I Do Declare...-

PORPHYRY: World of The Burn, a Tunnels & Trolls 5th Edition and Mercenaries, Spies & Private Eyes RPGs Setting and Accessory...is now in the hands of Jez Gordon for Layout & Artwork.

As soon as it is ready to transfer to LuLu and OneBookshelf (DriveThruRPG/RPGNow), I'll be letting you folks know.

In retrospect, I've had 19 characters, run by 16 Players, in the Porphyry setting, and I've only had the thing going since late December or early January.

I'm resting up a bit before giving Urutsk a similar minimalist treatment, then back to work on Porphyry regional sandbox guides, etc.

A plan to add Pages to this blog is in the works, so as to help sort things out so that the different games and settings will be more easily accessible to those interested.

On Thursday the 17th, I'll be part of a Game Designers Discussion Panel.

--More on that in a bit.

See you for plenty of gaming on Google+

I'm Over at Google+

The power is back on in the arcology. They now have a genuine flying saucer, originally piloted by aliens -- cat-like aliens. Along with that, they've got a flying pack, and a scramjet rocket launcher. There is a trip to the Black Crown, to allow the FLAILSNAILS dwarf to roam the mountain halls.

Most of my activity is going on at Google+, and there is a weekly Thursday Urutsk game at 8PM EST (-5 GMT).

I'm also running a Villains & Vigilantes game using a modified Tunnels & Trolls version on Wednesday nights (same time slot), and the PORPHYRY: World of The Burn game on Friday nights (ditto).

Rumours of a Man, Myth & Magic game on Sundays may be confirmed at a later date.

FebRUary 2nd Update-

The PCs are back to the Marnharnnan 'Megadungeon', a subterranean emergency colony of the Ancients. In the past, an endless stream of Runners (fast zombies) would emerge from a tunnel into the initial site, but since the Orthodox Wodic priests have been brought on site, that problem has been brought under better control.

A new area with worker dwellings, like Japanese 'coffin motels', apparently set up for the folks who used to run the behind the scenes infrastructure was explored and reclaimed, although Runners and Hyenamen are still a bit of an issue. From there, the PCs chose to head into a mall-arcology with apartments above two floors of shops, and two sets of monorail tunnels on either side.

An earlier session saw the PCs visit, and take books from the climate-controlled bookstore, falling back to held territory. Tonight's session went from there, where the first sector, Phoenix Spoonbill, was explored.

Contact with Runners recently dressed out in clothing and gear of the Ancients were engaged and deactivated, and these peculiarities were noted, including monorail tickets punched and worn on leather necklaces, etc. Pressing on, it became clear that folk were selectively removing items from various shops, and using them to outfit the mindless undead.

Moving into Water Badger Sector of the miles long mall, a group of humans were met who first contacted the party through a dog, the native psychic using the critter as the envoy, and peaceful relations established. These Water Badger tribesfolk held the eating establishment closest to the edge of their sector, 'where it is always the end of the work week', and were pleased to offer selections based upon the menu's photos. The Water Badgers' leader, Shaulm, a Khem woman, explained how each sector had its own tribe whose generational duty was to maintain their portion of the arcology. Other tribes included the Golden Egret, Snapping Lungers, Spitting Spinefish, and Jungle Howlers.

'The Walkabout' is the name for the fungal-based undead infection, and the tradition of honouring the dead simply transitioned to those who died of the black fungus. Jungle Howler apparently has the most dealings with the Walking Ancestors, and contact has yet to be established with them or the Spitting Spinefish, who appear to be vassals of the JH. Water Badger warned that Jungle Howler were tricksy and demanded tribute, and that the SpitSpine were prone to ambush.

We held it there.

Why My Writing a Tunnels and Trolls Product is Good For Urutsk-

You see, now that PORPHYRY: World of The Burn is nearly complete, I've a better idea of how to frame Urutsk products than before this.

I've read the comments you folks have left over these years, and I've taken them to heart, believe it or not.

Something playable should be out for the big U sometime this year.

And, if you dig on the T&T, you'll have that much less to wait.

Weekly games continue to be played on Google+: Wed & Thu are Urutsk, and Fri is T&T

Best,

January 15th UPDATE-

The PCs, after battling Anime-inspired baddies in the mining town, took their shopping goodies (including Transceivers and desk-set radios) back with them on the express train. Along the way, there were interesting stops, scheduled and unscheduled, and fauna to fight and/or collect. A Capacitor and Batteries from a Tube Car Line were got, and after all that, the last of the Anime baddies nearly killed the PCs, who are now tattoo'd with Yaesh script describing the wounds they inflicted upon them -- all save General Roland Peltier, the Immortal, who cannot easily be tattoo'd.

After running a game for Mike Fernandez last Monday night, there is a new zone to investigate, and a strange glop of Elemental Glass-Silt that looks good for all manner of circuitry.

--This Monday night Pacific time game will run from 9PM Hawaii-time to whenever I fall asleep at the computer, or breakfast Tuesday (-5 GMT) time. He's already wrangled three other players.

I'm working on something else, and it has taken a bit longer than I thought it would to finish, but I'm a few yards from the finish line on it. It is for Tunnels & Trolls.

Also, once I'm confident the VANGUARD Alpha Rules One Sheet is saying what I intend it to, I'll post the link to that. I'll take this opportunity, though, to point out that VANGUARD characters can quickly be created by clicking on THIS and THIS link.

Working on the Railroad ;)

After a brief discussion about how things had been undertaken, the group sorted out its intent, and we moved on with play.

Reaching the Black Crown settlement of TshelUundam, a mining town with a high percentage of Yaesh, the PCs ascended in their armoured dirigibles and got the whole town/city talking. They quickly were met by a Yaesh engineer working on a dam project. He offered great things in exchange for one of the flying 'stubbies', but the party held off, hoping to clarify the situation.

To that end, the consulted the local university Alchemy dept., and were surprised to hear the diagnostic information regarding the two small spheres of polar lightning energy. Based on the loose readings the staff conducted under the informal setting of the dept. office, the estimated output of the Black Sphere is off the charts; highly dangerous; and highly unlikely to have been created recently.

Ssu Rosenbrad received 30 Alchemy textbooks, more than a lifetime's learning on the subject, and Roland Peltier purchased early education books for his daughter, as well as a dragon marionette.

Play will pick up (this is a Thursday session, I think) determining whether a deal with the Yaeshani Court for the Stubbie is worth it. Also, the Black Crown scientists are eager to travel to Xudorn with the PCs to set to work on creating a White Sphere to counter the Black, now residing somewhere on the Shadow plane.

The Cats are Away...-

Concerned with the PCs' lack of direct action, a player prompted that the characters hop aboard a train and travel across the Black Crown, into the Yaeshani Empire, in search of a potential White Sphere to mate with the Black Sphere they found and returned with back in the Skullcrusher Mtn. Campaign.

This journey will take months to reach their initial stop, and an undisclosed amount of time to discern whether said object exists, or can be created. This plan, predicated upon its successful reunion with the Black Sphere they tossed into the plane of Shadow due to its deleterious effects, deprives the colony of Xudorn of its two top generals, its air marshal, and one of its top aeronautics chiefs. Another player voiced concern over Xudorn's vulnerability during this period, as the fledgling republic is under increasing attack by Continental Vrun forces and agents.

Along the way, barely into their trip, the PCs have encountered one of several Western Isles colonies in territory controlled by the Black Crown, essentially isolated now for over 150 years from the Western Isles Crown. Discerning things slightly more complex than at face value, it was discovered that these WI folk have been fighting the Undead for generations. Stymied by lack of official power for the PCs to institute treaties, the instigating player has suggested that they be granted said powers.

I sit back, incredulous at times, but now more confident why later generations never mentioned Xudorn in the history of Marnharnna. This is almost a parable for why the Vrun haven't regained space flight, and it is playing out before my eyes.

We'll see how this turns out.