It seems like a bit of a grab-bag this one, lions tigers and bears oh my! But I think it should work out well as a setting. I have a handful of potential tweaks, but here’s the deal as of right now.
Races:
I’m happy with my core list of Humans, Changelings, Genasi, Goblins, Gnomes, Kenku, Kobolds, Minotaurs, Shifters, Tabaxi, Tieflings, Tortles and Triton, though I’ve somehow managed to add Were-lions to the end of it. It’s also entirely possible, given the nature of the setting, that not all Humans have arrived from the same plane of existence (green, blue and purple skin tones encouraged!), and therefore that not all Minotaurs, not all Tieflings, not all Tabaxi etc. have arrived from the same home plane either.
I’m considering an addition of Hadozee or Vanara/Monkeyfolk, but I haven’t made my mind up about those yet.
Classes:
All the major classes are there, though I’m obviously happier to emphasise the nautical themes and have Storm Sorcerors and Swashbuckler Rogues and Elemental or Tempest Clerics. There’s room for most things, even Artificers if they have a Ys background.
Speaking of which…
Backgrounds:
No surprises for sailors, criminals, charlatans and urchins, but there’s room for most things in the setting. Courtiers and Emissaries from Baochuan or Kitezh or Tantravellon, Sages and Acolytes and Hermits from Aiaea, Nobles from Ys and Lyonesse, Outlaws and Pirates from Cagway.
Places:
Baochuan, the giant floating Burh. Aiaea, home of magic and the last of the Elder Isles. Dvaraka, Hybrasil, Roccabarraigh, Ys, all now lost to the waves.
The bustling cities of Nan Madol and Ravenser Odd, the strange land formations of Long Sault, Reimerswaal and Iram of the Pillars, the seemingly ancient Buyan, Kitezh and Sri Vijaya, the politically lethal Lyonesse, Skaghane and Trantravellon.
The monolithic black tower of the Oud, the only truly unchanging point of the Endless Sea, shunned by wildlife but somehow pulling on the minds of all the peoples of the Sea.
Boats and Guns:
Sloops, dhows, cutters, feluccas, ketch, catamaran, canoes. Flintlock pistols and rifles. Aetherium salts used to make blue powder, magic potions, or magical weapons, armour, and trinkets.
Factions:
The Black Flags of Cagway, sworn to the code. The scheming eunuchs of Baochuan. The seekers of lost Old Vinatan artefacts. The different rulers of the Burhs, seeking an edge. Refugees from Ys, seeking a new home.
It looks like any Session Zero will involve players having a quick play of the City Creation rules from Dresden Files / FATE, because then I can build a few more ideas into the game. And I can try and build some sort of free-flowing narrative, as befits the setting.
And I’m quite likely to run this at a weekly meetup, so could have players come in and out, and it could be a bit like the Western Marches game I’m playing it, which I’ve mentioned before.
I’m still debating Action Points, but we’ll see. It would fit the swashbuckling setting.
Yeah, pretty happy with this so far. Just need to amalgamate some rules into one place so I can actually see what I’m doing with it!
jot jot ïota 