It is no secret that I've been working on (and extolling) the virtues of one of my favorite table-top RPGs recently both on here and on Twitter; Barbarians of Lemuria.
I've been getting things together to run my "Great Campaign," and in the interrim I've been messing around with the system a little more. Drawing from the plethora of BoL-inspired games, as well as the Mythic Edition playtest. Great stuff all around.
While toying with it, I came up with an interesting character concept that draws heavily from The Elder Scrolls' lore, namely soul-trapping and soul gems, but with a twist.
As such, I've created an item that utilizes this concept, as well as a sample spell using BoL's free-form magic system that I've discussed at length in the last power. See more about it after the break.
Draining souls and other foul necromancy is fun, not just for the mechanics of it, but the flavor as well. Even in a game like Skyrim, it is a risk. Casting a spell or striking with a blade with "Soul Trap" on it and hoping the creature dies within an allotted amount of time. It's just fun. When it works and you have an empty Soul Gem you get something that will fuel your enchanting or recharge your magic items. Cool, right?
Now, I don't want to copy the whole mechanics as described above whole-cloth. It works great for a video game, but for a table-top RPG it is just too much book-keeping. Counting down rounds til they die, among other things. That's not very heroic, is it? So let's focus on what is.
The Warlock's Soul-Knife is an ebony great sword used by a dread necromancer to store the souls of those whom he tormented. It has passed from hand to skeletal hand over the eras and ages past, but recently this foul blade has found its way into the hands of a hero. This is not just any hero mind you, but one with a hatred of necromancy and its ilk. This hero is a renowned Warlock-Slayer. So do they use this black blade in their quest to hunt down warlocks, knowing full well what it does? Is there a certain justice in trapping the dark and twisted souls of magi within the blade itself? Well... that's up to the Warlock-Slayer, isn't it?
Mechanics: The Warlock's Soul-Knife is a great sword that deals 1d6+2 base damage.
But, how does one absorb souls into this ebon blade? Well, I'm glad you asked!
Soul Drain is a 1st Circle ranged spell that shoots out from the Warlock's Soul-Knife and necrotizes its target's soul. Any creature slain with this spell has its soul absorbed into the Soul-Knife.
Mechanics: 1st Magnitude Spell; 1d6 damage that ignores Protection; base Arcane Power Cost 2; Tricky (-1) task; Requirements: Warlock's Soul-Knife, Line of Sight, Chant and Gesture, caster takes d3 Wounds.
Combining this all together, the act of absorbing the soul requires the spell and blade. The act of using the soul for benefits requires a Boon:
Soul-Forged Blade: Burn a soul absorbed with Soul Drain. When dealing damage with the Warlock's Soul-Knife, roll the damage die twice and take the higher result. Additionally, you may use Mind instead of Strength for bonus damage.
So while this is a very high-concept character that requires three moving parts to make work, it does create an evocative character as well. Someone who has forsworn to hunt down and end the lives of necromancers and warlocks is using a tool of necromancy and the manipulation of souls as a means to an end. Where does that character draw the line? When they look into the ebony darkness how long until the darkness and the beings within look back?
"He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster.
And when you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you."
-Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil
Until next time,
-blob
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