It's been a while. After the move I still have to successfully adjust my blogging habits to my new life. There have been great changes so far, and there are more to come, but I have not given up on this here thing. If you would like to to keep in touch with me outside this channel, please feel free to look me up on Facebook. If you have written an email to me, and gotten a response, you have my name. If not, feel free to poke me about it.
Though I have not posted much, I've been playing. Not as much as before, but still with relative stability. The latest, and most notable development, has been the addition of a new playable template.
A while ago I mentioned that I was really keen on getting my claws into a copy of the out-of-print Geist: The Sin-Eaters core book. The marvellous Loquacious, who owns my very Friendly, but not even remotely close to Local Game Store with her husband Dave, offered to help me out. Thus it was that a week ago I got mail. After having danced around like an absolute fool for a little, clutching the book to my breast, I sat down and started reading.
I. Love. It.
As is my way, I transplant the WoD templates into my own world, which means I usually have to do more than just file off the serial numbers. Mage: The Awakening, until now my main focus in this world, needed a lot of work, and still does. Nothing of the Atlantian fluff can be used, and since every thing else is built upon that hogwash, pretty much nothing but the raw rules have made it into my games. Not so with Geist.
They have a natural role in the world of Argos, especially following the death of the god of death, and the following Cthonic corruption of the Underworld, that occurred in the previous Chronicle. There are some minor changes that has to be made, but my new tome is essentially game-ready.
I still have a couple of questions regarding the crunch I need to deal with before I start running Geists. The most crucial concerns how the ten Keys and the seven Manifestations work. If a character has two of the former and three of the latter, can she use any Key with any Manifestation? This is the main magical ability of the Geist, so it is something I need to figure out quite quickly. Since I cannot seem to find a passage in the book that clears this up, I'll ask the White Wolf forum-community.
Apart from that little problem, I think I'm ready. At the moment, I'm working on a Geist NPC, and I intend to get that one posted shortly. Once I've run a session or two, I also hope to get a post out on my thoughts and reflections on the matter. And I have two or three other partially completed posts in my back-log as well. We'll see how fast I can get them up...
For now, live long, friends.
[Artist: John Wigley]
From pages 110, 111 as well as self determined "that makes sense"- You CAN do as you suggest. The only limit is that at any time, you can only have one key unlocking a manifestation at a time.
ReplyDeleteUsing passion and silent keys with rage, shroud and caul manifestations as examples.
You can use passion to unlock any you like, say rage, While it is active, you can't use the silent key for rage. You CAN use silent for caul or shroud.
You can even have 2 keys in use at a time, as long as they are not in the same manifestation.
And, I am glad you enjoy!
ReplyDeleteGlad to read that you are still gaming.
ReplyDelete@Loq: I never ended up actually posting the question. I read a few threads on the topic, then I sat down and marinated on the information I had, and then you confirmed it for me. Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteHave you actually played Geist?
@Whisk:
Oh, it takes more than a chnage of anything as trivial as continents to make me stop rocking the dice ;)
Harald- No, not personally. I'm trying to learn the system for my own development as a potential ST. Also, in the WOD game, TheBoy's longstanding character died, and he is introducing a new one-a Sin Eater. I'm helping him build his character, so I am learning the rules as I go along.
ReplyDeleteIt is a neat concept. I remember reading Wraith: The oblivion back in the day, and while it struck me as an awesome ST-resource, it was way too gloomy to play. This one has just the right amount of gloom 'n doom, mixed with some good old win.
ReplyDeleteVisited the local gaming-store today and found onw copy of Geist on the shelf. Considering what you have told me about it being out-of print, I bought it on the spot - 350 NOK seemed like a good deal, at least if you compare it to other games out there.
ReplyDelete@Bjoernar: Good on you! I, for one, rank it as the best game I've read in the last two years (though that's not saying much). I'm uncertain as to how it'll play as a stand-alone, but as an addition to the setting (be it vanilla WoD or smoething else), it is invaluable.
ReplyDeleteThere is also one copy available at www.spillsjefen.no for less than NOK 300, if I'm not mistaken. Get after it if you are in the marked for such goodness.