Messages

16

RPGs / Re: Red Flags of Gaming

« on: May 18, 2009, 07:48:41 PM »

Oh, indeed. Not all red flags apply to all situations. I bring it up because I have players who've been playing 4E D&D with me for some months now and still operate almost entirely out of source books rather than off their sheet.

That's one of my biggest pet peeves -- specifically players who play spell casters, but don't actually read up on what their spells do ...

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17

RPGs / Re: A Study in the Logic of Gaming

« on: May 16, 2009, 10:03:03 AM »

Uhura was the character who had all her skill points put in Communication Tech, and as such couldn't do anything else with any hope of success.  As a result, the player of this character sits back from the gaming table drawing in a sketchbook through the whole gaming session, and rolls a die only when someone says in a loud voice, "Mike!  Roll communications!"

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18

RPGs / Re: A Study in the Logic of Gaming

« on: May 14, 2009, 09:53:38 PM »

Let's face it, Captain Kirk is the ultimate player character. If he can't fuck it or kill it, then he is out of ideas.

At which point he does what gamer logic demands -- he turns to the "smart" PC and puts it on him to fix it.  Spock = Wizard.

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19

RPGs / Re: Call of Cthulhu- Need some help

« on: May 14, 2009, 08:50:11 PM »

I firmly believe you can solve any problem with sufficient dynamite, bear traps and elephant guns.

And on the off chance you ran into a problem not solvable by these methods, you could be assured of at least having a great deal of fun while failing to solve the problem.

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20

RPGs / Re: Call of Cthulhu- Need some help

« on: May 14, 2009, 10:08:04 AM »

The number one thing you're going to have to have for this scenario is a good reason why the town is suddenly isolated. Is it a remote mountain town in a snow storm (or almost uninhabitable like 30 Days of Night)? Is it so remote it takes a couple of days to get anywhere? Do cars suddenly start breaking down for no reason? Why can't DG friendlies get help once the weird shit hits the fan?

Setherick's absolutely right -- just remember that whatever you choose, the PCs are going to do their absolute best to get around it, so you want to make sure you pick something that keeps them from physically leaving and from calling out for help.  The nice thing is that this kind of thing is entirely true to the genre, so it shouldn't be too jarring to the PCs.  A major storm works as you can use that to explain them being unable to travel, their cell phones not working, and the land-lines being down as well.  The down side of this is that it also keeps you from providing information via internet research, contacting sources, etc.  However, if this is the kind of isolation you want to create, no worries.

If your group is comprised of DG friendlies, it's possible that they may only have once contact method to get in touch with DG (one telephone number or email address).  If nobody is picking up the phone or answering their emails, this has the effect of severing them from the rest of DG, even if it doesn't isolate them from the rest of the world.

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21

RPGs / Re: rifts muthafuckas!

« on: May 14, 2009, 10:00:16 AM »

There's something to be said for a game where you can make a hyper-intelligent, telekinetic toaster as your character and not have it be the weirdest character in the group ...

That said, yeah -- rules bad.

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22

RPGs / Re: Hunter the Vigil Discussion Thread

« on: May 13, 2009, 08:12:57 PM »

My game is more sandbox focused.

I'm hoping to move to a more sandbox type game after the first interlude used to compel the PCs to work together.  What I'm hoping for is a situation where the PC respond to attacks on their turf, but also seek to expand the area they control.  As they go, I'll probably have them run into representatives of other conspiracies and compacts, some of which may aid them, and some of which will almost certainly manipulate them.  I'm picturing a city that is already at war, with various supernatural forces striking out at each other as well as the PCs.  The idea of the PCs chasing down a car full of vampire gangbangers that is simultaneously trying to do a driveby on fleeing werewolves sounds like fun to me. 

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23

RPGs / Re: Hunter the Vigil Discussion Thread

« on: May 13, 2009, 02:57:18 PM »

What's the premise for your game (or do your players haunt the forums looking for secrets)? 

The game I'm considering running would be making use of the Block By Bloody Block supplement.  I'm envisioning a game where some of the PCs are police and the rest are criminals.  I'd start the game with an Assault On Precinct 13 type incident in which all the PCs are in the police station when it's attacked by "something".  From here, I'd move to the PCs becoming full-fledged Hunters and starting to take back their city from the supernatural forces arrayed against them.

Some of the tricky things (and the solutions I'm playing with) would be:

Why do the cops and criminals work together? -- Well, they all get dumped into it together anyway.  Also, I'm envisioning criminals with ties to a gang or organized crime, who also have a stake in protecting their turf.  I'd need to emphasize to the characters playing criminals that certain types of characters are right out (no serial killers, sex offenders, etc.).  Also, both character types would have something to bring to the table.  The cop characters have the advantage of being able to play on their authority, to an extent, and to the resources given to them by the police department.  Conversely, the criminal characters will have other, different resources, and won't be saddled by legal niceties that may restrict the cops.

How do the cops at one precinct manage to operate city-wide? -- I'm thinking that the cop PCs are all members of the "Special Investigation Unit", which is in reality a dumping ground for cops who have screwed up, offended the wrong higher-up, or are just a little off of normal.  This lets me put their HQ in a run-down precinct, while still giving them license to operate city-wide.  Also, this helps explain why they might be a bit more amenable to working with unsavoury criminal types towards "the greater good."

Anyway, those are just some initial musings ...

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24

RPGs / Re: Red Flags of Gaming

« on: May 13, 2009, 11:21:03 AM »

Had the first brain storm meeting of the eveing Hunter the Vigil game. One of the players, after being continually pressed for information about their character's goals, basically said she didn't want to hunt monsters.

Red flag for a Hunter game.

The player didn't want to, or the character didn't want to?  I could see a character who didn't really want to fight monsters but did anyway because of some sort of compulsion, oath, duty, etc.  If it's the player who doesn't want to then yeah ... big red flag.

Note: I'm currently jotting down notes for a possible Hunter campaign -- I'd be interested in hearing what you're planning to do with yours, if you're interested in talking about it in another thread.

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25

RPGs / Re: What makes you scared, and How can you make a RPG game truly frightful???

« on: May 11, 2009, 03:15:59 PM »

One thing that has worked for me in the past is that, no matter what you choose, never describe it in full or let the PCs get a good look at it.  Describe it as "a blur of shadowy motion", "a shifting shape at the edge of your vision", or "a scuttling figure, seen out of the corner of your eye."  No matter what you come up with, it won't be as terrifying to the players as the unknown (or the images that pop into their head).

Another key ingredient of horror is isolation.  Sometimes this is physical isolation (such as being trapped in a spaceship stranded in deepspace) or it can be psychological isolation (the PCs know that there are horrible things lurking in the shadows, but can't get anyone to believe them).

Thirdly, I think one of the hardest things about running horror in an RPG is that the horror theme relies on a state of powerlessness.  In most horror stories, the enemy is far more powerful than the protagonist, forcing them to flee or otherwise act defensively until they can come up with a way to defeat it.  This is a bit of a switch from most RPG games, where the PCs tend to have decent odds in a stand-up fight against the majority of the enemies they encounter, and it can be tough for even veteran gamers to make that mental "switch."

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26

General Chaos / Re: Introduction

« on: May 11, 2009, 07:39:21 AM »

I also doubt our government is much into conspiracy.

Maze: I have been tasked to communicate to you that the Supreme Command is pleased by your efforts to divert attention from our ongoing efforts.  Also, the green falcon tapdances at the fairgrounds.

 

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27

RPGs / Re: The RPPR Forum Users AD&D Stated Party

« on: May 07, 2009, 06:30:07 PM »

What I'm saying is: The shit was very real back in the day.

3d6 and hold them.  I once played a character whose highest stat was a 10 ... he just qualified to be a thief.  Yeah, a thief.  No politically correct "rogues" back then.  We were what we were.

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28

RPGs / Re: Question about what system to use

« on: May 07, 2009, 06:28:18 PM »

If you're looking for a game with heavy "adventure" elements, you might want to check out the Savage Worlds system.  It's very much into the theme of an "Excursion To Darkest Africa", although you might want to ease back a bit on the pulpier elements.

I'm not very familiar with GURPS, but there's almost certainly some sourcebooks to cover what you want to run. 

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29

General Chaos / Re: Introduction

« on: May 07, 2009, 09:19:00 AM »

Guess I should have looked for this thread when I arrived -- how rude of me.

Hi!  I'm a 31 year old gamer from Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, and one of only six people in the whole city that does not work for Research In Motion (the BlackBerry makers).  I'm considering a career of superherodom, as one of the top guys behind Research In Motion is named Dr. Lazaritus, which is so clearly a super-villain name.  It's good to go into a job with pre-defined goals.

I've played a ton of different systems, with favourites being D&D 3.5 (now a Paizo Pathfinder fan), Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu, Paranoia XP, and Cyberpunk 2020.  I've recently picked up some NWoD, after being assured by friends that White Wolf no longer requires you to dye your hair black and shop at Hot Topic (I kid!, I kid!).

Anyway, I'm still working on catching up with the RPRR podcasts - I'm on the New World Actual Play #4, but hopefully I'll be able to join in on some of the more current conversations once I finish my homework, and get up to date. 

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30

Role Playing Public Radio Podcast / Re: Cody Fan Club

« on: May 04, 2009, 09:12:23 AM »

Oh man, I can't misspell a word in my flesh! All the other mad cult leaders will think I'm an idiot...

What's something properly disturbing that begins with D.E.D.A.?

Dedal (adj.): The archaic form of daedal which means skillful, ingenious, cleverly intricate.

How's that work? 

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