Post-Traumatic Growth

I am the Warden and I command you to watch this video!!

I watched this one last night with the missus listening in from the kitchen and it was a profound experience. I've watched a few of these TED Talks before and found the discussions interesting or poignant, but this one truly spoke to me. Things made a little more sense.

I'd never heard of post-traumatic growth before and now that I have, it'll be interesting to see if any of the specialists I'm working with have heard of it as well... and if so, why the fuck haven't they ever said anything about it? Even since my accident - almost from Day Two, to be honest - I've been fixated on my quest to achieve my dream of professional tabletop game designer and publisher.

Fixated is the right word for the job. There is very little "common sense" that has detracted me from my quest, though that does not mean I've ignored it. If anything, I've embraced it and accepted its challenges, thereby redefining how I will approach my quest on the path to success. Will it require a lot of hard work and dedication? Yep, bring it on. Is there a chance to make a lot of money? Nope, and I don't much care. I've never had a lot of money nor any great success with it, so it's not like I'll have to learn to live without it. Would it have been better to approach this quest with stability, like that of a well-paying career by day and a string of nights working on the next RPG project? Definitely, but that's out of my control. For the longest time, I've always chalked it up to a need to fulfill a life's ambition before I truly die once and for all. An innate realization that I could have missed out completely if I was killed and I've often wondered if this pursuit was healthy.

Based on what Jane reveals in her presentation, it finally makes explains why I've been so driven at an unconscious level. In a good way. "Why" is an incredible device when you're dealing with trauma and if this woman has truly gone from suicidal thoughts to the cheerful and pleasant crusader for games we see above, then there is something truly powerful about her beliefs.

To quote Abed: "Cool. Cool cool cool." 

Cleaner, Simpler, Smaller!!

I am the Warden!!

Yesterday was the start of revisions for Killshot Reloaded's options chapter. You know those days when you get started on a large chapter/project and it starts with complete unawareness of just how much of a difference your work will bring? That was yesterday.

One of the primary goals for Reloaded is to create a cleaner version of the game while simultaneously allowing assassins and Directors more flexibility to take the game and run with it. While making a post on G+ about the process, it occurred that I've probably run close to 50 jobs for Killshot and various recent offshoots of the Optional System since it's creation and publication. In that time, I've noticed how players have translated and interpreted their options, listened to their opinions, and have now set a goal to use those opinions and concepts in mind for the new edition.

What I did not expect was just how improved these options have become. I hate putting it that way, because it instantly comes across as if the game was broken. And I hate saying THAT because the original edition of Killshot is by no means perfect (need I point out the major faux pas of having an option and skill both named "Survival").

Using My Big Boy Words

I am the Warden!!

You'd think by my blog alone that there's very little action going on right now, but that's so far from the truth. Aside from the official announcement of Killshot Reloaded (see the BRG site for details) and the progression of development in the new edition, I've also been plugging away on a new Kickstarter video for the upcoming Shaintar campaign by Sean Patrick Fannon, finishing up the final piece for Killshot Files #2, putting the next instalment of High Plains Samurai together, and working on a silent project on the side. If I haven't been posting enough, it's because I'm writing too much.

And that's the irony of today's post. It came to me last month that perhaps I haven't been writing enough, particularly when it comes to adventure design. When I'm running a game, I'm a massive fan of improvising. I'll detail a basic plot, flesh and stat out characters, establish locations, and run with everything as it plays out to provide players with a rich and reactive setting.

The problem is the contradiction with what I really need for adventure design and publication. It's something discovered during the past couple of Killshot or Optional Core sessions that must be seriously and correctly addressed in the new edition. When you don't write down the entire adventure and plan out your fight scenes in advance, you tend to take liberties with your text. For example, it never occurred to me during any of the various drafts for the three jobs published in Killshot: Direction to include a sidebar or any relevant information on how to set up a Tracker for a given scene. There were rules for determining all the chips needed on the board and that seemed good enough. What I've noticed is that without having a solid foundation to set up a scene through the game's mechanics, there's no telling how good or poor the scene will play out. So much information is missing from the text that Directors will have to embellish as they see fit and that can cause serious problems in game satisfaction.

Perhaps no other evidence is required than the outcome of the first session for High Plains Samurai. While the YouTube broadcast was cut out early and remains unavailable to those outside of the Development Team sitting at the table, the last fight scene went horribly awry. Everything went wrong and the fact that I never bothered to write down a set-up for the fight scene contributed to that problem. And it didn't help that my qi points mechanic was totally screwed up.

For tomorrow's game, I've made adjustments and wrote out every fight scene (all five of them) in complete detail, from how many Teams are provided in what order to a list of pre-existing triggers and outcomes for the fight using the new fight management system undergoing construction for Reloaded. How will it turn out? You can find out tomorrow as we stream a live broadcast of the game through the Optional Core community on G+. 

I'm Seeing Stars: Kickstarters On My Watch List

I am the Warden!!

If you've been following me Twitter feed, I've been sharing links for 4 different Kickstarters underway as we speak. Or read. Wait, I'm writing. Never mind! All four of them are on my watch list and waiting for that next cheque to make it possible to pony up just a little bit to become part of the action and help make them a reality. I'd like to take this moment to share them in a little more detail for various reasons.

Aside from Torment: Tides of Numenera, there's a personal connection to the remaining three. Twilight Continuum you've heard about here before (I'm writing Books 2 and 5) and Centurion and Spark are projects from a local of local boys and good friends. 

Centurion is inches away from hitting its mark as I write this. It's the brainchild of Fraser Ronald (Sword Noir and Kiss My Axe, Sword's Edge Publishing, and the Accidental Survivors podcast) where players take on the role of Roman Legionnaires. Fraser's a huge history nut, particularly when it comes to the Legion and it shows through in gameplay. Along with a few others, I've been helping as a playtester and watched it grow over these past few months. No existing knowledge is required as a player and if you're an interested GM but unsure of your own, there's going to be plenty of history provided to help you build a campaign. 

Twilight Continuum is the ambitious 6-part adventure serial put together by Aaron Huss at Mystical Throne Entertainment. I've been part of this one for the past couple of months and put the intro video together, but she's struggling to get past 10%, let alone reach the true goal of $35,000. If you're a big space opera nut, love the sic-fi games, and want to have a complete adventure path without getting bogged down by rules expansions and third-part supplements, this project is for you.

Torment: Tides of Numenera... You know what? It's past $2.5 million. I don't think I need to share too much with you at this point. You've heard of it. And yeah, I wants to get the download edition for $20. 

Spark RPG is the creation of Jason Pitre (Genesis of Legend Publishing) and will finally see the light of day after nearly four years of development. This one is also a hop, skip, and a jump away from hitting its goal and will likely rise up into something truly special. Never had a chance to play it, but the concept of creating the world around you before you create your characters sounds massively intriguing and was the basis for starting up my recent High Plains Samurai mini-campaign. Plus the artwork looks gorgeous and expensive. 

That's my wish list, projects that will see my money as soon as I can do it guilt-free. Ok, maybe guilt-less. What's on your list? 

Find the Lokka: Savage Insider Premium #5 Available Now

I am the Warden!!

Released today by Mystical Throne Entertainment (the same people behind our current Twilight Continuum Kickstarter project... hint!), Savage Insider Premium #5 contains my first published Savage Worlds article detailing a new alien race known as the lokka. Secretive and paranoid shape changers, they have been cast out to the fringes of society and know a life only of subterfuge and infiltration, existing as a refuge within any of the countless other races in your campaign. If you're like me and can never choose one race in particular as your favourite, this shapeshifting option may be just what you're looking for. Just look for the Racial Profiling article.

Or you could also pick up a copy for the other articles too. I'm sure they're just as good, if not better. There's a POD copy coming out soon and I just may treat myself and clear some extra space on the shelf.

On sale through RPGNow. 

A Big Day For Reloaded

I am the Warden and today is the day that Killshot: Reloaded truly begins!!

Oh, I know I've been talking about it for months and work has begun on the four individual themes originally intended as the sole purpose for Reloaded, but things have taken a turn for the better. During the month I shall now refer to as Dark February - a time when I had to put various projects and other game design related activities aside to deal with the harshness of Reality - a realization occurred. Something deep and profound that has breathed new life into this project.

Killshot: Reloaded will not simply exist as a supplement supporting Killshot. It will be the second edition of Killshot, complete with additional themes and settings to create a fully-detailed, fleshed-out campaign setting. 

In the past year since Killshot's Kickstarter brought this game to life, I have run a lot of games. In that time, I have tried a lot of new options and material, particularly for the recent Optional Core playtests and we've devised a few new tricks and shortcuts previously unconsidered or unavailable. That's not to say it's broken as is, but it's dawned on me how this game could be even better.

At this point, I wouldn't go so far as to call this an official announcement or anything. Just a little secret between you and me. The plans for Reloaded have just exploded and it's going to take me the rest of the month to truly understand what's swirling around in my head and run with it. All of these ideas will be incorporated into a complete Kickstarter campaign bigger and better than what was offered last year and if everything goes amazingly to plan, you could be looking at a 300+ page guidebook for the next edition of the world's deadliest tabletop roleplaying game. 

Initiative Without Dice? [Optional Core]

In the Optional System, the Team with the Edge gets to act first.
The problem is establishing which Team gets that honour. 

I am the Warden!!

During last week's recap of our first playtest session of High Plains Samurai, I mentioned the need for initiative in the game. On the surface, the idea sounds simple and viable because the majority of initiative rules in RPGs involve a dice roll and since the Optional System is a dice-rolling machine, this shouldn't be a big deal, right?

Wrong. Wrong wrong wrong. I had no idea how wrong that theory was.

Let's start by explaining how turn order works in Killshot, the original and only published version involving the Optional System. The main characters, AKA assassins, pretty much always go first. Because it is a game of strategy and planning, players must set a plan in motion and will likely always go first. That works for a realistic and tactical game like Killshot, but it's shit in a martial arts clone. It provides a near automatic victory for the heroes assisted by their bonus options, Pass reactions, and everything else. The only other means to force heroes to go next involves villains and thugs applying triggers before the fight scene begins, but that can get old and tired after a while. And what if the heroes set down a trigger designed to go off when the thugs' trigger activates, huh? It can potentially reach ridiculous heights.