Some more new illustrations

I had a productive mini-vacation and got some new illustrations done.

A Venator and its Unlucky Victim

Imo has a bad day

A Celestial Healer provides succor to the wounded

Escaping a Tirak!

Almost Done! Here's the Free Introductory Rules!

I have completed principal work on the free introductory version of Exiled in Eris, the new alternative version of Swords of Cydoria. I've made many changes to the history and setting, mostly changing many names and changing some geopolitical stuff that has nothing to do with how the game is played and doesn't really affect the player characters.

So anyway, here's the free downloadable version of Exiled in Eris. It's a free taste to get you hooked when I release the PDF on Drivethru and Lulu.

The full version will include setting info, detail on the city of Acik Sehir and the local surroundings, a new adventure, GM advice, lots of creatures and opponents, and artifacts!

After that, I'll convert my previous adventures. Then I'll start working on two sourcebooks: one for Ta'Oudh and Psychomancy and one for Zephyrs and vehicle.

I welcome your review and feedback.

Cydoria vs. Numenera vs. Chronicles of Future Earth

A few months ago, I compared Swords of Cydoria and Numenera. After having played Numenera, I would like to append that earlier post and also include a comparison to another BRP sourcebook: Chronicles of Future Earth by Sarah Newton.

Chronicles of Future Earth is Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun. It's weird. It's incredibly ancient. It feels medieval and old yet also weird and gothic at the same time. It's Jack Vance and Frank Herbert. Chronicles explores themes of decadence and decay and corruption. It also falls more on the fantasy side of science-fantasy.

Swords of Cydoria is Flash Gordon meets Chris Wooding's Ketty Jay series by way of French comics. Cydoria explores themes of imperialism and political power and social class structure. It's also more dieselpunk with a dash of pulp adventure and seventies sci-fi. Cydoria falls more on the science side of science-fantasy. It also depends on where you are in the setting. The City-States are the film Metropolis. The deserts of Eris are American Westerns and Firefly. Everywhere in between is good old Swords and Sorcery with blasters.

Numenera, however, is much more transhumanist, more avant-garde. It is definitely weird, but not in a gothic way. It also feels like a French comic book mixed with anime. It is based more on digital concept art paintings than on literary precedents, I think. In my opinion, there is no strong thematic thread to Numenera, no central gravity pulling it together. It is more patchwork and episodic. One thing I've noticed reading and playing Numenera is that you never see the same thing twice. Everything feels unique, or only found in a small region and nowhere else, which is what contributes to the patchwork feeling I get from the setting.

Personally, I like all three. Each provides a different take and has a different feel.

Chronicles feels more literary.
Cydoria feels more pulpy and cinematic.
Numenera feels more avant-garde and anime.

More Art: Vark Slaver, Terror-Cactus, a Wrinkled Cave Rat, and a Malusian Guard

A Vark Slaver and its Helpless Captive

A Deadly Terror-Cactus!

A Wrinkled Cave Rat

Malusian Guard

Phanosians

Phanos

Phanos is a rocky world roughly the same size as Uruta. The world is a humid hothouse of biodiversity. The world consists of a several large island-continents and thousands of chains of smaller islands of every possible size scattered over a warm planetary ocean. The four continental regions are Phota, Itar, Lada, and Baga. 

Phota is a large island-continent located along the equator and is the most heavily populated and technologically advanced region on the world. The Photans are currently the most influential culture on Phanos. The islands of Phota are covered in lush jungles to the south and arid deserts to the north.

East of Phota is another group of islands called Baga, named after the largest island of the region. The island of Baga is a land of forests to the east and savanna plains to the west.

North and west of Phota is the mountainous continent of Itar, a cool temperate region covered in forests. Itar is home to a second advanced human culture. The Itarans are a peaceful, spiritual people.

Half a world away due south of Itar is Lada, south and west of Phota. Lada is a labyrinth of islands and channels. The islands of Lada are covered in tropical rainforests. The largest island is dominated by a tall circular plateau known as the Kezzo Pettania. Kezzo Pettania is home to a race of non-human intelligent beings called yamas. Kezzo Pettania is abundantly rich in zephyrium, the result of ancient asteroid collisions. This supply has made Phanos a major interplanetary power.

All three cultures of Phanos, the Photans, Itarans, and Kezzo Pettanians, live in peaceful co-existence and each contributes to the government, defense, and prosperity of the entire world.

Phanos is protected by a defensive field similar to the Oudh of Uruta. This field prevents a full-scale invasion. Over the past five hundred years, the Rhakadians have attempted multiple times to bypass the defensive field and invade the world. Phanos has thus far thwarted every attempt through the combined efforts of the Phanosian intelligence and counter-espionage agency known as the Hand of Fate and the Phanosian military forces known as the Spear of Destiny and the Shield of Achilles. Many agents from the Phanosian espionage agency known as the Hand of Fate have been deployed to thwart Rhakadian operations on Uruta.

Photan

The dominant culture of the planet Phanos

The planet Phanos is home to four distinct cultures: the Itarans, the Kezzo Petanians, and the Photans. Most Phanosians encountered on Uruta are Photans. Located on the equator of Phanos, the continent of Phota is the largest land mass on the planet with terrain ranging from deserts to mountains to cool highland rain forests. Photans are the most technologically and culturally advanced culture on Phanos. It was the Photans that set forth the principles that created the world government known as the Phanosian Alliance.

The people of Phota are friendly and inquisitive. They are well educated and idealistic. Phota is a liberal permissive society that believes in universal rights for all intelligent beings. They also believe that it is the obligation of society to help those who cannot help themselves. The Photan people are encouraged to pursue individual social and professional ambitions and to express themselves openly and freely. Phota possesses a sophisticated level of technology which is freely available to all the people of Phanos.

When contact was made with the people of Uruta, the Phanos ian Alliance was delighted that the world once shrouded in mystery was opening up and ready to join the interplanetary neighborhood. Reaction turned to dismay when it was learned that the Rhakadian League had established exclusive contact and trade.

Phanosian Alliance agents were soon able to make contact with other factions on Uruta. The Alliance found a kindred spirit with the Demetrians and a partnership was soon formed. The Phanosian Alliance Space Force recognized the strategic advantage in denying the Rhakadian League its prize. They helped the Demetrians, supplied them with weapons and training, though careful not to over-shock the primitive world with technologies not already introduced by the Rhakadian League. The strategy was working and the war against the Vrildarian Empire was going well for Demetria and its allies.

Unfortunately, the Rhakadian League established a total blockade of Uruta and the Phanosian Alliance was not willing to risk a full-scale war over the world. The Alliance was forced to abandon their military support operations there. The withdrawal was devastating to Demetria.

Ruler: Phota is a part of the Phanosian Alliance, a constitutional democracy governed by a parliament of nations with elected representatives from every island and continent. The current prime minister is Hilea of Atarra, a middle-aged woman of unsurpassed intelligence with a noble bearing and an icy glare.

Race(s): Phanosian.

Appearance: Photans are Phanosians and are so similar to humans that one may easily pass for the other. Photans vary in skin color from pale to brown. Their hair can be yellow, brown, or black and can be straight or wavy.

Dress: Photans in the military of the Phanosian Alliance wear white form-fitting uniforms with colored trim and white helmets. The color of the trim indicates a service branch within the military, for example gold for command, red for engineering, blue for science, green for medical, etc.

Language(s): Photans speak their own language but also speak Phanosian. Photan agents generally learn an Urutan language when serving undercover.

Professions: Special agents of the Phanosian Alliance Space Force risk their lives to sneak past the blockade in order to support the efforts of the Demetrian resistance. These agents work undercover on the planet, fomenting dissent and revolt, supplying resistance fighters with weapons, technology, and training, and undertaking missions against Rhakadian operations. These agents face great danger. Their very presence on Uruta is a Imperial crime punishable by death.

Religions: In ages past, Photans worshipped personifications of natural and spiritual forces as gods. Today, most Photans are atheists and worship no gods. Instead, teachings, discussions, dialogues, and debates about philosophical and moral concepts are held in open forums.

Favored Weapons: They are generally armed with beam pistols.

Favored Armor: Special agents of the Phanosian Alliance Space Force wear protective mesh vests and are equipped with personal force field belts.

Cultural Skills: Photans value and encourage polite interaction and intelligent debate. The skills of etiquette and persuasion are therefore ingrained from a young age. Photans also encourage science and knowledge. Choose any two of the following: Etiquette +20%; Persuasion +20%; Knowledge (any) +20%; Science (any) +20%.

Items: Most Photans carry an amulet that can project a holographic image of a loved one.

Common Male Names: Genesis Tega, Cole Vash

Common Female Names: Atarra Ntandu, Pira Satay

Phanosian

Phanosians are humans from the alien world of Phanos.

Appearance

Like Urutan humans, Phanosians are racially and physically diverse. They are considered tall by Cydorian standards but are otherwise identical and a Phanosian can easily pass for an Urutan.

Behavior

Phanosians share the same wide range of behavioral traits and proclivities as humans from Uruta, though some generalities can be made based on cultural background. The majority of Phanosians encountered on Uruta hail from the Photan cultural background.

Phanosian Player Characters

Most Phanosians on Uruta are espionage agents providing aid to the Demetrian Resistance.

Characteristic        Roll                         Average

STR                        2D6+5                    12

CON                      2D6+5                    12

SIZ                         2D6+6                    13

INT                        2D6+7                    14

POW                      2D6+6                    13

DEX                       2D6+6                    13

APP                        2D6+7                    14

Redistribute up to 3 points between your characteristics. No characteristic may be higher than 22.

Powers: Phanosians may spend power points on Fate. They may also create and use potions without restriction. They cannot learn psi-magic, or Ta’oudh.

 

Even More New Artwork

Here's a drawing I just finished less than twenty seconds ago for the wilderness survival chapter.

The Drifter in the Desert

And here are a few more new ones.

Sword of the King showing a Warrant

Katari Assassin

More new artwork

Here are some more illustrations from the new edition.

Oculus Mercenary

Artifact Hunter

Bula-Kaa

Wooly Munglor

Production Update and some Artwork

I've been working away at the layout, doing one thing then changing my mind and re-doing most of the whole thing, then changing my mind again. I would say that the core book with the new rules system: Swords of Cydoria, is 95% complete. I'm doing some new illustrations and tweaking some layout stuff. Then I'll re-do the index and it will be finished.

I've also started writing a source-book/adventure called Exiled in Eris, which is a kind of sandbox setting. I'm moving "the City in the Mirage" adventure over to that source book, plus including a lot more information on the region of Eris and a new town/adventure location called Acik-Sehir. After that I'll convert the Blade of Takshaka to the new system. Then my plan is to write Sorcerers of Cydoria, a source-book for "magic" and supernatural powers.

Fans of the original BRP monograph should be aware: I'm making some setting changes. Most of the changes are cosmetic. For example, I'm changing the names of a lot of things.

• Nazarians  are now Aeonians
• Xoog are now Caste-Spawn
• Jinx are now Factotums
• Brux are now Drudges
• Orix are now Myrmidons
• Added a new race called the Savants
• Arus is now Eris
• Biomancers are now Terat
• Biomancy is now Teratology
• Daka are now Dakazi
• Capridians are now Bakiri
• Zorin is now Xurin

Other things are to the backstory.

• "Earth was hit by rogue planetoid" has been replaced with "Sdara Vatra merged our universe with a parallel universe", which conveniently allows me to have contradicting timelines and mysterious things that never existed in our universe yet are ancient, plus floating mountains and ancient serpent-men!
• "Nazaria was a human empire with genetically engineered slaves" has been replaced with "Aeonians were all genetically engineered" which gives the "Caste-Spawn" as they are now called more of a sense of society and history than that of freed slaves.
• There are now two kinds of Cyberdroids: the good Ohnans and the evil Nilians.
• Aya are now split into the good/neutral spirit-like Aya and the evil demonic Vards. 
• Feral Xoogs are now Hordelings.

And to tide you over until I'm done, I'll be sharing some of the new artwork.

Cyberdroid Nilian Deathstalker

Production Update, 2/20/14

I've been in layout mode for several weeks, playing with several options. My current plan is to release the core rule-book with minimal setting info for free then sell the various source books. The first source book will be Exiled in Eris, which will be a region resource, sandbox campaign, and adventure.

In the meantime, here's a cover mock-up I put together today. This is not the final product. It's too low-res, but it was fun.

Dan's review on RPG.Net and the RPG Site

Dan's review has been shared on RPG.Net and the RPG Site.

Read them. Comment on them. I look forward to seeing people's feedback and comments. And I am humbled by Dan's great review.

For those new visitors who have just learned of my little game world, there are lots of introductory and supplementary materials for Swords of Cydoria here on this blog.

In addition, I'm working on a new non-BRP edition which will update the setting a little. Most of the changes are an attempt to distance my product from four other excellent games that share similar themes and common inspiration: Numenera, Tales of Future Earth, the Secret of Zir'An, and Encounter Critical.

The Hardboiled GMshoe's Office: [Review] Swords of Cydoria

The Hardboiled GMshoe's Office: [Review] Swords of Cydoria: Introduction The name’s Davenport. I review games. So the other day I'm walkin' to the office when a beaked purple four-armed gor...