Tikvari's Journey Part II

SoloRPG Session using Ironsworn

This is a continuation of the SoloRPG session that I’m running in my worlbuilding project. In it, Tikvari, a young Eekraw (the avian species that is the primary species on the world) set out on a journey to avenge his nestmate, Riv’Tal, who was killed by a predator reptile.

In this session:

• Tikvari finds the Jiltal’teik, as well as its eight nestmates and nearly gives into despair

• Riv’Tal’s nestsister, Riv’tikara comes to aid him

• The pair drive off the Jiltal’teik’s nestmates

• They fight and kill the Jiltal’teik, avenging Riv’Tal, at the expense of grevious wounds to Tikvari

Background

I am doing a project of incremental worldbuilding. In other words, I’m taking aspects of worldbuilding and changing them slowly over time, in hope of creating a world that has the real weight of history behind it. In addition, I’m using randomness and ‘game-like’ mechanics, as well as assistance from ChatGPT, to help work my way through this process and ensure that I am sometimes surprised by the results.

The Eekraw are an avian species that has developed sentience. They’re slightly shorter than human height, and live around 80 years absent illness or injury. They can’t lift off vertically, requiring a cliff face or tree to jump off to successfully initiate flight. They have strong and dexterous foot talons, meaning their feet rather than wings are needed to work tools. They live in communal nests, with a nest of four-six adults raising their young together.

The way I do this is to have ‘turns’ in which I randomly change aspects of the societies in the world. For the random event in the current turn (Turn 11), I rolled the event “Run a solo roleplaying session set in this particular region.” The region that this takes place in is a tribe of semi-sedentary Eekraw who live in a swampy coastline region.

In the first session of this Ironsworn adventure, I established that the main character would be Tikvari. Tikvari went on a hunt with Riv’Tal, another young Eekraw, and tried to kill an ancient and dangerous Jiltal’teik (a predator reptile that lives in the marsh). Their hunt went wrong, and Riv’Tal was killed. When Tikvari recovered from his wounds, he swore to avenge him.

In the session, Tikvari traveled across the swamp to reach the location of Riv’Tal’s death. Along the way he was ambushed by a Vari (an avian predator) but managed to fight it off. When he reached the location of the earlier battle, he realized that the Jiltal’teik would be vulnerable in a confined space as it couldn’t use its tail fully.

Now Tikvari is at the location of Riv’Tal’s death and knows that his next step will be to try and find the Jiltal’teik.

Tikvari does a Gather Information roll.

The strong hit from Reach Your Destination (at the end of the previous session) also gives me the option of adding +1 to my next move or taking +1 momentum. I’ll add +1 to this move — it makes sense that finding the location of the fight will help Tikvari figure out where the monster went next.

Gather Information

Roll+wits+1

1d6+3 = 8

2d10 = 1,10 —> weak hit

The information complicated my quest or introduces a new danger.

I think the most obvious complication would be that there is more than one of the creatures — Tikvari only wants to kill the big one, but the other Jiltal’teik will make it harder for him to do so.

I’ll say this is Likely and roll a 1d100 — on a 26 or greater it’s true.

1d100 = 54 —> Yes, so there are additional Jiltal’teik.

Now for the hit on Gather Information, I need to see what signs of the Jiltal’teik I can find.

I’ll use the Monster Hunting rules from ironsmith (an Ironsworn supplement) and check for the signs of the monsters’ passage.

1d100=42, 1d6 =1, so scat that is minutes old.

Tikvari found a nearby tree and jumped to its top, then launched from it, taking to the air. He had to find the Jiltal’teik, then find where there was somehwere he could lure it to kill it. He tried to make a balance of flying high enough that he could cover a lot of ground, but also low enough that he could see what he was looking for. As he circled around the area, he saw a disturbance on the ground and flew in closer for a better look.

As he landed and looked at the steaming piles of shit, his feathers stiffened in fright, and he looked around in concern. He couldn’t see the Jiltal’teik, but he now knew that it was near. Worse than that, he knew that there were more than one of them.

As he looked up and down what was clearly the path the jiltal’teik had recently taken, there were not merely one or two but a dozen piles of shit, of different sizes and not all in one line. It was clear to Tikvari that they had been dropped really recently, within a few minutes at most, and that it was more than one creature doing the dropping. Most likely the beasts are still close, and might even be able to smell him right now.

Tikvari immediately runs for a nearby tree, trying to get up it and get into the air before the Jiltal’teik find him.

I think there’s a small chance that the Jiltal’teik are close enough that they see and/or attack Tikvari.

I thought about doing an ask the oracle, but I think it’s more appropriate to use Face Danger instead.

He’s doing Face Danger with speed, so I’ll roll +edge (Note: Tivkari’s strongest stat is Iron, but he hasn’t actually used it all that much, and against a superior opponent like the Jiltal’teik I don’t think it makes sense to for the most part)

Face Danger

1d6+2 = 7

2d10 = 3,10

Weak Hit

You succeed but face a troublesome cost. I choose Endure Stress

Endure stress:

Spirit goes down by 1, to 4.

Roll +spirit

1d6+4 = 7

2d10 = 1,1

Strong hit with Positive Twist

With the strong hit, I embrace the darkness and take +1 momentum. As for the positive twist — I think the most likely scenario is that someone comes to aid him — I’m thinking it’s probably one of Riv’Tal’s nestsiblings¹, so I’m going to ask the oracle with the odds of “Likely” —> 1d100 = 70, so Yes.

I need to figure out who it is who arrives. First off, I realize that I was subconsciously assuming the newcomer was female, and rather than roll for it I’ll just go with it — it was one of Riv’Tal’s nestsisters. Ironsworn has oracles to see who the newcomer might be, but as with a number of the oracles, most of them don’t really make sense in my setting. I will roll on the Character Descriptor table, and see if I get something that is reasonable, but I’ll be generous about discarding. I’ll roll three times and discard one or two of them depending on what they are.

3d100 = 16,71,36 —> jealous, stealthy and quirky.

I think this can kind of make sense. She’s one of Riv’Tal’s nestsisters, who was jealous of Tikvari’s claim on his time (or maybe jealous of Riv’Tal for claiming Tikvari for his nest). Stealthy is easy — she’s small and able to hide easily. Quirky is a little harder to interpret — what does quirky even mean in a hunter-gatherer society of birds? But I think I have it. I think she’s on her Rauki E’yee (coming of age ceremony). Females are usually not expected to do as strenuous a hunt for that — they are more likely to find a Tirtiry (floating fruit) or some Jilktra (small fish) and are not at all scorned for doing a short hunt. Males are respected based on how big a prey they get and how far they go.

This nestsister of Tikvari’s — Riv’tikara² — has decided to go all out for her Rauki E’yee and help Tikvari hunt the Jiltal’teik. I’m not sure if she’ll face censure for not doing it alone — no, I think that it is common for a new adult to find fellows to join together to do the hunt. Sharing in the danger, as well as the potential honor or shame of the hunt, is a way to bind together as nestmates.

Tikvari jumps for the nearest tree, flapping his wings desperately to get a little bit more air than otherwise. He doesn’t quite reach it before hitting the ground again. He hears the crash of a heavy body behind him, and is sure that it’s the Jiltal’teik.

Jumping again, Tikvari reaches the shelter of the tree, landing an Eekraw’s height above the ground. Though prudence would tell him to immediately take to the air, he instead looks back. All of his feathers stand on end, pricking in fear. Below him, he sees the baleful stare of the monstrous Jiltal’teik, the monster that had killed Riv’Tal and greviously wounded Tikvari. The massive, scarred beast stared up at him with hungry eyes.

Even worse, there were another (1d6+2 = 8) eight of the creatures besides it. Tikvari had never seen this many of the reptiles, and yet here there were nine of them. None of the others were as large as the old one, but they were all there and clearly hungry.

Tikvari could feel his spirits sink. How could he possibly hope to avenge Riv’Tal aginst these odds?

I’m going to reduce the amount of actual fiction I'm writing, as opposed to summarizing, to speed up a bit and give myself the motivation to keep going. I feel like I’ve been somewhat avoiding playing this this because of the effort of writing the full detailed fiction. Now I’ll allow myself to write general descriptions without writing a full story for every action.

Riv’tikara appears, and lands next to Tikvari. She tells him she is here on her Rauki E’yee, and she is going to help slay the Jiltal’teik. Tikvari tries to argue, saying that it is his job to avenge Riv’tal, and that she shouldn’t risk herself, but she ignores him. She asks what the plan is, and he says that he doesn’t know, it seems like with so many other of the Jiltal’teik around, and how big it is, he isn’t sure he even can carry out his task anymore. Riv’tikara shouts at him and convinces him that they can still do it. The pair jump out of the tree, flying over the swamp to a location that’s further away.

I’ll count this as a milestone and since I downgraded the quest to Dangerous to save time, that means there is now 4 progress.

Going back to the plan Tikvari established at the beginning, the next steps are to lure the Jiltal’teik to higher or less swampy ground, wound or weaken it, and then kill it. Now that he’s discovered the additional smaller Jiltal’teik, he needs to lure them away separately, as well.

So, they’re going to set up the dead Vari from earlier, trying to place it somewhere that will draw the big creature. The idea will be to put it somewhere that only one of the Jilatl’teik could possibly fit, and of course the massive one would not let any of the others get there before him.

Part of that will be to find a good area that is higher ground and has a confined space that will both prevent the other Jiltal’teik from coming to the beast’s aid and will constrain its tail as well.

So, I think that’s a Gather Information roll again.

Gather Information

Roll + wits:

1d6 + 2: 4 + 2 (mod) = 6

2d10: 9, 6

So, that’s a miss — I think that means that there is no good ground anywhere nearby that will constrain the Jiltal’teik.

So, now Tikvari and Riv’tikara have to decide on a different approach.

They’ve decided instead to find an area with several trees or other tall things that can be used to aid in flight. They’re going to do a strategy of harassment hunting — they’ll swoop down, scratch with foot talons, and then continue on. They’ll try to do that over and over again. The corpse of the Vari will be used to draw the Jiltal’teik into a suitable area. Unlike confined spaces, there are definitely trees around, so they don’t need to do Gathering Information to find one.

They’ll use Secure an Advantage to try to draw the creature in.

Secure an Advantage

Roll +wits:

1d6 + 2: 4 + 2 (mod) = 6

2d10: 10, 8

And that’s another miss. “You fail or your assumptions betray you. Pay the Price”

I think the likely outcome is that the Jiltal’teik just don’t follow the Vari. However, the other possibility is that they sense Tikvari and Riv’tikara and go after them. I’ll roll on Ask the Oracle for a ‘likely’ result — 26 or above it’s the first, otherwise the second.

1d100 = 53

So yes, the Jiltal’teik are uninterested in the dead Vari, probably because it was so skinny and undernourished, and they’re already sated.

With that, Tikvari and Riv’tikara decide to just try and drive the other Jiltal’teik off directly. He gambles that even in an area with fewer trees which is harder to fly through, he’ll still be able to. They’ll basically just harass the smaller Jiltal’teik, making them want to leave.

I’m going to say that’s a Battle

He’s using speed and the terrain to try and hit and drive away the smaller Jiltal’teik, with Riv’tikara’s help.

Battle

Roll +edge:

1d6 + 2: 2 + 2 (mod) = 4

2d10: 1, 3

And amazingly, despite a low action die, it’s still a strong hit.

Tikvari and Riv’tikara swoop down, using their foot talons to strike at the middle sections of the smaller Jiltal’teik — between their sharp teeth and their dangerous tails. They are careful to stay away from the big monster, moving towards a different one of the smaller ones whenever the bigger one gets too close.

After what felt like hours, but was probably only a short time, the younger Jiltal’teik have been driven off. They scatter, moving to better hunting grounds without these Eeekraw swooping at them over and over again.

That leaves just the pair of Eekraw and the massive Jiltal’teik, probably twice as large as the other ones.

All the attempts of making the odds better have failed up to this point, and Tikvari decides to just Enter the Fray anyway.

I’ll say that it’s a Formidable foe — especially since they weren’t able to find a weakness to exploit.

Enter the Fray

They’re facing off against the Jiltal’teik — so roll +heart

1d6 + 1: 4 + 1 (mod) = 5

2d10: 2, 10

Weak hit — I choose to take the initiative.

With the smaller Jiltal’teik driven away, it is now down to just Tikvari, RivTikara and the Jiltal’teik who killed Riv’Tal. The Jiltal’teik is not surprised by their attack, as it has been snapping at them as they attack his younger brethren over and over again.

They swoop down, trying to attack in unison to take out its eyes.

Strike

Roll +iron:

1d6 + 3: 2 + 3 (mod) = 5

2d10: 3, 6

Inflict 1 harm but lose initiative

Now, they’ll Face Danger to try to regain the high ground (otherwise they’ll be stuck on the ground).

Face Danger

Roll +edge

1d6 + 2: 4 + 2 (mod) = 6

2d10: 3, 2

Strong hit — successfully make it to another tree.

Of course, that leads to the question of what next — the Jiltal’teik can’t reach them in the tree, but it has initiative³. I think it’ll just be a Clash with a +2 to Tikvari — basically, the Jiltal’teik is lined up and ready for them, but they are attacking from above and swoop to try and avoid.

Clash

Roll +edge+2

1d6 + 4: 2 + 4 (mod) = 6

2d10: 8, 1

Weak hit — Inflict harm but pay the price, Jiltal’teik still has initiative

In this case, Pay the Price is endure harm —

Endure Harm

Take 3 damage, since the foe is Formidable, then roll + iron:

1d6 + 3: 1 + 3 (mod) = 4

2d10: 3, 5

Weak hit, so press on.

This damage is pretty bad, Tikvari only has one health left.

Tikvari and Riv’tikara swoop down again, to try to scratch at the Jiltal’teik. They successfully hit it, but as they fly past Tikvari is struck a glancing blow by the great tail. He is flung sideways, crying out in pain as he does so. Still, he is able to regain his feet, glaring down the beast. The beast is clearly wounded, but shows no sign of slowing down.

I’m going to try to Turn the Tide

One of Tikvari’s assets, Honorbound, allows that when I turn the tide, I can imagine how this fulfills my vows, and add an additional +1 to the roll and +1 to momentum on a hit. Tikvari remembers Riv’Tal’s death and his resolve is firmed, allowing him to put his all into attacking again.

Strike

Roll +iron and +1 due to turn the tide, plus one more due to Honorbound.

1d6 + 4: 3 + 5 (mod) = 8

2d10: 3, 10

So that’s a weak hit — I inflict 1 harm but lose initiative. I do still take two additional momentum (one from Turn the Tide and one from Honorbound), though, making a total of 9.

Now, Tikvari and Riv’tikara try to Face Danger again. I realize that I made a slight mistake earlier — any strong hit regains initiative, even the strong hit from Face Danger above, so I needn’t have done the Clash from earlier, I could have done Strike instead. But that’s fine, I’ll just keep that in mind going forward.

Face Danger

Roll +edge

1d6 + 2: 4 + 2 (mod) = 6

2d10: 8, 1

Weak hit — succeed but face a troublesome cost. Endure Stress (1 stress)

Endure Stress

Spirit is reduced to 3. Then roll +spirit:

1d6 + 3: 4 + 3 (mod) = 7

2d10: 7, 3

Weak hit, so press on

Now, I guess it’s Clash again, since I did not get a Strong Hit on face danger, so do not yet have the initiative.

Clash

Roll +iron

1d6 + 3: 4 + 3 (mod) = 7

2d10: 8, 2

Weak hit again, but I have 9 momentum, so I can burn the momentum to turn it to a strong hit. I do so, so I have initiative again. In addition, due to the now strong hit, I have the chance of increasing momentum by one or doing one additional harm. I’ll increase momentum by one.

Tikvari is going to try and Secure an Advantage by distracting the Jiltal’teik so Riv’tikara can get in more attacks. Since he’s a berserker, when he secures an advantage by using his wild nature, he gets +1 and +1 momentum on a hit.

He’ll basically go wild, attacking the Jiltal’teik with his talons, but not actually getting close enough to do any real damage or be hurt in turn.

Secure an Advantage

Roll +iron +1 for Berserker

1d6 + 4: 3 + 4 (mod) = 7

2d10: 4, 3

Strong hit - choose +2 momentum or +1 to next move — he just got one momentum from Berserker, so he’ll do +1 to next move.

Riv’tikara strikes from behind while Tikvari distracts the Jiltal’teik

Strike

Roll +iron +1

1d6 + 4: 2 + 4 (mod) = 6

2d10: 5, 3

And another strong hit, which does a +1 harm for a total of 2.

The Jiltal’teik is now bloody and bruised, attacked from both sides by the Eekraw who swoop in and then swoop away.

There’s six progress now in the Jiltal’teik’s track — they could try to end the fight now. But no, it’s not quite there yet, it’ll be too dangerous still to try and end the fight prematurely.

So, they’ll try to strike again, this time without that earlier +1 from Secure an Advantage

Strike

Roll +iron

1d6 + 3: 5 + 3 (mod) = 8

2d10: 7, 8

So, despite the really high action die, the challenge die still made it a weak hit. Inflict 1 harm, but the foe has the initiative. At this point, they are truly stuck in and can’t try to retreat to the trees each time.

Tikvari stares down the Jiltal’teik, seeing its great jaw bared at him. He is stuck in mud, just like he was before, when Riv’Tal died. He is faintly aware of Riv’tikara trying to come around from the side, and he charges forward to distract the beast from her.

Clash

Roll +iron

1d6 + 3: 4 + 3 (mod) = 7

2d10: 4, 9

And another weak hit — one harm but pay the price.

Pay the price will be endure harm —

Endure Harm

Tikvari takes three damage, but he already only has one health so he takes -2 momentum.

Roll +health

1d6 + 1: 1 + 1 (mod) = 2

2d10: 5, 4

That’s a miss, and -1 additional momentum, then mark wounded and roll on the table 1d100 = 38⁴

Tikvari is reeling and fighting to stay conscious. If he engages in any vigorous activity before taking a quick breather, he needs to roll on the table again before resolving that move.

He tries to get out of the way — so he rolls again on the table, then Face Danger.

1d100 = 17 —> you are dying, you need to heal within an hour or two, or Face Death.

Still, on the edge of death, he tries to Face Danger.

Face Danger

Roll + iron (try to pull himself away with strength of will)

1d6 + 3: 4 + 3 (mod) = 7

2d10: 8, 6

Weak hit — Endure stress

Endure Stress

Spirit decreases by one, then roll +spirit

1d6 + 2: 6 + 2 (mod) = 8

2d10: 3, 5

Strong hit —> Embrace the darkness, take one momentum.

And with that strong hit, Tikvari tries to end this, by lunging out and killing the Jiltal’teik as it approaches his downed form.

End the Fight

Roll just challenge die against a progress of 8

2d10: 2, 7

Strong hit!

Tikvari lashes out, his foot talons striking through the Jiltal’teik’s jaws as they try to close around him. The sharp talons strike something vital, and the monster collapses to the ground at Tikvari’s feet. Riv’tikara lands seconds afterwards, rushing towards her downed companion.

Tikvari is badly wounded, but with Riv’tikara’s help is able to get some vines together to try to bind his wounds — this is the second time in only a few months that this particular Jiltal’teik has badly wounded him — but this time, the creature was dead.

Heal

Roll +wits

1d6 + 2: 2 + 2 (mod) = 4

2d10: 9, 5

With that miss, I’m going to say that it doesn’t kill Tikvari, but it does mean that he is maimed now.

So, Tikvari is maimed —

1. One of his wings

2. His foot talons

3. Just visibly scarred

4. Lost an eye

5. His wing talons

1d5 = 1

So, Tikari has one of his wings badly maimed, such that he can barely fly anymore. That’s a pretty horrific outcome for one of the Eekraw.

With the Jiltal’teik’s death, I add one more progress to Tikvari’s vow to avenge Riv’Tal. It’s at six progress now — I could try to fulfill the vow now, but I think there’s one more milestone that makes sense.

Tikvari is going to try to Forge a Bond with Riv’Tikara. If he suceeds, it’ll mean that he also has forged a new nest with Riv’Tal’s nestsister, keeping his name living on and fully avenging him.

Forge a Bond

Roll +heart

1d6 + 1: 5 + 1 (mod) = 6

2d10: 10, 3

It’s a weak hit, so Riv’tikara asks something of Tikvari first. I’m not going to make it something for a vow — that would just extend this longer and I do want it to come to an end. I’ll say that she wants him to help her bring the head of the Jiltal’teik back to the settlement, so that she can present it as the outcome of her Rauki E’yee.

I’m not going to do Undertake a Journey for the way back either — this has already gone on for a while. Instead, I’ll just say that they limp their way back, arriving at the Teer’tee nearly four days later. Riv’tikara presents the head of the Jiltal’teik to the entire settlement, and presents Tikvari as her nestmate.

Now, I mark one additional progress on the vow and try to fulfill it.

Fulfill Vow

Against a progress of 8

2d10: 5, 2

Strong hit!

Mark two experience (not that it matters) and fulfill the vow.

Tikvari and Riv’tikara form a new nest together, along with some others they find, and make a good life for themselves, keeping Riv’tal’s memory alive. Some years later, Tikvari is selected to be the Vikre’ratir (flight leader) despite his crippled wing, showing the respect all the Eekraw have for him.

I’ll make the following updates to the legends of the tribe:

Riv’Tal and Tikvari - Riv’Tal and Tikvari were two males of the tribe who were planning on starting a nest together. As their Rauki E’yee, Riv’tal convinced Tikvari to join him to hunt a massive and ancient Jiltal’teik, the large predator reptile of the marsh. Riv’Tal was killed by the Jiltal’teik and Tikvari was badly wounded. (5)

Tikvari and Riv’tikara — After recuperating in the settlement, Tikvari decided to avenge his would have been nestmate, and went to hunt the Jiltal’teik. He was nearly overcome, but Riv’tikara, Riv’tal’s nestsister, joined him on her own Rauki E’yee. Together, they killed the Jiltal’teik, though Tikvari suffered grevious wounds to his wings and had struggles flying thereafter. They brought the Jilta’teik’s head back to present to the entire clan as the fruits of their Rauki E’yee. Tikvari and Riv’tikara started a nest together, and Tikvari was eventually chosen as Vikre’ratir, despite his crippled wing. (5)

Debrief Thoughts

• Ironsworn may not have been the best system to use for this — it relies a bit too much on the specific setting of the Ironlands, as well as assumptions about having villages around, weapons and armor, and magical encounters. If I do Ironsworn again, I may try to hack it more extensively first.

• I made a lot of mistakes during the adventure in terms of the Ironsworn rules. But it didn’t end up being a big deal, and I think if I played it again I wouldn’t make as many mistakes.

• The game ended up going much faster and being more fun when I stopped trying to fully write out every single scene but stuck with bullet points. I think maybe I could still have been a bit more descriptive, but overall, it was better at the end than the beginning.

• I didn’t get enough chances to really establish Riv’tikara as a character — partially because I didn’t introduce her until the very end, at which point I was kind of speeding through things. Still, Ironsworn is definitely intended to center a single character — I might try another system that works better with multiple characters (or just do Ironsworn with both characters independently, as if I were playing with multiple people).

• Dall-E 3 is useful to try and make illustrations of what’s going on, but it has a real problem with understanding scale — I couldn’t get it to make the Eekraw smaller than the Jiltal’teik. I do think that if I had been using humans instead of Eekraw, Dall-E 3 would have been more useful. ⁵

Overall, it was fun, and I appreciated the way it let me expand on more details of the setting. However, I definitely struggled through things in the middle of the adventure. I wanted to continue with the worldbuilding term in the meantime but couldn’t since I was waiting on this to finish. In future, the RPG section will be the very last thing in the settled rounds region, so I can continue with stuff for the migratory rounds while I take pauses from the RPG session. I think switching back and forth will make it easier and more fun for both.

1. The Eekraw have a strange family structure, since they live in nests of four to six adults and a similar number of juveniles. Therefore, ‘nestsibling’ refers to those who were born in the same nest, ‘nestparent’ refers to adults of the nest that raised one, and ‘nestmates’ refers to fellow adults of the same nest (effectively the spouses).

2. Riv (‘fly’) appears to be a family name at this point, since there’s Riv’Tal, and his nestmother Jeela’Riv, along with Riv’tikara. Tikara means camouflaged/hidden

3. As noted later, I misinterpreted the rules here — the strong hit should return initiative to Tikvari, even though it wasn’t as part of a Strike or Clash move.

4. Another rules mistake — it should be mark wounded OR roll on the table, not AND

5. Much less prompting required to get this: