Nightbane Settings Changes / Additions

[Rogerd]

Hi folks

Not been on in a while, but I have been mulling over Palladium world building as some of it is just brilliant. So I was thinking one day, what home brew changes have you made to the setting?

I am not talking rules, but the actual setting itself.

For instance have you included some stuff from other Palladium settings, or from various media such as television, or films in this? If so, what and hoe did you go about doing it?

For me, I think Mystic China would be a great addition to this. We already have an immortalist in the form of Geomancer, why not others from MC. Not the least of which the Shih certainly might give some Nightbane a run for their money.

What have you changed, why, and how did it workout?

[Captain_Nibbz]

I personally have smashed together Dead Reign (small outbreaks caused by minions of the Nightlords and necromancers), Beyond the Supernatural, and some super toned down elements of Chaos Earth (my eventual idea was to have the Cataclysm be something caused by the nightlords down the line, so I was starting to introduce super tech).

So far everything has been going smooth with it, but its a game that has been going on and off as the mood strikes us rather than as a coherent campaign.

[Warshield73]

I have never run, or even played in really, a straight Nightbane game. However, I have used the first 3 Nightbane books more than any non-Rifts PB books because I use the setting in two other PB games. While I like the Nightbane they are not my favorite characters in Palladium and a friend of mine even said the worst part of Nightbane is the Nightbane. So what I use most is the Nightlands and Nightlords.

The first is in Rifts. Almost as soon as the Nightlands book came out I ported it over to Rifts. I limited the Nightlords to mostly pre-rifts cities that were still occupied. I even had the Nightlands version of Hiroshima and Nagasaki disappear and reappear when the real cities did. I had the Nightlords trying to take over the Republic of Japan, the New Navy, the fortress cities of Australia and I think I found a few cities in South America to use as well. I keep it away from anything in North America or Europe but if there were appropriate cities in Russia I might use it there.

My Rifts version of the Nightlands is pure devastation as Nightlands cities died with there Earth counterparts and Earth cities that were abandoned found there Nightlands version abandoned as well. This gave lots of ruined cities to explore for mystical artifacts and I put lots of monsters in the wastes. I think I even put a splugorth outpost, one of the ones from the Three Galaxies, in the Nightlands to explore and give him a foothold outside the reach of Splyncryth.

The second place I use it is my version of Heroes Unlimited which I though in lots of skills and monsters from BTS along with the Nightlords and Nightlands from Nightbane. I do allow Nightbane as characters but I made extensive mods/limits to them and they use HU skill programs not the OCCs from the book. The setting is also almost fully HU but I have magic as something that most people still do not believe in. Grim Gulf is a fan created Nighlands version of Century station that is really cool too.

Hope this is what you wanted.

[Slight001]

@Warshield73, what is wrong with the Nightbane? They are the main reason I like this setting. If you don't feel comfortable posting it here feel free, if you wish to share your thoughts on them, to PM me.

I don't game. No one to play with around here and I have yet to find an online group I can stomach for more than a day or two and frequently rarely more than an hour. Between my social anxiety and intolerance for derogatory slander and so-called 'jokes', I find myself increasingly self-isolated. So I find myself occasionally writing bits of fanfics set in the various Palladium settings.

That said, I never intended to, but I've basically integrated most of the monsters of "Beyond the Supernatural" into the mix and set them up as an unintentional consequence of the Nightlords invasion of Earth.

Vampires are now affected by ultraviolet light, with the Globe of Daylight not producing enough to cause damage but just enough to scare them out of it. Vampires also don't give a **** what you believe or for religion in general. 'Holy' X doesn't mean anything in this version of the setting. The need to ask permission to enter a 'home' is derived from the magic that holds the VI's in check in their pocket dimension prisons, which have weakened but are still mostly working.

I've decided to toss aside the Dream Stream and most all of the Astral Plane stuff, I've also been cherry-picking from world books three and four as neither of those seemed to have an interest in creating a Nightbane setting just something else entirely and both authors couldn't be bothered to keep their beliefs in check...

[Warshield73]

@Warshield73, what is wrong with the Nightbane? They are the main reason I like this setting. If you don't feel comfortable posting it here feel free, if you wish to share your thoughts on them, to PM me.

I don't dislike the Nightbane, they are just not my favorite group to play or run for. Also, and I have this discussion before and many people disagree with me but in Nightbane there aren't that many PCs that can fight the minions of the Nightlords. Human PC usually die quick that's why I like combining this with HU.

I don't game. No one to play with around here and I have yet to find an online group I can stomach for more than a day or two and frequently rarely more than an hour. Between my social anxiety and intolerance for derogatory slander and so-called 'jokes', I find myself increasingly self-isolated. So I find myself occasionally writing bits of fanfics set in the various Palladium settings.

I'm in a similar boat. I live nowhere near the guys I played with for years and it has been hard to find a group I like here. As for online my favorite part of gaming is sitting around the table with everyone so I just haven't moved in that direction.

That said, I never intended to, but I've basically integrated most of the monsters of "Beyond the Supernatural" into the mix and set them up as an unintentional consequence of the Nightlords invasion of Earth.

Vampires are now affected by ultraviolet light, with the Globe of Daylight not producing enough to cause damage but just enough to scare them out of it. Vampires also don't give a **** what you believe or for religion in general. 'Holy' X doesn't mean anything in this version of the setting. The need to ask permission to enter a 'home' is derived from the magic that holds the VI's in check in their pocket dimension prisons, which have weakened but are still mostly working.

As I said I also incorporate BTS, or more precisely Lovecraftian mythos, into my Heroes Unlimited / Nightbane game. I also use a more traditional vampire in these games (a cross between Buffy and PB vamps).

I've decided to toss aside the Dream Stream and most all of the Astral Plane stuff, I've also been cherry-picking from world books three and four as neither of those seemed to have an interest in creating a Nightbane setting just something else entirely and both authors couldn't be bothered to keep their beliefs in check...

I've never explicitly said no dream stream but I have never had a player ask to use it either. I do however use the astral plane a lot.

[Rogerd]

This is great guys, keep it coming.
I switch out the incorporeal 'angels' for the Tolkien Ainur, that take on corporeal form, which become Olympians from clash of the Titans or DCEU.
Athantos are basically akin to WW from the first DCEU film, no higher.
Nightbane I have yet to work out an origin for, but are from what i remember around MCU Sif. But I have essentially removed the more esoteric shape changing aspects so as to keep them more mythological.

snip

As an aside I am about to start a Heroes Unlimited game, street heroes, on another site, but all freeform. It will be taking place in Arrowverse, Dctv and MCU verses all merged together, minus any mega heroes.

But yeah I like what you've changed about vampires, Rifts vampires always, always irked me really.
Wasn't there an article in Rifter about mixing up vampires?

The second place I use it is my version of Heroes Unlimited which I though in lots of skills and monsters from BTS along with the Nightlords and Nightlands from Nightbane.

To be fair Nightbane does have the martial powers of Ancient Masters and various Genius & Hardware categories in there, so including heroes into it would be natural step.

[Slight001]

I don't dislike the Nightbane, they are just not my favorite group to play or run for. Also, and I have this discussion before and many people disagree with me but in Nightbane there aren't that many PCs that can fight the minions of the Nightlords. Human PC usually die quick that's why I like combining this with HU.

Completely understandable. I've noticed more than once that the setting was balanced around the Nightbane and the other character types just feel like they were never really meant to be player characters. Those who disagree are likely the hardcore players who look for the so-called weak classes so as to prove they are a badass... or fail to understand just how much their GM helped them out.

As I said I also incorporate BTS, or more precisely Lovecraftian mythos, into my Heroes Unlimited / Nightbane game. I also use a more traditional vampire in these games (a cross between Buffy and PB vamps).

I've never gotten the appeal of Lovecraft... but I'm not a fan of their general belief/rule that somethings are beyond "mortal" comprehension. I partially based my vampires on the Underworld cinemaverse... I've never watched Buffy. I've probably seen an episode or two, but never the series.

As an aside I am about to start a Heroes Unlimited game, street heroes, on another site, but all freeform. It will be taking place in Arrowverse, Dctv and MCU verses all merged together, minus any mega heroes.

That sounds like it'd be a nightmare to manage and integrate that many different elements together.

But yeah I like what you've changed about vampires, Rifts vampires always, always irked me really.

Thanks, it pissed me right off when Kevin declared, in the new revised VK book, that you had to have belief in the 'holy' symbol in order for the vampire to be held back... I'm an Athiest... that's basically an FU to me and mine. So when I got the chance I rebuilt them into something that follows scientific reasoning... ie it doesn't need you to believe it will work because it will even when you don't think it will... just like science. I also tend to take a similar mindset to Mystics though as I love the idea, but hate that they are all treated like they are tree-hugging hippies.

Wasn't there an article in Rifter about mixing up vampires?

Likely, IIRC, a few years back some of the forum members got all excited about some rifter about vampires. I've probably got it and likely read it but if it was during the time period I'm thinking of then I'd have not been a good place mentally and not been able to appreciate it even if it was similar to what I've made.

[Rogerd]

That sounds like it'd be a nightmare to manage and integrate that many different elements together.

Not too bad actually as I have done it before and it worked okay. Only this time there are no powerful characters that can just solo whole teams.

But yeah I like what you've changed about vampires, Rifts vampires always, always irked me really.

Thanks, it pissed me right off when Kevin declared, in the new revised VK book, that you had to have belief in the 'holy' symbol in order for the vampire to be held back... I'm an Athiest... that's basically an FU to me and mine. So when I got the chance I rebuilt them into something that follows scientific reasoning... ie it doesn't need you to believe it will work because it will even when you don't think it will... just like science. I also tend to take a similar mindset to Mystics though as I love the idea, but hate that they are all treated like they are tree-hugging hippies.[/quote]

I remember an old DnD game, many, many years ago. At the end of the day I had a face off against a vampire so my character brandished a religious icon only for the vampire to take it off him, toss it aside and say, "Sorry, I'm an atheist."

Likely, IIRC, a few years back some of the forum members got all excited about some rifter about vampires. I've probably got it and likely read it but if it was during the time period I'm thinking of then I'd have not been a good place mentally and not been able to appreciate it even if it was similar to what I've made.

It was pretty good from what I recall although to be honest I tend to have a list of various methods of vampirism-

Larva (like the Necroscope books, a film, and of course WoD)
Virus, natural or magical
Curse / Gift
Mutation
and a few others.

[Slight001]

I remember an old DnD game, many, many years ago. At the end of the day I had a face off against a vampire so my character brandished a religious icon only for the vampire to take it off him, toss it aside and say, "Sorry, I'm an atheist."

Lol, that's awesome. Sounds like something I'd do. Which would usually result in the PC's freaking out about me changing the rules... when I pointed out, in the beginning, that assumption, and especially out of character assumptions, is a dangerous thing.

It was pretty good from what I recall although to be honest I tend to have a list of various methods of vampirism-

Larva (like the Necroscope books, a film, and of course WoD)
Virus, natural or magical
Curse / Gift
Mutation
and a few others.

Yeah, there are a lot of ways to represent a vampire or just about anything really. I only have the one rule that it must make sense, at least in the context of the world, and be consistent... it must also abide by scientific principles. Meaning that even without a MacGuffin to provide the answer then a rigorous process of testing should reveal the same information if not more.

[Rogerd]

Yeah, there are a lot of ways to represent a vampire or just about anything really. I only have the one rule that it must make sense, at least in the context of the world, and be consistent... it must also abide by scientific principles. Meaning that even without a MacGuffin to provide the answer then a rigorous process of testing should reveal the same information if not more.

If you are in to that kind of thing I highly recommend Night's Black Agents, a Gumshoe game, that basically deals with vampirism, vampire pyramids etc and is one hell of a book. And for me my go to book for anything paranormal related.