I've had this idea for a roleplay heavy game in my head for too long. Is there enough interest to start it?
Does it need any changes? I haven't played a mechanics-free roleplay game that's entirely fluff, let alone hosted one.
Brief blurb: An empire roleplay over eras of time, where we go through the evolution of different magical systems, starting from the earliest epochs with the equivalent of tribal rain dances, and figure out the intermediate steps between that and magic spaceships.
Has anyone else ever looked at a high fantasy wizard launching fireballs with a gesture and a chant, and wondered how we get there? What did the magic look like at different eras, how has it evolved into this, and how has developing magic affected society?
This is a collaborative civilization roleplay and writing exercise, with little in the way of hard mechanics or gameplay. Run away now if you don't like lore dumps.
As a basic framework, subject to change if there's a compelling argument, in most eras of play, everyone can make 2 major changes to different civs per turn, and 1 minor change to as many civs as they wish to write for.
A minor change is something on the scale of a person pushing forward old ideas or making small alterations. A healer starts a charity organization for healing the poor. A chieftain of a tribe of jaguar shape-shifters switches to parrot shape-shifting. A fire elementalist starts a mage's guild paid for by the state. Minor changes are generally small-scale, local changes. The state owner may freely choose to roll it out further, ignore it, or ban the changes by, say, outlawing necromancy and sending in the inquisitors. Given the long time scales, we might not need to declare Changes to be non-canon.
A major change fundamentally alters or advances magic. The already-present order of chi monks figures out how to isolate and polarize chi into healing energy and the information spreads throughout the order. Jaguar shapeshifters figure out that they've been using sympathetic magic to shapeshift and discover it as a new field of study, which lets them stabilize their transformations to control their bloodthirsty personalities, and give their city walls the aspect of the jaguar to strengthen them, at the cost of the walls occasionally demanding blood sacrifices. Mages steal the secrets of chi from their neighbor and integrate it into internal mana, letting them cast more powerful spells and freeing themselves from needing to cast directly from expensive mana crystals.
Each state is limited to receiving 2 major changes, and as many minor changes as there are people making changes, per turn. Whoever started the state has one of the two major change slots reserved by default.
I would prefer to focus on developing magic instead of statting out mechanical empire building, which would inevitably draw people into advancing magic towards empire building and conquest instead of seeing what cool flavorful magic systems we create together. It might be fun to have a Magic Roman Empire conquering around and integrating the magic of its vassals, but you'll still have to spend Major Changes for each, and be respectful if you're playing a warmonger. I'll roll for conflicts if needed, but I'd prefer if they are resolved by player agreement: Banding together to repel invaders, fleeing and colonizing elsewhere, or accepting conquest and becoming vassals, are all choices that could lead to interesting stories.
It's very hard to true-kill a state, or even slow their magic growth. There's plenty of room for running away to colonize elsewhere, using magic to settle somewhere inhospitable, moving to another planet or plane, or even going underground as a shadowy mage guild organization working against their conquerors.
You have unlimited mundane changes to your state. Write a book every turn if you really want. Ask before making major changes to other player's states, but small-scale local changes are fair game.
There are initially no gods, although people are allowed to believe whatever religion they want, including thinking that FIREBHAL is the name of an angry fire god who smites those who invoke his name. Players are allowed to bring gods in later, such as finding spirits and empowering them with Major Changes, summoning Cthulhu, or breaching a celestial plane and drawing the attentions of part of the D&D pantheon.
Eras end when most players are ready for it. The previous era may still be added to for a few days.
By default, it is assumed that every state is available for additions and Minor Changes by others, while Major Changes should probably be talked about first. Please be very clear if you don't want others making changes, or if players can make Major Changes or major mundane changes without asking first.
When writing changes, please include a brief summary in bold at the end of your post. It makes it much easier to tally changes and remember who has what. A spoiler with info about your state and overall magical systems is also helpful.
Era I, The Dawn of Magic
In this era, (some) civilizations are just starting to settle into sedentary tribes. Most people spend all their time working to survive, have little time to study the world, and certainly won't be writing down their findings to pass to a class of students. The general limit to institutional learning would be a shaman teaching what he knows to his successor, and having limited interaction with other shamans. Maybe nobody studies it, and it simply exists, like ritual rain dances that occasionally work, or living near magical giant penguins that leave a path of ice in their wake, just like all penguins probably do.
Magic in this era should be some combination of deniable or unpredictable. A shaman who sees glimpses of the future when he drinks the sacred herbs. A tribe who's rite of initiation for young warriors is a jaguar hunt and wearing the hides, which they think grants them the strength of the animal, occasionally grants cat-like features, and once every hundred years across the entire culture, results in a full were-jaguar who does legendary feats. A tribe that settles in an exceptionally fertile valley, with enormous plants and beasts with strange properties, like giant fire-breathing wolves.
Magic shouldn't be explained yet. You can have an idea of where you're going, and post the idea, but don't lock it in stone yet: Someone might have a cooler idea that you'd rather take. Of the above examples, the shamans might evolve into divination and astral projection, magic sight to allow traditional spellcasting, alchemy, or talking with spirits. The jaguar-shifters might be because of magical animals, they might discover sympathetic magic, it might be blood magic, or they might be like Warhammer Orks with a belief field. The fertile valley might be on a major leyline nexus, there might be a thin spot to another plane, there might be magic crystals, or there might be natural spirits enhancing everything with magic.
Assume you are the first civilizations, with no easy power-ups. No stumbling across ancient ruins with the secret of magic. No being taught a complete runic magic system by spirits in a dream. No suddenly realizing that your language is the True Language of Power that runs the world and allows spellcasting if you snap your fingers while talking. Future eras, however, might allow something like "use our demon summoning rituals to coerce them into teaching us sorcery" if you can justify it well enough.
For the moment, states in this era are limited to one Major Change each, which will be what the "change" that first gives them magic (Or has them knowing the magic for countless generations). I need opinions about whether or not to allow the second Major Change. I don't want to leave the first era feeling barren, but it feels wrong for the first real change to be by someone else.
Era I is likely to cover thousands of years, all before the technological discovery of copper-working, but perhaps magic allows it on a limited scale. There is a lot of time for cultures to change, for Minor Changes to propagate or be forgotten, or the rise and fall of legendary figures.
When creating a state, consider the climate and governance. Is there a combination with your magic system that would lead to unique opportunities or challenges for a low tech society that would be interesting to write about? Have individuals gotten greedy with the magic and had accidents, leading to interesting cautionary tales and superstitions around it? If you're in a tropical jungle, and someone else's state is in a warm, temperate area, maybe they're close by? Have your people had interactions?
There is no player limit or participation requirement. You can join to write something at any time someone inspires it.
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Topic: Gaming Block (Game Discussion Thread) (Totally Not Roller's Block) (Read 417244 times)