Singing The Blues

Recapping the first session of our Smurfs RPG mini-campaign - based on the classic Dungeons and Dragons Module B3 Palace of of Silver Princess - our party of Smurf adventurers walked the path to the Western Lands Beyond and got to know each other a little better.

Session One, Part 2:

We open with the party leaving Smurfy Grove, home of the Smurf Girls, where Smurfhoneysuckle and Smurfcornflower picked up some extra supplies and other things they thought the group might need for its trip to the Kingdom of Haven in the Lands Beyond. Afterwards they walked for some time before the day wore on and the Sun started to go down, coloring the land in shadows and the hues of twilight.

The group decided to set up camp with simple tents and plans to cook dinner. Brash decided he would start the fire and Smurfhoneysuckle said to let her do it as she'd probably do it better. Suave Smurf diplomatically stepped in to get them to work together, though they still tried to outdo each other in the cooking prep. Honeysuckle had some ingredients from her Barn, while  Smurfcornflower helped with some herbs and spices from her Ingredients pouch. Apathy wasn't really hungry so he made sure the tents were sturdy. 

The team ended up making a vegetable soup and discussing the adventure ahead. After some much needed camaraderie and laughter, the group went to sleep. The party members traded watch duties like any typical D&D group but with Honeysuckle reluctant to switch with the next Smurf to prove she could stay awake and sharp longer than Brash had.

The next day, the party found out their path lead them  to a Human made road. As they continued along their journey, Honeysuckle joked about singing a travel song to make them go faster; the idea being that the act of singing such a song actually accelerates you through time. Without further preamble, Cornflower started humming and then suddenly broke into singing*...

"Smurfy Road,

Smurf me home,

To the Cursed Lands,

Where I belong.

Mushroom Village,

Smurfy Grove,

Smurf me home,

Smurfy Road."

Out of knowwhere, as the group walked between hills on the left and a dense forest to the right, a half dozen Growlers jumped the PCs, likely attracted by Cornflower's offkey singing.

Growlers are hairy, blue-black 'monkey-goblins' who have plaqued the Forbidden Forest of the Cursed Lands for a very long time and can be found in other deep forested areas as well. 

Growlers of the Northwestern Woods

Suave Smurf stepped forward to reason with these uncouth creatures only to discover the Growlers don't speak and aren't quite as intelligent as Smurfs, though clearly smarter than animals. Apathy suggested a plan might help but Brash declared that "Plans are for wimps!" and dove right into the gang of Growlers, knocking some over and startling the rest. Unfortunately he ended up completely surrounded by the angry beasties. 

Honeysuckle shouts, "If he can do that, I can knock'em all down!", and leaps into the fray too, tackling at least four of the creatures. Cornflower rolls her eyes, steps back and searches her bag of potions. Meanwhile, one of the Growlers holds Brash down and tries to pound him with his fist but Apathy grabs the critter's wrist. The Growler turns to look at him and growls loudly in Apathy's face, causing him to let go, stumble backwards, and land on his butt. 

"OK fine. Whatever", grunts Apathy. 

"Found it!", exclaims Cornflower as she holds up a bubbling hot pink potion. 

"Oh Smurf! Everybody get clear!," Honeysuckle yells as she dives behind a rock. All the PCs roll Quick to jump away from the Growlers. Everyone makes it, though Apathy rolls exactly what he needed, indicating a Success with a Complication. Smurfcornflower hurls her Boom Juice bottle and it shatters on the ground amid the Growlers, resulting in a fuchsia explosion that threw them all a good dozen apples away in all directions, their fur steaming with pinkish smoke. Dazed and sniffing themselves, the Growlers run for it, disappearing into the woods. 

Everyone pats Cornflower on the back or shoulder, congratulating her on her great move. All but Apathy, who approaches sniffing at himself. "Hey, does any Smurf smell..",Apathy begins but before he can finish the rest of the group backs away from him holding their noses. 

"By Smurf my good Smurf! What is that atrocious stench? It is as if Smurfberries went sour and were then set ablaze!", cried Suave Smurf, putting a silk hankerchief over his face. Apathy looked very cross and Cornflower very embarrased. 

"Sorry Apathy and...well...everyone. My Boom Juice Potion sometimes has side effects. At least you didn't turn pink. That can happen do to the inclusion of...", Smurfcornflower gives a nervous smile, looks at her feet, and rubs the back of her neck. "Again, really sorry Apathy."

While Apathy might have still been annoyed, he appeared nonplussed. He told her it was fine and the group got back on track with their mission. The Growlers popped up a few more times, each time in greater numbers, yet our heroes managed to always stay ahead of them and eventually escaped their territory.

The party walked for another full day and a half before hitching a ride on the backs of a small group of wild boar. Dropping off of the boars' on a rise overlooking the valley beyond, the team could see the ruined front gate of the Palace of the Silver Princess in the distance. The was somehow bathed in a dull red glow and at the same time it seemed to emanate from within. The party proceeded with caution, even Brash, though he'd describe it as 'confidence rather than 'caution'...

Rain clouds rolled in. The sky darkened and a cold wind picked up. Before long a full on storm seemed to be upon them, making walked down the rain-soaked hill extremely difficult. Brash, Cornflower, and Suave slipped and tumbled down to a muddy trail, while Honeysuckle darted after them. Apathy continued steadily at a failed casual pace, neither hurrying nor slowing. When they all got together, Apathy noticed a hollow log that might serve as a shelter from the downpour. 

"Excellent!," exclaimed Suave, "I must change into something clean and dry. It just won't do to continue on in these filthy clothes. It just won't do I say!"

Waiting out the storm in their impromptu shelter, Cornflower and Honeysuckle passed around bowls of leftover [and cold] vegetable soup and Smurfberry Dry Biscuits**. All sat quietly, eating and listening to the rain, save Suave who was busy changing in a tree stump right next to the log.

That's when Brash heard a strange hissing squeak and the snap of a twig. He reached for a mossy rock and ran to the opening of the log, startling everyone. He than swung the green stone just in time to have it connect with the noise of a massive rat! The huge rodent reared back in pain before letting out a snarl.  It recovered quickly, staring at Brash with glowing red eyes and diving at him. For a brief moment everyone else froze, then Honeysuckle's eyes darted around frantically for a stone or something else to throw. Apathy looked to Cornflower and said sharply, "You have another potion, yes?"

Cornflower was startled back into the present, nodded, and reached into her potion sack. She pulled out a bottle with a slimy, milky, gray liquid. Cornflower held the potion up and shook it a bit, "I've got this! It's Web Water!" Apathy gave her a blank look with tired eyes and one raised eyebrow. "It's really sticky", she offered with a shrug. 

"Good enough", said Apathy. He called out to Honeysuckle and grabbed the Web Water flask. "Throw this." He tossed it to her, she caught it, and as she wound up for the throw she saw Brash go flying by, tossed like a ragdoll by the raging beast. Apathy rushed forward to distract the rat and used his Smurf Power, a Smurfberry, and Effort! Taking her que, Honeysuckle waited until the foul creature snapped at Apathy and then chucked the potion also using her Smurf Power, a Smurfberry, and Effort! 

SPLORCH! 

The bottle shattered and thick, quickly hardening webs spread from wall to wall and rodent to floor. Its head was still free and nashing chaotically but the creature itself was otherwise immobile. Honeysuckle and Apathy quickly made rope out of some roots and vines. Cornflower saw to Brash's injuries. Just then, they heard a noise behind them and everybody spun expecting trouble. Instead, Suave Smurf stepped into the log from the other end that was up again the tree stomp where he'd been changing. "What in the smurf is all the commotion?!" When he looked at the trapped beast and wounded Brash he gulped and whispered, "Oh. So I see."

As it turned out, Suave had not been dressing all this time. Nor had he been idle. The interior of the tree stomp was odd, with some clues that lead Suave to think someone had been there before him. As he looked through some disgarded cloth of a most unusual nature, he found a green whistle made of leaves and lacquered wood. He showed it to his friends as he explained where he'd found it. 

Brash reached out to it and asked if he could see it. Suave handed it to him and Brash turned it every which way as if searching it for some secret wisdom. Then, being Brash Smurf, he blew the whistle. The sound was like the wind blowing through the trees but higher, clearer, and it echoed within the log and somehow from without as well. It lingered, fading slowly. All the Smurfs were silent and remained motionless for a few seconds. It was Cornflower that broke the moment by pointing towards the rat and saying, "Hey, look at that..." The rat no longer had red eyes and it seemed so much calmer. "I wonder if..."

Before Smurfcornflower could finish her thought, the rain outside seemed to ease up considerably and the late day sun shimmered off of the remaining water droplets. A green light came into view, getting closer and brighter as it seemed to float down towards them from above. Honeysuckle rolled up her sleeves and very carefully cut the webbing where it was driest and most brittle. Freed from its sticky bindings, the creature ran into the woods as fast as it could. Not a heartbeat later, the green light landed several feet in front of the opening of the hollow log. Looking to each other for support, the party of Smurfs walked out of their shelter to see what the emerald glow was all about. 

In doing so, they came face to face with three green fairies, The Protectors of Haven. 

End of Session One.

To be continued...

AD

Barking Alien

*Yes, I did come up with and sing that song impromptu during the game. Obviously it's a parody of 'Take Me Home, Country Roads', the 1971 Country/Folk classic by John Denver. Thing is, I love that sound but I am by no means a great singer. Or even a good one. Or even a singer. I used to but only for fun and long ago. 

Heather on the other hand...

After the game was over and it was just Andrew, her, and me left on Discord, Heather asked me to sing it again. I did and towards the later half she joined in. Then she sang. She, unlike myself, is an amazing singer. Her voice...WOW. I was like, "What the heck? Are you a 'ringer'?A professional singer or something? Am I gaming with Reba McEntire and no one told me?"

**Smurfberry Dry Biscuits were invented by Heather and are essentially Smurf hardtack. If you've never seen the Youtube Channel Tasting History - first, you are missing out - you might not have seen the episode on Hardtack and the re-occurring gag where it pops up in other videos. I highly recommend checking out the channel if you are interested in Food and History. Very useful for learning about what different people ate in various places at points throughout history. Great for world-building.

Blue Smurf Group

Before I get any further into how the first session of The Smurfs and The Palace of the Silver Princess went, I'd like to introduce the cast:

We (all the players and the GM) met up online a day before the first session to create our characters; a sort of Session 0. Most of us already had an idea of what we wanted to play, though I made one fellow change his mind (Heheh). 

Character Creation is very easy and quick in Smurfs, even going mostly rules-as-written as Stephen wanted. There were some tiny tweaks here and there and a few concessions/decisions needed for PCs with unusual abilities (like my character's Potion Making). 

In addition, we were each allowed to come up with one starting Room in our Mushroom Cottages (the Smurfhouses I've discussed in prior Smurf and Base posts). 

Left to Right: Smurfhoneysuckle, Brash Smurf, Apathy Smurf, Smurfcornflower, Suave Smurf. 

Apathy Smurf (played by Andrew) 

I actually created Apathy Smurf as a background gag NPC in one of my earliest Smurf RPG runs. Andrew thought the idea was so funny he asked if he could write him up and play him and I said of course! He was amazing!

Apathy Smurf couldn't care less. He just isn't that interested in what you're doing and can't be bothered to put on his shoes to join you. Eventually you might get him to come with you on an adventure by pointing out that he really has nothing better to do. 

Andrew's portrayal is hilarious. There is a nuanced sense of melancholy and ennui to Andrew's version of the character that I didn't expect but very much appreciate 

Apathy is noticeably shorter than a typical Smurf, with a face that says 'I don't care' and 'I'm tired of this' simultaneously. He wears a short sleeve shirt, short pants, a standard Smurf [Phrygian] cap, and often goes barefoot (Andrew says it's because he can't be bothered to put his shoes on or remember where he put them).

This fellow's special Advantage is to reduce the Difficulty Level of an action or situation by audibly, verbally dismissing the obstacle as uninteresting, unimportant, or irrelevant. 

His starting signature item of Equipment is a pillow, which he usually sits on when bored (which is often) or places behind his head when leaning on trees, walls, etc. 

Apathy's Smurfhouse has An Old Couch +2 where he can rest before or after an adventure. It's worn out and most find it hard to get comfortable on it but Apathy doesn't seem to mind the lumpiness.

Apathy Smurf and his Smurfhouse

Brash Smurf (played by Brandon)

Don't worry about potential threats or dangers on our journey; Brash Smurf sure doesn't! He is the first one in and the last one out and never the one to make or follow a plan. Brash is brave, bold, more than a little reckless, and perhaps not the sharpest smurf in the smurf shed. He means well though, that's undeniable.  

In some ways Brash is the least peculiar and most traditionally Smurfy of the PCs and that was exactly what Brandon intended. He wanted what he saw as a 'Classic' Smurf. At the same time, Brash is distinct because Brandon portrays him with gusto and is focused on keeping the game exciting and constantly moving forward. 

Brash has a long sleeve shirt, pants that end above the ankles, a distinctive red 'cape' tied around his neck, and red shoes. He often has a determined look in his eyes and a smirk on his lips.

This character's Advantage is to decrease the Difficulty Level of a challenge by charging in head first without a plan (or by ignoring the one presented) or by (at the very least) by going first. Brash is the 'Leeroy Jenkins' of Smurfs.

Brash's starting piece of Equipment is his Cape, which he can use in a variety of ways such as carrying things in it, waving it as a distraction, or using it to block water, wind, or dust. 

Brash Smurf's Smurfhouse has an indoor Obstacle Course +2 which can temporarily improve his ability to overcome troublesome terrain, scale walls, or jump a chasm (and other similar hindrances). 

Brash Smurf and his Smurfhouse

Smurfcornflower (played by me!)

Smurfcornflower, or just Cornflower, is a Smurf Girl from Smurf Grove. She is very focused on the study of magical ingredients and the brewing of potions. She'd be happy to make some for you to take on your adventure if...what's that? You want her to come with you? Er...hmm. You think she'll be helpful in the field? Um, well gee, I don't know...who's going to dry the Mandrake Root and powder the Snail Shells? Besides, Smurfwillow might need my help. 

*Smurfhoneysuckle rolls her eyes and yanks Cornflower out of her Smurfhouse*

I had some much fun playing Smurfcornflower and I'll be honest, that's pretty amazing. I rarely play, prefering to GM. I practically never play a female character (for fear of not quite doing the role justice). It often takes a bit of time to get the charactetr's voice, literally and figuratively. This was a totally different experience: Got the mindset and voice right away. Love her design. Loved playing her. 

Cornflower is a Smurf Girl with oddly large hands and long fingers. She is a little shorter than normal height for a Smurfy Grove Smurf but has pretty bad posture which makes her seem even smaller. Her hair is a lighter, slightly aqua blue color than her Smurf blue skin. She wears a tan dress and often no hat, instead keeping her hair in a bushy pony tail. Cornflower has aqua blue eyes. 

Smurfcornflower's Advantage covers her skill at brewing potions. Her Difficulty Level in making a given potion is lowered by -1D6. The Advantage is also useful in finding the right ingredients for a given potion, as long as she knows what she's looking for. 

As far as Equipment, Cornflower is a special case. Her standard item is an Ingredients Pouch +2, that gives her a really good chance of having the component she needs. She also carries three Potions, each having only one use unless she spends a Mind Effort. Even then, she can't spend Mind Effort on a Potion noted as having the bottle emptied or thrown. Once all three are used, Cornflower needs to stop and spend time brewing three new ones. 

In the first session I declared that Smurfcornflower had:

Boom Juice (aka Potion of Bad Brewing): When a potion is brewed very poorly it has a chance of exploding. Cornflower realized she could make potions wrong on purpose to create a throwable bomb. It often has side effects if you are hit or even too close to the resulting explosion, such as turning your skin yellow with red pokadots or causing you to lose your voice.

Invisibility Potion: This potion can be poured over an object, Smurf, or other creature causing it to disappear from sight. The recipient is still there of course but it can not be seen for 3D6 moments. 

Web Water (aka Web Fluid): A gray, milky potion that is liquid until exposed to air. Once it touches the air it thickens and hardens, turning very sticky and gummy. It has several uses, the most basic of which is as a glue. It the container is shaken, the cork removed, and the container 'whipped' towards a solid object, a long and thick strand will come out forming a 'Web Rope'. The person holding the bottle can then swing on the web-like cord. Finally, the bottle can be thrown as a 'Web Bomb' that covers an area in gooey clumps and strands. Those caught are trapped like flies. (Spider-Smurf, Spider-Smurf, Does Whatever a Spider-Smurf can!)

Smurfcornflower's Smurfhouse has a Potions Room +2 with a [Smurf scale] medium-sized cauldron and firepit in the center of the room. There is a small alcove in the room with an open pantry, it's shelves covered in bottles, jars, and boxes of magical ingredients. 

Smurfcornflower and her Smurfhouse

Smurfhoneysuckle (played by Heather)

Honeysuckle wants to be the fastest, strongest, toughest Smurf, though there may be more to it than simply a strong sense of competitiveness. The only thing she won't try to compete with is potion brewing and spellcasting. She knows full well that she doesn't have any magical talent. This might be one of the reasons Smurfcornflower is her best friend; they're not in competition. Other than that she'll pretty much go for the gold when it comes to showing the world which Smurf is the most capable at, well, almost everything.   

Her life and job back in Smurf Grove is that of a rancher/cowgirl type. She has a small barn next to her Smurfhouse with 'Hen House' of small bird nests and a 'Stable' for riding Martens. As she is always carrying a Pail one has to wonder...what animal is she milking?

Heather (Smurfhoneysuckle's Player) and I hit it off pretty much immediately and it didn't take long for us to determine that Honeysuckle and Cornflower weren't just friends but the very best of friends. Heather is full of surprises; a native of the Southern Mid-West of the USA, she naturally has a regional accent that is fairly light usual. When speaking as the farmgirl/tomboy Honeysuckle she cranks the accent up to 11. She's positive, funny, and she can sing! (More on that in the next post). Apparently, the character is based on tales her grandmother told her about her mother as a youth. There is something about this that gives this Smurf PC another layer and I am here to find out what that is.

Smurfhoneysuckle is a little taller than average for a Smurf Girl from Smurfy Grove, with platinum blonde-white hair, blue eyes, a red and black checkered flannel shirt, cotton blue jeans, and dark brown leather boots. She wears a traditional Smurf cap as well as a white apron. 

Honeysuckle has an Advantage that Stephen allowed for giving the very specific parameters regarding its use. When competing against another Smurf, Smurfhoneysuckle can add a +2 to either her Brawn or Quick stat as is appropriate to the challenge. Usually you would pick only a single Stat capable of receiving a bonus. Here, Shephen allowed this PC to Brawn or Quick because of the limitations in her use of the Advantage:

The Advantage only works in response to another Smurf's actions; i.e. Honeysuckle can only take an action with a bonus after another Smurf has taken an action. Smurfhoneysuckle must perform [essentially] the same feat as the Smurf she's trying to best. 

Honeysuckle can also get the Advantage bonus if she challenges another Smurf to compete with her and the other Smurf accepts. 

The Advantage can't be used to do things she can not physically do, such as breathe underwater or fly for example. However, if Scuba Smurf goes underwater in his scuba gear, Honeysuckle can attempt to hold her breath (Brawn) in order to swim submerged as long as Scuba Smurf can. 

Based on her nature, Honeysuckle often attempts to challenge and/or compete with non-Smurfs and so far she still gets her Advantage but at only +1, indicating she doesn't care as much about besting non-Smurfs. Once again, she can't use it to do exactly what her rival is doing if said rival is using a special ability she does not possess. 

Her equipment is a Pail+2 that she always carries around. It is can be used in several ways, most notably carrying items in it, using it to boost a Smurf's height (like stepping up on a box), and wacking someone upside the head with it. 

Honeysuckle's Smurfhouse is located right next to a Smurf Barn. The Barn +2 is her special 'room', enabling her to obtain food supplies before a journey, like Eggs, Grain, and Milk. 

Smurfhoneysuckle and her Smurfhouse and Barn

Suave Smurf (played by René) 

This guy. I mean seriously, THIS GUY! My sides still hurt from laughing. 

Suave Smurf is dashing, debonair, charming, and of course impeccably dressed. 

His manners, his sense of chivalry, it's all so that people will think highly of him. That doesn't mean he isn't truly a sophisticated individual but he is definitely in it for the optics. It would appear Suave owe alot of his charm and 'proper behaviour' to his item of Equipment, a Book of Etiquette (See below). 

So far this character is the most comical of the bunch, played almost totally for laughs by a very charming fellow in his own right named René. Like myself, he is a Smurf fan since before seeing the 1980s cartoon. This is because René was born in Belgium and is of French descent. Funny enough, his family moved to the US just before 1980 and therefore saw the same Smurfs cartoon we [here in the States] did at the same time. René's comedic timing is naturally impeccable and he had some of the best lines and moments in the game.

Suave Smurf is slightly taller than most Smurf's, though it is unclear if that is natural or the result of his perfect posture and having thick soles on the bottom of his Smurf shoes. He dresses in white ruffled shirts like those common in the mid-16th to 17th centuries and his pants and shoes are usually black. He changes clothes fairly often, though keeping the same style the details vary. He has a black Phrygian cap but several others as well as likes to wear different ones for different occasions. He has a small tuft of white hair grown from the top of his forehead 'Charlie Brown' style. 

The special Advantage of Suave Smurf is to reduce the Difficulty Level of swaying another's opinion or outlook by -1D6 simply by speaking with them like two (or more in some cases) civilized men of the world. He is extremely charming and convincing. The Advantage is limited to beings that can converse of course and he must face off against the other individual's convictions. A Knight sworn to an oath is must harder to sway than a Mercenary who doesn't like his employer for example. 

Now, Suave Equipment item is very interesting and different; he carries a Book of Etiquette +2 that gives him the protocols for dealing with a wide range of situations. Having dinner with a Witch from the Lands Beyond the River to the Sea? Here's some things to say and some to avoid. Negotiating trade with a Western Ogre? Never show fear and lie if you have to. They appreciate that you'll go that far to make the trade.

Now here's the really cool part - the book is in excellent condition but not 'perfect condition'. It is extremely old and some of the writing on the cover has faded. Suave doesn't know who wrote it and apparently neither does Papa Smurf! It is a very thick tome, Smurf sized, and written so Smurfs would understand it but no Smurf Suave has ever met is familiar with it. It's origin is quite the mystery. 

As far as his Smurfhouse, Suave lives in a 'fancy' Mushroom Cottage, almost a townhouse, and his special room is his Wardrobe +2. It's a walk in clost filled with all manner of ruffled shirts, pants, stylish hats, shiny shoes, and other articles of clothing to ensure Suave Smurf is almost properly dressed for the occasion, whatever it might be. 

Suave Smurf and his Smurfhouse

Well, that's our party. Pretty interesting group, huh? Next up, a recap of the first session of the adventure itself. 

Smurf you then,

AD

Barking Alien

Something Borrowed, Something Blue

I am so smurfed I can barely smurf myself! I got to smurf the Smurf RPG as a Smurf!

What? Why are you confused? It's simple...

I am part of a private Discord Channel dedicated to the SMURFS tabletop RPG and this past Saturday I got the chance to play as a Player in a game run by one of my fellow group members, the great Stephen R. (I think you're great Stephen. That's what's important). I've run the game a number of times now but this is the first time I've gotten to play my own character (I also helped one of the others create their character and kind of inspired the name of another. I helped!). 

The adventure may be somewhat familiar to some of you...heheh.

Inspired by the Dungeons and Dragons Module B3 Palace of the Silver Princess, the tale has been seriously reworked for use as a Smurfs adventure and so far its a blast. Literally in the case of my character. 

The original module has a fascinating history, with its original printing in 1980 being recalled and all copies disposed of (I kid you not). The second version came out in 1981, the same year as the Smurfs Animated Series, which is one of the reasons Stephen chose it for this mini-campaign. 

Another factor that drew Stephen to this adventure is that its leans more towards a Fairy Tale in the flavor of its setting and narrative and not D&D's typical Sword and Sorcery vibe. It is therefore much easier to adapt and modify to the world of the Smurfs than 'Slave Pits of the Undercity' or 'Tomb of Horrors' might be. 

Finally, unlike many modules from back in the early days of the hobby, Palace of the Silver Princess has a distinct story. It's less of a sandbox and more an adventure designed to tell the tale of a fallen kingdom, a magic curse, and a trapped princess. 

Session One, Part 1:

Our first session opened with a narration by Storyteller Smurf (the GM that is):

'Once upon a time, in a place known as 'The Cursed Lands', there lived tiny, blue people known as the Smurfs.

Late one cold night in early Spring, Papa Smurf awoke in a fright..."

Papa Smurf immediately runs downstairs and throws open the front door of his cottage. He shouts, "My Smurfs! My Smurfs! Come quickly please!"

Within three hoots of an owl the entire village is standing in front of Papa Smurf's house, all whispering and murmuring and wondering what's going on.

"Are you alright Papa Smurf?", asks Smurfette.

"Is it Gargamel?", questions Hefty, crackling his knuckles.

"Now, now everyone", Brainy begins, "I'm sure Papa Smurf has a reasonable explanation for calling us here in the middle of the night. As Papa Smurf always says..."; before he can finish Papa Smurf clears his throat loudly and says...

"I had an awful nightmare...no, a vision! I must ask, did any of you have bad dreams tonight? Did you see images of Green Fairies, a Red Eye, or a White Dragon?"

A hush fell over the gathering at that moment before three hands went up - one quickly, one politely, and one reluctantly. Papa Smurf requested those three Smurfs step forward and so they did: Brash Smurf, Suave Smurf, and Apathy Smurf.

"Hmm. I expected two more...but this will do for now". With this, Handy walked over and gave Papa Smurf a box to stand on so he could address everyone even more clearly. 

"In the Land Beyond to the West of the us, there was once a kingdom called Haven. It was ruled by Princess Argenta of the Silver Hair. The Silver Princess was kind and wise and beloved not only by her people but the Dwarfs of Thundertop Mountain and Fairy Protectors of Haven Woods. 

One day, a handsome young man with golden hair and black armor flew down on a White Dragon. He courted the Silver Princess who quickly fell in love with him and the two planned to wed. 

On the day of the wedding, the Dwarfs of Thundertop gave Argenta a gift to show their adoration for her and their hope for her happiness. They called it 'The Lady's Heart'; a ruby sphere as big as plum. Moved by their kindness, she expected."

"WOW! What a story!", said Brash Smurf aloud. "This the first I've ever never heard of Haven."

"I must say dear Smurf, I have not heard of it either. This Silver Princess sounds most delightful and charming to be sure", whispered Suave Smurf.

"So...is that it? Can we go back to sleep?", Apathy asked under his breath, trying to stiffle a yawn. 

Papa Smurf fixed them with a glare before continuing. "Moments after saying their vows, the Silver Princess and Dragon Rider Knight - along with everyone else in the Kingdom of Haven - were engulfed in a brilliant red flash! Each and every person, animal, and being present at the time...vanished!"

The crowd of shifted nervously and gave each other frightened looks.

"That was ten years ago apparently. I have learned from my vision, my dreadful dream, that the people of Haven are still there, trapped in a magic curse. The Green Fairy Protectors continue to watch over the valley where Haven resides and have told me a great evil has been building within the Palace of the Silver Princess. It will be released soon unless those destined adventurers with heroic hearts can free the Kingdom."

After a few heartbeats, Apathy, Brash, and Suave realized all the other Smurfs were looking at them. 

"Who...us?!?", blurted Apathy.

"YES! Of course us!", exclaimed Brash, slapping Apathy on the back and nearly knocking him over.

Suave spoke up next, tossing back his head and flashing a debanoir smile. "Dare I say, a smashing idea! I'll need a few days to figure out what to wear and prepare a speech for when I meet this Silver Princess."

"No, you must go tomorrow at first light! Time is of the essence my little Smurfs!"

As if on que, the gathering of Smurfs heard the foot falls and tail swish of an approaching Marten, with two Smurf Girls from Smurfy Grove riding on its back. Dismounting and thanking the creature, they walked up to Papa Smurf. One nodded firmly, while the other did a clumsy curtsey.

"Papa Smurf! Papa Smurf! Smurfwillow done sent us here. She had a vision tonight and the two of us had strange and scary dreams", said one of the Smurf Grove Girls. She was dressed in a red checkered shirt and blue cotton pants. Her friend had a tan dress and looked uneasy. "Oh dang, sorry, where are my manners...?"

"Where indeed?", whispered Suave Smurf disapprovingly.

"I'm Smurfhoneysuckle and this here's Smurfcornflower. Smurfwillow said ya'all'd know what this was all about."

"Of course! You two were the others in my vision! Now the quest to save Haven, and perhaps all of us, can truly begin?", exclaimed Papa Smurf.

Smurfcornflower raised an eyebrow. "Save what now?"

The next morning our five 'Chosen' Smurfs met at the North Western edge of Smurf Village, along with Papa Smurf, Brainy, and Smurfeffe. They stood together near a secret path through the Sarsaparilla Fields that would eventually lead to the Land Beyond.

The group chatted a bit, trying to get to know each other better and discuss this fantastic situation. Each had pouches and backpacks filled with travel and camping essentials. They all planned to stop off at Smurfy Grove so Honeysuckle and Cornflower could pick up a few things from home, as well as get extra food for the journey.

They were given a map by Brainy that gave the quickiest and safest route to Haven. Papa Smurf warned of dangers they might face, from difficult terrain to strange beasts. Smurfette gave them each a hug (except Suave, to whom she gave a curtsey as he in turn bowed to her). 

"Good luck my little Smurfs", said Papa Smurf, "Safe travels."

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Barking Alien

Talk A Blue Streak

Over the past few months I've had the opportunity to run the Smurfs a number of times and I have some thoughts.

In order to understand some of the ideas my friends and I have for [possibly] improving play, allow me to go over some of the game's rule mechanics. The objective here is to provide a point of reference for rules discussions and not to give you all the RPG's particulars. We're just going for a 'working knowledge'. 

Effort, Smurfberries, Smurf Power, and Thorns

The game has a number of different in-game currencies.

First and perhaps foremost is Effort, with one pool of Effort points for each of your stats - Brawn, Heart, Mind, and Quick. By spending a point of Effort, a Smurf PC can reduce the Difficulty Level of an Action Roll related to the connected Stat by -1D6. If you are desperate to lift a large tree branch off your friend and the Storyteller says its Difficulty Level 3, you would normally roll 3D6 and try to get under your Brawn. However, you could spend 1 point of Brawn Effort and reduce the Difficulty to 2D6.

Smurfberries are next - PCs starting out with 1 Smurfberry and gaining one more when they use Smurf Power. They can also be awarded by the Gamemaster for particularly clever moves or great role play. My players have likened them to Bennies from Savage Worlds.

By spending a Smurfberry the player can add a one-time +1 to one of their Stats for the purpose of an Action Roll. An expenditure of three Smurfberries will return a spent point of Effort to its active pool. The Effort point can be restored to ones self or you can restore one to a fellow PC. 

This got us wondering about other possible uses for Smurfberries. We'll get back to this later.

Smurf Power is one of the most awesome and interesting elements of this system but also the one that led me to wonder if the rules regarding it need some kind of modification. 

Smurf Power begins Active at the onset of every session and becomes Inactive once used. It remains Inactive until either the Smurf PC's Player rolls all 6s - even if rolling just a single d6 (Hmm...OK) - or the session ends and the another session starts. As noted, Smurf Power always starts out as Active at the beginning of a session.

When you use your PC's Smurf Power you switch out one of the action's Difficulty Dice for a special Smurf Power Die. The number on the die doesn't matter and I am honestly not sure if you roll it or not. In the custom dice set there is a larger die with white and red Smurf symbols so I am thinking you do roll it. The important thing is that if the total roll succeeds it Critically Succeeds and if it fails it Critically Fails. 

When a player uses their PC's Smurf Power the Gamemaster gets the last of our currencies, Thorns.

Thorns are points that are given to the GM when a player/PC initiates their Smurf Power that has a few different uses. Most notably, your Storyteller can add 1D6 to the Difficulty Level of a situation, obstacle, or opponent. Another, and my favorite by far, is to activate the Advantage of a foe. Like Smurfs, enemies have a special Advantage but they require a Thorn to be spent to use them (remeber this - it's key). Finally, a Thorn can be spent to remove a piece of Equipment from play, though only if the PC fails or partially succeeds on an Action Roll using that item. The Equipment need not be destroyed permenantly but rather temporarily lost (swept down river, dropped into a ravine, snatched by a raven, etc.). 

Now for some questions, opinions, and potential houserules my friends and I thought up. Here goes...

Smurfberries and Thorns

One Smurfberry gives the PC a +1 to a Stat for the purpose of a single Action Roll. Three Smurfberries can return a point of spent Effort to themselves or to another.

What if you could spend two to give your ally a +1 and/or it costs three to regain an Effort point for yourself but only two to aid someone else? Now, in each case, imagine that when performing these actions you give the GM a Thorn.

Why? Well that partially goes into my issues with Thorns.

The Gamemaster just doesn't get enough of them. The Storyteller only receives a Thorn when a PC uses Smurf Power but what if you're playing with only two or three players/PCs for a four hour game. In that case, as I have experienced now a few times, I rarely get more than one Thorn per session. Considering the fact that Thorns are needed to activate a foe's special Advantage, well, the table doesn't see that happen much. In fact, if there are only two PCs, two Thorns is the most I could possibly have in four hours. 

Smurf Power Alternative

Smurf Power is such a cool idea; the PC gets to decide on a gamble that might earn them a Critical Success or inflict upon them a Critical Failure. I love that. The thing is, you're already expending the ability and giving the GM a Thorn. Why then do you roll it to see if you actually get the effect or not? Based on standard odds, you have a 2 in 6 chance of the Smurf Power Die coming up with a Crit (a 1 or a 6 let's say). 

Instead, my group and I have been using an alternate method:

Once a player expends their Smurf Power (going from Active to Inactive), they roll the total number of Difficulty Dice - no die switched out and no special die included - and if it succeeds it Critically Succeeds and if it fails it Critically Fails. Nice and simple, more direct, and to the point. Basically, once you use your Smurf Power it is in effect for the next roll and that's that. It seems much Smurfier this way. 

So what will I do with the special Smurf Power Crit Die when it arrives? Not sure. I am considering an option where the player can choose to include it in addition to his Difficulty Dice and count a White or Red Smurf Emblem as a Super Smurfy Crit! There's a catch though...the Storyteller gets two Thorns! *Gargamel laugh*

As far as gaining your Smurf Power back...I would say rolling all 6s makes sense but not on a 1D6 roll. For one thing, while there are certainly occasions where the player might roll a single D6 Difficulty, it's rare that I would require one. If your Smurf can reduce the Difficulty down to 1D6 they really shouldn't need to roll. The exception would be if your Smurf is especially bad at the Action in question and has a Stat of only 2 or 3.

Another reason is that there are very few things in the game that are Difficulty Level 1. Again, not none but its really uncommon and it seems odd that you'd regain something as great as Smurf Power just by performing an especially simple and easy task. 

There you have it. The focus is mainly on simplifying things and finding a way to give the GM more Thorns to work with. 

I do have one more Smurf post on my mind but not sure beyond that.

Smurf you soon!

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Barking Alien

The Month of Living Again

February is over and March is here, 'The Month of Living Again'. 

March represents, from a certain perspective, the road to renewal following the cold, dark months of Winter. The phrase itself embodies the promise of Spring and the idea that rebirth and a fresh start are on the horizon. 

What? It's the 11th already?!? F*@%!

*sigh*

I can't pinpoint the exact reason why but I am struggling to blog lately. I have a ton of thoughts and ideas on a variety of subjects but I am not enthusiastic about any of them to put them to post 

About the only gaming subject I am actively excited about is my take on the Smurfs RPG. The thing is, I am not so blinded by my personal preferences that I don't realize how niche this game is. While it may be the only thing I want to write about, I know very few of you out there have any interest in reading about it*. 

That's fine. More for me. 

Where does that leave the blog though?

Damned if I know. More likely then not you're gonna see some Smurf posts anyway as that's just what's on my mind. Maybe accompanied by the occasional usual unusual mix of Star Trek,  Ghostbusters, Supers, and Japanese TRPGs. Just know it's going to continue to be irregular for a while until I can sort out whatever this tabletop RPG malaise is that I'm experiencing. 

Fingers crossed that it passes quickly.

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Barking Alien