World building is one of the most fun things when roleplaying.
>>152350 → >>321295
There is quite a bit of wold building here in various threads, but am hoping to get a good base worldbuilding thread that we can say "This is the mlpol world" to help facilitate more roleplaying.
Something that others can use as a base to launch their games from.
Do you guys want any kind of scifi in it? Or maybe some scifi hooks? Prior to Celestia and Luna, were there lots of alicorns before?
One of Luna's dream abilities is to change the physical world indirectly from dreams. When Luna visits others in their dreams, and if she is not careful, ponies tend to change.
/vx/ - Videogames and Paranormal
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Do you think Twilight ever feels like she's lost control of her life?
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>>152798
Twilight "Twilynanas" Sparkle is the poster child of pony OCD. She probably feels like that 40 times a day.
Twilight "Twilynanas" Sparkle is the poster child of pony OCD. She probably feels like that 40 times a day.
>>152741
Very nice that somebody made this thread.
It's no secret that a lot of horsefuckers enjoy roleplaying, because playing a character in a world of ponies is so much fun. Countless pony roleplay games exist, and everyone presents their world a little bit differently. Some players straight-up use the world in the show, other modify it, and some make completely original pony settings.
What do you think makes for a good pony-centric setting? What does a pony setting need to create a fulfilling game? Is canon Equestria a good place to adventure/roleplay in? Why/why-not? What would you like to see in a world of ponies?
And if you were to set the grounds for a game that incorporates /mlpol/ memes, how would you write up the setting?
Very nice that somebody made this thread.
It's no secret that a lot of horsefuckers enjoy roleplaying, because playing a character in a world of ponies is so much fun. Countless pony roleplay games exist, and everyone presents their world a little bit differently. Some players straight-up use the world in the show, other modify it, and some make completely original pony settings.
What do you think makes for a good pony-centric setting? What does a pony setting need to create a fulfilling game? Is canon Equestria a good place to adventure/roleplay in? Why/why-not? What would you like to see in a world of ponies?
And if you were to set the grounds for a game that incorporates /mlpol/ memes, how would you write up the setting?
>>152741
I enjoy sci-fi in my pony settings. I think a post celestia/Luna/twilight setting would be perfect imo
I enjoy sci-fi in my pony settings. I think a post celestia/Luna/twilight setting would be perfect imo
>>152877
There was this ttrpg game I played that combined fantasy and a steampunk aesthetic that is to say, magic guns and airships.
There was this ttrpg game I played that combined fantasy and a steampunk aesthetic that is to say, magic guns and airships.
>>152878
I guess the first questions of world-building are what you want your characters to experience in game.
I guess the first questions of world-building are what you want your characters to experience in game.
maybe 3-4 different worlds defined would be better than one. Will include hooks to allow them all to tie together as multiverse dtuff is canon with the MLP:FIM show.
I'd like to define something like an alternative earth thing where WW2 ppl accidentally occult-magic'd up some pretty crazy stuff. This would include ponies, but mostly other dark things. Will think about this more when I have time.
I'd like to define something like an alternative earth thing where WW2 ppl accidentally occult-magic'd up some pretty crazy stuff. This would include ponies, but mostly other dark things. Will think about this more when I have time.
>>152881
>where WW2 ppl accidentally occult-magic'd up some pretty crazy stuff. This would include ponies
Are you a fan of games where humanoids and ponies exist in the same setting?
>where WW2 ppl accidentally occult-magic'd up some pretty crazy stuff. This would include ponies
Are you a fan of games where humanoids and ponies exist in the same setting?
>>152741
I honestly prefer to have S2 worldbuilding as a base, then put interesting stuff to see what ticks inside said world.
I honestly prefer to have S2 worldbuilding as a base, then put interesting stuff to see what ticks inside said world.
>>152882
I'm pretty indifferent about it. honestly I like hooman+pony more than the skittles fairy changelings.
I'm pretty indifferent about it. honestly I like hooman+pony more than the skittles fairy changelings.
>>152889
Interesting.
Honestly, I do appreciate the idea of roleplaying in the G4 world, although I question how to properly support it for conventional fantasy, especially an exploration based one. G4 is at its core a slice of life show, and although slice of life games are great, some people may be disappointed if they sign up to play adventuring games but don't do they much combat or adventuring. Not saying it isn't possible, but it takes some thought to work out.
I would at least change it to make sure that spellcasting isn't restricted to unicorns. Race-locking class niches has always been unfun to me.
Interesting.
Honestly, I do appreciate the idea of roleplaying in the G4 world, although I question how to properly support it for conventional fantasy, especially an exploration based one. G4 is at its core a slice of life show, and although slice of life games are great, some people may be disappointed if they sign up to play adventuring games but don't do they much combat or adventuring. Not saying it isn't possible, but it takes some thought to work out.
I would at least change it to make sure that spellcasting isn't restricted to unicorns. Race-locking class niches has always been unfun to me.
>>152890
Of course, it's just the base structure of it. After that, you can add any number of elements to fit whatever niche you want to explore, be it simple RPG adventures where you go fight monsters harrassing towns, mobster crime thrillers in Las Pegasus, maybe some eldritch abominations in a deep cave inside Everfree. If it doesn't directly contradict the base, then it can go in.
Of course, it's just the base structure of it. After that, you can add any number of elements to fit whatever niche you want to explore, be it simple RPG adventures where you go fight monsters harrassing towns, mobster crime thrillers in Las Pegasus, maybe some eldritch abominations in a deep cave inside Everfree. If it doesn't directly contradict the base, then it can go in.
>>152891
Tbh, the thing that bothers me the most is the princesses. Although they're effectively deities tied to the cosmology, they're still very mortal and failiable creatures that PCs will want to interact with on the prime material plane. That means that they need to have stats, which also means that any PC could for whatever reason kill them and gum up the setting for future players.
I once joined a high level Spelljammer game, and the DM said that the one thing he genuinely regretted about his setting was the advent of one of his past players murdering Pelor and changing the setting forever. It came as a surprise to me, who wanted to play a Pelorite Druid.
If you don't want anyone to kill the sun, you should not make it an option.
Tbh, the thing that bothers me the most is the princesses. Although they're effectively deities tied to the cosmology, they're still very mortal and failiable creatures that PCs will want to interact with on the prime material plane. That means that they need to have stats, which also means that any PC could for whatever reason kill them and gum up the setting for future players.
I once joined a high level Spelljammer game, and the DM said that the one thing he genuinely regretted about his setting was the advent of one of his past players murdering Pelor and changing the setting forever. It came as a surprise to me, who wanted to play a Pelorite Druid.
If you don't want anyone to kill the sun, you should not make it an option.
>>152892
>kill
I honestly don't know if outright death can explicitly happen in G2 world, as none up until S3 with Sombra has ever died in the first place.
I like to think that 'lethal' damage just knocks them out cold while 'non-lethal' damage just leaves them so tired they can't do anything significant. Although I do understand feeling the stakes might be lowered by such a change.
That's why you kidnap the princess instead!
>kill
I honestly don't know if outright death can explicitly happen in G2 world, as none up until S3 with Sombra has ever died in the first place.
I like to think that 'lethal' damage just knocks them out cold while 'non-lethal' damage just leaves them so tired they can't do anything significant. Although I do understand feeling the stakes might be lowered by such a change.
That's why you kidnap the princess instead!
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>>152893
Hmmm, are you aiming for more of a slice of life kind of pony game, rather than a conventional fantasy hack-and-slash violent game?
That's certainly doable. It's what the tales of Equestria system is for.
There's also this nice Savage Worlds doc that has rules for non-combat encounters:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13rx6jUoOR8izx4_M4nqc8Wt5g0FyF2qR/view?usp=sharing
Hmmm, are you aiming for more of a slice of life kind of pony game, rather than a conventional fantasy hack-and-slash violent game?
That's certainly doable. It's what the tales of Equestria system is for.
There's also this nice Savage Worlds doc that has rules for non-combat encounters:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13rx6jUoOR8izx4_M4nqc8Wt5g0FyF2qR/view?usp=sharing
>>152895
I mean, the hacking and slashing are still there, but the damage is usually just like a black eye or a bruise, mebbe.
Still, I get where you're coming from, and I do indeed like a more social, slice of life sort of deal rather than a lot of pew pew laser/sword tornadoes mostly because chatting up and learn how to solve a conflict through words tends to be more intriguing to me rather than learn a rulebook's worth of mechanics to memorize that I don't even use in the end.
I mean, the hacking and slashing are still there, but the damage is usually just like a black eye or a bruise, mebbe.
Still, I get where you're coming from, and I do indeed like a more social, slice of life sort of deal rather than a lot of pew pew laser/sword tornadoes mostly because chatting up and learn how to solve a conflict through words tends to be more intriguing to me rather than learn a rulebook's worth of mechanics to memorize that I don't even use in the end.
>>152896
See, I'd really prefer to play d&d/Pathfinder, especially for a West Marches style where players are inconsistent and the game isn't centered on one narrative, but I guess it matters what people want.
See, I'd really prefer to play d&d/Pathfinder, especially for a West Marches style where players are inconsistent and the game isn't centered on one narrative, but I guess it matters what people want.
>>152885
Are you talking about an isekai AiE-type situation, where humans are visitors in the world of ponies?
Are you talking about an isekai AiE-type situation, where humans are visitors in the world of ponies?
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Tail bone is it real?
Due to this being later season check out the tail bones.
Due to this being later season check out the tail bones.
>>152909
Horses have fleshy tails beneath the hair, and tails have bones. The pic on the right looks a bit weird, but it still looks like the tail bone of the spine.
Horses have fleshy tails beneath the hair, and tails have bones. The pic on the right looks a bit weird, but it still looks like the tail bone of the spine.
>>152741
A couple anons have thrown ideas around, but I would like to hear what (You) have to say about the topic, OP.
A couple anons have thrown ideas around, but I would like to hear what (You) have to say about the topic, OP.
How many races are y'all interested in for an Equestrian game? Should there be a lot of races other than ponies? Zebras? Buffalo? Minotaurs? Kirin?
Ponyfinder has quite a few "creatures", but as far as I'm concerned I'm not really interested running or playing pony-games that feature anything but ponies. I can play furshit races in any game, but pony races are really only accessible in pony games in pony communities, so I'd rather keep the racial pool pure.
Ponyfinder has quite a few "creatures", but as far as I'm concerned I'm not really interested running or playing pony-games that feature anything but ponies. I can play furshit races in any game, but pony races are really only accessible in pony games in pony communities, so I'd rather keep the racial pool pure.
>>153030
I am not a fan of restricting magic to certain races. Imo, it's the biggest common mistake in pony games.
I am not a fan of restricting magic to certain races. Imo, it's the biggest common mistake in pony games.
>>152979
I understand and sympathize with you on that. What if one of the other players wanted to be something else though?
I understand and sympathize with you on that. What if one of the other players wanted to be something else though?
>>153040
To be fair, changelings are already edgy by design. Still, they're plagued with ugly OCs who add arbitrary color changes and other "unique" features, just to distinguish them.
On that topic, how do you feel about changelings as a playable race?
To be fair, changelings are already edgy by design. Still, they're plagued with ugly OCs who add arbitrary color changes and other "unique" features, just to distinguish them.
On that topic, how do you feel about changelings as a playable race?
>>153041
I know I wasn't directly asked, but frankly it's a little tough to play as bug if you want the character to have explicit goals of their own without the hive's heavy influence on them. It's either making an entire hive for the character to rally behind, be a hive's queen from the get-go or mold oneself to an established hive's goals, like the obvious Chryssi.
Aside from that, it's quite difficult for them to really shine through appearance alone while staying true to canon, too. Perhaps it's why when the non-canon resolution to the species came out as le gay boogs led by Thorax. Clothing could help, tho.
I know I wasn't directly asked, but frankly it's a little tough to play as bug if you want the character to have explicit goals of their own without the hive's heavy influence on them. It's either making an entire hive for the character to rally behind, be a hive's queen from the get-go or mold oneself to an established hive's goals, like the obvious Chryssi.
Aside from that, it's quite difficult for them to really shine through appearance alone while staying true to canon, too. Perhaps it's why when the non-canon resolution to the species came out as le gay boogs led by Thorax. Clothing could help, tho.
>>153051
I know in Everglow "doppelgangers" are actually more of a template race or heritage a full race, and they don't have the hive mind eusocial traits. Of course, that makes them quite different from the changelings in the show, but also arguably much better as an RPG race.
I know in Everglow "doppelgangers" are actually more of a template race or heritage a full race, and they don't have the hive mind eusocial traits. Of course, that makes them quite different from the changelings in the show, but also arguably much better as an RPG race.
>>153743
I don’t know mate, just like loss on a personal level maybe? Also I’m new around here, but I think there should be a Nation of nazi ponies, since that’s essentially what this site is about.
I don’t know mate, just like loss on a personal level maybe? Also I’m new around here, but I think there should be a Nation of nazi ponies, since that’s essentially what this site is about.
>>153744
>Im new around here
Then as a '4chan old-schooler' as youve claimed in other threads, you should KNOW what to do AS A FUKKING NEWFAG
Hint, it rhymes with 'lurk moar'
>Im new around here
Then as a '4chan old-schooler' as youve claimed in other threads, you should KNOW what to do AS A FUKKING NEWFAG
Hint, it rhymes with 'lurk moar'
>>153746
No, youre a fucking newfag who doesnt have the sense to lurk when he should, and expects to be spoonfed because he posts.
tl:dr Youre a newfag
No, youre a fucking newfag who doesnt have the sense to lurk when he should, and expects to be spoonfed because he posts.
tl:dr Youre a newfag
>>153748
>hurr, youre obsessed
Yeah, ask Nigel how that song went, newfag.
You obviously have not a care for board culture, you assume that 'Ive been in chans ever since' gives you largesse to post whatever/whenever.
You CLEARLY have no grasp or attention to the site (since there are literally embedded image links at your disposal),...
Quick question: what does the policy page say? (for extra credit, spot where Im mentioned).
If you intend to make mlpol your home (and there are no prohibitions on that) then please drop the self-entitled bullshit. I know Straya is shit, but thats noy an excuse to act like a ponce.
>hurr, youre obsessed
Yeah, ask Nigel how that song went, newfag.
You obviously have not a care for board culture, you assume that 'Ive been in chans ever since' gives you largesse to post whatever/whenever.
You CLEARLY have no grasp or attention to the site (since there are literally embedded image links at your disposal),...
Quick question: what does the policy page say? (for extra credit, spot where Im mentioned).
If you intend to make mlpol your home (and there are no prohibitions on that) then please drop the self-entitled bullshit. I know Straya is shit, but thats noy an excuse to act like a ponce.
>>153750
Don't mind him. He's just cranky.
For the claim, well, yes, it would be nice for characters to experience loss. But it can't really be taken for granted that what is "lost" is of value to the character. You have to work to establish that value before before you can really lose it
Don't mind him. He's just cranky.
For the claim, well, yes, it would be nice for characters to experience loss. But it can't really be taken for granted that what is "lost" is of value to the character. You have to work to establish that value before before you can really lose it
>>153751
Pretty sure this isn’t the correct thread to sperg at me, since it is a world building thread. And enlighten me oh oldfag. How have I been acting entitled? I’ve just been having fun a nice board.
Pretty sure this isn’t the correct thread to sperg at me, since it is a world building thread. And enlighten me oh oldfag. How have I been acting entitled? I’ve just been having fun a nice board.
>>153753
>isnt the correct thread
Says the pot, who has derailed how many threads with his 'hurr, Im new' bullshit? Do you even know what /vx/ is for? Lurk moar newfaggot
>isnt the correct thread
Says the pot, who has derailed how many threads with his 'hurr, Im new' bullshit? Do you even know what /vx/ is for? Lurk moar newfaggot
>>153744
>there should be a Nation of nazi ponies
I've been considering this, since I've been fixing to make a site-wide series of games for /mlpol/. It's natural that some will want to do Nazi roleplay.
>there should be a Nation of nazi ponies
I've been considering this, since I've been fixing to make a site-wide series of games for /mlpol/. It's natural that some will want to do Nazi roleplay.
>>153756
Dude, right now you're the only one who's derailing the thread. I don't care how long people have been here; that's not a qualifying factor for opinions on fantasy horse games.
Dude, right now you're the only one who's derailing the thread. I don't care how long people have been here; that's not a qualifying factor for opinions on fantasy horse games.
>>153744
It's kind of difficult to I still personal loss on party members in roleplay. Sure, you could subject them to bodily injury, destroy their most precious items, or kill NPCs they bonded with, but those events don't necessarily contribute to a fun session.
Loss is usually something that players put in back stories.
It's kind of difficult to I still personal loss on party members in roleplay. Sure, you could subject them to bodily injury, destroy their most precious items, or kill NPCs they bonded with, but those events don't necessarily contribute to a fun session.
Loss is usually something that players put in back stories.
>>153752
Very true. It was just a thought I had when I saw the thread. I suppose it would be hard to implement.
Very true. It was just a thought I had when I saw the thread. I suppose it would be hard to implement.
>>153752
I was playing a game were my pet Inix (big lizard) was killed by a pack of Gith recently. I considered it a moment of character development for Druid, since he was really all she had, and the feeling of powerlessness motivated her to try harder in the future, but also to take fewer risks.
I was playing a game were my pet Inix (big lizard) was killed by a pack of Gith recently. I considered it a moment of character development for Druid, since he was really all she had, and the feeling of powerlessness motivated her to try harder in the future, but also to take fewer risks.
>>153774
Then comes the question of how the "WWII biome" meshes with the rest of the fantasy RP world. I guess we could raise the overall tech level to incorporate guns into the world like Pathfinder does, but balance them so they don't conflict with medieval combat.
Then comes the question of how the "WWII biome" meshes with the rest of the fantasy RP world. I guess we could raise the overall tech level to incorporate guns into the world like Pathfinder does, but balance them so they don't conflict with medieval combat.
>>153779
What about a setting like Golarion's Arcadia where guns are just ancient tech native to one area of the world? In a fantasy game it's not unfair to deviate from realism a bit.
What about a setting like Golarion's Arcadia where guns are just ancient tech native to one area of the world? In a fantasy game it's not unfair to deviate from realism a bit.
>>153788
I enjoyed reading the new Guns And Gears book for PF2e. It let me realize that guns and high fantasy aren't mutually exclusive.
I enjoyed reading the new Guns And Gears book for PF2e. It let me realize that guns and high fantasy aren't mutually exclusive.
>>153794
The PF2e Gunslinger is also pretty good, imo. It's probably the best with guns because of its reload actions. Lots of other classes can make use of guns too though, like Monks ala the Bullet Dancer archetype (mechanically and flavorfully done best with the Holy Roman Empire era Air Repeater gun).
The PF2e Gunslinger is also pretty good, imo. It's probably the best with guns because of its reload actions. Lots of other classes can make use of guns too though, like Monks ala the Bullet Dancer archetype (mechanically and flavorfully done best with the Holy Roman Empire era Air Repeater gun).
>>153796
I Havnt played PF2e, Its Great they can use Guns too. What would be the best way to implement Guns for ponies though?
I Havnt played PF2e, Its Great they can use Guns too. What would be the best way to implement Guns for ponies though?
Here's a question for world-building, what kind of fantasy enemies are good for pony games? Equestria lacks humanoids, so some conventional monsters don't exactly work as well as villains. Naturally, in an FiM themed game, you want to have unique villains.
I've been thinking of things such as:
>Windigos (powerful spirits that bring societies to ruin)
These guys are pretty serious villains, so I'd only use them for high level. It could be interesting to have cannibalistic wendigo-worshippers as enemies in an icy terrain map though.
>Conventional beasts (cockatrice, manticore, chimera, hydra, Bugbear, flyder, etc)
Your run of the mill fantasy monsters of the week. Certainly great for filling combat encounters, less so as villains.
>Autistic Unicorns (Sombra, Glimmer, Shimmer, Tempest)
Evil/misguided spellcaster(?) tries to end the world (again) with a sinister spell. Not a hard enemy to make. These guys would typically be your main humanoid villains.
>Whateverthefuck Tirek is
I would rather not reuse canon villains, but it could be cool to explore their origins
>Discord
Again with the last point. I would also prefer to sideline discord as more of a deity-level entity. However, things like "chaos beasts" from his dimension could make for fun encounters.
>Changelings
Again, not sure if I'd want to use exact FiM villains, but shapeshifting bug-ponies are full of potential as villains.
>Dragons
Dragons are classic villains, although perhaps some of FiM's average dragons might conflict with expectations when it comes to size. Perhaps spike-like dragons could be their own subspecies, or perhaps villainous dragons will just be the advanced age version of them.
Dragons also have their own homeland and society in FiM, so that could be a map worth building.
As for "good" dragons, I would actually prefer most dragons in a pony setting to be pretty consistently unfriendly to ponies, to keep it consistent with FiM. Besides, I was never that big of a fan of deus-ex-machina metallic dragons when it came to campaign design.
>Grogar
Now, Grogar is a villain that was never actually used in FiM, so I think he's a villain worth using. He's like the Equestrian equivalent to Satan, although I think statwise he'd be some sort of high-level ascended mage, probably a former humanoid (goat). His vestige as the father of monsters could actually make all of the "conventional beasts" more interesting by their supposed relationship to him, and perhaps there could even be a (((continued lineage))) of goat practitioners who continue his legacy.
>Evil humanoids
This is where Equestria is lacking, as it doesn't really have "monster races". That's not necessarily bad though. I would guess that changeling actually fall within this category, with their eusocial nature necessitating loyalty to a hive, and their love-feeding implying they're less-capable of certain emotions.
>non-pony humanoids who happen to be evil
If I'm going to design an entire race, I'm rather not make them universally evil/savage. Still, there's potential there for cool things, since other races may compete with ponies for territory, and I feel like that's a warlike adventure that players might appreciate on this board. Every race, including ponies, should have at least one evil faction, and fighting the evil ones gets to explore those races as villains or even as monsters (i.e gigantic minotaurs who grew stronger out of worship of their creator Baphomet).
>Evil ponies
This is really the "Autistic Unicorns" thing, although it's worth noting that the best villains are not necessarily spellcasters. Some part of me has a hunch that pony-on-pony violence may be less desired than other conventional fantasy adventures, unless it's a war game (see below), but main-race villains can be fun in urban areas.
>The fog of war
In some cases, conflict can be had without evil being involved in the first place. Neutral races may go to war over territory or ideology, even between ponies. This would certainly be an element of any /mlpol/-themed game. In this sort of adventure, PCs would either be trying to stop/end a war, or earn "victory points" through side quests to ensure the success of their faction.
>Animals
Normal animals can make for good monsters, but harassing the wildlife gets boring after low levels. They're could also be used if the PCs are at odds with a Druid or something from the next category though:
>Elementals/Fey/spirits etc
Equestria is a world of magic and certainly has room for natural monsters. I would constrain "spirit" entities to certain maps, but definitely use them in exploration. Their mere presence helps worldbuilding. The role of ponies as caretakers of nature could mean that natural spirits could serve as either enemies or allies in a pony game. They could be entities of worship by NPCs or even PCs, and they could even be quest-givers in certain maps
I would arguably put Windigos in this category, or even in "friends" as per below
>Fiends/Aberrations/Eldritch horrors from beyond
Depending on how the planescape is built, fiends could certainly be villains in a pony setting, whether they be native creatures of the "spirit" category, or invaders from beyond the void.
Outsiders give world-building potential to any setting, as they illustrate factions from beyond the world. They are also universally evil, so the party will have plenty of motivations to fight them or otherwise stop their spread. Plenty of existing demons that look like humanoids could be reskinned to look like ponies.
>Other entities from beyond
As above, but not necessarily evil. In most cases, extraplanar invaders are going to be unwelcome in most cases, but they could serve as neutral villains or even allies with PCs.
>Undead
Whether they're the product of Autistic Unicorns, ancient tombs of forgotten kings, or spontaneous spawn of horrible magic, the undead are always good villains in any setting. A lot of undead are template-monsters too, so they're not hard to reskin as ponies.
I've been thinking of things such as:
>Windigos (powerful spirits that bring societies to ruin)
These guys are pretty serious villains, so I'd only use them for high level. It could be interesting to have cannibalistic wendigo-worshippers as enemies in an icy terrain map though.
>Conventional beasts (cockatrice, manticore, chimera, hydra, Bugbear, flyder, etc)
Your run of the mill fantasy monsters of the week. Certainly great for filling combat encounters, less so as villains.
>Autistic Unicorns (Sombra, Glimmer, Shimmer, Tempest)
Evil/misguided spellcaster(?) tries to end the world (again) with a sinister spell. Not a hard enemy to make. These guys would typically be your main humanoid villains.
>Whateverthefuck Tirek is
I would rather not reuse canon villains, but it could be cool to explore their origins
>Discord
Again with the last point. I would also prefer to sideline discord as more of a deity-level entity. However, things like "chaos beasts" from his dimension could make for fun encounters.
>Changelings
Again, not sure if I'd want to use exact FiM villains, but shapeshifting bug-ponies are full of potential as villains.
>Dragons
Dragons are classic villains, although perhaps some of FiM's average dragons might conflict with expectations when it comes to size. Perhaps spike-like dragons could be their own subspecies, or perhaps villainous dragons will just be the advanced age version of them.
Dragons also have their own homeland and society in FiM, so that could be a map worth building.
As for "good" dragons, I would actually prefer most dragons in a pony setting to be pretty consistently unfriendly to ponies, to keep it consistent with FiM. Besides, I was never that big of a fan of deus-ex-machina metallic dragons when it came to campaign design.
>Grogar
Now, Grogar is a villain that was never actually used in FiM, so I think he's a villain worth using. He's like the Equestrian equivalent to Satan, although I think statwise he'd be some sort of high-level ascended mage, probably a former humanoid (goat). His vestige as the father of monsters could actually make all of the "conventional beasts" more interesting by their supposed relationship to him, and perhaps there could even be a (((continued lineage))) of goat practitioners who continue his legacy.
>Evil humanoids
This is where Equestria is lacking, as it doesn't really have "monster races". That's not necessarily bad though. I would guess that changeling actually fall within this category, with their eusocial nature necessitating loyalty to a hive, and their love-feeding implying they're less-capable of certain emotions.
>non-pony humanoids who happen to be evil
If I'm going to design an entire race, I'm rather not make them universally evil/savage. Still, there's potential there for cool things, since other races may compete with ponies for territory, and I feel like that's a warlike adventure that players might appreciate on this board. Every race, including ponies, should have at least one evil faction, and fighting the evil ones gets to explore those races as villains or even as monsters (i.e gigantic minotaurs who grew stronger out of worship of their creator Baphomet).
>Evil ponies
This is really the "Autistic Unicorns" thing, although it's worth noting that the best villains are not necessarily spellcasters. Some part of me has a hunch that pony-on-pony violence may be less desired than other conventional fantasy adventures, unless it's a war game (see below), but main-race villains can be fun in urban areas.
>The fog of war
In some cases, conflict can be had without evil being involved in the first place. Neutral races may go to war over territory or ideology, even between ponies. This would certainly be an element of any /mlpol/-themed game. In this sort of adventure, PCs would either be trying to stop/end a war, or earn "victory points" through side quests to ensure the success of their faction.
>Animals
Normal animals can make for good monsters, but harassing the wildlife gets boring after low levels. They're could also be used if the PCs are at odds with a Druid or something from the next category though:
>Elementals/Fey/spirits etc
Equestria is a world of magic and certainly has room for natural monsters. I would constrain "spirit" entities to certain maps, but definitely use them in exploration. Their mere presence helps worldbuilding. The role of ponies as caretakers of nature could mean that natural spirits could serve as either enemies or allies in a pony game. They could be entities of worship by NPCs or even PCs, and they could even be quest-givers in certain maps
I would arguably put Windigos in this category, or even in "friends" as per below
>Fiends/Aberrations/Eldritch horrors from beyond
Depending on how the planescape is built, fiends could certainly be villains in a pony setting, whether they be native creatures of the "spirit" category, or invaders from beyond the void.
Outsiders give world-building potential to any setting, as they illustrate factions from beyond the world. They are also universally evil, so the party will have plenty of motivations to fight them or otherwise stop their spread. Plenty of existing demons that look like humanoids could be reskinned to look like ponies.
>Other entities from beyond
As above, but not necessarily evil. In most cases, extraplanar invaders are going to be unwelcome in most cases, but they could serve as neutral villains or even allies with PCs.
>Undead
Whether they're the product of Autistic Unicorns, ancient tombs of forgotten kings, or spontaneous spawn of horrible magic, the undead are always good villains in any setting. A lot of undead are template-monsters too, so they're not hard to reskin as ponies.
>>153798
I would start with a system that is already made for guns and then adapt them for ponies. Fingerless limitations get in the way, but they can be circumvented or even outright ignored if the GM wants ponies to have guns.
It's more of a question of flavor instead of mechanics.
I would start with a system that is already made for guns and then adapt them for ponies. Fingerless limitations get in the way, but they can be circumvented or even outright ignored if the GM wants ponies to have guns.
It's more of a question of flavor instead of mechanics.
>>154062
I'd say the lands outside of Equestria (with exception to all the wacky beasts and plants and phenomena) is 'peaceful'.
The show depicts ponies having a meltdown every couple of months or emotionally significant event good or bad, that could lead to the total destruction of Equestria and the world at large.
It starts manageable, but left unchecked they escalate. They escalate extraordinarily fast.
My theory is that we don't normally see the large scale escalation because it's nipped in the bud quickly.
So one place that is a multi racial city is that one town in the badlands (MLP THE MOVIE).
So enemies... especially long term reoccurring villians are tailor made as puns.
Take Darling Doo and Dr. Cabelaron and Aoizotal (typos). Ancient wierd creatures just sort of exist and most ponies sort of shrug in disbelief (or run screaming).
Then you have The Tree of Harmony the ultimate chess master.
I'd say the lands outside of Equestria (with exception to all the wacky beasts and plants and phenomena) is 'peaceful'.
The show depicts ponies having a meltdown every couple of months or emotionally significant event good or bad, that could lead to the total destruction of Equestria and the world at large.
It starts manageable, but left unchecked they escalate. They escalate extraordinarily fast.
My theory is that we don't normally see the large scale escalation because it's nipped in the bud quickly.
So one place that is a multi racial city is that one town in the badlands (MLP THE MOVIE).
So enemies... especially long term reoccurring villians are tailor made as puns.
Take Darling Doo and Dr. Cabelaron and Aoizotal (typos). Ancient wierd creatures just sort of exist and most ponies sort of shrug in disbelief (or run screaming).
Then you have The Tree of Harmony the ultimate chess master.
>>154063
Punch activated and wrist activated guns exist and ponies could use those if they didn't want the trigger mechanism attached to a big slammable button on the side.
Or they could use their tails like Tangle The Lemur/Miliah Rage(from Guilty Gear, not Meliah Rage) to pick up and fire guns.
Or they could wear mannequin limbs attached to necklaces that pick up and fire and reload guns for them.
Or they could hold guns between their teeth and pull the trigger using their tongues. Guns could be specifically designed for this with tactical rubberized mouthpieces and integrally surpressed flash hiders.
Or they could get an animal companion with hands or talons (Owl? Small chimp?) and train that to fire guns wherever they look when saying a word like "Bang".
Anything's better than Fallout Equestria's retarded Battle Saddles.
Punch activated and wrist activated guns exist and ponies could use those if they didn't want the trigger mechanism attached to a big slammable button on the side.
Or they could use their tails like Tangle The Lemur/Miliah Rage(from Guilty Gear, not Meliah Rage) to pick up and fire guns.
Or they could wear mannequin limbs attached to necklaces that pick up and fire and reload guns for them.
Or they could hold guns between their teeth and pull the trigger using their tongues. Guns could be specifically designed for this with tactical rubberized mouthpieces and integrally surpressed flash hiders.
Or they could get an animal companion with hands or talons (Owl? Small chimp?) and train that to fire guns wherever they look when saying a word like "Bang".
Anything's better than Fallout Equestria's retarded Battle Saddles.
>>154073
Yeah, I'm actually okay with any variety of hoof/mouth activated guns, since in a ttrpg most content is going to be imaginary and I don't exactly care about the fine details possibly looking a little bit stupid. I'm more concerned with how modern warfare conflicts with medieval fantasy, but I think we could find a nice PF-style sweet spot that includes both.
Guns pre-date rapiers and full-plate armor. Using them in fantasy games isn't far fetched.
Yeah, I'm actually okay with any variety of hoof/mouth activated guns, since in a ttrpg most content is going to be imaginary and I don't exactly care about the fine details possibly looking a little bit stupid. I'm more concerned with how modern warfare conflicts with medieval fantasy, but I think we could find a nice PF-style sweet spot that includes both.
Guns pre-date rapiers and full-plate armor. Using them in fantasy games isn't far fetched.
Alright, finally getting around to some actual worldbuilding. Even asked our friendly occult anon, who likes to hang out, about some things. He said occult stuff back in the 1940's timeframe was all very well hidden and that I could pull whatever I wanted out my ass. So here it goes.
WW2 is in full swing for America with countless war effort propaganda being handed out. USA's largest occult ring in New York decides to do something about it and gets in contact with many other cities across USA to perform a ritual that should help with the war effort. Something to end it with. A date was set for Spring in 1944, enough time so word could get out and they could prepare. What they didn't count on was just how well word-of-mouth would spread or how large of a scope this would be.
It was a week after the ritual when people started noticing things. Random things showing up in random places, most of it mundane and cleaned up without much of a second thought. Random grass clippings, dirt, sludge, water, sometimes other things like a chunk of metal... It's not like anyone had time to speculate, ask, or even mention it to anyone else, keeping the war machine fed to guarantee the survival of their family and culture.
Canada was the first country to switch from war coverage to media coverage of cars or even whole houses disappearing; or the occasional half of a house or tree seemingly perfectly cut. They were the laughing stock of the world; for a short time. Brazil started coverage of random monsters showing up with a third of the city Brasilia disappearing with a good chunk of earth underneath, being replaced by what can only be described as an extraterrestrial city. Soon after many other countries started reporting similar such things.
China went completely dark, same with Papua New Guinea, and most of the middle eastern countries.
A month after the occult ritual, the entire war stopped. For the most part, everyone went home to their respective countries to deal with infrastructure problems, if they could get home. Manufacturing, at least for the factories that could still operate, for the most part was already making products to help deal with such problems. Houses had to be reclaimed from monsters, emergency housing had to be built, and in some cases, was built for what was described as non-aggressive beings.
/* *** */
It's a bunch of hours past my normal bedtime. I'm going to sleep and either write more on this or pretend like it doesn't exist depending on feedback.
Obviously poneland would be at least one of the universes that 'gets linked' or whatever.
In Soviet Russia, pone come to you.
Sleep.
WW2 is in full swing for America with countless war effort propaganda being handed out. USA's largest occult ring in New York decides to do something about it and gets in contact with many other cities across USA to perform a ritual that should help with the war effort. Something to end it with. A date was set for Spring in 1944, enough time so word could get out and they could prepare. What they didn't count on was just how well word-of-mouth would spread or how large of a scope this would be.
It was a week after the ritual when people started noticing things. Random things showing up in random places, most of it mundane and cleaned up without much of a second thought. Random grass clippings, dirt, sludge, water, sometimes other things like a chunk of metal... It's not like anyone had time to speculate, ask, or even mention it to anyone else, keeping the war machine fed to guarantee the survival of their family and culture.
Canada was the first country to switch from war coverage to media coverage of cars or even whole houses disappearing; or the occasional half of a house or tree seemingly perfectly cut. They were the laughing stock of the world; for a short time. Brazil started coverage of random monsters showing up with a third of the city Brasilia disappearing with a good chunk of earth underneath, being replaced by what can only be described as an extraterrestrial city. Soon after many other countries started reporting similar such things.
China went completely dark, same with Papua New Guinea, and most of the middle eastern countries.
A month after the occult ritual, the entire war stopped. For the most part, everyone went home to their respective countries to deal with infrastructure problems, if they could get home. Manufacturing, at least for the factories that could still operate, for the most part was already making products to help deal with such problems. Houses had to be reclaimed from monsters, emergency housing had to be built, and in some cases, was built for what was described as non-aggressive beings.
/* *** */
It's a bunch of hours past my normal bedtime. I'm going to sleep and either write more on this or pretend like it doesn't exist depending on feedback.
Obviously poneland would be at least one of the universes that 'gets linked' or whatever.
In Soviet Russia, pone come to you.
Sleep.
File (): 29D081B3771C5B539569175E056360C3-274447.png (268.0 KB, 2222x1167, thingpone full.png)
>>154154
Some more months roll by as various countries attempt quarantine to varying degrees, with varying degrees of success. Most of the time this translated to damage control, keeping critical infrastructure going. In some of the freer places of the world, the non-aggressive extraterrestrial beings were allowed to help, as strange as it was. People working around these can pretty easily tell that the aliens were just as distraught about the events as everyone else.
Around this time, now summer of 1944, some of these people, generally those working closest to the aliens from various dimensions, started developing traits found on the aliens. Hair, skin, sometimes limbs, internal organs, or some combination. It wasn’t for another year or two before the leading theory came from the lack of magic in humans is what allowed the innate magical nature of these aliens to get absorbed by some people.
/* *** */
I'm just (trying to) provide a decent backbone with shit tons of hooks without any obvious holes in it aside from the obvious hook points.
It could be Nazi purist campaign fighting against hoards of soviet russian zombies, Hitler literally gets turned into Aryanne (or something lol) and bombing kikes eventually continues, or some factory ends up in Equestria where they need to try to get back home while (you) get turned into anonfilly...
Or all sorts of other things. Nor does this preclude the use of other universes, or variations of Equestria. dungeon master's discretion, and DM's job to decide what else to add, leave out, and when/where the campaign starts.
Among the possibilities could include ponies ending up on earth, then once again get transported to some other random universe sometime later.
At the very least, existing earth population would segregate a lot more with shadow governments trying to install their puppets using newly acquired power. But such power is also randomly distributed, so there could be campaigns to stop shadow governments.
iunno.
Some more months roll by as various countries attempt quarantine to varying degrees, with varying degrees of success. Most of the time this translated to damage control, keeping critical infrastructure going. In some of the freer places of the world, the non-aggressive extraterrestrial beings were allowed to help, as strange as it was. People working around these can pretty easily tell that the aliens were just as distraught about the events as everyone else.
Around this time, now summer of 1944, some of these people, generally those working closest to the aliens from various dimensions, started developing traits found on the aliens. Hair, skin, sometimes limbs, internal organs, or some combination. It wasn’t for another year or two before the leading theory came from the lack of magic in humans is what allowed the innate magical nature of these aliens to get absorbed by some people.
/* *** */
I'm just (trying to) provide a decent backbone with shit tons of hooks without any obvious holes in it aside from the obvious hook points.
It could be Nazi purist campaign fighting against hoards of soviet russian zombies, Hitler literally gets turned into Aryanne (or something lol) and bombing kikes eventually continues, or some factory ends up in Equestria where they need to try to get back home while (you) get turned into anonfilly...
Or all sorts of other things. Nor does this preclude the use of other universes, or variations of Equestria. dungeon master's discretion, and DM's job to decide what else to add, leave out, and when/where the campaign starts.
Among the possibilities could include ponies ending up on earth, then once again get transported to some other random universe sometime later.
At the very least, existing earth population would segregate a lot more with shadow governments trying to install their puppets using newly acquired power. But such power is also randomly distributed, so there could be campaigns to stop shadow governments.
iunno.
File (): 86BF9754DD817DAABE606186314C41F0-60064.jpg (58.7 KB, 513x640, s-l640.jpg)
>>154154
>>154155
This is certainly an interesting exposition to a game. Looks like it would fit well in d20 Arcana, GURPS, savage worlds, or even adapted pathfinder.
It seems as though your goal is to have a setting that starts in WWII but can also include content from anything/anywhere: a fine endeavor, and really fun if done well. One of the perks of historical fantasy settings is that the overall real world is already developed, which lets you focus more on the fantasy aspects and how they subtly or drastically alter the course of history. In those sorts of historical settings, you'll want to be more descriptive of the minor details, so that players have a chance to immerse themselves in history.
Your setting seems to be largely fueled by chain-reaction catastrophes begun by occult rituals, so that would clearly be an important aspect of the story. You should work on developing the origins, meanings, and mechanics of magic in your world(s), in both terms of what you want to reveal to your players early on and what you want to remain a mystery or be discovered later.
>Obviously poneland would be at least one of the universes that 'gets linked' or whatever.
You can draw inspiration from countless greentexts for this. Maybe get some of our local Manosfags on board.
I couldn't help but think of Christ-chan's Merge... *shudders*
Now for points of interest:
>USA's largest occult ring in New York decides to do something
Perhaps you could tie this in to other intelligence secrets like the Manhattan Project? It would be interesting if eldritch entities from another world influenced or aided the course of human history/science. I think Savage Worlds's Weird Wars series has a lot of stuff about that. (pic related)
>gets in contact with many other cities across USA to perform a ritual
Ah, if the rituals were spread out across multiple rings, the players may have to travel to multiple locations to fully uncover their secrets. Very good hook.
>Brazil started coverage of random monsters showing up
A magically-warped Amazon rainforrest sounds like fun to explore. It could also could be interesting if ancient magical artifacts and ruins in MesoAmerica and South America suddenly activated and unleashed on the world.
>Canada was the first country to switch from war coverage to media coverage of cars or even whole houses disappearing
Day of Rake when?
>being replaced by what can only be described as an extraterrestrial city
Also a very interesting point to explore.
>It's not like anyone had time to speculate, ask, or even mention it to anyone else, keeping the war machine fed to guarantee the survival of their family and culture.
Perhaps this could have something to do with intentional suppression. Intelligence agencies were just beginning to bloom in that period. Also incidentally when Jews first took irreparable grasp of united states intelligence (see: Richie Boys).
>A month after the occult ritual, the entire war stopped. For the most part, everyone went home to their respective countries to deal with infrastructure problems, if they could get home.
Ah, this is actually a very important point of interest: it represents the point where history changes course. In this timeline, the Third Reich and Imerial Japan may still exist, which I think players in this community could have fun with. It also means that the United States may have never completely bloomed as a superpower, and the cold war never would have happened either.
>Manufacturing, at least for the factories that could still operate, for the most part was already making products to help deal with such problems. Houses had to be reclaimed from monsters, emergency housing had to be built, and in some cases, was built for what was described as non-aggressive beings.
A fusion of adaptive development with chaos-regression. I would bet some regions of the world practically went back to the stone age from the mayhem.
>In some of the freer places of the world, the non-aggressive extraterrestrial beings were allowed to help, as strange as it was.
Ah, so some of the aliens are friendly. These would make for interesting characters, and possibly even playable races. (ponies?)
However, for each race you make known to players, you might also have to develop at least part of the world that those creatures come from, unless the cataclysms somehow caused memories/history to be lost.
>some of these people, generally those working closest to the aliens from various dimensions, started developing traits found on the aliens. Hair, skin, sometimes limbs, internal organs, or some combination.
Mutants are fun. Reminds me of goblinization from Shadowrun. Mutants with similar traits could be classified as their own playable races.
>lack of magic in humans is what allowed the innate magical nature of these aliens to get absorbed by some people
Hmmmm, opposites attract, I guess.
>I'm just (trying to) provide a decent backbone with shit tons of hooks without any obvious holes in it aside from the obvious hook points.
Yeah, this much is obvious, and you definitely have a lot to work with. would certainly like to play a game in a setting written by you.
>>154155
This is certainly an interesting exposition to a game. Looks like it would fit well in d20 Arcana, GURPS, savage worlds, or even adapted pathfinder.
It seems as though your goal is to have a setting that starts in WWII but can also include content from anything/anywhere: a fine endeavor, and really fun if done well. One of the perks of historical fantasy settings is that the overall real world is already developed, which lets you focus more on the fantasy aspects and how they subtly or drastically alter the course of history. In those sorts of historical settings, you'll want to be more descriptive of the minor details, so that players have a chance to immerse themselves in history.
Your setting seems to be largely fueled by chain-reaction catastrophes begun by occult rituals, so that would clearly be an important aspect of the story. You should work on developing the origins, meanings, and mechanics of magic in your world(s), in both terms of what you want to reveal to your players early on and what you want to remain a mystery or be discovered later.
>Obviously poneland would be at least one of the universes that 'gets linked' or whatever.
You can draw inspiration from countless greentexts for this. Maybe get some of our local Manosfags on board.
I couldn't help but think of Christ-chan's Merge... *shudders*
Now for points of interest:
>USA's largest occult ring in New York decides to do something
Perhaps you could tie this in to other intelligence secrets like the Manhattan Project? It would be interesting if eldritch entities from another world influenced or aided the course of human history/science. I think Savage Worlds's Weird Wars series has a lot of stuff about that. (pic related)
>gets in contact with many other cities across USA to perform a ritual
Ah, if the rituals were spread out across multiple rings, the players may have to travel to multiple locations to fully uncover their secrets. Very good hook.
>Brazil started coverage of random monsters showing up
A magically-warped Amazon rainforrest sounds like fun to explore. It could also could be interesting if ancient magical artifacts and ruins in MesoAmerica and South America suddenly activated and unleashed on the world.
>Canada was the first country to switch from war coverage to media coverage of cars or even whole houses disappearing
Day of Rake when?
>being replaced by what can only be described as an extraterrestrial city
Also a very interesting point to explore.
>It's not like anyone had time to speculate, ask, or even mention it to anyone else, keeping the war machine fed to guarantee the survival of their family and culture.
Perhaps this could have something to do with intentional suppression. Intelligence agencies were just beginning to bloom in that period. Also incidentally when Jews first took irreparable grasp of united states intelligence (see: Richie Boys).
>A month after the occult ritual, the entire war stopped. For the most part, everyone went home to their respective countries to deal with infrastructure problems, if they could get home.
Ah, this is actually a very important point of interest: it represents the point where history changes course. In this timeline, the Third Reich and Imerial Japan may still exist, which I think players in this community could have fun with. It also means that the United States may have never completely bloomed as a superpower, and the cold war never would have happened either.
>Manufacturing, at least for the factories that could still operate, for the most part was already making products to help deal with such problems. Houses had to be reclaimed from monsters, emergency housing had to be built, and in some cases, was built for what was described as non-aggressive beings.
A fusion of adaptive development with chaos-regression. I would bet some regions of the world practically went back to the stone age from the mayhem.
>In some of the freer places of the world, the non-aggressive extraterrestrial beings were allowed to help, as strange as it was.
Ah, so some of the aliens are friendly. These would make for interesting characters, and possibly even playable races. (ponies?)
However, for each race you make known to players, you might also have to develop at least part of the world that those creatures come from, unless the cataclysms somehow caused memories/history to be lost.
>some of these people, generally those working closest to the aliens from various dimensions, started developing traits found on the aliens. Hair, skin, sometimes limbs, internal organs, or some combination.
Mutants are fun. Reminds me of goblinization from Shadowrun. Mutants with similar traits could be classified as their own playable races.
>lack of magic in humans is what allowed the innate magical nature of these aliens to get absorbed by some people
Hmmmm, opposites attract, I guess.
>I'm just (trying to) provide a decent backbone with shit tons of hooks without any obvious holes in it aside from the obvious hook points.
Yeah, this much is obvious, and you definitely have a lot to work with. would certainly like to play a game in a setting written by you.
File (): 9A5BDCECDF4E71922DFB7486979A3456-150026.jpg (146.5 KB, 1920x1080, 1880516.jpeg)
So uhhh I was a little late on the uptake of relevant stuff.
But apparently the concept and it's implementation existed for quite a while.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rifts_(role-playing_game) (1999)
The important details are vastly different though. That rpg is a futurist cyber fantasy lovecraft hellscapes more or less.
Found it through something else completely unrelated, but thems the breaks.
But apparently the concept and it's implementation existed for quite a while.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rifts_(role-playing_game) (1999)
The important details are vastly different though. That rpg is a futurist cyber fantasy lovecraft hellscapes more or less.
Found it through something else completely unrelated, but thems the breaks.
File (): 275BDF64C4BF8FD0FEE71BDCEAADB244-349050.jpg (340.9 KB, 2000x1438, full_.jpeg)
>>154188
>this is actually a very important point of interest: it represents the point where history changes course. In this timeline, the Third Reich and Imperial Japan may still exist, which I think players in this community could have fun with. It also means that the United States may have never completely bloomed as a superpower, and the cold war never would have happened either.
Yeah, and one of my main reasons for picking this date, as its just a bit before D-day would have happened (summer of 1944) but still when USA was in the 'full swing' of war.
This specific timeframe has two points of inspiration, you guys (I love you mlpol :) and the world at war series by hairy turtledove. The war series is basically about lizard aliens attack earth when WW2 was in full swing with 1980's-1990's technology but much less experience, pretty interesting.
I thought it would be interesting to still have nazi germany around as an option for the dungeon master to do stuff with. Not even limited to earth either, as a campaign could be had where some amount of Germany makes it to [Everglow, Equestria, Golarion, Greyhawk, Faerun...] or almost anything else.
>A magically-warped Amazon rainforrest sounds like fun to explore. It could also could be interesting if ancient magical artifacts and ruins in MesoAmerica and South America suddenly activated and unleashed on the world.
I wasn't really thinking of that really as much as random obscure places in the world to help give a sense of scope. Although it would be interesting to see some bushwhacking adventures too, in the context of a warping amazon forest.
What I haven't really mentioned is how polarized certain people-groups would get. Quite a few I would imagine would shut down almost all outside-contact for various reasons like keeping a pure religion (more Amish-like but with modern tools equipment), or keeping their race pure. Though how much that happens is up to the dungeon master really.
The other thing I haven't done is define what things are like 20 years later. I think this was my original goal too, so the game wouldn't have to be quite as chaotic. Though at the same time, why not roleplay all that out?
>Yeah, this much is obvious, and you definitely have a lot to work with. would certainly like to play a game in a setting written by you.
I've been told by the several people I've done play-by-post roleplay with, that I'm exceptional to RP with. I have a lot of fun defining characters and building worlds in a realistic way given a premise. Never been a dungeon master though. I suspect I would have fun at least trying it, certainly played pathfinder long enough to have a really good idea for how.
>this is actually a very important point of interest: it represents the point where history changes course. In this timeline, the Third Reich and Imperial Japan may still exist, which I think players in this community could have fun with. It also means that the United States may have never completely bloomed as a superpower, and the cold war never would have happened either.
Yeah, and one of my main reasons for picking this date, as its just a bit before D-day would have happened (summer of 1944) but still when USA was in the 'full swing' of war.
This specific timeframe has two points of inspiration, you guys (I love you mlpol :) and the world at war series by hairy turtledove. The war series is basically about lizard aliens attack earth when WW2 was in full swing with 1980's-1990's technology but much less experience, pretty interesting.
I thought it would be interesting to still have nazi germany around as an option for the dungeon master to do stuff with. Not even limited to earth either, as a campaign could be had where some amount of Germany makes it to [Everglow, Equestria, Golarion, Greyhawk, Faerun...] or almost anything else.
>A magically-warped Amazon rainforrest sounds like fun to explore. It could also could be interesting if ancient magical artifacts and ruins in MesoAmerica and South America suddenly activated and unleashed on the world.
I wasn't really thinking of that really as much as random obscure places in the world to help give a sense of scope. Although it would be interesting to see some bushwhacking adventures too, in the context of a warping amazon forest.
What I haven't really mentioned is how polarized certain people-groups would get. Quite a few I would imagine would shut down almost all outside-contact for various reasons like keeping a pure religion (more Amish-like but with modern tools equipment), or keeping their race pure. Though how much that happens is up to the dungeon master really.
The other thing I haven't done is define what things are like 20 years later. I think this was my original goal too, so the game wouldn't have to be quite as chaotic. Though at the same time, why not roleplay all that out?
>Yeah, this much is obvious, and you definitely have a lot to work with. would certainly like to play a game in a setting written by you.
I've been told by the several people I've done play-by-post roleplay with, that I'm exceptional to RP with. I have a lot of fun defining characters and building worlds in a realistic way given a premise. Never been a dungeon master though. I suspect I would have fun at least trying it, certainly played pathfinder long enough to have a really good idea for how.
Sometime I imagine in a pony-inspired pathfinder setting, the Mane 6 represent sovereign archetypes with the equivalence of deities, similar to Eberron sovereign archetypes. I think Ponyfinder/Everglow just straight up makes them gods.
My idea was to associate each element of harmony with a specific idol (mane six member/goddess/champion), and a star/planetoid or other celestial body in the night sky. They'd also be associated with a day of the week where that star shines brightest in the sky. Celestia would get Sunday and Luna would get Monday, the nights when all six stars shine brightest. The mane 5 would each get a day of the week (Pinkie would get Saturday, for example), while Twilight gets no day of the week since her star is brightest in twilight of each day. The stars would also represent a major source of arcane magic in the setting, like with Dragonlance. I wanted astronomy to be a big part of unicorn culture for that purpose.
That way, the sovereign archetype represent core aspects of daily life, and each has a day of the week where those aspects are celebrated/observed. Pinkie, for example, would be based on the Roman Saturn's Day Sabbath: a time of feast and fun.
For evil aspects of divinity, I thought of perhaps making an antithesis aspect of each element of harmony, which represents inverted or twisted ideals. I thought perhaps that those could be represented by another cosmological event, perhaps when those stars are eclipsed by a certain dark moonlet (more on that later).
Also there could be references to characters like Discord, Tirek, Doom-Faust, Grogar or other wicked aspects that could be sources of evil magic.
My idea was to associate each element of harmony with a specific idol (mane six member/goddess/champion), and a star/planetoid or other celestial body in the night sky. They'd also be associated with a day of the week where that star shines brightest in the sky. Celestia would get Sunday and Luna would get Monday, the nights when all six stars shine brightest. The mane 5 would each get a day of the week (Pinkie would get Saturday, for example), while Twilight gets no day of the week since her star is brightest in twilight of each day. The stars would also represent a major source of arcane magic in the setting, like with Dragonlance. I wanted astronomy to be a big part of unicorn culture for that purpose.
That way, the sovereign archetype represent core aspects of daily life, and each has a day of the week where those aspects are celebrated/observed. Pinkie, for example, would be based on the Roman Saturn's Day Sabbath: a time of feast and fun.
For evil aspects of divinity, I thought of perhaps making an antithesis aspect of each element of harmony, which represents inverted or twisted ideals. I thought perhaps that those could be represented by another cosmological event, perhaps when those stars are eclipsed by a certain dark moonlet (more on that later).
Also there could be references to characters like Discord, Tirek, Doom-Faust, Grogar or other wicked aspects that could be sources of evil magic.
Thoughts on combining Yaks, Minotaurs, and Buffallo into subraces of the same bovine race, for the sake of RPGs?
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You gotta appreciate subtle aesthetics as worldbuilding devices.
We could argue in circles for days about the ridicularity/practicality of things like battle saddles or whatever, but maybe it's better to worldbuild warriors based on their most common enemies.
Ponies at war would have to face a lot of flying, spellslinging and shapeshifting enemies. How would their combat work center around that?
We could argue in circles for days about the ridicularity/practicality of things like battle saddles or whatever, but maybe it's better to worldbuild warriors based on their most common enemies.
Ponies at war would have to face a lot of flying, spellslinging and shapeshifting enemies. How would their combat work center around that?
>>158249
>flying enemies
they could drop shit on you from on high. Darts. Blades. Bombs. Potions. Anything. Shields are necessary, especially when blocking projectiles.
>spellslinging
anti-magic armour or anti-magic shields. Otherwise how would a swordsman or martial artist fight a tornado, a rockslide, or the stopping of time?
>shapeshifting enemies
spears kill anything they can shapeshift into (mostly) and swords are adaptable enpugh to face a variety of foes. Trapping tools would be excellent against giant monsters.
>flying enemies
they could drop shit on you from on high. Darts. Blades. Bombs. Potions. Anything. Shields are necessary, especially when blocking projectiles.
>spellslinging
anti-magic armour or anti-magic shields. Otherwise how would a swordsman or martial artist fight a tornado, a rockslide, or the stopping of time?
>shapeshifting enemies
spears kill anything they can shapeshift into (mostly) and swords are adaptable enpugh to face a variety of foes. Trapping tools would be excellent against giant monsters.
>>158250
Hmmm, I guess ranged combat would be prioritized in such a high-magic world. It's difficult when you don't have fingers though.
Hmmm, I guess ranged combat would be prioritized in such a high-magic world. It's difficult when you don't have fingers though.
>>158250
>anti-magic armour or anti-magic shields
Sounds expensive and impractical for large armies. Interesting idea though.
>anti-magic armour or anti-magic shields
Sounds expensive and impractical for large armies. Interesting idea though.
>>158587
It can't be that expensive to outfit troops with shields or armour that can shrug off being Fireballed or weakened or slowed or turned into a frog vs the expense of raising an army of mages or one-man army mage that can cast fireball.
It can't be that expensive to outfit troops with shields or armour that can shrug off being Fireballed or weakened or slowed or turned into a frog vs the expense of raising an army of mages or one-man army mage that can cast fireball.
>>158693
>the expense of raising an army of mages or one-man army mage that can cast fireball.
That's a good question.
If becoming a Wizard is like having a PHD in magic, then the cost to train and educate a wizard could be quite high, not counting the material costs for magic.
However, in the interest of fantasy roleplay, most wizards level up not at the academies, but on the battlefield as adventurers, implying that it costs very little to level up. Then again, d&d leveling was originally tied to how much gold the adventurer procured, so who knows what it costs to train a war wizard.
In most fantasy settings, even high magic ones, accomplished mages are rather rare. There's usually a reason for scarcity in heroic classes, usually the idea that only geniuses can become heroes, which exemplifies the role of player characters as protagonists. This is similarly reflected in /mlp/, as among the unicorns in the show only a handful have strong aptitude for magic, even when looking at Twilight's classmates in the school for gifted unicorns.
Perhaps there wouldn't be very many mages at all on a pony battlefield.
>the expense of raising an army of mages or one-man army mage that can cast fireball.
That's a good question.
If becoming a Wizard is like having a PHD in magic, then the cost to train and educate a wizard could be quite high, not counting the material costs for magic.
However, in the interest of fantasy roleplay, most wizards level up not at the academies, but on the battlefield as adventurers, implying that it costs very little to level up. Then again, d&d leveling was originally tied to how much gold the adventurer procured, so who knows what it costs to train a war wizard.
In most fantasy settings, even high magic ones, accomplished mages are rather rare. There's usually a reason for scarcity in heroic classes, usually the idea that only geniuses can become heroes, which exemplifies the role of player characters as protagonists. This is similarly reflected in /mlp/, as among the unicorns in the show only a handful have strong aptitude for magic, even when looking at Twilight's classmates in the school for gifted unicorns.
Perhaps there wouldn't be very many mages at all on a pony battlefield.
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Flat expanding realms as fantasy settings?
I don't really care about the real world, but I wonder what perks there could be to flat planar realms.
I usually treat outer planes as semi-flat unlimited ranges, so why not treat the prime material plane the same? The ice rings could be interesting zones to explore, and beyond them there could be older worlds and advanced civilizations.
A setting with a long history could have interesting events with a new Sun/Earth being born.
I don't really care about the real world, but I wonder what perks there could be to flat planar realms.
I usually treat outer planes as semi-flat unlimited ranges, so why not treat the prime material plane the same? The ice rings could be interesting zones to explore, and beyond them there could be older worlds and advanced civilizations.
A setting with a long history could have interesting events with a new Sun/Earth being born.
>>161186
I'm considering doing this for my upcoming pony game.
It wouldn't be hard to unfold the globe into a realm, and it makes my lore about the wendigos occupying the edges of creation make more sense occupying a ring than two poles.
Also, doing away with scientific concepts like planets, gravitation and orbits opens up room for more fantasy concepts, like entities interacting with celestial bodies (See: Celestia and Luna).
I'm considering doing this for my upcoming pony game.
It wouldn't be hard to unfold the globe into a realm, and it makes my lore about the wendigos occupying the edges of creation make more sense occupying a ring than two poles.
Also, doing away with scientific concepts like planets, gravitation and orbits opens up room for more fantasy concepts, like entities interacting with celestial bodies (See: Celestia and Luna).
What would you say are elements for a good pony setting? What kind of pony world would you want to play in?
How should the planescape work in a pony game? FiM makes little mention of outer planes, but many games give mention to upper/lower celestial/fiendish planes.
I would certainly make the realm of dreams quite relevant, and maybe even Tartarus for monstrous creatures, but other Planar aspects aren't really in line with FiM.
What about the afterlife though? I considered making the realm of dreams also the realm of the dead.
I would certainly make the realm of dreams quite relevant, and maybe even Tartarus for monstrous creatures, but other Planar aspects aren't really in line with FiM.
What about the afterlife though? I considered making the realm of dreams also the realm of the dead.
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