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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 14, 2013 6:03:37 GMT -8
Seriously though the big competitor with mainstreaming tabletop RPG's with the "rising tide if nerd/geek culture" remains the silicon chip. CRPG's and MMORPG's have invested big big bucks in claiming and retaining that portion of the nerd population that enjoys RPG's . . . It's also very good at stifling both the debate and the contrasting of the very substantial differences between tabletop and digital games. If you want to grow the hobby destroy Sony . . . Aaron I think PC and Console gamers are the easiest people to convert. As soon as they complain about something or if I get the slightest whiff of interest, I run with it. Alcohol helps in that situation. It's kinda the same way that you convince a chick to... uh... "go out to dinner with you." Yep. I'd be interested in hearing how people convince "normies" to join in the fun, though. I think some of my fashion industry co-workers would enjoy roleplaying, metal-head friends, or even my parents who aren't otherwise into nerdy culture, but I have no idea how to bring it up without getting "the look" that means they aren't going to sit with me at lunch anymore. I hear all these stories about people with carpenters, jocks, and lawyers in their games. How is that done?
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 13, 2013 13:08:31 GMT -8
Congrats!
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 13, 2013 10:50:13 GMT -8
Kainguru: You're the best! Unless you're also doing it for yourself, you don't have to include the crimes and punishments if it'll save you some work. I had tried looking up AD&D Waterdeep books but it seems like there were a couple. Was it the one by Ed Greenwood? I'm always looking to add to my collection of AD&D paraphernalia.
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HJRPG1010
Aug 12, 2013 12:25:10 GMT -8
via mobile
Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 12, 2013 12:25:10 GMT -8
heavymetaljess I have somewhere in my realms of old archived game materials a judicial mechanic specifically for 2e - it was cobbled together from various sources and gives the incremental bonuses for things like charisma etc. It was a TOOL for RP not a replacement . . . you *could* use it to resolve the process with dice rolls but it was actually supposed to be used to take make the decision/justice less arbitrary (by that I mean purely by GM fiat or story goals driven ie: it's a sandbox mechanic). IIRC I 'borrowed' a large chunk from Thieves World by Chaosium, mainly sentencing, and the 2e WaterDeep Boxed set. This would be awesome if you still have it. Coincidently, I think the only FR book I have is the naked lady Northern sourcebook mentioned in this episode.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 12, 2013 8:54:28 GMT -8
The Endless Corridors Everyone in Charjarni fears the endless corridors and the bureaucracy behind its doors. You're unlikely to get anything unless you pay a little here and a little there and it takes forever and they're sending you back to where you just came from and here's another form and would you come back tomorrow and no,we're closing now and OH GOD KILL ME NOW! The locals have renamed this place "the eternal waiting line" and avoid it like the plague. You need to go there if you want certain permits though. Unless you have a way to fake them or the money to have someone else do it for you. Also consider that you really do not want to get caught with fake permits... This reminds me so much of the movie Brazil. Love it.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 12, 2013 8:46:46 GMT -8
So as some clarification, my rough plan was to use basic mechanics but only as a back-up to the roleplaying. The cleric has a very high Charisma so using ability checks with each bit of evidence would give her a landslide win and I don't think that would be fun for the player. I like the idea of using a combination of the reaction adjustment and non-weapon proficiences. She doesn't have Debate, Rhetoric, or Law so that might make it feel more balanced and maybe give her a reason to take one of them at her next level. She'll most likely be doing this again in the future. As Stu brought up, with a one-on-one game it’s hard to balance the action. There will be one judge and no jury, but the trial will involve a great number of witnesses. Maybe with the offer of beers I can convince a couple people to join in for one session to play the judge (love this idea) and some witnesses. I think @jonmcnally’s back and forth method will help with that, too. Having the Happy Jack’s crew join in would be a fun idea, but I’m on the East coast. CreativeCowboy: Yes, there is an especially dark conspiracy at work. This trial will determine how much more the cleric finds out about that corruption. I was hoping basic mechanics might help me determine who betrays what information when. I don’t want to shoot the plot load too early, but I also don’t want to hold on to the evidence so tightly that the player misses the clues. I’m still pretty new to GMing and those types of subtleties are sometimes hard for me to grasp. You also bring up trial by combat. I hadn't thought to use this, but I really like the idea as a way to build more roleplaying opportunities (like a death bed confession). Thanks everyone for another great round of input. I’ll be sure to give an update on how it goes.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 6, 2013 9:05:00 GMT -8
How about low class humans & gnomes who work as canal & street clean up crews? They could be organized in city district unions which belong to the city ruled union for such specific matters/tasks. Would natives have spanish, or arabic sounding names? Locals have Persian sounding names, but right now there are refugees from other countries involved in wars, so feel free to add color to immigrants. The next country North of Charjarni is Slavic styled and a nearby area has Non-Vikings (Nordic) that could easily arrive by ship to try and make trade negotiations.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 6, 2013 8:59:02 GMT -8
You just want locations or would you like NPCs to go with them. For instance would you like the spice merchant to go with the market stall, or you are you just looking for stuff to plop on a map as you flesh things out? Whatever you're willing to contribute. The contributions already made include a former adventurer turned merchant who rides around in an extravagant gondola, an enchanted tavern, and a clockwork shop run by a deaf gnome named Baloden. All three of these were just a paragraph, but the more the better. I just don't want anyone to feel like their idea is too basic to contribute. I believe settings really benefit from the diverse worldview that a group of people can pull together.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 6, 2013 8:45:39 GMT -8
If there's a middle class, where is the underclass? Is there organized crime? Yes, the working poor and well as those in abject poverty live in the walled off area for lower class citizens and transient poor. This area is big enough to be it's own large city and the burrow is known as Mirador. Working poor live closest to the wall since the canal system causes the water in the poorest areas are quite foul. There is a good deal of organized crime. So far, I've created one large organization called The Hammer Handed. Because the Emperor heavily regulates what can be exported to other countries, they make their money running a booming black market. Most of their clientele are the noble merchant families. Due to this involvement with the upper class, they also trade in secrets and political backstabbing. They operate out of a system of underground tunnels the spread throughout Charjarni and are rumored to extend under the Emperor's Palace complex. There is still LOTS of room for other organized crime units especially arms dealers, drug merchants, pimps, and hit men. Some recreational drugs are produced at one of the temples, but I'm sure exotic, novelty items have a place in the crime work for the city.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 5, 2013 13:17:28 GMT -8
Hello Fellow GMs.
On topic with the last podcast episode, I thought I'd try crowd sourcing some locations for my massive capital city in my AD&D game. Feel free to post anything you like that might exist in a Medieval Fantasy world like Al-Qadim for a middle or lower class city.
Here's some information about Charjarni:
- There is an imperial government with very strict laws and taxes. Hands are cut off thieves, nobles are executed for treason, paperwork must be filed for weapons, magic users are registered, etc.
- The capital is peopled with humans and elves. Occasionally there might be a stray gnome.
- The middle class, merchant portion of the city is separated from the lower class portion of the city by a manned wall. It is similarly blocked off from the upper class and imperial portions of the city (which I have already built).
- The culture and climate of Charjarni is based on the Spanish Moors. So think Moroccan influence on European sensibilities.
- The entire city has a series of canals much like Venice, Italy.
- There are museums dedicated to the religions of the area, the city's past, and cultural achievements must like the Smithsonian.
- The people are polytheistic. The main gods are a sun god (LG) and a fire goddess (NG) who are constantly at odds.
I need blacksmiths, jewelers, eateries, shops, markets, personalities, marshals, knights, and pretty much anything else. The setting is mid-magic. So a potion shop may exist in the middle class portion of town, but would be quite expensive.
Ask any questions that might help you out and feel free to include weird location quirks like the head of the stable selling steeds left too long without pay to a local butcher.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 5, 2013 12:53:52 GMT -8
I'm actually about to post a topic on the forum about massive city building for my one-on-one AD&D game. I thought it would be fun to make a city with ideas crowd sourced from r/Loremasters, but no one seemed to understand what I was trying to do and I only got one helpful reply. It has been a really daunting task so I broke it down as follows: - List basic details (government type, language, monetary unit, etc.)
- Break the areas into "burrows" and give them a basic feel (as mentioned on the podcast)
- List 10 major locations the PC will most likely visit (parent's home, personal temple, prison, etc.)
- Flesh out major NPCs for those 10 locations
- Draw a basic map for the overall area. I used this method from the Fantastic Maps blog, placed my Big 10 locations first, then filled in roads and misc., unnamed bulidings after
My city is much bigger than the one at the Fantastic Maps link. To handle that, I assign and build more places during each prep session I have between games. I make myself accountable to build at least two small locations, one medium location, or 1/2 a big location each time. This keeps me from feeling overwhelmed by the amount of work there is left to do while still giving my player fun new locations each session. None of these places get a permanent map space unless I feel really strongly about where they would be. Last session I used up a kabob street vendor (small location), a steed stable (small location), and a spice market (medium location). Now they have a permanent location on my map. I should also mention I hate building detailed maps (you can see the map making step was dead last). I much prefer talking it through and keeping it fluid, but this city is too large for my laziness. 100% of the time, my buildings get pre-made maps from the internet. After a bit more work, I plan to pay someone to draw it up for me in Illustrator so I can pass out a map. I'm so glad you mentioned Crucible of Realms. It's a GREAT example of how to brainstorm your world. I used their method (they have helpful paperwork) for my current world. Going forward, I'll probably sit down and do this process with my players.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Aug 4, 2013 11:37:50 GMT -8
In my one-on-one game, we have very different timing each session. Some games are 2 hours long, others are upward of 6. We just play until we come to a natural stopping point or until someone needs a break. Yesterday we played for about 2 hours, got to a good stopping point, and I also needed time to prepare. That's usually how it works out. We try not to have any preconceived notions about time and just let it "flow."
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Post by heavymetaljess on Apr 8, 2013 13:31:23 GMT -8
Wanted to write a bit back to Clockwork Monk. In the game I play in, my character has a phobia of fire. I get absolutely no advantage for having this (mechanically), but I constantly wish it would be brought up in game as well as the fact that my character wears a mask that covers half her face. It never does. No NPCs ask about it and there are never fire traps, or pits of fire, or fire slinging mages. It makes me really sad. There's never even a reason for anyone to see her without the mask. No surprises while bathing, no breaking into private inn rooms.
tl;dr Use it. Your players want you to and as Stu said, it's your duty if they're getting a mechanical advantage.
BTWz, the idea of the Moors was FANTASTIC. This is almost exactly what I was going for. The country with this culture has a Venice like city so I've been telling the players, "It's kinda Arabian, and kinda Venetian, and kinda Persian, all put together." I really know nothing at all about the Moors, so I'll have to do some research. I had tried the food thing and had thought about the music thing. Will have to give that a go to see if it helps. At the very least, images of the Moors and reading about their culture has given me ideas about how to better describe things. The idea for smells seems good, too. I'm thinking of grabbing some incense to burn or putting some cloves in the oven before we start...
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Post by heavymetaljess on Mar 11, 2013 16:33:40 GMT -8
I am also fed up with losing dice. Just the other day on Reddit I was saying how we can't use our glittery mini dice (oh the femininity!) because they are impossible to find on the floor. I think I'm going to design some kind of RPG lap tray. Then we can play our game on the couch instead of at my uncomfortable table under the ridiculously hot lights.
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Post by heavymetaljess on Mar 1, 2013 16:57:50 GMT -8
I really liked their updated images. Though, I still hold to my opinion of, "I don't really give a shit."
Almost every die I have is from Chessex, except for a few (including some metal ones, and a handfull of unknown origin). Other than a reddish orange opaque Chessex d20 they don't seem to roll high or low more often. I like lots of colors, so I generally go with Chessex.
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