tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post5215168980516542362..comments2024-03-27T19:02:58.368-04:00Comments on BARKING ALIEN: Obscure ThinkingAdam Dicksteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-50250386297702147652014-02-20T19:17:53.641-05:002014-02-20T19:17:53.641-05:00Again different experiences. And apparently differ...Again different experiences. And apparently different Silver Age titles. It seems like you're focusing on the most exaggerated elements and not the best ones for a continuing campaign. Again I would point to the Avengers but also the late Silver Age books of the late 70s and early 80s like Legion of Superheroes, the Wolfman/Perez Teen Titans, The Claremont/Byrne X-Men and others.<br /><br />I myself have run a number of successful Superhero campaigns and Supers is the only genre I ever played in as a player where I thought the GM was absolutely amazing.Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-59920704991705372522014-02-12T18:47:42.438-05:002014-02-12T18:47:42.438-05:00I just the hardcover Traveller book, what's it...I just the hardcover Traveller book, what's it called, that encompasses the first handful of books...never saw the need for anything else although I do like that patrons book, whatever it's called, for jumpstarting stories.Doc Savagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08783244633195233970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-4495549851788755992014-02-12T11:13:31.840-05:002014-02-12T11:13:31.840-05:00I don't like Silver Age powers in a table top ...I don't like Silver Age powers in a table top setting because Silver Age seems more to just catch a person's attention with time-travelling treadmills and super-knitting. If that was all the players had, it'd be fine but it's always just a detail to other ridiculously over-powered characters. I've never seen a DM manage to provice a good challenge in a superhero game because everyone's characters are practically gods. Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08744387076248475114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-15866521467624010892014-02-11T23:38:12.536-05:002014-02-11T23:38:12.536-05:00I won't argue with you on any of these points,...I won't argue with you on any of these points, but I have had a very different experience with Superheroes.<br /><br />I usually prefer a power level akin to the classic Silver Age or Modern Age Justice League or Avengers. Even on that level, the best villains are smart villains and the best way to stop them is not with punches or zaps, but with creative use of your powers and a clever approach to the situation.Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-3258274526085791562014-02-11T23:18:37.375-05:002014-02-11T23:18:37.375-05:00Scouts was also good. For Robots I would actually ...Scouts was also good. For Robots I would actually search the internet for the MegaTraveller Robots book. A fan made product that is fantastic for robot design.Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-1251327920122770442014-02-11T21:18:44.647-05:002014-02-11T21:18:44.647-05:00High Guard and Mercenary!High Guard and Mercenary!Blacksteelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16289298640828309072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-6017271349653051722014-02-11T17:33:17.125-05:002014-02-11T17:33:17.125-05:00D&D is the default game because everyone under...D&D is the default game because everyone understands hit guys with swords or spells.<br /><br />Myself, I hate the game for all the plane-skipping and God-killing that goes on. <br /><br />Table top stuff works much better when everyone's not weak, but not too strong. Like, you can beat up the common person but if everyone in the town or station gets together, they can beat you up. It makes for situations that requires thinking not just straight punching. If you're going to just straight punch, play a video game. Table tops were made for thinking and talking to actual people.<br /><br />Too many of the box office superheroes punch or explode their way through challenges instead of think their way through to make for a good table top. The only good superhero table top I've ever seen is limited powers or powers that the villains out-think to make the players talk and use what they have creatively. Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08744387076248475114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-71881987629532524352014-02-11T16:44:31.316-05:002014-02-11T16:44:31.316-05:00If we're talking classic Traveller I recommend...If we're talking classic Traveller I recommend the Alien Books, practically anything by Digest Group Publications (especially The World Builder's Handbook (which is really for MegaTraveller but its compatible) and the Journal of the Travellers Aid Society Magazine.<br /><br />Off the top of my head.Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-20965837338735102192014-02-11T16:38:52.872-05:002014-02-11T16:38:52.872-05:00Doh! That's right! Honestly, I make that mix u...Doh! That's right! Honestly, I make that mix up each and every time I talk about that game. Will fix it tonight. <br /><br />Thanks for the sharp eyes!Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-46735473776714197472014-02-11T16:26:21.913-05:002014-02-11T16:26:21.913-05:00Anything you would recommend for Traveller beyond ...Anything you would recommend for Traveller beyond the Core Rulebook? I have a birthday coming up and I figured I would pick it up.Monkapotomushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15863829877299943297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-4208375287383828962014-02-11T14:49:59.082-05:002014-02-11T14:49:59.082-05:00Don't let Victory Games see you give the credi...Don't let Victory Games see you give the credit for James Bond 007 to Mayfair!Doc Savagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08783244633195233970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-59128214554287855382014-02-11T10:41:23.866-05:002014-02-11T10:41:23.866-05:00Agreed. I think Gary was a created fellow and he e...Agreed. I think Gary was a created fellow and he essentially invented or co-invented a pastime, but he never struck me as a great writer.<br /><br />Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-51551202136716523702014-02-11T00:08:22.600-05:002014-02-11T00:08:22.600-05:00Another pass for me - I just don't care much f...Another pass for me - I just don't care much for most of these "answer 30 question" things. Plus this one sounds like it's coming from someone who's never played anything besides D&D and I don't know how you could have grown up in the 80's, 90's or today and have that narrow a perspective.<br /><br />Plus if I wanted to be snarky about that whole "dominates the scene" line - old, yes, new, well, according to numbers I keep hearing about, Pathfinder is the big deal now, not D&D. There isn't even a current version of D&D in print, officially. <br /><br />Number 4 bugs me too - I like E.G.G. quite a bit but the assumptions inherent in that question are massive and put me off of the whole thing.Blacksteelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16289298640828309072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-21449389193959783982014-02-10T19:29:26.769-05:002014-02-10T19:29:26.769-05:00Valerius! Wow, where've you been? I hardly rec...Valerius! Wow, where've you been? I hardly recognized you, what with the name change and all.<br /><br />I like your analogies a lot. Guess you're 'speaking my language'. Wokka Wokka!Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-29196217282870727652014-02-10T19:27:13.580-05:002014-02-10T19:27:13.580-05:00I agree. But it is the DEFAULT game.
That is some...I agree. But it is the DEFAULT game.<br /><br />That is something I wish I could change. I really do. I wish there was more than one default game. <br /><br />Also, Science Fiction and Superheroes, which garner so much more at the box office and on TV, don't translate that success to the table top market. For me, someone who doesn't recall having that much fantasy exposure as a kid, that's always struck me as bizarre.Adam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-72654744975838884102014-02-10T19:22:15.471-05:002014-02-10T19:22:15.471-05:00http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_languages_by_...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_languages_by_number_of_native_speakers<br /><br />http://listverse.com/2008/06/26/top-10-most-spoken-languages-in-the-world/<br /><br />http://www.photius.com/rankings/languages2.htmlAdam Dicksteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04840144928096089178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-87435171046227629582014-02-10T18:35:01.855-05:002014-02-10T18:35:01.855-05:00D&D is a game I only play when I really really...D&D is a game I only play when I really really want to play a game and no one will agree to anything better. And sometimes not even then. Because it's not even the best fantasy game.Doc Savagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08783244633195233970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-55706205337369944122014-02-10T18:32:03.628-05:002014-02-10T18:32:03.628-05:00Pretty sure English has the most speakers overall ...Pretty sure English has the most speakers overall as many learn it as a 2nd language. Certainly more speakers worldwide than Mandarin Chinese last I checked.Doc Savagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08783244633195233970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2465863144787683153.post-76511853695080987142014-02-10T12:10:49.098-05:002014-02-10T12:10:49.098-05:00Judging by the blogs I read, the tendency to consi...Judging by the blogs I read, the tendency to consider D&D the "alpha and omega" of RPGs seems more pronounced in the English-speaking world* (and that probably means mostly the US, but I'm not sure). In other countries, D&D was not necessarily the first game published or the most prevalent. In Spain, "old schoolers" are as likely to have started gaming with RuneQuest or MERP as they are with D&D (I started with Star Wars d6, and I got my first contact with D&D through the Baldur's Gate videogames years later). Vampire was HUGE, and Call of Cthulhu is one of the most popular games (but you could say the same for most of the world). Nobody would call those "obscure games". Right now, the publishing of Pathfinder in Spanish has been big news, but so do the translations of the latest editions of Ars Magica, Pendragon and RuneQuest. Nevertheless, we are also talking of a certain "Stacy Malibu effect": people will buy new versions of D&D even if the only come with a new hat.<br /><br />I'll say that there is probably an important group of players that only play D&D and know little else. I have come to that conclusion because you can sometimes see an amateur game anounced like if it was a great leap in roleplaying design... and it is if you only know D&D. If not, you'll recognize that the "innovative" concepts have been used for at least a couple of decades.<br /><br />*It seems the language parallelism is quite fitting, after all XD.<br /><br />PD: Formerly signing as "Valerius"Miguel de Rojashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15762364029464337239noreply@blogger.com