It’s Jonathan here with another signature DR:TX Rules Ramble, leading up to our February live event THE BREAKER OF CROWNS! This is our next event, led by Heather Halstead and Jonathan Loyd. Each week, I’ll discuss in detail an aspect of the upcoming event, compiling the rules and lore into one easy place to read! This week, we are covering some last-minute Rules You Should Know, featuring some Threat Skills that might be useful to prepare for as the Summit begins…
TICKET SALES ARE CLOSED ONLINE, BUT YOU CAN STILL GET A TICKET AT THE GATE!
We’ve updated our New Player Corner with a lot of great resources for new and returning players alike. This is a great place to start if this is your first game in awhile!
We’ve updated the SES Buy List, and we’ve allowed it to use your San Saba Society Memberships instead of requiring involvement with the Red Ledger. Check out what your Marks can earn you if you sign up for the Survival Ethos System last month!
You might have missed it, but we updated our Local CAPS list last season. There are some brand new shiny rewards if you bought some items from our Wish List, or if you help our game with extra NPC shifts or spend time as a Guide. Check it out!
Did you attend The Great Revival National Event? Unfortunately, the 42 shiny new faith blueprints from this event have not been added to our shared drive yet by the Network Support team. This means that for now, you won’t be able to make copies of these blueprints until we receive these files from the event game runners. If you’ve received your mail package of item cards from that event early, you can craft the items and perform the benedictions as normal, just not duplication of the prints. We will update you at the game if this changes before then!
Our photos for this post were taken from previous DR:TX events by our talented Photo Team, by Max Pohlmeier, Lauren Guzaldo, Jason Dumas, and Maddeax Khole.
CHOICE POINTS & the Summit
The outcome of THE BREAKER OF CROWNS will not be decided by a vote alone, or by choosing a new leader of the Tribes, or even killing a certain big bad. Instead, YOUR actions will matter over the course of the event. Several CHOICE POINTS will be presented to the town throughout the event, and how you react to these in-game situations will determine how the resolution of this game will end.
Your actions as a player will determine if the Oxkillers decide to pursue a peace treaty, or if the War is doomed to continue into the months ahead, or some unknown third choice is selected... Heather and I have prepared multiple endings based on how these flash points resolve, and you will get to have a direct impact on if the War of Antlers continues or the Oxkillers instead head towards peace. Pay close attention to the story of the Summit, and you will have multiple opportunities to sway the opinions of either the San Saba forces or the Oxkillers.
There are at least EIGHT difference CHOICE POINTS to make over the weekend, and depending on your actions during the game there could be more. One decision alone won’t be enough to sway the opinions of the Summit.
We will telegraph when one of these events occur by using a clear OOC sign that reads CHOICE POINT. It should be clear to those involved that a choice is being made or can be made, but we won’t always detail exactly how to pursue that choice. Whether your choice will push the various personalities towards peace or war will depend on the choices you make!
Some CHOICE POINTS will be decided by role play behaviors alone. Not every Choice Point will be spelled out on a Zone of Mechanics or exactly detailed on a print out. Instead, how you react to certain events or roleplay from the NPCs will determine which direction you sway the choice towards war or peace.
Some CHOICE POINTS will be decided by mechanics, usually detailed on a Zone of Mechanics sheet of yellow paper. There will still be a few ways for you to mechanically interact with the plot if heavy roleplay isn’t your style, particularly for those with Society Memberships in the various San Saba factions.
Each of the NPCs has a series of agendas, secrets, and leverage they want to use to pursue their goals. If you can discover where each representative stands, you’ll be better prepared to push the Summit towards a path of your choosing. These NPCs will also have item cards, Brass, supply bags, and can be looted, killed, or protected.
Your decisions over the weekend will determine the final Battles in the War of Antlers plot that occur on Sunday at the war table, so be prepared for the shifting battlegrounds based on your actions during the event itself!
When is the actual Summit of Tribes?
Great question! While our Choice Points will begin on Friday night, the main affair is scheduled during the Siesta on Saturday, at 3:00 pm, in the Depot. The delegates of both factions will be present to hear arguments for or against peace, in the tradition of the ancient Tribes, so everyone can have a say. It’s up to you what secrets or leverage you might use against one of the representatives, or what alliances and promises you might make to sway them towards your desired outcome.
The Honored Guests
There will be several new NPCs in town that represent the leaders in attendance for the Summit of Tribes. According to the tradition of the Antler Tribes, each of the Houses of the Republic is given an invitation to attend. However, you might notice that the invitation above doesn’t technically exclude enemies of the San Saba. Just remember the new Wartime Powers of the Charter keeps the Oxkillers from enjoying the protections of the law against murder, theft, and worse, and has a few other fun complications.
You’ll see a few of these characters as early as Friday night, but here’s an idea of who to expect.
The Oxkiller War Party will consist of a few new characters that you might have seen on a War Report if you’ve been paying attention to the War of Antlers mini-game on Sundays.
The Breaker of Crowns, Leader of the Oxkiller Alliance
Carina Astora, the Saltwater Sweetheart, Leader of the Clearwater Rebels
Marcus Remington, Minister-General of Star City, Leader of the Mustang Loyalists
Ahote the Restless, Oxkiller Mentor
The San Saba Republic will have two major representatives to expect during the Summit. While the third member of the Troika remains on the front lines to defend against betrayal, two of the leaders of the faction will be in attendance.
Boss Debs, Queen of the San Saba Republic
Malorous Mab, Spymaster of the San Saba Republic
THREAT SKILLS OF NOTE
There’s one last thing to be concerned about during the Summit. Zombies are a key part of Dystopia Rising, and this weekend a few of our classics gain a dangerous new ability. This new threat skill will see play during the February Event:
Blood Scent
The [REDACTED] will point at a Target and call “Line of Sight, Downsurge: Blood Scent!”. This ability may not be Avoided or Resisted.
This Downsurge replaces any Downsurge currently on the Target, and lasts for one hour.
All nearby Undead will swarm and try to kill that target, channeling the anger of the horde. If a character goes into Bleed Out from the attacks of the swarming horde, any member of the horde can call a Killing Blow instead of the Cannibalize skill on the Blood Scented character. Ouch!
This skill means that even a normal Shambler can suddenly become DEADLY. Make sure you have some friends close by, because you won’t have the normal Cannibalize window to rescue them before they die!
Wrap UP
That’s it for this week Vados! We have a great event planned for you and we can’t wait for y’all to decide the next steps for the people of the San Saba as we begin the last half of the season. We hope that you are ready for the challenge of THE BREAKER OF CROWNS. Will you choose a path of peace, or do you want to make the Oxkillers pay by continuing the war? Can you survive the deadly politics of the Summit and risk treason to make your point? We have some some fun and exciting challenges planned for your characters in the nightmarish zombie apocalypse.
See you soon Vados!