Picture from here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/britishlibrary/11230894045/in/album-72157691107046960/ Back in the day, I loved WEG D6 Star Wars because, if, as a GM, I described some bizarre alien jizz-wailer (that's Star Wars music by the way) my players latched onto, I could immediately write up stats for them. No classes to worry about, no advantages, disadvantages, feats, traits etc. Just stats and skills, easy peasy. This sort of simplicty is essential in a journaling

Statue of Väinämöinen decorating the Old Student House in Helsinki. I was blogging while writing Seith and Sword and an astute reader mentioned how they were looking forward to seeing Finnish mythology laid in comparison to Norse myth. I didn't know there was a big difference. I was wrong, so wrong. As such I am very happy to have read the Kalevala . It is the national epic of Karelia and Finland. It is just as beautiful as Norse mythology but more mystical; full of wonder

Picture from Here: https://www.oldbookillustrations.com/illustrations/became-mad/ Kiah wasn't part of this fight, as such everything was done with Oracles. In some ways they were very kind, in others... (Do Tristan and Reema avoid the Thin Ice Trap?: No ) (Do They Escape With A Viable Invasion Force? Yes ) (Does Reema Survive? Yes ) (Does Tristan Survive? Yes ) ( Does Kione Dream Talker Survive? Yes ) (Is the Weather Horrible? Yes ) The following morning Great Mount's warb

Picture from here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/britishlibrary/12458915605/in/album-72157659990533249/ A struggle of magic. I am rather concerned with what will happen with Reema and Tristian, in the next session. (Priests who serve Reema: Amara Deep Laugh, He/Him, Incompetent, Generous, Obsessed Kato Steel Path, He/Him, Bitter, Armored, Connected ) (Swear and Iron Vow: strong hit ) The next morning Kiah stood before the Great Hall, flanked by Reema's preists, Amara Deep L

Picture from: https://www.oldbookillustrations.com/illustrations/would-call-aloud/ I expected most of this, except for Kiah's last compel. I was certain Reema and Tristan wouldn't heed her, they'd continue with their heartless plan. Then she got a strong Compel with a match. I still couldn't see them surrendering their plan, but her words do have a strong response in her favor. Given that this is a Saga, something terrible will happen that our Kiah have to deal with. The nex

Picture from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/britishlibrary/11105001204/in/album-72157639804554423/ And so the name of this actual play has dropped. Not in the way I expected, but that's the joy of Ironsworn. (Is the Weather Bad? Yes ) An hour later Kiah, Gruff, Keyshia, and even Shush, sat on the polar bear hide in the Great Hall. The wind howled outside. Snow and hail hammered on the walls. "I suppose, I should explain," stated the Overseer. "We are curious," admitted Kiah.

Picture from here: https://www.oldbookillustrations.com/illustrations/shepherdess/ Some journalling games offer a series of paths and guide your character down them. Like a ball drop, where your PC bounces between different pegs, to finally rest in a number of set-out endpoints. Other journalling games start with nothing, and you build the narrative based on random draws or charts. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. Orboboros the Brick Kingdom will take a mixed approac

Image from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/britishlibrary/11039427914/in/album-72157639804990613/ I decided to write Tales of the Haunted Blue during the start of the pandemic. I felt it was time to take a crack at another novel. I love pirates, ghosts, and magic, so thought I'd write a series of fables about a pirate on a haunted sea. That expanded into a 140,000 word novel, of which, I have finished the rough draft. Looking back at it, I'm proud of what I've done. I love the

Image from: https://www.oldbookillustrations.com/illustrations/ring-upon-hand/ Battle is perhaps the most exciting move in Ironsworn. One roll leads to victory or defeat. It's exhilarating. (Sorjurn - Miss - It Wastes Resources) The wolf-skull woman directed the siblings to a Hall to the east, which was nestled to the island's rock. Between the dock and it was a long boardwalk. The entire town was crisscrossed with them. (Are The Sentinels fine with Shush tagging along? No) K

The form of Serene's curse is not what I expected, but still pretty cool. She's jumping to using it right away because of Kayan Ghostbeard's preemptive raid. I imagine she doesn't expect her curse to wipe out Great Mount, but she hopes to at least cause damage. She will then move to the next stage of her plan. A previous set of oracle checks revealed to me what the sentinel's deal is. Such will be revealed later. The real fun is that Kiah doesn't know, and I hope what foll

Most of this was Oracle Checks, it's neat how a handful of rolls can reveal threads in the game that I never expected. (Did Solana Survive? No) (Did all of the Wardens Left Behind Survive? No) (Did any of the Wardens Survive? Yes ) (Is Reema There? Yes) As soon as the ship reached dock, it was pulled in by many hands. Handsome Eleri regarded the three with sorrow. "Tristan, Kiah, Gruff, I'm sorry." "Sorry for what?" Tristan asked cooly. Maya, a Great Mount warden Tristan left

I'm happy Kiah met with her father and brother. She might not have, if so, the later part of this session would have been finding a boat. A roll a few sessions ago lead to what happened in the last part of this session. Making those oracle checks had me on the edge of my seat. After gathering herself, Kiah considered her options. It would take four days to reach Broken Helm, let alone Great Mount. Four days, by herself, with limited supplies. (Gather Information: Miss ) The b

I had a solid idea of what would happen before I started this session, so I guess this is more a visual novel than a standard Ironsworn session. I even chose to not make Face Danger rolls, because I liked the idea that Kiah was being tricked. Even so, some things surprised me. I was introduced to Stoad the Wanderer. Kiah will need to wait a little longer for the magic Bayara Doom Axe will grant her. (What Does Kalina Ask? Threaten Trade) Late that night Kiah was shaken aw

Progress on Orboboros, the Brick Kingdom is going well, I've nearly finished the rules section and will soon fill out the adventure parts. This has got me thinking about the kind of backdrop I want to offer. My original idea was that; no matter what background you roll, you're related to the heroes of old. You've got knight, wizard, or princess blood in you, and through the course of the game, you'll become what you're meant to be; amazing. However, some dialogue on the Mari

Things are heating up in the Barrier Isles. I'm kind of worried that Great Mount will fall, that would certainly take this game in a direction I didn't expect. However, we'll see. Reema's pretty cunning and powerful in her own right. Overseer Serene lounged on her throne to greet the dawn. She was spectacular, dressed in orange and red, the Queen of Flame. A gold goblet filled with red wine was in her hand. Her wardens were arrayed along the walls, dressed in finery, their we

My previous Norse fiction writing is definitely affecting this playthrough. In my Ironsworn there are no inns or taverns; one simply invokes the right of hospitality at a hall that can accommodate them. Of course, one can overstay their welcome. While beds exist, they're only for the powerful. Most folks sleep communally on benches. The Norse had slaves; slavery was rampant. However, there is no slavery in my Ironsworn. Servants are certainly lower class but are compensated

I recently got this feedback on Reddit, and it filled me with joy: Hi, I tried to leave a comment on the blog but couldn't for whatever reason. These Ironsworn sessions have been a great read, and a major eye-opener for me - I am new to Ironsworn and have not actually played a session yet, but I imagine it as very combat/ martial focused gaming...and then in 5 sessions of Kiah's saga, the Battle move is used once and no other combat...all adventure and social drama! I feel b

So I attended CanGames this weekend and ran a little Orboboros . It went well, it went really well. So well, in fact, that at every game, I sold at least three copies. Which is huge. For me. I 'm no Cam Banks or Fred Hicks, okay? I wrote Orboboros for the Troika 2021 Game Jam . Trokia is a surreal science fantasy RPG that doesn't take itself at all seriously. You make wacky characters and explore a hunchbacked sky. Not a lot is explained, just floating flavor text, but it w

[Oracle Grandmother's Next Lesson - Uphold, Ability] [Sorjurn: Weak Hit] Winter progressed and ice bobbed between the Barrier Isles. Everyone wrapped themselves up or stayed by the fire to keep warm. Kiah was in demand. She visited every important person in Great Mount to share stories, songs, and enjoy feasts. It was lovely and exhausting work. [Do both of Kiah's parents visit? No] When the skald returned to the Great Hall, her father Tristan was there to see her. Kiah let o

This session determined two things. A) Kiah's grandmother is basically a Sith, and B) magic is most useful when it's used to fill one with awe and wonder. The next day, Reema sent priests armed with divining tools to Raven Falls. Kiah couldn't help but glare. Reema answered her unspoken question, thus, "I sent you as a mere test. They, on the other hand, are my true eyes and ears, well-equipped to find the source of the hex. That being said, you successfully determining the n