Free Traveller!

Cheers to Dyson Logos for pointing this out on his blog, but in case you don’t happen to read his stuff (and you really should be), the “Starter Edition” of classic Traveller is currently available for free!

It’s a little hinky to download because there are three files and the “Get It Free” button only gives you the first file. You can get the other two either by looking at your order history or by checking the receipt email RPGNow should send you after downloading the first file.

Pretty much everything you need to play classic Traveller is included in the three files, so if you don’t have the King of SciFi Games (or just don’t have it in a digital format), get to downloading, people!

Notes And Video From The Michael Moorcock Reading

Below are a couple of relatively short video clips from this afternoon’s reading by Michael Moorcock here in Austin (where he lives, in case you didn’t know).

Big thanks to Austin Books for making this experience possible for those who were able to take advantage of this intimate little reading, Q&A, and signing opportunity with one of the absolute greats of fantasy.

Things I Learned Today

I will actually enjoy Doctor Who: The Coming of the Terraphiles
Mike’s favorite Doctor was Tom Baker
Mike knew Tom Baker, and Baker was apparently prone to, shall we say, chemically induced improv while working on Dr. Who
The BBC has some quaint, vintage standards rules they apply to Doctor Who novels (alas, no miniature smoking lizard dudes allowed)
Mike is working on some fresh Jerry Cornelius stories

And I really can’t stress enough just how nice Mike and his lovely wife Linda are. If you ever get a chance to meet these folks, do not pass it up.

Mike’s Intro

Mike Actually Reading

New Mutants, Michael Moorcock

No, Mr. Moorcock hasn’t gone in for that particular crossover (thankfully). Instead I’m combing two posts into one.

First, as you’ve probably already read elsewhere, Mutant Future is getting a facelift in advance of its coming out party (i.e., going into actually gaming store distribution). Three cheers for Goblinoid Games on this one. Though, as my wife who deeply loves the game said of the new cover this morning, “Hey! Where are the spider goats?”

Second, Michael Moorcock, who may not be writing for Marvel but who has now written a Dr. Who novel, is doing a reading and signing at Austin Books this afternoon. You can bet yer boots I’ll be there to hear the man and shake his hand (again, he did a reading/signing there a while back in ’08 the first volume of the Elric reprint/compilations was released).

I’ll let y’all know how it went and maybe even share some pictures or something. Or, if you’re in Austin, go. Mike, as he insisted we call him last time, is a very funny and engaging person to chat with. Plus, it’s Michael Moorcock, people. I’m not insisting he’s god or anything, but damn. Michael Freaking Moorcock.

Experts On Sale

Experts by Skirmisher Publishing is on sale at RPG Now. Lots of other things by Skirmisher are on sale, too, but I point our Experts in particular because it was easily my favorite thing that came out for 3rd Edition D&D back in the day. I truly loved the concept of the NPC classes (Expert, Warrior, Shaman, etc.) in Third Edition and I always wanted to run a game using this supplement that would focus on a group of Experts as guildsmen on some kind of Chaucer-esque pilgrimage. It never happened, of course, but maybe I’ll make something like that happen someday. With a different system (*cough* BRP *cough*), though.

Anyway, I just thought I’d share. Because I can.

Oh, and for the record, I actually liked 3rd Edition D&D when it first came out, before it got bloated and absurd. Heck, it was part of what got me back into gaming on any consistent level after my late 90s GURPS burnout. Of course, as we all know, they went and ruined it by making it a never-ending stream of upgrades and splatbooks and such. But I always enjoyed the core game.

That said, I wouldn’t play it now if you paid me, unless everyone at the table agreed to using nothing but the core books and perhaps one well-chosen supplement. Like the aforementioned Experts. Even then, though, probably not. But Experts could still be a solid resource for another game.

BoL Bestiary: Quilitlconcuanacatl – Man-Eating Plants Of Tlactoztlan

Although they are largely immobile, Quilitlconcuanacatl pose a serious threat to jungle travelers. These carnivorous plants blend in almost perfectly with their surroundings and surprise all but the most alert eyes when they snap with their powerful jaws. Fortunately, Quilitlconcuanacatl require food only once every 6-12 days, and they will not attack if they are currently digesting a meal. The area immediately around a digesting Quilitlconcuanacatl is far more likely to be occupied by jaguars, crocodiles, and other predators as these awful plants emit a sickening aroma that attracts such creatures to the vicinity.

Quilitlconcuanacatl

When a character has been bitten by a Quilitlconcuanacatl, he or she must succeed at a Hard Agility-based task check or be swallowed whole by the massive plant. Creatures swallowed by a Quilitlconcuanacatl are immobilized and will suffer 1 LB damage each hour they remained trapped inside the creature, as they are being slowly digested. Only the complete destruction of a Quilitlconcuanacatl can save the “meal” from its fate. Once a Quilitlconcuanacatl has successfully swallowed a creature it will not attack or otherwise engage any other creatures in the vicinity. However, the aroma released by a digesting Quilitlconcuanacatl attracts other predators to the area, making it hard for “survivors” to focus on destroying the plant.

Attributes
Strength 5
Agility −1
Mind −3

Combat Abilities
Attack with Bite +3; 2d6
Defense: -1
Protection: d6 (tough, fibrous “skin”)
Lifeblood: 50

BRP WWII Notes: November Company

A while back I posted a couple of NPCs (here and here) I had put together in relation to a World War II scenario I intended to run over Thanksgiving using Basic Roleplaying, but other gaming got in the way (darn the luck!). Before I realized that was going to happen, though, I started work on some brief notes designed to help the players produce “new recruits” quickly, since we were likely to have 6 hours at most for gaming. Rather than toss these, or worse, risk losing them to my “special” filing system, I thought I’d post them here. They ain’t pretty and they ain’t detailed, but if you know BRP then they should make sense. Oh, and cheers to the mighty Charles Green for his work on Dragon Lines, where I more-or-less swiped the skill distribution concept from.

Given that the game was intended to be a one shot (or, at best, a once-a-year shot) I was purposefully limiting all of the players to making soldiers rather than letting a motley crew of spies, femme fatales, and archaeologists (or femme fatale archaeologist spies) take the stage. Still, I believe there’s enough room for customization below that the characters would all have been unique enough for the game. At least, I think they’d have been unique enough for a vintage WWII movie, which is the feel I was going for, after all.

But enough about me. Here’s the notes:

Attribute Determination: roll 2d6+6 seven times, place in desired order
Step Six is on
Professional Skills
- Put 25 points each (in addition to skill base) into each of the following:
  - Brawling
  - Dodge
  - Firearm: Rifle
  - First Aid
- Put 25 points each (in addition to skill base) into any six of the following:
  - Artillery: Howitzer, Mortar, etc.
  - Climb
  - Command
  - Drive: Jeep, etc.
  - Firearm: Machine Gun, Submachine Gun, Revolver
  - Grapple
  - Heavy Machine: Tank
  - Heavy Weapon: Tank Gun, Turret Machine Gun
  - Hide
  - Language: French, German, Italian, etc.
  - Listen
  - Jump
  - Medicine
  - Melee Weapon: Bayonet, etc.
  - Missile Weapon: Crossbow, Thrown Knives, etc.
  - Navigate
  - Repair: Mechanical
  - Ride: Horse, Camel
  - Spot
  - Status: Army (base 20)
  - Stealth
  - Technical: Radio Ops
  - Throw
Put INT value into 10 skills of your choice, either Professional Skills above or other era-appropriate skills (Perform: Jitterbug, anyone?)
Army Status skill indicates rank as follows:
- 01-29 Private
- 30-39 Corporal
- 40-49 Sergeant
- 50-59 Lieutenant
- 60-69 Captain
- 70-79 Major
- 80-89 Lt. Colonel
- 90-99 Colonel
- 100+ General

For the record, I am in no way, shape, or form a WWII buff. I built a few airplane models (P-51D Mustang, P-38 Lightning) and played with army men when I was a kid. I’ve watched a fair number of vintage WWII movies (and too much Rat Patrol), but not a lot of the modern ones. I’ve never played any of the WWII-based computer games. I have played Wings Of War WWII (and WWI, but that’s not important right now), but only a few times. In short, I am a complete and utter tourist in the genre. This means that I’m open to suggestions if anyone has any, but they must be delivered gently and with patience 🙂

I hadn’t gotten too far into thinking about the exact weaponry that was going to be involved, and I was likely to depend on what info I could track down at Wikipedia on the subject. I’d also considered picking up a few of the GURPS WWII books in PDF format, but once I realized we weren’t going to be playing this particular game, I decided to save my pennies for another day. Maybe next year when this particular group of old-timers gets together I’ll think about trotting this out again. And thanks to the blog, I’ll actually be able to find it!

Addendum: As the title of this post suggests, I was planning on referring to the game as November Company. It was a nice reference to the fact that we were going to be playing around Thanksgiving. I discovered a little later (thanks, Wikipedia) that “November” wasn’t used as the indicator for “N” in the phonetic alphabet until 1956, which is just a bit after the time period in question. If this ever does get run, I’ll likely stick with the anachronism though because, as I said, I’m a tourist. That and the fact that November Company sounds way cooler than Nan Company. Naan Company, on the other hand, sounds tasty.

BoL Bestiary: Hueyatocatl – Giant Spiders Of Tlactoztlan

With a tip of the hat to Jeff Mejia of Evil DM Productions for his work on the BoL version of Legends of Steel, I present the Giant Spider (Tlactoztol variant).

Eight-legged death awaits the foolhardy in the jungles and ruins of Tlactoztlan in the form of giant spiders the natives call Hueyatocatl. These malevolent creatures possess a deadly poisonous bite delivered with terrible mandibles. Look carefully before you step into that darkened room or seemingly innocent clearing, traveler.

Hueyatocatl

Hueyatocatl poison causes nerves to burn with a searing agony as it courses through the veins of the unlucky victim. Immediately after being bitten the victim must make a Hard Strength-based task check or take an additional d6 damage that bypasses any armor or other protection. Subsequent bites in the same encounter do only an additional d3 damage unless a Tricky Strength-based task check is made.

Attributes
Strength 3
Agility 0
Mind -1

Combat Abilities
Attack with Bite +1; d6 + poison
Defense: 0
Protection: 1 (chitinous hide)
Lifeblood: 10

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone

Even if your locality does not celebrate this holiday at this time (or at all), you should be able to enjoy the following classic…

Regular geekitude should resume shortly. Meanwhile, there are enchiladas to cook and cranberry margaritas to be drunk. Cheers!

Like A Demon’s Eye (Where Have All The Paos Gone?)

Sorry for the general silence of late. I’m actually prepping for a couple* of Thanksgiving week games and it’s distracted me from the blog. Have no fear, though, I’ll be back to providing you with the content you’re itching for ‘ere long.

In the mean time, here’s some Deep Purple that’s almost as old as I am:

Why? Because it’s good, that’s why.

* A sequel to last year’s BRP Western and, um, something else. Yeah. I don’t quite know what I’m running yet, since I’ve got some brand new folks involved and I’m not sure what to throw at ’em. Labyrinth Lord or BRP are most likely, though.

BRP Character: Roger “Lucky Dog” Doggett

Wherein your humble scribe presents an NPC for use with Basic RolePlaying.

Lieutenant Roger “Lucky Dog” Doggett, the leader of November Company, is the kind of man an ordinary soldier can look up to. He’s a big fella who doesn’t shy away from a fight, but he’s also clever enough to know when and how to avoid trouble. More than anything, though, Lucky Dog is just plain likable. So likable, in fact, that if he makes it out of the war in one piece there’s already some talk of him running for office when he gets back home to Texas. You can bet your spare chocolate and stockings that there’s not a man in November Company who wouldn’t vote for Doggett.

STR 14 CON 16 SIZ 17 INT 13 POW 15 DEX 13 APP 16
Hit Points 17 Major Wound 9 Power Points 15

Damage Bonus: +1d4
Weapons: Rifle 50%, damage 2d6+2
Revolver 65%, 1d8
Fist 50%, 1d3+1d4
Grenade 50%, 4d6
Armor: none
Skills: Appraise 35%, Artillery: Machinegun Turret 15%, Bargain 25%, Brawling 50%, Command 60%, Dodge 61%, Drive: Jeep 55%, Etiquette 35%, Fast Talk 35%, First Aid 55%, Firearm: Revolver 65%, Firearm: Rifle 50%, Grapple 35%, Heavy Machine: Tank 11%, Heavy Weapon: Bazooka 11%, Insight 25%, Perform: Acting 25%, Persuade 35%, Language: German 20%, Language: Italian 10%, Language: English 85%, Listen 50%, Sense 30%, Spot 55%, Status: Army 55%, Throw 50%

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