Loom
In the ten cities of the New World of Loom, groups of adventurers can take on publicly posted quests to solve problems and earn enough gold to pay their rent. Everyday Life is full of nagging responsibilities, never-ending work, and society's bullies.
Quests allow the adventurers to encounter strange magic and creatures that exist as a result of their city's culture and location. Adventurers get to escape their everyday lives and problems to be part of something meaningful and heroic, yet also dangerous. They risk their lives and being changed by the struggles they'll have to overcome to save the day. The New World of Loom is defined by these principles for the players and Dungeon Master to use in creating stories with the right kind of feeling and plot. THE CITY IS FULL OF STRANGE AND FANTASTIC THINGS
When magic knots, encoding thoughts, and infernal wishing were discovered at the turn of the Epoch, it took world civilizations into the information age before any industrial revolutions could occur. Instead, a magical revolution created a new standard for civilized living. Cargo is not transported but teleported worldwide in an instant. Items and constructs are capable of sentience. Wizards investigate travel through time and wildspace. Strange beasts roam alleys and mortals can contact people and creatures from other planes of existence.
Not infrequently, things are created because of experiments that go wrong or random events that spawn something new and unexpected. Only the imagination limits what can happen in the New World. EVERYDAY LIFE IS DULL AND UNFORGIVING
The alarm clock rings every morning, and dinner must be made every night. It does not matter that magic brooms fly by outside the window, that the neighbors fight, and your coworker seems to hate you. Your home smells and you don’t make enough money to buy that spell scroll you want. The garbage has to be thrown out every day, bullies give you nicknames, and your bike is broken. It’s raining, and you have no raincoat.
Life is full of setbacks and obstacles. The ruling class does as they please, and everybody else is forced to do as they say. Sure, sometimes a problem is solved and you enjoy a nice moment, but it only lasts a short while, then it’s the same as before. Everyday life. AUTHORITIES ARE OUT OF REACH AND OUT OF TOUCH
It does not matter what you say; the authorities neither listen nor respond. They live in their own world, distinct from yours. There’s no point in asking them for help with problems, quests to be solved or problems that must be overcome. The people are at the mercy of each other. It's not that the authorities won’t even believe in all the strange things that the party encounters - it's just that they can only respond to so much chaos in a day.
The authorities nag and whine and argue with each other. They are busy with themselves and their work. Moreover, they are ignorant. It is usually their mistakes that the party needs to fix – monsters run amok, experiments gone bad, magic explosions.
The worst are those with power who actually see the party and want to exploit or harm them.
Sometimes authorities help, like when a cleric dispels a curse, or you capture the villain and they put them away, but it never lasts and it often comes with a price. The police take all the glory, the bill comes due, or your Landlord sees you as an ally and expects you to help her keep an eye on the less fortunate in town. THE NEW WORLD IS DANGEROUS BUT DEATH MAY NOT BE THE END
Adventurers can be hurt, locked up, mocked, displaced, robbed, or broken-hearted. All this and death could occur, but great magic means they could be undone as well. Nothing is ever truly over. THE WORLD IS DESCRIBED COLLABORATIVELY
The Dunegon Master is responsible for setting scenes and describing things in the story, but that doesn’t mean she should do all the work herself. They should ask the players for help; ask what their home looks like, what the weather is, why their family is arguing, and so forth.
The Dungeon Master should ask the Party questions: What does your mother look like? What’s fishy about the lady of the house next door? What is the mood like in the house when you get home? How do you feel? What are you thinking? What have you done that makes her hate you? What are you wearing? How come you love her? The Dunegon Master should use the players’ imaginations by asking questions all the time, and making sure the group creates the world together.
If the players make up flying schools and parents who work as Alien Hunters, the Gamemaster should remind them of the principle “Everyday life is dull and unforgiving.” They can be all those things - but we should find the mundanity within as well.
Quests allow the adventurers to encounter strange magic and creatures that exist as a result of their city's culture and location. Adventurers get to escape their everyday lives and problems to be part of something meaningful and heroic, yet also dangerous. They risk their lives and being changed by the struggles they'll have to overcome to save the day. The New World of Loom is defined by these principles for the players and Dungeon Master to use in creating stories with the right kind of feeling and plot. THE CITY IS FULL OF STRANGE AND FANTASTIC THINGS
When magic knots, encoding thoughts, and infernal wishing were discovered at the turn of the Epoch, it took world civilizations into the information age before any industrial revolutions could occur. Instead, a magical revolution created a new standard for civilized living. Cargo is not transported but teleported worldwide in an instant. Items and constructs are capable of sentience. Wizards investigate travel through time and wildspace. Strange beasts roam alleys and mortals can contact people and creatures from other planes of existence.
Not infrequently, things are created because of experiments that go wrong or random events that spawn something new and unexpected. Only the imagination limits what can happen in the New World. EVERYDAY LIFE IS DULL AND UNFORGIVING
The alarm clock rings every morning, and dinner must be made every night. It does not matter that magic brooms fly by outside the window, that the neighbors fight, and your coworker seems to hate you. Your home smells and you don’t make enough money to buy that spell scroll you want. The garbage has to be thrown out every day, bullies give you nicknames, and your bike is broken. It’s raining, and you have no raincoat.
Life is full of setbacks and obstacles. The ruling class does as they please, and everybody else is forced to do as they say. Sure, sometimes a problem is solved and you enjoy a nice moment, but it only lasts a short while, then it’s the same as before. Everyday life. AUTHORITIES ARE OUT OF REACH AND OUT OF TOUCH
It does not matter what you say; the authorities neither listen nor respond. They live in their own world, distinct from yours. There’s no point in asking them for help with problems, quests to be solved or problems that must be overcome. The people are at the mercy of each other. It's not that the authorities won’t even believe in all the strange things that the party encounters - it's just that they can only respond to so much chaos in a day.
The authorities nag and whine and argue with each other. They are busy with themselves and their work. Moreover, they are ignorant. It is usually their mistakes that the party needs to fix – monsters run amok, experiments gone bad, magic explosions.
The worst are those with power who actually see the party and want to exploit or harm them.
Sometimes authorities help, like when a cleric dispels a curse, or you capture the villain and they put them away, but it never lasts and it often comes with a price. The police take all the glory, the bill comes due, or your Landlord sees you as an ally and expects you to help her keep an eye on the less fortunate in town. THE NEW WORLD IS DANGEROUS BUT DEATH MAY NOT BE THE END
Adventurers can be hurt, locked up, mocked, displaced, robbed, or broken-hearted. All this and death could occur, but great magic means they could be undone as well. Nothing is ever truly over. THE WORLD IS DESCRIBED COLLABORATIVELY
The Dunegon Master is responsible for setting scenes and describing things in the story, but that doesn’t mean she should do all the work herself. They should ask the players for help; ask what their home looks like, what the weather is, why their family is arguing, and so forth.
The Dungeon Master should ask the Party questions: What does your mother look like? What’s fishy about the lady of the house next door? What is the mood like in the house when you get home? How do you feel? What are you thinking? What have you done that makes her hate you? What are you wearing? How come you love her? The Dunegon Master should use the players’ imaginations by asking questions all the time, and making sure the group creates the world together.
If the players make up flying schools and parents who work as Alien Hunters, the Gamemaster should remind them of the principle “Everyday life is dull and unforgiving.” They can be all those things - but we should find the mundanity within as well.