Oh and, once we start this, we should probs try and see if there is any intelligent life in our territory or others. Maybe make ourselves leader, treat them right, and we got a buncha extra soldiers, or at least servants. Plus, if there is any intelligent life in the other territories, maybe we could get them to revolt or give us information. Diplomacy and Intrigue skills for the win.
Oh and, once we start this, we should probs try and see if there is any intelligent life in our territory or others. Maybe make ourselves leader, treat them right, and we got a buncha extra soldiers, or at least servants. Plus, if there is any intelligent life in the other territories, maybe we could get them to revolt or give us information. Diplomacy and Intrigue skills for the win.
Oh and, once we start this, we should probs try and see if there is any intelligent life in our territory or others. Maybe make ourselves leader, treat them right, and we got a buncha extra soldiers, or at least servants. Plus, if there is any intelligent life in the other territories, maybe we could get them to revolt or give us information. Diplomacy and Intrigue skills for the win.
How do you plan to conduct diplomacy when TFO is the size of a mountain range and the Wyrms are horrible tap-fanged monsters? Why would a dragon even care?
Wyrms. That, and I don't think a civilization would be too willing to argue for protection from a giant mountain in exchange for loyalty. If not then eh, *shrugs* whatever, at least we tried. Also servents that can make things that Wyrms probably couldn't. Things for more detailed work and stuff.
Ah, but the goal isn't friends, it's weaponsminions. You merely need obedience, and what fool says no to "I am the size of a mountain, and completely invulnerable. Do as I say, or I destroy your entire village"?
Meanwhile, the rival at KMJ!
King of the Mighty Jungle
A Large size Dragon, looking like a Lion carved from wood, covered in moss in place of fur, and with a mane of vibrantly colored flower, King of the Mighty Jungle has been a rival for some time now, though nevertheless is not one of your oldest foes. He has always fought cautiously against you, when he wasn't fighting defensively outright, but, really, that seems to be less fear and more strategy. He's much faster than you, the fastest and most mobile of your current non-Small size opponents, (though you have plenty of Small opponents, so in some ways that's not saying much), he's quite a bit better at Weaving than you, and he seems to have an absolutely insane degree of Influence over his environment. Of course, conversely, he's not really a challenge for you in direct contests of Territory, and he probably doesn't have competitive Might (He hangs back generally, not attacking directly too often). But then, of course, is the central issue, what has got to be part of his Quirk, given you've seen it happen near his Wyrms. When a Dragon is fighting him, you, or on occasion another Dragon that you happened to witness fight against him, there is an alarming habit for the trees to attack. You know, the gigantic things that dwarf even you. And I don't mean they swing their branches or something, I mean they do things like slam down towards the Dragon or its' Wyrms, rise back up, and do it again. Naturally, this is a devastating weapon, and the same trees can be observed to intercept attacks, go figure.
His Wyrms, meanwhile, look like nothing so much as oversized birds of paradise, if you ignore the part where they are made of wood and covered in flowers rather than feathers. Yes, they somehow fly. He has far, far fewer than you, actually, and they don't match yours when it comes down to a melee exchange of blows, but they are alarmingly swift and agile, above your own in skill at Weaving, and of course the trees keep attacking your stuff while nearby them. Fortunately, the really crazy stuff only happens around either a mob of Wyrms, (like, every single one he has, you suspect) or in the bounds of his Territory, or you suspect he'd have killed you by now.
Oh, and that crazy Influence? Yeah, the trees in King of the Mighty Jungles' Territory tend to have traits like almost draconic levels of toughness to the bark, being covered in spikes, and similar blunt weaponization. His tactics are pretty flexible, too, it always centers around his tree control, but he's not half as predictable as most of your rivals.
Ah, but the goal isn't friends, it's weaponsminions. You merely need obedience, and what fool says no to "I am the size of a mountain, and completely invulnerable. Do as I say, or I destroy your entire village"?
Meanwhile, the rival at KMJ!
King of the Mighty Jungle
A Large size Dragon, looking like a Lion carved from wood, covered in moss in place of fur, and with a mane of vibrantly colored flower, King of the Mighty Jungle has been a rival for some time now, though nevertheless is not one of your oldest foes. He has always fought cautiously against you, when he wasn't fighting defensively outright, but, really, that seems to be less fear and more strategy. He's much faster than you, the fastest and most mobile of your current non-Small size opponents, (though you have plenty of Small opponents, so in some ways that's not saying much), he's quite a bit better at Weaving than you, and he seems to have an absolutely insane degree of Influence over his environment. Of course, conversely, he's not really a challenge for you in direct contests of Territory, and he probably doesn't have competitive Might (He hangs back generally, not attacking directly too often). But then, of course, is the central issue, what has got to be part of his Quirk, given you've seen it happen near his Wyrms. When a Dragon is fighting him, you, or on occasion another Dragon that you happened to witness fight against him, there is an alarming habit for the trees to attack. You know, the gigantic things that dwarf even you. And I don't mean they swing their branches or something, I mean they do things like slam down towards the Dragon or its' Wyrms, rise back up, and do it again. Naturally, this is a devastating weapon, and the same trees can be observed to intercept attacks, go figure.
His Wyrms, meanwhile, look like nothing so much as oversized birds of paradise, if you ignore the part where they are made of wood and covered in flowers rather than feathers. Yes, they somehow fly. He has far, far fewer than you, actually, and they don't match yours when it comes down to a melee exchange of blows, but they are alarmingly swift and agile, above your own in skill at Weaving, and of course the trees keep attacking your stuff while nearby them. Fortunately, the really crazy stuff only happens around either a mob of Wyrms, (like, every single one he has, you suspect) or in the bounds of his Territory, or you suspect he'd have killed you by now.
Oh, and that crazy Influence? Yeah, the trees in King of the Mighty Jungles' Territory tend to have traits like almost draconic levels of toughness to the bark, being covered in spikes, and similar blunt weaponization. His tactics are pretty flexible, too, it always centers around his tree control, but he's not half as predictable as most of your rivals.
A. Kill it with fire. Burn the forest to the ground.
B. It said that the trees attack Dragons and Wyrms, it said nothing about anything else. All the reason to get some minions.
Fair warning, you don't know what a Dragons Quirk can do, just what you have observed them to do. Since most Dragons consider lowly mortals beneath notice, it wouldn't happen too often unless fighting someone like High King of the Beasts, even if he can do so.
Ah, but the goal isn't friends, it's weaponsminions. You merely need obedience, and what fool says no to "I am the size of a mountain, and completely invulnerable. Do as I say, or I destroy your entire village"?
Meanwhile, the rival at KMJ!
King of the Mighty Jungle
A Large size Dragon, looking like a Lion carved from wood, covered in moss in place of fur, and with a mane of vibrantly colored flower, King of the Mighty Jungle has been a rival for some time now, though nevertheless is not one of your oldest foes. He has always fought cautiously against you, when he wasn't fighting defensively outright, but, really, that seems to be less fear and more strategy. He's much faster than you, the fastest and most mobile of your current non-Small size opponents, (though you have plenty of Small opponents, so in some ways that's not saying much), he's quite a bit better at Weaving than you, and he seems to have an absolutely insane degree of Influence over his environment. Of course, conversely, he's not really a challenge for you in direct contests of Territory, and he probably doesn't have competitive Might (He hangs back generally, not attacking directly too often). But then, of course, is the central issue, what has got to be part of his Quirk, given you've seen it happen near his Wyrms. When a Dragon is fighting him, you, or on occasion another Dragon that you happened to witness fight against him, there is an alarming habit for the trees to attack. You know, the gigantic things that dwarf even you. And I don't mean they swing their branches or something, I mean they do things like slam down towards the Dragon or its' Wyrms, rise back up, and do it again. Naturally, this is a devastating weapon, and the same trees can be observed to intercept attacks, go figure.
His Wyrms, meanwhile, look like nothing so much as oversized birds of paradise, if you ignore the part where they are made of wood and covered in flowers rather than feathers. Yes, they somehow fly. He has far, far fewer than you, actually, and they don't match yours when it comes down to a melee exchange of blows, but they are alarmingly swift and agile, above your own in skill at Weaving, and of course the trees keep attacking your stuff while nearby them. Fortunately, the really crazy stuff only happens around either a mob of Wyrms, (like, every single one he has, you suspect) or in the bounds of his Territory, or you suspect he'd have killed you by now.
Oh, and that crazy Influence? Yeah, the trees in King of the Mighty Jungles' Territory tend to have traits like almost draconic levels of toughness to the bark, being covered in spikes, and similar blunt weaponization. His tactics are pretty flexible, too, it always centers around his tree control, but he's not half as predictable as most of your rivals.
Man, so many of these guys have sweet ranged attacks! We'll have to steal that from someone, someday. I wonder, @Terrabrand, can we blow some Liquid Might on our wyrms to give them the requisite toughness to survive, and then throw them really, really hard at other dragons? Either to do damage as projectiles, or just as a way of delivering them to enemies who it might be hard for them to catch up to on foot?
Defense v KotMJ: Be there, and dodge trees. If it gets too tough, maybe blow Wraith Energy to make the trees moot. Come to think of it, we can't push while blowing WE, but can we defend? I hope so.
Offense v KotMJ: Maybe try the wyrm tossing idea? Otherwise, this is still the same problem as all of the other "This dragon doesn't bother entering melee with you, because everyone knows you snap them like a twig" targets.
I wonder, @Terrabrand, can we blow some Liquid Might on our wyrms to give them the requisite toughness to survive, and then throw them really, really hard at other dragons? Either to do damage as projectiles, or just as a way of delivering them to enemies who it might be hard for them to catch up to on foot?
Your Wyrms aren't all that aerodynamic, it'd probably be a better plan for TFO to throw specially made spears or something, blowing the Liwuid Might herself to increase damage.
I originally did not include such a limit on Stronghand Wraiths Quirk at all, but then it occurred to me that his power would be nigh unstoppable against most Dragons if he could push while incorporeal. There is an in-universe reason it'd line up that way, but what that is, is a secret
Maybe try the wyrm tossing idea? Otherwise, this is still the same problem as all of the other "This dragon doesn't bother entering melee with you, because everyone knows you snap them like a twig" targets.
Your Wyrms aren't all that aerodynamic, it'd probably be a better plan for TFO to throw specially made spears or something, blowing the Liwuid Might herself to increase damage.
Spears. That does make more sense than wyrms. Any ideas on what we could make them out of? Wood seems like the natural choice, but I don't know if that's durable enough. Maybe weave it to be stronger? Would TFO's base weaving be enough to make wooden spears do noticeable damage, or would we have to blow Liquid Weave to do it?
Is there another material that TFO knows about that we could make them out of?
Spears. That does make more sense than wyrms. Any ideas on what we could make them out of? Wood seems like the natural choice, but I don't know if that's durable enough. Maybe weave it to be stronger? Would TFO's base weaving be enough to make wooden spears do noticeable damage, or would we have to blow Liquid Weave to do it?
Is there another material that TFO knows about that we could make them out of?
Any major project of a Dragon likely features Weaving, the application, if only sub-consciously, of Influence, and a selection of base materials of the highest quality. Of note, if TFO made a habit of crafting spears, she would start to find trees in her Territory with durable, easily harvested and crafted into spears, wood. Or rocks that fit the same parameters. Or animals with bones that, you guessed it, fit the bill. Etc. Influence works at all times, even if the Dragon isn't thinking about it, so that applies to your enemies, too.
Any major project of a Dragon likely features Weaving, the application, if only sub-consciously, of Influence, and a selection of base materials of the highest quality. Of note, if TFO made a habit of crafting spears, she would start to find trees in her Territory with durable, easily harvested and crafted into spears, wood. Or rocks that fit the same parameters. Or animals with bones that, you guessed it, fit the bill. Etc. Influence works at all times, even if the Dragon isn't thinking about it, so that applies to your enemies, too.
I guess we need to get into the habit of making spears, then. Would the Influence effect happen faster if we crafted the spears with TFO, or would using wyrms be equally Influence-ing?
I guess we need to get into the habit of making spears, then. Would the Influence effect happen faster if we crafted the spears with TFO, or would using wyrms be equally Influence-ing?
1: the Dragon can consciously apply it. There is generally a gradual drop off in effectiveness as range from the Dragon increases, and it is limited to their area of Influence and, to a point, their focus. When Prince of Shifting Shadows flash constructed barriers, that was this.
2 Influence identifies the Dragons current goals, plans, and needs, and dynamically applies at a low level evenly throughout the Territory, fulfilling the requirements to facilitate said goals and plans and cover said needs. Still limited to Territory, but independent of the Dragons focus and location. The presence of animals that look almost identical to High King of the Beasts is a product of this, as is the creation of interesting Tap-ables that high Influence would cause for TFO that I previously alluded to.
Mysteriously convenient plants/animals/minerals is the latter. Direct Influence upgrades is the former. Neither requires TFO's physical hand in the process, and the later doesn't even strictly require her attention or intention.
Something I've been continually forgetting to ask for a while now: will tappable resources from other dragons become finite, once we bump them? As in, once we kill somebody, there will be no way to tap their stuff anymore. So far I've been assuming yes, but I'm feeling optimistic so I thought I might ask.
Something I've been continually forgetting to ask for a while now: will tappable resources from other dragons become finite, once we bump them? As in, once we kill somebody, there will be no way to tap their stuff anymore. So far I've been assuming yes, but I'm feeling optimistic so I thought I might ask.
How do you tap a dead dragon or a Wyrm that doesn't exist anymore? I wouldn't worry about this too much, because every time TFO bumps off a neighbor there'll be new ones to tap.
How do you tap a dead dragon or a Wyrm that doesn't exist anymore? I wouldn't worry about this too much, because every time TFO bumps off a neighbor there'll be new ones to tap.
Something I've been continually forgetting to ask for a while now: will tappable resources from other dragons become finite, once we bump them? As in, once we kill somebody, there will be no way to tap their stuff anymore. So far I've been assuming yes, but I'm feeling optimistic so I thought I might ask.
I've actually been putting some thought into the topic. Short version? It varies. Specifically...
1: SECRET. There's mechanics in place that can allow permanent access, depending on decisions made. But we'll see about those when we get there.
2: I've concluded that some of the more 'basic', for lack of a better word, tappables, would be identified by TFO from tapping them, and there are trace amounts in more ordinary creatures. which, with knowledge of what to look for allows TFO to get them from generic sources.
3: Other, somewhat more distinctive types would be engineer-able by Influence, once TFO knows they exist and feels a need for them.
I've actually been putting some thought into the topic. Short version? It varies. Specifically...
1: SECRET. There's mechanics in place that can allow permanent access, depending on decisions made. But we'll see about those when we get there.
2: I've concluded that some of the more 'basic', for lack of a better word, tappables, would be identified by TFO from tapping them, and there are trace amounts in more ordinary creatures. which, with knowledge of what to look for allows TFO to get them from generic sources.
3: Other, somewhat more distinctive types would be engineer-able by Influence, once TFO knows they exist and feels a need for them.
I have not given up on this quest, but I have been having extensive issues trying to get a working combat system for it. I have decided to seek the aid of the forums as a whole in generating such a system, in this thread here, so everyone knows. Feel free to participate.
Hoo boy. It's been a long time. About two and a half years, in fact. I'm sure most of you have forgotten this existed, or assumed it was dead, or both.
Well, neither of those is the case. I've always intended to return to this, it simply turned out there was certain issues proving intractable, until recently. For those who had been around in the first place, it's back, for the rest of you, yes this has been in my signature the whole time.
A few days back, @Aabcehmu contacted me about this Quest. We had a bit of a back and forth, and wound up agreeing to him being Co-QM and from there worked out the kinks.
That said, with how long it's been, and having only just gotten through chargen, I felt it'd be wrong to simply resurrect the Quest when many prospective players weren't even around when I started this originally.
So I'm holding a vote. You've got two choices here. The first is we stick with the originally voted Dragon, Tap-Fanged One. Colossal Wood Plane Dragon, with all that entails, same Quirk, same name. Stats would be re-voted for, due to adjustments to the system, and all existing rival Dragons will be going away, to be generated from scratch. There will also be fewer of them- eleven was excessive.
The second option is a full reboot of the quest. New thread, voting from the very start, starting from Plane and all. Everybody gets a say in the Player Dragon, etc. So.
[] Stick with Tap-Fanged One, with some limited adjustments.
or
[] Full reboot, let me at chargen from scratch.
In case it sways opinions, the revolutionized mechanical framework is as follows...
Dragons now have the following stats to consider:
Personal Might: Approximate overall personal fighting strength. This does not factor in situational advantages and disadvantages or matchup favorability, but rather is an overall guideline.
Personal Agility: Approximate overall personal mobility. Not counting situational advantages and disadvantages.
Personal Weaving: Approximate overall capacity for Weaving, the draconic enchantment specialty. All Dragons can Weave enchantments, but that does not mean all are equally good. A Dragon Weaves anywhere within its Territory, losing a marginal amount of effectiveness over long range.
Personal Labor: The first new addition. Personal Labor represents the Dragon's capacity to work physically at basic, rote tasks. Mining, construction, smithing, carving, and so on.
Majesty: This is simply the previous Territory stat, but renamed to avoid confusion with the concept of how much Territory a Dragon presently holds. Majesty is a Dragon's natural ability to Territory Push and resist the same.
Influence: Influence describes a Dragon's passive and active control over its environment. A Dragon naturally twists the Territory it holds to its advantage, and can apply such more actively as well.
Brood Quantity: Brood Quantity describes how many Wyrms a Dragon can command and how quickly they replace them. Both numbers scale to Territory held, as well. A Dragon can command up to Brood Quantity in Wyrms per ten units of Territory, and will generate one-tenth (rounding up) of its Wyrm limit per turn at no cost, up to the limit.
Brood Might: This is the baseline Might each Wyrm commanded by the Dragon has. This is the same concept as Personal Might, but for Wyrms.
Brood Agility: This is, predictably, the baseline Agility each Wyrm commanded by the Dragon has. This is the same concept as Personal Agility, but for Wyrms.
Brood Weaving: The rate of effectiveness each Wyrm possesses at Weaving. Unlike Dragons, Wyrms Weave strictly at short ranges but also function independently of Territory in this regard. Note that only Dragons and Wyrms possess the capacity to Weave, and thus this is an area that cannot be replaced by mortal forces.
Brood Labor: The baseline Labor each Wyrm has. This is the exact same concept as Personal Labor, but for Wyrms.
TL;DR Brood Inheritance is out as a stat, but Dragons and Wyrms now track their capacity for plain old labor. The details have been refined however.
Furthermore, contrasting to the initial design, Small Dragons are now strong in Personal Weaving, Personal Agility, and Influence, while being weak in Personal Might, Personal Labor, and Wyrm Quantity.
Moreover, the turn-by-turn system has actually been developed meaningfully. The mechanics are below.
Each turn, a given Dragon has to deal with four things.
Goals: Goals are tasks the Dragon wants to do, or else needs to respond to. Attempting to kill an enemy Dragon right now is a Goals. Needing to stop ceding ground to an enemy Dragon is also a Goals. Goals are short term objectives by definition, they do not cover long term desires or plans. A Dragon may be working towards killing a Dragon over several turns, but turn by turn 'kill that Dragon' is not a Goal until they are per se trying to kill the Dragon in the here and now. Before that, they will be taking Goals such as to remove fortifications, seize Territory, kill troops, or otherwise position themselves to be able to make the kill. Goals may be set by outside forces and determined internally alike. A Dragon may achieve as many Goals as it likes in a turn, so long as it has the means by which to do all of them.
Obstacles: Obstacles are attached to Goal. An Obstacle is something that must be somehow addressed to achieve the objective. All Obstacles must, somehow, be addressed when planning to achieve a given Goal. Obstacles can include enemy forces in the way, natural conditions that somehow prevent you from advancing, and so on. An Obstacle is any force or condition that stands between you and the Objective.
Resources: Resources are individual assets that can only be applied to so many tasks at a time. Resources can have various properties, such as Agility, Might, Labor, Weaving, and so on that describe their approximate general effectiveness at a class of task. Resources include but are not limited to...
Wyrms: An individual group of Wyrms is a Resource. Note that Wyrms pool their Might, Weaving, and Labor when functioning as a single group, thus a group of ten Wyrms will work, fight, and weave ten times as well as a solitary one. Wyrms may also receive more nebulous benefits to Agility considerations due to eg walling off or flanking the opposition.
Dragon: The Dragon's body as such is a Resource. It is a particularly important Resource, as a Dragon loses completely if it is destroyed. Dragons are normally impossible to kill, except by the attacks of other Dragons. The Dragon can be applied directly to combat, labor, and use of their Quirk, and may be applied indirectly to eg Territory Pushes (which the effectiveness of is shaped by their present location)
Focus: A Dragon's mental capacity, to be split between tasks. Focus as a Resource is applied to Territory Pushing, Active Influence, personal Weaving actions, and use of certain Quirks.
Subconscious: A Dragon subconsciously Influences its Territory to its favor. While this occurs below their conscious awareness, it is by definition turned to the tasks they desire. Subconscious is a Resource used to perform Passive Influence actions, by which the Dragon reshapes terrain, creates or enhances resources and wildlife, and otherwise twists the physical world into their image and to their favor.
Mortals: Any Dragon can create mortal creatures. Mortals currently working for the Dragon are directed (generally via Wyrms) to perform tasks to the Dragon's benefit. This includes, but is not limited to, war, construction, self development (eg training, creating gear, etc), and recon. Mortals function broadly similarly to Wyrms; they are directly more powerful militarily and at labor in larger groups.
Structures: Be it assembly line or fortifications, a Dragon can produce structures and encampments and so on to enhance the productivity or effectiveness of the troops and so on they command. Structures generally cannot be moved readily, but are often more effort efficient to create.
Intangibles: Intangibles are things like intelligence on enemies and areas, environmental advantages, and more. Any Intangible can be potentially leveraged to deal with or help deal with any number of Obstacles in a turn, so long as it is relevant. Whether it is exploiting knowledge of the world's mechanics, the personality of another Dragon, natural environmental conditions, or the Dragon's Quirk, Intangibles are largely those things that cannot be said to exist in specific locations and cannot be per se destroyed (although some, such as intel reports, can become out of date and thus potentially worthless or actively harmful to try to use).
The mechanics as such are directly fairly simple. However, Intangibles and Resources will track the concepts of how they actually work. For example, deploying a fire-resistant army to face a fire breathing foe will work better than the raw Might scores would dictate. This is why Might and so on are qualified as the 'approximate overall' values, as things that should work better will get favorable weighting. Likewise, clever ambushes or other tactics can enhance effectiveness as well.
Note that there is also a random component. When combat is joined, I will be rolling dice as a random, proportionate modifier. Depending how the dice rolls, units may fight at up to + or - 10% of their actual Might score, for otherwise the same situation.
Casualties and other results are ultimately decided by fiat based on numbers and goals of the opposing forces- two armies each seeking the others annihilation at any cost will naturally be a more bloody fight than two armies trying primarily to stop each other or get past each other.
[X] Full reboot.
Because Tap fanged was okay but I'd like a dragon who didn't get some crazy meta-games power. For once sticking with a classic like Fire breath or whatever as a power might be nice instead of trying to cook up the perfect power to win any white-room duel.
