torchbearer

#Torchbearer Sagas...At Sea

A quick preview of some of my "At Sea" rules for #Torchbearer Sagas: Outcasts. Very useful for sailors and for characters like the half-orc pirate and sea elf mariner.


New Town: At Sea

Avast, me hearties. You've set sail for fame, fortune and glory but now you're looking at a week under the blazing sun, the salt sea and the cries of gulls. Pull your weight, boyo, or you'll be stripped to the waist, tied to a yardarm and lashed with a cat o' nine tails!

Available Locations At Sea

• Tavern (anywhere there’s a cask of rum and a sea shanty)
• Street (on the deck, napping under the stars—do not roll on the Streets Events Table)

• Stables (belowdecks in the cargo hold, with the rats)
• Flophouse (bunking with the crew)
• Hotel (ah, the Captain's Quarters!)

Alignment: Unaffiliated (Merchant ship), Law (Naval ship), Chaos (Pirate ship)

New Home: At Sea

You were raised aboard a ship and know life at sea better than the back of yer own hand.

Skills: Pathfinder, Carpenter, Sailor

Traits: Sea Legs, Scarred


Sea Camp Events

Use these events when At Sea.

Disaster At Sea

1 - Typhoon winds and hail the size of sling shot. Take cover!

2 - You run aground on an uncharted sand bar. Spend all night getting free.

3 - Pitching waves present problems. Sail on and hope for the best; else all characters make a Health test (ob3) or become Sick before camp

4 - Smell of rotting fish and seaweed is everywhere. Disgusting.

5 - Leviathan prowls these waters, thrice the length of your ship. You must leave here.

6 - Sea monsters, winged creatures or raiders attack!

Minor Inconvenience At Sea

1 - Water barrels fouled. You may not refill your skins.

2 - Lost at sea (Sailor or Cartographer roll required to get back on track).

3-4 - Mice or other vermin crawl all over your ship and spoil food for one character.

5 - All of this open space gets to you, there’s nowhere to hide (increase recovery obstacles for angry and afraid by one for one character).

6 - Someone breaks a piece of gear (roll randomly for character and equipment).

Minor Break At Sea

1 - Clear skies and useful landmarks (+1D to next Sailor or Cartographer test).

2 - Good fishing spot! (+1D to Hunter, Scavenger and Fisher tests).

3-4 - You find shelter in a peaceful cove (+1D to recover from exhausted).

5-6 - Gentle rain refills the water barrels. Drink up, me hearties, drink up!

Lucky Break At Sea

1-2 -Find an oyster bed (counts as one portion of forage for all characters).

3-4 - Clear skies and good tailwind (+2D to next Sailor or Scout test).

5 - Ship ahoy! A ship flying friendly colors comes into view.

6- Dolphins frolic in the waves (automatically recover from angry and afraid).

 

Coming soon: The Outcasts

After the success of my Wanderers supplement for Torchbearer I wanted to take a stab at some new character stocks. I knew I wanted to include a classic from BW (the rat-like roden) as well as AD&D-esque gnomes (because who doesn't love a gnome? Don't answer that!). So what...small folks? Burrowers? What's the angle going to be?

When I put it to a vote on Twitter, the minotaur and the roden were both strong contenders. I figured, why would roden and gnomes and minotaurs be adventurers? What makes them unique? Then it hit me: if the first group of character classes were Wanderers, then these should be Outcasts.

So hopefully in a month or two I'll have six new character classes done and ready for download:

  • Dark Elf Sorcerer
  • Gnome Illusionist
  • Half-orc Pirate
  • Minotaur Pit-fighter
  • Roden Guide
  • Sea Elf Mariner

Roden illustration by Jordan Worley