Tizun Thane

That's probably the best way to play it. Thank you

14 hours ago, BioKeith said:

Back in court, Caoilfhionn tried to pretend that the wounds she received had come during the hunt, and neglected to mention anything about her duel.

She lied to her king, murdered a lady, showed no remorse... If I were Arthur, I will have put her in a trial, with a possible beheading at the end.  By the way, it was a big insult to give nothing to the king.

Otherwise, nice little tale. How do you manage to play the 3 little solos with your party?

1 hour ago, Voord 99 said:

That’s actually what the bit about there being a difference in wars with external enemies and rebels was about, and you taking an Honour loss in the case of the former but not the latter.

I am not sure there is  an honor loss. After all, you only loss 1 honor point if you killed the man in the field. From my understanding, it was a way to neutralize a man without any execution, waiting he dies on his own "naturally". Vengeful, sure! Cruel, maybe, but honor loss? I don't know.

On 3/16/2021 at 3:31 AM, BioKeith said:

In the fall, Arthur returned to Cameliard where he spent the winter with King Leodegrance and the two raised a toast, hopeful that this was the last battle that Arthur would need to ensure his throne.

And Arthur felt in love with his fair daugther...

Do Ysabel have a passion (love) for Arthur?  Will Arthur have the guts to tell her she was just a one night stand? How will she react? ^^

You forgot the obvious "I do not ask for any ransom, so I can keep you forever in some jail, because I hate your family!". Another great hook for a missing brother 😉

I do not play enough with ransoms in my game. Ransoms could take years to be collected.

On 3/13/2021 at 9:20 AM, Leingod said:

That's probably the intended word, but from what I can tell, "[Name] le Cure Hardy" was the spelling of the nickname given in Mallory to Sir Borre/Bohart/Bohort, one of Arthur's sons, and also to Sir Ozanna/Ozana/Osanna, a recurring minor character of the Round Table who mostly shows up to get beaten up along with a bunch of other third-stringers so that a more important character has something cool to do.

It's Osenain Coeur Hardi in french 😉 He became a minor recurring character in my campaign ^^

Nice year.

It's not you, but I am not a big fan of "The Brown Knight of the Wilds".

He was created by Greg Stafford, and does not fit well, IMHO, in the GPC. I don't know what purpose he serves. Do someone have an explanation?

18 hours ago, Voord 99 said:

EDIT: Also, the new rule (which not everyone likes — I know that Tizun Thane considers it an abomination :)), that Horsemanship caps combat skills when on horseback

Thanks for quoting my opinion about it ;) 

You do not cap combat skills with horsemanship when your game is about knights. It's an abomination. ^^

Did your players enjoy this session ? They were for a major part only witnesses after all...

13 hours ago, BioKeith said:

. And so, with some misgivings, the young knights found themselves headed back to the site of their beating.

What a cliffhanger ! I love how Pellinore looks badass in your campaign. It's a good idea to make him a special NPC in the GPC.

15 hours ago, Morien said:

The other houserule to limit skills of over 20 that I have seen some people to use is to require that each step over 20 costs the excess in Glory Bonus Points. So 20 -> 21 costs 1 GBP, but 21 -> 22 costs 2 GBP, and so forth. This will pretty much ensure that people max out around 23, which is still very good, but not game breaking.

Great Idea! It would be difficult to implement in my campaign now, of course...

@ Genser: the RAW are already very lethal, especially if you are stingy with glory and the use of passions (As you should^^). The norman chainmail is only ten.  So against 3 saxons with 5d6 damage, no PK is feeling at ease, trust me (And Morien, of course ^).

Maybe you should first test the rules as written, before making any change.

4 hours ago, Voord 99 said:

Honestly, I think I was thinking of Banin, and forgetting that he adds the condition to his service to Claudas that he can leave whenever he likes.

I was also thinking about Banin in the Vulgate. This guy was crazy ! I don't remenber the subtility of the oath, however. I love that part of the Vulgate with Claudas, Pharien, and the crazy one (aka Banin).

Like Morien said. Never forget the new count will probably ask  counsel to his vassals. Maybe Robert is inclined to follow Arthur, but maybe he could be convinced otherwise.

11 hours ago, Elcid321 said:

Now, Earl robert wants to side with arthur, but as i said before, the older generation won't support him

It's great drama ! Force your characters to choose beetween their liege and their family. Clash of passions! It's the heart of KAP ^^

5 hours ago, Elcid321 said:

so, you're saying that they should join their parents in the war against arthur? sounds cool, but i'm wondering, wouldn't they lose honor for going against their liege lord?

Your players are free, remember. Yes, it could be a bit dishonorable to go against his lord (even if I should mitigate the losses by half because they have good reasons).

According to the legends, there is one honorable way to do it. You give back your lands to your lord, saying publicly he is not a good lord, and you can not be his vassal anymore. Of course, it's a bit drastic...

2 hours ago, Voord 99 said:

For me personally, Tristan as a Round Table knight doesn’t do any favors for Tristan’s own story, although it makes him an interesting counterpoint for Lancelot.  

Yeah, it makes little sense, and I did not follow the GPC on that either.

2 hours ago, Voord 99 said:

Tristan’s story was originally independent of anything Arthurian, but became integrated with Arthurian romance due to the Prose Tristan.

For the record, the involvement of Tristan with Arthur's court is much older than the Prose Tristan. It's a shared universe even in the time of Béroul or Thomas. In Beroul's work, Yseult swears an oath in front of the king Arthur to "prove" she is faithful to her husband for example. It's the infamous ambiguous oath.

https://www.timelessmyths.com/arthurian/tristan.html#Oath

Tristan (and Yseut) could both die in the 540' without altering the GPC. Maybe 544 (in his 33th year ^^) or 545. 

9 hours ago, BioKeith said:

but Sir James’ echelle of knights failed to keep any kind of organization – perhaps from weariness, perhaps because the younger knights ( Sir Edwin and Sir Alfred) were at their limit. Soon the knights found themselves fighting individually, rather than as a unit

What happened? Disorganised unit? Sounds nasty anyway...

9 hours ago, BioKeith said:

He said that ‘One of their kind, a Laece named Issen, has grown powerful enough to call forth old forces.

I don't remember if it is the same guy or a new one ^^ I have no idea where you are going with the 13 treasures of Britain, but it's intriguing...

The 5 godesses were under the shape of a lady, or of an horse?

Lou Carcolh, or the Carcolh, is a mythical beast from French folklore. It's described as a large, slimy, snail-like serpent with hairy tentacles and a large shell. It is said to live in a cavern beneath Hastingues, a town in the Les Landes region in southwestern France.

The carcolh's slime could sometimes be seen long before the creature itself arrived. Nobody dared to approach the creature, as unwary persons would be grabbed by its tentacles, dragged into its cave and devoured whole.

So, it’s a giant serpent with the shell of a snail and a few tentacles. What’s not to like ?

Tai 50 Dex 05 Str 25 Con 40, Speed 3, Dmg 7d6, Healing Special (1d6 HP/rd), Armor 25/10, HP 90, Valorous -10, glory to defeat 500

Bite 18, 2 tentacles* 16 (dmg+grappled. A PK can free himself by winning a test of Str vs Str. If the PK loses, he takes full dommage)

The Carcolh can project its tentacles up to 30 meters (100 feet)  away.

Special: You can aim for the less protected part of the beast (ie not the shell), taking a -5 on the attack roll.

2 hours ago, Baba said:

We’re closing in on the grail quest now,  and I’m not sure how to handle it. I didn’t expect any of the characters to be especially grail-worthy, but now we  actually have one who is extremely devout, although still no Galahad.

Yeah, it's very tricky. If you lack time, I would say:

Read Malory, especially the Grail Quest, and the few adventures in the GPC. In Tales of Magic & Miracles, there is one or two christian adventures you can throw to your players. I would say "be unfair". A little mistake, and bam, you're out of the quest. You are unworthy. 

The Grail Quest should be very frustrating. Kill their horses, their friends, their foes, etc. until the players want to quit the quest. If your devout knight want to continue, even alone, fine. Maybe, after a few another moral tests, he will see the Grail from afar, or even be one of the 12 worthy knights during the Mass of the Holy Grail.

On 2/9/2021 at 4:01 PM, Morien said:

The Tarascon Castle is really cool, too.

It is said that the castle is built on the same site as the old lair of Tarasque. It is a magnificent castle and I envy you for having been able to visit it ...

***

Magical horses in french folklore

We can distinguish the Blanque Jument(white mare) in the north, Cheval Mallet (Mallet Horse) in the west, and the drapé in the south of France. A link (in french) about the Blanque Jument:

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevaux_légendaires_du_Pas-de-Calais

A link (in english) about the Drapé:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drapé_(legend)

Basically, the Blanque Jument is a beautiful white horse with all harnesses that seems peaceful and lost. If anyone climbs on it, the animal becomes enraged and rushes at an unearthly speed to throw itself into the nearest body of water to drown its rider.

The same is true for the Drapé except that it is all black and has a preference for children.

Sincere prayer may be enough to dispel them. In the folklore, they're more or less devilish, so only a christian prayer may work. In KAP, I suppose a pagan prayer to Rhiannon can do the trick as well.

For the characteristics, we could take the kelpie of the GPC (^^)

Edit: Thank you Morien ^^

I like your 510 adventure, especially the tournament. Did your players feel railroaded, or did they enjoy seeing a page of history? Looking forward for the battle of Carlion...

Why did your players pledge their loyalty immediately? Was it the "Arthur effect"?

If KAP is lacking about something, it's about the Grail Quest. We are in need of good material.

I don't now exactly how I will play the Grail Quest.

I don't like Galaad either (very bland), and Perceval is my favorite character, especially in the unacheved Conte du Graal. So I intend to keep the arrival of Galaad, the sword in the stone, the Perilous Seat, the grail feast, the oaths, etc. And... The first dead quester they will found will be ... Galaad ^^

I think it's a great way to tell your players there is no destiny, and it's deadly serious. Go Away if you are not up to the task!

2 hours ago, Voord 99 said:

Post-Vulgate

The Post-Vulgate is the main inspiration for Malory and very close of course. It's very depressing. Everyone (except Galaad and his two buddies) is a bastard (especially the poor Gawaine) or an idiot (like Erec, without his Enide).

2 hours ago, Voord 99 said:

I’ve never read Perlesvaus

Perlesvaus is insane! You should read it ^^ !!! For the grail quest, it's not very good however. Gawaine and Lancelot in this tale are good guys, but failed. They are not pure enough. Perceval/Perlesvaux/Parluifait/Whatever will conquer the Grail and  become the new Grail King. He retired himself as a monk. The end.

It's a bit disappointing of course. Perceval is very violent in Perlesvaux, killing everyone who is pagan, demon-worshipper, etc (The narrator have some narrow views about religion ^^)

34 minutes ago, Voord 99 said:

My French is in decent enough shape for reading purposes...

Alas, I wrote it a few years ago with a pencil  ^^. The Cat of Lausanne is basically a retelling of the Cat of Paulag from the welsh tale, about a devilish monstruous giant cat eating people, except it's Arthur who slayed the beast during his campaign of Rome.

The fun fact is there is no local tale in Lausanne (in modern Switzerland) about this Cat. But, in the Lake of Bourget, west of Lausanne (in modern France), there is a local legend about a devilish Cat. Its Lair was the Dent du Chat (Cat's tooth), a mount close to the lake.

Basically, during the passage of the Alps, the players heard about the Cat of Lausanne and its depravations. If they decide to travel to Lausanne to kill the Beast, they will find that there is no giant cat here. To make things worse, the lord of Lausanne was courteous, but a vassal of Lucius ^^.

So there will be another travel in the mountains to rally Bourget, and then to find the Cat. The Cat is of course fond of ambush. Who is the hunter and who is the prey? 

In my campaign, I created a few monsters from French folklore for KAP. These are typically the kind of monsters you can slip in when the PKs venture to France for a change of scenery. First, an iconic monster, the Tarasque of Tarasquon. The wikipedia link in English is rather well done to learn more about this folk dragon.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarasque

The Tarasque

Tai 50 Dex 10 For 50 Con 35, Speed 6, Dmg 10d6, Healing Special (1d6 HP/rd), Armor 25, HP 85, Valorous -15, glory to defeat 500

Bite 15 and scorpion’s tail 15 (+ poison, Potency 20, If Con roll failed, instant death, if partial success, 3d6 HP)

Special : can be tamed by a saint (all christian virtues at 16+) with a prayer, and a spiritual roll.

Lair : In Provence, France, the creature inhabited the forested banks of the Rhône between Arles and Avignon, around what is now the town Tarascon (then called Nerluc or 'black place'), but lurked in the river and attacked the men trying to cross it, sinking boats, and terrorizing the countryside.

Appearance :

It is a massive creature with a body 6 meters long, covered with a turtle shell, provided with 6 short legs and a scaly tail ending in a scorpion stinger. His mouth is misshapen, set with the mane of a lion, with donkey's ears, and forming a face looking strangely human.

11 hours ago, SaxBasilisk said:

Having examined that quote from my game notes, it is 100% pure vintage Wikipedia. But I did get beyond it, and I think I actually dipped into this work right here, before realizing that it was legitimate and I didn't actually need the research for the game:

https://www.google.com/books/edition/Contes_populaires_préjugés_patois_prov/J-FiAAAAcAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0

Great link. Thank you! The book is indeed talking about this "lady of Aprigny" (not Apringy ^^) but have other cool stories as well.

The fée d'Argouges (fairy of Argouges) have a beautiful story about a fairy lady, and Jeanne Bacon is a another badass lady. 

I think every GM should alter the GPC to match his personal tastes. For example, I use the Vulgate and Chrétien of Troyes as my main sources, not Malory. 

In practice, it is not much different ^^ The Rome campaign is at the same time, for example, but there is the episode of the Cat of Lausanne, very interesting that we can launch to spice up those years. I wrote a little adventure about this, but in french, alas.

18 hours ago, SaxBasilisk said:

"One such Dame was known as La Dame d'Apringy who appeared in a ravine at the Rue Quentin at Bayeux in Normandy, where one must dance with her a few rounds to pass. Those who refused were thrown into the thistles and briar, while those who danced were not harmed."

I love this little tale. By curiosity, what is your source? 

I think it's a an excellent idea, by the way ^^ 

Otherwise, I am not a big fan of the raiding of Normandy (Neustria?). I suppose it's a wink to the Vulgate when the kings Bohort and Ban and Uther burned everything in the land of King Claudas, giving him his nickname (Claudas de la Lande Déserte, or Claudas of the wasteland). 

If I had to play this part, I would make the war dirty. The PK need to understand they're not the good guys in this war, and Uther not a good king. I would really play the sack of the city of Bayeux, and every dirty consequence of it.  I will place the players in front of tough choices:

Will they enjoy the mayhem, , or try to protect the people, the women, the churches? There is no boundary anymore. They can do anything. What kind of men are they at the core?

18 hours ago, SaxBasilisk said:

Perhaps King Cadwy can provide some experienced boatsmen to help out?

Why king Cadwy would provide a boatman ? Aren't they at war with Somerset? Anyway, astute players will recrut a boatman for a fair price (1£, considering the risks). If I played this part, the poor man would be the first victim of water leapers ^^ 

I think that's precisely the point: marshes and seas don't mix well with a man in heavy armor. Usually, swimming and boating are very minors skills. For once, they will be very useful ^^.

22 hours ago, BioKeith said:

King Nanteleod went down on one knee and publicly proposed to Ellen, which she happily accepted.

That's so sweet^^ Or nasty. I love it anyway.

One mad knight, one prisoner, 2  unconscious, and the squire/wife dead. They will remember the battle of Nettley Marsh. I suppose your players are ready for revenge...