Blades of the Immortals (Early Access)
A downloadable game
Blades of the Immortals is a tabletop roleplaying game inspired by xiānxiá, a Chinese genre of fantasy about immortal cultivators — practitioners of esoteric internal alchemies that grant superhuman abilities. It uses the Forged in the Dark rules engine developed by John Harper, as seen in games like Blades in the Dark and Beam Saber.
In Blades of the Immortals, you will take on the roles of cultivators, striving for your own ambitions, for the glory of your sect, and for the ultimate prize — immortality. You'll viciously struggle for scarce resources, compete for the patronage of powerful and influential teachers, gather allies to your banner, and scheme against your enemies. Your cultivators will wield mystical treasures and supernatural spell-arts, mastering the very laws of the cosmos as their weapons, as they become entangled in centuries-long vendettas between deathless wizard-kings.
Raise your blades to heaven, cultivators! You will live forever, or die trying.
This is an in-development but fully playable pre-release version of the game. The book includes:
- 9 cultivator playbooks, each walking a different path to immortality
- 6 faction playbooks, with distinctive narrative focuses to shape your games
- The core game engine
- Rules for designing and creating your characters' mystic techniques and treasures
- A setting-creation process that allows you to iteratively build a bespoke fantasy setting for your game, complete with a cultivation system that suits your group's desired tone, scale, and pace for your game. Also, some tips for the GM on designing NPCs, factions, and regions.
- GM chapter, including a list of principles & best practices as well as advice on how to structure missions
- Appendix of example spell arts, tools, and weapons
The pre-release version of the game is pay-what-you-want: your contributions fund the game's ongoing development, and your feedback helps shape it into the best game it can be! Also, paying any amount of money for it means you'll get automatically notified every time I release a new version, which is convenient.
Download
Click download now to get access to the following files:
Development log
- v0.3.2 Update & Development RoadmapSep 18, 2022
- Version 0.3 is live!Jul 11, 2022
- Blades of the Immortals v0.2 is live!May 23, 2022
- v0.11Jan 31, 2022
Comments
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any new developments?
Hoping this is still worked on! Been looking at testing it out as it is now.
Looking forward to the next update, this game is very cool!
Soo. it's been awhile. I'm curious as to what new developments are in store for the game.
Hello, how can I download your game?
https://jagganoth.itch.io/boti-ea/purchase
It's pay-what-you-want, so if you want it for free, just hit the link that says "No thanks, just take me to the downloads" when the popup appears.
How is this so on point, I never thought I would see a good adaptation of xianxia to a ttrpg but here we go. Awesome! I will be following this closely.
Thanks for your kind words! ^___^ I've been busy with other obligations for the past few months and haven't had much time to work on this, but thankfully things have finally cleared up and I'll be able to start pushing updates again, so stay tuned!
By any chance are there plans for a character sheet?
Several people have asked for sheets, so it is on the agenda. I don't have an ETA for them yet, though ^^;
Hmm... I've been thinking on running a campaign through the game, with the specific intent to run my players through the setting of Will Wight's Cradle series, which might ring a bell to some fans of the genre. The main issue I'm trying to tackle is exactly how to pace the different stages of advancement. I'd welcome suggestions from anyone who knows what I'm talking about!
I've had several people recommend Cradle to me lol, but I haven't gotten around to it yet, so I can't offer any advice ^^;
I love this game a ton! I’ve already got into a hole for writing up Cultivation systems and panoply items! The only complaint is that I wish I could find a group to play it with lol
I'm glad to hear it! ^___^ I wish you luck finding a group lol, please let me know how it goes if you find one. There's a thread on RPG.net about the game, you should share your homebrew there! I always enjoy seeing what people come up with.
Hello, I'm really like the game I just had two concerns to bring up
Sure, I'll change up the list level bullets in v0.3.1! I can see how they'd get visually confusing, especially with the lists now being spread across two columns.
In re the Assassin, I hadn't put any specific thought into what happens if/when you manage to kill your Prey. In a real way, you've got a lot of mechanical incentives to keep them alive - they give you access to a higher-tier faction's resources, they can generate XP for you via the connection clock, etc. It is somewhat unsatisfying if you just lose a playbook ability for doing the thing your playbook is nominally about, I'll admit - I haven't yet figured out a good way to reconcile the fact that the Assassin is, conceptually, about not yet having gotten your revenge, with the inevitability that you will at some point get that revenge. Swapping the Prey over to another faction seems like a pretty straightforward and generally workable solution, though. I'll think on it and put something in the next update.
Thanks for reading the game, and for bringing that stuff to my attention! ^___^
Fantastic update, as usual! Though ive noticed that the file seems to have the text of the last example Heaven-Defying Chance ability cut off by the start of the next chapter. Also, when do you feel we'll get some form of character/playbook/faction sheets?
nooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!! i was so sure i'd gotten all the layout problems fixed T___T. thank you for catching that, rip. tbh character and faction sheets were not high on my priority list at all because I naively assumed that everyone was like me (literally has never used a provided sheet in any game), but I've come to understand through talking to people that this is very much not the case lol. so, sheets are on the agenda, but I've never built one before and I think it will probably require putting together some visual assets that I don't have yet, so I can't give a solid time estimate. hopefully i'll release them with v0.4?
I've got this game, and I'm looking forward to whatever progress you may make on it. I have some loose ideas about how to use it for superheroes, archmages, and so on, but I'd like to see what a "pure" cultivation (inspired by the actual real-world sources) would look like. (Also, dare I ask, what the hell is a corpse-puppet and how does one help you ascend to a higher Realm?)
Oh boy I'm so glad you asked. Various media have differing interpretations of corpse puppets, but the general idea is that it's an animated corpse, frankenstein, or other form of corporeal undead that obeys a cultivator's directions. I was principally inspired by the Black Fiend School arc of Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality (chs. ~279-330) in re the ascending-in-Realm thing; the main antagonist of that arc had several corpse-puppets that were possessed by spiritual clones of him and were capable of independently cultivating.
I am planning to include at least one "classical" cultivation system in the setting chapter in v0.3, which is like 80% of the way to being done rn I'd say, hopefully should be ready by the end of the month.
Yay! Looking forward to it!
Lovely to see this project moving forward! I know the system is designed so just about any setting-specific title can be slapped on the different Realms, but what would you say is a good scale to set them at?
It can vary enormously from table to table depending on your group's vision, which I realize isn't a terribly helpful answer. If we were doing like, the most stock and straightforward xianxia system possible, it would go like:
Realm 0: Qi Condensation
Realm 1: Foundation Establishment
Realm 2: Golden Core
Realm 3: Nascent Soul
Realm 4+: who knows
If I had to phrase it as generically and setting-agnostically as possible, I guess it would probably be like:
Realm 0: Minor supernatural feats; fights will involve one or two techniques at most, unleashed at critical moments.
Realm 1: You are a wielder of supernatural power. Conflicts become exchanges of spell arts.
Realm 2: You are capable of larger-scale miracles and sustained magical exertion. You have largely transcended mortal frailties.
Realm 3: You are an arch-wizard, capable of prodigious supernatural feats and only barely human anymore.
Realm 4: You are a demigod.
Realm 5: You are a god.
Realm 6: You are a cosmic sovereign, treading stars to dust beneath your feet and ruling over hundreds of worlds.
That's very helpful, thank you! And while I'm at it, how do you reckon would be a good way to handle a Heavenly Tribulation using your system?
I'd probably do it as a special kind of mission, sort of like a Major Entanglement. Smack em in a desperate position, mission objective "survive", etc.
I'm really happy to see games tackling this genre! May play this with my friends!
I have a few questions: My group is a bit uncertain about how you would write new cultivation methods, and their clock-size and base quality. The earlier chapter seems to indicate that the default quality required for a breakthrough is (Realm + 3), but the cultivation methods have varying qualities?
I'm really excited about the game, and hope my friends and I have fun playing it!
Thanks for bringing that to my attention, I did forget to add some explanatory text in the appendix. Cultivation methods set their required quality like any other panoply item (except for the fine/poor wrinkle discussed in the section on breakthroughs), based on their edges:flaws balance, linked techniques, etc. Then, you slap a +3 tax on top. The examples in the appendix don't include the +3 modifier (because of minor realms).
As for clock size, it's just based on vibes. Assume the default is an 8-clock: adjust that up for more powerful or time-intensive cultivation methods, adjust it down for more materials-intensive ones or ones with bigger drawbacks/harsher flaws.
I'm glad you're excited about the game overall though! I hope you have fun, and please let me know how it goes! ^___^
Thanks for your answer! It's really helping clear things up. I do have another question, now. (^.^;) How do you price the addition of linked techniques on a cultivation method, I assumed they acted as either a minor or significant useful function. (I was doing the math on the example cultivation methods to get a feel for things), however, I'm not exactly sure. Should my group assume you can have 0-2 linked techniques on a cultivation method as part of the standard quality?
Frankly I haven't figured out how I want to cost linked techniques yet. To a certain extent this is a table style thing; if you want to hit a more Exalted-3E-esque tone then linked techniques could be free! It also depends on the technique, what it does, and how hard it is to unlock; a powerful technique that's very difficult to unlock probably wouldn't affect Quality at all.
As far as cultivation methods go, yeah, 0-2 linked techniques would be entirely reasonable imo. I also think that if a cultivation method requires some sort of external skill (like binding familiars for the God-Imprisoning Art) then it should include a linked technique that lets you do that.
Thanks for your really helpful and prompt responses! I really appreciate it. My group has transitioned from discussing the game to making more concrete plans and discussing characters and setting.
I've really enjoyed a some cultivation story content in the past, and I'm excited about the potential for playing a heaven defying wizard.
Also, from a design perspective I really respect the decisions to use more narrative positioning and powers as influenced by the group's consensus and conversation. It's, I think, going to make the experience really satisfying.
My group is trying to figure out something about the Inheritor's Heaven Defying Chance- if it's a cultivation method, do you automatically get a fine realm when you achieve the next realm, or should the cultivation method be made so that you can add lots of extra ingredients to it to make it easier to reach a higher quality? My partner is looking into that playbook, and we wanted to see what your intent was.
Thank you so much for your time!
Are you still planning on working on this?
Yes, I'm still actively working on it! A lot of the stuff that's left is more dense/less of a retread of other FitD games, so it's taking a while, but progress is very much ongoing.
Oh, sick! I was just wondering because I was planning on running a xianxia game very soon and have been having some issues finding a system for it. I was gonna use this one but no GM section kind of warded me away since I've never messed with FitD before. Do you think its playable in its current state or should I just wait?
That's a tricky question lol. I think the game is playable in its current state, but I'm an experienced FitD GM and also I'm the one with the clear creative vision in my head for how it should all work, so ymmv. :P
I've been putting off writing the GM section because I haven't had a chance to run more than two or three playtest sessions, and therefore am not sure what advice to give GMs yet besides just regurgitating stock FitD advice. Have you read Blades in the Dark, Beam Saber, or any other FitD games? If so, their GM sections would probably provide mostly-applicable guidance. If not, I can bump the GM section up my priority list and include it in the v0.2 release that I'm almost done with. If there's anything in particular you'd like guidance on, lmk and I'll be sure to include it.
If you do decide to run it, afaik you'd be the second person ever (after myself) to do so. As such, I'd be very interested to hear how it goes, since you'd be providing valuable playtest data that will influence the game's ongoing development. For the same reason, I'd definitely be available for detailed consultation about anything that you'd like advice on or that's giving your group trouble.
In any case, thanks so much for your interest! ^___^
I've read most of it right now to make sure I understand everything. I'll probbaly just read the GM section of some other FitD stuff, unless you have some specific advice for running it you want to slap in. The main thing that trips me up is Panoply stuff and I think I just need some examples on Items, Techniques, and cultivation methods to understand it better. Do you have a discord by chance? I most likely will run it and I can tell you how it goes there.
I do have a Discord, hmu at Jagganoth#6685. I've got some example panoply items written up, I can get you a copy of the doc once I polish it up a bit (~a day or two).
Very nice! There have been plenty of wuxia RPGs, but I haven't seen anyone try to tackle the xianxia genre before.
Fantastic stuff! I cannot wait to see more of this project. This is scratching an itch I've been having for so long.