AUTHORS Luca De Marini & Gilbert Gallo Based on the Mobile Games Darkmoor and Blackmoor by Mooff Games
EDITED BY ACCHIAPPASOGNI Graphics and Layout: Luca De Marini Editing: Francesco Raimondi English Translation: Annarita Guarnieri
ILLUSTRATIONS Davide Quaroni
AKNOWLEDGEMENTS We are really thankful to all the playtesters who believed in this game, everyone who pledged in the Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign as well as all the gaming associations that beta-tested it. WWW.ACCHIAPPASOGNI.ORG/DARKMOOR/
You can still support us on Kickstarter! Only a few days are left, hurry up!
http://kck.st/1QWy0GB Darkmoor RPG is published by: Acchiappasogno di Luca De Marini e Davide Quaroni - Via Leonardo da vinci 30 27020 TRAVACO’ SICCOMARIO (PV) - ITALIA All rights reserved. Reproduction of any of this material without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons, organizations, places, or events is to be considered purely accidental. Made in Italy. First limited edition. Printed in the month of October 2015. For any further information please write to:
[email protected]
Hi, folks!
is a new fantasy role-playing game (RPG) that will allow you to live breathtaking adventures with your motley crew of adventurers! My name is Duberry, and I’m the brave leader of my group and...what? Yes, of course I’m the boss, why shouldn’t I... what? Democracy? When the heck did we...? No, but...okay, okay! Put that whip down! Well...ehm...as I was saying, my name is Duberry, and with my ABSOLUTELY EQUAL PARTNERS, I will explain ’s main features to you!
THIS IS NOT YOUR USUAL GAME
I know, I know! You have already heard this so many times that you don’t believe it anymore, but that’s how I had to begin, it’s in my contract! Honestly, there’s nothing I can do about it. Still, doesn’t work like the most popular RPGs that you may know. There are many substantial differences!
A HUMOROUS FANTASY GAME
is set in a self-deprecating fantasy universe, full of action and magic, where anything is possible! Giant apes and huge, colourful pandas train in the art of kung fu in remote monasteries in preparation for the Steel Fists Tournament. Giant robot toys chase one another through different parallel dimensions waging an automated miniatures war. Coins, jewelry and all kind of possible treasures pop out of the monsters you just killed in dungeons created by crazy robot butlers!
CINEMATIC COMBAT
In , combat is pure, hyper-cinematic action! Taking inspiration from Soul Calibur, Fist of the North Star and the Matrix movies, you will unleash your “epic-named” special moves while the whole universe stops to watch! Fighting is based on a variety of factors: your character’s stats, the Attack and Defence Dice, customized Special Moves created by each Player, the Symbols that make each Move unique and the various effects they trigger, and Special Weapons and the bonuses they provide. You will even upgrade your moves by describing your cinematic actions—the cooler the better!!
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TO FIGHT OR NOT TO FIGHT
In , the game mechanics during fighting scenes are completely different than they are during non-combat situations. Why? Because it’s COOL this way! And fun. I mean it! During scenes where you aren’t violently pounding your opponent, everything is resolved with the Oracle: a six-sided die that helps the Guide (what we call the Referee or Gamemaster in ) develop the Story. The Oracle also provides interesting ideas to advance the Story. Bringing up your Race, Class , Background, Skills and ... Portrait, you will get Bonus Dice! If you want to skip all the fun, the Guide can interpret the Oracle through a boring and mundane “yes-no” answer...or you can use it as intended: taking the suggestions to create plot hooks, outrageous situations and daunting obstacles that make the adventure more exciting and fun! The only limit is your imagination!
THERE’S TOO MUCH STUFF: MY BRAIN’S MELTING! Hahaha! Nice one, young padawan. It’s not difficult; you’ll only need one game to know everything about . There’s also a cheat sheet—only a small one for the whole game—and it is dying to be put on the table to help you ...at least until the second game, when you won’t need it anymore and you’ll throw it away! MUAHAHAHA!
YOUR PENCIL AND ERASER ARE COLLECTING DUST
is even more fun if you use playing cards, counters and other colorful tokens that will make your gaming experience more memorable! The game is specifically designed and conceived to be played using physical media that help speed up and simplify combat round management! Just write a few important things on your character sheet, such as Symbols and elements used by your character (so you won’t forget them!), as well as...ah yes—your cool character portrait!!! Then throw yourself headlong into action!
MASTER, HE’S CHEATING!!!
Hammer and nails, my boy; hammer and nails for his coffin. So what? Is cheating such a big deal? This is : in this fantastic world where the incredible becomes possible and anything can be a source of inspiration or comedy, the important thing is always and only FUN.
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The game design of maximizes the fun and streamlines every other aspect of the game, generating adventures, enemies and rewards...all in addition to the thousands of ideas offered by the absurd world of Darkmoor itself! In , players are NOT puppets in the hands of the Guide. The Guide trusts them and enjoys the game, telling the story and describing the NPCs’ actions. Meanwhile, the players independently manage their turn and their characters, all without the Guide being forced to follow their every single move. If a player says he scored 25 instead of 23, or if he used 1 Action Point more than he should, is it a big problem? Probably not, but if it annoys you, tell the player! Otherwise, just go ahead! Come on: killing a monster one round earlier is not the primary focus of role-playing, at least not in THIS game! So what’s this game’s focus? Yes, you guessed it: HAVING FUN! In , STYLE and FUN always win!
ALL THOSE BLING-BLING THINGS!
The equipment in is an essential (and humorous) part of your character! It’s almost as important as his or her Stats, and it’s ALWAYS USEFUL! Your techniques may or may not involve you using your sword or your ring, but simply wearing them will ensure their Bonus and Penalties apply to you! Why? Well, because MAGIC, that’s why! They are MAGIC ITEMS: they do MAGICAL things. Are you happy with this? I thought so. Just remember to never leave home without a Shield of Pondering Reflections. You can thank me later!
IN SHORT
is a VERY tongue-in-cheek, humorous game. Anything is possible: PCs literally shine brightly when they level up, they can choose to fail a task on purpose in order to earn more Experience, and they may belong to any race, ethnicity, profession, class and background you can imagine. Best of all, you can combine all of this (and more!) to create absurd and bizarre results! Plus, when you finally kill the Boss, you will be showered with coins and treasure! Seeing is believing!
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Darkmoor is TOTALLY customizable. In the 200+ pages, USA letter format book, you’ll find just a couple of rules to follow, so the Player can shape his own Races, Classes, Skills, Techniques (Martial or Magic), and Equipment. There will be plenty of examples and suggestions, but they all explain how to create your own original stuff. In this document, we’d like to highlight some of Darkmoor’s features, so that you can better understand how the game will look like thanks to your help. Let’s begin with a pregenerated Character.
fighter able to perform huge combos and take on several opponents at the same time! Her defense techniques are not as good, though. It was Raven who taught her Dragon-slaying Techniques.
RACE
Undying Offspring: an ancient Race from the East, they are direct descendants of the Elemental Gods. Akin to the Spirits, they are resistant to magic, agile, and generally handsome.
CLASS
Lancer: expert at fighting against multiple opponents while keeping them at a distance; delivers precise and fast strikes. Quite talented in guessing his/her enemies’ weak points.
RED SPHINX
A female character with a strong fighting attitude. She’s strong, fast and determined to become the best Lancer in the world. She wants to become at least as skilled as an Elemental Herald, so that her village will be safe forever at her return. Being the secret descendant of the Undying King, she feels compelled to become the best warrior under the heavens. She’s fast, precise and deadly, a Lightning Dragon Slayer, the perfect
GOALS
1. Helping Wraiths, Ghosts and Spirits in general. 2. Meeting and challenging Raven in combat again. 3. Beating up NPC Bosses
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BACKGROUND
Once graduated as an expert Lancer, she left Ethernia to sharpen her Techniques. Once outside her village, she almost got insane from the oppressive voices of the Spirits, risking to get lost between our Material Plane and the Chasm. Raven, one of Darkmoor Elemental Heralds, found her in the Dark Lands. He saved and trained her, then taught her how to anchor herself to our Earth. Now she knows tons of stuff about Spirits and Monsters from this and other worlds.
SPECIAL TECHNIQUES
In Darkmoor, Magic and other forms of mystical energies are real, and can be used by a Character to unleash powerful martial or magical Techniques! You can literally create any special move you can imagine. Darkmoor uses Symbols to define a Technique: Symbols are mechanical elements that are activated when a Technique hits someone. It can be a friend or a foe, since some Symbols are used to boost up stats or heal someone. In creating a new Technique (you’ll only find examples in this book, but you’ll be free to create any Tech that comes to your mind), you’ll have to balance the cost in terms of Action Points with the number of Symbols you want your Technique to acquire! You can create devastating Combos, use Symbols that will paralyze your enemy or throw him in the air! In this Book, you’ll find a total of 38 Symbols! Each one requires following simple rules that are easy to keep in mind while playing.
Lightning Bolt
It’s a lightning strike that hits your opponents, even if they are at a distance from the Character. The energy beam strikes several times (from X2 Combo to X4 in case of a critical Die Roll) and possesses White elemental properties.
Lightning Dragon Punch
It’s an uppercut, as fast as a lightning strike. Sphinx has to give all she’s got to perform this Technique, concentrating all of her energy (Extreme Effort Symbol) in her punch. It possesses White elemental properties, throws the enemy in the air, stunning and hitting him several times (from X2 Combo to X4 in case of a critical Die Roll).
SAMPLE SYMBOLS
Here you’ll find some of the Symbols used by Sphinx’s Techniques. In Darkmoor you’ll find a full set, but these are just examples so that you can have a look at how they work.
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X 2xCombo: the attack inflicts 2 Combo
In doing so, Sphinx declares that she’ll use her “Friend of the Spirits” Ability to receive an extra die in her Oracle Roll. Now she’ll be rolling two six-sided dice instead of one, and she’ll be allowed to pick the result she likes the most (even if she might not always opt for the highest score).
Points and one extra Damage. There is a cumulative effect in the case of Moves repeatedly carrying this Symbol. Distance: this Attack hits the opponent even if he is at a distance from the Character. Facing this kind of attack, a distant defender can counterattack only with another attack, using the Distance or Dash Symbol.
BACKGROUND, RACE, CLASS, CHARACTER PORTRAIT
Everything’s customizable in Darkmoor. When creating Red Sphinx, Luca had to write everything from scratch, drawing from his imagination: In Darkmoor you won’t find any pre-generated Classes and Races, only some examples of what you can create! The coolest thing is that, just like we’ve seen for the Abilities, each time a Character will be able to describe how his Race, Class or Background experiences will help him solve the situation, he’ll receive a Bonus Die to the Oracle Roll. You can use one of your Character’s descriptors only once per Scene, though (and you get Experience Points by doing so). You can even use your Character’s Portrait in this way! Do you see something in the portrait (that you had to draw by yourself, that’s the rule!) that might help you? Good, describe it, then, and you’ll get a Bonus Die! Of course, you can get multiple Bonus Dice for the same action. After rolling, you’ll choose the score you like best! Why would you want to choose a low number? Well, because it will probably generate a funny situation, cause some trouble... and let you gain extra Experience Points!
Launch: the opponent gets thrown in the air. The following Attack must be different and will automatically hit the target (your opponent won’t even roll the dice). Whatever the outcome of the following Attacks, the opponent will fall down receiving 1 non-absorbable Damage and will have to get up (expending 1 AP, as usual).
ABILITIES
In the Darkmoor RPG, each time a character is in a situation where he can use one of his abilities, he gets a Bonus Die in the Oracle Roll, used to determine the outcome of a Character’s actions. If the Character is in a fighting situation, he can choose to activate the Ability’s Symbol instead of obtaining a Bonus Die for the Roll! Abilities can be chosen freely. You can write on your Character’s sheet anything that comes to your mind, from “skilled burglar” to “fatal seduction”. Sphinx has an Ability called “Friend of the Spirits”. In any situation in which she can ask for the Spirits’ help, she can describe the way she uses her Ability. For example, let’s say that Sphinx is looking for someone in a labyrinth. She could describe her action like this: “I try and concentrate on the silence and the darkness of this place. I try and talk with the Spirits and ghosts that are wandering in this dungeon!” - Listen to me, oh spiritual creatures and undead souls. I’m looking for a living being, a person who got lost in this labyrinth, and I need your assistance! Tell me what you know and I’ll help you transcend to the other world in peace!
GOALS
Every Character needs a reason to go on adventures. Why does he travel, what is he seeking? You’ll have to define some Goals for your PC, and you can write up to three Goals in this field of the Character Sheet. Once again, it’s all up to your imagination.
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EQUIP CARDS
Darkmoor’s Equip Cards are 100% customizable, thus allowing you to generate any kind of Equipment. The balance system here is very easy to understand: you just have to play a little with weight, level and cost (that is, money), so that you will be able to produce your ideal Equips. Just like special Techniques, Equips add some more Symbols to your character’s arsenal! You just have to specify if your Equip is a Weapon, an Armor (or protection in general), a Jewel, or even a Familiar. We’ll discuss Jewels and Familiars in another update; right now, let’s just talk about the first two kinds of Equips. You use Equip Cards to enhance your Character’s stats and get more Symbols to use when needed.
CHARACTER SKETCH
However, the Sketch is really important, too! In fact, in a very similar way to what happens with Class, Race and Background, when you describe how your Sketch can help you in a situation of any kind, specifying something related to its look, you get a Bonus Die to use in an Oracle Roll! And yes, you’re guessing right. You have to draw it by yourself! Since this sketch will be essential for Darkmoor’s game mechanics to work properly, be sure to draw it, even if you cannot draw. It will be of great benefit to you, I promise!
Just keep in mind that there are Recursive and Conclusive Goals. The first are those Goals you can repeat several times during the same adventure, and each one is worth 1 Experience Point (EXP). Sphinx, for example, wants to “Help Wraiths, Ghosts and Spirits in general” and “beat very strong people (NPCs Bosses)”. She can perform these tasks as many times as she likes. However, she also has a Conclusive Goal: “Meeting and challenging Raven in combat again”. Raven is her master, and an Elemental Herald of Darkmoor. Characters get 5 EXP from reaching a Conclusive Goal, then they can set themselves a new Goal. Experience points serve the ancient, usual purpose: to level up, of course! This time, the tweak is that your character actually glows when he does! Upon levelling up you also chose how to improve your character’s sheet: you can improve Attributes, Attack or Defense die, gain a new Ability or Technique, get more Life Points, improve one of your Techs... there are tons of options to choose from!
HERODE SABERPUNK
This Equip comes from a character created by Daniele Fusetto. His name is Herode Saberpunk and he’s a fighting Little Pony. This is the original article we’re going to translate for you soon! As you can see from his portrait (sketched by Daniele himself, of course), he’s some sort of humanoid Little Pony who does lots of workout. He’s got thin fangs, large ears, and lots of tattoos, not to mention his skin’s light blue. Should Herode need to test his hearing abilities in a scene, Daniele could say something like: “Herode’s got wide ears, as you can see from his portrait. This lets him perceive any kind of sound from a long distance!” In doing so, Daniele will use an extra die in his Oracle Roll! The same goes for Herode’s muscular
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strength: if he had to attempt to intimidate someone, Daniele could resort to this aspect of his character to use an extra Oracle Die! And now let’s have a look at Herode’s Equip Cards!
Sadness-Gem Blade
[Symbols: Smash, Enchant; Weapon; +1 Attack; Weight 3; LV 1; 10 Coins] A two-handed long sword with three gems set in the blade. Those are powerful treasures from the world of the Little Ponies: Ruboring, Hatist, and the violet pearl of Friendzoning. The joint power of these tree gems sort of frees those who are attacked by this weapon from any feeling of resentment. That’s why it has +1 in Attack, and the Enchant Symbol.
Just a Chainmail, with a touch of color to it
[Symbols: Ultra-Agility; Armor; +1 Defense; Weight 2; LV 1; Life Points 5; 10 Coins] Mom’s scarf on top of an orcish chainmail my dad gave me and that’s it, I have a cool armor that makes me swifter, and increases my awareness, too. Since it’s made of orcish metal, it’s also very durable.
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DARKMOOR (ECONOMICAL) DICTIONARY [D (E) D]
Hail Adventurers! We are proud to show you some extracts from the Darkmoor (economical) Dictionary, the official guide to this setting’s Special Features. Today we start with a Vicious—I mean Very Important— Personality: Lord Blackmoor himself! Stay tuned, more coming soon...
Lord Blackmoor Also known as the Dark Master, the Creepy Lord or the Evil Puppeteer, Lord Blackmoor is the meanest, most evil villain who ever walked on Darkmoor. Despite the fact he’s now dead, nevertheless his evil presence is so strong that whoever says, thinks or even reads his name is unavoidably struck by bad luck. Yes, my dear reader, this will happen to you as well! Too late to look away now! He scourged Darkmoor for so long time, that scholars argue on the exact starting date of his evildoing. His true identity too is still a debated subject. He was defeated and killed many times during history, yet he always found a way to be resurrected to bring evil to Darkmoor once again. The last hero who managed to defeat Lord Darkmoor was Benjamin Kenobi (the former “Ben the greatest”, who after some years became “Knight Ben” and now is also known as “Old Ben”). Nowadays, some “so-called” heroes led by Duberry pretend they found a definitive solution to prevent Lord Darkmoor never-ending resurrections for good, nevertheless the number of followers of the Creepy Lord increases steadily. Did Duberry really find a way to defeat Lord Darkmoor once and for all? Or will he show up on Darkmoor once again? It’s up to you to shape Darkmoor’s destiny!
H.O.S.T. (Humanoid Organizer of Settlements and Tunnels)
H.O.S.T.s are artificial (living?) beings created by the Crafters Guild in order to create houses and furniture from raw materials. Eating raw materials (wood, stone etc.) H.O.S.T.s defecate processed materials (doors, windows, marble slabs etc.). With their incredible telekinetic powers, they are able to move and assemble these “excrements” according to a coherent plan customizable by their “master.” Their metabolism is so fast that they are able to create a 300 square feet apartment in a day, full optional: luxurious furniture, efficient water system and even sophisticated alarm systems! If properly fed, H.O.S.T.s breed (with a really uninteresting mating ritual). The spawning happens within 24 hours. From 4 to 6 H.O.S.T.s are born from a single spawning - and they are immediately operational.
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g-H.O.S.T. (Gone-mad Humanoid Organizer of Settlements and Tunnels) a.k.a Ghost Alas, something went wrong. Some people believe that, as it happens even in the best families, H.O.S.T.s of the last generations were born “defective”. Others believe that the evil influence of Lord Blackmoor tainted H.O.S.T.s’ minds too. Or that the Demiurge, tired of the extreme perfection of the H.O.S.T.s, decided out of the blue to change their nature. Whatever the reason, all of a sudden, H.O.S.T.s changed. The “newborn” ones no longer followed the orders of their “Masters”, but began to dig tunnels and build doors, traps and furniture in a totally random way. When Darkmoor’s inhabitants became aware of this phenomenon, they tried to block the H.O.S.T.s, but many had fled away and it was not possible to try and contain them, given the extreme speed with which they reproduced. This “new type of H.O.S.T.” was renamed “G-Type H.O.S.T.” or more briefly Ghost (Gone mad-Humanoid Organizer of Settlements and Tunnels). Slowly and inexorably, the Ghosts spread everywhere on Darkmoor, creating environments that initially had no logical sense. Then a weird coincidence morphed these environments into “death traps” from which it was very difficult to get out alive. Nowadays, most of the so-called “dungeons” are created by G Type Hosts: these out-of control entities lay treasures in places difficult to access and protect them with deadly traps.
MICHAEL INN’S GUIDE TO DARKMOOR’S LOCATIONS
Darkmoor is a land full of great places where you can eat good food, drink tasty wines and enjoy yourselves. There are also cheap and poor places, however, where you waste your money and risk your life, too. To help adventurers find their way through both the “must-see” locations—if looking for plunder, or for a hearty meal—and those to “avoid absolutely” if you value your life, we asked the famous adventurer (and self-proclaimed culinary expert) Michael Inn to share with you some excerpts of his refined “Michael Inn’s Guide”. With the help of a precise “starred” rating system, it will allow you to figure out which locations are truly worth a visit, and which ones you should better avoid. Don’t waste your time looking for geographical directions, because you won’t find any in this book. As Michael himself says: “More than half of the satisfaction you get from a good dish comes from discovering it by yourself.”
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The Drunken Prawn Pub “Yet another old and shabby tavern where rogues and ruffians drown their sorrows in alcohol” - Michael Inn The Drunken Prawn Inn is one of the worst bandits and thugs’ den in Darkmoor, but the house’s potato flan minimally compensates the bad company. It’s usually attended by the gang of the half-orc Bulcrux, a giant of few words and with a bad, fiery breath. Only a few people ever managed to survive his “Drunken Dragon’s Breath” special move. Luckily, you rarely see him there, cause he often sends his two favorite henchmen to do the “dirty job”: Rowario “the barrel chucker”, a former longshoreman who decided to walk away from the law, and Zurl, known as “the one who will die doing what he likes”. So far no one ever dared to ask Zurl the reason for his “nickname”, but the fact that he’s always angry suggests that he has not found a good reason to die yet. Shortly said: if you love potato flans, if you want to get info from the underground, or if you want to personally meet Bulcrux and his henchmen, the Drunken Prawn Inn is THE place for you.
CUSTOMERS: UNDERGROUND INFO: MICHAEL INN’s FINAL RATING:
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The Lighthouse Tower “The best place where to learn how to slice Sashimi” - Michael Inn For centuries, the Lighthouse Tower has been a meeting point for all the ships plying the Grayguild Sea. Over the years, it became a flourishing hub where merchants exchanged goods... and recipes from all over Darkmoor. A sad day, however, a ferocious gang of Easterners murderers (known with the infamous epitome of “Ninjas”) came from far away and took possession of the lighthouse, imposing a heavy toll on all passing ships and turning those who were once “bilateral, hard bargaining trades” in “silent, unilateral appropriations”. The “spiritual” chief of the gang, known as Porkulator, is a true legend among oriental cuisine lovers. Those who has had the great honor of seeing him describes him as a big, red feline eye floating in the air, surrounded by dozens of sharp swords with different, exotic shapes. Some say he might even be some sort of G.H.O.S.T. rather than a living creature. His “Sashimi Storm” technique is passed down through centuries by certain eastern cooks, who first invented the art of slicing raw fish. Unfortunately, Porkulator is closed in the rooms of the highest tower where he strives to improve his technique with immense patience, surrounded by the treasures accumulated in years of Ninja piracy. Adventurers who love good food, alas, to reach master Porkulator you must first defeat gang’s minions and its “Daimyos”: Macabre “the Dark One”, Damien “the Invisible One”, the “Sishima” twins and finally Eagle, the undisputed leader, who has the annoying ability to copy your own moves with disarming perfection. Even I, Michael Inn, had to pull back before challenges such as these, but if the spirit of the kitchen burns inside of you, I urge you to succeed where I failed myself.
NINJAS: CULINARY CULTURE MICHAEL INN’s FINAL RATING:
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THE ORACLE
During your adventure, whenever you need to know if your actions will succeed, fail or complicate the situation in some way, you can “consult the Oracle”. It is a system which gives automatic suggestions and will help you to get new ideas and make any situation a little more impredictable. Just see it as your narrative compass. The Guide (Darkmoor’s Game Master) will intepret its answers, embellishing them any way he / she wants, and giving free rein to imagination. Of course, since Musha Shugyo was a game focused on martial arts movies-like fiction, its Oracle wasn’t designed to generate weird, or funny, situations. Darkmoor’s Oracle is. Let’s make an example that will be clear to all who play Musha Shugyo. A really easy one: remember what happens in MS when you roll 1? Not good at all: absolutely negative result. You must not even think about it, it is simply impossible, wrong place, nobody knows anything, a total failure. When you roll 1 in Darkmoor, the situation gets grossly worse and you really make a fool of yourself, or totally misunderstand something important. For example, the Guide may come up with some totally wrong hint about what you’re investigating! All the players at the table know you failed miserably, but their characters don’t, so you have to interpret the scene according to the results you got! This will surely make things go haywire in unpredictable ways. You may misinterpret a situation, mistake an enemy for a friend, and so on. Each time you roll your Oracle, you have the chance to describe how your Race, Class, Background, Abilities, etc, will help you in that task. This will give you extra dice for the Oracle Roll and you’ll be able to choose the score you prefer. You might notice we didn’t write “choose the highest score”. In fact, if you choose a lower score, thus allowing the Oracle to produce a funny situation, or complicate the scene for you, you’ll gain a number of EXP equal to the highest die you rolled, minus the value of the one you’ve chosen. Let’s say you roll 6, 3, 2, and choose 2. Things will get funnier, and harder for you, but you’ll gain 6-2 = 4 EXP! So, you’re always torn between succeeding and getting more EXP by partially or grossly failing. Each time you roll an Oracle Die, the other players wait in trepidation, wondering not only if you’ll Roll a high score, but also if you’ll go with it, or choose a lower one!
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PARTY FIGHT
As for fighting scenes, it’s true that Musha was designed mainly for 1vs1 fights, or 2vs2, etc. Darkmoor is BASED on MS’ system, BUT it has been highly customized having a party of heroes in mind! With a very simple NPCs managing system, the Guide can easily handle even 3 vs 20 battles! It’s really been customized a lot, yet if you played Musha Shugyo, you’ll find yourself at home immediately. Action Points, Special Points, everything works the same way for all PCs, but NPCs are extremely simpler to handle.
ATTRIBUTES
In Darkmoor, RA, AT and DE (Rapidity, Attack and Defense) are 3 out of 5 Attributes. The new ones are Will and Equilibrium (WI, EQ ), an innovation first introduced in Agon WWII, an outstanding Musha Shugyo RPG hack we’ll try and translate as soon as possible. In any Scene, you can use Will to boost your physical and practical actions (related to your body) and Equilibrium to do the same with spiritual, notional, or non-physical rolls (related to your senses, intelligence, notions, sixth sense, and magic). As you can see, those Attributes have extra circles: you can spend them to roll extra dice, but then you need time to regain WI or EQ points. In some ways, those Attributes are also related to your psychological alignment. Are you more materialistic and determined to do what you need to, no matter what, or are you nearer to your spiritual side, therefore more gentle, calm and composed? It is related to a negative vs positive mind approach, too.
CHARACTER’S DESIGN
As for Race, Class and Background, you can freely describe them. You don’t have to calculate any point. You can create your Character’s Race drawing from your imagination only, or use something you’ve seen in movies, books, etc. Have a look at Herode Saberpunk (described in the previous pages). He’s some sort of human Little Pony! A weird race indeed. Once you imagine something, just write down a little description in the “Race” field of your Character sheet. For example: a breed of very muscular, fast and strong creatures. Little Ponies also have very keen senses, and an affinity to magic. Element: Black. Every Race except humans has a Magical Color. They are used to determine magical resistance and weaknesses. Whenever you are in a situation where you may make use of the description of your character’s Race, just describe how it will be useful to fulfill an action, and you’ll get a Bonus Die! Example: Herode finds himself facing a very thick wooden door. It’s locked. Daniele (Herode’s Player) says: “I’ll smash it using my superhuman strength! I’ll kick it with my stone-hard hooves!”
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Of course, Herode will have to try an Oracle Roll. Many things may happen if the action doesn’t go as predicted: for example, he may produce too much noise, attracting unwanted attention. Luckily, Herode’s using his Race’s capabilities, therefore he gets a Bonus Die. Just to be sure, Daniele decides to spend a Will point, too, and get another Bonus Die (this is a physical action). Now our hero can Roll 3 dice for this Action, and choose the score that best suits him. You can use your Character’s Race only once per Scene. It works the same way for Class, Background, and other Abilities. Of course, you could even spend several of this capabilities in the same Action, and add them to your Will or Equilibrium die. Also, remember that Herode may even decide to deliberately complicate his life by choosing a low dice result, just to gain some extra EXP
PREFERRED SYMBOLS
The “spare Symbols” are called Preferred Symbols, and in combat you can add them to your attacks or defenses whenever you like. Only remember, there’s a limit: Preferred Symbols are free only the first time you use them during the same Scene. If you want to use one of those Symbols again in the same Scene, you have to pay an extra Action Point. Preferred Symbols are used to describe specific capabilities of your Character, his fighting style or even something related to his Race! For example, Herode has the Powerful Symbol. That’s because he’s very strong and muscular, therefore he can add Powerful to some of his attacks whenever he pleases! He wants to represent his iron-hard hooves somehow? No problem, he just has to add the Ultra Hard Symbol, for example. As you can see, in the Darkmoor’s system anything can be translated in rules! And it’s really easy to do so. Of course, you have some points to distribute when you build your character. There are some restrictions and some freebie points too.
THE BLACK BOOK
The Black Book Deck is an optional cards deck for Darkmoor RPG containing tons of NPCs, ready to be used in any adventure! Monsters, ninjas, living skeletons, and any other kind of creature you may find in Darkmoor’s world. You can draw a card whenever you need a random enemy for your Playing Characters, or you can create brand new Monster Cards yourself! In Darkmoor, NPCs are described just by a single value established by the Guide (used for every fight roll) and a bunch of Symbols (only for expert NPCs) that they’ll be using at will in battle. Of course, one or two Magic Elements are defined too. And the Black Book Deck is also a standard poker cards deck! This way, not only you can play with it, but you can also use it to create random adventures thanks to Darkmoor’s automated adventures plot generator!
In the book you’ll find a list of NPCs (not only monsters, there are Ninjas and Thieves too) with a description and simple stats only. Only a few of them will be illustrated, the rest will just have a written description, and a very brief list of game mechanics!
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SILENT CAT BELT
Crafted with a special stuffed animal infused with the magical stealth power of kittens, it will let you move like a ninja. Silent, lethal, swift!
AMMO PIGGY
This cute little Familiar will EAT your enemy’s ammo or energy attacks, sending them back to the attacker.
BURNING RAZORBLADE
Got problems with the Air element? No problem, this white-hot blade will remove any superfluous air! And hair too, just in case.
