Red Skies and Floppy Disks

As my 40th Gaming Anniversary month draws to close, I am kind of amazed at how much of it I spent talking about, and playing Superhero RPGs.

It shouldn't come as a surprise really, for as I've said, Supers is what got me into RPGs in the first place (in a manner of speaking). It's just that, with a name like 'Barking Alien' you'd think there would be a bit more Science Fiction in my celebration of the 40 year mark. 

Furthermore, when I look at the general gaming landscape, how things like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and Numenera seem to dominate the market by leaps and bounds, I am once more reminded that is the bulk of the lot, the unifying factor, the common denominator...but it just ain't me.

This past Wednesday evening I ran the first session of my half of our Google Hangouts group's Ultra Mega Summer Super Crossover Event, DC Adventures - Crisis on Earth G+!

The first part, a Marvel Heroic mini-series, ended with a bit less bang, and a bit more whimper than we all would have liked. The Marvel Heroic system didn't turn out to be to most of the players' liking. Even, or perhaps especially the GM found the game cumbersome, and tedious, getting in the way of telling a Superhero comic book story instead of supporting, and enhancing it. 

I was personally a tad disappointed that we didn't get to 'see', or experience very much of the Marvel Universe. If I don't normally play in the Marvel milieu, and I get to for a limited run, I want the opportunity to encounter uniquely Marvel things. I wanted to feel why the atmosphere of Marvel is special - why it's not DC, or our homegrown Kapow! game. 

I tried really hard to make that a part of our DC excursion. To facilitate that, I made some tough choices. Not tough for me to make, but choices that I knew might not initially sit well with all the players. For example, I limited which characters they could choose to play, but I didn't do it arbitrarily. Rather, I did it to make the whole thing work. 

Here's what we ended up with...

The Silver/Bronze Age Justice League of America

Characters by Jose Garcia Lopez

Background by Me.

First, I told all the players that the story was set in the DC Universe in the year 1984.

Yep. 1984. The Bronze Age. Pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths. 

I opened the game saying:

"The year is 1984. 
Ronald Reagan is the President of the United States.
Footloose and Beverly Hill Cops are raking it in at the Box Office.
Dynasty and Family Ties top the Nielsen Ratings. 
Just like the rest of Earth G+, Bonnie Tylor is Holding Out for a Hero."

That right there is the key to everything. 

Any character created by DC during, or after Crisis on Infinite Earths does not exist in our game. If the character was acquired by DC Comics, and first appears in a DC book during, or after COIE, such as Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, and the other Charlton Characters, they too are not available as PCs. 

The 'Satellite Era' Justice League of America, the Teen Titans (Dick Grayson is Robin, not Nightwing), the Doom Patrol (original), the Metal Men, and a number of independent heroes are all cleared for use. 

The group eventually chose a very classic Justice League line up:

The Flash/Barry Allen (played by Keith)
Green Arrow/Oliver Queen (played by Stephen)
Green Lantern/Hal Jordan (played by Tim)
Hawkgirl/Sheira Hall (played by Mark)
Superman/Clark Kent - Kal-El (played by Carl)
Wonder Woman/Princess Diana - Diana Prince (played by Melinda)

A day, or two before the session, I posted the following image, and caption to our Event page...

'Earth Time - August 29th, 1984, 12:00 PM EST - On the outskirts of Space Sector 2813, bordering the edge of 2814, Green Lantern Honor Guard Member, Tomar-Re, detects a disturbance in the Space-Time Continuum.'

The following morning I posted this...

'A series of strange events, some clearly villainous, some merely suspicious, have kept the Justice League of America rather busy over the past 48 hours.

Flash, and Green Arrow - In the wee hours of yesterday morning, Mark Mardon, AKA Weather Wizard, somehow escaped from the Minnesota State Correctional Facility that held him. Several hours later, a sudden, terrible storm blew over Star City just as a plane extraditing Count Werner Vertaygho of Vlatava, AKA Count Vertigo, had taken off. The aircraft, as well as Count Vertigo himself, have disappeared. 

Green Lantern, and Superman - Our heroes have been on the trail of Rudy Jones, AKA The Parasite, for at least twelve hours now. Jones recently escaped from a S.T.A.R. Labs facility attempting to cure his condition. As the heroes neared his last known whereabouts, the Metropolis suburb of Midvale, reports came through that a 'yellow-gold giant with purple clothes' had been sighted in the Delaware Water Gap National Park, about 80 miles Northeast of the city. 

Hawkgirl, and Wonder Woman - Yesterday evening, Helen Alexandros, AKA The Silver Swan, stole an ancient, Greek salpinx from the Midway City Museum (The Midway Museum of Ancient History). She was aided by a mysterious man in a blue cloak. The two individuals vanished right before the eyes of stunned security guards. Early this morning, a man wearing a cloak of the same description was spotted in the Suicide Slum area of Metropolis by Ace O' Clubs owner Bibbo Bibbowski.'

A few hours later, I posted this last, additional entry:

'Update: Additional sightings of the Parasite, Silver Swan, the Blue Cloaked Man, and the mysterious Yellow-Gold Giant have been confirmed by various sources, and complied by J'onn Jonzz, The Martian Manhunter, back on the JLA Satellite. According to his findings, they are all headed for central Metropolis, likely the borough of New Troy.

Weather patterns there have begun to change rapidly, and a particularly intense lightning storm seems to be forming. Very likely, this is a sign that Weather Wizard, and perhaps Count Vertigo, are on their way as well.

Be ready Justice Leaguers!'

The important things to note here are that I tried to make sure I had certain vital (IMO) components established:

• Familiar super villains from the rogues galleries of the chosen PCs.
• A few mystery villains who could not be confirmed to add intrigue.
• Mention of key DC Comics locations related to the PCs.
• Mention of key NPC heroes or supporting cast members. 
• Everything culminating in the most well known location mentioned: Metropolis.

Also, I established that the Martian Manhunter was there to help in an advisory capacity. This enabled me to give exposition, helpful hints, and the like with an in-game voice (J'onn's) instead of a GM/Narrator voice.

Remember this is all before the first session. This is the prologue. It's...OMG...it's...

Pre-Crisis on Earth G+!

More to come...

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Barking Alien

RPGaDay Challenge 2017 - Bonus Round!

The RPGaDay Challenge for 2017 is over! 

However...

Here are some Alternate Questions I found on the blog Casting Shadows that I'm going to answer in short response form as Bonus Questions. Why? Because Gaming that's why!

Alternate Questions

• What do you look for in a review of an RPG?

In a review? I look for someone to have read, and/or played the game who can tell me how it works, and why they think it's good, or bad. Isn't that what a review is?

• Campaigns: do you prefer set-length or open-ended play?

I definitely prefer open-ended play. Long term because it ends up long term. 

• How long does it take to learn to get the most out of a game?

I don't understand this question. You get what you put into it. If you're asking how long it takes to master the rules lawyer/power game bs that comes with a game like Pathfinder, it takes me exactly 0 seconds. I don't bother.

• What do you want out of an RPG experience?

Excitement, laughs, real emotion, and a story that you'll tell each other, and other gamers you meet years done the line. 

• What gives an RPG its ‘replay value’?

Again, I don't understand. If you can't play a game more than one time, it's not a good game. It might not even be a real RPG. 

• What part or parts of a session do you look forward to the most?

As GM, the world building, and the players/PCs uncovering the elements I put there in order to build an interesting setting.

As a player, I like discovering those world building bits, and bobs, uncovering secrets to the universe the GM has developed. 

• What makes an RPG book special in your eyes?

This is an interesting question. What makes it special? Wow. This is very hard to pin down. It's a combination of things. How it looks, the art, how easy it is to read, how cool the examples of play are...some many things. 

• What would appear on an RPG book cover that would make you want to play it?

A Japanese Anime/Manga Giant Robot.

Heh, kidding (sort of). It isn't what's on the cover, it's what the game is about, and how well it handles that subject matter.

• How far from human do you enjoy getting the chance to be in an RPG?

LOL. You are talking to the guy whose motto in high school was, 'If the game has something other than Humans, I will be something other than Human.' Jot me down for 'Real Weirdie'.

• What is the oldest game you have played, or still play?

Classic Traveller I would think.

• Describe a moment of wonder that arose in play.

So many. I wouldn't know where to start, or rather it would take a whole post to describe anyone of them. I am trying to give short response answers here. Please go back and read various entries on my blog. There are some real doozies. 

• Have you learned a skill because of events in a game? Tell us about it!

I am awful at math. I always have been, and probably always will be. It's almost a learning disability. Not quite, but my mind just doesn't grasp numbers and their relationships very well. The one area of mathematics I can understand is probability and percentages. That is solely due to playing RPGs.

• What section do you read first when you get a new game? Why?

Character Creation. I always want to know how to build a character. Oddly, as a GM, Character Creation is not my favorite part of the gaming experience. Often, I actually find it tedious. That's why I look at Character Creation first. If I find Character Creation enjoyable, it is very likely that I will like the rest of the game. 

• Suggest an RPG with engaging solo play.

Um...er...um...huh? Do you mean One Player, and One GM, or no GM? Why would you do that? There are video games for that. Go play Mass Effect. Better yet, play World of Warcraft or something. That way you can play alone, but with people. 

• Which RPGs facilitate running very large groups enjoyably?

I may be biased here, as I prefer running for fairly large groups. I find many games that people view as cumbersome for large groups to be pretty easy to run. I've run FASA Star Trek for 7 or 8 players at once, WEG Star Wars for 7 or 8 on average, and a Mutants & Masterminds campaign with between 7 and 11 people per session. Any game with rules that a both simple, and straightforward work well with large groups. 

The RPGaDay Challenge for 2017 is over! 

Well that's that! Challenge excepted and overcome! Feeling pretty good about myself. 

Until next post...


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Barking Alien

RPGaDay Challenge 2017 - Day 31

This is it people of Earth, the last of the RPGaDay Challenge questions for 2017!

Well...not really. It is that last of the questions on that big ol' question board, but there are some alternate questions provided by the gaming blog Casting Shadows that I am going to answer as Bonus Round questions.

Go Me!

Last things first however...

Huh,

Tough one.

Why?

I am not really anticipating anything in particular industry-wise. 

I am curious to see how Modiphius handles the Star Trek Adventures line of course, and there are a few books announced by them that I may pick up and convert their useful ideas, and info to Last Unicorn's game. 

It would be nice if Fantasy Flight covered the new Star Wars films, but that mean having to get a dozen more books, since they seem to make a separate game for every Star Wars idea that comes out. The new, post-Return of the Jedi trilogy alone would require three new, completely distinct rulebooks if you go by FFG's logic. (Have I said FU to FFG here before? No? Well FU FFG.).

I wouldn't mind checking out the upcoming new edition of Villains & Vigilantes, mainly because of nostalgia. That should be out soon though I would think (before the new year).

I have my eye on Japan's Wares Blade Reboot project, but current information seems to suggest that a new RPG is low on the list of their priorities. Rather, they want to use the property to make an Anime, Light Novels, and possibly Manga. A new RPG is probably a bit more complicated give the original publisher may not have an interest in that right now. I will hope for the best, and keep you all posted.

So...anticipated, let alone most anticipated, isn't a phrase I would use I the moment. 


From my own gaming things are different...


I am hoping to continue, and maybe even expand my My Hero Academia: American Ultra game. It's working really well, and having other players/PCs drop by on the main three every once in a while would be really cool. 

I figure we will continue on with our Wednesday night Google Hangouts Kapow! Superhero RPG, with occasional breaks to try out other things (we did that a few times this year, and I really enjoyed some of them. Just taking a break every one in a while is nice.).

My Friday night group is going to go through a change, as one of the players is moving out of New York (Take care Erick! Good luck my friend!). We will likely continue on with our Hogwarts/Wizarding World game, and I aim to give Ars Magica a good run, though definitely a finite one. Long, ongoing games are not as effective with this particular group as are short, concise ones. 

Ooh, Tales from the Loop! I totally need to run Tales from the Loop at some point.

Beyond that, who knows?

There are games I am itching to get back to after having not played them in a while, such as the aforementioned Star Trek (LUG), Star Wars (WEG), and Wares Blade (Hobby Japan).

What about you? Do you know any games you think are worth watching out for? Let me know! Please! I'm always up for being impressed by a new game. 

Well, that about does it. I sometimes rib these questions, and I do honestly think they could sometimes be better, but I must also thank RPG Brigade for making them each year. The Challenge as a whole is fun, and it always gets me posting right after my usually dreadful summers (dreadful business and posting wise).

Thanks RPG Brigade, and The RPGaDay Challenge!

See you here next year,

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Barking Alien

RPGaDay Challenge 2017 - Day 30

The end is near...

OK, I can answer this...but I'd first like to say that I really don't want to see 'genre-mashups'.  Not when there are so few genres with a decent headline game.

If there a definitive Wild West game out there? A 60s Spy game? How about a Fantasy Folklore game, huh?

Yeah. Don't go putting your chocolate in my peanut butter until you can make really good chocolate.

That said...I wouldn't mind seeing a Medieval Fantasy/Mecha game that doesn't fall into the typical American default of making the mechs Steampunk contraptions, or regular Science Fiction robots. I want that mix of magical item, and fantasy engineering you see in Japanese TRPGs like Wares Blade, or Anime like Knights & Magic.

While I am not a big fan of traditional Fantasy settings, adding a giant robot makes anything better.

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Barking Alien

RPGaDay Challenge 2017 - Day 29

Close to the end my friends. What the heck will I talk about next month?

I haven't backed very many projects on Kickstarter. Funds for me are often tight, or practically non-existent during certain stretches of the year, and I simply can't afford to spend money on a thing that might not happen. 

Of the ones I have backed, I think only two have come to fruition so far.

That sucks, and makes me less likely to join a Kickstarter in the future.

Conceptually, it's a great idea - Fans of a concept give money to the concept's creators before any product has been produced so that the product can be produced to the best of the ability, and available funds of those working on it. 

Cool. Awesome. And, if you don't reach the desired goal, or you do and nothing comes of it, what then? I'm looking at you Mekton Zero.

Golden Sky Stories, and Spirit of '77 are probably two of the few I've sponsored, and the only ones to put a book in my hand. That's it. Just two.

Bleh. Kickstarter.

Just make a game. If you already made it, and it sounds cool, and isn't super expensive, I'll buy it. 

That's what I did for The Googly Eyed Primetime Puppet Show. 

I didn't want to make a site for maybe making the book. I wanted to make the book. So I did. Perfect? Maybe not, but done and the price? I like to think so. 

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Barking Alien