Feyroam - The Dark Forest Chapter 1
Welcome to this two-shot adventure of Feyroam, by Eric Dill of Drakonspyre, a fellow Solo RPG actual play writer. I’m excited to play a game written by one of us and looking forward to playing in the magic world he has created.
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| I love the art and feel of this book! |
What is Feyroam?
Feyroam is a Caltrop Core-based TTRPG (with solo rules) placed in a magical realm of Feyrie, where sprites and spirits, fairies, and other fey folk dwell far apart from the mundane world of humans. There has always been a barrier between the world of humans and the world of the Fey until recently that is…
Based on Caltrop Core, the game uses only D4s and is pretty easy to pick up and play. I was drawn to the game by the great artwork, magical setting, and ease of play. I’ll pair it with the simple One Page Solo Engine I used to play Agon with.
Alright, let’s get into it!
Character Creation
Feyroam uses HP like many RPGs. Everyone starts with 4 HP.
There are three stats:
Being - which is the expression of your Fey’s physical power. Used for lifting things, and melee combat.
Soul - which is the expression of your Fey’s intellect and magic power. Used for casting spells or translating scrolls
Fey - which is the expression of your Fey’s cunning. Used for ranged combat and setting traps.
All stats start at 1.
Now I need to pick a class. There are three.
Guardian - The fighters and defenders of the Fey
Mystic - The spell casters and intellectuals
Wilding - The scouts and rogues.
I’m going to pick Mystic to be a spell caster. I start with the Exceptional Intellect which gives me +1 Soul. My character also starts with a Tier 0 weapon (Aelfwood Staff), a Tier 0 armor (leaf armor), and a Tier 0 Scout Satchel.
Lastly, we need to name our hero and describe her. Her name is Uhta (Old English for the period just before Dawn). She wears a green robe that is slightly too large for her, it drags in the mud and is constantly stained with spells components and potions. Uhta recently joined the Feyroam to learn more about the magical barrier between the world worlds and what could be done to repair the damage to the veil that separates us from the Fey.
We need a start to the adventure. One Page Solo Engine will get us there.
Set the Scene - Hostile forces oppose you
Objective - Eliminate a threat
Adversaries - Guardians
Rewards - Knowledge and secrets
I’ll say Utha is a part of a patrol that is attempting to wrestle evil knowledge away from an enemy. The enemy can be the Marshogs, which are amphibious wild hogs, that can walk on hind legs and wield spears. Not especially intelligent, they have been gathering scrolls and artifacts of the other world lately. Why? Let’s play to find out!
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Utha strolls through a field of wildflowers on a beautiful spring day. The sun is shining on her face, and she dips down to pluck a flower from the grass. A bee buzzes by and she smiles, the cycle of life in the Feyrie is beauty itself. She watches the path of the bee as it lazily swirls through the air into the forest ahead.
In stark contrast to the wildflower field, the forest ahead looks dark, menacing, and dangerous. Utha frowns as she scans it, no sign of movement, not a squirrel or a bird. It isn’t right, something is sick in that forest.
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| Dark things are ahead. Photo by Rosie Sun on Unsplash |
Tawnie steps next to Utha. The big Fey is their Guardian on this expedition, meant to keep them safe and protect them from any threat as they search for the sickness infecting the forest. “Utha, the patrol is ready to start into the forest. I suggest you ready yourself and check your equipment.’’
Utha rolls her eyes and scoffs, “Yes, to you Tawnie everything is a patrol, or an enemy, something to defeat or fight. But this is about learning and knowledge. We can’t fight sickness, at least not with a sword and shield, even if it is the finest in all of Feyrie.’’
“Still, my job here is to protect you and your other Mystics from harm. Stay close to us and I’ll keep you safe. I swear it on my life,’’ the big Fey says.
As much as Utha dislikes the Guardian’s simplistic view of the world, she definitely appreciates them being there. While she and the other two Mystics on the Expedition can defend themselves, they don’t have the raw strength and martial skill of the Guardians. They will keep them safe as Tawnie says.
Just then, out of a bush close by pops a small Fey, with grass and twigs covering their hair. It must have been there the whole time, Utha never noticed them. Yes, this is their Wilding, Auden. An odd Fey, Utha has only seen them once or twice in the whole five-day travel to the edge of the forest.
“Are we done talking? The forest ahead is weird. The birds don’t sing and the squirrels don’t play. I don’t know. And something dark walks among the trees. A shadow. We should be very careful" the scout says.
Utha shivers, this is definitely concerning. The last time she was in these woods they were a happy place, filled with life and energy. She tightens her grip on her staff and starts to walk into the forest.
The forest is indeed a dark place. In every direction Utha looks she sees shadows moving. She gasps a couple of times, swearing she saw a person or something. But Tawnie and Auden, as well as the others in the troop, see nothing.
They head deeper into the forest, and they walk for hours. The paths Utha was so familiar with have changed, and the darkness gets deeper. Utha stops at a fork in the forest path. She is the only one who has been here before. Are they lost? She looks around for any clue as to where they are.
Action 2D4 with Soul
Highest roll - 4 Absolute Success
“The left path will take us deeper into the woods, I am sure of that. There is something foul in the air, we should be prepared for anything. Anything at all. Tawnie, I’m glad you are with us.’’ The big Fey nods to Utha in respect.
The patrol moves deeper into the forest, It seems to Utha as if the darkness becomes more constrictive. Utha is reminded of mines or the dungeon under the great city of Swanfey, not a natural place.
Suddenly Auden pops up next to her, his bow out and an arrow at the ready. He motions to be quiet and silently stalks out into the undergrowth. The guardians and other mystics tense up, and hands go to weapons or staffs.
Action - Does Utha spot anything? 1D4 with Fey
Highest roll - 1 Absolute failure
Suddenly out of the forest burst shapes! Large beasts, Fey-sized, running on four legs or two. Some carry short spears and others baring long fangs. Utha knows who they are, Marshogs! Normally a nuisance in the more untamed parts of the Feyrie, she has never seen a pack so large!
Tawnie and the other Guardians yell a deep battle roar and charge the pack. Utha backs up to the few other mystics and prepares to defend herself.
One Marshog slips through the screen of Guardians and stalks toward her group. Utha steps forward, just because she is a mystic does not mean she can’t defend herself. She readies her staff and prepares to fight.
A Wild Marshog is a 1D4 HP enemy, a bit weaker than the standard Marshog. I roll 1D4 and get a 3HP. Utha has 4hp. Let’s start the combat.
Utha Attack 2d4 with Soul - Highest roll = 2
Utha stands strong and chants a spell, hoping to blast the marshog off its feet and gain the advantage, but maybe it's the sound of battle or her being unused to using magic against a living creature, but she gets the spell wrong and nothing happens. The hog is nearly about to attack.
Wild Marshog attack with 1d4 - Highest roll = 4 - 2 Damage (Utha 2HP left)
The hog jumps on Utha, bashing her to the ground. It is on top of her, foul breath in her face, and rotten black teeth snap at her face. Utha is pinned down!
Utha Attack 2d4 with Soul - Highest Roll = 4 - 2 Damage (Marshog 1 HP left)
Utha finds her centre, even with the imminent possibility of death at the hands of this beast. She closes her eyes and says the words correctly this time, and the Marshog is lifted off her with the force of a thousand gusts of wind.
It quickly recovers and gets back on all four legs and aims to strike again.
Wild Marshog Attack with 1d4 - 1 Highest roll, Utha counterattacks for 1 Damage. Marshog is dead.
It charges recklessly but Utha is ready this time. Staff out, in defensive stance as she was taught so many years ago. She waits for the last second then lashes out with her staff, striking the beast in the nose viciously. It recoils from the hit and goes down in a lump.
Utha breathes a sign of relief and she scans the group. The Guardians have defeated the rest of the hogs and the remaining left alive are scattering into the woods. Several of the Guardians are left bruised and cut, but there are no serious injuries.
Tawnie and Auden approach Utha and check on the other mystics. Auden has only half of his remaining arrows. After everyone who is injured is cared for, the three move away from the group to have a conference.
“I saw where they ran off too and got a couple with arrows. Their trail is pretty clear and its leads to what looks like a lake. I’m not sure what is there but they are heading that way,” says Auden.
Tawnie furrows his brow with concentration, ‘’It’s clear these Marshogs are involved in what is happening in these woods. We must pursue them and end the evil that has infected this place. But you Utha are the leader of this expedition. What do you decide?”
Utha looks down at the scratches and cuts she had from her fight with the Marshog. This is not what she expected when she signed on for this. It was meant to be a research trip, gather information, and report back. But there is dangerous magic happening here, magic that must be stopped. “I agree Tawnie, we must find out what is happening here. Auden, scout ahead a little, but the day is getting late and we must rest here for tonight. Tomorrow we head to the lake and find out what the Marshogs are up to.”
The troop finds a clearing to camp in. Guards are set and watch fires created. They rest as best they can, knowing tomorrow will bring more dangers.
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| The patrol rests for the night. Photo by Wes Hicks on Unsplash |
Utha HP recovers back to 4.
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Well, that is it for this week’s session of Feyroam. I recommend checking it out, I love the setting and the rules are easy to set up. Next week we will come to the conclusion of our quick adventure!
Be sure to check out more from Eric on his blog here!
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- Croaker
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