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In Beast: the Ravaging, your beast may belong to an Officium.  Officia are the guilds of battle.  Each Officium is tasked with a role that enables the warmongering hordes of the Beasts to conquer their foes in battle.  From ranged archers to frontline defenders, each Officium dedicates itself to a specific style of combat.  In every horde. each Officium is led by a Taskmaster, who directs the training and deployment of troops under his command.  The Taskmasters report to the Warlord of the horde, which is usually the biggest, meanest son of a beast around.

Membership in an Officium grants access to the specialized Aptitudes of their role in battle.  These Aptitudes allow members to execute extraordinary powers that allows the invoking Beast to ravage his enemies on the field of battle.

Artillery

The Artillery of a horde may consist of boulder throwing Giants, Javelin wielding Kobolds, crossbow wielding goblins, or mix of Beast and ranged weapon.  The role of the Artillery is to pin down enemy units and destroy their vanguard before they can reach the front lines.

Beasts of the Artillery Officium are usually deployed behind Soldiers and Brutes and shower death and destruction upon the enemy.

Brute

The largest and most power specimens of Genos usually find their way to the Brute Officium.  Brutes excel in punishing the enemy with devastating attacks.  However, Brutes are often slow and are thus easy to strike themselves.  Even so, it is a long grind to bring down the hordes’ Brutes.

Beasts of the Brute Officium are usually deployed to shield the leaders, Controllers, and Artillery of the horde.

Controller

Beasts of the Controller Officium are master manipulators of the battlefield.  The method Controllers use to exert their influence over the battlefield may include casting spells or merely employing clever tactics to turn the terrain against the enemy.

Controllers are usually deployed behind front line combatants, but should the need arise, they have no qualms against entering the fray themselves.

Lurker

Lurkers strike from the darkness and quickly withdraw, eliminating the enemy’s commanding officers, controllers, and destroying their moral.  Most Lurkers are deadly assassins that keep to the shadows, however some from this Officium merely disguise themselves as unlikely opponents.

The Lurker Officum is the wildcard for the hordes.  They are deployed anywhere on the battlefield where their services would prove most effective.  This usually means behind enemy lines.

Skirmisher

Skimishers use their speed and maneuverability to flank the enemy.  They move in and out of the melee, distracting and harry their opponents where they are vulnerable.  Mobility is the strength of this Officium.

Skirmishers are deployed on the battlefield to work in concert with Brutes and Soldiers.  They attack once the enemy is engaged with the frontlines.

Soldier

The Beasts of the Soldier Officium are the mainstay of the hordes.  Soldiers make up the bulk of the horde’s fighting force and are usually first to engage the enemy, at least after the enemy has moved through the storm of death rained in by Artillery.

Soldiers are deployed so their numbers are concentrated in the front and center the horde, though tactical minded Warlords often hold large units of Soldiers in reserve to crush their opponents when the oppportunity arises.

Aptitudes

So what cool powers do the Officia have to offer?  Can you smash your enemies with a boulder?  Or cleave them with brute strength?  Well you’ll have to wait until the next installment of Beast: the Ravaging to see.

Listening to: Marilyn Manson - Eat Me, Drink Me - Heart-Shaped Glasses (When the Heart Guides the Hand)

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In the World of Dark Fantasy, the monstrous Beasts gather into fierce hordes and descend upon the fringes of civilization.  The hordes send raiding parties to ravage the countryside and test the defenses of the outlying kingdoms of men, dwarves, and elves.  No one is safe.

In Beast: the Ravaging, you become the monster that every villager fears.  Your bestial instinct drives you to prove yourself in battle and reap the spoils of war.  You impose your monstrosity upon everything you see, sometimes even your allies, and the kingdoms of civilization quake in fear at your atrocities.

There are many varieties of Beasts; running the gamut from sniveling goblins to enormous giants.  Beast lorekeepers tell stories that their peoples originate from a cabal of gods that were cast from the heavens because the other gods feared their prowess.

The fallen gods were stripped of their divinity, but all their powers had been extracted.  The Fel, as they were known, were determined to restore themselves as gods once again.  Thus the Fel began raiding villages as well as cities, stealing the virgin priestesses of the enemy gods.  The gods of men, dwarves, and elves.

Only the combined might of the armies of the lesser races was strong enough to slay one of the Fel and force the remaining to retreat to the distant mountains and the caverns under them.  And with them they brought the priestesses they had taken.  Soon the priestesses submitted themselves to the Fel and birthed the mighty races of the world.

The Fel’s children, or genos in the bestial tongue, were warped by the power within their fathers’ blood, bestowing upon them a monstrous countenance.  The Beasts quickly multiplied and not even a generation of men had passed before the Fel descended upon civilization with their horde of Beasts and wrought devastation upon the world.

Satisfied with the carnage and chaos they had sown, the Fel took their most savage and powerful children and marched upon the heavens.  They left the rest of their Genos, or Beasts as man calls them, to wreak havoc on what was left of civilization, promising divinity to those who proved themselves worthy.

This was a thousand years ago.  Today the gods are still besieged by the Fel; their children slavering at the gates of heaven.  The world below has not fared any better, as civilization has never fully recovered, and the hordes still ravage the landscape.

There are six Genos, one for each of the remaining Fel.  Each Genos gains a bonus dot in an Attribute chosen from the two Attributes listed in the Bonus section of its description.  Every Genos also has an Attribute their heritage is lacking in.  Thus increasing dots in the Attribute listed in the Weakness section of the Genos’ description cost twice the amount of Experience Points it normally would.  Finally, each Genos has a unique gift inherent in their lineage.  Each Genos receives gains use of the power listed in the Boon section of its description.

Giant

Giants are the Genos of Volakar the Behemoth.  The spawn of Volakar inherited their sire’s huge mass, and tower over the races at ten to eleven feet tall.  Giants look more less like very ugly humans.  A giant usually fills the position of warlord among the hordes, orchestrating strategies and commanding units of Beasts.

Giants tend to gravitate toward the Brute and Soldier Officium because of their strength and durability.  However, despite their poor dexterity, a fair number of giants find themselves as Artillery, hurling boulders.

• Bonus: Presence or Strength.
• Weakness: Dexterity.
• Boon: Enormous Size, giants have a size of 9; giants can roll 9 again on Intimidate dice pools.

Goblin

Goblins are the Genos of Kromj the Vile.  These Beasts stand about the same height as a dwarf, are devoid of hair, and have inky black, spongey skin like that of a frog.  They have long pointed ears that can be as long as a man’s forearm and also have many rows of sharp pointed teeth and sharp yellow claws.  Goblins are known to lick their claws, transferring their poisonous saliva to them.

Goblins are usually found in the Lurker or Skirmisher Officium due to their mobility.  The Controller Officia also includes its fair share of goblin warlocks.

• Bonus: Dexterity or Intelligence.
• Weakness: Wits.
• Boon: Poisonous, goblin saliva is a toxin that inflicts a point of lethal damage for two rounds after a successful attack; gobins can roll 9 again on Craft dice pools.

Kobold

Kobolds are the Genos of Saladon the Hidden.  These smallish humanoids resemble dog-faced men, albeit with patches of scales.  Most Kobolds are no taller than a man’s waist, but some mongrels have interbred with humans, producing stouter offspring.

Kobold are most attuned with the Officium of Controller or Lurker due to their excellent stealth and powerful shamans.  Yet some find themselves in Artillery because of the same thing; stealth and magic.

• Bonus: Dexterity or Wits.
• Weakness: Resolve.
• Boon: Shifty, once per scene a kobold may shift five feet, putting himself in a better position to attack, he gets five additional dice to his attack pool for that turn; kobolds can roll 9 again on Stealth dice pools.

Ogre

Ogres are the Genos of Kazadli the Tyrant.  The fearsome humanoids are all brutish figures standing just a head taller than a  man.  They are formidable opponents on the battlefield where their charges blast through the enemy ranks.

Ogres are very well suited to the Officium of Brute and Soldier due to the strength and prowess.  Some ogres find themselves excellent Skirmishers, making use of their charge repeatedly.

• Bonus: Composure or Strength.
• Weakness: Presence.
• Boon: Charge, if an ogre is not engaged in melee combat, he may charge and opponent and on a successful attack he knocks the opponent prone and deals two additional bruised damage; ogres can roll 9 again on Athletics dice pools.

Orc

Orcs are the Genos of Marrak the Twisted.  Orcs often serve as captains in the hordes, putting their manipulation skills to use by commanding troops.  These boar-faced Beasts are a fearsome sight on the field of war when their rage overtakes them.

Orcs are endeared to the Brute and Controller Officium due to their Berserk boon and Manipulation skills, but also make good Soldiers.

• Bonus: Manipulation or Stamina.
• Weakness: Composure.
• Boon: Berserk, once per scene an orc may Berserk for a number of turns equal to her stamina which allows her to ignore wound penalties and deal 1 additional lethal damage per successful attack; orcs can roll 9 again on Subterfuge dice pools.

Troll

Trolls are the Genos of Haggard the Hideous.  Trolls are slender but tall green-skinned  thugs with long arms.  They inherited their long, hooked nose and warty complexion from their progenator.  They are renowned for their ability to regenerate wounds that would normally be lethal to most mortals.

Trolls are most always Brutes or Artillery Officium, throwing  their deadly handaxes with zeal.  They can also make a fair Soldier.

• Bonus: Resolve or Stamina.
• Weakness: Intelligence.
• Boon: Regeneration, trolls may spend 1 Atrocity to regenerate 1 lethal wound or 2 bruised wounds; trolls can roll 9 again on Survival dice pools.

Listening to: KMFDM – Tohuvabohu - Spit or Swallow

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ChattyDM took the plunge and established the Chatty Studios site in the pursuit of his RPG Publishing goals.  He also recently had an adventure proposal accepted by Goodman Games for an upcoming anthology.

So now that Chatty has his studio going, he’s officially moved the Kobold Love project over there.  What is Kobold Love you ask?  Well head on over to Chatty Studios and find out more.  The down and dirty is that Chatty wants to prove that any system is just a means to an end, and a well done adventure can be fun using any decent rules.

He has invited anyone interested to convert his adventure idea into their system of choice, and I have picked White Wolf’s Storyteller System.  I wrote an initial article about entering the fray here.

To make this work, I need to create a Template that takes advantage of the World of Darkness core rules.  Official templates include Vampire: the Requiem, Werewolf: the Forsaken, and Promethean: the Created.  I have done some re-christening of names, but everything is still fluid.  Without further droning, here is an overview of the new template:

Beast: the Ravaging

Genos:

You may choose to add a bonus dot to one of the two Attributes listed for your Genos.  You may never have more than two dots in your Genos’ weak Attribute

• Giant – Bonus Strength or Presence, Weak Dexterity
• Goblin – Bonus Intelligence or Dexterity, Weak Wits
• Kobold – Bonus Dexterity or Wits, Weak Resolve
• Orc – Bonus Manipulation or Strength, Weak Composure
• Ogre – Bonus Composure or Strength, Weak Presence
• Troll – Bonus Stamina or Resolve, Weak Intelligence

Boons:

Each Genos grant special powers, or boons.  This includes the ability to roll again on a result of 9 on dice pool rolls of the associated skill.

• Giant – Enormous Size, 9 again on Intimidate
• Goblin – Poisonous, 9 again on Crafts
• Kobold – Shifty, 9 again on Stealth
• Orc – Command, 9 again on Subterfuge
• Ogre – Charge, 9 again on Athletics
• Troll – Regenerate, 9 again on Survival

Officium:

When Beasts gather in their hordes and march for war, they take up specific roles and join special units.  These units work in concert to ravage civilization.  A character can belong to more than one Officium but the cost of keeping your training up in more than one can become very expensive.

• Artillery – Raining death from afar
• Brute  - Meatshields of the monstrous hordes
• Controller – Sowing chaos, terror and worse with magick
• Lurker – Striking from hiding
• Skirmisher – Using mobility to harry the enemy
• Soldier – The key fighter of the hordes

Aptitudes:

Characters gain access to powerful advantages called Aptitudes based upon their Genos and Officium.  Each Aptitude has various powers for each dot that are purchased with experience individually.  At character creation, a Beast may choose two dots of Aptitudes to be chosen from their Genos and Officium.

Merits:

• Elite ***** – You gain both bonus dots for your Genos

New Traits:

• Morality – Instinct
• Power Level – Monstrousity
• Energy – Atrocity

This should give everyone the direction I am heading with Chatty’s open reverse dungeon trope.  This is probably more involved than most of what the other participants are doing, but I think it is worth it, besides I may use some of the developed Aptitudes in my Echelon Gaming System.  Chime in and tell me what you think!

Listening to: In Flames – Reroute to Remain – Cloud Connected

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Phil, the Chatty DM, wants to launch his own RPG Publishing Studio, Chatty Studios.  Phil likes the idea of the patronage system and was inspired by Wolfgang Bauer’s Open Design.  He has opened his first adventure concept under a version of the Creative Commons license and has welcomed the RPG Blogosphere community to create a version of the adventure for the system of their choice.

Phil has outlined the plot synopsis very well in his articles, so I will not repeat the content here.  Besides, you should check out all the other cool stuff he has going on over at his blog.

Since my own system, Echelon, is far from complete, I thought I would use a modified version of White Wolf’s Storytelling System.  The modifications are simple really; it is merely switching keywords to fit a medieval-fantasy setting and adding a template for Half-Kobolds.  I think I will christen the system mod World of Dark Fantasy, or WoDF for all the acronym lovers out there.

So the first thing we are going to have to do is some renaming.  In the Skills section there are at least two skills that need repurposed: Computers, Drive, & Firearms.  Drive will of course become Ride.  Firearms is also very easy, I will choose to replace it with Archery (though if the campaign world did include firearms, a more generic Ranged would be in order).  The Computers skill is a little more difficult.  But I just happen to have a Victorian Age character sheet handy, and it used Enigmas, which works for me.

While the skill system in the Storytelling games is pretty intuitive, they still have examples of use.  Ride is for handling an animal used for transportation.  Archery is used when making attacks with bows and crossbows.  The Enigmas skill is used to grant additional clues to help solve riddles and puzzles.

The Storytelling System uses templates to extend the game.  That is how you get Werewolf: the Forsaken, Vampire: the Masquerade, Promethean: the Created, and so on.  So my template will be called Creature: the Pillaging.  We will apply the Creature template and then select the Half-Kobold Folk.  Folk is the keyword for a type of Creature, much like Clan, Auspice, and Seeming.  I haven’t given much thought to factions (Covenants, Tribes, and Orders) yet.

I will also create a new advantage called Aptitudes (similar to Disciplines) a Morality called Instinct, a new power level trait called Monstrosity, and a new energy trait called Atrocity.  In future posts, I will provide full entries for the swapped skills, template, advantages, and traits.  I only hope I can devote enough energy to finish it on time.

Listening to: Alcoholika La Christo - Toxicnology Part 1 & 2 – Trance La Mort

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