SERTORIUS PREVIEW: SARILLA AND THE HASRI

This is an image of the goddess, Sarilla, in the gardens of her great temple in Asharun. It was painted by Samantha Fanti. I should emphasize that this image is for promotional and creative purposes, to help us as we craft the setting for Sertorius. The final book will have interior black and white images and this is for our websites leading up to release. As with prior previews, I will use it to discuss some relevant parts of the setting. What follows is text taken from the rulebook (things are still in development so much of it could change).

SARILLA

Sarilla is the goddess of fertility and love. She is the former consort of Senga, the god of the ogres whose death over 1,000 years ago ushered in the age of magic. She may bear some responsibility for his death, and likely crafted the blade needed for the task from her own spine. But she is not an evil deity.

Sarilla’s true motives are not easily deciphered. To this day she still mourns Senga. Her reasons for killing him are unclear, they may have been born out of loyalty to him, perhaps a secret purpose only Senga knew, or they could have been selfish and an effort to steal his power for herself (perhaps she doesn’t even know why she did it).

Like all gods in Gamandria, Sarilla can take any form she desires, but her preferred form is that of a snake-woman with yellow scales and long dark hair. She dwells in a secret realm beneath the city of Asharun, near a set of columns called the Pillars of Life. Between these pillars the Asharuni make sacrifices to their goddess.

 

THE HASRI

The Hasri are a snake-like race who live in south western Gamandria. Created by Sarilla, they look like humans except for their pitch black eyes and smooth blue-tinted skin. Hasri are so-colored because their skin is made of layered scales, which they keep polished. These scales have additional colors arranged in many different patterns. The hue and shape of these colors are usually similar or the same within a given clan. Their hair is long and straight, often braided but not always…

…Hasri do lay eggs but are not cold blooded, and have one sex. To procreate they simply become fertile and lay eggs when it is time by going to the temple and making an offering of gold and flowers to Sarilla (they can perform the ritual on their own or have a priest do it for them). The siblings from the same clutch of eggs, or clutchlings, are a key social unit in virtually every Hasri culture. The bond between clutchlings is strong, they leave their parent late in life usually going with their siblings and work together to survive. The parent is still important and often serves as the head of an extended clan, which is comprised of all the parent’s clutches. These clans are easy to identify by the patterns and colors of their scales…

…The members of a Hasri’s own clutch are its closest living friends and allies. These are usually called “first siblings” or “first clutchchlings”, while members of different clutches from the same parent are called 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th “clutchlings” the further apart they are in sequence. The closer the number, the stronger the bond…

… Hasri are quite capable of love and of forming powerful emotional bonds with a single individual. But this is not associated with child rearing or reproduction. Hasri often consider their love more pure than the love known by most other races because it is unfettered by the needs or desires of the body and exists (for them) on a higher level.

Sertorius Logo

Here is a first-look at the new logo for Sertorius. We are working on the cover art now and hope to have a preview of that for you soon as well.

SERTORIUS PLAYTEST JUNE 23, 2013

This was a playtest of three people: two players (A&B) and a GM. It was set in the Caelum Repubic, a vast area mainly made up of orcs. Player A ran a Hasri Sertori named Balu. Player B ran an Orc Sertori named Cael Turatani. At the start of the adventure the characters were both members of the Caelcori, an organization who operate at the direction of the Senate to prevent Sertori from gaining politically powerful positions. The Caelcori were created in the wake of the tyranny of Poro Sertorius (the first known Sertori). All Sertori in the Republic are not expected to join this order but they must abide by its rules.

Overview

Cael and Balu were summoned by Juventar, the head of the Caelcori and told to investigate possible trouble in the province of Aetorus (a bit of a resort region for powerful senators and aristocrats, but also an important center of learning and invention). According to Juventar, he had received a message sent by General Hilarus Fulvar, governor of Aetorus. Apparently the messenger was found dead and there was some question concerning the authenticity of the letter (it stated that the general was unhappy with the two Caelcori officials currently assisting him, and he would like them replaced). Juventar instructed Cael and Balu to go to Aetorus and investigate the two Sertori: Pora Lurani and Daethronus Malavine.

Juventar offered to cast Thekla’s Secret Pathway, a risky method of transporting people over great distances. He failed to cast it properly and brought back a spirit from the ethereal realm, which possessed him. Juventar attacked Cael with a Bolt of Fury, doing 4 wounds (almost enough to kill). Balu calmed Juventar with Captivation and found some Tribunes to help restore Juventar. In the wake of the incident, the two decided to travel to Aetorus by ship.

Upon arrival in the province, the characters were given quarters in the Governor's palace and told he would be available for an audience in the morning. Cael ordered musicians, food and wine before going to sleep. In the morning Cael noticed (on a successful Detect roll) that his hair had been snipped. Balu experienced illness, which a medicine roll determined was most likely a result of mandrake poisoning. Cael was unaffected by the poison, so summoned a physician to provide an antidote to Balu.

The characters spoke with Governor Fulvar and learned that he never sent any message, and that he was satisfied with the Caelcori serving his province. They did learn that one of his servants had been killed, and this was likely the messenger that Juventar found. They set out to learn more about the man, when they learned that a wife of one of the general’s officers had been murdered in the streets of the city.

Investigating, the characters found the body of an orc woman, with an arrow in her neck. A witness (a drunk) reported she had been killed by a Hasri, and that an orc had rushed to her aid to fend off the Hasri, before disappearing in a golden mist. As the investigation unfolded, they interviewed all the Hasri in the city. There were only three, and use of magic determined that none were involved. This seemed suspicious and Cael remembered his lock of hair. He inspected Balu to see if he was missing anything from his body and they found some scales had been taken. The player running Cael had the skill Magic: Misos, a knowledge skill. He asked the GM if he knew of any spells that required hair or bits of skin from people in order to make replicas. The GM decided that because the player had two ranks in the skill, he knew that there was a spell called Malevolent Mockery that did exactly that.

The characters then interviewed all the servants who had been in their room the night before. They forced on of them to confess involvement in the poisoning and obtaining the hair and scales. She told them that the Sertori, Pora, had offered to make her ten years younger in exchange for these acts. Cael and Balu decided to forgive the servant and recruit her as a spy against Pora. They then went to the governor Fulvar and asked for permission to arrest Pora and Daethronus. Fulvar was hesitant, and said he needed more evidence. On a successful Detect roll Balu and Cael noticed that Fulvar seemed younger than before. Cael immediately attacked the Governor with a spell called flying steel, which empowered his sword. However Pora had been magically concealed the whole time and cast Arch of Protection, which produces a massive gold dome to defend against attacks. Cael’s strike was thwarted. The governor fled and seemed content to let the Sertori work it out amongst themselves. Balu used Captivation to enchant Pora and encourage her to enter into parlay. The group left the palace for further discussion but were confronted by the Malevolent Mockery of Balu. Cael used Earth Mastery to create a pit below the replica, and it fell inside. But the mockery of Balu retaliated with Captivation and enchanted Cael.

The real Balu diffused the situation by casting Unity, which linked everyone mentally and emotionally, enabling both sides to see through the other’s efforts at deception. The Capitivations were dropped and a discussion had between Cael and Pora. Cael acknowledged that he and Balu were not in a position to arrest her or Daethronus because she clearly had the upper hand. He inquired about her intentions. She said she had no desire to kill them, but wished to go against the Caelcori and form a council of Sertori to replace the Senate. In the course of the conversation, Balu and Cael learned that she had many supporters, both provincial governors and members of her order. Cael offered to go to the Caelcori with her demands and help arrive at a compromise to avoid civil war. Pora agreed.

Juventar was at first reluctant to entertain Pora’s demands, but Cael and Balu convinced him that Civil War was unavoidable if she wasn’t taken seriously. Juventar decided to ask the senate to vote on the matter in the second capital, Poro Deus (which was more neutral than Cael). Pora agreed to appear and make her case before the senate, while Balu would make the case for maintaining the old ways. Cael spoke with Pora prior to the vote and got her assurances that she would work slowly within the system if the Senate didn’t go her way, rather than initiate civil war.

The senate voted to keep the old ways. 

Findings

It was noted that the Angry Spirit entry wasn’t in the monster section yet, despite being mentioned as a possible encounter for a failed casting of Thekla’s Secret Pathway. This was fixed.

Sertorius Preview Part Two: Halflings

Illness keeps me from doing a long preview today, but the image does much of the work for me.

This is an illustration of the fall of Karima by Samantha Fanti. Karima was an important official in the coastal trade empire of Shahr. The head of the great library, she defended Shahr's vast collection of scrolls when it was attacked by Gru raiders. The Gru are beastly creatures, distantly related to humans.

Karima is a halfling but she is also a Sertorius, or spellcaster. The spell in the image is Karima's Baleful Glare, which causes terrible pain to anyone who resists the caster's wishes for quiet and calm. Halflings in Sertorius are inspired by Carthage and Phoenicia. They are the most technologically advanced culture in the setting.

 

Arrows of Indra at Eternal Con

Our friend Gianni recenlty ran a demo of Arrows of Indra at Eternal Con 2013 in Bacharach Germany, held from May 17th to May 20th. Here is a photo of the event:

The names of the participants (from left to right): Nicola, Gwen, Elina, Gianni, Valentina, and John.

You can learn more about Eternal Con here: http://eternal-con.de/

Explore Arrows of Indra here: http://www.bedrockgames.net/about.html

Morrus was Right and I was Wrong

[Warning if you haven't seen the recent Doctor Who finale, do not read what follows]

This is a bit of an unusual entry for the blog, but I made a wager with Morrus of EN World (EN WORLD FORUM) that Clara in the current season of Doctor Who would turn out to be CAL from Silence in the Library. I was wrong and Morrus was right, she is not CAL.

Sertorius Preview: The Elves of Mandaru

We’ve been working hard on our latest project: Sertorius. This is our fantasy setting that takes the core mechanics of the Network System and pushes them to the limit with a robust selection of magic, monsters and gods. In Sertorius players assume the role of powerful spell-casters who can channel divine energy taken from a slain god. It is a complete world, with an entire continent of races and empires. Today I want to give you a glimpse of one of my favorite places: The Mandaru Empire.

The Mandaru are elven steppe nomads. They are one of a group of pastoral tribes in the region, and a large number of settled elves also live on the periphery of their grazing land. The nomadic tribes are organized around warrior bands. That doesn't mean most Mandaru are warriors, in fact few are, but fighting men and women are the elites and have greater authority than other members of the tribes. Usually they are not much of a threat to neighboring settlements, perhaps making the occasional raid. But sometimes they unite around a single leader, and in the last fifty or so years, the elves of Mandaru pledged their loyalty to Veja Kashan. Veja expanded Mandaru influence far beyond the steppes, forging critical alliances and taking key cities. The result was the Mandaru Empire, which stretches far across the eastern lands of Gamandria (the world on which Sertorius is set). The woman in the image is Vetanna Khusat, the emperor’s daughter and a queen of her own region. I want to explore the image a bit to introduce readers to our elves.

First it is important to know this is a single highborn elf from one place on the map. There are lots of elves throughout the world and they are all quite different. However they have a few things in common. In a moment I will address those common characteristics, but first I want to talk about Vetanna and the Mandaru. Like her father she has her own band of warriors that form her power-base, these are called a Benkrob. The leader of a warrior band is usually a chieftain (called a Khan) and each chieftain is pledged to one of four Kings or Queens (called Khusats). Vetanna is the Queen (or Khusat) of western Mandaru. All the kings and queens pledge their allegiance to the emperor (or Kashan).

Like all elves, Vetanna is immortal. Customs vary from place to place, but the Mandaru believe warriors who die in battle are born into the realm of their goddess Ranua (a kind of nature deity), whereas farmers and craftsmen are simply reborn as humans, dwarves or halflings. They also believe that the bond with their fellow warriors and their leader carries over to the next life.
As you can see in the image, Vetanna is clasping a skull goblet in her left hand. When Mandaru leaders defeat a worthy opponent, they use the skull as a drinking vessel. Here she is holding court in her tent with her fellow warriors, following a recent conquest.  The throne is made from wood shaped like tree branches. If you look at her face you can see a scar, which is quite common for elves. They are beings of beauty, but this is often marred by battle scars and lost limbs. They live a long time and can aquire many of these over time.

The gold leaf tattoo on her forehead is common among the Mandaru and indicates her status. Her's is a three layer leaf, signifying she is a Khusat (Khans have two, normal warriors have one). The dots represent important military victories. Though it is concealed by her clothing, Vetanna is wearing lamellar armor. The blue flowers at her throne's base are blue water flowers, which are sacred to Ranua. In addition to it's sacred status, it's common in a warrior tent because it can be used to ward off infection (not to mention vampires).

We have tried to make the elves a bit different but familiar. Elves are tall, athletic, and immortal.All elves were created by the nature goddess Ranua as a gift to the ogres (who once rules a powerful civilization). They were sent there as slaves and functioned as administrators and scribes for centuries before being liberated shortly before the ogre kingdoms fell. Their immortality made them especially skilled record keepers. Migrating south, they settled many lands and one of these was Mandaru. 

Most elven cultures are war-like, despite their immortality. Almost without exception they believe in rebirth, and for them death in battle is the only way to ensure prosperity in the next life. The Mandaru are unafraid of an early death in war, but other elven cultures fear this more than anything, reserving soldiery for elves who reach a certain age. They are still martial, but only those who have heard the ‘call of Ranua’ are expected to do the fighting. For them, the loss of an elven life before then is the greatest tragedy.  

This image was made by Samantha Fanti and is one of many to come to help us preview the setting. I should point out, if it does appear in our final book, in the printed version it will be black and white (since we don't print interior color images).