Exalted, Sessions 1-5

On alternating Saturdays, Chris runs his Exalted chronicle for our group. The chronicle is set in a modified Creation that mostly plays to how the Exalted setting is presented, but with the agreement that anything that he wishes to change will be changed on a whim, as the events and characters will be presented as the ancient history and some of the most important figures (perhaps gods) of a shared campaign setting in the future, which will mostly host D&D and Pathfinder campaigns.

The Story So Far...

Our chronicle began in K'losis, a city carved into and around a fallen enormous humanoid war machine. There, we had learned some history of the campaign world and that the construct the city was built into is actually the husk of a being from another reality that invaded in the distant past and now there were factions that were trying to bring it and others like it back to life and summon more to this reality! Additionally, it was learned that powerful individuals were involved in these groups, speeding up their timeline by funneling money and resources into their aims.

Reports surfaced during this time of one of the great threats marching across the land as our band made haste to various locations, dismantling cult cells and the portals they had begun to erect. We flew out to face the engine of destruction and were able to dispatch it with the ship's weapons and a sprinkling of our own attacks, then made on our merry way to prevent the onset of the end of the world. 

Our leads took us to the city of Palanquin, where we strong-armed our way into their strange cult politics by having enough knowledge and materiel from capturing and destroying construction from other cult cells, thus locking in our access to the working portal in the city that leads to what we had learned were the giant war construct things' home plane. 

We took the first opportunity to make the jump through and emerged into a barren cityscape. Once we entered we find the place inhabited by the spirits of thousands of the dead, many of which showing signs of physical trauma. Most of these spirits didn't give us a notice, but one approached and engaged us, answering a few questions about the place, then leading us to a building where a council gave us audience, further providing information about the place. We had assumed this was the home plane of the aggressor war machines, but we were told this was also a conquered world, and their undeaths were spent in servitude.

During the trip through the portal, Exton experienced a vision in which an entity revealed to him that in order to fulfill their task of destroying the colossi, they would have to assemble a collection of artifacts. There were eight in total, but it was unclear if all of them were needed, and only a few were revealed. Our "map" was a tome that turned out to be in possession of one of the party, a key, a sword, the Shield of Ancel, the Hands of Tyr, and the Keeper's Dagger.

The form of the last five named and the two unnamed were unknown to us, but we had a start. Exton told the Circle about his visions and the decision was made to cross back into our world to find the artifacts. When we arrived, we discovered that two years had passed, even though we has spent a touch less than eight hours in the other realm. We assessed our situation and set a few affairs straight once we found that our ventures had continued as usual without us, then we took the opportunity to divine where other artifacts could be located.

Our key was in Brightonvork, an island located in the northwest, and the sword was in the Burning Sands, to the south. We decided to head toward the island and made contact with an older lady who explained to us that if what we were after ever existed, it was at the bottom of the ocean with her father's ship, which sank when she was young. It didn't take us long to ascertain the approximate location of the shipwreck and we went diving, recovering a metal rod with no discerning markings on it, as well as some other valuables from the wreck, which were mostly returned to the old lady, after which we set off for the Burning Sands, at which point we left off.

When we pick up next, I will be taking over for the next arc of the chronicle. The Circle knows that one of the colossi are headed to sea, presumably to Brightonvork, and the other is heading in the direction of the Burning Sands. Are these things now moving to intercept any who are trying to retrieve the artifacts? Are they wanting the artifacts, themselves? Hiow do they know about them? The Circle is so far clueless to the actual history of the items.

2022: A Year in Summary

 Always open to questions and commentary when it comes to the lists of media I consume! I write these every year so that maybe if someone sees this, it might act as recommendations. Having said that, I do not claim all things on this list are good!

Books (Many, many of these are 5-40 pages. Sorry I don't have the authors of some)

Trinity Continuum: Anima (Onyx Path)

Shadow of the Demon Lord master adventure Oblivion's Edge (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Monstrous Pages: Of Monstrous Mein (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord novice adventure The Apple of Her Eye (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord master adventure The Darkness in Shadowturrets (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord expert adventure Feast of the Father (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord novice adventure The Demon's Wetnurse (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord expert adventure The Gorgon's Tears (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Lands in Shadow: The Kingdom of Sails (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Unholy Champions of the Demon Lord (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Lands in Shadow: Weight of the Underworld (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord master adventure With My Last Scream (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord expert adventure Wretched (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord novice adventure The Knife in Your Hand (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord master adventure The Man Who Fell to Urth (Schwalb Entertainment)

The Phylactery (Planet X Games)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Eberron (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: When Armies Clash (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Creating New Class Options (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Psionics and the Mystic (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Modern Magic (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Prestige Classes and Rune Magic (Wizards of the Coast)

The Phylactery #2 (Planet X Games)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Psionics & The Mystic, Take 2 (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Artificer (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Warlock & Wizard (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Revised Subclasses (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana: Fiendish Options (Wizards of the Coast)

Geist: The Sin-Eaters 1e SAS: Dem Bones (White Wolf)

Geist: The Sin-Eaters 1e SAS: The House Always Wins (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors Introduction (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - The Razorkids (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Host of the Clutter (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Frankenstein's Mobster (not a typo!) (White Wolf)

The Phylactery #3 (Planet X Games)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Empty Space (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - The Man with the Gray Beard (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Meeting the Frostbite Girl (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Getting Her Back (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Body of Evidence (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Caveat Emptor (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - No Escape (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Good for the Soul (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Serpent's Tooth (White Wolf)

Warhammer Age of Sigmar Battletome: Soulblight Gravelords (Games Workshop)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - The Mother of All Wrong Turns (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Mother to Monsters (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Dead to Me (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e SAS: Collection of Horrors - Mr. Theleme (White Wolf)

nWoD SAS: The Devil's Night (White Wolf)

Exalted 2e Scions of the Scarlet Dynasty (?)

Tombpunk: Rogues (Outland Entertainment)

Marvel Heroic Roleplaying What If...? Ed Gross Had Thor's Hammer in His Collection (Margaret Weis Productions)

Marvel Heroic Roleplaying What If...? Bruce Banner Was A Prisoner at the Raft (Margaret Weis Productions)

Scion 2e Nile War Gods (Chris Handforth)

Scion 2e Relics of Origin (Crystal Mazur)

Scion 2e The Deicide Compact (Travis Legge)

Exalted 3e Occult Charm Homebrew (?)

Scion 2e Cheat Sheet (?)

Changeling: The Dreaming The Norse Fae (?)

D&D Dark Sun A Little Knowledge (?)

Mage: The Ascension One-Page Jumpstart A Breakdown of Order: The Alchemist's Schism (High Level Games)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse adventure Curse of the O'Tolley's Burger (High Level Games)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Maeghar (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Ravnos (Jasin Holliday)

Dark Sun Cosmology (David Schwartz)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Monstrous Pages: From Beyond This World (Schwalb Entertainment)

They Came From Outer Space! New Tropes and Archetypes (Onyx Path)

Trinity Continuum Terra Firma: Boston (High Level Games)

Scion 2e The Republican Pantheon (Mike McCall)

Mork Borg module Under the Abbey (Flamberga)

Forgotten Realms module The Dead Tell No Tales (Mikael Mansen)

Demon: The Fallen Angels of Death: Lore of the Slayers (Travis Legge)

Rayguns & Robuts (Planet X Games)

Demon: The Fallen Flames of Perdition: Lore of the Devils (Travis Legge)

Demon: The Fallen Infernal Might: Common Lores (Travis Legge)

Storypath System Preview (Onyx Path)

Trinity Continuum Leviathan: Mabuhay (Travis Legge)

Scion 2e Vampire (Lilith Grishaw)

Scion 2e Mysteries of the Otherworld (David Taylor)

D&D 5e adventure The Haunting of Valentyne Manor (Ryan Loyal Stueve)

Dark Sun Sorceror-Kingmaker conversion for Pathfinder Kingmaker AP (Luke Swadling)

Brancalonia The Daily Jinx #0 (Acheron Books)

Call of Cthulhu adventure Black Goat of New Orleans (Golden Goblin Press)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e Sioux City by Night (Martlett Games)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Tzimisce (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Nagaraja (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Old Clan Tzimisce (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Gargoyle (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Daughters of Cacophony (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: True Brujah (Jasin Holliday)

Vampire: The Masquerade 5e homebrew Clanbook: Salubri (Jasin Holliday)

Werewolf: The Wild West Welcome to Purgatory: Osage Character Option Supplement (High Level Games)

Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition one-page jumpstart Heirs to the Mountains of Madness (High Level Games)

Vampire: The Victorian Age one-page jumpstart A Musical Interlude (High Level Games)

Deadlands Horror at Headstone Hill Player's Introduction (Pinnacle Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Monstrous Pages: Forces of Nature (Schwalb Entertainment)

D&D 3.x SiglO: 100 Feats for Ravenloft (Dion Fernandez)

Cavaliers of Mars module Witch-Queen of the Shadowed Citadel (Onyx Path)

Where the Crawdads Sing (Delia Owens)

Scion 2e Solo Adventures (Peter Rudin-Burgess)

Symbaroum Throne of Thorns Campaign Overview (Jarnringen)

King Tut's Rootin' Tootin' Extravabonanza (Planet X Games)

Conan d20 to 2d20 Conversion Guide (Modiphius)

Final Fantasy RPG 4th Edition CD 1 (Bruno Carvalho)

A Guide to the Storyteller Adventure System (White Wolf)

nWoD Dudes of Legend (White Wolf)

The Mud, the Blood, and the Beer (Calvin Johns)

Vermilium Jumpstart (White Witch Games)

Vampire: The Requiem 1e SAS: Scenes of Frenzy (White Wolf)

Mummy: The Curse 1e Lore of the Deceived (White Wolf)

Shadowdark RPG: Blades, Guts, and Gold (Laurin-David Weggin)

Dawn of Worlds (Legends)

Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition Believe in Magick! (Sebastian Freeman)

Numenera In Strange Aeons (Monte Cook Games)

Numenera adventure Vortex (Monte Cook Games)

The Strange Impossible Vehicles (Monte Cook Games)

Blood & Chrome 1.1 Technopunk Descriptors (Marlowe House)

Blood & Chrome 1.2 Technopunk Types (Marlowe House)

Blood & Chrome 1.3 Technopunk Foci (Marlowe House)

D&D 5e adventure Shadows of Lastwatch Keep (The Arcane Library)

AD&D adventure DA1 The Lottery (Dan Armstrong)

D&D 5e adventure Crypts of Azarumme (The Arcane Library)

Numenera Cypher Collection I (Monte Cook Games)

Numenera Artifacts & Oddities Collection I (Monte Cook Games)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Monstrous Pages: Foulest Reptiles (Schwalb Entertainment)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana 37: Downtime (Wizards of the Coast)

Hopeless, Maine: The Roleplaying Game (Outland Entertainment)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana 32: Traps Revisited (Wizards of the Coast)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Victims of the Demon Lord: Only Human (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Poisoned Pages: Insupposable Instruments (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Victims of the Demon Lord: Ghosts in Machines (Schwalb Entertainment)

Shadow of the Demon Lord Lands in Shadow: Borderlands of Tear (Schwalb Entertainment)

Exalted 3e A Mirror Darkly Abyssal homebrew (?)

Exalted 3e Metagaos Charmset Infernal homebrew (Revlid/?)

Big Eye Chungus (Planet X Games)

Dungeon Crawl Classics 72: Beyond the Black Gate (Goodman Games)

Gods of the Fall Gods Beyond (Monte Cook Games)

D&D 5e Unearthed Arcana 33: Mystic Class (Wizards of the Coast)

D&D 5e module Temple of the Basilisk Cult (The Arcane Library)

Odyssey of the Dragonlords Player's Guide (Modiphius)

Geist: The Sin-Eaters 1e Ready-Made Characters (White Wolf)

Hunter: The Vigil 1e Ready-Made Characters (White Wolf)

Promethean: The Created 1e Ready-Made Characters (White Wolf)

Vampire: The Requiem 1e Ready-Made Characters (White Wolf)

Werewolf: The Forsaken 1e Chronicler's Guide I: To Isolate (White Wolf)

Werewolf: The Forsaken 1e Chronicler's Guide II: To Rebuild (White Wolf)

Comics

Hopeless, Maine Book One: Personal Demons (Tom & Nimue Brown)

Justice League: Last Ride #1 (DC)

Nightwing #74 (DC)

Batman: Fear State Omega #1 (DC)

Movies

Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

Death on the Nile (2022)

The Batman (2022)

The Night House (2020)

Candyman (2021)

The Man from Toronto (2022)

Free Guy

The Cloverfield Paradox

Uncharted

The Black Phone

Ghosts of the Ozarks

Jurassic World: Dominion

Halloween Ends

Nope

The Northman

Champagne & Bullets

Killer Workout

TV

The Witcher, Season 2

The Masked Singer, Seasons 5-7

The Book of Boba Fett, Season 1

Archive 81, Season 1

Castle Rock, Season 2

Burden of Truth, Seasons 1 & 2

The Amazing Race, Seasons 33 & 34

Law & Order: Organized Crime, Seasons 1 & 2

Obi-Wan Kenobi, Season 1

No Cover, Season 1

Stranger Things, Season 4

The Umbrella Academy, Season 3

The Last Kingdom, Season 5

The Sandman, Season 1

Anatomy of a Scandal, Miniseries

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Season 1

The Sinner, Season 4

House of the Dragon, Season 1

Unsolved Mysteries (Netflix), Season 3

Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities, Season 1

Servant, Season 1

Video Games

Battlechasers: Nightwar

Tabletop Gaming

(Jon G)Pathfinder 1e Ruins of Azlant AP, 12 Sessions

Shadows of the Demon Lord: Shadows of Castle Whiterock, 12 Sessions

(Jon R)Pathfinder 1e Game Shop setting homebrew, 1 Session

Numenera One-Shot

Numenera: Those Who Move Clouds, 1 Session

A Return to Things

 Unsurprisingly, another year+ has passed since any content has been posted to this blog.

Also unsurprising is that I'm here to say that I hope to remedy the lulls I've had the past few years, and start posting at least semi-regularly.

You see, my absences have been driven by changes. Changes in workplace, changes in schedule, changes in health, changes in living conditions, and very importantly, changes in happiness. Too heavy for a blog that deals with make believe? Perhaps. True, nonetheless. I have allowed various things and circumstances in my life to dictate my mood and attitude toward almost everything for too long, and I've decided (with the help of some good old introspection) that I'm going to take the things that bring me joy and relaxation back. 

More gaming, more talking about gaming, more reading and just soaking up entertainment, in general. In the past few years, I couldn't tell you about things I've read or watched because they mostly were just to distract from stress.

I want to engage and create again.

Do I still have anyone that follows this blog? Do people still try to engage with my other endeavors, elsewhere? I'm not sure, but I know I want to try to do the things that I have loved in the past and this is one of those things.

More to come!