Tuesday, May 3, 2011

It Still Hasn't Sunken In Yet

After killing two groups of morlocks, the party is confronted by 40 of their angry brothers, all armed with spears and changing down the hall at them.

The Boy: Uh . . .

Ron: Let's get out of here.

Merv: Forty?  Yeah.  Lets go.

Tim shakes his head and waves his hands:  Hold on, hold on.  I know the whole design philosophy is a bit different with these old games, but I'm not sure.  Would he really set us up to fail?  I think we should stay and fight.  There has got be be a way - some trick - some gimmick.  We can win this.  He wouldn't just keep on throwing things at us to kill us, would he.  Stand firm.  We can do this, guys.

Me:  What the hell are you talking about, Tim?  I attacked your group of first level adventurers with a DRAGON on a random roll.  You are not being paranoid.  I AM trying to kill you.

Tim looks back at me and scrunches up his forehead:  Oh.  Well, let's run away then.

- Ark

Monday, May 2, 2011

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Calling All Really Cool Idea People

My brain is melting.

I need help.  I am going to be starting a new LL +AEC game.  This isn't a home hosted one - but an every other week affair at the FLGS.  The ulterior motive is to create a public haven for old school gaming in this 4e/3,5/Pathfinder rich environment - a place where D&D or Traveller or Stars Without Numbers or Gamma World or Mutant Future or Top Secret could just be whipped out and people would be on it like stink on a dog.  But we'll start with LL.

The trouble is, I run a home game every other weekend.  It is very vanilla LL.  By design - cuz I like it.  But for the public game, I want to do something different.  Not so far different that it freaks people (newcomers) out, but different enough to keep me interested.  Understand?

We've so far got two players who are AD&D types, who want to start playing again, and two complete newbies.  I expect others will be interested, but I'll let it grow organically.  I think there will be some core people, but there will be people showing up some days and not others.

So I need . . I need . . . A slightly off-kilter episodic sandbox.  I guess that is how one would describe it.  I once ran a 4e game based loosely on Mouse Guard.  It was over the Christmas holidays for a random bunch of people.  It was 4e, but the players all were members of the 'Watch' and protected the border from EVIL.  And helped little old ladies.  They never battled giant crabs though.

Anyway, that worked, for the most part.  I could encapsulate each game session into it's own episode - but it wasn't sandobxy at all. I led the players by the nose from episode to episode. 

So, I'd like something different, but, well, my head hurts trying to think about it.  I want to show the new players what my view of old school D&D is all about.  I want it to be encapsulate-able into a session, however.  So, a episodic sandbox.  Is this an oxy-moron?  And it needs to be weird but not too weird.  Am I deluding myself?  Is this possible?

Thanks in advance for any ideas or thoughts.

- Ark 

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Dead Simple Lock & Trap Mini-game

I've fiddled around and play-tested the various ideas and suggestions floating around until I've come arranged the pieces into something that the Boy likes.

This mini-game involves a deck of cards.  It could be a regular deck of cards or a special deck with bump, undulate, rake, and probe written on each.  Four 'suits' of some sort or another. 

Take the deck of cards.  Remove the Jokers. Shuffle.  Set the cards down and stare at the player. 

To pick the lock, the the thief must pick one out of four actions to take - bump (club,) undulate (heart,) rake (diamond,) or probe (spade.)  Three of the actions will further the lock-picking (or trap disarming.)  One of those actions will seize up the lock, or set off the trap.

Example One:
DM sees that the next card is an Undulate (Heart.)
Player: I Probe (Spade) the lock with my lock picks.
DM: (flips over card) You hear a faint 'click' and have passed this stage. On to the next tumbler.

Example Two:
DM sees that the next card is an Undulate (Heart.)
Player: I Undulate (Heart) the lock with my lock picks.
DM: (flips over card) Too bad.  The lock seizes up on you. Game over, dude.

Each lock has a certain amount of cards that determine it's difficulty. A 2d4 roll could easily be used to determine the number of cards, but any amount could be used.  Percentages of success are as follows:

75% - One Card
56% - Two Cards
42% - Three Cards
32% - Four Cards
24% - Five Cards
18% - Six Cards (fyi - roughly equals the chance for a first level thief)
13% - Seven Cards
10% - Eight Cards

As a thief increases in level, their skill would increase as well.  Each level gives the thief the ability to automatically conquer an undisplayed card.  This does not fix a 'seized lock,' it just allows the thief to reduce the number of cards in the stack during play.  A level 2 thief would breeze through a 2 card lock without having to make any guesses.

Traps can be implemented by card values.  For example, all face value cards could be trapped.  If the lock seizes up on a face value card, the lock's trap would spring.  Hilarity ensues.

So, that's it.  Hopefully I've been clear enough.  Comments appreciated.  And thanks to all who came forth with ideas.  Ya'll rock, much like old school does. 

All I need now is a BURP deck. :)

- Ark

Monday, April 25, 2011

Character Sketch - Imbroglio

Actual Photo
Imbroglio is Tim's first level elven fighter in the Razing Zone campaign.  Imbroglio worships the mysterious elven god Faux.  This god is so mysterious that no one on the planet has ever heard of him but Imbroglio.  Faux also talks to Imbroglio.  Often.  The DM is, however, unaware of most of these conversations as they take place inside of Tim's head.

It is rumored that Imbroglio was run out of the elven lands by his own kinsfolk.  Upon meeting Imbroglio, it is understandable why.  Imbroglio has large amount of pamphlets, explaining in full detail why everyone, including you, should worship Faux.  Did I say he has a lot of pamphlets?

Imbroglio runs a traveling road show, developed with the express purpose of spreading Faux's divine message.  The road show is comprised of many people that do not know they are part of the road show.  They just happen to be innocent bystanders.  Imbroglio uses his amazing feats of strength to sway potential devotees by breaking stick on his forehead.  Some say he has hit himself too many times in the head with wood.

Others say he was dropped when he was a baby.  A lot.  And then jumped on.  When I say others, I mean the Boy.

There are many ways that Imbroglio attempts to impress those unblessed with  the knowledge of Faux.  Part of the road show is devoted to wild animal taming.  Imbroglio, through the divine will of his god, causes wild beasts to become tame.  Regretfully, he does not have any wild beasts.  Luckily, he has convinced the halfling thief Ferrit to dress up as a giant wild ferret.  During the show, Ferrit acts wild, then is tamed and does a little jig for the crowd.  Imbroglio is pretty happy with the way things have worked out, except for the fact that Ferrit demands too much of a cut of the meager proceeds earned.

Fearsome Beast
The human lands that Imbroglio frequents are none too kind.  The humans only recognize one god - the Lawgiver.  While most try to be patient with Imbroglio, patience only goes so far. Imbroglio has a habit of making things up, like claiming to kill a dragon when he didn't.  When people have had enough of Imbroglio, they tend to incarcerate him, toss him into oubliettes, beat him senseless, steal all of his possessions, and throw him naked but for a burlap sack, unconscious, into urine filled alleys.  Not many people, including his friends, feel very sorry about Imbroglio's woes.

Despite all of his hardships, Imbroglio remains steadfast, fighting evil in the name of Faux armed with his mighty, and somewhat broken iron pick.  He helps raise his spirits by giving himself titles.  So far, he is now officially known as Imbroglio the Spider Squisher, the Dragon Slayer, the Orc Stinger, the Bee Slasher, and the Dryad Disappearer, and the Jello Snuffer.  Some of those things he didn't actually kill, but he's at least seen them, so he figures they must have died already, or will die at some point in the future.

The DM doesn't expect Imbroglio to last very much longer, but Tim is very hopeful the plucky little elf can go all the way.

- Ark 

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Wisdom

I'd like to congratulate Anthony Hunter on his logo that won the Old School Links To Wisdom Logo Contest.  A high-five goes out to Greg Christopher as well for his entry into the competition. 

Ah, well, it's a bummer to loose - but a temple probably speaks to people more than Calamity Clam the Bivalve of Old School Wisdom anyway. It's nice to see I got some votes on it.  But now, what the heck do I do with this logo thing? 

I figure that since I created it to give away, I should just give it away in the same manner that I did the Old School Rocks! logo.  I'm not sure if anyone wants it, however, or how to package it.  The image to the side over there is one idea.  I could see it on a t-shirt worn by some burly old grognard sitting at a table in a gaming shop.  Growling.  Biting other patrons.

Um . . . okay, maybe not biting, but looking smug.  :)  So, if anyone has any thought on the matter, let me know.

Thanks to everyone who voted!

- Ark

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Doctor Who in Arabic

By Becca at No Smoking in the Skullcave
I spent part of my childhood running up and down the sand-dunes in Saudi Arabia.  To this day, buried deep under the sand near Rahimah, sits a headless Han Solo, an Obi-Wan Kenobi (sans cape but with his light saber,) a transparent yellow and silver headed Micronaut Time Traveller, the reflector dish off the Millennium Falcon, and a fully functional Space 1999 Eagle Transporter.

TV was a hit of miss affair in Saudi, even though we had two TVs.  One was an NTSC set for picking up the ARAMCO station.  It only broadcast 5 or so hours a day - mainly Scooby Doo, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, and strange British Cartoons that scar me to this day.

The other TV was a PAL affair, picking up regional broadcasting from Saudi Arabia, and when the humidity was just right, shows from Qatar and Abu Dhabi.  My mother sat glued to the TV in the afternoons watching soap operas from the Emirates.  She had no idea what they were saying, but the male and female leads chain smoked a lot and had an intense staring contests with one another. 

In the evenings we would watch Arabic stations, channel surfing (in the age before remote controls) for something to watch other than pictures of Yassir Arafat.  We could catch BBC shows on occasion.  I remember most started (or was it ended,) with a picture of a fancy building near water and the word 'THAMES' boldly emblazoned on top.  I pronounced it like 'James' with a 'THAY' in the front.  Oh, laugh away, you limey bastards.  You go and try to pronounce the town of Palestine, Texas correctly.  WRONG.  That way you said it in your head just now  WRONG.  Ha!

It was this way I learned about Doctor Who.  It was in black and white.  The good Doctor was a gray-haired man and he had a lovely lady with him named Sarah Jane Smith, and they went on wild and wacky adventures together with dinosaurs, robots, and god-knows-what-else.  They all spoke Arabic, and the show was sub-titled in English.  That was a lot of reading to go through for a kid, I swear!  But it was worth it.

Jon Pertwee and Elisabeth Sladen were my firsts.  I eventually moved from Saudi, and this teeth-and-curls guy eventually became my new go-to doctor back in the States, late nights on PBS, but Sarah Jane Smith was my Who-girl for a long, long while (mainly because the PBS in my area refused to get the post Baker Dr. Who's and repeated the 4th Doctor over and over and over again.)

I've tried to let the news settle in the past couple of days.  Elisabeth Sladen's death is rather unsettling.  It seems too soon.  Way too soon.  It wasn't actually ever supposed to happen at all.

- Ark