Monday Musings #110 🤬
Spouting Lore, bombs and stuff you missed.
Good Monday, Gamer!
“But more wonderful than the lore of old men and the lore of books is the secret lore of ocean.” —H. P. Lovecraft, Seer
What Do the Seers Say?
After our most recent Mythic Bastionland session, we got to chatting about Seers — specifically, what should a Seer actually say when a Knight seeks their counsel?
The rulebook offers rich flavor text and some evocative descriptions, but when it comes down to the table, it’s on the Referee to make that Seer moment land. And sometimes… that’s a tricksy, heavy lift.
Whenever I’m stuck on this kind of thing, I always come back to one of my favorite mechanics: the Savvyhead’s Workspace Move from Apocalypse World. I’m not the only one who’s stolen it — it’s a perfect GM tool for gating results, adding flavor, and raising stakes. Here’s the gist:
Savvyhead’s Workspace (AW):
When you go into your workspace and dedicate yourself to making a thing or figuring out some shit, tell the MC what it is. The MC will say, “Sure, no problem, but—” and then pick 1 to 4 complications:
— it’ll take days/weeks/months
— you’ll need to build or find something first
— you’ll need help
— it’s dangerous, expensive, imperfect, unreliable……
The MC might connect them all with “and,” or might throw in a merciful “or.” Once you’ve accomplished the necessaries, you can go ahead and accomplish the thing itself. The MC will stat it up, or spill, or whatever it calls for.
It’s a mechanic dressed up as good GM advice, and I think it’s a perfect model for Seer moments: a Knight seeks guidance, and the Seer’s vision comes with conditions. Maybe they must fast, retrieve a relic, endure a haunting, offer blood, or face a vision that marks them forever.
Judd from Githyanki Diaspora has a working version of this called “What Do the Seers Say?” for our Mythic Bastionland games — I suspect he’ll post it soon.
On the Table
🛡️ Mythic Bastionland – Session II: The Harvest Season
I caught some friendly heat for calling it an early night Saturday… so I could be fresh for Sunday morning gaming. Worth every jab. 💯
I debuted my Dust Knight, Braack, and his squire Tahnet (a future Pearl Knight). Braack is loyal to the Southern Hold — hungry, opinionated, and a little skeptical of our current quest. We joined Hex, now ruler of the holding, on a mission to the mountain where the High Lord lives to find and rescue Chastian, the Tome Knight’s sister, from the clutches of the High Lord — a Cosmic Knight with a dimensional sanctuary.
Braack doesn’t believe in this quest, but he believes in the station of Knighthood and what it demands. The session was a setting establishing one — lore, loyalties, friction, and fate. I’m certain Judd was making plenty of Ref calls and dice rolls behind the scenes. IMHO, it is these sessions, nailing down fiction and states that make future conflicts POP! I cannot wait to see how our final session plays out.
Also: I’ve officially made the leap from PDF-only peasant to Print Copy Noble — Mythic Bastionland will soon live on my tables!
📺 Watch the session on YouTube
✈️ Flying Circus – Session III: Crunchy Sky Shenanigans
Have I mentioned how deliciously crunchy Flying Circus is?
Our mission: rescue downed pilots. The problem: enemy aerial patrols were waiting for us. We've been HAD! The sky lit up with dogfights, dive bombs, over-shoots, and last-second rolls. It’s got that Car Wars feel — all the gearhead strategy, none of the drag.
Flying Circus’ air combat is all about momentum, positioning, and stress management. In this session, we had to escort a bomber to the target drop zone — and we’re still not done. Next up: get on the ground, secure the pilots, and get everyone back in the air and get home!
Definitely not a stealth mission.
⚙️ Mektonfall – Session I: Ground Truths
Meanwhile, in Angel City…
Pilot Callsign: 01Mule is on the ground, chasing down a lead on missing pilot Jupiter Ames — just as IMC forces close in on the same location. Turns out, Mule’s sister leads the squad hunting them, and SquawkBox says there’s “Get Retired” cred on the table if they escape clean.
We’re learning the Mekton system in a Titanfall-inspired world, and it’s coming together fast. The session was lean, mechanical, and rich in hooks — everything I want from an early campaign session. I figure we'll play this one more session as we start to build Mekton Titans. I'm working up an Atlas version first to use as a reference point for the other Titan classes. The work isn't so much about 100% conversion; what I've discovered is that there is a focus on 1st-person shooter details in the Titanfall sources, where Mekton, a TTRPG, some of that is...ridiculous!
📌 ICYMI
🐐 Sarah DOOM!! Meese Games: While the Cats are away...
🎧 I'm on the Open Hearth Podcast! — talking Flying Circus, Smallville, and design nerdery with some brilliant folks.
📫 Indie RPG Newsletter: Censoring Itch.io — important reading on platform pressure and creative freedom in indie spaces.
Got a favorite moment from your weekend game? Hit reply or share it on Bluesky — I love hearing what you’re playing.
This week’s sessions reminded me of why I keep showing up for these games — not just for the dice rolls or clever mechanics, but for the stories that unfold in the spaces between.
From weird-ass knights to aerial chaos, from family drama in Angel City to hard-won victories over undead spectres — it’s the people, the play, and the possibility that keep me coming back.
If you're running something cool, prepping a session, or just dreaming about your next game: tell me about it. What’s on your table? What are you excited to run, read, or just imagine this week?
I’d love to hear about it.
Thanks for reading, thanks for playing, and thanks for supporting the strange stuff.