Jkeown

In brief, there are Hidden Cities inside the cities we know. The largest of these is (probably) Ravenna, but Roma Aeter is suspected to be larger. These things are hard to judge. Mundanes are not aware of these cities, but access to them is found in Ravenna, Rome, Leipzig, Bonn, London, Indianapolis, New York, Tokyo and San Francisco. Opposing Ravenna in its goal of Maxime Magica (Magic Over All) is the Establishment, a group of mages who operate out of Roma Aeter. They also revere Maxime Magica, but they envision a domine of a magical Roman Empire, where the mundane world serves the magical one.

Ravenna is ruled by the Signoria, a group of wizards who are elected by the whole of Ravennati society.

Players in the setting are Normal Heroes, 175+50 and all that. They tend to be wizards, but can also be a variety of magical creatures, undead, Dolls (ball-jointed ceramic people) and Eikones, the spirits of long-dead people and minor gods.  

Adventures include breaking up Establishment plots, busting monsters, taming feral undead and the politics of wizards. Also, a lot of poorly pronounced Italian.

In my Ravenna game (that takes place in a hidden city "inside" Ravenna, Italy) there are magical books from the past and from other realms (i.e., my other HERO campaigns). Here are a few.

There is evidence of house rules (like allowing wizards to use Multipowers, the inclusion of Detects in MPs, etc. I humbly beg indulgence... and if you use them, please make them match your own house rule situation.

Ravanna Grimoires.pdf

Oops. Helps if you can read the character sheet.

Old Galactic Kadu.pdf

Here's a Kadu, a giant form of Vac-life in my 2600CE campaign. This one is fairly old and large, and I just noticed there is no indication on how long these guys live, or what their purpose might be. Anyway, enjoy and if you want, make suggestions for other features of this critter, or even other kinds of vac-life.

I think I want to add some kind of EM-based stealth or minor invisibility power.

Then I will not release my adaption of it. I do not want to step on toes.

So I re-wrote Cyber Hero. Found a copy on EBay, started typing. More than 52000 words later, I'm ready to link it to all of my other games by way of the Via, the network of inter-dimensional pathways that meander through Astral Space, some of which connect to past-time echoes of Earth, possible futures, fantasy worlds, magical versions of Earth... you name it.

Almost 20 years ago, my then-very-small son created a setting with cyberpunk elements. In his story an Arcology suffered an accident that sent it to a world of steaming jungles and dinosaurs. There might have been aliens, but I can't recall.  Point is, I'm resurrecting it now that the game is ready to be played.

The setting itself is a mix of Cyber Hero, Kazei 5, Transhuman Space and raw speculation. with Crazed Robots, Zombies, Biotech Horrors and Ninjas.

In Deniable Assets (the name I use for my version of Cyber Hero), the PCs are investigating a ruined arcoloy in New Haven, CT. How many weeks of exploration will I put them through before they find the aperture to the Jurassic?  I think I might break it down into old-school dungeon levels or specific encounters, and let them just run through it. Here are some ideas:

1. Morlocks (the survivors of genetic experiments); scrounged gear, hordes of enemies, easily dispatched.
2. A proper Gang Encounter with some street elements that are trying to get deeper into the ruin themselves.  
3. CorpSec - Corporate Security trying to keep folks out of the place.
4. Some kind of Picaresque encounter with a crazy scientist who "Knows Stuff" but is completely wrong about everything. (Like the Internet)
5. Rogue Psyker and his followers, looking for the secrets of the Aperture.
6. Zombies. With one or two Mega Zombies. And some that explode.
7. Auto-Turrets.
8. Crazed Auto-Turrets with Bad Attitudes
9. Some kind of terrifying mech guarding the actual aperture. (which itself is found in a Jurassic-like environment "leaking" into our world)
10. The Aperture will be big enough to walk through, but it is imperceptibly shrinking, so the whole world doesn't get contaminated.  
11. 12d6 STUN Only NND (Something or other) for the trip through the Aperture. Oops.
12. Guards at the Other End, waiting for something to fall through.  
13. Dinosaurs. Because Dinosaurs.
14. Survivors of the Arcology, trying to rebuild in the Jurassic period.

This almost begs to be published. Maybe I should try it.

We have riding birds, Striders and Stompers in Caleon. I could post their stats if there is interest.

I've expanded on FPS Hero from Digital Hero 43. Is there any interest in such a thing? It breaks a number of rules, and as ever, I worry about other's toes.

_{I bought a print of this from Larry a few years ago. It's the first RPG my wife and I played together. That exact edition of FH. We were married to other people back then, and now that print hangs in our living room.}

I guess my initial post is a bit misleading. Yes, for years (since 1986) I didn't have many monsters, there were NPCs, some were Dead NPCs. Some animals, but it wasn't DnD-level of monstrosity. That article, originally written in 2005, was a turning point toward more wild game, magic increased, the stakes got higher. The game is much weirder. I'm on page 283 of my player's guide for the game. (158000 words)

Thanks for the kind words and opinion!

For years, I didn’t have monsters in Caleon. I had Demons, Trolls and Ogres, but no monsters. Bandits, Brigands, evil Mercenaries and awful people of all races and temperaments. No Monsters. They don’t make sense. Maybe it’s that they don’t make sense in Caleon. Perhaps they make sense in your world. If they do, cool. This article is for you.

I wrote this a long time ago, using various resources and games.. Traveller.. a lot of HERO Products, and my own research into how life changes over time.

I updated it yesterday and thought I'd share. It's not really a bestiary, but it could be used to create one.

Monsters and Animals.pdf

Animal Traits 6E.hdp

Aside from being a backer, was there any other way to get these before now? I bought a couple of copies of MHI at Gen Con a year ago. Were they available somehow back then?

I have a Possess a Freshly Dead Body and Heal It So You Can Use It Power.

Discarnation:  (Total: 160 Active Cost, 130 Real Cost) Possession (Mind Control Effect Roll 40; Telepathy Effect Roll 30) (60 Active Points); OAF (Fresh Corpse; -1) (Real Cost: 30) plus Healing BODY 3d6, Resurrection, Trigger (Activating the Trigger is an Action that takes no time, Trigger resets automatically, immediately after it activates; Jumping to a Dead Body; +1) (100 Active Points) (Real Cost: 100) Real Cost 130

As for those others, I would think that Life Support: Immortal would cover that. As there is no other rule covering aging, so that means that aging just happens.

My Urban Fantasy HERO game goes live soon (As soon as Mummy's Mask is behind us...) so I thought I'd offer these Not Dying Talents (or Powers, your choice). I put various levels of Not Dying on a spectrum from almost Mundane to HIghlander and beyond...

Flavors of Not Dying
Life Support: Immortal is boring. Immortality is cheap… points-wise. Sure, you can pay 5 points and live forever. This is because HERO is balanced toward combat. Its 5 points to live forever, but you never play that long, right? Time is a special effect.  Actually getting immortality is a lot harder than those 5 points imply. There are treatments, accidents, curses and rare spells involved. Do some research, why don't you?

Fast Healer
It might not seem like much, but this tiny bit of Regeneration is enough to make Mundane doctors sit up and take notice.

Fast Healer:  Regeneration (1 BODY per Day) Real Cost: 4

Unaging
The Unaging Talent prevents a character from growing old or dying of age-related diseases They stop aging at the physical age of 18, or the age when the Unaging Talent was acquired.  Thus, an infant with Unaging will stop aging around 18 and never look older, whereas a 48 year old man who acquires it (possibly due to potion malfunction) will always look 48. Forever. Yay.

Unaging:  (Total: 30 Active Cost, 20 Real Cost) Life Support  (Immunity: All terrestrial diseases; Longevity: Immortal) (Real Cost: 10) plus Power Defense (20 points) (20 Active Points); Only Works Against Aging- and Time-Related Effects (-1) (Real Cost: 10)  Real Cost: 20

Undying
If you want the serious immortality offered by the Nicene Treatment, or the Jupiter Protocols, take Undying. Not only does it make you immune to diseases and aging, but as long as you keep your brain stem intact and connected to your heart, you can come back from the most grievous of injuries.

Undying:  (Total: 61 Active Cost, 51 Real Cost) Life Support  (Immunity: All terrestrial diseases; Longevity: Immortal) (Real Cost: 10) plus Power Defense (20 points) (20 Active Points); Only Works Against Aging- and Time-Related Effects (-1) (Real Cost: 10) plus Regeneration (1 BODY per 6 Hours), Can Heal Limbs, Resurrection (Real Cost: 31) Real Cost: 51

Ever-Living
This version of Immortality not only allows for protection from disease, aging, and the regeneration of damage, it can magically overcome bodily destruction. Limbs and heads removed by violence can be re-attached and function as normal. It is also faster than Undying.

Ever-Living:   (Total: 79 Active Cost, 69 Real Cost) Life Support  (Immunity: All terrestrial diseases; Longevity: Immortal) (Real Cost: 10) plus Power Defense (20 points) (20 Active Points); Only Works Against Aging- and Time-Related Effects (-1) (Real Cost: 10) plus Regeneration (3 BODY per Hour), Can Heal Limbs, Resurrection (Real Cost: 49) Real Cost 69

<Nero>

Hi, Christopher

</Nero>

Do you list somewhere the qualities of the magical materials you mention in your Treasure PDF on your website? Does the Fantasy Codex have this info? I'm buying it either way, but I thought I'd ask.

I would agree. That's why I'm trying to re-tool them with this Limitation.

Good Advice. I'll lower the Limitation.

So, something like this? (the +0 on Illusion Magic is not an error, just a reminder.

Phantasmic Fireball:  Killing Attack - Ranged 2d6, Illusion Magic (+0), Alternate Combat Value (uses OCV against DMCV; +1/4) (37 Active Points); Can Be Disbelieved (-2) Real Cost: 12

Obviously, if the caster was someone known to employ Illusions, there might be a bonus to the Breakout Roll, or would there even be one?

Say I want to make Illusionists cool again. Could I allow a Limitation on Powers like "Can Be Disbelieved" and "Illusion" to represent that the Powers aren't real, just weird, magical light, and that they all share a common special effect, that of Illusion Magic.  A target would get a Breakout Roll to defend against them. (or they might be required to target DMCV)

What sort of Limitation would that be? -1? -2? More?

Also, if this has been covered before, please direct me to that discussion, I'd love to read it.

My notes for Ravenna are getting kinda complex, so I thought I'd start sharing some of the content.  Certainly, especially in the case of victims of institutional abuse like the girls in the Magdalene Laundries, I do not mean to do anything but highlight where the evil in the mundane world hides. Ravenna is a place of Extradimensional Evil, to be sure, but ordinary humans can create horrors without casting spells. That's my intent, if I go too far, please tell me. 

Backgrounds
The following are a few ideas for characters who might want to fit into Ravenna by truly being part of its history. Each of these origins connects to “actual” events in the Ravenna timeline.

Asylum Survivor
Not too long ago, “fallen women” were confined to asylums to aid them in changing their ways.  The excesses of such places as the Magdalene Laundries in Dublin left scars that have not yet healed for some women.  The last of these nightmare factories was shuttered in 1996. The youngest of their victims is barely 30.  A female character having gone through her youth in such a place would have tales of physical abuse and black rituals.
This experience makes her strong, and might have given her knowledge of dark paths. She might be yet tempted to walk these paths, or she might fight her memories, taking battle to the demons and spirits that manifested in the asylums.
Take skills related to dark times, and talents like Resistance and Lightsleep. Complications involving physical abuse (or worse) would make up your psyche, and trust would come slowly, if at all. No apology is coming, and few care to hear your tales.

Black Schola Survivor
Your boarding school was magical, but this wasn't Hogwart's. The survivors of demon- or spirit-led Black Schola are frequently very strong people.  The schools exist to weed out mundanes from those youth who might be turned down the Dark Paths.  They often operated by demonologists or actual demons (Fairseemers or Deceivers, most likely).
You understand Demonology, and might have a Magic Skill related to it. At the very least, you have your memories of draconian discipline, nights spent screaming and the scent of rendered human fat. IT has hones you into a weapon, but who is your target?

Child of Ravenna
Lucky you. You were born in the hidden city of Ravenna. To your eyes the outside world is a dead, colorless place. It took many years to discover the joy to be lived in a mundane life. Perhaps you now live this simple existence, made just a bit easier by the application of a little covert magic.
You have access to all kinds of magic, but little understanding of the Realms of the Mundanes. A Physical Complication (Doesn’t Understand Mundane Culture) is almost certainly in order.

Mundane Upbringing
You were born into a family of non-wizards, but somehow obtained magical abilities. Perhaps, the magic skipped several generations from your Fae ancestor, and suddenly manifested in you. Perhaps that ancestor showed up one day, and you never saw home again.
Then again, maybe you have powers and don’t think that any other wizards exist. The discovery of others with power would have been joyous and terrifying all at once. For one, you aren’t the only freak on the streets, but then again, you find yourself in a strange new world just behind the curtain. Welcome home, kiddo.
Lastly, maybe you are just a normal, no frills HUMAN. No magic, no special powers, no strange ears! Just a barista, a welder, a truck driver or common criminal. Deal with this new world on human terms. Good luck.  
Don’t buy any magical skills that require understanding. No Knowledge Skills, or Skills relating to the Reality of Ravenna. Learn as you go, role playing your new life and being amazed at the least of magical occurrences.

Embodied Spirit
They found you covered in dirt and leaves. They cleaned you up, fed you and nursed you to health. But deep inside, you know you aren’t like these mundanes. The girl thinks you are easy to talk to, the one with the guns and muscles is suspicious of you, and the little guy with the glasses might be in love with you.  You aren’t sure. You’ve never been in love before.  That’s because you were until recently a spirit, wandering the astral. By some agency, you are now perfectly human. Well… perfectly human with animals following you around and lakes growing still at your approach. You have some purpose in this cold, colorless realm, what might it be?
Buy spirit powers and try to cope with the physical world. Try to remember the Astral and what “real life” was like.  Take Complications related to unfamiliarity and innocence. But ask the GM to buy you some secret powers you will discover as play progresses.

I admit it. This isn't much of a plotline as obscure social satire. It's a reason for PCs to go blow up some cultists. Oh, and there are not-so-subtle parody elements to it. I know I'm gonna take heat for even writing this, but it's lunchtime in Indy, and I was bored.  As some background, Ravenna is the name of my Urban Fantasy campaign, which features modern elements and crossworld fantasy tropes. Evil things lurk in both the city streets and the shadows of astral space.  The Yigothu are a race of astral slavers I nicked from GURPS Cabal.

Dark Dungeons: a Ravenna plotline
Marcie “Black Leaf” Anderson was a typical gamer girl. Her GM, Ms. Vandela Frost, is an evil, Yigothu-worhipping dark priestess. She is luring the kids in her group to the Yigothu via a game called Dark Dungeons.  Recently, her lead gamer/acolyte, Debbie “Elfstar” Morgan, has shown promise as a spellcaster. She plans on handing Debbie over to the astral-travelling, magic-hungry monsters as soon as the girl increases her power a bit further. The Yigothu prefer developed spell-casters over mere “promising” students of the Arts.

During the games, the players are exposed to minor occult secrets and strange astral energy. Playing the game is addicting as a result.  When Marcie blows a roll, Frost uses the event as an excuse to drive Marcie away, no need to waste dice of Mind Control on girls who won't ever be proper slaves to the Yigothu.

A friend of Marcie’s notices a change in her after she is ejected from Ms. Frost’s group, perhaps alerting the PCs at this point. Alternatively, the PCs can be alerted after Marcie’s suicide. The PCs can track Marcie down, learn of Ms. Frost’s misdeeds and would have to face not only a powerful cult leader, but the rest of the Dark Dungeon players. If the PCs are particularly potent, the cultists might summon a Yigothu to deal with the pesky player characters.

Timeline:
Marcie is ejected from the game after failing a poison save. Debbie treats her cruelly during the debacle.
Elfstar is initiated into the Yigothu cult, her powers grow rapidly.
Marcie becomes depressed, an effect of the withdrawal of the Yigothu emanations that took place during the game and her outcast status among her former “friends.” She hangs herself in her room from a particularly sturdy light fixture.
Elfstar freaks out and encounters the PCs. 

Players lock and load.

They interrupt game night in spectacular fashion.

How they deal with the authorities investigating a shoot-out in a high class neighborhood is their problem.

Thanks for the replies.

As it happens, I'm also using Cyber Hero for this purpose. I've done about 25000 words since March 2nd. I could share it if such a thing is desired. I'm not sure about copyrights on such old materials, however. I think 70 pages of conversions is a bit more than "Fair Use"

Some of the net programs are little more than an evocative name followed by "RKA DoT" or "Entangle" at this point.

So the last two days, I've been typing like a mad fool. Bringing Cyber Hero up to 6th Edition from 20 years ago. I'm at 38 pages and 14,353 words. I've a way to go....

I really want to include some kind of netrunning Tron-like action, with Powers as programs.  I could just translate the existing ones, but I'm keen to hear new methods... any thoughts?

I'm always coming up with game ideas, most of them go nowhere, but I had a weird one this morning that I thought I'd share. 

HERO System Kingdom rules. Each "Kingdom" is a Directorate in a Soviet-style government on a fictional recent-past (c.1956) Earthlike world. Each player is a Director of one of these Directorates.  Directors almost always rise to the position of Supreme Director of the Red Star Republic (Soviet Union, right?). Very few Supreme Directors were military heroes or the like.

Opposing the Red Star Republic is the People's Democratic Alliance (China) and Federated States of Placida (America).  The GM plays the PDA and the FSP (and all of their little satellite nations).  There are also a number of smaller power blocs who may or may not get involved. You also have to consider the actions of the Global Coalition - a union of nations who get together to avoid more World Wars like the first three that were so devastating.

What do players do? They direct. They order their apparatchiks to undertake various tasks, issue orders and...sometimes... meet in cold dark alleys with questionable persons to get things done covertly.

Phases are 3 months long, but once a year (or more often) the action becomes personal (you might have to shoot someone, or hand them something, and that doesn't take 3 months).

I have a plotline in my head, and some great character ideas for NPCs. 

So far, the Directorships up for grabs are these:

Communications - Oversees Media, Internal intelligence activities
Intelligence - Spying. External Intelligence
Agriculture - Feeding people and researching new means of food production
Red Star Military - Guns, tanks and planes
Research and Development - Science!
Other Directorships are probably available. Players can invent new ones and I'll decide whether they get used.

There are a number of interesting talents I've thought up, and clever maneuvers characters can use in their attempt to rise to the top of the Red Star.  There are other outcomes that I'm preparing for.

Names are in Russian, of course. My plan is for a 4 week run between 2600CE and Pathfinder.