The Campaign Builder's Guild

Sorry about taking so long to get this posted. This will, hopefully, be the second session after Steerpike's Halloween game, either in the afternoon or in the evening, depending on when he's available and what he wants to do. Please feel free to post to RSVP, reserve characters, offer suggestions, and so on.

[ooc=Disclaimer]Asura is, itself, a rather over-the-top game, being about the antics and machinations of humans that have become much more: something of a merging of classical mythology, a golden age comic book, and space opera. Combining it with the style of the sleazy, campy, and typically quite violent "grindhouse" exploitation films that were big in the 70s (and are experiencing something of a revival) is probably going to result in something that won't quite appeal to everyone.

Though I have no idea why not.  :grin: [/ooc]

[ic=REVENGE OF THE REVENANT]
The badlands between the northern border of the Sultanate of Agahza and the United Coalition is a lousy place to live, and an even worse place to die. The Badlanders themselves are maligned by both the Sultanate and the Coalition, which, judging by the way those two powers conduct themselves, would probably make them the most decent people on the planet. Some Asuras are the gods and prophets of millions, but a small band that found themselves thrown together in this wretched place are happy to carve out a small homestead where a community of good, simple people can live, grow food, and maybe even prosper just a little bit.

The homestead was carved out with the untimely death (or undeath) of the Revenant Khao, an unsavory sort (even by Revenant standards) who previously held control over the area. What was once cursed lands inhabited only by zombies became farms, and Khao's old and spooky manor house became the village center... after being purged three times of lingering evil influence, not to mention redecorated. Unfortunately, it's tough to keep a Revenant down, even one you slice up, disembowel, set on fire, and throw off a cliff. That just made him uglier.

Khao is back, and he's not happy.

[ic=Darius Zek]
Darius was once a simple shopkeeper in Agahza. He had no grand aspirations other than profit, good food and wine, more profit, a lovely wife, and still more profit. This was all well and good, but at one point, he made just a little too much profit at the expense of the wrong people, and his shop was burned. He himself was abducted and left for dead in the badlands. He would have been dead, too, were it not for the passing of a Fiend, bearing a Demonic Conduit.

The Fiend him granted him life, but like every Demonic Conduit, the price it demanded was torment. What better victims of his torment than those that had done this to him? He dismantled the gang that crossed him piece by piece, eventually tracing them back to their lord and master, Khao. Destroying Khao was to be the final stroke, to satisfy his Conduit's hunger for the foreseeable future, so he could finally settle down.

Even at the time, Darius sensed something was wrong, but he tried to put his worries aside, and build something peaceful and noble on the ashes of such destruction. It might just have worked, had Khao actually been gone...

[spoiler=Stats]Asura Type: Water-aligned Demon

Signature Equipment: In his ongoing war against those that left him for dead, Darius has bought, found, and stolen quite an arsenal of weapons. His weapon of choice, however, is a quicksilvered sword that was once the property of the Obsidian Sultanate, before that corrupt state crumbled into dust. Now, it is the enemies of Darius that crumble into dust, for the quicksilver in the blade can focus his terrible Ruinous Insubstance.

Relationships: Being its de facto leader, Darius gets along well with nearly everyone at the homestead, but he has a particular rapport with Yamato. He somewhat distrusts Mistress Tsu, but finds her services invaluable.

Prana Powers:
- Ruinous Insubstance: Darius is able to focus the primordial force of destruction that feeds his Demonic Conduit into the even more primordial root of matter, Insubstance. He can destroy nearly any object smaller than himself, and can do significant damage to a portion of even larger objects. This destruction can take nearly any form he desires: catching fire, rotting from within, or simply crumbling into dust. Naturally, this can be used as an attack against living beings as well, and is capable of causing grievous wounds if not outright death. The power normally requires a bare-handed touch to use, but Darius can focus the power through his quicksilvered sword, as well.
- Judgment: Darius is able to perceive, through concentrating on the aura of a person, how different that person's morality is from his own. Being a mostly honorable man, this often highlights evildoers, but those who are passive without a strong sense of justice will likely also show up as differing strongly. His sense cannot tell him the nature of the person's transgressions; only that their aura is tainted with deeds of which he would likely not approve.
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[ic=Yamato]
The "strong, silent type" if there ever was one, Yamato has been the guardian and enforcer of the law at the homestead for as long as it has existed. Friend to the downtrodden, most of the law-abiding people of the homestead have a quiet respect for him, though his roughly scarred countenance and slightly pallid skin tone does inspire some fear. Yamato was once a citizen of the far-off Republic of Higashi, but he was abducted by slave traders and brought far to the west. He was to be a slave in the hellish city of Borutar, but he escaped that fate, paradoxically, thanks to Khao.

Khao assaulted the caravan carrying him, planning on adding guard and slave alike to his army of zombies. Yamato and the other Revenants that resulted due to particular concentrations of black Prana were to be its commanders, enthralled by Khao to serve him. Yamato had been given deliverance from one form of slavery, and he was not going to fall victim to an even worse one. He channeled all of the Prana he could muster, and fled.

They say it takes a Revenant to kill a Revenant, and Yamato is more than happy to oblige.

[spoiler=Stats]Asura Type: Earth-aligned Revenant

Signature Equipment: Yamato wears the light but effective body armor worn by the elite troops of the United Coalition. His is somewhat the worse for wear, but still quite effective, particularly when combined with the preternatural body resilience and strength that being an Asura grants him. He usually uses light hand weapons, or, when more firepower is needed, a (stolen) United Coalition model V55 triple-barreled scattergun.

Relationships: Yamato is quiet and relatively private, cultivating few friendships. Darius is perhaps his closest bond; even the two of them sometimes have disagreements, though Yamato typically defers to Darius's will.

Prana Powers:
- Ruinous Insubstance: Like Darius, Yamato's Prana is rooted in the powers of destruction and death. He can destroy nearly any object smaller than himself, and can do significant damage to a portion of even larger objects. This destruction can take nearly any form he desires: catching fire, rotting from within, or simply crumbling into dust. Naturally, this can be used as an attack against living beings as well, and is capable of causing grievous wounds if not outright death. The power requires a bare-handed touch to use.
- The Ancient Master: Yamato can speak to spirits of the dead, drawing upon the experience and expertise of those that have long since passed. If he can manage a few moments of quiet meditation, he is able to channel knowledge, boosting his capabilities in something he already knows how to do. With more time, and a more focused application of Prana, he is even able to learn skills he might otherwise have no way of knowing.
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[ic=Mistress Tsu]
Mistress Tsu was once a servant girl in the Prismatic Imperium's capital, Varrdyen, barred by caste from ever rising above this position. She cultivated what few opportunities she was given back then, and eventually managed to have herself assigned to be the assistant to a prestigious Serene One priestess. Prestigious, and also a horrible person. She was rude to the servant girl, beat her on more than a few occasions, and generally never wasted the chance to make her feel like dirt. Her daughter was no better. The only saving grace was that the old crone was on death's door. Although the plan was to pass her Conduit on to her daughter, Tsu stabbed the daughter in the back with a jeweled dagger, stole the Conduit, and ran. And she never stopped running, until she arrived in the badlands. As for her title? Never being more than a servant, she never acquired one of the overly-adorned names of the Varrdyeni upper class. That's fine with her, but, being among the Transcendent now, she's not going to be just "Tsu" any more.  

Or at least, that's how she always tells it. Mistress Tsu seems to know far too much about Varrdyen and the Imperium in general for a mere former servant girl, and her connections have gotten the homestead out of trouble more than a few times.

They've gotten it in trouble a few times, too, but that's another story.

[spoiler=Stats]Asura Type: Void-aligned Serene One

Signature Equipment: Adding to her aura of mystery, Mistress Tsu's favored weapon is the duhao, the telescoping double-ended spear of the Varrdyeni warrior caste. Neither a servant girl nor a priestess would normally have any expertise with this weapon, but Tsu wields it with grace and skill equal to any well-trained Varrdyeni warrior woman.

Relationships: Mistress Tsu is tolerated but not particularly trusted by the other Asuras at the homestead, given her somewhat mysterious background. Among the common folk, on the other hand, she has a much greater following, and is generally well-liked for her wit, as well as her use of her powers to feed the hungry and heal the sick.

Prana Powers:
- Theurgy: Although her Conduit was stolen, not granted by the usual means, Mistress Tsu nonetheless shows the same reverence for the Serene Mother that nearly all Serene Ones do. She believe it was the will of their Goddess that she Transcend, not the horrible old woman's equally horrible daughter. Through her faith, Mistress Tsu can work literal miracles, provided her cause is just and her heart is pure and loyal to the Serene Mother.
- Elemental Sorcery: Mistress Tsu has studied and learned the ancient spellcasting arts, and is now quite skilled at invoking the Void element of Elemental Sorcery. This gives her control of shadows, exotic gases, and creatures from beyond this existence. She also has some mastery over the element of Fire, which is quite useful in combat as well as for a variety of utilitarian tasks, but is not quite as experienced with it.
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[ic=Tiberius Chaen]
Tiberius Chaen was once a member of the Progenitor Central Bureaucracy, involved in world-building, political meddling, and other such things. Being Fire-aligned, he ended up on the Way of Iron, a sect of the Progenitors particularly rife with intrigue and infighting. While he had a certain talent for this, he was, first and foremost, a man of science, and resented the amount of time he spent haranguing over policy instead. He made this known to his superiors, and, after repeated attempts to bring him into line (that he simply refused to go along with), he was drummed out of the Bureaucracy and sent into exile in the badlands. 

This was fine with him, as he could continue his work in isolation and peace. He has built a small lab at the homestead, and in return for safety and security, he provides the homesteaders with agricultural technology that allows them to easily feed themselves in the badlands' infertile soil, as well as other creature comforts such as a small electrical generator.

Leave him alone, he'll leave you alone. Mess with him, and...

[spoiler=Stats]Asura Type: Fire-aligned Progenitor

Signature Equipment: Tiberius Chaen's signature weapon is a small chrome cylinder, dubbed Dextera Deorum, the "right hand of the gods." It is an immensely versatile energized plasma weapon. Its forms include a short sword blade, a longer and flexible strand usable like a whip, or even a beam that is launched a short distance. The energized plasma field itself can be set to a nonlethal form to stun and incapacitate, but can also be used at its full power, which will melt through most things without any difficulty.

Relationships: Tiberius mostly keeps to himself, working on machinery and conducting his various experiments. He is not so much distrusted as the others at the homestead see little of him, and he is rather fond of keeping it that way. When push comes to shove, he will defend the homestead to his utmost, but he will do so only if he feels his own interests are threatened as well. Otherwise, he stays out of the way.

Prana Powers:
- Scientia: Progenitors have an innate understanding of how the universe works due to their connection with the Stream of Life. It is not as "magical" as some powers, and yet, what the Progenitors lack in raw supernatural ability, they more than make up for in intimate knowledge of the workings of the universe in which they reside. Through Scientia, the functioning of machines and science can be made instantly clear to Tiberius, as can the patterns of human language and logic.
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I'll definitely play!  Not sure which character yet.

Yamato sounds good; if Steerpike isn't able to run his afternoon game. Theoretically I should still be able to make it.

Gah, this sounds awesome...I wish my schedule would allow me to commit to an IRC game. :(

Added some basic stat blocks.  :yumm:

Quote from: Xathan Of Many Worlds
Gah, this sounds awesome...I wish my schedule would allow me to commit to an IRC game. :(

There is not really anything to "commit" to, because this is just a one-shot. :)
If you can make it, great! If not, that's ok too.

I'm enjoying the updates; is there anything more that I should know about earth-aligned revenants and other revenant types that aren't in this thread or do the powers describe everything I need to know?

[ic=Yamato]"Whu? What?" Smoke drifted away from under Yamato's hand. The other Asurae, Mistress Tsu and Darius Zek were staring at him; the one bemused, the other with a frown. "-T' could'a been a spy." A pile of dust settled beneath his hand.

Darius sighed a wide, open-mouthed hiss. "It was a cat."

Yamato shrugged and placed his hand back into his overcoat vest, Cybo-Napoleon-style across his chest. "Shth---shady creature, that."[/ic]

I try to not to impose a great deal on players, especially in the case of this one-shot. I can (and do) write lots about what -I- think Revenants should be like, but, aside from a few global constants needed to ensure we're all playing the same game, I try to keep most of it optional.

If you'd like some more information, feel free to read the wiki: http://www.thecbg.org/wiki/index.php/Revenants_%28Asura%29

I'll post the section on "Carrionites" (Earth-aligned Revenants) because that may be the most useful:
[ic=Carrionites]Carrionites feed upon flesh, but they are far less picky. They prefer not to bother hunting, instead feasting upon the traces of Prana lingering in the terminally ill, the moribund, and the recently deceased. They are thus aligned with the rotting Earth. They can get their energy from any sort of living or recently living matter, and will frequently consume offal, bone, and other matter that even the most ravenous Devourer would think twice about. Unsurprisingly, Carrionites often develop a profound aura of death, with skin that ranges from pallid to sickly green to gangrenous black, and every unnatural shade in between. Unhealed scars, yellowed teeth and fingernails, and other less-than-appealing features are also frequent. During a Manifestation, they become even more repulsive: a miasma of decay surrounds them, and they may develop tumors, abscesses, and other diseased features. Carrionites are often scorned for their appearance and habits, usually leading either to stoic acceptance of their lot in unlife, regarding the world with a cynical bitterness, or, perhaps, both. They are surprisingly gregarious around their own kind, however, particularly when sharing one of their repulsive meals. [/ic]

I enjoyed the little IC snippet.  :grin:

I posted one more character, since there seem to be 4 people who have expressed interest.
But if nobody picks Tiberius, we can say he was in his lab oblivious to everything. :P

Khao was defeated. The people rejoiced.

Thanks for the setting info link- it helped.

Also appreciation for reading and enjoying the IC snippet!

Can we get some details? I want to know what happened!

I'd try to do a recap, but I'd probably do a poor job - best to wait for sparkle to edit the log, since that'll be so much better than any brief recap I could do. :P