I am busy describing life in all of the Imperial Castes based upon the ancestral traditions of former starship crew positions (Astrogator, Medical, Survival Instructor, etc.), and their applicability to contemporary Urutskan life.
--Mechanically, this works with both the Spectral Index, and traditional d100 rolls equally well, so both camps are accommodated without diluting the system.
Likewise, the micromanagement of Skill % has been eliminated through the introduction of the Spectral Index, which itself, eliminates the use of d100 while still maintaining as great a range through the addition of PC bonuses for Ethnicity, etc.
I have also updated the Dynamic Pool rules to align more precisely with Gamma World's (nd6) HP, where n is equal to the figure's Constitution score. Although, Urutskans are generally of a lighter build overall than inhabitants of a full G world, rather than .95 G or so of that smaller, watery world.
--Now, commoners and non-Fight-die gaining persons are still as durable as an average GW character, and any gained DP from Fight Dice are simply added to the total.
---The effect this has upon the Combat System is that Critical Strikes will conform more closely to the established 'Double Damage' sort of operation than my, 'straight into the negatives' method. Concurrent with that, however is a 'Wound Level' mechanism which emulates similar effects I find desirable in my games; namely that folks really ought to go unconscious before kicking the bucket more often than not.
Also Combat-related, Critical Strikes now occur only on iterative '5+ what was needed' results, and taken off of the raw die (dice) results of a '20', etc.
With all of the talk of Mass Combat and the Deendee End Game in the blogs, I brushed-off my work from earlier in the year and combined it with the Spectral Index to provide a standard wargamey matrix with the added granularity of a subjective, colour-logic system.
--I'm letting all of that simmer, but have taken efforts to support a seamless integration with the PCs so that 'on-the-fly' change of focus 'zoom' can be used to affect both the Strategic and PC scales of action.
---The results of 'heroes' are then stepped-down one level for the aligned warriors around them, but also, poor troop rolls can drag-down the heroes' efforts. It is the most synergistic and compact mechanism that I have seen in a system tailored to such high degree of integration with an RPG, so I hope I succeed in my lofty goal.
My entirely random character, Eresenkh Elik, using the CharGen tables, and before expending any 'PC' currency, is pretty interesting and serves to illustrate the sorts of folks who surround and support/undermine the PCs in their efforts/exploits, and from whence PCs are derived.
--This makes UWoM PCs somewhere on the order of magnitude between D&D and GW starting characters, which is where I intended.
---This ought to further facilitate the use of GW and UWoM materials back and forth between the two games, and a few of the tables are based on concepts put forth by James M. Ward in early Dragon articles for Metamorphosis Alpha.
I'm certain other bits are escaping me at present, but that's the gist of the changes.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
[RPG] Diced Spell Point System-
Copyright (c) 2009 Kyrinn S. Eis
This has been simmering for a few weeks:
Diced Magic-
The exact Spell Magnitude number must be rolled on a die, with the number of dice equal to the number of Spell Points possessed and available, plus 01.
If the required number is the die result, that Magnitude of spell may be freely cast without the expenditure of the Spell Points.
If, instead, any other number is rolled, the warp and woof of reality did not support the harvested energy within the Kherstic matrix, and requires the expenditure of the listed SP if the spell is to be successfully cast.
If the figure has insufficient SP to cast a spell, DP may be substituted at a 1:1 ratio.
Spell Magnitude-
1-3 : d4
4-5 : d6
6-7 : d8
8-9 : d10
Example-
:: Eshylzbet seeks to cast the spell, Xhillsen Del Hamn 'Being a powerful working of the air into a duty-bound being; a being of subtle spirit from above; a servant of the Empyrean.' This spell is 4th-Magnitude, and costs 04 SP. At present, Eshylzbet has only 03 SP, and attempts to empower the Kherst matrix with ambient energy instead.
:: Her player rolls 4d6 (because 4 Mag must be rolled on the next-higher die-type than d4, which is d6; the number of dice is derived from the current number of SP she has available, plus 01): 1, 2, 3, 5 -- no success. For Eshylzbet to cast the spell, she must expend all three of her SP, and sustain a loss of 01 DP to make up for the deficit of 01 point.
However, crafting magic items, including single-use items such as scrolls, require too great a degree of focus to allow for the gathering of ambient Aether, and subsequently necessitates the expenditure of personal SP (etc.) reserves (although the SP/DP need not be given willingly...).
This has been simmering for a few weeks:
Diced Magic-
The exact Spell Magnitude number must be rolled on a die, with the number of dice equal to the number of Spell Points possessed and available, plus 01.
If the required number is the die result, that Magnitude of spell may be freely cast without the expenditure of the Spell Points.
If, instead, any other number is rolled, the warp and woof of reality did not support the harvested energy within the Kherstic matrix, and requires the expenditure of the listed SP if the spell is to be successfully cast.
If the figure has insufficient SP to cast a spell, DP may be substituted at a 1:1 ratio.
Spell Magnitude-
1-3 : d4
4-5 : d6
6-7 : d8
8-9 : d10
Example-
:: Eshylzbet seeks to cast the spell, Xhillsen Del Hamn 'Being a powerful working of the air into a duty-bound being; a being of subtle spirit from above; a servant of the Empyrean.' This spell is 4th-Magnitude, and costs 04 SP. At present, Eshylzbet has only 03 SP, and attempts to empower the Kherst matrix with ambient energy instead.
:: Her player rolls 4d6 (because 4 Mag must be rolled on the next-higher die-type than d4, which is d6; the number of dice is derived from the current number of SP she has available, plus 01): 1, 2, 3, 5 -- no success. For Eshylzbet to cast the spell, she must expend all three of her SP, and sustain a loss of 01 DP to make up for the deficit of 01 point.
However, crafting magic items, including single-use items such as scrolls, require too great a degree of focus to allow for the gathering of ambient Aether, and subsequently necessitates the expenditure of personal SP (etc.) reserves (although the SP/DP need not be given willingly...).
Thursday, December 3, 2009
[Gaming] Promised Images & Pages-
*
*
I thought that intro was worth scanning.
*
Interesting Rules
*
Did someone say 'hexcrawl'?
*
*
 |
| From The Grand Tapestry |
*
 |
| From The Grand Tapestry |
I thought that intro was worth scanning.
*
 |
| From The Grand Tapestry |
Interesting Rules
*
 |
| From The Grand Tapestry |
Did someone say 'hexcrawl'?
*
 |
| From The Grand Tapestry |
*
 |
| From The Grand Tapestry |
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
[Gaming] Qadardalikoi & Pre-TSR EPT !
My friend, Jeff Berry, (co-)author of the Qadardalikoi Tekumel wargame rules set, sent me a copy of those rules, and a printed scan of mimeographed, pre-TSR Empire.
Jeff also painted a paler version of my N'luss character; her 'sister' appears in his game.
--I hope to have scans and photos to post next day or three.
[Beyond beaming,] all I can say to folks who suggest that Old School was 'simple' or 'rules-light', clearly were kept in very small (and strange) circles.
--Details on true settings make the play more tangible, and the game-reality more concrete and 'alive.' Tekumel, Glorantha, and (the Silver-, or Bronze-age) Jorune, being those that leap readily to mind.
...more cowbell!
Jeff also painted a paler version of my N'luss character; her 'sister' appears in his game.
--I hope to have scans and photos to post next day or three.
[Beyond beaming,] all I can say to folks who suggest that Old School was 'simple' or 'rules-light', clearly were kept in very small (and strange) circles.
--Details on true settings make the play more tangible, and the game-reality more concrete and 'alive.' Tekumel, Glorantha, and (the Silver-, or Bronze-age) Jorune, being those that leap readily to mind.
...more cowbell!
[RPG] Competing with Space Opera... ;) -
I've been looking for sections of the revamped CharGen to post here, but all the 'sexy' parts are formatted in such a way as to be mangled by blogger's column width.
--I'll see about posting a .pdf
So far everything on the character sheet is accounted for, apart from actual combat/weapons rules, and the Aberrations.
--Those still reside in their own sections (completed or unfinished).
Here are a few excerpts:
------------------------------------------
BACKGROUND DETERMINATION-
These tables are used to provide depth of character which integrates directly with the game system so that the Character Control Record is essentially all the information a Player needs.
Should another method of more rapidly preparing a character be to your liking, merely roll up the Ability Scores as above, and roll for starting Count for purchases in the Amour, Arms & Gear section, and the PC is ready to go. If this method is chosen, all charactrs must be generated in this manner. Likewise, bits and pieces that appeal to the Referee and gaming group may be retained or excepted.
If play is desired immediately, existing characters for most versions of The World's Most Popular Roleplaying Game, from editions O to X, as well as many other 3d6-scaled RPGs of the earlier age of gaming are highly compatible with UWoM, 'right out of the box'. I would be delighted to hear that some hybridisation has taken place in your local games, as that spirit of inventiveness and creativity is the one in which the entire milieu and RPG have been fashioned.
Sex-
(Choose or Roll 1d10)
6+ - Female
2-5 - Male
1 - Special
=---= Special-
(Choose or Roll 1d10)
04+ - Male, as above
03 - Female: Bxhr 'Amazon' +2 Ability Points, 1-Point Regeneration
02 - Male: Avemn 'Highblood' +3 Ability Points
01 - Other - see
=---= Other-
(Choose or Roll 1d10)
03+ - Odd = Male, Even = Female, as standard, above
02 - Neuter
01 - Hermaphrodite
Age-
(Choose or roll 2d6)
11+: 16 Years
10 : 18
09 : 20
08 : 22
07 : 23 Years
06 : 21
05 : 19
04 : 17
03-: 15 Years
+01 Year per Primary Field, and +01 Year per two full Secondary Fields.
Ethnicity-
(Choose or Roll 2d12)
24-22 - Durn: +16 - Frame mod.: -02 - Scholars & Scientists
21-20 - Khem: +03 - Frame mod.: -01 - Carousers & Card-readers
19-17 - Western Isles Vrun: +08 - Frame mod.: +02 - Empire-Bringers
16-15 - Yirinn: +0 - Frame mod.: +0 - Warrior-Bards
14-12 - Vrun: +10 - Frame mod.: +01 - Dominators & Innovators
11-09 - Dokirin: +06 - Frame mod.: -01 - Farmers, Nomads, & Nations
08-05 - Yaesh: 3d6+06 - Frame mod.: +0 - Chaotic Cogs in an Empire Machine
02-04 - Khark: 1d4+19 - Frame mod.: -03 - Nihilists & Shaman
--I'll see about posting a .pdf
So far everything on the character sheet is accounted for, apart from actual combat/weapons rules, and the Aberrations.
--Those still reside in their own sections (completed or unfinished).
Here are a few excerpts:
------------------------------------------
BACKGROUND DETERMINATION-
These tables are used to provide depth of character which integrates directly with the game system so that the Character Control Record is essentially all the information a Player needs.
Should another method of more rapidly preparing a character be to your liking, merely roll up the Ability Scores as above, and roll for starting Count for purchases in the Amour, Arms & Gear section, and the PC is ready to go. If this method is chosen, all charactrs must be generated in this manner. Likewise, bits and pieces that appeal to the Referee and gaming group may be retained or excepted.
If play is desired immediately, existing characters for most versions of The World's Most Popular Roleplaying Game, from editions O to X, as well as many other 3d6-scaled RPGs of the earlier age of gaming are highly compatible with UWoM, 'right out of the box'. I would be delighted to hear that some hybridisation has taken place in your local games, as that spirit of inventiveness and creativity is the one in which the entire milieu and RPG have been fashioned.
Sex-
(Choose or Roll 1d10)
6+ - Female
2-5 - Male
1 - Special
=---= Special-
(Choose or Roll 1d10)
04+ - Male, as above
03 - Female: Bxhr 'Amazon' +2 Ability Points, 1-Point Regeneration
02 - Male: Avemn 'Highblood' +3 Ability Points
01 - Other - see
=---= Other-
(Choose or Roll 1d10)
03+ - Odd = Male, Even = Female, as standard, above
02 - Neuter
01 - Hermaphrodite
Age-
(Choose or roll 2d6)
11+: 16 Years
10 : 18
09 : 20
08 : 22
07 : 23 Years
06 : 21
05 : 19
04 : 17
03-: 15 Years
+01 Year per Primary Field, and +01 Year per two full Secondary Fields.
Ethnicity-
(Choose or Roll 2d12)
24-22 - Durn: +16 - Frame mod.: -02 - Scholars & Scientists
21-20 - Khem: +03 - Frame mod.: -01 - Carousers & Card-readers
19-17 - Western Isles Vrun: +08 - Frame mod.: +02 - Empire-Bringers
16-15 - Yirinn: +0 - Frame mod.: +0 - Warrior-Bards
14-12 - Vrun: +10 - Frame mod.: +01 - Dominators & Innovators
11-09 - Dokirin: +06 - Frame mod.: -01 - Farmers, Nomads, & Nations
08-05 - Yaesh: 3d6+06 - Frame mod.: +0 - Chaotic Cogs in an Empire Machine
02-04 - Khark: 1d4+19 - Frame mod.: -03 - Nihilists & Shaman
Monday, November 30, 2009
[Gaming] Thanksgiving Sandbox with the Intoxicated Newbies-
On Thanksgiving night I ran a game of Basic Fantasy RPG that I gave, along with a copy of The Crusader mag., and a full set of polys with 4d6 to a guy who hadn't gamed in over 20 years.
--He and Delver's player were the first two PCs in the game and died twice in a row with six goblin archers firing from darkness at their two 2nd-Level characters with max. HP at first, rolled for 2nd.
---Said guy was a few sheets to the wind which made everyone's enjoyment a bit less, but then we re-started for the third time, now with the characters at 3rd-Level, and soon had two additional intoxicated players --both of whom took the game more seriously and were really thinking for their characters.
The host's character was a 'Sorcerer', so I allowed him access to both MU and Cleric spell lists, but in the III re-vamp, we forgot to give him a second 1st level spell, but he did well enough with MM and Pro/Evil, which is essentially a more EPT version, insomuch that any hostiles are the 'evil'.
--His wife's character, Aradia (pretty cool), was a 'Priestess', and I gave her the same dual-list casting capability, but she chose Pro/Evil and Cure Light. --Both had d8 HD.
---The other guy was just a fighter-type w. d10 HD, and 'Delver' was thiefy, with d6 HD.
Version III's flowchart consisted of:
||= Cave Mounth leading to:
||= Gremlins
||= Hostile Elf on a Chain
||= Chest with Gems
||= Witch, L3 (cut down before she could cast)
||= Chute to 2nd-Level room with water enough for 0 damage
||= Hatch
||= Jail Cells & Office
||= Other PCs
||= Secret Door in Office
||= Chest, Trapped and not opened
||= Stairs down to slightly flooded chamber with one obvious door
||= Door is opened, further flooding chamber
||= Secret door found which opens to stairwell-up covered in fine pale sand
||= Aradia finds a topaz-headed metal-hafted spear in the water before taking the stairwell
||= Stairwell-up leads to a vast room covered in desert sands and dunes at least 30' high, a silvery star-like light shining down upon the scene, two palm trees, and wall carvings similar to Egyptian Hieroglyphics, which Aradia decided she could read (so I let her).
She determined that the area was inhabited by jackal-headed creatures, guardians of a great treasure, and terrible monsters besides. With their 'cue', the PCs geared-up for combat and absconding, and were pleased when the Jackal-headed baddie brought a pedestal up from the ground, adorned, naturally, with a fist-sized pale-blue diamond.
As the host was slashing away and taking damage, Aradia dodged the creature's strike and grasped the diamond to find herself teleported back to the door of the local tavern in her home town, now holding a 100 gp pearl.
--The same occurred for the fighter-guy.
---The host's character, however, killed the guardian, and he was rewarded with a 700 gp. diamond. 'Delver's PC didn't survive.
New Tweak: I had everyone roll-off to see who would get struck with arrows, etc.
--It seemed to making things edgier and more competitive.
The folks were pleased as punch at the gift, once they realised it was for them, and I was asked back ASAP.
Hmm...
What are your thoughts?
--He and Delver's player were the first two PCs in the game and died twice in a row with six goblin archers firing from darkness at their two 2nd-Level characters with max. HP at first, rolled for 2nd.
---Said guy was a few sheets to the wind which made everyone's enjoyment a bit less, but then we re-started for the third time, now with the characters at 3rd-Level, and soon had two additional intoxicated players --both of whom took the game more seriously and were really thinking for their characters.
The host's character was a 'Sorcerer', so I allowed him access to both MU and Cleric spell lists, but in the III re-vamp, we forgot to give him a second 1st level spell, but he did well enough with MM and Pro/Evil, which is essentially a more EPT version, insomuch that any hostiles are the 'evil'.
--His wife's character, Aradia (pretty cool), was a 'Priestess', and I gave her the same dual-list casting capability, but she chose Pro/Evil and Cure Light. --Both had d8 HD.
---The other guy was just a fighter-type w. d10 HD, and 'Delver' was thiefy, with d6 HD.
Version III's flowchart consisted of:
||= Cave Mounth leading to:
||= Gremlins
||= Hostile Elf on a Chain
||= Chest with Gems
||= Witch, L3 (cut down before she could cast)
||= Chute to 2nd-Level room with water enough for 0 damage
||= Hatch
||= Jail Cells & Office
||= Other PCs
||= Secret Door in Office
||= Chest, Trapped and not opened
||= Stairs down to slightly flooded chamber with one obvious door
||= Door is opened, further flooding chamber
||= Secret door found which opens to stairwell-up covered in fine pale sand
||= Aradia finds a topaz-headed metal-hafted spear in the water before taking the stairwell
||= Stairwell-up leads to a vast room covered in desert sands and dunes at least 30' high, a silvery star-like light shining down upon the scene, two palm trees, and wall carvings similar to Egyptian Hieroglyphics, which Aradia decided she could read (so I let her).
She determined that the area was inhabited by jackal-headed creatures, guardians of a great treasure, and terrible monsters besides. With their 'cue', the PCs geared-up for combat and absconding, and were pleased when the Jackal-headed baddie brought a pedestal up from the ground, adorned, naturally, with a fist-sized pale-blue diamond.
As the host was slashing away and taking damage, Aradia dodged the creature's strike and grasped the diamond to find herself teleported back to the door of the local tavern in her home town, now holding a 100 gp pearl.
--The same occurred for the fighter-guy.
---The host's character, however, killed the guardian, and he was rewarded with a 700 gp. diamond. 'Delver's PC didn't survive.
New Tweak: I had everyone roll-off to see who would get struck with arrows, etc.
--It seemed to making things edgier and more competitive.
The folks were pleased as punch at the gift, once they realised it was for them, and I was asked back ASAP.
Hmm...
What are your thoughts?
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