Three New Layers for My Shadowdark World Building

Hello Game Master and happy Super Wolf Moon!

In these parts, it’s the first full moon of the year (wolf) and Luna is at perigee (super). Snowing here in the morning darkness, so I can’t see it. But the clouds sure are bright. It’s great getting mooned on a Friday.

This week I started prepping a Shadowdark campaign. And I’ve been thinking about adding three things to my new setting:

  • Masks
  • Tattoos
  • Cosmology

Why?

Masks for intrigue, status cues, and social conflict. I want masks to be part of normal society so identities become mysterious, and players will need to engage more to find out who they’re dealing with.

For example, in the high courts in Obsidian Invictus (the PCs’ home base city), nobles believe it’s indecent to show one’s bare face. Their masks are made of gold and platinum as proof of their superiority (because no poor folk could afford to own such things). The masks themselves communicate bloodlines.

Tattoos for more social cues and clues, faction play, but also as a new type of Shadowdark magic and treasure.

For example, new loot includes a needle of volcanic glass. When used with the right ink (a quest hook), it etches a tattoo that glows bright enough to confer darkvision for an hour each day.

Cosmology to me means star signs and sun signs as part of character and NPC generation. With added mechanics and setting support, I hope to weave these as important factors in the narrative.

For example, if born in the House of the Minotaur, you receive +1 to Strength, but animals find you unsettling. This is ok, but not quite hitting the note I’m looking for.

I’m now looking for sources of ideas for each of these to noodle on and build out in Campaign Logger.

I’ve got tattoos covered well by the Tome of Mystical Tattoos. It was given to me by the authors, and I finally had time to paw through it over the holidays. There’s a ton of fantastic ideas in this book.

For cosmology, I’ve got Astrological Alterations from Fantasy Wargaming by Bruce Galloway (pg 77) that modifies stats. But I want more meat on this bone.

And for masks, I’ve got nada. Questing for resources here too.

If you have any recommendations for cosmology and masks, please let me know.

By adding these three bits of world building, I aim to make my milieu deeper and more intriguing with new layers of NPC cues, clues, and conflicts for players to suss out.

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Changing topics for a moment, I want to give you a heads up that on Monday I start a cool new series of tutorials on dungeon map design for Platinum Wizards of Adventure.

I view my dungeon maps like game boards where I can get strategic and tactical with its denizens and design. I believe great maps should transform static crawls into living hells dungeons that challenge and reward smart gameplay. And these weekly tutorials will literally level up your designs.

Platinum Wizards, keep an eye out for your first tutorial on Monday.

And, dear game master, if you are not a Platinum Wizard of Adventure, become one today and begin your dungeon level design journey with me.

Cheers,
Johnn
roleplayingtips.com
https://discord.gg/6MxTRAqQ76
Have more fun at every game!

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