Just made some updates to the wiki which recorded our group's run through of this Call of Cthulhu campaign, which really reminded me what a great campaign it was. Also, while Marcus visiting Auckland this week, he picked up copies of the session recordings we made during the game, so those may actually get edited and be available soon. Check it out here (warning: spoilers abound).
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Running Up the Score
What is it with Americans treating keeping your best team on the field/court/whatever and running up a big score as a sign of disrespect? I don't get it. Here, as with pretty much everywhere else I know about, taking top players off the field and easing up shows far more disrespect. Surely if you respect the powers of the opposition to challenge or defeat you, you will keep your top team on and endeavour to raise as many points as possible while you are in the ascendency. If you don't have respect for them and/or wish to insult them, you would rest your top players and take it easy, secure in their inability to hurt you, right? Why do people in the U.S. think the exact opposite? I don't get it!
Esoterrorists Supplement Review
Check out Marcus Bone's blog for a pre-release review of The Esoterror Fact Book. Marcus' blog is great for all things RPG. Just forgive the typos!
Battlestar Galactica Boardgame
Just hit up boardgamegeek this morning and found that BSG has had a whole bunch of new content created for it, both official and unofficial. If you're naywhere near as much of a fan of this game as I am, check it out at http://new.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=18 and http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/37111
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Repost of Appreciation email to NZRaG
Thanks to all the organisers and GMs who made this yet another great Kapcon and worth every penny of the trip down from Auckland. Thanks especially to Ivan, Liam, Erik, Barry and Mike who GMed the games I played in. As a GM for my group up here in Auckland I really appreciate the time and effort that needs to be put in to GM a game as opposed to just rocking up on the day armed with dice and imagination. I *can't* even imagine what it means to do that and then shoehorn the game into a limited time slot and play with a bunch of people you've never even met before. Great job, guys. I'll see you all again next year (or perhaps sooner).
Monday, January 19, 2009
Jumping the Sharky
GM: Mike Foster
Blurb: The Boss is laid up in hospital, his right hand man on the run and his best men scattered far and wide. Someone's putting the pressure on and there's no time or chance for a gathering to plan their counterattack. But the distance separating them may yet prove their greatest strength, as each man is able to carry out his part of the plan unnoticed while the enemy thinks they're too scattered and distant to be a threat. Of course, communication is key so that every member of the team knows exactly what he has to do, but in this technological age long distance isn't the problem it used to be.
System: Homebrew, indie style (mostly systemless with quotes, names and events from cards for inspiration. Shared GM style).
My Character: Lance, the wheel man. It should be noted that each character sheet had something that the character was supposed to be doing, followed by the words "it's all gone a bit wrong". I was supposed to be picking up a shipment for the boss somewhere on the south Cornwall coast.
Review: This was definitely the most unusual game of the con and one that I was a little leary of getting into as I often find the indie-style shared GM game to be difficult to do. I'm glad I took the plunge on this one (inspired by the fact that Mike was GMing and I *had* to play in at least one of his games) because the sheer calibre of the players in the room meant that this was my second favourite game of the con (and, indeed the last year), losing out only to "The Long Lost Boys".
The basic setup of the game was that Don and the boys were variously separated on different jobs, each of which had gone wrong. The game took place as phone calls between different members of the gang with Mike chiming in with calls from various NPCs where required to drive things along. There was a deck of cards with quotes, NPC names and situations. When one of the players did something which might succeed or fail (or if they just needed inspiration), they would roll a die numbered from -2 to +4 (no zero). On a plus, the player would draw that many cards, choose one or more, and integrate their contents into the narrative of their success. On a minus, mike would take the cards and choose one for you. You would then narrate your failure using that card's ideas. Of course, with the group we had, just about everything was a failure of sorts (as they are much more amusing anyway!), and we often didn't bother with the cards, or just picked some randomly for inspiration.
I managed to come up with a plot for my character involving a cargo ship hitting a bridge, a biohazard container, a terrorist plot to blow it all up, a James Bond lookalike, cranes, the british army, truck chases, people smuggling and somehow managed to tie it into some of the other's stories too. With all this, though, I had a complete imagination failure near the end of the end of the adventure and needed some help getting bailed out (thanks Conan!).
All in all, another hit from the Mike Foster foundry - keep 'em coming Mike!
Personal Highlights: 1. Lance: Don, I got the crane like you said, but now there's a bunch of [censored] shooting at me! They're all wearing camo gear and these poofy beret's...
Don: You called me in the middle of a [censored] firefight?
Lance: Yeah. What the [censored] should I do?
Don: Well, you've got a [censored] crane haven't you? Drop a [censored] container on them!
Lance: [censored]. Good idea Don! {to crane driver} No! To the [censored] left you [censored].
Don: Just make sure it's not Sharky's container, for [censored] sake!
Lance: Sorry, Don - you're breaking up. CRASH!!!! Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepppppppppp......
2. The Scotsmen trying to get into the warehouse full of Italian families.
Other Highlights: 1. Billy and the briefcases!
2. Kev 'dealing' with four kids and their [censored] dog because they wouldn't shut up about ginger beer.
3. Billy managing to crash a Mafia wedding and marry the don's daughter by accident.
4. Don being put upon by *everyone* calling him at the start.
Blurb: The Boss is laid up in hospital, his right hand man on the run and his best men scattered far and wide. Someone's putting the pressure on and there's no time or chance for a gathering to plan their counterattack. But the distance separating them may yet prove their greatest strength, as each man is able to carry out his part of the plan unnoticed while the enemy thinks they're too scattered and distant to be a threat. Of course, communication is key so that every member of the team knows exactly what he has to do, but in this technological age long distance isn't the problem it used to be.
System: Homebrew, indie style (mostly systemless with quotes, names and events from cards for inspiration. Shared GM style).
My Character: Lance, the wheel man. It should be noted that each character sheet had something that the character was supposed to be doing, followed by the words "it's all gone a bit wrong". I was supposed to be picking up a shipment for the boss somewhere on the south Cornwall coast.
Review: This was definitely the most unusual game of the con and one that I was a little leary of getting into as I often find the indie-style shared GM game to be difficult to do. I'm glad I took the plunge on this one (inspired by the fact that Mike was GMing and I *had* to play in at least one of his games) because the sheer calibre of the players in the room meant that this was my second favourite game of the con (and, indeed the last year), losing out only to "The Long Lost Boys".
The basic setup of the game was that Don and the boys were variously separated on different jobs, each of which had gone wrong. The game took place as phone calls between different members of the gang with Mike chiming in with calls from various NPCs where required to drive things along. There was a deck of cards with quotes, NPC names and situations. When one of the players did something which might succeed or fail (or if they just needed inspiration), they would roll a die numbered from -2 to +4 (no zero). On a plus, the player would draw that many cards, choose one or more, and integrate their contents into the narrative of their success. On a minus, mike would take the cards and choose one for you. You would then narrate your failure using that card's ideas. Of course, with the group we had, just about everything was a failure of sorts (as they are much more amusing anyway!), and we often didn't bother with the cards, or just picked some randomly for inspiration.
I managed to come up with a plot for my character involving a cargo ship hitting a bridge, a biohazard container, a terrorist plot to blow it all up, a James Bond lookalike, cranes, the british army, truck chases, people smuggling and somehow managed to tie it into some of the other's stories too. With all this, though, I had a complete imagination failure near the end of the end of the adventure and needed some help getting bailed out (thanks Conan!).
All in all, another hit from the Mike Foster foundry - keep 'em coming Mike!
Personal Highlights: 1. Lance: Don, I got the crane like you said, but now there's a bunch of [censored] shooting at me! They're all wearing camo gear and these poofy beret's...
Don: You called me in the middle of a [censored] firefight?
Lance: Yeah. What the [censored] should I do?
Don: Well, you've got a [censored] crane haven't you? Drop a [censored] container on them!
Lance: [censored]. Good idea Don! {to crane driver} No! To the [censored] left you [censored].
Don: Just make sure it's not Sharky's container, for [censored] sake!
Lance: Sorry, Don - you're breaking up. CRASH!!!! Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepppppppppp......
2. The Scotsmen trying to get into the warehouse full of Italian families.
Other Highlights: 1. Billy and the briefcases!
2. Kev 'dealing' with four kids and their [censored] dog because they wouldn't shut up about ginger beer.
3. Billy managing to crash a Mafia wedding and marry the don's daughter by accident.
4. Don being put upon by *everyone* calling him at the start.
The Journey
GM: Barry Baker
Blurb: It's a fantasy story as old as time - a group of adventurers have a mission to travel from a town to a distant House of Contemplation. All that is missing is a smoky Tavern and an old man in a hooded cloak.
But this mission is a little different, the world a little more gritty and grey, our brave adventuring party know nothing of dungeons and trapdoors. The small group is comprised of a withered Nursemaid, a impetuous man servant with regular features, a retired soldier and a pure example of young female innocence.
System: Dragon Warriors
My Character: Jonathan, a young man striving to conceal his spanish heritage while attempting to woo the above example of female innocence (here we go again) and control a fiery passion which, in the past, has led him to murder.
Review: This adventure was much more standard RPG fare. A little slow to start as we stepped into our characters, but we were soon travelling along nicely. Along the road complications arose such as bandits (who we killed), thieves (who stole our stuff from under our noses) an orphaned child (who we tried and failed to find the parents of) and a bunch of burly young men (*all* of whom seemed to want some alone time with Emma). Things came to a head when it was discovered that Emma (the female character who I had been trying my hardest to convince to elope with me and forsake the convent) actually turned out to be a promiscuous wench, which crushed my character's fragile little soul, almost led to a murderous rage, and ended up with his suicide. The game was somewhat hurt by not actually having a fourth player, which yielded less of the intra party conflict which really drove the adventure along, but it wasn't bad as a first session for Sunday morning.
Highlights: The number of times we managed to return to the same Inn (nice work by Emma, there, who was trying to delay arrival at the convent). My character's breakdown and transformation in attitude to Emma from doe-eyed love and loyalty to hatred and scorn.
Blurb: It's a fantasy story as old as time - a group of adventurers have a mission to travel from a town to a distant House of Contemplation. All that is missing is a smoky Tavern and an old man in a hooded cloak.
But this mission is a little different, the world a little more gritty and grey, our brave adventuring party know nothing of dungeons and trapdoors. The small group is comprised of a withered Nursemaid, a impetuous man servant with regular features, a retired soldier and a pure example of young female innocence.
System: Dragon Warriors
My Character: Jonathan, a young man striving to conceal his spanish heritage while attempting to woo the above example of female innocence (here we go again) and control a fiery passion which, in the past, has led him to murder.
Review: This adventure was much more standard RPG fare. A little slow to start as we stepped into our characters, but we were soon travelling along nicely. Along the road complications arose such as bandits (who we killed), thieves (who stole our stuff from under our noses) an orphaned child (who we tried and failed to find the parents of) and a bunch of burly young men (*all* of whom seemed to want some alone time with Emma). Things came to a head when it was discovered that Emma (the female character who I had been trying my hardest to convince to elope with me and forsake the convent) actually turned out to be a promiscuous wench, which crushed my character's fragile little soul, almost led to a murderous rage, and ended up with his suicide. The game was somewhat hurt by not actually having a fourth player, which yielded less of the intra party conflict which really drove the adventure along, but it wasn't bad as a first session for Sunday morning.
Highlights: The number of times we managed to return to the same Inn (nice work by Emma, there, who was trying to delay arrival at the convent). My character's breakdown and transformation in attitude to Emma from doe-eyed love and loyalty to hatred and scorn.
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