Pre-Generated Characters in Everway

Everway provides a dozen pre-generated characters, complete with backgrounds, descriptions of magic and powers, possessions, and even “questions for development.”  Without further ado. . .

Amber

Air:  3 (etiquette)

Fire:  5 (unarmed combat)

Earth:  6 (resisting unconsciousness)

Water:  3 (stealth)

Motive:  Authority

Virtue:  Summer

Fault:  The Fool – reversed

Fate:  Knowledge

Amber is a weretiger from a village of weretigers.  She was exiled after helping humans from other villages and now she travels among the spheres using “her powers to right wrongs, correct the injustice, ad protect the innocent.”  Other than being a weretiger, she has the powers of 'Silence of the Hunter' (“When stalking her enemies. . .Only those with special senses or a strong Water scores can sense her”) and 'Resistance to Death Magics' (“Magical abilities that specifically kill instantly only incapacitate Amber. . .”).

Chance

Air:  3 (military tactics)

Fire:  6 (reacting to danger)

Earth:  4 (endurance in combat)

Water:  6 (sensing motives)

Motive:  Adversity

Virtue:  The Peasant

Fault:  The Griffin – reversed

Fate:  War

Chance inherited some abilities from his father, who was a wandering warrior.  He left his village to become a mercenary, but stopped when all the fighting became too much for him. . .”  His powers are 'Berserk' (“His strength and endurance increase [in combat], but he becomes completely lost to reason”) and 'Inured to Pain' (“Chance endures physical pain easily”).

 

Clarity

Air:  6 (poetry)

Fire:  4 (swordfighting)

Earth:  3 (resisting persuasion)

Water:  5 (sensing others' presence)

Motive:  Wanderlust

Virtue:  Inspiration

Fault:  The Defender – reversed

Fate:  The Smith

Growing up, Clarity was an apprentice to a bard.  Eventually, she discovered that she was a spherewalker.  Now she travels “among the worlds, learning songs and poems and sharing them with others. . .”  Her powers are 'Ravenform' (“Clarity can take on the shape of a large raven at will”) and 'Perfect Memory of the Bard' (“Clarity can remember everything that she was trained to perform or learn as a bard”).

Cleft

Air:  3 (identifying herbs and plants)

Fire:  4 (hunting)

Earth:  5 (resisting bad magic)

Water:  3 (sensing injury and illness)

Motive:  Mystery

Virtue:  The Lion

Fault:  The Creator – reversed

Fate:  The Peasant

Cleft has five points of 'Soil and Stone' magic, appropriately associated with his Earth element.  Cleft uses his magic for healing.  “His touch can ease pain, stop bleeding, and keeping a wound clean. . .[as well as] cure diseases, neutralize poisons, lift curses, and banish malignant spirits.”  Among other capabilities, “With great and constant effort, he can prevent a mortally wounded person from dying and nurse that person back to health.”  With his power of 'Earth's Surety', “Cleft is almost impossible to knock down” if he is standing on “living, level earth.”

 

Detritus

Air:  7 (ancient lore)

Fire:  3 (jumping)

Earth:  2 (walking long distance)

Water:  5 (sensing death)

Motive:  Knowledge

Virtue:  Winter

Fault:  Striking the Dragon's Tail

Fate:  Spring

Detritus has decided to explore “the spheres for the rest of his life, compiling what he hopes will be a comprehensive book about past civilizations.”  His powers are:  'Rune of Lurking Unseen' (Detritus has a stone that allows him to become invisible as long as he doesn't move or make a sound), 'Ancient Gesture of Clarity' (He “can dispel magical illusions”), 'Invulnerable Sphere of Infinite Sound' (“This crystal can. . .make any manner of sound, as loud as thunder or as quiet as [a] mouse's sigh”), and 'Illuminating Clap' (“With a clap, Detritus can illuminate the area around him with a gentle glow”).

Fireson

Air:  3 (speaking to crowds)

Fire:  6 (fire magic)

Earth:  3 (maintaining vigils)

Water:  5 (sensing divine energies)

Motive:  Adversity

Virtue:  The Lion

Fault:  Death – reversed

Fate:  The Soldier

Fireson – Jonathan Tweet's own character – was “banished from his homeland” after he “offended his deity.”  Now he “wanders the spheres, hoping for a way to regain his deity's favor. . .”  His powers are:  'Priestly Rites' (“Fireson can channel divine energies and the energies of worshipers through powerful rituals”), 'Sweat Fire' (“Fireson can cause flames to come forth from his skin”), and 'Friend to Fire' (Heat “neither pains nor harms him”).

Opal

Air:  4 (speaking well)

Fire:  5 (climbing)

Earth:  2 (enduring pain)

Water:  7 (sensing magic)

Motive:  Adversity

Virtue:  The Phoenix

Fault:  The Hermit – reversed

Fate:  The Cockatrice

A water priestess was held captive by an evil wizard.  The priestess died giving birth to Opal.  When Opal grew to adulthood, she beheaded the wizard using a pair of “bird claw gloves.”  The gloves allow her to “grasp with great strength and endurance.”  Opal also has the power of 'Persuasion' (“Because of her strong intuition about people, she is very effective at manipulating them”).

Praises Be

Air:  6 (authoritative voice)

Fire:  2 (staff fighting)

Earth:  3 (studying long hours)

Water:  3 (sensing magic)

Motive:  Conquest

Virtue:  The Eagle

Fault:  The Defender – reversed

Fate:  Law

“After defeating his master in a contest of magic, Praises Be. . .set out to explore the universe and test his abilities against the challenges to be found among the infinite spheres.”  He has six points of 'Words of Power' magic, associated with his air element.  With this magic, he “can compel a spirit to obey him, kill an average person, or force a group of people to back away.”  Additionally, he can use his magic to conduct rituals as well as “inscribe objects with magic words. . .”  Praises Be also has the power of 'Universal Reading'.

Puma

Air:  3 (storytelling)

Fire:  5 (archery)

Earth:  6 (enduring the elements)

Water:  5 (stealth)

Motive:  Authority

Virtue:  The Defender

Fault:  The Dragon – reversed

Fate:  The Creator

“Puma is a hunter, the only known survivor of an earthquake that killed her people when she was eighteen.”  She has the powers of 'Speak to Animals' (“Puma can speak to and understand all animals”) and 'Cat's Leap' (“Puma can jump fifteen feet straight up from a standing position”).

Serenity Freemansdaughter

Air:  3 (singing)

Fire:  5 (dancing and partying)

Earth:  4 (resisting poisons)

Water:  3 (sensing faerie magic)

Motive:  Wanderlust

Virtue:  Death

Fault:  Knowledge – reversed

Fate:  The Fish

Serenity's maternal grandmother was a troll.  She taught Serenity magic and gave her the secret name “Farbright.”  Serenity has five points of 'Flux' magic, associated with her fire element.  She can use this magic to “transform people and things. . .through her concentrated gaze.”  Such transformations are temporary and relatively minor.  She also has the 'Troll Friend' power:  “Trolls (and other earthy, magic beings) generally take a liking to Serenity.”

Shadowblade Dragonseeker of the Clan of the Spirit Mountain

Air:  3 (disguise)

Fire:  5 (swordfighting)

Earth:  4 (resisting magic)

Water:  7 (anticipating another's actions)

Motive:  Mystery

Virtue:  The Dragon

Fault:  Autumn – reversed

Fate:  War

Shadow was “a spy [for] a noble house. . .” who performed “a delicate, dangerous, and ugly deed. . .”  Freed from further obligations to the nobles, “Shadow has set out to learn about life's deeper mysteries: beauty, love, family, awe, worship, friendship, and sorrow.”  Wearing “shadow gear,” he “can blend into shadows and become invisible.”  Shadow is also a 'Weaponsmaster' (He “can use any sort of mundane, handheld weapon without training...”).

Whisper Walker

Air:  3 (historical insight)

Fire:  4 (spirit battles)

Earth:  4 (“Soul's Wall of Stone”)

Water:  5 (speaking with spirits)

Motive:  Beauty

Virtue:  The Hermit

Fault:  Drowning in Armor

Fate:  The Phoenix

Due to a mishap as a child, Whisper became “sensitive to the world of spirits.”  She has four points of 'Open Chalice' magic, associated with her water element.  Whisper can use her magic to sense energies and become possessed by spirits.  Her “Soul's Wall of Stone” is a “psychic barrier.”  Whisper also has a power called 'Vision of the Departed Spirit' (She “can tell by sight whether a person is awake, unconscious, or dreaming”).

Powers and Magic in Everway

In Everway, all player characters (i.e., “heroes”) are spherewalkers.  The Playing Guide asks, “What makes someone a spherewalker?”

Those who are sensitive to mystical things (in game terms, those who have high Water scores) can open the gates and walk the paths between spheres.  A few other people who aren't particularly sensitive also can open and travel the gates.  Different people have the ability for different reasons.  Those with even a little blood of the deities can usually spherewalk, as can those sent on missions by their deities, those who have been given special gifts by spirits or faeries, those conceived or born at propitious or magical times, and so on.  Often no one knows what makes spherewalkers able to travel the gates, not even the spherewalkers themselves.

Heroes can have “magical, psychic, or unusual Powers.”  For the most part, Powers have a cost in elemental points.  Therefore, purchasing Powers will limit the hero's combined Element scores.  Technically, the Powers Stage occurs before the Elements Stage.  The cost of any given Power is determined by three factors:  versatile, major, and frequent.  Each factor that applies to a power costs one point.  If a Power has numerous effects, it is versatile.  If a Power “has a big effect, especially on another character,” it is major.  A frequent Power is “something that often makes a difference in play.”  Example Powers are presented in a number of categories.

Examples of 'Create Fire' Powers include Throw Fire (2 points; frequent and major) – “The hero can produce fire from his or her hands [and] ...can be formed into balls and thrown” and Mastery of Flame (3 points; frequent, major, and versatile) – “The hero can create heat, light, and flame at will.”

Examples of 'Healing' Powers include Fast Healing (1 point; frequent) – “The hero recovers from physical wounds seven times as fast as normal” and Instant Healing (2 points; frequent and major) – “no wound lasts for more than a few seconds [but] ...A blow that kills the hero instantly, however is still fatal.”

Examples of 'Immortality' Powers include Unkillable (2 points; frequent and major) – “The hero cannot be killed, though he or she can still be hampered by wounds, sickened by poison, knocked down by blows, weakened by disease” etc. and Invulnerable (3 points; frequent and twice major) – “The hero cannot be wounded or poisoned by normal means, though he or she can still be struck down by forceful blows, knocked unconscious from lack of air, or killed by hunger or thirst.”  As can be seen, the 'major' factor can be doubled, costing an additional point.

'Invisibility' Powers include Standing Unseen (1 point; frequent) – “The hero can become invisible but must remain still and silent” and Walking Unseen (2 points; frequent and major) – “The hero can become invisible and can move about.”

Examples of 'Persuasion' Powers include Winning Smile (0 points) – “The hero's smile... helps the hero stand out and may make some people more favorable disposed toward him or her” and Charming Voice (2 points; frequent and major) – “The hero can win the affection of those that he or she can talk to at some length.

'Priestly Powers' include Priestly Rites (2 points; major and versatile) – “The hero can lead worship services and divine ceremonies to channel energy” and Invocation (3 points; frequent, major, and versatile) – “The priest or priestess, apart from any worshipping congregation, can invoke the power of deities.”

Examples of 'Shapechange' Powers include Werewolf (2 points; frequent and major) – “The hero can turn into a powerful wolf that is immune to normal (nonsilver and nonmagical) weapons” and Bird Form (2 points; frequent and major) – “The hero can turn into a particular type of bird, such as a crow or hawk.”

Examples of 'Speech' Powers include Speak to Animals (1 point; frequent) – “The hero can speak to all manner of animals” and Shadow Whispers (1 point; major) – “The hero can speak to the dead.”

Examples of 'Visions' Powers include Glimpses of the Future (1 point; major) – “During times of stress, the hero gets visions of the future” and Mystic Eye (3 points; frequent, major, and versatile) – “The hero can concentrate to gain visions of the future, of times past, or of distant places.”

Powers can also be purchased to allow a hero to guide others while spherewalking; to guide a group is a 1-Point Power, to guide “large contingents” is a 2-point Power.  Otherwise, a hero needs a high water score to lead others:  6 – one or two people, 7 – a group, 8 or more – “large contingents.” 

It is possible for a Power to “come from some object or creature... [such as] a familiar animal, a wand with magical powers, a flying boat, or the like.”  Examples of animal companions include Cat Familiar (2 points; frequent and versatile) – “It can talk to the hero (and only the hero), and it is as intelligent as a child” (Fire = 1, Earth = 2, Air = 2, Water = 5) and Wolf Companion (3 points; frequent, major, and versatile) – “A clever, loyal wolf... It does not have human-like intelligence” (Fire = 4, Earth = 3, Air = 1, Water = 4).

As Winning Smile suggests, there are zero-point Powers that are neither frequent, major, nor versatile.  Other examples of such Powers include Friend to Water (“The hero can breathe water”), Horse Friend (“The hero befriends horses automatically”), and Phantom Musician (“The hero can make a musical instrument play by itself”).  Each hero is entitled to one such free Power.  Each Power after the hero's free Power costs at least one point, even it if would be a zero-point Power.

The Magic Stage follows the Elements Stage.  Similar to purchasing an element score, to have Magic, a hero spends elemental points to develop a Magic score.

Of the dozen pre-generated characters, eight characters have purchased Powers, spending up to three points total.  The other four characters have spent four to six points on Magic and have only free Powers.  Although I could not find any rule that prohibits a hero from purchasing Powers as well as Magic, each pre-generated character has either purchased Powers or Magic, but not both.  Presumably, a hero need not spend points either for Powers or Magic, but this is not the case for any of the pre-generated characters.

There are various 'types' of magic (e.g., paths, schools, arts, styles, and traditions).  Each magic-using hero has a single type.  The rules provide four example types, but players can “invent” their own.  Each type is linked with one of the elements, but a mage cannot have an element Specialty that is magical.  A hero's Magic score cannot exceed his or her score in the linked element.  Additionally, the Magic score of a beginning character cannot exceed seven.

Examples of what a Magic score indicates are...

1 Apprentice:  A beginner, capable of both modest tricks and catastrophic mistakes.

3 Average Mage:  A humble practitioner with some impressive powers in his or her area of specialization, but not one to tackle great magical challenges.  A town of a thousand people might have one such mage.

6 Mighty Mage: The mightiest living mage that most people have ever heard of; a master of magic.  A realm of a million people might have one such mage.

The four example magic types are 'Flux' (Fire), 'Soil and Stone' (Earth), 'Words of Power' (Air), and 'Open Chalice' (Water).

'Flux' regards transformation.  Example levels include:  1 – Alter minor features on small objects, such as making a pebble smoother; 3 – Alter minor features, such as aging milk, freshening air, fortifying wine, weakening rope, and rusting metal; 5 – Alter an average hero's features, such as height or race.  We learn, “the effects of this magic last only a short time, usually about a day.”

'Soil and Stone' regards healing and wards.  Example levels include:  1 – Aid the ill; 3 – Counter diseases or ward an individual against a particular danger or magic; 5 – Counter curses or let a mortally wounded person recover (slowly).  We learn, “this magic works through physical contact, especially with the hands.”

'Words of Power' magic “uses spoken and written words to affect living things, spirits, and magical forces.”  Example levels include:  1 – Command insects by voice or inscribe charms to bring good luck; 3 – Force back wild animals or inscribe charms for various, minor purposes; 5 – Force back an average person with a magic word.

'Open Chalice' regards empathy and communication.  Example levels include:  1 – Sense strong energies; 3 – Call and channel spirits with varied success; 5 – Neutralize petty negative energies or communicate nonverbally with plants or call and channel spirits with facility.  We learn that “taste and smell are the physical senses ruled by water, this magic sometimes uses magic drinks, smoke, incense, or other aids.”

City of Wonder

Six years ago, your humble host wrote about Chaosium's 1982 Worlds of Wonder product.  We return to that product because a reader has informed me that he (or she or they) purchased Worlds of Wonder on eBay; however, the 'A Portion of Wonder' pamphlet was missing.  This, of course, is unconscionable and I cannot sit idly by while a lone voice cries out in the wilderness.  In this post, I provide the requested scan.  Some concern was expressed over copyright.  I am certain that this is covered by one or more 'fair use' provisions (particularly the 'obscure blog' & 'material that has been out of print for nearly four decades' provisions – but you should consult with a lawyer before relying on said provisions for your own purposes).  Anyway, what good are laws when justice has been trampled in the dirt?

The pamphlet consists of four pages.  The front cover briefly describes the city (usually referenced merely as 'Wonder') and supplies a price list.  The interior two pages present a map of part of the city (i.e., the Magic World, Superworld, and Future*World sections).  The back cover provides a 'Short Guide to the Avenues', with brief descriptions of places shown on the map (e.g., All-Beings Hospital and Piglar Megalessar's Stage Show and School of Cunning).

Please note the reference to Apple Lane in the lower left area

 

The reader also requested “any suggestion for a multi-genre crossover rpg.”  It seems several such games have been published over the years, but it would be inconsiderate of me not to suggest Chaosium's own Basic Roleplaying, the natural evolution of Worlds of Wonder.  It has a System Reference Document that has been out for almost a year.

Characters and Elements in Everway

From Leonhard Thurneysser’s Quinta Essentia (1574)

 

Previously, we examined parts of the Identity Stage of Everway character generation; specifically, the concepts of Virtue, Fault, and Fate.  The remaining portion of the Identity Stage is choosing a name for the character, which “is not a trivial matter.”  However, “You may choose a name at any point in designing you hero.”  Names of Everway characters often “mean something in everyday speech rather than being merely traditional.”  Names of the pre-generated characters appear in a chart later in this post.  Choosing a Motive is also part of the Identity Stage.  Seven Motives are listed, but the reader is invited to “invent your own.”

    Adversity:  “The hero is under some compulsion to walk the spheres.”

    Authority:  “The hero is the hands, the eyes, the mouth, or the sword of some authority, such as a deity, ruler, or holy order.”

    Beauty:  “The hero seeks to share or to experience that which is beautiful:  art, music, romance, poetry, aphrodisia, and more.”

    Conquest:  “The hero lives for challenges and loves to exert power.”

    Knowledge:  “The hero seeks knowledge to be found in new realms and new worlds.”

    Mystery:  “The hero seeks no mundane goals but wishes to confront mysteries on other worlds.”

    Wanderlust:  “The hero wanders the spheres with little or no care for a purpose.”

Stages that follow the Identity Stage involve an allocation of elemental points.  Players have twenty elemental points to spend on the Powers, Elements, and Magic of their characters.  Elements are the “basic aspects” of a character – what would in other games be called characteristics or attributes.  In Everway, these basic aspects correspond roughly with the four medieval humors.  Rather than have attributes like Phlegm and Yellow Bile, Tweet wisely named these aspects after the four classical elements.  Elements have ratings from one to ten, with a one meaning helplessness and a ten meaning a godlike level of ability.  Player characters have a minimum rating of two and a maximum rating of nine.  We learn, “An average hero's scores are usually between 4 and 5...”  An average background character (i.e., non-player character) has only twelve elemental points to allocate, “so a well-balanced average person has a score of 3 for each Element.”  The Elements and their meanings are:

          Air determines intelligence, speech, thought, logic, analytical ability, oratory, and knowledge.  A hero with a strong Air score knows a lot, speaks well, and can figure things out easily.

          Earth governs a hero's health endurance, fortitude, will, determination, and resilience.  Heroes with strong Earth scores can withstand damage, shake off the effects of poison, and resist magic.

          Fire measures vitality, force, courage, speed, and daring.  Heroes with strong Fire scores are energetic and capable in physical activities.

          Water governs intuition, sensitivity to that which is unseen and unspoken, receptivity, psychic potential, and depth of feeling.  Heroes with strong Water scores are good at sensing lies, feeling magic, intuiting hidden emotions, adapting to new social situations, and so on.

 

 

As the above graphic shows, each Element has an opposite Element and combines and contrasts with the remaining two Elements.  For example, Air ('thought') opposes Earth ('might').  The combination of Air and Water results in 'Wisdom' (Air associated with “spoken” and Water, “silent”), while the combination of Air and Fire results in 'Energy' (Air associated with “focused” and Fire, “forceful”).

If a player has a “role” or “career” in  mind for his or her character, one or more Elements can be emphasized.  As examples...

Earth:  farmer or guard

Earth and Water:  priest or healer

Water:  mystic or artist

Water and Air:  physician or poet

Air:  scholar or engineer

Air and Fire:  leader or messenger

Fire:  warrior or acrobat

Fire and Earth:  athlete or smith

Even opposite elements can be combined for certain roles / careers.  High Fire and Water scores can represent a scout or dancer.  High Air and Earth can represent a magistrate or inquisitor.

For each Element, a player character has a Specialty.  A Specialty is a particular area of expertise.  “Generally,” the rules inform us, “a Specialty allows a hero to perform an act as if the [Element] score were 1 point higher than it is.”  Examples include...

    Air:  Smooth-talking, Occult Lore

    Earth:  Resisting Magic, Tireless Stride

    Fire:  Archery, Running

    Water:  Stealth, Tracking

It's possible for a Specialty to be a “Cross-Specialty,” meaning it can be associated with one Element but affect another.  As an example, the rules explain that Archery is a task normally associated with Fire, but “because arrows fly through the air,” Archery could be associated with Air.  If a hero has a Fire score of 2, but an Air score of 6 (with an Archery specialty), then that hero “would shoot arrows as well as as a 7-Fire” character.  Other Cross-Specialties include Smithing (Fire – Air), Swimming (Water – Fire), and Mining (Earth – Air).

The Everway boxed set comes with twelve pre-generated characters.  As such, Tweet gives us a good amount of insight into his concept of how player characters ought to be.  Below is a chart showing the Element scores for the “ready-to-run heroes.“  The characters are ordered by ascending value of their Air scores.

In terms of averages:  Earth = 3.83, Air = 3.92, Fire = 4.5, and Water = 4.75.  The 'Wisdom' Elements (Air and Water) have a value range of 3 – 7 while the 'Power' Elements (Fire and Earth) have a value range of only 2 – 6.  For fully three-quarters of the characters, Element ranges are within 3 – 6; for one-fourth of the characters, Element ranges are within 3 –5.  If the characters are grouped according to which of their Elements has the highest score, each Element would have three characters except Fire, which would have two.  (One hero has Fire and Water tied at highest score.)