Half a Worm and a Bitten Apple

Maximising Omens and Myths Advice for running Mythic Bastionland An ongoing attempt to maximise narrative potential. I would like to think that over time I have developed a specific style of running the  award-winning  game Mythic Bastionland. This is the first post out of 3 or so where I’ll summarise some things I do that I think might be of use to others. Chris McDowall has an almost obscene love for doing things in 3's and as an ode this blogpost will present things in 3's as much as possible. The Wyvern will be used as an example throughout. The first omen from the Demon and from the Wight are also included. So spoilers obviously follow. I. Expanding Omens The book does a pretty good job of presenting omens in an evocative way. Nonetheless, having a procedure to assist improvisation can help. This section shows how to do that by asking three W-Questions , by thinking about Chronology and finally by Cross-Pollinating Myths !  The Three W-Questions The following q...

One Shot Open Table Play Report Mythic Bastionland The Fanged Knight Squire Suzy Myths The Catacomb The Cave The Demon Prologue Two returning players! One player had previously been the Salt Knight. But the Salt Knight died horrifically and the player had continued with Suzy, who was to take on the role of squire today. It seemed fitting to all at the table that this session should see her take a more prominent role in helping the realm, followed by her being knighted. Her backstory was that her hamlet (002.003) had been ravaged when she was but a child and that today's session would play into that somehow. This is cool backstory but didn't answer the question of how today's session would start. So I gave some suggestions and we decided the party would begin at the Fetid Sanctum (004.001) and would see the Company escort an acolyte to Windswept Spire (004.006). There was something buried there and the acolyte would help find it and help convince the locals that this diggin...

  This is part of an ongoing project that you can read about here . Part XII - The Devil's Spine The Devil's Spine dropped about a week ago on this blog. I am just mentioning it here because I have now added the hexmap to the realm map. Check out the post here . Part XIII - Tide's Edge This entry is created by 1pagedungeons (creator of a very cool Whale myth). With the oyster Seer and some Holland-inspired terrain. Read it here . Part XIV - The Rainlands Tucked away in the south eastern corner is an area that came to life using Tarot cards. You can find it here . Progress Map And here's the map update. It's really coming together !  Would you like to participate? Let me know here . ---

  This is part of an ongoing project that you can read about here . Part XII - The Devil's Spine This region has been designed by Morgen, who has some great art on their Blusky account and is working on a really cool expansion to Mythic Bastionland: Bushi-Den . And some of that vibe has been brought into Woland. Here is Morgen's piece: THE DEVIL’S SPINE A region of dense forests, needle-like mountains, and an immense lake. The locals say that a strange sect of monks have appeared on the mountain, worshipping the omniscient “All-seer” and practicing the Way of the Burning Match, an esoteric martial art using forbidden blackpowder weaponry. All across the Devil’s Spine, the Company can hear firework-like crackling echoing through the mountains HEX H6 - Dwelling - the Woodsman’s Shack A small wooden shack inhabited by an old woodsman. ● Takezo, the woodsman - An old, grumpy woodsman, who resents the monks on Mt. Indra. Says he can’t get a good night’s sleep with all the fireworks...