What Zak said

Over at Playing D&D with Porn Stars, Zak is exploring some of the same issues I've experienced attempting to talk with Forge adherents about what, exactly, gaming is and is supposed to accomplish.  I pointed out Glenn Blacow's excellent article about different kinds of gamers, which is itself an exploration of the different expectations that people bring to the gaming table.

So what's my point?  Simple: the process of negotiating the kind of role-playing game you want to play takes place between players as a part of gameplay as a social activity.  Whatever you conclude becomes the basis for your social contract to continue - but there's no requirement that this be codified in the rules of the game.  I would go further and argue that to codify such requirements into the rules places limits on role-playing within gameplay.  Whether or not you want those limits is collectively up for negotiation.

A modest accomplishment

I have completed three character "sheets" for three different games: Original D&D, Empire of the Petal Throne, and Mutant Future.  They are all 3x5 card sized, as they should be.  I'm feeling accomplished.  :)

The Peasants Are REVOLTING!

Well, maybe they had a good reason - at least insofar as Terry Jones can tell:



What's interesting about this is pretty straightforward.  In a quick half-hour show, Terry provides a glimpse of medieval life for peasants and that's pretty useful for the aspiring RPG referee.  Past that, some of what Terry talks about gets even more interesting if you start to mix in magic and its place in a D&D society.  Unfortunately, not many campaigns actually explore or reflect how magic is itself a kind of technology.

If you think about it, a D&D world might have some pretty sophisticated approaches to health care, farming, town planning - you name it.  Some of this analysis was done in early issues of The Wild Hunt -  unfortunately, I don't think I own most of those.  Something to dig up out of the past!

Feeling unmoved

Wizards has recently made two announcements.  First, about the development of 5th Edition D&D, and then about the release of 1st Edition reprints (with new covers).  I think the idea of reprints to benefit the Gygax Memorial Fund is a great idea, so I'm all for that.  But as for a new edition of the game, I'm...unmoved.

To begin with, let's get something clear: Wizards is probably making the right move to move smartly along from 4th Edition, and from a business perspective, a new edition possibly makes sense.  But the entire reaction to the announcement of 5th Edition strikes me as similar to the reaction from the fan community when TSR announced 2nd Edition, or when Wizards announced 3rd Edition.  But "new" is not necessarily "better." From an individual gamer perspective, I do not need a "new" edition to improve my game.  In fact, if I have added enough of my own imagination to my existing game, a new version may not be as good as the one I've got.  This gets back to a post on Facebook by Jeff Dee, where he observes that the gaming hobby and the gaming industry are two different things -and while I wish Wizards the best, I'm not at all sure that the genie can be put back in the bottle.

Past the initial hype, a particular reaction which has spread like wildfire has been the notion of a version of D&D "for everybody."  As someone put it on Facebook about 1st vs. 4th Edition, "One side is rules light and DM dependent while the other is rules heavy and player empowered. Where's the middle ground or the modular to get us all to the same place[?]"  I'm pretty sure I don't agree with that analysis, and I am very sure I don't need a "middle ground."

Don't get me wrong; I'm not an "old school purist" - I simply doubt that it is necessary (or even possible) for there to be a "one big tent" version of D&D.  James Maliszewski expresses surprise that there are a noticeable number of old school gamers that seem to want a new edition, and I'm with him in that surprise.  What worries me more is that there may be a lot of gamers who will ardently get behind 5th Edition, only to be disappointed when it doesn't deliver.

Regardless of what Wizards intends, however, let's hope it doesn't turn out like THIS.

The Best Laid Plans....

"Rise, Farashu, and hear the edict of the Ever-Lasting Guardian of the Gods.  Whereas you are said to be the last survivor of the Legion of the Sun-Bright Disk, and whereas that legion was known to all to have died to the last soldier in Katalal in the terrible War of 2020 A.S., and whereas you have but lately become known to the Temple of Thumis on our city of Bey Su, apparently having traversed through both time and space....Here is the Divine Will revealed!

"You are to travel hence without delay to our city of Katalal, presenting yourself within one month's time to the Clan of the Sun-Bright Disk, along with this Writ of Imperial Will that your membership and station within that clan be restored to you, in all ways that are seemly and pleasing to the Petal Throne.  You are to be accompanied by those companions who were with you when you arrived here in our city of Bey Su the Beauteous.  From Katalal, you are to travel to our city of Purdimal and present yourself within one month afterwards to the Kerdukoi of the Legion of Lord Ga'enish of Katalal.  While the Legion of the Sun-Bright Disk has perished, the Legion of Lord Ga'enish proudly maintains its traditions and glories, much as a son dignifies his father.  Therefore it it right and proper that you present the standard of the Legion of the Sun-Bright Disk unto the Legion of Lord Ga'enish, and thus celebrate the virtues of that historical relationship.  In this matter, pay heed to the advisements made unto you by the elders of the Clan of the Sun-Bright Disk.

"Go forth, in the name of the Emperor, Hirkane Tlakotani, and be mighty!"

...or so the adventure began.

Shortly after this, on a caravanserai platform near the Sakbe Road between Bey Su and Hauma, the party of adventurers bedded down for the evening, slightly apart from the caravan with whom they were traveling.  Inside a large pavilion, the humans settled down in various spaces appropriate to their statuses.  As night progressed, black-clad assassins of the Black Y Society made their way past the Shen guard, and into the tent where Farashu and his companions lay asleep.

Yes, there was a fight - no real surprise, right?  The assassins misjudged Farashu's companions, and after they failed in their apparent attempt to kill him, they made their escape.  But that is where things went downhill, quite literally.  Despite a lack of coordinated response, despite knowing that there were several assassins involved, and despite not knowing what the lay of the land was around the caravanserai....Farashu charged out after the assassins, waving his sword, calling out, "To me!"  He jumped off the platform and ran into the surrounding darkness.

The assassins must have felt victory being snatched from the jaws of defeat.  Farashu did not even realize what had hit him when the assassins struck again, leaving only his steel sword for his companions to find later.  Two other assassins fought a rear-guard action against the Shen warrior who had attempted to rescue Farashu, neatly dispatching him with a lucky blow.  The party returned to Bey Su, using Farashu's steel sword to finance the spell of Revivification for the unlucky Shen.  Poor Farashu was missing and presumed dead - his body was never found.

Moral of the story:  You can set up the conditions for a marvelous adventure, but never underestimate the power of player-characters to go off and do something truly stupendously nutbar in character.

When "different" meant "interesting"

James Maliszewski and I were talking the other night about the practice of naming campaigns.  I got my start in gaming back in 1975, and after reading The Strategic Review, it was pretty clear to me that naming your campaign was a way to signify that it was your own interpretation of the game.  This wasn't just a matter of coming up with your own dungeon (or "mega-dungeon" in current parlance), but also - as James and I discussed - an opportunity to come up with your own rules and rules interpretations.  At the time, it meant that each campaign was different, and going from campaign to campaign meant that you needed to check in with the referee about how things worked.  It led to some interesting discussions about how people thought about D&D, as well as a lot of arguments about what was "fair," etc.

Over time, particularly after the emergence of AD&D, there was a shift towards "by-the-book" game-play.  It seems to me that what this led to was the notion that "different" was bad, whereas during the early era of role-playing (roughly 1974-77), "different" meant "interesting" - the value judgment would come after you played in someone else's campaign, as you decided if it was to your own taste or not.

The Shrine of the Azure Goddess

From my Tuesday Night Group (playing Tekumel, of course).... 

Tsechelnu Flats swamp,
not far from Jakalla

 ...It was James, Dave, Tristan and myself, so we picked up with Tristan's original character, Shemek. Shemek has found a patron in the Temple of Karakan, Lady Visaya, a member of Prince Rereshqala's court. The noble lady had originally wanted to go on an Underworld expedition, and had hired Shemek for that purpose. However, a new mission arose: protect a recently discovered shrine to Lady Avanthe in the ruined city of Ngala. The lady sent along two bearer-slaves and two native guides, and Dave and James generated two new characters: a merchant-adventurer human from Mmatugual, and a Pygmy Folk sorcerer (Odd! But also the sort you might find at Rereshqala's court hoping for some mission or opportunity). The Temple of Sarku was sending a mission to "investigate" the new shrine, and that simply would not do.

Ngala city wall section

They set off on the 9th of Shapru (about 5-6 weeks behind the party in Bey Sy), taking two boats once they reached the far side of the Mssuma River estuary. Rowing through the hot, steamy mangrove swamps, the guides used a local plant to ward off predators and insects, by burning leaves in a smudgepot fire. They told Shemek that it was "good" to chew, and Shemek accepted some. After chewing it for awhile, he began to experience a deep sense of serenity and peace. Over time, this built into a seeming connection with all surrounding life. The female guide, Onne, sensing a kind of psychic change in Shemek, offered herself to him - but Shemek felt that that would not be appropriate right then. 

Ngala clanhouse courtyard

By the third day, the boats had reached a village centered around an old Engsvanyali watchtower, which was slowly sinking into the swamp. The guides went ashore with some gold to obtain information and safe passage. Shemek sensed there were 63 people in the village, and 2 of them were pregnant. Even though the surrounding jungle and swamp were teeming with life, the Pygmy Folk and Mmatuguali human noticed none of it was attacking their boats.


The misty - almost steamy - morning of the fifth day brought them closer to the ruins of Ngala. By this time, Shemek was sitting in a full lotus position in the boat, wearing little except a string of beads and his new, finely decorated steel sword over his back. As the boats were rowed cautiously through the swamp channels, the edges of old Bednalljan canal banks emerged. The faint sounds of axes thudding into wood reached the ears of the Pygmy Folk, while Shemek became aware of harm being done to the Life of the Swamp. Avoiding the troops clearing away jungle growth, the party reached the southwestern edge of the city, near to where they needed to be. The party chose a nearby half-ruined watchtower as their base of operations, as it afforded a view of the recently revealed entrance to the shrine, next to the original Bednalljan fortress. A large pack of Chnelh nearly 150 strong made it clear that they regarded the fortress and temple as their turf, and the Pygmy Folk used a spell of Calm to have them leave the party alone.

Ngala ruined temple entrance

That evening, during Shemek's watch, an elder of the Chnelh appeared out of the darkness, escorted by another four younger specimens, descending from the half-ruined roof of the tower.  Speaking in accented but clear Tsolyani, the elder communicated with Shemek - they, too, served the Azure Lady, and would follow Shemek's lead (even if he was human). We left it there.


Next week? We shall see how things develop.... 

Engsvanyali bas-relief

 (photos courtesy of Google search; their use here is purely for non-commercial purposes)