Monograph #411 - BRP - Swords of Cydoria.pdf

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Swords of Cydoria
A Setting and Adventure for Basic Role-Playing
Written and Illustrated by Christian Conkle
Proofread and Edited by Christa Cloninger
Swords of Cydoria
Contents
Chapter One: Introduction ...................................................3
Setting................................................................................... 3.
Premise................................................................................. 4
Glossary................................................................................ 5
Chapter Two: Creating a Character.......................................8
BRP.Character.Generation.Options....................................... 8
Step.One:.Select.a.Premise................................................... 8
.
Step.Two:.Choose.a.Character.Concept................................ 9
Step.Three:.Choose.a.Cultural.Background......................... 10
Step.Four:.Choose.a.Race.and.Generate.Statistics.............. 30
Step.Five:.Determine.Characteristic.Rolls............................ 38
Step.Six:.Determine.Derived.Characteristics....................... 38
Step.Seven:.Determine.Personality..................................... 38
Step.Eight:.Choose.a.Profession.......................................... 38
Step.Nine:.Purchase.Skills................................................... 46
Step.Ten:.Choose.Starting.Equipment................................. 49
Step.Eleven:.Name,.Personality.and.Appearance............... 49
Chapter Three: Equipment and Technology........................50
Cydorian.Technology........................................................... 50
Alien.Technology................................................................. 51
Equipment.Lists................................................................... 54
New.Weapons..................................................................... 63
New.Vehicles....................................................................... 64
Aero-Ships........................................................................... 65
Imperial.Bureaucracy.......................................................... 71
Building.and.Modifying.Equipment. ................................... 74
.
Chapter Four: Powers ........................................................77
Fate..................................................................................... 77
Biomancy............................................................................ 77.
Psi-Magic............................................................................ 79
Ta’oudh............................................................................... 80
Chapter Five: The History of Cydoria ..................................88
The.Nazarians..................................................................... 88
The.City-States.of.Cydoria................................................... 89
The.War.of.Unification........................................................ 91
The.Current.State.of.Affairs. ............................................... 92
.
Chapter Six: The World of Uruta ........................................93
The.Peninsula.of.Baadria.................................................... 93.
The.Cydorian.Peninsula....................................................... 94
Markania............................................................................ 99
Central.Markania.............................................................. 100
Western.Markania............................................................ 101
Northern.Markania........................................................... 103
Southern.Markania........................................................... 103
Chapter Seven: The Society of Cydoria .............................104
The.Vrildarian.Empire....................................................... 105
The.Imperial.Court............................................................ 106
Law.and.Order.................................................................. 108
The.Imperial.Military........................................................ 109
The.Inquisition.................................................................. 110
Cydorian.Science............................................................... 110
Social.Class........................................................................ 111
Slavery.............................................................................. 111
Chapter Eight: Secret Societies.........................................113
The.Black.Market.............................................................. 113
Demetrian.Resistance....................................................... 114
The.Guardians.of.Adhara.................................................. 115
The.Hidden.Hand.............................................................. 116
The.Katari.Assassins.Guild................................................ 117
The.Octavium.................................................................... 117
The.Oculus........................................................................ 118
The.Pirates.of.Dazumi....................................................... 119
Psi-Mages.of.Sarkaan....................................................... 119
The.Society.of.the.Twin.Serpents...................................... 120
Swords.of.the.King............................................................ 120
Techno-Heretics................................................................ 120
Chapter Nine: Alien Worlds and Cultures .........................122
Alien.Contact..................................................................... 122
The.Inner.Worlds............................................................... 123
The.Belt............................................................................. 124
The.Outer.Worlds.............................................................. 124
Chapter Ten: Allies and Opponents ..................................125
Human.NPCs..................................................................... 125.
Non-Human.NPCs............................................................. 132
Other.Creatures................................................................ 143
Dangerous.Environments.................................................. 153
Chapter Eleven: Gamemaster’s Guide ..............................157
Premise............................................................................. 157.
Themes............................................................................. 161
.
Genre................................................................................ 162
Meta-Plots........................................................................ 163
The.Secret.History.of.the.Sdara.Vatra............................... 164
Motivations.and.Rewards................................................. 167
Artifacts............................................................................ 168
Chapter Twelve: The City in the Mirage ...........................176
Background....................................................................... 176
Scene.1:.the.Expedition.is.Assembled............................... 176
Scene.2:.Journey.to.Arus................................................... 181
Scene.3:.Welcome.to.Sweetwater..................................... 182
Scene.4:.Expedition.Day.One............................................ 188
Scene.5:.Decisions.to.Make............................................... 190
Scene.6:.Sand.squid.Attack............................................... 190
Scene.7:.The.Invisible.City................................................. 191
Scene.8:.Small.Talk............................................................ 192
Scene.9:.The.Temple.......................................................... 193
Scene.10:.The.Temple.Catacombs..................................... 194
Scene.11:.The.Stick-Up...................................................... 197
Outcomes.......................................................................... 198
Index ...............................................................................199
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Swords of Cydoria
Chapter One: Introduction
Welcome to the
Swords of Cydoria,
a setting for
Basic Role-
playing.
Swords of Cydoria
is set on the fantasy world of Uruta.
Whether Uruta is our own Earth in the far future, a mirror of
Earth in a parallel universe, or a strangely-familiar alien world
on the far side of the galaxy is unclear. Uruta is a savage barbaric
world of flashing swords, mutant beasts, daring heroes, diaboli-
cal cults, ancient ruins, mysterious forces, and powerful artifacts.
Against this backdrop of swords and sorcery is told a story of
contact with alien worlds, the introduction of sciece-fiction tech-
nology, and the struggle for freedom against oppression.
Swords of Cydoria
offers many opportunities for intrigue and ad-
venture. Using the rules presented for this setting, players may
create brooding barbarians, dashing adventurers, desperate free-
dom fighters, cunning aero-ship pilots, and much more.
occupy cliff-side caves overlooking a fetid swamp. Monstrous
saurians haunt the ancient ruins of lost cities deep in the vine-
choked forests.
Civilization is centered in the city-states of Cydoria, most of
which are ruled by the Vrildarian Empire. The Empire conquered
the city-states twelve years ago using advanced technology sup-
plied by the Rhakadian League, aliens from the planet Malus.
During the War of Unification, the Empire was opposed by the
Coalition of Timan, an alliance equipped with advanced technol-
ogy of their own supplied by the Phanosian Alliance, enemies
of the Rhakadians. The Coalition was eventually abandoned by
their Phanosian allies and ultimately lost the war. Afterwards,
the cities of the Coalition were occupied and its population en-
slaved. Many Coalition prisoners were shipped to prison camps
in the deserts of Arus.
Life for the civilized people of Cydoria is roughly equivalent to
that of ancient Rome or China, with areas of relative technical so-
phistication in cities such as Norukar. Barbarians, of course, live
a much more primitive existence. People wield swords and wear
armor of leather and steel. They tame strange animals as mounts
and food. In recent years, contact with aliens has introduced
sorcerous wonders such as electric lights and motors, broadcast
power, energy weapons, and motorized vehicles.
Setting
Swords of Cydoria
takes place on the continent of Markania on
the mysterious world known as Uruta.
The continent of Markania is a land of extremes, with frigid tun-
dra covering the northern third, poisonous jungles and swamps
blanketing the southern third. The middle is characterized by re-
gions of exploding volcanoes, baking deserts, vast plains, inland
gulfs, towering peaks, floating mountains, and dense forests.
The deserts are home to ravenous sand squid and giant wasps.
Dragonflies the size of horses dart over the dark jungles of deadly
plants and poisonous miasma. Massive four-armed mutant apes
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Swords of Cydoria
The Vrildarian Empire maintains power over the empire through
its monopoly on access to alien technology. Such wonders are
available only to a select few members of the nobility and the
punishment for unauthorized use of technology is severe. The
sentence for carrying or using a laser pistol, for example, is the
amputation of a hand. Despite this, smugglers from other worlds
are able to slip past the Rhakadian orbital blockade and gain en-
try through the Oudh, the magical force field that protects Uruta
from alien invasion, to sell their wares on the black market.
The invention of the aero-ship, flying vehicles powered by pro-
peller-driven engines, has opened up the Markanian interior for
colonization and settlement. Cydorian pioneers and refugees
from the War of Unification have streamed west to establish a
new life on the frontier.
Into this land stride mighty adventurers, be they resolute soldiers
of the Demetrian resistance, cunning members of the crew of the
Tonbo, crafty artifact hunters exploring an ancient ruin, mystical
warriors of the Adhara, deadly assassins of the Katari, devious
rogues of the Hidden Hand, notorious sky-pirates of the Dazu-
mi, or simple townsfolk on the Markanian frontier. They fight
for freedom, riches, and fame against the tyranny of those who
would oppress them.
The player characters are the crew of the Tonbo, travelling from
city to settlement across the continent. They earn money mak-
ing deliveries and through speculative trade but, when that’s not
enough to cover their expenses, they have been known to take
any work that comes their way, regardless of safety or legality.
The Great Game of Cydoria
The noble houses of the Cydorian city-states play a constant
game of intrigue and betrayal as they vie for power and influ-
ence. These nobles have many tools at their disposal. Spies, as-
sassins, thugs, seers, diplomats, and seducers all have their parts
to play in the great game. The player characters create actors in
the great game, taking orders from a noble, often indirectly and
usually anonymously. The missions they will undertake some-
times require discretion and sometimes require direct action and
always demand a hefty reward.
The Vrildarian Empire is justly afraid that if they lose their mo-
nopoly on advanced alien technology, the source of their politi-
cal power could be threatened. Therefore, it is strictly forbidden
to own, operate, or maintain any piece of off-world technology.
Techno-heretics brave this prohibition. The techno-heretics are
inventors, mechanics, and technicians that work outside the
semi-religious rules imposed by the Octavium. They work in
hiding, either in secret laboratories or as itinerant merchants,
disassembling and reassembling advanced devices to learn their
secrets. The player characters are members of a secret entou-
rage serving and protecting one or more techno-heretics. Riches
await those wily enough to avoid the Imperial inquisitors; a pub-
lic hanging awaits those who are not.
The Heresy of Invention
Premise
For all role-playing game settings, the question must be asked:
“What do the player characters do?” Like most settings,
Swords
of Cydoria
assumes the player characters are a group of adven-
turers that have banded together for a common purpose. That
purpose is defined by the premise. The premise sets expectations
for the players and provides a frame-work for character genera-
tion and story-telling.
Swords of Cydoria
provides the following
six ready-to-play premises, each telling a different type of story.
Gamemasters and players should choose a premise that interests
them or create a new one.
Remember Demetria
Artifact Hunters
The continent of Markania has seen a succession of technically
advanced cultures rise and fall across the millennia. These an-
cient cultures left behind ruined cities filled with valuable and
sometimes useful artifacts of technology so advanced it may as
well be magic. These ruined cities are also home to many dan-
gers. From mutated teraxes and psychic ghosts to toxic environ-
ments and deadly traps, many obstacles stand between the in-
trepid artifact hunters and the promise of untold riches.
The player characters are adventurers, explorers, treasure-hunt-
ers, and scholars seeking out the lost ruins of forgotten cultures
for gold and artifacts. If the giant mutant slugs don’t kill them,
the tribe of feral orixes that call the ruins home will.
The Vrildarian Empire has conquered all of the city-states of
Cydoria and, as a demonstration of their power, has completely
obliterated the kingdom of Demetria. The renegade Baron Urik
of Demetria has established an underground resistance to the
Imperial occupation with the ultimate goal of overthrowing the
Empire once and forever. Join the rebellion and fight for inde-
pendence and freedom. The player characters are members of a
resistance cell. Their goals are to carry out the directives of the
resistance and strike a blow against Imperial rule, all while keep-
ing their activities a secret from the Imperial inquisitors.
Savage Frontier
Flight of the Tonbo
The Tonbo is an aging aero-freighter with a crew of six. It is held
together with wire, glue, and love. The crew is a rag-tag assort-
ment of wastrels from across the continent. The captain is an
honest man, a Demetrian veteran of the War of Unification with
no home or family other than his ship and his crew. Though he
is sometimes willing to compromise his honesty to keep his crew
safe and his aero-ship flying, he is never willing to compromise
on his integrity.
In recent decades, the vast plains, treacherous mountain ranges,
and baking deserts of central and western Markania have been
colonized by settlers from the east. These settlers range from
pioneers seeking to tame the savage land to refugees from the
War of Unification to exiled prisoners released from the Arusian
prison-camps. These remote settlements face threats from bar-
barian hordes, mutant monsters, lawless bandits, and corruption
from within and without. It takes a special breed of hero to step
up and defend these settlers, to make a stand and do the right
thing. The situation also presents a rare opportunity for those
willing to make a profit, legally or otherwise. The player charac-
ters can choose to be heroes protecting the settlement from evil,
mercenaries just looking to turn a coin, or bandits avoiding the
hangman’s noose.
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