====== Spirit Shaman: Gnosis ====== It's time to fight, Spirit Style! You are a Shaman, a warrior linked to powerful spirits of the world called Totems. Your Totem is unique to you, and gives you Spirit Power to enhance your fighting abilities and use magical skills. You will craft a unique martial arts style and embark on a journey of friendship, rivalry, philosophy and fighting! Game System : OVA: The Anime RPG Self-Direction : Medium Combat : Very High Role-play : Medium-High Exploration : Low Player Buy-In : This game will be a TEXT GAME. It's all about that Shonen battle manga style, so expect lots of fights and lots of melodrama. Be aware that the game will focus on some pretty heavy themes and philosophy. The intention is not just to have a hell of a fun time punching and shouting and doing cool anime shit, but also to think about the questions I present and come to your own conclusions about them. Inspirations include: Dragon Ball, Xenogears, Naruto, Gnostic Christianity, Philosophical Skepticism Date and Time : Session 0 will be Sunday, November 20, at 6:00 PM CST. Games will be weekly thereafter. Platform : Roll20 for gameplay, Discord for organizing. ====== The World of Spirit Shaman ====== Setting : Spirit Shaman takes place in a hybrid fantasy world that combines some European, East Asian, and Native American tropes. Shamans are heroic martial artists who are linked to a spiritual companion called a Totem at birth. Shamans are born in every society, and different cultures view Totems differently. Although some Totems take on the appearance of people or animals, such as the Bear or the Lonely Warrior, they are not actually the spirits of those creatures. Totems are more like concepts or archetypes made manifest - no one really knows where they come from, and the Totems themselves don't seem to have any memory of their origins. Shamans serve a variety of roles in their society. Some are celebrities who travel around the world showing off their fighting skill; some are brave adventurers who fight dangerous monsters; some are spiritual leaders and guardians of their community. Yet other Shamans use their powers for evil, committing crimes and wreaking havoc against the people. Technology is at a roughly pre-industrial level in some nations, but others have incredible technology such as robots, energy weapons, etc. Totems and Shamans appear anywhere, and are not bound by the level of technology in a given nation. There are some tendencies for Totem manifestation depending on where a Shaman is born - for example, in a high-tech nation, Totems may manifest in the form of Invention or Law, while in more undeveloped lands will see more Totems such as the Bear or the Lonely Warrior. Tone : Serious, but with moments of levity. This game will deal seriously with complex subject matter such as religion, oppression, death, and bigotry. It's also a game about kung-fu fighting and magic, with over-the-top, bombastic action. And there should also be some moments of humor to break up the tension! Power Source : Magic comes in several forms, but all of it is directly powered by the Spirit Power of Totems. If a person is not born a Shaman, they’re not going to be dealing with Spirit Power. Among Shamans, Spirit Power usually manifests as techniques that boost physical power or control the 4 elemental energies (fire, water, wind, earth). There is a baseline expectation that all Shamans have basic control over the 4 elemental techniques and can boost their physical abilities on a rudimentary level with their Spirit Power. More advanced (and therefore rare) techniques involve complex manipulation, illusions, divination, or summoning servants of Totems. There are legends of rare Shamans that have such a close relationship with their Totem that they can actually become an Avatar, where they partially merge personalities with the spirit and gain unprecedented fighting power. Scale : At the beginning, Spirit Shaman is small-scale and personal. The vast majority of Shamans don’t have the ability to fly, and even those that do can only do so for short periods. Shamans don’t blow up buildings, they don’t throw their enemies through mountains, and they don’t face down armies of enemies on their own. Character Creation Guidelines : In Spirit Shaman, all characters must be Shamans. You are all students of a master Shaman living in a small mountain village in an Asian-themed nation. Humans are the only allowed species, and characters can be of any reasonable age, but keep in mind that *most* Shamans get their Totems young. If your character is older and only just meeting heir totem, think about why that is and what it means for the character. ====== Player Guidelines ====== 1. NO MEME CHARACTERS. Characters who are funny are fine. Characters who are jokes are not. This is a mostly serious game, though humor is a valuable and encouraged quality in small doses. 2. NO LONERS If you want to tell a story about your badass lone wolf antihero, then write a book. In this game, you will create characters who are motivated to work with others toward a common goal. This is non-negotiable. 3. NO KENDER. If you’re not familiar with Dragonlance, “kender” refers to a race of halflings who reflexively steal things, even from their friends, and then claim they just found the things. For the purposes of this game, I use the name to refer to players/characters who do things with the express purpose of trolling others, especially when those things are disruptive. 4. MAKE CHARACTERS YOU CARE ABOUT. This might seem like a given, but it’s important you be invested in the character you play so that stakes matter and tension exists, because as Matt Colville says, “drama is tension and resolution.” 5. PLAY ACTIVELY. You guys are playing heroes, and heroes don’t hang around waiting for someone else to come up with a plan. Work together with the party. Ask questions. Get shit done, and I promise we’ll all have more fun that way. Additionally, find a way for your character to get involved in the story. No one has fun when you say “my character wouldn’t do that.” Well, you control them. Make it so they’d get involved in the adventure anyway. 6. HAVE FUN. Before the game, take a moment and say to yourself, "I'm going to have fun tonight." This helps take the responsibility off the game to be fun, and allows you to have a good time. That's not to say I won't do my damnedest to give you guys a good time! But if one of the party isn’t enjoying themselves, that bleeds through. Talk to me or the other players if you’re not enjoying yourself. If you are, seek out ways to include the players that may not be. Sometimes it doesn’t work out, though, so don’t be afraid of bowing out of you’re just not having fun.
