Strength
Courage, Bravery, Compassion, Resilience, Vulnerability, Pet Ownership
This is a fun one to talk about, because it seems incongruous at first that Strength is a woman patting a lion on the head.
One might imagine Strength to be an impossibly buff dude stackin’ weights and getting yoked: but nay!
It’s just this lady, giving a friendly lion a nice chin scratch. Who’s a good boy?
Therein lies the message: Strength doesn’t mean raw, physical strength, but strength of character, strength of resolve. This woman is not wearing armor, but she’s not afraid of the lion. Even if she feels fear in this situation, she is not letting it affect her.
The Emperor tries to appear invulnerable in his suit of armor and mountain fortress. Strength appears vulnerable in a soft white dress in a field, but she’s still willing to go toe to toe with a deadly animal: who, then, is the braver of the two?
A relationship with an animal is – unfortunately – one that we know is doomed to end in pain and loss. It’s hard to fall in love with something that has a lifespan so much shorter than ours, but being able to form new relationships knowing full well that their loss is inevitable takes strength. Courage.
That’s what Strength is: staring at the void, staring at pain, and saying “no”. Not today. Today we find a sunny place and give our lion friend a chin scratch.
Friends & Foes
The Volunteer Firefighter is huge, strong of brain, kind of heart, and thick of skull.
La Résistance is a small organization fighting an impossible battle against a large, well-funded Goliath Empire.
The Animal Acccumulator can’t even go on a nice forest walk without dozens of local creatures following them. Maybe they shouldn’t sing so much. They’ve made it their mission to care for all of these creatures.
The Restrained Pacifist1 seems like a coward, because they refuse to fight – but what they’re actually afraid of is what they become when they are unleashed.
The Master of the Boat Oar is so dangerous that they only bother to fight with incongruous objects in order to give their opponents a fighting chance.
The Gymnasiarch is responsible for organizing sporting events that are entertaining to watch, and has little concern for their safety or practicality.
The Misguided Hero is courageous and indomitable in their quest – it is unfortunate that their quest is actively harmful and they just haven’t realized it, yet.
The Scarecrow stokes and manipulates people’s fears2 in order to control them.
The Craven talks a big game, but when the chips are down, they fold immediately3.
Hooks
The inhabitants of small village outnumber the bandits, but the bandits are so violent and imposing that they’ve got everybody terrified. If only a hero could step in...
Locations
The Zoo is home to a collection of many unique and esoteric creatures. Were they captured from the wild or are they rescues? Are they happy and well cared for4?
The Pride is a wild location, home to a pack of dangerous creatures who regard this as their territory.
The heavy, oppressive mist in the Nightmoors conceals illusions that reflect your players’ worst fears.
Legend has it that the narrow, winding path to the Mountain Pass Redoubt allowed a small contingent of true-hearted heroes to hold off an entire army.
The Dojo hosts dozens of martial students. Maybe they will allow players to train with them, or maybe they’re just looking to test their mettle against hardened opponents.
Treasures
Maybe the real treasure was The Friends We Made Along The Way5.
The Tooth Necklace strikes fear into the hearts of everyone who sees it, and it gets stronger the more teeth that are added to it.
Names
Leo/Leonidas/Leon/Leona/Leonard/Lionel6, Ariel, Hamza, Bernard, Callista, Orson, Dov, Arthur, Bjørn, Ursula, Mischa, Michael, Theodore/Theodora, Kaplan, Kyar, Shere, Zholbarys, Beowulf, Wolf, Lupe, Tala, Zella, Gawain, Yolani, Sokol, Baz