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Step The Next

I’ve been trying to decide what to do here once Dark Horizons reaches it conclusion (coming soon!). I think I know what I’ll do. I can’t promise to reach a conclusion to the next project, because it is more about concepts and ideas than actually producing something.

What the heck am I talking about?

I have decided, yet again, to take a stab at RPG design. Why would I do this? Two words: sword noir. This is all part of my attempt to define the genre for myself. As so much of my creative energies are directed toward RPGs—either for personal or commercial reasons—I figured that it might be useful to get some of the ideas into a concrete form as an RPG system.

My first step is to consider exactly what I am going to design. I need to ask myself some serious questions and try to fashion the answers over time. To do this, I’m going to riff off the Power 19 (links at the end of the post). I’m not going answer them all at once and I might not even answer all 19, but I need a place to start and a place to sharpen my ideas, and question and answer usually helps.

The first three are the big three

1.) What is your game about?
2.) What do the characters do?
3.) What do the players (including the GM if there is one) do?

Next post, I’ll answer those three questions.

You can find the Power 19 questions here.

You can find a discussion of my proposed system here.

Don’t miss a chapter of Dark Horizons!

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Mundus Novit: Painting the Project Black

Something that is hiding in the background of Dark Horizons but is front and centre in Mundus Novit is the Black Project. There are more than a few Black Projects revealed in the Mundus Novit sourcebook. What do I mean by Black Projects?

From the sourcebook:

Sometimes the government acts for the good of the nation, but in ways it thinks best to keep from that nation. The general public, after all, doesn’t see the big picture. It doesn’t understand that sometimes the ends do justify the means. But even if the government wanted to share information regarding all its projects and operations, national security often does not allow it. Are you going to broadcast to your enemy everything that you are doing? Of course not.

Since the Second World War, governments have embarked on many projects hidden in the shadows. The budget for these projects is disguised, mislabeled, nonexistent. These black projects have produced some amazing advances; they have protected nations and averted war. They have also perpetrated suffering and ignored injustices.

You have to look at the Big Picture.

Now, if you aren’t interested in a look behind the curtain, to see one of the prime motivators for all the action in Dark Horizons, move along. Nothing to see here.

For those of you interested in what is going on in the shadows, the stuff that none of the protagonists knows about, read on.

Crosswind
After the Trigger Event, many academics and researchers wondered if perhaps paranormal powers of the mind were not confined to someone amazing like Kreskin. While the scientific community sought to answer its own question, a rogue element within the CIA decided to try to purpose-build ESPers. Using the already identified Oberon virus, a secret operation piggy-backed itself onto a legitimate DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) research project. Not only did Crosswind seek to create ESPers, it sought to create super-soldier ESPers.

Who? The actual mastermind behind Crosswind has not been revealed, though the project was backed by a rogue CIA group. The lead scientist, aware of the true purpose of Crosswind and its true master, was Dr. Jean Howlett. She had already proved herself through another secret project involving the Oberon virus. In order to have her manage Crosswind, she was given control of a small unit called the Technical and Sciences Group (TSG). She leads a very small scientific staff, all officially working in the TSG.

What? Using the research network and resources of DARPA, Crosswind was to create task-oriented ESPer spies and assassins that would be further enhanced using what the TSG referred to as Oberon X. No single group or organization involved in the research would be privy to the entire plan. Only Crosswind would have all the data, and it would be the Crosswind team who would try to synthesize Oberon X.

Where? While the DARPA project had been outsourced to a variety of research facilities and academic institutions, the black part of the project was conducted at a facility code-named St. Martin. The location of St. Martin has never been revealed.

How? The CIA backchannel funded a DARPA research program into parapsych known as Emphasis. Project Emphasis sought to clinically prove the existence of parapsychic powers. The Trigger Event sparked renewed interest in the paranormal, and Emphasis was one of multiple projects undertaken publically by DARPA and other research organizations.

While the results had not yet been released, a rogue element within the CIA known as Tacit Spear gained access to them. The Emphasis data strongly indicated proof of parapsychic powers. Tacit Spear initiated Crosswind through the Technical and Sciences Group, a small unit within the CIA’s Special Activities Division mandated to assist in operations for the acquisition of technology or scientific research.

Tacit Spear had co-opted the Technical and Sciences Group soon after that unit’s formation. TSG took control of Emphasis and buried the data, while at the same time farming out other experiments and research directives based around the hypothesis that a parapysh could be purpose built with a specific suite of ESPer abilities. Further, Crosswind included genetic research based on the Oberon virus.

When? Emphasis began in May of 2005. The participating institutions believe the project to be ongoing, however, Tacit Spear initiated Crosswind in January of 2008. At this time, Crosswind may have successfully created a purpose-built ESPer using Oberon X, but this has not been verified.

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Hitting Dark Atmo

I wrote about Sword Noir characters in the last post, and I mentioned this was not the hardest part about Sword Noir. What is the hardest part?

The atmosphere.

Listen, giving an actual description of what constitutes film noir is pretty tough. That’s true of a lot of genres. A lot of people know what isn’t pulp, but it’s tough to catalogue exactly what is pulp.

I have attempted to define Sword Noir, but really it really is simply a mash-up of sword & sorcery and film noir. It’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser chasing down the Maltese Falcon. It’s Conan getting hired to find red-haired Velma.

And it’s as much atmosphere as anything else.

The aesthetics of noir is very much about attitude. But while that attitude is reflected in the characters, much of it is external. Let’s look at my definition of Sword Noir again.

To quote:

So what is sword noir as a genre? Characters morals are shifting at best and absent at worst. The atmosphere is dark and hope is frail or completely absent. Violence is deadly and fast. The characters are good at what they do, but they are specialists. Trust is the most valued of commodities–life is the cheapest. Grim leaders weave labyrinthine plots which entangle innocents. Magic exists and can be powerful, but it takes extreme dedication to learn, extorts a horrible price, and is slow to conjure.

See how much of that is setting? To me, setting is more than just a collection of places. Setting is atmosphere. The city of Lankhmar is what it is because of its atmosphere, not its locales and location. What makes Shadizar the city of the wicked? Casablanca isn’t about the actual place–it could be called Singapore or Cairo and the story would still work.

Setting is atmosphere.

The atmosphere is dark and hope is frail or completely absent.

That’s the second sentence in the definition. The dark atmosphere isn’t illumination, it’s a lack of hope, a setting of pessimism in which cynicism is simply being realistic. I would say it is our world, but that isn’t exactly true. Our world has hope in many places. In the case of Sword Noir, dark is a few steps away from dystopia. It’s a look at the poor and abandoned places of our own cities. You know that section of town where you wouldn’t want to be caught alone after dark? It’s that place.

And this isn’t about anything physical. This is about a feeling. This is about fear and expectation. You can’t really show this on a map. You can’t use miniatures or models to designate it. This is something that the GM and players must concoct and maintain in unison.

Notice, this is something the GM and players must concoct in unison. If the players don’t buy into this, it is not going to happen. It is tough to create atmosphere in someone’s basement, or dinner table, or spare room, or wherever. The GM can try to build the atmosphere through words and description. It can be reinforced through the actions and reactions of NPCs. What it cannot do is withstand the disinterest or disregard of the players. They must feel it, and they must portray their characters as feeling it.

That’s tough.

And this is only a part of it. Next, let’s look at:

Trust is the most valued of commodities–life is the cheapest.

I’ll be back to talk about that later.

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Mundus Novit: “The Crew”

As I’ve written elsewhere, Mundus Novit can be used for a lot of different styles of play. I mentioned my Osiris concept, which is basically a riff on the comic Planetary. That’s pretty much a super-hero concept, even though it is one without colourful costumes.

I had an idea for another super-hero game set in Mundus Novit, but this one would be with supers in costume. However, the player characters would not be those supers. The PCs would be a team assigned to remove supers whenever they got out of line.

And they get out of line a lot.

This campaign was also based on a comic, this time The Boys, written by Garth Ennis and illustrated by Darick Robertson. The PCs would be part of a government (or possibly private, like Osiris) organization that keeps watch on the supers. In this setting, supers (or “masks”) start showing up and being deputized to work alongside municipal police departments. This is a move by certain corporations who sponsor the supers–and, it turns out, give ‘donations’ to the police forces who allow their sponsored supers to operate. Things get really cosy, and the municipalities, including some of the bigger ones, start to turn a blind eye to some questionable corporate actions.

These corporate shenanigans–including attempts to silence competition and opposition, as well as human experimentation–lead to the activation of the Crew (or a group with a more inspiring team name). The PCs are assigned to mess up those supers who are covering for the corporation, or who are involved in criminality themselves.

The PCs would learn, during the campaign, that someone has cracked the Oberon virus. Someone is now tailoring it specifically to order. The corporations are buying this and creating their own purpose-built supers. The PCs may be the same, they may be have higher stages of the Oberon effect than the supers they face, and they may be random or designed. The campaign was to be based on the discovery of this new aspect of Oberon, and to find out who had cracked its code.

I’ve got a short piece of fiction for this setting, but its language is even stronger than what we’ve been presenting with Dark Horizons, so if you want to read it, it’s available here. I’m warning you, the attitude and language may offend, so don’t be complaining if you read it.

The Crew is much darker, much dirtier, and much more violent than Osiris. Thing is, they could inhabit the same world. It’s a stretch, but these guys might even inhabit the world of Dark Horizons as well. The idea of the campaign was that the supers would start to appear late in the secret history, outside of what is presented in the sourcebook.

In Dark Horizons, after the mission in Kathmandu, Tangible Stream or the Vault might be pulled into the campaign as the supers begin to appear. Maybe only one or two supers or teams are active, but already there are concerns. Supers in colourful costumes kind of destroys the gritty, black-ops feel I’m going for with Dark Horizons, but I think it could still work. A bit of a shift in gears, but totally doable.

As for Osiris, it has its own story arc that leads to a discovery, and tacking on the Crew’s campaign narrative would be pretty easy. But that revelation needs to wait until the Osiris Files actually come out.

I think, for this game, I would use Mutant & Masterminds 2E. It just seems fitting when one has super-heroes, whatever their source. However, once the Mundus Novit True20 supplement comes out, I would suggest it instead. It is actually planned to address exactly this need–something that balances True20 and superheroics–though the method I use may not be acceptable to some.

That method? Again, sorry but you’ll have to wait and see.

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News Hooks: Somali Snatch and Grab

A very interesting and public use of US military assets for a direct action mission. It’s totally a guess, but I would say 160th SOAR and Delta. This is exactly the kind of stuff I would run in a Covert Forces campaign. Maybe the CSRS were involved? In my game, they would be!

nabhanBut let’s extrapolate a bit from this, make it juicier. If I were running this in Mundus Novit, I could add in a few details, make it something out of the ordinary. Now, honestly, buzzing an enemy convoy, disabling the vehicles, and performing a snatch and grab in hostile territory doesn’t need anything more to make it exciting, but if you are running a reality plus game (based in the real world but with some SFX elements), how would Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan fit into this?

First off, if I were writing this, Nabhan would be captured rather than killed. A Voice of America article indicates the US took “his body into U.S. Custody.” What is special about Nabhan?

If you want to go with minimal SFX, Nabhan is a human incubator of a new super-virus. He’s been somehow immunized against its effects, but the virus is breeding in his body. The clock was ticking because the virus doesn’t go live and virulent for a set period of time. Let’s say the team has intel from a defector (or a previous target of another raid), that the new virus will be viable in 48 hours. The clock is ticking and the team has to find and capture Nabhan within that timeframe. A kill is acceptable, but the virus might still be growing. Further, they need samples of the virus to synthesize an vaccine, given that the terrorists could just make more.

Bigger SFX with a horror element could have Nabhan as the nexus of a lycanthropy infection in Somalia. That’s kind of a riff on the virus problem, because when he’s loose, Nabhan could start infecting others. I choose lycanthropy rather than vampirism because werewolves need a full moon, which gives us a countdown as well. Nab Nabhan before the next full moon or things are going to get messy.

Nabhan might also be an agent of the alien infiltrators that run the shadow government. They’ve now begun to replace terrorist leaders in order to get a grip on that—at this time—unregulated danger. For the group opposing the aliens, Nabhan will have important information on the alien project to replace people. He might know who has been replaced, which till give the PCs an idea as to whom they can trust.

Ah, the news—the sum of it and my imagination is so much greater than those parts.

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Mundus Novit: Kathmandu Campaigning

Running a campaign similar to Dark Horizons is a tough one. All of the characters act pretty independently. Granted, there is a goal presented to them—find Boyle. How they go about that goal is strictly left in their hands. It’s interesting to consider Dark Horizons as a campaign.

Now if you were to ask me how you could run a Dark Horizons campaign, I couldn’t tell you. I could tell you how I would run it. I’d do it just like I did the Khorforjan Gambit.

The Khorforjan Gambit—like a Dark Horizons campaign—is a kind of hybrid sandbox game. It’s a goal-oriented sandbox, in that the characters are presented with a goal, and then left to their own devices, as in a sandbox. While the characters deviating from the goal in Dark Horizons is unlikely, given that it is a work of fiction, in an actual campaign, deviation from the goal would lead to them losing their patrons and creating powerful enemies, but it would not be forbidden.

Deviating from the goal in the Khorforjan Gambit also has some pretty hefty penalties, but there’s nothing actually stopping the PCs from ditching their mission.

So how do I run such a goal-oriented sandbox game? I create a time-line of events and a collection of well-rounded NPCs. I have event locations prepared with boxed text, NPC stats etc, usually written down on index cards. I have some extra locations ready—a couple of bars or coffee-shops, residences, offices, that sort of thing—also on index cards and tagged for ease of access. The locations don’t need to be heavily developed, just enough that I’m able to wing it should the PCs enter.

With these in hand, I set the PCs loose and see what happens.

The time-line of events is important because this is going on in the background while the PCs are doing their thing. Each event needs a few paragraphs of description. A couple of examples from the Khorforjan Gambit are presented at the bottom of this post to give you an idea what I mean.

The NPCs need to be developed in much more depth than usual. I include sections for personal history, goals, motivations, what he knows, what he will tell, and tactics. An example from the Khorforjan Gambit is again included at the bottom.

Detailed NPCs linked to events in the time-line allow me, as the GM, to figure out what these characters would do when the PCs begin to impact on their plans. It is not always the smart thing. Given a character’s background, goals and motivations, the character’s reaction to PC actions might not be what you, yourself would do, but it’s consistent with the character. If you, as the GM, understand your NPCs and their plans, the PCs changing the time-line won’t be a huge concern. You’ll be able to judge NPC actions on the fly, just as you judge a lot of things on the fly.

And there’s the rub. You must be comfortable adjudicating on the fly. That’s true of any sandbox game. With goal-oriented sandbox, as I prepare it, the GM has a lot more resources at hand to address PC actions.

I shouldn’t have to say/write this, but I’m going to, because it is really, really important for a successful goal-oriented sandbox game (and any successful RPG session, really): you, the GM, are not out to win. When the PCs trip up your carefully prepared time-line, that’s what they are supposed to do. If they find and eliminate the Big Bad well before you expected, they shouldn’t be punished, they should be congratulated. The whole point is for them to win.

If you are the kind of person who is upset when the players act in a way you didn’t expect and throw a spanner into your works, stop GMing. Seriously. The GM facilitates the game, the GM doesn’t run it. It is not the GM’s game, it is the entire group’s game, and the point is for the players to have fun as well as the GM. If one or the other party is not having fun, you aren’t doing it right.

Also, be aware that the players will likely not have the chance to admire your impressive time-line, nor to marvel at the craftsmanship of your NPCs. It is highly unlikely that the PCs will encounter every event and location you have prepared. All that preparation isn’t for the players’ edification, it’s to make your role easier. Anything that isn’t used in this game, use it in the next. Recycle like a mo-fo. It’s the only way to work.

Running a goal-oriented sandbox game can be a daunting task, but the more you run, the more resources your compile that can be re-used. That’s why I use index cards. Infinitely portable from one game to the next. I print out the stats, locations, what have you and tape or glue them to the index cards rather than hand write them. That way, I have all that on file in case the index cards are lost.

So, ready to run a goal-oriented sandbox game? Pretty soon you’ll have an awesome campaign setting in which to do so.

Examples follow:

Time-Line Example 1: Kamilov the Messenger
Abbas decides, after hearing of Kamilov’s difficulties around Camp Parker, that the plan needs to be changed. While an authoritarian, Abbas does appreciate the input of his subordinates, so he sends Kamilov to contact the main players in his plan. Abbas will need Kamilov’s eastern European sedan, so Kamilov takes his moped. He departs the office at 1055 after having a short, light meal.

At 1130, he arrives at the small apartment complex in which Boboyev lives. Boboyev is not at home but is actually working in his office, at Boboyev Construction, conveniently located in the main square beside the apartments. Kamilov arrives there around 1140. He has a short discussion with Boboyev, which leads to an argument, as Boboyev is not particularly happy that Abbas has changed the plan unilaterally. He agrees to meet at the New Office that evening.

At 1155, Kamilov leaves the Boboyev Construction offices. By 1205, he arrives at the Old Sadirov Office, where Hasanov is working at this time. Hasanov greets him cordially. Muzaffar Hameed, the main contact for the HMA and the rogue SIG faction, is the manager and is also in attendance. Kamilov, whose first loyalty is to Hasanov, explains the situation and also explains that Boboyev is already angry regarding Abbas’ decision, taken without consultation. Hasanov is more understanding, recognizing that the HMA is not a democratic group. Hasanov decides to visit Boboyev and calm him down. Kamilov does not venture an opinion. Finally Hasanov indicates that he will make the meeting.

Kamilov leaves Sadirov Holdings at 1245. He knows that contacting Iskanov, a colonel with SIG, is dangerous. At 1310, Kamilov arrives at a small coffee house that borders the Blue Zone. It has no name but is run by a widow, Imenaz Salimov, whose husband was a supporter of Marat Burhonov in the civil war and was killed by government troops. He leaves a message with her that “the Wolf must meet the Shephard in his hut at the appointed time.” Salimov has no idea who the code names refer to, but she knows enough to pass the message on to Senior Lieutenant Yaqub Rakhmonov, who frequents her coffee house.

This done, Kamilov heads back to the office. By the time he arrives, 1325, Abbas has left for the Ashanjube Internally Displaced Persons camp. Kamilov has a nap in the unused bed in the guest room.

Time-Line Example 2     No Refuge, No Refugee
At 1300, after having a small lunch, Abbas will leave the New Office with his two Committed Guards. They will take Kamilov’s Eastern European sedan and drive to the HMA Rendezvous camp just outside of the Ashanjube camp. They will arrive at 1400 and from there, Abbas will send an HMA Runner to contact Saparmurat.

Saparmurat will arrive at the Rendezvous camp at 1435, along with the HMA Runner and two Camp Toughs. Saparmurat is in awe of Abbas and will agree whole-heartedly that the plan to attack Camp Parker was foolish. His reverence for Abbas partly colors his opinion, but it is also based on what he has seen of the CASFOR-A operations in the area. Knowing that Saparmurat is one of his best, local assets, Abbas is pleased to have him on-side, and invites him to the meeting at 2300. Saparmurat assures Abbas that he will be present.

After sharing tea, at about 1525, Abbas heads back to Khorforjan and Saparmurat returns to Ashanjube camp. Abbas arrives at the office around 1600.

NPC Example Saparmurat, leader of HMA element hiding in the Ashanjube Internally Displaced Persons camp.
Smart Hero 2/ Strong Hero 2/ Tough Hero 2/ Soldier 2: CR 8; 47-year old Male; HD 2d6+2 and 2d8+2 and 4d10+4; hp 52; MAS 13; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; Def 18, touch 18, flatfooted 16; BAB +5; Grap +6; Atk +6 melee (knife 1d4+2), or +8 ranged (2d8+2, AKM), or +8 ranged (2d6, M1911A1); FS 5 ft. by 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; AL HMA; SV Fort +7, Ref +4, Will + 2; AP 4; Rep +1; Str 13, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 8.
Skills: Craft (pharmaceutical) +7, Craft (structural) +10, Disable Device +10, Forgery +7, Handle Animal +2, Intimidate +7, Listen +5, Knowledge (current events) +8, Knowledge (streetwise) +9, Knowledge (tactics) +7, Knowledge (theology and philosophy) +5, Navigate +7, Repair +6, Search +5, Speak Language (Arabic, Russian and Tajik), Spot +5, Survival +8
Feats: Advanced Firearm Proficiency, Brawl, Educated (Tactics and Theology & Philosophy), Personal Firearms Proficiency, Quick Reload; Weapon Focus (M1911A1)
Talents (Smart Hero): Savant-Knowledge (streetwise)
Talents (Strong Hero): Extreme Effort
Talents (Tough Hero): Robust
Talents (Soldier): Weapon Focus (AKM), Weapon Specialization (AKM)
Occ: Rural (Handle Animal, Survival)
Possessions: AKM assault rifle, 6 AKM magazines, combat knife, M1911A1, 2 M1911A1 magazines, worn clothing.

Background: Saparmurat comes from a small farming community in what is now the Autonomous Province of Qurghon Khujand. He was born Akezhan Saparmurat. Frustrated and aware that his family would always remain poor, Akezhan left Albenistan and joined the Mujahideen, becoming known simply as Saparmurat. He remained in Afghanistan after the Soviet pull-out and even after Albenistan gained independence. Only the civil war drew him back.

During the civil war, Saparmurat joined the Albeni People’s Liberation Army (APLA). While the leadership was not as capable or ruthless as Saparmurat would have liked, they often spoke of their high regard for him and his accomplishments. The flattery worked.

After the civil war, Saparmurat began to work with weapons smugglers moving Russian armaments through the Central Asian republics. Many of his contacts from his days in Afghanistan remained active and they trusted Saparmurat, so he flourished. He also met Bahrom Hasanov. While Hasanov wasn’t much of a fighter, he had a quick mind. Through Hasanov, Saparmurat met another Mujahideen veteran, Abbas. Abbas’ vision of Albenistan infected Saparmurat, and he becomes an adherent of Abbas’ Albenistan Motherland Army (AMA). Saparmurat returned to Qurghon Khujand to lead AMA operations there.

When the AMA became Holy Motherland Albenistan (HMA), Saparmurat returned to the border region with Afghanistan. Refugee traffic offered the HMA a fertile ground for recruitment, and Saparmurat traveled among the various refugee camps and routes recruiting young men and criminals.

Goal: While Saparmurat professes the same goals as Abbas and the HMA, he wants a certain amount of chaos to remain. He has thrived amidst conflict and anarchy and he is not certain he could survive long in peace.

Motivation: Saparmurat retains his farmboy dream of making a difference, of shaking the corridors of power with his actions. He enjoys attacking authority literally. He also enjoys the adrenaline rush of combat.

What He Knows: Since he is involved in its planning, Saparmurat knows everything about the HMA timetable. He is also familiar with all the leaders of the HMA and knows Colonel Iskanov leads the rogue faction of SIG. He commands the HMA element in the Ashanjube camp and so knows everything about the HMA adherents there.

What Will He Tell: He won’t talk willingly. Even under threat of torture and death, Saparmurat will remain silent. Drugs might work on him but extreme duress is unlikely to succeed. In Afghanistan, Saparmurat was questioned by the Soviets and he didn’t crack.

Tactics: While one of the most experienced combat veterans in the HMA, Saparmurat has had no formal training. He knows enough to attack from surprise, and to withdraw from a superior force. He loves his autofire and this is his preferred mode of attack. He will lead from the front, but will not open himself to attack unnecessarily.

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Osiris Rising

Update (18 May 2020): The experiment that was the Osiris Files never got off the ground. No feedback or expression of interest was ever received. The product is no longer available.

The Osiris Files series
The Osiris Files take place in a world right beside ours. Next door, or perhaps just down the block. People drive cars you would recognize, have jobs you would recognize, and eat food you would recognize. Somewhere, though, there is a shadow world. It might be a world of super spies, super humans, or magic. It might be a world of hidden monsters, ancient threats, or that which man was not meant to know.

The characters inhabit this shadow world. They may pose as accountants, or librarians, or electricians, but they are not. They are not butchers, bakers or candlestick makers. They are something different, something special, and something absolutely dangerous.

The Osiris Files are not adventures, they are concepts. Each operation provides briefing materials, background and ideas. The core of the adventure and its place in the campaign are left to the GM. There are no maps. There is no conclusion. While the concept provides possible conclusions and ideas as to what is happening, there is no set path to solving a problem. The Osiris Files only provide ideas.

Op NearscapeOperation Nearscape
The DNA of an astronaut and naval aviator declared MIA in 2006 has been found in a fragment from the Tunguska event of 1908. Is the aviator alive? How could his DNA be involved in the explosion of the Tunguska event, 100 years earlier? Osiris is tasked with learning the answers to these questions.

Black projects, super-science, and conspiracies all play a part in Operation Nearscape.

This product is part of the Osiris Files series and is systemless. It is not a complete module, but provides ideas and concepts built around a central conceit to help the GM build an adventure suited to the GM’s campaign.

Free Sneak Peek
The Osiris Files: Operation Nearscape is ready to go, except for some possible last minute layout decisions. Right now, I’m planning something pretty basic. I expect the product to be available for download within a month. When it is released, it will be free.

But you don’t have to wait. Send an email right now to sep@swordsedgepublishing.ca with “Gimme Gimme” in the Subject line, and I’ll send you back a copy of Operation Nearscape. When it goes live, I’ll send you the product ZIP as well.

All I ask is that you send me feedback. What works? What doesn’t work? Is this useful at all? Would you pay for it?

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Mundus Novit: What Is That Guy?

So what is the Bedouin?

Well, he’s not Algerian. At least, he’s not Ahmed Zeghida. I’m not saying if he truly is an Algerian posing as a Bedouin, or a Turk posing as an Algerian posing as a Bedouin, or something else entirely.

At least, I’m not telling you that right now. Later, many of his secrets will be revealed.

But the question ‘what is the Bedouin’ is asked in a role-playing game sense. After all, this entire exercise is to introduce you to a role-playing game setting—Mundus Novit: the Changed World.

So, in game terms, what is the Bedouin? Is a parapsych/psionic? Is he a wizard or sorcerer of some kind?

I’m still not telling. This much I will say: his game information will be forthcoming at a later date. When we get closer to the end of Dark Horizons, you will start to see game information. Can you hang in there that long?

Here’s something more: the Bedouin doesn’t know what he is. He knows he can do things, and he knows he gets information from somewhere, but he couldn’t explain how it is done. In “From Delhi With Indifference,” he gains information about objects by running his hands over them. He does this, and he knows he can do this, but he does not know how he does this.

And that’s an interesting way to play a character with powers.

Think of your True20 adept. This adept has powers. True20 is wide open enough that it doesn’t explicitly tell you how to run powers in your game. So there aren’t things like mantras that must be uttered or rituals that must be performed. There are powers and some characters have these powers.

The Bedouin has powers.

In a game, the player would know everything about the powers. The character, however, does not. Perhaps on an instinctual level—as in the Bedouin knows to run his hands over objects, that he needs physical contact to read the past of these items—the character knows he must act in a certain way or do a certain thing to succeed with his power/talent/”whatever the heck it is I do,” but he does not know or fully understand the rules of his talents.

This is the Bedouin. He knows what he can do, he just couldn’t explain how.

And here’s the last little tidbit about the Bedouin. He is powerful. We will see how powerful when it gets closer to the end. He is not powerful in the sense of fireballs out of eyes and lightning bolts out of his arse, but he has his talents and he knows how to use them. While he is combat capable—he deals handily with the hit teams—his real power is knowledge. He knows things. Not just things he conjures out of thin air, like Tashi’s name. The Bedouin can speak a plethora of languages. He knows that a guy using an designated marksman rifle with a laser sight is not a sniper, he’s a shooter or maybe a marksman.

He knows a lot of stuff.

And that makes him powerful. At least in this setting. Knowledge is power, since so many people are trying to keep so many secrets. A lot of guys can beat people up and shoot people. Very few know the things that the Bedouin knows.

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Narrative Powers in True20 – the Idea.

Another moment over another massive cup of coffee. While the Princess is busy downing strawberries, I’m going to try to get this idea down and out there.

I was thinking about the next campaign I intend to run once I get the band back together (if you are in Ottawa, we could still use another player). It’s going to be a “supers” campaign but in the setting of Mundus Novit. I’m leaving it up to the players as to what level of supers they want to play, but I’m kind of leaning toward something like the Authority or Planetary. Yes, Warren Ellis still owes me money from all those Nextwave: Agents of Hate plugs on the podcast, but I continue to pimp his stuff.

Any-hoo.

I’m leaning toward Savage Worlds for Planetary and Mutants & Masterminds for the Authority. I got some good suggestions from the Twitosphere (thanks@JamesDillane and @thornlord) but unfortunately, the excellent suggestions are impractical—though  if anyone can suggest a way to get print copies of Truth and Justice and/or Prime Time Adventures without doubling the cost in postage, let me know.

I had an idea for powers that would let me use True20. Why bother with learning a whole new system when I can tweak the one I love?

Narrative powers.

Just a basic idea right now, and here’s how it would work. Instead of having a specific power effect—like energy blast or sleep—the character has a power concept. For example, Mr. Snow would have “cold.” As long as the player can explain how this power applies to what the character is trying to do, the character makes a power check, just like now. All powers are fatiguing.

The powers would get 10 points to put into combat or utility. So, Mr. Snow might drop 8 points into combat and 2 into utility. That means for combat purposes, the power is +8. If the player tries to use the power outside of combat, the power is considered +2. If Mr. Snow tries to freeze Mr. Leather’s brain, that’s combat. If Mr. Snow tries to short circuit the security network by dropping its temperature into the negative hundreds, that’s utility.

Strawberry break is ending. More later if I get the chance.

Updated on /

Cowboy Burn-Bop

The long awaited final chapter to the Burn Notice suite of mini-settings/campaigns is the SF setting. This one is tough, because I’m torn between space opera and cyberpunk. I wouldn’t go hard SF simply because I don’t think that fits with the style of Burn Notice. Just as Burn Notice isn’t Spooks, SF Burn Notice shouldn’t be the Forever War.

I think SF Burn Notice should be a kind of Cowboy Be-Bop, with hints of hard SF, but where the fiction absolutely trumps the science.

Welcome to Cowboy Burn-Bop.

In Cowboy Burn-Bop, most of the planets have habitation either planetside or orbiting in satellites. One of the satellites orbiting Jupiter we’ll call Station Miami X-Ray, and it is here that Michael Westen awakens. He was in the middle of a sting operation, smoking out a hacker who claimed to have the identity of US (United Satellites, or something equally pat) agents working undercover and was offering these for sale. In the middle of a crucial meeting with a cutaway–a middle man–Michael was contacted by the Company (make it the CIA if you want to still have Earth governmental organizations influencing extra-terrestrial settlements) and notified that he was burned. An implanted chip caused his body to shut down. When he came to, he was on Miami X-Ray, the station on which he was born.

It might also be interesting to have Michael returned to Miami on Earth, perhaps providing a destroyed paradise–dystopian Blade Runner meets the sunny beach–or even a bright and shiny future Miami, depending on your taste in future Earths.

The Company believes that Michael is a double agent, working for the Hacker. Until they can verify or disprove their suspicions, he’s restricted to Miami X-Ray. The satellite provides an ease of containment an actual city does not, but it’s a choice of setting atmosphere, and either will work equally well. He still has the chip in his head, and his “handlers” can shut him down any time they want . . . or can they? Since the initial shutdown, the Company hasn’t interfered in Michael’s life, and if he gets an examination, no one can find the chip–or any evidence it ever actually existed.

Fiona may be the reason for Michael’s burn. She was muscle for one of the Hacker’s middle-managers–let’s call him Non-State, for no reason in particular–and Michael had been involved with her. He revealed his identity to her, and all hell broke loose. She had tried to kill him, but when Non-State tried to have Michael assassinated, Fiona saved him and killed Non-State. That was the last Michael had seen of her, as Fiona had gone underground.

She’s in Miami X-Ray now, and the Company has given her the same deal it gave Michael–stay in Miami X-Ray or face the consequences. For her, it is a permanent exile. Does the Company think it may want to make use of her in the future? Their motivations are murky at best.

Michael learns that Fiona has been taking care of his mother and his sister Nancy–a tomboy nicknamed Nate. Fiona actually fits into Michael’s family in a way Michael never did, and this–along with unresolved romantic issues–could lead to character tension.

Nate is a successful security consultant. She’s been the brains to Fiona’s brawn, sussing out networks’ vulnerabilities on contract. She’s the white version of the Hacker. Fiona has insured that Nate never need fear from the competition, especially the criminal kind. There is a big sister dynamic working, so that both Fiona and Michael feel protective of Michael’s family.

This is actually sounding more like a story than a campaign concept, but all of this can be built into a group template to help justify the PCs’ continued co-existence.

Sam is an ex-soldier, now cybernetically enhanced to repair damage endured during his tenure as a special warfare operator. He was living the good life until Michael came back. Now the Company wants him to keep tabs on Michael. The Company has not applied a lot of pressure on Sam, because he’s got connections everywhere. He can both spy on Michael and protect him to a certain degree, and so that’s what Sam does. With Michael’s full knowledge.

Just as in the show, this small team fixes small problems using their big skills. In this version, the jobs come through either Nate or Sam. Sam’s connections–and his lady friends–often cash in on their kindness by asking Sam to take care of minor problems. Nate’s contacts through her security consultancy often make her aware of wrongs that needs righting. She’s just naive enough to feel the wrongs need to be righted.

Soon, Michael is targeted by a hit squad sent from the Company, but Sam learns that the Company authorized no such thing. The hit squad should lead to a covert surveillance team that is also from the Company but not under the Company control. It soon becomes apparent there is a shadow organization within the Company. And, you guessed it, the Hacker is running it.

The small adventures lead to this big one, and at its conclusion. Going a little Neuromancer, let’s say the Hacker is actually an AI, the first truly sentient AI known. It has been trying to protect itself and its secret. How the team deals with this problem is up in the air–do they help it, hinder it, destroy it? Whatever the case, with the Hacker problem solved, the team is suddenly free. They find themselves off the Company radar, with carte blanche to do what they will. The Company owes them huge, but the Company doesn’t like owing anyone, so they have to keep a low profile and not press to hard on the Company’s good graces.

Michael is the man with the plan, combat capable but with planning and leadership skills. Fiona is a combat monster, pure and simple. She can fight with anything or with nothing, and be equally deadly. Nate is the tech-head, but also has connections that can work in a narrative fashion that can both feed information and supply adventures. Sam is combat capable, but his the social chameleon, with contacts everywhere–also likely used in a narrative fashion.

So there you have it. Burn Notice in multiple genres.

Any basic premise can lead to a good setting or campaign in any genre. It only takes a little tweaking to make the Seven Samurai  into Battle Beyond the Stars.