The Other Side blog: community

Showing posts with label community. Show all posts

Monday, August 7, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 SMARTEST RPG you've played

Oh, now that is an interesting question.

It is a tossup, really.

Victoria and Baker Street are two very historically accurate Victorian-era RPGs. No steampunk, no gothic horror, no supernatural. Straight-up exploration of one of the more fascinating ages (in my mind) in history. I love my Steampunk. I LOVE my Gothic Horror and Supernatural. But that loves comes from a solid grounding in the age, and these game both managed to give me what I love and be very clever about it.

Likewise, I love the tales of King Arthur and an age of a Mythic Britan.

While less grounded in actual history, these books both capture their subject matter well. Pendragon and Chivalry & Sorcery are great fun, and I just don't get to play them enough.

It is great to do a historically accurate RPG as Victoria and Baker Street show, but Pendragon and C&S also demonstrate why historical accuracy sometimes needs to take a backseat (or passenger seat) to a good game.

Sunday, August 6, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 Favourite game you NEVER get to play

My favorite game I never get to play? Easy.

C. J. Carella's WitchCraft.

I love everything about this game and I never ever get to play it. I think the last time was at Gen con maybe 10-12 years ago.

It was my inspiration behind Ghosts of Albion and NIGHT SHIFT. Neither of those games would have been made if it had not been for WitchCraft.

I can't even adequately put into words what this game means to me. Only the AD&D Monster Manual comes close.

Saturday, August 5, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 OLDEST game you've played

Not sure if this means "This Year" or "Ever." Let's go with Ever.

The Oldest game I have played is Original Dungeons and Dragons.

I spent a summer after my freshman year at college playing in an OD&D campaign. It was an eye-opening experience to say the least!

Friday, August 4, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 Most RECENT game bought

Not counting collections (I'll detail that later) the most recent game I have bought was bought FOR me and not BY me. That would be my Spanish Language D&D 5e books.

I got these as Birthday presents back in June because I am learning Spanish now. They are actually a lot of fun and have been a great challenge. I am looking for other RPGs in Spanish too.

Thursday, August 3, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 First RPG BOUGHT (this year)

I had to think about this one, but my first RPG purchase of 2023 had to be my Deluxe Edition of The Dark Eye.

There is a lot about this game I really love and want to do more with. I still might get around to doing some more too.

Wednesday, August 2, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 First RPG GAMEMASTER

Another one that has been on my mine a bit lately.

My first Gamemaster was myself really. We all kind of taught ourselves how to play back then and I didn't have older brothers or friends that played. But that changed when I got to Jr. High.

My first real DM was Jon Cook and we played this hybrid version of Basic (B/X) D&D and 1st Edition Advanced D&D.

In a lot of ways I guess I am still chasing that high.

Tuesday, August 1, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 FIRST RPG played (this year)

This one is easy because we played it New Year's Eve and Year's Day. My first game for 2023 was D&D 5e Dragonlance: Shadows of the Dragon Queen.

I was a player in it, not the DM, which was a nice change of pace.

My oldest was running it, and he combined it with bits and pieces of Rise of Tiamat and Horde of the Dragon Queen from the start of D&D 5.

Honestly, he did not care for the adventure as it was written and wanted to tweak it a bit for us. We did not play many more sessions of this. My "falling out" with D&D 5 had a lot to do with that and his promotion as a pastry chef meant he had less time. But we did have a great time. I was cleaning up our game room the other day and all of our minis are still in the "current campaign" box.

Sunday, July 30, 2023

#RPGaDay2023 10th Anniversary Edition

Next month, which is also later this week, Dave Chapman's RPGaDay celebrates its 10th anniversary, and I plan on participating again.

And this year I have even more social media sites to get involved with! Here are the text versions of the prompts.

1) FIRST RPG played (this year)

2) First RPG GAMEMASTER

3) First RPG BOUGHT (this year)

4) Most RECENT game bought

5) OLDEST game you've played

6) Favourite game you NEVER get to play

7) SMARTEST RPG you've played

8) Favourite CHARACTER

9) Favourite DICE

10) Favourite tie-in FICTION

11) WEIRDEST game you've played

12) Old game you STILL play

13) Most memorable character DEMISE

14) Favourite CONVENTION purchase

15) Favourite Con MODULE / ONE-SHOT

16) Game you WISH you owned

17) FUNNIEST game you've played

18) Favourite game SYSTEM

19) Favourite PUBLISHED adventure

20) Will still play in TWENTY years time

21) Favourite LICENSED RPG

22) Best SECONDHAND RPG purchase

23) COOLEST looking RPG product / book

24) COMPLEX / SIMPLE RPG you play

25) UNPLAYED RPG you own

26) Favourite CHARACTER SHEET

27) Game you'd like a new EDITION of...

28) SCARIEST game you've played

29) Most memorable ENCOUNTER

30) OBSCURE RPG you've played

31) FAVOURITE RPG of all time

I am sure this will be a lot of fun, and I am really looking forward to seeing what everyone does.

See you all next month...er...Tuesday.

Friday, July 28, 2023

#FollowFriday: ME!

Ok...maybe a little self-serving here. Ok. A lot. But I spent some time organizing my social media profiles and thought I'd share them all here for ease.

Here is my new Link in Bio from bit.ly.

Oddly, iframes are not working with this one.

As you can see, you can now find me on bsky (BlueSky), Mastodon, and Threads, in addition to all the other places I have been at forever.

Share yours below and connect with others. With social media a vast and unconnected set of sites, it is hard to find out what cool things people are doing now. Or at least keep track of them.

I guess this is one of the reasons why I continue to blog here, it is my corner of the Internet, and I can do what I like, as I like.

Thursday, July 20, 2023

Wasted Lands: Nymwen the Necromancer

A while back, I posted B/X-OSE stats for the wonderful Morelia the Wood Witch. An "adoptable" NPC from the equally wonderful Ginny Di. With the release of the nonhuman species rules for The Wasted Lands, I thought I might revisit her. BUT while re-reviewing it all, I figured out two things. 1.) I really like Morelia, where I have her now. And 2.) One of her other characters Nymwen would be much more fun to have in the Dreaming Age!

Nymwen the Necromancer, courtesy of Ginny Di

You can read all about Nymwen on Ginny's World Anvil site. You can also watch her introduction video here:

And Nymwen on her own:

She is a Necromancer and a Sage, so honestly, she would fit right into my notion of Wasted Lands as D&D.

Nonhuman species get a level in their species first and then choose to move on to a class. This gives them abilities that many here would largely expect.

Nymwen here is a High Elf. She was born and High Elf and was raised as a High Elf, so she takes full advantage of these sorts of rules. So she gains the following.

Vitality Die: d6 (at "first level" only)
Saves: +1 to Persona, +1 to Agility, and +2 to mind-affecting spells
Senses: Elves are Nightsighted.

She also gains a free 1st level spell.

In Ginny's D&D (Di&Di?) worlds, Nymwen is a cleric with a penchant for Necromancy but is described as a Sage. Here she can do both. Ginny has her at level 12 and may be a potential villain/adversary. I am going to put her at level 6 and see where she goes.

Nymwen the Necromancer

Class: Sage
Level: 6
Species: Elf (High)
Alignment: True Neutral
Background: Sage, Occultist

Abilities
Strength: 12 (+0)
Agility: 13 (+1)
Toughness: 14 (+1) N
Intelligence: 17 (+2) A
Wits: 16 (+1) N
Persona: 15 (+1)

Fate Points: 10
Defense Value: None 10
Vitality: 25 (d6)
Degeneracy: None (yet, outside of Alignment)
Corruption: None

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +4/+2/+1
Melee Bonus: +2 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +2 (base)
Saves: +1 to Persona, +1 to Agility, and +2 to mind-affecting spells (Elf), +4 to saves vs. Magical Effects (Sage)

Sage Abilities

Languages (17), Lore (75%), Mesmerize Others (60%), Suggestion, Renegade Skills, Spells, Read Languages

Renegade Skills

Hide in Shadows: 40%
Open Locks: 45%
Bypass Traps: 40%
Sleight of Hand: 50%

Necromancer Abilities (from Divine Touchstone)

Channel the Dead (30%), See Dead People, Summon the Dead (35%), Command Spirits, Protection from Spirits, Death Knell, Suggestion (Spirits)

Spells
1st Level: Mystical Senses (Elf), Protection from Evil, Read Languages, Chill Ray (DT)
2nd Level: Eternal Flame, Zone of Protection vs. Evil
3rd Level: Dispel Magic

Divine Touchstones
Level 1:
Level 2: 1st level Spell
Level 3: Level 1 of Necromancer
Level 4:
Level 5: Level 2 of Necromancer
Level 6: Level 3 of Necromancer

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Death, Love

Nymwen can be a figure of tragic love or one of obsession (Ayana). I'll have to see what happens with her as she grows in level.

Notes on Wasted Lands D&D

The Divine (called here "Heroic") touchstones, allow the character a bit more flair and a bit more power.

I have not worked out how many Heroic/Divine Archetypes would be right for a D&D style game. If it is 5e I am emulating, then maybe one every level or two every three (like above). One every other level might also be good. One every third level for older style play or even none at all.

Also, if I am going to keep the Divine/Heroic touchstones I think I will also keep the Degeneracy and Corruption rules. It help balance it all out and reinforces the idea that power has a price.

This will al be fun to figure out.

The outstanding feature here is that with all the rules options in place in O.G.R.E.S., The Wasted Lands RPG is a Rosetta Stone of D&D and ORD games. A game system where anything can be easily added.

As always, thank you to Ginny Di for giving everyone such a great character to play with!

Please check out and back the Wasted Lands Kickstarter.

Nymwen's Links

See the mini painted here

Wednesday, July 19, 2023

Wasted Lands: Larina Nix

If I am going to try to convert my D&D games over to Wasted Lands, then it only makes sense to try to convert my witch Larina.

I have already converted her modern incarnation to NIGHT SHIFT, which is the one I am happiest with. But Wasted Lands has a lot to offer, and I want to see what she can do here.

In this case I want to convert her AS&D 1st Edition version to Wasted Lands, though it will not be a 1 to 1 conversion. Instead, I will convert her concept. Also, this will not be a conversion of her NIGHT SHIFT stats. They will be similar, to be sure, but I want to rebuild her from the ground up.

I always imagine that the various versions of Larina were all in some way different aspects of the same character or even past lives. One thing I have never, to date, figured out was who was the very first (game world chronology) Larina. It makes sense then to base this build on the first Larina (real-world chronology) from AD&D 1st Edition.

This would be that very first one. Maybe not the first witch in the world (that is a bit presumptuous even for me), but certainly the first one in her line.

Larina Nix

Class: Sorceress (Persona Aspected)
Level: 16
XP: 2,741,986
Species: Human (Avian heritage)
Alignment: Neutral-Light
Background: Sage

Abilities
Strength: 9 (+0)
Agility: 11 (+0)
Toughness: 12 (+1)
Intelligence: 17 (+2) N
Wits: 16 (+2) N
Persona: 18 (+3) A

Fate Points: 10
Defense Value: 7
Vitality: 33 (d4)
Degeneracy: 14
Corruption: 3

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +7/+5/+3
Melee Bonus: +3 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +3 (base)
Saves: +6 vs magical effect

Arcane Abilities
Arcana, Spellcasting (140% base + bonus)

Sage Abilities

Languages (17), Lore (37%), Mesmerize Others (20%), Suggestion, Renegade Skills, Spells, Read Languages

Renegade Skills

Hide in Shadows: 20%
Open Locks: 15%
Bypass Traps: 10%
Sleight of Hand: 20%

Spells
1st Level: Black Flames, Arcane Darts, Mystical Senses, Night Vision, Chill Ray, Read Languages (Sage)
2nd Level: Beguile Person, See Invisible, Locator Spell: Objects, Magic Lock, Levitate
3rd Level: Clairvoyance, Globe of Darkness, Concussive Blast, Dark Lightning
4th Level: All-seeing Invisible Eye, Befuddlement, Protection against the Deeper Dark, Hop and Skip
5th Level: Convert Stone to Mud, Passageway, Shadow Armor, Dominate Other
6th Level: Dispel Evil, Invisible Servant, Enchant Item
7th Level: Ball of Sunshine, Wave of Mutilation, Widdershins Dance
8th Level: Animosity/Affinity, Wail of the Banshee

Arcane Powers
Level 1: Telekinesis
Level 4: Beguile
Level 7: Empathy
Level 10: Precognition
Level 13: Psychic Power: ESP
Level 16: Shadow Walking

Divine Touchstones
Level 1: Sense Magic
Level 2:
Level 3: Bonus to Spellcasting (+10%)
Level 4:
Level 5:
Level 6: Level 1 of Sage
Level 7:
Level 8:
Level 9: Spirit Guide (Nightbird)
Level 10:
Level 11: Glamour
Level 12:
Level 13: Magical Recovery
Level 14: Level 2 of Sage
Level 15:
Level 16: 2 Level Ones: Arcane Power: Astral Projection. Psychic Power: Bio-feedback

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Witchcraft, Occultism

Gear
Staff, dagger, ring of protection

Why this Build is Important to Me

AD&D Larina was a very special character for me. I rolled her up as a "Magic-user" with the goal of playing her as a witch. We used our new method of rolling up psionic abilities and she ended up with psychic powers. I thought this was great. Later the infamous Dragon #114 came out, and I converted her to a proper witch. She kept her level of Magic-user (Dual classing), and we said it was because, as a witch, she was pretending to be a wizard so as not to get caught being a witch.

As the game progressed, she became less the magical powerhouse I envisioned back then and more the group's sage, occult expert, and polyglot. So when it came time to level her up I took the spells that gave her more social and mental power/aspects. If the choice was to take a power/spell/magic item that gave a blasty power OR say, learn a new language, then I always took the language.

For me, the Wasted Lands rules had to capture what happened by happenstance in 1986. Her odd combination of magic-user, psychic, sage, and witch.

I was able to replicate the feel of that AD&D 1st Edition Character rather perfectly, I think. She even has a bit of corruption to cover her, occasionally dipping her toes (sometimes a whole foot) into dark magic. In AD&D, I covered this by having her eyes change color and would replicate in other ways in other games.

Please check out and back the Wasted Lands Kickstarter in its final week!

Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Wasted Lands: Melissa Belladonna

Our weekend Fifth Edition D&D games are slowly sliding over into the Wasted Lands: The Dreaming Age RPG. We have been able to pivot so well because a lot of what we have been doing in D&D 5 comes from the same roots that you find in the Wasted Lands. But there is one thing the Wasted Lands doesn't do out of the box that many of the D&D 5e players love, and that is to play non-human characters.

That is until now.

If you are a backer, you already got the preview of nonhuman species so you can play the likes of an Elf, Dwarf or other stranger things. This is one of the key D&D experiences, and it is a welcome addition for those who want them. The rules addition from Jason includes the expected ones; elves, dwarves, gnomes and the like. But D&D 5 is full of all sorts of species to play. Can you do that in WL?

Yes.

Keep in mind one very, very important thing about the "humans" in the Wasted Lands. They are not really humans at all. They are proto-humans, proto in the sense that they very well might look like us but they were created by the Old Ones as sort of a "rough draft" of humans. So they could have ancestry from just about anything to be honest. Birds, reptiles, snakes, and yes, primates. The changes are largely cosmetic and immaterial to a group of mortals fighting evil elder things from beyond the stars. So adding an elf, dwarf or even dragonborn is really trivial.

Today I want to try a tiefling. Not just any tiefling, though.

It dawned on me a couple weeks back that I do not have a tiefling character to call my own. I still didn't but needed an NPC to fill a certain role. Enter Melissa Belladonna.

Melissa is a tiefling Artificer that runs an alchemist shop. You can follow her exploits on Twitter and Twitch (links below). But I was thinking here is a good character to try out. She has a 5e class. She is a tiefling. And she serves a role I needed of an alchemist. Plus, she is fun, and NPCs should be fun.

The party got to meet up with her, and she was great. I had more planned, but they had other things to do (and tacos were done). But she will certainly be back. Here is how I did her for the Wasted Lands.

Part of her background is should used to pretend to be human and used a glamour. That still works here, to be honest. There are demons in the Wasted Lands, so it is possible that there is an offspring of a demon and human that is also good.

Melissa Belladonna

Class: Sage
Level: 17
Species: Tiefling (Mammon heritage)
Alignment: Neutral Good (Twilight Good)
Background: Sage, Alchemist

Abilities
Strength: 14 (+1)
Agility: 12 (+0)
Toughness: 14 (+1)
Intelligence: 18 (+3) A
Wits: 15 (+1) N
Persona: 17 (+2) N

Fate Points: 10
Defense Value: None 10
Vitality: 60 (d6)
Degeneracy: None
Corruption: None

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +7/+5/+3
Melee Bonus: +5 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +5 (base)
Saves: +1 Fire-based effects, +1 to Magical-effects (Tiefling), +7 to saves vs. Magical Effects (Sage)

Sage Abilities

Languages (18), Lore (188%)*, Mesmerize Others (170%)*, Suggestion, Renegade Skills, Spells, Read Languages

Renegade Skills

Hide in Shadows: 95%
Open Locks: 90%
Bypass Traps: 100%
Sleight of Hand: 100%

Spells
1st Level: Mystical Senses (Tiefling), Beast Speech, Glamour, Read Languages, Restore/Drain Vitality, Summon Familiar (Perry, a Raven)
2nd Level: Create Water, Eternal Flame, Invisibility, Subtle Influence, Zone of Honesty
3rd Level: Anti-toxin, Dispel Magic, Remove Curse, Slow, Zone of Protection from Evil
4th Level: Befuddlement, Conjure Fire, Kiss of the Succubus

Divine Touchstones
Level 1:
Level 2: Arcane Ability: Enhanced Senses
Level 3:
Level 4: Luck benefit (1d6)
Level 5:
Level 6: "Spirit Guide" Her cauldron homunculus.
Level 7:
Level 8: Magical Recovery
Level 9:
Level 10: 3rd level spell: Conjure Fireworks
Level 11:
Level 12: Glamour at will
Level 13:
Level 14: Slow aging
Level 15:
Level 16: Signature Item: Cauldron
Level 17:

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Sage, Occultism, Dragons

Here lore skill covers her alchemy and artificer skills. She is also widely regarded as an expert on dragons, having conducted extensive field work on studying them for years.

Thank you to Melissa Belladonna for letting me borrow such a great character to play with! Everyone loved her.

Melissa's Links

Carrd.co links
Twitter

Please check out and back the Wasted Lands Kickstarter.

Monday, May 1, 2023

Doctor Who, Sci-fi Month, and A to Z Reflections

It's May 1st! Here at the Other Side, that means Sci-Fi Month.

Doctor Who RPG

I didn't want my Doctor Who fun to stop, so I will extend it to May and I will cover the two major Doctor Who RPGs; the 1986 FASA Doctor Who and the two editions of the Cubicle 7 ones.

I also have the complete FASA line and many of the Cubicle 7 ones. I'll see where my gaps are.

Right now, I am not considering covering the Time Lord RPG above and beyond what I have already done, but I will consider it. I also might toss in a few other time-travel RPGs if I have the time.

In any case, the reasoning is the same for May and it was for April; 2023 is the 60th Anniversary of Doctor Who.

A to Z Reflections

I completed another A to Z blogging challenge. I had a lot of fun with this, and I think people liked it too. I didn't visit as many other blogs as I wanted, way less than I usually do, so I am going to make an effort to go back and visit them all again. There were a lot of great blogs this year and it seems a shame not to go back. In fact a few will even go on to my new follows list.

Thank you everyone that came by and posted comments.

Follow Timothy's board "April 2023 A to Z of Doctor Who" on Pinterest.

I already have next year's planned (I knew what it was going to be last year) so I might get started on them now so I can spend next April visiting other blogs. Not a bad plan, really.

All images are used with permission from the BBC and are copyrighted 2023 by the BBC.

Friday, April 21, 2023

Fundraiser Friday

Photo by Liza Summer

Something a little different today.

I have been rather fortunate. I have a great job. I have a wife who has a great job. We have a roof over our heads, we can put food on the table, and we are all healthy and happy. That has not always been the case. I can remember times where I didn't have money for food, or when I did it was lean times. I was a grad student in the 90s and went 3 months without a paycheck because the State of Illinois could not make their budget. I was out of a job in the early 2000s for the longest time. I grew up without much. So when people have it rough I can empathize.

Professional Game design is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Lots of game designers live paycheck to paycheck. So when an unexpected hardship hits, it is felt.

Here are a few game designers that could use some help and every little bit helps.

Owen's Medical Bills Bundles

Owen K.C. Stephens suffered a pulmonary embolism back in February. As you can imagine, the bills have been pretty bad. There are two bundles from publishers he has worked with in the past on DriveThruRPG that you can buy to support him. He gets some help and you get over 180 PDFs. Even if you just find one or two in here to use it is worth the price.

Jonathan M. Thompson Memorial

I mentioned this on before and it should be repeated. But a good friend and publisher Jonathan M. Thompson passed away a while back and left his family with some expenses. There is a DriveThruRPG bundle and a GoFundMe in place for him.

Fright Night Classics

Another good friend and publisher Richard Ravalli is having to go to court to defend his trademark.

If you like what I'm doin', please consider helping!

Help us cover our costs https://t.co/Zpz1FZ0hoR
— Fright Night Classics (@chillcryptworld) April 21, 2023

Fright Night Classic legal fees

Cam Banks Support Fundraiser

Another designer in need of a bit of help from a lawsuit is Cam Banks. No lawsuit is fun and no matter which side of it you are on it is a messy and expensive affair. He has a Givealittle campaign (the GoFundMe of NZ I think) set up to give him some help.

Cam Banks Support Fundraiser [Givealittle]

So instead of giving $8 a month to a narcissistic billionaire, why not spend it on someone that will actually benefit from it all AND you can help out their lives.

Note: I am not getting any "kickback" from any of these and there are NO affiliate links here. I am asking this because these folks all need our help. RPGs is based on communities and group work. We as a group can make things better for others. And we should.

Tuesday, February 14, 2023

Witches (and Monsters too) to the Rescue, Part 2

I did some fundraising over the weekend. Not a lot, but I hope it helped.

Last week I mentioned that I was going to donate all the profits of my various witch books to the Trevor Project in support of LGBTQ people, but in solidarity with the trans community. When the print copy of Monster Mash went live yesterday, I thought, what the hell, I'll add yesterday in as well.

The results are in.

Not as much as I would have liked to be honest, but I guess I can't complain.

So $40.00 in sales. I said I would match all sales, so $80.00 and I figure I will round that up to $100.00.

So donation was sent in, and I asked my day-job employer to match my donation, which they will since I know The Trevor Project is on their list of approved charities.

IF you buy a copy of Monster Mash this week and want your purchase to go towards this donation then just shoot me an email and I'll get it added in a future donation (likely next week).

Thanks, everyone!

Thursday, February 9, 2023

Witches to the Rescue

It is no secret. I really love witches and anything and everything to do with them.

It is also no secret that I used to be a pretty solid Potter-verse fan. I have read all the books, seen all the movies, been to the theme park, and played the mobile game. It was something fun I could do with my family, and we all enjoyed it.

And then, J.K. Rowling began to show her ugly side. I am not going to debate what she said here. Why? She is wrong, plain and simple, but I am not out there burning my Potter books (besides, burning books is a coward's move) I am just not supporting her and trying in my own small way not to popularize her. Trust me, I have no illusions about my effectiveness here.

So the new game coming out was going pass by these pages unremarked.

Then I saw this post on both Facebook and Twitter.

All of the profits that @JonGilmour, @SpenserStarke & I earn on DriveThruRPG this Friday for Kids on Brooms will be donated to charities supporting trans folks.

We want to make our love and support for the trans community clear every day—but especially this Friday.
— Doug Levandowski (@DougLevandowski) February 8, 2023

Doug Levandowski along with Jonathan Gilmour and Spenser Starke are the authors of the wonderful Kids on Brooms (non-affiliate link, but do try and buy it tomorrow if you can). Their book is extremely popular and hopefully will sell a lot.

And I realized that, yes, there is something I can do. I have a LOT more books about witches.

So. In solidarity with Kids on Brooms team and always in solidarity with the LGBTQI, but especially the trans community I will donate ALL profits from ALL my witch books starting at 12:00 am Midnight Friday, Feb 10, 2023 to 11:59 Sunday, Feb 12, 2023 to the Trevor Project.

So every book. Every profit. Even my newest one, Monster Mash.

Yeah, I know some will call this "Virtue Signaling," but I want to clarify where I stand and let others know what their purchases will do this weekend. Besides, calling out Virtue Signaling is just virtue signaling to other assholes. Don't like what I do here? I don't care. Get your own fucking blog and books and sell them how you like.

So pick up some books about witches this weekend. Go grab Kids on Brooms tomorrow and some of my stuff later. And avoid the Potter game.

Thursday, January 12, 2023

When One Door Closes...

There is an old saying, "When one door closes, another one opens."

But you know what? I hate that saying.

When a door closes, you open it back up.

I grew up playing D&D. When you encounter a closed door, you make your "Open Doors" roll and kick it in!

Look. I love D&D, and I likely always will. While Hasbro's choices disappoint me, I am not going to let them stop my fun.

So at home, I am still going to play the games I like. On my blog and for my writing? Well, there are plenty of exciting existing alternatives. It now sounds like there are going to be more alternatives too.

But maybe the "OSR" phase of my game writing is over. It was fun, and I loved doing it. But many other games are out there that need love and attention, and I am excited to try them out.

One of the original purposes of my original "The Other Side" website was to talk about all sorts of games that I enjoyed. So let that continue now.

Friday, January 6, 2023

OGL 1.1

I am sure by now you have seen/read/heard of the potential leak of the new OGL 1.1.

I mentioned last month that we knew very little, which is still true, but we have heard some troubling things.

Here is a brief rundown.

Dungeons & Dragons’ New License Tightens Its Grip on Competition

Bat in the Attic - Rob Conley's Blog

Designers & Dragons - Article: Is the OGL Era Over?

Ryan Dancey -- Hasbro Cannot Deauthorize OGL

First Lawyer Letter

There is more. A lot more really, but a lot of it is rehashing what is known above.

Lots of people, who are not lawyers, are saying their piece. Lots of people whom this affects their livelihood are saying their piece as well.

The truth is we really don't know much of anything just yet. At least not until the OGL 1.1 is released and not until some clarification on what this means for the OGL 1.0a.

Which kind of sucks, honestly.

I had plans this year. I had my Monstrous Maleficarum I was doing for 5e. I had my Basic Bestariary I wanted to do. Another monster-related project and even something I was calling my last witch book. All under the auspices of the OGL. I liked working under the OGL. It gave me room to move, it let me know what was and was not allowed. Now all of that is up in the air for me.

What I can say for sure is this.

NIGHT SHIFT will continue. With the material released in the Night Companion, we have moved away from needing the OGL or OGC. The base mechanics are generic, and the newer character advancement rules are not OGC or SRD derived.

Jason is planning on releasing his new fantasy game using the same system as NIGHT SHIFT (O.G.R.E.S.) with the modifications suggested in the Night Companion. But more on that from him later.

So there will be continued, if not more vigorous, support of NIGHT SHIFT.

For all my other projects?

Damn, if I know yet.

Tuesday, December 6, 2022

The Acrobatic Flea for Amazing Adventures

I had so much fun doing the write-up for Tim Knight's Acrobatic Flea a couple of weeks ago for NIGHT SHIFT I thought, why not give it a try for Amazing Adventures too!

NIGHT SHIFT's Flea (dubbed Earth-NS) is a non-powered gritty street-level hero fighting the forces of darkness while working for Weirdly World News. The Flea of Amazing Adventures is a powered hero with more emphasis on two-fisted action as behooves Amazing Adventures' own origin as a Pulp game and now itself a multiversal game.

The Amazing Adventures of the Acrobatic Flea

Sean Edward Ridire grew up reading comics about his favorite pulp action heroes; Tennessee O'Malley, Mackie Gleeson, Marie Laveau, the adventures only known as "The Fox" and Brotherhood of William St. John. Then to his surprise and joy, at age 14, his own mutant powers developed. He became superhumanly strong, could leap several meters into the air and land safely, and could climb any surface. At 21 he moved to Knight's End to take a job as a reporter at a local TV News network. During the day he covers the news, reporting on traffic, human interest stories, and other bottom-tier assignments. But he also patrols the city as the Acrobatic Flea stopping what crime he can.

In his short time he has teamed up with other heroes such as the demon hunter known as The Paladin and the mysterious Witch Queen to fight spider mutants and defeat the evil Refrigerator. But the strangest encounter of all was meeting his own counterpart from another, darker Earth!

What adventures will the Flea have next? Only time will tell, but they will be Amazing!

The Acrobatic Flea

3rd Level Powered / 1 level Hard to Kill
Race: Human (Mutant)

Strength: 22 (+4) P
Dexterity: 20 (+4) P
Constitution: 14 (+1)
Intelligence: 14 (+1)
Wisdom: 16 (+2) P
Charisma: 16 (+2)

Hit Points: 25
Alignment: Lawful Good
AC: 16
BtH: +2
Power Points: 12

Sanity (SAN): 80 (Max), 80 (Current)

Fate Points: 6

Fate Die: 1d6

Languages: English (native language), French
Background: Reporter
Skills: Knowledge (Popular Culture)

Traits: Quick (Move +10, +1 to initiative)

Powers

True Strike, Jump, Spider Climb (2), Enhanced Strength +8, Enhanced Dexterity +4, cell phone (burner)

Gear

Night vision goggles (gift from the Flea of Earth NS), costume (AC 6).

Remember, these are the final hours of the Amazing Adventures Multi-Genre RPG crowdsourcing campaign.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/amazing-adventures-multi-genre-rpg#/

Friday, November 18, 2022

Frigid Follow Friday

We are finally getting some proper cold weather here in Chicago! I am not going to complain about it. It's November, it's Chicago. I know what that means.

It is also Friday and that means it is time for a Follow Friday. Especially important this week with Twitter in melt-down mode.

So if you follow me there, I am sticking around to the end, but here is where else you can find me.