Project A-Game

It is my intention to run a truly special, truly memorable RPG campaign this year. Something that is elevated above the run-of-the-mill work I feel has made up the bulk of my endeavors over the past 12 months or so since the pandemic began.

True, the Red Dwarf/Yellow Sun game was on point and pretty amazing but other than that it has felt like I've been generating a lot of mediocre content. 

In order to bring my 'A-Game' to the virtual table though, I need to go with campaign concepts I truly feel passionate about. Likewise, I require a group of players eager and invested in these concepts as well, to the point where they aren't just saying, "OK, I'll play" but rather 'That sounds awesome! I'm all in!".

That later part maybe a little harder to pull off at present and with these particular ideas. That said, here is what I have:

[Stay tuned at the end for a rather unusual offer.]

Idea #1

Neon Genesis Evangelion: The Flood 

Set a little before the original Anime series and using a merged original and 'Rebuild' continuity, the flooded city of London-2 is the site of attacks by invading aliens. To thwart these devastating creatures, a subdivision of NERV, Project: NIMUE, battles the monsters with their own EVA Units. These Units are not derived from The First Angel, 'Adam'...so where do they come from? 

Players would play 14-19 year old pilots who need to get in their &*$%ing robots and protect England and the European Union from the Absolute Terror that are The FALLEN ANGELS. 

Adapting the rules found in Tales from the Loop and Things from the Flood, I would love to run this creepy, angsty, action-packed story which I've had in the back of my mind for over 15 years.

Idea #2

The Kill Death Business:

Tonight on Hell TV we tune in to everyone in the Underworld's favorite unreal-Reality/Game Show, 'The Kill Death Business'! Contestants (the PCs) are Souls sent to that realm of eternal damnation over relatively minor sins but given the chance to earn points towards being forgiven and moving on to a better afterlife in Heaven! If you are willing and able to reach the Bonus Round, you will be given the choice of the land of eternal happiness or returning...to Earth!

Contestants earn points by hunting down and eliminating even worse Souls, those that have become so corrupted they're now Demons! These foul entities are trying to wreck havoc in the mortal realm and only you can stop them AND win lovely parting gifts!

There is some fine print in your contract of course; nothing you need concern yourself with. In order to take down some of these truly terrible foes, you need to be a bit terrible yourself. While this earns you points on the show, Heaven isn't going to want awful, violent people skipping through the Pearly Gates. Of course, big time Devils might see your handy work and offer you a better job if you stay but wait, what about the chance to return to Earth?

A darkly humorous Action/Comedy that mixes The Good Place with Battle Royale.

Honestly, as much as I really, really want to run this game, I don't think I could assemble a group of players out of my entire current talent pool who would be completely behind this concept. It is a little too dark and easily misunderstood.

Much like another game I deeply love, the All-Australian Sci-Fi Comedy RPG Hunter Planet, it's hard to get everyone involved on the same page for something like this. If you're lucky, you start out with a bunch of people who just hear about it and instantly say, "Oh man, what an AWEsome concept! I totally get it!", then you start making characters and playing and discover that no...no they don't. 

This game is a TRPG that comes from Japan and utilizes the Dice Fiction system I discussed near the end of February. Another game using a variant of Dice Fiction is Idea #3... 

Idea #3

Yokai Hunters Society - Dice Fiction:

Original Version Cover

During the Meiji Period of Japan (possibly switched to the Edo Period - haven't decided), a secret organization of ghost and demon hunting heroes from all walks of Japanese life band together to protect their land and people from supernatural menaces. 

In addition to Anime and Chanbara style action, there will be drama and even humor stemming from the 'secret identity' lives of the individual YHS members. Since each wears a Mask their true identity is unknown even to others on their team (at least initially). Players may be nobles or beggars, peasant girls or retired soldiers, and no one would know who was what until the story unfolds. 

Rules would be based on my adaption of Dice Fiction, mentioned in posts last month (check out the tag below). 

Honorable Mention:

I have two other ideas - One which I have been really interested in for a long time and one that I've only recently felt an inclination to try out. Both are inspired by both Anime and Manga and game concepts of partially American origins. These two ideas...will open April.

Check back to fine out! 

There is a reason Dungeons and Dragons is the most popular RPG in the Western world. It has broad appeal and is (for some reason) easy for a large number of people to understand mechanically. It is the American Football of RPGs. It is the McDonalds of gaming.

I am not a Sports fan. My comfort food is Spicy Ramen. I often feel like I'm at a bit of a disadvantage when it comes to selling people on my ideas.

So...

If any of these ideas really appeal to you, you aren't busy on a Wednesday or Sunday evening, and you favor character, story, and setting over rule mechanics, contact me via Twitter and let me know. I might be able to add you to a game. No guarantee but let's talk shall we? My Twitter ID is Barking Alien @alien_barking. 

Be sure to indicate which of the game ideas you would be most interested in and what your second choice would be. The game with the most interest will likely be the one we do. 

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Barking Alien

Oh and it probably doesn't need to be said that I'm also always up for...

 

Whistling At Night

We put on our masks

In the hope we might frighten

What dwells in shadows

-A Yokai Hunters Society Haiku

Continuing with my ideas for using the Japanese TRPG system Dice Fiction (or my take on it at least) to run a version of Yokai Hunters Society, I am leaning heavily towards the idea of building templates. 

One aspect I really liked from the original Yokai Hunters Society game (YHS going for forward) is the concept that each member of the organization wears a Mask to hide their identity and frighten their foes both mortal and supernatural. I just wish they had gone even further with it. I mean, picture a secret group within Japanese society made up of nobles and beggars, the clergy and the unclean, all equal while performing their clandestine duties as their true identities are unknown to even their closest allies. But for how long?

Then their is the choice of motif - Big and powerful Oni, sly and clever Fox (Kitsune), social yet secretive Cat (Neko), or perhaps you identify more with ghosts and monstrous beasts! This got me thinking that the players would choose a Template patterned after the Mask they wear. Each Template has a greater emphasis on one particular Attribute and Skill column or would see more unique Techniques (Special Abilities) to reflect their Mask type. 

Mechanically all Fox Hunters - YHS members with a Fox Mask - are geared towards Awareness, Illusion, and other trickery. Visually, all Fox Masks are foxes but they needn't look identical. Again, each is unique just like each Fox themed Hunter is unique as they pick their individual character's Strong Skills, Weapon of choice, etc.

Right now I have about five Attribute/Skill Templates completed: Cat, Fox, Ghost, Oni, and Tengu. I feel some may need further tweaking. Here are three examples:

The Fox

The Fox is wise and clever, as well as very sneaky. They possess both Disguise and Stealth for any sort of covert mission, not to mention the ability to create Illusions. The Fox walks the fine line between high and low society, well versed in Romance and The Arts but not afraid to walk the back alleys and dark streets. 

The Oni

The Oni is your powerhouse bruiser - Strong, tough, able to take a beating and dish one out. At the same time, they are among the most compassionate and personable, befriending old people and children. The Oni will decimate dangerous Yokai but never forgets the people they protect by doing so. 

The Tengu

The Tengu is a being of Air and Earth just like their namesake. They strike like bolts of lightning, often from above or starting out at a distance from their opponents. They have keen Insight into the thoughts of others and the wisdom and strategic skill to know what to do about them. They can be their own worst enemy, getting involved in things like Gambling and Politics but they can also be a powerful ally. 

The Techniques, as I envision them, are like Assignment Skills that can do things beyond normal levels of Human skill. Are they actually magic? I think I want that to remain unclear, even within the setting itself. They are a mixture of Feats, Special Abilities, and perhaps just a bit of legendary Power. 

What does everyone think? I am really liking how this is coming along and although my primary focus for March will he my new Mecha RPG MSV - Mecha System Variant, I will definitely be continuing with this little project as I am enjoying where this is going. 

Join me won't you?

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Barking Alien

*The title of this post refers to a Japanese superstition that whistling at night or near a graveyard would bring forth ghosts. It is believed to originate with thieves, who would whistle to alert or signal each other during night time burglaries. Eventually the act was simply deemed evil, prone to bringing bad luck and ill intent. 

Here's Where Things Get Dicey

Fair Warning: This entry goes all over the place but if you'll follow along I think you'll enjoy the ride. 

My previous post on the Japanese tabletop RPG system Saikoro Fiction, or 'Dice Fiction' in English, by Adventure Planning Service was posted this morning, yet it was based on a conversation I had last Wednesday and actually written this past weekend. Why did it take so long to complete? Partly it was due to the accompanying illustration and the sample Attribute/Skill Grid I put together. 

Mostly though, it was because I did some addition research, had some thoughts, and got feeling truly creative again. Between my original twitter conversation and now I've been incredibly inspired in a way I haven't felt in a long while. I think the last time I was honestly this jazzed about gaming ideas was when I ran our Red Dwarf/Yellow Sun campaign using the ALIEN RPG. 

What follows - both in this post and over the next month - will be a breakdown of a series of ideas that have come to me, not all of which flow in a straight line. I will do my best to organize them into some kind of order. At some later point, when the ideas are largely out of my head and on paper/screen, I will likely compile some of them into a book of some kind. I can even see a sellable product coming out of some of them. 

To begin...

I am really intrigued by Dice Fiction and its Attribute/Skill Grid but one of the things I noticed when building a sample one was that with six Attribute columns and eleven Skill rows, the total number of Skills in sixty-six. 66! That's kind of nuts. It was really tough coming up with 66 names of Skills and what they might possibly be used for (or why one might be used as opposed to another).

I propose a 6 x 6 grid which would result in 36 skills. I also think that not every PC in a given game has the same 36 Skills. Creating different grids enables PCs to cover areas other PCs don't which not only allows for greater character customization but also enables you to make Templates not unlike those found in Star Wars D6. In a given setting its possible everyone has Dodge or Melee Weapon under the Attribute 'Prowess' but not everyone has the same special abilities, magical skills, or martial talents under their 'Technique' column. I believe some of the official Dice Fiction games do work this way.

 

Sample Attribute/Skill Grid for my Dice Fiction version

of the RPG Yokai Hunters Society

Now here's where my first idea comes in; a few weeks back I downloaded the game Yokai Hunters Society from the amazingly cool itch.io website. A neat, rules-lite game of masked, Meiji era Japanese folks battling demons, ghosts, and spirit monster against the background of the political and social change prevalent in Japan in the late 1800s. It has some similarities to a number of Anime and Manga series, notably the extremely popular Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, as well as numerous Japanese live-action TV shows and Movies in the Horror genre. 

Wow! I mean, seriously right up my alley, right? What a great idea for a game. Only...I don't love the system. Very simple, almost too much so, with not a lot to sink ones teeth into. It is functional, even fun, but a little lackluster for my tastes.

If I apply the Dice Fiction rules to the setting, I think I have something. Something really interesting that I can see being used for a long term campaign.

First though I am thinking of fleshing out some of the 2D6 vs. Assignment Skill mechanics with conditions or points that would allow for rolling with Advantage or Disadvantage. For example, an Enchanted Sword that gives you Advantage on your Melee Weapon/Sword so that you need to beat the Target Number on 2D6 but roll three six-sided dice and take the highest two. Meanwhile, if injured or perhaps cursed by a Yama Uba (Mountain Hag/Witch), you might roll three six-sided dice and take the lowest two.

I am definitely going to work on this and flesh it out a bit more. In addition, I will be posting both a more detailed overview of the basic Dice Fiction game (based on my research) and this alternate Barking Alien version I am developing. 

This leads me, indirectly mind you, to another idea I have. While it has nothing to do with Dice Fiction, it was looking into that game that reminded me of my age old love affair with Anime, Manga, and RPGs with an Anime/Manga influence and flavor. I miss running our very Japanese influenced games of Cyberpunk 2020 and Space:1889, not to mention games like Mekton and Teenagers from Outer Space. 

I figure it's about time I made one of my own.

Stay tuned...

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Barking Alien

My apologizes to the creator of Yokai Hunters Society, Chema González, who did an excellent job with the writing, illustrations, and layout. Clearly impressive enough to inspire my own take on the game.

 
Also an apology to Nate Treme, who created the Tunnel Goons rules used in Yokai Hunters Society. Again, fine rules, completely workable, but they just didn't grab me personally.