Monday, March 31, 2014

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.

 



Thursday, March 27, 2014

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

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

More new artwork

Here are some more illustrations from the new edition.
Oculus Mercenary
Artifact Hunter

Bula-Kaa


Wooly Munglor


Thursday, March 20, 2014

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