Human-centric Nyambe

[Randy Shipp]

Have any of you run Nyambe such that the characters start out mostly unaware of the true dangers and horrors of the world? I mean, they grow up in a village and hear all the scary stories as children, but don't haven't ever actually seen a flesh-eating zombie or a dragon, or even an agogwe halfling. Is this common? Any thoughts?

Randy...

[Nyambefan]

I have found that players love discovery first hand. This sounds like an excellent way to begin a campaign. I think players get into the setting better when they start with humans. Then, as they meet agogwe or unthlatu they want to play those races. The benefit here is that their perception of how to play the race will be colored by how the DM portrayed them in the campaign. That helps the players in that they are less likely to treat them as humans with bonuses.

[Moose]

I went so far as to make the two PCs who were not from the starting village to understand that the village people were very strange creatures indeed.

They looked kind of human, but were the wrong color, dressed different, did not speak the language but used a language of the village, etc. Fortunately one of the village PCs had befriended another hunter of the same race years ago and had learned the language. He acted as the interperter and made sure that everyone understood these were good people.

I tried to use everyday objects as being strange, not just the non-human ones.

It was funny when the tribe asked them to help with the problem, they asked "Us, help kill some monster lion?" Which was interpered as "They said we will help kill the monster lion" And the village cheered mightily. The whole village adventure went like that.

[ltlconf]

Hello Folks,


So far my DM has kept the non-human PC races at a arms length and off radar. We are a group of Shombe who, after getting our names, have decided to explore our world a bit. We hear of a civil war in Boroko from some traders and decide to go up there and "make a name." We of course had no idea just how FAR it was but after a big deal out of doing this, once we did we just had to go on until we got there!
The trip through the mountains and through Mademba was our first encounter with non-humans that we couldn't, or didn't have to, kill on sight. We played it to the hilt, and then just decided they were weird looking humans! This worked until we hit the nightmare that was the Bida Rainforest. Then we discovered pointed-eared talking monkeys and our notions of how the universe worked fell off the edge of the earth! Though we decided they weren't all that bad we never warmed up to them, they always seemed to be a little...off. The Agogwe really freaked us out and we nearly started a war until the head of the caravan we guarded stayed our hands. It really turned into a real "Heart of Darkness" scenario when the trader inadvertedly ticked off a local tribe noted for some unsavory habits to begin with. We got through with the help of some agowe who figure the trader was owed a favor for stopping us from killing some of them. Funny how karm comes around.
We made it to the scrub plains and Boroko only to find the whole thing pretty confusing to a bunch of cow herders. We picked a side, got taken. We turned on our employer and showed him why you don't cheat guys who hunt lions when kids! We're now working for another faction (we've decided to back the Nuba traditionalist) and are truly making a name for ourselves (and learning some cool moves for our fellow faction members). We still can't follow Boroko politics but what the hey, we're becoming known!
By the way, our DM adapted aspects of Mongoose's "Conan" system for combat, armor, weapons, and character creation to give the tribes more individual color. It gives a distintive feel to each culture and gives the combat a nasty edge while giving the lightly armed a bit more of an edge over the heavily armored Near Esterners now showing up. Combat moves quick, we have more options, the armor works better, weapons do more damage and the wildlife is even deadlier! Now those Tsavo lions are REAL deadly!

[Nyambefan]

Sounds like you have a great Nyambe campaign going. Tell your DM I am very willing to start a board for your game just like I did for the Oryx campaign.

I think things like you just posted provide inspiration for other Nyambe players and DMs.

[ltlconf]

Hello Folks,


Sorry it took so long to reply. I'm running a business and the Silly Season is a a real #&%-buster. Also I sit on the board at our chapel's Holy Name Society and we've been up to our eyeballs helping the hurricane victems as well as aiding the Assyrian christains (native christains, predate the Muslims) in Iraq. Needless to say December was chaotic. But things are back to norman now.
I would be happy to aid you, Nyambefan, in keeping everyone up to date in whats going on. I think our GM got the idea for what's going on from the falls of Mali and Songhai. Especially Songhai. At this point each city is controled by a faction (some factions control instead a coalition of towns and villages) and the whole thing is degenerating into a free for all city state warfare style. However, the Neareasterners are keeping the Caliph on the throne in the capital (though that's all he rules) and he's chafing at this foreign control. Everyone is finally realizing just how much of a balencing act the caliph was doing. Now the Near Easterners are pouring in and lording over us locals. He's not liking it. There's a real chance he just may recognize the illegitimate son of the Fire Priestess in order to gain the support of her kingdom. Just what a kingdom so far away could do is hard to fathom, but it would mollify traditionalists and gain a great deal of moral support from other nations on Nyambe. The Nuba faction is indeed now thinking a little compromise is in order as well. After all, a fire-priest king would be a foreigner per se, but at least a LOCAL foreigner. Plus it's unlikely he would interfere overly with local custom.
M'gande commanded his first battle (we are using mass combat rules from the ConanRPG mixed with a little Black CompanyRPG rules). It wasn't a total disaster. My men inflicted more casualties than they took, held their ground and stood up to elephants and horse cavalry while on foot. However they outnumbered us and so it was a draw of sorts: they didn't push us out of the ford we were crossing, but they retired in good order, hurt us enough to make us stop and lick wounds, and will be back.
We had 2000 Boroko spearmen and 700 archers (I'm getting over some of my prejudices) with only 200 cavalry on the flanks but I did have 100 Nuba shock troops (no one likes THESE guys coming at them). The Tombu clan (claiming the throne in the name of native tradition, but really just a bunch of greedy merchant houses with the Tombu in their pocket) had 3300 spearmen, 500 archers, 400 cavalry and 75 elephants. A big force, but they were counting overly much on their elephants, and M'gande had taught his men how to take one down (it's actually frightfully easy if you've the nerve and the proper tools). This would be the job of the Nuba. As for the rest, I had more archers and a better disciplined force (the Nuba are the smallest faction of the big four, but VERY disciplined).
The enemy commander was smart enough to his us while we were crossing the river, but he attacked too late. Though M'gande had only half his force across, they were formed up. He should have hit us while we where coming across and chopped us up piece-meal.
Emir Jobo K'Tombu hit us with 2000 spearmen backed by 300 cavalry. He sent in his cavalry first, thinking I guess that he would be hitting disorganized infantry. Instead his horse ran into a rank of spearmen who repeled the charge easily. Instead of bringing up his archers (as he should have done) he underestimated our numbers (due to dust kicked up by the charge) and decided to conserve his arrows for the main battle and sent in half his infantry while his horse withdrew to reform and exploit the inevitable breakthrough. We had only 1000 spears and thus were staggered, but then counterattacked. M'Gande had the whole cavalry force across at this point and used them: While the superior Nuba spearmen held the more numerous Tombu spears in place, we swerved around our left and kicked them in the posterior just as the Tombu horse were forming up to hit OUR flank. We hit them at full gallop why they were forming up (thus still and helpless) we used the cover of all that dust kicked up by the fighting at this point. It was a slaughter.
K'Tombu realized his error and brought up his remaing infantry, withdrew those in battle to reform, put forward his archers to keep us pinned (good move on his part) and prepared his elephants.
M'Gande now realized exactly what he was dealing with. He pulled back his cavalry out of arrow range, ordered his archers across double-time. He felt confident his present infantry could hold, if spread a bit thin. He also ordered across his Nuba shock troops: they would take down the elephants.
M'gande organized his infantry into a single line (he knew he would be getting reinforcement through the battle as men came across the river. He would feed them into the line). Behind this he had two seperate groups of cavalry, and the Nuba shock troops in right behind the center, also in two groups. Behind all were the archers, hidden away, lighting fires. M'gande would hold his ground and let the Tombu come to him.
K'tombu ordered a general advance, with the elephants a little ahead in good order. He didn't realize it, but the Nuba wanted the elephants ahead.
More to come!

[ltlconf]

Hello Folks,

The Battle Continues!

As the fires set by the archers caught, M'Gande ordered a volley of fire arrows. This set the grass afire ahead of the line, stalling the enemy advance and sowing disorder. While some of the enemy infantry reached the line and put pressure on the Nuba line, it held. The enemy commander now realized the Nuba line was more solid than he supposed and called up his superior archer contingent to balance and tip the scales. Mgande now realized he had to end this quick.
The elephants were unwilling, despite all prodding, to push through the fire. Milling elephants are a huge target and M'gande now decided to strike at it. He ordered his elephant axe-equipped Nuba shock troops forward covered by a contingent of archers. They charged into the midst of the now halted elephants and began to hamstring the poor beasts. The archers and the axemen were covered by the low-lying smoke and the bodies of the beasts themselves. It wasn't until the elephants themselves began falling in numbers that the Tombu realized what was happening and panic set in. K'Tombu realized the moral center of the battle had shifted in a major way, but decided he could still bloody his opponent. He remained clam even as the few remaining elephants beat retreat: the Tombu still had a good number of spears and bows and could win a draw. The Nuba would likely now get overconfident.
This panic is natural: when your trump card is knocked down, you tend to lose heart, even when you still could win (think France in 1940). M'Gande understood this and decided to push things. He had a slight edge in spears, more horse and the inferiority in bows was negated by the moral acendecy he had attained. He decided to advance. In otherwords, M'Gande got overconfident. His Nuba axemen had paid a stiff price as had the 1/3 of his archers that had supported them. He should have declared victory.
K'Tamba pulled back just outside the smoke and formed up his spears in a "U" with his archers and reaming cavalry in the center. Just in time as M'Gande's cavalry game charging in with the spears right behind. It would be a rough charge!
More to come.

[ltlconf]

Hello Folks,


The Battle Climax!

M'Gande's cavalry ran into a hail of arrows and a wall of spears. Worse it was coming from both flanks as well. The cavalry commander didn't panic but realized he was in trouble. He decided to push right at the center and get in amongst the enemy so that the Tombu archers wouldn't have a easy target. This would aslo prevent the Tombu cavalry from hitting them as well.

As M'gande led his spear men into the open he realized he'd ran into a trap. The Tombu, by setting up their line just outside the smoke, didn't give the cavalry time to react to the enemy formation until they were amongst it. However, M'gande's infantry did, and it's well trained and able to shift formation on the run. He did, creating three parallel lines with the center in the form of a inverted "V" (yes it's a take on the Zulu "Horns of the Bull" formation) and closed in. M'Gande's line closed at a run and overlaped the Tombu flanks. The Cavalry commander had the presence of mind to not retreat through his own lines (which would have thrown everything into confusion) but rather to gather up his men and now push at the center, acting as a battering ram and leaving the flanks to the infantry. Few things push like a 500ibs of angry horse! Worse the Tombu horse didn't have a clear target to attack as the center was now a jumble mass of men and the flanks now were bowing back and outwards.

K'Tombu now realized he was in danger of being surrounded by a enemy fresher than him and it was time to call it a done deal. He'd delivered a solid last blow and the Nuba cavalry was in no condition now to pursue. He gave the call for retreat and staged a smart series of fighting withdraws. He pulled back his archers and had them volley blind intot he center of Nuba formation halting it long enough for the majority of his men to start peeling off. First they and the archers formed up behind the cavalry, and then the cavalry charged forward. M"gande now realized he could't catch K'Tombu: his infantry would have to form up to meet every charge and arrow storm and his cavalry was too bloodied. So under the cover of his archers and with his cavalry to keep the now tired Nuba horse busy K'tombu staged a masterful retreat. True M'Gande was in no real condition to follow, but that was his own mistake and K'Tombu's exploitation of the same that made it possible.

So, the Battle of the Gembasi Drift was over. The Nuba Faction now had control of this strategic position but had paid a stiff price for it. The K'Tombu had lost alot of men to try and hold it but still had a army in the field and a proven commander to lead it. The Tombu position was now weaker, but they could rebuild rather quickly. The Nuba faction had also lost heavily but now controled a vital trade route. More importantly was the defeat of the elephants. Up to this point the mercanary elephant cavalry had been terrifying and won every charge (if not the battle) but they had been laid low but simple hunting tactics (we all say DOH!). The Nuba also had a field commander who could fight well. He still needed tempering but he showed promise. ;D

Needless to say, it was a tactical draw but a strategic victory.

[ltlconf]

hello folks,


Well, things have gotten dicey. The Tamba had gotten all of our attention and we got attacked from the rear into out loyal territory. We are still not quite sure who they are yet, but M'Gande has been recalled from the Tamba campaign and sent with some Nuba troops and some mercenaries to find out. So far skirmishes have been inconclusive, but a spirit attack by a spell user on the other side has us worried: we don't have our own with us. She is back in the city helping to protect the court and casting augeries (she's real good at it). Meanwhile the Nuba traditionalists are discovering just how convulated politics really are. A faction of traders, nobles and priests are jockying for power while paying lip-service to the "cause." Our little Bida Forest augery reader is busily using every bit of cunning and mystique she has to keep our employers on top of the game (can you believe they are almost as naive as WE are!). The fact she is some exotic and slightly frightning savage from the the deep dark Forest has everyone a little scared of her and SEVERELY overestimating her ability. She's using that and their superstition concerning anything formt he Forest (a common thing for plains peoples who know of the forest, we've discovered) to keep the factions off balence and mistrusting each other. M'Gande is conteplating sending a couple of bigger bruisers to keep her safe. We're begining to realize we're in over our heads again, but have decided that we'll fight this time, even if ti means taking the very territory we're supposed to be protecting.