Camping! A Save System and Repopulation Procedure for Heroes of Cerulea

"Pokemon Base Camp" - Pokemon Legends Arceus, Game Freak

Howdy, Farmhands!

    Heroes of Cerulea by Blackfisk Publishing comes with 3 separate campaign styles printed in it's rules. The first, Dungeon Campaign, allows Players to skip all overworld travel, teleporting them from entrance to entrance of the main campaign's 3 Dungeons in whatever order they like. In the second style, Overland Campaign, the map is placed before the players with the Dungeon's locations clearly marked, with overland travel being used to fill in the space between them. The final, and most expansive style, Screen Crawl Campaign, is the focus of today's post.

    My current game is run in Screen Crawl style. The map is entirely whited out, with the contents of a square only being made known to my players as they choose to enter it. NPCs will mention the names and general direction of landmarks, but until the players choose to head in that direction, they know nothing about it. Sure, both of my players have access to the PDF with the full map included, but ostensibly, they're traveling blind. Rules as written states that "completed" squares can be ignored for fast travel purposes once the obstacle within it is solved, be it a puzzle or a fight with Monsters. I've decided this is too easy, and have seasoned the game to taste with the following homebrew.

Disclaimer:

    This is an independent production, unaffiliated with Lucas Falk and Blackfisk Publishing, published through the Heroes of Cerulea Third Party License. Heroes of Cerulea is copyright Lucas Falk and Blackfisk Publishing.

Homebrew Rule #1 - Square Repopulation

    Unlike in the core rules as written, a "Completed" square cannot simply be skipped as players travel through it again. Puzzles remain solved, but Pots and Grass respawn, provided the party isn't purposefully abusing this by repeatedly exiting and reentering the same square. Any Square that contained Monsters as it's obstacle has a 1 in 4 chance of being restocked upon reentering it's space.

    The result of this rule is twofold - First, it increases the chance of the Party gaining Gems from Pots and Monster Loot. For my Archer character, this is very important, as bad rolls in the campaign thus far has made Gems a very valuable resource for their desired play style. The second result is that it creates squares that are objectively more dangerous than others. Knowing there is a chance, however small, that Monsters will generate in a specific space they've already traveled through, gives players an option to make decisions on how risky they want to play. If they're well stocked, a Monster square offers more Loot drops. If they're low on Hearts, however, a Monster square risks a Game Over.

    Speaking of Game Overs, if a Party Game Overs in the Overworld (not in a Dungeon), all completed Squares will have their Monsters respawn. Puzzles and other obstacles remain solved, but the Monsters WILL come back. There are Three ways to prevent this from happening. 

1. The party could simply Not Die. As mentioned, Squares only have a 1 in 4 chance of respawning Monsters while traveling through them, and only if Monsters were previously spawned there.
2.  Defeat the main Dungeon in a Biome. My game assumes that the main dungeons are what spawn Monsters in the first place - all terrain of a similar color stops respawning Monsters once it's related Main Dungeon is cleared. This means it's possible to "clean up" a region by entering every square and ensuring you've defeated all monsters within it.
3. Using a Campsite to set a Save State.
   

Homebrew Rule #2 - Campsites & Save States

    A Campsite is a consumable Item, with a 1 in 4 chance of being available at any given Shop, separate from it's generated stock, for 100 Gems. Alternatively, it can drop from General Loot on a roll of 44, if the Character has Full Hearts AND already has a Pixie in a Bottle in their inventory.

    Using a Campsite sets a Save State, which is a Point in the relevant Biome that prevents any square ventured before it from respawning it's Monsters in the event of a Game Over. Should the Party leave the Biome, or Defeat the Main Dungeon (thus ending the Respawn mechanic entirely), the Save State will be lost. 

    This rule, unfortunately, requires some extra work from the DM, needing to note on what square the Camp was used, and which Squares after it are not protected by the Active Save State. I personally have no issue with this extra bookkeeping, though I'm sure it won't be as digestible for everyone.

Additional Thoughts 

    There are a number of locations within the officially released Heroes of Cerulea catalog that I personally refer to as "Minigames." In Overworld Areas, there are Three - the Cow Herding Minigame, the Fishing Minigame, and the Mountain Traversal Minigame. Unlike Puzzles, these are meant to be repeatable events, wherein the Resolution Mechanic is slightly altered to create a modular experience. Some sort of dice related activity to be done "Overnight" while Camping would be fun, though I don't think it's benefit should be the traditional healing found in ttrpg long rests. 

    Savvy Players may find there is an Optimal point to use a Save State, and attempt to tactically deploy them for maximum protection. I think this is perfectly fine. Campsites are not guaranteed to be available at every Shop they find, and while ensuring maximum usage of a Save State _is_ technically Metagaming... So is the knowledge that defeating a Main Dungeon ends the Respawn mechanic and choosing to beeline for it. I think this should be a valid party tactic of everyone at the table agrees to it, and offers interesting choices.

Until next time,

    Farmer Gadda