🌸 [IC][QuestWorlds] 鋼鉄の花びら – Steel Petals 🌸

THE PITCH: noble magical-girls in soul-powered power armors/robots battle against demons to save humanity in an alternate history magi-tech world!

GENRE MIX: Mahou-Shoujo, Mecha, Tokusatsu, Romcom (& comedy in general?), alternate history. Loosely inspired by Sakura Wars, Valkyria Chronicles and Symphogear, among other things.



THE PREMISE: the history of this world has been marked since times immemorial by the battle between Order and Chaos, Good and Evil. Since antiquity, the shamon, monsters from the Underworld, have invaded Earth, most of the world's crisis were caused by their incursions and the great wars to set them back. Humanity always survived by a close call.

In this timeline, many of humanities conflicts didn't happened (as they were too busy fending off the shamons), our greatest minds dedicated their lives studying means of fighting these terrible enemies: holy magic flourished, its users called mystics, majorly present among the clergy. Japan maintained a cordial relationship with the European powers early on, since contact with the Portuguese in the 16th century.

After a century of peace and prosperity, crisis struck once again: on the turn of the 19th century, a huge incursion from the underworld attacked France, the damage unprecedent, the kingdom torn apart.

It was then that, under French Princess Éloïse d'Anjou's iniciative, the Steel Petal Project was born. Under heavy funding by the world's powers and joint cooperation between the Church's mystics and Japanese inventors, they aimed to create a weapon that would turn the tides of the war. Japan had recently discovered deposits of Tamashishi, an incredible rare mineral capable of channeling a person's soul to produce astonishing amounts of energy. With that discovery, the first Petals were born: soul-powered highly mobile armored vehicles.

The princess assembled 6 of her personal maidens and they went to battle in their new Petals, quickly turning the odds of the conflict. In the end, the whole division perished in martyrdom, their sacrifice buying the victory against the Forces of Darkness.

Fast forward some decades of peace and tranquility, at the turn of the 20th century, shamon activity began growing once more, all around the world, prompting the forming of the Holy Pact, where the world's great powers coalesced to prepare for another war, and to keep the world safe from these minor incursions. Japan, as the only place where tamashishi can be found (though recently traces of deposits were found in Brazil), holds monopoly on the world's production of Steel Petals. They, thus, founded the Imperial Academy, with the goal to train new pilots, from all around the world.

But not everyone has what it takes to be a Petal pilot: amongst the world's populations, only those of noble blood have a strong enough manifestation of their soul as to fuel them; and even among these, it has been a tradition since the first generations of pilots that they're almost exclusively girls: it could be said it is to honor Princess's Eloise and her maiden's memory; a more pragmatic explanation would be that the girls smaller frame fits better in a cramped Petal, as their maximum size is still technologically constrained (most Petals are around ~2.6 meters tall, with some reaching at 3.3; taller ones exist, but they're normally specialized units).



GAMEPLAY FOCUS: narrative-driven game, mixing slice-of-life, comedy, drama, and INTENSE ROBOT ACTION!!

PLAYER ROLES: You are noble girls (or potentially other "exceptional souls") chosen for your lineage and potential, from all around the world. There are some people capable of piloting petals who are completely clueless of their own heritage as it got lost in time. Fret not, the demand for pilots is big and the evaluators wont make a pedigree check on you!

You will start as fresh-girls at the academy (this won't be the game's focus, just for the introduction); afterwards you will form an independent division, will work on your spare time on some kind of cultural production: music, theatre, etc. As well as anything from the PCs day-to-day deemed funny. The division's commander will be a young somewhat (allegedly) charming and somewhat dense and extremely irresponsible man. At any rate, things always go well in the end!

But then, as characters are minding their business in town, a shamon incursion suddenly attacks it! Now they must do what they can to set them off and avoid any greater damage, while they have to wait some minutes, for their steel petals to be air-dropped or canon launched at their location, so they can finally put up a real fight and save the day! Hopefully, the petals come before the shamon capitain of that incursion arrives and they only have to worry about its canon-fodder, still a big deal to fight without a petal!

The current year in the game is Spring of 1916.LOOKING FOR:
+ 4 to 7 players. At least 4 to start working on it.
+ At least 1 post per day.
+ Proactive players when it comes to cooperating with everyone to create amusing stories.

HEADSUP:
+ Very anime game in general!
+ May very tangentially touch on politics. Then again, this is an alternate world where geopolitics barely changed since the 1400s, the world is still ruled by aristocracies and it's set in the 1910s, any similarity between a country and it's modern real counterpart would be in name only.
+ I mentioned romcom in the genres. This mostly have to do with the idea of the players having a """healthy and respectable rivalry, proper of the fine ladies they are""" (not throwing grenades at each other's rooms, please) when it comes to winning the heart of their commander. Of course, maybe the greatest challenge would be to start having any sympathy towards that incompetent fool. This of course would be an optional dimension of the game for each character (though engagement on it would be welcome, if it makes sense for the PC).

THE SYSTEM: QuestWorlds is the new edition of HeroQuest, released this year. It's a narrative freeform game. I think it would be a great use for PbP, since, in it, most whole scenes are resolved with a single roll (and maybe a single batch of posts), while there are options to make more dramatical sequences be resolved in a sequence of contests.

For those who don't know it, characters are made of freeform abilities that have a rating. Players roll a d20 trying to roll under their rating to achieve a success, then the GM rolls the same way for the resistance. The party with the most successes wins the prize (the narrative goal behind the contest), the difference in successes sets the degree of success or defeat, which impacts the result.


Hello everyone. Since things got easier on this part and I started craving to run something, I came up with this little funny idea.

Sakura Wars, huh. Now that's a throwback. Though i wouldn't be surprised if they do some remaster of it, what with all those reboots of old jrpgs going around; think i even heard they're making new Suikoden, of all things. Do remember finishing first Sakura Wars, but never quite got around to playing the second one. If i recall only 5th was translated in english? Not sure officially or not.

They did a Sakura Wars 2019 remake, so not that much of a throwback comparatively. I'd be interested in the above idea by the way!

Oh, you're back. Now I'm hesitant between signing up due to positive impressions of the past campaign making me hopeful about the next one, and refraining because it just won't feel the same.

Oh, I'm pleased to see there are people interested in my super niche games! Let's hope there's some more around here.

Hey Vicky; yep, I'm back from the dead. I'm not sure I catch your drift here... It will surely feel different (hopefully better). I'm glad to see my last campaign left positive impressions.

I'm pretty sure the main games of the series are mostly untranslated. I got know the franchise by a Japanese friend hyper-focused on it. I didn't play any of the games, but am going through the anime and manga. Though by this friend's lectures on it, it seems really interesting, hence my desire to run the afore-presented game.

Well, it mostly means that I'm nostalgic for the other one. Any chance of resuming that one too?

Also, now reading the pitch more attentively. First thing that stands out is the separate division. That sounds like a lot. (Continuing reading.)

I see. Honestly, my creative fuel for that game is pretty much played-out, sorry. I'll DM you for clarification, as to not bloat this thread.

I'll wait for you to finish reading then! (That is, if you want to)

The first game was pretty average. The setting, characters and the art were probably its best assets. The gameplay was split between vn/dating sim-esque segments, with much hated (by me, the slowpoke) timed answer mechanic (if i remember correctly, been a while) and the trpg fights, which were fairly simple (think early SRW titles, minimal amount of bells and whistles). The story was.. eh, present, i guess, though i struggle to remember the details. Or the main plot. Yeah. I think i focused mostly on the little one with the bear and the purple-haired glasses-wearing nerdy-bird, though the hot-blooded redhead and the kudere blond were also intriguing.

As for the game i've got no clue what QuestWorlds or HeroQuest are, and i'm not 100% sure that i can average 1 post per day, if i'm being honest, so yeah..

Writing this post i was reminded of Galaxy Angels, another date-sim/trpg combo, of which i also only finished the first entry. Anyone remembers that one?

Edit: so many typos.. Sigh. Should not post before bed.

Well, so far I'm interested, but probably mostly because of positive prior experience. I'm unfamiliar with the system (could you point me to the right publisher/edition to avoid mistakes?) and with the setting inspirations, but I think I get some of the general idea from the description. Am I a suitable candidate?

Having read the whole pitch start to end: So far I'm puzzled by the expectation of interactions with the division commander playing a major role in the plot. Since Petals seem to be implied to have a chunkiness no greater than the equivalent of a tank, I wouldn't expect anyone below battalion commander to interact much with the division commander.

https://www.chaosium.com/content/FreePDFs/QuestWorlds/QuestWorlds%20SRD.pdf

This is the free SRD for the rules. I'll explain them nicely in the possible recruiting post though, it's really simple too.

About your puzzlement: the military in this world don't organize like a modern military would in ours. First off, they're much more antiquated with that; Petals are way more powerful than tanks (mostly for their mobility and power, the armor is comparable) and the best comparison would be to knights in a medieval army than modern tanks. The structure is like this: the division has all of its staff and the 7 pilots. The commander leads things from the background (he doesn't go on the field), plan stuff and manages the division.

Oh, and as they're nobles and high-level warriors, the pilots have great autonomy inside this all. Really it wouldn't be wise to compare with a modern military.

Oh, and you're surely a suitable candidate, no doubt t about about it!

I'm interested in this game. The premise sounds fun and the system looks easy enough to learn.

Great, at least one more person and I'm good to go.

I don't think I can participate in this right now due to other commitments,but I did want to ask a question or two about the setting.

So,the PCs and other petal operators have powers independent of the petals,right? Which means they have a general ability to fight/do superhuman things even outside the petals.

Also,what do Shimon look like and do (if anything) outside of kill people? Are there known intelligent Shimon/leaders able to make plans and pursue agendas?

Well, first off, the setting isn't fully realized yet (waiting to see if I have the minimal interested players), but I had some considerations about this:

the PCs could at beast have some very basic magic capability. I presume a good part of them would be proficient in martial arts/swordsmanship, but shamons would be too dangerous to engage in melee and that should be a last resource. A good part of the PCs, being nobles of different cultures, would carry swords (like katanas and sabres). All pilots would carry a tool called a Soul Key, which would be attuned to their souls and would be used to activate the petals. These keys would also be capable of transforming into short swords, whips or pistols for emergencies. After that, other kinds of armaments could be chosen to be carried by the PCs, anything that's concealable is fine, except for swords, if it would make sense for them to carry one. All that being said, my initial idea was for them to not be able to put up a good fight against the shamons without their petals (otherwise, what's the point of them, right?).

My initial idea for chapter's common first encounter (going after the tokusatsu inspiration in here), would be for them to be surprised by a shamon invasion while minding their business in town, away from their petals, in street clothes, etc. Then, they would call for their petals by radio or any other mean, which would be dropped from an airplane on shot by canon at their location. On the meanwhile before the petals reach them, they would strive to keep damages low and save any person in danger the best they could, with what they have, before their petals finally come and they can gloriously beat the shamons. They could also find gear and armament on the fly, if the situation allows it.

As for the shamon's nature, I didn't thought too much about it, and what I did I'd like to keep it a secret to the players for now. Well, for how organized they seem to be, it's pretty possible there's some intelligence behind them, though communication haven't been very promising so far. But they seem to have a hierarchy. Again, I still have a lot of fleshing out to do. Not sure how they would look like though, but the inspiration would be demons from various cultures.

Giving an example, the most basic type of shamon would hardly be defeated by pistol rounds, but shooting a chandelier so it falls on its head would at least stop him, possibly kill him.

Interesting,thanks for elaborating. I was just curious about the former point because it seems according to your description that the mystics of times past were able to more or less keep Shimon at bay by non-Petal means,even if it wasn't considered optimal.

No problem, appreciate the interest.

I see this post and now have more setting questions. I can't get a good feel for the technology level, activities, and competence expectations. You mention radio and swords. Is non-Petal warfare still sword-dominated, or are swords (and other mêlée) made obsolete by ranged weaponry? And what of magic, what kinds of it are there, and how much/type of a role in warfare?

Is the expectation that unmounted combat capability is almost useless in this campaign's narrative, or is it just not enough to face the main bigger threat, but often useful for all the other conflict-like situations? And does combat competence outside the Petal translate to competence in the Petal or nah?

Are Petals all ranged, or do they fight with (bigger) mêlée weapons?

Ok. First off, we should keep in mind that even in the real world 1910s, the mindset concerning these things were very different from ours, and this mindset is even more departed in the setting. Also that my commitment to the rule of cool is greater to that of realism, as expected from the genres I'm coming from.

In the setting, as it were in the real world, a lot of places expect nobles to be carrying swords with them, and be proficient in their use. It isn't relevant that guns made melee obsolete, swords still carry an important symbolical meaning and people wouldn't question their use. That was the case even in our time-line.

As for technology, it's similar to what we had in the same time period, but with the addition of magic making somethings (like petals) and machinery more feasible (it mostly boils down to having this special power source).

As for petals, they would be both capable of melee combat and ranged one, with different models being optimal for both or specialized in one (once I share some more model examples, that will be more clear)

Petals are controlled analogically by the pilot like a power armor so, if the user is a proficient swordsman, their melee capability with them would be great. They basically increment the users power.

As for unmounted combat, it's viable with heavy armament (how the military would do it), but also with a highly trained squad of knights supported by a mystic and holy magic, that was how it's done in ancient times; this role is replaced by petals currently. Basically, a trained pilot with her soul well synchronized with the petal would have a greater fighting capability than a whole army unit, but they still can fend off the monsters with some effort. Finally, a clever pilot could fend off a threat with good thinking, and melee against a monster would be very risky, but doable.

I must say we're probably thinking too deep about this, realism isn't the focus here: okay, shamons are really dangerous and tough, but a great hero from ancient times was able to defeat an invasion in an epic battle; stuff like that.

As for mystics, that's a point I still must elaborate a bit upon. It should mostly be equivalent to the magic used by your typical DnD cleric/paladin, so stuff like barriers, seals, shamon fending auras, weapons and armor blessing, etc. They play a big part in the building of petals. Accomplished mystics dedicate their whole life to the art and need decades of study to reach that point, but people can use lesser forms of it with some study and dedication. The power of a mystic is also linked to the purity of their heart, power of their soul and so forth. So, on exemplary (but non limiting) ideas of PCs who have some magic power, it could be: someone with a single inate power, maybe inherited from her lineage, someone more scholarly inclined and someone with a clerical role (like a miku priestess) and so forth.

I'm still working on magic, I don't want it to be like fireball stuff, but still be open enough for a lot of ideas and uses.

I am currently inclined to want a character concept that would be a Charismatic Swashbuckler or the like (influenced by the likes of Scarlet Pimpernel and La Maupin), so I'm trying to understand whether an idea like that would be fitting, or whether such a choice would make the prospective PC a suitable and useful member of the team, or more of a bumbling anachronism. (1910s seems late for swashbucklers, but some of the descriptions implied the world has some very archaic details side by side with WWI-era ones.)

So would that be a good fit or nah?

Uh... I'm unfamiliar with the first one you mentioned. As for the second, it would feel a bit anachronistic indeed, but with some minor adaptations, a concept like that would be very fitting; I'm presuming you're talking about something like: very martial kinda girl whol loves fencing and swords and is a bit of a daredevil and, uh... fiery?

I wouldn't say there are any archaisms in this world (at least nothing that would set it to 150 years in the past), apart from aristocracies being more prominent and lively instead of the dwindling ones of the same period.

Regarding the first, I suppose this clip may showcase some of the characterisation. Martial, flamboyant, audacious, over-the-top, a bit superficially silly but concealing true guile. Anyway the part that seems ambiguous is the role of mêlée - is that a purely ceremonial thing, or is it a thing that PCs may reliably and repeatedly use 'for real' as a primary weapon (in and out of the Petal)? Because if it's purely ceremonial, I should think of what concept to take instead (e.g. a ranger - military, not fantasy type).

Oh... That accent...

---

Figured this (inspired by you), the best way to show you how thins should look is to give you some of the openings from Sakura Wars (by far the most influential in the game) to get the feels right!

This one takes place in France, has a bit of action in it.
This one is from the recent reboot. I'm not particularly found of its looks, but it shows a bunch of action and how the petals should look like.
Another with good representation
Some scenery and casual stuff, but again, in France
This one is set in New York.
From the anime.
From the first game.

Not that relevant but definitely a thing that exists.

But yeah, not purely cerimonial, melee is as viable as guns.

Seeing the plague doctor with a blade on a roof makes me much more confident about such anachronistic approaches as swordsmanship.

Sure, go for it (that is, presuming the game will happen~). Thought keep in mind that the plague doctor in question is a masked guy in a costume, not something that would be considered normal!

I'm interested!

Sweet! 4 interested people (if I counted right), that means I'll start working on it!

Nice having you around Eltesla~

I am trying to further brainstorm, and for that it would be good to know some things.

- Is the campaign going to be focusing on Japan, France, or elsewhere? The description seems ambiguous.
- So far the core of the system seems understandable, but there is one rules topic that is puzzling for me, and I'd want to request a lengthy chat to help me understand it. It has to do with the line between Keywords and Stand-Alone Abilities and how they're handled mechanically in terms of purchase/progression/definition.
- Is he named Tyler by any chance?
- Hmm, a mystical trick or two up the sleeve is interesting, but it reads like they require some very specific concepts to be compatible, so I'm guessing mine won't qualify . . . well, unless I'm mistaken. Would be interesting to know more.

Hi. I'm currently working on fleshing out the worldbuilding, some of my fleshed-out concepts so far have become their own thing, and there will be more options for PCs as it's finished (almost there guys). If you'd like a little spoiler, there's something akin to psychic powers which are innate.

The game will be set mostly in Japan, at least for the start. And Tylor would be too cheap from me, heh~

As for the system, a difference at the end of the day is that keywords are more wide and stand-alone more specific, naturally. The thing that sets both apart is that keywords can have breakout abilities on them. In fact, one of the advancement options is turning a stand-alone into a keyword by adding breakouts into it. So if you want a wider set of related capabilities, making them as a keyword would be more efficient. At character creation, their cost is the same, but on advancement, keywords are more costly. I'll try to explain everything better in the official recruitment post.

By the way, for the people with experience in applying to games, is it better form to edit the interest check post into the recruitment? Or to make a new thread?

Intriguing.
Should the characters be Japanese, or are French ones also appropriate? (I think given the inspirations I'm tapping into, French makes a lot of sense for the character concept.)
Ah, so when taking 'an ability' for a slot, a Keyword can be taken with no additional requirements. That wasn't entirely clear from the rulebook, but now it is clear.
Unsure. But a new thread that is explicitly a recruitment would probably be more visible to those who have not subscribed to this one due to thinking it might not take off. That, however, is just a hypothesis and I have no data to back it up.

Got right, a new thread makes more sense indeed.

Yeah, characters from all around the world are allowed.