#alternate shaped dice

[diceyclipse]

A full set. With only crystal shaped dice. Because I can, so I did.

[artificer-dice]

The d4!

(If you turn on sound it's mostly me talking to my partner Garrett who was in the room with me)

But this is the failed master. The 1 face is filled in because it was printed wrong and Garrett accidentally brought back the wrong one.

But they seem to sometimes land wrong but we think that's more from how it was printed. If it's still just as bad when cast in resin, I'll adjust the shape to try to help.

I like how the shape looks with a set and the size is finally right and we also printed the other pieces for it as well! The round liquid core shells needed redone because I didn't notice that I had made some of the walls too thin but we fixed it and they just need reprinted.

[transmutationdice]

CMY Dice

I'm revisiting some of my favourite dice designs, but now with alternative dice shapes!

This dice set is made with only the colours cyan, magenta and yellow which combine into a rainbow spectrum.

Numbers currently unpainted.

[seryueeeee]

☆ 𝕲 𝖍 𝖔 𝖚 𝖑 – P R O L O G U E //

ʚ ◠◠ An Alternative universe of Resident Evil 4. Leon was tasked to retrieve the President's daughter; Ashley Graham. Stumbling upon mysteries that were bloody, scornful, dehumanizing and eerie, his plan was to get his shit together, return with Ashley in the US, safe and sound and take a break. But to his dismay, he ought to meet someone who he thought was humane. But was also like one of those monsters– although the creature was capable of thinking rationally and wasn't immoral.

⊰⁠⊹ฺ

𝕷𝖊𝖔𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖔𝖚𝖌𝖍𝖙 The world had gone mad. Phenomenons that aren't normal were already scorching the state. Humans had turned into blood curdling undeads who feed on people, and bioweapons spread like crazy across the Earth. It was like God was causing a riot down here, a battlefield for his own subjects, Leon wasn't pretty big on religion, but ever since then; the shitty things that had been happening around, he started blaming it against God; everything unlucky that happened in his life, it was all aimed to the almighty– if anything, Leon felt weak, this commotion was sending his headache in a pitiful hysteria, what he wanted was a safe place away from all the atrocities that would set ablaze.

Focusing on the bigger picture, Leon scanned the parameters; with the baby eagle following him from behind. The sound of the storm pattering against the mud and the squelch of the dirt as they walk, pinpointing their way out of the island– they had just defeated the almighty Saddler, and was left surrounded by countless Ganados and armies of bioweapons.

“C'mon Ashley, hurry up!" Leon scurried, holding the gun tightly in his hands as he made sure to look behind– the blondette followed along as they ran from danger. Exhaustion targeting every muscle in Leon's body as they stormed away, trying to keep himself up, but the excruciating pain just kept getting worse.

Suddenly, a loud screech and a howl echoed against a distance, and the ground rumbled, Leon and Ashley wobbled as the air fogged with dust. Leon hurriedly shielded Ashley while trying to make out any footsteps or an unknown presence; another loud roar thundered the scene, as blood and remnants of the Ganados bodies littered the area, and a horrifying situation played out in front, it was a battleground between creature to creature.

A man dressed in a bodyfit turtleneck and suspenders, with black baggy pants and combat boots. On the man's lower back, there were tendrils like tentacles that prodded from his lumbar vertebrae, it was scaly, patches of scales that looked like spikes– three of the tendrils were shaped like centipedes and had limbs like one, it was sharp, pointy enough to dice anyone in half, but the real question was why was it killing the Ganados?

The unknown man clad in black was mercilessly killing the Ganados, blood splattered everywhere like paint, as he tore their flesh, a neutral expression was present on his face as he danced against corpse of the undead, Leon can feel his heart beat like crazy, praying for any kind God out there to save them– whether this man is an ally or a foe, he can kill any being in a matter of seconds with those limbs that grew from his lower back.

It felt like ages, staring at the man as he finished hundreds of the Ganados without breaking a sweat, analyzing his own work; blood painted his hands and the tentacles on his back. The unknown man slowly shifted from where he stood, his slightly overgrown hair danced with the musky scent of the air, tucking a strand behind his ear. Slowly turning around, Leon scanned the latter's face; plump, dried lips, eyes that looked so devoid of life and emotions, eyelashes that were long and fluttering, his brows furrowed, knitted and stroked in a straight fine line. And a face shape that could arouse any men and women.

The federal agent was stunned, either because of the strange man's beauty, or because of his meticulous performance earlier, Leon's breath hitched; and slowly the exhaustion hit him like a break as he limped down

"L-Leon! Are you okay?!" Shouted; Ashley as she assisted the blonde from falling. "I.. Ashley.." Leon muttered, as the fatigue finally kicked in– unable to keep himself further as he blinked to a deep slumber, everything fell silent once again. Leon remained still in the shell of his own thoughts, he stayed ignorant of his surroundings, it felt warm, almost as if someone's running a heating pad down his forehead, Leon wanted to wake up but his body seemed to disagree with his wishes. He could only hope for a living being to come and save them in time.

⊰⁠⊹ฺ

[felassan]

Red lyrium idol detail from the Dreadwolf dice set.

The angular, geometric style of the wolf head makes it all pointy and triangular. Less furry wolf, more the suggestion of scales or of a reptilian-type aspect (especially with the way the head is half bisected down the middle). The ears look less like ears and more like horns, especially with the dividing line separating them from the head itself. this reminds me of the half dragon/half wolf or dragon-wolf design on these dev t-shirts -

and the creature as described in Tevinter Nights -

But here, unfinished, was the outline of a beast that stood over both dragon and sword. This was not the battle, or the victory. This was after. And the beast was not a dragon. The outline alone might have allowed that assumption, but now, filling with black and red, it was something other. The creature was reptilian, but also canine. The snout was blunted and toothy, but edges came to a point in houndlike ears. As the mass of plaster filled the shape, it began to rise, revealing scales and tail, and paws with talons. It looked like two figures painted on either side of a pane of glass, then viewed together, their forms confused. A wolf that had absorbed a dragon, and now stood crooked over all.

in relation to this Skyhold rotunda mural -

The Dread Wolf is depicted with red eyes this time. Sometimes he's shown with red eyes (below), other times with blue.

Some other by-now very familiar imagery and motifs also return, like the figure with the staff from the Dread Wolf Rises Teaser trailer (Solas), the arrow/arrowhead-shape & outward rayed lines depicting the moment of Impact when he Did The Thing, those triangles that crop up when something Veily/Fadey/magicky is happening in a mural, the general gold and black color scheme (Golden City/Black City), and the alternating gold and black 'dotted line'-pattern that probably represents the Veil as a barrier between the Fade and the mundane world:

(👀 Shoutout to the 'arrow' shape, that depiction of the Dread Wolf always reminds me of the story of the Slow Arrow, that Felassan told Briala -)

"The god Fen'Harel was asked by a village to kill a great beast. He came to the beast at dawn, and saw its strength, and knew it would slay him if he fought it. So instead, he shot an arrow up into the sky. The villagers asked Fen'Harel how he would save them, and he said to them, 'When did I say that I would save you?' And he left, and the great beast came into the village that night and killed the warriors, and the women, and the elders. It came to the children and opened its great maw, but then the arrow that Fen'Harel had loosed fell from the sky into the great beast's mouth, and killed it. The children of the village wept for their parents and elders, but still they made an offering to Fen'Harel of thanks, for he had done what the villagers had asked. He had killed the beast, with his cunning, and a slow arrow that the beast never noticed."

[theresattrpgforthat]

this might be a big ask, but do you know of any fantasy adventure RPGs that does idk fantasy napolionics, not nesesarily actual napolionics with fantasy elements, but sorta 18th very early 19th century tech + magic and other fantasy stuff, pre/peri-industrial but only just, whfrpg leans (allover the place but) earlier, and a lot of other fantasy stuff with guns leans eather Piracy, or steapunk?

THEME: Fantasy Napoleonics.

Hello friend, there's a lot of different elements going on here, so I"m casting a pretty wide net to show you what's out there. I hope something in here strikes your fancy! I primarily looked for games that felt like they fell within the right time frame, but I also threw in some games that maybe fall just outside your parameters in the hopes they spark something for you.

Castle Falkenstein, by R. Talsorian Games.

When computer game designer Tom Olam found himself sorcerously shanghaied by a rogue Wizard and a Faerie Lord, little did he suspect that he would soon become the pivotal force in the struggle to control an alternate Victorian Universe. But before the deadly game could end, he would first have to battle gigantic Landfortresses, outwit Dragons, romance a beautiful Adventuress, and defeat the Evil legions of a Dark Court determined to destroy him at all costs.  Then maybe, just maybe, he could find a way home again …

Originally published in 1994, Castle Falkenstein is set in the Victorian era, but with a magical twist. This is a world of swashbuckling and adventure, complete with elves, dwarves and magic - but also submarines, Sherlock Holmes, and England’s courtly sensibilities.

There’s going to be many different kinds of roleplaying options in this kind of game, including combat, feats of derring-do, and diplomacy! The thing that possibly makes this game a bit far from what you’re looking for is the ruleset. Rather than using dice, this game uses a deck of cards, with different suits being suitable for different tasks, while card value determines skill or difficulty.

When it comes to setting, however, you’re going to have a lot of great things to look at. The supplements for this game include The Lost Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci, Curious Creatures, Steam Age, and more!

17th Century Minimalist, by Games Omnivorous.

Welcome to the 17th century minimalist.

This is a fast-paced and highly-deadly game with a pinch of black humour that puts characters as wanderers in 17th century Europe. You will play as tricksters, thieves, former soldiers, bankrupt swashbucklers and petty physicians, roaming the Old Continent in search of coin and glory. The system is designed to allow fast character creation, compatibility with other games (mostly in the OSR community) and a reckless style of play. 

The closest thing to magic in this game is an illusionist, but that doesn't stop this game from pushing your imagination. Games Omnivorous is pretty well-regarded in the OSR community. 17th Century Minimalist is meant to be simplified, fast-paced, and deadly, with technology like flintlock fire-arms, and goals like searching for treasure and glory. If you want to see a fuller review of this game, I’d recommend looking at Questing Beast’s video that covers the rules and the layout of the game.

A Guide to Casting Phantoms in the Revolution, by World Champ Games Co.

A Guide to Casting Phantoms in the Revolution is a single-session roleplaying game, in which players work together to summon specters to fight the aristocracy during the French Revolution. Featuring the pentacrawl system, Guide is different every time you play. Played on a story map in the shape of a pentagram, create a cast of characters, interpret symbols to create unique moments, and have the phantoms do you bidding—or you’ll do theirs!

This is a game with a number of physical, in-person components required to play. However, if you just have the pdf, the creator also directs you to online resources that you can print for the full experience. You are members of a secret cabal, casting phantoms to help you fight. This is a game that evokes the feeling of a ritual, and might feel magical or personal depending on how you play. It’s a strange mix of thematic storytelling and complex mechanics, so it might not be for everyone, but if you want to feel like a cult enacting revenge through eldritch rituals, I’d recommend checking this out!

Tales from the Aerosphere, by EfanGamez.

Tales from the Aerosphere is an original steampunk TTRPG that is powered by the Neon Nights system, a system that prioritizes seemingly limitless character creation freedom. From medics, to assassins, to mechanics, to a literal barbarian, there are THOUSANDS of character combinations you can play in Tales from the Aerosphere.

This game has its own setting, but all of the set pieces could be dropped, altered or changed if you like. The focus on this game is on character creation: the creator has outlined a number of discrete parts that you can use to not just put a unique character together, but tell you something about the world you’re in. If you’re a Spy, then there’s some kind of international conflict that hasn’t blown open into full-out war yet - perhaps there’s technology being developed that some nations don’t want others to learn about.

The game is extremely steampunk, with airships, CogWare that gives you exceptional abilities, and Tesla technology. It’s going to be on the more fantastical side of things, so if you really want to immerse yourself in another world, why not give it a go?

Shot & Splinters, by Tom Mecredy.

Shot & Splinters is a tabletop roleplaying game of naval adventure, inspired by Horatio Hornblower, Aubrey & Maturin, and Richard Sharpe. Drawing on history but not beholden to it, the game is set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars, thrusting your characters into the heart of the conflict. 

If you want seafaring and piracy, this is probably the game for you. It’s set in a napoleonic time frame, but it has strange creatures located upon uncharted waters. The mechanics are OSR, so expect simple stats, tables upon tables of gear, and a hex crawl map of the uncharted seas. If you want more adventure in this world, you can also check out Beneath the Battlements, a city crawl that brings your characters through a city under invasion. Honestly, I think this game might be the closest on the list of what you're looking for in terms of technology level, and possibly theme.

Games I’ve Recommended in the Past

Lady Blackbird, by John Harper.

[sterlingarcher23]

An "eye-opener"

This quite literally opened her eyes... Oh, foreshadowing. Nachtigall ick hör dir trappsen.

"Let me see" (If "I hear you" while listening to the radio forshadows blind Max, the "Let me see" forshadows the opposite.)

Why? Because both Lucas & Erica are connected to the 8.

You know... Kali. The dice could have shown any other number in slow motion but it's the 8 before it's a 20 (the ElMax & Lumax patterns both equate separately to a specific number once the final verse happened: 20)

Lucas speaks directly to her inability to see and feel and he says "We're gonna get you some help". Not for the resurrection, he speaks to her condition, her loss of sight and unable to feel/been paralyzed (the dying/resurrection is addressed after this) - Some don't see her paralyzed forever but blind definitely? That is inconsequential. (Seriously, you can't just flat out say one part is probably not the case but the other is. - It's both or nothing. That's why it's in this scene.)

A supernatural genre show and you truly believe everything is going to be normal?

Blind girl...

...um, psych.

Blind girl connected to her friend - when she grabs Els hand, she pulls off her glasses.

"Rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold behind the clouds", Neverending Story

So behind Max's clouded eyes "rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold". We still have to see this, don't we? S4 didn't gave us this.

Angel by Madonna, in its final line, says "Clouds just disappear". One shouldn't overlook this line of the song when everything else IS in the show.

And how? You know how. Brenner explained it even to us. We just misunderstood who was actually meant.

You know "taking abilities & memories".

Well she IS alive, ergo she will see another day even though it won't be her "eyes" that she'll use. It doesn't get more obvious than in this line - not only for this episode but in whole since this scene is a forshadowing of both her death and resurrection (I think there's the clock sound at the 20 minute mark?):

IF Max lives (Yes & Yes), she will SEE another day (Yes and logically Yes again! + "In your hand/s the birth of a new day"). And Lucas & Erica will get her some help as Max demanded "Let me see" via the 8. (which is btw the shape of the binoculars too)

El will be Max's eyes. Yes, I agree. Literally. This scene here is meant literal. You remember Phineas Gage? No? Go watch the scene. 😉

I'll talk about Gage in another post but there's a case of a woman that was blind after an accident. She was diagnosed with brain damage ; you know the thing Max doesn't believe is a thing...and she's right in her case. That woman wasn't blind, it was a misdiagnosis as it turned out many years later. The woman had something else... similar to Gage's symptoms but the correct diagnosis wasn't brain damage.

Max is blind...but she isn't at all. Because she'll consume. The silver cat feeds. Abilities. Memories.

The Talisman which Lucas reads from passage refers directly to Speedy. Speedy Parker whose alternate version, Parkus is a gunslinger, a knight. There's a third character with the name of Snowball (Seriously!) a blind musician who, although never directly confirmed, the protagonist of The Talisman, Jack, identifies as Speedy Parker. Snowball is extremely good in identifying other people himself even though he "can't see" - but if he is indeed Speedy, how can he be blind and be able to see at the same time? The Talisman - a healing object like the Grail - doesn't answer this oddity, it can be interpreted as a case of multiple identities/versions. However it is obvious why the Duffers chose this reference: Max is "Speedy" and therefore Snowball. That's why the "Snowball" happened. Blind yet not blind at all.

Plus: El literally removes blindness where he blinds the kids.

Oh, and about that brain thing...wait for a space walk that's been foreshadowed too when Max is introduced to the class.

[snitchesnsneeds]

Bizarre V3 AU Explanations and More!

I wanted to explain a bit more about the ongoings of my Bizarre V3 AU a bit more and explain some behind-the-scenes stuff, so let's-a-go!

All of the main 16 characters have or will have superpowers! This was foreshadowed in Miu's, Maki's, Ryoma's, Kokichi's, Gonta's, Kirumi's, and Tenko's character descriptions. I don't know what everyone's will be, but a basic description of the power system is that they have the rareness and luck factor of Stands from Jojo but resemble the Devil Fruit users in One Piece more in that the abilities are physical and can be seen by anyone. Unlike Devil Fruits, abilities can be stacked and there can be multiples of the same ability, so two people could be elastic, but one can drain stamina and convert it into light while another can generate electricity and make metal and plastic float around.

There's also a second power system that's essentially Haki from One Piece. Willpower shaped into three different forms.

The Seven Holy Essences are one of the main things Bizarre V3 will be about aside from the characters themselves. Their inspirations are the infinity stones, the chaos emeralds, antiquated western and Japanese astronomy/mythology, and the general concept that plot coupons could be anything, really.

The "smaller, lesser essences" are based on the fixed stars and are a pretty important part in the overall backstory.

I don't have too much of a plot laid out so far, but I want it to be five "seasons" of sort. All I have is season 1 (basically what the character introductions set up,) season 2 (Idabashi lore, maybe take inspiration from Sonic Adventure 2? Add in the Purple People Eater somewhere, first final boss fight, etc.) and season 3 (version 3 of Star-Hunter Squadron: Elite Rangers!)

Characters do wear alternate outfits, including day-by-day clothes (well, most of them have day-by-day clothes.) Shuichi has clothes on and off the job, Kaede has a variety of sweater vest-related combos, Miu wears various outfits that are not lab-safe, etc.

Ships I'll feature are as follows: Saimatsu, Harukaito, Tenmiko and maybe even polyamory with Angie, Irumatsu (in the form of awkward and bitter exes,) ambiguous and possibly one-sided Saioma, Omota, and Omeno, Kokichi x some original character that appears in season 2 and is supposed to have a ludicrous amount of chemistry with him, and Kirumiu (is that the name for Kirumi x Miu? Miurumi?), mostly because I like it and my idea for it is that two women trying to get information out of eachother end up bonding over a lot of similarities between the two.

Writing-wise, the hardest part for me is trying to fit the Himiko plots into everything else. Himiko's busy with her overprotective girlfriend, joining what may be a cult, and serial killers while the other three-fourths of the cast is trying to figure out what the hell is going on with displacements and blue glows. Maybe Gonta gets depressed and exhausted from finding no results and goes to see one of Himiko's shows or even invites Himiko and her lovely assistant over, but Tenko gets involved in said displacements and blue glows.

To explain what I mean by "disappearances, reappearances, and displacements," here's some of the mysteries described: "Help! I can't find my husband" solved as "Oh! There's my husband! At a restaurant we went to once and hated? And he doesn't know how he got there?", "I couldn't find my keys, but they were in the attic. I wasn't in the attic since five years ago.", and "What the heck is the TV remote doing in my neighbor's front lawn?"

Danganronpa will appear as an in-universe franchise, but non-V3 characters will appear. It'll make sense when it comes up. Also fake memories implanted into vessels may show up.

There will be a fight scene between Maki and Kirumi in season 1 where they both use their powers because 1. They are on opposing sides and 2. Cool strong women fighting.

My idea of "Ryoma heavily interacting with DICE" partly came due to my desire to do something unique with Ryoma. I'm honestly getting tired of him being paired up with Kirumi and Gonta. I think there'll be a scene between Ryoma and Kirumi in season 2 and possibly onward, but in general I want Kokichi and Kirumi to interact, maybe a few Kokichi-Gonta interactions too, but little-to-no Ryoma-Gonta interactions. Also it makes sense to pair up the criminals and the gentleman and maid together.

The Gokuhara manor's description of vegetation growing in and around it is supposed to be similar to how there was vegetation growing in the Ultimate Academy for Gifted Juveniles.

Rantaro has to be the green ranger because his western VA played The green ranger. I had a power rangers hyperfixation when I was 10.

[dicenne]

November DWC Day 7 - Dream

No photograph nor verbal description of the Emerald Dream could ever do it justice, this was something everyone needed to see first hand for themselves. Dicenne had a good excuse to do so, as with other campaigns he would go and offer his blacksmithing services to help with repairs for broken weapons and armor. He had brought his own armor and weapons too, just in case.

He had been an on and off member of Talonoa’s mercenary crew for years now. After having spent so much time in the military, it was difficult to completely give up that lifestyle, and a mercenary crew suited him much better. The majority of the group were ex-military themselves, so it operated in a similar, albeit less strict manner of what he was already accustomed to.

Dicenne had set up his camp with them, focusing first on their repairs and then wandering about the other mercenary units to see if anyone needed his services. Despite never asking for gold, doing this had become quite the profitable endeavor. Mercenaries were great about tipping, and often followed up post-campaign with visits to his shop to get more repairs or new weapons.

One late evening, he found himself lounging near the communal fire with eyes focused upwards on Amirdrassil herself. She was a thing of beauty for certain, and born of the souls from her predecessor. A fresh start for the Kaldorei. It made him wonder if maybe the Sin’dorei should have done the same with their own city; while not all of Silvermoon had been destroyed by the Scourge, the memories that clung onto that place were difficult to move past at times.

His gaze fell onto the only remaining member of the crew still up and looking towards Amirdrassil with a thousand-yard stare. With the way the fire and shadows highlighted the half-Kaldorei’s angular jaw and shape of his nose, it was easy to see the resemblance to the young man’s father. He was never actually told that Garren was Xylaes’s son, but the observant could easily figure it out.

“You were there, right?”

Garren’s eyes drifted down to look at Dicenne, giving a slow nod of his head. There was no need to question what ‘there’ meant in this situation, it was obvious he was speaking of Teldrassil.

“I’m sorry for what you had to go through. How are you, are you doing okay here?”

Garren shrugged out of habit, but eventually spoke as his gaze drifted skywards once more. “I’m afraid of what will happen to us if we can’t save the tree.”

Dicenne nodded in agreement, “Me too, but I have faith. Practically the entire world wants, no needs, to see this all succeed, and I think we will.”

“How can you be so optimistic?” 

It was Dice’s turn to shrug. “Better than the alternative options, yeah? It’s not a belief that things will automatically get better, it’s a conviction that we can make things better.”

Garren offered a small smile in response, looking up once more. “My grandparents are a part of this. They died in Teldrassil, and now they’re here. I feel like I’m meant to be here too, with them. Together again.”

A part of Dice wondered if he spoke like this with Xylaes. Probably not. In a way, he almost felt guilty. “I’m sure they are very proud of you for being here and helping. You should be proud of yourself too, this is a huge moment in history.” 

The words clearly resonated with Garren, and shortly after the young elf excused himself for the evening, leaving Dicenne alone by the fire. In all honesty, the words had resonated with himself as well. He was never great at staying on the sidelines when he knew his friends could use his help. Maybe it was time he strapped his armor back on and threw himself into the fray.

@daily-writing-challenge @talonoa @xylaes @garrennorassin

[diceyclipse]

A little crystalline d6 ! It's purple and orange (a little) and sparkly (a lot)

[artificer-dice]

D4 update:

So I spent some time today experimenting with different proportions of the crystal shard d4 shape and while I like the proportions of the original, it's not the most reliable when it comes to landing on the correct face.

Like after 200 rolls it landed in a valid way only 63.5% of the time. Not ideal. In the video, this would be the blue version.

So my first thought was shortening the top faces (the green one), which I figured might give those numberless faces less weight to influence how it lands. I could have pushed this further but even as it is, this improved the success rate to 70%, which is a 6.5% improvement.

That being said, I'm also trying to essentially isolate the issue if I can, so on the purple one all I did was elongate the faces that would have numbers. I did this one to a bit more significant amount, but it did further improve to 73.5% successful rolls.

I still have more variations to try, the first of which being a combination of what I did to the purple and green trials, but I'm done with all of that for the day.

I know having a die not landing in a valid position 26.5% of the time still isn't great, but it is an improvement. I can see it correcting itself more and once I get viable proportions I should be able to remake the masters to hopefully get a better final product that doesn't land on an invalid face!

[transmutationdice]

Crystal Shard D20s!

I'm really liking alternative dice shapes lately - particularly these crystal / stabby / plumbob shaped d20s. What do you think? Do you like these, or do you prefer the normal icosahedral d20?

[gently-decaying-flowers]

may you roll the dice for me please?

yes!!

soooo

character: witty, greedy, shape shifter man

time: present day

place: fantasy setting

conflict: character vs technology

theme: love

and it’s told from an alternating pov!

[mustangs-flames]

can we know anymore about how making your pc should go in the ttrpg game? i would like to plan things in advance if possible

Sure thing! Here is a rundown of what I have so far (things are subject to change in the final ruleset though):

Making a character requires no dice like your more traditional ttrpgs like dnd. Instead, you have 2 pools of points. 1 pool is for putting into your base stats (toughness, smarts, metaphysical awareness, etc.). The other pool is for putting into skills of your choosing (analogue tech, digital tech, brawl, etc.). You earn more points at the end of each session depending on what you did and how much you did and you can then spend those points in your skills.

There are different backgrounds, awareness levels (which is how much info you know about alternates), and such that give you boosts or detractions for your base stats.

Each character has a Haunt. A Haunt refers to something in your character's backstory that they have been shaped by. For example, one Haunt is that your character was attacked by an alternate and survived. Haunts are used by the Game Master to influence your character's Fear Level - for example if your character survived an attack but your friend/family member died, then the alternates the GM controls will use it against your character in an encounter. If you max out your Fear Level, you begin to develop MAD which in turn affects other stats your character has and can also affect your Initiative (which has been replaced with the THINK principle in the game).

This ttrpg whilst having combat elements is definitely more roleplay oriented, with the skills available being there to aid in and facilitate roleplaying the exact character you want to play. Essentially, character generation will be flexible to whatever you as a player want to make. That way no one comes to the table with characters that are almost identical to one another.

I hope this helped! The rulebook will be more clear and comprehensive than what I've posted here and I'll be sharing drafts of the character creation pages as soon as I can to give folks a better idea of how it will be in the final manuscript!

[angelfishofthelord]

haunted, like every other holy thing

for @horrornaturalevent week 4 swap prompt: haunt

Alternate s9. Cas is captured by angels as soon as he falls. He's different by the time Dean and Sam and Charlie find him.

CW: food, vomiting, body horror

It’s almost six weeks after that hospital phone call that Dean finally sees Cas again. He’s been mentally preparing himself that Cas isn’t going to look the same: he’s human now (as if the body will be physically warped from the enormity of that transition), but he’s also been held captive by angels. Dean has tried hard to stop himself from picturing what they might be doing to him. He’s kept the predominant vision in his mind of a Cas who is alive.

And he isn’t wrong.

Cas stares up at him and Sam and Charlie (who’s breathing heavily, shakily, right by his ear). His blue eyes are a washed out hue, not even brightened by the contrast of the dull iron bars he’s peering through. The ex-angel is crouched in what looks like a huge kennel for one of those short-haired, bad-tempered type dogs. A Rottweiler or Great Dane. There’s a plastic water bottle with a small tube tied with wire to the top of the cage. Something a hamster or parrot would sip from. Patches of beige trench coat and white shirt fabric are stuck so tightly with the grime all over Cas’ body that it looks like his clothes have melted into his skin.

Charlie is trying her best not to cry when she slips an arm around Cas’ waist to steady him as he crawls out of the cage. Dean figures he probably hasn’t walked in weeks; he’s trying to stand as firm and proud as he can, but his ankles are protesting the reality of the situation.

All three of them end up supporting him in a strange sideways gait back to the car, like some fucked-up three-legged race.

Sam grabs a water bottle and a towel and Dean skims his hands over Cas’ body, looking for open wounds or infected lesions. He’s so severely underweight that Dean is afraid to press on his protruding bones and hurt him. Dean exhales slightly when he finds no noticeable injuries (bruises litter his body like weeds in a garden, but he’s not bleeding anywhere). They can skip a stop at the hospital and take him straight back to the Bunker. Back home.

Charlie sits in the backseat and unwraps a piece of cold French toast from the diner that morning and rips off small pieces to give Cas. Something Sam said about not letting him eat or drink too much at first or it’ll be a shock to his system. Cas figures each morsel of bread between his dirty fingertips before slowly pushing it between his teeth.

The angels who did this are nowhere to be seen. Dean temporarily puts out the fire in his chest that’s burning for justice. They’ll find the bastards when Cas is strong enough to eviscerate them with his own two hands.

+

Charlie makes chicken soup from scratch, with a whole real chicken. Dean is almost fascinated to watch her pull the rubbery skin off the bulb-shaped legs and crack the ribcage open with a knife. Sam adds cilantro, diced potatoes, carrots and celery to the stock. Dean gazes at the magical process for a few moments longer before going to see if Cas is finished his shower.

Cas is sitting on the edge of the bed in the infirmary, wearing just his boxers, elbows on his knees.

Dean tries hard not to react visibly to the sight of his emaciated body. Cas’ ribs stick out from under his skin like metal wires. His toes look more like a Halloween costume fixture than actual toes. There’s no amount of loose fabric from oversized t shirts and sweat pants that can hide the way his collarbone juts out or the sunken hollows around his eyes.

He feels so small when Dean helps him pull a sweater over his head. Like Dean could move too brusquely and his entire skeleton would collapse. “I’m sorry,” Dean murmurs over the swish of knitted strands.

Cas pulls the sweater sleeves over his wrists and then leans into Dean. His elbows burrow into Dean’s belly like the hilt of a sword ramming into his gut. (It’s hard to breathe.) Dean hugs him closer anyways.

They all sit and watch him try the chicken soup. Like it’s some potion that will cure all, the way storybook grandmothers always promised it would.

Cas grimaces and holds his nose while slurping the first spoonful. Charlie laughs softly and tells him its just smoke from the heat. It won’t hurt him. He doesn’t look very appeased but he lowers his hand for the next sip. His expression relaxes slightly and he says he likes the smell of the cilantro. Sam smiles hopefully.

Then Cas’ lips suddenly curl upwards and his eyes wide in horror. Before Dean can ask why he’s shoving back the chair and spitting something out on the table before stumbling backwards. His knees are knocking into each other hard, hands fumbling frantically against the wall he’s sliding down.

The three of them jump up at the same time. Charlie grabs the bowl, exclaiming how there’s nothing wrong with it. Sam goes to Cas’ side to help steady him and Dean stares at the offending thing sitting in a pool of thick saliva next to the spoon.

It’s just a chicken bone.

+

Cas keeps biting his lower lip. Dean doesn’t know if it’s a new habit or not (he never got see Cas as human before the torture). He tells Cas to stop whenever he sees it, but it clearly happens when he’s not around, and frequently, because Cas’ lip is starting to look like a discolored strip of raw meat and dark blood stains.

Charlie buys different flavors of lip balm online and has Cas try each one to find the kind he likes.

“Put it on whenever you want to bite it,” she says, buying several extra tubes of Burt’s Bees so he can put one in each pocket of his clothes.

She keeps buying things for him. She tells Dean she doesn’t know what it’s like to be human for the first time, but it’s gotta require lots of things you never needed before. Dean doesn’t think miniature hand sanitizers, waterproof phone covers, or a matching pillowcase and duvet set is going to help Cas forget that he was tortured for weeks by his own siblings, but he lets her do it anyways.

Sam reads books on dieting and How to Help Your Ex-Angel With a Very Picky Appetite Gain Weight.

Foods Cas refuses to eat include chicken wings, hamburgers, hamburgers, hot dogs, and hamburgers.

Dean tries not to be frustrated with Cas. It’s only been a few weeks. A few weeks of watching at Cas’ haunted figure wobbling around the Bunker and knowing there’s nothing he can do to fix it. He can’t even cook for him, which is normally his winning move in mother-henning the infirm back to life.

Foods Cas likes to eat includes cereal, milk, and bread. Chocolate bars and French fries were soundly rejected.

Dean wonders if part of the angel’s torture was to give Cas the best fast food ever so he’d develop an aversion to it for the rest of his life.

It’s almost six weeks after that hospital phone call that Dean finally sees Cas again. He’s been mentally preparing himself that Cas isn’t going to look the same: he’s human now (as if the body will be physically warped from the enormity of that transition), but he’s also been held captive by angels. Dean has tried hard to stop himself from picturing what they might be doing to him. He’s kept the predominant vision in his mind of a Cas who is alive.

And he isn’t wrong.

Cas stares up at him and Sam and Charlie (who’s breathing heavily, shakily, right by his ear). His blue eyes are a washed out hue, not even brightened by the contrast of the dull iron bars he’s peering through. The ex-angel is crouched in what looks like a huge kennel for one of those short-haired, bad-tempered type dogs. A Rottweiler or Great Dane. There’s a plastic water bottle with a small tube tied with wire to the top of the cage. Something a hamster or parrot would sip from. Patches of beige trench coat and white shirt fabric are stuck so tightly with the grime all over Cas’ body that it looks like his clothes have melted into his skin.

Dean almost topples the cage over in his frantic attempt to get Cas out of there.

Charlie is trying her best not to cry when she slips an arm around Cas’ waist to steady him as he crawls out. Dean figures he probably hasn’t walked in weeks; he’s trying to stand as firm and proud as he can, but his ankles are protesting the reality of the situation.

All three of them end up supporting him in a strange sideways gait back to the car, like some fucked-up three-legged race.

Sam grabs a water bottle and a towel and Dean skims his hands over Cas’ body, looking for open wounds or infected lesions. He’s so severely underweight that Dean is afraid to press on his protruding bones and hurt him. Dean exhales slightly when he finds no noticeable injuries (bruises litter his body like weeds in a garden, but he’s not bleeding anywhere). They can skip a stop at the hospital and take him straight back to the Bunker. Back home.

Charlie sits in the backseat and unwraps a piece of cold French toast from the diner that morning and rips off small pieces to give Cas. Something Sam said about not letting him eat or drink too much at first or it’ll be a shock to his system. Cas figures each morsel of bread between his dirty fingertips before slowly pushing it between his teeth.

The angels who did this are nowhere to be seen. Dean temporarily puts out the fire in his chest that’s burning for justice. They’ll find the bastards when Cas is strong enough to eviscerate them with his own two hands.

+

Charlie makes chicken soup from scratch, with a whole real chicken. Dean is almost fascinated to watch her pull the rubbery skin off the bulb-shaped legs and crack the ribcage open with a knife. Sam adds cilantro, diced potatoes, carrots and celery to the stock. Dean gazes at the magical process for a few moments longer before going to see if Cas is finished his shower.

Cas is sitting on the edge of the bed in the infirmary, wearing just his boxers, elbows on his knees.

Dean tries hard not to react visibly to the sight of his emaciated body. Cas’ ribs stick out from under his skin like metal wires. His toes look more like a Halloween costume fixture than actual toes. There’s no amount of loose fabric from oversized t shirts and sweat pants that can hide the way his collarbone juts out or the sunken hollows around his eyes.

He feels so small when Dean helps him pull a sweater over his head. Like Dean could move too brusquely and his entire skeleton would collapse. “I’m sorry,” Dean murmurs over the swish of knitted strands.

Cas pulls the sweater sleeves over his wrists and then leans into Dean. His elbows burrow into Dean’s belly like the hilt of a sword ramming into his gut. (It’s hard to breathe.) Dean hugs him closer anyways.

They all sit and watch him try the chicken soup. Like it’s some potion that will cure all, the way storybook grandmothers always promised it would.

Cas grimaces and holds his nose while slurping the first spoonful. Charlie laughs softly and tells him its just smoke from the heat. It won’t hurt him. He doesn’t look very appeased but he lowers his hand for the next sip. His expression relaxes slightly and he says he likes the smell of the cilantro. Sam smiles hopefully.

Then Cas’ lips suddenly curl upwards and his eyes wide in horror. Before Dean can ask why he’s shoving back the chair and spitting something out on the table before stumbling backwards. His knees are knocking into each other hard, hands fumbling frantically against the wall he’s sliding down.

The three of them jump up at the same time. Charlie grabs the bowl, exclaiming how there’s nothing wrong with it. Sam goes to Cas’ side to help steady him and Dean stares at the offending thing sitting in a pool of thick saliva next to the spoon.

It’s just a chicken bone.

+

Cas keeps biting his lower lip. Dean doesn’t know if it’s a new habit or not (he never got to see human Cas before the weeks of torture). He tells Cas to stop whenever he sees it, but it clearly happens when he’s not around, and frequently, because Cas’ lip is starting to look like a discolored strip of raw meat and dark blood stains.

Charlie buys different flavors of lip balm online and has Cas try each one to find the kind he likes.

“Put it on whenever you feel like biting your lips,” she says, buying several extra tubes of Burt’s Bees so he can put one in each pocket of his clothes.

She keeps buying things for him. She tells Dean she doesn’t know what it’s like to be human for the first time, but it’s gotta require lots of things you never needed before. Dean doesn’t think miniature hand sanitizers, waterproof phone covers, or a matching pillowcase and duvet set is going to help Cas forget that he was tortured for weeks by his own siblings, but he lets her do it anyways.

Sam reads books on dieting and How to Help Your Ex-Angel With a Very Picky Appetite Gain Weight.

Foods Cas refuses to eat include chicken wings, hamburgers, hamburgers, hot dogs, and hamburgers.

Dean tries not to be frustrated with Cas. It’s only been a few weeks. A few weeks of watching at Cas’ haunted figure wobbling around the Bunker and knowing there’s nothing he can do to fix it. He can’t even cook for him, which is normally his winning move in mother-henning the infirm back to life.

Foods Cas likes to eat includes cereal, milk, and bread. Chocolate bars and French fries were soundly rejected.

Dean wonders if part of the angel’s torture was to give Cas the best fast food ever so he’d develop an aversion to it for the rest of his life.

keep reading on aO3

[copper-dragon-in-disguise]

Could you do me a favor and tell me literally every piece of info abt dnd you can? Asking for an aster

@amethyst-aster (just so you see it)

hello!

so. this is long which is why there is a cut. i feel i ought to foreworn you that i read the entire players handbook cover to cover the summer i turned 11 because i was lonely and autistic. i memorized it (mostly. little rusty on some of the magic rules but whatever). /not sarcastic so! this is EXTREMELY LONG.

first up! your basics:

dungeons and dragons is a tabletop roleplaying game first created in 1974 by gary gygax. that's not so important. what is important is this: it is currently in its fifth edition (shorthanded as 5e). that is the one i know the most about and it is personally the one i think is the easiest to play, but thats my own preference. my biology teacher thinks 5e is bloody stupid and he plays the second edition (2e), which i find much harder and more limiting.

There are three core rulebooks, and a number of supplementary books.

The most important of those three (and the only one you need to know, really, unless you're the one running the game) is called The Player's Handbook (PHB). It contains the rules for building a character and playing them.

Because it will run you upwards of $50USD per copy, here is a pdf of it on archive dot org.

The other two is the Monster Manuel (MM) (a book of all the monsters in the game) and the Dungeon Master's Guide (DMG) (a book of how to run a game, but you don't need it as a player). They are here and here.

There are a number of d&d youtubers who have tutorial videos on this type of thing. my favorite is Ginny Di, but there are literally dozens out there.

BASIC TERMS

A Character sheet is the thing you have all the information about your character recorded on. It comes in several variations, but this is a free form fillable pdf version, and this is a free printable (both from the wizards of the coast (wotc) website, but the second is hosted on archive.org) (wotc are the company that owns the copyright to the game).

A class is the vocation of the character. its what they do with themselves, but its not necessarily a job.

A race is the character's species. this is also called their species, but in offical material you'll see it called their race.

A background is how their past shaped the character.

A backstory is that past.

Ability scores are the abilities of the character, they are determined with dice rolls. There are six of them, and many years ago someone explained them with tomatoes and that's still the easiest way to explain them in my opinion. You figure them out by rolling 4d6 and adding up the three highest numbers, for a total of 6 times.

ID in alt text. [I cannot find the original source, I am sorry, nor the graphic's source]

There are various types of dice, conveniently labeled with this image below:

ID in alt. [Source]

The d20 is the most important; its what you'll use to roll ability checks and saving throws and etc.

If you don't have your own physical dice (they are advalible online, at barnes & nobles, and at your local gaming store, but many people don't have a local gaming store (me)), you can roll them on many websites. My preferred one is this one, but any work. Google has its own built in, too.

MAKING A CHARACTER

So. You have your dice, now what?

Now you make a character sheet! there are many videos online explaining how to do this (there is a lovely one here and here), but i'm going to explain it here how I generally do it.

Step 0- OPTIONAL:

Take your character sheet, and come up with an idea. Who do you want to play? A gay disaster who can shapeshift? a hobbit? a chaotic ginger with too many cats and a habit of making deals with eldritch powers? You can be whatever the hell you want. alternatively, you can look at the options in the PHB first, and go from there.

Step 1- Pick a race/species.

There are well over 30 of these, and I'm not listing them all. But the ones advaliable in the player's handbook are as follows:

Dwarf. Your sterotypical mining, axe wielding, beared fantasy dwarf. ex: Gimli, in Lord of the Rings

ID in alt. [Source]

Elf. Traditionally depicted as tall, graceful, and living in the woods. Generally have pointed ears. ex. Legolas in Lord of the Rings.

ID in alt text. [Source]

Halfling. Literally just renamed hobbits, so they don't get sued. Known for being short and excellent cooks. ex. Frodo, Sam, Merry, & Pippin from Lord of the Rings. (I can't seperate them, it feels wrong)

ID in alt. [Source]

Human. We all know what humans are. Generally viewed as very adaptable species in d&d! also in real life. ex. Bill Nye the Science Guy.

ID in alt. [Source]

Dragonborn. A bipedal species descended from dragons. They're cool as shit. ex. I literally cannot think of one i'm sorry.

ID in alt. [Source]

Gnome. Known for being very tinkery, small, and causing mischief. Also, for some reason, for being in gardens. ex. Pike Trickfoot from Critical Role.

ID in alt text. [Source]

Half-elf. Half elf, half something else! They generally have a lot of angst, but not always. Sometimes people say they combine the best of both worlds (elf and human), and sometimes people say they have it really shitty. ex. Keyleth from critical role.

ID in alt. [Source]

Half-Orc. half orc, half something else! I dunno really how to describe them. ex. Fjord Lavorre from Critical Role

ID in alt. [Source]

Tiefling. A humanoid species with horns and a tail, and often brightly colored skin. Extremely Gender in my opinion.

Step 2- Pick a class.

There are 12 core classes, and one more added in a later book. I'll go over all 13!

ARTIFICER. A magical tinkerer. A bit like leo valdez in pjo? Their core stat is intelligence. In my opinion they're very complicated for a first character ever, but do what you want its your game i do not care.

BARBARIAN. If you want to wear no armor, have an axe (or other weapon), and charge into battle shouting, this is the class for you! its fun and decently simple for first time players, in my opinion. Core stat is Strength (and constitution).

BARD. Someoe who uses the magic of creation to do shit. Also known for seducing anything that moves, but that's optional. Core stat is charisma. Seems simple at first, but they have a lot of spells to manage at later levels, but they're not too hard. The main guy in the d&d movie is one.

CLERIC. They're healers and warriors. Generally have got some sort of divine magic, but don't necessarily have to. Semi-difficult? I haven't ever played one, so I don't know how easy it would be for a first character ever. Main stat is wisdom.

DRUID. Person who turns into animals and respects the enviroment. Basically, the lorax, but less orange and with more turning into animals (druid lovers out there i am sorry for saying y'all are the lorax please don't come after me with pitchforks). they're okay for a first character but they can be a little confusing. Main stats are wisdom (and constitution).

FIGHTER. Someone who fights things. The most basic of the d&d classes, and one of the simplest for first time players, probably, but I haven't ever played one so who knows. Main stats are strength or dexterity.

MONK. Person who punches people a lot. Like Aang from avatar: the last airbender. Main stats are dexterity and wisdom. They seem simple, but one of the mechanics is slightly confusing, but they're still really simple.

PALADIN. Your tradition knight. A guy (gender neutral) in plate armor with a horse and loyalty issues. I love playing paladins so much, they're great. Personally I think they're a little confusing. Main stats are Strength & Charisma.

RANGER. Someone who wanders through the forest and fights things, like strider (but not like aragorn) from lotr. Core stats are wisdom and strength. My first ever character was an elf ranger named Thia Nailo. She was awesome. Rangers can also have pet panthers and shit, and sometimes small dragons (not tiny dragons, though. Like horse sized dragons).

ROGUE. A thief. My second ever character, and the first one who I played for any significant length of time (thia's campaign died out) was a half-elf rogue named Enna Helder-Kromlin. Rogues are a really good class for first time players, I feel like. Core stat is dexterity.

SORCERER. Someone born with magic. Main stat is charisma. They can be a little complicated.

WARLOCK. Someone who made a deal with some sort of higher power (eldritch being, god(s), etc) for magic. they make bad decisions for a living and its awesome. my favorite ever character was an elf warlock named Mara. Her patron lived in a shield and she had a wisdom of 5 but a charisma of 20. Core stat is charisma.

WIZARD. Gandalf. Someone who studied magic and learned it that way. Main stat is intelligence. They can get really complicated, really fast, but they're still a viable option for your first time.

Step 3- Backstory

There are other things to do, but its late and i'm tired. What you need to do from here is figure out what your character's life was like before now. Or, if you dont want to, then get a vibe for their personality or something.

NOW WHAT?

When you have a character, your DM (Dungeon master, the person running the game, the ''narrator'') will give you scenario, and you roleplay your way through it.

Literally anything can happen. It's d&d. the rules are suggestions, not actual rules. Make it what you want it to be!!!!

If you have other questions please contact me I love them even if it takes me forever to answer them sometimes.