A Knight of the Round Table, reincarnated into a new age and a new body, still determined to follow her code. A mover-and-shaker whose loyalties seem to shift with every day, honeyed word, and bullet. A former criminal working off her sentence in service of the greater good, although she hasn’t abandoned her hunger for information. A Fluxed magic user who has joined up for his own safety, hunted by a rival corporation for his abilities. Each Meet the Party article gives you an entire group of ready-to-play adventurers (maybe even some heroes) for your gaming needs for a variety of systems and settings. This time we’re suiting up with some Knights in Fine Armani in a world of Arthurian cyberpunk, with Corporia from Brabblemark Press!

Corporia, recently featured by The Independents, is an Ennie-nominated game taking place in The City, which was a normal enough cyberpunk megalopolis until relatively recently. That changed when the legends came true and the Knights of the Round Table began making their return. Something in reality broke loose, however, and in an event called the Flux magic and monsters began appearing in the world again. With King Arthur himself still missing in action, Sir Lancelot stepped up to lead. Reincarnated as the CEO of the Valyant corporation, he created the Knightwatch special operations group. Supported by Sir Percival, Nimue, and the AI known as M.E.R.L.I.N., Lancelot hopes to assemble his fellow Knights and other willing and talented people and use the ‘watch to restore the balance between Order and Chaos, all while searching for Arthur. So, without further ado (but with some notes inserted to help understand the game), let’s meet our Knightwatch team!

Elayna Blanc the Knight-Errant

Archetype: Knight-Errant

Core Competency: Touched

Public Traits: Fiercely Loyal, Reliable, Swayed by Emotion

Private Trait: Reincarnated as the Opposite Gender

It’s possible to take a second Private Trait in order to get an extra point to spend on General Assets, but for this article I kept things simple and left everyone with just the one.

Strength (STR) 4, Deftness (DFT) 2, Mettle (MTL) 3, Knowledge (KNO) 2, Wits (WIT) 2, Magick (MGK) 1

Every Core Value has to have a minimum of 1, and a maximum of 4. You might think that the non-magic-users are hampered by needing to put a point into Magick, but MGK increases magical defenses and gets added to metal melee weapon damage against cryptids.

Skills: Getting Medieval 5, Fisticuffs 2, Athletics 2, Firearms 2, Business 2, Crime 2, Instinct 2, History 2, Language 1, Valor 2

If you don’t have a rank in a skill but need to roll it, you simply add the Core Value. Otherwise, you add the skill rank to the Core Value to get your full bonus. Skills can only rank as high as their Core Value +1.

Initiative: 4

Melee: 9

Ranged: 4

Unarmed: 6

Dodge: 4

Block: 7

Run: 30

V.S. Physical Spell: 4

V.S. Mental Spell: 5

Flux Points: 5

Flux Points, used to boost rolls and invoke Traits, are gained in gameplay through a variety of ways. At character creation, a character is granted Flux Points equal to KNO+WIT+MGK.

Assets: Fortitude, Knight’s Prowess, Lionheart 2

Weapons and Equipment: Pistol, Longsword, Modern Medium Armor, EyePhone, Hardened Personal Augment, Energy Shield, Tactical Kit, Silencer, Stimpack x5, $3150

REPP: None

REPP stands for Really Effective People Promotions, and is a 1-100 scale ranking a character’s social media impact. A higher number means a character might receive gifts, invitations, special promotional items, and things along those lines. The trade-off is that ‘REPPing’ in order to increase your score means posting your status like any other social media platform, which might cause trouble for a member of a secretive special-ops group. It’s optional though, and Elayna here has opted out. If a character does participate they start with REPP equal to WIT x 6, and can boost that with an Asset.

Elayna is the heavy hitter of the team, the toughest to hurt, and therepresentative of the age of Camelot. As a Knight-Errant she receives, in exchange for honoring the Knight’s Code, the Fortitude Asset for free. This Asset means that the more damage she takes, the more damage she deals with her melee attacks. With the best Getting Medieval skill on the team, she’s going to make that extra damage count. Knight’s Prowess means that Critical rolls, which usually only effect rolls-to-hit, can also boost damage to devastating levels. Finally, Lionheart grants her two ranks in the Valor skill, which will help her stand her ground when monsters come out of the shadows.

Roland Johnson the Suit

Archetype: Suit

Core Competency: Touched

Public Traits: Diplomatic, Sociable, Sucker for a Pretty Face

Private Trait: Triple Agent

STR 1, DFT 3, MTL 3, KNO 3, WIT 3, MGK 1

Skills: Athletics 2, Firearms 4, Business 4+1, Antiques 2, Psychology 2, Influence 4+1, Instinct 2

Initiative: 5

Melee: 1

Ranged: 7

Unarmed: 1

Dodge: 5

Block: 2

Run: 30

V.S. Physical Spell: 4

V.S. Mental Spell: 4

Flux Points: 7

Assets: Funding 5, Influential , Master of Red Tape , Safehouse 2

Weapons and Equipment: Pistol, X-Calibre, Suit Weave 8/8/7, Eyephone (inc. EyePad and EyePhoto), Silkskin Personal Augment, Urban Defense Vehicle, Silencer, Nanorebuilders Personal Augment, $2525

REPP: 18

Roland is the team member who is tasked with navigating the corporate landscape of the City, and the entire team knows they can depend on him to do it with style. His Influence and Business, already nearly at the character-creation-max, are further boosted by the Influential and Master of Red Tape Assets. Surprisingly (which is the point) he’s also the best shot on the team, almost as accurate with a gun as Elayna is with her sword. His Funding granted him enough cash to get some amazing gear, including the X-Calibre energy weapon and an armored vehicle, as well as a Suit Weave and Augments that make him much hardier than he appears. Finally, his Safehouse means that he always has a bolthole for when things get too hot.

Addy Pierce the Hacker

Archetype: Hacker

Core Competency: Gifted

Public Traits: Analytical, Meticulous, Will Not Be Dissuaded from Tasks

Private Trait: Criminal Record

STR 1 DFT 2 MTL 2  KNO 4 WIT 2 MGK 1

Skills: Athletics 1, Firearms 3, Crime 3, Computer 5+1, Instinct 2+1, Biology 1+1, Chemistry 1+1, Mechanical 1+1, Medicine 1+1, Physics +1, Psychology +1

Initiative: 4

Melee: 1

Ranged: 5

Unarmed: 1

Dodge: 3

Block: 2

Run: 15

V.S. Physical Spell: 3

V.S. Mental Spell: 3

Flux Points: 7

Assets: Hack, Quester (Sciences), Detective, Everyman, NT3RF4C3

Weapons and Equipment: Pistol, Shotgun, Blur Suit, EyePhone (inc. EyePad and EyePhoto), Cloak Personal Augment, Suit Weave 8/8/7, Silencer, $125

REPP: 12

Addy is the team’s hacking,  tech, and stealth expert, the best they have for investigation. Hack lets her meddle with systems she’s not welcome in, while NT3RF4C3 lets her dive into virtual worlds, reducing the Target Numbers for her rolls and reducing the time such actions take. Quester means she gains a bonus to any Sciences checks, even the ones she doesn’t technically have a rank in. Detective increases the boost that Flux Points can grant to any KNO roll involving research and investigation. Finally, while she’s not a bad shot in a fight, she’s actually very good at avoiding them in the first place. Her Blur Suit and Cloak Augment make her quite stealthy, and the Everyman Asset means she’s difficult to spot even when out in the open.

Machau Aguado the Witcher

Archetype: Witcher

Core Competency: Fluxed

Public Traits: Adapts to Change, Clever, Nervous

Private Trait: On the Run from OmniCorp

STR 2, DFT 1, MTL 2, KNO 2, WIT 1, MGK 3

Skills: Athletics 1, Getting Medieval 2, History 2, Arts 1, Charm 2, Elemental 3, Perception 3, Spiritism 3

Initiative: 1

Melee: 4

Ranged: 1

Unarmed: 2

Dodge: 2

Block: 3

Run: 15

V.S. Physical Spell: 5

V.S. Mental Spell: 4

Flux Points: 7

Assets: Hermetic Bloodline, Lady Luck, Weapon Master (Com/Bat), Bravado, Spellcaster

Weapons and Equipment: Pistol, Com/Bat (with +1 Damage Augment), Suit Weave 8/8/7, EyePhone, Beech Wand, Cypress Wand, Ebony Wand, Hornbeam Wand, Ivy Wand, Redwood Wand, Yew Wand, Elder Wand, Hawthorn Wand

REPP: None

Machau is the one who, in a world that’s been Fluxed, acts as the magical powerhouse. The only member of the team who can cast spells, Machau’s magic makes him useful in pretty much any situation. Just going by the sample spells provided by the book, he can use his disciplines in social, investigative, and combative situations. His wide array of wands allow him to boost his spells in a variety of ways depending on which he uses, including straight bonuses, increased number of targets, increased range, and increased duration. His Bloodline helps him defend himself from other spells. His Getting Medieval rank and Weapon Master means that he can hold his own in a fight even without magic. Finally, Bravado lets him stand his ground even after failing a Valor check, and Lady Luck grants him a free re-roll every session!

Who They Are

Elayna Blanc is a woman who remains steadfast in the pursuit of her duty, despite not being entirely sure of her own standing. She was a Knight of the Round Table in her past life, after all, so the Code is everything. But, in addition to having awakened to a very different world, there is the fact that she is the reincarnation of the decidedly male Sir Elyan the White. This is taking some getting used to. What her future in this new world will turn out to be isn’t clear, but for now Elayna plans to stick by her fellows, her code, and Sir Lancelot. The rest will sort itself out in time

Roland Johnson is a loyal employee of Valyant and the Knightwatch. Actually, he’s a loyal employee of OmniCorp. No, wait, actually he’s really a loyal employee of Valyant. It’s complicated. Even Roland has a hard time at moments when it comes to keeping track of who knows what, which way the secrets are flowing, and what the end game is. Still, he lives for the challenge, and can’t imagine playing the game in a less dangerous manner. He looks forward to when he can reveal his mastery to OmniCorp in some grand betrayal, but also expects to regret the end of the charade.

Addy Pierce first encountered the Knightwatch on the wrong side of things: she was captured, despite all her efforts, by a Knightwatch team after hacking her way into various troves of sensitive information regarding the Flux and the ‘watch itself. Even Valyant plays the corporate game of hiding the Flux’s reality behind reports of radiation leaks, and Knightwatch isn’t supposed to be known at all, but Addy hungers for information like most need food. Lancelot knows an opportunity when he sees one however; rather than imprison or eliminate Pierce, he decided to hire her. She sometimes resents the restrictions being in the Knightwatch places on her, but that is usually drowned by love of the increased access it grants her.

Machau Aguado was just another worker drone for OmniCorp before the Flux hit. After, he began to manifest abilities that he knewweren’t hallucinations or the product of some sort of radiation poisoning. So did someone else in OmniCorp, however, because Machau quickly noticed efforts to make him disappear. Engaging in some corporate espionage, Machau defected to Valyant, and was shortly thereafter drafted into the Knightwatch. Truthfully it’s all a little overwhelming, but Machau has learned to adapt, and is willing to pay Valyant the debt he owes in exchange for further safety.

How They Interact

Elayna isn’t quite sure about Roland. She feels that he is loyal enough to Valyant, but she has heard him lie to his fellows a number of times, behavior that is dishonorable according to the Code. The way he acts around her does not help her ambivalence towards him. Addy is attempting to redeem herself, an admirable quest for any knight. Elayna thinks of herself as Addy’s sponsor in this regard. Machau is of the supernatural, something that memories of Sir Elyan tell Elayna to be wary of. The man himself seems a good one, however, and deserving of protection from those Bastion dogs over at OmniCorp.

Roland has always been a sucker for a pretty face; the only real close calls he’s had have involved a woman. So, he wasn’t surprised when he fell head over heels for Ms. Blanc. There’s something about the way Elayna swings that longsword . . . she doesn’t seem interested in anyone, and Roland hasn’t pressed the issue, but he holds out hope. Addy’s a good kid, just the right kind of clever, and a great ally to have when you need records deleted as often as Roland does. She gets tunnel vision a little too often, though. Machau’s a little twitchy for Roland’s tastes. Keeping a cool head is key in the suit’s line of work. That being said, Roland was involved in getting the witcher out of OmniCorp in the first place, so he can hardly complain about working with the man.

Addy is fascinated by Elayna, plain and simple. She has strong suspicions that the woman is a reincarnated knight, and longs to find out which one and learn more about the modern version. She’s kept this additional quest for knowledge under wraps, however. She’s got her suspicions about Roland as well, although she’s less interested in what the man is up to and more in what his way with words could get her access to. She can’t hack opinions, after all. Yet. Machau presents a front-row seat to a pure expression of the Flux. If the only offer Lancelot had made her was a chance to observe a witcher in action, she’d still have joined up.

Machau is a little unnerved by Elayna. There’s something not quite right with someone who’ll see a squiggly monster and run in to stab it. She’s always looked out for him though, even if her words aren’t always the kindest. Machau feels as if he owes a debt to Roland for helping him to escape whatever fate OmniCorp had in store for him. There’s very little that he wouldn’t at least consider doing for the suit. Addy’s as unnerving as Elayna, if for different reasons. He keeps catching the hacker staring at him when he’s using magic. It reminds him a little too much of OmniCorp. At least she doesn’t seem to malevolent about it.

The Future

The City is torn between opposing forces. The corporations attempt to impose Order, taking advantage of the Flux but crushing any hope for a New Camelot. Darker forces hope to drown the world in Chaos, tearing down the rules and creating a world of ‘might makes ‘right’ that will just as surely prevent New Camelot from rising. Arthur remains missing, and perhaps his ancient enemies lurk under new identities. Will the Knightwatch be able to hold to their oaths, protect The City, and usher in a new golden age? Or will their fellowship be broken once again, and the world cast into shadow? That’s for you (and your dice) to determine!

Originally posted 2/19/16 on the Mad Adventurers Society!