Numenera: Scry Hawk Campaign

For quite a while now I've been wanting to run a second Numenera campaign that was more for either Twitch or podcasting. So below I present to you the details for the Scry Hawk Campaign. If you're interested in taking part let me know either via google+, twitter @proftesla or on skype professor_tesla.

Numenera Campaign: Scry Hawk

Project Name: Scry Hawks

Medium: Skype and Roll 20

Broadcasted: Via Twitch/Podcast

Times: Six Hour Window 9AM PST, 12PM EST, 5pm GMT - 3PM PST, 6PM EST, 11PM GMT. Sign sheet here

Session Length: Four Hours

Scheduling: Bi-Monthly (one case/cast per month)[I usually like two sessions to get max story and character development before changing]

Cast: Ensemble. No set cast required, first come first serve to availability. Anyone of any skill/experience level can join

System: Numenera

Additional Material: Character Options, Ninth World Assassins- Andreas Walters , Whisper Campaigns - Ryan Chaddock, City of Needles - Andrew Wilson

Setting: Needles Universe Thaemor

Story so far:

The Scry Hawks have always worked independently of their brothers and sisters in other Hawk orders. They are also the most elusive and dangerous order of the Hawk-Eyes. Within Thaemor at least, they have utter authority and their actions, although questionable, can never be challenged. They operate outside law, government, guilds and royalty and pride themselves on their anonymity. Their  primary function is to protect the Steadfast at any cost. This has lead them into other regions and their unchallenged behaviour in Thaemor is nearly always met with resistance at every turn. They are a law unto themselves and in that regard, an infractions or incursions beyond Thaemor's borders, is dealt with swiftly and harshly.  

The current situation in Thaemor is dire. Auspar, the capital city, has suffered a great catastrophe called The Great Descent. Most of the city has suffered some form some structural damage, as the ground beneath them sunk. During the chaos, or it is now believed just before, the Mad King, Holva the First was kidnapped. In his place, a power-hungry Chancellor Pheylor has become Chancellor Regent.  With no objects to his mental state, the citizens, including the city guard now follow him blindly. His new protectors, the Shadow Guard, have now, with increased money from taxation, begun to spread across the Steadfast like a plague and there is little information on why, in the first time in Auspar's history, the city guard have become a Steadfast wide army, with armaments and equipment to match.

There has been a sudden rise of a sect within the local religious group called the Purple Order. Throughout Thaemor they have spread the word of the Great Devourer looming to consume the world, but none of them can agree on how this will happen, or how they can be saved from it. Their varying theories stems from the abilities of the Order, being able to read individually specific materials, by feeling the contours, bumps and edges, they would interpret as a form of prophecy. The First Oraea of the Vessel has unified a large number of Order members under the same belief. A young girl who was changed into amethyst allowed the Orders members to read her entire body, regardless if they were not able to read amethyst in the first place. The words inscribed on her told the tale of the Herald and the Heretic. This was coupled with the voices of both entities contained within her, making her the Vessel, and unfortunately due to her crystalline nature, shattered when the Great Descent started.  With the ability for all to read the prophecy, they now believe in unison that the end of the world is already upon them. It is now understood that Great Devourer is from another plane of existence and his vanguard referenced in the amethyst of the girl has already been sighted within Thaemor's borders and perhaps have already been here for quite some time. They are women, believed to be clones, with incredible strength, speed and acuity. Their very existence calls into question the scepticism of the Purple Order's beliefs, and presents the credible possibility of invasion or an extinction level event.

The preservation of the Steadfast is the Scry Hawks upmost responsibility, and investigating the threats now posed to the citizens of Thaemor has taken precedent. There is no telling what is on the horizon, but the Scry Hawks will be the first ones there, armed with weapons and information, ready to hold back the tide.

Numenera: Kill Your Darlings

...Or in other words, no person, place or object is safe from death's scythe.

So I've got some news for you, firstly City of Needles has just reached over 4000 views and Venicia 3000 so again I'd like to say a big thankyou to you reading this, everyone that's been involved with the campaign and the community at large. Remember to get in contact if you want to take a guest seat at my campaign for a session or two, just get in contact.

tHa prominent figure from my campaign who I had planned to help in the development on two of my characters, I killed. It wasn't on purpose, as their death served no purpose, but they were in the wrong place and the wrong time and well, it's my first NPC death of the game that I hadn't factored in the game play. In all honesty, it was awesome.

For those of you unfamiliar where the term comes from, reportedly it originated with Faulkner although an earlier example from has been found from notes on 1914 lecture: "On Style" by Arthur Quiller-Couch. As a GM assigning any sort of narrative importance to an NPC, it should be done lightly. An example from an earlier post was the factor of  the narrative importance in a quest chain. The value is only the weight of the preferred outcome, it is never a guaranteed outcome, nor should it ever be considered as one. It is the idea that these actions are more likely to happen in the circumstance knowing your party or own machinations. Assigning a similar value to an NPC however is difficult, as giving them any value at all will most likely result in plot armouring (the idea that a GM will negate circumstances or change them to keep an NPC alive due to subjective reasoning) rather than allowing the natural progression of interaction.

In that regard, referring back to the quest chain post, you need to keep your options open. Unless the last survivor from a lost planet, speaking a dead language, dies and is the only person in known existence and in any reality or dimension to know what this person knows; then someone else can give your PCs the interactions they need.  A quest given in a tavern might be overheard and most NPCs have families, guilds or groups that can continue their roles. A great character will be remembered for their deaths by you and your group, but they soon start to pile up and grow stale as they survive each and every encounter. Heroes of legend and myth are told of their great deeds and usually die a glorious death to suit their life, and so all NPCs, in my opinion should suffer the same fate.

If this all sounds a bit too much then perhaps I could walk you through it:

Q. Okay, I did what you said and I'm going to allow my NPC to die, what do I do now?
A. How are they going to die? Is it the right time? What's going to kill them? Who can see?


Q. Whoa, slow down, okay first things first. The party is under attack by bandits and have left the NPC unguarded, now what?
A. Can the NPC defend themselves, do they have any sort of protection and can they get to any reasonable cover?


Q. The NPC is a suspected criminal is currently tied up, he has been stripped of his armour but he can get to a rock that the PCs are using for cover. This doesn't sound like the right time for him to die, is it?
A. No, he's currently in the group so unless there is something that can attack the group as a whole from where they are, then it's not logical and you really don't want to force something like that especially in the middle of your players. How is the groups rapport with the criminal, does anyone in the group have any reason to trust his words?


Q. One of my players has been chatting to the NPC all day and seemed to have hit it off, the party also knows that the criminal may actually be a freedom fighter, although they are being paid by who the NPC opposes. Is that any use?
A. Definitely, have the NPC ask for the particularly chatty PC to free your NPC's hands so they can help with the fight. [If you really want this option here, try to play on what your PC's already know about your NPC to get them freed, usually something they say due to their restraints]


Q. They didn't buy it, none of them trust the NPC enough to give him a weapon. What now?
A. Well this is for you to decide, would your NPC flee, try to free themselves, or act as a distraction?


Q. I wanted them to realise he was a freedom fighter so they could join his cause later on after a big scene against the sheriff. But right now, he would probably try to free himself to get into the fight...He's picked up one of the swords from the ground, now what do I do?
A. Depending on your characters next actions will determine how they will be viewed by your party forever. If your freedom fighter is as heroic as I think he is, use them to try and take an attack for the chatty PC, or if someone else is more suitable you can choose them.


Q. Now what?
A. This is pretty much the easiest bit, use what you know of your NPC and the current situation to create the rolls needed for combat for the particular circumstance. Then tell me what happens.


Q. He survived, he actually survived but barely, and managed to save the PC in the process. They are mending him now and it would seem everyone's already adjusting their views on their quest giver and the 'criminal'. They're even now planning to go back to the NPC's camp to regroup and take down the sheriff.
A. You put your NPC into mortal danger and survived, and now your party has changed their views, has an awesome story to tell and your NPC became much more than just a way to get into a faction you want your players to get into.

OR 

Q. He died, I don't really know what to do. The group are a bit stunned that he died knowing this was the way they were getting the money they needed, but they needed him alive. Now there's pretty much no chance my group will ever join the freedom fighters. What have you done?
A. You put your NPC into mortal danger and he died, but that's great. Make it obvious there is something on his body that would lead your group back to the freedom fighters, perhaps even a letter that would emotionally spur on your group.

Q. I don't think even need to do that, one or two suggested that after what he had done for them, they should probably take his body back to his group. I can work with that for next session, I can' definitely work with that. It's the outcome I wanted, although it's a lot earlier than I was prepared for. Did I just have a conversation with a voice in my own head?

Okay so most of that might have sounded a little cliché and probably too much like a government sponsored video than anything else but I hope it at least demonstrates how life goes on. Putting your NPCs at risk of dying not only will force your players to assign priorities and change how they act but also changes your party's view of them. Did they die valiantly or survive a legendary fight? Were they poisoned as the group slept, or murdered in the street when someone failed a perception roll. Perhaps they die a suitably horrible death for their deeds while turning their back on your party. If you think back to the quest chain; there is always options, there are always other paths and so many more NPCs to kill!

If you take this on a grander scale of things, places and objects too have their frailties and can always be broken or replaced. Take it from me, I built Auspar and then pretty much destroyed it.

Remember if you like this don't forget to share, put me into some of your circle shaped things, restrict yourself to 140 words with @proftesla on twitter, or help me make more with my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/cityofneedles.

Talk to you guys later.

/Drew - Tesla 

Numenera: Rosta Change and Lady Luck

The first of the Needle's guest sessions is over and a new one has began. As I mentioned a few weeks back I had come up with the idea for a Guldspar descriptor. A player from the community by the name of +Andrew Wieland  took up the mantle. You'll find out later on this week how he plays his Guldspar but his character was definitely something me and my players were not expecting. In fact the Guldspar has joined the group as a permanent member. However there is a flip side to this. Due to new commitments, Chance's character is now retired indefinitely. If you've been following from Season One you would know him better as Chloe. So I would just like to say thank-you to him for playing and I hope we play again soon.

However I still want you at my table! If you've been watching Real Rollplay on itmeJP's channel on You Tube, they've been running West Marches. It a DnD 5e living town, for multiple one shots, to help build a universe. I've used this as inspiration for Season 2. Your character and your actions will be added to the Needle's lore, placed in the character hall of fame on the Wikia and will hopefully not brutally murdered. If you like the idea of the possibility of the chance of not being brutally murdered by your GM, come join me on Saturdays at 2pm EST. Give me a shout ahead of time on either twitter @proftesla, on here or on Skype professor_tesla.

Now that's out of the way I can talk about what I really want to, Lady Luck. She's fickle, loves everyone but you and dresses up as RNJesus and sits on your shoulder as you play. By the time you've finished a game she probably owns your soul an immeasurable amount of times over and cursed your dice forever. In the Numenera universe, I personally don't see enough of her. If your characters keep back enough XP, she can be easily dismissed. Training and skills knock her down to size along with any relevant extras. If players essentially control the difficulty then how can fate intervene.

Now the Cypher System does have that in place with the GM Intrusion but this is human. A person decides when things are thrown into chaos. I've been trying with my games to keep myself as far removed from chance when it comes to skills. I use GM Intrusions to throw complications at the players that perform a functional role, such as changing combat situations, ambient assaults and for when things slow down a little. I've given Lady Luck the chance to mess things up for my players herself by increasing the amount of rolls they do.

For my game nothing is ever certain and nothing is ever guaranteed, unless the difficulty is zero. I've found all too often from other players that as soon as someone becomes skilled it becomes far too varied a skill and applicable in more than one situation. In life someone can become trained as a runner, but they will become specialised in long distance, sprint, cross country etc.  This is how I've been working my skill system. A player can be trained in the Numenera, but Skilled in a special subsection such as mechanical or biological. This has helped my characters not only get a better understanding of their characters, it also invites chaos as specialising will always have its inherent flaws giving rise to chaos and complication

.

I also try to get characters to roll as much as possible. Sometimes a player will give a long rant about their actions and for some of them, a GM could allow without a roll. However nearly everything has a chance to go wrong so as they talk, I create them as a series of events. Conflicts between players involve a modified dice rolls from both parties and not just a one sided affair. Also psychologically, sometimes I will be mean and just ask for a dice roll even if nothing is involved. Sometimes a failed perception check is just that, or perhaps you just missed your doom. Never knowing what's real, where's safest to go, and what lies ahead are my key tools for woo-ing Lady Luck.  There is one huge caveat to all of this, it suits my campaign and my play style. I play completely ad-hoc with some notes and an general idea and the more rolls my characters do, the more the narrative develops for me and the game becomes more interesting and more deadly for them. I will keep saying this, your style is what makes you a GM, improving your skills is always good. If it doesn't feel right, don't force it because it's a good idea, or a lot of people suggested. You will always know what suits you.

GMs: How do you deal with a player who talks about multiple rounds of action? Do you allow it, break it down into rounds, get them to roll for part of it or something completely different.  Do you invite Lady Luck to your table often, could you throw something at your players that puts everything into chaos in just one dice roll?

Players:  When has Lady Luck cut you down in your prime, or given you a vast wealth. Was that down to pure luck or did something in the game help you with your aim. If so, try to find other assets that have been unused, ask your GM for anything to help you out.  Throwing chaos into your solution not only brings excitement and intensity, both you and your GM will become more engaged (and for me as a GM, really happy).

Talk you guys next week and hope you enjoy this weeks now permanent player. Remember to get in touch via the comments or on twitter @proftesla and please come join!

/Drew - Tesla

Numenera: Character Intergration & Guest Interview

First and foremost I want to say thank you for all your support for both the narrative blog and this tech one over the past four plus months. I've set up a Patreon account if you wish to support with what I'm doing. I want to do so much more, such as podcasts, new games, Twitch, You-Tube and more writing.

Hopefully you will know by now that I am inviting you to join in with the Needle's universe campaign. Not only am I looking to you guys for inspiration and suggestions, but I'm reserving a seat just for you, you only have to claim it. For those that have taken me up on the offer two have already taken part. Megan and Aser from The Redacted Files are my first guests in the universe and here a little post game interview:-

D: Could you tell everyone who you played ?  

M: Lavinia Marsh, a Mad Nano who Crafts Powerful Poisons 

A: Randall Whateley, a Clever Jack who Entertains

D: Did you know much about the universe before you played? 

M: I was pretty new to the world and had just read the Season 1 summary and the wiki entries for the living characters 

A: I knew the basic geographical and political details about the setting, garnered from the wiki page.

D: Since you've read the blog and some of the Wikia, what do you think  to the campaign story so far? 

M: I liked the take on the Beyond All Worlds adventure quite a bit. It was run with a different background than what I have used, which made it fun for me to read. I liked the use of the third party materials and it inspired me to go buy some of those for my own campaign. 

A: The political manoeuvring and overlapping conflicts, as well as the flawed characters, lent the world a sense of gritty realism I find lacking in the original Ninth World materials.

D: The regular cast loved having you with us, what did you think of them? 

M: I think the wide variation in personalities caused a lot of unexpected moments, that were fun to play through. 

A: The diversity of character outlooks and styles of play made for a surprisingly dynamic story that provides the cast with interesting challenges. They always seem to find entertaining ways to overcome them.

D: From the two sessions, what  was your most enjoyable moment? 

M: I liked using my “Self-Inflicting Poison” on Froge. 

A: The sudden onset of the Iron Wind. It was unexpected but alarmingly plausible and emphasized the alien nature of the Ninth Wor

D: From the two sessions, what was your most memorable moment? 

M: I think the scene with the dinner table, where Lavinia was trying to do whatever she had to, in order to get out of this house again. 

A: The room of mirrors. It defied expectations and truly created a feeling of powerlessness. 

D: This is definitely a spoiler but can you tell us if you survived? 

M: Yes! 

A: Yes! 

D: Overall, what do you think of Needle's Universe? 

M: I really like the intrigue with the guilds and all the factions. It’s very different then the take I have of the Ninth World in my game and it’s a lot of fun to manoeuvre through. 

A: See above. 

D: The regular Needle's cast would love you to have you back, would you come and play in the Needles Universe again with us sometime? 

M: Of course! And we would love to have you come play with us as well. 

A: Absolutely

For players joining my table I try not to railroad them into specific characters that I'm looking for that fit with the campaign. The ideas behind a GM's narrative is just that, ideas. The world we inhabit is not by design nor should it be, and neither should your characters. Characters that are thrown into unexpected situations are far more interesting than a generic hero going on a quest.  I believe player agency to be one of the most important aspects of table-top gaming and so I don't get to choose. What I can do however, is mould characters. Lavinia and Randall started off as a mercenary duo. It only took a few quick edits, mainly of names and places, that contextualised the characters.

Having set up an established world, and having the Wikia on hand to explain the finer points, doing this grounds the player in a sense of realism within the universe. All characters in any game should feel like that. A player shouldn't feel placed on the world, neither should a character feel newly spawned. The more you know about the world you're in, the more you can bond people to it, creating for a more compelling and interesting narrative.

For one of my players however, the appearance of Lavinia and Randall brought unexpected news. Although going any further would count as a spoiler, I have tried to tie them both into one of the greater, and more character-centric plotlines. It did involve a bit of meta-gaming on my behalf but it worked for the players. There are at times where a GM wants to pass information privately to another character, and thanks to online play, this can be done via private message. However, I did not want to deliver the information myself, so I had my guests deliver it for me. Not only was it up to them when and where they said it, it would also come as a complete surprise to my player. It was in fact such a surprise that  we had to talk about its implications after the game for a quite a while.  

Being able to throw curve balls at my regular players, with using my guests to help facilitate it is great, not only does it shake things up but it gives every character a sense of purpose.

GMs: Think about how you disseminate information to your players. How much information do they know about the world from just being in it, and how much have you had to tell them? Can you provide more information via experience? Could you use another character to inform another on what you want them to know?

Players: Do you actively seek out information about your world around you, or do you let it pass by? Outside of what your character is doing now, how much do they know about the wider world? Do you know something another PC doesn't, or could never know? Is anyone in your party keeping secrets from you?

This weekend I have another guest player, playing, as I mentioned last week, a Guldspar. If you wish to join in don't hesitate to ask and follow me on twitter @proftesla, google+ or support me via Patreon.

Talk to you guys later on this week,

/Drew- Tesla