Maw of the Corpse Star

The world is dying. As the Corpse Star rises in the black and hopeless sky, no sane creature can truly avoid knowing that the fate of the world is to be pulled into its gaping maw. The gods have long ago averted their gaze, children are born without souls, and corpses lie restless in their shallow graves.

Behold, the dark funeral crypts of the elves, prepared aeons ago to prepare for the prophesy of a dying world. Within their walls, the immortal ones wait, entombed in stone, for their final deaths.

Behold, the noisy feasting halls of the dwarves, gouging themselves to death in a centuries-long wake for the entire world. Hidden in chambers deep beneath the earth, they ignore the madness-inducing sky in favour of the endless feast.

Behold, the great silent horde of the orcs, carving a path across the star-ravaged plains to the very end of the world. Their lips sewn shut, they slaughter and destroy all they encounter in complete silence, to better hear the death throes of the spirits of the world.

Behold, the many empty vales of the halflings, long ago vanished into myth and legend. No man knows to whence they have gone, the only clue being the mad scrawls carved deep into each and every door, speaking of the croatoan.

Behold, the last desperate empire of man, its stepped temples stretching into the sky, a thousand hearts offered into the sky each day in a cruel parody of sacrifice. They hope to appease the maw and stay the death of the world, but their bloody works are all in vain.

The air is stale. Crops rot in the fields and fish float upon the surface of the stinking sea. Each and every sigil and omen and portent and sign points to a single thing: death, to all and everything that will ever be upon this world.

Some few still struggle to avert this terrible fate, but what hope can be held beneath the gaze of a hungry star?

Welcome to my second (third?) AW hack, this one inspired by, of all things, D&D 4e. To be precise, the description of the warlock power Maw of Acamar, which speaks of the hungry maw of a corpse star. When I read that, I wondered... what of the world beneath that hungry dead star?

Dramatis Personae
The Playbooks

The Elf, Wandering
She forsakes the tomb her sisters take.
She has the chance to follow still.
And yet she cannot walk away.

The Wizard, Dying
He will not live to see the end.
He has power still, might to spare.
And yet he cannot save himself.

The Sword, Unsheathed
She solves it all with blood and steel.
She fights demons, orcs, and creatures unknown.
And yet her might is no match for the darkness.

The Wheel, Turning
He deals in chance, a difficult dance.
He hopes that he can buy off his final breath.
And yet he has a final fate.

The Dragon, Grieving
She knows the end will come too soon.
She longs for life, for love without strife.
And yet her wings have fallen still.

The Dwarf, Smiling
He happily ignores the sky.
He quests and fights and drinks.
And yet he knows it all is true.

The Seer, Blinded
She once saw light and futures bright.
She now sees nothing, not even shadows.
And yet she knows that there is a chance.

The Baron, Wearied
He has served his people for so long.
He is tired - so tired it's hard to stand.
And yet he cannot rest - not yet.
 

The Basic Moves

Defy danger
Whenever you defy danger, roll + nerve. On a 10+, you do it. On a 7-9, you do it, but the MC chooses 1:
You flinch or hesitate. The MC can offer you a worse outcome or a hard choice.
You break something.
You suffer harm.


Break something
When you break something, roll + blood. On a 10+, it’s destroyed. On 7-9, it’s destroyed, but choose 1:
You suffer harm.
You tick your fate clock up.
You lose a memory of the past.


Inflict harm
When you inflict harm on another character, roll + blood. On a hit, you inflict harm, in addition, on a 10+, choose 3. On 7-9, choose 1:
You suffer no harm.
You inflict serious harm.
You don’t take 1-fate.
Your enemy surrenders (if they’re an NPC).


Impose your will
When you try to impose your will on someone, roll + nerve. On 10+, they have to stand up to you or do what you want. On a 7-9, they have to choose 1:
Offer to do what you want in exchange for a promise.
Get out of your way.
Give you something they think you want.
Force you to take them down.


Escape hopeless situations
When you try to escape a hopeless situation, roll + nerve. On a 10+, you escape. On a 7-9, choose 2:
You get out.
You suffer no harm.
You don’t leave anything behind.


Wield an artifact of the past
When you wield an artifact of the past, roll + memory. On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7-9, hold 1. Spend your hold to:
Avoid damaging the artifact. (if you don’t pick this, it takes 1-fate)
Use its power.
Learn its secrets.


Invoke past glory
When you invoke past glory, roll + memory. On a 10+, both. On a 7-9, choose 1.
You take +1 forward.
You don’t take +1 fate.


Empathise or relate
When you empathise with or relate to someone, roll + history. On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7-9, hold 1. While you interact with them, spend your hold to:
Have them answer a question from the read a soul list.
Ask them to do something for you. If they do it, they mark experience.
Give them +1 forward.


Manipulate and deceive
When you try to manipulate or deceive someone, roll + nerve. If they’re an NPC, on a 10+ they believe what you say and do what you want. On a 7-9, they do what you want but you have to do something for them first. If they’re a PC, on a 10+ both, on a 7-9 choose 1:
If they do it, they mark an experience box.
If they don’t, they’re defying danger.


Read a soul
When you read a soul, roll + soul. On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7-9, hold 1. Spend to ask:
What have you lost?
What do you feel?
What do you want?
Are you telling the truth?
How can I convince you to (do this)?


Let in the darkness
When you let in the darkness, roll + darkness. You take 1-fate. On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7-9, hold 1. Spend your hold to:
Inflict harm.
Destroy something.
Gain a vague insight into the darkness.


Suffer harm
When you suffer harm, roll + soul. If it’s serious harm, take -1. On a 10+, choose 1. On a 7-9, choose 2:
You take -1 ongoing until you have a chance to heal.
You take +1 fate.
You take a permanent debility.
 

The not-quite poetry of the Dramatis Personae is nice.

This really puts me in mind of the Viriconium books by M. John Harrison. Good stuff.