Myth and History GM notes

I talked a little about my Servants of Gaius campaign last week and want to continue with some notes from behind the GM screen. I must warn you, these are far from pretty. There is a good reason we hire artists to do our interior map work. But the maps below show how I plan things like background details and travel.

As I mentioned in my last post, Rome is at war with a ressurected Cleopatra and Mark Antony. This had been building for a while in my personal Servants of Gaius setting and so the prefect of Aegyptus had ammassed legions and allies to break away from the empire. Personally I like to have procedures for this sort of thing, so it doesn't become a matter of me as GM decreeing all the real world events (I just find this makes for a more live and surprising setting). So I used the abstract mass combat system from the Servants of Gaius rule book (adding a small rule for levying troops) and began to chart from month to month the progress of the conflict:

Again, this isn't pretty. But it marks the location of Rome's legions and Cleopatra's legions (as well as her allies in Mauretania). It is quite rough, but does the job for me. Presently Rome is winning but they are taking losses in the process and their biggest concern is the stability of the northern legions along the Rhine (where there are rumors of Neptune activity).

The PCs spent some time in Tarraconensis (in Tarraco) so I made a small map of that as well knowing they would probably investigate local businesses and personalities. They did manage to find the Cult of Sertorius at a local wine shop called the Golden Fawn (I also included some brief notes about major political personalities, and had a few off page notes in my NPC and power group chart):

This one was very rough as well but it had the major points of interest I needed (plus I had a city entry in my notes with population, exports, etc). These are just highlights of course. In addition to these details I had other stuff mapped out, like a small Iberian village where the cult was active, a cave used for their mystery rites and similar details.

Here is the GM map of Thule. Not as pretty as the handout. For foliage I just scribbled green inside a dark border. On it you can see the colony of Heca, a couple of minor villages that arose nearby, and the Amazian city of Forbad. There is also a small encounter chart for when the players failed their Survival rolls:

Myths and History in Servants of Gaius

Servants of Gaius can handle just about anything in my opinion. The game was designed with investigations, mysteries and adventures in mind, but in terms of tone and genre it can support a broad range. We didn't write it to be strictly one kind of setting. It isn't Ravenloft in Imperial Rome for example. Certainly a GM could run it as a horror game, but that wasn't our intent, the intent was to deliver a deeply Roman setting but leave the final mystery of Neptune in the hands of the Gamemaster. But the way I run Servants of Gaius is very specific. I commit to Roman ideas about history and reality, using those as the foundation of my adventures.

I like to have a strong mix of the fantastic and mythical. In the past I took a more realistic approach to historical settings (particularly Ancient Rome), treating them with the seriousness I felt they deserved. But over time I started to lighten-up a bit and learned that mixing myth with history pays dividends in the end. 

Above is a map from my Servants of Gaius campaign and illustrates how myth can blend with history. This is the legendary Island of Thule. I took certain liberties with it and figured out a way to tie it to a growing conflict (in my own setting) between Rome and a recently ressurected Antony and Cleopatra.

The players were sent on a mission by Caligula to recover "The Skull of Antaeus" a magical artifact that grants the wielder power over sea and land. Antaeus was a giant, the son of Poseiden and Gaia. According to legend he was buried in Mauretania, and his tomb was located by Quintus Sertorius (a Roman General and proconsul of Hispania who tried to break from Rome during the reign of Sulla). The details of the adventure are pretty extensive, but they revolved around locating the Skull which had been moved from Mauretania by Sertorius to the Island of Thule. In Thule Sertorius set up a small colony to keep and protect the skull while he continued his campaign in Hispania. In 73 BC Sertorius was assassinated, and a small cult of Iberians formed around his memory (he was popular and nearly revered by them in life). A mystery cult, their final secret was a route to Thule.

To make Thule a bit more interesting (and to explain why it eluded navigators for so long) I decided it was a floating island that moved on a somewhat regular pattern (above map). I then decided that Sertorius's colony (Heca) was a small pinpoint of Roman civilization surrounded by hostile Blemmyae and a lamia or two (not to mention an aggressive race of dwarven hunters). But even Heca had its problems. In 30 BC or so, a group of women broke away from the city, stole the Skull and brought it north where they established an "Amazonian" city-state under the protection of one of the local lamias.

There are a few grains of historical truth here, but most of it I simply invented or stitched together in new ways. The Sertorian War is quite interesting and I liked taking that bit of history to use as a backdrop for the campaign. It mixed nicely with the myths of Thule, Blemmyae and Antaeus. And in the end gave us a great adventure that spanned several Roman provinces and ended with a bloody battle against a Lamia and her Amazonian priestesses.

Unleash the Gods

This is just an experimental mechanic I devised for my own Servants of Gaius campaign. I like having procedures for dealing with stuff like divine wrath and wanted something that would create interesting results. Putting this out there for people to try if they like it, but this is in no way an official rule. Feel free to give feedback. If we get enough positive responses I may develop this further.

Unleash the gods
The gods are fickle and petty in Servants of Gaius. What pleases Jupiter one day, might anger him the next. Use these optional rules to bring the gods into your campaign. They work off the pattern established in the Ritual Skill roll, but extrapolate for a wider range of scenarios.

The gamemaster should be careful when gods and player characters interact. It is easy to opt for the best plot hook or most interesting result. This can be an obstacle to fairness and to the integrity of your setting. Sometimes it helps to have a mechanic mediate these sort of in-game relationships so the outcome is never certain from the GM’s or player’s point of view and to keep from playing favorites.

Anytime a player character accomplishes a heroic  feat or performs a wicked act (see description below) that would attract the god’s attention roll a d10. As a general rule the god in question should be the most appropriate deity (even a non-Roman one in some cases) to the situation. On a result of 1, the PC has angered the god. On a result of 10 the god is pleased. In both instances you roll once more to determine the extent of the god’s response.  Results of 2-9 indicate divine indifference.

If the god was angered, roll another d10. On a result of 1-9, the god merely issues a minor curse upon the player character (see effects below). On a result of 10, the god unleashes his wrath upon the character (see wrath below).

If the god was pleased, roll another d10. On a result of 1-9, the god issues a small blessing (see below). On a result of 10 the god is so pleased he favors the mortal in some way (see below).

Effects

Curse                                   
The god takes a brief interest in the mortal, issuing a small curse that impedes his ability to function properly or produces embarrassment. This will have tangible effects such as tremors, persistent drooling or abnormal growths (horns for example). This imposes -1d10 penalty to skill group related to gods area of power. The curse generally lasts a month or so. This can get worse with time if the PC displeases the god again. If the mortal continues to displease the god, he may find his condition permanent.

Wrath

The god the god takes an immediate interest in the mortal and singles him out for divine punishment, hounding him to the ends of the earth.  He may simply smite the poor fellow on the spot (in very extreme cases) or he could send his minions to do his dirty work over the course of months or years. In most cases the mortal spends his remaining days evading the god’s wrath.

Blessing

The god takes slight interest in the mortal’s deed, granting a minor blessing. This usually takes the form of something vague but palpable such as greater clarity of mind or sharper sight. Blessings normally last about a month and bestow a +1d10 to related skill group.

Divine Favor

The mortal is special and worthy of the god’s efforts. He chooses the mortal for some special purpose, becoming his chosen. This is a tremendous honor but usually comes with great risk. Being the servant of one god can make a man the enemy of other gods.  The exact nature of the special purpose will vary from deity to deity.

Heroic Feats and Wicked Acts

Heroic Feats and Wicked Acts are exceptional. Simply saving a person’s life is not a heroic feat, since it happens all the time and is frankly of no interest to the gods. But saving the emperor’s life or discovering a lost artifact after a long quest are heroic. A Wicked Act must also be more than merely bad. It requires a level of malevolence and evil that would attract the attention of the gods. Betraying an entire village so its inhabitants are slaughtered could be a wicked act.

Remember heroic feats and wicked acts can both attract either the gods’ pleasure or anger. A mortal who does something vile may be rewarded for it but he may also be punished.

Rome Awaits: Servants of Gaius released in print

Servants of Gaius is now available in print: Servants of Gaius

Unravel sacred mysteries and explore the empire  in this unique alternate Roman history setting where a mad emperor is savior of the world.

As Neptune’s armies threaten  Rome, Caligula creates a secret order to root them out.

The Servants of Gaius come from all the ranks of the Empire, chosen by the divine emperor himself. In their quest they face dark cults, backstabbing politicians and powerful gods.

A game of intrigue and investigation, Servants of Gaius comes with a complete alternate history setting but is perfect for any Roman campaign.  The book includes:

·         A complete and flexible rules system

·         An overview of Roman society and government during the early empire

·         Stats for important historical characters

·         Monsters and other supernatural threats

·         Rules for gods and rituals

·         A map of the Roman world in 38 AD

Servants of Gaius is availble in print. Copies can be ordered on our website (Bedrockgames) or directly at: Studio 2 Publishing

Servants of Gaius has arrived!

Servants of Gaius has arrived. Order your copy today: http://www.studio2publishing.com/shop/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=80&products_id=3617


Some images from the camera-phone:

Orlando's Guide to Organized Crime

We announced release dates for Orlando's Guide to Organized Crime long ago but the project was shelved briefly while we focused on some other matters. I am happy to say the project is back on track. This week I re-drafted the manuscript and will hold a playtest of new mechanics in the coming weeks. After that it goes to the editor and prepares its way for layout.

Here is what you can expect to find in Orlando's Guide:

• A solid overview of life inside the mafia
• In-detail treatment of the game's existing Crime Skills
• An overview of real-life mafia families and rival organizations
• A full chapter on law and the justice system
• New equipment
• A GM section explaining how to successfully run a mafia-inspired campaign
• Revised and new optional mechanics for handling rackets and crews

We are still looking for playtesters so please contact me at BedrockBrendan@gmail.com if you would like to review or playtest the guidebook.

We are pleased to announce that Bedrock Games and RPGPundit have teamed up to work on an exciting new project: Arrows of Indra.

RPGPundit is the author of Forward…to Adventure!, Forward... to Adventure! Gamemaster's Notebook!, and Gnome Murdered, as well as the upcoming Lords of Olympus.  A notorious blogger (Rpgpundit.xanga.com), Pundit is also the owner and administrator of theRPGsite (www.therpgsite.com), one of the most popular general RPG forums on the internet. Now you can experience his latest project: an authentic yet accessible old school game set in a fantasy world inspired by the Epic Myths of India during the Age of Heroes.

“Arrows of Indra is an RPG based on the original and most popular RPG; intended for old-school heroic fantasy adventure in a world that is exotic and at the same time highly recognizable. Inspired by the Mahabharata and other Indian legends, players may take on the roles of brave Kshatriya warriors, disciplined yogis, temple priests, assassins of the dark goddess, siddhis seeking the mysteries of the universe, monkey-men or half-demonic Rakshasa; and adventure in Naga-filled jungles, fight Asura demons, visit the ruins of ancient Rakshasa empires, seek out the shining treasures of the Patala Underworld, fight duels for money or honor in the Kalari Arenas, or get caught up in the political and military intrigues of the human Bharata Kingdoms. No anthropology, history, theology or linguistics degree required!”

—RPGPundit

Look for periodic updates and announcements as Arrows of Indra nears release.

Bedrock Games

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