Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

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Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Sat Jul 16, 2011 2:14 pm

So finally, thanks to HBO's Game of Thrones and the storm of publicity around A Dance With Dragons, most of my gaming group has now read the Song of Ice & Fire books and are into the idea of doing a SIFRP campaign. We like to dodge canon as much as possible when we play games in settings based on books or movies. I saw Sturn's "Before Aegon's Landing Campaign Guide" on these boards (check it out at http://ourstead.com/sif/BALC.pdf) and it's great work, but I'm ambivalent about how far removed the truly independent Seven Kingdoms are from the united Westeros of the novels. I want the Iron Throne, the Kingsguard, and all the other trappings of Westerosi politics post-Conquest.

So I rooted around the timeline at the ASOIAF Wiki looking for some open space to work with, and I think I found it. Between Aegon the Conqueror's death in 37 AL (under unknown circumstances) and Jaehaerys I's crowning in 48 AL, we see rebellions (plural!) spring up under Aegon's son Aenys' rule, backed by the Faith Militant. The weak heir names his strong younger brother Maegor as his Hand to crush the revolts, then dies (also under unknown circumstances). Maegor supplants Aenys' heir Jaehaerys as King (again, under unknown circumstances!) and earns his nickname "the Cruel" by murdering wives, architects, and Hands alike, and putting out bounties for the scalps of the Faith's Poor Brothers and Warriors Sons. He dies on the Iron throne (under unknown circumstances!!!) before Jaehaerys the Conciliator brings peace back to the realm once more. That's all we know, and that's 11 years of chaos. I like chaos.

So basically after Aegon's death, everything falls apart. Lords who were once kings want their crowns back - some of the ambitious ones might even want the Conqueror's seat for their own. The Faith rejects the royal abominations born of Targaryen incest and support their overthrow. A weakling sits the Iron Throne, followed after his mysterious death by his monstrous usurper brother. This is a perfect time to play the game of thrones.

I'm still fleshing out where I'm going with this, but it's ripe. Here's some offhand ideas I have.

[*]It's unknown under what circumstances the King of the Vale bent the knee, and being so naturally defensible, I can't see Aegon's forces breaking the Bloody Gate and storming the Eyrie. Gotta be dragons. According to legend, the House's founder Artys Arryn flew to the top of the Giant's Lance riding a giant falcon and slew the last of the Mountain Kings in single combat to claim the Vale. It'd be cool if Aegon pulled a similar move, only on dragonback. I'm thinking when the Faith rejects Targaryen rule, the Vale (being pretty much all Andal except for the mountain clans) raises its banners and the new Lord Arryn challenges the weakling Aenys to accomplish the same feat...

[*]It's established that Loren Lannister bent the knee at the Field of Fire. I'm thinking maybe his heir and second son we among the slain, leaving his third son, an acolyte of the Citadel, heir to the Rock. He never forged his chain, and left his studies at Oldtown after his brothers' deaths made him next in succession. Now Lord of the Casterly Rock and Westerlands, he seeks to keep his family's influence strong, but bears no resentment towards Targaryen rule - who needs a crown when the crown needs your gold?

[*]When Torrhen Stark knelt at the Red Fork of the Trident, he had but one condition of the Conqueror: that life would go on in the North much as it had, particularly in their manner of worship. With the Faith Militant a power in the realm, I imagine the Faith was less tolerant of the worship of the Old Gods and more able to oppress it, and perhaps in the not-too-distant past had even had "Crusades" of sorts against those who kept their ways (good luck getting past Moat Cailin!). Aegon granted him that no such incursions would ever be allowed under the King's Peace. When the Faith of the Seven revolts, the direwolf may be one of the dragon's staunchest supporters. When Maegor puts the bounties out on the Faith Militant, some northerners might be looking for some payback for old grudges...

Like I said, I'm still working out a lot of stuff, particularly with the Targaryens, but I think it's got an insane amount of potential as a setting. Anybody else have any ideas to help flesh out this time period?
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Iron Legs » Sun Jul 17, 2011 2:05 pm

You have many good ideas!

Another posible points are:

- The Faith guerrilla's war against Maekar.
- The building of the Red Keep and it's dungeons. The architects were killed by the king just after the construction.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby ceranko » Sat Jul 23, 2011 8:42 pm

From what I've read Maegor the Cruel was a lot like Henry the VIII. He had his wives killed that didn't give him sons and he was aggressive in the extreme about putting down rebel lords. Somewhere I think I read that the Iron Throne actually killed him, he fell or something and was cut by one of the blades and died of blood loss. It was implied somewhere. But here are some ideas.
1. Faith begins getting huge amounts of knights to join the warriors sons, "The only True Knighthood" recognized by the faith, which would probably have many disinherited lords and warriors join after Aegons conquest.
2. The Faith preaching about ungodly rites of the Targaryens and their incestuous marriage practices. Equating Dragons with demons, devils ect. In every small town and city giving the Targaryens a bad name.
3. Rebel lords have turned into robber knights in various parts of the kingdom due to old rivalries and land grabbing by new Lords of the realm assigned by Aegon during his reign, some of the old lords are angry at the hand they were dealt after the conquest. The poor brothers are formed to escort pilgrims to and from Oldtown and Stoney Sept and Kings Landing. The seat of the Faith was the ornate Starry Sept in Oldtown, constructed in black marble with stained glass windows set in pointed arches. Baelor hasn't built the Sept of Baelor yet.
4.Dorne still hasn't capitulated and still has border wars with the reach and the stormlands.
5. The Ironborn raid the north and the reach and the westerlands from time to time.
6. Church Knights (Poor Fellows) take it upon themselves to be judge jury and executioner and get into conflicts with Lords and knights in duels and will outright kill nobles they feel do not follow their style of righteousness, Abuse of power, oppressing the people or taking advantage of the smallfolk. When they kill nobility this is where the other nobles seek help from the crown. Commoners can't kill nobles, they are nobles by divine right!
7. Religious prophets spring up around the countryside and perform miracles and receive visions influencing the commonfolk, most are charlatans that work for the church, or the robber knights.
8. The Faith militant wants to root out the mountain clans in the eyrie and convert them from their faith in the old gods. Lord Arryn agrees and lets them have a crusade to burn weirwoods, as long as they stay in the mountains and kill the mountain clans, who cares? A knight from House Marbrand is leading this crusade. Maldon the Burner they call him. Unfortunately he likes to build bonfires of heretics as well and rape and murder are ok because the mountain clans are heathens. Lord Arryn quickly realizes his mistake.
9. The Freys see their chance to kill crannogmen so they send a few sons to join a crusade in the swamps to burn the Weirwoods and root out House Reed their ancient enemies. The Warriors Sons recruit quite a few Freys into their ranks. But most end up hanging upside down from cypress trees killed by the wily crannogmen.
10. One of the master masons escaped Maegors massacre and he wants the characters to track him down. If they can't find him he might find someone to replace them.
11. One of Maegors wives takes interest in one of the characters and tries to make him her man. Whatever you want that to mean.
12. The Faith Militant decide to destroy the weirwoods in the gods eye. But come into supernatural "Problems" While they disembark from their boats.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Sun Jul 31, 2011 2:27 pm

Cool ideas all around!

@Iron Legs: I like the idea of guerrilla conflicts in Targaryen-loyalist lands. A band of Poor Fellows and hedge knights belonging to the Warrior's Sons could fill a niche similar to the Brotherhood Without Banners (or, if they're not as godly as they claim to be, maybe the Brave Companions...).

I figure one of the builders of the Red Keep might be a Grand Maester who'd forged his chain in architecture & engineering, which might work well with ceranko's idea #10...

-

@ceranko: 1. Yeah, the Faith Militant's ranks swell, probably beyond even their height during the last Exalted March against the tree-worshippers and skinchangers of the North (which is a big historical conflict I'm going to be playing up, kind of like how the Blackfyre Rebellions are frequently referred to in the novels). Resentment is probably pretty high in the Reach, with many nobles under the Gardner dynasty feel that the Tyrells are undeserving of their position as Lords of the Reach (as the Tyrell bloodline is only related to the Gardner's through the female line). Plus, their heavy losses on the Field of Fire guarantee ill-will towards the Targaryen dynasty.

2. And that leads to Maegor's men hanging those seditious septons left and right, which only breeds more resentment...

3. This got me thinking about where most of the land-grabbing is taking place. The Riverlands are probably pretty grateful for Aegon's expulsion of the Ironborn and their establishment as independent of both the Iron Islands and the Stormlands. The North is content to carry on as the North has for centuries. The Stormlands chafe under the newly established House Baratheon and would probably rebel. The Reach, as I said, is a hotbed of sedition, with the Tyrells and a few bannermen fighting off civil war in the name of the Crown that raised them to their status. The Westerlands are probably the most likely to be manipulating events to their own benefit - Maegor's only established wife was a Westerling of the Crag... of course, with Maegor's propensity for killing wives, her execution may turn the lords of the Rock against the Iron Throne. The Vale seems the most likely to be in open rebellion, being so naturally defensible and possibly having taken a page out of Dorne's playbook years before...

4. Y'know, I think with all the conflict in the other Seven Kingdoms, the Dornish border might be the most peaceful it's been in decades. I'm still trying to figure out where the Dornish fit into the grand scheme of things...

5. Yeah, with the death of Harren the Black and his dreams of inland empire, the Greyjoys (hand-picked by the other lords of the Iron Islands) are definitely gonna be returning to the Old Way. An idea: what about all the thralls left behind in the Riverlands after the Ironborn's unceremonious retreat from the Riverlands? Hmm...

6. This is where it gets really convoluted. Even lords who follow the Faith will start doubting the Faith Militant's value when their necks are on the block...

7. Here's an interesting question: is there any real supernatural power attributed to the Seven? Followers of R'hllor and the Old Gods both seem to have some powers granted to them, but I can't recall any such abilities having been established for the Faith.

8. The internal conflict in the Vale is gonna be an interesting one. Being 300 years before the events of the novels, I'm imagining the mountain clans of the Vale being more akin to those of the North - a bit more civilized, less like Wildlings than proper Northmen. There was probably a live-and-let-live mentality between them and the Andal houses up until this point, and I could see this being the start of their degeneration into the primitive tribes Tyrion encounters, with the Faith laying waste to their villages and holdfasts. House Arryn's permissiveness here breeds the lingering hatred the clans will have for the Andal rulers of the Vale for centuries to come.

9. Hell yeah. I want to play up the fact that the North are supporters of the Targaryens not out of any special loyalty, but rather because their rule guarantees that southron incursions will be outlawed under the King's Peace. What starts with a small conflict between the Freys and their Faith Militant allies against the crannogmen may turn into one of the central battles of the war.

10. Even if they aren't working for Maegor, the rebels would have an interest in learning the secrets of the Keep that the Cruel King killed so many to protect....

11. Hell, one of his wives might be from the PCs' House. Wouldn't that mix things up. In fact, I'm almost definitely gonna do this.

12. Yeah, the Green Men aren't gonna take too kindly to that...

-

A few other ideas I've been kicking around:

While the political conflict is relatively easy to work out, I've been struggling with a more supernatural conflict that underlies the whole thing akin to the novels. What I'm thinking now is that Maegor's line, if allowed to supplant Aenys' and his son Jaehaerys', will cut short the threads of prophecy that allow their to be either Azor Ahai reborn or the Prince That Was Promised, and that allowing that to come to pass will spell doom for the world further down the line. Basically, circumstances will come to pass where Dany, Jon, Tyrion, Bran, Stannis, and/or [ADWD SPOILER] Aegon (or any other crackpot theories about who the Three Heads of the Dragon or what have you) will ever even exist and because of that, the Others victory in the time of the novels is all but assured. Still thinking of ways to reveal this to the players, especially if they end up supporting the throne early on...

I'm trying to figure the personality of Maegor. One idea I've had is that, unlike his father or brother, he holds court in High Valyrian (with his Grand Maester translating for him) to distance himself from the commoners and nobles alike who come before him. Roman Catholic mass pre-Vatican II meets Jabba the Hutt.

One thing I've been wondering is the supernatural abilities members of House Targaryen possess. Aegon V's elder brother Daeron the Drunken had prophetic dreams, and the Bloodraven was reputed to be a sorcerer [ADWD SPOILERS] and was in fact the Last Greenseer. I'm kind of envisioning Maegor's mother Visenya as a sorceress of sorts, guiding her son with her visions...

Also, a friend of mine is interested in running a game set during the same time in the Free Cities during the Bleeding Years where Volantis attempted to reforge the Valyrian Freehold. Should be interesting.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby ceranko » Sun Jul 31, 2011 3:59 pm

Sounds awesome. I wish some of you guys lived in Austin so I could play in the game. How hard it is to find good players!
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Mon Mar 19, 2012 1:43 pm

Okay, so we've finally gotten around to playing this game! We're three sessions in, here's the scoop so far.

I dunno if any of you guys are reading these boards now, but if you're playing in Brian D's game in Brooklyn, NY, stop reading right now on pain of ruining shit for yourselves and a bunch of arbitrary Drawbacks if I catch on.

The PC house is House Claemor, an ancient family with the blood of the First Men holding lands on cliffs that rise above the southern shore of the Bite in the Vale. According to legend, their house was founded in the Age of Heroes by Cade Claemor, a lowborn footsoldier in service to a petty King of the Bite, who slew the last of the dragons of the Mountains of the Moon after they had ended his liege's line and lain waste to his lands and castle. After his quest was done, he claimed the king's ruined seat for his own, rebuilding a part of the once-massive fortress and naming it Castle Ruyn. To this day, only the main keep, bailey, and a few towers stand within the restored inner wall - the curtain wall is a ring of crumbling stone still blackened by ancient dragonfire, and the old moat a mere depression in the earth encircling the former glory of a great stronghold to rival those raised by Bran the Builder. Cade named his house Claemor (a word meaning "great sword" in the Old Tongue), and took for his sigil a winged sword, iron-grey on rust red. His words, "Even Dragons Bleed," once meant to invoke a common soldier's triumph over even the most daunting of foes, take on a more dire meaning now...

When the Andal invaders came and claimed the Vale, the Claemor kings of the Bite fought them for years until seeing the wisdom in bending the knee after Artys Arryn slew the last Griffon King on the Giant's Lance. The last Claemor king, Carel, brokered a peace between the Andal lords and the old First Men rulers of the mountain clans (note: the mountain clans at this time are more akin to the Flints, Norreys, and Wulls of the North than the Moon Brothers and Burned Men of the Vale during the ASOIAF novels - their reasons for their present state at the time of the books and the heart of their grudges against the Lords of the Vale will be an important plot point in the game...). For their efforts, the house still enjoys a sort of primacy among the First Men lords who still keep to the Old Gods, acting as go-betweens to them and the Arryns.

Situated on the white cliffs that bear the house's name, Castle Ruyn overlooks an old port town called Farreach. Its position north of the mountains allows trade to the northernmost parts of the Riverlands along the Old Coast Road, and many northern merchants out of White Harbor prefer to trade there rather than make an overland trip through the bogs of the Neck. However, Gulltown's rise to prominence has hurt their position as a port of call for traders from the Free Cities of Essos, and Farreach has dwindled somewhat over the years, though Braavosi and even Ibbenese merchants are not totally uncommon visitors. The Claemor fleet had traditionally been one of the stronger naval powers on the Bite, dealing with piracy effectively and keeping even the unscrupulous lords of the Sisters in line.

Near the end of Aegon's Conquest, for nearly all of which the Vale was unmolested, a conspiracy of First Men lords of the mountains arose, with the Claemors at its head, seeking to lend aid to Torrhen Stark's march against the Targaryen forces on the Trident. Unfortunately for the house, an emissary from one of their allies was captured by the Freys of the Crossing (who had already sworn themselves to Aegon) while bearing a message to the Reeds of Greywater Watch, through which the Targaryens learned of the plot. As the alliance's forces set sail to meet with the Stark's on the Neck, the Targaryens unleashed the dragon Vhagar on the ships, burning the Claemor's great fleet and most of the power of the mountain clans within sight of the harbor, a defeat from which the house has not yet fully recovered. They entered into the king's peace when Lord Arryn bent the knee personally to Aegon, though they still harbor resentment towards the new Kings of the Seven Kingdoms.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Mon Mar 19, 2012 3:07 pm

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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Mon Mar 19, 2012 3:21 pm

RECENT HISTORY

The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, thirty years after Aegon the Conqueror united them under the Targaryen dynasty (about 250 years before the novels). The Conqueror reigned for eight-and-twenty years, and has been dead for two. His son Aenys, the First of His Name, now sits the Iron Throne, forged from the swords of those his father defeated in his invasion. His reign has been an uneasy one thus far.

The Red Keep nears completion, and around it a new city that is being called King's Landing has sprung up where only a small fishing village stood less than a century ago. Already its size rivals that of the ports of Gull Town in the Vale and White Harbor on the Bite, and at this rate it will soon outstrip even the great cities of Lannisport and Oldtown on the western coast.

The Ironborn, who until recently had expanded their rule far into the Riverlands, have been thrown back to the Iron Islands after Aegon's first victory in the Wars of Conquest, in which he and his dragons burned King Harren the Black alive in his monstrous fortress of Harrenhal on the God's Eye, exterminating House Hoare in one fell swoop. Vickon Greyjoy was chosen as the new Lord of the Iron Islands. His son Victarion now rules from the house's seat at Pyke.

The Riverlands, free of the oppression of the Ironborn, have been the Dragon's staunchest supporters. House Tully, an ancient house that was always sworn bannermen to the Kings of River and Hill of old, were the first to join their strength to Aegon's, and the lords of Riverrun were rewarded with the title of Lords Paramount of the Trident. The current Tully lord is Lord Edmyn, who was just a boy of four-and-ten when he led the campaign to drive out the remaining Iron Islanders from his homeland once and for all in the name of King Aegon.

In the west, the King of the Rock, Loren Lannister, saw Aegon's forces sweeping into the heart of Westeros and knew he had to act swiftly to preserve his rule. He forged an alliance with King Mern IX Gardener of the Reach, and joined their hosts to meet Aegon's on the field shortly after the liberation of the Riverlands. Their combined forces, known as the Army of the Two Kings, numbered 60,000; the Conqueror fielded a mere 10,000 men. In what has come to be known as the Field of Fire, the Targaryens unleashed all three of their dragons - Meraxes, Vhagar, and Balerion the Black Dread - on their foes, burning untold soldiers alive with dragonfire and claiming the lives of King Mern and King Loren's two eldest sons.

Loren Lannister laid down his arms and swore fealty to the Conqueror there on the field. His third son Gerion, who had been forging his maester's chain as an acolyte at the Citadel in Oldtown, was called back from his studies. He now holds the title of Warden of the West from the Lannister's seat at Casterly Rock. Though they still rule the Westerlands as vassals of the crown, they are not the richest family in the west (as they are in the time of the novels). House Reyne of Castamere and House Westerling of the Crag hold the richest gold and silver mines in all of the Seven Kingdoms, and wield nearly as much influence as the Lannisters themselves. Still, Gerion's learned nature has served him well, and there has been peace in the west since the War.

The Reach, however, has been a hotbed of seditious sentiment since the end of the conquest. When Lord Hightower of Oldtown threw open the gates of the city for Aegon's forces at the advice of both the High Septon and the Archmaester of the Citadel, it was expected that primacy over the Reach would pass to either House Hightower or House Florent, both of which houses had significant blood ties to the exiled House Gardener. Instead, the lands of Highgarden and the title of Warden of the South was gifted to the Harlen Tyrell, a minor house that had served as steward to the Gardeners and was only married into the old house of kings through the female line. This has not sat well with the two other great houses.

To the east, Aegon's bastard-born brother Orys Baratheon led the campaign against the Storm King Argilac. Living up to his nickname "The Arrogant," Argilac challenged Orys to single combat at the gates of Storm's End after Baratheon's army, primarily composed of sellswords from across the Narrow Sea, had taken Massey's Hook, the Wendwood (later known as the Kingswood), and the Isle of Tarth. Orys slew the Storm King and took his seat, his sigil, his words, and his daughter as a wife. The Storm King had not been a popular ruler, and the remaining lords of the Stormlands on Cape Wrath readily bent the knee to Baratheon as their liege, at which point Orys joined his forces to Aegon's for the invasion of Dorne.

The Dornish Princes of House Martell, however, lived up to their family's words - "Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken." Having learned of the Field of Fire and Harren's mistakes, they refused to give open battle; nor did they hide in their castles, instead striking supply lines and engaging in guerilla warfare and melting away before the dragons could be brought to bear. A thousand pinpricks did what a single pitched battle could not, and Aegon chose to withdraw and leave Dorne an independent nation, which it remains to this day.

At this point, Torrhen Stark of Winterfell could not simply sit and wait for Aegon to turn his attention to his domain. The last King in the North marched south towards the Riverlands, and Aegon mustered his troops and dragons to meet him on the banks of the Red Fork of the Trident. Torrhen intended to engage Aegon in battle, but viewing Aegon's vast host and his dragons made Torrhen realise his folly and instead he bent the knee in submission, with one request of the Conqueror - in the recent past, the Warrior's Sons and the Poor Fellows of the Faith Miltant had waged three Exalted Marches, holy wars intended to root out the worship of the Old Gods, against the Northmen. Each time they had been driven back at the ancient castle of Moat Cailin, at great cost in lives. Aegon vowed that such actions would not be allowed under the King's Peace, and life would be able to continue as it had in the North for ages. Torrhen Stark still rules as the crown's Warden of the North.

Finally, Aegon turned to the Vale, the most naturally defensible of all of the Seven Kingdoms. The Bloody Gate through the Mountains of the Moon had earned its name by turning back every army that had ever sought to take it, and King Arryn's seat at the Eyrie was said to be impregnable. Legend held that in the Age of Heroes Artys Arryn, founder of the house and the first King of Mountain and Vale, took the lands by flying to the top of the Giant's Lance mountain where the Eyrie stands on the back of a giant falcon and slew the last Griffon King of the First Men in single combat. When the Targaryen king arrived riding Balerion, Lord Elbert Arryn saw the wisdom in submitting to the rule of the Iron Throne and was awarded with the title Warden of the East, which his son Ranold bears today.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Mon Mar 19, 2012 4:08 pm

HOUSE TARGARYEN

The Targaryens are the blood of the dragon, descended from the high lords of the ancient Freehold of Valyria, their heritage proclaimed in a striking (some say inhuman) beauty, with lilac or indigo or violet eyes and hair of silver-gold or platinum white.

The Targaryen banner is a three-headed dragon, red-on-black, the three heads representing Aegon and his sisters. The Targaryen words are Fire and Blood.

[AEGON TARGARYEN] the Conqueror, the First of His Name, died of natural causes
  • His elder sister and wife, QUEEN DOWAGER VISENYA, purported to be skilled in the blood magic of Old Valyria
      their sons
      • MAEGOR, Hand of the King, a cruel man
      • SER DAERYL, man of the Kingsguard, known as the Dark Brother
  • His younger sister and wife, QUEEN MOTHER RHAENYS, a notorious schemer
      their son
      • KING AENYS, First of His Name, King of the Andals and the First Men, an ineffectual ruler
        • [QUEEN IRAEA] of House Velaryon, died in childbirth
            their children
            • JAEHAERYS, a good-natured boy of 10
            • ALYSANNE,
            • DAENA
          his small council
          • GRAND MAESTER HENRIC
          • STEFORD WESTERLING, master of coin
          • JACEN VELARYON, master of ships
          • SEMYON QOHERYS, master of laws
          • ILLOS WATERS, master of whisperers
          • SER DAVED DARKLYN, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard
            • SER RUPERT CRABB, called the White Whisper
            • SER EDRIC TULLY
            • SER ARON TEMPLETON, the elder Knight of Ninestars
            • SER JAYMES HAYFORD
            • SER CASPAR DONDARRION
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Gurkhal » Wed Mar 21, 2012 1:14 pm

I think that this looks awesome! Brilliant work all around.

The only thing that I would comment on is that there is only six knights in the Kingsguard and not the usual seven. Is there a reason for this?
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Thu Mar 22, 2012 8:34 am

The seventh is Ser Daeryl Targaryen, the younger son of Aegon and Visenya; he's listed under the Targaryen family members instead of with his sworn brothers.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Fri Mar 23, 2012 10:18 am

House Claemor, PC House
Heraldry: A winged sword, iron grey on rust red
Words: "Even Dragons Bleed"

LORD ALAN CLAEMOR, 44, Lord of Castle Ruyn, Farreach-on-the-Bite, and the Claemor Cliffs, a prudent and fair man
  • his late wife [LADY KARYN CLAEMOR], died in childbed 13 years past, daughter of a minor branch of House Royce
      their children
      • [DONAL CLAEMOR], died battling pirates on the Sisters 4 years past, a charismatic leader
      • RICKEN CLAEMOR, 16, heir to Castle Ruyn, a headstrong youth, gifted in battle
      • ERYCK CLAEMOR, 16, Ricken's identical twin brother, lame of arm after an accident but possessing a keen wit
      • MARION CLAEMOR, 13, a maid newly flowered, clever but impressionable
  • his mistress since his wife's passing "LADY" ELSA, 29, a woman of common birth
      their child
      • RIVERS STONE, 11, already a notorious scoundrel and troublemaker
  • his sister LADY RHIANNON PYCT, 36, widow to the late [JONOS PYCT], bannerman to House Claemor
      her children
      • LORD HOLLIS PYCT, 21, Lord of Clearview Hall
      • JON PYCT, 20, steward to House Claemor, an exceedingly intelligent and dutiful young man
    his household
    • SER MARKE CLAEDYN, 19, sworn sword, once heir to the dispossessed House Claedyn, bannermen and kin to the Claemors, Donal's former squire
    • MANNYS SNOW, 25, master of the hunt and sheriff of the Claemor Cliffs, nephew of Lord Alan through his baseborn elder sister [CILIA STONE], prone to vivid dreams
PC's underlined

DEFENSE 36
Castle Ruyn (Small Castle, 30), 6 expendable

INFLUENCE 43
Ricken Claemor (Heir, 20), Eryck Claemor (Second son, 10), MARION CLAEMOR (First-born daughter, 10), 3 expendable

LANDS 22
The Claemor Cliffs (Mountains, 9, with Coastline, 3), Farreach-on-the-Bite (Small Town, 10)

LAW 18
House Fortunes -5

POPULATION 17
House Fortunes +0

POWER 31
House Pyct of Clearview Hall (Bannerhouse, 20), the New Fleet (Green Warships, 8 ), household guard (Green Garrison, 3)

WEALTH 34
Godswood (5), Marketplace (10), Port (10), 9 expendable
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Eisen » Tue Mar 27, 2012 7:56 am

I must admit at first glance I didn't think this was a good idea. Campaigns outside of the current timeline? Blasphmey I say! But then reading over your posts I think your players might be in for some fun. With wars, crusades, new kings, intrigues, magic and living dragons, it sounds like there is a wealth of potential here.

Just a few thoughts:

Will you be posting a running campaign log? The other logs seem to have all dried up and now I have nothing to read at work!

How many PC's are there? It looks like 8, but I'm assuming some players are taking more then one character? 8 at one table would be nuts.

Given the current religious/political climate that Godswood is going to cause all kinds of trouble ;)
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Wed Mar 28, 2012 3:37 pm

Will you be posting a running campaign log? The other logs seem to have all dried up and now I have nothing to read at work!

I plan to, we're 4 (well, 4 and a half) sessions in now and it's going pretty damn well.

How many PC's are there? It looks like 8, but I'm assuming some players are taking more then one character? 8 at one table would be nuts.

There were actually 8 players for the second session! It was a little crazy, but a lot of fun. 6 seems to be the standard though.

Given the current religious/political climate that Godswood is going to cause all kinds of trouble ;)

Oh yeah...
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby ceranko » Thu Mar 29, 2012 6:44 pm

Can you post campaign notes on each session so we can see whats going on? Thanks!
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Iron Legs » Tue Apr 03, 2012 6:06 am

Personaly I prefer campaigns outside the current novels. That's avoids any risk of spoilers to the players, and also avoids continuity messing in the way.

Your game sounds highly amusing. Keep us informed, please!

Also a note: what's happening in Dorne?

About the Other Continent: In a DWD is told that in that era (the Post-Doom of Valyria time) Old Volantys became briefly a super-power, controling most of Esteros.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby ceranko » Tue Apr 03, 2012 6:29 pm

From experience its much easier to play a campaign outside the current timeperiod of the books. Its much more fun I think.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Gurkhal » Tue Apr 03, 2012 9:53 pm

I know this comes pretty late but I couldn’t resist as I love world building and this thread has some very interesting stuff in it. :)

BrianD wrote:So I rooted around the timeline at the ASOIAF Wiki looking for some open space to work with, and I think I found it. Between Aegon the Conqueror's death in 37 AL (under unknown circumstances) and Jaehaerys I's crowning in 48 AL, we see rebellions (plural!) spring up under Aegon's son Aenys' rule, backed by the Faith Militant. The weak heir names his strong younger brother Maegor as his Hand to crush the revolts, then dies (also under unknown circumstances). Maegor supplants Aenys' heir Jaehaerys as King (again, under unknown circumstances!) and earns his nickname "the Cruel" by murdering wives, architects, and Hands alike, and putting out bounties for the scalps of the Faith's Poor Brothers and Warriors Sons. He dies on the Iron throne (under unknown circumstances!!!) before Jaehaerys the Conciliator brings peace back to the realm once more. That's all we know, and that's 11 years of chaos. I like chaos.

Who don’t love chaos? I agree that it sounds like a very interesting period to set a game in.

BrianD wrote:So basically after Aegon's death, everything falls apart. Lords who were once kings want their crowns back - some of the ambitious ones might even want the Conqueror's seat for their own. The Faith rejects the royal abominations born of Targaryen incest and support their overthrow. A weakling sits the Iron Throne, followed after his mysterious death by his monstrous usurper brother. This is a perfect time to play the game of thrones.

I wouldn’t go so far as to fall apart but I can see that the new system is being strained. Even if things would’ve gone to hell the Targaryens would’ve still have held their dragons by this point and so an outright military defeat of the Targaryens was more or less impossible by Westerosi forces.

BrianD wrote:[*]It's unknown under what circumstances the King of the Vale bent the knee, and being so naturally defensible, I can't see Aegon's forces breaking the Bloody Gate and storming the Eyrie. Gotta be dragons. According to legend, the House's founder Artys Arryn flew to the top of the Giant's Lance riding a giant falcon and slew the last of the Mountain Kings in single combat to claim the Vale. It'd be cool if Aegon pulled a similar move, only on dragonback. I'm thinking when the Faith rejects Targaryen rule, the Vale (being pretty much all Andal except for the mountain clans) raises its banners and the new Lord Arryn challenges the weakling Aenys to accomplish the same feat...

Sounds like this lord Arryn has a lot of balls. I think it’s awesome and it would set the stage for an epic duel atop the Eyrie between either lord Arryn and king Maegor or between two champions for each side.

BrianD wrote:[*]It's established that Loren Lannister bent the knee at the Field of Fire. I'm thinking maybe his heir and second son we among the slain, leaving his third son, an acolyte of the Citadel, heir to the Rock. He never forged his chain, and left his studies at Oldtown after his brothers' deaths made him next in succession. Now Lord of the Casterly Rock and Westerlands, he seeks to keep his family's influence strong, but bears no resentment towards Targaryen rule - who needs a crown when the crown needs your gold?

Sounds reasonable.

BrianD wrote:[*]When Torrhen Stark knelt at the Red Fork of the Trident, he had but one condition of the Conqueror: that life would go on in the North much as it had, particularly in their manner of worship. With the Faith Militant a power in the realm, I imagine the Faith was less tolerant of the worship of the Old Gods and more able to oppress it, and perhaps in the not-too-distant past had even had "Crusades" of sorts against those who kept their ways (good luck getting past Moat Cailin!). Aegon granted him that no such incursions would ever be allowed under the King's Peace. When the Faith of the Seven revolts, the direwolf may be one of the dragon's staunchest supporters. When Maegor puts the bounties out on the Faith Militant, some northerners might be looking for some payback for old grudges...

Sounds like this might be the way it would work out, yes.

ceranko wrote:1. Faith begins getting huge amounts of knights to join the warriors sons, "The only True Knighthood" recognized by the faith, which would probably have many disinherited lords and warriors join after Aegons conquest.

Would it really? I mean Aegon seems to have worked pretty hard to ensure that there wouldn’t be any disinherited lords or knights rowing Westeros and so I can’t see this influx being likely to have occurred.

ceranko wrote:2. The Faith preaching about ungodly rites of the Targaryens and their incestuous marriage practices. Equating Dragons with demons, devils ect. In every small town and city giving the Targaryens a bad name.

BrianD wrote:2. And that leads to Maegor's men hanging those seditious septons left and right, which only breeds more resentment...

Sounds about right. Bad move by the Targaryens to ignore the Faith when they invaded.

ceranko wrote:3. Rebel lords have turned into robber knights in various parts of the kingdom due to old rivalries and land grabbing by new Lords of the realm assigned by Aegon during his reign, some of the old lords are angry at the hand they were dealt after the conquest. The poor brothers are formed to escort pilgrims to and from Oldtown and Stoney Sept and Kings Landing. The seat of the Faith was the ornate Starry Sept in Oldtown, constructed in black marble with stained glass windows set in pointed arches. Baelor hasn't built the Sept of Baelor yet.

BrianD wrote:3. This got me thinking about where most of the land-grabbing is taking place. The Riverlands are probably pretty grateful for Aegon's expulsion of the Ironborn and their establishment as independent of both the Iron Islands and the Stormlands. The North is content to carry on as the North has for centuries. The Stormlands chafe under the newly established House Baratheon and would probably rebel. The Reach, as I said, is a hotbed of sedition, with the Tyrells and a few bannermen fighting off civil war in the name of the Crown that raised them to their status. The Westerlands are probably the most likely to be manipulating events to their own benefit - Maegor's only established wife was a Westerling of the Crag... of course, with Maegor's propensity for killing wives, her execution may turn the lords of the Rock against the Iron Throne. The Vale seems the most likely to be in open rebellion, being so naturally defensible and possibly having taken a page out of Dorne's playbook years before...

Would this really be so? I though the Targaryen policy during the conquest was to keep the lords in their castle for the sake of avoiding just the scenario of robber knights and robber lords plaguing the realm.

ceranko wrote:4.Dorne still hasn't capitulated and still has border wars with the reach and the stormlands.

BrianD wrote:4. Y'know, I think with all the conflict in the other Seven Kingdoms, the Dornish border might be the most peaceful it's been in decades. I'm still trying to figure out where the Dornish fit into the grand scheme of things...

Sounds about right and I would think that Dorne is rather much a marginal note at this point of Westeros history. They are just too isolated geographically and culturally from the others to play a role while not being part of the kingdom.

ceranko wrote:5. The Ironborn raid the north and the reach and the westerlands from time to time.

BrianD wrote:5. Yeah, with the death of Harren the Black and his dreams of inland empire, the Greyjoys (hand-picked by the other lords of the Iron Islands) are definitely gonna be returning to the Old Way. An idea: what about all the thralls left behind in the Riverlands after the Ironborn's unceremonious retreat from the Riverlands? Hmm...

Sounds about right that when the throne is occupied elsewhere the Ironborn dances to old tunes. I’d figure that any thralls left behind would be transformed to the normal kind of smallfolk that populates Westeros.

ceranko wrote:6. Church Knights (Poor Fellows) take it upon themselves to be judge jury and executioner and get into conflicts with Lords and knights in duels and will outright kill nobles they feel do not follow their style of righteousness, Abuse of power, oppressing the people or taking advantage of the smallfolk. When they kill nobility this is where the other nobles seek help from the crown. Commoners can't kill nobles, they are nobles by divine right!

BrianD wrote:6. This is where it gets really convoluted. Even lords who follow the Faith will start doubting the Faith Militant's value when their necks are on the block...

I would think that yes the Faith Militant will be a pain for some but since the lords of Westeros had lived with them for centuries before the Targaryens I would think that most of them know how to deal with the Poor Fellows. Of course there will be a lot of those who don’t like them and who then turns to the Targaryens, most notable probably the remaining followers of the Old Gods.

ceranko wrote:7. Religious prophets spring up around the countryside and perform miracles and receive visions influencing the commonfolk, most are charlatans that work for the church, or the robber knights.

BrianD wrote:7. Here's an interesting question: is there any real supernatural power attributed to the Seven? Followers of R'hllor and the Old Gods both seem to have some powers granted to them, but I can't recall any such abilities having been established for the Faith.


While a great number of charlatans will probably spring up I think its rather uncertain that they would work for the Faith. More likely they are serving themselves and the Faith is as pissed about these pretenders and heretics as anyone else.

ceranko wrote:8. The Faith militant wants to root out the mountain clans in the eyrie and convert them from their faith in the old gods. Lord Arryn agrees and lets them have a crusade to burn weirwoods, as long as they stay in the mountains and kill the mountain clans, who cares? A knight from House Marbrand is leading this crusade. Maldon the Burner they call him. Unfortunately he likes to build bonfires of heretics as well and rape and murder are ok because the mountain clans are heathens. Lord Arryn quickly realizes his mistake.

BrianD wrote:8. The internal conflict in the Vale is gonna be an interesting one. Being 300 years before the events of the novels, I'm imagining the mountain clans of the Vale being more akin to those of the North - a bit more civilized, less like Wildlings than proper Northmen. There was probably a live-and-let-live mentality between them and the Andal houses up until this point, and I could see this being the start of their degeneration into the primitive tribes Tyrion encounters, with the Faith laying waste to their villages and holdfasts. House Arryn's permissiveness here breeds the lingering hatred the clans will have for the Andal rulers of the Vale for centuries to come.


Why would lord Arryn be a such squeamish little girl? He should know that in war there are murders and rapes and when he lets a crusade against his enemies, who lives by murdering and raping his subjects, he knows what he’s getting and that’s probably why he allowed the crusade from the start. Why would his heart start to bleed for the enemies that have caused his House troubles for Seven knows how long? Tensions would probably come when the Faith’s warriors turns their attention to impious Vale nobles.

I for one do not think that the relation between the Mountain Clans and the Andals have been all that sweet until this point but its more that the Arryns couldn’t or didn’t dare to spare the manpower to clear the mountains from their barbaric inhabitants before and probably still can’t, hence why they would need someone else to do their dirty work.

ceranko wrote:9. The Freys see their chance to kill crannogmen so they send a few sons to join a crusade in the swamps to burn the Weirwoods and root out House Reed their ancient enemies. The Warriors Sons recruit quite a few Freys into their ranks. But most end up hanging upside down from cypress trees killed by the wily crannogmen.

BrianD wrote:9. Hell yeah. I want to play up the fact that the North are supporters of the Targaryens not out of any special loyalty, but rather because their rule guarantees that southron incursions will be outlawed under the King's Peace. What starts with a small conflict between the Freys and their Faith Militant allies against the crannogmen may turn into one of the central battles of the war.


I’ll agree that the Freys might try to attack the Crannogmen but more likely than anything else is that they’ll wander around the swamps and get tired of the mud, water and lizard lions and so head back home again while the Crannogmen laughs at the stupid Southrons. The Freys really can’t do anything against the Reeds and so I don’t think that this would escalate into a proper conflict.

ceranko wrote:10. One of the master masons escaped Maegors massacre and he wants the characters to track him down. If they can't find him he might find someone to replace them.

BrianD wrote:10. Even if they aren't working for Maegor, the rebels would have an interest in learning the secrets of the Keep that the Cruel King killed so many to protect....


Very true.


ceranko wrote:11. One of Maegors wives takes interest in one of the characters and tries to make him her man. Whatever you want that to mean.

BrianD wrote:11. Hell, one of his wives might be from the PCs' House. Wouldn't that mix things up. In fact, I'm almost definitely gonna do this.


Man, I could see this as a highway to make the characters rebels against the Iron Throne. Because if they submits and are discovered, what choice do they have than to throw in with the Faith and the rebel lords? :D

ceranko wrote:12. The Faith Militant decide to destroy the weirwoods in the gods eye. But come into supernatural "Problems" While they disembark from their boats.

BrianD wrote:12. Yeah, the Green Men aren't gonna take too kindly to that...


Stupid move by them I must say but not entirely unlikely.

BrianD wrote:While the political conflict is relatively easy to work out, I've been struggling with a more supernatural conflict that underlies the whole thing akin to the novels. What I'm thinking now is that Maegor's line, if allowed to supplant Aenys' and his son Jaehaerys', will cut short the threads of prophecy that allow their to be either Azor Ahai reborn or the Prince That Was Promised, and that allowing that to come to pass will spell doom for the world further down the line. Basically, circumstances will come to pass where Dany, Jon, Tyrion, Bran, Stannis, and/or [ADWD SPOILER] Aegon (or any other crackpot theories about who the Three Heads of the Dragon or what have you) will ever even exist and because of that, the Others victory in the time of the novels is all but assured. Still thinking of ways to reveal this to the players, especially if they end up supporting the throne early on...


I don’t think you should go down this road as it looks a lot like railroading to me.

BrianD wrote:I'm trying to figure the personality of Maegor. One idea I've had is that, unlike his father or brother, he holds court in High Valyrian (with his Grand Maester translating for him) to distance himself from the commoners and nobles alike who come before him. Roman Catholic mass pre-Vatican II meets Jabba the Hutt.


I would imagine him as a kind of mix between Viserys/Joffrey and Tywin. He’s certainly going to be cruel and probably not above petty acts of violence and mutilation but at the same time I would think that he would have a kind of steel in him that both Visery and Joffrey lacked. I mean he’s certainly competent enough to crush his enemies without mercy in an intelligent manner while at the same time being very cruel as a person.

BrianD wrote:One thing I've been wondering is the supernatural abilities members of House Targaryen possess. Aegon V's elder brother Daeron the Drunken had prophetic dreams, and the Bloodraven was reputed to be a sorcerer [ADWD SPOILERS] and was in fact the Last Greenseer. I'm kind of envisioning Maegor's mother Visenya as a sorceress of sorts, guiding her son with her visions...


I wouldn’t overdo it but since the dragons are still alive I would probably play up their connection to these beasts which might have some supernatural properties to it.

Speaking of dragons, how are you going to handle them? Striclty a plot device or write up rules for them and possibly allow the PC to really make a name for themselves as a dragonslayer?

BrianD wrote:Also, a friend of mine is interested in running a game set during the same time in the Free Cities during the Bleeding Years where Volantis attempted to reforge the Valyrian Freehold. Should be interesting.


Sounds like great fun. You’re going to play the Volantis then, right? Its always more fun to be bad than be good.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Wed Apr 04, 2012 11:02 am

The Faith militant wants to root out the mountain clans in the eyrie and convert them from their faith in the old gods. Lord Arryn agrees and lets them have a crusade to burn weirwoods, as long as they stay in the mountains and kill the mountain clans, who cares? A knight from House Marbrand is leading this crusade. Maldon the Burner they call him. Unfortunately he likes to build bonfires of heretics as well and rape and murder are ok because the mountain clans are heathens. Lord Arryn quickly realizes his mistake.

The internal conflict in the Vale is gonna be an interesting one. Being 300 years before the events of the novels, I'm imagining the mountain clans of the Vale being more akin to those of the North - a bit more civilized, less like Wildlings than proper Northmen. There was probably a live-and-let-live mentality between them and the Andal houses up until this point, and I could see this being the start of their degeneration into the primitive tribes Tyrion encounters, with the Faith laying waste to their villages and holdfasts. House Arryn's permissiveness here breeds the lingering hatred the clans will have for the Andal rulers of the Vale for centuries to come.

Why would lord Arryn be a such squeamish little girl? He should know that in war there are murders and rapes and when he lets a crusade against his enemies, who lives by murdering and raping his subjects, he knows what he’s getting and that’s probably why he allowed the crusade from the start. Why would his heart start to bleed for the enemies that have caused his House troubles for Seven knows how long? Tensions would probably come when the Faith’s warriors turns their attention to impious Vale nobles.

I for one do not think that the relation between the Mountain Clans and the Andals have been all that sweet until this point but its more that the Arryns couldn’t or didn’t dare to spare the manpower to clear the mountains from their barbaric inhabitants before and probably still can’t, hence why they would need someone else to do their dirty work.

Well, here's the thing: House Claemor, the PC house, actually is an ancient First Men house of the Vale who still keep to the Old Gods. They're culturally more assimilated than most of their neighbors in the Mountains of the Moon, with anointed knights in their service and a well-tended sept in their port town, and a major event in their history was actually being the first of the old houses to bend the knee to the Andals and brokering the peace treaty that brought the dozen or so remaining mountain clans into the fold centuries ago. Like I said, up to this point, the mountain clans are more like the Norreys and Wulls of the North than the Burned Men and Moon Brothers at the time of the novels. They're culturally and religiously distinct from the rest of the Vale and they're not the most enthustiastic of subjects, but they pay their taxes and call their banners when their liege requires them.

Since the players chose to make the house they did, this has sort of become one of the central plot points of the game. If and when Lord Arryn lets the Faith Militant come and root them out, he's essentially throwing his least favorite subjects under the bus as a concession to secure a political alliance of convenience with religious zealots. With the PCs playing Old-God-worshiping Valemen themselves, specifically the descendants of the peacemakers who negotiated the terms under which the mountain clans entered the king's peace, this whole plot thread is a lot more personal. It's referenced in the novels that the mountain clans' grudge with the lowlanders is based on the Lords of the Eyrie's broken promises and betrayals. Should be fun to actually play that out...

Hell, descendants of the PC House might even end up being the Burned Men or the Moon Brothers in the centuries to come, depending on how badly (or awesomely) this plays out.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby BrianD » Wed Apr 04, 2012 11:28 am

I’ll agree that the Freys might try to attack the Crannogmen but more likely than anything else is that they’ll wander around the swamps and get tired of the mud, water and lizard lions and so head back home again while the Crannogmen laughs at the stupid Southrons. The Freys really can’t do anything against the Reeds and so I don’t think that this would escalate into a proper conflict.

Not if it's just the Freys, sure. But if the Warrior's Sons decide to lend aid to their cause in full force and help the Twins smash the dragon-loving tree-worshippers in the name of the Seven, who knows? It could go the other way, even, and the might of the North could come down through the neck to answer the Targaryen's call to arms. One way or another, the Neck and the northern Riverlands are gonna get messy.

I don’t think you should go down this road as it looks a lot like railroading to me.

Well, I've got a PC with the Third Eye benefit. Prophecy and visions of the future always entail a little railroading. I'm not gonna force anybody's hand, but this is the overarching issue from a supernatural perspective. How far into it the PCs wanna go, specifically the one with the Third Eye benefit, is entirely up to them.

I would imagine him as a kind of mix between Viserys/Joffrey and Tywin. He’s certainly going to be cruel and probably not above petty acts of violence and mutilation but at the same time I would think that he would have a kind of steel in him that both Visery and Joffrey lacked. I mean he’s certainly competent enough to crush his enemies without mercy in an intelligent manner while at the same time being very cruel as a person.

Yeah, that's a good angle. Hard, cunning, and merciless, with just a dash of inbred madness for flavor.

Speaking of dragons, how are you going to handle them? Striclty a plot device or write up rules for them and possibly allow the PC to really make a name for themselves as a dragonslayer?

A little of column A, a little of column B. For the most part they're just gonna be the looming threat of total annihilation, but once things get moving along, I could always draw up some truly horrific stats for 'em if need be.

Sounds like great fun. You’re going to play the Volantis then, right? Its always more fun to be bad than be good.

Sadly I don't think the sister game is happening. Bummer. But once the scope of the game opens up, events in Essos are something I wanna touch on. Still hammering out ideas there.
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Gurkhal » Thu Apr 05, 2012 2:16 am

BrianD wrote:Well, here's the thing: House Claemor, the PC house, actually is an ancient First Men house of the Vale who still keep to the Old Gods. They're culturally more assimilated than most of their neighbors in the Mountains of the Moon, with anointed knights in their service and a well-tended sept in their port town, and a major event in their history was actually being the first of the old houses to bend the knee to the Andals and brokering the peace treaty that brought the dozen or so remaining mountain clans into the fold centuries ago. Like I said, up to this point, the mountain clans are more like the Norreys and Wulls of the North than the Burned Men and Moon Brothers at the time of the novels. They're culturally and religiously distinct from the rest of the Vale and they're not the most enthustiastic of subjects, but they pay their taxes and call their banners when their liege requires them.


Alright this certainly paints the situation in a different manner from what I thought of it.

BrianD wrote:Since the players chose to make the house they did, this has sort of become one of the central plot points of the game. If and when Lord Arryn lets the Faith Militant come and root them out, he's essentially throwing his least favorite subjects under the bus as a concession to secure a political alliance of convenience with religious zealots. With the PCs playing Old-God-worshiping Valemen themselves, specifically the descendants of the peacemakers who negotiated the terms under which the mountain clans entered the king's peace, this whole plot thread is a lot more personal. It's referenced in the novels that the mountain clans' grudge with the lowlanders is based on the Lords of the Eyrie's broken promises and betrayals. Should be fun to actually play that out...


I see, this sounds like alot of fun. I see violence on the horizon. :D


BrianD wrote:Hell, descendants of the PC House might even end up being the Burned Men or the Moon Brothers in the centuries to come, depending on how badly (or awesomely) this plays out.


That would be a pretty awesome end to it. If they would manage to kill either lord Arryn or Marlon the Burner then remember to feed them to the goats!
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Re: Setting a campaign during Maegor the Cruel's reign

Postby Gurkhal » Thu Apr 05, 2012 2:22 am

BrianD wrote:Not if it's just the Freys, sure. But if the Warrior's Sons decide to lend aid to their cause in full force and help the Twins smash the dragon-loving tree-worshippers in the name of the Seven, who knows? It could go the other way, even, and the might of the North could come down through the neck to answer the Targaryen's call to arms. One way or another, the Neck and the northern Riverlands are gonna get messy.


One idea you could have is that maybe some Stark, probably not the lord Stark but some younger brother or perhaps sister, have married a Blackwood and with the Faith swarming around Raventree to bring the heathens down the Starks marshall their forces. The trouble is of course that first the Freys and then the Tullys wonders what to do with both a bunch of zealots on their lawn and a big freaking army of Northmen pagans coming down on their lands to battle it out. Sounds like chaos to me.

BrianD wrote:Well, I've got a PC with the Third Eye benefit. Prophecy and visions of the future always entail a little railroading. I'm not gonna force anybody's hand, but this is the overarching issue from a supernatural perspective. How far into it the PCs wanna go, specifically the one with the Third Eye benefit, is entirely up to them.


Alright well then of course some railroading is probably needed. I was just thinking that maybe you shouldn't say that "you have to do exactly this, or the world will end!" but rather have it a bit looser and not set things in stone yet.

BrianD wrote:A little of column A, a little of column B. For the most part they're just gonna be the looming threat of total annihilation, but once things get moving along, I could always draw up some truly horrific stats for 'em if need be.


Sounds about right to me. :)

BrianD wrote:Sadly I don't think the sister game is happening. Bummer. But once the scope of the game opens up, events in Essos are something I wanna touch on. Still hammering out ideas there.


OK. Well I hope it end well with a good game campaign. :)
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