Eternal Champions: Path to Glory

 

As a devoted disciple of the Dark Gawds you all know how I love Eternal Champions.  Also you may remember all the way back here I painted some Chaos Warriors for Zhu and he came up with these amazing rules and campaign hooks.  

 

Then JB and Cheetor's Quickening game latched on to my mind and never let go.  The ideas twisting and flowing thru my brain as a warp storm.  I started consolidating my ideas and the works of others till this began to form into a more solid campaign plan.  Which you will see below because in the end...

 

 Heeeeeeere we are! BORN to be kings, we're the Masters of the Univeeeeeeerse!

 

 

 

The Ironsand Desert will be the gathering of Eternal Champions...till there is only one!

The rough idea is your general can be an Eternal Champion. The Eternal Champion's are trying to channel the warp, summon demons, possess people, desecrate other powers holy sites, forge warp weapons, or do other foul rituals to gain power. 

 

Inspirations: sensei/starchild from RoC books, Highlander, Jedi's and the Force, Masters of the Universe and I have the Power...This will all be loose, and matters most in the narrative blogpost you as the player come up with. 

The warp is strong in this one!

 

 

Here are the parts from Cheetor and JB that really took hold for me.

- Quickenings or I HAVE THE POWER- Eternal Champions who defeat another Eternal Champion rise off the ground with with the power of the warp with iceblue electricity coming out from every part of them.

 

 

 

The guys had used a plastic cup with some printed explosions which was perfectly campy and hilarious.  I'm always out for LOLs but for my terrain setting I thought the idea of something more MOTU was needed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I settled on a Balewind Vortex for my Quickening.  Especially after reading Cheetors description.

 

 

 

per Cheetor:

Of all the summoned-into-existence Arcane Fulcrums in the Storm of Magic range, the Balewind Vortex is the one that feels to me most like a video game power up.  That is one of the reasons why I like it.

I can also see it as being a spell effect that keeps an item out of reach in a video game until certain criteria are fulfilled, the vortex suspending a key or chest or other maguffin.

-  I thought that it would be fun to have some Holy Ground in the games featuring Ramirez and co. The Highlander concept of neutral holy ground actually makes marginally more sense in the context of WFB/40k “Sensei” than it does for Christopher Lambert and the rest I think. The Sensei are unknowing descendants of the Emperor and therefore could have some sort of religious/spiritual connection with areas of Emperor worship. Im probably overthinking it. Im pretty sure that the writers of Highlander didnt give it much thought…

Arcane Ruins can be used to represent an area of holy/unholy ground.  They could also double as warp gates to a terrain setup on another table. This would be perfect for a cosmic duel or other eye of the gods tests, they cold even lead to a final boss fight. The ideas are endless as the warp ebbs and flows thru the Realms of Chaos.

 

 

- Sensei/Eternal Champions can only be killed (last wound removed) by another Sensei/Eternal Champions in close combat and the winner receives the buffs his victim had.
 

 Path to Glory: Campaign Ideas

 

All you need to take part is:

- A name: Black Vasken:

- A title: The Tattered Prince

- A catchphrase: By the Power of Kissy Snake....or I have the Power of Kissy Snake, or For the Honor of Kissy Snake.....or Kissy, Kissy, Kissy Snake HOOOOOOOOOOO (Haven't settled on one yet)

Eternia/ Eternal Champion: Fills highlander role: Rapid Regeneration and Daemonhood/Apothoseis covers the Quickening and warppower

Jedi/Star Wars: Sensei type but more using the Force as the Warp...I sense a disturbance in the warp

HeMan- He has the Power, Graveskul, Mighty Strike

Mission Goal:  Each general I fight is another Eternal Champion that leads one step closer to unlocking the secrets of Graveskul. 

The more Vasken uses the warp/force the eye of the gods test becomes risky and the chance to go Spawn is perfect for a Slaine warpspasm...which should be what I call it since I'm using the warp.  Maybe that's when I can use Kissy Snake as I take on his form when he has a warpspasm.

Chaos Spawn > Warpspasm > Turn into Kissy Snake

Sword of Graveskul: Gravedigger (Sanctity) Graveskul Strike (Mighty Strike), (Parry) (deflection to replace parry?   Collect Warpstone Crystal? 

LATD Narrative Motives- Map, Amulet, Sword, Eternal Labor (side or FATED quest), Cosmic Duel (side FATED quest)

Warcry mission generator- it's a quick easy use

Warrior Familiar- Like droids to Jedi

Warhammer Chaos Armies: Eye of the Gods Tests!

Stormcast Warcry Campaigns are most fun for me as narratives: Hidden Treasures, Lost Souls

  

Lost souls > Ghostbusters > Zombie Outbreak > Gozer Worshippers > Key Master> Gate Keeper >Are you a god? > Choose the form of your destructor

Setting: Graveskul, Ironsand Desert, Broken Lands, Ashen Coast, Tyrants Peak, Blackspine Mountains, Petrified Forest, The Monoliths, Cobra Canyon, Passes, Gulches, Gorges

Eye of the God Test: 

1-3 The Eyes of the Gods of passed over you this time.

4-5 Take a New Chaos Reward Card capped at the most 3, this also adds a +1 to your next Test roll.

6 The Chaos Gods attention has been caught by the champion and they decide to grant a special reward.  Roll a further D6. 

    6 Roll on the Permanent Advancement Table

    5 Add +1 Attack for the remainder of the game

    4 Add +1 Strength for the remainder of the game

    3 Add  +1 Wound for the remainder of the game

    1-2 The Champion receives to much Warp Power and Warpspasms into a Spawn

 Eternal Champion Permanent Advancement Table: Use per Path to Glory Rules after being gained from an Eye of the Gods Test. Will need to edit them to be specific to your own general. 

Black Vasken's Specific Eternal Champion D66 Table: 

2. Eternal Curse- Lose D3 Advancements

3. Strength- Add D3 to Strength

4. Soul Hunger- Reroll Missed Rolls to Wound

5. Warrior Familiar/Droid Sidekick- Make mini and he gets one S5 Attack before a combat starts per Path to Glory rules

6. Eternal Glory Lesser- Brazen Will: Ignore or dispel one spell against the champion per game

7. Eternal Glory Greater- Murderous Charge: Each roll to hit of 6 allows another attack by your champion

8. Eternal Glory Exalted- Champions Challenge: Once Per Game roll a D6 and add that value to the number of attacks for that combat (used only on multi wound targets)

9. Warp Armor- Reroll Failed Saves

10. Warp Weapon- Damage rolls of 6 ignore armor saves, however the warp is fickle and rolls of 1 wound the champion instead,  if rolled a second time can combine to form a Ultimate Warp Sword to unlock the secrets of Graveskul

11. Warp Crystal Amulet- Any unsaved wound roll a D6 and a roll of 6 the wound is ignored but a 1 Vasken takes another wound.

12. Eye of the Gods: D6 roll- 1 Spawn, 2 Feud of the Gods, 3 Cosmic Duel, 4 Eternal Battle, 5-6 Gift of the Gods stat increase

Path to Glory: THE QUICKENING (from Cheetor and JB with setting edits by me)

In the Grim Wastes of the Ironsand Desert...A kind of magic known to only a select few, the Eternal Champions, are compelled to assemble for the Gathering. Many defeated Eternal Champion souls want to break free and merge with the Master's of the Universe. They wont be able to till...There is only one!

“The Quickening” is a multi-player participation game based on an obscure piece of ancient 40K nonsense known as Sensei which I have switched to "The Eternal Champion", with a large dollop of dodgy 1980s cult movie "Highlander" added. Space Clancy Brown, Space Sean Connery and Space Christopher Lambert will be provided. Queen soundtrack and indecipherable accents to be provided by participants.

Forces

Each player commands his normal army and the opponent need not even know they are taking part if they so choose. See Scenario Special Rules below for details

Set up

After models have been set up each player is dealt two “Quickening” (realm of Chaos) cards. The player chooses one card to hold onto and discards the other.

Each Eternal Champion contributes a Turn Card, forming a Turn Deck.

Objective

To be the player with the last standing Eternal Champion at the end of the game. There can be only one.

Duration

The game lasts until there is only a single Eternal Champion left on the table or an O’Hammerer official decides that its over.

Gameplay

Each round players take turns in an order determined randomly from the Turn Deck with one event card as well which a triggered event is determined by a D6 roll of 6. At the end of each round the turn deck will be exhausted. Shuffle it and redraw at the beginning of the next round.

This mechanism will occasionally result in a Eternal Champion getting an opportunity to act more than once before another can retaliate. The Gathering is a strange time and the Master's of the Universe work in mysterious ways.

Scenario Special Rules
 

Warp Storms- Use Warcry storms from twist cards

Warcry scenario generator is fine to use as well

Warp Storms combined with other EMP and magic generated by the Gathering mean that the first turn of the battle is dark with dawn occurring at the start of the second turn. No model can trace line of sight or shoot during the first turn of the game.

Forging a Warp Sword/ Weapon: same as forging a void blade; Gain 1D6 Warp Points (warp banner chaos codex 2nd ed.)  at start of game...Subsequently for each wound caused by an EternalChampion  you are awarded 1 warp point to replenish the blade past what it started with...warp points can be used to increase the strength of an attack and also subtract at -1 to saving throws per point used 

Forging or gaining another half to a Warp Sword gets the champion one step closer to becoming the master of the universe and ability to open the jaw bridge to  learn the secrets of Graveskul.

Eternal Champion

Each Eternal Champion starts the game with a Quickening Card that conveys an additional unique advantage. The number and type of Quickening Cards available to a Eternal Champion can change throughout the game. The maximum number of Quickening Cards that a Eternal Champion can have in hand at any time is three.

Eternal Champion suffer damage as normal, with a single exception: a Eternal Champion can only lose its final wound in close combat by damage inflicted by another Eternal Champion on a roll of 6. No other means can remove the final wound from a Eternal Champion. Once this is done the defeated Champion is beheaded and the Victor has a Quickening/I have the Power

When wounded by a ranged attack, a Eternal Champion may choose to remove a friendly Extra within 2” instead of suffering the wound: the loyal companion has thrown him or herself into the path of the attack.

The Quickening

Beheading a Eternal Champion produces a powerful energy release from their body, called a Quickening. The Quickening is the receiving of all the power and knowledge another Eternal Champion has obtained throughout his/her life. It is like the receiving of a sacrament or a massive orgasm. The power of the Quickening is the equivalent to a major electrical storm hitting - clouds burst, glass shatters and machine spirits writhe as the victorious Eternal Champion is suspended as if by wires in the center of a spiritual lightning storm. Its a big deal.

When another Eternal Champion bites the dust:

All miniatures adjacent to the victor are moved 3” directly away from the victor and Pinned.

The victor is placed on an upturned clear plastic cup above its current location. The victor remains elevated upon this cup until the next time that Eternal Champion Turn Card is drawn. While elevated, the Eternal Champion is immune to everything and cannot be engaged.

The victor is healed back to his or her full wound quota.

The victor takes a single random Quickening card from those previously in the decapitated Eternal Champion hand. This card can be used by the victor from now on in addition to any other Quickening cards that s/he has access to. If a Eternal Champion is already at the maximum limit of Quickening cards - three per Eternal Champion - then he may replace one of his Quickening Cards in hand with the randomly chosen card that he has just gained, if desired.

Holy Ground 

“You are shafe only on Holy Ground. None of ush will violate that rule. it’sh tradition.”

The chaotic gods have particular effects on Eternal Champion, due to their direct connection. On Holy Ground a shaky truce exists between the Eternal Champion: few will violate that law.

There are two pieces of Holy Ground on the battlefield: the ruined Aquila and the Space Marine monument. When a Eternal Champion comes into contact with either of these, two things happen:

1) The Truce is upheld, for now. The Eternal Champion is marked with a Truce counter. The Truce counter is removed the next time that the Eternal Champion's Turn Card comes up. While the Truce Counter is in play, no other Eternal Champion may attack him/her.

2) Communion with the Warp allows the Eternal Champion to focus his power. The Eternal Champion may draw a Quickening Card if available and add it for any Quickening cards that s/he already has. This cards effect may be used from this point onward. If a Eternal Champion is already at the maximum limit of Quickening cards - three per Eternal Champion - then he may replace one of his Quickening Cards in hand with the randomly chosen card that he has just gained, if desired.

A Eternal Champion can only gain these benefits once from each Holy Ground area. Further contact with that piece of Holy Ground has no effect. As there are two pieces of Holy Ground in play, each Eternal Champion will be able to avail of these benefits a maximum of two times per game.

Brother will kill brother but the holy ground will remain a sacred haven ...

Morale and Psychology

Due to the magnitude of the events unfolding and the hand picked nature of the elite companions of the Eternal Champion, the rules for morale and Leadership are not used in this scenario. Eternal Champion and their Extras are immune to Morale and Psychology.