A Crown of Blood: A Low Fantasy Game

[Fingal]

The kingdom of Tarvannia has been ruled for forty years by King Janos III. Janos was a jolly man, known for his love of hunting and feasts, with relatively little interest in the harder matters of ruling. Janos married twice during his reign, and has had children by both wives. His first marriage took place during the Great Division within the Church of the Eightfold God, and questions remain regarding the legitimacy of this marriage. Outside of the king's hearing, some say that the children from this marriage should be considered illegitimate, and that the children from his second marriage should succeed him.

While Janos was on the throne, he maintained that his eldest son from this first marriage should succeed him as king. For the past five years, however, Janos has been growing increasingly sickly, and his second wife has been serving as Regent. This second wife is ambitious and highly loyal to the Church, and wishes to see her own children ascend the throne. As King Janos nears death, the stage is set for a civil war that will tear the realm apart.

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Welcome to A Crown of Blood, a low fantasy game set in a world that draws inspiration from the historical Middle Ages as well as fantasy settings like A Song of Ice and Fire, with an emphasis on political intrigue and worldbuilding. In this game, you will take on the role of members of the royal family of Tarvannia, or other members of the high nobility and Church leadership. When King Janos dies, you will be forced to choose sides in the civil war that will follow his death.

To help with character creation, I have created a number of character slots for the family of King Janos:

King Janos III, aged 63 (dying)
first married to Queen Mara (deceased)

• Prince [available], aged about 40, or one of his children. He will become the leader of the faction that believes Janos's first marriage was legitimate.
• Prince Daron, died young.
• Princess [available], aged about 35, or one of her children.
• Princess Elvira, died young.

then married to Queen [available], aged about 48.

• Princess [available], aged about 28, or one of her children.
• Prince [available], aged about 26, or one of her children. He will become the leader of the faction that believes only Janos's second marriage was legitimate.
• Prince [available], aged about 24.
• Princess [available], aged about 20.
• Prince Tomar, died young.

Note that your character does not have to be a child of King Janos.

Character Sheet

Name:
Gender:
Age:
Relationship to King Janos III (if any):
Biography:

In addition to being a role-playing game, this is also a collaborative worldbuilding game, with players mutually contributing to the setting.

[Fingal]

Hello @Ducksworth, I saw a post where you said that you'd like someone to tag you if someone started up a dark fantasy game. This one is more similar to A Song of Ice and Fire than Dark Souls, but if you like political intrigue and warfare, this might prove interesting.

[Ducksworth]

Intriguing! I would definitely have an interest. I'll have a consider and see what I come up with

[Fingal]

Magic in this Setting:

One thing I wanted to explore with this game is a fantasy setting where the main Church is more than just window dressing. In the real Middle Ages, the Church was a highly important part of daily life, and I want to reflect that in this game. All people who display a propensity for using magic are required to join the Church, so that they may be taught to use their magic abilities. Thus, mages and clerics are largely the same group in this game. Magic is quite risky in this world, and failing to perform rituals and spells in the proper way can result in dire consequences, including insanity.

All mages/clerics are taught to read, as most magic is performed through the use of books such as grimoires. While some magic users refuse to join the Church or abandon their training, they usually go mad within a few months to years, making these "rogue" magic users a perennial thorn in everyone's side.