I've mentioned before how I initially started gaming with my group to learn how it all works. That was (kind of) accomplished. I have also stated that my gaming group decided to try to put our own something together with the goal of launching a Kickstarter. We started strong...and fizzled out.
Being that we're all adults (however childish) with jobs and spouses and houses and other various real life obligations, we just couldn't get together to keep the momentum going. A big thank you to Riley for putting forth such enthusiasm and getting our forum set up! He really was the keystone to the project.
That being said, I wish him the very best in continuing his own adventure. Look for it on Kickstarter in the future. He has decided to not let the project die, thus he is carrying the battle standard onward. Ever onward, sir!
I may still tinker with my original idea, but it will be small potatoes and likely never go more public than this here blog. In homage to Riley's genius title, I am finally giving mine a title of W.A.R. (Wicked Awesome Roleplaying).
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Keeping Secrets
I just had an epiphany regarding (literally) playing your cards close to your vest. As a DM you are very much the wizard behind the curtain. The screen hides your notes, master maps, and tidbits about which NPCs are to be trusted or not. But what if there were secrets that even you didn't know?
I'm thinking, make a stack of index cards with an affliction, penalty, detrimental secret, etc. to keep the players from getting too cocky. Write what it is and how it affects attributes and skills. Then seal each card in an envelope and shuffle them several times. Now you have a stack of random bad luck. Heck, maybe even toss in a few bonuses to keep them from storming off.
Imagine the fun that ensues when you distribute the cards and players end up with....what? A vain, yet balding elf that fancies himself a real Casanova. A dwarf with a nervous bladder. Maybe a dyslexic mage that only gets his spells right half of the time.
I'm thinking, make a stack of index cards with an affliction, penalty, detrimental secret, etc. to keep the players from getting too cocky. Write what it is and how it affects attributes and skills. Then seal each card in an envelope and shuffle them several times. Now you have a stack of random bad luck. Heck, maybe even toss in a few bonuses to keep them from storming off.
Imagine the fun that ensues when you distribute the cards and players end up with....what? A vain, yet balding elf that fancies himself a real Casanova. A dwarf with a nervous bladder. Maybe a dyslexic mage that only gets his spells right half of the time.
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Old Age and Broad Beltlines
I found something a bit different as I was cruising various generator's today.
Age, height, & weight generator per race. Sure it says it's geared specifically toward Pathfinder, but I don't see why you can't use it for something else. I like it because most other NPC gennies I've found spit out something like name, alignment, attributes, and motivation. Well what if I'm not needing to know all that for a crowd in a marketplace or patrons in a tavern?
This one is incredibly simple and I love it for that!
It also got me thinking about a much earlier post - The Age of Man - and what I needed to expand upon.
So I spent some time messing about with a spreadsheet that details the rate of aging for my core races.
Humans age...well, as humans do. For each year they appear 1 year older.
But what of the longer-lived races of elves, dwarves, gnomes, and those hybrid half-elves?
I'm glad you asked.
Elves live anywhere from 500-800 years, but they age almost imperceptibly over the years of a human lifespan, which is "only" 85-100 years. Elves grow and mature at the same rate as humans until the age of 15, at which time their elven-ness really kicks in and they age only 1 year for every 5 human years.
At the age of 65 they would appear to be 25. At 150 years old they look to be in their early 40s. And at barely half their lifespan of 250 years, they only then start to look "aged" at just over a century.
I may even modify it further to say that once they reach 200 years old, when they'd appear to be around 50, they're aging slows even more to only 1 year per 10 human years. This would mean that only the very oldest of elves would look it. They'd seem to be just entering their 80s when they're 500 years old.
Because of their mixed genetics, half-elves age at roughly half the rate of humans, or almost twice as much as a full-blood elf. After reaching 15, they age only 1 year per 3 human years. At age 60, they only look 30. At 120 years old, they barely look a day over 50.
While a half-elf child will outlive their human parent by a century or more, they are still considered to have very short lives compared to their elven parent. Half-elves can conceivably live to be 250 years old, but at around age 200 they start to look and feel rather rickety. Most would have an expectancy of around 185 years and cash out when they appear to be in their late 90s.
Gnomish aging doesn't slow until they're 30, at which time they age 1 year for every 3 human years.
So at 60, they'd look to be around 40. At 90, they'd look 50. Like a half-elf, they wouldn't really start to appear aged until they're almost 200 years old. And that's only about half of their lifespan.
Beyond age 175, gnomes slow to aging only 1 yer per 5 human years, so when they turn in at 400 they look to be 123 years old.
Last, but not least, dwarves in my world don't live as long as some might have it in other worlds. I don't want them dropping off too quickly, but I also consider that a life of hard work and hard drinking must catch up with them at some point. They typically don't live beyond 300, and hardly ever will one see a day past 350.
They age at the same rate as humans, and don't even get a beard coming in until they're at 50. But then they slow to aging 1 year per 4 human years. So by the time they have a "respectable" beard at 70, they only look to be in their mid 50s. When they're 90 and looking 60 is when most dwarves start to think of starting a family. When that dwarf's son's stubble starts to show in another 50 years, the father will only look to be in his early 70s. Dwarf beards don't even begin to show a little gray until they're 150 and looking not a day over 75. They're 250 years old before a century shows on their grizzled face. But most dwarves "retire" and take up the pipe and coin counting at 275-300. But that's still saying something that great-great-great-great-great-grandfather dwarf could expect to see a 6th generation of beard bloom before he grumbles his last and closes his eyes for the stone sleep.
Age, height, & weight generator per race. Sure it says it's geared specifically toward Pathfinder, but I don't see why you can't use it for something else. I like it because most other NPC gennies I've found spit out something like name, alignment, attributes, and motivation. Well what if I'm not needing to know all that for a crowd in a marketplace or patrons in a tavern?
This one is incredibly simple and I love it for that!
It also got me thinking about a much earlier post - The Age of Man - and what I needed to expand upon.
So I spent some time messing about with a spreadsheet that details the rate of aging for my core races.
Humans age...well, as humans do. For each year they appear 1 year older.
But what of the longer-lived races of elves, dwarves, gnomes, and those hybrid half-elves?
I'm glad you asked.
Elves live anywhere from 500-800 years, but they age almost imperceptibly over the years of a human lifespan, which is "only" 85-100 years. Elves grow and mature at the same rate as humans until the age of 15, at which time their elven-ness really kicks in and they age only 1 year for every 5 human years.
At the age of 65 they would appear to be 25. At 150 years old they look to be in their early 40s. And at barely half their lifespan of 250 years, they only then start to look "aged" at just over a century.
I may even modify it further to say that once they reach 200 years old, when they'd appear to be around 50, they're aging slows even more to only 1 year per 10 human years. This would mean that only the very oldest of elves would look it. They'd seem to be just entering their 80s when they're 500 years old.
Because of their mixed genetics, half-elves age at roughly half the rate of humans, or almost twice as much as a full-blood elf. After reaching 15, they age only 1 year per 3 human years. At age 60, they only look 30. At 120 years old, they barely look a day over 50.
While a half-elf child will outlive their human parent by a century or more, they are still considered to have very short lives compared to their elven parent. Half-elves can conceivably live to be 250 years old, but at around age 200 they start to look and feel rather rickety. Most would have an expectancy of around 185 years and cash out when they appear to be in their late 90s.
Gnomish aging doesn't slow until they're 30, at which time they age 1 year for every 3 human years.
So at 60, they'd look to be around 40. At 90, they'd look 50. Like a half-elf, they wouldn't really start to appear aged until they're almost 200 years old. And that's only about half of their lifespan.
Beyond age 175, gnomes slow to aging only 1 yer per 5 human years, so when they turn in at 400 they look to be 123 years old.
Last, but not least, dwarves in my world don't live as long as some might have it in other worlds. I don't want them dropping off too quickly, but I also consider that a life of hard work and hard drinking must catch up with them at some point. They typically don't live beyond 300, and hardly ever will one see a day past 350.
They age at the same rate as humans, and don't even get a beard coming in until they're at 50. But then they slow to aging 1 year per 4 human years. So by the time they have a "respectable" beard at 70, they only look to be in their mid 50s. When they're 90 and looking 60 is when most dwarves start to think of starting a family. When that dwarf's son's stubble starts to show in another 50 years, the father will only look to be in his early 70s. Dwarf beards don't even begin to show a little gray until they're 150 and looking not a day over 75. They're 250 years old before a century shows on their grizzled face. But most dwarves "retire" and take up the pipe and coin counting at 275-300. But that's still saying something that great-great-great-great-great-grandfather dwarf could expect to see a 6th generation of beard bloom before he grumbles his last and closes his eyes for the stone sleep.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Magic Items and Enchantments
I'm a much better sword swinger than spell slinger, so forgive me if what follows isn't earth shattering. I have never been one to ooh and aah overmuch when it comes to magic in games and stories. My characters are typically straightforward fellows preferring to use a well-crafted weapon in their own two hands. But that's not to say that magic doesn't have its uses. Flipping through my DM guide gave me a few ideas in areas that I've previously and sometimes purposefully avoided.
First off, what is the basis of magic in the world? Is it without form from another plane, or drawn from the swirling elements of the world around you? Is there good magic and bad magic? Laws, abuses, taboos?
In the game world my chums and I are developing we're thinking that magic is much more elemental - like "weaving" in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. The somewhat Ptolemaic construct is this:
Beginning at the center is the focus of Light, then Air, Earth, Water, Fire, Spirit, and finally Shadow. They are arranged as such because air is between the earth and the sun. Water encircles the land. Deep beneath the earth is were rivers of fire flow. Spirit surrounds everything, separating the realms of life and death. Delving too far into the spirit world, or using the Aether/Ether for malicious purposes leads to corruption of Spirit, which is Shadow. I haven't decided if Light is actually a school of magic that can be used by mortal beings. Maybe it is a tool that only gods can use.
Keeping in line with the random roll concept, if you can't decide on which school your character or an NPC favors, just toss a d6 and see what you come up with.
1. Air
2. Earth
3. Water
4. Fire
5. Spirit
6. Shadow
Or let's say you're party knows nothing of magic until they come across magic items in a treasure hoard.
Roll a d10 to determine what they find.
1. Potion - a simple concoction that grants a bonus like healing, stamina, etc.
2. Gem or crystal - a raw or cut jewel which can be imbued with magic.
3. Amulet - a necklace (simple or complex) made of various materials and adorned with a set magical stone.
4. Ring - a smaller and/or more intricate version of an amulet. It's assumed rings take more skill to craft.
5. Rod, wand, or staff - either a simple stick topped with a crystal or a very intricate staff festooned with mysterious runes of warding. Such an item would focus powers much more than a piece of jewelry.
6. Scroll - a single page of runes and/or illustrations that teach the reader magical secrets...assuming it can be deciphered.
7. Weapon - an enchanted sword, axe, bow, arrows, etc. that give the wielder additional powers.
8. Shield - just as it sounds, it is a shield enchanted with extra protection against attacks both physical and/or magical.
9. Armor - it can be enchanted with added protection, just as a shield is, or it grants added strength, stealth, fortitude, etc.
10. Tome - an entire book of spells would be quite the valuable find!
**Revised list for 2d6
2. Armor
3. Shield
4. Rod, Wand, or Staff
5. Cloak or Boots
6. Crystal or Gem
7. Potion
8. Amulet
9. Ring or Jewelry
10. Scroll
11. Weapon
12. Tome
As for enchantments placed on shields and armor, these are just a few I've come up with.
Enhanced Fortitude - roll 1d4 to determine the HP bonus.
Enhanced Strength - the armor weighs 1d4% as much, or your carrying capacity is boosted by 1d4%.
Increased Speed, Stealth, Agility, Dexterity - this would depend on whether the item is a cloak, boots, or gloves.
Elemental/Magical Resistance - attacks against you with magic do 1d4 less damage.
Sonic Deflection - when struck the shield or armor makes a loud noise that stuns the attacker like a flash-bang grenade. Perhaps this could also have a blinding effect with a flash of light.
Some other generators I'm fond of are:
Inkwell Ideas Magic Item/Shop Inventory
Donjon Random Magic Shop
RoleplayingTips.com Shop Inventory - this is an Excel download for mundane and magical items.
First off, what is the basis of magic in the world? Is it without form from another plane, or drawn from the swirling elements of the world around you? Is there good magic and bad magic? Laws, abuses, taboos?
In the game world my chums and I are developing we're thinking that magic is much more elemental - like "weaving" in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. The somewhat Ptolemaic construct is this:
Beginning at the center is the focus of Light, then Air, Earth, Water, Fire, Spirit, and finally Shadow. They are arranged as such because air is between the earth and the sun. Water encircles the land. Deep beneath the earth is were rivers of fire flow. Spirit surrounds everything, separating the realms of life and death. Delving too far into the spirit world, or using the Aether/Ether for malicious purposes leads to corruption of Spirit, which is Shadow. I haven't decided if Light is actually a school of magic that can be used by mortal beings. Maybe it is a tool that only gods can use.
Keeping in line with the random roll concept, if you can't decide on which school your character or an NPC favors, just toss a d6 and see what you come up with.
1. Air
2. Earth
3. Water
4. Fire
5. Spirit
6. Shadow
Or let's say you're party knows nothing of magic until they come across magic items in a treasure hoard.
Roll a d10 to determine what they find.
1. Potion - a simple concoction that grants a bonus like healing, stamina, etc.
2. Gem or crystal - a raw or cut jewel which can be imbued with magic.
3. Amulet - a necklace (simple or complex) made of various materials and adorned with a set magical stone.
4. Ring - a smaller and/or more intricate version of an amulet. It's assumed rings take more skill to craft.
5. Rod, wand, or staff - either a simple stick topped with a crystal or a very intricate staff festooned with mysterious runes of warding. Such an item would focus powers much more than a piece of jewelry.
6. Scroll - a single page of runes and/or illustrations that teach the reader magical secrets...assuming it can be deciphered.
7. Weapon - an enchanted sword, axe, bow, arrows, etc. that give the wielder additional powers.
8. Shield - just as it sounds, it is a shield enchanted with extra protection against attacks both physical and/or magical.
9. Armor - it can be enchanted with added protection, just as a shield is, or it grants added strength, stealth, fortitude, etc.
10. Tome - an entire book of spells would be quite the valuable find!
**Revised list for 2d6
2. Armor
3. Shield
4. Rod, Wand, or Staff
5. Cloak or Boots
6. Crystal or Gem
7. Potion
8. Amulet
9. Ring or Jewelry
10. Scroll
11. Weapon
12. Tome
As for enchantments placed on shields and armor, these are just a few I've come up with.
Enhanced Fortitude - roll 1d4 to determine the HP bonus.
Enhanced Strength - the armor weighs 1d4% as much, or your carrying capacity is boosted by 1d4%.
Increased Speed, Stealth, Agility, Dexterity - this would depend on whether the item is a cloak, boots, or gloves.
Elemental/Magical Resistance - attacks against you with magic do 1d4 less damage.
Sonic Deflection - when struck the shield or armor makes a loud noise that stuns the attacker like a flash-bang grenade. Perhaps this could also have a blinding effect with a flash of light.
Some other generators I'm fond of are:
Inkwell Ideas Magic Item/Shop Inventory
Donjon Random Magic Shop
RoleplayingTips.com Shop Inventory - this is an Excel download for mundane and magical items.
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Random Equipping
As I was going over older posts today I realized that I hadn't provided an easy out for the indecisive/lazy gamer. I had posts about scars and taking wounds. I had posts about race, gender, class, and location. And I had posts about armor and weapons, but I didn't have anything about randomly equipping those items! So here it is.
Melee weapon: d10, or a d8 if you want to do away with the larger, two-handed weapons
1. Dagger
2. Short sword or Club
3. Axe
4. Longsword
5. Mace
6. Morningstar
7. Flail
8. Hammer
9. Battleaxe
10. Greatsword
Ranged weapon: d8, or a d6 if you want to do away with polearms
1. Sling
2. Crossbow
3. Shortbow
4. Bow
5. Longbow
6. Greatbow
7. Spear
8. Halberd
Shield: d6
1. Hide
2. Wood
3. Bronze
4. Iron
5. Steel
6. Large/Tall
Armor: d4
1. Leather or Hide
2. Mail - ring, scale, or chain
3. Partial plate - this would be like having only a breastplate
4. Full plate - you're covered head to toe in metal
Melee weapon: d10, or a d8 if you want to do away with the larger, two-handed weapons
1. Dagger
2. Short sword or Club
3. Axe
4. Longsword
5. Mace
6. Morningstar
7. Flail
8. Hammer
9. Battleaxe
10. Greatsword
Ranged weapon: d8, or a d6 if you want to do away with polearms
1. Sling
2. Crossbow
3. Shortbow
4. Bow
5. Longbow
6. Greatbow
7. Spear
8. Halberd
Shield: d6
1. Hide
2. Wood
3. Bronze
4. Iron
5. Steel
6. Large/Tall
Armor: d4
1. Leather or Hide
2. Mail - ring, scale, or chain
3. Partial plate - this would be like having only a breastplate
4. Full plate - you're covered head to toe in metal
Sunday, December 29, 2013
The Prodigal Son Returns
"Sire! He's returned." the page boy panted, bursting through the engraved double doors.
"Who, lad?" the startled lord said with a jolt.
"He...him...the One!" stammered the breathless page.
"No...it cannot be." The lord beamed, leaping from his gilded seat. "Send for my scribes at once! After so long away, He must have quite the tale to tell."
Thus is this bard's return from a few months of hiatus. Minimal fanfare, please. Hold your applause until the conclusion.
"Who, lad?" the startled lord said with a jolt.
"He...him...the One!" stammered the breathless page.
"No...it cannot be." The lord beamed, leaping from his gilded seat. "Send for my scribes at once! After so long away, He must have quite the tale to tell."
Thus is this bard's return from a few months of hiatus. Minimal fanfare, please. Hold your applause until the conclusion.
Monday, October 14, 2013
Attributes Simplified
It should come as no surprise based on my previous post and very novice standing as a gamer (almost to the 1 year mark and still a floundering newb) that I love me some simplicity in games. Thus I have further modified and simplified my own earlier stats sheet.
The new version has only 5 core attributes of STR, INT, FORT, DEX, and CHARM.
STR is Strength and is added to your attack roll + weapon bonus.
INT is both Intelligence and Intuition and is used in instances like translating runes or detecting traps. It's a trap! Sorry I couldn't resist.
FORT is Fortitude which combines Constitution and Will, basically lumping your ability to withstand physical, mental, and/or magical attacks. It's either hurts you or it doesn't.
DEX is Dexterity, obviously, and is used in instances of picking locks, picking pockets, and sneaking. It is used in the place of STR for ranged/projectile attacks, be they with a bow or a spell.
CHARM is essentially the same as Charisma. I thought of implying that good-looking characters automatically get a bonus to this stat, whereas unsightly characters suffer a penalty. But I have decided to do away with such because that would allow for a player to choose a snobby, beautiful elf that won't give the time of day to anyone and wouldn't even think of haggling with a mere shopkeeper. Or someone could be a lovable, yet ugly and disfigured dwarf. Because who doesn't have a soft spot for Tyrion Lannister?
Some outliers are Speed and Luck. At first I thought of making SPEED its own attribute that characters would roll up, or perhaps it would be assigned based on race. But that assumes that one would have to level up entirely to get any faster. Why not make speed a skill that can be increased with training? And why would a character in heavy armor have the same racial speed as a character in light armor? To me it makes better sense to have it separate and unequal for reasons of player choice. Let's say you choose to be a fleet-of-foot elf rogue with high SPEED and DEX, but low STR and FORT. You just better hope no one catches you with your hand in their pocket or you're in serious trouble. Maybe someone wants to be a fat, clumsy gnome who can really take a punch. I think the ability to modify and customize characters - if not for strategically better gaming, but just as more fun to play - is key to doing what we do.
LUCK is a conundrum in and of itself because it introduces a very different style of play. Perhaps a rogue/thief character is attempting to pick a lock above their skill level. They could either roll for LUCK, or already have an established LUCK score of plus or minus, which would add to DEX as the skill/attribute they're using.
In the beginning I thought that a player would roll a white die against a black die and use the difference as a LUCK modifier. But what dice to use? Because I tend to think and operate as a generous DM, I thought using a higher white die and a lower black would give an advantage towards good luck for the players. As an experiment I had my wife roll the following:
Obviously the dice are going to have quite the variation, but I think I'm most satisfied with the way the numbers came out on the d8 and d10 rolls. Where I remain torn is just how much of a bonus or penalty to I want to allow for players? You could end up exceedingly lucky (+9) by rolling a 10 against a 1, or you could be so unlucky (-9) as to get struck by lightning from a clear blue sky. If the system is d10 based, should I use d10s for LUCK rolls? Or should I keep it lower with a d6, or even go as low as a d4? I'll really have to think on that.
The new version has only 5 core attributes of STR, INT, FORT, DEX, and CHARM.
STR is Strength and is added to your attack roll + weapon bonus.
INT is both Intelligence and Intuition and is used in instances like translating runes or detecting traps. It's a trap! Sorry I couldn't resist.
FORT is Fortitude which combines Constitution and Will, basically lumping your ability to withstand physical, mental, and/or magical attacks. It's either hurts you or it doesn't.
DEX is Dexterity, obviously, and is used in instances of picking locks, picking pockets, and sneaking. It is used in the place of STR for ranged/projectile attacks, be they with a bow or a spell.
CHARM is essentially the same as Charisma. I thought of implying that good-looking characters automatically get a bonus to this stat, whereas unsightly characters suffer a penalty. But I have decided to do away with such because that would allow for a player to choose a snobby, beautiful elf that won't give the time of day to anyone and wouldn't even think of haggling with a mere shopkeeper. Or someone could be a lovable, yet ugly and disfigured dwarf. Because who doesn't have a soft spot for Tyrion Lannister?
Some outliers are Speed and Luck. At first I thought of making SPEED its own attribute that characters would roll up, or perhaps it would be assigned based on race. But that assumes that one would have to level up entirely to get any faster. Why not make speed a skill that can be increased with training? And why would a character in heavy armor have the same racial speed as a character in light armor? To me it makes better sense to have it separate and unequal for reasons of player choice. Let's say you choose to be a fleet-of-foot elf rogue with high SPEED and DEX, but low STR and FORT. You just better hope no one catches you with your hand in their pocket or you're in serious trouble. Maybe someone wants to be a fat, clumsy gnome who can really take a punch. I think the ability to modify and customize characters - if not for strategically better gaming, but just as more fun to play - is key to doing what we do.
LUCK is a conundrum in and of itself because it introduces a very different style of play. Perhaps a rogue/thief character is attempting to pick a lock above their skill level. They could either roll for LUCK, or already have an established LUCK score of plus or minus, which would add to DEX as the skill/attribute they're using.
In the beginning I thought that a player would roll a white die against a black die and use the difference as a LUCK modifier. But what dice to use? Because I tend to think and operate as a generous DM, I thought using a higher white die and a lower black would give an advantage towards good luck for the players. As an experiment I had my wife roll the following:
| White | Black | LUCK |
| d6 | d4 | |
| 1 | 2 | -1 |
| 4 | 4 | 0 |
| 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | 1 | +1 |
| 2 | 2 | 0 |
| d10 | d6 | |
| 6 | 4 | +2 |
| 6 | 3 | +3 |
| 3 | 4 | -1 |
| 10 | 6 | +4 |
| 5 | 4 | +1 |
| d8 | d8 | |
| 4 | 1 | +3 |
| 7 | 4 | +3 |
| 7 | 8 | -1 |
| 8 | 6 | +2 |
| 4 | 8 | -4 |
| d10 | d10 | |
| 7 | 3 | +4 |
| 1 | 3 | -2 |
| 8 | 4 | +4 |
| 5 | 10 | -5 |
| 2 | 10 | -8 |
Obviously the dice are going to have quite the variation, but I think I'm most satisfied with the way the numbers came out on the d8 and d10 rolls. Where I remain torn is just how much of a bonus or penalty to I want to allow for players? You could end up exceedingly lucky (+9) by rolling a 10 against a 1, or you could be so unlucky (-9) as to get struck by lightning from a clear blue sky. If the system is d10 based, should I use d10s for LUCK rolls? Or should I keep it lower with a d6, or even go as low as a d4? I'll really have to think on that.
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