Dragon Storm Demo

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Dragon Storm Demo: Shape Shifter’s Sojourn

By Susan Van Camp

Since we first introduced Dragon Storm, we’ve had many opportunities to run demo games for this system. After much trial and error, we’ve come up with a standardized introductory game that lasts about an hour, explains the basic concepts of DS, and is flexible enough to be modified to fit a gamemaster’s style of play. This is what we’d like you to use when introducing new players to Dragon Storm. Feel free to modify the following scenario to fit your needs; all we ask is that the basic story and rules information be part of a new player’s first game.

For demo games, don’t mix experienced players with folks who have never played before. Experienced people may dominate play, or leave inexperienced players feeling confused and intimidated.

1. Explain the basic rules of DS.

Hand out pre-made characters or let players choose ones they want to play. As they’re looking over their character’s cards, explain the basic rules of the game. You can use the player’s character cards when you want to point out a particular rule (for instance, placing a form card on top of a character card to show stat changes when a character shifts, then turning the card over to illustrate how a card is drained). Here are the important rules points to explain.

A. Stats – tell them what each abbreviation means, and what it affects (for instance, STR means strength, and it affects melee combat).

B. Starting Points – let players know that the characters were built up by using starting points to buy cards.

C. Equipment – show players that their characters got a certain amount of gold to buy stuff. The rules state that they get 100 GP to buy equipment.

D. Gold, Food and Water – let players know that these are recorded on their character sheet. Allow each character D6+1 Gold, food and water, unless you decide you want them to start with more limited resources.

E. Anchor cards – show them a background card, and let them know that, because it says "anchor" on the card type line, it’s permanent. The character always has these abilities.

F. Ace cards – show the players an ace card, and let them know that this type of card is temporary; the character gets the ability only until the card’s duration expires. After this the card is drained and can’t be recharged until the character rests. For ace cards, activation and duration are important concepts to get across: Make sure they know that an activation of 1 means that a card takes one action to activate during combat, an activation of 0 means it takes no actions. Explain the duration codes: F cards last an instant, R cards last one combat round, C cards last one combat, V cards last as long as the player wants. This last concept is especially important to make clear with form cards. Also, be sure players understand that independent cards cost no actions, that the first words in the text box are "Independent card", and they can be played any time the character wants.

G. Contest rolls – make sure everyone has 2D6, then roll against one of the players to illustrate the basic idea of a contest roll. If the player wins, whatever her character was trying to do succeeded. Let them know that some cards give them a bonus to contest rolls. "Success at" formulas are an important concept to explain; be certain that they understand that "Success at +1+WIS" means they roll 2D6 and add 1 plus their character’s Wisdom to the roll. Also make it clear that characters don’t have to have a card to try something. A character can try to persuade someone even if she doesn’t have the Persuasion card. The card represents speaking abilities that make it easier.

For now don’t bother to explain combat or spending role playing points. Those are best talked about when they occur.

2. Introduce the scenario:

Once players understand the basic concepts of the game, read the following knowledge aloud, or paraphrase it in your own words.

Your characters are teenagers who grew up in a little village called Black Heath, and they’ve had a pretty hard life. Black Heath is ruled by Imrys, a necromancer, who gets his kicks by making life hard for villagers. He bullies them, forbids them from traveling more than a couple of hours outside of town, and taxes them to the limits of their endurance. The characters, now all sixteen or older, have had a bellyful of this creep.

Despite this, they’ve stayed in Black Heath. Imrys has a foul mouth, and he smells like the zombies he raises, but he does offer villagers protection from dragon storms. These terrifying storms strike suddenly, and hard. They bring hurricane force winds and a bizarre magical fallout called warp. Warp fouls the water, kills crops and causes a disease called the tox, which kills many people and turns others into deformed creatures called madspawn. It’s no surprise that villagers will tolerate a lot of nastiness from Imrys, because the necromancer is able to turn away the storms.

According to Imrys, dragon storms are caused by shape shifters – evil dragons, gargoyles, werewolves and unicorns who take the form of people. Imrys hunts shape shifters, preferring to capture them alive and drag them off to his tower. Then nothing more is heard of them except the occasional scream in the night. People of the character’s age sometimes change into shape shifters, especially right after a dragon storm. In fact, after a storm, Imrys rounds up all the young people of the village and throws a spell on them, which allows him to tell if any have become shape shifters. Villagers are encouraged to report any suspected shape shifters; according to Imrys, every one of the fiends he kills make storms less likely to strike the village.

Special information: In addition to common knowledge, one or more characters will have the following secret information. Who knows these secrets is up to the gamemaster; perhaps this was learned from a wise woman or from spirit ancestors who told it in a dream.

Imrys, like all necromancers, twists the truth. Shape shifters don’t cause dragon storms. Necromancers do. When a necromancer captures a shape shifter, he frains his victim in a painful magic ritual that takes about a month. At the end of the ritual, the necromancer gains the shape shifter’s natural magic, which he can use to fuel spells. He also creates warp. The warp fuels dragon storms, which the necromancer blames on "evil shape shifters". He encourages the frightened villagers to hunt down more shape shifters for him to drain, and the whole cycle begins again.

It’s not like this everywhere. About two days travel away lies a village called Red Clover. According to stories, people in Red Clover welcome shape shifters. The local Elethay Priestess, Mother White, offers shape shifters protection at her temple. Of course, these are only stories. None of the characters have ever been far enough out of town to find out if they are true.

Back to common knowledge – The characters are people who know each other. One sunny afternoon in late spring, they decide to escape their chores and go hunting. While they are out, a dragon storm blows up suddenly, and the characters are forced to take cover. They find a large cave where they huddle, terrified by the eerie howl of the wind outside. Then, just as the storm starts to abate, the characters all change shape for the first time. It’s brief, and the characters quickly return to normal, but now they know the truth. They are shape shifters, bound to be detected and captured if they return to Black Heath. (Is Imrys even now collecting their friends to be tested? How long do they have?) Some of them have heard about a safe village called Red Clover, but no one is certain of the route. Which brave soul is going to lead the way?

At this point, have the players choose someone to scout, and have that person make a scouting roll. This begins the adventure. We recommend that the adventure contain at least two encounters before the characters find Red Clover: the first a peaceful one (perhaps with Stormland Hunters or an Ancestor Spirit) to give characters a chance to rile-play and use skills; the second a fight, either with an Apprentice Necromancer and guards sent to track the characters, or Marauding Warpspawn. This gives the players a chance to try out combat rules, be sure that the encounter is not too tough, we want these people to have fun.

As soon as combat starts, call for an initiative roll, explaining that the roll is 2D6+SPD. Then let the players know that their characters get 1 movement and 1 action when their initiative number is called. A movement can be used to move toward an opponent, move away from an opponent, or dodge. An action can be used to attack, defend or play a card requiring an action to use. Both movement and action can be saved, to be used on an initiative number later in the same round.

To end the adventure, describe to the players the village of Red Clover, a little town surrounded by bountiful fields and filled with healthy, friendly people. They welcome the characters, and readily point out the stone temple to Elethay. There Mother White, a middle aged priestess and Valarian Champion, sympathetically listens to the characters’ story. She knows Sense Lies, and quickly realizes that the characters are shape shifters. She offers the protection of the temple, food and healing. You may also choose to have Vladus present at the temple visiting Mother White, he is ready to award characters the Valarian Boon, if you have Valarian Champion cards available to hand out.

3. Ending the scenario:

At this point, award role playing points and let the characters know they can spend them to buy cards for their characters at a rate of 20 role playing points per one card point.

Now it is time to thank them for playing and ask them for their names to fill out your Storm Warden Form (if you are a guildmember) to send in for DS perks.