Standing in the Rain With a Lightning Rod

As I mentioned before, I’m already working on notes for an Exalted campaign, but perhaps it’s time for me to explain my motives.

The reason why I’m making an Exalted campaign of my own is because I want to see if it’s possible to run Exalted in such a way that focuses on character development and stories without having to create an overly hostile environment.  One thing  I feel about how Exalted runs is that it focuses on two facts.

• Solars are badass
• Therefore everyone needs to be even more badass to pose much of a threat

In most of the games this roughly translates to everything and everyone having stats that actually exceed the Solars every time.  Sure there are cases where some Dragonbloods might not be as able, but there’s five of them to one of the Solars.

—

I’ve changed people’s opinions on a given game before.  HERO was not a popular system in my gaming group since it was perceived to be too mechanical and too complicated to be playable.  Furthermore, prior experience under HERO devolved into a combat-fest, with moments of story narrated to us between matches.

Not a good way to start off an impression.

So I ran a HERO game of my own.  It was difficult, since nobody was there to teach me how it worked beyond what experience I had with it before, but hey, it kicked off great, and that HERO campaign still remains as one of my favorite campaigns.

Now I’m here with Exalted.  Much loved by half the group, much hated by the other.  Maybe it’s just the masochist in me, but I’m looking forward to converting the Naysayers, by running a game that they would like.  Of course the Yes Men of Exalted are looking at me funny and questioning why the heck I’d take so long to give the players phenomenal cosmic power.

The answer of course, is really stylistic.  I want to run a game which really gets the players to understand the vast difference between mortals and Exalts, and I feel that establishing their Mortal lives and relationships and experiences will reap vast rewards once the players are Exalted.

So here I am, crazy GM, standing in the rain with a lightning rod, hoping that the GM mojo lightning strikes again and I pull off something I’ll be proud of.

[Exalted 2e] Dawn of Sorrows, Campaign Brainstorm

Hey guys,

After years of procrastination, bitching and whining, I’ve decided to put money where my mouth is and actually figure out an Exalted Campaign, and this is going to be my notebook / sounding board for stuff. Feel free to chime in and add suggestions, and/or criticism if necessary.

[nMage Actual Play] The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning

This weekend’s Mage game has been very interesting, it was like the last weekend was just the group winding up to unleash hell.  With a plan set, Yuuko, Martin and Rock gathered together to try and compose a plan to stop the spirit.  In the end it was decided that they’d try and bind the spirit and force it into a Soul Jar.

Just when I thought I kicked the White Wolf Habit…

See, I like my current financial situation.  Mage: the Awakening and several other games are keeping the gaming group happy in a good way, and despite small rpg purchases I have not splurged on a line since Changeling: the Lost.

I dodged the bullet called, Hunter: the Vigil.  It looks neat, but it wasn’t something that I could drag myself to actually buy.  I know the info in it is nice and flavorful and juicy, but somehow the overlap between it and the vanilla nWoD was just too close and I wasn’t certain I could justify that expense.

So now here I am, working on nMage, glad that my RPG purchases are no longer as insanely obsessive as they were in my college years *looks at a shelf with the full of Mage: the Ascension, Revised line*, when White Wolf throws this at me:

Geist: the Sin-Eaters

A rulebook for playing the Sin-Eaters, mortals who have passed through the gates of Death and returned, bonded with the unusual shades known as geists. An expanded look at death and the Underworld in the World of Darkness, from simple ghosts to strange threats such as the Kerberoi. Provides new player types and antagonists for crossover chronicles as well as chronicles focusing on Sin-Eaters.

Maybe it’s just because it’s shiny and new, but I’m a sucker for games of these type.  Demon: the Fallen, Mummy: the Ressurection and even Orpheus all got my money when they came out because they explored similar themes: Mortals bonded to Immortal Essences.

Geist: the Sin-Eaters just sounds really freaky, and ultimately, very cool.

Soaking in Damnation

Well, since my Mage campaign seems to be shaking off the last remnants of it’s previous hibernation, I’ve begun looking at some of the usual suspects for inspiraton.  In this particular case, I’ve got my hands on a few Hellblazer Trade Paperbacks, and I have to say that it’s ugly, visceral, unrepentant and terrifying.

Open Game Table is now on Sale!

OGT!

I’m proud to announce that the Open Game Table project has finally come out with it’s finished product.  I’m very happy to be part of this project, and I’ll let Jonathan do the talking:

Open Game Table aims to bridge the gap between the RPG blogging community and the broader table-top gaming fan base by showcasing the best talent in the RPG blogosphere. Within these pages are 47 blog posts from 32 top-quality RPG blogs, plus a Foreword written by RPG luminary Wolfgang Baur. After six months of hard work, I am very happy to say this anthology is finally here for your enjoyment!!!

Packed with the best in RPG blogging and over 60 illustrations, this book is Pure Gold. The anthology chapters cover a wide variety of topics for fans of all table-top roleplaying games, including:

1. Play Style;
2. Game Play;
3. Characters & Players;
4. Monsters & NPCs;
5. Encounters, Settings, and Locations;
6. Adventure Design;
7. Campaign Setting Design;
8. Classes, Action, and Equipment;
9. RPG History & Commentary; and
10. The RPG Toolbox.

This anthology is the result of the hard work of nearly 100 volunteers, authors, editors, judges, artists, and designers. A true grass roots effort; it is a tour de force of the RPG blogging universe.

This project is the biggest physical proof that the RPG blogging community is going strong, and I highly encourage people to check it out over at LULU or AMAZON

[nMage] Long Actual Play Report is Long

Yesterday’s mage game turned out pretty interesting due to a number of sidetracked events, when characters ended up making their own lives just a little bit more difficult.  In any case, maybe it’s best to start off at the beginning.

L5R in Spaaace! #2 Non-human Races

Continuing where we left off yesterday in the fevered vision of L5R set in space, we’re tackling non-human races now:

[L5R] Dammit, now I gotta write this down…

L5R in Spaaace!

I’m certain people have seen me write this down before, but not as a campaign setting, not as an idea on how to take my favorite Faux-Samurai game and throw it into the Space Opera Genre in one fell swoop.  Sure it sounds  Star War-sy but I’m sure that Rokugan’s uniqueness will shine through.

Oh, and if you’re looking for a culprit: blame Mass Effect

Tell Me What You Want and We’ll Make It Happen

One thing I’ve taken on doing as a GM is to always take the time to ask my players what they want.  It’s been mentioned several times already on this blog that communication is key in any social activity, and the same goes for RPGs.  Contrary to what some people believe, GMs don’t have a greater “right” to dictate every single little thing that’s supposed to happen in a game.

As such, I like to ask my players from time to time about what they want to see in the game.  This doesn’t mean I’ll always bow down and give them all the magic items they want, or tons of experience points.  The question is geared towards what they want as players to play through with their characters.  Some characters enjoy politics.  Others love a good dungeon crawl.  In each of these answers, a GM can glean Opportunities, situations that may be utilized in game to meet what the player wants without necessarily being a sure thing.

For example, a player in a fantasy game I’ve spoken to says that he is looking for his character to end up running a kingdom.  It’s a broad request, and admittedly one that’s high up in terms of ambition.  Rather than tell him straight out no, I consider it and let it play in my head.  With that single request all sorts of opportunities pop up:

• Being drafted in the Military
• Earning the respect of his men and moving up the ranks
• Eventually attaining a post as Captain of the Royal Guard
• Discovering a conspiracy by the Chancellor against the royal family
• Trying to stop said conspiracy
• Arriving too late to save the King, but being named his heir as both his sons are poisoned
• Which then spins off to “Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown” scenarios

With a single request I’ve got an entire campaign planned out in broad strokes.  Does the  player get what he wanted?  Maybe.  As a GM, I’ve given him opportunities for him to reach out and attain what he wanted.  I might even go so far as to tell him now and then out of game if a current plot hook is leading to his goal.

One important thing to remember is that just because the player asks for something, doesn’t mean it has to be a cakewalk to get it.  The player will appreciate that you listen to his request, and will trust you in turn when you throw complications his way.  He’ll have an idea of where you’re leading him, but he’ll never expect the complications.

All the stories in the world have already been told after all… it’s the little things like the trials and tribulations to get to the end that make it interesting after all.  Let the player tell you what he wants, then make it your job to make the journey to his goal a memorable one.