600 AD: Proto-Kelts in the 7th Century, the Nearly

(Peryton)

" I like proto-Bavarian or maybe half-neanderthal. The neanderthal angle is interesting because the Island Celts had a legend that, when they arrived in Britain, they had to push out a race of ugly giants. And an isolated community in Bavaria seems like a reasonable place to find more-than-usual neanderthal heritage."

Along side the humans, these beings would come to know the Universe, They were those that came about as the Trees made Land welcoming. They were those that were born as the seeds of the Now and would take hold. The Nearly, mostly human, as a culture have watched the Sea separate from Land. 

   Up in the mountains, as they fear the Sea with His anger about being separated from their mother, the Sky, the are stranded on Land. The Nearly have dealt with first the neanderthals and then the humans as partners as the Cosmos have unfurled around them. This has worked only so well for them.
   The humans new One God thing is causing the Cosmos to go mythical. As refugees on land from the Sky-Sea Cosmos, this means the Nearlys inevitable demise. At the same time they have to deal with the world of 600 A.D. going on around them. They are doomed but the world around them probably isn't up to their extinction.

The Nearly Player-Character in 600 A.D: 
 Protecting Dryad-Trees only found in the deepest of forests, the Nearly areat home in wilderness. As they are tied to magic along threads being woven by the Stitch Witches weaving the Cosmos around all beings in the Universe, a world's elements hold only so weight upon them. 

Been Here  +10% to any Perception roll.
Done That +5% to any Knowledge roll. 

600 AD: Elves Against Myth

 

The Tim Kirk of Iceland's take on elf

Elfkind has been around even before the Sky separated from the Sea and the Trees grew on Land. In  600 A.D. , they are often described as angels that did not chose a side when Lucifer tried to defy God. Tied to magic and the working of magicks, but also tied to the goings on by the mundane creatures around them. For most practicing Good Old Tyme Religion, umm Paganism, you idiots, elves are a primordial species that aren't trolls (titans or monsters, if you're from the Greek center of the world).

An elf-princess on her way to the dance party

   Those in this most modern of world in the year of Our Lord 600, elves are watching that One God thing making most the Cosmos go mythical. That said, they aren't exactly opposed to Christendom, located in the Parchment. Marble, and Steel Valley. That is all the cutting edge spots between Rome and Constantinople. Elves aren't fans of chaos and misery that cyclopsi and storm giants have liked to impose on those around them. They, in their eternal wilderness, can withstand the mundane. They have after all survived the separation of the Sky from the Sea, and helped grow the Tress on the Land. 

   Reincarnation, while essential to the species survival, it really gets on their nerves though. They are immortal in age, but not eternal in form, at least since when the Sky separated from the Sea. Elves live many lives. It's not a pleasant quest working their way out of any of the many damnation pits lying just beyond whatever mortal coils of the Cosmos. Memory as well as ancient wisdom is lost. These lost things though can be recovered. This is while the elf is in a new skin. The elvish can't complain too much. 

   An elf can't complain too much...

The Elf Player-Character in 600 A.D:

  
 Sprung from Dryad-Trees only found in the deepest of forests, elves are here to protect those around them from chaos. As they are tied to magic along threads being woven by the Stitch Witches weaving the Cosmos around all beings in the Universe, a world's elements hold only so weight upon them. 

Been Here  +15% to any Perception roll.
Done That +20% to any Knowledge roll.

300 AD: Not Humanly Possible

 

Saint Christopher, for reals.

Let's talk about non-human species for this game.

Now Runequest, RQ, is known for "strange" monsters. I put "strange" in quotations because the people saying these things think that Stat-Trap monsters designed to to play against rules and based on weird plastic dinosaurs, looking at the Rust Monster, are normal. So of course, me being so normal, I am going with based off of scholastic works that actually exist-- I am being scientific. Yeah right. Still using what we now call folkloric sources, which would be called "educated" at the start of the Seventh Century AD. I'm such good weird fantasist that reality falls into my lap. 

   The Dog-Heads
According to Wikipedia it's called "cynocephaly." I call them dog-heads, not "dogfaces." "Faces" is a World War Two term for Army grunts because ring-knocking West Point Officers giving orders to about 3/4-trained conscripts like they were dogs in combat. Dog-Heads have popped up throughout history. They start appearing in strict Biblical iconography since about 300 AD and didn't stop there. Despite Dog-heads being a metaphor for accomplished but illiterate people, I find them the most fascinating non-human "race" ever these days. Yes, they had that convention of language, metaphors,  before 1993. So mixing and mismatching  here's my lore:
  My-Take: Residing beside humanity since the skies were separated from the seas and trees grew on the land, dog-heads have been around humanity. It is said that they even older than wolves or real dogs, those species evolved from the cynophalids(?).  They have been able to avoid going MYTH because of their acceptance of the human regime of how things should be. Lately though, the muslin-wearing Islamic-worshiping mystics have associated the dog-heads with the ghul And when ghouls show their undead essence to to the travelers that those demons have been trying to seduced, the dog-like head of the collapsed corpse would remain. So Dog-Heads have been getting the short end of things especially for the last century and then some. 

PC Race- Dog-Head
   
   As they are canine in nature, they tend to adopt the Character with the highest Charisma around them as their leader. As people move in and out their lives, SAVES on CHARM will be required to maintain loyalty.

Dog Luck Keen Hearing, Smell, and Tastes- +15% to any Perception roll.


   Pilt-Downer
As the Sky continues to separate from the Sea and the Trees grow ever larger on the Land, Ogres continue to face the problem that the world just isn't big enough for them. Wherever more natural folks liked to live, the ogres would have to go away. Pilt-Downers are their last defense against the World Occurring. 
   The size of human children bit possessed with the presence (INT and CHR) and strength (STR and DEX) of an adult.While they try to avoid the World's attention (+10% to SNEAK rolls), they tend to die young (-10% on CON Saves).

Down and Pilt: 50% chance of learning any spell cast at or on them. 

300 AD: The everflowing River Po and its Playful People

Well, Runequestish

 So this session is going to be set in a city spread over the banks of the Po River known as Cataulado. To the historians in the crowd, I'm talking about Cremona, Italy. 

You as Players can play whatever you like. Try me fuckers, I'll work it in.

What I suggest, as only the GM for the session, are the folks that lived in and around the Exarchate of Ravenna in 600 AD, human or not.

For fun let's call them:

Natives- Did you know that Rome never actually conquered all of Italy? Just ask the Veneti and their swamp hub known as Venice. Let alone the Ravenners, that have spit at all the Imperials giving them money for centuries. The Cremonani have a nice touch of pagan as well as torch-holders for this Chrtistdom fad.
   Speaks: Cremonmani , or Ravenner, or Veniti (Latin 3, Italia 1)  then roll D4 per 6 on the PC's INT score.  Vulgate (Italia 2, Latin 2), Lombard (German 4), Romas (Latin 1, Italia 1), Latin (Italia 2, German 5) Illyrian (Italia 3 , Greek 3, Slav 3),  Greek (just Greek), Frank (German 2), Sicilian (Italia 2, Latin 3), or Western (Latin 2, Iberian 3, Frank 1, Arabi 9) 
   Skills: +10 points

Lombardi- Look, you're only teaching the damn Romans how to be people after they forgot how to be civilized. This is regardless, even irregardless, of all the money that they have been holding on to for way too long. 
   Speaks: Lombard (German 4, Italia 2)  then roll D4 per 6 on the PC's INT score.  Vulgate (Latin 2), , Romas (Latin 1), Latin, Greek, Frank (German 2), Sicilian (Latin 3)
   Skills: Nil bonus

Greek-Peakers- Home is so far away. You're only re-teaching this "civilization thing" to people that forgot how to be civilized.
   Speaks: GREEK  and Latin,  then roll D4 per 6 on the PC's INT score.  Vulgate (Italia 2, Latin 2), Syrian (Arabi 2),  Lombard (German 4), Romas (Latin 1, Italia 1), Latin, Illyrian (Italia 3 , Greek 3, Slav 3),  Greek (just Greek), Frank (German 2), Sicilian (Italia 2, Latin 3), or Western (Latin 2, Iberian 3, Frank 1, Arabi 9)
   Skills: +45 

Romaners- As soon as all these Italians, Greeks, and Germans realize that the peninsula belongs to Rome the easier things will go.
 Speaks: Romas (Italia 1, Latin 2)  then roll D4 per 6 on the PC's INT score.  Vulgate (Latin 2), Latin , Sicilian (Italia 1, Greek 1,Latin 1), Latin, Greek, Frank (German 2), Sicilian (Latin 3) 
   Skills: +5 

Catholic- Does anyone on the Peninsula follow the will of Jesus and Saint Peter?
   Speaks: Latin and Vulgate  then roll D8 per 6 on the PC's INT score.  Vulgate (Latin 2), , Romas (Latin 1), Greek, Frank (German 1), Sicilian (Italia 3)
   Skills: +40

Far Off Franks- Does anyone on the Peninsula follow the will of Jesus accepting our Nestorian faith and our King? Home is so far away.
   Speaks: Frank (German 1)  and Latin,  then roll D6 per 6 on the PC's INT score.  Vulgate (Italia 2, Latin 2), Syrian (Arabi 2),  Lombard (German 4), Romas (Latin 1, Italia 1), Latin,  Illyrian (Italia 3 , Greek 3, Slav 3),  Greek (just Greek), Frank (German 2), Sicilian (Italia 3, Latin 3), or Western (Latin 2, Iberian 3, Arabi 9) 
   Skills: +15 



The Language Mechanic

When a PC speaks a certain Language, out in the wider world, miles from where they were born, the other character that they are talking to might not have their background. Whatever is (the root) means that have a lot of linguistic speaking in common. Failing that the number after the root language can bring their idioms closer to an understanding. It goes the other way, Characters having a root language in common will have difficulties because of their dialects indicated by the number score.

Tabletop Tales: Wobble 2026, "The Nu-World Chronicle"

Over the course of eight sessions played from January through May this year, the saga of Rudolph Viago, Wobbler Extraordinaire, continued.

  

Prof. Vi

 The professor from the Prime Earth (Prime-H) universe of the Mu Continuum had been residing in a between-dimensions spot known as the Groovy Grove ran by transdimensionally-traveling vegetation known as Clock Trees. While great wobbling scientists, the "C-Tree" are on flora time, so he was getting bored. His lover, Alejandro, was screwing some satyrs and hikers at the other end of the woods around their cottage, so domestic bliss was not his lot. When Xver, Primrose Corporation Executive-4 operative,  Xavier Handspand, showed up asking the Wobbler to come to work for the Explorations Division, it was not a hard sell.
The specific mission was to get some specifics as to what the progress on multidimensional traveling hacks of Apple-55 (our Earth, still in the Mu Continuum). Rumors had it that those barbarians, especially the fearsome Canadians, were conquering the main Earth spot of the Nu Continuum.  
Meanwhile, on Lost Earth, the main Earth spot of the Kappa Continuum, the accomplished warrior, Praetorus, had been selected to try to get his species, the Kardaz,  doing this thing called transdimensional travel again. Armed with a sword as well a holder of many micro-level technologies known as a Sera Monee Ol Stick, he wobbled into the multiverse. His picture is below.



His mission assigned by the Vissu Order, Lost Earth's would-be Wobbler officials, to re-establish ways to get to Juxta. That between-dimensions spot being a key connection between the Lambda to Zeta Continuums. The Kappa connections having been severed during the Glorp Blort 4 specie's crusades against Infernal influences from the Omicron Continuum some six centuries before. 

While Viago meant to show up over the skies of Baffin Island, Earth-Apple 55, in his jacked-out wobbleship, the Gypsy Drifter, Praetorus did not in his man-sized and egg-shaped environmental-protection apparatus. Two Wobblers showing up at the same time over and on Apple-55's only Multinational Transdimensional Applications Portal Region, "Map Spot", caused some alarm. Frankly the two arrivals happening almost at once, triggered every developed military in the world to be ready for an invasion.
   It was not a warm welcom to start things off. The Gypsy Drifter was hit by anti-aircraft missiles by Map Spot's forces. Praetorus would emerge from his egg shell to have tanks and a brigade of infantry aiming at him. Viago was ready for a fistfight when he almost crash landed, but eight hundred and sixteen rifles and a couple tanks for good measure pointed at him, calmed his rage.

Next time: "Captivity." 

T&T-is Rules Drafts

 If you need outside ideas for your own creative process, feel free to actually type mine up. By the way "T&T-ish" is a campaign name for a high (higher) fantasy feel not the concept behind the rules being developed. 

The T7T-ish Campaign: the Piltdowner

When Cyclops demanded that the world is HIS, the World responded with less than enthusiastic response. Thereupon, Cyclops not only endowed onto that planet the cyclpsi and trolls, but included many lesser (in statistical measures) beings. Piltdown man, also know as the Piltodowners, are one of those species.Already at war with the humans, dwarves, and elves, things were getting tight. So the one-eyed god in his failed claim to to all around him, let this particular instance rest. He, Cyclops, might be wrong.
  Regardless of how things might turn out, Cyclops made sure to leave his imprint on the World. First came the Ogres, along with the angle's mortal off-spring, they were called seraphim. They and Cyclops, himself would see the mortals around them and covet them. This, of course, would lead to more off-spring. While everybody knows of the connection of the Og to Cyclops, few know that the Piltdowners species are his grand children. 

 

The Piltdowner

  Physically-speaking they are only the size of a human child. They as strong as a grown adult of that mentioned species. Hair grows in all the nooks and crannies of their bodies, it isn't common, though,  on the heads and faces. Like most human-like species, they like to build cover to shelter them when they don't have a shallow cave-- they are wary of deeper ones as well they should be. Like their grandfather god, they are not subterranean beings.
   The "downers," as they are often called, are not exactly dimwitted or stupid. They are though challenged when it comes to figuring out stuff that the rest of the world around them have already figured out. For various reasions, they would rather not adapt to figure out the rest of the world.
   They are genetically predisposed towards obeying any ogre that is near them (MEN at 30 to resist).

They can be very stealthy.
     +5 to PHYS when sneaking.

Their perception is amazing. 
     +5 to LUCK when awareness matters.

The problem is their constitution.
   -10 the any health check.