New fire rpg

General/Looking For Group
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[color=#BF4000][size=170]NEW FIRE[/size][/color]

[size=129][color=#BF4000]Style:[/color] Narrative Pre-Columbian Meso-American Fantasy RPG.

[color=#BF4000]Synopsis:[/color]

The Flower Festival in Xochitlan (“Place of Flowers”; one of the three ruling cities) is held following the bloom of the Akokotli flowers (Tree Dahlia) in the Tonalsiwatl’s (“Sun Lady”; the Empress ) garden. These flowers blossom at a different time each year. The celebration begins as soon as they open and lasts five full days.

The Flower Festival is a celebration of art, beauty, and pleasure. It is sponsored by the goddess Kwekweponiwitl (Blooming Feather), patron of artists and lovers. The finest artisans, crafters, and musicians gather to share their best works and demonstrate to the goddess that her inspiration has been put to good use. They also seek to earn the attention of Tlatokay (Nobles) patrons for future work and gain respect and fame from ordinary people. Regardless of skill level, everybody who attends must bring an object of beauty.

Works of art are displayed in the Market for all to see. Admiration infuses the objects with life and adds to their magnificence. Flower Singers and musicians from all over the Empire perform, sharing their most precious dreams with the people.

Many of the traditional restrictions on sex and sensual indulgences are relaxed during the festival, allowing everyone to embrace the fleeting moment and seek unfettered joy. It is the most fun, exciting, and moving event of the year.
The beauty does not last long, however. At the end of the five days, all the pieces of art are taken into the Sacred Precinct and sacrificed to Kwekweponiwitl (Blooming Feather) to show gratitude for the joy she brings. All the adoration the objects received goes back to her so she will continue to provide beauty and inspiration to the world.

In addition to objects, sometimes the artists and singers volunteer themselves as sacrifices. They live for five days as gods, adored and worshipped by the attendees and given the opportunity to share anything they wish. It is a moment of unparalleled glory for the artists, an opportunity to display their greatest works before an infinitely appreciative audience. But then, at the end of the festival, the artists are sacrificed by having their wrists opened. If the artist is a singer or musician, he or she is allowed to perform from the top of Kwekweponiwitl’s temple until dead. If the artist is a crafter or sculptor, he or she works until dropping. Many great artists have died at the Flower Festival of Xochitlan, ending their careers in glory rather than retiring.
It is the ideal finale to a life spent in pursuit of beauty.

[color=#BF4000]Setting:[/color] Semanawak (“Land Between the Waters”) … a fantasy country inspired by the Aztec and the Maya.
[color=#BF4000]Characters:[/color] … are all very busy during the Flower Festival.

[color=#BF4000]System:[/color] NEW FIRE [pregenerated characters]
[color=#BF4000]Dice:[/color] several D10[/size]

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[color=#BF4000][size=130]Core Mechanics[/size][/color]

A great deal of New Fire is just talking. You describe what you want your character to do, and you say what you want your character to say. The Giver then responds, anwering questions and describing how the world reacts. The other Players may respond as well. You then respond to their responses, and through this process a story emerges.

If the Giver and the other Players consent to the direction you want to take things, the story continues without interruption. But if somebody wishes to Challenge your narrative, we turn to the Dice.

[color=#BF4000][size=120]The Basic Idea[/size][/color]

Each time there is a Challenge to someone’s narrative the Player takes a certain number of 10 sided dice and Throws them (rolls them). The exact number of dice depends on your character details and the situation, which we’ll get to in just a bit. The Giver never rolls dice in Challenges—only the Player rolls.

Each die will show a number 1-10. You then choose up to 3 of them to Hold (usually you will want to Hold the dice that roll the highest values, but not always). The values displayed on the Held dice are added together to determine your Result for the roll.

The Result of the roll is compared to a Target Number (referred to as a ‘TN’), a value that represents the minimum Result necessary to retain at least some narrative control over the outcome of the Challenge. The TN for most rolls is 20, but certain things may raise or lower this value.

The basic idea is that the fewer dice it takes you to equal or exceed the TN, the greater your narrative control over the situation.

[color=#BF4000][size=120]Outcomes[/size][/color]

There are 4 outcomes for a roll in New Fire:

If you make (equal or exceed) the TN by Holding just 1 die, you achieve what is called a Dawn Roll—you, the Player, get complete narrative control over the outcome of the challenge.

If you make the TN by Holding 2 dice, you achieve a Noon Roll—you, the Player, get narrative control of the outcome, but must incorporate/abide by a Condition set by the Giver.

If you make the TN by Holding 3 dice, you achieve a Dusk Roll—the Giver gets narrative control of the outcome, but you, the Player, may set a Condition that the Giver must incorporate/abide by.

If you cannot equal or exceed the TN even by Holding 3 dice, you achieve a Night Roll—the Giver gets complete narrative control of the outcome.

[color=#BF4000][size=120]The Flowery Death[/size][/color]

The Giver can never kill a player character, not even if the Player throws a Night Roll, nor can one Player narrate the death of another Player’s character. You can be bruised and battered and scarred for life, robbed of wealth and dignity, and wounded in body, mind, and soul. But the only one who can narrate the death of your character is You.

This rule is very important. New Fire is not a game about trying to avoid death—you will see in a bit that dying the Flowery Death, dying in a meaningful and glorious way, is in fact the ultimate goal. New Fire is a game about facing death in a world that requires death to renew it. It is inevitable—your character will have to die eventually, or the game will end. But only you can choose when and how your character meets his or her end.

Make it a death to be proud of, one that people will remember for ages to come!

quoted from the NEW FIRE Blog - link

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[color=#BF4000][size=130]Themes[/size][/color]

Themes are words or short phrases that describe Narrative Elements about a person, object, or situation. What do we mean by Narrative Elements? Narrative elements are things that are ‘narratively active,’ that affect how a story unfolds. This is in contrast to simple descriptions, things that describe the situation but do not actively change it. The best way to illustrate is by example:

Take the character Han Solo from Star Wars. One Theme this character might possess is ‘Pig-Headed.’ He is over-confident, thoughtless, and prone to acting and speaking without thinking. It comes up multiple times in each movie, and it has a definite affect on how the story unfolds.

For example, while on board the Death Star in A New Hope, Han bellows and charges a group of Storm Troopers, which temporarily works—they run away from him because they’re not used to people actually fighting back and his boldness surprises and frightens them, allowing everyone else to get away. But soon after, he chases them into a corner, which forces them to rally and start shooting back, putting him in a tough situation! In Empire Strikes Back, Han recklessly rides out into the snowstorm to look for Luke when everybody else is too afraid and tells him he is insane—in this case, his Pig-Headedness ends up helping, because he is able to rescue his friend from certain death. But then, when talking to Leia back at the base, his careless words end up offending her and driving her away.

What differentiates a Theme from a simple description is that a Theme has a definite effect on the story. For instance, Han Solo has brown hair, is about 6 feet tall, wears a vest and boots, and has a voice in the baritone range. These are descriptions, because none of these things have any impact on the story—Han’s hair color doesn’t help him out of a jam, or get him into one in the first place. The story would be the same whether his hair was brown, blonde, red, or purple.

Han is also very handsome—this could be a Theme for some characters (for example, James Bond’s handsomeness is definitely a Theme—it affects his stories all the time), but for Han Solo it really isn’t. He never uses his good looks to charm or seduce someone, nor do his good looks attract any trouble. That doesn’t mean that James Bond is handsome while Han Solo isn’t. It means that James Bond’s handsomeness is an active part of his character, while Han’s is simply a description.

[color=#BF4000][size=130]Fortune Points[/size][/color]

In order to use Themes, you must spend Fortune Points. Fortune Points are a resource that allow you to Call Up (introduce) a Theme into the situation in order to help you achieve greater narrative control. Themes and Fortune Points are closely related—in order to use a Theme you must spend a Fortune Point, and in order to benefit from a Fortune Point you must incorporate a Theme.

For each Fortune Point spent/Theme Called Up, you may throw an additional die on a roll. You can only call up each Theme once per roll, but you can spend multiple Fortune Points to call up multiple Themes on the same roll. You may do this after you have already thrown your skill dice during the Challenge—for example, you could roll your skill dice, check the Result, then spend a Fortune Point/Theme to throw another die, check the Result, then spend another Fortune Point/Theme to throw another die, and so on.

You may also spend Fortune Points to introduce Themes into a situation without a roll—for instance, if you have the Theme ‘Friends in High Places’ you may simply spend a Fortune Point to say that as you walk through the street of a strange city you encounter an old friend from years ago, who simply happens to be in the area at that time.

Eventually you will run out of Fortune Points. In order to get them back, you must voluntarily call up a Theme as a Hardship—you must use a Theme to make the situation more difficult for your character. Doing this increases the TN of a roll by 5, or introduces a significant problem into an unchallenged narrative. Each time you do this it refreshes your store of Fortune Points back up to your normal maximum.

quoted from the NEW FIRE Blog - link

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Note that this is just a One Shot for the Thursdays Indie Group and not a new RPG campaign!

I will post the pregenerated characters tomorrow.
(if anyone, who has the New Fire Core rules, wants to create her own character - feel free to do so :sunglasses:)

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Very interesting! I take it this is one of those fabled indie games that I’ve heard so much about? I like it!

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In.

7

Same.

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InSame

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Like I stated in the thread next door: I’m interested too.

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got a max number of players in mind for this one?

I’m interested to join if still possible.

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aww damnit. wanted to get in for this as soon as i saw the thread this morning but since only neill had replied i figured there was no rush. damn.

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[quote=“Auburney”]got a max number of players in mind for this one?

I’m interested to join if still possible.[/quote]
I guess I could handle up to 6 players.

If there is a 7th one without any group on that day, I will hope, that I will be able to manage that too.

I perpared the following 9 PCs to choose from:

Note:

activating a Stat or a Theme costs one Fortune Point

  • a Stat gives you a Dicepool equal to the Stat
  • a Theme grants you a Dicepool of 3 dice

Power Themes are activated differently (no Fortune Point cost)

  • and grant you a Dicepool of 5 dice
  • additionally you can narrate superantural effects!
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[size=120]TACELEL (“Greatest Male Warrior”)
THE EAGLE WARRIOR[/size]

“The greatness of a Warrior comes from the greatness of those
he leads.”

FORCE: 3, AGILITY: 3, ENDURANCE 1;
PERSUASION: 1, DECEPTION: 3, PERFORM: 3;
LORE: 1, DIVINATION: 1; MEDICINE: 1;
CRAFT: 1;

Themes:
“Seek Truth To Justify My Venegance” (Passion)
“The Skull Of My Father” (Equipment)
“Take Venegance For The Death Of My Father” (Source of Strength)
“Talkative Loon” (Reputation/Demeanor)
“Respected Warhero” (Community)
“Seize The Moment, Or Fail Miserably” (Horoscope)
“Mummy Issues” (Background)
“Blood As Hot As The Surface Of The Sun” (Exceptional Ability)
“Indecisive Leader” (Core Concept)
“Struggling With Decisions” (Disadvantage)

Power Themes:
Movement, Vision & Leadership

Note:

A respected Warhero, who helped defend a treaturous pass against the Kakayawani (ancient enemy). Rumor has it, that he will receive a beautiful metal for his acomplishments at the last day of the festival.
It should be a glorious time for him … but there are other things on his mind.

His father was killed and died an unglorious death. Tacelel suspects a prestigious relative, but he is troubled by doubts.

He likes to play the “talkative loon” to coax others into revealing to much … maybe in that way Tacelel could confirm the suspect … or find the real culprit.

Think of him as Hamlet the Eagle Warrior

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[size=120]ICHTACA (“Secret”)
THE JAGUAR WARRIOR[/size]

“The greatness of a Warrior comes from the greatness of his deeds.”

FORCE: 3, AGILITY: 3, ENDURANCE 1;
PERSUASION: 1, DECEPTION: 3, PERFORM: 1;
LORE: 3, DIVINATION: 1; MEDICINE: 1;
CRAFT: 1;

Themes:
“Justice Must Be Served” (Passion)
“Your Personal Macahuitl (Obsidian Spiked Wooden Sword)” (Equipment)
“Fight For What Is Right” (Source of Strength)
“My Name Is Nobody” (Reputation/Demeanor)
“You Know The Backalleys Of Your City” (Community)
“You Were Born Ready” (Horoscope)
“Former Thief” (Background)
“Smell Lies” (Exceptional Ability)
“Detective Assassin” (Core Concept)
“Mysterious Nemesis” (Disadvantage)

Power Themes:
Darkness, Deception & Destruction

Note:

As a young noble Ichtaca was reckless and started to steal out of the thrill and boredom.
Finally he was cought - but the old Jaguar Warrior gave him a chance to use his talents for the good of the Empire.
After many years of hard training the old Jaguar Warrior sacrificed himself in the heat of combat against an unknown “mysterious criminal” - since then it is the duty of Ichtaca to monitor the canals of Xochitlan.
As a true Jaguar Warrior, Ichtaca does neither claim the glory nor the fame of his deeds. He tries to operate in silence and discretion.

Lately he found hints that the “mysterious criminal” has returned. With the upcoming Flower Festival Ichtaca is vigilant as never before.

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[size=120]ACHCAUHTLI (“Leader”)
THE SCREAMING ONE[/size]

“The greatness of a Warrior comes from the greatness of her opponents.”

FORCE: 4, AGILITY: 2, ENDURANCE: 2;
PERSUASION: 3, DECEPTION: 1, PERFORM: 1;
LORE: 1, DIVINATION: 1; MEDICINE: 2;
CRAFT: 1;

Themes:
“Might Makes Right” (Passion)
“An Obsidian Ritual Knife With A Winged Snake Motive” (Equipment)
“Ax Crazy In Love” (Source of Strength)
“Respected Leader” (Reputation/Demeanor)
“A Real Warrior Is A Killer” (Community)
“You Will Give Birth To The Ultimate Warrior” (Horoscope)
“In Love With Carnage” (Background)
“Vicious Temptress” (Exceptional Ability)
“Social Darwinist” (Core Concept)
“Deadly Silbling Rivalry” (Disadvantage)

Power Themes:
Fear, Fire & Strength

Note:

When Achcauhtli was born, an old flower priestess prophesied, that she will give birth to the ultimate warrior.
This has been on her mind since she can remember.
She trained to become one of Semanawak’s best shock troopers - were else could she find the perfect mate? - but she never found her soulmate …
… until the Flower Festival of Xochitlan.

Inspiration was Citra from Far Cry 3

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[size=120]NECAHUAL (“Survivor”)
THE SHORN ONE[/size]

“The greatness of a Warrior comes from the greatness of what she fights for.”

FORCE: 3, AGILITY: 2, ENDURANCE 4;
PERSUASION: 1, DECEPTION: 1, PERFORM: 1;
LORE: 1, DIVINATION: 1; MEDICINE: 2;
CRAFT: 1;

Themes:
[b]“To Create Something Lasting” /b
“Your Personal Tepoztopili (Halbert-Like With A Left-Side Head)” (Equipment)
“Family” (Source of Strength)
“Wears Her Scars With Pride” (Reputation/Demeanor)
“Sole Survivor Of A Village-Massacre” (Community)
“Your Children Will Be Your Legacy” (Horoscope)
“I’ve Seen Worse” (Background)
“Determined To Survive” (Exceptional Ability)
“Maimed Warrior” (Core Concept)
“Crushed Because You Cannot Get Pregnant” (Disadvantage)

Power Themes:
Pain, Fatigue & Serenity

Note:

When Necahual was a small child, disaster struck her village (choose anything you like). Only she survived - barely. Warriors from the House of the Shorn Ones realised, that this is a sign and indoctrinated her.

Coming of age Necahual began to struggle with her identity as a warrior. Warriors are “destroyers” , but as a woman she is a “creator”.
(that’s why ~70% of the warriors are male)
Things got worse, when she travelled to the Flower Priests to get her horoscope. When they told her, that her “Children will be her Legacy” - she was shocked!
Because of the wounds, she endured as a child, Necahual will never be able to give birth to children.
Her horoscope only fuled her identity crisis …

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I will post the other 5 characters (3 priests & 2 nawal sorcerers) later in the night :nerd:

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Pretty nice so far! gotta say i’m not a fan of warrior women for the most part but i guess concessions must be made. BTW, i find it quite amusing that the “greatest” warrior has less force than the leading lady. :laughing:

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[size=120]XICOHTENCATL (“Angry Bumblebee”)
THE FLOWER PRIEST[/size]

FORCE: 2, AGILITY: 1, ENDURANCE: 1;
PERSUASION: 4, DECEPTION: 3, PERFORM: 2;
LORE: 2, DIVINATION: 1; MEDICINE: 1;
CRAFT: 1;

Themes:
“Political City-State Affairs” (Passion)
“Beautiful Hat” (Equipment)
“Lust For Power” (Source of Strength)
“Glorious Leader” (Reputation/Demeanor)
“Priviledged Upbringing” (Community)
“Hoist By Your Own Petard” (Horoscope)
“The Enemy Of My Enemy Is My Friend” (Background)
“Kick Them While They Are Down” (Exceptional Ability)
“Manipulative Worldy Priest” (Core Concept)
“Your Overconfidence Is Your Weakness” (Disadvantage)

“Carried Gods” / Power Themes:

Weysitlalin (Great Star)

  • Healing, Words, and Light
    Teoxotlani (Lighter of the Sacred Flame)
  • Fire, Leadership, and Blood
    Kwekweponiwitl (Blooming Feather)
  • Beauty, Creation, and Death

Note:

Xicohtencatl comes from a line of prestigious Flower Priests, but his lust for influence & power is even greater then his religious fervor. Although he aims to rise through the ranks, he still follows the best interest for Xochitlan - his city.
He is more of an politician then a priest, but since Flower Priests often act as magistrates - it is a role that suits him well, and since he does his job so well, his position is pretty secure.
Xicohtencatl is a divine gardener and his city Xochitlan is the flower he cares about. He will minister it and will ensure, that it will bloom as long as he is its caretaker.

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[size=120]PATLI (“Medicine”)
THE DRUNKEN PRIESTESS[/size]

FORCE: 1, AGILITY: 1, ENDURANCE: 2;
PERSUASION: 1, DECEPTION: 3, PERFORM: 1;
LORE: 4, DIVINATION: 2; MEDICINE: 3;
CRAFT: 1;

Themes:
“Find The Truth” (Passion)
“Small Amphora Of Oktli (Pulque; an Alcoholic Drink)” (Equipment)
“Unhealthy Curiosity” (Source of Strength)
“Revels In Filth” (Reputation/Demeanor)
“Educated Upbringing” (Community)
[b]“Sin Has Many Tools, But A Lie Is The Handle Which Fits Them All” /b
“Was Prosecuted For Adultery Once” (Background)
“Read Emotions” (Exceptional Ability)
“Sin-Eater Priestess” (Core Concept)
“Haunted By The Sins You Have Eaten” (Disadvantage)

“Carried Gods” / Power Themes:

Ometochtli (2 Rabbit)

  • Fire, Water, and Truth
    Tlakwepa (Vomit Eater)
  • Filth, Truth, and Healing
    Tlayomixtli (Night Cloud)
  • Illusion, Creation, and Fire

Note:

Patli comes from an allied city - Tlatlahako (“Place of Burning Water”) - in the north east.
There the Drunken Priest are in charge. The city is famous for its Oktli (Pulque), whch is delivered in large quantities to Xochitlan for the upcoming Flower Festival.
Oktli (Pulque) has the effect that is opens the mind for the spirit realm. This can also be dangerous - and there are numerous stories of people who have consumed to much and live their lives as beggars, unable to work - since they are possessed by evil spirits.
Since the Drunken Priests search for truth - Patli, who was always a curious individual, was naturally drawn to them.
Since she seems to share a special connection to the goddess Tlakwepa (“Vomit Eater”), her primary sacred duty is to be a “Sin-Eater”. She goes to those, who will die soon and they confess their sins to her - so they can die in peace.
As a side effect, Patli became haunted by the sins, she has accumulated in all these years.

For the Flower Festival her duty is to ensure that the Oktli (Pulque) arrives at its destination - she feels not quite happy in Xochitlan, since she remembers vividly, that she was prosecuted for adultery not too long ago.
Thankfully, after a “gift” of a lot of Oktli (Pulque) the officials dropped all charges.
(you can make this part of her backstory up as you want)