For some reason, it’s taken me forever to get around to ordering Eclipse Phase. Anyway, that’s rectified and I’ll have a review up once I get it.
I’m down on fantasy this week, so bring on the sci-fi! Maybe I’ll see if I can convert some of the local cardflippers. Which brings up the vital question: [...]
Honestly, I’ve been a bit down on tabletop RPGs lately. Just haven’t gotten many sessions in (December is never a good month for weekly games) and it’s kinda thrown me off.
Been playing a lot of video games, as usual. World of Warcraft, and somehow I got suckered back into Eve Online, plus Dragon Age, Assassin’s [...]
Currently, the only active game I’m in is a Shadowrun game, a pretty cinematic take on the genre. Enjoying the hell out of it. The SR4 book is not without flaw, but the Anniversary edition is much easier to navigate, and I’m really digging the system once I grokked some of the odder combat interactions.
Work [...]
Adventures in Playtesting and Sidereals are both over. For the first time in quite a while, I’m not running any games.
NWoD game started up that I’m in for now. I have some clash with the nWoD system, so we’ll see how that goes. Shadowrun game starting that I’m really excited about. I have my usual [...]
I’ve been following the Infernal Exalted spoilers lately, and I have to say, what I’m seeing is actually revving me up about Exalted again.
No other real content, but I’m feeling all Exalted-discussion-y, if anyone wants to ask questions or start an argument.
As long as the argument is not about Sidereal Martial Arts.
Anyway, Exalted goes well, or at least I think it’s going well. The 3e game I was playing in has recently switched to 4e, so I’ll be able to give a better player’s-eye perspective on the game. I’m actually looking forward to doing a comparison between them. Exalted thinks it’s a crunchy tactical wargame, but [...]
Adventures in Playtesting is not dead. In fact, we had an entertaining (if short) session 3 last week, and a longer session 4 this week. A writeup is in preparation.
4e By the Numbers is also not dead, though I’m having some trouble coming up with an effective recap of the combat chapter that isn’t “Gee, [...]
So, inspired by a couple of references, I’ve been looking at the World of Warcraft CCG.
Yes, I know. Moving on.
I know I’m not the only person who finds the idea of “raid decks” entertaining as hell. On the other hand, CCGs are, historically, a giant pit in the ground that one throws dollars into until [...]
I’m still alive. Just distracted. Trying to come up with a more regular routine for this blog, because I certainly haven’t slacked off in my book purchases (even if I’m down to one table game these days).
Two games coming to an end. The Exalted game I’m playing in has about one session left, as we throw down with all the forces of Creation and the Underworld and try to decide who are the bigger liers, the Sidereals or the Deathlords. And my Mage game has probably two to three sessions left [...]
This is a bad season for me and tabletop games. Because I’m also into video gaming, and the October-December block is when every game company on the planet decides to bring all its good games to market. So I’m largely in maintenance mode at the moment, mostly just keeping up with new Exalted releases.
Speaking of [...]
Posting as “James” now. No real reason for the switch, just felt like it.
Scion: Demigod came in, I’ll be giving it a look (and a review) shortly, along with an overdue review for Changeling: The Lost.
Ptolus: Iron, Flame, and Shadow resumes tonight, as the players head into a mysterious shadow plane to battle the forces of the Pact and recover Captain Tourmann before he spills the secrets of the Circle and makes everyone very sad.
Gnomes are not in the 4th Edition core. I love it. Stupid gnomes. Always gnoming it [...]
Got some weird-ass spam while I was out of town. Anyway, back now.
Been busy with work and other things. Including, actually, quite a lot of tabletop play, which is always nice. In a short-form high-level D&D game, which is actually my first experience with the high-level 3.X game. I’ll have some insights to share once the game is over.
Also, finally running Mage: The Ascension again. Have thrown [...]
This isn’t really an MMO-focused blog, but since I mentioned the Eve developer scandals in Dreams in Digital 4, I thought I’d post this follow-up.
CCP’s had a bit of a hard time getting out from under the cloud of mistrust, but they’ve come up with a plan: a democratic oversight committee, elected by the playerbase:
The [...]
So, I was working on a new game to run, just kicking around ideas.
I go back a few lines, and decide to remove one that I’ve changed my mind about, but I may change it back. So what did I do? Without thinking about it, I instinctively prefaced it with ‘//’. That’s right, I commented [...]
Another long hiatus – I got caught up in work, a short trip out of town, building a new computer, and a variety of games determined to keep me from posting. The good news is, I have three reviews in the pipeline: White Wolf’s Scion: Hero and Manual of Exalted Power: Lunars, and 7th Circle’s [...]
I’m not dead. I’ve been spending non-work time mostly on non-tabletop stuff. Though I am in an Exalted game at last, playing Whisper Iron Wind, an itinerate one-eyed barbarian anthropologist sorcerer. I love Exalted.
D&D 3.5’s recent Magic Item Compendium is a useful book, mostly for compiling and updating the six hojillion magic items and weapon/armor [...]
Today’s RPG idea, inspired by a David Bowie song. Would not have posted it, but have been drinking, and have decided is a good idea.
In five years, every human being will die and the Earth will cease to be inhabitable by anything we understand as life. This is absolutely unavoidable.
I want to run that game. [...]
Games I vaguely want to run, but don’t have the time or energy to really make happen: Nobilis, Exalted: The Fair Folk
BUT! I do have a game I vaguely want to run and think I might actually be able to do something with. A scenario set in the immediate and (very) vaguely post-apocalyptic aftermath of [...]
Today’s entry in “excellent quotes from RPG.net”, from this thread on handling Sidereals in an Exalted game:
Sidereals have, as their primary weakness and limiting factor (and unlike most other antagonists in the game) habitual incompetence. That’s it. The reason Sidereals haven’t accomplished all their goals is not because they can’t, but because they don’t. [...]
I’ll weigh in on this tomorrow with my thoughts, but I’m curious what anyone happens to think:
Psionics in sci-fi settings, yes or no? Does it matter if the setting is otherwise ‘hard’ or ’soft’ SF?
On Spelljammer, AD&D 2nd, and the Giff:
“We need something different. We need something that will ring through the ages, that will set us apart. We need something that will force the buying public to sit up and take notice; that will forever divide roleplaying into “before Spelljammer” and “after Spelljammer”, separated by the thin, hard [...]
I cannot write interestingly about RPGs if I have not played one in nearly a month.
Fortunately, both Iron, Flame, and Shadow and the other D&D game I’m playing in should be resuming this week after the winter hiatus, and there may be an Exalted game on the horizon for me.
Back from vacation. Catching up on internet happenings. It’s going to take me a few days to get back into the Sphere o’ Blogs, though I do have a half-written post on the definition of ‘crunch’ that I may do something with.
IFS session 11 will be up somewhat eventually. The game is on hiatus until January while most of the players are out of town anyway. And I’m going to be busy over the next week, so there may not be another update until as late as the 2nd.
I just ordered Classic Traveller. It’s a game [...]
Couple of posts in the pipleine, plus IFS session 11 tonight.
Why so few posts lately?
Because, basically, my RPG-related ADD has gotten way out of hand and I can’t stop tinkering with D&D character builds.
Also, I think last night I determined that the D&D 3.5 ruleset is Turing-complete. More on that later.
I actually did have a post written up. Then my web browser closed for no apparent reason, sending my words spiraling into the void, where they are no doubt being devoured by some sort of Old One, who may (or may not) be Great.
Over on RPG.net, I have enlisted the aid of Tabletop Open to [...]
I want to try my Nobilis experiment again. I want to sit down with a bunch of people who have never gamed before, or with very limited gaming experience, and run Nobilis.
The last time I tried that, about four years ago, it was somewhat entertaining, but pretty terrible. But that was my first attempt with [...]
Other than the usual IFS writeups, one or two Dreams in Digital articles I’m working on, and maybe a new review, this is going to be a pretty spare week, and possibly month, for blogging.
If you’ve looked at the video game release schedule for the month of November, you can probably guess why.
IFS session 6 will be up early next week, as will any further posts – I’m working tonight and early tomorrow, then headed out of town for the weekend. Go read RPG.net. Or better yet, go play.
I have this persistant desire to do something with the new-ish Production I.G. anime series, Chevalier d’Eon.
It would translate very cleanly into D&D 3.5 (even bits like levels, since ‘the protagonist gains a level and suddenly becomes much more awesome in every way’ is very much an anime plot standby). Most of the magic would [...]
What are the gameplay tradeoffs, i.e., how similar is the tabletop D&D experience to that of playing a D&D-inspired CRPG?
The full article is being written. Here’s a preview!
D&D:
Adam: That looks like a pretty dangerous dragon. Do we have a plan?
Beth: Well, I’ll can give everyone some pretty good bonuses, especially against its fear, but I [...]
I just bought more. Specifically, three sets of polyhedrals, including some shiny shiny metal. Mostly because we kept running out of d8s at the table.
That bring me up to five sets (d20, d12, 2d10, d8, d6, d4) of 16mm polyhedrals, 72 14mm d6 (two cubes), and 37 16mm d10s (one oMage set, one Demon set, [...]
I’ve been doing a lot of prep-work for my Ptolus game, which starts tonight.
And actually putting the book to use only confirms my previous review – it’s a great book for GMs.
I’ll probably write up something after the session (or tomorrow, since the session may run pretty late).
Speak to me, o denizens of the Intarwubosphere, of Preferred RPG Snacks.
I happen to be a big fan of pocky and molassus cookies, which are terribly unhealthy, and cheese und crackers, which are less so.
On the other hand, I will not permit Doritos to be eaten at my gaming table. They stink up the whole [...]
Well, due to scheduling issues, it looks like my Trinity game has stalled and is due to be placed on indefinate hiatus. It happens. I had some really neat ideas for this game, some of which saw play, some of which didn’t. Hopefully I’ll be able to rope everyone into a wrap-up extended one-off later [...]
Unearthed Arcana and Arcana Unearthed are not the same book. The former is the Big Book of Varients and House Rules, the latter is an alternate PHB with an extra helping of weird.
Which is why AU was republished as Arcana Evolved, but whatever.
Remembering this would have saved me a certain amount of irritation last night [...]
Was out of town over the weekend, back now and catching up on what I missed.
Coming this week: A look at Iron Heroes versus the standard PHB, my thoughts on Everway (finally!), the final resolution of the age-old question of “Who pays for the pizza?”, why I don’t use homebrew fantasy settings, and a look [...]
Somehow, I’d gotten the idea a while ago that Burning Empires was steampunk-y. I have just realized why. I explain:
Iron Kingdoms is a D20 campaign setting with strong steampunk elements. It is also the setting for the Warmachine minis game.
Iron Heroes is an alternate D&D 3.5 Players’ Handbook for low-magic Conan-esque sword-and-sorcery gameplay, by Mike [...]
Standard RPG Reference Form #14b: Official Call For Players
The Game: On a Thousand Worlds
The System: Dogs in the Vineyard, modified
The Setting: Warhammer 40K Inquisitors
Proposed Schedule: Monthly: afternoon on the first Sunday of each month, with the first session to cover chargen, system, and setting on September 3rd September 10th
Open To: Anyone in the Cleveland area, [...]
So many games, so little time.
Also, insert standard lament about being unable to convince people to run the games I want to play. I mean, yes, I could run them (though between Trinity, Inquisitors/DitV, and a few one-off or short run ideas I’m playing with, I’m pretty near tapping out my GM-fu). But running a [...]
My copy of Everway came in a few days ago, and I’ve been looking over it. Everway, for those not in the know, was an RPG published by Wizards of the Coast prior to their acquisition of TSR. It uses some interesting card-based mechanics for a variety of things, including chargen. Basically, it feels at [...]
