The Realm of Dungeons & Dragons

D&D Next/5e

2012-01-23T06:58:00.000-08:00

I can't help wondering (and worrying) if it's actually going to work, I really REALLY want it too - I've loved D&D since the White Box Edition.

Played Basic, then AD&D 1st Edition to DEATH - kept running 1st, but learned 2nd for those who like it.

Really couldn't get to grips with 3rd/3.5 - too many options, to open to abuse by unscrupulous players - I wasn't a fan at all (it still didn't stop me trying, but after one Scenario - played over seven weeks, I went back to AD&D 1st with a little 2e thrown in).

Then came 4th, and I bought into it - but it wasn't satisfying, not at all - really not enjoyable to run or play for me - so I started running 1st ed AD&D and Castles and Crusades for my "newbies".

Over time, AD&D 1st and C&C started to fuse - and we had something great going on. So it was more than apparent some of the newer concepts/elements worked great, they needed incorporating.

Is this what we are going to see with D&D Next/5e? What they 'seem' to be reaching for is a little like the 2e re-vamp, with the Skills & Powers books etc

A specific "core" with books and rules you can plug in. Thats actually a style that appeals to so many gamers, I'm still REALLY hopeful they get it right this time - all the promises and chatter seem "spot on", so I wait with baited breath . . . .

Do you know, where you are going to . . . . .

2012-01-09T17:33:00.000-08:00

I actually bought into the whole 4e package to begin with, Rulebooks, T-Shirts, running Demo's etc. But I must admit, it didn't take me that long to "burn out" on the whole thing.

When I got fed up with it (which really didn't take that long at all) I FLEW back to AD&D 1st Edition (which is still my favourite version of the Game) with some Castles & Crusades on the side (which was my gateway system, to get people to play AD&D) - so my imagination hasn't been stilted or abandoned, just dissapointed.

I'm really REALLY hoping 5th Edition "cuts it" as far as I am concerned - my AD&D Books are looking tired and well worn now, and they are getting increasingly expensive to replace should I need to.

5th Edition D&D Announced

2012-01-09T07:13:00.000-08:00

Dust off your Wallets D&D Fans!

As I predicted early last year (and suffered even more hate attacks and abuse than usual), 5th Edition would be announced next (now this) year.

The Articles (both news and off the Wizbro website) read as hopeful, they kinda (in a VERY round about way) admit they screwed up with 4th - alienating fans etc.

Whether or not they are going to get it right waits to be seen, but (as usual) I am excited and remain optimistic. I just hope (for once) I am correct in my optimism.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidewalt/2012/01/09/wizards-announce-new-dungeons-and-dragons-an-inside-look-at-the-game/

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4ll/20120109

Lord of the Rings Sucks

2011-12-22T05:02:00.000-08:00

OK, I know this is going to result it hate-outrage. But Lord of the Rings pretty much sucks. The books are long winded and so up themselves you can almost smell the s**t-stains.

The Movies aren't much better (which is actually what burned me out) - and I prefer Sword and Sorcery (Conan and Thongor) over the novels, and pretty much any Fantasy/Science Fantasy over the Movies (STAR WARS RULES, the... original Trilogy comes first though).

In all the Middle Earth Stories - Tolkien's good guys are white and noble - and the bad guys are black, slanty-eyed, unattractive, inarticulate and a psychologically undeveloped horde - bigotry at its best.

In the Movies – Check the percentage of protagonists in Fellowship who are white: 100%

Meanwhile the black-skinned antagonists and their black crow spies and their black glass seeing ball inhabit their black towers and perform black magic. One would have to be blind to miss the symbolism.

Only Saruman is white, and even he is abusing the other races and treating them like slaves to reach his goal.

The Movie continuity guys are crap, In the massive Mt. Doom battle scene at the beginning of Fellowship of the Ring, a DVD pause reveals at least half a dozen of the 50,000 Orc Warrior extras are wearing modern tennis shoes.

Re – the ACTUAL PLOT of Lord of the Rings. Why TF didn't they take horses on their quest?( Or even more practically, why didn't Gandalf's giant flying bird friend haul them to Mordor if it was THAT bloody important, at the end the Giant Eagles rescued Frodo and Sam in no time flat – if its so damn important to destroy the ring why risk it ON FOOT OVER AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME) – HEY LOOK OUT FELLOWSHIP - ALL methods of transportation have been swallowed by the “Dark Lord of the Plot Hole”!

Every time Frodo or Bilbo went invisible with the ring he should have also gone BLIND. Your eyes cannot function unless light is reflected off the cornea. If light passes through it (as must be the case with invisibility) sight is no longer possible. D’OH!

I read somewhere that US students are being forced to read some novelization of the movies in their literature classes. UTTERLY Ridiculous! Hollywood wins again

OK – RANT OVER!

The Legend of the Crystal Skulls - Part II

2011-11-24T15:06:00.000-08:00

The land is split, Munkars realm embrace the power of the two Skulls he has - it has lead to a new age of prosperity and progress for the new elite, Munkar and his followers. Munkars "empire" (for want of a better word) is built of the backs of the ignorant and the less fortunate, only those outside of his reach live free in the 'outlands'.

Munkar lives in the vast city of Vivamus, a shining complex of many levels and towers - he and his followers live in great luxury, nearly touching the sky - yet the city streets are shielded by the towers from the daylight, leaving the less fortunate to live their miserable lives in shadow.

To the North, the winterlands - a cold mountainous region, and home to the Tribe of the Free. Barbarians who bow to no man save their High Chieftain, and then only out of love and respect - not out of fear.

The Legend of the Crystal Skulls

2011-11-21T09:20:00.001-08:00

In a time before History began, in a Land beyond imagination - lay the realm of Lamaria.

Darkness ruled the land, the evil Necromancer Munkar had harnessed the power of the Gods by capturing two of the five Crystal Skulls - remnants of power of the dead gods of Lamaria.

Munkar and his minions constantly search for the remaining three Skulls - for he who controls all five has dominance over reality itself.

This Really Amused Me . . . .

2011-11-13T09:17:00.000-08:00

I (personally) believe in 100% openness with my Players, Don Turnbull of TSR UK (great bloke, sadly missed) always found that "odd" about my style of DM'ing - that I didn't fudge rolls etc

When 4th Edition came out, and practically everything is static - with little or no rolling actually done by the player - I was more than a little incensed - as it takes away a good chunk of the fun for the player.

So, this article on 'The Action Point' really REALLY amused me -

http://theactionpoint.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/having-players-roll-the-dice/

So, basically, it seems like its actually more fun to play 4th Edition like the older editions were played - odd that . . . .

The Killing Joke

2011-07-21T03:20:00.000-07:00

No, not the DC Graphic Novel - but rather a comment the way WizBro are treating Gary and Daves legacy. They are talking about a 5th Edition of D&D now, its been getting further and further away from what D&D should be to me. Less and less of a Role Playing Experience, more and more of a single model tabletop tactical wargame. What they are doing has been slowly but surely killing off the brand name.

A guy on Google+ made an interesting remark about RPG's in one of my Friends comment threads - "All This Must Evolve" - It kinda made me smile at the time, so lets look at that comment.

In Nature, if something 'works' it changes very little. Sharks and crocodiles are optimally suited for their environment - so they haven't really changed for a VERY long time.

Evolution and change isn't always necessary really, especially when it comes to games and gaming.

2nd Edition AD&D didn't really change much from 1st Edition AD&D - it added and expanded, in fact I (as a DM) merely added certain elements and functionality from 2nd Ed to my 1st Ed Games - if it's not "broken" why fix it right.

Unfortunately, changing things in a major (and often flawed) way - is a "disease" that has penetrated the RPG industry, it's a sad truth. Not everyone has the common sense that a Publisher like Troll Lords has - in only changing things that don't work well.

The truth of the matter is, that the MAIN reason for changes in rules IS NOT JUST to "make things better" - its to actually ensure that people feel compelled to buy the newest edition!

Whilst its logical to ensure the survival of a business, its NOT always a good thing in my opinion (or in a lot of other peoples for that matter) why not bring out new and exciting products that add to the gaming experience, rather than watering down and re-hashing ideas all the damn time!

Check out this guys feelings on the possibility on there being a 5th Edition!

http://classicrpgrealms.blogspot.com/2011/07/d-5th-edition.html

Change isn't always the right way to go, just "ask" the environment how it "feels" about the changes Mankind has made, all in the name of "progress" too!

I still enjoy 1st Edition AD&D, I prefer the look and the "feel" of it. OD&D through 1st Edition AD&D was a labour of love, its obvious - 4th Edition is quite simply soulless "product", and a lackluster product at that.

In Depth Role Playing or Adventure Gaming

2011-07-08T06:39:00.000-07:00

What do you prefer, I know I (and my Players) prefer Adventure Gaming.

Whats the difference I hear you ask, Adventure Gaming is like an Action Movie - light on Plot, high on Action and Investment in the Characters (as in you want to see the Heroes win) - I prefer to run Games like that.

A real "Roller Coaster" ride that keeps my players involved and guessing - fun, rowdy, and fast!

In Depth Role Playing - even my games have this sometimes, but I find it boring if that's ALL you ever do.

I remember once talking to a Guy who played Vampire the Masquerade twice a week (sometimes more) - they spent an ENTIRE SESSION that lasted over four hours talking at a Party . . . . . .

FFS if I want to do that I would actually go to a real damn Party, whats the point of "playing" at real life - go out and LIVE IT FFS! OK there are no real Vampires to hang around with, I'll give them that - but I have to say - THATS why Live Action Story Teller games work better than on the table-top. In Depth Roleplaying works better in "person" IMHO.

Table-Top RPG's (for me at least) give me a chance to do things I would never do in reality - going down a Dark Dank Dungeon in search of Treasure, or swing across a wide Ravine on a Jungle vine to escape some Magical Abomination, or Hack a Government Mainframe to steal Top-Secret Weapon Designs - not stand around dressed like some reject from an Anne Rice Novel chatting!

High on Adventure is the key for any FRP, whether its D&D or Runequest - THAT'S the real key to fun and a great time being had by all IMHO. Thats not to say Roleplaying doesn't come into it, not at all - we should always at least attempt to play unique and distinct characters wherever possible - even when it comes to your own NPC's - that's a huge part of the fun I reckon.

4th Edition (Not) DnD have gone TOO far towards the Adventure Game Concept - its way WAY too light on the Role-playing. Almost all interactions within the gaming environment can be Governed by a Dice Roll - as opposed to Role-played Through - not good IMHO.

Too Far WizBro, Too Far.

House of Paincakes

2011-07-07T10:48:00.000-07:00

I am glad to announce I am now part of the "House of Paincakes" Gamers Blog Network!

Just Sayin'

Castle Keepers Guide - Some Thoughts

2011-07-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted on here for a while, RPG's have taken a back seat for me for a while - not because of lack of interest - but life has been kinda chaotic, and I've been focusing on miniatures and painting for a while (I find it calming).

I've had the Castle Keepers Guide for Castles and Crusades for a while, but haven't really had the time to sit and read it properly. Now I have, here are my thoughts (for what they are worth).

Ok – now everyone who knows me is aware what a huge Castles & Crusades fan I am, next to AD&D 1st Edition it’s my favourite RPG – so what I write here I really don’t do lightly, I'm just being as honest as I always try to be - so before you read on – it’s not all hearts and flowers. Sorry Troll Lords . . . . .
It is a hefty and great looking book – I do wonder however why the cover is matte not glossy like the other books – it looks kinda strange on my bookshelf tbh. A Shame that really.

It’s very VERY much like the original AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide in feel and tone – but rather than simply being a “copy” it’s much more like a show of respect, and a doff of the writers “cap” so to speak.

There is a wonderful section on fleshing out your characters, complete with different methods for attribute generation – height, weight and age charts and tables – and even ideas for using Monster Races as Characters (something very fashionable these days, but also something I am not too keen on.

The section on hirelings and henchmen, whilst interesting and somewhat useful – simply goes on too long for me. Droning on and on seemingly forever, I zoned out while I was reading it. My groups rarely use henchmen, and I personally as a player have never used them – so perhaps it’s just me and mine – but I don’t think the subject deserved the extensive coverage it got.

There is also a BIG section on dealing with world creation and management – great for new DM’s/CK’s – especially those who want to develop their world from scratch – there are even rules for handling large scale conflicts – wars between nations and peoples. Interesting stuff indeed, viable and playable whilst maintaining the “old skool” feel that Castles and Crusades is famous for.

There are even ideas and concepts for story development, which whilst I imagine they were put in there with all the good intentions in the world – they (in my humble opinion) are of little use to DM’s/CK’s – there is too much of this tendency to force DM’s/CK’s into a “mold” trying to make them all run games in the same way – I’ve seen it over and over again for such a long time, I think its kinda bad for creativity and can make individual DM’s/CK’s stagnate – thereby making it necessary that they buy Scenarios and World Books – or maybe that’s the point really (yes I know I am jaded and suspicious).

There are some great guidelines on Challenges and how to rate them properly and effectively, and a large amount of information on the Siege Engine and the mechanics of the system. Assigning appropriate treasure is covered in reasonable depth, as is how to extend and expand upon character abilities. Plus there are loads of good solid examples of how to make judgment calls, assign difficulty levels and such like. Pretty damn useful and a very interesting read.

There are even rules and ideas for Hi-Tech Weapons, so Sci-Fi crossover games and now more easily don (Expedition to the Barrier Peaks for C&C anyone?) – BUT even though Secondary Skills are covered (as in the AD&D 1st Edition rules) there are no real and tangible rules for Skills in C&C – so I am afraid all us DM’s/CK’s and Players who like such things are stuck with our own home-brew systems.

As an experienced DM/CK only around 50% of the Castle Keepers Guide was truly useful to me, newer DM’s/CK’s will find much more of it useful.

Some sections were a little too “in depth” others not so much, and some information that needed to be in there simply wasn’t.

Don’t get me wrong it’s a good solid Tome; I just think it could have been better . . . . . . . . . .

Bad Press

2011-05-23T16:15:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't been Blogging for a while, but I've not been well - and tons of family crap got in the way too.

In between reading the new Castle Keepers guide for C&C and going over my AD&D 1st Ed Books Again (I love doing that) I've been watching Movies, and Mazes and Monsters crept into my schedule.

A lot of people STILL think Mazes and Monsters is an accurate account of the ACTUAL events that led Rona Jaffe to write her Book Mazes and Monsters.

No doubt the TV Movie Myths and Monsters had its damaging effects, but the original Novel by Rona Jaffe - was more damaging in my opinion.

Mainly (again in my opinion) because it came out at a time when Dungeons & Dragons was being attacked by various religious groups who alleged that it promoted Satanism and other forms of occult practices.

The irony is that the novel is based in large part on the largely apocryphal (as in of "questionable authenticity") "steam tunnel incidents" of the late 1970's.

The RIDICULOUS urban myth that developed during the infancy of Dungeons & Dragons, generally purporting that university students playing a live action version of Dungeons & Dragons disappeared into the utility tunnels of the school and became lost, and in some cases died of hypothermia or other causes - has actually little basis in reality.

These legends had arrisen because to newspaper reports concerning the disappearance of a Michigan State student named James Dallas Egbert. Egbert had played Dungeons & Dragons and did in fact go into the steam tunnels of his school, but with the intent of committing suicide.

When his attempt to end his life failed, he hid at various friends' houses for several weeks. During that time a private investigator hired by Egbert's parents- speculated in the press that perhaps Egbert had gone into the tunnels to play a live version of D&D and somehow gotten lost.

The media did their usual thing and reported the theory as fact - thereby controversy over the effects of playing Dungeons & Dragons.

IN ACTUALITY THE WHOLE THING WAS BUNK! But that didn't stop the religious freaks, zealots, and morons jumping on it whole scale!

The Dungeon Master: The Disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III is the 1984 book written by private investigator William Dear, in an attempt to "cash in" for his own gain - giving his own personal account of the 1979 "steam tunnel incident", which he claims was only written because the actual events were misrepresented by the news media.

The book recounts his experience investigating the 1979 disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III, a student at Michigan State University - and is just as flakey as Mazes and Monsters in its own way.

Egbert was a 16 year old child prodigy who was battling intense academic pressure, drug addiction, and personal issues - IN ACTUALITY, if you are interested Egberts personality and character was evenly distributed between the four main characters Robbie Wheeling (Tom Hanks), Kate Finch (Wendy Crewson), Daniel (David Wallace), and Jay Jay Brockway (Chris Makepeace) - yet ANOTHER innacuracy compared to the reality.

He had entered the school's utility tunnels with the intent of committing suicide and went into hiding after that attempt was unsuccessful. After learning that Egbert had played Dungeons and Dragons, Dear, who was unfamiliar with the game, suggested that Egbert may have entered the tunnels to play a live action version of the game. This theory was taken as fact by the media and caused intense controversy over the psychological effects of role playing games. After several weeks, Egbert gave himself up to private investigator Dear.

In 1980, less than a year after the incident, Egbert successfully committed suicide by self-inflicted gunshot wound. Dear kept the true circumstances of the disappearance a secret until four years after Egbert's death, due to a promise he made to the boy not to reveal them.

Although Egbert was indeed a player of D&D - it was later found that his entry of the steam tunnels was TOTALLY unrelated to Dungeons and Dragons.

At the time, the 16-year-old as struggling with depression, was under INTENSE academic pressure from his family, AND was battling drug addiction. In addition, his young age, advanced intelligence, and other issues had made it difficult for Egbert to make friends.

Egbert entered the steam tunnels on August 15, 1979 with a bottle of methaqualone intending to end his life - the suicide attempt was unsuccessful and when he awoke the next day he went into hiding at a friend's house - leading to the search for the "missing boy".

When you know the real story, and understand the poor lads confusion and desperation - you realize all the scandal over D&D was LITERALLY drummed up by the press. All the bible bashing about the game that ensued and became more and more exaggerated led to increased sales and awareness of Dungeons and Dragons - so in reality, all these news hounds and god botherers did was do TSR a favour.

I don't know about you, but I find that kinda funny!

Pimps & Whores

2011-04-05T08:52:00.000-07:00

To me there are two distinct "Breeds" of Dungeon Master - "Pimps" and "Whores".

There are "Types" of DM too - whether they be active, passive, reactive, cinematic, or dramatic - they are always either Pimps or Whores.

The "Pimp" will only ever run Games that HE likes and is passionate about, whether they be older editions of a specific system or retro-clones of that system - and he talks up his fave to the Nth degree - getting players to join his games, his players ALWAYS get into it because he is so passionate about what he's doing!

The "Whore" sells out, runs whatever is new and shiney - whether its for selfish reasons (he really REALLY likes the system, there can be some crossover into "Pimpdom" here), "because its new and shiney" (the true Whore), because "thats what everone else is running/playing" (the "Keep up with the Neighbours" Whore), because its a new edition (the "want to be part of something bigger" Whore).

Are Pimps superior DM's to Whores - not always, its not about that. Its about "pushing" an inferior gaming experience.

Thats not to say Whores can't run AMAZING Games, but True Whores RARELY run home-grown Scenarios. They are always "up to date" with the new scenarios and campaign supplements.

See, when I started there wasn't that much in the way of Campaign Worlds - so I could quite literally move between groups and never have the same gaming experience - it was wonderful seeing all that creativity and passion.

I've joined in with a few 4e Games, and - to be perfectly frank - they are pretty much clones of each other. Dissapointing really.

Whether you are a Pimp or a Whore, you should always do your best when running games - its important, and pretty much your biggest task as a DM. Because if you don't care, how can you expect your players too!

The Future of Table Top Gaming . . .

2011-03-26T07:14:00.000-07:00

I've published this on my Pulp Planet Blog to, because these thoughts interest me so much.

Looking to the far FAR future - you could be playing games with tiny nano-robotic machines that you collect and paint yourself - that could be used to fight actual battles on the table-top using your tactics.

Each "battle" the robots took part in and survived without being "taken out" (I envisage a sort of "laser tag" micro system, with a central computer calculating the hits and damage) - they would learn and improve, with the ones that "died" being returned to play as basic units.

That way you utilize modern and advanced technologies, whilst keeping the "hobby" aspect.

No doubt some of you are thinking "it would cost way too much" - but when you think how much a CD Player cost when they were first introduced to the retail market ($900 in 1982 - as compared to today when you can pick a PORTABLE CD Player up for less than $20 that has more features than the 1982 version LoL) to what you can buy today, I'll bet its not that far fetched given enough time and imagination upon the part of the designers/manufacturers.

What amazes me is the Tech we have today actually (sorry to digress) TAB computers from Star Trek - WE NOW HAVE THEM!!

So, that's what I envision - tiny robots, you collect and paint yourself - that fight battles set up by human players - computer controlled in a table top environment.

Possibilities and Perceived Reality

IMHO ALL Fictional Universes exist somewhere, somehow in our limitless extra-dimensional multi-verse.

Think of any video game that you've played or movie watched. Think of any fiction book you've ever read, or table-top game (both miniatures games and RPG's) you've ever enjoyed.

Those ideas and concepts exist sometime and somewhere in tangible form.

Maybe not on our planet, not in our galaxy or even in our universe but somewhere they do. There's no such thing as fantasy - because space and time (and therefore reality) is infinite.

I'm no sage or scholar (well, I suppose I'm kinda the latter - or so some of my friends insist LoL) but I know deep down this concept has more than a little legitimacy.

I can't prove any of this (by the sheer nature of thought and imagination, such concepts are subjective at best - and other thinkers cannot disprove it either) but I am certain some of you have already though this (or something similar) already.

And yes I have a vivid and overdeveloped imagination, I'm kinda famous for it . . . . . .

Dragon Lords of Melnibone

2011-03-22T08:28:00.000-07:00

One of the BEST D20 RPG Books (IMHO) of recent years was the Chaosium "Dragon Lords of Melnibone" - I much preferred this incarnation of the Elric saga, not just because I am a fan of the D20 system overall - but because the whole presentation of the Book was more "Elricy" to me.

I spent my teenage years (when I wasn't rehearsing with the various Bands I was with or DM'ing) - lying on my bed listening to Kiss (for the most part) and reading Moorcock and Lovecraft. I even wrote a song called Tanelorn once . . . .

See, I never got into Tolkien till much later on, so the Lord of the Rings (though I enjoyed it) never had the impact on me it had on a lot of people - whereas Elric, Hawkmoon, Erekose, and Corum did.

Don't get me wrong, Dragon Lords of Melnibone has its problems - mostly due to the "cut and paste" nature of the writing/editing of the book - but they are EASILY solved by converting it over to AD&D or Castles & Crusades proper.

Rather than do a wholesale cumbersome (and lets face it boring to read) conversion, I'm just going to present some rough notes from time to time.

Law And Chaos

The battle between Law and Chaos is an ongoing theme in all Moorcock's fantasy works, involving as it does
both gods and mortals. Above and beyond these warring forces is the Cosmic Balance, which swings in favor sometimes of Law, sometimes of Chaos.

In a perfect world the two are stabilized, in delicate equilibrium. The harmony of the Balance is all too lacking throughout the multiverse. Although the Balance rules unalloyed in places, most universes are in a state of Chaotic turmoil or Lawful stagnation. Without its opposite, a plane of pure Law is as deathly and sterile as one ruled by Chaos.

This flux of opposites snares the Eternal Champion, but he does not give up the fight against it. In the final battles, Law and Balance join forces against Chaos, for Chaos has grown too strong. Elric's death brings the plane toward the Balance. When the world reforms, there will be magic, but much less of it. Our own world will then be born.

In the saga, Chaos attracts because it has great beauty and power even while it wreaks havoc. Elric realizes that Law similarly confounds the notion of good and evil, though we do not see it conquer the world.

We imagine that Law should provide security, but it brings with it rigidity and sterility. What is right is not always easy to know. Sometimes the wrong person dies, or a quest goes unfulfilled. Sometimes the adventurers are cursed for doing good, or blessed for their evil doing.

The reversal of expectations is an important notion in understanding the saga.

This whole "topsy turvy" concept is one of the most enthrawling (for me) themes running throughout the books, that Chaos can bring about good and Law and Order can bring about evil is (nowadays) showing itself in the real world even as I type (if anyone has their doubts of the voracity of what I write, you need look no further than your TV or Newspapers - its all there if you care to see it).

Magic

All spells function as written, but spell availability is determined by the religion to which a character belongs - for the Gods of the young Kingdoms have a powerful influences over Magic and Magical Powers.

Powerful individual Sorcerers do exist - but the most powerful Sorcerers are so because of rituals and summonings not because of Spell Knowledge and Power.

A few spells are restricted in their availability - among them wishes, commune, and consecrate. The functions of the first are available through divine intervention-the asking of and receiving the attention of the gods themselves. The use of the latter spells is available only to an actual priest of a religion.

The Young Kingdoms is a vast and fascinating place, well worth exploring!

Next - The People of Pan Tang!

Beholder Miniatures

2011-03-18T16:12:00.000-07:00

Coming soon from Otherworld Miniatures -

Its meant to be an "Eye of Terror" for the Labyrinth Lord RPG, and is a multi-part kit consisting of of 2 head sections, 2 sprues of eyestalks, 2 arm tentacles and 2 sprues of body fronds. The kit has been sculpted by John Pickford

They are available to Pre-Order at just £14.00 and contain enough bits to build either a "Classic" "Eye Tyrant" or a Labyrinth Lord Eye of Terror.

I am blown away by this, absolutely gorgeous!

D&D For Kids

2011-03-18T07:25:00.000-07:00

RPG's for Kids, not Teenagers - Kids. Whilst there is the rare child who can play RPG's in a collective and co-operative manner (I've known just one) there seems to be a real trend (especially with 4e D&D) to run games for very young children.

Uri Kurlianchik has been posting articles on the official D&D Website, about his experiences running games for Kids - and whilst his intentions are no-doubt good, I don't think they are entirely realistic.

The OLDEST player he has been running games for is 11, and (to me at least) 11 is the YOUNGEST (unless they were exceptional) aged player I would run games for. His youngest Player is 7 (and doing surprisingly well according to Uri) which is really REALLY young to cope with the concepts of even the simplest RPG.

His lastest article D&D Kids: Punishment made me really smile, as its a perfect example of why running D&D for young children is NOT a good idea.

The article basically deals with controlling the players behaviour when they "act up" - and Uri categorizes them into different types -

The Astronaut - A kid whose oblivious to the "rules" of the game world, forgets what he can and cannot do - probably because his attention span is poor.

The Crybaby - The Kid who always looks like he is on the verge of tears or a tantrum, ALL the time over everything.

The Cheater - I think this needs no descriptive explanation.

The Serial Character Changer - Who constantly wants new characters, either because he finds something cool in the Manuals or is bored.

The Hyperactive - Constantly "in motion' and won't stop still.

The Joker - Actually a misnomer for what this Kid is, a malicious little bugger out for a "laugh" all the time.

The Chaotic-Stupid - A Kid who's behaviour "in game" gets his party killed repeatedly.

The Antagonist - The type of Kid who ALWAYS argues with authority figures.

NOW - it's difficult enough running games for Teenagers and/or Adults, without the added hassles of Kids misbehaving. If you are spending a large chunk of your time (as a DM) controlling your player's behaviour, you don't have time to focus on NPC's, Encounters, World Events, Weather, Environment, etc . . . . .

The list of in-game "Chores" for a DM is a long one!

One of the things I love about playing in an RPG is the sheer amount of freedom a good DM can give you, by having to "Crack the Whip" (Uri's term, not mine) over his Kids is cheating them of that freedom - if they don't (or can't) understand its meant to be a co-operative experience, constantly messing about or screwing things up for the group they shouldn't be playing IMHO (and that applies to grown-ups too).

So, my point is this - if D&D (or any other RPG NOT specifically designed with Children in mind) were suitable for Kids that young, you wouldn't need articles like the one's Uri is writing - would you . . . . .

What makes a Good Dungeon-Crawl Good?

2011-03-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

If you strain, and think back to the (no doubt MANY) Dungeon Adventures you've played in and/or run down through the years - whether purchased (or indeed home grown, I've read some amazing unpublished dungeon-centric adventures).

What makes a Good Dungeon-Crawl Good? (or hopefully even Great). What makes a Dungeon an enthralling place to explore and adventure in - a suitable environment to "Fight the Good Fight" - rather than it being some boring repetitive exercise in monster bashing and door breaking . . . .

1- A Goal

The PC's need a reason to be there (outside of the obvious Treasure and Glory). A mission - often one of the three "R's" (Rescue, Retrieval, or Revenge).

2 - A "Hook" or Theme

Its important that the Creatures/Monsters have a common link - Whether it be they all work for a Villain, or come from the same (or related) families of Monsters.

3 - Style or "The Look"

When describing the environment, remain consistent. If its Medieval, keep the descriptions as such. If its Egyptian styled, don't start throwing in Renaissance Torture Chambers in - suspension of disbelief is really important during FRP games - if you break from your internal consistency, you can ruin it for your players.

4 - Pacing

DO NOT allow your players to pause for breath, keep the descriptions coming - and the encounters rapid. The minute they finish with one problem, introduce another. It seems a daft thing to mention, but the more you keep your players on their toes - the more they will enjoy it.

5 - Traps, Tricks, and Puzzles

A lot of modern DM's don't like including Traps, Tricks, or Puzzles - they find them trite or old fashioned. BUT when a Player beats/circumvents such an encounter they will be bouncing with excitement MORE than if their Character had slain the biggest of Dragons.

Resource Materials

Here is a list of some great books to pic up for reference, all are useful and are non system specific so any DM can get good use from them.

Central Casting Dungeons
A dungeon random-generation kit, with piles of very specific details. Great if you want to generate random (although illogical) dungeons. Now out of print (Originally Published by Task Force Games), if you search around you can generally find it somewhere to Download.

The Dungeon Alphabet
Billed as an A-to-Z Reference for Classic Dungeon Design - The Dungeon Alphabet compiles twenty-six classic dungeon design elements in one place to assist the game master in creating subterranean challenges. A is for Altar, B is for Books, and C is for Caves and so on. Its one of my all time favourite books. The Dungeon Alphabet is available in both Print and PDF format - produced by Goodman Games.

Engineering Dungeons
Similar to Central Casting Dungeons, but more streamlined and logical is Engineering Dungeons from Troll Lord Games. Though formatted for Castles & Crusades its easily usable with any edition of Dungeons & Dragons (even the dreaded 4th Edition). Engineering Dungeons brings the DM the tools to entice the imagination, to create, wholesale, from scratch, a varied array of dungeoneering experiences. You will find the means to determine monsters, their treasures, their lairs - who, where, and why a dungeon exists, and even flavorful aspects of the dungeon environment, such as light, air condition, and odors. Traps, of all sorts, designed to function as a universal difficulty system, are included.

Network Blogs

2011-03-08T16:47:00.001-08:00

We're listed on NetworkedBlogs now too!

So please follow me, plenty of things to convert and ideas to put forth!

More conversions tomorrow!

WizBro Logic

2011-03-03T14:23:00.000-08:00

One of the "mainstays" of "Modern" Dungeons & Dragons is the use of a Battle Grid and Miniatures.

So why have they cut their own throat by stopping the miniatures line?

It's going to interfere with the Rules as they stand, and make things difficult for DM's too.

The whole dynamic of the game "shifts", pushing counters around a grid detracts from whats going on in my opinion - whereas miniatures, used well can enhance a game.

The OFFICIAL line is that the miniatures range ISN'T profitable any more - of course it isnt. You stopped it being a CMG for a start, re-issuing new packs whilst removing the collectable and competative elements - bang goes a large chunk of revenue.

Co-incidentally (well, I actually believe its NOT a co-incidence) WizKids sales have taken an upturn - so the CMG D&D collectors have obviously switched camps fairly quickly - and WizKids aren't missing a trick either - releasing LotR Clix and Star Trek Clix - to recruit even MORE customers/collectors from the void created by WizBro.

If the miniatures weren't selling that well in the absense of the CMG format, does that mean 4e isn't either - if the rules as they stand require miniatures. Then surely both DM's and Players (at least in theory) should be buying them, or are they buying other companies (superior) miniatures and painting them.

Reaper Miniatures do everything Player Character wise, and a fair chunk of monsters too.

Otherworld Miniatures produce a really BIG range (and its growing) of D&D Monsters with a lovely "Old School" feel to them.

I just feel like this is a really bad move for modern D&D, heck the D&D Franchise in general - alienating a large chunk of their customer base like that.

On the plus side, I think its going to recruit more players for games like Labyrinth Lord and Castles & Crusades - games that are more "old school" and economically accessible.

WizBro Logic . . . .

The Dark Creeper

2011-03-02T17:54:00.000-08:00

Another conversion to C&C today, one of my all-time favourite Fiend Folio beasties - "The Dark Creeper"!

The Dark Creeper (a folk name or the race since the race name is unknown and the race language incomprehensible to linguists) is a humanoid, slightly-built creature about the same height as a dwarf.

Members of the race always dress in sombre, darkcoloured clothing, concealing as much of their pallid skin as possible. They detest light and dwell deep underground - usually leading a solitary existence though there have been rumours of underground villages inhabited by as many as 80 individuals, including 20-25 females. These villages are always ruled by a Dark Stalker.

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1 (20-80)
SIZE: Small
HD: 2
MOVE: 30 ft
AC: 20 (or 12, see notes below)
ATTACKS: 1 (Dagger) 1D4
SPECIAL: See Notes Below
SAVES: P
INT: Average (Human) Intelligence
ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Neutral
TYPE: Humanoid
TREASURE: See Notes Below
XP: 125

The dark creeper is particularly fond of small magical items such as rings and magic daggers - solitary individuals will carry 25% of their treasure in the copious pockets of their cloaks, so there is a 15% chance of a magic dagger, 5% chance of a magical ring and 10% chance of 1-4 gems or 1-2 items of jewelery on any individual encountered.

In a Dark Creeper lair multiply these probable treasure items by the number of male individuals resident, in addition add 1-100 platinum pieces and 50-500 gold pieces.

A Dark Creeper has all the abilities of a 4^th Level Thief in addition to the ability to Detect Magical Items at a range of 15 feet. A Dark Creeper Attacks with a normal (or, if one is possessed - a magical) Dagger. A Dark Creeper also has the innate power to Create Darkness three times a day - when this power is used, all torches, lanterns and other non-magical sources of illumination within 50 feet are extinguished and cannot be re-ignited during the next hour of in-game time (the duration of the Dark Creeper’s power). During this time the Dark Creeper has two main objectives. First, to destroy lanterns and tinderboxes, break flasks of oil and so on - any act which will inhibit the creation of light and illumination. Secondly, to steal any small magical items detected. Self-preservation ranks only marginally above such objectives.

Magical sources of illumination may also be affected by a Dark Creeper’s darkness abilities. In effect, they obtain a saving roll against magical frost, and if the item makes such a save it is not affected. If the item fails to save, however, it is extinguished for the next hour, after which its property returns to normal.

During the darkness, even infravision becomes useless; however a Dark Creeper will not use its power against parties not using artificial illumination, so Elves using infravision, for instance, will usually pass unmolested.

Magical sources of illumination may also be affected by a Dark Creeper’s darkness abilities. In effect, they obtain a saving roll against magical frost, and if the item makes such a save it is not affected. If the item fails to save, however, it is extinguished for the next hour, after which its property returns to normal.

During the darkness, even infravision becomes useless; however a Dark Creeper will not use its power against parties not using artificial illumination, so Elves using infravision, for instance, will usually pass unmolested.

The darkness power may be countered by spells such as light, and if a Dark Creeper is attacked in normal illumination its AC is lowered to 12. If a Dark Creeper is killed its body undergoes spontaneous combustion of such intensity that all within 10 feet of the victim are blinded (saving against magic permitted) for 1-6 full turns. All traces of the Dark Creeper are destroyed - though metal items will normally (5+ chance on a D20) be undamaged; magical items, metal or otherwise, will lose their enchantment if they fail to make a save against magical fire.

The Necrophidius

2011-03-01T14:03:00.000-08:00

Back to some conversions whilst I finish my Cthulhu Mythos notes - first up "The Necrophidius".

The necrophidius, called the "death worm" by some, is an artificial creature, built and animated by a wizard or priest for a single task, such as protecting a particular treasure or assassinating a specific target.

The necrophidius resembles a bleached-white skeleton of a giant snake, topped by a fanged human skull with constantly whirling, milk-white eyes. The death worm's bones are warm to thetouch. The necrophidius is nearly undetectable to most senses. It is absolutely silent; it may open a door and cause the hinges to creak, but it makes no noise whatsoever even when slithering across a floor strewn with leaves. The necrophidius has no odor. The necrophidius keeps up a constant motion, moving with a macabre grace.

NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1
SIZE: Large
HD: 2
MOVE: 30 ft
AC: 18
ATTACKS: 1 (Bite) 1D8
SPECIAL: Eye Magic, Darkvision 60 ft, Anti-Magic
SAVES: M
INT: Average (Human) Intelligence
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
TYPE: Aberration
TREASURE: -
XP: 320

A necrophidius is created for a single purpose. It may be created in one of three ways.

The first is via a magical tome, akin to a manual of golems can provide secrets of the necrophidius's construction (the Necrophidicon, as it is sometimes called, must be burnt to ashes, which provides the animating force for the monster).

Alternatively, a wizard can create a necrophidius by his own means. This process is long and complex, and requires that the wizard be able to cast limited wish, geas, and charm person spells.

The third method enables a high-level priest of some Powers to build a necrophidius. Again, the method is long and tedious. It requires the spells geas, neutralize poison, prayer, silence, and command.

Whichever method is used, the monster requires the complete skeleton of a giant snake (either poisonous or constrictor) slain within 24 hours of the enchantment's commencement. The construction takes 500 gold pieces worth of herbs and ointments per hit point of the necrophidius; and ten days are required.

A necrophidius is built for a specific purpose (which must be in the spellcaster's mind when he creates it), such as "Kill Ragnar the Bold" or "Keep the Scepter of Trystom safe on this altar."

The necrophidius has a reasonable intelligence, and does not seek to twist the intent of its maker, but its enchantments fade when its task is done or cannot be completed, for example, when it kills Ragnar, or when the owner decides to use the Scepter of Trystom.

The crafter must want the necrophidius to serve its purpose. He could not, for example, build a death worm to "Sneak into the druids hut and steal his staff," if the crafter really intended for the necrophidius to merely provide a distraction. He could not build more than one death worm and assign each of them to kill Ragnar, since he could not imbue in the second death worm a task that he intended the first one to complete. For this reason, ne-crophidii are almost never seen working as a team. There are rumors, not well-founded, that there were once methods to make a necrophidius that conformed to all current specifications except that it gained 1 Hit Die every century it was pursuing its purpose.

Memories and Old Friends

2011-02-05T09:43:00.001-08:00

I started, ALL those years ago with OD&D - my Nan bought it me back from a trip to see my cousins in the US. Not that it was her idea to buy it for me; it was one of my American cousins (I never did find out who).

I was hooked, myself and my friend Philip would spend hours playing - we roped his Mum (Rose) in for one game - she was UTTERLY confused LoL! But whereas my addiction increased, Philips interest waned.

I went on to study Music, was in a Band (Philip became a drinker, and died in a drunk driver incident) and quickly roped my fellow rockers into playing. I came to know and become firm friends with a guy named Steve - we were both in Six of One (the Prisoner society) and knowing Staves penchant for adventure shows, I suggested AD&D (I had gone through Basic/Expert with the Band - you know, the red and blue boxed sets - and was moving into AD&D by this time) - I have always been a bit of a tarter as a DM.

You can bring an established character into my games, providing your old DM can confirm what you have, or has signed off on your notes or character sheet somewhere - just to keep things fair to my other players really. Likewise, I would PREFER you to roll your characters in front of me or at the very least with another player to witness your rolls. If that’s impossible, then you have to use a point’s allocation system I devised.

Too much information? LoL! No - it’s setting the "scene" for the next part.

Steve came around my house bright and early that Saturday. We were going to roll his character up, then actually role-play him buying his equipment (I always give people their clothes, a dagger, and walking boots/shoes anyway - I think its "illogical" to start them naked IMHO) - So, sitting at our Kitchen table - with Tea and Biscuits provided by my Mum (very British I know) we settled down to roll up Steve’s first character - Londarth Drogos.

I wanted Steve to start with a Fighter, always best for a Newbie - we were using 3D6 in order. Steve amazed me with his rolls, and this is the ONLY time I've EVER seen this done - he rolled straight 18's for every attribute, after doing it three times - I insisted he change his dice after 3 18's, and he rolled 3 more. Londarth was Steve’s longest running character; his Ranger Grath Von Eltz had good solid attribute scores - but (obviously) not a patch on Londarth.

Unfortunately Steve passed away from Cancer some years ago - its a shame that very few people in real life have Con 18. I recently managed to get the figure he used for Londarth off EBay - a Vintage Citadel C01 Paladin.

I miss you Steve mate, I hope you keep rolling high wherever you are . . . . . . . .

Castles & Crusades Conversions

2011-02-05T06:05:00.000-08:00

After chatting to various C&C Fans that I know, the greater majority want to see my series of conversions return.

So over the next few weeks, I shall be doing just that - starting with the C'thulhu Mythos from the original Print of Deities and Demigods.

I will be leaving the Psionic attributes in the stat-line, as those of you who've been following my blog know - I merely transposed the Psionics rules from AD&D 1e over to C&C with no conversion/changes.

First Off - Great C'Thulhu Himself!

The Caverns of Draconis . . . . . . . . .

2011-02-04T09:12:00.000-08:00

The latest Episode of "The Community" NBC's fantastic comedy show, was indeed a triumph.

You really REALLY have to give the show credit for not being afraid of anything, most writers/producers/directors shy completely away from D&D (or take the p**s) but not only did The Community jump into the metaphorical water feet first, they managed to pull it off in style.

During the course of the show, they explore the affects of name calling & potential suicide (with a REALLY strong and sensitive performance from Charley Koontz as the unfortunately nicknamed "Fat" Neil), strong and unexpected emotions (Britta developing a sincere relationship with a dying NPC Gnome), racism (Señor Chang made up as a Dark Elf, and Shirly mistakenly thinking its a "hate crime"), role reversal (Annie and Abed playing out a sexual encounter was a hoot - just watch her hand gestures LoL), and all sorts of good natured jabs at geekery and those who simply fail to understand it.

Pierce is once again the "baddie" of the Episode, and I have to say Chevy Chase is still as funny as he was when he was younger. But if he was playing in MY Campaign, he would get SUCH a slap for cheating LoL!

I have to say I found it to be a triumph not only of television, but a REALLY sensitive and realistic portrayal of a Game of AD&D - not since The Gamers (2002), and The Gamers: Dorkness Rising (2008) - have I seen anything so well done and enthrawling - Bravo!

Tightly scripted, well acted (as usual) - The Community goes from strength to strength; and this episode shows how bloody strong and versatile the Actors on this show are.

Well Done my friends, and Well Met!

Advanced Dungeons and Dragons

2011-02-03T08:58:00.000-08:00

I've only recently discovered "The Community" NBC's AMAZING Comedy of oddballs and misfits attending a Communit College.

I devoured the first season, and am well on to catching up with season two - BUT COMING UP is an AMAZING Episode entitled "Advanced Dungeons and Dragons"!

Its its anywhere as funny as the Trailer, we're all in for a Treat!

Miniatures, Scenarios, Wargames, and Rules

2011-01-27T12:42:00.000-08:00

I (personally) like miniatures, and I am sad that the D&D Miniatures range is at an end.

My love of miniatures harkens back to when I was a kid. I always liked Toy Soldiers - when ever I built a model kit (such as the Aurora Spindrift from Land of the Giants) I NEVER glued the crew in - that way I could use the model in my wild and wacky games I played on the back-garden rockery.

I spent HOURS out there, it was an alien planet - a fantasy land - or prehistoric times, depending on what game I was playing.

Mum would bring me out biscuits and a drink - or call me in if something was on I wanted to watch on TV.

What does all this have to do with Dungeons and Dragons I hear you asking (seriously, I do LoL) - a lot actually.

Imagination, whether it be with miniature gaming or role-playing is all about imagination. Something I had in spades as a kid, and I am (luckily) "well endowed" with as an adult.

Don't be afraid to "think outside the box" - using props found here and there, taking your players outside (even to a quarry as I did once, or out into the Woods at Portmerion) for a session!

If at home, even if you don't normally use miniatures, try using miniatures for chase scenes - its a great change of pace, and can revitalize your group.

I've even used costumes - and yes, I do feel silly when I do that - but its never stopped me if I want to achieve an effect "in game"!

Also, don't think JUST because D&D is in print in some form - that its your only option -

Try Googling the subject - there are LOADS of different free versions of the rules, Runequest based rulesets, even World of Darkness rules out there on the net for your D&D style campaigns.

If you are a fan as I am, Gary Gygax's creation lives firmly in your imagination - don't limit what you do with yours.

Difference in D&D Editions

2011-01-18T04:32:00.000-08:00

I came across this somewhere (if anyone can remind me I would be most grateful) and saved it because it amused me.

BUT - the more I ponder this, the more true it becomes - anyone who's run games/played games of every edition of D&D/AD&D (as I have) will love this!

Difference in D&D Editions

Original Edition D&D -
“That fight was really hard.” -> The party was wiped out.

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st Edition -
“That fight was really hard.” -> Half the party is dead.

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition -

“That fight was really hard.” -> One member of the party is dead.

Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition/3.5 -
“That fight was really hard.” -> One member of the party was close to 0 hit points.

Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition -

“That fight was really hard.” -> I can’t believe we were down to using At Will powers.

It's Like The Entrance To The Underdark . . . . . . .

2011-01-05T11:42:00.000-08:00

Explorers discover spectacular caves in Vietnam

It's Like The Entrance To The Underdark . . . . . . .

'Nuff Sed!

Castles & Crusades - Conan Style!

2010-12-15T10:31:00.000-08:00

I was asked recently, would it be possible to run a Conan (as in set in Hyboria) style game using the Castles & Crusades rules, rather than the "mish mash" that Mongoose produced.

Although I actually quite like the 2nd Edition of the Conan rules from Mongoose, I really cannot see why not.

The BIGGEST obstacle is the lack of any Healing Magics available to a party, thus rendering all Characters really vulnerable to an untimely end.

In the Conan RPG, they circumvent this with Fate points - but in the SEIGE system I would probably use a "Luck" Attribute in stead, and give it the same 3-18 range (and option to make Primary or not, after all some people are luckier than others) as other C&C Attributes.

Races are another point of contention, as the 3.5 based rules give racial bonuses in the +2/-2 range - whereas in C&C all bonuses are in the +1/-1 range. Its easy enough to correct, dropping +2/-2 to +1/-1 and (should the occur) reducing +1/-1 racial adjustments to zero's across the board. Don't forget there are NO Demi-Humans really running around in the Conan Universe, those "sub-humans" that do exist (like the Black Giants of the Western Seas from Savage Sword of Conan #22) are not really suitable for use as Player Characters.

Classes are (kinda) the easiest to accomodate, so here are some "rough" thoughts.

Barbarians

Quite simply use the C&C Barbarian Class, nice and easy - no changes or messing about needed.

Borderers & Nomads
The quite happily come under the heading of Rangers, they are similar (but not the same) in many respects, I would "tweak" the Ranger class on a character by character basis if variations are required.

Nobles & Knights
I would recommend using the Noble Class from the C&C Freeport Companion. Knights (in the Core Conan Rulebook) come under the heading of "Noble" but luckily in C&C there is a seperate Knight Character Class.

Pirates

Once again the C&C Freeport Companion has a fantastic Pirate Class, alternatively there are a couple of variant Pirate Classes to be found if you trawl the C&C forums.

Scholars

There are no Scholar classes for C&C, I shall be attempting a conversion of the Scholar to C&C at some point.

Soldiers & Sell-Swords

Are Fighters, again you can "tweak" the Fighter class on a case by case basis if you want.

The Temptress

I shall be also doing a conversion of the Temptress class at some point, taking inspiration from the old White Dwarf Magazine "Houri" class as well.

Thief

Take the C&C Rogue class, rename it "Thief" and you're done!

As I have pointed out, Hit Points and Healing could potentially be a problem. In addition to having either Fate Points or a Luck Stat, there are a couple of other things you can do to make things easier.

First Level Hit Point "Kicker".

At First Level, give your PC's Starting Hit Points equal to -

A Dice Roll (or Maximum) + Con Bonus + Constitution Score. It might seem a lot, but there is a rationale to it.

The People of Hyboria are a tough bunch, much tougher than the average FRP "Joe" - plus it increases their "durability" in an environment with limited Healing.

Better Healing Skills.

Rather than 1D3 Hit Points regained during the use of a characters Healing Skill, give them a Higher Dice Roll - or (which I prefer personally) give them 1D3+ the number the task was beaten by.

E.G. If the difficulty was 17 (the number of Hit Points lost in this case) and the character performing the healing rolled a 12 (after modifiers) the person receiving the aid would be healed 1D3+5 Hit Points of Damage. HOWEVER it would take 2 minutes of "tending" per Hit Point healed, and the injured character would then need to rest for a number of minutes equal to the number of Hit Points healed multiplied by 5 (so 6 points of damage healed would require 30 minutes of rest), if the healed character becomes active during that time, he would only receive half the number of Hit Points restored.

Next - The Scholar

Villains, Demons, & Devils

2010-12-12T06:23:00.000-08:00

I've been party to a lot of discussion on Villains for our games of late, whether it be AD&D/D&D ( or my my own case Castles & Crusades) - and their prospective power levels and types.

See, I'm in the camp where sometimes Villains (and even some encounters) should be insurmountable - that the Characters should have the common sense to "run away to fight another day" whereas some DM's believe that ALL encounters should be defeatable (is that even a word LoL) including Major Villains.

But, in my opinion at least - that's not very realistic, now is it.

There are plenty of heroic tales where the main protagonist(s) flee or have to return to complete a quest/defeat some evil (the Hobbits in the Lord of the Rings don't confront the Ring Wraiths for example, not until the have Aragorn with them - and the company flees into mines of Moria to escape the watcher in the water ) - if not at the very least the Hero in question prepares himself in some way to vanquish the evil (as in the legend of the Lambton Worm).

Unfortunately, the modern "trend" is balance over story telling - something I've never found particularly palatable when running (or even playing in) games.

A common thread in my own Games are the "Three Tiers of Villainy" as I like to call them, the different sorts of encounter a Party of Player Characters might encounter.

The Three Tiers of Villainy

Tier One - The most basic villain types, Minions, Monsters, and Morons. Those Low-Level (total number of levels/hit dice generally within two levels of the total Part Level) encounters that form the meat and potatoes of any game. These can be represented by a "spread" - as in 1 monster/minion/npc per party level, or as a "combined" encounter - eg 5 1st level PCs could encounter a 5 hit dice monster.

At the end of the day, even when designed to be a challenge to your players, they should be well-within your party's capability to deal with them.

Tier Two - The Bosses. This is the most challenging "encounter" a DM can put it, tough enough to (at least in theory) perform a total Party Wipe Out (if they are stupid enough to take such an encounter on) when initially encountered, but not unbeatable IN THE LONG RUN. These are the Baddies the PCs return to kill/exact revenge upon. The Long Term Villains that can make a campaign truly memorable. Of course, such "Bosses" CAN be taken on, and on rare occasions the PCs will get lucky (or the NPC unlucky with his saves etc) and defeat such a Tier Two Villain early on, if that's the case - let them gloat etc. Just have him (or her) replaced, and make sure the new Villain has an entourage with them this time!

To sum up, Tier Two Villains should be ALMOST unbeatable - but at the end of the Day they are there to entertain your Players, so don't be surprised when they do (eventually) get killed!

Tier Three - The Gods, Demon Princes, & Arch-Devils. Though such encounters will have attributes/statistics - they aren't in place for the PCs to fight. They are there rather for flavour, and to scare the "bejesus" out of your Players.

Evil Deities turning up to gloat (and tell the Party their plans of course), Demon Princes there to "slap them around" a bit, before you let them "find" a powerful magic item or two. Or an Arch-Devil, there to tempt them into "making a deal" (if you get me) - Tier Three encounters are there for one reason, and one reason only - the scare the crap out of your players.

DO NOT put such Villains/Monsters in as an standard encounter, at least some of your Players characters WILL die - and that's a fact.

So, even though I am not a fan of "balance" in the rule set (I find it a little too constraining myself) - I do believe in balance when it comes to telling a tale.

And telling a good story is what its all about for me as a DM.

D&D, Lies, and Dungeon Mastery

2010-12-06T05:38:00.000-08:00

In Dungeon Magazine 183, there was an article about being a DM "Save My Game"
- which basically went on about (the authors) three tennants for running a successful D&D Game.

The overall topics were "Lie, Cheat, and Steal" - something I vehementy disagree with to be frank

As a relatively successful DM of many MANY years, here are my thoughts on what was written.

LIE, LIE, LIE - "so-called truths of the world are fluid" - Sorry, BOLLOCKS. The Minute your players find out you are lying to them, you lose their trust, you minute you lose their trust, thats when campaigns start to go down hill (and rapidly).

I have a reputation for running difficult, but fair games - I never lie to my players (thats not to say my NPC's don't, but thats for another time) about anything in my worlds or games. HOWEVER I also don't tell them everything about a game mileu, thats for the Characters to find out.

The world should be consisten, and never change - unless politically or because something has happened because of a scenario.

CHEATING - CHEATING, FFS - NEVER DO THAT! How can you be the "master of the game" if you cheat. You are taking away the very soul of sportsmanship and story telling.

A lot of DM's (like the late great Don Turnbull of TSR UK) liked rolling dice behind their screens, if the rolls weren't what they wanted as a DM - they "fudged" around them. Something I simply don't subscribe too personally, I roll ALL my "Public" (Combat/Initiative/Monster Saves) Dice Rolls in front of my Players. I am firm with them too, if a Dice Roll isn't witnessed by myself or the rest of the group - it never happened.

My games have deaths from time to time, but my Players know they aren't deliberate - and in the same way, they know all their rewards and achievements were earned!

STEALING - Now I don't call it stealing, its more a case of borrowing ideas IMHO. Whether its an entire scenario, converted over to your system of choice - or borrowing plot threads from a TV show or Movie - doing such things is more about homage than it is stealing.

Plagiarizing or Paying Tribute to a great idea isn't stealing - thats why its got specific terminology to describe what it is (seriously Dude, learn the English Language) - whilst plagiarism can be considered theft under certain circumstances, when writing a scenario or creating a new non-player character for a game I personally don't think its the case.

"There are no new stories. It all depends on how you handle them" - Jude Deveraux.

Its borrowing, or taking inspiration - not stealing.

To sum up, Honesty is the best policy - in everything - and its especially important to a Dungeon Master who wants to be DM'ing for a long time.

I kinda resent this idea, (well, the whole article to be frank) the writer had a VERY jaded view of being a good Dungeon Master - Gary and Dave will be spinning in their graves over this!

Dramatic Structure in Your Dungeon Crawls

2010-12-03T09:11:00.000-08:00

There were some interesting thoughts this month over at D&D Insider, a Dungeon Editorial (from Dungeon # 185) about "Dramatic Structure".

Now I've never really thought about this personally, I just sort of "do it" without any bells and whistles or fuss.

You know, theres a beginning, a middle, and an end to every adventure - but it was REALLY interesting seeing it laid out and discussed like that.

Of course an RPG is different to other Mediums, but a lot of elements are the same - Protagonists (PC's & NPC's), Antagonists (NPC's & Monsters), the Setup (Act 1 if it were a Play - in RPG terms the PC's meet an NPC in a Tavern who "hires" or "Quests" them with a task), a steady build of conflic/tension through Confrontation & Encounters (Act 2), and sorts it all out for Better (Comedy/Resolution - funny moments in a game are very important, as is your Players achieving their goals, should they repeatedly fail - you WILL lose some or possibly all, of your group) or Worse (Tragedy/Resolution/Failiure - SOMETIMES your PC's HAVE to fail, for the sake of the plot - so you HAVE a "place" for them to go in your Game World) in the Final Part of a Scenario or Story (Act 3).

I've ALWAYS found Players enjoy "Dungeon Crawls" more than any other type of Scenario, now thats not to say that I DON'T run "non" Dungeon games - I do, its just that when I hear my Players chatting/reminiscing about games - the Dungeon "elements" always seem to stick in their minds. So I like to stick to whats fun, for both my players and myself.

One of the "pitfalls" DM's find when running extensive or repeated Dungeon based Scenarios is blandness, things always seem "the same" with no real variation in plot. Now THATS where following the rules of dramatic structure REALLY come in handy.

ALWAYS (and I mean always too LoL) follow the Dramatic Structure and you really cannot go wrong, by having a fairly "rigid" structure - you actually "free" your imagination up - giving you the ability to insert more "flavour" into your Dungeon based Scenarios.

ACT I - The Setup

Whether you actually run the Setup as part of the Scenario, or its just there as "fluff" for the players so they know why their characters are intering the Dungeon - it should be rich and fully realized. Don't skimp of detail, don't skimp on information. There SHOULDN'T be a Villain in every game, but by the same token don't have endless streams of "lost artifacts" for the PC's to retrieve.

Other options could be - rescue a Kidnap Victim, a Lost Child, Deliver a Message, Bury an NPC's Remains, or even (as I did in one scenario) rescue a lost Cat.

ACT II - The "Meat" of the Story

Keep things fresh, don't be afraid to "roll" with the punches your players throw at you. I remember one game I ran, the Party were storming through my carefully planned Dungeon - Kicking in EVERY wooden door. It was boring for me, so when they moved onto Level II - SUDDENLY all the Doors were stone, and very heavy (there was one moment in a Pit room with a sliding stone door, the Players spent nearly an HOUR trying to get out of that room. Searching for Secret Panels, JUMPING up and down to activate pressure plates etc - it didn't occur to them to check if it slid LoL).

ACT III - The Resolution

Again, keep things fresh and exciting - Don't "force" the ending. If someone Dies (a PC or beloved NPC) roll with it, play up the Pathos - ONLY ON VERY RARE OCCASIONS should you Plan to kill even an NPC. It just pisses of your Players when you do. By the same token, if your "Main Villain" (if you have one) fails to die, or manages to Escape - go with that too, then you have a Plot for later on (Revenge or Track him Down) - and never EVER get pissed off when your Players kill off a Carefully Crafted Major Villain or Monster! Thats what they are there for!!!

So, there you go - just some thoughts that I find useful and might help.

Kinda the Point . . . . .

2010-11-28T08:18:00.000-08:00

Those who know me personally, know that I am one of the "old guard" - that I've been playing games of Dungeons & Dragons since I was 15 (I started in 1977) and have run games (and sometimes played) every edition of the "beautiful" game. When 4th came out, I reacted badly - much more so than when 3rd came out (though I now prefer 4e).

A good friend of mine was suprised at my recent blogs, wondering why I was SUDDENLY warming to WizBro!

HOWEVER I'm not really Warming to Wizards per-se, mainly because they've made some serious "errors" with their business model. OK, they have shareholders etc - but they have to remember the fan base for an RPG is a LOT different to the fan base of say a Card Game (and a lot more vocal).

I didn't (and still don't) like their original marketing approach to D&D. Whilst the system itself is playable, they didn't really explain (and therefore justify) their "approach" to the new edition.

There was lots of "babbling" about the "sweet spot" when it comes to playing D&D, but no real explanation (that I could find) as to the reasoning behind their sweeping changes.

All that was further compounded with their "dismissive" attitude to thier fan-base, resulted in the "knee jerk" reaction that I myself was guilty of.

HOWEVER, if you read through the rules (especially the "essentials" range - its very apparent what they intended).

Here are my own thoughts on the whole debacle -

Choice and Playability - Although the familiar character types are present. They didn't want everybody to be the same. So there are a LOT of choices, that in itself alienated the 1st/2nd Ed crowd. HOWEVER the choices in 4e are more "class driven" (though you can "cross class" Traits/Powers/Skills - its their way of multi-classing), this class-driven choice system with no real multi-classing in turn alienated the 3.X crowd. It is less complex to create a character than in 3.X D&D - and the 4e "Archetypes" are stronger.

They increased starting Hit Points, a lot of DM's/Players out there started games/campaigns at higher than first level. The increased HP at first level negates the need for this (although I prefer a Die Roll + Con Bonus at each level rather than a static amount myself, ad that is easily house ruled).

They also introduced "healing surges", an abstract concept that allows PC's to regain Hit Points "X" amounts of times a day - receiving healing magic also "burns off" a healing surge. This concept PI**ED OFF so many Fans its untrue, but I get the feeling these "fans" didn't understand the concept of Hit Points in the first place.
You don't suddenly get physically "tougher" as you rise in level, but rather Hit Points represent Training and Fighting Stamina - so Warriors get more and Wizards get less (see, logical). A "healing surge" would have been better described as a "second wind" pretty much representing an individuals ability to regain their composure, tapping into their hidden reserves.

In reality all it means is that you can throw more interesting challenges/monsters at a party.

The "fans" are missing that . . . . . .

Another "bone of contention" was the focus on Combat Powers -

Now even though in a LOT of D&D Stories - people ramble on about in stores and conventions are about killing a particular monster - combat in ANY edition of D&D can be drawn out and sometimes kinda boring.
By focusing on Combat and Damage, what they have done with the 4e Combat is make it more dynamic - allowing all party members to take part on some level during play. Of course, it still gets "bogged down" at higher levels - but thats generally a problem in all games with high-powered characters.

This, combined with some magics being turned into Rituals that can be cast as many times as you have components - really opens up game play

They Proved they Listen - Thanks to fan pressure, they have been releasing the "Essentials" range - a set of products that really show the system off, the Three that are THE MOST useful to players are - Heroes of the Fallen Lands, Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms, and the Rules Compendium.

The Rules Compendium is a quick and handy rules reference and guide for the Dungeons & Dragons Fantasy Roleplaying Game. A REALLY handy and comprehensive book, it is basically a quick rules reference. It contains the complete core rules for the 4th Edition. In addition to providing an overview of the game and how it’s played, this book presents the core rules in a format that is easily referenced during a game. It includes information on level advancement, combat, experience points, treasure, skills, equipment, etc.

The Heroes of the Fallen Lands, presents builds for the most iconic classes: the cleric, the fighter, the rogue, and the mage. Loads of new powers, class features, paragon paths, epic destinies, and more that players can use to build the characters they want to play and experienced players can plunder for existing characters. In addition to the new builds, this book has expanded information and racial traits for some of the game’s most popular races, including dwarves, eladrin (sort of true Elves), elves, halflings, and humans.

Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms, has builds for some of the game’s most popular classes: the druid, the paladin, the ranger, and the warlock. Again loads of new powers, class features, paragon paths, epic destinies, etc. There is also expanded information and racial traits for dragonborn, drow, half-elves, half-orcs, and tieflings.

As a Player, you need nothing more than these three - OBVIOUSLY the Players Handbooks contain more evocative classes, powers, and races. But the two "Heroes" books, have MORE than enough information for any player.

A lot of fans didn't like the more exotic races/classes from 4e, WizBro ACTUALLY listened. Games Workshop (for example) HAVE NEVER listened to the fans (they just keep flogging away with the now DREADFUL 40k ruleset, making it weaker and weaker with each edition) - EVER! Whereas WizBro have, and have taken a slight "back peddle" with the essentials, whilst keeping it all fully usuable with the initial 4e releases.

The range of DM essentials is amazing, a DM's Kit, Monster Vault (with new monsters and LOADS of Tokens), and even High Quality Card-Stock Dungeon Tiles! (Which are lovely btw).

Digital Rights Management Issues - The original approach to the 4e release - REALLY did alienate a lot of potential players; by changing the "Open Games License", and revoking PDF sales of ALL earlier editions - this really REALLY pissed people off (the withdrawn PDF sales is what pissed me off initially, it felt like they were trying to FORCE people to buy the new Edition - WizBro claimed it was to stop pirating of their products, but a lot of people came up with the same reasoning as I did) - hence my own personal rebellion, and not really giving 4e the chance and try-out it deserved.

The Character Builder for 4e, was a stand alone application - with Downloads/Updates available via a subscription. They have now changed it to an online Character Builder - people are now up in arms about this. BUT its interesting to note, the ones who are moaning don't seem to like or want to pay subscriptions - they obviously think their D&D Fix should be for free. By doing it as a browser only application, they can't get a hold of pirated software - so they have to buy a subscription. HOWEVER, there is a monthly subscription charge - for which you get Digital Issues of Dragon and Dungeon Magazines and access to Downloads and Updates. Considering Dragon Magazine used to sell in the UK for £3.99 last time it was available a couple of years ago, £6.38 a month isnt a lot to ask for the equvallent of two £4 magazines and use of all their online tools (it drops to £3.81 if you take a years subscription).

Like I said, the people who are moaning are the ones who seem to want something for nothing, and Wizards can do without them tbh.

Maintaining servers and developing software isn't cheap (as anyone involved in computers knows), and yet the "Fans" I mentioned earlier - seem to want it all for nothing. I say Bo***cks to them - they aren't really fans.

My Closing Thoughts - Its taken me a LONG time to come around, something I never really did with 3.X D&D (don't get me wrong I've run D&D 3.X and had fun with it, I've just never felt comfortable with the system as a whole) - and though I am still not 100% happy with WizBro (as a company they still have a lot to do to earn my respect), I am MUCH happier with the way they are treating D&D's History - and MUCH happier with the direction 4e is taking, and even somewhat happier with the pre-painted stuff (I STILL think it should be sold in sets rather than in "blind" packaging - but thats me) - but thats more to do with finding time to paint and the price of metal miniatures these days to be frank.

4e ISN'T D&D as the "old guard" remember it, and to be frank I wouldn't expect it to be. THACO was clumsy and outdated, the Saving Throw Tables were arbitrary, the "Vancian" Magic System is kinda outmoded and arkward (and actually makes little or no sense with Clerics, if their Spells are granted by their Deity - why do they actually need to memorize them), the Feats from 3.X were WAY too much for ANY DM to remember - but what they have done with 4e is taken the parts that worked, updating them where applicable - and changed/re-invented areas that needed attention.

I'm NOT saying 4e is perfect, such a game doesn't exist (even my beloved Castles and Crusades has its issues/problems) but its a game thats worth CONSIDERING looking at. I went back and looked at it again because I had the sense to "back peddle" and check things out again - plus I am mature enough to admit when I was wrong (as I WAS wrong in this case).
What this has taught me is that their shouldn't really be "edition wars" anymore - that the game OVERALL needs to be kept alive - no matter what the edition.
By bickering and fighting all we are doing is hurting Dungeons & Dragons on the whole, not promoting any edition of the game - but (more likely) putting people off taking up the hobby in the long run.

I am now in the position to run /play ANY edition of Dungeons and Dragons now, both from knowledge of the rules and love for D&D and Fantasy Role Playing in general -
And running/playing games is Kinda the Point . . . . .

Snobbery & Pre-Painted Miniatures

2010-11-26T17:52:00.000-08:00

I have quite a few WizBro D&D miniatures, you know - the pre-painted bits of rubber.

The reason why is simple really, when I travel to run games or am running games for Kids - NO WAY am I carting my Metal Miniatures around with me.

If they got stolen It would quite simple kill me (some are VERY rare indeed), plus you have to worry about damage (chipping, broken arms etc) - so the PP Minis fulfill a specific role as far as I am concerned.

Then there is the fact they have produced monsters you can't find elsewhere, I really REALLY don't like the "collectable" aspect tbh - thats the one thing that puts me off.

But, for the most part they are a LOT cheaper than their metal counterparts too.

FOR EXAMPLE -

WizBro Purple Worm - around £10 plus Shipping.

Reaper Purple Worm - around £20 plus Shipping.

Otherworld Purple Worm - around £30 plus Shipping.

I FINALLY aquired an Aboleth the other day, more than likely to the upset of my players LoL!

Then, there is the "snobbery" angle with PP minis, that they are "collectable" (something I mentioned earlier I'm not 100% a fan of), and for the most part the paint jobs are pants - OCCASIONALLY they are "OK".

I have (as part of painting commisions) re-painted some, and I have to say once stripped the detailing on the Vinyl is excellent and they paint up well.

The "miniature" snobs have to remember not everyone has the time or the skill to spend hours and days painting hordes of Miniatures, so these are a BOON in those circumstances.

So don't discard the idea of using PP WizBro stuff, its got its uses after all . . . . . .

D&D Cat

2010-11-20T11:50:00.000-08:00

I've been going through the 4th Edition D&D Books recently, as I'm going to be ACTUALLY PLAYING rather than being the DM soon - and found Frankie wanting to join in!

I wonder what sort of Character he would prefer . . . . . .

Games, Rulesets, Genres, and Collections

2010-11-13T05:47:00.000-08:00

Does every other DM out there stick to one system, one world, or one genre?

In my youth as a DM/GM I ran a LOT of different games (heavy on the D&D of course) -

Dungeons & Dragons - White Box Edition
Basic Dungeons & Dragons (Basic thru to Immortals Rules & Rules Cyclopedia)
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st Edition
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition
Dungeons & Dragons - Third Edition
Dungeons & Dragons 3.5
Castles & Crusades (which counts as D&D for me at least)
Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition
Hackmaster (up to 4th, I don't really rate the new Hackmaster Basic)

Call of Cthulhu (I stopped running it around 5th Edition, though I do have the excellent D20 rules)
Chill (Pacesetter)
Dark Conspiracy (AWESOME Fluff, OK system)

Star Trek (Fasa)
Star Trek (LUG)
Star Trek (Decipher)

Traveller
Traveller 2300
Twilight 2000

Mythus - Dangerous Journeys
Lejendary Adventures

Metascape - Guild Space

Mechwarrior - The Battletech RPG

Shadowrun (1st thru 3rd Edition, not keen of 4th Edition)

Marvel Super Heroes
DC Super Heroes
Silver Age Sentinels (my personal favourite Supers game)
Golden Heroes (a FANTASTIC Supers Game IMHO - despite its flaws)

Star Wars (West End Games - still one of the BEST RPG's ever written)
Star Wars D20 (NOT the Saga edition, I really don't rate it at all)

I own a lot of RPG's besides - but the above are the ones I have actually run games for. But these days, I don't know why the "song" of Fantasy RPG's is calling me more and more.

I don't know whether its my inherrant romantic nature, or my Love of all things fantastical (in part thanks to my Mum) - but its there.

My RPG Book Shelves looks like a D&D Library, but (not unusual for me - as I like to write my own) very few Scenarios. I find bought Scenarios very "constricting" - they aren't written with your players (or their characters and any relevant backstories) in mind.

I wonder if any other "Veteran" DM/GM's feel the same, are they narrowing their focus - or is it the other way around, are they spreading their wings?

The "Realm" of Dungeons and Dragons has always been "Home" to me, and I imagine it always will . . . .

DM's Respect , Balance, and Moving Forward

2010-11-11T10:10:00.000-08:00

One of the things I have encountered over the years is lack of respect, on behalf of the DM/GM with regards to his players.

I've run games in co-operation with and under many GMs over the years and though they are rare there are those that are totally reprehensible in their attitudes to their players.

From the guy who made Scenario's/Dungeons so impossibly difficult you were always (and I mean ALWAYS) guaranteed at least a couple of dead party members (and often total wipeouts) - and this guys doesn't even DM anymore, no one with even allow him in their group as a player.

To the DM who treats his players quite literally as play-things for his own amusement, don't get me wrong this guy had some great (if sometimes derivative from Movies and Comics) ideas - but everything was for HIS amusement, and he was totally regardless of his players feelings or needs.

Now, I have only encountered a few such "rogue" GM's/DM's - but thinking about it has led me to wonder if such arrant GM/DM behaviour is the reason for the total OBSESSION with RPG balance?!!?

Apart from the "everyone is equal" (and totally unrealistic) approach, the core systems of 4th Edition DnD ISN'T that bad, I kinda resent the oversimplification of potions and suchlike - and don't like the fact that almost all (if not all) of the powers/abilities/feats are so combat orientated (I have a batch of the newer books coming soon, so I shall be able to clarify that more in my own mind) - there need to be more "passive" powers/abilities/feats I reckon, that could be used outside of combat.

4th Ed is shiney and very pretty, and could benefit and be really strengthened by the addition of more flavoursome "non-combat" elements IMHO. It would certainly redeem the ruleset in my (and a lot of others) eyes.

4e (not) DnD as a "Tool"

2010-11-08T12:33:00.000-08:00

Though I really am still not a Fan, I've actually been using 4e (not) DnD as a "tool" to get people to play Castles & Crusades.

I've been Running "Encounter" Level sessions here and there, and in the (innevitable) post game discussions bringing up Castles and Crusades.

Some (obviously) stuck with 4e (not) DnD, but more than a few have now taken to Castles & Crusades - either as well as their Fantasy RPG of Choice or as their New Main System.

Though I am not a HUGE supporter of 4e (not) DnD, it is a good entry level RPG - very shiney, light on the Roleplaying, and heavy on the Combat Action - but (as is the general concensus amongst D&D Die-Hards) its not long before a lot of Players & DM's (both old and new) want more; and either change their style of play completely (whilst keeping with the 4e (not) DnD ruleset - generally heavily house-ruled) or move to a more enjoyable System. Castles & Crusades & Pathfinder being the most popular "live" D&D-Like Rulesets out there at the moment.

In summing up, Treat 4e (not) DnD as what it is; a good tool to draw people into the hobby - and nothing more.

Sorry

2010-11-02T08:54:00.001-07:00

Sorry I haven't been posting for a while, I've had a LOT of personal shit to deal with.

Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible!

Back to It

2010-10-10T09:29:00.001-07:00

For my Players and thier Characters -

Something Dark is stirring in Guildstown, an evil that corrupts and usurps all that is good and kind.

Lamaria will change, be sure of that.

Play 4th Edition (not) D&D. It's good for WizBro and "OKAY" for you . . . . .

2010-09-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

I really can't believe people are still defending WizBro, with all the usual Bull Shit - any role playing is good role playing is my particular favourite - not only is it puerile populist claptrap, its simply not true!

It reminds me of the segment with the Robotic Food Dispenser in the Stallone Judge Dredd Movie "Eat recycled food. It's good for the environment and okay for you".

You might get an "okay" game out of 4e, but ONLY with a lot of effort - if you played a decent system, its easier, more fun - and a longer lasting experience.

WizBro Role playing, events, merchandising - all it does is benefit WizBro, there are so many smaller companies out there who are doing it for the love of the hobby, and not out of some obscene desire to make it into big business.

You can moan at me, berate me, criticize me, slag me off - but that doesn't change the fact that I am right about this.

And all the sock puppet-like comments in the world cannot change that fact!

That WizBro is being run along the lines of any other Lucas owned company - merchandise the HELL out of a franchise and be damned. Why do you think so many new Star Wars Characters get introduced all the time - BECAUSE IT MAKES THEM MONEY!

With the (not) D&D brand, we will continue to see obscure and unnecessary products released BECAUSE IT MAKES THEM MONEY. Cash flow is what matters to WizBro, NOT the Hobby - the sooner gamers out there realize it the better. Give your hard earned cash to someone else FFS!

4e (not D&D isnt even THAT popular, check out this -

http://blackdiamondgames.blogspot.com/2010/09/our-little-rpg-experiment.html

They are trying to promote gamers getting into systems, and doing trades/buying collections to help people find the system they want - but (and I quote) "We probably lost money on the straight trade of 4E" - because no F***ER WANTS IT THATS WHY!

PLAY ANYTHING else, Earlier editions (4e is so f***ing w**k I have a greater appreciation of 3.5 now), AD&D, Castles & Crusades, Labyrinth Lord - ANYTHING but boycott the tossers at WizBro!

WizBro

2010-09-18T09:29:00.000-07:00

HOW T.F. can WizBro have the NERVE to create the Official "Dungeons & Dragons" page on FaceBook, like they are some "Beacon of Light" leading D&D Fans into the Future!

UTTERLY Naff!

One of my FB friends put it as "leading them down a long dark tunnel of despair is more like it" and in my opinion the "dark tunnel of despair" is called "The Money Pit".

Seriously D&D'ers out there, take a F**ing stand - play an earlier edition or use a "Retro-Clone" - the gaming experience is better and you will save a packet!

Mazes and Monsters, and the Healing Power of RPG's

2010-08-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

For my first post in a while, I'm going for something thats close to my heart. The actual benefits of RPG's.

There are the obvious ones -

Literacy & Numeracy Skills - no one who plays RPG's regularly (or even sporadically for that matter) ever has problems with reading, writing, or simple (or in the case of some games complex) maths. The educational benefits of playing an RPG are undeniable, yet those who berate RPG's always ignore them. Perhaps they would prefer it to be like the Dark Ages, where the Churchmen are education and the general populace aren't.

Social Aspect - I have made more friends via RPG's than from any other source. My oldest and dearest friend became that way because of regular contact playing AD&D. I have an enourmous amount of respect for him, not just as a Human being - but as a gamer. I've encountered kids who really find it hard to make friends, and because of playing RPG's have bonded with others and made firm friends. Again, the "RPG" haters ignore this - citing the evils of becoming an RPG'er and selling one's soul to the Devil.

Then there are the less obvious ones -

Arts and Crafts Skills - though not as popular during play these days. I've seen some really elabourate Dungeon setups. Wonderfully crafted and painted, an old aquantance of mine wouldn't DM a game unless he had everything built in 3D and painted monsters for every encounter! A lot of DM's/DM's (myself included from time to time) make their own props. Treasure Maps, Chests, Magic Items, and Scrolls - all meticulously crafted. I seen some Amazing work over the years.

Health - yes, health reasons. From the kid who suffers with allergies and asthma so badly they can't play sports or even go outdoors that much during the summer months, to the poor sod who suffers with depression.

I've been demoing Castles and Crusades a lot recently, one of my Gamers has been suffering badly with depression - his Mother told me that his roleplaying outlet has helped him medically (his Doctors actually told her this, that his attitude has become more and more positive) and his recovery has been definitely helped by these gaming sessions - helped with perspective, facing up to problems etc.

He's now DM'ing for his own group now, before he had very few friends - and wouldn't have had the confidence to set up his own group and be the main DM!

In my own experience - people who victimize/persecute roleplayers and vilify rpg's generally have problems of their own - and should put their own "houses" in order before causing problems and casting aspertions.

It makes me smile it really does, surely Jesus's message was one of tolerance, generosity, and acceptance - and a lot of "so called" Christians simple don't exhibit those traits at all!

In this day and age, of supposed enlightenment and tolerance (yea right - a local supermarket staff member has recently been "moved" because he's racist - very tolerant, but not very enlightened - the wanker should have been sacked IMHO) why are there still people with such an archaic attitude to RPG's.

It reminds me of the scare over Mazes and Monsters. Though some people think Mazes and Monsters was a "spoof" movie, it really wasn't.

Mazes and Monsters was based upon a novel of the same name by Rona Jaffe. Jaffe had based her 1981 novel upon certain wildly inaccurate newspaper stories about the disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III from Michigan State University in 1979.

The working title for the film was actually Dungeons & Dragons, but CBS dropped it in favour of the orignal novel's title - I would imagine to avoid the inevitable lawsuits over use of the trademarked name.

I had a friend back in those days who's girlfriend was very religious - he ended up letting her minister BURN all his D&D manuals and notes.

On a slightly ironic note - they are now divorced.

I actually love the film Mazes and Monsters, rather than a lesson in the "evils" of D&D (which is how simple minded bigots like to interpret it) its actually a lesson in dependancy and addiction and how too much of a good thing can present really big problems for anyone.

Robbie (Tom Hank's character in the film) had a co-dependant personality (needing the aclaim and affection from his parents that never came - leading to his obsession with his Brother, his girlfriend, and Mazes & Monsters) his problems could quite easily have led him to become a religious fanatic, an alchoholic, or even a drug addict - to whatever solution he felt most comfortable and "in control" of.

When "abandoned" by his Brother, his Girlfriend - he resorted to retreating into his RPG persona; the only thing in his life he felt in control of and supported by. Retreating into his character took all responsibility away from Robbie, he was a different person - it was all Robbies fault, not the "characters".

Had his friends actually been aware of Robbies problems, rather than caught up in their own - they might have been able to help him via their Games. Turning them into a beneficial "healing" experience, rather than letting Robbie turning them into an addictive and destructive one.

In reality Egbert was a 16 year old child prodigy who was battling intense academic pressure, drug addiction, and personal issues. So he was actually two characters in the film Robbie and JayJay.

He had entered the school's utility tunnels with the intent of committing suicide and went into hiding after that attempt was unsuccessful.

Different from the sensationalist story, no insanity, no retreating into his character. Just pain and embarrasment for the poor kid.

After learning that Egbert had played Dungeons and Dragons - William Dear (a Private Investigator hired to find Egbert), because he was unfamiliar with the game, suggested that Egbert "MIGHT" have entered the tunnels to play a live action version.

This theory was taken as fact by the media (ooh, what a freaking surprise) and caused intense controversy over the psychological effects of role playing games.

After several weeks, Egbert gave himself up to William Dear.

HOWEVER in 1980 (less than a year after the incident) Egbert successfully committed suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Investigator Dear kept the true circumstances of the disappearance a secret until four years after Egbert's death, due to a promise he made to the boy not to reveal them.

If you want to check out the actual events, in William Dears words - try reading "The Dungeon Master: The Disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III" written by William Dear in 1984 - it gives his explanation of the 1979 "steam tunnel incident" which he feels was misrepresented by the news media.

The book recounts his experience investigating the 1979 disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III, a student at Michigan State University and is well worth the read.

OK rant over, normal Gaming Blogging will be resumed with the next Post :D

Long Time No Blog

2010-07-12T13:02:00.000-07:00

Long Time no Blog . . . .

Things (my other Blogs notwithstanding) got in the way a little, but my Good friend Chris has done some exemplary work on his Campaign and a LOT more work on the Real Elves I was blogging about some time ago.

Getting back to it, I've been reviewing my C&C conversions - and will be returning to the "Booty and the Beasts" C&C project, doing each page in turn (including the index).

Furthermore, as I am now a C&C Harbinger I will hopefully be running some C&C Demo's in my local area soon as well.

LOADS to do (as usual).

Federation Races

2010-06-03T04:48:00.000-07:00

More Races (and Class options) will be added later (such as Soong Androids), but for now the Notes will Focus on those Races who are most active within the Federation.

Again I make an assumption here, that in reading these notes you are familiar with the Star Trek Universe – so detailed descriptions of these Races aren’t included.

Andorians

Attribute Modifiers
+2 Con, -2 Wis

High Pain Threshold
Andorian Characters add double their Level to their Life Points.

Antennae
Andorian Characters add a +2 Species Bonus to all rolls involving Tasks involving listening, and detecting anomalies (such as hidden passages) within a 3 meter radius.

Andorians who lose an Antennai suffer disorientation and migraines until it grows back (+2 difficulty modifier to all challenges).

Bajorans

Attribute Modifiers
None

The Pagh
Bajorans receive a +2 bonus to all Reflex, Toughness, and Willpower rolls. This is due to their natural determination, tenacity, and a strong belief in the Prophets and their “Pagh”.

Bajoran Culture
Bajorans come from a Culture of Artists and Craftsmen, and so receive a +2 Racial Bonus to all Tasks involving Arts and Crafts.

Betazoids

Attribute Modifiers
+2 Cha

Telepathic
Betazoids are naturally Telepathic, and so may attempt Tasks involving Telepathy and Empathy. These abilities are always considered to be Class Skills, so Betazoids may add double their level as a bonus to any rolls involving such Tasks.

Naturally Peaceful
Betazoids add a +4 Species Bonus to all rolls involving Negotiating and Mediating Tasks.

Bolians

Attribute Modifiers
-2 Str, +2 Dex

Team Player
Bolians receive a +2 Racial Bonus applied to all Tasks when working as part of a Team. This applies to other members of the Team as well, not just Bolians. Providing the Bolian is present, everyone in the Team receives the +2 bonus to all Task rolls.

Humans

Attribute Modifiers
None

Adaptable
Human characters receive a +2 bonus to all Reflex, Toughness, and Willpower rolls. Courage and Luck tend to protect Humans in most situations.

Skilled
Humans tend to excel at things they are passionate about. They receive a + 4 Racial Bonus to a “Field of Expertise” of the Players Choice (noted on the Character Sheet), or +2 Racial Bonus to any two “Specialities” of the Players Choice (noted on the Character Sheet).

Tellarites

Attribute Modifiers
+2 Con, -2 Cha

Exceptional Fortitude
Tellarites are a lot more robust than most Races, and so receive a +2 Racial Bonus to Toughness.

Meticulous
Tellarites tend to be precise and deliberate – giving them a natural “leaning” towards the Engineering Class. They receive a +4 Racial Bonus to all Tasks involving Engineering, Maintenance, and Repair. This also tends to make them impatient with other races, so they receive a +2 to the Challenge Rating of all Task involving Diplomacy and Social Interaction.

Trill (Joined)

Attribute Modifiers
+2 Int, +2 Wis

Skilled
Joined Trill have many lifetimes of Training. They receive a + 4 Racial Bonus to two “Fields of Expertise” of the Players Choice (noted on the Character Sheet), or +2 Racial Bonus to any four “Specialities” of the Players Choice (noted on the Character Sheet), or they may instead take one “Field of Expertise” and any two “Specialities” of the Players Choice (noted on the Character Sheet) instead.

Vulcan

Attribute Modifiers
+2 Int, +4 Str, -6 Cha

Telepathic
Vulcans are naturally Telepathic, and so may attempt Tasks involving Telepathy – however for the purposed of these rules such Tasks are restricted to Mind Melds and the Vulcan Nerve Pinch. Such Tasks are always considered to be Class Skills, so Vulcans may add double their level as a bonus to any rolls involving such Tasks.

Vulcan Nerve Pinch – An application of a Vulcan Neuralpressure Technique, the nerve Pinch requires contact with a nerve cluster between the neck and shoulder of the subject. When using this talent, the character must make an unarmed attack roll – using the standard Attack Rules. Upon a successful hit - if the subject fails a Toughness save with a Challenge modification equal to the value of the attacking Vulcans Wisdom Bonus, the subject is rendered unconscious for 2d6 minutes, or until revived by medical attention.

Vulcan Mind-Meld – Often mistaken as a simple Psychic technique, the Mind-Meld is steeped in Vulcan tradition and mysticism – and wasn’t allowed to be used on non-Vulcans until the 23rd Century. By coming in physical contact with a willing subject, the character is able to merge minds with the subject, essentially creating a single consciousness in two bodies. This allows for deep two-way mental communication. An unwilling Target must make a Willpower Save, with a Modifier equal to the Vulcans Level – if the victim passes the roll the Mind Meld is unsuccessful, and may not be attempted again for 24 hours.

Rapid Healing - Vulcans may, once a day if injured – enter a trance-like state to heal themselves.

10 Minutes = 1D8 Hit Points or 1D4 Life Points
20 Minutes = 2D8 Hit Points or 2D4 Life Points
30 Minutes = 3D8 Hit Points or 3D4 Life Points
40 Minutes = 4D8 Hit Points or 4D4 Life Points
50 Minutes = 5D8 Hit Points or 5D4 Life Points - and so on . . . . . . . . .

Star Fleet Character Classes

2010-05-31T07:17:00.000-07:00

Star Fleet Characters receive 10 Hit Points + Con Bonus (if any) at level one, from level two onwards the use their Class Hit Dice.

• Command (d8 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Cha)
• Counsellor (d4 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Cha)
• Engineering (d8 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Con)
• Medical (d6 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Wis)
• Operations (d6 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Dex)
• Sciences (d6 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Int)
• Security (d10 Hit Dice, Prime Attribute – Str)

Star Fleet Personnel Experience Chart (Click to enlarge)

+ 250,000 XP per level required after 12th Level
*Hit Dice determined by Character Class, this number is the Total Hit Dice at that level.
** Maximum Combat Bonus

Career Placement

The easiest part of Character generation, is deciding what your characters position will be on the Ship. This determines their final level (don’t forget to roll for additional Hit Points).

Captain
Starts Play at Level Six

First Officer/Rank of Commander
Starts Play at Level Five

Head of Department/Rank of Lieutenant Commander
Starts Play at Level Four

Starfleet Officer/Rank of Lieutenant
Starts Play at Level Three

Next - Federation Races

New Blog

2010-05-27T13:32:00.000-07:00

I've started a new Blog today, this time to help with my "Superhero Fetish" - its called "Pulp City Planet" inspired by one of the best (if not the best currently available) Skirmish Miniatures games on the market - Pulp City!

You can find it here - PULP CITY PLANET!

Starfleet Training, Skills, & the Seige Engine

2010-05-27T12:18:00.001-07:00

If you are reading these notes, I am going to make the assumption that you are familiar with Castles and Crusades and the Siege Engine system.

There are little or no changes to the Siege Engine, and how it works – but there are benefits to being a trained Star Fleet Officer.

One of the main changes to the rules as written (an addition in actuality) is that a natural “20” always succeeds, and a natural “1” always fails.

Utilization of the rules below requires a reasonable amount of Games Mastering skill – do not be too generous with what constitutes a “Class Task”, by the same token do not be to strict over what comes under the heading of “Star Fleet Training”.

When performing a task that counts as a Class Task, twice (2X) the Characters Level is added to the roll.

Example – Captain Kurt is attempting to Negotiate Peace between the Anticans and the Selae – Negotiation counts as a Command Skill so he gets to add +12 (twice his level of 6) to the Roll.

When performing a task that does not count as a Class Task, but comes under Star Fleet training protocols – the Characters Level is added to the roll.

Example – Captain Kurt is attempting repair the Transporter Station, Chief Enginer “Taff” Jones is unconscious and Kurt needs to site to site transport himself onto the Bridge in an attempt stop the Romulan Pirates that have invaded his ship. Kurt is not an Engineer, but all Star Fleet personell have at least some training in this field so he gets to add +6 (his Level) to the Roll.

If the Task comes outside the province of Star Fleet Training altogether – but is still within the realms of possibility that the Character might “know” how to do such a thing, he may still attempt the Task – but with no bonus for his level applied to the roll.

Example – Captain Kurt attempting to beat a Ferengi at Tongo in order to get information out of the Ferengi, he is familiar with the game as he spent time stationed on a Deep Space Station. Tongo is a Charisma Based test the GM reasons, so Kurts base Challenge level is 15 + the Ferengis level of 3. The Ferengi passes his Tongo test, now its over to Kurt - should Captain Kurt roll 18+ he stays in the game for another turn, if the Ferengi had failed his Tongo test - Kurt would have won outright!

Next - Federation Character Classes

Medical Aid in the 24th Century

2010-05-24T07:59:00.000-07:00

There are certain liberties taken with this part of the rules, the simple reason being to keep the game going – if characters end up dead or incapacitated after one fight – where’s the fun in that! So I’ve made healing (and thereby Medi-Kits and Doctors) rather more powerful.

All Healing and Medical Treatment are dependent on the Star Fleet Equipment at hand as well as the Skill of the individual using them. As I mentioned in the “Seige Engine and Star Fleet Training” section, a Doctor gets +2 on the Roll when attempting a Medical Procedure, whilst a Star Fleet Officer would just get +1 per Level – and wouldn’t be able to achieve as much as a Star Fleet Doctor could.

The Challenge Rating is ALWAYS calculated as following –

Hit Points = to the number of Hit Points you want to heal.

Life Points = to 2 x the number of Life Points you want to heal.

Modifiers

No Medi-Kit = +2 to the Challenge Level for Medical Staff, +4 for all other Star Fleet Personel.

Example – Captain Kurt wants to heal 7 Life Points to the Ferengi Spy to bring him around. There is no Medi-Kit. The GM rules its an Int based Task for Kurt. Luckily Kurts Int is Primary, so the Challenge Base is 12. +4 for No Medi-Kit, and +14 for the Life Points Kurt needs to heal. This gives a final Challenge Rating of 30! Fortunatley in these rules a 20 always succeeds (and a 1 always fails) so Kurt needs to roll a Natural 20 to revive the Ferengi! But if he rolls a natural ‘1’ the Ferengi could be in a lot of trouble . . . .

Medi-Kit = +2 to all Medical Rolls

Runabout or Long Range Shuttle Medi-Bay = +4 to all Medical Rolls

Starship/Starbase Sick=Bay = + 8 to all Medical Rolls.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2010-05-23T03:36:00.000-07:00

Its my Birthday today, so the chances of me posting anything more than an apology for not posting anything (like this LoL) is slim at best!

I hope everyone has a great Weekend!

Drew

Hit Points, Life Points, Combat, & Death

2010-05-20T16:41:00.000-07:00

We all know about Hit Points in RPG’s, and in Star Trek there is little difference – they represent the characters durability and resiliance.

Reduction to your hit points can take many forms - Fatigue, Malnutrition, Grazing hits in Combat, or even some gribbly Alien Disease (Andorian Shingles for example).

In this set of rules we also have "Life Points" - they are important in this Star Trek RPG as they help draw the line between "Grazes" and "Hits".

Life Points are exactly that, the “Life” of the Character. Your Life Points are equal to your Characters Str+Con+Dex divided by three – plus your Level.

Example – Captain Kurt is 6th Level, and has 52 Hit Points. His Str is 14, his Con is 16, and his Dex is 18. 14+16+18 = 48, 48/3 = 16. 16+6 (for Kurts Level) = 22. Captain Kurt has 22 Life Points. When he advances to Level 7 he will have 23 Life Points.

Combat & Damage

Both Close Combat and Ranged Combat are worked out slightly differently in these Star Trek Roleplaying Notes, mainly because of the lethality of 24th Century Weapons – but partly due the the lack of Armour and therefore an Armour Class.

If the intended Target of the attack is aware that the attack is coming, you roll to hit as usual (applying all the usual modifiers for range, level, skill etc – you roll to hit, and the intended victim then rolls a standard Combat Based Reflex Test (Reflexes Score + 1D20).

If the Attacker rolls a “1” to hit, the Attack automatically misses.

If the Target rolls equal to the Attackers roll, they take a “graze” and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon – the Victim of the attack takes that many Hit Points of Damage to their Hit Points.

If the Target rolls higher than the Attackers roll, they successfully avoid the attack – and take no Damage.

If they fail the Roll, they take “Hit” Damage and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon and the Damage is applied directly to your Characters Life Points (see -10 HP and Death).

If a natural “20” is rolled, not only does the Victim take Life Point Damage – but he is also “stunned” for a number of Rounds equal to half the Damage taken. Medical Aid can reduce this.

If the intended Target is unaware of the Attack, the Attacker instead rolls against the targets Reflexes.

If the Attacker rolls a “1” to hit, the Shot automatically misses.

If the Attacker rolls equal or lower than the Targets reflexes score - the victim of the Attack takes a “graze” and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon and the Victim takes that many Hit Points of Damage to his Hit Points.

If you roll more than the Targets Reflexes, the Victim takes “Hit” Damage - the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon and the Damage is applied directly to the Characters Life Points (see -10 HP and Death).

If a natural “20” is rolled, not only does the Victim take Life Point Damage – but he is also “stunned” for a number of Rounds equal to half the Damage taken. Medical Aid can reduce this.

The above rules also apply to attacks/effects that target an Individuals Toughness (in the case of Radiation, Explosions, and Diseases) and Willpower (in the case of Psychic, Illusionary, and Fear based attacks) as well.

Stun Attacks

Weapons which stun ALWAYS affect the targets Life Points, this is only temporary damage and should be noted on the sheet as such. Stun Damage is recovered at a rate equal to the characters Con Bonus +1 each round (with a minimum of 1 point recovered each round), when this temporary damage is reduced to Zero the character recovers conciousness. Medical Aid can speed this recovery.

If the intended Target of the attack is aware that the attack is coming, you roll to hit as usual (applying all the usual modifiers for range, level, skill etc – you roll to hit, and the intended victim then rolls a standard Combat Based Reflex Test (your Reflexes Score + 1D20).

If you roll a “1” to hit, the Attack automatically misses.

If you roll equal or lower than the intended victims roll, the Stun "grazes" the target and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon – the victim makes a Toughness Save with a Challenge Modifier equal to the amount of Stun Damage Rolled. If passed the target is not stunned and takes no effect from the shot, if failed the victim takes that many Points of temporary Stun Damage to his Life Points.

If the intended Target rolls higher than the Attackers roll, they have successfully avoid the attack – and take no effect from the Shot.

If the Victim fails the Roll, they take Stun Damage with no way of avoiding it - and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon and the temporary Damage is applied directly to the Characters Life Points.

If a natural “20” is rolled, the Stun Damage is doubled.

If the intended Target is unaware of the Attack, the Attacker instead rolls against the targets Reflexes.

If you roll a “1” to hit, the Attack automatically misses.

If the Attacker rolls equal or lower than the Targets reflexes score, the Stun "grazes" the target and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon – the victim makes a Toughness Save with a Challenge Modifier equal to the amount of Stun Damage Rolled. If passed the target is not stunned and takes no effect from the shot, if failed the victim takes that many Points of temporary Stun Damage to his Life Points.

If attacker rolls more than the Targets Reflexes Score, the Victim take Stun Damage with no way of avoiding it - and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon and the temporary Damage is applied directly to the Characters Life Points.

If a natural “20” is rolled,
If attacker rolls more than the Targets Reflexes Score, the Victim take Stun Damage with no way of avoiding it - and the Attacker rolls the Damage rating of the Weapon and the temporary Damage is applied directly to the Characters Life Points - and the Stun Damage is doubled.

-10 HP & Death

In a lot of D20 based RPG’s, normally when a Character reaches -10 Hit points he dies almost immediately. In these Star Trek notes its somewhat different . . . .

When a Character reaches Zero HP he is battered and exhausted, after that point – all Damage is applied directly to the characters Life Points rather than applying “graze” Damage to his Hit Points.

Losing Life Points

When a character takes Damage to his Life Points there are consequences, these are listed below.

If a Character is reduced to half his Life Points (or less) he must IMMEDIATELY make a Constitution Saving Throw – the difficulty is ALWAYS 18 regardless whether the Characters Constitution Score is Primary or Secondary. If it is failed, the Character passes out. If it is passed, the Character stays Conscious – and must continue making Constitution Saves every Round until his Life Points are healed and passes the Consciousness barrier (more on healing later).

If the Character continues taking Damage, and reaches Zero Life Points he must make another immediate Constitution Save (again Difficulty 18 regardless) and if failed the Character expires and must be resuscitated within minutes or the Character Dies permanently. If passed he must continue making Con Saves each round. However, the difficulty of the Save increases by 2 each time he passes (the poor fellow is dying after all) until the he receives medical aid or finally expires.

Death Saves Table

Initial Save vs. Death – 18+
After1 additional Round – 20+
After 2 additional Rounds – 22+
After 3 additional Rounds – 24+
After 4 additional Rounds – 26+, and so on . . . . .

Next - Medical Aid in the 24th Century

Star Trek RPG Notes Part Two - Armour Classes & Saving Throws

2010-05-19T08:11:00.000-07:00

Armour Classes are gone (especially as most weapons in Star Trek could vaporise almost any Armour), and is replaced with a characters “Reflexes” Score.

Note - As a “rule of thumb” Federation Training NEVER leaves a Cadet with a Dex Attribute ranked at less than Secondary.

Standard “Fantasy” RPG saves are Illogical in the Star Trek Setting – so more applicable saves are required - The "model" is take from 3.5 D&D.

Reflexes
Reflexes is calculated as following -

“Base” + your character level + Dex ‘Base’ + Racial Bonus (if any)

Choosing Dex as a Primary Attribute yields a base Reflexes of 12, whereas choosing Dex as a Secondary Attribute yields a base Reflexes of 10, and choosing Dex as a Tertiary Attribute yields a base Reflexes of 8.

Toughness
Toughness is calculated as following -

“Base” + your character level + Con ‘Base’ + Racial Bonus (if any)

Choosing Con as a Primary Attribute yields a base Toughness of 12, whereas choosing Con as a Secondary Attribute yields a base Toughness of 10, and choosing Con as a Tertiary Attribute yields a base Toughness of 8.

Willpower
Willpower is calculated as following -

“Base” + your character level + Wis ‘Base’ + Racial Bonus (if any)

Choosing Wis as a Primary Attribute yields a base Willpower of 12, whereas choosing Wis as a Secondary Attribute yields a base Willpower of 10, and choosing Wis as a Tertiary Attribute yields a base Willpower of 8.

As per the standard C&C Rules all saves can (and generally are) modified by Challenge Ratings, opponents level, and encountered creatures hit dice.

Next - Hit Points, Life Points, Combat, & Death

Expanded Attributes, Primary, Secondary, & Tertiary

2010-05-17T09:49:00.000-07:00

Presented over the next few Blog Posts will be the “bare bones” of the System, it uses Castles & Crusades at its core – and makes particular use of the “Seige Engine” Mechanic.

Star Fleet Personnel

It is the intention of these notes that the Game "Group" be centered around Teams of Star Fleet Personnel – Star Fleet produces some of the finest Officers, Explorers, and Scientist in the Star Trek Universe. If there seems to be sufficient interest I may do rules for civilian characters too.

How you “set up” your Games is entirely up to you, your Players could be the Bridge Crew of a Starship – or maybe made up of the Command Team of a Deep Space Station on the very Edge of Federation Space.

Attributes

Star Fleet Personnel are generally healthier and in better condition than most in the 24th Century, that combined with the fact they don’t train Half-Wits means character generation will be slightly different.

All Attributes are generated on 2D4+10 giving a range of 12-18, this yields much higher scores than the standard 3D6 of C&C – but is a more realistic treatment of the 24th Centuries finest in my humble opinion.

Expanded Attribute Chart

With the Alien Races, better Nutrition, and impeccable Health Care of the 24th Century, come (possibly) higher attributes - hence an expanded attribute chart.

Primary, Secondary, & Tertiary Attributes

In Castles & Crusades the Primary Attribute concept is introduced, challenges associated with a Primary attribute are set at 12+. All other attributes have the base challenge levels set at 18+.

There are no averages, no middle ground - you are either talented at something or you struggle - base challenge level being set at 12+.

This “no middle ground” really doesn’t sit-well for Star Fleet Personell – they are better trained that that! So here we introduce the idea of Tertiary Attributes.
The idea behind this is simple - rather than all other attributes being set at 18+, Secondary attributes have a base challenge level of 15+, and Tertiary have a base challenge level of 18+.

All Star Fleet Personnel pick three Primes, two Secondary’s, and one Tertiary. Civilians pick two Primes, three Secondary’s, and one Tertiary. This way Star Fleet Characters are as well trained as they should be, and you get a better “spread” of numbers, further exemplifying Star Fleets training program.

However, ONE of your choices still has to be the Prime of the Class you have chosen.

So, to sum up –

• Star Fleet Personnel – 3 Primes, 2 Secondary’s, and 1 Tertiary.
• Civilians – 2 Primes, 3 Secondary’s, 1 Tertiary.
• One of your Primes MUST belong to the Class chosen.
• Prime Challenge Level – 12+
• Secondary Challenge Level – 15+
• Tertiary Challenge Level – 18+

Next - Armour Classes & Saving Throws

Star Trek

2010-05-17T03:38:00.000-07:00

A while ago I expressed a desire to write some rules for Star Trek Roleplaying, after writing a STUPIDLY detailed and OVERLY complex set of character generation, background creation, and skillset rules I realized that had all been done before.

So, I re-thought everthing . . . .

Why have a seemingly endless list of skills when Castle & Crusades SEIGE Engine facilitates everything. Characters in the Star Trek Universe are remarkably well trained, if you give them a Bonus for their "Field of Expertise" (Engineering, Life Sciences, Medicine, Security, etc), allow them to attempt Tasks involving Starfleet Training/Operations with no penalty, and only really penalize them on rolls involving Non-Starfleet Tasks you not only make things a lot simpler (allowing for more roleplaying rather than "roll" playing) but actually replicate the "high-end" skill levels of such well rounded and extremely well-trained individuals.

Of course I had to change combat a little, Armour Class is gone - with Phasers, Disruptors, and other high-energy weapons; personal armour becomes pointless. Now there is a Reflexes Stat, which not only covers Reflex saves (much like 3rd Edition D&D) but serves as the "target number" for all attacks.

So, over the next few weeks I will be posting these rules on my Blog - if they prove popular I may even do a website for them!

Next - Expanded Attributes, Primary, Secondary, & Tertiary

Another Great Man Gone

2010-05-11T17:16:00.000-07:00

Frank Frazetta, who was widely respected and appreciated for his Fantasy and Science-Fiction Art has passed away - he was 82.

Frazetta was famous for his works on book covers, movie posters, and other commercial works - including those of the Conan the Barbarian series. He was also known for his illustrations of Edgar Rice Burroughs characters such as Tarzan and John Carter of Mars.

His style of painting (which I adored personally) became one of the milestones of Fantasy and Science-Fiction art.

Yet another great and talented Man gone, he will be missed.

NoticingThings and Perception Checks

2010-05-04T09:30:00.000-07:00

In Castles & Crusades Where a character, and not a player, has had an experience that could impact upon present circumstances - a Wisdom based attribute check is often involved.

Wisdom checks often help resolve unclear circumstances through hunches or gut feeling. Wisdom is also used to determine surprise, and when allowed - to spot something not normal about a situation.

This is one of the rare instances where the 12/18 (Primary/Secondary) rules (sorta') fall down.

This means that EVERY character (and always Clerics and Druids) with Wisdom as a Prime Attribute will always be at an advantage in these sort of situations.

It is an easy problem to resolve however, if you look at these sort of Perception checks in a slightly different way.

A Character (Fighter, Ranger, Cleric, Wizard, Thief or whatever) has training in such things - whether it be spotting potential threats, noticing subtle things about an opponents demeanor, or sensing an ambush - and such training would 'stem' from the Characters Prime Attribute.

So, the simplest method to adopt for resolving such tests would be to use the Classes designated Prime Attribute - Wizards would use Intelligence, Clerics would use Wisdom, Fighters would use Strength - and so on.

This way every Character would be on an equal footing with no one having a distinct advantage (beyond their Attribute Scores) over anyone else.

A New Way of Looking at Skills

2010-04-29T13:45:00.000-07:00

I ended introducing skills to my C&C Games mainly because players wanted them, I love the C&C system as a whole but the general concensu was folks wanted a little more "definition" to their characters. After pinching skill systems that didn't really "fit" (a mixture of AD&D 1st and 3.5 Editions) I came up with a new approach.

Here's how I've being doing it - its been working quite well for the last couple of Months.

This is a way for the use of skills in C&C games to 'fit' a little better with the Siege Engine System - so it’s possible to actually still use both approaches - allowing characters to attempt pretty much anything whilst maintaining a more structured approach - with appropriate Challenge Ratings of course.

This would still allow a Fighter to attempt to pick a lock (for example) - he just wouldn't have much of a chance of succeeding (IMHO as it should be).

I personally believe that rather than have a long static list of skills, the players should choose skills that fit their character concept and with the help of their CK – and come up with their own list of skills and their descriptions.

Skills would still have ranks of sorts – and these levels are ‘rated’ like any characters attributes –

• Tertiary (the lowest skill level)
• Secondary (average skill level
• Primary (the highest skill level)

Like class skills, the character applies any appropriate attribute bonus to the task at hand - strength when shoeing a horse, or dexterity when making a horse-shoe – both would be considered to come under the skill heading of blacksmithing, but you would require strength for one and manual dexterity for the other. But unlike class skills, you don't add your class level in a 'straight' manner.

• Primary skills get a +1 bonus per level
• Secondary gets +1/2 levels
• Tertiary gets a +1 bonus per 3 levels

Your base challenge rating is determined by skill 'level' – level 3/Primary = 12, level 2/Secondary = 15, and level 1/Tertiary = 18. This in turn has a Challenge Rating applied by the Myth Master determined by the individual circumstances for that particular use of the skill.

As rule of thumb - the Number of slots a Character has for his Secondary Skills are equal to –

Characters (INT+WIS) + Characters Starting Age/10 (round up).

Skill Level / Cost to "buy" at First Level
Tertiary (18 ) / 2 point
Secondary (15) / 4 points
Primary (12) / 6 points

Skill Level / Cost to "buy" after First Level
Tertiary (18 ) / 3 point
Secondary (15) / 6 points
Primary (12) / 9 points

Example - Brother Kydric has 26 ‘Slots’ to spend on his Secondary Skills – and he decides to spend 6 Slots on Healing. Giving him the Healing secondary skill at Level 3/Primary, his base challenge difficulty for all tests involving his Healing secondary skill is set at 12.

I set the costs for buying new skills as higher after the character has begun his "career" to make it more difficult later on in a characters development - mainly to stop PC's being "bogged down" with huge lists of skills.

A Character gains Secondary Skill points at every ‘Odd’ level (3rd, 5th, 7th and so on), the points he gains are equal to his Class Prime attribute modifier (whichever is higher) +1 (with a minimum "gain" of 1 Secondary Skill point).

To make the check, the character performing the skill simply rolls a d20 and adds his appropriate modifiers - the difficulty is set by his skill level (either 12, 15, or 18) plus any challenge rating added by his CK.

So if a character is level three, has a dexterity of 15 (the appropriate attribute in this example), and his skill level is 3/Primary – when using the Weapon Smith secondary skill they are allowed a +4 to their roll.

In some instances the use of skills causes another to make a saving throw. In this case, the character, monster or non-player character makes a saving throw but modifies the roll by a -1 for each level of skill the character has (-1 for Tertiary, -2 for Secondary, and -3 for Primary).

This is also adjusted further for any attribute modifiers. When a saving throw is called for, the character’s level or monsters hit dice also affect the roll.

Furthermore, as mentioned above - there are always circumstances than need some modification beyond that mentioned above.

Unusual circumstances, the weather and pure chance can come into play to effect the chances of success. In addition, the difficulty of the situation also adjusts the roll.

Its fairly straight forward, fits in with the concept of primes - and doesn't screw up the SEIGE Engine system.

Morality & Responsibility

2010-04-19T04:56:00.000-07:00

Even though I’m no moralizer - I have commented in the past about the moral “grey area” of WizBro’s marketing. How it’s an example of corporate greed, and that I believe it’s going to be damaging to the hobby in the long run.

I’ve had my dissenters, (you know who you are Mister B) and there have been yells and whines about how they are a business and need to make money.

Whilst that is true, I don’t think it’s right dumbing it all down to the level it has been (the rumour is character sheets are going next, to be replaced by cards – another product in the line no doubt) whilst exploiting it to the level they have.

D&D T-Shirts have been around for years, worn in “geek pride” by many a gamer – but a line of Soft Drinks, even a ‘limited edition’ one is taking the p**s IMHO.

A lot of parents have been running 4e with their kids, and whilst I think it’s a good thing – the ages concern me. Getting very young kids (even in one instance a pre-schooler) taught to play D&D – feels a little more like indoctrination than a family activity. As at very young ages they hear the word “game” and are up for anything, without the ability to make a decision about wanting or not wanting to play it on their own.

D&D has been aimed at kids before – that’s a fact I know.

Sure there have been colouring books in the past - and the Classic Animated Series (which I still adore). But if it IS to be marketed at kids, it should be done in a more appropriate and responsible way – Making a "kiddy friendly" product.

The Harvesters RPG from Troll Lord Games is a brilliant example of a game designed to be played by kids and their parents.

But, if such marketing exists – it should be tempered with a little morality and responsibility. Something WizBro seems to be lacking.

Still not convinced – then scoot over to the Virgin Casino and check out “Crystal Caverns” – a Dungeons and Dragons slot machine game (I kid you not).

“Adventure & fortune awaits in Dungeons & Dragons: Crystal Caverns. Now with Tumbling Reels® plus free spins & a scatter feature.”

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS - CRYSTAL CAVERNS

Of course, you can play for free – but to allow such an obvious abuse of the D&D brand and linking it to gambling - is despicable behaviour at best.

Well done WizBro – you really suck now!

The Campaign for Real (as in folklore and legend) Elves

2010-04-15T07:37:00.000-07:00

I've been talking to my friend Chris about this.

Elves in Fantasy are little more than effeminate Humans with pointy ears and an overly aloof nature.

One more thing Tolkien can be blamed for in modern fantasy (I know I'm going to get hate mail over that one LoL).

In mythology, Elves are far more interesting especially taking on Nordic and Celtic references.

Its quite interesting to note that WizBro attempted to "bring them into the fold" of 4e with Eladrin, but just missed the mark (more to do with the dreadful system than the initial idea).

The "Seelie" (Bright or Good Elves) and "Unseelie" (Dark or Evil Elves) are far more than pointy eared Santa's Workshop midgets or the foppish Drag-Queens of modern fantasy.

By looking around the internet and through dusty tomes you can find a wealth of fantastic ideas about these fascinating people.

The LIST of information about 'real' Elves is seemingly endless, but here are a few thoughts.

An "Unseelie" (as in Evil or Dark) Elf that intends you harm can be "warded" against by marking the doors/windows/entrances with a Pentacle. As in certain Druidic cults the Pentacle is also a symbol of reverence, could a Druid "Turn" an Unseelie Elf with one?

Even though its mentioned here and there, I can't find much reference to the 'famous' Fae vulnerability to iron.

But should you want to include it, how about this - critical hits are delivered to a "True" Elf on a natural 18+ rather than a natural 20+. Representing their weakness towards it. In addition, such Elves cannot comfortably use weapons and armour made from it; and will be at a penalty of -2 to all tasks when wearing it - and cannot cast Arcane Spells at all. BUT (and its a BIG BUT) do we count Steel under this ruling. (Upon saying that, I quite like the thought of Elves running around in cool looking Bronze Armour)

If an Elven Woman is rejected by a Mortal Man or who has lost her Elven Life-Mate becomes a "Beansidhe" (Banshee) - automatically gaining the powers of the Monster and becoming an NPC in the Process. This can be avoided with a successful Save vs Petrification being made once per Month, but a -2 Penalty is imposed on each successful save after the first, till she eventually succumbs to her fate . . . .

Elves in some Celtic Myths have enlarged Canines, much like a Cat (maybe they "evolved" from Felines much in the way we evolved from Monkeys) and have eyes and hair colours that range the full spectrum (it not mentioned, but I wonder if their irises would be 'cat-like' too - a cool thought IMHO). The 'cat' thing might be down to the fact the Ancient Elves were all shape shifters though.

Size - I can't find any solid reference to height! In some cultures they are tiny, others they are almost giants, the Celts described them as "man sized".

Malekith, who was a character from marvel comics - an Enemy of Thor and the other Asgardians was 6'9" tall! (But he is an 'Ancient One') is a shapeshifter (as all Ancient Elves are) and has a vulnerability to Iron. (Malekith exists in Mythology btw, and F'ing GW pinched the name for a Dark Elf Lord grrrr).

Just some thoughts really, though Chris has actually named the movement "CAMRE" (the CAMpaign for Real Elves).

JOIN THE FIGHT!