Possible fantasy setting: Darien's Rise

[seneschal]

"Darien's Rise" is a retelling of the biblical story of David's struggle against a jealous King Saul. The reboot is set in Marus, a kingdom in a sort of 19th century Europe in which soldiers travel to battle on trains, snipe at enemies with muskets, but still fight primarily with swords. It's a low- or no-magic setting depending on how one interprets divine guidance but filled with derring-do, swashbuckling fights, and political intrigue.

http://www.amazon.com/Dariens-Rise-Adventures-Odyssey-Passages/dp/1589975901

http://www.whitsend.org/passages/marusmap.aspx/

FYI. Hey, if you can loot Shakespeare for plots to fuel Japanese swordplay epics and Westerns, why not the Old Testament?

[ORtrail]

Interesting. There would be a lot of drama to mine from the life of David (going from sheperd boy to elderly king and some adultery/murder along the way). There was some TV show based more-or-less on this idea too, right?

[nerdvana]

There was some TV show based more-or-less on this idea too, right?

It was called Kings and was short-lived. In addition to its IMDB entry (previous link) you can read about it here on Wikipedia.

[seneschal]

I am a believer, but whether you are or not the saga of David is pure soap opera campaign fodder. For those who came in late (as Lee Falk would say), Saul -- divinely appointed King of Israel and popular national celebrity -- disobeys God during a tense encounter with Israel's traditional enemies, the Philistines. He wins the battle but is told by the prophet Samuel that the kingship will not pass to his eldest son, Jonathan. While Saul frets and continues to strive against the Philistines, Samuel goes quietly to the ranch of an obscure Judean farmer, Jesse, and selects his youngest and least impressive son, David, as Saul's successor.

Months later, the war grounds to a stalemate. His father sends David to the Israeli camp to deliver dairy rations and to get news from his brothers, who have been conscripted. He arrives just as the Philistine champion Goliath offers to end the bloody war with a one-on-one duel: Whichever side's hero wins the fight wins the war. Since Goliath is a badass veteran soldier -- and 9-feet, 9-inches tall -- nobody wants to take him on. Since Saul is tall, muscular and handsome -- the poster boy for Israeli manliness -- he might logically be expected to tackle the job. But his self-confidence has fled along with God's approval. He's hiding in his tent like everyone else (and hoping no one notices).

To be continued ...

[soltakss]

There's Goliath, a trained warrior, nurtured from birth, one of the noble elite, with a king's ransom's worth of armour on his back, armed with a spear and shield. A Rune Lord of his cult, Battle Champion, probably spelled up to his teeth.

Then this little pipsqueak comes along and challenges him.

First round, critical to the head with a sling shot - 1D8+1D2 damage, maximum rolled, so 10 direct and Goliath falls dead to the ground. No Hero Points/Fate Points to spend.

One thing is true, it wouldn't have happened that way with D&D! You need a game like RQ/BRP to do this.

[seneschal]

There's Goliath, a trained warrior, nurtured from birth, one of the noble elite, with a king's ransom's worth of armour on his back, armed with a spear and shield. A Rune Lord of his cult, Battle Champion, probably spelled up to his teeth.

Then this little pipsqueak comes along and challenges him.

First round, critical to the head with a sling shot - 1D8+1D2 damage, maximum rolled, so 10 direct and Goliath falls dead to the ground. No Hero Points/Fate Points to spend.

One thing is true, it wouldn't have happened that way with D&D! You need a game like RQ/BRP to do this.

David was about 16 or 17, a wiry little farm kid with red cheeks. He had faith in God and independence and confidence honed by years of protecting his sheep all by his lonesome out in the middle of nowhere. When he volunteered, Saul, embarrassed, tried to loan him his own armor and weapons. David gave it up after trying merely to walk in armor. (Hmmm, shades of Rolemaster, which requires a skill to wear armor!) Instead, he faced Goliath with his normal work tools -- a stout staff and a sling. After all his blustering, Goliath was genuinely insulted when this scrawny punk came out to meet him. David had to use Goliath's own sword to cut off his head.

David's motivation, in addition to faith, was that Saul had promised that whoever eliminated Goliath would get to marry his daughter and (along with his whole family) would be exempt from taxes for the rest of his life. Why did he stop and collect a handful of stones before charging the Philistine? It wasn't that he was afraid that he would miss, obviously. But Goliath had several brothers in the Philistine army, each as big and bad as he was. Later in the story, David and an elite band of fighters had to deal with them as well.

[ORtrail]

One thing is true, it wouldn't have happened that way with D&D! You need a game like RQ/BRP to do this.

So true.

To be fair, David, like many shepherds of the time had some mad skill with the slingshot. He had already dealt with a lion and a bear while protecting his flock. If you remember that some of those sling stones could be the size of a small orange? A shot to the head, even with a helmet, would be deadly. I think chopping his head off was to leave no doubt to either army that Goliath was dead.

[SDLeary]

There's Goliath, a trained warrior, nurtured from birth, one of the noble elite, with a king's ransom's worth of armour on his back, armed with a spear and shield. A Rune Lord of his cult, Battle Champion, probably spelled up to his teeth.

Then this little pipsqueak comes along and challenges him.

First round, critical to the head with a sling shot - 1D8+1D2 damage, maximum rolled, so 10 direct and Goliath falls dead to the ground. No Hero Points/Fate Points to spend.

One thing is true, it wouldn't have happened that way with D&D! You need a game like RQ/BRP to do this.

Well, to be fair, he probably had TrueStone cast, or perhaps a rare DI that doesn't kill you.

SDLeary