Design Journal 01/29/24

 

Opportunist is an Archetype I find to both embrace the skills a character has and go beyond. The offer a Player the familiar but yet become a little extraordinary in their own right.

 

Performer – Heroes who find the concept of adventuring a platform to showcase their artistry.

 

Scoundrel – Heroes who intend to benefit from their journeys, cleverly working through desperate situations.

 

Specialist – Heroes who latch onto a specialty, honing their skills to become the best.

 

As strange as it sounds, for the most unlikely Calling, I marginally gave the Player the authority to change the game, leniency to bend the rules in certain situations. The mechanic will make for some interesting stories or lead to terrible deaths. But hey… isn’t that the game?

 

- James S. Austin

Design Journal 01/27/24

 

 

So, I wanted to see where Tacitus’s progress in creating projects, and share with you. Not including the few bigger pieces, here are some numbers…

 

Type - Released / Near Completion

Battle Cards – 5 / 1

Q-Adventures – 2 / 1

Q-Crawls – 16 / 1

Q-Encounters – 54 / 34 (in the pipeline, AMAZING!!!)

Q-Haunts – 2 / 1

Q-Hunts – 1 / 1

Q-Quests – 1 / 1

Q-Towns – 1 / 1

Short Stories about the setting 28 / 17 (so proud of this one, too)

 

With all these great writers who have been a part of this growing setting, I am so thankful! And then we have all the fantastic artwork from a fine group of people also waiting in tandem for these projects.

 

 

- James S. Austin

Design Journal 01/26/24

 

 

 

The Red Wyvern RPG

 

We next look at the Archetype of the Disciple, one of the groups of Callings that has overlap - between the Champions and Adepts. This includes: 

 

Oath-Bound – Heroes who center their life on an oath given to a greater power. These would include the ever-needed Paladin in the mix. These are adventurers who favor a more physical means to their worship of a deity, the enforcers or devout soldiers. But it also gives freedom to twist up what that oath entails, which could then have, as an example, the Templar (don’t rush it, details come later.)

 

Pact-Bound – Heroes who make a pact with a greater power. Again, we have that familiar build you would find in Warlocks. These adventurers have a pact, also having a physical component but leaning more toward the gifts bestowed upon them to carry out their duties.

 

These Callings presented the opportunity to explore and test the boundaries of how we design these builds and how they interact with the world. Not to dive into the full lore and magic’s blueprint, imagine their use of the Weave comes with manipulating the energies through their oath or pact. When they are ‘compliant’ with their actions and intent, the Weave is then influenced by this devotion, bringing forth the power they call upon.

 

 

- James S. Austin

Design Journal 01/25/24

 

The Red Wyvern RPG

 

The next Archetype is the Champion. This includes: 

 

Outlander – Heroes who are raised with a weapon in hand and come to respect their people’s connection to their homeland and have taken the mantle to defend their ideals.

 

Warrior – Heroes who enjoy the intricacies of battle and the artistry found in using a weapon.

 

I think the challenge here was not to fall into the trap of focusing only on the contributions of a combat-oriented adventurer held only to combat situations but on how they interact in other types of encounters. This was one dilemma that heavily pushed me to realize that trying to keep the design simplistic would not work… so, the crunchier The Red Wyvern RPG became. Each Calling must have an opportunity to be a part of every encounter, even if in a small way. To lose a player to boredom because they feel they have nothing to offer, even if for a brief period, seems problematic and defeats the purpose of a game. I have no issue if they choose not to participate, but sometimes, those small moments make a player’s night.

 

 

- James S. Austin

Design Journal 01/24/24

 

The Red Wyvern RPG

 

The thought of using a special term to identify a group that embraces an aspect of adventuring, having shared or similar features, was pivotal in establishing the design flow. ‘Callings’ soared above other possible choices put into the pool, and there were only a few after the word was proposed, as there was no need to look further. We wanted something strong to build upon as we began the process of gathering ideas, and a barometer to make final decisions.

 

Our first Archetype collection is the Adepts. These Callings have found ways to harness the powers found within the Weave. This reveal goes beyond just a list; it demonstrates how we approached the overall build designs to establish delineations between the Callings within the Archetypes.

 

Blooded – Heroes who connect with the Weave through their innate abilities.

 

Channelers – Heroes who channel the Weave through them, harnassing divine-granted power.

 

Weavers – Heroes who have learned how to manipulate the Weave through external means.

 

They each have a particular way of working with parts of the Weave – one is directly connected to the Weave and has learned to use it, one allows the Weave to flow through them, and one shapes the Weave around them. I will explain magic further once I get through the Callings, which will be eye-opening but also hopefully intuitive in its understanding.

 

 

- James S. Austin

Design Journal 01/23/24

 

The Red Wyvern RPG

 

The first interesting detail I would like to share is our breakdown of adventuring Archetypes into Callings:

 

Adepts – heroes who share a deeper connection with the Weave.

 Champions – heroes who favor a strong blade or a well-made bow.

Disciples – heroes who have connections with the greater powers of the universe.

Opportunists – heroes who survive off quick wit and have ‘a very particular set of skills.’

Sensates – heroes who tap into their inner strengths.

Naturalists – heroes who devote their lives to the natural world.

 

Every Calling has a particular flavor, trying to capture an aspect of play that separates them in spirit while still having some crossover, as they can have shared features. I’ll dive into each a little more in future journals; as you can imagine, this just scratches the surface.

 

 

- James S. Austin

Design Journal 01/19/24

 

I have been writing the new Red Wyvern RPG steadily for months, jumping in and out of the process. Although a challenge beyond anything, it can be gratifying and enlightening.

 

To start off by sharing glimpses of what is to be, I felt a need to embrace what I am creating. At first, this was meant to be like many of the new 5E clonish or alternatives that have been announced and are coming out in droves. But there was one key difference inherent with this build. It will not be that close to those. I came from the ‘old world’ of D&D and still have roots in the past. But I have embraced much of the newer outlooks on what a design can mean to a game and its players. So, in effect, I am berthing something of a hybrid of all past to present babies.

 

The result favors what many like in a game, but is not in the DNA of the current pattern. The current trend is to have simple and fast play. I am targeting to create a play-style with a sense of uninterrupted flow during a game, not bogged down in game mechanics. The flow is important! But so is the one thing missing from the larger projects of recent – options. Like 2nd edition, when the seeds of options started to blossom, I want that again. Large companies are held to certain constraints and answering to the many overseers. I am not. I am bringing the kitchen sink.

 

The Red Wyvern Role-Playing Game will undoubtedly fall into the ‘crunchy’ category by the time it is completed. I wanted each character’s core build not to constantly bleed over with every other build. Sure, there will be some shared features, but each approach should have a sense of being different, contributing in different ways. I will continue with this journal to share where the project is headed and listen to any thoughts and feedback as I go. I hope you will join me in this as we will be a community who will share in these adventures. Because I tell you now, if you are a gamer, you will not want to miss out.

 

 

- James S. Austin