In which we revolt!

 May entry into the 11/24 Blog Carnival: Haves and Have Nots.

Revolution as a Game of Power: Running Revolts Through Faction Intrigue

In TTRPGs, revolution often means upheaval, chaos, and the rearrangement of power structures. Yet, there's no need to think of revolutions as purely mass-based uprisings. Drawing inspiration from settings like 700 Lordly Houses, I take a different approach: presenting revolution as a complex dance of factional influences, rivalries, and the tactical moves of a few skilled operators—namely, the players.

Revolution as a Network of Influences

Revolution can be seen as a struggle not only of the “Have Nots” rising against the “Haves” but also of competing factions jockeying for control, influence, and survival. This is a more localized, faction-oriented perspective, where individual agents—be they nobles, spies, or mercenaries—can have a significant impact. By focusing on factions rather than masses, players can engage with revolution on a scale that can be both digestible and intensely personal.

Why Small Groups Matter

In a faction-driven game, the actions of small groups are the levers that push change. This doesn’t mean the players alone can start or end a revolution; rather, they influence pivotal figures and factions whose decisions ripple through the fabric of society. For example, one lord’s choice to back a rebellion might turn the tide or fracture alliances. A revolutionary movement may rely on noble houses, secret guilds, or even criminal syndicates, each with their own interests and methods. As the players work with (or against) these factions, they impact the revolution in a way that feels organic and impactful.

Running a Revolution in Faction Turns

Using faction turns, as outlined by Of Cats and Books, is an ideal way to track the progress and status of various revolutionary factions. In these turns, factions make their moves: recruiting allies, making power plays, spreading influence, or crushing dissent. When players act, they influence a faction's standing or affect another faction’s plans directly, giving them real agency in the revolution.

Faction turns can unfold on a time scale that best fits your table, creating a timeline that charts the revolution’s growth or collapse. The players’ actions determine how their allies fare, who gains or loses influence or resources, and where the tipping points might occur.

Influence over Mass Action: The Key to Revolutions

When thinking of a revolution as a series of factional maneuvers, a single band of heroes isn’t responsible for winning or losing. Instead, they are agents of influence. Consider a few ways players can affect a revolution without leading a mass uprising:

• Targeted Sway: Players can sway key NPCs within factions, negotiating or persuading them to join, remain neutral, or withdraw from the revolutionary movement. Instead of fighting in the trenches, players maneuver behind the scenes, manipulating those with direct control over the masses or at least small clusters of them.

• Strategic Strikes: Just as in Blades in the Dark, where individual actions impact larger factional standings, players can conduct missions against specific targets. This could mean sabotaging supply lines, assassinating a tyrant’s right-hand agent, or liberating a charismatic revolutionary imprisoned by the ruling class.

• Moral Manipulation: Revolutions often pivot on ideology. Players could spread misinformation, inspire loyalty, or discredit rivals to shift public perception and morale. This is where Night’s Black Agents-style investigative and manipulative gameplay shines, as players engage in the war for hearts and minds rather than swords and shields. The Vampyramid is your friend!

• Personal Alliances and Betrayals: In a world like 700 Lordly Houses, allegiances are delicate. If players help a faction rise in the revolution, they’re setting the stage for power grabs and betrayals down the line. The revolution becomes less about one side winning or losing and more about who gains what in the aftermath.

Examples of Faction-Driven Scenarios

1. Betrayal at the Banquet: The players receive intelligence that a noble who sits on the fence between the ruling power and the revolutionaries is attending a private banquet. If they can sway or sabotage this noble’s allegiances, they could pull an entire family or network into the revolutionary cause or away from it. Success or failure here shifts the balance of power within the revolution. I might suggest Festivities if you need ideas.

2. The Assassination of a War Architect: A brutal general is leading oppressive measures that have kept the revolution contained. Removing this figure could change the tide. The players are tasked with planning and executing a subtle assassination, knowing that every faction involved will have its own reaction.

3. The Smuggling Chain: Factions often rely on supply lines and resources to operate. The players are hired by a faction to secure a route for smuggling arms or block a rival’s trade routes. In this scenario, players become the nerve center of factional warfare, making tactical decisions that impact the success of larger movements.

Conclusion: Agency and Balance

By presenting revolution as a series of factional skirmishes, rivalries, and negotiations, the process becomes something dynamic and immersive rather than a grandiose mass movement. This also preserves the tension and challenge for the players, as they never have total control but remain essential to shaping key events. In this approach, players are neither the entire revolution nor just passive witnesses—they are influencers, tacticians, and decision-makers. This style keeps revolutions interactive and allows for a balance of political intrigue, tactical moves, and high-stakes choices, providing a unique and layered game experience.

 EDit 11/20 to add:  Let's Talk Clocks is another helpful tip ... and Red Hand of Doom provides good insight on how to run those massive war campaigns by playing the party.

Note:  Chat-GPT assisted with the compilation of this post.

In which we wake "It" up.

 The following isn't session notes per se.  It's the Thought process that followed a specific action during a session, written out for two reasons.  First, so that I can follow it, add to it, and keep the world moving.  Second so the players can read about what REALLY happened when the campaign is over.  

I'm using Fronts from Dungeon World, with a little Night's Black Agents thrown in.  Players initially just wanted to be treasure/monster hunters but after about five levels of that they decided a little BBG action would help, so long as it wasn't too railroad-y.  So I set to work designing it.  And plopping it down in the world.  Realizing that nothing exists until the players brush up against it.  Which means I can add, delete, alter and amend to my heart's content until they're actually in media res.  Which is what I've done.  One over-arching BBG.  Four (was six) factions struggling for dominance.  I gave the PC's an artifact and some clues to figure out it's workings.  While they searched for that I brushed up the factions. LAST session they FINALLY figured it out and that sets the ball rolling.

The Five Great Prophecies.  Each foretells the rise and triumph on one of the factions.  

June 21.  A generic bard was contracted to journey with the party as the revisited an old battle field.  Our ranger had been hired to do away with some marauding bears, which he did.  Leaving the rotting carcasses of the large carnivores behind. Which attracted a LARGER carnivore.  A green dragon.  The dragon was soon dispatched.  The bard had his song.  AND knowledge of the artifact.  Five days journey found him back in the capitol city.  There he reached out to the House of Pellissi, patrons of entertainers known to pay for information.  A quick visit to the School of Illusion netted him a bit of a disguise to protect him from feared retribution.

House Pellissi ALWAYS seeks favor from House Lupine, and with the election only six months ago it was important to keep ties intact.  The School of Illusion took longer to pass on the news - always on the lookout for false news dontcha know. Eventually word filtered up to the Archmage.  It was going to be an interesting summer.

The Arcane Eye moved first.  Valen the Enchanter reached out to their contacts in the "knowledge" world: libraries, scholars, sages and artificers.  They were to be on the lookout for anyone seeking information regarding The Compass.  (Game-wise: this started the countdown clock to their first Grim Portent.  Time now became a growing issue for the party ,although they didn't know it yet.)

House Lupine sent word to Lady Elara who then presented it to the Counsel of Sovereigns.  The CoS is far reaching and slow moving.  Already mid-July and they have not yet reached a consensus on what action to take.  By the end of the month they will have opted to merely consolidate their holdings and grow:  More caravans.  More thieves.  Guildmaster Thaddeus and "The Whisperer" will have a busy summer.

The Circle of the Silver Moon has already made an unauthorized direct attack, sending an Invisible Stalker after Dakora the Enchantress of Fire & Ice.  And acid.  They need to SERIOUSLY re-evaluate.  

The Cult of the Shadow Moon is more circumspect, taking a "wait and see" attitude.

The party sits at July 13 just off the Southern Road, a few days from Crossroad #1.  Completely oblivious of ANY of this. 

Next Session:

gets us to July 15.  I've stripped out one of the factions.  No more Shadow Moon.  The Shadowmaster (an outlaw gang) has knowledge they'll pass on to The Whisperer.  And a stray half-elf ranger will pass word on to The Purple Rider.  Arcane Eye is seeking someone to obtain the prophesied grimoire.  Dawn's Nexus? They parties foil?  Circle of the Silver Moon changes their focus to Brethemney and the blight.  The Counsel begin placing new faces in ever higher places.

another few sessions have passed.  Today is June 19th, and it's July 25th in the game world.  Was NOT happy with the way things were flowing (and neither were the players.)  Prohecy's learned weren't sparking interest.  The "other stuff" was happening but PCs weren't learning about it since they've opted for a long (productive) trip in the wilderness.  So I've fallen back to another old source: "Creating Epic Campaigns" by Guy Sclanders.  Have stripped out another faction.  Currently have four: the BIG BBG and three "secondary" factions, two of which are functioning under/beside the BIG BBG and another which MAY turn out to be allies of the PC.  I've redesigned all of the factions to fit the CEC format.  Only one of the prophesies has been "learned" so I'm rewriting the rest to fit the CEC model.  Should be MUCH more actionable.  It's also helped to design the countdown clocks that will "run" the factions.  And taking a page from Gnome Stew to provide a war room for the party.  Need to design a polar area chart so the PCs can SEE the progress (at least graphically) and rework the countdown clock.  Every iteration makes things a bit clearer.  

 

In which I don't get a nibble

 

and the session STILL runs itself!

As foretold I rather unceremoniously dropped half a dozen plot hooks at the start of the session.  The hook for the primary and secondary story lines was dropped first along with a cryptic poem (emailed to them at the start of the session as my printer decided it no longer had ink!) and an item in a box (presented via the picture affixed to this post.)  The rest of the hooks were tertiary and to at least some degree class/race/character specific.  But the party latched on to one and clamped down like grim death.  "A heretical sect has produced a new translation of the book of the cleric's faith and must be hunted and captured. Those that do not recant are to be exterminated."

So off they went with our diminutive halfling Twilight Cleric in the fore.  So it took a while to get there.  A clearing in the woods.  The stone outline of the beginnings of as worship site.  A rough altar.  And a dozen followers.  The first hour or so of our session was spent talking to NPC's and weighing their options.  The NEXT hour was spent at the site with our cleric discussing theology with the leader of the sect.  I had done NO research on the topic.  I knew damned little about the deity worshiped by the cleric.  But I knew enough to respond to his questions and to present enough of a difference between what the cleric believed and what the sect was proposing as to make a difference.  The whole thing had a distinct "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin" feel to it.  Is the sacrament the ACTUAL blood and body of Christ or is it symbolic?  The other two players and I engaged in some pleasant meta banter while the cleric feverishly read everything he could find on the interwebs, thinking I'd dug up some theological dilemma in the lore of some other setting.

And he found one!

And it was DAMNED close to the bushwa I had been slinging about  to keep the session moving.  After about an hour of THAT I realized I needed to do something to move the session along or else the entire evening would be filled the cleric and I sitting on tree stumps discussing philosophy.  NOT the stuff of legendary fantasy.  So I put it to the cleric - recant or exterminate?  He tried a persuasion check (high CR and with disadvantage) and failed.  At which point all hell broke lose.

Six PC's and a dozen religious zealots.  How long would it take to fight out at YOUR table?  Twenty five minutes.  Considering that half the party had just advanced a level and included four spell casters was not bad IMHO.  Each party member succeeded in plinking off 1-2 opponents quickly.  The cleric then strode the battlefield dealing the death blows to the remaining heretics.

About a hundred coins, a ceremonial dagger, and eight uncut stones.  The stones are "interesting" because it marks the first time I've given uncut stones as treasure.  They'll need to find a lapidary to turn them into gemstones.  I'll see how that goes.  About 1/5 of a level in XP with an additional 1/10 to the cleric.  I'll use the travel back to let the two wizards discuss the item that they were given at the beginning of the session and see if I might rekindle interest.  

One last concept introduced: I'm going to allow each PC to declare their own quest or goal and we'll agree how much XP it's worth.  Our ranger was quick to take the bait - "hit ten targets in a row during combat or competition, for XP worth 1/10 of a level."  Done!  Keep in mind he's 5th level with his father's +1 bow and a quiver which bestows an additional +1 so he's looking at +11 to hit.  We're looking at almost a 60% chance of success.  That'll be fun.  Looking fwd to seeing what the others come up with.

In which we answer some questions

 For some reason I stumbled across The DM in Paris who was answering a series of questions themed "How's My Campaign" posed by one Alex Schroeder on a Mastodon thread and for some reason I feel compelled to answer them as well.  

How many sessions have you been playing, more or less?

Of THIS version?  Under two dozen.  These players in this world?  Closer to fifty.

How long have you been running this campaign?

Started with these players in early July of '20.  Moved to this setting late July '21.  This specific campaign started in April '23

Have you had long breaks? If so, how did you pick it up again?

Yes?  We have some theater people in our group so we occasionally face multiple 6 week absences.  Our breaks are therefore planned and calendared and picking up is relatively easy.

How many people are at the table when you play?

Two to four people and myself.

How many characters are in the party when you play?

Two to six PC's and Rouf the cook/bearer.

How many players have you had in total over that time period, not counting guest appearances?

Six

Have you had guest appearances? How did it go? Did you gain regular players that way?

Had two guest appearances.  First time guest ran an absent player's PC.  Second time the guest ran a pre-gen.  Went well both times.  Did NOT gain a new player and knew we wouldn't.

What have the character levels been over time?

We start at 1st (or a funnel at 0).  First iteration got to double digits.  Second round got to low Tier II.  Current bunch has just hit 5th.

What classes did the players pick? Did you add new classes over time?

Current batch:  Fighter, Ranger and a Scribe Wizard with a support team of Twilight Cleric, Wizard and Circle of Spores Druid.  We've also had Barbarians and Rogues.  Not adding new classes but I will always discuss the possibility with the player.

Tell me about some adventures you ran over that time that I might enjoy hearing about?

Party found themselves in a caravanserai plagued by rare animal poaching.  They thwarted the thieves by "making a dragon" using Mage Hand and Minor Illusion.

Have the rule changes over that time? Do you maintain a house-rules document?

Yes.  And yes,  I've implemented a slew of DM facing mechanics and PC facing changes are always mentioned prior to and after play testing.  Document here

Has the setting changed over time?

It changes as players interact with it.  They managed to resolve a dispute between opposing Lordly Houses recently.  They also managed to aid (unbeknownst to them) a child sacrifice which brought prosperity to the region. 

How much in-game distance did the party cover, how big is the area they have visited?

Party has covered about 400 linear miles.  Triangulating we get an area of just under 3 million acres.  Smaller than Connecticut ... or Montenegro.  Triple Rhode Island.  Four x Georgia.

Have you used proprietary setting books? Like, could you publish your campaign or would you be in trouble if you did?

Nope.  And nope.  Although I DID for the '20 effort.

 

In which cults take shape

A few months ago I grabbed a product called Game of Shields from drag-n-drop games which was a "system" to run factions.  Great idea.  Easy to implement.  But had a couple "rules" that made it virtually unimplementable in real life.

So I was a little reluctant to take on another similar product but then I stumbled across Gods, Cults and religions made by Stefano Scordo contact: worldofhyr@gmail.com.  My table is currently in a struggle between two cults whose "ideals" aren't well defined, nor did they NEED to be.  

The stated purpose of this product is to simulate the story of a cult starting from its origins.  With a series of simple ideas, you will be able to decide its evolution over time, to create a cult and see if it survives the course of history or if it is destined to disappear.  It uses a simple deck of 52 cards to provide the randomness and leaves a lot of basic decisions up to you, like dogmas, organization and structure, symbols, art, architecture, rites and practices.

Took me about 20 minutes to design the two cults in question and move them through a few developments which can then be used to motivate and direct them through the flow of this adventure - and beyond if needed.

This small pdf isn't for everyone but I really like the crunch.  It adds some nice flavor easily and helps maintain that verisimilitude that my table appreciates.  No more bland people in gray/black/red robes burning candles around a pentagram for no other apparent reason than that they they're evil.  GOOD cults exist too, y'know.

In which we get dressed

 OK, y'all know I like some picky grit (grit pickin'?) in my game.  And weather.  And economics.  And that my econ system is being reworked.  So I finally got around to updating my textiles, cloth and clothing production.  Alexis has over a dozen posts on clothing (sadly no longer with comments, some of which were quite helpful.)  And I had begun the task of meshing the clothes and weather systems but several steps remained undone.

No longer.

Weather.  Every population area has a weather system based on latitude, altitude and biome.  This spits out a daily temp range, precipitation, condition and wind speed.  The temp ranges are broken into 10 degree steps and each "step" has a clothing "requirement."

Clothing.  The two prime concerns are thickness and weight.  It takes about 4.5 pounds of material to provide basic coverage.  Every 1.5 pounds provides an additional 10 degrees of "warmth."  When it's pleasant the 4.5 mark is sufficient.  As it gets warmer or colder the party needs to increase/decrease what they're wearing.

An outfit of common clothes (homespun hemp) weighs in at 4.6 pounds and covers the basics.  Traveling clothes are made of linen which is not as heavy material but is made thicker, so 10 pounds which means it's good down another 35 degrees!  Wool socks.  Great hooded cloak.  Mittens.  Now you're getting down below freezing.   It's late spring though and heat is getting to be a factor.  Common clothes.  But even then a failed CON save can result in exhaustion, and that adds up.  And wearing ARMOR while traipsing around the countryside just adds to the problem!  Leather armor adds 8# right off the bat!  

So now part of my session prep will include evaluation clothing/armor worn as it relates to upcoming weather so I can advise the party of the choices they'll need to make.   And choices make the game!

In which we open up the books

It was recently suggested that I write up more details on my trade system. Since I spent a chunk of the last week writing up my procedures for handling travel it seemed like a natural next step. I'm going to skip all of the world building that went into the base of the system although another polite request might get a thousand words on that as well.

So the world exists. Raw materials exist. In places. Limited by biome, rainfall, manpower, altitude and a few other geographical factors. The OTHER thing that exists is my spreadsheet(s.) Before we begin I need to credit my inspiration, Alexis Smolensk. I return to his material daily for guidance and inspiration. A dozen other writers provided insight, ideas and inspiration: for h in hexes , Red Ragged Fiend and others you'll find over there in Appendix N.

Just realized I have NO idea where to start. So I'll send you back to Alexis's. That's a rough starting point for the travel stuff. We then use THAT table to calculate how far each and every shipping point is from “Our Town.” Divide the amount of something that's produced “far away” from the distance and you get a number reflecting how much of any given item is available here. He uses the example of elephants from Burma to Norway. That's 300 units of travel. His math further determines that 144.55 of the beasts are available in Norway. That's the number of elephants moving through this town of 2,500 in a year. Or COULD be, if anybody wanted to ship pachyderms through Norway.

All of that is pretty much a straight adaptation of Alexis' with a few corners cut. I then do the same thing with “Storefronts.” Manufacturers. Trade people. People who convert raw materials into stuff … and the people who convert that stuff into other stuff, etc., until it ends up in the PC's backpack. Short version: Cow to stockyard to butcher to tanner to leather worker to armorer to Ranger as leather armor. Or sheep to shearer to spinner to weaver to tailor to Druid as that sweater to weather this winter's long journey. By using the same formulas for Storefronts as for Raw Materials I can generate another decent number to calculate finished goods reflecting the rarity and difficulty of the labor which goes into it.

The question that was bugging me was what are the caravans hauling into and out of a given place. Here's what I'm testing. Spreadsheet. Column 1: all raw materials. Column 2: Amount of each resource in “Our Town.” This represents what is produced locally AND can be shipped in. Column 3: amount of resource produced locally. Anything with more than .25 units produced is considered for export. (This may change in future iterations as it's a work in progress.) Column 4 is Column 2 less column 3 (total available less locally produced.) Another way to phrase it is amount available for importation. If it qualifies for export I won't import it and if there's less than .25 units for importation it's rare enough that it rarely gets here. I take what's LEFT and look for what's most available, by type. I consider the three most prevalent types of timber. Our current location imports maple (used for handles), chestnut (utensils, tools and furniture), linden (furniture), and yew (sometimes art but in this case, bows.) We export iron ore but have to import clay, salt and construction stone (hence why most homes are wood.) Livestock? We export hogs, ponies (!), freshwater fish, and chickens. We import sheep (for wool) and saltwater fish (salted of course.) Carrots and turnips come in as well. Using the same system I can tell you the woods are full of moose and elk, along with fox for a good trapper.

But it was at this step that I hit a wall. Shelby and I discussed this almost a year ago when considering rarity and availability. I'm omitting a lot of the reasoning that went into the following tweaks. In short, in order for later stage production to occur the inputs must exist. Let's make a pair of cowhide shoes. In our current location there are plenty of cows. A butcher (or tanner) needs to separate the hide. The tanner tans it (turning it into finished leather.) It can then go to a leather worker or a cobbler. Cobbler turns it into shoes and we're done. But without a tanner, there's a problem. Why would a cobbler exist in a village with hides, but no tanner? Potential solutions: a) make existence of a cobbler dependent on existence of a tanner. b) allow for “fractional tanning” via cottage industry in small locales . c) admit this is a bridge to far and hand wave it away. Hate C. Increasing number of tanners lowers cost of their labor. Decreasing number of cobblers increases the cost of shoes. Much of our math so far is based on “support population.” But perhaps rather than just looking at how much population it takes to support one tradesman we should (also) be looking at how many lower level tradesmen it takes to support a later stage. A little back of the envelope math indicates that (roughly) one tanner can support eight cobblers. So I rewrote the formula. Calculate tanners. Calculate cobblers. If “cobblers*7” > tanners, cobblers equal tanners. If C*7<tanners the cobblers equal cobblers. CAN have tanners w/o cobblers. As I find similar occurrences I'll use a similar corrective. Not going to chase them down.

Note:  When calculating the cost of a manufactured item we take the cost of the raw materials divided by a labor factor and add the  cost of raw materials again (A/B)+A.  The labor factor is the cube root of the available references. 

As we approach a thousand words I'll end this lengthy (for me) post. PLEASE ask any questions. I'll gladly fill in any gaps I've left, and I've left quite a few.   

In which we experience FOMO

 For those of you closer to MY age FOMO is "Fear of Missing Out."  It's a thing.  Not going on a rant here (although I could) but rather sharing a bit of a table story.  Party has set off on the road "south" looking for adventure.  A few random encounters.  A few interesting sights/landmarks.  And one of the players sez "I wonder what's happening in Brethamney?"  They left the small town a couple months (IRL) ago (maybe a week in game time) with some unresolved issues, most notably the Wood Elf refugee problem and the growing blighted forest.  The expression of FOMO means I'm doing something right.  They cared about the village and the growing threat/problem.  Which means I can keep escalating the Fronts there and allow the PCs to hear rumors of what's going on as they're on the road.  And THAT makes this "garden game" work.   I feel like I can pull 'em back there any time I want without  railroading.

In other news, here's what I have going on outside of basic sesion prep:

1.  My NTME system crashed a couple weeks back so it's being rebuilt.  Personally I HATE working on just one aspect for a prolonged period of time.  I get cranky.  I start cutting corners, getting sloppy and resort to hand-waving.  So I just do one or two entries on a handful of things so as not to lose the edge.

2.  Do one step on my storefront table (calculating how many of each shop are in each market town (over 150 globally.)  

3.  Rebuild one storefront (which determines what's available from a merchant along with its cost.)  Last night I did fletchers, bowyers and armorers.  One issue here is that many of these are interdependent so I leave notes for things I need to add/re-evaluate.  Really need to hit the textiles chain: from raw material to thread, cloth, yarn, clothing.  Kinda important and far-reaching.

4.  Found a nice article on random generation of caravans.  Have been VERY disappointed with my random encounter tables in this regard.  They don't really reflect road travel well.  Rather than rebuild them for that purpose I've decided that unless my table gives me a GREAT encounter I'll make it a caravan, and use THIS generator to design it.  

5.  All of the above are related to the import/export question and I'm working on "designing" the math to determine what's coming in and going out of a given market.  So far so good but there's a LOT of "formula writing" issues.  

6.  I've had the hex crawl data for MOST of the trip the party is currently on but I need to do three-horizons prep for the new destination.  AND the new destination.  The city, layout, power structure, and the beginnings of Fronts.

7.  Also noticed I need to prep random encounters more.  Was very disappointed with my play of combat encounters on the road.  Solution?  Have one in my pocket!  So part of weekly prep is now spending some time to build a GOOD encounter at the deadly, easy and in-between level.  As an offshoot I need to prep the encounters suggested by the current encounter table so they're ready to go when they come up.  Viva la spreadsheet.

That's pretty much where we are.  PCs will be jumping to 4th level soon with all of the fun THAT entails.  Then at 5th they'll make "The Choice."  They create new characters.  We'll either do the traditional random roll, OR a Lvl 0 funnel OR maybe even a point crawl.  Old characters may be retired ("settle down") or kept active.  New characters may EITHER be tied to the existing party (the B team) OR plugged in to their own campaign somewhere else. 

In which the DM smiles

     Our last session was roughly the 10th in the new campaign.  Party had decided to hit the road.  After exploring a mysterious keep, with the aid of a mysterious stranger, they headed for "the crossroads," a caravanserai.  There they were hired as night watchmen to try to catch/kill an unidentified "monster in the woods."  I thought this was a one-night adventure but it turned into three.  PART of that is because 80% of us play in the same FFL and it's a busy time of year so a LOT of off-topic convos.  But still!  

    The OTHER reason it took so long was because of player agency.  On several occasions throughout the story they reached decision points and took .... creative paths.  They DID uncover the monster, reveal the twist, bring the true miscreants "to justice."  And then left town.  Had they been able to tie the wrong-doers to their higher-up the caravanserai would've rewarded them with a pony and a wagon - something they can definitely use and have been asking about (and can only just barely afford.)  <edit to add> I would note that there was some questionable writing in the otherwise good product I pulled the adventure from.  Too much RR and not enough SB.  Thankfully The Alexandrian has taught me well about the three clue rule, so I was able to "add" undiscovered clues in a couple more areas to smooth the road.  Better writing could have eliminated this necessity.   

    So why the smile?  At the session conclusion there was MUCH discussion over their new-found freedom and agency.  There was SOME last campaign but this time around I've listened, forced myself not to over-plot, and let them go.  They THINK they're being naughty murder hobos.  They DID kill two people on the way into the first village and the rest of the Night Watch given the opportunity.  In reality, ALL of the death sentences were meted out to the local equivalent of the Thieves Guild, unbeknownst to our heroes.  So THEY think they've been given a crap-ton of agency (which they have) and I've been able to to run fronts, short form adventures and random encounters that meet their needs.   There's a blighted forest spreading.  There's a green dragon keeping an eye on them.  They're learning of the Noble Houses which run the realm (and learning that perhaps there ARE no good guys.)  

    Also on the up-side I'm incorporating some of the journey techniques from Adventures in Middle Earth and using the hex crawl techniques from the good folks at Infinium to improve long travel and exploration.  "Lonely fun" as we used to call it.  And we're gonna try to bring back Skill Challenges from 4e!  ChatGPT is your FRIEND!  I'm currently using it to generate NPC's (using the GreatGameMaster's OGAS technique,) fix formula problems in my extensive spreadsheets, design the aforementioned Skill Challenges, select actions and grim portents for Fronts, write short adventures(!), and management of climate and weather. 

    On the DOWN side my hand has been forced on upgrading to NTME23.  I moved all three base files into the same folder and instantly fouled up/destroyed all of the links.  Think I have enough into to run Tuesday's session but there will be some intensive work to get it all reconnected.  ONE document.  Some new raw materials.  Storefront calculator incorporated.  Manufacturing pages cleaned up to be made a bit more uniform.  And an attempt at an "easily" updatable shopping list.

In which we ask "How big is a dragon scale?"

 I've spent the last two days researching limpets, komodo dragons, fish, snakes, pangolins, gators, armadillos, bones, goethite, keratin and a crap ton of physics and geometry.  And dragons.

Weeks ago my party found a "dragon scale" in a plundered abbey.  It was meant to clue them in as to the presence of a dragon in the area.  A plot hook.  They ignored it which was fine of course.  Days later they briefly encountered a wyrmling in a dark forest in the rain.  As the dragon withdrew they noted it was missing a couple scales.  And in our most recent session they considered using the scale to further the ruse of "there's a dragon in the woods" (see prior post.)  I questioned whether they had TAKEN it.  They said they did.  I said I didn't remember, but I'm willing to allow it.

Jump to my post-session review.  I need to update Aerialayna's inventory to reflect that she's carrying the scale.  So how big is it?  How much does it weight?  The interwebs and ChatGPT had no (valid) answers.  "It depends" was a common response which is fine if it's followed up on.  

Most of the attempts at answers failed on SOME level.  Usually too heavy.  Reason?  Virtually every animal we know of is in the 3%-5% range of "hide" to total weight.  Notable exceptions are armadillos (15%) and turtles (50%.)  I'm happy to go with that 15% figure for our dragon.  A wyrmling is a medium creature which means it will max out at 500 pounds.  So the dragon would have 75# of scales.  So the dominant answers found online (usually somewhere between 20 and 50 pounds) means our wyrmling would have FOUR scales.  No.  Just no.  

So if a satisfactory answer doesn't exist I need to create one.  Not gonna bore you with all of my leaps and dead ends but I will include some assumptions.  Rules:  Dragons range from medium to gargantuan.  Assumption: scales are bigger on bigger dragons.  Using some of the critters mentioned above we can assign diameters of 6, 9, 13 and 25 inches.  To simplify the match we're going to use round/cylindrical disc scales.  And we're going to make the scales bone as opposed to keratin or goethite, for size purposes.  Next assumption - the body surface of a dragon covered by scales is similar to the amount of usable  hide from a cow (sq footage equal to .05% of its weight.) Final assumption: scales overlap so they'll only cover "half of their size."

Now lets take a look at our 500 pound wyrmling.  It will have 75 pounds of scales covering 30 square feet.  Scales have a 6" diameter.  Each will cover 14 square inches.  It will take 300+ scales to cover the dragon.  Each scale would weigh about 4 ounces.  Jumping the gun: ancient dragon scales would weigh over 4 pounds!  All of the scales would be .1298 inches thick (1/8.)

Young dragon: Large, 4k#, 240 square feet, 9" diameter, covering 32 sq inches each.  Just under 1,100 scales, weighing 9 ounces each.

Adult dragon:  Huge.  16 tons.  1,920 square feet.  13" diameter, covering 66 sq inches each.  Just over 4,100 scales weighing 18 ounces each. 

Ancient dragon:  Gargantuan.125 tons.  1,667 square YARDS.  25" diameter, covering 1.7 square FEET each.  Almost 9,000 scales weighing 4 1/4 POUNDS each.    

I think I can live with this!!!!

In which we visit the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker

As usual Alexis started it.  Still noodling the numbers on wages.  Figure something might gel by Labor Day.  In the meantime it provoked me to revisit one factor of the trade system I've never been comfortable with.  for h in hexes and I have been "corresponding" about our approaches to the mechanic.  He's a coder.  I'm a spreadsheet guy.  But we benefit from comparing notes.

To recap:  each settlement in the world produces things, dependent on size and location.  These things are disbursed over the planet based on distance from the source.  These resources can then be acted upon by those with the proper skills to make secondary (or tertiary, etc) products.  At each step the craftsman impacts the cost of the finished product.  This impact is determined by a factor, somewhere between .5 and 2 (?.)  The factor CAN be assigned to achieve whatever price range is desired for the product but that seems arbitrary.  

I had already adopted a system for deciding what businesses existed in a city, based on it's population, using MDME.  Why not plot the businesses for EVERY settlement, then determine how much impact they have on neighboring villages using the trade table.  The numbers the raw system gave me were WAY too large, but using the quad root proved to be ideal (so far.)  More testing to follow.

End result: the cost of anything you wanna buy is determined by the cost of raw materials, cost of the skilled tradesman to convert them, and the distance both of THOSE are from the purchaser.  As a general rule no settlement deals in anything that costs more than 1 gp per 10 pop (so 10%.)  So I can keep the shopping lists limited in small or out of the way locations.  Rarity creates conflict.  Conflict creates plot hooks.

In which we examine "The Promise."

Back in late May the Spriggan's Den wrote a very nice post entitled Making RPGs live up to their promise.  I let it simmer more a month and while I don't have a lot to add to the good parts I thought I'd make a somewhat responsive post to address some of the points raised.

The author begins by observing that 

"When anyone first tells new people about roleplaying games and what makes them such a cool activity, it’s nearly always about how you can play characters who are free to do anything and go anywhere, and how your choices create a unique story as the GM has the NPCs and the world react naturally and logically to whatever you can come up with. This is the promise that RPGs make to players, and I think that we all should expect these from any campaigns we play and don’t accept any campaign that doesn’t. Because what’s the point of all of it then anyway??

 So there's the premise (or rather, promise) of the article.  Why is this so often NOT so.  And can we MAKE it so?

 The author's next point was that there was a lot of "do not do these things" advice and it GREATLY outweighs the "do these things" advice.  Boy howdy.  Because the "dndtt" advice applies to virtually ALL tables while the "dtt" advice can be VERY table specific.  The last few months I've started spending WAY to much time on YouTube WATCHING this advice.  There are content creators I NEVER have to watch again.  There are others that I rewatch on the reg.  And there are some that I wonder "what the hell are they even doing on the inter-webs?"  They seems to be clowns, playing D&D.  And their game is terrible.  But for THEM?  They love it. And I'm sure their viewers do.  But if 95% of the DM's out there are watching it there is a serious Cargo Cult problem.

We then proceed to a series of premises.

#1.  The player  characters are the protagonists.  Well .... yes.  But as the author observes in published adventures the PC's are essentially henchmen, helping the king save his kingdom or the princess or whatever they're supposed to be saving.  And who wants to play a henchman? 

#2.  The players decide what the characters do.  But in most railroad games the players DO decide what to do but it's a decision without a difference.  The decision's players are given aren't driving the story.  They're deciding whether take the high road to the demon's cave or the low road.  Again: a problem with most published adventures.  

#3.  Players decide where the players go.  Short answer: so long as it's in the 24 pages of the published adventure.  And the author recognizes that as well.  Riding off into the night abandoning the demon-plagued village to its own devices MUST be an option.

#4 Players decide who they side with or against.  Don't like the quest giver?  Awesome.  Go join the other side!  As the DM - present the world.  Let it unfold.  And let the players decide which side of the fold they take.

#5.  The players decide which causes to pick up.  I've been through this recently in my game.  The party decided to let the wood elf war refugees fend for themselves and to let the blighted forest spread unabated.  They're headed west to The Crossroads to see what else is "out there."  And "out there" there's a whole social structure with people and groups who have a wide range of goals and drives.  And this was AFTER they took a stab at setting up a protection racket.  

#6.  They player characters are the champions of their cause.  See #1 above.  

#7.  The Antagonists of the Story are within the PC's means to challenge.  As the author observes, think Seven Samurai.  

It’s set in a world of constant civil wars with raiding armies and roaming bandits destroying and plundering all the villages they come across. There is a tale happening somewhere in that world about one warlord rising to the top, defeating and subjugating all the other warlords, and establishing a strong state that cracks down on the bandit problem. But The Seven Samurai is not that story. The heroes of that story do not have fight and defeat all the warlords and their armies to be victorious. They are just seven samurai with no resources and there is no way for them to win the civil war for the control over all of Japan. But that is not their story. Their story is about destroying a gang of some 30 bandits raiding a single unprotected village. This is a threat that the seven samurai are perfectly able to deal with and win against. Great warlords and their armies exist in this world, but they are not the antagonists of the story.  

Not sure I'm as married to this one as the others but it DOES make for a great campaign.  And it doesn't always have to be about saving the world.  Sometimes it's just about beating the Urbania Cowboys.  

#8.  Failure is always an option.  Failure reinforces that each eventual success was NOT a given but rather was the result of their own hard work.  

#9.  False conclusions are the fault of the players.  Or SHOULD be, if the DM is doing their job.  

I also left a comment at Spriggan's.  We'll see what discussion ensues.
 

In which we move Factions to the "front"

 They party has spoken.  No more sweeping 20-level story arcs.  More "bounty/treasure/monster hunter" arcs.  But I can't just sit back and throw 3rd party adventures at them.  I want the world to MOVE.  To change as they respond to it.  And as it responds to them.  I've made efforts to do this in the past and I keep improving but I ALSO like crunchy mechanics.  I don't trust my instincts so I prefer some bounded guidance.

So I'm incorporating a few things that I touched on last campaign but that I feel can be kicked up a notch in this one.  I'm stealing bits and pieces from several RPG's and stitching them together to form a Frankenstein's Monster of a crunchy system.  

First, I had good luck LAST campaign incorporating "Aftermath" from the good folks at Worldspinner.  Party indicated they might like a little more political intrigue so I'm overlaying and adapting "700 Lordly Houses."  We'll see how it goes.

Second, I did a little incorporating of Fronts from Dungeon World.  Tried a LITTLE of this last time but not full blown.  The structure of 700 LH really lends itself to this mechanic and it can REALLY make for a dynamic world. 

Third, Blades in the Dark is often credited with the innovative incorporation of countdown clocks.  Tie THOSE into the dooms and portents from your Fronts and you've automated the running of a lot of "behind the curtain" stuff.

Fourth,  Night's Black Agents (which I SERIOUSLY heard as Nice Black Asians!)  has a nice escalating response logarithm called the Vampyramid.  Active and re-active missions/operations provide some interesting guidelines and suggestions for fronts as well.

I've long used Sly Flourish's Lazy DM checklist and kept it on Notion but I'm leaning away from that for this campaign.  I've looked at World Anvil and Scabard.  Neither of them seems quite right but I COULD be swayed.  Looking for something better.  All the inputting seems to be a duplication of effort without enough savings.  "The view isn't worth the climb."

In which we look back ... and start again.

Ok, we all know what railroads are.  There's a LOT of argument about  sandboxes.  And some folks use the term "amusement park."  And they're all kind of mobile plot points on a graph and fine if you like that kinda thing.  I was HOPING to move beyond that but I keep missing the mark.  We started with the Masks of Destiny campaign and a bunch of little side trips that were fun, when needed, to bump the party up a level.  It was good.  We all had fun.  Until they all died.  

And then we started over.  I wanted it to be more of a "garden" type game, but I couldn't resist the urge to throw in a through-line with a campaign-closing BBG.  So I planted my garden and sowed a bunch of seeds of plotlines that were interconnected.  And they traipsed through the garden for a while.  Then wandered off for a while.  Then came back adn started making progress.  Then they all died.  

So now we're starting over again.  No more over-arching BBG.  Yet.  Tried using a world balance mechanic last game.  Nice touch but surely better mechanics have been developed in the last 40+ years.  So THIS time around I'm trying (more) new things.  Players wanted a little more political intrigue and I have a "mechanic" to handle that.  AND I'm going to try using Dungeon World Fronts more.  After a session I'll review existing fronts, move them forward (or not) and review the session to see if perhaps there's a new front coming.  Party can address the front or not and we'll where that leads.  Already have one front in place.  Two more in development.  As the folks at DW say: 

"Fronts are built outside of active play. They’re the solo fun that you get to have between games—rubbing your hands and cackling evilly to yourself as you craft the foes with which to challenge your PCs. You may tweak or adjust your fronts during play (who knows when inspiration will strike?) but the meat of them comes from preparation between sessions."

Looking fwd to where next Tuesday takes us.

 

In which we start over

 TPK last time out.  In the first hour of a three hour session.  But the last two hours were a fun session of character building for the NEXT campaign.  Players wanted a little more political intrigue, maybe a military invasion, in a traditional campaign setting.   That exists!  Northern hemisphere.  Bucolic forests and beautiful rivers, nestled between a stereotypical Celtic culture and the eastern edge of a bunch of wood elves.  

A ranger.  A warlock.  A wizard leaning toward Hexblade.  And a fighter leaning toward Battlemaster.  With a high level rogue waiting in the wings.  A little short on the healing arts but the players know how to work as a team.  

Ready to rework the econ system just a tad.  Modifying the spreadsheet to account for the presence or raw materials and manufacturers.  Might have a two month breaking hitting which will allow for those changes.  Also need to incorporate the political struggles of a bunch of lordly houses.  Know I have a book coming which will result in the addition of a crap-ton of resources.  And I need to look into that whole military campaign thing.  

The map was largely made.  Took me an hour to rough out the infrastructure.  I need to start dropping POI's.  Come up with a "system" - already incipient.   The last two campaigns were plotted out 20-step mega-campaigns.  This one?  One step at a time.  I'll put together 2-3 plot lines each week and see which hook they bite.  And where the story takes us.

Almost forgot - The Boy (part of my Kitchen Cabinet) pointed me to this youtube video.  I watched it a few years back but had forgotten. 

In which we make a big leap in the plot development

 I admit this is the first time I've "written" a campaign.  Designed is a MUCH better word. And as expected there were ... ahem ... issues.  But the study, learning and development goes on.  I regularly visit a dozen design blogs and follow half as many youtube channels.  And only two podcasts.  But the "how to improve/fix" gene is strong here.  

I've wrongly assumed the party would follow my well-placed plot hooks.  They didn't.  Spent most of the winter (in-world) heading the wrong direction.  But I've FINALLY planted the clues (and they've been taken up) that cajole them back into the maelstrom.  They're finally seeing that that IGNORING the problem will only make it worse - for them, and others.  And they're seeing the other side of THAT coin - that addressing the problem, in no matter HOW small a fashion, will have a positive impact on the world.  

I think when spring came but winter didn't leave is when they realized something bigger than them was up.  Right now they're standing at a doorstep.  There's still ample opportunity to turn away.  To pass the cup (since it's Easter.)  But I don't think they will.  Sometime in the next session there will be three major revelations - one clear and two cloudy.  If they unravel the cloudy ones they will clear up and give them a total of three positive courses of action.  

Or they can get on a boat, sail for Dwarfheim and leave this land to rot.  I'm ready for that too.

ps.  Sorry for starting three paragraphs in a row with "I."  Having an Obama moment.  

and thanx to Red Ragged Fiend.  Followed their advice on "building" a DM binder.  Helped immensely. Even (especially?) the parts I ignored. 

In which we actually review a product, kinda sorta

 

I use a LOT of sources to build a world and to run my weekly (?) game. Roughly two years ago I stumbled onto the products of a company called Infinium Game Studio. Their product is called FlexTale. My first work was with their combat tactics. The product was DEEP and a good idea, but you need to know the “role” for every critter and it wasn't somerhing I didn't wanna fidle with. Next up was their Social Choice product. Went DEEP into that one which is where I'll start.

You as the DM assign the role that the interlocutor plays, selects the conditions under which the interaction occurs and the player decides what approach they're taking in the interaction. Find the right chart, roll the right dice, and adjudicate the result. Easy-peasy lemon squeezy. But I HATE tables and charts and turning pages. So I took a few hours, converted the WHOLE thing onto a spreadsheet. Then when I'm playing I can use a simple filter, input the player's dice role and have my result in nothing flat. VERY happy with THAT product.

So a year later they come out with their environmental encounters product. A crapton of information. Again I converted to a spreadsheet. Since a party rarely changes environments (at least at my table) us is even faster. Again: filter, input players role, adjudicate result. Smooth. Working out REALLY well. I'm even taking steps to automate the secondary dice rolls, of which there can be many, so that the entire encounter is presented to me in one place again without having to flip through scores of pages. My party has no idea of the level of detail I'm drawing from.

Which brings me to THIS years acquisition. Their Adventure Omnibus. MY interest was in the hundreds of Places of Interest (POI) generated. From the companies text:

What is This Thing?

FlexTale Infinite Adventures is a concept that applies the Infinium Game Studio approach to points of interest on a fantasy TTRPG map.  Detailed descriptions, endless permutations of things to keep things fresh, easy-to-use tables and resources, and plenty of ideas and inspiration.

This book is the first in a series describing the various Points of Interest (POI) in the Western Realm of Aquilae.  Though it was created with this setting in mind, everything in this book was designed to be system- and setting-agnostic.

Inside, you'll find:

• Discovery, including read-aloud text, "Why You Might Come Here", "So You Find Yourself Here", Hooks, and more.

• Activities, including Adventure Snippets, Quests, Secrets, Threats, and more.

• Location information, including a heatmap / location guide for the POI's presence in the Realm of Aquilae.

• Rumors & Lore table with true, partially true, and false stories about the POI.

• Events and Quirks, describing unique phenomena that might occur as you explore.

More interesting for players.  Easier to run for D/GMs.  Full, out of the box support for solo players.

And above all: NOT BORING!

Contents

Inside, you'll find:

• 668 tables, 129 FlexTables (each one four tables in one), and 150 full-color maps

• Dozens of Utility Tables: quickly and dynamically generate entire dungeon maps, traps, poisons, diseases, curses, treasure, and spells.

• "Jump Right In" introduciton describing exactly how to use this book based on your needs as a G/DM

• Dedicated discussion on how to use this book as a solo adventurer

• Creature Modifiers to quickly make even the most ho-hum, boring common monster more interesting and unique

• Much, much more!

So here's how I'm using it: every week during my game prep I RNG a POI. I read up on it. If it can fit into my immediate location I will. If NOT I'll add it to my list of rumors and perhaps add it to my library research system, in case the parties interest is piqued and they wanna go poking around. Example? I have a paladin NPC who needs a quest for his plate armor. Rolled up a castle, used the provided table for a simple quest

On the downside:

1. Their complete quest engine is apparently in a different product.

2. Each book seems to include more or less the same first 2-3 dozen pages – necissary perhaps but a PITA nonetheless.

In conclusion if you're a GM who just needs an occasional jump-start or a little extra seasoning in your world building soup, these products are for you.

In which we crank it up again

 After taking a two-month hiatus (so I could direct a show.  VERY well received)  we gather together to .... to what?  When last we left our intrepid crew they had scattered to four different directions  then come back together in Crysift to wait for Barty to heal.  I'm posting this three months after the fact so as to not throw any spoilers.  

I had NO idea what direction the pary would pick.  They had quite a few options.  And they surprised me - they picked something I hadn't explicitly promoted.  They opted to walk away.  I don't think they KNEW they were waling "away" but that's the direction they picked.  Rather than following any of half a dozen hooks/leads they had, they opted to hit the road.  Pretty much the one thing I was NOT really prepared to run!

Spent the first 45 minutes just catching up.  Then did some role-playing stuff.  One character was "retired."  Two new ones joined the party.  And then they decided to just head out into the wilderness, due east.  What followed was very little game play but a LOT of role play.  "You covered about 20 miles.  Watches as last night?  What do you two discuss?"

Cut it short by about 30-45 minutes but a good time was still had by all.  We'd reconnected.  And the party now had a plan.  A direction.  Something I could prep for.  Or rather BE prepped for.  And I've spent a few hours actually gaming out their travel, sending them an update of what happened each day.  These updates included a lot of "Adam did this, using his X knowledge while Bob used his Y to accomplish Z."  Everybody got some time in the spotlight.  And they'll have hooks (?) for next session and I'll be ready.

I felt bad about this at first.  Not being able to handle their choices.  But then I realized I DID handle them.  I didn't panic.  I know on the map where they were going and what was there.  So we didn't do multiple encounter rolls.  It's winter in the wilderness.  I'm ok not throwing something at them every day.  I hand waved a lot of things but didn't break anything.  Didn't disrupt the verisimilitude of the world.  XP's were earned.  Knowledge was gained.  Items were mended.  Just like on that drive from Ames Iowa to Lincoln Nebraska.  

ps.  Almost forgot.  There's something where they're going.  Coastal cities.  A trade road.  Hills and mountains and grasslands and swamps.  But the "planned adventure", with a BBG and cultists and a moving plotline?  That lies in the OTHER direction!  "On second thought, let's NOT go there.  It is a silly place."

The Drive

 In a well-constructed world the stories write themselves.  Party has been traveling up and down the Great Northern Road pursuing leads but a recent vow of vengeance took them off the road and into the woods to the east - toward the mountains.  There's another small village a week away.  No trail connects them bacause south flowing rivers provided better passage.  Snowtall.  It's existence had been plotted and it's economy created but I needed to flesh it out.  Nothing fancy.  Nickel mining with an occasional peridot.  Sable habitat nearby suitable for trapping.  And goats.  As the party approached the village the biome changed.  More pine forest.  And they climbed about 1,000 feet.  Colder.  Just enough different from where they've been to make it interesting.  And goats.  Chevon to the French.  And all the differences it makes.  Goat milk.  Cheese.  

Goat meat replaces pork on the menu.  Cabbage and onions.  Carrots when you can find them.  Beer and vodka.  Kefir for ceremonies.  And then there's the neighboring town of Lireverc.  It's a 9-10 day journey.  But it sits in the lowlands.  And they raise pigs.  So over the years a trade has developed.  In the fall the goat herders and the swineherds cull their animals and begin driving toward each other.  Many a peasant and workman make the trip as well.  For the boys it is a rite of passage, for they carry the heavy packs of salt and provisions.  The drovers meet at a halfway point and the slaughter commences.  Huge bonfires are lit with hogs and goats roasting for three days.  The animals are skinned: the goats more carefully as their hide is more valuable.  Amateur tanners set about their task.  Then the butchers.  Entire carcasses are prepared as are specific cuts.  The salters prepare the meats for shipping.  And after three days of slaughter, hard work, story-telling and passing the news each side packs up and heads home to prepare for the winter.

Our party missed this years slaughter by about three weeks.  But they'll hear about it.  Probably eventually pass the site of this years event.  Might lead to an adventure.  But regardless it makes the world real.  And it wasn't some fanciful die-roll on a pre-generated "festival" table.  It was what the world gave them. 

In which we discover a LOT of scarcity

 

Scarcity creates conflict. Conflict creates adventure. And there you have it.

And so we're ready to implement NTME2022. A FEW things still need a tune up. Carpenter, Cartwright, Mason and Alchemist all need work. Kinda saving them until needed. When the party decides they need to buy a wagon, or build a fence, or an eye of newt I'll start fleshing those out, and the tools will be in place for that to happen. Distiller, Brewer, Furrier, Metalsmiths, Outfitter and “Inns and Taverns” all need some touch-up work to be done. Example? Since sugar is rare I haven't set up rums yet.

To catch up, the resources of my world are loosely based on reality. They're placed according to geology, climate, long & lat, altitude, etc. Many are dependent on other resources. About a month ago I placed all of my precious metals and stones. This weekend I set up my lapidary store based on size, rarity, location, etc. Which brings me to aquamarine. Emeralds are currently the most expensive stones. There are seven known sources in the world, based on the presence of tin and granite. Diamonds SHOULD probably be next, found only deep in dwarven mines and occasionally those of Orcs. But the second most valuable stone in MY world happens to be the lowly Aquamarine. Found where the geology has conspired to place but tin and copper. Which just so happens to be ONE place: the neutral berg of Baram, in the rough lands bordering on Dunnir, the land of the hill dwarfs. This town of 4,000 souls is cut off from most of the world. Pirates, sea monsters, brigands and the lawless wilderness make any journey there treacherous.

Stones occasionally make it out via the black market but let me give you some idea of value. An almond sized emerald would cost about 1 million gp here in Crysrift. A plum sized diamond would got for about 1.5 million gp. That same million would get you an almond-sized aquamarine – IF you could find one. There's a campaign story arc all on it's own. As currently constituted it would take over two DECADES to get there from Crysrift. Opening up the trade route ALONE might take years and earn millions.

Think anybody will?  Maybe.  Once they figure it out.