Blackwood: This Wasn't Always Our Shape

 Whether they're the playthings of fey that got away, vicious seductresses who fall in love, immortal tricksters, or men becoming beasts to hunt/fight better; animals transforming into people and people transforming into animals run deep in folklore around the world. They echo in modern media with films like Green Snake, Sorcerer and the White Snake, and Brave.

Here's transformed animals for the Blackwood's elf haunted wilds for Errant Deeds (Forged in the Dark) and the OG Savage Worlds setting. I'm calling them Shapestrong to avoid "skin walker" and other loaded terms.

SHAPESTRONG FOR ERRANT DEEDS:
If you select Shapestrong as your culture, then choose an animal for your ancestry. You can briefly manifest that animal's qualities in exchange for Stress.

0-STRESS - Minor abilities that don't directly impact the game in a significant way. Example: Follow tracks using keen sense of smell (dog). Adopting a surefooted stance on a narrow ledge (goat). Subsisting on spoiled food with your iron gullet (pig).

1-STRESS - Abilities that are temporary and require concentration or exertion to summon.
Example: Manifesting a scaled hide to resist a crushing blow (snake). Rapidly regrowing teeth as you gnaw through rope and steel wire restraining you (rabbit). Sprout a prehensile tail for a third hand swing through the branches (monkey).

2-STRESS - Abilities beyond the ken of man. If it only allows you to take an action, roll an additional die or increase the effect.
Example: Plow through a solid wall (ox). Shout across a city (rooster). Slip through a narrow crack (rat).

These are reskinned xenos abilities from the excellent game, Scum & Villainy.

SHAPESTRONG FOR SAVAGE WORLDS:
If you select Shapestrong as your culture, then choose an animal for your ancestry.

My Other Skin Is A... - Spend a Benny to temporarily gain an Edge (you must meet the requirements) or 3 points of Racial Abilities that reflects your animal ancestry. It lasts for a scene.

Example: Screw your courage to the sticking place and facedown an elf with the Brave Edge (tiger). Run incredibly fast for a time with the Fleet Footed Edge (horse). Dash up the surface of the sorcerer's tower with Wall Walker while sprouting Claws (dragon).

Hello My Fellow People - Shapestrong are acutely aware of their heritage and how that agitates  superstitious folk. To compensate they adopt an annoying behavior to blend in. Because people are annoying. Treat this as the Habit (Minor) Hindrance.


The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: The Elf Who Would Be King

Out past the safety of Hedges and Lanterns’ light, the Blackwood stretches beyond distances measurable: the miles contract and dilate without regard for the surveyor’s art. Dense with trees and boggy ground, boughs hide the sky and obscure the hour, travelers off the beaten path rarely find their way home once they’ve stumbled into the Elven Deeps. Hostile to farming and static settlement, the Pagan clans live by hunting, gathering, banditry, and war.

Each clan is part of a larger whole, quilt work confederacies united by shared history and Elven worship. Some of these confederacies were bound in the ashes of Wulf Ember-Eye’s madness and only the worst crisis could sunder them, while others have the permanence of mist. Liable to explode into blood feud at the slightest provocation or dissolve from momentary inconvenience. This volatility frustrates the self-styled Lord Manu's royal ambitions. 

Through force and guile he acquired all the things a king should: a legendary blade from the Winter Kingdom, a castle, elite men-at-arms, a prodigal knight, and a betrothed. An army, a horde is all he lacks. So that's what he'll build. Few outside the Errants and woodkin would hear the rumors and portents- a double rainbow heralding a rival power, forsaken totems scorched in bonfire ashes, fallen champions on gruesome display, and Howlers walking on their hind legs as men. All hint at a gathering storm.

LORD MANU, CERYNEIA'S BETROTHED & WOULD-BE KING
WILD CARD
STATS - Strength D10 Agility D10 Vigor D10 Smarts D8 Spirit D8
SKILLS - Fighting D12, Intimidation D6, Knowledge (Battle) D8, Notice D6, Persuasion D8, Riding D6, Taunt D8
SIZE 1 PARRY 10 TOUGHNESS 11 (3)
EDGES- Aspiring, Worthy, and Master of Stone Lion, Block & Improved Block, First Strike, Leaf Step, Trademark Weapon, Improved Trademark Weapon (Calendirwine), Sweep
HINDRANCES - Arrogant (Major, ), Driven (Major), Vengeful (Major)
ATTACKS
CALENDIRWINE, KING OF STEEL - +2 to hit. STR + D10+2 Damage, Reach 2". Additional damage dice from Raises and die explosions are D12s. The fabled blade of the Winter King, lost to legend and now in Lord Manu's grip.
HORNS - STR+D6 Damage. Manu can make a Horns attack against an adjacent enemy at no penalty.

POWERS
REGENERATION - While in contact with Watergiver, Lord Manu benefits from Regeneration per the Savage Worlds core rulebook.

Lord Manu has 30 PP and knows 9 of the 11 following powers: blind, deflection, dispel, fear, greater healing, invisibility, smite, speed, summon ally, teleport, warrior's gift

THE WATERGIVER
Lord Manu's personal mount, a great fanged stag fed a steady diet of Great Root, red python hearts, and stag antlers. Pagan stories say the stag freed the rivers from the grasp of a selfish dragon. The fight shattered Watergiver's antlers so he took the dragon's fangs as a trophy,.

(per the Stag in the Blackwood Codex with the additional abilities and Edges: Aspiring, Worthy, and Master of Boar School and Leaf Step Edges from the Blackwood Codex, Regeneration and Venom monster abilities from the Savage Worlds core rulebook. Yes, the deer knows kung fu.)
  
The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Getting Paid in the Elder Kingdom

Magu (literal trans. "Hemp Maiden"), Taoist immortal

The 7 Errants is winding down  with only a few more characters and organizations left to detail. Also I'm going through SWADE behind the scenes, putting together an unofficial Borchardbriar Jumpstart and a kung-fu quickstart. In the meantime here's three sources of trouble and adventure for the Blackwood Codex.

Rare Herbs - The Blackwood paradoxically sustains and threatens the Kingdom. Average folk brave the Wood's dangers every spring to harvest the natural bounty of wood, Dark Ladies(1), forage, game, but -most importantly- medicinal herbs. Harvest festivals provide warmth and relief in the present age of chaos, the Vosserlin Picking draws woodkin, riverfolk, and Errants from around the region and can set the common folk up for the rest of the year. Various rituals anchor the festivals, for example the village Drachenkissen holds Lou's Pursuit. The festival begins as prospective hunters re-enact the folk hero's desperate search for the Elder Root King, setting off into the Blackwood armed with only a staff, a gourd and a small dog, ending the festival when over half the hunters return while the others, hopefully, trickle in later. Errants could go looking for missing persons, follow Lady Ceryneia's lead by providing some security, or enter the Pursuit themselves to find the Elder Root King themselves.

Lost Techniques and Wisdom - The Kingdom didn't spring forth fully grown from the Elder King's brow. It was built on the bones of Old Kingdoms. From Kingdom of Light to Winter Kingdom to Elder Kingdom, inheriting centuries of accumulated wisdom still used today. Ancestor worship, clockwork, herbalism, and numerology are all cultural products handed down alongside a wide range of folkways. The nobility quickly dismiss the more immaterial customs as superstitious, cultural mores gone vestigial in need of trimming. Sages argue this perspective stems from a place of cultural ignorance, an imperfect transfer of knowledge robbing the Kingdom of context. Both nobles and sages will pay well for cultural artifacts and art objects from the Old Kingdoms, moreso for the truly rare and exotic. Lost martial manuals and living weapons(2) command the highest price. Less scrupulous Errants may opt to steal rare objects from a collector's wonder room.

The Post - North of Grand Delving, the Kingdom quickly unfolds like an untamed, green quilt. Civilization and settlements strewn across the Blackwood with only Hedges and rivers connecting them.Combine distance with elves and pagans and that's an obstacle insurmountable to your common subject. Luckily Errants aren't common subjects. Though some fellowships will act the courier, bitter rivals Thurn & Taxis and Tristero's Bravos exclusively transport mail. You won't find a work shortage any time soon, someone will need a letter delivered to Grandma's house and who knows what dangers might lurk beneath the boughs.

1- I'm not sure if Dark Ladies are run of the mill silkmoths, pack hunting carnivores, or Mothra. We'll figure that out.

2- Other living weapons could be figurines of wondrous power, pagan menhirs, and living taxidermy.

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: This Little Light

When folks talk about the Hartsworn you hear the same tired things - an Errant fellowship lost to the Wood, the spitting image of heroes past, and gone too soon. Composed of masters and their apprentices, their deeds were the stuff of legend. In a short time they defeated the Six Eared Howler, turned a Lonely River (1) away from swallowing Talbrand, and brokered peace with the Scarlet Child. Set on reviving the Kingdom of Light's lost secrets to pacify the Blackwood. Falcon Master Wulf Schafer spearheaded the expedition into the Eastern Wood and the fellowship was never heard from again. Until now.

Two years ago folks on the Margin gossip that one of the Hartsworn's returned from the Elven Deeps. Not long after terror stalked the streets of Talbrand. First the chandler apprentices formed the Ghost Light Gang and carved a bloody swath through the local underworld, claiming the Tenderloin district. Then Pigeon Hawk, a crackshot and fearsome fighter, was found skewered with pagan arrows in the village square. Glistening in the morning light.

Now the Gang spreads to town and city while the list of skinless masters continues to grow.

THE BUTCHER AKA THE LAMPLIGHTER AKA WULF SCHAFER
NEMESIS OF THE 7 ERRANTS
WILDCARD
CULTURE - Riverfolk - Raised by big cities and bustling river markets, the Butcher gains the Dirty Fighter Edge.  
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - A necklace of large prayer beads. The only thing he has left from his previous life.
STATS - Strength D8 Agility D10 Vigor D6 Smarts D6 Spirit D10
SKILLS - Fighting D10, Intimidation D8, Notice D8, Persuade D10, Shooting D10, Stealth D10, Streetwise D8, Thievery D8

PARRY 8 TOUGHNESS 9 (4) PACE 10 SIZE 1
EDGES - Acrobat, Dirty Fighter (+2 to Agility Tricks), Frenzy, Improved Frenzy, Martial Artist, Prospective, Worthy, and Master of Falcon School, Worthy Student and Master of the Firecat School, Prospective and Worthy Student of Red Bear School, Versatile Student (Fang can benefit from 2 Schools at once)
HINDRANCES -Driven (Major, It will take blood and great violence to pacify the Blackwood. The Elder Kingdom would be better prepared for the task if the fighting arts were wider spread.), Vengeful (Major, Frog's shortcomings shamed Wulf and failed the Hartsworn. He will kill his failed student.)

ATTACKS
THE CLAW - STR+D6, +1 damage for each successful attack. AP 1
NAILSPITTER - 2D6+1, Ranged weapon, Wound penalties apply to Pace. AP 1

SPECIAL ABILITIES
LIGHT OF KNOWLEDGE - The Butcher learned how to conjure the dead and bind them to their skin. With these grisly materials he crafts lanterns and interrogates the trapped spirits when the lantern is lit. Wulf is stalking masters to learn the secrets of their fighting arts, disseminating them among the Ghost Light Gang.
OGRE MASK - Double the bonuses from Wild Attacks, ignore Wound penalties, and Armor 4.
SHEDDING DEATH - Put him down and he just keeps coming. When the Butcher gets his third Wound he exits the scene, suggesting his death but not leaving a body. He can't do this in his workshop. Or can he?

The Ghost Light Gang's brand. From Wikipedia.

The lines between cult, secret society, and criminal organization are fuzzy on the Margin, the Ghost Light Gang plows right through them. Initially organized among apprentices, under the Lamplighter's tutelage their membership and activities quickly spread. Their distinctive take on the ancestor lantern marking their turf is now a common sight in major cities. Inductees often come from trades with secret knowledge and initiations of expertise, the Lamplighter exploits their frustration and impatience as avenues for recruitment. He gives them a sense of belonging and control over their lives, equipping them with weapons and guidance.

Tactically the Gang harries their foes, using the rudiments of Falcon School to stay out of reach and pepper their opponents with arrow fire. Baiting or driving them into dead ends where the Lamplighter has become the Butcher, lying in wait. Within the Gang's mythology the Lamplighter and the Butcher are two sides of the same coin. The Lamplighter kindles the flame of secret knowledge among the Gang, while the Butcher demonstrates his lessons. Unleashing them on hapless criminals and the occasional Sentinel who gets in his way.

STATS - Strength D6 Agility D8 Vigor D6 Smarts D6 Spirit D6
SKILLS - Athletics D6, Fighting D8, Intimidation D8, Knowledge D6, Notice D8, Shooting D8
PARRY 7 TOUGHNESS 5 PACE 8 SIZE 2
EDGES - Prospective Student of Falcon School (They can run through the air.)
HINDRANCES - Mean (Major,  Rule #1 - The Wood does not know mercy, and neither do we.) Delusional (Minor, Rule# 2 - The Light has chosen us. We serve the Light.)
ATTACKS
Axe Str+D8
Bow 2D6, Ranged
SPECIAL ABILITIES 
LIGHT THE LANTERN - On the second round, one of the Ghost Light Gangsters lights a sky lantern. 2D6 more gang members show up at the end of the round.

1 - I first mentioned Lonely Rivers back in the Blackwood Giants post. They're roving bodies of running water that rove the Blackwood and swallow things whole. What if the River Lethe was a sandworm?

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

This particular entry was inspired by the film Human Lanterns, you get a great summary and discussion by the Jianghu Hustle guys here on episode 19.

Blackwood: Our Dear Mother Night

Beldame.

Adderhand.

Leech-queen.

Wound-worm.

Just a few names woodkin parents invoke to terrorize their children, "If you don't go to sleep; She will draw close, scoop you up in her sack, and steal you away." They warn, "Talk back to your mother again and the Beldame'll introduce you to Her knife, Leech." Stories of collecting tongues and eating fingernails craft an ogreish semblance. Something too absurd to be real and forgotten with age. But all these nightmares stem from a very real figure, the witch called Mother Night.

Mother Night sealed her first pact with her right eye when still a child. She traded her birth name in the second. All doubt flees when you see her: wearing a skirt of Elf totems, her right hand tasting the air, her left gripping a leaking sack, and bogles clamoring 'round her feet. This one-eyed pagan rivals the 7 Fair Consuls with her ire for the Elder Kingdom. She blames the Elder King for stealing her only child. A child prophesied to cast down the reign of phantoms. If she had her way a pagan horde would sweep the elderfolk and their allies from the Blackwood. Held in check by 4 of the 7 Consuls who hold sway over segments of her soul, the Leech-queen has her agents among the outcast and the elf touched probing the Kingdom for any rot within. She also charged them with finding her lost, little moth should they still survive.

MOTHER NIGHT
NEMESIS OF THE 7 ERRANTS
WILD CARD
CULTURE - Elf Touched Mother Night has an additional 5 Power Points and the Outsider Hindrance. Her right hand ends in a copperhead and the scale pattern covers her skin.
STATS - Strength D8, Agility D8, Vigor D8, Smarts D6 Spirit D12
SKILLS - Fighting D10, Healing D8, Knowledge (Elves) D10, Notice D8, Pact D12+1, Persuasion D10, Research D6, Taunt D10
SIZE 1 PARRY 7 TOUGHNESS 9 (3)
EDGES- Additional Power Points, Arcane Background (Elf Pact), Dark Sight, Elan, Leaf Step, Luck, New Power x 3, Witch (Mother Night has one additional power of your choice)
HINDRANCES - One Eye (Major, Cut from her head when she was still a girl. Her first sacrifice to Elven lords), Outsider (Minor, You can't mistake Mother Night for anything but a pagan), Superstitious (Major, Having accrued so much arcane power, she has a dozen little taboos she will not break), Treebond (Major, Everyday Mother Night must spend time in contact with a tree)

ATTACKS
LEECH - STR+2D4 Damage, recover 1D6 Power Points on a successful hit. Double the Power Points recovered if you hit with a raise.
ADDERHAND - STR+D6 Damage, Poison (Roll Vigor at -2, causes petrification) Only make this attack when someone engages or disengages in melee with Mother Night.

SPECIAL ABILITIES
FONT OF MAGIC - Mother Night can use the mega-powers from Savage Rifts.
NEVERENDING BAG OF BOGLES -  A gift from one of her fey lovers, 3D4 bogles pour out with Mother Night is hit (use cats from the core book, adding Athletics D8 and a tendency to Grapple en masse).

POWERS - 25 POWER POINTS- armor, barrier, boost/lower trait, greater healing, intangibility, puppet, quickness, telekinesis

It's a bogle.

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Heart of the Web

For 14 years the Elder Kingdom has staggered forward headless. Provincial governors, burgomeisters, and chief sentinels find their interests overlap and conflict with no Elder King to sort it out. Conflicts of interest and jurisprudence only serve to atomize and isolate resistance to the Kingdom's greatest internal threat - the Jeweled Fan Society. By all appearances a trade organization heavily focused on herbal harvesting and refinement, the Society's true activities concealed. The Society's true purpose? The steady, upward redistribution of goods, assets, and favors from the fringes of the Blackwood to the City Astride the River, Span.

Barring a buffoonish nephew, the Brandts are a respected and well-heeled family with bloodties to Span's founding. Their oldest estate rests atop catacombs housing their oldest ancestors. It was here Renata found the Judas Silver, rolling free from funerary clothes. A trinket associated with her great-great-great-grandfather and thought lost. The coin's true nature was made apparent when Renata touched it. The relic emphasized her worst self and allowed her to control others, bringing their shadows to the fore as well. With this power she created the Society and spread throughout the Kingdom. Controlling what she could and destroying what she could not.

By pulling taut her web of influence, she will form a new kingdom. The Jeweled Kingdom. Her Kingdom.

RENATA BRANDT
NEMESIS OF THE 7 ERRANTS 
WILD CARD 
STATS - Strength D6 Agility D8 Vigor D6 Smarts D10 Spirit D10 (D6 without the Judas Silver)
SKILLS - Athletics D8, Gambling, Intimidation D10, Knowledge (Battle and Business) D8, Notice D8, Persuasion D10+2, Riding, Taunt D8, Thievery D8
PARRY 9 TOUGHNESS 7 (2)
EDGES - Command, Hold the Line, Luck, Great Luck, Merchant, Noble 
HINDRANCES - Curious (Major), Decadent (Minor), Greedy (Major)
ATTACKS
FLIT OF THE FAN - Use Persuade instead of Fighting to Defend. She can also use either Perfume or Smoke.

FLICK OF THE WRIST - 3D4 Damage, ROF 4. Thrown, 5'/10'/15'. A hail of needles fly from her fan. If she has Polish, it's been applied to the needles.

SPECIAL ABILITIES
ENTOURAGE - Renata is accompanied by at least 5 bravos. Some are hired muscle and others are suitors
FEARLESS & HARDY - See the core Savage Worlds rulebook.
YOU WOULDN'T HIT A LADY, WOULD YOU? - Calculate Parry using Persuade, instead of Fighting.

PARLOR TRICKS - Through the Jeweled Fan Society, Renata has access to herbs that would make a witch jealous. She always has some botanical tricks up her sleeve. Choose 2.

• Powder - All the makeup and perfume hides her Undead nature. (+2 Toughness, can't be Shaken)
• Polish - A nail lacquer made from beeswax, egg whites, gelatin, and vegetable dyes. It's bright red hue a warning. Contact poison. Touched characters roll Vigor at -2 or suffer a Fatigue level. 
• Musk - Perfume made from the 40 Wink Orchid, renowned for its soporific effects. Targets roll Vigor at -2 or become Shaken, uses the Large Burst Template
• Smoke - A case full of  hand-rolled cigarillos made from Ulix' Nightmare. When Renata exhales a cloud of smoke opponents fly into blind panic. Targets roll Spirit vs Fear -2, use the Cone Template

THE JUDAS SILVER
The relic has 15 PP and can Awaken Darkness (puppet) and Call For Help (summon ally).
Puppet - Use Persuade as the arcane skill. The subject also gains a Major Hindrance for a lunar cycle, possible amplifying a Minor hindrance to to Major.

Summon Ally - Summons 2 constructs resembling a houndmaster and his mastiff (treat as ogre and dire wolf in the core rulebook).
DRAWBACKS - Holding the Judas Silver inflicts a Major Hindrance, highlighting your worst trait. Prolonged use has other side effects.

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Constant Vigilance

The Winter Kingdom predated the Elder Kingdom, and before them was the Kingdom of Light. Led into destruction by Mad King Ember-Eye, ruins from the Days of Light persist in cities, on the road, and in the Blackwood. Ember-Eye pressed deeper into the Wood than any before or since, the fortifications were known as the "Burn Line". Instrumental to his success were the Stone Lions - unnatural beasts of worked stone, cold iron, and cinnabar.

Always present in pairs, a manifestation of Firmament and Fundament, the female representing the River and the male representing the Heavens. From their bronze collars the males bore an orb representing the world under the watchful gaze of the stars. The females' collars were functionally identical, except their collars had a cub symbolizing the cycle of life. No elfin glamour could fool their eyes and elf flesh cringed at their touch. When the Burn Line served its purpose and was discarded, the Stone Lions wouldn't leave. Tireless and vigilant, they still stand guard over empty buildings and jagged foundations.


STATS - Strength D12 Agility D8 Vigor D8 Smarts D6 Spirit D10
SKILLS - Fighting D10, Intimidation D8, Notice D8
PARRY 7 TOUGHNESS 12 (3) PACE 8 SIZE 2
EDGES - Frenzy, Improved Frenzy

ATTACKS
BITE & CLAW - STR+D6, AP 2
CURSE - When a Stone Lion hits with a Raise, they can forgo the extra damage and lay a curse on an opponent instead. The curse leaves a physical mark on your body.

• MALE - Attention of High Places - All the powers in the world are against you. Gain the Wanted (Major) and Enemy (Minor) Hindrances. 
• FEMALE- End of the Line- Fortune and family are forever out of your reach, your name dies with you. Gain the Poverty (Major) Hindrance and you are infertile.

SPECIAL ABILITIES
ELFBANE - Elves double the wound penalty when damaged by Stone Lions.
HARDY - Additional Shaken results do not result in Wounds.
LIKE A STONE - When the beast is hit, reduce the damage die size of a weapon one  step. (D12>D10>D8>D6>D4>D4-1, etc.)
TRUE SIGHT - Ignore penalties for darkness and dim light. Magic provides no concealment.
MOMENTUM - Stone Lions aren't light on their feet but they are dangerous when they get going. If a Stone Lion is able to move 5" before attacking they add +4 to their damage total.


The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here.

Special thanks to Michael Barry for notes about the symbolism.

Blackwood: Stretched to Breaking

14 years since the Elder King went missing.  Through all the hardship and uncertainty, the Kingdom's subjects held onto hope. Believing that the King would return in due time while the Hedges and Errants stood firm against the ever marching elven forest.
Then the Giants marched.

Striding from the deep Woods and walking through the Hedges like cobwebs, no one knows precisely where they came from. There's always one person in a village who swears their missing nephew looked just like the Giant that came through last week. Traditional folkways, effective against elvenkind, don't bother them and the deadliest Errant finds them a stalwart foe.

WILD CARD
STATS - Strength D12+3 Agility D6 Vigor D10 Smarts D4 Spirit D6
SKILLS - Fighting D8
PARRY 6 TOUGHNESS 14 SIZE 7
EDGES - Brute, Nerves of Steel

SPECIAL ABILITIES
LARGE - Attackers add +2 to hit.
FEAR -2
SMASH - Str+D8 Damage Whether or not you hit, enemies nearby need to roll Agility or get knocked prone.
SNATCH - Str Damage Roll Strength vs an opponent's Strength or Agility roll. If the Giant succeeds, they're grappled.
CHEW- Str+D12 Damage only available if it successfully grappled someone.

WEIRD POWERS - Choose 1 or 2
Corpsemaker - The Giant doesn't require a raise on its damage roll to begin inflicting Wounds (ex: if your Toughness is 8 and the Giant deals 8 damage, you are both Shaken and suffer your first Wound.)

Footless - The Giant lacks feet, walking on the wind. The Giant gains Stealth D8 and imposes a -2 penalty to detect via sound.

Handfuls of Teeth - The Giant has two additional mouths on its hands. They gain Improved Frenzy and their BITE no longer requires grappling.

100 Hands and 50 Heads- Instead of two conventional human arms, the Giant as two massive multi-jointed appendages comprised of standard human limbs, opponents now roll at -4 to avoid/escape grappling. In addition the Giant has 360 degree vision from a plethora of standard sized heads sprouting from a Giant-sized neck.

Maddening Giggle - When the Giant is hit but not Wounded, all characters in the scene must make a Spirit test at a -2 or gain the Distracted status. The Giant titters at their feeble efforts.

A Glandular Problem - Whenever the Giant is successfully hit, its Size increases by 1. This also  increases their Toughness by 1.

Pukey - The Giant can hork up a gut full of Lonely Riverwater. Place the medium cone template, Errants have to make an Agility check vs the Giant's Vigor to avoid the spew. Which Lonely River is it? Roll 1D4 - 1-Misery (Draw 2 Action Cards and take the lowest) 2-Hatred (Turn on their allies) 3-Venom (-2 to soak rolls) 4-Terror (Roll on the Fear table)

Walking Wound - The Giant cannot be killed or knocked unconscious with damage. It only slows down and stops when it's exhausted. Then they nap.

Witches' Eyes - The Giant's eyelids are full of normal human eyes, bunched together like grapes. Or compound eyes. Gain Fear -4.

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here.

Blackwood: Stone Lion School

Impetuous action and refusing to weigh the odds - traits shared by the suicidally brave and adherents of the Stone Lion. Named for the fearsome beasts guarding ruins from the bygone Days of Light. Their dense flesh blunts the mightiest blow and heavy claws crush the toughest foe. Several stand guard over the legendary Red Gryphon Court. Wielding great blades like the Autumn wind sweeps leaves, the Elder Kingdom has been lucky Lord Manu's graduates are engaged elsewhere.

For now.

REQUIREMENTS: Vigor D8, Intimidation D6, Taunt D6
CORE PHILOSOPHY: Wood (+1 vs River)
ASPIRING - Ferocity- Aspiring students roll a Wild die along with their normal damage, add the die's result to the total when the Wild Die is even.
WORTHY - Valor - Worthy Students gain their opponents' Gang up bonus when the student is outnumbered.
MASTER - Unbreakable- Masters of Stone Lion fight through wounds that will cripple lesser men. Reduce wounds penalties suffered by -1. This stacks with Edges with similar effects.

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here.

Blackwood: The Misplaced Prince

"Rumor has it the Elder King and the Crown Prince disappeared together, on the same night. What if I told you that was a lie? Not a deliberate falsehood but an accident of happenstance."

"How would I know? Because I took him, you loiter-sack. Swapped him for a bundle of sticks and mud convinced it's the Prince. I had to. My Lord doesn't take "NO" for an answer. Really the boy hadn't been in the Palace for a month."

"The lump fooled everybody, even the King though he could've seen through it if he'd cared."

"Don't look at me like that! It's no revelation the King was disappointed in Prince Gareth. Just ask around the Palace, the servants are TERRIBLE gossips. I can't blame the King though. He thought the boy was softheaded. Really I did Gareth a favor, when you think about it."

"14 years is a long time, longer in Red Gryphon Court. You've heard of it?"

"Aye, the Light's Lost Stronghold turned sword seminary and slaughter-ground by King Ember-Eye's immortal foes. My Lord sharpened the boy into a fearsome swordsman and turned him loose. Goes by the name Rikar now."

"Why am I telling you all this? Can't help it since you offered me a meal; geas & all. Now drink up. That Blissberry juice you've been sipping for the past hour won't work on its own. Give it some help."

- Rustle, notorious Pagan Childthief

CULTURE -Human - Rikar begins with the Aspiring Student (Stone Lion) Edge from his time in Red Gryphon Court.

BADGE OF ERRANTRY - A cloak clasp of autumn leaves forming a lion's face.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D8 Agility D8 Vigor D8 Smarts D6 Spirit D6
SKILLS - Fighting D8, Intimidation D6, Knowledge (Battle) D6, Notice D6, Persuasion D8, Riding D6, Taunt D6
PARRY 6 TOUGHNESS 9 (3)
EDGES - Aspiring and Worthy Student (Stone Lion), Brave, Command
HINDRANCES - , Code of Honor (Major, He's a Disney Princess- Have Courage. Be Kind.),  Enemy(Major, From his time as Lord Manu's fosterling, Rikar made an enemy - the Bantam Knight, Sir Ironside.), Emotional (Minor, The state of the Elder Kingdom pulls Rikar into bouts of melancholy.)
EQUIPMENT

Greatsword (1D8+1D10 Damage), Plate armor (+3 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Kettle Helm,  Badge of Errantry, Hearth Bread, Errant's Kit, His father's signet ring

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

This backstory was generated using the Ultimate RPG Backstory Guide by James D'Amato. You can find that here. 

Blackwood: Frog's 5 Scars

In sharp contrast to Cannibal Ox and Dust, the taciturn Frog rarely discusses his past or his problems. His story's only clues? The scars he bears, new & old. A favorite past time among the fellowship when he's out of earshot is to speculate and spin yarn.
How did he get them? How long did they take to heal?

A long scar on his brow lends a serious look. Since its nearly faded away, Pin thinks he received as a child. Whatever hit him, hit him hard. His parents were River folk, that's why he's called "Frog".

A ragged swathe of shiny tissue bands his forearm and a missing pinkie finger are surely the sign of a struggle for survival. Cannibal Ox swears up and down that he was raised by wolves. The marks came from a fight for dominance- or fighting a Howler!

The opposite shoulder bears a spearpoint's puckered kiss. Obviously saving his wolf pack from foul hunters. "No good deed goes unpunished" Dust chimes in, "he's obviously called "Frog" because he has no fur!"

Kestrel recognizes a tattoo across the meat of his palms - the Brand of the Hartsworn. A band of Errants dedicated to finding the cairns of Wulf Ember-Eye and his Last 13. They hadn't been heard from in some time.

A burnt orange mark, crooked and deep across his thigh, draws the wildest stories. It's shape and color are ready fuel for Ox and Dust's over eager imaginations. Tall tales tattled aside, Ceryneia suspects the blemish's true origin. The Sun-Eater, a beast chronicled in books written shortly after the Kingdom of Light's fall. Fed bonfires and firecats by Fair Lords should man's dreams of flame encroach too deep.

But they're all just stories anyway.
Right?
 

CULTURE - Woodkin- Keen Ears- Growing up in the Blackwood, Frog gets +2 to Notice checks involving hearing. Superstitious - Frog starts with the Luck Edge and the Superstitious Hindrance.
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - An ancient Howler mask. Scavenged from a cairn in the deep Blackwood.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D6 Agility D8 Vigor D6 Smarts D4 Spirit D8
SKILLS - Athletics D6, Boost/Lower Trait D10, Fighting D8, Notice D6, Stealth D8 Survival D6 Thievery D4
PARRY 7 TOUGHNESS 8 (2)
EDGES - Arcane Background ((Ancestor Worship) Channeling the spirit haunting his mask), Luck (+1 Benny per session), Magical Trinkets (Once per session, Frog has the right magical trinket for the job.), Frenzy (Make 2 Fighting attacks at a penalty.)
HINDRANCES -  Arrogant (Major, Raised in the wilds and a member of the Hartsworn. He's seen the worst the Blackwood has.), Cautious (Minor, "Measure twice, cut once" has never steered him wrong.), Illiterate (Minor, Frog just doesn't have a head for letters.), Quirk (Minor, Fidgets with his Trinkets when he's anxious.), Vow (Minor, To find the Pheasant Dart and slay the Sun-Eater.)
ANCESTOR WORSHIP POWER -  Boost/Lower Trait

EQUIPMENT

Axe (1D6+1D8 Damage), Hauberk (+2 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Buckler, Badge of Errantry, Ancestor Beads, Errant's Kit, Full helm

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

This backstory was generated using the Ultimate RPG Backstory Guide by James D'Amato. You can find that here. 

Blackwood: Breathless Pin

Once upon a time there was a young lady who was apprenticed to a  master clockmaker, she showed glimmers of genius and was quick to solve a problem. As long as there was work, everything went well, but when the master's patron was bankrupted she was dismissed, and the master told her she could go wherever she wanted. 

Her parents were dead and she no longer had a home. So, she went to her brothers and asked them to support her until she found a patron. The brothers, however, had hardened their hearts against her and said "What can we do with you? You are too old to find a husband! Begone and make your own way!"

Left with nothing but her tools, she set out into the Wider World. 

Crossing heath, mountain, and sea, she ended her travels in the city of Farwater Beach. There she finds what she was seeking: a home. The apprentice clockmaker built beautiful works, and became a journeyman, and in time she was considered a master.

This bothered her, however, because she had not ascended through the ranks in a traditional manner. To be a master she needed to construct a masterwork. No one could doubt her ambition as she set out to build an automated man.

As word of her project and her progress spread, it caught the attention of those in high places. The clockmaker was approached by an envious noblewoman who bought what she could not make and took what she could not buy. Three times the clockmaker refused the noblewoman, irritated with each interruption as she creeped nearer completion. 

The noblewoman was determined that if she could not own the clockwork man, then no one could. Through her influence a gang of ruffians burned down the clockmaker's workshop with her inside. Delirious from breathing in the smoke, she loosed the incomplete masterwork and fell. Smothered by the burning remnants of the life she had built.

The workshop had become an oven, though they would fare better without air than their creator, the extreme heat played havoc with his springs and sprockets. Surely he would have perished there too, if a fellowship of errants hadn't fought their way into the building to make sure there were no victims.

CULTURE - Automat - An incomplete masterwork that can't be duplicated. Construct (Doesn't need to breathe/sleep/eat, etc.), Cannot Speak (Amelii's prototype larynx was unfinished when the "accident" happened), Clueless (He wasn't raised in a traditional manner, -2 on Common Knowledge rolls), Dependency (His key is in a place he can't reach, someone else must turn it), Noisy (His gears and springs grind,whir, click and clack. -2 on Stealth rolls)
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - A locket containing a picture of their creator, Amelii Rozse.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D8 Agility D8 Vigor D8 Smarts D6 Spirit D6
SKILLS -  Athletics D8 Fighting D8, Knowledge (Classics and Music) D6 Lockpicking D6  Repair D4, Weird Science D8 
PARRY 8 TOUGHNESS 8 (2)
EDGES - Arcane Background (Clockwork), Aspiring Student (J'Osudeau)
HINDRANCES - Code of Honor (Major, Breathless Pin is dedicated to the Errant virtue of Benevolence, maybe he can teach Cannibal Ox.) Loyal (Minor, Dust and Lady Ceryneia pulled him from the fire. Now no one gets left behind.), Vow (Minor, To avenge the death of Amelii. Kestrel has leads.)
CLOCKWORK POWER - 10 PP - Warrior's Gift (Pin can imitate the fighting style of anyone he's seen)

EQUIPMENT

Lancing Sword (1D8+1D6 Damage, +1 Parry, Ranged 2/4/8), Hauberk (+2 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Buckler (+1 Parry), Badge of Errantry

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Kestrel

A shabby, little town at the end of the Elk River, Lehm was once known for its fine pottery. Lead by Burgomeister Franz Fluss, the town prospered under a firm and fair system of taxation for the common good. In the Elder King's absence, taxation and tithe turned into corruption and tyranny. Chief Sentinel Jurgen Shining cited the oncoming winter and seized goods in excess for years.When that fierce winter finally came howling, the provisions distributed were meager. The townsfolk did without and many perished. After that the town started to dry up as people moved away, the river changed course, and their stranglehold cinched tighter. Jurgen never suspected his doom would take flight from young Kestrel's bow.

Orphaned by that cruel winter, Kestrel dealt out justice her deceased friends and family would never know. Eluding capture, she traveled the riverways and trails in the company of outlaws, pagans, and Errants until she fell in with Dust and Breathless Pin. Despite their counsel she still hunts the wicked the Sentinels can't, or won't, touch.

CULTURE - Woodkin - Kestrel starts with a +2 to Notice, the Luck Edge, and the Superstitious Hindrance.
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - A kestrel's embroidered silhouette attached to her gambeson, a gift from her departed parents. Looking a bit careworn she kisses it for good luck.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D6 Agility D8 Vigor D6 Smarts D8 Spirit D6
SKILLS - Athletics D8, Fighting D6, Healing D6, Investigation D4, Notice D10, Shooting D10, Stealth D6, Survival D8, Tracking D8
PARRY 5 TOUGHNESS 6 (1)
EDGES - Assassin, Aspiring and Worthy Student (Falcon School), Luck, Marksman
HINDRANCES - Emotional (Minor, Kestrel followed her heart after Dust.), Superstitious (Minor, A hundred little rituals for good fortune), Wanted (Major, The Sentinels come down hard when you kill one of their own.), Vengeful (Minor, Nothing angers Kestrel like the guilty escaping their just reward.)

EQUIPMENT

Bow (2D6, Ranged, 12/24/48), Hatcher (2D6, Thrown 3/6/12), Dagger (1D6+1D4, Thrown 2/4/8), Gambeson (+1 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Errantry Kit, Hearthbread, Cap Helm

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Lady Ceryneia, Warden Between Wild Wood and Worked Stone

Born to  an Errant Classicist and Pagan Huntsman, Ceryneia isn't a noble in any traditional sense. She is afforded the title at the Neighbors' insistence. Specifically the self styled "High Lord" Manu, who pursues her hand in... matrimony? Eluding her erstwhile suitor, she fell into Kestrel and Breathless Pin's company.

CULTURE - The Margin - No one's too sure where Ceryneia came form, and she's tight lipped about her past. She starts with the Ambidextrous Edge.
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - Her antlered cowl, crafted by her own hand.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D6 Agility D6 Vigor D6 Smarts D8 Spirit D8
SKILLS - Fighting D8 Healing D8 Herbalism D8 Knowledge (Beastcraft, Classics, Elves, Religion) D6 Notice D8
PARRY 6 TOUGHNESS 6 (1)
EDGES - Ambidextrous, Arcane Background (Herbalism), Aspiring and Worthy Student (Stag's Crown Treatise), Two Fisted
HINDRANCES - Heroic (Major, Despite Ceryneia's disdain for both hapless humans and malicious elves she doesn't want to see anyone hurt), Outsider (Minor, Not really home anywhere), Zealot (Minor, "Don't stray from the path, you idiot."), Vow (Minor, Once the 3 Signs have come to pass, she must marry High Lord Manu. The Elder King's absence is the first sign.)
HERBAL DRAUGHTS (her draughts are teas, steeped in a gourd) - 5 PP each - quickness, boost/lower trait, armor

EQUIPMENT

Quarterstaff (1D6+1D4 Damage, Parry+1, Reach 1), Gambeson (+1 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Errantry Kit, Hearth Bread, Hatchet, Herbalist's Kettle, Sling (2D4 Damage), Antlered Cowl (as a cap helm)

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Dust, the Night's Own Child

Hailing from the far edge of the Elder Kingdom, Dust has come a long way. Falling in with Cannibal Ox and company in to Walk the Margin. Their companions do know their mother was also Elfmarked, and rumored to dabble in witchcraft. They've also learned that you don't ask about their past because once they start talking about home, they won't stop. You would think all the abuse and bullying at the hands of peers would dampen Dust's spirit, instead it seems to have had the opposite effect.

CULTURE - Elfmarked - The circumstances of Dust's birth is the seed of local gossip and stories in their hometown. Their dull, black eyes and fuzzy antennae betray otherworldly parentage. Dust gains +5 PP for Arcane Background (Elfpact) and -2 Cha from stigmatized appearance.
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - A headband given to them by their mother before leaving home. Keeps the antennae out of their eyes.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D4 Agility D8 Vigor D6 Smarts D6 Spirit D8
SKILLS - Fighting D8  Investigation D10 Notice D6 Knowledge (Elves) D6 Pact D10 Stealth D6 
PARRY 6 TOUGHNESS 6 (1)
EDGES - Arcane Background (Elfpact), Beast Sight (Moth eyes provide low light vision), Leaf Step 
HINDRANCES - , Enchanted (Minor, When the moon is full Dust transformed into an eclipse of various moths), Emotional (Kindness) (Major, Dust is moved to provide succor and kindness that they've hardly experienced.), Big Mouth (Minor, Naive and quick to trust.)
ELF POWERS - 20 PP - blast (a powerful gust), confusion (hallucinogenic pollen)

EQUIPMENT

A Flintbladed Hatchet (1D4+1D6 Damage, Thrown), Gambeson (+1 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Elf Totem x2, Errantry Kit, Hearth Bread x3

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here. 

Blackwood: Jacek Brandt (Cannibal Ox)

Nothing spoke to young Jacek like the folkstories and dime novels of Errants on the Margin. Every caravan that made its way to the big city of Span, there was always more stories to pore over and memorize. More daydreams and fantasies for the giant Jacek to act out, more topiaries to shatter with a sloppy imitation Elder King's Palm. Once he was old enough to leave, he left home to make his delusions reality. Unfortunately the stories never provided instruction on where to start. So he faked it until he made it, leaning on his impressive size and the moniker "Cannibal Ox" he earned a fearsome reputation that is largely bluster. Lady Iron took pity on him and trained him in the Tortoise School before cutting him loose.

CULTURE - Riverfolk - Growing up on the move from city to city afforded Jacek a taste for the wider world. And taste everything he did. Jacek starts with Persuasion D6 and the Brawny Edge as well as the Mischievous hindrance.
BADGE OF ERRANTRY - A drinking vessel carved from an auroch's horn.
RANK - Seasoned
STATS - Strength D6 Agility D8 Vigor D12 Smarts D4 Spirit D6
SKILLS - Athletics D6 Fighting D6 Intimidate D10 Knowledge (Battle) D6 Notice D6 Persuasion D8
PARRY 6 TOUGHNESS 10 (1)
EDGES - Aspiring and Worthy Student (Tortoise School), Brawny (Cannibal Ox is a big boy)
HINDRANCES - Mischievous (Minor, Jacek doesn't like to break character, even when it makes things worse.), Overconfident (Major, There's nothing Cannibal Ox can't or won't do!), Pacifist (Minor, you can make a principled argument for nonviolence. Cannibal Ox quails at the sight of blood.), Vow (Minor, Jacek is quick to swear himself to right wrongs.)

EQUIPMENT

3 Section Staff (2D6 Damage, Parry+1, Reach 1), Gambeson (+1 armor to torso, arms, and legs), Errantry Kit, Hearth Bread x2, Hachet, $145 set aside for a Treasure Map.

The 7 Errants are a fellowship of heroic martial artists and wanderers for Eli Kurtz' Blackwood setting - a mash-up of Wuxia action and frontier fairy tales. You can find the book for sale here and a free quick start bundle here.