tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30994707317154985232012-01-29T20:45:36.909-08:00People read this shit?Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.comBlogger1041100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-2390551263863816572012-01-29T11:56:00.000-08:002012-01-29T11:56:19.297-08:00

On saving throws: Greg: Another thing we've been talking about recently is saving throws and what you guys think about them and the future of D&D?  Monte: Making a saving throw against something has become something that's really a part of D&D. So again, what we've done is tie those into the ability scores. For example you'll make a strength saving throw or wisdom saving throw against a

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-23009890052929261672012-01-27T14:30:00.000-08:002012-01-27T14:30:02.850-08:00

From the "Charting the Course: An Edition for All Editions" seminar: "So instead of the fighter’s attack bonus going up, up, up every level, maybe it goes up every few levels and he gets other things at the other levels. So you can go back to that orc and know that this is the same exact orc that nearly slaughtered you at level 1. It gives you a bar to see your character advance." That sounds

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-36546875942728461922012-01-27T09:38:00.001-08:002012-01-27T09:38:21.040-08:00

The original Dungeons & Dragons is a game about two, maybe three things: exploration, combat, and accumulation. In no other game do you have such a strong tangible way of measuring the expertise and power of adventurer then by the wealth they have accumulated. It makes sense in a way that future editions fail to: the longer you survive, the more wealth you accumulate, the better you get at

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-27856576056384905942012-01-18T22:55:00.000-08:002012-01-18T22:55:40.182-08:00

From the WotC website: "In 1974, the world changed forever when Gary Gygax introduced the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The legacy of his innovative ideas and the extensive reach of his powerful influence can be seen in virtually every facet of gaming today. To help honor his work and his memory, we created limited-edition reprints of the original 1st Edition core rulebooks: the Monster

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-41672131244824189362012-01-10T14:25:00.001-08:002012-01-10T14:25:16.504-08:00

Remember fans, there already is a 5th edition made by a team of loving and hardcore gamers who understand what good games, gamers, and referees are made of. It's called Hackmaster. And it rocks.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-57109828586664028472012-01-09T09:55:00.000-08:002012-01-09T11:32:49.797-08:00

Brothers and sisters, my message to you today is a simple one: do not trust the white man bearing gifts. Fifth edition has been announced (to no one's surprise, which has got to be some sort of record for a holder of the D&D license), although they are calling it a new "iteration". Wizards of the Coast wants to do open playtests, and have the fans give feedback and shape the development of the

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-64776453592137412212011-12-24T21:34:00.000-08:002011-12-24T21:34:42.913-08:00

And as we keep hurtling through the cold dead of space in an elliptical rotation around a singular star in the sol system, these great mysteries and wonders of the the cosmos may hit us like bolts of thunder for the mind, causing us to reflect on events that have transpired before the completion of another calendar year. And because you read my crap, and I still keep making this crap ('cause poop

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-52241783301332955252011-12-14T22:49:00.000-08:002011-12-15T08:27:59.073-08:00

A lot of people are saying "Fuck WotC for letting go Steve Winters and Rich Baker!" And brothers and sisters, I would normally be with you in the church singing those praises high into heaven. But you got to look at this from another angle. WotC = shit. Leaving WotC = wiping the shit off your boots. Look at the trends. Paizo's business is booming. They have been hiring these cast aside WotC/

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-90583038857094056432011-12-04T15:18:00.001-08:002011-12-04T15:21:38.537-08:00

So James at the Underdark Gazette is closing shop and moving the OSR news to a new blog. Why? 'Cause the dude is afraid for the ways IP is being protected in this country. Do I blame him? No. Is this blog entry about him? No. Fuck you WoTC. You already wrecked the best fantasy game of all time, but you didn't want to stop at that. You're sending out C&Ds like holiday cards. You take away PDFs of

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-74205164426535531812011-11-29T12:07:00.001-08:002011-12-02T20:10:21.862-08:00

How many times have you, John Q. Public, seen an awesome game and thought "Man I'd love to get my group to play this, but the people I know don't all want to spend the money to each get their own book for a game they might not like." I know that sometimes the hardest part in group game adoption is the buy in, especially in these economically strapped times where some people don't have the

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-6844276613710147312011-11-28T14:08:00.001-08:002011-11-28T14:11:40.833-08:00

The key search phrase that has the third highest gross hits of all time bringing traffic here is: moldyvale.blogspot.com Why I do believe that warrants a double face palm. There is no intelligent life here. And what the hell, let's throw in a wah wah for good measure.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-91499126242595745742011-11-22T18:06:00.001-08:002011-11-22T18:18:50.197-08:00

I imagine Wizards of the Coast is feeling that way after hearing the announcement of the Pathfinder MMORPG. And you know what? Since a computer is doing all the complicated fuckwork that it takes to run Pathfinder, I think I would actually play this. It has to be better than this piece of shit: This is only slightly more entertaining than watching The View.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-2324169362533379912011-11-22T05:35:00.001-08:002011-11-22T11:06:13.787-08:00

Yes, the title of this post describes the latest Legends and Lore article by Monte Cook. You can tell that good ol' Monte is running out of steam for these articles because he tackles the all-important topic of attacks of opportunity. I might have to clarify myself a bit for some readers (though none of the OSR crowd, I imagine), because they might say "I can't tell if Orion is being serious or

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-90373296067569395012011-11-16T13:03:00.001-08:002011-11-16T13:03:53.555-08:00

Okay my fellow miscreants and mutants, I'm gonna lay it out for you: I'm not going to dissect the latest Legends and Lore column for you because I needs to plays my Skyrim; my Redguard is hella badass, and not just because I play on novice difficulty. Instead of the dissection, we're going to do a quick rundown. I counted thirteen paragraphs plus one question in bold type, and it's all complete

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-40893884320758595262011-11-09T22:37:00.000-08:002011-11-09T22:38:41.477-08:00

So, false alarm people. Monte Cook did not announce 5th edition as I had screamed in the shower this morning, but instead he announced something much more terrifying. Brothers and sisters: Geek Seekers. Because, you know, people who investigate the paranormal are not geeky and dorky enough already. But now we get even more unrelated geekiness and paranormal investigation as presented by Aeon

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-24098179321234512492011-11-08T03:44:00.000-08:002011-11-08T18:57:28.584-08:00

Before I serenade you with the sweet smell of the rotten fruit of my wit, I would like to point out something which I had noticed only moments before sitting down to write this post: Mike Mearls wrote the latest Legends and Lore column. Gentle readers, you may ask, whither did go our usual punching bag, Monte Cook? You might be thinking "oh man, the moldy guy has let it all go to his head, he's

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-38697421311339818182011-11-02T22:32:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:51:25.571-08:00

Oh man, you don't know how much Tuesday has become my favorite day of the week. I wake up in the morning, drop a load, shower and shave, put on my robe, walk into the kitchen and brew some coffee, and then I open my laptop to witness the weekly chucklefest that is Monte Cook's Legends and Lore. It's almost as satisfying as a kicking a shithead teenager. But what happened when I read the latest

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-29590042522777545102011-10-30T22:48:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:52:19.787-08:00

Today, without much fanfare, the word press blog known as YDIS, or Your Dungeon Is Suck, was taken down for violating terms of agreement. Surprisingly, or maybe not surprisingly, there is little discussion about it, as it was a much maligned blog, and the writer no less. I'd like to talk a little about the SuckDungeon in a somber tone, if you don't mind. Please don't misconstrue my musings as an

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-65741532342545006872011-10-28T12:48:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:52:51.510-08:00

Note that there is no correlation between these two statements, WotC: I think you should go fuck yourself, and you didn't ask me for help. But here I am, ready to outline how to fucking save your business from yourself, because you seemed hellbent on driving D&D into the ground and smoking cigars and drinking port at your annual big bad guys meeting. So, here is where you went wrong. 2008.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-23315495427395535182011-10-25T14:08:00.001-07:002011-11-08T03:53:15.777-08:00

I'm not going to link you to Monte Cook's latest Legends and Lore. Google that shit. Monte Cook presents three levels of what I like to call "rules entanglements". The first option is simple, needs little memorization, but also allows for a high degree of referee ruling. Example two is more detailed, but not quite as expansive. Example three made me feel like I was back in 'Nam getting shot at

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-60355286367037987602011-10-24T10:27:00.001-07:002011-11-08T03:53:55.386-08:00

From Monte Cook's blog, The Chapel Perilous: "Lastly, I have a brand new project being announced on Monday, so stay tuned for that. An announcement on Halloween! Oooooh. Scary?" (takes big breath) IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH EDITION IT'S 5TH

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-86440449173247519562011-10-20T11:55:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:54:15.143-08:00

I went online to look at prices for Castle Zagyg: the Upper Works and then I saw the prices for the Upper Works and then I read about what the Upper Works actually were and I looked at the prices again and I made myself sad because I didn't buy this when it was released in 2008 :(

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-55429234603224139372011-10-18T10:19:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:54:42.931-08:00

I leave for three months and when I come back, what is this do I see? Mike Mearls has stepped down as writer for Legends and Lore? Score one for the proletariat! But wait, lo does a new challenger appear. Monte J. Cook. Who the fuck is this guy? Originally I was going to go to Wikipedia to edit his entry to say that he lives in Kentucky and lost all his teeth when he moved to the hills, but it

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-88239945465166140112011-07-27T13:51:00.001-07:002011-11-08T03:55:01.162-08:00

Orion took the Hardest Gary Gygax Quiz in the World and got 80%! You are a Gary Gygax Superhero. If aliens ever invade Earth and challkenge us to a Gary Gygax trivia contest, you will be our champion. Paladin Code: You completed this quiz without using Google.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-38290337835652459292011-07-08T16:36:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:55:24.669-08:00

Mike Mearls devises the premise for Castle and Crusades. Quick! Someone tell Chenault! He's gonna be either pissed or angry! I'm guessing both. If WotC released a new edition and it looked like Castles and Crusades, you would be incredibly dumb to pick it up. Not only are they going to make the usual batch of drivel they call "Player's Option" books, but they are also gonna sell you rules

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-76947313181248473042011-06-23T15:56:00.000-07:002011-11-08T03:55:56.095-08:00

I don't hate Wizards of the Coast, I just hate the idea that some people have that we need the IP holders of Dungeons and Dragons to validate what the OSR is doing, or to validate old games or game styles. Let me tell you a story about Bupkiss Slovacky. Bupkiss started working at the turd factory before it was known as such, when it was known as This Shit Rules gaming company. Bupkiss made cool

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-76400505519424009952011-06-22T07:38:00.000-07:002011-06-22T07:38:00.988-07:00

Somehow, between June 7th and today, I've been receiving on average 300 pageviews a day, up from an average of 20 a day. What the fucks guys? Are people really waiting for that review of Advanced Fighting Fantasy (on the boiler, I swear, it's coming)? I've been geen traffic from blog posts that don't mention me at all. I can't even fathom what's going on. You all read the history of this blog

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-33585516714589996872011-05-08T10:42:00.000-07:002011-05-08T10:42:23.191-07:00

This last year, I've been getting into the habit of pre-ordering gaming books and products and being pleasantly surprised when they show up (except for my Grindhouse box and Vornheim hardcover, which somehow everyone else in the OSR blogosphere has gotten one and I still haven't, but I digress.) Yesterday, I received my Advanced Fighting Fantasy RPG pre-order, which came with the main rulebook,

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-73921872259728802322011-04-26T08:23:00.000-07:002011-04-26T08:23:04.476-07:00

Drawn by Zak S. During the height of the Megalosian empire, there was a strange wizard who had appearantly gone insane. As far as the magister lords go, this isn't too uncommon, but this wizard claimed he had made dealings with creatures outside of known existance and had seen dimensions of such capacities that defied our normal laws of nature. His name isn't important, but the contribution he

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-37362076953464754632011-04-24T11:43:00.000-07:002011-04-24T11:46:49.138-07:00

This first session is the culmination of months of reading, pontificating, and some small amount of prep work. Also included in the previous list, lot's of purchasing of old school products. I simultaneously curse and bless James Raggi for making me want things that he will not give away for free. I had managed to contact a super nice guy on EN World, who through his efforts (and some mine),

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-56045774705295468102011-04-13T22:11:00.000-07:002011-04-13T22:11:32.764-07:00

If reaction roll results in hostile action, roll 1d10 to determine reasoning. 1. Their shaman had a vision and you are the monster they need to slay. 2. You accidentally trampled upon holy ground. 3. Your people have wronged their people one too many times. 4. They are hungry and they have depleted all local sources of food. 5. They are under the battle lust and you are the first target in

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-43225644738174395532011-03-14T22:57:00.000-07:002011-03-14T22:57:10.478-07:00

The infamous Mike Mearls has been conducting informal polls on his weekly column, Legends and Lore. Appearantly this was the last poll question: Your fighter loses all his or her feats, skills, powers, and non-weapon proficiencies. Yet, your standard swing with a sword/shot with a bow is effective enough that you don’t feel overshadowed by any of the other characters in the group. How do you feel

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-79248660868841250442011-03-10T10:33:00.000-08:002011-03-10T10:33:34.242-08:00

You're such a pretty girl, aren't you? Welcome to the fringe OSR. DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!!!

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-6711109709154873692011-03-07T21:03:00.000-08:002011-03-07T21:03:41.769-08:00

I'm totally pimping this because it's cheap and it's a novel way to quickly and easily model market fluctuations in a fantasy campaign, as well as a modern and sci-fi campaign. Folks, this is Playing the Market. The premise is pretty simple. You determine the amount of dice available from a settlement due to it's market power and then you roll them. From the results you both determine how many

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-91276713075678571332011-02-23T16:39:00.000-08:002011-02-23T16:39:26.266-08:00

In the process of hammering a deal for some artwork for a special OSR-related project. Gotta keep hitting those key number letters buttons on my folding computer sandwich if I'm ever going to release it. In the meanwhile, if you haven't already seen it, I really really REALLY urge you to check out Hideouts and Hoodlums. Scott Caspar has done an incredible job switching the genre on the old

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-23835581440467212142011-02-20T09:16:00.000-08:002011-02-20T09:28:44.961-08:00

"That sentiment popped Churchill’s opening quote into my mind. These days, when we think about D&D’s past and present, we all too often think of it in adversarial tones. 4th Edition is a lame tabletop MMO. 3rd Edition is for number-crunching losers. 2nd Edition is for setting junkies. 1st Edition is for people obsessed with polearms. Let’s not even talk about Basic D&D. Who plays that?" -Mike

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-72571879018838900252011-02-07T17:18:00.000-08:002011-02-07T17:18:26.258-08:00

Elves, as they will appear in my (soon to happen one day) campaign. Lovingly stolen from Poul Anderson as a main source. The Elvish Folk Elves are a capricious and magical folk that inhabit the fey realms that co-inhabit the untouched forests of the realm. They are aligned with chaos and can only create more of their own race by stealing human infants and replacing them with changelings (the

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-13980854736234297262011-02-02T14:54:00.000-08:002011-02-02T14:54:01.892-08:00

Oooh shiny ... As I sit here inking my GameScience precision dice, I have been thinking about referring a game of OD&D. I have done lots of reading (Medieval Life In A [Insert Settlement Here]), and only one week ago have I began to put pen to paper and begin the process of creating content for my game.  I purchased a copy of Outdoor Survival for use of the game board during my D&D sessions.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-54106292628224509852010-10-16T11:16:00.001-07:002010-10-16T11:16:55.286-07:00

"I've used material from my daughter's Care Bears cartoons and I am completely unrepentant. If there's room for shame in this sort of thing (a debatable point in my opinion) it's in using way too much stuff gleaned from places like Appendix N. Everybody should develop their own list of dubious source materials they like to rip off." - Jeff Rients

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-82619602822067858902010-10-13T18:32:00.001-07:002010-10-13T18:32:45.048-07:00

Is there such a thing? Can anyone recommend one, if it exists?

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-64893466632671724532010-09-22T20:08:00.000-07:002010-09-22T20:08:20.930-07:00

There has been a conundrum of which I have been grappling with for sometime. Based on the three little booklets for D&D, the political organization of the Outdoor Survival map seems to be true feudalism. There are several keeps and fortresses being managed by high level fighting-men, clerics, and magic-users. The problem in my mind was, what happens to the heir? This was my line of thinking: say

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-70128090806029936222010-09-22T18:47:00.000-07:002010-09-22T18:49:12.943-07:00

I now own a copy of the original white box. From my understanding, it is the sixth edition, or "collector's edition". The three booklets are in great condition, albeit some minor staple rust, and are sturdier than I imagined. Yeah, that one! I have to tell you, I've been reading the three little booklets off my laptop screen for some months now, and the experience of actually reading the real

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-69929901315305023902010-09-18T10:05:00.000-07:002010-09-18T10:05:13.629-07:00

You might think I'd choose the Moldevay basic rulebook cover as my favorite, as it was the first version I played, ran, and still retain (two copies no less) to this day. But you'd be wrong. I also had a copy of the Holmes basic rulebook, but somewhere along the way, I lost it. But to me, this picture of a magic user and a fighting man fighting a dragon among a treasure pile is very evocative

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-11354411527670796252010-09-16T12:22:00.000-07:002010-09-16T12:22:20.740-07:00

I have been reading these little booklets since I received them back in August, and I may have to let a little fanboy-ism creep in. Yes, it is true people: where once I held Wizards of the Coast on a golden pillar with sparklies and glow sticks, I have decided to kick them off. For a while, James Maliszewski sat on that pillar, but he's been kinda stuffy lately. And also: HE DIDN'T MAKE THE BEXT

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-14928242061388539202010-09-15T18:38:00.000-07:002010-09-15T18:38:20.861-07:00

I'm willing to believe that Mike Mearls is a classic gamer and is using his position to influence the development of D&D back to something more akin to the real "red box". However, unless they publish a simulacrum of the three little booklets, I still don't really care about what Wizards of the Coast is doing with D&D, and that includes their new red box. I like Mike Mearls. He did Iron Heroes.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-8452072462409715232010-09-14T07:52:00.000-07:002010-09-14T07:52:03.805-07:00

FakeTSR wrote: "MisterFiendZero TomBrend That depends on whether you believe in the vengeful, Old Testament Gygax." I see it now so clearly. Gary is the bible. In the old testament, Gary is vengeful and adversarial. In the new testament, he is forgiving and amiable. Or maybe he never become forgiving and amiable to his players. Discuss.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-15827708854904615832010-08-09T20:58:00.001-07:002010-08-09T20:58:15.572-07:00

I got my Weird Fantasy Role-Playing box. Review coming soon.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-13104467349731556992010-06-23T20:32:00.000-07:002010-06-23T20:32:21.545-07:00

After a month of dilly dally and suffering a 3 weeks stretch of working with no day off in sight, I have managed to finish my second project: rewriting the spells descriptions in the original booklets and compiling them in a PDF. Additionally, you will find rules for scribing scrolls and brewing potions, a short description of how Magic-Users and Clerics differ, and rules for reincarnation (that

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-4306620377297966732010-06-02T09:12:00.000-07:002010-06-02T09:12:32.725-07:00

I am selling off some books to help a friend in need. Unfortunetly, the first round of auctions failed, so I've decided to sell them off at $5 each (plus $4 shipping and handling) to the person who wants them first. I only accept payments via paypal. There is more information at EN World here: http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/277357-help-me-help-my-friend-auctions.html Among

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-41026856324400702022010-05-30T11:04:00.000-07:002010-05-30T11:04:43.312-07:00

I am finally putting up what is planned to be one of a few booklets designed at letting experienced gamers who are unfamiliar with OD&D create a character in the games I plan to run in the future. If you look inside it, you will see it is a combination of OD&D, Chainmail, and Swords and Wizardry. Now if I will ever get to run the thing, that is the real question .... The second part I plan to

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-44506733137528127922010-05-19T09:53:00.000-07:002010-05-19T09:53:51.072-07:00

Rat Men may only be Fighting-Men and may not progress higher than 4th level (Hero). However, they have several advantages: 1) They are highly resistant and make their saving throws as if they were four levels higher (as a Dwarf); 2) Creatures larger than a man adjust their To Hit rolls by -2 when attacking a Rat Man in melee; 3) They have a highly developed olfactory sense; 4) They have a natural

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-69743039931273568822010-05-15T20:51:00.000-07:002010-05-15T20:51:39.670-07:00

Goblins may only be Fighting-Men and they may progress no higher than 4th level (Hero). However, they have several advantages: 1) Creatures man-sized or larger adjust their To Hit rolls by -2 when making an attack against a Goblin; 2) They can eat spoiled, rotted, or otherwise polluted foodstuffs and not suffer any malady for it; 3) Goblins are almost undetectable if they choose to move silently

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-2443793297404106982010-05-13T10:38:00.001-07:002010-05-13T10:38:43.926-07:00

This post is brought to you in part by Jeff Rients. I was skimming my copy of 'The Miscellaneum of Cinder' when I came across one of the low-powered magical items - a goblin deck of cards marked so that only characters with infravision can see the marks. I suddenly freaked out by how awesome that is, when you consider that none of the races in Men & Magic have infravision. I suddenly became more

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-7809559736790032262010-05-05T09:51:00.000-07:002010-05-05T09:51:25.356-07:00

I am halfway through reading The Elfish Gene by Mark Barrowcliffe, and most of the experience has been awkward and unpleasant. I will admit, this is mostly because I discovered Dungeons & Dragons at the tender age of 11 and I grew up with it as an influence in my life. And I will also admit, that despite my dislike of the narrator of the book and his various social gaffes, the writer himself has

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-17149000999799812572010-04-20T10:50:00.000-07:002010-04-20T10:50:41.329-07:00

I've been thinking lately about an abstract combat sheet, a sheet of paper that tracks positioning in combat without being too complex, can facilitate minis but doesn't require a battle map or the need to draw the surroundings on the grid, and is compatible with most of the games put out by the OSR. A tall order, I know, but bare (bear?) with me. This idea first came up when I wrote the one-post

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-48891447540701800022010-04-13T08:43:00.000-07:002010-04-13T12:06:21.431-07:00

If there is one thing I am glad for, it's that the practice of "borrowing" from other games or settings is still a widely practiced method of development among OSR, and ultimately, among all gamers. There was a time when it was considered a form of flattery to imitate another's work; and while this practice has fallen out of the realm of flattery among writers, it is thankfully still a positive

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-5255282924155869382010-03-24T07:58:00.000-07:002010-03-24T07:58:07.490-07:00

Is lamezorz.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-75430358745408719922010-03-04T08:09:00.000-08:002010-03-04T08:09:49.249-08:00

I never met Gary Gygax; it was one of those things I consciously decided to put off until one day when I was comfortable and had the means to do so at my whim. I figured I'd meet him at GenCon, in Milwaukee (and the sad part about this one is, I had to google to remember where it used to be, because it's been in Indianapolis so long, I've forgotten). Having never met him, and now, not having the

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-53462906818061944562010-01-11T09:53:00.000-08:002010-01-11T09:54:45.557-08:00

I'm not exactly sure how many people feel the terms "Priest" and "Cleric" are interchangeable; I know I've felt the same way in the past and have used the two terms to describe what I thought was the Cleric class, even though evidence to the contrary has been all up in my grill the entire time. Let me quote a particular section from the revised Labyrinth Lord rulebook about Clerics: "Clerics are

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-9448932326002488082010-01-05T13:35:00.000-08:002010-01-05T13:36:05.370-08:00

As I mentioned in a previous post, one of my gaming resolutions was to create a wilderness map with a home base, dungeon. and stock it with various Wilderlands encounters. After two weeks of dice generation, drawing, and coloring, I have created the following piece: http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/view.php?id=1660013&da=y I used the article in Fight On #2 to generate the random terrain,

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-42492887905546543982010-01-03T09:20:00.000-08:002010-01-03T09:20:49.806-08:00

After giving it some thought, I decided on my new years resolutions for my gaming life, and my general life. I dare say, the resolutions of my gaming endeavors are much more demanding, albeit much more satisfying. With no more mincing of words, here are my resolutions: 1) As I've finished drawing and coloring a hex map of a wilderness (using the random wilderness generation guidelines from Fight

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-10832393416628177662009-12-29T09:27:00.000-08:002009-12-29T09:51:53.274-08:00

As the new year approaches, I find myself lacking much to say, but with so much more to do that this poor old blog often finds itself in neglect. Reading the new year retrospectives of a few of the OSR bloggers has caused me to think about why I started this blog myself, and perhaps on why I neglect to write anything most of the time (or post poorly photoshopped pictures).I initially started this

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-71544969700334868302009-12-05T09:28:00.000-08:002009-12-05T09:47:30.257-08:00

P. Armstrong over at Ode to Black Dougal recently did a post about hex crawling and stocking (which seems to have been the popular topic), and of course, in a better late than never fashion, I have my fill to say of the hex stocking. There is a lot of good advice on the handling of hex crawling, but Mr. Armstrong's method of stocking is what I find to be the most brilliant gem of the bunch.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-67466120982281213562009-11-30T23:12:00.000-08:002009-12-01T07:38:17.019-08:00

I'll admit that I didn't pick up Death Frost Doom when it first came out; in fact, I picked it up as the other half of an order for the Grinding Gear, based on the word of Jeff Rients. After reading Death Frost Doom, I will keep a closer eye in future LotFP releases, because not only does James Raggi the IV talk a mean game, but he also writes a mean module.Death Frost Doom is a 28 page booklet.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-56032940216972509382009-11-29T12:37:00.000-08:002009-11-29T12:47:58.742-08:00

It is the thing people are talking about, and my roommate finally invited me, so if you want, you can reach me at oriondc at googlewave dot com.I've been thinking about putting together a submission for Fight On, and I think I'd like to tackle a psionicist class. Psionics has always held an appeal to me; for the longest time, it was a mysterious force that I had no knowledge of. Without the books

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-76308299887813543972009-11-25T11:13:00.001-08:002009-11-25T11:44:26.048-08:00

It's not all that rare for me to have an epiphany about the old school roots of D&D when I flit about the various OSR blogs on my list. Anyone could tell you that if you hang around long enough and peruse the gems that are the blogs of, say, James Raggi the IV or James Maliszewski, you're going expand your current mindset quite a bit. It is a bit of brown-nosing, I admit, but it isn't undue.After

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-25944437997848396892009-11-15T10:42:00.001-08:002009-11-15T11:02:04.449-08:00

Forgive the philosophical references: I'm taking such a class this semester. One thing that has been drilled into my brain from this class is the concept of bliks, or bliking. A blik, as best as I understand it, is a claim we make that we would not allow any amount of evidence to disprove. This is also similar to Plato's allegory of the cave, that in some way, we are all in a cave, and as such,

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-85510350153210978192009-11-09T11:18:00.000-08:002009-11-09T11:41:20.496-08:00

I confine this discussion in to D&D because there are preconceived notions that I want to dispell about the Dungeon Master as a sort of deity which is, incidentally, an arguement used often against the OSR community. I doubt this will be a popular piece of exposition, but perhaps it will aid in understanding the position of the DM, and help shift the title from DM to Referee, which is a more

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-23503255445487814892009-09-10T19:28:00.000-07:002009-09-10T19:29:26.858-07:00

Would anyone be interested in playtesting Badass Presidents or Of Men and Jackals in exchange for a free booklet of the game they playtest? Email at talath [at] comcast [dot] net.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-10311478877987784012009-08-28T15:44:00.001-07:002009-08-28T15:55:17.745-07:00

Clarification: ExchangeAn exchange is the progression of the steps to resolve deadly combat. An exchange begins before Step 1 and ends after Step 5. Thus, the completion of Steps 1 to 5 is one exchange. If, at Step 5, there are opponents who still wish to fight, the current exchange ends and a new one begins.Rule Insertion: HealingIf a character has one or more Kills inflited upon him in deadly

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-20968968178795296812009-08-26T18:37:00.000-07:002009-08-26T22:31:08.386-07:00

Of Men & Jackalsby Orion CooperHow to Create A Character1. Roll 3d6 for the three attributes: Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution.2. Each of the following Vagaries starts at 1: Athletics, Awareness, and Thievery. Add 1 to any of the three Vagaries.4. Record your Level as 1. Record your Experience Points as 0. Record your Attack Dice as 1. Record your Kill Value as 1. Record your Save Value as

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-58885575757555656682009-08-01T09:57:00.000-07:002009-08-01T10:32:38.864-07:00

Let me talk about the players I have gathered for my Thursday night Labyrinth Lord group, and discuss a little about their backgrounds with gaming and their reactions to my campaign as far, with some of my own commentary thrown in.Aaron M. is a friend of mine from early 2005 whom started playing D&D with 2nd edition. As such, he has been exposed to games with strong narrativist elements, and

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-13666430288697405282009-07-21T23:47:00.000-07:002009-07-21T23:50:06.552-07:00

Let's forget for a moment, that of the five people playing, 4 chose to be demihumans. I don't restrict character types, but come on. For fuck sakes. I may let the elves live so they can feel the sting of high XP requirements.Oh well, that's what TPKs are for.The party started off in a nameless village in Misteldale, a village of around 200 people. They overheard a farmer talking about the

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-26635021763884686412009-07-21T09:05:00.000-07:002009-07-21T09:20:33.135-07:00

Devil DogA creation, in part, from the Random Esoteric Creature Generator by James Edward Raggi the IV.Hit Dice: 1-1Armor Class: 8Attacks: 1Damage: 1-4Movement: 120' (40')Saves As: Fighter 1Morale: 8Alignment: NeutralTreasure: NilExperience Points: 5Devil Dogs are a lean and malnourished looking quadruped the size of a great dane, but the resemblance ends there. It's canine body has patches of

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-56876407575960546612009-07-13T07:20:00.000-07:002009-07-13T07:22:34.942-07:00

That my players for my Thursday LL game will do everything I ask of them to create characters, but will not hire any hirelings or mercenaries, for whatever reason.I never mention hirelings and mercenaries because I want the players to come up with the idea themselves.Doubtful.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-87758855215989368392009-07-11T21:53:00.000-07:002009-07-11T22:11:01.282-07:00

I will be starting up a Forgotten Realms game using Labyrinth Lord soon, and the one thing I wanted to do I found myself having to think about before I came to the conclusion as to how best to implement it.The Problem: As I described in an earlier post, I had an idea of using a generic combination of unnamed deities categorized by alignment. Thus, there are the Gods of Law, the Gods of Neutrality

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-48970185416501574212009-07-11T21:26:00.000-07:002009-07-11T21:46:48.225-07:00

James Maliszewski over at Grognardia reviewed Carcosa back during late 2008, and while he had some illuminating points to make, I find myself disagreeing with him on the point of the aesthetics of Carcosa. It's not that I don't care if the booklet looks like an homage to the original booklets, or if it's close, or not, but rather, I am so overwhelmed by the content that I do not care. However, I

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-37101560209602815872009-07-05T19:41:00.000-07:002009-07-05T19:45:17.506-07:00

I'm looking for people who are interested in playtesting game rules. I recently developed a mini-game for brawling, and plan to produce more. If anyone is interested, please let me know. I will consider posting the rules pdf on this blog.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-22232583664556619912009-06-27T08:58:00.000-07:002009-06-27T09:50:37.194-07:00

When I had heard that Kenzer and Company had already begun working on a new edition of Hackmaster, I was very excited. When 4th edition had arrived, I bought the PHB, the GMG, all Hacklopedias, the Monster Matrix, the Mages guide, the Fighters guide, the Gaws and Demigawds guides, numerous modules, and so on and so forth. Easily, the best product they put out was the Game Master's Shield, which I

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-70753463075836046842009-06-15T17:32:00.000-07:002009-06-15T17:37:13.268-07:00

I returned from Hawaii last week on a red-eye flight that was delayed two hours. In other news, I finished writing the classes section yesterday. It took a different turn than when I had written down the notes in my notepad. From what is written currently, there are four classes: Brawns, Brains, Sneaks, and Socialites. Brawns give a bonus to combat, Brains have a good Saving Throw, Sneaks do

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-46470522117969502052009-06-04T07:57:00.000-07:002009-06-15T18:30:27.656-07:00

Yes, I'm going to Hawaii today, for a week. I know, I'm a complete douchebag for taking a vacation to Hawaii.See you guys in a week!

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-73843468522866928222009-06-02T13:40:00.000-07:002009-06-02T14:30:22.665-07:00

Yesterday, I grabbed my copy of Fight On! volume 2 and Grim's Blank Hex Sheets and started rolling dice and drawing maps. After a few hours, I had developed a wilderness, a home base, the location of the (unstarted) dungeon, a few towns and villages, a keep, some rivers, and I called it a day.I placed a city on the shore (the southern end of the map), and gave it a name: Anvando, which is an

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-53933392558701800432009-05-31T15:52:00.000-07:002009-05-31T15:54:23.334-07:00

Of course, as I post this long winded and long rant about self-publication, noting that I have no group and players for D&D, here comes along my friend, who lives far away enough that we would need skype to play, saying he wants to play some D&D. Well, fuck.I guess I can juggle working on some D&D stuff and M&M stuff.At least I have the opportunity to get involved in some D&D (or Labyrinth Lord,

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-65110544648876423462009-05-30T16:33:00.000-07:002009-05-30T17:20:44.154-07:00

So, I said I would now be involved in a project to develop an old school game. Let me clarify my statement, as to not mislead, nor confuse terms. But before I describe the project, let me talk about a bit (read: at length) as to why I made the decision.What started it all was Geoffrey McKinney's Carcosa. Here was an individual who developed a supplement for D&D and released it in pdf as well as

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-60116617540603053352009-05-29T21:07:00.000-07:002009-05-29T21:10:57.193-07:00

I'm going to be working on and developing an old-school RPG, although it won't be fantasy. More information to be forthcoming.Suffice to say, the lack of OD&D content is due to the lack of gaming group. 

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-43041941663825984842009-05-28T12:52:00.001-07:002009-05-28T12:53:19.444-07:00

Hopefully I don't alienate my readership; all four of them.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-7477292621042211662009-05-25T16:37:00.000-07:002009-05-25T16:43:55.487-07:00

It's hard to mourn the death of someone in your own way, especially when the person is someone you've never met, yet has influenced your life greatly.  Such is the case of Gary Gygax, and equally as much so, Dave Arneson. I didn't know how quite to react to it, and it's still pretty new to all of us. As publications come out, the In Memorials do as well. Well, I found my way to say good-bye to

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-35139664330092584452009-05-25T14:42:00.000-07:002009-05-25T14:59:39.614-07:00

I just submitted my 24 Hour RPG for the contest. I made a mistake when I glanced at the Abraham Lincoln wikipedia page, and in the text, put the year he entered office (1861) as his birth date (which is really 1809). Very embarrassing. And then I mispelled submission.Some days you just can't win.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-78003999629064317312009-05-13T09:49:00.000-07:002009-05-13T10:37:26.511-07:00

I feel that, of all the rules you could add to a Dark Sun B/X, the most important is rules for dehydration. Normally, the way I handle hunger and thirst in B/X is by way of common sense; people need to eat three meals a day and drink a quart of water. I've never really had to come up with a suitable punishment for not doing these things, because when it mattered, the players had adequate food and

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-52294366769923979672009-05-12T22:11:00.000-07:002009-05-12T23:26:08.969-07:00

After reading a post on Ode to Black Dougal's Blog (here and here), I quickly jumped aboard the idea of a B/X Dark Sun, and upon reflection, I think it's a great fit. Here is an opportunity to take the D&D rules and change them in a way akin to M. A. R. Barker's Tekumel: a sword and sorcery setting.As Mr. Armstrong demonstrates, his points reflect his idea of Dark Sun: some I agree with, and some

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-65916952151077709032009-05-11T19:03:00.000-07:002009-05-11T19:16:32.634-07:00

So last week, at 9:32 p.m. on Sunday, May 3rd, I began my 24 hour RPG. It is a contest, in a loose sense, in that you can participate at any time as long as you abide by a few rules and restrictions. I finished the following day at 7:45 p.m., on May 4th. After I was finished, I cleaned up the file a bit, added an index, and uploaded it to lulu.com as a free pdf download; the original file I came

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-68025939397256704312009-05-11T14:37:00.000-07:002009-05-11T15:23:03.275-07:00

The only session, unfortunetly. This was my first B/X session with my old RP group.I pre-made (on the suggestion of one of the players) 11 player characters: 1 elf, 1 halfling, 1 dwarf,  3 fighters, 1 cleric, 2 thieves, and 2 magic-users. They were chosen based on the stats I rolled on the train, travelling to my home town. When the day came, we managed to gather six players, one of whom was new

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-68004531654094788702009-05-08T12:10:00.000-07:002009-05-08T12:31:44.863-07:00

Sort of.I plan to do a few updates, first up being the one session I referreed with my old group in a game of Basic D&D (B/X, of course). My second post will talk about my experience writing a 24 Hour RPG, which I did at the beginning of this week. And other stuff if I think about it.I'm trying to get back into swing of blogging again.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-16312700062923318752009-04-02T22:19:00.001-07:002009-04-02T22:19:56.390-07:00

Will be back next week with a play report and more info on the creation process. Till then, peace out.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-38726091272920561602009-03-29T12:25:00.000-07:002009-03-29T12:40:19.026-07:00

If you happen to be exploring the concept of the dungeon as a mythical underworld (as put forth by resident expert Philotomy Jurament on his website), then may I offer this small tip to help you when you map for dungeon levels.Tip #1: When drawing entrances, rather that draw a door, draw an archway. With an archway, if you complete the square, you have a door, and thus it can save you some

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-61719491318505863722009-03-27T19:23:00.000-07:002009-03-27T19:25:23.157-07:00

I've been tossing this around in my head for a while. I am leaning towards the house rule that PCs and Monsters die at less than 0 hit points. I wouldn't give the PCs any bonuses to their hit points, or additional hit die. I might let them have max hit points at 1st level. But I would let them know before play that they perish at this point.Any thoughts?

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-14055910708968552092009-03-26T22:53:00.000-07:002009-03-26T23:56:44.063-07:00

I like a fair amount of random generation - it helps with the creative process. Since I bought the Ultimate Toolbox from AEG, I have been meaning to give it a try during setting creation and during gaming sessions. If you haven't seen this book, it is thick and full of charts. As much as I love random generation charts, some of the results in this book bug me, but they can be easily ignored.With

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-70056613193437575912009-03-26T14:59:00.000-07:002009-03-26T15:28:45.139-07:00

As a fantasy reader and gamer for quite a while, I could probably, if I pulled all my books and resources, compile a list with over 1,000 items, listing the names and portfolios of fantasy deities. Of all the parts to create, thinking of a list of gods and portfolios is the least enjoyable to me. Naming nations, non-player characters, landmarks, cities, dungeons, and etc. all require a certain

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-66194748145806969692009-03-26T00:05:00.000-07:002009-03-26T15:04:53.018-07:00

And here it is:You can see a larger version here. Note that the map itself has no free hand lines, which is more of an artistic taste of mine, and in no ways should reflect on the constraints of the program. You are not bound to the grid when making lines.No more for tonight. Tomorrow, fleshing out the stuff around the keep, as well as the city-state by the sea.

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3099470731715498523.post-56242617456910660482009-03-25T19:04:00.001-07:002009-03-25T19:19:02.576-07:00

Although it isn't called Hexamographer (just like Homer Simpson should know it isn't called a Saxomophone), the Hexographer is an incredible cool java program for hex mapping made by the same guy who made the hex brushes for Gimp. I've been reworking my hex map in the program, and I have to say, even though it is in alpha stage at the moment (should be beta soon), I find it to be a spectacular

Orionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544318089839943358noreply@blogger.com1