Designer’s Notes: A funny thing happened on the way to the Shaolin monastery

 Designer’s Notes:  A funny thing happened on the way to the Shaolin monastery

 

The three electronauts meet in secret but no longer in privacy = one among them, the last to arrive, does so astride a majestic robotic flying horse that squawks, plays music and seemingly farts glitter and rainbows;  the mage themself has a shaved head and an elaborate tracery pattern inked into his skull

These are members of the electric college.   They seem quaint and somewhat hard to believe, but they are in fact quite successful illusionists who use a fusion of cybernetics, technology, psychology, neural hacks, and actual illusion magic to foster a sense of wonder in the mundanes around them. (This is their stated purpose and calling – the kindling of wonder)

So understand their larger than life personas are quite intentional and very deliberate. It is part and parcel of their calling as much as it is a badge and manifestation of their Art.

They are one of the greatest forces for good within the Imperium today.

 

 

Galaxy Black II Magic, metaphysics, and psychic powers should be out by the time you see this.   While it incorporates several new spells and magical traditions (as above) the major thrust of the work is the introduction of a variant magic system for psychic powers in DCC (two of them actually, one plays nicer with DCC as written)

 Several of the disciplines in Galaxy Black have a scattering of details given for the monastery where it is easiest to learn such a thing.  Why was this done? Several fold.   The credo of DCC is Quest For It and in the Collapsing Universe it is no different.  I envision most starting and low level psions, in-character having a list of places they would like to go and train, rather like the characters in a martial arts film[1].   But like everything else in the game it’s a story hook, a neat thing to dangle in front of the PCs or Always keep them moving.   Like any destination in galaxy black there are bound to be complications on arrival – some worlds may regard their disciplines as ancient cultural practices and expect you – and those with you – to demonstrate courage (or whatever they value on that planet), others will be literal monasteries and you may be waiting at the foot of the mountain before they have room for you or find you worthy.  Some may be more like universities or secret training academies a la Traveller’s Psionics Institutes.  No two should really be much alike save for advocating the practice of one or more psychic disciplines.  Part of the flavor of the psychic material in Galaxy Black is a deliberate callback to old Shaw Brothers films, modern Wuxia, and everything in between.  

 The assumed default “voyaging” style of game play that I think most people will take to works best when you have a destination in mind and don’t’ mind the time it takes to get there. And it may take some time……

 

  Remember in Galaxy Black, every voyage should be long and weird, and often an adventure unto itself.  The destination will always have unforeseen complications. Often very awkward or unpleasant ones.   Travel between the stars is fraught with peril and not for the timid.  Each voyage should be memorable for some reason.  Each destination even more so. No one should ever think of a world they have visited as simply a stream of numbers and letters in an index somewhere.  They should befuddle, amuse, frustrate, and challenge.  Always,

Some good examples extrapolated from actual play 

“The trip from High Arcturus to Goth, where half the crew died, and we had to journey into the underworld to get their souls back…while in transit. I remember that. My confiscator has to eat a non-replicated pomegranate once a year or they will rot from the inside.    But I don’t show up on life sensors now if I don’t want to.”

 Or

“Yasmin? That’s the planet that turned everyone permanently yellow right?“

“The apparent luster of semi-pearlescent amber jade.” 

“So yeah yellow….”

“I guess that was the favorite colour of the High Patriarch when they ripped us apart atom by atom and rebuilt us to “cure us of infection.”  But yes to summarize, yes we all got turned an identical shade of bright yellow.  Inside and out.”  

 

"If you can't take a little bloody nose, maybe you ought to go back home and crawl under your bed. It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's not for the timid."

-         Q

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[1] Which reinforces the DCCness of it all. In universe, people journey to these exotic psychic academies and monestaries and train for decades to learn the one discipline.  A PC breezes in and in weeks or months picks up this one also.   Leveled characters, i.e. the PCs, should stand out as being implicitly larger than life.