Share your settings for TFT

[larsdangly]

Another fun one I did today...

Florian the Soggy Smith: A gifted sword maker (and fine swordsman), on a years-long alcoholic bender and living in a gutter
ST 12 DX 15 (16) IQ 15 MA 10
Talents: Sword, Recognize Value, Fencing, Armorer, Mechanician, Assess Value, Master Armorer, Master Mechanician
Gear: ‘Muriel’, a simple looking but exceptionally fine (+2 dam./+1 DX) Broadsward (2d+2)
Job: Drunk Residence: Street outside the Cracked Cup (a bar) Haunts: The Mews (a city district)

[JohnPaulB]

Originally Posted by larsdangly

All the excitement about TFT has me thinking about fun settings for the system - deadly dungeons, grungy cities, mysterious towers... This has always been a game where most such things are DIY rather than commercial products. So let's get a thread going where we can share some of the favorite items from your old folders!

I had a standard Medieval World setting on Cidri, but with a hidden understory.

This is gamed in a Cidri right out of TFT, but with a lost, still operating space station filled with ‘generation ship’ people (sort of a benign FALLOUT). There are a few remnants of Techy’s on the surface of this section of Cidri that have been preserving the technological apparatus, but have not had contact in a very long time: hundreds of years. (Note: the ones who built the space stations were the descendants of Mnoren’s Children.)


- - - - - - - - - - -
Space Station
The Mnoren left this sector a long time ago (1000 years?). However, they left behind two geo-synchronized space stations (self-sustaining nukepowered mini generation ship-type) that had degenerated* technology-wise as the generations passed. A few members on the space-stations still have Psi.

The advanced GURPS Tech Level 9.5 has mostly dropped to Tech Level 8 on the station. Things got forgotten, parts wore out etc. Shuttles broke down and soon physical contact with earth stopped. There are a few additional operational satellites in orbit, but they have been out of communication with the space station for a longtime too. (There are two Space Stations a 1000 miles apart, but have lost communication and hope that the other is all right. They knew each other at one time. This allows the GM flexibility to see how much the stations have devolved from each other and diverged. One could have been a nationalistic station and one an international station, etc.)

Those in space station have tech that makes food, air, recycles metal, manufactures. Over the years many capabilities have devolved. They still know earth because they have electronic data history and long range cameras, but no contact. They maintain 1 earth gravity.

Contact through radio was lost because the earthers really lost the knowledge of how to operate and maintain the instruments. Cidri in this planet area is now GURPS Tech Level 3.75.

-----------------------

Played 3 ways
• The vast majority of this portion of Cidri will never know that there are living people in the asteroid above their heads. They try various means to communicate which affect this portion of Cidri.

• The PCs are just as ignorant as everyone else on this topic, but slowly come into contact with those who are trying to reunite with the space station. [Those people might be a secret tech society, a religious order, an arcane school, a few arch-mages: Whatever the GM thinks would be appropriate after 500 years of devolving.] This would make a good Campaign Game.

• The PCs are from the space station. The station has just recreated a shuttle which has dropped down a scouting party (standard Star Trek party?) and in order to fit in, they are using basic Cidri tools (but for a few handy exceptions.) They now have to find either a group that old guard or a satellite dish that they can repair and power up as the basis for further communication. The radios linked to the space station are very much subject to the ionosphere and other hazards.

If PCs are from the space station, they know a lot more of the Mnoren background, but not what has been happening politically or otherwise on Cidri. They may know where some of the big cities are and other large landmarks, due to their space station cameras.
------------

CIDRI

Earthers now just think of these as small circling celestial bodies.

Depending on what the GM wants:
There is a remnant of high tech & high tech knowledge on earth, harbored by a cadre of secluded groups, some of whom know each other, perhaps help each other or fight each other.

But difficult to use this high tech knowledge because there is no Electricity Tech available and parts are worn out or missing. Knowledge is fragmented.

Tech Wizards – The technology of the Space Station is so advance compared to Cidri that it seems magic. One of the technologies that the space stations commonly had before they devolved was a technological psionics. This was a psi chip implanted in the body that ran off electrical energy from the body (that fatigued a person). The chip was wired to certain parts of the brain to spark the psionic affects.

So how they would go about gaining a Wizard spell is that they would get a chip implant. It takes the same length of time to “learn” the spell (manufacture the chip, fine tuning it to the person), but it has to be installed in a special hospital that does Psi surgery. On Cidri, that would be only the highest, holiest of the cadre.

Those Psi Chip wizards may cast the spell without appearing to move a muscle. He/she does power the spell per usual method, though, including fatigue.



(In my way of thinking, TFT magic is really a pidgin form of Psionics for those who need symbols and actions to make it work. See http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread...16#post2202016 #6 for my thoughts on that.)

As mentioned above, the framework setting can be totally background, a revealing story or The Story.

* When I use degenerated or degraded, I am not referring to morals or morale or evolutionary species, I mean that the technology and knowledge they had has become forgotten.

[Todd Roll]

I am running something based in the Dreamlands of HPL. The characters are currently traveling on a caravan through the Jungle of Kled. All the characters except for one are denizens of the Dreamlands. They don't know it but there will be some folks from the waking world scattered about and there are a couple gates that do lead to our world, as well as the moon and Yuggoth.

The tone of the game is more high fantasy rather than the sanity blasting slog you would expect in a Lovecraft inspired game. You won't find the typical Great Old Ones, but you could run into Bast, Nodens, The Black Pharaoh and some other more traditional gods.

There will be ghouls, Men and spiders of Leng, moonbeasts, nightgaunts, the cats of Ulthar and the Mi-Go along with more traditional beast (including octopi).

Cheers,
Todd

[EKB]

My setting is Etan. Metagaming published my "Players guide to the Etan Campaign" as (IIRC) an Interplay article way back in the day.

The campaign is centered on the Million Kingdoms and the wilderness to the north and west (in which live the Northern Barbarians). From the latest version (which is still a dozen years old):

The Million Kingdoms consists of 58 small city-states and petty kingdoms with a generic fantasy/medieval/renaissance flavor. It includes three cities, 38 towns, and a large number of farming villages. A spiderweb of cart-tracks and paths connect the villages and towns, and the High Road – an artifact from before the Greater Obscusification – links the three main cities.

The typical kingdom covers several hexes on the campaign map. It contains one town (bearing the same name as the kingdom) and a hundred or more villages. Half the villages cluster around the town, while the rest are scattered through the countryside. Each village has a belt of fields, pastures, and orchards surrounding it, with an average of four square kilometers per village. Beyond this is parkland: a mixture of forest and wild fields with occasional hills and swampy lowlands. Away from the towns, each campaign hex has only five to 15 villages, and parkland covers over 90% of the hex. As a result, the terrain in the Million Kingdoms is very similar to that of the Middle Wilderland to the east.

Each village has a population of 200 to 500, with most (90%) having populations under 250. The towns have populations ranging from 500 to 5000, and the three cities – Glygorf, Robono, and Sal-Hy – have populations of 5000, 15,000, and 25,000 respectively. The villages hold 90% of the population of the Million Kingdoms, with the towns and cities having most of the rest. Only a handful of outlaws and crazy hermits live outside any settlement; the shadowspawn and other bogies make life too dangerous. Even the gypsies, traveling merchants, drifters, and other wanderers try to stay safely inside a village each night.

Government:
Government in the Million Kingdoms is a variant of feudalism. Each kingdom is divided into a number of fiefs. Traditionally, a fief covers the land half a day’s journey from the manor; in practice each fief corresponds more or less to one hex on the campaign map. The king of each kingdom rules directly over the richest and most populous fief (the one containing a town or city if there is one). The rest he grants to various noble lords (barons, earls, counts, dukes, etc.). Each lord in turn takes one village in his fief as his own and grants the others to lesser nobles who thus gain the title of “Squire.” Similarly, the king stays in the town, city, or chief village of his royal fief and grants authority over the other villages to his knights.

According to the feudal law of the Million Kingdoms, no one can rule over more than one kingdom, one fief, and one village, town, or city. Those who violate this law suffer a curse. As a result, the rulers of the various fiefs and kingdoms do not waste a lot of time trying to conquer each other. Instead, they aim their intrigues and brief, frequent wars at putting friendly rulers (or puppets) in charge of their neighbors.

Economics:
Coinage: Each of the Million Kingdoms mints its own coins. However, almost all coins have weights and values very close to the traditional (and “lucky”) ones. Normal sized coins weigh 5g each, or 200 per kg, with the value depending on the metal. The common types of coins in Etan are:

• The Silver Dollar ($). This is the standard coin in Etan. It is worth about what a US dollar was worth when US dollars were still silver – or about five to ten modern dollars. Half-dollar and two-dollar coins also exist but are rare.
• The copper bit. This is the basic copper coin, worth $0.10. In addition there is the half-bit (worth $0.05, wt 2.5g or 400 per kg), and the two-bit piece or “quarter” (worth $0.25, wt 12.5g or 80 per kg).
• The Eagle. This is the basic electrum piece, worth $10. It traditionally has an eagle on the back. Half-eagles ($5, 2.5g or 400 per kg) and double eagles ($20, 10g) also exist.
• Gold Pieces are known by various names (crown, royal, sovereign, etc.) and normally are worth $100 each. Half-crowns ($50, 2.5g) also exist, along with the rare dragon ($200, 10g)

Taxes: Taxes in the countryside range from 10% to 60% of income. Ordinary villagers pay to the Squire or Knight, Squires pay to their Lord, and Knights and Lords pay to the King. People in areas with higher tax rates tend to get more back from the rulers by way of public spending and noblesse oblige.

Taxes in the towns and cities normally hit established businesses (a 10% ‘business’ or ‘sales’ tax) and property owners (1% of the value). Note that the ‘standard’ prices for goods already include the 10% sales tax.

Adventurers don’t normally get taxed directly unless they buy real estate, start a regular business, or otherwise settle down. Taxmen have a hard time trying to deal with well-armed, hard-to-catch adventurers – it’s easier to squeeze the merchants they deal with.

Society:
Villagers
Most of the people in the Million Kingdoms are villagers, and most of the villagers are peasant farmers. Thanks to the magical nature of Etan, these peasants can produce generous amounts of food with very little effort. They thus have a great deal of free time which they use to practice other trades “on the side” and to party.

In addition to the farmers, a typical village will have a wizard, a blacksmith, a miller, and of course the ruler (lord, squire or knight) with his or her family and several servants.

Townsfolk
About 10% of the population of the Million Kingdoms live in towns and cities. This population includes craftsmen, merchants, thieves, Royal Household and Government officials, tavern- and innkeepers, and professionals of various sorts. They have a higher level of both magic and technology than villagers do: More wizards per capita, and more late- and post-medieval gadgets.

Towns typically have a number of areas or “quarters”: a crafting district, a market area, a wealthy quarter, a dwarven quarter, a bad part of town, and so on.

Wanderers
These are folk that don’t live in any one settlement. Most of them travel from village to village and from town to town, staying in the safety of a settlement at night. Only a handful of desperate outlaws and crazy hermits and woodsmen try to live outside all the time.

Besides the outlaws and hermits, wanderers include young folk working off wanderlust or looking for a mate, traveling peddlers, merchants, rogues, entertainers, and gypsy families, and, of course, adventurers.

Non-humans
The Humankin races consist of humans and those races who live among humans – dwarves, elves, halfelves, orcs, goblins, giants, and lizardmen. In the Million Kingdoms, these non-human races usually live in the same villages as humans, so characters will generally be familiar with members of other races.

Dwarves are a partial exception to this. Dwarves live only in towns and cities – never in the countryside – and usually stay in the “dwarven quarter” of town. Even so, town-dwelling humans (and elves, goblins, orcs, etc…) will be familiar with dwarves although rural folk may not be.

Wizards
As noted before, Etan has a lot of wizards. About one person in 100 will be a wizard, and practically every village will have at least one wizard in residence. These “hedge wizards” may not have much skill or power, but they will exist.

Priests
Almost all the people in the Million Kingdoms follow the Millerite faith, but most are not very pious. They celebrate the major Holy Days, pray in desperate emergencies – and that’s about it. As a result, not too many priests live in the Million Kingdoms. Only about one village in five will have a priest in residence. Most people go to secular wizards for marriages, funerals, blessings on the hearthstone, and other magical and spiritual needs.

[EKB]

In addition:

Other Cultures
The Northern Barbarians:
This culture consists of small, widely-scattered bands of hunter-gathers plus a few more-heavily-settled corners. Mostly it has the sort of flavor one would expect if Viking settlers had adopted the lifestyles of American Indians, with the more populated corners (e.g. the North Kingdoms) having the flavor of American Indians who have adopted the lifestyle of Viking settlers. In the Million Kingdoms, the Northern Barbarians are noted for their hearty primitiveness and their fair (Nordic) appearance.

The Desert Nomads:
This culture consists of the desert kingdom of Alaron plus nine nomadic tribes that wander along the edges of the Great Sandy Desert. The whole has an Arabian Nights flavor. Among the people of the Million Kingdoms, the Desert Nomads are noteworthy for their religious fanaticism and the way they sequester their women.

The Eight Islanders:
This culture consists of a mix of people who were originally from everywhere, and who now live on the Eight Isles. It has the flavor of the 16th-17th century Caribbean. Among the people of the Million Kingdoms, the Eight Isles are famous for their seafarers and pirates.

The Southern Empire:
This is the largest culture in Etan. It consists of 64 provinces under the rule of a divine Emperor. It has a oriental flavor with the different provinces resembling the different oriental cultures (Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Thai, etc.) To the people of the Million Kingdoms, the Southern Empire is the “Exotic South.”

The Dark Kingdoms:
People in the Million Kingdoms know relatively little about this culture – only that its people are black in color, have strange customs, and are highly civilized. Actually though, the “Dark Kingdoms” are a group of 13 republics somewhat resembling the early United States under the Articles of Confederation.

The Southern Savages:
These people are black-skinned “noble savages,” the southern equivalent of the Northern Barbarians.

The South Sea Islanders:
These people live among the South Sea Isles. Their culture has a Polynesian flavor.


Religions
All the religions of Etan have to deal with the fact that the Gods all died over a thousand years ago in the Battle of the High Hunt, and that only minor godlings and spirits and the ghosts of some of the Gods remain.

The major religions of Etan are:

Millerism:
Founded shortly after the Greater Obscusification by John the Miller (“Prester John”). He taught that people should continue in the worship of the old gods since they would someday revive and reward those who had been faithful.

Millerism is the most widespread religion in Etan. Millerites can be found everywhere, but are especially common in the Million Kingdoms, the Eight Isles, and the Dark Kingdoms. Millerites use a millstone carved with the symbols of the twelve major deities as a symbol of their faith.

Carpalism:
Founded in the fourth century GT by a nameless Prophet. The Prophet taught that beyond the gods and the primal beings was a force or power known as the Hand of Fate. He further taught that one should submit to the Hand of Fate, living according to the rules revealed to him, in order to do well both in this life and the next.

Carpalism is found mostly among the Desert Nomads, with a small minority in the Eight Isles. The Carpalist symbol is an outline of a five-rayed star.

Isran:
Founded after the death of the First Emperor of the South, sometime in the first century GT. Isran teaches that the Emperor of the South is the true heir of the gods and thus the proper object of worship.

Isran is the state religion of the Southern Empire, and intimately connected with the imperial bureaucracy. In fact, in the Imperial Tongue of the Southern Empire, the same word is used for ‘bureaucrat’, ‘priest’, and ‘wizard.’ The symbol of Isran is a portrait of the current Emperor, done in whatever style he decrees at the beginning of his reign.

Hysterism:
Founded before the Greater Obscusification by Missmith the Teacher, Hysterism teaches that the world is a womb and that one’s real life doesn’t begin until after one dies and one’s spirit leaves the world. To prepare for life in the ‘real world’ one should therefore seek enlightenment and learning.

Hysterism is mostly found in the Southern Empire, although some followers live in the Eight Isles and the Dark Kingdoms. The symbol of Hysterism is a golden five-rayed star.

Animistic Religions (Shamanism):
These religions teach that the major deities aren’t very important to ordinary people – and weren’t even when they were alive. The supernatural beings important to ordinary people are ancestral spirits, tribal totems, and the various minor deities that take an active interest in you and your tribe. Mediating between you and these spirits are shamans who may be priests, wizards, or both.

Animistic religions may be found among the Northern Barbarians, Eight Islanders, Southern Savages, and South Sea Islanders. Followers of Animistic religions use a wide variety of fetishes and totems.

[hcobb]

I have several free settings/adventures at
https://www.hcobb.com/#tft_adv

[TippetsTX]

Originally Posted by EKB

My setting is Etan. Metagaming published my "Players guide to the Etan Campaign" as (IIRC) an Interplay article way back in the day.

Which issue?

[EKB]

Originally Posted by TippetsTX

Which issue?

I recalled incorrectly. On checking I find references to it being in "The Fantasy Forum" TFT fanzine in 1988, but I can't find my copy.

[Ferretman]

The setting we created (back when there was a group of us playing) was centered on the map in the back of ITL, with the Duchy of Elyntia. My friend Tim and I (mostly me though) kinda gradually "grew" it around that original map for a total size of roughly the size of Iran (I think that's how I calculated it at the time, anyway).

Our adventures had us traveling around most of the adjacent maps. I had plans to migrate the group over to the Land Beyond the Mountains modules, which (in our world) was to the west of Elyntia across a large desert.

Of course that didn't happen; I got a job at an aerospace company and we all went our separate ways. Now that I'm retired, I've been playing the solos and kinda slotting in my head where they fit onto the map. I still have all of the maps, which I reckon I should properly digitize at least.


Ferret