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No wonder Christopher Lee is smiling.

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My 10 yr + Play by post (we've survived forum change and personal disasters and still at it): http://darkeningshadows.darkbb.com/forum

It's funny how missing a heading completely changes the meaning of a post.

I was scrolling through the thread and stopped to look at the picture. Unfortunately the statement 'No wonder Christopher Lee is smiling.' had disappeared off the top of the screen, but your tagline 'My 10 yr + Play by post' was shown beneath the picture.

My immediate thought was - If that's what your play by post is like, I 've got to track it down!
 
Would play the hell out of this! I read somewhere that The Mist was a huge influence on the original Half Life game and it would be great to tie in The G Man and Black Ops agents and alien tech and whatnot.
Me too! I think the next apocalyptic game I run, whatever it is, will have the Mist as a setting. The ending in the novel makes it perfect for the beginning of a campaign.
 
Was torn between a Star Wars style Edition Wars or D&D, as that's where all the serious Keyboard Warrior action takes place and in the end decided to go with the lawyers who were least scary. No one messes with the House of Mouse.

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Here we have the roleplaying game of Banhammer, where you are up against people who actively spend all day trying to scrutinise internet forum posts and find something (anything!) to be offended about, or post an infraction/warning/threadban for. Whilst you try and figure out what happened in the reasonable discussion that was ticking along nicely until you logged back in and found a pop up message stating you were a 'very naughty person' you must roll 1D6.

1) You are banned for life. Don't backchat to the mods, that will increase the ban to beyond life. Unlife even. And some red text. See me after class. Etc.
2) Words, phrases and reasons for the ban are produced which have you reaching for a dictionary and a thesaurus to figure out how in gods name something you said in good faith without any ill intent could be misconstrued by mods into some form of wrongspeech.
3) You realise the mods are on some kind of power trip and say so, getting a 7 day ban, extended to 9.421 days on appeal
4) Incredulous, you aren't sure whether to take the ban, come back all sheepish or rage quite with a 'go fuck yourself'. Flip a coin.
5) Chuckle because they banned you for something you meant to say but said in a different way that had them scrabbling around and forming a huddle whilst they take it 'offstage' and pick over every word and phrase then cross reference it on the chart of butthurt. You still get banned, mind.
6) Realise you don't give much of a shit and join another forum.

(by the way I've never been banned from any forums but more and more I see certain places - more than one I will say - where you have to watch what you say, how you say it, when and what context it's used in. It's like a minefield and genuinely not much fun to negotiate so you end up going there and reading the infraction forum instead of the Roleplaying sections because you like a good laugh and an eye roll)

In fairness they probably do a thankless task and it's a dirty job and someone has to do it but... damn. I remember when roleplaying forums were about talking about RPGs. Hence why I'm here I guess :hehe:

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Still on Season 1 of this (I'm always late to the party, no spoilers please!) and loving it.

Play as a sleeper agent, KGB or FBI trying to stop them pesky Russkies in Reagans America.


Don't get too attached to your character.

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A look at this revealed George Clooney had a reboot in planning but it was jumped on by the Nowlan family trust and their attack lawyer/junk yard dog. Not surprising because an IP=money but I suspect it will languish in legal quagmire and never see the light of day after the to and fro he said she said I've got this bit of paper that says etc etc

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I loved XXVC but never got to run it. Played the heck out of Countdown to Doomsday on the Amiga and will one day get round to Matrix Cubed. The game manuals pretty much contained everything you needed to create an RPG with a minimal amount of effort.

Edit: I don't recall Gil Gerard having much in the way of a six pack as depicted in this picture though. More of a barrel shape. Wouldn't be surprised if he wore a little something to pull it all in, bless 'im.
 
Edit: I don't recall Gil Gerard having much in the way of a six pack as depicted in this picture though. More of a barrel shape. Wouldn't be surprised if he wore a little something to pull it all in, bless 'im.
I think that's a painting. Happened quite often back then, I mean, the Vallejo-types needed work. I think one of the Army of Darkness posters had Ash totally ripped.
 
I think that's a painting. Happened quite often back then, I mean, the Vallejo-types needed work. I think one of the Army of Darkness posters had Ash totally ripped.
Luke Skywalker also looked rather ripped on some posters. :tongue:
 
Still on Season 1 of this (I'm always late to the party, no spoilers please!) and loving it.

Play as a sleeper agent, KGB or FBI trying to stop them pesky Russkies in Reagans America.


Don't get too attached to your character.

americans.jpg
I really like this show.

Oddly enough, one of the things that I find most convincing in a subtle way is the hairdo on the male hero (the man in the spy couple). So 80s :happy: !
 
Kind of off topic, but back when I had dreams of creating and selling my very own RPG, I started to think about how I wanted the cover to look. My intent was for a multi-genre system with a focus on cinematic action. My enthusiasm for RPGs was that a good game would just jump out of the page at me. The representational feel of an RPG just with all kinds of disparate stuff assembled in my mind into something exciting.

In the early 90s, I briefly had an Odyssey2 game console complete in box. And that was exactly the kind of visual I wanted on the cover of my core RPG book. Something very much like this:

odyssey2.jpg

It just has the title zooming at at the reader, but not just that, but all the contents of the game flying out like they just can't be contained. You have spaceships, and tanks, and racecars, and some motorcycle rider flying off his bike! And it's all stylized neon, like it's thoughts moving through your brain as you come up with your own campaign. I'd love a cover of that style on my game creation.

Odyssey2 had some kickass covers. Check these out:


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I guess I'm just strange. I guess these covers don't resonate with anyone like they do with me. Otherwise, I'd imagine we'd see a lot more homages/direct copies of these types of works. But to me they are just so striking. I love how they play with darkness and bright color, just like the bright phosphor of game characters against the black screens of times gone by. As I already mentioned, for me the style also captures the concept of ideas in the realm of pure thought. That Quest for the Rings cover is basically my brain coming up with a new fantasy campaign.

Even less related to the OT than that is the topic of copying art.

Remember this one?

godnet.jpg


I know some people remember Torg. I never owned that supplement, but that cover always stuck with me for some reason.

So, does the following cover look a bit familiar to anyone else?
aetherium.jpg
 
I think that console was the Phillips G7000 in the UK (or something like that). They had some great games, one of which combined a board game if I remember? It's been a while admittedly. Like, nearly 40 years. One was a sword n sorcery type game. I think. gawd, that brings back some memories. I used to lust after an Intellivision too. The Atari 2600 was ok for it's time but didn't really do much aside from arcade type games for the masses. In comparison the Dragon 32 I had at the time or thereabouts introduced computer RPGs to me if you didn't mind moving a block around on a screen.
 
Would play the hell out of this! I read somewhere that The Mist was a huge influence on the original Half Life game and it would be great to tie in The G Man and Black Ops agents and alien tech and whatnot.
I don't think it needs to be a licensed game but I could easily see a campaign running in the 'King-verse'... or whatever to call it... because at this point he really has a lot of tie-ins between his stories... but when I think of what it would be like... it's pretty much Stranger Things, but with more ghosts and vampires.
 
I don't think it needs to be a licensed game but I could easily see a campaign running in the 'King-verse'... or whatever to call it... because at this point he really has a lot of tie-ins between his stories... but when I think of what it would be like... it's pretty much Stranger Things, but with more ghosts and vampires.

There was some thread on RPG.net where someone suggested a World of Darkness line about King-style psychics like Carrie or Danny from the Shining and their interactions with haunted Overlook Hotel-like environments. It’s been stuck in my mind ever since and I’d love any rpg based on King’s stories like the one you’re suggesting!
 
There was some thread on RPG.net where someone suggested a World of Darkness line about King-style psychics like Carrie or Danny from the Shining and their interactions with haunted Overlook Hotel-like environments. It’s been stuck in my mind ever since and I’d love any rpg based on King’s stories like the one you’re suggesting!
Yeah, Doctor Sleep has a gang of billionaire vampires who travel between King's various 'haunted' spots... Jerusalem's Lot, The Overlook, etc.. They're a source of energy they feed on, among other things. 'Wastelands' as I've seen them described in other places.
 
I don't think it needs to be a licensed game but I could easily see a campaign running in the 'King-verse'... or whatever to call it... because at this point he really has a lot of tie-ins between his stories... but when I think of what it would be like... it's pretty much Stranger Things, but with more ghosts and vampires.
There was some thread on RPG.net where someone suggested a World of Darkness line about King-style psychics like Carrie or Danny from the Shining and their interactions with haunted Overlook Hotel-like environments. It’s been stuck in my mind ever since and I’d love any rpg based on King’s stories like the one you’re suggesting!
Yeah, Doctor Sleep has a gang of billionaire vampires who travel between King's various 'haunted' spots... Jerusalem's Lot, The Overlook, etc.. They're a source of energy they feed on, among other things. 'Wastelands' as I've seen them described in other places.
Aside from ghosts, vampires and spooky places, you also need psychic powers inspired by a blend of '70s parapsychology, Cold War experimentation and Theodore Sturgeon stories.

Thinking back through games I have run, Conspiracy X comes closest to fitting the bill. It has Cold War psychic powers down, although I'd probably tweak it to involve more nose bleeds and brain hemorrhaging.

For spoilery reasons that I won't reveal, all humans in the game are latently psychic, giving off a constant stream of psychic white noise called Seepage. Extreme emotions can cause Seepage to form Pools. These could be battlefields, holy sites, or the basements of serial killers house. That gives you your Overlook Hotels.

It doesn't line up perfectly, but its a closer starting point than trying to do King with Call of Cthulhu.
 
Aside from ghosts, vampires and spooky places, you also need psychic powers inspired by a blend of '70s parapsychology, Cold War experimentation and Theodore Sturgeon stories.

Thinking back through games I have run, Conspiracy X comes closest to fitting the bill. It has Cold War psychic powers down, although I'd probably tweak it to involve more nose bleeds and brain hemorrhaging.

For spoilery reasons that I won't reveal, all humans in the game are latently psychic, giving off a constant stream of psychic white noise called Seepage. Extreme emotions can cause Seepage to form Pools. These could be battlefields, holy sites, or the basements of serial killers house. That gives you your Overlook Hotels.

It doesn't line up perfectly, but its a closer starting point than trying to do King with Call of Cthulhu.

Yeah Conspiracy X would be a great fit! Especially the Seepage and Pools stuff, which even without having read the game sounds very evocative.

I was also trying to think how Schism could work. It's a hack/add on to Ron Edward's Sorcerer (which I've been very enamored with lately) that deals with Scanners-style psychics. I think combined with the base game you could come up with a good mix, especially since Sorcerer focuses on the emotional as well as physical turmoil that comes from playing with powerful forces.

Aside, which Theodore Sturgeon stories would you recommend for fodder for this type of game? I've never really delved into his work.
 
Deviant would cover the powers and antagonist goverment conspiracy for a Psychic 'King-style' game, you'd just need to drop the more outlandish powers.
I don't know the specifics of the game, but that premise fits well for something like Firestarter.
 
Aside from ghosts, vampires and spooky places, you also need psychic powers inspired by a blend of '70s parapsychology, Cold War experimentation and Theodore Sturgeon stories.
That's why I mentioned Stranger things... with it's psychic kids escaped from the secret lab (which is also making holes into other dimensions... or something). This echoes King's 'Firestarter' and 'The Institute'... not so much his free-range psychic kids like 'Carrie', 'The Shining' and 'Doctor Sleep'.
'The Tommyknockers' is kind of about space aliens... but so is 'It'. Conspiracy X covers UFO stuff as well, right?

Aside, which Theodore Sturgeon stories would you recommend for fodder for this type of game? I've never really delved into his work.
'More Than Human' is the first one that pops to mind for me.
 
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That's why I mentioned Stranger things... with it's psychic kids escaped from the secret lab (which is also making holes into other dimensions... or something). This echoes King's 'Firestarter' and 'The Institute'... not so much his free-range psychic kids like 'Carrie', 'The Shining' and 'Doctor Sleep'.
'The Tommyknockers is kind of about space aliens'... but so is 'It'. Conspiracy X covers UFO stuff as well, right?
You are right that Stranger Things does indeed cover that territory. I drifted away during Season 2, so it isn't that fresh in my mind.

And yeah, Conspiracy X had great aliens, and the aliens, psychic powers and magic are all cleverly interrelated as well.
'More Than Human' is the first one that pops to mind for me.
Yeah, that's first one for me as well. As most of his work is short stories, it also has the advantage of being a novel. No need to hunt for it in anthologies.

It's been 20 years since I read Sturgeon, and I did that mostly in one solid binge, thanks the complete stories series that came out at the time. That means my memories both distant and compressed, which makes it hard to single out short stories. I think I am going to give him another read. If come across anything that strikes me as particularly Kingian, I'll let you know, Klibbix! Klibbix!
 
That's why I mentioned Stranger things... with it's psychic kids escaped from the secret lab (which is also making holes into other dimensions... or something). This echoes King's 'Firestarter' and 'The Institute'... not so much his free-range psychic kids like 'Carrie', 'The Shining' and 'Doctor Sleep'.
'The Tommyknockers is kind of about space aliens'... but so is 'It'. Conspiracy X covers UFO stuff as well, right?


'More Than Human' is the first one that pops to mind for me.

You are right that Stranger Things does indeed cover that territory. I drifted away during Season 2, so it isn't that fresh in my mind.

And yeah, Conspiracy X had great aliens, and the aliens, psychic powers and magic are all cleverly interrelated as well.

Yeah, that's first one for me as well. As most of his work is short stories, it also has the advantage of being a novel. No need to hunt for it in anthologies.

It's been 20 years since I read Sturgeon, and I did that mostly in one solid binge, thanks the complete stories series that came out at the time. That means my memories both distant and compressed, which makes it hard to single out short stories. I think I am going to give him another read. If come across anything that strikes me as particularly Kingian, I'll let you know, Klibbix! Klibbix!

Thank you!
I realized after you mentioned Theodore Sturgeon that I've been confusing him with Thomas M. Disch this entire time.
 
Kind of off topic, but back when I had dreams of creating and selling my very own RPG, I started to think about how I wanted the cover to look. My intent was for a multi-genre system with a focus on cinematic action. My enthusiasm for RPGs was that a good game would just jump out of the page at me. The representational feel of an RPG just with all kinds of disparate stuff assembled in my mind into something exciting.

In the early 90s, I briefly had an Odyssey2 game console complete in box. And that was exactly the kind of visual I wanted on the cover of my core RPG book. Something very much like this:

View attachment 36530

It just has the title zooming at at the reader, but not just that, but all the contents of the game flying out like they just can't be contained. You have spaceships, and tanks, and racecars, and some motorcycle rider flying off his bike! And it's all stylized neon, like it's thoughts moving through your brain as you come up with your own campaign. I'd love a cover of that style on my game creation.

Odyssey2 had some kickass covers. Check these out:


View attachment 36531

View attachment 36532

I guess I'm just strange. I guess these covers don't resonate with anyone like they do with me. Otherwise, I'd imagine we'd see a lot more homages/direct copies of these types of works. But to me they are just so striking. I love how they play with darkness and bright color, just like the bright phosphor of game characters against the black screens of times gone by. As I already mentioned, for me the style also captures the concept of ideas in the realm of pure thought. That Quest for the Rings cover is basically my brain coming up with a new fantasy campaign.

Even less related to the OT than that is the topic of copying art.

Remember this one?

View attachment 36533


I know some people remember Torg. I never owned that supplement, but that cover always stuck with me for some reason.

So, does the following cover look a bit familiar to anyone else?
View attachment 36534
I actually still have my Odyssey 2 box.
 
I think that console was the Phillips G7000 in the UK (or something like that). They had some great games, one of which combined a board game if I remember? It's been a while admittedly. Like, nearly 40 years. One was a sword n sorcery type game. I think. gawd, that brings back some memories. I used to lust after an Intellivision too. The Atari 2600 was ok for it's time but didn't really do much aside from arcade type games for the masses. In comparison the Dragon 32 I had at the time or thereabouts introduced computer RPGs to me if you didn't mind moving a block around on a screen.
Yes, it was. I had an Odyssey 2, but I used to buy Phillips cartridges for it when I lived in Kuwait. Seeing both game lines was an interesting lesson in how much games depended on cover art back then. I had a two-player game where each player commanded a squad of robots in a battle. A friend of mine had the Phillips version, but the title and cover art had a Napoleonic theme.
 
It's:

Kevin Spacey impersonating Christopher Walken auditioning for Han Solo

 
GibletBlizzard GibletBlizzard on twitter went all in making a fake LotR rpg. He said: "So two nights ago my brain went "hey what if there was a Lord of the Rings RPG that came out in 1979 with the Bakshi movie but it used the most popular rules of its day" and suddenly my brain went BLARGH and now this exists. a little bit B/X D&D, a little bit 5E, a little AiME..."
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GibletBlizzard GibletBlizzard on twitter went all in making a fake LotR rpg. He said: "So two nights ago my brain went "hey what if there was a Lord of the Rings RPG that came out in 1979 with the Bakshi movie but it used the most popular rules of its day" and suddenly my brain went BLARGH and now this exists. a little bit B/X D&D, a little bit 5E, a little AiME..."
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I mean, with all this here it shouldn't be 'too' hard to actually make this.
I need to dig out those old decipher books and see if I can pillage for the loremaster abilities.
 
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