[Dictionary of Mu] Red Wastes - Mystic otherworld?

[Moreno R.]

Hello!

Playing Dictionary of Mu yesterday, we had some difficulties with the concept of the Red Wastes as a "Mystic Otherworld" from page 32 of Sorcerer & Sword.

I get the eerie landscape, the sand, the "edge-of-reality kind of existence", and the need for the Humanity Rolls until a traveller "acclimate".... but many of the starting characters in the Book LIVE in the wastes! (the One true Khan at least. The Olimon prince has a Dragon that he found in the wastes. Th Damsel Messiah is a "child of the Wastes", and so on) and I really don't think that the Witch King and the others never went there. So the humanity loss is only for starting character made from the players that never went there? Or the humanity roll is made every time?

And what is the meaning of the Contact Roll for the red wastes? How can someone go south and miss going there? When someone go south and miss the Contact Roll, where would he go?

[Judd]

I didn't picture someone going over a boundary and *BAM* they are in the waste, make a Humanity check as per the Mystic Otherworld rules.

In order to invoke those rules, someone needs to get into the deep of the wastes, the parts where even Wasteland Prophets only go maybe once in their lives, returning to what outlanders refer to as the waste forever changed.

I'd use the Mystic Otherworld rules when a player wants to evade some kind of army that is following him "Don't bother following; nothing comes out of there alive; we'll just tell our liege the Witch-King that he died," or when they want to seek some kind of ancient relic or bit of lore or some kind of spirit journey, or beckoned into the deep waste by their demon.

In other words, I'd make it explicit and I'd make it really clear.  Imagine the gravity of ancient Greek heroes going into Hades...

If you have any questions, let me know.

[Moreno R.]

Thanks!  I think I get it now!

So the contact roll should be done when the character is searching for something (a relic, a place, a demon, a character), and not when he is lost or is trying to evade pursuers, right?  (I mean, he COULD find something by chance o design, decided by the master, but he should not do a contact roll for it. The contact roll should be made when the Player want his character to find something)

Kudos for the GREAT setting, by the way. I played the Primite Prince, raced with the Damsel Messiah to the Red Wastes be the first to find the lost city of Kitezh (the third player played the "Kai" character from the Evilhead actual play), and both me and my dragon got our asses royally kicked! (that Serpent is a mean s.o.b...)

Another question who came out in play: The serpent has the ability "command reptiles". It can command even a Dragon, or Demons, even reptilian ones, are outside his power?  (in the game we decided that demons were immune, but I would like to hear what you think)

[Judd]

Thanks!  I think I get it now!

So the contact roll should be done when the character is searching for something (a relic, a place, a demon, a character), and not when he is lost or is trying to evade pursuers, right?  (I mean, he COULD find something by chance o design, decided by the master, but he should not do a contact roll for it. The contact roll should be made when the Player want his character to find something)

It is not only that he wants to find something, but that the character wants to venture into the deep and dangerous parts of the Red Waste for a purpose, be it getting away from Mu's Bed bounty hunters, to find a relic or a spirit journey to find their path.

Kudos for the GREAT setting, by the way. I played the Primite Prince, raced with the Damsel Messiah to the Red Wastes be the first to find the lost city of Kitezh (the third player played the "Kai" character from the Evilhead actual play), and both me and my dragon got our asses royally kicked! (that Serpent is a mean s.o.b...)

Thank you very much; I'm glad you dig the setting.  It is with great joy that I read threads like this.

If you think the demons are mean s.o.b.'s, your GM is doing their job in that regard.

Another question who came out in play: The serpent has the ability "command reptiles". It can command even a Dragon, or Demons, even reptilian ones, are outside his power?  (in the game we decided that demons were immune, but I would like to hear what you think)

Yeah, I'd think that demons are immune, no doubt.  Demons aren't really reptiles and the Dragon isn't a reptile but the spirit of an extinct species.  I agree with what you decided and hope that choice was fun for ya.

Thank you for playing in the great bloody sandbox that is Marr'd.