Grognardian Madness! Madness, I Say!

James Maliszewski of GROGNARDIA has posted my favourite Erol Otus Drow image.

Thanks again, James. :)

[RPG][Wargaming] Update-

Agh! :[
These last eight Leaders are kicking my imaginative-ass. They are about all that is keeping me from going-over the rest of the text and determining what stays and what gets chopped from the beta. Aberrations are almost certainly out of the main document, as I expected a (few?) weeks ago. I may put the tech-arms/armour into another document and later compile these for the live edition.


R'Tshen, the skirmish/tactical rules, at least, are coming along nicely.
Jeff Berry has asked me permission to play-test with his regular Tekumel group. Um..."w00t"! :D
I am finishing up the greatly expanded outline for their use.

Brief Update-

To remain productive even while taking a break from the Adventure Locales, I have been working on a Skirmish/Tactical wargaming rules outline, based on the rules utilised by folks described in one of the Adventure Locales.
I've sent off what I had at the time to Jeff Berry (who seems to have made good progress back to health --thanks), and have expanded it since then, and seen glimpses of later era variants.
The most different aspect to it is the diceless mechanics that instead use a narrow, but robust version of my Colour Logic system with tokens drawn from a container, just as is used in-setting.

The AL is coming along nicely, and the data-headings, and rumours nicely fill-out the locations.

[RPG] Ancient Wonders Procedure-

(c) 2009 Kyrinn S. Eis All Rights Reserved

Ancient Wonders, Technical Skills, and Aberrations-

What once were the commonplace tools of living and leisure for the Ancients are now considered archaeological treasures and great boons.

While both Intelligence and Wisdom must certainly play a role in determining the type of item, and diagnosing its condition, with a strong argument that high Dexterity may illuminate additional features on most purely-mechanical devices, surely experience itself is a great teacher? So far we have something like this:

• Base Percentage Chance (BPC) based upon the item's Utility (01% -- 100+%, with higher being better). Simpler, or more 'user-friendly' items are easier to activate in their intended manner than similarly complex items with lower Utility.
• +/- 5% per Modifier on Exp, Wis, Int, and Dex
• Condition modifies the Threshold: Irreperable +100, Badly Damaged +75, Minor Damage -0, Superficial Damage -05, Display Item -10, New In Box -25, NIB still in Crate -50
• Remove Traps to Disarm/Make-Safe, Diagnose Condition, and effect Repair
• Open Locks to Diagnose and Clear Correctable Malfunctions/Reset
• Technologians have the correct skill set to perform these procedures, and receive a flat +20% bonus in addition to their rolls
  
• Certain Aberrations provide specific bonuses at various stages in the Identification/Diagnosis/Repair process
  

The Referee then rolls the dice and determines whether the character has discovered how to operate the item, provided it were working properly, and had whatever power needed.

Clearly, a series of steps are necessary to take an artefact and bring it back to operational level. To speed things along, I've come up with this procedure:

1. Spend an amount of coin on diagnosis and any possible repair at a cost equal to the item's XP value. A rush job will cost at least double (1d4+1x), and subtracts 25 from the item's Utility until the first six times it is used, decreasing by 6% each time until only 1% has degraded until the minor repair is performed.
2. Spend the XP for the Armour/Weapon Proficiency or Open Locks +%s necessary to operate the item in the field
3. Pay 1/2 the XP value of the item (if discovered, it may be a 'free cost')
   

That's it. Now the figure has legally purchased full operational usage of an Ancient wonder.

Stuff-

I didn't intend this.
Honestly, I'm not a masochist.

As I was editing the 16 Adventure Locations and their Leaders, I realised that each of them needed at least a few Rumours, if not an Encounter Chart.
Yeah, so, no, I'm not as close to being finished with the writing as I had intended, but yes, I think it will be a better product for the inclusion of those features.

* I've also fiddled with the Tunnels & Trolls snap-conversions (from ARGUS to T&T), and it looks like a nice mix between the very minimalist MR rating and a D&Dism. If anything, I think the T&T critters are laterally improved (Saving Roll bonuses) if not the overall number of dice they are rolling.

--In brief

• Each Fight Die is 5 Monster Rating
• AB is the creature's Combat Adds (and if one adds the CT value, Missile Adds)
• # Attacks is the minimum number of d6 the creature rolls
• modified Resolve is Spell-casting POW
• modified CT is the creature's LK score

Defence and Armour perform the same function, although Defence could be added to Defence and Stunt SR totals (dodging the Giant), while the Armour listing could be replaced with the Armour values in T&T, or used as is.

Other rules-set modifications (again to ARGUS, without affecting the host-system) are coming to mind, and as I write them up, I'll have an eye toward posting them alongside with the free Beta .pdf when it becomes available for your perusal and hoped-for testing.

[Business][RPG] Business Declaration & Conversion Essentials-

(c) Copyright 2009 Kyrinn S. Eis All Rights Reserved.

I am taking this opportunity to announce my desire and intent to operate as Alternate Reality Games (ARG), and launching the ARGUS game engine at the same time.

ARGUS, Alternate Reality Games Universal System is geared to operate seamlessly with any Classic RPG, offering on the fly conversion guidelines for a variety of systems and character generation methods. The in-house term attached to this sort of product is, an 'overlay'.

ARGUS, although it contains its own reference framework, is written so as to allow near transparent use with games as varied as Tunnels & Trolls and Metamorphosis Alpha. It accomplishes this by using generic terminology in the tradition of the old Mayfair products, but in the same way, ARGUS can operate as a stand alone RPG.


In order to facilitate quick-conversion, I have chosen the three creature headings most different from the 0th-Edition and Basic games of yore, and their modern equivalents:

Defence-

• In DAC (Descending Armour Class) games, subtract the Defence value from 9 to arrive at the figure's DAC.

• In AAC (Ascending Armour Class) games, add Defence to 10 to determine the figure's AAC.

The Armour rating after a Defence score may be ignored, or may instead be treated as a sort of Weapon versus Armour modifier:

• 1d4: +4 AC versus Light Weapons/Attacks (1d4 or less [1d6-1])
• 1d6: +3 AC versus Medium Weapons/Attacks (1d6 or less [1d6])
• 1d8: +2 AC versus Heavy Weapons/Attacks (1d8 or less [1d6+1])
  

The progression would be continued if higher die-types are encountered.


Resolve-

Operates as Morale and can operate as Monster Reaction value.
The listed Resolve score, divided by 2, and 1d6 added to that, is the creature's Morale score.
The number generated can act as the creature's Reaction value, if deemed appropriate by the Referee/GM.


Critical Test (CT)-

Treat it as a Single Number Saving Throw by subtracting the score from 20, and rolling equal to or greater than that on d20, as per a normal 'Save'.

[RPG] Cover Update-

Kindly note the updated cover sketch.

Thank you,