Battlestar Galactica + Space: 1999 = YES!

Somewhere there is a fanboy walking on water because he's done the Lord's work and weaved two classic space opera TV shows together into a miracle of awesome! Turns out the Galactica, wandering the cosmos for Earth has stumbled upon Moonbase Alpha adrift in the black. Far-out, sci-fi hijinks ensue!

MAP: Our Moon as a Wilderness - your next campaign?

The geniuses at University College London have made available--for free--a glorious map of the moon, as illustrated by astronomer Walter Goodacre in 1920. Words cannot describe how incredible this map is, so I'll just show you (click to embiggen):

That's a resized version (by me, so I could fit it here, but also messed up the clarity) of one page of his original publication. Go now to the UCL site and feast your eyes on full-size scans of the pages! You can also peek at these on Flickr in a slightly more approachable format.

And that's not all! They've digitally stiched the entire map back together into a clean, line drawn version that you can download--in either 130mb and 300mb versions.

The thought of printing this out and spreading it onto a table to use as a wilderness adventure or a lunar wargaming map is almost geographically obscene. My GM-brain is salivating at the mere notion of a Victorian-age steampunk/dieselpunk campaign, tromping through the wilds of the moon!

Heading to Con of the North 2014!

Busting out of my self-imposed, baby daddy exile to bring you the news that--YES--there will be an X-plorers game at Con of the North! It will be a Rad Astra setting of my own making. Here's the quick/dirty submission I sent for the con listing:

RAD ASTRA: Far-Out Space Opera! Pack your ray pistol and laser sword for a rules-light, mash-up of B-grade, sci-fi exploitation movies, 70s space opera TV, and Bronze Age comics! You're part of a group of interstellar swashbucklers pursued by agents of the Drukar Empire on a quest for intergalactic infamy and fortune! Choose your class: Space Ranger, Astrosassin, Starlocke or Starbarian!

Game details: 4-6 players, pre-gens will be available with some tweakability by the players. Game is scheduled for 4 hours (which is 2 hours longer than the previous session).

If I can get my act together (that's sort of a big "if") I may run a second game. As it is, I'm still working on the class descriptions for Astrosassin and Starlocke, so I don't want to bite off more than I can chew!

Finally, I'm looking for some input on what type of adventure sounds most fun over on my Google Plus page, so check that out and let me know what you think!

TONIGHT: Talking ELYSIUM on HuffPost Live

What up nerds?! I'll be a guest blogger on HuffPost Live tonight, 7pm central with Nancy Redd, talking to actress Alice Braga about her role in the new sci-fi film Elysium (maybe you've heard of it?).

Here's the link to watch! Come see me make an absolute fool of myself on live webstream!!

UPDATE: The interview is now archived here.

New X-plorers Class: Starbarian!

"Suddenly have a craving for an Oreo and birdseed blizzard..."

Are you a muscle-bound brute who's recently become custodian of a far away and savage planet? Congratulations, you're a Starbarian!* You've just joined the ranks of battle-savvy, star warriors that excel at warmongering planetside in light attire. As such, clean our your closet, because you can only wear one piece of armor (anything higher than leather). Common choices include a harness, helm, sleeve of steel (mail or jointed plate), or shield.

Prerequisite Attributes
Strength/Physique of 13 or higher OR Dexterity/Agility of 13 or higher is required for this class.

The robo death squad was unsure if it was Helga's *Galactic Guts* or flair for feathered headgear that roused them to battle.

Starbarian Skills
Just because you're a ragin' brute, doesn't mean you can't handle yourself around technology! Maybe you're a lost traveler from another star, stranded on a strange and savage planet. Never fear, Starbarians can start with any two of the following skills and benefit from the modifiers listed below:

Level	Pilot Ancient Tech	Survival	Weapons Specialist	Beast Whisperer	Stealth
1 Tendertoes	+1	+2	+1d4	+1	+2
2 Furfang	+1	+1d4	+1d4+1	+2	+1d4
3 Bonescratcher	+2	+1d4	+d4+2	+3	+1d4
4 Battleaxe	+3	+1d4+1	+1d4+3	+1d4	+1d4+1
5 Warrior at Arms	+1d4+1	+1d6	+1d6	+1d4+1	+1d6
6 Doom Dealer	+1d6	+1d6	+1d6+1	+1d4+2	+1d6
7 Moon Mauler	+1d6+1	+1d6+1	+1d6+2	+1d6	+1d+1
8 Vanquisher of the Void	+1d6+2	+1d6+1	+1d6+3	+1d6+1	+1d6+1
9 Guardian of the Galaxy	+2d6	+2d6	+2d6	+1d6+2	+2d6
10 Champion of the Cosmos	+2d6+1	+2d6+1	+2d6+1	+1d8	+2d6+1

After reaching Level 5, Starbarians may add additional skill sets, starting first with the ones listed here and then at their GM's discretion.

Skill Descriptions

"I can't believe he wanted extra for the windsheild!"

Pilot Ancient Tech - Drive one type of land, sea, or air vehicle with extra proficiency. Technology is typically of an abandoned nature and therefore difficult to fix. Starbarian will need to take vehicle to a local technician (i.e., wizard) for repairs or modifications.

Survival - For this class, Survial covers running, free-hand climbing, swimming, leaping, and enduring extreme climates. At level 10, Starbarian earns the title "Planetstrider".

Weapons Specialist - Starbarian gains bonus in any of the following weapon categories. At level 5, Starbarian can wield any melee-weapon type of her or his choosing, with each hand and suffer no penalty in combat. Weapon choice should indicate signature weapon for that warrior. Acceptable weapons include:

• Club (bone)
• Scythe (bone)
• Mace (metal)
• Axe (stone)
• Axe (metal)
• Sword (bone)
• Sword (metal)
• Spear (stone)
• Spear (metal)

Warrior may substitute the double-wielding ability for the one following ranged weapons, which will come with a quiver or bandolier of extra ammo. Bandolier holds twice the ammo listed below:

• Sling (12 stones)
• Crossbow (10 bolts)
• Longbow (10 arrows)
• Conventional handgun, non-automatic (6 rounds)
• Raygun (6 blasts)
• Laser rifle (6 blasts)

"Father, Igoo made a mesa went he went #2."

Beast Whisperer - Communicate orders to native animal life. At Level 5, Starbarian can take a familiar. If character forgoes familar at level 5, she/he can take a faithful mount at level 7. At level 10, Starbarian gains telepathic connection with that familiar or mount, regardless of Wisdom or Presence attribute score--and the title of "Beastshiner." This skill also helps in communicating with beast-like races of humanoids.

Stealth - Skill allows Starbarian to duck detection per the bonuses listed. At level 6, character gains an extra attack at the beginning of combat where initiative is won. At level 10, the title of "Ghostslither" is conferred with much respect of his or her foes.

Special Abilities
In addition to the skills listed above, those with ability of 14 on a given attribute may choose one of the following special abilities for that score. These additional abilities probably manifested through a spiritual connection to the planet--and only work while on that world. All special abilities may be used once per game session.

• Strength/Physique - Supernova: Starbarian flies into battle rage, which adds an extra attack for 1d6+1 rounds during combat.
• Intelligence - Starspeake: Starbarian speaks in tongues an ancient magic that grants them supreme focus (+3) in any single task for 3 rounds.
• Wisdom/Presence - PsyEyes: Starbarian can see through any familiar or friendly character's eyes for 1d4 rounds.
• Charisma/Presence - Galactic Guts: Whether facing foes or rallying allies, Starbarian gains a +3 to intimidation of enemies or inspiring morale in comrades for 3 rounds.
• Dexterity/Agility - Quickening: Double movement for 1d4 rounds without penalty.
• Constitution/Physique - Bones of Stone/Blood of Shade: Survival OR Stealth skill goes through the roof for 1d4 rounds by doubling bonus.

Need some inspiration?
Here was mine: Zandor of the Herculoids, He-Man, John Carter of Mars, Tarzan, Blackstar, Beastmaster, Warlord, Gor, and yes, Thundarr.


NOTE: This post assumes familiarity with X-plorers ruleset, but can be converted easily to other games. Attribute equivalencies for D&D also given.

*STARBARIAN may be replaced with FARBARIAN, WARRIOR OF THE WARP or WARPBARIAN or something else entirely, upon publication. I've permission from X-plorers publisher, Brave Halfling to use the game's rules and stats and intend to publish a supplement, using the class name and description above. Okay to use in your personal gaming, but not to be published without my express consent. :)