As I've posted before, I tend to see campaign pitches as movie trailers. Here's one for the Dracula Dossier, which is blowing through stretch goal after stretch goal on kickstarter.
In A World....
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Monday, September 22, 2014
Dresden Accelerated Playtest Thoughts
So thanks to my pal Theron I was able to participate in the Dresden Files Accelerated Playtest. The first session was mostly world-building and character creation, but we did manage to quickly save a bunch of runaways from a Red Court Vampire. (One of the things we decided upon was that this game took place during the Red Court War, because Reds are such great monsters to smite.)
The players were all super-familiar with the books, though none of us had played the Original Flavor Dresden RPG, and we were all new to Fate Accelerated. We came up with an ex-changeling who'd Chosen to be human because the Fae are all jerks, the "Murphy of Houston" (though she's got True Faith), and since the magic system was important to test (and because WIZARD) I made a White Council Wizard. We had fun coming up with the shared backstory and some of the things we're going to face down the line.
In terms of gameplay, we were all new to FAE, but it's pretty simple stuff, though the Dresden patch of it takes some getting used to. But that's why there's playtesting - considering the differences between the original drafts of the Dresden RPG and the awesome RPG that it ended up being, I'm sure that Dresden Accelerated is going to rock.
The players were all super-familiar with the books, though none of us had played the Original Flavor Dresden RPG, and we were all new to Fate Accelerated. We came up with an ex-changeling who'd Chosen to be human because the Fae are all jerks, the "Murphy of Houston" (though she's got True Faith), and since the magic system was important to test (and because WIZARD) I made a White Council Wizard. We had fun coming up with the shared backstory and some of the things we're going to face down the line.
In terms of gameplay, we were all new to FAE, but it's pretty simple stuff, though the Dresden patch of it takes some getting used to. But that's why there's playtesting - considering the differences between the original drafts of the Dresden RPG and the awesome RPG that it ended up being, I'm sure that Dresden Accelerated is going to rock.
Sunday, August 31, 2014
#RPGaDay 31st - Favorite RPG Of All Time
Unfair question. Also, how is this different from the Favorite Game System? I mean, there's probably a "we can use nostalgia to ignore faults in the system" filter or "I didn't like the system but the setting was really cool" filter.
So, like a politician, I will instead answer a question other than the one asked.
Favorite RPG Campaign Of All Time (That I Ran): The campaign where I feel like I was really firing on all cylinders, in terms of plot, pacing, NPCs, foreshadowing, etc, was a Shadowrun game I ran. I'd always loved the setting but didn't care for the system. In fact, when I started the game, I had tried to hack Masterbook rules for the Shadowrun setting. Around the same time I was realizing that the Masterbook magic system was broken, I went to GenCon and actually played a round of Shadowrun. It really helped me figure out the things I was confused with and so, after the third or fourth adventure, we converted the characters to Shadowrun, though I did keep some Masterbook stuff. I added the Action Deck to Shadowrun and I let them keep some advantages they'd bought in MB in Shadowrun.
Long rambling story after the cut....
So, like a politician, I will instead answer a question other than the one asked.
Favorite RPG Campaign Of All Time (That I Ran): The campaign where I feel like I was really firing on all cylinders, in terms of plot, pacing, NPCs, foreshadowing, etc, was a Shadowrun game I ran. I'd always loved the setting but didn't care for the system. In fact, when I started the game, I had tried to hack Masterbook rules for the Shadowrun setting. Around the same time I was realizing that the Masterbook magic system was broken, I went to GenCon and actually played a round of Shadowrun. It really helped me figure out the things I was confused with and so, after the third or fourth adventure, we converted the characters to Shadowrun, though I did keep some Masterbook stuff. I added the Action Deck to Shadowrun and I let them keep some advantages they'd bought in MB in Shadowrun.
Long rambling story after the cut....
Saturday, August 30, 2014
#RPGaDay 30th - Rarest RPG Owned
Shrug. I dunno. I don't own any really rare games, all by themselves. I do have a complete set of (you guessed it) Castle Falkenstein and the Aeon/Trinity lines, which aren't rare individually, but as a set they're a little harder to assemble.
Thursday, August 28, 2014
#RPGaDay 29th - Most Memorable Encounter
A couple spring to mind. I can't decide.
Firstly, back in college, my roommate ran a AD&D campaign that was the Hommlet -> Temple of Elemental Evil -> Giants -> Drow -> Demonweb sequence, but he'd added a lot of side stuff to make it more interesting and more personal. Now, when we first started the campaign, we weren't sure if we'd get enough players, so the DM (Andy) asked me and our other roommate (Bob) to make two characters. I made NightOwl the Half-Elf Fighter/Thief and his brother, Woodstock the Druid. Bob made a wizard whose name I won't attempt to spell and a fighter who was going to be a 1st Ed bard someday and I can't pull his name out of the vaults. But then we got enough people (there were 9 players , I think), so Andy invented a side quest for Woodstock and the bard to go on to get rid of the spares, because we had plenty of PCs. Fast forward through the school year. While we've been fighting the Temple of Elemental Evil, we've also heard rumors about a Linear Guild for our group of PCs, a group called the Nine Hounds of Doom. There's a big battle going on and we discover that the Nine Hounds are on the other side of the hill. So we run over the hill and out of a cloud of smoke walk the Nine Hounds. Andy describes them one by one, and when he gets to the 8th he says "and there's Woodstock and [the Bard Guy]. See you in the fall." Talk about your season ending cliffhangers.
Second, not so much the encounter itself, but the reasons for it all. It was a Champions game set in a mixed Champions/Marvel/DC Universe. We were a bunch of super-heroes defending Houston from the Hellfire Club, Viper, and other assorted bad guys. So anyway, there was this big strangeness going on, with magic and technology surging and waning across the globe. We were investigating and starting to get some of the pieces when we get contacted by.... Doctor Victor Von Doom and Lex Luthor. They tell is they've figured it all out and to fix the problem, they need to stabilize the surges by collecting various magical and high-tech MacGuffins, which was in line with what we had discovered. We ask why they're telling us instead of the Justice League/Avengers/Fantastic Four/etc. They say, more or less "duh, we're Dr Doom and Lex Luthor, they're not going to listen to us.." So we call every super-hero team we know, to pass on the information, but, of course, they're busy fighting the symptoms of the surges, not the causes. So, reluctantly, we agree to help. "What's the first thing we need to get, evil overlords?" With a straight face, the GM tells us that we have to break into the Vatican, steal the Necronomicon, and give it to Doctor Frikkin' Doom.
So yeah, our ragtag group of super-heroes ended up attacking the Vatican, beating the crap out of the Swiss Guard's Super Team, ripping the vault open, and giving the Necronomicon to Doctor Doom.
All because none of the super teams bothered to check their darn voice mail.
Of course, we later all ended up working together with the assorted super-heroes. There were three or four sessions where a couple of us would play our characters and the rest of us would play other supers. Those fights were pretty fun too.
Firstly, back in college, my roommate ran a AD&D campaign that was the Hommlet -> Temple of Elemental Evil -> Giants -> Drow -> Demonweb sequence, but he'd added a lot of side stuff to make it more interesting and more personal. Now, when we first started the campaign, we weren't sure if we'd get enough players, so the DM (Andy) asked me and our other roommate (Bob) to make two characters. I made NightOwl the Half-Elf Fighter/Thief and his brother, Woodstock the Druid. Bob made a wizard whose name I won't attempt to spell and a fighter who was going to be a 1st Ed bard someday and I can't pull his name out of the vaults. But then we got enough people (there were 9 players , I think), so Andy invented a side quest for Woodstock and the bard to go on to get rid of the spares, because we had plenty of PCs. Fast forward through the school year. While we've been fighting the Temple of Elemental Evil, we've also heard rumors about a Linear Guild for our group of PCs, a group called the Nine Hounds of Doom. There's a big battle going on and we discover that the Nine Hounds are on the other side of the hill. So we run over the hill and out of a cloud of smoke walk the Nine Hounds. Andy describes them one by one, and when he gets to the 8th he says "and there's Woodstock and [the Bard Guy]. See you in the fall." Talk about your season ending cliffhangers.
Second, not so much the encounter itself, but the reasons for it all. It was a Champions game set in a mixed Champions/Marvel/DC Universe. We were a bunch of super-heroes defending Houston from the Hellfire Club, Viper, and other assorted bad guys. So anyway, there was this big strangeness going on, with magic and technology surging and waning across the globe. We were investigating and starting to get some of the pieces when we get contacted by.... Doctor Victor Von Doom and Lex Luthor. They tell is they've figured it all out and to fix the problem, they need to stabilize the surges by collecting various magical and high-tech MacGuffins, which was in line with what we had discovered. We ask why they're telling us instead of the Justice League/Avengers/Fantastic Four/etc. They say, more or less "duh, we're Dr Doom and Lex Luthor, they're not going to listen to us.." So we call every super-hero team we know, to pass on the information, but, of course, they're busy fighting the symptoms of the surges, not the causes. So, reluctantly, we agree to help. "What's the first thing we need to get, evil overlords?" With a straight face, the GM tells us that we have to break into the Vatican, steal the Necronomicon, and give it to Doctor Frikkin' Doom.
So yeah, our ragtag group of super-heroes ended up attacking the Vatican, beating the crap out of the Swiss Guard's Super Team, ripping the vault open, and giving the Necronomicon to Doctor Doom.
All because none of the super teams bothered to check their darn voice mail.
Of course, we later all ended up working together with the assorted super-heroes. There were three or four sessions where a couple of us would play our characters and the rest of us would play other supers. Those fights were pretty fun too.
#RPGaDay 28th - Scariest Game You've Played
Another cheat answer.
Back in the day, when I was running Call of Cthulhu at cons, one of our group's younger siblings was an audio nerd. So he read some latin (possibly from that copy of the necronomicon you used to be able to find in bookstores) and added all sorts of effects to it, so it sounded really creepy.
THEN, we took the cassette tape (ask your parents about those if you don't know what they are), put it on constant loop play and put the boom box in the corner of the room, facing the wall, with the volume just low enough that it was hard to hear.
We kind of freaked out a couple of people when they realized they were hearing spooky stuff that they couldn't easily see the source too.
I think that was the same year that we used as CPR dummy as a quasi prop for a dead body.
Back in the day, when I was running Call of Cthulhu at cons, one of our group's younger siblings was an audio nerd. So he read some latin (possibly from that copy of the necronomicon you used to be able to find in bookstores) and added all sorts of effects to it, so it sounded really creepy.
THEN, we took the cassette tape (ask your parents about those if you don't know what they are), put it on constant loop play and put the boom box in the corner of the room, facing the wall, with the volume just low enough that it was hard to hear.
We kind of freaked out a couple of people when they realized they were hearing spooky stuff that they couldn't easily see the source too.
I think that was the same year that we used as CPR dummy as a quasi prop for a dead body.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
#RPGaDay 27th - Game You'd Like to See A New / Improved Edition Of...
It's kind of cheating to mention the games that I know are getting a new edition that I'm looking forward to reading. Specifically: Exalted, Scion and Trinity. I'm also looking forward to seeing what the Margaret Weis "Heroic Roleplaying" does now that it can slip the restrictions that Marvel put on the game. (Specifically the lack of character creation rules.)
But the game I'd like to see rise again is Castle Falkenstein. (I know, you're shocked since I mention it about every fifth post.) Steampunk has really blown up since then, and I think it'd be great to see the game come back now that the world is more ready to see it. Maybe do it with Fate, though I really did like the conceit that it uses cards because the in-world game designer shocked his high society friends by suggesting they use dice. (Dice are what common folk used for gambling. Proper ladies and gentlemen use cards.)
But the game I'd like to see rise again is Castle Falkenstein. (I know, you're shocked since I mention it about every fifth post.) Steampunk has really blown up since then, and I think it'd be great to see the game come back now that the world is more ready to see it. Maybe do it with Fate, though I really did like the conceit that it uses cards because the in-world game designer shocked his high society friends by suggesting they use dice. (Dice are what common folk used for gambling. Proper ladies and gentlemen use cards.)
#RPGaDay 26th - Coolest Character Sheet
The only sheet that really springs to mind is the Alternate Character Sheet for the East Texas University Savage Worlds setting. Since players are college kids, the character sheet looks like a scan-tron for standardized testing.
Monday, August 25, 2014
#RPGaDay 25th - Favorite RPG No One Else Wants To Play
That's another complicated one. There are certainly games I love that have strong enough detractors that it's not something we play regularly. Mutants and Masterminds is the most common example, but there are folks in my group who are okay with it, and I run it every year at Owlcon. Similarly, Star Wars Saga Edition isn't going to get traction in my group. But there's also folks in it who would play.
I had to think about this for a bit, but I guess that if I had to go through all of my books, I'd say that Wraith: the Oblivion would be the game that nobody would be interested in. Heck, if I were running it, I'd make huge changes to the setting. But I really like the intense personal focus and the Shadow mechanic (which I'd probably houserule to be closer to how the Screwtapes work in Better Angles) was really interesting.
I had to think about this for a bit, but I guess that if I had to go through all of my books, I'd say that Wraith: the Oblivion would be the game that nobody would be interested in. Heck, if I were running it, I'd make huge changes to the setting. But I really like the intense personal focus and the Shadow mechanic (which I'd probably houserule to be closer to how the Screwtapes work in Better Angles) was really interesting.
Sunday, August 24, 2014
#RPGaDay 24th - Most Complicated RPG Owned
I guess Hero System is the most complicated system I own. It's infamous for its complexity. I will say that 99% of the complexity is in the character / NPC generation, and that once you have a character properly constructed, it's a pretty simple game in play.
Shadowrun has a lot of special subsystems (decking, rigging, magic, etc), so that might come close. I actually haven't gotten around to reading my copy of 5th edition, but the editions I am familiar with had that level of complexity. The basic system was okay, but all of the subsystems did add up.
Shadowrun has a lot of special subsystems (decking, rigging, magic, etc), so that might come close. I actually haven't gotten around to reading my copy of 5th edition, but the editions I am familiar with had that level of complexity. The basic system was okay, but all of the subsystems did add up.
#RPGaDay 23rd - Coolest Looking RPG/Book
Hmmm.
The Dresden Files RPG has a nifty look to it. One of the conceits of the game is that it's a sort-of in world artifact. For those not familiar with the setting, in the world of the Dresden Files, the book Dracula was written as a "how to kill Black Court Vampires" instruction manual. As a result of the book, the Black Court of Vampires (1) was almost entirely wiped out. Additionally, Dresden plays tabletop RPGs with a bunch of his friends (who are also werewolves, but that's not really germane to my point). So the leader of the pack had the idea that they could do something similar for all the other monsters out there by publishing a RPG that includes the details on the other monsters out there. So Billy wrote a draft of the game, and it's covered in post-it notes and margin scribbles by Billy, Dresden and Bob the Skull for the "next draft" of the game. Dresden, for instance, says they need to globally change names and redact some things that would get everyone in a lot of trouble if it were revealed. (2)
But I wanted to mention a couple of other books that deserve mention.
The four DC Adventures RPG books by Green Ronin are full of art from the DC archives. Best of all, everything in the books is pre-New52. So there's all sorts of gorgeous stuff in there.
Eclipse Phase and Shadowrun both have great graphic design across the board.
(1) In the Dresden-verse, there are different kinds of vampires. Black Court Vampires follow the Dracula rules. The Red, White and Jade Courts have different powers and weaknesses.
(2) The game itself isn't "canon" because there's no way Dresden would have told Billy all the secrets the game books reveal. There is an original (and canonical) short story in the setting book.
The Dresden Files RPG has a nifty look to it. One of the conceits of the game is that it's a sort-of in world artifact. For those not familiar with the setting, in the world of the Dresden Files, the book Dracula was written as a "how to kill Black Court Vampires" instruction manual. As a result of the book, the Black Court of Vampires (1) was almost entirely wiped out. Additionally, Dresden plays tabletop RPGs with a bunch of his friends (who are also werewolves, but that's not really germane to my point). So the leader of the pack had the idea that they could do something similar for all the other monsters out there by publishing a RPG that includes the details on the other monsters out there. So Billy wrote a draft of the game, and it's covered in post-it notes and margin scribbles by Billy, Dresden and Bob the Skull for the "next draft" of the game. Dresden, for instance, says they need to globally change names and redact some things that would get everyone in a lot of trouble if it were revealed. (2)
But I wanted to mention a couple of other books that deserve mention.
The four DC Adventures RPG books by Green Ronin are full of art from the DC archives. Best of all, everything in the books is pre-New52. So there's all sorts of gorgeous stuff in there.
Eclipse Phase and Shadowrun both have great graphic design across the board.
(1) In the Dresden-verse, there are different kinds of vampires. Black Court Vampires follow the Dracula rules. The Red, White and Jade Courts have different powers and weaknesses.
(2) The game itself isn't "canon" because there's no way Dresden would have told Billy all the secrets the game books reveal. There is an original (and canonical) short story in the setting book.
Friday, August 22, 2014
#RPGaDay 22nd - Best Secondhand RPG Purchase
This one's really tough. I do often get books secondhand at Half Price Books, but I rarely remember where I bought a book, especially once enough time has passed.
So I am punting this one.
So I am punting this one.
Thursday, August 21, 2014
#RPGaDay 21st - Favorite Licensed RPG
Hmm.
Star Wars Saga Edition is pretty amazing.
Atomic Robo really captures the feel of the setting.
The most recent versions of DC (the M&M 3rd edition) and Marvel (Heroic Roleplaying) were awesome in their own special ways.
And I LOVE the Dresden Files RPG not just as an adaptation of the books, but as an awesome game, and as an awesome, sorta-but-not-in-continuity artifact.
But the game that has to win is the Leverage RPG, because it did the impossible. It lets you run heist games without being master con artists. I've always been a big fan of the heist genre and Leverage is an awesome show. But while fantasy games let you play wizards without having to know magic, or badass kung fu fighters without knowing the first thing about martial arts, heist games, prior to this, really required the players to know how to plan a heist and figure out all of the twists and turns and cool reversals that make a good heist.
Until Leverage cracked it. The quickstart is free and should be read by all. I think the things Leverage does could be done in any game that allowed certain levels of player narrative control. Heck, you could probably even hack a D&D system to do a heist, but allowing the "you thought I did X but really I did Y which set up Z" mechanics is counter to the "you have to prepare for the monster as best you can" methodology of most games. Essentially, Leverage lets players retcon events - not in a way that says "yeah, you didn't stab me last round even though you totally did" way. More like a "yeah, you stabbed me, but I had set up some cameras ahead of time and there's a live feed to the police station, so thanks for giving them all the evidence they needed to put you away."
Leverage rocks.
Star Wars Saga Edition is pretty amazing.
Atomic Robo really captures the feel of the setting.
The most recent versions of DC (the M&M 3rd edition) and Marvel (Heroic Roleplaying) were awesome in their own special ways.
And I LOVE the Dresden Files RPG not just as an adaptation of the books, but as an awesome game, and as an awesome, sorta-but-not-in-continuity artifact.
But the game that has to win is the Leverage RPG, because it did the impossible. It lets you run heist games without being master con artists. I've always been a big fan of the heist genre and Leverage is an awesome show. But while fantasy games let you play wizards without having to know magic, or badass kung fu fighters without knowing the first thing about martial arts, heist games, prior to this, really required the players to know how to plan a heist and figure out all of the twists and turns and cool reversals that make a good heist.
Until Leverage cracked it. The quickstart is free and should be read by all. I think the things Leverage does could be done in any game that allowed certain levels of player narrative control. Heck, you could probably even hack a D&D system to do a heist, but allowing the "you thought I did X but really I did Y which set up Z" mechanics is counter to the "you have to prepare for the monster as best you can" methodology of most games. Essentially, Leverage lets players retcon events - not in a way that says "yeah, you didn't stab me last round even though you totally did" way. More like a "yeah, you stabbed me, but I had set up some cameras ahead of time and there's a live feed to the police station, so thanks for giving them all the evidence they needed to put you away."
Leverage rocks.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
#RPGaDay 19th - Favorite Published Adventure
This one is totally easy: Murder on Arcturus Station for the original Traveler rules. There's a fun story behind it too.
I forget exactly what year this was, but it was sometime around or after college. I'd moved away but was in Louisiana visiting my parents for Christmas. Now that I think about it, it was probably during college because I was there for a long time and once I graduated, I didn't get to take long vacations. I got a call from my old friend Michael (who ran a Villains and Vigilantes game that I swear I've talked about before but apparently haven't) that he had moved to New Orleans and wanted to know if I could visit and maybe game.
I was thrilled and it was cool to see some of the old gang who'd also moved to New Orleans. Anyway, Michael ran Murder on Arcturus Station for me and another member of his gaming group. The premise is: you're on a space station in the middle of nowhere. There's a big important guy Mr. Urshakan, who nobody likes and he's murdered. The space station security is great at busting up drunks, but not so much at solving murders, so they ask the PCs to help.
So, we had fun solving the mystery and I made a note to find a copy so I could see all of the details. And that's when I learned how really awesome the adventure is. You see, when we played, the killer was a labor leader Urshakan was blackmailing. But in the adventure, it could have been any of the ten or so suspects. The book's written so that the GM can pick whodunnit and how they did it. In each case, there's evidence and testimony and timelines so the adventure is never the same twice (unless you want it to be). It's really amazing work and ahead of its time. That is a drawback, however, as modern CSI fans will want to go for evidence that was undetectable when it was written.
Since then, I've run it:
* Once using Traveler for friends one weekend. Most of them weren't familiar with Traveler, but it didn't matter, because it's all about looking for clues and talking to the suspects. I used the same murderer that Michael had used.
* Once using The Babylon Project system. I had to swap out some of the aliens for Babylon 5 aliens, but it was fun. That time it was additionally challenging because one of the PCs was a P5 Telepath, and I had to prepare for how to handle the telepathic aspect. Fortunately, the TV show had already showed me how telepaths and the legal system interacted. In this case, I don't remember who I'd picked, largely because all of my memories of running it are based around the PCs interacting.
* Once using Shadowrun, replacing the space station with an oil platform in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico. This time I really poured my heart into it, working out timelines for all of the suspects and who each of them suspected (or who they'd accuse). Even better, I had multiple overlapping murder plots. Urshakan was poisoned before he was stabbed and the PCs find a ticking bomb under his bed while going over the murder scene. I was almost thrown by one of our players, who had an almost psychic ability to solve mysteries with no evidence correctly identified one of the killers. Fortunately, the other PCs didn't really believe him (because "Played By Kelly" was a 20 pt Psych Lim in Champions) but looking back, they said "dammit, we should have paid attention to Kelly." It being Shadowrun, one of the PCs took a bribe from one of the killers to hide their involvement. AND the guy I considered to be the "real killer" skated because his crime was "get 10 people who hate my boss enough to kill him on the oil platform and one of them is sure to take the opportunity." (Actually, 11 people, if you count the PCs as a suspect, because Urshakan wasn't going to pay them for the job they'd done for him. Of course, one of the PCs' Plot Radar sensed that someone was going to murder Urshakan, so they stayed up all night in the bar in front of plenty of witnesses. It didn't clear the other PCs, but the head of station security really didn't think they'd have done it.)
* I'd consider running it again for some other system, but I think that my Shadowrun version of the adventure was the platonic ideal in terms of making it an interesting and complex mystery to solve. I just now had the idea of adapting it to Eclipse Phase, just to try to figure out how to do a good murder mystery in a world where just about everyone's minds are backed up and can be restored into new bodies trivially. Having Urshakan's consciousness around as a restored backup would add an interesting twist to the investigation. (Scribble, scribble, scribble)
I forget exactly what year this was, but it was sometime around or after college. I'd moved away but was in Louisiana visiting my parents for Christmas. Now that I think about it, it was probably during college because I was there for a long time and once I graduated, I didn't get to take long vacations. I got a call from my old friend Michael (who ran a Villains and Vigilantes game that I swear I've talked about before but apparently haven't) that he had moved to New Orleans and wanted to know if I could visit and maybe game.
I was thrilled and it was cool to see some of the old gang who'd also moved to New Orleans. Anyway, Michael ran Murder on Arcturus Station for me and another member of his gaming group. The premise is: you're on a space station in the middle of nowhere. There's a big important guy Mr. Urshakan, who nobody likes and he's murdered. The space station security is great at busting up drunks, but not so much at solving murders, so they ask the PCs to help.
So, we had fun solving the mystery and I made a note to find a copy so I could see all of the details. And that's when I learned how really awesome the adventure is. You see, when we played, the killer was a labor leader Urshakan was blackmailing. But in the adventure, it could have been any of the ten or so suspects. The book's written so that the GM can pick whodunnit and how they did it. In each case, there's evidence and testimony and timelines so the adventure is never the same twice (unless you want it to be). It's really amazing work and ahead of its time. That is a drawback, however, as modern CSI fans will want to go for evidence that was undetectable when it was written.
Since then, I've run it:
* Once using Traveler for friends one weekend. Most of them weren't familiar with Traveler, but it didn't matter, because it's all about looking for clues and talking to the suspects. I used the same murderer that Michael had used.
* Once using The Babylon Project system. I had to swap out some of the aliens for Babylon 5 aliens, but it was fun. That time it was additionally challenging because one of the PCs was a P5 Telepath, and I had to prepare for how to handle the telepathic aspect. Fortunately, the TV show had already showed me how telepaths and the legal system interacted. In this case, I don't remember who I'd picked, largely because all of my memories of running it are based around the PCs interacting.
* Once using Shadowrun, replacing the space station with an oil platform in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico. This time I really poured my heart into it, working out timelines for all of the suspects and who each of them suspected (or who they'd accuse). Even better, I had multiple overlapping murder plots. Urshakan was poisoned before he was stabbed and the PCs find a ticking bomb under his bed while going over the murder scene. I was almost thrown by one of our players, who had an almost psychic ability to solve mysteries with no evidence correctly identified one of the killers. Fortunately, the other PCs didn't really believe him (because "Played By Kelly" was a 20 pt Psych Lim in Champions) but looking back, they said "dammit, we should have paid attention to Kelly." It being Shadowrun, one of the PCs took a bribe from one of the killers to hide their involvement. AND the guy I considered to be the "real killer" skated because his crime was "get 10 people who hate my boss enough to kill him on the oil platform and one of them is sure to take the opportunity." (Actually, 11 people, if you count the PCs as a suspect, because Urshakan wasn't going to pay them for the job they'd done for him. Of course, one of the PCs' Plot Radar sensed that someone was going to murder Urshakan, so they stayed up all night in the bar in front of plenty of witnesses. It didn't clear the other PCs, but the head of station security really didn't think they'd have done it.)
* I'd consider running it again for some other system, but I think that my Shadowrun version of the adventure was the platonic ideal in terms of making it an interesting and complex mystery to solve. I just now had the idea of adapting it to Eclipse Phase, just to try to figure out how to do a good murder mystery in a world where just about everyone's minds are backed up and can be restored into new bodies trivially. Having Urshakan's consciousness around as a restored backup would add an interesting twist to the investigation. (Scribble, scribble, scribble)
Sunday, August 17, 2014
#RPGaDay 17th - Funniest Game You Played
So, I've played Paranoia and that's certainly the silliest game I've played.
But the funniest game story I've got was from an old Champions game. I don't remember the name of the team, but we were a pretty standard pickup group of super-heroes that defended Houston against super-villains. My character was Dr. Jurassic, a paleontology grad student who had an accident with a velociraptor fossil and a Kirbytech DNA gizmo. He could turn into a Utahraptor (because as dinosaur experts will tell you, the raptors in Jurassic Park were way too big, except that after the movie was made, they found raptor skeletons that were the "right" size). So he was a big scary dinosaur with sharp claws and teeth. Another player was "Cue", who had a magic pool cue (or maybe she was a mutant and it was a power crutch, I don't recall), and she could make pool balls appear in mid-air, and she's shoot them at bad guys. Different pool balls had different effects.
So, some Inuit critters from the spirit world were making trouble and we were going on this journey through the spirit world to stop it. At one point, our spirit guide tells us that we're about to face this nasty creature, but it'll leave us alone so long as we don't laugh at it. It was magically funny-looking or something, but as long as you didn't laugh, it'd leave you alone. Now, the GM was intending for us to make EGO rolls to avoid laughing.
But Cue's player and I just looked at each other and, for whatever reason, just started laughing hysterically. The GM rolled his eyes and said "okay, I guess we go to initiative them."
Runner Up: It was a big epic 2nd Ed D&D game. One of the players was a Drow Ranger who was Destined to Kill Lloth. We'd gone on a huge quest to get Spiderbane, the artifact sword Also Destined To Kill Lloth. We fought our way through the Demonweb, smashed up stuff in the big robot spider castle thing, and burst in to the throne room. "Darkmover" (the drow) raised his sword and swung.
And promptly fumbled. The sword flew out of his hand and across the room. We scramble to get the sword to him (because only he can wield it) and he swings.... and fumbles again. We get him the sword AGAIN and this time the wizard casts "Glue" to make sure he doesn't drop the damn sword again. We won, eventually. Darkmover started making criticals instead of fumbles.
But the funniest game story I've got was from an old Champions game. I don't remember the name of the team, but we were a pretty standard pickup group of super-heroes that defended Houston against super-villains. My character was Dr. Jurassic, a paleontology grad student who had an accident with a velociraptor fossil and a Kirbytech DNA gizmo. He could turn into a Utahraptor (because as dinosaur experts will tell you, the raptors in Jurassic Park were way too big, except that after the movie was made, they found raptor skeletons that were the "right" size). So he was a big scary dinosaur with sharp claws and teeth. Another player was "Cue", who had a magic pool cue (or maybe she was a mutant and it was a power crutch, I don't recall), and she could make pool balls appear in mid-air, and she's shoot them at bad guys. Different pool balls had different effects.
So, some Inuit critters from the spirit world were making trouble and we were going on this journey through the spirit world to stop it. At one point, our spirit guide tells us that we're about to face this nasty creature, but it'll leave us alone so long as we don't laugh at it. It was magically funny-looking or something, but as long as you didn't laugh, it'd leave you alone. Now, the GM was intending for us to make EGO rolls to avoid laughing.
But Cue's player and I just looked at each other and, for whatever reason, just started laughing hysterically. The GM rolled his eyes and said "okay, I guess we go to initiative them."
Runner Up: It was a big epic 2nd Ed D&D game. One of the players was a Drow Ranger who was Destined to Kill Lloth. We'd gone on a huge quest to get Spiderbane, the artifact sword Also Destined To Kill Lloth. We fought our way through the Demonweb, smashed up stuff in the big robot spider castle thing, and burst in to the throne room. "Darkmover" (the drow) raised his sword and swung.
And promptly fumbled. The sword flew out of his hand and across the room. We scramble to get the sword to him (because only he can wield it) and he swings.... and fumbles again. We get him the sword AGAIN and this time the wizard casts "Glue" to make sure he doesn't drop the damn sword again. We won, eventually. Darkmover started making criticals instead of fumbles.
Saturday, August 16, 2014
#RPGaDay 16th - Game You Wish You Owned
Hmm. I certainly wish I had PDF copies of a lot of the games I've sold off to keep the clutter in check. (And to be honest, it would take me ten minutes to find pirate download copies of just about everything I've sold over the years. But that's not cool.)
The snarky angel on my shoulder just said "A Version Of D&D that fixes the Linear Fighter / Quadratic Wizard problem" or one with a good "Gish" (fighter/wizard crossbreed - though I confess none of us have played a Magus yet, so they may work).
There's certainly a long list of games that I want to at least read someday (Gumshoe, for instance), but that's more of a "yeah, someday" over a "I gotta have it now" wish.
In terms of games I wished existed, I wish there was the Platonic Ideal Super-Hero RPG that everyone in our group liked. I wish Paizo would do a Spelljammer-inspired Adventure Path. I wish that the upcoming Onyx Path Scion and Trinity books are everything that I hope they will be. I wish there was a good Mass Effect RPG (though I've read really good Fate and Savage Worlds conversions).
The snarky angel on my shoulder just said "A Version Of D&D that fixes the Linear Fighter / Quadratic Wizard problem" or one with a good "Gish" (fighter/wizard crossbreed - though I confess none of us have played a Magus yet, so they may work).
There's certainly a long list of games that I want to at least read someday (Gumshoe, for instance), but that's more of a "yeah, someday" over a "I gotta have it now" wish.
In terms of games I wished existed, I wish there was the Platonic Ideal Super-Hero RPG that everyone in our group liked. I wish Paizo would do a Spelljammer-inspired Adventure Path. I wish that the upcoming Onyx Path Scion and Trinity books are everything that I hope they will be. I wish there was a good Mass Effect RPG (though I've read really good Fate and Savage Worlds conversions).
Friday, August 15, 2014
#RPGaDay 15th - Favorite Convention Game
I'm going to cheat and break this into two answers.
Favorite Convention Game I Ran: A Vampire: The Masquerade round where the PCs were charged by the Prince of London to catch Jack The Ripper, who he believed was a vampire. We did a LOT of research (probably too much, since the handout we gave them was pretty long AND not really useful with regards to catching the Ripper) on the killings and put a lot of work into the various NPCs and suspects. One of the upsides of running the same round over and over is that each time you do it, you get better at it, and little details pull together so by the end, it's so much better than the one you started with. The twist to the game was that the Ripper was a normal guy (one of the folks Ripperologists often point to, but honestly I don't recall which one). So when they show the Prince the Ripper, he tells them "I told everyone the Ripper was a vampire. So which vampire was it?" And then the PCs get to pick who they want thrown under the bus. By that point, they've done enough investigation of the vampire suspects that there are good reasons to do so, but it's still a quandary.
Favorite Convention Game I Played: Geez, that's tough. I usually run games at cons. But the times I went to GenCon, I played more than I ran. I think I ran Bloodshadows for WEG once to get some WEG swag, but other than that, I played, which was a nice change. I recall having loads of fun in a Shadowrun round where me and another guy played a couple of ork (or maybe troll) street samauri called "Dis" and "Dat" and we decided to tawk in think Brooklyn accents. That was a hoot, just because we were being goofy while mowing down Renraku security guards. I also played a round of (there it goes again) Castle Falkenstein, which was Clue meets Murder on the Orient Express. It really didn't have anything to do with Falkenstein, as we were all normal people being blackmailed by "Mister Korper" (German for "Body", according to the GM), and we had to solve the murder before the train stopped. My character was a British Banker who stole bank funds to cover his gambling debts and then had to steal more to pay off Korper. I was an unashamed coward, so when I mouthed off to the German military officer, he challenged me to a duel and I told him "why would I want to do anything as bloody stupid as that? You'll kill me." We eventually figured out who the killer was (one of the PCs, of course), and I do have to give the guy who played the killer credit, he did a great job of misdirecting the rest of us and chasing leads until we finally found some clue that gave him away.
Favorite Convention Game I Ran: A Vampire: The Masquerade round where the PCs were charged by the Prince of London to catch Jack The Ripper, who he believed was a vampire. We did a LOT of research (probably too much, since the handout we gave them was pretty long AND not really useful with regards to catching the Ripper) on the killings and put a lot of work into the various NPCs and suspects. One of the upsides of running the same round over and over is that each time you do it, you get better at it, and little details pull together so by the end, it's so much better than the one you started with. The twist to the game was that the Ripper was a normal guy (one of the folks Ripperologists often point to, but honestly I don't recall which one). So when they show the Prince the Ripper, he tells them "I told everyone the Ripper was a vampire. So which vampire was it?" And then the PCs get to pick who they want thrown under the bus. By that point, they've done enough investigation of the vampire suspects that there are good reasons to do so, but it's still a quandary.
Favorite Convention Game I Played: Geez, that's tough. I usually run games at cons. But the times I went to GenCon, I played more than I ran. I think I ran Bloodshadows for WEG once to get some WEG swag, but other than that, I played, which was a nice change. I recall having loads of fun in a Shadowrun round where me and another guy played a couple of ork (or maybe troll) street samauri called "Dis" and "Dat" and we decided to tawk in think Brooklyn accents. That was a hoot, just because we were being goofy while mowing down Renraku security guards. I also played a round of (there it goes again) Castle Falkenstein, which was Clue meets Murder on the Orient Express. It really didn't have anything to do with Falkenstein, as we were all normal people being blackmailed by "Mister Korper" (German for "Body", according to the GM), and we had to solve the murder before the train stopped. My character was a British Banker who stole bank funds to cover his gambling debts and then had to steal more to pay off Korper. I was an unashamed coward, so when I mouthed off to the German military officer, he challenged me to a duel and I told him "why would I want to do anything as bloody stupid as that? You'll kill me." We eventually figured out who the killer was (one of the PCs, of course), and I do have to give the guy who played the killer credit, he did a great job of misdirecting the rest of us and chasing leads until we finally found some clue that gave him away.
Thursday, August 14, 2014
#RPGaDay 14th - Best Convention Purchase
Another easy one. Castle Falkenstein. I went to GenCon twice (1994 & 1995), and, on advice of a friend, put one suitcase inside another on the way up so I could fill up the second on the way back. I bought a LOT of stuff. But Falkenstein was definitely the best.
I still wish I knew what to do with it.
In today's instant-gratification PDF RPG market, I rarely buy stuff at cons anymore. Heck, I rarely buy RPGs at brick and mortar stores. It's all PDFs that I read on my iPad. I do spend all kinds of cash at my friendly local comic book store, so I don't feel too guilty about doing that. Someday, I may make a similar jump to just digital comics, but I haven't gotten there yet.
I still wish I knew what to do with it.
In today's instant-gratification PDF RPG market, I rarely buy stuff at cons anymore. Heck, I rarely buy RPGs at brick and mortar stores. It's all PDFs that I read on my iPad. I do spend all kinds of cash at my friendly local comic book store, so I don't feel too guilty about doing that. Someday, I may make a similar jump to just digital comics, but I haven't gotten there yet.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
#RPGaDay 20th - Will Still Play In 20 Years Time
Assuming we haven't all been uploaded to the cloud and get to MMO "for reals", I assume that me and my regular group will still be playing some version of D&D-esque fantasy until the stars (or our bodies) grow cold. Gaming is, for better or worse, built on the foundations Gygax and Arneson laid in the 1970s. It will probably be as different from the current versions of d20/D&D as today's games are from the basic boxed set, but it'll still be recognizably D&D-ish.
#RPGaDay 18th - Favorite Game System
How is that a fair question?
First off, does it mean "favorite game to run?" "To play?" "For when I want to play some specific genre?" "Favorite system to hack for multiple genres?" "Favorite pick up system?"
I mean, if I wanted to play a game that delivers the sort of Dungeons and Dragons Experience that I and my group like to play, then I'd pick Pathfinder. That's the game we've more or less settled around for most of our weekly play. We've played a full campaign from planned start to finish, we're working our way through Rise of the Runelords and we're probably going to play another AP after that. If I were feeling up to the time commitment, I'd probably want to run (just based on the summaries on the Paizo Page, and listening to an AP podcast) Carrion Crown or Mummy's Mask. (Though Iron Gods looks pretty sweet.) But running a Pathfinder game, especially with a large, experienced group, would be pretty challenging.
I've wanted to run a supers game for our group for a while. I'd like to use Mutants and Masterminds, and not just because Vigilance Press pays me to write M&M stuff for them. It's a good supers system that has enough flexibility and crunch to do just about any kind of super-heroic stuff. That said, I'd also run Icons or Marvel Heroic Roleplaying. (Probably MHR because one of the campaigns I have in my head is cosmic supers and scaling Icons for cosmic would require a little system hacking.)
I guess if we're talking "a game I can muck around with to use for different genres" then FATE is the way to go. Fate Core is pretty simple and I can pick up Dresden Files if I want to use it for urban fantasy/horror, Atomic Robo for pulp super-heroics, and the different hacks out there for other genres. I'm looking forward to an upcoming Steampunk Fate game (The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences) and Fate Cthulhu. I'm also a fan of the Strange Fate hack used in the Kerberos Club, which is a supers hack, even if it's a steampunk setting. That said, I've only played/run Spirit of the Century twice, so I'd need to play or run more Fate to commit to liking it.
First off, does it mean "favorite game to run?" "To play?" "For when I want to play some specific genre?" "Favorite system to hack for multiple genres?" "Favorite pick up system?"
I mean, if I wanted to play a game that delivers the sort of Dungeons and Dragons Experience that I and my group like to play, then I'd pick Pathfinder. That's the game we've more or less settled around for most of our weekly play. We've played a full campaign from planned start to finish, we're working our way through Rise of the Runelords and we're probably going to play another AP after that. If I were feeling up to the time commitment, I'd probably want to run (just based on the summaries on the Paizo Page, and listening to an AP podcast) Carrion Crown or Mummy's Mask. (Though Iron Gods looks pretty sweet.) But running a Pathfinder game, especially with a large, experienced group, would be pretty challenging.
I've wanted to run a supers game for our group for a while. I'd like to use Mutants and Masterminds, and not just because Vigilance Press pays me to write M&M stuff for them. It's a good supers system that has enough flexibility and crunch to do just about any kind of super-heroic stuff. That said, I'd also run Icons or Marvel Heroic Roleplaying. (Probably MHR because one of the campaigns I have in my head is cosmic supers and scaling Icons for cosmic would require a little system hacking.)
I guess if we're talking "a game I can muck around with to use for different genres" then FATE is the way to go. Fate Core is pretty simple and I can pick up Dresden Files if I want to use it for urban fantasy/horror, Atomic Robo for pulp super-heroics, and the different hacks out there for other genres. I'm looking forward to an upcoming Steampunk Fate game (The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences) and Fate Cthulhu. I'm also a fan of the Strange Fate hack used in the Kerberos Club, which is a supers hack, even if it's a steampunk setting. That said, I've only played/run Spirit of the Century twice, so I'd need to play or run more Fate to commit to liking it.
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