Banners Tabletop Roleplaying Game

Banners is a tabletop roleplaying game by the illustrious John Wick. Below is a brief explanation directly quoted from the Crowdfunder campaign:

WHAT IS BANNERS?
BANNERS is the first new roleplaying game from multi-award winning RPG designer JOHN WICK in 6 years. Inspired by games such as BIRTHRIGHT, PENDRAGON, and A GAME OF THRONES, Banners puts the players in the roles of officers of a Banner: a region of land ruled by a monarch called "the Crown." They are the Crown's inner circle of experts and advisors who protect the Banner from dangers. They are the Crown's spies, bodyguards, spiritual advisors, and generals.
But there's more to a Banner than just its people. Players also create the Banner itself, its history, enemies and allies, triumphs and tragedies. And as time passes, their characters grow older, and eventually, pass their titles to younger characters ready to take up the challenge.

Here are some campaign setting details I have come up with for my own game. I am hoping to run this setting as a campaign in the future. The players would choose one of these Banners to adopt and flesh out, as well as help shape the rest of the setting. I am only detailing the bigger players politically speaking, there are lots of Lesser Banners that may get in the way of the player character goals, or can serve as meat for their conquest. Ideally, I will eventually create a map detailing the lands of my version of Pania.

(NOTE: What follows is strictly my version of Pania. All references to Pania refer to my own creation and are not meant as a guide for the official setting!)

Theistic Hierarchy

First Pantheon: Void Gods / Primordials / The Distant Ones / The Geometries

Second Pantheon: Sky Gods / The Elder Gods / The Guardians / The Judges / Heavenly Bodies

Third Pantheon: Water Gods / The Old Gods / Gods of the sea / The Sources / The Mysteries

Fourth Pantheon: Earth Gods / The Young Gods / Gods of the land / Gods with earthly influence / Gods invested in their interactions with humankind / The Gods of Man

Fifth Pantheon (here, religious leaders are splintered on their opinion concerning the existence of this so-called fifth pantheon): Metal Gods / The Gods of War and Strife

Banners of Pania rally around the domain of Divine Patrons: the gods of the fourth pantheon. These gods are earthly, they are born and they can also die. They follow a great cycle of manifestations which aligns along certain axes. The gods have to obey the rules of those of the previous pantheon, etc, a hierarchy of order, defined by how events of the past have shaken up and taken shape.

The very many Banners of little consequence have been omitted, but there are always lesser Banners to influence and conquer, as well as new Banners on the rise, guided by fledgling Divine Patrons trying to weave their godly influence into the world.
Players should feel free to quickly invent such fledgling Banners into the setting to suit the needs of a particular scene in the game.

Alliances of Pania

Three alliances of Banners control most of Pania. The Alliance of Light, The Alliance of the Starborn, and The Alliance of Order.

Alliance of Light

Greater Banners of the Alliance of Light:

Bat

The most powerful Banner of the Alliance of Light. Influences all other banners of the alliance very closely, aided by their Spider advisors. Their plan is well-known: complete dominion over all other banners by elevating the Alliance of Light as the only Alliance. Their methods seem to promote independence in the Banners of the other alliances, then pulling them to their misty fold, such as the recent acquisition: the Banner of the Owl.

Spider

The most underhanded and ambiguous Banner of the Alliance of Light. It brokers deals for all banners and alliances, seemingly staying neutral, but in the end, these brokered deals are aiding the Alliance of Light.

Wolf

The most likely to act swiftly. Enforces territorial conquest, maintains borders for the Alliance. Close to the people, roams the country in search of prey (enemy spies, rogue squads, bandits).

Lesser Banners of the Alliance of Light:

Bear

Independent, powerful, would rather wait and see, must be enticed before resorting to action. When set upon an enemy, will not be deterred.

Owl

Wise, insightful, watchful. Defected a few years ago from Alliance of Order to join sides with the Bat. They help the Alliance of Light organize internal leadership as well as spy on enemy banners.

Badger

Volatile and violent. Will pick a fight for any reason at any time (with anyone), mostly around immediacy (here and now). Much like the Wolf banner, they enforce and patrol the territories of the Alliance of Light.

Secret Crown: House of the Mist

Mystical orders spread out throughout the territories of the Alliance of Light. Ties to the Old Scorpion Banner. A stark reminder of what the Alliance of Light has lost. Some powerful artifacts are being guarded by the order. They may be responsible for the spreading of the strange mist on behalf of the Bat.

Alliance of the Starborn

Greater Banners of the Alliance of the Starborn

Kraken

The Crown of the Kraken once held most of Pania in their grasp, in decline for centuries, fathering many splinter banner groups, including Mantis Crab, Scorpion, Spider, Cockatrice, Twin Stars, Saurian, Serpent, and many more now-defunct (destroyed or absorbed) Banners.

Mantis Crab

Merchant leagues and raider leagues. They control the lesser waters that the Kraken does not oversee directly. They hold and trade luxuries and are continually wealthy and well-supplied. They also heavily rely on trade for their foods.

Twin Stars

Linked to lineages of coastal fishing villages and cults of the watery gods (Dagon, Hydra, Cthulhu). Mariners, raiders, fishermen. Their priests can exert control over the effects of tides and weather.

Lightning Brotherhood

A mysterious group of slavers, male-dominated culture, enlightened madness and inspired with great purpose. Has been a surprisingly able force of change for the Alliance, and has been elevated to Greater Banner in recent years due to the number of lesser enemy Banners they have claimed by conquest.

Lesser Banners of the Alliance of the Starborn:

Gryphon

Once known as the Banner of the Eagle, they defected (along with a third of the Banner of the Lion) from the Alliance of Order to join the Alliance of the Starborn under new (current) leadership. The Gryphon are tactical masters and efficient brokers, never hesitating to escalate or calm things to best benefit their situation and long-term needs.

Cockatrice

A mysterious clan hidden in the remote Valley of Whispers. They are very isolated and unlikely to welcome guests outside their current Alliance (Alliance of the Starborn). It is unclear to outside parties why the Elk cared to include them in the Alliance, or why they are so protective of the Cockatrice banner.

Crystal Shards

An ubiquitous cult which serves the Alliance of the Starborn, but operates throughout all banner lands. Especially popular among hermits, monasteries and nunneries throughout Pania.

Secret Crown: Rumors of the King in Yellow

Rumors of the King in Yellow is a secret cult, its members wield cruelty and madness to torment those unfortunates who fall within their grasp. They lie beyond the natural folds of reality but interact nonetheless. They are the fallen tatters of what were once the fairy courts, now calling themselves The Chromatic Courts (7 colors, Black, White, Red, Green, Blue, Yellow, Violet).

Alliance of Order

Greater Banners of the Alliance of Order:

Lion

Cunning, powerful, rich. They are the military might of the Alliance of Order. They lead with decisive action, swift retribution, and will never hesitate to take down an opponent they know they can win against.

Elk

Scheming, manipulative, connected. The Elk work the plan within the plan (within the plan). They are schemers and enforcers of magical contracts which bind the blood of those involved in a self-arbiting curse. (Secret: The curse may or may not always be reliable, so agents of the Elk close those gaps so that there is never a doubt: the terms of their contracts will always be enforced, by mystical curse, or by their direct underhand.) They organize the spy networks of the other banners, binding spy masters of the Alliance of Order to their own leadership.

League of the Dragon Kings

(7 Dragons: Onyx Black, Silver White, Red Stone, Green Stone, Blue Stone, Yellow Gold, Violet Shard)

The Dragon Kings are a reminder that dragons used to be much more common and the early tribes of Pania generally worshiped these powerful creatures. The seven dragon crowns draw their lineage from well-documented genealogies, descending from the blood of dragons themselves.

The Dragon Kings are powerful but mostly isolated from the other banners of the Alliance, and even more isolated from the rest of Pania. It is common for younger warriors of the dragon crowns to prove themselves as bands of warriors to bolster other armies of the Alliance of Order (and rarely, of other Alliances!). Generally speaking, they look down upon members of any crown that is not led by a Dragon! Rumors of real dragons interfering with warfare is not unheard of.

Lesser Banners of the Alliance of Order:

Scorpion

Formerly part of the Alliance of Light, it splintered and the followers of the Scorpion crown are less prepared to collaborate with other Banners of the Alliance of Order, except for the Elk. In contrast to this political distancing, they have the best connections with independent banners of Pania.

Tower

The architects and engineers of warfare, their crafts and technological advancements remain unmatched. The Lion, the Elk, and the Eagle crowns closely monitor the Tower crown, to ensure exclusive access and to prevent any deals from reaching banners outside the Alliance of Order.

Eagle

They are a proud, organized force who seeks to maim and control all banners outside of the Alliance of Order. They conquer lesser Banners with ease, preparing for the moment to strike swiftly and decisively. Often allied with the Lion in their pursuit of revenge against the Gryphon Banner.

Boar

Tenacious and stalwart, they roam all of Pania, though their ancestral lands are the great woods of the East. They impose their needs upon neighboring banners, their very presence is a threat to order and welfare.

Horse Lords

(3 Kings, descendants of three sons of the original Horse Banner’s Crown). Three houses in decline: the three sons of the Great Horse Lord of the Plains have squandered the chance to conquer Pania by horseback in favor of obtaining extreme wealth by simply breeding them for other houses. Unfortunately they have all been manipulated into various and contradicting exclusivity contracts with all of the other Banners. The House of the Mist controls them for the time being by blackmail alone. The wealth of the Horse Lords is now in steep decline.

Secret Crown:

Black Skull Society. An elite and exclusive death cult. Their secretive leader is none other than the Black Onyx Dragon King himself. The group has tasked itself with snipping unworthy bloodlines from the great boughs of the Banners’ tree of life. They recruit exclusively from the highest ranks of nobility if possible, but will make exceptions to suit some greater plan or to bring their enemies closer in order to better control them.

Independent Crowns

These crowns are not part of any alliance and culturally maintain their independence, though no banner or crown stands completely alone. They must balance independence with interdependence. They must remain large enough to hold their own, but small enough not to garner the attention or desire of would-be conquerors.

Saurian

They control the harsh and impenetrable jungles of the West. They are mostly a group of ancient crocodile-worshiping tribes. They have strong ties to the dragon crowns but are rarely seen associating together. It is not uncommon for the saurian to eat their conquered enemies.

Serpent

They control the swamps that border the jungles of the West. Their history stretches to the first tribes of Pania. Nowadays, they continue to be well-connected, due to their inherited powerful magics and artifacts. They are an old enemy to the Elk and Lion, and often ally themselves with the Scorpion, Owl, and Gryphon.

Green Seven-Point Star

A not-so-unusual crown. The sanctified ones hold the power of fate, they call it ‘the wyrd’. Oracles, fate-changers, destiny-makers. They are known to hold good and peaceful counsel, and for the most part, no one dares to cross them. It is rumored that when a crown splits, the fates of all banners change a little, so they seem to foster peace among rival banners.

Rat

Rats can be found in any city worth visiting. They protect manors and such from spies (that is to say, spies they do not control). The members of the Rat banner often operate as lesser guardians, fetchers, servants of other crowns. They are said to have no honor except loyalty to ‘the cause’, but no one outside the Rat can say what that is.

Raven

Similarly to the Rat crown, the Raven considers its duty and its power in the ability to maintain lines of communication between all banners. They are messengers, spies, scouts, and while they serve other houses, their network is predictable and reliable, making them an essential asset to all banners of Pania. Without the Raven operating independently, Pania would fall into chaos and war, or so they claim.

The Anvil

They are closely associated with the Iron-Shield Rat (Armadillo) crowns. They forge legendary weapons and other steel tools of warfare which the greater banners of Pania covet and trade luxuries for. They protect and are protected by the Iron-Shield Rat crowns, although no formal alliance exists between these banners.

The Four Iron Shield Rat (Armadillo) Crowns

They control the four peaks of the Ironside mountain range, mining and processing ore into workable iron for most banners of Pania (The Dragon Crowns being the exception). ‘The Iron Shield Rats’, descended from the Rat crown.

Setting notes:

Technologies and economies of the various crowns are still very limited, similar to the bronze age of ancient Greece and dark ages of Europe, with some notable exceptions. Literacy among knights and the ruling class is not as widespread as one might expect (1 in 3 knights knows how to read; 1 in 4 knows how to read and write). Literacy is almost non-existent among the general populace. Scribe is a profession honed by the Raven Banner, and those who cannot read or write employ these trained scribes.

All banners speak the same language, although some regional accents or usage differences exist. They call their language 'the word', such as speaking the word or writing the word (or singing the word).

War and conflict are inevitable and very much part of yearly concerns for knights and the crowns they serve. Espionage is an important tool used throughout to prepare and prevent wars. The same can be said of the importance of diplomacy, tact, honor, and composure. The reputation of the banner can make or break a knight at court, and vice versa. The respect the courts hold for the knights is typically a reflection of the banner's influence and importance. Wealth can shift quickly through plunder or miseries, but the greater banners always seem better prepared to survive these than others.

The divine patrons, the pantheons, tend to reward the strong and the bold among humankind, though the gods can also be cruel or vain, much like in ancient Greek mythos.

Each banner, to some extent, offers something unique or has mastered a specific technology or task.

The three alliances generally keep Pania from falling into all-out war, but these rivalries often come at the expense of smaller independent Banners. Rivalries within the alliance charters also exist (Lion vs Dragon Kings; Wolf vs Bear; Lightning Brotherhood vs Crystal Shards are famous instances of infighting and rivalries within the three major alliances).

Rites of Pania:

Each banner has their own set of rituals to connect with their divine patrons. These rituals may include any event highly regarded in a person's life, such as birthing methods, medicinal practices, marriage rites, codex of warfare, holding ceremony, giving praise, ritual sacrifice, death rites, and anything you can think of, from cleaning your hands to how to sing to a lady can be unique to each banner if the divine patron cares about it.

[RPG] Banners: Fabien's Campaign Details