INTEREST CHECK: Amethyst Untamed (Savage Worlds)

Genre: Post-apocalyptic science-fantasy.

System: Savage Worlds Deluxe Edition. The setting has not yet been updated for SWADE.

Number of Players: 4 to 6.

Posting Frequency: Minimum of 3-4 times a week.

Books: You will need the Amethyst Untamed Player’s Guide for Savage Worlds, which is available on DrivethruRPG for $9.99. Obviously, you will also require the Savage Worlds Deluxe Edition Rulebook.


The Setting

One day in the near future, Earth is invaded by magical forces. In an event known as the Second Hammer, twin gateways to other universes, one light and one dark, tear open to unleash fantasy elements into our world. Dragons, elves, and fae creatures of myth appear to populate the Earth, and humanity is laid low by natural disasters and armies of once-fictional beings. Even worse, the flooding of magic into the world causes technology to start breaking down. Wherever magic is prominent, reality and physical laws are overwritten so that anything more complicated than a bicycle has trouble working. Civilization collapses, and the human race is reduced to a fraction of its former size.

Centuries have passed, and the world is a very different place now. Magic permeates most of the planet, and technology struggles to function in the presence of it. The more advanced the tech, the more potential for problems. Many humans have retreated to walled cities known as "bastions" - technological enclaves where magic is prohibited and tech reigns. Some of these cities have grown to the size of small countries, but they live in isolation since magic prevents tech-based long range communication. These humans hold to the old ways of science. They cling to their machines, hoping to one day push back the tides of magic and reclaim the Earth.

Beyond the bastions are the empires and wastelands of fantasy; nations peopled with fae creatures and monsters, as well as humans who have embraced the magic around them. Outside the walls of the cities, such humans have settled for a primitive life surrounded by fantasy and the supernatural. The wilderness has become more dangerous but at the same time, all the more romantic and full of possibility.


Open Your Spell Book. Load Your Gun. Make A Choice.

The setting of Amethyst centers on the clash between magic and technology. Many fantasy worlds blend the two, usually with magic gaining the foothold and technology falling behind. But Amethyst presents a world where the two sides stand diametrically opposed – and from a metaphysical point of view – actively disrupt each other’s existence. This is not to say that individuals from both sides cannot coexist: it is the differences between people that make them stronger when together. Although an individual might not be able to wield both a spellbook and a gun, this does not extend to the limits of the group. Perhaps, despite growing tensions and mounting enmity, a balance between the two worlds can be found. Maybe the player characters will be the ones to bridge this divide.

The world is not engulfed in war, but widespread peace across the land is still a distant dream. Not only are the remaining bastions of pre-Hammer humankind fighting a desperate and seemingly hopeless struggle against encroaching enchantment, but the individual bastions themselves are also paranoid about their own technological sovereignty over rival bastions. Furthermore, the world of fantasy is definitely not a unified one. There are two realms of magic, flowing from two different breaches in the normal universe: the white gate of Attricana floating high above the sky, and the black gate of Ixindar half-buried in the earth. Their influence, and the factions loyal to them, break into conflicts whenever the two sides meet. While Attricana encourages creation and chaos, Ixindar promotes order and assimilation.

Order versus chaos, science versus magic; these conflicts make fanatics of everyone. An unspoken stalemate has arisen, with none gaining the upper hand.


Character Races

Humans are divided into two broad groups: the Techans and the Echans.

Techans are humans who have chosen to live behind the walls of a bastion and stand with technology.

Echans are those who practice, or have been touched by, magic. This usually refers to human magic-users, though technically anyone who uses magic or has a magical nature can be called echan. Echans cannot use technology; attempting to do so will cause the tech to malfunction.

Kodiaks are a species of bipedal bears that gained sapience thanks to the influence of magic. Although Kodiaks aren’t the only Earth animals to become changed by magic, they are the only ones that have advanced to the point of developing a culture. Kodiaks are unavoidably echan.

The Fae are a group of races born from magic rather than having naturally evolved like humans did. Amethyst Untamed details eight such species, though there are others. Due to their magical natures, fae races are always echan (with a few notable exceptions).

I’ve heard of Amethyst. It was a 3.5 campaign setting, right? It sounds interesting.

This might be my favourite racial descriptor ever... a laissez-faire attitude toward gravity.

It was a campaign setting for 3.5, 4e, and 5e. In addition to Savage Worlds, it’s also been converted to Pathfinder and Fate. So in other words, this game has been around the block.

Lol, I know, very true

Following. I'm in a metric ton of games and I've been trying to cut down, but Savage Worlds! If you need an extra player to launch, I'll be your huckleberry. (Take everyone else first though.)

I'm in the same situation as Qralloq, but I've always wanted to actually play Savage Worlds, and I love the Amethyst setting. So if you need/want yet another body, I'd be very excited to join!

Yes, I also really dig Savage Worlds. I have a list of SW settings that I’m dying to play in or run. If Amethyst doesn’t Garner enough interest, I’m try the next setting on the list. I’d love to do Shaintar, Accursed, or Savage Rifts one day.

Have you played Amethyst before? If so, you’re the first person I’ve met who has played it. Most gamers that I know haven’t even heard of it, much less played.

I haven't played it, but I have the sourcebook for FAE and Player's Guide for SW and was considering giving it a run some time.

So could I play an Atlantean? Always wanted to try that race. Or is it strictly races above mentioned?

The books focus on the above races, but I'm not opposed to someone playing something unique. There are no "Atlanteans" that I know of in the setting, but I guess that depends on what you are thinking about. What is your idea?

Are we leaning towards a diverse group, or a predominantly Techan/Echan one?

Yeah, a mixed group would allow for the most opportunities

Sweet, I'm leaning either Chaparran or Kodiak then.

At last - a call for SW! I've been wanting to try out the system, SWADE and prior, for a bit now. Color me interested!
I would probably play one of the types of human.

Thanks, I was thinking my Atlantean could have been banished from his homeworld for crimes against the king. They used magical powers to send him into your world, and he has no way of getting back. Crimes that he committed could have been Sedition, Treason or Piracy. I have played SWEX much, and I do prefer it to SWADE. Thanks.

I think we can make that work. You'd basically be echan by nature, like the fae and the kodiak. So you'd fit in with any of the fae or echan races/communities. I'll see if I find any write-ups related to Atlanteans in the Savage World books.

Welcome aboard.