[Scarlet Heroes] Sample Character

The Scarlet Heroes KS is over, and I felt like trying out the character generation rules, so I drew up my first Scarlet Heroes player character.

Swarthy Lee has had a tough life. He is one of the Shou, the original inhabitants of the distant Sunset Isles that have been dispossessed of their lands, and pushed ever further west into the more inhospitable parts of the islands by the colonists. He has learnt how to eke out a living selling his sword or his skills at ambushing his employer's foe or sneaking unnoticed into the mansion of his employer's rival. However, what Swarthy Lee likes above all is working by and for himself looking for forgotten treasures in the many ruins that dot the islands. As a native, Swarthy Lee is able to survive on a diet of roots and insects for quite a long time; this doesn't mean, however, that he does not enjoy the fine food available in the eastern cities. Swarthy Lee would also be able to pass as a human, were it not for his facial tattoos.

Swarthy Lee

STR 14 (+1)
INT 15 (+1)
DEX 16 (+2)
WIS 12 (+0)
CON 13 (+1)
CHA 10 (+0)

Race: Shou-Blooded
Class: Thief

HP: 5
Armour Class: 5 
Attack Bonus: +1
Fray Die: 1D6

Abilities:
- May use any armour
- Can wear leather armour but no shield
- Weapon: any, but limited to 1D8 dmg

Traits:
- Archetype, Fearless Ruin Explorer: 3
- Resist the Red Tide: 2
- Forgettable Face: 1
- Wiry: 1
- Well-travelled: 1

Wealth
46 gold coins

Equipment
Bow (Dmg: 1D8)
Quiver w/20 arrows
Sword (Dmg: 1D8)
Leather Armour
Backpack + Tools
Narcotic drugs, 10 doses

Weather in China

After my post about using weather dice it is only natural that I should write one about weather in China.

China being a vast empire, a discussion about her weather will have to be apportioned among her various regions. Using the nomenclature from map No.2 on p28 of The Celestial Empire, the regions are:
 - North China -  with cold, dry winters, and hot, humid summers. The annual precipitation is concentrated heavily in summer.
 - Gānsù - as North China, but with drier summers.
 - Sìchuān and Lower Yángzi - hot summer with heavy rainfall, short but cold winter, little sunshine overall.
 - South China - winters are short, mild, and relatively dry, while summers are long, hot, and very wet.

Despite the dramatic differences, the GM may apply the usual four-season distinction (as in Europe) to determine weather, especially with regards to the 1- v 2-die mechanism described in my earlier post:
 - Spring: March to May
 - Summer: June to August [except in South China: April to September]
 - Autumn: September-October
 - Winter: November to February [except where indicated as 'short' above, in which case it's December to February]

This four-season distribution doesn't hold true any longer with areas outside China proper, such as the tropical south, the subarctic north, or the Tibetan Plateau.

Weather Dice

In my olden days, I used to like long, complicated tables (like these) for weather generation. Now I am more in favour of quick-and-easy methods for pretty much everything when I'm GMing, including weather generation.

I had bought a 'weather die' such as the one depicted on the left to generate weather when GMing, but it soon turned out that it was yielding results that were (a) too simple, and (b) often inappropriate for a given season.

So what I did, I bought a second 'weather die'. And I believe the combination of the two 'weather dice' is now giving satisfactory results.

If you do not have such a pair of dice (they're about £1 each in most shops), you can use 2D6 but it is going to be less fun. Let us describe the faces, and let us number them 1 to 6, for those who do not have the weather dice.

1= Overcast.
2= Snowstorm.
3= Thunderstorm.
4= Rainstorm.
5= Partly Cloudy.
6= Fair.

The illustration above shows the Raining (4), Partly Cloudy (5), and Fair (6) faces of the 'weather die'.

Use Of The Weather Dice to Determine Weather
Now, depending on the season you will use 1 or 2 weather dice.

Spring
Use 1 weather die only. Read the results as rolled, except Snowstorm (2) is replaced with Monsoon.

Summer
Use 2 weather dice and choose the "nicer" result, e.g., if you roll Partly Cloudy (5) and Fair (6), then choose Fair (6).
If you roll two 2's, then replace Snowstorm (2) with Hailstorm.

Autumn
Use 1 weather die only. Read the results as rolled, except Snowstorm (2) is replaced with Drizzle.

Winter
Use 2 weather dice and choose the "worse" result, e.g., if you roll Partly Cloudy (5) and Fair (6), then choose Partly Cloudy (5).

Scarlet Heroes Kickstarter

I am wary of Kickstarter projects now. Most projects are late or haven't delivered, and I prefer the time-proven tranquillity of the product that has been written and playtested by its author before it eventually hits the shelves of my FLGS. I know, I'm old-fashioned.

However, I did back the Scarlet Heroes Kickstarter project, and for several reasons.

First and foremost, because of the south-east Asian setting. Second, because Sine Nomine Publishing has a solid history of delivering on time. Third, because I am curious of the sandbox tools, of the "adventure tags", and of the one-on-one gaming rules that will be part of Scarlet Heroes.

Happy Year of the Horse!

Tomorrow is the first day of the new Chinese year. It is going to be a Wood Horse year (31st in the sexagenary cycle, see page13 of The Celestial Empire). It will be a yáng year.

I know the picture below is über-cheesy, but I simply couldn't resist. 新年快樂!

click to enlarge