Medieval Hack has gone and got itself a
new working name,
Feudal Anarchy, a title ripped from recent academic
debates that have buried the idea of a stable, dullish thing called
“feudalism”. (We are lining up with the more gameable strain that
emphasizes the chaotic mafia-like view of how things were likely run
in the High Middle Ages).
Since those of us working on the game
primarily play old school D&D-like campaigns, quite naturally the
game has evolved in directions that support campaigns with some
of those elements. Emphasis on the “some” since the design frame
of the game has some departure points–fewer and more mythical
powerful monsters, more limited site-based exploration, a greater
emphasis on the PCs role and station in society etc.--from that style
of play.
Which naturally leads us to be
thinking a lot more intentionally about how we can get the high-player agency,
dangerous, non-linear “sandboxy” elements while keeping the
game's more focused flavor. And that means trying to wrap our heads
around different kinds of campaigns for Feudal Anarchy--and how to
support them in the rules.
Some examples:
Local Sandbox. The players are
mostly assumed to have their adventures in a small, bounded sandbox
say a barony, county, or other region generally walkable in a few
days or a single week. The campaign dynamics revolve around a mix of
news hooks, site-based exploration, and to a greater degree than some
other fantasy games a web of personal relationships. This kind of
sandbox thrives on small details and is thus generally smaller and
more bounded geographically than most fantasy game campaigns. (To
date both
Ulfland and
Evan's Cocanha playtest campaigns are examples of this
kind of campaign).
The random fief/realm generator can
spit out counties, earldoms, manors, towns, monasteries, megalith,
weathered ruins, etc to help speed or guide the creation process. We
have also developed a subsystem to quickly generate the broad
brushstrokes of a big cast of NPCs--and their broader relationship
web (who hates who, whose plotting against what, etc). We still need
a system to generate period-appropriate events en masse.
The Roadshow. This is a sandbox
mode where the players are wandering Europe. The game hardwires
certain non-linear incentives (primarily in the Magic chapter) to
getting to other places: gaining new knowledge of the “magical”
powers of different saints at pilgrimage sites, shrines, cathedrals,
etc; finding new demons and black magical knowledge; and hunting rare
herbs and alchemical components. The characters are mostly footloose
for various period-appropriate reasons (perhaps they are on
pilgrimage, fleeing serfdom, or on a long circuitous trip to a
distant city) with various adventures along the way.
Warband. Somewhat similar to
above in that it assumes a high degree of roving (can in fact be
combined like all these modes). In this case the PCs lead (or are
part of larger NPC force) a free company, bandit band, or other
warband. A more combat oriented game with copious usage of the mass
battle, siege and other rules. We are developing a special set of
rules to handle small battle combats without miniatures (and are more
interactive and less abstract than the mass battle rules). Also
special rules for resource management and retinues in general.
Marco Polo. More trading
(perhaps with some exploration) focused campaign that combines
elements of above. The players could have a home town/port that they
have local adventures on but play is mostly focused on turning
profits on a grand circuit. Simple long distance and commodity trade
system and a mishaps table combined with some of the warband and
roadshow mechanics will support this.
Off to the Crusade. Traveling to
the Crusades in the Levant was a long, arduous journey often filled
with much turmoil and chaos—i.e. great gaming material. Both the
land route through Central Europe, the Balkans, Byzantine Empire,
etc. and the sea route through the hotly contested Mediterranean
(with ports of call along the way) present enormous adventuring
opportunities.
This type of campaign could essentially
be a mix of both the Road Show and Warband with the possibility of a
final climatic phase using the Abstract Mass Battle Rules we have
currently for the game. Deus Vult.
Of course like all categorizations of
things that tend to be messy and evolve on their own (human that is)
the different sandboxes here can overlap, vary in specific character
or even be phases in a campaign's evolution as players' goals/desires
change.
Thoughts, oh peanut gallery? Any
suggestions for different categories or supporting mechanics? Things
you'd like to see or just plain don't like in there?
