter:  Mundane, Resource.

- Object:  Impressive, Stylish.

- Encounter:  Clue, Full.

Let's roll on the 1P CC and see what I get for opponents:

Challenge Rating: 1/4.

Descriptors:  Animal, Tail.

Behavior:  Feeding.

(Q)  More than 1?  (Likely)  Yes.

And for the second encounter:

CR:  1/2

Descriptors:  Wormish, Artificial.

Behavior:  Ability:

Ability:  Cold, Constrain.

(Q)  More than 1?  (Likely)  Yes.

Entering the next area, the group saw some rats gnawing on, what looked like, human bones. 

"We may be able to sneak up on them," Sutha said.

"Let me see what I can do," said Kithre. Raising her hands, she whispered a spell.

Kithre is attempting a Sleep spell. Her Casting ability is +6. Since the rats don't notice her yet, they only get their save, +1. There's technically more than one, but the CR is for them combined, kind of like adding 1 for each ally.

(Magic)  Does Kithre succeed?  (+6 vs. +1 = Certain)  Yes.

Moving her fingers, Kithre cast her spell, and the rats rolled over, unconscious.

"Well that was easy," said Mitchell.

"I think we're just getting started," said Ovak, pointing. 

A couple of metal worms unraveled from a column and moved to surround the group. Everyone felt a chill as they neared.

The worms (Let's call them Worm Golems) emit cold from their bodies. 

(Q)  Does the Col increase Damage by +2?  (Likely)  No.

(Q)  Does it cause a character to miss a turn?  (Very Likely)  Yes.

So if the worms brush up against someone, they need to save or miss their next turn. That could hurt, just a bit. Luckily, everyone is involved this time.

(Clash)  Do the heroes win?  (+9 vs. +4 = +5 = Certain)  Yes.

+5 will also be the Damage. Versus +2 AC (12 - the 10 points) means +3 Damage.

The worms suffer -1 RS for the initial attack -1 RS for the 3 pt damage.

"Don't let them touch you!" Kithre launched a magical blast that struck one of the worms while Sutha fired an arrow to help. Ovak and Mitchell doubled teamed the other, hacking and smashing away at it.

(Clash)  Do the heroes win?  (Certain)  No.

Sutha and Mitchell suffer -1 RS.

(Save)  Do they make their Save?  (+3 vs. 0 Diff = Near Certain)  Yes.

Good, so they don't miss their next turn.

Mitchell yelped as one worm struck his side. Sutha jumped back as the other hit her with its tail. Both felt a chill but otherwise were able to continue.

(Clash)  Do the heroes win?  (Certain)  Yes.

This brings the Worms to -3 RS (It would've been -4, but I dropped the damage because half the team got hurt).

(Incapacity)  Are the worms destroyed?  (Certain)  Yes.

Kithre blasted the worm again with her magic, causing it to catch fire and collapse. Ovak leaped to her sister's aid and chopped at the other one, with the help of Mitchell. Surrounding the golem, they bashed and chopped it to pieces.

Standing over it, they shivered, and not just from the cold.

"Are those golems?" Mitchell asked.

Kithre kicked one. "Looks like it. Someone powerful has been through here."

"We're ready," said Ovak, lifting her weapon.

Sutha lifted her bow. "Let's do it!" But then she stumbled.

Mitchell ran to her side, but he too seemed to have trouble moving.

"I tell you what," Kithre said, as she and Ovak helped the other two. "We're close enough to the entrance. Let's get a little rest and compare notes in case more of those things are in this cave."

The others agreed.

Just out of curiosity, I want to see what's next.

Connector:

- Same, with side area.

So another straight path, possibly linking to the first room. Convenient.

For now though, let's allow our heroes to rest and we'll see what happens in our next session.

Unseen Mystery Part 4 - Mythic/Discworld Game

 All right, I was dragging my feet the past two sessions. I'll admit I was more interesting in padding my word count so I could break my record of writing 10,000 words in a single day. BTW, I succeeded!

So let's get this mystery moving. Watch rookies, I mean members, Ibash Urskul and Yugo Thud are now going to question each of the 3 suspects who had also used the lab where Kaylor had been conducting experiments before someone so rudely tried to murder him.

Now I recently received a pdf of Mythic 2e as a gift (Thank you, Tana!), and it contains some great material that adds to my collection from the magazines. This includes several new tables for generating characters. The first is simple titled, 'Character,' is is a catch-all, giving you a quick summary of the person. The second is about Skills, allowing you to learn what the person is good at. And the third is Names, and it helps you name not only characters, but places as well. Plus it's generic enough to be used for any genre. 

Oh, and you're not supposed to take the name results literally, so you'll see a bit of interpretation from me.

But let's bring in the first suspect, shall we? 

(Q)  Are they all Level 2?  (Likely)  Yes.

(Q)  Are they all Human?  (Likely)  Yes, barely.

Character: Crazy, Questioning.

Skills:  Conflict, Ruin.

Name:  Orn, Ar, Occupation, Drah.

Level 2; Do: +1, Think: +3, Talk: +1.

"Your name," said Yugo Thud, as he sat in the chair, eyes locked on the suspect.

The young man, who looked like he worked out a bit, stared right back without blinking. "Homer Sweed. Do you need my parents' name as well?"

"That won't be necessary." Ibash Urskul either failed to notice the young wizard's darcasm or chose to ignore it. "You were signed up to use the lab after Kaylor Wallow, correct?"

"I was signed up for the afternoon," Sweed answered. "Is that a crime?"

"Trying to murder him's the crime," said Yugo.

"What experiment were you working on?" Ibash asked.

(Spell Effect)  What experiment was he working on?  "Self," "Death." (I'm avoiding the obvious interpretation and going with something more loose.

I'm going to have Ibash make a Talk check to see if he can succeed with his questioning. Ibash has Talk +1, but so does Sweed.

(Talk) Does Ibash succeed?  (0 = 50/50)  Yes.

 "I was trying to give myself the ability to see ghosts," Sweed answered. "Necromancy is a tough field, especially combining it with Divination."

"Did you leave anything behind the night before the explosion?" Ibash asked.

Sweed shook his head, "I just had my spell book and bag full of components, none of which could explode. Anything else?"

"Just one last question." Ibash paused for a moment. "what are your thoughts toward Kaylor Wallow"

(Q)Did Sweed even know Kaylor?  (Very Likely)  Yes, Barely.

(Q)  Did he dislike him?  (50/50)  No.

The young wizard shrugedg. "He's in a few of my classes, but we don't hang out. We all have our own projects."

"Were you threatened by his project?" Yugo asked.

"Why, is he trying to talk to the dead too?" Sweed asked, suddenly angry.

"No," assured Ibash, "he's making round thinks float or something."

"Oh," the young wizard said, "then why should I care? I'm going to ace my project no matter what he does?"

"Thank you for your time," said Ibash. "We might have more questions later."

An hour later, they brought in the next student.

Character:  Playful, Cautious.

Skills:  Water, Art.

Name:  Virtue, Orn, Drah, Ess.

"Your name," said Yugo.

"Coran Taist," said the young wizard.

"And what were you researching in the lab?"

"You mean before Kay blew it to pieces?" Coran smirked. "I make ice sculptures."

"That seems like a waste of a wizard's power," said Yugo.

"Oh it's not that easy," said Coran. "First I control the water to make the shake, and then I freeze it in place."

"Actually," said Ibash, "that's quite interesting. Now did you leave anything behind the night before?"

"And let someone steal my work?" Coran shook his head. "I'd never risk my project on that."

"Okay," Ibash thought for a moment. "Were you close with Kaylor Wallow?"

(Q)  Did Coran know Kaylor?  (Very Likely)  Yes, barely.

(Q)  Did he dislike Kaylor?  (50/50)  No.

The young wizard shrugged. "I've seen him around, you know, a face in the classroom, that's about all."

"Thank you," said Ibash. After Coran left, Ibash turned to Yugo. "What do you think?"

(Q)  Is Yugo suspicious?  (Likely)  Yes, Random Event.

(Event)  Object, Create.

(Q)  Did someone find evidence that water was present in the lab?  (Likely)  Yes.

"He claimed he didn't know Mr. Wallow well," said the dwarf, "and yet he referred to him by a nickname, Kay." He then pulled out a piece of paper and looked over it. "And Brigda claimed to finding a puddle of water under one of the shelves."

Ibash frowned. "A fire suppression system?"

Yugo shook his head. "The bucket was blown into the far wall."

The troll considered this. "The boy's experiment from the previous night."

"Possible." The dwarf nodded his head. "I'd think it'd evaporate by then."

"Quite possible," said the troll. "Let's talk to our third suspect."

Character:  Violent, Aggressiveness.

Skills:  Investigate, Communicate.

Name:  Kr, Tor, Fr, Number.

Level 2:  Do:  +2, Think:  +4, Talk:  0.

"Your -"

"Kramer Frunt." The young wizard sat, leaning forward in his chair. "Let's get this over with."

"What kind of experiment were you working on?" Ibash asked.

(Q)  Does Kramer cooperate?  (Very Unlikely)  X-No, Random Event.

(Event)  Distant, Enemies.

(Q)  Is he trying to kill Kaylor?  (50/50)  X-Yes.

 Wow, I thought it was the other guy! Guess I need some spells for Kramer.

(Spells)  Light-Powerful, Mind-Shield, Environment-Emotion, Cold-Restore, Weak-Soul, Poison-Inspect.

I'm going to interpret these to mean:

- Create light.

- Mind shield.

- Cry Baby (Make people around you feel an emotion for 10 seconds)

- Counter Cry Baby (in case someone tries it on him)

- Terror (Level 3 Fear spell)

- Find Poison.

"Why are you even asking me these things?" Kramer asked. "The lab's sign-up sheet was erased."

Yugo sat up straight. "How did you know it was erased?"

The smarter they are, the dumber they are.

Eyes going wide, Kramer leaped out of his seat. Ibash and Yugo immediately stood up, hands falling to their weapons.

Kramer will try and use his Cry Baby spell on the two watchmen (Effect), and they will try to restrain him (also Effect). Kramer has +2 Think but -1 for the second opponent. 

Bash has +2 Do, +1 for Yugo's help.

(Clash)  Does Kramer succeed?  (0 = 50/50)  Yes.

Kramer's Think is +4 vs. Ibash's 0 and Yugo's +2, so it works.

Kramer lifted his hands. "Spilled milk!"

Ibash stopped, dropped his crossbow, and burst into tears. "Oh no, I miss my gramms!"

Yugo covered his face. "I miss mine too!"

The two leaned against each other, sobbing hysterically. Turning on his heels, Kramer burst from the room.

(Q)  Does Kramer run for it?  (No means he goes after Kaylor)  (Likely)  No.

(Q)  Does he have a weapon?  (Very Likely)  Yes, Random Event.

(Event)  Mundane, Move.

I'm interpreting that to mean he was able to get past everyone and reach Kaylor's room without anyone noticing, so a dagger seems like the best weapon.

(Q)  Does the dagger have a +1 enchantment (Likely)  Yes.

(Q)  Is it also poisoned?  (Likely)  No.

You know what?  I'm going to say the +1 Is the poison.

Kramer burst into Kaylor's room to find the other young wizard sitting at his desk. In another chair sat a gray skinned, muscular figure.

"Stop right there, in the name of the watch!" said Bridga Hert.

For a brief moment, Kramer stared. "How many of you are there?"

Before the undead watchman could react, Kramer let loose with his Terror spell.

The Spell is Level 3, so Kramer suffers a -3 when casting it. However, if it hits, it gets a +3 against anyone trying to resist. He also suffers a -1 because, again, he's casting it against 2 people.

(Magic)  Does Kramer successfully cast the spell (50/50)  Yes.

(Magic)  Does Brigda resist the spell?  (+1 Think vs. +6 = Impossible)  No.

(Magic)  Does Kaylor resist the spell?  (+3 Think +3 Danger Sense vs. +6 = 50/50)  Yes, Random.

(Event)  Increase, Progress.

"Boo!" Kramer shouted.

Brigda fell to all fours and cowered behind the bed. "No! Monsters!"

But Kaylor held is ground. "So all along, it was you, you . . . you. Who are you anyway?"

"My name's Kramer." "He held out his dagger. "I can see magic won't work against you. Setting traps don't work. I'll just have to try something, more direct."

"Okay." Kaylor kept his hands by his side. "But first would you tell me why you're doing all this?"

Good question.

(Detail)  Why is Kramer trying to murder Kaylor?  Failure, Stop.

"I messed up my project and now I'm going to flunk Prenk's class," Kramer said. "But if I off one of my classmates, maybe that'll impress the higher ups enough to fast-track me to the top. After all, wizards here just LOVE ambition! Sending you to an early grave will show them I'm definitely high level material. Then I won't even need to pass. why do you think I work out so much? all the higher ups are so out of shape, I could body slam them right off the tower. But I'll start with you."

Kaylor stared at him. "That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my life, and I just sat in Garfnozell's class." He began to pace. "You do realize that I'm low level. Killing me does nothing to get you ahead, not even a little. Not to mention, you really think they'll promote someone who so blatantly and stupidly admits to murder? There's a little word called subtly, you know."

(Q) Did Brigda have time to recover?  (+1 Think vs. -1 RS from the effects = 50/50)  No.

From the corner of his eye, Kaylor noticed Brigda. For an undead, he still whimpered in the corner.

"The watch are So good at their jobs!" Kramer cackled. "Don't you feel safe? I'm stronger. I'm smarter, and I'm much more powerful." He gestured to his dagger. "I also coated this with a little surprise. You wouldn't believe how easy it is to get poison when you're friends with - "

Kaylor rolled his eyes. "Enough with the monologues. Just kill me already."

Kramer grinned. "Gladly." He stepped forward, pointing the blade at his opponent's chest. "Get ready to die."

Kaylor star right at him. "Who am I again?"

Kramer is going to try to stab our hero, while Kaylor will attempt his Forget me So spell. Kaylor has +3 Think. Kramer is attacking melee and his Do is +2.

(Clash)  Does Kaylor win the Clash?  (+1 = Likely)  Yes.

Kramer stopped in his tracks. "Why you're, huh?"

Kaylor ran past him and down the hallway.

(Q)  Did Ibash and Yugo recover yet?  (+2 Do vs. -2 RS from the X result = 50/50)  No.

Kaylor ran back to the room, only to find the other two watchmen still in tears.

"Gramms!" Ibash embraced Yugo who sobbed into his friend's shoulder.

Shutting the door, he locked it behind him. Running over to the two watchmen, he grabbed their shoulders. "Snap out of it! He's coming this way!"

When both men ignored him, he held onto their shoulders. "What are you doing?"

This is a slightly more powerful version of the spell. Instead of making someone forget the caster, it makes them forget what they're doing. It's a Level 1 spell and lasts 10 minutes.

(Magic) Does Kaylor's spell work?  (+3 Think -1 for two targets vs. Level 1 = Likely)  Yes.

Opening their eyes, Ibash and Yugo stood straight up.

"You're right," said Ibash. "Let's stop that guy."

(Q)  Will Kramer go after Kaylor now?  (Very Unlikely)  X-Yes.

Damn, this guy's a psycho!

They turned, hearing a crashing against the door.

"We're not done yet, Wallow!" said Kramer from the other side of the door. "I'll pass my class if I have to turn you all to dust."

"I take back what I said before." Kaylor shook his head. "THAT was the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

Ibash held up his crossbow. "I'm ready."

Yugo held up his staff. "Me too."

But Kaylor held up his hand. "Last time, he turned you into bawling infants. Don't charge ahead."

Ibash glanced over. "What do you have in mind."

Kaylor thought for a moment. "Keep bawling."

The two watchmen looked at each other and then lowered themselves to their knees while pretending to cry. "Gramm Gramm! Why must the good leave us so young!"

There was another banging on the door.

(Q)  Is bashing the door +2 Difficulty?  (Likely)  Yes.

(Do)  Does Kramer succeed in bashing it?  (+2 vs. +2 Diff = 50/50)  Yes.

Slamming his foot into the door, Kramer knocked it loose. Entering the room, he found himself staring at Kaylor while the two watchmen were on their knees, still sobbing away.

"A guys," said Kaylor, "now would be a pretty good time to snap out of it."

This is a Bluff attempt by Kaylor, Ibash, and Yugo. Kaylor has +4 Bluff, with +1 from Ibash having +1 talk. Yugo's talk is 0 so he won't be counted. Kramer's Wit (awareness) is +4. If it works, they'll get to attack Kramer before he can cast another spell.

(Clash)  Does Kaylor bluff Kramer?  (+1 = Likely)  Yes.

Kramer laughed. "I can't believe the best the watch can do is send a bunch of babies to protect you, Wallow." He started forward with his dagger. "I dare you to try that stunt again."

Suddenly, Ibash pointed his crossbow and fired, striking Kramer in the chest. He stumbled back a few steps in shock.

Kramer suffers a -1 RS.

(Q)  Does Kramer run?  (Likely)  No, Random Event.

(Event)  Benefit, Surprise.

(Q)  Is Brigda the surprise?  (Likely)  Yes, Random Event.

(Event)  Goals, NPC.

(Q)  Is the NPC Brigda?  (50/50)  Yes.

(Q)  Does he get a surprise bonus?  (Likely)  No.

As Kramer backed to the doorway, he failed to see the gray-skinned person behind him.

This will be a one on one Clash between Brigda and Kramer. Both will use Do, though Kramer has a -1 RS from his injury.

(Clash)  Does Brigda win the Clash?  (+1 = Likely)  No.

Brigda lunged forward but Kramer dodged him. "Nice try, but you smell like Professor Grant's funeral."

But he forgot about Kaylor, who used his Levitate spell to pick up a vase and hurled it at the insane young wizard's head. Ibash, meanwhile, armed another bolt and fired his crossbow, and Yugo swung his staff at the young man's chest.

Kaylor has +3 Magic, +1 for Ibash, and another +1 for Yugo (who is attacking now instead of bluffing), versus Kramer's +4 Magic, -1 RS.

(Clash)  Do the heroes win the Clash? (+1 = Likely)  Yes.

Another -1 RS, but versus the combined attack, I'm making it a total of -3 RS.

(Incapacity)  Is Kramer Incapacitated?  (+4 vs. -3 = Certain)  Yes.

The vase slammed into Kramer's head. He stumbled, but then Yugo's staff struck his chest and he fell down. Just as he raised his head, Ibash's bolt caught him in the throat and he fell to the ground.

Just them Professor Prenk ran in. "My word! What happened?"

"We found out who was after me," said Kaylor, as the watchmen got to their feet. "Turned out his was failing your class and thought dropping me would gain him some favor."

"That's the stupidest thing I've heard," said the professor, "and I've sat in on Garfnozell's lectures." He then whispered to Kaylor. "But you didn't hear that from me."

Kaylor shrugged. "Heard what."

As Prenk leaned over the fallen Kramer, he shook his head. "Will he be all right?"

Yugo leaned over the body and felt for a pulse. "Doubt it."

"We'll take things from here," said Ibash.

"Good, good." Prenk led Kaylor out of the room. "I'm so sorry you had to go through with this, especially since you have a ways to go in your career at this university.. However, you proved yourself quite adept at surviving so I'll make a note of that when I grade your assignment."

"Thanks," said Kaylor, "but I would like to continue. I was having a lot of fun, until, you know."

Nodding, the professor smiled. "I'll see if I can get you into another lab. Just make sure you keep your belongings with you next time."

"I will," Kaylor turned to go back to his room.

"And I'm going to make a school-wide announcement," said Prenk. "No attempting to remove your classmates. That will gain you no advantages." He then lowered his voice. "Not this lower levels anyway.

 So that ends that game, and I finally have an ending to my mystery. But the stories don't end there, especially with Discworld have over 40 books. I'm sure I can come up with a few more games here and there. Plus I wouldn't mind expanding on the adventures of Ibash, Yugo, and Brigda.

Until next time . . .

 

Unseen Mystery Part 3 - Mythic/Discworld Game

 Yep, I'm up to Part 3, and the mystery is just getting started. I think it's time to bring in some investigators and see if any clues can be found. I still have no idea who is trying to take out Kaylor. Okay, I have a few ideas, but I still want to see where the story takes me.

Waking up in the morning, a few days later, Kaylor found a note under his door. When his danger sense didn't go off, he picked up the note and read it."See Professor Prenk at 11 A.M. this morning." 

After eating breakfast in his room, Kaylor walked cautiously down the hallway and between each of the buildings. Once he reached the professor's office, he knocked and when prompted, entered.

"Ah, young Kaylor!" Prenk smiled and gestured. "Please come in and take a seat." 

The two sat before the fireplace and Prenk offered his student a cup of coffee. "How are you feeling?"

"More confused than anything else," Kaylor answered. "I don't understand what's going on, and I'm quickly thinking it's not a bunch of accidents."

"As am I," said the professor," which is why I called in some outside help."

"Outside help?" Kaylor asked. "From where?"

"The City Watch," Prenk answered. "I figured they have seen their share of horrific acts. Perhaps they can shed some light on the situation."

"What time will they be here?"

"Oh they arrived earlier morning." Prenk took a drink of his coffee. "They've spent the last couple of hours investigating both your laboratory and the auditorium."

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door.

"Please," said the professor, "come in!"

The door opened and two very different individuals entered. The first was a troll. Having to duck his head and bend his legs to crouch as he walked through the doorway, he had skin that resembled red stone. Wearing loose-fitting pants (No idea where he had those made!) and a vest, he also had a crossbow the size of a person slung on his back.

The other was a short figure with green skin. He had wide shoulders and muscles under his hide clothing. He also had an under-bite that extended far past his wide face. A staff was attached to his back, but he walked with his hands together as his eyes wandered the room.

"Good morning," said the troll. "I am Lance Constable Ibash Urskul, and this is my associate, Lance Constable Yugo Thudd."

Finally!

I created these two characters for a game years ago because I had a bunch of miniatures from Mage Knight and I wanted to use them. The only reason I didn't was because I couldn't figure out how to create quick stats for opponents. TWERPS (the game I was playing at the time) didn't really have any fantasy rules. For a while, I used Two Hour Wargames and their fantasy rules, but by then I forgot all about these two characters. Now, with my Mythic game in the Discworld universe, I have my chance.

Here are their stats:

Ibash Urskul:  Troll Level 1 Watchman.

Do: +2, Think: 0, Talk: +1.

Weapon:  Giant Crossbow, fist.

Yugo Thudd:  Hybrid Dwarf/Goblin  Level 1 Watchman.

Do:  +1, Think: +2, Talk:  0.

Weapon:  Staff.

Prenk frowned. "Lance Constables, you say? So in other words, you are trainees, Mr. - ?"

"Please," said the troll, "you may call us Ibash and Yugo. And yes we're rookies." His smile disappeared. "The watch chose us to do this."

"They didn't want to waste manpower since you wizards kill each other all the time anyway," said Yugo. 

Ibash patted his friend's shoulder. "Don't worry though, we're good at our jobs."

Prenk looked to Kaylor, who shrugged. "Well then, I'm Professor Johann Prenk, and this is my student and the unfortunate victim of both instances, Kaylor Wallow. Why don't we get started."

"Good, good." The two watchmen approached the seats. Yugo jumped into one chair that was across from the others. Ibash looked at the other chair, and after considering his own body shape, chose to sit on the floor. "Now we've gone over the auditorium - "

"Before you start," said the professor, "and I mean no offense by this, but you seem quite articulate for a troll."

Ibash smiled. "Thank you. I spent a good time learning your speak, though it not perfect." He sighed at his own words. "Anyways, we studied the rubble in the auditorium."

"Did someone cut it?" Kaylor asked.P

(Q)  Did someone cut it?  (Likely)  Yes.

(Q)  Was it cut by a known tool or weapon?  (Likely)  Yes, Random Event.

(Event)  "NPC," "Obstacle."

 Ibash nodded. "It looked like it was cut by some kind of tool. It seemed like a good cut. But we had to stop because the teacher there yelled at us for making a mess, even though the mess was already there."

"Could you tell who exactly was the target?" Prenk asked.

"The beam seemed to be aimed for your seat." Ibash pointed to Kaylor." It's a little hard to tell because it fell from the loft above the balcony. Was anyone sitting next to you?"

Kaylor shook his head. "We kind of spread out, giving each other an open seat or two unless we're good friends."

"Which means you weren't friends with any of them," said Yugo.

"I haven't really made any," answered Kaylor. "Wizards here prefer to keep to themselves."

"Unless you're killing each other," said Yugo. "I read you wizards do that a lot."

"Well, the danger does exist for the upper ranks of wizards," Prenk responded. "However, young Mr. Wallow here is merely a Level 3 wizard, and just recently that."

"So other students wouldn't want to off him and take his place?" the dwarf/goblin asked.

Kaylor shook his head. "I'm not a threat to anyone. If someone wants to move up, I have no effect on it, even if I was killed."

Yugo grunted. "What about that rule that a student passes if his friend dies?"

"I'm afraid that's an urban legend," said Prenk. "Anyway, the full story is it would apply only to roommates, and Kaylor has his own room."

Yugo narrowed his eyes. "What if someone wanted your room?"

Kaylor scoffed. "Doubt it, especially with nicer rooms right down the hall."

There was a knock on the door.

Prenk looked up. "I wonder who that may be."

Ibash brightened. "The other member of our team. Come in, Brigda!"

The door opened and another large individual entered. while he was shorter than his troll associate, he was quite muscular. Also, his skin was very, Very gray. He was bald, but with the hint of facial hair, and he wore a cloak that was an even darker shade of gray than his skin.

As the individual sat in the chair beside him, Ibash gestured to the man. "This is Lance Constable Brigda Hert."

Brigda Hert:  Zombie Level 1 Watchman.

Do:  +2, Think:  +1.

Weapon:  Hands, feet.

Prenk studied the new figure. "Please pardon my ignorance, especially if I accidentally offend you, but are you a zombie?"

Brigda didn't even flinch. "Of course. You said in your report to the watch that the room was filled with poison. We couldn't risk a living person going in there."

"So it was poison," said Prenk.

(Q)  Does Brigda know the chemical that was involved?  (Likely)  No.

Brigda nodded. He handed some bags to Yugo. "You can study these." He then turned back to the two wizards. "I don't know the name of the chemical yet, but it combusts under direct heat, which was caused the explosion. The explosion then turned the chemical into powder and sent it into the air, filling the room."

"Is it deadly?" Kaylor asked.

(Ability)  Could Brigda tell if it was deadly?  (+1 Think vs. +2 Diff = Unlikely)  Yes, but barely.

"By studying the chemical itself, I can't say," Brigda responded. "But judging how, according to the report, you reacted to it, combined with the later attack in the auditorium, I would guess yes."

"Before we go further," said Ibash, "I have some questions for you." He pulled out a small notebook and opened. Then he looked to Kaylor. "Were you performing some experiment that's forbidden or ancient, or something?"

"No," answered Kaylor. "I was levitating spheres and bouncing lights from lanterns on them."

"Would anyone wish for your experiment to fail?" the troll asked.

Kaylor again shook his head. "Nobody even cared. Everyone else is summoning creatures or trying to turn dirt into gold or something. Most people focused their experiments purely on magic while I used magic as a tool."

"Which is why I approved his project," said the professor. "I applaud outside the box thinking, and Mr. Wallow's studies fell exactly into that area."

"I understand," said Ibash, "I'm just covering each possibility." He glanced back down. "Would anyone be hiding anything in the lab and try to off you to get it back, or to keep you from finding it? Also would anyone think you were hoarding the lab?"

Again, the young wizard shook his head. "A lot of people use the lab. There's even a sign up sheet. If someone was wanting to go in there, they just had to wait until I was done. My lab time was always the average 3 or 4 hours a day."

"Do you have this sign up sheet?" Ibash asked.

"I might." Brigda looked through his sack that lay beside him. "let's see, debris, pieces of the student's notes, my underwear. Oops." He quickly closed his bag, and then peeked again. "Here it is." He handed it to Ibash."

(Q)  Did any other student have a name on the sign-up sheet?  (Likely)  X-No.

The troll frowned. "I'm afraid the only name on the sheet is Kaylor Wallow, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 10 A.M. to 2 P.M."

"Were the other names erased?" Kaylor asked.

"Good question." Ibash handed the paper to Yugo. "What do you think?"

(Q)  Is the Difficulty +1?  (50/50)  Yes.

(Ability)  Could Yugo tell if names were erased?  (+2 vs. +1 Diff = Likely)  X-Yes.

(Q)  Were the names erased?  (50/50)  Yes.

Yugo studied the paper. Then he pulled out a paper of his own and place it under the sheet. finally, he placed a third over the sheet. Scribbling on the top paper, he revealed the bottom paper with faint names appearing on it. "A trick I learned from someone at the watch house."

(Q)  Is there more than one other name?  (Very Likely)  X-Yes.

(Q)  Are they all before Kaylor's name?  (50/50)  X-No.

"There are 3 other names on this list," said Yugo. "the first was at 2, the second at 5, and the third at 9." 

"When did the explosion take place again?" asked Ibash.

"Around one-ish," Kaylor answered.

The troll nodded. "So if they really wanted the room, they just had to wait an hour or less." He turned to Prenk. "I want to speak with the students on that list as soon as possible."

"Of course," said Prenk, "but I insist on being present."

"Until then," said Ibash, turning to Kaylor, "I think you should remain in your room. Brigda will go along for your safety."

Kaylor nodded, standing. He looked to Brigda. "Let's go, I guess."

Brigda nodded. "After you, young wizard."

Unseen Mystery Part 2 - Mythic/Discworld game

 I decided to split my Unseen Mystery  - Mythic/Discworld game and its current session as it was getting rather long. Also, I'm trying to break my record by writing ten thousand words in a single day, and this makes it easier to count. So this session is part of two goals: Find out who is after pour Kaylor and reaching 10k by 9 A.M. 

The next morning, Kaylor stopped by Professor Prenk's office. The professor was sitting at a table, eating breakfast while reading reports from his many students. as he saw his student, he smiled. "Mr. Wallow, a good morning to you. Please, have a seat."

"Morning." Kaylor took a seat at the table.

"Are you hungry?" The professor waved a hand over the various foods before them. "I've got more than enough."

Kaylor shook his head. "Thanks, but I already ate."

Prenk nodded. "Well I'm glad you are eating. How are you feeling?"

"My head's still ringing," the young wizard answered, "but otherwise I'm okay. Did you find out what happened?"

(Q)  Has anyone investigated the room yet?  (Likely)  No.

"Not yet." Prenk took a drink from his cup. "I ordered the room sealed until we knew more, especially after seeing your reaction and being told you had inhaled some of a dangerous gas." I chewed some of his food and then looked up. "Actually, I was hoping you could enlighten me as to what happen, from your perspective, of course."

Kaylor shrugged. "I was working on my study of spheres, like I mentioned to you when getting your approval."

"And what magic exactly did you cast on these spheres?" the professor asked.

"All I did was levitate them," Kaylor answered. "Then I shined a light on them to see how the light reacted." He shrugged. "It's not like I mixed a bunch of chemicals or anything. I was just studying inanimate objects."

"But the last one that exploded," Prenk set down his fork and set his complete attention on his student, do you remember which of your spheres that it was?"

"The mirror sphere," Kaylor said. "I was studying where it reflected light and the different angles it struck the walls and ceiling when, well, Boom."

"Boom, indeed." The aging professor leaned back in his seat. "This is a most unusual occurrence."  

"I have a question." Kaylor leaned forward. "This isn't one of your special little exams, is it?"

(Q)  Was this one of Professor Prenk's surprise exams?  (50/50)  X-No.

The question actually brought out a chuckle from the professor. "Ha ha! You really thought it was one of my . . . ha ha! Oh my goodness, I can assure you, young Mr. Wallow, no. Absolutely not." He thought back, with his eyes briefly roaming to the ceiling. "All right, I'll admit that I have thrown quite a few, unexpected tests in your direction because I found you are one of those who learn best that way, not to mention my own amusement as I observe how you tackle each obstacle."

The professor suddenly grew serious. "However, in complete honesty, I can assure you that I would first not interrupt an actual experiment to spring a surprise exam on you. and second, I would not directly place any of my students in the path of critical harm. My students may walk away from my exams with bruises and the faintest hints of psychological trauma, but they still walk away." His eyes fell to the table. "Well, most of them anyways. But to answer your question. no I had nothing to do with it."

Kaylor sighed. "So then next question. How do I continue my experiment then? The due date, your own due date, isn't too far away."

Prenk nodded. "For the time being, I am choosing to place your experiment on hold. That means I will also postpone your due date until we know more information." He then turned a piece of paper around and passed it to his student. "Until then, I have scheduled for you to attend classes. In the worst case of scenarios where you are unable to complete your studies with the spheres, I will count your classwork toward your final grade."

Picking up the paper, Kaylor frowned. "Okay, but I was really enjoying what I was working on."

"Oh you're not done with it," his professor reassured him. "Simply consider it on pause for the time being. Now off with you. I believe your class with Professor Garfnozell begins in an hour."

So that was my opening scene, with Kaylor taking a break to attend classes. Will he be safe? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

But first, let's see what exactly this Professor Garfnozell teaches. I'm going to use the Spell Effects table for this one.

(Detail)  What does Professor Garfnozell teach?  "Information," "Inspect."

Before attending class, I want to have Kaylor cast his Danger Sense spell, just in case.

(Magic)  Does the spell work?  (+4 vs. 0 spell lvl = Certain)  X-Yes.

An hour later, Kaylor sat in the auditorium with a number of other students for Professor Garfnozell's lecture on Linking Magic to Language. He sat in the back, where he preferred to sit. However, since both sides of the auditorium were filled, he sat in the middle row. Also, he went with Professor Prenk's suggestion to wear his wizard robes rather than his street clothing so he'd blend in better. After all, Garfnozell was kind enough to allow another student into his class, so the least Kaylor could do was cooperate and follow the dress code.

(Detail)  Please tell me about Professor Garfnozell.  "Expensive," "Stocky."

(Detail)  What else?  "Careless," "Mocking."

(Detail)  What is he doing during the lecture?  "Betray," "Excited."

For the record, I want something to happen in this scene, but I'm just not sure what. While I'm writing, I'll figure out how to trigger a random event.

Professor Garfnozell with his wizard robe covered with trinkets seemingly from all over the disc, paced back and forth on the stage. As he reached one end of the stage and turned, his belly paused before hurrying to catch up with the rest.

On the board behind him was a list of various place on the disc and their languages. Picking up a longer than usual wand, he pointed to the board. "This brings us to the tiny island of Raugu, a relic of a previous age. And yet this small patch of land, while falling below the attentions of the common eye, an yours as well, houses a genuine secret."

He lifted a necklace for the students to view. And then he pointed to pictures of several runes on the board. "And who can identify the runic designs that also appear on the stones that I current wear."

Several hands went up.

(Detail)  What do they represent?  "Self," "Illusion."

But Garfnozell didn't even look up. "I highly doubt it." When the hands fell, he continued. "These represent the belief of the Raugi, and yes that what how you refer to the previous inhabitants of that island. Not Rauguans, not Raugians, and certainly not the Raug." He glared at someone in the front row, who lowered his or her head from view. "You refer to them as the Raugi. Now before I was so rudely interrupted - "

Kaylor smirked. Nobody had actually interrupted the professor. In fact, those around him seemed to really want to learn what he was teaching. Too bad Garfnozell was so full of himself, he spent more time trying to boost his own ego than to teach his students. Kaylor hated instructors like that, but he needed the grade until he could return to his studies at the lab, so he stayed quiet and tried to take notes.

"The Raugi," the professor continued, "believed that that which we call the self does not in fact actually exist." Reaching the front row, he pinched a student's arm, and the student jumped. "They claimed that this, the flesh, is merely an illusion." He returned to the stage, wiping his fingers on his robe. "And that in reality, well in their reality, we are but collections of countless collections of consciousness. The actual term they use, in their language, was Sabbheek Yhen. Could anyone tell me what that means?"

(Q)  Did anyone know the answer?  (50/50)  No.

When nobody raised a hand, he smirked. "I didn't think so. In our language, it means, 'All Are One.' Or to put in terms that the lot of you would understand, they believed not in one person or group being better than another, but everyone as equals. After all, anyone, according to them, right the right mindset and training could touch the powers beyond and achieve greatness."

He snorted. "A feeble notion at best. However they did learn to harness magic by focusing their energies into the runes, which acted as their own spell books, which they could easily carry around with them." He smiled. "I spent many a year on that island, and I would be misrepresenting myself as all too humble if I kept to myself that I learned much of their mystical language."

He then pointed to the next line on the board. "Now who can identify this next line?"

(Q)  Does anyone identify it?  (50/50)  No, Random Event.

(Event)  "Start," "Conflict."

Hmm, I could use one more word:  "Move."

Got it!

When no hands were raised, he grinned. "Well at least I know of one who would pass this class. Now this next line refers to - "

Suddenly, the top of Kaylor's head pounded. Looking straight up, he saw a large object falling right at him.

(Q)  Is the object's Difficulty +2?  (Likely)  No.

(Ability)  Does Kaylor avoid the object?  (+3 for Danger Sense vs. +1 Difficulty = Very Likely)  Yes, but barely.

"Look out!" Kaylor shouted, spreading his hands in both directions.

Leaping over the chairs, he cleared them just as the object crashed behind him, sending him tumbling between the seats. As he got back to his feet, he saw a large piece of a girder where he had just recently sat.

(Q)  Was anyone hurt?  (50/50)  No.

Several other students got to their feet. They all seemed shaken but unharmed. 

"What in the devil?" Professor Garfnozell ran up the aisle. "Young man, I have seen more than my share of excuses to cut my lectures short, but this -"

"It wasn't his fault," said a student next to him. She pointed upward. "It just fell, like it broke off or something."

(Q)  Did the piece of girder really break off on its own?  (Unlikely)  No.

Wrapping his robe around his trinkets to protect the, the professor examined the piece of rubble. "Not broken, obviously." He pointed. "These lines are too smooth for an act of nature of negligence." He looked up, and for the first time since Kaylor had known him, the professor lost his aura of excessive confidence. "This was broken by outside action." His expression turned even more grim. "It was deliberate."

So that scene ends with another attempt on Kaylor's life. The mystery continues.

Unseen Mystery - Mythic/Discworld Game

 This Mythic game is based on a dream I had about a month ago. I had been reading the Discworld books (mainly Guards Guards and Thief of Time) and watching the movies (The Color of Magic and Hogfather). I also had just created my first Discworld character; a human wizard in training named Kaylor (The name came from the word Lore (I love to read, and as such, so does he), and I just added a few letters at the beginning while dropping the 'e' at the end.

That night I had a dream that I was a young wizard, leaning my craft while running an experiment at the Unseen University. Suddenly I realized someone was trying to kill me. Now at the higher levels, wizardry at the Unseen University is definitely cutthroat (literally), but I was pretty low level, like 3 or 4, so I was neither a threat to anyone nor an opportunity. A mystery was thus born, and I felt the best way to solve it was by making it a game session.

Now Mythic has some excellent rules for running a Mystery Game. However, I'm going to keep this pretty free form by just writing the story while make rolls when necessary. In the past, I've had stories develop on their own this way. But this time the dice will be helping, though I don't know yet if it'll be in a small or large way. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

But first, I ended the previous session with Kaylor reaching Level 3, so I'm going to update his stats. He gains 2 more Ability points, so I'm going to go with 1 in Think and 1 in Talk. In addition, I'm converting latter to 3 Skill Points and placing them all in Question. After all, he's a student, so research is his area.

His current stats are:

Abilities:  Do:  0, Think:  +4,  Talk:  0

Skills:  Bluff:  +3, Question:  +3.

Spells:  

1.  Levitate (Lvl 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Lift an object up to 50 lbs. and manipulate it. Lasts 10 minutes.

2.  Danger Sense (Lvl 0, takes 10 minutes to cast):  An alarm in the caster's head warns him of immediate danger.   +3 to any Defensive rolls (physical or magical). Lasts for 4 hours or until Doubles are rolled out side of Fate Questions.

3.  Helping Hand (Lvl 0, Takes 10 seconds to cast):  A spectral hand appears and answers basic questions, including yes or no, and pointing out directions. On any roll of Doubles, the hand responds sarcastically instead. Lasts 10 minutes.

4.  Forget me so (Lvl 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Target forgets about caster's presence. If applied by touch, it lasts 10 minutes. If applied from a distance (up to 6 feet), it lasts 30 seconds.

5.  Staff Strike (Lvl 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Causes a staff, wand, or similar object to launch a magical blast of energy at one or more targets for +1 Damage. Lasts 10 minutes and requires a staff, wand, or similar object (Kaylor uses a club).

6.  Lock/Unlock (Lvl 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Locks a door, pocket, or similar object. Anyone attempting to break the lock magically must roll versus the caster's lvl. All others suffer a +3 to Difficulty. Lasts 10 minutes.Unlocking is immediate but only requires a roll versus the lock itself (or caster if magical).

Items:  Kaylor wears normal clothing, including a jacket and carrying a backpack (when outside the university). He also found a large tree branch that somehow is strong enough to cause physical harm if it strikes someone. He got it modified into a slender club that he walks around with like a cane or exploration stick (for finding and nudging traps). The club provides a +1 Damage in melee combat and +1 in ranged combat when he casts Staff Strike.

New Spells:

Upon leveling up to Level 3, Kaylor gains 3 new spells, with 1 of them being at random. I'll roll it now, using the spell Effects table.

"Life," "Trap."  I'm interpreting this to mean he can find and disarm traps to protect himself and anyone around him (thus bringing or rather protecting life).

So his new spells are:

7.  Disarm (Level 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Disarms a nearby trap. Works instantly.

8.  Dictate (Lvl 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Modifies Helping Hand to also write on a surface, such as a notebook, normal book, or scroll. Lasts 10 minutes.

9.  Tell a Roam (Lvl 0, takes 10 seconds to cast):  Allows caster to communicate with someone up to 100 miles away. Lasts 10 minutes. Range can be extended by raising the Spell lvl. Lvl 1 = 150 Miles. Lvl 2 = 200 miles. Lvl 3 = 400 miles. Lvl 4 = 800 miles.

And now, the adventure.

A year later, Kaylor stood alone in the laboratory, working on his experiment for class. Professor Prenk, still acting as the young man's mentor, allowed him the freedom of performing these experiments in place of class work. Also, Kaylor worked under relief knowing Prenk merely monitored his progress, rather than springing a surprise 'exam' on him again.

Before starting, he cast his Danger Sense spell, just in case.

(Magic)  Does the spell work?  (+4 vs. 0 Spell Lvl = Certain)  X-Yes.

He managed to cast the spell much more successfully than usual and was relieved to learn it would last for 6 hours instead of the usual 4. With that in mind, he got to work.

Lately, Kaylor had become fascinated with spheres. Maybe it was because his world was flat but others existed that weren't and therefore followed different rules of physics. Or maybe it was just that the 3 dimensional round shape had some rather interesting effects on math, particularly measurements.

In a box on the desk were a bunch of spheres of various sizes, all cheaply made from cardboard, paper, or clay. He levitated it into the air.

(Magic)  Does the spell work?  (+4 vs. 0 spell lvl = Certain)  Yes.

As it floated in the air, he extinguished the wall torch and picked up a hand lantern and closed the focusing lid so that a narrow circle of light shined on the floating sphere. Moving the lantern up, down, left, and right, he found the light shone around the sphere and struck the far wall, creating a round shadow. However, the shadow, he learned, was much bigger than the sphere.

Not wanting to forget his results, he cast a Dictate spell and pointed to his notebook which rested on the desk.

(Magic)  Does the spell work?  (+4 vs. 0 spell lvl = Certain)  Yes.

The spectral hand appeared with a feather pen and floated above the notebook. As Kaylor spoke, it wrote his words into the notebook. Picking up a yardstick, he placed it between the sphere and the wall and measured the distance. He then approached the wall and measured the size of the sphere. As the spectral hand dictated his words, he grabbed a nearby scroll and made calculations for how the distance and the size of the shadow related.  

After a few minutes, he picked up a different sized sphere and predicted the results before levitating it up in the air.

(Magic)  Did the spell work?  (+4 vs. 0 spell lvl = Certain)  Yes.

This sphere, made of clay, was twice the size of the previous, and so he performed similar experiments with it. For several more minutes, he ran these experiments, making calculations and using his Dictate spell to take notes.

Dropping (CAREFULLY, it's made of clay, remember?) it into the box, he searched through and found his Mirror Sphere. This was basically a ball with its outer edges composed of a reflective surface so it resembles both a ball and a 3 dimensional mirror. Wizards used often mirror spheres as spell components, but Kaylor had something else in mind. 

Casting Levitate again, he lifted it into the air.

(Magic)  Does the spell work?  (+4 vs. 0 spell lvl = Certain)  Yes, Random Event.

(Event)  "Break," "Harm."

(I'll admit, I deliberately kept making the rolls hoping to trigger the random event and seeing what would happen. That one is perfect!)

Shining the light at it, he found the light struck the ceiling at a 90 degree angle. He then shifted slightly downwards and noted how the angle changed. Slowly, he continued to move in a variety of directions, with the light shifting from the ceiling to one wall or another. Reaching forward, he then spun the sphere in place and stepped back to see if it had any affect on how the angle of the light - 

The alarm in his head suddenly went off! 

It felt like a sudden hangover, right in his face, and reflexively, he threw a magical field up.

The sphere exploded, sending shards of glass in every direction. The shards struck the box of spheres, sending it flying off the table, but luckily, they bounced off Kaylor's magical shield.

(Description)  What is the explosion like?  "Fragrant," "Rotten."

I'm going to play off the 'Harm' part from earlier.

Suddenly, Kaylor's eyes began to water, and he started coughing. A dark green noxious gas spread from the explosion and suddenly filled the room, rolling over the magical shield and seeking out the vulnerable young wizard.

Kaylor needs to get out of the room. I'll make it a Reflex (Do) roll. Fortunately, he gets +3 for his Danger Sense spell. Since someone is trying to kill him, I'll raise the difficulty just a bit.

(Q)  Is the Difficulty +2?  (Likely) Yes.

(Ability)  Does Kaylor escape the room?  (+3 vs. +2 Difficulty = Likely)  No.

-1 RS. If he hits -3, well let's just say it's bad. VERY bad.

Kaylor stumbled back, but he missed the doorway and fell against the wall. Losing his balance, he collapsed to one knee. The screaming in his head forced him backwards, but he couldn't focus.

(Ability)  Does Kaylor escape the room?  (+3 -1 RS vs. +2 Difficulty = 50/50)  Yes.

Head pounding until he thought it explode, Kaylor forced himself to his feet. He felt as though a voice shrieked inside, "TO THE LEFT! LEFT! LEFT!"

Finally reaching the doorway, he hurled himself backward, slamming the door shut. Luckily, the window on the door remained intact and one of the gas escaped.

Falling to a sitting position on the floor, Kaylor began coughing uncontrollably. Removing his coat, he wiped anything residual on his face, as well as any remaining tears from his eyes. After a few minutes, he could see again, and the coughing started to go away.

Kaylor was then aware of others around him, and he looked up to see a number of students and professors gathering around. Most tried to look through the window and into the room as the professors cautioned the students not to open the door.

Professor Prenk then appeared and stopped beside the young wizard. "Kaylor, are you okay?"

Kaylor weakly nodded.

The professor glanced at the closed door then back at him. "What happened?"

The younger man shook his head. "I don't know. I was levitating spheres for my experiment when one of them exploded."

"Bizarre." The professor helped Kaylor to his feet. "Let's get you looked at and then we'll get to the bottom of this." He looked back. "Lock that door until I return. I want to know Exactly what happened."

And so Kaylor survived his ordeal, though barely. Next, we need to find out what said ordeal really was. Once again, I'll be mixing narrative with rolls here and there where I see fit. I don't know if this is the same as RPG Journaling (I'll have to research that), but I figure it's the easiest way to play this sort of game.

Oh and BTW, I also deliberately wrote out at great length about his experiments so that they would possibly be boring to those uninterested in spheres. That way the sudden explosion would be more of a shock. That and, I'll admit I personally find spheres interesting, which is why I had Kaylor studying them.