A Kind of Magic
about 8 years ago – Wed, Mar 14, 2018 at 06:21:23 AM

There a number of different styles of magic in Liminal, and a magician can focus on one style or learn several different styles. They are:

Blessings and Curses
Divination
Geomancy
Glamour
Necromancy
Ward Magic
Weathermonger

For this update, let us take a look at Geomancy.

Geomancy 

A geomancer is mystically attuned to an area or city. To attune, a geomancer must wander the city or landscape, taking note of landmarks and energy flows, and perhaps marking certain stones or buildings with a personal sigil. To an outsider, this process of attunement appears to be aimless wandering with occasional acts of pointless grafitti. 

A geomancer needs the geomancy trait, and can only attune to one city or area of landscape at a time. An area attuned to is no more than 10km across. When a geomancer is within their attuned area, spending Will brings extra power and extra luck; they draw power from the land as well as their own reserves. Specifically, all Will costs, whether for bonuses to skills or for magic, are reduced by one, to a minimum of one point. A geomancer can also reduce any damage to Will from a magical effect by one.

Further, a geomancer is aware of the presence and rough location of huge magical effects and otherworld gates in the attuned area. Precisely what counts as a "huge magical effect" is at the GM's discretion, and may vary depending on factors such as how much magical activity is going on in the area. A geomancer is also aware of major damage to the landscape. 

During character creation or advancement, you can spend your Trait points to do more with geomancy. 

Danger Sense (1 point) You are never surprised in combat when in your attuned area, and can always act normally. You always get a warning at the last minute when it comes to ambushes and surprise attacks, and the warning comes in sufficient time for you to shout a warning to any companions. 

My Enemies are the Land's Enemies (1 point) You can spend one Will to strike at someone you can perceive within your attuned area. The attack takes the form of falling stones or masonry, sudden sinkholes, or even in a city, a swerving car. It appears an unfortunate accident. In any case, the strike is a ranged attack using your Lore skill, and if successful inflicts d6+2 damage. 

One with the Land (1 point) The land protects you from attacks. When faced with an attack which would reduce you to 0 Endurance or Will, the land instead takes the damage for you. This erupts in the form of physical damage to the landscape or city you are attuned to. The damage breaks your attunement; you must reattune to the landscape after using this effect before you can use geomancy again. 

Sense of Eyes (1 point) Within your attuned area, you always know when you are being spied upon, whether magically or mundanely. You can make an Awareness test to catch a brief glimpse of the one spying on you. You can also spend one point of Will to know where the one spying on you is, or a point of Will to block magical spying. 

Tap Power (1 point) A geomancer who knows how to tap power can, through placement of stones, signs, and sigils, draw magic from the land. When a geomancer does this in an area they have attuned to, they gain d6 Will. This Will increase can bring a geomancer above their usual maximum, but once any Will above the usual maximum is spent, it is gone. Most geomancers spend the energy on permanent or long-term magical effects. 

Usually a geomancer can only tap power once in an area, but on certain sites, the energy flows mean a suitable building can bring more power, meaning a geomancer can tap into it once per month. Many such energy nodes are marked by neolithic stone circles, but some are the site of modern buildings. Nearly all such energy nodes in the UK are already claimed by individual practitioners or factions.

Liminal Bling
about 8 years ago – Thu, Mar 08, 2018 at 09:01:06 PM

I'm pleased to announce that we're partnering with All Rolled Up to produce exclusive Liminal branded dice trays. Here's a mock up (not the final product):

If you're interested in adding a dice tray to your Kickstarter, simply increase your pledge, and add £14 plus postage. Postage is £2.50 to the UK, and £4.00 to the rest of the world. To repeat, this item is an exclusive, only available through Kickstarter.

Wave 2 stretch goals! Werewolves! Not swearwolves!
about 8 years ago – Sat, Mar 03, 2018 at 10:15:01 AM

The Faeries and Folklore stretch goal has now funded, leading to the question...what happens next? What happens next is Wave 2 stretch goals.

They are:

• £10,000. Paul Baldowski will be writing a 10,000 word supplement on magicians, including the Council of Merlin and the Mercury Collegium.
• £12,000. Neil Gow returns with his take on fantastic Newcastle, with his supplement Novocastria.
• £14,000. The Case Notes expand! Currently a 10,000 word supplement with 8 to 10 cases, it will become a 20,000 word supplement with twice as many cases.
• £16,000. Guy Milner will be writing a supplement on vampires.
• £20,000. At this level we fund Places in Liminal Britain, a 20,000 word book of locations. The core book already has a gazetteer of places; this will let us publish a major expansion to it.

While I'm at it, I'd like to welcome Rich August to the Liminal crew. He will be working with us on some of the Case Notes and locations.

Oh, and did I mention werewolves? Here's Becky's introduction to the Werewolves of Britain supplement:

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Werewolves of Britain will be a tour through some of the iconic locations and legends of which sit at the heart of Werewolf culture and history in the Isles. It will:  

 - explore the real inspiration behind the Hound of the Baskervilles tale  
 - reveal why Robin Hood is known as the Wolfshead     
 - give the alternate history of Sheffield, the only Werewolf controlled city there has ever been. 

Secrets of the Werewolf gangs will be laid bare from their Rituals of Change to the strange talents powered by the gangs' unusually close bonds. There will be a rich set of NPC gangs and the famous Wolves and notes on what the Werewolves think of the others, the Vampires, the Fae, the Wizards and the unknowing humans they walk amongst. 

The encroachment of civilisation has wreaked havoc on the Werewolves. They are dangerous and fearsome but they have hungered for adrenaline, the hunt and for each other; not money, power and control. The world left them behind. But the Jaeger family want to change that, for too long the Wolves have been driven further and further out to the fringes. But Sheffield is finally growing in strength and influence, the other factions feel it and who knows what that will bring. 

 "Nothing is forgotten. Nothing is ever forgotten."

Zap! Pow! Smash!
about 8 years ago – Thu, Mar 01, 2018 at 05:52:55 PM

That was the sound of another two stretch goals funding since the last update....we now have adventures for Liminal. There's the Case Book, consisting of from eight to ten short cases, written by various people involved in the project, and a single longer scenario written by Newt Newport.

Thanks to everyone for making this possible. You're all amazing.

Next up, at £8,500 is Faeries and Folklore, a guide to the Fae and folkloric creatures and monsters in the Liminal setting, written by yours truly.

Talking of amazing people, I'd like to point out a post by the Liminal artist, Jason Behnke. He's someone I love working with and who really cares about what he's doing.

https://jasonbehnke.com/blogs/creativeprocessinprogress/liminal-rpg-by-paul-mitchener

Characters and the Core Mechanic
about 8 years ago – Wed, Feb 28, 2018 at 05:45:02 AM

Characters 

Liminal characters are quickly described with a drive, skills, and traits, as well as a few numbers coming from skills. It's easier for me to show rather than tell, so let me give you an example of a player character.

Ygraine Green 

Ygraine always knew she was different to normal. She grew up with her grandfather who told her nothing of her parents. As a child, when Ygraine commented she could see things which weren't there to others- ghosts and hints of illusions from the Fae- her grandfather simply cautioned her to stay quiet about them and not tell others, especially any adults. Ygraine never fit in at school. Her teachers thought her dreamy and unfocused. The other pupils at school merely found Ygraine odd.

When Ygraine's grandfather died, she was left alone in the world, not fully part of mundane reality, and ignorant of the Hidden World. The Fae began to approach her with promises and information. Ygraine didn't trust them, but their help let her survive, albeit often through stealing, and find out more about her world, though never enough. She even learned she had some talent with weaving the illusions of the Fae. 

Eventually Ygraine found a home and a purpose with her crew, the South Yorkshire Irregulars.

The Core Mechanic 

When your character faces an uncertain situation which tests their abilities, in game terms this is a skill test. Any particular skill test has a Challenge Level.

• When you make a skill test against a non-player character or another player character, they can oppose it with a relevant skill. The Challenge Level is then their skill level plus 8. 
• When a skill test is against a situation rather than a character, the GM sets the Challenge Level. Much of the time, the Challenge Level will be 8; a skilled character will probably succeed. 

To resolve a skill test, roll 2d6 and add your skill level along with any bonuses from Traits. If the result equals or exceeds the Challenge Level, the task is successful. If the roll succeeds by 5 or more, the result is a critical success. If the result falls below the target number, the outcome is failure. 

There's a little bit more to it than that in the rules, including specific suggestions for critical successes and failures, but that's the basics. BUT...you can spend Will to improve upon your roll in a test, either to turn a narrowly failed roll into a success, or a success into a critical success. If you wish to improve your result, simply spend a number of points of Will to add that many points to your dice roll. 

Some traits and forms of magic also require an expenditure of Will to activate. Some magical effects drain Will. 

Once per game session, you can engage your Drive to regain d6 Will. This does not take you above your usual maximum, but if the roll would take you above its usual maximum, or you are already at your maximum and gain no other benefit, tick an experience box on your character sheet.