Tomorrow A-Z Blogging ends and things go back to normal somewhat. As I mentioned in by V post, I hope that this will lead to more blogging on my part. I plan on updating everyone on my play-by-post game every Friday, and Hitting the Bottle Week will return later in the month. I do want to at least finish this event on Z, which I wasn't able to do last year.
I am also considering doing more vlogs and maybe a review of one of my favorite series up here. But I haven't decided yet. I'll see how the muse hits me and take it from there.
Showing posts with label April A-Z Blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label April A-Z Blogging. Show all posts
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Thursday, April 26, 2012
U is for Underground
Dungeons and Dragons. Tunnels and Trolls. Labyrinth Lord. Fantasy role-playing games are obsessed with getting people underground. Is there a monster to kill, he's in a cave outside of town. A crime wave has struck the city? Go into the sewers to find the thieves' guild hall. Here rumors of a long-lost treasure? It's over there in that dungeon which, despite its name, is not actually a place where prisoners are detained and tortured but is in fact an underground fortress more heavily fortified than a castle that actually has a real dungeon in it.
Sorry for the run on sentence.
There has to be a reason that this became the norm. Something about the feel of going into a place where the sun doesn't reach. Where you can't see where the path in front of you is going to turn. Bats, rats, spiders and other things that crawl around. Dirt, mud, fungus and stuff that makes you feel unclean. Sounds echo about preventing you from knowing what is out there, and how close it is. It's amazing that most dungeon adventures don't conjure up a feeling of dread. Going into the unknown should be a little unnerving, especially for a ragtag group of first-time adventurers.
Sorry for the run on sentence.
There has to be a reason that this became the norm. Something about the feel of going into a place where the sun doesn't reach. Where you can't see where the path in front of you is going to turn. Bats, rats, spiders and other things that crawl around. Dirt, mud, fungus and stuff that makes you feel unclean. Sounds echo about preventing you from knowing what is out there, and how close it is. It's amazing that most dungeon adventures don't conjure up a feeling of dread. Going into the unknown should be a little unnerving, especially for a ragtag group of first-time adventurers.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
T is for THAC0
Am I the only person in the blogosphere that never had a problem with this?
THAC0 (pronounced like the sound of a sword hitting an orc in the head) stood for To Hit Armor Class Zero. Prior to 3rd edition, Armor Class started at 10 and went down as better defenses were applied, with an "upper" limit around -10. Hitting a target required rolling a twenty-sided die, adding modifiers, and then comparing the result to a number on a table that cross-referenced the target's armor class (AC) and the attacker's class and level. This took up as many as three pages depending on what version of D&D you played. This was a pain in the ass, but it was soon figured that since the tables' progressions were all linear, you just needed the number to hit zero and work the rest out using basic algebra.
THAC0 (pronounced like the sound of a sword hitting an orc in the head) stood for To Hit Armor Class Zero. Prior to 3rd edition, Armor Class started at 10 and went down as better defenses were applied, with an "upper" limit around -10. Hitting a target required rolling a twenty-sided die, adding modifiers, and then comparing the result to a number on a table that cross-referenced the target's armor class (AC) and the attacker's class and level. This took up as many as three pages depending on what version of D&D you played. This was a pain in the ass, but it was soon figured that since the tables' progressions were all linear, you just needed the number to hit zero and work the rest out using basic algebra.
Monday, April 23, 2012
S is for Setting, or History of the Archipelago
On the 10th day of Famine, 744 YND, a Reanaarian trading vessel was headed en
route to Svimozhia along the Reanaarian Run when a storm from the north
pushed the off course. After being battered by the wind and rain for two
days, they found their vessel off shore of an archipelago southwest of
Svimozhia. After spending six days on one of the islands making repairs
and doing a small bit of exploration before getting back on their
original course to Svimozhia.
Upon returning to Zoa, the captain of the vessel spoke to the elders and got permission to begin an expedition to explore the archipelago fully. No one is sure what the captain said to get the funding needed to begin this expedition. But everyone is sure that something was found on the island besides sand and friendly natives.
The Reanarrese aren't the only ones making plans for the archipelago. The Svimozhians quickly learned about it from a few rum-soaked crewman aboard the trading vessel, and they consider the archipelago to be part of Svimozhia. The Kalamaran Empire also has expressed interest in the archipelago. Both nations have begun to send their own expeditions.
The archipelago consists of eight islands, one central surrounded by the other seven. All attempts to find a safe place to disembark on the other islands has proven difficult. The seas around the island, particularly the central one, are filled with shallow reefs and a variety of intelligent and monstrous sea creatures. The sailors call these waters "The Devil's Moat".
Upon returning to Zoa, the captain of the vessel spoke to the elders and got permission to begin an expedition to explore the archipelago fully. No one is sure what the captain said to get the funding needed to begin this expedition. But everyone is sure that something was found on the island besides sand and friendly natives.
The Reanarrese aren't the only ones making plans for the archipelago. The Svimozhians quickly learned about it from a few rum-soaked crewman aboard the trading vessel, and they consider the archipelago to be part of Svimozhia. The Kalamaran Empire also has expressed interest in the archipelago. Both nations have begun to send their own expeditions.
The archipelago consists of eight islands, one central surrounded by the other seven. All attempts to find a safe place to disembark on the other islands has proven difficult. The seas around the island, particularly the central one, are filled with shallow reefs and a variety of intelligent and monstrous sea creatures. The sailors call these waters "The Devil's Moat".
R is for Riddler
The relationship between game master and players is a contentious one. There are those that believe that the GM must make a conscious effort to defeat the PCs by whatever means necessary. The so-called "Killer GM" if you will. On the flipside, there are people that say that the GM's role is to facilitate the story that the players are involved in, and help them see it to it's conclusion.
Opponents of each side throw out some valid points. A GM that is too adversarial with the players has a tendency to screw over the players with petty rules-lawyering if not all out rule-breaking. The other argument is that if the game master doesn't do something to challenge the players, then it's not really a game but one person telling a story with the players sitting around unable to have any effect on the narrative.
Ideally a GM should challenge the players, while maintaining an even playing field. This seems like it would be easier said than done. Truth be told, there is a model for an adversary that is a threat to his opponents while simultaneously giving them a fair chance to defeat him. And he comes from the world of comics.
Opponents of each side throw out some valid points. A GM that is too adversarial with the players has a tendency to screw over the players with petty rules-lawyering if not all out rule-breaking. The other argument is that if the game master doesn't do something to challenge the players, then it's not really a game but one person telling a story with the players sitting around unable to have any effect on the narrative.
Ideally a GM should challenge the players, while maintaining an even playing field. This seems like it would be easier said than done. Truth be told, there is a model for an adversary that is a threat to his opponents while simultaneously giving them a fair chance to defeat him. And he comes from the world of comics.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Q is for Questions
With the start of my play-by-post campaign coming on Saturday, I have had a few questions come up that need to be addressed sooner or later. I figured I would answer a few of them now.
How will the PCs train?
We'll be playing by the new Player's Handbook rules which states that characters don't need to formally train until they hit level six. Since the first island is designed to take a party of six PCs to level four, that shouldn't be an issue. By that time, the company in charge of the expedition should have made a few arrangements for formal training. In the case of some classes there may be other opportunities right away, if they know where to look.
How will the PCs train?
We'll be playing by the new Player's Handbook rules which states that characters don't need to formally train until they hit level six. Since the first island is designed to take a party of six PCs to level four, that shouldn't be an issue. By that time, the company in charge of the expedition should have made a few arrangements for formal training. In the case of some classes there may be other opportunities right away, if they know where to look.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
P is for Party
Put the lampshade down, not that kind of party.
Role-playing games are a team effort. A group of hopefully like-minded individuals work together to accomplish a goal. If the party is not on the same page, things go pear-shaped quickly. I have played in and GMed for parties that have had problems. Here's just a little advice to any would be player that wants to avoid problems.
Fill a niche
This is better known as having a "well-balanced" party. For classic fantasy gaming it means having one member of each character class represented. In classless system it means each character having their own distinct skill set. But what you really want to accomplish is being able to do something that no one else in the party can do. Even if you are playing characters of the same class, you want to customize your PC to be unique. Having a niche in the game means that there is less of a chance of you getting shut out by other players trying to accomplish the same thing, which leads to the next point.
Don't try to upstage the other players
Part of playing as a team is working with your teammates, not against them. Unfortunately, some players are under the impression that they have to beat everyone else at the table in order to win. They get in the way, kill-steal and overall make nuisances of themselves. I know one game where a player was so obsessed with taking the limelight from the front-line fighters that he was completely ignorant of his character's ability as a long-range sniper, a skill set that would have been a greater asset to the party. But he preferred to be the center of attention, which only served to make the rest of the group resent him. No one is going to watch your back if you're constantly turning yours to them.
Speak up!
Not every person is an extrovert. Even my Myers-Briggs test has that big letter I in it. But at the same time if you're not giving any input into the party, you're not contributing anything of value. Sitting in your chair, playing with your phone and waiting for the GM to tell you it's your turn isn't adding to your enjoyment of the game, and it's certainly not adding to everyone else's fun. One of the nice things about role-playing games is the escapism involved. While it may take a while to loosen up and get comfortable around the people you game with, it will be well worth your while.
Role-playing games are a team effort. A group of hopefully like-minded individuals work together to accomplish a goal. If the party is not on the same page, things go pear-shaped quickly. I have played in and GMed for parties that have had problems. Here's just a little advice to any would be player that wants to avoid problems.
Fill a niche
This is better known as having a "well-balanced" party. For classic fantasy gaming it means having one member of each character class represented. In classless system it means each character having their own distinct skill set. But what you really want to accomplish is being able to do something that no one else in the party can do. Even if you are playing characters of the same class, you want to customize your PC to be unique. Having a niche in the game means that there is less of a chance of you getting shut out by other players trying to accomplish the same thing, which leads to the next point.
Don't try to upstage the other players
Part of playing as a team is working with your teammates, not against them. Unfortunately, some players are under the impression that they have to beat everyone else at the table in order to win. They get in the way, kill-steal and overall make nuisances of themselves. I know one game where a player was so obsessed with taking the limelight from the front-line fighters that he was completely ignorant of his character's ability as a long-range sniper, a skill set that would have been a greater asset to the party. But he preferred to be the center of attention, which only served to make the rest of the group resent him. No one is going to watch your back if you're constantly turning yours to them.
Speak up!
Not every person is an extrovert. Even my Myers-Briggs test has that big letter I in it. But at the same time if you're not giving any input into the party, you're not contributing anything of value. Sitting in your chair, playing with your phone and waiting for the GM to tell you it's your turn isn't adding to your enjoyment of the game, and it's certainly not adding to everyone else's fun. One of the nice things about role-playing games is the escapism involved. While it may take a while to loosen up and get comfortable around the people you game with, it will be well worth your while.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
O is for Objectives
The archipelago campaign is the closest I've come to running a sandbox-style game. As soon as the party lands on the island they have one main task ahead of them, explore the entire archipelago. How they choose to go about this is their prerogative. But there is more to the island than just making a map of hills and trees. Depending on how the party chooses to fan out and search, they may miss a few adventure hooks I have laid out for them.
Part of the problem is the way overland maps are drawn in role-playing games. Unlike most maps that show landmarks and exact positions of things, more RPG maps are little more than hexagonal graph paper with markers in each hex to indicate terrain. A single hex can be anywhere from 100 feet to 10 miles wide. I'm using 1 mile hexes, but that still leaves a lot of room for a party to walk past a hook or macguffin. Since experience in this game will be awarded more on exploration and discovery than combat, the party will have to be thorough to avoid missing anything.
This works both for and against me. If the party just walks by the hook it gives me time to flesh things out while I throw random encounters at them, but it slows advancement down considerably and may get boring after a while. On the other hand if they choose to be through in searching every square mile of the island they should find everything, but again it will likely slow down while they explore every nook and cranny, and most of the time without finding anything.
My only solution will be to establish a short-term goal up front that will lead to clues about the island's origins and secrets. Hopefully it will allow the party to meet all their goals without railroading them.
Part of the problem is the way overland maps are drawn in role-playing games. Unlike most maps that show landmarks and exact positions of things, more RPG maps are little more than hexagonal graph paper with markers in each hex to indicate terrain. A single hex can be anywhere from 100 feet to 10 miles wide. I'm using 1 mile hexes, but that still leaves a lot of room for a party to walk past a hook or macguffin. Since experience in this game will be awarded more on exploration and discovery than combat, the party will have to be thorough to avoid missing anything.
This works both for and against me. If the party just walks by the hook it gives me time to flesh things out while I throw random encounters at them, but it slows advancement down considerably and may get boring after a while. On the other hand if they choose to be through in searching every square mile of the island they should find everything, but again it will likely slow down while they explore every nook and cranny, and most of the time without finding anything.
My only solution will be to establish a short-term goal up front that will lead to clues about the island's origins and secrets. Hopefully it will allow the party to meet all their goals without railroading them.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
N is for Names
A rose by any other name would smell just as sweet, but a bad character name can really stink up the joint.
Choosing a name for a PC is never easy. A good name should be appropriate for the campaign setting, as well as help establish the character itself. For example, when I was playing Engines & Empires, I played a fighter named Lt. Reginald Hornsby. The name was perfect for the character. First, it fit the pseudo-Victorian pseudo-England setting of the campaign. Second, the rank helped establish a sense of authority from a character that started with an 8 Constitution and a 9 Charisma. Third, the name was remarkably versatile in determining who was addressing him. Those that recognized his authority called him Lieutenant. To those who new him more formally, he was Reginald. To his best friends, he was just Reg. And you always knew when an enemy approached when they shouted "Hornsby!" By the time the campaign ended, he added "Lord Reginald" and "Baron Hornsby" to the list of addresses. It's of little surprise that he became the leader of the party. The only name that came close to my PC's in coolness was our party's scholar, Dr. Matthew DeVault. That was a name that said, "I am an erudite and cultured individual, and I slay monsters for a living." No wonder he ended up with the Sword of Dracus.
On the other hand, we had a few characters that naturally fell to the back of the pack. First there was Bob the gnome, a character that was sadly played by a woman who had no idea how to play an E&E gnome/tech. Bob's major contribution to the party was being cursed to grow an inch a week until he was 6'8" tall. Not exactly the stuff legends are made of. On top of that was one of the party's halflings. Engines & Empires replaced the thief class with the more versatile expert, a skill-oriented character that could quickly become a master of many things. Halflings were the demi-human counterpart to the human expert. So one would expect a character that made up for his lack of size by using intelligence and guile.
Instead we got Bayonetta, the halfling stripper.
Yes, a gaslight fantasy campaign filled with high adventure and political intrigue had a character named after a then-popular video game character whose weapon of choice was based on it doubling as a stripper pole. John eventually made the player change the character's name to something more appropriate, but I'll be damned if I can remember it. And why should I? The player obviously didn't give a damn about the game, and came up with a character that was only memorable because of some juvenile shock value. So it's no surprise that it fell into the ranks of the supporting cast. In the end, the party really consisted of four or five heroes and a bunch of glorified hirelings. and those at the front of the line were played by players that cared enough to give their characters a decent name.
After all, you can't make history if no one knows who you are.
Choosing a name for a PC is never easy. A good name should be appropriate for the campaign setting, as well as help establish the character itself. For example, when I was playing Engines & Empires, I played a fighter named Lt. Reginald Hornsby. The name was perfect for the character. First, it fit the pseudo-Victorian pseudo-England setting of the campaign. Second, the rank helped establish a sense of authority from a character that started with an 8 Constitution and a 9 Charisma. Third, the name was remarkably versatile in determining who was addressing him. Those that recognized his authority called him Lieutenant. To those who new him more formally, he was Reginald. To his best friends, he was just Reg. And you always knew when an enemy approached when they shouted "Hornsby!" By the time the campaign ended, he added "Lord Reginald" and "Baron Hornsby" to the list of addresses. It's of little surprise that he became the leader of the party. The only name that came close to my PC's in coolness was our party's scholar, Dr. Matthew DeVault. That was a name that said, "I am an erudite and cultured individual, and I slay monsters for a living." No wonder he ended up with the Sword of Dracus.
On the other hand, we had a few characters that naturally fell to the back of the pack. First there was Bob the gnome, a character that was sadly played by a woman who had no idea how to play an E&E gnome/tech. Bob's major contribution to the party was being cursed to grow an inch a week until he was 6'8" tall. Not exactly the stuff legends are made of. On top of that was one of the party's halflings. Engines & Empires replaced the thief class with the more versatile expert, a skill-oriented character that could quickly become a master of many things. Halflings were the demi-human counterpart to the human expert. So one would expect a character that made up for his lack of size by using intelligence and guile.
Instead we got Bayonetta, the halfling stripper.
Yes, a gaslight fantasy campaign filled with high adventure and political intrigue had a character named after a then-popular video game character whose weapon of choice was based on it doubling as a stripper pole. John eventually made the player change the character's name to something more appropriate, but I'll be damned if I can remember it. And why should I? The player obviously didn't give a damn about the game, and came up with a character that was only memorable because of some juvenile shock value. So it's no surprise that it fell into the ranks of the supporting cast. In the end, the party really consisted of four or five heroes and a bunch of glorified hirelings. and those at the front of the line were played by players that cared enough to give their characters a decent name.
After all, you can't make history if no one knows who you are.
Monday, April 16, 2012
M is for Maps
On of the goals I have set for the players in my archipelago campaign is to map all of the islands. Mapping is one of those aspects of fantasy role-playing games I love. Armed with only the gamemaster's words, a pencil and some graph/hex paper, a player attempts to craft a workable map for the entire party to find their way through the dungeons and wildernesses of the campaign world. It's a fun way to interact with the players and keep them on their toes. A few sloping passages, teleportation traps or just a simple misunderstanding of what the GM said and the players may make a wrong turn down a path they thought they went down before.
My archipelago campaign is going to have an additional wrench in the works, it's a play-by-post game. So there is the additional factor of not being able to see what the players are drawing as it happens. HackMaster also has a Cartography skill, which is necessary for players to create maps. So now I have to adjudicate a player's map-making ability on a document I can't readily see. And I am pretty sure one of the characters that spent points on the skill does not have a scanner or a good graphics program readily available. It will be interesting to see how we manage to get things worked out.
My archipelago campaign is going to have an additional wrench in the works, it's a play-by-post game. So there is the additional factor of not being able to see what the players are drawing as it happens. HackMaster also has a Cartography skill, which is necessary for players to create maps. So now I have to adjudicate a player's map-making ability on a document I can't readily see. And I am pretty sure one of the characters that spent points on the skill does not have a scanner or a good graphics program readily available. It will be interesting to see how we manage to get things worked out.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
L is for Looking for Players
I'm hoping to get my play-by-post game started by the end of the month. I've already got my brother and another friend in on the game and have made an announcement on the Kenzer & Company boards, but I thought I would extend an invitation to my readership. If anyone is interested in getting into HackMaster and is up for a play-by-post game, let me know. Don't worry of you've never played the game before. I'm willing to help out in that regard.
K is for KickStarter
According to Blogger, this is my 100th post. I was going to have this post be about the campaign world the archipelago is set in, but instead I am going to hold that off until S (for Setting) and focus on something different.
A lot of would-be game designers have been using Kickstarter as a means to raise funds for their pet projects. I usually pass on a lot of them. There's a joke that goes, "How do you make one million in the gaming industry? Start with two million." So it never seemed like a good investment. But I am making an exception far a gaming product that I do think deserves backing.
Douglas Gray has created a KickStarter for PopAble Polyhedrons, a product that puts the unusual dice we gamers love into Pop-A-Matic bubbles like you see in the board game Trouble. Originally, Douglas made them as a neat little variant die-roller, and gave one to Jolly Blackburn, creator of Knights of the Dinner Table. as may you remember, Jolly and his wife Barb lost their daughter Amber last year. Amber spent her entire life in a wheelchair with limited mobility. As a result, the Blackburns have had a keen eye for devices that would help the disabled, especially when it came to gaming. Needless to say, for people with limited motor control function in their hands, picking up and rolling dice can be a problem. So a Pop-A-Matic die roller can be of great use to them. That inspired Mr. Gray to start his Kickstarter project to make PopAble Polyhedrons a reality.
Douglas' goal is to raise $2,800 (US) by May 2, 2012 to get things going. Pledges of $10 or more qualify you for something special. Like all Kickstarter projects, if the project does not meet it's pledge goal, your account will not be charged. Hopefully, we can help Doug make his goal and start opening up new opportunities for all gamers.
A lot of would-be game designers have been using Kickstarter as a means to raise funds for their pet projects. I usually pass on a lot of them. There's a joke that goes, "How do you make one million in the gaming industry? Start with two million." So it never seemed like a good investment. But I am making an exception far a gaming product that I do think deserves backing.
Douglas Gray has created a KickStarter for PopAble Polyhedrons, a product that puts the unusual dice we gamers love into Pop-A-Matic bubbles like you see in the board game Trouble. Originally, Douglas made them as a neat little variant die-roller, and gave one to Jolly Blackburn, creator of Knights of the Dinner Table. as may you remember, Jolly and his wife Barb lost their daughter Amber last year. Amber spent her entire life in a wheelchair with limited mobility. As a result, the Blackburns have had a keen eye for devices that would help the disabled, especially when it came to gaming. Needless to say, for people with limited motor control function in their hands, picking up and rolling dice can be a problem. So a Pop-A-Matic die roller can be of great use to them. That inspired Mr. Gray to start his Kickstarter project to make PopAble Polyhedrons a reality.
Douglas' goal is to raise $2,800 (US) by May 2, 2012 to get things going. Pledges of $10 or more qualify you for something special. Like all Kickstarter projects, if the project does not meet it's pledge goal, your account will not be charged. Hopefully, we can help Doug make his goal and start opening up new opportunities for all gamers.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
J is for Jocularity
Nine out of ten times I try to run a normal game, inevitably there is a moment where the group breaks down laughing. And yet whenever I try to run an intentionally comedic game, the laughs never come. It's one of those little quirks I've come to expect out of game mastering.
Most of the time the laughs are from the joy of seeing a situation go well. Any humor that pops up is due to an amusing situation, either in or out of character. Someone will come up with a snarky comment, a die roll pops up a humorous result, or an attempt at role-playing goes horribly awry. But I have never been able to master the art of the comedic game.
Maybe it's because my players are looking for something in the action/adventure genre, where comedy is there as a means of releasing tension. Or maybe it's because comedy is so difficult to master, one person's silly is another's stupid. Or maybe I'm just not as funny as I'd like to think I am. Regardless of the reason, I have to to give credit to those that have managed to pull off the "humorous" game.
Sorry for the short post. I was reaching for topic on this one.
Most of the time the laughs are from the joy of seeing a situation go well. Any humor that pops up is due to an amusing situation, either in or out of character. Someone will come up with a snarky comment, a die roll pops up a humorous result, or an attempt at role-playing goes horribly awry. But I have never been able to master the art of the comedic game.
Maybe it's because my players are looking for something in the action/adventure genre, where comedy is there as a means of releasing tension. Or maybe it's because comedy is so difficult to master, one person's silly is another's stupid. Or maybe I'm just not as funny as I'd like to think I am. Regardless of the reason, I have to to give credit to those that have managed to pull off the "humorous" game.
Sorry for the short post. I was reaching for topic on this one.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
I is for Illusionists and other Specialist Mages
Though I got started on BECMI D&D, I quickly made the transition to AD&D thanks to some books that my brother and I found at our local library. One of the things that I was interested in seeing in what we now call 1e was a second magic-user class called "The Illusionist". It was an interesting concept, a magic-user that specialized in a specific type of magic. The class even had it's own spell list, separate from those of the regular magic-user.
It wasn't long until I wondered if there were other types of spellcasters like the illusionist. I guess I wasn't the only one, because 2nd edition revamped the illusionist into the "specialist mage". Now you could play conjurers, necromancers, transmuters as well as the illusionist. But 2nd edition made one change that I wasn't happy with. Rather than the specialist having it's own spell list, there was a master spell list for all mages covering all spells. While it ensured that none of the specialists would be short-changed, it made the specialists less, if you'll pardon the expression, special. A straight magic-user can stock up his spellbook with all the illusion/phantasm spells and still have room for magic missile and fireball and not need a 16 Dexterity on top of it.
The only solution to this problem I can think of would be to pare down the main magic-user spell lists for the generalists, and to create separate lists for the eight specialists. But this seems to be a lot more trouble than it's worth. Especially when it comes to making sure no one class gets short-changed. It's strange that The Complete Wizard's Handbook didn't do a better job to make the specialists more unique. In hindsight, it seems that rather than try to create a broader magic-user with the potential for specialization, it would have been better to visit the new specialist classes individually in either a splatbook or a series of article in Dragon. Streamlining may have seemed like a good idea at the time. But in the end variety turned out to be the spice of life, an gaming.
It wasn't long until I wondered if there were other types of spellcasters like the illusionist. I guess I wasn't the only one, because 2nd edition revamped the illusionist into the "specialist mage". Now you could play conjurers, necromancers, transmuters as well as the illusionist. But 2nd edition made one change that I wasn't happy with. Rather than the specialist having it's own spell list, there was a master spell list for all mages covering all spells. While it ensured that none of the specialists would be short-changed, it made the specialists less, if you'll pardon the expression, special. A straight magic-user can stock up his spellbook with all the illusion/phantasm spells and still have room for magic missile and fireball and not need a 16 Dexterity on top of it.
The only solution to this problem I can think of would be to pare down the main magic-user spell lists for the generalists, and to create separate lists for the eight specialists. But this seems to be a lot more trouble than it's worth. Especially when it comes to making sure no one class gets short-changed. It's strange that The Complete Wizard's Handbook didn't do a better job to make the specialists more unique. In hindsight, it seems that rather than try to create a broader magic-user with the potential for specialization, it would have been better to visit the new specialist classes individually in either a splatbook or a series of article in Dragon. Streamlining may have seemed like a good idea at the time. But in the end variety turned out to be the spice of life, an gaming.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
H is for HackMaster
Last year I mentioned a few things I liked about the previous edition of HackMaster. After a few years of Basic being the only version of the new edition available, Kenzer & Company have finally sent the new Player's Handbook with there still being time to pre-order and get the PDF version for free. I'm particularly looking forward to this as I was one of the few to get in on the order for the Beta edition, so I got to have a little input in the book (mostly a couple of comments in the Introduction).
With the Player's Handbook coming soon and the Game Master Guide on its way, I thought I would revisit my old post by doing a list of the top three things I like about the new HackMaster.
The Opposed-Die Roll Mechanic
In older games, die rolls were one-sided affairs. You rolled the die and if you meet or beat the number required, you succeed. It does tend to mean that if you roll low, you fail. A lot of people get frustrated when that happens and those bad feelings tend to spill into the rest of the game. With an opposed die mechanic, a low roll isn't the end as long as your opponent rolls lower or has a large enough penalty.
The Numbers Game
As player characters advance in level, they tend to move on from the obstacles that plagued them early on. One can't have a 10th level fighter can't waste his time with kobolds after all. But thanks to the above mechanic, those little buggers are still a threat to high-level PCs. High-level PCs that mowed through orcs and goblins before are now challenged by facing larger numbers of them. So a good GM never has to worry about running out of threats.
The Support
Two days ago, someone on the Kenzer boards asked for advice on how to deal with a group of players that got off the track for the adventure and went to another town. Within a short period of time, Jolly Blackburn posted an image showing the layout of the town in question that he had been working on for another project. A lot of companies make a product, but it's the service along with the product that builds loyalty. I've had the privilege to meet and play with the Kenzer D-Team on a few occasions. They are some of the nicest and most dedicated people I have met. I feel that I get more than a game from them, I get goodwill. You can't put a price on that.
Monday, April 9, 2012
G is for GaryCon (Followup)
If you haven't seen them already, here are my vlogs from GaryCon for days zero, one, two and three.
First of all, it looks like plans are underway for GaryCon V. The estimated attendance this year was around 550 people. At the rate things are going the convention may have to move to a bigger venue as The Lodge. I actually wouldn't be opposed to that. When GaryCon II was first held at the Lodge, I thought it was a great venue. It was big enough for all the con-goers and had great amenities like a Friday night seafood buffet and a Sunday morning brunch as well as a bluegrass band in the bar on Saturday night. It was a gaming convention with a little bit of everything else to keep things interesting. Then the hotel changed management and next thing we know, the restaurant is closed for the convention save for some burgers and overpriced bags of chips. This year saw a limited menu of "gamer grub", but it pales compared to the good breakfast I had with the Geekpreacher two years ago.
As far as gaming went, I overextended myself this year. At GaryCon I, I sat and played what would become HackMaster Basic with the Kenzer & Company D-Team. At GaryCon II, I ran my first HackMaster Learn to Hack and played Aces & Eights. At this year's convention, I tried to run and attend as many games as possible. And I ended up too tired to engage in any of the festivities in the bar afterward.
First of all, it looks like plans are underway for GaryCon V. The estimated attendance this year was around 550 people. At the rate things are going the convention may have to move to a bigger venue as The Lodge. I actually wouldn't be opposed to that. When GaryCon II was first held at the Lodge, I thought it was a great venue. It was big enough for all the con-goers and had great amenities like a Friday night seafood buffet and a Sunday morning brunch as well as a bluegrass band in the bar on Saturday night. It was a gaming convention with a little bit of everything else to keep things interesting. Then the hotel changed management and next thing we know, the restaurant is closed for the convention save for some burgers and overpriced bags of chips. This year saw a limited menu of "gamer grub", but it pales compared to the good breakfast I had with the Geekpreacher two years ago.
As far as gaming went, I overextended myself this year. At GaryCon I, I sat and played what would become HackMaster Basic with the Kenzer & Company D-Team. At GaryCon II, I ran my first HackMaster Learn to Hack and played Aces & Eights. At this year's convention, I tried to run and attend as many games as possible. And I ended up too tired to engage in any of the festivities in the bar afterward.
Previously on Weekend Wizardry
Here's what I've posted so far for the April A-Z Challenge.
- April 2nd: A is for Archipelago (Hackmaster)
- April 3rd: B is for Blue Magic (Retro Phaze)
- April 4th: C is for Conventions
- April 5th: D is for Dice Bags
- April 6th: E is for Encounters
- April 7th: F is for Fighters
- April 9th: G is for GaryCon (Final thoughts on this years convention)
- April 10th: H is for HackMaster (Not a reprint of last year's post)
- April 11th: I is for Illusionists and other Specialist Mages (AD&D 2e)
- April 12th: J is for Jocularity
- April 13th: K is for Kingdoms of Kalamar
- April 14th: L is for Levels
Saturday, April 7, 2012
F is for Fighters
Fighters are awesome.
They aren't required to follow a particular ethos, philosophy or religion. In the heat of battle, all are warriors.
Fighters are unrestricted when it comes to weapons and armor. The mounted knight with plate, shield and lance. The dual-axe wielding wild man dressed in skins. The unarmored swashbuckler with the sabre. They are all fighters with their own style.
Fighters can go anywhere. They are as comfortable in the city as they are in the wild. As deadly in the desert as they are in the tundra. As useful in the darkest dungeon as they are stark battlefield.
If you go through a fighter's belongings you will not find the tools of a thief, nor the gruesome components of a wizard, nor the religious icons of the cleric. They will not have to worry about being accused of being a criminal, or burned at the stake for being a witch or heretic.
In battle the wizard, thief and cleric laugh at the fighter as he takes the enemy's shots while they prepare their counter-attack. But in the tavern after the battle, the patrons will hear how the fighter went toe-to-toe with the ogre while the others, stood back, hid and prayed.
Give a knife to a wizard, and he'll tie up some helpless damsel to sacrifice her to a demon. Give a knife to a thief, and he'll skulk in the shadows and stab an innocent passerby in the ribs for a few coppers. Give a knife to a fighter, and he'll hold it in his teeth as dives in to wrestle with an owlbear.
Fighters get all the glory. Fighters get the stories told about them. Fighters get free drinks from appreciative citizens. Fighters get all the chicks.
Fighters are awesome.
They aren't required to follow a particular ethos, philosophy or religion. In the heat of battle, all are warriors.
Fighters are unrestricted when it comes to weapons and armor. The mounted knight with plate, shield and lance. The dual-axe wielding wild man dressed in skins. The unarmored swashbuckler with the sabre. They are all fighters with their own style.
Fighters can go anywhere. They are as comfortable in the city as they are in the wild. As deadly in the desert as they are in the tundra. As useful in the darkest dungeon as they are stark battlefield.
If you go through a fighter's belongings you will not find the tools of a thief, nor the gruesome components of a wizard, nor the religious icons of the cleric. They will not have to worry about being accused of being a criminal, or burned at the stake for being a witch or heretic.
In battle the wizard, thief and cleric laugh at the fighter as he takes the enemy's shots while they prepare their counter-attack. But in the tavern after the battle, the patrons will hear how the fighter went toe-to-toe with the ogre while the others, stood back, hid and prayed.
Give a knife to a wizard, and he'll tie up some helpless damsel to sacrifice her to a demon. Give a knife to a thief, and he'll skulk in the shadows and stab an innocent passerby in the ribs for a few coppers. Give a knife to a fighter, and he'll hold it in his teeth as dives in to wrestle with an owlbear.
Fighters get all the glory. Fighters get the stories told about them. Fighters get free drinks from appreciative citizens. Fighters get all the chicks.
Fighters are awesome.
E is for Encounters
This was originally going to be about gamer etiquette until I realized two things.
You are not alone.
The island may be newly discovered, but that doesn't mean it is uninhabited. There will be different tribes of indigenous people on Malakoah, and they may not all get along. Mistaking one tribes customs for another could be a major faux pas for the party. How this plays out could mean the difference between having allies and having enemies.
In addition, there will be a total of three expedition parties on the island, of which the PCs will be a member of one. The other two will be competition for who can discover the island's secrets first. It's another situation where combat may not be the best option. It's one thing to trip up the competition and send them down the wrong path, it's another to outright murder them.
Keep it mundane, but exotic.
Animals are to be the most likely "monster" encounter on the island, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. One of the key elements of the campaign should be that the party is out of their element. They may be familiar with some of the fauna back in their homeland, but on a remote island, there could be a number of variant species of bird, insect, reptile and arachnid just waiting to come down on them. Nature can be just as dangerous as the supernatural, maybe even more so. Players are used to the hordes of humanoids and demons GMs throw at them, so they may likely underestimate the danger of a common, yet poisonous snake. Besides, if you keep the majority of the threats normal, the supernatural ones become all the more special.
Throw a little evil at them.
While racing against other expeditions and fighting off giant spiders will be part of the normal game, one cannot understate the importance of a good villain. This is a fantasy based campaign after all. Who knows what darkness lies within the mountain peaks and jungle depths. And if you don't throw a few of the classic and not so classic bad guys at the players every once in a while, they might get bored and lose interest. Plus, the presence of such creatures could lead to questions about the rest of the archipelago. Questions that the party won't hesitate to find answers to.
Thoughts? Suggestions? Let me know what you think.
- There's a blog post about gamer etiquette from some gamer's blog at least once a month and my post won't add anything new to the discussion.
- All "gamer etiquette" issues are less about gaming and more about an individual's overall personality and can basically be summed up with "quit acting like an ass."
You are not alone.
The island may be newly discovered, but that doesn't mean it is uninhabited. There will be different tribes of indigenous people on Malakoah, and they may not all get along. Mistaking one tribes customs for another could be a major faux pas for the party. How this plays out could mean the difference between having allies and having enemies.
In addition, there will be a total of three expedition parties on the island, of which the PCs will be a member of one. The other two will be competition for who can discover the island's secrets first. It's another situation where combat may not be the best option. It's one thing to trip up the competition and send them down the wrong path, it's another to outright murder them.
Keep it mundane, but exotic.
Animals are to be the most likely "monster" encounter on the island, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. One of the key elements of the campaign should be that the party is out of their element. They may be familiar with some of the fauna back in their homeland, but on a remote island, there could be a number of variant species of bird, insect, reptile and arachnid just waiting to come down on them. Nature can be just as dangerous as the supernatural, maybe even more so. Players are used to the hordes of humanoids and demons GMs throw at them, so they may likely underestimate the danger of a common, yet poisonous snake. Besides, if you keep the majority of the threats normal, the supernatural ones become all the more special.
Throw a little evil at them.
While racing against other expeditions and fighting off giant spiders will be part of the normal game, one cannot understate the importance of a good villain. This is a fantasy based campaign after all. Who knows what darkness lies within the mountain peaks and jungle depths. And if you don't throw a few of the classic and not so classic bad guys at the players every once in a while, they might get bored and lose interest. Plus, the presence of such creatures could lead to questions about the rest of the archipelago. Questions that the party won't hesitate to find answers to.
Thoughts? Suggestions? Let me know what you think.
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