(Smitty is gonna love this.)

____

For the ven, the only weapon is the Sword. Everything else is a tool. Spears, bows, hammers, whatever. Everything else is a tool.

If you face an enemy and you have a Sword and your enemy does not, your enemy has the aspect “Tool.” You may tag it for two bonus dice by giving your opponent a style point.

This may only be done in a face-to-face fight. If someone fires a bow at you from 300 yards away, you may not invoke the Tool aspect.

____

(I love the asthetic of someone tossing a style point at another player and calling him a tool as he kicks his ass.

(Some days, it’s good to be the ven.) 

I’ve been dividing my time between game design and translation.

I’ve undertaken a great task. Translating an obscure ven pillowbook called The Great and Tragic Life of Shara Yvarai. I first read about it in college when studying Plato’s Republic. My research on Atlantis lead me to the ven, and ever since then, I’ve been collecting scraps and bits from various translations.

I’ve been using Duncan’s to translate it. A slow and demanding process, but I think I can publish my translation next year.

I just finished translating the patona: a ven literary tradition of giving the reader a brief foreshadowing moment of the ending at the beginning of the book. I thought I’d share.

 

I have a small sized group ready, but not a Crew. Need a Crew.

I’m heading out to LARP for specific reasons.

I want to find playtesters for the Houses Larp. I’m gonna need an enormous amount of people playing the game on a regular basis. The best way to do that is find a huge group.

I also want to have a crew go into a Larp with a critical eye. What systems work? What systems don’t work? What was neat? What made you so frustrated you wanted to eat someone’s head. A critical eye on player behavior, culture, and other elements so we can design a system to address all those problems.

Like killing any character that starts an unauthorized fight. Or the No Pets rule. Or the Helping Hand Heinig Rule. Those help facilitate a healthy play environment and discourage the wankers.

That’s what I really want. A game system that discourages wankers from wankery.

I know I can do it. I’ve already taken the right steps. We’re headed in the right direction, but we’re only part way there.

If you’d like to help, let me know. 

I’m waiting for you.

This chapter gives general guidelines for playing Houses in a live action environment. The rules are a little different, but basically the same. Let’s take a look at those basics.

Style
The most important change in the system is how players use style. Instead of using dice to determine random elements, we use style.
Before we get using style, let’s talk about how you bank it.

Like the table top game, you can bank a certain amount of style. The base for your style bank is, of course, the things you own.

Every ven can carry style based on what they are wearing.

•    If you show up to the game in regular old mundane clothes—a t-shirt and jeans, for example—you can carry a base of five style.
•    If you show up to the game with even part of a costume—a cool hat, boots, a sword, whatever—you can carry a base of seven style.
•    If you show up to the game in full costume, I’ll let you carry ten style.

That’s your base. When you show up to the game, I give you that much style, based on what you come to the show with. Full costume, ten style. Half a costume, seven. No costume five.

You can also bank the same number of style. In other words, if you get more style during the night, at the end of the game, you have to surrender any excess style.

As usual, items and Art can bank additional style for you. You have a rank 2 hat, you can bank two additional style at the end of the game. You have that same hat and a rank 1 Sword, I’ll let you bank three additional style.

And, of course, if someone tags or compels an aspect, you get one style.

A Liege’s Demand
At the beginning of each game session, your direct Liege can demand 1 style from you and each of your fellow Vassals. There’s really nothing you can do about it. Learn to live with it.

He doesn’t have to make the demand, but the option is always open. Also, if you are a Liege over other ven, you may make the same demand. Once per game, once per vassal.

Risks
To determine the outcome of risks, players still gather dice as usual, but instead of “dice,” we use the term “points.” Each die you would normally gain for a risk becomes a point.

Simple Risks
So, for a usual simple risk, gather points at you would check the following.

1.    Is your Name appropriate to the risk? If so, gain one point.
2.    Do you have the relevant Virtue? If so, gain a number of points equal to your rank in that Virtue.
3.    Do you have an appropriate Aspect? If so, gain three points.
4.    Can you tag another Aspect? If you can, gain two points.
5.    Can you invoke or tag any free Aspects? If so, gain another three or two points, as appropriate.
6.    Do you have any other bonuses? Romance, Items, etc. If so, gain an appropriate number of points.
7.    Once you’ve gathered all your points, you may now spend style to add to your total.

As long as your points beat the standard target number, you get to narrate the outcome of your risk. If you do not, the Game Master gets to narrate the outcome. Often times, a simple risk is a binary question. Yes or no. Did I unlock the lock? Did I jump the rooftop? Did I decode the cipher? These questions are answered by simple risks.

Any style you use for a risk are spent. Gone for the rest of the game.

Wagers
Using wagers is still pretty much the same. Each wager you make gives you more narrative control, adding an additional “yes, and…” to the outcome.

You can exchange four points for one wager. Any points you set aside for wagers do not apply to your total points.

Now, because live action games are generally player vs. player, you cannot use wagers to say something true about another player character ven. Just can’t do it. I already see people making endless Wisdom risks at their enemies, piling on irrelevant and damaging “facts.” Bad form.

Contested Risks
Contested risks are a little more complicated.

Use the same procedure as above. The ven with the most points wins the risk and may narrate the outcome. Also, the victor keeps all his wagers and the defeated keeps only half, rounded up.

Any style you use for a risk are spent. Gone for the rest of the game session.

Violence
Having been in a few live action clubs before, I’ve got an opinion on how to handle violence. Here’s how it works in my game.

Unapproved Violence

First, I assume most—if not all—games take place in a noble’s home or castle. That means a few dozen armed guards surround every scene. That means, if anybody starts any violence that is not approved by the owner of the house, the characters who start the violence get themselves killed.

As in die. No test. No risk. Nothing. Die.

The characters die at the hands of a few dozen armed guards specifically trained to kill anyone who starts unapproved violence.
So, just in case you didn’t hear me, this is the system for a character or a group of characters jumping someone else inside a castle where they do not have the approval for violence.

They die. That’s the mechanic.

Approved Violence
Now, approved violence is another matter. If you have the lord of the manor’s approval to whack someone on his own grounds, by all means go ahead and do so. You can use the very same rules for duels or Mass Murder you found in the Violence chapter, with a couple of modifications.

Duels
One on one fighting is pretty much the same.

1.    Gather points.
2.    Strike bid. Giving up points to go first.
3.    Secretly make wagers.
4.    Reveal remaining points. The highest total wins, keeping all his wagers. The defeated keeps half, rounded up.

Use the Maneuvers as usual, requiring two wagers each. Injuries are the same: aspects your opponents can tag.

Mass Murder
Like duels, Mass Murder uses pretty much the same mechanic, just substituting points for dice. Maneuvers still cost two style points from the ven using the Maneuver. Failure to dodge a successful attack results in a rank 5 Injury.

Other Rules
All the other mechanics in the game operate as usual. Anything that gives you more dice gives you more points. But a couple more rules for the “official” Houses of the Blooded live action game.

No Pets
Game Masters are forbidden from playing any characters, PCs or NPCs.

The most a GM can do at a game is create the illusion of servants. When players need to address a servant, they can turn to the GM, make a demand, and the GM responds accordingly.

Likewise, any assistants the GM may have may not have PCs of their own, but may only play inconsequential NPCs. Scenery. Backdrop characters. Servants and common folk.

The Heinig Rule: Everyone Helps
At every game, every player should have the opportunity to play an NPC, important or inconsequential. A bandit. Duke Xyvrost. An ork. The Lady of Shadows. Doesn’t matter. Every player can expect the GM to tap them on the shoulder and request you spend at least one fourth of the game as an NPC. Four hour game means you spend one hour playing an NPC.

The GM should assign a Goal to each NPC. Something the character needs to accomplish, either that night or down the road. Short term and long term Goals. If the player accomplishes the Goal for the NPC, great! He gets rewarded at the end of the game. If not, that’s okay. We still thank you with a lesser reward for putting aside your own character to help the GM run his game.

Rewards
At the end of a game session, players are rewarded with style points.

1 style point for playing your character.
1 additional style point for good sportsmanship.
1 style point for playing an NPC.
1 additional style point for obtaining an NPC’s short term Goal.
1 additional style point for obtaining an NPC’s long term Goal.

Jaymin Steele

 “Leave an enemy alive and he makes allies. Kill him and he makes a grave.”

House: Blooded of the Elk
Favored Virtue: Cunning
Titles: the Iron Heart, Winter’s Promise, the Ruthless

Jaymin Steele stands alone in the House of the Elk. A mountain of a man, standing a head above his brothers and sisters, he fought for the right to inherit his father’s lands, leaving bloodshed and tears behind him. It was he who first flew the banner that would eventually adorn the Senate: the Crest of the Elk.

He wore reputation like a crown. Those who plotted against him disappeared and those who aided him flourished. He was a Duke by the age of nineteen and an Archduke by the time he was twenty-five. His lands were unmatched in all of Shanri… and then it all went wrong.

Many operas have been written about the fall of Jaymin Steele, but none so stirring, so moving as The Autumn. A deceptively simple title, but a profoundly disturbing work. After establishing the largest domain in all of Shanri, after dispatching all his enemies, after consolidating the Senate’s power under his thumb… Steele lost his heart to a woman. The widow of his deadliest enemy. Blooded of the Fox. She beguiled him. Entranced him.

And very slowly, she began a delicate and beautiful Revenge.

Demonstrating the patience of a spider, she unmade everything he had built. Turned allies into enemies. Disrupted his trade. Sabotaged his every plan. But her greatest Revenge was at the end.

When she left him, he was on his knees, begging her not to leave. She did not need to kill him. She made Jaimyn Steele beg. That was enough.

Months of long solitude followed. Living off the charity of family—for he had no friends—he spent most of his life under the shadow of despair. But when Revenge finally found his own eyes, what followed was perhaps the most perfect example of vengeance in all of ven literature.

Symbol

Steele’s symbol is the Elk, a crossed Sword and dagger behind the antlers. The Sword symbolizing the conquering Elk, the dagger representing the consequence of betrayal.

Blessings

Steele’s Blessings represent his life. He never acted on his own, but bent the wills of others to accomplish his goals. His hands were always clean of blood… until the very end. 

2,351: Introduction
33,459: Shanri & the Ven
9,471: Character
6,161: Risk
10,15: Virtues
9,163: Aspects
7,501: Violence
2,362: Poison
2,788: Romance
16,189: Seasons
4,883: Sorcery
8,292: Suaven
9,084: Player
7,920: GM

That’s a little more than 120,000 words. And I’m not quite done. I suspect the book will be closer to 200k. Lots to write for the GM and Player chapters and I have to tighten up a few of the earlier chapters.

Back to the writing.

The release of Houses will be postponed until April, at the GAMA Trade Show. That’s four additional months of waiting.

I apologize, but trust me when I say, the delay is for a very good reason I can’t quite talk about just yet.

I will be releasing something in November to make up for it. Trust me (again), you’ll be very happy with it.

Why don’t weapons add to my dice? 

Ask yourself this question: Is Vin Diesel’s character Riddick most lethal with… 

a) a knife 
b) a sword 
c) a pistol 
d) his bare hands, or 
e) I’d rather not fight him at all, thank you very much 

Never forget the Riddle of Steel. 

A Puzzle House provides no Resources for you, but it does add one rank to any Parties you throw there. Puzzle Houses can hold any rank of Party, even rank 5 Parties.

A Puzzle House is difficult to navigate, requiring a contested Wisdom risk against the House. The House always rolls six dice for the risk. Ven roll against the House as soon as they try exploring its twisting, turning halls.

If the ven wins the roll, he may use his wagers to remember how to get to specific rooms. The House loses half its wagers, but may use those wagers to force the ven to get lost in the halls during a Story. this means the House can force the ven to any room it chooses, regardless of the ven’s intention.

If the House wins, the same rules apply above, but reversed. The ven loses half his wagers, but may use them to remember how to get to specific rooms he visits and the House can use its wagers to force the ven to get lost in the halls.

In our own language, “party” is a little word. Perhaps a better word could be “event.” “Occurrence.” “Occasion.” But “party” somehow seems too small. The ven word, “althua” has two meanings. One is what we’re talking about. Gathering, get-together, festivity. But the word has another meaning.

Althua. Where romance begins and revenge ends.

Every Season, ven throw parties. They throw small, private parties and huge raucous, indulgent soirees. Food, drink, sex, dancing, flirting, singing, sex, hunting, duels, bloodshed, sex, and revenge.

Throwing parties is a huge affair for the ven. Most last at least a week, sometimes stretching even longer. The greatest parties were said to last an entire Season, although we may have to attribute those to the ven habit of extravagant exaggeration.

As a Story, your character can throw an althua. There are a few benefits to do so and a few benefits for others to attend.

Throwing a Party
First, we have to determine the rank of your Party. Party rank, of course, is the degree of size, sophistication and style you can summon for your guests.

You may only throw a Party equal to the rank of your Castle’s Staff. Rank 1 Staff, rank 1 Party. Rank 2 Staff, rank 2 Party. You get the idea. The maximum size for a party is rank 3 unless you take the steps to turn your Staff into an NPC. Then, and only then, can you throw a rank 4 Party.

You can only throw a rank 5 Party if your Beauty is rank 4 or higher and you’ve graduated your Staff beyond Vassals into NPCs.

Trade
First and foremost, going to a Party allows you to trade freely with anyone at the Party. Usually, shipping Resources costs Season actions. If you’re at a Party, you can trade freely a number of Resources with other ven equal to the rank of the Party. That is, you can swap up to five Resources with other ven, depending on the Party’s rank. Rank 1 Party, one Resource. Rank 3 Party, 3 Resources.

Romance
Parties are great places to begin Romances. So great, in fact, you get a huge bonus for doing so.
When you begin a Romance at a Party, add the Party’s rank to the Romance’s potential. For example, if you begin a rank 3 Romance with another ven at a rank 3 Party, add three to the Romance, making it a rank 6 Romance.

You can read more about Romance in its appropriate chapter.

Duels and Revenge
While most ven have to wait for the Senate to declare Revenge or sanction duels, ven law allows for such activities at “any significant gathering of nobles.” Yes, that means Parties.

If at least six nobles are gathered in one place, one for each House, they may make an ad hoc Senate, providing the jury for any duels or declarations of Revenge.

Events
A host must entertain his guests, so every Party needs Events.

An Event is a significant happening at the Party. A hunt, an opera, a play, games of chance, debuts of great works of Art. You may have a number of Events at your Party equal to the rank of the Party.

Listed below are the most common Events at Parties and the benefit for your ven if she should choose to attend. All Events have a Prerequisite: something you need in your Castle before you can schedule such an Event.

Art Show
Prerequisite: Art Gallery (Holding)

Revealing new Art at Parties is a huge affair. It gives the artist an opportunity to show his Art for the first time for a huge audience, giving him the opportunity for a massive amount of style. For each point of style another ven pays you for your Art’s aspect, you gain a number of style points equal to the rank of the Party. See Create Art above for more info.

The Hunt
Prerequisite: Master of the Hunt (Vassal)

Going out on Hunts is a popular pastime for the ven. Of course, nobles don’t go out on their own: they bring Personal Guard with them just in case the party does run into orks. While on the Hunt, and for the rest of the Party, any ven gain the aspect “Hunter.” See Aspects for more info. Any ven can spend a style point to keep the aspect for a number of Seasons equal to the Party’s rank.

Hunter (aspect)
Invoke: gain three dice when tracking an enemy or bringing down an enemy you’ve tracked.
Tag: no tag
Compel: no compel

The Opera
Prerequisite: Opera House (Holding)

The great and grand most sacred and holy Art. Holding an Opera at your Castle is the pinnacle of all Events. Of course, you need someone to write an Opera, and then you need an Opera House to put on the Event. But all that is more than worth it.

Like Art (above), Operas give those who see them aspects and give the composer style points. For each point of style another ven pays you for your Opera’s aspect, you gain a number of style points equal to the rank of the Party. See Compose Opera above for more info.

The Play
Prerequisite: Theater (Holding)

The passionate and dangerous play of summoning the spirits into the bodies of the actors is always an alluring risk for the ven. Both the actors and the audience.

When ven watch Plays, they may take on the Roles portrayed by spending a style point. For each point of style another ven pays you for your Play’s Role, you gain a number of style points equal to the rank of the Party. See Write Play above for more info.

The Wager
Prerequisite: Parlor (Holding)

Like most other things, the ven don’t gamble, they Gamble. Make Wagers. A Wager is a bet between two or more ven on a (seemingly) random outcome. Wagers made between ven are only legally binding if made under the shadow of at least three ven from different Houses. At least one of the three must be from a House uninvolved in the Wager. Winning such a Wager not only gets you what you bet against the other ven, but also a number of style points equal to the rank of the Party.

___

PS: I’m not entirely happy with the bonus from Opera. It should be… it should be…

It should be Freddy Mercury meets Jim Steinman meets Wagner is what it should be. It isn’t that yet.