Valley of Fear - Rules You Should Know

It’s Jonathan here again with another Wednesday Rules Ramble! Each week, I’ll introduce a topic that will be important in an upcoming game, explain some new mechanic or system for DR:TX, or discuss a particular rule from the DR Corebook. In each ramble, I’ll focus on explaining that topic in more detail than the book alone can provide and help provide one place to reference all the various errata or rulings that might be relevant. Sometimes I’ll even drop a few Story Teasers or provide a summary of the last game in a Game Recap.

This week, we are going to discuss Rules You Should Know for the upcoming game this weekend, including new Illustrated Item Cards, Mysterious Ore, Variant Crystal Candy, new Roleplay Burdens, Clue Cards, and more!

Tickets are still on sale at the door for VALLEY OF FEAR! See you this weekend!

We had an amazing comic by Beau Lee and Aesa Garcia drop on Monday with a story update for this weekend, so check it out if you haven’t already!

You can also submit official Feedback about our events through our Feedback Form.

Rules you SHould know

TL;DR This is a bit of a long post, and it contains SPOILERS. Reader beware.

This weekend also has a new experiment for DR:TX - new ILLUSTRATED ITEM CARDS! We will be premiering SIX types of new Item Cards that are variations of the Local Plot Item cards. These card will be printed with the rules for the item on one side, and a custom illustrated back designed by Shan, one of our Directors. These cards will be very obvious and will stand out when you find them in play.

Let’s talk about these item cards first, and then we’ll cover a few quick new rules at the end.

Mysterious ore

This first one we are going to be a little coy about. It’s Mysterious Ore, after all. It’s literally in the name.

This weekend will be the first game where you can acquire this new type of limited currency in DR:TX. There will be a finite amount of these items in play, so they will have some value by scarcity alone. Mysterious Ore has no specific function by itself, and is the only Illustrated Item Card this weekend without rules on the card. But it WILL have a use at some point this season.

People that attend our NECROPHAGE National Event will have even more opportunities to gather Mysterious Ore as well. In fact, every person that pre-regs for PYROCLASM will get one of these items at Check-In! We’ll have more on this in our lead up to The Necrophage: Pyroclasm next week.

The primary way to find Mysterious ore this weekend is by helping out the game with some extra NPC time.

Guides, STs, and Players alike can participate in a new Zone of Mechanics that will be in the world somewhere. I’ve even included an image of the ZOM: A Vein of Mysterious Ore below. This ZOM will require you to go out of character and spend additional time as an NPC while you are “mining” inside the Morgue, and can even get you an additional FULL MIND REFRESH for completing an additional four hours of NPC time. September is always a bit lighter game for attendance due to the lingering summer heat, so the extra help will be appreciated and rewarded!

Mining in the Mortis Amaranthine sounds like a lovely idea though. I’m sure nothing bad will happen.

Probably.

In the words of a few new local characters in Bravado “ROCK AND STONE! It’s time for some DIGGY DIGGY HOLE!”

clue cards

Hmm.

These items are pretty self explanatory, but this is an important part of Ted LeBeau’s over arc story for VALLEY OF FEAR. Each DR: Texas game will often have some things we call “plot scaffolding” during the weekend. Sometimes, it might be a series of Research Challenges that need to be completed, or a series of Resource Sinks that require you to turn in herb or scrap, or sometimes you might just have a Monster of the Week to track down and kill (like Grandfather Nichols, or a Raider Queen!). This Plot Scaffolding is how the main plot is resolved, and it’s often a key mechanic of the weekend.

VALLEY OF FEAR is no different, and this takes the form of the CLUE CARD. These items will be found in certain situations and will be useful for understanding more about the nature of the weekend story. The new Warden of Killhouse is definitely up to something, but it’s up to you to find out how deep the rabbit hole goes…

There are two ways to use a Clue Card:

First, you can simply tear up the card and get a free use of one of three Skills — Avoid, Balance, or Basic Awareness. But, by collecting TEN of the Clue Cards, you can turn them into the Post Office for a piece of the puzzle — information about the mysterious Adam Moriarty, the Spider of Killhouse.

These items will be found throughout the weekend, and will have a bit of flavor text to describe the clue itself, but these might be in the pocket of some zombie you just killed, discovered while Foraging out in the woods, or even traded as a source of information with an NPC. Since it’s a Local Plot Item, you can even trade (or sell) it to others, if you so choose.

variant Crystal Candy

One of the big parts of this weekend’s game VALLEY OF FEAR is dealing with the new Law against Crystal Candy in the San Saba, and the backlash against a criminal underworld that is not only continuing to sell the drug, but releasing even worse versions of it. Like we first revealed in our Welcome to Season 4 blog post back in August, a new dangerous and addictive type of Crystal Candy has been flooding the wasteland.

There are three elements of this Crystal Candy plot during VALLEY OF FEAR you need to be aware of: Variant Crystal Candy, Roleplay Burdens, and Crystal Candy Saturation.

Variant Crystal Candy

There are FOUR types of new Crystal Candy items in play this weekend (Red, Green, Blue, and Silver), and they will be on unique, illustrated item cards. There will be no mistaking that the item you have is one of these Local Plot Cards, so it should be able to directly avoid them if you want.

The new drug trade of the San Saba has led to new and more addictive variants of the Crystal Candy commonly found on the Criminal Influence list. These Variant Crystal Candy cards will be printed on separate item cards with an illustrated back. If you encounter one of these items, they will have different mechanics than the common Crystal Candy gizmo. These items interact with the Addiction and Crystal Candy Saturation local rules.

Here’s the plain text of the one the Variant rules on the back so you have an idea of what to expect:

Each of the four variants has two basic mechanics:

• The normal function of the item is a more powerful healing effect than the normal Crystal Candy, but comes with the Roleplay Burden (Addiction). However, unlike normal Crystal Candy these items do NOT cost a Resolve, but they have NO effect once you have a Fracture. That means if the Roleplay Burden is not met, these items quickly become worthless.

• Each Variant Crystal Candy has a SATURATED effect that can be used once you have consumed three of the new Candies in a single 12s. These are powerful abilities that you must use within the next HOUR, or else a negative effect occurs.

Upon consuming a third Addictive Crystal Candy within the last 12s, you will become SATURATED. If you become Saturated more than once per 12s, become SUPERSATURATED. We will cover a bit more of this below.

Roleplay burdens

This is a new Fracture-like effect that will be in play this season, and the Addiction mechanic is the first of these uses. This is simply a mechanic that simply makes you need to do a particular role play activity or else it becomes a full-fledged Fracture.

ROLEPLAY BURDEN

• Keyword. A character can have one Roleplay Burden at a time. A Roleplay Burden must be fulfilled once per 12s, or else it will turn into a Fracture. Roleplay Burdens can be soothed or cured as if they were a Fracture, but does not count as a Fracture for preventing use of certain Skills. Players can opt-out of a particular RP behavior at any time, but must fulfill any required mechanical cost or effects. Roleplay Burdens expire at the end of an event, unless the player chooses to keep them longer.

  There are several types of Roleplay Burdens:

  • ADDICTION: When you consume an item with the Addictive keyword, you gain this Roleplay Burden. You must consume an item with the Addictive keyword once per 12s. If you do not meet this requirement, you gain a Fracture. This is normally found on Variant Crystal Candy cards.

At it’s heart, it’s a pretty flexible rule that can be adapted to a number of different stories, like hunger, fear, disease, or even faith. A possible Roleplay Burden for Starvation could include needing to eat a Meal every 12s, for instance.

You can opt out of any role play involved with roleplay burdens, and no NPCs will ever force someone to use an item that causes this behavior, or require a character to take this condition without consent.

Addictive items will require consent to use on another, just like using an Injection that costs Resolve on someone (DR Corebook, p. 169, 181). Using an item that causes a mechanical effect like this is a CvC action if attempted on an unwilling target. You can also use the OK Check In system to simply decline interaction with this CvC, the Addiction mechanic, or any scene you are uncomfortable with as always.

CRYSTAL CANDY SATURATION

Crystal Candy is bad. Past the horrific way it is harvested from a person, taking too much of it can cause strange side effects. It’s almost like cannibalism in a way, and can have similar effects on a person once ingested. This weekend, this takes effect as Crystal Candy Saturation. Here are the basic mechanics for this new condition:

• Crystal Candy Saturation

• Effect. Upon consuming a third Addictive Crystal Candy within the last 12s, an LC will become SATURATED. While Saturated, you gain the ability to use the Affix abilities of Variant Crystal Candy cards.

• If you become Saturated more than once per 12s, you become SUPERSATURATED.  While Supersaturated, you do not refresh Mind at the 12s, and cannot regain Mind points by any means except by using any variation of Crystal Candy. This effect lasts until the end of the event.

• In summary: When you take a THIRD Variant Crystal Candy, you become Saturated. When you use the Affix ability for the SECOND time in a twelves. If you do NOT use the Affix ability and take the penalty instead, you do not become Saturated.

Crystal Candy can be deceptively useful, but has a significant cost to being used. If you use too much too fast, you can make yourself unable to regain Mind points at all during the weekend.

You might even see a few common Threats like zombies and raiders this weekend that develop strange new psionic potential spreads from the wastewater and pollution left behind from the Crystal Candy manufacturing. A HELPFUL TIP —- Remember, every Psionic power except for Master Pyrokinetics (p.138) can be resisted with Basic Mental Endurance (p. 126)!

other rules of note

The last few rules of note are gonna be short and sweet. If you hear these calls this weekend, it will be VERY obvious what is happening. Sorry not sorry.

DEVOUR

Skill Call. This delivery modifier causes the attacker to be healed for an equal of Body as the attack deals. For instance, a creature might call “Devour 50 Body!”, which will deal 50 Body as the attack and heal them for 50 Body. This call can drain Body, Mind, Resolve, or Infection.

This Threat Skill might be seen in different variations during this season, but ALL of them are bad. Not only does it deal damage to a target, it can absorbs and drain the very health (or even Infection) from a target. Yikes! That seems like an attack to save an Avoid for!

PUrple Headbands

If you encounter an NPC wearing a PURPLE headband or light, this represents an encounter that is “UNSEEN”.

These characters are part of some space that is not your own, like a dream or a hallucination, or someone “out of phase”. They are not out of character but in a state that can only be observed or interacted with in specific conditions. It is possible for some characters to be able to see this condition, while their friends cannot.

Your LC cannot see the Unseen in-character or interact with them unless given specific instruction from the Unseen character or Guide. The Guide or NPC will place their hand on their head and inform your LC that you can interact with that character. Once given this instruction, you can see and interact with the NPC until you cannot physically see them anymore or they leave the scene. You will not be able to see them again if they reappear unless you are specifically told otherwise.

Certain ZOMs, item cards, and Skill calls can also reveal the Unseen.

The Unseen, huh? Just know that when you see a PURPLE headband or headlight this weekend, that.. person?… thing?.. isn’t quite THERE. Ignore them until something tells you otherwise. Just imagine it’s a Hunter using Stealth and you don’t have Basic Awareness.

New Death Procedures

This last new rule is kind of amazing, if I do say so myself. This is from the new DEATH LOG that will be used this weekend. We have a majestic bell in the center of Camp Kachina that we use to start and finish the game, but during the game it has another use entirely:

RING YOUR OWN BELL

If you should DIE during an event at DR:TX, a newly deceased character should walk to the Crossroads and ring the their own Death Bell three times and then report to Logistics, known in-character as the Grave Council Annex.

That’s right.

You finally get to ring the bell at Kachina yourself. It’s fun, I promise, and there’s nothing more chilling than the discordant three rings in the middle of the night telling you that someone just DIED. This bell will let our talented team of Groundskeepers know to meet you at Logistics to run your personalized death scene, and also lets folks with Faith skills, Necrokinetics and Death Brews know they have a chance to interact with a Gravemind scene.

If you are really excited about this rule, let me know at game and I’ll make sure a certain… eyeless… friend helps make that request a reality…

Medical and Safety Resources

One last reminder:

In previous years we had a few medical-trained folks marked out for assisting in emergencies. This year, we made it a dedicated team under Sadie Hawkins. Folks on that list are available resources for non-emergency/non-professional assistance. The Med Room in Kiva (back room past the the Post Office) will have a revamped and restocked medical supply box. These supplies are available for everyone, though, note we don’t have any consumable medications in there.

Mental and Emotional health are also included in our Medical and Safety resources. The Med Room can also be used as a safe decompression space if you need to step out of character and take time re-center or process something. Several of our medical staff are also mental health professionals, and can be tapped to help provide assistance if you need it.

If you do require assistance, and don’t know how to find someone to help, tap any Guide or Gamerunner and we will help you with finding that resource, or contact emergency services if needed.

wrap up

That’s the last from me this week folks! We will have a few opening announcements to cover at the start of the game, but these are the main things to be aware of before you show up.

I still gotta pack and get my own stuff ready for the game, so I hope I see everyone there this weekend. It’s been a LONG summer, and I’m ready to kill some zombies!

Valley of Fear - Content Warning

It’s Jonathan here with another quick update for our upcoming event this weekend. I want to briefly talk about a bit of a content warning for folks about the over arc plot of VALLEY OF FEAR.

This weekend’s plot involves THEMEs and mechanics about drugs, drug abuse, Drug-related death, and drug addiction.

Given how drug addiction is a terrible illness that plagues people in real life, we understand that this topic isn't for everyone. Some of our lives have been impacted by this crisis and each person could be dealing with this trauma in different ways. Our goal is not to minimize the impact of addiction nor it’s effect on our community, and we empathize with anyone that has suffered loss and hardship because of drug abuse and drug addiction.

The themes of Dystopia Rising often touch close to our real world in ways we cannot always avoid. We believe that we can still tell these stories, but we also believe we need to be transparent about our intentions, and allow folks to opt-out of any mechanics from those stories. In our tradition of radical trust, we want to also trust in each player that attends our game to know their own limits and be able to choose to avoid topics and situations that make them uncomfortable.

Its one reason we take our OK Check-In system so seriously! We understand that this may not be a story you want to participate in, and that’s okay!

To be clear: The easiest way to avoid the addiction mechanics of this plot will be to simply avoid Criminal Influence events, and avoid using the new Variant Crystal Candy cards that are in play starting this weekend.

A large part of the experience of the horror role playing genre comes from and is experienced as a loss of control — often in horrific, and unpleasant ways. And the situation only deepens after experiencing trauma and fractures from that horror, as survivors can feel like they’re losing control of their lives as they wrestle with the emotions their experience has left them with.

This weekend’s story involves themes around the trafficking and production of the drug known as Crystal Candy. Crystal Candy and other drug items have already existed in our game since the start of 3.0. Several other chapters have introduced other drug items like Redline, or a series of new Drug items from the DR: Michigan chapter. We’ve had hallucinogenic brews and alcoholic brews since 2.0, so the themes of drug abuse and drugs have always been there, but this is the first time in 3.0 we will be dealing with an Addiction mechanic.

We will be providing options during our September game to “opt-out” of addiction roleplay and drug mechanics as much as possible (and even give those folks that don’t want to experience these mechanics a way to be part of the story), but it WILL be present in ways that you will not always be able to avoid. Even the OK Check-In system may not be enough to avoid this topic during the September event. We’d like to give you advance warning that this content will be present so you can choose if you would still like to attend our event.

We will be coaching our NPCs before each shift about how to responsibly represent addiction in the world of Dystopia Rising, and our Storytellers wrote each of their shifts with this in mind. While we can’t predict a player’s reaction to NPC’s suffering from addiction, we can gauge our output to make sure we don’t present addicts themselves in a negative way. Addiction will be an mechanical illness in our world, and will be treatable like any other illness in game. It is a disease that is identified and fixed the same way as a Fracture, caused by a specific substance.

If you have already purchased a ticket for this event and would like a refund, please email info@dystopiarisingtx.com.

We will have many other events this weekend that don’t deal with this topic, and it’s still a survival game in a world of zombies and raiders.

Tomorrow, I’ll talk about some of the specific mechanics of Addiction, the new Variant Crystal Candy items, Mysterious Ore, Clue Cards, and Roleplay Burdens.

See you soon, Vados!

COMIC - Valley of Fear Teaser!

Good morning Vados! We have a story update for our Season 4 opener, VALLEY OF FEAR, with a comic by the incredibly talented Beau Lee and Aesa Garcia!

Aesa wrote the text for this comic, and is one of our Gamerunners for DR:TX. Beau completed the art for the comic and is one of our Storytellers for Season 4, and has designed several comics for us over the last few seasons, so you might recognize their art style.

This comic references some events that occurred during our last game of Season 3, and you can find a recap of THE CICATRIX here if you don’t recall what happened after the long summer.

COMIC: “INTO THE VALLEY OF FEAR”

By Aesa Garcia and Beau Lee

PAGE 1, Artwork by Beau Lee

First panel shows an overhead view of the floating city of Waking Prime, with dark smoke rising from it from the recent accident. Second panel shows the San Saba Board is meeting, Tabitha St. Mercy and Boss Wyatt are standing in front of the Chairman, who appears to be holding a dossier. The Chairman is cloaked in shadow.

Chairman: "Boss Wyatt, these allegations are very serious.”

PAGE 2, Artwork by Beau Lee

The Chairman appears to be referencing a length dossier of the crimes of Tabitha St. Mercy.

Chairman: “Warden Tabitha St. Mercy, what do you have to say for yourself?"
Tabitha, her eyes noticeably red: "What we've accomplished in Prudence Penitentiary in my time as Warden feeds my PRIDE."

Shot of Wyatt, scoffing, with noticeably blue eyes: "Your GREED, more like" 

Shot of Tabitha glaring at Wyatt: "Whatever my critics may say, I have followed the mandate of this Board and the San Saba Territories are more lawful than ever." 

PAGE 3, Artwork by Beau Lee

Chairman holding up hand for silence: "Still, what good is a Justice of Sin who is run out of her own Gauntlet?" 

Flashback images to May’s Gauntlet, captioned with (Bravado, earlier this year).

First panel shows Tabitha aiming her deadly psionic gauntlet at Abe Callaghan. Second panel shows Imperius taking the blow that should have killed Abe instead, other vague silhouettes behind them of the crowd at the Gauntlet. Last panel shows Tabitha being led away in chains by two “Devil Dogs”, former mercenary bodyguards that turned on her and led to her capture.

PAGE 4, Artwork by Beau Lee

Back in the office on Waking Prime, with the Chairman seated at a desk facing Tabitha and Wyatt.

Wyatt to the Chairman: “Our constituents have spoken. They will riot if this Board cannot bring them true Justice. On their behalf, I demand the resignation of Tabitha St. Mercy as Warden, and  her removal from this ruling body.”

Panel shows Tabitha, smirking back: “Despite their WRATH, I’m afraid it’s not so easy to remove me from this Board, Boss Wyatt. There are protocols, as a Law Dog should know.” 

Panel shows Wyatt, disgruntled at being called out on politics, but silent.

Chairman, framed by the window behind him, answering Tabitha’s challenge: “Tabitha St. Mercy is correct. It takes more than one undisciplined mob to sway this board but…”

PAGE 5, Artwork by Beau Lee

Zoom in on the Chairman’s glasses, with his answer: “I intend to investigate these allegations thoroughly. You are hereby temporarily suspended as Warden until the Board’s investigation is complete.”

Shot of Tabitha: *shocked*, followed by a shot of Wyatt: *pleased*

Shot of Tabitha’s lips, as Tabitha begins to grin ominously. “Understood, Chairman. Fortunately I have already selected my interim Warden for my absence. And if the people of Bravado want to riot…”

PAGE 6, Artwork by Beau Lee

Final panel shows Tabitha in front, with the silhouettes of Lifers behind her, emphasizing the silhouette of Adam Moriarty, the Spider of Killhouse in the front center. The Lifers from left to right: Eyeless Jack, Juliet Butcher, The Saint of Three Mouths, and Sugargums.

Tabitha’s final words, in large text at the top of the panel: “We will indulge them.”

THE VALLEY OF FEAR

One last reminder of the Story Premise for Episode 1, along with our Story Update from last week.

Before the Burning Season forced the San Saba into hibernation for the summer, dramatic changes to law and order in the wastes took root thanks to the work of the citizens of the tiny town of Bravado. A new law banning the sale and trafficking of Crystal Candy, new faces and new voting members on the San Saba Board, a mysterious accident in the floating city of Waking, and now — a missing Warden.

Tabitha St. Mercy - hounded, hunted, betrayed - caught off guard by enterprising people in Bravado, has disappeared from Prudence Penitentiary. In her place, a new Warden has taken control. Adam Moriarty, former Lifer, has stepped out from the shadows and the effects have rippled across the San Saba Territories. While major changes have been occurring at the prison commonly called “Killhouse”, life in the San Saba Territories has grown more dangerous.

People have gone missing. Roving bands of Vigilantes, often called “puppies” in a deriding fashion by some, try and help the Law Dogs. Their goal is to help enforce the newest laws, especially against Crystal Candy, and if a few skulls get broken, such is the way of things in the wastes. The Justices of Sin are more prevalent than ever, under the orders of Moriarty to help quickly pass judgement so that the Law Dogs can continue their crusade. Moriarty has even helped Wyatt break the backs of the Rotgut Family, former purveyors of the largest Crystal Candy pipeline in the San Saba and now they too sit in Prudence Penitentiary.

Despite the Board’s bold action against the drug trade of the San Saba, a prophecy of trouble has come true. Crystal Candy is still in abundance, and new pipelines are sprouting like weeds. There are even rumors of new and more addictive variations making their way to the marketplace.

And then there is Bravado - breeding ground for Saints and Miscreants - stuck in the middle of these wars between law and order, in a valley of fear…

WRAP UP

We will have an update for some last minute Rules You Need to Know for this weekend on Wednesday as usual, but if you’ve been a particularly hyper fixated type of person, you might have a noticed a few site updates here or there already…

I can’t wait to see everyone this weekend for VALLEY OF FEAR!!!

Characters & Stories of Note for Season 4

It’s Jonathan here again with another Wednesday Rules Ramble! Each week, I’ll introduce a topic that will be important in an upcoming game, explain some new mechanic or system for DR:TX, or discuss a particular rule from the DR Corebook. In each ramble, I’ll focus on explaining that topic in more detail than the book alone can provide and help provide one place to reference all the various errata or rulings that might be relevant. Sometimes I’ll even drop a few Story Teasers or provide a summary of the last game in a Game Recap.

Tickets are on sale until FRIDAY for our first event of the season, THE VALLEY OF FEAR!

Make sure you get your ticket before the end of the week, so we can have your pre-reg packet ready when you get to site. It’s been a long summer, so save your time catching up with your friends in Bravado instead of waiting in line at check-in!

Today’s blog post will touch on a bit of the narrative for Season 4, particularly with some Stories and Characters of Note for the story line this year.

We did a post like this last season, and it was a great way to help you know which characters and stories to pay attention to when they show up in the game. While each game will have it’s own distinct plot, there is also an overarching story running through the whole season. If you want to be involved in the big events, it’ll be easy to identify what is important by the people that are involved, and by paying attention to the big threads of story.

The Season 4 Premise

Every season, Shan & I start out with a Design Doc that lays out our intentions for the entire season arc. From there we build out each game, but this is the first bit of inspiration we shared with our STs for the new season, and today we share it with you.

New Bravado is built on old land, older than the towns that came before it, and older still than the San Saba Territories in which it resides. The land beneath New Bravado dates back to before The Fall of Humanity, when the world was heavy with splendid and delicate thing, before the Archons descended upon the works of men and before the Mortis Amaranthine or, at least, before we knew it existed and of the various and terrible Grave Minds that are like unthinking gods below. 

New Bravado is built on old land, and inscribed in the unbreakable firmament of the ancient and chasmic structures far beneath the arid soil is an ancestral site of unimaginable age, a Facility from before The Fall. Perhaps the lost cradle of Barogian myth, the underground campus upon which countless bodies of unwoken Semper Morts sleep in cryostasis. Ensconced in their intentions, these long-changed humans sleep beyond the fall of humanity and into its eventual rise. But, the Survivors who make a living on the surface above, beneath the apocalyptic sun, seek the deep knowledge and priceless artifacts of an age before. 

New Bravado is a boom town, but instead of mining gold and silver from the hills and steppes that surround it; Vados delve into the deep structures of the facility beneath the city and brave it's sometimes dangerous, and always bizarre, depths in pursuit of glory, riches or knowledge. In recent years, the slow but steady discovery of Grave Tech and Crystal Technologies in the halls beneath Bravado has lead to the formation of not only a governing body over the geographical area around Bravado, The San Saba Board, but also the formation and growth of sister settlements such as Drywater, Essex and Widow’s Peak. 

What truly lurks beneath New Bravado looms in the future, yet. But in Season 4 of DR:TX the town of New Bravado will need to take the reigns as one of the most advanced cities in the Lone Star, and, either allow the Greater Wastes to grow wild and free, or to move it’s educated, deadly population to becoming not simply a participant in the San Saba story, but it’s primary author.

Sounds exciting!

Stories of Note (Season 4)

Let’s take a look then at some threads from last season, plus a few more that we will explore during our games this season:

Waking is Falling?

We released a few WASTELANDER articles this summer, with some rather conflicting reports about the majestic floating city of Waking Prime. The capital of the San Saba, this monument of oldcestor technology is held aloft by the curious and misunderstood Capacity Engine. A mighty airship the size of a small city, Waking is the seat of the San Saba Board, the heart of the Railroad Conglomerate, and a testament to the power of the factions of the Lone Star.

While there are multiple points of view of what exactly happened in Waking in the last few weeks, some uncomfortable questions have been asked of the leadership of the San Saba. Is it wise to have the capital of the San Saba in a floating city that could crash to the ground? From a daring raid on the city two years ago by the Oxkillers, the nefarious Stormchaser raider clans that harass it in the skies, or just the radioactive waste it leaves in the wake of its passing, Waking Prime has had its share of challenges but emerged triumphant each time. What does the future hold for the capital of the San Saba?

The Fate of Tabitha St. Mercy

This season will decide the fate of the villainous leader of Killhouse, Tabitha St. Mercy. From the very beginning of our 3.0 story, the story of Prudence Penitentiary has been meant to reach a conclusion and an end. We’ve never shied away from difficult stories in DR:TX, but we do want to provide agency for players to dismantle or remove the various organizations and personalities that make up the evil of Killhouse. This season will continue the player’s efforts to bring a close to the story of Tabitha, one way or another.

Last season, Tabitha saw a challenge unlike any other as players stood up to the Warden of Prudence Penitiary in the middle of a public Gauntlet in May. They also passed a vote at the Stakeholder’s Meeting and held an armed negotiation with the Warden to step down from her post at the prison. Now, Tabitha hasn’t been seen in months, but it seems like her influence has not waned at all. How can you deal with a threat that is no longer as easy to find in her seat of power at prison? How can the concept of law and order survive in a society where death is not the end, and the violence of the zombie apocalypse renders folks hard and heartless?

The Crystal Candy Question

Crystal Candy seems innocuous enough at first. An easy to purchase Gizmo, capable of a cheap Mind restore available to characters with the Skill Criminal Influence. It’s a well designed item mechanically, as it is very useful when you first start out in a game of Dystopia Rising, but becomes less useful as you gain more ways to use your Resolve. It’s a cheap and effective item, and has remained a solid source of trade and regaining lost Mind points since the start of 3.0.

However, it was revealed that the primary way to “create” the drug is through the painful and deadly harvesting of psionic crystals from the very brains of kidnapped and exploited psions. Several Law Dogs even died during a raid on a “Candy Shoppe”, a temporary chop shop and charnel house set up to harvest the drug from helpless psions. Last season, the San Saba Board put their foot down, passing a law that makes the drug illegal throughout the Territories. In fact, this season you can’t even BUY the item from the Buy List any more (at least via the Post Office…).

However, opponents suggest that the vaguely worded new law could be a slippery slope to pursuing psions themselves as illegal. While the question of ethics has always been murky or crystal clear regarding the drug depending on who you talk to, this season will see the consequences of the war on Crystal Candy. How will the criminal underworld react, and will they chose to find new and more dangerous ways to create illegal substances to sell, or will they continue with business as usual?

Characters of Note (Season 4)

Like we did last season, we want to introduce a few new faces and remind you of a few characters of importance during Season 4. I’ve included some images of most of them, so hopefully you recognize a friend-shape in the mix. Two faces on here are the same as last season, but are still important in their own and unique ways.

Felicity Redfield, CEO of the RAILROAD CONGLOMERATE

As she was born into a lesser Pureblood House before the Hiway War, following its conclusion, Felicity Redfield found herself in a unique position of power. As one of the few remaining members of the extended Lineage League, Felicity used what remained of her clout and dowry to form the Railroad Conglomerate and spent the ugly, irradiated years following the Hiway War building train-tracks across what is now the Greater San Saba. 

Her crowning achievement is the settlement of New Bravado, which she owns down to the rocks the city is built on, followed shortly thereafter by the creation of The Iron Ox; a locomotive of monolithic proportions, designed to endure the threats of the Greater Wastes as it trucks goods between settlements at speed.  The tracks of the RRC Oxline stretch further each day as the influence of the rail system continues to grow. Felicity has spearheaded “delves” into the uncharted ruins underneath Bravado in search of some unknown goal, using resources found beneath to fund future endeavors.

Deeply motivated to create a more magnificent future in her image, Felicity is a founding member of the San Saba Board. Despite multiple assassination attempts this last year, Felicity’s can-do attitude and plucky persistence is symbolic of both the spirit of the Lone Star and the citizens of Bravado. Her company, thanks to a merger in 04” PHW, still retains two of the six votes needed to change San Saba Law, and her alliance with the Junkerpunks has ensured that only a tie-breaking vote from the Chair can prevent most of her efforts from passing. Though she has not always seen eye to eye with the Board and the Chairman, her ambition has continued to reap dividends for the RRC.

Tabitha St. Mercy, Former Warden of Killhouse

Tabitha St. Mercy, former Warden of Prudence Penitentiary (more frequently known by its moniker of “Killhouse”) is seen frequently in the company of her pet killers, the Lifers of the XXX Wing. This Retrograde Hedon is pragmatic, business-like, and always happy to make a deal. Tabitha St. Mercy can still offer a variety of social contracts. Need some unwanted parties disappeared? The sick, the broken, the marginally useful? Send them to Killhouse Prison! For a nominal fee, the former Warden is all too happy to cut out your blighted parts of society and relocate them behind tall walls where they can be used for her own means. Greed is her only master, and as she has lost power in Bravado and lost face on the San Saba Board, this impulse for restitution has only intensified. 

Tabitha is still a voting member of the San Saba Board and a supremely influential person in the Territories, though she has been recently suspended of her duties on the Board by the Chairman.  Each year after the great Indulgence, she gathers up her errant Lifers and returns them to the Prison, but each year she asks for them to be taken alive, not dead. With her no longer in power at Killhouse, it remains to be seen what will happen during the Indulgence this year. What will happen when the former master of Killhouse is no longer chained to her station?

The Rook, psion terrorist

The Rook is a powerful psion, marked by a massive growth of psionic crystal emerging from her forehead and left eye. Made infamous by a recent attack on the city of Essex, this powerful psion is a mysterious and mostly unknown threat to the San Saba. Branded as a terrorist and criminal, the Rook has been hell bent on going on the offensive to protect aberrants from any threat, real or perceived.

She has led several successful raids on Crystal Candy Shoppes of the San Saba, which both makes her a vigilante rival to the Law Dogs, but earns grudging respect from those she has freed or that are familiar with the horrors of the confectioner’s trade. Her message is divisive, but she speaks a truth to power in a way that few can ignore. Her stated ultimatum and goal is to not only give the San Saba a chance to protect the helpless and exploited, but to push them to do it in the only way she will accept. She is a vocal and outspoken opponent of the new laws against Crystal Candy, foretelling an escalation of “justice” that will turn on her people, those capable of wielding the dangerous powers of psionics.

The Rook is not a reasonable person, and is a general force of chaos despite generally enacting what could be considered by some as noble behaviors. However, the echoes and reminders of former vigilantes in the Lone Star’s past like Four or Sparrow cannot be ignored or forgotten. The recent violence in Essex has split her following, with some branding her a murderer of innocents like the others, while others insist that she was framed by her enemies in the government of the San Saba Board itself.

Adam Moriarty, The spider

The former Lifer and spy master has been named the new Warden of Prudence Pententiary in the wake of Tabitha stepping down from the post. Hand chosen by the former Warden, Moriarty is a known as the Spider of Prudence Penitentiary. Moriarty is a criminal influence in his own right. He deals in information, buying, selling, and trading, and always has a scheme under way.

Adam is a Tellingvisionary, and a member of the Nemesis Cult. He fashions himself after his namesake, looking for a worthy Adversary. When he finds this Adversary, he will do everything he can to destroy them, secretly hoping this will be the one who challenges him and perhaps rises above. Despite his faith, Adam has been considered one of the more “reasonable” Lifers.

No one knows where Adam comes from. He is a Pure Blood, but the family he claims is not one local, and no local families claim to know him. He claims his family came across the great sea a generation or two back, and that he had to remove them from his life. The smile he makes when he says that makes people think they did not live.

The Eightfold Mother

During the last Collection Day, the former leader of the Grave Council, Takheeta Firstborn died while attempting to cure the morgues of the San Saba. Takheeta was barely sane at the end and in the shattered psyche of the Gravemind, the shards of her and her acolytes combined into something terrible. Her machinations, zeal, and ambition in life would bleed into what is known as a Gravemind Shard — a manifestion of personality, id, and ego with all the powers of the undead hordes the Mortis Amaranthine could create. Takheeta needed what she sought most in her life and her journey on the Quiet Path — balance.

A lone and quiet voice reminded them of the sacrifice of Eight, a young and brave resident of Bravado. He was strong, resolute. He was determined. He could be the soldier to keep the tainted energies of Takheeta in check. He had emerged in the darkness, volunteering life, Infection, and their very being to save the town, to save the San Saba, and to provide some measure of balance to the Grave Mind. The sacrifice of Eight was redirected by the Cantankerous Matrix, becoming a way to contain the final energies that was formerly Takheeta to form a stable Gravemind Shard, their combined strength balancing out the inequity of that pairing.

The new presence in the Gravemind has been called “The Eightfold Mother” by the fanatics of the Grave Council, but they promise that the Shard remains dormant. However, the recently deceased all speak of a voice in the darkness of the Gravemind — a voice that reminds them of home and beckons them to stay with her. Small shrines to the Eightfold Mother are common now in Bravado, but are quickly cleared away by Groundskeepers and Graverobbers, intent on keeping the slumbering presence and her new followers in check.

Wrap Up

That’s it for today, Vados! I hope you enjoyed the sneak peek into the story this season. There’s so much to be excited for, from a collection of overarc stories written by our talented Storytellers, our first live National Game of 3.0 - THE NECROPHAGE, and a killer premiere game in December. We can’t wait to start Season 4 off with a bang!

There’s a few more characters of note left to be seen, but we’ll save some of them for a later post as the season continues. See you next week, as we get ready for our last teasers for the game, in the rules you need to know in your journey to the VALLEY OF FEAR!

What's New for Season 4?

It’s Jonathan here again with another Wednesday Rules Ramble! Each week, I’ll introduce a topic that will be important in an upcoming game, explain some new mechanic or system for DR:TX, or discuss a particular rule from the DR Corebook. In each ramble, I’ll focus on explaining that topic in more detail than the book alone can provide and help provide one place to reference all the various errata or rulings that might be relevant. Sometimes I’ll even drop a few Story Teasers or provide a summary of the last game in a Game Recap.

We still have tickets on sale for our next event VALLEY OF FEAR! We hope you can make it out for our season opener!!!

Today’s blog post will focus on the CHANGES we’ve made for Season 4, particularly when it comes to new rules and features of our game!

Changes for Season 4

We tried a LOT of new things last year. We introduced Work Orders, Supply Orders, formalized some rules for joining our Factions, published some Local Rules & Mechanics including the infamous Leviathan Salts, ran Submarine mods, had our first encounter with the Archons, and we just ran one of our busiest seasons in DR:TX so far.

It was a lot of changes overall, so this season might seem a little tame in retrospect but it’s really about REFINING what we’ve done so far. These might not be huge changes, but it’s part of our process of continuous improvement!

New Site Layout

Last year, the Morgue got moved around a lot. Some of it was related to plot, but it was also about trying to find the best way to setup the perfect “black box” experience. If you attended our game in April for COLLECTION DAY, you got to experience the Near Death. We set up this morgue in the hallway behind the Kitchen, between the Depot and the Dusthouse. It has a regular source of electricity for cool lighting and sound effects, it’s pretty climate controlled for those hot months, and it’s pretty central to the game space. Based on the success of that game, we decided to double down on the convenience of the breezeway and just move the Morgue there permanently.

Additionally, the Library & Research Center we had set up in the Depot will be relocating to the General Store instead, rebranded as the LDU Library (Law Dog Union). This new space will allow you to more easily receive answers on Research questions, as well as give a different social point for our book nerds in the game.

Lastly, those players that need MED SLEEP have an option for sleeping at the Wigwam cabin, aka DOGRUN. This location is primarily aimed at folks that need electricity for things like a CPAP machine, but it’s first come, first serve. During our National Event, we’ll have a few more rules for this to keep it fair for our travelers, but for now this is our primary cabin for those that need Medical accomodations. This cabin will NOT be attacked at night, so if you are looking for the thrill of a survival horror, I’d recommend seeking out a different location to sleep.

If you don’t actually need physical accomodations, but still want to be able to sleep undisturbed, you can now simply request Med Sleep during your Check-In from Aesa & the team. We will write this note on your character sheet, so that means you can sleep in whichever cabin you like! Ideally, this will help conserve spots in Wigwam for those that need it most, while also taking care of our players that need to avoid random cabin raids at night.

We’ve updated the maps below and on our site with the changes:

New Local Mechanics & Rules

We introduced some new Local Plot Cards last year, including some illegal substances and a few unique items. We also codified all of this on our website, and I’ve been hard at work updating our public rules of note for our players and travelers to DR:TX. Here’s a few links worth familiarizing yourself with:

• Skill Buy Lists

• Check In Skills

• Local Rules & Skills

• Local Diseases

• Local Zones of Mechanics

• Local Blueprints & Items

• Research Rules for DR:TX

• Lexicon & National Mechanics

A few changes of note:

• The custom DR:TX diseases of Gutscourge and The Plague of the Unfinished are officially in remission and decline. These diseases will no longer risk appearing in game thanks to the efforts of players last season. Great job!

• Grave Ash and Grave Pigment have been removed from our local items. We are going to focus in on a few of the more popular drugs this season, along with a continuing story about Crystal Candy in the VALLEY OF FEAR.

• Speaking of Crystal Candy, the Criminal Influence list has been… modified. You can no longer purchase Crystal Candy from the Post Office, as it has been banned in the San Saba Territories as our our May event. However, you can still purchase the illegal item during the planned Criminal meetings if you know who to talk to..

• For those that didn’t attend travel games and are worried about finding a Blueprint that just got released, we have the new Redfield Invention Exchange, a permanent Zone of Mechanics set up in the General Store. This ZOM will allow you to generate a blueprint of your choice once per game, provided you give us a silly picture and spend a Resolve. Environmental Storytelling!

• Last year, we used a new Threat Skill called “Object of Veneration”, particularly during our BLOOD FEAST event. This call has been cleaned up and rebranded as COMPULSION. Same great taste, same great flavor — just a new packaging! I have a feeling this mechanic will come up during our National event, THE NECROPHAGE…

• Lastly, we have a new mechanic called “San Saba Social”. This is a unique type of Zone of Mechanics that is brought into play by our new Faction Buy Lists. This ability puts into play a Zone of Mechanics at the General Store that EVERYONE can access and use, but it only lasts for THREE HOURS. However, it can be REPLACED by someone else putting a different San Saba Social into play, but watch out because that’s a CvC action that might earn you a violent visit from an angry competitor.

That gets us into the next big change:

Faction Buy Lists & New Work Orders

Last year we introduced some updated Faction Buy Lists and Work Orders for interacting with the various factions of San Saba. We asked for feedback, and heard you loud and clear. Shan & I recruited the help of Sam Mars, the original designer of the Faction Buy Lists at the start of 3.0. Sam helped me kind of “remix” our ideas into the best of the best, and I’m proud to show off the newest version of the rewards you can gain by working with the Factions of the Lone Star.

• Faction Buy Lists

Inspired in part by the great work our friends up in DR:NY have put into play, we wanted to revisit some of the items on the Faction lists. We had a few popular items on the list that people purchased regularly but by and large most folks didn’t really interact with the Faction Buy Lists. The new design philosophy you’ll see in these lists is a focus on environmental storytelling, and giving some big game-changing abilities to those that invest in a particular faction.

In general, the Basic tier items are focused on powerful and fun abilities for the individual that uses them. You’ll see that most of these are short term, single use items that require having the appropriate Society Membership. The Proficient tier is focused on buffs and effects that impact other people in your crew or faction and not necessarily yourself, and the final Master tier items are indeed paradigm shifts that will change entire stories. We want to reward those of y’all that bought in (sometimes literally) to the factions last season, and give folks this year a few new things to strive for.

An oft overlooked rule about the Buy Lists last year will be even more important now:

A CHARACTER MAY ONLY BUY ONE ITEM PER EVENT FROM EACH LEVEL THEY CAN ACCESS, NO MATTER HOW MANY DIFFERENT FACTIONS THEY REPRESENT.

That means if you buy that new super sweet Law Dog brew during our September game, you won’t be able to purchase the new Eye of Justice item from Killhouse. You gotta make a choice (and really come to terms with how you can support two opposite teams!)

Special note for the fans of the former Buy Lists: If you had a few items you loved on the previous lists that you don’t see here anymore, stay tuned cause I think you might see them again in a new and improved Blueprint form very soon…

• CONTRACTOR WORK ORDERS

Last season, Aesa and I designed a Starter Work Order as a way to create some story telling opportunities for new players. It was wildly successful, and each game we had 20+ work orders turned in to the Post Office. This Work Order gave you a monetary reward for completing various role playing tasks or exploring our site. It was designed as kind of a “silent ST” that could encourage players to do the four pillar behaviors of the Dystopia Rising game we found most rewarding - combat, role play, economy, and CvC. Later during the season, we also introduced Faction Work Orders, and eventually Supply Orders, created by our very own Andrew Harper.

However, it wasn’t without a few pitfalls. Some of the Faction Work Orders were VERY popular, but others were a bit confusing or sometimes hard to complete if a certain kind of monster never showed up in play. It could be impossible to complete if it was a weekend that had little to no Raiders, for instance. Others required Skills that a player may not have had, and it was just a poor experience all around. Additionally, the Work Orders required a LOT of yellow scavenger hunt pages to be posted, and it was a pain to hang up during the busy time before game on.

So, with the help of Sam, this season we’ve adjusted our old Starter Work Order and Faction Work Orders into the new CONTRACTOR WORK ORDER, which I’ll show you an example of below:

You can see the whole thing on our website as well (as well as the other rules), but this will be the new replacement for Work Orders going forward into Season 4.

Some notable features of this new Work Order:

• You don’t have to complete all of the tasks on this Work Order. Finish as many tasks as you like, but remember you can only turn in the Contractor Work Order ONCE per game, per character.

• Many of the tasks reward you for having a particular common Skill, by either reducing the time the RP task takes or providing an easier way to complete the challenge. These are all things even a brand new character could have, so you can complete one of these starting on Game 1!

• The task that requires you to kill monsters is now more general, meaning ANY threat will work, not a specific type of zed or raider. Get out there and protect the town!

• The Scavenger Hunt tasks will no longer have a ZOM that you are looking for in the field, and those that took time to learn Basic Awareness can even save themselves a trip to the lake!

• One of the tasks even rewards you for participating in the amazing food culture of the DR:TX game, so treat yourself to a tasty snack while also completing a Work Order!

• This is also a second way to earn a Blueprint choice, meaning a character can acquire TWO new Blueprints by participating in this mechanic, along with the Redfield Invention Exchange. This should give you a way to catch up on the over 80 new prints in play since our last season.

I’m excited to see what you think of these new additions to the game, so if you have any feedback on potential changes let us know!

That’s it for this week! Next week will dive a bit into the story of the season and some faces to look out for in our tiny town of Bravado. See you soon Vados!