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More Eberron News!
Posted 6 years agoGreetings! Fluffy here!
Exciting news! Finally, Eberron seems to be getting the full attention that it deserves. If you have been following the setting at all, you know that there has been a prototype PDF eBook out for the setting called The Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron. Unfortunately, that book was not released for print. Instead, coming out for print is a whole adventure and (finally!) sourcebook that takes place in the setting. Eberron: Rising from the Last War looks to be the book that people have been waiting for, being the first resource out for print that doesn't take place in the Forgotten Realms. The book seems to be a primer for the setting, including a wealth of new character options like the mysterious dragonmarks and the new Artificer class. This means that it will probably replace the Wayfinder's Guide as the prime source for the setting. It also looks like it will have an adventure module in the book, so you can get a taste of the setting if you've never played in it before.
All in all, it sounds great and I'm excited to see a new setting book released in print for 5e. Does this mean we might see more settings teased in the future? Are any of you excited for Eberron?
Let everyone know!
Edit: The book is available for pre-order today at most online retailers, such as Amazon!
Exciting news! Finally, Eberron seems to be getting the full attention that it deserves. If you have been following the setting at all, you know that there has been a prototype PDF eBook out for the setting called The Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron. Unfortunately, that book was not released for print. Instead, coming out for print is a whole adventure and (finally!) sourcebook that takes place in the setting. Eberron: Rising from the Last War looks to be the book that people have been waiting for, being the first resource out for print that doesn't take place in the Forgotten Realms. The book seems to be a primer for the setting, including a wealth of new character options like the mysterious dragonmarks and the new Artificer class. This means that it will probably replace the Wayfinder's Guide as the prime source for the setting. It also looks like it will have an adventure module in the book, so you can get a taste of the setting if you've never played in it before.
All in all, it sounds great and I'm excited to see a new setting book released in print for 5e. Does this mean we might see more settings teased in the future? Are any of you excited for Eberron?
Let everyone know!
Edit: The book is available for pre-order today at most online retailers, such as Amazon!
Thoughts on modules.
Posted 6 years agoHello peeps. Fluffy here.
D&D modules have been around since the game started. They're premade self-contained adventures. Some are short and sweet and can be finished in a session, while others are fully fleshed adventures that can take a character from level 1 to 20. There are hundreds of modules out there to choose from and the selection is big enough that you could play a different module every session for many years. That said, I have to ask you...
My favorite module has to be "White Plume Mountain". It's great for me, because I love old-school dungeon crawls. And this fills every classic D&D dungeon crawl trope out there. Intense encounters, nonsensical dungeon design, creative puzzles, and memorable bosses. My second favorite module has to be "Against the Cult of the Reptile God". I'm biased toward this one because it was the first module I ever seen and played when I was new to D&D. It's an eerie mystery adventure that slowly builds up to a great final encounter. It's a good introduction to D&D.
What is your favorite module? What makes that one special? When you're looking for a new one, what sorts of criteria do you look for before making a purchase? Or do you just pick them up on a whim?
fluffygryphon
D&D modules have been around since the game started. They're premade self-contained adventures. Some are short and sweet and can be finished in a session, while others are fully fleshed adventures that can take a character from level 1 to 20. There are hundreds of modules out there to choose from and the selection is big enough that you could play a different module every session for many years. That said, I have to ask you...
My favorite module has to be "White Plume Mountain". It's great for me, because I love old-school dungeon crawls. And this fills every classic D&D dungeon crawl trope out there. Intense encounters, nonsensical dungeon design, creative puzzles, and memorable bosses. My second favorite module has to be "Against the Cult of the Reptile God". I'm biased toward this one because it was the first module I ever seen and played when I was new to D&D. It's an eerie mystery adventure that slowly builds up to a great final encounter. It's a good introduction to D&D.
What is your favorite module? What makes that one special? When you're looking for a new one, what sorts of criteria do you look for before making a purchase? Or do you just pick them up on a whim?
fluffygryphonEberron's Artificer UA has been revised!
Posted 6 years agoHello! Fluffy here!
The Revised Artificer class has just been released as new Unearthed Arcana for 5e. As a fan of Eberron, I've been keeping a close eye on things related to the setting, hoping for more news on a full release setting book. That said, I know a lot of people that just like the concept of the artificer and have been waiting for Wizards to do the class justice in 5e.
Give it a read and see what you think!
http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/une.....NycP5YzkRby8Qs
fluffygryphon
The Revised Artificer class has just been released as new Unearthed Arcana for 5e. As a fan of Eberron, I've been keeping a close eye on things related to the setting, hoping for more news on a full release setting book. That said, I know a lot of people that just like the concept of the artificer and have been waiting for Wizards to do the class justice in 5e.
Give it a read and see what you think!
http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/une.....NycP5YzkRby8Qs
fluffygryphonWent to Gary con 2019.
Posted 6 years agoWe hit up gary con for one day and i had to most amazing day EVER!
When we parked Ernie gygax was just rolling in so i waved at him and he offers us a rid to the front door of the resort. So yes, i have now sat i a car with gygax jr himself. That set the mood for the rest of the con. Got some art from 2 legends Jeff easily and Larry elmore both autographed. Made my way to castle crusades booth to chat with my friend davis, got a few books from him for a nice price and even a book that Ernie and Luke gygay wrote. I got Ernie to autograph the castle crusades book too. Davis also autographed my castle crusades books, what a great guy. I had some new people with me that wanted to see that sites so we bummed around and took in the unofficial TSR tour. Always eat local so hit up a dinner that we loved last year, still great in every way. I was jokingly offed a job too. Over all was a long day 3 hours 1 way but so worth it. If your on the fence about goign to gary con, just go once. Chances are ill be there and love to meet up.
Take care, roll well.
djsnowfang
http://www.trolllord.com/indexnew.html
When we parked Ernie gygax was just rolling in so i waved at him and he offers us a rid to the front door of the resort. So yes, i have now sat i a car with gygax jr himself. That set the mood for the rest of the con. Got some art from 2 legends Jeff easily and Larry elmore both autographed. Made my way to castle crusades booth to chat with my friend davis, got a few books from him for a nice price and even a book that Ernie and Luke gygay wrote. I got Ernie to autograph the castle crusades book too. Davis also autographed my castle crusades books, what a great guy. I had some new people with me that wanted to see that sites so we bummed around and took in the unofficial TSR tour. Always eat local so hit up a dinner that we loved last year, still great in every way. I was jokingly offed a job too. Over all was a long day 3 hours 1 way but so worth it. If your on the fence about goign to gary con, just go once. Chances are ill be there and love to meet up.
Take care, roll well.
djsnowfanghttp://www.trolllord.com/indexnew.html
5e Humblewood Kickstarter
Posted 6 years agoHello, Fluffy here!
If you recall my news about the Humblewood playtest a couple of months ago, you might be interested in hearing more awesome news.
The Humblewood project has a live Kickstarter going on. The first couple of stretchgoals have already been passed, which means they are adding the following as playable species...
Deer
Hedgehogs
Mice/Jerboas
Raccoons
and Foxes!
If you'd like to contribute to the kickstarter, you can check it out here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/project.....ing-for-5e-dnd
If you don't know about Humblewood, it is an anthropomorphic campaign setting for 5e D&D that is being designed by The Deck of Many, a company that makes products for use in 5e D&D. You can read about it here: https://thedeckofmany.com/products/.....ewood-playtest
Happy gaming!
fluffygryphon
If you recall my news about the Humblewood playtest a couple of months ago, you might be interested in hearing more awesome news.
The Humblewood project has a live Kickstarter going on. The first couple of stretchgoals have already been passed, which means they are adding the following as playable species...
Deer
Hedgehogs
Mice/Jerboas
Raccoons
and Foxes!
If you'd like to contribute to the kickstarter, you can check it out here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/project.....ing-for-5e-dnd
If you don't know about Humblewood, it is an anthropomorphic campaign setting for 5e D&D that is being designed by The Deck of Many, a company that makes products for use in 5e D&D. You can read about it here: https://thedeckofmany.com/products/.....ewood-playtest
Happy gaming!
fluffygryphonWhat setting are you hoping for?
Posted 7 years agoHey peeps, fluffygryphon here.
Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica has been out a couple months now. It adds a lot of new additions to the game, most notably some fairly unique races, backgrounds, and monsters from the setting of Magic the Gathering. It is likely that more campaign setting content will be released in the future, so I have to ask. What setting are you hoping Wizards will be working on next?
fluffygryphon here.Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica has been out a couple months now. It adds a lot of new additions to the game, most notably some fairly unique races, backgrounds, and monsters from the setting of Magic the Gathering. It is likely that more campaign setting content will be released in the future, so I have to ask. What setting are you hoping Wizards will be working on next?
5e D&D Humblewood playtest!
Posted 7 years agoHey guys, Fluffy here!
If you play D&D 5e and like to have a little more furry in your games, well I've got some fun news. The producers of the RPG reference cards, deckofmany.com has a playtest going on for a new campaign setting called Humblewood. This setting appears to have a lot of avian-based character races, but doesn't seem like it will end up entirely limited to that. The latest playtest version 0.3 released today and includes:
The 57 page Booklet with:
• An Intro to the world of Humblewood,
• Character creation rules to make your own birdfolk characters,
• Two new divine domains for clerics,
• Two new backgrounds well suited for birdfolk characters,
• Four new feats,
• Six new spells, and
• A ready to go mini-campaign Adventure in the Wood to help you dive beak first into Humblewood!
Printable reference cards featuring:
• 28 new monsters and NPCs to use in your campaigns,
• Six spell cards,
• Five new magic items, and
• Six new location maps.
If that's something you might be interested in, you can check it out here:
https://thedeckofmany.com/products/.....ewood-playtest
Happy gaming!
If you play D&D 5e and like to have a little more furry in your games, well I've got some fun news. The producers of the RPG reference cards, deckofmany.com has a playtest going on for a new campaign setting called Humblewood. This setting appears to have a lot of avian-based character races, but doesn't seem like it will end up entirely limited to that. The latest playtest version 0.3 released today and includes:
The 57 page Booklet with:
• An Intro to the world of Humblewood,
• Character creation rules to make your own birdfolk characters,
• Two new divine domains for clerics,
• Two new backgrounds well suited for birdfolk characters,
• Four new feats,
• Six new spells, and
• A ready to go mini-campaign Adventure in the Wood to help you dive beak first into Humblewood!
Printable reference cards featuring:
• 28 new monsters and NPCs to use in your campaigns,
• Six spell cards,
• Five new magic items, and
• Six new location maps.
If that's something you might be interested in, you can check it out here:
https://thedeckofmany.com/products/.....ewood-playtest
Happy gaming!
Jeff r. Leason raw uncut Facebook interview.
Posted 7 years agoThis is the first interview i could get. Its with Jeff r. leason a TSR employee from 1978 to 1986. He didn't answer all the questions. Hope you enjoy, let me know what i can do better.
DJ Snowfang: I have a few questions for you all rdy from my D20 page.
What was their favorite campaign.
is there anything they ever regretted not making it to being published?
How do they feel about the modern incarnation of the game [5e]
What was your favorite edition of the D&D and why?
What was your favorite class and why?http://www.furaffinity.net/
Funniest tabletop story.
_________________________
Jeff: I really only played in one campaign; that was Skip Wialliam's campaign. However, since the question isn't specific, I'd have to say mine. I had mainly TSR employees playing in it: Diesel, Dave Conant, Tim Jiardini, Neil Christiansen, with "guest appearences" by Jeff Dee, Bill Willingham, Jean Wells, Cory Koebernick, Tom Wham (once), and Jack Herman (when he came to visit Jeff Dee.
Then, when I went to work at Mayfair Games (in 1986, the year i was "let go" from TSR along with 149 others) I had most of the staff play in my campaign.
DJ Snowfang: nice
Jeff: I've only really played AD&D 1e, with bits of AD&D2e, but I hear that 5e is much like 1e.
I still run 1e at conventions.
DJ Snowfang: oh wow.
Jeff: AD&D1e is my favorite, as the DMG was the first book I was accredited in and the one I feel the most comfortable Dming.
DJ Snowfang: very nice.
How did you get roped into TSR?
Jeff: My favorite character type is the thief, but I really like the multi-class PC FI/MU/TH. I always got an extra share of treasure as (the original, but not famous) Melf the Elf, 'cause I was always taking the extra chances by finding/removing traps and climbing walls and hiding in Shadows.
DJ Snowfang: hehe great.
Jeff: I was in high school orchestra with ernie, and we got to be pretty good friends (he was/is a year older than me), so he told me that when I got out of high school I had a job at TSR. I was only 17 when I graduated hs, so I had to move to the Northwoods of Wisconsin (where I still reside), and help my parents finish building their house. We finished to house in July (my b.day being July 11th) and in August, I moved back to Lake Geneva and started working at TSR in the shipping department with Ernst. I was the 17th employee hired.
DJ Snowfang: cool
are you a writer by traide?
Jeff: Back then everybody, with few exceptions helped load and unload trucks. I was lucky enough to be asked, by Mike Carr (my best boss EVER), to help proof the DMG. Shortly thereafter I was working in the editorial dept.
All of my editorial and writing skills were self taught, as I never went to college or had any training.
I consider myself extremely lucky to be at the right place at the right time. In my case, it wasn't really what I knew, but who I knew.
when i get to talk to people such as your self, i feel very luck also.
luckey*
DJ Snowfang: Sometimes freelance journalism gets pushed aside or never responded to.
Jeff: My "heroes" bach then were the artists, Dave Sutherland, and Dave Trampier (my favorite artest, and Tom Wha, who still remains my favorite male person, as he has the most creative mind of anyone I've ever known. He and Ernie were also the guys who introduced me to pot, women, Monty Python, and all around fun having.
DJ Snowfang: LOL
this is the info ONLY one who was there will ever know or tell.
Jeff: Back then, we lived and breathed gaming. We worked in THE game company during the day and either wrote or played games with the other TSRers the rest of the time. When at TSR (from 1978 - 1986, I had 22 roomates (at different times) that were TSR employees. Gaming was our lives and it was fun pretty much constantly.
When I worked at Mayfair, the atmosphere was similar, but when we went home at night, we all went our seperate ways.
yeah. It shows how much TSR relay cared about games. You can see it in all the orginal books.
Yep. After a while, TSR was just pumping out products 'cause they knew that they would sell. The beginners set (started by Tom Molvay and later given the Frank Mentzer, who usually takes all the credit, as Tom wasn't/isn't around to tell the truth was one of those "throw away/puked out" products, in my opinion.
Gamers wanted/demanded more, so TSR gave it to them, even if the products were so-so.
I have set out to collect as many as possible, i doing great. lol
My favorite TSR/Dungeon Hobby SHop story is when a lady from a southern baptist church came into the Hobby shop and asked me where we kept the magic items and spell books. I explained how/what D&D really was and she finally understood what role-playig was. I tlked to Gary a bit later and he told me that I handled the situation perfectly. I was pretty proud of myself.
Back then, each TSR employee rec'd a free copy of of any product that came out, so I had a near complete collection of TSR products.
DJ Snowfang: oh wow!
Jeff: I purchased my first copy of D&D from Gary in the basement of his house.
DJ Snowfang: LOL
what kind of D&D set up di you have?
Jeff: I was only 14 or 15 at the time. My Mom thought D&D was "demon worshipping", but my Dad said that I was playing with friends (Skip Williams taught me in Boy Scouts) so I was able to buy a copy and play. If it weren't for my Dad, I'd be a completely different person.
The woodgrain boxed set.
I started DMing in 1976, the campaign I still use today.
DJ Snowfang: thats great!
djsnowfang
DJ Snowfang: I have a few questions for you all rdy from my D20 page.
What was their favorite campaign.
is there anything they ever regretted not making it to being published?
How do they feel about the modern incarnation of the game [5e]
What was your favorite edition of the D&D and why?
What was your favorite class and why?http://www.furaffinity.net/
Funniest tabletop story.
_________________________
Jeff: I really only played in one campaign; that was Skip Wialliam's campaign. However, since the question isn't specific, I'd have to say mine. I had mainly TSR employees playing in it: Diesel, Dave Conant, Tim Jiardini, Neil Christiansen, with "guest appearences" by Jeff Dee, Bill Willingham, Jean Wells, Cory Koebernick, Tom Wham (once), and Jack Herman (when he came to visit Jeff Dee.
Then, when I went to work at Mayfair Games (in 1986, the year i was "let go" from TSR along with 149 others) I had most of the staff play in my campaign.
DJ Snowfang: nice
Jeff: I've only really played AD&D 1e, with bits of AD&D2e, but I hear that 5e is much like 1e.
I still run 1e at conventions.
DJ Snowfang: oh wow.
Jeff: AD&D1e is my favorite, as the DMG was the first book I was accredited in and the one I feel the most comfortable Dming.
DJ Snowfang: very nice.
How did you get roped into TSR?
Jeff: My favorite character type is the thief, but I really like the multi-class PC FI/MU/TH. I always got an extra share of treasure as (the original, but not famous) Melf the Elf, 'cause I was always taking the extra chances by finding/removing traps and climbing walls and hiding in Shadows.
DJ Snowfang: hehe great.
Jeff: I was in high school orchestra with ernie, and we got to be pretty good friends (he was/is a year older than me), so he told me that when I got out of high school I had a job at TSR. I was only 17 when I graduated hs, so I had to move to the Northwoods of Wisconsin (where I still reside), and help my parents finish building their house. We finished to house in July (my b.day being July 11th) and in August, I moved back to Lake Geneva and started working at TSR in the shipping department with Ernst. I was the 17th employee hired.
DJ Snowfang: cool
are you a writer by traide?
Jeff: Back then everybody, with few exceptions helped load and unload trucks. I was lucky enough to be asked, by Mike Carr (my best boss EVER), to help proof the DMG. Shortly thereafter I was working in the editorial dept.
All of my editorial and writing skills were self taught, as I never went to college or had any training.
I consider myself extremely lucky to be at the right place at the right time. In my case, it wasn't really what I knew, but who I knew.
when i get to talk to people such as your self, i feel very luck also.
luckey*
DJ Snowfang: Sometimes freelance journalism gets pushed aside or never responded to.
Jeff: My "heroes" bach then were the artists, Dave Sutherland, and Dave Trampier (my favorite artest, and Tom Wha, who still remains my favorite male person, as he has the most creative mind of anyone I've ever known. He and Ernie were also the guys who introduced me to pot, women, Monty Python, and all around fun having.
DJ Snowfang: LOL
this is the info ONLY one who was there will ever know or tell.
Jeff: Back then, we lived and breathed gaming. We worked in THE game company during the day and either wrote or played games with the other TSRers the rest of the time. When at TSR (from 1978 - 1986, I had 22 roomates (at different times) that were TSR employees. Gaming was our lives and it was fun pretty much constantly.
When I worked at Mayfair, the atmosphere was similar, but when we went home at night, we all went our seperate ways.
yeah. It shows how much TSR relay cared about games. You can see it in all the orginal books.
Yep. After a while, TSR was just pumping out products 'cause they knew that they would sell. The beginners set (started by Tom Molvay and later given the Frank Mentzer, who usually takes all the credit, as Tom wasn't/isn't around to tell the truth was one of those "throw away/puked out" products, in my opinion.
Gamers wanted/demanded more, so TSR gave it to them, even if the products were so-so.
I have set out to collect as many as possible, i doing great. lol
My favorite TSR/Dungeon Hobby SHop story is when a lady from a southern baptist church came into the Hobby shop and asked me where we kept the magic items and spell books. I explained how/what D&D really was and she finally understood what role-playig was. I tlked to Gary a bit later and he told me that I handled the situation perfectly. I was pretty proud of myself.
Back then, each TSR employee rec'd a free copy of of any product that came out, so I had a near complete collection of TSR products.
DJ Snowfang: oh wow!
Jeff: I purchased my first copy of D&D from Gary in the basement of his house.
DJ Snowfang: LOL
what kind of D&D set up di you have?
Jeff: I was only 14 or 15 at the time. My Mom thought D&D was "demon worshipping", but my Dad said that I was playing with friends (Skip Williams taught me in Boy Scouts) so I was able to buy a copy and play. If it weren't for my Dad, I'd be a completely different person.
The woodgrain boxed set.
I started DMing in 1976, the campaign I still use today.
DJ Snowfang: thats great!
djsnowfangOH WOW!
Posted 7 years agoI got some breaking news, i was talking to Jeff r. Leason a former TSR employee. He has agreed to a full uncanded interview and has offered to put me in touch with many of the other TSR people for interviews and off the record talk. Heres my question to you, i need you to come up with a few questions for them i will pass them on to Jeff and others. As i build my library of interviews i will do my best to post what i can. This is truly a once in a life time opportunety to get the INSIDE scoop on how "D&D" and even "chain mail" was created. Please only note me questions, you will get full credit for them. here is a small example of some of the people i get to talk to: Mike Carr, Steve Winter, Steve Sullivan, Ernie G, and the other Gygaxs, Harold, DSL, Jeff Easley, Frank Mentzer, Jim Ward, Jeff Perrin.
Once again if you want to be a part of history, submit your questions now. I plan on starting interviews in august. Sadly a lot of the people are in poor heath due to age. This could be your final chance to get inside info on the game that started it all.
Thank you, hope to see some great questions.
djsnowfang
Once again if you want to be a part of history, submit your questions now. I plan on starting interviews in august. Sadly a lot of the people are in poor heath due to age. This could be your final chance to get inside info on the game that started it all.
Thank you, hope to see some great questions.
djsnowfangNoxari's Commission Information.
Posted 7 years agoNoxari dose mini paintings and asked if she could get some more exposer to her great work. We decided to give her a whole journal post.
Pricing can be found here, bear in mind she is based in the UK. http://www.furaffinity.net/commissions/noxari/
Noxari will take non-custom commissions (such as 40k sets/Rune Wars sets, etc.) and those are calculated on a basis of $5 per miniature, $10/$15 for the larger miniatures and vehicles. If it is a large order than discounts will be applied after the calculations in order to find a price that seems fair. The same comes with the Heroforge miniatures, but they are more difficult to discount considering the price comes from how much the miniatures themselves cost to get printed.
By now your asking where can i get a hold of all this great mini art, you can get a hold of noxari on:
FA
Telegram
Skype
Discord
Ask here for any of the above info.
Noxari main FA: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/noxari/
Thank you to noxari for the info and we are not sponsored or get any kick backs for posting noxaris work.
We did it out of love.
djsnowfang
Pricing can be found here, bear in mind she is based in the UK. http://www.furaffinity.net/commissions/noxari/
Noxari will take non-custom commissions (such as 40k sets/Rune Wars sets, etc.) and those are calculated on a basis of $5 per miniature, $10/$15 for the larger miniatures and vehicles. If it is a large order than discounts will be applied after the calculations in order to find a price that seems fair. The same comes with the Heroforge miniatures, but they are more difficult to discount considering the price comes from how much the miniatures themselves cost to get printed.
By now your asking where can i get a hold of all this great mini art, you can get a hold of noxari on:
FA
Telegram
Skype
Discord
Ask here for any of the above info.
Noxari main FA: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/noxari/
Thank you to noxari for the info and we are not sponsored or get any kick backs for posting noxaris work.
We did it out of love.
djsnowfangLaura Roslof TSR artiest has passed away.
Posted 7 years agoLaura Roslof was an artest for TSR back in the day and has sadly lost her battle with cancer. She will be missed by me and many other's who grew up with her art.
Thank you Laura Roslof for all the memories and art.
Her late husband was Jim Roslof who sadly passed away march 19th of 2011 he was one of the "golden age" TSR artists.
Both will now be together once again.
Jim Roslof: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ob.....im-Roslof.html
Thank you Laura Roslof for all the memories and art.
Her late husband was Jim Roslof who sadly passed away march 19th of 2011 he was one of the "golden age" TSR artists.
Both will now be together once again.
Jim Roslof: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ob.....im-Roslof.html
Back from Gary con...sort of.
Posted 7 years agoIt was the best con i been to, the way it played out was incredible. I got some autographs a few pics with some of the TSR staff. Got an unexpected high five with transformers producer tom desanto! Steve Jackson creator of Munchkin was there (i didn't see him personally) Best of all i have an interview set up with Christopher Clark the owner of inner City Games Designs. He played D&D with gary gygax and has agreed to share some of his story with me. Look for that interview soon. As a side note Pathfinder 2.0 was on a playtest at the con the room got so full it was hard to even sit in on it. Gary con X was the first public play test of pathfinder 2.0, i can tell you i cant wait to see it finished.
Inter city games:
http://www.fuzzyheroes.com/
djsnowfang
Inter city games:
http://www.fuzzyheroes.com/
djsnowfangBack to Gary con 2018!
Posted 7 years agoI will be back at Gary con for 3 days in march 9th to 11th 2018. If you are going and want to hang out let me know.
I will be doing something crazy that i will post after the con.
Hope to see someone of you there.
http://garycon.com/
djsnowfang
I will be doing something crazy that i will post after the con.
Hope to see someone of you there.
http://garycon.com/
djsnowfangD20 to Yuma - Trouble at Mission Wells is out.
Posted 8 years agoD20 to Yuma - Trouble at Mission Wells is a complete sandbox campaign setting for the "D20 to Yuma" RPG by Paul Kidd i quote "Old School D&D mayhem blended with the Wild Wild West. Character races include Puma People, Coyote Folk, Lizard Folk, & full orcs." end quote.
If you want the new add-on: http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product.....-Mission-Wells
Need the orginal game: http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product.....35/D20-to-Yuma
Thank you to Paul Kidd for the heads up.
http://www.furaffinity.net/user/patpahootie/
If you want the new add-on: http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product.....-Mission-Wells
Need the orginal game: http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product.....35/D20-to-Yuma
Thank you to Paul Kidd for the heads up.
http://www.furaffinity.net/user/patpahootie/
Interview with Luke Gygax get involved.
Posted 8 years agoI have an interview set up with Luke Gygax, i want you to be involved. He created Gary con to honer his father Gary gygax. Here's your chance to ask about Gary con and D&D. The rules are only one question per person, be creative and original. No personal questions. i will credit everyone's questions when i post.
THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING QUESTIONS IS FRIDAY SEPT 22ed.
Send them in a note on FA.
Thank you in advance.
djsnowfang
THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING QUESTIONS IS FRIDAY SEPT 22ed.
Send them in a note on FA.
Thank you in advance.
djsnowfang10 Tabletop RPGs for Beginners.
Posted 8 years agoAll right my friends i have decided to make a list of easy to play RPGs for beginners. This way you can get your feet wet and not feel like you have a 100+ kobalts after you and a wooden sword to fend them off.
Lightweight:
Lightweight games are the most basic RPGs, and allow people to get into them without needing much preparation. They are perfect for people who have never played tabletop RPGs before.
1. Fiasco
Genre: Modern / General
Fiasco, of all of these games, is the most basic example of what an RPG is. All you need to play are a handful of dice, some index cards, and a scenario (several of which come in the core book).
Fiasco is a game about Fargo-esque capers. It’s about small-town people with more ambition than forethought going at each other’s throats before limping away into the epilogue. Play starts by rolling a pool of dice, then building a scenario off the outcome. Each player has a relationship to their neighbors, while some also share a place, an object or a need. Needs are the driving force behind the game, and are usually what spurs on the action. Once the scenario is built, players take turns enacting scenes with each other. When it’s your turn, you get to choose to establish the scene or decide the outcome. The option you don’t choose is chosen by the other players, ensuring that there is always some uncertainty to a scene. Not sure what your scene should be about? Let the others decide! Feeling like your character has had it too easy? Let the others rough them up a bit!
While Fiasco assumes a modern backdrop, the game can take place in any genre. Science fiction, fantasy and westerns can all be used to tell stories!
2. Dread
Genre: Horror
Dread adds a few more pieces to the “standard RPG formula,” like a game master to oversee the action, but it also removes others. For one example, there are no dice! Instead you have The Tower. The Tower is, well, a Jenga tower. Now, you might laugh at imagining a horror game based around Jenga, but you have to understand how Dread works. When you come to a situation your character might fail at, you must pull a block from the Tower and place it on top, just like Jenga. Do so, and you succeed at your action. You may also choose not to pull the block to fail the action. However, if you try to pull a block and the Tower falls, your character dies. Imagine, each trial you try to overcome could be your last. Very quickly, Dread lives up to its name, as that is what you’ll be feeling as you play the game, which is fast and brutal.
3. Golden Sky Stories
Genre: Pastoral
Now, it must be said that many RPGs deal with combat in some way. There’s usually some fighting or violence to be had. Golden Sky Stories is a big exception, however. In GSS, you play as an adorable magical animal called a henge in a pastoral Japanese town similar to ones portrayed in Miyazaki films like My Neighbor Totoro. You help the village’s inhabitants solve problems, and not big nasty problems like dragons coming to visit, but small problems, like, “Help, I’m a 6-year old and I like a girl, what do I do?”
GSS bills itself as a “heartwarming RPG,” and it certainly lives up to that. While the game toes the line between lightweight and medium weight, it errs enough on the lighter side to fit into this category nicely. If you are not interested in violence or classic RPG settings bore you, GSS may be what you are looking for!
Medium Weight:
Medium weight games up the ante a bit in terms of complexity, but they are still lighter affairs. All of them employ the standard RPG materials: dice, character sheets and a game master running the whole thing.
1. Fate Core/Fate Accelerated Edition
Genre: General
Fate Core is more of a gaming system than one game in itself. That is, it is a framework that you can build many different genres of games on top of. The game uses sets of “Fate dice,” special six-sided dice that have a collection of pluses and minuses on them. You roll four dice at a time, adding the pluses and minuses to a skill for your outcome. Fate also uses several freeform mechanics for character creation, like aspects, which are different facets of your character that you can activate for bonuses, and stunts, which let your character break the rules in ways specific to them.
If Fate Core is a little too complex, you can try Fate Accelerated Edition, which pares down the system even more. Now, instead of a list of skills, your character is made up of several different broader sets called approaches.
After picking up the system, you can use several different games that have been built using the engine, or you can simply come up with your own campaign and genre!
Fate Core and Fate Accelerated Edition are both pay what you want, so you can even pick them up for free now and pay for them later.
2. Dungeon World
Genre: Fantasy
Dungeon World is a game that tries to capture the idea of Dungeons & Dragons while leaving aside the weightier mechanics. Instead of a class loaded down with abilities and spells that you need to reference the book for, each class fits onto two pages, which also serves as your character sheet. The game itself is built on a flexible system that plays with consequence to heighten danger and make for a more intense experience. While many of the mechanics have been extrapolated from D&D itself, they have also been pared down. Bonuses or penalties to a roll will rarely exceed two, you will always roll two six-sided dice to pass an obstacle, and you will always know what number you need to hit for a specific result.
Dungeon World offers more complex options, especially for the GM, like Fronts, which let the GM plan plot points and campaigns around their players. For the most part, however, Dungeon World is a light and easy to understand RPG.
3. Cortex Plus: Firefly and Leverage
Genre: Science Fiction and Modern
Cortex Plus is the system used by Margaret Weis Productions for many of its RPGs, including two based off of popular TV shows, Firefly and Leverage (Cortex Plus is also used in the sadly discontinued Marvel Heroic Roleplaying). Unlike other RPGs, Cortex Plus doesn’t have you roll one set die for tests. Instead, you build a pool of dice based on all applicable traits and skills. A die that you add to the pool can vary in “size,” which is to say that a four-sided dice is “small” and a twelve-sided die is “large.” The bigger the die, the better you are at what you are trying to do, so at a glance you can easily see how much of a chance you have of succeeding at your task.
Another bonus to the Cortex Plus system is all of the licensed properties it utilizes. If you are playing Firefly, for instance, and you have any familiarity with the show, you know that you will probably be playing a ragtag gang of mercenaries, struggling to scrape by. For people who are completely new to RPGs, having a familiar idea to grab hold of is extremely helpful.
Both Firefly and Leverage have $5 starter adventures which also contain the basic rules of the game, in case you want a cheap entry point.
4. Monsterhearts
Genre: Horror/Drama
Monsterhearts uses the same base system as Dungeon World, but while the latter aims to emulate Dungeons & Dragons, Monsterhearts lets you tell stories that mash Buffy, Twilight and The Vampire Diaries together. In this RPG, you play as teenage monsters trying to live their lives while subsequently destroying them. Monsterhearts can be dramatic, it can be violent, and it can be darkly funny. It’s also a wholly unique and, when boiled down, fairly simple game. Like Dungeon World, Monsterhearts has a single sheet for each monster that serves as both a character sheet and rules reference. Monsterhearts sits a little higher on the list than Dungeon World even though it has arguably simpler rules because of its mature themes. In this game, you truly have the power to destroy another character’s life, and while physical violence is rampant in many RPGs, mental violence that can be afflicted between teenagers is something fairly unique to Monsterhearts.
Heavyweights:
Heavyweights are just on the cusp of what one might call “complex.” I’d even caution that you try a lightweight or medium game before diving into one of these. Still, they are a good gateway to truly complex games, and many of them are perfect for a first campaign.
1. 13th Age
Genre: Fantasy
13th Age has very obvious ties to Dungeons & Dragons. It’s a fantasy game full of adventurers, very familiar races and classes, and very similar mechanics. It also, however, has taken a few elements from lighter games to create a unique experience. Instead of choosing from a long list of skills, for instance, you simply give your character backgrounds. A character with “Shady Fence +2” will be good at haggling with others, but also at appraising an item’s value, and many other things as long as you can provide a good reason for it. Another aspect is that you choose a unique thing about your character, something that makes them different from everyone else in the world. This trait usually has little influence on the game itself, and merely helps you flesh out your character more.
It’s little things like these that make 13th Age a more freeform game, and while it shares a few unfortunate ties with Dungeons & Dragons that drag it down, it still makes for a unique and exciting experience.
2. Star Wars: Edge of the Empire and Age of Rebellion
Genre: Science Fiction
Star Wars: Edge of the Empire and Star Wars: Age of Rebellion are technically two separate games that share the same system, but really, the only difference is that the former focuses on bounty hunters and smugglers while the latter focuses on the infamous Rebellion.
Like Cortex Plus, Star Wars uses a dice pool system, but in this case, the game uses custom dice with special symbols replacing the numbers. There are six main symbols, which boil down to success, failure, critical success, critical failure, advantage, and disadvantage, and there are several different colors of dice. You gather dice depending on your skills (green and yellow) and the difficulty (purple and red) and roll them all together. Add together everything and you can quickly determine success or failure.
Add this fairly unique and simple system with another thing that makes Cortex Plus popular—a recognizable and celebrated license—and Star Wars can be quite the easy sell to make to potential players.
Both Edge of the Empire and Age of Rebellion have $20 starter kits available.
3. Call of Cthulhu, 7th Edition
Genre: Horror
After a long while sitting in limbo, Call of Cthulhu, 7th Edition is now available, and promises a streamlined and simpler game than previous editions. Call of Cthulhu uses a percentile system, so if you have 25 strength, you’ll want to roll a hundred-sided die (or, more commonly, two ten-sided dice, using one die as the tens place and one as the ones place) and try to get under 25 to succeed. If you couldn’t tell, this game is based on the Cthulhu Mythos, so expect horrible, twitching abominations and minds snapping a-plenty.
Chaosium, the makers of Call of Cthulhu, are offering the quickstart rules for free on their website, so check that out to learn more!
djsnowfang
Lightweight:
Lightweight games are the most basic RPGs, and allow people to get into them without needing much preparation. They are perfect for people who have never played tabletop RPGs before.
1. Fiasco
Genre: Modern / General
Fiasco, of all of these games, is the most basic example of what an RPG is. All you need to play are a handful of dice, some index cards, and a scenario (several of which come in the core book).
Fiasco is a game about Fargo-esque capers. It’s about small-town people with more ambition than forethought going at each other’s throats before limping away into the epilogue. Play starts by rolling a pool of dice, then building a scenario off the outcome. Each player has a relationship to their neighbors, while some also share a place, an object or a need. Needs are the driving force behind the game, and are usually what spurs on the action. Once the scenario is built, players take turns enacting scenes with each other. When it’s your turn, you get to choose to establish the scene or decide the outcome. The option you don’t choose is chosen by the other players, ensuring that there is always some uncertainty to a scene. Not sure what your scene should be about? Let the others decide! Feeling like your character has had it too easy? Let the others rough them up a bit!
While Fiasco assumes a modern backdrop, the game can take place in any genre. Science fiction, fantasy and westerns can all be used to tell stories!
2. Dread
Genre: Horror
Dread adds a few more pieces to the “standard RPG formula,” like a game master to oversee the action, but it also removes others. For one example, there are no dice! Instead you have The Tower. The Tower is, well, a Jenga tower. Now, you might laugh at imagining a horror game based around Jenga, but you have to understand how Dread works. When you come to a situation your character might fail at, you must pull a block from the Tower and place it on top, just like Jenga. Do so, and you succeed at your action. You may also choose not to pull the block to fail the action. However, if you try to pull a block and the Tower falls, your character dies. Imagine, each trial you try to overcome could be your last. Very quickly, Dread lives up to its name, as that is what you’ll be feeling as you play the game, which is fast and brutal.
3. Golden Sky Stories
Genre: Pastoral
Now, it must be said that many RPGs deal with combat in some way. There’s usually some fighting or violence to be had. Golden Sky Stories is a big exception, however. In GSS, you play as an adorable magical animal called a henge in a pastoral Japanese town similar to ones portrayed in Miyazaki films like My Neighbor Totoro. You help the village’s inhabitants solve problems, and not big nasty problems like dragons coming to visit, but small problems, like, “Help, I’m a 6-year old and I like a girl, what do I do?”
GSS bills itself as a “heartwarming RPG,” and it certainly lives up to that. While the game toes the line between lightweight and medium weight, it errs enough on the lighter side to fit into this category nicely. If you are not interested in violence or classic RPG settings bore you, GSS may be what you are looking for!
Medium Weight:
Medium weight games up the ante a bit in terms of complexity, but they are still lighter affairs. All of them employ the standard RPG materials: dice, character sheets and a game master running the whole thing.
1. Fate Core/Fate Accelerated Edition
Genre: General
Fate Core is more of a gaming system than one game in itself. That is, it is a framework that you can build many different genres of games on top of. The game uses sets of “Fate dice,” special six-sided dice that have a collection of pluses and minuses on them. You roll four dice at a time, adding the pluses and minuses to a skill for your outcome. Fate also uses several freeform mechanics for character creation, like aspects, which are different facets of your character that you can activate for bonuses, and stunts, which let your character break the rules in ways specific to them.
If Fate Core is a little too complex, you can try Fate Accelerated Edition, which pares down the system even more. Now, instead of a list of skills, your character is made up of several different broader sets called approaches.
After picking up the system, you can use several different games that have been built using the engine, or you can simply come up with your own campaign and genre!
Fate Core and Fate Accelerated Edition are both pay what you want, so you can even pick them up for free now and pay for them later.
2. Dungeon World
Genre: Fantasy
Dungeon World is a game that tries to capture the idea of Dungeons & Dragons while leaving aside the weightier mechanics. Instead of a class loaded down with abilities and spells that you need to reference the book for, each class fits onto two pages, which also serves as your character sheet. The game itself is built on a flexible system that plays with consequence to heighten danger and make for a more intense experience. While many of the mechanics have been extrapolated from D&D itself, they have also been pared down. Bonuses or penalties to a roll will rarely exceed two, you will always roll two six-sided dice to pass an obstacle, and you will always know what number you need to hit for a specific result.
Dungeon World offers more complex options, especially for the GM, like Fronts, which let the GM plan plot points and campaigns around their players. For the most part, however, Dungeon World is a light and easy to understand RPG.
3. Cortex Plus: Firefly and Leverage
Genre: Science Fiction and Modern
Cortex Plus is the system used by Margaret Weis Productions for many of its RPGs, including two based off of popular TV shows, Firefly and Leverage (Cortex Plus is also used in the sadly discontinued Marvel Heroic Roleplaying). Unlike other RPGs, Cortex Plus doesn’t have you roll one set die for tests. Instead, you build a pool of dice based on all applicable traits and skills. A die that you add to the pool can vary in “size,” which is to say that a four-sided dice is “small” and a twelve-sided die is “large.” The bigger the die, the better you are at what you are trying to do, so at a glance you can easily see how much of a chance you have of succeeding at your task.
Another bonus to the Cortex Plus system is all of the licensed properties it utilizes. If you are playing Firefly, for instance, and you have any familiarity with the show, you know that you will probably be playing a ragtag gang of mercenaries, struggling to scrape by. For people who are completely new to RPGs, having a familiar idea to grab hold of is extremely helpful.
Both Firefly and Leverage have $5 starter adventures which also contain the basic rules of the game, in case you want a cheap entry point.
4. Monsterhearts
Genre: Horror/Drama
Monsterhearts uses the same base system as Dungeon World, but while the latter aims to emulate Dungeons & Dragons, Monsterhearts lets you tell stories that mash Buffy, Twilight and The Vampire Diaries together. In this RPG, you play as teenage monsters trying to live their lives while subsequently destroying them. Monsterhearts can be dramatic, it can be violent, and it can be darkly funny. It’s also a wholly unique and, when boiled down, fairly simple game. Like Dungeon World, Monsterhearts has a single sheet for each monster that serves as both a character sheet and rules reference. Monsterhearts sits a little higher on the list than Dungeon World even though it has arguably simpler rules because of its mature themes. In this game, you truly have the power to destroy another character’s life, and while physical violence is rampant in many RPGs, mental violence that can be afflicted between teenagers is something fairly unique to Monsterhearts.
Heavyweights:
Heavyweights are just on the cusp of what one might call “complex.” I’d even caution that you try a lightweight or medium game before diving into one of these. Still, they are a good gateway to truly complex games, and many of them are perfect for a first campaign.
1. 13th Age
Genre: Fantasy
13th Age has very obvious ties to Dungeons & Dragons. It’s a fantasy game full of adventurers, very familiar races and classes, and very similar mechanics. It also, however, has taken a few elements from lighter games to create a unique experience. Instead of choosing from a long list of skills, for instance, you simply give your character backgrounds. A character with “Shady Fence +2” will be good at haggling with others, but also at appraising an item’s value, and many other things as long as you can provide a good reason for it. Another aspect is that you choose a unique thing about your character, something that makes them different from everyone else in the world. This trait usually has little influence on the game itself, and merely helps you flesh out your character more.
It’s little things like these that make 13th Age a more freeform game, and while it shares a few unfortunate ties with Dungeons & Dragons that drag it down, it still makes for a unique and exciting experience.
2. Star Wars: Edge of the Empire and Age of Rebellion
Genre: Science Fiction
Star Wars: Edge of the Empire and Star Wars: Age of Rebellion are technically two separate games that share the same system, but really, the only difference is that the former focuses on bounty hunters and smugglers while the latter focuses on the infamous Rebellion.
Like Cortex Plus, Star Wars uses a dice pool system, but in this case, the game uses custom dice with special symbols replacing the numbers. There are six main symbols, which boil down to success, failure, critical success, critical failure, advantage, and disadvantage, and there are several different colors of dice. You gather dice depending on your skills (green and yellow) and the difficulty (purple and red) and roll them all together. Add together everything and you can quickly determine success or failure.
Add this fairly unique and simple system with another thing that makes Cortex Plus popular—a recognizable and celebrated license—and Star Wars can be quite the easy sell to make to potential players.
Both Edge of the Empire and Age of Rebellion have $20 starter kits available.
3. Call of Cthulhu, 7th Edition
Genre: Horror
After a long while sitting in limbo, Call of Cthulhu, 7th Edition is now available, and promises a streamlined and simpler game than previous editions. Call of Cthulhu uses a percentile system, so if you have 25 strength, you’ll want to roll a hundred-sided die (or, more commonly, two ten-sided dice, using one die as the tens place and one as the ones place) and try to get under 25 to succeed. If you couldn’t tell, this game is based on the Cthulhu Mythos, so expect horrible, twitching abominations and minds snapping a-plenty.
Chaosium, the makers of Call of Cthulhu, are offering the quickstart rules for free on their website, so check that out to learn more!
djsnowfangGary con 2017!
Posted 8 years agoWOW! what a con, i wish i didn't hold out this long to go. First of the hotel its at is amazing. All the guests are so nice most re TRS and some are gygax family. Way to much to do 180 events over 4 days! Lots of beginner workshops and great dealers to buy from. I relay cant put into words how much fun it was, if you go have to go sight seeing its a must. I did want to edit that the TSR werehouse pic is wrong it was up the street from where we got the pic. Also did't get the actual offices downtown, next time we will. I came home broke with lots of con swag and Larry elmore autographed some prints for me. The story's those guys had, could have talked all day to every one of them. I would highly recommend going if you can its well worth the trip. I will be back there next year for sure.
Back from gary con
Posted 8 years agoIm back, i will have an update soon.
Gary con in WI.
Posted 9 years agoI will be at Gary con in march for the 23ed thursday to 26th sunday, if you are going and want to meet up let me know.
garycon.com
djsnowfang
garycon.com
djsnowfangAdventure commission infomation
Posted 9 years agoI am doing commissions for tabletop RPG adventures/modules. As a game developer interested in using his skills to benefit the community, I'm offering to help GMs/DMs/Storytellers get their foot on the ground and have an epic adventure for their campaigns, whether they be to start a campaign, create a dramatic progression to continue their world, or even conclude their campaigns with a bang.
To Commission: Send a note to my account with an idea for what you want the adventure to be about, including setting, people of interest, genre, and/or game. I will get back as soon as possible with one or more outlines for an adventure.
Pricing: $20-60 estimated, based on the complexity and/or length of the adventure. Additional costs apply for a game or setting that I don't have. I use Paypal for payments, further details will be shared with commissioners.
Rules:
No fetish-related adventures. I'm not suited to doing these professionally.
No refunds. If you are not satisfied with the quality of an adventure, please contact me. Payments are final.
In addition, these adventures will not have accompanying art. Art may be an option in the future, but no promises. I hope that what is there is evocative and helpful enough.
Please be sure to share how these adventures turn out with me! I hope your gaming groups enjoy these crafted adventures.
Curus
Curus-Keel
To Commission: Send a note to my account with an idea for what you want the adventure to be about, including setting, people of interest, genre, and/or game. I will get back as soon as possible with one or more outlines for an adventure.
Pricing: $20-60 estimated, based on the complexity and/or length of the adventure. Additional costs apply for a game or setting that I don't have. I use Paypal for payments, further details will be shared with commissioners.
Rules:
No fetish-related adventures. I'm not suited to doing these professionally.
No refunds. If you are not satisfied with the quality of an adventure, please contact me. Payments are final.
In addition, these adventures will not have accompanying art. Art may be an option in the future, but no promises. I hope that what is there is evocative and helpful enough.
Please be sure to share how these adventures turn out with me! I hope your gaming groups enjoy these crafted adventures.
Curus
Curus-KeelDungeons & Dragons is now officially on Roll20!
Posted 9 years agoExciting news!
Dungeons and Dragons is now officially supporting the Roll20 tabletop experience.
More info here: https://dnd.wizards.com/articles/fe.....dragons-roll20
May your rolls always crit!
fluffygryphon
Dungeons and Dragons is now officially supporting the Roll20 tabletop experience.
More info here: https://dnd.wizards.com/articles/fe.....dragons-roll20
May your rolls always crit!
fluffygryphonGame Mechanics: Gear in Science Fiction vs Fantasy
Posted 9 years agoHello Tabletop Warriors, Fluffy here!
So it's been a while since I've contributed a proper article to the group. As I said in the past, I've been a bit out of the gaming loop and when I'm not rocking the dice, I'm not thinking about it too much. Now that I've got a game going again, (and last night was great. Thank you to you guys that showed up. I'm looking forward to the first session.) I've had some time to think about things I'd like to talk about.
As a GM, I feel quite a bit of pressure to present a group with a great setting and story. I love that pressure, though, as it forces me to think. It makes me pull out books, browse websites, and just get inspired. As I've branched out into other settings away from D&D, I noticed very early on that you have to focus on the setting from another perspective.
In D&D, you have three types of interactions – mundane, magic, and high-powered. For all intents and purposes, the mundane is the most common. That's your ordinary NPCs. It's the shopkeeper, the farmer, the merchant, the bandit, and so on. You know who they are and they're fairly one-dimensional. Then you also have your mundane gear. Now for the most part, 90% of a party's gear is going to be mundane. Grappling hooks, iron swords, leather armor, lanterns, and so on. It's all very basic. You know what a sword is from the moment you pick it up. You know all the functions of a lantern and its requirements, such as fuel and an ignition source. It's simple and easy to work with. No explanation needed.
We go into the magic next because this is where things get a bit more complex. Your mystical brethren, sages, magic gear, and so on. In AD&D, magic was a gamble. There was no reliable way to determine the properties of a magic item except to have it identified by a powerful NPC. Everything was about shades of gray. Was it cursed? Were -all- of the magic stats known? Who made it? A lot of the mystique of magic and sorcery went away with the arrival of the 3rd edition. An unidentified magic item stopped being a wondrous, potentially dangerous mystery and became a mere inconvenience. With the Identify spell, it took all the guess work out. Magic became a stat tool. In this way, it didn't really change the demands of the DM, but it did change the way the game worked. That's an article for another time, though.
Magic and magic users are still a relatively simple concept, merely due to the fact that the amount of magic that a group in play will experience is spaced out enough that it's easy to deal with. A powerful item can be rolled up and assigned stats with relative ease. That one item can be dished out in the next treasure hoard. You know where it is and its predictable. This is where modern and science fiction setting diverge significantly. The inclusion of tech in a game is basically what magic is to D&D. The main difference is its prevalence.
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” - Arthur C. Clarke's 3rd law
I first ran into this issue when I was building a 1960's spy thriller setting out of the d20 Modern game rules. The party consisted of secret agents working for a peace-keeping organization. In order to build up the larger-than-life action adventure, I had to put in all the typical secret agent tropes. Cool cars and cool high-tech gadgets. This was a lot of fun, but very demanding and time consuming as well. It took a lot of time to create these tools. (It took an even longer time to avoid introducing guns and such that would have been anachronistic. Strangely enough, there was not a way to look up firearms by date of manufacture at the time.) Things got difficult because it was no longer a matter of the mundane doing a mundane task. I eventually had to scrap the campaign due to numerous reasons, only one of which was the complexity of the research involved.
Modern settings suffer from this a little, but no where near the amount that Science Fiction does. At least in a modern setting, you can fall back on real-world technology to explain the function. Everyone knows what a cellphone is and isn't capable of. Everyone has a vague idea of what radar can do. In a Science Fiction setting, this is a little more difficult. If I had come up with a Tricorder before Star Trek, I would have to describe it. I'd have to describe everything it is capable of (seemingly everything) and its limitations (limited only when the plot calls for it). This is typically why pre-designed equipment in sci-fi games tends to only have one very specific function. It's not easy to work with.
But the prevalence of technology has another issue. This issue is accessibility. In a science fiction game, a lot of the character's power and capability is in their equipment. In order to make sure that opposing forces are on common ground, they too must have equipment. Since giving everyone the -same- equipment leads to lazy and boring narrative, you need to mix it up a bit. Also, remember that in D&D, the primary limiter in the prevalence of magic is written into the fabric of the game. Magic is hard to accomplish. Only the best of the elite can make powerful items. In science fiction, equipment isn't a one-time made item. It's a manufactured product, priced to sell to the right audience. This means it's available literally on demand to almost anyone. And those that can't access it legitimately, usually have other means at their disposal.
As a DM, you have two choices. Use the equipment in the book and stick with it, or suck it up and start designing your own. The first option is viable, but then comes the questions that may not be easily answered. What are computers like? What can a mobile phone do? These questions can quickly start reaching outside of the scope of a rule book and get into the realm of “What does the DM want to have in his world?” These are not questions that typically matter so much in D&D because the solutions are much simpler and more streamlined. Limitations abound; most societies in D&D couldn't fathom anything more technologically or magically advanced than steel. And magic, well, magic just is, and it's rare, thankfully.
When it comes right down to it, a piece of technology in a science fiction game is basically a magic item in D&D. In this case, magic is in the hands of the masses, for better or for worse. This can be frustrating when everything in a game does something 'magical' and the GM has to make the decision of what that -something- is, exactly. This leads me to believe that's the reason why swords and sorcery style games are so much more prevalent. They're popular from a gaming standpoint and because they're simpler to prepare for. On the other hand, this could just be my perspective on the subject. Some of you might think differently. Have any of you run or played in any advanced settings? How was the technology handled?
I'd like to hear your thoughts on the subject, so feel free to comment.
So it's been a while since I've contributed a proper article to the group. As I said in the past, I've been a bit out of the gaming loop and when I'm not rocking the dice, I'm not thinking about it too much. Now that I've got a game going again, (and last night was great. Thank you to you guys that showed up. I'm looking forward to the first session.) I've had some time to think about things I'd like to talk about.
As a GM, I feel quite a bit of pressure to present a group with a great setting and story. I love that pressure, though, as it forces me to think. It makes me pull out books, browse websites, and just get inspired. As I've branched out into other settings away from D&D, I noticed very early on that you have to focus on the setting from another perspective.
In D&D, you have three types of interactions – mundane, magic, and high-powered. For all intents and purposes, the mundane is the most common. That's your ordinary NPCs. It's the shopkeeper, the farmer, the merchant, the bandit, and so on. You know who they are and they're fairly one-dimensional. Then you also have your mundane gear. Now for the most part, 90% of a party's gear is going to be mundane. Grappling hooks, iron swords, leather armor, lanterns, and so on. It's all very basic. You know what a sword is from the moment you pick it up. You know all the functions of a lantern and its requirements, such as fuel and an ignition source. It's simple and easy to work with. No explanation needed.
We go into the magic next because this is where things get a bit more complex. Your mystical brethren, sages, magic gear, and so on. In AD&D, magic was a gamble. There was no reliable way to determine the properties of a magic item except to have it identified by a powerful NPC. Everything was about shades of gray. Was it cursed? Were -all- of the magic stats known? Who made it? A lot of the mystique of magic and sorcery went away with the arrival of the 3rd edition. An unidentified magic item stopped being a wondrous, potentially dangerous mystery and became a mere inconvenience. With the Identify spell, it took all the guess work out. Magic became a stat tool. In this way, it didn't really change the demands of the DM, but it did change the way the game worked. That's an article for another time, though.
Magic and magic users are still a relatively simple concept, merely due to the fact that the amount of magic that a group in play will experience is spaced out enough that it's easy to deal with. A powerful item can be rolled up and assigned stats with relative ease. That one item can be dished out in the next treasure hoard. You know where it is and its predictable. This is where modern and science fiction setting diverge significantly. The inclusion of tech in a game is basically what magic is to D&D. The main difference is its prevalence.
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” - Arthur C. Clarke's 3rd law
I first ran into this issue when I was building a 1960's spy thriller setting out of the d20 Modern game rules. The party consisted of secret agents working for a peace-keeping organization. In order to build up the larger-than-life action adventure, I had to put in all the typical secret agent tropes. Cool cars and cool high-tech gadgets. This was a lot of fun, but very demanding and time consuming as well. It took a lot of time to create these tools. (It took an even longer time to avoid introducing guns and such that would have been anachronistic. Strangely enough, there was not a way to look up firearms by date of manufacture at the time.) Things got difficult because it was no longer a matter of the mundane doing a mundane task. I eventually had to scrap the campaign due to numerous reasons, only one of which was the complexity of the research involved.
Modern settings suffer from this a little, but no where near the amount that Science Fiction does. At least in a modern setting, you can fall back on real-world technology to explain the function. Everyone knows what a cellphone is and isn't capable of. Everyone has a vague idea of what radar can do. In a Science Fiction setting, this is a little more difficult. If I had come up with a Tricorder before Star Trek, I would have to describe it. I'd have to describe everything it is capable of (seemingly everything) and its limitations (limited only when the plot calls for it). This is typically why pre-designed equipment in sci-fi games tends to only have one very specific function. It's not easy to work with.
But the prevalence of technology has another issue. This issue is accessibility. In a science fiction game, a lot of the character's power and capability is in their equipment. In order to make sure that opposing forces are on common ground, they too must have equipment. Since giving everyone the -same- equipment leads to lazy and boring narrative, you need to mix it up a bit. Also, remember that in D&D, the primary limiter in the prevalence of magic is written into the fabric of the game. Magic is hard to accomplish. Only the best of the elite can make powerful items. In science fiction, equipment isn't a one-time made item. It's a manufactured product, priced to sell to the right audience. This means it's available literally on demand to almost anyone. And those that can't access it legitimately, usually have other means at their disposal.
As a DM, you have two choices. Use the equipment in the book and stick with it, or suck it up and start designing your own. The first option is viable, but then comes the questions that may not be easily answered. What are computers like? What can a mobile phone do? These questions can quickly start reaching outside of the scope of a rule book and get into the realm of “What does the DM want to have in his world?” These are not questions that typically matter so much in D&D because the solutions are much simpler and more streamlined. Limitations abound; most societies in D&D couldn't fathom anything more technologically or magically advanced than steel. And magic, well, magic just is, and it's rare, thankfully.
When it comes right down to it, a piece of technology in a science fiction game is basically a magic item in D&D. In this case, magic is in the hands of the masses, for better or for worse. This can be frustrating when everything in a game does something 'magical' and the GM has to make the decision of what that -something- is, exactly. This leads me to believe that's the reason why swords and sorcery style games are so much more prevalent. They're popular from a gaming standpoint and because they're simpler to prepare for. On the other hand, this could just be my perspective on the subject. Some of you might think differently. Have any of you run or played in any advanced settings? How was the technology handled?
I'd like to hear your thoughts on the subject, so feel free to comment.
Game Invite: Hc Svnt Dracones
Posted 9 years agoHello everyone, this is Fluffy.
I will be starting a game of Hc Svnt Dracones in the near future and I'm looking for a few people to join. If you have no idea what that is, I can sum it up as follows:
The title means Here Be Dragons in Latin. This statement was used on ancient maps to indicate areas of the world that had not been charted or explored. The game itself is an anthro-based tabletop game where the setting is the solar system after humanity had destroyed itself in a nuclear war. It is a science fiction theme with a good dose of horror/survival. In this case, the game name is indicative of the many unknowns humanity's last biotech project (Anthros) faces and its uncertain future. I may or may not angle the story in a horror direction, though. I have never run this game, though I have taken it for a short trial run. The rule system does not appear to be perfect, but no 1st edition anything ever is.
The requirements will be as follows:
Who: Anyone 18+ with a decent microphone and a quiet room. You must be available to play each week. (Life happens, though. I understand.) Vocal people who want to actively get into a character are preferred. People who are going to sit back and say nothing until poked by the GM need not apply.
What: You will need a copy of the core book. (You can get the book cheap on Drivethrurpg) Decent mic, of course. Physical dice are preferred but not required. Keep in mind that I will only ever use my own dice.
When: Every Friday at 7:30 PM CST. The game session will typically last around 4 hours.
Where: Roll20 for the game space and Discord for the voice support.
A bit about me: I like to write stories. I have written a few articles here for D&D, but haven't recently because of being rather busy and plain lack of inspiration. (I haven't been in a game in a while and it's difficult to come up with something if I don't have sessions to reflect upon.) A good story, or exciting missions are important to me. I encourage natural and well-balanced characters. I have ran games for the past ten years off and on. My players tend to consider me a harsh, but fair DM and I do my best to make sure everyone is having fun.
If you wish to play, let me know. I'm only going to grab a few, so if you don't get picked, I apologize in advance!
I will be starting a game of Hc Svnt Dracones in the near future and I'm looking for a few people to join. If you have no idea what that is, I can sum it up as follows:
The title means Here Be Dragons in Latin. This statement was used on ancient maps to indicate areas of the world that had not been charted or explored. The game itself is an anthro-based tabletop game where the setting is the solar system after humanity had destroyed itself in a nuclear war. It is a science fiction theme with a good dose of horror/survival. In this case, the game name is indicative of the many unknowns humanity's last biotech project (Anthros) faces and its uncertain future. I may or may not angle the story in a horror direction, though. I have never run this game, though I have taken it for a short trial run. The rule system does not appear to be perfect, but no 1st edition anything ever is.
The requirements will be as follows:
Who: Anyone 18+ with a decent microphone and a quiet room. You must be available to play each week. (Life happens, though. I understand.) Vocal people who want to actively get into a character are preferred. People who are going to sit back and say nothing until poked by the GM need not apply.
What: You will need a copy of the core book. (You can get the book cheap on Drivethrurpg) Decent mic, of course. Physical dice are preferred but not required. Keep in mind that I will only ever use my own dice.
When: Every Friday at 7:30 PM CST. The game session will typically last around 4 hours.
Where: Roll20 for the game space and Discord for the voice support.
A bit about me: I like to write stories. I have written a few articles here for D&D, but haven't recently because of being rather busy and plain lack of inspiration. (I haven't been in a game in a while and it's difficult to come up with something if I don't have sessions to reflect upon.) A good story, or exciting missions are important to me. I encourage natural and well-balanced characters. I have ran games for the past ten years off and on. My players tend to consider me a harsh, but fair DM and I do my best to make sure everyone is having fun.
If you wish to play, let me know. I'm only going to grab a few, so if you don't get picked, I apologize in advance!
Dark Heresy 1st Edition DM needed.
Posted 9 years agoName of game: Dark Heresy 1st Edition
Description of game: A Warhammer 40k based RPG, players must serve an Inquisitor (the DM) and do their bidding, crushing rebellions, infiltrating cartels and bringing evil cults to retribution by fire.
Home brew or official: Official, can involve some homebrewing.
How many players and/or DM needed: We've got 3 confirmed players right now, we do need a DM and I would recommend more players too, 3 players isn't many for a DH game.
Online or in person: Online, text only.
Contact info: Note me
Preferred times to play: Saturdays 7-10pm GMT
Any other info: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/7594201/
Description of game: A Warhammer 40k based RPG, players must serve an Inquisitor (the DM) and do their bidding, crushing rebellions, infiltrating cartels and bringing evil cults to retribution by fire.
Home brew or official: Official, can involve some homebrewing.
How many players and/or DM needed: We've got 3 confirmed players right now, we do need a DM and I would recommend more players too, 3 players isn't many for a DH game.
Online or in person: Online, text only.
Contact info: Note me
Preferred times to play: Saturdays 7-10pm GMT
Any other info: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/7594201/
Why play table top games?
Posted 9 years agoI get asked this allot, with my collection of video games near 1K in titles, people that are new friends often ask why do i play table top games.
That's an easy answer to me, it sparks creativity to create something from almost nothing. With video games you get set paths and a few outcomes, even sandbox games still have limits set upon them at some point. With a pen and paper you can create a dynamic ever evolving world, with everything you want. Let the player (or yourself) go and be free in something that has no bounds. I realize some games do this too and i have a few that do, your stuck most of the time solo or siting in front of a TV with a head set on talking to someone miles away you barley know. Table top games allow that long forgotten age of social interaction to happen again. Im sure pen and paper games mean different things to different people, to me it means a night of siting around a table with some good friends. Even i have to turn the TV and videogames off once in a while.
Whats table top gameing mean to you?
dyno
That's an easy answer to me, it sparks creativity to create something from almost nothing. With video games you get set paths and a few outcomes, even sandbox games still have limits set upon them at some point. With a pen and paper you can create a dynamic ever evolving world, with everything you want. Let the player (or yourself) go and be free in something that has no bounds. I realize some games do this too and i have a few that do, your stuck most of the time solo or siting in front of a TV with a head set on talking to someone miles away you barley know. Table top games allow that long forgotten age of social interaction to happen again. Im sure pen and paper games mean different things to different people, to me it means a night of siting around a table with some good friends. Even i have to turn the TV and videogames off once in a while.
Whats table top gameing mean to you?
dyno