Maptacular Monday: Necrodwarf Oracle

I drew this in my wallet moleskine while waiting somewhere for something. (It’s been a while.) I stocked this originally as a shrine under a temple. I was aiming for basic functionality.

1. Entryway to receive guests and visitors and impress them.
2. Shrine with a statue of a famous saint.
3. Standard chapel, with an altar up front, pews, benches in back.
4. Enh. Intersection. Probably something defensive.
5. How the faithful come and go, a staircase up into a temple.
6. Mess hall and bar.
7. Kitchen area, larder to the north.
8. General recreation and living space for acolytes and servants.
9. Sleeping area for servants.

Also of note; the doors south of 4 and west of 7 could be barred, so in case something went desperately wrong, those in the temple could mount a defense or at least buy time for reinforcements to come.

With that rather pedestrian “original intent” style designation complete, to assist those who would dress the setting as a ruin that could be stocked with monsters, I figured I’d take a second crack at it using the highly-entertaining DungeonWords by the fun-flinging Risus Monkey. If a result was not sufficiently amusing, I would add a second random word. The results seemed to flow together super-well without any tinkering!

1. “Furnace, Sanctuary.” Sure, I had been working intensively on my (ignored) necrodwarf rules at the time, but… they just seemed to fit better and better as the generation process continued. This chapter of necrodwarves showcased their religion to show how as others forged from fire and metal, they forged from unholy energies and meat. This could be a fabulous creepshow of a decorated foyer emphasizing the forge that churns out undead.
2. “Entombed.” The founder of their particular chapter, his corpse in a thin stone statue, ready to burst out should their dark god animate him to return to lead his people.
3. “Epitaph, Soulless.” The walls over the back benches have runes that substitute for the souls of those enemies claimed by the necrodwarves. (There’s more of that in 6). The religious gatherings here exhort the faithful on the greed of other gods, and the rightful claim of the God of Death on all that exists, and how the efforts of the Faithful are just a tithe on what is due… Plus they sacrifice people on the altar on special occasions or slow nights. And put their souls in jars.
4. “Ice.” Since the God of Death is also the God of the Void (deep space beyond the atmosphere) the door is trapped with a glyph where, when the door is barred, those who interact with it from the north without exerting the power of the God of Death are hit by a brutal ice attack that engulfs most of the tunnel.
5. “Fire Pit.” Sure, in keeping with the forge theme. The pillar in the middle of the room transmogrified to a fire pit, whose chilly blue light and radiant chill greet those who descend to the domain of the God of Death.
6. “Platforms, Jars.” I let this one roll around for a bit, then turned the tables into bookshelves, and the chair backs into ladders. Tall shelves, lined with jars holding the souls of those sacrificed on the altar in 3. Not only is this fantastically creepy, but now we have a possible objective or sub-objective for the party; rescue one or more important souls, or just free the collection for the temple of a good god to release these poor souls to their next stage.
7. “Remains.” To the north, “Stirges.” I swear I randomized these. Anyway, the remains from sacrifices in 3 are animated in this laboratory (no, it is no longer a kitchen.) Also, the necrodwarves are experimenting with using stirge beaks as fangs in their undead, to draw blood, or packing stirge in the torso so the ruptured undead gush out a surprise attack upon dying. ‘Cause that’s just nasty. And hilarious. An always-irresistible combination!
8. “Lodestone.” This is where my whole concept of the complex began to shift. Something crucial had to be in 9. Because in 8, those who come in are subjected to a powerful magnetic pull; the entire east wall was converted to a magnet. Metal armor, weapons, etc. would be drawn to it and stuck there; even if people could get past that to 9, they’d be without their usual level of arms and armor.
• Maybe the toughest defenders of the compound, whether dwarven, undead, or animal, would function without metal stuff for just this reason.
• Maybe a badge of office is the toughest foes use bone equipment instead of metal equipment–but only the toughest, so as not to leave non-metal gear laying on fallen defenders to help attackers.
9. “Oracle.” Perfect. The necrodwarves have a powerful oracle here, who gives them strange tidings with inexplicable fact and fate woven through them. The main purpose of the expedition becomes clear–win through to the oracle, to either assassinate the seer, or find out some unknowable fact through persuasion or force.

Consider this an advertisement for DungeonWords! This particular roll-up was startlingly thematic, and showcased some aspects of the necrodwarves that I didn’t think of until I was making sense of the random words.

If you use this map, I’d love to hear about it. Happy Halloween!

Best Anti-Hero Idea I’ve Ever Had

Okay, so you’ve got some players who think they want to be “evil.” What do you do?

I quit running games for “evil” player characters a long time ago. No matter how fun they think it will be, there comes a point where they look around and the players aren’t sure they want to see the world that will result if their characters are successful. The more success, the less satsifaction.

So if they want to go a dark direction, I use the anti-hero solution; you are a hero, because no matter how screwed up you are, the things you’re fighting are way worse; even considering your excesses, you’re better for the status quo than your foes are.

So, if I had to pitch my idea in one paragraph, it would look like this:

Cthulu Mythos vs. Warhammer Chaos. The Mythos has been involved on Earth forever, and through a shift in reality, now the aether of the Warp has engulfed Earth. Mythos was there first, and it’s Chaos’s turn now.  Best part: you look to your players, and say, “which side to you want to be on?”

So either you have cultists of Cthulu and agents of Nyrlathotep using Azathothian spells against demons, or you have cultists aspiring to be champions, gifted by their dark gods, invoking wild daemonic powers to crush the frail wizards and cultists and their summoned monsters.

I could unpack this, but I trust you to work that out on your own. It’s a deep chest of “teh awesomesauce.”

This was too hilarious not to share.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VS

OSH has the Gift of Youth

 

It is only a matter of time. And I am not innocent.

There is a game. The game is fun. People adjust it for their tastes and settings. People put a lot of hard work in their versions, and in reviewing other versions. Differences lead to more differences, people like to analyze and talk about their preferences, preferences are codified into how the game is played. This, my friends, is the routine process of role playing games.

People who rediscover the fun of rules-light games echoing the flavors of the origin of tabletop role playing are pleased at the fun they are having. This is as it should be. People are drawn into the lovely art and slick presentation and alternative concepts for role playing in the newest versions. Why not. And people try to recapture the flavor of the original without taking on its hang-ups or elements that detract from the fun–why not indeed?

People do what they do, and there’s a human element that pulls at all of us, even those who would like to think they are immune to killing what they love through dissection or relocation to an incompatible climate.

Let me be clear. I would be dismayed if someday I found out people were comparing and contrasting my work (in support of the game Kirin Robinson made, with Old School Hack) with the original and making disparaging comments one way or another.

I want the freedom to take his rule set and have my way with it. In exchange, I really don’t want to start an edition war. I’ll do my thing. You do your thing. If we can collaborate, that’s cool. If people want to pick and choose, I’m spreading the buffet table. Just… just don’t start a food fight.

It was a chilling moment when I realized that there could come a point when people would point to different versions of Old School Hack and get into the sort of seriously unpleasant discussions they get into about editions of D&D. In reading some of the OSR comments, I’m beginning to realize I need to be a lot more careful if I want to keep this sort of murk out of our crystal waters.

Why has Old School Hack not had to deal with this very human condition? Division, rancor, redrawing categorical lines, insulting other play styles, and so on? Because it is young, it is relatively small. And that’s it.

Apologetic for Halflings.

Halflings should get paid more. Why? Jet Li’s character helps us understand.

Here is the dialogue from the movie (you can see it in the clip if you click through the picture.)

So the next time some big folk want to drag your halfling character through the muck and the danger and the death, remember that you should get paid more.

If they can’t understand why, try having this conversation:

• It’s difficult.
• What is?
• My life is difficult. I need more money.
• Why is that?
• I work harder than the rest.
• No you don’t!
•  Yes I do! Everything is harder for me. When I get hurt, the wound is bigger—because I’m smaller! When I travel, I need to go farther—
•  I know, because you’re smaller, right?
• Yes.

There you have it. Difficult to argue with logic like that. Much easier to stuff the little bugger into a sack until it’s time to burgle something. Mileage may vary.

One Hundred Posts!

So I am very excited and pleased to share with you that this is my one hundredth post. I started on the fourth of July, but this moment feels like a bigger bang to me somehow.

Thank you for supporting my blog with your attendance and enthusiasm!

That is all. You are free to move on. The rest of this is a wall of text.

I have changed the look of the site a bit, mainly because I didn’t want to correct people who do me the service of referring to my blog. Confusion was certainly understandable. I named the blog “Between Are the Doors” in boring text at the top, and not “Old School Hack” which was, of course, proudly displayed on my banner. (And I go by “fictivite” or “fictivefantasies” to compound the confusion.) Now, the banner should be less misleading, and I got rid of the boring text altogether.

This is a good moment for a bit of introspection. I initially got into blogging because I was (and am) grateful for people in the Old School Renaissance/Revolution/Rules/Rocks/Retro/(and so on) that talk about a kind of gaming, and concepts in it, that spark creativity for me in my other endeavors. I wanted to give back, with some maps, some mini-rules, and that kind of thing.

I had some ideas for B/X D&D. After six weeks of sharing what I thought was within the parameters with what people who do that kind of game are looking for, I was apparently not offering anything useful.  (For people who are looking for necrodwarves, undead-hunting dwarves, a taunting reaction system, radiation, or magic items for B/X, I collected references to it here.)

I switched over to talking about Old School Hack, Matt Jackson mentioned me on his blog, and I had a modest and lovely audience.

Something that those who follow this blog have probably already realized is that I tend to latch onto a project and pursue it with a certain manic force. This project is not the first. There was a fan fiction project that sprawled to over a million words. (The last surviving online presence is here.) Another that spanned only two books but had a 5,000 word chapter posted every two weeks for a couple years; it survives here. Several deeply developed role playing games and massive houseruling on other role playing games. A dozen different campaign worlds. And so on.

Maybe by the end of this year I will have lost the drive on my Old School Hack related projects. Maybe not. Maybe there will be something else. In any case, thank you for following my efforts and clicking on my blog to see what I’m up to. I really appreciate other people looking at what I’m doing. Otherwise, it’s a lot of effort for something that ends up pleasing only me. I guess what I’m trying to say is, thanks for making me look a little less insane.

Let’s survey my current projects!

• “Fictive’s Talents and Templates.“ Done. And updated.
• 30 new templates, some modified equipment at generation guidelines, adventuring motives for all classes, new schools of magic and god-specific clerics, occupational talents, extended advancement, more.
• Scenarios! Yes, I know, Old School Hack is supposed to be a “pick it up and play it” game. But not every DM is that cool. Even cool DMs sometimes want to have enough structure in place that they can focus on the improv and not note-taking or remembering what they said 2 minutes or 3 weeks ago for continuity. Here they are…
• “Road to Baffram.” The first OSH scenario! An escort mission.
• “The Tireless Archer.“ A site based adventure.
• “Lopelia Alchemal Fortress.” A geomorph stocking dungeon crawl.
• “Maptacular Monday.” Maps for my mega-dungeon in process, also bite-sized little adventure settings.
• “Fictive’s Book of Power.” Work in Progress.
• A book for DMs with suggestions for rulings, house rules, a massive geomorph stocker with treasure and a huge bestiary, and more.
• Draft Bestiary is actually the single most-downloaded thing on my site. People love monsters! Even this draft scratches an itch. (Just over 50 views.)
• Magic stuff! Cool. You can even randomize what it is with a couple 1d6 rolls.
• “Fictive’s Open Seas.” Planned.
• Sailing ships, ports, islands, setting information, ocean monsters, salty encounters, default arenas on ships, etc.
• “People vs. Creatures Player’s Handbook.” Drafted.
• Modern or science fiction survival horror is possible on an Old School Hack chassis! Give your players this handbook. Then attack their characters with monsters.
• Like zombies.
• “Death Shines on the Fornia Moon.” Work in Progress.
• A science fiction setting designed to accommodate a wide range of monster attacks and creepy stories, with a bestiary, sci fi history, plot and threat generator, and a lot more.
• “Tentacular Hack.” Work in Progress.
• Cthulu mythos on a toned-down Old School Hack chassis! Compatible with “People vs. Creatures” but of more limited scope and flavor.  Only 5 templates, but 10 talents each, and a deep pool of occupational and open talents. Plus the first draft of a kickin’ Azathothian Mythos magic system! Insanity in OSH! Great stuff.
• Reports! Ongoing adventure and ruling reports.
• I put these up on my various Obsidian Portal sites to save you all the text wall; this post is something of an indulgence for me on that front.
• Reviews! I’ve done a few, and look forward to doing more. I have even had requests for reviews, which is flattering.

Not bad, since I started on Old School Hack commentary and house ruling on August 16, ten weeks ago.

Thank you for being part of what I’m doing here. Thank you for linking to my blog, for commenting, for responding to comments I leave on your blog, and for connecting me to the wider world through this grand project. I appreciate it. I appreciate you–the free adventures, the rumination on role playing, the maps, and the joy of it. Believe me: sharing an infusion of joy with your favorite creators makes a difference.

Thank you. Let’s continue through the doors together.

Template Tuesday: OSH Prostitute

I present: the Prostitute. Wait–that doesn’t sound right. I mean, here is a template for making prostitutes–hm. Well, there’s no graceful way out of this. Just look at the attached .pdf!

No, this doesn’t seem right to me either. But five talents came to mind, this character type is present in the genre, and… well, it could be hilarious. Also note: the template is gender neutral.

This was done before the update of “Fictive’s Talents and Templates” so the format is more compatible with the basic Old School Hack.

OSH Prostitute

Maptacular Monday: Yeila Temple Sub-Basement

More of the surviving underground of the Shining City! (Other maps here.) My players should not read this, on pain of misfortune.

Now we get right under the temple to Yeila herself. To the southwest, the priests have a cold storage morgue and crematorium, under heavy guard, with live-in clergy and acolytes and ready access to the crematorium complex.

• A: Crematorium Complex to Yeila Temple Sub-Basement
• I: Yeila Temple Sub-Basement to Yeila Temple Basement

To the north, spaces for the clergy assigned to the temple above to use for various purposes.

To the east, and south, a dedicated area for celebrating the passage of Yeila’s willing servants. And, a shrine to connect personal sorrows of the clergy with the goddess’s own sorrows.

East central, the hallowed vault with a dimensional disconnect, and five dimensional keys (fashioned from the skulls of her holy men.) Within, something too secret to share, in case my disobedient players are reading this.

In the center,  triangular chamber with massive bars and locks, and a triptych with the essential teachings of the faith in the center of the holy chamber.

Revision of “Fictive’s Talents and Templates” v 1.1 posted!

“Fictive’s Talents and Templates” was fun. Version 1.1 is more fun.

This book has been fine-tuned further, answering some difficulties I had with the previous draft. Nine more templates! Even more talents, including the group and swarm combat talents!

• Concepts for half-breeds and unusual circumstances growing up.
• One-page reference with all 37 template level titles 1-4.
• Adventuring motivations for all templates.
• New robust equipment at generation, including an “adventurer’s pack” to pull unexpected items to hand.
• An updated list of open and restricted talents.
• Occupational talents, for non-adventurers and characters both–the middle ground between a day job and an inherent ability.
• 37 templates, so you can randomize on 4d10 if you want.
• Streamlined character creation including how to learn languages, arts, and musical instruments–everything you need to make a character here.
• More!

I hope you enjoy it. Check it out here or on the “Old School Hack Resources” tab.

People vs. Creatures: Riddick starts at 3rd level.

I have posted a rough draft (very rough!) of “Death Shines on the Fornia Moon” science fiction setting for People vs Creatures, which is an Old School Hack/Modern Slash variant of the Old School Hack rules.

Let’s make Riddick! The DM decided everyone in the “Pitch Black” movie world would start as a “normal person” and not an “adventuring person.”

On the “Factions” generation, he would get “Pirate” and “Fugitive.”

Starting Attributes: Brawn 18. Cunning 16. Daring 16. Commitment 14. Charm 11. Awareness 12. (Level 2, +1 Brawn and +1 wound. Level 3, +1 Brawn–now 20–and he gets his full 5 wounds because he’s 3rd level.)

Attributes with level advances and bonuses from talents and backgrounds: Brawn 20 (+5, substitute for Charm to lead thugs). Cunning 16 (+3, +2). Daring 16 (+3). Commitment 14 (+2, +2 vs. mental stress). Charm 11 (+2 to make conversation). Awareness 12 (+1, variable Eye Shine).

He starts with one occupational talent and one wound (as a minion):

• Criminal. +2 to Cunning. Knowledge of street culture, picking locks, and illegal goods and services.

He gets an open talent at second level (and a health level), and one at third (when he gets all 5 health levels):

• Thug Culture. Constant. The character substitutes Brawn bonus for Charm tests to command underlings or support a stronger leader. Bullying feels natural and comfortable, both giving it and receiving it. Those who understand the strongest should rule will be attracted to this character.
  
• Eye Shine.* Constant. The character has been surgically altered, the eyes have a strange half-blind sheen. The character gets +2 to intimidate, and –2 to Charm for friendly tests. This is negated if others cannot see the eyes, if they are closed or behind goggles or glasses. Dark goggles or glasses reduce the light level by 1 The character’s sight-based Awareness is altered in all levels of lighting. (Bright -4, moderate -2, dim +4, dark +2.

He gets 3 backgrounds (the bonus of Cunning and Charm, without talent adjustment). He puts 2 in “Experiences” so he is well traveled with many strange experiences, +2 to resist mental stress or make conversation. Add “Career 1″ so in some circles he has some authority–as a criminal.

His Awareness bonus grants him an extra language; we’ll say it’s Tradespeak, to fit with our game setting of Fornia Moon.

His next talent will be “Heft.” That will be helpful by the middle of the movie.

This is the DM’s first experience with the game system, so he gets his buddy to make a level 1 character, and test out combat and rolls by escaping from prison. That got him to level 2. For level 3, he led a merry chase across The Black, ending in his capture as a 3rd level character. Another player was able to come for that session, so they could do some cat-and-mouse hunting during the game.

Now he’s ready to start in “Pitch Black.”

So if he gets a level or two in Pitch Black, he’ll be ready for the Necromongers.

Victim to Survivor (People vs. Creatures variant)

“People vs. Creatures” can make “normal people” or “adventurous people.”  Adventurous people get 2 occupational talents and 5 wounds at generation. Normal people are less competent…

1. Beginning characters get 1 occupational talent.
2. Beginning characters have 1 wound.

Level 2. When a character has spent 12 Morale Points, then the character goes to level 2 and gains +1 wound in addition to a talent and +1 to an attribute.

Level 3. When a character reaches level 3, the character has 5 wounds, in addition to another talent and +1 to an attribute.

DMs can choose which kind of character they want people to play for their scenario; it is probably best if people all make the same type. Why mix and match? If you have civilians with soldiers, or tough guys rescue normal people, or whatever, it may be good to have a mix.

By having characters start as minions at first level, guards at second level, and characters at third level (in parent game “Old School Hack” terms), you really motivate them to get and spend those Morale Points. Also, you thin the herd; as the clever or tougher ones survive to get more wounds, they tower above their peers. By third level they are five times as tough as they were. Which is a pretty cool (and seemingly accurate) curve in a survival horror game.

Plus, it’s fun. Don’t forget the fun.

For examples of normal people, I would think of Ellen Ripley (Alien series), Ash (Evil Dead series), characters from Frighteners, Tremors, Resident Evil, Silent Hill, and Laurie Strode (Halloween).

For examples of adventurous people, I’d suggest soldiers (from Aliens movies, Predator movies, etc.), Seven, and X-Files.

I want this system to be flexible enough to handle investigators, soldiers, or housewives… Whatever story you want to tell.

The Progression:

Level 1.

Level 2.

Level 3.

Level 4.