Eberron in Whitehack

Wayne Reynolds

I’ve recently come into possession to a variety of D&D 3rd Edition books detailing Keith Baker’s setting of Eberron. My table and I used it for a brief foray into using the 3.5e rules, but I immediately thought of how much I could adapt for use with Whitehack. Surprise surprise! It was amusing to try but the rules of 3.5e were just too oppressive, especially for a group that didn't really care for tactics grid minutia.

The setting has a nice focus on adventures in the true sense of the word and fits the lower level expectations you see in WH. The flexibility suits WH as well, whereas other old school systems might not work out as well. Let’s see what we can work with here in case I ever get around to something in Eberron again.

EBERRON IN SHORT

The general gist of Eberron is a post-war setting where magic has developed the world, rather than science, and the general ideas of D&D magic were taken to some logical conclusions. A common refrain is “everything D&D has a place in Eberron but it might not be what you expected.”

And so, the great 100 year magical war called the Last War is over. It’s devastation was notable to say the least and we are left with world of reeling nation-states and the economic powerhouses of the Dragonmarked Houses. Part of the reason the Last War was so devastating was due to Eberron not being “high magic” but rather “wide magic”, with lots of people knowing how to use a little magic. This meant magical war on a near industrial scale.

In addition to the usual suspects (dwarves, elves, etc. albeit remixed), we have minor shapeshifters called changelings, planar entities merged with human hosts called kalashtar, lycanthropic ancestors called shifters, and the sentient battle constructs called warforged who seek their place in a post-war world.

It labels a lot of its intended flavors as “noir” and “hard-boiled” especially within the more modern cities of the world. The stories don’t always end well and regrets are abound. Greed, fear, pride, and ambition drive conflict. Separating the heroes from the villains isn’t easy and everyone has something lose beyond their life. The general vibes I get are one well suited swashbuckling with mysteries and political thrillers, but that is due more to Baker’s writings than any actual game flow in 3rd Ed.

EBERRON VIA WHITEHACK

What follows is a basic structure of an Eberron campaign, presented in a manner similar to The White Curse in WH2e. Aside from the below, I'd say Eberron works out of the box!

Once, the nations of the continent called Khorvaire were party of the legendary kingdom of Galifar. When the last great king of that mighty realm died, his five heirs of the Five Nations pit themselves against one another in a bid for crown and kingdom. As the decades passed, this all-encompassing conflict became known as the Last War, for surely no taste for battle and blood would remain in this world when it finally ended.

Now, the world of Eberron is emerging from the ashes of this Last War. The nations seeks to rebuild, but still struggle for economic and political dominance on the world stage. Cloak and dagger in the shadows behind the front of international trade and dealings, anything short of all-out-war.

TEMPERED BY MAGIC

Eberron is a world of magic and industry. Although medieval in some ways, the advances of magic allow Victorian-esque wonders to exist. The greatest cities have sky-scraping castles, elemental-powered transportation, and a rigorous arcane economy. Arcane railways, magical telegraphs, and more. But it is magic, not mundane science, that is the engine of this progress.

FORGED IN WAR

In an Eberron campaign, you’re near guaranteed to play a character impacted by the War. Whether they fought in the war or just tried to survive it, it has left its mark. Everyone has lost something whether it be family, loved ones, community, or some part of themselves.

STARTING SITUATION

As the campaign begins, two years have passed since the treaty was signed that ended over a hundred years of war… sort of. While there is still overt peace, the pain and rage of the Long War are both alive and well. The nations and other powers seek every advantage. You play adventurers, connected via patrons and old friends to one of the many organizations looking to make their claim on this changing world.

EXAMPLE GROUPS

• Dragonmarked Houses
• House Canith
• House Deneith
• House Ghallanda
• House Jorasco
• House Kundarak
• House Lyrandar
• House Medani
• House Orien
• House Phiarlan
• House Tarkanan
• House Tharashk
• House Thuranni
• House Vadalis
• Khorvaire Nations
• Aundair
• Breland
• Cyre
• Karrnath
• Thrane
• Religious Organizations
• Church of the Silver Flame
• The Blood of Vol
• The Gatekeepers
• Cults of the Dragon Below
• Academic and Political Groups
• The Library of Korranberg
• Morgrave University
• The Royal Families
• The Twelve
• The Wayfinder Foundation
• Other Groups
• The Aurum
• The Dreaming Dark
• The Lords of Dust
• Order of the Emerald Claw

DRAGONMARKS

“A healer touches the dying; the mark on their forehead blazes with arcane flame as the wounds close and vanish.”

Dragonmarked is a Template that can be added to any creature of a species able to manifest a dragonmark. These are symbols etched on the skin in colors more vivid than any tattoo, magical power made flesh. They enhance the user’s ability to perform certain tasks. For example, the Mark of Shadows helps its bearer avoid enemies, the Mark of Making guides the hands of the smith, etc. They may also manifest in more dramatic ways akin to potent spells and magics.

Dragonmarked characters mark their symbol as a group, modifying their Species group. For example, a human with this template could note “Mark of Finding” next to two attributes. A half-elf would note their mark next to an additional attribute. An elf would replace one of their attributes that has “Elf” with their mark. The mark can be called upon as a wording for an appropriate simple magic once a day. At 4th level, it can also be called upon for standard magic once a day. At 8th level, it can be called upon for major magic once a day.

The specific mark of a Wise character should factor into cost triangulation for miracle effects. 

N.b. this calls back to the differing levels of Dragonmarks. Could use some more tinkering.

ARTIFICE AND PSIONICS

Artifice is the channeling of magic through objects. To observers, these don’t look like conventional spells; rather they appear as wonders produced from conventional items or outlandish inventions. They can also commonly create infused items, effectively prototypes of permanent magical items. Artifice is one of the arcane forces that the Wise is able to negotiate with.

Psionics tap the mind’s potential to grant access to personal power beyond the mundane, or even the magical. They are one of the arcane forces that the Wise are able to negotiate with.

SPECIES CLASSES

CHANGELINGS
Changelings are subtle shapeshifters capable of changing their appearance with a thought. In their true form, changelings give only a passing nod to their human heritage. They are pale, with colorless eyes and silver-white hair. Their facial features don’t look quite finished, with only a hint of a nose and lips.

Changelings have slippery minds granting resistance to mental effects. As a standard action, changelings can alter their voice and appearance including coloration, hair length, and gender. Their weight and height can adjust but not enough to change size. They may appear as another species, but are limited to creatures they've seen and that have the same basic arrangement of limbs. Clothing and appearance doesn't change. Being natural linguists, they begin with a bonus language and halve the time required to learn a new language. Few trust changelings and treat them with extreme suspicion which is a problem when trying to join non-criminal affiliation groups. Their XP penalty is ×1.3 (30% more XP).

They are skilled in deception and intimidation, and can intuitively ready body language and attitude with surprising accuracy. It’s suggested to place Species groups next to Dexterity and Charisma. Referees should consider negative invocations when interacting with the overly wary.

KALASHTAR
The kalashtar are a compound race: incorporeal entities from the alien plane of Dal Quor, the Region of Dreams, merged with human bodies and spirits to form a distinct species. They appear very similar to humans, but are slightly taller than average and they have a grace and elegance that makes them seem almost too beautiful.

The dual spirit of kalashtar grants them resistance to effects that target their minds. Kalashtar sleep but they do not dream, granting immunity to any effect that relies on dreams. Kalashtar are naturally psionic. Once a day they can forge a telepathic bond with another (at least semi-intelligent) willing creature within 30 ft. The bond allows telepathic communication, regardless of language barriers, over any distance in the same plane, lasting 1 round per character level. Their combination of life in exile and a dreamless existence makes kalashtar slightly inclined towards madness. Their XP penalty is ×1.2 (20% more XP).

They are masters of social interaction with their commanding presence and subtle psychic powers. It’s suggested to place Species groups next to Wisdom and Charisma. Referees should consider negative invocations when their alien dispositions can put others off.

SHIFTERS
Shifters, sometimes called “the weretouched,” are descended from humans and natural lycanthropes, now nearly extinct on Khorvaire. Shifters cannot fully change shape but can take on animalistic features—a state they call shifting. Shifters can see twice as far in low light compared to a human.

Shifters can tap into their lycanthropic heritage to gain short bursts of physical power. Once per day, they may manifest their trait, gaining a boost to a physical ability and some other advantage according to their type. Their trait is selected at character creation and cannot be changed.

• Beasthide: +2 Con, +2 AC.
• Longtooth: +2 Str, grow fangs for d6 damage.
• Cliffwalk: +2 Dex, gain climbing MV of 20.
• Razorclaw: +2 Str, grow claws on both hands for d6-2 damage.
• Longstride: +2 Dex, +10 feet to Movement.
• Wildhunt: +2 Con, gain Keyword: “Keen Sense of Smell”.

Shifting is a small action that lasts three rounds. A constitution score of 13 or more lasts four rounds. A score of 16 or more gives five rounds. An additional shift per day is gained at 3rd, 6th, and 9th level.

Shifters are lithe and agile with keen senses, but their bestial aspect colors their reasoning and their social interactions. It’s suggested to place Species groups next to Dexterity and Wisdom. Referees should consider negative invocations involving keeping their instincts in check.

WARFORGED
The warforged were built as mindless machines to fight in the Last War, but developed sentience and evolved into a new species of living constructs. They are formed from a blend of organic and inorganic materials, wrapped in a framework of steel, darkwood, or stone then covered in a shell of armored plates. They share a common facial design with a hinged jaw and crystal eyes embedded beneath a brow ridge. Beyond these elements, the precise material and build vary based on the purpose for which it was designed.

Warforged don’t require food, sleep, or air and are immune to poison and disease. While they can benefit from magical healing, their bodies must also be mended to function properly. Their armored nature counts as AC 2, though they may not wear other armor. Some warforged were either made with or choose to be refitted with heavier plating at the cost of mobility: they may have mithril (AC 4, ENC 4) or adamantine (AC 6, ENC 6). Regardless, their fists count as clubs.

Not all of Eberron is accepting of warforged and prejudice against them is a huge problem when trying to join some affiliation groups. Despite being made to fight, they seek to adapt to life in this era and are not restricted in their choice of Class or Vocation. The XP penalty is ×1.5.

Warforged combine the best of constructs and living creatures, but being created and trained for war , many have only had a few years to live beyond a battlefield. It’s suggested to place their Species groups next to Strength and Constitution. Referees should consider negative invocations in task rolls where a lack of worldly experience or knowledge.

NOTES ON SWASHBUCKLING ACTION

Some of Keith Baker’s earlier editorials on the setting did some aspects of it far more justice than the WotC materials and still align quite nicely with WH.

Aside from the obvious flavor that descriptions for combat can add, combat advantage and other modifiers a great way to boost colorful and clever actions when the swords and wands come out. As well as not penalizing such actions to the point where they become worse than just trying to swing. Tossing over tables, yanking carpets, and more. Minor adjustments to initiative, AC, and such can also help keep such flair meaningful.

Fights in Eberron don’t seem like they should be grim, muddy, and bloody but something out of an Errol Flynn film or Indiana Jones. Something to keep in mind when discussing the tone of things.

ACTION POINTS?

One of the ways Eberron tweaked the nature of 3.5e was the addition of action points. Kinda like WFRP Fate points or Savage World Bennies. I would probably use my tried and true Tokens rule here. In short, characters begin an adventure (not session!) with Tokens equal to their level and can spend these for minor bonuses/earn them through daring-do.

The Mundane: Level 0 Funnels in Whitehack

Angus McBride

So you want a funnel? For those who don't know, a "funnel" is a style of adventure where you take a ton of no-level nobodies (maybe 3-4 or more per player) and just run them through a gauntlet... and if there are any survivors they become the actual campaign party becoming level 1. Simple as.

DCC is an obvious source for this but it definitely has its origins in the Original tradition (e.g., a focus on relatively weak characters, large parties, not attachment, simple setup, etc.) and even with the explicit introduction of 0-level stuff in AD&D 1e and its kin.

Whitehack is a bit of a different beast in this regard. It allows (but doesn't necessarily require since you don't have to pick right away) plenty of thought to go into how to create and define your character right out of the gates. What's more, these characters are very flexible as well. So how can we mix the two?

Whitehack Magic 101: How do Miracles work???

This is a slightly related follow-up to my previous Whitehack 101 post on monsters.

Easily the most common subject of discussions and questions on Whitehack are miracles, the game's take on characters' "arcane negotiations with powerful forces in their environment" (aka just about any magic/science/psychic nonsense you can think of in an adventure game!).

This isn't surprising as it's a sort of open system, especially compared to having a set spell list which is the baseline for most old-school adventure games. To quickly summarize how it works:

1. Characters in the Wise class can note down wordings.
2. To use them, the player says what their desired effect is and the referee suggests the cost.
3. The cost is the HP that must be paid to enact the effect.
4. This cost can potentially be lowered.
5. There are a few limitations making high HP costs dangerous or even impossible if your HP is too low.

And that's pretty much it! But it's easy to see where questions can arise with this. Common points are usually:

• Are the miracle effects determined ahead of time?
• Is each wording a set effect? Can it be used for something else after we've set a cost?
• How much should a miracle cost? What's too low or too high?
  
• How much cost debate is too much?
• What kind of damage should combat miracles do?
• What the hell is the "traditional magic" table even about?

And much much more! I can share how I've been handling them and perhaps that can make others more comfortable engaging with miracles without bringing the game to a full stop to talk about HP costs.

N.B.: A lot of this isn't prescriptive and no advice will top what you and your table decide feels right, but hopefully these examples and such help clear up some things and provide guidance!

Whitehack Monsters 101: Converting a Chimera

I often see folks looking for some guidelines on converting classic dragon game monsters to Whitehack. Common points are:

• Multiple attacks? Do I leave them as is?
• Abilities? Do I make them keywords? Or do I treat them as described?
• Spells? Do I make each a miracle? Do they use HP to cast them?

What do?

Well, what better way to try things out than a Chimera? The Monster Manual of old gives us this:

Chimera from the 1e Monser Manual

Whitehack 3e House Rules

Jun Suemi

Here's a collection of some current house rules and bits that have come up in Whitehack so far this year. Some are pilfered from various sources but none are set in stone. Anything can change during play. 

Maybe I will keep this updated! In the meantime, I've also made a 3e Rule Summary, a Community Compendium, and Character Record sheets.

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Saiki and Surrounds

Takato Yamamoto

Saiki

Saiki, a soon-to-be castle town on the coastal delta of the Banjo River in southern Bungo. It is the seat of a fief of 20,000 koku. The great forested hill is crested by a fort and the beginnings of castle foundations and constructions. Its trails overlook a small but growing town, crossed by a minor canal and outlined by broad flooded fields.

Governed by the Gohda clan, senior retainers of the Otomo clan, from their manor and fort. The late Elder Lord Gohda has recently passed, leaving the clan and the fief of Saiki to his son, the Young Lord Matsunoshin.

The Saiki domain is rich in undulations, has little cultivated land, and has little income from agriculture. Since the coast is a rias coast there are many uras, and it is used as a port for fishing and marine transportation bases. Forestry is also one of the sources of income that supports the clan's finances. The weather is humid with hot summers and cold winters. It often rains throughout the year.

20 horsemen, 40 musket men, 20 archers, and 100 spearmen.

Saiki Surrounds

To the northeast, the island of Onyujima sits right off the coast. Its thickly forested hills are home to Ishima Village and several remote shrines.

Directly to the north is the village of Usutsubo. Beyond it lie great hills, covered by woods. In these mountainous forest hills, the Azuma clan ninja train their art.

Folks trade with the large village of Yayoi, east upriver along the Banjo. Regular river traffic makes its way back and forth, a common stopping point for traveling further inland.

Across the Banjo Delta to the south lies the Kitachi River Valley. Along it lies some minor villages and the fallen Shojuji Temple. This is considered a destitute place that never really recovered from the Kyushu Campaign 13 years ago.

South of these lands lies the province of Hyuga. The northern fief of this province is ruled by Takahashi Mototane, a Shimazu clan retainer appointed by Hideyoshi himself. Within the last two years, he has completed his ruin of the Mitai clan and has gained control of the 48 Forts of Takachiho, various fortifications in the steep mountains, valleys, rivers, and plateaus of the region.

A Fistful of Mechs

Armored Core V by yutori-custom

Wanzers (derived from German wanderpanzer; wander for "walking", and panzer for "armor") are weapons from an older age, discovered buried in the ground. They are refurbished and crudely rebuilt to be used as military weapons. While nowhere near as powerful as their past iterations due to their poor reconstruction, they retain strong offensive and defensive capabilities, making them powerful war machines and highly sought after.

Most stand 5-7 meters tall and are designed for urban combat situations. They are primarily focused on ground-based operations and have limited aerial capabilities, being unable to fly for or maintain height for an extended period of time. They do have heightened mobility on the ground, boosting and gliding along the ground at high speeds.

n.b. The rules already have some opinions on how vehicles work. Per the rules on p.88:

• "... allow each vehicle to have hit points, movement, AC, ST, and weaponry just like a character, and maybe also special attack or repair options."

• "The characters engaged in the battle are allowed control over one or several of these things each."

• "For some things, the characters' stats can be used."

See my post on modern violence for how to handle movement, equipment burden, and weapons. Mechanically speaking, these are piloted dragon stat blocks using modern weapons and the normal combat rules with some added bits and a coat of sci-fi paint.

Adjudicating Wanzers

In addition to the general vehicle rules, keep the following in mind:

Mods. These act like the implants on p. 89. Minor mods can grant the listed bonuses, mod keywords act like very limited groups (i.e. can grant double rolls), and major mods replace an attribute altogether.

Mods complicate the piloting process. Only the most experienced pilots can wield such machines to their full potential. Pilots can only utilize one mod but can accommodate one more at levels 3, 6, and 9. 

Weapons. Equipped on each arm, with two more stored on bay units on the shoulders. Swapping a current weapon with one stored in a shoulder hanger counts as a small action. Some mechs may have heavier or experimental weapons equipped on their back as well. These have their own restrictions.

Keeping in mind that I treat these like dragons, HD 5+ mechs can attack twice, HD 10+ three times, and HD 15+ get four. The last attack must be AV 10 and they have to forsake their move. 

Weight. As mentioned above, wanzer's use the rules for equipment burden and act as if they have a backpack (i.e. 14 slots). They count AC, weapon size, and spare ammo towards their total. 

While they can use two-handed weapons with one arm, they still count as two slots!

Damage Types. All weapons and armor come in three damage type categories: Kinetic (KE), Chemical (CE), and Thermal (TE). 

Bullet-based projectiles deal KE damage, Chemical/Explosive type projectiles deal CE damage, and energy weapons deal TE damage. 

If the damage type is an armor weakness (W), it's treated as AC -1. If the damage type is an armor strength (S), it's treated as AC +1.

These can cancel out! If you have TE weakness, but get TE strength from some source, you'd treat it as normal. Neither a strength nor a weakness. 

Critical Damage*. When a Wanzer is reduced to 25% HP, they must make a critical damage roll (d6):

1. Loss of Footing: pilot must save or the wanzer staggers, giving foes Combat Advantage.
2. Knocked Unconcious: pilot must save or skip 1d3 rounds.
3. Weapons Down: the wanzer's weapons are down for 1d3 rounds.
4. Comms Down: audio/video feed down for 1d3 rounds.
5. Cockpit Fires: 1d3 rounds of 1d6-1 damage to the pilot.
6. Malfunction Explosions: 1d6 damage to mech and pilot.

*Stolen from Ternwillow

Making Wanzers

I generally handwave the process but these random tables could help streamline things.

The main parts of a wanzer are as follows:

• Head: visual sensors, scanners, CPU equipment, etc.
• Core: pilot controls, grants HP and ST.
• Arms: weapons are fixed here.
• Legs: govern movement type.
• Generator: powers all other components of the wanzer.
• Boosters: the thrust system that lets a wanzer boost along the ground or jump in the air.
• Arm Hangars: store weapons and allow swaps mid-engagement. 
• Shoulder Unit: an optional utility hard-point.

Being refurbished and scavenged war machines from a bygones era, you don't exactly get to go shopping for the perfect configuration. You make do with what you have. 

Roll 1d6 to determine the wanzer type:

    1-2: Light. HD 4-10. AC 4-6. Strengths: KE. Weaknesses: CE & TE.

    3-4: Medium. HD 6-12. AC 5-6. Strengths: KE. Weaknesses: CE & TE. 

    5: Sniper. HD 4-10. AC 4-5. Strengths: CE. Weaknesses: KE & TE.

    6: Heavy. 8-14 HD. AC 7-9. Strengths: TE. Weaknesses: CE.

Randomly determine Hit Dice and use that to get Hit Points. 

The Saving Throw is equal to HD+5. Randomly determine AC as well.

Determine its leg-type (d6):

    1-3: Biped. Standard. Legs are good for walking when you aren't gliding along.

    4: Reverse Joint. Great jumping ability. Grants CE Strength and TE & KE weakness to Heavy types.

    5: Tetrapod. Can take a turn deploy, gaining Combat Advantage on ranged attacks but can't move.

    6: Tank. +4 HP and +1 AC but twice as slow (i.e. two move actions to travel a short distance).

Weapons follow the linked rules above for simple weapons. They could be handguns, shotguns, gatling guns, machine guns, howitzers, battle rifles, sniper rifles, laser rifles, laser blades, physical blades, cannons, etc.

Take four weapons, give them fittingly military tech-sounding names, and work out what they are.

You may take RLDs (spare ammo) for any weapon, counting each RLD as a minor item.

Give it a cool call-sign (or steal one from your favorite mecha anime or vidya).

Roll (d6) for what kind of mod you start with and work with your Ref and fellow players to figure out what it is.

1-3: Minor Mod; 4-5: Keyword Mod; 6: Major Mod.

Sample Wanzer - THE HANGED MAN

From Armored Core V

CALLSIGN: HANGED MAN | PILOT LVL: 6

HP: 35 (HD: 10) | AC: 8 (Strength: TE, Weakness: CE) | ST: 15

WT: 16 used / 16 total

WPN SYSTEMS: 

• R ARM: UBR-05/R (medium CE rifle, long-range). 1x RLD.
• L ARM: Tansy RF12 (medium KE rifle, long-range). 1x RLD.
• R BAY: ULB-13/H (medium TE laser blade, melee).
• L BAY: USG-11/H (large KE shotgun, short-range).
• SHLDR: UMM-20/H Surat (medium CE missile, long-range).

MODS:

• KT-2R3/Dafeng. Minor. High-powered booster. +2 inventory spaces.
• Verseau RG-04zz. Minor. Advanced CPU fire-control system. +1 Initiative.
• Analytical AR enhancements. Keyword for sensory task rolls and other relevant tasks.

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If you can't tell, I've been on a bit of an Armored Core and Front Mission kick over the past few months. I suppose this is just how they finally bleed over into my hobby time.

Modern Day Violence in Whitehack

Hard Boiled (1992) dir. John Woo

I've been running a table through a Whitehack spycraft game set in an unclear time in the late 20th century. This is a far cry from the typical faux-medieval milieu, but only a couple of adjustments have been needed to transition from swords and spears to the semi-automatics and machine guns. Remember, keep it fast and nasty.

n.b Whitehack 3e has an optional rule section for "modern and futuristic weapons" already. I used this as a base and combined it with some additional considerations, but it works well enough on its own!

Hard Boiled (1992) dir. John Woo

ABSTRACT DISTANCE & MOVEMENT

During a frantic firefight, the last thing I want is to count the exact distance when the guns come out.

MV is removed. There are now five broad distance categories: close, short, medium, long, and distant.

• Close is everything within a couple steps.

• Short is how far a person can walk in ~10 seconds.

• Medium is how far a person can run in that ~10 seconds.

• Long is how far a person can run in a minute.

• Distant is the distance a person could run in 10 minutes.

These are relative to people. Just replace "person" with "car" or "speedboat" if you need to scale up.

In combat, characters can move up to a short distance with a movement action. Two movement actions let characters move up to a medium distance. Moving within a close distance only needs a small action.

Stolen from Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells

Hard Boiled (1992) dir. John Woo

EQUIPMENT BURDEN

In the vanilla game, equipment burden affects your Movement (MV). We don't have MV so the MV penalties for carrying a ton of junk need adapting. Now, equipment burden affects your ability to act effectively. Strength can still be used to overcome this, however.

Each character has 10 slots for equipment, but the tenth slot may be occupied by a 5-slot backpack or another suitable container, for a total of 14 usable slots. Having high Strength affects your ability to handle equipment beyond your number of slots. 

At the end of each time unit* when you are over-encumbered, you need to pass a Strength task roll or rest for one time unit before doing anything else. If you exceed your maximum load by more than one, you need to pass a Strength task roll to start moving at all, and then again every time unit. 

The amount you are allowed to exceed your limit by is increased by +1 at Strength 13 and another +1 at Strength 16.

Stolen from Suldokar's Wake.

*Here "time unit" simply refers to whether we're dealing with rounds, turns, days, etc.

Hard Boiled (1992) dir. John Woo

WEAPON ADJUSTMENTS

These John Woo gifs are no coincidence. Be sure to stretch the phrasing of the Strong's cleave ability to include ranged weapons and enemies adjacent to one another!

Weapons are grouped in large categories for ease of play.

• Unarmed. 1d3 damage. Punching, kicking, etc.

• Small. 1d6-1. Brass knuckles, knives, etc.

• Medium. 1d6. Axes, bats, swords, etc.

• Large. 1d6+1. Claymores, spears, halberds, etc.

Ranged weapons are grouped similarly.

• Small. 1d6-1. Medium range. Revolvers, pistols, etc.

• Medium. 1d6. Long range. Heavy pistols, semi-auto weapons, crossbows, etc.

• Large. 1d6+1. Distant range. Rifles, shotguns, machine guns, longbows, etc.

For ranged weapons, the given range is its standard range. Weapons can be fired one distance category further away at a -4 AV penalty. Longer shots are nigh impossible.

Small weapons are easy to hide. Large weapons need two hands to wield and are extremely conspicuous. Medium ranged weapons can be used with one hand in a pinch (-2 AV), but often work much better with two.

n. b. Remember that weapons will have other benefits and drawbacks in different circumstances as well. The Referee should consider these and apply Combat Advantage, penalties, and other adjustments as appropriate (e.g. usable in a grapple, reach, armor-piercing, concealable, loud, etc.). Use common sense and discussion.

These make most weapons quite easy, but may not properly portray everything!

E.g. a shotgun could do 1d6+1, but would have a short range. A flamethrower could hit everyone in a cone up to short range for 1d6 if they fail a save. Crossbows can fire every other round. Black powder muskets may fire once every three rounds. Modify to fit whatever you're thinking of.

Stolen from Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells

Hard Boiled (1992) dir. John Woo

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

Don't stand out in the open in a firefight. Take cover.

• Cover stops bullets. Characters hiding behind cover cannot be hit by direct fire.

• Partial Cover is when characters attack from behind cover. -4 AV to hit a target behind partial cover.

• Concealment hides you from attackers. -2 AV to hit a target behind concealment.

Armor grants AC as normal, but we're not dealing with chainmail or plate suits.

• Light. AC 2. Civilian-grade protective armor such as that provided by leathers or layers of heavy cloth.

• Medium. AC 4. The more obvious type of body armor, like a security-grade tactical outfit or bulletproof vest.

• Heavy. AC 6. Heavy-duty military-grade tactical body armor; impossible to hide and extremely protective.

Armor and cover may not always apply during all types of attacks. Use common sense and discussion.

Some other quick additions that have come up:

• Explosives deal full damage to everyone in close range and half as much within short range. Those who can dive for cover can save to avoid damage.

• Incendiaries catch a target on fire unless a save is made; 1d6 damage per round until put out.

• Let the Strong's cleave ability include ranged weapons and enemies adjacent to one another.

• Use the 3e rules for Burst and Full Auto for automatic weapons (pp.84-85).

• Ammo isn't tracked exactly. Use the 3e rules for abstract ammo (pp.84-85).

• Add the Suppressive Fire special combat option from 3e (pp.84-85).

• Add the Spray Ability for the Strong to choose from in 3e (pp.84-85).

OD&D/WHITEHACK

Katsuya Terada

Running Whitehack like OD&D

OD&D has been one of my inspirations with how I've been running Whitehack as of late. Being written in the "original tradition", playing 3e like this has been quite fun and easy. Since the game is so open as well, I just use a couple of the tweaks and Referee guidelines below to help get across the feel I'm going for.

This is a living home for all my tweaks, guidelines, and rules. It will change over time.

Determination of Abilities

Generate two stat arrays, rolling 3d6 six times for each.

Choose one array for the character to use and assign in order. Give the other to Referee to use as they see fit.

Schrodinger's Character

The first session for a character is character creation; this session starts with everyone naming their character, assigning a species, and rolling their attributes. Play then proceeds with players filling out aspects of their character when required and after any rolls are made. 

As they need them, players can select:

• a basic class and a slot ability
• an inventory of items equal to 3d6x10sp (see below)
• 2 groups (+bonus groups for low stats)

Stolen from NGR

Starting Gear

All characters begin with 3d6x10sp worth of "Schrodinger's inventory". This "inventory" can be decided during the first game session as needed. Should a character need a rope to cross a chasm, as long as they have the "inventory" sp left to cover it, then they have luckily happened to have brought along. 

These items should be mundane and common items, except one special item such as military-grade equipment, luxury items, specialist tools, or highly illegal items.

Any unused 'equipment' sp just counts as extra coin the character has back home. If a character with 120sp of "inventory" only used 90sp of "Schrodinger's inventory" during the first game session and picked up 20sp of loot, they would have an additional 50sp.

Stolen from NGR. I'm also assuming a silver standard here with XP-for-silver.

Affiliation Groups as Alignment

Alignment is a bigger deal. In Whitehack, Affiliation groups like "Lawful" or "Chaotic" represent allegiance to the warring cosmic powers. Characters without such groups (i.e. most people; these groups are for zealots and champions) simply have no stake in this grand contest.

Law is order and (at least the pretense of) civility. Chaos is disorder and (at least the pretense of) brutality. They have nothing to do with morality, as "good" and "evil" can be found on all sides of this struggle.

Just like normal Affiliations, these provide friends, knowledge, language, and enemies. The limited languages from these groups are Lawful and Chaotic. Feel free to come up with more exciting names.

Species

The classic HALFLING, DWARF, and ELF are present as Species groups.

There is no reason that players cannot be allowed to play as virtually anything, provided they begin relatively weak and work up to the top, i.e., a player wishing to be a Dragon would have to begin as, let us say, a “young” one and progress upwards in the usual manner, steps being predetermined by the campaign referee. 

- Gygax & Arneson, OD&D Book I: Men & Magic, 1974

In keeping with the original tradition, the table is encouraged to work together when Rare Classes become available to determine what fantastical Species-as-Class options are available. Almost nothing should be off-limits with the caveat that this type of character is uncommon in the game world.

Avoid making these mono-cultures. These classes only imply that a certain type of individual is a character in the game world, not that all the members of a species are the same.

Initiative & the Order of Battle

In the baseline game, initiative is rolled and combatants take action in descending order. Here we drop it completely.

Surprise. Allows one round of unanswered actions. If these include attacks they are made with Combat Advantage.

Intent. Each player describes their intent for the upcoming turn stating whether their character will attack, utter a magick spell, overturn a boiling cauldron, or whatever.

Initiative. The Referee resolves all actions for the turn in the order they judge to be fair. 

Initiative may be granted to those firing missiles into advancing foes, those with the advantage of reach (in the first turn), or lighter weapons (in subsequent turns). Magick can be cast successfully in the turn that melee is joined if the caster has initiative; otherwise, the miracle is likely to be interrupted!

Otherwise, initiative is determined by throwing a d6 per group each round, adjusting for Dexterity.

Weapons

Weapons deal d6 damage. They will have other benefits and drawbacks in different circumstances as well (e.g. weapon reach, range, rate of fire, armor-piercing, concealable, loud, etc.). The Referee should consider these and apply Combat Advantage, penalties, and other adjustments as appropriate.

If you desire more mechanical diversification, allow small and large weapons to re-roll their damage, taking the worst or best result respectively.

Shields & Other Protection

Heavy Shields (+2 AC, cost 15) are available to represent tower shields and other similarly bulky shields. 

Great Helmets (+1 AC, -4 on task rolls to spot things, cost 25) are over-the-top pieces of protection compared to normal helmets. They still allow a re-roll on the crit table.

Vancian Magic (Optional)

The optional rules for Traditional Magick and True Miracles* are used (p. 83). A true Vancian air is intended with petty wizards, coveted spells, and an increased focus on scrolls (or an appropriate analog).

*A small tweak to True Miracles is in play, however. Miracles are rare and coveted ancient spells; the last remnants that haven't been lost to time. There is no limit on how many Wise can know such a miracle at any one time, but they are more akin to "items" looted, stolen, or passed down. The creation of new miracles is a rarity in these times.

Most Wise characters will start with one of the more commonly known wordings (still a comparative rarity) and acquire more as they adventure.

These spells are appropriate fodder for Miracle wordings and set scroll effects. When making your own, grandiose and fantastic names are a requirement!

For those with the appropriate group, a limited ritual language is granted: The Arcane Cypher. A small spell-infused language that allows one the understanding of magical inscriptions, spell formulae, etc.

Is an evil sorcerer a cleric of a dark god or a magic-user? Such things make little difference here. Whether their miraculous incantations are whispered into their ear by otherworldly beings or gleaned from decades of study, all wrestle with the laws of the universe with their miracles.

Classic Hirelings, Mercs, and Retainers

Hirelings and retainers can be brought along to hold torches, carry gear, or fight. You usually get this kind of help through Affiliation Groups. The Referee decides--based on a CHA roll--how many will come, if they require some kind of compensation, and how loyal they are in the face of danger. All such hirelings and retainers are HD 1 Referee characters. 

Aside from these "normal" types, unusual help can be sought in the form of PLAYER TYPES or MONSTER TYPES. These retainers are charmed, hired, dueled, or otherwise enlisted into service and the number allowed at any one time is limited by Charisma (CHA/3).

Player Types are retainers who are Strong, Deft, or Wise. They can advance in level and receive XP gained from acquired gold only. Their loyalty isn't a guarantee and should be determined by the Referee based on pay, treatment, and inclination. Only the lowest level player types will seek to become a retainer.

Monster Types often require some type of incentive. Hostile monsters may need to be pressed into service by coercion with magic or physical subdual.

n.b. The slotted retainers of the Fortunate aren't subject to the above limitations. The only limit to their number is the number of open slots the Fortunate possesses. They loyally serve and are controlled by the same player, not the Referee. The Fortunate can choose to make one of their retainers suffer a grisly death on behalf of her or anyone else (perhaps shoving the Fortunate out of the way of an attack).*

*Stolen from NGR

Katsuya Terada

Other Miscellaney

Magic Swords

All magical blades are intelligent and have an alignment group. Many can communicate, some possess powers they can share with a worthy wielder. They have goals and motivations. They are dangerous and fickling items that can overwhelm a lesser wielder and harm those who are enemies in the great cosmic struggle.

Magical blades have two stats: Ego and Intelligence with their alignment affiliation as a group next to one of them. In certain situations, the Ego of the blade can be used in a contest to overwhelm and possess a wielder.

Monsters

At the Referee's discretion, monsters may be subject to bonus damage if they are notably large, strong, deadly, or some combination of the three.

1. Most monsters deal 1-6 damage.
2. Notably strong monsters deal 2-7 damage.
3. Inhumanly strong or large monsters, such as ogres, deal 3-8 damage.
4. Supernaturally strong or giant monsters, such as balrogs or giants, deal 2-12 damage.
5. Impossibly strong or massive monsters, such as titans or leviathans, deal 3-18 damage.

n.b. High HD monsters get additional attacks. If a monster is using multiple attacks, it should do 1d6 damage for each. The danger is represented by the additional attacks. If it uses a single attack, use the above scale. So for example, a HD 10 cyclops could smash someone for 2d6 or swipe and make its three attacks for 1d6.

Some entities can have Supernatural HP. They are only affected by attacks that deal 6 or more damage. A successful attack that beats this threshold removes a single HD for every 6 damage dealt. A simple implementation for such foes is that Supernatural HP = HD.

Dragons' breath attack can be used 3/day for most dragons. The most common effect is dealing damage equal to their current HP in an area attack with a Save allowed for half damage.

Poison

Poison has a potency rating the same as the HD of the creature that it came from. If the poison is rated higher than your level, then you save vs. poison or die. If it is equal to or lower than your level, save or take damage for a number of rounds equal to its rating (unless an antidote or cureall gets to you first).

If the poison has some effect other than or instead of damage (like makes you hallucinate, or vomit, or fall unconscious) then that last for a number of rounds/turns equal to the HD if it’s greater than your level, or half HD if it’s under your level.

Suitable groups could allow for resistance for these saving throws (i.e. assassin vocation).

Stolen from Sean McCoy. Check it out for more ideas on poison.

---

Big influences from Luke Gearing, Simon Bull's Delving Deeper, Philotomy's Musings, and Zzarchov Kowolski's NGR.

Giant Robots for the Vampires of the Gothic Frontier

Escaflowne: The Movie (2000) dir. Kazuki Akane

Whitehack 3e just dropped and it has all kinds of goodies to take advantage of for my futuristic gothic western campaign. One of the main things I want to get sorted is the titular Dragoon. These are terrible creations of the vampiric Nobles. Giant, bio-organic suits of armor powered by a mixture of occult magicks and inhuman sciences. They were lost long ago but around the time my campaign is taking place, they are slowly being unearthed and brought out of the murky depths of legend and myth.

Being made by the occult science of the Nobles, it would only make sense that these things are gnarly. Their armor is scales of bone and thick scabbed skin, their sensors are organic clusters of eyes or tongues that flick and taste the air, and their minds are full of sin and rage. To pilot one is to be pierced by organic tubes and feeders that latch onto your veins, bones, and mind. Rather than think of them as mere vehicles you pilot, they are better thought of as beasts fused with tier pilot and 'ridden' into battle.

Heroic Characters in Whitehack

Atey Ghailan

After reading Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells, I'm coming away with lots of neat ideas for my games. There's a particularly neat bit on heroic* characters that can tackle obstacles that would normally take a full party of players. It's pretty minimal and is less work than applying something like Scarlet Heroes with its Fray dice and unique damage table. Perfect to steal and adapt for Whitehack!

*Heroic here has nothing to do with morals or inclinations; capability and potency are the focus!

Vampires & Dragoons - Gothic Western Wastes in Whitehack

Yoshitaka Amano

With perfect timing, Whitehack 3e will be coming out right as I start a new Whitehack 2e game with my players! We just wrapped up our previous Whitehack campaign after almost a year and a half, but we're already itching for some more.

I've recently watched some favorites of mine: Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000) dir. Yoshiaki Kawajiri and Escaflowne: The Movie (2000) dir. Kazuki Akane. Both films have been swirling in my mind. Ancient technology, strange and powerful species, apocalyptic wastes, and gothic goodness. That sounds like a good excuse for a new campaign! The following is what I pitched to my players before we threw together a session 0:

Earth...

The distant future...

The dwindling shadow of the Vampires and their terrible Dragoons still lingers...

With huge bounties on their head, a class of hunters has emerged. Bounty Hunters.

In a far-future, post-nuclear waste we wander. A world, once terrified by the blood-sucking Nobles, ancient demons, mutants, and their terrible creations: the Dragoons, that is only now returning to a semblance of human control--thanks in part to the decadence and hubris of Nobles, the stubbornness of humanity, and the rise of mercenary hunters-for-hire.

But as the shadow of the past fades, new troubles stir. Haughty warlords and despotic tyrants seek to claim power and dominion over their fellow humans in a world that has only now tasted freedom. Nobles still rule the night and cling to the past by any means available, from unholy pacts to technology best left forgotten. The Dragoons, those fell suits of Dragon Armor born of Sin, towering bio-weapons all, are being unearthed after their merciful slumber.

Indeed, only time will tell if the world can finally emerge into the light, or if it falls into dark forevermore.

 INSPIRATION

> Pulp genres of inspiration: westerns, sci-fi, horror, high fantasy, folklore, and occult science.

WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?

> Imagine `Castlevania` + `Fist of the North Star` + `A Fistfull of Dollars` illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano and Ayami Kojima.

WHAT DO WE DO?

> Rob parasitic nobles, overthrow tyranny, delve unholy temples, use freaky past tech and unholy magic, hunt undead horrors, make posses to ride with, and carve out your legend or die trying.

I see this as a great opportunity to play to Whitehack's strengths and expose my players to genres and art they might not have known about. Also, I can't really think of a better time to get together to stick it to corrupt and inhuman leeches at the top of a struggling society.

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000) dir. Yoshiaki Kawajiri

Whitehack has a very broad framework for character creation. Nearly anything goes. The following are just some of the ideas I had scribbled down to give my players a creative push during our session 0.

Basic Classes

• The Strong
• The Deft
• The Wise

Rare Classes

• The Brave
• The Fortunate
• The Species-as-Class
• Dhampir
• Cyborg
• Revenant

Sample Vocation Groups

• Revolutionary
• Highwayman
• Merchant
• Raod Warrior
• Sheriff's Deputy
• Hunter-for-Hire
• Vampire Hunter
• Exorcist
• Grave Robber
• Rancher
• Scavenger
• Surgeon
• Horse Mechanic
• Old World Scholar
• Shadow Templar [RARE]

Species Groups

• Humans
• Dhampir [RARE]
• Cyborg [RARE]
• Revenant [RARE]
• Night Creature [RARE]

We also wanted to try 'Affiliation Groups as Social Class Attunement'. Not unlike using groups like 'Lawful' or 'Good' for moral attunements in more traditional campaigns, we talked about using them to represent your class loyalties.

We have:

• The Nobility. Why would you side with their cold ilk? They care for you not.
• The High Class. Seekers of opportunity in these fresh vacuums of power. They aspire for what they shall never have.
• The 'Deadbeats'. The masses. The most powerful as the others are powerless without them.

Characters without such groups are simply more ambiguous and complex in their loyalties.

Whitehack really thrives with Groups. They are a potent way to just fully open the setting up to players and everyone at the table (Referee included) can be surprised by the emergent creativity. It's one of my favorite parts of the system.

Escaflowne: The Movie (2000) dir. Kazuki Akane

At the end of our session 0, we ended up with a neat group of characters and a quirky place where our adventures will start.

We have a con man on the run from his past deeds, a mutant rancher, a vampire hunter with potent contraband, and a gentleman thief who dabbles in the occult. 

I look forward to coming up with some more ideas for the various bio-weapons and weird occult nonsense that we'll stumble across. The lasers with fly, the gun blades will sing, and the dead will rise in these unholy wastes. For now, we kick off with our first session next week!

It is the year 12,090 A.D. The world has all but ended, ravaged in a firestorm of mankind's wars and madness. But from the wreckage a few humans manage to survive. A few humans... and something else.

Welcome to the Frontier. A post-apocalyptic wasteland inhabited by humans, mutants, demons and various other strange creatures. 

Our story begins in the town of Sandridge, a small ranch town in the Eastern Sector of the Frontier established a couple hundred years ago. It's not far from New Moses, the closest seat of the relatively young Revolutionary Government. It's at least close enough to have some of the Frontier Defense Force parade around and act like heroes.

It's a quiet place. The weather controllers still work and the augmented fields still deliver plenty of crops. But some nasty trouble is brewing and those who came here for an escape are in for a rude awakening!

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000) dir. Yoshiaki Kawajiri

Far Over Wood & Mountain Tall: Middle-earth in Whitehack Part II

Jon Hodgson

So last time, we looked at how to use the existing tools in Whitehack to attempt an 'authentic' themed Middle-earth game. We covered changed stats, new classes, and how to reward quests that take companies far abroad. We'll continue our Whitehack adaptation of The One Ring and this time around we'll tackle the Shadow.

The Shadow

Whitehack already has some nifty rules for handling corruption. It basically involves a scale from 1-10 and above. There's an ever-increasing gamble with effects lasting longer and effects building based on when you choose to save. Wait too long to make your saving throw and your corruption might get too high to avoid permanent effects. We can use this nicely, we'll just have to look at how to systematize ways that a character in Middle-earth might be affected (this isn't chaos wizards turning into slime mutants after all).

(A little bit of commentary: you'll notice that compared to a "traditional" fantasy adventure game which sees the characters throwing themselves into any hellhole or haunted crypt they can find, the below rules will seem relatively harsh. The penalties of the Shadow can be long-lasting or even permanent. Dealing with a haunted crypt could be a harrowing experience. Finding an orc camp could change someone for life. This is intentional. Journeys are no small feat and any encounters during will be quite impactful. You'll probably have one or two a year and the experience will change you. These are dark times after all!).

So what is the Shadow? It's the weight of the presence of the forces of darkness in Middle-earth. It's the dread that weighs heavy on the hearts of most of the peoples of Middle-earth. Peoples to the South and East have fallen to it in multitudes. Sauron might be closer to victory than any dare dread!
But there is always hope and our intrepid need to be steadfast against this dread. So here are the triggers that can cause a character to gain Shadow Levels (SL):

• Anguish - Experiencing distressing events. 
• Blighted Places - Going through or being in an area tainted by the Shadow.
• Misdeeds - Committing despicable and dishonorable deeds.
• Tainted Treasures - Some items and treasure might be tainted or cursed.

Khamul by John Howe

Then suddenly he knew that he was imprisoned, caught hopelessly; he was in a barrow. A Barrow-wight had taken him, and he was probably already under the dreadful spells of the Barrow-wights about which whispered tales spoke.

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

Anguish

The light is fading and characters will quickly realize just how fragile they and the world they know really are. Witnessing or directly experiencing a disturbing or distressing event causes a character to gain Shadow Levels. The table to should work together to determine how severe an event is using the following guidelines:

• A natural but unexpected tragedy or grievous occurrence (serious or deadly accident, death in the family, natural disaster). Make a save vs Shadow or gain 1 SL. 
• A gruesome killing, dreadful experience, Orc-work, display of the power of the Enemy (a friend turned traitor, finding mutilated corpses, seeing an army of the Enemy mustering). Automatically gain 1 SL. 
• A harrowing experience, physical or spiritual torment, the sorcery of the enemy (slavery, torture, the Black Breath, seeing the Eye). Gain 2 SL. 
• A direct experience with the power of the enemy (Being interrogated by the Eye, captured by the Nazgûl). Gain 3 SL. 

Jon Hodgson

As their eyes became used to the dimness they could see a little way to either side in a sort of darkened green glimmer. Occasionally a slender beam of sun that had the luck to slip in through some opening in the leaves far above, and still more luck in not being caught in the tangled boughs and matted twigs beneath, stabbed down thin and bright before them. But this was seldom, and it soon ceased altogether. There was no movement of air down under the forest-roof, and it was everlastingly still and dark and stuffy and our heroes felt that they were being slowly suffocated.    

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

Blighted Places

The dark seems thicker in the lair of a foul creature and the gloom hands around sites of black treachery. Grief, pain, and suffering never leave the black pits inhabited by the servants of the Dark Lord or the plains where bloody battles were once fought. When characters enter or linger an area that has become blighted by darkness, they must make a save vs Shadow. If they fail they gain 1 SL. The Referee has the final say on whether a place is blighted or not and how frequent saves should be made while in said areas.

• Free Lands, Border Lands - Frequency: save only during special circumstances.
• Wild Lands - Frequency: save once every week. 
• Shadow Lands - Frequency: save once daily.
• Dark Lands - Frequency: save twice a day.

If you want to randomly determine if an area is blighted, roll for it. Roll 1d6 for Free/Borderlands, 2d6 for Wild Lands, and so on. If any die rolls a six, the area is blighted and requires saves as listed above. Areas that have long been home to minions of the Dark Lord or are currently infested by them, villages that have had a horrible murder or act of treachery, or places that are having their spirit poisoned by dark sorcery are great examples of Blighted Places. 

Boromir by John Howe

'Why not get rid of it? Why not be free of your doubt and fear? You can lay the blame on me, if you will. You can say that I was too strong and took it by force. For I am too strong for you, halfling,' he cried; and suddenly he sprang over the stone and leaped at Frodo. 

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring 

Misdeeds

Even the greatest and most virtuous of heroes can be tempted into dark actions. Misdeeds that would call their character into question. This can be the result of accident or misunderstanding, but also the temptation to do noble goals by dark means. Characters must stand fast against the dark impulses within. 

There are no saves vs Shadow when it comes to Misdeeds. When you knowingly embrace the Shadow, there is no temptation to resist. Even attempting something despicable is a misdeed, regardless of its success.

If a player is unaware of a Misdeed (ex. ambush and kill someone they believed to be guilty of a brutal murder, only for them to innocent), they should not immediately gain SL. Their behavior when the mistake comes to light should be used to determine whether they should gain the SL or not.

The Referee should warn a player if they are about to carry out a misdeed. Use the following guidelines to determine severity:

• Accidental misdeed. See above. 
• Violent threats. Gain 1 SL. 
• Lying purposefully, subtly manipulating the will of others. Gain 2 SL. 
• Cowardice, theft and plunder. Gain 3 SL. 
• Unprovoked aggression, abusing own authority to influence or dominate. Gain 4 SL.
• Torment and torture, murder. Gain 5 SL. 

The One Ring by John Howe

There for ages his huge bones could be seen in calm weather amid the ruined piles of the old town. But few dared to cross the cursed spot, and none dared to dive into the shivering water or recover the precious stones that fell from his rotting carcass.

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit 

Tainted Treasures

While gold can't tarnish like silver or rust like iron, it can corrupt faster than both. The treasure found in the lair of some dead monster or buried in a tomb long-sealed may be tainted. Such treasures can drive men to distraction and fill hearts with greed.

When such treasure is found, characters must make a save vs Shadow or gain SL.

• From a Troll hoard - 1 SL
• From a Dragon hoard - 1 SL
• From an ancient barrow - 2 SL
• From a stronghold of the Enemy - 1 SL before save, 3 more SL if save fails

Effects of the Shadow

The traits from this type of corruption aren't your typical chaos mutations or anything. These are character flaws and traits. Inner faults that the Shadow exploits and twists to the surface. Use list below for inspiration. 

These traits go from minor and fleeting to more troublesome and major. A character should stick to one or two of this listings and progress along them as they (hopefully) deal with their corruption. 

1. Spiteful, Brutal, Cruel, Murderous
2. Grasping, Mistrustful, Deceitful, Thieving
3. Resentful, Arrogant, Overonfident, Tyrannical
4. Haughty, Scornful, Scheming, Treacherous
5. Idle, Forgetful, Uncaring, Cowardly 

As you can see, a corrupted PC is no mutant or direct evil. Think of a PC being in a fey mood for a day or two. Perhaps during the least few weeks of a journey, a PC is disastrously overconfident. Maybe there is even an ultimate act of betrayal or treachery from someone as their Shadow overtakes them. 

Well, this was a little longer than expected. This should cover handling the Shadow from the One Ring in Whitehack. We'll have to do a third post covering journeys (and maybe an extra one on enemies and evil play).