Changeling Stranger Tides
This is a setting for new World of Darkness that allows you to play a Changeling: The Lost campaign set in a 17th century world full of pirates and adventures on the sea.
The World[edit]
Think of Pirates of the Caribbean, not all tales from the drunk sailors are bullshit, sea men get caught by mermaids and dragged in the depth, ships are being crushed by giant monsters, Davy Jones stuffs souls into his locker, and some of this souls manage to come back, changed in more ways then a mortal eye can see.
The real world is a round globe, but in Hedge the thorns gave way to a merciless Sea that bathes a flat Earth. This Sea is full of Leviathan creatures, so monstrous that even the bravest Changelings prefer travelling by mortal oceans.
The Courts[edit]
The World is divided in 7 Seas, and each Sea has each own Pirate Lord, creating this way 7 Courts.
- 1thLord of the Old Sea
- 2thLord of the Rising Sea
- 3thLord of the Malay Sea
- 4thLord of the Deep Sea
- 5thLord of the Voodoo Sea
- 6thLord of the Coral Sea. In charge of the territory of modern Oceania.
Emotion - Curiosity & Serenity.
Current Coral Lord: Irwin Dundee.
- 7th Lord of Sealess Sea. Accepting this title puts a curse on you which make you lose sooner or later any territory or any propriety you can't hold in your hands. You journey the various Oceans, without a home to return to, such is your destiny Traveler.
Emotion - Rum.
Current Sealess Lord: Jack Sparrow.
The courts gather on 29 February every 4 years, but can be summoned in case of emergency. When need arise a Pirate King or Queen may be elected to deal with the situation.
New Hedge Bounty[edit]
Trifles[edit]
Black Spot. It's a small circle of black paper.
To place this curse on somebody the desired target must willingly touch the paper circle with their skin. This little circle can be hidden in a hand handshake or in a gift. Once in contact with the target the Black Spot will dissolve into skin leaving a horrendous Black Spot.
The Black Spot will spread a slight smell of rotting flesh around the marked person. This smell will be repulsive to mortal animals and mans and will attract bloodthirsty Hedge Beasts.
The person who applied the black spot would be able to feel in which direction the marked person is located.
Catch:
The user must give a reasonable compensation for whoever kill the target. Failing to do so would create a Black spot on the user.
Hedge Fruits[edit]
Whale Foam It's a square yellow sponge, that is sometimes found floating in the Hedge Sea. After being eaten this fruit expands in the stomach releasing oxygen rich liquid that will be absorbed in intestine, making the user able to go on without breathing for a full hour.
Mechanical Changes[edit]
Skills[edit]
Several changes are needed for this time period.
- Computer becomes Navigation
It represents how well you are able to read a map, to read the stars and find the position of your ship, and how good are the routes your ship follows. Specializations include Astronomy, Map cryptography, Drawing maps.
- Drive becomes Sail
Sail 1 is needed to understand more or less what the Quartermaster is yelling at you, at Sail 3 you are a First mate being able to bring the ship to safety in a voyage when nothing unexpected happens, Sail 4 usually is a Captain requisite.
- Firearms changes a little.
Since most of the flintlocks can fire only once, the number of dots in this Skill represent how many pistols can you effectively use in battle: for example with firearms 4 you can carry 4 guns and shot for 4 turns without the need to reload.
Merits[edit]
- the refuge Hollow becomes Ship
It's four-way point split between
- Speed (Black Pearl have Speed 6 as the fastest magical ship in the Oceans)
- Size (galleon with three masts being 5 and a small one man ship being 1)
- Weapons
- Crew (Crew 1 being just enough to sail the ship)
Hobgoblins[edit]
Random[edit]
Box Crab: Large crabs that camouflage themselves to look like small wooden crates when at rest. They breed in ship's holds, feeding on the packed rations and hiding when disturbed.
Archer Urchin: A giant sea urchin that lives in the shallows and around the reefs, it fires its spines in order to pin prey to the reef, and then slowly makes its way over to feed. Its spines are poisoned to discourage other creatures from stealing its immobilised prey before the urchin can get there.
The Sargasso Hopper looks like across between a large water strider the size of a large dog and a baracuda. They jump like the dickens and live on top of the twisted seaweed, hunting in packs and tearing into their prey.
Blossom Kraken are ambush hunters, squid the size of a man that have developed a ring of short, broad tentacles in front of their large grasping ones, which they use for camouflage. They rest with their short tentacles out of the water, resembling the large blossoms of the matted seaweed. When an animal gets too close, they strike with their large tentacles, which have vicious hooked suckers pulling the creature into the water to be devoured by the cruel beak. They've been known to snatch men out of rowboats, if they get too close while trying to clear a path for a ship.
Giant Enemy Crab. Hit it's weak point for a shower of Angry Crabs
Whobster - Half Whale Half Lobster. It's blowhole is a weapon thats so powerful it can strip flesh from bone.
Helifish - Like a Jellyfish but it can fly. It's blades are also blades. Shoots lighting.
A Sandmancer and Pyromancer on a pair of islands. Together they seal the ship in a giant bottle
Telefish - Telepathic Jellyfish
Shale - Shark the size of a Blue Whale
Burnicles - At first glance these appear to be mundane barnacles. However should one attempt to remove them from the hull of the vessel they burst into flame.
Mehpeople - Kinda like merpeople bit y'know they just don't give a fuck.
Starfish - Now containing an actual Star.
Behemoth[edit]
The biggest creation both in the real world and the Hedge. A giant catfish able to swallow whole ships without noticing them. A crazy Lost affirming he was able find his way out of Behemoths tummy said that a civilization of hobgoblins lived inside ancient ruins swallowed by the Catfish eons ago.
Scallywags[edit]
These Hedge Beasts live in large swarms and resembles little spiders. They roam the oceans sinking ships because they feed on a drowning mans last breath. Scallywags are little silver spiders, they store the feeding breath in diving bells made from theirs web. Some says that to appease them is necessary to go underwater near their colony and start singing. They disguise themselves as barnacles and other debris that sticks to the bottom of ships, for they sometime hitch a ride on the bottom of boats. If the hull of your boat is covered in a thin layer of a blood and goblin fruit mixture you can attract them to the bottom of your boat and have a small army of beasts at your call when dealing with enemy ships.
Ishma[edit]
A giant monster that dwells on the sea floor. He spends most of his time sleeping and dreaming about green water. But sometimes he awakens and needs to eat. And human flesh is one of his favorite meals. To hunt he enchants all water in a mile radius around him. If a human stares into that water he is bewitched: the water appears green and he hears an alien song about green water of Ishma. If not stopped, this person will jump into water and drown and the monster will collect his corpse from the sea floor. When Ishma visits a port town it could lead to the whole port becoming a ghost town.
Umibōzu[edit]
Some Changeling return from Arcadia with their souls ravaged by thorns, but some are not so fortunate.
When a soul is nearly destroyed by thorns or by a True Fae, this Lost loses any purposes and will to live and becomes a drifter, a Umibōzu.
They have long lost any personality or distinctive features and sometimes their faces miss any lineaments at all. They drift in the Hedge Sea and can come on board of a ship.
DON'T TALK TO THEM. They will wander the ship and try to speak with the crew, but if you value your live you must ignore them. If left alone they will go away without causing any damage, but if interacted with Umibōzu will attack and try to suck away the soul with their deadly kiss.
Umibōzu consume people souls to replenish the void inside themselves, but the only outcome is their increase in size and appetite. Legends mention Umibōzu bigger then a ship.
Notable NPCs[edit]
Irwin Dundee[edit]
Also known as Crocodile, sails the seas on his vessel Sting Alligator.
The lost whispers that Irwin was once used as a Hunter by True Fae. He was the best hunter, but once he refused to kill the prey he has caught. His Master was displeased by such disobedience. He pierced Dundee's heart with a poisonous sting and abandoned his corpse in the Hedge. But the sting missed Irwin's heart by a inch. The motherfucker crawled in the real world and survived. Still Dundee had a wound near his heart and the venom corrupted the flesh around the wound. This made Irwin immune to most poisons, but to stop the sting venom from expanding he need to keep consuming poisons.