hpowellsmith
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Project Amble Announcement and Title Reveal!
🕑 Added 2025-02-05 18:00:10 +0000 UTCI'm thrilled to announce more details about my new project! As you may already know, it's a fantasy game in a new setting and I've been working on it since December.
Here's one of the songs from my writing playlist if you want to get in the mood while you read about it!
A century ago, the tiger god Vastan fought a risen demon over the steppes and mountains that are your home, battling for mastery over the earth below. Their war poisoned the land, causing magical storms that twist the mind and the elements alike.
At the moment of Vastan’s eventual triumph she was grievously wounded, retreating beneath the mountains to be cared for by a sect of worshippers known as the Guardians of Tulara.
You are one of those Guardians: a scout who ventures from the secretive monastery to hunt, gather, and trade with those living on the plains. Protected from the storms by Vastan’s power even as she sleeps, you care for your wounded god in your small, safe community.
Until today.
After an attack on your monastery that leaves your comrades dead and scattered, you cut a piece of your god to preserve her in a weakened, half-alive state and run. Scraping together a living as a hunter-gatherer and courier on the dangerous steppes, you must survive the gathering storms while searching for a way to bring your god back to life.
In this dark fantasy of tragedy and survival, will you rebuild your order or forge a new path of your own, align with Vastan or rebel against her? Will you bring back your god and protect your lands, or take this chance to seize power for yourself?
Play as male, female, or non-binary; cis or trans; gay, straight, or bisexual; asexual and/or aromantic; allosexual and/or alloromantic; monogamous or polyamorous
Befriend, romance, clash with, or destroy an ambitious, stubborn magic enthusiast with a lot to prove; a hard-bitten courier determined to be self-reliant while looking after their own; a haughty, visionary herbalist obsessed with preserving knowledge for future generations; an outgoing, no-nonsense guard with a strong protective streak; a fast-talking witch-turned-con-artist who might have a heart of gold somewhere.
Survive the storms: use your skills and knowledge to help the communities on the steppes–or only yourself
Unearth dark secrets on the steppes: will you share them with the world, or bury them once more?
Build your relationship with your dying god and rebuild her power, or use it for your own ends
Give of yourself or others for the greater good, persuade your god to different paths, or rebel against her entirely
When the storm hits, what will you sacrifice for survival?
The MC of The Earth Has Teeth
You’ve lived in the Tulara monastery all your life, along with a group of around fifty Guardians of Vastan. After your parents died in a storm when you were in your mid-teens, you were cared for by the other Guardians and have lived a comfortable, if hard-working, life.
You’re now 25 and an experienced scout, adept at travelling alone and surviving in the wilderness. Thanks to Vastan’s power and protection, you’ve rarely wanted for food and even if some of your trips outside were harder than others, the safe haven of the monastery walls was always waiting for you.
Vastan the tiger god
In your holy texts, Vastan is described as a tiger larger than the sky who moves faster than the eye can see and has all-powerful influence. As you know her, she appears as a tiger striped black-and-gold the size of a house, who sleeps in a huge underground chamber deep in the Tulara monastery.
While the demon Nerekay had influence over and could warp the elements, Vastan’s power is entwined with nature, protection, and growth. She made unearthly plants grow and flourish in the monastery, and her presence improved the health of her Guardians. She can also provide protection from the hypnotic, mind-altering storm sickness and, before the attack, she shielded the monastery from storms hitting it at all.
You carry a part of Vastan with you now, and although her powers are diminished, she can still lend you help when you’re in need.
Magic in Amikya
In Amikya, the land in which you live, priests draw magical power from Vastan through time-honoured religious ritual, whereas witches do so through practices more like folk medicine and superstition passed down through generations of folklore. Not all witches consider their power to come from Vastan: some see it as drawing magic from the earth.
There are blurred lines between the practices, though not every witch or priest would like to admit such a thing.
Major Befriendable and Romanceable Characters
All the romanceable characters are gender-flippable. All characters can be romanced monogamously; some can be romanced polyamorously in various configurations - more on that later!
Armell Bassar (23): the only child of a town leader, Armell is passionate about learning more magic to protect and expand their home. With a keen mind and more intensity than they know what to do with, Armell is eager to prove themself to their community and to their mother. (cis man/cis woman/agender)
Elisei/Elena/Elis Kiriyak (32): an expert herbalist and potion-maker, Dr. Kiriyak is near-obsessive about their collection of seeds and potions and the knowledge they’ve amassed. Some might call them arrogant; Kiriyak would say that’s irrelevant. (trans man/trans woman/genderqueer)
Nikita Leu (25): a courier carrying items and messages as well as escorting people, Nikita is an excellent survivalist and has endured a dangerous itinerant life on the plains despite experiencing tragedy. Nikita is generally withdrawn and self-reliant to a fault. (cis man/cis woman/transfem)
Serhii/Sara/Saba Roschin (39): the leader of a town guard, Roschin is boisterous and cheerful, and likes to be the first to dive in to fix a problem. Roschin is a bold fighter and protector who may go too far when joking around but will stand up for others when it matters. (cis man/cis woman/transmasc)
Valeria/Valerio Chernenko (26): a flamboyant witch who guides travellers through storms and sells magical charms, Val’s trinkets aren't always as effective as they claim. Living a transient life, Val relies on their wits to avoid trouble - not always successfully. (trans man/trans woman/nonbinary transfem)
Comments
hpowellsmith
I looked at a lot of different lists of names and it jumped out at me! For all the names I wanted to choose ones that sounded very different to each other so that it would be harder to get them confused. Other than that, it was just what felt right!
Saba
A character with my name is super exciting! Curious where the name came to you from. Its Saba.
A sandwich
I do genuinely think you could have said it would have been anything and I would have been bought in, I so trust you as an author
hpowellsmith
I'm so glad! I'm loving writing it - so fun to be writing something so different!
A sandwich
Hell yeah this sounds SO COOL
hpowellsmith
Thank you so much, I'm really enjoying writing it!
Corinne
This seems like it'll be a lot of fun! Looking forward to it.💙
hpowellsmith
For MCs, they'll be able to specify what their body is like (or leave it vague if they want to). For NPCs, it'll depend on the dialogue and situation, but broadly it'll be similar to Honor Bound where sometimes a character might mention "I thought I was a girl until I realised I wasn't", etc, or if the MC is in a position to get intimate with them and/or is seeing them without clothes for whatever reason, it'll be clear what their body's like also.
hpowellsmith
Thank you so much! I've been really enjoying writing about magic for my own setting (for the first time in many years!) and I've been figuring out more ways for players to express the MC's personality which is a lot of fun too
Jinx
Question, if a character is Agender will their sex be stated. I'm personally Agender and we- or atleast i identify with the sex
Jinx
I love the prospect of magic and i am looking forward to the customisation personally, you always know how to incorporate it into the story line and enhance the immersion
hpowellsmith
Eeee thank you!!!
Bessie Burnet
Zamn, this sounds soooo gooooood!! Aaaaaaah!! 🤩
hpowellsmith
ahhh I loved Lone Wolf when I was younger! I should reread some :D Thank you so much, I'm really excited for it (and to share more!) Vastan is fun to write, it'll be interesting to feel out how she evolves over the course of the game!
emelsi
That inciting event of an attack on the citadel where you grew up reminds me a lot of Joe Dever's Lone Wolf books that I was obsessed with as a kid, I love it! The aspect of a relationship with the god sounds a bit like Ink & Intrigue's system with the companion phoenix/dragon/something else. I love games where you have a relationship with an incorporeal entity that is with you all the time. Professor of Magical Studies even made it an RO which kinda ruled.
