There is a funny thing that happens with game design for me. I get an idea for a specific type of play I want to emerge at the table. A picture forms in my head of how the people I don't know will engage with the game.
Then I start writing...
As I write, I try to predict how people might choose to engage with the system I amputting in place. Will it lead them down the path I am envisioning? If I tweak this and add that, will the signs posts I put down lead them to my perceived oasis of fun?
Then I keep writing...
If I add this system to model this type of interaction, will that be enough? What if this system bounces off of that system in the right way? What will the NPCs do? Do they have to do anything?
And more writing...
And more...
And...
Well here we are at the bottom of the abyss. All around me is thousands of words. The words I tried to write to dig myself out of a hole I dug in the first place. What started as a simple idea became a whirlpool of possibilities that dragged me under.
And this is all before I even tried the rules in practice...
It is tantalizing how easy it is to get lost in my own writing. It is one of the reasons I try to move quickly into layout. The constraints of the page design hinder my worst impulses and force me to think about the presentation. This makes it easier for me to edit, particularly edit myself.
Constraints are what make a good idea great...
This particular set of rules is a simple add on for the factions that sit at the heart of Yggdrasil MGZ 5 and 6. This double issue is a massive dungeon that is effectively a campaign for both Torchbearer and Dungeon & Dragons. This, of course, meant I had to be very careful in my rule construction.
At first I made the classic mistake of trying to creating a living world all on its own. Rules sprung up for how the factions interacted with one another independent of everything. I chased the illusion of a "living world" in my design.
I forgot my own first principle of game design.
The only thing that matters in the game world is what the players touch.
Put another way, I didn't need rules for the factions on their own. I needed rules for how the factions changed based on the player's actions. Once I got that down, everything flowed much easier and I clawed my way, one editorial choice at a time, out of the abyss.
What follows is a preview of my contribution to the Death by Dungeon project, The Sanctums of the Serpent Vaults that will appear in late spring in Yggdrasil MGZ 5/6.
Factions
Not every encounter in the Sanctum is about a life and death struggle. Swinging swords and slinging spells will not get you very far. Resources are scarce, so making alliances is very important to survival.
Each faction that they encounter has their own goals and motivations. They have an existing relationship to the other factions. Think of it as a chess match already in progress, only the adventures have just sat down to take over for black.
Disposition
The faction’s disposition to the player’s has a numerical value (see the next page). This value corresponds with a starting disposition to members of that faction in each encounter, all of which have a faction icon.
This number will change over time. When the party does something in that faction’s favor, the number goes up. When they do something against their interests, and the number goes down.
Allies (6)
- Will Protect
- Free common gear
- Rare Goods and Services
Helpful (5)
- Will Assist
- Discounted Prices (50% of)
Friendly (4)
- Discounted Prices (25% of)
Indifferent (3)
- Simple goods and services
Unfriendly (2)
- Everything costs 2x
- Limited access to services
Hostile (1)
- Everything costs 10x
- Barred from services
- Will fight if provoked
Enemies (0)
- Refuse all dealings
- Will attack on site
Power
The faction’s power is a modifier that comes into play when dice are throne. If using D&D, the modifier adjusts D20 roles. For use with Torchbearer, they modify the number of dice (+/-D).
These modifiers are all in a direct relationship to one another, meaning that if one goes down, the others go up. Each time the players take an action that helps one faction, their modifier goes up one and another faction must go down one increment. The game master should use the the fiction of play to guide this choice.
The only exception to the rule is the Tyrant. Their power only changes from direct action for or against them. There is no limit up or down the player’s can adjust their power by helping or hurting their agents.
The Tyrant (TT) [+3]
The Tyrant desires absolute obedience from all within their domain. Only after all dissent is crushed will The God allow the Tyrant to wreck revenge on the world.
Those that aid the Tyrant and their agents in their aims will be showered with wealth, property, and power.
The Hierophant (HT) [+3]
The Hierophant desires the elimination of heresy within the domain. Only when all worship The God in the right way will the people ascend out of perdition.
Those that aid the Hierophant and their agents in their aims will be given money and blessings of divine power.
The Chancellor (CR) [+2]
The Chancellor desires to turn from The God to embrace a future through the Wyrd. Only when the power of the Wyrd is harnessed will the people move forward.
Those that aid the Chancellor and their agents in their aims will be given deep secrets and artifacts of the Wyrd.
The Necrolord (NC) [+0]
The Necrolord desires to return the world to the time of the lost age. Only when the dead march and rule the living will the Black Gate be open once again.
Those that aid the Necrolord and their agents with their aims will be given the secrets of endless unlife.
God’s Joy (GD) [+1]
The God’s Joy desires all true believers to give into their hedonistic instincts. Only then will he manifest and bring them to their reward.
Those that aide the God’s Joy in their aims will be given basic supplies and access to their vast network of anarchic followers.
God’s Venom (GV) [-1]
The God’s Venom desires the holy slaying of all other factions. Only when the last blade is placed in the last heart will the God be satisfied.
Those that aid the God’s Venom in their aims will be provided alchemical supplies and the use of their trained spies and killers.
God’s Wake (GW) [-2]
The God’s Wake desires to maintain the status quo. Only by embracing their punishment and fate will the God bring them into their bossom.
Those that aid the God’s Wake in their aims will be provided the good and services of the finest craftsmen in the Vaults.
Enemies & Allies
When the adventure begins, they will find the agents of the various factions balanced against one another. The party themselves are the destabilizing force that tips over the scales. The power map above is the means to keep track of each factions relative strength and their relationship to one another alliances.
As the party takes actions they will elevate or weaken different factions by their actions. Each time they do so, adjust the scale next to the appropriate faction to see what changes as a result.
