RPGaDay 2024 - Barking Alien Edition - Day 4

What makes a character in an RPG a hero? Have you ever seen a PC or NPC worthy of the title?

I've seen lots and I'm sure most of you have too. Hard to pick just one. In fact, most of the PCs run by my good friends David Concepcion, Keith Conroy, and certainly Selina Wong would more than qualify.

Today though, I'd like to tell the tale of a hero I've not mentioned before. To make things even more difficult for myself I want to avoid games where being a champion of true and justice is par for the course such as Superhero games, Star Trek, or Star Wars.

Hmm. OK, I got it! Let me set the scene...

Summer Camp, 1980. Six Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (1st Edition) adventurers levels 5 to 7 have been exploring The Ruins of Castle Fengest* in search of the fabled Ghost Sword of Apotrop**. Each intends on finding the sword and turning it over to the rightful heir in hopes of gaining a great reward. 

I am the Dungeonmaster. The party consists of:

Dwarf Fighter - Rightful heir promised to ally with Dwarves against Goblin Invaders.

Elf Fighter/Magic-User - Fulfill an oath to the original sword wielder to avenge their death. 

Halfling Thief - Earn enough riches to pay off family debt.

Human Druid - Secure a region of the heir's woods as a Druid Sanctuary.

Human Fighter - Earn his place as a Knight in service of the rightful heir.

Human Ranger - Rid the roads around the ruins of bandit attacks to ensure safe travel.***

The group is most of the way through the haunted ruins of the castle and things are tense. The Dwarf is dead, the Human Fighter (toughest PC they have) is really low on HP, and everyone has taken some damage. The Human Druid has revealed himself to be a coward and mostly self-interested. 

The party is at odds on what to do. Three want to turn back or at least find a 'safe' place to heal up and two want to keep going as they're sure the sword is close. The Dwarf's voice can sometimes be heard echoing the halls, spuring them on. Is it encouragement from their departed ally or a trick of the Ghost Lord of Fengest****? 

A rousing speech by the Human Ranger [and the rest of the group threatening the Druid with bodily harm] gets the team to continue forward. Their next encounter is a boon, defeating several very tough skeletons and gaining a couple of healing potions.  They don't help much but its better than nothing. 

Finally, after besting a riddle trap with the help of the Dwarf's spirit, the party comes face-to-phantom with the Ghost Lord of Fengest, wielding the Sword of Apotrop! Now, the team was up against some major obstacles:

The Ghost Lord could hit the PCs with his Ghost Touch (see below under Ghost Lord of Fengest****) or very solid sword but he was intangible and the PCs couldn't do the same. Only certain spells and magic weapons could hit him and most did little damage (see below as noted).

Anyone killed in the Ruins of Castle Fengest would become a disembodied spirit, trapped within its halls forever, such as the Dwarf, the magic sword's original owner (friend of our Elf), and all the adventurers who'd come before.

The Druid went full @$$&*%#, refusing to heal anyone but himself, barely helping, and mostly hiding. 

The entire team was still low on HP, Spells, and pretty desperate. 

The Human Fighter made a decision and asked the Elf to cover him. The Fighter then downed a Strength Potion and on his next action ran straight towards the Ghost Lord and tried to physically rend the Sword of Apotrop from its ghastly grip. Doing so allowed the Ghost Lord to touch him, draining away his lifeforce as he struggled to remove the sword from the spectre's hand. Finally he managed to pull it free and tossed it back to the Ranger as the Fighter collapsed to the ground. 

The Ranger lept forth and struck the Ghost Lord with the enchanted blade, doing massive damage! The Ghost Lord relatiated but the Sword of Apotrop gave the Ranger protection against the phantom warrior's attack (in the form of a saving throw bonus to take no effects). Everyone in the party (expect the Druid) forfeited their next moves so the Ranger could strike again. And strike he did, mightly and true, destroying the Ghost Lord once and for all! 

With the Ghost Lord gone, all the trapped souls were free. The party could see many of them passing upwards through the floors, walls, and ceilings toward the great beyond. The Ranger and the others gathered around the Human Fighter but it was too late. The brave hero managed to say, "Someone was going to die today. It was either me or all of you. Fair trade I'd say", and his spirit departed skyward as well. 

The team returned to the rightful heir with the sword and their was a great celebration. The Human Fighter was posthumously awarded Knighthood. A plaque with his name adorned the barracks of the City Guard. The heir become Duke and fulfilled all his promises...save one. The Druid was given no land in his woods and was banished from the province, never to set foot on the Duke's soil or stone lest he suffer the blade. 

David P's Human Fighter. A true hero in the truest sense. 

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BONUS FEATURE: Day 3 of the official RPGaDay 2024 Prompts:

From medieval heroes to modern criminals...

I get bored with the art in most RPGs these days. There's a sameyness to a lot of it. Some games do have their own more individual look and I do like those particular RPGs as a result. ALIEN, Star Trek Adventures, and Tales of the Loop (a game specifically based on the artwork of Swedish painter Simon Stålenhag) are good examples though I do wish ALIEN and STA would change up their styles a little once in a while. 

One of my favorite RPGs with great art is the Japanese TRPG 'SATASUPE', Saturday Night Special, the Asian Punk Roleplaying Game which I've discussed on the blog in the past. Not only is the art cool but its unusual. It has that Japanese Anime/Manga look and yet it doesn't. It's got a street art, funky vibe that is perfect for the game.

While a handful of artists worked on the product, the lead illustrator most commonly associated with SATASUPE is Hayami Rasenjin. Rasenjin (a pen name) is a really interesting fellow (look into him some time) but what I want to focus on is that he's drawn for dozens and dozens of Japanese TRPGs. He wrote what would have been the first Dice Fiction game (but that's a story for another time) and was a playtester on many as well. He has been a major figure in the JTRPG scene.

Anyway, I love his art in SATASUPE. Here are some examples:

SATASUPE Cover Art

Current Edition

More talk about SATASUPE in the near future.

Generating Interest - Part I

I had a fascinating conversation with my friend Ray last week regarding Player Characters in Fantasy RPGs versus those in other games.

The focus of the discussion followed Ray's observations as to why I - me personally - often find it difficult to create Fantasy PCs and why I don't often find the Fantasy Player Characters I generate all that interesting. This can lead to my becoming bored with the character, wanting to try some other sort of Race/Class combo, or simply losing interest in the game overall. 

Ray's keen insight into why I don't have an investment in Fantasy RPG characters is that they simply aren't particularly intriguing to begin with. They are not, by their nature, especially cool. To paraphrase Ray himself...

'Fantasy RPG characters don't start out interesting. They become interesting.'

 

I can just imagine the reactions to this statement out there in TRPG Internet Land and the images it conjures in my minds give me quite the hearty chuckle.

I should point out we are talking about Fantasy PCs created in the majority of the bigger, more popular Fantasy game systems; the discussion concentrates on RPGs like D&D, Pathfinder, Cypher System, and other Race/Class/Level based games. I could absolutely create a PC I find interesting in Ars Magica. Ars Magica is a very different beast from the games we're talking about here, though some of what makes it different will come into play (no pun intended) later in the post.

Many a modern gamer would disagree with this statement outright, saying the PC is as rich a character as the work you put into it. A truism I'll grant but that work is all you the player, with little coming from the system itself. Remember we are talking beginning PCs starting at 1st level here. I know many like to run and create characters that begin at 3rd Level or even higher but that only proves my point. The bulk of the classic style Fantasy games don't have you start at First Level with the kind of character you'd really like to play. That comes later (this is a key point that will come up further on in the post).

I can see the Grognards and Neckbeard Old-Schoolers (the latter the name of a Dwarf I met once I'm sure of it) saying that's the point! You start with nothing, a nobody, you're not a 'Character' in a story but a game piece, a component for the game that is D&D (or Rolemaster, Tunnels & Trolls, etc.). That's possibly true...and doesn't interest me. I don't want to play a glorified wargame or innovative board game. I want to go on adventures that tells/turns into stories and I want to be part of those stories with a story of my own. 

Now back to Ray's proclamation: It's always kind of bugged me that you begin many Fantasy game with a character who often seems like they never existed before they first stepped foot in 'Ye Ole' Meeting Place' tavern or the Dungeon-of-the-Week. 

"Flakgore the Barbarian turns to see an Elf in the Wizard Robes standing next to him. She wasn't there a moment ago but then again...was he? He has no memories of his life before opening the vaulted doors of the Crypt of Cataclysm. Looking at the other members of his party, there is a vague recollection of meeting them all in a tavern..."

These types of characters rarely feel 'real' to me and as such, I usually concoct a short description of who they are and why they've deciding upon the life of an adventurer. Without that, it all feels immaterial to me. Unimportant and definitely not special. The problem is, in my experience, I can't come up with a description because there isn't much to go on inspiration wise. Fantasy game settings often feel same-y to me and since I'm not a fan of the genre overall, these elements combine to create a blandness that doesn't motivate me to come up with much. 

Then there's the make-up of the characters themselves...We begin with 'Race'. Humans are boring, the other Races sound cool on paper but have few mechanics reflecting the fluff, and there are rarely rules for creating your own Species. This has improved in later editions and various systems. Classes are fairly rigid, start with few abilities, and multi-classing is usually poorly thought out. There is little to give any ideas for character background (later editions of D&D and other systems have added this and its much appreciated), and I just don't know where to go with it since I'm at a handicap with Fantasy to begin with.  

Compare this to some of my favorite games from other genres:

Star Trek (various versions) and Traveller: Rolls and/or choices develop your PCs pre-playing history. Your 'starting' character isn't just starting out in life but moving onto the next big, bold chapter of it - it just happens to be the chapter the GM and other players are interacting with. 

Characters begin the campaign after their 'Pre-Academy' days and 'Tours of Duty'. They may have gained 'Special Assignments', received 'Promotions' and/or 'Commendations'. They've lived interesting fictional lives before they've even entered the first session. This person is, to me, instantly interesting. It inspires ideas and makes me want to answer questions like, 'What was their homeworld like?', 'What was the Special Assignment they were given?', and 'Who gave them their Commendation? Are they still in touch?'.

Star Wars (specifically the West End Games D6 System) is so customizable that you can practically make up a cool character first, then figure out the Template's numbers, skills, Species abilities, etc. Let's say...OK let me try an experiment. I am going to do a Google Image Search for 'Star Wars Alien'. Give me a moment.

OK, the first three were a Hutt, Grogu (Yoda's Species), and Jar Jar Binks, a Gungan. OK, I love redeeming the Gungans so I'll make one of those. What Template? I'll build my own. There is no official Gungan Mercenary but I like the idea of playing one. Another quick search shows a few different Gungan Species write-ups. The Second Edition has a Mercenary Template as well as rules for making Templates so - bing, bang, boom - I can make a Gungan Mercenary, customize some of the skills, take away some gear since I get a few Amphibious abilities as a Gungan and I have a character I like that I designed myself for the most part. His name is, hmm, Junji Terble. Yeah. I could totally play this guy. 

I had 20 minutes and too much coffee so I made an image. 

Champions and Ars Magica take the previous approach and lean in on it hard. Through the purchasing of Attributes, choosing Advantages and Disadvantages, building your various Powers and Abilities exactly the way you want, I can create precisely the character I would find interesting. I can come up with a story for the character and then dig through the systems for rules that reflect that story. If my Superhero character's origin has her trapped in a forest fire before being given her plant powers by Flora - Spirit of All Plants, Daughter of Mother Nature - she might be as mighty as a Redwood but remain afraid of fire. So...hmm...Psychological Limitation. Cool. How about...Pyrophobia and maybe she takes Vulnerability: Extra Damage from Fire. Nice. That gives me more points so I can add more Plant-themed gimmicks to my PC's repertoire. Which gimmicks? How do they work? The ones I want and how I want them. 

One of my oldest Superhero characters, Excelsior - art by Keith Conroy, 1992.

The randomly generated Villains and Vigilantes version was cool. 

The custom built Champions version was AWESOME!

It would seem that the main focus of classic Fantasy RPG Character Creation is more Character 'Generation'. You are, for the most part, along for the ride as you roll dice and make some choices. You are a passenger on a commercial airplane flight. You get to pick your meal from one or two choices, decide what you want to drink, and whether or not you want the peanuts. 

With many of the games I enjoy it's more like being the pilot of a private jet. It's your plane. Go where you want to go, bring the food you want to eat, and if you want the peanuts, hell, knock yourself out. 

As Ray notes (paraphrasing): 

"The Fantasy character traditionally starts off simple. A basic design without much to make them appear unique. As they adventure, as they explore, fight monsters, and perform their skills, they will gather experience points they can spend to get new and more special abilities. Even more so, they will establish friends, enemies, and live through events that will give them a 'life story'.

Eventually, the PC will become much more interesting, both mechanically and narratively, as they've gone through numerous 'character building' moments."

OK, I get that. That certainly makes sense. I'll even go as far as to say it sounds fun to follow this complete rookie, this noob, through their development into a hero of the realm. But...

Spoiled as I may be, what with having cool traits, knacks, and maybe some neat equipment at the very start - all of which I built or decided upon myself - can you see how I'd automatically be more invested, more attached to this kind of character than the one just described? 

At the end of say a dozen sessions, both a classic Fantasy RPG PC and a Space Adventure/Supers RPG PC will have had the same amount of potential in-game character building and development time.

Yet the Space Adventure/Supers character had a head start on the 'being cool' factor right from the get-go. This is key to my forming a relationship with the PC that makes me want to keep playing them.

What can be done...?

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STAR WARS: GRAY TERRITORIES - Episode I: Another Person's Trash - Part 1

STAR WARS: GRAY TERRITORIES 

Episode I: Another Person’s Trash

The Galactic Civil War is over but all is not well. Between the Western Reaches and the Unknown Regions, chaos reigns.

As the New Republic focuses on the inner systems, Imperial Remnants and Independent Warlords battle for control on distant worlds. In addition, the mysterious cult known as The Dwellers in The Dark search the stars for the tomb of an entity most sinister.

Meanwhile, on the remote planet of Boggonda, the paths of three beings who may decide the fate of the region are about to cross...

We open with a view of the planet Boggonda in space, a large starship moving in front of that camera; you know, as you do in a Star Wars production. As the audience takes in the scene they realize that ship is clearly Imperial but it's not a Star Destroyer. Rather it is a considerably smaller corvette, badly damaged, and apparently adrift. 

Then we go down to the surface of the swampy, humid , foliage covered world, its single biome best described as 'the Florida Everglades'. The focus terms to the character of Xim Darrol (PC), an 'Ex-Imperial Field Commander'. More on the potential inaccuracy of that description later. 

Art by Aristides Iliopoulos

Through an inner monologue we learn that Commander Darrol has been stranded on Bogganda for about 5 years. Sent to take out Pirates and Criminal Warlords thought to be working with the Rebellion, Xim's team was out numbered and outgunned. His unit, along with support in orbit, managed to defeat the enemy at a huge cost; the orbiting ship was disabled and the majority of the Imperial soldiers were dead.

Darrol called in back-up that never came and neither did an extraction team. Communications broke down and eventually the Commander and his remaining team members found themselves stuck. Rumors spread that the Galactic Civil War was over; the Emperor was dead and the Empire no more.

One by one his squad fell to local bandits, dangerous local flora and fauna, and the rough conditions of Boggonda's environment. Darrol survived, cobbling together gear dropped by those who didn't make it and learning to live in the wetland jungles. Now, for the first time in as long as he could remember, there might be a chance to get off this mudball.

While in the town of High Ridge, Xim overhead a local mechanic and salvage scavenger saying he might have found a ship at the bottom of Crevice Crater North East of them. The mechanics fellow salvagers didn't believe him, especially when he insisted it was a Corellian Transport, maybe a Light Freighter, and in really good condition. Darrol was ready to believe this guy however because, as he said himself, "I gotta get outta here! I've had it with this slime pit."

Xim heads off to speak with the mechanic, a Dug by the name of Dunbolgo Siwani (PC) who works for Beego's Salvage Shop.

Dunbolgo's player didn't know he found a ship until I mentioned it in the opening to Xim's player. Without any more elaboration, I turned to 'Dunbolgo'...

Art by Keith Conroy

"So where is Dunbolgo this morning?"

The Dug Mechanic was already at the shop, trying to perform some repairs on a Dwarf Probe Droid he'd found in the jungle a few weeks back. Xim walks in, nods to the Rodian Shopkeep Beego and then marches towards Dunbolgo. Darrol had been to the shop before for parts and repairs and while he'd seen the Dug many times, they'd never really spoken before. Funny enough, the Dug had probably done work on Xim's gear. 

Xim and Dunbolgo's players immediately launch into an in-character conversation that basically I had nothing to do with as GM. 

Xim: "Hey there...say, is that a Viper 10J? A Dwarf Probe Droid? My team used to work alongside those."

Dunbolgo: "Why yes...yes it is. I found it pretty badly banged up in the jungle. Something is clearly wrong with the waste compressor."

Xim: "You seem like you know your stuff but have you tried adjusting the power flow? The tech boys I knew said that if you give it more juice it compensates for all the gunk that gets in it from the terrain out there."

Dunbolgo: "I thought of that but was afraid it might overheat. Still...you just gave me an idea. I can divert some of the battery power to the filtration system to prevent the compressor from needing to work so hard. Yeah! That'll do it. Thanks...ah..."

Xim: "Xim. Xim Darrol. Listen...(gets closer and lowers his voice)...I hear you found a ship?"

Meanwhile in the wetlands below, we see a rarely sparse and simple camp site and a figure stirring from within a makeshift tent. This is Bodhe (PC), a former Guardian of The Whills who once protected the Kyber Temple on the Jedha. Offworld when the planet was destroyed by the first Death Star, Bodhe has wandered the galaxy for many years questioning and reaffirming his faith in The Force. Lately he believes he has achieved a deep understanding and connection to it, possibly even gaining the abilities of the long lost Jedi. 

Art by Jason Narvaez

Or...he might be delusional.

Bodhe is missing many specifics in his memories of the past and periodic visions confuse his sense of the present. Reality and dream intertwine as he searches for answers as to his identity and purpose in the universe. Here and now on Boggonda he is looking for something, both a light and a voice, calling to him from the wilderness. Having had a dream of the location of this thing that calls him, he seeks to climb a nearby mountain in an attempt to get a better vantage point. Perhaps he can find a landmark from his vision to guide him further. 

As Bodhe approaches a waterfall coming out of crack in the mountainside, he sense a cave opening behind it. The expanse of swamp beyond the mountain is too hazardous to travel by foot and he decides to see where the cave leads. Soon he find himself ascending rough hewn stairs as the cave leads to some sort of ancient dwelling and what looks to be a shrine. Ancient symbols carved into the walls seems strangely familiar...

To Be Continued,

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A New Hope

Earlier this month I had the honor and privilege of running West End Games' Star Wars, The Roleplaying Game - one of my all time favorite RPGs - for three of my very long time and very dear friends. The game was run over Discord and went for three hours.

It's a challenge for me to put into words how good it felt to game with these fellows once again after nearly 20 years. Aside from getting to play with three people who are very special to me, playing with these guys has truly rejuvenated me. It was a breath of fresh air to game with three players who want to play the kind of game I want to run. 

I first met and became friends with Keith Conroy, Aristides Iliopoulos (sometimes referred to by his nicknames Aris or Artie), and Jason Narvaez while working at The Forbidden Planet between 89 and 91. I was introduced to these fine fellows by our mutual friend Vlad Rients (you can watch Vlad, Keith, Aris, and their pal George chew the pop culture fat on the YouTube channel The Podcast Cosmic). These fellows were also in my Tales from The Rim campaign group.

There is a lot more to our friendships than this though; Aris and I worked together at the Forbidden Planet. Keith helped me choose the Groomsmen's suits for my wedding. Jason was my Best Man. These guys, like a very select few others in my heyday of playing TRPGs have long since gone from 'people I gamed with' to family. I couldn't be happier getting to play with them again. 

The campaign, entitled 'STAR WARS: Gray Territories', is set in the same timeframe as the Disney+ series 'The Mandalorian'. approximately five years after the destruction of the second Death Star and the death of The Emperor at the Battle of Endor. I will discuss the details of the campaign in a later post and probably do a breakdown of the 'Episodes'.

Here and now, I simply want to say how and why this campaign - which has only had one session as of this writing - has already rejuvenated my love of RPGs and helped to shrug off the feeling of 'Gaming Ennui' I've been experiencing lately. 

These guys approach gaming differently from my other groups. That different approach can best be summed up as 'exactly the way I do'. Much like my A&D High School Group, these fellows and I aren't just on the same page; we wrote that page together as a team. We want the same things out of the game. We move and think at the same speed. We get it and each other in a way that could only come about if you'd been there, if you know what I mean. 

It is really freeing to be able to run a game as well as I can because the group is good enough, quick thinking enough, and immersed enough to handle that. Likewise, I need to be at the top of my...well...game as it were...to keep pace with this crew. Exhilarating. Nothing like it.

I will end here for now. I apologize for the long delay but I just haven't felt motivated to post lately. Tired from an increased work schedule (a good thing) and a lack of enthusiasm as mentioned above and in my previous post. Feeling a bit better now and looking forward to the rest of the year. 

Talk to you soon and May The Force Be With You!

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31 Days / 31 Characters - EVERYN WOLFSHADOW

One of my all time favorite Japanese Tabletop RPGs is Wares Blade. 

First published in 1988, Wares Blade is a Fantasy Role Playing Game in which the components and tropes of Medieval Fantasy are merged with those of the Giant Robot/Mecha genre popular throughout the world but [arguably] originating in Japan.

Unlike many other examples of the Fantasy and Mecha combination, the mechs of Wares Blade are not purely technological or steampunk but magical artifacts. It isn't Magic and Technology but it is Magic and Machinery. The machinery in this world is powered and created by enchantments and sorcery. 

Years ago when I was regularly gaming with my old New Jersey group, I found out that some of the gang's favorite Anime and Manga included such titles as Aura Battler Dunbine, Panzer World Galient, and (one I love myself) Rune Masquer. What do all these have in common? They are all in the vein of Giant Robot Fantasy. 

Realizing this, I decided to give a Wares Blade campaign with the group (including my ex-wife Selina) the old college try. The results were...well...magical. 

Character: Everyn Wolfshadow

AKA: The Forest Witch, The Wolf Woman of the Remote North

Player: Selina Wong

System: Mekton II - Modified with Houserules and Elements of Wares Blade, 1st Edition.

 

Campaign: The World of Magic and Machinery

Gamemaster: Adam Dickstein 

Circa: Roughly 2001-2002

Sadly this campaign only went about five sessions before scheduling became too difficult to continue. Not being able to continue this game with this group is one of my great RPG gaming regrets.

 

Origins: In addition to the reasons given above, one of the things I really wanted to do around this time was introduce my girlfriend of the time (later my wife) to gaming with a group. We had already been playing RPGs together just the two of us; her as the main character and me as Gamemaster and a cast of thousands. She had yet to play an ongoing game with a large group and so I developed a portion of this game to facilitate that. 

In addition to the setting - which incidentally looks and feels like Medieval Europe has been crossed with Arabian and North African cultures and civilizations - and of course the pre-requisite Japanese Mecha battles, I really wanted the game to be about the Player Characters. I wanted their personal stories, goals, and obstacles to be paramount.

Selina has always been uniquely well-suited for this type of game; equally capable of engaging in edge-of-your-seat, visceral combat and gut-wrenching, emotional trials and tribulations. There is a reason we initially bonded over our mutual love of Anime.

Backstory: When we first meet Everyn Wolfshadow she is traveling through the Southern Lands of the continent of Ahan. She seemed almost lost but later revealed that she spirits of the Water had told her this was where she needed to be. Her only companion was Rowan, a rather large wolf. 

It was later be revealed that Everyn was blind, the result of a curse placed upon her for falling in love with a young man who severed as one of her nations' Hunters and Rangers. The group of Witches she had trained to become were forbidden from having such relationships. Luckily she found Rowan or he her and her mystical powers allowed her to 'see' through his keen wolf senses. 

What she did not know was that Rowan had been cursed as well and was once the young Hunter with whom she had shared her heart. 

Overview: I had either forgotten or didn't quite absorb the detail that Everyn was blind. I think I thought her curse was more of a banishment; i.e. she was 'cursed' to never again walk the verdant forests of the Elves or something like that. 

None of the other players or PCs knew of her handicap either until at one point in the second or third session when the group planned to uncover an ancient magical mech which legends say slept beneath the city of Flare. The party would split into three groups - One would search the great Library of the Flare for a old tome that would help pinpoint the Ryude Knight's location. Another would speak with the Duke and Duchess of Flare to convince them to stay a visiting noble they believed sought out the mech as well [on behalf of an enemy nation]. Finally, the last group would infiltrate the headquarters of the Thieves Guild, as they had recently stolen a key needed to activate the mech. 

Everyn was chosen to search the Library given her high intellect, affinity for water magic (Flare was built on bridges over a river and tales said the Mecha might be in or near the river), and the presence of an Elf in the city might make other nervous [never mind the wolf]. Everyn was find with this as long as one other PC accompanied her. Jarod Steele, knightly 'half-Elf' agreed to go but remarked that she has shown she could take care of herself. Plus there was Rowan! She smiled and said politely, "Yes but I can not read the pages without assistance."

Someone started muttering something about language when all of a sudden our friend Lynn exclaimed, "Wait! Everyn is blind!" The room fell silent for a moment, followed by a symphony of hands slapping foreheads. All the clues had been there and yet no one had realized it. 

Selina, playing as Everyn, never looked directly at myself (as GM) or any other player when speaking to a PC or NPC. She instead leaned in with her ear angled slightly in the other persons direction. She mimed feeling around before pretending to grab an object, including drawing her dagger. She always established a link of sorts with Rowan as her first action in combat, especially before casting any spells. Best of all, she had been doing all that since the first session and the rest of us were just then putting it together. 

Best Actress in a Dramatic Medieval Mecha Fantasy Campaign goes to... 

The Highlights:

Aside from the big reveal mentioned above, there was a fantastic sequence when the PCs finally discovered the Ryude of Flare, a red, winged Mecha which had been buried deep beneath the riverbed far below the elegant city. Of all those with magical abilities, only Everyn had access to the domain or 'Gate' of Water. This meant she was the only one who could her people safely to the gigantic robot. 

She ends up one of the two pilots, with our Warrior Prince controlling the mech's movements and physical combat and Everyn supplying Mana to activate the machine's special abilities. Unfortunately the group's fortunes reversed - the Ryude Knight had wings but Everyn's Gates were Sun, Tree, and Water! Unable to fly or use the robot's Fire based enchantments, the two PC's nonetheless managed a bold if awkward escape, aided by the rest of the team. When in the light of the Sun, Everyn transferred as much Mana to the Mecha as she could and it did indeed take to the air to cheers from the whole group. 

So beloved was the character by the other players that, as you can see, two separate people decided to do illustrations of her. Both Lynn Morton (Left Side Drawing) and Keith Conroy (Right Side Drawing) - without discussing it with each other - surprised Selina with these drawings around session five. I love both for different reasons. 

Game Info:

I have Everyn Wolfshadow's original Character Sheet from the game but since I used a hybrid system merging Mekton II with what few translations I could find of Wares Blade 1st Edition, I can't really make heads or tales of it. Heh. *Anime Sweat Drop*

I can tell you that her Physical and Social Stats were about average, her Mental and Magical Stats quite good, and her skill at Sorcery and Spellcasting especially high. Wolfshadow is knowledgeable about Plants and Beasts, has a Keen Sense of Hearing and Smell even without connecting with Rowan, and is capable of Blind-Fighting with her Quarterstaff. She can also play the flute, though she isn't very good at it. At all. 

She has a magical item known as the Bracer of the Clear Path - worn on the wrist and forearm, the Bracer tugs you towards of the path or direction with the fewest and/or easiest to overcome obstacles. The perfect thing for a blind Elf moving through unfamiliar country. 

I hope to run a long campaign of Wares Blade someday and if I do, I'd like to think that Everyn Wolfshadow and Rowan might call upon the PCs to help her lift her curse and return her sweetheart to his rightful form. 

Someday...

Hey, you there bumping gums. Yeah, you! We're trying to make tracks before the coppers get here see, so don't be a pill. Don't worry, we're on our way to go see FRANKIE THE FERRET so relax and don't flip your wig. 

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Barking Alien

Barking Alien's Top 10 Favorite PCs of Others

When I decided to make a post about the 10 favorite PC's I've played, I knew I'd also want to/have to do one about my 10 favorite PCs played by others. 

Why did I do this to myself?

How in the Hoary Hosts of Hoggoth I am supposed to pick just 10 PCs from the hundreds, perhaps thousands I've seen in 42 years of gaming?

I have been exceptionally lucky to have played with what I can only assume are the greatest RPG players in the world. Seriously. The entire world. Possibly the galaxy. Maybe even the universe. 

From hilariously funny to deathly serious, wild action heroes to sublime character actors, I have seen players who have made PCs that actually made me stand up and cheer or sit down and tear up (It was something in my eye. I'm not crying, You're Crying!). 

I wish I could list my Top 100 favorites but I guess you and I will have to settle for 10.

As before in previous posts, these are in alphabetical order that has no bearing on how much I like the character. I love them all. I should note that this is focused on the PCs and not the players themselves. Nearly all the characters played by my ex-wife, our dear friend, the late Allen Halden, and my pal Jeff are freaking awesome. 

Not that it really needs to be said but the Gamemaster in most of these cases was yours truly. Only the Savage Worlds Western game, run by my friend Dan R., stands as the exception.

Here goes nothing...

#10 - Belarus Hosta

(Traveller - Classic/MegaTraveller House Ruled Variant, Played by William L.)

I like Will very much as a person and as a gamer he is capable of amazing things, such as his character, Belarus Hosta. 

A 38 year old single mother, former diplomat, and heir to a powerful business position with the Solomani genetic engineering megacorporation SuSAG, Hosta was the driving force of the early part of our Traveller campaign, 'Operation: PALADIN'. As time went on she went from driving force to the glue that held it all together and the one element that could tear it all apart. 

What a deep, rich, layered character. Also, the best portrayal of a female protagonist by a male player I have ever seen in all my days.

See these entries for the merest glimpse of how good this character was. Honestly these posts don't even scratch the surface. It was amazing stuff. The campaign lasted three years of real time and the character evolved, changed, and yet stayed true to its origins.

#9 - Buddy Thatcher

(Savage World - Modified w/ House Rules, Played by Alex B.)

My own character in our Western game set in Dunton, Colorado, 'Professor' Milford Thatcher, ranks as one of my favorites largely due to my pal Alex's PC, Milford slow, sweet, well-meaning to a fault nephew, Bartholomew 'Buddy' Thatcher. We only learned Buddy's 'Christian Name' recently, as indeed Uncle Milford and Buddy himself thought Buddy was his given name. 

Strong as an ox and nearly as smart, Buddy is one half of the duo of 'THATCHER & Thatcher' ("I'm the lower case Thatcher", Buddy is quick to point out), who are out to mine silver using Uncle Milford's 'Thatcher Process' ("Scientifically speaking", notes Buddy, not completely sure what that means and totally clueless as to how the process actually works). 

I love Buddy. Love him! He is a breath of fresh, the perfect sounding board, and often a much needed laugh in tough times. At the same time, he is a more nuanced character than is immediately apparent, as his innocent and naive romance with a Native American girl and his belief that all of Humanity share the same faith, views, and emotions deep down completely elevates the material. 

Kudos to you Alex. Kudos. Beautiful. 

#8 - Ceren-Dee WindDrake

(Dungeons & Dragons - Advanced 1st Edition w/ House Rules, 3rd and 3.5 with House Rules, played by Selina W.)

No list of great RPG characters would be complete without my dear friend and ex-wife's incredible character, High Elven Warrior/Wizard Ceren-Dee WindDrake. The character enabled me to share my favorite hobby with someone special to me and reignited my enjoyment of D&D for a brief time. It also got me to resurrect one of my best settings, the World of Aerth and the Order of the Winghorn Guard.

What can I say about Ceren-Dee. Empathic, determined, and three dimensional to a fault. There were sessions which made Selina cry and others where she laughed so hard she could barely breathe. I have never enjoyed Dungeons & Dragons so much and it's not been easy recapturing that level of awesome. 

I could spend time writing a dozen posts detailing this PC, her trials, tribulations, and triumphs and probably only scratch the surface of all she did and all she is.

Like all good Aerth characters, she remains a part of the world's lore and can be encountered in sessions set there to this day. 

It's also Selina's birthday today so, Happy Birthday Selina!

#7 - Ipperius Witspear

(Dungeons & Dragons - Advanced 1st Edition w/ House Rules, played by Pete H.)

The late, great Pedro 'Pete' Hernandez was a natural born character actor. He could instantly create a character, oddly accented voice and all, and make said character come to life in no time flat. Unlike a lot of my other wonderful player who created characters with developed stories based on research or knowledge, Pete was a build-as-you-go type. His PCs came about their origins through playing them. He detailed them in the moment and then built on what he'd made as he went forward. 

This is especially true with the swashbuckling, often wildly eccentric Ipperius Witspear, an Elf of initially indeterminate origin who went through numerous riveting, harrowing, and yet often hilarious adventures before being retired as we moved on to our next game project. 

Of course, no longer being regularly played is not the same as dead. Ipperius Witspear, 'Ip' to his friends, popped back up in other Aerth campaigns from time to time, eventually becoming a major NPC when I brought the Winghorn Guard back after a long hiatus (see Ceren-Dee WindDrake above). 

I love Ip because there is so much more to him than meets the eye at a passing glance. He comes off as a typical devil-may-care, somewhat foppish scoundrel. In truth his personality is more robust, his tactics more subtle, and his story much richer than the usual roguish hero. Also, he is just so fun to play as an NPC.  

There have been a few references to Witspear on the blog, though not nearly enough. 

#6 - Jeard’en Kaine

(Star Wars, The Role Playing Game - 2nd Edition (WEG D6), played by Keith C.)

Like so many of my favorite characters, this one was played by a true character actor player, the amazing Keith Conroy. A multi-talented fellow with a portfolio of both great artwork and excellent RPG Player Characters, Keith has the ability to make the mundane seem amazing and the amazing just another day at the office. Case in point, Star Wars Smuggler Jeard'en Kaine. 

Jeard'en Kaine can best be described as a Blue Collar Han Solo or the Working Man's Buck Rogers. He isn't the coolest guy, the best looking guy, or the greatest pilot in the galaxy. He is cool, he cleans up pretty well, and he is A great pilot, don't get me wrong. What makes him special is...well...his normalcy. He's you or me in the Star Wars universe. Just another Joe Blaster trying to make a living and stay out of trouble. 

Unfortunately for Jeard'en he has too big a heart and trouble has a way of finding him. His generally calm and level-headed demeanor was as real as seeing him freak-out or even faint when things just weren't within parameters he could wrap his brain around. The addition of Jeard'en Kaine to a game is adding 100% pure, grounded humanity.

You can read a bit more about Jeard'en Kaine in this post here.

#5 - MAN-2

(Star Wars, The Role Playing Game - 2nd Edition (WEG D6), played by Martin K.)

It saddens me to note how many of these characters are tied to friends who have passed on. What memories remain are sweet but also serve to remind me they're no longer with us.

MAN-2, or more properly IM-MA-N2, started as a quirky R2-like repair droid but grew in capacity, depth, and scope throughout the course of the campaign. The character was comic relief early on in the 'series' and it worked thanks to Martin King's incredible skills as an improv actor and comic. However, as with many others on this list, MAN-2 became more than the sum of his parts if you'll pardon the pun. 

Great visual design work went into him as well, with players Martin King and Nelson Marty sketching out a number of concepts for MAN-2's ever evolving appearance throughout the course of the campaign.

MAN-2 has been mentioned here and here. 

#4 - Night Knight

(Champions - 4th Edition, played by Dave C.)

Dave C. should not be confused with David C. Simple right? Riiight. 

OK, Dave C. refers to my buddy Dave Cotton, whom I first met at my FLGS about 10 years ago or so. Wow. Have Dave and I really known each other 10 years? Anyway, he joined in a Mutants & Masterminds game I was running at the store and he's been a regular part of my groups ever since. 

Dave has a lot of great characters, especially Superhero characters, but Night Knight is probably my favorite. His character Impact is a really close second but I only have 10 slots and have to spread the love. 

Night Knight is the type of Superhero I am not generally into at first glance, falling into the vein of Daredevil, Batman, and other brooding, grim, street level crimefighters. At the same time, he does have powers, an origin he related directly to the world/setting mythology, and played him as reluctantly accepting the bigger role of being a member of the campaign's major Superhero group.

This evolution from street hero to world hero felt organic and necessary given the circumstances of the campaign and Dave did an amazing job of showing Night Knight's struggle with his position in the grand scheme of things. 

Night Knight appears in this post about my New Age of Champions campaign. 

#3 - Omni

(Champions - 4th Edition, played by David C.)

See now here is the other David C., David Concepcion, who has been profiled on this blog and whose characters have been mentioned at least as often as Dave Cotton's, if not more. 

While I've know Dave C. about 10 years, I've known David C. since high school. He too has a lot of PCs who could have made this list [being another amazing Player Character Actor] but if one stands out above all the others it has to be the Psionic Alien Superhero OMNI! 

I love Omni. He is just so - damn - good. I mean morally good. Just. Fair. Upstanding. Empathic. Kind. Determined. Dependable. He's what Superman is one paper at all times, but only actually is with a great writer. Omni out Superman's Superman in my opinion. 

Omni has been addressed a number of times as it was due to this character and its player that I joined in on the original Age of Champions campaign that he was a part of. You can see those posts here, here, and most recently here. 

#2 - Owen Blackfjord

(Ars Magica (?) - 3rd Edition, played by Allen Halden)

Boy oh boy this trip down PC memory lane is a rough one. Like Martin King, and Pete Hernandez, Allen Halden is no longer with us. Hmmm. Scratch that. He has departed this mortal coil but he is always, and will always be with us. Always.

Allen and I were close and like the Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz, I miss him most of all. 

Though I know it sounds selfish, I especially miss his contributions to our RPG campaigns. There are times when I come up with a game idea and think how perfect it will be, then scrap it because Allen is gone. How will my outlandish ideas work without Allen and his characters. 

The Character Actor's Character Actor, Allen was almost the opposite of Pete H. in approach. Allen would do research, plan, and thoughtfully consider his characters before playing them. This was used to fantastic effect when he portrayed the token, weird alien in one of our Science Fiction games or an English Brownie in our Faery's Tale Deluxe outing.

One of his most memorable characters was the Medieval European Warrior-for-Hire, Owen Blackfjord. Of Northern English or Orkney origin I'd wager, with his odd English/Norwegian accent and name, Owen was a lower class, poorly educated, not-that-well-meaning sell sword living some time around the 12th century.

He was most famous for being swindled...um...lucking upon the handle of a sword, a handle with no blade, and being convinced...um...informed it was an enchanted weapon of great power. So proud was he to be the bearer of 'The Sword Unseen', and to have gotten a deal on it I might add, that he became adept at convincing others of it's majesty and prowess.

When he faced off with an opponent of note, he would draw The Sword Unseen and give his adversary pity and an ample chance to stand down. So sure was his resolve that many enemies did just that. 

#1 - Sollock (Doctor Sollock actually)

Star Trek, The Role Playing Game - 1st Edition (FASA), played by Joe C.)

I was starting to get nervous that this list wouldn't include a Star Trek character. 

Truth is I've seen so many wonderful PCs in our numerous Star Trek campaigns over the years that picking one...ugh. It's like trying pick a favorite child. I love them all! That said, one did stand out when I put my mind to the task and that one is one of the first two I've ever had.

My friend since 2nd grade, Joseph Cangelosi and I have played a lot of a lot of games together. Few as memorable as our very first Star Trek game, and though he had some great characters, I dare say none compare to Doctor Sollock. 

Sollock was a half-Human, half-Vulcan doctor serving as Chief Medical Officer on the covert operations starship USS Alliance during The Original Series era. He was raised on Earth by his Human father as his mother was an instructor at the Vulcan Science Academy School of Medicine. It was hinted at, though never made clear, whether or not his parents were estranged. 

Sovok was a character with just so much, well, character! He had habits and idiosyncrasies, likes and dislikes, beliefs and things he stood for. He was a wonderful paradox of Human emotion and Vulcan logic, arguing with his owns views nearly as often as those of the Captain or my Andorian Helmsman. 

You can read about Sollock in this post here.

Ok, all done. Woohoo! Another post that took way too long to put together. I think I am done with these lists for now. I have other ideas and things I want to discuss.

Here's to another 10 years, Avis willing. 

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Barking Alien

I actually finished this on the 28th of February but put the post up on March 1st as I fell asleep at the keyboard and forgot to hit publish. Heheh.