Everyone dreams when they’re little of being something more. Firemen, police officers, superheroes, princesses. When we’re younger, we always think that adults can do amazing things, and we always wish we had some kind of power to change things. For many children since the late 90s, they grew up wanting to be Starlight Guardians, first a comic book series created by Kagome Yuzuki, a young Japanese woman living in LA, and then later as a Saturday morning cartoon. It was standard fare, well received. A story about young girls who fought against nightmares and a vaguely defined “Darkness”. The themes all centered on friendship and companions and it was praised for the fact that the girls struggled with protecting the world and going to school, as opposed to most other shows where classes are never missed and family is never worried. It was considered a deconstruction of the magical girl genre, showing what the fallout might be, but it remained hopeful and upbeat, and managed to find an audience across many age groups and demographics. Yuzuki has never really given an interview, despite her creation being so popular, licensed, translated, and dubbed in several languages. Starlight Guardian cosplay is common at anime and comic book conventions, and there have even been six video games and two stage musicals in Japan. All that’s known about her is that she moved to LA when she was 16, and that she’d been disabled when she was 19. Some fans speculate that she was shot, but there’s nothing but rumour to support that, certainly not medical records. The truth is that Yuzuki didn’t come up with the Starlight Guardians and their secret world of magic and fairy creatures. They’re a Conspiracy of Hunters, mostly young women, dedicated to fighting evil and stopping the creatures that live in the Dark Forest, that cause nightmares and steal away children. She belonged to them once, and they’re very real. They really do fight against darkness, creating citadels and fortresses in the magical realm known as the Dark Forest. They gain their powers by making deals with the creatures that live there that don’t want to devour the living, or cause nightmares. Everything written about in the comics is based on the experiences of Yuzuki and her cell, and later on stories she heard from other magical girls. Originally it was a way of coping with her injuries, which left her unable to fight. As time went on, the Starlight Guardians have used Yuzuki’s rather sizable media empire, rivaling that of Sanrio (of Hello Kitty fame) to act as a sort of propaganda. Young women take to the idea more easily when they can point to something. For many of them, their secret becomes a shared experience. Some turn away from the show, hating it. Others love the comics and cartoons, and hope that Yuzuki will immortalize their exploits so that they can encourage other young girls to be heroes. Kagome herself is now in her twilight years, an unassuming Asian woman in her mid eighties. She works with the Guardians still, though rarely as anything other than a figurehead. She doesn’t lead, and she sleeps with a gun underneath her pillow. The girls who join the Conspiracy are often young. Younger than most other Conspiracies by a long shot. Some are barely out of middle school. While most are high schoolers, there are some who make it to college before they’ve been brought into the fold. Almost every Starlight Guardian has had an interaction with the Unseelie, evil faeries from beyond the Dark Forest who feed on mortal children and pervert dreams. Some lost friends and loved ones, while others were taken themselves, and still bear the scars as their skin was torn at by the thorns before their rescue.
The Dark Forest The magical girls make their sanctuary in the Dark Forest, a dreamscape wilderness with all manner of strange entities. Much of it isn’t actual forest, but all throughout even the strange towns and markets are vines and branches, and the ever present thorns. All manner of faerie beastie lives in the Forest, some strange animals that almost but not quite look like mundane animals. Some of the stranger creatures can even talk. And in sometimes in little temples or caves, or even in the markets, the Starlight Guardians can find something even more powerful. They call them the Seelie. They claim to have been banished from their homes by the Unseelie, and they bargain with the Guardians, granting them powers to fight the Unseelie that manage to get to earth, stopping them from grabbing up children. Many of the Guardians have personal grudges against the Unseelie as well, for replacing siblings with doppelgangers, or trying to grab them through the Thorns. Many of the magical girls can sculpt the Dark Forest, creating new pathways that are safe, and even creating little bastions of hope against the darkness.
The Enemy The Unseelie are everywhere because the Dark Forest is everywhere. They poison dreams and steal away the innocent. Many a Starlight Guardian was born when a young woman was dragged out of bed at night and found herself pulled through the thorns of the Dark Forest, only to be rescued from whatever horrid fate awaited her in some far away faerie castle by an upperclasswoman who always seemed so distant and aloof. The Guardians make their Safe Houses far away from mortal eyes in the Dark Forest, and they do fight the nightmare beings there sometimes, but more often than not they chase down the monsters that creep out of the Dark Forest and threaten the innocent. Monsters of all stripes have their origins in the Dark Forest, from creepy crawly spidery things that hide in attics and wait to capture anyone exploring that old abandoned house, to strange batlike things that glide through the night sky. While faeries that steal away children are the primary enemy, more often than not the magical girls face inhuman creatures, animals that escaped the Forest and try to sate their hungers. There are also many doppelgangers, people left behind when the Unseelie take someone away. They often don’t even know what they are, and the Guardians are torn on how to deal with them. Some feel that as creatures of the Dark Forest they should either be destroyed–often resulting in the doppelganger turning into a pile of sticks and stones and snails and puppy dog tails–or sent back into the Dark Forest by force. Others feel that they’re as much victims as those who are stolen away, and that killing them just tears a family apart. At least with a doppelganger they think their son or mother or relative is alright. Sometimes, the Seelie beings that the Starlight Guardians make pacts with will have certain tasks for them. Sometimes finding rare ingredients, or dealing with the Hobgoblins in the Dark Forest itself, before they can even leave it. Most of them have no problem carrying out these ‘missions’. Even beyond the Unseelie and the monsters that crawl out of the Dark Forest, there are many other things that feed on the innocent. No magical girl worth her salt would ever refuse to fight an enemy because it’s “not my problem”.
Hunters College was a big change. You’d just gotten out of a bad relationship, you were away from home for the first time. You were on your own. At first you were okay with it, but as the weeks went on, your dreams became nightmares, all the horrors of loneliness magnified. They all came to a head when you were dragged out of your bed by a woman on horseback, her hair–her head–all on fire. She dragged you by the ankles and your flannel nightgown was torn to ribbons and your skin was bleeding, but before she could steal you away for good you were rescued. Now you work to keep others from experiencing what you did. You absolutely adored Starlight Guardians. It was your favourite show as a kid, you had all the toys, and even now you have a plushy of Hitomi, but as you got older you grew out of it, and called it kids stuff. That was before you were attacked in the park one night by a creature that looked like something out of a nightmare–or a TV show. Then a little white creature asked “Do you want to be a Starlight Guardian?” Now you’re living your dream, and you know twelve year old you would cream herself, but you just wish you could sleep soundly ever again. You’re a guy. Not a macho guy, but you always thought there was something wrong with the guys who obsessed over a cartoon for girls. Then you accidentally wandered into the Dark Forest somehow, and you were drafted. Now you obsess over the cartoon yourself, hoping that it will give you some idea of how to keep from dying now that you know there are monsters out there. And you really wish you’d listen to your mom when she said to cut your hair.
Circles The Starlight Guardians aren’t a unanimous group. There are several smaller groups that make up the Conspiracy, each with a different way of approaching the Vigil. Within the Conspiracy, they’re known as “circles”, after the group of doujinshi artists. Big Sisters, Little Sisters is a group of magical girls who focus not so much on the Dark Forest or fighting monsters, but on helping those less fortunate. They even have a public face, acting openly as fans of theStarlight Guardians, dressing up in cosplay, and visiting sick children. They even put on skits at elementary schools. They believe they can make the world a safer place by making it less hospitable to the nightmare sustained Unseelie. Spreading information through doujinshi and fanfiction, as well as helping with the animated series, Starlight Projekt can help get the word out on tactics and chronicle the exploits of Guardians. Sometimes they even honour fallen Guardians, though they do have a tendency to dramatize events and “ship” members of the Conspiracy. They also manage to bring in money for the magical girls. Kagome Yuzuki belongs to this circle. The largest circle within the Guardians is the Starlight Sisterhood, who actually go out and fight the monsters up close and personal. Many of it do it out of a sense of justice, or regret at not being able to save a sibling. But a rather large number simply want to show up in one of Starlight Projekt’s doujinshi, or be immortalized by Yuzuki herself in the cartoon that inspired most of them to fight in the first place.
Status Status in the Sisterhood is gained by stopping evil, and by the number of pacts and agreements with the things in the Dark Forest. ● Entry into the Guardians comes from first defeating one of the evil faeries. You can purchase dots of Pactio, and have others who can look up to you. ●●● You’ve seen enough of the things that haunt nightmares that you know how to recognize them. You gain the Unseen Sense Merit fromThe God-Machine Chroniclep.175 towards the Fae. ●●●●● At the highest level of Status within the Conspiracy, you have several resources to call upon thanks to your pacts and bargains with your Sisters. Divide three dots however you like between Allies, Retainer, or Safehouse Merits. New Endowment: Pactio By making deals with the more benign creatures of the Dark Forest, the Starlight Sisterhood gains some measure of supernatural power to do battle with the creatures of nightmares. Every time a member of the Starlight Guardians gains a new dot of Pactio, choose one of the following Endowments. A Guardian can change out which Pactio powers she has by sleeping for one night in the Dark Forest. Each point of Pactio comes with a cost, though: The magical girl takes on a Ban as if she were a Rank 1 spirit for each dot, representing the bargains made with the Seelie that allow her to use the powers. Her magic also suffers a specific Bane: Cold Iron.
Mascot Something from the Dark Forest agrees to help the magical girl, whether out of the goodness of it’s heart(?) or because she’s made a bargain with it. The mascot is rarely larger than a dog, and looks nothing like a normal animal. It understands simple commands, and will carry them out, though more complex actions might require a Presence + Animal Ken roll.
Attributes: 3/3/2 (divide among Power, Finesse, Resistance) Skills: 9/7/3 (divide among Mental, Physical, Social) Willpower: Power + Resistance Essence: 10 (10 max), used for casting Dread Powers. Speed: Strength + Dexterity + Species Factor Defense: Lower of Dexterity or Wits, plus Athletics Health: Stamina + Size. Virtue and Vice: Any. Some Mascots share the magical girl’s Virtue, while others might not. Size: 5 or less, based on the animal it mocks Dread Powers: Assign four dots Innocuous: Anyone but it’s magical girl suffers -2 to Perception rolls to notice the Mascot. Conditions: The bonded Guardian and the Dark Forests are considered suitable conditions for regaining Essence. Any time a Mascot resolves a condition, or would otherwise gain a Beat, it instead gains a point of Essence.
Barrier Jacket Battling evil is a tough job, and anything that you could call “evil” with a straight face generally isn’t going to pull punches, even against a teenage girl. The Barrier Jacket is a lightweight piece of armour that protects a Starlight Guardian. By spending a point of Willpower as a Reflexive action, she gains an armour rating equal to her Resolve for the scene. The “Jacket” covers her entire body, though it may not look it. It often takes the form of a cheerleading outfit or school uniform, and has touches of glittery moonlight in it. No matter what appearance the barrier jacket takes, it provides complete protection for the scene and is impossible to hide as mundane. Cold iron ignores the Barrier Jacket’s armour.
Light of Truth A bright light shines from the Guardian, centered on her heart. It emanates around her and reaches out a number of yards equal to her Presence, illuminating the area as if it were a flickering candle. In addition to creating light, anyone within the radius of the light talking to the magical girl must spend a point of Willpower to speak falsely, and takes a -2 to any rolls to obfuscate the truth. In addition, any supernatural creatures roll Composure + Potency contested by the Guardian’s Presence + Resolve to remain hidden, whether through invisibility or stealth. Mundane characters are spotted instantly. The light also causes hidden nooks and crannies to glow faintly, giving anyone looking for hidden objects a +3 to their rolls. A character must concentrate when using the Light of Truth, and can take no other actions besides moving her speed and using her Defense.
Costume Weapon No magical girl would be complete without a fancy sword or bow and arrow. By spending a point of Willpower, the Starlight Guardian summons a physical weapon that uses the Weaponry skill and takes the form of a staff, a mystical sword, or something of the type. The weapon is between size 1 and 4 with a damage rating of 1L, and an initiative penalty of -0. The weapon lasts for a single scene, and can never be lost or stolen. Any time it isn’t in the Guardian’s hand, she can summon it right back at the top of the initiative.
Light Steps Sometimes monsters can get places that people normally can’t. By making this bargain, a magical girl can reach those places as well. Provided she moves at double her speed, she can move along any surface, even one that couldn’t support her weight or is against gravity. A Guardian with this power can run up walls, across glass, or even over deep mud or shifting sand (but not water) without so much as ruining her shoes. When using this power, she can also leap incredible distances, doubling her successes on any such Athletics rolls.
Big Sister Says Blessed by the inner light–or at least the pacts with the Seelie–the magical girls can resonate an aura of authority. By spending a point of Willpower and rolling Presence + Intimidation + Striking Looks versus each opponent’s Composure + Potency, a Starlight Guardian can make herself appear to be someone more imposing or authoritative. She doesn’t actually become anyone different, but people perceive her as being in charge so long as she doesn’t do anything to go against that impression. In addition, so long as she doesn’t openly carry a weapon or strike at anyone, if an opponent does choose to attack her, they first have to spend a point of Willpower and roll Resolve + Composure.
Love Love Beam Originally this Pactio ability had a different name, but the silly one stuck after it showed up in a gaiden or sidestory in the original Starlight Guardian comic. Older or more uptight Guardians prefer to call it the Starlight Beam. It takes the form of a magical burst of light coming out of the magical girl’s chest or hand (though more than one Guardian has shot hers out of her mouth) with the spending of a point of Willpower and a roll of Dexterity + Athletics. The blast has a damage rating of 2 and does only bashing damage, but it ignores Defense. The short range for the Love Love Beam a number of yards equal to the magical girl’s Presence + Resolve.
Knockout Punch Sometimes enemies don’t stay down. Those enemies that just keep on coming just need a little assistance getting flat on their ass. By spending a point of Willpower for the rest of the scene the Guardian’s fists are cloaked in magic, or perhaps starry gauntlets appear. Any brawling attacks that she takes now do an additional 1 bashing damage on a successful hit, and the first time an opponent is hit they suffer the Knockdown Tilt.
Stereotypes ● The Malleus Maleficarum: These guys act like they’re straight out of an anime. Don’t they know The Church in those things is always evil? ● The Lucifuge: Sure, I guess they make great brooding and mysterious boyfriends, if you’re into that thing. ● Taskforce VALKRYIE: Boys and their toys are pretty useful, and there’s something about a guy in uniform. But if you’re gonna go out for drinks, get ready to hear them bitch about how the NCOs are incompetent. ● The Long Night: I don’t know what’d upset these guys more, kissing my girlfriend or working with fairies… uh, the other kind of fairies. ● Network Zero: Ugh, stop trying to take pictures, creep! I don’t want you ruining my life for your little conspiracy theory Youtube page.
● Vampires: Girls, I know, you think you can “fix” him and it’ll all work out. I’ve heard that story before. ● Werewolves: Bad dog, no treat. ● Mages: I’d make a D&D joke, but I’m wearing a bullet proof school uniform. Just remember that nerds rule the world. It’s kinda sexy, but kinda scary, so don’t let them know how much you know. ● Prometheans: I met this guy who was some kind of zombie and ended up writing THE most embarrassing sex fic. God, I felt so dirty I wanted to shoot him. Probably not a good sign. ● Changelings: Most of them remind us why we shouldn’t trust the things in the Dark Forest, but too many of them are Unseelie monsters going around giving nightmares. Just remember it’s not nice to glomp them even if some of them are just so cute and sad. ● Sin-eaters: If you ever wanna get white girl wasted in a graveyard, find one of these goths. ● Beasts: Woah there, Big Bad Wolf, what makes you think I’m Little Red Riding Hood?