Scion, Companion VI The World at War
Scion, Companion VI The World at War
Scion, Companion VI The World at War
at war
Part six
Normandy. June 6, 1944: O-Dark-Hundred
There wasn’t much of a wall between Lt. Sam Washington and the German machine-
gun to begin with, and the rounds were rapidly chewing it up in pluming red sprays
of brick dust. Somewhere in the dark, a cannon boomed loudly enough to bounce the
pebbles near Washington’s hand. It was the noise of the war that got to men, he knew.
There was no way to explain it, no way to really simulate it in training. It split the
sky, rattled a man’s teeth in his head, and rumbled his guts into water. Some soldiers
shot themselves in the foot or the hand—or even the head—just to get away from it.
Washington wasn’t one of those. He had a mission.
Uncle Sam himself had briefed him, pointing his finger right at the lieutenant’s heart
and saying “I want you to find Marie and guard the Shield.” Cryptic old bastard—and
as if there weren’t already enough to do on D-Day. But Washington wasn’t about to
disappoint his patron.
The lieutenant had lost his equipment satchel in his jump from the C-47, and now
he had exactly ten bullets and one grenade. But he did still have his standard-issue
cigarettes—all four packs—so he cupped his hand to shield his lighter while the Germans
continued to waste their ammo. Two puffs later, he let fly with his grenade, flicking it up
in a blind toss over the wall. One more puff, a loud bang, and the shooting stopped.
Unfortunately, the grenade had ripped up the machinegun just as much as it had the
soldiers, so Washington sprinted past them to take cover behind a wrecked half-track.
The tank was still fifty yards ahead, parked amidst a cloud of grey-clad soldiers hustling
in and out of an old abbey. All around, howitzers, grenades, bombs and rifles thundered
so loudly that they made the night air seem as thick as water.
He dashed in, keeping the abbey between him and the panzer. But by the time he
hopped the low stone fence into the overgrown abbey grounds, he could hear the tank
shift into gear and speed away with the troopers falling in after it. Still, there was some
kind of commotion within, so he raised his machine gun to shoulder level and kicked in
the abbey’s back door.
Washington put three rounds into the first Nazi’s back and three more into the other’s
chest. They seemed to be the only ones there, except for the young woman they had cor-
nered. Pretty, was his first thought. That was about all the time he could spare for think-
ing, because the soldiers he had just riddled with bullets were doing a lousy job of dying.
One on the floor swung his rifle around, but the girl produced a pistol and shot him in
the head. The other jumped Washington, howling and snapping at his throat. Washington
noticed the teeth right away: they were pointy and glittering, like miniature, gnarled
icicles. With his face shoved so close, Washington could now also see that the Nazi’s hair,
eyes and eyebrows were powdered white, as though coated with hoarfrost.
Creating some space with a swift kick, the lieutenant put another two rounds into his
enemy at point blank, which only seemed to make him angry. So he put another three
rounds in, and then another two, and four more after that. Finally, the Nazi lay still and
Washington looked at his Thompson, wondering how he hadn’t run out of ammo when
he’d started with a third of a clip.
“I gave you bullets so you could continue shooting,” the girl answered his unspoken ques-
tion in a thin French accent. Washington knew what she meant: she was a Scion, too.
“Neat trick,” he said. “You must be Marie?”
“Oui. And you are Lieutenant Samuel Washington of the one-oh-one?” She pronounced
each syllable deliberately. “I have been told to expect your help.”
Washington realized that he had lost his cigarette, so he pulled another from his pack.
The girl eyed it desperately, so he shook out one more and flicked it to her.
“What’s all this about a shield?” he asked as he held out his lighter.
“The shield belonged to Jeanne d’Arc.” She took a long, deep drag and blew the smoke
out with her words. “They have it now, in their tank. They are taking it to Loki, for the
Axis War. You were too late to help.”
“Listen, lady, don’t be an ingrate.” He slung one of the German rifles over his shoul-
der and began pilfering ammunition from the dead soldiers. “We’re here to save your
country, you know.”
“Just as we saved yours in, when was it? 1776?”
“I don’t need a history lesson from you.”
“No, perhaps just a lesson in manners.” She blew smoke through a haughty smile.
“You want another smoke? Ever?” He glared at her until the smirk faded from her
lips. When it did, he tossed her a full, unopened cigarette pack. “There’s a good girl. Now,
how about you tell me the story on our friends here.” He nudged one of the fallen sol-
diers, whose hair and teeth were melting into little puddles on the wooden floorboards.
“They make them,” Marie said with a shudder of abhorrence. “Some kind of serum—I
don’t fully understand.”
“I’d hate to fight an army of these guys,” Washington admitted.
“This is only one experiment. They are doing many unholy things. And this shield is
important. But they now have it.”
Washington looked at her for a long moment. His cigarette’s cherry slowly ate away at
the tobacco while the sounds of war raged on in the distance.
“That’s good enough for me,” Washington finally said, tossing her the other rifle and
heading out the front door. “Let’s go get that shield back.”
The History of the Real War
World War Two was every bit as momentous and World at least through the early 1920s, and this widespread
fateful an episode for the Overworld as it was for the association with mortals inevitably resulted in Scions being
World. The Gods, who refer to the conflict as the “Axis born in unprecedented numbers. It was these Scions who
War,” now look back on it as a catastrophic blunder. would serve on the front lines in the Axis War to come.
t It was a time of massive destruction and widespread Scions were not the only thing to be born out of the
peril, when large numbers of Scions were called upon to First World War. The legends of many new nationalistic
h prove themselves through courage, action and sacrifice. Gods had coalesced and expanded during these times.
e Whatever may have been true about right and wrong, Some were Scions turned folk heroes turned divinities,
victor and vanquished, Fate made one adamant decree but others apparently sprang into being on their own,
w for these years: these were to be interesting times. apparently crafted from mortal imagination. The old Gods
o greeted the arrival of these new pantheons with perfect
r Will There Be disinterest—all except for Loki. Loki alone conjectured
l a Test On This? that if the collective subconscious of mortals could truly
bend Fate far enough to fabricate Gods, then perhaps
d If you’re feeling a little apprehensive about Fate could ultimately be controlled by influencing the
adding a historical setting to your game, hearts and minds of mortals. In short, though mortals
a we offer this simple advice: don’t sweat the had power to write in the book of Fate, the Gods might
t details. Nobody’s going to test you on facts, yet dictate the story. It was a radical theory, but Loki
you don’t need to memorize any dates and managed to convince the rest of the Aesir that they might
your high school history teacher isn’t going avoid Ragnarök by vowing to support this experiment.
w to grade your character’s back-story. For most Loki thought he had selected the perfect cat’s-paw in
a groups of players, the fun will come from Adolf Hitler, a fanatic adept at inspiring fanaticism in
r establishing the feeling of the war rather than others. The trickster god arranged for Hitler to acquire
from maintaining strict historical accuracy— Odin’s spear Gungnir, which he presented as the Spear of
and it’ll be a lot easier that way, too. Destiny. With this artifact, Hitler was able to Fatebind an
By the same token, this section is not ever-growing circle of supporters, revitalize his country’s
meant to deliver an accurate representation economy and restore Germany’s national pride. Around
of the historical war. World War Two is a the world, men and women standing in the unemployment
vast subject which has been the focus of lines of the Great Depression read splashy headlines about
thousands of books, and there are simply Nazi Germany’s labor shortages and booming industries.
not enough pages here to do justice to the Even as Jews, Gypsies, Communists and homosexuals
real-life triumphs, catastrophes, heroics and began fleeing Nazi persecution, other people from many
horrors of the war. Furthermore, this section nations developed sympathies for the new Reich.
presents an alternate history—that is, history Loki was pleased with Hitler’s rise to power and his
viewed through the lens of mythology. Just as preparation for war, but he, like the other Gods and most
when playing in a modern setting, Scion in of the mortal world, remained ignorant of the true extent of
the context of World War Two diverges from the Führer’s genocidal intentions. The Gods can be callous,
“real life” as we know it to follow the epic but not even Loki would have condoned the Holocaust.
tradition, complete with heroes who perform However, in the years that followed, all the Gods were too
amazing deeds, villains with supernatural distracted by their own battles and had no reason to suspect
powers and pointy-toothed monsters that that such horrors were taking place. Furthermore, Hitler’s
would happily munch on any of the above. use of Gungnir to drastically change the mortal world caused
him to remain largely veiled from the view of the Gods by a
denser and more tangled skein of Fate than had been spun
before. After the war, when the secret of the Holocaust was
Storm Clouds Gather laid bare for Gods and mortals alike, this would prove to be
As above, so below: the seeds of World War Two were the greatest shame of the Axis pantheons.
sown in the scorched ground left by World War One. While the Norse pantheon was developing the “Ultimate
Whether out of concern for their people or property or Reich,” the Dodekatheon was also being marshaled towards
a simple zeal for fighting, the Gods became extensively imperialism, albeit under blatantly false pretenses. Caligula,
embroiled in mortal affairs during the so-called “War to a lesser God and former Roman emperor, sought to do
202 End All Wars.” Most divinities remained active in the as an immortal what he failed to accomplish as a mortal:
reclaim and expand the glory of the Roman Empire.
Caligula managed to seize control of the Dodekatheon by
placing Zeus into a deep slumber and then impersonating
the King of Olympus. However, the pretender proved to
be an ineffective leader. The other Olympians obeyed his
commands out of respect for Zeus, but few were inspired
to strive on behalf of his ambitions. Thus, this ordinarily
august company spent most of the war years on the defensive
before finally breaking apart in dissention.
The Amatsukami were far more unified in their
t
ambitions than the Dodekatheon and even more advanced h
in their war plans than the Aesir. In 1937, when the Japanese e
invaded China, ambassadors from the Celestial Bureaucracy
traveled to the court of Amaterasu to request that she exert h
her influence with the imperial family to withdraw troops. i
The sun goddess spurned their request and sent Hachiman
and an army of Overworld soldiers to storm the Celestial
s
Bureaucracy’s Axis Mundi and scatter the Jade Emperor’s t
disorganized and unprepared court. This was a shocking show o
of aggression; it was virtually unheard of for one pantheon to r
seize another’s Axis Mundi and capture space within a foreign y
Godrealm, but it was to set the tone for the war to come.
As the Aesir, Dodekatheon, and Amatsukami began
to militarize, they found that they shared many of the
o
same enemies. In 1940, the same year that the German, f
Italian and Japanese governments became the “Axis” by
signing the Tripartite Pact, the three aggressive pantheons t
also agreed to work together—or at least to stay out of each h
other’s way. The stage was now set for the war to come. e
The Conflagration R
Spreads e
Gods and mortals alike call this war World War Two,
but denizens of the Overworld refer to it as the Axis a
War. This latter name is less in reference to the axis of l
aggressive pantheons and more to the Gods’ war strategies
for capturing or destroying other pantheons’ Axes Mundi. w
Following the example set by Hachiman in China, the
three Axis pantheons initiated a campaign of invading
a
other Godrealms through the Axes Mundi connection r
points in the World. Even without Titans residing in the
spaces between realms, it was simply easier to transport
large numbers of celestial troops through these connection
points than through the Overworld. However, this often
required that invading armies first capture areas in the
World surrounding the connection points. Thus, while
the Gods remained heavily pre-occupied with their war
in the heavens, they used their Scions to influence the
actions of various armies on Earth to gain access to enemy
Godrealms, deny the enemy access to their own or cut
off enemy forces that had already passed through. This
manipulation explains some of the seeming blunders
made by mortal generals on both sides: often, an all-out
assault costing the lives of thousands of soldiers to claim a
location with no apparent strategic value was really part of
a larger strategy to take a critical Axis Mundi. 203
Axis War Timeline in Brief
1922: Mussolini becomes prime minister; Caligula supplants Zeus
1925: Hitler acquires Gungnir
1933: Hitler elected Chancellor of Germany
1937: Japan invades China; Amaterasu spurns the Celestial Bureaucracy
t 1939: Germany invades Poland; Aesir conquer existing Russian Gods
h
1940: Tripartite Pact signed, Germany overruns Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, and
e France; Aesir subjugate several pantheons, including the French
204
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the Aesir, but their losses were tremendous and Rodina Mat the attack on Pearl Harbor and the simultaneous razing of an o
privately considered surrender on numerous occasions. Axis Mundi connection point for a guest realm given by (or f
Amaterasu also directed her pantheon to subjugate the extracted from, depending on whom you ask) the Hawaiian
assorted pantheons associated with the pacific islands. The goddess Uli. Amatsukami had already decreed that no for-
vision of both Emperor Hirohito and Amaterasu was the eign pantheons could have Axis Mundi connections within t
“Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere,” which was to be a her empire, and this attack now declared that she believed h
united and self-sufficient Asian empire under Japanese control. her empire to stretch all the way to American shores. e
They reasoned that the subjugated countries and Godrealms The Yankees were quick to respond to the Amatsukami
would be more prosperous and harmonious if unified by their as well as their European counterparts. The vast industrial R
rule, just as Japan was more prosperous and harmonious system of the United States, subdued for years by the Great
after it was unified under a single emperor. While the Nazis Depression, now jump-started itself into full war production.
e
claimed racial superiority, the Japanese claimed superior The Gods of the young nation did similarly, crafting new a
“spiritual purity,” and this conquest was to be the means by engines of divine warfare and new strategies to redefine the l
which they spread their pure culture. It would also eventually conflict. Soon, they were pushing back the Amatsukami ad-
allow them to establish new Axes Mundi connection points to vance, capturing one island after another. At the same time, w
Takamagahara throughout all of Asia. they brought critically needed troops, supplies and weapons a
To sustain their pace of conquest, the Axis Pantheons need- to the European front, effectively rescuing the British pan-
theon from an uncertain fate and taking the pressure off the
r
ed an unending supply of new weapons and new troops. All
three pantheons scoured the earth to retrieve Birthrights, claim much beleaguered Russians. The Yankee arrival in the war
or convert Scions, and enlist the monsters who lived hidden promised neither a speedy resolution nor certain victory, but
from mortal eyes. But the most drastic move came when the it undoubtedly tipped the scales away from the Axis for the
Underworld Gods—Hel, Hades and Izanami—began opening first time since the war began.
the Titans’ prison to recruit from among the titanspawn. They Early on, the British and Yankee pantheons pushed
were selective in their efforts, carefully choosing only those that their way into Italy, following their mortal troops. After rela-
they thought could act as mindless weapons. Although it would tively short but intense fighting, the Allies managed to oust
be decades before the Titans burst their bonds, the death Gods Mussolini and claim the Omphalos Stone (Scion: God, p.
today cannot shake the nagging guilt that opening Tartarus, 136) to serve as a gateway to Olympus. Rather than storm
however briefly, may have been what enabled their primordial the mountain, however, the invaders camped at its base and
enemies to discover the means to free themselves. shelled it night and day, then blasted it with wave after wave
of bombers before going back to shelling. This rattled the
The Turning Point Dodekatheon, and many laid down their arms. Some retreat-
The Gods of the Yankee pantheon had been more or less ed deep within Olympus or out into the World, unable to
content to stay out of the war, which seemed distant and un- openly oppose the one they believed to be Zeus, but also un-
related to their immediate needs. Everything changed with willing to fight any longer in a war that they never believed in. 205
Only Ares and Quirinus continued to man the defenses, and
it is because of their fierce resistance that the Dodekatheon
The Aftermath
Arguably, no event since the coming of mortals has shaped
was able to throw back every attempt to take Olympus itself. the future as much as World War Two. Nearly every deity from
Olympus would remain under siege until the end of the war, nearly every pantheon was involved in some way, and every
when Zeus returned to revoke all of Caligula’s decrees. With one of them felt that each step they took was necessary and
the British and the Yankees harassing the Aesir from two wise as they took it. But in the end, when the Gods turned to
sides, the Russians were able to get back on their feet. Much look back on the path they had followed, they were shocked
of the Gods’ fighting on the eastern front took place in the to see the carnage and destruction they had left behind. The
World, amidst some of the bloodiest battles in mortal history. Gods may be callous, but they are not (generally) evil, and
t Baba Yaga used her magic to ensure that the winter of 1943 for a time many worked to set things right with humanity,
h to 1944 was one of the coldest on record, with temperatures ushering in an age of prosperity for as many as they could.
e plummeting as low as -30 degrees Fahrenheit. The harsh win- At the end of the war, the Axis pantheons were left with
ter was bad for the defenders, but even worse for the invad- much to rebuild. Apollo discovered Zeus and roused him from
w ers, and the Aesir began to fear that too many mortals might his slumber. The Dodekatheon, united once more, banished
be reminded of Fimbulwinter and that these thoughts might
o Fatebind the Aesir to exactly what they were trying to avoid.
Quirinus and cast Caligula into Tartarus with the Titans. The
r On June 6, 1944, the mortal and divine troops stormed
Amatsukami abandoned their warlike tendencies but not their
warrior traditions, and turned their attentions to reclaiming the
l into France in the largest invasion since the war to bind harmony and refinement they had lost during the war years. In
d the Titans. The Gods of the French pantheon, who had their shame, the Aesir sought to punish the perpetrators of the
been working diligently to undermine the Aesir occupa- Holocaust as best they could. Hel took special care to ensure
a tion from within, were now free to resume open warfare. that the shades of conspirators such as Auschwitz guards and
t Slowly, the lines of battle pressed closer to Berlin, and one Nazi high commanders received the worst her realm could offer.
by one the Allies recaptured their own Axes Mundi. In However, Hitler’s shade never appeared for her or any of the
April of 1945, the Soviet Gods stormed into Asgard, loot- other Underworld Gods. With Hitler’s death verifiable only by
w ing many of the great halls and smashing the Rainbow the testimony of his closest retainers, the events of his last days
a Bridge when they were unable to put it to their own use. would spin off limitless conspiracy theories, but the strands
r It was then that Loki bowed to Odin’s wishes and released of Fate were woven around him too thickly for even the most
the Norse pantheon from their vows to fight. powerful mystics and prophets to discern the truth. Some of
In the Pacific, the Amatsukami seemed set to fight the Gods speculate that Hitler must have been a Scion, though
simply for the honor of selling back each captured Axis no God ever openly claimed him. Even Loki, who sired such
Mundi as dearly as possible. But when the Yankees horrors as the Midgard Serpent and the Fenris Wolf, would be
brought forth the Poison Sun—the atomic bomb—Amat- ashamed of having fathered a monster like Hitler.
erasu saw that this was a weapon capable of eradicating As to the Aesir experiment in the workings of Fate,
each and every one of her Axis Mundi connection points Loki himself admits that it failed abjectly. Did Fate’s de-
in short order, not to mention obliterating the very cul- crees remain in place because the Axis lost, or did the Axis
ture she sought to propagate. She had no choice but to lose because it was Fate’s decree? No one will ever know,
surrender. For the first time, mortals had created a weap- and the cost of the experiment was far too high for any
on so powerful as to be feared by the Gods themselves. God to ever consider attempting it again.
Tyr Vidar
Description: Tyr wears the uniform of an infantry Description: The God of vengeance has found
general, medals on his chest and mud on his boots. the perfect role as master of the swift counter-
After a foray into a Godrealm, Tyr stays to organize attack. Vidar has been quick to utilize the new
the occupational forces within the captured territory, weapons of war, particularly tanks, rail guns and
t and sees to it that the treatment of conquered Gods is mobile artillery. Enemies often gain ground only to
h neither too harsh nor too lenient. He and the forces find that they have been cut off from the rear and
e he commands are also responsible for establishing the are now surrounded by Vidar’s advance. Vidar is
front lines of defense against counter attacks. particularly active against the Soviet Gods, where
w Tyr’s Scions tend to be the first ones into new his icy determination matches their cold and
territory and the last ones to leave. They have set stubborn resistance.
o
up the regional administrations within France Vidar’s Scions are very much drawn to panzer
r and other conquered nations, and hunt for spies, divisions. Powerful weapons, thick armor and rapid
l resistance cells and the underground railroads used movement make their tank groups among the most
d to transport escaped Allied prisoners and downed feared fighting forces in the world.
airmen back to safe territory. Tyr’s children tend Rivals: Njord, Loki; Dionysus, Tsuki-Yomi
a to be patient, self sacrificing and determined to Enemies: Baba Yaga, The Citizen, John Henry,
t support the cause. Rodina Mat, Uncle Sam
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The Amatsukami
Originally, the Emperor and the Gods of Japan wished
only to be left in peace, but foreign powers would not allow
it. Uncultured outsiders sold dishonorable weapons to
Hachiman
Description: As the God of samurai and protector of
ambitious daimyos, forced their way into closed harbors with the influential Minamoto warrior clan, Hachiman is in his t
gunboat diplomacy and finally placed a stranglehold on oil element. His brazen tactics in the invasion of the Celestial h
through trade sanctions. This exploitation has been even more
pronounced elsewhere in Asia, though not every nation is
Bureaucracy serve as the model for nearly all Overworld wars e
to follow. Hachiman now fights to honor Amaterasu and the
wise enough to see it or powerful enough to stop it. Therefore, Emperor, and to prove that his nation must never be trifled
the Japanese Empire will drive out the foreign devils, brutally with. The oil embargos placed upon Japan have limited his A
conquer all countries that resist Imperial rule and enforce ability to experiment with new types of fighting vehicles, but m
Japanese standards of culture and prosperity on all subjugated few are as adept as Hachiman at taking advantage of terrain a
peoples. This is to be their gift to all of East Asia. or at inspiring fearlessness in infantrymen. t
Amaterasu regrets the necessity of this war, but she also Of all the Amatsukami, Hachiman has the greatest s
truly believes that it is the only way to re-establish harmony number of Scions active. These serve in every branch of the
within her lands. She directs the broad strokes of the war,
u
military, acting as shock troops, machine gunners, artillery
though Hachiman and the other generals are expected to personnel, prison camp commanders and field officers.
k
take care of the details. They shield her from the more Hachiman’s Scions are especially adept at defense: although a
unpleasant aspects of the fighting, reporting to her only the the Yankees outnumber and outgun them, they intend to m
glories of battle and not the unpleasant means by which the take so many with them into death that the soft Americans i
war must be prosecuted. They assume that Amaterasu, in will lose their fighting spirit long before reaching Japan.
her wisdom, must know these details, but that it would be Rivals: Marishiten; Ares, Odin, Quirinus, Tyr
unbecoming to speak of such vulgarities in her presence. Enemies: John Bull, John Henry, Paul Bunyan
A smaller and traditionally more isolated pantheon,
the Amatsukami are widely underestimated by foreign
powers. Indeed, it seems they are not considered a pressing
Izanagi
Description: Izanagi is perhaps the only God who
threat even after their string of victories across the World. truly realizes the toll the war is taking on the people of
All that began to change with the attack on the Yankees Japan. Although combat has not yet come to Japan or
in Hawaii. Now, though hard pressed, many of the Takamagahara, Izanagi sees that the enemies are drawing
Amatsukami would be pleased to fight for nothing more the net ever tighter, and he hears the private mourning of
than to prove their formidability as warriors. all the families who have lost sons abroad. Stooped and
Amaterasu
Description: Giving orders from her throne room in
sad-eyed, Izanagi contributes to the war by overseeing the
production of weapons and the distribution of supplies.
Izanagi’s few Scions are now, as always, destined for
Takamagahara, Amaterasu believes that the world will one grief. They are the soldiers who see their platoons cut
day thank her for spreading her gifts to them. She also down or the mothers whose sons are missing at sea. Still,
maintains close communication with Emperor Hirohito, they also share an ability to put their grief aside when in
and the two discuss philosophical, military and cultural public and rise to meet the needs of the nation.
matters at length. Her greatest fear is that if the Yankees Rivals: Izanami; Dionysus, Freyr, Hades, Heimdall
cannot be stopped, they may sever her direct connection to
Enemies: Betsy Ross, Johnny Appleseed
the imperial family, which would hamper her efforts to serve
as the wellspring of inspiration and beauty for her nation.
The Scions of the sun goddess are often generals,
Izanami
Description: Izanami is generally preoccupied by the
politicians and priests. Many of them are ignorant of the
massive influx of spirits coming to her from the battlefields.
atrocities that are being committed in the name of the
Of the three Axis Gods of the Underworld, she is the most
Empire, and they would certainly punish the perpetrators
conservative in releasing titanspawn, generally choosing
if they found out. Of Amaterasu’s descendants who are
only those who will swear an oath to fight in the service of
directly involved in the fighting, they are invariably
Amaterasu and her generals. She then tests them in their
possessed of high rank or specialized skills.
resolve, subjecting them to great hardships and numerous
Rivals: Marishiten, Tsuki-yomi; Apollo, Caligula, tricks to assess their loyalty. Izanami’s Scions are often
Frigg, Loki embittered loners in important positions. They guard 211
Enemies: Britannia, Columbia, Uncle Sam
the POWs, count the dead or tend the dying. When she this reason, Raiden has been searching for pilots willing to
calls upon them for service, it is usually to look after the become a very different kind of “divine wind.”
monsters she has released. While some few prove to be very effective ground
Rivals: Izanagi; Hephaestus, Hera fighters, most of Raiden’s Scions are drawn to the speed
Enemies: Baba Yaga, Johnny Appleseed, Madame and freedom available only to fighter pilots. They travel
Guillotine, Rosie the Riveter with the Imperial Navy throughout the Pacific and
Marishiten
AKA: Marishisonten, Marishi,
with Raiden into the Overworld. In combat they fly in
disciplined, organized formations, but on the ground they
have a longstanding reputation for disorderly conduct,
t
h Marici, Molichitian picking fights and indulging in booze and women.
Description: Marishiten is a deity of light, mirages Rivals: Susano-o; Freya, Hermes, Thor
e and illusion, and is a defender in times of war. She is Enemies: John Henry, Pecos Bill, Rodina Mat,
often symbolized as the shimmer of hot air, and her Uncle Sam
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opponents find her as elusive and invisible as her symbol.
Warriors pray to her for protection against being seen by
the enemy. Her steed is a boar, and she may appear with
Susano-o
Description: Susano-o has believed from before the
anywhere from one to six faces (one of which may be attack on Hawaii that the war was doomed to failure, but
l that of a sow) and from two to twelve arms. this has not stopped him from performing his duty. As the
d Marishiten is not native to Japan and, to make matters master psychopomp and chief strategist, he found that he was
worse, she personally converted to Buddhism shortly after unable to develop a strategy for victory, so instead he gave
a being allowed to join the Amatsukami. For this reason, the Amaterasu the “best possible strategy” in which their superior
t other Gods of the pantheon feel that it is unbecoming to determination might achieve a stalemate with the Yankees.
associate with Marishiten too extensively, and she is not Although it is somewhat out of character for him to dress
allowed into Amaterasu’s court. Still, they find themselves neatly, he shows his dedication to the war by wearing a prim
w calling upon Marishiten’s talents again and again. She is Imperial Navy Admiral’s uniform, complete with polished
a a mighty warrior, yet does not rely on direct assault when shoes and a sword at his side. Even so, he relies on subordinates
r deception and misdirection might serve. She is an adept to suggest changing into more presentable garb whenever his
instructor of military strategy and combat arts, and above uniform becomes too waterlogged. He enjoys the feeling of the
all teaches her pupils that life itself is yet another illusion, Navy’s massively powerful battleships plying the ocean, and he
thus allowing them to release their fear of death. revels in the thunderous destruction of their mighty cannon.
Marishiten’s Scions make superb battle planners, Susano-o’s Scions are really best suited for service at
commandos and shadow warriors. Generally, her Scions sea, where they can use their Birthrights to great advantage
are detached from worldly rewards, seeking only to prefect in maritime warfare. They make excellent and courageous
themselves and their military art. As do the majority of sailors, although they have difficulty containing their
Japanese citizens, they practice both Buddhism and stormy emotions in the absence of action.
Shintoism, although the Scions of Marishiten frequently Rivals: Raiden; Njord, Quirinus
remove themselves on religious retreats and a high Enemies: Columbia, The Citizen, Paul Bunyan,
proportion retire into the Buddhist priesthood. Pecos Bill
Associated Powers: Epic Appearance, Epic Dexterity,
Animal (Boar), Darkness, Sun, Tsukumo-Gami
Abilities: Awareness, Empathy, Integrity, Larceny,
Tsuki-yomi
Description: Disgruntled and displeased to have
Fortitude, Stealth been ordered away from his studies, Tsuki-yomi is
Rivals: Amaterasu, Hachiman; Athena, Hel, Loki currently assigned to spend the war years as ambassador
Enemies: Br’er Rabbit, d’Artagnan, Robin Hood, to foreign pantheons. He moves through the World and
Rosie the Riveter the Overworld, spending as much time in the company
Raiden
Description: Raiden now eschews his traditional garb in
of enemies as allies. It was his idea which birthed the
pact between the Axis pantheons, but none of the other
Amatsukami seem willing to recognize his contributions.
favor of a modern flight suit. He has risen to the challenge of Most of Tsuki-yomi’s Scions feel out of place during this
the new possibility of mortal aerial combat, and personally war. They may have been drafted into the lower ranks of the
took steps to ensure that the Zero would be faster and more armed forces, or may follow the Imperial Army into war-torn
maneuverable than any fighter their enemies could put into areas as reporters, entertainers and civil engineers. Many also
the air. Raiden is particularly concerned with the defense serve as diplomats and ambassadors, and some few are ex-
of the Japanese homeland. He knows that it will take more patriots unable to return to Japan for the duration of the war.
to drive off their current enemies than the storm he used Rivals: Amaterasu; Artemis, Aphrodite, Vidar
212 to repel the Mongolian invaders several centuries ago. For Enemies: Betsy Ross, Johnny Appleseed, Marianne
The Dodekatheon
Shortly after the conclusion of World War One,
Caligula, with the help of Quirinus, distilled water
Aphrodite
Description: The Goddess of love was never really
from the river Lethe into a potion so potent that it
could even overpower the king of the Gods—at least
one to be found on the battlefront, but she has always t
for a time. Preparing Zeus’ wine with this concoction,
had an important role during war. She now wanders h
the battlefields of Europe, encouraging soldiers of both
Caligula then hid him away in a forgotten cell sides to tap into the tremendous emotions produced by
e
deep within Olympus and seized control of the the proximity of death. There is nothing that will inspire
Dodekatheon by impersonating their king. amour quite so rapidly as the imminent possibility of d
Once on the throne, Caligula made increasingly death, and these urges are compounded in soldiers o
unrealistic demands of his fellow Gods. He who are far away from home, travelling through exotic d
declared that the time had come to harness the new
Italian nationalism to re-establish the old Roman
lands and free from conventional social expectations. e
Caligula has ordered Aphrodite to keep the enemy
Empire. Ares, Caligula’s sidekick Quirinus and a forces distracted, but she is not likely to play favorites;
k
few others greeted this proclamation with vigorous if the Allies are finding the girls in occupied countries a
approval. The other Olympians, however, were more welcoming, it is only because they are coming in t
deeply hesitant, fearing that conflict would harm as liberators rather than conquerors. h
their interests in the wider mortal world. They do Aphrodite’s Scions can be found throughout the e
as ordered, but they rarely apply the creativity and
expertise for which they are so famous. Poseidon
world, working as USO entertainers, celebrities and o
prostitutes. Much to Caligula’s irritation, most of n
abandoned the effort altogether after Caligula Aphrodite’s Scions prefer to work for the country of
ridiculed him for early defeats to the Italian Navy, their birth, whichever that may be. However, those who
and many of the others are beginning to envy are more obedient to the Emperor have proven their
the sea god’s banishment as they grow to fear the worth as spies, able to charm their way into the most
unpredictable temper of their leader. secure facilities and coax information from the most
recalcitrant generals.
Roman Names Rivals: Hephaestus; Freya, Tsuki-yomi
Enemies: Betsy Ross, Britannia, Marianne
The old Gods of Rome and Greece have
not been formally worshiped in nearly two Apollo
millennia, but they have enjoyed wide Description: As a physician and artist, Apollo
reverence as symbols of historical, intellectual supports this war only because Caligula spun images of
and cultural significance. The Italians, who disseminating science and culture throughout the world
inhabit the heartland of the once mighty just as the Roman Empire once did. Now, Apollo is
Roman Empire, would more readily refer to having doubts, and is beginning to wonder what madness
the Gods by their Latin names: has taken hold of his father. When Apollo accompanies
Aphrodite Venus Ares on an attack, his chief role is that of healer, and he
insists on tending to the injured of both sides equally.
Ares Mars
When he can get away from his duties, he wanders the
Artemis Diana World, helping the suffering mortals as he can.
Athena Minerva Apollo’s Scions spend much of the war working to
mitigate the limitless tragedies all around them. They
Dionysus Bacchus might serve as field surgeons perpetually in conflict with
Hades Pluto their less merciful superiors, or as war correspondents
Hephaestus Vulcan fighting censorship. They can also be found as
politicians whose cooler heads did not avail, but who
Hera Juno are quietly awaiting the right time to build a consensus
Hermes Mercury for surrender.
Rivals: Hades, Caligula; Thor, Raiden, Vidar
Enemies: John Bull, John Henry, Madame
Guillotine 213
Ares fiercest enemies of her own. Still, as Goddess of war
Description: Along with Hera, Ares may be one of and the helper of heroes, she is heavily relied upon
the only members of the Dodekatheon who suspects by the Axis. Although she acquits herself well on the
that Zeus has been replaced. If he knows the truth, battlefields of the Overworld, she has also committed
Ares certainly has little reason to reveal it, since the several betrayals, slipping critical pieces of information
inconsistent leadership has allowed the war God to to the Allies. She hides her true actions in a dangerous
run amok. He has accompanied the Aesir on several of game of counter-intelligence and misinformation.
their raids and conducted attacks of his own on various Athena has Scions serving in the Italian army,
but she has also adopted children in Greece, France,
t pantheons connected with northern Africa. In particular,
England and the United States who are fighting against
he has frequently skirmished with the Presedjet, whose
h people and lands were once a very valuable tributary to the Axis. She tells the Dodekatheon that these other
e Rome. Lately, however, Allied pressure has forced Ares to Scions are disobedient, but in fact she actively organizes
fall back in defense of his home. When victorious, Ares them to minimize the long-term damage of this war as
w trumpets his success loudly. When defeated, he rails at much as possible. Many serve as soldiers, generals and
o the other Olympians for their lack of aggression. communications officers, although she also has Scions
working in Bletchley Park to crack the Enigma Code, and
r Ares’ Scions can be found throughout the Italian
others acting as spies and double agents in other ways.
l army. They are the commanders who motivate their
men through fear. They are also the stalwart soldiers About half are ultimately loyal to Italy, and something
d who hold the mountain passes, throwing back attack like ten percent are aware of the identities or activities
after attack from their machinegun nests. None of them of any of their siblings.
a will ever consider abandoning the struggle, and they do Rivals: Caligula, Ares, Quirinus, Hera; Loki,
t not hesitate to shoot their own compatriots for talk of Marishiten, Vidar
treason or surrender. Enemies: Baba Yaga, Br’er Rabbit, Madame
Guillotine, Rodina Mat
w Rivals: Apollo, Artemis, Athena; Hachiman, Odin
a Enemies: The Citizen, d’Artagnan, John Henry,
Paul Bunyan
Caligula
r AKA: Gaius Julius Caesar
Artemis Augustus Germanicus
Description: Although not officially banned from Description: Widely known for his cruelty,
Olympus, Artemis has been kept far away from Caligula, hedonism and sexual perversity, Caligula used his
no doubt because the Emperor fears her godly perception. position as Emperor to declare that Rome should
This exclusion suits Artemis just fine, as she is growing worship him as a God. Even before he ascended to
increasingly disgusted with the wars of men. When called Olympus, he had already developed a tendency to
to battle, she is usually ordered to contribute her skills as a impersonate various Gods at official functions, and
huntress in tracking down enemies or finding and recruiting eventually even took to signing legal documents with
legendary monsters. When she is not on duty, she takes on the name “Jupiter.” Considering this background, it
the role of protector of prostitutes, not so much because she is hardly surprising that he hatched the scheme to
relishes this profession, but because this is the only form of supplant Zeus. What is a surprise is how effectively he
livelihood left for many women in war-torn areas. has pulled it off—although his impersonation is about
Artemis’ Scions, though few in number, tend to the only thing at which Caligula is currently succeeding.
shift their roles throughout the war. Many serve as He has been reveling in the luxuries afforded to
red-cross nurses, military scouts and brothel madams. him as ruler of the Dodekatheon, while at the same
Whenever circumstance allows, they would rather be time issuing contradictory and impossible orders to
the ones picking up after a devastating attack than his subjects. He has reverted to all the questionable
causing the destruction. practices he enjoyed in his days as Emperor, which—
Rivals: Ares, Hera, Quirinus; Freyr, Loki, Raiden although not entirely out of keeping with Zeus’ past
behavior—has been raising eyebrows.
Enemies: Britannia, Rosie the Riveter, Uncle Sam
Caligula is seeking to replicate Italian fascism on
Athena Olympus and use it to re-establish the Roman Empire.
Description: Athena is deeply torn by this war What the conspirators do not seem to understand
through her intimate connections with so many enemy is that these authoritative commands and harsh
countries. As a Goddess of wisdom and justice, she punishments do not sit well with the Gods, who have
was actively involved in the creation of many of the always been strong individualists. Somehow, Caligula
modern constitutional democracies, and placed her manages to restrain himself just enough to avoid open
own daughters—Britannia, Columbia and Marianne—at revolt, but he has unquestionably generated more
214 the heads of pantheons who have now come to be the resentment than loyalty.
Caligula has scattered his Scions far and wide Although the Scions of Hades are few in number,
throughout the Mediterranean area. They frequently find they have managed to accumulate great amounts of
their way into politics, where they preach fanatic dedication wealth. They are the men and women who profit from
to the state while accepting bribes for their own ends. carnage, whether by looting the fallen soldiers, buying
They are the commanders who go too far in disciplining out war-torn properties at low prices or selling their
their soldiers, the priests who abuse their flocks and the services as morticians. This wealth never seems to make
defense contractors who line their pockets by supplying them happy, although their melancholia grants them
defective equipment to soldiers. Nearly all of his Scions little pity for the plights of others.
can be described as reckless, cruel and dangerous. Rivals: Apollo, Dionysus, Hera; Amaterasu, Hel
Associated Powers: Epic Appearance, Epic Enemies: d’Artagnan, Johnny Appleseed, John Henry
t
Manipulation, Arete, Chaos, Magic h
Abilities: Command, Integrity, Investigation, Hephaestus e
Larceny, Politics, Presence Description: Since the start of the war, Hephaestus
Rivals: Athena, Apollo, Hades; Amaterasu, Hera, has been the “guest” of the Aesir in Asgard. Hera d
grumbles that this is a polite way of calling him a
Odin, Marishiten
hostage, but in truth the God of the forge is key to
o
Enemies: Britannia, Columbia, Robin Hood,
the war effort. He has been working closely with the d
Marianne, Uncle Sam
dwarves to develop engines of destruction unlike any e
Dionysus the Overworld has seen. Thanks to his efforts, the Axis k
Description: Some might have assumed that has enjoyed technological superiority throughout nearly a
Dionysus’ festivities would be slowed by the war, but in the entire war. t
fact the revels have accelerated. He now plays host to The Scions of Hephaestus are weapon designers, h
a generation of young people who cannot assume they scientists and engineers. With their help, Germany
will be alive tomorrow, which means they are ready to and its allies have been able to dominate the battlefield
e
celebrate tonight. Like Aphrodite, Dionysus has orders through the superior range, speed and reliability of o
to keep the enemy distracted but does not truly play their weapons and vehicles. Hephaestus’ Scions tend n
favorites between the Axis and Allied soldiers. to be very removed from the implementation of these
As often as not, Dionysus’ Scions are from countries devices, and all too often they do not consider the moral
outside the Axis. They often operate recreational facilities, or ethical implications of their creations.
from big band dance halls to small-time gin joints and Rivals: Apollo; Heimdall, Izanagi
cabarets. Those who are drafted into some branch Enemies: The Citizen, Paul Bunyan, Rosie the Riveter
of service are likely to desert at the first opportunity,
although they never fail to help their fellow soldiers set Hera
up stills before they go. The children of Dionysus do serve Description: Like her son Ares, Hera may very well
one very important wartime function: the black market. know that Caligula has replaced Zeus, but so long as she
They are the men and women, both in and out uniform, can maintain plausible deniability she has too much to
who can provide anything from fresh eggs to hashish— gain from the arrangement. She is living the life of a
provided that the client can cough up the dough. pampered stateswoman, safe from the action while able
Rivals: Hades; Baldur, Susano-o, Vidar to enjoy the spoils of war. She would love nothing more
Enemies: Betsy Ross, The Citizen, Pecos Bill, than for her children to establish an Overworld Empire,
Rodina Mat and is not above manipulation and deceit to make sure
that their allies get less than a fair share of the conquests.
Hades Her primary role is that of diplomat, for which her skills
Description: After seeing his brother Poseidon so with manipulation and trickery combine well with her
harshly and unfairly criticized, Hades has decided to avoid jealous protection of her family’s interests.
Olympus as much as possible. This is perfectly acceptable, Her Scions are the political opportunists and the war
especially considering that Hera has insisted that Hades wives who stand to inherit greatly if their husbands fail to
release titanspawn for use in the war. Against his better return. More than that, Hera calls upon her children in
judgment, Hades agreed to this plan and now frees the the World to serve as spies and agents provocateurs, pulling
ancient horrors based on his assessment of their reason. strings within and between governments, manipulating
Those monsters with enough enlightened self-interest political debates and adjusting the flow of supplies and
to see the benefit of fighting for the Dodekatheon are soldiers to serve Hera’s immediate interests.
allowed out, though kept under strict supervision. Hades Rivals: Athena; Amaterasu, Freya, Loki, Odin,
is careful to avoid releasing any creatures that might be Tsuki-yomi
too intelligent, such as Prometheus, for fear that they Enemies: Betsy Ross, Br’er Rabbit, Britannia,
might outsmart their captors. Marianne, Rodina Mat 215
Hermes replaced by Athena and Hera, and he was thus relegated
Description: Hermes, traditionally the messenger, to obscurity even as the empire he co-founded rose to
now serves the Dodekatheon as spy and infiltrator. supremacy. He has been nursing his jealousy for more
These tasks he accomplishes with both finesse and glee, than two thousand years, and now, with Caligula serving
turning his natural trickster behavior into powerful as the face of the operation, he has devised a way to
intelligence-gathering gambits. But as much as he keeps restart his empire with himself at its helm.
an eye on his enemies, he keeps an even closer eye on Quirinus is a rugged and disciplined soldier, less
the other Axis powers, feeding information back to the prone to rage than Ares but no less courageous. He can
also be calculating and ruthless, and even slew his own
t mistrustful Hera.
brother in order to take control of his city. He makes
h Hermes’ Scions are a clever, wily lot, known more
for swiftness than for courage on the battlefield. They a dashing figure and a good leader, while at the same
e usually gravitate to duties involving communications, time he is known for poor manners, inconsideration for
having served as radio operators, cryptographers and others and rough personal hygiene—possibly all explained
w propagandists. Those who are civilians also frequently by the fact that he was literally raised by wolves. On the
o work in communications, and include brave front-lines battlefield he has proven himself almost as mighty as
Ares, and far more cunning in matters of state.
r reporters, filmmakers and radio personalities.
Quirinus’ Scions are drawn to war, most frequently
l Rivals: Apollo, Quirinus; Marishiten, Loki, Odin, Thor
serving as military and political leaders capable of making
d Enemies: Br’er Rabbit, d’Artagnan, Robin Hood
tough decisions. They are implacable foes and adept
Quirinus statesmen, but never seem fully adjusted to civilized life.
a AKA: Romulus Associated Powers: Epic Strength, Animal (Wolf),
t Description: Scion of Ares, Quirinus is the deified Arete, War
form of Romulus, one of the two brothers who founded Abilities: Animal Ken, Athletics, Command, Melee,
Presence, Survival
w Rome. Originally, he was one of three Gods given
Rivals: Athena, Hera; Freyr,
a primary dominion over the city, but he and Ares were
r
216
Scions of the
Axis Pantheons
The Axis Gods generally seek aggressive Scions who assume the superiority of their people and their regime. A
Scion of Vidar is presented here as a beginning hero-level Scion, and a Scion of Raiden is presented as a demigod- s
level character. c
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217
SS-Sturmfuhrer
:
Klaus Schmitt
Scion of Vidar
t
K
h
l
e
a As a child, Klaus Schmitt was told that his father died in the Great War. He
was taught from an early age to harbor anger and hatred for the other nations
u of Europe because of it, and when he was nine his mother took him to
w
s a Nazi rally to hear Hitler speak. Schmitt, like most in the crowd, was
o entranced by the oration. In 1936, when he was 16, he
r
S joined the Youth Corps and later graduated into the leagues
l
c of the SS.
d
h Schmitt got his first Panzer command in the western push
to occupy France, and later distinguished himself in the Russian
m
a
i
campaign, where he earned 48 Soviet tank kills. When he turned
t 23, he was finally old enough to join the Leibstandarte—Adolf
t Hitler’s personal elite guard—and was inducted into the order on
t the same night he received his Visitation from Vidar. Since then, he
w has served his father with as much dedication as he has served the
a Nazi Party, although he knows a few things about
r each that he does not volunteer to the other.
Roleplaying Hints: You are a paragon of perfection
and you expect others to recognize that fact. The
proper thing for them to do is acknowledge the
superiority of your heritage and your training by accepting your
dictates unquestioningly. You believe that those who cannot
accept this hierarchy should be weeded out of the human race
in order to make way for a golden age of humanity. This is
not an attitude shared by your patron, but it is one which is
shared by your commanding officers so sometimes you must
balance your loyalties. At least for the time being, your duty is
clear: destroy the enemies of the Reich.
Join Battle: 6
Dodge DV: 6
Birthrights: Schmitt’s ceremonial dagger, given to him by his
SS commander on behalf of Vidar, grants +1L and allows him to
access the War Purview. His Knight’s Cross medal, which he won
for successful armored combat against the Russians, grants the
Fire Purview. His five followers are experienced soldiers who serve
as his tank crew. They are fanatically loyal and regularly receive his
Jotunblut gift.
Other Notes: Schmidt’s tank crew followers are experienced soldiers
(see Scion: Hero, p. 283), each armed with an MP 38. Schmitt uses his
Jotunblut Boons on each of them.
218
H E R O
SS-Sturmführer Klaus Schmitt Panzer Commander Aesir
Name Calling Pantheon
Autocrat Vidar
Player Nature God
Attributes
K Physical Social Mental
K
l Strength oooooooooo Charisma oooooooooo Perception oooooooooo l
a Dexterity oooooooooo Manipulation oooooooooo Intelligence oooooooooo a
u Stamina oooooooooo Appearance oooooooooo Wits oooooooooo u
s s
S ABILITIES S
c Academics ooooo Craft ooooo Melee ooooo c
h Animal Ken ooooo ooooo Occult ooooo h
m Art ooooo ooooo Politics ooooo m
i ooooo Empathy ooooo Presence ooooo i
t Athletics ooooo Fortitude ooooo Science ooooo t
t Awareness ooooo Integrity ooooo ooooo t
Brawl ooooo Investigation ooooo ooooo
Command ooooo Larceny ooooo Stealth ooooo
Control (Tank) ooooo Marksmanship ooooo Survival ooooo
ooooo Medicine ooooo Thrown ooooo
BIRTHRIGHTS WEAPONS
Follower (Tank Crew) 1, Relic (Schutzstaffel Clinch: Acc 7, Dmg 3B, Parry DV –, Spd 6, P
Dagger—War, +2L) 3, Relic (Knight’s Cross Unarmed, Heavy: Acc 6, Dmg 6B, Parry DV 3, Spd 5
Medal — Fire) 1 Unarmed, Light: Acc 8, Dmg 3B, Parry DV 6, Spd 4
Luger: Acc 9, Dmg 4L, Rng 20, Clip 13, Spd 4, P
Schutzstaffel Dagger: Acc 8, Dmg 8L, Parry DV 5, Spd 4, P
2 L ––––
A –––– 4 B ––––
7 LEGEND
BOONS ARMOR oooooo
Blessing of Bravery Heavy Clothing
oooooo
Fire Immunity
––––––––––––––––––
A –––– L –––– B ––––1
Legend
Points 9
–––– ––––
Human Endowment 219
HEALTH EXPERIENCE
–0 –0 –0 –2 –2 –4 I
Motoki Kamayaka
Scion of Raiden
m
t Kamayaka was raised to believe that one should be equal to one’s
h
o peers, but unfortunately found that few people could be considered his
peer. By his accounting, pilots are more important than infantry soldiers,
e
t soldiers are more important than civilians and Japanese civilians are
o more important than anyone else in the world. When he factors in his
w
k being the son of the great god Raiden, he doesn’t see too many people
o
i crowding his airspace.
r On the ground, he is reckless, cocky and condescending. In the air, he
k
l is a genius. He scoffs at the reprimands of his superior officers because he
knows they cannot do without him. He has flown missions across the
d
a Pacific and throughout countless Godrealms. He can weave his way
m through enemy fire to dive-bomb with surgical position, and then
a come back around to outfox and out-fly even the most cunning
t
y enemy airmen.
a Roleplaying Hints: In a highly structured and formal
w
k military society, you do not stand on structure or formality.
a You do what you do for fun and you know you are extremely
good at it. The only thing better than shooting down your
r enemies is astonishing them with your skill—and then shooting
them down. Although you pretend not to care what others think,
it’s just an act to make it seem as though you aren’t even trying to
be as amazing as you are.
Join Battle: 6
Dodge DV: 26
Birthrights: Raiden gave Kamayaka his arrow upon granting his
visitation and Kamayaka carries it with him always, strapped to his
hip like a sword so that he may channel the Sky Purview even after a
bail-out. His sash, which Kamayaka wears under his flight suit, grants
him a bonus to DV and access to the Guardian Purview. Kamayaka’s
followers consist of a flight crew of grunt soldiers (see Scion: Hero,
p. 282) with Craft (Airplane Mechanics) 3 instead of their usual
Medicine and Academics Abilities. The Tengu (see Scion: Hero,
p. 323) usually poses as one of the flight crew but will accompany
Kamayaka on special missions.
220
D E M I G O D
Motoki Kamayaka Ace Fighter Pilot Amatsukami
Name Calling Pantheon
Bravo Raiden
Player Nature God
Attributes
M Physical Social Mental
M
o Strength oooooooooo Charisma oooooooooo Perception oooooooooo o
t Dexterity oooooooooo Manipulation oooooooooo Intelligence oooooooooo t
o Stamina oooooooooo Appearance oooooooooo Wits oooooooooo o
k k
i i
ABILITIES
K Academics ooooo Craft (Airplanes) ooooo Melee ooooo K
a Animal Ken ooooo ooooo Occult ooooo a
m Art ooooo ooooo Politics ooooo m
a ooooo Empathy ooooo Presence ooooo a
y Athletics ooooo Fortitude ooooo Science ooooo y
a Awareness ooooo Integrity ooooo ooooo a
k Brawl ooooo Investigation ooooo ooooo k
a Command ooooo Larceny ooooo Stealth ooooo a
Control (Airplanes) ooooo Marksmanship ooooo Survival ooooo
ooooo Medicine ooooo Thrown ooooo
BIRTHRIGHTS WEAPONS
Follower (Flight Crew) 2, Clinch: Acc 10, Dmg 4B, Parry DV –, Spd 6, P
Follower (Tengu) 4, Katana: Acc 11, Dmg 9L, Parry DV 26, Spd 5
Relic (Goggles —Sun) 1, Nambu 8mm: Acc 11, Dmg 3L,Rng 20,Clip 8,Spd 5,P
Relic (Raiden’s Arrow — Sky), 1 Unarmed, Heavy:Acc 9, Dmg 7B, Parry DV 23, Spd 5
Relic (Sash — Guardian, +1 Dodge DV) 2 Unarmed, Light: Acc 11, Dmg 4B, Parry DV 26, Spd 4
w
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Columbia’s Scions lust for travel and adventure. They Some consider his hands-on approach to be an oddity
tend to take positions in the military or any other organization in a pantheon dedicated to progress and innovation, but
which can send them out around the world. They join the John Henry embodies characteristics equally essential to
State Department as ambassadors to both friendly and enemy the American spirit: guts, hard work and pride. He isn’t
nations. More than a few are officers aboard aircraft carriers opposed to technological advancement—his labors were
and troop transports that move through distant waters. They dedicated to building a transcontinental railroad, after
express unbridled optimism, but they are neither naive nor all. Rather, he serves as a reminder that at the end of the
unprepared, as their past adventures have equipped them day what really gets the job done is the blood and sweat of
well for anything the future will bring. working class people. In the war, John Henry is a tireless
Associated Powers: Epic Charisma, Epic Perception, warrior, ready to duke it out against any other God. With
Guardian, Industry, Psychopomp his enormous hammer he lays low his opponents or tears
Abilities: Awareness, Control, Fortitude, up their fortifications to make way for his own. Henry is
Investigation, Science, Survival also drawn to the use of fire and explosives, dating back to
Rivals: Britannia, Pecos Bill, Rodina Mat the days he laid dynamite to open tunnels for the railway.
Enemies: Amaterasu, Freya, Susano-o He outdoes whatever they throw at him, and if there is a
cost to be paid, he will tally what he owes only after the
John Henry job is done.
John Henry’s Scions tend to approach life with a
AKA: The Living simple motto: “Knock me down eleven times, I’ll get up
Steam Hammer a dozen.” They are the war-widow single mothers who
Description: John Henry is a steel driving man—the won’t give up on their dreams and the factory laborers
biggest, strongest steel driving man ever to pound spikes who set production records while braving hate crimes
for a transcontinental railroad. When some egghead at work. Although African American soldiers were not
from back East said he had a machine that could lay always treated fairly by their superiors, Henry’s Scions
rail faster, Henry challenged the machine to save his job make damn sure they are among the first to charge the
and the jobs of his crew. True to his word, he beat the line. They are a tough lot, and each one is ready to finish
machine —though it cost him. Most say he died from the the fight and damn all the consequences.
labor, through some allow that he eventually recovered. Associated Powers: Epic Strength, Epic Stamina,
In truth, this contest allowed him to achieve apotheosis Fire, Industry
224 as the Man Who Beat the Machine.
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Abilities: Athletics, Brawl, Craft, Fortitude, they excel at food production. They are farmers, ranchers, e
Integrity, Melee veterinarians, doctors, aid workers and preachers. Most
are extremely knowledgeable about what it takes to grow
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Rivals: d’Artagnan, John Bull, Paul Bunyan
Enemies: Hachiman, Heimdall, Hel, Raiden food and what it takes to nourish living beings, both n
physically and spiritually. They tend to be very pious
Johnny Appleseed people, very giving of themselves, and are frequently
AKA: John Chapman vegetarians. Nothing frustrates them more than the
thought of someone going without food, and even if
Description: Johnny Appleseed is a gentle God who holds
they are starving they will still share their bread.
all living things in reverence. Tradition has Johnny Appleseed
scattering seeds at random, though in fact he carefully Associated Powers: Epic Charisma, Fertility, Health,
cultivated orchards and distributed the trees themselves Industry
rather than the seeds, often offering generous terms of credit Abilities: Animal Ken, Craft (Farming), Empathy,
to perspective buyers or even bartering for mere cornmeal Medicine, Science, Survival
or used clothing. He didn’t seek profit, but instead made it Rivals: Baba Yaga, The Citizen, Uncle Sam
his mission to provide food for the needy and sustainable Enemies: Freyr, Hel, Izanagi, Izanami, Tsuki-Yomi
agriculture for his nation. He remains an itinerant God,
following the fruits of his orchard throughout the country Paul Bunyan
and giving advice to pioneers and farmers as he goes. AKA: Big Paul
Despite his pacifistic tendencies, Johnny Appleseed plays Description: Big man, big beard, big axe, big
a crucial role in the war. As Napoleon said, an army marches ox—everything about Paul Bunyan is big. By the early
on its stomach; that being the case, the armies of the United twentieth century, lumberjacks in the East and Midwest
States need to do a lot of marching and, consequently, a lot of were circulating stories about Bunyan’s incredible size
eating. Johnny Appleseed is the chief organizer and distributor and strength. They said he could do the work of a
of the needed supplies. He oversees the vast American hundred other loggers, and eat a hundred times as many
operations to transform and preserve food as K-rations and pancakes, too. They also said that he built mountains
mess hall grub, and then to deliver it to the farthest corners by piling stones around his campfire, dug the Grand
of the World, the Overworld and the Underworld. Canyon by dragging his axe behind him as he walked
Johnny Appleseed’s Scions all live off the land in and made Minnesota’s ten thousand lakes with his feet
some way. While they do not make the greatest soldiers, and the hooves of his gigantic pet ox, Babe. 225
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Some suppose that Paul Bunyan was a Scion turned quickest draw, the slyest cowpoke and the rootinest,
working-class hero, much like John Henry. Others tootinest hombre in the Wild West. He has saddled
suspect that he is an ancient Earth God who took on a tornado, used a rattle-snake as a bull whip and hog-
a new visage when he joined the Yankee pantheon. tied a giant bear. But for all that, he is a consummate
Whatever the case, Bunyan and his ox are now revered loner, and due either to his own rugged individuality
by their people. Their combined ability to alter the or to simple bad luck, he is unable to form any long-
landscape is also a highly prized asset in war, allowing lasting relationships with anyone other than his
the Yankees to re-define the battlefield itself. horse, Widowmaker.
Every one of Paul Bunyan’s Scions is uncommonly large Pecos Bill is indispensible in the war. He is extremely
and strong. During peacetime, many become professional talented as a scout and is able to move far and wide
athletes or manual laborers of widespread fame and success. on his steed, investigating enemy territory and surviving
But in the armed services, they are best suited to join the under even the most inhospitable landscapes of the
Army Corps of Engineers. They are the ones who redirect the Overworld. He doesn’t always work well with others, but
flow of rivers, build up or tear down bunkers and trenches, he can pull off the most challenging jobs and survive the
construct tank traps and build bridges across chasms that most insane risks, usually with an exuberant whoop and
the enemy thought never could be crossed. No one can dig holler and an inimitable sense of flair.
deeper, cut faster or eat more than Bunyan’s children. Pecos Bill’s Scions are charismatic and deft, but they
Associated Powers: Epic Strength, Epic Stamina, are still uncomfortable working with others. They volunteer
Epic Intelligence, Animal (Ox), Earth, Industry for service as lone operatives, often far from the oversight
Abilities: Animal Ken, Athletics, Craft, Fortitude, of their superiors. This makes them excellent army scouts,
Melee, Science paratroopers, fighter pilots and couriers. Although they
Rivals: The Citizen, d’Artagnan, John Henry frequently have difficulty taking orders and their personal
Enemies: Freyr, Hachiman, Susano-o relationships end in tragedy, nobody is better at working solo
to achieve the impossible than the Scions of The Cowboy.
Pecos Bill Associated Powers: Epic Dexterity, Epic Stamina,
AKA: The Cowboy Epic Charisma, Animal (Coyote, Horse), Industry,
Psychopomp
Description: As far as anyone knows, Pecos
Bill was never born: he simply rode in out of the Abilities: Animal Ken, Athletics, Control, Fortitude,
226 desert, a fully fledged God of cowboys. He is the Marksmanship, Survival
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Rivals: The Citizen, d’Artagnan, Johnny Appleseed, male counterparts, and there is the strong likelihood e
Robin Hood, Uncle Sam that the end of the war will see returning servicemen
replace many of the positions now held by women.
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Enemies: Raiden, Susano-o, Tyr, Thor
Still, Rosie will never rest until women are allowed to n
Rosie the Riveter contribute their full potential to society.
AKA: the Suffragette, Rosie the Riveter’s Scions are almost exclusively women.
They are fearless social activists who work long hours in
Wendy the Welder the factories by day and campaign for wage equality while
Description: Rosie first manifested as an agitator
off duty. Others of her Scions seek to get as close to the
for women’s rights in the mid eighteen-hundreds.
front lines as they can, sometimes serving as WACs or army
Although initially shunned, she continued to press
nurses. Her servicewomen daughters can wield a rifle as well
her revolutionary platform until the passing of the 19th
as any man, and if their positions happen to be overrun,
amendment of the Constitution, and is now taking
they will make sure they are the last to retreat.
the war as an opportunity to redefine perceptions of
Associated Powers: Epic Strength, Epic Stamina,
women. Her rebellious spirit and uncompromising
Epic Intelligence, Industry
opinions often create conflicts within her pantheon.
She is the rebel among rebels, constantly pressing all Abilities: Academics, Command, Craft, Fortitude,
her peers to the next level of social reform, regardless of Integrity, Politics
what upheaval may come with it. Rivals: Betsy Ross, Britannia, Madame Guillotine,
In World War Two, Rosie has been instrumental Rodina Mat, Uncle Sam
in bringing women into the workforce to replace the Enemies: Frig, Loki, Izanami, Marishiten
young men who have shipped overseas. Her influence
contributed to over sixty million women gaining Uncle Sam
employment manufacturing arms, ammunition and AKA: Brother Jonathan,
other battlefield necessities. More importantly to Yankee Doodle
her, she has changed the common perception of the Description: Uncle Sam is the elected president of the
capabilities of women, with many of female workers Yankee Pantheon and the quintessential representative
now having mastered some of the most difficult and of the United States of America. His divine origins are
exhausting jobs available. Even so, this is not enough: unknown, but he has been around long enough to have
women factory workers are still paid far less than their been a hero of the Revolutionary War, and he has stated 227
that his parents traveled aboard the Mayflower. He When activated, this power opens a rippling portal
embodies the power and responsibilities that accompany through which even mortals and vehicles can pass into
citizenship, and stands as a reminder that freedom isn’t the Overworld. For each success rolled, the gate is wide
free. At all times he carries a complete copy of the enough for one unit to cross over. A “unit” may consist
Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of of either eight fully-equipped soldiers or 2 points of
the United States of America. vehicle Mass. Thus, if a Scion with Epic Intelligence
During this war, as with past wars, Uncle Sam works rolled 15 successes, she would open the way for 120
politically to organize and strategize the war effort. foot soldiers, or 5 tanks, or potentially even one small
His chief role is to remind citizens of their patriotic battleship. A vehicle may carry its full compliment of
t obligations, especially by encouraging young men to join passengers and crew as it crosses over. The Scion may
h the ranks of the armed forces. He and his country have repeatedly use this Boon as long as she can continue to
e never been in greater need, but he has never lost a war yet pay the Legend cost for each unit sent through, but may
and isn’t going to let the American people down now. not send through any vehicle with a Mass exceeding the
w Perhaps because of his puritanical origins, Uncle number of successes on a given roll—you can’t send half
a B-17 through one minute and half the next minute.
o Sam never sires Scions of his own, but is always on
the lookout to recruit the best and the brightest for This power does not alter in any way where the
r adoption. His adopted Scions tend to find their way connection point opens in the Overwold, so troops may
l into leadership roles as brilliant generals in shiny silver still need some other way to scale the vast mountain, climb
d helmets, honest and hardworking politicians and sharp the cosmic tree, navigate the celestial oceans or deal with
field commanders. They are, as a rule, very dedicated whatever other environment awaits them at the other end.
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and self-sacrificing individuals who are driven to great
lengths in the service of their country and who inspire Pantheon
others to do the same. Purview: Industry
Associated Powers: Epic Intelligence, Epic The name of this Purview refers less to the
w Manipulation, Animal (Eagle), Guardian, Industry, manufacturing system of the United States and more to
a Justice, War the hard work, resourcefulness and progressiveness that
r Abilities: Command, Fortitude, Integrity, created that system. As is fitting for a modern pantheon,
Marksmanship, Politics, Presence the powers of this Purview apply to the tools and devices
Rivals: Baba Yaga, The Citizen, Rodina Mat, Rosie of the modern world. The Industry Purview allows its
the Riveter user to do more and be more through the improvement
Enemies: Baldur, Freyr, Loki, Susano-o of both techniques and technology.
Work Harder (Industry •)
New Boon: Dice Pool: Stamina + Survival
Storm the Gates Cost: 1 Legend + 1 Willpower
This Boon was first used by the Axis Pantheons to To be industrious, one must sometimes be prepared
open the way for their rank-and-file to enter and seize to dig deep, take a few hard knocks or burn the candle at
foreign Godrealms. Since the start of the war, this power both ends. This Boon gives the Scion endurance enough
has been used even more frequently by Yankee Gods and to make long marches or continue working without sleep.
demigods leading armies into the Overworld to liberate The Scion using this power reduces fatigue penalties by
those same Godrealms. Because of the central role of Axis 1 for each success rolled. This penalty reduction lasts for
Mundi connection points, Psychopomps with this Boon are 12 hours, at which point the Scion may pay the cost and
extremely prized officers in all of the major celestial armies. re-activate the power if he so chooses.
Storm the Gates Work Smarter
(Psychopomp •••••) (Industry ••)
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Command Dice Pool: None
Cost: 1 Legend per 2 units Cost: 1 Legend
This Boon allows a Psychopomp to open an Axis An industrious person knows to seek time-saving
Mundi connection point to those who might not innovations wherever possible. By finding just the right
normally be able to pass through it. The user of this Boon balance in the materials, handling the tools in a more
must first be in the immediate presence of an active Axis efficient way or finding the most advantageous location
Mundi connection point and must meet all the criteria for the project, this Boon allows a Scion to intuit the
for moving through the gate. If the Psychopomp would most productive way to work. Using Work Smarter allows
normally need to use another Boon to pass through the the Scion to double the speed with which he performs
connection, the cost of that Boon is added to the cost of one type of repetitive manual labor such as stacking
228 using Storm the Gates. sandbags, digging a foxhole or peeling potatoes. This
does not grant the user greater strength or the ability to functioning. To do so, the character must roll (Wits
physically move faster, but rather imparts knowledge of + Craft) and accumulate at least as many successes as
the best way to go about the task. This intuition cannot the Boon’s user. This Boon has no effect on equipment
be communicated or shared with others—it would crafted by characters of higher Legend.
take longer to explain the technique than it would to
just do it. This power cannot be used for complicated
Supply Chain
or unpredictable labors, such as repairing an engine, (Industry •••••)
foraging for food or most anything that requires an Dice Pool: Intelligence + Politics
Ability roll. Although walking and running may be Cost: 4 Legend
repetitive physical tasks, this Boon cannot be used to It is no easy task to supply an army consisting of t
accelerate travel; the way to work smarter at covering hundreds of thousands of soldiers spread out across h
ground is to get a vehicle. the globe. Acquiring the material, processing it and e
This power applies to one task and lasts for one scene, transporting it to keep each soldier equipped with
at which time the intuition fades or the work conditions everything from food and ammunition to boots to y
are no longer so favorable. The Scion may spend an prophylactics is a truly epic accomplishment of logistics.
It boils down to this: the army that gets what it needs
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additional Legend to perform a new task more efficiently
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Fixit (Industry •••) received a recent supply of whatever he needs at the e
Dice Pool: Perception + Craft
Cost: 1 Legend
moment. When activating this power, the Scion decides e
on one small item, which could be anything from a
Anyone who wants to get more out of modern life needs clip of ammunition to clean socks to a roll of currency
to know how to get more out of modern machines. With for whatever country you happen to be liberating this
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only the bang of a hammer and a few twists of a screwdriver, week. The only limitation is that the item must be small a
a Scion with this Boon may spend 2 Legend to repair even enough to fit inside a pocket. n
the most grievously damaged equipment or vehicles almost The Scion using this Boon must have a pocket t
instantly. The player may repair a number of health levels from which to produce the item, so someone who has h
equal to the number of successes on the roll. The Scion can
use this Boon on any given object only once per day, but he
been stripped down and sent to a POW camp cannot e
call upon this power until he reclaims his original gear. o
can use it on as many different objects in the same day as A single success is enough to acquire any item, but
he can afford to spend the Legend points. Items may not be should a Scion fail, he cannot use this Boon to produce
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repaired beyond their original maximum number of health that particular item again until after he has returned
levels, and this Boon has no effect on an item which has to base or received a new supply dump in the field.
been reduced to zero or fewer health levels. He may use this power to produce other items during
Gremlins (Industry ••••) that time, but once he comes up short on a particular
Dice Pool: Charisma + Integrity item he stays short. A botch on the roll means that the
Cost: 2 Legend character cannot use this power at all until he has been
When there is just no explaining why a machine resupplied in the usual way.
malfunctions, you can always blame it on gremlins. But Fire in the Belly
gremlins aren’t all bad: sometimes they get the other (Industry ••••• •)
guy. Using this Boon allows the Scion to send invisible Dice Pool: Stamina + Fortitude
spirits of entropy into one visible piece of mechanical
Cost: 1 Willpower + 2 Legend per dot of Virtue added
equipment such as an engine, a gun or a time bomb.
These gremlins jam gears, cross wires, loosen hoses and Keeping ahead of the competition demands
generally cause the machine to go on the fritz, but only tremendous drive and dedication. This power allows the
for a limited amount of time. The Scion may choose to Scion to temporarily boost that passion in times of great
prevent the machine’s operation for a number of ticks need. For each success rolled, the Scion may temporarily
up to double the number of successes scored on the add one dot to a Virtue, to a maximum of five dots in
roll. The Scion must declare the length of the delay at any given Virtue. These dots may be distributed between
the outset, and the machine resumes normal functions the Scion’s Virtues in any way the player sees fit, but each
at the expiration of that time. It is unlikely to be long dot costs the Scion 2 Legend. The player may choose to
enough to cause a plane to fall to Earth, but it can add fewer Virtue dots than he rolled successes, and must
provide the critical seconds needed to charge a machine pay the Legend cost only for dots added. These bonuses
gun or throw back a grenade. last one day, although a player may extend them for an
additional day by spending one additional Willpower.
The operator of the item may attempt to fix the
The player may continue to renew this power as long as
problem before the item would normally resume 229
he can pay the Willpower cost.
Jury Rig (Industry ••••• ••) and has enough available materials, he may create multiple
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Craft identical items. Consult “Attacking Inanimate Objects”
(Scion: Hero, p. 201), “Vehicles” (Scion: Hero, p. 205),
Cost: 5 Legend
“Spears of Destiny, Chariots of Fire” (pp. 131-134) and
Resources are scarce in times of war, so enterprising “Military Equipment” (pp. 266-270) to determine the
individuals know to “use it up, wear it out; make it do or do number of health levels an item might have. If the player
without.” Salvaging vehicles and weapons wherever possible does not roll enough successes to bring the item to its full
is a very cost-effective way of keeping ahead of the enemy. capacity, it still functions but is considered incomplete,
With this Boon, the Scion affects miraculous repairs limited to the number of health levels initially granted
t on the remnants of an object that has been reduced to through this Boon. No other Boon or Ability can repair
h zero or fewer health levels. A single success on the roll the incomplete item above the number of health levels
e returns the object to 1 health level, no matter how badly granted by the use of this Boon, and the item will function
damaged it was. However, the item is shaky and does not as though “damaged” if it has fewer than half of the health
operate to its fullest potential. Any user will suffer -4 to all
w rolls using this device (thus, weapons suffer -4 accuracy
levels typical for its type. The God may use Assembly Line
on an item any number of times, each time raising its
o and vehicles suffer -4 maneuverability). This penalty maximum health levels by the number of successes scored,
r is in addition to any other penalty normally associated to the maximum of the standard number for that item.
l with that item, including penalties for damage. For each Provided that enough materials are available, Assembly
d threshold success when activating this Boon, this penalty Line can be used to mass produce identical items. To
is reduced by 1, to a minimum of 0. do so, divide the number of successes by the maximum
All of the pieces of the item must be present for Jury
a Rig to work. If pieces are missing or incinerated, the
health levels of the items to be produced. For example, if
t a player scored 10 successes, his character could create 5
Storyteller may impose additional penalties to its use. hand grenades with 2 health levels each, or 1 motorcycle
However, pieces from identical vehicles or equipment with 10 health levels, or 2 Garand rifles with 4 health
w may be cannibalized to complete the item. For example, levels each (with the option of also creating a defective
a a tank which has an incinerated left tread isn’t going to rifle with only 2 health levels). For the purpose of creation
r be able to move—except, perhaps, in circles. But a tread by this Boon, assume that sixteen bullets have one health
salvaged from the same model tank and piled on the level and one artillery shell has 4 health levels.
wrecked heap will allow the Scion to Jury Rig a fully
functional (if somewhat worse for wear) tank. Innovate
An item repaired in this way is restored to a single (Industry ••••• ••••)
health level, but it may be further repaired through the Dice Pool: Intelligence + Craft
use of the Fixit Boon. Cost: 10 Legend + 1 Willpower (or 10 Legend + 1
Assembly Line Willpower dot)
The character with this Boon is so innovative that
(Industry ••••• •••) there is virtually no device which he cannot improve, no
Dice Pool: Wits + Craft matter how advanced or time-tested the original design.
Cost: 10 Legend With a little tinkering, the God might shave firing pins
So resourceful is the Scion that he can create nearly to speed a gun’s attack, mix in the right fuel additives to
anything with only a few raw resources, and can mass boost a vehicle’s speed or improve the slope of a tank’s
produce equipment with the wave of a hand. armor to make it even tougher. By concentrating on an
The player may choose to build any standard weapon, item for one action, each two successes rolled (rounded
vehicle or piece of equipment, or common structures up) allows the player to add a +1 bonus to one of that
such as buildings and bridges. To create the desired item, item’s traits such as damage, accuracy, health levels,
the God must first assemble raw materials equal to the armor or maneuverability. No item may receive more
mass of the items to be constructed. Up to 25 percent of than a total bonus of +5 for all traits combined, which
this material may be improvised from whatever is at hand, means a vehicle could gain +3 armor and +2 health levels,
including bricks, trees, old boots and so forth. At least 75 but not +5 to each. Bonuses may also be divided between
percent of the materials must be of the kind used in the identical items. Each item beyond the first requires a
manufacture of the item—most often this means steel or separate action and costs 5 additional Legend. The God
some other alloy. Earth Creation (Scion: God, p. 87) can must not be interrupted while using Innovate, so if he
greatly assist in this process, or the God may recycle from performs another action or even defends himself against
scrapped vehicles, buildings and the like. attack then none of the items receive a bonus.
Once all the raw materials have been assembled, the If the player spends one Willpower point and ten Legend
player may activate this Boon. Each success grants the points when he activates this Boon, the effects of Innovate last
item one health level, as though it were being repaired for a single scene. If the God sacrifices a permanent Willpower
230 from zero health levels. If the God rolls extra successes dot for each item modified, the effects are permanent.
The Project To use this Boon, the God must concentrate
for 5 ticks, during which time he is considered
(Industry ••••• •••••) defenseless. Upon completion of this action,
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Science the God brings into being a large, lumpy metal
Cost: 20 Legend + 1 Willpower sphere about four feet in diameter and weighing
Contrary to assumption, the development of the four hundred pounds. Exactly sixteen ticks later,
Yankee’s top-secret super-weapon is not being carried out the device detonates with a searing blast that can
only by a small clutch of bespectacled scientists locked potentially be seen for miles. Anyone or anything
in a room somewhere in New Mexico. It is actually the caught in the explosion suffer 5L of fire damage
single largest and most expensive industrial project ever and 1A of soul-searing radiation for each success on s
undertaken, utilizing more workers and factory equipment the Boon user’s (Intelligence + Science) roll. This c
than all of the automobile manufacturers in the United damage is not rolled; it is simply applied directly to i
States combined. With this Boon, a Yankee God can tap each character within range. It cannot be dodged o
into the power of this experiment to produce a prototype or parried, but it may be soaked. The damage is n
weapon. Even this small sample can be so devastating that reduced by 5L and 1A for every 50 feet the blast
the Gods themselves fear to call it forth.
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travels from the epicenter.
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Scions of the t
h
Yankee Pantheon e
y
The Yankee Gods favor vigorous, determined people, and generally prefer to help those who prove ready and a
willing to help themselves. The Scion of Uncle Sam is a sample beginning hero-level Scion, and the Scion of John n
Henry is a sample demigod-level Scion.
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231
Lt. Samuel Washington
Scion of Uncle Sam
Sam Washington grew up in rural Iowa, passing his time hunting, fishing and
living off the land. During the Great Depression, his family of farmers was so poor that
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t Sam did not own a pair of shoes until he was ten years old, and he did not see printed
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a currency until he was fifteen. Still, he proved himself a fierce competitor in high school,
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e earning several distinctions for both athletics and academics. He never thought much
u about his future, and had no plans to attend college despite his scholarship victories.
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e He was content simply to be the best in his town, and found that milestone easy
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l enough to achieve.
r The morning after Pearl Harbor was bombed, Washington set out for the army
recruiter. He had to hitch-hike to get to the nearest recruiting office, and along the
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l way he was given a lift by an avuncular but serious-faced man in a wildly outdated
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a stovepipe hat. This was Uncle Sam himself, and it was then that he revealed
s Washington’s divine parentage and told him he wanted Washington for special
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a service to his country. Uncle Sam suggested that Washington join the newly-
ti founded, ultra-elite branch of army paratroopers,
n and Washington took him up on the deal.
Training was rigorous. Though on several
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o washed out of the program. After a few months, the officers had a hard
n time keeping up with the men, which is when Washington got the offer to
attend Officer Candidate School. The army broke its tradition by assigning him
as a lieutenant to his original group, so by the time the division transferred to
England, Washington was leading the very men he had enlisted with.
Washington and his men had their first combat experience on D-Day. As
if clearing the way for the invasion force and wreaking havoc with the German
troops weren’t enough of a challenge, Uncle Sam also uses Washington in special
operations relating to the capture or destruction of Axis Mundi connection
points. Lt. Sam Washington of the 101st, “Easy Company,” is now essentially
fighting two wars: one to free Europe, and one to free the Overworld. That’s
all right with him, because he’s confident he can win both.
Roleplaying Hints: You are a grizzled veteran of heavy combat, which
makes you seem gruff and jaded to others. It isn’t that you are heartless—far
from it, as you will go to any length to protect the innocent from the tyranny
and murder that inevitably follows in the wake of the enemy’s advances.
However, you are a realist who knows that this fight is going to require some
tough decisions and some sacrifices. It is going to get ugly, but you know that
you’re just about the best qualified to put a stop to it.
Join Battle: 6
Dodge DV: 5
Birthrights: When he graduated Ranger training, Uncle Sam presented
Washington with his 101st division “Screamin’ Eagle” insignia patch. This
patch enables Washington to access the War Purview. His helmet provides
access to the Guardian Purview and adds +1L soak. Washington also
received the Thompson SMG that had once belonged to the lawman
Eliot Ness, Washington’s childhood hero. Although the gun
appears slightly outdated, it has been customized for increased
power and ease of use, gaining +1 damage and -1 speed.
232
232
H E R O
Lt. Samuel Washington Airborn Ranger Yankee
Name Calling Pantheon
Attributes
s Physical Social Mental
s
a Strength oooooooooo Charisma oooooooooo Perception oooooooooo a
m Dexterity oooooooooo Manipulation oooooooooo Intelligence oooooooooo m
u Stamina oooooooooo Appearance oooooooooo Wits oooooooooo u
e e
l l
ABILITIES
w Academics ooooo Craft ooooo Melee ooooo w
a Animal Ken ooooo ooooo Occult ooooo a
s Art ooooo ooooo Politics ooooo s
h ooooo Empathy ooooo Presence ooooo h
i Athletics ooooo Fortitude ooooo Science ooooo i
n Awareness ooooo Integrity ooooo ooooo n
g Brawl ooooo Investigation ooooo ooooo g
t Command ooooo Larceny ooooo Stealth ooooo t
o Control ooooo Marksmanship ooooo Survival ooooo o
n ooooo Medicine ooooo Thrown ooooo n
BIRTHRIGHTS WEAPONS
Relic (Polished Helmet —Guardian, +1L soak) 1, Clinch: Acc 5, Dmg 5B, Parry DV –, Spd 6, P
Relic (Screamin’ Eagle patch — War) 1, Relic Grenade: Acc 5, Dmg 15L, Rng 15/10 (direct/indirect), Spd 5
(Ness’ Tommy Gun — +1 dam, -1 speed) 2 Unarmed, Heavy: Acc 4, Dmg 8B, Parry DV 3, Spd 5
Unarmed, Light: Acc 6, Dmg 5B, Parry DV 4, Spd 4
Ness’ Tommy Gun — Acc 10, Dmg 5L, Rng 30, Clip 30, Spd 4, P
4 B ––––
A –––– L –––– 5 LEGEND
BOONS ARMOR oooooo
Aegis Helmet and Fatigues
oooooo
Blessing of Bravery
––––––––––––––––––
1 B ––––
A –––– L –––– 1
Legend
Points 16
–––– ––––
Warrior Ideal 233
HEALTH EXPERIENCE
–0 –1 –1 –2 –2 –4 I
Sgt. Jonathan Steele
Scion of John Henry
Like his divine father, Jon Steele is a steel driving man. He got his start
working in the Naval Armory in Detroit, where he and his small crew of
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j African Americans were harassed by white coworkers, segregated from
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o the other workers, paid less and put on the most dangerous jobs. The Ku
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e Klux Klan had made a stronghold of Detroit since the twenties and had
a successfully boxed in the city’s two hundred thousand black residents into
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t a dismal sixty-block ghetto. Jon Steele had received his Visitation way back
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o in the late thirties, and had spent his earlier years fighting against the Klan’s
bigotry and small-scale terrorism.
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It took another Visitation from John Henry himself to convince Steele
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l to enlist with the Marines. Steele argued that the war-time influx of
d both black and white laborers into the shipyards was contributing to
s more racial tension than ever. Besides
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t that, he was already contributing to
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t the war effort by being the best damn
e ship-builder the Navy had on its payroll.
But Henry finally won the debate by promising to
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r would never end if people couldn’t see that America’s
so-called second-class citizens were ready to make first class
contributions. “We got brothers shooting and bombing Nazis
all over Europe,” Henry explained. “I need you to bust down the doors in
the East.” Steele wasn’t used to speaking with anyone more stubborn than
he was, so he finally agreed to join up.
As soon as the Marine Corps began enlisting African Americans in
1942, Steele was in line to sign on. By 1944, he and his all-black squad were
leading assaults. Life was tough for Marines of any color in the Pacific.
All Marines bleed red, he said repeatedly, and they all have to march
hard and stare death in the face. The fact that Steele never got tired
and could survive on grub that would make a goat puke inspired his
men to slug it out, too. They used to think he was crazy for lugging his
enormous sledge hammer with him everywhere, but now that they’ve
seen him use it they’re doubly glad he’s on their side.
Steele’s duty, handed to him straight from Uncle Sam’s war council, is
to plug up the Amatsumaki’s ability to move in and out of their captured
Godrealms, thereby removing their ability to flank the American Navy.
This means slugging his way into the most bizarre and often inhospitable
landscapes to dig out the enemy no matter how deep they burrow themselves
in. The only thing he thinks about is the next objective, the next hell-hole he
has to clean out. He’s already racked up more awards than he can count,
and now won’t bother to report any injury less severe than a sucking chest
wound. As they press closer and closer to the Japanese mainland,
he knows he and his men are being fed into the meat-grinder of
Imperialist suicidal fury. He doesn’t expect to ever return home
except in a bag, but that’s fine with him. He’s resolved to earn the
Medal of Honor—and he knows it’s usually granted posthumously.
234
234
Roleplaying Hints: “Tough as nails” isn’t an adequate phrase to illustrate your mental resolve—maybe
“tough as railroad spikes” is a little more fitting. To you, there is no problem that cannot be overcome
through sheer force of will. It isn’t that you don’t get hurt or scared, it’s that these feelings are insubstantial
compared to your drive to finish your task. You don’t go looking for command but your unflagging
determination can be an inspiration to those around you and you often find your peers looking to you for
how to proceed.
Join Battle: 6
Dodge DV: 6
Birthrights: Steele’s C&O hammer was one that John Henry himself used to lay track for the railroad. j
Not only does its unusual weight give it +2 damage, it also focuses the user’s will into a sharp point,
making the hammer capable of dealing lethal damage as though each blow were driving a railroad spike
o
into its target. Steele’s Zippo lighter is gold-plated with an inscribed line “Life for me ain’t been no crystal n
stair,” taken from a Langston Hughes poem. This lighter grants access to the Fire purview, and Steele a
uses it when lighting everything from cigarettes to dynamite fuses. Steele also travels with his 15-man t
platoon of experienced marines. Although they are often assigned a commissioned officer, they look to h
Steele for leadership. a
Other Notes: Jon Steele’s sledgehammer does lethal damage instead of bashing damage. n
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235
D E M I G O D
Sgt. Jonathan Steele Leatherneck Yankee
Name Calling Pantheon
Attributes
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j Physical Social Mental
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o Strength oooooooooo Charisma oooooooooo Perception oooooooooo o
e
n Dexterity oooooooooo Manipulation oooooooooo
Intelligence oooooooooo n
a Stamina oooooooooo Appearance oooooooooo Wits oooooooooo a
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a ABILITIES a
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Academics ooooo Craft (Masonry) ooooo Melee ooooo
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Animal Ken ooooo ooooo Occult ooooo
s Art ooooo ooooo Politics ooooo s
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t t
t ooooo Empathy ooooo Presence ooooo
e Athletics ooooo Fortitude ooooo Science ooooo e
e Awareness ooooo Integrity ooooo ooooo e
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a Brawl ooooo Investigation ooooo ooooo
e Command ooooo Larceny ooooo Stealth ooooo e
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Control ooooo Marksmanship ooooo Survival ooooo
ooooo Medicine ooooo Thrown ooooo
BIRTHRIGHTS WEAPONS
Followers (15 man platoon) 5, C&O Hammer: Acc 7, Dmg 17L, Parry DV 8,Spd 5,P
Relic (C&O Hammer — Lethal Damage, +2L) 4, Clinch: Acc 6, Dmg 8B, Parry DV –, Spd 6, P
Relic (Zippo Lighter — Fire) 1 M1 Garand: Acc 9, Dmg 8L, Rng 150, Clip 8, Spd 5, P
Unarmed, Heavy: Acc 5, Dmg 11B, Parry DV 4, Spd 5
Unarmed, Light: Acc 7, Dmg 8B, Parry DV 7, Spd 4
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her subjects. She sees her younger sisters, Columbia Associated Powers: Epic Charisma, Epic Intelligence,
and Marianne, as immature and irreverent, but she Animal (Lion), Civitas, Guardian, Justice, Water
is more than ready to put aside her differences in the Abilities: Academics, Awareness, Command,
face of the Axis threat. Integrity, Politics, Presence
As the spirit of an island nation, Britannia Rivals: Columbia, Rodina Mat, Rosie the Riveter
has always been particularly invested in seafaring Enemies: Amatsukami, Freya, Frig, Loki
technology. For centuries she has pushed her people to
maintain their unbeatable naval power. The seas have John Bull
always been her first line of defense, but in this war AKA: Johnny English, le Rosbif
they have also proven to be her greatest vulnerability. Description: While Britannia embodies the
Njord’s aquatic titanspawn and U-boats have been upper crust of all the United Kingdoms, John Bull
choking off the isles, mercilessly hunting all traffic to is the salt-of-the-earth Englishman. He often wears a
and from the realm. Britannia herself has gone into the top hat and shortened trousers, and is never without
waters to meet the threat, slowly driving the invaders a Union Jack somewhere on his wardrobe, often
back and smashing their sea-going weapons. She will displayed prominently across his vest. He is particular
not be satisfied until she once again commands the about his tea, has a keen hand at darts and enjoys
world’s finest naval power. nothing more than a pint of ale at his local pub.
Not all of Britannia’s Scions are drawn to the When the situation demands it, he is also daring and
sea, but all of them find their way into positions of loyal beyond measure, dauntlessly moving against any
power and privilege. During the conflict, they serve threat to the empire and ever ready to respond to
as captains, admirals, politicians and titled nobility. hardship with a stiff upper lip. He makes an excellent
Virtually all have been given knighthood or higher and disciplined soldier, ready to travel around
titles, and most hold large estates and ancestral the world, yet all the while knowing that glorious
fortunes. Their authority and wealth never makes old overcast England is where his heart will always
them weak or self serving; they never fail to fight remain. He’s also an enterprising merchant, open
for king and country. They inspire their troops with to new experiences but self-assured that his nation’s
courage and unflagging bravery, though they insist customs are unquestionably the best.
on proper formalities being observed at all times Like Uncle Sam, he serves as a recruiter during
between the lower ranks of soldiers and their own times of war, but he does so as a peer rather than as a
238
echelons of command.
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commanding father figure. In this war, he divides his
Robin Hood e
time between tending the English people at home and
AKA: Robin of Loxley, Robert Hoad, o
fighting in the war abroad. For the common folk, he n
moves about the countryside and the big cities, raising The Bandit King
morale and teaching his countrymen how to make do Description: Dashing, mysterious and clever, Robin s
under strict rationing and constant threat of bombing. Hood is a cunning trickster and a daring fighter. He
As a soldier, he serves as Britannia’s master sergeant, sometimes prefers the green garb of a merry medieval
never shirking or failing to carry out his orders. He woodsman, and is known for his consummate skill in
has fought the Aesir and the Dodekatheon in their archery and disguise. He is most famed for turning
home realms and in his own, as well as throughout the citizens against unjust rulers and has a knack for
World. He is an implacable foe and will never so much making public relations his greatest weapon in guerilla
as allow a hint of distress cross his face until after the warfare. In the best of times, he serves as Britannia’s
job is done. “loyal opposition,” taking responsibility for nettling
John Bull’s Scions are every bit as good-natured, her about potential flaws in her policies and the moral
stubborn and dedicated as their patron. They are the implications of her actions. He is unshakably loyal to
sailors who would rather drown than surrender, the Britannia, though it is not unusual for him to criticize
soldiers who bravely lead the charge against the enemy her, and once he even went so far as to inspire an attempt
cannon and the merchant marines who maneuver the to dynamite the Houses of Parliament. Yet however far
pursuing U-boats into traps. They never give up, never he takes his speech and his actions, Britannia seems to
back down and never overstate a difficulty. Though love him all the more.
numerous Scions of John Bull perished before the Robin Hood’s talents are invaluable in this war. He
Yankees joined the war, more fight on, and will do so is a master of ambush and distraction, and the Axis
to the last. has been forced to dedicate a disproportionate number
Associated Powers: Epic Stamina, Animal (Bulldog), of resources to contain him—to little effect. The Aesir
Civitas, Psychopomp, War have laid several traps for him, which Robin Hood
evaded so deftly he embarrassed his would-be hunters.
Abilities: Athletics, Brawl, Control, Craft, Integrity,
Robin Hood’s greatest thrills are his daring escapes,
Survival
and he much prefers to baffle an opponent than to
Rivals: The Citizen, d’Artagnan, John Henry
beat him outright.
Enemies: Freyr, Hachiman, Heimdall, Loki 239
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Robin Hood’s Scions are clever, independent civilization, Robin Hood’s Scions pride themselves on
and charming. They make excellent spies and SAS having just the right solution to escape a seemingly
commandos, and are well suited to operations deep certain death.
behind enemy lines, where they can establish systems Associated Powers: Epic Dexterity, Epic Appearance,
of sabotage, organize underground resistances and Epic Charisma, Epic Wits, Chaos, Civitas, Darkness
foment rebellions. They have an amazing talent for Abilities: Athletics, Larceny, Marksmanship, Melee,
retrieving sensitive information, particularly through Presence, Stealth
seduction of high ranking officials or of their wives Rivals: The Citizen, d’Artagnan, Pecos Bill
and girlfriends. Whether on the battlefield or within Enemies: Loki, Marishiten, Tyr
w Gift of Defense on their Legend score and other applicable factors. The giver
may reduce any of his own scores to zero, but if Willpower,
a (Civitas ••••• ••) health levels or any Attribute or Virtue is reduced to zero
Dice Pool: Stamina + Fortitude
r Cost: 2 Legend per DV
then the God will fall into a deep slumber from which he
cannot be awakened for the duration of this Boon. This
The Scion may share defense with another, sacrificing Boon lasts one scene, and the recipients must be aware of
his own safety to protect his peer. The Scion may take and willing to receive the gift.
a penalty to his Defense Values up to the number of
successes rolled and grant a bonus of the same amount
All for One
to one recipient. The recipient’s bonus from this Boon (Civitas ••••• •••••)
may not exceed his original Defense Value, but the Dice Pool: Intelligence + Command
DV may be further modified by other factors such as Cost: 25 Legend + 1 Willpower
actions or attacks. The user of this Boon must remain While this power is in use, the God sets up a
within two hundred feet of the recipient. If the two are subconscious psychic network that links the nervous
separated by a greater distance, the recipient loses the systems of each member of a squad. This provides many
bonus even though the recipient maintains the penalty. benefits. First, all the members of the squad enjoy telepathic
If the distance is closed again, the recipient regains the communication, which is both instant and silent. Second,
DV bonus. The effects of this Boon last for one scene. any member of the squad may use the highest base Dodge
Pool Life (Civitas ••••• •••) or Parry DV possessed by any member of the squad,
modified by the character’s own attacks and other bonuses
Dice Pool: Perception + Medicine
or penalties. Third, any member of the squad may use the
Cost: 2 Legend per person included
highest level of any Ability possessed by any member of the
Much like the Pool Ammo power allows a squad to squad in place of his own. Fourth, any member may spend
extend their ammunition to the uttermost limit, this Willpower on behalf of any other. Finally, any member of
Boon allows a squad to distribute their injuries in the the squad who has at least one dot in an Epic Attribute
most advantageous way, guarding each individual through (including one transferred to him through Gift of Attribute
the life force of the others. Any injury received by any or One for All) may use any squad member’s Knack
member of the squad will be suffered by the member associated with that attribute, even if the character using it
of the squad with the most available health levels. Each would not normally meet the requirements to do so.
success on the roll allows the Scion to include one person
For each success rolled, the God using this Boon may
in the pool. When a character in this pool is targeted by
include one person in the squad. All members of the squad
an attack, use the Defense Value and Soak value of the
must remain within fifty feet of at least one other member.
character being targeted, but transfer any wounds to the
This power lasts one scene, and all members must be willing
246 character with the greatest number of unmarked health
and knowing participants when the power is activated.
Scions of the
Allied Pantheons
The Allied pantheons are united in their desperation, and they are long past the point of being choosey about
which Scions receive Visitations. All too often this means their children lack the proper equipment, qualifications s
or loyalty, which can lead to even more dissention in their ranks down the line. But finding a good Scion and c
putting him or her in the right place at the right time can turn the tide of battle. The following are two sample i
Scions of the Allied pantheons. The Scion of Marianne is a beginning hero-level character, and the Scion of The o
Citizen is a demigod-level Scion. n
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247
Marie du Champs
Scion of Marianne
Marie is jaded, cunning and cautious in a way that belies her seeming
m
t youthful inexperience. Her father was an outspoken grassroots leader against the
Nazi sympathizers in the French government. When word came through that the
h
a Panzers were approaching Paris, he was one of the first citizens out in the road,
r
e taking down street signs to delay the enemy as much as possible. As the weeks
i of the occupation led into months and Hitler set up the Vichy
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e puppet government, Marie’s father pulled together a network
o of citizens in Paris and throughout the countryside to resist the
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d Nazis in any way they could. It was dangerous work, and they all
knew it. Captured Americans and British military personnel were
u
l protected under the Geneva Conventions, but French citizens were
d considered subjects of Germany and their actions were punishable by
c execution without trial. This was to be the fate of Marie’s father, when a
h
a French turncoat infiltrated the organization and submitted the names of
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t its leaders to the Gestapo.
m The Nazis assumed that the organization died with her father, but
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p Marie re-organized and even expanded the operation. She had the perfect
cover as a prim and proper young lady volunteering her time running
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s errands for war widows. A wink and an absent-minded tossing of her hair
r is usually enough for her to allay the suspicions of most investigators, and
her ruthless weeding-out of spies and traitors keeps the rest of her people safe.
For everything else, she uses the .45 given to her by a downed American pilot
whom she helped escape back to England some months back. It was not until
mid-1943 that Marianne was able to get a messenger through to Marie, offering
Marie a single Birthright and the plea that she protect certain key locations and
artifacts which the Axis powers could use against her nation’s pantheon.
Roleplaying Hints: Since the invasion of your country and the murder
of your father, you have become cynical and pessimistic. In public, you
maintain the appearance of being a sweet and pious young lady, but when
among your fellow conspirators you do not hide your jaded outlook. Smoking
is your preferred means of dealing with stress, and the cigarette rationing is
reason enough to eject the Germans. Your real weapon in the war is your
ability to carry out subterfuge and sabotage. You find that you can get the Nazis
to believe just about anything you say, especially if you wear a slit skirt and high
heels—it disgusts you to do so, but the stakes are too high to refrain from using
every advantage.
Join Battle: 6
Dodge DV: 4
Birthrights: Marianne was never able to meet Marie in person, and
she could smuggle out only one Birthright for her: a necklace bearing
the Croix de Lorraine, the symbol of the Free French Movement, which
grants Marie the ability to channel the Guardian and Justice Purviews.
Marie’s followers consist of a network of 30 French citizens in Paris
and throughout the countryside. Although they have no special
skills, they all resent the Nazi occupation and will do what they
can to help the resistance movement.
248
H E R O
Marie Du Champs French Resistance Operative Allied (French)
Name Calling Pantheon
Cynic Marianne
Player Nature God
Attributes
M Physical Social Mental
M
a Strength oooooooooo Charisma oooooooooo Perception oooooooooo a
r Dexterity oooooooooo Manipulation oooooooooo
Intelligence oooooooooo r
i Stamina oooooooooo Appearance oooooooooo Wits oooooooooo i
e e
d ABILITIES d
u Academics ooooo Craft ooooo Melee ooooo u
Animal Ken ooooo ooooo Occult ooooo
C Art ooooo ooooo Politics ooooo C
h ooooo Empathy ooooo Presence ooooo h
a Athletics ooooo Fortitude ooooo Science ooooo a
m Awareness ooooo Integrity ooooo ooooo m
p Brawl ooooo Investigation ooooo ooooo p
s Command ooooo Larceny ooooo Stealth ooooo s
Control ooooo Marksmanship ooooo Survival ooooo
ooooo Medicine ooooo Thrown ooooo
BIRTHRIGHTS WEAPONS
Relic (Croix de Lorraine — Guardian, Justice) 2, Clinch: Acc 3, Dmg 2B, Parry DV –, Spd 6, P
Followers (French Underground) 3 Unarmed, Heavy: Acc 2, Dmg 5B, Parry DV 0, Spd 5
Unarmed, Light: Acc4, Dmg 2B, Parry DV 3, Spd 4
Colt .45: Acc 7, Dmg 5L, Rng 20, Clip 8, Spd 5, P
1 B ––––
A –––– L –––– 2 LEGEND
BOONS ARMOR oooooo
Judgment
oooooo
Pool Ammo
––––––––––––––––––
A –––– L –––– B ––––
Legend
Points 9
–––– ––––
Vigil Brand 249
HEALTH EXPERIENCE
–0 –1 –1 –2 –2 –4 I
Sniper #113
Scion of The Citizen
If Sniper #113 ever had a name, it is entirely possible that even he has
forgotten it. This much is known: he was born during the First World War
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t and worked as a youth to promote the “Lenin Levy” recruitment drive for the
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n Communist Party in the 1920s. He served as an industrial laborer prior to the
ei German invasion, but went to the front lines as soon as the Soviet military
p could issue him a rifle.
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e In person, Sniper #113 is quiet,
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r In battle, he is terrifyingly deadly and
bewilderingly elusive. He has single-
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# handedly held up entire Aesir divisions by targeting
d
1 the commanding officers with pinpoint accuracy and
1 then completely fading away into the background.
a
3 He has infiltrated Helheim to assassinate titanspawn
t before they could be mobilized, and escaped dozens of
elite enemies personally hunting him.
The only thing he allows to occupy his mind is the defense of
w his country and his Godrealm. Although his function requires
a him to operate alone, he is by nature a social creature and
r secretly longs for the companionship of peers. Failing that, he
would at least enjoy the opportunity to educate soldiers from other
nations on how this war was caused by capitalistic aggression and
will be resolved by proletariat unity. However, dedication to the
collective is paramount, and Sniper #113 is quite ready to put
aside his loneliness for the sake of the greater struggle.
Roleplaying Hints: For you, the highest good is that of the
group. Individuals do not matter except in how they can support
the greater collective. It so happens that you can serve a very
powerful function during war. You do not feel proud of this
fact, but there is a contentment that comes with a job well done.
Although your skills make you well suited for independent work,
you enjoy camaraderie above all things and you are especially
eager to engage in conversations on political philosophy.
Join Battle: 6
Dodge DV: 13
Birthrights: Sniper #113’s Red Star Badge allows
him to channel the Psychopomp Purview. His
traditional ushanka fur hat, which once belonged
to Lenin himself, grants access to the Darkness
Purview. At the outbreak of war, the Citizen
granted Sniper #113 a specially enhanced
Mosin-Nagant M1891/30 sniper rifle. This
rifle, dubbed the Red October, adds +100
range, +2 accuracy, and +1 L damage to a
Garand rifle template (see p. 266).
250
D E M I G O D
Sniper #113 Sniper Allied (Soviet)
Name Calling Pantheon
Attributes
s Physical Social Mental
s
n Strength oooooooooo Charisma oooooooooo Perception oooooooooo n
i Dexterity oooooooooo Manipulation oooooooooo Intelligence oooooooooo i
p Stamina oooooooooo Appearance oooooooooo Wits oooooooooo p
e e
r r
ABILITIES
# Academics ooooo Craft (Agriculture) ooooo Melee ooooo #
1 Animal Ken ooooo ooooo Occult ooooo 1
1 Art ooooo ooooo Politics ooooo 1
3 ooooo Empathy ooooo Presence ooooo 3
Athletics ooooo Fortitude ooooo Science ooooo
Awareness ooooo Integrity ooooo ooooo
Brawl ooooo Investigation ooooo ooooo
Command ooooo Larceny ooooo Stealth ooooo
Control (Automobile) ooooo Marksmanship ooooo Survival ooooo
ooooo Medicine ooooo Thrown ooooo
BIRTHRIGHTS WEAPONS
Guide (Party Leader) 3, Relic (Red October Rifle Clinch: Acc 6, Dmg 3B, Parry DV –, Spd 6, P
— +100 range, +2 accuracy, +1 L damage) 5, Unarmed, Heavy: Acc 5, Dmg 6B, Parry DV 10, Spd 5
Relic (Red Star Badge —Psychopomp) 1, Relic Unarmed, Light: Acc 7, Dmg 3B, Parry DV 13, Spd 4
(Lenin’s Ushanka — Darkness) 1 Red October Rifle: Acc 15,Dmg 9L,Rng 250, Clip 8,Spd 5,P
254
set on this front should be marked by limited access to same way as it did in the World. The Scions may not
weapons and supplies, vengeful enemies and freezing have had much opportunity to mingle in mortal military
weather sometimes devastating enough to inflict 1B per efforts if they were “drafted” by their divine patrons to
hour, with a trauma rating of 3. brave the exotic and sometimes highly illogical realms of
Homefront, USA: Just because the mortal German the Gods. Unfortunately, the threat also increased as the
and Japanese forces never crossed the shores of the battle moved into celestial spaces. Going from legendary
United States doesn’t mean that the U.S.A. was free from battlefield hero among the mortals to low-status grunt
the action. The Axis Gods hatched scheme after scheme in the Godrealms was quite a shock for many Scions.
to sow distrust and destruction among the American The Underworld: Outright warfare is uncommon in
people. Scions acting as national protectors were charged the Underworld regions—there’s not much point, since
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with rooting out saboteurs, spies and sympathizers. most everyone there is already dead. But during the War, u
Italy/Southern Europe: This theater was a hotspot from the death-lands were primarily in the hands of the Axis n
1943 on. Much of the fighting took place in the mountainous Gods, which made them an ideal staging ground for all n
regions of northern Italy as allies tried to push their way kinds of nasty surprises. Scions saw opportunity to infiltrate i
through the “soft underbelly of Europe.” The primary these areas by force, trickery or stealth in order to thwart the n
adversaries here were both the Aesir and the Dodekatheon, marshaling of spirits and titanspawn to rise to the World.
although some rebellious Scions of the Dodekatheon served
g
as ready allies. By the end of 1943, the Italians surrendered, Types of Stories
Olympus was besieged and the Nazis occupied the country World War Two can host almost any story that works a
to use as a buffer for their own homeland. in the modern setting, and a few that more easily fit this
North Africa: This region saw the most intensive fighting era. The ideas listed below can serve as springboards w
in the beginning of the war. Although ostensibly neutral, the into many kinds of stories. o
Front Lines Fighting: This is the most straightforward
Presedjet occasionally got sucked into the war, often because
type of war story, with the heroes slugging it out against
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of Set’s unofficial alliance with the Aesir. Much of the l
fighting took place in the scorching desert, which means that the enemy in the thick of battle. The Scions will most
mortal troops required vehicles to move at speed. Airpower likely receive specific orders for obtaining objectives, d
was king within these open landscapes, and being able to which usually involve tackling strategically important
maintain supplies of water and protect soldiers from the points such as bridges, fortresses or “AMCons” (Axis w
blistering heat was as decisive a factor as heavy ordnance. Mundi Connection points). It could also mean holding a
The Pacific: Though primarily the battleground of the out while surrounded by overwhelming Axis forces r
Yankees and the Amatsukami, more than a few French and or pressing through to locate and rescue friendly (or
enemy) V.I.P.s. Of course, what soldiers do between
British mortals and Scions also fought against the Imperial
battles is as important to the story as what they do in the t
Japanese forces. In sharp contrast to the cold European
plains or the flat African landscapes, the battlegrounds of battles, so they can also expect dramatic encounters with w
the Pacific consist of verdant tropical islands. Immortals with squad mates, superior officers, needy locals, salacious o
access to the Sky and Sea purviews had a decided advantage sympathizers and more.
in this theater, moving easily among the isolated and often Enemy Territory: Special forces such as a Band of Scions s
uncharted islands. Combatants were sometimes marooned may be called upon for important missions behind enemy t
lines. These groups might need to disrupt enemy supply
far out to sea, and more than a few sailors discovered strange
chains, rescue important prisoners or prevent (or commit) the
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secrets and bizarre creatures that were long-forgotten—or r
were never known—in the outside world. assassinations or kidnappings of key figures. This would still
Germany: In the beginning, the German people were be a combat-heavy story, since the protagonists are expected y
loyal to Hitler and swelled with nationalistic pride, but as to directly damage enemy military interests, but it could also
the war turned against them, public resentment grew and require mission specialists with uncommon knowledge or
skill sets, and probably the ability to fast-talk effectively. c
outsiders found a few willing accomplices to stand up to the
totalitarian leaders of the Reich. In April of 1945, at the tail Espionage: Go far enough behind the lines, and the story y
end of the war in Europe, the disintegrating German military essentially becomes one of civilians again, albeit civilians c
fled west in hopes of surrendering to the Americans instead caught in the tense and politically charged atmosphere of a l
of being consumed by the vengeful, rampaging Soviet forces. totalitarian state at war. In an espionage story, the characters e
At the same time, Nazi leaders attempted to gather their last will not necessarily fight regularly or openly, but must instead
scraps of power, either to make a final stand or to escape with use their wits to steal the secrets, disrupt the troops or plant
their great wealth, untested weapons and horrible secrets. the bombs. Characters might be underground resistance
The Overworld: All the work done by Scions in the members in occupied territory or operatives planted in the
World to capture Axis Mundi connection points only Axis’ capital cities or central Godrealms. Their danger may
served as a stepping-stone to reach the war of the Gods. be even greater here than on the front lines, since they are
The fighting raged through the heavens in much the perpetually surrounded by enemy.
255
POW: Many great stories see the protagonists The Race: Usually, the goal of war is to wipe out the
incarcerated by the Axis. Sometimes they are treated other side directly, but sometimes both sides share the
with respect and sometimes with brutality, but the same objective and the victor is the one who can achieve it
goal of the hero is to remain in the war, even from first. For Scions, this can be something like an ancient and
behind barbed wire fences. Some true-life stories powerful artifact which has been unearthed in the deserts
involve Allied prisoners developing amazing devices of Egypt or on an uncharted Pacific island. If it falls into the
and brilliant schemes to free themselves. Wherever hands of the Axis, it could spell doom for the free world
Scions are imprisoned in the World, Overworld or (and free Overworld). To prevent that eventuality, the
Underworld, they must use their wits and ingenuity to Scions must brave traps, decipher riddles and outmaneuver
t bewilder their captors and turn their imprisonment to or outfight rivals to lay claim to the objective before the
h their own ends. Axis can use it to snuff out the Allied powers.
e
w
o The Fields Run with Ichor:
r
l
Rules for Military Warfare
d Fighting tends to run a little bit differently in war than in
civilian life. Heavy weapons and large numbers of combatants Combat Units Make
a change the tactics and flow of combat. This section provides Great Accessories
the rules to meet the needs of a war-time setting.
t In the maelstrom of world war, tens of thousands of soldiers
Scion simplifies mass combat by treating
units as enhancements to their commander.
clash on the battlefield. For the first time in history, coordinated Troops provide a bonus to their leader,
w attacks between infantry, artillery, tanks and aircraft are possible. increasing his traits and granting him extra
a While this makes for a dramatic and compelling backdrop health levels. Moreover, trained soldiers
r upon which to tell a story, trying to run a combat with dozens marching in formation cannot be attacked as
or even hundreds of individual characters is impractical. As a individuals, but force enemies to fight them
result, Scion uses the following rules to abstract mass combat as a collective group. Storytellers should not
into a clash of units rather than individual characters. For allow characters to fight individuals once
reference throughout this section, units track time in long ticks units have formed ranks on the battlefield.
lasting one minute each instead of the standard second-long If they want to cross swords with an enemy
tick increments of individual combat. commander, they will have to fight their way
These mass combat rules aren’t appropriate to every through the rank and file soldiers first. Units
conflict, particularly if the battlefield only serves as a dramatic in mass combat are rarely destroyed outright,
backdrop for a more personal combat. Use these mass combat though, unless they are the target of a truly
rules whenever heroes and demigods become personally devastating weapon. More commonly, units
involved in open warfare or whenever the Storyteller wishes fall victim to exhaustion or suffer gradual
to leave a battle’s outcome to strategy and chance as opposed losses until their morale breaks and they
to the story’s particular needs. Furthermore, mass combat either surrender or abandon their leader on
in Scion assumes that unit commanders charge into battle, the battlefield, leaving him to his fate at the
leading their troops by example rather than directing the hands of his enemies.
battle from the safety of the rear. Generals may use radios
and runners to issue orders and direct an entire force from
afar, but only a unit leader can personally rally his troops to
victory with his own prowess. Magnitude: The number of members in a unit.
Training: The discipline and training of a unit.
Units Endurance: The overall staying power of a unit.
Units in mass combat fall into one of two categories: Power: The combined mystical power of a unit,
solo units and complimentary units. Solo units are characters factoring in any magical equipment.
that aren’t part of any group. They use their individual stats Close Combat/Ranged Attack: The skill and
and traits on the battlefield. Most units are complimentary accuracy of a unit’s members.
units, made up of one character and everyone under his
Close Combat/Ranged Damage: The lethality of a
command. In game terms, a complimentary unit uses its
unit’s members.
commander’s statistics with trait bonuses according to
Armor: The average protection provided by unit
the numbers, equipment and training of his troops. The
256 member’s armor.
special traits that define complimentary units are:
Magnitude Members Equivalent
0 1 Solo
1 2-15 Squad
2 16-50 Platoon
3 51-100 Company
4 101-250 — t
5 251-500 Battalion
h
e
6 501-1,000 —
7 1,001-2,500 Regiment f
8 2,501-5,000 Brigade i
e
9 5001-10,000 Division
l
d
s
Morale: The courage and bravery of a unit. If this is not the case, use the special character’s health
Special Characters: A list of important characters levels as a guide to determine the number of standard
combatants a character type represents. For example,
r
within the unit’s ranks.
Formation: A description of a unit’s tactical arrangement. a hero has seven health levels instead of three. This u
means that every hero is worth slightly more than two n
Magnitude regular unit members. Since heroes provide a substantial
The Magnitude of a unit reflects the number of characters advantage, round their benefit up to three. Demigods w
that are part of it. Large units can inflict more damage and
absorb more casualties, but have more trouble executing
and Gods might be worth considerably more, however. i
orders quickly. Therefore, most military organizations
When figuring out unit Magnitude, each value over t
nine has double the maximum membership of the previous
break up their fighting force into manageable units, each rating, so a Magnitude of 10 would be 10,001 to 20,000
h
led by a different commander. Furthermore, combined troops, 11 would be 20,0001 to 40,000 troops and so on.
forces of infantry, armor and artillery are increasingly used i
in modern warfare, requiring smaller units of specialized Training c
troops to coordinate with each other on the battlefield. The Training trait represents the military discipline
and combat preparedness drilled into a unit. Highly
h
The following table assumes that a given unit is made
up of rank-and-file extras apart from the commander. trained units can rapidly change formation and o
r
Training Description Example
0 Untrained Solo units; mobs; gangs
1 Green Low quality troops; resistance
fighters; raw recruits
2 Regular Average troops; trained militia;
standard infantry
3 Veteran Good troops; US Marines;
Waffen-SS
4 Elite Excellent troops; British
Commandos; US Army Rangers
5 Legendary Superb troops; Alamo Scouts, US 6th
Army Special Reconnaissance Unit;
Easy Company, US 506th
Parachute Infantry Regiment
257
tactics to respond to threats. Training also improves Bonuses Equipment
the survivability of unit members, keeping them in +1 Enhanced items, Relic 1
formation, ready for battle and fused together into a +2 Special gifts, Relic 2-3
potent fighting force. +3 Powerful artifacts, Relic 4-5
Training represents the special bond created +4 Legendary objects, Relic 6+
between soldiers who have gone through intense
training together. As such, it is not calculated based Close Combat/Ranged
on the average statistics of unit members. Use the Attack Rating
following table to determine a unit’s Training rating.
t Every complimentary unit has a Close Combat and
h Endurance Ranged Attack rating representing the general skill and
accuracy of it members. A unit’s attack rating is equal to
e No mortal man can march and fight indefinitely.
the average (Dexterity + appropriate combat Ability) for all
Even the offspring of the Gods will tire of warfare
and lay down their arms eventually. To reflect this, unit members, divided by two (remember, mortals generally
w each unit has an Endurance trait that reflects its round disadvantageously – see Scion: Hero, p. 174). A unit
o member’s vigor and staying power. A complimentary has access to its Close Combat rating only when equipped
r unit has an Endurance rating equal to its (Training with the appropriate weaponry (e.g. bayonets, but not
rifles). If every member of a unit carries the same weapon,
l + Stamina). A solo unit has an Endurance rating
as is usually the case in military units, the Accuracy of that
d equal to (Stamina + Fortitude). This trait decreases
weapon factors into the Attack rating before halving it.
over the course of combat, and the unit suffers a -2
fatigue penalty on all actions if its Endurance ever For example, a squad of Marines (Dexterity 3, Firearms 3)
a drops to zero. equipped with M1 Garands (Accuracy +3) would have a
t If unit members are not allowed to rest for Ranged Attack rating of 4 (3+3+3 equals 9, half of which
several hours between battles, subtract the fatigue is 4.5). If a unit carries a mix of different weapons, such
as in a French Resistance unit, average the Accuracy of
w value of the troops’ equipment and armor from
the primary weapons carried by the unit members before
a their starting Endurance.
calculating the attack rating as normal.
r Power
Instead of presenting rules for how each
Close Combat/Ranged Damage
supernatural ability is used on the battlefield, Scion These traits represent the amount of damage a unit can
mass combat rules abstract various powers into a inflict with a successful close combat or ranged attack. To
single rating that represents the combined mystical determine a unit’s Close Combat or Ranged Damage rating,
might of the unit. Use the following table to figure average the damage rating of the primary weapons carried
out a unit’s Power rating, adding the best equipment by the unit members. If each member is carrying the same
bonus that applies (if any). In order to qualify for a weapon, simply use its damage rating. Remember to add
bonus, the majority of unit members must possess the the unit members’ average Strength for close combat and
listed powers and/or equipment. Having a few Scions primitive ranged weapons. For firearms, simply add one to the
amongst a unit will increase its equivalent strength, weapon damage to calculate raw damage. After determining
but will not increase its Power rating. Instead, these the base damage rating, divide the total by three (rounding as
individuals count as special characters (see p. 259). appropriate to the unit type – up for Legendary units, down
Few units have a Power rating higher than three for mortals) to get the final Close Combat or Ranged Damage
during the modern era, even during the upheaval of rating. For example, the aforementioned Marines with their
the Second World War. M1 Garands (+8L) have a Ranged Damage rating of 2.
258
Armor
Armor is rarely, if ever, used in warfare of this
period. Scions and their loyal followers may go into
battle wearing anachronistic armor. This trait represents
the resilience and protection afforded by unit member’s
armor. To calculate a unit’s Armor rating, divide
the average soak of the troops by three, rounding as
appropriate to the unit type. Likewise, the mobility
penalty for a unit is equal to the average mobility penalty t
of its members. The fatigue value of armor comes into
play during prolonged exertion, such as combat (see
h
Endurance, above). e
Morale f
Dwight D. Eisenhower said, “Morale is the single
greatest factor in successful wars.” Units with high
i
morale can overcome larger and better-equipped units. e
Conversely, units with poor morale falter in the face of l
adversity and are more likely to break and run when d
confronted by an aggressive enemy. The Morale of s
a unit is equal to the lower of its members’ average
Virtue (such as Courage or Valor) or the appropriate r
Virtue rating of its commander. If the unit members
are mortals and do not have Virtues, use half of their
u
Willpower rating, rounded down, when calculating the n
unit’s Morale rating. Units comprised of the walking
dead or automata have perfect Morale even if their w
commander does not, and they automatically succeed i
on any Morale check. t
Special Characters h
In smaller units, the commander is often the only
special character, inspiring his troops and leading i
them into battle. The unit will likely fall apart if the c
commander dies in battle, however. Therefore, larger
units have lesser officers on hand who can assume
h
command if the commander is killed. Conversely, larger o
units are harder to manage, and commanders need r
aides to help them maintain order, relay commands and
call for support if necessary. In addition to maintaining
order, units may also contain specialists such as medics,
sappers and even Legendary creatures to give them an
edge in battle.
A complimentary unit can have a maximum
number of special characters equal to (Magnitude x
2), not counting unit commanders. Unless they are
directly targeted (see p. 265), special characters always
survive until the unit loses its last dot of Magnitude, at
which point they heroically give their lives to protect
the commander. At the end of a battle, or whenever
a unit loses Magnitude away from the battlefield,
special characters in excess of the unit’s normal
Magnitude limit must leave the unit unless sufficient
replacements can be found to restore the unit to full
fighting strength.
Individuals may be mixed and matched from the
following roles. 259
relay communications. Radio operators, signalmen
Sample Mass and runners, they disseminate the commander’s
Combat Units orders throughout the ranks, ensuring that each and
every member is on task. Even more importantly, relays
Experienced G.I. Squad: Magnitude 1; can call in artillery, air support and reinforcements
Training 3; Endurance 6; Power 0; Attack when necessary. Units with a Magnitude greater
(ranged) 5; Damage (ranged) 2 L; Armor 0; than three must have at least one relay for every dot
Morale 3; Special Characters: Medic of Magnitude, or suffer from communication failure.
French Resistance Mob: Magnitude 2; Units suffering from poor communication suffer
t Training 0; Endurance 3; Power 0; Attack a -2 penalty to its effective Training rating. Besides
h (ranged/close) 2/2; Damage (ranged/ handling communication, relays can stand in for the
e close) 1 L/1 B; Armor 0; Morale 2; Special commander when the unit hesitates, tests for rout
Characters: none (see pp. 265--266) or whenever making immediate
w German Regular Platoon: Magnitude 2; command decisions is vital.
o Training 2; Endurance 5; Power 0; Attack
Formation
r (ranged) 3; Damage (ranged) 2 L; Armor 0;
Every military unit has a formation, representing
Morale 2; Special Characters: Hero, Relay,
l Medic x 2
how close together members are when they fight. In
d game terms, the exact shape of the unit deployment
Hachiman’s Jikininki Battalion: Magnitude is less important than whether or not members are
5; Training 4; Endurance 8; Power 1; Attack bunched together for close quarter combat or spread out
a (close) 4; Damage (close) 3 L; Armor 0; to minimize casualties from artillery fire. Commanders
t Morale 3; Special Characters: Hero x 5 can order one of four basic formations to suit the needs
of a changing battlefield. In general, the tighter the ranks
w the more training it takes to learn how to fight this way.
a Hero: These special characters are subordinate officers Unordered (Training 0): This formation is little
r who are capable of assuming command if their unit more than an unruly mob of combatants rallied around
commander dies. Because they are capable of independent a charismatic leader. Unordered units may win battles
action, these characters may attack other units as if they through sheer numbers, but they are at a major disadvantage
were solo, effectively giving their unit an additional close when fighting against professional soldiers. Typically only
combat or ranged attack. They may also lend their Close civilians or untrained militia fight in this formation, but
Combat or Ranged rating to his unit, using his trait instead even well-trained units may be forced into disorder if vital
of the unit leader’s rating, but the trait is limited by the communication relays are disrupted at the right moment.
commander’s Command rating (see “Attack,” p. 264, for Relaxed (Training 1): The default formation, unit
more on this limit). Specialist heroes such as snipers and spacing is just wide enough for members march and
sappers can use their special abilities in place of making an fight next to each other without getting into each other’s
independent or supporting attack. Additionally, heroes way. This formation walks the line between close and
may leave the main unit, taking some members with them skirmish, providing none of the advantages nor suffering
and transforming the breakaway group into a new unit any of the drawbacks of either one.
under their own command. Skirmish (Training 1): In this formation, unit members
Medic: These special characters have no direct effect intentionally spread out to minimize casualties from ranged
on the outcome of a battle but can help win the war, and area-effect attacks such machinegun, artillery and mortar
especially for military units that are short on manpower fire. Mobility is also increased, but this formation makes it
or cut off from reinforcements. Whenever a unit takes harder to defend against enemy infiltration of their ranks
damage, the medic has the opportunity to treat the and leaves the unit vulnerable to close combat attacks.
wounds and ensure that the wounded troops live to fight Close (Training 2): In this formation, unit members
another day. Damage inflicted reduces the unit’s health close ranks and fight side-by-side, taking a stand and
levels and Magnitude as normal, but once the battle is preventing enemies from breaking through. Close-
over, the medic can restore lost health levels to the unit. formation fighting requires a lot of training, but units
The number of health levels that a medic can “save” per that master it gain bonuses to their defense and morale.
turn is equal to his (Wits +Medicine) divided by three. Any Unfortunately, the tight-spacing makes the unit vulnerable
damage in excess of this is lost permanently. Additional ranged and area-effect attacks, especially machinegun,
medics can work together, increasing the total number of artillery and mortar fire. Because of the prevalence of these
health levels that can be saved per turn. weapons on the modern battlefield, close formation is rarely
Relay: Arguably the most important special used except in urban or heavily forested environments
characters in an organized military unit are those that where ranged weapons are less effective.
260
Other Unit Rules each soldier’s pack for a time, easing their collective burden
and giving them a chance to rest. Additionally, a Scion may
Mass combat rules treat military units as abstract use Untouchable Opponent Knack to draw enemy fire
characters, but they are still groups of individuals. As a away from his troops or the Body Armor Knack to defend
result, there are a few special rules modifications. them by throwing himself into harms way. Not every Boon
Targeting: Any power or special ability that targets or ability will translate as directly onto the battlefield, so
one specific character may only be directed at the players will have to come up with their own rationale for
commander or a special character within the unit. It how to use a power. The Storyteller should veto anything
cannot be directed at the unit as a whole. Powers that that does not make sense, but as always should err on the
extend to multiple targets or to a specific area must side of fun and coolness whenever in doubt. o
encompass most of a unit in order to affect it. Penalties: In addition to the targeting limitations r
Conversely, a commander may use Boons and abilities described above, complementary units do not suffer d
to benefit himself or his unit’s actions regardless of the penalties unless they affect all unit members. Similarly, e
unit’s Magnitude. In this case, using the Boon does not
count as a single use, but as a dramatic and repeated action
units cannot be knocked back, knocked down or r
crippled unless the effect encompasses the entire unit.
that inspires or supports the unit’s primary action. For If a unit is somehow knocked down or knocked back, it
example, a Scion could use the Work Harder Boon to must immediately test for rout (see p. 265-266). Likewise,
o
reduce the fatigue penalties incurred by his unit’s forced units may not be grappled, but may be Enveloped by a f
march. This might represent the commander shouldering larger enemy unit (see p. 264).
b
a
t
Order of Battle t
l
e
Declaration of War Move
Units move at (normal Move x speed modifier)
Mass combat begins when the unit commander
decides to join battle, just like in small-scale combat. yards per long tick. The speed modifier is based
The mechanics are slightly different, however. The roll on the current unit formation. Solo characters use
to determine the unit’s first action is ([Wits + Command] their Dexterity when calculating their normal move
- Magnitude). Solo units and any special characters that while complimentary units use the average Dexterity
wish to act separately from their unit make a (Wits + of the unit members. Any applicable wound or
Awareness) roll as normal. Actions are resolved in order, mobility penalties are factored in before applying
just like in regular combat (see Combat in Scion: Hero, p. the speed modifier.
187), except that mass combat uses long ticks representing Formation Speed Modifier
approximately one minute each. Solo x100
Surprise: Unexpected attacks in mass combat are Unordered x30
resolved normally except that the attackers must be fully Relaxed x70
concealed in order to ambush another unit. Military Skirmish x100
units cannot surprise each other out in the open because Close x40
a hostile unit’s intentions become readily apparent once Terrain: While terrain plays less of a role in small-
they are spotted by their enemy. The roll to concealing scale conflicts, it is much more important in mass combat.
an attacking unit is ([Dexterity + Stealth] - Magnitude) Units gain the usual DV bonuses for height (see Scion:
and is resisted by rolling the commander’s or any special Hero, p. 193), but use the following guidelines for cover:
character’s highest (Perception + Awareness) to spot the tall grass, low fences or fallen logs (30%); forest, rubble
ambush before the trap is sprung. field or machinegun nest (60%); trenches, foxholes or
Actions concrete bunkers (90%). If multiple conditions apply,
use only the highest bonus.
The actions available in mass combat are similar to
In addition to providing bonuses for cover and
those found in regular combat. Each action has a Speed
height, terrain also affects movement.
that determines how many long ticks must pass before
the unit can act again plus a Defensive Value penalty Open: Terrain is considered open if it provides
that indicates how much the specific action impairs the 30% cover or less and contains no obstacles that
unit’s defense. While there are many similarities between would impede movement. Examples include farmland,
small-scale and large-scale conflicts, the following special meadows and roads. Any unit can move freely through
rules apply to mass combat. open terrain. 261
Difficult: Terrain is considered difficult if it provides Inactive
60% cover or less and includes obstacles that impede A unit remains inactive whenever it is incapable of
swift movement. Examples include forests, heavily taking any other action in mass combat. This may be
bombed cities and areas protected by field fortifications due to a supernatural power or chemical weapon, but
such as barbed wire and tank traps. Infantry units may these circumstances rarely come up in play since such
move normally but cannot dash, and tanks may move attacks must encompass the entire unit in order to have
at half speed. All other vehicles cannot pass though any effect. Therefore, solo units are far more likely to
difficult terrain at all. become inactive during mass combat.
Extreme: Terrain is considered extreme if it
t provides 90% cover or less and includes obstacles Miscellaneous Action
h and barriers that make movement all but impossible. In addition to the standard actions available in a
e Examples include thick jungle, swampland and field small-scale conflict, there are a number of additional
fortifications such as barricades and hedgerows. actions specific to mass combat.
w Infantry units may move at half speed, and anything Change Formation (Speed 5, -1 DV): Unit
larger cannot pass through at all. Barriers may be commanders may rearrange a unit for maximum
o tactical advantage, spreading troops out to prevent
attacked just like regular objects, however (see
r Scion: Hero, p. 201). Destroying a section opens a casualties from artillery fire or forming close ranks in
l path large enough for unit to pass through using a preparation for a bayonet charge. Changing formation
d full move action. requires the player to roll the (Charisma + Command)
Vehicles: Marching is not always the quickest of the commander or the best relay against a difficulty of
a or safest way to travel. As such, vehicles are often (Magnitude - Training) with a minimum difficulty of 1.
The difficulty is +1 if the unit was attacked since its last
t used to deploy fresh troops to the battlefield.
action and +2 if it is currently engaged with an enemy
Infantry may be loaded onto trucks, hitch a ride
on passing tanks or parachute out of the sky to get unit. The benefits and drawbacks of the new formation
w them into the fight. There must be enough vehicles take effect immediately.
a to transport the entire unit for them to gain any Disengage (Speed 0, -0 DV): Complementary units
r benefit, however. become engaged as soon as one of them attacks the
Vehicle Movement per Long Tick other in close combat. In order for the two units to
Armored Car 600 yards separate, one of them must perform a Disengage action.
Doing so requires a successful roll of ([Wits + Training]
Motorcycle 900 yards
- Magnitude) against a difficulty of (the opposing unit’s
Tank 300 yards
Training + 3). Failure means that the retreat is blocked,
Truck 500 yards but the acting unit may attempt to Disengage again on
Towed Artillery 1/2 vehicle speed its next turn.
Dash Turn (Speed 3, -1 DV): Solo units can pivot
A dash in mass combat is called a charge or forced freely in any direction to face their enemy, but
march. Units dash at ([normal Move + 6] x speed larger units are less nimble. Complementary units
modifier) yards per long tick. Normal Move and can reflexively change their facing by 90 degrees
speed modifiers are determined just like in regular on any long tick that they normally take an action.
unit movement (see above). Individuals can dash at Turning more than 90 degrees on one turn requires
will, but coordinating unit charge takes some skill. the player to roll (Charisma + Command) of the
To keep the unit in formation during the charge, the commander or the best relay against a difficulty of
commander’s player must roll (Charisma + Command) (Magnitude - Training) with a minimum difficulty
against a difficulty equal to (Magnitude – Training) of 1.
with a minimum difficulty of 1. Failure causes the If a unit is attacked from the rear, it suffers the
unit to become unordered, severely reducing the usual disadvantages of an unexpected attack (see Scion:
speed of the charge and losing any tactical advantage Hero, p. 199).
of the original formation. Immediately after making Split Unit (Speed 3, -1 DV): Sometimes a larger
a charge, the Endurance of the unit decreases by the unit will split into two smaller units, usually so it
average fatigue value of any armor or equipment can pursue separate objectives. No roll is required to
carried by the unit. do so, but the parent unit must have a spare hero
character to take over command of the new unit.
Guard Calculate the Magnitude of the new units based
Taking this action focus a unit on defense, on the number of unit members assigned to each,
useful for defending a fixed location or advancing including any special characters. Parent units always
under fire. lose a minimum of one Magnitude dot following a
262
split, even if the number of members lost would not battle. Radio operators are regularly called upon to
normally require it, because of the disruption caused relay orders, call for reinforcements and coordinate
by dividing the unit. attacks with other units. This action may be used
If a new unit does not have sufficient relays, it suffers to send messages to a maximum number of units
a communications failure (see p. 260). Additionally, equal to the number of relays the sender has in its
both units may hesitate and become unordered. ranks. Such messages are usually coded to prevent
To prevent this, the player may roll (Charisma + interception, but may be sent in the clear if the
Command) of the commander or best relay in each commander chooses, such as when contacting an
unit against a difficulty of (Magnitude - Training) with enemy unit.
a minimum difficulty of 1. Add two to the difficulty if Rally (Speed 4, -1 DV): Good commanders know
o
the original unit was engaged with another unit at the how to inspire soldiers and lead them to victory. r
time of the split. Rallying requires the commander to address his troops, d
Solo characters: It is much easier for a single giving them a short speech or rallying cry, after which e
character to leave a military unit than to divide the his player should roll (Charisma + Command) against r
entire fighting force. Solo units may split from a a difficulty of (Magnitude - Training) with a minimum
unit as a reflexive action with a Speed 0, -0 DV at difficulty of 1. The effects of a successful rally depend
any time. Conversely, an individual may be expelled on the commander’s objective:
o
from a unit against his will in the same manner. Relay: Success turns a regular unit member into f
No roll is required, but the expelled character may a relay, provided this does not take the unit over
attempt to directly attack his former commander its limit of special characters. This represents the b
(see p. 265). commander appointing a new runner, replacing a
Merge Units (Speed 3, -1 DV): When necessary, a wounded radio operator or giving a soldier a t
two friendly units can combine forces to create a battlefield promotion.
t
larger, stronger unit. Most commonly this is done to Recruit: Success draws scattered allies to the unit’s
compensate for severe casualties. Both units must be cause, increasing its Magnitude by 1, provided there
l
adjacent and the commanders must consent to the are enough unorganized troops nearby to justify the in- e
merge. One of them has to initiate the action, but both crease (such as after a larger unit has lost Magnitude).
players must make a reflexive (Charisma + Command) If so, assume that the unit has the minimum num-
roll against a difficulty of (original unit’s Magnitude ber of members for its new Magnitude. If the unit
- Training) with a minimum difficulty of 1. If either does not have enough relays to accommodate its new
fails, the merge is unsuccessful, and one (or both) units Magnitude, suffers from communications failure until
hesitate (see pp. 265-266). If the roll is successful, the the commander rallies sufficient relays (see p. 260).
two groups merge and the new unit’s Magnitude is This represents the commander bolstering the cour-
calculated using the total combined membership, age of broken troops or recruiting a group of retreat-
including special characters. Either commander may ing troops for a counter-attack.
take command of the new unit, but if there is a dispute, Recover: Success restores a number of Endurance
the commander of the larger unit (or the one that points equal to the unit’s Training rating (minimum
rolled highest if both units were the same size) retains 1), but it cannot increase the value above the
control. The former commander may become a special unit’s starting level. This action represents the
character within the new unit as long as there is room commander inspiring his troops to redouble their
within the new unit. Any special characters in excess of efforts, refuse to give up or fight harder in defense
the maximum must leave the unit immediately become of all they hold dear.
solo characters.
Special characters: Two units may transfer or
Activate Boon, Knack or Power
In mass combat, commanders, special characters
exchange special characters as long as both units are
and solo units may use Boons, Knacks and powers
adjacent. Both unit commanders’ players must make
on any long tick that they normally take an action.
Merge Unit rolls as described above. If successful, both
Additionally, these characters may use a reflexive
units may transfer any number of special characters,
ability at any time, even if they have used another
up to the maximum allowed per unit. Failure means
power recently. Rank-and-file characters may not use
that the transfer is delayed until they can try again.
special abilities during mass combat, as their mystical
Additionally, this roll also covers solo units that wish
abilities are already factored into the Power trait.
to join up with a complementary unit, except that
Unless stated differently, Boons and Knacks that last
the joining character’s player does not need to make
until the end of the scene last until the end of the
a roll.
battle in mass combat.
Signal Units (Speed 3, -1 DV): Maintaining
Using Magic spells is a little different, however.
clear lines of communication is vital to winning a 263
Characters capable of spellcasting may do so as a
Speed 5, DV-2 action. Spells that take longer than Additionally, a unit’s Power rating grants a bonus to
five minutes to cast will take the appropriate amount the commander’s effective Legend rating for the purpose of
of additional long ticks. Also, if a unit leader casts resisting hostile Boons, Knacks and spells. Close Combat
a spell, it counts as the entire unit’s action, as they and Ranged Damage each add their rating as bonus
provide him support and cover. Therefore, it is often successes to the damage generated by close and ranged
better to leave the spellcasting to special characters attacks, respectively. Likewise, a unit’s Armor value adds
within the unit. bonus successes to the commander’s bashing, lethal and
aggravated soak. Furthermore, if the commander chooses
Attack to parry in close combat, he adds one half the unit’s Close
t For the most part, attacks in mass combat are
Combat Attack rating as a bonus to his Parry DV.
h resolved the same was as in regular combat. A
Formation modifiers:
e unit’s assault represents a sustained volley of fire
or clash of arms instead of a single attack, however. • Close formation doubles the unit’s Close
Military units also track health levels a little dif- Combat Attack rating as well as doubling the DV
w ferently. Most importantly, complimentary units bonuses for cover against close combat attacks (if
o grant bonuses to its commander’s attack rolls un- any). Enemy units making ranged or indirect fire
r der certain circumstances. attack double their effective Magnitude when
l Unit Bonuses: A complimentary unit uses its determining attack bonuses. Units in close
formation also subtract two from the difficulty
d leader’s statistics, but provides bonuses based on the
of all hesitation rolls (see pp. 265-266).
training, equipment and quantity of its members.
Whenever a unit commander takes an action, his • Relaxed formation doubles cover bonuses
a player uses the normal Ability or Command rating, (if any) against ranged attacks.
t whichever is less. Therefore, the Command rating acts
as a cap for all other Abilities in mass combat. For • Skirmish formation doubles cover bonuses
(if any) against all attacks and gain an additional
w example, a commander with Dexterity 3, Firearms 4
+3 DV bonus against ranged and indirect fire
a and Command 3 has an effective Firearms rating of 3
attacks. Enemy units making a close combat
and a total dice pool of 6.
r attack double their effective Magnitude when
A commander adds his unit’s Close Combat
and Ranged Attack rating as bonus successes to determining attack bonuses. If the attacking
close combat and ranged attacks, respectively, ap- unit is in close formation, it triples its effective
plying this bonus to any successes generated by the Magnitude. Units in skirmish formation add two
attack roll. The total number of bonus successes to the difficulty of all hesitation rolls.
cannot exceed the commander’s Command rating • Unordered formation adds two to the
before applying any formation bonuses, however. difficulty of hesitation rolls.
Therefore, the commander with Command 3 lead-
Ranged Attacks: A unit making a ranged attack
ing a unit with a Ranged Attack rating of 4 would
fires a volley of shots or a sustained artillery barrage
only get to add three bonus successes to his attack
at a target. As such, every attack consumes three
roll. If attacking a unit in close formation, the ef-
ammunition instead of the normal one. The range
fective number of successes doubles, allowing him
increment for a ranged attack is based on the average
to add six successes. After adding in the number
equipment carried by the troops rather than any
of bonus successes based on combat skills, a unit
specialized equipment carried by the commander.
gets to add a number of additional successes equal
Special characters armed with superior weapons are
to its Power rating. Therefore, a veteran unit of
not limited by the unit’s standard equipment, however.
berserks with a Close Combat Attack rating of 5
Snipers and bazooka men may make independent
and a Power of 1 commanded by a character with
attacks using their own weapons on any long tick that
Command 4 would add five successes to close com-
they normally take an action.
bat attack rolls.
Enveloping: To envelop a target, the attacking unit
Magnitude can play a major role in the success of an
spreads out and surrounds the enemy, trapping it in
attack. A larger unit gains bonus successes on its attack
place. The attacker must be in close combat range and
rolls equal to the difference in Magnitude between itself
have a Magnitude greater than the target unit. The
and the smaller unit. It also subtracts the difference
attack roll suffers a -2 penalty to perform the maneuver,
in Magnitude from the successes generated by the
but if successful the enemy unit is trapped in place. Add
smaller unit’s attack rolls. The bonus provided by excess
three to the difficulty of the trapped unit to disengage
Magnitude cannot exceed three successes, however.
and one to the difficulty if the larger unit wishes to
Only so many soldiers can fight the same enemy at the
disengage. The envelopment continues until either unit
same time, after all.
264 disengages or is defeated.
Direct Attacks: Killing a commander or special of 1). Repeat the roll for each dot of Magnitude lost
character can cripple or destroy a unit, making during the battle. If successful, the troops repre-
assassination an ideal method of defeating a larger force. sented by the lost Magnitude have recovered and
Enemy commanders are aware of this and take steps to return to the unit, raising membership up to the
protect themselves, however. They will often remove minimum number required for the new Magnitude
any sign of rank and stay where their unit can protect level. If the unit regains a point of Magnitude, it
them. An attack that directly targets a commander also regains full health. If the roll fails, the soldiers
suffers a penalty equal to half the target unit’s represented by lost Magnitude were killed in action
Training or Magnitude, rounded up. Use the lower of and replacements will have to be recruited normally
Training or Magnitude if the target unit is unordered. (see below). o
Otherwise, use the higher rating when calculating the r
attack penalty. An attack that directly targets a special Exhaustion d
character is handled in the same way, but the effective Every time a unit attacks or defends itself, it loses e
a point of Endurance. Players of commanders or their
Magnitude is doubled when calculating the penalty.
best relays can avert this loss by making a reflexive
r
Additionally, only ranged attacks may directly target a
commander or special character unless the units are (Charisma + Command) roll against a difficulty equal
engaged in close combat. to the fatigue value of the troops’ equipment and o
The target of a direct attack may defend normally, armor (if any). A number of circumstances may modify f
and any damage inflicted applies directly to the this roll, adding or subtracting from the difficulty
victim instead of to the unit. If a commander is value (minimum 1). b
slain, another special character must take his place Circumstance Difficulty Modifier a
or else the unit becomes unordered and the unit’s Unit’s Morale 3+ -1 t
statistics are recalculated as if an average member Unit has perfect Morale -2
were in command.
t
Unit is engaged with enemy unit +2
Unit Damage: The base damage inflicted by l
Unit charged as last action +1
a unit in mass combat is equal to its Magnitude. Hot or snowy weather +1
e
Complimentary units begin play with full health Desert or blizzard +2
equal to the commander’s maximum, regardless of
Extreme temperatures +3
his current wound level. A unit composed entirely of
average troops would only have an average character’s Units reduced to zero Endurance suffer a -2 penalty
base health levels. Therefore, units led by heroic on all actions due to fatigue.
leaders are tougher and have higher survivability rates,
and armies try to put talented people in command Healing and
wherever possible. Recruitment
When units take damage, they lose health levels Solo units recover from wounds just like the normal
until they reach Incapacitated, at which point they lose characters, but complimentary units do not simply
a dot of Magnitude and their health rating is reset to regenerate lost manpower. Instead, they must spend a
full. Whenever a unit loses Magnitude from a single period of time recruiting reinforcements and integrating
attack, the commander must check for rout. Once a unit them into the unit. Restoring a single health level takes
is reduced to zero Magnitude, every member is dead save a number of days equal to (current Magnitude + 1), and
the former commander, whose health remains wherever repeating the cycle as necessary until the unit is back
it was at the start of the battle. at full fighting strength. Once the unit regains its first
Few troops possess the discipline to fight to the last point of Magnitude, it also regains full health.
man, however. Most often units suffer hesitation or route
completely as they lose Magnitude due to damage. Hesitation and Rout
Casualties: Not every character that is lost when Fear and doubt can be fatal on the battlefield.
a unit loses Magnitude is killed. Some flee or are Units that believe themselves beaten have already lost,
wounded and retreat to from the battlefield to re- even if they have superior numbers. Whenever a unit
cuperate. But people do die in battle, especially if experiences a rout condition, roll its Morale against a
they do not receive timely medical attention. After difficulty of 1, adding modifiers according to the event
a battle, players of commanders or their best medics that triggered the rout check.
can roll (Wits + Medicine) against a difficulty equal If the roll succeeds, then nothing happens. On a
to the largest number of Magnitude lost in any one failure, the unit hesitates and cannot move until its
attack. Reduce the difficultly by one if the unit’s next action. It also loses a dot of Magnitude for every
Morale is 3 or higher or reduce the difficulty by two success by which it failed (so a roll of 1 success against
if the unit has perfect Morale (minimum difficulty a difficulty of 3 would lose two dots of Magnitude).
265
The loss takes place immediately, but has the dubious solo unit or lead a breakaway group as commander of
benefit of restoring the unit’s health to full. The loss of his own unit.
manpower does not include special characters unless
their total number exceeds the maximum allowed by Military Equipment
the new Magnitude. In this case, they leave immediately The pure destructive force of weapons in the 1940s
along with the rest of the fleeing troops. leaves nothing to be desired. True, weapons of the future
Event Difficulty Mod. will be a little less bulky and a little more accurate,
Suffering Magnitude +0 but the world has never before or since seen such raw
loss from damage destructive force unleashed. In order to blow stuff up,
t you need the right equipment. Courage, patriotism and
Receiving the first ranged +0
h attack since the unit’s last action
high ideals aren’t worth much if the other side is coming
e Receiving a chemical, biological, +1
at you with panzers and bombers.
or supernatural attack Firearms
w Becoming engaged with an enemy unit +0 Colt .45: This is the standard sidearm of the U.S.
o …that is superior in number or training +1 military. It is reliable and has good stopping power.
r …that is composed of supernatural beings +2 Luger: The most prized trophy of Allied soldiers,
l Successfully disengaging from an enemy unit +1 the Luger went out of production in 1942 due to the
high manufacturing costs. Still, it remains a badge of
d
Special Character authority among Nazi officers.
266
Meiji 38: The most common rifle among the very far away or well-entrenched behind cover. They
Japanese Imperial forces, the Meiji 38 is cheaply can also be useful for shredding large numbers of
made but surprisingly reliable. Despite a push to soldiers who make the mistake of standing too closely
re-issue a variant with a larger caliber, millions of to each other. Anyone directly hit by a weapon with a
these slightly underpowered rifles continue to be blast radius suffers the full damage. For each ten feet
carried by Japanese soldiers throughout Asia and beyond that, the amount of damage is reduced by 5L.
the Pacific. When the damage is reduced to zero, the explosion
PPSh: The Soviet government authorized the has reached the limits of its area. Therefore, a grenade
widespread production of this stripped down sub- landing in a soldier’s lap will do 15L to him, 10L to
machinegun when their manufacturers demonstrated anyone within ten feet of him and 5L to anyone from o
that a single rifle could be recycled to provide many of 10 to 20 feet away. This damage obviously cannot be r
the parts for two PPSh sub-machineguns. As standard blocked or parried, but the DV bonuses for cover or d
infantry armament, the short range of this weapon is not being prone apply to the victim’s Soak rating instead. e
much of a drawback in the point-blank urban fighting Extra successes on an attack roll only apply to damage r
common to the Russian war experience. This weapon is on the recipient of a direct hit, not with those caught
capable of automatic fire. in the blast radius.
Sturmgewehr Stu .44: The first weapon to Indirect Fire: Many weapons can fire indirectly,
o
successfully blend the rifle and the sub-machinegun, which means that they do not require line of sight f
the Sturmgewehr assault rifle is in high demand among and can often achieve much greater range. Some of
the German army after Hitler’s personal guard took it the biggest guns can actually launch shells through b
as their standard firearm. This weapon is capable of the stratosphere to hit targets a hundred and fifty a
automatic fire. miles away. When firing indirectly, consult the t
Thompson M1: With heavy stopping power despite sidebar and then select a target area the size of the
deviation rating for the distance to the target (or the
t
its slow rate of fire, the Thompson is an American
tradition. The only drawback is that it is very expensive minimum deviation as indicated in the weapon’s l
to produce. This weapon is capable of automatic fire. description). If the distance is more than 500 feet, e
one action must be spent finding the range before
Heavy Weapons the first shot can be fired. If the target is out of sight,
As powerful as infantry weapons seem, the the gunner must have coordinates relayed to him
modern battlefield demands much more. Only from a spotter in the field.
heavy weapons have the capability of cracking tank For indirect fire, the gunner rolls (Intelligence
armor, knocking planes out of the sky or sweeping + Marksmanship) for most weapons, or (Dexterity
an entire field of enemy soldiers in a few blasts. + Thrown) for hand grenades and the like against
Many heavy weapons have the capabilities of a blast a difficulty of 5. Threshold successes do not add to
radius and indirect fire, both of which require a few damage, but equaling or beating the difficulty means
extra considerations. that the projectile comes down on a random spot within
Blast Radius: Bombs, hand grenades, and artillery the target area. On each subsequent attack against the
shells are among the many weapons designed to fill same target, the difficulty is reduced by 1. Once the
an area with flame, shrapnel or both. These can be gunner achieves success, all subsequent attacks will hit
useful for striking at targets that are high in the air, the targeted area until the gunner chooses a new target.
267
If the indirect fire misses the target, the projectile Many indirectly fired weapons, including hand
still comes down somewhere. In most situations, grenades, may also be aimed directly. In this case, the
the Storyteller may simply rule that it is unlikely to attacker must have a line of sight and follow all the usual
land anywhere important, but if friendly units are rules for hitting a target point.
perilously close to the area or if the environment For firing indirectly over great distances, the
is particularly “target-rich” then it may be critical projectile can take time to reach its target (see “Time to
to know where it lands. To determine this, roll a Target” on the Indirect Fire Chart). This doesn’t help
single die to determine a direction at random (1 = most mortals, but Scions with sufficient Perception or
North, 2 = Northeast and so on, with 9 and 10 being Dexterity can sometimes see a shell coming and get the
t Storyteller’s choice). Start at the edge of the targeted hell out of its way.
h area and move in the direction indicated on the roll Bombs and Shells as Environmental Conditions:
e for a number of feet equal to the deviation times the Artillery is both powerful and indiscriminant, easily
number of successes by which the gunner missed. capable of dispatching hero-level Scions in a single hit.
w Example: Lt. Washington and his spotter need to drop some In real life combat, survival may sometimes depend
o shells on a Nazi bivouac over the ridge, 450 feet away. Fate is on a proverbial roll of the dice, but randomly and
not with Washington on his first roll; he needed 5 successes but impersonally snuffing out protagonists doesn’t make
r only scores 1, which means his shell misses the outermost edge of for a good story. Unless the characters are powerful
l his original targeted area by 40 feet (4 successes short of the target enough to take it, use heavy explosives such as artillery
d times 10’ deviation). The Storyteller rules that it lands harmlessly and bombs as an environmental condition. While
in a nearby field, and now the enemy knows they’re under attack. being shelled, the characters suffer an amount of
a Washington’s indirect fire difficulty drops to 4 on his second lethal damage ranging from 1L/minute to as much
t shot, and this time he rolls 3 successes. The Storyteller rolls for as 5L/Action, with a Trauma rating between 1 and
direction and determines that the shell hit a hedgerow ten feet 5, all depending on the force of the explosives (see
shy of the target, which may be significant later as it opens a “Environmental Effects, Scion: Hero, pp. 182-184).
w hole in what would have otherwise been a significant obstacle. This represents the overall average of the various
a On the third action, Washington hits the new target difficulty bombs falling all around them, and can add up to
r of 3, which means that he can drop shells right on the enemy significant danger for those operating in the open
position as long as they stay there. during a shelling.
268
Heavy Weapon Tags and Special Ammo
Weapons with the “B” tag have the Blast Radius effect (p. 267). Some weapons may add or lose a
tag by using certain types of ammunition.
Armor Piercing (AP): Loaded with a tungsten slug designed to crack through thick armor, weapons
firing this ammo lose the “B” tag but gain +5L damage. (Bazookas and cannon only)
Flak: Designed as an anti-aircraft weapon but equally effective at engulfing enemy soldiers in clouds
of shrapnel, weapons using flak shells pick up the “B” tag but lose the “P” tag. (Cannon only) o
Shaped Charge: This hollow charge, high explosive shell burns through armor in a focused burst of r
molten metal and superheated gases. The weapon using this ammo loses the “B” tag. However, when a
vehicle loses health levels due to this explosive, all occupants of the vehicle receive an equal amount
d
of lethal fire damage, which they may soak as normal. (Bazookas and cannon only)
e
Tracer: Every fifth bullet has a pyrotechnic fixture so it glows brightly when fired, allowing a gunner
r
to see where the bullets are going. Using tracers increase a weapon’s accuracy by +1, but they can also
give away the gun’s position in a hurry. (Machineguns only) o
f
Weapon Acc. Damage Range (Direct/Indirect) Clip Speed Tags
b
Artillery, Small +1 +15L —/2,500 5 8 B
a
Artillery, Large +0 +40L —/8,000 1 8 B t
Bazooka -2 +20L 300/— 1 8 B, P t
Bomb, 125lb -4 +25L 0/0 1 n/a B l
Bomb, 250lb -4 +50L 0/0 1 n/a B
e
Bomb, 500lb -4 +100L 0/0 1 n/a B
Cannon, Light +0 +15 L 250/500 1 6 P
Cannon, Generic +0 +25L 500/1,000 1 6 P
Cannon, 88mm +0 +30L 1,000/2,000 1 6 P
Hand Grenade +0 +15L 15/10 1 5 B
Machinegun, generic +1 +10L 300/1,800 belt 6 P
MG 42 +2 +11L 400/2,400 belt 6 P
Mortar -1 +15L —/2,000 1 8 B
Nebelwerfer Rocket -4 +30L —/1,500 6 8 B
Artillery, Small: Small artillery is usually multiple crewmembers. This weapon may only be fired
drawn by truck, but it may also be built into vehi- indirectly or at aircraft, and it cannot hit targets closer
cles to create mobile gun platforms. It takes three than 400 feet. This weapon has a minimum deviation
actions to fire small artillery, but these actions of 30 feet.
can be performed simultaneously by multiple Bazooka: Designed to take the smirks off the faces
crewmembers. This weapon may only be fired in- of the panzer commanders, this shoulder-mounted
directly or at aircraft, and cannot hit targets closer rocket launcher allows foot soldiers to challenge heavy
than 200 feet. This weapon has a minimum devia- armor. A two-man crew can load and fire this weapon
tion of 20 feet. in a single round; a lone operator must spend an action
Artillery, Large: Huge artillery guns are often part loading between each shot.
of large battleships or built as railroad cars because Bomb: Bombs may be dropped from a plane or
they are too massive to be transported in any other installed as warheads in devices such as torpedoes or V-1
way. It takes nine actions to fire a single round, but rockets. To drop a bomb from a plane, treat a bomb as
these actions can be performed simultaneously by 269
though it is an indirect fire weapon and roll (Dexterity +
Control) to determine whether it hits the target and by MG 42: This is the machinegun design that revo-
how much it might deviate. lutionized infantry tactics. It is light, powerful, highly
Cannon, Light: These are often used as light anti- versatile and easy to produce.
tank weapons or as armament in fighter planes. Mortar: The mortar frees infantry from having to
Cannon, Generic: These may be mounted as call in artillery strikes by allowing them to carry their
vehicular weapons or may be made free-standing or own artillery with them. A two-man crew can load
semi-portable for use as infantry support or anti- and fire this weapon in a single action; a lone operator
tank fire. must spend an action loading between each shot.
Cannon, 88mm: The dreaded cannon typical of Nebelwerfer Rocket: Allied soldiers nicknamed
t these weapons “Screaming Meemies” and “Moaning
many German army support guns and heavy panzers.
h Hand Grenade: Pulling the pin and throwing Minnies” for the peculiar sound they make. Despite
e a grenade is a (5/-2) action. The grenade detonates its inherent imprecision, rocket artillery was much
6 ticks after it has left the hand of the thrower, so feared for its powerful payloads. This weapon may
w heroic soldiers might have enough time to throw it only be fired indirectly and cannot hit targets
o back or dive on it to shield their buddies from the closer than 100 feet. It has a minimum deviation
of 40 feet.
r blast. The German “Potato Masher” hand grenade
is much more bulky than the Allied version, but it
l grants +5 feet to the range. Several types of grenades Vehicle Combat
d may also be fired from rifles, with a base range of While it is theoretically possible for a mob boss
50 feet. to get his hands on a Messerschmitt and strafe his
a Machinegun, generic: Machineguns are widely enemies in the streets of Chicago, such things simply
aren’t the norm in civilian life. On the other hand,
t used both for anti-infantry and anti-air attacks. They
the size, power, and ubiquity of fighting vehicles
are typically fed ammo on a belt, and burn that ammo
at twice the rate of other weapons capable of automat- is one of the key features of a modern warzone.
w Vehicular combat is detailed in Scion: Hero (pp. 200-
ic fire. Usually, machineguns and their ammo must
a be carried by three men. To fire a machinegun from 201), but takes on a new importance in a World War
r the hip, a character would need at least one point Two story.
of Epic Strength, and the heat from holding the gun Large airplanes, battleships and aircraft carriers
without a tripod or other mounting causes 1L per are only a few of the World War Two vehicles that
action with a Trauma rating of 1 (although the Fire are so large as to more closely resemble locations
Boon Fire Immunity from Scion: Hero, p. 142, can than objects. However, Scions fighting on or in
negate this damage). these vehicles can cause collateral damage that could
270
destroy their own transportation. Any attack with maintaining supply chains to delivering paratroopers
a blast radius (or other area of effect) that strikes a into enemy territory.
character in the open on such a vehicle—for example, Lexington: Comprising the largest U.S. aircraft
standing on the deck of a battleship or hanging on carriers in service for most of World War Two, the
the wing of a B-17—also strikes the vehicle. Treat Lexington class carriers play a pivotal role in the Pacific
any such attack as a direct hit against the vehicle, theater. They house 91 aircraft and sport a dozen light
in addition to whatever damage it might do to the cannon and artillery.
targeted character. If fighting inside a vehicle, this rule Messerschmitt: One of the most successful and
also applies, and in addition any ranged attack which versatile designs in military aviation history, the
misses its intended target should be considered a hit Messerschmitt Bf 109 is destined to become increasingly
o
to the vehicle instead. These attacks count towards obsolete as the war progresses. Different variants carry r
the onslaught penalty for the vehicle’s DV as the pilot as many as four machineguns or two light cannon with d
or driver must compensate for the force of the blow. eight shells each. e
In the case of most large vehicles, these stray attacks P-51 Mustang: Arguably the best one-man plane in r
don’t pose much of a threat, but a careless shootout in the sky, the P-51 had endurance enough to escort heavy
the belly of a bomber or within a submerged U-Boat bombers through their entire mission and agility enough
can lead to disastrous results. o
to dogfight any enemy fighter. It is usually armed with 6
Another circumstance that doesn’t come up often machineguns. It can also serve as a dive bomber, carrying
f
in civilian life is air-to-ground combat. For the most up to one ton of bombs but suffering -2 Maneuverability
part, this is handled just like any other vehicular until these bombs are dropped. b
combat, with the exception of altitude differentials. Tank, Generic: World War Two saw many tank a
Altitude has three rough categories, with each category designs. Most are armed with a cannon in a turret and a t
granting a DV bonus to the aircraft. These categories
are low-flying (+1 DV), high-flying (+2 DV) and mile-
machinegun mounted on the side or in a hull mount. t
Tiger Ausf. E: The Tiger is the Nazi’s terror tank. l
high (+3 DV). Consider low-flying planes to be within It can destroy most other tanks from the distance of
100 feet and therefore reachable by most conventional a half a mile or more, and its own armor is proof
e
weapons, high-flying to run beyond the reach of against many other tank weapons even at point blank
infantry weapons and mile-high to be reachable only range. Its only weakness is its notorious tendency
by artillery and certain other heavy weapons. This for mechanical breakdowns, which has led to more
distance is a penalty to both parties: ground targets get Tigers being lost to engine failure than to enemy
the same DV bonus as the aircraft, and the difficulty of fire. The Tiger is armed with an 88mm cannon and
indirect-fire weapons such as dropped bombs increases a coaxial machinegun, with a second machinegun in
by the same amount. a hull mount.
B-17: The four-engine Boeing B-17G “Flying U-Boat: Many nations have submarines, but
Fortress” is of the most influential fighting vehicles Germany has a tradition of using them to the
of the war, and can be seen pummeling the German greatest effect. Still, life on board is cramped and
infrastructure virtually every day. The B-17 is simply unpleasant, and only one in four U-Boat crewmen
a tough bird, capable of sustaining immense damage is Fated to survive World War Two. U-Boats are
and still staying in the air. It is armed with 13 slow under water and must come up frequently to
machineguns and carries 5,000 to 8,000 pounds of replenish their batteries, which must be charged by
bombs on most missions. their diesel engines. They are typically equipped with
Battleship: Although smaller gunships are torpedo tubes in the fore and aft. Treat torpedoes
generally more cost efficient, big battleships are as self-propelled 500lb bombs that require incessant
still kings of the sea. They usually pack multiple maintenance before launching.
artillery batteries, torpedo tubes and scores of Yamato: The largest battleship ever built, the Yamato
machineguns. As a rule, Allied battleships in the is longer than most sky-scrapers are tall. It bristles with
Atlantic are also fitted with depth-charges and the machineguns and artillery, including nine 18-inch
latest sonar equipment. cannon. It would take hundreds of enemy warships to
Bomber, Generic: There are a bewildering variety of sink this floating mega-weapon.
bombers in the skies above both Allied and Axis cities. Zero: Although stripped of armor to keep it fast,
Most are armed with three to six machineguns and carry light, and maneuverable, the A6M Zero has earned a
bomb loads of one or two tons. fearsome reputation. It is armed with two machine-
C-47: The U.S. Military has adopted the guns and two light cannon, and can be equipped with
McDonald-Douglas C-47 (DC-3) as its standard cargo two 125lb bombs. Two 500lb bombs are welded to the
and transport plane. It is used for everything from underside for use in a Kamikaze attack.
271