Let’s Play Dark Covenant Invader! Part 1: The Drowned King

The fallen paladin Leoric is brought back as an Abyssal Wraith to collect Bloodshot Eyes for his new Patron.

Table of Contents

How about we invade other people’s world, Dark Souls style?

Dark Covenant Invader is a one-page soulslike solo TTRPG written and illustrated by Kerova Archive. We play as a lowly dreg, serving the sinister patron of a dark Covenant, and invade other worlds to kill a target, harvesting trophies to rise in our Covenant rank.

It’s a simple and fun game with a fantastic Souls vibe. Let’s dive right into it.

Creating our dreg

First, we choose or roll a background, a place of origin, and create 2 pieces of equipment. It can be whatever we want, and I think its main function is to increase one of our stats.

Stats are Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence. They all start at 1, and we get an extra point to allocate however we want.

We also start with 6 Vigor (HP) and 6 Grasp. Losing all Vigor sends us back to the Sanctuary, the starting hub location. Each death reduces our Grasp by 1. If it reaches 0, we lose our purpose and sanity, becoming mindless dregs.

I think I’ll go with a full strength character. I might be missing something, but I don’t see why I would distribute points among the stats. Obstacles, damage, and defense are all interpretative, and I believe focusing on one stat grants an advantage, like making a build in Dark Souls. Again, I’m dumb and the game is very rules light, so I could be wrong.

The next step is to choose or roll our Covenant, the trophy it collects, then roll on the tables Essence and Form to define its lore.

Background: Spiteful Paladin
From: Luskand, with deadly bogs and poisonous forests
Name: Leoric

Gear
1. Greatsword (+1 STR)
2. Heavy Armor (+1 STR)
I’ll add some lore once I find out more about the story.

Stats
I’ll put my point in STR.
STR: 2
DEX: 1
INT: 1

Covenant Rank: 0
Covenant: Abyss Wraiths
Trophy: Bloodshot Eye
Covenant Lore
Essence: Ashen
Form: Damp
I wasn’t expecting that hahah. But I have an idea.

Covenant Sanctuary
Environ: Parish
Essence: Hallowed
Form: Spikes

Let’s start Leoric’s journey!

Part 1

In the last minutes of Leoric’s life, as the poison consumed him, the Abyss reached out. An ashen hand touched his soul and made an offer. Time in exchange for servitude.

As the toxins racked his body and the fever burned his brain, he stared into the Abyss. The damp presence making the offer stared back.

The bargain was struck.

His lungs filled with water, moss covered his body, and an ashen mist blinded his eyes.

Water and darkness will drown every fire and light so we can rise, a bubbling voice echoed in his mind. Our enemies are blind, but we shall make their eyes see the truth.

He tried to scream, but only a gurgling choke came out.

Darkness embraced him, cold and wet.

When he awoke, the land of Luskand felt like a distant dream. A ruined parish stretched around him, shattered and choked with damp ash. Sharp bones jut from the floor, petrified spikes like remnants of a gargantuan corpse.

Leoric rose and coughed water from his lungs. When he raised his arms, he noticed a streak of fungus and mold clinging to his ashen skin. He wiped it fiercely, but they didn’t disappear.

It was part of him now.

He trod the inundated flagstones. Faces drowned in pools, but disappeared when he looked directly at them. He reached a bonfire in front of an altar, with his old armor beside it. It was blackened where the poison had permeated, marred by slick stains of moss and mold. Engraved on the chest, the symbol of his Order, the Verdant Flame.

He picked it up and equipped it, leaving only hands and feet unprotected.

Armor of the Verdant Flame
Heavy armor of the Order of the Verdant Flame, warped by fire.
The paladins of the Verdant Flame swore to scour poison from the bogs of Luskand. They wore heavy armor to wade into fetid and toxic waters and emerge unscathed from the fires they unleashed.

It is said that the fumes from the crusades seeped into the armor and never left.

Something moved in the corner of his vision, like dark tendrils coiling and dripping. Leoric turned sharply. A figure sat on the altar.

More a manifestation of essence than a body, its blurred form rippled and glowed like water behind a thick glass.

“Welcome to the Sanctuary of Spikes,” they said.

The presence exerted immense pressure on Leoric’s shoulders and back, forcing him to the ground. He collapsed to his knees.

The form slung a huge sword toward Leoric. His old greatsword, blemished by rust and dried poison.

“Wield it for your Drowned King.”

Leoric trembled as he leaned forward and clutched the weapon.

Leoric’s Greatsword
Weapon forged for the paladins of the Verdant Flame, inscribed with Leoric’s name. The blade, once meant to blaze with holy fire, now lay damp and scarred. When swung, it fizzes and gurgles as if underwater.

The Order believed in purification through the sword, but as their fanaticism increased, every flame they kindled brought only ruin.

The game says we can challenge a dreg once per invasion in the Sanctuary to gain a Trophy. We inflict damage on ourselves to invoke the challenger.

I’m probably missing something, but the Sanctuary restores our HP, so I don’t know what’s the point of taking the damage to start the duel. Maybe to get a small handicap in the fight?

I also don’t know what the dreg stats are supposed to be. I’ll use a standard hunting target:
2 stages + Covenant Rank (0): 2
Damage: d6 + Covenant Rank (0): d6

“Now prove you are more than a dreg,” they said.

The form shifted as if a tentacle whipped in the air, and Leoric felt a cut in his hand. His black and foul blood dripped on the bonfire, making it roar and release an ashen mist. When it cleared, a crestfallen knight stood in front of him, armed with sword and shield.

“Reveal your worth to the Abyss,” the Drowned King ordered.

Leoric noticed the knight trying to speak, but their Patron’s will demanded obedience, not words. He raised his greatsword and attacked.

Here’s how combat works:

I’m going to pick STR (2), obviously. I also have the greatsword, so 3d6. I don’t think the armor applies here, even though it gives me +1 STR. I don’t have any Curios yet, so let’s do 3d6.

Stage 1/2
3d6: 6, 1, 1
That’s an optimum outcome! It means we cause 1 damage and receive none. Stage 1 done.

Stage 2/2
3d6: 4, 1, 1
A moderate outcome. We cause damage, but also take it. I wonder if killing the enemy still triggers the damage for us? I’m gonna say yes.

D6 damage: 6!
Max damage, of course. We subtract it from STR (2) and gear, which is the armor (1), and I guess I could use the sword to defend as well, right? But let’s make it harder and use only the armor.
3 damage taken.
Vigor 2/6 (we took 1 damage to summon the dreg)

That’s it, combat won! I’m rethinking taking the damage after we kill our enemy. What would happen if I died, and let’s say it’s the hunting target? Would I still get the trophy and call it a successful hunt?
I think I’m going to change it.

Leoric’s greatsword swished toward the knight, releasing fetid water. The shield deflected it with ease, taking Leoric by surprise. He hadn’t practiced in a while.

The crestfallen knight countered and drew blood. Leoric staggered back, taking in his opponent's impeccable posture, the fluidity of his movements, and the precision of his attacks.

Leoric was never a good student or a gracious fighter. When he took fire and steel to cleanse the bogs of Luskand, he did so with violence and abandon, letting battlelust guide him. Maybe his means left much to be desired, but the ends mattered more for the greater good.

Or so he told himself.

He resented the knight’s perfection, and a burning spite swelled up in his drowned heart. Perfection was a false virtue that masked cruelty.

He roared as a newfound strength propelled him. The knight lunged. Leoric parried, and his opponent’s arm went wide. The greatsword whooshed back and took the knight’s head clean off.

In his peripheral vision, a mass of tentacles shifted, but immediately turned into the Drowned King again. “Take his left eye and bring it to me,” they demanded.

Leoric dropped his greatsword, picked the crestfallen knight’s head, and forced his fingers inside it to scoop out the eye.

Bloodshot Eye
A swollen, crimson left eye, torn from the socket of the fallen. Still wet and quivering.
The Abyss Wraiths collect these trophies for their Patron in order to weave together all visions into the gaze of the Abyss.

Our enemies are blind and foolish, but their eyes will learn to see.

He offered it to the Drowned King.

“Good. You are an Abyssal Wraith now, and you have my patronage. Now look into the bonfire and hunt those who would thwart us. Bring me their left eye, and I will give you my favor. When darkness falls, we rise.”

Leoric coughed more water and finally found his voice. “Who are you, really?”

“I am the one who commands. You are the one who serves. Now go!”

Their will overpowered Leoric once more, and he inspected the bonfire, seeking his target.

Trophies offered: 1
Covenant Rank: 0

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And that’s it for this session! What I love about one-page RPGs is the skill that designers have to create fantastic flavor with so little, and Kerova is more than skilled! The souslike vibe is perfect here.

I think one or two more sessions will develop enough story to make Leoric interesting and will showcase the other mechanics of the game.

Thanks for reading and until next time!

Dark Covenant Invader is available at Itch.io. Support the creator.