Old Man Henerson

Just now, Richard S. said:

That's a book, right? I think you'd have to get permission from the author if you wanted to make money off of a BRP hack for playing in it.

Yeah it is a book, but it is in the public domain so it is free to use right?

1 minute ago, Richard S. said:

I'd assume so, assuming that it works similarly to other OGLs.

Sweet, time to work on my Night Land setting.

I wonder if I would have to make my own pictures.🤔

So does all this mean that we will be able to produce our own sub systems for Chaosium and make money from it?

Hi everyone. About a month or two ago, I finished reading William Hope Hodgson's The Night Land and I was inspired to make a campaign about it. Right now, I am working on a different campaign at the moment but I hope to get to it once I am finished with my current campaign.

Has anyone else on this forum tried gaming in the Night Land? The setting is so fantastic that I am surprised that nobody has made anything with it, especially since it is the public domain.

What do you guys think? Would this make a great game setting?

What sort of advantages can having the high ground give you?😏

25 minutes ago, Lloyd Dupont said:

I am pretty sure many forum dweller such as I, look at forum status change and check all forums of interest (compulsively?)  

Oh yeah, you and me both.😄

5 hours ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

Aaaaaand that's the whole point of playing the game? We struggle, stay alive, we sneak and snoop - we test what evil can do so that we can find ways of negating it.

I could not have said it better myself. That is the great game in the end, the contest of who can best adapt and prevail.

4 hours ago, Lloyd Dupont said:

I think there is a problem of expectation... In some other game forum I antagonised many people because I simply had different expectation...

Yes there might be a canon story, setting and expectation. But each GM's campaign is his own. And if he feel creative enough to come up with something different, so be it. But it is sometimes difficult for those GM with different point of view to ask advice of other who see things differently.... It's is often pointless and can easily be misinterpreted and get heated for no good reason...

Obviously the setting he envisaged is quite different from the mainstream and canon Cthulhu stories. This is a clear premise. So the challenge of the game might also be, in fact will also be, slightly different! 😜 

I have seen other fourms where the nature and vulnerability of the mythos was hotly debated, but this fourm seems pretty open relaxed about debate. I have already learned all kinds of valuable advice here, so I have been very pleased by all these great replys.

My setting is more homebrew than cthulhu, I just added several mythos elements to the story. Maybe I will have to post a log on. The fourm when I begin. Although I am not sure weather it would be better in this sub fourm, or in the BRP section.

1 hour ago, g33k said:

The more complex, the more modes for the thing to break.

How do they generate the mag fields for the railgun?  Batteries & capacitors?  Batteries can overheat & catch fire.  Capacitors can pop.

1 hour ago, foolcat said:

Assuming that handheld magnetic rail guns sport

• some kind of high density energy cell (with enough juice for, say, 20-50 shots),  depending on tech level
• some sort of projectile magazine with a feeding system, either separate from, or integrated with the energy source, depending whether small caliber flechettes (perhaps 40-80/mag) or more massive projectiles (ibidem 20-50) are used 
• high temperature super conductors (HTSC)

I am not sure if they use batteries or capacitors, they are built by Martian colonists who are trying to conserve resources by just using magnets instead of gunpowder and shells, so they would probably use what ever was easiest to make.

1 hour ago, foolcat said:

possible malfunctions could include:

• failure to accelerate and/or eject projectile (“jam”): HTSC and/or controlling electronics are busted, resulting in no magnetic fields at all, or projectile gets stopped in the barrel
• as a worst case scenario (.0001% perhaps), this could result in a spectacular barrel burst with high velocity shrapnel
• failure to feed firing channel (“dud round”): magazine/feeder busted
• energy cell failure: depending on reliability, cell overheats, ruptures, or even explodes 

1 hour ago, g33k said:

Timing can fail... Each loop needs to kick the projectile forward HARD, so mis-timed mag pulses can render a dud, that only flies a few meters.  A sabotaged gun could even push the ammo to the tip, then "shoot" it in reverse!

Physical damage to the railgun, or to the ammo, might result in the shot contacting the gun, presumably destroying it's use (manufacturer repair, not field repair).  I suppose damage in the midst of battle might be severe enough for it's own shot to actually "hit" the gun -- foe hits the gun a split second before the gun shoots, so its own shot hits the misaligned rail, or a loop, etc.  Unlikely, but possible.

Thanks for the suggestions. These will really help me out in the near future.

I have a question. What would the result be if you rolled a malfunction with a rail gun? In the game I am working on the PCs will likely be armed with light automatic magnetic rifles, so I was wondering what would happen if it malfunctions. Would it explode?

29 minutes ago, g33k said:

Typically, I'd use either the "major wounds" rules or HP-by-location, but not both together:  I see them as two different ways to make damage into something more-interesting than "big meatsack of HP's."

That said, one could integrate the two systems.

Yeah. I was planing on only using one of the systems for my game, I just did not know which one would be more appropriate for the game I am planing to run.

29 minutes ago, g33k said:

For by-location HP's, a sheet with the relevant spaces is invaluable.  There's a fan-made sheet here:   

(There may be other BRP sheets with hit-locations in the D/L section, too; I'm not sure.)

I'm very partial to the RuneQuest style sheets, where there's a little graphic of a person, with spaces on the graphic for the points.  The old RQ2 "Sapienza mk iv" sheet is primitive, but functional; the new RQG sheet is more evocative... and ALSO functional (the RQG special "artisinal" sheet it even MORE evocative... IMHO, too much so, too distracting from the core functionality & legibility of the sheet).

Thanks for the suggestion, I think this sheet will do nicely if I decide to go for hit points by location.  I love that it is so nice and clean, even though I like the normal character sheet it can still be a bit cluttered.

Hi everyone, I have a few questions about the the rules for hit points by location.  My first problem is how do you keep track of each limbs hit points? Since they do not work with the hit point chart on the character sheet I do not know where to place them. Problem number two is what value do hit points by location have over the major wound rules, and which kind of games would you this rule over major wounds?

2 hours ago, TheHistorian said:

This. One also gets the bonus effect of the Mythos being more special if it isn't encountered every scenario.

36 minutes ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

 The Occult skill could be considered, in game terms, as a general acceptance of something 'out there' but no real knowledge of the Mythos.

And let's not discount that the Mythos' existence doesn't preclude the existence of other mythical beings. While the game is sourced on Lovecraftian creations, it can't be forced to make every paranormal event relate to the Mythos.

Sometimes a ghost is just a ghost.

That also begs the question of how non-mythos magical creatures view and react to the actual mythos.

Sure thing. I am not familiar with RD100, and I am just barely getting the hang of BRP, but I am glad it helped you a little. I wish you luck in making your game! 😉👍

You could try this: 

On 7/13/2019 at 3:19 PM, Sir Carter said:

Hi All

As a amateur historian and a gamer i find often the paths will cross. This is the case with the Arthurian legend. I enjoy fantasy RPGs and Historical wargames. And I enjoy researching the period to. As with everything Arthurian nothing is ever clear cut, and the Jury is still out as if there was ever a real Arthur. As the Early Dark Ages is primarily my favourite period I found I end up with 3 Arthur's. The first is very historically based and doesn't really have an Arthur or any of the Knights, Round Table, Merlin etc and focuses on the Saxons, Angles and Jutes that raided Britain in the early 5th-6th century as well as Picts, Welsh and Irish. A good example would be GMTs Games Pendragon

The 2nd is also set in the 5th-6th Century's but it has Arthur and his knights along with Merlin and others. Fighting the Saxons lead by the likes of Hengist and Horsa. It also has Picts and Irish raiders and the traitor Vortigern. 

Finally the 3rd is Pendragon all history is thrown out of the window, its got Knights in Shining armour, Merlin the Wizard, Mordred and everything else Medieval 14th Century will allow and includes Faerie lore as well.

I find with these 3 levels of play and style I cover all I want from the Stories of Arthur.

For Fiction I read T.H.Whites "Once and Future King" and Bernard Cornwalls "Winter King Trilogy" Plus historical stuff to.

Is there anyone else who likes to look into the other aspects of Arthurian lore Historical or otherwise ??      .   

My personal favorite books about Arthur are from Stephen Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle. I would say the fit in your second listing as they are very historical, yet still find ways to work in the famous parts and magic of the legend.  I absolutely love the historical vibe of this book series as it is so different than anything I have ever read about King Arthur.  It has even inspired me to write a book about this dark age Arthur awakening in dystopian future England and fighting to change it, wile slowly coming to realizing that old magic is at work in this dark future.

16 hours ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

This links back to another thread here - what is the point of the "Occult" skill? It may not tell us much of the roots of the Big Bastards but it tells us tales of their impact on us humans. It drops hints of weaknesses, it lets us know of 'conventions' that they may have to follow.

The occult (in CoC) gives us echoes of the Mythos ... which may be interpreted?

If we can learn the rules they are bound by, we can then find ways to out maneuver them and gain the advantage over them.

16 hours ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

This links back to another thread here - what is the point of the "Occult" skill? It may not tell us much of the roots of the Big Bastards but it tells us tales of their impact on us humans. It drops hints of weaknesses, it lets us know of 'conventions' that they may have to follow.

The occult (in CoC) gives us echoes of the Mythos ... which may be interpreted?

If we can learn the rules they are bound by, we can then find ways to out maneuver them and gain the advantage over them.

2 hours ago, Morien said:

Have you read 'The Dragon in Lyonesse' by Gordon R. Dickson? Heck, pretty much all of the Dragon Knight books are worth a read, even if they are somewhat higher in magic than is my preference. Comes from having the main character to be a magician, albeit a lower class one, not a true Master of the Arts.

I have not specifically run such a campaign, but that book & series came to mind when you mentioned it.

I have not heard of these books.  The ones I love the most were written by Stephen R. Lawhead' in his Pendragon Cycle.  I will have to look into these books. Thank you.

If you are all interested. I highly recommend you read Stephen R. Lawhead's book series, The Pendragon Cycle, and his King Raven Trilogy. They are a very historical take on the Arthurian legends and on Robin Hood, but they do not sacrifice the spirit of the stories either.

Hope you enjoy! 🙂

1 minute ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

How very realistic, eh?

If the Elder Gods are so far from our comprehension, how can we comprehend their motives?

Another thing I just thought of, while we may or may not be able to know the thoughts and motives of the elder gods, their physical actions are clear enough for us to see.  Perhaps over time we could find patterns to their actions, and therefor, ways to potentially push them back.

5 minutes ago, jeffjerwin said:

Well this would be Cambrians specifically, not the lowland peoples of Logres; on the other hand, Welsh troops were also famously poorly outfitted, so they weren't very effective except as bowmen. By the 1400s of course (I'm estimating here as I'm more of a cultural/literary historian) the English proper spent quite a bit of time training with the longbow, and the longbowmen wore armor.

Yeah. They eventually learned it from the Cymri, and of course, technology marches on.

15 minutes ago, Morien said:

I am probably one of the most vocal critics of the cultural skill system. In short, I dislike them intensely, since they lock you into a cultural stereotype. There are clear minmax cultures to pick if you wish to be, say, a courtier (Romans). You will simply be much better since you only have one skill (Law) you have to raise, while the Cymri have at least two, Courtesy and Intrigue. This becomes a huge advantage in 15+ levels, and especially if you push them to 20+, as it only costs you 1 Glory Bonus Point instead of two. And the same for Yearly Training points prior to 20. And if you want to be a Saxon and fight in the shieldwall, guess what, your cultural skill is useless if you want to use a shield.

So you will end up with characters whose role and weapon choices are pretty much defined by their culture, rather than their individual preferences. And going against the stereotype is a big disadvantage since then you are inferior to another culture whose stereotype would give you at least some bonus you can use. For example, a Roman knight who wants nothing to do with Courtesy and Intrigue is objectively inferior with Lance and Spear compared to a Cymric knight. And so forth.

This is also a big reason why I dislike Family Characteristic. Like the cultural skill, it pretty much locks you into a certain role within the game group, based on a random roll. "Oh, you rolled Hunting +5? I guess you and all your children and children's children will be the Hunters in this campaign." Grr.

OK, rant over. Carry on.

At the same time, the Cymri of the time of the Normans, were masters of the long bow; preforming feats of archery that were feared and greatly desired by the English and the Normans. They were so good infarct that the way to determine a battle was by how many archers you had on your side, and if they were even, the victor was determined by how many Welsh archers they had.  A Cymri there for, should have a much higher cultural skill in archery than a common archer of the English or Normans.

23 minutes ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

Hear me out - I'm thinking on the hoof here ...

Use the same BRP game mechanics. That's a given. SAN is still important; after all, a human's imagination has far more impact on their state of mind than assumed. So ... we have investigators of the occult (as in the true definition of 'hidden knowledge') who start to see *gasp* an organised ... er ... organisation who do unspeakable things in the name of Great Cthulhu (Azathoth, Yog-Sothoth, whatever. Let's not get hung up about it.) Immediately the PCs have a foe, an organisation to fight against.

"Call yer Gods Daisy-Do BAD if you want but we'll take you down!"

Said Cultists (Yah Boo!) see the investigators as publicising stuff that, really, actually, aint good to publicise. Ice them thar nosey parkers!

The actuality - the Cultists being able to summon real, nasty, mind-bending crudmeisters - is missed by both. It's like both sides don't understand the entities that may be brought into the conflict. As said - what if the real, mind-numbing horrors actually notice the insects disturb their sleep/lethargy/indifference.*

* We've always assumed these entities actually want Earth. Why? What do they get out of it?

That is a cool story concept, neither the players nor the cultists know what the elder gods are up to, though the PCs want to stop them and the cultists want to gain power from them. 

In the game I am working on, the BBEG is a cosmic planet eating abomination that needs to feed off the Earth's life force to survive. However, instead of eating the world out right, it let its four children take control over the earth so that hey could learn to feed on it, like a mother cheetah teaching her cubs to hunt with the prey it caught. Once the children are feed, it will return to destroy the planet totally. 

The PCs, who are descendants of the humans who fled to Mars before the invasion, then have gain enough psychic power to fight and destroy these beings before the earth is lost. 

Hi. I am not a Pendragon player, but I am a big fan of Arthurian legends. I was wondering if any of you have ever run a campaign involving the myth where it says Arthur will return to save Britain in its darkest hour. How would you guys go about running such a campaign?

4 minutes ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

Games - one player or many - need to follow certain appeals in order to get players. A nihilistic attitude (we're all gonna die anyhow) doesn't encourage play. In an episode of Star Trek: Next Generation, Worf among others were upset that they hadn't won a competition. Riker pointed out that it wasn't winning but how you played the game. Worfs response? "If winning is unimportant, why keep score?"

As a Keeper, I want us all - both players and myself - to have a good time. That's the point of playing a game. If I have to dial back on the Mythos, to let players win "points", kill the bad guys and leave with a bit of sanity then so be it.

Yeah. Playing and having a good time should always be the most important thing GMs and PCs focus on, even if you have to bend the rules a bit to achieve it. You are also right that movies are rather incapable of showing the true scope of cosmic horrors and powers, but that is what imagination is for!😁

10 minutes ago, Stormkhan Cogg of Pavis said:

Frankly, I like the idea of a new approach: it's the investigators versus the cultists. The truth - if there is any - may be drip-fed to either side, making them more intent on their opposition ...

That is a very interesting idea, though I am not sure how you would implement it. How would you do it?