Game Creation Part 2

On my last post, I have ended with two aspects for my Eberron game: The Next War and the Doom that is to Come. I had a bit of a think about these aspects and I think The Next War, although evocative in the setting, would be a bit challenging for me to invoke and compel. Warmongers and general evil doers would invoke it when they are going to make moves that would break the tenuous peace in Khorvaire, but are the PCs, heroic as they are, going to be comfortable in invoking such as aspect? I suppose given the noir characteristic of Eberron, it is not entirely against the grain.

I want to replace it with another aspect, I suppose, and would put Lingering Shadows of the Last War in its place. Given the current level of distrust among the populace, I think this would be more evocative, and easier to invoke and compel. So now I've decided to have my game aspects to be Lingering Shadows of the Last War and The Doom that is to Come.

Moving on: Fate Core suggests drilling down and writing down aspects of the environment, as well as determine some NPCs. For my first game, I would like to focus on a nation among the Five Nations of Khorvaire. There's Aundair, home of the the Royal Eyes, noted mages and archers; Breland, the default home base of adventurers and the location of Sharn, the greatest city in the continent, if not the world; Thrane, and its clerics and witch hunters; and Karrnath, with its military tradition and undead armies. Cyre and the Mournland is not exactly "playable" now since the default setting has it destroyed four years ago, so will deal with fleshing it out in the future should the players want to explore it. Breland (and Sharn) would be an obvious choice, but I find that it does not encompass the adventures I have in mind yet. So I settled with Aundair: the presence of the Royal Eyes makes for a great espionage-focused game.

The Fate Core game creation sheet has spaces for 6 places and/or people, so I'll limit it to those for my first Fate game. Looking at the Eberron Campaign Guide for DnD 4E, there are a lot of faces, places, and organizations to choose from:

Arcanix (city) - floating castle and home of the Arcane Congress
> Gate of Xabra (artifact) - magical teleportation device to different planes of existence
Arcane Congress (organization) - premier magic institution in Khorvaire
> Starspeaks Observatory (place) - newly acquired observatory to study the stars
Knights Arcane (organization) - military knightly order of Aundair
> Lord Darro ir'Lien (person) - its leader; wants to mount a military campaign against the Eldeen Reaches
Queen Aurala ir'Wynarn (person) - ruler of Aundair
> Sasik d'Vadalis, her consort, and was a member of House Vadalis
> Adal ir'Wynarn, her brother and the current Minister of Magic
Thaliost (city) - Thrane-held former holding; every Aundarian wants it back!
Fairhaven (city) - capital of Aundair
> University of Wynarn (school) - premier institution of learning; school of diverse students
> Fairhold (place) - location of the royal residences and other nation's embassies
Passage (city) - trade city to the West
> House Orien (organization) - dragonmark of passage (courier and travel)
Stormhome (city) - island playground for the rich
Towers of Aundair (places) - magical border fortifications
Whisper Rock (artifact) - monolith that corrupts everything around it in the Whisper Woods
Royal Eyes (organization) - one of two intelligence and espionage organizations in Khorvaire
> "The Royal Eyes are watching" - popular saying
> Thuel Racannoch (person) - Spy Master
> Tower of the Eyes (place) - headquarters in Fairhaven
Eldeen Reaches (place) - former holding; now independent; Aundarians think the Reachers are traitors

So I have Lingering Shadows of the Last War and the Doom that is to Come as game aspects; which of the setting materials above would be appropriate for my first 6 places / faces? Lord Darro would fit the Lingering Shadows, as is the Royal Eyes. I would also put in the Eldeen Reaches as another Lingering Shadow. I put two setting elements under the Doom, for completion sake: Whisper Rock, and cultists of unknown cult (for lack of a better, mysterious term). Last, I put in Fairhaven as a hotbed of intrigue and as a base of the PCs' operations. So the six setting aspects / issues I have are:

1. Lord Darro of the Knights Arcane - wants to reclaim the Eldeen Reaches
2. The Royal Eyes of Aundair - for Queen and Country
3. Fairhaven - hotbed of intrigue
4. Eldeen Reaches - former territory now independent
5. Whisper Rock - corrupting influence has to be dealt with, soon
6. Cultists - doing unimaginable rituals

Next post, I discuss my overall concept for a campaign in Eberron.