Iron Kingdom RPG (looking for dm and/or players)

[godfang]

Would anyone be interested in an Iron Kingdom RPG game? We can swap dms around and determine what the party will play as (using the adventuring company rules) when we have at least 4 people interested.

[Muse]

Is that the steampunk d20 or something else? 

[eBadger]

I assume with IKRPG?  I'm in, definitely.  What sort of crew are you thinking of?  Perfect timing to break something out of the new book :)

[Ershin]

Oooh, I've wanted to try out IKRPG for ages. Got the book here but no one in my local group feels the same way. Definitely interested in a player spot, but I can't say I'm very well read up on the full rule set.

[godfang]

oops, been out of town for abit. To answer:

@Muse: There WAS a d20 version of the iron kingdom rpg, but now it has its own set of rules.


I was thinking we can do something like a Khadoran empire high court intrigue perhaps? or the ubiquitous 'Mercenary Charter' genre.

[Yandros]

Are you looking to use the new rule set for the game, the one Privateer Press just released not too long ago...or are you thinking of going with something d20?

[godfang]

The new ruleset mostly. I haven't had the chance to use them much, and when i did, it wasn't using the Iron Kingdoms as setting and i always wanted to play there.

[AndyZ]

Played this briefly but not sure how much of it I remember.  I have the PDF though.  Trollkin are cray cray.

[eBadger]

Hmm, will have to ponder what to play.  If we do a merc charter I'll likely be a gun mage of some flavor; if we do Khadoran court intrigue I'm really not sure. 

[Yandros]

The new ruleset mostly. I haven't had the chance to use them much, and when i did, it wasn't using the Iron Kingdoms as setting and i always wanted to play there.

Ah, good luck with it then!  I've had a chance to read and actually play a game with the new rules, and they are not for me in the slightest.

If you guys thought about something along the lines of d20 or what not, I'd definitely be interested.  But I wish you all the best of luck in playing!

[TheGlyphstone]

I love IK, and would definitely be willing to take a shot at a game using the new rules.

[eBadger]

What's the good word on this, Godfang?  I'd love to have a concept and character creation guidelines for this, so I can get something underway. 

Given the two options before, I'm thinking either an Aristocrat/Thief (a younger noble daughter being trained as a courtesan/assassin) for the Intrigue idea or a Man at Arms/Man of War (the fourth son of a petty noble and a military veteran setting out to carve a living from his skill at arms). 

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Positing interest. I don't think my version is the d20...It says "Full Metal Fantasy" on the character guide, if that's helpful? Flexible on the court intrigue/merc group thing... I can come up with a character that'd suit whatever the group decides to do.

[eBadger]

This is the IKRPG; Iron Kingdoms was originally released in the early 2000's as a setting and a couple adventures for D&D, then they went their own way with a miniatures game, and now they've released their own RPG system based heavily off the table top. 

[Muse]

  Okay, I have the book now and I'm definitely interested.  Just hope we can find a GM since I'm totally full. 

  Ooh!  Fun!  They still have gun mages. 

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Checked, and the one I have is the 2004-edition D&D character guide. IF there's still room (I count 7 so far, hi Muse and Glyph and I think I remember a couple of others!) and a definite willing GM to kick things off (I see that multiple GMs, either Round Robin or something else has been suggested but someone has to get the ball rolling), then I'm happy to go buy the more recent one...I'd rather not drop sixty on a book that'll just collect dust, though, as my local group is pretty orthodox.

You'd think a bunch of people who enjoy roleplaying adventurers would be more adventurous but it's a pretty strict diet of Pathfinder.

[godfang]

Pathfinder is a pretty popular one with longevity. Alright, we'll do a game.


The occupation of Llael

A simmilar idea to what i had for my pathfinder game. This takes place during the Khadoran Empire's occupation of Llael. A mercenary charter has been hired by the Khadoran forces to help root out the Highborn Covenant. The person paying the charter is lord Fedor of Umbrey, a high ranking military officer who is trying to pacify the Llaelese people. While he has his own army consisting of Khador's finest soldiers, he needed to have people to do his dirty work. This is where the charter came in, the warhounds are established secretly, hiring skilled mercenaries from many different backgrounds to take care of certain assignments that might bring dishonor to the Khadoran army if they are involved, things such as assasinations or extortions.

You are one of the warhounds, perhaps you are a former Khadoran soldier, now delegated to this special taskforce. Or you might be a Llaelese traitor, willing to do anything for power, or maybe you're just another mercenary trying to make a living.

Character Building
-We start with 0xp, pick careers and race that would suit the story
-We will use the mercenary charter adventuring party, unless everyone agrees to use something else (say spy ring or bounty hunters)
-I require a brief background and information about your archetype/race/careers, i don't need an actual character sheet
-Adult contents optional, but it's there if you choose to pursue it (might involve non-con)

[eBadger]

I want people to vote between these two.

Is there another one coming?

[godfang]

Oops, forgot to erase that part.

[eBadger]

   

Kovnik Vaska Zakharov
Skilled Man O War/Aristocrat

Born a fourth son to minor West Umbrian nobility, Vaska spent his youth in the Kovosk Hills preparing for the honor and glory of warfare.  Upon reaching his majority, Vaska volunteered for the military to earn his own fortune, an expectation for a son not due to inherit, and quickly earned respect for his talents.  He joined the elite Man o War in short order.  His service record has been impressive, showing constant engagements, notable successes and marked skill.   

Vaska exists in the strange space between the low and high.  His family heritage entitles him to respect and exemption from most of the common law, but he lacks wealth or land.  This has led him to tread casually on the edge of law, rules, and tradition; a risk for a soldier but useful when commanding or working independently. 

Following the defeat of Llael, Vaska's term of service was complete and he found himself given the option to leave regular military service at an opportune time - when the war in the south has grown stagnant, but the chaos of a newly conquered territory has left great opportunities for paid work.  Vaska considers himself more of an irregular: taking on special duties for suitable pay, but still standing by his rank, nobility and loyalty to the Motherland. 

Vaska's personality is rather utilitarian.  He's usually jovial and easy going; he's compartmentalized the horror of war and sees little option to the violence he's trained to since birth, so he can seem at times surprisingly casual or blase.  When needed, however, his passionate character can switch quickly to a vision of fury and command, instilling discipline by respect or violence. 

He has a penchant for Ordic cigars, Llaelese wine and intelligent women. 

Human Skilled Aristocrat/Man O War
PHY 6, SPD 7 (5), STR 5 (8), AGL 3, PRW 5, POI 4, INT 3, PER 3

DEF 11, ARM 15

Languages: Khadoran, Llaelese, Cygnaran
Connections: Khadoran Nobility & Khadoran Military

Abilities:
Additional Attack; Virtuoso: Great Weapons
Good Breeding, Privilege, Ironhead, Load Bearing

Skills:
Hand Weapon 1, Pistol 1, Great Weapon 2, Light Artillery 1
Command 1, Etiquette 1, Negotiation 1, Mechanikal Engineering 1

Equipment:
Man O War armor, Ice Maul, Armored Great Coat, Dagger, Nyss Claymore, Long Rifle, Pack, Bedroll, Tent, Toolkit, Cigars, Basic Gear

[1SAZ]

I'm gonna go ahead and toss up my interest, though I realize I'm late to the party. I've been trying to find a good group for IK and just noticed this thread today. I would love to finally put my copy of the core rules to use.

[godfang]

ideally the party is 3-4 people, i can go up to 5 if neccesary. I'll also post my character soon (if someone wants to take the second adventure), eBadger, i want to make a pugilist, can you help me with the rules? (i haven't been able to get a copy on this side of the world yet)

[eBadger]

Happy to help, just let me know what you're after. 

And hopefully we'll get a few more characters completed soon!  As to group size, 4-5 is good as long as people are going to stick around (please peeps, no signing up and ditching two weeks later!)

[godfang]

what skills do they get and what the new skills do (i was thinking pugilist-cuthroat or duelist)

[Elayne]

I'd be willing to play if you get this going,but I know nothing about dming :)

[TheGlyphstone]

Good time to learn, then. Take a spot near the end of the rotation and you'll have lots of examples to follow by the time it's your turn. ;D



I'm going to brainstorm a character today. Currently I'm waffling between an expatriate Cygnaran gun-mage or a Khadoran sniper.

Or, of course, the third option of being a Warcaster, but that's only if no one else rolls one. It'll just feel wrong to be playing Warmachine without at least one warjack hanging around.


EDIT: Sniper it is. The theme is 'Khadoran merc unit', and I don't need to be a special snowflake by being something weird or non-Khadoran. Plus, Warcasters don't seem to start with a steamjack anyways.

[eBadger]

GMing isn't a completely different skill set.  Just come up with a problem for the group and make some rolls as they solve it.  Being a good GM requires innovation, knowledge of the rules and good roleplaying.  And actually, PBPs are an excellent place to start with GMing, since you have plenty of time to look up a rule, create an NPC or come up with some details or setting when things go unexpectedly, unlike face to face where there's a lot of thinking on the fly.  And start with something very simple: an informant tells us some Llaelese troops, now acting as bandits, are holed up in a certain spot in the hills.  He either sets us up for an ambush, or we ambush them.  Brief search, combat, and done :)

I don't mind a few snowflakes, but it would be great to have at least a couple Khadorans to keep the theme and motivation. And snipers are good, I also made a widowmaker myself. 

For Godfang:

Pugilist

Pugilist Career:
Req: Ogrun or Trollkin
Abilities: Brawler* and Hulking Presence*
Mil. Skills: HW 1, Unarmed 1
Occ Skills: Detection 1, intimidation 1, Streetwise 1
Special: a starting pugilist gains +1 STR or PHY, which can bring them above their racial max.
Assets: 100g

Career Abilities:
Brawler*, Defender, Flying Fists*, Grappler*, Head butt, Heave Ho*, Hulking Presence*, Rock Solid, Trip*, Waylay
Career Mil Skills: HW 3, Unarmed 4
Career Occ Skills: Bribery 3, Etiquette 3, General 4, Interrogation 2, intimidation 4, Law 2, negotiation 3, seduction 2, streetwise 4

Brawler: req STR 6, can use Unarmed skill with improvised weapons
Flying Fists: req unarmed 2, an empty offhand can be used to make an additional punch attack
Grappler: req unarmed 3, opponent suffers -2 to break free and character doesn't lose DEF when grappling
Heave Ho: req PHY 8, Unarmed 3, can use a feat point to throw an opponent
Hulking Presence: Additional die to intimidation rolls using PHY
Trip: kicks gain crit knockdown

[godfang]

@theglyphstone: while they do work for khador, it doesn't neccesarily mean they have to be khadoran. They're bassically mercenaries hired to do the dirty work of the Khadoran army, so it's not odd for them to have non-khadoran characters. I'm still unsure of what to play, but that's no problem since i'll dm an episode first.

[TheGlyphstone]

@theglyphstone: while they do work for khador, it doesn't neccesarily mean they have to be khadoran. They're bassically mercenaries hired to do the dirty work of the Khadoran army, so it's not odd for them to have non-khadoran characters. I'm still unsure of what to play, but that's no problem since i'll dm an episode first.

The double benefit is that I don't have to teach myself the magic system with my first character, which is why I'm making a mundane.

[godfang]

The double benefit is that I don't have to teach myself the magic system with my first character, which is why I'm making a mundane.

Oh, with this part i agree. Warcasters are also a bit too..fancy for a merc group used for doing shifty stuff

[eBadger]

For Godfang, Round 2 -

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Allegiant

Must choose Cutthroat, Investigator, Priest (menoth), ranger, Scrutator*, spy or warcaster as their second career

Abilities: Flesh of Steel*, Hardened Strike*, Shifting Sands Stance*
Connections (order of the fist)
Mil Skill Unarmed 1
Occ Skills Detection 1, Jump 1, Sneak 1
Assets: None

Career stuff:
Abilities: Acrobatics, Chain attack: body slam*, Circular Vision*, Fist of God*, Fleet foot, Flesh of Steel*, Flying Fists*, Hardened Strike*, Iron Will, Precision Strike, Reed in the Wind*, Serpent Strike*, Shifting Sands Stance*, Steady, Trip*, Waylay, Whirlwind*
Connections: Order of the fist
Mil Skills: HW 3, Unarmed 4
Occ Skills: General 4, Interrogation 3, Law 3, Sneak 4, Survival 4


CA: Body Slam - req Flying fists, unarmed 3, chain attack allows a body slam
Circular Vision: req PER 5, 360 degree front arc
Fist of God: req willpower 11 unarmed melee attacks are magical and gain an additional die against structures
Flesh of Steel: when unarmored, double PHY to determine ARM
Flying Fists: req Unarmed 2, gains an additional punch attack from an empty hand
Hardened Strike: req unarmed 1, kick and punch attacks are boosted; at veteran, this becomes an additional die instead
Reed in the Wind: can't be targetted by free strikes
Serpent Strike: req unarmed 2, unarmed kick attacks gain reach
Shifting Sands Stance: forfeit movement to gain 2 DEF, if enemy attack misses move up to 3", lasts one turn (doesn't expire after movement)
Trip: kicks gain crit knockdown
Whirlwind: req flying fists, unarmed 3, first unarmed melee attack can become a thresher: make one attack against each character in melee and los

[godfang]

oh my god, the allegiant is so beautiful T_T . i'm playing a mighty cutthroat allegiant. Gonna have his profile up soon

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Going to bow out of this, just not up for spending that much on a new game right now.

[eBadger]

If we're doing this, people need to start putting together some characters :)

[eBadger]

Officially dropping this due to non-activity. 

[Muse]

*sighes*  Sadness.  Sorry I didn't learn the system fast enough.