D20 Is Ruining Role Playing?

Today is day number two of the Reader's Choice Challenge.  Last week I asked people to make topic suggestions that I would use this week, Monday through Friday.  Yesterday, I covered Cthulhu, which isn't a strong suit of mine, and it shows.  MEH!

Dave G of the N++ blog, a great blog by the way, even though I don't know what N++ means?  Heh... I'm losing more geek points!  Anyway, Dave gave me a few suggestions,  this one however is the easiest, and with me getting a little burnt out, I'm going to use it.  He wrote:

- Why D20 is ruining roleplaying. (aka, Remember when D&D was about building interesting characters instead of uber multiclass-feat-skill-other weird skill stuff-other weird stuff combos to turn characters into super heros?)

No, I don't think it is.  There, that was easy.  Time for a nap.

Heh... there I go kidding around again, but really, I don't think D20 is ruining any aspect of the gaming hobby much less role playing.  I'm sure there are many people who would argue otherwise, but do they have evidence?  Of course what I write here is just an opinion.

Sure, maybe there isn't much role playing going on, but the level of role playing ( from what I've noticed ) varies from group to group, and game system to game system.

If anything it seems to be keeping the hobby alive?  To be perfectly honest I haven't played any of the current incarnations of the game.  Nothing past AD&D 1st Edition.  That doesn't mean I wouldn't try any other editions, I just haven't had the chance to try them out.  I probably won't get into the current edition of D&D for a lot of reasons, but I would like to at least try it.  How can I form a valid opinion without experiencing it myself?  If people enjoy D20 then I say more power to them!  Whether it's D&D 4th Edition or Pathfinder everyone is free to game the way they want to game.  That's my opinion, and I'm sticking to it.

Actually, the whole "uber multiclass-feat-skill-other weird skill stuff-other weird stuff combos to turn characters into super heros." sounds kind of interesting.  Then again I also enjoy playing a character who has trouble hacking his way through a horde of orcs, and keeping his plate mail pants on. That actually happened to me in Ultima Online, but it was actually a bunch of dragons, or something, good times... but I digress...

Now, the new Gamma World seems like a rocking good time.  I am buying it as soon as I can.  The same goes for Pathfinder, those seem like big, fun, crunchy books.  However, neither is a big purchasing priority.

And thus, the scribe finishes day two of the challenge.  What will day three bring?

A Chaotic Campaign Formulae

During one of my recent voyages through the blogosphere, I found a great post on Places To Go, People To Be about a unique method for campaign creation.  There was also a link to this post on Jeff's Gameblog.  So I decided to create my own "formulae" for campaign creation, yet another great creative exercise.  Now my formulae is still incomplete, and a work in progress, but here's what I came up with...

First you take a set of core rules, add a setting, then a supplement or two, or three, and an odd game mechanic or two.  Add spices to taste.  Here's what I have so far..

I decided on a setting first, and picked the Riverworld, from the series of science fiction books written by Philip Jose Farmer.  If you are unfamiliar with the series the premise is that everyone who was ever alive on Earth gets resurrected on a planet that consists of one VERY long river valley.  The great thing is that if you die you get resurrected again somewhere else on the river.  It's a great series, and this setting has many adventuring options.  My initial decision is to use either Gamma World or Mutant Future as the core rules.  This would add something different.  Now, no one would start with mutations, but if they died, there is a chance they will be resurrected with one or more mutations.  There would be no mutant animals. There's a great Riverworld sourcebook that was published by Steve Jackson Games, so that would come in handy. 

I haven't decided on the odd game mechanic, but I'll think of something.  Perhaps a die roll to determine the number of mutations that you then draw from a Deck of Mutations.  I'm thinking that would be good, because the player keeps the card,  because if the character dies again, then they have to reroll for the chance at new mutations, and they could return without mutations.  Such is the nature of this version of the Riverworld.

I like this concept because it's weird, and would be fun to play a historical character with mutations.  Say perhaps, George Armstrong Custer with wings?  Or a two headed George Washington with a Life Leech field?  A 20' tall Pee-wee Herman?  Okay, maybe not that, but you get the idea.

Okay enough fun for now.  Keep rolling those dice!

Word Verification NPC, A Creativity Exercise

Word Verification NPC, this idea came to me after I posted a comment to someone's blog, and because I have such lousy bandwidth, it takes a little while for the word verification gump to pop up. In that short time, I was wondering if it might give me a good idea for a NPC name. I thought... naw, probably not...

Well, the word that popped up was ovadimp. Hhhmmm... a little weird, but I like weird; especially in the right setting, but then I guess it wouldn't be weird? I could work with it. In fact, this became a creativity exercise, and a chance to roll some dice. ( As well as write a blog post... )

I've been working on a Mutant Futures module/scenario for conventions.  Mutant Futures is a retro-clone of Gamma World that is published by Goblinoid Games.  So I envisioned Ovadimp as a mutated Duck-billed Platypus . Then the creative floodgates opened up. Of course, if I create Ovadimp using the Mutant Future rules, and randomly generate his mutations, there's no telling what he might end up looking like. His eyes might be on the end of long stalks and he could be covered in exploding warts! Well, okay no exploding warts mutations in MF, but he might just turn out odd. However, I decided to give randomness a shot anyway. Here is the result...

Ovadimp ( A Mutated Duck-billed Platypus ) Alignment: Neutral

First I rolled his characteristics: 8 Strength, 10 dexterity, 10 Constitution, 9 Intelligence, 8 Willpower, 8 Charisma. I rolled straight 3d6 in the order that the characteristics appear in the rulebook. I also went ahead and gave him a Neutral alignment.

Poor Ovadimp. He's so average. Next, on to the mutations!

Ovadimp is a mutated animal, so he gets one free natural weapon. I decide on claws, and roll a d8 for the amount of damage the claws can inflict, he ends being able to do 1d6 of damage with his claws. I know that the platypus has a venomous spur on it's hind feet, but Ovadimp doesn't have those. I decided it was a free mutation, since it doesn't help or hurt him, not to have them.  I don't think it actually helps real platypuses either.  However, other mutated platypuses might have them.

Next, I rolled for the number of mutations, and had a bit of luck. ( I think... ) Ovadimp has 4 physical mutations, and 4 mental mutations.

The first one rolled was Natural Armor, I rolled another d6 to determine if it was moderate or extreme. Ovadimp ended up with Moderate Natural Armor, which gives him a natural AC of 6. This actually makes some sense, because a platypus has fur.  So Ovadimp has extra thick fur.  The next wasn't a beneficial mutation, but wasn't that bad. Ovadimp has a Pituitary Deformation, which is unnatural aging. Can anyone really tell how old a platypus is anyway? He also ended up with a Sensory Deficiency, so I rolled and ended up with deafness. It was 50/50 either blindness or deafness.  The last roll was for an Increased Physical Attribute! I roll once again to determine which attribute, and get Strength. It gives Ovadimp an extra +3d6 damage in hand to hand combat. You do not want Ovadimp to use his claws on you!  He would do a total of 4d6 in hand to hand combat damage using his claws.  Not bad...

Next up, mental mutations. The first was Metaconcert, here is it's description straight from the rulebook.

Metaconcert
This ability allows the mutant to link its mind with other mutants of a similar type or those who have the same mental mutation. These include those with the Metaconcert mutation, or other mental mutations that facilitate control between the minds of two beings. The mutant may combine his WIL with the WIL of other mutants for conducting a mental attack, or some other joint

Eh, guess it might be handy. Unfortunately, the next mutation was Weak Will. Poor Ovadimp's Willpower gets reduced to 3. That's not going to help much with Metaconcert. His next one was Density Alteration ( Others ).  Cool, sort of, doesn't help him much, and he doesn't have many friends due to the last mutation he rolls up. The next one was Force Screen, which allows him to take an extra +5d6 hit points worth of damage once a day. Finally, Ovadimp gets a break. He ends up with a Vampiric Field, with a 33' foot radius. It would have had a 38' radius, but his Weak Will nixed that... Ovadimp can absorb 2d4 hit points a round from all creatures within the radius, which goes into a separate pool of hit points. Very handy, but since he is Neutral and mainly looks after himself, others don't like to hang around him, especially considering his Vampiric Field!  Not even his own kind.  Anyway, these extra hit points disappear after 24 hours.  So with his Force Screen, and Vampiric Field he might be a tough platypus, but with a Weak Will, Ovadimp is probably easy to boss around.  Oh well...

That's not how I really envisioned Ovadimp, but as a player I think I could work with this. For the scenario I'm writing he's going to be different. My original concept for Ovadimp, included the fact that he had a techno-fetish, and coveted gadgets. So if I create him for the scenario he will have mutations beneficial to figuring out technology. I've already decided that in my Mutant Futures campaign there is a whole race of mutated Platypuses. Unfortunately, they are hunted because of their protective fur, and the eggs are tasty too!

I also want to make a fantasy version of Ovadimp, and a few other genres. I even found a mini! It's produced by Reaper Miniatures, and even though it seems a bit pricey; it goes on the list. Too bad they don't have a post-apocolyptic platypod, perhaps one with a plasma rifle?  And a few photon grenades...

Ovadimp the Mighty Wizard!

A Reaper Mini sculpted by Jason Wiebe.

Of course this miniature wouldn't really work that well with MF, but it's cool for a wizardly Ovadimp! This was fun. I haven't rolled up a character in a long time. The next creative exercise is Security Phrase Adventure Hook!  Which will be coming... soooooooooooooon! So, until next time, keep rolling those dice!

Cartography & Digital Map Making

Well, since my interest in gaming has returned; especially role-playing games, and being a gamemaster; I have become obssesed with maps and map making.  I have been searching for a good freeware mapping program, and I found another one yesterday.  It's called AutoRealm, and it seems it might be very good.  I experimented with it some, and there are a lot of features.  I also found a manual for it, but I haven't read it yet.

I was also experimenting some with Dungeonforge, and wasn't all that happy with it.  I was frustrated with trying to get a tile set I had downloaded into the right file.  I tried to follow the brief instructions, but they weren't much help.  I may discard Dungeonforge.  Dungeoncrafter 3 has possibilities, but I still need to work with it some more.  I also had trouble getting the tile files in the right folder, or to even work for that matter.  I am not sure what I was doing incorrectly.

I also plan on experimenting with Paint.  I can actually work on a map in DC3, and export it, and work on it in Paint.  I also want to download Inkscape, and see what that is like.  I would like some better graphics programs, but those just aren't in my budget at this time.  So far DC3 has been the best, although I haven't spent much time on any of the programs.

One thing I haven't ruled out is good old pen and paper map making.  I've started calling it analog map making, and I could get very creative doing this.  Plus, I can scan the maps, and have them printed.  If I have a particularly good map, I can also have it printed on canvas.  A nice, if not expensive option, for a player map.

During the search yesterday ( for the already forgotten object ), I found a remnant of my gaming past.  It was an old Gamma World map, the one that came with the original boxed set.  ( I forgot what I was looking for because I was excited about this map. ) My original GW book is long gone, but I still have the map!  I think I may use it in a Mutant Future campaign.  Unless, of course I can manage to replace my Gamma World book.  I'll try and get a photo of it up soon, but I've got a lousy digital camera, and it may not turn out good at all.

There is one thing bugging the heck out of me!  Is it map making, or mapmaking?  Two words or just one?  I've seen it both ways...

Conventions

In yesterdays post I mentioned Origins 84, a national gaming convention. These days they are calling it,  Origins Game Faire , and the dates are June 23 - 27, 2010.  The deadline for entering an event submission was March 1st, but there is no way I can attend this year anyway so that's a moot point.  On a positive note I now have about a year to come up with something good to submit.  Origins has really good benefits for the GMs that run games at the con.  Work enough hours and they give you a spot in one of the volunteers room.  That would save you a lot of cash, but on the other hand you would spend much of your time running games.  It's been 25 years since I attended Origins 84.  Where did all that time go?

Speaking of conventions, this weekend I will be attending All-Con 2010, a local covention here in Dallas.  All-Con doesn't really have much gaming content; in fact very little at all, but that could change in the future.  All-Cons main motto is, "We Serve The Fan Community".  However, it really is a good convention, and supports fans of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Renaissance, Anime, Costuming, Theater, Performing Arts, Mystery, Art, Crafts, Collecting, and Film Making.

I will be giving a comic workshop on Friday, and we will be creating and publishing a "small press" comic.  I haven't done this since 2007, and look forward to the workshop.  Here's a photograph of me and one of the guests of the 2007 All-Con.  All I can say is WOOT!

The very attractive woman is Luciana Carro, she played Kat on Battlestar Galactica.  She's a very nice person, although I didn't get to talk to her much at all.

Later people, I need some sleep.