How to forge an amazing mythos in City of Mist
Superpowered detective noir game City of Mist gives you the powers of real world mythology.
For the past four years, I have been running a roleplaying game called City of Mist. It’s a detective noir game set in a modern-day world where stories have awakened within people, granting them incredible powers. For reference, think of American Gods by Neil Gaiman, The Wolf Among Us by Telltale Games, or The Wicked + The Divine by Kieron Gillen. The game uses the Powered by the Apocalypse system and is heavily focused on roleplay, narrative, and character development. I have to say, it’s one of the best roleplaying games I’ve ever played, and it has quickly become a staple in any TTRPG conversation I have. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to try something new, exciting, and intriguing.
I’m not writing this just to rant about City of Mist; rather, this is a simple set of points and recommendations for anyone either playing or considering making a character for this amazing game.
A few disclaimers: I’m an ancient history graduate with a focus on Greek mythology, and I’m a complete mythology fanatic. As a fanatic, I want to make it very clear that there is no singular "correct" interpretation of myth. Myth is something that evolves and changes with time. We can make educated guesses about what ancient people might have taken from certain tales, but we will never know for sure. So much has been lost over the years that the boundary between certainty and speculation can be thin. I’m saying this so you know that no one has the right to tell you that your interpretation is incorrect or invalid. We all draw what we need from stories, which is what makes them so powerful and important.
The following is a collection of my opinions and does not cover the full breadth of my thoughts on these subjects. I completely understand if you disagree, and I’m happy to discuss any disagreements in the comments. Without further ado, let's jump into it.
1. Talk to your MC about your idea.
This might sound simple, but it’s an easy one to overlook. Like all roleplaying games, most of the story is driven by your MC (Master of Ceremonies). They create the city in which your character resides. Because of this, it’s really important to discuss with them the tone and content of their planned cases.
Some MCs, like myself, might not want certain mythos included if they clash with the world they’ve built. The world of myth is filled with troubling and difficult content, and your MC might require you to tone down aspects of your mythos so it fits into a more inclusive setting. On the other hand, your MC might want to embrace the pure brutality and darkness of mythology, and if you don’t talk to them, your SpongeBob mythos probably won’t fit in.
The key here is to keep an open mind and listen to your MC if they have concerns about your choice. It’s better to talk things through at the beginning than to struggle later.
2. Read the core rulebook.
The City of Mist core rulebook is a treasure trove of insightful, creative, and complex mythoi brought to life. There’s no reason not to use it to inform and develop your own ideas. Remember, just because the rulebook presents a character in a certain way doesn’t mean you have to follow it exactly. Mythology is all about interpretation, and there are countless ways to interpret each tale.
The rulebook will help inform your choices, as you’ll find some great examples that can inspire your own ideas.
3. Learn obscure mythology.
Where Dungeons & Dragons or Vampire: The Masquerade have lore books, City of Mist uses the entire world around you as its lore. Your options are literally limitless.
I’m an ancient history student and a mythology nerd, and I often find myself gravitating toward familiar myths that I’ve studied all my life. Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythologies are some of the most popular, and because of that, we tend to draw from them a lot. I’m guilty of this myself, as it’s easy to fall back on my Greek knowledge and lose sight of all the other mythologies out there.
Don’t get me wrong—there’s a reason these stories are so beloved. They’re beautiful, unique, and still resonate with us today. But it’s always good to broaden your mind with the beliefs and tales from across the world.
Not only will this expand your own knowledge, but it will also open up more possibilities for character creation. For MCs, especially, this is essential for creating an authentic, inclusive, and accessible city for your players.
4. Learn the origin of myths.
Myths are deeply connected to who we are as people. They were formed in the collective consciousness of entire cultures as they tried to make sense of the world around them. As such, myths are the beating heart of cultures and peoples long gone from the earth.
Understanding the origin of a myth gives you insight into the building blocks that shaped it and helps you understand the people who created it. This deeper understanding can inform your character’s mythos and allow for greater character growth.
Often, when you examine one myth, you’ll find it overlaps with others, extending into different cultures and histories.
For example, the will-o'-the-wisp myth appears in various cultures but is most similar in Ireland and Scotland. The idea of a nature spirit or ghost luring people into dangerous bogs connects to the very real fear of those landscapes. This kind of insight can help you build interesting power tags for your character.
5. Get to the heart of the story.
Similar to the previous point, it’s helpful to get to the core of your story and figure out both what it’s saying and why it matters.
For example, The Iliad is about the brutality and glory of war colliding. Achilles, the greatest warrior of the Greeks, is given a choice: a long life of happiness or a short life of glory. He chooses glory, and his story has echoed through countless characters since. This theme resonates with real-life decisions made by soldiers, philosophers, and even rock stars.
Creating an Achilles without this choice would be like creating an Odysseus without a survival instinct or a Loki without his chaos. The essence of the myth shapes the character, and harnessing it will allow you to do the tale—and your character—justice.
6. Don’t be afraid to break mythological convention.
On the other hand, there can be great power in breaking mythological convention to create something new. You could create a version of Achilles who sought glory but never got to die young, now living as an aged, somewhat lost figure, broken from his destined path.
This kind of decision could evolve throughout your campaign, with gradual changes, cracks, and shifts in themes. However, there’s nothing wrong with starting a character outside the boundaries of traditional myth.
Take the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice as an example. In the original Greek myth, Eurydice dies, and Orpheus ventures to the underworld to bring her back. He succeeds but loses her again when he looks back. The story emphasizes the inevitability of death.
In modern retellings, such as in the Supergiant game Hades, Eurydice doesn’t want to return to life. She’s content to stay dead and even taunts Orpheus to look back. This twist on the myth is just as valid as the original and makes for a compelling basis for a mythos.
7. Study history.
As I’ve stressed before, history and mythology are deeply intertwined. You can’t look at myth without history, and you can’t look at historical figures without seeing the legends that have grown around them.
With each historical perspective comes a different view of a mythos. Take Julius Caesar, for example: from the Roman perspective, he’s a brilliant tactician and near-divine figure; from the perspective of the Gauls, he’s a monstrous tyrant. Both perspectives are true, and both are false, but either can serve as the basis for a character.
That said, be sure to consult with your MC before incorporating historical figures, as historical content can be sensitive and complex. It’s important to handle such themes with care.
8. Match your Mythos with your Logos.
The power of a mythos is only doubled when you connect it to a human character. In my opinion, it’s best to avoid simple trope combinations, as they don’t allow for as much character development. If you have the mythos of Hercules, your character doesn’t need to be a strongman. If you have the mythos of Mercury, they don’t have to be a postman or track runner.
For example, your Hercules could be a fiery young activist whose herculean strength manifests through her passionate willpower. The Hercules within her might try to turn her strength into rage, echoing the original myth where Hercules’ strength led to tragedy.
Consider the relationship your character has with their mythos and develop it as the story unfolds. Will they embrace the mythos, or fight it? Will it slowly consume them, or will they find harmony?
9. Have fun with it.
Finally, have fun and think outside the box. City of Mist gives you more freedom in character creation than almost any other roleplaying game out there.
It allows you to take the greatest stories ever told and reforge them into something new. Stories shape who we are. They connect us to our past and help us understand our existence. When you give yourself the freedom to embrace them, you can create compelling, diverse narratives that reflect the essence of being human.