IsabellaRose

STEP 1 ORIGIN Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 2 YOUTH Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 3 FOCUS Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 4 ROAD Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 5 LIFE CHANGING EVENT Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona Ramona: choose 2 specialties for Commissioner Gordon Ramona: Choose to bump up either HONOR (in lieu of Duty) or Passion Ramona: Choose New Distinction (SNEAKY or another) Ramona: Choose a Resource to Step Up STEP 6 PRIORITY Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 7 MODUS OPERANDI Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 8 MOTIVATION Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona STEP 9 IDENTITY Alicia | Kojo | Missy | Millie | Edmund | Ramona

I would give her a Distinction something like this: Apprentice of Science: You once studied under a brilliant but unhinged inventor, learning enough to recognize strange devices, patch broken mechanisms, and puzzle out scientific principles, though your teacher’s questionable methods haunt you still. Roll this Distinction’s die when your education helps you analyze, repair, or identify unfamiliar technology or phenomena. d4: Earn a Plot Point when your incomplete training leads to mistakes, misidentifications, or broken equipment. d8: Spend a Plot Point to Reveal a useful insight into a device, substance, or experiment — even if it’s not entirely accurate. d12: Spend a Plot Point to Reroll a die in a Contest or Test when repairing, jury-rigging, or analyzing a strange object. maybe even this, if you want to lean into that aspect at all... Skilled Courtesan: You’ve turned intimacy into an art, whether in the saloons, brothels, or boudoirs of the Weird West. You know how to read desire, how to turn charm into coin, and how to use your skills to manipulate, comfort, or control. Roll this Distinction’s die when seduction, erotic allure, or professional experience gives you an edge. d4: Earn a Plot Point when your profession draws stigma, unwanted advances, or complications. d8: Spend a Plot Point to Reveal a client, admirer, or rival from your past that complicates or assists the current scene. d12: Spend a Plot Point to Reroll a die in a Contest or Test when you lean into seduction, erotic tension, or sexual expertise (fading to black when necessary).

I might put it into the first post of this thread. I don't want anyone updating the wrong pathways map between the two games. Plus, I was hoping to use the Rules reference for other games I might run using Cortex, so I don't want to put game-specific stuff in there.

If it's just a looks thing, we can just add it. I think we need to flesh out this Other World so I can make some decisions around how it affects other things as well. I do like tying unexpected things together, but I really need to see what you're thinking for this idea so I don't overstep.

I think what happened was they bought it all, got all the stuff, but all the funding from the Kickstarter stayed with the previous company (or two companies ago... it's changed hands a few times now.) Cam doesn't say a lot about what's happening behind the scenes, but my guess is that's because he works there and has to keep the paychecks coming in. I missed the Kickstarter and I see all these items having been fulfilled but no movement on making them available to fans of the system who missed the kickstarter. I even messaged them once and said something like, " I have stupid amounts of disposal income how much will it take for me to get my hands on the goods" and got zero response.

Right now we want character concepts, jobs, backgrounds, species, etc. What do you want to play? Who are they? What do they do? How do they interact with the world?

I only put that there if someone has or wants an asset to hold their abilities - like Thor's hammer, Captain America's shield, or DreamsnThings' gas cannister launching parasol. You can delete it from your sheet unless you have an asset that is tied strongly to your character, so strongly that they're not themselves without it. All relationships and values start at d4. You get chances throughout the Pathways system to Step Up both, and I can't reiterate enough how important it will be to step up your relationships when you get a chance. In D&D terms, stepping up a relationship is like giving yourself an across the board +2 to hit EVERY TIME YOU DO IT. It's really, really beneficial to have higher rated relationships with the other PCs. Don't apologize! I'm the slow one! I want to make sure everything is as perfect as it can be for our characters.

Distinctions are entirely different in the Smallville game than they are in Xadia, which is 100% Cortex Prime. Smallville was one of the earliest implementations of Cortex, before there was a Plus or Prime. Xadia was the first Cortex Prime game. Honestly, I'm not sure I want to support Dire Wolf1. In Prime, you have 3 main Distinctions that define your character. In Xadia I think they basically boil down to a heritage, a homeland, and something else... I'm not digging my copy out right now to find out. But yeah, in Smallville Distinctions are sort of a catch all that include skills, personality traits, backgrounds, etc. It's a little weird, but it's where I jumped off the system to build this, because everything else is already built and connected and I don't have to rebuild an entire new game in Prime. Which admittedly would probably be better in the long run, but would take SO MUCH MORE TIME when I can just hack Smallville into Wild West/Steampunkville. 1 Dire Wolf is wasting one of the best (imho) roleplaying systems by not doing what Fate did and putting out all those great worlds/settings/rules implementations. They're all done. They were part of the original kickstarter. Just get them out to the general public. It's a great toolset, but if they don't show people how to use and implement it to its full, cool effect, nobody will ever play it. They're wasting it, and frankly, I want to put my foot in their collective asses for that.

You're waiting for me. I wanted to review every sheet and make sure nobody missed anything before moving on to Step 2. We were working out a couple custom distinctions and heritages, then we can move on to Step 2. The custom stuff is slowing me down as I'm trying to make it good AND fit the game rules and I have to keep double checking myself.

If that's the world you all want to play in, then start making character concepts. If you have an idea that doesn't fit on that list, then discuss what we need to add to that list to make it work.

So here's what I have so far: Game 2 Lists INCLUDE: Dusty boomtowns, saloons, and lawless frontier towns. Railroads, train robberies. Airships.* Cursed mines. Traveling carnivals and bizarre expositions. Mad scientists in brass-and-copper laboratories. Automatons and clockwork men questioning their humanity.* Creepy experiments. Tesla coils, pneumatic weapons, and steam-powered contraptions. Strange inventions with unintended consequences. Poe-style hauntings and spiritualism (séances, mediums, spirit boards). Folk religion and superstition (totem cults, skinwalker legends). Themes & Drama including Progress vs. Peril – new technology brings danger as often as salvation, and Law vs. Chaos – marshals, outlaws, and vigilantes clashing. Ruins of old civilizations Magic esoteric, rituals, unseen hands, magic on the decline - witches powers fading Cults: dedicated to magic, lovecraftian influence, and tech The Lovecraftian idea could be something really fun to build on. Maybe the anthro/non-human stuff could be connected to that. Maybe something tribal? I had been thinking about doing a tribal character earlier, but maybe now leaning between explorer or mad-science. A group either investigating or running away from something of a higher power maybe. Something they may or not want to find the source of. Would potentially mix in ruins as well. tech - steam tech, chem tech, or really any tech that deviates from the default science. specifically I want my character to be weaponizing pheromones and I dont want her to be the only one in universe using a weird side tech Concepts - I would like something a little distanced from raw combat, maybe espionage, maybe a steampunk train hostage situation, maybe a high noon draw off where its more of a stand off then a battle, etc species - im fine with... literally anything you could be a yetti and I would be starry eyed and happy, or a dragon, or a sentient can of pringles. sexual interest varies but anything im cool with being in the setting set pieces- ... a clock tower that doubles as a mad scientists lair? a steam powered train that is a tourist attraction with an authentic robbery! and old school bank, with metal bars, and a proper vault! that gets robbed im basically happy with anything, but these are a few random ideas off the top of my head? DON'T INCLUDE: Romero-style zombies (mindless hordes shambling about). Goofy slapstick steampunk tropes (overly cartoonish tech): Silly gadgets like a steam-powered top hat that shoots lasers, an umbrella that turns into a pogo stick, or monocles that shoot lightning beams just because it’s funny. Cartoon logic, like jetpacks made from tea kettles, mechanical ducks that double as grenades, or someone riding a unicycle tank into battle. Pure gags, devices whose only purpose is to be goofy, like a clockwork butler who exists only to serve pie with comic timing. Tone-breaking contraptions, in short anything that feels like it belongs in a parody cartoon instead of a gothic Weird West story. Overly modern politics or moralizing that break the 1880s frontier feel. Alien invasions from outer space (though alien fossils, crashed remnants, or hints of otherworldly influence are fair game). High fantasy elves/dwarves or Tolkien tropes. Stick to Gothic, Weird West, and pulp science. Overt superhero tropes (no caped crusaders or spandex heroes, this is pulp adventure, not comic book). Pure comedy tone. Humor is fine, but the core is dramatic, atmospheric, and weird.

IMPORTANT TIP: Another tip for Relationship and Value statements: They should be actionable as much as possible. These statements help you decide WHY your value or relationship would make you act in a certain way. So keeping them tight and punchy is better than wide and general. Great statements for relationships include: I need to be there for Louise d10 Jonathan is my moral compass d4 Pearl is not the same girl I used to love d6 Wiley can never be trusted d6 I can’t tell Susie my secret d12 Clara stands between me and my love d8 Elijah is reckless d8 Sylvia can take care of herself d6 There must be good in Max d6 Max is a dangerous threat d4 These are good because you can take action based on them. Say you're trying to focus on picking a lock and Sylvia is supposed to have your back, but she gets jumped by two bandits. You could use her to help you focus on the task at hand (I'm including Sylvia because she can take care of herself while I focus on picking this lock) OR you could turn around to help her and challenge your relationship with her (I'm taking on one of these bandits because I thought Sylvia could take care of herself, but she's getting beat up on, so I guess I was wrong). It's the "my assumptions or views were wrong" angle that offers the most drama and potential for later growth. Every time you challenge a value or relationship, you roll more dice in your contest, and you get to add that size die to your Growth Pool, which is how you "level up" your character at the end of a scene. One of the biggest, best things you can do is challenge your relationships and values. She the rules under Values or Relationships for how it works, but make sure to write statements that can be used as they are, and can also be challenged as the opposite of what the statement says.

Something that came up in Group 2: "I just dont want this to become a great premise to a glorified porno, well i love the lewds in these things i have been in a game where the story full stopped because two players fucked like rabbits for 8 or 9 real world months well the rest of us kinda just... waited awkwardly, wanting our own moments, sexual or otherwise." I'm 100% in agreement with this. I don't mind a great description of a sexy scene, but maybe we should say they're limited to just a couple posts before we continue with the rest of the story and just assume the couple are satiated. Maybe they can take it off into another thread, if they want to continue, but I definitely don't want the story delayed because of an interminable sex scene. I'm content to have characters head off into the saloon girl's room with a quick description of what they do so the rest of the group can continue the scene, then reappear later with a smile and missing an item of clothing. As long as we know it happened, we don't need pages of gritty details of how the bits fit together. That's my personal opinion. You can let me know what you all think.

All of those are good. Regarding combat: the game isn't designed for combat, really. You can have combat, but the game is designed to focus on drama rather than combat or survival. When you roll, you'll roll to do things like convince the heiress to finance your latest invention, convince the sheriff to let you remain free after an altercation in a saloon, sing a song so well it makes someone in the audience swoon, seduce the heiress, grab the power source before a spy can get their hands on it, etc. Lewd scenes: We can say they're limited to two or three posts before we continue with the rest of the story and just assume the couple are satiated. Honestly, I don't want anything devolving into just rampant sex either. I'm content to have characters head off into the saloon girl's room so the rest of the group can continue the scene, then reappear later with a smile and missing an item of clothing. As long as we know it happened, we don't need pages of gritty details of how the bits fit together.

Okay. I wasn't sure what you were going for there... if it was her, or "some random Ashborn follower of hers" Cool.

The rules are a typical tabletop roleplaying game. It's designed for you to control a single character and the GM to control the rest of the world.

There is (or should be) a Genius Distinction. We could try something like: Mad Scientist: Your mind is a lightning storm of invention, obsession, and dangerous brilliance. You see possibilities where others see only wreckage, and your experiments push the boundaries of science, morality, and sanity. Roll the Distinction’s die when your bizarre contraptions, reckless theories, or scientific fervor give you an edge, or get you into trouble. d4: Earn a Plot Point when your obsession with an experiment causes chaos or distraction at the worst possible time. d8: Spend a Plot Point to Reveal that you happen to have a strange device, concoction, or half-finished invention on you or nearby that provides a d8 Useful Detail in the scene. d12: Add a d6 to Trouble to Reroll a die when your wild science bends reality, logic, or nature in your favor. or, as a Heritage Distinction, something along the lines of: Experimentally Cured Albino (we can work on a better name) Your pale skin and strange eyes mark you as different, feared, pitied, or whispered about. The sun burns you quicker than most, leaving you weak or in pain, but the moonlit hours bring you clarity and a haunting presence that others can’t ignore. Roll this Distinction’s die when your condition, appearance, or nocturnal resilience affects the scene. d4: Earn a Plot Point and when your sensitivity to the sun forces you to retreat, cover up, or collapse at the worst time. d8: Spend a Plot Point and Add a d6 to Trouble when the strange tonics in your veins allow you to Step Down physical or exhausted Stress. d12: Spend a Plot Point to Reroll a die in a Contest or Test where your eerie presence, unique appearance, or otherworldly aura unsettles or fascinates others. Connected Abilities: (this is where I run up against a wall... do you want her to have powers/abilities linked to the pale skinned vampiric appearance?) Limits: Daylight Weakness. Earn a Plot Point when exposure to direct sun increases your Exhausted or Injured Stress;

I'm sorry, I must have missed that. We can make any custom Distinctions you need. Let me know what you're trying to define, and I can start tossing out samples/ideas to see if we can come up with some that fit what you want! It takes a bit to get for the feel for creating them in a way that fits. The most important parts are actionable limits and specific SFX that fit the standard exchange rules. You don't want any one ability or distinction to be out of whack with the rest.

@StarlitSiren - make sure to include Willis as a relationship on your sheet.

I'm working my way through character sheets to make sure everything looks solid and playable. @AsBloodTurnsEverCold - for your Distinction and Ability, what do you think about this? Virtuoso Distinction: Music is more than skill to you, it is breath, fire, and soul. Your hands move with instinctive grace over strings, keys, or pipes; your voice resonates with power that can hush a crowd or stir them to tears. Whether in a saloon, a cathedral, or around a campfire, your performance holds people spellbound. Even without supernatural influence, you know how to make your music heard. d4: Earn a Plot Point when your music draws you unwanted attention (hecklers, rivals, over-eager fans). d8: Spend a Plot Point to Reroll a die in a performance-related roll (whether calming a tense room, impressing an audience, or competing with another performer). d12: Add a d6 to Trouble to Reroll any die when your musical reputation precedes you or when your artistry inspires emotions in others. The Other Theory When you play, your music doesn’t just move hearts, it opens minds. Notes spill from your instrument or voice like a bridge to the Other World, luring listeners into a state of suggestible reverie. Sometimes it’s a captivating distraction; other times it stirs deep emotion in the listener... calm, rage, longing, even lust. With focus, you can even plant a subtle idea, a whisper woven into melody that lingers long after the last chord fades. Effect: Influence. Descriptors: melody, eldritch, performance, emotion Limits: deafness, strong faith, concentrated will SFX: Spend a Plot Point to captivate an entire audience, distracting them from events around them. Spend a Plot Point to inflict a particular emotion on a target or group. Spend a Plot Point and Add d6 to Trouble to plant a single compelling suggestion in one listener’s mind. @WritesNaughtyStories - For your Ashborn on the Pathway map, that's a specific Ashborn individual, right? Because it's meant to be a named individual. Just spitballing and nix it if you don't want it, but what if it was Prudence herself who found and rescued her? I have no problem including her as an NPC if that tickles your fancy. If not, we need to name that person. In fact it might be better if it's not Prudence, because whoever it is will likely be tied to other NPCs and locations.

There's a big list in the rules reference thread! I added info on Heritage Distinctions to the rules, at the bottom of the Distinctions section, along with a couple sample Heritage Distinctions for this setting. The Heritage Distinction may be more directly from the Smallville game than the Cortex Prime rules. For this game, we're crafting a narrative together, with the goal being to tell the most interesting story. While there will almost definitely be player vs. player contests, we should be crafting things collaboratively to make a great story rather than trying to win. My intention is that all character sheets can be public with no real issue as we're all working together as players toward the same "cool ass story" goal, even if that means we let our characters get beat down a few times.

They're definitely the foil to the Unbound, but mechanically a Limitation takes away any powers or abilities tied to a Heritage for the rest of the scene. I'm not sure I can come up with a way that the old church takes away your knowledge of pressure points or combat training other than by threatening others to keep you from using them, and that's the kind of dramatic interaction I'm hoping will make you WANT TO use your training... I think we'll keep it as a regular distinction for now.

I think the Unbound are still forming in this time period... there is no formal church yet. Prudence likely still walks the plains. She was set in the wild west. I think this movement is just picking up steam and different forces are influencing it as it solidifies into the codified religion it becomes later. I think there are a variety of people trying to honor what she did for them in their own ways, and many different views on what her legacy should be, and what her actions mean. I like the idea that there is a core set of beliefs, as outlined in The Manifesto of the Unbound, but that different individuals and groups have different takes on it.... but also all still help each other because that's the core of the beliefs. "I am the storm that shields the meek, the flame that protects the scorned, the ruin that stands as sanctuary for those you cast out." "I am the ruin of your false sanctuaries, the fire that devours your lies, the storm that scatters your order to ash." "I am your reckoning, and I promise you this: the scales will balance, but not by your dogma, not in your courts." "I build a new temple, not of walls, but of arms wrapped around each other..." Each of those seems to call for a different type of action, and I think different people will hear her call differently. But those who met her directly, who were actually saved by the real Prudence, I think they might be the first Ashwalkers, the ones most like Kwai Chang Caine. But let's see what happens in Pathways. Heritage Distinctions are handled differently. The biggest drawback I see is that they require a limit (like kryptonite to a Kryptonian, or fire to Martian Manhunter, etc.) so it might not be appropriate. I'll have to dig into the rules more later.

I like the more tightly focused one. I was also thinking we could make it a Heritage distinction. Even though it's not a "species" or anything, it has broader implications and could have a set of connected abilities you could learn over time. I think maybe adding more to the definition/description would help, too. Something like "you know pressure points and can use them for hands-on healing as well as nerve strikes" to cover that. The idea should be that, even without the need to mechanically heal a PC, you should be able to help an NPC with minor injury as a matter of course because it's something you do. The Hearthkeepers would not be on the map at this point. You're just adding a single NPC to the map.

You can leave them for now. You might just want to double-check them once we're done and make sure your first thoughts are still what you're thinking once Pathways is done.