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[DL] Arcane Tale-Teller
I originaly wrote this for HOE but one of the
players suggested I convert it to the Weird West, so
here is the end result for those interested.
Horace Black
P.S. I know that in many ways the arcane Tale-Teller
is like a huckster, but this is a different take on
it. Any comments good or bad would be appreciated as
this is still a work in progress.
Arcane Tale-Teller
By
Horace Black
Arcane Background: Tale-Teller 3
Some people can tell a joke or a story and entertain
a whole room full of people. But there are some
people who speak to the very soul, whose words and
songs are magical in a sense. With their stories,
songs and jokes they can alter the very fabric of the
universe and change the hearts of men and beast alike.
Your hero has that kind of gift and he better use it
wisely.
For every level of tale-tellin’ Aptitude you
possess you start with one Yarn. Learning new yarns
takes 1d6 hours and cost 5 Bounty each. Yarns are
stories, songs, jokes that have supernatural effects
and usually require another Tale-Teller to teach,
although, some books are said to contain yarn.
Yarns may be told by making a successful roll against
the Yarn’s TN, using the tale-tellin’ Aptitude. The
downside is that whenever the Tale-Teller goes bust,
bad things happen, consult the Nightmares table to
find out just what occurs.
A Tale-Teller has starting Strain equal to their Vigor
die type. Once the Tale-Teller runs out of Strain, he
can no longer use his yarns.
A Tale-Teller can recover Strain by resting at the
rate of one per hour or by reading any fictional book
at the rate of 2 per hour.
TN: This is the number the Tale-Teller needs to roll
or better to successfully use the yarn.
Speed: This is how many actions, the yarn takes to
tell.
Duration: This is how long the yarns affect the
target.
Strain: This is the amount of Strain the story weaver
spend to spin his yarn
Yarns
A Lusty Young Smith
TN: 7
Strain: 2
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Hour/Success
The songsmith receives the Purty Edge free while
this yarn is in effect. If they already have the
Purty Edge then their bonus is doubled (+4 to
persuasion rolls).
Battle Cry
TN: 9
Strain: 2
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Round/Tale-tellin’ level
By releasing a battle cry “Remember the Alamo, Viva
La France, Spoon, etc.”, the tale-teller gives a bonus
to his allies to their attack rolls of +1 per success
and raise, affecting 1 ally per tale-tellin’ level.
Big Purple Dinosaur
TN: 7
Strain: 4
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 round/Success
The tale spinner is able to summon a man-size
purple dinosaur that is under his control.
The Big Purple Dinosaur has the following stats.
Corporeal: D: 2d6, N: 2d6, S: 4d8, Q: 2d6, V: 2d12
Fightin’: Claws 4d6, Dodge 4d6
Mental: C: 1d6, K: 1d4, M: 3d6, Sm: 2d6, Sp: 2d8
Guts 3d8, Performin’: Songs 4d6
Pace: 6
Size: 6
Damage: Claws STR +2d8
For some reason some tale spinners use this yarn to
get something for live target practice.
Dr. Dolittle
TN: 5
Strain: 1
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Minute/Success
By making a Fair (5) tale-tellin’ check, the singer
can talk to the animals as they would a person.
Although, the animals might not have much to say.
Dust in the Wind
TN: Opposed
Strain: 5
Speed: 1
Duration: Permanent
When Dust in the Wind is used all undead must make
opposed Vigor rolls or take 1 Wound to their focus
area for every raise and success the Tale-Teller got.
The tale weaver may only affect one undead per level
of tale-tellin’.
Ghost in the Machine
TN: 7
Strain: 2
Speed: 2
Duration: Instant
With this yarn you can make a Gizmo malfunction.
The device must make an immediate Reliability check
with a penalty of –1 per raise.
Ghost Story
TN: Fear level +2
Strain: 3
Speed: 2
Duration: Instant
The tale spinner is able to cause Terror in living
creatures that don’t have the Fearless ability. One
creature can be affected for every level of
tale-tellin’ Aptitude. Those affected must make a
guts check versus the Fear level +2 or roll on a
1d6/success and raise on the Scart Table.
Horse with No Name
TN: 5
Strain: 3
Speed: 1 Hour
Duration: Concentration
By spinning this yarn the Tale-Teller summons a
horse-like mount, that will carry him and one
companion 5 mile/success and raise, the mount
disappears if the Tale-Teller stops concentrating on
this yarn.
Inspire Courage
TN: 5 + Fear level
Strain: 2
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Round/Tale-tellin’ level
The tale spinner starts speaking of courage and
bravery, giving a bonus of +1 to guts checks per
success and raise, affecting one ally per level of
Tale-tellin’ Aptitude.
Let there be Light!
TN: 5
Strain: 1
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Hour/tale-tellin’ level
The tale weaver has learned the power of the spoke
word and may produce light from thin air. This light
illuminates an area of 5-yard radius and move with the
Tale-Teller.
Lord of the Dance
TN: Opposed
Strain: 5
Speed: 2
Duration: 10 minutes/Success
Using this yarn causes creatures to obliviously
follow the performer, even into dangerous situations.
To resist this the creatures can make an Opposed Fair
(5) Spirit roll, failure means that the creature
dances after the performer.
Lord of the Dance affects up to 5 creatures per
tale-tellin’ Aptitude and only works on living and
non-human creatures. Although for some unknown reason
it will also work on children of 12 years or less,
affecting 1 per level of tale-tellin’.
Lost and Found
TN: 5
Strain: 3
Speed: 1 Round
Duration: Special
With the Lost and Found yarn the Tale-Teller has a
better chance of finding things. Foe every success
and raise adds +1 to his next scroungin’ or streetwise
roll. The yarn ends after the Aptitude roll is made.
Lullaby
TN: Opposed
Strain: 3
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Round/Success
Lullaby can put the most hardened of road warrior
into sleepy land. Those who here this yarn must make
a Fair (5) Vigor check or be put fast asleep.
One Liner
TN: Opposed
Strain: 3
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Round/ Success
So a Rabbi, a Priest and a clown walk into a bar
and the bartender says “What is this a joke!” The
tale spinner is able to use tale-tellin’ to cause
those who hear his joke to start laughing
uncontrollably (treat as stunned). The targets must
make a Fair (5) Mien roll to resist One Liner. One
target is affected per level of tale-tellin’ and the
tale-teller chooses the targets.
Pinocchio
TN: Opposed
Strain: 5
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Action/Success
The Tale-Teller is able to take over the actions of
another creature, if it fails an opposed Spirit roll.
The creature will do nothing that directly harms
itself and they are completely aware of what’s going
on, they just can’t do anything about it.
Purple Haze
TN: 5
Strain: 2
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 round/tale-tellin’ level
When Purple Haze is sung, old people eyes glaze
over with nostalgia, but the real magic is that it
summons a visible purple fog around the tale weaver.
This fog adds a +2 modifier to opponents TN to hit the
Tale-Teller.
Rusty Cage
TN: 7
Strain: 3
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Round/Success
This yarn causes metal bars to come out of the
ground and surround the target. The bars are made
from rusted metals and can be bent with a Hard (9)
Strength roll, otherwise the target is imprisoned for
the duration of the yarn.
Sing for Your Supper
TN: 7
Strain: 2
Speed: 5 Minutes
Duration: Permanent
The tale weaver is able to perform this yarn and
summon forth a nice stew or soup out of this air. The
Tale-Teller needs a bowl or something to use this yarn
and produces enough food to feed one person per
success and raise.
Solitary Man
TN: 9
Strain: 4
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Action/Success
With the Solitary Man yarn the Tale-Teller phases
out of time and can neither be affected or affect
others. But, he may do things other things that
affect only him, such as reloading, bandaging, etc.
When he comes back it’s only moments after he left.
Soothing Song
TN: 7
Strain: 2
Speed: 2
Duration: 10 minutes/Success
By using Soothing Song, the singer can stop the
effects of insanities on a target for the yarns
duration. So that things like phobias and Mad
Scientist insanities would be temporally stopped.
The Beast in Me
TN: 5
Strain: 4
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Round/Success
With The Beast in Me yarn the Tale-Teller rapidly
grows hair, fangs and claws. Giving him a Bite
STR+1d10 and a Claw STR+2d8 attack. However, his
Smarts and Knowledge die types drop two stages while
this yarn is in effect.
Thirteen
TN: Opposed
Strain: 4
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Day/Success
The tale weaver can manipulate fate and cause
misfortune to follow, like a little lost puppy. The
target must make an Opposed Spirit check or gain the
Bad Luck Hindrance for the yarns duration.
Thriller
TN: Opposed
Strain: 2
Speed: 2
Duration: 1 Round/tell-tellin’
This yarn only affects undead. Undead must make an
opposed Spirit roll, or start dancing uncontrollably.
The target can still act freely, except they dance
while doing it, causing them to suffer a +2 penalty to
all TN (except performin’).
Thriller affects up to one undead for every level
of tale-tellin’.
Unchained
TN: 9
Strain: 3
Speed: 1
Duration: Instant
When a tale spinner tells this yarn chains and
ropes unlock and unwind, allowing those held by them
to be free.
Walking Man
TN: 5
Strain: 3
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Round/Success
Walking Man increases the Tale-Teller’s Pace by
+1/Success, while this yarn is in effect music follows
the story teller.
Wondrous Stories
TN: Opposed
Strain: 4
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Round/Success
Wondrous Stories causes those who fail an Opposed
Mien roll to suffer –2 to further Opposed roll from
the story teller for the yarns duration.
The tale spinner affects up to 1 target for every
level of tale-tellin’.
Your True Colors
TN: Opposed
Strain: 2
Speed: 1
Duration: 1 Round/Success
With Your True Colors yarn the Tale-Teller forces a
creature that can change its shape to revert back. So
that creatures like the werewolves or those using some
special power are forced to resume their original
form. They must make an opposed Spirit roll to
resist.
New Edges
Additional Yarns 2
Your Tale-Teller has traveled extensively or been
in contact with those who have, with this contact you
know more that the average Tale-Teller and can start
with more yarns. Each additional yarn cost you 2
points, although you are limited to 5 plus half you
Mien die type in starting yarns.
Long Winded 1-5
Some Tale-Tellers can go on for hours, spinning
their yarns and weaving great tales. Your tale weaver
is one gifted as such, giving him 2 extra points of
Strain for every level of Long Winded he has.
New Hindrances
Dark Dreamer 5
There is something about your yarns that is hard
for people to put their finger on, but darkness
surrounds them. This has no obvious effect on your
yarns, but makes it a living hell for you personally
if you go bust on using a yarn. If this ever happens
then add +4 to you roll on the Nightmare table.
Marshal’s Only
Players Scram
O.K.
Now the downside, earlier I spoke of how there was
a sort of magic in the Tale-Teller words, well there
is of course and it’s drawn from the peoples hopes and
dreams. You see in the Hunting Grounds are creatures
called Wishbringers and they take these hopes and
dreams and provide power to the Tale-Teller’s yarns.
Most Wishbringers are benign but every now and again
you will find one of incredibly evil power, well this
is who the Tale-Teller contacts whenever he goes bust
on one of his yarns. When this occurs the Nightmare
come to life roll a d20 and consult the following
table, the yarn fails unless the table says otherwise.
Nightmares
1d20 Nightmare
1-2 Give Me some Sugar, Baby!: The yarn is successful
(as if he got a success and 3 raises) but cost twice
the Strain. If this goes over the Tale-Tellers Strain
total, then the yarn fails and the Tale-Teller rolls
again on the Nightmare table with a +4 modifier.
3-4 Twisted Yarn: The very opposite of the yarn
occurs, if an enemy was the target then it affects the
Tale-Teller and then his allies (up to as many as who
would have been affected by the yarn), or say if Sing
for Your Supper then rancid stew or soup would be
produced instead.
5-6 Haunted Dreams: Next time the Tale-Teller goes to
sleep, he must make a Hard (9) Spirit roll or lose his
lowest Fate Chip, and chips may not be spent on this
roll.
7-8 Tongue Tied: The Wishbringer takes away the
Tale-Teller’s ability to speak for one day.
Preventing him from using any more yarns during this
time.
9-10 Fear Arising: The area fear level is increased by
one, as trees visible warp and ghostly voices can be
heard in the night. If this occurs in a Deadlands
(Fear level 6 brainer) then reroll on this table
adding +4 to the result.
11-12 Pay the Toll: the Wishbringer twist the
Tale-Teller’s fate, causing him to lose his highest
Fate Chip.
13-14 What Was I Saying?: The Tale-Teller loses 1
level of their tale-tellin’ Aptitude.
15-16 Take Backs: The Wishbringer steals the yarn from
the Tale-Teller, so that he must relearn it before
using it again.
17-18 Double Image: A duplicate of the character
appears and tries to destroy him; this duplicate has
the same gear, knowledge, etc. as the character. If
the image is beaten, then all the gear and etc.
vanish. The image will not surrender and will vanish
with the next sunrise.
19 Monkey’s Paw: The Tale-Teller picks up a number of
Hindrances equal to the Strain of the yarn, as the
Wishbringer twists reality to harm him. These
Hindrances may later be bought off, just like other
Hindrances.
20+ Make a Wish!: A full blown evil Wishbringer
appears (imagine your typical bald genie, but the size
of a three story building) grabbing the Tale-Teller
and whisking him off screaming to the Hunting Grounds,
never to be seen again.
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