I'm going to develop a little on what I talked about last
time. As you hopefully know the setting for my campaign for Numenera is set in
the city of Auspar. Now running an urban sandbox terrified me but also thrilled
me at the same time. It was a challenge, a serious challenge for someone who
has never played any Table-Top RPG ever let alone GM'd, so I had to draw upon what
I knew. Creating and telling stories. Doing my masters degree I fell in love with the Oulipian movement in writing
and enjoyed expressing a scientific eye over a text when I could. This lead to
my love of mechanical text, narratives derived from systems and I thought what
better system that an Table-Top RPG game. But being myself I wanted a
challenge, and coming up with a living, breathing city was just that. As I've
said I came up with the Narrative Matrix so let's talk about the other
guilds/factions and how they thematically exist in relation to my urban
setting. If you havn't already read The Shattered Child, you might want to. I use it to give examples to my theoretical work.
For me personally there are a few qualities to urban life,
regardless of time. There will always be,in my mind, these categories. The rule
maker, the rebellious, the religious, the lawful, the mercantile, the criminal,
the entertainers, the hunter gatherers and the string pullers. These sound very
vague but that would be the point, they are not specifics you can just plop
into your game, or narrative, these are tropes.
The rule maker: The King. The governing body or bodies of a particular
society, in Auspar it's the mad King. It could easily be a creed, a government,a dictator, a bandit chief, a
majority vote or even the leader of your PC's party. It's up to you how you
lead your society but each one comes with different styles of societal
organisation so you need to make sure it's tailored.
The rebellious: The Purple Order. These guys something I am
quite proud of, they function as rebellious as the societal rules are in their
mind are not applicable due to certain circumstances or reasoning. This is
different to breaking the rules, which is an important point. The rebellious could be an example, royalty from another kingdom, someone who knows nothing of urban
life and its airs and graces, or someone who just perceives the world differently.
The Purple Order believe they have the right to investigate any possibility of
an answer, to survive the world being 'devoured'. They have a unique ability, or
pretend to, to read certain materials like brail. This has lead to some
invading homes, causing panic and generally creating dismay and disruption. They
do not see themselves as breaking any laws as they believe their task
transcends any set of rulings. The Purple Order are also known as great artists
and sculptors, owing to their intimate understanding of their chosen material. Those that have disowned the order for following fruitless ideas, have
become very rich and very famous, regardless of their past. Their sculpting and
creation is an extension of their analysis, and they claim their endeavours were not
controlled by them, almost as if they were reading a book, rather than writing
one.
The religious: The Guldspar. Regardless on your personal
stance there will always be an element of this in some form wherever you go. To
some it's the belief they will survive tomorrow, in a guardian spirit, in an
omnipotent being, or perhaps their task will save then from whatever fate will befall them. Religious, in this
context, is more about belief than the practice. Of course I made the Guldspar very practice heavy just to contradict myself. They are the societal curators, the gatekeepers to climbing
the social ladder. They have an intrinsic connection to the Obsidian Spire,
which keeps a measure, by growth, of the tallest building in the city and therefore the
highest and richest members of society. When a new building is built, Numenera is left at the Spire by the owners of the building to appease the spire and prove that their work is the tallest in Auspar. The Guldspar provide the ceremonial aspects as well as guarding and cataloging the Numenera left They also have a hive mind of sorts,
akin to the Borg, however I wanted something a little different. Their hive
mind is a hive of emotion and not thought. In Auspar many people have been
injected with what the Guldspar use and is seen as a noble position, but does
not grant you any gain in society. They also serve as adjudicators in matters where
no clear guilt can be found by the Grapnel Guard. The interrogation is a simple
as being injected and your emotions and behaviour monitored, some do not know
they have been injected, but all do not know they are constantly being observed
when they had been let go to ascertain guilt.
The Lawful: The Grapnel Guard. So named after their favoured
method of travel; using the zip lines and connectors around the city so cross
it with speed and ease. The king in Auspar is mad, and not trusted by the
people and neither are his edicts. The Grapnel have stepped up from guard duty
of the city to the law enforcers. Their tendencies however are as swift as
their travel, guilty by proximity, or by coin. They have rarely caught the right
person, which has had the unintended effect of everyone keeping within the
rules, or else fall foul of someone else. It has become an unwritten tenet in
Auspar society. Your lawmaker should be interesting and playable. Rigidity
within their behaviour or outlook will only force the same encounters again and
again they need to be flexible, surprising, even if you have a single sheriff, they
can't always wear the sheriff's hat.
The entertainers: The Grapnel Guard. Now I can't help it but these were influenced by T.V. I
was a ninety's kid and in 1992 there was a programme on ITV called Gladiators. Of
course it was an idea nicked from America but I didn't have access to T.V
across the pond as a child. Regardless they entertained with feats and contests
of strength and agility. Now this reminded me of a city guard, or a guild of warriors,
they did not perhaps perform but they carried out those feats. It made sense in
the mercantile city of Auspar that everything was for sale, even the guards
training and sparring. Leading to a more important role performing ceremonial
acts for the city in combination with displays of strength, speed, combat
prowess and flair. In your campaign this could easily be a bard, street performers
(of which in Auspar there are many) to a theatre troop or a travelling circus.
An urban environment requires catharsis, a release and expression of emotion,
and boredom is high on that list. At its very basic level, the concept of the
entertainer could go as far as the tavern you are in and the barkeep that runs
it. The Gladiators inspiration also had the unintended effect of influencing
the Hawk-Eyes.
More will be posted Monday so TBC....
/Drew @proftesla
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