Gamer's Gate - From the Perspective of a Tavern Keeper Blocked by All of the Main Players (Rant)

This post will make me few friends, That's okay tho', because those that will be most offended already have me blocked on social media ;)

Here is the story of "Gamer's Gate" in a nut shell, broken down to it's core existence. Names have been changed to protect the assholes involved at the core - the nuts in the center of the shell if you will.

On the one side we have "The Dark Side", which is strange as she see's herself as a force of good. Her main henchman - the infamous "Research Assistant."

On the other side, we have "Punk Porn", who also sees herself as a force of good, albeit with tattoos and piercings and other aspects that are not regarded as usual by those that are boring and usual. Her main henchman - the short and smug "Third Rate Porn Actor Artist."

Both sides claim to speak for all sides, even those that have taken no sides.

If you fail to agree with "The Dark Side", all hell and wrath shall be brought upon you, ye unbeliever, harasser and general evil doer.  Beware, the "Rainbow Haired Master of Fate" my come to their aid, and then begins the true name calling. Social media blocking may come at a later point, but not before they attempt to brand you with a Scarlet Letter.

If you disagree with the "Punk Porn" side of things they will simply talk over you in a louder voice before you eventually get blocked from this and all further communications. They simply don't have patience for those that don't toe their line, and as they are smarter than the rest, or at least, more smug, they'd rather just converse with their converted. Their sometimes aid is "Destructo."

Both sides share one common trait - inability to listen to anyone that disagrees with them in the least. Both sides could be considered fundamentalists of sorts, preaching to their drones and then sending them out to do battle with the opposing side.

I'd tell both sides to go fuck themselves, but all the main players have me blocked. I guess it was obvious fairly early on that I was not convertible, that I would walk my own path. Thus, like I would assume the majority of The Tavern's readers, I am damned to Gamer's Hell by both sides. In this case, it is better to game in hell than listen to the same drivel about full length chainmail armor on fictitious female characters and bronze braziers. Remember, it's all in the mind anyway.

Sure, maybe it's not a PERFECTLY accurate story of Gamer's gate, but it does put it all into perspective ;)

Wayward Kickstarter - Nystul's Infinite Dungeon - Infinite Nystulian Magic (update)

As Mike's last update was back in mid August on this project, I figured I'd share the latest:

Update #68

Jan 2 2015

Happy New Year!

3 comments

 Like
 2 likes
Many thanks for the good wishes.

I have the files from D3 I will need to get the final version of the initial project to you. I have to do some layout and put in what art I have to make it look as good and be as useful as possible.

Beyond this I plan to put together some additional materials since even though I will be sending out a version of the Infinite Dungeon that you all will be able to use I would like to get you some resources that will better fit the definition of "Infinite". I will say no more since at this point I think simply getting it to you like I did the dungeon tiles will be more effective.

I hope you are all off to a great start his year!

Best - Mike

oh, and Mike's response to a request for an ETA:

Creator Mike Nystul about 11 hours ago
ETAs are useless. I can post something but people will respond "lies - you have given ETAs before and they mean nothing". Thing is - they would be right, My track record on this project (and the other Kickstarters) has been awful. There are reasons, but they are immaterial. What matters is performance. All that really matters is what I get to you.

I believe we released an ashcan of the original ID some time ago which was the project developed when I had a team working on it and hoped to do a series. It focuses on an island and an order that protects a dungeon. I can see if that ashcan is still somewhere I can repost if you like.

If anything, Mike is perhaps understating how bad his Kickstarter track record is, but he is better at admitting it than most these days. I will give the man credit where credit is due.

Now, about those other Kickstarters languishing under the effects of Nystulian magic...

The Grumpy Dwarf Critiques - Kickstarter "Spam" - Letters From the Mindless Marketers and Amateur Manipulators - Part the First

No, I ain't referin' to "spam" such as you get from certain "trolls" every time they launch a new Kickstarter severely in need of editing. No, I'm talking about the shite sent directly to Kickstarter creators, promising everything from raising millions of dollars to larger penises.

Lets all given some of these gems a look, shall we?

Hello there (gotta luv the impersonal greeting),

My name is Nick and I'm the lead crowdfunding Ad Specialist (me, myself and I) with Kick Me in the Nuts (not their real name). We're a unique service that specializes in launching highly targeted Facebook promotions for live Kickstarter campaigns like yours (yes, you Kickstarter campaign that we know nothing about).

Your project caught the attention of myself and my team (hey! look, we might have a new mark!). We noticed that you're not driving as many supporters from Facebook as you could be (because we have special powers), so we wanted to get in touch. How is your campaign going so far (we have no idea, so we need to have you tell us)?

If you want to cover all your bases, our targeted Facebook promotions are a very inexpensive and aggressive way get in front of your target market and drive new supporters. Learn more about our program here: Kickmeinthenuts.com/HowItWorks

It really doesn't get any better than our guaranteed reach too (or out reach around) (especially when you're crowdfunding on Kickstarter). I wanted to say that based on everything I've seen with your campaign and how many days you have remaining (because if we gave details, we'd actually have to look at your project, and we ain't wasting time on that shit), our promotions seem like a perfect fit for you.

Please take a look at our 3 different packages available (our most popular being the "Drive Supporters" package) on our website here: www.Kickmeintheasss.com/budget

Let me know which one you're most interested in (the one where you never email anyone ever again). I'd also like to talk more about your campaign and what your biggest headache has been when it comes to getting new supporters (I suspect emails like this)!
__

Looking forward to your reply,

Nick -- Ads Team

Call Us: (800) 999-Nevermind
Email: Nick@Kickmeinthenuts.com
Kickmeinthenuts.com -- We Make it Easy to Crowdfund with Facebook!

P.S. I'm always available to help! We've especially had a lot of success with campaigns
like yours in the Games category (we have absolutely no idea what your project is about)! Checkout some of our recent clients and testimonials here

unsubscribe from this list  (this means someone subscribed you to a list - naughty naughty)

Talk about an obnoxious pice of shit. Nick needs to get kicked in the nuts.
__________________________________________________________________________
JerryTheDick says:
I don't notice very much related to your project from a advertising perspective. You may possibly want to have a look at these crowd funding professionals (the only crowdfunding professional I know of is The Pundit - cough! cough! gag)

www.goo.gl/IEatPaint

they do a excellent job on social media. You could tweet to over 1 million targeted members for basically $10 "basically $10 (as in, "not really $10 but it sounds nice"). I've noticed them supporting other projects with crafting and publishing press releases as well.


Good luck!

At least Jerry is short - and still doesn't give a shit about who he is talking to. Yet ANOTHER form letter.
__________________________________________________________________________
Lali says:
Hi (faceless dude behind a Kickstarter),
Kickstarter uses an algorithm to rank campaigns on featured sections, the algorithm takes into account the number of contributions, social shares, unique site visits and other campaign activity. We offer services to boost those factors, starting at only $5!
We will make you a complementary contribution to your campaign (pay us $5 to support your project at the $1 level), we will share your project on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn with a combined total of 28 thousand followers (awesome - dumb fuck - I've got over 9k on G+, and they aren't paid or zombie nor do they expect to be constantly spammed by a spammer. Oh my God. Shit like this just pisses me off). If you are interested visit the link below to order my service.
http://bit.ly/kickstarterinthebutt

You will not receive any more messages from us unless you contact us.

I wish you lots of luck with your campaign!


Cheers

What the fuck is it with the impersonal form letter shit? I mean, if you want to manipulate someone, at least try to do so on a personal level.
____________________________________________________________________________
Scott Shitberg says:
Hello Niche (note - this is being addressed to +Pete Spahn at Small Niche Games),
congratulations on your success! (we don't need no proper capitalization!)- Guidebook to the City of Dolmvay
I have a great idea too, but I don't have enough funds to build the prototype (prototype?).
I am trying to raise money by selling the book I wrote (it's a fucking book! the prototype is the written words printed out on paper - if you can't fund that, Kickstarter can't help you)- http://goo.gl/griftingformoney
To be honest it's nothing special, but your support will be greatly appreciated http://goo.gl/griftingformoney)

Thank You!

No, thank you!

Alright, thus ends Part the First. Thanks Niche!

So Many Games - So Little Time - My 2015 "To Read" List

You would think that my recent vacation would mean I'd have time to read through at least some of my recent gaming purchases, but alas, adult responsibilities intrude even on one's vacation. I strongly suspect that much won't be properly read until early 2016.

The Chained Coffin arrived last week. This is a DCC RPG boxed set by +Michael Curtis . This won't be waiting until 2016 to be read. My God but it's a full box.

World of Calidar by +Bruce Heard scratches my SpellJammer itch. I'm working my way through the book now. As an aside, the most recent episode of the THAC0's Hammer podcast discusses, what else, SpellJammer.

Metamorphosis Alpha - Collector's Edition - pretty book, this will probably sit on a shelf until I find myself in a game of MA. Assuming I can find a shelf big enough.

Designer's & Dungeons - the 4 volume history of RPG - current bathroom reading

Dwimmermount appears to be a successful conclusion of what was nearly a horrible Kickstarter implosion. Sadly, it's sitting low on the list of stuff to read.

Lost City of Barakus looks to be my next campaign when I pick up the weekly GM reins again, which leaves me some time before I need to dig in deeply.

Transylvanian Adventures for the DCC RPG - not sure I'd even run it, but my God it looks sweet.

BreachWorld - basically Rifts via OpenD6. Need to find the time.

River of Heaven - because I do love OpenQuest and good scifi.

Yeah, I need a clone...

River of Heaven (OpenQuest / D100 SciFi) Giveaway - PDF

+Newt Newport recently emailed me and asked if I would be interested in giving away a PDF copy of River of Heaven (and it's companion PDF, the adventure Reunion) to one of the readers of The Tavern. I'm no fool - of course i said yes!

This is not part of OSR Christmas (that should pick up again this weekend.) This is a total separate generous giveaway.

River of Heaven takes the OpenQuest rules and ports them to SciFi. OpenQuest is the current version of the d100 / OGL RuneQuest rules that I feel comfortable with. They remind me of the classic Chaosium RuneQuest 2 rules, and those were my go to rules back in the day when I wasn't running AD&D.

I'm damn tempted to take River of Heaven for a spin when life reaches a speed that's manageable. In the meantime I'll brainstorm the campaign that will drive my players happily crazy ;)

So, this is how we are going to do it - post a comment between now whenever I wake up Saturday morning (January 3rd, 2015). One random commenter gets a PDF copy of the River of Heaven rules and the Reunion adventure.

It's already a Silver Best Seller at RPGNow and it's only been out for a week and a half.

(if you want to check out the OpenQuest rules for free, OpenQuest 2 Basic is available RPGNow in PDF)

Here's info from the blurb:

It is the dawn of the 28th Century.

The Third Renaissance, or Bright Age as future historians will call it, is at its zenith.

After the catastrophic first contact with extra-terrestrial life that led to the horrific Solar System war, humanity clawed its way back from the brink and finally reached the stars. For millions of people, Earth’s sun is no more than another star in the night sky, a mote of light, a spiritual birthplace that they will never visit in their lifetimes.

It has been over a century since the Machine Civilisation gifted humanity technological marvels such as the Visser Cube, allowing wormhole travel across the vast chasms of interstellar space. Now interstellar distances grow ever shorter. How the myriad of splintered cultures view this gift varies. Some see it as a blessing, a way to draw humanity into a united whole. Others see it as a curse, robbing them of their individuality. And then there are those who would use it as a means to subjugate humanity and impose their own will upon all…

Across the river of heaven, humanity clings to a scattering of islands in a sea of stars. Players can take on a multitude of roles in this future: a crew member on an interstellar trader, a member of the mysterious Engineers’ Guild, a body-hopping Intercessionist agent – out to manipulate human cultures to its own secret ends, a Renouncer Zealot – intent on destroying Artificial Intelligence in all its forms, or perhaps one of the Reclaimers – planetary engineers dedicated to terraforming any viable planet they happen upon…

River of Heaven uses D101 games’ OpenQuest rules engine; a sleek and streamlined D100 rule set that enables you to maintain the tempo of your stories whilst keeping the rules simple and in the background.

In the core rulebook you will find:

The OpenQuest rules engine - tailored to a hard sci-fi setting.

Simple Character generation

Enabling you to go from concept to fully finished character as quickly as possible.

Augmentations

Humanity has found many ways to improve upon what nature created. Quickly augment your character with the latest biotech/nanotech upgrades.

Equipment

All the weapons, armour (those damn Brits ;)and other types of equipment your character might need to go adventuring in the 28th century.

Transportation

Information on how to get around the River of Heaven universe, be it lowly pack animal on a frontier dirt farm or an interstellar trader equipped with exotic stellar-tap drive.

Background

In addition to a timeline spanning 1000 years of future history, River of Heaven includes an introduction to the Bright Age, the default play setting for the game. It also includes a campaign setting – the Kentauran Hegemony – and information about all the colonised star systems at the start of the 28th century.

Adventure Seeds

Ideas for adventure ideas set in the River of Heaven universe, covering a wide range of styles and themes.

Friends and Foes

An A-Z list of lifeforms that may be encountered by the player characters during their adventures. It includes humans from the various divergent cultures and castes, mundane animals encountered on many worlds of humanity, and some more exotic creatures too.

Written by John Ossoway.

I Got Yer 5 Stars Right Here! The Brainstorm Podcast Rates Five Stars! (yes, it's a rounded average... we ain't perfect ;)

First post of 2015 and it's a look back of one of the later projects I was (and still am) involved in that kicked off in 2014.

Yes, we are talking The Brainstorm Podcast.

I think the reason that the podcast is as strong as it is is that all of the hosts - +Vincent Florio , +Glen Hallstrom , myself and even guest host Sal (Sal stepped in for a few of the recent episodes) all bring diverse and differing perspectives on roleplaying to the discussion. I listen to every episode as they release and I always find stuff that I missed the first time around - and I was there!

Our monthly downloads are in the thousands, and I am humbled and grateful to all those that spend the time to listen to us talk about gaming. It's a passion for each and every one of us.

If you haven't checked The Brainstorm out yet, consider giving it a listen. Find a topic that sounds interesting to you and tell us what you think. What are we doing right and what we can do better. In the end, it is YOUR podcast, because we want it to be useful and enjoyable to YOU.

2014 - A Tavern Keeper's Review of the Past Year

2014 certainly had it's highs and lows. From a personal POV, losing both one of my Detectives to cancer and the family dog to a brain tumor early in 2014 didn't give much of a high note. It really did start out as a crappy year. It hasn't ended much better with the assassinations of two of my fellow officers just days before Christmas. So on that level, 2014 has been a fairly crappy year.

On the gaming front, 2014 has been fairly good. 5e has finally released and appears playable to my eyes (but not to the point that I'd put aside S&W or DCC.) On the Kickstarter front, Dwimmermount finally released in a usable format. Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls has not. Metamorphosis Alpha, the deluxe Reprint funded in April of 2014 and arrived in December. The Metamorphosis Alpha Roleplaying Game funded in April of 2012 and still hasn't shipped. Then again, there were all those Kickstarters that entertained the crap out of us. Cardboard gaming tables for the win (go to the link - watch the video - it never gets old for me ;)

Podcast-wise, Tenkar & the Badger is awaiting a reboot while The Brainstorm is about to release it's 27th episode on January 2. Yes, I started the year listening to podcasts and ended the year co-hosting two of them.

I really appreciate everyone's patience, especially as the 12 Days of OSR Christmas slowly slip into 2015. We will get the next 4 days out. Trust me. It's just that 2014 was "that kind of a year" from beginning to end.

Thank you for reading this small blog. Those that listen to the podcasts, thank you for listening. Thank you for being part of the community. I really do appreciate it :)

Kickstarter - Codename: Morningstar - About to be Kicked From it's High & Lofty Goals and Crash Back to Earth

So, it looks like folks sent a message to Codename: Morningstar, as it has six days to meet it's lofty goal of $425,000 and is currently sitting at less than $68,000.

Remember this wonderful quote?

"not pledging is telling the industry that you are happy with the status quo."

Yep, just like it's biblical namesake, it seems to have been rejected by the vast majority. Yes, hubris without being able to back it often leads to similar results. This isn't being happy with the status quo, it's not wanting to back a shitty product.

What's in the future for Codename: Morningstar? I suspect more of the same. There is simply too much invested in this money sink already for them to abandon it. Instead, they'll have to actually try and sell it once they have an actual working product.

Go figure that one out ;)

BLUEHOLME™ Prentice Rules Available POD at Lulu Starting at $4.99

So, why is it that the BLUEHOLME™ Prentice Rules have that little "™" in the title? Is it really that important to indicate the trademark in the title? I don't see the same with Swords & Wizardry and Labyrinth Lord, or do I?

     Swords & Wizardry™

     Labyrinth Lord™

Eh, don't like it ;)

In any case, BLUEHOLME is a decent set of OSR rules, and having them available in either saddle stitch ($5.99) or perfect bound ($4.99) at Lulu is a pretty good deal.

You can always grab the BLUEHOLME PDF at PWYW pricing at RPGNow before buying it in print.

Adventures in the East Mark - One and Done - No Further Boxed sets in the Future

Latest update from Adventures in the East Mark - The Red Box by Extra-Dimensional Publishing. Looks like the Red Box will be the first and only English entry in the series. Damn shame.

Update presented in it's entirety:

#62
Overdue Update on Adventures in the East Mark

Posted by Extra-Dimensional Publishing

This is the update that I've not wanted to write but I want to be open with you, our fantastic backers.
Due to a number of factors, the relationship with XD and our Spanish partners will not continue. I am sad about that, especially as that means that the East Mark product line will not continue in the US, at least in the near future and under the eXtra-Dimensional banner. This does also include the Walkure license too, but fortunately this severing of our license may mean you see that product in the US sooner than if it had remained with us.

So what happened? Our greatest folly, it seems, was to overprint box sets, in hopes for the future of the line. To do so we got additional investment to take advantage of the better price per set we'd get from a bigger order. But distributors in our industry have thus far not been interested in carrying the product, due largely to the size of the box and what that means for shipping.

Our focus currently is on getting our backers the last of what we owe you. That means Tony's Lovecraftian adventure, which, while now finished, is not laid out in a module format. I'm working on that and have plans to get it out before the end January. This is and has always been planned as a digital only release.

That also means releasing the Beta of the Blue Box set for those who chose that add-on and our Titan backers. We have about 100 unedited pages translated and I am releasing that compilation before the end of this week. I don't know that we'll be able to get more translated or any of it edited and laid out, but we have some options we are exploring. This is perhaps the thing I am most sad about as I've often stressed that the quality of the setting is what sets it apart from just being another OSR product. I am looking at any means possible to at the very least get the translation finished with hopes to have it fully laid out at some point.

We made some mistakes, but we learned from them and any future campaign would have been more successful from it. But I am proud of what we accomplished, proud of the product we produced, and proud of the enjoyment the fans seem to have gotten out of the game.

Please feel free to contact me directly at david@xdpublishing.com

(http://mailto:david@xdpublishing.com) if you have any questions.

Thank you so much for your trust, your faith, and your support. XD will live on, but certainly in a different form. If you want to help, please encourage friends to buy a set from our remaining stock direct from us at our online store (http://xdpublishing.com/product/adventures-in-the-east-mark-red-box-basic-rule-set/) or from any other retailer selling the set.

-David Brown

Free OSR - The Smoking Tower of Lan Yu (Sine Nomine Publishing)

In case I've failed to say this in the past, +Kevin Crawford IS the Man. No, really.

The Smoking Tower of Lan Yu is a free OSR adventure released by Kevin into the wilds of the OSR, but it's more than that. It's a design sample on how to put together your own Old School module. It's also all open, for one to do with as they wish. Even the art. All praise +Kevin Crawford and Sine Nomine Publishing!

From the blurb:

On the island of Kai Besil the earth trembles with the threat of a terrible fire to come. The forbidding Pillar of Lan Yu plumes white with new smoke, and the warning flames in the village of Talamau burn red and blue with dire promise. Can heroes be found to restore the volcano’s ancient binding, or are the islanders doomed to perish in fire and choking ash?

The Smoking Pillar of Lan Yu is a playable module for most OSR games, but its real purpose is as a worked example and a resource for other small publishers interested in old-school module page design. The module has been built to echo early 1980-era TSR module layouts, with sections exampling village, wilderness, and dungeon layouts. A "Commentary" layer in the PDF can be turned on and off to explain the particulars of each page's design choices. 

The files include the PDF itself, the .IDD InDesign source file for Adobe InDesign CC, and an .IDML InDesign markup file that should be backwards-compatible with many earlier versions of InDesign. An art folder is also included with the art used in the module, all of which was either made by myself or drawn from the free Scarlet Heroes Art Pack available on DTRPG. Any of it can be used freely for your own projects, whether personal or commercial. 

All users are encouraged to take the module apart and use its pieces for their own projects. While a perfect replication of TSR trade dress is generally a bad idea in your own work, you can use the objects, paragraph styles, and page layouts for your own products. The commentary layer provides hints as to why the choices were made for each, and you can carry this information into your own creations.

Do We Do a Kickstarter Dos and Don'ts Post(s)?

Looking over my assortment of Kickstarter posts, I'm wondering if I should put together a post or two listing basic Kickstarter "dos and don'ts", such as:

- make sure your funding levels actually add up to funding your project

and

- wear shoes in your videos

and

- don't have public fights with those that critique your Kickstarter presentation

So, what say you all?

Yea or nay?

Kickstarter - Shadows of Esteren - A Medieval Horror RPG: Occultism (5th in the series - I STILL don't know which books you need to play)

Shadows of Esteren (I always want to pronounce it "estrogen".) Amazing art. Awesome presentation. I supported a previous Kickstarter and I still don't know if I have the core books needed to play. Not that I plan to play it, it just looks awesome.

Great, but which do I need to play the fucking game. No Book 1 option? Is that not needed? Fuck me!

My God. So many flavors, so many options. I'm so confused.

But the art...

Is there a mechanics free setting book? Or just an option for art prints? I don't want the music or the fiction.

Damn but look at the pretty lights...

The Brainstorm Podcast Hits Episode #26 - Not Bad for it's First Year

I still find it hard to believe we've hit episode #26 at The Brainstorm Podcast. It's not that I have a problem with talking - I'm just pleasantly surprised so many would want to listen ;)

Seven ratings and three reviews on iTunes - solid 5 stars but we would love to see more reviews. What are we doing right and where can we improve?

Tell us on iTunes. Tell us here at The Tavern. Let us know on G+. We really do thrive on feedback.

+Vincent Florio +Glen Hallstrom

Wayward Kickstarter - Creatures CG (I'm Having a WTF Moment)

Lets see, what can we say about the Creatures CG?

It's "an RPG style Card Game for 2-4 players"

That's it.

No sample art, sample text or hints at game play.

No rough layout of the cards.

A whole lot of nothing.

Even better, the rewards allow you to name creatures to be included in the set but doesn't include a level where the actual game is a reward.

I'm guessing 75 creatures or so for the deck, but that is only based on backer levels

Even better, Chris H's previous failed Kickstarter? A Chocolate Cookbook where you could submit an ingredient with a 5 dollar pledge. His goal? 2k - he raised 5 bucks. I'm guessing the ingredient suggested was a whole lot of nothing...

Hat tip to +Keith J Davies

Bruce Heard's World of Calidar - Quick Peek

This post is way overdue. +Bruce Heard was kind enough to to mail me the actual print copies of the World of Calidar maps as well as the PDF for the sourcebook back in the early fall.  We are now in early winter, so yes, I'm pretty backed up.

First off, the maps themselves are gorgeous. They are probably barely outdone by the Whisper & Venom maps, but then again, they are done in a different style and are for different use. In any case, they are too big for me to take a pic of and I've yet to convince Rachel to allow me to paper the walls of the double bedroom (we have two rooms joined by an arch - one for sleeping, one for my desk and our clothes and such) with gaming maps. I'm working hard on it tho' , and with Danke's Christmas Remolding and wallpaper removal trick she taught herself, I may just have gotten a little closer, but I digress.

Spelljammer was probably one of my underused 2e game settings, but not because of lack of desire on my end. I wanted to run with but my group never complied, even when I had them find their own Spelljammer. Ah well, there is always tomorrow.

If Spelljammer has a fault, it was that it was shoehorned into the existed AD&D continuity. That is not an issue with Calidar, which is designed from the ground up as a setting with airships traveling between worlds.

As an aside, if you enjoyed the Voyages of the Princess Ark series of articles / fiction from Dragon Magazine, much of the some feeling is found in the World of Calidar. Personally, for me the series of articles was my gateway to Mystara, if only because Bruce was connected to both projects. Sadly, after all these years my memory is a bit fuzzy. I may need to reread the series at some point.

One of the more surprising aspects about the Calidar, In Stranger Skies is that it is system neutral (don't let the Pathfinder label fool you). Sure, it has Pathfinder stats for the characters, but that can easily be hand waved and converted to OSR stats without too much trouble, although in the case of the spells memorized there might be some work needed. If I can squeeze the time out of the rock that is my free time, I may do some conversions of such to Swords & Wizardry here at The Tavern. Don't expect exact conversions if I do make the attempt, as downsizing from 3x / Pathfinder to older editions is more art than science ;)

I'm about halfway through the first part of the Calidar PDF, and the fiction is spot on. If you are to learn of a setting through the eyes of those living it, this is the way. I would like to see an abbreviated version that could serve as a player handbook of sorts, as this is a rich setting and I would rather run it with my players grounded in the common knowledge (but without all the DM secrets.)

Oh, remember all my bitching about the Numenera PDF and being damn near unreadable with my aging eyes? Not a problem with Calidar, In Stranger Skies. Although the pages of the PDF have that faux weathered look, there is nothing obstructing the actual text. Heck, it's nicely readable on my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 phone, which is good, as I return to work tomorrow. No, I won't be reading at my desk - unless I'm on lunch ;)

Full review when I finish digesting the PDF. I must day I am enjoying the lack of distracting game stats thus far.

Just think, the NFL season will be coming to a close soon and I'll have my Sunday's back...

Kickstarter - The Folio 1E Module Relaunch! (OSR Adventure)

The Folio is something that escaped my radar up until now (thanks to Scott for brining this to my attention.) It's the relaunch of a 5e adventure subscription Kickstarter, retuned with a lower goal and rewritten for 1e and without a subscription.

$15 (includes shipping with the US) for a 30 page or so adventure with high end art and removable cover (just like the olde style adventures from TSR.) $5 for the PDF (print included the PDF.)

So, what do you get for your money?

My Project: The Folio is a 1st Edition gaming module. It will be produced as an 8x11”, removable cover [11x17" once removed], adventure with mostly b/w interior artwork.  The final size is 30 pages of content. 

Who’s it for? ALL gamers, both new gamers and old gamers as it is easily expandable or playable as is.The concept is to allow gamers a starting point for adventure that can be modified to their liking while providing excellent reference content and framework.The base mechanic will be for 1st Edition, but I’ve designed it to be readily modified to any fantasy game. 

What’s in it? All original content. It h as been written by myself and my OSR compatriot Mark Timm, with incredible cover art from old school masters and interior artwork by skilled black and white illustrators Travis Hanson and Michael Wilson, and even a bit of Jim Holloway because I can never get enough Holloway. We are intent on providing a polished and modern design with creatively nostalgic content that transcends a particular age. The Folio will contain a 3-D map, a Gazetteer, a monster section, a new monster unique to the setting, DM’s notes and guides, and a full adventure. 

They'll even through in a PDF of the 5e version if you ask for it.

It's also a Kickstarter Staff Pick, whatever that means.

In any case, I'm in for $15. Still has 7 days left to reach it's funding. I suspect it will.

Wasting Time with Frozen Food Reviews on Youtube? There Must be Some RPG reviews Floating Around...

No game this week, so instead of doing useful things, I'm watching episodes of Freezer Burns on my computer as my wife does some online certification for her job on her computer.

Does anyone know of  a series of YouTube videos that spend about 5 minutes or so per episode reviewing RPGs?

I find that my attention span for YouTube videos is in the 5 to 10 minutes mark - anything longer than that and my attention wanders.

Crap, I need to get back to my own series of OSR reviews, don't I?

Alright, no rest for the wicked. Let me work on some OSR for the Lapsed Gamer next...