Sword of Symphonies

That's right, our friends at Evil Hat are going to be publishing Rangers of a Broken World, and you can get in on the open playtest by going to Evil Hat's Website

The next project from Cosmos Cameo Studios is live on Kickstarter! We're playing Animon Story, a Pokemon and Digimon inspired game by Zak Barouh. Join Misha, Syd, and Alexis as they go through the mirror to the mysterious City Spectacular, meet their reflections, and help avert a disaster coming for both worlds! Support the Kickstarter at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/peachgardengames/afterschool-wonderland Check out Animon Story at https://www.animonstory.com/

DId you know that if you squint, I Came Here to Win can be used to play a Halloween party that goes horribly wrong?Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

In an enormous nest lined with soft tawny feathers, the Prince of This Island sits, knees drawn close to their chest, watching the sea. They close their glassy black eyes and begin to hum, rocking side to side as the sounds of the waves beat a backing track against This Island's stony beach. It brings back a pleasant memory.“You will come to understand” the Prince repeats out loud. They can't help but wonder if this prophecy has come true for their visitor.A storm is brewing in the distance. The Prince cannot hear its voice, but they know it has a powerful will and a mind of its own. The Eagle comes home to his roost, and the Prince moves aside to make room for his huge, warm body. At the end, all we have is one another.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

“I understand this must be confusing,” says the soft little human in the robe, and the Ambassador in Pearl hates that thought. “It is not.” She moves her head, and she can feel the movement ripple down the cloak of javelins covering her back. Any one of them would end this uncomfortable encounter.“Ah. My apologies for assuming. But, it's about time you and I discussed the terms of your agreement with us, right?”“Is it?” She has no sense of time. Some of the humans in the robes seem to know this, and some do not. “Let's. May I start by asking what it is you want?”She casts her gaze back at the Mountain, where her kin writhe and slither over a world too crowded for them.“To be left alone.”She looks back at the human, whose expression has changed. From what, and into what, she couldn't say. Whatever this little creature is feeling, she thinks, it had better include fear. Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The Emerald Duchess approaches the city of Stageport, surrounded by a flurry of daemons. She takes the first step from the soft grass of the Veldt onto the fabricated stone roads of this gray world. A cloud of poison whirls around her, and her very breath is plague.The sky above her is darkened, and amid the thump of massive wingbeats, the Clocktower Baroness herself descends from the sky to land on the road, face proud and tail lashing. Any humans nearby flee to their homes.The Baroness will protect this city. Not out of obligation, or necessity, or obsession.Out of love.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The Ambassador in Pearl stops in her tracks, and her hounds circle in close to her as everything in the clearing becomes still."There you are. Do you have a moment?”She turns to see a human, one of the ones in the robes that comes to talk to her sometimes. He is small and slow and soft and round at the edges. This one is unarmed, but they aren't always. Someone else's daemon follows at his heels. The sight is disgusting, but somehow she swallows her irritation.“What do you want?”“The same as always. Just to talk. Are you all right?”The Ambassador looks at the Mountain. From here, she can hear the cries of her despised kin. But something is missing in her heart. She can feel it. The primal hatred that has always driven her is waning like a silver moon.And this little human, this tiny creature, knows it.Welcome to Sword of SymphoniesOriginal music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Does Cat really deserve to rule as Host King? Let's play the new game Descent in Silver and Glass to find out!Check out Solo But Not Alone here!Journey SRD and Beneath the Wishing Tree here!Mastering by Kathleen - thanks a ton!

I have no idea what happens in this one. I've been working hard on stuff for our new network, and so I left them to their own devices and this is what they sent me.Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

She is hungry. She is always hungry. Surrounded by a chill mist and the infinite darkness of the southern ocean, she waits, hungry, for her next prey to approach.A ship drifts past her, and faintly, she can hear singing from the deck. For a second, she is no longer hungry, but curious about the sound, compelled to learn more.The Princess of the Southern Isles shakes her head to clear it, ignores the music, and drifts through the mist toward her next meal.Welcome to Sword of SymphoniesOriginal music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The ironclad Invincible drifts up Amylte's coast, casually knocking aside the ice floes that decorate the surface of the ocean this far northeast.The Admiral of the Glacier Legion stands on the deck, looking out over the shoreline, a hot drink in his hands. He can see a glint from the coast.The tundra surrounding a small ancient shrine is no longer bare – now, it is covered in steel grass and flowers sprouted by the Princess Of The Shrine of Blades. Just like the scouts reported, she has left her shrine and taken up arms against the Swarm for the first time.He does not know what to do with the idea that the Princess will no longer permit herself to be predicted.Welcome to Sword of SymphoniesOriginal music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

In an abandoned hall half-buried in the Veldt, the emerald Duchess opens her eerie green eyes to the sight of light filtering in through the one window that remains.This is her place, and until now that has always been enough for her.But, this morning, she emerges from the hall and stares out over the world of green that surrounds her, moved by a longing she doesn't understand. Or rather, by a longing she used to understand but had forgotten.Her venomous daemons swirl around her on the air, in the shapes of birds and beetles and any number of shining green creatures. Idly, she thinks what a long time it has been since she has been in the city.So she begins to walk.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The Radiant Prince hops off his altar, in the darkness of the shrine called Escape Route of the South Wind, content to be the only light in the stone ruins. His odd little courtiers watch him as they go about their business sweeping up the shrine for him, and all is right with his world.He runs a hand along the carved surface of the shrine's walls, and a memory startles him, as if waking him from a deep sleep. Visions of the past, of the people who carved these walls, of the offerings once laid upon the altar where he sits, a magic spell meant to convey to him the value of the place and its memories.When the spell was cast, he hadn't really understood the idea that history was a treasure, and somehow today he does. Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week on Cat's Cradle, hop in the car with us! We're joined by Bappy from The Eternity Archives! We're going on a roadtrip, and it's time to answer the eternal gamer question:What should we play?Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

The sky over the eastern desert is enormous. Standing on the sacred plateau where the remains of the deilith Benevolent Zhuge are collected, one can see from horizon to horizon, an endless world under an endless sky.The torches that adorn the plateau flicker.Moved by the sight, and terrified by the thought of being moved by the sight, the Chosen Emperor places his face in his hands and begins to weep.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The moon is full over the Silver River, and for the first time in ages, as the tide recedes, the sound of a flute echoes over the area.One by one, they emerge from the cave, dressed in layers of seawater-soaked silks embroidered with gold. One in violet, one in blue. In teal and green and yellow and orange. Six beauties wade through the ocean to approach the Silver River and the city of Celres, moving as one being and staring around at the world again.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!Thanks for joining us, Dillon!

What is the purpose of power? There are countless answers, of course, from countless people, ranging from obvious to esoteric, from benevolent to craven. But for many people, power is its own reason, and they don't stop to consider why. In Amylte, there are Noble Demons, and there are Horrors, and there is a wild world hostile to humanity. In the face of this, many want power to help others, to protect the things they see as worth protecting.But in the face of the Noble Demons, the Horrors, and the mistakes of the past, it can be hard to imagine power as a good thing.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!Thanks for joining us, Dillon!

For better or for worse, chaos reigns in Amylte. The gods are asleep, the kings dethroned, the land unruled except by its own nightmares. For better or worse, the age of order in Amylte is over. Nations and institutions melted with the mountains, sunk into the Veldt with the rest of the ruins. People are left deciding on their own how to take care of each other, how to live their lives, and how to rebuild.And whether this is for better or worse is now for them to decide. Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week Kathleen did the intro, as is tradition! So, enjoy!Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week on Cat's Cradle, Cat has finally done their best to write a Golden Sky Stories!It's called Dragons of Amylte, and it's a sweet little family-friendly game about being baby shapeshifters and learning new ways to interact with the world.So, Nick and Kathleen agreed to playtest! Join Newt and Rhododendron as they use their very best manners when meeting a new friend.Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

Listener, about two weeks ago I knocked a bowl off my kitchen counter onto the floor, where it shattered. I swore a little, and then set about sweeping up the pieces and safely disposing of them to prevent future injuries.About a week ago, I saw something in the bedroom, stark white against the rug. It was a piece of porcelain, a jagged little blade about the size of a fingernail. I have no idea how it got there. When things break, there is no telling where the pieces will end up.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week on Cat's Cradle, we talk about levels, gear, abilities, mechanics, and other ways that characters change in a long-term roleplaying game!What does it mean to level up? When should abilities be given, and what kinds of abilities should be gated behind levels? What different ways to players have to expand their play options as a game goes on?How many M&Ms can Nick eat?Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

(Content warning: Trauma, trauma responses, claustrophobia)One hundred million years ago, there was a river. Most people can't conceive of one million, let alone one hundred of them, but it's true. Back when the mountains of the Coral Coast were proud, jagged peaks and the Cloudcombs weren't even born yet, there was a river. It wound out of the proud mountains down over the lush plains to the sea, as many rivers seem to like to do. Over the course of its lifetime it flooded and ebbed and changed course countless times, until it settled into the shape of a broad, placid river with a wide flood plain, the kind humans would love if they existed yet.And on this flood plain there dwelled a god. Not a Deilith – not yet – but a living and moving deity. A god who laughed and danced and played the first music the river had ever seen. Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The thing about organic life is that, while it can be broken, wounded and damaged, it cannot be repaired. We are not bridges, or knives, or clocks. We are not doors or garments or wheels.We can't be mended, we can only heal, and even then, we hold on to scar tissue both literal and metaphorical as a record of that healing. Like a tree growing over and around a deep gash in its body, we hold on to our wounds. Our bones remember every break. We are books, carrying our own history. Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

In our chaotic world, everything is changing. Things change in dramatic, explosive, powerful ways. They change in subtle, invisible ways. Every action changes the world, and the world in turn changes us, and makes us look at the world with new eyes and see it changed again. Moment to moment, the world is being reborn.In light of that, what is the purpose of looking back?Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Yes, this episode goes live on Saturday. Humor me.What are your favorite dice? What are your favorite ways to use them? How can you use random outcome mechanics deliberately and mindfully?Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

Listener, let's start at the end this time. When the action is done with, and the story is told, and what sense can be made of things has been, what remains is memories. Memories are the final product of our mind's alchemical process, the gold we make of leaden everyday events. Memories aren't the end. They remain with us, guideposts to our mind and our identity, and so many beginnings are formed by following them. We build new memories among them, again and again, as time filters through our minds.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week, Cat, Nick, and Kathleen talk about crunch, fashion in game design, and reasons you might want to make a very crunchy game!Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

It can be comforting to think that everything has an assigned place in the world, and that, like a well-ordered kitchen, things will make sense when everything is in its proper place. It can sometimes feel like we are a dish left on the counter, waiting to be put in our assigned space so that the world will make sense.Of course, the cold fact of the matter is that there is no such order in the world, and, luckily for us, we can choose where we belong.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Everything is tied together. Amylte is chained to its past, and its future will be chained to its present, by the horrors. The Noble Demons are chained to their obsessions, imprisoned by desires they barely comprehend, and the Lesser Daemons are chained to their bound masters. Rangers are tied to their gods, and to the people of the world they are trying to protect. And those people are tied to each other, through bonds of love and hate and envy and fear and desire and every other ribbon in the skein of human emotion.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The first disappearance was a matter of money. A competitor who needed to disappear at the right time in order to clear the way for new growth. It was also an experiment, a test to see if stories passed down from one head of the household to the next were true.The second disappearance was a matter of fear. A way of sweeping away the tracks. The third disappearance was another matter of money.The fourth disappearance was a matter of envy.The fifth would have been a matter of honor. Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week, special guest Ziva of The Eternity Archives joins us to discuss the upcoming Rainbow Roll Fest, a podcast festival we're planning to showcase queer Actual Play content!Find Ziva and her gorgeous castmates here!Find the Rainbow Roll Fest Here!Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

We've talked a little about the concept of value. I think now you understand why. You see, as human beings, value is something we can pick up and shape with our own hands, define and redefine as we like. It may be the redefining that is the most beautiful part – the ability to look at something's value to us and decide for ourselves that it needs to change. We are not Noble Demons. We are not shackled to value.That is, unless we decide to be. Then, the only difference between us and the demons is the devastating power.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

You may remember the Countess of the Silver River, whose love of dominion made it possible for Tissa to convince her to cease her campaign of terror. Of course you know the Ambassador in Pearl, who fought more or less alongside mortals in the hunt for a common foe. Some of you may even know the Baron of the Gallery, whose collection of unique objects recently had a new sword added to it by some canny adventurers. They are powerful. They are practically gods. But if one knows the right thing to offer, it's not impossible to make a deal with a Noble Demon.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Value is a funny concept. Somehow human beings turned something abstract into something concrete – what was once just the notion that something meant something to someone became a measure of worth in real, absolute terms. How much does it mean to them? Not everything can be measured in numbers, but we hold the ruler up to more and more objects, events, circumstances, and concepts anyway. In that regard, we might be the irrational ones. I doubt a demon ever cared how much something cost.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

We interrupt this Sword of Symphonies feed to bring you a special previous of Cat's next big project, Roar to Heaven!If you'd like to hear the rest of this podcast, then please follow our campaign on Kickstarter!

This week, on Cat's Cradle! If you've ever idly wondered about what it would be like to make an AP podcast, let us tell you some of the ways it might be different from what you were expecting!Roar to Heaven Kickstarter is here!You can find more about Roar to Heaven on our website!Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

People are full of stories. When you get right down to it, we live and breathe them. So it stands to reason that any place that is full of people is doubly full of stories. Some of them are anecdotes, some of them are tales, and some of them are even legends. The more people there are in any given place, the deeper and more beautiful the library of that place, which just might be its greatest treasure.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

We've spoken before about the Noble Demons and their obsession, the single beacon of light that illuminates everything they think and do. The Radiant Prince exists to acquire, with no thought at all for what he acquires, from whom, or why. Whether or not he is even capable of questioning his urge to hoard, he doesn't. The Lady of the River's Origin, though she claims to hate uncleanliness, builds her entire life around corruption, around seeking it out and destroying it, and without it she would have nothing.Did you know? Humans can be the same way.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Once upon a time, there was a Duke in Stageport. It's true. Once upon a time, so long ago that the city as it stood was wrapped in a wall of stone to defend it from neighboring city-states, there was a Duke in Stageport. In fact, there was an army in Stageport. Not like the Crusaders, mind you, nothing like that. An army hired and paid for by this Duke, retained in order to preserve the city as it was, unless there was an opportunity for it to grow. Then this army would become an invading force, taking whatever the city wanted by force. At spearpoint, the city grew and grew, swallowing several smaller communities around it. This was how things went in the old world. Always forward, never back.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week on Cat's Cradle, how do you come up with a character?Worse, how does Bill do it?Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

Listener, have you ever felt yourself melt out into the world around you? Felt your body relax as your mind takes its leave for a moment?In Amylte, the world responds to this feeling. When a person takes leave of themself, the world answers that courage with power. To some, it has become second nature to melt into Amylte, so much so that they have forgotten what it means. That their own heart is what pushes the world. Their own heart stays out there, working for them.Welcome to Sword of SymphoniesOriginal music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Sometimes when you see yourself slipping away, you see another self. But then you begin to understand that this self is also your self, and it is all selves.Lines of distinction begin to blur, and you realize that you are not you, and I am not me, but we are everything and we are infinite.All joys, fears, hopes, and dreams are experienced as one, all understanding is as one.And all listeners are now joining Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

A couple days ago, the Chosen Emperor conjured a stately pleasure barge from thin air. It was crewed by eager daemons and fueled by supreme egotistical force. Spikes of coral and poison and love drove the barge away, back up the coast, away from the Coral Spirit's precious home.The Chosen Emperor turned around in defeat but not in surrender. The spirit knew the scent of a demon, yes, but what of an insignificant emissary? Neither the Emperor or Coral Spirit seemed even to care about those.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

On a high plateau decorating the sacred Origin Island, where, centuries ago, a great temple one stood, there is now a ruined garden. You may remember the Conqueror's Coin, the gold-colored flower that stirred the heart of the Conqueror, according to legends. The flower that now grows on the same Conqueror's grave, in the ruins of his hometown, which was a humble fishing village back when he was a humble fisherman.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Do you remember the Conqueror, listener? The Coral Coast remembers him, even if its people have forgotten. He once collected a rich garden of different peoples and traditions under his banner through force of arms and valiant, warlike courage.The history books also give him credit for the infrastructure that made widespread trade and study possible in the region.It was in service of war. They have forgotten that, too.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

Far to the south of Amylte, there is a chain of islands surrounded by mist and jagged stones like the teeth of a monster. Here, the Princess of the Southern Islands lies in wait for passing ships to deliver her favorite delicacy – raw human flesh, which she devours without hesitation or mercy.In a particular castle, half-sunken beneath the Veldt, overgrown by ancient orange trees, there is a grand hall adorned in rose gold. Here, the Emerald Duchess sits, admiring her riches and pacing around a domain that is entirely hers, where none can interfere with her. In a small shrine just north of Hushwave City, called Escape Route of the South Wind, the Radiant Prince sits impudently on an ancient altar to await tribute from passers-by. Like the tales of so many of his kind, his is a story bound to a place, tied inextricably to a particular piece of the world.So many of his kind, but not all.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies. Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

The gods of Amylte sleep in their treacherous homes. Augustine rests at the center of a huge whirlpool, Hector dreams from the back of the King of the Desert.These are the gods of Amylte, and have been for as long as the people of Amylte can remember.But have they always been?Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!

This week on Cat's Cradle, a bonus episode where the team builds an encounter all together!Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

This week, on Cat's Cradle! Harmony Drive is live now, so it's time to talk about SRDs, or System Resource Documents, the moddable hackable huggable lovable TTRPG systems we love!SRDs Mentioned in this Episode:Carta SRD by Peach Garden GamesHarmony Drive SRD by Peach Garden GamesLUMEN SRD by Gila RPGs五德 - The Five Powers by WuDeRPG Games Mentioned in this Episode:Sacred Forge by Peach Garden GamesBlazing Hymn by Peach Garden GamesHeroic Chord by Peach Garden GamesCOURAGE by Catscratcher StudioThe Land and The People by Bryon Casebolt(Also Remember the Land by Ivan Coluchi. I did get them slightly confused but they're both beautiful.)Theme Park After Dark by Ziva MacPhersonLa Bête by Merlin McGrawRunning With a Mouthful of Toast by Corvyn Appleby80' – the Eightieth Minute by AvriWalk n' Wag by Dorca Check out the Carta Jam for even more wonderful solo games!Join our Discord!Music by Kathleen!

A couple days ago, there was a girl, and it was time for her to become an adult, though she didn't know it at the time. She ventured into the forest on no particular errand, with no particular goal but an afternoon's diversion.She stumbled upon a vision of herself, a selfish, lonely, hostile child. As her senses gave way to fantasy and the world tingled around her, she fought. She fought to stay conscious, but more than that, she fought to remain herself. She fought to keep that feral little girl in her heart, to make it through the ordeal unchanged.When her failure was complete, she was grateful for it.Welcome to Sword of Symphonies.Welcome to special guest Bill From Online!Original music by Kathleen~!You can find the Heroic Discord here!