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Glowworm Swarm
Type: Bioluminescent cave-dweller Size: Individual: 10-20 cm; swarm: thousands Behavior: Filter-feeds on airborne spores. Harmless individually, overwhelming in swarms. Light pulses disorient predators. Abilities: Bioluminescence (controllable intensity) Sync...
Sand Skimmer
Type: Burrowing scavenger (day side) Size: 1-2 meters long Behavior: Burrows through superheated sand. Attracted to movement. Scavenges equipment, corpses, and mining waste. Cowardly but persistent. Abilities: Sand-swimming (burrows rapidly) Heat resistance (...
Feral Bonded Creature
Type: Former Beastwalker mount (any species) Behavior: Psychic bond broken by trauma, death, or sabotage. Retains training but acts unpredictably. Dangerous because it understands human tactics. Abilities: Species-dependent (wind serpent, thermal lizard, etc....
Storm Beetle
Type: Flying insect / swarm Size: Individual: 5-10 cm; swarm: thousands Behavior: Native to twilight belt storm fronts. Feed on electrical discharge during superstorms. Harmless individually, dangerous in swarms when they discharge stored energy. Abilities: F...
Crevice Eel
Type: Burrowing predator Size: 3-6 meters long Behavior: Lives in Deep Roads and twilight belt crevices. Ambushes prey by erupting from stone. Excellent tremor sense. Solitary and territorial. Abilities: Stone-boring (creates new tunnels) Tremor sense (detect...
Frost Moth
Type: Night-side herbivore Size: Wingspan: 30-50 cm Behavior: Gentle creature that feeds on ice crystals and lichen. Beautiful bioluminescent wings. Used by Deepkin as light sources and companions. Abilities: Bioluminescence (controllable, multiple colors) Co...
Thermal Bloom
Type: Plant / ambulatory organism Size: 1-2 meters diameter Behavior: Semi-mobile plant that migrates toward heat sources. Roots can detach and re-establish. Absorbs thermal energy for sustenance. Neither predator nor prey—environmental hazard. Abilities: The...
Designing New Settlements
1. Choose Scale: 50,000-150,000 (cave/outpost), 200,000-500,000 (mid-size), 500,000-2,000,000 (major city) 2. Define Location: Twilight belt position (closer to day or night?) Cave system or surface Proximity to resources (geothermal, water, ice, mines) 3. E...
Creating Factions
1. Define Core Goal: What does this faction want? Control resource (water, energy, knowledge, psychic training) Ideological mission (preserve Earth culture, embrace Duskaran evolution, expand settlements) Practical objective (profit, survival, political power...
Inventing Creatures
1. Choose Niche: What role does this creature fill? Predator (hunts humans or other fauna) Prey (food source, companionship) Symbiote (mutual benefit with humans or environment) Hazard (environmental feature that happens to be alive) 2. Adapt to Environment:...
Developing Psychic Abilities
1. Choose Sensory or Motor: Does it enhance perception or allow manipulation? Sensory: detect something humans normally can't (metal, water, emotions, future echoes) Motor: manipulate something physically or psychically (gravity, minds, biology, time) 2. Tie...
Core GM Principles
1. Telegraph Risk: Always tell players what they're risking before they roll. "If you fail, the superstorm will catch you before you reach shelter—that's 1 stress per hour exposed." 2. Fail Forward: Failure shouldn't stop the story. Complications create new ch...
Campaign Frameworks
1. Caravan Expeditions Premise: Players escort trade caravans between settlements, dealing with superstorms, bandits, predators, and inter-settlement politics. Structure: Session = one journey segment (settlement to settlement) Introduce complications at half...
Session Structure
Opening: Establish scene, location, immediate goal. "You're two days from Khal-Rim when the wind shifts. Your weather worker senses a superstorm forming." Rising Action: Players make checks, skills degrade, complications arise. Let them decide when to catch th...
Using Complications Effectively
Complications aren't predetermined events—they're prompts you interpret based on what's happening right now. Roll "You've attracted attention": In ruins exploring ancient tech? A salvage crew from rival settlement heard noise and investigates. Camping in twil...
Balancing Resource Depletion
Don't micromanage. Track water, food, and energy loosely. Use scarcity as narrative flavor, not tedious accounting. Make resources matter during complications. "You find shelter, but there's no water source. How do you ration what you have?" Reward clever thin...
Psychic Abilities and Balance
Psychics aren't mandatory. Non-psychics contribute through skills, equipment, and ingenuity. Overuse has consequences. After 2-3 psychic feats in a session, impose stress or require rest. Psychic abilities create opportunities, not solutions. Weather working c...
Responding to Player Actions
RPG storytelling emerges from player choices and system interactions. Don't plan outcomes—respond dynamically using Breathless mechanics and Duskaran context. Players Track Bandits Into Ruins Player Action: "We follow the bandit tracks into the abandoned settl...