Kalashtar improvements #2

dangermuse commented 2021年09月27日 05:40:34 +02:00

The Kalashtar stock is not quite right compared to their depiction in the Eberron source material.

They are not just connected to a rando spirit, these spirits are rebel Quori (and each Kalashtar is a member of a lineage that is connected to one of these 67 rebels). The rebels are usually tied to an emotion or personality trait but how this manifests is completely up to interpretation. There are examples in Exploring Eberron. This could confer specific abilities via Help, Hindrance, etc. They may also receive appropriate character traits.

The memories of the rebel Quori that are transmitted in dreams come in the form of visions but they also feel like a lived experience to the Kalashtar. This is part of what makes them so strange because they have bizarre experiences that are completely out of context in the actual world they live in.

Sending them off to the spirit world when their Emotional Attribute reaches 10 is not right either, it doesn't really make sense. Instead they could lose their connection to this world, they remain in it but are insane.

Temporary Possession as a consequence of Tax is still interesting in my opinion. But I think it would work a little differently. The rebel Quori may use the Kalashtar to fulfill an agenda but they also may expose the character (and themselves) by taking over a mortal body. The Dreaming Dark will see this as an opportunity. If the Possessed character is killed, this may cause the rebel Quori spirit to be lost for a time, breaking Connection for other members of the same lineage. This is my own invention. The bad Quori do possess mortals but having the rebel Quori possess Kalashtar is my idea.

Psionics are an important aspect of the Kalashtar but that was way too ambitious for a first Burning Wheel home-brew.

This podcast episode blew my mind:
Mainfest Zone - Kalashtar

Races of Eberron has a full chapter on Kalashtar that is supposed to be good.

Secrets of Sarlona apparently has some good stuff about the Dreaming Dark and some of the plots. Also a good source of info about Changelings apparently.

@takeonrules Thoughts? Do you like this direction?

The Kalashtar stock is not quite right compared to their depiction in the Eberron source material. They are not just connected to a rando spirit, these spirits are rebel Quori (and each Kalashtar is a member of a lineage that is connected to one of these 67 rebels). The rebels are usually tied to an emotion or personality trait but how this manifests is completely up to interpretation. There are examples in *Exploring Eberron*. This could confer specific abilities via Help, Hindrance, etc. They may also receive appropriate character traits. The memories of the rebel Quori that are transmitted in dreams come in the form of visions but they also feel like a lived experience to the Kalashtar. This is part of what makes them so strange because they have bizarre experiences that are completely out of context in the actual world they live in. Sending them off to the spirit world when their Emotional Attribute reaches 10 is not right either, it doesn't really make sense. Instead they could lose their connection to this world, they remain in it but are insane. Temporary Possession as a consequence of Tax is still interesting in my opinion. But I think it would work a little differently. The rebel Quori may use the Kalashtar to fulfill an agenda but they also may expose the character (and themselves) by taking over a mortal body. The Dreaming Dark will see this as an opportunity. If the Possessed character is killed, this may cause the rebel Quori spirit to be lost for a time, breaking Connection for other members of the same lineage. This is my own invention. The bad Quori do possess mortals but having the rebel Quori possess Kalashtar is my idea. Psionics are an important aspect of the Kalashtar but that was way too ambitious for a first Burning Wheel home-brew. This podcast episode blew my mind: [Mainfest Zone - Kalashtar](https://manifest.zone/kalashtar/) *Races of Eberron* has a full chapter on Kalashtar that is supposed to be good. *Secrets of Sarlona* apparently has some good stuff about the Dreaming Dark and some of the plots. Also a good source of info about Changelings apparently. @takeonrules Thoughts? Do you like this direction?

takeonrules commented 2021年09月27日 11:50:35 +02:00

An interesting aspect of the Kalashtar is that they represent a design constraint from the 3.5 D&D era. Namely that there exists psionics (the Psionics Handbook had been released prior and as with the 3E and earlier versions, it represented a different system of "magic"). So what we see in the Kalashtar represents world development to address the rules.

Personally, I love the Dreaming Dark and feel it got some significant love from Keith Baker. I think it's one of the more interesting villainous organizations in Eberron. I love the idea of an Emotional Attribute, as it encodes the aspect of the twin souls "achieving" their goal.

With all of that, I don't think the Kalashtar need to be "psionic" (or more appropriately that we don't need to create a psionic system, after all we'd want to see a Kalashtar wizard). And I'm wondering about tying the Kalashtar's twin spirit to a belief (and perhaps opening a fourth belief, which is powerful, or constraining one of their beliefs, after all they fight for an entire age).

So perhaps once per session they may call on that spirit for help or to break a tie. And maybe they all must spend one of their general points on Aura Reading.

I'm going to re-listen to that Manifest Zone episode. What are your thoughts on the belief slot, help/tie-break, and Aura Reading might be enough to create the light touch, while still getting the flavor of a Kalashtar in the campaign.

An interesting aspect of the Kalashtar is that they represent a design constraint from the 3.5 D&D era. Namely that there exists psionics (the Psionics Handbook had been released prior and as with the 3E and earlier versions, it represented a different system of "magic"). So what we see in the Kalashtar represents world development to address the rules. Personally, I love the Dreaming Dark and feel it got some significant love from Keith Baker. I think it's one of the more interesting villainous organizations in Eberron. I love the idea of an Emotional Attribute, as it encodes the aspect of the twin souls "achieving" their goal. With all of that, I don't think the Kalashtar need to be "psionic" (or more appropriately that we don't need to create a psionic system, after all we'd want to see a Kalashtar wizard). And I'm wondering about tying the Kalashtar's twin spirit to a belief (and perhaps opening a fourth belief, which is powerful, or constraining one of their beliefs, after all they fight for an entire age). So perhaps once per session they may call on that spirit for help or to break a tie. And maybe they all must spend one of their general points on Aura Reading. I'm going to re-listen to that Manifest Zone episode. What are your thoughts on the belief slot, help/tie-break, and Aura Reading might be enough to create the light touch, while still getting the flavor of a Kalashtar in the campaign.

takeonrules commented 2021年09月27日 12:06:38 +02:00

Ooo...another thought...what if Kalashtar was a Mannish stock lifepath? It's available in every setting, and would encode the above requirements. I'll noodle on that as well.

Ooo...another thought...what if Kalashtar was a Mannish stock lifepath? It's available in every setting, and would encode the above requirements. I'll noodle on that as well.

takeonrules commented 2021年09月27日 12:48:39 +02:00

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dangermuse commented 2021年09月27日 14:54:31 +02:00

The Mannish stock lifepath is great.

Aura Reading is a nice touch. It is easy to see psionics as just a super power, which is a 3.5 mentality. But the practical need for such a thing is that there are Dreaming Dark agents everywhere, so Aura Reading is a useful survival trait for the Kalashtar.

I like the Belief slot idea. Not all Kalashtar follow the Path of Light or are self-aware, so it might also work as a trait that could be purchased or earned via a trait vote. Althought the majority of them seem to follow the Path...

The call-on or Help from the spirit is good too. The spirit connection does seem subtle like that. Once per session is better than requiring that Artha are spent, especially if the benefit is more subtle. My first design asked for a Persona point spend to activate the connection because the benefits were more pronounced. But the whole "subset of Spirit Binding" design is probably too heavy, especially if someone makes a Kalashtar wizard.

I didn't really understand what the Dreaming Dark were until I listened to that episode of Manifest Zone. They are a really interesting concept. One could see their hand in a lot of things in the world, even as an influence on The Trust in Zilargo. The Trust is exactly the sort of thing the Dreaming Dark would want to exist. It could have come about on its own but it could be a seed that was planted (or some mixture of the two). The extent of the Dreaming Dark's influence is one of the great questions in Eberron. I am looking forward to learning more about them.

The Mannish stock lifepath is great. Aura Reading is a nice touch. It is easy to see psionics as just a super power, which is a 3.5 mentality. But the practical need for such a thing is that there are Dreaming Dark agents everywhere, so Aura Reading is a useful survival trait for the Kalashtar. I like the Belief slot idea. Not all Kalashtar follow the Path of Light or are self-aware, so it might also work as a trait that could be purchased or earned via a trait vote. Althought the majority of them seem to follow the Path... The call-on or Help from the spirit is good too. The spirit connection does seem subtle like that. Once per session is better than requiring that Artha are spent, especially if the benefit is more subtle. My first design asked for a Persona point spend to activate the connection because the benefits were more pronounced. But the whole "subset of Spirit Binding" design is probably too heavy, especially if someone makes a Kalashtar wizard. I didn't really understand what the Dreaming Dark were until I listened to that episode of Manifest Zone. They are a really interesting concept. One could see their hand in a lot of things in the world, even as an influence on The Trust in Zilargo. The Trust is exactly the sort of thing the Dreaming Dark would want to exist. It could have come about on its own but it could be a seed that was planted (or some mixture of the two). The extent of the Dreaming Dark's influence is one of the great questions in Eberron. I am looking forward to learning more about them.

takeonrules commented 2021年09月27日 23:01:39 +02:00

Just listened to the Kalashtar episode...and yeah, I've got some more reading todo.

Just listened to the Kalashtar episode...and yeah, I've got some more reading todo.