Thursday, April 30, 2015

And another one while I'm at it; my G+ feed is on FIRE this morning.


And another one while I'm at it; my G+ feed is on FIRE this morning.

Originally shared by Dmitri Arbacauskas

Good Morning, World.

There's so many ideas going on here I don't even know where to start. It may be the entire game I plan to Overplay...


There's so many ideas going on here I don't even know where to start.  It may be the entire game I plan to Overplay on Sunday for my IRL group.

Originally shared by Concept Art

Go wild with the difference in size. (White Elephant by Tianhua Xu)

Monday, April 27, 2015

Sahir


Sahir

Outcast and wanderer, summoner, who bargains with powers beyond mortal ken.

All that deserves a name
Firhan: A demon with whom Sahir has bargained in the past.
The Awlan: An order of demon summoners with whom Sahir has dealt in the past.

Feats Heroic
Jovial: Sahir howls madly and slices his palm with a ceremonial knife, his blood calling forth a small but ravenous spirit of the area
Glum: Sahir calls the name of a ghost long forgotten by all others among the living, who may or may not be interested in helping.

Trick
Canny Cognition: Whispers from the depths between the stars
Thanks for the Pinterest spree Epidiah Ravachol!

Sunday, April 26, 2015

Volara


Volara

All that should be Named
The Yoren: A seal branded into her back, that gives her the ability to see and strike creatures of the Shadow, but not hear them.
The Turen: The semi-nomadic people Volara hails from originally.


Feats Heroic
Jovial:  With a snarl volara hefts her weapon and leaps forward, cleaving foe from life.
Jovial: Volara pushes against mystic bonds, the Yoren igniting in green flame, till they bend, and then break.
Glum: Volara stalks with the grace of a panther.

Trick: Undenied - Because one feat heroic per game is never enough.

Sunday Morning Swords: 26 April 2015, Part 2

Sunday Morning Swords: 26 April 2015, Part 2

#TheOtherCoastEdition

Good morning!

Here's our organizational thread. Comment below if you're interested in playing this morning and mention if you're comfortable being an Overplayer and whether or not you have play Swords before.

When we get an Overplayer and three or four Rogue Players, those players will run off and start their hangout. For now, let's focus on getting everyone into a group. We'll probably wait until 9:15 or 9:30 PDT to start the last group. If you can't make that, no worries, we'll be back next week with more adventures.

I will be a swing player, jumping in where needed to fill out the final groups so we can make sure we have 3-4 Rogue Players in each group.

Feel free to enjoy some breakfast or brunch while playing. I know I'll be enjoying more coffee, if I can.

Also, feel free to use the hashtag #SundayAMSwords should you desire to chat about your game on the social medias.

P.S. Got some tips on how to do this and links to useful files here: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords
http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords

Sunday Morning Swords: 26 April 2015

Sunday Morning Swords: 26 April 2015

#GroggyLikeAFoxEdition

Good morning!

Here's our organizational thread. Comment below if you're interested in playing this morning and mention if you're comfortable being an Overplayer and whether or not you have play Swords before.

When we get an Overplayer and three or four Rogue Players, those players will run off and start their hangout. For now, let's focus on getting everyone into a group. We'll probably wait until 9:15 or 9:30 EDT to start the last group. If you can't make that, no worries, we'll fire another one up at 9 AM PDT for those who wake at a more civilized time.

I will be a swing player, jumping in where needed to fill out the final groups so we can make sure we have 3-4 Rogue Players in each group.

Feel free to enjoy some breakfast or brunch while playing. I know I'll be having a maple walnut toast that is almost pancakes but not quite and coffee, myself.

Also, feel free to use the hashtag #SundayAMSwords should you desire to chat about your game on the social medias.

P.S. Got some tips on how to do this and links to useful files here: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords
http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords

Sunday, April 19, 2015

Sunday Morning Swords: 19 April 2015, the Late Shift

Sunday Morning Swords: 19 April 2015, the Late Shift

#DoubleFeaturePartTwo 

Good morning!

Here's our organizational thread. Comment below if you're interested in playing this morning and mention if you're comfortable being an Overplayer and whether or not you have play Swords before.

When we get an Overplayer and three or four Rogue Players, those players will run off and start their hangout. For now, let's focus on getting everyone into a group. We'll probably wait until 9:15 or 9:30 PDT to start the last group. I will be a swing player, jumping in where needed to fill out the final groups so we can make sure we have 3-4 Rogue Players in each group.

Feel free to enjoy some breakfast or brunch while playing. I know I'll be having a sandwich and iced coffee, myself.

Also, feel free to use the hashtag #SundayAMSwords should you desire to chat about your game on the social medias.

P.S. Got some tips on how to do this and links to useful files here: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords
http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords

This scene just blows me away with how cool it looks.


This scene just blows me away with how cool it looks.  It is the cover to Sulphur Aeon's Gateway to the Antisphere record.

Sunday Morning Swords: 19 April 2015

Sunday Morning Swords: 19 April 2015

#DoubleFeaturePartOne  

Good morning!

Here's our organizational thread. Comment below if you're interested in playing this morning and mention if you're comfortable being an Overplayer and whether or not you have play Swords before.

When we get an Overplayer and three or four Rogue Players, those players will run off and start their hangout. For now, let's focus on getting everyone into a group. We'll probably wait until 9:15 or 9:30 EST to start the last group. I will be a swing player, jumping in where needed to fill out the final groups so we can make sure we have 3-4 Rogue Players in each group.

Feel free to enjoy some breakfast or brunch while playing. I know I'll be having a bagel with Tofuttie brand fake cream cheese and coffee, myself.

Also, feel free to use the hashtag #SundayAMSwords should you desire to chat about your game on the social medias.

P.S. Got some tips on how to do this and links to useful files here: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords
http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords

Saturday, April 18, 2015

Violetta, a promising young sorceress (only about 60 years of age) who was cursed by her over-protective mother to...


Violetta, a promising young sorceress (only about 60 years of age) who was cursed by her over-protective mother to stay a child forever.

All That Deserves A Name

Hannibal, her loyal familiar. An animal created by Violetta, sort of a cross between a monkey, a cat, and a flying squirrel. Oh, and he can talk, when he deigns to (rarely to anyone but Violetta). And Violetta doesn't know it, but he's also the accidental prison of a demon who is seeking to fully possess him. 

Zephyrus, the demon. He was trying to break out from a hellish prison dimension to this world via the reality shaping/shifting magic that Violetta was using to create Hannibal, but ended up trapped inside Hannibal, seeing the world through his eyes but unable to control the creature's body. Until, a few times now, he's managed to work a little of his magic to protect Hannibal. And he's started appearing in Hannibal's dreams, even whispering to him in times of stress or need.

Zamre, the Sorcerer-Queen of Ruvi. Violetta's doting mother, and a monstrous dictator. Ever since Violetta ran away with Hannibal, she's been expending massive resources to hunt for her, sometimes creating tensions as her soldiers and mercenaries tromp through neighboring kingdoms and principalities.

Feats Heroic

Jovial: Laughing, she darts and dashes through spaces too small for her enemies to follow, only to reappear behind, above or underneath them to deliver a stunning blow with a hand magically transformed to stone, fire, or ice.

Glum: Trapped and exhausted, she cries for help from Hannibal, who gives a little more of himself to Zephyrus in exchange for the power to save her.

Trick

Inevitable Foe- The Men in the Tall Hats. An elite group of Zamre's soldiers, tasked to capture and return Violetta to Ruvi or die trying. They carry magical spears and wear tall yellow hats, and are forbidden from speaking directly to Violetta.

It has been a couple of weeks since I've been available for #SundayAMSwords and I was feeling creative, so I...

It has been a couple of weeks since I've been available for #SundayAMSwords and I was feeling creative, so I thought I'd make a new rogue to hopefully play tomorrow morning. :)


Mönkhjin


All that deserves a name:

The Hidden Valley. Monkhjin, a trusted general, was sent west by the Great King of the Golden Horde.  After suffering a humbling defeat, they took refuge in the hidden valley.  Learning too late that the valley was cursed, Monkhjin and his army have been trapped there for four centuries.

Evren ,the Gatekeeper. This White Dragon is as much a creature of the valley as it is a creature of the world.  Shortly after arriving in the Valley, Monkhjin defeated the beast in single combat, winning its servitude.  Evren has captured the celestial flame and is able to use it to melt a passage through the rock, allowing Monkhjin, and in extreme situations, his whole army to return to the real world... but the curse of the hidden valley is strong, and it is rarely long before Monkhjin and his men find themselves trapped by stone walls once again. 

Altan the Halcyon Steed. This tireless war-horse has ridden in every campaign Monkhjin has fought in over his entire career.  Many of the soldiers say Altan has a better sense of tactics and strategy than the general himself.

The Tumen Calvary. Ten thousand professional soldiers, each born in the saddle and maintaining 3 or 4 horses, allowing them to travel at high speeds for days if required.  Six in ten are light cavalry horse archers; the remaining four are more heavily armored and armed lancers. All are cursed to live forever in the hidden valley, escaping for short periods only, when Evren the white dragon melts the rock walls of the valley allowing them to ride and fight beside their honoured general Monkhjin.

Feats Heroic:
Jovial: Brace his spear as Altan thunders across the battlefield, bringing the sharp point inevitably closer to his foe.  

Glum: Stand solid like a mountain and observe the scene, until the perfect opportunity reveals itself.


Trick:
Adroit Prowess. A loyal army of eternal soldiers freed, for a time, from the hidden valley by a white dragon’s celestial fire. Before the Overplayer chooses a new phase, you may demand that it is a Rogues’ Phase and that the Overplayer opens it with a demand that highlights this feature.

Former Feats Heroic
Jovial: Flow like water across the battlefield, eroding defences with a wave of martial prowess.

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Sunday Morning Swords: 12 April 2015

Sunday Morning Swords: 12 April 2015

#StayedUpTooLateWatchingDaredevilEdition  

Good morning!

Here's our organizational thread. Comment below if you're interested in playing this morning and mention if you're comfortable being an Overplayer and whether or not you have play Swords before.

When we get an Overplayer and three or four Rogue Players, those players will run off and start their hangout. For now, let's focus on getting everyone into a group. We'll probably wait until 9:15 or 9:30 EST to start the last group. I will be a swing player, jumping in where needed to fill out the final groups so we can make sure we have 3-4 Rogue Players in each group.

Feel free to enjoy some breakfast or brunch while playing. I know I'll be having a blackberry muffin and coffee, myself.

Also, feel free to use the hashtag #SundayAMSwords should you desire to chat about your game on the social medias.

P.S. Got some tips on how to do this and links to useful files here: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords
http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Good evening fellow rogues!

Good evening fellow rogues!

In about a week and a half, I'll be running a couple games of Swords Without Master at a small local RPG convention. I'm super excited to get some new people interested in games like this!

I was wondering if there were any resources available to help facilitate playing SWM in a con setting, though. Besides stuff like the Ritual of the Neophyte, and the other items in the Google Drive resources page, of course.

How do I deal with eidolons & simulacra when I might not have free wi-Fi? What order should I teach the mechanics? Should I just go with the info in the City of Fire & Coin?

If someone could point me towards any previous discussions about this very thing, that would be amazing!

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Just dropping this here so you folks see it as well. Feel free to share widely!

Just dropping this here so you folks see it as well. Feel free to share widely!

Originally shared by Epidiah Ravachol

Today is the final day of Worlds Without Master's #PatronDrive . If you join the Patron Horde at www.Patreon.com/Epidiah there will be a coupon code waiting for you that will grant you 25% off of all back issues. But you must be fleet of foot, because sometime tomorrow morning the code is coming down. (It'll still be active for the rest of the month, you just won't automatically get it by joining the Patron Horde.)

Thus far in the #PatronDrive  I've talked about:
•   Enter the Avenger: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+EpidiahRavachol/posts/Jv9pxwsb9dd
•   Wolfspell: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+EpidiahRavachol/posts/igyeAJdr6vN
•   Sorceress Bloody Sorceress: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+EpidiahRavachol/posts/cgRCTLf722a
•   A Scoundrel in the Deep: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+EpidiahRavachol/posts/ArnQMwLU5mz
•   And Invisible Empire: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+EpidiahRavachol/posts/Ks86XFaXUzJ

And now I will talk about the aleph, the nexus of crisis, the origin of storms, Swords Without Master.

Swords is a game I've been promising since the release of Time & Temp back in 2009. But one that I could never find a comfortable format for. I'd write it and rewrite it and rewrite it, chasing that wretched herald of failure, the siren known as Perfection.

In the process, I rekindled an old flame with the help of used bookstores and folks like Fritz Leiber, Robert E. Howard, Tanith Lee, Michael Moorcock, Leigh Brackett, C.J. Cherryh, Jack Vance, Clark Ashton Smith and Charles R. Saunders.

It was trying to create Swords that set me on the path to creating Worlds. And like the worm Ouroboros, Worlds circled around and set me on the path to creating Swords.

Since it's release in issue 3, a little over a year ago, Swords has spawned a community whose numbers rival those of the Patron Horde itself: https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/104194230537983273846 This community has given rise to a number of Swords hacks, mods, and descendants. We hold regular Sunday morning games online. And we have amassed quite a collection of rogues, eidolons, and simulacra for your pleasure.

I have said a lot about this game over the years, so I'm just going to shut up now and let others do the talk.

"Swords Without Masters recreates the sword & sorcery stories I read growing up. One of my favourite games ever." – Eric Nieudan 

"Swords Without Master never fails to produce a tale dripping with adventure, mystery, and fantastic imagery." – Aaron Feild 

"Right now, Swords Without Master by Epidiah Ravachol is my favorite roleplaying game and it’s not particularly close." – Keith Stetson 

And a quick shout out to my Swords Without Master illustrators, Storn Cook, Ed Heil, and Christopher Kimball, who all made this game gorgeous.   
http://www.swordswithoutmaster.com

Sunday, April 5, 2015

I overplayed my first game in Spanish and I had a blast!

I overplayed my first game in Spanish and I had a blast! So much that I am thinking on offering that option during the Sunday Morning Swords times, when I am able to make them. Would it be OK to do so?

Después de mi primera partida en Español me quedo con ganas de más. Me gustaría usar el formato de Sunday Morning Swords, ¿qué os parece?

Sunday Morning Swords: 5 April 2015

Sunday Morning Swords: 5 April 2015
#PatronDrive

Good morning!

Here's our organizational thread. Comment below if you're interested in playing this morning and mention if you're comfortable being an Overplayer and whether or not you have play Swords before.

When we get an Overplayer and three or four Rogue Players, those players will run off and start their hangout. For now, let's focus on getting everyone into a group. We'll probably wait until 9:15 or 9:30 EST to start the last group. I will be a swing player, jumping in where needed to fill out the final groups so we can make sure we have 3-4 Rogue Players in each group.

Feel free to enjoy some breakfast or brunch while playing. I know I'll be having some coffee and toast, myself.

Also, feel free to use the hashtag #SundayAMSwords should you desire to chat about your game on the social medias.

P.S. Got some tips on how to do this and links to useful files here: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords
http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2014/7/14/sunday-morning-swords