Divine Knowlegde (rules Q&A)

[Ouroboros]

Scion: Apokálypsis

Apocalypse? The end of the world? No. Apokalypsis, the Greek root for apocalypse, meaning "lifting the veil", is a term applied to the disclosure to certain privileged persons of something hidden from the majority of humankind. Basically the revelation that the gods and titan exist and that one of your parents was a divine being.

What's with the funky Greek spelling? My intent is that it will help to remind us that this is not an "end of the world" story so much as it is a game about finding out who and what you are. Scion is as much about finding and making your place in the world/mythos as it is about kicking ass and taking names.

What's the setting? Geographically we'll be in Boston and eastern Massachusetts. For my part I'll likely make use of the rest of New England as well, but I encourage players to go out into the larger world as well. As far as the world goes ... its now, the world is that same as ours, the economy sucks, the President is being assailed for being ineffective after less than six months, and, oh yeah, the Titans have broken free from their prison and are waging war on the Gods.

Can I play a Demigod or God? No. At this time there will be a cap on Legend of 4. You can squirrel away experience for that 5th dot and Demigod status but until I break the seals you just can't seem to gather enough Ichor to make the jump in power. That said I encourage people to start with Legend 2 and allow themselves to grow from an unknown Scion into a fledgling Demigod.

I want to play an old dude! Good for you, there are plenty of other games where you can go complain about dentures and healthcare. Scions are young and vital, visitation happens in the late teens maybe as late as 20. After char gen for each dot of Legend beyond 1 you should be able to explain at least a years worth of heroic deeds and adventuring that has caused your Legend Rating to grow. So if you want to start at Legend 4 be prepared to have some good background or be asked to pare down your power.

I want to be a Scion of ... Any pantheon in the Scion material is fine with the exception of the Atlantean, Yankee, Axis, and Ally pantheons from the Companion. Additionally no Fan Made pantheons or Gods, there's more than enough choice in the books.

Can I be a Titanspawn? No.

Can I use Boon/Relic/Creature/etc. XYZ from Book ABC? At this time we will be using the following Scion Books: Hero, Demigod, God, Companion, and Ragnarök as resources for this game. For anything cribbed from a book other than the Hero core rules please reference the Book and Page where the entry can be found. This will help me stay sane as I am still trying to familiarize myself with this game.

Geasa ... cool! Hold up there bub. Members of the Tuatha Dé Dannan may NOT choose their own Bans when creating their geasa. The STs will find something appropriately mean for you. Yes we are meanies.

Edited:[God X]'s Kid keeps bugging me. Can I kick his ass and take his toys? You bet. Scions are going to clash (even if we STs need to make it happen), especially when it comes to Scions of your Patron's Rival. PvP will be very real and players will be able to kill each other and steal each other's Relics.

Consent:

The issue of PvP Consent will be dealt with in the following way. Players will be given (or denied) consent to P-Kill another player (or Kill a PC's Follower, Guide, Creature, or to steal/destroy a Relic) by the Storyteller(s). If a player's character wants to kill a PC they must contact the Storytellers and provide their IC reasons and stories WHY they are out for mortal blood. If the STs agree that the PC has justification to be out for a kill they will be given consent and the STs will work with both players to create a ST moderated plot (or modify a current fiction into a ST moderated plot). Success/failure will still hinge upon the character's plans abilities and dice rolls.

For all non-lethal combat, consent is assumed and ST consent need not be obtained. Players should talk to each other and determine if the combat needs to be adjudicated by a ST or not themselves. Non lethal combat may cause temporary loss of a Birthright but not permanent loss (that requires ST consent). Beat down your fellow Scions all you want, but if you wish to end their legend you need to speak to the STs.

Edited: My mommy says I can't play big boy/girl games. Is this a big boy/girl game? Yes, Scions fight hard and play hard.

I'm a touch confused about X, what should I do? You can ask your fellow players, the ST(s), or check WW's official FAQ found HERE.

How do Bonus Points work when buying Boons? OK Boons bought with BPs cost 5 (or 4 if favored) Bonus Points per dot. For General Purviews this means you take the value/rank of the boon and mutiply by the cost above. For Specialty Purviews and Pantheon Specific Purviews which must be bought in order the cost works just like a skill or attribute.

Example: Bob wants the 3 dot War Boon. He has no other War boons and it is not one of his Parent's purviews. He pays 15 Bonus Points for that boon.

Example: Kelly wants the 2 dot Animal Boon. Animal is a purview of her parent. It costs her 8 BPs to purchase.

Example: Theo, a Scion of Thor, wants to have Jotunblut 3, but he did not allocate any dots to it already. He pays 4 BPS for rank 1, 4 BPS more for rank 2, and 4 BPs more for rank 3. The total cost would be 12 BPs.

Do the bonus dice from Arete or Geasa for the Athletics ability apply to DV? I'm going to rule that they do not. My logic being that DV is not rolled and Arete/Geasa grants bonus dice, re-rolls, or auto sux to Ability Rolls. If anybody locates and can provide an official answer to that question (either supporting or supplanting my ruling) we will abide by said Official answer.

Do we send PCs to you for approval or just post em'? How we doin' this? Please bear with me for just a touch longer. Once I confirm the ASTs (Assistant Storytellers) I will ask that you submit your character sheets to all of us for review. In the meantime please standby just a bit longer.

[Ouroboros]

So how the hell is this game going to work anyways? This game will be an "open world ST driven PBP" game. You will be free to create and write fictions as well as participate in ST driven stories. Threads will take 3 basic forms; Fiction, fully scripted with no dice rolling and no ST involvement; IC, partially scripted by one or more players, dice rolling as standard with ST moderation of dice (this is the default for any lethal or nonlethal PVP between hostile parties); Plot, any thread being fully run by a ST.

You will get out of this game what you put in, the more you write the more other players and the ST will have to work with involving your character.

Players can distinguish the type of thread by the Tag on the title [Fic], [iC], or [Plot].

Edit: All Fictions and IC threads will be on a voluntary participation basis. The exception is IC threads involving ST moderated PvP which will be compulsory between the target and aggressor. The ST driven Plot threads will be voluntary though a ST may approach a player and request that they participate through the PC's Divine Parent.

Edit 2: It should go without saying but any stories involving Titanspawn, Demigods, or Gods need to be IC or PLOT threads and use full dice. Gods ALWAYS require ST moderation.

[Ouroboros]

How do I round fractions? Fractions are always rounded UP for Scions (actually for anything with a legend rating) and rounded DOWN for mortals.

[Ouroboros]

Detecting Other Legendary Beings

We'll be using the optional sidebar on page 57 of the Scion Companion. All Creatures with a Legend score have the "Scent the Divine" Knack for free and it is always on.

For those without that book know that any time your PC SEES another Divine being they will be able to smell and/or hear a distinctive scent/sound that identifies them as divine and what Pantheon. Note that Adopted Scions smell/sound like the Pantheon of their birth until they reach Demi-god at which point either the scent or smell changes to match their adopted pantheon. At God they are now fully composed of Ichor and fully integrated into their Divine Pantheon. Also note that this is not so specific as to identify the divine parent specifically except in rare cases.

Pantheon - Scent and Possible Sound

• Aesir - Burning amber, with a snap of electricity
• Amatsukami - Cherry blossoms, with a roaring wave
• Atzlánti - Fresh blood, accompanied by the sound of a heartbeat
• Celestial Bureaucracy - Ink and old paper, with a sound of rustling silk
• Devas - Incense, with a low humming
• Dodekatheon - Olives in hot air, with a murmuring crowd
• Loa - Rum and tobacco, with a drumbeat
• Pesedjet - Dry dust and sand, with a sound of wind
• Tuatha Dé Dannan - Fresh grass and clover, with a sound of creaking wood

Edit: If you already submitted a PC with this Knack choose and new one and let the mods know

[Ouroboros]

MAP

If you have something you want added to the map let me know where it is and what description you want and I will add it on.

[Ouroboros]

MORTAL KOMBAT! (or how to get your ass beat and still look good)

Combat will be run as follows in IC and Plot threads (Fics are diceless and thus need no rules for combat). Please us the spoiler code for all your OOC combat details.

• ST rolls Join Battle (JB) or asks for players to roll JB. Your Starting tick is [Reaction Count] minus your sucesses (minimum 0)
• Combat starts on the lowest kick off tick. In the case of ties on ANY tick the higher JB goes first, for tied JB values compare Epic Wits and then Baseline Wits.
• Describe your action in an entertaining way.
• State your attack and roll, ST will post DV value for the NPC combatants. If you hit roll your damage and determine damage after soak. State if you are using Willpower or Legend.
• Note the damage that you did AND the speed of your attack and the next tick you will act in. KEEP A RUNNING COUNT OF TICKS, i.e. rather than going from 7 back to 0 as in the book we will continue to count upwards.
• Note any changes to your DV, WP and Legend pools as needed in your post.
• Combat continues to the next person and the process repeats

What about stunts? Actions sufficiently cool enough will earn you stunt bonuses on your NEXT attack.

How are we rolling dice? Beta Chat or Invisible Castle

[Ouroboros]

How do we regain lost WP and Legend?

In addition to the usual methods of upholding your nature and virtues or performing a bad ass stunt you will regain 2 WP points each chronological week on Sunday. In general you needn't worry about heavy bookkeeping unless you are using a lot of WP or you don't have much to spend in the first place.

Legend pools will be assumed to be full at the start of any Plot or IC thread unless noted by the ST as continuing from a prior thread. During threads where you spend Legend keep track at the bottom of your post (either in spoiler box or using an italicized OOC statement).