Interview with the Alpha Omega Team
June 17, 2008
Ethan Haas was right, at least according to David Carter, Earl Fischl and Tom McLaughlin, the team behind Alpha Omega the new post apocalyptic science fantasy RPG from Mind Storm Labs. In the future, the world is ravaged by war and disasters while alien races wage war. Of course, dumb old humanity mistook these aliens for angels and demons thousands of years ago. Plus, there are robots. What more could you want in a game? Magic? There’s that. Mutants? But of course. Ninjas? The ninjas are so sneaky in this game, they aren’t even mentioned. But they’re there. And they will kill you in the night if you doubt their existence. That’s how bad ass they are.
In the interview, we discuss how Alpha Omega was created, the Ethan Haas Alternate Reality Game viral marketing campaign and its connection to Cloverfield, upcoming products for the game, the art of Alpha Omega, game design and more. Be sure to check out the New World Science and Engineering Commission site, mentioned in the interview.
Posted by Ross at 12:23am
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RPPR Episode 15: Let’s Split Up Gang!
May 29, 2008
Just like the Scooby Doo gang, players tend to split up during a game and ike it or not and unless you know what to do, your game can suffer. Most players get bored when they have nothing to do, a divided game can mean the end of your campaign. We discuss how to deal with a split game and keep everything running smooth. There’s also a letter from Tom and of course, shout outs.
Cave Story: A freeware side scrolling adventure PC game that is a blast to play.
Shadowcaster: An old school PC RPG that has something to do with casting shadows. Which is dumb, because everyone casts a shadow. But, whatever.
Music: Scooby Doo by Baron Von Lichtenstein.
Posted by Ross at 8:47pm
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RPPR Episode 08: The Role of Rules
January 20, 2008
Music by The Old Ones - a Lovecraftian inspired metal band. Brutal!
Intro song: Alone in the Mountains
Segue for Letter from Tom: Rise!
Ending music: Spirits
Hosted by Ross Payton, Tom Church and Dan McDowell
Synopsis: Rules, the foundation of our hobby. How many rules are enough? When do you follow them and when do you ignore them? We go over our philosophy for rules interpretation in role playing and offer strategies to make your game better, such as dealing with a new player not used to gaming. Find out when to fudge the rules and when to let the dice roll where they may. This is a rich topic that we’ve barely begun so if you have any thoughts on what the role of rules is in your game, let us know.
If you like RPPR, please review us on the Itunes Podcast Directory! It’s like gaining experience for a podcast and just as addictive. Or if you’re a Chinese listener, Ni Hao! We’d like to hear from you.
Shout outs: Blackbird Dreaming is an excellent play by post GURPS 4e post apocalyptic game. It’s almost like reading a collaborative novel online.
Project Twilight is a great Old World of Darkness sourcebook for running government investigators in a modern horror game. A treasure trove of ideas for your modern horror game and usually pretty cheap too.
Ptolus is one of the best, if not THE best, 3.5 D&D settings ever written. Immensely detailed and well crafted, it is the ultimate city campaign. Quite expensive but the worth the price if you can find a copy.
Film Spotting is an awesome film review podcast. If you want to hear about the latest films, give it a listen.
And finally, Shoot ‘Em Up is a bland action movie that pretends to be clever and funny, but fails at both. Tom likes it but I write the episode summaries, so how do you like them apples?
Posted by Ross at 2:37am
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Actual Play: Delta Green Eyes Only - A Night on Owlshead Mountain
December 31, 2007
Keeper: Ross Payton
Players: Tom Church, Jon and Katie Carter, Matt Howell, Meriam, and Paul
You are cordially invited to a night at the opera.
“A Night on Owlshead Mountain is a Delta Green adventure that pits investigators against the deadly, lingering aftereffects of Mi-Go activity in rural Vermont.
The long awaited Delta Green supplement, Eyes Only is finally out. The RPPR crew tries out one of the scenarios as a one shot session.
Be seeing you.
RPPR Actual Play: Delta Green - A Night on Owlshead Mountain [167:36m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
Posted by Ross at 3:20pm
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RPPR Episode 06: The Bad Player
December 12, 2007
A round table discussion with Ross Payton, Tom Church, Cody Walker and Samantha Harrel.
Synopsis: Every gamer has been touched by a very special kind of player. The bad player wrecks campaigns, breaks up relationships and causes madness with their inept munchkinism, selfish attitude, and infuriating personal habits. Two guests, Sam and Cody, join us to discuss one such player, Jessica. Her paladin character refused to fight evil and her villainous character refused to be evil. Even her attempts at roleplaying wound up with her creating a Witchblade knockoff superhero with Indiana Jones as her father. Find out how the other members dealt with her. Learn from their mistakes so you can be prepared for the next bad player you meet.
Tom reads a letter to the average Call of Cthulhu player character and a few shoutouts. First, Jonathan Coulton is a great singer/songwriter who has made his music available under a creative commons license. We’ve included one of his songs, Skullcrusher Mountain, at the end. Give it a listen. Tom has a shout out for the one and only George Carlin. Finally, Cody thinks everyone needs to check out 8-bit theater, a great fantasy comedy web comic.
Posted by Ross at 7:11pm
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