Keep Them Engines Rollin'

For a long while I have had in the back of my head a steampunk-ish campaign. (I didn't even realize how "long" I've been bouncing around the idea until I checked the date on the logo I made - above - and saw I originally made it in '04.)

As you can see from the logo, I call it Fey Engine. The idea being that all the steampunky "tech" in the setting will be powered by fairies - fairies encased in amber or trapped in glass jars and used as batteries that is. To ease the process for myself I had the thought the other day of using the Cyberpunk 2020 book as a template. I will follow it page by page and convert it into a steampunk/fantasy setting. So the Rocker will become a bard like class, the Solo is the fighter class, etc. The biggest divergence being that netrunning will be replaced by magic. (Though I am contemplating a way to convert it into a kind of astral realm that magic-users enter and thereby effect the material world. Thus "programs" can be converted into "spells" and would be a more direct conversion. Just can't remember if netrunning was a broken system or if it functioned reasonably well...)

I think it will be an interesting experiment and I look forward to converting cyberware into fey-powered, magical accoutrements.



I am not abandoning my '50s scifi/fantasy mash-up setting. I will just bounce between the two. Posting on whichever topic moves me on a particular day.

Here be Dwarves

Dwarves are renowned for their outgoing and oft times boisterous attitudes. They are also know to be shrewd hagglers who "know the value" of precious metals and gems. For these reasons they are natural merchants. Dwarves are nearly as wide as the are tall, averaging a height of approximately four feet and a weight of nearly 11 stones (150 - 160 pounds). Due to their short stature dwarves cannot wield two-handed weapons or longbows. Their skin, hair and eye colors tend toward the drab side of the spectrum. With many a dwarf being described as "mossy" or "earthen" in appearance.

Dwarves live in cliff or cave dwellings known as cairns. These structures house every aspect of dwarven society, with each building being built one atop the other. Thus, allowing their private living quarters to be hidden deep within a complex network of rooms, tunnels, staircases, walls and ladders. These living conditions have resulted in dwarves having a 2 in 6 (roll a 1 or 2 on 1d6) chance of detecting traps, false walls, hidden construction, or noticing if passages are sloped. Dwarves must be actively searching for these abilities to function.


In addition to these abilities, dwarves have infravision up to 60 feet and have a strong resistance to magic, as reflected in their saving throws. Further, a dwarf character will speak the trade language (common), dwarvish, and his own alignment language. Because of their frequent interaction with underground creatures, dwarves will also speak goblin, myconid, and kobold.

Saving throws, classes and skill adjustments are the same as those listed in the Labyrinth Lord Advanced Edition Companion with the following changes:

Assassin - 9, OUT

Monk - 9, IN (again, probably not keeping the name Monk but it will suffice for now)