Pat from the excellent Henchmen Abuse asked me how long it takes for me to make on of my megadungeon maps; my estimate was one hour...with the caveat that I spend hours afterward idly adjusting and altering the maps (usually while watching the boob tube with the Warden); dungeon mapping is a two phase affair with me: first the preliminary map, and than aforementioned adjustments
As an experiment, I decided to see how much dungeon I could map in an hour. I set a timer for one hour and took pencil to paper, with the end result below (I cheated and numbered the rooms after the time limit expired).
Apparently, the biggest influence on my dungeon maps seems to be the fire escape plans in large buildings... Anyways, although I like this map it seems to be screaming for "The Adjustment Phase." There's far too many samey rectangular rooms; it's lacking in architechtural features such as fountains, statues, and pillars; there's only one connection to another level; many of the rooms are far too big (a lot of these maps would make more sense at a 5-foot-per-square scale); and some of the empty spaces are screaming for "shadow complexes" of rooms accessible by secret door; and I prefer blacking about the solid areas surrounding corridors and chambers for easier visualization of the layout.
I didn't have any idea what the theme of this level would be before drawing it, but the layout makes me think of museum (top right-hand section) meets Resident Evil scientific complex...video & computers games seems to have a strong influence on my dungeon levels.
The obvious next step in this experiment is to give myself one hour to stock and key the map...
One of the articles I'm working on for the first issue of The Jewel Throne is "War...War Never Changes," being a selection of Wasteland and Fallout inspired equipment, with a focus on firearms; a project I'm working on in preparation for running some Gamma World games.
My goals are twofold: as most of the players in our group are familiar with the Fallout series, this provides a certain "resonance" for the gameplay; secondly to provide a wider selection of firearms than that provided in Mutant Future including more lethal varieties. With Gamma World and Mutant Future PCs having significantly more hit points than beginning PCs, as well as the creatures in both games having, on average, more hit points than D&D monsters, I'm interested in gun having more "oomph" to them. With your average beginning Mutant Future Human PC having 47-48 hit points, it's going to take a fair amount of d12 damage assault fire rounds to take him down.
Anyways, here's some early drafts of some of the fictional firearms I'm working on for this article:
22-3 STRIKER
Effective Range: 400'
Maximum Range: 800'
Damage Inflicted: 3d6
Shots per Round: 1
Ammunition Type: .223
Capacity: 5 round integral magazine
Experience Point Value: 850
Based on a modified rifle design, the 22-3 Striker is a bolt-action pistol designed for hunting large game. Due to the weight and recoil a Physical Strength of 12 or higher is required to effectively use this weapon.
AK-57
Effective Range: 450'
Maximum Range: 900'
Damage Inflicted: 2d8
Shots per Round: 2
Ammunition Type: 7.62 mm
Capacity: 30 round magazine
Experience Point Value: 1300
The last descendant of the AK-47, featuring an integral folding stock, the AK-57 was manufactured by China but saw distribution throughout the globe. Thousands were smuggled into North America, many by fifth columnists.
M2049A1
Effective Range: 150'
Maximum Range: 300'
Damage Inflicted: 1d12
Shots per Round: 1
Ammunition Type: 10 mm
Capacity: 12 round magazine
Experience Point Value: 250
A durable, heavy frame autoloader resistant to harsh conditions, the M2049 was the standard US military sidearm as well as being used extensively by federal agents. A more reliable revolver variant, the M2050, holds 7 rounds in a side-loading cylinder.
M2039-ACR
Effective Range: 600'
Maximum Range: 1200'
Damage Inflicted: 2d8
Shots per Round: 2
Ammunition Type: 5.56 mm
Capacity: 40 round magazine
Experience Point Value: 1500
A descendant of the M16 featuring a gas-vent system and a integral optical sights, the M2039-ACR was the chief weapon of US marines.
VP41
Effective Range: 150'
Maximum Range: 300'
Damage Inflicted: 1d10
Shots per Round: 1
Ammunition Type: 9mm
Capacity: 18 round magazine
Experience Point Value: 150
A reliable West German pistol that was popular with survivalists due to it's high ammunition capacity.
Also, here's a first draft of the first Jewel Throne cover:
"... to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet...."
- Robert E. Howard
"Once prayed to my gods, searching for the whistled memories
Empty eyes are staring now, to my feet a land of sorrow
I'm the king, sitting in the dark hiding from the shadows of the wind
Wafts of might, wine of fire, I was called to taste
Silver horses brought us here, to the edge of the universe
We left the falling walls as the stars' collapse began
Now I rest on the highest steps, revealed the eternal frontier
As I gaze from the Jewel Throne to the portal of infinity
Fallen have the "chosen ones", debris remain in the dust
Far behind, beyond the sands, the wind sings to those who fell
Forever now, my hands laid down the poisoned weapons
I will pray to my gods, searching for the mysteries"
- Thomas G. Warrior
As I've previously mentioned, I've been mulling over doing a RPG zine as a means of getting past the stress related burnout that's been plaguing me recently (speaking of stress, as I was writing this my boss phoned me to talk about possibly being laid off, good grief!), and with the positive reaction it has elicited (and the possibility of having a buttload of free time soon) I've decided to do so.
I presented a selection of names for the zine I had been considering, and "Jewel Throne" won by a considerable landslide with two votes. Although I'm sure Netherwerks will be gratified to see that I managed to work a Black Ziggurat into the logo.
This zine will be digest sized, done in a underground metal/punk style, with dodgy illustartion by myself, and will focus of sword & sorcery, weird fantasy, science fantasy, post-apocalyptic, and science fiction gaming. The intention is to present a selection of D&D-compatible resources in those genres...one-page sandboxes, mini-dungeons, monsters, spells, technological artifacts, random tables, and so forth. Although I would like to include material compatible with Runquest, Call of Cthulhu, Traveller, and other great RPGs, both old and new.
My original intent was to do this as a free-to-download present to the community. Now, with the potential of impending financial hardship, I'm reconsidering this solely as a means of mitigating the aforementioned scenario.
Several of you expressed interest in contributing; originally I was wildly enthusiastic about that, but with the possibility of this being a for-(meager)profit venture I can certainly understand any that would wish to rescind their offer; however, anyone who did contribute would, if it ends up not being a free-to-download production, receive fair compensation for their effort.
My plan is to begin working on material, with a two-week deadline before commencing with layout and than publishing in some form or other. If I end up printing this myself I have some ideas regarding pull-out maps that could be quite nice.
I'd love to hear any feedback regarding this project. Suggestion, criticisms, it is all welcome.
I suspect this is a condition that affects all DMs eventually, and I've wrestled with it in the past, but for the past couple of months I've felt Burned Out as a DM. Interestingly enough, this burnout seems to be the result of non-RPG-related factors.
I'm not going to go on a "woe is me!" jag here....I know I have it better off than the majority of the folks in this world and that you just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other. But brooding about crap has a way of impairing one's enthusiasm and creativity, and I haven't been working on Algol material (and another "secret" project) nearly as much as I'd like.
I'm not about to 86 this blog or give up on DMing (although I've been considering a brief sabbatical), but I do feel a need to re-charge my RPG creativity, and have been considering several projects in order to take a break from Algol/alternate with Algol/do some one-shot's (or micro-campaigns) and get Stoked! again.
Some of the projects that I've been mulling over include:
- A small, digest-sized, free to download, Sword & Sorcery/Weird Fantasy/Science Fantasy D&D zine; crudely illustrated by myself and done in a punk rock/underground comic style. Something in the 8-16 page range, done for fun. I've considered the following names: Cyclopean; The Jewel Throne (..of the Earth), IIIrd Gatekeeper; and Voronya...I was going to go with "The Black Ziggurat"...but the Black Ziggurat belongs to everyone. Let me know if any of these names tickle your fancy!
- A Vancouver Old-School Micro-con: Certainly not an original idea, but it would be great to set up a weekend for some awesome old-tyme rpg antics, especially if some of our neighbors from BC, Alberta and the USA were able to make it (yes, I am talking about you! If you are 10% as awesome in person as you are on the internet you could help make the best weekend ever!). Rent some cheap hall or meeting facility, set up a schedule, and play a butt-load of D&D, Gamma World/Metamorphosis Alpha, Traveller, Boot Hill, Tunnels and Trolls, Runequest, Call of Cthulhu, Star Trek, Car Wars, et al...
- "The Vance Sector:" interstellar sci-fi adventure campaign heavily, heavily inspired by Jack Vance. I'm waffling between Traveller, Terminal Space, X-Plorers and Stars Without Number for this.
- Dune D&D: A houseruled D&D game in the universe of Frank Herbert's Dune, although probably quite a while before the events in the book. Space Feudalism!
- Fallout!: I'm not sure if I'd use Gamma World or Mutant Future's Mazes & Mutants as the base, and I'd probably incorporate a 3E style skill system, but it would involve the post-apocalyptic Canadian prairie, vault-dweller PCs, Canadian Tire money, way too many kinds of firearms and ammo, Mad Max-esque vehicular warfare, and using soft drinks instead of booze for the "heal 1d6 hp once a day" houserule.
- Gene Wolfe tribute campaign: Either set on a post-historical Earth or in an O'Neil cylinder; although it would definitely not be a railroad, there would be a "central campaign quest" in the vein of The Book of the New Sun and The Book of the Long Sun. Would every PC be unaware that they are a Cleric? ;)
- "The Lemurian Age", a Sword & Sorcery campaign set in the Lost Prehistory of the Indian Ocean: The Kerguelen microcontinent, Kamari Kamdan, Africa, Mesopotamia, India, Southeast Asia, Australia, & Prehistoric Marsupial Megafauna. Inspired by Conan and Atlantis: The Second Age.
- Empire of the Petal Throne: Using the original OD&D variant rules...but set on Mars! With additional Barsoom, HG Welles and The Dictionary of Mu influences.
- 80s Action! Movie campaign: Something in the vein of Commando and Miami Vice. Mini-Uzis, sinister Eurotrash in turtlenecks, crazed coke dealers, and rescuing The President's Daughter!
- Carcosa: Although Algol is heavily influenced by Carcosa, Geoffrey's creation is an entirely different beast, far more grim and far less "Jack Vancian" than my Algol game. OD&D and crazy dice conventions!
- OD&D: Of course this could be combined with several of the above ideas, but I want to try out pre-Greyhawk style LBB OD&D; d6s and d20s only!
Man, just thinking about the above options gets me fired up, just the thing to get me out of this rut...I gotta run these ideas past the gaming group.
Just as a friendly disclaimer, players in any of my games should refrain from reading this.
Work Progresses on my Algol Megadungeon, which now consists of a ten level complex with 1138 rooms; at this point, aside from the first level, I've been focusing on the mapping before stocking and detailing the lower levels, although I have some monsters, treasures and features roughed out.
Below is the first level; in play it's been pretty barren and picked over. The southeast portion of the top map is an ancient convention center facility; the large chambers in the southwestern potion of the top map are ancient supply storage hangars, long since stripped aside from several barrels of "dimetheloxychloxcyanidateonium..."; the spiraling and flooded center potion of the bottom map is the House of the Snail, the aforementioned snail being some sort of savant or oracle. There's a staircase to a submerged portion of the fourth level in the center of ole Mollusk Manor. I dig how the silhouette of this level turned out.
The second level; the upper map is actually the first draft of what became the northern map of the first level; I still liked the map, for both it's rectangular "city block" layout and also how it made me think of tomb complexes. The southern map is primarily the remains of a suicide cult temple, as well as a gladiatorial arena presided over by evil robed skeletons.
The third level; the western region is a maze of chambers of "baroque decrepitude," whereas the eastern portion is some sort of scientific research facility. The topmost map is the uppermost level of another temple complex. One feature of all three maps is that I placed "major avenues" of corridors and chambers without doors, to allow the free passage of inhabitants sans hands or equivalent.
You may notice that compared to my previous Algol Megadungeon post that I've incorporated the previous version's second and third levels into the current second level; and also that I've further modified and expanded the maps.
For the fourth level and downwards the dungeon becomes four "sub-dungeons" and two side-levels, including a couple of Indiana Jone-esque "deathtrap treasure mazes."
These items appear to be an umbrella with a sword handle instead of the usual umbrella handle. If used as a weapon they inflict 0-3 points of damage on a hit. These items are actually cursed: the bearer will operate under the misapprehension that this item grants a +3 bonus to charisma whereas the bearer's charisma will actually be halved (round down). The DM must make a reaction roll whenever the bearer encounters guards, bouncers and other security personnel. On a result of "hostile" the aforementioned security personnel will assume that the sword handle umbrella bearer is reaching for an actual sword and will attack with lethal force.
* I'm not badmouthing Tenkar or any other public safety personnel here...carrying an umbrella that looks like a sword is just plain stupid.
"You are not allowed to play music at my place ever again."
Music while gaming is a subjective thing. RPG messageboards are full of topics advocating Hollywood blockbuster soundtracks; Dimmu Borgir; and Midnight Syndicate as gaming session soundtracks.
I have obscure musical tastes, and even though I'm intellectually aware that my records with The Devil or mushroom clouds on the cover do not contain music that is any better or any worse than any other music, I can't help being enough of a snob/jerk to read the aforementioned threads for the *giggles* factor.
Years ago the gaming space that my circle of gamers use was located in my apartment; before one session an unnamed, but otherwise sterling, participant played us a sample of what he thought would be good music to listen to while playing D&D. It sounded like slick European symphonic black metal crossed with slick industrial rock, like Dimmu Borgir crossed with KMFDM. My immediate, unthinking reaction was "You are not allowed to play music at my place ever again."
When I first started DMing again in my adult years, I could not handle music with vocals (aside from some "abba dabba" nomad chanting and the like) while I was DMing; I found it too distracting. In a similar vein, although I listen to lots of music by guys that wear belts made out of bullets, I couldn't handle DMing wile metal was playing. I also found both annoying while playing, but hey, I gotta take my lumps when I'm not wearing the Viking Hat.
Nowadays I've come around, and can handle pretty much anything while playing or DMing, even descending deep enough into madness to use Jon Bon Jovi's "Blaze of Glory" as the theme music for a brief western-themed D&D campaign, not to say that there aren't exceptions that grate mightily upon my nerves.
One thing I've come to hate is signature, epic, genre-appropriate Hollywood Blockbuster orchestral soundtrack music. The Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, Braveheart, etc. Not only do I find most of it plodding and tasteless, but I've also observed an emergent behavior among players while such music is playing.
I call is the "Desperate Battle" effect; the party is fighting some desperate battle, meanwhile this booming symphony is playing the background music for some movie heroes iconic death. Somehow the movie soundtrack affects the players judgments, and instead of fighting smart and tight they engage in poorly executed heroic blunders that put their character, and others' characters, in serious peril.
I still love the Conan the Barbarian soundtrack, even though I find it disgustingly overplayed at this point; the Robocop score is awesome; and Morriconne's Fistful of Dollars trilogy is some sort of audial mana emanated from the extradimensional redoubt of the eternal champion...
Anyways, while Dudebird is DMing his Wilderlands AD&D campaign, he will call an intermission to grill up some sausages. A couple of times lately he's put on some "soft rock" music for the break. It's a nice change of pace from the Star Trek fight music on repeat and German Oak of the previous hours.
And after we gorge ourselves on cruel, delicious meat and get back to the D&D table, Pete (another player) and I find ourselves intensely petitioning DM Dudebird to keep playing the soft rock. Don't get me wrong, the DM is the DM and pretty much has the right to chop of someone's hand for unauthorized ipod meddling; we just try to present a compelling case: We're usually in a dungeon, usually beat up or in peril, people are making rash decisions, and Pete and I opine that what the party needs in that sort of circumstances is some optimistic, calming soft rock.
And you know what? It seems to work; instead of catastrophically bumbling our way through the rest of the night like a pack of Chris Farley's, despite perhaps being tipsy and bong-addled, we tend to play a smart, calm, well-oiled game when provided a soft rock soundtrack.
As a DM, I love playing German Oak, Hellhammer, Hawkwind, Sleep, Bone Awl (the long song on bog bodies!), as well as Morriconne and all sorts of arty-fartsy stuff, when running a delve; but as a player, I can think of no better soundtrack for my imaginary swords & sorcery adventures than some smooth soft rock!
