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01-18-2012, 10:38 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Jan 2012
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Ideas for Fantastical France?
Gloire pour la France!
Fantastical France is my newest, upcoming campaign. I have already talked with several players (which I won't take on anymore since this is a friends-only campaign) about Fantastical France. Fantastical France is set in fantasy 1500s France, where France is in the early throes of the Middle Ages, where wars might occur between France and England. Even a Germanic Crusade is possible, cutting right into France should religion get the better of them by going berserk with fervor. France has other assorted creatures. Young Marigold, a beautiful elf (275 years old; 16 years old HSY), unknowingly runs into a secret plot that would destroy the glory of France by deposing of a well-meaning but Alzheimers-ridden king and effectively making sure the crown prince never sits on the throne by encouraging him to be more squalid, inconfident, even a buffoon or a fool in front of others. She must gather a group of friends in order to confront the greatest evil in France: Letizia, the Italian witch with powerful magic. I already have created the PCs, NPCs, and will be creating a list of generic enemies to throw at young Marigold and her friends. ;) I also have installed MapTools 3.b85, put a map in, and will be starting on creating new areas for the PCs to explore should they run into specific hexes. My question is... despite a humorous campaign that may ensue, what ideas do you have that may help me sort out some "Point A, Point B" route that may keep the game fresh, or the campaign ongoing. I may assume 10 sessions for around 1 hour to 3 hours depending on the availability of the players so it won't be so long a campaign. |
01-18-2012, 11:14 PM | #2 | |
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
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I think it might have been around then that Baldassare Castiglione wrote his Book of the Courtier, with its long passage about how the Italians love art and music and cuisine, but the uncivilized French care for nothing but hunting and war. That said, I might look at the rediscovery of relics of pagan Rome as sources of no longer understood magical powers. A lost shrine to Mithras or Isis could have very interesting effects. Bill Stoddard |
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01-18-2012, 11:41 PM | #3 | |
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Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Southeast NC
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
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Another thought is that perhaps one of the 13th century explorers of Asia finds the kingdom of Prester John.
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RyanW - Actually one normal sized guy in three tiny trenchcoats. Last edited by RyanW; 01-19-2012 at 01:01 PM. Reason: Typo |
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01-19-2012, 12:12 AM | #4 |
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Mannheim, Baden
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
Religious problems would be my first guess. Internal ones would be more likely than external ones. The Huguenots were really influential and the kings could only contain them by repeatedly cracking down on them. One of the GURPS Who is Who volumes has a nice alternate history seed where they eventually settle French North America en masse, but that's probably best for the late 1500s. Religious fervour from Germany leading to a crusade would not be likely. The Holy Empire had enough problems with religion of their own to occupy them for more than a century. They would be a major exporter of new kinds of heretics, though.
If you want to change tacks you can also tone down the reformation inside the Empire after the initial phase. That would give the Habsburgs a better chance to actually use their power in Spain and the Netherlands to exert pressure on France. And there is still the matter of Calais held by the English. Colonial matters would likely be more important later on, but if you want to give your French a head-start just make them a bit more adventurous. |
01-19-2012, 12:21 AM | #5 |
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Yucca Valley, CA
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
Maybe check out (GURPS) Castle Falkenstein and turn back the clock a couple of centuries: Faeries, Dwarves, Dragons, Book Magic. -GEF
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01-19-2012, 12:24 PM | #6 | ||||||||
Join Date: Jan 2012
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
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As for the relics of pagan Rome or no longer understood magical powers, the PCs cannot have magic since magic is rarely sought out. I would assume, from my fictional viewpoint, that France used to know magic in the times of the Roman Empire as the Gauls but that knowledge had died out slowly. While Rome may have relics with magical properties, it is likely these relics were sacked, taken, or robbed and sold to others. France may possess some of them but the King likely would have had them. Quote:
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Though I do assume that magic is a part of the campaign, using Catherine de Medici as the primary antagonist without magic might give her disadvantages against combat-geared characters. She may be more social, uses more of her IQ and that's why I thought that a witch with magic could be a good idea to offset that disadvantage. Though thanks, I'll still keep that lady in mind for a more serious FF. Quote:
As for wars, Michele, I have decided to allow "Letizia" to command a group of Arquebusiers, a pre-muisketeer type unit using gunpowered pistols but with weak melee skills. This might throw the PCs off their trail and find better ways to combat the enemy. Quote:
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Thank you everyone for all your help! I will post an update on the session once it's rolled out. :) By the way, I wonder what is the policy of this forum when it comes to posting screenshots? EDIT: I read the FAQ on photos and I don't think screenshots are allowed in posts through forums but can be created through albums of photos. I can do this and show everyone that by linking you guys to check out the screenies. :) Last edited by Huscurian; 01-19-2012 at 12:43 PM. |
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01-19-2012, 01:10 PM | #7 | |||
Join Date: Aug 2004
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
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That would be.... odd, considering Nostradamus only gave his supposed prophecies in print, and had no need to roam the streets in any case, being invited by the consort to the palace... |
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01-19-2012, 10:19 PM | #8 |
Join Date: Feb 2007
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
Two things. First, I want to point out that "dauphin" is pronounced like "doe fawn" (but drop the w sound). Audio of someone saying, "un dauphin" here: http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/File:Fr-dauphin.ogg
Second, the things I used in my fantasy France game were: The city of Rennes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rennes) which was actually a part of Brittany at the beginning of the 16th century, and became a part of France in 1532. It really just has some fascinating culture and history, in my opinion. Rennes-le-Château (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rennes-le-Ch%C3%A2teau) which is in southern France, has no association with Rennes, and has some wonderful conspiracy theories connected to it. |
01-19-2012, 11:58 PM | #9 |
Join Date: May 2007
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Don't sell Catherine de Medici short --
while she won't be swinging a sword herself as Queen of France, and a Medici to boot, she can acquire world-class champions in any field.
Oh -- IIRC the musket (or handgonne) was pretty common after c. 1505. For a short look at the warfare of that era, I'd suggest the Osprey book on Pavia -- covers the French, Spanish, German, and Swiss military systems of that era. Lots on individuals, national rivalries (hint -- do NOT brigade Switzers and Landsknechts together, even if you're paying both of them). One note -- the Spanish had the Caribbean their own until, IIRC, 1519, when a batch of French galleys crossed the Atlantic and began to maraud. Yes, galleys. Frenchmen, not Dutch or English, were the first corsairs on the Spanish Main. |
01-20-2012, 01:58 AM | #10 | |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Udine, Italy
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Re: Ideas for Fantastical France?
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It could be argued, however, that these people didn't see themselves as "wizards" in the medieval sense, nor as "sibyls" in the Roman sense; we're probably better off thinking that they had a broad definition of "natural sciences". Alchemists and astrologists, generally speaking, didn't think they were dealing with supernatural forces, but, rather, with natural ones that were not yet fully understood. |
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Tags |
elf, fantastical, france, glore pour la france, marigold |
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