Hey folks!

I'm again working on my Kings of Kandor set. I've been really hammering things out lately with the mechanics, and there's starting to feel like a real gel (although more iterations are still needed). I think I've designed and redeveloped most of my commons three or four times, but they're starting to look better and better! Now, I'm getting to a point where I need some good backstory. When I've previously released some of my cards, there was a general vibe of "These cards are cool, but I don't feel the 'knightly' or 'kings' part of the set,". I'm not the best when it comes to the Concepting/Creative segment - flavour just isn't my strong suit - so I need some help with this.

Here's what I know I want for a setting:

Tagline - Discover your heritage.

Kings of Kandor is about a world where your heritage makes you who you are. The world can have a different name, but Kandor is the main continent/realm where the action occurs. Those of noble or powerful blood can create links to their ancestor's spirits or deeds, represented by the following mechanics:

Bloodline (As this creature enters the battlefield, you may exile a card from your graveyard as its ancestor.)
Lineage (As a creature enters the battlefield under your control, you may exile this card from your graveyard as its ancestor.)

Cards with Bloodline are almost always of the creature-type "Noble" in this set, and common Bloodline cards only exist in White, Blue, and Black. Red doesn't gets Bloodline until Uncommon, and Green doesn't get it until Rare. There are three main "Noble" houses in Kings of Kandor, representing each of these three main colours. Each house's bloodline is connected to the enemy colours. White is connected to Red and Black, Blue is connected to Red and Green, and Black is connected to Green and White. The ritual of choosing a bloodline in this world is a deep, personal connection of great importance, as it helps shape your destiny. This is why it's primarily based in these colours, and why green and red don't get it right away. From a world-building perspective, these Noble houses have convinced the regular populace that only those of Noble blood can connect to the spirits in this way.

The three Noble houses jockey for power, but all three keep their populace's in check. They see themselves as the natural rulers, and those beneath them are pawns in their game. As such, though they combat each other, they share an agreement that they alone will hold power. Currently the Black-centred house is in power, having teamed up with the White-centred house to push the Blue-centred house to the fringe.

Cards with Lineage suggest a different path though, since any creature can gain a lineage. Black, Red, and Green get Lineage at common, though White and Blue get it at Uncommon too. These Lineages represent something inborn - hence why they are more "destiny" than "chosen". Black considers it a manifest destiny, while Green and Red don't particularly care where the extra power comes from, it's just something natural about them.

The "terrible" secret is that anyone can connect to their ancestors, even those without noble blood. It happens occasionally, though in these cases it is hidden - either through expulsion, death, heresy, or (very rarely) celebration as an ancient "house" is rediscovered.

The main story revolves around a single person who is the true "King" of Kandor, but doesn't even know it. He or she discovers his/her heritage, spreads the truth, organizes a rebellion, and then in the third set reclaims the throne.


So there we go. That's everything that's important to the set.


Here's what I need:

1. Creature names & types; I know I want Humans and Vampires, as the black house is mainly Vampires. But what kind of other creatures inhabit this world? Are there any other humanoid creatures that might head a house or work for them?

2. Locations; What is the topography of this realm? Where do things take place?

3. THE HOUSES; Their names, current leaders, personalities, beliefs, etc. I know nothing about them beyond what you've already read.

4. The Hero; His/Her name, how he/she discovered his/her heritage and the big secret, and how he/she plans to overthrow the current status quo.

EDIT: 5. Military Names & Positions; What's a kingdom without loyal subjects? Legates, Barons, etc - I need these names!


Thanks!

I think you should pick either bloodline or lineage and scrap the other. They're essentially the same mechanic, except taking up twice the headspace, so I don't think it's worth it to have both. You can always expand from one to the other in the second set.

1. Kandor is not-Medieval Britain. There's a lot of forests, glens, and rolling countryside. Except not-Wales, which is rainy and misty all the time forever.

2. House is the archetypal medieval kingdom. Castles, farms, knights and so on. There is a church that employs paladins to defend the kingdom. The wise queen is beloved by her people but not actually very good at statescraft.

House is an archmage's domain where all the nobles have magic in the blood. Faeries are treated like house-elves in Harry Potter. Owls are a thing. The grand archmage is a very old Merlin figure who spends all his time maintaining the magic that sustains the kingdom.

House is a grim kingdom of witches, black forests, and forbidding keeps. They consort with goat-headed demons and muster armies of death knights. The king and queen are Macbeth-like undying vampires who rule together. The dark forces that give them power have promised them that if they bathe in blood every fortnight they will never die.

House is a loose collection of not-Celt barbarian clans. They do crazy things like play bagpipes and rush into battle naked. Their armies include giants. The most influential clan leader is a female warlord who is unanimously agreed to be the most badass person in the highlands.

House are a secretive druidic circle in the enchanted forest. They are faeries and elves or "wild folk" who live in harmony with the natural world, using wolves as hunting companions. The faerie queen is an inscrutable ancient being who appears in the deepest part of the forest every hundred years.

4. The protagonist is a farm boy discovered to have noble blood, wow!

5. House uses bog-standard medieval army ranks. House is similar but the lower ranks are all expendable undead. House uses battlemages and summoned creatures. House has different specialized teams inspired by nature. House has only three positions: warrior, bard, and clan leader.

1. I really don't want to cut either of those mechanics, because I'm very sure they'll play differently.

Bloodline:
- Works each time a creature enters the battlefield, meaning it's harder to use bounce or blink effects against.
- Only works with the colours it's paired with; a black Bloodline deck in Kings of Kandor will only work when paired with white or green. This will open up in future sets.
- Has specific effects that only vary between 4 modes (no Bloodline, Bloodline option 1, Bloodine option 2, Blooding option 1 & 2)

Lineage:
- Works only once. Once exiled, no creature can use that card as an ancestor again.
- Works in combination with any colour it's paired with; a Black Lineage card can be the ancestor of a White, Blue, Red, Black, or Green creature, or even creature token!
- Has effects that will vary depending on the creature that claims it as an ancestor (a Vigilance creature with deathtouch ancestor works very differently from a First Strike creature with deathtouch ancestor).

PLUS, there's a double-pay-day when you use a Bloodline card and in addition to choosing a Bloodline, get the Lineage bonus as well! I'm absolutely positive that keeping both in the file is vitally important.

2. Cool ideas. Any thoughts on names though?

4. (wait, 4?) Shocking! I was thinking either the farm-boy who is king, or the thief who is king story. Don't want it to be a child though. Again, I need names and actions/deeds.

5. Yeah, but any idea on names? I'm looking for card name inspiration, and looking up these names usually proves kinda fruitless for me. I often end up accidentally putting in names from 10 different cultures separated by centuries of time, and people feel messed up when a Arch-Duke meets a Praetorian.

I usually just google "Fantasy Name Generator"...which always leads me to rinkworks.com/namegen.

I hit name gen and just say stuff outloud until I come across something I kinda like, tweak it a bit and roll with it.

I agree that Bloodline/Lineage feels more like something that would be introducer over the block instead of front-loaded.
Ancestor seems very green philosophically, given that green is heavy about tradition and inherent nature.

: The House of Bannan, led by Queen Eithne Bannan.
: The House of Escriben, led by Archduke Artair Escriben.
: The House of Macraven, led by King Dougan and Queen Mora.
: The House of Caircad, led by Queen Boudrith of the Caircad.
: The House of Foraine, led by the Queen of the Solstice.

For reference, the British royal ranks go:

• Royalty
• Dukes and Duchesses
• Marquesses and Marchionesses
• Earls and Countesses
• Viscounts and Viscountesses
• Barons and Baronesses
• Baronets and Baronetesses (honorary title)
• Knights

In feudal times, the military ranks would be equivalent to royal ranks. Undeath and magic might throw a monkey wrench into this system though.

Do you have any ideas about your other mechanics? Exalted seems like a nice fit (people and institutions that work to keep the royals on top) but you might want a noncreature mechanic to even things out. Do you want each house to have a mechanic?

Legends-matter seems like an appropriate subtheme.