Sunday City lies further yet to the west. Halcyon Springs is many people's hope of gaining enough wealth to be able to afford that final push to Sunday City. It's what people talk about, what people toil in the mines for, what people mutter in their sleep during their most pleasant dreams. No one's been there, but the stories of that friend who had a friend who went and returned are enough to turn the sourest of souls, the most pessimistic of men west as the sun sets over those high, cold crags.

However, my tendency to want to call the place Halcyon Falls makes me think higher up on the river, perhaps there is a set of falls coming off the higher bits of the badlands. It's rumored there's a cavern underneath, but given the proximity to some of the nastier Roden (Meeting one down in a cave? Yeah, my idea of fun) and the pass the orcs commonly use, not many people bother trying to figure it out.

Where we at?

Who are the antagonists? Who is opposing the goals of the characters?

Hmm...I kinda think this would be handled better when we sit down to make characters.

So, we finished up the world burning and burned up some characters last night. I'm actually sad that we have to wait an entire week before we actually get to play, because it's going to be awesome. Fuck, the first scene is something I'm excited about.

I think everyone should post their characters up here, because they're fucking awesome.

Name: Bedwich
Concept/Bio: Crazy outcast sorcerer
Lifepaths: City Born, Neophyte Sorcerer, Recluse Wizard, Hunter, Rogue Wizard
Age: 46
Stats: Wi: B6, Pe: B5, Po: B3, Fo: B4, Ag: B4, Sp: B3, Speed Mult.: x3.5
Attributes: Ref: B4, Ste: B5, Hes: 4, Hea: B6, MW: B9, Circles: B3, Resources: B1
PTGS: Su: B3 Li: B5 Mi: B6 Se: B7 Tr: B8 Mo: B9
Beliefs:
The village has grown too large. Return it to what it once was by either controlling it or destroying it.
I will use the profits from the mine to establish an academy for sorcery.
Jonas and Sticks have gotten themselves into some deep shit. I will help them out for a cut of the mine...and out of friendship.
Instincts:
When surprised, hit 'em with The Fear.
Never take off the hat.
Always assert the superiority of magic.
Traits: Batshit, Spooky, Extremely Respectful of One's Sorcerous Betters, Gifted, Low Speech (Horses and pack animals), Impressive Hat
Skills: Ancient and Obscure History B2, Alchemy B4, Apocalypse-wise B2, Astrology B2, Bloodletting B4, Conspicuous B3, Firearms B5, Hunting B3, Inconspicuous B4, Read B3, Riding B4, Stealthy B3, Sorcery B5, Write B3
Spells: Mage Light, The Fear, White Fire
Affiliations: Sorcerer's Cabal +1D
Reputations: Impressive Hat +1D
Relationships: Orlan (Major, hateful/rival)
Gear: Pistol, Clothes, Shoes, Traveling Gear, Horse, Elvish Hat
Property: House

This is one of the major NPC's that I burned up:

Name: Orlan Forsythe
Concept/Bio: Orlan is the owner of the Dog's Leg Saloon. He's a scumbag, but a gifted businessman. He doesn't have a very high opinion of women, and he's also a racist.
Lifepaths: City Born, Criminal, Confidence Man, Lead to Outcast, Whoremonger, Lead to City Dweller, Barkeep, Barkeep, Barkeep
Age: 44
Stats: Wi: B4, Pe: B4, Po: B3, Fo: B3, Ag: B3, Sp: B3, Speed Mult.: x3.5
Attributes: Ref: B3, Ste: B4, Hes: 6, Hea: B3, MW: B9, Circles: B2, Resources: B4
PTGS: Su: B2 Li: B4 Mi: B6 Se: B7 Tr: B8 Mo: B9
Beliefs:
1. Halcyon Falls is MY town. I'll tolerate figureheads, but any real competition has to be ground out.
2. Business is business; even if you're dealing with a cocksucker, deal with him fairly
3. The Dwarves have had us by the balls for too long; it's high time we started fighting back
Instincts:
1. If blood is spilled in the Dog's Leg, clean it up.
2. Always carry a knife
3. Always take a shot before a hard decision
Traits: Cynical, Good Listener, Poker Face, Cursing, Dreadful
Skills: City-Wise B3, Drink-Wise B2, Drunk-Wise B2, Falsehood B5, Haggling B4, Inconspicuous B2, Intimidation B3, Knives B3, Persuasion B5, Prostitute-Wise B3, Read B2, Streetwise B4, Torture B2, Write B2
Affiliations: 1D Orlan's Crew
Reputations: 2D Cutthroat Businessman
Relationships: Has trade deals with Thissik, the Roden Launderer (Significant)
Gear: Clothes, Shoes, Pens & Ink, Paper, Run of the mill knife
Property: The Dog's Leg Saloon/Brothel
Weapons:
Bare Fisted I:B1 M:B3 S:B4 Add 2 VA - Fast Shortest
Knife I:B1 M:B3 S:B4 Add 1 VA - Fast Shortest
Hilt Strike I:B2 M:B4 S:B6 Add 2 VA - Slow Shortest

Edit: Switched out the Taskmaster LP for Whoremonger

Posted By: BabeBut the peaches...what about the peaches, man?

Property comes fully stocked. Peaches are included. If nothing else, he can always make a Resources test.

Posted By: BabeUmmm....joke, love. Joke. I know I'm no good at them, but...

You think I was being serious?

So I'm just going to sum up what we have so far for world building, if only so I have everything in one place for reference:

What's the Big Picture? What's going on in this setting that makes it ripe for adventure. What's changing, evolving, declining?

The Dwarves have found a mineral-rich stretch of low, old mountains which they have been raping for a couple decades in secret (as those greedy little fucks do). But, given emergent technology, word traveled fast. Men came from the east in wagon-loads to fill their pockets and make a name for themselves. They are motivated by their internal clocks. They know their time on the planet is comparatively short, so they take advantage of any opportunity. A fringe group of elves settled much of the area north of the rich mountains thousands of years ago. Settled is a light term, they conquered it. They think they have a right to land and don't like others encroaching on it. Men and Dwarves used Orc slave labor to build their cities and railroads, but cast them aside once the work was done. If the Orcs ever rally it could get messy. The Roden and Orcs occupied the land long before the Elves, but were pushed out of their land by the other races.

But the land, having been raped for as long as it has, it's definitely not producing except for a fortunate few. The good veins have been monopolized and everyone else is just trying to squeeze in where they can. The dwarves still own most of the proven veins, but the increase in people brings many problems. Quite a few dwarves who didn't keep up with the times lost their claims through legal trickery. They try to find support, but the lawless, unclaimed land grants them no safe harbor. Once man put his name on the paper for the claim, he protects it with might, muscle, and gun.

But man is stupid at the same time he is crafty. The vices that attract men in such towns-the alcohol, the camp women-strip them of what they gain as soon as it lands in their pocket. Elves, unhappy with the degree of land desecration, run brothels and saloons and tobacconists, trading minuscule claims for a week's worth of dick stink between the legs of a jaded woman. Their goal is to gain enough to have sway, like being a majority stakeholder somewhere.

Dwarves have changed tunes as well. As man begins to take over their claims, they too figure out ways to put their hand in man's pocket as he did to them. Dwarves have started working procurement trades, getting man to pass back the money he stole in the form of exuberant mark-ups on mining gear. There's a large band of them, too, that control trade. They're an alliance, because they found out pretty quickly they couldn't defeat man on a mono a mono basis, and they have to band together.

Rural life is declining. "Place" is devolving from sacred to commodity. People are favoring pidgin over their native tongue. Material is valued over action. All of the worst parts of capitalism are destroying the serenity of peasant/agrarian life. True belief is declining. It has become a convenient excuse for conquest and persecution. Most people out in the frontier do little more than pay it lip service, but otherwise it has become unimportant in day-to-day lives.

There's an entire band of settlers who came out for this very purpose. They only come into the main bits of town and such during the day, before all the philandering and drinking begins, to preach, but a few battered women and a dead preacher was all it took to realize they weren't welcome after dark. And the women fit the cult of "true womanhood" to a T - Piety, submission, purity and domesticity. They will follow their men, they will venture in to town after dark if a father or husband asks to prove the true godlessness and sinful ways of the other settlers. They will not raise their voice to the men nor a hand to protect themselves if one should get upset, for it's a woman's place to be subservient and accepting of the whims of the superior men. However, to the "camp women", they are nothing but fire and brimstone. Half the whores go to church because they want some solace. The other half go to rile the believers during service.

What's the world's culture? What are the cultural analogs? Analogs can be taken from historical earth, current events or fantasy works.

Dwarves - Very traditional Tolkein-esque, but tone down the merriment and up the corporate capitalist.
Orcs - Nomads. Savage beasts. Hatred with a capital H.
Roden - Farmers, peasant-folk, "Agrarian"
Humans - What *aren't* they like? Greedy, opportunistic, technological, frantic (short life spans)
Elves - What a sad little boy you are

Wow. That's a really good summary.

Posted By: XenithIf is Faith used, what is the Faith idiom? What are the religions? Is Faith universal or does it only affect believers?
This hasn't been answered yet.

Didn't we have something about a couple of gods? A sun god and an earth god. Zoltec and Turkis, respectively iirc. I think that we'd decided that the Faithful could perform miracles, but it's difficult to tell if they really are miracles, or simply impressive coincidences.

I also forgot to ask - are there still monsters in the world? Dragons and whatnot? Or just mundane animals? What about monster burned characters?

Also, depends on how close to real bad lands we're keeping this, as the Bad Lands are where most of the fossils come from. Orcs, along with dwarf bodies, are bringing up bones of what are ferocious beasts: Massive jawbones, huge fangs, claws that could eviscerate an orc.

Had to do a quick sketch of Sticks.

Posted By: XenithWhat Cultural Traits apply to the characters of this game world? Pick three Character Traits for each culture.

Halcyon Falls settlers might have Intrepid, Risk-taker and Cocksure. They are all closely related, but applicable in different situations. Intrepid in the face of danger. Risky in economic endeavors. Cocksure in the street.

Nice!

While looking up some non-offensive Deadwood quotes for MrBoy on Tiwtter (which isn't possible. I don't think that any series has ever used as much profanity as Deadwood), I came across the following quote, which I thought might be appropriate as a theme for the game:

Al Swearengen:Pain or damage don't end the world. Or despair or fucking beatings. The world ends when you're dead. Until then, you got more punishment in store. Stand it like a man... and give some back.

I also realized that the dialogue on that show is even more clever when you read it.

Just for everyone's information, I've cross-posted xenith's summary (credited, of course) over at my blog. I used Randy's map, too.

I'm going to post this over on the Burning Wiki, as well.

Posted By: BabeOrlan totally invited her in and gave her whiskey. Jonas has a new friend.

And Bedwich and Orlan absolutely despise each other. I smell drama!

I just want to say that you haven't lived until you've seen a dirty cowboy running down the hall with his pants around his ankles and his erect wang waggling about.

....I don't think I'm going to sleep tonight.

Posted By: BabeYou should probably preface this with "Things I learned while watchingDeadwood"

You just keep telling yourself he learned it on Deadwood if it lets you sleep without the nightmares...

why does this make me think of Preacher?

I've updated the Burning Wiki in case anyone is interested. I'll try re-creating your characters based on what's here, and add them to the Wiki.

Yes, yes he is.

Come to think of it, there aren't many non-cocksuckers in this setting.

Posted By: BabeDoes that mean Jonas will never coax an incite from Thurmond?

Not necessarily. It's okay to go against an Instinct. But NPC's get Artha, too. And tests for advancement, if I'm not too lazy to write it down. I should be playing the NPC's like they were PC's.

Posted By: elmago79

Posted By: ShaunAnother major NPC. Probably don't want to get into a DoW with this guy.

Save for the fact that he has no main dueling skills, I would agree with you. You can't win a DoW using only Obfuscate and Incite!

Crap, you're right. Well, guess he's got to get to working on opening Stentorious Debate. No more late-night character burning for me.

EDIT: Of course, he only needs to use it three times to open. He's new to this Seneschal thing. He just needs some practice.

I'd just like to say that this game is fucking awesome, and that all of my rabid fanboyism is justified. We need to start posting AP reports on this fucking game, 'cause there is a lot of shit going on.

Hell, I'll be responsible for posting the first arc of the game. After I've had some sleep, anyway.

Posted By: elmago79Looking forward to your account of the game.

Lolz-I'll get on him about doing that. He's been a little sick and out of sorts, but I'll remind him. :)

Have the ceremony in game.