Before you ask, I do always write it all in uppercase.
The thing that sets CHARNEL aside from any other game, at least to me, is the horrible nature of it. It's not just a bit grim, it's really awful.
As an example is one of the gods of the world.
The Burned God.
A figure splayed out against the sun, burned black. His flesh is cracked and weeping. His head is thrown back but you can't quite tell whether it's in unimaginable agony or rapturous pleasure. From his face, his charred hideous face, comes the white gleam of perfect teeth revealed in a grin or a grimace or perhaps the lips were simply burnt away.
And this is one of the gods that people call upon for protection. Well, protection when they really need it and they sacrifice to him the rest of the time to keep him away and hope in their secret hearts that it works.
The world is a horrible place in CHARNEL. I know this is probably a tired comparison but imagine the world of The Road. Now imagine it has been this way for generations. Now imagine the dead are also rising and there are cannibals coming to take away everything and everyone you love.
Sometimes I'm not sure why I even like this as a setting idea when it's so bleak and nasty.
And then I imagine the one man with a sword, going out to hopefully make the world a better place. Striking down the cannibals and striking down the necromancers and putting his blade to the throat of the world and demanding a new one.
It's a story about survival, about heroism and it's a story about doing what needs to be done to make the world a better place no matter what the cost.
Does that sound interesting?
So, not a bad start. I'm not certain of how unique it is, being as how there are some pretty dark and grim settings out there, but it's interesting enough. I'm not familiar with The Road, unfortunately, so that comparison does nothing for me.
ReplyDeleteBut still, Points of Light scenarios have their adherents, so there could definitely be something here. Your description is evocative enough, so more color like that is a definite plus.
So my next question is a moving forward one: Is this just a nasty little setting idea, or do you have ideas for mechanics to support it?