Posted in: Role Playing Games

RPGaDAY2026 Day 11: Welcome to T.A.C.T.

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 11 Prompt: Tact

Week 3 Prompt: Associates

Weekday Prompt: Fair of Face

So, after yesterdays deep blog post for Secret, I decided to have a little fun with the day 11 entry to the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge. The prompt is Tact, which I’m going to turn into an abbreviation for Transcontinental Association of Civilized Travelers.

The following system agnostic post can be used with the following pulp adventure systems or more. Amazing Adventures, Everyday Heroes, Age of Empire, Modern Age or Mercenaries, Spies and Private Eyes.

Professor Archibald Wainwright III let a slight curl of a smile show as he placed his teacup back on the saucer. The candidate he had been tasked at observing had just entered The Oak Room at the expected time of three minutes before the hour. While the other eyes in the room seemed shocked, he was not.

“So right on time I see.” The professor stated as his companion took a seat across the table from him. “May I ask how you were able to gain access to the inner sanctum of this exclusive club?”

The professor noted the confidence in the candidate’s smile as he spoke. “I followed the clues and easily found the location. As for how I obtained entrance.” He raised an eyebrow. “Let’s just say no one was hurt in the process, and we’ll leave it at that.”

Professor Wainwright thought about pressing for a second but then dropped it. Keeping one’s cards close to their chest was an admiral trait in their secret society. He pulled a large, sealed envelope from his coat pocket and slid it across the table.

“What we discussed at Lady Rochelle’s party is contained within this envelope. I’m certain that you’ll read it in discretion. If you wish to pursue the matter, then fill out the documentation and re-seal the envelope. It can be left in the back seat pocket of any Hollings-Smith taxi, and it will be delivered to the right destination.” Professor Wainwright reached for his teacup again and smiled. “I’m sure that you can see to your own exfiltration from this location before some burly gentlemen locate you.” Taking a sip, he returned his attention to his copy of the Times.

Transcontinental Association of Civilized Travelers (T.A.C.T.) Membership Application

Please answer all questions truthfully so that a proper evaluation can be made by the guild membership board. All applications will be thoroughly checked for accuracy.

Basic Information:

Full Name:

Alias(es):

Secret Alias(es):

Date of Birth:

Place of Birth:

Astrological Sign:

Lucky Number:

Unlucky Number:

Catch Phrase:

Unique Weapon/Equipment/Transport of choice:

Unique Article of Clothing (note if bulletproof):

Base of Operations (note if secret):

Associates:

Known Adventuring Family Members:

Known Doppelgangers or Clones:

Known Psychic Pets:

Living Sidekicks:

Deceased Sidekicks:

Arch-Enemy (Include Guild of Calamitous Intent ID number):

General Qualifications:

Have you traveled to at least three continents?

Have you disembarked one of those continents in a hurry?

Have you ever been declared dead in error? (note number of times)

Have you discovered a lost city?

Was it already occupied?

Did the inhabitants object to your presence?

Have you ever removed an object of interest from a resting place?

Did the resting place immediately begin to collapse?

Were you surprised by this?

Transportation:

Check all forms of transportation from which you have escaped-

[ ] Airship

[ ] Biplane

[ ] Zeppelin

[ ] Steamship

[ ] Train

[ ] Runaway Train

[ ] Train hanging from a broken bridge

[ ] Giant Mechanical Spider

[ ] Alien Spacecraft

[ ] Other _________

Associate History:

Have any of your associates-

[ ] Betrayed you?

[ ] Been revealed as royalty?

[ ] Been replaced by an imposter?

[ ] Been controlled by an ancient artifact?

[ ] Turned out to be an intelligent monkey?

[ ] Became royalty after betraying you?

Scientific Matters:

Have you ignored the warnings of a scientist?

Have you ignored your own warnings?

Have you awakened something that should have remained asleep?

Did you do so in the interest of science?

Encounters:

Check all forms encountered during your adventures-

[ ] Dinosaurs

[ ] Mummies

[ ] Cultists

[ ] Mad Scientists

[ ] Not mad, just disappointed Scientists

[ ] Scientists currently in therapy

[ ] Cannibals

[ ] Amazons

[ ] Aliens

[ ] Cryptids

[ ] Honest Politicians

[ ] Giant Snakes

[ ] Giant Spiders

[ ] Giant Ants

[ ] Giant versions of something that shouldn’t be giant

Wealth Level:

Please indicate your financial status:

[ ] I had to borrow a pen to complete this application

[ ] I clip coupons, but I’m doing ok

[ ] I have a nest egg

[ ] I don’t have to ask how much when ordering anything

Club Conduct:

[ ] I solemnly swear to describe every obvious deathtrap as perfectly safe

[ ] I shall never spilt the party unless dramatically appropriate

[ ] I shall maintain a calm demeanor while pursued by hostile natives, criminal masterminds, or cursed statuary

[ ] I understand that “Do Not Enter” is generally a suggestion

Character References:

Please supply three references whom are Partially Living, Currently Living or Not actively seeking revenge.

Reference #1:

Reference #2:

Reference #3:

Final Question:

Have you ever looked at a plan and said, “What could possibly go wrong?”

[ ] Yes

[ ] No

[ ] I refuse to answer on advice of council

Declaration:

I certify that the above statements are true to the best of my knowledge and that any inaccuracies are likely the result of hypnosis, amnesia, time travel, or an encounter with an ancient civilization possessing advanced but poorly understood technology.

Applicant Signature:

Witness Signature:

Disclaimer:

T.A.C.T. bears no responsibility for curses, hexes, diplomatic incidents, or unfortunate encounters with giant apes resulting from membership.

What would you put down if you filled out this application? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Role Playing Games

RPGaDAY2026 Day 10: The secret of gaming

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 10 Prompt: Secret

Week 3 Prompt: Associates

Weekday Prompt: Fair of Face

And we start off with the prompt of “Secret” for Day 10 of the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge. We also moved to a new week prompt of “Associates” while circling back to the line in the poem with “Fair of Face”.

Drums fingers on the desk. There are a lot of possibilities with this prompt. Probably one of the most RPG like of the month. I already had a good article about Secret Tunnels, how they could be made and kept a secret. I passed secret information to players using notepads, but I’ve already mentioned that in a previous blog post. How do I keep this about RPG locations? The Village entry from day 9 is in a secret location.

Keeping secrets is keeping information hidden. Obtaining this information is the job of spies and secret agents. Even during this time of the internet, obtaining information for governments, corporations and other organizations is a big business. It reminds me of the only novel that I have ever read that scared me. Robert Asprin’s The Cold Cash War. His first novel.

Long story short, an independent contractor that buys and sells information to various clients in a proto-cyberpunk world. During the course of the book, this broker discovers that large corporations have become so powerful, that they are taking over countries in the name of the almighty dollar. What scares him the most is that he can’t do a damn thing about it. Even when he tries to keep himself out of the way of the mega-corp train running everyone over. He knew before anyone else what was happening, that secret seemed like money at first, but then came back and could bite him in the ass.

I don’t mind corporations; I just hate it when the lust for money takes precedent over lives and the world we live in. Had I known the secrets that the independent contractor knew by the end of the book, I would have been just as worried. I look back at that book and some of the things seem dated (again, pre-internet of the 70’s look at the future). But then sometimes I have to wonder.

Now, could this level of belief in this type of story be used in a sit-down RPG? It would probably be more cyberpunk than presented in the novel, but if I could get my players to react at the reveal that I had when I first read this book, then I would count that as an accomplishment in my career as a gamemaster. Slowly revealing the different clues. Letting the players put the clues together. Watching them realize “Oh shit!” as the big-bad guys have all the pieces in place.

Sometimes this is why real life scares me more than horror movies. And it’s probably why the thought of playing a horror game doesn’t appeal to me. The things that I fear are not slasher blood and guts. It’s knowing what man can do to each other. I can see the sense of drama in an TTRPG, but I just can’t see the feeling of horror. Perhaps the secret could be the true horror.

Am I too personal on this one? Beyond the book, seeing what corporations have done to myself and others makes me distrust them. And I realize that this post has become more about my feelings than about gaming. For that, I apologize to the organizers of this challenge as they wanted to focus on the positivity of gaming. But that may be the point. I play games, so I can feel joy. The laughter around the table last Friday night (report coming soon) was infectious. The players were even talking about our fun the next day. And perhaps, that’s the secret… of gaming. Feeling joy.

This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Role Playing Games, Spy-Fi

RPGaDAY2026 Day 9: Privilege of the Village

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 9 Prompt: Privilege
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Blessed

As you can see from the graphic and above notes, “Privilege” is the prompt for Day 9 of the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge. And yes, I’ll be twisting this one as well. I didn’t really see an anagram or near-word. But there is a rhyming word, “village”.

So instead of making something up in this blog entry, I’m going to talk about one of my favorite locations that had its own unique characteristics. The Village from the surreal 1967 spy-fi British television series “The Prisoner”.

Short intro: Patrick McGoohan plays a British espionage agent who is kidnapped by persons unknown and sent to a place called “The Village”. The forces who control The Village want to know why McGoohan’s character (only referred to as Number 6) retired from his espionage assignment without giving a reason to his superiors. In The Village, Number 6 discovers that other prisoners in the gilded cage may also be “retired” secret service agents or possibly witnesses to things that should have not been seen.

When I started using this challenge to bring about the wonderful locations that are characters themselves, The Village was one of the best examples of this. When Number 6 is trying to gather information about his captivity, he is only given maps like the one above that are generic enough to prevent escape. There are hidden cameras everywhere keeping an eye on the inhabitants. If they wandered too far, special devices called “Rovers” would appear and incapacitate (or even eliminate) the offending individual. These “Rovers” appeared as a large white balloon that could herd or smother those that they tracked. It is not known if they were autonomous, semi-independent or just remote controlled.

The needs of the inhabitants were well taken care of in this cage with no bars. They were provided with an apartment, food, clothing and various entertainment options. There are stores, a hospital, recreational options, labour exchange, café, a town hall and even a phone box (no it’s not blue).

Some of the inhabitants knew that they were prisoners within this location. Others were participants in trying to obtain information from those who had been brought here. And there were others that no longer possessed all of their mental facilities.

The Village sits on a warm coastal location somewhere in Europe. In the show the exact location is a bit of a mystery. In one episode, it’s easy to get to from London. In another episode it takes a while to get there. This may have been on purpose as the bulk of the stories in this 17-episode season are mind-fucks (for lack of a better word). We are never told who controls The Village, the fate of the inhabitants or if Number 6 ever gets to be a free man. This vagueness has contributed to the appeal of the show. Fans could debate facts, information tidbits and theories about this series for years (and continue to this day).

This location begs to be used in a spy-fi espionage RPG campaign. While some GMs may enjoy watching the entire TV series, there are some other quicker options for additional information on this location. Both Wikipedia and The Prisoner Wiki have entries on The Village. And there was an actual RPG supplement released for it that I talked about in a 2021 RPGaDAY entry. Steve Jackson Games released GURPS The Prisoner when they had a massive expansion of IP related supplements. It was one of the few GURPS products I kept when I had an RPG book purge in the mid to late 90’s (I look back at that with regret). This supplement had suggestions on types of games that could be played, how to introduce the characters to The Village and a guide to the episodes. If you can pick it up, I’d recommend it.

“Be seeing you.”

What other locations have you seen that would provide a number of stories for a roleplaying campaign? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Role Playing Games, Westerns

RPGaDAY2026 Day 8: Resolve or Resolute

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 8 Prompt: Resolve
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Works Hard

Thank you again for the encouraging feedback you’ve all been providing for me. It’s making me feel that my efforts are being appreciated. For Day 8 of the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge we were provided with the prompt of Resolve. I’m worried that this would be too generic (as a lot of these prompts seemed to be). So, I’m returning to my twisted world of morphing the prompt and I’ve come up with Resolute. Close to the original, but it got some creative juices flowing.

Following the recent patterns, I’m keeping this system agnostic, but it could be used for Boot Hill, Amazing Adventures, Tall Tales B/X, Modern Necessities-Single Action and others.

::Standard Telegraph Services Start::
From: T Finch Jr., Field Reporter
To: Editor T Pembroke, Chicago Sentinel
FORT RESOLUTE KAN JUNE 20 PART 1 OF ARTICLE SENT BY POST STOP
FIRST ROUND OF INTERVIEWS COMPLETED STOP
EXPECT PART 2 ARRIVAL IN TWO WEEKS STOP
ADDITIONAL FUNDS REQUESTED TO COMPLETE ASSIGNMENT STOP
::Standard Telegraph Services End::

The following article appeared in Edition XXI Volume Four of the Chicago Sentinel on June 29, 1875.
THE WILD WEST BECKONS SETTLERS, PART I
Fort Resolute, Kansas
June 20, 1875
By Thomas Finch Jr., Field Reporter for the Chicago Sentinel
Edited by Theodore Pembroke

On the edge of the American frontier stands one of the last bastions of civilization that many travelers will pass through on their way to points west. The trail ends, and begins, at a lone U.S. Army fort in Kansas near the borders with Missouri and Nebraska known eloquently as Fort Resolute. In the two weeks since my arrival, I have encountered dust, winds, rain and the widest variety of humanity that I’ve had the fortune of encountering. Travelers stocking up at this military base before heading west. Their destinations could be the gold hills of California, driving cattle south to Texas and Mexico, or places in-between. Many souls are looking for new lives with religious freedoms, fair pay for an honest day’s work or even a new husband. The expansion of knowledge also brings travelers along this stop, both the highly regarded and the depths of the unknown.

For the price of a drink, an act of kindness, or an exchange of information, I was able to interview a number of individuals who made the temporary stop at Fort Resolute before moving on in their quests. Here is a short snippet of some of those conversations.

While the scar on the side of the face of U.S. Marshal Elija Boone may frighten some of the children he has come across, I found the calm demeanor of this lawman very pleasant. Unlike most of the individuals that I’ve met, Marshal Boone lacks the freedom of choosing his next destination. He had just arrived with a fugitive that will soon be tried in the local courthouse. Having a drink before heading out again, Marshall Boon informed me that “The law ends nowhere. It merely gets harder to carry.”

After assisting with a runaway horse, I was thanked by Sarah Whitaker and her four children. She told me that after her husband had passed away in the Appalachian coal mines back east, she decided to head west to provide a better life for her family. “Back east we rented the ground beneath our feet. Out here we’ll own it.”

Not all travelers were heading west from the rugged fort. I met a group of railway workers from the oriental land of China. Only their foreman, Chen Wei, spoke English. From our broken conversation he said that “A railroad is a promise made of iron. Every mile says the world will be smaller tomorrow.” They had worked on the western half of the new network of railways and were heading east to assist with the further expansion.

There were two sets of educated parties within the fort, but they seemed to come from different worlds all together. First was Professor Bernard Holloway of the Stanton Institute. He was more than happy to explain that “Every region leaves bones behind. Some of these bones are answers to the un-asked questions.” He was more interested in the supernatural legends and following up on leads of the paranormal. While I had my doubts about some of his theories, I gladly accepted his gift of a protection token at the end of our conversation.

The second learned individual came from the shores of England. Dr. Percival Finchhh, F.R.S. is a natural philosopher and explorer. Documenting the plants for possible medicinal use was his goal. It took some time to convince him that I was serious about my interview. “I came seeking fossils and unusual fauna. The Americans insist on showing me gunfights and violence.”

“The frontier does not create sinners. It merely removes the walls that hide them.” Was proclaimed to me by Reverend Josiah Cooper. What I found most interesting was the derringer that the good reverend kept hidden in a secret compartment in his bible.

A scout that went by the name of Runs-Between had told me of many wagon trains that he assisted guiding them to the Rocky Mountains. The proud Indian informed me that “Most people lost on the plains do not know they are lost until they run out of water.”

In Part II of my article has many more freedom seeking individuals ready to tame the rugged lands. Mormon pilgrims from Sweden, cattle drivers from Texas, a gambler looking to press his luck, brides who have only known their engaged partner by letter, a Canadian Fur Trapper looking for his last big score and many more. There are many souls that can be found walking through the gates at Fort Resolute, who will I interview next?

Did this get the dusty trails vibe? There are quite a few western RPG and scenarios out there for players and GMs. What suggestions would you like to see for a future blog entry? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: August 3-9

Written by TardisCaptain
When I look at certain people.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account and the @STrekQuotes Bluesky account for the week of August 3rd through August 9th. Note: Because Twitter/X will use posts to train AI, we will no longer be posting on that platform. This is out of respect for the owners of Star Trek.

August 3:
(to his Android duplicate) “Eating is a pleasure, sir. Unfortunately, one you will never know.” Kirk- What Are Little Girls Made Of?, Stardate: 2712.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #Quote

August 4:
“I think you’ve got a great deal to learn from Starfleet.” Picard “I always thought Starfleet had a lot to learn from me, Captain.” Ro Laren “That is an attitude I’ve found common among the best officers I’ve ever served with. You’re not one of them yet, but you could be, if you work at it.” Picard- Ensign Ro, Stardate: 45076.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #Quote

August 5:
Happy Birthday to Bruce Horak. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Bruce_Horak #StarTrek #StarTrekSNW #IDIC #Quote

“You create bonds. It’s a gift. Of course the people you care about are going to cause you pain. It will hurt, but the love it yields will far outweigh the sorrow.” Hemmer- All Those Who Wander, Stardate: 2510.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekSNW #IDIC #Quote

August 6:
Happy Birthday to Michelle Yeoh. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Michelle_Yeoh #StarTrek #StarTrekDSC #StarTrekST #StarTrekS31 #IDIC #Quote

“Bureaucracy is where fun goes to die.” Mirror Georgiou- Far From Home, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDSC #IDIC #Quote

Star Trek: Lower Decks premiered on this date in 2020 with the episode Second Contact. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Lower_Decks #StarTrek #StarTrekLDS #IDIC #Quote

“Computer, load Mariner program all-nude Olympic training facility. You might want to back up a bit.” Mariner “Wow, this is a very detailed program.” Tendi- Second Contact, Stardate: 57436.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekLDS #IDIC #Quote

August 7:
Happy Birthday to Cirroc Lofton. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Cirroc_Lofton #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #StarTrekSFA #IDIC #Quote

“I guess I just forgot you’re a Ferengi.” Jake Sisko “You forgot? To most people, the lobes are a dead giveaway.” Nog “What I mean is, we spend so much time together and we seem so much alike I, I sometimes forget we’re different.” Jake- Life Support, Stardate: 48498.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #Quote

Happy Birthday to Brett Gray. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Brett_Gray #StarTrek #StarTrekPRO #IDIC #Quote

“You know, a good first officer is loyal, capable, and they keep their captain honest, which is why… I’ll be right here, as your number one.” Dal- Ouroboros, Part II, Stardate: 62314.8 #StarTrek #StarTrekPRO #IDIC #Quote

August 8:
“So they brought you here to see your first human. Take a good look—you won’t see any hate in my eyes. I’m a gentle man from a gentle people who wish you no harm.” Chakotay- Initiations, Stardate: 49005.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #Quote

August 9:
Happy Birthday to Eric Bana. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Eric_Bana #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #Quote

“Kill him? I’m not gonna kill him. I’m gonna make him watch.” Nero- Star Trek (2009), Stardate: 2233.04 #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #Quote

What are your favorite daily Star Trek quotes selected for this week? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Dungeons and Dragons, Role Playing Games

RPGaDAY2026 Day 7: The Mercy of the Macers

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 7 Prompt: Mercy
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Loving & Giving

I’ve had some very positive feedback on my Day 5 entry of Burden or Burned and my Day 6 entry of Reach. One fellow RPG bloggers commented that these were some of my best entries so far. Then they recommended that I use the same format for a fantasy setting. Well for day 7 of the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge the prompt is Mercy.

Should I use Mercy or should I twist it? Tick, tick, tick…… processing complete. The following system agnostic entry can be used for Dungeons and Dragons, Basic Fantasy, Castles and Crusades, Fantasy Age or any of the many other fantasy RPG systems out there.

Journal of Prengar Derreth, 14th day of the royal year 1267.

I did it. I can’t believe that I’m on my way to joining the Order of the Macers. I’ve completed my first day of orientation here at St. Carthan’s Fort. I really wish I could tell you where I was, but new initiates are hooded for the last three days of the journey. When they pulled the hood off of me and the other candidates in the courtyard it felt like a breath of fresh air. Sure, we could take the hoods off as we slept in the enclosed tent at night, but not seeing sun or stars for three days was disorienting. Seeing the ramparts and towers covered by the banners of the different house mantles was a sight for sore eyes.

There are five house mantles that make up the order. The Heads, which consist of leaders and future leaders. The Hafts, which consists of the coordinators and logisticians. The Flanges, those who are instructed to strike swiftly or silently when called upon. The scholars and researchers are known as The Crowns and finally The Pommels who are the doers who get things done. All parts of St. Carthan’s Mace that are equal in providing mercy and justice. A single mantle cannot do the job alone; thus, we are all brothers. This was one of the first lessons we learned on day one orientation. To be a member of the Order of Macers is to be trusted or feared in the many kingdoms that we bring justice to.

Soon I’ll go through my first set of trials. How I pass them and work alongside my fellow initiates will determine which mantel I will join. I’m not certain which one I really hope to be admitted to. I have many talents that I feel can contribute to the order. I guess this is why the trials are here, to make that determination.

I was not surprised to see the many races of the land represented in the order. Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, Orcs, Giantkin, Centaurs, Dragonborn, Touched and Goblinoid. All had passed the trials and deserved my respect. None looked at me with eyes other than, will I uphold the order.

Then over the next two years, I’ll go through several more different trials. Each harder than the last. While different proctors and teachers will guide me during the first year, I’m really looking forward to the time when I’m selected by a Warden of the Order to be their Aspirant. Assisting the Warden will be one of my many duties in the Order’s mission to provide non-partisan justice and guidance across the lands.

I remember telling my mother that this would be a difficult life. I may never see the wheatfields of home again. But if I’m able to protect those fields and the members of my line that work them, then it will be all worth it.

The nightcall is about to go out. This is a time of rest which I will gladly take. Tomorrow, I know that my orientation will continue. Will I be able to keep up with my fellow initiates in the trials? I pray that my body is strong and my mind stay sharp.

-Prengar Derreth, Order of the Macers Initiate (by the gods it felt good to write that)

If you guys are getting Jedi vibes, that was rolling around in my head as the muses spoke to me. An order of knights that carried special maces (like the Jedi carried lightsabers) that distinguished them from other fighting forces. Known for balanced judgement and mercy when called upon by the general population. Some kings have blessed them, while others have cursed them.

I hope the thoughts that got loose out of my head have helped inspire you. What suggestions would you like to see for a future blog entry? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Role Playing Games, Science Fiction

RPGaDAY2026 Day 6: Reach

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 6 Prompt: Reach
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Far to Go
Another entry in the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge; for Day 6, I’m not changing the prompt. After the creative enjoyment from the Burden or Burned entry on Day 5, I’m writing another entry by just putting my fingers on the keyboard. The prompt is enough without having to twist it around, and I was able to add the Weekday prompt for once.

The following RPG blog post is system agnostic. I hope it inspires GMs for science fiction games like Star Trek Adventures, Traveller, FrontierSpace, Stars Without Number or Star Frontiers.

Dataset Report: Far-Reach Station and Colony
Location: Marcus III, Marcus System, Kestrel Expanse
Number of Planets: Six full sized planets, unknown number of dwarf planets
System Breakdown: Marcus I (Rocky, No atmosphere, No moons); Marcus II (Rocky, Thick atmosphere, No moons), Marcus III (Rocky, Standard atmosphere, Two moons), Asteroid Belt, Marcus IV (Gas giant, 12 moons), Marcus V (Gas giant, 17 moons), Marcus VI (Ice giant, Two moons)

History: Fifty years ago, a one-way transport arrived at Marcus III to start up a colony of human survivalists. They used the hull components of their vessel as the building blocks for the first colony, and were able to eke out a living. The group, known as The Children of Mankind, had been able to grow the colony. Fifteen years after planetfall, a second group of colonists arrived with additional followers. This also included a few non-human residents. Primarily, the group just wanted to be left alone from the core-worlds. When there was vessel from Earth, they greeted them, showed them that they were self-sustaining and in no need of follow up. Secretly the group feared that a life-ending disaster was about to befall the core worlds. By setting up a colony in a remote region of space, they could ensure the survival of the species.

Then, a disaster did strike, but not the one they were expecting. A group of colony prospectors came across an alien ship of unknown origin that had crashed before they had arrived. When they opened it, delta radiation was released and was starting to expand from the still active reactor. The colony lost several educated members who were attempting to seal the vessel off. The colony had no means of leaving Marcus III as they had cannibalized their vessels for planetary use. Merchant vessels were rare to stop by a remote colony and their radio transmitter only covered the area of the solar system.

Colony leaders were attempting to see if they could reassemble the FTL transceiver when a miracle happened. Or was it a curse? Infamous scientist Dr. Antonio Kron arrived in the system with several of his followers. While their vessel was too small to evacuate, he did offer them his services. Dr. Kron and his assistants had the equipment and knowledge needed to re-seal the unknown alien vessel. It would take several years for the delta radiation to dissipate, but with the source cut off, it wouldn’t expand any more, no longer threatening the colony or its agricultural sources.

Had the colony known of Dr. Kron’s crimes in the core worlds, they probably wouldn’t have agreed to reward him. Dr. Kron needed a place to hide from the authorities, and he wanted to continue his banned experiments. He had found that one of the moons around Marcus IV had the materials needed for his research. He wanted to set up Far-Reach Station on the surface of the ninth moon. If needed, the colony could reach the station with their transmitter if another emergency came up. Dr. Kron was able to discreetly use his resources to build Far-Reach Station. And he was willing to purchase fresh foodstuffs from the colony in exchange for their continued silence to the station’s location. If anyone came searching for Dr. Kron, the colony leaders only informed them that he had stopped by then continued on his way after helping them with the radiation issue.

Stephen Milken, one of Dr. Kron’s assistants, discovered that the left-over residue of the softwood tree found on Marcus III contained properties that would imitate one of the illegal narcotics in the core worlds. The fruit of the softwood tree was one of the foodstuffs that helped the colony survive and was held in high regard with the colonists. The residue had no value to them, so when the station requested it “for research purposes”, they gladly sold it to them. The Doctor’s team used the profits from selling the narcotic as a way to fund their research.

At the time this report was compiled, the following questions had not been answered.
1- What was the unknown alien ship found on Marcus III?
2- What medical crimes (besides narcotics) had Dr. Kron and his associates been charged with?
3- How far did the narcotics network reach into the core worlds?
4- Would the disaster that The Children of Mankind feared come to pass?

Answers that a good GM might be able to use for a science-fiction roleplaying campaign. Which one was your favorite? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Role Playing Games, Science Fiction

RPGaDAY2026 Day 5: Burden or Burned

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 5 Prompt: Burden
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Full of Woe

The anagram of the Day 5 prompt for the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge is Burned. We (the voices in my head) didn’t do a location for my Day 4 entry of Charm, so I’m going to return to that train of thought in this entry.

The following blog post is system agnostic. I hope it inspires any GMs running a cyberpunk game like Cyberpunk Red, Modern Necessities-Cutting Edge, Shadowrun or Cyber Generation.

The Burned Archive

:::Recording Start:::

“I’m telling you man, this data is legit. It came from the Burned Archive.”

“Skegger, what are you talking about? The Burned Archive is called that because the CorpForce found the black-web servers in the dregs and torched it. Everything was melted, every sys-op was burned alive. It even made the news-vids despite the corp-lords trying to keep it off the net.”

“Then why are new data dumps being released Rik? I mean look at this on my hand-screen, it’s the latest info on the uprising at the Martian colonies. From it I can pull up all the archived data about the past food riots.”

“Smegging Hell Skeg, are you trying to get greased by the CorpForce, why do you have that on your personal device?

“Relax man, I’m taking the nesc steps to keep my device clean if scanned. I’m not an AI-slop slinger thinking he’s really a cyber-sleuth.”

“Dude, is this real? It even has the same scan-technique and digital fingerprints from the Burned Archives. How is this info-dump still available?”

“That’s what makes my wet-circuits think. Look at the scan-technique. That’s not from a screen. Do you think it came from a hard copy?”

“Paper? Who has paper copies of stuff?”

“Grognards Rik, grognards. The old-time runners and sleuths used to do something called ‘Reading the Manual’. I looked it up; a manual was a paper book. No power use to keep the information on the book means no power use to detect the book”

“Skegger, setting up a new server wouldn’t be that difficult. Thery’re enough back-room dealers who would sell the hardware in a heartbeat for extra creds. It’s the data that the corps are trying to hide. But what if that data is printed on paper that can be quickly scanned by nano-bots which happens at lower power and in milliseconds. Boom. It’s back online like it was never gone and still getting updates.”

“But I still don’t know where the resisters would find a place to store this paper. The deadtree versions of data took up a ton of room.”

“Two words Rik. Micro. Dots.”

“That’s one word you gimboid.”

“Whatevs, my spell checker hates me anyway. But the point is, if the print is microscopic material instead of whatever the trees provide, then you could hide entire libraries in the smallest locations where the nano-bots can constantly scan them on demand.”

“We gotta find out if this idea of yours is legit man. If we can get in on this, we could sell it to other data-junkies.”

“Or put a big bullseye on our backs from the CorpForce.”

:::Recording End:::

Why did I type it up this way? Because that is what my fingers started doing when I the typing started. I wasn’t intending to type up a conversation, but the more I “heard” the more I wanted to put down. Hopefully it will inspire a GM or two. Speaking of inspiration, I’m willing to take suggestions for future RPGaDAY posts.

Have you dipped a chrome-plated toe in the cyberpunk world? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Dungeons and Dragons, Role Playing Games

RPGaDAY2026 Day 4: Charm

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 4 Prompt: Charm
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Full of Grace

Eagle eyed readers may notice that I didn’t change the prompt for the Day 4 entry in the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge. The reason for this is that I’m writing these on the fly. When I saw the title “Charm”, the first thing that came into my head was the first-level Charm Person spell that always made me raise an eyebrow. First-level? It seemed like a powerful spell at this level, especially if it isn’t done right.

So I pulled out my books for Basic Fantasy, Castles and Crusades, Labyrinth Lord, Dungeon Crawl Classics and even the new Dungeons and Dragons 5.5 players handbook that I just recently obtained with a gift card. They were all variations on the same thing. The target thinks that the caster is a friend. As long as the caster or his party doesn’t attack them or do anything that wrongs them, then they can continue to be charmed with some options to make a save vs the spell effects. Perhaps the name of the spell is altered to avoid OGL license issues, but the process is similar.

I’ve never really cast this spell in all my years of gaming. I don’t recall ever seeing it cast. I asked one of my Geek Kids who has been in several D&D campaigns, and they hadn’t seen it used either. So it got me thinking, if this comes up in my current Castles and Crusades game, or at a one-shot at a convention, how would I handle this as a GM.

I think this is a perfect opportunity for role-playing instead of roll-playing. I’d rather have the table play more of the first than the later. I’d ask the caster how they are going to handle the charmed person. Take into account the current scenario involved (social, physical combat, bartering for goods and services?) and make adjustments to any saves vs affects from there.

Then there is the after affects. Once the spell has worn off or is resisted, how does the target(s) react? Will they know they’ve been charmed? Will they feel violated? Confused? Resentful? The response could make for an interesting roleplaying experience.

Every time there is a tactic that comes up in a magical universe like this, there is also defenses against them. Could shopkeepers, community leaders and other likely targets invest in rings, amulets or other worn items of defense against such spells? That would make for an interesting roleplaying event when a PC tries to be sneaky and suddenly finds out that the town sheriff doesn’t take too kindly to being targeted like this. And for every genuine magical item, hucksters could sell fake items that are promoted to assist with a charm resistance.

I wonder if that’s why this was a first-level spell. A good GM could see the opportunity to get some roleplaying going at the table?

What are your thoughts? Now that I’ve let my muse type this out, I think I’m glad I didn’t go with my initial idea of making a Wild West bordello with charming ladies. Still might, but not with this prompt.

Have you seen this spell in play at your table? How did it go? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Posted in: Role Playing Games, Spy-Fi

RPGaDAY2026 Day 3: Poise or Poison

Written by TardisCaptain

Day 3 Prompt: Poise
Week 2 Prompt: Intellect
Weekday Prompt: Fair of Face

Another day where I take the recommended prompt for the RPGaDAY 2026 Challenge and I twist it on it’s side. I’m still intending to blog about RPG vehicles or exotic locations that, I hope, inspire others. Today I’m twisting Poise into Poison.

Like the Day 2 entry for Stature/Statue, this submission is system agnostic. But it could be used with any espionage or modern day system such as White Lies, Agents of AGEIS, Modern Necessities, Everyday Heroes, Shadow Ops or Tiny Spies.

Memo for Administrator 7 eyes only. In our effort to track down the rogue agent “Dutch”, we have been following up on possible locations where he might be able to obtain an antidote to the Ticking Poison that was administered to “Dutch” in order to keep him compliant with our orders. As you know, unless “Dutch” receives regular injections once-a-week of the antidote, the Ticking Poison will slowly shut down his digestive system. This will result in his painful death by starvation as the poison prevents his body from absorbing the nutrients in food.

Unfortunately, since the untimely demise of Dr. Meredith during Dutch’s escape, we were unable to locate in his notes where the source of the Ticking Poison originated. Several documents remain encrypted in the late doctor’s personal code. Cryptography is continuing their efforts in decoding these documents.

We did find one possible lead, one that Dutch may also have. Eomma’s Hanseon. The rumored nautical home of the reclusive biochemist only known as “Mother” in the espionage underground. We strongly believe that Dutch is now searching for Mother in the south oriental seas. Attached is the report that we have on Eomma’s Hanseon.

==Start of Report==

Only known photograph of Eomma’s Hanseon.

Subject: Eomma’s Hanseon
Report reliability rating: Medium (57/100)
Last Update: 20260803
Access: All

“Eomma’s Hanseon” is the name of a luxury yacht of unknown origin that is owned by the reclusive biochemist only known as “Mother”. This biochemist has been credited in saving the lives of at least known fifteen individuals worldwide from rare poisonings or unknown illnesses.

There is no known port of registry for this vessel. Agents have spotted this vessel in territorial waters belonging to Taiwan, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, the Philippines and China. As of this last update, no known reports of governmental boarding or inspections have been discovered.

While the report on Mother states that she (gender unconfirmed), has been operating for over twenty-five years. The vessel believed to be Mother’s home base was first observed in 2012 at a port near Singapore. The last reported sighting was off the coast of Vietnam in 2025. No observations of this vessel have been made outside of the oriental region.

All agents have been alerted to report any sightings or any other gathered information immediately.

==End of Report==

On a personal note, while I can’t confirm it, I have a strong suspicion that the reason that “Mother” can cure these afflictions is that Eomma’s Hanseon is the source for these chemical poisons. I have dispatched an investigation team to the area to see if they can track down the vessel or pick up the trail for “Dutch”. I will keep you appraised.

–Supervisor 47

The royalty free image was found on Pixabay. I tried to find an image of a mutant bear for yesterdays post without any luck and I didn’t want to delay the post. I like having visual references when I can obtain them.

Oh, and I’m still open to suggestions from any readers on future vessels or locations to use in this challenge. They can be from any genre.

Did this inspire anything for a possible espionage or modern day RPG scenario? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Back to Top