by John Clayton | Feb 12, 2015 | Recursions
Welcome, traveller, to the city of delights, the city of a thousand and one pleasures, the city of Baghdad. And yes, noble visitor, all the stories you have heard are true. This is not the war-torn Baghdad of the present day but the Baghdad of the Arabian Nights, the Baghdad of stories. Under the reign of the wise and munificent Sultan Haroun al Rashief, the city is a haven of art, culture, science and learning. Genies, magic carpets, lamps, rings, 40 thieves, sailors… The tales immortalised in the Thousand Nights and One Night are almost as old as civilisation itself. And they are all here in the City in a Bottle. Over *there*, the docks where Sindbad is preparing to set sail for another voyage. *There*, the tailor who was present at Aladdin’s wedding in far-off China. *There*, a barber who will tell you the most wonderful tale while trimming your beard – it’s not a problem that’s he’s completely blind, is it? This is a land formed by stories, shaped by the tales told. The tale truly has grown in the telling… Play along with the story and things *will* work out – go against the tale and you may just attract the Evil Eye. [In game mechanics terms, any action that flows *against* the narrative logic of the story being told suffers a -1 penalty, with any roll ending up a 1 due to this counting as a natural 1 for the purposes of triggering a GM Intrusion]. In Baghdad, the stories will find you. When you translate in you may choose to take the form of...
by John Clayton | Feb 12, 2015 | Foci
I am but your humble servant and it pains me to say that I do not know the answer to your question. But I know someone who does…You know the right words of power to call one of the Djinn to your service and bind them to be truthful and obey your commands. Your power may be tied to a physical object containing a single Djinn – a ring, a lamp, perhaps – or the item may just be a focus for your will. Tier AbilitiesTier 1 – CompanionThe summoner has a Gen, an elemental friend. Pick an element (earth, air, fire, water) and you get some level 1 abilities for how to deal with that element and things the Gen can do. As you increase in Tier in this Focus, so your Gen increases as well. Enabler.<sidebar>Gens1, don’t let your Gen be injured or killed. At least not until you’re much older and more experienced in negotiating with the courts of the Djinn.2, they’re genies, not miracle-workers. While they can fetch Cyphers for you, retrieve lore thought long-forgotten, persuade the Djinni of their court to work wonders on your behalf, it all takes time and patience.3, look after your Gen and it will look after you – nothing better to have at your side when you’ve been thrown overboard than a Maridan, a Efreetling to guide you safely over that lava field…</sidebar>Go-between.Your Gen acts as an intermediary between you and the Genie courts. If you send the gen to an opposed element, it suffers a 1-step increase in all difficulties in negotiations.Enabler<sidebar>What can you achieve with a negotiation?...
