(Rio - Tokyo) World Hoppers - Mage the Ascension

How to prepare

You'll need a microphone, a discord account (along with the discord app) and a computer able to connect into the online browser page of the game which Foundry generates. Foundry usually works best in Google Chrome and we'll try to deal with any possible issues relating to that before the game starts. Tablets usually also manage to connect to Foundry but often experience some problems with the controls (or having video-capabilities too low to load the maps) so we'll have to test those beforehand if you'd prefer to attempt to use one.

What I provide

I will use Foundry VTT and Discord for GMing, that includes custom maps and tokens, along with music (which will be mostly be kept somewhat quiet to not detract from the session) during at least key scenes. Not all combat or scenes will happen in battlemaps (it's impossible to predict everything) so some Theater of the Mind will be used. I will open access to the pdf books of the system I have on the discord server. My narrative style attempts to balance verissimiltude in detail with dynamism, that is, I try to describe things as well as possible to set the mood of each scene without taking too long on descriptions or on each turn of the players. I'm not a voice actor, but I do try to make my NPCs sound different, when not in voice at least in word choice and other manneirisms. While I do recognize that the World of Darkness is a Horror setting my MtA games lean more to Fantasy and Adventure than dwelling too much in Horror. Think Dark Fantasy, for example. You can also have fairly good idea of the vibe of this game from the listed inspirations.

Gameplay details

This is a World of Darkness game, which means it will involve dark and adult themes, however, players that have played with me before know that my GMing style is far from being as edgy as this setting can get at it's max. My WoD tables offer a mix of realism and fantasy, with research done on the places and cultures depicted, with "Slice of Life" and other lighter narrative elements being contrasted against the moments of adrenaline and edgyness. This is not a grimdark or gorefest game, it will certainly have its edgy moments (specially if the characters go looking for it or causing it) but focus of the narrative "vibes" will depend a fair amount on the characters and what each players bring to the table (as long as it doesn't clash too much with the premise). Character concepts and sheets can be discussed beforehand with me on discord but we'll finish them on session-zero, so that we can avoid any problems both in possible clashing themes and more mechanical complications. Safety Tools: We'll use the consent form and Session 0 to set up expectations on what to look for and if there is anything to avoid. Like I said before, however, I do care about a certain degree of realism in the game - I will do my best to avoid undesired content in the game, keeping those topics out of the story and unworthy of mention, even if they still exist in the world. I won't go as far as to make them unexistent in the setting, but I'll they will not show up "on-screen" in any significant manner - This is simillar to the "Lines and Veils" technique. About the Content Warnings: Nudity related content (as long as it doesn't become too explicit) will be allowed unless one of the Players disagree with it. Sex will only happen in "fade-to-black" (Veil), if at all. Themes related to discrimination, corruption and abuse of power will be present due to the realities of economic inequality, along with possibly other forms of prejudice related to ideology or religion. The Player Characters will not be the main focus of those unless they are made with those themes in mind at character creation (usually with Flaws involved), which should be discussed with the GM(me) beforehand. Debriefing: For the last 5 minutes of so of the session (which should last between 2:45 to 3:15, so around 3 hours) the players are encouraged to offer feedback and discuss any lingering feeling about the session, the story and any bleed from their characters. I welcome any criticisms, suggestions and other positive feedback about how the game and the player's experience can be improved. Edgyness and Politics: Lastly, I'd like to reinterate that this game is not heavily focused on "dark", "mature" or "edgy" content (with maybe the exception of violence and the result of it, due to combat). Those things will exist in the gameworld somewhere, yes, and some NPCs (specially antagonists) may be involved in a number of evildoings. But this story is more about the journey and the fights we won along the way than dwelling in the darkest corners of civilization trying to find new ways to shock my players. Simillarly, this game will be fairly apolitical, morally gray and leaning towards the flaws (and eternal hope of overcoming them) of humanity's systems of belief and political governance, in terms of tone. Some NPCs might have political views of their own, and there might be plenty of political wrongdoing and corruption to be found if the PCs go looking for it - but I'm not here to pander to this or that side. I don't plan on the narrative being focused on that, though.

Content warnings

Safety tools used

How will character creation work

I'd like a concept of the character and an overrall idea as soon as you can give me, but I'll assume the characters are not "locked in stone" before session 0. I'll review sheets and backstory between Session 0 and Session 1 proper. Characters may have been born or live anywhere - they are not limited to Brazil or Japan, as long as it makes sense for them to have joined Ishikawa for whatever reason. Characters born in richer countries (like Japan) will effectively begin with an extra dot of resources when it comes to disposable income (See below), characters from poorer countries will start with a number of "minor contacts" equal to their Streetwise skill, as per the "Contacts" BG. We'll be using a combination of "Lifestyle" and "Currency" when it comes to money. The Resources level of a character will indicate both their "economic station" and their disposable income per month. The amount of disposable income starts at 2.5K Reais at R1, doubling per each level after that. Characters starts with 2 times that "free". The game is set to start in April of 2022, the characters are either members of the Traditions, allied with them or masquerading as them. The characters have gone through a selection process of candidates and have performed well enough in testing as to be recruited formally into the Chantry. The characters capabilities should reflect that: I.I. is ideally looking for people able to communicate in both countries, capable of defending themselves and to locate and escape with any item of mystical importance they might be targetting. The Life sphere of at least level 2 is well regarded as to increase the agent's survival chances. (Characters don't have to be full combative, a mix of social and combat abilities is prefered). Characters need to have at least one point in the "Chantry" BG. They will receive a payment of 1 Quintessence point per week, per point in Chantry. It also counts as "Requisitions" on the same Level, while on missions.

Combat / Tactics

Medium

Roleplay

Medium

Puzzles

Low

Experience level

Open to all