Episode 30 of Discern Realities is here!

Episode 30 of Discern Realities is here!

Episode 30 of Discern Realities is here! The comic strip AP on this one is really interesting because David LaFreniere and I do a lot more collaborative world-building than we have done in the past. I think you’re going to enjoy it.

Also, David and I set a goal of thirty episodes by the end of 2016, and we’re hitting that milestone a little early! We certainly couldn’t have done it without our terrific community of listeners, so thanks to everyone who has supported the show.

Enjoy!

Cc: Arnold K.

http://www.gauntlet-rpg.com/discern-realities/episode-30

40 thoughts on “Episode 30 of Discern Realities is here!”

  9. Codex Keeper Entry

    There was once a kingdom where secrets were outlawed. The nobility and bureaucracy flaunted their openness by living nude in houses with grand arches instead of walls. If an elite was caught holding a secret, they would seek penance in the monarch’s courtyard. The penitent would sit upon the throne of secrets–a thorny stump–and open their wrists. Should their wounds heal, they would then hold court upon the stump and reveal their secret to any who would listen. If they died, they would take their secret to the grave.

    When you strip yourself, bare greatest secret, and spill your blood on the throne of secrets, roll + Charisma.

    – On a 10+, your sacrifice is rewarded. The shamed dead aid you, and you get 3 hold to compel a person to reveal a secret.

    – On a 7 – 9, the shamed dead pull at you. Take your damage die in damage, ignoring armor. Reveal another secret, and you get 1 hold to compel a person to reveal a secret.

    – On a 6-, you withhold too much. The shamed dead curse you. The DM gains three hold against you. If you attempt to keep a secret, they may spend a single hold to do your damage die in damage to you, ignoring armor. If you die from this damage, the shamed dead take you. You skip Last Breath.

  10. Codex Keeper Entry

    There was once a kingdom where secrets were outlawed. The nobility and bureaucracy flaunted their openness by living nude in houses with grand arches instead of walls. If an elite was caught holding a secret, they would seek penance in the monarch’s courtyard. The penitent would sit upon the throne of secrets–a thorny stump–and open their wrists. Should their wounds heal, they would then hold court upon the stump and reveal their secret to any who would listen. If they died, they would take their secret to the grave.

    When you strip yourself, bare greatest secret, and spill your blood on the throne of secrets, roll + Charisma.

    – On a 10+, your sacrifice is rewarded. The shamed dead aid you, and you get 3 hold to compel a person to reveal a secret.

    – On a 7 – 9, the shamed dead pull at you. Take your damage die in damage, ignoring armor. Reveal another secret, and you get 1 hold to compel a person to reveal a secret.

    – On a 6-, you withhold too much. The shamed dead curse you. The DM gains three hold against you. If you attempt to keep a secret, they may spend a single hold to do your damage die in damage to you, ignoring armor. If you die from this damage, the shamed dead take you. You skip Last Breath.

  11. Codex entry: The Ehnita Onekwenhsa Pact

    As is known to all, living things with red blood in their veins only come to be on worlds with a Moon, and that those beings with the sacred power to Bear offspring are bound deeply to this life-giving force. In exchange for a few children over a lifetime, the bodies of the Bearers offer to the Moon their life-blood each moon-cycle.

    What is known only to a few, is the way that one may invoke the terrible power of the Pact, and exchange all one’s future children to summon and bind a Child of the Moon.

    When you sit upon the Altar and offer your womb to the full Moon according to the occult customs of your people, a torrent of blood pours forth from the Altar’s cleft, and out of the blood-soaked ground is born a Child of the Moon. The GM will describe its otherworldly appearance. Roll+CON.

    On a 10+: Choose two.

    On a 7-9: Choose one, and reduce your Constitution by 1 permanently.

    -Your control over the Child is absolute. If this is not chosen, the Child will heed you at times, but may rebel willfully as all children are wont to do.

    -The Child is clever. Chose a level one spell from the Wizard spellbook. You may ask the child to cast this spell once per day.

    -The Child is vicious. Treat the child as an animal companion with Ferocity 3, Cunning 0, 1 Armor, Instinct 0. Follow the animal companion creation guidelines on page 131 of the Dungeon World rule book.

    -The Child is kind. Chose a level one spell from the Cleric spellbook. You may ask the Child to cast this spell once per day.

  12. Codex entry: The Ehnita Onekwenhsa Pact

    As is known to all, living things with red blood in their veins only come to be on worlds with a Moon, and that those beings with the sacred power to Bear offspring are bound deeply to this life-giving force. In exchange for a few children over a lifetime, the bodies of the Bearers offer to the Moon their life-blood each moon-cycle.

    What is known only to a few, is the way that one may invoke the terrible power of the Pact, and exchange all one’s future children to summon and bind a Child of the Moon.

    When you sit upon the Altar and offer your womb to the full Moon according to the occult customs of your people, a torrent of blood pours forth from the Altar’s cleft, and out of the blood-soaked ground is born a Child of the Moon. The GM will describe its otherworldly appearance. Roll+CON.

    On a 10+: Choose two.

    On a 7-9: Choose one, and reduce your Constitution by 1 permanently.

    -Your control over the Child is absolute. If this is not chosen, the Child will heed you at times, but may rebel willfully as all children are wont to do.

    -The Child is clever. Chose a level one spell from the Wizard spellbook. You may ask the child to cast this spell once per day.

    -The Child is vicious. Treat the child as an animal companion with Ferocity 3, Cunning 0, 1 Armor, Instinct 0. Follow the animal companion creation guidelines on page 131 of the Dungeon World rule book.

    -The Child is kind. Chose a level one spell from the Cleric spellbook. You may ask the Child to cast this spell once per day.

  13. Regarding the Bard Arcane Art move, what about flavoring the action as a “flash-back” to an earlier song/poem/performance/story from a previous time the group made camp?

    This would allow the inspiration during combat, but it would not consist of out of context actions–like pulling out an instrument during a deadly situation.

    This could cause an issue that breaks the flow of a combat story if the bard describes a long scene of their performance.

    To mitigate this, the DM could ask for the title or a line from the poem/song during the combat, but not the full scene.

    These lines could later be combined into showing the original performance. (I’d steal lines from appropriate poets/songs, as I’m not a composer. 🙂

    I see it going something like this:

    Fighter: I’m hit, and almost dead!

    Bard:Remember “Cowards die many times before their deaths;

    The valiant never taste of death but once”! (Roll 1d8 to heal)

  14. Regarding the Bard Arcane Art move, what about flavoring the action as a “flash-back” to an earlier song/poem/performance/story from a previous time the group made camp?

    This would allow the inspiration during combat, but it would not consist of out of context actions–like pulling out an instrument during a deadly situation.

    This could cause an issue that breaks the flow of a combat story if the bard describes a long scene of their performance.

    To mitigate this, the DM could ask for the title or a line from the poem/song during the combat, but not the full scene.

    These lines could later be combined into showing the original performance. (I’d steal lines from appropriate poets/songs, as I’m not a composer. 🙂

    I see it going something like this:

    Fighter: I’m hit, and almost dead!

    Bard:Remember “Cowards die many times before their deaths;

    The valiant never taste of death but once”! (Roll 1d8 to heal)

  23. Jason Cordova any chance down the road we will see a compendium of a particular segment? I’d love, for example, to have all the What Here Is Not What It Appears To Be? segments all in one place.

  24. Jason Cordova any chance down the road we will see a compendium of a particular segment? I’d love, for example, to have all the What Here Is Not What It Appears To Be? segments all in one place.

  25. Jason Cordova – I was listening to an dungeon world AP podcast, possibly “Friends at the Table,” and liked the interpretation on the bard a player presented there. He framed what the bard does as just one type of “semiotomancy” or “pattern-magick,” describing a school where magic is done by making all sorts of ordering or patterns, with objects, on paper, etc., and that some do this with sound. If the effects are successful he described reality shifting ever so slightly under the effect of his pattern magick to produce the intended effect. More interesting than lightning shooting out of a lute.

  26. Jason Cordova – I was listening to an dungeon world AP podcast, possibly “Friends at the Table,” and liked the interpretation on the bard a player presented there. He framed what the bard does as just one type of “semiotomancy” or “pattern-magick,” describing a school where magic is done by making all sorts of ordering or patterns, with objects, on paper, etc., and that some do this with sound. If the effects are successful he described reality shifting ever so slightly under the effect of his pattern magick to produce the intended effect. More interesting than lightning shooting out of a lute.

  29. This episode’s Arcane Art discussion makes my think of the bard as like a lore-collector with bits and scraps of ancient secrets of power. Like, if magic is “reality is programmable,” bards are script kiddies– they don’t have the deep understanding of magic to be true spellcasters, but they’ve picked up up a few ancient secrets (maybe preserved as parts of old songs and legends) that they may not totally understand. Kind of makes me want to play one. I’m not a fan of the”guitar that shoots magic” vibe either, but this episode has kind of rehabilitated the playbook for me. I especially loved the suggestion to ask a bard player about each particular song, and build the lore of the world with that. Good stuff.

  30. This episode’s Arcane Art discussion makes my think of the bard as like a lore-collector with bits and scraps of ancient secrets of power. Like, if magic is “reality is programmable,” bards are script kiddies– they don’t have the deep understanding of magic to be true spellcasters, but they’ve picked up up a few ancient secrets (maybe preserved as parts of old songs and legends) that they may not totally understand. Kind of makes me want to play one. I’m not a fan of the”guitar that shoots magic” vibe either, but this episode has kind of rehabilitated the playbook for me. I especially loved the suggestion to ask a bard player about each particular song, and build the lore of the world with that. Good stuff.

  33. David LaFreniere If we know of someone who is getting ready to binge-listen, we should ask them to take notes – things we discussed, magic items, etc.. It could be helpful for the future.

  34. David LaFreniere If we know of someone who is getting ready to binge-listen, we should ask them to take notes – things we discussed, magic items, etc.. It could be helpful for the future.

  35. Brent RawlsThat’s an interesting idea about the segment compendiums. We’ll probably end up doing something for Codex related to DR, but I’m not sure what that looks like yet.

  36. Brent RawlsThat’s an interesting idea about the segment compendiums. We’ll probably end up doing something for Codex related to DR, but I’m not sure what that looks like yet.

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