“I’m here about a job” said the newcomer. The usual crowd at the Grotto stared at them in the doorway – faces grim, suspicious, annoyed, mocking. A few eyes glanced back at the surly Mr. Sargos at the counter. “Well don’t just stand there with the door open, all the luck is getting out!” “And […]
Resources
Monster Design – J. Baseline and the Cave Rays
The core system of Symbaroum proposes that monsters be evaluated on the basis of how many points of experience went into their construction. Personally I find that a lacking measure of actual difficulty. A monster with Terrify and Resolute 7 is much less dangerous than a monster with Terrify and Resolute 15, but on paper […]
Alternate Combat: Brawls, Games, and Chases
Symbaroum is a game system that is weighted heavily towards fighting. You may not always run a combat-heavy game, but there are few avenues for character advancement that aren’t about becoming better at killing people. However, as I touched on in my previous Encounter Design article, there are ways to frame combat that allows your […]
Help! How do I design Scenes and Narrative Encounters? (Encounter Design Part 3)
A few days later, you arrive back at Thistle Hold. The fire of the lighthouse beacon burns bright and guides you home to the familiar stench and noise of civilisation. You approach the North Gate and one of the city guards steps forward. He asks you for the usual toll: One shilling per leg and […]
- Adventures
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A Legate’s Favor: Explorer’s License as an Adventure in Itself
Are you certain you wish to keep poking at this wounded land?” – Suria Argona The Explorer’s License I’m quite fascinated with bureaucracy, especially bureaucracy that allows for totally arbitrary decisions by the powers that be. The Explorer’s License is a perfect example of this. On paper it looks to be a simple fee structure […]
The Sorceresses’ Shop of Charms and Seals
Waharom, what’s this now hawarom? Waha! Sisters! Looks like we have customers! Awaha! In the post about keeping bad guys alive, I mentioned getting creative with magic as a method for granting NPCs some survivability. The ritual Spell Trap and the lesser artifacts Spell Seals and Ritual Seals from the Advanced Player’s Guide give a […]
Help! I can’t keep my bad guys alive! (Encounter Design Part 2)
No single target survives contact with the players. In the previous post, I talked about how to think about encounter elements that challenge unstoppable player characters. I mainly focused on abilities and traits that can put a stop to the onslaught of a targeted player character. However, this doesn’t really solve one of the other […]
Help! My Symbaroum Players are Overpowered! (Encounter Design Part 1)
“There’s this one character who’s immune to damage, and one that deals infinite hurt every turn! I can’t challenge them without also annihilating the more reasonable players! What do I do!?”
