Hey, Look! TrollsZine Is A Free T&T 'Zine!

Getcha some! I just did.

Damnit, Stop Apologizing For Being A Gamer! (WARNING: F-Bombs!)

Jebus! Seriously, man, cut it out! "Oh, I'd be too embarrassed to admit to doing something that dorky...!"

NO. NO, AND FUCK THAT. FUCK THAT RIGHT IN ITS FACE.

Does anyone say, "Gee, I'd be too embarrassed to admit that I like to hike"? When did you hear somebody say, "I'd never bring up my love of...fucking knitting in casual conversation!" Did anyone ever get all sheepish and apologetic about liking to cook?

NO! NO, THEY DON'T! THEY DON'T BECAUSE IT'S JUST SOMETHING THEY FUCKING DO, AND THEY LOVE TO DO IT, AND IT MAKES THEM HAPPY SO BIG DEAL!

You bet I'm pissed.

Where'd this come from? I saw a guy's blog post (not a gaming blog) where he basically gushed about how much he loved gaming as a kid, but opened it up by saying:

"Ordinarily, I'd probably be a little embarrassed to talk about playing something as profoundly geeky as a pencil-and-paper RPG. By itself, it's bad enough."

No offense to author -- it's the attitude that pisses me off. Acting like it's something nasty or dirty that we do, something barely on the fringes of acceptable behavior. Bull-shit. It's not like we're organizing dog fights, people.

Oh, but sure, lots of non-gamers look down on it, don't understand it, think it's childish at best. That's because they don't know any better. And how are they gonna know any better if they aren't exposed to it as something that's not incomprehensible and childish and dumb?

Damnit, stop hiding it. Just be you, man, life's too fucking short.

Reaffirmation Of Purpose

In the comments upon the"How I Run STAR WARS" post, new blog reader Chris said:

"I've always run rules-heavy games (Vampire, Werewolf, etc.) and only now am I discovering that gaming doesn't have to be following a pre-created script that has been pondered and polished and PERFECTED -- it can be half-assed spontaneous crazy fun instead."

I love it when readers say things like this, because I sometimes need to be reminded. Thanks, Chris!

My Most Brilliant Idea Ever!

Here, here, check this out, it's awesome:

"WELCOME BACK, KOTTER" / "THE WARRIORS"
MASH-UP LARP.

*tink* *tink* *tink* "Swe-aaaaat Hooooogs! Up y'nose wid' a rubb-ah HO-WOO-OOOOOSE....!"

Listen, man, that's it. This stuff writes itself.

Reading RPG Books In Public

I support this event so wholeheartedly that I practice it every week of the year. I encourage you to do same. You know why?

Because if this is no big deal...



...then neither is this.

Realmsbucklepedia -- Wherein I Elabomorate

I dunno, man, I think it was the other day when I read somewhere where a fellow blogger mentioned that the Rules Cyclopedia's character creation rules allow for pretty much any character you want, what with the skills and stuff. I hadn't quite thought about it that way, but I had to agree -- especially when I got to thinking about how I could take a basic off-the-rack fighter and, using skills and weapon masteries, I could build a charming, dashing swashbuckler-type dude. This is because every character I dream up has to smooth with the ladies.

Pictured: Inside Doc's brain.

Anyway, I kinda fixat-- no no no, the notion crystallized around the idea of a straight-up swashbuckler character built out of nothing more than what the RC has in inside it, and so I had flamboyant shenanigans on the brain.

Then came the turning point when, this past weekend, I had to go to the bathroom.

This is important to the story.

It's important to the story because the bathroom is where a lot of my ideas snap into place, since very little of what takes place in there requires concentration. This leaves the mind to wander off and find weird doorways in the backs of record shops and glue-spewing dragons and so on.

But what's key about going to the bathroom is that needed a magazine. (C'mon, you've done it too.) I grabbed Dragon #273, the one with Robin D. Laws' article "Swashbuckling Essentials", where he elegantly solves the AC-when-you-wear-no-armor dilemma by saying, basically: "Fighters' AC improves by 1 each level, clerics' every two, thieves' every three". And I just thought, "DUDE. That is simpler than what I'm doing right now."

Bingo-bango-bongo.

Of course my next thought was, "Setting"?, and my mind flew to Sembia, as one of the places in the Forgotten Realms that TSR totally turbo promised would not be goofed with and was just for DMs and blah blah blah. Since I like to pretend that it's 1987 (for a lot of reasons, actually) and that those words are still true, tonight (but not in the bathroom) I put pen to paper and wrote this:


So, what's next? Well, my wife and I have next Wednesday off together...

The Voices Are Whispering Their Strange Maths To Me

And this is what they say...

+

+

+

Cliffhangers, Myth And Hot Rods: How I Run STAR WARS

Okay. It's long since been established that STAR WARS was my first game, and that it's my favorite, even if I don't run it all that much.

Everybody runs the game differently, I think. When I run it, I try to capture a certain feel -- I have a specific impression of the setting that I like to emulate in style, content, mood, etc.

This impression is probably colored in part by the GM advice in the 1st edition rulebook. There's a section wherein the author (presumably Greg Costikyan, andnot an editor or other contributor, wrote this bit) makes a list of what STAR WARS is, and what it isn't. I don't have the book handy at the moment, so I can't quote it, but it basically says that STAR WARS is not hard SF, it's not about building the supergadget that solves everything, and so on. The author argues (quite rightly, I think) that instead the focus is on melodrama, sense of wonder, and so on.

I agree. I agree, but I simplify. I go back to the source, and look at what George Lucas was thinking when he created the whole thing.

And my impression of that is this: Cliffhangers, Myth and Hot Rods.

Cliffhangers

It's no secret. Hell, you read Skywalking too, right? In writing STAR WARS, he was trying to emulate the high-adventure Saturday-morning serial shenanigans of Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, Commander Cody and their ilk. It's obvious when you watch the movies (the OT, anyway) that it's pulp adventure in space-age clothes. That stuff pressed his Wow Button when he was kid, and he wanted to make something that would press it for you as well. I can tell you that it worked a charm for me.

How does that translate into my games? Action and wonder, cousin! I strive for constant action. Conflicts aplenty, happening all the time. Swoop races, running gunfights, foot chases, starship battles, arguments -- I try to keep the pace moving. It doesn't always have to be some kind of physical conflict, mind you. Although such conflicts are more direct, the occasional melodramatic subplot can be just as tantalizing and attention-getting (and even plot-driving!) as wrestling Gundarks.

If the PCs aren't in a constant state of having to do something that might go wrong, then I'm not doing it right.

Oh, and I like the exotic locations -- or at least evocative prosaic ones. Palaces made of marble and crystal one game, greasy-floored garages the next. So long as they take you somewhere.

Myth

This is pretty obvious too. STAR WARS is a version of the hero's journey, what with Luke going from farmboy to hero with the help of the old wizard, and fighting the dark king and etcetera etcetera. You know -- The Power Of Myth and all that. George hearts him some Joe Campbell, boys.

Frankly, I don't elaborate on it overmuch -- at least not consciously. I prefer to be guided subconsciously by the epic/mythic yadda-yaddas in the process of gettin' mah STAR WARS on. It's just kind of second nature, really. That's why my good guys are good, my bad guys are bad, and the former will triumph over the latter. Anybody in a grey hat, so to speak, will eventually lighten or darken. I treat the whole thing as a principle as opposed to a rule.

Hot Rods

Lucas is a car guy. If you doubt this, go watch American Grafitti. Luke had a speeder; Anakin stole a nice one. Both were pilots. The Falcon is a souped-up junker that's faster than she looks. Speeder bikes go real fast; so do starfighters. Like I said: Lucas is a car guy.

Ergo, as a STAR WARS GM, I do not forsake the hot rods. Good gods, I'd never dream of it. I gotta have my vehicles in there -- and they have to go fast. Why is this important to me? Well, think of it this way: Why do drag racers, uh, drag race? It's the need for speed, baby! VROOM VROOM! There is power and excitement and danger in these things. They don't have to take center stage, but really -- can you imagine STAR WARS without turbo-fast space-cars?

I can.

I don't like it.


The No-Nos

Just as important as what I do is what I don't do. Just like I wouldn't pour caramel on lettuce, there are some things that I prefer not to jam into my STAR WARS games.

No Genre-Mixing

Been there. Done it. Ran back as soon as I could. I tried injecting cyberpunky themes into a STAR WARS game once, and it failed. Dystopia and desperation simply don't go with mythic tales of space fantasy. No horror, either -- STAR WARS is exciting but not scary.

No Visitors

I seldom, if ever, like to drag stuff in from other worlds. That means no Klingons, no X-Men, no Giger biomechanical monsters, no Predators, no Schwarz. ESPECIALLY no Schwarz. Crossovers with STAR WARS just don't ring true to me. The universe is big enough as it is, with lots of room for my own inventions; why co-opt? Now, inspiration from other sources is a different matter, but still and all, I find that I rarely need it.

No Prequel Trilogy

Sorry, but no. Just...just no. The OT pushed my Wow Button; Tales of the Jedi did, and so did Knights of the Old Republic. In the end, though,what really gets my doggy leg jigglin' is Stormtroopers, TIE fighters, a band of Rebels and space gangsters.


So. This is my own idiosyncratic take on it. What's yours?

...Dammit, I'm Just gonna Hafta Buy This CD.

Luckily it's cheaper than I thought. But -- DAMN. I try to express how much I like what I've heard of Soda Stereo's 1985 album Nada Personal, and it's like I'm trying to tell you how delicious a taco is while I'm eating a dozen of 'em.

Don't speak Spanish? Hell, listen to it anyway. Good music is good music.

Free Map (You Know You Want To)

Here. I scribbled this today at work, and you can totally have it.

Click to amplify!

Not related to the Harold Waldrop story of the same name, my map for Night of the Cooters was inspired by a few things: The want of a map for a quick D6 Adventure skirmish, the desire to draw a map in this angled, fake-o 3D projection, and an Engle Matrix game inspired by the Kelly-Hopkinsville Encounter of 1955. Only my scenario, obviously, involves a staggering amount of illegal hooch.

(As an aside: The Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter -- Is It Is, or Is It Ain't? I'm skeptical, not because I dismiss it as bunk but because the evidence is scant, so it can't be proven. Probably never will. Until then, though -- hell of a story, eh?)

So...yeah, the scenario is pretty much all there. Obviously here's a downed saucer, a trailer and some rotgut. We can assume that "2 mi. to saucer" means "a short hike for some aliens", and that "trailer" and "illegal hooch" mean "hillbillies with shotguns". Who the PCs are is up to you, as is the exact situation -- do the Good Ol' Boys mistake attempts at peaceful First Contact for space-boogers cruisin' for, uh, Really Close Encounters of the Wrong Kind, or are those saucer-rats really-for-truly a bunch of complete bastards -tinfoil suits notwithstanding- who will shoot you daid an take yore tipple? Whichever, my friend. It's all you. Take! Take and enjoy.

But if that propane tank doesn't go up like an outhouse full of M80s, I will be a very, very sad panda.

I Never Claimed To Be Funny.

Yes.

So I ran the first session of my Pulp Art Nouveau Spelljammer thing, with Savage Worlds as my rules. Went pretty well, even with 7 players -- which made combat take a while.

Still and all, I'm excited.







Sorry, I guess me no got much words.

22 Years Ago Today

I walked into the Waldenbooks at College Mall in Bloomington, IN, with $30 in pocket. I saw these two books:


I had no idea what they were for -- just that they were a game of some sort. I liked Star Wars, I liked games, and each book cost fifteen bucks.

$15 + $15 = SOLD.

Aaah, yes.

22 years ago today.

Cyberpunk Cities Revisited

Not much time for this post, but -- here's some cyberpunk inspiration I've had lately.

ONE
You heard that Dubai is in financial trouble, right? What would happen if the companies building those crazy-ass resorts suddenly all went bankrupt -- who'd move in? What would happen? Wouldn't that be a kickin' setting for a cyberpunk game -- an extravagant metropolis on the skids, fancy hotels converted to apartment blocks full of your typical cyberpunk characters? Hmmm...

TWO
Yesterday I mentioned that thing about La Movida Madrileña, and how pop culture exploded all over Madrid after Franco blah blah blah? You'd hafta play fast and loose with your future history, but it strikes me that you could use that as a hell of another premise for your cyberpunk setting: a culture released from opression that can suddenly go crazy and do whatever the hell it wants -- and there's cyberware.

Hmm. Crap! Gotta go back to work!

El Wave-o New-o; or, ¡Esta Noche Todo Mundo A La Calle!"

Damn, there's some pretty good Spanish-language pop, synthpop and New Wave. Why the hell haven't I dipped into this well before?! Was it because of the sour taste left in my mouth by Timbiriche's cover of "99 Luftballons" in 1984 (or so)?

Actually I have blog reader José Viruete to thank. See, back a few months ago when I posted about a Las Mexican Go-G-- er, I mean, Flans, José dropped me a link to a video of a Spanish New Wave band performing on Italian TV.

I was hooked.

And it's not just because the singer had such nice legs; I liked the song. I liked the song A LOT. I've visited that link a ton of times; I even played the song for my daughter.

It was only a matter of time before I said to myself, "Okay, so...what else?" Thus I started myself a Pandora station for the stuff, aaaaand...

...wow.

So it looks like there was a New Wave-esque movement in Madrid back in the late 70's/early 80's, born out of the sudden freedom from Franco's regime. It's much deeper a thing than I have summarized here (click the link and you'll get a better taste), but the bottom line is this: It produced a ton of synthpop I'd never heard of, and to me, that's like suddenly getting a millionh dollars in gold from a team of laser-powered dancing bears.

And it's not just out of Spain. There's been some pretty good stuff from all over Latin America, too -- Mexico produced a modern act called Belanova, which I've approved on my Pandora station, and there's stuff from Argentina and all over the place. I'm just getting started.

And the best part?

I CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY'RE SAYING.

Que tal, Alaska...bien, bien, y tu?

"Merry Something To You"

Thanks to Mike for the tip.

I'm Tired Of How This Blog Looks.

I can't find a template that I like, though, and I suck at coding -- AND I can't decide how it should look.

The D6 System And Why I Love It (For Moni)

Yeah! That's right! I'm answering a comment with a post of its own, again! It's MY blog, suckas, and I DO AS I PLEASE! I AM THE DUKE OF NEW YORK!

...yeah, okay. So new blog reader Moni asked, "What would you say are the best aspects of the system?". Good question, Moni (and welcome to the blog, by the way) -- not least because I feel it is important that I am able to articulate my opinions on stuff instead of just spraying them around like water from a firehose.

So...here's what I would say are the best aspects of the system. Got your reading feet on?

1 - IT'S DAMN EASY TO PLAY.
D6, in all of its incarnations (from the old Ghostbusters game that became D6 to the latest stuff) has never been big on fiddly-bits and rules. They've always been clear-cut: Roll as many dice as your skill code, add 'em up, and see if you beat the difficulty number. In some cases (combat), you figure the difference between one roll and the other. There's not a lot of room for error or doubt in that.

2 - IT'S DAMN EASY TO TEACH.
Read the last paragraph again. There, you know 75% of the rules.

3 - IT'S DAMN EASY TO PREP FOR.
Few things really require stat blocks in D6. Those that do aren't very demanding. Once you get a feel for what levels of competency are described by what die codes (1D feeble, 2D average, 3D gettin' it done, 4D awesome sauce, 5D badass, etc.), NPCs can be thrown onto the page in a trice. Dig:

HAMPTON LANGER, Gunslinger of Mars
All stats 2D except: DEX 3D, Pistol 4D+2, Dodge 3D+1, STR 3D+2.
Armored duster (+3 physical), Radium 6-shooter 4D damage.

It took me longer to decide on "Gunslinger of Mars" than to write down the skills. Hampton here is now fully statted out for whatever shenanigans in which he's meant to engage. I can now worry more about what he looks like, how he talks, and how he's gonna die.

4 - IT HAS BITS AND BOBS THAT YOU CAN TAKE OR LEAVE.
Seriously, all the perks and complications you see in Mini Six? We never had those back in the day. They're nice, I like them -- but leaving them out ain't gonna break anything. Trust me, I made do without 'em from 1988 to, like, 2002.


Well, Moni, I hope I answered your question. If I have not, then just say: "No, Doctor Rotwang!, you have not." I will try again. I'm a big boy, I can take it.

Still, the best answer I can give you is this: Go play with it.

You'll see.

Falling In Love Again: Mini Six

You know of course by now about Mini Six, AntiPaladin Games' streamlined, condensed, totally free game built upon the D6 SRD. You read the blogs; nothing gets by you.

What you might not know is that I have downloaded it, read it, and pronounced it AWESOME.

There was a time in my life when I wasn't a fan of the D6 system, but that was prior to 31 December 1987 when I purchased the first edition STAR WARS rulebook, so...never mind. Anyway, the game is OGL now and the designers are off and running with it.

This thing has it all, and it mixes rules from 1st and 2nd Ed. STAR WARS with stuff from the later D6 iteration to terrific effect. You'll get character generation, optional perks and complications, basic rules, some equipstuff, a bestiary, some stock NPCs, vehicle combat, magic...even tips for customizing the game's components to your heart's desire. Seriously, you can totally run a campaign out of just those 7 pages.

I was glad to see a few neat 1st Ed SW concepts revived in Mini Six. I'm thinking specifically of vehicle move ratings being expressed not as absolute values but as dice, which are rolled along with piloting skill dice for the resolution of chases. I hadn't realized that I missed the abstraction of vehicle speed; somehow, reading the brief but totally serviceable rules in Mini Six, I suddenly thought: "Oh, yeah...!"

There are a few things I'd change, but not many (mainly, base melee damage dice and scaling bonus dice) . Still and all, I don't see anything in there that doesn't work just fine as it is.

If you've never tried a D6 game, or if you just want a 7-page condensation of what you know is a badass cinematic game...the link is up there. You may use it.

Bring Your Beef To WRASSLETOWN!

Okay, so you know how you wake up in the morning and your brain is totally like "I'm awake! No, I'm asleep! Burgundy flotilla bears!" and all kinds of dumb stuff is liable to fly into your consciousness?

That's how I thought of Wrassletown.

Actually, I only thought of the word -- somewhere between my bed and the shower (approx. 7 feet), and after thinking the words "Figby & Sarp", who...I dunno who they are. Anyway, I got in the shower and cogitated on Wrassletown.

Wrassletown is a place for your Mutant Future campaign. Situated in a fairly safe valley, it is THE destination for entertainment, commerce and even law. Sort of like Bartertown, yes.

It began as a travelling circus, a group of able-bodied survivors roaming together for safety. They didn't have much to trade at the scattered towns they found in their travels, but one of its members, The Ultimate Hogan (the two-headed mutant result of the apocalypse-caused fusion of Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior), suggested they might be able to make some trades and some friends by putting on a wrestling show to amaze and amuse the locals. After all, just because you live in an irradiated wasteland where the living envy the dead, that doesn't mean you can't enjoy watching a tentacled rat-man pile-drive a walking cactus into the mat -- right?

It worked.

Within just a few years, word of the travelling wrestling show got around, and The Ultimate Hogan (quickly become the de facto leader of the group) saw the benefits of settling down. They sought out a valley and set up shop. A permanent ring was erected, tents were battened down, and the people came. Before long, traders and merchants came, too -- Wrassletown was born.

Someone (search me, I dunno who) had the idea that if mighty battles of good versus evil could be fought in the ring, then maybe common, every-day disputes could be solved that way, too. Now, those who sought a law of sorts -or justice at any rate- could come to Wrassletown and solve their problems in the squared circle.

Now...at this point, the reader might be -as is the author- tempted to flesh this idea out, to consider the ramifications of this rough island of civilization in the post-apocalyptic wilderness. Still, the perrceived need might be a false one. After all, think about this:


...I think we're really done here, don't you?

Special thanks to Leaky Pete for this whole "The Ultimate Hogan" craziness.

First, Because I'm Thinking Of It: Elizabeth Perkins Is Hawt

The TV here inna break room is showing Big, and it's the part where they go on the date, and she's wearing the black dress, and ROWR.

Okay, real post now.

Gods!

Time was I would try to insert some big-ass pantheon into my game worlds, only to discover that I could not reconcile them logically with the way my game worlds worked.

Screw that.

To preserve my sanity (not to mention my interest ion the whole endeavor), I have decided to go with a mere three deities and one legendary figure.

To further simplify matters, these three deities have no spheres of influence -- they simply represent different ways in which the people of my setting view and understand the universe. In a way, they are the embodiment of alignments.

The three deities worshiped in my world are:

• Atarath, a Lawful-Neutral god who demands obedience and service;
• Marnir The Ready, a Neutral-Good figurehead who embodies goodwill; and
• Suggol, a Chaotic-Evil icon of the world's ultimate lack of compassion and of its doom.

The legendary figure is Lurick, The God Of Righteous Battle. He doesn't count as a god at the moment, though, because he's lost at the moment.

Atarath

Atarath, called The Law-Giver, is believed the creator of the world and of man. He is also the ultimate judge. He is considered all-powerful. Legend has it that he gave life unto man in exchange for obedience and service, saying that man may prosper and multiply so long as he does so in the name of The Law-Giver. To best accomplish this, he gave unto man certain Laws to follow. Failure to follow these Laws constitutes sin, and sinners are judged harshly by Atarath...and by his priests.

Luckily for the sinners, Atarath is a rather absent god, and only rarely does he come to mete out justice -- and his appearances are capriciously timed, at that.

The biggest thing to fear from Atarath is actually his priests, who have taken it upon themselves to be his personal representatives on earth. It is up to them to interpret and enforce his laws. The priesthood is authorized to dispense most punishments, but corporal punishments are the sole province of clerics and paladins.

Atarath's symbol is a thundercloud with a lightning bolt.

Worship of Atarath

As one might expect, worshiping this deity involves strict adherence to laws, proscriptions, customs and bans. The devotion shown by his worshipers is directly proportional to the proximity of someone who will call them out on slacking off.

Atarath's is the most widely-practiced religion in the land. This is for a simple reason: it's the one that demands the least effort. Most people find it easier to follow rules than to take their own initiative (as Marnir's followers do), so they strive to avoid punishments both corporeal and spiritual by shrugging and going along with Atarath's rules.

Many of the Laws are simple ones, and for the most part are simply common sense: Don't steal, don't kill, don't commit adultery, etcetera. Other laws, however, are more esoteric, and some fringe on the bizarre -- devout worshipers of Atarath may not wear red and black together, for instance, nor can they eat meat of beef when it's raining, and must cast their old boots over a cliff before they wear a new pair. Not all laws are so whimsical, however; people have been slain or worse for giving aid to faeries.

Given that Atarath himself is never around, it's unclear which laws are set by him and which are merely creations of the priesthood. The Scrolls of Law set forth all of the rules, but if Atarath himself is the author, he's not talking.

The Church of Atarath is powerful both politically and with the populace, and its temples are widespread.

Avatar

Atarath rarely, if ever, makes an appearance on the material plane. When he does, it's as a raging thunderhead that drags much sturm und drang in its wake. The thunderhead glows brightly from within, as lightning constantly twists and lashes inside it. Wrathful destruction usually follows (he usually only shows up when he's mad), but on occasion good things come from his visits, like bountiful crops, the banishment of diseases, the blessing of roads so that bandits cannot tread them, and so on.

Priests, Clerics and Paladins

Priests or Atarath are commonly found tending to a community, serving at a temple. They can cast no spells and receive no martial training. They function mainly as moral compasses for the communities they serve. Thankfully, many who are called to the priesthood are of a benevolent nature and as such really do have peoples' best interests at heart; these folk hew to the laws out of a desire to do good. Some few are bad apples, and are drawn to the priesthood for the power it affords them, but these are rare cases.

Clerics of Atarath work as missionaries, traveling abroad and spreading The Law to the Lawless. They function as normal clerics do, but can cast an extra Detect Evil and a Detect Chaos 1/day. In addition, they can turn undead as though they were 1 level higher.

Atarath's paladins are a fearsome foe. They embody his ideals in the staunchest, most devout of ways, and are authorized as judge, jury and executioner. They are as pious as they are relentless. Paladins of Atarath must be Lawful Good, and they must act that way lest they lose all their powers. Once per day, a paladin of Atarath may pray before a battle, effectively granting himself the effects of a Bless spell for three rounds.

Marnir The Ready

Marnir The Ready, The Friend-To-All, He Who Calls To Serenity, is a thoroughly benevolent power dedicated to harmony and sharing. Marnir has no real church or doctrine -- just followers and a general ideology. He is called "The Ready" for his and his followers' eagerness to assist those in need.

What Marnir espouses is not so much a doctrine as it is simply a way of life, guided by a few precepts which are regarded as universally true: That freedom and personal rights are sacred, that every living being has the right to be alive and to seek happiness, and that the only way to do wrong is to actively deny these rights to others. They are not judgmental people but they are easily stirred to action.

Marnir's symbol is of two hands clasping.

Worship of Marnir

As can be imagined, Marnir doesn't really expect anyone to worship him; he just wants people to find the goodness in themselves and to lead by example. The practice of the tenets is called Marnir's Way.

Those who follow this ideology tend to be altruistic and generous people. Some are more active in their generosity than others; most people are content simply to stay out of each others' way, but many look for ways to help others. Displays of this altruism can vary from simply sharing food when one has enough to share, to outright self-sacrifice. Marnir doesn't expect any of the latter, of course, but he has a way of smiling upon it and rewarding it in one way or another.

Human nature being what it is, it's not surprising that Marnir's Way is not very popular -- at least not as much so as the fear of Atarath. Proselytizing is not Marnir's Way, and many who try to lead by example notice that there are few who actually follow. Add to this the fact that Marnir threatens no damnation from which one needs saving, and the result is that people mostly decide that Marnir's Way is all wasted effort.
What these people fail to notice, however, is that Marnir's Way is its own reward -- simply put, benevolent people are usually well favored by their peers. In addition, those who prove exemplary altruists are often blessed by Marnir himself with a variety of boons, ranging from perfect health and uncanny knowledge to, in some cases, extravagant wealth and even powers beyond those of mortal men.

Avatar

Marnir makes more appearances on the material plane than Atarath has -- or ever will. No one will ever know how often he appears, though, because he manifests as a normal human being with an average appearance. The only evidence that proves it is Marnir is that he disappears very suddenly, and leaves a ring of emerald-green light where he stood. (Incidentally, any illusionist spell designed to replicate this effect fails outright.)

Priests, Clerics and Paladins

There are no priests of Marnir The Ready. Since Marnir's Way is one of personal initiative, priests are antithesis -- there's no dogma to learn or teach. Likewise, there are no paladins, because gearing up for war and going around smiting people isn't really a Marnirite's style. And anyway, if someone really wants to dress up in shiny armor and ride around on a charger with coloful pennons aflutter, then why shouldn't they? Just so long as no one gets hurt.

Clerics of Marnir, however, are plenty. Like knights errant, they adventure to seek wrongs to right and rights to defend. Adventuring clerics of Marnir will always share of the riches they gain, keeping for themselves only one-tenth of the value of their loot. The rest is spent freely and readily in securing food, shelter and other necessities for those who need them. It is not at all uncommon for a Marnirite cleric to emerge from a dungeon with a sack full of treasure, go back to town, and arrange a big-ass feast for all and sundry. What the hell else is he gonna do with it?
Clerics of Marnir are as normal clerics, except that they can Heal Light Wounds and Create Food for free 1/day per level.

Suggol

The Lurker In The Dark, The Hunger Unstoppable, The Bringer of Nothing -- these are names for Suggol, a loathsome beast who exemplifies an indifferent, uncaring world. Legend says that Suggol will one day chew his way through the Seven Pits, and emerge into the world of men and light -- whereupon he will literally consume it all, in an orgiastic feast of chaos and destruction. With such a doom inherent in the world, does anything at all really matter?

Worship of Suggol

It can be argued that declaring oneself a Cultist of Suggol has little, if nothing, to do with espousing a philosophy of life, and everything to do with having an excuse to exercise one's animal nature. To the Cultist, it's every man for himself; selfishness and self-gain are the only reasons to do anything, and consequences be damned. In the end, nothing matters; until then, do as thou wilt and screw everyone else.
Suggol itself (it has no sex, being simply a gibbering engine of destruction) does indeed lie captive in an extraplanar prison, and it is trying to eat its way out. That much the cultists have got right. However, whether or not Suggol is having any success in this endeavor is unknown. The Bringer Of Nothing may be striving in vain, or it might be moments away from bursting through and eating the sun. Who knows? That's what makes it scary, and what gives its cultists their drive.
Cultists of Suggol meet in Covens, and hold their services (such as they are) in places of desecration and ruin. They observe no rituals but instead engage in activities of a dubious and often horrendous nature. They eschew order and see it as their duty to sow chaos, chiefly aiming to engender fear and destruction. They pray to Suggol only to ask him to delight upon their enormities. Human sacrifices are common.
Thankfully, the actual outward worship of Suggol is not so common. The Church of Atarath is active in the persecution and destruction of what covens they can find. As a result, Suggoltic worship is most common in the wilderness, away from retribution but within the reach of victims. Even Marnirites, whose tolerance is legendary, will hunt them down.
Many followers do so in secret, and limit themselves to less outward expressions of their beliefs. Thieves, assassins and other such unsavories will pay homage to The Lurker, while common folk who just don't give a damn about anyone but themselves will use The Hunger Unstoppable as justification for their pettiness.

Suggol's symbol is an open, many-toothed maw, from which a baleful two-lobed eye stares.

Avatar

You don't want to know.

Priests, Clerics and Paladins

Suggolites can't stay organized long enough to form orders, but that doesn't stop them from trying.

Every Suggolite considers himself a priest of his or her own personal depravity, but there are no ranks or any such order to follow. Individuals may become well known for their accomplishments, and thus stand out as objects of admiration to the others; this earns them favors, and in some cases even respect. Still, there's always someone with a dagger at the ready, lusting for the blood of the mighty.

Surprisingly, there are clerics, even though the deity itself is too far removed in the cosmos to provide any direct powers and benefits. Unknown to its clerics, Suggol is not the source of their spells and powers. Instead, these powers come from a place on earth -- a cavern far away in Maknar, where Suggol's last bodily incarnation lies in state. Strange energies emanate from this place, and certain evil folk are attuned to them. These are the clerics of Suggol, and they see it as their duty to wreak even more havoc than they could before.

Paladins of Suggol, perhaps best termed anti-paladins, also exist and are likewise powered by the same giant carcass. Anti-paladins become such at the end of an unspeakable ritual (the only one the Suggolites observe, and adapted quite by accident from an ancient spellbook), gaining nasty horrible versions of a paladin's abilities. The paladin him- or herself becomes physically changed by this process, and is therafter posessed of a rather unpleasant physical trait of some sort: A hideous odor, glowing red eyes, a twisted face, or somesuch. Then it's off into the world to mess things up and generallybe a bastard, for fun.

Lurick, The God Of Righteous Battle

So! Why is Suggol currently locked away in the transdimensional pokey? You can thank Lurick for that.

Long ago, there were many gods, and Lurick was one of them. Lurick, being The God Of Righteous Battle, stood for every good reason for picking up a weapon and using it. Much of his lore is forgotten, but this much is known: Suggol was once disturbingly close to eating everything, and it was Lurick who stopped him. With the help of another lost deity, Aiara the Enchantress, Suggol was banished into the void.

After this, the histories get sketchy. At some point in the chronologies of old, Lurick vanishes without explanation. To be fair, little is known of this distant past, and none of it is likely to be important to he campaign.

Of course, I might change my mind and decide that some of it is, which I'm entitled to do because I'm the GM.

Yeah, I Know.

Totally.

StarGate: Universe is on right now.

And I'm posting on my blog.

What's that tell you?

A Quck Digression

We'll return to Snot's adventures in T&T land, you bet. First, though, while I'm thinking about it...

Anyone who knows me knows of my obsession with 80's pop culture. Many also know that I spent the majority of that wondrous decade in Mexico City, and that I have a very melancholy fondness for the place.

So.

The Eighties,, in Mexico City. One might wonder -- what was that like...?

...kind of like this, really, which goes to show why I think about it so damn much.

Snot Down The Hole: More T&T Shenanigans! (Part One)

Enough of us were free yesterday that it was decided to reconvene at Leaky Pete's for gaming. When the call went out for a game to be chosen, the closest I got to a request was for more Tunnels & Trolls. Seeing as how my wife was still wanting some sweet, sweet dungeon-crawling misadventure, I took my 7.5 box along and away we went.

The crew was the same as last time, in players if not characters. My wife wasn't real thrilled with her last character, so she switched to Ismir, a 2nd-level elf rogue with a Swashbuckling talent. Also, I forgotten to pack up Mr Party Gorilla's character, Glorkk, so he rolled up a new Wolf Troll and thus was Glerk born. No big loss, really, since Glerk ended up with a strength of 52 and 40 Combat Adds. Fine by me.

I quickly set the scene: fleeing the disaster they engineered last time, the four adventurers peeled out of Three Chickens and headed elsewhere -- in this case, to the Village of Flatdog, also in the Frankie Valley. Along the way, Glork was magiclly teleported away and replaced by Glerk; and sometime after arriving in Flatdog, Maaren dumped the other three (a good move) and Ismi, who had adventured with Snot before, was recognized by the little booger and had no choice but to hang around him. There, that was the party. Done.

[By the way, in case you're wondering why the village was called "Flatdog", my reason was a simple one: Leaky Pete was dog-sitting a Corgi named Grunt. It's often handy to let your immediate surroundings inspire you.]

Speaking of parties, Flatdog was holding its annual Festival of Clobbero -- a feast to commemorate the coming of the hero Clobbero, who long ago chased a dragon away. Mirth and good cheer was everywhere, what with the coloful pennons and the girls dancing and the kids chasing each other with sticks (re-enacting the mighty hero's deed).

The PCs were in the Tavern of the Black Mare, whereupon they encountered a VERY famous local fellow named Polydor the Bard, whom I described as "looking like a ketchup bottle and a mustard bottle had a baby, gave it alute and sent it out for voice lessons".

Polydor waited for the crowd to settle down before dropping the adventure hook, to the tune of "Greensleeves": That long ago, the wizard Zantos ("The Spellmaker!" suggested Party Gorilla, and it suck) had become evil in his old age but recanted on his death bed, and that he had been interred in a secret tomb not far from here. Furthermore, the location of the tomb was rumoured to have been found in The Ravine of Durdin's Rest, two days' ride from Flatdog. Then, the crowd roared and applauded, Polydor left with some groupies, and the hook was baited.

Before departing, the party wished to stock up on supplies. They purchased what Jake called "The ACME Adventuring Pack", which means,uh, you know. Zando, being a non-comtatant with 2 whole Combat Adds, expressed a desire to hire a shield maiden to protect him.

This pleased me. It pleased me greatly.

It pleased me greatly because I love the idea of hirelings and henchmen. I din't know why; I just think it's cool. I get to make up my own quirky NPC adventurers who get to help out in a pinch, and also get killed first. It's a rare opportunity, so I took it...and made magic.

I quickly created Kirsil The Grim, Late of the Marauders of the Twilight Hills. Kirsil appeared in the game as ablonde warrior woman with viking tresses, a horned helmet, shield, spear -- the whole works.

Oh, and she's 18 years old and with the looks of a high school cheerleader.

Zando quickly propositioned her as an employee, to which she replied, "What, ho! I readily hear your pleading voice -- let us now hear the tinkling of your silver!"

Yes, I made her talk like Thor.

After insulting her by offering her "Two silver now, and ten when we return" and assuming that she was pregnant (Zando thinks that all human females are pregnant at all times), they settled on a share of the loot. She made the acquaintance of the others, looking down her nose at Snot but finding much admiration for Glerk ("Verily, mighty Troll-friend! If you adventure with this dark Elf, then truly he must be worthy!"), although Glerk just kinda stared at her blankly. A lot.

With all that settled, they made their way across the valley to The Ravine Of Durbin's Rest or whatever I called it. They found the ravine, they found the hole, and made a plan to delve into it. A plan which was to result in a wet troll, a wetter goblin, a battle with some stone elves, severe heatstroke and two scrapes with death -- both on Snot's part, poor little guy with like a 9 or 10 CON.

TO BE CONTINUED
(I'm hungry)

In Ancient Rome, There Was A Poem

WHOA-HOA, NELLY! Git on up there, lil' dogie! Sure as shootin', we're...uh...on the range, and...

...

...yeah, okay. Hey! Remember how the other day in the comments section of this post about how I decided to do my Spelljammer game with Savage Worlds, reader Forge said,

Welcome back. This is a very cool idea! One question though; what about D6?

Yeah, you're totally right, Forge -- what about D6? 'Specially since I'd already mused on that very idea before?

Well, here's the thing.

I've honestly waffled back and forth on what system to use for this game. I thought, hey -- I could use Savage Worlds as easily as I could use D6, but then again, why not just use genreDiversion 3? Come to that, wouldn't Chaosium Basic Roleplaying do the job just as well? I mean, it IS a generic system...just like GURPS and HERO, both of which would also work for high adventure stuff with quick resolution if you made a few decisions up front. Then again, Spelljammer was orignally designed for AD&D 2nd Edition, and how far away is that from Swords & Wizardry -which would work just fine- or Castles & Crusades? Hell, that's SIEGE Engine land, so why wouldn't StarSIEGE fit the bill? Isn't it just as useful as Instant Game and, say, Fudge? Hey, that's just a step away from Fate 3.0, right? And doesn't THAT game remind me of Theatrix? Oh -- not to mention that Hollow Earth Expedition's Ubiquity system could pull it off...and, hey, 7th Sea is ALREADY a swashbuckling adventure system that I could --

...

...so you see my conundrum. I could use any of those systems. I have them. Any one of them would do. I like them. I can make 'em do what I want. I considered ALL OF THEM (except 7th Sea, but that's only because I just now thought of it). So why, out of all of those, did I pick Savage Worlds?

Because I can only pick ONE GAME. I HAVE to. If I DON'T, then I'll NEVER START THE GAME. If this thing is going to happen, then I need to START IT, and not just spin my wheels, jackin' around, endlessly analyzing pros and cons and matching and weighing and measuring and --

-- bah. BAH!, I say. Every day I spend hemming and hawing -and that is what it is- is another delay.

So, Forge, the answer comes clear:

I am a spazz, but I listen to DEVO.

Subtlety Comics

My friend Yucky Gross (don't ask) bought a kids' "do-your-own-illustrations" calendar last year, and asked me to, uh, do her own illustrations in it. She gave me free reign to do with it as I pleased.

Here's what I drew for July 2009:

Battlestar Gatelactica: Spamblog

Look -- I'll try another episode or two of the new Stargate series. I really will. However, it's gonna be tough shaking the feeling that it's nBSG with a gate in it.

Meanwhile, Blogger has important nooz for me:

Your blog is marked as spam

Blogger's spam-prevention robots have detected that your blog has characteristics of a spam blog. (What's a spam blog?) Since you're an actual person reading this, your blog is probably not a spam blog. Automated spam detection is inherently fuzzy, and we sincerely apologize for this false positive.

We received your unlock request on October 5, 2009. On behalf of the robots, we apologize for locking your non-spam blog. Please be patient while we take a look at your blog and verify that it is not spam.

Granted -- this ain't The Wall Street Journal. But, still -- c'mon, man, spam?! What the hell characteristics could this thing possibly exhibit, which could be likened to a "spam blog"?

spam blogs [...] can be recognized by their irrelevant, repetitive, or nonsensical text, along with a large number of links, usually all pointing to a single site.

...

...oh.

BUDGIE SMUGGLERS!

Here follows a transcript of some adventure notes made 6/26/08. I have yet to run this.

BUDGIE SMUGGLERS!
An RPG Adventure or something

THE PREMISE: The PCs are a team of professional smugglers. They are charged with smuggling a pair of rare birds out of the exotic nation of Tanjukistan, wherever that is. They must acquire parakeets, take them across the border with Farmvania, and deliver them to their employer, whoever that is.

I.WHAT'S GOING TO STOP THEM?

1. The Royal Tanjukistanian Mounted Police, who all ride okapis (?!)
2. A mysterious femme fatale who will try to double-cross them
3. A rival smuggler team who wants the budgies for another employer
4. Spock and the Electro-lettes
5. A double-crossing team member
6. Bennie & The Jets (?!)

II. WHO IS THE EMPLOYER?

1. King Stoppoulossakis of Farmvania
2. Donaldo de Trumpo
3. King SOUVLAKI of Farmvbania
4. A mysterious masked figure known only as "The Black Alpaca"
5. Robin Meade, claiming to be Mary Hart
6. For THAT matter, John Tesh

III. WHO IS THE RIVAL SMUGGLER?

1. John Tesh -- There, I think I'm done.
2. A swarthy ne'er-do-well named Alboso El Dumblador
3. Chichi Zapatos (sort of an evil pulp Charo) and her dwarf sidekick, Mondo Calcetin
4. Avram Ben Bowling, Israeli Master Criminal