Tenkar's Tavern: hand puppets

Showing posts with label hand puppets. Show all posts

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Dragons and Cats Oh My!

Alright, technically one dragon hand puppet and one cat. My intention was to do a short review of The Tome of Horrors Complete for Swords & Wizardry, but my cat was hogging up the stage. So, I improvised.

In any case, the dragon needs a name (the cat already has one).

Add your thoughts in the comments below. I'll then take the suggestions and put them in a poll at the end of the weekend. The name that wins the poll at the end of next week is the dragon's new name AND the original poster gets a $10 gift certificate to OneBookShelf / RPGNow / DriveThruRPG. How's that for fun?

You can enter more then one suggestion, but only one will make the poll (my choice).

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Gaming With Hand Puppets - Is It a Sign of the Coming Apocalypse?

I had a conversation with a coworker yesterday and the subject of hand puppets came up. Alright, it came up because we were discussing video blog posts, so it didn't just "pop up". The thing is, as interesting as I find the use of hand puppets in a video blog post (you have been warned) it got me thinking about the use of them in a standard table top RPG session. Mostly by the DM for the occasional NPC.

I found knights and dragons, and with an average price less then 20 bucks a pop it's actually affordable. The question is, has anyone tried this before? Is anyone willing to admit that they tried this before? ;)

It's may be kinda silly, but I think it could work with the right group (and correct game system)

Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 52, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)

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Thursday, September 29, 2011

Dragons and Cats Oh My!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Gaming With Hand Puppets - Is It a Sign of the Coming Apocalypse?

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