Finishing Touches
Your Haven is almost complete. Take a moment to summarise everything you have decided so far among the group. Search for any interesting synergies or clashes that the Haven creation process has brought up between your Location, Culture, and Crises, and feel free to tweak them to fit now.
Once you have done that, and the party have all agreed that they are happy with your Haven, all that’s left is to record some important statistics for your Haven and give it a name. Once you have completed these finishing touches, you can move on to creating your Survivors to begin your adventures, though you may want to come back to your Haven and make adjustments and additions based on the Survivors you have created.
HOPE
All Havens possess Hope. Hope in the Broken World has tangible power, which can push mortals beyond their limits and hold back Decay. Hope is created when people come together to support each other and work towards a common goal, which means that Havens are the primary source of generating Hope. When Survivors leave the Haven to face great dangers, Havens invest their Hope into them, granting them a slim edge against the unknowable horrors beyond the relative safety of home. For a more in-depth explanation on Hope and how it is used, see Hope on page 129.
Your Haven begins with a pool of Hope equal to 1d4 per player. A Haven’s Hope can increase or decrease due to player actions, Downtime and Seasonal Activities, or through narrative events.
DECAY
Even Havens are not safe from Decay, it is an ever present malady of the world from which there is no true escape. Yet sane communities rarely settle in places where Decay is at its most destructive. Once a community forms, their collective Hope is normally enough to hold back the worst effects of Decay.
Decay is measured on a scale of 1–10, and your Haven begins with 1 Decay. This means that the land is relatively stable in and around the Haven itself — well-trod paths lead where they should, weather and seasons are relatively predictable, an ecosystem of some kind has established itself, and Monster sightings are relatively rare. For a more in-depth explanation on how Decay affects Havens and those who live there, see Effects of Decay on page 127.
Certain narrative events or choices you made during Haven Creation may increase the level of Decay present within your Haven, and the actions of Survivors may sometimes be able to reduce it.
HARD LUCK HAVEN
If your group wants a particularly tough challenge, you can choose to create your Haven with a higher level of Decay. But beware that Decay is incredibly difficult to remove, and has the effect of increasing the Decay of all who reside there, including your Survivors. The following choices during Haven Creation can increase your Haven’s Decay. Note that Decay begins to mechanically affect Survivors through their Curse once it reaches 4 or more. See Chapter 4. Lineages, for details on how Decay manifests in each Lineage.
• Your Haven may gain an additional Resource at the cost of +1 Decay
• Your Haven may gain an additional Landmark at the cost of +1 Decay
• A Dangerous Monster may make its home near your Haven at a cost of +1 Decay
• Your Haven may gain an Uncovered Artefact at a cost of +1 Decay
RESOURCES
Every Haven has Resources, which functions like a communal collection of supplies. Resources are a
surplus, and don’t represent the day-to-day food and equipment a Haven needs to function. Instead, it contains extra materials for communal and emergency use, such as mundane crafting materials, medical supplies, and preserved food.
• Your Haven begins 1d4 Resources per party member.
Your Haven generates new Resources every 4 weeks based on its Population, as shown in the Haven Resources table. A Haven’s Resources are calculated differently during Seasons.
Resources can be expended for trade or crafting but they are also used when a Haven falls into Crisis (see page 131). When this happens, Resources are consumed to stave off a threat. If the Resources run dry, the Population begins to perish, so Survivors should always think twice before draining their Haven’s Resources for personal goals.
POPULATION
Havens come in all sizes, from a desperate handful of outcasts huddling in barren caves and subsiding on scraps, to thriving towns with sustainable agriculture and robust defences. Population represents the number of people in your Haven, its general health, and how well it can survive the dangers that the Broken World can throw at it. Population is often referenced in gameplay, such as when your Haven is in Crisis or when you are undertaking Downtime or Seasonal Activities that rely on your community. If your Haven ever reaches zero Population, excluding Player Characters, it is effectively destroyed.
• Your Haven begins with a Population equal to 1d4 × 10 per party member.
If you want to represent an older or larger Haven, you can roll 1d4 × 10 up to three additional times and add the result to your Haven’s Population. This will increase the Resources your Haven generates every 4 weeks. However, each time you roll, you must generate an additional Crisis, as the larger the Haven, the more problems they encounter.
Haven Resources |
---|
Population | Resources Generated |
<100 | 1 |
100-200 | 1d4 |
201-300 | 1d6 |
301-400 | 2d4 |
401-500 | 2d6 |
501-600 | 3d4 |
600+ | 3d6 + 1d6 per additional 100 people |
Populations change over time, but this is a gradual process that takes years and is normally only noticeable between Crises and during Seasons (see page 164). The exception to this is if a narrative event triggers a notable Population increase or decrease. An influx of refugees from another settlement might rapidly increase a settlement’s Population, while a natural disaster or unchecked Monster rampage may cause a massive Population decline.
HAVEN NAME
Haven names are functional and descriptive. They often include the Haven’s distinguishing landmark, combined with things like the name of the Haven’s first leader, the motivation for the Haven’s founding, or the trade in which the Haven specialises. Many believe this helps scouts to find their way home, as it gives the Haven’s name a solid grounding in the earth that all too-readily shifts and changes.
By now, you should have plenty of material to make your Haven name. Take a moment to look at the Location, Landmark, and Culture for inspiration. Some Haven names are included as examples.
Example Haven Names: Afrasno Steamfalls, Fifteen Graves, Grubwarren, Knucklebone Mines, Listener Point, Mammothchase, Palefeather Roost, Rorik’s Kennel, Rustfield, Spider-eater Gulch, Stille’s Rest, Surgeonhall, Temple-on-Blue, Turnipseed
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:49, Tue 16 Apr.