Well, my players are about a week from meeting the Mad Archmage, a retired, reclusive know-it-all who was once the…

Well, my players are about a week from meeting the Mad Archmage, a retired, reclusive know-it-all who was once the…

Well, my players are about a week from meeting the Mad Archmage, a retired, reclusive know-it-all who was once the most famous magic-user because of inventions which furthered the empire. He wasn’t an adventurer, or a battle-mage, just a really clever guy who used magical discoveries to improve the land for a large fee.

I’m trying to decide how he looks/dresses and don’t want to go with trope-mage-robe, beard or pointy hat. I’m leaning more towards the idea that he’s like Parry from the Fisher King – all beanie and fingerless gloves, greasy hair, etc.

Does anyone else have any good ideas for a non-typical look for this guy?

You guys, Joe Banner is really good. I think we should put him on as permanent staff.

You guys, Joe Banner is really good. I think we should put him on as permanent staff.

You guys, Joe Banner is really good. I think we should put him on as permanent staff.

(I just found a dozen adventures in my downloads folder and read them all this morning, and with the exception of the apostrophe problem, THEY ARE SO BRILLIANT)

http://joebanner.co.uk/patreon/

One of my players decided to Spout Lore between sessions and this is what happened over Hangouts this morning:

One of my players decided to Spout Lore between sessions and this is what happened over Hangouts this morning:

One of my players decided to Spout Lore between sessions and this is what happened over Hangouts this morning:

————————————

Player:

Is that the same king Teothiar from the ancient Angiar texts, become Drazhu or “malice” in his native tongue

the king that never lived

GM:

I like it. A Spout Lore roll would tell us how accurate you are.

Player:

rolls for wisdom check, succeeds, 11

GM:

The King who Never Lived is very interesting.

I’d love to hear/discover how that situation arose.

Player:

many of us thought he was just a fairytale

the story goes that he was his father’s only son, born stillborn.

his first advisor pressed by threats of death used the darkest form of sorcery in the name of ensuring his lord had a heir, as the king’s wife had also passed in the birth

the boy was brought back to life, at a price. The king incumbent was destined to lose his soul so that his son may live. the fates deemed that this would not be until the king’s death.

knowing his fate, he sought to prolong his life using dark arts and sorcery much as he had done to save his son in the first instance,

I’m on a roll let me keep going

GM:

Of course

Player:

and so the king’s advisor an agent for darker powers, indulged his king, calling upon frightful energies to sustain him, sacrifices of his servants, exotic concoctions of rare beast and bush and finally after all others could sustain him no longer, a stone, so powerful that death itself was afraid of its presence.

but even the stone could not preserve his mind, slowly over the decades, the kind grew frightfully more and more mad

the stone sustains life, not mind, in the end the king wished for death, only a husk of his consciousness remained

and so the stone took away the life it gave, and the soul of the king with it. leaving naught but itself and a pile of wispy dust on the floor

the debt was paid in the end, the kings son became the king albeit 184 years after he was meant to be…or not, as the case may be

GM:

What a lovely story.

Player:

however… the son inherited the stone, its needs quelled its power renewed

he kept it as a bauble

GM:

I take it his kingdom didn’t fare too well beneath his rule. I should ask the Ranger what brought him so low…but that can wait until next session.

Player:

the boy’s mind fared better than his fathers

better yes, kinder no

GM:

In a way, the stone and he had much in common, and therefore less affected.

Player:

he knew the power and the corruption of the stone, he knew it would take thrice what it gave

GM:

They were both cold, still creatures of death.

Ageless, unfeeling.

Player:

indeed

where his father had passion, rage, fury, greed

GM:

So much water passing around the stone

Immovable, unmoved

barely even eroded

Player:

this man, was no man, an intelligent golem,

GM:

A clay thing shambling across the earth

when it should’ve been buried at birth

Player:

slowly the will from within the stone… moved to take this blank, this plain canvas so attuned to it

GM:

and add motivations, machinations

Player:

man

this is getting crazy

GM:

which the boy couldn’t discern from his own

It is playing the Long Game

and Drazhu a pawn

of many

long forgotten

Drazhu was up to his multidimensional antics again today, to introduce a mage and a rogue to #DungeonWorld.

Drazhu was up to his multidimensional antics again today, to introduce a mage and a rogue to #DungeonWorld.

Drazhu was up to his multidimensional antics again today, to introduce a mage and a rogue to #DungeonWorld. We had one hour with three hirelings from The Book of Hirelings and got as far as the Whipmaster’s door. Full transcript to follow after close of business.

Ideas to make Elven Arrows worth the extra coin:

Ideas to make Elven Arrows worth the extra coin:

Ideas to make Elven Arrows worth the extra coin:

Are they silent and swift, for stealthy assaults?

Or strong enough to drive through two enemies?

Or pin one to the wall?

Or drive into a stone wall and create handholds?

Or knock a metal weapon out of someone’s hand?

Or split an incoming arrow, or deflect another missile?

They need to do things which cheap, inferior arrows cannot.

(Our elven ranger refuses to buy local arrows, says they’re a rip-off)

Ideas for custom Dungeon World moves, inspired by today’s session:

Ideas for custom Dungeon World moves, inspired by today’s session:

Ideas for custom Dungeon World moves, inspired by today’s session:

1. When you try to describe something and it’s not only the GM who has no idea what you’re trying to do, roll+WUT

2. When you ask the GM a question, or propose a move when he hasn’t had a chance to answer the previous player or resolve the previous action, roll+KANYE

3. When you start your move with “BEFORE THAT HAPPENS”, roll+NOPE

One of my gang is playing a Druid and wants to have an over-the-top pivotal scene where his emotional devastation…

One of my gang is playing a Druid and wants to have an over-the-top pivotal scene where his emotional devastation…

One of my gang is playing a Druid and wants to have an over-the-top pivotal scene where his emotional devastation allows him to shift into a huge dragon.

Without simply flooding his homeland with huge dragons to justify his shift beyond the humbler drakes, I am considering a custom move, maybe even charging some XP (maybe level+4) to activate it. How does everyone feel about using XP as currency to limit this glorious grandstanding? I want it to be big and amazing, but not every player, every session.

===

When a devastating life-event acts as a crucible for the advancement of your powers, you may exceed the restrictions of your class for one dramatic scene. A halfling could engage a much larger enemy, a cleric could receive a public audience with their deity, or a druid could shift into a huge dragon.

During this scene, your moves work as normal, only BIGGER. 

Sorry to bring this up again, but does anyone understand or have a fix for Mike Burnett’s Phylactery advanced move…

Sorry to bring this up again, but does anyone understand or have a fix for Mike Burnett’s Phylactery advanced move…

Sorry to bring this up again, but does anyone understand or have a fix for Mike Burnett’s Phylactery advanced move from Grim Portents ‘Zine issue #2’s Necromancer?

As written:

Phylactery

Choose an item you can carry to be your phylactery. When you

reach 0 HP and your phylactery is unbroken and within your reach, your soul will be tethered to the phylactery, beyond Death’s reach. You become undead. While undead, you do not have to breathe, eat, or sleep, and you use CON for all rolls.

Any additional damage you take while undead reduces your HP stat, and it remains lowered until you rest in the light of the moon. If your HP stat reaches 0 while you are undead, you die permanently and do not make the last breath move. If you gain hit points while undead, you return to life and lose the undead tag, but gain a debility.

This morning, I was musing on some simple potion mechanics from someone else’s post last month, and wondered what…

This morning, I was musing on some simple potion mechanics from someone else’s post last month, and wondered what…

This morning, I was musing on some simple potion mechanics from someone else’s post last month, and wondered what simple, generic mechanics you could place on the DW equivalent of an energy drink:

When you drink a generic ability potion with a tacky brand name, Roll+CON to gain hold (3 on a 10+, 2 on 7-9, 1 on 6- plus side-effect). You must spend your hold on any moves which use the relevant ability, treating those rolls as a 10+ until the hold is exhausted.

Bull’s STRength

Midnight DEX

No CONtest*

INTellectual 

WISe Owl

CHArismanova

*Disclaimer: Drinking No CONtest does not allow you to apply its effects to other potion rolls.