The Secret of Steel Preview: Abysnian Magic

To say I've been working hard on my game is an understatement. It's a conglomeration of all the house-rules I've ever needed to implement, combined with the setting I've been wanting to make, combined with the flavor and themes that I paste onto every game that I play anyways. It's working on being my baby, and I don't care if nobody ever plays it but me, my brother, and my buddies.

Anyways, I'm putting a short preview up here, as much for the sake of looking back when it's over as much as because I want anybody to read it.

Points if you catch the references, btw.

The Secret Of Steel Notes III: Fascination

Although my long, rambling notes hardly make this clear, my labor of love is formed of a great many things. First and foremost is an improvement of the hobby that started when, rummaging through the boxes in the basement of my parents' house when I was but a wee lad, was this:

And so it was born.

Secret of Steel Notes II: Sorcery!

Sorcery, and indeed all magic, is a difficult thing to put into one's game. By its very nature, Sorcery must have its own rules. Sad, indeed, is the magic system that is a mere extension of the game's skill system, level system, or some such. There have been entire games devoted to mages, wizards, and the like, where the magic system is what the game revolves around. Ars Magica, for one, and Mage: The Awakening for another. One could, of course, argue that the magic system is the star of the show in 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons as well. 

But in a more pulp-fantasy, sword-and-sorcery adaptation of the idea, where does sorcery fit in? How powerful is it? Who can use it? What is its price? These are all things that must fit together for a comprehensive use of magic in any game.

The Secret of Steel

I've been working on a lightweight roleplaying game system, based off of low-fantasy swashbuckling type characters, especially ones from pulp fantasy writers like Robert E Howard, Micheal Moorcock, and Jack Vance. It's about worlds where there are big burly swordsmen, insane sorcerer-priests, and helpful occultists in every corner. It aims to be a sort of beer-and-pretzels game, but for longer-term campaigns.

It is, of course, inspired by Labyrinth Lord in particular, and the retro-clone movement in general.

Troll Sighting!

There were always reports of trolls. Like the greenskins they smelled like, trolls were reported to be in every cave, every forest, every nook and every cranny. Garaz Bakazi, or Seymour as he'd been known to the humans he'd stumbled across, had almost given up hope. The accursed things were almost impossible to find, even after weeks of scouring the wilds, searching for broken trees, devoured animals, and the like. Seymour decided to head for the lake to wash the sweat off of himself- though he'd long since forsaken any other form of comfort, if the troll smelled his sweat, he might flee. He stopped by the river when he saw an enormous yellow beast, hefting an enormous chunk of grudge wall over his head for some reason. Seymour grinned. It was a good day to die.

Hammerers of Karak Dal Zharr

There were only five. Five guardsmen sent to the disgraced thane. The eldest among them, a longbeard named simply Dokari, or, One who Watches, nearly sent himself into the slayer oath, and may have succeeded were it not for the wise words from his King. 
"Serve me by serving him, as you are my finest of Hammerers and will return him to honor."
Dokari shook his head. This wasn't how it was in the old days, when young Thanes the likes of Bormin weren't celebrated, but exiled. There were some things you can't understand, even when it's your King telling you what to do. 

Karak Dal Zharr

The army of Karak-Dal-Zharr marches to war. From deep within the dormant volcano they call their home, they spill onto the forests. The greenskin threat has grown to be more than they can bear- their rangers, highly skilled warriors and scouts all, tell their Thane of the movements of a goblin warband of no small size. Their raiding parties through the Empire's forests have gotten them to the stony gates of the Thane Bormin Truthseeker. His warriors, brightly clad in shining chainmail and aeon's old dragon's gold, have been preparing themselves for days, the veterans and longbears telling the young beardlings tales of their ancestor's greatness, the severity of their grudges, their coming victory. They are ready for the threat. They are ready for the war.