The Arcane Order of Pandora

Just an idea at present, but one I'm having fun pondering.  Posting now to see if there would be interest in such a game, or if this stays in the self-amusement pile.

The year is 1851.  Queen Victoria rules half the world, and after the defeat of Napoleon, the [i]Pax Britannica[/i] has kept the world safe from the threat of world war.  The fortunes of Britain continue to wax… but she has many enemies, some of which are possessed of abilities beyond the ken of mortal men.

In response, Lord Elphinstone, an intimate of the queen, has sought out gifted British citizens of all stripes to protect Her Majesty's interests.  Thus is born The Arcane Order of Pandora.


As I said, this is only an idea I'm working on at this point.  Here's some of the major notions I'm tinkering with...

- This world's history parallels that of Earth; the existence of super-powered individuals has not significantly altered the course of history.

- Super-gifted people are quite rare. The AOP would include NPC members, but not many.

- Technology of this world is that of the historical time period.  Steampunk devices are exceedingly rare.

- I would want original characters, not period homages to supers in the comics.

- The power-level would be fairly low.

- Use of abilities would be narrative-driven – I don't want to use a game system to slow down the action scenes.  At this point I foresee players declaring their character's attempted actions, and me responding with the outcome of those attempts.

- Additionally, I'd like to avoid existing legendary characters (Sherlock Holmes, Spring-Heeled Jack, Captain Nemo, etc.).  I don't want this to be a League of Extraordinary Gentlemen type of thing in that respect.

- Adventures would be GM plot-driven, but player contributions to plots and sub-plots would be welcome.

- The game would start with the characters having known one another and worked together.  The group would spend a bit of time establishing relationships before actual play began.


Sound interesting?