Just an index for the challenge updated as I add posts:
A is for APEMaN
B is for The Books of Three/The Black Cauldron
C is for Combat and Cyborg
D is for Damage Scaling
E is for EMaN Robot Armor
F is for Forge Out of Chaos, Fifth Cycle, and Fantasy Heartbreakers
G is for GURPS
H is for Hawkmistress!
I is for ION Guard and Iron Lords
J is for Jorune
K is for Knights of the Dinner Table
L is for Legion of Superheroes
M
N
O
P
Q is for Quest of the Ancients
R is for Rifts
S is for Suppressed Transmissions
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Rifts Done Right
RDR (maybe call it Radar) is a tag that I've added a couple of times. It is my latest probably not to be finished project. Specifically it stands for Rifts Done Right. It won't technically be Rifts converted to a retro-clone given Palladium's rather nasty policy of sending C&Ds to anyone who posts conversions of their material to other systems. Despite that routinely threads turn up at RPG.net about converting Rifts or doing it right. Most talk about converting it to a "better system" with as diverse a list including EABA, Savage Worlds, Mutants & Masterminds, FATE in several incarnations, Hero, and GURPS regularly coming up. I think that's misguided as the "clunky, broken, and unbalanced" system Palladium uses is a big source of the gonzo fun that makes Rifts work.
Instead, I'm working on a retro-clone based (probably Swords & Wizardry White Box) game inspired by Rifts: a gonzo post-nuclear and magical apocalypse game about guys in powered armor adventuring with dragons in order to kill demons coming to Earth via tears in reality. After all, if you want weird gonzo science fantasy after the end of the world why not go back to the original "balance, we don't need no stinking balance" game style. Palladium's house system has it's roots in the late 70s/early 80s old school style. In fact, they are arguably the last great old school gaming company.
Why am I bothering to post all of this? Because in surveying my A to Z Blogging Challenge planned posts I see just how many are RDR based. Given that I figured explaining it up front was worth while.
Sure, after April it might turn out to be another Space Monks or Demon Haunted World but I hope not. Both of those projects died for lack of players for me to test my ideas. After this Saturday's Stars without Numbers game RDR will be what I run at local meet-ups. I find it hard to create RPG material if there is no game to use them. I'm hoping it'll be a hit at the Meetup and become a monthly game.
Instead, I'm working on a retro-clone based (probably Swords & Wizardry White Box) game inspired by Rifts: a gonzo post-nuclear and magical apocalypse game about guys in powered armor adventuring with dragons in order to kill demons coming to Earth via tears in reality. After all, if you want weird gonzo science fantasy after the end of the world why not go back to the original "balance, we don't need no stinking balance" game style. Palladium's house system has it's roots in the late 70s/early 80s old school style. In fact, they are arguably the last great old school gaming company.
Why am I bothering to post all of this? Because in surveying my A to Z Blogging Challenge planned posts I see just how many are RDR based. Given that I figured explaining it up front was worth while.
Sure, after April it might turn out to be another Space Monks or Demon Haunted World but I hope not. Both of those projects died for lack of players for me to test my ideas. After this Saturday's Stars without Numbers game RDR will be what I run at local meet-ups. I find it hard to create RPG material if there is no game to use them. I'm hoping it'll be a hit at the Meetup and become a monthly game.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Random Campaign Idea: Roaring Heroes
Imagine a time of great change, a new and unique popular music, the emergence of organized crime in many cities in the US, a ubiquitous underworld, rebellious youth culture, lots of stories of adventure and science, and many people pushing to the limits of human ability and endurance.
Well, if you consider women voting, the emergence of jazz (specifically Dixieland), people from Joe Kennedy to Al Capone to making fortunes running rum, the speakeasy culture, The Lost Generation and flappers, the birth of Amazing Stories, much of Lovecraft's stories (the landmark Call of Cthulhu was written in 1926 and published in 1928), and things as serious as Lindbergh flight and as frivolous as pole-sitting(although it has a serious religious history).
So why not superheroes? I thing the 20s is a completely ignored period for superheroes, at least in gaming.
Potential heroes could include:
Pole Star: With the emergence of the first Polish nation in over a century the resulting surge of nationalism would inspire one young lady to become the embodiment of the Polish nation. Her powers first appeared on the battlefields of Polish-Soviet War when she blinded an entire Soviet infantry company (leading to their capture) with her "star light".
The Limmerick: An Irish veteran of the war against British known for his banter while running circles around British troops later showed how literal those circles were. This speedster was also know for his improvised vibes at his opponents.
The Stylist: A record holder during the pole sitting fad would achieve a form of enlightenment and bodily control and go on to fight crime with his mental powers and unstoppable fists.
The Drunken Brawler: The other great fist fighter of the first generation of superheroes was a college student who first learned of his alcohol fueled powers while defending his girl and several others when a gang hit went down in his favorite speakeasy.
The Mol: However, The Drunken Brawler's girlfriend needed protection the least. A champion trick shooter she would go on to join him in crime fighting in the Northeast US. Given his need for the illegal gin to fuel his abilities she actually held the more prominent position and certainly was the public face of the Flapper Duo.
I think a 1920s game would work best with a few ground rules:
Well, if you consider women voting, the emergence of jazz (specifically Dixieland), people from Joe Kennedy to Al Capone to making fortunes running rum, the speakeasy culture, The Lost Generation and flappers, the birth of Amazing Stories, much of Lovecraft's stories (the landmark Call of Cthulhu was written in 1926 and published in 1928), and things as serious as Lindbergh flight and as frivolous as pole-sitting(although it has a serious religious history).
So why not superheroes? I thing the 20s is a completely ignored period for superheroes, at least in gaming.
Potential heroes could include:
Pole Star: With the emergence of the first Polish nation in over a century the resulting surge of nationalism would inspire one young lady to become the embodiment of the Polish nation. Her powers first appeared on the battlefields of Polish-Soviet War when she blinded an entire Soviet infantry company (leading to their capture) with her "star light".
The Limmerick: An Irish veteran of the war against British known for his banter while running circles around British troops later showed how literal those circles were. This speedster was also know for his improvised vibes at his opponents.
The Stylist: A record holder during the pole sitting fad would achieve a form of enlightenment and bodily control and go on to fight crime with his mental powers and unstoppable fists.
The Drunken Brawler: The other great fist fighter of the first generation of superheroes was a college student who first learned of his alcohol fueled powers while defending his girl and several others when a gang hit went down in his favorite speakeasy.
The Mol: However, The Drunken Brawler's girlfriend needed protection the least. A champion trick shooter she would go on to join him in crime fighting in the Northeast US. Given his need for the illegal gin to fuel his abilities she actually held the more prominent position and certainly was the public face of the Flapper Duo.
I think a 1920s game would work best with a few ground rules:
- The nature of the heroes is probably better at a lower power level (even the original Superman was less powered than today) and with attitudes halfway between classic pulp heroes such as The Shadow and Doc Savage and the Superheroes decended from them. Domino masks and stylized street clothes should be preferred over tights.
- A lighter, early Silver Age style should prevail and even then a more DC "golly, gee why can't she love me instead of Green Lantern" feel than a "how will I take care of Aunt May" Marvel feel.
- At the same time, this is the party before we all die in the wake of WWI. Most men who are heroes are probably veterans of that war and their angst over the killing and senselessness of the war is good. Codes against killing as well as superheroics being an expression of things such as finding meaning or thrill seeking (similar to the emergence of biker gangs after WWII) are good uses of the effects of the war.
- The Mysterious East is a double edged sword. Yellow peril is in the air and the Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu (or a suitable clone) is almost required. At the same time characters like Larry Darrell are finding a way to deal with the war and some mysterious powers (even Darrell uses hypnotism) in the Orient.
- National heroes could pop up all over Europe with the changes due to the war. That same nationalism deposed many monarchs who could make great villains or national heroes depending on how you play it. Is the Kaiser a villain scheming to re-enslave Germany or the last person defending it to the world?
Monday, March 28, 2011
A Pair of Random Thoughts
I'm not sure it's the answer they wanted but a recent search that lead someone here: "where did people go in the 80s".
Well, they did go and play D&D so it's a valid answer.
Item the second is there is a lot of talk about how D&D in the 80s was a fad and we'll never see it again. While I don't disagree I think that concluding the hobby is doomed, Doomed, DOOMED because of it is false. Why?
This is one of the newest Meetups in Atlanta. Gee, didn't that fad die over a decade before Dave and Gary first created our hobby?
Well, they did go and play D&D so it's a valid answer.
Item the second is there is a lot of talk about how D&D in the 80s was a fad and we'll never see it again. While I don't disagree I think that concluding the hobby is doomed, Doomed, DOOMED because of it is false. Why?
This is one of the newest Meetups in Atlanta. Gee, didn't that fad die over a decade before Dave and Gary first created our hobby?
I Want to Open a "5 & 23" Store
I mentioned in the last post my idea of how to write PDFs and how it falls into Zak's "how I want to know about your setting" post. Yet, it came from much more random ideas on my part.
The idea behind a "5 & 23" supplement is fairly simple. Take an idea: character generation, artifacts, the Hierarchy, whatever and create two sets of things. First, you create 5 of something about the idea. These five are longer items like an essay or other exposition text. For example, with character generation you could make an outline of character generation, an alignment chart with explanations, a brief set of common knowledge, and a couple of other things. Then you make 23 shorter things, like sets of random tables, on the same idea. A logical one for character generation would be 23 sets of Devil in the Details tables. These might have some exposition but the core idea is these are at the game table usable things. In fact, they should be laid out so the GM can print out the charts on one page, complete and alone, and just pick the one he needs out of his notebook. For example, you could hand the elf tables to the player creating an elf while the one creating a cleric could pick the Hierarchy one or The Cults of the 1,000 Saints One.
Why 5 and 23? Because they are sacred numbers to Discordians and I've discussed before how influential Discordianism is for me and the setting. Influential enough that when thinking about making a product or two Discordian numbers guiding the form of product.
I was discussing this in early March with someone. While I won't claim independent creation it's nice to know I was at least thinking along similar lines to people much smarter than me.
The idea behind a "5 & 23" supplement is fairly simple. Take an idea: character generation, artifacts, the Hierarchy, whatever and create two sets of things. First, you create 5 of something about the idea. These five are longer items like an essay or other exposition text. For example, with character generation you could make an outline of character generation, an alignment chart with explanations, a brief set of common knowledge, and a couple of other things. Then you make 23 shorter things, like sets of random tables, on the same idea. A logical one for character generation would be 23 sets of Devil in the Details tables. These might have some exposition but the core idea is these are at the game table usable things. In fact, they should be laid out so the GM can print out the charts on one page, complete and alone, and just pick the one he needs out of his notebook. For example, you could hand the elf tables to the player creating an elf while the one creating a cleric could pick the Hierarchy one or The Cults of the 1,000 Saints One.
Why 5 and 23? Because they are sacred numbers to Discordians and I've discussed before how influential Discordianism is for me and the setting. Influential enough that when thinking about making a product or two Discordian numbers guiding the form of product.
I was discussing this in early March with someone. While I won't claim independent creation it's nice to know I was at least thinking along similar lines to people much smarter than me.
What Do Welsh Porn Stars Know About D&D
The Welsh Piper expanded upon an excellent idea from Zak at Playing D&D with Porn Stars. GM oriented materials, especial setting materials, are written wrong. They are long tomes of text resembling histories or fiction instead of stuff you can use at the table.
Zak has since done a couple of posts that one could see as GM exercises similar to writing exercises. The first, as part of the original post, is "What's Chewing On That Carcass? Table For The Last NonDungeon Place Your PCs Were...(roll d6)". The second, a day later was "d6 Why Did that Happen?" table for the last city or settlement your PCs visited. The first seems less useful to me but the second is great in terms of explaining the secret behind what to me was just an event that the players fixated on.
Yet even the first, is useful if you look at Erin's reasons this is so brilliant. It's a weird, simple encounter table which makes it easier for me to customize my encounter/random event tables.
What really struck me is how my "5 & 23" idea for gathering PDFs of The World After info falls into this. It's also a cheap and easy idea for blog posts.
Zak has since done a couple of posts that one could see as GM exercises similar to writing exercises. The first, as part of the original post, is "What's Chewing On That Carcass? Table For The Last NonDungeon Place Your PCs Were...(roll d6)". The second, a day later was "d6 Why Did that Happen?" table for the last city or settlement your PCs visited. The first seems less useful to me but the second is great in terms of explaining the secret behind what to me was just an event that the players fixated on.
Yet even the first, is useful if you look at Erin's reasons this is so brilliant. It's a weird, simple encounter table which makes it easier for me to customize my encounter/random event tables.
What really struck me is how my "5 & 23" idea for gathering PDFs of The World After info falls into this. It's also a cheap and easy idea for blog posts.
Monday Pointers: Out Like a Lamb Edition
D4:Favored and Unfavored Abilities
Here's a cool little house rule for generating ability scores. It's from an abandoned attempted at the Fantasy Heartbreaker exercise by Mike Holmes and related by Ron Edwards in the second fantasy heartbreaker article. The irony is I found Madcat's blog looking up one of my favorite heartbreakers, Fifth Cycle. Regardless, I think this idea will work it's way into The World After, at least for generating non-humans.
D6:Produce a Setting Almanac, not Encyclopedia
This one is a bit old, but given I've got two posts in the hopper today that reference it I figured I should link to it. Zak, about to produce his first published setting, argues prose is the wrong way to present a setting. Instead we should have game rules materials: random charts, classes, lists, etc.
D8:Yet This is An Encyclopedia
The hot thing last week in the OSR seemed to be our very own wiki with many exhortations to link your favorite things.
D10:A Truly Random Contest
So, Fight On is having a random tables contest. The winners get to roll on a series of treasure tables for their prize.
D12:Not An April's Fools
This Friday is the pre-order day for LotFPWFRPG: Grindhouse Edition and Vornheim (which is the above mentioned setting by Zak). I will be as close to #1 as possible to the point of considering writing a bot to do it.
Two posts in the hopper today (as in almost done) plus Thursday I'll be putting up a "to be filled in as I go" index for the post a letter a day in April.
Here's a cool little house rule for generating ability scores. It's from an abandoned attempted at the Fantasy Heartbreaker exercise by Mike Holmes and related by Ron Edwards in the second fantasy heartbreaker article. The irony is I found Madcat's blog looking up one of my favorite heartbreakers, Fifth Cycle. Regardless, I think this idea will work it's way into The World After, at least for generating non-humans.
D6:Produce a Setting Almanac, not Encyclopedia
This one is a bit old, but given I've got two posts in the hopper today that reference it I figured I should link to it. Zak, about to produce his first published setting, argues prose is the wrong way to present a setting. Instead we should have game rules materials: random charts, classes, lists, etc.
D8:Yet This is An Encyclopedia
The hot thing last week in the OSR seemed to be our very own wiki with many exhortations to link your favorite things.
D10:A Truly Random Contest
So, Fight On is having a random tables contest. The winners get to roll on a series of treasure tables for their prize.
D12:Not An April's Fools
This Friday is the pre-order day for LotFPWFRPG: Grindhouse Edition and Vornheim (which is the above mentioned setting by Zak). I will be as close to #1 as possible to the point of considering writing a bot to do it.
Two posts in the hopper today (as in almost done) plus Thursday I'll be putting up a "to be filled in as I go" index for the post a letter a day in April.
Friday, March 25, 2011
The State of Superior and the Other Lake States: Encounter Tables
Setting info via The Zak Method.
After The Night of Blood and Tears human remnants in the Great Lakes regions of the US and Canada huddled into medium cities that survived. Eventually these settlements evolved into the Lake States, dominated by Superior. They are human purists and virulently anti-magic and nearly as anti-psionic.
In the Lake States there are three basic types of areas in The Lake States: urban, farmland, and fringe (originally wastes).
Lake States Encounter Tables
Everything in this box is released via Creative Commons or Open Gaming License as best suits your needs. Please licensing page for details.
After The Night of Blood and Tears human remnants in the Great Lakes regions of the US and Canada huddled into medium cities that survived. Eventually these settlements evolved into the Lake States, dominated by Superior. They are human purists and virulently anti-magic and nearly as anti-psionic.
In the Lake States there are three basic types of areas in The Lake States: urban, farmland, and fringe (originally wastes).
Lake States Encounter Tables
| Lake States Urban Encounters | |
|---|---|
| 2 | Escaped Extra-dimensional Being |
| 3 | Rouge magic user or psychic |
| 4 | Lone wolf patrol |
| 5 | Military convoy |
| 6 | Full wolf patrol |
| 7 | Common public services bot |
| 8 | Party officials |
| 9 | Off Duty Regular soldiers |
| 10 | Police patrol |
| 11 | Common workers going to or from work |
| 12 | Drunks |
| 13 | Skinhead Gang |
| 14 | Prostitute |
| 15 | Slave laborer |
| 16 | Adventuring Party |
| 17 | Black market dealer of some kind |
| 18 | Stoners |
| 19 | Escaped slave laborer |
| 20 | Minor mutant |
| Lake States Farmland Encounters | |
|---|---|
| 2 | Extra-dimensional Being |
| 3 | Rouge magic user or psychic |
| 4 | Lone wolf patrol |
| 5 | Slave laborer |
| 6 | Full wolf patrol |
| 7 | Farming bot |
| 8 | Adventuring Party |
| 9 | Farm products convoy |
| 10 | Military Convoy |
| 11 | Military Patrol |
| 12 | Farm Workers |
| 13 | Farm products convoy |
| 14 | Drunks |
| 15 | Farming bot |
| 16 | Escaped slave laborer |
| 17 | Smuggler |
| 18 | Industrial resources convoy |
| 19 | Minor mutant |
| 20 | Major mutant |
| Lake States Fringe Encounters | |
|---|---|
| 2 | Lone wolf patrol |
| 3 | Smuggler |
| 4 | Full wolf patrol |
| 5 | Military Patrol |
| 6 | Extra-dimensional Being |
| 7 | Malfunctioning bot |
| 8 | Magic-user and apprentices |
| 9 | Refugees |
| 10 | Adventuring Party |
| 11 | Wild animals |
| 12 | Giant Ants |
| 13 | Giant Deer |
| 14 | Mammoth |
| 15 | Giant Bear |
| 16 | Dragon |
| 17 | Demon |
| 18 | Escaped slave laborer |
| 19 | Minor mutant |
| 20 | Major mutant |
Everything in this box is released via Creative Commons or Open Gaming License as best suits your needs. Please licensing page for details.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Inspirational Art: Hot Elf Chicks
For those getting the joke, yeah I'm late. I took a couple of weeks break from the D&D blogs. But, I figured I could still present various pictures of the Hot Elf Chick of all Hot Elf Chicks of The World After, Lilith, Mother of Elves.
For those of you going, "Hey, I goggled 'hot elf chicks' looking for some inspirational material and I'm getting stuff about some lame D&D world using artsy pictures, WTF?" let me explain.
This blog is connected to a large community of DIY oriented players of D&D and other roleplaying games. We are using a common bait and switch tactic: seeding terms we know people are searching to get people to visit our blogs who usually wouldn't. We figure some of you either played games like D&D in the past but drifted away or might enjoy playing them with us
First up we have John Collier's Lilith, which graced the post linked above. It is my favorite Lilith (obviously I would think) and one I consider highly erotic. You might not consider it "hot" in the primitive boner creating sense that seems to be the limit of 21st century male thinking on the Internet but I encourage you to move beyond that and imagine the sensual and sexual avenues this woman would open to you.
Next up is Dante Gabriel Rossetti who had a habit of painting the same woman from the same model (yet who looked nothing like the model). His Lilith is colder and more reserved than Collier's Lilith. Given in The World After elves are the children of primal chaos the abandon and destructive sensuality of Collier is a much better match than the ice queen of Rossetti.
Next we have some more modern Lilith images. The first incorporates direct dragonic features into Lilith herself while the second maintains the serpent entwining nature we see in Collier.
Finally, we'll finish with Vallejo's Lilith.
One thing this post has got me wondering, I choose Lilith as the Mother of Elves for the World After without considering the strong draconic/serpent imagery. That said, the Marvel Weird World materials which inspired the elves without memory show one elf born fully adult from an egg in the skeleton of a dead serpent. Perhaps there is a strong connection there.
Finally, some links to learn more about the OSR:
THE Place to go to learn about the history and ethos of early D&D is Grognardia.
If you lost those old D&D books there are a variety of clones: Basic Fantasy Roleplaying, Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry, and OSRIC.
My favorite producer of new material is Lamentations of the Flame Princes who also produce their own D&D clone which is my rule set of choice.
Finally, if you want hot chicks and D&D how can you beat Playing D&D with Porn Stars.
If that's got you interested, check the blog roll and the Old School RPG Magazine and Fanzine page for more.
For those of you going, "Hey, I goggled 'hot elf chicks' looking for some inspirational material and I'm getting stuff about some lame D&D world using artsy pictures, WTF?" let me explain.
This blog is connected to a large community of DIY oriented players of D&D and other roleplaying games. We are using a common bait and switch tactic: seeding terms we know people are searching to get people to visit our blogs who usually wouldn't. We figure some of you either played games like D&D in the past but drifted away or might enjoy playing them with us
First up we have John Collier's Lilith, which graced the post linked above. It is my favorite Lilith (obviously I would think) and one I consider highly erotic. You might not consider it "hot" in the primitive boner creating sense that seems to be the limit of 21st century male thinking on the Internet but I encourage you to move beyond that and imagine the sensual and sexual avenues this woman would open to you.
Next up is Dante Gabriel Rossetti who had a habit of painting the same woman from the same model (yet who looked nothing like the model). His Lilith is colder and more reserved than Collier's Lilith. Given in The World After elves are the children of primal chaos the abandon and destructive sensuality of Collier is a much better match than the ice queen of Rossetti.
Next we have some more modern Lilith images. The first incorporates direct dragonic features into Lilith herself while the second maintains the serpent entwining nature we see in Collier.
One thing this post has got me wondering, I choose Lilith as the Mother of Elves for the World After without considering the strong draconic/serpent imagery. That said, the Marvel Weird World materials which inspired the elves without memory show one elf born fully adult from an egg in the skeleton of a dead serpent. Perhaps there is a strong connection there.
Finally, some links to learn more about the OSR:
THE Place to go to learn about the history and ethos of early D&D is Grognardia.
If you lost those old D&D books there are a variety of clones: Basic Fantasy Roleplaying, Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry, and OSRIC.
My favorite producer of new material is Lamentations of the Flame Princes who also produce their own D&D clone which is my rule set of choice.
Finally, if you want hot chicks and D&D how can you beat Playing D&D with Porn Stars.
If that's got you interested, check the blog roll and the Old School RPG Magazine and Fanzine page for more.
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