[CLOSED] Black Swords and Red Sails (BSH)

The Pitch
You are not Champions Eternal, but you are amongst the most capable in the Young Kingdoms. Set in Moorcock's world popularized by Elric of Melniboné, you will have the opportunity to explore many strange tales of danger and intrigue; you will help save fair maidens, set sail with vicious pirates, explore bizarre planes of existence, and find a balance between the forces of Law and Chaos. I have selected five modules from the Stormbringer RPG and prepared them to be run using a rules-lite system, Black Sword Hack (which has a free SRD).

While there will be nautical themes, do not mistake this for a Pirate game. There will be as much time set on land as there is at sea. You will explore bustling ports, mysterious seas, blazing deserts, and shady slave markets and back alleys!

Please note, this game will NOT force female characters to be dancers or wives, and it WILL encourage them to be buttkicking heroes!

Trigger Warnings and Themes
This game will include triggers related to violence, kidnapping, sacrifice, character death, and slavery; many of these are to be condemned. The world in which you find yourself is full of ancient gods, warring forces, and active cultists; evil deeds can be found around every dark corner.

This game WILL NOT include the following triggers: sexual assault, violence against children, suicide. This is an incomplete list, and will include other triggers as decided by the group.

To survive, you must work together! For this reason, your character must have a willingness to work together even with those who might be diametrically opposed.

Game Duration and Pacing
This game expects players to post once a day, five times a week. I do not expect the game to move on weekends, as I am usually busy myself. As for the duration, this is a series of five modules that are designed to be quite fast; all this to say I would expect it to last a little over a year, but it really depends on how quickly you get yourselves killed.

This game will use a private Discord server to encourage speed and ease of play. Black Sword Hack has some rules that are benefited by a quicker communication, such as combat options; the server will help with this.

Who May Apply
This game is open to any who are interested in this chaotic experience. The table is intentionally inclusive, and will not tolerate any racism, sexism, or any other -ism. Safety is paramount. I reserve the right to prevent any from joining should I feel they are not a good fit, and to remove any players who show the same.

How to Apply
Simply reply here, or reach out on the GamersPlane Discord. If you are interested, please use a quote from your favorite nautical or pirate show/book/movie/game/musical in bold. If you have questions, I am more than happy to answer before you make a decision. I will utilize an arbitrary method of choosing who joins, which may be the product of the Lords of Chaos. I will select five players, or six if the mood strikes me.

Nice* Count me in."Save some film, for when we return they’ll have full beards" Das Boot

Heh, you know, I always wanted to play Stormbringer, but I kept being told I had to play a farmers wife, or a "common female", or, of course, a courtesan.

But girl heroes? I am in!

"You won't be regretting this, Watcher. Least so long as you keep us heavy in grog and light on the onions. Them dirty shit-apples ain't never agreed with me, and I be suspecting they never will."
- Serafen, Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire

Tossing my tricorn into the ring!

Super-neat, and BSH should be awesome for this! If it's public I'll be checking it out...

Sounds interesting: ""Inconceivable!" "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." - Princess Bride

Ok I will formally throw my hat in the ring.

"Man For Sale! Someone, Buy My Booty!"
- Stede Bonnet, Our Flag Means Death

Count me as interested. I have played BSH once IRL; the game is adequate, I guess, and simple enough, but can I ask why you are not planning to simply use the rules of ... Stormbringer ( or Elric!/Elric of Melniboné) ?

As for the quote, I always remember the last sentence of Treasure Island from when I read it in my youth:

That's a good question! The answer is twofold: I actually really like BSH and find it simple but flavorful; and I find Stormbringer and Elric! to be far too dense and crunchy. Running the modules with a lighter system is such an easy conversion, and the system in question was based around the source material!

Reason part 3: free, easy to read SRD.

That is fair enough. I guess "crunchy" is a relative concept, whose definition would devolve in endless arguments...

For what it's worth, though, Elric! is usually considered a paragon of a well-written and presented RPG book. Could be worth a peek for anyone who has not yet had the opportunity to read it.

As far as I know, Elric! and Stormbringer 5e are both out of print, and I have no idea where to legally source their PDFs. I'm not afraid to share a non-downloadable table copy of a PDF that I've purchased, but that's not the case here. (Though if you know of a source, I'm all ears)

Unfortunately you are right, they are not in print and there is little hope there will be a legal book or PDF available anytime soon given the status of the IP. Best option seems to be eBay or used game / book shops. I was just mentioning this because it is a classic, and in the case someone comes across the book (or has the opportunity to lend / acquire it).

xD ROFL

I'll send some invites out tomorrow morning. There's still time to sign on to the crew.

One of the eight arrows of Chaos is pointing my way … I’m interested if there’s room.
Destiny is not always preordained. Life is what you make it.
- The Sailor on the Seas of Fate

I've chosen to invite @DrGwen, @testlum, @Grendar, @dabaggins, and @rpgventurer. If you don't see your invite, please check on the game details page.

Kwll, I'll hold you in reserve in case a player drops out!