Introducing: SATURDAY NIGHT SPACE OPERA!

LIVE, FROM SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA! (Actually, it's in Roseville, but whatever...) ---in the game room at Source Comics & Games it's---

The urge to game has finally taken hold and Saturday Night Space Opera is a chance to get your scifi fix amid the crowd of fantasy-heavy game nights.

FIRST GAME IN ONE WEEK!
Our first session kicks off January 3, 2015 at 6:00 p.m., and we'll return to hypergate coordinates every first Saturday of the month from 6pm to close. The honorable Star Admiral John Till of FATE SF is co-commanding the fleet with myself. (Finger crossed that he'll run a Strange Stars campaign in sometime in the future!)

SO MANY GAMES, TOO LITTLE SPACETIME
The first few sessions, I'll be running a Rad Astra mini campaign for X-plorers RPG. We're hoping folks enjoy gallivanting around the galaxy so much that we'll end up hosting several simultaneous games. What kind of games, you ask?

There's a lot of different systems (and settings) out there, here's just a few up for consideration:

• Cosmic Patrol
• FATE Core / Starblazer Adventures / Strange Stars
• Firefly
• Marvel Superheroes (FASERIP) set in Marvel Cosmic universe
• Metamorphosis Alpha
• Spelljammer
• Star Frontiers
• Star Trek
• Star Wars (West End Games and/or Fantasy Flight Games)
• Stars Without Number
• The Strange
• Tekumel
• Traveller /Thousand Suns
• X-plorers
• And more!

If you're interested in being a GM, let us know.

We're hoping to see more tabletop games join the fleet too:

• Battle Beyond Space 
• Cosmic Encounter
• Eclipse
• Firefly board game
• Fluxx
• Race for the Galaxy
• Space Cadets
• Space Empires
• Space Hulk
• Star Munchkin
• Star Fleet Battles
• Star Realms
• Star Trek miniatures (Wizkids)
• Star Wars: Imperial Assault
• Star Wars: X-wing
• Twilight Imperium
• You name it!

DON'T LET THE WOOKIE WIN
Stop kicking yourself for being stuck in the launch bay and wanting to play more games. 2015 IS THE FUTURE! Add some far-out space-capades to your weekend and join us---RSVP NOW!

Click cheesy flyer image to visit the full site!

Con of the North event submitted!

Well I'm all paid up for my third visit to Con of the North, come February. I decided this time around I'd like to focus on playing games rather than running a bunch. I got sick of missing out on so many awesome games. In light of that I did submit one event for X-plorers. Here's the description:

RAD ASTRA: Gonzo, Space Adventure!
Pack your ray blaster, charge your laser sword and take off on a far-out, interstellar adventure! Get set for a rules-light, mash-up of sci-fi B-movies, 70s space opera TV, and Bronze Age comics. You're the galaxy's last hope on a do-or-die mission against a horde of savage space vikings, alien astrosassins, and sinister space wizards! Your swashbuckling, Saturday night space opera is here baby!   

I left the plot details out but sprinkled in some of the elements that will hopefully attract sci-fi fans. Maybe I should have put the words "space," "opera," and "adventure" in there a few more times? Aw well. In any case,  I have just over five months to procrastinate until I get my shit together the week before--so exciting! 

Con of the North 2015 is February 13-15 at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West.

X-plorers on sale for GM Day!

X-plorers softcover edition + PDF on sale for under $12!

March 4th was GM's Day, but DriveThruRPG is having a sale this week (and through the weekend) on digital and print-on-demand products. X-plorers is included in that list and you can pick up the PDF for less than $5 or the softcover AND PDF for less than $12. The softcover--by itself--usually retails for $12.95, so this is a REALLY good deal.

If you've been on the fence you really can't go wrong with $11.46 for a printed and digital copy!

Get X-plorers at DriveThruRPG

Con of the North: LEVEL 1

This past Saturday I enjoyed my first venture to Con of the North, the big gaming convention here in the Twin Cities. I've been to many a comic convention and Convergence (the geek culture con) but this was my initial foray into the gaming crowd's natural territory.



Saint Dave of Blackmoor

If you weren't aware, Minnesota--and particularly the Saint Paul/Minneapolis metro area--has a thriving game community. I'm sure some credit goes to Dave Arneson (Saint Paul's patron gaming saint) for his involvement/innovation in the early days of wargaming and roleplaying.

Whatever kept the die rolling in this town has really taken permanent root.

The con was Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and I'd signed up for a few games on each day, but I didn't get to any of them. Both as a consequence of an unusually hectic work week and the fact that I wanted to polish the Rad Astra adventure I ran for X-plorers on Saturday night.

But I didn't miss out on gaming.

Gaining XP as a First-time Con-goer

One of the great things about Con of the North is that everyone is gaming everywhere--including the hallways! One game I stumbled upon was a tricked-out version of Aliens!

Now, I'm not even a huge fan of the film (I like it just fine, but I'm not an Aliens fanboy, per se) but this was not to be missed. It used 6" action figures for the marines and aliens and a TON of scratch-built debris as the terrain.  See if you can identify all the sci-fi references built into the game (click on pics to embiggen):

Everything from Star Wars to Doctor Who action figures were used--in some creative way to be in scale. The gameboard itself was at least 6 feet long and each space about 3"x3" (possibly larger).  

The guy behind this fantastic setup is Steve Bauman--he built the game and drew up his version of the rules. I don't know if playing with action figures as pawns is a relatively new thing at cons, but this was just pure fun. Steve called his version "Aliens: Escape from the Robotics Lab".

There was another game with a different board set up going on at the same time and due to a mix-up (that there were two of these Aliens games going on simultaneously but in different locations) Steve's players all ended up at that other game table. So I got to join in along with a few other passerbys. 

It's been a few days since the con, but I believe the gameplay went something like this:

The objective is to get at least 7 of 9 marines across the board, regardless of whether they're healthy, wounded, or incapacitated (carried by other marines). Sequence of play (as best I can recall):

1. Aliens move (they move 4)
2. New aliens appear (always 3)
3. Aliens attack (they "grab" prey, leaving them unable to fight)
4. Marines move/attack (up to 3 actions, depending on character)
5. Repeat!

Each marine has a card with the number of actions they can take and their weapon determines their range. So Apone has the flamethrower (I got to play him!) and he can fry aliens without dealing with splashback from acid, but the fire only goes up to 4 squares away. Meanwhile Hicks (has, I think a pulse rifle? shotgun?) can hit foes even farther away.

 Apone and his flamethrower! 

A queen! GAME OVER MAN, GAME OVER!

"I'll...be...right...here...attacking from behind!"

The game uses d10 (10 = zero) and you want to roll lower (generally). It's based on line-of-sight and they even had laser pointers to help judge angles. 

Seriously, without exaggeration, this was one of the coolest games I've ever played!

Sadly, I didn't get to finish since I had to get to my table for the game I was running. But Steve didn't let me leave without a parting gift. See, we here in Minnesota, live in the Land of the State Fair (our largest, longest, and most fattening tradition).

So, of course, I took home one of these:

ALIEN-ON-A-STICK!

SO MUCH FUN!!!

(Pics were kinda' fuzzy, sorry about that!)

There also was one game I didn't get to play but looked amazing.

CONvergence Coverage: Costume Pics

I attended Convergence Sci-Fi and Fantasy convention here in the Twin Cities today, which had a rather steampunk theme (but there was a variety of themes present). I'm beat, but I thought I'd show a few pics I snapped of some costumed crusaders:

More later!

Convergence Con in the Twin Cities This Weekend!

Man, I'm totally slipping! Somehow this one got by me--but there's still time: Convergence Con sci-fi/fantasy gaming/comic/local celebrity extravaganza is is going on this weekend. It started today and runs through Sunday, so if you're within driving distance set your booster to maximum power out and get out here! Stat block:

What: The four-day annual convention for fans of science fiction and fantasy, with celebrity guests, film screenings, live music, a masquerade ball and themed party rooms
When: Thu.-Sun 6/30-7/3
Where: Sheraton Bloomington Hotel, 7800 Normandale Blvd., Bloomington
Registration: $80
Web: www.convergence-con.org

Event Programming
In addition to the usual (artist alley, gaming, nerd movies, silent auctions, costume contests) the program schedule includes some real gems like "I'm Your GM, Not Your Therapist" and "Elaborate Death Traps and Why They Never Work" so you know you're definitely getting your money's worth.


More Info
Local zine Vita.MN did a great article about local musician Jeremy Messersmith's D&D game. They also did a nice de-coding guide for newbies and non-nerds so you can just send it to your significant other without further explanation and they'll instantly speak your lingo/encourage you to attend. (Kidding! Like that would be possible....).

Anyway, my birthday is tomorrow so I'll check it out this weekend as a present to myself.  :)

Have you ever played Player Vs. Player in an RPG?

I'm asking mainly if anyone out there in the blogosphere has experience actually playing player v. player RPG session (or campaign?). I know that there's a few games out there with rules and such, but I'm just conducting a little research...using anecdotal evidence of course. I've peeked in a few forums, but I thought I'd ask my peeps.

So, anyone? Bueller? Comments please!

The Secret History of Spelljammer and a Question

Former TSR game wizard Jeff Grubb has done a another "secret history of" post on his blog, this time about Spelljammer--a game near and dear to his heart--that I think is fascinating. There's a lot to love/learn from his post, but some of the best is the fact that the game was inspired by a single image:

One of the things that I came into the pitch session with was the idea that I wanted to push the envelope on what D&D fantasy was. Yeah, we had done FR and DL, but those had been written down as typical fantasy worlds. Vanilla fantasy. Default fantasy. Background static. Here was a chance to go out on more of a limb and push the envelope. So this was the chance to do D&D in space. I’m sorry – Innnnn Spaaaaaaace!

He goes on to describe that image:

A knight standing on the deck of a ship in space. He doesn’t freeze. He doesn’t blow up. He doesn’t float away. Everything that follows comes out of that one image, which is captured (with more to it as well) on the final cover Jeff Easley did. All what people have called “Grubbian Physics” with its air envelopes and its gravity planes, comes from creating a universe where that image is true.

If that's not the definition of weird science fantasy, I don't know what is. Sure it seems wacky at first, but it led to a whole new way of thinking in the game and opened a really imaginative approach to the genre (which he talks more about in his post).

Fair disclosure: I'm not even a fan of Spelljammer. Always thought it was a little too out there, which is my own fault for not giving it a chance. But I'm willing to admit what a fool I've been! Anyway, I'm just getting to the good part, which is:

For the boxed sets at that time, we had a format – two 96-page books, 4 big color maps, and a bunch of light cardboard sheets. Our task was to fill that space. Sometimes the format worked, sometimes it was less successful. For Spelljammer, we used them to create the ship stat cards and standups. So that worked out pretty well.

A Challenge!
So, here you have a template:

• 1 box, 
• 2 books
• 4 maps
• Some cardboard sheets

Make a game. Take an image--real or imagined--and base an entire game on it. Think what the cover would look like, what the books would cover, and most intriguingly, what do you do with those cardboard sheets?

Using the same items and format, what type of game do you come up with? To the comments my friends!

X-plorers vs. Star Frontiers

So here's a quick update on my search for a ruleset. I'm looking closely (exclusively) at two systems X-plorers and Star Frontiers. X-plorers, for those not familiar, is a recent "imagining" of 0E RPGs had they been sci-fi based instead of fantasy. Star Frontiers is more like a first cousin to D&D since it came directly from TSR. Most of this is on setting and character creation, I'm still working my way up to game mechanics on both sets (I'm reading them simultaneously so it's taking a bit longer).Click the images to visit each game's website.

First impressions about X-plorers...

Quick and easy character creation rules, so far better than Star Frontiers (see below). It's 3d6 based which is intuitive if you're a D&D person and the main attributes are boiled down to just four simple stats. I'm not too crazy about some of the setting stuff in X-plorers, but the book even says that everything is malleable. A big corporation acts as the sole organization for exploring, which kinda turns me off. Likewise for the heavily armored soldiers which seem like "kinghts in space". They're set up as kind of the default for the setting, and I don't see that panning out for a campaign I'd want to do. If I choose this one I'll likely discard some of those trappings. I could use a little more description in the way of equipment and aliens, but I can pick that up from other sources too I guess. I think sci-fi works much differently in that you want a certain degree of description. Magic is magic--it doesn't require explanation because...it's magical! Sci-fi needs that explanation of how stuff works--even if it's minimal.

First impressions about Star Frontiers...

I really dig the atmosphere (I think it's the artwork to be honest!), and maybe I just like that there are a few more details (not too many) in these manuals. There's still a big corporate influence in this one too, again, this can be mitigated or re-worked. The big discovery was that I'm not a fan of the PC creation rules which employs this weird re-scaling chart after rolling d10s. I don't mind d10s per se, but I'm confused why SF has players rolling d10s then using that number to determine an entirely different one on a 1-70 range to find an attribute score. It's all just too convoluted.

UPDATE: Here's an image of the weird chart in question:

WTF?

More to come, but feel free to share your observations as well. I'm learning about these two examples rules for the first time really, having played WEG Star Wars back in the day. I'd like to try something new, which is why I'm investing time with these two sets, but I'm also not opposed to borrow heavily from my roots.

New X-plorers Fanzine!

Mike D. over at Sword+1 is starting an X-plorers fanzine he's named "Boarding Action". This is sort of the publishable part of his mega-dungeon-in-space project.

I imagine this will be to X-plorers what Fight On! is to Swords and Wizardry. He's taking submissions through March 1, so if you've got some sci-fi goodness in the hopper, send it on in!

Sword+1 is a great blog in and of itself. Mike's the author of Ruins and Ronin a Swords and Wizardry ruleset based on Asian-styled adventuring.

You would prefer another target? A military target? Then name the SYSTEM!

If only I could! The problem is there's more Sci-Fi RPGs out there than you can shake a stick at. To be honest, I'm in a similar situation as Doug over at Athanor. But I figure, this is as good as any exercise to develop some ideas and we'll see where it goes from there.

Anyway, on to the good stuff! I've recently invested in an old box set of Star Frontiers I purchased from ebay. I'd previously downloaded all the PDFs available at StarFrontiersman.com, a sort of super fan site that has "remastered" all of the old material into nice, clean PDFs. The Frontiersman also offers its own magazine supplement (also in PDF format) which provides loads of gaming material. But I'm not sure SF is THE system yet. Currently I'm also looking at Star Blazers, X-plorers (on it's way from LuLu), and James Maliszewski's Thousand Suns. All would provide the proper amount of "pulpy" sci-fi I'm looking for.

Back in High School I played the original Star Wars RPG by West End Games. I really loved that system and there's no reason to think I couldn't strip out the Star Wars branded stuff and start from scratch. (I love SW, but I'm not interested in playing a straight SW-themed game right now).

And I haven't even hacked into Gamma World, or it's OSR equivellant, Mutant Future for that matter!  At this point I'm overwhelmed, but I think I'll settle on something soon. At the moment I've opted to stay away from GURPS and I've not looked at Traveller (for the moment). From what I've read Thousand Suns is sort of Traveller stripped down, so perhaps that's a better alternative anyway. That's not to say I won't borrow source material. There's just lots to choose from, including several I've not even mentioned.

So where does that leave us? Which system? Well, let's say that it's in research and development at this stage....

Oh, and suggestions, insights, and criticism are welcome (as always)!