WUXIA CHESS

On Christmas Eve I threw together this chess variant inspired by wuxia to play with my family. It was quite a bit of fun and definitely altered the flow of the game. I tweaked the rules a bit based on the first few games and hope to play it some more over the holidays. When I do I will probably post an updated version of the rules. Note that poker chips are the best pieces to use to mark Kung Fu Techniques but in the images below we were using much smaller markers. 

WUXIA CHESS

Here are some rules to spice up a regular game of chess with wuxia flavor. These are loosely inspired by techniques from our game Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate.

What you will need:

•        A chess board and pieces
•        Poker Chips (or similar marker)

The rules for wuxia chess are the same as regular chess with one big difference. All Rooks, Knights and Bishops have special Wuxia Techniques they can use once during play (once used, they become normal Bishops, Rooks and Knights). In addition, a single pawn of your choice is designated as a Secret Hero and also has a special ability.

Poker Chips are better
but these worked just fine

Wuxia Techniques are assigned to pieces by their type and indicated by the placement of a poker chip beneath the piece. Rooks, Bishops and Knights all have Wuxia Techniques. Secret Hero Pawns can use one of four abilities listed in the Pawn Techniques section. When the ability is used, simply remove the poker chip so you know that the piece can no longer draw on its wuxia technique.

To conceal your Secret Hero, take out some white poker chips and write an S on the bottom of one of them. Then take all the white poker chips and place them beneath your pawns (putting the one with the S under your Secret Hero).

Wuxia Techniques (including Pawn Techniques) never work on Kings or Queens. They are immune to these abilities.

WUXIA TECHNIQUES

Every Rook, Bishop and Knight has the following Wuxia Technique. These are represented by placing a Poker Chip beneath the piece. Once the Wuxia Technique is used, the poker chip is removed and the Technique cannot be used again by that piece.

Blazing Charge (Rook): You blast your foes in a blinding charge, leaving a trail of bodies in your wake. You may continue moving and capture one extra piece in your path. For example this allows a Rook to move forward two spaces, capture a piece, then continue forward until it captures another piece.

Qinggong Master (Knight): Your Lightness Kung Fu is profound and you may make an additional move this turn. The second move is your full movement but cannot be used to capture a piece.

Ricocheting Strike (Bishop): Your attack ricochets or sends fragments flying at another piece on the board. When you capture a piece, the nearest enemy piece is also captured.

PAWN TECHNIQUES

Pawns designated as Secret Heroes can use any of the four abilities listed below. Again, you may only select one pawn to be your Secret Hero. If your secret hero reaches the end of the board and becomes a Queen, it retains its Pawn Techniques.

As with the other pieces, Pawn Techniques are represented by Poker Chips. Use the white poker chips and write an S on one of them (placing this piece beneath your Secret Hero and giving the others blank chips). When the Pawn Technique is used, it should be removed as the pawn can no longer use it.

Suicidal Qi Blast: You unleash all your internal energy in a powerful wash of light that strikes surrounding enemies. You can use this ability when you are captured to take two adjacent pieces.

Three-Point Strike: You use your knowledge of pressure points to quickly tap your foe three times in the chest area, causing them to freeze. This can be used on any foe in an adjacent square. The affected piece cannot move for 2 turns.

Swift Rebuttal: You sidestep and counter your foe’s attack, using their momentum against them. When any piece, except the kind or queen, tries to capture you from two or more spaces away, you counter and capture them instead

Grace of the Tiger: You effortless evade attacks and are difficult to capture. First attempt to capture you always fails. The piece that attempted the capture returns to its original position. This still counts as your opponent's move and ends their turn.

BLOOD OF THE DEMON MOON CULT SESSION 16: BONE BREAKER CONSIDERS MERCY

This is the campaign log for the Sixteenth session of a google+run Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate campaign. The previous session is described HERE. 

Note: I am running two campaigns in the same setting and treating them as occurring in different realities with some vague similarities. Characters in one may appear in the other, but there are no direct causal effects from one campaign to the next. Partly this is to playtest, but this is also partly due to the multi-dimensional aspect of the universe I run all my games in. It would theoretically be possible for the party from the Blood of the Demon Moon cult campaign to dimension travel to the Secret of Je Valley Campaign, in which case direct interactions could occur (and they could even meet their counterparts in the alternate dimension). 

CHARACTERS

Player Characters

Zhang Wan (Bone Breaker): An unpredictable and violent martial expert who is the brother of Zhang San. First chief of Qui Pan Bandits. Married to Huo Ju (Little Venom)

Zhang San: A wandering hero and sister of Zhang Wan, more calm than her brother

Chen: A poisoner and healer known for his lazy ways.

Key NPCs

Jade Priestess: Bone Breaker's Sifu and former member of the Demon Moon Cult

Jade Butterfly: San's Sifu
Senior Grand Councilor Cai Yuanyu: Highest ranked official in the Empire below the emperor; plotting to 'invert heaven' and has recruited Bone Breaker into his plans

Prince Yuan: Son of the King of Li Fan, controls the eastern territories. 

General Dee: An important military commander in Hu Qin who pays Bone Breaker for services 

Iron Spear Tip: A magic weapon with a mind of its own, the bride of Zhang Kang.
Little Venom (Huo Ju): Bone Breaker's Wife
The Venom of Zhaoze (Huo Si): Leader of Zhaoze sect, father of Huo Ju (Little Venom) and Sifu to Chen

Last session the party had joined with Yang Tuo, the man who imprisoned them in the Jade Turtle to stop their schemes. They journeyed with him to the Kushen Basin, bringing the Face of Vaagu and restoring it. Once there Bone Breaker, San, Abbot Firebrand, Huo Ju, and Jade Priestess used the Talisman of Yao Feng to teleport into Iron Sky Realm (rather than take the gate and sky pole through the Face of Vaagu). They found themselves in a forest, and when they reached a village, San and Bonebreaker went on their own by ship to a neighboring mountain island (the whole place was a bunch of floating islands in the sky connected by waterways). 

They reached Superior Wisdom Sect, speaking with Sixth Brother of Iron Sky Maiden, an immortal and leader of the sect. He seemed uninterested in Bone Breaker or his troubles, simply telling him if he wished to see Iron Sky Maiden he should travel to Skylark Sect where Third Brother would be able to help. 

San and Bone Breaker asked directions and were told to follow the lake until they reached a river. That eventually they would see a mountain peak east of the river and that Skylark Sect was located there. It took several days. One evening they awoke to some movement in the forest. A group of dazed-looking people shambled from the trees and advanced toward them. San and Bone Breaker moved away, but the people pursued, breaking into a sprint when the twins moved into the lake. As the people closed in, a giant floating fish broke from the tree tops above the people. It was inflated like a puffer but had a mouth filled with long teeth. As it approached it sucked in the air and pulled the twins toward its jaws. 

They fled toward some trees, using them as a barrier. The people grasped at them. Trying to pull at their limbs. When the creature got close, it rammed at San and Bone Breaker, trying to impale them with its spiked body. The trees offered some protection and they used their Thunder Kick of the Zhang Twins technique to knock it back. This tactic eventually drove the creature, and its attending humans, off. 

A couple of the people, who Bone Breaker and San had killed in the melee, remained behind, so San searched their bodies (finding 100 taels and the Snake Lotus Manual). 

They resumed their trail along the lake. This brought them to a river, which they followed. However though the river continued to flow, the landscape came to an abrupt halt. Peering over the edge, they saw the river's waters course through empty space and fall several hundred yards to nearby floating mountain (where it continued to flow). San tried throwing stones into the water, only to watch them fall through the river. Bone Breaker placed a log and it seemed to float to the other side. 

Confident, Bone Breaker placed a larger log on the water. He attempted to ride across but slipped (failed Athletics roll) and sunk into the river. The moment he hit the water he took out the talisman and asked to be taken to Iron Sky Maiden. In that instant, he vanished. 

Back at the Kushen Basin, Chen was drinking fermented mare's milk with the Kailin Prince when a messenger from their information network arrived. He informed Chen that General Dee and Prince Yuan were planning to attack their holdings in the Ogre Gate Inn region. He estimated that they had 25,000 to 35,000 soldiers preparing to march. 

Chen convinced Prince Gol and Princess Samga to lead their 40,000 riders back to Ogre Gate with him. He also gave Prince Gol 50,000 spades if he could use it in the next three days to increase his forces. Chen also sent a letter to Bronze Master asking him to bring any martial heroes he could. 

The money had a modest but important impact, raising their numbers. When they reached Ogre Gate, they flooded a pass and laid traps. Bronze Master came with 100 heroes and offered to help assess the situation. They scattered their men in the hills and awaited the forces of General Dee and Prince Yuan. However once the army approached, things devolved to chaos pretty fast. 

Chen had superior numbers and they were able to ravage the invading army. However they lost 15,000 men in the process. They surrounded General Dee's army and slaughtered most of them; taking only 100 prisoners (including Prince Yuan and General Dee). 

Chen took the general for questioning, using their House of Paper Shadow musicians to summon shadow puppets to paralyze him. He laughed at Chen and asked how long he thought the House of Paper Shadows would remain loyal after they'd betrayed the Demon Emperor. 

Bronze Master and the Kailin expressed concern about the King of Li Fan, saying they had at least 100,000 soldiers and would be sure to use them when news reached the capital (to say nothing of the Empire itself). Chen persuaded Bronze Master to use his Shift of the Chameleon Technique to impersonate the general and return to Hu Qin with some men dressed as soldiers (to buy them time). 

In Iron Sky Realm, San cobbled together a raft from some local bamboo trees and set it afloat in the river, then floated over to the other side. She followed the river's course and found Bone Breaker passed out on the shore. He clutched the Talisman and it was glowing red. 

When Bone Breaker awoke, they continued and reached Skylark Sect on the Southern Peak. Third Brother was more friendly and offered them food. He then took them aboard his sky ship, The Restless Phoenix, transporting them to the Palace of Endless Splendor. They were brought before Iron Sky Maiden. Beside her was a large official with a beard (Supreme Judge Yu) and another official named Minister Dongmai). Iron Sky Maiden spoke:

"Bone Breaker has committed many sins, has been corrupted by demon magic and has entered into illegal agreements with the Demon Emperor; how does he plead?"

In the course of the trial, Bone Breaker admitted his faults and gave back the talisman to Supreme Judge Yu. He then asked for Iron Sky Maiden's help protecting his family and himself. 

She promised to help him if he pledged himself to her and to Hen-Shi, relinquished his demon magic and if he agreed to wear the Belt of Mercy. Placing the belt of mercy on him, she instructed that any act of cruelty he committed would inflict harm on him as well as the belt tightened. 

Bone Breaker then asked for compensation for losing his demon magic, as he could not serve her as well so hindered (he had lost his arm and his endurance in exchange for the powers). She agreed but on the condition that he unite the martial sects under a just and competent leader and promised to cultivate. 

When he agreed, she touched his temple and transmitted the Profound Technique: Dreams of Infinite Sky realm to him. She also instructed him in Adaptation of the Maimed (a technique for overcoming his physical limitations). 

She then instructed them to return with Supreme Judge Yu, who transported them back to the Human Realm. When they returned, they were joined by Jade Priestess, Sand Demon, Yang Tuo, Abbot Firebrand, Huo Ju and Abbot Ping. Bone Breaker headed south with Yang Tuo, Jade Priestess and Huo Ju to unite the sects, and San took the rest of the group to the Ogre Gate Inn to learn more about the situation there (they had received a message informing them of the invasion). 

Bone Breaker and his group went to the Nature Loving Monk sect, finding them in a grove deep in the south. They spoke with Green Beggar explaining they wanted to unite the sects. Green Beggar was open to the possibility but said the martial world would only follow someone who possessed the Phoenix Crown of Bao and the Wind Saber of Sunan. After a night of drinking with the beggars of Nature Loving Monk Sect, Bone Breaker and his group left for the mountains to cross into Hai'an. 

San reached the inn and discussed possible strategies with Chen. They hired a Zun Demon Master to secure the Ritual Vessel in Zhang Kang's lair, then shipped it as a gift to Fan. 

This is where the session ended. 

SOCIAL SKILL ROLLS

If you play any of our Network games, you know we have social skills in the system (Deception, Persuade, Command, etc). However, if you follow this blog or interact with me online about gaming, you know I have, perhaps a somewhat irrational, dislike of social mechanics. I use them, I include them in my own system, but my relationship with them has been complicated.

It took me a long time to realize what it was that troubled me about social skill rolls in RPGs. There are a lot of factors here, but two basic things stand out. One concern is they often become buttons the players press that replace things like talking in character or describing their actions (so "I use Command on the guard" rather than "I try to stare the guard down and shout 'open that door before I make an example out of you"). The other is skills like this can make the actions that the players do take, almost meaningless. They might ask the right questions, say the right things, but if they fail that social skill roll, suddenly all that roleplaying is a bit pointless (the only thing that really mattered was the roll and the roleplaying really had no bearing on the outcome). 

Illustration by Jackie Musto

These are extreme examples. I realize social skill rolls are not always used this way and don't always produce these sorts of results. But for me, these are issues that irk me as either a player or a GM. When they arise, I find it incredibly frustrating. This was something me and Bill talked about a lot between games and we eventually settled on the following approach (which slowly became how we advise GMs in the rulebook). It is actually pretty intuitive and simple and it allows you to use social skills without having them get in the way or replace roleplaying. I suspect lots of people do this and it just took me an extra long time to figure it out.

First, the most important thing to keep in mind is the GM asks for social skill rolls; the players don't intitiate them. Players can ask if it is appropriate for them to make a roll,but for the most part the focus here shifts to the players describing what they are trying to do. They talk in character and/or describe their character's actions, then the GM either decides what happens or, if there is some doubt about outcome, asks for a roll. 

Second, the GM needs to really think about when a social skill roll is appropriate. Every interaction with an NPC doesn't warrant a roll. Asking the innkeeper for a loaf of bread if you can pay for it (and if he has the bread) doesn't usually necessitate a roll (unless you've done something to offend him). The roll is only when the outcome is unclear for some reason. 

Third, let the player's actions and words have weight before deciding if a roll is necessary. This is about giving primacy to the role-play and the events in the game, and making sure they stand instead of being trumped by a random roll. It is only when something about the Player Character or something about the NPC would create resistance or difficulty, that you would ask for a roll. A fully cooperative witness, talking to a polite PC asking appropriate questions at a crime scene, is probably going to result in the player getting answers to his or her questions. But if that player character is strange and off-putting in some way, if the NPC has something to hide and doesn't want to reveal anything, then you might ask for a roll based on the interaction. 

These three points are really just part of one basic guideline: know when to ask for a social skill roll. This can apply to other skills as welll (and in our games it generally does), but for social skills it is especially important because they can undermine the in game details if you are not cautious in their use. I've found this approach not only allows me to live in peace with social skills at my table, it enhances play tremendously and avoids a lot of the problems I have had with social skill rolls in the past. 

BLOOD OF THE DEMON MOON CULT SESSION 15: JOURNEY TO IRON SKY REALM

This is the campaign log for the Fifteenth session of a google+run Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate campaign. The previous session is described HERE. 

Note: I am running two campaigns in the same setting and treating them as occurring in different realities with some vague similarities. Characters in one may appear in the other, but there are no direct causal effects from one campaign to the next. Partly this is to playtest, but this is also partly due to the multi-dimensional aspect of the universe I run all my games in. It would theoretically be possible for the party from the Blood of the Demon Moon cult campaign to dimension travel to the Secret of Je Valley Campaign, in which case direct interactions could occur (and they could even meet their counterparts in the alternate dimension). 

CHARACTERS

Player Characters

Zhang Wan (Bone Breaker): An unpredictable and violent martial expert who is the brother of Zhang San. First chief of Qui Pan Bandits. Married to Huo Ju (Little Venom)

Zhang San: A wandering hero and sister of Zhang Wan, more calm than her brother

Chen: A poisoner and healer known for his lazy ways.

Key NPCs

Jade Priestess: Bone Breaker's Sifu and former member of the Demon Moon Cult

Jade Butterfly: San's Sifu
Senior Grand Councilor Cai Yuanyu: Highest ranked official in the Empire below the emperor; plotting to 'invert heaven' and has recruited Bone Breaker into his plans

Prince Yuan: Son of the King of Li Fan, controls the eastern territories. 

General Dee: An important military commander in Hu Qin who pays Bone Breaker for services 

Iron Spear Tip: A magic weapon with a mind of its own, the bride of Zhang Kang.
Little Venom (Huo Ju): Bone Breaker's Wife
The Venom of Zhaoze (Huo Si): Leader of Zhaoze sect, father of Huo Ju (Little Venom) and Sifu to Chen

After they escaped from the Jade Turtle party returned to the inn to strategize. Chen and San went south to retrieve the statue of the Emerald Monk, while Bone Breaker remained at the inn. 

Senior Grand Councilor Cai Yuanyu met with Bone Breaker, informing him that the Face of Vaagu had been taken by Yang Tuo. He also discussed their agreement to have Huo Ju (Bone Breaker's wife) where the Heart of Yao Feng during her pregnancy so the child would become the demon emperor. Bone Breaker explained that his wife refused and the Senior Grand Councilor told him that Qinwen Master of the Seven Talismans (Leader of Heaven Palace Sect) would not budge on the point*. If Bone Breaker's son was not the embodiment of the demon emperor, then the child would die at birth. There was nothing the Senior Grand Councilor could do. 

Bone Breaker used his information network to find out where Yang Tuo may have gone, then he went to Heaven Palace sect with his men and some Divine Powder. He attempted to work out a new agreement. Qinwen was enraged and fused Bone Breaker's feet together. Eventually he restored Bone Breakers feet and released him when it seemed they had an understanding. 

However Bone Breaker used his Divine Powder to cave in the entrance to Heaven Palace sect. This only angered Qinwen even further, and suddenly Bone Breaker's left eye burned as it went blind. Qinwen told him he would take both eyes if he continued to be belligerent. When it seemed the situation was once again under control, Qinwen restored Bone Breaker's vision. 

San and Chen found a guide in the Banyan who took them to Mount Waxing to find the cave of the emerald monk. On the way they stopped at Wu Pen village and met a martial hero named Flying Dragon. He was with three other heroes (Master Hammer and The Saber Brothers (Mr. Yun and Mr. Xi). Though it seemed Flying Dragon was considering robbing them, Chen persuaded him that they could offer him and his men good employment at the Ogre Gate Inn. 

The next day they continued south, with Flying Dragon saying he'd go north to the inn. They reached Wuxing Mountain and began the trek up through the steep trails. They had some Flying Phantoms and soldiers with them, but were attacked by stone throwing apes called Jufu. Five of their men were incapacitated by the attack, but after they sent the apes fleeing, Chen found numinous mushrooms in the area. 

They found the cave of the Emerald Monk and the statue. It took some time to extract, but once they destroyed the base, they were able to carry it through the woods very slowly back to Naam. Keeping the statue covered they found a merchant willing to take them, but he insisted on seeing what their cargo was once on the ship. He took them as far as Bei and warned them to conceal the statue as others would certainly come after them if they knew what it was. 

When San and Chen reached Ogre Gate Inn, Bone Breaker told them he wanted to go to Sun Mai Temple. Abbot Firebrand led the way and their journey began. 

It tool a long time but they reached Sun Mai and abbot Yuancheng agreed to meet with Bone Breaker. During the conversation, Bone Breaker expressed a desire to change his ways and follow the path of righteousness. He promised to be merciful and sought council from the abbot. 

Abbot Yuancheng explained that he knew of Bone Breakers crimes and he agreed to help the son, giving him a protective amulet for Huo Ju to wear and saying as long as the child entered Sun Mai as a monk, he would be fine. He made Bone Breaker promise not to harm Yang Tuo. 

He told Bone Breaker that if he restored the Face of Vaagu there was a way to undo what he'd started. He revealed that the Face of Vaagu was a gateway to Infinite Sky Realm, where the immortal, Iron Sky Maiden resided. According to the Abbot she was once a member of Sun Mai (the only woman in their history) and was a devotee of Hen-Shi (Goddess of Mercy). He believed if they went to Iron Sky Realm, that the maiden would help them. 

The party went north, and recovered the face once they learned of Yang Tuo's whereabouts (he had taken the face to the Banyan mountains where he recruited the help of Hu Gao to protect it). Yang Tuo was pleased with Bone Breakers choice to work with Sun Mai and helped him take the face back to the Kushan Basin where they put it atop its original location. It fused to the stone with a blaze of golden light. 

Chen decided to remain with the Kailin in the area, while Bone Breaker, San, Huo Ju, Jade Priestess, and Abbott Firebrand used the Talisman of Yao Feng to teleport to Iron Sky Realm (this was done against the advice of Sun Mai, because the talisman violates the laws of heaven). 

However, use of the talisman did not attract the attention of Judge Yu (who normally handles such matters) so it seemed they were safe. They were brought into a forest and eventually made their way to a seaside village. The people were kind, thought the sky was a strange metallic blue. A fisherman told them to see Iron Sky Maiden they would first need to go to Superior Wisdom Sect near the southern peak (they soon learned that the 'peaks' were floating mountains). The sea near the village connected to Southern Peak and the fisherman agreed to take them. 

This is where the session ended. 

*In order to eliminate a reduction of Bone Breaker's lifespan to five years, the Senior Grand Councilor formed a new agreement with Heaven Palace Sect where they pledged to make Bone Breaker's child the demon emperor. 

THE SECRET OF ZHE VALLEY SESSION 19: THE INVISIBLE FISH OF NANSUN

This campaign is set ten years after a previous set of adventures (HERE). This is the nineteenth session of the current campaign (Session 18 can be found HERE). 

Note: I accidentally left an 'interim session' note in some of the prior session logs. These were regular sessions (last true interim online session for this campaign was a long time ago). 


Characters*:
Xue Lingsu (Purple Cavern Sect)
Xi Kang(Affiliated with Mr. Red Claw)
Zhi Zhu (No Sect)
Long Shu (Purple Cavern Sect)
Min (Purple Cavern Sect)
Rong (Tree-Dwelling Nun Sect)
Nuan (Xi Kang's Disciple and a former Flying Phantom)
Niang the Demon Hunter (A martial hero who knows how to kill the Yao)

Last session the party had destroyed the lacquered heart boxes of the Yao (the Emperor's impervious body guards). This sent a ripple of fear through the grand palace as the Emperor's guards dropped dead. Only one Yao remained alive, because they left his heart box intact. This was Yuancheng, the husband of Niang the Demon Hunter (who was traveling with the party). After they destroyed the heart boxes they saw the Senior Grand Councilor dispatch a man north toward the capital so they followed him. 

They found the man camped by a river and forced him to confess his intentions. He was on his way to kill the Glorious Emperor and convinced the players to join him. He told the party his name was Wei and that the Senior Grand Councilor sent him to kill the emperor as well as retrieve an artifact around the emperor's neck. While the party agreed to work with him in from a shared desire to assassinate the emperor, they could not allow him to take the artifact. Wei agreed to have a duel with Kang for possession of the object after their mission was successful. 

They reached Nansun and went to palace, where Wei presented his seal and said he was sent to protect the emperor. They were met by Eunuch Du Wan who informed them that the emperor had taken to his 'invisible ship of pearl' with a select group of guardians the moment his Yao dropped dead. Wei thanked the eunuch and the party left with him to formulate a plan to find the invisible ship. 

Because it was a city with canals and waterways, they began by asking local fisherman if they had seen anything. At a local inn, Kang found heard a story about a Mr. Buwei who claimed to have caught an invisible fish. He went to the man's residence and told him he was a poet and was working on a masterpiece that would incorporate his tale of the invisible fish. Buwei was excited at the prospect of being immortalized in verse and happily shared what he knew. He brought Kang to where he had been fishing the previous day and explained that something caught his line, dragging him around the canals for about ten minutes. He also claimed to have killed the fish and cooked it. 

During this time, LIngsu went to a Book shop to find information on the heart taking ritual (in hopes of learning a way to save Niang's husband). After some negotiation and bribery he was brought to a back room and shown a manual containing the heart taking ritual with commentaries. He purchased it and read the material, which indicated how to reverse the process. However he would only have one chance of success. 

While the party went through the canal system and searched for inconsistencies, Kang went to Golden Sky Pavilion, a Yen-Li spirit temple. He asked the priest, Master Ren,  if there were ways to see through illusions. Master Ren told him he knew how to make a pill from Numinous Mushrooms that would show the spirit realm and also allow people to see through enchantments. It was expensive but Kang bought 7 pills that he was assured would last for about seven hours. 

Back at their inn, Kang took the pill and immediately began to see spirits in the city, including a massive snake spirit in the canals. He and the party walked through the city, when he eventually spotted a ghostly ship of white pearl moving through the waters. There were also two women in white robes on the deck standing watch. The party walked to a bridge. Rong and Lingsu also took the pill, with the rest of the group following Kang's lead as he jumped onto the deck. 

Kang, lingsu and Min made it down first. Lingsu was able to throw one of the women off the deck, but she used arms of silk to hang onto the rail (causing the boat to drag her like a kite). Kang and Mind faced off against the other woman who unleashed a splay of silken threads and needles, wrapping him in a cocoon. As they fought, Zhi Zhu snuck into the ship and found a door, behind which she heard the sounds of people laughing. 

Min used Swan Taming Strike to slice open Kang's threads, then attack the woman. She replied with Whirling Blade, wounding Kang, but was soon dispatched. Lingsu cut the clothes strands the other woman had used to clutch the rail, dropping her into the water. 

The party followed Zhi Zhu down below and kicked open the door to the chamber. Inside they found the emperor with three concubine guardians and a remaining Yao (Yuancheng, Niang's husband). Lingsu charged in and used Sword Whipping strike with spectacular precision. He killed the emperor almost immediately and nearly killed the concubines. It was a quick matter for the party to follow his resounding sword blow and finish them off. 

While the party fought, Zhi Zhu inspected the emperor's body and found two objects, a large pearl pendant and a pendant made of a ruby sphere. She took both. 

Once they subdued Yuancheng, Wei inspected the emperor, but found nothing. He seemed irked. The object he was looking for was called the Heart of Yao Feng, so he announced that perhaps it was the emperor's heart. He cut open the emperor's chest and removed the organ. 

The ship came to a halt. The party disembarked and saw a gathering of locals who stood in awe of this great pearl ship that suddenly appeared from thin air. They seemed to believe the party to be immortals and followed them before Kang corralled them to another part of the city. 

The party fled, with Wei helping them escape through a series of tunnels below the city as alarm bells filled the air. When they were miles from the city, Lingsu performed the heart keeping ritual in reverse, restoring Yuancheng. He seemed to recognize Niang after he awoke and she pledged her service to LIngsu for saving her husband. 

Wei and Kang dueled for possession of the heart of the emperor as they had agreed. It was not an easy fight but Kang ultimately proved the better martial expert. Once he subdued Wei, he killed him. 

This is where the session ended. 

WANDERING HEROES OF OGRE GATE UPDATE

We've been working to bring Wandering Heroes to layout and wanted to give a brief update. 

We are in the last phase of the edits. I should get the manuscript back soon and once me and the editor go over any changes, we will layout the rulebook around the middle of January. 

Madame Hamaya and Dancing Fox
by Jackie Musto

The art is nearly done we also have a couple more maps coming in as well. 

We are very close and have also started on supplementary setting PDFs and the Profound Masters of Ogre Gate follow-up rulebook for higher level play (the core book will contain the rules for higher level, this just goes into considerably more detail). 

We should have more updates in the coming weeks. 

WICKED SCHEMES

As a GM I believe in rewarding good tactics and plans on the part of the PCs. To me things feel more real when a valid solution is able to solve the problem. This sometimes means that challenges are easily overcome or that an adventure ends soon after it started, but in the long haul, I think those are good things, not bad. But, just as the players are rewarded for their cunning, I assume they live in a world inhabited by equally clever opponents. Once in a while the tables are turned and I put a lot of effort into the evil schemes of my NPCs. 

One rule of thumb I abide by, since as the GM I have a serious advantage over the players, is I imbed several 'outs' for the players. I'll usually include a couple of opportunities to detect some crack or clue about the scheme, as well as a couple of opportunities to prevent the schemes from reaching fruition. 

And when I say schemes, I mean the kinds of intricate plans that are designed by a very intelligent foe to trick, mislead and get the party to play right into their hands. These are things that really hit below the belt and wake the party up. When you reward clever thinking sometimes it leads players to believe they can't be outwitted, and I think every once in a while they need to face a truly worthy adversary on that front. 

As an example, recently in my Blood of the Demon Moon Cult Campaign, the party, who had been on a steady ascension to power, were sidetracked when a powerful and clever martial hero named Yang Tuo decided to get revenge for a friend they had murdered, and also sought to stop them from enacting their evil plans (the party in this campaign could be described as evil and cruel). When the party killed his friend Kang, they took a Jade Turtle he was carrying. It was worth a lot of money but they didn't inspect it enough to discern its true nature. Kang came into possession of it because it once contained the imprisoned spirits of a cursed town. After he freed them, he was taking the turtle to its original creator, an Immortal of Iron Sky Realm. 

It just so happened the party had been planning a tournament to help grow their prestige, and they were in need of a nice prize. They decided the Jade Turtle was ideal and announced it would be given to the winner of the competition. 

Yang Tuo realized because the turtle was now empty after Kang freed the spirits inside, it could once again be used to imprison people if he learned the original ritual that had been cast on it. He mastered a ritual and improved it, then went to compete in the tournament. He planned to win it, then complete the final mudras of the ritual once he had it (or use trickery if he didn't win). If Yang Tuo did not win, he knew he'd probably only get one chance to grab the turtle and use its powers before they became suspicious of him. 

Yang ended up making it to the final match, but was ultimately beat by a Player Character named Chen. Because the PCs were recruiting muscle and were impressed by Yang Tuo's performance, they invited him to join their group for a good wage. He convinced them he would and asked if he could handle the Jade Turtle telling them he only competed so he could see it for himself, that once would be enough. When the party agreed and handed it over, they fell right into his trap. He tapped the turtle and imprisoned them. 

The end result was the party was imprisoned for about 2-3 months of time before they escaped (due to time moving slower on the inside of the turtle). This is a pretty good example of the kind of scheme I will occasionally deploy against a party when they attract powerful enemies. 

Another recent example occurred in my Secret of Je Valley Campaign. The party had been trying forever to find a way to kill the Glorious Emperor, but he was protected by demonic warriors called Yao, who have their hearts ripped out and placed in boxes (which makes them immortal, regenerative and loyal). In order to kill him, they needed to find the heart boxes and destroy them, so he has less protection. This played right into the hands of a nefarious official who also wanted the Emperor Dead so he could get his hands on a magical artifact that would help him restore the demon emperor (both campaigns have been dealing with this threat, but from two very different angles). When the heroes finally found the heart boxes, the official put his plan into action and sent an assassin against the emperor. 

Again, I think it is always important to insert opportunities for players to learn about the schemes. In the second case, the party got a bit suspicious and lingered in town well after they destroyed the heart boxes. Because they took time to spy on the official, they saw him send out the assassin and were able to follow him and learn of his plans. So every wicked scheme can be cracked if the players are sufficiently vigilant or clever. 

When using wicked schemes like this, it is very important not to railroad and let the dice fall where they may. There might be points where, once a certain line is crossed, there is very little the players can do (for example once Yang Tuo tapped the Jade Turtle, he enacted a powerful magic that couldn't be stopped). But along the way, he shouldn't protect NPCs on their path to outwit the party. Again, in each fight Yang Tuo participated in in the tournament, I rolled the dice and let the results stand. Ultimately he ended up losing the final match, which nearly ruined his ploy. He basically had that one last card to play, and the party was in a good enough mood that it worked. Otherwise, it might not have happened. My view was, things should have been able to go either way.