Sovereign Stone

Elmore's Sovereign Stone Game System

Scenario & Setting

Sovereign Stone takes place in a medieval world, an ancient continent called Loerem. It is inhabited and ruled by the people of the four races, humans, elves, dwarves and orcs. Each race stands for one of the four elements, the element it draws its powers from and is associated with: humans are bound to earth, elves to air, dwarves focus on fire and orcs rely on water. Those capable of using magic tend to focus on spells of their people's associated element and shun the opposite element, respectively.

The races' culture is classical and similar to most countless other scenarios: Humans are multi-cultural and open-minded. Elves are wise and reclusive, hiding their wisdom and knowledge in the groves and forests. Still, there are original exceptions, too: Don't expect dwarves to live underground to enjoy precious minerals, rocks and mining. Instead, the short fellows ride the eastern lands of Loerem, which they claim their territory entirely, with their ponies, praising their freedom and their clan. Orcs, on the other hand, are known to be seafaring people who rule the element of water and make a living as sailors and traders.

Background

Loerem, more than any time before, is threatened by severe peril in form of a foreign power that has emerged from one of the western magical portals, from where the army of darkness conquers the land. For what is known, the enemy is said to mainly consist of taan, an unknown race of reptilian humanoid warriors who fiercly sweep over the land, leaving noone alive. The saying goes that the taan, the footmen and soldiers, are commanded by vrykyl, undead knights, who, in turn, have once sworn fealty to Dagnarus. Dagnarus, Lord of the Void and master of the dead, left Loerem two hundered years ago to find power beyond the borders of the realm of humanity and mortality. Indeed, he found what he was seeking. He also found the taan, trained and bred them and promised them to lead them into victory against the people of Loerem.

Not surprisingly, the four local races don't go along with each other in perfect harmony. Although their leaders once met to share the elemental power of the Sovereign Stone, an ancient artifact the human king received from the gods themselves, they are at odds with one another nowadays and a war is slowly going to be prepared, threatening to claims its victims on a global scale.

In the beginning of the game, the players hardly know anything about the big picture, if at all. They have to pick the pieces and put them together, one by one. Basically, their prime directive is to overcome the local peoples' animosities and to unite them against the common threat. While doing so, they will reveal numerous connections between the past and the present.

Rule Set

Sovereign Stone deploys a well-known mechanism for its skill system: it combines a character's attributes, the natural talent, with his or her skill, that is, the training and learning in the respective field of expertise. Unlike other systems, however, it does not modify a static bonus or the amount of dice being cast for experienced characters, but rather the die type, ranging from a d4 for apprentices to a d20 for grand masters. Consequently, a grand master might roll as low as an apprentice does, but has a chance to achieve feats a beginner simply does not have. All in all, the system is convenient, quick and efficient, based on a realistic, yet practical set of rules.