Messages

61

Discussion and Debate - The Philosopher's Plaza / Re: In the News

« on: March 22, 2019, 06:22:01 PM »

It's a fantastic cluster-portugal demonstrating the need for a different political system. It's also not apparent what happens if we just brexit the hell out and leave south ireland to irle.

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Norbayne / Re: The Norbayne Suggestion Thread

« on: February 24, 2019, 10:55:45 AM »

Tbf I think I pinched that from Warhammer roleplaying game or something, can't take credit for it

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Norbayne / Re: The Norbayne Suggestion Thread

« on: February 23, 2019, 11:27:14 AM »

Suggestion 481b - The blunderbuss requires a short rest to reload but does a ton more damage with it's one shot per combat.

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Tabletop Games - The Game Room / Re: P&P YouTube channels.

« on: January 05, 2019, 10:50:34 PM »

No problem!

Cool, not heard of them I'll give them a look tomorrow!

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Tabletop Games - The Game Room / Re: P&P YouTube channels.

« on: January 01, 2019, 03:32:11 PM »

Oh my man, this is 100% my jam.

JP McDaniels has the Rollplay channel with a ton of D&D editions and a huge variety of other games as one-shots or short campaigns including a fantastic Blades in the Dark, Stars Without Number, Shadowrun, Maid RPG, Sagas of the Icelanders and more. He has some meat grinder d&d like West Marches with an incredible amount of cast members held together with some kind of adamantine superglue in the form of game designer and DM supreme Steven Lumpkin. More recently Court of Swords started as the most deadly game of D&D I've seen but it then mellowed as one character in particular became surprisingly unkillable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iofsg3hqZjo&index=1&list=PL-oTJHKXHicQ0jv37mr8D9kRFXox7-PXD

The most talked about show is Critical Role which has a cast of professional voice actors, a huge loreful world and fantastic improvisation. I've watched it all and it's a thing you can get invested in but honestly you learn little to nothing about playing D&D, I'm not even sure what edition they play tbh. The greater Geek and Sundry umbrella incorporates a ton of board games and other shows with different games in but I've not seen that content due to getting that sort of thing from Rollplay.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-p9lWIhcLQ&list=PL7atuZxmT954bCkC062rKwXTvJtcqFB8i

Another channel which I feel confident in recommending but have never watched is Sherlock Hulmes High Rollers: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3qtZRMtWNaD2Q96STxgOrA
They do RPGs and I think tabletop as well.

Any questions about specific channels or games, give me a shout

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Computer Game Development - The Indie Alley / Re: Heralds of The Order - Turn based tactics focusing to the genres core principals

« on: December 16, 2018, 08:19:28 PM »

Yeah it's not insurmountable at all, it's no more awkward than learning banner saga's health/damage/armour system or Hard West's luck system.

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Computer Game Development - The Indie Alley / Re: Heralds of The Order - Turn based tactics focusing to the genres core principals

« on: December 16, 2018, 01:29:12 AM »

I played this and filled out the survey. The resistance levels are unintuitive it has to be said, usually gold would be best, silver middle and bronze weak. There are great reasons to break conventions but not all the time


Overall I like the game, there is a lot of thematic power to it. By that I mean that there is a clear real-world analogous identity to the fiction but still distinct.

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Exilian Articles / Re: Race or Species: The Humanisation of Monsters

« on: May 28, 2018, 12:35:23 AM »

No problem, glad you liked it! Yeah he's both very much in the DM space and the queer space so it's super interesting to watch him mix the two

I watch a ton of his content on JPs Rollplay shows and I watch Matt DM on Critical role. Both are progressive, culturally aware guys who take different stances to D&D and that difference is interesting to me.

Mhm the D&D starter thing is pretty much: walk out of tavern, kill goblins afaik. It is designed to take all the pressure off the DM. I do tend to disagree with him that it's just written into D&D in this edition (certainly it is in previous ones, no quarrel) but I think that comes from him DM'ing since the 80s and the things being just so ingrained in him (like 90% of people DM'ing atm) against me starting getting into RPGs recently. Also I think it comes from starting with non-D&D RPGs, more liberal, more story based, egalitarian by design RPGs such as Masks and Blades in the Dark.

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Exilian Articles / Re: Race or Species: The Humanisation of Monsters

« on: May 27, 2018, 05:07:47 PM »

My guy Adam Koebel is a god of race, ethics, philosophy, stereotypes and allsuch things in a tabletop RPG environment. I think this episode has some of an answer to what you're looking at here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CTAC6-8GdQ&list=PLAmPx8nWedFVGdrP2JmcYzdvZC8sWV5b4&index=40. If not tweet at him or something he answers a ton of questions.

The type of game you're describing is pretty old though I'd have to say; I think a lot of new games (D&D 5th included) are less encounter heavy and have more weight on RP'ing. In Forgotten Realms, the goblin race (as part of the goblinoid species) are given some standard traits (persuasive, deceitful), and share a common history of tribalism. However, it clearly says they have the capacity for intelligence and emotion and whatever else you can think of and some 'civilised, good' goblins are found in most 'commonly good inhabited' cities. Physicality (short, agile, small fangs, pointed ears) can't particularly be changed that much which is sort of what makes them goblins I guess.

Sticking all goblins in your world as previous edition goblins or lotr goblins is literally just convenience or bad DM'ing, depending. Or perhaps in your world, yes, all goblins are armadillos

In modern D&D and other TT games from recent years there has been a tendency for these books to say: just ignore the whole thing if you want and keep only the mechanics - you do you.

Also while yeah you can create an RPG with drunkard, fat elves. Lithe Dwarf supermodels, humans being the literal gods and Orcs being shy scholars as a generalism - does it really make it any better or worse than the current expectations of variations of kith? I'd be inclined to think no.

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Forum Games - The Beer Cellar! / Re: Word Association

« on: May 05, 2018, 03:49:24 PM »

underrated superhero and movie. Also leet page


Moon-Knight

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Computer Game Development - The Indie Alley / Re: Hero death in warband-style games

« on: March 28, 2018, 10:00:26 PM »

This may or may not be helpful but recent total wars have given the leaders and their bodyguard a ton of melee defence but relatively low attack for the tier they're supposed to be.


I agree that injuries can easily lead to frustration and immortality a)doesn't suit a lot of games and b) yeah not having another game over condition would lower the stakes dramatically.


If you have ration or upkeep mechanics then those could be lose conditions? Or could the hero literally have to be the last piece of the army to die?

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Computer Game Development - The Indie Alley / Re: Hero death in warband-style games

« on: March 28, 2018, 09:26:10 PM »

I mildly disagree on your use of the term 'warband games', those are not particularly defined but usually I've seen that term used to describe games like Mordheim: City of the Damned (PC and TT), Warband (PC), Battle Brothers, Templar Battleforce. Games in which the party and/or encounters of said party are at least mostly randomly generated at some level. This is in contrast with Chroma Squad, JRPGS, Dragon Age which have definite characters even though a fair amount of the combat/encounters can be random.


Having said that - I also don't like the term I use for the type of games you mean: Legion RPGs but I use that because they have a lot more troops than what I call warband games.

With my unnecessary bs out the way: it depends what vibe you're going for. High fantasy usually has heroes only die to plot and in low, anyone with a pitchfork and racism can kill the main character (hey witcher fans).


Would HOMM be better with killable heroes? No. HOMM 4 did that and it's almost exclusively regarded as the worst in the series.
Would Disciples (another prominent Legion RPG, mid fantasy, heroes are randomly named warrior, mage, rogue or merchant) be better if heroes were immortal? Not sure, the facelessness of them means that you aren't as invested in them when they die.


Theme of the game plays another part - if the game is supposed to be hard, heroes dying adds difficulty as it basically removes a 'try again' button.


If other gamers are anything like me then an injury system has to be interesting - lose an arm: no shield/2h/ranged but +1 to attack with single handed and +1 AC etc. without the bonus coming from injury, re-rolling the character just seems like a better option.

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Norbayne / Re: Norbayne Timeline

« on: March 13, 2018, 07:14:58 PM »

+1

Bear in mind I am that one guy that eats all the lore you lay down.

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General Chatter - The Boozer / Re: Workshop Booze Up VII - Seven stars, seven stones, and one light beer!

« on: March 06, 2018, 06:46:54 PM »

Happy birthday buddy, 24 is okay but 25 is actually decent so like, good things ahead

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Exilian Articles / Re: Vampires & Music

« on: February 19, 2018, 07:37:57 PM »

Ah I love them, aloof, effortless, feckless, lazy, a disarming aura, an air of mystery. Beautiful decadence, prideful narcissism. Prone to flights of fancy, stunned by beauty, innately more 'human' than most creatures of darkness.


They're very much 'twilight/true blood' vampires which gives them a bad rap. Having said that I love playing this super casual being with sudden bursts of energy and glaring weakness


Musically I'd have to find something that just sounds good and it's innately cool without trying. Loathe to say it but Beatles maybe? I'll look into it.