The Grand Bazaar
Jul. 27th, 2004 11:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morslaThe Grand Bazaar
An Exalted: Abyssals game, to be run at a convention on the Other Side of my thesis…
For those unfamiliar with the background, the Abyssals were once Exalted champions, humans chosen by the Unconquered Sun for their might and prowess. They had the potential to be more powerful than the Gods, but they were not perfect...
Over time, a number have fallen – offered bargains by powerful creatures in the underworld. They have sold their souls and names to their new masters, creatures known as Deathlords; and they now serve Oblivion itself. One Deathlord plans to seizing the underworld for his own – something his peers do not wish to see happen...
Background:
The First and Forsaken Lion, Deathlord of the desolate southwest, has struck an unusual bargain. His allies, opposite to him in every way, are the Fae – creatures of the wyld, of madness and chaos. By assisting the Fae to invade a mortal city, thousands of humans will die – swelling the Lion’s armies in the land of the dead. The Fae will feast on the terror of the populace, and as the slaughter continues the distance between the lands of life and death will narrow. Eventually, a shadowland – where the underworld overlaps Creation – will be born.
Through this shadowland, the Lion will send armies greater than any in living memory, each charged with a single order – kill those that live. With each mortal death the Lion will grow, until none can stand before him. Naturally, the other Deathlords do not wish to see this happen.
Five of the Lion’s rivals have sent a champion to prevent the pact from being signed. Unwilling to trust their newfound allies, neither Fae nor Lion will move until their emissaries sign binding agreements – something the champions must prevent at all costs. The meeting will take place in the city of Gem, amidst the clamour of the Grand Bazaar.
Echo of Silent Screams
A Daybreak caste, serving the Bodhisattva Anointed By Dark Waters. Calling from the Silver Prince’s archipelago, Echo is noted for her mastery of stealth and concealment. She brings sorceries to the group, and the ability to cloak their entrance into Gem. Few have faced her spear and lived to speak of it, for the weapon is rumoured to enslave those it wounds.
The Architect of Flawless Desolation
A Day-caste serving the Bishop of the Chalcedony Thurible. The Architect has two motivations leading him to Gem. His tactical precision is renowned through the underworld, matched only by his lethal accuracy with a bow. He also hunts his twin, a Night-caste Solar Exalted known as Hahkt. Hahkt believes his brother to be dead, but the Architect plans to introduce the Solar to his newfound master – one way or another...
Four Kingdom’s Ruin
A Moonshadow caste, who serves the Lover Clad in Raiment of Tears. Ruin has personally gathered much of the group’s information – stealing the faces of her victims, she has already infiltrated the Council of Gem. With weapons crafted of her own flesh and bone, she has removed the more troublesome members of the Council, and corrupted the minds of those who remain.
The Prophet Bearing Shackles of Devoted Servitude
A Midnight caste, serving the Mask of Winters. The Prophet is a powerful necromancer, and wears the heavy manacles of a slave. The Mask has bid him to destroy any Fae present in the city, and to deny the Lion his share of souls – by reaping them himself, if need be. His zeal is without question, but his subtlety is suspect. He has been attached to the group as a concession to the Mask’s political might.
Faceless Scholar of Ash and Dust
A Dusk caste, serving the Walker in Darkness. Renowned for his insight into the most cryptic riddles, the Scholar will ensure that no complexity cannot be unravelled by entropy. With sweeps of his ancient sword, he paints calligraphy of elegant brutality, reminding his foes that Oblivion waits eternally.
An Exalted: Abyssals game, to be run at a convention on the Other Side of my thesis…
For those unfamiliar with the background, the Abyssals were once Exalted champions, humans chosen by the Unconquered Sun for their might and prowess. They had the potential to be more powerful than the Gods, but they were not perfect...
Over time, a number have fallen – offered bargains by powerful creatures in the underworld. They have sold their souls and names to their new masters, creatures known as Deathlords; and they now serve Oblivion itself. One Deathlord plans to seizing the underworld for his own – something his peers do not wish to see happen...
Background:
The First and Forsaken Lion, Deathlord of the desolate southwest, has struck an unusual bargain. His allies, opposite to him in every way, are the Fae – creatures of the wyld, of madness and chaos. By assisting the Fae to invade a mortal city, thousands of humans will die – swelling the Lion’s armies in the land of the dead. The Fae will feast on the terror of the populace, and as the slaughter continues the distance between the lands of life and death will narrow. Eventually, a shadowland – where the underworld overlaps Creation – will be born.
Through this shadowland, the Lion will send armies greater than any in living memory, each charged with a single order – kill those that live. With each mortal death the Lion will grow, until none can stand before him. Naturally, the other Deathlords do not wish to see this happen.
Five of the Lion’s rivals have sent a champion to prevent the pact from being signed. Unwilling to trust their newfound allies, neither Fae nor Lion will move until their emissaries sign binding agreements – something the champions must prevent at all costs. The meeting will take place in the city of Gem, amidst the clamour of the Grand Bazaar.
Echo of Silent Screams
A Daybreak caste, serving the Bodhisattva Anointed By Dark Waters. Calling from the Silver Prince’s archipelago, Echo is noted for her mastery of stealth and concealment. She brings sorceries to the group, and the ability to cloak their entrance into Gem. Few have faced her spear and lived to speak of it, for the weapon is rumoured to enslave those it wounds.
The Architect of Flawless Desolation
A Day-caste serving the Bishop of the Chalcedony Thurible. The Architect has two motivations leading him to Gem. His tactical precision is renowned through the underworld, matched only by his lethal accuracy with a bow. He also hunts his twin, a Night-caste Solar Exalted known as Hahkt. Hahkt believes his brother to be dead, but the Architect plans to introduce the Solar to his newfound master – one way or another...
Four Kingdom’s Ruin
A Moonshadow caste, who serves the Lover Clad in Raiment of Tears. Ruin has personally gathered much of the group’s information – stealing the faces of her victims, she has already infiltrated the Council of Gem. With weapons crafted of her own flesh and bone, she has removed the more troublesome members of the Council, and corrupted the minds of those who remain.
The Prophet Bearing Shackles of Devoted Servitude
A Midnight caste, serving the Mask of Winters. The Prophet is a powerful necromancer, and wears the heavy manacles of a slave. The Mask has bid him to destroy any Fae present in the city, and to deny the Lion his share of souls – by reaping them himself, if need be. His zeal is without question, but his subtlety is suspect. He has been attached to the group as a concession to the Mask’s political might.
Faceless Scholar of Ash and Dust
A Dusk caste, serving the Walker in Darkness. Renowned for his insight into the most cryptic riddles, the Scholar will ensure that no complexity cannot be unravelled by entropy. With sweeps of his ancient sword, he paints calligraphy of elegant brutality, reminding his foes that Oblivion waits eternally.
silence swimming in a pool of dreams
beneath its depths the forgotten streams
above, the city of the evening star
behind its walls, the Grand Bazaar
as she walks through its endless maze
cursing those who mistrust her ways
please my friend no matter what she sees
tell my lover come back to me
doorways spilling out their sombre light
casting shadows that will raid the night
along the alleys of her ruling fears
walk the visions that will cause her tears
lying still as she wills her glance
through the eyes of a charmers trance
please my friend no matter what she sees
tell my lover come back to me
and on the walls
shadows play
twilight souls
anguished ways
lost adrift
severed seas
i await you
come to me
- Tea Party, The Bazaar
beneath its depths the forgotten streams
above, the city of the evening star
behind its walls, the Grand Bazaar
as she walks through its endless maze
cursing those who mistrust her ways
please my friend no matter what she sees
tell my lover come back to me
doorways spilling out their sombre light
casting shadows that will raid the night
along the alleys of her ruling fears
walk the visions that will cause her tears
lying still as she wills her glance
through the eyes of a charmers trance
please my friend no matter what she sees
tell my lover come back to me
and on the walls
shadows play
twilight souls
anguished ways
lost adrift
severed seas
i await you
come to me
- Tea Party, The Bazaar
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-07-27 02:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-07-28 01:54 pm (UTC)It's a high-fantasy game setting by White Wolf, set in the second age of mankind. The game's namesakes, the Exalted, are individuals chosen by the sun (Solars), the moon (Lunars - shapeshifters), the planets (Sidereals), and the elements (the Dragon-blooded). All are far more powerful than the mortals, although the Dragon-blooded are far weaker than the other Exalts (although far more numerous). In the first age, all of Creation was ruled by the Solars, who became corrupted by the power they possessed. In a coup lasting decades, their Dragon-blooded servants hunted and killed them, taking Creation for themselves.
Each type of Exalt posesses an immortal "shard" that will reincarnate in another worthy being, once they die... and as the Second Age progresses, the Solars are being reborn into the world. Some have been corrupted, turning away from the sun - hence the Abyssal Exalted in the Grand Bazaar storyline. Their new masters hail from the Underworld, but are extending their reach into the lands of the living.
Each type of exalt is further divided into castes, with solar & abyssal mirrors of each other. Generally speaking, the Dawn/Dusk caste are warriors and generals. Zenith/Midnight castes are priests and rulers; Twilight/Daybreak castes are the sorcerors, Night/Day caste are spies and assassins. The Eclipse/Moonshadow caste are messengers and diplomats, able to sanctify oaths on behalf of their masters. The Grand Bazaar has one of each Abyssal caste, all serving different lords.
It's a lot of fun to run games in - I think I've played in & run about a dozen different storylines since the game was released. The game mechanics encourage dramatic, cinematic-style action sequences (lots of Hong Kong cinema and Anime influences - Final Fantasy, Storm Riders, etc).
Each type of Exalt lends itself to particular types of games. If the characters are mostly Dragon-blood Dynasts, the game might follow the intricacies of politics between the Great Houses. Solars are the archetypal heroic characters; Lunars run wild far from civilised lands. Personally, I like the Abyssals. They tend towards anti-heroes, villains, or tragic heroes - you can still incorporate an epic feeling into the story, but they work well for dark fantasy games. I've always prefered these to the "squeaky clean" Solar stories :)
no subject
Date: 2004-07-29 04:01 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-07-29 12:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-07-29 01:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-07-29 03:02 pm (UTC)For some reason, it doesn't seem to matter how much background you prepare... half the game is made up on the fly, regardless. That's the best part though - you could spend years writing detail on a city, but a few games later you've doubled the amount of information. I'm using the first Places Between game pretty much like that; fleshing out the city for future stories and games.
It's like the convention game rule-of-thumb... no scenario ever survives first contact with the players :P
no subject
Date: 2004-07-29 05:43 pm (UTC)