Fuck it's warm!

Fuck it's warm!

Give me your freezing cold eidolons!
http://frazettamuseum.com/product/APN2TSW.html

Around 11 AM EDT this morning, Misha B, R Shel Kahn, Stras Acimovic and I will be making our 4th attempt at the...

Around 11 AM EDT this morning, Misha B, R Shel Kahn, Stras Acimovic and I will be making our 4th attempt at the #SwordsWithoutMaster Speed Run Challenge live on the Actual Play Twitch Channel: https://www.twitch.tv/actualplay

Join us if you can!

Sean Nittner will be hosting and monitoring the chat, and I believe some of our Rogue Players will dip their toes into the chat as well. I'll try, but I'm an old wizard who is confounded by these new was. So there's no guarantee there.

Many fine seers will be watching our rogues' activities from afar, scrying for clues to what fate has in store for them! You can join them with the Ritual of Scrying: http://www.worldswithoutmaster.com/blog/2018/5/30/to-craft-an-enthralling-short-story
https://www.twitch.tv/actualplay

Call for Rogues / Over Player

Call for Rogues / Over Player
Event Name: Valley of Glass
Date & Time: June 23 @ ~12:00 PST (20:00 GMT)

Notes: Roll 20 + Discord VOIP, or . . .
Who: @AronBC (Rogue or OP) @Luiz F (Rogue?)

Here's an extract of our game we completed a few days ago via Role Gate, good times.

Here's an extract of our game we completed a few days ago via Role Gate, good times.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ckoz5XaFHdPGWFwO1l7a5WpQoMbi9eFCaFP6eHzxM3Y/edit?usp=sharing

The Summers Without Master Sale is going on for the next five days over at...

The Summers Without Master Sale is going on for the next five days over at https://itch.io/s/11982/summers-without-master-sale

25% off of any back issue of Worlds Without Master or get the whole lot of them for only $29.99!
https://itch.io/s/11982/summers-without-master-sale

A little teaser peak at my design process for something new and very Swordsy.

A little teaser peak at my design process for something new and very Swordsy.

Evidence of a successful first game of Swords Without Master last night!

Evidence of a successful first game of Swords Without Master last night! We hacked (really, reskinned the tones) the game for use in my original folklore-meets-wuxia fantasy setting, The Blackwood. We're putting together an audio drama for the setting and this game was the perfect way to hone in on our characters and discover some juicy motifs and plot points for our writers.

The game is awesome but we definitely encountered some stumbling blocks on the way. A couple players are fairly new to RPGs (especially rules-light, narrative-heavy games), so the worldbuilding opportunities of the Discovery Phase kinda melted their brains. They rose to the challenge but it was a big adjustment on their part. They loved the challenge though!

We also found the endgame/reincorporation mechanics to be a little confusing, mostly because I as the Overplayer hadn't done enough reading and pondering for that stuff. All the same, it was a wonderful first game. Everyone wants to play again!

I just wanted to give a shout out to Josh McGraw for setting up the Discord Without Master and this community for...

I just wanted to give a shout out to Josh McGraw for setting up the Discord Without Master and this community for embracing it.

It's been an absolute delight watching folks organize games and share their eidolons, threads, scrying, & whatnot on there.

Here's one I whipped up for #SundayAMSwords.

Here's one I whipped up for #SundayAMSwords. Pretty simple cause I was in a rush, but also simple enough for anyone to use!

Sinter, absconded assassin
One-time assassin, who failed badly on his first mission and decided to take to the road rather than face the Guild's wrath.

All That Deserves a Name
Necker - Keen assassin's blade
Baneballs - Balls of magic smoke carried by assassins to cause chaos
Mystery Mask - Used by assassins to keep their identities secret and protect from the banesmoke

Feats Heroic
Jovial - Toss a baneball and slash through purple smoke at choking foes
Glum - Slide behind and take a hostage with Necker at their throat

Trick
Inevitable Foe - The Guild of assassins coming to reclaim their mask and baneballs.

https://sandara.deviantart.com/art/PQ2-assassin-199314185?q=gallery:sandara/514931&qo=57
https://sandara.deviantart.com/art/PQ2-assassin-199314185?q=gallery:sandara/514931&qo=57

Just had my first game this morning on #SundayAmSwords and it was awesome! This is the rogue I cooked up

Just had my first game this morning on #SundayAmSwords and it was awesome! This is the rogue I cooked up

Galgo
Once-consumed by an eldritch amulet that made him travel the world in an endless rampage, Galgo was stopped by the sight of a single flower, that grounded him and allowed him to break free from the spell. He now roams the world trying to make reparations.

All That Deserves a Name
Jasmine – The spirit of a little flower
Endbringer – A cursed amulet that unleashes chaos and death
Penitence – An oak staff harboring the accidentally bound spirits of those killed in the rampage

Feats Heroic
Jovial – I let Endbringer take me once more, and destroy what stands in my path
Glum – I loosen the binds on Penitence and the sorrow of the imprisoned souls floods forth

Trick
Locus – A humble shrine that marks the place my rampage stopped

https://alectorfencer.deviantart.com/art/Startling-Beauty-206393238
https://alectorfencer.deviantart.com/art/Startling-Beauty-206393238

Sunday Morning Swords

Sunday Morning Swords
#SundayAMSwords #DiscordantEdition

Good morning! We are organizing a live game over on the new Discord server. Click the link below to join (for free!). Once there, click the channel "looking-for-group" and we'll get you started.

New players are welcome and encouraged to join! (Having a microphone is preferred.)

We're looking to start around 9AM PDT (4PM UTC).

https://discordapp.com/invite/u9BxdyY
https://discordapp.com/invite/u9BxdyY

Fan art from last week's speed run!

Fan art from last week's speed run!
https://twitter.com/buttopian/status/1008052914923933696?s=19

You know how every day is the national day of "something".

You know how every day is the national day of "something". Well today is National "Pop goes the Weasel" Day and I decided to make a rogue with the song as my eidolon.


https://fictivefun.com/weasel-a-swords-without-master-rogue/

So, I've been reading this comic lately (yesterday, to be precise).

So, I've been reading this comic lately (yesterday, to be precise). And, well, that's a story I would want to tell via SWM. It's full of inspiration. Great characters. Strange towns / sceneries. Surprises. I think to make it as an eidolon for a short run.

https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/seven-to-eternity
https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/seven-to-eternity

This is happening

This is happening

https://www.bigbadcon.com/events/sunday-morning-swords/
https://www.bigbadcon.com/events/sunday-morning-swords/

Warning: Rambling Thoughts

Warning: Rambling Thoughts

I've been thinking about #Starward and #GammaThrones recently, and starting to stretch those old Swords design muscles again. (This is in no small part due to the wonderful reception the speed runs have received.) I've been thinking of them as campaigns that are essentially collections of thematically appropriate rituals.

But in truth, #GammaWorld messes with some really fundamental aspects of the game. It adds a new phase and thread, it changes the whole timing mechanism aspect of the motifs, and it eliminates the end game altogether. That's perhaps a bit more substantial than a campaign.

That World Phase and Map Thread are pretty nifty, though, and wouldn't be too out of place in Swords as an advance phase and thread, like like the Lore Phase and Thread or the Mark Thread.

What's really happening here is that I'm starting to think real earnestly about what a stand-alone Swords Without Master rulebook would look like and contain. And how to think about things like additional threads and more thunderless phases. Because there's a couple more I want to introduce.
https://twitter.com/Epidiah/status/1006605882904457216?s=19

Have made an update to my collection of play aids, now includes:

Have made an update to my collection of play aids, now includes:
* Roll20 environment set-up
* Table top tiles
* 2 page play aid to introduce new players
* Simple character sheet, 3:1 landscape page
* Collected character creation procedure
* Trick cards

Find it all here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1VIS4P1Y_PIRBZyWYRlpul_qlQcozO7hn
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1VIS4P1Y_PIRBZyWYRlpul_qlQcozO7hn

Here is my effort with the ritual of scrying from speed run episode 2.

Here is my effort with the ritual of scrying from speed run episode 2.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Dfs8N4USpG4f1OUW99rfmIZuYMyHmCCkvsJFIRJjjNc/edit?usp=sharing

I peered into the inky black of my scrying bowl and uttered the ancient words.

I peered into the inky black of my scrying bowl and uttered the ancient words. I pricked a finger and let a drop of blood fall into darkness, falling forever. The ripples took form and I lost myself in the gazing of another world for a time. I witnessed many strange and terrible things, a tale of great heroism emerged and I recorded it here:

Motifs
1) She stands, drawing both daggers
A strange woman with the Baron's ear

2) Streets plunged into sudden darkness
1) Flying daggers rain down
A flying leap across rooftops

3) Drinking Ale you can't afford
Beyond the Valley of Mausoleums

4) A Horde of Undead Monkeys
3) Drinking Away Your Troubles in a dim tavern
4) Chunks of meat and exposed bone
A spear bursts from his chest in a spray of blood!
2) Lights go out across the city
2) Losa steals the light that remains

Morals
Don't draw attention you're not prepared for
(ECHO: The Monkey King steals the amulet)

Mystery
Why did the geyser choose this moment to erupt?
-----------------------
The numbers to the left of the motifs indicate those that I linked with silver thread (just match the numbers!)

This is my scrying report from today's #SundayAMSpeedSwords over on the livestream. I also did one for the second half but I was too enthralled by the story to finish it.

A question that came up for me: Is it intended that we should arrange our Motifs into three portions the way the Rogues do? Or do we keep ours more of a running list and just mark the echoes with silver thread?

https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/455359014293733377/455400021299429376/JPEG_20180610_115651.jpg?width=527&height=702

So I had my second round of using the Scrying rules during this morning's speed run episode.

So I had my second round of using the Scrying rules during this morning's speed run episode. This one went smoother than the first, which was fortunate since the first game of the doubleheader finished in just over 40 minutes! Here were my threads and such:

First motif:
- Roasted beasts of questionable origin
- A fountain fed by hot springs beneath the city, surrounded by torches
- An epic duel with the baron's champion

Second motif:
- Being pursued by the tiger-mounted city guard
- Throwing flames from the city fire dancer's torches from the tips of daggers
- Ducking into the shadows as the guards run past

Third motif:
- Drinking ale that you can't afford
- Pulling a well-worn map from a pouch
- Previously unknown missing pieces of a map linking party members through mystery
- The enormous looming shadow of the monkey king

Mysteries:
- What caused the eruption of the geyser?

Morals:
- Watch for signs when you need them most
- Beward of meddling in the wars of other kingdoms

All in all it was another great time, and the episode was the best of the bunch so far. The group got in two games since the first went so quickly, but I only took notes for the first. My goal for the next go-round is to try and get a handle on the silver threads that link my motifs to the groups', but I think I might also take a stab at rewatching the episode when it hits YouTube and seeing if I come up with different motifs when I get some time this week.

Episode 3 of our Swords Without Master speed run goes live in just about an hour!

Episode 3 of our Swords Without Master speed run goes live in just about an hour!
https://m.twitch.tv/actualplay

Any online Sunday Morning Swords happening tomorrow? I’m PST.

Rogues without Tales.

Rogues without Tales.
Oh man. Discord and the Scrying ritual makes me want a SWM ritual for an out-of-game impromptu invitation to create S&S micro-fiction. Something like a micro-rogue's phase challenge that people can invite and offer others (or play solo) in a setting like the Discord chat, G+ community, or casual conversation. Not even a scene, more like a single evocative in-character moment that one or more people can explore. Basically a spotlight, nearly context-less motif, or raw S&S cover art as a poster with a story but not a tale.

What are the minimum mechanics/structure necessary for empowering cool on-the-go micro-fiction? Should dice or a similar simulacrum set a tone for the reply or is that cumbersome/limiting? How should/could such a thing invite communal participation/affirmation and tie into other rituals and game modes in the SWM ecosystem?

How about this as a starter draft:
The Ritual of the Pregnant Moment
Share an eidolon for any ephemeral Moment you want to wrap in a shred of fictional flesh. Then direct a loaded challenge illuminated by the eidolon to a willing companion (or yourself) in the following form: "Who can show us an [adjective] rogue... [doing something]?" The challenge can be open or directed toward a specific person.

Whoever dares answer the challenge should roll dice to set a tone, and offer an incisive reply in the rolled tone, perhaps as the internal monologue of the rogue in question. Others may offer alternate responses. After a response, anybody else present may ... [?]

"Who can show us a blood-smeared rogue... wrestling with destiny" "Who can show us a sympathetic rogue... suffering for their irreverence." "Who can show us a famously brutal rogue... showing tenderness?" "Who can show us a broken rogue... wielding power."

(Embrace a pregnant pause between the described rogue and the task demanded, especially when the two deliciously contrast.)

Rogues!

Rogues!

Thanks to Josh McGraw , the enterprising rogue who set this up, the Swords Without Master pack now has their very own Discord to organize and play games on!

I'm a bit of a Discord neophyte, but I'm eager to learn its ways. Join us on this adventure using the invitation link below!

Rogue Tip: Typing "/roll 2d6" will get a bot to return a roll of 2d6 to you. The bot will add them up for you, for the arithematically curious, but it will also list the roll on each of the dice. Our convention is to assign them to tones alphabetically. So the Glum roll then the Jovial roll in the basic game. Or the Glory result then the Hell result if you're playing a Tale …of War. Or the Beautiful dice followed by the Glum die if you're playing an Unparalleled rogue who has substituted Beautiful for Jovial. You get the picture.
https://discordapp.com/invite/u9BxdyY

I went on and on about the advanced game of Swords Without Master over on Twitter over the past couple days.

I went on and on about the advanced game of Swords Without Master over on Twitter over the past couple days. I figured share it with you good folks as well. Especially since I mention the community here a few times.
https://twitter.com/Epidiah/status/1003996557115568133?s=19

So had my first run of the Scrying rules during the stream yesterday.

So had my first run of the Scrying rules during the stream yesterday. I missed a few descriptions here and there (particularly on the Morals) due to the baby being in the room while I watched, and kind of had to fill in based on what was on the board so to speak. I also briefly forgot about tying the Motifs together, but that ended up working itself out. So not ideal, but still pretty good I think.

Anyway, if anyone is interested, here's what my sheet ended up looking like. But all in all it was a good time, and hopefully as the speed runs continue I'll get a bit better at it.

Today's speed run starts in less than a half hour at https://t.co/pkRRgkpiUb

Today's speed run starts in less than a half hour at https://t.co/pkRRgkpiUb
https://t.co/pkRRgkpiUb

Can anyone help clarify?

Can anyone help clarify?

Rogue phase is essentially a demand of the rogue player: “Show is how you...”

Rogue phase stymies them become: “Show us how you do not...”

Is this a reasonable explanation?