Player Mapping in OSR Games (Guest Poster)

Tonight we have a guest post from +Eric Hoffman , one of the guys behind Stormlord Publishing and the Zine Vault Kickstarter. Remember, The Tavern is as much yours as it is mine and the doors are always open to members of the community that have thoughts they wish to share.

I don't think I am very unique amongst OSR gamers in my map fetish.  Maps were one of the first things that drew me to Dungeons and Dragons.  I had an immediate visceral reaction when I first gazed upon the map of the Haunted Keep in the Moldvay Basic Rulebook and the Caves of Chaos in The Keep on the Borderlands that accompanied it.  Before I ever played an actual game of D&D I created my own floor plan on the graph paper provided in the back of B2.

Players mapping their adventures was a big part of early editions of Dungeons and Dragons.  Graph paper ("6 lines per inch is best") is listed as an essential part of the game in Book I of Dungeons and Dragons (OD&D).  "One player should map the dungeon..." in Holmes' edition. formalizes the position with "This player is called the mapper" in my beloved Moldvay revision.

It has also been mentioned that player mapping of a dungeon can facilitate emergent gameplay.  By drawing out their explorations they may discover dimensional magics at work, divine the possible location of secret chambers, or solve puzzles based on the very construction of the dungeon rooms and corridors.

As I grow older I waffle between the nostalgia of player mapping and the expediency of just giving the players a map of where they have been.  Technology certainly makes that easier today.  Most of my games are online; and programs like Roll20 make it ever-so-easy to just 'reveal' to the players what they see.

Right now I am contemplating how to handle this for an in-person game for some old friends who are coming for a visit.  Do I eat up the limited time we have to game by laboriously describing the dungeon and letting them fumble through the mapping process?  Or do I use the technology readily available and just throw the map up on the big screen TV as they explore the area?
What method do you prefer, and why?

Does Anybody Do "True20" These Days?

Yeah, I heard something about Blue Rose being rebooted but that never grabbed me.

True20 seemed to have nice, inspirational yet small package settings. During the Dark Ages of my gaming hobby, where I had no group nor game to pay for 12 years or so, the settings for True20 were inspirational.

Of course, never having played the system, I have no idea how well it would have all worked in practice.

Anyone have any direct experience with True20 and the settings that it spawned? Worth the investment of time and effort to track down some of the books and learn the system? Some of the way it was presented reminded me of Savage Worlds BTW, though more from a marketing / packaging aspect than anything else.

If All Editions are Just Shadows of the "True" Edition, Which is the "True" Edition and What Makes it the "True" Edition?

This is a hypothetical, but an interesting one (at least in my state of moderate intoxication.) It riffs off what little I can remember of the Amber series which I read about 25 years ago.

For all intents and purposes, all editions of D&D and it's clones are more or less compatible (not counting 4e in this discussion.) While the Original Boxed Set is what everything else builds upon, it's the SRD and the OGL from 3x that allowed for the clones and the surge of the OSR and added interest in the older editions. Castles & Crusades, heavily built upon the 3x core with old school sensibilities can be argued to be the Rosetta Stone of the editions.

So, is the "true" edition the one that started it all, the one that enabled the clones, the one that is a central translator or something else all together?

Yes, this is the product of many beers. There is no right answer. There is no wrong answer. There is just... beer ;)

Tavern Chat at 730 PM Eastern (in an hour)

It will soon be time for the weekly Tavern Chat.

I may not be around for the next two (Boo!) but I will be in tonight :)

Come by and say hello. You never know who else will be there...

"Advanced" Vs. "Basic" was Such a "Thing" in my Youthful Gaming Circles

I cut my roleplaying teeth on Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. I didn't even know there was a Basic Dungeons & Dragons until months after I found the hobby and everyone I knew looked down on "Basic."

Obviously, "Basic" was for lesser minds. We were "Advanced."

Yes, we were D&D snobs.

I actually didn't even own a Basic Set until years later, when I found it in a remainder pile at a discount store. I believe it was 3 bucks. I appreciated it for the set of crappy dice that came with it. Because, as you know, it was "Basic."

These days I wish I had cut my teeth on B/X instead of AD&D, as I find myself drawn to simpler games that are more open to houseruling.

So, what version of D&D was your gateway drug? Did you play the various flavors or just one?

AD&D 1E Player's Handbook Goes PDF - Holy Sh!t - About Time

I noticed this over at +Rob Conley 's Bat in the Attic Blog earlier today - the AD&D 1e Player's Handbook is now available in PDF from RPGNow.

I will be the first to admit that I have a truly bad scanned copy of the 1e PH buried away on a hard drive somewhere, but the following info from Rob makes the $9.99 pricetag worth it:

While Wizards doesn't allow page extraction it does allow you to copy text and graphics out of the book

I'm sold. I'll give my feedback over the weekend after I get a chance to look at it closer. Maybe I can make Paladin in Hell a proper desktop image ;)

Oh, and I wish it was the original cover art myself...

Variable Weapon Damage by Class - Have You Used It?

I remember an article in Dragon Magazine back in the mid 80s. It was about weapon damage by class. All classes could use all weapons, but not all classes could  use them effectively.

If the magic-user picks up a long sword, he'd still be limited to d4 damage. Actually, he was limited to d4 damage in all but staff (d6.)

Clerics and thieves were limited to d6 damage and fighters could hit d8 or d10 depending on the weapon.

It solved the problem of the character that wants to wield a long sword like Gandalf without putting long sword damage potential in the wizard's hands.

I never used the variant rule, but it appeals to me these days and I may just introduce it in a future campaign.

Have you ever used class based weapon damage or something similar in your campaigns?

Kickstarter - Bones III - The Viagra of Miniatures

Do you wish you had more miniatures in your collection?

If so, Bones III is the Kickstarter for you!

Launching tomorrow, July 7th, Bones III brings you more of that mostly hard white stuff that you can paint and turn into mostly professionally painted stuff! (Results not typical. Reaper is not responsible for ugly, poorly painted Bones miniatures.)

Still have hundreds of unpainted minis from Bones I and II? With Bones III, you can add hundreds more to that number!

Make no "bones" about it, Reaper brings affordable miniatures to the unwashed masses of amateur miniature painting!

Get your Bones III today! Er, we mean tomorrow.

(Painting Bones Miniatures can lead to eye strain. Purchasing all three Bones Miniatures Kickstarters can lead to endless years of miniature painting and failed relationships. Consult your DM before bringing Bones Miniatures to the gaming table, as they may not use miniatures in their campaign. Be advised that some campaigns do not allow unpainted miniatures to be used at the gaming table. Bones Miniatures are made of plastic and may pose a choking hazard for immature players. Reaper not responsible for ingested paint nor proper display or storage of miniatures, painted or otherwise.)

Time to "Overwhelm" The OSR ENnies Voting Box! Let's Roll the Vote!

The ENnies is all about stuffing the voting box (alright, maybe not. it IS about getting out the vote for certain products to ensure they get enough votes to win. All the finalists do it.)

No, Really. That's how you get some surprising winners.

Let's be the ones causing the surprises this year.

I'm calling for an all out effort to "overwhelm" the ENnies Voting Box with votes for OSR Finalists.

In the year that 5e is going to walk away with a ton of prizes simply because it's the latest flavor of Hasbro approved D&D Branding I think it's a great time to get the OSR organized and voting for classic gaming.

So, what votes do YOU need to make? Simply follow the Tenkar's Tavern List of OSR Endorsed Finalists for the 2015 ENnies:

(BTW, in the following categories, only vote for the OSR entries unless you are familiar with and value other entries in that category. You DO NOT need to pick all 5 and give them a value.)

Best Adventure:

  1 - A Red & Pleasant Land - I might find Zak S annoying and his non-gaming tangents distracting (to put it kindly) but Zak hit the bullseye with A Red & Pleasant Land. This should win based on quality alone. Let's make sure it does.

  2 - Horror on the Orient Express - Have you seen the box? I have it. I need to devote a solid week of vacation time to this to do it justice.

Best Aid / Accessory

  1 - Dungeonmorph Dice: Explorer Set - Inkwell Ideas is a huge supporter of the OSR. Back them with some support.

  2 - Black-green Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition RPG Dice Set - it's CoC

Best Cartography

  1 - The Guide to Glorantha - Glorantha. "nuff said.

Best Production Values

  1 - Horror on the Orient Express - simply amazing. it needs a bigger box ;)

  2 - The Guide to Glorantha - because it is Glorantha

Best Setting

  1 - A Red & Pleasant Land - read what I said above.

  2 - The Guide to Glorantha - read what I said above.

Best Writing

  1 -  A Red & Pleasant Land - ditto

Fans' Choice for Best Publisher - this one gets awkward, as everyone has their favorites. I'm not going to endorse any in particular, but I will give a list alphabetically of some OSR publishers. You can vote for up to 10.

Black Blade Publishing, Chaosium, D101 Games, Frog God Games, Goblinoid Games, Goodman Games, Lamentations of the Flame Princess, Lesser Gnome Games, Mythmere Games, Purple Duck Games, Sine Nomine Publishing

If you haven't noticed, I listed 11 choices above. I will just identify my #1, which is Lesser Gnome Games ;)

Product of the Year

1 - A Red & Pleasant Land

2 - Horror on the Orient Express

3 - The Guide to Glorantha

There you have it. The Tenkar's Tavern List of OSR Endorsed Finalists for the 2015 ENnies.

Pass this on. Share this. Social media it. Argue about it. Just DO it.

This is an attempt to get more eyes on the OSR and the amazing releases that come from it than it is any particular product. 

Dysfunctional Chainmail Bikini - Sidetracking the Weekly Game Night

Tonight's derail was classic D&D art. Sharing pics from google search from Tramp, Otis, Elmore, Dee, Caldwell and others. Then we hit this piece from Wilmingham and the derail dreailed.

I'll forgive the cloak that is acting like a cloaker.

I'll ignore the fact that the fighter's hands are so muscular, it is no wonder he couldn't hold on to his sword.

I'll turn a blind eye to the idea that the elf's shield looks like it wants to bite the female fighter's back.

That chainmail bikini top? Please.

But then I looked at the bikini bottom. The back piece of chainmail is held in place by the belt pressing it against her ass.

WTF?

How did I not see this as a 14 year old who already had a succubus page in the Monster Manual that was facing wear?

How the hell did this pass muster, even back in the day?

Well, that and it's a pretty shitty piece of art.

K, time for sleep. Maybe I'll make this piece the wallpaper on my laptop ;)

Do You Allow Mundane Pyrotechnics in Your Games?

I'm in the Poconos for the holiday weekend. We missed the fireworks in one town last night and the event closer to home got postponed to tomorrow night due to the weather.

It all go me thinking - do you allow mundane fireworks in your campaigns? I'm not necessarily referring to gunpowder and the the baggage that entails, but alchemical fireworks that go boom, make sparks, bright colors and the like.

Not powerful enough to blow open a stuck door or a lock, but maybe enough to startle or entertain.

I haven't done so, but I'm thinking about it as well as how far my players might push the envelope ;)

So, do you or don't you?

Race as Class or Racial Classes?

I was never big on Race as Class, probably because I started playing with AD&D and not B/X. It wasn't until I came across ACKS and it's racially themed classes that I saw the potential of Racial Classes. When I decided to do a release based on halfling racial classes for Swords & Wizardry, ACKS was certainly an inspiration.

I don't think racial classes are necessary but in the right campaign they can add depth.

Do you use race as class, racial classes, none of the above?

Some Further Thoughts on RPG Industry Awards, Especially as They Concern the OSR

I'm not going to be discussing the ENnies much with this post, except to remark that they are the industry standard when it comes to awards. Origins awards don't have the same kind of bling in the eyes of the gaming public. The fact that the ENnies are backed by the largest gaming con - Gen Con - and one of the most trafficked RPG fan sites - EN World - certainly doesn't hurt. They also cover (in theory) every corner of the RPG gaming universe.

For the OSR we have the Three Castles Award. Most don't realize this, but the Three Castles Award (which is judged by panel of judges that are from the gaming industry) is judged primarily based on design merits (I'm sure other biases also come into play, as such is human nature) . Also, the publisher or a third party has to submit copies to the NTRPG Con for the entry to be considered.

Pretty much all of the yearly winners and finalists from past few years of the Three Castles Award have been the cream of the crop but there are many titles that don't get recognized that most certainly deserve recognition.

Some folks in the previous ENnies post joked that the OSR should have "Tenkies" or some such. Besides the fact that the jokingly proposed name is horrid, any such move to a recognized OSR Award for Best of "X" needs to include the whole OSR Community (beyond just blogs and G+.) Preferably, it would include forums and publishers big and small. I'd rather see the community decide on the top 10 in each category (assuming there are 10 in a category, we are a niche within a niche) and an esteemed panel of judges picking the top three. It keeps it from becoming a popularity contest and lessens the effect of stuffing the ballot boxes.

Oh course, this is just stuff being thrown out there for critique and suggestions. There is no real game plan except for realizing there is no game plan.

And no, I'm not volunteering. This is all firmly in the category of "what if?" at the moment ;)

Kickstarter - Nuclear War Card Game 50th Anniversary Edition

My God but we played the SHIT out of Nuclear War in my college gaming days. Couldn't get enough players together for a D&D session? Nuclear War and Chaos Marauders were our go to games.

Blow up the world and everyone loses? Sign me up!

30 bucks for the 50th Anniversary Edition, which has already funded in about 3 day. It's by Flying Buffalo. No brainer, right?

Well, Rick says estimated delivery is December 2015, but then hedges his bets:

I have been in the game business for 45 years, so I am confident that I can manage this project. However there are always many possibilities for delay. The dates I have picked for completion are only estimates. (I repeat - these are not promised delivery dates. They are only estimates. Doing a good job on the artwork takes time. )

So, it's an estimated date and don't hold him to it.

Why would Rich need to say that? Why not simply pick an estimated ship date further out?

Also, I am still in the process of finishing my (much delayed) Tunnels & Trolls project. The final book is not quite finished, but many of the rewards have already been mailed out...

Nobody backed for a T&T pencil or whatever else was mailed out. None of it is memorable. What is memorable is the 6 copies of dT&T that will be 2 years late next month.

Until I have what I actually backed and was due two years ago, I'll need to pass on this and wait for retail. Besides, this one has already funded. Maybe these funds will expedite dT&T. One can only hope.

How the Hell is a 7 Year Old PDF Marked Down to $30.70 a Deal of the Day? (Mini Rant)

Corporation was released on RPGNow in May of 2008.

Feel free to charge $47 for a seven year old PDF, but marking it down to 31 bucks does not make it the Deal of the Day. And don't anyone say "It's $47 because of all the pages!" 256 pages is pretty standard for a game book these days and 31 bucks is still overprices by about a factor of three.

This Deal of the Day shit seems to be a way to squeeze some extra cash out of old, overpriced RPGs. Sure, there have been some exceptions, but they have been few and far between. Most of it is "Here's some old shit you didn't want before but maybe you'll want now!"

Still, I guess Corporation is as good a title as any for organized robbery ;)

(edit - they are figuring the sale price from the Hard Cover price, not the PDF)

(edit edit: Sale price $15.33, Deal Price $30.70? - deal for WHO?)

Is "An ENnie" Anything More than a Popularity Prize?

When it comes down to it, are the ENnies anything more than a popularity prize?

First off, the judges aren't industry professionals (see below) that are judging the works by professional standards. The judges are self nominated and the ones with the greatest social media reach are going to be the ones that come out on top and get picked.

Then there's this for the 2016 judge self nomination:

not have any professional relationship with any RPG publisher during the period from January 1st, 2014 to August 1st, 2016

That cut's off just about every professional and semi-professional in the industry, because if you aren't working making games you aren't making money from games.

Secondly, the companies that want to be considered must submit physical copies of their product (if it is available as such - the unofficial, unlicensed Mass Effect FATE hack was only available digitally - so send away, as it cost nothing.)

Now, you don't send copies to a central location that packages it up for judges all over the world. That would keep expenses reasonable, especially for the smaller publishers. Nope, you have to send those copies out to each judge. How much money was wasted sending individual packages to Turkey?

Interestingly enough, this means that nearly every publisher on RPGNow could submit their work for free.

Oh, did I mention all of that free gaming material is for the judges to keep? Only the top 5 finalists are listed per category, but there are dozens of entries for most categories I am sure.

Now, I heard (can't confirm so I won't mention the name) that at least one of the judges from this year's ENnies is trying to crowd fund a trip to Gen Con this year. Shit, just sell a portion of the pile of gaming supplements you got for free and you should be good to go. Literally. It's called eBay.

Then when the votes start for the five finalists in each category, the ballot stuffing begins. It's as bad as the Baseball All Star voting, but the ENnies are given actual weight by those in our hobby.

I'm not sure how things could be run better, but I think removing the self nominating aspects from judges and submissions would be a start.

Stock Art Madness Has Revived My Muse - Last Few Hours to Get Purple Duck Stock Art at 50% Off

It occurred to me that today might be Canada Day (it is) and that meant that the Purple Duck Everything is 50% off Sale would be ending tonightish and I need stock art.

So, I bought a ton of stock art from +Purple Duck Games and then poked around a few other companies.

Some samples (BTW, as I use stock art on here at The Tavern, I'll link to where you can find it at RPGNow - today it's just a sampling of what is awakening my muse.)

Gary Dupuis from Purple Duck Games

 Maciej Zagorski from Forge Studios

I've got plans for these and more. Let's see what I can get to after dinner and before Tavern Chat later tonight.

Behind the Bar - Tweaks and Forthcoming Content

June was a bear of a month. After I returned from NTRPG Con my free time was literally at a premium - time and a half because the bureau realized it didn't spend enough overtime during the previous 11 months.

Over the next few days were are FINALLY going to award the Post 5k / NTRPG Con gifts to all those that are waiting, although anything that requires  trip to the post office will have to wait on next weekend to finally ship.

It may seem there was a dearth of gaming content at The Tavern in the month of June and there was. There were multiple reasons for that - lack of free time was one but a desire to get a proper OGL in place was another. I have some free time this week and I have what should be a proper OGL for the website ready to go. OGL for the Pocket releases for the Patreon Backers is also being finalized.

This does mean there will some White Star / Swords & Wizardry content hitting the blog over the next few days. Huzzah!

Don't forget Tavern Chat tonight at 830 PM Eastern ;)

Whatever Happened with the 5e OGL / GSL / Whatever the Heck it Was Supposed to Be?

Today is the 1st of July. The D&D Starter Set was released on July 15th, 2014, nearly a year ago. Even before release, there was talk of a 5e OGL, GSL, fan creation license and other such schemes.

Have any of them come to fruition? Not that I have seen.

It hasn't stopped 3rd party publishers from publishing products for 5e, but they have used either the original OGL or used copyright law (can't copyright games rules, just their presentation) to get around the lack of an open license for 5e.

Is the lack of an open license for 5e going to hold back the popularity of it, especially when one compares it to Pathfinder?

Do you think there will be a license - open, fan or otherwise for 5e?

Tavern Chat Tonight - 830 PM Eastern

Just a quick reminder that the weekly Tavern Chat is tonight at 830 PM Eastern.

Topics may include "Even Further to Far West" and "Nystulian Madness." ;)

See y'all tonight!

Far West - Missed May Self Imposed Deadline - Now Missing June - Welcome to July

He's the Man with the hands - Red Hands

Ask me if I care about Far West anymore?

No, seriously, ask me.

Okay, no, I don't fucking care anymore except to see:

a - how late it will finally be

b- how shitty the final product will be

c - if and when the physical product actually ships (I'm doubtful on this)

d - if my portrait is the worst in the book

So, here we are in July 2015. My money is on November 2015 for the PDF and I'll be well into retirement before I ever see a physical copy - if I do.

But hey, Gareth is looking for recommendations from other RPG creators in the industry to fluff up his profile. Good luck sir.

Mike Drops "Nystul" - The Wandering Wizard Wants Your Patronage on Patreon

A tip of the hat to +Dyson Logos (and +Joseph Bloch ) for bringing one of my favorite serial Kickstarter failures back to my attention.

Mike Nystul (as he is wisely trying to distance himself from none other than himself) is looking to raise backing on Patreon to support his creation of new games. Nowhere does he mention using the monies raised to actually produce the games he has already been paid for via his Trifecta of Kickstarter Failures.

Now, I have to give the Wandering Wizard credit where credit is due - he doesn't allow the fact that he blew over $75,000 (less fees) from three Kickstarters on a Dwarf Con and a failed business venture (not spent on the Kickstarters themselves) keep him from fleecing more people. He did it with Nystul's Castle over at Indiegogo and now he's trying to use Patreon.

edit - here's the link directly - Mike does his best to not use Nystul anywhere in the pitch, but it's in the link itself - poor Mike - https://www.patreon.com/nystul?ty=h 

Well played Mike. By the time the new folks realize what kinda fucking flake you are, you'll be moving to your next scam.

Is it safe to assume that Nystul's Aura no longer serves it's purpose for you?

ENnies had a Mass Effect - How Legit ARE the ENNies as an Industry Award?

+Christopher Helton has an excellent article on the copyright infringing Mass Effect "Powered by FATE" RPG reaching the ENnies finals. Go read it and then come back. We'll wait for you.

Waiting...

There we go.

Interesting, right?

Now, I'm not sure which is more surprising:

1 - That the writer of a copyright infringing RPG supplement, who actually submitted this very work to two other RPG award panels, thought that somehow this would not get flagged. Oh, and that getting attention to his work would somehow escape the attention of the powers that be (Bioware) is basically stupid.

2 - That the ENnies didn't flag this before passing it one to it's esteemed panel of self nominated judges. Wait, you knew that, right? Not only do publishers have to self nominate (and send hard copies of their work if it's in print - 1 copy per judge) but the panel is self nominated and pretty much voted on by their social media popularity.

So, what kind of vetting process goes on before passing on the material to the ENnie judges? Ignore that question, as the answer is obvious.

It didn't just get nominated in one category either. It got nominated in three: Best Electronic Book, Best Free Product and Product of The Year. Yes, product of the year.

Now, even if there wasn't a review of the entries before they were passed on to the self nominated judges, you think it would have been done after the five finalists per category were submitted, but apparently the answer is "no."

Maybe the folks behind the ENnies could add the IPIAs - Intellectual Property Infringement Awards. It would make for some interesting internet drama if nothing else.

Overall, it just shows how the relevance of the ENNies is decreasing each year, especially if they can't police their own award process.

There is an interesting thread on this whole issue at ENWorld. It makes for an entertaining read.

Empire of the Petal Throne - Back on the Shelf

When I picked up my copy of Empire of the Petal Throne on eBay a few years back I got it for a very good price - around $125 or so - and although the box was slightly crushed it was still in it's original wrap. Yes, my copy was unopened - for about 5 minutes after it arrived.

I opened it and marveled at the pristine contents of the box, much as I did yesterday when I came across it while reorganizing my game collection. I must confess, I've yet to read the game itself, but I do love the presentation. The cover art for the box is top notch and a true eye catcher.

The maps are vibrant, even 40 years after printing, and the paper is thicker than I would expect. I could easily find myself using these maps with other RPGs if it weren't for the fact that they are so damn collectible. Ah well.

There are 2 sets of reference sheets included in my box. One is slightly discolored, as i suspect it was the one constantly rubbing the rulebook or maps whenever the box was moved (and especially in shipping.)

The rulebook, which I forgot to take a picture of, use comb binding. I'm not sure how well the pages would stand up to repeated use, but it looks like it would make for a pleasurable reading experience.

Ah well, back to the shelf for another year or two...

How Many RPG System Rules Do You Actually Play?

I've spent the better part of the day today going through piles of gaming shit stuff that just doesn't fit where it's supposed to. I have accumulated RPG systems and their supplements for so many years I literally have my gaming material in 2 states, not to mention storage, the basement and a closet in another room besides my "gaming area."

One day I'll catalogue what I actually have, but it occurred to me me that not only have I forgotten many of the rpg system rules of the games I used to play and run (RoleMaster / SpaceMaster / MERPS, WFRP, the Pacesetter System, RuneQuest, Traveller, CoC, Gamma World, GURPS, Champions, Rifts and other systems that escape me at the moment) but I have a ton of systems I just never learned.

Then we look at the more recent acquisitions and with few exceptions they just aren't being played. Most of the OSR stuff can be considered a single system, just with different tweaks, so my preference for Swords & Wizardry means I can still grab adventures from Castles & Crusades right on through Dungeon Crawl Classics and over a dozen systems in between - but I generally only run S&W as my OSR system of choice and convert from other OSR systems on the fly.

Tunnels & Trolls is simple enough (once you get past the horrible organization of T&T 5e) that I can run it without referring much to the book. Far Away Land is the ONLY recently published rule system that I grokked right away and can run with minimal if any rules searching.

That's it. D&D derivatives, T&T and FAL. Three systems that I can grok these days. Dozens if not hundreds that I own and will never play - either for the first time or the first time in 20 years.

How many systems do you actually play compared to owning?

Kickstarter - The Thin Blue Line: A Detroit Police Story (Savage Worlds Modern Horror Setting)

The Thin Blue Line: A Detroit Police Story Kickstarter is a setting book for Savage Worlds (Horror Supplement required - don't say you weren't warned ;)

As you can probably suspect, I bring my biases to the table here. I've yet to see a well done RPG ruleset or setting that handles police work well. Notice I didn't say handled it accurately, because that would include a load of boring shit with occasional pieces or heart stopping adrenaline rushes. You want to stress the later and push the mundane to the background. So, making a police heavy setting into a horror setting is an excellent way to focus on the exciting.

I liked the video. Short and to the point. Less is certainly more when it comes to Kickstarter videos, and this video explains just enough. I'm not sure if the little girls who pipes in an answer was a plant or not, but it worked well.

Melior Via successfully ran and fulfilled a Kickstarter for Accursed (a dark fantasy RPG setting for Savage Worlds) in 2013. We learned a great deal from the project, and we are using the lessons learned in undertaking this one.

They also took a 2 year break more or less between the two Kickstarters, so I suspect they'll be ready for this one.

That being said, there is only one Kickstarter in their history. Amazingly, it was pretty much on time. With this Kickstarter, print copies are at cost via OneBookShelf, which is probably the way for all but the big boys to do core physical rewards these days.

Did I mention Rach loved the video pitch?

I'll probably be backing this, even if I can't fully wrap my head around Savage Worlds as a game system.

Kickstarter - Age Past Dungeon Keep RPG Set

Where to start on Age Past Dungeon Keep RPG Set?

I guess the video. News flash - video of bacon cooking cutting into the rest of the video isn't "cool" or "hip" - it's fucking annoying. Oh, and the video is over 10 minutes long. No one cares enough to watch the whole thing. Really. If you go past 2 minutes for the hook video you've lost your fish.

Now, look at the absolute clutter in the pic above. Not a good pic. It does point one important thing out - lack of grid or scale. If you want lightweight WITH scale, you have Blue Dungeon Tiles. Laminate that can be written on with dry erase. Basically, coated paper with a grid.

There has always been a disconnect.  RPGs are paper products, essentially always apart from the tabletop aspect of the game, and most accessories are made from physical materials such as plastic and metal.  The same people making one are not usually great at making the other.  We have seen many solutions, some good, some bad, and many are very expensive.  We need something new.  Something that works.  Something that anyone can take anywhere he goes... but, it has to be elegant and sleek, and it has to work.  Something totally bacon.

What the fuck is it with "bacon?" I love bacon. I don't refer to non-bacon products as bacon. Is this something regional?

close up doesn't look any less cluttered

 Hey. Look, for 10 bucks you can get and Age Past RPG which isnt mentioned anywhere else on the page except the rewards (it was the previous Kickstarter tho.) Talking about the rewards - how many choices? Too many. It's confusing.

Listen, I'm no going to bother with the vetting here. If for some reason you want laser woodburning to map out your dungeons on your table, this is your choice. Probably your only one. There are better choices for the rest of us.

Sometimes We Forget the Echo Chamber We "Social Media" In

I like to do a reality check at times. It's needed to be properly grounded in all things, but especially in social media, including blogging.

The reality is that a very large portion of gamers, if not the vast majority, do not do social media. They don't blog or read blogs, don't do Facebook or G+, don't read or post at Dragon's Foot or the Arcanum. They play games with the same group they always game with, or show up at the game store every Saturday Night and just play.

They don't care about editions wars. OGL or GSL or CC. Race as class or multi-classing. They don't know The Tavern from The Manor from The Pundit from the Greyhawk Grognard. They don't give a shit, and wouldn't in all probability even if they did suddenly know about the social media going on behind the games they play.

The play is the thing.

Sometimes, events get caught up in social media to the point where we forget what we are actually posting about - games. Why do we post about games? Because we are passionate enough to do so. Can we drive trends? Sure. Some of that influence may even trickle outside our little echo chamber. Still, we are an echo chamber. To ourselves our voices may sound really loud and influential at times. For the most part, it is a pleasant illusion.

Alright, time for me to get back to my hallucination of being the writer of a popular gaming blog...

Some Thoughts on Women In Gaming (and some NTRPG Con Observations)

First things first - this is not a rant. I have many rants, and this is not one of them ;)

Some background.

When I was dating my wife, she was very supportive of my efforts to get back into roleplaying. She didn't understand it, but giving me every other Saturday night to do something that was important to me was important to her.

Flash forward a little bit, and she was brave enough to let me run her through a Tunnels & Trolls adventure. I figured the d6s would make the 1st session just a bit less confusing, and I was right. Still, that was her first and last RPG session until NTRPG Con 2014. Yep, she decided to join me at the Con and wanted to play in some of the games. After all, she listens in to one side of my Roll 20 sessions most every Saturday night ;)

My thought last year was that her first RPG session should be a game very few would have a handle on, so I chose Time Master run by none other than +Tim Snider . Tim did what you should do with most game sessions, but especially those with new players and / or those unfamiliar with the system - put the game mechanics in the background and have the players describe what their characters are actually doing.

It went so well Rach wanted me to dig the original rules out of storage and by the next night she was telling me we were returning in 2015 (we did.)

This year, in addition to playing DCC, SWN and Victorious for the first time (as well as some LL) Rach got to play in Merle Rausmussen's All Girls Top Secret session. Now, this is pretty much the opposite of what I generally hear about when it comes to "empowering women in gaming", as the assumption is usually that the woman needs to run the game in order to be empowered. Not according to my wife. She had more fun in Merle's game than any of the others (and she loved them all), possibly because it was her first session without me as a crutch. It was also the rare event with three women at the table (although we did have two women at our table - including Rach - three times this year.)

Let's be honest. More women are brought into gaming by the men in their life than the other way around. The secret to empowering women in gaming isn't to exclude men from sitting behind the GM's screen but giving women an opportunity to play without their crutch - the man that brought them into gaming. It's scary to remove the training wheels but so rewarding when you realize you are riding on your own.

Of course, the next step for Rach WILL be to find a session run by a woman, because she wants to see if there is any difference in the experience. I don't think Rach will be running a session anytime soon, as she doesn't have the desire to do so, but that's true for many players.

(for those wondering, Rachel was actively involved in the writing of this post. I'm hoping to get a post or two out of her where she writes about her gaming experiences directly - I'll twist her arm a bit this summer ;) 

Catch Up Starts NOW!

I'm on vacation.

No more overtime.

No more barely able to scratch out a post or two a day.

Content.

Reviews.

Beer...

Oh, and spring cleaning at home. I have my assignments. Sure, it's summer, but who's counting?

K, back to the fun work :)

Bundle of Holding - Traveller (Classic LBBs)

Traveller was my third RPG, after AD&D and Gamma World. I didn't have the three Little Black Books (LBBs) Edition - I had the Starter Edition, which reedited the 3 LBBs into one Black Book.

I so remember my characters occasionally dying during character generation :)

So, all I can say about the Traveller Bundle of Holding is this:

If you don't have Classic Traveller - GET THIS NOW!

If you have Classic Traveller, but don't have all the books in the bundle (Starter Collection at $6.95 or Bonus Collection which is currently under 15 bucks) GET THIS NOW!

If you have all the Classic Traveller any breathing roleplayer would ever want but don't have it in PDF, GET THIS NOW! Well, alright, you do have 12 days to make the purchase, but I'd hate to see you forget.

Shit, enough of this. Jumping in for the Bonus Collection. There is stuff here I don't have. Now I want to play Classic Traveller again (but I'd make the ship computers MUCH SMALLER, just so you know ;)

Big Bang - Small Packages - Miniaturized Items in RPGs

So, my mother was going through some of my grandmother's stuff and she found this one shot firearm that was worn like a charm. My grandmother got it in Tahiti back around 1914 or so on her honeymoon. There was also an article about a cop removing this from a drunk driver who had worn it around his neck, cocked. Cop shot himself in his finger. Ouch!

It got me thinking - what could still work miniaturized in D&D? Wands are the most obvious choice. Wear one around your neck and no one would be the wiser until you broke it out and mini-fireballed someone's ass. Or mini magic missiled. Actually, the effect does not have to be miniaturized in D&D, just the item itself, although a DM could easily rule either way.

Miniaturized potions could be held between cheek and gum, ready to be bit down on much like a spy's poison pill, but this could hold a healing potion or invisibility.

Maybe a magical 1" long crossbow still fires a bolt that does full damage.

Or maybe it's just 4 pints speaking to me. Or is it thru me ;)

Racial Level Caps - Hard, Soft or Not At All?

We're had some pretty good discussions about experience points in D&D and it's offspring the last few days, so I figured why not keep a good them going ;)

Level caps for demi-humans is pretty common in the earlier editions of D&D. Halflings capping at 4th level is always the thing that comes to mind for me as well as the work around of giving thieves unlimited  advancement in AD&D.

In truth, level caps haven't been an issue in my gaming, mostly because few of my campaigns, as a player of a DM have ever reached the level where they would come into play.

From my perspective, I'd rather give a racial XP penalty (depending on the strength of the races default abilities) than hit them with a hard cap. It comes closer to accomplishing the balance that level caps supposedly are there for than the caps themselves.

So, where do  you stand? Hard caps, soft caps or no caps at all?

Tavern Chat - 830 PM Eastern - Tonight (30 minutes from now)

Sorry for the late Tavern Chat reminder. Didn't get home until after 7 tonight.

Anyhow, see you all in 30 minutes :)

What Alternative Methods of Awarding Experience Points Do You Use?

Building upon yesterday's conversation about experience point bonuses, I thought I'd mention some alternative methods I've experimented with to award expo.

For my "B Team" that is going through Castle of the Mad Archmage, I want to encourage exploration of the dungeon and discourage the "rest and repeat" that was so common in the dungeon crawling of my earlier days of gaming. Each room or encounter area explored without resting has an increasing bonus. I've constantly experimented with the numbers.

Room explored squared x 10  -  ex: 5th room without resting would be worth 5x5x10 = 250 expo to be split by the party.

Room explored added to previous  -  ex: 5th room without resting would be worth (1+2+3+4+5) x 10 = 150 expo to be split by the party. This is usually multiplied by the dungeon level.

Yes, I'm still tweaking.

I tend to award less GP than is expected by classic versions of the rules.

I also award a 10% bonus to expo for write ups on blogs or campaign forum or the like. Helps me better remember the previous sessions highlights ;)

So, what alternative methods of awarding experience points do you use?

Purple Duck PDFs Are 50% Off Through Canada Day (Some Excellent DCC RPG Picks)

I had to ask myself: "When the fuck is Canada Day?" Thankfully I didn't ask "what" instead, as that would have disrespected our Northern Neighbors ;)

The answer is - July 1st.

Purple Duck is putting their entire catalogue of electronic releases on sale at 50% off right through July 1st. There's Pathfinder stuff, 4e stuff, Icons and more.

Most importantly for folks like me there is some excellent DCC RPG stuff and some very affordable stock art. Heck, the stock art was reasonably priced before - this is simply a steal.

So, go to Purple Duck's page at RPGNow and browse. Oh, and tell The Duck "Tenkar sent ya." ;)

Experience Bonus for High Ability Scores - Shouldn't it Be the Other Way Around?

I was stuck on overtime yesterday afternoon, and probably will be the rest of the week. It's what happens when work needs to get done and the overtime budget was underspent the past 11 1/2 months.

In any case, as it tends to do, my mind started to wander. That often happens after the 11th hour when sitting at a desk signing off on electronic worksheets. The wandering went something like this:

High ability scores already give player characters a bonus, especially in AD&D and later versions / clones of D&D. This bonus is to the chance to hit, to damage, lowering the chance to be hit, more hit points, more languages, better chance to know spells and the ability to know more spells, cast more spells, improve NPC morale, more potential henchmen, open up those stuck doors, bend those bars... I'm sure I missed a few.

With all those potential bonuses, do we really need to add expo to the mix? They do things better naturally but it doesn't mean they learn faster. Maybe, just maybe, the weaker fighter has to learn faster just to make up for his physical deficits.

Maybe those high scores should be an expo penalty and the low ones should be bonuses.

Just a thought...

Kickstarter - Baby Bestiary 2016 Calendar

These is just something about the art. The use of colors. The lack of stark line art. The expressions...

Shit, where was I?

Oh, yeah. The Baby Bestiary 2016 Calendar.

Did I mention I love the art and your girlfriend / wife and / or both will probably love it too? Always a good selling point for fantasy art. They tend to not appreciate chainmail bikinis and blood and entrails adorning one's refrigerator door.

Backers can even vote on the monster babies included on the calendar.

So, there's lots to like. Heck, there's a lot I DO like.

There is a potential pitfall (file this under vetting), at least if you are focusing on the calendar and not so much the Baby Bestiary Handbook -

If you missed the Baby Bestiary Kickstarter, it is an adorable book about the your favorite fantasy beasts, how they reproduce and how to rear them if you so want to find one and train it :) The book features 32 baby beasts within each with amazing artwork done by Conceptopolis, including the eyebeasts, owlbears and phase cats. 

When this kickstarter ends I can send off your PDF immediately, and the books are printing as you read this. 

The official release of the Baby Bestiary Handbook is during GenCon (July 29th) but you will be getting your copy before then :D 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/metalweavedesigns/the-baby-bestiary/description

Sorry, got distracted again. Oh, yes. Calendars are time sensitive. The estimated delivery date is September 2015, but if it slips (as it did with the original Baby Bestiary Calendar) you miss out on some of the very use you are backing for. It does seem Andreas has recognized this:

Looking at last year, I was personally disappointed in myself with the calendars, they were late to market, the images didn't perfectly fit and there some obvious editorial errors that were in it that were a result of being rushed getting the thing to print. And I don't want to repeat those mistakes. 

This year the calendar will be Illustrated by Domenico Nezart, and artist of whom you may recognize his work in the introduction of the Baby Bestiary.

One project wrapping up, one looking to be on target for November or earlier and one about to run late (nothing new for a Kickstarter.) Andreas has multiple balls in the air, with most of it depending on art that appears to be progressing well across the Kickstarters (updates are full of art pieces.)

I think Rachel wants the calendar ;)

Playing Swag Catch Up - NTRPG Con Swag Goes to...

I've been busy since getting back from NTRPG Con - much busier than I expected. I'm playing catch up in many ways. Thankfully, I'm on vacation next week. Damn, but that came fast.

Tonight we're awarding a NTRPG Con swag bag. There may be more to this swag than pictured - I need to inventory all the goodies I returned with.

So, who gets this swag?

None other than...

+James Stanton

James, email me at tenkarsDOTtavern at that gmail thing with your snail mail and we'll get this out to you. Well, I'll get this out to you :)

Free OSR "Kitchen Sink" - From The Vats (Free RPG Day Alternative Picks - Post VI)

As is my usual, I try to find some free RPGs in PDF to highlight for folks that don't have a FLGS participating in Free RPG Day. Or maybe you're like me and just not all that impressed with this years offerings.

I literally just refreshed my RPGNow homepage, saw for the first time and have just downloaded From the Vats.

Holy crap, but there is a lot of old school goodness crammed in here:

54 pages of community-created, bio-sorcery weirdness. 

Contains: 

One full adventure: The Submerged Spire of Sarpedon the Shaper, by Ben Laurence.
Two one-page adventures by Alex Schröder and Anders Hedenbjörk Lager.
25 new monsters.
7 new magic items.
6 new spells.

Even some art by my friend +Jim Magnusson

The price is right. This sucker is free. You know you want it.

Free OSR Adventure - RL1 - The Craft Dungeon of Reynaldo Lazendry (Free RPG Day Alternative Picks - Post V)

As is my usual, I try to find some free RPGs in PDF to highlight for folks that don't have a FLGS participating in Free RPG Day. Or maybe you're like me and just not all that impressed with this years offerings.

RL1 - The Craft Dungeon of Reynaldo Lazendry is an adventure module for older versions of the world's first (and still most popular) fantasy role-playing game. It is meant to be a begining adventure and is purely a dungeon crawl, with no plot or story, where the PCs explore the ruins of a dungeon (nearly 80 rooms) where a retired wizard pursued his hobbies.

Also comes with a small village meant to serve as a home base, though this can easily be discarded.

Free OSR RPG - Saga of the Splintered Realm Book 1: Core Rules (Free RPG Day Alternative Picks - Post IV)

As is my usual, I try to find some free RPGs in PDF to highlight for folks that don't have a FLGS participating in Free RPG Day. Or maybe you're like me and just not all that impressed with this years offerings.

I actually did some work on the Saga of the Splintered Realm Kickstarter - I have a small piece of the mega dungeon. It's a solid system that draws heavily on D&D while taking on it's own strengths.

Best part? It's PWYW.

While you're at it, grab Book 2: Adventures and the Map Book. Well worth your time and again, the price is right.

Frog God Sale - 35% Off All Weekend Long for Father's Day

If I didn't already own just about every Frog God Games Swords & Wizardry release in print and / or PDF already, I'd be all over this:

To celebrate all of the awesome Gamer Dads out there we are happy to offer:

35% Off Site Wide for the next 3 days!

Use this coupon code during checkout:

FATHERS-DAY-3309

Frog God Games linky

Offer expires Midnight on Monday! (PST)

Free RPG - Far Away Land QuickStart - and lots of PWYW Adventures (Free RPG Day Alternative Picks - Post III)

As is my usual, I try to find some free RPGs in PDF to highlight for folks that don't have a FLGS participating in Free RPG Day. Or maybe you're like me and just not all that impressed with this years offerings.

I know. It's almost like I can't stop talking about Far Away Land. Let me put it this way - I've run 4 sessions of FAL with 2 groups and just using the Quickstart, and it has all you need for many evenings of adventure without spending a cent. Even better, if your printer supports duplex and booklet format, you can have your own print copies for the cost of paper and toner.

Dirk does great stuff and the fact that the Far Away Land QuickStart rules includes rules for leveling as well as the first adventure in the series is awesome. Give the FAL rules a try. My groups and I love 'em.

Free OSR RPG - RuneQuest Essentials PDF (Free RPG Day Alternative Picks - Post II)

As is my usual, I try to find some free RPGs in PDF to highlight for folks that don't have a FLGS participating in Free RPG Day. Or maybe you're like me and just not all that impressed with this years offerings.

This time I'm highlighting RuneQuest Essentials, the stripped down version of RuneQuest 6. RuneQuest was one of the early alternatives to Dungeons & Dragons and has gone through nearly as many versions as D&D. BTW, I may call RuneQuest Essentials "stripped down" but it still comes in at over 200 pages for the PDF.

The full version of the RuneQuest 6 rules are 40% off this weekend only, but certainly grab the Essentials version. Can't beat the price.

Free OSR RPG - Iron Falcon (It's Free RPG Day Eve)

As is my usual, I try to find some free RPGs in PDF to highlight for folks that don't have a FLGS participating in Free RPG Day. Or maybe you're like me and just not all that impressed with this years offerings.

Tonight I'm highlighting Iron Falcon by none other than +Chris Gonnerman (of Basic Fantasy RPG Fame)

What is Iron Falcon?

The earliest fantasy campaigns grew directly out of wargames. There was a point in the development of the first commercial role-playing game when the rules shed most of their wargame roots and assumed a form familiar to generations of players to come. Iron Falcon aims to be that game, reproducing its mechanics and style in all its raw and innovative glory, as it was before the advent of more "advanced" rules.

The rules are free in PDF and damn inexpensive in print.

My copy arrives from Amazon on Sunday ;)

 

Thoughts on a NYC Area "PubCon"

+Joe D and I have been discussing the possibility of a NYC Area "PubCon" for more than two years now. Today, we hung for a bit both in Manhattan and Queens. While I would love to game in a pub with 40+ tap lines (Rattle & Hum) the place just isn't large enough and doesn't need our business.

Joe finally got to see the pub out by me today and although it only has a mere 10 tap lines, it also has a catering side that could probably hold 70 folks or so gaming comfortably.

We are considering holding an informal gathering in the fall or next spring (preferably a Saturday evening or afternoon) - reserved table or three and pay for your own grub and beer - to judge the interest and feasibility. Location would be near the subway and bus lines (because we wouldn't want to encourage drinking and driving.) If there was enough interest, we would work on organizing a more formal PubCon. Or, it might turn into a seasonal and informal Old School Gathering at a friendly pub. Depends on the interest shown.

Consider this post an attempt to judge interest on the informal gathering to judge interest ;)

(I've already told Rachel I'll be spending her B-Day tomorrow posting Post 5k / NTRPG Con gift recipients - and she didn't kill me)

Thank You All for Keeping it Civil - Yesterday Was a Busy Day at The Tavern

Two posts yesterday.

Fifty-four comments on those posts thus far, including twenty-nine on the polarizing "OGL and Fair Use" rant.

You've all kept it civil.

I really appreciate it.

With the exception of the occasional piece of spam that slips through, I moderate a handful of comments a year, if that. This year, I've had to moderate exactly zero.

Without you, readers and commenters and guest posters, there would be no Tavern.

On that note, a piece of entertaining spam:

ALL THANKS TO OLUMBA SPELLCASTER 

i was married for 6 years and we were living happily together until he traveled to France for a business trip, where he met this girl and since then he ma treat me and the kids and love her only. Any time my husband comes back from work,he said he does not want to see me and my kids ever again and he drove us out of the house.he was always going to France to see the other woman.i moved my kids to my mother's house out of frustration. we were not well treated due to the fact that my mother remarried,i was so confused that i started searching for solution from every angle until one fateful day, i was browsing with my computer when i saw a testimony about olumba spell caster testimonies shared on the internet by a lady and it impressed me so much that i decided to give it a try. At first i was scared but when i thought of what myself and my kids were passing through i contacted him via mail at olumbaspellcaster@gmail.com and he told me to stay calm for just 24 hours that my husband will come back to me and to my greatest surprise i received a call from my husband on the second day asking after the kids and i called Dr olumba and he said your problems are solved my child. so that was how i got my family back together after our long break up. please i want everyone on this forum to join me to say a huge thanks to Dr olumba and i will also advice for any one with this similar problem or any kind of problem to contact him. via email olumbaspellcaster@ notmyfuckingemail.com he is the solution to all your problems and predicaments in life. He is the best in casting of spell of the following: 1) If you want your ex back. (2) if you always have bad dreams. (3) You want to be promoted in your office. (4) You want women/men to run after you. (5) If you want a child. (6) You want to be rich. (7) You want to tie your husband/wife to be yours forever. (8) If you need financial assistance. (9) How you been scammed and you want to recover you lost money. (10)if you want to stop your divorce. (11)if you want to divorce your husband. (12)if you want your wishes to be granted. (13) Pregnancy spell to conceive baby (14)Guarantee you win the troubling court cases & divorce no matter how what stage (15)Stop your marriage or relationship from breaking apart,(16)If you have HIV AIDS, E.T.C once again the email address is olumbaspellcaster@notmyfuckingemail.com or phone +99nevermind contact him immediately

Wherein I Rant about the OGL, Compatibility Logo and Fair Use - If you Don't Understand Them, Don't Use Them

There's been a bit of a kerfuffle over at the White Star G+ Community. I won't bore you with needless details - you can get that and more at the original source.

Here's the meat and potatoes:

- 1 page adventure contest

- one submission omits the OGL, includes the White Star compatibility graphic and uses 2 pieces of art without permission and with the statement / question "I think this counts as fair use, right?"

- submission is pointed out for it's issues

- internet drama blossoms. adventure creator locks down all relevant G+ threads he started after getting his last words in and states "to put an end to the drama I started and kept poking..." (which tells me he enjoyed the drama)

Now, on to the rant...

The OGL - love it or hate it, I really dont give a shit. Use copyright law for all I care. But if you are deriving your work from an OGL product, use the fucking OGL. Mocking the OGL while displaying a compatibility logo isn't just poor taste - it's asinine.

Compatibility logos and licenses. You get to use someone's trademark on your product. It's awesome until you fuck with it. Why are you fucking with it? Sure, this is the internet and we are all to some extent attention whores, but why piss on someone else's work that you are making a claim to appreciate?

Fair use. I wouldn't touch it with a 10' pole. If you're not sure it's fair use, assume it isn't. That sir, is a ground ball.

Oh, and blocking comments on all your threads after getting your final words in? That's just lame.

Alignment - Is It Better Left Out?

Over my commute the last 2 days I've been listening to the Save or Die podcast wherein they discuss the Basic Fantasy RPG ( +Chris Gonnerman is the special guest.) It's and excellent episode and very informative, but it got me thinking when it was mentioned that there is no alignment system in BFRPG.

Is alignment really needed in an RPG?

How many RPGs that aren't derived or inspired by RPGs have alignment?

Does the removal of an alignment system open up the game to moreor less defined monsters and NPCs?

If 90% of PCs are either Chaotic Selfish (or Chaotic Crazy Homicidal Murder Hobos) and the other 10% are Lawful Rules Lawyers, is the 9 point alignment chart even accurate?

How Do You Handle Encumbrance, Especially Coinage?

I know that D&D as written was intended to be as much about resource management as anything else. Really, when you think about it, 10 coins to a pound might make for easy math, but the ability to move with your loot was practically nil. You needed 40 pounds of gold just to buy a suit of plate mail.

So, of course, encumbrance was one of the first parts of the game we houseruled in high school. Not intentionally, we never discussed it, but the sheer weight of coinage made it something we just stopped counting towards weight. Heresy, I know.

Later, bags of holding and portable holes gave us an in game reason to no longer fret about coins. Drop them into an inter-dimensional space and be done with it.

Later still, we changed it to 100 coins per pound, but even that didn't satisfy.

These days, my groups trade in coins for gems, but really, who else but a gem merchant or jeweler is ever going to cash them out?

How do you handle the heavy coins of classic D&D?

Kickstarter - The Folio #3, 1E/5E format, Adventure Module!

Sure, the title of this Kickstarter - The Folio #3, 1E/5E format, Adventure Module! - doesn't quite flow from ones mouth, but that's not the driving question. The question is - does this Kickstarter provide me with quality gaming material at a fair price?

Simple answer - yes.

More in depth answer - I am lucky enough to have been forwarded PDF copies of The Folio #1 and #2 to review. They will get full reviews later, but I'll give the basics now.

Art? Excellent choices. I've always been a huge Jim Holloway fan, whether his work was for TSR or West End Games. I'm not sure where I've seen Travis Hanson's work prior, but I like it. All the artists are good in the early folios and I expect more of the same (even if the artists change) from Folio #3.

Maps? Here's a sample from Folio #1:

The writing itself? Entertaining. I like the split between gazetteer and adventure. I'd gladly run this for one of my groups, although I'd be converting to Swords & Wizardry on the fly.

Do I have any complaints? My usual, so it's not like it's pointing out the Folio series in particular, but I really hate the watermarking behind the text. Sure, it's there to make the "paper" look old, but I hate it everywhere I see it. Still, I can more than tolerate it here as the product itself rises above it.

Edit: Scott told me he removed the watermarking after Folio #1 - outstanding!

For those that may ask, no, there's no OGL attached. It really isn't needed, but that's a whole 'nother discussion ;)

Did I mention that the print copies have removable covers just like the old TSR modules? Yep.

Folios 1 and 2 shipped on time. The creator states that Folio #3 is ready to release in PDF when the Kickstarter funding wraps up. 11 previous Kickstarters (one cancelled to tweak the presentation of the Folio series.) Project has funded with 16 days to go in the funding period as this is posted. Folio #3 to ship in print in August. No stretch goals listed at this time. No distracting swag.

I'll be backing for #3 and I'm damn tempted to back to get 1-3 in print. We'll see when I get paid this Friday.

Finally Caught Up Enough to Start Playing Catch Up

Amazing what an excellent convention followed by overtime at work can do to one's posting schedule. I finally feel, a week after returning from NTRPG Con, that I'm in position to start playing catch up ;)

Among the many reviews I need to address, Westward - a western steampunk mashup - is high on the list and is literally sitting on my desk awaiting some love.

There are a handful of vetted Kickstarters I need to highlight.

Can't forget content for White Star and White Box. I've been slacking the first half of June and need to get back to it.

Oh, and can't forget to award gifts for the Post 5k / NTRPG Con celebration.

Phew!

Guidebook to The City of Dolmvay (Print) Goes to...

I got back from NTRPG Con last week and I'm finally playing catch up. Phew!

Anyhow, here goes the first gift to be given out for the Post 5k / NTRPG Con Celebration - it's a print copy of Guidebook to the City of Dolmvay:

After appealing to the Random Gods (or is that Petty Gods?):

+Allan Bray

Congrats! I'll need your snail mail address. Email me at tenkarsDOTtavern at that gmail thing.

(I'll be awarding one or two gifts a day until we get through the backlog - and then more gifts to give away ;)

Be Forewarned - I Hosted The Latest Brainstorm Podcast - The Episode of Hate!

I dropped an F-Bomb or two in this Brainstorm episode and I don't know if Vince took them out. I also filled the "host" role.

A fun fill in episode recording in a winter marathon.

Stuff we hate in RPGs, RPG Players and more.

edit: oh my God! once we hit midpoint it is awesome in such a bad way ;)

Adding Text to Speech Integration - The Tavern is Now Listenable via iTunes and other Podcast Apps

While at NTRPG Con last week I played in +Mike Stewart 's Victorious session. Mike runs a really entertaining game and it is easy to forget that he is visually impaired. Afterwards, a third party mentioned to me that Mike would like to read The Tavern, but he literally can't.

I've been playing catch up on my end since we got back last Monday but I've spent a good part of the day today trying to find a solution. In the end, simple is best.

Podcastomatic allows blogs to be converted to podcast feeds, so you can subscribe and listen to them via iTunes or other podcast apps. Sure, the voice is a bit robotic, but it's actually a nice solution. The podcast feed is constantly updated.

I'm surprised Rach didn't get on me to do this earlier. Her vision defines her a "legally blind" and issues like this are important to her. Don't feel bad if you met her at NTRPG and never realized - there is a reason we found her oversized dice ;)

Here's the Tenkar's Tavern podcast link.

+Elizabeth Stewart I apologize to Mike for not thinking of this before and encourage other bloggers to do the same. It's simple and it works.

Adding a Little Vetting on the Kickstarters I Highlight - As Folks Tend to Not Do So On Their Own

I did a lot of talking about Kickstarters while at NTRPG Con. I know some of what's coming up, heard details about what's currently available and shared horror stories of the failures and the nearly so. Some of what I heard was surprising and some not so much.

One thing was clear though. Few backers or potential backers do even the most basic vetting of Kickstarters they may be potentially backing. They like it and the price looks good (and look at all the pretty pictures of awesomeness) and they're all in. Few look deeper. I'm going to try and attempt that slightly deeper look.

It isn't going to be an in depth vetting. I'll point out previous projects by the creator (if any) and look for the general feedback on quality and timeliness for them. I'll look at how many projects the creator has back and over what amount of time (did he just back a dozen to fill in his profile) and I'll give my opinion on the viability of stretch goals if any. If they are a known publisher, that will also factor into the vetting.

It's not a lot, but still more than most. I'm not going to give a letter or number grade. Just a simple opinion. Heck, my opinion of the project as a consumer may be different than the paragraph I'll come to when I do the vetting. Actually, I suspect that will happen more often than one might initially imagine.

The vetting I'll be doing isn't the be all and end all, but I'm hoping it will encourage others to take a closer look at the Kickstarters they are interested in backing and maybe increase the odds of skipping the ones with potentially major issues.

Last night's PEDION Kickstarter highlight included a very basic vetting. I hope to get a bit more in depth as I do it more often.

Feedback on this idea is of course welcome.