HeroForge 2.0 Color

Crazy busy day today.  This working and school from home has me working more than ever.  Hell of a way to get job security.

I checked my email and I got my early access to the new HeroForge 2.0 with color, and I am happy to say that it really exceeds my expectations.

There are a lot of nice features, not all are in yet, but enough to make very, very happy I backed this Kickstarter and the original HeroForge Kickstarter.

You get a bunch of tools and textures to work with.

There are some pre-configured color themes that can really help get you started.

Not everything is ready just yet.  Likely good or I'd be spending too much money now.  This will likely be good for tattoos and designs.  If we can upload our own designs then I have a few custom tattoos I am going to do.

While there are plenty of colors to work with you can use a standard RGB palette to adjust everything.

Here are a few I made tonight.

My superhero character Justice.

A new version of my iconic witch Larina.  I love the shading on her hat.

Iggwilv and The Simbul from my War of the Witch Queens campaign.

Of course my two favorite witches. You may or may not be able to tell, but even Tara's fingernails and toenails are painted.  That is the level of control you have.

And my two newest characters.

Asabalom and Maryah.  These are my new druid and ranger characters for Old-School Essentials.  They have made appearances in my Pumpkin Spice Witch book, in NIGHT SHIFT and other places.  They have been my playtest characters for other things as well including a couple of Blue Rose adventures I have written.  I am quite happy with how they turned out.

Maryah, in particular, is just fantastic looking.  If you compare her and Justice to Willow, Iggwilv or Larina above you can see she has more musculature. Appropriate for a ranger and superhero respectively.

If you look you can see her eyebrow piercings are different metals, copper and two gold.

The minis are $45 each in the color plastic OR $145 to have someone paint it there.  Frankly, I am not sure how they are going to make money at $145 to paint a mini given the amount they are going to do.

I am going to at least pick up four right away.  Though it will likely be a couple of months before I see them.

Gonna have to sell more books to feed my mini addiction!

Characters: Freyr, Mage Knight

One of the things I have been doing as part of my Back to Basics is creating characters using all the Basic-era clones I have.  In particular I have been looking for characters that optimize the system in question.  There things you can do in Labyrinth Lord for example that you can't do in OSE and things you can do in Blueholme that you can't do in either of the other games.

Now, keep in mind "can't" is a strong word.  I should rather say "rules as written".

To keep it interesting I am using characters from the fantasy playtests of West Haven that appear in NIGHT SHIFT in my "Ordinary World" setting.
West Haven also makes an appearance in my War of the Witch Queens campaign, so these characters have also been my playtests for that.

One character I needed was a half-elf knight or cavalier that also used magic.  His main job was to protect his half-sister, an elvish princess, who I am depicting as an elvish party girl. Yes, she was originally a "Valley Elf" back in the 80s.

But back to my half-elf.  None of the books I have really had what I wanted. Not exactly anyway.
That is until I got a copy of CAL2a Conversion Guide to Caldwen for Vintage Roleplaying and CAL2b Conversion Guide to Caldwen for the OSRIC System. 
Setting this character in Caldwen makes perfect sense since he is part of a mage school in my concept.  It seemed then at a Mage Knight might be the best choice for him.

So let's try him out.
I am also trying out some new software for character design.
So the art here is from Overhead Software's ePic Character Generator. so far it is pretty fun.

To build this character I am using the following:

• Advanced Labyrinth Lord  (so I can get a half-elf)
• CAL2 Calidar On Wings of Darkness (background)
• PG2 A Players' Guide to Caldwen (base Mage Knight)
• CAL2a Conversion Guide to Caldwen for Vintage Roleplaying (for the LL conversion)

Freyr, Mage Knight of Caldwen

Male, half-elf Mage Knight 6th level, Chaotic Good.

Abilities
Strength  16 (+2)
Intelligence 16 (+2)
Wisdom 10 (0)
Dexterity 16 (+2)
Constitution 12 (0)
Charisma 12 (0)

AC 2 (Chain mail, shield and Dex -2)
HP 25
Base THAC0  15 (13 mod)

Saving Throws
Breath Attacks 13
Poison or Death 10
Petrify or Paralyze 12
Wands 11
Spells, Spell-like devices 14

Powers
+4 to saves vs. Paralyzing touch of Ghouls
Spellcasting
Sense Raw Mana
Demon Enmity
Laying On Hands

Spells
First Level: Light, Magic Missile, Shield
Second Level:  Knock, Detect Evil

Really straight forward and he compares well to the 5e version I also created.

Reviews: Conversion Guides to Caldwen

I am still spending a Virtual Vacation in Calidar's beautiful Caldwen.  But you know what every tourist needs?  A tour guide.  Thankfully our thoughtful travel agent Bruce Heard has supplied us with not one, but two new "tour guides" for anyone traveling to Caldwen.

CAL2a Conversion Guide to Caldwen for Vintage Roleplaying and CAL2b Conversion Guide to Caldwen for the OSRIC System.

Both books follow the same format. The only differences are the systems they are being converted too.  The books cover both CAL2 Calidar On Wings of Darkness and CA2 How to Train Your Wizard.  Knowledge of PG2 A Players' Guide to Caldwen and Game Mechanics for the World of Calidar is helpful.  (links are to reviews, not the products themselves.)

The books are 30 pages with full-color covers and color with black & white interior art. Prices at $3.95, but currently $2.95.  You do not need both, but I find it nice for my own system analyses.
Unlike the main Caldwen/Calidar books the art here is sparse, but that is by design since the focus of this book is the stats.  Here Heard make explicit the conversions he discussed in the main books using the Calidar game stats.  Depending on the system book you grab, you get easily familiar stat blocks and guides on how to use the books.  Now obviously the "vintage roleplaying" can be used with any 70s and 80s circa version of the World's Greatest Role-Playing Game. Or as I have called here, any Basic-Era edition.  It is labeled for "Labyrinth Lord" but any game similar enough to Labyrinth Lord can be used (ie. only a Law-Chaos alignment axis, race-as-class), or adapted.  The OSIRC-labeled version can also be used with any Advanced-era version of the game.

One of the main features of these books is the Mage Knight class. I am quite fond of this class so I wanted to try it out.  Now I have choices, a "Basic" or an "Advanced" version.  Now the class has been converted faithfully, so don't expect them to look exactly the same between the Basic and Advanced versions.  There is no description of the powers the Mage Knight has, you still need the Caldwen book for that, but this is expected.

After the Mage Knight, we get into the How to Train Your Wizard material. 

Throughout the book, page references to the sourcebooks are given. 
So the great thing about these books is if you play a particular system then you only need one conversion book.  True, it does mean you need two books, but for me the flexibility more than outweighs this minor issue.  I am a system guy, so I like being able to have multiple versions of the same material to blend between my games.  So yeah for 3 bucks it is totally worth it for me, hell it is worth it for 6 bucks to have both versions. 

There is an obvious logical extension here. CAL2C for Pathfinder and CAL2D for D&D5.

Up next, I try out a Mage Knight.

Monstrous Monday: The Jackalope

There are few creatures that say "Americana" than the Jackalope.  Created from the same tall tales that gave up Paul Bunyan, Captain Stormalong, Piasa Bird and the Hodag. Stories I enjoyed as a kid.

The Jackalope, of course, has had the "advantage" of taxidermy where several stuffed Jackalopes can be purchased across the US.  I have lost track of the number of truck stops, gas stations or diners I have stopped in from California to New York that had at least one stuffed Jackalope for sale.  Though I admit I have never had the desire to own one.

Though having a Jackalope in my games?  Yeah, that is doable.

Jackalope
These creatures seem to be a magical crossbreed of a large rabbit and either a deer or antelope.  The jackalope is a large creature, larger than a rabbit, about the size of a large dog.  Its head comes up to about 2-3 feet, with its antlers adding another 12-18 inches.  Some are smaller but rarely larger.
The jackalope is an intelligent creature, capable of speech and is even known to sing.  It is fond of singing in the evening just as the stars are coming out.
When relaxed the jackalope is a cordial creature and good company. It will even share stories of other magical animals it has met in its life.
When hunted, the jackalope is a fierce opponent.  He will run towards hunters to attack with its antlers. The jackalope is also very fast and can outrun most opponents.

Jackalope (Old-School Essentials)
A large jack-rabbit like creature with antlers and intelligent eyes.
Armor Class 2
Hit Dice 3 (13)
Attacks 1 antlers (1d6+2)
THAC0 17 (+2)
Movement Rate 120' (40')
Saves D12 W13 P14 B15 S16 (3)
Morale 10
Alignment Neutral
XP for Defeating 50
Number Appearing 1
Treasure Type none (Jackalopes have no need for treasure)

• Antlers. The jackalope can rush an opponent to attack.  The antlers are sharp and cause piercing damage.
• Fast. Jackalopes are very fast when escaping they can double their speed once per day.
• Speaking. Jackalopes can speak and sing.

Jackalope (Rhy-creature) (Blue Rose)

Abilities (Focuses)
1 Accuracy (Antlers)
3 Communication (Performance)
2 Constitution
2 Dexterity (Stealth)
1 Fighting (Antlers)
2 Intelligence
2 Perception (Hearing)
1 Strength (Jumping)
2 Willpower

Speed 16
Health 30
Defense 12
Armor Rating 0

Weapon Attack Roll Damage
Antlers +3 1d6+1

Special Qualities
Favored Stunts: Defensive Stance, Lightning Attack
Arcana: Calm, Illusion, Psychic Contact

Threat: Moderate

Jackalopes could be considered Rhy-Rabbits if there were such a thing, but they are a unique sort of creature. All Jackalopes are Rhydan. In this respect, they are more like unicorns or griffins, though some would contend as more humble and even "rustic".
Jackalope rhydan love nothing more than to hop through the land, sing and tell stories.  All jackalopes are natural storytellers.  Not for epics involving dragons and great queens or kings, but simple tales like the luck of widow's sons, or small clever creatures that most heroes would ignore.

Zatannurday: WitchFire

I was SUPPOSED to be working on some FASA Star Trek characters.  So I was going through my character folders trying to find some of my old characters for Decipher Trek.  I didn't find them.  I DID find characters for my very, very first Generation HEX characters.  Namely Taryn aka "Teen Witch" and Brianna who had a lot of names, but one of them was "Witch Fire."

Imagine my surprise when it finally dawned on me that there was a DC character named Witch Fire AND my complete surprise when I found out Marvel also had a Witch Fire!

I pulled her out, went over her stats and thought it would be great to update her to Mutants & Masterminds 3.0 from version 2.

I also looked over the DC Witchfire and the Marvel Witchfire for some ideas.

DC, Rebecca Carstairs
Fandom: Rebecca Carstairs (New Earth)
Fandom: Rebecca Carstairs (Prime Earth)
ComicVine: Witchfire
Comic Book Realm: Witchfire aka Rebecca Carstairs
Notes

DC Earth-27 Project, Rebecca Carstairs
PhilChoArt: Rebecca Carstairs (Earth 27)
Rebecca Carstairs (Earth 27)
DeviantArt Sheets, Page 1 and Page 2.

Marvel, Ananym
Wikipedia: Witchfire
Fandom: Ananym (Earth 616)
ComicVine: Witchfire

All three characters (Marvel, DC, and Mine) had several similarities.
- All three are redheads
- All three had fire powers in addition to magic
- All had strange, magical parentage.

So instead of trying to do one or the other (and I am partial to the DC version), I'll present my own with some add-ons from the other two.
Here she is!

Witchfire aka Brianna O'Kelly

PL 8
Strength 3, Stamina 1, Agility 3, Dexterity 1, Fighting 1, Intellect 2, Awareness 1, Presence 1

Advantages
Attractive 2, Languages 1, Well-informed

Skills
Acrobatics 1 (+4), Athletics 2 (+5), Close Combat: Fire Aura: Damage 4 1 (+2), Insight 1 (+2), Perception 2 (+3), Persuasion 3 (+4), Ranged Combat: Fire Blast: Damage 8 2 (+3), Sleight of Hand 1 (+2)

Powers
Alternate Form (Fire) (Activation: Standard Action)
   Damage: Damage 1 (DC 16)
   Flight: Flight 3 (Speed: 16 miles/hour, 250 feet/round)
   Immunity: Immunity 0
   Insubstantial: Insubstantial 3 (Energy)
   Teleport: Teleport 1 (60 feet in a move action, carrying 50 lbs.; Medium: Energy Medium)
Dazzle: Cumulative Affliction 1 (1st degree: Impaired, 2nd degree: Disabled, 3rd degree: Unaware, Resisted by: Fortitude, DC 11; Cumulative, Increased Range: ranged; Limited: Sight)
Enhanced Ability: Enhanced Agility 3 (+3 AGL)
Enhanced Ability: Enhanced Strength 3 (+3 STR)
Fire Aura: Damage 4 (DC 19; Reaction 3: reaction)
Fire Blast: Damage 8 (DC 23; Increased Range: ranged)
Magic: Burst Area Line Area Damage 8 (DC 23; Burst Area: 30 feet radius sphere, DC 18, Line Area: 5 feet wide by 30 feet long, DC 18)

Offense
Initiative +3
Damage: Damage 1, +1 (DC 16)
Dazzle: Cumulative Affliction 1, +1 (DC Fort 11)
Fire Aura: Damage 4, +2 (DC 19)
Fire Blast: Damage 8, +3 (DC 23)
Grab, +1 (DC Spec 13)
Magic: Burst Area Line Area Damage 8 (DC 23)
Throw, +1 (DC 18)
Unarmed, +1 (DC 18)

Complications
Fame (well known under real name)
Motivation: Thrills

Languages
English, Irish Gaelic

Defense
Dodge 3, Parry 2, Fortitude 2, Toughness 1, Will 3

Power Points
Abilities 14 + Powers 91 + Advantages 4 + Skills 7 (13 ranks) + Defenses 4 = 120


Not bad.  She is PL 8 since that is where I set all my M&M3 Generation HEX.
I might have to do some more.

Reviews: Calidar Guides for Players

Been spending some quality time with Calidar this week.  Why? because there is a complete lack of flying cities and skyships in my games.  Plus Bruce Heard is a great writer going way back to the TSR days.  Back when I was in college my money was tight.  Ok I was spending it on alcohol. But the point is that I was not buying a lot of D&D books.  What I DID buy were book by Bruce Heard and anything he did for Mystara.

So these new books (and my Professor's salary) are a welcome addition to my life.
Let's get into it.

Game Mechanics for the World of Calidar
12 pages. PDF and Softcover format. Full-color covers, color, and black & white interior. PWYW

Ok, this book is punching WAY above its weight in terms of value to page count. There are some obvious benefits, that I'll talk about and one or two not-so-obvious that also make this a must-have.  I'll get to those as well.  Let's start with the explicit value.
This book is designed to allow any GM or player to use the Calidar shorthand stats I have talked about all week and then convert them to any game system.
The game mechanics used are detailed first. By doing this Calidar is free to depict stats in any way that works best for the world and not necessarily the game system.  There is an obvious "D&D-bias" here but that is fine really, and expected.
Inbetween the text is the numbers conversion chart.  Ranked by percentages the numbers are grouped by ranges you can convert say Level to a Calidar %.  So let's say your game goes from 1 to 14 (like say B/X or OSE) then you can convert a Calidar character statblock using this.  Or maybe 1 to 30 (D&D4) or 1 to 20 (most D&D).  Spend some time with this chart and the translations begin to happen easily.
The game mechanics continue and include a "Philosophy" stat which is a stand in for Alignment. AND it might actually be a better alignment system.  Now I have never had any issues with Alignment myself.  Maybe because I spent so much time with things like the MMPI and other tests that I naturally gave alignment more subtle gradations.  Actually, I think it was more chemistry come to think of it. Take the "alignment chart" in the old PHB or D&DG and think of an electron cloud where a character can move up or down in the shells.
There is also a map of Calidar and the Great Caldera and some brief descriptions of the lands.
Now what else do you get?  Well this conversion table is fantastic for conversions to all sorts of games. Not just D&D based ones.  Yes, the math is not difficult, actually, it is pretty easy.  But I teach math all damn day. I like having something like this.
Secondly, I want to get back to the new Philosophy system.  It works GREAT in CA2 How to Train Your Wizard. It would be great for someone that doesn't like the Law-Chaos, Good-Evil axes.
So grab this. Throw a couple of bucks at Bruce and have fun!

PG2 A Players' Guide to Caldwen
20 pages. PDF and Softcover format. Full-color covers, color, and black & white interior. $2.99

This covers the basics of the Magiocracy of Caldwen. The various Provinces are covered briefly and other aspects of the land.  We get the calendar with months and some astrology.
There is a new race, the Shatim, which are like Tieflings, humans with demonic heritage. These have their own Caldwenian spin on them. 
We also get a Mage Knight class. They are an armored knight that can cast spells. Using the Game Mechanics for the World of Calidar book you can convert them to your game system of choice.
We get overviews on the various cults in Caldwen and their locations, or at least where the majority are located. Appropriate for a land where magic is the real religion.
Currency, tourism and a brief map are all included.
A good resource for players and a needed one for the Game Masters.
It really sets the flavor of what you can expect in the Caldwen mini-setting. "Mini setting" is actually underselling it a bit to be honest. There is so much in the Caldwen books that you forget it was just a piece of the entire Calidar world setting.

I have the softcover books, but these really benefit from being printed out (bad on the color ink though) so I can put them in a binder to lay flat.  Especially when it comes to referencing the maps, which are a highlight of these books.

I can't wait to see where my vacation in Calidar takes me next.

Review: Calidar How to Train Your Wizard

Next up in the Calidar: On the Wings of Darkness series is sourcebook/adventure for novice necromancers.  So you know I am excited!

CA2 How to Train Your Wizard
PDF 70 Pages, full-color covers, color, and black & white interior art.
This book requires Calidar On Wings of Darkness and A Players' Guide to Caldwen, but it can also be played without those to a lesser degree.  That is, it can be adapted to any game or setting, but I think it looses a bit of the original charm.
This adventure and supplement focuses on the College of Necromancy and assumes novice characters of about 12 years old.  There are guidelines for rolling up novice characters as well as six pre-gen characters you can name and drop into the game.
Given the characters are novices this is a PERFECT introduction game for new, younger players. This is "Harry Potter meets Scooby-Doo (but more like Magicians)." You have young adventures, a mystery and the ghosts are real.

For the background, you get a collection of teachers that will interact with the students, and there is already a built-in rivalry in the school; the White vs. Black Necromancers.  Or Law and Chaos for us old-school types.  The characters are also given homework that can earn them "insight" to be used in the game.  Students can also get "brownie points" from their official Brownie Protector, Bronwen!  These are for good roleplaying that would not necessarily result in Experience Points.
I am just mad I didn't think of this first.

The clues the students/characters can find while working through our plot and subplots.  The adventure is designed NOT to be a railroad. In fact, care is given knowing the characters, being young, will likely go all over the place.

The adventure starts in the classroom (! YEAH, no "you meet in a Tavern/Bar/Inn!) and moves out from there.  The College is very detailed with maps and descriptions of the rooms. There are plenty of NPCs to encounter and combat is NOT expected at every turn.  Clever spellcasting is rewarded, as is finishing homework.

I want to point out here that the maps in this product are a work of art.  Really.

The levels are detailed well and clues to the murder of a student, Odel Talron.

This adventure can be run to support the murder investigation, or as a means to test the new young necromancers, or even just to play out the rivalry between the White and Black factions.  Or all the above.

For my money, I would run it first as an introduction to the College, maybe play up the rivalry a bit, and then hit the characters with the murder in the next session.

The bottom line there is a LOT you can do with this and the ideas are not limited to those above.
It comes in softcover, but for my uses, I grabbed the PDF and printed it out one side per page so I have room to write my own notes.

According to Bruce Heard, there will be Labyrinth Lord and OSRIC compatible conversion guides for this coming soon.

I hope we can see other guides like this for the other Colleges.