![[Gauntlet Calendar: Online Tabletop RPG Play]](/uploads/7/7/8/1/77811662/gauntlet-calendar-square-172x172_orig.jpg) Greetings, and welcome to the weekly Gauntlet Calendar video roundup! Enjoy these recordings of online games organized through Gauntlet Calendar and the Gauntlet RPG Community. These recorded sessions represent only a portion of the selection of games available every week, and anyone is welcome to join the fun! If you'd like to play or watch more games like these, check out the links and information at the bottom of the post. Star Wars Saturday
HyperspaceD6 (Session 4) Rich Rogers runs for David Walker, Sabine V., and Will H After run-ins with old acquaintances, some good, some ill, the team is sent on Operation: Shell Game. Will they survive their mission on Hammer Base? The Wind Began to Howl Donogh runs for Rich Rogers Vinor Deleste, the Joker & Erkaia, the Thief infiltrate Titan Station to steal a secret database of Imperial spies from the Watchtower facility. In the aftermath of the Emperor's death and the destruction of the second Death Star, in-fighting has begun and this is a chance to strike a further blow to the Imperial cause. Gauntlet Calendar Dungeon World: The Gloom (Session 1) Blake Ryan runs for Daniel Kušan and Will H PBTA Celtic Fantasy HyperspaceD6: Scoundrels (Session 3) David Walker runs for Leandro Pondoc, Sabine V., and Terry (He/Him) On the tomb world of Malachor the mysterious leader of the Crimson Dawn has been waiting for Kat Foy'loni. Was Qi'ra's job a coincidence or part of a longer play? Quake gets a bad feeling about the stranger and thinks he recognizes him from the clone wars. Oh, and we finally figure out what is up between Casian Andor and Yuno Sunfell. All before her twin sister blows up their ship. Just another day in the life of Scoundrels... This is an actual play of Hyperspace D6 a cutdown version of West End Games amazing D6 Star Wars RPG. Tales from the Low Cantrefs: The Path Unwinding (Session 3 of 4) Alexi S. runs for Chris Newton, Dan Pucul, David Morrison, and Rosamund The young people of Sindle confront the Beast and the Ancient Dead. Ruga pursues a foolhardy plan, dragging Luned into danger with her. Barrow flails to prevent his dire vision from coming to pass. And Gwyn ventures into the mists of Death, where he meets a newly-slain soul and an ancient, deathly lord intent on reclaiming power. Before the Endgame: A Supers Reskin of Before the Storm Lowell Francis runs for David Morrison, Leah Libresco Sargeant, and Steven Watkins Countless sacrifices have held the forces of the Morphomagus back, but now they have broken through and a rag-tag group of supers must brace themselves for the final conflict. Monsterhearts 2: Tomb of Horrors (Session 3 of 4) Shane runs for Adam Oh, Matthew Arcilla, Rye, and Sam Zimmerman We start with a musical montage set to Judas Priest and only get sexier and more metal from there. Our teenage monsters just want to play DnD but they're distracted by infernal demands, murderous Project agents, a Sphere of Annihilation and - most dangerous of all - their rising sexual tensions. Can they find the True Entrance? Eotenweard: Hospitality (Session 4 of 5) Alun R. runs for Sawyer Rankin, Tyler Lominack, usnavi, and Will H Hild the Outlaw returns from a day and a night trying to integrate Woden's experience on the World Tree with the crucifixion of the Christ God, only to attract the anger of a flock of ravens. Meanwhile, the local smith casts weapons of bronze for Cennus, the Sword of God, and Eadric the Commoner. Gildas the Fae Changeling is already so armed for what they all expect to be a conflict with a Fae Lady over the fate of an unquiet spirit. There's a haunted ancient hillfort, the ghosts of Rome, and a pack of wolves...then...a descent into darkness...and a chicken with an unerring sense of direction... Polaris: Chivalric Tragedy in the Utmost North (Session 2) Robbie Boerth facilitates for Brandon Brylawski and Kieron Acamar's beloved is killed in an escape-attempt gone terribly wrong. Andromeda has heeded the words of a corrupting demon and is going after the leader of her order. And Heka weighs her emotional attachment to a poisoned patriarch versus her new bond with Andromeda. Tales from the Low Cantrefs: Shadows Cast by the Hearth (Session 3 of 4) Jesse A. runs for Jan, Leandro Pondoc, Maria M., and Robbie Boerth In which our heroes are harried by a devil, but eventually get the better of it. Tales from the Low Cantrefs: Shadows Cast by the Hearth (Session 4 of 4) Jesse A. runs for Jan, Leandro Pondoc, Maria M., and Robbie Boerth In which our heroes decide to talk about their feelings rather than seek out an Ancient Dead, but it eventually finds them anyway. Content warning: light body horror. Space Wurm vs Moonicorn (Session 4) Tyler Lominack runs for Bethany H., Lowell Francis, Patrick Knowles, and Sherri Space Wurm takes control of the Spice, secrets are revealed, and a new threat emerges from the Maelstrom. Good fun is had by all. ALIEN: Destroyer of Worlds (Session 3) Jon Grim runs for Daniel H., Jason Zanes, Mark, and Matthew Arcilla The marines have some tough choices and tough conversations. Weyland-Yutani enters the picture to complicate things, and in this case they might be more trustworthy than the chain of command. Gauntlet Book Club Wolfsong/Bite Marks (Session 2 of 7) David Morrison runs for Drew D., Sabine V., and Steven S. Learning of further possible incursions by Omegas, Ivar and Jax go out on the hunt. Cody learns more about the reason for the secrecy in the pack, but confronts Marcus about keeping Paul in the dark. You can see all these videos (plus all the ones that have come before) on The Gauntlet YouTube channel playlists, and be sure to subscribe to catch all our great podcasts! If you'd like to catch these sessions in an audio-only podcast, check out the community-run Hangouts Podcast at http://gauntlet.hellomouth.net/. If you'd like to play in games like these, check out the calendar of events and the Gauntlet Forums where games are announced. To support The Gauntlet, please visit the Gauntlet Patreon. Everyone is welcome to sign up for Gauntlet Calendar games, but Patreon supporters get extra options like priority RSVP for Gauntlet Calendar games and joining the Gauntlet Slack team where special events and pickup games are announced. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!
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 by Jason Cordova I’ve been thinking about the design process for The Between, my upcoming game of monster hunters in Victorian-era London, inspired by Penny Dreadful and British horror classics. It has been a long, twisty process—one that included writing and publishing a whole other game—but it has been extremely gratifying and instructive. The beginning… and the problem I was actually playtesting The Between as far back as 2018, and I even finished writing all the player-facing materials in early 2019. I was extremely happy with how the playtests went; after 35 or so sessions, people were loving the atmosphere, loving some of the novel things the game was doing in its rules, and really excited to see the final product. But there was a problem: very little of the Keeper-facing stuff was written down (“Keeper” is what the GM is called in The Between, though the role was originally called the D.I.). I felt confident my game worked, but I had been running my playtests with just a few notes about the various mysteries the characters would be investigating, and otherwise just improvising at the table. I had a lot of experience running freeform mysteries, where it didn’t matter where or how the characters investigated, they’d always find clues and the investigation would always move forward. But I had a lot less experience conveying that style of GMing to others, especially in a formal, procedural way, as you would expect to find in a TTRPG ruleset. Quite simply, I didn’t know how to translate my GM brain to the page. Narrowing the scope I realized almost right away that coming up with a good mystery structure for The Between was going to involve constantly rewriting parts of the player-facing material, and that was going to be massively time-consuming. I needed to develop a mystery system that worked great first, so I would only have to rewrite the player-facing materials once, at most. I decided to make a separate game, one that was smaller in scope and that would just be a “sketch” to try out a new mystery engine for The Between. I didn’t yet have an idea for this smaller game, but I knew a few things needed to be true:
Apocalypse by Moonlight, Cthulhu Dark, and developing a new mystery system The Between, as originally conceived, was Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA). The problem is that Powered by the Apocalypse games are not exactly known for being good at mysteries. The few games that had attempted it up to that point had, frankly, done a poor job of it. Games like Monster of the Week were pitched as having “mysteries” but the mystery aspects always flattened out in favor of action. This was actually a problem we tried to solve a few years ago in Codex - Moonlight. Oli Jeffery wrote an article called “Apocalypse by Moonlight,” which included moves and procedures you could theoretically import into any PbtA game in order to add mystery-solving elements to the story. Below are the three most relevant parts (which should look very familiar to fans of Brindlewood Bay):
 I was familiar with “Apocalypse by Moonlight” because I had not only published it, but had also tried it out a few times in Monsterhearts, and so I knew there was something good there. I began thinking about how I could combine “Apocalypse by Moonlight” with the more lightly-structured mystery games I enjoyed, principally Cthulhu Dark. My habit when running Cthulhu Dark was to create lists of clues that could be peppered in wherever needed, so that the characters were always moving forward in the investigation. That approach, while very fun, still didn’t feel like the players were actually solving a mystery—they were moving forward, they were getting all the creepy vibes, but they weren’t puzzling out anything. And straight-up importing “Apocalypse by Moonlight” wouldn’t work, either, because its mystery engine was really only satisfying when the game was otherwise about something else (teenage drama in Monsterhearts, the fight for survival in AW, etc.); its mystery was too emergent, too ungrounded, like it didn’t really exist in the world before the players started talking about it. But combining these approaches—a flexible clue list with a freeform, emergent mystery engine—felt like a good approach, and so the initial seeds of my new mystery system were planted. Mavens and Midwives I was originally going to rework Public Access, a story game about a creepy public access children's show I wrote six years ago, to be my “sketch” for The Between, but a conversation on Twitter in late 2019 changed all that. I had mused aloud about the TV show Murder, She Wrote, and suggested the reason the show’s setting, the picturesque town of Cabot Cove, was so rife with murders was because there was a death cult operating in the town, and all these murders were part of some grand ritual. That conversation quickly spiraled into making a game based on that idea, and people were legitimately excited about it. It was a eureka moment for me; this idea fit every criteria I set out for narrowing the scope of The Between in order to test out a new mystery structure: it was about elderly women (one playbook), living in a small town (a narrow setting), solving murders (one type of mystery). Long story short (“Too late!”), I added in a Hellenic death cult, imported some player-facing stuff from The Between, developed a mystery system that combined all the elements I was looking for, and Brindlewood Bay was born. And it worked: people have been running Brindlewood Bay for over a year now, and having great success with the mystery engine; what started as a “sketch” to try out some ideas for a bigger game has turned into its own thing, with its own community of players and hackers.  ...and back again
The story about solving my problem with The Between doesn’t end with Brindlewood Bay. In fact, the next big problem I ran into was: “How do I make a mystery system that is about one thing (solving murders) work for doing lots of other things (hunting monsters, stopping serial killers, putting ghosts to rest, and so on)?” I have landed on an answer to that question, but I’ll probably discuss it in a future blog post. The important thing is The Between is back on track, and set for release in—fingers crossed—April. I had a game idea I believed in but ran into a critical problem during its development. By thinking hard about what I actually needed in that moment to solve the problem—as opposed to just writing a bunch of stuff over and over again until something stuck—I was able to get to a good place, and now I’m extremely happy with The Between. You can purchase Brindlewood Bay and its supplement, Nephews in Peril, on DTRPG here. Greetings, and welcome to the weekly Gauntlet Calendar video roundup! Enjoy these recordings of online games organized through Gauntlet Calendar and the Gauntlet RPG Community. These recorded sessions represent only a portion of the selection of games available every week, and anyone is welcome to join the fun! If you'd like to play or watch more games like these, check out the links and information at the bottom of the post. Star Wars Saturday
HyperspaceD6 (Session 3) Rich Rogers runs for Cody Eastlick, David Walker, Sabine V., and Will H The team attends a moot on the Demon Moon, race a Trandoshan, and make amends at a village for the evils of the Empire. Gauntlet Calendar Thirsty Sword Lesbians: Crush of the Titans (Session 3 of 5) David Morrison runs for Diana Moon, Gerwyn Walters, Joe A., and Steven S. Nymphadora and Katch join forces to face off against King Leonidas in a battle of epic proportions, while Berenice and Rhode infiltrate the court of King Telemachus. Slapstick comedy is performed, repeated insults against the Spartans are made, chandeliers are swung upon, and feelings are had. Cthulhu Deep Green: Operation Fulminate (Sessions 1 and 2 of 2) Shane runs for Drew D. and Will H Agents Rook and Rowan are dragged from their holidays to investigate strange and ultimately terrifying events in Yosemite National Park. HyperspaceD6: Scoundrels (Session 2 of 4) David Walker runs for Leandro Pondoc, Sabine V., and Terry (He/Him) After their successful heist, Kat meets Qi'ra in hopes of getting paid - the slippery Daggrin has other plans with his new friends in the Black Sun. Yuno Sunfell's past catches up with her - who has raised the bounty that put Zuckuss and 4-Lom on her trail? Quake gets bad news on the location of their armour from Cassian Andor and the crew agree to take Qi'ra to meet her patron on the graveyard planet of Malacor. All in all, a pretty average day for our Scoundrels! i'm sorry did you say street magic? Rye facilitates for Bryant Durrell, Joe A., and Nicholas Timperio Great game of i'm sorry did you say street magic where the players built a world of the ancients where the new denizens are at odds with the returning founders. ECH0 Rye runs for Marc Majcher and Nicholas Timperio Super sweet game of ECH0. Monsterhearts 2: Tomb of Horrors (Session 2 of 4) Shane runs for Adam Oh, Matthew Arcilla, Rye, and Sam Zimmerman In the second session of our game about emotionally volatile teen monsters playing DnD in the 80s, Dorian and Hope open up to each other while Cain and Iris clash, and the players deal with scary nerds, cops, evangelists, animal sacrifice and Marilyn Monroe. Eotenweard: Hospitality (Session 3 of 5) Alun R. runs for Sawyer Rankin, Tyler Lominack, and Will H Having gone against his God and freed the lordless men they captured, Cennus the Sword of God expriences regret and then Wrath as Eadric the Commoner confronts him with what they had done. Gildas the Fae Changeling, meanwhile, casts a worried eye on the stone circle they have come to find as it overlooks the place of murder. There is a Fae Lord holding what they have, an indulgence of Lust, and another confrontation in Aelfburh's great hall...then there's the certainty that its Lord will have an heir and a trial by combat that gives Cennus a chance to assuage his guilt with revenge... Tales from the Low Cantrefs: The Path Unwinding (Session 2 of 4) Alexi S. runs for Chris Newton, Dan Pucul, David Morrison, and Rosamund In our second session, the protagonists brave a winter storm to return to the village of Sindle. Luned faces questions from her mother, worries about her sister's unquiet spirit, and does some public speaking. Ruga learns of a search party in danger and stands up to her blacksmith mentor. Gwyn has trouble relating to his dad, but hears a comforting lullaby from his dead mother. And Barrow uses tree runes to peer into the unwritten future...and sees a door of mist, a yew growing from the ruins, and a ravenous Beast's attack. Dream Askew: For Love is Strong as Death (Sessions 1 and 2 of 4) Kyle H. facilitates for Bethany H., Chris Sellers, Darold Ross, and Puckett The players create a queer enclave in the elevator shafts and support infrastructure of a vast arcology (that won't let us in). Free from the Yoke: Firebird Suite (Session 2) Lowell Francis runs for Alexi S., Bryan, and David Jay Our champions' interests intersect, leading them to travel to the Red Forest in hopes on an alliance, but someone's tampering with ancient magics has unleashed a dangerous force there. Last Fleet (Session 2) Jim Likes Games runs for Brandon Brylawski, Joe, and Patrick Buechner This is the second episode of a planned dozen-episode 'quarterly' run of Last Fleet, a tabletop RPG of humanity's flight from an implacable alien adversary intent on wiping them out. In this episode, fallout from the revelation of sister thought lost, and an unexpected action sequence. Also, Gunny gets lucky (for now). Alien: Destroyer of Worlds (Session 2) Jon Grim runs for Daniel H., Jason Zanes, Mark, and Matthew Arcilla The marines blast their way out of a firefight in the bar, search for cigarettes in the rubble of the town, and find their first AWOL soldier along with the 'intel' he's been carrying. Mason has more close calls than anyone has a right to survive, but now they're hot on the trail of two more missing marines. Space Wurm vs Moonicorn (Session 3) Tyler Lominack runs for Bethany H., Lowell Francis, Patrick Knowles, and Sherri The gang is all together...but so far apart. How will the Galaxy survive? Night's Black Agents: Underworld Promises (Session 3) Lowell Francis runs for Alun R., Paul Rivers, Pawel S., and Will H The agents regroup in the face of recent debacles and put together information from enemies both vampiric and human, leading to a deadly confrontation at a subterranean ritual. Urban Shadows 2E: The City of Perspiring Dreams (Session 2 of 3) Alun R. runs for Daniel Westheide, Gerwyn Walters, Sabine V., and SalamanderJames The clock is ticking so Wynne the Fae uses a glamour to steal some College silver, while Smith the Veteran and Janette the Wizard (sorry, Witch) make final preparations for casting the bullets Reggie the Vamp promised Jovita in time for her face-off with the Werewolf biker gang on the edge of Cambridge. There's also a move for a potential victim of the Piers Verde Dining Club, ingratiating Ghouls, and foul language...then it all kicks off so Wynne gets a chance for revenge, Reggie shows his qualified loyalty to the other vampires, Smith displays his care, and Janette...well Janette goes rogue and nearly gets her throat torn out... Brinkwood Legacy: Season 2 (Session 2) Jamila R. Nedjadi runs for Daniel H., Joel N., Josh Hittie, and Sherri In this session the brigands continue to infiltrate Count Dumask's party, and come across a truly sinister plot. The Count is willing to go through great lengths for power, and will pay the price gladly. Dovella meets a mysterious and charming fellow who guards his secrets, Cornyx meets someone tied to his tragedy, while both Semira and Bastian come across a terrible ritual that must be stopped. Brinkwood Legacy: Season 2 (Session 3) Jamila R. Nedjadi runs for Joel N., Josh Hittie, and Sherri In this session we find more questions than answers, and it will take true bravery to face down Count Dumask and keep the facade intact! Dovella discovers the plans Riot has for her, Cornyx makes a daring rescue, Bastian fights off the impossible, and Semira plays a dangerous game of lies and truth. Gauntlet Campaigns Dragon Age (PbtA Hack) (Session 1) Jamila R. Nedjadi runs for Lowell Francis, Matthew Arcilla, Patrick Knowles, and Sherri In this session we meet our heroes. Ailis is a former tranquil and mage with a loyal mabari companion. Gunter is a charming rogue with a knack for telling stories and dueling opponents. Castine de Moreau is a mercenary captain who hails from Orlais and plays the Great Game with ease. Harrow is a mage with a forgotten past, who bears the soul of an Old God within him. Together our party travels from Antiva to Ferelden. We start off with undead and demons attacking the ship! Can our heroes come together and fight off these threats? Gauntlet Book Club Wolfsong/Bite Marks (Session 1 of 7) David Morrison runs for Drew D., Jamila R. Nedjadi, Sabine V., and Steven S. We visit the town of Canaan, Maine, where our pack is based. Cody goes drinking with his BFF Paul, but is increasingly angry that his boyfriend Jaxon and father Ivar are hiding the truth of their natures from him. Ivar and Paul share their concerns about Cody over coffee, while Ghost works his mundane job. Tensions run high at the pack dinner, as the pack struggles to deal with their losses, and a new threat looms on the horizon. You can see all these videos (plus all the ones that have come before) on The Gauntlet YouTube channel playlists, and be sure to subscribe to catch all our great podcasts! If you'd like to catch these sessions in an audio-only podcast, check out the community-run Hangouts Podcast at http://gauntlet.hellomouth.net/. If you'd like to play in games like these, check out the calendar of events and the Gauntlet Forums where games are announced. To support The Gauntlet, please visit the Gauntlet Patreon. Everyone is welcome to sign up for Gauntlet Calendar games, but Patreon supporters get extra options like priority RSVP for Gauntlet Calendar games and joining the Gauntlet Slack team where special events and pickup games are announced. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!  by Jason Cordova
The strength of Brindlewood Bay’s core mystery system is that each mystery has Clues that are not tied to any particular person or location; no matter where or how the Mavens are searching, the Keeper can just scan the list and pick a Clue they think would be fun or interesting to reveal in that moment. This flexibility is a major strength of the game versus other TTRPG mystery systems, but it comes with a trade off: the Keeper has to be ready to improvise a little bit in order for the Clue to feel coherent with the scene. If the Clue is a physical one, such as “a blood-soaked rug,” how do you reveal that in a scene where the Maven is questioning someone? If the Clue is something overheard, such as “a heated argument about British politics,” how do you reveal that in a scene where the Maven is poking around a Suspect’s office? Fortunately, this type of improvising is fairly easy (and forgiving) in Brindlewood Bay. The best way to show what I mean is to work through some examples. A typical Clue: Instructions to cut someone out of a will This Clue is from the starter mystery, Dad Overboard, which means there’s a good chance every Keeper will have an opportunity to use it at some point. Like many Brindlewood Bay Clues, it’s very open-ended, which makes it easy to work into a variety of scene types. The most straightforward scene type for this Clue is when a Maven is snooping around a Suspect’s personal space, such as an office or bedroom. The instructions might come in the form of a letter to a lawyer that is found on a desk or in a drawer, or perhaps the letter is from the lawyer and indicates that the will change has been made. Maybe it comes in the form of an answering machine message confirming the change. You can even give the Clue more context: perhaps the specific person being cut out of the will is named when revealing the Clue. But what if the Maven is having a conversation with someone? This is a little trickier, but still straightforward: just have the person being questioned mention the change to the will. Maybe they’re upset about the change because they were the person cut out, or perhaps they were the one instructed to tell the lawyers about the change. The trickiest investigation scene to reveal this clue in is when the Mavens are doing archival research. How do you reveal something so private as a change to a will in something so public as a newspaper or archival records? Here’s how I would do it: I would have an old newspaper article mention a very public fight between two Suspects, and the reporting would suggest that one of the Suspects had recently been cut out of the will, which is what sparked the conflict. An extremely vague Clue: A taboo love affair The first thing you have to do with a Clue like this is decide what the taboo love affair even is. It helps to think about a Clue like this before you actually start playing, but it’s ok to take a few moments and come up with something on the spot. We’re going to say our taboo love affair is between a rich, older woman and a very young sailor. Once you’ve established what the taboo love affair is, the improvisation of how to reveal it becomes much easier. It can be mentioned in a conversation; there can be physical evidence of the love affair, such as a sailor’s kerchief smudged with lipstick, or a steamy love letter; the characters in question can be observed behaving in a very flirtatious way with one another (a well-timed “Hello, sailor” sounds about right); or the Mavens might find cell phone records indicating a lot of late night phone calls. A very common action: examining a corpse Murder Mavens examine corpses—a lot. The problem is that the Clues rarely (and by design) have forensic details such as you might uncover in an autopsy. It’s the first thing you’re going to run into in Dad Overboard: the Mavens will want to look at Albert’s body in the cold storage to see how he was killed, but literally none of the Clues in that mystery indicate a cause of death. The Mavens can certainly work such details into their final theory, and you can even just say outright how he died (“...he was clearly bludgeoned to death and thrown overboard”) but the mechanical, per se Clues have nothing to say about it. This is intentional so that the players can be as flexible as possible when doing the Theorize procedure. But the question remains: what Clue do you give them in this circumstance? Well, start by scanning your list and looking for Clues that might be found somewhere on Albert’s body. “Stock certificates in an unusual place,” “piles of receipts for extravagant purchases,” and our favorite, “instructions to cut someone out of a will,” are all things that might be found in Albert’s pockets or stuffed in his trousers. They will be a little waterlogged, of course, but that’s just an excuse to obscure the identity of who was cut out of the will or who made the extravagant purchases. Another approach is this: maybe the Mavens don’t find anything on Albert’s body, but while they’re looking, they overhear a conversation outside the cold storage where someone mentions a Clue, such as a couple of fishmongers discussing a strange thing one of them found: “a cod with a rat stuffed in its mouth.” The key when trying to figure out which Clues to drop where, especially in a circumstance where the Clues don’t seem to match the action the Mavens are taking, is to think expansively about the scene, and not worry too much about everything lining up neatly. After all, this is how it goes on Murder, She Wrote, which is a major inspiration for this game: Jessica Fletcher frequently just stumbles onto things. The Murder Mavens can just stumble onto things, too, and that’s ok, because this game is about making those weird, seemingly-disconnected details make sense. You can purchase Brindlewood Bay and its supplement, Nephews in Peril, on DTRPG here. Greetings, and welcome to the weekly Gauntlet Calendar video roundup! Enjoy these recordings of online games organized through Gauntlet Calendar and the Gauntlet RPG Community. These recorded sessions represent only a portion of the selection of games available every week, and anyone is welcome to join the fun! If you'd like to play or watch more games like these, check out the links and information at the bottom of the post. Star Wars Saturday
HyperspaceD6 (Session 2) Rich Rogers runs for Cody Eastlick, David Walker, Sabine V., and Will H The new occupants of Whisper Base get acquainted with their new roomies, go on a joyride, and meet their neighbors. Like you do. Gauntlet Quarterly Last Fleet (Session 1) Jim Likes Games runs for Brandon Brylawski, Joe, Lowell Francis, and Patrick Buechner We meet the PCs and see how they're dealing with a recent ambush the Fleet barely escaped with their lives. Empire City Urban Shadows 2e: Everybody is Going Uptown (Session 1 of 4) Jesse A. runs for Brandon Brylawski, Jex Thomas, Philip Rogers, and Sam Zimmerman In our debut Empire City game, we make characters and describe the city, Uptown Manhattan and its nearby neighbors of North Jersey, and the Bronx, with a hub at 181st st. Gauntlet Calendar Space Wurm vs Moonicorn (Session 1) Tyler Lominack runs for Bethany H., Lowell Francis, Patrick Knowles, Sherri, and Steven S. World-build and Char Gen for our Galaxy. Family drama for the fate of the Universe!!! Thirsty Sword Lesbians: Crush of the Titans (Session 2 of 5) David Morrison runs for Diana Moon, Gerwyn Walters, Joe A., and Steven S. We meet our fourth member of the crew, Katch the Spooky Witch - a Spartan helot theatre nerd with an unusual connection the the Underworld. The crew puts on a performance of a new satire on the suitors of Penelope at King Telemachus' court in Ithaca. Rhode catches the attention of Prince Nicomedes, who delivers a warning. Katch (mostly?) accidentally pulls King Leonidas of Sparta out of the underworld. Nymphadora accepts a commission to retrieve an item from the horde of Odysseus. And Berenice chafes against her upbringing even as she prepares to face her mother in combat. Tales from the Low Cantrefs: The Path Unwinding (Session 1 of 4) Alexi S. runs for Chris Newton, Dan Pucul, David Morrison, and Rosamund We create our protagonists and the village they live in, with its festivals, superstitions, and values. Then Luned the Bell leads her peers to an abandoned, crumbling tower in search of a lost younger sister. Ruga the Blade confronts a Beast the likes of which she's never seen. Gwyn the Door feels the chill of Death. And Barrow the Loom saves the day with an unexpected (but also unexpectedly costly) item of provision. Monsterhearts 2: Tomb of Horrors (Session 1 of 4) Shane runs for Matthew Arcilla, Rye, and Sam Zimmerman We make our characters, and then they make their characters, as a group of emotionally volatile teenage monsters play DnD in the 80s. Our Queen, Infernal and Hollow begin feeling each other out as they excavate some false entrances, and we learn about strange goings on around the town of Springwood--and amongst the members of the high school DnD club. Eotenweard: Hospitality (Session 2 of 5) Alun R. runs for Sawyer Rankin, Tyler Lominack, usnavi, and Will H Hild confronts Bardwulf, the Lord of Aethelburh, while Cennus ensures proud thane Madog will honour the debt he owes him if called to do so. Meanwhile, Eadric and Gildas visit the treacherous ravine where Bardwulf's first wife met her untimely end and seek answers from her unquiet spirit. There's the feast of Blodmonath, a failed attempt to retrieve a moonstone, and tensions that almost turn violent at the wedding feast...and then there's an ambush... Ultraviolet Grasslands: Season 11 - Monoliths and Dimensions (Session 1 of 3) Horst Wurst runs for Abe Lincoln Jr., Chris Thompson, and Nathan Harrison Vicar's Beach III Heart: Sickness Unto Foolish Death (Session 2 of 4) Leandro Pondoc runs for Bodhi, Brandon Brylawski, Jake, and The Rolistes Podcast Deep below Spire, a heretical church has managed to take root. Believing in the moon below, they have dispatched one of their own to join the expedition of Asher Malperdy to entreat with the witches of Hallow. But they are not the only ones with ulterior motives lurking within the expedition's ranks. Tales from the Low Cantrefs: Shadows Cast by the Hearth (Session 2 of 4) Jesse A. runs for Jan, Leandro Pondoc, Maria M., and Robbie Boerth In our second session in Sidle, Una tries to protect the village, with little sign of what she's protecting it from. Aine's brother is at the center of a struggle. Idris tries his best to help everybody, and meanwhile, Dogan reaches past the realm of the living and invites the dead out. Alien: Destroyer of Worlds (Session 1) Jon Grim runs for Daniel H., Jason Zanes, Mark, and Matthew Arcilla A hastily thrown together unit of Colonial Marines is tasked with tracking down a group of AWOL soldiers escaped with highly confidential intel. It’s a need-to-know situation and that’s all you need to know. Free from the Yoke: Firebird Suite (Session 1) Lowell Francis runs for Alexi S., Bryan, David Jay, and Scot Ryder We meet the champions who represent their houses as they gather at the Arbiter's conclave to hear her firebrand vision of the land to come. Night's Black Agents: Underworld Promises (Session 2) Lowell Francis runs for Alun R., Paul Rivers, Pawel S., and Will H Splitting the group to deal with two separate plots leads to a bomb detonating and a sniper bullet to the shoulder, but in the aftermath new pieces begin to fall into place...though Henri, left by herself in the safehouse, realizes she's not actually alone. Space Wurm vs Moonicorn (Session 2) Tyler Lominack runs for Bethany H., Lowell Francis, Patrick Knowles, Sherri, and Steven S. Space Wurm holds court before learning of a disturbance in the Galaxy. Moonicorn encounters an ancient force newly awakened and makes Universe altering promises. Serpent Princess gets a task from Space Wurm, The Mogul sees opportunity in Chaos. And the Mutant...makes a new friend. Urban Shadows: The City of Perspiring Dreams (Session 1 of 3) Alun R. runs for Daniel Westheide, Gerwyn Walters, and Sabine V. At an imaginary Cambridge College in an imagined 1970's urbane fixer/grifter Reggie the Vamp meets friend (and blood supplier) the Veteran 'Smith'...that's THE Smith. We find out about the 'Piers Verde Dining Club', an incursion by werewolves leading to a call for vampire solidarity, and Wynne the Fae demanding that 'those werewolves are mine'...then...stuff happens...including a lost sword, a walking statue, and a change in the wine list... Gauntlet Book Club Wolfsong/Bite Marks (Session 0) David Morrison runs for Drew D., Jamila R. Nedjadi, Sabine V., and Steven S. We learn a little about our pack and the werewolves who make it up. Ghost the Howl, the haunted brother of the current Alpha Marcus. Cody the Cub, a newly bitten werewolf and former boyfriend of Marcus. Ivar the Enforcer, an older bitten werewolf who served under the previous Alpha. And Jaxon the Fixer, instagram model and brother-in-law to the Alpha. You can see all these videos (plus all the ones that have come before) on The Gauntlet YouTube channel playlists, and be sure to subscribe to catch all our great podcasts! If you'd like to catch these sessions in an audio-only podcast, check out the community-run Hangouts Podcast at http://gauntlet.hellomouth.net/. If you'd like to play in games like these, check out the calendar of events and the Gauntlet Forums where games are announced. To support The Gauntlet, please visit the Gauntlet Patreon. Everyone is welcome to sign up for Gauntlet Calendar games, but Patreon supporters get extra options like priority RSVP for Gauntlet Calendar games and joining the Gauntlet Slack team where special events and pickup games are announced. Enjoy, and have a great weekend! By Darren Brockes darrenbrockes.online @DarrenBrockes You can find Darren's excellent Mecha rpg HILT//BLADE (among others) on his itch.io page here. “Mech” is a weird word for a giant robot! According to Wiktionary, it comes to English via Japanese and is an abbreviation of the English word “mechanical.” “Robot” doesn’t even really hit correctly, you know, because often, I think, we imagine robots as autonomous — whether that is through being programmed to do something or, like, full blown, artificial intelligence. No one needs to pilot a robot! So I suppose that’s why “mech” is useful, then, since it is not really a robot and it’s certainly not a tank or jet or anything. Really, mechs are just armor. In the same way that armored cavalry is not soldiers on horseback (anymore). We just imagine them large, very in charge and in need of a pilot—really, though, this is a sort of retrofuture imagining of mechs. At our own point of technology and certainly in science fiction/fantasy, no mech really needs a pilot. They could easily be remote piloted, which, frankly, makes far more sense than sticking a whole human in there and sending them off to do war. But where’s the drama in that? Anyway, I’m here to talk about mechs in Trophy Gold, a dark fantasy game...that is as technologically advanced as, uh...currency. But there's magic! First I have a blurb to introduce the "mecha" into the setting and then the mechanics to make it work: a partnership roll to acquire a mecha and then a new mechanic that brings in the stakes of making this pact. Finally, a small table with suggestions for the mecha. In groves kept in the secret places within the Crown’s purview, hedges and sorcerers work rituals over symbols carved into the trunks and branches of trees gathered from woods near and far and replanted. They labor to bring a semblance of life to the giants — something like the work done with manikins, but not so refined, not so desirous of sentience. Now, despite the number of hedges and sorcerers lost to the work, the questionably loyal Trees are ready. When you encounter a Tree and want to enter into a partnership, gather 6-sided dice.
Roll the dice. If your highest is a:
If you included a dark die, it rolled equal to or higher than your highest light die and it is higher than your current Ruin, add 1 to your Ruin and work with the GM to describe how your mind or body is becoming closer to the Trees. When you lose the Skills associated with your Background and Occupation, replace them with and equal number of the Tree's Skills. You cannot reroll this roll for any reason. Does your treasure-hunter enter the Tree, becoming one with it in moments of danger? Does it stalk your shadow, an extension of your will like a sword? What does it whisper to you from just out of the campfire’s light? When it says “I took this name,” does it mean by choice or force? What promises do you keep and break with it? Why hasn’t it abandoned you (or worse)? After you make the partnership roll, you have another tracker along with Ruin, but it represents your Tree: Wrath. Wrath starts at 1. Whenever you use your Tree, anything that causes you to increase Ruin instead increases Wrath—you can, however, choose to increase your Ruin instead. There is no way to reduce Wrath. When your Tree’s Wrath reaches 6, you Lose Yourself. Your Tree wants and desires things. Ignoring your other half can cause you to gain Conditions.  Greetings, and welcome to the weekly Gauntlet Calendar video roundup! Enjoy these recordings of online games organized through Gauntlet Calendar and the Gauntlet RPG Community. These recorded sessions represent only a portion of the selection of games available every week, and anyone is welcome to join the fun! If you'd like to play or watch more games like these, check out the links and information at the bottom of the post. Star Wars Saturday
HyperspaceD6 (Session 1) Rich Rogers runs for Cody Eastlick, David Walker, Sabine V., and Will H A New Republic team under command of Major Mothma (daughter of Mon Mothma) take over Whisper Base, the first step in the war against Warlord Zsinj! HyperspaceD6: Scoundrels (Session 1) David Walker runs for Leandro Pondoc, Sabine V., and Terry (He/Him) Join us in this 5 part Hyperspace D6 Star Wars actual play. When Qi'ra gives Kat Foy'loni a job and a chance at the big leagues they recruit Quake and Yuno Sunfell to steal something from the Imperial Carrier the Blue Star. Gauntlet Quarterly Last Fleet (Session Zero) Jim Likes Games runs for Brandon Brylawski, Joe, Lowell Francis, and Patrick Buechner If you think 2020 was bad, at least it wasn't Last Fleet bad. Session Zero with world-building and character creation for our dozen-session Quarterly run. Gauntlet Calendar Unincorporated: Vigil Creek Nature Preserve (Session 2 of 2) Bethany H. runs for David Morrison, Kieron, and Maria M. The bear situation has changed, thanks to an elderly butterfly collector convinced she's discovered a new species. She leads hapless intern Kay and ever-thirsty reporter Cynthia on a trek through the swamp in search of the Bumblebear. Meanwhile, Willow the aspiring action star and Oscar the oblivious ranger try to take back their secret pot field from the bears. (Thanks to OBS glitches, this one is audio-only, and the sound quality in the last few minutes is bad even after I cut out the worst bits and ran several filters on the rest.) Monsterhearts 2: Inconvenienced (Session 1 of 4) Donogh runs for Abe Lincoln Jr., Jo Lene, Kim, and Rich Rogers Eva, Karen, Ashley and Midas all struggle through the graveyard shift in Shop Smart, a big box store outside the little Loveland, Ohio. A new corporate policy on work hours, little acts of rebellion in the shampoo aisle, strange customers...and moving something in a wheelbarrow that’s definitely not in the manual! Eotenweard: Hospitality (Session 1 of 5) Alun R. runs for Sawyer Rankin, Tyler Lominack, usnavi, and Will H The heroes arrive at the village of Aethelburh and are granted hospitality by its grim Lord, but their arrival seems to trigger a supernatural event to which one of them are tied by their previous life. There's an unquiet spirit, an inquisitive chicken and a secret hinted at...then Woden and a Fae Lord take different degrees of interest while the Christ God turns their face away... Thirsty Sword Lesbians: Crush of the Titans (Session 1 of 5) David Morrison runs for Diana Moon, Gerwyn Walters, and Steven S. We discuss the world the game will be taking place in and our initial premise. Our heroes are the crew of a pirate ship-cum-theatre troupe plying their various trades through the seas of the Greek archipelago, while trying to keep ahead of the wrath of the gods and pursuit by the Spartan fleet. We meet our initial cast - Nymphadora the Devoted, an automaton designed by Hephaestus to serve Aphrodite, cast out but still loyal to her mistress. Berenice the Seeker, a dedicated Spartan demigod looking to find a life out from under the strictures of her mother, Admiral Coronis of the Spartan fleet. And Rhode the Trickster, a mysterious figure found abandoned as a child, breaking hearts and lightening purses across the classical world. Free from the Yoke: Firebird Suite (Session 0) Lowell Francis runs for Alexi S., Bryan, and David Jay We begin building our world and see how our Envoy, Church, and Keeper Houses weathered the turmoil of The Empire's occupation. Heart: Sickness Unto Foolish Death (Session 1 of 4) Leandro Pondoc runs for Bodhi, Brandon Brylawski, and Jake An introductory delve into the nightmare undercity of Heart as a deeply out-of-their-depth drow nobleman contracts a seasoned Cleaver drawn to the song of the heart, an enlightened Deep Apiarist seeking the perfect hive deep down below and a gnoll Deadwalker searching for death's ultimate defeat to take him deep below the earth. Night's Black Agents: Underworld Promises (Session 1) Lowell Francis runs for Alun R., Paul Rivers, Pawel S., and Will H A frame up attempt leads the team to Paris where they run down an assassination attempt and race the clock to prevent a bombing they'll be implicated for. Polaris: Chivalric Tragedy at the Utmost North (Session 1 of 5) Robbie Boerth runs for Brandon Brylawski, Kieron, and Steven S. While the hell hole known as the Mistake continues to spawn demons, the mysterious leader known only as the Prince of the South has entered the scene. Acamar is in a relationship with the Prince's betrothed, while Alshain is secretly in love with the Prince himself. Meanwhile, Andromeda and the members of her sect hold the Prince as another agent of an ancient prophecy, and Heka wages her eternal war with a lover-turned-demon named Ursa. Brinkwood Legacy (Session 5) Jamila R. Nedjadi facilitates for Joel N., Josh Hittie, and Sherri Refuge - In this session we return to the comfort of the Refuge. The survivors of Sister Red's cruelty must be attended to, and Mother Myrtle quickly realizes the Healing Tent meet everyone's needs. Ashtarae takes responsibility for the dryads, eager to begin their healing process with the help of Rayith. Toland struggles to make sense of the mysterious amethyst amulet, but wisdom comes from the most unexpected place. Brinkwood Legacy: Season 2 (Session 1) Jamila R. Nedjadi runs for Daniel H., Joel N., Josh Hittie, and Sherri Blood of Tyrants - In this session we our brigands return to the foray! Count Dumask has retreated to the Marshlands, hiding from Sister Red and the Baron. The brigands decide to pit vampire servant against vampire servant. Can they infiltrate the strange home of the Count and leave behind enough evidence to point him towards Sister Red? Corynx prowls the marshlands to discover the strangest party, Dovella leaves obvious traces to point towards Sister Red, Bastian finds a most dangerous target to please the Mask of Terror, while Semira finds herself drawn towards the mysterious stranger who intrigues the Mask of Lies... ![[Gauntlet Calendar: Online Tabletop RPG Play]](/uploads/7/7/8/1/77811662/published/gauntlet-calendar-square-400x400.jpg?1609512142) Happy new year, and welcome to the weekly Gauntlet Calendar video roundup! Enjoy these recordings of online games organized through Gauntlet Calendar and the Gauntlet RPG Community. These recorded sessions represent only a portion of the selection of games available every week, and anyone is welcome to join the fun! If you'd like to play or watch more games like these, check out the links and information at the bottom of the post. This is a smaller collection than usual due to the holiday week, but we're looking forward to a fun-packed year ahead! Gauntlet Comics
Masks: Gauntlet Comics Holiday Special 1975 Jo Lene runs for Anders, Bryan, Jim Likes Games, and Jon Grim Gather round readers, and enjoy another tale of The Justice Alliance and their annual Holiday Party in Continuum City. Oh No, A sudden Distress call from Deep Space has called them away, luckily the Junior members know how to operate the switch board to contact any reserve members should any crisis pop up. Suddenly a Distress call from The North Pole, and the Junior Members are teaming up for the first time to Save Christmas! Gauntlet Calendar Apocalypse Keys: Plays Your Dreams Like Concrete And Smoke (Session 4 of 4) Leandro Pondoc runs for Brandon Brylawski, Donogh, and SalamanderJames After the end of WizardWorld, our monsters come back to DIVISION HQ to rest their weary feelings and be debriefed about growing threats. But even in the seeming genteel of Dover Castle, the DIVISION's own shadows may threaten to swallow them whole. Night's Black Agents: Roused Prey (Session 5 of 5) Lowell Francis runs for Alun R., Paul Rivers, and Pawel S. Rescuing a veteran vampire hunter leads to revelations and a final violent confrontation at the National Museum of Romanian History. 7th Sea d6 (Session 3 of 3) Lowell Francis runs for Patrick Knowles, Sherri, and Tyler Lominack Pursuit of a Montaigne spy leads to a salon at San Sancha, but the arrival of Jane Gaunt and her demonic matrons cuts short the festivities. You can see all these videos (plus all the ones that have come before) on The Gauntlet YouTube channel playlists, and be sure to subscribe to catch all our great podcasts! If you'd like to catch these sessions in an audio-only podcast, check out the community-run Hangouts Podcast at http://gauntlet.hellomouth.net/. If you'd like to play in games like these, check out the calendar of events and the Gauntlet Forums where games are announced. To support The Gauntlet, please visit the Gauntlet Patreon. Everyone is welcome to sign up for Gauntlet Calendar games, but Patreon supporters get extra options like priority RSVP for Gauntlet Calendar games and joining the Gauntlet Slack team where special events and pickup games are announced. Enjoy, have a great weekend, and happy new year! |
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