My wife Elfgirl and I went for a walk the other night around our neighborhood, and the following discussion transpired. I thought it was interesting and wanted to go ahead and post it here, and to me, this sums up the difference as to why I prefer D6 above all other systems I’ve played.
Enjoy
Me: You know what I don’t understand…you and your sister used to play old school D&D when you were young, where character deaths occurred like, every five minutes.
Elfgirl: True. In the Temple of Elemental Evil we went through a few characters each.
Me: Right. So now, when your characters die, or even get close to dying, you guys act like I just ran over your kitten with a lawn mower. What gives? Shouldn’t you guys be numb to TPK’s and character death by now?
Elfgirl: Well, it’s not the same.
Me: How so? And speed up, you’re lagging.
Elfgirl: Well, in old school D&D you really had no control over your character’s stats. They were randomly generated and you had whatever you rolled. You were basically “trapped” by whatever the dice came up. In D6 you can customize your character- put your D wherever you want and in what abilities you think the character will utilize the most.
Me: Ah…
Elfgirl: Yeah, it makes you more in tune and connected to your character. When you can craft your PC from the ground up, customizing what they are and what abilities and skills they have, it’s a greater investment as a player, rather than having some random rolls determine what your character is good at.
Me: So when your creation is threatened, it’s not just some character that was effectively thrust on you that you had little real control over creating (outside of a name), it’s more disconcerting.
Elfgirl: Right. We, as players, have invested a lot of time crafting our PC’s to be what we want, so when they take a beating or die, there is a greater sense of loss.
Me: Gotcha. Well that makes sense. Still, the game is pretty lethal, so at the end of the day, your PC’s, and by extension, you the players, need to start using your heads a little more and investing some time in studying your inventory and what you have and what you can use in certain situations. It’s not my job to remind you that you have a potion or scroll that would help you out of a bind, it’s YOUR job to remember these things, and if you don’t? Well, I see that as little different than taking an ill-advised course of action that results in a PC’s death. At the end of the day, in my game, as in life, ignorance is no excuse.
So!
An interesting discussion I thought.
Showing posts with label D6 Fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label D6 Fantasy. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
Damn Rust Monsters!!!
You know, there has been a lot of hubbub lately on other RPG related blogs about “old school” vs “new school” gaming and which is best and why. Truth be told, I don’t really have a dog in the fight so I could care less. See, fact is that while I tried to get into playing D&D in about ’81, I was never really successful until about 84-85, and even then the amount of gaming I did was sporadic at best. My fellow gamers had parents who were very religious, so most gaming was done below boards and as there was no real consistency among our group or experience levels most games fell flat and died before they ever had a chance to start.
Fast forward to 1992 and I dabbled in a few hack n’ slash games with some friends, but as we were more interested in the ladies and our newfound freedom at this point, again, the games were scattered and half-assed at best. Then, between 1992 and 1999 I dropped out of gaming entirely.
Without rehashing a lot of old and boring history, that time was filled with various failed relationships and a failed marriage (which was doomed from the start, so shed no tears for me Argentina!) and included me moving out of town and away from any potential gaming buddies for about three years. So, in 1999 I moved back to my hometown, single and with a lot of free time and found that my friends were still gaming and tossing some dice. So it was in March 1999 I found myself learning and loving WEG’s D6 system, and for the next seven years was content to exclusively play the Star Wars RPG.
So, after that campaign ended, I found myself faced with a dilemma: Keep playing Star Wars or branch out into something new. My gamer wife and her sister played D&D back when they were kids, so there was already two players who were interested in branching out into a fantasy setting- throw in another player and all of a sudden I had a group willing to try something new. Needless to say, I was thrilled that D6 had thrown their hat into the fantasy ring with D6 Fantasy and before I knew it I was running my players through a good old sword and sorcery campaign.
Now, let’s clarify something right here. As much as I love roleplaying, I’ve never been an RPG fiend like some folks. I’ve had friends who had all of the RIFTs and D&D books, but, save for a handful of sourcebooks I got for my birthday that wound up being stolen a few days later by a so-called “friend” I never possessed much more than the core ruleset (and the “friend” got his karmic payback when he was busted a while back and sent to prison for bringing illegal reptiles through an airport- trust story).
So where does all of this lead us and how does it relate to Rust Monsters?
I guess it comes down to the fact that while I’ve been playing/Gm’ing games for the last decade, I’m not what you would call a gaming connoisseur. I don’t have the AD&D rules memorized, nor do I have every result on the potion miscibility table in the original DM’s guide memorized. I’d never mapped out a “Dungeon of Doom” before a year ago and you know what?
It’s great.
Really. Think about it, all of you old school (and new school) guys. Think about what it would feel like if you opened those books for the first time, un-jaded by all that you’ve seen and done already and lost yourself in the magic and wonderment that you first felt back when you were a kid.
Cause that’s what I’m experiencing right now baby!
So you can understand my surprise and amazement when my group came across a trio of Rust Monsters this past Saturday while making their way through a city’s underworld.
See, Rust Monsters (as most, if not all) of you know, are bad.
But what’s worse?
A Dwarven Monster Slayer who is easily goaded into rash actions by the GM.
Heh.
Yeah, just a few thinly veiled cracks about his honor and bravery and about how a real Dwarven badass would go in and “take care of bidness” and *poof*.
One regular Battle Axe: Gone.
One Magical Warhammer: Gone.
One suit of Magical Chainmail: Gone.
The end result of seeing what these little bastiches can do and those adventurers- the same who took down a Red Dragon and survivors of countless battles with Trolls, necromancers and all other manner of badass- ran.
Fast.
It was crazy, wild and completely unexpected and the players were as stunned as I was.
In just 2-3 combat rounds the dwarf was almost naked and weaponless and another PC had lost a nice suit of half-plate armor. But what was damaged more than their gear was their morale. And due to the terrible draws made from the “Deck O’ Many Things” last game session, this last encounter literally stripped the group down to a bare-bones magical inventory that is almost laughable compared to what they were toting around at the beginning of the year (so many items they actually lost track of what they had).
And as the group ran wildly to get away through the dark tunnels beneath the Imperial City, their valuable items reduced to a bedtime snack, a piece of advice regarding magical items and powerful PC’s passed on to me by Uncle Angus, an old-school GM just a week before rang through my mind:
“Sometimes, you just have to do some pruning.”
Indeed Uncle Angus. Indeed you do.
Fast forward to 1992 and I dabbled in a few hack n’ slash games with some friends, but as we were more interested in the ladies and our newfound freedom at this point, again, the games were scattered and half-assed at best. Then, between 1992 and 1999 I dropped out of gaming entirely.
Without rehashing a lot of old and boring history, that time was filled with various failed relationships and a failed marriage (which was doomed from the start, so shed no tears for me Argentina!) and included me moving out of town and away from any potential gaming buddies for about three years. So, in 1999 I moved back to my hometown, single and with a lot of free time and found that my friends were still gaming and tossing some dice. So it was in March 1999 I found myself learning and loving WEG’s D6 system, and for the next seven years was content to exclusively play the Star Wars RPG.
So, after that campaign ended, I found myself faced with a dilemma: Keep playing Star Wars or branch out into something new. My gamer wife and her sister played D&D back when they were kids, so there was already two players who were interested in branching out into a fantasy setting- throw in another player and all of a sudden I had a group willing to try something new. Needless to say, I was thrilled that D6 had thrown their hat into the fantasy ring with D6 Fantasy and before I knew it I was running my players through a good old sword and sorcery campaign.
Now, let’s clarify something right here. As much as I love roleplaying, I’ve never been an RPG fiend like some folks. I’ve had friends who had all of the RIFTs and D&D books, but, save for a handful of sourcebooks I got for my birthday that wound up being stolen a few days later by a so-called “friend” I never possessed much more than the core ruleset (and the “friend” got his karmic payback when he was busted a while back and sent to prison for bringing illegal reptiles through an airport- trust story).
So where does all of this lead us and how does it relate to Rust Monsters?
I guess it comes down to the fact that while I’ve been playing/Gm’ing games for the last decade, I’m not what you would call a gaming connoisseur. I don’t have the AD&D rules memorized, nor do I have every result on the potion miscibility table in the original DM’s guide memorized. I’d never mapped out a “Dungeon of Doom” before a year ago and you know what?
It’s great.
Really. Think about it, all of you old school (and new school) guys. Think about what it would feel like if you opened those books for the first time, un-jaded by all that you’ve seen and done already and lost yourself in the magic and wonderment that you first felt back when you were a kid.
Cause that’s what I’m experiencing right now baby!
So you can understand my surprise and amazement when my group came across a trio of Rust Monsters this past Saturday while making their way through a city’s underworld.
See, Rust Monsters (as most, if not all) of you know, are bad.
But what’s worse?
A Dwarven Monster Slayer who is easily goaded into rash actions by the GM.
Heh.
Yeah, just a few thinly veiled cracks about his honor and bravery and about how a real Dwarven badass would go in and “take care of bidness” and *poof*.
One regular Battle Axe: Gone.
One Magical Warhammer: Gone.
One suit of Magical Chainmail: Gone.
The end result of seeing what these little bastiches can do and those adventurers- the same who took down a Red Dragon and survivors of countless battles with Trolls, necromancers and all other manner of badass- ran.
Fast.
It was crazy, wild and completely unexpected and the players were as stunned as I was.
In just 2-3 combat rounds the dwarf was almost naked and weaponless and another PC had lost a nice suit of half-plate armor. But what was damaged more than their gear was their morale. And due to the terrible draws made from the “Deck O’ Many Things” last game session, this last encounter literally stripped the group down to a bare-bones magical inventory that is almost laughable compared to what they were toting around at the beginning of the year (so many items they actually lost track of what they had).
And as the group ran wildly to get away through the dark tunnels beneath the Imperial City, their valuable items reduced to a bedtime snack, a piece of advice regarding magical items and powerful PC’s passed on to me by Uncle Angus, an old-school GM just a week before rang through my mind:
“Sometimes, you just have to do some pruning.”
Indeed Uncle Angus. Indeed you do.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
The Deck o' Many Buttkickings
Yeah, lots of folks don't like this item in D&D but I found the concept intriguing. And he, why not use it, right?
Well....
In my last game of D6 Fantasy, after my players defeated the baddie and saved the day, he granted them draws from the deck. And, because he's an evil bastard, re-draws.
Ouch.
The deck was modified to fit into the D6 system by me, So, here is the major draws my players drew from the deck:
First:
The Bard drew the IDIOT card.
This Reduced his KNW Attribute by 1d Permanently. It also allowed him the option to draw again, which he did.
The Bard re-drew and drew the JESTER Card.
This card gave him the choice of 100 cp's or two more draws from the deck. He chose the 100'cp.s
Second:
The Ranger drew the DONJON card.
This card immediately signifies Imprisonment. Either by the Imprisonment spell or physical imprisonment. All gear and items are stripped from the PC. This means that he is imprisoned somewhere and his stuff has been taken from him (but he could still get it back).
He disappeared from the game for now.
Third:
The Dwarf drew the STAR card.
Immediately gained 1D to any attribute score.
Fourth:
The Mage drew the TALONS card.
When this card is drawn, every magic item owned or possessed by the character is instantly and irrevocably gone.
Fifth:
The Cleric drew the TALONS card.
When this card is drawn, every magic item owned or possessed by the character is instantly and irrevocably gone.
NEXT
The Baddie offered more draws for anyone who wished to take them (Eeeeeeeeviillllllll!)
Sixth:
The Bard re-drew and drew the VOID card.
This black card spells instant disaster. The character�s body continues to function, as though comatose, but her psyche is trapped in a prison somewhere�in an object on a far plane or planet, possibly in the possession of an outsider. A wish or a miracle does not bring the character back, instead merely revealing the plane of entrapment. Draw no more cards. ***
More on this below.
Seventh & Eighth:
The Dwarf re-drew and drew the GEMS card.
The character must change to a radically different alignment. If the character fails to act according to the new alignment, they lose 2d off all skills. The Dwarf chose to loose the 2d off ALL skills.
Ninth:
The Cleric re-drew and drew the FOOL card.
Loose 3D from all of your skills and you MUST draw again.
Yeah, again, ouch.
There were a few decent draws in there, but overall this group appears to have the absolute worst luck, well, ever.
One of the things I do like is how the deck can change the course of a game. Before, my players had a few things on their plate, but now? Now they not only have to find and rescue their Ranger from a prison they have no idea the location of, they then have to track down and find out what happened to the soul of their Bard.
Yeah, it kind of shook things up a little- which I like. It makes things interesting and in addition now gives my players a definite path and goal, so while it bites that they drew some of the worst possible cards, it's great becuase it instantly created several adventures for me.
So, has anyone else used this? Do you like it? Dislike it? Did it result in any wild or unpredictable things happening?
Oh, and for those interested, I used the following deck:
http://www.greenronin.com/store/product/grr3004.html
Well....
In my last game of D6 Fantasy, after my players defeated the baddie and saved the day, he granted them draws from the deck. And, because he's an evil bastard, re-draws.
Ouch.
The deck was modified to fit into the D6 system by me, So, here is the major draws my players drew from the deck:
First:
The Bard drew the IDIOT card.
This Reduced his KNW Attribute by 1d Permanently. It also allowed him the option to draw again, which he did.
The Bard re-drew and drew the JESTER Card.
This card gave him the choice of 100 cp's or two more draws from the deck. He chose the 100'cp.s
Second:
The Ranger drew the DONJON card.
This card immediately signifies Imprisonment. Either by the Imprisonment spell or physical imprisonment. All gear and items are stripped from the PC. This means that he is imprisoned somewhere and his stuff has been taken from him (but he could still get it back).
He disappeared from the game for now.
Third:
The Dwarf drew the STAR card.
Immediately gained 1D to any attribute score.
Fourth:
The Mage drew the TALONS card.
When this card is drawn, every magic item owned or possessed by the character is instantly and irrevocably gone.
Fifth:
The Cleric drew the TALONS card.
When this card is drawn, every magic item owned or possessed by the character is instantly and irrevocably gone.
NEXT
The Baddie offered more draws for anyone who wished to take them (Eeeeeeeeviillllllll!)
Sixth:
The Bard re-drew and drew the VOID card.
This black card spells instant disaster. The character�s body continues to function, as though comatose, but her psyche is trapped in a prison somewhere�in an object on a far plane or planet, possibly in the possession of an outsider. A wish or a miracle does not bring the character back, instead merely revealing the plane of entrapment. Draw no more cards. ***
Seventh & Eighth:
The Dwarf re-drew and drew the GEMS card.
The character must change to a radically different alignment. If the character fails to act according to the new alignment, they lose 2d off all skills. The Dwarf chose to loose the 2d off ALL skills.
Ninth:
The Cleric re-drew and drew the FOOL card.
Loose 3D from all of your skills and you MUST draw again.
Yeah, again, ouch.
There were a few decent draws in there, but overall this group appears to have the absolute worst luck, well, ever.
One of the things I do like is how the deck can change the course of a game. Before, my players had a few things on their plate, but now? Now they not only have to find and rescue their Ranger from a prison they have no idea the location of, they then have to track down and find out what happened to the soul of their Bard.
Yeah, it kind of shook things up a little- which I like. It makes things interesting and in addition now gives my players a definite path and goal, so while it bites that they drew some of the worst possible cards, it's great becuase it instantly created several adventures for me.
So, has anyone else used this? Do you like it? Dislike it? Did it result in any wild or unpredictable things happening?
Oh, and for those interested, I used the following deck:
http://www.greenronin.com/store/product/grr3004.html
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
When Last we left our Heroes....
…They had just settled down for a long nap as vampires….
So, we pick up…new year, new props…and FIRE!
Yeah, I had the tavern they were sleeping in set ablaze by a band of gypsies.
The first part of the adventure was frantic fun as I produced an Hourglass of DOOOOOOOOOM and told them they had till time ran out to make rolls to get out of the flaming tavern…it was hectic insane fun.
The rest of the adventure was great and we ran a marathon on Saturday…Fourteen hours straight of gaming.
Yeah, you read that right.
Fourteen.
Marathon!!!!
And it was a blast. The only downside was the craptacular pizza served up by Papa John’s. YOU SUCK PAPA JOHNS!
But I digress…
Some highlights was the group having to fight through a wave of suicidal Kobolds who were hopped up on crack (or Moon Sugar as the Fantasy case may be) who were throwing themselves at the group while grasping alchemical bombs…helping a barbarian Orc tribe who was dying due to their growing fields being polluted by a mage and the acquisition of a cleric for the group, though perhaps not exactly what they expected.
In all it was a lot of fun, and when I can get my players to laugh so hard they turn purple from lack of oxygen, well, there’s the sign of a solid game eh?
The high points? I’ll post the high points this week, but the props this time around had a lot to do with it.
So! Keep your eyes peeled for the good stuff!
So, we pick up…new year, new props…and FIRE!
Yeah, I had the tavern they were sleeping in set ablaze by a band of gypsies.
The first part of the adventure was frantic fun as I produced an Hourglass of DOOOOOOOOOM and told them they had till time ran out to make rolls to get out of the flaming tavern…it was hectic insane fun.
The rest of the adventure was great and we ran a marathon on Saturday…Fourteen hours straight of gaming.
Yeah, you read that right.
Fourteen.
Marathon!!!!
And it was a blast. The only downside was the craptacular pizza served up by Papa John’s. YOU SUCK PAPA JOHNS!
But I digress…
Some highlights was the group having to fight through a wave of suicidal Kobolds who were hopped up on crack (or Moon Sugar as the Fantasy case may be) who were throwing themselves at the group while grasping alchemical bombs…helping a barbarian Orc tribe who was dying due to their growing fields being polluted by a mage and the acquisition of a cleric for the group, though perhaps not exactly what they expected.
In all it was a lot of fun, and when I can get my players to laugh so hard they turn purple from lack of oxygen, well, there’s the sign of a solid game eh?
The high points? I’ll post the high points this week, but the props this time around had a lot to do with it.
So! Keep your eyes peeled for the good stuff!
Thursday, December 18, 2008
FEAR! What is it good for? Huh!
So the D6 Fantasy system has a Mettle skill.
This sometimes comes into play when the characters come up against a monster or creature that can cause them to be terrified. They fail the Mettle roll, they (in theory) will turn and run away in fear.
While this has given rise to several fun and crazy moments in my game, I'm thinking about reworking this and incorporating a house rule:
If you fail your mettle roll you have three options:
1. Flee:(nuff said)
2. Frenzy: You can attack but fear has altered your perception to the point that you are attacking wildly, and therefore your difficulty to hit the target creature has increased two difficulty levels. Missing results in a %50 chance that you hit one of your own teammates.
3.Freeze: You can do nothing the rest of the round but may make another mettle roll to get control of yourself next round.
Some might recognize this ideas as being based on a game called "Unknown Armies," but obviously modified to fit the D6 system.
Personally, I'm diggin it...it gives the player some control over their character rather than saying "Yep, you failed the roll and run away like a scared little bitch," while still penalizing them. but more importantly it gives them a choice, which I'm all about. I hate railroading players and having them feel like the control of their PC has been taken totally out of their hands.
Anyway, I know some Gm's and passersby out there may have some thoughts/opinions on the above and I would love to hear them. So please! Sound off!
This sometimes comes into play when the characters come up against a monster or creature that can cause them to be terrified. They fail the Mettle roll, they (in theory) will turn and run away in fear.
While this has given rise to several fun and crazy moments in my game, I'm thinking about reworking this and incorporating a house rule:
If you fail your mettle roll you have three options:
1. Flee:(nuff said)
2. Frenzy: You can attack but fear has altered your perception to the point that you are attacking wildly, and therefore your difficulty to hit the target creature has increased two difficulty levels. Missing results in a %50 chance that you hit one of your own teammates.
3.Freeze: You can do nothing the rest of the round but may make another mettle roll to get control of yourself next round.
Some might recognize this ideas as being based on a game called "Unknown Armies," but obviously modified to fit the D6 system.
Personally, I'm diggin it...it gives the player some control over their character rather than saying "Yep, you failed the roll and run away like a scared little bitch," while still penalizing them. but more importantly it gives them a choice, which I'm all about. I hate railroading players and having them feel like the control of their PC has been taken totally out of their hands.
Anyway, I know some Gm's and passersby out there may have some thoughts/opinions on the above and I would love to hear them. So please! Sound off!
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