Seasons of Heroes: A D&D-inspired Adventure!
The continent of Vikalean is divided: between...
The continent of Vikalean is divided: between...
Seasons of Heroes: A D&D-inspired Adventure!
- Thread starter The Laurent
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Character Sheet
- Pronouns
- They/Them
The Mysterious Orphan
Name: Lotte, daughter of Henrik and Anelie
Sexuality: Pansexual
Age: 18
Species: Lamia, Central Lands Human Culture
Level: 3
Class: Hunter
Weapons: Bow, Knife
XP: 2/18
Description: A tall lamia, with short blond hair, and blue eyes, dressed in a protective vest and a noble's hunting shirt. They are muscular, well-formed and handsome, and have slightly yellowish eyes and a forked tongue. Their snake-half is in a forest pattern that helps for blending in, except for the occasional splash of Tyrian purple.
Traits:
Just Devotions (Racial--Human, Central, Cultural)(Level 0): Humans in some parts of the world worship the Gods, vast and sometimes unknowable beings that do grant blessings to those that believe in them, magical blessings. But even the lowliest of the pious knows how to pray to them, how to do the right supplications, how to act in the proper ways. This knowledge can sometimes be put to good use, though the Gods rarely turn their eyes to every little prayer.
Wholesome Farm Looks (Human, Central, Physical, Level 1): Though most of the people of the Central lands, that mass of Kingdoms, Princedoms, Dukedoms, Duchess States, and more, are of course quite poor, they are a hardy, hard-working people, and sometimes this life less beats a person down and more hones them. They have reasonably good looks, and even more importantly, look trustworthy, clean-cut, and otherwise like the kind of person who'd never lied a day in their life or slacked off a single hour, either. This remains even after becoming a lamia, though it is... tempered, obviously.
Snake Eyes (Level 1, Physical, Lamia): You can see in the dark pretty well. It isn't perfect, but the night is not nearly so dark and full of dangers as you expected it would be, for whatever reason.
Forest Wanderer (0, Pre-Class): The forest is a fascinating place for a child, as long as they don't go too far. As one gets used to it, one learns more about its ins and outs, and while some of it only applies to the forest that such a child lived in at first, much of it is quite helpful later.
Forest Eyes (Level 1. Class): As one could have eyes that pick out every tiny detail of the tundra, so can one be used to seeing in the dark forest tracks, possibilities, old growth, traps, and anything else, especially when one knows how to use your ears and nose to aid it. It is remarkable how much you can see, when you see what is actually there.
Hunter's Mettle (Level 1, Class): To hunt, one needs a bow, an arrow, and perhaps a knife for self-defense. Having some skill at them is inevitable, having solid skill at them is admirable, and quite useful.
Steady Arm (Level 2, Class): You have a strong, consistent aim. You're not a superlative archer, at least by the standards of adventurers, but you don't have off moments, and you don't waver from being able to hit your target, even if you're not doing the fancier tricks.
Leave Few Traces (Level 2, Class): The experience of being on one side of the hunt makes you wonder how you'd hide your tracks if you were being hunted, or tracked by hostile enemies, as sometimes does happen in adventures. You've begun to practice how not to be followed in the woods, and perhaps elsewhere.
Mending Knowledge, Basic (Level 0, Pre-Class, Healing Priest): You know how to apply poultrices, and you know the basic ingredients of a number of potions that cure headaches, deal with common pains, put someone into a gentle sleep, and other minor things. You can also bandage someone properly. You are not very good at this, merely adequate... but that's more than what most people are.
Whitlin' Ways (Level 1, Common): A man or woman who knows how to whittle will never want for whistles, or spoons, or any number of goods. It's a useful, solid sort of skill, and one that could be made into a trade. It also makes a pretty decent way to pass the time, and the person who whittles never lacks for a knife in sticky situations.
Penny Pincher (Level 1, General): You know the value of a Pfin, and how to keep from wasting all of your money, even if you're far from a merchant. Money is something you're familiar with.
Steel Nerves (General, Level 3): You've seen enough strange places and done enough fantastic things that you are less likely to panic in terrible situations, and more likely to think things through, however difficult. This doesn't mean you can't panic at all, but you have a grip on those nerves. In battle and danger only, this unfortunately doesn't help at all with social anxiety.
Divine Sense (Level 0, Divine): You can sense when someone is a Demigod, and there's at least the potential ability--though you have not figured it out yet--to try to track people through their divine 'scent.' A person's 'scent' gets stronger as they get more magically and divinely powerful... but on the other hand, you now have a 'scent' of your own, that will allow other demigods to know you for what you are, increasingly as you grow more powerful yourself.
Captivating Eyes (Level 2, Divine): You can sometimes 'catch' people with your eyes. If you're concentrating, they'll find it slightly more difficult to look away, though any sense of threat or danger breaks it immediately, and they'll hear your words clearly, actually listening… or at least hearing them. There's no requirement to listen to them, nor does it seem as if anyone's mind is being altered in any way, but it's an interesting, if bizarre, power, and certainly is a new take on 'lost in their eyes.'
Slithering Shadows (Level 3, Divine): You can blend into the shadows better than you should be able to. At night, and in darker areas, you can seem to shift away from sight. It doesn't work well in a wide-open space, but that little bit of extra secrecy can be very useful as a hunter, and as someone who might need to sneak through various areas.
Name: Lotte, daughter of Henrik and Anelie
Sexuality: Pansexual
Age: 18
Species: Lamia, Central Lands Human Culture
Level: 3
Class: Hunter
Weapons: Bow, Knife
XP: 2/18
Description: A tall lamia, with short blond hair, and blue eyes, dressed in a protective vest and a noble's hunting shirt. They are muscular, well-formed and handsome, and have slightly yellowish eyes and a forked tongue. Their snake-half is in a forest pattern that helps for blending in, except for the occasional splash of Tyrian purple.
Traits:
Just Devotions (Racial--Human, Central, Cultural)(Level 0): Humans in some parts of the world worship the Gods, vast and sometimes unknowable beings that do grant blessings to those that believe in them, magical blessings. But even the lowliest of the pious knows how to pray to them, how to do the right supplications, how to act in the proper ways. This knowledge can sometimes be put to good use, though the Gods rarely turn their eyes to every little prayer.
Wholesome Farm Looks (Human, Central, Physical, Level 1): Though most of the people of the Central lands, that mass of Kingdoms, Princedoms, Dukedoms, Duchess States, and more, are of course quite poor, they are a hardy, hard-working people, and sometimes this life less beats a person down and more hones them. They have reasonably good looks, and even more importantly, look trustworthy, clean-cut, and otherwise like the kind of person who'd never lied a day in their life or slacked off a single hour, either. This remains even after becoming a lamia, though it is... tempered, obviously.
Snake Eyes (Level 1, Physical, Lamia): You can see in the dark pretty well. It isn't perfect, but the night is not nearly so dark and full of dangers as you expected it would be, for whatever reason.
Forest Wanderer (0, Pre-Class): The forest is a fascinating place for a child, as long as they don't go too far. As one gets used to it, one learns more about its ins and outs, and while some of it only applies to the forest that such a child lived in at first, much of it is quite helpful later.
Forest Eyes (Level 1. Class): As one could have eyes that pick out every tiny detail of the tundra, so can one be used to seeing in the dark forest tracks, possibilities, old growth, traps, and anything else, especially when one knows how to use your ears and nose to aid it. It is remarkable how much you can see, when you see what is actually there.
Hunter's Mettle (Level 1, Class): To hunt, one needs a bow, an arrow, and perhaps a knife for self-defense. Having some skill at them is inevitable, having solid skill at them is admirable, and quite useful.
Steady Arm (Level 2, Class): You have a strong, consistent aim. You're not a superlative archer, at least by the standards of adventurers, but you don't have off moments, and you don't waver from being able to hit your target, even if you're not doing the fancier tricks.
Leave Few Traces (Level 2, Class): The experience of being on one side of the hunt makes you wonder how you'd hide your tracks if you were being hunted, or tracked by hostile enemies, as sometimes does happen in adventures. You've begun to practice how not to be followed in the woods, and perhaps elsewhere.
Mending Knowledge, Basic (Level 0, Pre-Class, Healing Priest): You know how to apply poultrices, and you know the basic ingredients of a number of potions that cure headaches, deal with common pains, put someone into a gentle sleep, and other minor things. You can also bandage someone properly. You are not very good at this, merely adequate... but that's more than what most people are.
Whitlin' Ways (Level 1, Common): A man or woman who knows how to whittle will never want for whistles, or spoons, or any number of goods. It's a useful, solid sort of skill, and one that could be made into a trade. It also makes a pretty decent way to pass the time, and the person who whittles never lacks for a knife in sticky situations.
Penny Pincher (Level 1, General): You know the value of a Pfin, and how to keep from wasting all of your money, even if you're far from a merchant. Money is something you're familiar with.
Steel Nerves (General, Level 3): You've seen enough strange places and done enough fantastic things that you are less likely to panic in terrible situations, and more likely to think things through, however difficult. This doesn't mean you can't panic at all, but you have a grip on those nerves. In battle and danger only, this unfortunately doesn't help at all with social anxiety.
Divine Sense (Level 0, Divine): You can sense when someone is a Demigod, and there's at least the potential ability--though you have not figured it out yet--to try to track people through their divine 'scent.' A person's 'scent' gets stronger as they get more magically and divinely powerful... but on the other hand, you now have a 'scent' of your own, that will allow other demigods to know you for what you are, increasingly as you grow more powerful yourself.
Captivating Eyes (Level 2, Divine): You can sometimes 'catch' people with your eyes. If you're concentrating, they'll find it slightly more difficult to look away, though any sense of threat or danger breaks it immediately, and they'll hear your words clearly, actually listening… or at least hearing them. There's no requirement to listen to them, nor does it seem as if anyone's mind is being altered in any way, but it's an interesting, if bizarre, power, and certainly is a new take on 'lost in their eyes.'
Slithering Shadows (Level 3, Divine): You can blend into the shadows better than you should be able to. At night, and in darker areas, you can seem to shift away from sight. It doesn't work well in a wide-open space, but that little bit of extra secrecy can be very useful as a hunter, and as someone who might need to sneak through various areas.
Last edited:
Intro Post/Character Selection
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Seasons of Heroes: A D&D-inspired Adventure!
The continent of Vikalean is divided: between cultures, between vastly different people, between the surviving Sepult who had once united the continent in an Empire of steel and blood, and the humans whose world was shaped by its collapse, and between humans and elves in the Islands.
It is also a continent of adventure. An ever-changing continent of heroes, where adventurers explore lost ruins and shape the course of history, of Princes, Councils, tribes and Republics.
In this age of progress and violence, this diverse age moving towards new forms of living, the story of one such adventurer resonated, changing far more than a life or three.
*****
Welcome, Questers, to another The Laurent Quest. By now these might be familiar to you, so rest assured that I'll be throwing plenty of twists and thinking plenty about history, culture and society. Indeed, I plan to have a series of posts about the world over the voting period, or perhaps before it.
So, here are your options.
As a note, all of these characters are men.
[] The Runaway Princess She didn't regret the choice, perhaps that said something about her. But when the princess faced a political marriage north, with the Island Kingdom of Olund, she balked. Not merely because it seemed a clear prelude to an invasion of Eskind or Ires and an attack on the elves and their human allies, but because she couldn't quite imagine… marrying a man, or even marrying at all. It felt wrong. She killed a man, a prince, who so far as she knew was not particularly terrible. And she fled her crime. The Princess took on men's clothing and a man's name and fled to the island of Ires. There, she survived as best she knew how. She had the skills necessary, but the past three years have had their rough patches. She still hides the truth of her sex.. Even now that those hunting her have likely given up, a part of him rebels and screams at the idea of just... just. Becoming a girl again to the world.
He is a rather posh and composed young man, given to occasionally chuckling over puns, but seemingly otherwise rather serious. Those who know him would say that he was very precise, and almost punctual, enough that some accused him of thinking he was better than them. Among this strange and foreign people, in tune with the Fae and with nature, he sticks out, but he tries not to let it bother him. He thinks of the family he left behind, but less and less each year.
[] Stranger In A Strange Land: The Orime are a proud people, strong and tough, tribes spread out over the vast northern wastelands, and into the transitional lands. They were a hardy, stock, powerful people, whose skin color varied wildly, and who valued warriors of either gender and lived in a rather egalitarian way. They usually stood against outsiders. Usually. Sometimes a tribe was betrayed. As a young man, his tribe was left isolated, and was destroyed by the Kingdom of the Kurzachs. He was driven out by the cruelty of powerful humans, and he refused to join a tribe which betrayed his people. He made his way south, over a number of years, and discovered certain facts about himself along the way. For the last year he's found himself in Edele, a land far too hot, near an unfrozen sea.
This mercenary, drifter, and adventurer is slightly above average height for his race, which was to say that he towered and loomed at far closer to seven feet than six. He is viewed as strong and often silent, though he has grown more competent in Eddelish. Despite his quiet, he can be witty, and he has a rough, even crude, sense of humor. He has Eddelish clothing, though he finds it far too revealing, but he often wears the furs and jackets of his homeland, as a sort of advertisement. Exotic and almost entirely alone, with few other Orime around, he nonetheless tries to form fast friendships.
[] The Mysterious Orphan: She doesn't remember the woman who gave birth to her, but that doesn't mean she doesn't know her parents. She was raised by two farmers at the edge of the Ailsbeg Forest. They were good, pious people, whose worship of the Gods involved helping those in need as well, and they never treated her as a burden, not even when she grew up a tomboy, proper, polite, and deferential to her elders, but given to wandering the forest and uncomfortable in long hair and skirts. She loved the forest, and she loved her parents, and she learned to protect herself as a matter of course. She grew up, and she grew straight and tall, put on muscle working in the field with her mother and father, put on wisdom puzzling out how to read and write with the local priest, though she never was all that good at it.
Finally, at eighteen, she is ready to set out in the world. She wants to have a few adventures before she figures out what she wants to do in life, and with her parents' blessing and aid, she has taken off to see what the world has to offer. She isn't very experienced, and she is quite sheltered, but she's sharper than she looks, and stronger than one would expect. Some nights, she wonders just what happened when she was a baby, but it doesn't interest her nearly as much as what lays ahead.
[] Street Rat: In the slums, and on the docks, of the Eddelian port city-state of Styrmia, one does what one has to if it means survival. She has no mother, and no father, and has grown up wild on the streets, often a day or less from starvation and death. It has made her hardy, and it has helped make her a Qile, a woman who dresses like a man, and is thought to prefer the company of women. It hasn't hurt her, any, and while she operates on the other side of the law, she hasn't stepped over any of the invisible barriers that separate the merely criminal from the outrageous.
She's quick on her feet, fast with her mouth, everywhere she's not supposed to be, and having as much fun as she's had in her impoverished life. After years of work, it feels as if she is finally finding her place, comfortable in what she's doing and how she's doing it… at least, relatively speaking. But in the slums of a city-state, dark clouds are always on the horizon.
[] Wandering Adventurer! for Hire: The Sepult are a people long since fractured into three groups, the Sepult under the hills, the traditionalist Sepult under the mountains who mine and make great artifacts, and the Sepult who travel upon the rivers, the traders and wanderers, the people who live in the world of man, the Surflug, quite literally on-the-river. He is the scion of one such trading family, which has operated the same routes for years, marrying among the same sorts of families, and doing the same sorts of things. But he was never a traditionalist, always the sort ot push the boundaries, from being a son to being the sort of Surflug who gives them their names.
With his parents' eventual reluctant blessing, he has stepped away from trading, perhaps for good. Instead he adventures, making his living by his skills, his wits, and his stellar personality. Shorter than many of his companions, in travel and otherwise, he makes up for it with vigor, energy, and the right tools for the right job. It's stood him in good stead, this last year, still a young man of thirty-five, with plenty of life ahead of him.
*****
A/N: Another The Laurent Quest. Mechanics post will come out in the next few days, but it's going to be relatively rules-light? As in, probably more rules light then you're thinking when I say that. But anyways, yeah. Probably update weekly, but maybe not? Who knows!
The continent of Vikalean is divided: between cultures, between vastly different people, between the surviving Sepult who had once united the continent in an Empire of steel and blood, and the humans whose world was shaped by its collapse, and between humans and elves in the Islands.
It is also a continent of adventure. An ever-changing continent of heroes, where adventurers explore lost ruins and shape the course of history, of Princes, Councils, tribes and Republics.
In this age of progress and violence, this diverse age moving towards new forms of living, the story of one such adventurer resonated, changing far more than a life or three.
*****
Welcome, Questers, to another The Laurent Quest. By now these might be familiar to you, so rest assured that I'll be throwing plenty of twists and thinking plenty about history, culture and society. Indeed, I plan to have a series of posts about the world over the voting period, or perhaps before it.
So, here are your options.
As a note, all of these characters are men.
[] The Runaway Prince
He is a rather posh and composed young man, given to occasionally chuckling over puns, but seemingly otherwise rather serious. Those who know him would say that he was very precise, and almost punctual, enough that some accused him of thinking he was better than them. Among this strange and foreign people, in tune with the Fae and with nature, he sticks out, but he tries not to let it bother him. He thinks of the family he left behind, but less and less each year.
[] Stranger In A Strange Land: The Orime are a proud people, strong and tough, tribes spread out over the vast northern wastelands, and into the transitional lands. They were a hardy, stock, powerful people, whose skin color varied wildly, and who valued warriors of either gender and lived in a rather egalitarian way. They usually stood against outsiders. Usually. Sometimes a tribe was betrayed. As a young man, his tribe was left isolated, and was destroyed by the Kingdom of the Kurzachs. He was driven out by the cruelty of powerful humans, and he refused to join a tribe which betrayed his people. He made his way south, over a number of years, and discovered certain facts about himself along the way. For the last year he's found himself in Edele, a land far too hot, near an unfrozen sea.
This mercenary, drifter, and adventurer is slightly above average height for his race, which was to say that he towered and loomed at far closer to seven feet than six. He is viewed as strong and often silent, though he has grown more competent in Eddelish. Despite his quiet, he can be witty, and he has a rough, even crude, sense of humor. He has Eddelish clothing, though he finds it far too revealing, but he often wears the furs and jackets of his homeland, as a sort of advertisement. Exotic and almost entirely alone, with few other Orime around, he nonetheless tries to form fast friendships.
[] The Mysterious Orphan: She doesn't remember the woman who gave birth to her, but that doesn't mean she doesn't know her parents. She was raised by two farmers at the edge of the Ailsbeg Forest. They were good, pious people, whose worship of the Gods involved helping those in need as well, and they never treated her as a burden, not even when she grew up a tomboy, proper, polite, and deferential to her elders, but given to wandering the forest and uncomfortable in long hair and skirts. She loved the forest, and she loved her parents, and she learned to protect herself as a matter of course. She grew up, and she grew straight and tall, put on muscle working in the field with her mother and father, put on wisdom puzzling out how to read and write with the local priest, though she never was all that good at it.
Finally, at eighteen, she is ready to set out in the world. She wants to have a few adventures before she figures out what she wants to do in life, and with her parents' blessing and aid, she has taken off to see what the world has to offer. She isn't very experienced, and she is quite sheltered, but she's sharper than she looks, and stronger than one would expect. Some nights, she wonders just what happened when she was a baby, but it doesn't interest her nearly as much as what lays ahead.
[] Street Rat: In the slums, and on the docks, of the Eddelian port city-state of Styrmia, one does what one has to if it means survival. She has no mother, and no father, and has grown up wild on the streets, often a day or less from starvation and death. It has made her hardy, and it has helped make her a Qile, a woman who dresses like a man, and is thought to prefer the company of women. It hasn't hurt her, any, and while she operates on the other side of the law, she hasn't stepped over any of the invisible barriers that separate the merely criminal from the outrageous.
She's quick on her feet, fast with her mouth, everywhere she's not supposed to be, and having as much fun as she's had in her impoverished life. After years of work, it feels as if she is finally finding her place, comfortable in what she's doing and how she's doing it… at least, relatively speaking. But in the slums of a city-state, dark clouds are always on the horizon.
[] Wandering Adventurer! for Hire: The Sepult are a people long since fractured into three groups, the Sepult under the hills, the traditionalist Sepult under the mountains who mine and make great artifacts, and the Sepult who travel upon the rivers, the traders and wanderers, the people who live in the world of man, the Surflug, quite literally on-the-river. He is the scion of one such trading family, which has operated the same routes for years, marrying among the same sorts of families, and doing the same sorts of things. But he was never a traditionalist, always the sort ot push the boundaries, from being a son to being the sort of Surflug who gives them their names.
With his parents' eventual reluctant blessing, he has stepped away from trading, perhaps for good. Instead he adventures, making his living by his skills, his wits, and his stellar personality. Shorter than many of his companions, in travel and otherwise, he makes up for it with vigor, energy, and the right tools for the right job. It's stood him in good stead, this last year, still a young man of thirty-five, with plenty of life ahead of him.
*****
A/N: Another The Laurent Quest. Mechanics post will come out in the next few days, but it's going to be relatively rules-light? As in, probably more rules light then you're thinking when I say that. But anyways, yeah. Probably update weekly, but maybe not? Who knows!
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- Location
- Cincinnati, OH
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Oooh, another The Laurent quest, awesome. 
[X] The Mysterious Orphan
[X] The Mysterious Orphan
[X] The Mysterious Orphan
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Also, feel free to ask questions!
- Location
- Bloomington, IN
[X] The Runaway Princess
- Location
- United States
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] The Mysterious Orphan
Tempted to do the princess but the Mysterious Orphan is just so obviously tempting that I want to see how you subvert the inevitable expectations of Heroic Destiny.
Tempted to do the princess but the Mysterious Orphan is just so obviously tempting that I want to see how you subvert the inevitable expectations of Heroic Destiny.
- Pronouns
- They/Them
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DannyboyZero
Has a GIF for that
- Location
- United Kingdom
[X] Stranger In A Strange Land
Mechanics, Heroes, and Parties
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Levels, Traits, Classes, and Races, Oh My!
Seasons of Heroes has a very simple system. There are classes, races, and levels, and all three interact with narratively but mechanically gained things called Traits. Put simply, a fireball spell (if it exists and would be available to your protagonist) doesn't do 1d57.9 damage, it instead is narratively a fireball, with all that means, represented by a Trait. Traits can be broad, or can be incredibly narrow, and Traits come in several different kinds. First, there are Common Traits, that anyone can take. Second, there are Race--Physical and Race--Cultural traits. As that implies, a human raised in an Orime village is, culturally at least, an Orime, and there are Traits out there that allow you to simulate someone born in and living in two separate cultures. Even humans actually have a wide variety of different Cultural traits, or at least that's the idea. Finally, there are Class Traits. Classes sometimes exist in-universe, and sometimes don't. On the one hand, Knights (none of the characters is one) are both a class and a social group in certain areas. But other classes, such as Bowmen, might be recognized but hardly can be said to be 'of a kind.' There are many classes out there, and because everything's narrative, they're at least reasonably balanced against each other.
You gain Traits at Level 0, 1, 2, 3... on and on until Level 20, but few people go beyond Level 10, at least typically. It takes a certain sort of drive to reach something like 'basic mastery' in a field and then keep on going. Adventurers, though, are going to adventure.
For Leveling, the costs are as follows:
Costs per level 10XP Base, with 4XP per level until 10, and then 6XP per level thereafter.
You gain XP not merely by fighting, but by facing tough challenges and triumphing.
Rewards per Adventure (difficulty scale)
Failing the goal of an adventure: -1 to -3 XP
Successfully completing an Adventure: 1 to 3 XP
Completing an Adventure with Style, or doing better than was expected: +1XP
Generic XP Questions (At end of an Adventure)
Facing, and overcoming, an easy challenge: .5 XP
Facing, and overcoming, a peer foe or solid challenge: 1 XP
Facing, and overcoming, a difficult challenge: 2 XP
Facing, and overcoming, a seemingly impossible challenge: 3 XP
Unnecessary Fights Or Challenges, especially when they harm the bottom line: -1 to -2 XP
Certain classes and races and characters have their own 'Questions' to ask at the end of a particular adventure. As can be seen, there's no such thing as grinding, not really. If you aren't facing peer foes or better, you're not going to get better. That, especially, is why leveling beyond ten is comparatively rarer (not that levels exist except as an abstraction.) You can't settle down to be the Royal Guard, or the academic magic-user in the tower, you have to keep on pushing, have to basically win and then keep on betting double or nothing hoping that you survive one adventure after another, each harder than the last.
I'll outline the Traits gained per each level later, since it really isn't important, but that's the long and short of it? There's no mechanical restrictions on party, just the practical ones you might imagine. Once you really get to know someone, you unlock their character sheet to peruse. All five of the characters you have to vote on already have completed character sheets, so don't worry about that.
Finally: weapon choice has no mechanical effect, because what does, but obviously a person with a bow fights differently than one with a sword. Part of what Traits will hopefully do for voters is give them ideas of how to, more or less, stunt or think up clever plans or etc. If you know that your character can talk their way out of anything with a torrent of lies, then when you get caught by the enemy, perhaps you try to do that. That's the point, narratively outlining what one can do, while having a mechanical component for voters to argue about and use to improve their Quest experience and the overall outcome.
Seasons of Heroes has a very simple system. There are classes, races, and levels, and all three interact with narratively but mechanically gained things called Traits. Put simply, a fireball spell (if it exists and would be available to your protagonist) doesn't do 1d57.9 damage, it instead is narratively a fireball, with all that means, represented by a Trait. Traits can be broad, or can be incredibly narrow, and Traits come in several different kinds. First, there are Common Traits, that anyone can take. Second, there are Race--Physical and Race--Cultural traits. As that implies, a human raised in an Orime village is, culturally at least, an Orime, and there are Traits out there that allow you to simulate someone born in and living in two separate cultures. Even humans actually have a wide variety of different Cultural traits, or at least that's the idea. Finally, there are Class Traits. Classes sometimes exist in-universe, and sometimes don't. On the one hand, Knights (none of the characters is one) are both a class and a social group in certain areas. But other classes, such as Bowmen, might be recognized but hardly can be said to be 'of a kind.' There are many classes out there, and because everything's narrative, they're at least reasonably balanced against each other.
You gain Traits at Level 0, 1, 2, 3... on and on until Level 20, but few people go beyond Level 10, at least typically. It takes a certain sort of drive to reach something like 'basic mastery' in a field and then keep on going. Adventurers, though, are going to adventure.
For Leveling, the costs are as follows:
Costs per level 10XP Base, with 4XP per level until 10, and then 6XP per level thereafter.
You gain XP not merely by fighting, but by facing tough challenges and triumphing.
Rewards per Adventure (difficulty scale)
Failing the goal of an adventure: -1 to -3 XP
Successfully completing an Adventure: 1 to 3 XP
Completing an Adventure with Style, or doing better than was expected: +1XP
Generic XP Questions (At end of an Adventure)
Facing, and overcoming, an easy challenge: .5 XP
Facing, and overcoming, a peer foe or solid challenge: 1 XP
Facing, and overcoming, a difficult challenge: 2 XP
Facing, and overcoming, a seemingly impossible challenge: 3 XP
Unnecessary Fights Or Challenges, especially when they harm the bottom line: -1 to -2 XP
Certain classes and races and characters have their own 'Questions' to ask at the end of a particular adventure. As can be seen, there's no such thing as grinding, not really. If you aren't facing peer foes or better, you're not going to get better. That, especially, is why leveling beyond ten is comparatively rarer (not that levels exist except as an abstraction.) You can't settle down to be the Royal Guard, or the academic magic-user in the tower, you have to keep on pushing, have to basically win and then keep on betting double or nothing hoping that you survive one adventure after another, each harder than the last.
I'll outline the Traits gained per each level later, since it really isn't important, but that's the long and short of it? There's no mechanical restrictions on party, just the practical ones you might imagine. Once you really get to know someone, you unlock their character sheet to peruse. All five of the characters you have to vote on already have completed character sheets, so don't worry about that.
Finally: weapon choice has no mechanical effect, because what does, but obviously a person with a bow fights differently than one with a sword. Part of what Traits will hopefully do for voters is give them ideas of how to, more or less, stunt or think up clever plans or etc. If you know that your character can talk their way out of anything with a torrent of lies, then when you get caught by the enemy, perhaps you try to do that. That's the point, narratively outlining what one can do, while having a mechanical component for voters to argue about and use to improve their Quest experience and the overall outcome.
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OfSpaceandTime
Chaotically Inclined
- Location
- Ohio
- Pronouns
- Anything non-rude.
[x] The Runaway Princess
This one speaks to me.
This one speaks to me.
- Location
- Peterborough
[X] The Runaway Princess
- Location
- Outside the Box
- Pronouns
- She/Her
In your ideas thread, you mentioned that the Sepult are this setting's dwarves and halflings. (Which ah, isn't clear in the vote description itself.) Are the Orime elven-ish? Are any other characters notably not-quite-human?
[X] Stranger In A Strange Land
[X] Stranger In A Strange Land
- Pronouns
- They/Them
The Orime are sorta like orcs, but... they're their own thing? Also, they're 6'8 on average and only sometimes green. I have a big write-up for them that talks about them, but I also haven't had time to finish the Sepult write-up (not 'finish making the Sepult' just finished in writing an informational entry for Questers) or several of the others, and I don't really want to post it but not the others, because that'd seen like I was trying to sway people towards Stranger by giving details for one, but not the others.
As far as it goes, from the start the only characters that appear non-human are the Stranger and the Adventurer!
Edit: That said, ask questions about any of the names/places/etc you see here, and I'll answer if it's not a spoiler.
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fallintolife
the worst vegan
- Location
- Los Angeles
- Pronouns
- They/Them
[x] Stranger In A Strange Land:
Random Member
Gardener of Human Happiness
- Location
- Behind You
[X] The Runaway Princess
Lab_Accident
A 2D 1D4
- Location
- Your dreams
[x] The Runaway Princess
I want to go on a Quest for the Nether Scroll.
I want to go on a Quest for the Nether Scroll.
- Location
- Somewhere in the area
- Pronouns
- He/She/They
[x] The Runaway Princess