13th Dynasty: A 13th Age campaign

Having moved in with housemates, we’ve just started a house campaign of Pelgrane Press’s 13th Age role-playing game. Edmund is running his own re-skin, called “13th Dynasty.” It takes surprisingly little to turn the Dragon Empire, the default setting of 13th Age, into a Chinese-inspired campaign.

Characters

Artist: Amelie Hutt. Used without permission, no copyright challenge intended.

Zhi Yu, played by Vlad, is a human monk who was raised along with his twin sister to be necromancers under the Undying Emperor (Lich King)’s tutelage during the War. There was an ill-advise spell interrupted by a terrible accident, and Zhi Yu’s twin Zhi Hao was killed in the explosion, leaving only charred bones. Zhi Yu barely survived, badly scarred and maintained only through necromantic arts. He soon discovered that his sister’s soul was still bound to him and could, with effort, also inhabit his body. (This is his One Unique Thing.)

Having rethought his career choices, he escaped the Undying Emperor’s grasp and, carrying Zhi Hao’s bones with him, he hid in a monastery where he became a monk, learning a new path. Many years have passed (he is much older than one would think) and he has felt the pull of destiny calling him back.

Zhi Yu has a conflicted (1) relationship with the Undying Emperor, a positive (1) one with the Great Golden Dragon (Great Gold Wyrm), and through his sister, a positive (1) one with the Monkey King (Prince of Shadows).

Artist: ziseviolet. Used without permission, no copyright challenge intended.

Jumping Carp, played by me, is a Gnome rogue, a public entertainer, pickpocket, and con artist. (She is based on Kitsune, a character from the comic book Usagi Yojimbo.) She juggles, tells stories, and play tricks to entertain crowds, making spinning tops dance on the edge of her fan.

Her one unique thing is a beautiful music box ornamented with a dragon motif, which used to belong to the Great Golden Dragon… As a result, she has a complicated (1) relationship with this Icon, as well as a positive (2) one with the Monkey King, her role model.

On occasion, we’ve also been joined by Lu Bu, an Elven Chaos mage played by Jason. Lu Bu one unique thing is that he is the tallest known Elf. He is also a disguise artist, a collector of teeth stolen from dead bodies, and dedicated to creating mischief wherever he goes. He has a negative relationship with the King of the North (Dwarf King) and a positive one with, you guessed it, the Monkey King.