Using the Ruined in your Game July 9, 2016 11:56 3 Comments

 As promised in the previous blog, the NPC stat blocks for the Ruined division of the Ashen Angels can be found below. These units were incredibly fun to design, not only because the aesthetic concept is something I greatly enjoy, but also because the way I imagine the Ruined fighting is something I haven’t seen a lot of in my Tephra games. I’d like to go over the inspiration and uses for these units before we get to the stat blocks.

When I first wrote up notes for the Ruined, I thought of them as knights. I wanted enemies that rarely touch the ground and charge at their opponents with devastating swords and jetpack gliders. Something that I feel has been missing in my Tephra games was a sense of three-dimensional combat, especially when fighting in the skies. I aimed for foes that would help create that feeling. The Ruined Knights fly by clanker mostly, favoring fast-paced charges to lash at their targets. Their battle style is mostly reactive, and they will simply charge at the most recent person to hit them.

The Ruined Bombers came second, and I didn’t want another NPC that simply shot a rifle or pistol. These are a group of extremists after all, and their tactics should be extreme. So I gave the Bombers (what else?) bombs. These units prefer to keep their distance in a heated battle, raining down destruction from up high. Ranged characters will have an easier time dealing with these foes, but that should not dissuade melee fighters from thinking up something creative. When it comes to fighting the Ruined, it pays off to go big.

The motivations of the Ruined are the same as the rest of the Ashen Angels; they fight to end the farishtaa oppression on their elven brethren. When including the Ruined in your sagas, it’s a good idea to expand on that exposition to give your players a sense of moral choice. Here we have extremists from an organization with a cause that some would deem noble, and yet their methods are incredibly violent and destructive. If you have players playing farishtaa or elf characters, make use of their prejudice for a more immersive experience.

And now, without further ado:

 

Ruined Knight AP: 3 PAR: 1

Elf Terrorist
HP: 25 Wnds: 12 Pri: +3 Spd: 30 ft (land), 60 ft (flying)
Brute +10 Cunning +0 Dexterity +5 Spirit +5 Sciences +0

Guard


Armored Flight Suit - medium leather armor
Eva: -1 Def: +3
Soak:  3  |  6  |  9  |  12

Actions

2 AP
Fallen Blade - heavy metal weapon
Stk: +5
Damage:  9  |  18  |  27  |  36
Note: Roll 2d12 for accuracy, ignoring bonuses and penalties.

2 AP
Aggressive Recoil (reflexive)
In response to being damaged from an attack, the Ruined Knight can make 1 move and 1 unaltered attack with its Fallen Blade against the person who damaged the knight.

 

Ruined Bomber AP: 3 PAR: 1

Elf Terrorist
HP: 20 Wnds: 12 Pri: +3 Spd: 30 ft (land), 60 ft (flying)
Brute +2 Cunning +5 Dexterity +10 Spirit +3 Sciences +0

Guard


Armored Flight Suit - medium leather armor
Eva: -1 Def: +3
Soak:  3  |  6  |  9  |  12

Actions

2 AP
Explosive Launcher - heavy metal weapon
Acc: +5 Range: 50 ft Radius: 10 ft
Damage:  20
Notes: If the accuracy roll misses a target, the explosive is fired to the nearest space that avoids the target. This may be chosen or rolled for using modified blind lobbing rules. (Give each potential square an assigned number on a 12-sided die.)
Targets may spend 1 AP reflexively  to resist the explosion with a Dexterity roll. Every tier above Tier 1 reduces the damage by 10.
Targets that fail to resist this explosive are pushed back from the center by 10 feet.
Explosive Augments: Collision-Detonated, Extended Blast Mq2, Knock Back Mq2

1 AP
Target Lock
The Ruined Bomber takes aim at their next target, gaining +3 to accuracy for the next attack.

 

Ruined Jetpack Glider (Clanker)

Wounds: 24
Evade: +1 (when evading an attack on the Glider)
Lose 5 ft of speed for every 5 damage dealt. Destroyed if brought to 0.
Augments: Flying, Efficient Movement Mq1, Improved Construction Mq1
Using a found Jetpack Glider requires a tier 2 Sciences roll.

 

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy using the Ruined in your games, and if you’re a player I hope you enjoy fighting or befriending them. Give us your feedback in the comments below and let us know how your Ruined games go. Until next time, Cheers and Gears!