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Empire of Satanis is not the kind of game for the light-hearted or those hoping to play in a classic ‘Good vs. Evil’ struggle. In fact, players who enjoy subtle cunning and playing the role of villains may be more inclined to give it a try. However, if your gaming group appreciates something more unusual and sinister, this may be the exact game your have been looking for.
Background
In Empire of Satanis the players take on the role of ‘Fiends,’ which are part alien, part sorcerer, part banished entity and even a little bit human. Heavily inspired by H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos and, I suspect, partially inspired by the Hellraiser movie series, Empire of Satanis tries something new in the world of RPGs. By creating a rules lite/story heavy system, the author, Darrick Dishaw, strives to create a world where the Fiends are part of some greater demonic society, constantly trying to serve their evil Emperor while at the same time trying to eek out an existence.
Certainly the concept of playing something vile and sinister is not revolutionary. Whether a group as played an entire party of evil characters in Dungeons and Dragons or taken on the role of the Sabbat in Vampire: The Masquerade, this will be somewhat familiar territory. Like many other systems there are a selection of races or archetypes to select when designing a character. Kuruer-esh, Zeph n’ glarl, Vihm, Dourge and Sairmenow, among others. The physical description for these creatures are somewhat vague but demons and creatures from the netherworld may not have fixed descriptions as is the nature of the beast, so to speak. However, there is enough detail in the description of the races to understand their motivations and where they fit into the greater society of demons.
The mechanics are simple, lending itself to easy game play. The GM sets a target number (4 for easy actions, 7 for average actions, 10 for difficult actions, and on up). The player has a number of d6s they can roll, depending on their stats. Rather than adding up the numbers on a d6, the player simply takes the highest number of the dice rolled. Since every ‘6’ the player rolls entitles them to another roll of that die, then the possibility of getting a ‘7’ or even a ‘10’ and higher is hardly outside the realm of possibility. Obviously, this lends itself to some ‘rules lite’ mechanics since the game is more heavily tilted towards storytelling than it is use of powers and abilities to defeat creatures and swipe their treasure. Furthermore, the combat system is equally as simple. The attacker adds attributes and adds a d6, compares that with defender’s attributes and combat resolution is as simple as that. Most of the other aspects of the game use this same system (target numbers, etc.)
One of the more interesting aspects of the game is the ‘Story Alteration’ section of the game. Since the game is interested in storytelling, it is appropriate that the players have a role in the creation of the story. The way it works is simple. Once per scene, any player may attempt to alter the story. With the roll of a 6 on a d6, any player may change a major aspect of the story. For instance, if a player needs to have a power imbued into a crystal or needs to have prior specific knowledge of an area, the player can use this to their advantage. It is assumed, of course, that the GM may have some final say over this so that it does not get out of control.
Personally, this is one of the most interesting aspects of the game. In most game systems the characters/players are pretty much at the mercy of whatever the GM throws at them, but in Empire of Satanis some power now rests in control with the players, partially. With putting so much creation in the hands of the GM as well as the players it does make for a very sharp and unique gaming experience.
Character creation was pretty simple and really allowed itself for players to design the kind of unusual and strange characters they wanted to play. This is one of the areas in which the game really excels. It may sound clichéd and overstated but the game system in Empire of Satanis works for the players and GM rather than the players and GM working for the game system. With this in mind players can come up with a concept for their character and then design what they want using the tools the author has provided.
In short, the players get to assume the role of weird and ultra powerful entities not held by the constraints of the physical world. Instead they fight their battles and scheme their schemes in other planes of existence, only occasionally visiting death and terror on humanity when it is a tertiary goal to their actual greater plans.
Magic
What would a game about unusual and quasi-demonic entities be without some form of magic? The characters have access to a wide variety of magic abilities and skills, many of which give an eerie feeling just reading about them. Blood Magic, Dream Magic, Flesh Magic, Mask Magic (and my personal favorite) Candy Land Magic. The magic system really is pretty freeform (as is the intent of the game). The magic can be combined for a variety of effects using the mechanics system mentioned above (target numbers for easy action, hard actions, etc.) Basically the magic is a vehicle for the characters to further their goals and accomplishments. The only limit is the imagination of the gaming group (which is a refreshing change from many games which are very much stuck on the idea of ‘game balance’ whether or not there needs to be any).
The Actual Playing Experience While reading through the game I actually had the opportunity to playtest the game with some friends at Origins and GenCon (thanks guys). The gaming experiences we had were actually kind of interesting.
Both games had a very surreal feel. This was good for some of the players and, well, not so good for others. One of the greatest compliments that the players had for it was they had an opportunity to act out a strange morality play, taking into account the mysterious Schadenfreude of tormenting humans (NPCs) into a variety of sins and temptations. Admittedly, there was a strange perversion that the character/players got from being ultra-powerful entities with strange abilities designed solely for the purpose of manipulation and deceit. Alternatively, one of the other directions that the game went was the series of Machiavellian tricks that the characters designed on each other, each trying to curry favor with the abysmal creatures that they served. Honestly, this was one of the more fun aspects of the evening, watching the intense role playing and clever scheming that went on. Honestly, some of the powers and abilities that the characters had took a backseat to their own ingenuity. The powers that they had merely supplemented the fun and excitement.
Many of the players really got into the spirit of the game (in a healthy way) by adopting personalities of what they could only presume would be the Elder Gods from Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. They were able to do this, in part, since we did not have to spend a great deal of time dealing with encumbering game mechanics rules. Fifteen minutes spent discussing the rule system was all we needed to get everyone familiar with the system and jump right in to the fun.
One of the criticisms that the players had, which is more of a matter of taste, honestly, is the fact that the game was very abstract in many ways. It was difficult for some of the players to really conceptualize this notion of ‘ultimate sinister powers’ rather than the traditional style of gaming that tends to gravitate towards ‘good vs. evil’ or achieving some tangible goal. Since the game really works better in abstract concepts than with a series of simple objects, it may be somewhat hard for people to get past that but honestly it is worth the attempt.
There was some question about ‘game balance’ or at least the feeling that the characters were immensely powerful. This was a little difficult for some of the players to get past but once they realized that the intent was to actually play the role of powerful denizens from an alternate reality, they came to understand that the power they had was all relative. Sure, they had the ability to level city blocks on earth but there was so much else to do and the kinds of adversaries they dealt with were equally as powerful and in some cases far more clever (sorry guys).
Overall, the game was great in actual play. Once we designed the characters we sat back and let the role-playing just flow out all over the room.
Summation
Empire of Satanis is an exciting game, catering to those who are looking for something different outside the rubric of traditional ‘D20’ play or even outside the normal confines of role-playing. What makes the game even more appealing is the fact that the writer offers some support on his website CultofCthulhu.net (yet another homage to the works of Lovecraft and the inspiration from the Cthulhu Mythos.
In short, your group will love this game if they appreciate some of the subtleties and nuances that come with abstract gaming. Give it a chance. You won’t be disappointed
