#dishonored 5e

[wreathedinlaurels-nerd]

Heyo I'm Carter ✌🏻💕 || 22 y/o || He/Him

This blog is truly just for reposting and making silly little posts about the fandoms I'm into [namely, but not limited to: DND, VTM, Avatar + the Na'vi, Dishonored, Cookie Run, Monster High, His Dark Materials, The Sandman Series, Star Wars, and more!]

I'm also an artist! @WeathedinLaurels on Insta and @WreathofLaurel_ on Twitter if you're interested 💕

~~~

DNI - jedi master/padawan shippers, cl*necest supporters, ableist, sexist, racist, lgbtqia-phobic, TERFs, HP/JKR related blogs, pro-shippers

[I am literally so liberal with the block button lolll we're bffs]

[lutethebodies]

LTB Tav Tuesdays: Cannor Coth, the Lost Singer (Part 2)

A very loose version of @kelandrin's Tav Backstory Bash to follow-up this post about Cannor, my first and favorite 5e/BG3 character. Since he had an established bio long before I'd heard of BG3, I'm using my own homebrew setting names and can switch them out for BG3/Faerun stuff at the end. Is it tropey and clichéd? Probably. Do I care? I do not. Here goes:

Vitals: 37-year-old human male Bard (College of Swords), with a background of Spy (Artisan in BG3).

Childhood. Cannor is the accidental result of a tryst between two Kalen exiles: stoic field surgeon Macanso of Cutheleann and unruly Lady Corda of House Baethu, who met in the stratified yet chaotic confines of the Kalen rebel outpost at Sevánhra in rural Narán. Cannor's childhood was already stunted by limited contact with his mother—a connection cut permanently at age seven, when Corda joined the Exiles' Army in their doomed crusade to retake the Kalen homeland from usurpers and invaders. Dishonorably discharged and increasingly alcoholic, Macanso tried to train Cannor as a healer, but the boy longed for escape to the wider world, enraptured by stories and songs of travellers, traders, and sailors passing through Sevánhra's tiny port. When Mac finally drank himself to death, Cannor got his chance, and at age ten stowed away on a Caranacian ship bound for the City of Fortune.

Adolescence. Discovered and mentored by the lenient boatswain Maramad the Tramontine, Cannor worked for his bunk until the ship was ambushed in the Narrow Sound by bloodthirsty pirates. With his protector among the dead, Cannor was thrown off the ship in Caranacia and sought Maramad's sister Cabella at the Wandering Star Inn. Once there, Cannor awkwardly and soon expertly charmed his way into found family, friendships, and flings—finagling his way through the City of Fortune's taverns, markets, shrines, and academies until he could handle himself in a fight, in the sheets, on stage, or in negotiations. This was also when he experienced a catalyzing event: witnessing the famed traveling bard Ruqirt Al-Zeem (aka "Raz the Rambler") perform at the Wandering Star.

Adulthood. Gripped by ambition, at 18 Cannor left Caranacia on a multi-year voyage, singing and strumming through the ancient cities and storied nations further west, from theocratic Emberhaven to cosmopolitan Great Zeyira, from the archaic Hundred Islands to austere Sanduzca, City of Balance. His shortest version of that story is that "it was a great plan until it wasn't." He fell in love with wayward Yedalari acolyte (and eventual semi-divine "Queen of Revels") Apertumina of Labri, and the trip soon soured into disaster, throwing him in with traders, fanatics, smugglers, acolytes, slaves, pirates, caravans, and troupes before ending in a Sanduzcan dungeon thousands of miles south and worlds away from home. After rotting there for a year, Cannor escaped with a fellow prisoner, the Schismastic apostate and Ovalansi warrior Suvarro Egir, eventually returning to Caranacia by his late 20s and re-establishing himself as "The Lost Singer."

Recent Events. Recruited by the Equiposium (Caranacia's academy of diplomacy and espionage), at 32 he continued performing as a cover for intrigue high and low among the city's movers, shakers, guilds, and gangs. The power and privilege went to his head, and after too many conflicting clients and tangled affairs—most explosively with the ambitious noble scion Esadora de Errocamesi, niece of his Equiposian spymaster Regina de Atraveisa—Cannor caused several simultaneous diplomatic crises, and was banished from Caranacia. With Esa's help he eluded capture, landing in the distant backwater of Saithaaven, and at 37 is getting ever more desperate to repay that debt and regain his independence, and someday return to his adopted home city.

Nua-to-Faerun Parallels: The Naransi city of Caranacia, Cannor's adopted hometown, is a sort-of medieval Iberian/Al-Andalus-esque civilization in my homebrew world. It's sort of the Barcelona to its two sister cities Narancia (faux-Cordoba) and Enancia (faux-Gibraltar). In Faerun it most easily becomes Baldur's Gate—and its Equiposium is a handy stand-in for the Harpers. Cannor's current location, Saithaaven (Seven Harbors), is much more of a Celtic-Teutonic mashup a bit like medieval London or, in Faerun, probably the chaotic frontier settlement of Luskan. Regardless, he was unhappily stuck in the dangerous sticks.

BG3 Notes: Before being captured by the Nautiloid, Cannor was scheming ways to get back into Baldur's Gate. He plays original songs, so he doesn't get many gigs and had despaired of gaining enough fame to return home. He was chased by Karlach, seduced by Lae'zel, and kissed by Shadowheart, but fell hard for Minthara—both physically and emotionally, and was obsessed with helping her escape the cult (to the bewilderment of his companions). Her value of loyalty above all else, even power, was ultimately what hooked him—but her contemptuous disdain for the Harpers didn't hurt. Neither did her beauty, of course.

As for the other companions and followers, Cannor respected Aylin like an elder sister for umpteen reasons, and related to Jaheira's resigned ambivalence about the Harpers. He empathized with Gale and Astarion. He tolerated Minsc and Wyll and steered well clear of Mizora. Oh, and he fucking loathes Volo. After the events of BG3, Cannor found himself involved with yet another strikingly compelling noble (Minthara), and yet another overly-ambitious scheme (taking over the city with her, from the inside out). It would require some artful tact and deft dealing, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

[honourablejester]

More Homebrew 5e Spells

If anyone’s wondering, I’m doodling on my lunch break in work. This time, a couple of illusion spells, something for my beloved cold damage, and a mean abjuration spell.

FROSTFLOWER

4th level evocation

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: 90ft

Components: V, S

Duration: Concentration, 1 minute

You channel the power of deepest winter and gesture towards a point that you can see within 90ft. A bloom of frost unfurls, sending fractal patterns of ice across the ground in a 20ft radius circle from that point. This circle of frost creates an area of frigid air in a cylinder extending 20ft above it. The temperature within this area plummets to a lethal, bone-deep chill that saps strength, slows movement, and seeds frostbite. The more effort a body extends to escape this deathly chill, the more warmth and strength is sapped from them.

A creature moving through the area must spend 4 feet of movement for every 1 foot it moves. For every five feet the creature moves, it takes 4d4 cold damage. Creatures wearing metal armour instead take 5d4 cold damage, as the metal hastens the loss of heat from their bodies. Numbed and weakened by the cold, creatures within the area have disadvantage on Dexterity saving throws.

Available to: Druids, Sorcerers, Warlocks, Wizards

(Yes, this is basically a cold-themed Spike Growth, but I just want more cold spells! And, I mean. If you abruptly plummet the temperature in an area to well below freezing, people are likely going to get slow and clumsy in there)

HEX GATE

2nd level abjuration (ritual)

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: Touch

Components: V, S, M (a piece of silk)

Duration: 1 hour

Touching a doorframe or the wall of a passage, you create an invisible gate that punishes those who attempt to pass through it. Choose 2 vertical anchor points that are no more than 10ft apart, such as the walls on either side of a passage, either side of a door frame, or two pillars in a colonnade. Touching 1 of these points, you funnel crackling protective energy into the creation of an invisible vertical pane of magic between the two points, a barrier that is 1 inch thick, up to 10ft between anchors, and up to 10ft tall. This barrier seals to the vertical anchors on either side, to the floor beneath, and to the ceiling above if that is in range, and is not impeded by inanimate objects that occupy the space, such as the door in a doorframe. It is soundless, invisible, and cannot be detected save by the detect magic spell or similar magics. The hex gate lasts for 1 hour, and deals 3d6 lightning damage to any creature that passes through it.

At higher levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, the damage increases by 1d6 for each slot level above 2nd.

Available to: Artificers, Bards, Sorcerers, Warlocks, Wizards

(This was inspired in large part by the walls of light from Dishonored, hence the lightning damage. Then I started describing it as a ‘pane of magic’ and I wondered if force damage would be better? But it’s an invisible electric fence, essentially, so I think lightning works)

FAERIE FEAST

4th level illusion (ritual)

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: 30ft

Components: V, S, M (a piece of fruit)

Duration: 12 hours

You create an illusory meal of your choosing in a suitable location within range, such as on a nearby table top. The meal could appear as simple as a bowl of fruit, or as elaborate as a feast, and can appear large enough to feed up to 12 Medium creatures. The illusion behaves in all ways as a real meal, in taste, smell and texture, and lasts for 12 hours at your chosen location before vanishing. Any creature who eats or drinks from the faerie feast while the spell is active must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a successful save, the creature takes 4d8 psychic damage, and becomes aware that the feast is illusory and dangerous. On a failed save, the creature becomes drowsy and feels compelled to find a place to sleep. Within 10 minutes, the creature lapses into a magical slumber, falling unconscious, and cannot be wakened until the spell ends or until they take damage.

Available to: Bards, Sorcerers, Warlocks, Wizards

(This is purely ‘do not eat fairy food’, the spell. I’m distinctly unsure on the level, here. On the one hand, it knocks people out for a long time, and Eyebite is 2 levels higher. On the other hand, it requires a lot more time and set-up than a battle spell like Eyebite, and there’s no guarantee that anyone will actually eat anything, so if luck and/or your DM are against you, it’s a waste of a spell slot. So I compromised on 4th level? I’m open to both lower and higher, though).

PHANTASMAL FOLLOWER

7th level illusion

Casting Time: 10 minutes

Range: 500 miles

Components: V, S, M (incense and a gemstone worth 500gp, which the spell consumes)

Duration: Special

You shape a phantasmal follower to haunt and bedevil a creature you know and have met before. Holding a gemstone in your hand over a lit bowl of incense, you focus on your hatred for this creature until the gemstone shatters with the force of your magic and the dust mixes with the smoke from the incense. You shape this smoke into an illusory spectre of hatred, gaunt and horrifying, and cast them out into the world to find and shadow your target. The phantasmal follower disappears from your side and appears beside your target as long as they are within 500 miles of you. Only your target can see this phantasmal follower, and the follower never leaves their sight, dogging them wherever they go, howling dire predictions and afflicting them at every turn.

The target must make a Wisdom saving throw when the spectre first appears to them. On a successful save, the target takes 9d10 psychic damage and the spell ends. The creature is then immune to this spell for 10 days if you cast it again. On a failed save, the creature instead becomes afflicted by the phantasmal follower, who reacts to any violent action they take. They make all attack rolls at disadvantage while the follower is with them, as well as any concentration checks to sustain a spell, and any Charisma (Deception) or Charisma (Intimidation) checks. The follower cannot be dispelled, reforming instantly if such magic is attempted. The spell only ends once the creature succeeds on their Wisdom save, which they can repeat once every 24 hours. Once they succeed on the save, they are immune to this spell for a year if you cast it again.

You are aware when the creature succeeds on their saving throw and the follower vanishes.

Available to: Bards, Clerics, Warlocks, Wizards

(Intended as a continuation of the Phantasmal Force/Killer spells, this is essentially the ‘summon a grudge ghost on your enemy’ spell. I found it very hard to judge potential costs. It’s a long-term debuff, so I figured it needed a material cost, but again it needs some set-up, and there’s a chance they’ll just take some psychic damage and call it a day. So. Let me know if you think the cost is miscalculated?)

[monthlychallenges4all]

Life & Honor

Name/Link: Life & Honor

Fandom: MCU

Inspired By: MC4A Cotillion

Challenge(s): Ship; Garden; Harvest

Ship: Worth Dishonor

Team:  Edwin Jarvis/Ana Jarvis

List (Prompt): Relationships (Married; Mother & Son); Items (Ceramic Mug; Fork)

List (Prompt): Gallery (MCU); Gee Favs (Found Family); Bargain Beans (Lavender); Bait (Kid Tony Stark); Tools (Blanket); Mixed Bag (Coffee)

List (Prompt): SpBig (Bird Feeder; Planter); SuBig (Carnival; Lemonade; Squirrel)

Space Address (Prompt): Ship 5E (White Knight) | SuB 1B (Stargazing)

Warning(s): Bondage

[spewagepipe]

On 2023

I have so many awards to give out this year – let's get to it.

Best 2023 Video Game: Baldur's Gate 3 Yeah, BG3 is good – this isn't exactly a hot take. But look, this wasn't as cut and dry as you might imagine. The fact that BG3 is possibly the single best game of the year is a testament to how much work the developers had to put in to overcome the inherent awfulness of the 5E D&D mechanics that it was saddled with.

Best Older Game that I Finished in 2023: Disco Elysium If BG3 is an A-Tier CRPG, then Disco Elysium represents the S-Tier of the genre. I had to interrupt my play-through of it last year, much to my shame, but I wrapped it up in April this year and now it's competing hard for the GOAT in my books.

Left 4 Dead Award for Best Cooperative Shooter: Remnant 2 The other major competitor for best 2023 game was Remnant 2, because although it doesn't have the sheer breadth of possibility of BG3, it is a very good shooter with a number of interesting puzzles, guns, and Soulsbornean bosses, and cooperative multiplayer so I can hang with my pals.

Best Horror Game that I Played in 2023: Iron Lung I also played Signalis this year, which was definitely a more expansive and involved game – but Iron Lung takes this because despite its short length, it's profoundly immersive and intense for that whole duration.

The Pandemic Legacy Season 0 Award for Finally Starting to play Pandemic Legacy Season 0 After Multiple Years of Having a Real-World Pandemic Making In-Person Board Games an Impossibility: Pandemic Legacy Season 0 I finally got to play it. It's very good.

The Franchise Game I Played in 2023 That Made the Biggest Improvements Over Its Predecessors: Dishonored: Death of the Outsider They stripped out most of the pointless progression, stripped out the chaos system, made most of what remains into task-oriented "find the bonecharm" type stuff, and finally introduced regenerating mana. I don't know if I'd go as far as to say that they perfected the core systems, but they came pretty damn close.

Best Worker-Placement Game that I Tried in 2023: Feast For Odin I've never liked the worker-placement genre much, but Feast For Odin is an entirely different beast. It cleanly removes basically every ADHD-aggravating mechanic that is typical of the genre, and then replaces them with a lovely Tetris mini-game. It fits so much more neatly into my brain, and yet doesn't seem to have lost any depth in the exchange (as compared to other games of the genre).

Best RPG that I Tried in 2023: Alice Is Missing I am genuinely curious about whether or not Alice Is Missing potentially represents a totally new way to run a GM-less RPG. These rules (and the story context) provide just enough of a plot-backbone and prompting to get players to produce consistently powerful stories every time.

Most Promising Non-RPG Story-Game Format that I Tried in 2023: Arkham Horror: the Card Game Speaking of GM-less stuff, I finally played the AH LCG and holy crap it really blows all of the previous Arkham Horror franchise out of the water (to say nothing of putting to shame a dozen other would-be story-driven tabletop games). I probably haven't played enough of it to really pass judgment just yet, but I am absolutely blown away by the promise on display here.

Best 2023 Movie Because I Honestly Just Didn't Get Out to the Theatre Very Much, But Clearly This Film Still Whips Ass: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse I feel like there might've been one or two better movies this year, but I didn't see any of those. I don't feel bad about throwing "best movie" at Across the Spider-Verse though, because it's clearly top-tier regardless.

Biggest Cinema Phenomenon that I Totally Missed: Barbie Everybody and their dog loves this movie, and I was just, like, busy for the entire season. I'm gonna go see it next Thursday, I swear.

The Finally Made a Good Dungeons & Dragons Movie: Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves Inside me there are two wolves. One wants to pretend that this is the first time they've ever adapted D&D for any kind of cinematic medium in an attempt to bury the older films and the cartoon show in the Dustbin of History. The other wants to show all that garbage off so that people appreciate the extent to which I have suffered at the hands of this brand. Regardless, this new film was like a breath of fresh air by comparison, and with any luck it'll bring a few more new folks to the hobby.

Holy Shit I Can't Believe I Still Haven't Seen This New Godzilla Movie, Everyone Fucking Loves It: Godzilla Minus One This is now the most critically acclaimed Godzilla film ever made, and that somehow includes the original? I am so fuckin' gized y'all, I can't even start.

[roskvawinther]

i think the whole "play another ttrpg than D&D" sentiment would be more effective if people actually tried to suggest RPG's similar to D&D. The first time I was suggested to delve outside of D&D, I was told to play some diceless story focused free form setting agnostic RPG, but like, I played D&D for the dice and the character progression and such.

The best way to recommend a new rpg to a D&D player is identify what they actually like, then recommend based on that. If they like D&D 5e, tell them to play Pathfinder 2e. If they like Dishonored, tell them to play Blades in the Dark. If they like gundam, tell them to play LANCER.

Don't just say "oh try this INCREDIBLY niche 1 page RPG with little to no structure, when you're used to the rules heavy and structured 5th edition D&D"

[reconstructwriter]

Paladins Aren't Cops

Or at least they aren't supposed to be played like them.

One of the most common problems with Paladins is when their player decides they must police fellow players. Which makes everyone else hate them or worse, divides the group between those who put up with the policing and those who rebel. But there’s nothing in the paladin’s features that support this playstyle in any edition.

Warning, long post ahead. I have thought way too much about this…

Paladin features across most d&d and adjacent games tend to have the following features: resistances to evil, healing touch, a smattering of cleric abilities and a holy steed. I was surprised to learn Smite was a later addition the first paladins didn’t seem to have, but the most popular ones do and it tends to work best against demons and undead.

They also all abide by a code of conduct. Lets start with that, which generally shows what a Paladin is obliged to do and not to do: “A paladin must be of lawful good alignment and loses all class abilities if she ever willingly commits an evil act. Additionally, a paladin's code requires that she respect legitimate authority, act with honor (not lying, not cheating, not using poison, and so forth), help those in need (provided they do not use the help for evil or chaotic ends), and punish those who harm or threaten innocents. While she may adventure with characters of any good or neutral alignment, a paladin will never knowingly associate with evil characters, nor will she continue an association with someone who consistently offends her moral code. A paladin may accept only henchmen, followers, or cohorts who are lawful good.” Copied from 3.5e SRD but PF 1e is similar and other editions like 5e’s Devotion tenets and 2e’s paladin champion draw heavily from it.

Lawful Good Alignment – this alignment involves being respectful of authority, making personal sacrifices for others. At worst judge those who slack off THEIR duties, nothing about policing others.

No Willing Evil Acts – the definition of evil “implies hurting, oppressing, and killing others,” specifically “whenever its convenient” or “actively pursuing evil.” A Paladin policing the party is arguably engaging in willful oppression…

Respect Legitimate Authority – depending on what counts as respectful and/or legitimate, this at most obliges you to be friendly and/or helpful to police, not be one to the party.

Honorable – aka fair play. This specifically prohibits the paladin from poisoning, cheating and lying and generally being unfair or dishonorable. Nothing about policing so moving on…

Helping Those in Need – this has a caveat against aiding those who will use your aid for evil or chaotic ends (no helping the Rogue burgle or the wizard into lichdom) but nothing about policing.

Punishing Those Who Threaten or Harm Innocents – this could arguably be justification for policing one’s party except punishment isn’t actually a cop’s job and…

Never Knowingly Associate with Evil Characters – pretty simple, between an evil character and a paladin, there’s only enough room in the party for one.

Never Continually Associate with Consistent Offender of Moral Code – this covers paladins in more dubiously lawful or moral parties. And the clear instructions are to stop the association. Not police. Stop.

Only Lawful Good Henches/Followers/Cohorts – these are a paladin’s employees, not fellow party members and the paladin is their employer, not a cop. Moving on…

…To mechanical features. Like the above code (copied from 3.5e SRD) not all Paladins will have every feature listed. Even when they did, the features sometimes differed in exactly what they did so I’ll list broader categories:

Detect Evil: Presumably so the paladin doesn’t waste a smite on a neutral person or join an evil party, it’s not a great feature on a cop. Many crimes don’t fit the d&d definition of evil and many an evil person can harm, oppress and kill others without breaking the law.

Smite Evil: Or Divine Smite, etc. the paladin’s primary damage-dealing mechanic often doesn’t work at all on non-evil beings and usually works better on fiends and undead. Cops also technically aren’t supposed to punish so this feature makes a poor choice for a realistic ‘police build’.

Healing Touch: Lay on Hands, Mercies, Cleansing touch, etc. all fall under this ability. The only way to police the party with it is to withhold healing from those who’ve offended you but that’s arguably against your code.

Resistances to Evil: Divine Grace/Health and nearly all auras give the Paladin and usually those nearby more even footing against the BBEG’s power. Useless for policing one’s party unless they’re evil and rebel via attacks.

Cleric Abilities: Usually the lower-level spells and turn undead and/or channel whatever. The latter is generally useless for cops but geas spells from the former could help policing…if you’re willing to spend those valuable spell slots

Holy Steed/Bond/etc.: Basically there to evoke the Knight in Shining Armor thing the paladin is based on. As with spells, you can technically use a sentient, sapient medieval warhorse like a cop’s mount.

TL;DR the Paladin makes for a poor cop with no code basis, little thematic reason or mechanical support for a policing style of play. More importantly this usually means no one is having fun playing, even the paladin player.

[the-akunim-ra]

Homebrew 5e warlock patron based on dishonored

[kayzig]

after the majority of the ttrpg news today, I grabbed a bunch of "Intro to" Corebooks (a couple vague ones, one that is for an entirely new setting inspired by The Neverending Story, etc), and once again my recent forays into New Vegas means I picked up a free copy of the Fallout TTRPG mostly for a laugh, but now I am learning the same company has a Dishonored TTRPG and I feel like that'd be a little niche but really fun to play in.

My more realistic TTRPG-trajectory for the moment is still thinking it'd be really fun to take a note from some of my friend's playbooks, build a world-setting background using The Quiet Year, and then testing a "pilot" session, and hopefully playing a "season" of a game based around the Charge system, tbh.

Something a bit more loose, to unwind from the more prep/building-heavy stuff I've done with my 5e focus.

[bards-anonymous]

Got a lot of sitting around to do today....and Im bored already

Anyone got any ttrpg character asks perhaps?? Even silly ones 😔👉👈 Got brainrot waiting for my games to start again

I got:

Harriett (Dishonored)

Doc Smiles (Fallout)

Callista (Fallout)

Jex (Starfinder)

Margo (D&D)

Addie (D&D)

Cassandra (Deadlands/just normal oc) (gonna be playing her in a Deadlands game here soon hopefully. Gonna cowboy-ify her) 🐴🤠

[dungeonmalcontent]

This is the product of a Discord discussion about... I think it started as a discussion on an ATLA AU? (had nothing to do with this). I’m weird, and so are my friends, and I love them.

[crowslunasidhe]

Here’s a WIP of my Tiefling

Her name is Casra a Dishonored Port City Noble who fucking hates the other nobles for their treatment of the poor. 

She’s a robinhood type chaotic good rogue.

She’s a disaster bi who does not understand how to flirt AT ALL.

Yes, her tail is not in the WIP but I’m adding it in later.

It’s okay to reblog this, in fact I encourage you to reblog it, not just like.

[hacks-and-heroes]

Hacks and Heroes #3

For those who are unaware of it, Dishonored is a series of first person action stealth games developed by Arkane Studios. It is well known for its Victorian-style setting, and its intricate and Lovecraft style lore. Dishonored is one of my favorite game series to come out in the last couple of years. If nothing else, the art and design of the series as a whole is breathtaking and unique. One particular special thing is its “Whalepunk” technology; big, bulky wrought iron devices and ships, powered by the oil of speared and skewered whales. All of this and the way it captures magic and gods makes for an enthralling setting.

So how do you translate all of this to tabletop games. Dishonored hasn’t been fully hacked by anyone that I have ever seen online, not for lack of people asking about it. I suppose as a whole it isn’t a complex setting to convert. Most games you play will have the pieces, they may just need a bit of rearranging. I’m gonna start by talking about general ideas that apply to all games, and then delve into a few specific games.

World Building

Firstly, as mentioned Dishonored is of a subgenre of Steampunk, Whalepunk. Truly the only thing in the subgenre is Dishonored itself but the point stands. So what defines Whalepunk? Well like Steampunk it is all about technology tinged with magic. Everything in Dishonored is bulky and harsh like the whaling ships that enable the technology. There are also a lot of Tesla-like devices that are apart of Dishonored’s world. The Wall of Light and Arc Pylon are two whale oil powered devices that produce electricity in a way that would make Tesla very proud. Other important things about the technology of Dishonored’s setting is the use of a railway-like system, with carts and boxes on elevated rails that loop through the cities.

Let’s talk about some of the themes of the story telling in Dishonored. The main games hold a lot of themes about family, royalty and responsibility. As well, the subjects of political discourse and poverty are also made apparent in the world building. It helps when our main characters, particularly of Dishonored 2 when you play the Empress Emily, are they themselves royalty. In the DLC and spin-off games, more is put towards themes of loyalty, survival, and revenge. The first novel also has the classic theme of being unable to change the past.

So now I’ll get into the specifics of making a Dishonored game.

Magic

Magic is complex in the Dishonored world. All magical ability stems from The Void. The Void is another world. The mirror to the tangible. Inhabited by giant floating leviathans and ancient otherwordly beings. There are several ways to receive magical ability in the world of Dishonored. The most prime and prominent answer is to receive the Mark of the Outsider. A godlike being who roams The Void, the Outside may bless anyone of his choosing with a mark on the back of their hand, that grants them various powers, unique to them. If you were to wish a character to have an array of magical powers in a Dishonored game, this would be the easiest way of doing so. That being said, the powers tend to be limited and do not go beyond five or six powers (and a small array of supplemental powers). As well, the bearers of the mark tend to not be mages themselves, often being rogues and warriors who use the powers to add to their repertoire. For example, a Pathfinder “Magus” class may be an example of someone such as Daud or Corvo. However, this isn’t a perfect example, and a better way to portray this in a game with classes would be to allow character class of choice, and offer the powers in a separate way such as Feats or Abilities.

Another way to gain powers in the world of Dishonored is to have them bestowed upon you by the bearer of the Mark. Some holders of the Mark can share their abilities with underlings, giving them access to some or all of their powers. This is how it is in the case of Daud and Delilah Copperspoon. While this is more apparent in Daud’s assassins, whose powers are more clear cut, the Brigmore Witches seem a bit more uncertain. Their powers are different from Delilah in a number of ways and manifest differently from witch to witch. That being said, I’d say there is something to be said of Witch Magic that is certainly aided by the Outsider’s influence. In a game, I’d offer up Witch magic as its own entity that could be aided by Shared Power. Once more in a class system I’d offer Feats like the Mark, but with the caveat that the power can be lost if the giver dies, retracts, or loses their own abilities.

One more source of magical power lies in the Dishonored world. That is Bone Charms and Whalebone Runes. Runes in the games have always been away of improving your abilities, so in an RPG terms, these could possibly be conduits that aid your growth through perhaps ritual. The bone charms are a more interesting tale. There have been several characters who used bone charms to great effect. In the video game, they aided your current powers or gave you small buffs and abilities. However other characters, such as the gang leader Paolo made use of several bone charms and a powerful artifact that gave him Mark-like powers. The character Zhukov from the first Dishonored novel has several powers granted to him through the use of corroded bone charms and a magical dagger. These powers began to take a toll on him in their own right, however he is one of the most powerful people in the series at large. From a gameplay point of view, Bone Charms should range from weak magical items that provide small buffs and bonuses to powerful items that can bestow new powers themselves onto the wielder. As well, they should be able to be combined with other magical artifacts for even greater effect.

A small aside about religious power in the Dishonored universe. While the Abbey of the Everyman is vehemently against the Void and any kind of dark art is met with execution, they themselves make use of some Void magic. To begin they have in their control special Music Boxes that play a song that nullifies all powers in the area. There is also the point of the Oracular Order, a group of women within the Abbey suspected to have powers that allow them to make “prophetic visions”. They seem to be more in line with real world monks, highly educated, trained in battle, and viciously cunning rather than truly magical. However, one may say that through the use of hallucinogens and possibly magical substances, their powers become truer.

Equipment

Much of Dishonored’s base technology is in line with real world tech of the late 1800s to early 1900s. The second game sees the advent of an internal plumbing system throughout the cities. As well, city lighting is through the use of street lamps, and news is pumped through a mix of hanging metal speakers and newsprint.

When it comes to personal equipment available to your party, there is a series of options for sure. Firearms lie pretty much in the realms of pistols, though it is not hard to imagine rifles or blunderbusses existing as well. They are primarily wooden-hafted weapons, functioning like flintlocks and wheelocks. Emily’s pistol from the second game appears at later upgrades to become more of a break-action revolver deal. From a gameplay perspective, these weapons have a one shot magazine without upgrades, and require an action to reload. They also have a small spread when fired, hitting a small five foot cone with shrapnel (half damage to even just 1 damage). Other options for ranged weapons include crossbows (the protagonists all use intricate rotating hand crossbows, or similar wristbows). There’s also several options for grenades, special ammunition, and devices for distraction. The tallboys of first Dishonored game also a type of compound bow, making them an option available to your party as well.

As far as melee weapons go, the games show primarily sword usage. Each faction tends to have a unique weapon. As with the pistol, I believe this primarily for simplicity and design standards. In RPG form, it is within reason to see weapons such as axes and spears, though spears will be more rare, as they became in real life.

Other weapons include several forms of landmines, including the infamous springrazor. Essentially a short range landmine filled with spring loaded razorwire. There are no real options for vehicles besides personal boats (such as Amanda’s boat in the sequel) and if characters are nobles, a personal railcar, though there’s not much one can do with the railcar besides traveling around the cities specific pathways. One could possibly also obtain some of the Tallboy armor, which is a strange mix of armor plating and massive stilted legs. Most modern miscellaneous items should be available within reason. Things such as internet and tv are clearly out, but gramophones and cameras aren’t.

Things such as Walls of Light and Arc Pylons should be treated as traps and obstacles. The arc pylons function within a certain range, and automatically attack a single target in range with a high damage electrical arc. The wall of light is only passable by those attuned to the wall or if the wall is disabled. Those that pass through should either take a high amount of damage, or just to make a safe to be instantly killed. Regardless, if a person survives a wall of light (never seen in the game, but there’s room for cool things like that) they should come out maimed and horrificly damaged.

Specific Game Conversions

So I’ve talked about the ideas that are pertinent to game run in Dishonored’s world. So let’s now talk about what you have to do in specific games to replicate that feeling.

Dungeons and Dragons 5e/Pathfinder

So converting settings to class-based systems like these two can be complicated for a number of reasons. Such as the fact that in Dishonored as a whole, there are numerous characters who have magical powers who would definitely not fit into the roles of Wizard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Bard, etc. So how do we remedy this. Well as mentioned earlier, feats are a possible remedy to these issues. In Pathfinder something like the Drow Magic feat progression offered to Drow players is possibly option, with steadily gaining more magical powers as time goes on.

For example:

Outsider’s Mark

Prerequisites: 5th level or higher, Iron Will, must be contacted by the Outsider and bestowed this power

Effect: Allows the use of Dimension Door and one other 4th or lower Spell of choice up to 3/day.

Some players may be opposed to this though, as this robs them of feats they may feel fits their character better. In Pathfinder this is a completely understandable as feats are a major piece of what makes up your character. Now since feats in 5e are optional, this is a more viable option, if your players meet said prerequisites. You can always decide to give these feats and abilities for free as the story progresses, as long as you are okay with your players having an edge against other characters. That’s really all you can do in these particular systems without being restrictive. If you want, you could also just give the Marked players a choice of spells from their mark and they have a certain number of uses, like other casters. Since the Mark tends be based on the strength of the wielder, Wisdom or Charisma wouldn’t be too off.

One more thing of mention for D&D/Pathfinder; the options for classes should be restricted to primarily martial classes unless under specific circumstances. I could see a point made for things such as Warlocks and Bards for the for former, and a handful of the latters. However, direct magic users, such as clerics, druids, paladins, sorcerers, and wizards should be kept to a very limited number to preserve the setting.

For Pathfinder, there is plenty already around to represent the setting of Dishonored. You may have to come up with some miscellaneous items, but not stuff that’ll have much bearing. For 5e, I highly recommend the Steampunk Compendium and the Urban Arcana Modern Magic Subclasses. Both fit fairly well, give equipment examples and a possible class, the gunslinger.

Savage Worlds

So Savage Worlds is pretty easily one of the best games for hacks and conversions. Not just Dishonored. I have seen hacks for Savage Worlds from Star Wars to Weird War to Conan of all things. So if you are looking for something to do Dishonored in, Savage Worlds is quite good.

So about players and building characters. Giving your players the Outsider’s Mark, or another form of magic, all they need is the Arcane Background edge. From there they will have to take the power edges to gain new powers and points. Any of the Arcane Background edges fit the setting really, even weird science could be put towards characters like Jindosh or Sokolov, but that may be a bit much. However using powers in Dishonored is almost always a force of will scenario, I highly recommend making them Spirit based. With the rate that characters gain powers using power edges, you may think that may too slow for your game. If that’s the case, don’t be afraid to either throw your characters extra powers or advance them a little faster to compensate.

From there it’s just about getting gear and equipment right. The core book does have some stuff that will work. However, if you’re unable to due with those, both The Widening Gyre and Rippers have a mix of settings that you can pull from to build. Rippers especially will have a lot setting appropriate miscellaneous items to pick from.

Aaaaaandd…

Those are the best systems I can think to run a Dishonored based games. That being said, there are a plethora of other systems that can do the job but I did not list for the reasons that will follow!

Point-Buy Games

Both Mutants and Masterminds and GURPS could run this game. I’m not kidding when I say Mutants and Masterminds has been made to run weird. Seriously take a trip over to the Ronin Army forums and look under the pages for characters made using that system. Literally made characters from sitcoms. My sole advice for M&M is that you keep the PL a little higher for your players. This way they will have a reasonable amount of points and limits for their powers.

On GURPS I can’t say terribly much. I’m sure there are plenty of Steampunk settings for GURPS given its age, so you should have no problem hunting stuff down for it.

Story-based Games

So this is anything along the lines of FATE. Very minimal dice rolling, primarily a talkative situation, and self-described abilities and skills. For anyone who prefers a more story heavy game, and isn’t a big fan of the mechanics of other RPGs, check these out.

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And that’s where I’ll wrap it for the week! Let me know what you all thought, send me your feedback. I know this is a lot talking and there aren’t really any hard conversions from myself this week. If would like to see actual statistical conversions of things from Dishonored or other settings, let me know and I’ll post some stuff up. Now with this, I bid you adieu. Next week we’ll be taking exchanging our Whalepunk aesthetic for an art deco dieselpunk and travel beneath the waves to a world of...Rapture.

[ficklepenguin]

looking for people to follow

hi, tumblr. i'm trying to get back into tumbling (not because of the great twitter migration or whatever is happening, i just miss fandoms) but it's been a hot, hot minute since i used tumblr regularly so everything is out of date re: my current interests. so i'm looking for some new blogs to follow. if you regularly post any of these things, give this post a like or a reblog and i'll check you out. alternatively, if you know anyone who is good to follow for these things, send an ask with their url or comment or something. anyway here are things I like:

our flag means death

the adventure zone (esp balance)

mcu

umbrella academy

elden ring

what we do in the shadows

anything else McElroy

arcane

TTRPG things (esp d&d 5e/pf2e)

dragon age

dishonored (esp 2 but they're all good)

i'm not expecting anyone to follow me back, i'm just looking to put more stuff i like on my dash!! thank you in advance, and have a lovely day

[clueeulc]

The updated Rogue Archetype for my Dishonored homebrew

[themerfman-blog]

A Dishonored-inspired homebrewed class I’ve put together last summer