Folks who have been reading this blog for the past year or so are by now familiar with my ocasional ranting against my internet connection and/or PC status as well as seeing me drop off the face of the (digital) world for extended periods.
This small post is just another hefty shoveling of woe and misery I am adding to the pile in an attempt to blow off steam and inform you, again, about the kind of crud I have to live with.
On last Thursday, somewhere between my last post and 22.00 PM the internet failed on the whole province of Algarve where I happen to live.
To put things in prespective that's an area of 2,089.6 square miles and well over half a million people (in a country with slightly more than 10 millions inhabitants) cut off from the internet for everything from a little less than a day to little under a week.
In my personal case, it wasn't until late this afternoon that the problem got solved. Oh, yeah cable and the telephone where out too. Extended failures as long as a weekend are not uncommon but this time...whoa! Maybe we can get a shot at the Guinness book?
Is is any wonder I am not that fond of this place?
Monday, 7 September 2009
Thursday, 3 September 2009
The Dragonlance
I am sure the title of this thread will raise more than a few eyebrows. The series of books and D&D modules where this particular item I am about to discourse is to be found suffers from almost universal hatred by the members of our little blogoshpere.
I don't blame the detractors, in fact I count myself among their number. I recently had the chance to give DL1: Dragons of Despair a looksee and indeed, the amount of railroading in those pages is enough to bring tears to one's eyes.
Oh sure...I had my DL moments back when I was young, naive and ignorant. It is not my fault it was the ONLY fantasy novel line to be found at bookstores back then, that I had yet to read Tolkien, Howard or Moorcock to get a proper sense of what true fantasy literature is about or that it was the ONLY book on the store with DRAGONS in the cover.
Ah...the follies of youth, eh? But the intent of this post is not to debate the setting or its crappy modules but the item that gave the whole franchise its name.
Take a deep breath, control the eventual surge of bile that the very mention of Krynn might cause and bear with me...
You see, a thought just struck me this afternoon as I was coming down the stairs to my room after a trip to obtain juice from the kitchen (I get inspirations at very odd times, it appears).
I began thinking about the Dragonlances and I am not referring to the AD&D mechanics of the weapon, which I am unfamiliar with. I mean the curious concept of these magical weapons, taking into account not only their effects/powers but its manufacture from the perspective of the novels.
For those of you not in the know allow me to lay out what a Dragonlance does and how it is made.
The Lance(s) kill dragons, pure and simple. They kill them deader than a doornail sometimes slaying a fully healthy dragon with a single blow.
The deadliness of the weapon towards the creatures it was designed to slay is such that even in the hands of an untrained newbie (i.e. a 0-Lvl character in D&D terms) it is a source of fear to them.
So, to put it succinctly, it is an almost insta-kill instrument (which is not surprising when we discover its power comes directly from the blessing of THE major god of the setting) that serves the purpose of turning the tides of battle in a story (yes...I know) where up to that point the Evil Enemy as been presented (as it often is) as undefeatable.
This on its own is nothing particularly original or surprising. Fantasy "literature" is rife with both the "magic-mcguffin that turn the tide" and "weapons of destiny" which in the right hands are the (only) thing will defeat whatever Sauron-equivalent is prancing about.
The really curious facets of the DL however is the conditions that must be met both to make one and to use it effectively.
In the story, the Dragonlances of the good guys' army are forged by a man named Theros Ironfeld (rolleyes), a smith from Solace who (quite conveniently) had his right arm chopped off by the bad guys by the time he is introduced.
The making of a true lance requires 4 things:
- Someone of can work a forge and make lances (duh!), enter Mr. Theros.
- The Silver Arm of Ergoth, a magical right arm that can be attached to whoever poor sod volunteers to have his own chopped off and replaced with it. It's sort of like a good version of the Hand of Vecna I guess...again, enter Mr. Theros.
- The Hammer of Kharas. A typical magical dwarven warhammer used normally to bust heads and crack bones.
- Weird silvery liquid metal that can be found in a magical fountain somewhere.
I find all this very interesting from a D&D point of view. Instead of a simple list of ingredients and a prince in GP we are told that to make these artifacts we require not only another artefact and a specific location (the cave where the silver fountain is), but the willingness of someone to indulge is some major personal mutilation.
The actual use of the DL is more curious still...I apologize for not being able to quote the source but I read the DL books a long time ago. I do remember that the actual forging of the Dragonlances as well the Big Revelation(tm) about how they work is not found on the main novels, but on a shortstory in some book which title escapes me now.
The hidden truth about Dragonlances is simply that they don't do a damn thing.
That's right. For all their supposedly inherent ubber effects the lances are simply weapons made of a weird metal, which is quite brittle and breaks easily. This startling revelation is discovered by Flint Fireforge (perhaps the easiest character to stomach in the entire line...but then he dies before the end) while Theros is working desperately at the forge.
While everyone else, including the syphilitic little [expletive deleted] known as Tasslehoff Burrfoot (try saying that 3 times in a row very fast) is running around complaining "OMG! The damn lances don't work! We are ALL SCREWED!!!" the aged dwarf realizes the startling truth: what makes a DL work, what makes it an item of power and dragon-slaying is...Faith.
Faith, ladies and gentlemen. Faith from the part of the user on the god that created the blueprints of the thing: Paladine (roool eyes).
This is where the dodo hits the fan and its collective bloody chunks spreading around the room give us ample food for thought.
Think about it. You have one of the most over-the-top magical weapons ever made for the AD&D game. An item of almost Artefact levels of power (in what pertains to killing dragons) without any drawbacks whatsoever for the user. And the damn thing won't work if the user lacks faith in...well, that it will work, really. Faith in Paladine, in the goodness and justness of his cause, yadda, yadda, yadda.
Even worse, while the user of a DL might be quite pious and faithful, if the weapon is used for a purpose different of what it is intended to, slaying goblin children for instance, then it is just a near-useless piece of weak metal.
So why is this of interest to us? Well, it seems to me a very original take on the nature of a D&D magical item.
Before I read that short story I had assumed Dragonlances where simply +5 Lances of Sharpness & Dragonslaying or somesuch (and indeed in the gaming sourcebooks they might very well be, I don't know). But if they are accurately portrayed in the game according to their nature as told by the story, then the mystical crafting / mundane nature / faith angle must be addressed.
This carries larger implications for D&D magical weapons as a whole. For a long time we have been told that Referees should strive to give the magic gizmos of their campaigns some flavor and personality. There shouldn't be such a thing as a generic +1 sword. It should have a name and a background story.
This approach is of course easier to proselytize than to follow. Given the amount of magical do-daas found in the average FRPG, making a backstory for each is more trouble than it is worth.
But the lesson of the Dragonlance can be put to good use when dealing with those special magical artifacts that crop up from time to time, particularly adventure-driving ones.
And note that by special I do not necessarily mean "very powerful", but rather "absolutely necessary for the task they are supposed to accomplish".
I speak about the ax that cuts the mystical chains locking the door that must be opened, the sword that is the only known thing that will wound that particular villain, the crystal chalice which is the only receptacle that may carry the water from the blessed nascent that is needed to heal the surge of the Great Plague, etc, etc.
If this sort of thing doesn't sound new and you are thinking of specific literary examples besides, then you are right up my alley.
Consider Excalibur for example. Whenever it is statted it is usually along the lines of "+5 Vorpal Holy Avenger". Yes, it is undeniable that this sword has some form of mechanical benefit for the user but it is also much more. When Arthur first used it in battle it was said to shine as brightly as 30 torches, blind his enemies and ultimately inspire his (rather outnumbered) forces to win the battle. But I cannot recall other instances of this happening. At the final battle with the forces of Mordred both armies are evenly matched and annihilate each other. If the sword could inspire Arthur's forces to win desperate battles against better armed, trained and numerically superior foes then the Battle of Camlann should have been a dozy. And in the final face-off against Mordred, Arthur would have simply "cast Blindness" and then skewer the bastard.
So to properly stat Excalibur, assuming you want to be true to its literary concept, you should not assign "Cast Light x30 effect" or "Cast Blind 30ft radius once per day" lines to its powers.
If we take a hint from DL above it is perhaps wiser to write "Shines likes 30 torches and blinds enemies, inspiring own forces to victory when drawn for the first time if the wielder is the rightful heir to the throne and fighting the first battle for his claim."
Ok, maybe not so verbose as that but you get the idea.
What I am trying to say is, when next in our games an artefact appears, making it mundane and powerless except when used for the specific purpose it was intended might be more entertaining than simply noting down a number of plusses and daily powers.
Finding a "Sword of Theseus" that kills Minotaurs in one hit if:
- The user is aware of its legacy and nature
- Fighting a Minotaur in its labyrinth
- And invokes the name of Theseus while doing so
Is much more interesting than finding a +3 Shortsword, +6 against minotaurs, I think.
Heck! Stormbringer's major power was "Kill Elric" after all.
Maybe the best way to make a magical items truly magical is to occasionaly leave the stats at home.
Wednesday, 2 September 2009
Passive-Agressive Churning of Fliers
Oy Vey!
When I get enthralled about something I really get knee deep down into the stuff. The fliers are finally ready in their final versions. Yes, that's "fliers" and "versions" plural because I ended up doing no less than 7 variants! Or more specifically 2 main versions, one of which has 6 different pictures and color schemes.
So here they are...
First of there's the original template that started the whole thing. Mentzer Red Box Dragon in all its majesty, courtesy of Elmore with the text now much revised (I'll post the translation after the 6 variants).
Next is another dragon, blue this time around, facing of against 3 adventurers. Taken from the 1980 Jim Roslof cover of the D&D Character Sheets. Notice that in each flier I tried to match the title color with the one from the product in was taken from.
Onwards and we find a picture I chose to illustrate to prospective gamers that it ain't all about dragons. There's other heavyweights out there and they don't limit themselves to fighting adventurers. Often they can be found attacking innocent civilian communities, as this giant trio is from the G1-2-3 Megamodule "Against the Giants" is doing.
I particularly like the terrorized young woman clutching the baby on the left. She very graphically represents what the characters are supposed to protect and fight for.
Fourthly we have one of my all-time BD&D pics. The cover to the seminal B1: In Search of the Unknown, and incidentaly, the module whatever players I can obtain will be cutting their gaming teeth on.
My love for this picture is fourfold: It represents an actual scene that can (and most likely will) happen in the module, shows the 3 fundamental OD&D classes (fighter, cleric, magic-user), doing what adventurers do best: mess around with their environment, has a wonderful use of color and last but not least, a room filled with giant gonzo mushrooms illustrates just the sort of weirdness you might expect to meet in D&D.
Next is an all-black flier. Since I will be using Moldvay-Cook B/X it would be criminal not to include some of its art in at least one of the fliers. Again we have a dragon (hope I'm not over-using them) in the most action-packed scene I have selected for my fliers.
The final variant of Version 1 uses the only non-TSR picture I selected for the fliers. This was drawn by "outskirtsofinfiniti" (don't know the artist's real name) for the upcoming OSRIC module FLA01: The Secret of the Summoning Chamber, by Fifty Latches Publishing. The pic caught my attention due to its use of colour and balls-out depiction of why you shouldn't split the party!!!
Right, now the moment you have all been waiting for, the translation of the text from version 1 (oh god!).
(*) does this word even exist in English? Gah! I hate translating to and from English. The languages are just too bloody different...
Ah yes version two. This one has a story. I wanted an old-school pic that showed a party doing something mundane, rather than fighting or dungeoneering. The travelling party picture from the pages of B1: In Search of the Unknown fitted the bill perfectly. However it was too small and left a lot of empty space. So I had the idea of just making a list of words I could associate with D&D on the body of the flier. Still there was too much empty space...then I saw the second pic on
the inside of Moldvay Basic and BANG! a perfect depiction of what the game is like around the gaming table: players using their imagination.
Ah yes, the list of words are thus:
So, I'm thinking of dropping one of each of the color fliers at each location plus a few of the B&W.
Now if you will excuse me I'm going to eat lunch and get a shave and a haircut because I got a meeting with the Jobcentre people tomorrow and I must look like a regular human being.
P.S. - Oh yeah, and after all this work If I don't get at least one person I might have to use violence against a random inanimate object to vent my frustration.
When I get enthralled about something I really get knee deep down into the stuff. The fliers are finally ready in their final versions. Yes, that's "fliers" and "versions" plural because I ended up doing no less than 7 variants! Or more specifically 2 main versions, one of which has 6 different pictures and color schemes.
So here they are...
First of there's the original template that started the whole thing. Mentzer Red Box Dragon in all its majesty, courtesy of Elmore with the text now much revised (I'll post the translation after the 6 variants).
Next is another dragon, blue this time around, facing of against 3 adventurers. Taken from the 1980 Jim Roslof cover of the D&D Character Sheets. Notice that in each flier I tried to match the title color with the one from the product in was taken from.
Onwards and we find a picture I chose to illustrate to prospective gamers that it ain't all about dragons. There's other heavyweights out there and they don't limit themselves to fighting adventurers. Often they can be found attacking innocent civilian communities, as this giant trio is from the G1-2-3 Megamodule "Against the Giants" is doing.
I particularly like the terrorized young woman clutching the baby on the left. She very graphically represents what the characters are supposed to protect and fight for.
Fourthly we have one of my all-time BD&D pics. The cover to the seminal B1: In Search of the Unknown, and incidentaly, the module whatever players I can obtain will be cutting their gaming teeth on.
My love for this picture is fourfold: It represents an actual scene that can (and most likely will) happen in the module, shows the 3 fundamental OD&D classes (fighter, cleric, magic-user), doing what adventurers do best: mess around with their environment, has a wonderful use of color and last but not least, a room filled with giant gonzo mushrooms illustrates just the sort of weirdness you might expect to meet in D&D.
Next is an all-black flier. Since I will be using Moldvay-Cook B/X it would be criminal not to include some of its art in at least one of the fliers. Again we have a dragon (hope I'm not over-using them) in the most action-packed scene I have selected for my fliers.
The final variant of Version 1 uses the only non-TSR picture I selected for the fliers. This was drawn by "outskirtsofinfiniti" (don't know the artist's real name) for the upcoming OSRIC module FLA01: The Secret of the Summoning Chamber, by Fifty Latches Publishing. The pic caught my attention due to its use of colour and balls-out depiction of why you shouldn't split the party!!!
Right, now the moment you have all been waiting for, the translation of the text from version 1 (oh god!).
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
Game of Medieval Fantasy
Players Wanted!
Game of Medieval Fantasy
Players Wanted!
Game of D&D will begin soon in Portimao with places open for gamers interested in regular ludic* gatherings.
D&D is a a Role Playing Game where each player takes on the role of a fearless adventurer in a fantasy world where magic and the supernatural are real. Many mysterious ruins, monstrous creatures, fearsome adversaries and immense danger await the brave, but the rewards and treasure to be gained are greater still.
Someone who enjoys The Lord of the Rings, Conan the Barbarian, Elric of Melnibone or other masterpieces of Sword and Sorcery literature, will be able through this game of making the saga of his own hero and achieve or even surpass the deeds of those legendary heroes.
Totally Free Game!
Totally Free Game!
All Beginners are Welcome!
(*) does this word even exist in English? Gah! I hate translating to and from English. The languages are just too bloody different...
Ah yes version two. This one has a story. I wanted an old-school pic that showed a party doing something mundane, rather than fighting or dungeoneering. The travelling party picture from the pages of B1: In Search of the Unknown fitted the bill perfectly. However it was too small and left a lot of empty space. So I had the idea of just making a list of words I could associate with D&D on the body of the flier. Still there was too much empty space...then I saw the second pic on
the inside of Moldvay Basic and BANG! a perfect depiction of what the game is like around the gaming table: players using their imagination.
Ah yes, the list of words are thus:
Rings, Dwarves, Traps, Armors, Assassins, Adventurers, Barbarians, Battles, Witches, Castles, Knights, Deities, Dragons, Elves, Druids, Enchantments, Swords, Fairies, Wizards, Giants, Gnomes, Warriors, Heroes, Hobbits, Labyrinths, Rogues, Werewolves, Magic, Curses, Dungeons, Mercenaries, Monks, Undead, Ogres, Orcs, Gold, Pirates, Paladins, Kings, Ruins, Priests, Sagas, Treasures, Trolls.
All this and much more in D&D the the Roleplaying Game
So, I'm thinking of dropping one of each of the color fliers at each location plus a few of the B&W.
Now if you will excuse me I'm going to eat lunch and get a shave and a haircut because I got a meeting with the Jobcentre people tomorrow and I must look like a regular human being.
P.S. - Oh yeah, and after all this work If I don't get at least one person I might have to use violence against a random inanimate object to vent my frustration.
Sunday, 30 August 2009
D&D Catchwords: Help Requested
I'm working on a second version of the fliers I want to put out to attract gamers for my BD&D game. The central part of the sheet will simply be an alphabetical list of words related with the game. Here's what I came up with so far:
Dwarves
Armour
Assassins
Adventurers
Barbarians
Knights
Deities
Dragons
Elves
Druids
Enchantments
Swords
Giants
Gnomes
Warriors
Hobbits (they can sue me if they want to!)
Thieves
Wizards
Labyrinths
Magic
Curses
Dungeons
Mercenaries
Monks
Undead
Pirates
Orcs
Ruins
Priests
Treasures
I still need few more so that the editing looks nice but I've hit a blank. What other words would you suggest I add (or remove)? What words are "iconic" D&D for you?
Note that I don't want to place any words that relate with the game itself (e.g. dice, character sheets, etc), that a person not familiar with the game would be unfamiliar with (e.g. magic missiles, displacer beast) or that are overly long (e.g. Ancient Civilizations)
I put "orcs" and "hobbits" in because I figure everyone and their dog has seen the LoTR movies so they will at lest know that much.
Go on folks, shoot!
Dwarves
Armour
Assassins
Adventurers
Barbarians
Knights
Deities
Dragons
Elves
Druids
Enchantments
Swords
Giants
Gnomes
Warriors
Hobbits (they can sue me if they want to!)
Thieves
Wizards
Labyrinths
Magic
Curses
Dungeons
Mercenaries
Monks
Undead
Pirates
Orcs
Ruins
Priests
Treasures
I still need few more so that the editing looks nice but I've hit a blank. What other words would you suggest I add (or remove)? What words are "iconic" D&D for you?
Note that I don't want to place any words that relate with the game itself (e.g. dice, character sheets, etc), that a person not familiar with the game would be unfamiliar with (e.g. magic missiles, displacer beast) or that are overly long (e.g. Ancient Civilizations)
I put "orcs" and "hobbits" in because I figure everyone and their dog has seen the LoTR movies so they will at lest know that much.
Go on folks, shoot!
Thursday, 27 August 2009
D&D Flier take 2
Well, it seems I'm not as useless with PDFs as I first tought. Thanks to WalkerP's advice I was able to come up with second version and so far so good. It still needs some tweaking and go-over the text to make sure all the thrice-accursed accents many words of my native language use are in their correct place.
No mean feat on a UK-bought keyboard where these symbols are lacking, let me tell you...
So here's ver. 2 in all its glory:
I am not sure about the Larry Elmore image, to be frank he's not one of my favourtites even if he gets a genial pic out once in a while.
But the red dragon pic has a special meaning for me. It was the very first image I saw associated with D&D in my pre-Uni days, and I remember going "Wow!" back then. I'm hopeing it has a similar impact on whoever sees this.
Still its not the definitive image yet. If I find any better pic online I might change it.
The text has also been revamped. For those with patience to read the translation here it is:
No mean feat on a UK-bought keyboard where these symbols are lacking, let me tell you...
So here's ver. 2 in all its glory:
I am not sure about the Larry Elmore image, to be frank he's not one of my favourtites even if he gets a genial pic out once in a while.
But the red dragon pic has a special meaning for me. It was the very first image I saw associated with D&D in my pre-Uni days, and I remember going "Wow!" back then. I'm hopeing it has a similar impact on whoever sees this.
Still its not the definitive image yet. If I find any better pic online I might change it.
The text has also been revamped. For those with patience to read the translation here it is:
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
Game of Medieval fantasy
Gamemaster with years of experience and several games ran at International Gaming Conventions seeks players interested in regular meetings of Role Playing Games in Portimao.
In Dungeons & Dragons each player takes the role of a fearless adventurer in a fantastic world filled with mysterious ruins, monstrous creatures and fearsome foes.
The dangers are numerous but the rewards and treasures that await the brave are greater still. The fantastic is commonplace and magic is real.
If you enjoy Lord of the Rings, Conan the Barbarian, Elric of Melnibone or any masterpieces of Sword and Sorcery literature, come try playing and making the saga of your hero instead of simply listening to the tales of the deeds of others.
Beginners are welcome. No previous experience needed to play.
Game of Medieval fantasy
Gamemaster with years of experience and several games ran at International Gaming Conventions seeks players interested in regular meetings of Role Playing Games in Portimao.
In Dungeons & Dragons each player takes the role of a fearless adventurer in a fantastic world filled with mysterious ruins, monstrous creatures and fearsome foes.
The dangers are numerous but the rewards and treasures that await the brave are greater still. The fantastic is commonplace and magic is real.
If you enjoy Lord of the Rings, Conan the Barbarian, Elric of Melnibone or any masterpieces of Sword and Sorcery literature, come try playing and making the saga of your hero instead of simply listening to the tales of the deeds of others.
Beginners are welcome. No previous experience needed to play.
As always folks, comments, opinions and suggestions are wellcome.
Edit: darn! I just realised I forgot to put my blog address on the bloody thing.
Edit: darn! I just realised I forgot to put my blog address on the bloody thing.
Help with D&D Fliers
So like I said on a previous post I began working on making the fliers I will place around town in hopes of getting a BD&D group together. I get my hands on a PDF editor, wrap up my sleeves ad get to work.
What do I discover? I suck at PDF editing!
I was assuming it would be as easy as Word documents work and user-friendly to boot but damn! Just putting the text in is driving me insane and I won't even try the rotated detachable "tickets" I wanted to put in the bottom of the sheet.
I don't have the patience to deal with this right now (learning PDF edition). Is there some charitable soul out there whose PDF-fu has reached such levels of awesomeness that creating a D&D flier with the guidelines given by yours truly wouldn't be much of a bother?
For your horrific delight here's the paltryness I have come up with so far...mind you it's only a prototype, the pic was hastily selected, text is missing, etc.
Oh yeah, for those of you not fluent in the local lingo here's a liberal translation into Shakespeare's language. I'm sure it will sound familiar:
What do I discover? I suck at PDF editing!
I was assuming it would be as easy as Word documents work and user-friendly to boot but damn! Just putting the text in is driving me insane and I won't even try the rotated detachable "tickets" I wanted to put in the bottom of the sheet.
I don't have the patience to deal with this right now (learning PDF edition). Is there some charitable soul out there whose PDF-fu has reached such levels of awesomeness that creating a D&D flier with the guidelines given by yours truly wouldn't be much of a bother?
For your horrific delight here's the paltryness I have come up with so far...mind you it's only a prototype, the pic was hastily selected, text is missing, etc.
Oh yeah, for those of you not fluent in the local lingo here's a liberal translation into Shakespeare's language. I'm sure it will sound familiar:
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
Game of Medieval Fantasy
Gamemaster with several years of experience and games ran at international gaming conventions wants players for gaming group.
In Dungeons & Dragons each player takes on the role of a fearless adventurer, travelling through a world filled with danger, exploring mysterious ruins, challenging monstrous creatures and defeating fearsome foes.
No materials or previous experience with the game required
Game of Medieval Fantasy
Gamemaster with several years of experience and games ran at international gaming conventions wants players for gaming group.
In Dungeons & Dragons each player takes on the role of a fearless adventurer, travelling through a world filled with danger, exploring mysterious ruins, challenging monstrous creatures and defeating fearsome foes.
No materials or previous experience with the game required
Wednesday, 26 August 2009
Closing Soon...maybe
Hi all,
Yes once again Edsan stirs his shambling carcass away from near net-death. Life's not all bad but it ain't all good either. While now I have a modest laptop and a net connection the latter is so unreliable it prevents me from any net commitments aside from...well reading other folk's blog really as weekly failures lasting as long as a day are commonplace.
This led to the abandonment of the online games I was playing/running....hmm, sorry about that, I'll have to wander into the actual sites and present proper excuses latter.
IRL Gaming-wise I am back to the wastelands of my early youth. The place where (with the exception of two cities far away) there is no gaming to be had. Heck, just to give you an idea the local language doesn't even have different words for "player", "gamer" or "gambler".
FLGS? what are those?
So the original purpose of this blog is pretty much dead, I can't write about my EPT or Mutant Future campaign if I am not running one. Right?
Truth be told, I am planning on starting a gaming group over here. Whip out a couple of fliers I will leave at the local library and schools and just hope I get enough people together to form an incipient party. Not having any illusions I don't expect anything other than a few, curious, total newbies, probably with limited commitment to show up. This will of course rule our running anything other than the most basic and unexotic game both in terms of setting and rules. No Tekumel, Jorune or Glorantha for these folks I'm afraid. No Rolemaster either...brrrr.
So the obvious choice, given both my predilections and the limitations I'm presented with is...(drum roll)... Basic D&D. More specically Moldvay/Cook B/X with a very few tidbits of Mentzer/Cyclopedia thrown in for good measure.
None of that was ever released over here, but I do remember seeing a copy of the Brazilian edition of B5: Horror on the Hill floating around in a bookstore somewhere yeeeears ago.
Speaking of B5, that reminds me. My plan is to run the original B-Series of D&D modules, beginning with B1: In Search of the Unknown which I have already stocked with monsters and treasure.
So I guess a few lucky people over here (if they ever do show up) will eventually visit such classic locations as the Keep on the Borderlands and the Palace of the Silver Princess.
I wonder if the places have changed much in 30 years...
(BTW, I don't why I am bothering with those links. As anyone who reads this is will certainly not be unfamiliar with what those modules are.)
I do hope this works and I get a group together soon. I need my gaming fix man! Withdrawal symptoms are setting in...
Now, as for the fate of this blog I'm planning on retiring it. It has been a fun ride (when I could ride it, my net access history being what it is) but it has outlived its purpose. I think a fresh start is required when/if I get the BD&D ball running over here. New name, new look and the whole shebang with a final post here carrying a nice link to the new site. Or maybe not, we shall see. It is not like "Clanless Barbarians of Pupol-Sua" or "Mutant Foursome" are brand name I'm worried about maintaining, right?
I'm sure the 20-odd suck...er, I mean esteemed followers that have faithfully followed this small disaster of a blog through highs and lows won't mind much if they have to fiddle a bit with their preference links...
Yes once again Edsan stirs his shambling carcass away from near net-death. Life's not all bad but it ain't all good either. While now I have a modest laptop and a net connection the latter is so unreliable it prevents me from any net commitments aside from...well reading other folk's blog really as weekly failures lasting as long as a day are commonplace.
This led to the abandonment of the online games I was playing/running....hmm, sorry about that, I'll have to wander into the actual sites and present proper excuses latter.
IRL Gaming-wise I am back to the wastelands of my early youth. The place where (with the exception of two cities far away) there is no gaming to be had. Heck, just to give you an idea the local language doesn't even have different words for "player", "gamer" or "gambler".
FLGS? what are those?
So the original purpose of this blog is pretty much dead, I can't write about my EPT or Mutant Future campaign if I am not running one. Right?
Truth be told, I am planning on starting a gaming group over here. Whip out a couple of fliers I will leave at the local library and schools and just hope I get enough people together to form an incipient party. Not having any illusions I don't expect anything other than a few, curious, total newbies, probably with limited commitment to show up. This will of course rule our running anything other than the most basic and unexotic game both in terms of setting and rules. No Tekumel, Jorune or Glorantha for these folks I'm afraid. No Rolemaster either...brrrr.
So the obvious choice, given both my predilections and the limitations I'm presented with is...(drum roll)... Basic D&D. More specically Moldvay/Cook B/X with a very few tidbits of Mentzer/Cyclopedia thrown in for good measure.
None of that was ever released over here, but I do remember seeing a copy of the Brazilian edition of B5: Horror on the Hill floating around in a bookstore somewhere yeeeears ago.
Speaking of B5, that reminds me. My plan is to run the original B-Series of D&D modules, beginning with B1: In Search of the Unknown which I have already stocked with monsters and treasure.
So I guess a few lucky people over here (if they ever do show up) will eventually visit such classic locations as the Keep on the Borderlands and the Palace of the Silver Princess.
I wonder if the places have changed much in 30 years...
(BTW, I don't why I am bothering with those links. As anyone who reads this is will certainly not be unfamiliar with what those modules are.)
I do hope this works and I get a group together soon. I need my gaming fix man! Withdrawal symptoms are setting in...
Now, as for the fate of this blog I'm planning on retiring it. It has been a fun ride (when I could ride it, my net access history being what it is) but it has outlived its purpose. I think a fresh start is required when/if I get the BD&D ball running over here. New name, new look and the whole shebang with a final post here carrying a nice link to the new site. Or maybe not, we shall see. It is not like "Clanless Barbarians of Pupol-Sua" or "Mutant Foursome" are brand name I'm worried about maintaining, right?
I'm sure the 20-odd suck...er, I mean esteemed followers that have faithfully followed this small disaster of a blog through highs and lows won't mind much if they have to fiddle a bit with their preference links...
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