The Campaign Builder's Guild

The roots are in tribal warfare, not judicial. I thought that my posted description was pretty clear about that?

Great update, Ghostman! I always enjoy reading new bits for Savage Age.

What sorts of weapons would be "typical" for a duel? What would someone don to duel a rival family?

Quote from: Ghostman
The roots are in tribal warfare, not judicial. I thought that my posted description was pretty clear about that?

Yet the duels are used to adjudicate disputes that cannot be taken to a legal trial.  It doesn't come off as antiquated warfare so much as how historical duels are largely represented in fiction and media.  Those derived from trials by combat.  Hence, the roots feel like they are judicial, but there's a heavy dose of militarism involved.  I suppose if you were really trying to distance these duels from judicial combat, you'll either need to expand on just how they are not trials by combat, since the descriptions of those duels really sounds a lot like just that.  The winner is deemed "right," the loser "wrong."  It even draws on the idea of champions fighting for those incapable of fighting for themselves, like women and invalids.

I liked the post, but I guess the post really missed the mark in terms of differentiating these duels from traditional trial by combat duels, except for one sentence that just says, "This is not a trial."  Elaborate and this could be even more interesting.

I guess the confusion arises from me thinking in terms of in-universe history, and you thinking in terms of out-of-universe influences? Real world judicial duels do count as a source of inspiration for this setting element. Whereas within the setting, the Argyrians have never had actual judicial duels, their present activities being a legacy of an earlier military tradition. Since they've never applied dueling as part of a judicial process and have a rather strong and lengthy history of formal trials, it wouldn't occur to them to make such a comparison. From their POV these duels between the champions of noble houses are something that falls outside the proper course of justice, though not necessarily in violation of it.

Anyway, the outcome of the duel being accepted as final and binding isn't because it's regarded as "just" of fair, but rather because both sides realize that ending the dispute is ultimately more important than proving who is truly in the right. Which is why they'd be willing to agree to holding a duel in the first place, instead of stubbornly carrying out with the feud.

Quote from: Weave
What sorts of weapons would be "typical" for a duel? What would someone don to duel a rival family?

Because the champions are practically always swordsmen, common sword types are the weapons of choise. Armour would be negotiated, and if worn would be something light and "court-appropriate", of the types that may be worn by household guards while on duty. Since there are actually no written rules for these duels, deviations from traditional norms is theoretically possible. That said, breaking such traditions would risk incurring a loss of face, and is therefore unheard of.

Quote from: Ghostman
I guess the confusion arises from me thinking in terms of in-universe history, and you thinking in terms of out-of-universe influences? Real world judicial duels do count as a source of inspiration for this setting element.

This, I think.  Sorry for the confusion.

Quote from: GhostmanFrom their POV these duels between the champions of noble houses are something that falls outside the proper course of justice, though not necessarily in violation of it.

This sort of thing is interesting to me.  It gives a glimpse of the mindset of the people living in the world.

Quote from: GhostmanAnyway, the outcome of the duel being accepted as final and binding isn't because it's regarded as "just" of fair, but rather because both sides realize that ending the dispute is ultimately more important than proving who is truly in the right. Which is why they'd be willing to agree to holding a duel in the first place, instead of stubbornly carrying out with the feud.

Again, awesome little glimpse into how they think.  It bespeaks a level of cultural altruism, for sure.

Quote from: GhostmanBecause the champions are practically always swordsmen, common sword types are the weapons of choise. Armour would be negotiated, and if worn would be something light and "court-appropriate", of the types that may be worn by household guards while on duty. Since there are actually no written rules for these duels, deviations from traditional norms is theoretically possible. That said, breaking such traditions would risk incurring a loss of face, and is therefore unheard of.

What is the standard sword?  Most societies have only one word for sword and it describes the one they use.  Modifications on that sword result in derivative names like "longsword," "two-hander," or "shortsword."  What is "sword" to these champions?

Please host a game. I will play.

Quote from: Humabout
What is the standard sword?  Most societies have only one word for sword and it describes the one they use.  Modifications on that sword result in derivative names like "longsword," "two-hander," or "shortsword."  What is "sword" to these champions?

The most commonly carried swords would be the spathion (an arming sword) and the xiphos (a short sword), although the paramerion (a sabre) and even the two-handed rhomphaia have become common enough weapons for household guards that they are acceptable choises.

Quote from: Magnus Pym
Please host a game. I will play.

Hopefully I can assemble a game to run some day. It's encouraging to hear that there's interest. :)

[ic=Pteraskeles]
Pteraskeles was an athlete from Axion, and it is said that he was the swiftest runner ever born into the world. He attended the Panargyraic Games five times and won all of the sprinting races. During the summer months he would hunt deer and wild horses by chasing them on foot. He was an excessively prideful man and bragged insufferably of his accomplishments, belittling anyone who refused to recognize his greatness. His unabashed arrogance earned him many enemies, but none could hope to catch him.

One day he boasted that his speed was superior even to that of Aeatis herself. The goddess heard his words and, taking offense at his insolence, leapt down from the heavens and challenged him into a footrace. Despite his phenomenal speed Pteraskeles had barely cleared the starting line when he was already left in the dust. Having effortlessly won the race, Aeatis punished the braggard by transforming his legs into feathery wings that carried him afloat, his body hanging helplessly upside-down. She also cursed him so that he could never touch the ground. In this monstrous form Pteraskeles took to flight, shrieking in madness, as his aberrant wings carried him away toward the Polemos Mountains. Such foolhardy travelers that dare cross near those peaks sometimes speak of having sighted the wing-legged abomination, or of having heard his awful wails in the dead of night.
[/ic]

The northeastern lands of the great island of Thymbria, between the Ceratops Mountains and the Sea of Dolphins. Acheria is famed for its vast grazing lands, trampled every year under the hooves of massive cattle herds. Equally famous are its inhabitants, the gaunt and warlike Acherians. The land bears the scars of active volcanism, though not so intensely as Ophidiana to the south. Hills, valleys and ridges dominate the landscape in the western parts of Archeria, nearest the mountains, while expansive plains and tablelands become more common eastward. Much of the coastline is rocky and riddled with treacherous currents and shoals, but sandy beaches are found in fair number along the shore. The climate of Acheria is mildly warm and dry, whilst winds blow freely across the pastures; great raging wildfires are a common hazard in the summer months. The coastal areas have been subject to significant colonization efforts by Argyrians, but the interior remains inhabited almost solely by natives. The foothills of the Ceratops range lay largely outside the Empire's control, home to tribes of lawless tattooed hillmen that do not allow themselves to be ruled by anyone.

Faraway and foreign Araxa comprises the western quarter of the island of Thymbria, made up of fertile lowlands girded by the shores of the Merciless Sea, and of wooded highlands that stand anterior to the summits and canyons of the Ceratops Mountains. The region is watered by a multitude of streams and rivers flowing westward from the mountains toward the sea, many of their number flooding forcefully during the spring. The hilltops and plateaux are crested with dense forests of deciduous trees and the valleys and plains riddled with scattered thickets of evergreens. The sylvan landscape provides a plentitude of lumber, but it is also a haven for wolves, panthers and spotted lions that infest the region in great numbers. Bandits, too, are fond of the convenient hideouts and dens to be found in the wilderness.

Walled towns and fortified hilltop settlements intersect the roads and waterways, their parapets looming warily amidst the treacherous territory, overlooking cultivations criscrossed by irrigation canals. They fall under the yoke of local despots that assent to pay tribute to the far-flung Emperor they know from word of mouth only, given free reins to reign as they see fit. The Araxan people seem strange and barbarous in the eyes of their conquerors, ill-trusted but left to their devices as long as tribute is paid. Argyrian presense in this alien land is confined to garrisoned strongholds along the coast that provide bases for the galleys of the imperial navy, essential for guarding against incursions from (and launching them into) Daliristan across the sea.

The region refered to as Throntia by Argyrians lies upon a large island to the west from the desert of Khâvaran. It is the southernmost extent of the Empire's reach, a conquered foreign land colonized via trading outposts. Situated as it is on the sea route leading to the fabled Silk Islands archipelago to the southwest, Throntia's strategic value cannot be overstated -- it is through their outposts along the coast that Argyrian merchants operate the shipments of silk en route to the markets of their homeland and beyond. To protect this lucrative trade the Empire maintains a very strong military presense in Throntia.

Climate on the island is hot and dry, but falls short of being truly desertlike. Much of the land is too arid to be cultivated, necessitating a heavy reliance on rivers for irrigation. Flocks of sheep and herds of goats graze on the open pastures and shrubby hillsides. Dust storms and bushfires are a frequent hazard in Throntia, and fresh water can become hard to find if the rainy season is delayed. Argyrian colonists inhabit the port towns along the northern and western shoreline, mingling with the natives there, but they've found little incentive to venture far from the coast. Military fortresses are maintained deeper inland along navigable rivers to maintain a presense and deter rebellion. The mountains of the interior are largely uncharted and aren't considered to be part of the Empire's territory.

[ic=Kobaloi]
Kobaloi are mischievous, dwarfish trickster spirits that revel at tormenting mortal men. They are blamed for stealing and misplacing items, spoiling food and drink, poisoning wells, frightening cattle and leading travelers astray. They are believed to be shapeshifters that may imitate the likeness of anyone who gives them his name. Their true forms resemble twisted infants some two years of age; baby-faced yet hunched and wrinkled like old men, with long gray beards that reach to the ground, rotund pot bellies and disproportionately large phalluses. It is said that a kobalos is compelled to always accept a bowl of soup or a cup of wine when one is offered, and cannot resist guzzling down on it until every last drop has been emptied.
[/ic]

very pleased with the mythic quality of the Kobaloi.  The appearance, is a great match, and one wonders their intelligence level and organizations.

They are certainly very cunning, if not quite "book smart". Encountering a small band of Kobaloi wouldn't be unreasonable, though I think in most cases they'd be solitary creatures. They're rustic spirits to begin with, and IMO the trickster flavour works best if they're not very organized.

Very interesting creature there. Sound kind of like an imp, or something.