What are y'all up to these days?

[Jetstream]

Octopus isn’t my favorite food, but I’ve had it raw and fried and it’s ok. Actually eating it live, Sannakji, I’m not really down for.

I like takoyaki.

 

[CRKrueger]

I like takoyaki.

The little dumplings, yeah those are great.

 

[TristramEvans]

I'm out, too. Tired of encountering little stealth political remarks, to say nothing of the blatant offenders. Certain political positions seem to get a free pass over and over, presumably because they're shared by the moderators, which only encourages the people who can't leave it at the door. Would've thought this place learned its lesson with the 2020 fiasco. Apparently not. Let me know when the "no politics" rule applies to all politics.

¡Adiós!

Welp, that's a load of horseshit from one of the posters that blatantly ignored mod directions against bringing up a modern political topic in the Site Discussion thread, leading to it getting closed.

If anyone is wondering if the mods share you're political position - we don't. As a collective, the mods here range from conservative to liberal, and as a policy we tend to be less tolerant of political opinions that we might agree with.

 

[E-Rocker]

As is often the case, I'm oblivious to whatever drama was going on because I just wasn't involved in whatever thread was contentious. As usual, I shrug and continue to post.

 

[Fenris-77]

As is often the case, I'm oblivious to whatever drama was going on because I just wasn't involved in whatever thread was contentious. As usual, I shrug and continue to post.

Just toss a Michael Jackson eating popcorn GIF in there, you'll be fine.

 

[Andy-C]

Our Delta Green game lost one player and picked up another. The Handler wants to keep on going for a while, too. I'm hoping to run a couple of DCC games at a small con in a couple of weeks, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to make it after all.

 

[AsenRG]

My current plan, fingers crossed, is to run Art of Wuxia for a short campaign of 20-30 sessions. During this time I should buy myself the books for whatever I'm going to run next.
That means either Riders of R'lyeh, the Road to Monsterberg mega-campaign for Stara Szkola, Destined: Technotriller Edition (tentative name "Rain, Bourne and Reacher meet into a bar"), or Dark Sun: Mythras edition.

See, guys? I don't consider only Mythras titles...

 

[SavAce]

Tomorrow it looks like we're running some action horror for the holiday. Savage Worlds one shot. The set up is that we're a group of folks that have survived our own personal horror situations in the past, and have come together to take the fight to the monsters while cruising the highways of Weird America in an old motorhome. The GM asked us to do up characters and answer 3 questions:

Who were you before your encounter with the monster?
e.g., camp counsellor, babysitter, radio DJ, security guard, bartender, precocious schoolkid, new homeowner, jock, comic book store clerk, movie cinema usher, ...

What was your monster?
e.g., slasher, killer clown, child possessed by the devil himself, child possessed by some other demon, killer doll, fuckin' dracula, teen wolf, zombies so many zombies, mummy, gill man, witch, your hand turned evil, crazy psychic, satanic metal band, family of degenerate inbred mutant cannibals, sophisticated cannibal serial killer, cosmic horror from beyond time and space, toxic mutant, swamp thing, people under the stairs, evil book, bear, ...

Why did you decide to take the hunt to the monsters?
e.g., because someone has to, because you feel a sense of duty to others, because being a monster hunter makes you feel special, because you swore an oath to your dying friend, because you just hate monsters so goddamned much, because you can, ...

Fun enough concept, for sure. Came up with a bit of story and whipped up a pic for my guy, Ol' Pete Wilkins...

 

[E-Rocker]

SavAce , that sounds like it will be an awesome time!

 

[chuckdee]

Working on my campaign - hopefully will have some sort of handout for the players to get an idea of my proposal by the end of the weekend.

Sakharya - The Shattered Remnant

I've started to work on my campaign, and have my first stab at it. I'm putting down my thoughts, to actually get somewhere with it and get the ideas out to my players sooner than I would otherwise. Rough Timeline (no years stubbed in yet) 1. Technological Advances lead to humanity discovering...

www.rpgpub.com

 

[AsenRG]

A Fenris-77 reply just got me the urban fantasy adventure I'm going to run next week. We'll see whether I'd run it in Destined or in Sigil&Shadow, but it's easy enough either way. Actually, the question is whether I want to run it as a technothriller, or as an urban fantasy!

I'd ask my group when I see them today. I have to whip them into shape and instill some discipline*, anyway...oh, and I'm running a session!


*A regular is planning to skip a game that I'm pretty sure she's going to actually enjoy, because she got into rules arguments with the GM. How do you even get into such arguments if you don't care about mechanics, I ask?
Either way, it can't be tolerated. There's going to be some mediation after the session!

 

[chuckdee]

Getting close on my handout being done - made it a website.

Overworld :: The PbEM

Going to use World Anvil for the encyclopedia rather than PmWiki this time, I think.

 

[Raleel]

After a two month break we returned to monster island. After spending a couple weeks with the Gamari tribesmen and Amelia Earhart, they went off to visit Ozax, the high folk wizard, and return with the translation device they were sent off for. After some brief discussion, in which they learned a bit about the island, one of them proved his worth to start learning the Manifest Creations of Yeiber, a dread book of sorcerous knowledge!

After this, they headed off to the ruins they found and we devolved because of a joke about a Chad Jaguar. It was short but I’m ok with it

 

[Mankcam]

I can’t remember which thread I started avoiding earlier in the week, but it sounds like a lot of crap may have went down in it later on, given that a few well-known names are considering leaving over it.

Whatever was typed, surely it’s not enough to leave a cool place like this.
Wishing you all the best, but really, please just chill and come back in a week, it’s a good spot here

Just sayin’



As an aside, I'll be getting back into game prep zone pretty soon, due to running my next session of 13th Age at the end of this week

 

[Certified]

Quality Gear: Long Guns

"Reach out and touch someone."

While the jingle might ring a bell, we're not phoning anyone. This week we're exploring everything from muskets to anti-material rifles. Number one with a bullet, let's look at Long Guns.

Quality Gear 5: Long Guns - House Dok Productions

First, a quick set of definitions, long guns first appeared in the 1500s, representing long barreled firearms intended to be used with two hands and braced at the shoulder, offering improved range and accuracy. This is the broader category, rifles are named for the rifling of the barrel which...

housedok.com

 

[AsenRG]

I ran a session on Saturday. Not much else to mention here, but it was fun!

AAR: In which AsenRG prepares his next session

I'm a bit behind... Since then, I ran a session of Sigil and Shadow, which went great. Here's what I wrote in the Actual News thread. Lots of roleplaying news on my side, and for a change, all of them sound positive:heart:! 1) I ran Sigil&Shadow for a second time on Saturday. We had a good...

www.rpgpub.com

 

[opaopajr]

That looks like opaopajr ’s house.

Sunday brunch has always been a delight and a treasure forever. Bring your dancing shoes.

 

[Mankcam]

Sitting on my ass prepping for a 13th Age session for tomorrow night

Stumbled across this course and thought it must be great to run trpgs for a living - probably not financially, but yeah much more fun

Role Playing Games in Education > Erasmus Course for Teachers

Feel ready to use RPGs in your classroom to bring your students’ engagement to higher levels, promoting their full potential.

www.teacheracademy.eu

 

[carpocratian]

That would be a fun course to teach.

In our area we used to have regional mini-conferences where libraries would send employees to take classes taught by other librarians. The events usually had a specific focus, and area librarians with specific skills and experience would sign up to teach them (for free). I used to always do a couple of classes related to computer stuff or children's services, depending on the focus of the conference. If they were still doing them, I would do an "rpg in libraries" one. I had thought about it in the past, but just never got around to it, and then the funding for them disappeared.

 

[spittingimage]

Stumbled across this course and thought it must be great to run trpgs for a living - probably not financially, but yeah much more fun

I once met a GM at a convention who was also a social worker using RPGs to teach troubled teens to make better life decisions. I'm thinking that would be satisfying, but not actually fun in any way.

 

[bleys21]

I once met a GM at a convention who was also a social worker using RPGs to teach troubled teens to make better life decisions. I'm thinking that would be satisfying, but not actually fun in any way.

Probably not, but considering how much RPG's helped me with critical thinking skills, like just being able to imagine potential outcomes, thinking how someone else might feel about something, and so on, it probably should be required in school...

 

[AsenRG]

I did actually accept a Fate Chthulhu game that a friend wants to run. That might surprise some of you, Fate isn't my dream system, but it's to her what d100 is for me, and I do preach the GM sets the system...

Admittedly, me accepting is partially because it's her first attempt at running a game off-line, and I think she deserves me being there to deal with unruly players (she is challenging her social anxiety, that should be commended!), and partially because I believe she's the right person for turning the Mythos into a good game...


Also, I might not get to play or run anything this week, daughter needs some help with classes. I'll try to run a belated Halloween session, though. And I might yet manage to run a Sigil&Shadow session for the group, too.

(I thought I might play, but Pulp Chtulhu and WFRP4 both got cancelled, and Fate Chthulhu is still in chargen!)

Sitting on my ass prepping for a 13th Age session for tomorrow night

Stumbled across this course and thought it must be great to run trpgs for a living - probably not financially, but yeah much more fun

Role Playing Games in Education > Erasmus Course for Teachers

Feel ready to use RPGs in your classroom to bring your students’ engagement to higher levels, promoting their full potential.

www.teacheracademy.eu

I once met a GM at a convention who was also a social worker using RPGs to teach troubled teens to make better life decisions. I'm thinking that would be satisfying, but not actually fun in any way.

Probably not, but considering how much RPG's helped me with critical thinking skills, like just being able to imagine potential outcomes, thinking how someone else might feel about something, and so on, it probably should be required in school...

I'd do that. And I'd probably have fun running it. Slices-of-life are among my favourite approaches to RPGs...

 

[Certified]

Admittedly, me accepting is partially because it's her first attempt at running a game off-line, and I think she deserves me being there to deal with unruly players (she is challenging her social anxiety, that should be commended!), and partially because I believe she's the right person for turning the Mythos into a good game...

Played a few games with a GM assistant. Didn't know that the assistant could be an enforcer. I like this new role at the table. Let the GM be nice. Have another player there to keep the table in line.

 

[AsenRG]

Played a few games with a GM assistant. Didn't know that the assistant could be an enforcer. I like this new role at the table. Let the GM be nice. Have another player there to keep the table in line.

No, I'm not going to be an assistant, I don't even know the system all that well. Just a cooperative, friendly player to help ease her social anxiety...

And I doubt there would be any need of an enforcer, frankly. Her games, unlike mine, shall be invitation-only, so disinviting people would be quite easy.

 

[chuckdee]

I did actually accept a Fate Chthulhu game that a friend wants to run. That might surprise some of you, Fate isn't my dream system, but it's to her what d100 is for me, and I do preach the GM sets the system...

Admittedly, me accepting is partially because it's her first attempt at running a game off-line, and I think she deserves me being there to deal with unruly players (she is challenging her social anxiety, that should be commended!), and partially because I believe she's the right person for turning the Mythos into a good game...

Commendable! I like to hear stories like this!

 

[Winterblight]

I finally got the juice to finish the layout of my latest adventure Mantle Of The Basilisk. It's been languishing in a semi-edited state since Covid hit. In the new year, I will get the Winterblight's Challenge thread back up and running.

DriveThruRPG

www.drivethrurpg.com

 

[Certified]

I finally got the juice to finish the layout of my latest adventure Mantle Of The Basilisk. It's been languishing in a semi-edited state since Covid hit. In the new year, I will get the Winterblight's Challenge thread back up and running.

View attachment 70888

DriveThruRPG

www.drivethrurpg.com

Great cover!

 

[Bunch]

Probably not, but considering how much RPG's helped me with critical thinking skills, like just being able to imagine potential outcomes, thinking how someone else might feel about something, and so on, it probably should be required in school...

Don't forget laser focus on following the money and doing whatever it took to get it in your grubby hands.

 

[Winterblight]

Great cover!

Thanks - It's AI-generated, but it has suffered that many hours of me messing around with the prompts and post-generation touch-ups I might as well have gone out and learned to draw I've done the layout in Affinity Publisher.

 

[spittingimage]

Don't forget laser focus on following the money and doing whatever it took to get it in your grubby hands.

From a certain point of view, CEOs are warlords and CFOs are dragons. Your office is an XP-rich environment.

(I don't know what CTOs are. Some kind of especially unkempt lich?)

 

[Dr. Gnome]

I'm running... a 5E D&D game tomorrow for a group of four friends. (Basically, two couples - three peeps are very D&D savvy and one is very new to the game.) I've been having a hard time figuring out how to get the newest player into the game as culturally and just exposure-wise in general she hasn't had any experience with RPGs outside of her husband's playing them and her watching in slight confusion. )

The weirdest thing worked. After a couple games trying to figure out what would "hook" our new player - theater of the mind? Minis? Crunch? Roleplay? Free-form gonzo OSR or a Disney-esque fantasy 5E world (most 5E settings are Disney-esque to me)... the weirdest solution happened.

I took Baldur's Gate 3 character sheets and allowed them to pick characters and then I just ran the BG3 game pretty much as a 5E campaign since none of them, shockingly, had actually played BG3 it worked out well. I changed a few things here and there, used theater of the mind, first adventure they made it off the Nautiloid and started exploring their surroundings. The party is amusingly Gale, Astarion, Wyll, and Karloch. That made for some interesting introductions. Important thing was everyone loved the game and our newest player seems hooked, she was excited to come for another session moreso than anything else I tried.

So, yeah. Free-form 5E game based on a popular 5E video game. I guess the tentacles and tadpoles were what finally worked.

 

[AsenRG]

I just ran my Halloween session... in Art of Wuxia.
Spontaneous reaction of one of my players after I said the sometimes dreaded words "this seems like a good place to wrap it up" was simply "The Fuck".

So I'd say I did well, given that I'drate the session as "mildly mind-fucking"!

 

[Andy-C]

Convention wasn't good. Organizational woes, attendees couldn't get event tickets until the day before the con, and attendance was very low. I canceled my Sunday game and went home Saturday evening. If I'm going to be bored and unhappy, I'd rather do so in the comfort of a favorite recliner.

Hopefully the next one will be better. I'm planning to run Coriolis there, and I better start reading up on it.

 

[Rated Aargh]

The last month was… interesting. I purged my Discord server of all but active players and GMs, which significantly brought down the membership numbers but left me with an accurate accounting of who I could play with. That'll prove helpful going forward. Fewer dead ends and more gaming, at least theoretically.

I got into a Werewolf: The Apocalypse game and ran smack into the silliest backstory for a werewolf I'd ever heard. A golden retriever who became enraged and underwent his First Change after his master fake-threw the ball one too many times. Who now travels the country sightseeing while wearing a purple kilt.

I couldn't get out of that game fast enough and went on to solidify my plans to run Tiny Wastelands at Christmastime. Everybody playing gets a present!

And, as per my usual, I have a couple of solo games running, including Classified and Wushu.

 

[Certified]

Quality Gear: Swapping Loadouts

This week we are stepping back from the regular gear updates to look at the intersection of mechanics and narrative, how to change gear and the impact to the story.

Quality Gear Interlude: Swapping Loadouts - House Dok Productions

Not all Gear focused characters are the same. Some may have unique or signature items they never part with, others use off the rack equipment and tools. Unlike most Powers, Gear can be exchanged, or possibly modified with much more ease. Swapping from a rifle to a set of pistols between...

housedok.com

 

[Certified]

Convention wasn't good. Organizational woes, attendees couldn't get event tickets until the day before the con, and attendance was very low. I canceled my Sunday game and went home Saturday evening. If I'm going to be bored and unhappy, I'd rather do so in the comfort of a favorite recliner.

Hopefully the next one will be better. I'm planning to run Coriolis there, and I better start reading up on it.

Hopefully the next con goes better.

 

[spittingimage]

I got into a Werewolf: The Apocalypse game and ran smack into the silliest backstory for a werewolf I'd ever heard. A golden retriever who became enraged and underwent his First Change after his master fake-threw the ball one too many times. Who now travels the country sightseeing while wearing a purple kilt.

Players like that are always either the best or the worst in the game, in my experience.

 

[Gringnr]

I got into a Werewolf: The Apocalypse game and ran smack into the silliest backstory for a werewolf I'd ever heard. A golden retriever who became enraged and underwent his First Change after his master fake-threw the ball one too many times. Who now travels the country sightseeing while wearing a purple kilt.

Friend once made a VtM character, a Malkavian who thought he was a super hero called "Night Man." He slept during the day because his powers "...only work at night, see?"

I stlll contend this was one of the best ideas ever, and an oh-so-refreshing change from the wacky-zany-random antics of most Malkavian players.

 

[Gringnr]

For my part, I've just started what I hope will be a lengthy Zweihander campaign, and I'm also prepping a Cy_Borg adventure as a side game while one of our DCC group is gone on work-related stuff.

 

[spittingimage]

I stlll contend this was one of the best ideas ever, and an oh-so-refreshing change from the wacky-zany-random antics of most Malkavian players.

I once played a Malkavian who was obsessed with balancing his karma. Which could have been awesome, but actually just meant me forcing people to accept fresh cookies at gunpoint to cancel out my poor conduct.