Monday MtG: Tivit, Seller of Secrets

The urge to build a new deck has overtaken me, so here it is.

Tivit, Seller of Secrets

My limited research suggests that the ideal way to build Tivit involves blinking him multiple times and overwhelming everyone through massive token advantage, especially with the help of Academy Manufacturer, Smothering Tithe, and Anointed Procession.  Sadly, the latter two are in my Linden deck, so currently unavailable.

Time Sieve is a nasty enough trick to merit its own paragraph.  Regardless of how the votes go, Tivit often provides enough token artifacts to ensure another turn.  With solid blink options, this means all the turns, which is pretty impressive for a non-Simic deck.  Reportedly, experienced Commander players presume Time Sieve is in a Tivit deck until proven otherwise.  

Other mean tricks include powering out Exsanguinate, Debt to the Deathless (also a flavor win), and/or Torment of Hailfire with treasure-based mana or letting the Treasure tokens do the winning more directly via Revel in Riches, Mechanized Production, or with a bit of setup, Cyberdrive Awakener.  Less mean and more amusing is one of my favorite Magic cards, Last Laugh.  It's a shame it wasn't reprinted in the last round of Commander decks - it is a great card.

With Council's Dilemma, Tivit suggests that voting cards could be fun, but there aren't all that many worth running - voting cards were among the first I culled from my initial pile.  Still, I own the big ones, so they are in the 99: Magister of Worth, Expropriate, Council's Judgment, and Plea for Power, all backed with Illusion of Choice.

There are also the flavor cards that fit an information broker: Bribery, Cut a Deal, Propaganda, Delay, Identity Crisis, and Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer.  Knowledge Exploitation is not in the deck (yet), but fits thematically and has the Prowl ability, which could take the deck down the rogue tribal path, but one player in our group does Rogue tribal, and I don't want to steal their thunder.

On top of this is the realization that I really don't make use of Planeswalkers all that much, so I busted them out, because Semester's End suggests I should.  So into the 99 went Narset Transcendant; Venser, the Sojourner; Kaya, Ghost Assassin; Teferi, Hero of Dominaria; and Tamiyo, the Moon Sage (as well as her BFF Rewind).  I know, friends don't let friends play Tamiyo and Rewind in the same deck, but this color scheme really ain't about friendship at all.

Typing up this collection of superfriends makes me think I should look into the various Oath cards, Oath of Teferi, especially.  Double loyalty abilities sounds ugly!

In short, I have lots of styles all jammed together, so there isn't much of a tight focus.  Still, I am excited to play with cards that have been languishing unplayed in my boxes for years, in some cases.  Yes, if victory is the main goal, I need to tighten up the 99 and probably drop at least a grand on a better landbase (original duals, better duals, fetchlands, 0-drop rocks), but that isn't what this is about.

Besides, a grand is a grand.  Even I have standards and limits.  To quote Doc Holiday from the movie Tombstone, 'My hypocrisy only goes so far.'

That's it.  Playing it will decide what works and what doesn't.  Happily, I discovered the local gamestore does Wednesday night EDH/Commander games that are not all about racing to combo.  So as time allows, it's there I hope to be.

Decklist - which will change once the mail from Cardkingdom arrives.

Merchant Caravans, Part 1: Safety in Numbers

As players wander across the hexes of Irongaurd, they may very well come across a merchant caravan, which could mean either lots of immediate dice-rolling, lots of ill-formed improv, or both.

Or I can use a premade caravan.

Trade Caravan, by Kaja Foglio, WotC

This site speeds the generation of random caravans, as does this site.  Neither are as much fun for me as rolling up my own.  

Notes on a caravan modeled after the ones found in the AD&D The Rogues Gallery. 

Total Size: this includes all members, also leaders and followers.  All caravans are human, but this does not necessarily mean that a caravan cannot have demi-humans or be made up of only demi-humans.  It will be up to the DM to decide.  For simplicity, we are giving human caravans only. (Remember that the default AD&D world was humanocentric).

Master Merchant: this is the organizer or appointed spokesman of the merchants.  His level is indicated in the parenthesis after his title.  His alignment will be neutral, or one suited to the campaign.

# of Merchants: These are the merchants under the Master Merchant.  They may be associates, underlings, etc. Their alignment will follow the guidelines for Master Merchant.  They will have 1-6 hit points.

# of Drovers: Drovers will have from 2-7 hit points.

# of Wagons/Mules: This is dependent on the campaign and the terrain.  Other possibilities include camels, elephants, etc.

Mercenary Leaders: Level and class are indicated, followed by any magic items possessed (the capital letters). 

Mercenary Guards: There are 7 different types of units, composed as follows:

    Unit 1 - heavy warhorse, plate mail and shield, lance, sword (all first level fighters)

    Unit 2 - medium warhorse, chain mail & shield, lance, sword

    Unit 3 - medium warhorse, chain mail & shield, flail, mace

    Unit 4 - light horse, scale mail, light crossbow, sword

    Unit 5 - chain mail, pole arm, mace

    Unit 6 - chain mail, heavy crossbow, mace

    Unit 7 - ring mail & shield, spear, morning star

Adventurer Followers: These are non-merchants travelling with the caravan.  Those characters below the highest level of the same class will serve as his or her followers. Magic items are indicated in the same manner as with leaders.

All caravans will have a pay chest containing 2,000-4,000 gold pieces, 100-400 platinum pieces, and 4-16 base 100 gold piece gems.  Merchants will usually have types J, K, L, M, N, and Q treasures. Mercenaries will have type K treasure.  Leaders will have type M treasure. 

Looking at the samples provided in the Rogues Gallery, each caravan has at least 100 guards of the various sorts.  This speaks volumes about the dangers of traveling with wealth in the book-standard AD&D world.  It also does a fine job of keeping murderous PCs in line; in 5e, the action economy would assuredly NOT be in the favor of the party.

Speaking of 5e, there would need to be conversion, using mostly the Sidekick rules.  Merchants and drovers being Experts, mercenaries being Warriors, and leveled folks (those with predecided names) using appropriate PC classes.  Alternatively, I can use the stats from the Monster Manual for Veterans and Guards and such.

Despite all the numbers, there are no rules in the Rogues Gallery for actually rolling up the various components of a caravan.  For this information, we need the entry in the AD&D Monster Manual, under Men, Merchant (pg 69).  A highlight:

Only 10% of any band of merchants will actually be tradesmen. 10% will be drovers.  The balance (80%) will be mercenary guards.  

The guards will be led by a fighter of 6th-11th level, with a lieutenant 1 level lower (5th-10th).  These leaders will have 12 guards of 2nd level.

For every 50 persons in the merchant caravan, there is a 10% chance for a magic-user of 6th-8th level.  There is a 5% chance per 50 for a cleric of 5th-7th level.  There is a 15% chance per 50 that there will be a thief of 8th-10th level with 1-4 lesser thieves (roll for the level of each, 3rd-7th).

All the leaders, guards, and special characters are in addition to the numbers indicated by the dice.

It then breaks down the seven unit types by percentage of the 50-300 people that make up randomly encountered merchant caravans.   

While there are no tables provided to determine the actual trade goods, the Merchant entry closes by telling us that each caravan carries 10,000-60,000gp worth of merchandise, broken down to 10 pack animals or 1 wagon for each 5,000gp worth of goods.  This is in addition to the assorted pocket change of the individuals (treasure types J, K, L, M, N, Q).

The same entry for Men in the Monster Manual provides the odds of leveled people having magic items, as well as which type - 5% chance per level, so a 6th level fighter (or cleric or magic-user) has a 30% chance of having one or more magic items. 

That's a lot of math.  Let's roll some dice.

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50-300 is 1d6 x 50 = 5, so 250 base members.

10% of 250 is 25, so 25 merchants and 25 drovers.  That leaves 200 guards.  The suggested percentages are based on the remaining guards, not the full number.

Type 1 - 10% or 20 heavy warhorse, plate mail and shield, lance, sword (all first level fighters)

Type 2 - 20% or 40 medium warhorse, chain mail & shield, lance, sword

Type 3 - 10% or 20 medium warhorse, chain mail & shield, flail, mace

Type 4 - 10% or 20 light horse, scale mail, light crossbow, sword

Type 5 - 10% or 20 chain mail, pole arm, mace

Type 6 - 10% or 20 chain mail, heavy crossbow, mace

Type 7 - 30% or 60 ring mail & shield, spear, morning star (two pole arms doesn't make sense, unless 'morning star' here is actually a flail of some sort).

Caravan Escort, by Goran Josic, WotC

The Guard Captain is a level 6-11 fighter, so 1d6 + 5 = I rolled 6, so the Guard Captain is a salty veteran of 11th level.  The Guard Lieutenant is a one-level lower fighter, so 10th level.  In addition are the 12 2nd level fighters as personal guards.

A pet magic-user is possible, at 10% per 50 people, so 50%.   These merchants have one, of 6th-8th level. 8th level (figure a d6, 1-2 is 6th, 3-4 is 7th, and 5-6 is 8th. I rolled a 5).  Clerics are less likely, at 5% per 50 people, so 25% here.  No cleric.  Thieves? 15% per 50, so 75%.  Of course, there is a thief, of 8th-10th level.  9th level, using the same methodology as for the magic-user.  By the book, thieves have lesser thieves as escorts, 2 in this case, levels 5 and 6.

100 mounted troops.  That's a lot of horses.  Plus, the merchants are all mounted (on swift horses), as are the leader sorts and adventurers.  25 merchants + 14 guard leaders + 1 wizard + 3 thieves, for 43 additional horses.   We'll call it 150 for seven spares.  Then there is the livestock pulling the wagons (oxen make sense, frankly - history suggests six oxen to a team).  Before we can decide how many wagons are in the caravan, we need to determine the value of the caravan's cargo.  1d6 x 10,000 = 20,000gp of cargo, so a whopping four wagons of cargo.  That makes 24 oxen.

200 guards for four wagons strains belief.  I can't help but wonder how many additional wagons would contain food, water, spare parts and gear, and fuel enough to get this party of 268 people, 150 horses, and 24 oxen between point A and B.  Something to make it worth someone or something's while to attack the convoy.

I'll dip into history (in a separate post) to determine how much food and water (and how many chuck wagons!) is needed for a caravan this size, which will expand the number of wagons, oxen, and drovers.  But first, I want to have some fun.

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Let's consider the possible magic items among this lot. Bold-faced type is what the dice say they have.

Guard Captain - 55% armor, shield, sword, miscellaneous weapon, potion

Guard Lieutenant - 50% armor, shield, sword, miscellaneous weapon, potion

Each of the 12 guards - 10% armor x1, shield x2, sword x2, miscellaneous weapon x2, potion

Each of the 20 heavy horsemen - 5% armor, shield, sword, miscellaneous weapon, potion

Magic-User - 40% scroll, ring, rod/staff/wand, miscellaneous magic (plus spellbook!)  

Lead Thief - 45% shield, sword, miscellaneous weapon, potion, scroll, ring, miscellaneous magic

Minion Thief 1 - 30% shield, sword, miscellaneous weapon, potion, scroll, ring, miscellaneous magic

Minion Thief 2 - 25% shield, sword, miscellaneous weapon, potion, scroll, ring, miscellaneous magic

How do these odds compare to possible magic items among NPCs in the AD&D DMG appendices? Specifically Appendix C (Random Monster Encounters) and Appendix P (Creating a Party on the Spur of the Moment).

Appendix C has slightly better odds, but fewer rolls AND item options are limited.  For example, those 12 2nd level fighters would each get a 20% chance for 2 items off table 1, so at best someone ends up with several potions or a +1 item.

Appendix P involves lots of math.  Using those same 2nd level fighters, each has a 20% for a magic shield, 12% for magic plate (but 20% for magic chain - choose wisely), 12% for a scroll of protection, 16% for 1 potion, then pick a single weapon type and have a 2% through 20% chance of having a magical one.

Just eyeballing things (I have an English degree for a reason), it appears that the version offered up in the Monster Manual provides the best odds of items being found.  So I rolled and bolded the individuals' items and have totals for the guards.

Magic Item Specifics (random dice rolls for what items):

6 magic swords - sword +1, +4 vs reptiles; sword +1, +3 vs regenerating creatures; sword +1, +3 vs lycanthropes and shapechangers; sword +2; sword of wounding; sword +1

4 magic shields - shield +2; shield, large +1, +4 vs missiles; shield +4; shield +2

3 magic armor - Splint Mail +2, Scale Mail +1, Plate Mail +1

3 miscellaneous weapons - Javelin +2, Trident (Military Fork) +3, 8x Arrow +2 2-16

2 potions - Gaseous Form, Dragon Control (good dragons)

1 ring - Elemental Command (earth)

1 miscellaneous magic item - Cube of Force

Overall, there are some sweet items that PCs might envy, but are unlikely to end up with, barring an army of their own to take them, although those shields make using the 'All Shields Shall Be Splintered' houserule more difficult.  

Personally, I'm a fan of enchanted swords having names, histories, and quirks, so I will need to have these ready.

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The only thing left to determine is the merchant's pay chest contents: 2,000gp, 100pp, and 12 100gp base gems (100, 90, 70, 100, 100, 100, 140, 100, 1 (costume jewelry), 160, 100, 100).  Terrible rolls for the gems.

Based on the DMG, pages 28-29, paying for all those guards and adventurer sorts (perhaps the Captain and Lieutenant officer the guards as a complete mercenary company) comes to roughly 2,732 gp per month - with the two high level officers eating up 2,100 of that cost.  This doesn't even factor in the Wizard or Thieves (we'll presume they are merely traveling for safety in numbers to make it an even zero cost to the merchants).

Payday is gonna be entertaining if this caravan takes longer than 30 days.  I guess retail doesn't pay even in fantasy land!

Antique Ironbound Strongbox.  Buy it today!

I made use of the Merchants of the Silk Road tables in Secret Santicore 2011 to determine the cargo and a few of the merchants themselves.  The cargo is 5,000 gp in furs, 5,000gp in rugs, 5,000gp in glassware (bound for a potent wizard who will be annoyed if it tampered with), and 5,000gp in silks.  In addition, the silk wagon contains the caravan paychest and a special cargo in its own chest.

That special cargo is also bound for the wizard expecting the glassware.  Rest assured that this wizard will be even more annoyed if this special cargo goes astray.  I have yet to decide that special cargo, but rest assured, it is magical or at least arcane in nature.  

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This post is already quite long, so I'll end it and continue in a second, and maybe third, post.

Review: Downtime in Zyan

My favorite part about supporting a successful Kickstarter is forgetting that I did so, then finding something that is equal parts cool and unexpected in the mail. So it was for Downtime in Zyan.

Downtime in Zyan, art by Evlyn Moreau

Written by Ben Laurence, Downtime in Zyan is part of his ongoing Through Ultan's Door series, so if you are a completionist, be sure to pick it up.  If you haven't heard of any of this, go pick them up, if only to mine for ideas for your own games, because there are lots of useful bits to squeeze into your megadungeon.

Physically, Downtime in Zyan is a neatly packaged and printed 36-page book, staple-bound and digest-sized.  Art-wise, I took the prudish approach of the Molerats with Pants.  For those interested in such things, there is a pantsless version of the book, because after all, everyone knows that molerats don't wear pants.

As the title suggests, the book contains 10 different ways for a PC to spend their downtime, each with the basic mechanic of rolling 2d6 and maybe adding/subtracting a modifier.  Rolls below 6 (and sometimes Snake Eyes specifically) are not what you want.  7-9 is some progress, and 10-12 is a success.  

Downtime in Zyan differs from other such tables and rules I have seen in that all the results - good and bad - help build the DM's campaign world, rather than just providing a flat mechanical bonus or item.

It is this cooperative approach to world-building that makes this book so fascinating.  Granted, overly controlling DMs (or the amateur authors masquerading as DMs) probably won't care for player ideas messing up 'their world' or 'their story.'  But for the rest of us, this book is a goldmine guaranteed to not only improve your campaign world, but also to cement player investment in your game.

Given that little can damage the dreaded Scheduling Monster beyond player investment, this makes Downtime in Zyan and its options a valuable volume on the DM's bookshelf.

Having talked the book up in general, a glimpse of its contents seems fitting.

Ben discusses some of these rules on his blog, neatly captured here, for those wanting a deeper look.  Of all of them, though, my favorite is the Spellcraft options.  Not only does this section contain evocative writing (the whole book does, but this part especially), said writing keeps magic mysterious and dangerous, the way it should be.

Being something of a nerd (English degree, reads for fun, maintains a blog and youtube channel, plays DnD and Magic), the Further Reading portion of the book might be my favorite part overall.  It's a one-page listing of games and blog posts that inspired and/or further the concept of Downtime Activities.  

So it seems that after finishing today's tasks, I have some online shopping and reading to do.

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In short, thanks for the book, Ben Laurence, and your team - Evlyn Moreau, art; Lester B. Portly, layout; and Ava Islam, editing (and creator of the game Errant).  I am looking forward to using Downtime in Zyan in my game and seeing where the players take it.

Johnny Law and Skara Brae

Every civilized place has laws that hold it together.  Sometimes it is through custom, tradition, or taboo, rather than legislation (or fiat), but these rules exist, and woe be to whomever violates them.  

Even today, ignorance of the law is not a valid defense.  In DnD-land, punishments might be quite extreme.

Now, it is possible to make a list of common laws that most places - both real and imagined - create: no murder, no rape, no arson, etc.  I would argue that these laws should exist, but don't need catalogued, because they can be easily improvised.  It's the stuff that fantasy gaming brings with it that need specific laws called out.

Spell-casting.  Monsters.  Magic items.  Non-human races (presuming your game is humanocentric - I know mine is).  Competing and allied religions that can do things.  Violence as a solution.  THESE are the things that differentiate fantasy cities from real world cities.  Frankly, most players should suspect such things, and some will actively go looking for them.

So it becomes a question of what are the important laws that will catch players' attention, and perhaps turn into a session or three getting around or dealing with the repercussions of?

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The Code of Hammurabi, inscribed on a 7.5 foot tall basalt stele, a fine way to display laws to the (il)literate populace, presuming they know the specific language.

Many folks gaming today presume that laws and courts and such seen today are common in their fantasy games.  Horsefeathers! I'd think kangaroo courts, mob justice, and presumed guilty until proven innocent would be more likely.

Cribbing laws and rules and ideas from history is a time-honored DMing tradition, and the Code of Hammurabi is definitely worth looting. Another example that plays nice with the typical DnD games set in pseudo-Europe, is wergild, because it deters murder-hoboes by hitting them in the pocketbook.  The Yassa of Ghengis Khan or the Edicts of Ashoka provide additional models to make use of.

Consulting the power of the internet is an option.  This thread from enworld is worth looting, and the subreddit r/DMAcademy has a great discussion on Laws of the Fantasy Lands, to include many laws and questions to consider adding to your world.  

The blog Sword of Mass Destruction makes some solid points about law enforcement in a fantasy world, adds questions worth asking yourself, and this quote:

Basically, from a gameplay perspective I think good law punishment would be something that attacks the character sheet. Remove a limb. Limit their health. Cripple their inventory. Ban them from buying at shops in that city ever again. Cut out their tongue. Cripple their ability to play the game. 

Interestingly, SMD's observation ties in well with several of Hammurabi's punishments - lots of death and injury for those causing it.

Some real-world taboos will also exist, but have their own DnD twist, courtesy of Blog of Holding.  Speaking of which, if a town is ruled by some sort of theocracy, then religious taboos become law.  Taboos like these from d4 Caltrops.

It's the laws and social mores that PCs are bound to run afoul of that are worth writing down and watching for.  Especially if any of these suggestions from the Dungeon Dozen are followed: Who's the Law in this Town?

All of this is because, as question 12 on this excellent campaign questions list from Jeff's Gameblog points out, players may ask where there are 'notable hassles from Johnny Law.'

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Examples of such rules and laws can be found in several gaming products.  The best might be Atlas Games' Crime and Punishment.

My favorite citybook is Hollowfaust, a city ruled by Necromancers.  As might be imagined, there are interesting laws regarding funeral rites (and rights) in that city. 

Another option to look at is Irilian, from early White Dwarf magazines, but compiled for easy use by Kellri. Note that readers wanting to publish their personal fantasy city could use this document as a template.

Another example comes from Runequest's Pavis/The Big Rubble, which contains this short list of rules that PCs are likely to run afoul of.  Especially items 2, 4, and 5.

If you have the resources to acquire them, here is a partial list of city books to loot for ideas.

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Skara Brae is no different than many other fantasy campaign cities, and it has its share of laws and common courtesies that players won't consider, which means neither will the PCs, which means several episodes across sessions as these laws and customs are encountered.

Some Laws (notable hassles from Johnny Law)

Humans, Dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes, and Elves can walk the streets of Skara Brae freely.  All other races must have a keeper; Goblinoids must be collared, chained, and with owner in the city - those found loose will be killed.

Tieflings, warlocks, and sorcerers are to be executed with extreme prejudice.  Those harboring or defending such beings are considered tainted and suitable for execution as well.

Mages must be licensed by the Mages' Guild; unlicensed casting results in fines, servitude, death, and worse.  Such licenses make great real life props.

If the general call is sounded, all beings within the city are expected to help defend the city.

The colors Red and Purple are reserved for specific people; punished by loss of colored clothing and fines.

Adventuring companies must be registered; those found adventuring without license and registration will be fined and lose recovered items, if not more.  Such registrations make great real life props.

Loosing monsters or bringing other notable trouble down on the city will see surviving troublemakers heavily fined, cursed, and exiled.  

Armor and weapons of war are not allowed to be worn/carried on the city streets unless headed home or out of the city.  Special licenses can be had for a suitable donation.  

Violence against members of the Skara Brae government or those in employ of the Skara Brae City Council will be met with crucifixion.

No one can kill a cat.

Some Customs and Traditions (and Superstitions)

Religious parades have the right of way.

If someone asks for a drink, give it to them; refusing it is an insult.

If you are offered food or drink, consume it; refusing it is an insult.  

Betting on anything is commonplace; refusing to bet is the mark of a social fool.

Cats have a place of honor at all tables.  

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Several implications can be seen in these laws and customs.

These laws imply a Mages' Guild of some sort, and reasons why such laws and customs exist, as well as a place for public crucifixtions.  In addition, a bureaucracy capable of taxes, registrations, and the like exists, and a constabulary capable of enforcing the law.

Note that the stuff about cats comes directly from the Lovecraft story, The Cats of Ulthar. I imagine that Wemics, Tabaxi, and other cat people would confuse the hell out of the local law.

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Of course, breaking these rules has consequences:

Fines.  Weregild.  Ostracism or Shunning. Exile.  Public Shaming.  Indentured servitude.  Slavery.  Branding.  Maiming. Tongue Cut Out. Blinding.  Crucifixion. Gallows. Stocks.  Imprisonment.  Oubliette.  Excommunication from one or several faiths (maybe this means that beneficial spells from clerics of those faiths no longer work on the Excommunicated being), Death (probably in a cruel and public fashion).  If specific ideas of punishment are needed, just browse history - humanity has quite an ability to be terrible to one another.  Just ask Giles Corey.

The Massachusetts Historical Society has a gruesome description of what happened next.

Giles was asked to strip naked and lay down, face-up, on the ground. A wooden board was then placed on top of him, and on top of the board, one by one, Sheriff George Corwin placed large rocks. After two days of this torture, through which Giles had remained silent, never crying out, he was asked to plead. Giles did not want his property to be taken, so he never plead either way. On the third day 19 September 1692 he died from being pressed to death.

His last words were, “more weight.” Corey’s death by pressing ultimately helped change the way the Salem Witch Trials were viewed by locals.

'More weight' is how a classy gent tells a town to go fuck itself.  

Exile is worse than it sounds in a points of light campaign world, which Skara Brae is.  Those not able to survive to the next city or other point of light tend to die horribly.  Note that being exiled from a place typically carries with it an 'if seen in this area again, people can make you dead, no questions asked.'  

In addition to traditional means of punishment, DnD allows the government to use magic, as well.  I suspect that there is a controlled market for drugs/potions that temporarily reduce stats to ensure that saves are failed and spells take effect.  (I also expect such potions to command top dollar on the black market).

Feeblemind.  Enfeeblement.  Geas,  Curse (so much more potential than the basic spell).  Polymorph.  Petrify.  Shrink.   Imprisonment.  Exile - but to another plane!  

Being cast into the Astral Plane or through a portal to an untamed land might be an extreme punishment, but wow, does it send a message to the populace while setting the PCs up for a new adventure! 

Given that there are PCs on the receiving end of these spells, I am leaning towards Geas and various Curses to keep PCs active and players engaged - something that instant death somewhat detracts from.  Note that in 5e, both Geas and Curse seem far weaker than I recall, so I'll use proper a Geas and proper Curses that actually matter at the table.

And by proper Geas and Curse, I mean, cannot be removed with simple Remove Curse spells or other use of the character sheet.

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Some bonus curses to consider.

Monday MtG: Game Day!

It's been some time since I have actually gotten to play Magic with the Citronelle crew; it's been longer since I have played any games beyond mismatched duels using Commander decks.   Mismatched because some Commander decks are better for one-on-one games, and others for multiplayer games.

To be frank, in a Commander duel, whichever player has the strongest start tends to win.  Land into Sol Ring into Arcane Signet is a sweet opening in a 4-player game, but overwhelming opening against one player.  

For today's games, I brought nine Commander decks.  Time allowed for only three games, but I took notes.

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Game one: Obosh, the Preypiercer vs Imotekh the Stormlord vs Marchesa the Black Rose

A slow start for all, but Imotehk does its thing and fills the board with artifacts.  Obosh overloads a Vandalblast and buys less than a turn, as Imotehk Reanimates Technomancer and it begins again.  He then tries for an 8-point Torment of Hailfire, but Marchesa counters it, thankfully.

Obosh comes and goes twice, but at one point gets to do its 'odd cmc' thing, and Underworld Cerberus hits Imotekh for 12.  This is the last time I am able to have creatures in play for more than one turn.  Enchantments, on the other hand, stick around all game, as I am able to land (and activate) Bloodchief Ascension and Caverns of Despair.  

It is the Caverns that keep both Marchesa and Imotekh from swarming either me or each other, so it is logical I need to go first.  

The entire time, Marchesa is doing her thing, mostly through cycling Reef Worm and Iron Apprentice through the graveyard to activate Bloodflow Connoisseur.  Still, all this cycling through the graveyard results in Bloodchief Ascension doing its thing, knocking Marchesa to one life and forcing her to sacrifice some of those tokens to stay alive.  

By this point, Imotekh lands a Darksteel Forge, Conjurer's Closet, and Whip of Erebos, and whips up some trouble for Marchesa, forgetting about the Propaganda she has out, so his creatures are for nought (all the mana gone for a big turn).  He could attack me, but needs the Caverns to stay in play to not die.

None of the half-dozen draw spells in my deck come into play, and all I can top-deck is land.   At an impasse, Marchesa takes me out of game, survives Imotekh's attack, and eventually wins, despite the Whip netting Imotekh more life than he loses for the first few exchanges.

 

Observations:  top-decking - especially lands - sucks.  I was worried about the mana-curve of the deck (too many fun 5 cmc cards in here), but it was the lack of anything to play that got me.  That Imotekh deck is built around the graveyard more than anything else.

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Game two: Torbran, Thane of Red Fell vs Vial Smasher the Fierce/Sakashima of a Thousand Faces vs Daretti, Scrap Savant

It didn't take long for VS/S1K to have four copies of Vial Smasher in play - it was ugly, but awesome to see.  Torbran tried for a sweeper via Chainwhirler with Torbran in play, but Vial Smasher responded with Go for the Throat on T, so all I got out of it was 1 damage on Daretti.  Two turns later, Daretti played Blasphemous Act and popped all four of them - and my second and last casting of Torbran, as well.  

Daretti is building a board of artifacts, and I am swinging with a Thundermaw Hellkite sporting a Basilisk Collar, while Vial Smasher tries to recover.  Being aggressive keeps me from playing the Stranglehold in my hand - something I'll regret later.

I play Structural Assault to clear the field, and Daretti miracles into Reforge the Soul on his turn, sending the Stranglehold in my hand to the bin.  Reforge does give me Brash Taunter, who in turn lets me get Daretti to 6 life, but Daretti recovers from the artifact sweeping with a Kuldotha Forgemaster, which spells my doom, as on successive turns he drops Darksteel Forge and Platinum Angel.  

The best I have is Price of Progess, which puts Vial Smasher out of the game (not a basic land in sight).  I then scoop because I think Into the Core is not in my deck. It turns out it was, but a good 30+ cards deep, so it might as well have not been.

Observations: I should ALWAYS play Stranglehold and other enchantments as soon as possible against decks that are unlikely to have answers.  This is two games in a row where enchantments were king.  Also, Torbran has some cards that are stinkers if he isn't in play - Magic Missile, Pyrotechnics, and Chainwhirler - although the last feeds devotion well.  Structural Assault is a great card, though, and it's always a thrill to see decks do their thing, which both of my opponents' decks did.

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Game three: Xyris, the Writhing Storm vs Empress Galina vs Borborgymos Enraged vs the Swarmlord

The game kicks off with everyone ramping - especially 'Bobby' and Swarmlord - but me.  Atalan Jackal in particular does work for many turns.  What a great card! A crying shame it's got too much sci-fi for my fantasy game tastes, but whatever.  So does the recent Kamigawa set.  

My one-land-per-turn finally allows a 6-point Prosperity, with Xyris in play, netting me 18 snake tokens.  The Swarmlord follows me and sweeps the field of 1/1s.  Bye snakes!

Empress Galina uses Telemin Performance on 'Bobby' to mill 17 cards and score a Birds of Paradise. We laughed at Empress.  Empress followed up with Cyclonic Rift, then laughed at us.

Xyris lands a Pandemonium in preparation for more snake tokens, which goes around the table once before getting zapped when 'Bobby' activates his Nev's Disk, and follows up with Kozilek the Great Distortion.  Koz is promptly stolen by Empress with a Corrupted Conscience.  Xyris can only play a Teferi's Puzzle Box and hope I'm not killed first, but Swarmlord saves us with a Blasphemous Act!

'Bobby' pulls his Disk from the grave and prepares to sweep the board - again - but Empress steals it. Puzzle Box is doing its disruptive thing - it is such a wonderful card for this reason - and gives me Wheel and Deal and Windfall, and I cast both and pass turn.  Swarmlord exiles 'Bobby's' graveyard with a Bojuka Bog, and 'Bobby' scoops, with his Commander never seeing play.  

Xyris lands and is able to equip Lightning Greaves.  Note that Puzzle Box is still in play.  We go around the table and Puzzle Box gives me Cyclonic Rift, which ends up netting me LOTS of snake tokens.

Swarmlord digs up and tries to recast Blasphemous Act, but I have a Voidslime ready. In response, he says 'screw it' and plays Primal Vigor and Doubling Season.  Empress plays something and passes to me.

Puzzle Box gives me Mana Echoes and a Wheel of Fortune, which gives me another wheel which provides Impact Tremors, Purphoros, God of the Forge, and Forced Fruition; I cast them all via Mana Echoes.  We all agree I win with my snake tokens.

Observations: I'd like to think that Xyris would have won, but Primal Vigor ensured it.  Winning or not, it was nice seeing my deck do its thing. I'd forgotten how fun chaining Wheels can be, because I get to at least see much of my deck.  'Bobby' is a well-tuned deck that normally fares better.  Between Puzzle Box and Telemin Performance, he never got to keep his key cards.

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Those two Warhammer decks I played against are strong out of box.  My buddy admittedly made some changes, but not many.  He did say the two I didn't face were not nearly as solid, though.

Overall, I realize that I made the terrible mistake of building my decks around the commander.  All three of today's decks - Obosh, Torbran, and Xyris - are jammed full of low-value/unusable cards if the Commander isn't in play.   Which was the case for these games, and honestly, should be the expectation for all games - the Commander staying in the Command Zone shouldn't impact the rest of the deck.

I partially blame the lack of the tuck rule - without that as a threat, a deckbuilder may forget that a deck's Commander may be kept out of play if their table runs a decent amount of removal - which it should.  The rest of the blame falls squarely on my shoulders - I got caught up in the 'cool card' mindset that doesn't take into account likely opponent actions.

Another mistake is that my graveyard-exiling is minimal in these decks.  I'd forgotten how much the Citronelle crew likes to treat graveyards like second decks.  

The endstate is that now I have no qualms breaking Xryis back into parts (many ear-marked for Nekusar), turning Torbran into another monored deck (perhaps with Torbran in the 99), and putting Mogis back in the Command Zone and Obosh back in the 99, where it belongs.

Treasure Maps

Nothing excites the imagination like a map and the promise of treasure at the end!

Maps are the perfect adventure hook - either belonging to one PC that is smart enough to realize they need companions to help recover it, or each PC holding a part of the map and grudgingly cooperating.  Treasure maps provide a focused reason to go explore a specific area - especially if there is a decent idea of what is 'buried' at the end of the map.   

I grew up encountering treasure maps again and again in various media, from following maps in Sid Meier's Pirates, to watching Harrison Ford evade Nazis while seeking the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders of the Lost Ark, to watching kids my age chasing One-Eyed Willie's treasure (while evading traps and finding a corpse) in the Goonies, to watching Elrond reading the Moon-Letters in the Hobbit on Thror's map.

Elrond and that map, from the Rankin-Bass cartoon, 1977.  Cool discussion on moon-letters.

As I got older, Treasure Island, Treasure Planet, the Pirates of Darkwater, and the various Pirates of the Caribbean films as inspiration joined my list of map-influenced adventure.  And honestly, can one run a pirate or oceancrawl campaign and not have at least one treasure map?

Even the popular video game Skyrim contains multiple treasure maps, although in my case, I stumbled upon some of the hidden treasures before I found the map leading to them.  THAT is the joy of an open world. 

DnD has a history of maps, as well.  The module X1: Isle of Dread kicks off with the PCs discovering a map of the edges of the fabled Isle of Dread.  The module B10: Night's Dark Terror (review) contains a map hidden in plain sight as an elaborate tapestry. Even the boxed set Dragon Mountain starts with a piecemealed map; chasing a few bits and putting them together leads to the titular Mountain.

All of these sources prove again and again that a treasure map provides a vehicle for all sorts of adventures, and with DnD being an adventure game, they are a perfect match.

With all this precedent, why not include a map of your own?

Thror's Map, to include the Moon-Letters under the hand

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You've decided to include a treasure map in your next adventure, which is awesome.

The best part is that said map provides something tangible for the players at the table - even if it is a digital table.  Giving the players a game artifact to fuss with and manipulate brings excitement to all.

A traditional map is an image and makes a great prop for the table.  That said, you can also use a verbal map, which is just a set of instructions, either written or spoken or sung, perhaps.  Both types lean heavily into the exploration pillar that some DnD games shun and others thrive on, but all need more of.

Verbal maps can take the form of diary or captain's log entries, letters, and tavern tales or bard songs - though I recommend the latter only if the players are tolerant of long read alouds.  Perhaps have a one-sheet ready for the players to re-read the tale or song for clues.

Actual drawn maps don't actually require great artistic skills.  Don't misunderstand - a pretty map is something beautiful to behold, but all you need is something that is clear enough to understand. 

At this point, the crafty DM can create a unique-to-table item, making use of a variety of invisible inks, aging paper, and (less than) remarkable art skills to bring it all together.  Fold it and/or roll it a few times to complete the appearance.  

Then present it to your players and let the session(s) roll, because one map can provide all sorts of player-driven stories, all in pursuit of that X at the end of the map.

Note that on occasion, you can turn a player-created map into a treasure map for later adventurers.  This happens when the PC mapmaker dies, and the rest of the party fail to grab their map before beating a hasty retreat.  That map gets added to the key as a well-deserved prize for the next PCs to head that direction.

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Below is Redbeard demonstrating how to age paper - essential for a solid prop.

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For those preferring videos to words, here is a video about Treasure Maps from D&D Homebrew.

I would love to hear about any great treasure maps you've used in your games.  Ideally, I'd love to see them!