GM: Shaun Hayworth Players: Sean Nittner, Kristin Hay Justin Dhiel System: Burning Wheel Setting: Burning…

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

This has been brewing for a while. In the fiction, for nearly a year, in game for 17 sessions. Baldric, a young knight whose moral code and has been challenged and found wanting, is out if his mind infatuated with Moya, his war wizard companion. Besides the fact that they have very different outlooks on life, scream at each other all the time, and often despise one another, there is one major hitch in their would be romance. Their siblings. Or at least half-siblings, but it’s still close enough.

For ages that was enough to keep them apart. Baldric didn’t know Moya was his sister, and so he pursued her relentlessly. Moya cast him away over and over. It was their routine. They also fought. A LOT. So that kept things from getting boring, and from feeling like skeezy sexual harassment. Generally speaking Baldric would make an advance, be spurned, something (unrelated) would come up that they fought like cats and dogs about, and they would part furious with each other.  The would both kick ass to overcome their trials, growing closer to each other in the process and… repeat.

Baldric has even found out Moya was his sister. Twice! But the Dragon Magic (she gave away her family name) keeps robbing him of that knowledge. Every night he forgets and wonders what revelation he had but like a dream was forgotten.

And of course there was even more than all that…

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

This session of Burning Theorsa can be viewed online here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?…

This session was definitely one of characters changing. Shaun had some specific prompts for us, things to set our characters off, but also their dynamics changed with each other. A lot of that, of course had to do with beliefs:

The visitors will be leaving Redvale soon; I will pledge my enduring fealty to the Duke so that I might have an opportunity beyond this village. – Ayernand
Baldric’s praise is mocking and self-serving. I will make sure all men understand the true meaning of war by telling them of my sacrifice. – Ayernand

Ayernand is a symbol, but to be loved by the people he must embrace it. I’ll convince him to speak at the feast, to embolden the troops as he accepts the mantle “Troll Slayer.” – Baldric
Afon speaks incessantly of his prowess at killing nobility. Since we cannot get to the king through Andon, perhaps Afon can do it. I’ll convince him to infiltrate the kings men and deliver our message to him. – Baldric

Baldric clearly thinks very little of my magic, and believes me to be an immoral monster. I don’t need family who feels that way about me, I will convince Aziz to let me head his personal guard. I will begin by sending him a letter by raven. – Moya

Ayernand – Baldric. Noam is just setting himself up for mold breaker. He wants to swear fealty to Roderick, he wants to put Baldric in his place. Will he have to choose between those two?

Baldric – Ayernand: Baldric can be remarkably callous with regard to how people feel about things. He’s seen men dying from being burned to death, he’s committed horrible atrocities. After that, hurting someone’s feelings just doesn’t register with him.  He was determined that Ayernand would accept the mantle of Troll Slayer, regardless of whether or not he believed in it.

Baldric – Afon: By the gods, what have I done? Sent Afon off to kill the king!

Moya – Baldric: We made sure Baldric saw the letter. Fires burn hot between these two.

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

Moya bolted upright. She heard the screaming and ran outside to douse the flames!

Yep, that is actually how our game started. Krisin wasn’t here last game so we presumed she was sleeping it off. She woke however to the sounds of our ending scene last gane, notably Andon Torron being hamstrung. For her, however, what she remembered was all those people burning to death from her spell. So she grabbed a buck of water and doused the wailing man!

Unfortunately that did very little for his bleeding. Fortunately once she did this, she woke up, realized he was bleeding horribly and tried to bind his wounds, to at least prevent them from getting worse.

As she recovered Baldric and Ayernand carried the night to the surgeon’s tent. There were many men worse off than Andon, however. Men with intestines bursting out of them,  men with head trauma, and men that would be losing their legs, rather than having them bandaged.  Andon could wait.

On the way out of the sick tent Baldric asked Ayernand if he meant what he said about killing the prisoners (from the duel of wits last session). “Are you prepared to follow through on your threat, to kill every man in Andon’s army until he yields or there are none left?” Baldric hoped to find some modicum of mercy in Ayernand’s heart, but there was none. The solider didn’t have the authority to order all of the prisoners executed but it was clear that was his desire.

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

Kristin was stuck on a job and so couldn’t make the game. We endeavored to carry on without her.

The Aftermath

After the battle, our characters set off to fulfill their own agendas.

Afon, in the guise of helping to tend the wounded, scavenged loose coin and trinkets from the soldiers, collecting a pouch of baubles worth 1D cash.

Ayernand, in an attempt to retain his stations as “just a soldier” managed to offend a veteran warrior that wanted to offer him drink and lodging.  He didn’t want to kick someone out of their house and the veteran took this as a sign of him been too good for soldier’s hospitality. The “Troll Slayer” is too good for us.

Baldric directed troops in preparing for the wounded, the hungry and the prisoners. He summoned the newly appointed quartermaster Leon and sent him off to a nearby village Duskwood to commission supplies. He placed the mayor’s sigil in his possession so that he could prove his authority to the locals of Duskwood.  Martin the Mayor saw this and of course was infuriated. “You can’t just hand out my office. Who do you think you are?” Baldric tried to be civil for a bit but eventually pushed the now ex-mayor in the mud and told him he was a coward for fleeing when war was at his gates. 

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Kristin Hayworth, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

We finished this “session”. It only took three weeks. But it was very satisfying. It felt more like an “adventure” than a typical Burning Wheel session as well. Travel to a place, rally the troops, and fight a huge battle. And we did it, all of it.

As per the last session, we streamed this episode, all 3+ hours of it on youtube. If you’re particularly fond of actual play, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPCM_Ms5oK4

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Kristin Hayworth, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

Action – Reflection – Response

Yay! First off, very fun game. In response to my previous game write up, we started this game having some discussion of intent and expectations. I mentioned the ideas that I had namely that I want everyone to play bold, getting into danger characters, and that I want us to shine the spotlight on our characters with a sympathetic eye.  Just like heroes of stories, the lens that we view our characters through makes all the difference.

Shaun pointed out that all characters in Burning Wheel are like Walter White. They are melodramatic, and it is their successes (and failures) that drive the story forward, not an external plot.

Noam also established some expectations for his character, namely that he wants the payoff of a showdown with Baldric or Moya (or both) to be something he builds up to. My hope is we can have many “minor” squables along the way.

Recording

Wow, everything on the internet is forever. Our games are now streamed on youtube. Sadly my video decided to die when we started this. We actually had lots of technical difficulties. It’s sad because I get pretty crazy eyed and emotive during play, especially tonight. Hopefully you’ll be able to see my pretty mug in the future.

To see this game (and others) hit up Shaun’s youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/shayworth

GM: Shaun Hayworth
Players: Sean Nittner, Kristin Hayworth, Justin Dhiel, and Noam Rosen
System: Burning Wheel
Setting: Burning Theorsa

Hah. I loved the beliefs that we have for this game. Baldric and Moya are up to their their normal conflicting beliefs.

Baldric: I can no longer live without Moya. She detests me because of my actions in Kashkyr, most of which is a drunken haze. To make amends, I must first find out what I did. I’ll get the information I need from Afon.

Moya: Baldric’s affections are overbearing and unwanted. I will involve myself with Ayernand to put him off for a while.

GM: Shaun Hayworth Players: Sean Nittner, Kristin Hayworth, Justin Dhiel, and... Noam Rosen (he's back)…

GM: Shaun Hayworth Players: Sean Nittner, Kristin Hayworth, Justin Dhiel System: Burning Wheel Setting: Burning…