3E Skylis Rules
Chapter 0: Overview.
OVERVIEW OF SKYLIS RULES
Dictatorial TutorialSo, you wanna play in Skylis, do ya?
Well, you gotta play by my rules. Why? Simply put: Because I said so. I'm in charge here. I made this hodgepodge world and I ain't about to let a bunch of well-to-do, know-it-alls muck it up. It's my job to muck things up. I'm the Head Honcho, El Presidente, Numero Uno, Big Cheese, Big Kahuna, The Man, The Boss, Oyuban, Editor-in-Chief, High Mucky-muck and Charles in Charge of this quagmire of cobbled together fantasy fiction. So you gotta play by my rules. Here endeth the lesson.
However, I'm a fair dictator. I listen to opinions and make changes based on player recommendations. In fact, despite my Iron Rule statements in the above paragraph, it must be understood that most of what I do is, in fact, for the enjoyment of others. Yes, I still stand by the Iron Fist in a Velvet Glove standard of Gamemastering, and World Building, but the care and love I put into the crafting of the gameworld and its mechanics is directly related to how important it is for my players to have a good time.
The tenuous balance I want to strike is one of a world where the player character can accomplish great things, with great sacrifice and a little luck. Sometimes the odds may seem stacked against them, but what would be heroic about victories handed to them on a silver platter? While I truly hope for the players to have their characters survive, I refuse to have that happen in spite of glaring stupidity in the face of danger. Sorry, but if you hold the standard of Arnold (in the movie Commando) standing in a courtyard without cover, having dozens of soldiers with automatic weapons firing at him unable to put one bullet into his body as the way a hero should survive, then you need to find someplace else to play. You need to find another gamemaster. 'Cause, bub, if your character runs into a similar scenario while I'm running the show, sorry, but you gonna die.
The changes and rules modifications listed in this section are intended to reflect the changes made by WoTC to AD&D in their 3E release. I have tried diligently to remain within the boundaries of the Open License Agreement set out by the original authors. While I am aware of the 3.5E currently available, I no longer have the means nor the time to devote in order to have Skylis fully converted to 3rd Edition, much less 3.5. So, bear with me, if you please, as I try to catch up with the times.
The world of Skylis itself is best described as an attempt to fairly mix action with intrigue, defeat with victory, struggle with growth, and adversity with romance. It is a fractured, purportedly stable collection of nation states, imperfect race relations and a constant struggle between innumerable camps, factions and self-interested groups. It is a reasonably civilized fantasy world with gaps of unbridled wilderness and several 'Big Picture' story arcs. It is a world where one can choose between getting involved in an epic adventure or just carving out a fortune for themselves. They can serve their country, their people, their family or their personal ambition. They can climb to the height of popularity, swath themselves in the shadows of intrigue or batter and bully their way into infamy. They can do just about anything, so long as they put their minds to it. For each of these paths, and any of the others, will be frought with danger, rife with enemies, filled with challenges and marred by defeats. There are fortunes to be made, but there will be prices to be paid. For, in my mind, the mark of the great hero (or villian) is the will to overcome.
If YOU have suggestion regarding the listed, or yet to be listed rules, feel free to contact me (rancorr.geo@yahoo.com) with those thoughts. Like most obsessive creators, I crave feedback, even in the form of criticism.
All in all, I do hope that players will appreciate what I'm trying to accomplish and moreover learn to appreciate that the majority of their triumphs have come not because their DM wills it, but because they have earned it themselves. I like to play smart adversaries as smart and evil adversaries as evil, so watch out. But when you do defeat them, remember that you did it because of your own ingenuity, your own panache, your own determination and, most of all, your own effort. Here's a state secret I now divulge: One of the most satisfying moments for me as GM is when the players have finally defeated a cunning and sinister nemesis, and they look me in the face and say "HA!", with a sort of smug self-congratulation. That's when I know, I've done my job right.
Now, let's get back to the business of adventure!