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Thread: Mononofù

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    Dirty Chai's Avatar Dux Limitis
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    Default Mononofù


    A private roleplaying game campaign set in an emergent world of autumn-shrouded mountains, musty wooden corridors, and moonlit blood-feuds. Unless you find your username in the cast below, please do not post in this thread. Privates Messages or Discord messages are preferred. I will request moderation to delete off-topic posts and posts made by those uninvolved. Please and thank you.



    Dramatis Personae

    Kuratomo, Oznerol
    • | Cool 0 | Hard +2 | Hot 0 | Sharp +1 | Weird -1 |
    • Unharmed
    • Light skin, Battered old armor, Fanciful clothing, Aristocratic face, Raging eyes, Hard body
    • Long sword (4-harm) of unusual metal, with an inlaid hilt and razor sharp edge
    • Short sword (2-harm) with an ivory hilt and a slender blade
    • Bow & arrows (3-harm, at range, specialized, 2-handed)
    • Laced scales, greaves, arm guards (1 armor, 2 armor against arrows)
    • Great dark spotted cloak of fur and hide
    • Short leather shoes trimmed with bear fur
    • Goods worth 2 keep



    The Moves

    All rolls are 2d6, using Orokos.com for results.

    Basic Actions
    Spending and Earning Keep At the beginning of every season, spend 1, 2, or 3 keep for your lifestyle (plus 0, 1, or 2 more keep for your mount’s hunger, if you have one). If you can’t or won’t, tell the world so, and answer its questions. If you need coins, goods, or keep during a season, tell the world you’d like to work to earn your keep.

    Imagine four possible lifestyles, relative to one another. First is the typical one: you eat what the people around you eat, wear what they wear, sleep where they sleep. Spend 1 keep at the beginning of the season to live this life.

    Next is better: you eat first and best, as an honored guest, a beloved leader, or a feared intruder. You wear finer clothing than the people around you, and sleep apart from them, in greater comfort. Spend 2 keep at the beginning of the season to live this life.

    Next is better still: you do not eat the best of their food, but better food, food of your own, prepared by your own servants, of ingredients not available to the people around you. You wear clothing the like of which they have never before seen; kingly, queenly stuff. You sleep in luxury. Spend 3 keep at the beginning of the season to live this life.

    Last is worst: you are starving, in rags, desperate, dying of hunger, thirst, and exposure. This is what it should mean to spend 0 keep at the beginning of the season, and it still might.

    Working the hard earth is worth 1 keep.

    Other duties should be worth 2–4 keep, depending on both how onerous they are and
    how well you perform them. Expect 3 keep, be grateful for 4, and resent 2.

    When you work, the world gets to choose:
    • The world describes the work you do very quickly, in summary.
    • You play out the work you do, making moves and conducting play as normal.
    • Make a single move or a quick snowball of moves to see how it goes.
    At the end, the world tells you how much it was worth.
    History, Improvement, and Highlighted Stats At the end of every season, choose one or two characters who know you better than they used to. If there are more than two, choose two at your whim. Those characters add +1 to their history with you. If this brings them to history+4, they reset to history+1 and mark experience. If no one knows you better, choose one character who doesn’t know you as well as they thought, or choose any character at your whim. That character takes -1 to their history with you. If this brings them to history -3, they reset to history=0 and mark experience.

    Whenever you roll a highlighted stat, and whenever you reset your history with someone, mark experience. When you mark experience for the 5th time, improve. Each time you improve, choose one of the options the world presents to you. You cannot choose it again.

    At the beginning of any season, or at the end if you forgot, anyone can call for new highlighted stats. The character with the highest history chooses one stat to highlight, and the world chooses another. You’re allowed to ask someone to highlight a particular stat for you, but you aren’t allowed to insist. If you have a particular stat that, because of your moves, you never roll, you’re allowed to insist that someone highlight a different stat instead.
    Do something risky When you do something risky, dangerous, challenging, or demanding, roll+cool.
    On a 10+, you do it. On a 7–9, you flinch, hesitate, or stall: the world can offer you a worse outcome, a hard bargain, or an ugly choice. On a miss, be prepared for the worst. On a 12+, you transcend the challenge. You do what you set out to do, and the world must offer you a better outcome, true beauty, inspiration, or a moment of grace.
    Attack or threaten someone When you attack or threaten someone, roll+hard.
    On a 10+, they have to choose 1: submit to you, try to flee, or fight back. On a 7–9, they can also choose to lie, try to placate you, back down with dignity, take a more secure position, or make a fighting retreat. If you’re satisfied with their answer, you can accept it; otherwise, you may press your attack and join battle with them. On a miss, be prepared for the worst. On a 12+, if you’re not satisfied with their answer, you can inflict harm on them as established, before joining battle with them.
    Seduce or manipulate someone When you try to seduce, manipulate, bluff, disorient, or lie to someone, tell them what you want them to do, give them a reason, and roll+hot.

    For NPCs: on a 10+, they’ll go along with you, unless or until some fact or action betrays the reason you gave them. On a 7–9, they’ll go along with you, but they need some concrete assurance, corroboration, evidence, or show of good faith first.

    For PCs: on a 10+, both. On a 7–9, choose 1:

    • if they do it, they mark experience
    • if they refuse, erase one of their stat highlights for the remainder of the session

    What they do then is up to them.

    On a miss, for either NPCs or PCs, be prepared for the worst.

    On a 12+, only if they’re an NPC, they do it, and furthermore you win them fully over to you. Tell the world to erase their threat and make them an ally.
    Choose 1:

    • Ally: confidante.
    • Ally: guardian.
    • Ally: representative.
    • Ally: friend.
    • Ally: lover.
    • Ally: right hand.

    Read a person When you read a person in a charged interaction, roll+sharp.
    On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7–9, hold 1. While you’re interacting with them, spend your hold to ask their player questions, 1 for 1:
    • Is your character telling the truth?
    • What’s your character really feeling?
    • What does your character intend to do?
    • What does your character wish I’d do?
    • How could I get your character to __?

    On a miss, ask 1 anyway, but be prepared for the worst.

    Advanced: on a 12+, hold 3, but spend them 1 for 1 to ask any question you like.
    Read a situation When you read a charged situation, roll+sharp. On a hit, you can ask the world questions.
    Whenever you act on one of the world’s answers, take +1. On a 10+, ask 3. On a 7–9, ask 1:
    • Where’s my best escape route / way in / way past?
    • Which enemy is most vulnerable to me?
    • Which enemy is the biggest threat?
    • What should I be on the lookout for?
    • What’s my enemy’s true position?
    • Who’s in control here?
    • Can I meet my enemy as an equal, or does one of us hold decisive advantage over the other?

    On a miss, ask 1 anyway, but be prepared for the worst.

    Advanced: on a 12+, ask any 3 questions you like.
    Grasp blindly outward When you grasp blindly outward from yourself into the realms of spirits and gods, roll+weird. On a hit, the world will tell you something new and interesting about the current situation, and might ask you a question or two; answer them. On a 10+, the world will give you good detail. On a 7–9, the world will give you an impression. If you already know all there is to know, the world will tell you that. On a miss, be prepared for the worst. Advanced: on a 12+, you reach through the world to what’s beyond.
    Help or interfere When you help or interfere with someone who’s making a roll, roll+your history with them. On a 10+, they take +2 (help) or -2 (interfere) to their roll. On a 7–9, they take +1 (help) or -1 (interfere) to their roll. On a miss, be prepared for the worst.
    Peripheral Actions
    Suffer harm When you suffer harm, roll+harm suffered (after armor, if you’re wearing any).

    On a 10+, the world can choose 1:
    • You’re out of action: unconscious, trapped, incoherent or panicked.
    • It’s worse than it seemed. Take an additional 1-harm.
    • Choose 2 from the 7–9 list below.

    On a 7–9, the world can choose 1:
    • You lose your footing.
    • You lose your grip on whatever you’re holding.
    • You lose track of someone or something you’re attending to.
    • You miss noticing something important.

    On a miss, the world can nevertheless choose something from the 7–9 list above. If it does, though, it’s instead of some of the harm you’re suffering, so you take -1harm.

    When you inflict harm on another player’s character, the other character gets +1 history with you for every segment of harm you inflict. If this brings them to history+4, they reset to history+1 as usual, and mark experience. When you heal another player’s character’s harm, you get +1 history with them for every segment of harm you heal. If this brings you to history+4, you reset to history+1 as usual, and mark experience. When you hurt someone, they see you more clearly. When you heal someone, you see them more clearly.

    You suffer harm as established: the harm rating of the enemy, weapon, or mishap inflicting the harm, minus your own armor, modified by any advantages or other modifiers that hold.

    When you suffer harm, mark 1 wound for each 1 harm you suffer.

    Wounds 1–3 are not life threatening; wounds 4–6 are. When you mark the 6th wound, your life is ending.

    While your wounds 1–3 are fresh, they can be healed, but failing that, after a season passes, mark them over in pen. Old wounds linger.

    When you take a life-threatening wound, wounds 4–6, mark that you’re dying. Without healing, your wounds will get worse: as time passes, the world can have you continue to take harm and mark wounds for no other reason.

    When your life is ending, choose 1:
    • Come back with -1hard.
    • Come back with +1weird (max +3).
    • Change to a new playbook.
    • Die.

    If you choose to come back, decide with the world how many wounds you should come back with, if any.
    Commerce When you go into a bustling market, looking for some particular thing to buy, and it’s not already obvious that you’ll be able to find it for sale, roll+sharp. On a 10+, yes, you find it for sale. On a 7–9, the world chooses one of the following:
    • It costs 1 keep’s worth more than you’d expect
    • It’s not openly for sale, but you find someone who can lead you to someone selling it.
    • It’s not openly for sale, but you find someone who sold it recently, who may be willing to introduce you to their previous buyer.
    • It’s not available for sale, but you find something similar. Will it do?

    When you make known that you want something, that you’ll pay to speed it on its way, roll+keep spent (max roll+3). It has to be something you could legitimately get this way. On a 10+ it comes to you, no strings attached. On a 7–9 it comes to you, or something pretty close. On a miss, it comes to you, but with strings very much attached.
    Insight By default, nobody has access to insight.
    When you call upon someone or something for insight, ask them what they think your best course is, and the world will tell you. If you pursue that course, take +1 to any rolls you make in the pursuit. If you pursue that course but don’t accomplish your ends, you mark experience.
    Augury By default, nobody has access to augury.
    When you use someone or something for augury, roll+weird.

    On a hit, you can choose 1:
    • Reach through the realms of spirits and gods to something or someone connected to it.
    • Isolate and protect a person or thing from the realms of the spirits and gods.
    • Isolate and contain a fragment of the realm of the spirits and gods itself.
    • Speak words into the realms of the spirits and gods.
    • Open a window into the realms of the spirits and gods.

    By default, the effect will last only as long as you hold it, will reach only shallowly into the realms of the spirits and gods as it is local to you, and will bleed instability.

    On a 10+, choose 2; on a 7–9, choose 1:
    • It’ll persist (for a while) without your actively holding it.
    • It reaches deep into the realms of the spirits and gods.
    • It reaches broadly throughout the realms of the spirits and gods.
    • It’s stable and contained, no bleeding.

    On a miss, whatever bad happens, the instrument of your augury bears the brunt.
    Mounts By default, anyone with a mount has access to these moves.
    When you try to outrace another rider, roll+the difference between your mounts’ speeds. On a 10+, you outrace them. On a 7–9, choose: drive your mount to suffer 1 harm (ignoring armor) and outrace them, or else let them outrace you. On a miss, they outrace you.

    When you push your mount to hard labor or long endurance, roll+your mount’s strong. On a 10+, your mount proves capable and accomplishes it. On a 7–9, choose: push your mount beyond its capacity, to accomplish it, but inflicting 1 harm (ignoring armor); or else let your mount set its own limits and fall not too far short. On a miss, your mount balks.
    Battle Actions

    When you join battle with someone, find who commands the field.

    Command the field When two warriors meet, both armed, they meet as equals. The particular differences between them as warriors, between their positions, and between their weapons might give one an advantage over the other, but still they meet as equals. Some advantages are so decisive, however, that holding one gives that warrior command of the field.

    Decisive advantages:
    • If you’re armed and armored, and your enemy is neither, you command the field.
    • If you outnumber or outsize your enemy by half again or more, you command the field.
    • If you are able and armed to fight at range, but your enemy must cover the ground between you before engaging, you command the field.
    • If you are mounted, and your enemy is on foot, you command the field.

    Choosing your battle move:
    • If you command the field, your battle move is to press your advantage.
    • If your enemy commands the field, your battle move is to survive against the advantage.
    • If you meet as equals, your battle move is to seize by force or a variation, to do single combat. Choose the latter if you have no objective but to injure and kill your enemy. If you have any other tactical or material objective, though, choose to seize by force.

    Other PC combatants:
    • If another PC is fighting at your side or under your command, they should help if you’re pressing your advantage, seizing by force, or doing single combat, and you should consult with them to make your choices. If you have to survive against the advantage, though, they do too, independently.
    • If your enemy is also a PC, and you meet as equals, you both make your moves simultaneously. If one of you commands the field, though, the one trying to survive against the advantage makes their move first, and the one pressing their advantage makes their move only on a miss.

    Competing advantages:
    If you and your enemy hold competing advantages — when you are 4 warriors armed with bows, and your enemy is a dozen warriors but not armed with bows, for instance — the world judges whether one side’s advantage remains decisive and commands the field, or whether they balance each other and you meet as equals after all. If you disagree with the world, nevertheless it is its judgment to make and so it stands. To avoid being startled by it, be sure to read the situation before you commit to battle.
    Establish and exchanging harm Establishing harm:
    • If you’re fighting for sport, not in earnest, you inflict 0 harm.
    • If you’re fighting in earnest, but unarmed, you inflict 1 harm.
    • If you’re fighting armed, you inflict harm according to your weapon.
    • Subtract your armor from the harm against you, unless the attack specifically pierces, ignores, or otherwise bypasses armor.
    • Some weapon tags give additional modifiers, depending on the circumstances.

    Exchanging harm:
    • Both sides simultaneously inflict and suffer harm as established.

    When you take harm, ask the world whether you should suffer harm. Ask even if your armor and other choices reduce the harm you suffer to 0 or less.
    Press your advantage When you command the field, your move is to press your advantage. Roll+hard.

    On a 10+, you inflict harm upon them as established, and then they have to choose: submit to you, try to flee, or force your hand upon them.

    On a 7–9, you inflict harm upon them as established, and then you choose 1:
    • Offer them your terms, and ask whether they will accept them.
    • Demand that they offer you their terms, and decide whether to accept them.
    If you agree to terms, the battle ends. Otherwise, they have to choose, as for a 10+: submit to you, try to flee, or force your hand.

    On a miss, you accidentally give them an opening of some kind. Be prepared for the worst.

    Outcomes:
    • If you agree to terms, the battle ends.
    • If they submit to you, your choice is to accept their submission or to strike them again while they’re at your mercy. Either way, the battle ends.
    • If they try to flee, your choice is to let them go, to strike them again in the back as they flee, or to try to block or pursue them. In the former cases, the battle ends. In the latter case, this phase of the battle ends, and to continue to fight you must move to rejoin battle with them.
    • If they force your hand upon them, they give you no choice but to strike them again. This phase of the battle ends, and either you or they can choose to rejoin battle.

    In any outcome, if you strike them again, inflict harm again as established.
    Survive against the advantage When your enemy commands the field, your move is to survive against the advantage. Work out with the world and/or the other player where you might be able to go and where you might be forced to go. Especially work out whether there’s somewhere you can go where you’ll be able to escape or somehow seize the advantage. Once done, Roll+hard.

    On a 10+, you’re able to make your way to where you hoped. On a 7–9, choose:
    • You’re able to make your way to where you hoped, but your enemy strikes you, inflicting harm as established.
    • You’re forced to go where your enemy drives you, but your enemy’s unable to land a blow.

    On a miss, there’s no surviving it. If your enemy’s a PC, they press their advantage now. If your enemy’s an NPC, they inflict harm as established now, and you must choose: submit to their mercy, break away and flee, or defy them and let them strike you again.

    Outcomes:
    • If you’re able to make your way to where you hoped, this phase of the battle ends. You might be able to seize the advantage and rejoin battle.
    • If you’re forced to go where your enemy drives you, this phase of the battle ends. If you or your enemy rejoins battle, though, your enemy might still command the field.
    • If you submit to your enemy’s mercy, the battle ends with your submission.
    • If you try to flee, this phase of the battle ends. Your enemy can choose to let you go, or can move to block or pursue you and rejoin battle.
    • If you defy your enemy and let them strike you again, they inflict harm again as established. This phase of the battle ends, but either you or they can move to rejoin battle.
    Seize by force To seize something by force, exchange harm, but first roll+hard. On a 10+, choose 3. On a 7–9, choose 2:
    • You inflict terrible harm (+1 harm).
    • You suffer little harm (-1 harm).
    • You take definite and undeniable control of it.
    • You impress, dismay, or frighten your enemy.

    On a miss, choose 1 anyway, but be prepared for the worst.

    Variations:
    • To assault a secure position, roll to seize by force, but instead of choosing to take definite control of it, you can choose to force your way into your enemy’s position.
    • To keep hold of something you have, roll to seize by force, but instead of choosing to take definite control of it, you can choose to keep definite control of it.
    • To fight your way free, roll to seize by force, but instead of choosing to take definite control of it, you can choose to win free.
    • To defend someone else from attack, roll to seize by force, but instead of choosing to take definite control of it, you can choose to protect them from harm.
    • To hold your enemy off while your allies take action, roll to seize by force, but instead of choosing to take definite control of it, you can choose to hold your enemy off.

    When your enemy is a PC:
    You both roll your moves and both make your choices. Choose blind, committing to your choices before you know your enemy’s. There’s only a single exchange of harm. All of the modifiers that you chose between you apply to it.If you choose contradictory options — one of you to take definite control, the other to keep definite control of it, for instance — they cancel one another. It’s the same as if neither of you had chosen them, and the matter remains contested.
    Do single combat When you do single combat, no quarters, exchange harm, but first:

    Against an NPC: Roll+hard. On a 10+, you choose 3 and your enemy chooses 1. On a 7–9, you choose 2 and your enemy chooses 2. On a miss, you choose 1 and your enemy chooses 3.
    Against another PC: You both roll+hard. On a 10+, choose 3. On a 7–9, choose 2. On a miss, choose 1, and your enemy chooses an additional 1 against you.

    You can choose duplicates. Choose blind, committing to your choices before you know your enemy’s.
    • You inflict terrible harm (+1 harm).
    • You suffer little harm (-1 harm).
    • You score 1 toward seizing control.

    After you exchange harm, which of you has spent more toward seizing control?
    • If a tie, either of you can choose to end the fight by submitting to the others’ mercy, or by breaking and trying to flee. If you both choose to fight on, though, then fight on.
    • If you spent more toward seizing control, the fight ends with your enemy at your mercy.
    Using a war-band as a weapon You can use your war-band as a weapon by having them attack or threaten someone or make a battle move against them. When you do, you roll the dice and make the choices, but it’s your war-band that inflicts and suffers harm, not you yourself.

    War-bands inflict and suffer harm as established:
    • Your war-band inflicts harm equal to its listing’s harm rating.
    • Subtract your war-band’s armor from the harm against them, unless the attack specifically pierces, ignores, or otherwise bypasses armor.

    There are a number of drills a war-band can practice. Drilling is an act of regular, ongoing discipline and effort. You choose your war-band’s drills, if any, in war-band creation.
    • Drilling against archers trains you to effectively rush enemy archers. For purposes of commanding the field, it eliminates the advantage of an enemy that can fight at range, when you can’t.
    • Drilling against cavalry trains you to hold fast and break a cavalry charge. For purposes of commanding the field, it eliminates the advantage of a mounted enemy when you’re on foot.
    • Drilling in defense trains you to fight together to hold a position. When your war-band fights in defense of a position, for purposes of commanding the field, it counts as half again its number. (If the position has walls, their multiplier applies as well, as below.)
    • Drilling in ranks trains to you fight in order, advance and retreat with discipline, and defend the warriors on your right and left. For purposes of commanding the field, your war-band counts double its number against a force that fights in disorder.
    • Drilling unarmed trains you to fight effectively even without your weapons. For purposes of commanding the field, it eliminates the advantage of an enemy that is armed and armored, when you’re not.

    Walls and siege engines:
    • Walls: for purposes of commanding the field, a war-band fighting to defend walls counts double or more its number against an attacking force, depending on the size and quality of the walls. Walls are rated 2x, 3x, 4x, or 5x in stronghold creation.
    • Siege engines: siege engines reduce the advantage of your enemy’s walls. Siege engines are rated siege-1, siege-2, or siege-3, and subtract their rating directly from the enemy walls’ multiplier. (Siege engines also provide a bonus to the harm you inflict.)
    When your war-band suffers harm When your war-band suffers harm, each 1 harm it suffers puts one warrior in ten, plus one mount in ten, out of the fight. 1 harm means 10%, 2 harm means 20%, 3 harm means 30%, and so on. These warriors are driven away, pinned down, wounded, killed, dazed, held off, or otherwise rendered noncombatant. Collectively, they are your fallen. If the battle continues, discount them from your war-band’s number. Then, at the end of the battle, sum your fallen and count your dead among them.

    Normally, a war-band breaks once it’s taken 2 harm. You can hold your war-band together with leadership or bloody-crowned, though, until it takes 4 harm.

    For PCs leading or fighting in the war-band, ask the world how much harm you take, and answer the world’s questions about your role in the fight. Expect to take harm equal to the harm the war-band’s taken, but the world can modify it by 1 or 2 up or down.

    When you count your dead, roll+harm, the total harm that your war-band has suffered. This move is unusual: a hit is bad for you, a miss is good. On a 10+, a solid and undeniable half of your fallen are dead or dying of their wounds. On a 7–9, less than half of your fallen are dead or dying of their wounds, a third or a quarter of them. On a miss, few of your fallen are dead or dying of their wounds, only one in five or one in six.
    Lay an ambush Lay an ambush by preparing a disadvantageous position for your enemy to unknowingly take, then waiting in concealment for them to take it. To draw them into your prepared position, you might be able to seduce or manipulate them.

    Expecting your war-band to hold discipline while your enemy takes position might be doing something risky, or you might be able to force them to by using leadership or bloody-crowned.

    Once your enemy’s in position, spring your ambush by attacking them.
    Conduct a pitched battle Conduct a pitched battle by using attack or threaten someone, seize by force or single
    combat.

    Start with attack or threaten someone only if your enemy was not expecting to meet you now, here, on this particular pitch, from this particular direction. Otherwise, start by establishing who commands the field and proceed directly to choosing battle moves.

    Supposing that the forces meet as equals, if both war-leaders intend only to reduce the other’s force, with no other objective, treat it as single combat. If either war-leader hopes to achieve any other tactical or material objective, though, use seize by force or a variation.
    Lay a siege To lay a siege, you must commit a war-band to the effort. Roll+hard.

    On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7–9, hold 2. During the remainder of the season, you can spend your hold 1 for 1 to declare that:
    • For purposes of wealth, the stronghold is not secure, nor the strongholder’s rule unchallenged.
    • No one inside the stronghold can leave it.
    • The people inside the stronghold are suffering d-harm: food.
    • The people inside the stronghold are suffering d-harm: water.
    • The people inside the stronghold are subject to a disease, which the world should create as an affliction threat.
    • Your forces now launch a full assault upon the stronghold.
    • A small raiding party of your warriors try to slip inside the stronghold.

    On a miss, hold 2 as above, but choose 1 as well:
    • Your besieging forces are themselves suffering d-harm: food.
    • Your besieging forces are bankrupting you; spend 3 keep now.
    • Your besieging forces are losing heart, in want, or prey to their vulnerabilities.

    Renew your siege at the beginning of every season until you abandon it, or until your enemy submits, flees, sallies out, or somehow breaks it.

    For a PC besieged by an NPC, roll+hard, once when the siege is laid, and again at the beginning of every season the siege continues. On a 10+, your enemy holds 2 as above, but cannot maintain the siege and abandons it at the end of the season. On a 7–9, your enemy holds 2 as above. On a miss, your enemy holds 3 as above.
    s-harm and d-harm s-harm means stun. It disables its target without causing any regular harm. NPCs suffering s-harm are simply unable to act. For a PC suffering s-harm, doing anything at all is risky and challenging; the challenge is “you’re stunned” or “you’re dazed.”

    A person suffers d-harm from deprivation. d-harm is strictly for acute cases of deprivation. For scarcity and chronic deprivation, create affliction threats instead.

    Individual NPCs simply suffer the effects of d-harm as follows. For PCs suffering d-harm, tell them the effects they’re suffering, and if they can’t or don’t alleviate their deprivation, inflict regular harm alongside it, in increments of 1-harm ap.

    For a population suffering d-harm, the two questions are how they behave, and how long they can last before breaking up, tearing themselves apart, or dying.

    • d-harm (air), asphyxiation: Difficulty breathing, panic, convulsions, paralysis, unconsciousness, brain damage, death within minutes.
      Inflicted on a population: Immediate panic. Social cohesion breaks down basically at once into a survival-driven desperation to find air.
    • d-harm (warmth), hypothermia: shivering, hunger, dizziness, confusion, drowsiness, frostbite, delirium, unconsciousness, irregular heartbeat, death in an hour or more, depending on the cold.
      Inflicted on a population: Huddling together, despair, lethargy, resignation. Isolated individuals suffer worsening individual symptoms, so social cohesion can last basically as long as the individuals can.
    • d-harm (cool), heat stroke: headache, dehydration, weakness or cramps, confusion, fever, vomiting, seizures, unconsciousness, death in an hour or more, depending on the heat.
      Inflicted on a population: Desperation, panic, lethargy, resignation. Social cohesion can last as long as the individuals can, as the less vulnerable individuals try to help the more vulnerable.
    • d-harm (water), dehydration: desperation, headache, confusion, delirium, collapse, death in 3 days.
      Inflicted on a population: Rationing & hoarding, desperation, infighting. Social cohesion can last up to a week before breaking down into violence or dispersal.\
    • d-harm (food), starvation: irritability, hunger, weakness, diarrhea, lethargy, dehydration, muscular atrophy, heart failure and death within 2–3 months.
      Inflicted on a population: Rationing & hoarding, desperation, infighting. Social cohesion can last up to 2 weeks before breaking down into violence, cannibalism, or dispersal.
    • d-harm (sleep), sleep deprivation, irritability, disorientation, nodding off, depression, headache, hallucinations, mania, personality changes, bizarre behavior.
      Inflicted on a population: Malaise, infighting, tantrums, desperation. For long-term acute sleep deprivation, create affliction threats instead.

    Last edited by Dirty Chai; September 13, 2018 at 03:54 AM.

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Mononofù


    WINTER
    Kuratomo: Hard and Sharp



    The path is steep, and the soil beneath your worldly feet shifts and slips. The mountainside curves downwards behind you, and sleet surrounds you. A deluge has come upon Mount Henjō, melting its snow-laden slopes into frigid, icy mud. You can hear rushing rapids in the distance, between the storm’s claps and splashes.

    Kuratomo, what god, demon, or beast does this new year belong to?

    The mountain does not want you to reach its summit, perhaps. You pass under another of the red gates nonetheless, driving further yet beyond sacred boundaries. Perhaps it tests you. You know hardship well, don’t you, Kuratomo? You notice how the crimson paint is faded, dark like lacquered leather in this provincial winter. You are glad for the tightly-fitting boots on your feet, thick leather trimmed with the fur of great bears.

    At the top, you know, is a great shinsha. A place of gods. Why do you go here? What do you seek there? You know there to be a family of priests and priestesses there, practitioners and defenders of the mountain. The warrior tribes in the valleys below never bat an eye to their whims and omens. After all, they hold the blood of gods, do they not?

    What is it you seek, someone or something? Is it real, or abstract, or both? What drives you to climb this mountain in the depths of winter?
    Last edited by Dirty Chai; September 12, 2018 at 12:10 AM.

  3. #3

    Default Re: Mononofù

    The gods of wind are howling, and their cries are not exactly those of defiance: maybe they mourn the death of life itself, suffocated in the long embrace of winter's cold arms. It was said that their metallic feathers provoke sparks that light up the sky, causing lightning. Whatever truth did those words of tale and lore hid, it was not known. Or maybe the wrathful god of storms, brother to the Sun, was waving his ten-fists-long sword, making wind swirl and clouds be torn open in his blind rage. Whatever the cause, the weather was horrid and the whole world was blurred, the borders eroded and the vision obscured by rain and wind. The leathered hand rested for a little in the gate's pillar.

    Maybe, only maybe, the climb would be worth it. The priests that made their abode at top were not only spiritual guides for the scattered communities in the surrounding lands and vale, but also were lords of the earthly, being the major propietaries of land, river, wood and rock in the region. Through hundreds of years of enlightened piety their wealth was increased and in turn the poor villagers only asked for guidance and protection. A sword was maybe needed, or maybe he could find some solace in the brazier-lit shrine and halls of the lord-priests of the mountain. Long had he wandered, from hall to hall, a manor to the next, seeking shelter in temples and inns all across the Northern half of the country. It was such a contrast with the warmer, placid halls of his forebears, but their delicate pabillions, high walls and storied keep were long lost. Sighing was not advisable in such a chilly climate, but noneless breath scaped his mouth, for much was the sorrow inflicted upon his heart by many. Grudges could be washed, but not forgotten. The touch of the inlaid hilt reassured him. Passed by from father to son in an unbroken line, the sword was unmoving, unfliching, eternal, a reminder of old times and lifes lost; it was both a memento and a tool, a symbol and a weapon.

    He wrapped himself more tighly in the furry cloak, bracing himself for the long way to the still distant manor and shrine that topped the surrounding world, a whole cosmos surrounded by the high walls of the mountains, veiled by snow and rain. It was remote enough to not be bothered and give some respite to his wandering soul.
    Last edited by Oznerol; September 01, 2018 at 07:56 AM.

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  4. #4
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    You're careful to protect that symbolic long sword in weather such as this. Instead of wearing it openly, you make sure that its handle and sheath are protected by the length of your cloak. You hide much under its thick protection, including the unstrung staff of a bow and a small bundle of arrows.

    A pinch at the back of your neck halts your progress. You balk, one foot behind the other still. You look around for the source of the threat, suppressing a tremble in your lungs. You find it. Two hazel eyes glow at you, through sleet and darkness, wide and judgmental. They belong to the body of a great red wolf, perched on a bank above you, overlooking yet another of the red gates in your path. The forest thickens just behind its motionless tail. It holds you in its gaze for many breaths before, without rhyme or second thought, it turns and continues on its way, slipping back into the frosted foliage.

    You have no time to reflect. The mountain howls. The pit in your chest growls. Old wounds sting and burn. You are close. So close. Only three more of the red gates arch your ascent, the last one notably unfaded - a brilliant red clashing against the white and brown beneath and beyond it. The summit is here, suddenly flat, turning into the fenced grounds that wall off this pocket of sacred soil from the rest of the world of the reed beds. You can see the grand hall beyond, through a path bordered by smaller pavillions and gabled roofs and stone markers and little shrines. Some lone braziers light the way, maybe one in five. You do not see anyone in sight.

  5. #5

    Default Re: Mononofù

    In a humid weather like that... a sword should only be bathed in oil and blood, both thicker and more dense than water. And the sword should be preserved at all costs: it was all that remained from a previous life, when he did have much more than a meager koku of rice to his name, the sword was not only a tool of trade but also an unequivocal symbol of status. However, his thoughts about blades and past grievances were interrupted by another presence, one that sent shivers down his spine. The wolf was motionlessly menacing, its natural authority, its imposingly threatening presence was felt almost physically; a beast to rule the forest. The eyes were haunting, like ponds of molten copper, deep and inscrutable. He held his breath for a moment, but never ocured to him to wield his sword, this was something that transcended a mere encounter with a wild animal: this felt like a portent, like an omen, the nature of which he could not ascertain. It lasted what seemed a lifetime, but the moment was broken and the wolf stepped again into the wilderness.

    Whatever the nature of the encounter with such a beast, it was unwise to remain in the open for a long period of time, not only the weather was worsening but who knows what lurked among the shadows. He had no intentions of spilling any blood that day, least so his own, so he hurried himself towards the shrine and the promise of heat and food among the lordly priests of the shrine. Light-footed he tried to the comforting safety of the fenced enclosure, sacred soiled, many times over blessed by the resident deity.

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  6. #6
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    An inner-wall cuts off the rest of the grounds from a larger heart - this wall is high, and made of rammed earth and has finely curved roofs which block everything out of view except for the towering gables of the great hall and the many conifers laden with white and black against the sky. Approaching the gate, it seems much larger than you had expected, and it is adorned with an enclosing rope - curling round and round and hung with zig-zagging strips of paper which blow and shake in the weather alongside the beautiful tassels of the rope. It seems to extend, although smaller and less grand, on both sides of the gate along the two lengths of wall you can see until, in the distance, they turn corners. One you can see, the other seems to disappear into the darkness and obscurity of the mountain's forest.

    As you step up - landing onto stonework for the first time in a long while - another alarm halts your progress. This time, however, it is more expected - and possibly encouraging. A man's voice breaks through the wind and rain, and you can see the light of his fire dancing on the woodwork above the gate and beyond.

    "Who goes there? Hello?"

  7. #7

    Default Re: Mononofù

    At least someone to be found in all this wilderness... and this weather. He tried to stand tall before the gate, projecting his voice forwards.

    "I am Kuratomo"

    That was the name chosen by fate and events of late, not the one handed down by his father and blessed by his mother.

    "I seek shelter and an audience with whoever might be in charge"
    Last edited by Oznerol; September 03, 2018 at 05:03 AM.

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  8. #8
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    There is silence for a breath, then the wooden gate opens - one of the two doors creaking backwards, inwards. On the other side, looking through, is the lantern's source and a man's wrinkled face. A black cap rises from his head. He stares at you, his eyes darting to your getup and your swords for a moment. He seems very surprised to see you, perhaps he'd expected a servant or monk.

    He backs up a step, and the door widens further. "Only the pure may stay in these halls," he states, not necessarily as a refusal.

  9. #9

    Default Re: Mononofù

    "Pure I am, for I have sworn to not eat the flesh of animals"

    Said the cloaked man.

    "I only seek the warmth of your halls and exchange a few words with your master"

    He rested his hands on the sword's inlaid pommel.

    "If any rite has to be conducted, so be it, I shall purify myself according to your exigences if I must. But, make haste, weather can only worsen"

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  10. #10
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    "You do not bring any sins with you?"

    He paused, eyeing Kuratomo, stubborn and standoffish. He seemed wary of a dreary warrior in mid-winter. After a moment, he steps backwards even more, and the door widens enough for the visitor to pass the threshold.

    "Then, you may enter," he says, lowering his voice to just above a whisper, "but you must leave your tools of violence at the doorsteps of the temple's halls."

  11. #11

    Default Re: Mononofù

    "I will hand you my sword, but it is not to be harmed in any way, take care of it"

    He said, protective. The man openned the furry cloak and unfastened the belt and scabbard. His clothes were fine and surprisingly well-kept, unusual for a man without master or property to call his own.

    "This is not a mere too, but a heirloom. I do deliver it into custody for the sake of gaining entrance, but woe the one who tries keep me from regaining it or damages it somehow"

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  12. #12
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    He pauses, standing there in the rain, staring back at Kuratomo, as if digesting what was said. After a moment, he gives a slight, solemn nod.

    "It will be cared for, and carefully stored. It will not be hidden."

    The servant suppresses a frown and his eyes glance at Kuratomo's waist, at the fine folds of your suikan, though it looks more like a fanciful hitatare with the sleeves restrained and hemmed for travel. The servant wears a similar garment, though his sleeves are not folded back - his hands only emerging from them when he's holding something or raising his arms - and the sleeves are sewn to the torso at the shoulders. And of course, it is much less fine, with no ornamentation or flowery design, made of black silk-substitute.

    "Do not warriors carry two swords, sir?" he asks with a tilt of his head to the side.

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Okay, let's try out one of the moves. If you want to lie to him about your sword and/or press his appearance disadvantage into deference, or anything in between, let's do this..

    When you try to seduce, manipulate, bluff, disorient, or lie to someone, tell them what you want them to do, give them a reason, and roll+hot.
    For NPCs: on a 10+, they’ll go along with you, unless or until some fact or action betrays the reason you gave them. On a 7–9, they’ll go along with you, but they need some concrete assurance, corroboration, evidence, or show of good faith first.

    So, make an account on Orokos.com, then use the Dice Roller to roll 2d6+Hot and link it in your post.

  13. #13

    Default Re: Mononofù

    He waves a hand majestically, like dismissing his concerns.

    "Fate has been unkind to me of late. My short sword lays broken, lodged in the throat of a vagrant I found on the road; he tried, most unsuccessfully, to assault me"

    It was a blatant lie, but a man should not be wholy disarmed, a short sword could always get you out of a hot spot, moreso if you were stepping into unknown territory. And a noble must always be armed.

    "So, will you step aside?"

    He crossed his arms. The garments had some sort of heraldic motif, specially on the chest, but the design was obscured by Kuratomo's own arms and the cloak. He was certainly commanding, his voice was of someone was used to be obeyed.

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Last edited by Oznerol; September 11, 2018 at 04:42 AM.

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  14. #14
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    "I mean no offense, master, only to be vigilant,"

    The servant bows his head from the neck and turns with a gesture, and shuffles out of the rain to the closest eaves. He stops again, and turns, standing on the first layer of the veranda, which was cleverly constructed of slatted pieces for water to drain through as it fell from the eaves above. Behind him were dark, simple, hardy storm shutters. He gestures with his hand.

    "Come this way, master Kuratomo."

    The guard begins to slide one of the storm shutters, carefully and quietly sliding it along a stubborn groove, leaving him and the guest a few feet to pass through. Inside was a dark second layer of the veranda, this one with smooth wooden flooring and protected by the eaves. Beyond were the paper sliding walls, and these were incredibly colorful, even in the dark.

    You are lead not within the paper though, but down the corridor and around the corner, the must and dew permeating from the droning roof above and the whistling storm shutters at your right. He leads you silently for some long minutes, his lantern leading the way through the darkness. Your long sword is carefully held in his free hand. A heavy staff is strung across his back, bearing no killing edges.

    At length, he halts and turns, his silk folds slipping smoothly on the wooden veranda to face a break in the shutters that leads farther into the complex - he widens the gap, and a covered, raised walkway narrows away with open sides into the distance. He gestures down the path and begins speaking again once they are away from the first building, the creaking and cracking of their feet on the wooden boards drowned out by the weather's din around them.

    Kuratomo, you can see way more life abound now, perhaps what you had expected of a great shrine like this. Other figures with lanterns seem to stroll in the distance among other buildings, and you spot a few seated figures before a dark enshrinement through a set of opened shutters. You can see the incense floating above their heads.

    The manservant speaks to you, but still hushed. "I will place you in quarters at the far end of the complex, and inform the priests of the gods of your arrival when they are unengaged."

    He stops you about halfway down the roofed walkway, and he gestures to a small alcove with a sacred forked roof of its own - a basin surrounded by hanging paper swirls and entwined rope.

    "Purify your body and mouth, and we may continue to your sanctuary," he says, still seeming to watch you carefully.
    Last edited by Dirty Chai; September 11, 2018 at 05:18 AM.

  15. #15

    Default Re: Mononofù

    "That proves you are a dilligent servant"

    He said, apparently with a hint of approval, maybe to stroke the guardsman's ego or to strengthen the man's subservience to himself.

    "Gods be praised, I will follow your steps"

    The complex within the enclosure was mostly as expected from such a place. The buildings did show some good craftsmanship and the sacred nature of the place was almost physical, piety could be sensed in every corner, acompanied by the well-rounded wealth it provided to its owners. But such was the reward for being the link of humankind with the gods in their heavenly abode, such was the custom of the land. To be freed of the storm's bothersome embrace was good enough, to be sheltered from wind and rain, even if he left a watery trail on his wake, for his furry cloak was soaked and dripping. Kuramoto inspects everything carefully, taking note of the surroundings and the possibilities around him. He nods once in the small alcove.

    "So be it"

    He proceeds with the expected ritual, washing his limbs in ceremonial ablution and taking small sips of water, later to be spit, to cleam his gums and teeth. Kuramoto conducted it without a hurry, silently, but orderly and precise, like someone who had done the very same thing over and over again through the years. Any lord had to be in contact with the heavenly, and rituals of purification were a rutine, considering the number of ceremonies a lordly life required.
    Last edited by Oznerol; September 11, 2018 at 05:39 AM.

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  16. #16
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    When you are finished, the temple guard finally leads you to the destination he spoke of. Along the way, once you round a corner, the pinnacle of the temple's structures comes sharply into your view as you pass by it: a three storied tower rises above the great hall, inner sanctum, with fenced-off white stories rising above it's double-roofed first floor. You can see great beasts carved of wood hanging from its columns and pillars. A great dark sword-like shape points to heaven at the top, barely visible from this angle. An arrester of demons, a harness of the storm. You continue onwards, and finally you reach another block of storm shutters.

    This time, the servant pulls back the second layer and gestures within - for you, Kuratomo, to enter first. He takes you past the paper walls, and into a side corridor, and within moments, he halts at last and gives a graceful bow from his waist.

    "Here you may rest and wait for the night. Nourishment will be brought to you. The hearth will be embered. The bedding is in the closet."

    The paper to your left is pulled back, and you can see the interior, with a sunken hearth in a square beneath the folded rice-mats tiling the floor around it.

  17. #17

    Default Re: Mononofù

    A formidable structure indeed. It was high and well-build, imposing even. He wondered who the temple was dedicated to, that, he did not yet know. Kuratomo enters the room and takes a seat, legs crossed, while nodding to the manservant, both as a thankful demonstration of courtesy and as farewell. Once alone, Kuratomo removes the cloak and the outer garments, which are left to dry near the hearth, the warmth of which is truly welcomed in such a foul weather. The short sword is removed from his back, the weight of the blade at his kidneys was comforting, but he could not openly wield it in the enclosure, so it would remain concealed for the time being. He tries to warm his hands over the fireplace, while in silent meditation. The room was comfortable, probably better than anything he had seen in several months, and if employement came as he expected, he could very well spend winter there. Kuratomo scratched his chin, the stubble was starting to grow again, so he would have to shave again in the morning, for he had sworn to not grow a beard either, as much as he had gave up meat and fish, not eating anything coming from animal.

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  18. #18
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    As you begin to settle down for the evening, you feel your muscles relax and ache, ceasing their silence to finally tell you of their complaints. This, while your heart slows and calms to the sight of the low flames of the hearth beneath your hands, drawing long, soft shadows across a dusky room. The mountain thunders outside, howling and swirling yet still. You think the storm has gotten worse, and perhaps you have received shelter at the most welcome moment.

    Eventually, you loosen your trousers, and pull the bedding out of the closet, piece by piece, until you can submerge yourself in several layers of clean comfort. How long has it been since you could do this, Kuratomo? Curl up in comfort, staring into the red flower of mankind's spark? Your great fur pelt, spotted and dark and regal like the ancient forests and primeval mountains your tread, is drying out above the flames, light illuminating the multiple layers of perhaps your most favored possession in winters like this.

    You drift into sweet sleep, even in humble living such as this. On your mind, ever present, is your need to continue to forge forward, to something. You will need to make both ends of the rope meet for the season, lest you resort to..

    Your eyes pull awake, opening wider and wider, and you find yourself in the usual mess of layers and limbs that sleep brings, staring at the ceiling. There is much more light now, even if dim, so you are quite confident it is morning. You hear a resounding din echo throughout the corridors and floor boards, the tolling of the temple's great iron bell.

    Some more time passes, moments to yourself - and you chose to do with them as you see fit: finely shave the fuzz and fur from your face, meditate, groom and master your appearance, sleep more..

    A clap comes from outside the room. Another. The paper wall is slid to the right to reveal a kneeling woman who prostrates before sliding in a tray carrying two small ceramic bowls - one with a foggy liquid, tea or soup perhaps, the other full of pale, bright substance like snow with steam rising like incense. She prostrates again. A servant woman, with no wrinkles you can see. No makeup, and her teeth were white. Her tightly folded dress was simple and restrained at the waist with a white sash.

    "When you are ready, master Kuratomo, you are invited to the western wing. Exit this room, and keep right, and you will find it."

    She waits to see if the warrior has anything to ask or request, though she keeps her eyes averted to the smooth wood beneath her.
    Last edited by Dirty Chai; September 12, 2018 at 12:54 AM.

  19. #19

    Default Re: Mononofù

    Kuratomo remembered, vividly, the last time that he could pass the night on a bed like that: five months and twelve days. It was, coincidentially, his mother's birthday, and by mere chance, or fortune, he was granted shelter by a lord, for a single night, after he had slayed a couple bandits in the road; the two men had been trying to rob, or brutalize in a way or another, a washerwoman who happened to have a liason with the own lord. The fireplace offered some glimpse of a flickering and uncertain future, maybe he could stay with the monks for few months or even a whole year, but in the end the road and a goal who could not be fulfilled would seek him again, pulling him from comfort and inaction. But, in the meanwhile, he could very well enjoy what the manor had to offer and give his bones some respite: he was already far enough from the place he once-called home and thus it was unlikely that the past would catch up, that fast, with him. Sleep came with a gentle embrace, the most repairing rest he had in a very long time: so, when morning entered the room, light traversing the windows, he was reinvigorated.

    First, he shaved, for that was an oath he could not break, not as of yet. He dressed, meticulously arranging the layers of clothing so as to appear respectable, imposing. He rubbed the dirt of his pants and shoes and even polished the short sword for a time, before concealing it in the wide and multilayered robe. He spent minutes in prayer, his fingers caressing a wooden rosary in silent meditation, easing his troubled mind for a time, at least. The door being openned didn't take him by surprise, he had noticed faint, quick steps towards his room few moments before the woman interrupted his moment of solitude. He replied politely:

    "Good. I will go in haste, nothing detains me here any longer"

    He crosses arms over chest, both arms inside the wide sleeves of his outer robe.

    "May I ask to whom is the shrine dedicated to?"

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  20. #20
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    Default Re: Mononofù

    She bows again. "Amaneteruyama, who dwells upon mountain." The bell tolls once again. It sounds dolorous.

    Does this name mean anything to you, Kuratomo? "World-filling-Illumination?"

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