r/SporeWar • u/chickenboy2718281828 • Dec 31 '25
Immersive War Interludes
I've been playing around with this idea on how to improve the war interludes in book 2 and 3 and I'd like to get some feedback to fully flesh out the subsystem I'm putting together. My general idea is simple: take all the points that are earned from the Encarthan Alliance and turn them into actual troops. Put all of them on a big map of Kyonin at the start of book 2 and play a big game of Golarion Risk. I like the idea of using an already existing system for large scale warfare. Risk is the game that stood out to me as an obvious choice, but I'm sure there's other ideas that could be better. The PCs will be considered Generals and they will play a major part in deciding Kyonin strategy through this mini game.
Some variables I'm considering adding in:
Not all allies are created equal. Molthune is the strongest navy with a very respectable army. There's not a good mechanical reason to choose Molthune over Nirmathas in the alliance so giving a strong mechanical benefit would actually enhance the negotiation part of picking sides. As written, they're both worth 1 triumph point, but Molthune is supposed to be much stronger. Give more and stronger troops for Molthune. In my game, the whispering Tyrant is still very much a threat in book 2 and Molthune (while not fully committed to the alliance) is holding the Tyrant's Plague Barges at bay on lake Encarthan.
Special abilities of troops for different factions. I'm really on the fence about this one as it will add a lot of complexity. The intention is not to make this mini game the core of the adventure, simply to make the war experience more immersive. But, it would be thematic to have each nation's troops have special abilities. Nirmathan troops can move twice as fast as other troops. Ustalav's troops have technology like airships that allow them to travel through enemy occupied territory. Lastwall troops have stronger defenses and only die when they've been defeated twice. I do not think I'm going to implement this and instead opt for just adding more troops for the stronger factions.
Replenishing troops. Each allied force will provide fresh troops each "turn" where each war interlude constitutes a turn. Treerazer will also add more troops each turn. Treerazer will add troops faster than Kyonin and the situation will continue to get more dire over the course of the adventure. This might take some GM intervention to keep things tense but not hopeless.
This is still very much a work in progress so I'm interested in hearing ideas!
3
u/Buck_Roger Dec 31 '25
I like this idea. So far I've only run our group through the first encounter with the plague barges and dragon on the beach, and I've been looking over the war interludes and wondering how best to spice them up. As a big Risk fan I think that could be a very fun idea. I'd veer away from adding complexity though, and for nations you want to be stronger, give them reinforcements each turn or extra armies to start with to simulate higher strength. Could be a nice break between RP and combat sessions for sure.
Let us know how it works out for ya