"I'd Buy That For a Dollar!"

First of all, I would like to extend my sincere apologies to any readers I may have left at this point: I've been away for quite a long while, and it's entirely because of everyday life. Between work, preparing for marriage, and having two insane cats, I've very little time to give over to writing a blog. With that said, let's get to the fun stuff, shall we?

Something that can always add some believability and interest to any RPG is procuring supplies; whether you have to forage/hunt for your own food, find a reputable salesman for a vehicle, or keep your activities hidden from authorities, there's always something to be done in finding what one needs for a mission. Often times, a GM can just simply gloss it over: "you purchased X supplies for Y price, with little haggling." Sometimes, it can become a very involved discussion with the seller, with compliments, threats, haggling, even bribes going back and forth. The question is, when do you do one and not the other?

As an example, if the players have reached a new area and will need to establish new contacts (or be given an idea about how the locals operate, true or not), one is better off to role play the encounter; how much and how long is entirely up to personal styles and the expectations of the players. If the seller the characters are dealing with is an old friend or contact, one could be well justified in role playing an exchange of platitudes and then ending the encounter - after all, these folks know each other, and the players will have it in their minds how it went down.

Trying to get access to a place or item(s) one needs can be very interesting if the possessing party is wary, greedy, or even traitorous. Such encounters are best played to the nines, with accents, speech patterns, and full descriptions. Immerse your characters in the situation; let them feel the burn of the sweat in their eyes, the cold steel of the cheap desk that they're leaning on as they argue. One could gloss it over with "you wait around on the corner for about an hour, and finally find someone who will sell you Z for some amount of A," but it's best done only to expedite a lagging story.

What if your heroes need a fast get-away car, and quick? If they're all over the news, no car lot will sell to them, and fences will most likely want to charge triple their usual prices. Do the characters steal a car? Do they even have the ability? Never forget that in a varied group of people, someone is very likely to have the intelligence and skills to come up with something the characters might need, and without their being involved with some trader.

A great example is food in a fantasy setting: you could find a baker in the next town to sell you a loaf of bread, but if you're well equipped you might make your own, or alternatively be wiley enough to steal someone else's from their larder. Often a woodsman might offer to share his kill in exchange for help carrying back what he's just downed. How you play such scenarios is of course entirely up to you, but don't forget the benefits of having the characters scrambling up and down hillsides after a stag they've wounded in the hunt, or their coming to a town for provisions only to find that famine has raised the prices sky-high.

As a framework, many games often have rules and guidelines for GMs in need of some guidance: D&D has a town-building guideline which provides for how many levels or gold's worth of services are available based on the population; Alternity has full listings of what is available at specific places (in published adventure modules). Don't ever forget that as the GM, you determine what happens; if the group absolutely needs that getaway car, provide it for them - just don't be obvious about it without a good reason.

Nest week on Roy's RPG Tactics Blog: Who knows? It might be good.

With A Little Help From My Friends

Here’s the next installment of Roy’s RPG Tactics! As promised, this session will cover some basic small unit tactics. It’s mostly common sense, but often the ideas presented are overlooked. The examples used are meant to get one’s creative juices flowing for designing an encounter, and hopefully they will do just that.

When you’re attacking or defending with more than one person/unit in a game, you would do well to read the writings of past great generals. Erwin Rommel and Sun Tzu spring readily to mind for ideas as well as mindset. Playing games such as the Total War series of games will give you even more ideas on how to handle larger engagements, if you plan to win.

One of the biggest points these things will teach you is that your surroundings are your best weapon. Hiding in the woods and firing your weapons at the enemy is far favorable to jumping out onto the road for an epic hand to hand fight. If the enemy can’t see you and you keep moving from place to place, they may think you have far more resources than you really do. When this happens, they’re more likely to quit the fight and retreat or surrender.

If you don’t wish to fight your enemies directly, run them into unfavorable conditions, or wait for them to encounter them on their own. Run them into the desert, or force them into a narrow passage of some kind. If the enemy is constricted, they have fewer choices in how to fight back or retreat. Consult the rules for your favored game, and see what they have to say about rough or cluttered terrain. Use those rules to your advantage.

Terrain can be the big factor in determining the winner of a tactical battle; bottlenecking corridors, wide rolling grass fields, and heavy growth forests all dictate the movements of the combatants differently. It’s harder to use long ranged combat (say, a crossbow) from the rear of a melee in a narrow dungeon hallway than on the open field of battle. Aimed magic could be impossible to use in such a tight space without hitting your fellows, while having a pike could mean you have no way to defend yourself if the enemy gets past the point of your weapon.

Fighting in and around a graveyard or similar place would be a nightmare for an organized force; the enemy can crouch behind headstones for cover, or hide an entire unit behind a temple or mausoleum. The ground is frequently uneven in the stereotypical graveyard, which can lead to injuries and losses for fast moving combatants. Low hanging trees or funerary decorations can block effective missile fire and prove to be an obstruction to ground movement. The same basic ideas could be applied to mecha combat in an urban or suburban setting. The varying amounts of cover make such settings ideal for hit and run and long ranged attacks.

That pretty much covers it for this session. I hope this series has been of use to those of you out there who take the time to read this blog. I’m not sure what I’ll be pontificating about next time, but it should be interesting. Tell a friend, and come back often!

I Am Alone, They Are Many

Well, it’s time for another installment of the RPG Tactics blog. It occurred to me this evening that I’ve not mentioned much in the way of tactics, and I think it’s time to remedy that. Over the course of a couple posts, I hope to share some ideas on ground combat. This time around, we’ll be discussing ways of attacking and defending in as many situations as possible.

Let’s start with a solo act: one unit on a board. Let’s assume they’re capable of both long ranged and melee combat, and have some form of protection. The first thing they’ll want to do is protect their flanks and rear, while assuring themselves maneuverability. Often this means getting above the opponent(s), either on a manmade or natural structure. From here, they can see the majority if not all of the opposition while still effectively attacking (or supporting other combatants).

If you can’t get the high ground, put your back or weakest side to some object that can ensure you won’t be attacked from behind without some notice - trees, a rock, a wall, anything can increase your odds of winning. If it can block your view of the enemies to your sides or rear, then it obviously blocks their views of you. This is both an advantage and disadvantage. Be ready to abandon that cover when necessary, whether for attack or retreat, and don’t be afraid to use the tools you have. If you’ve got access to magic or some other form of destructive force that’s useable at a distance, deploy it from that defensible position.

Conversely, if you’re on the attack, keep your enemies bottled into a tight spot. Ambushing them from the top of a narrow canyon or while they’re on a narrow mountain road will keep them right where you want them while you work your magic or ready your big weapons. Hit and run tactics combine with this style of attack very well. Conserve your resources in ambushes, and you can draw out the enemy and take them down piecemeal.

If you’re attacking only another combatant and are not bound by rules of honor, fight dirty. Throw dirt in their face, kick them in the sensitive parts, and be willing to use the terrain around you. Try tripping them and stabbing or shooting them where they lay. If someone’s wearing heavy armor or driving a land vehicle, run them into thick mud or water. If they’re lightly armed and armored, knock them into a ditch and force them to fight their way out. Most game systems have rules for holding the high ground and fighting dirty - use them! If your enemy suddenly throws mud in your eyes in desperation, it makes the situation (and thus the game) much more believable.

Something else that a solitary combatant can do is to use unique weapons. Whether swords, firearms, magic or missiles, things removed from the status quo will put your opponents off their game. Say the enemy mech before you is used for hand to hand combat; when you suddenly fire on them with a shoulder-fired beam weapon, they’ll reconsider the attack!

While it has been brief, I hope that this has sparked some ideas in the GM-folk and players alike. Next session, I’ll be discussing small unit tactics, and briefly touching on large scale tactics. See you then!

Okay, Wizards... I Give Up!

Seriously, Wizards of the Coast; I surrender. You have once again milked the cash cow that is geek fandom, and I hate you all the more for it.

I had a lot of fun with revised AD&D when I was a young teenager; I didn't have many friends who weren't on the internet, and those that I did have all played Dungeons and Dragons. My older brother got me an AD&D rulebook for Christmas, and helped me learn a game that I'd only played one other time before. My friend across town introduced me to a group of dedicated nerds, geeks, and weirdos who played the TSR games religiously.

That group rejoiced when Wizards of the Coast bought out TSR, and nearly sang for joy when an easier to play, more accessible (and only relatively more expensive) update to the classic game was released. We were all happy, because we thought that D&D 3E might give us something the game sorely needed - a dearth of new players.

We were right, as kids and parents alike began to play. The adventure modules were a bit lackluster, but pre-published adventures usually are. The open license format of third edition meant that more and more publishers could jump on the game. Some products were absolutely amazing! I couldn't begin to express my joy as Dragonlance came out, and in a great time setting to boot!

Then came the 'updated' system, D&D 3.5 Edition. I balked, and asked "why do they need to do this so soon?" When I purchased the handbook, I realized it was almost exactly the same, down to the artwork. True, it had a more advanced tactics section for miniatures, and included some needed changes for a couple of the core classes, but still... why?

When my fiancee and I got our hands on a preview copy of Fourth Edition, we nearly vomited with anger; the rules have changed, the classes have changed, and most importantly, the feel has changed. Now miniatures are a requirement to get the full benefit of the rules! What the hell was going on here?

Having talked to several hardcore gamers, as well as shop owners and would-be buyers of the game, we made our decision: we will never purchase Dungeons and Dragons Fourth Edition. There will be no browsing of the half-price bookstores, nor any downloading of the reduced price .pdf files that are available for purchase. The only miniatures we buy are for my benefit as both a hobby painter and sometimes tactician wannabe. They are not just so we can play a rip-off pretender that is a thinly veiled computer game adapted for table-top play!

We spurn you, Wizards. I know that five people won't matter much to you, but mark my words: You have ruined any and all desire we had to purchase your products; anything you touch from now on, we shall boycott.

Between The Walls

Hello all, it’s time for another installment of the RPG Tactics Blog. This time around, I’d like to discuss traps in an RPG. Plots often have their own twists and turns built in, sometimes to the point of being cliché; but what about a good dungeon crawl, or the search for someone through winding streets?

Often the way to make this more interesting (while still introducing conflict) is an ambush or trap of some sort, but how does one go about it? There are many great ways that can be used at times, often to great effect. A good ambush or pitfall can put the players on edge, and raise their suspicions in a way that a straight ‘point a to point b’ interaction could never do. Planning these events out takes only a little effort on the GM’s part, and they can be a regular feature of adventures, but using them too often gets boring.

A great example is a pitfall trap in a dungeon delve. The characters are ambling along in a corridor, when suddenly the floor gives way beneath their feet and drops them several feet into a deep hole. There may be spikes, water, opponents, treasure or any combination of things at the end of the fall. There may be a new passageway they did not know about, or no escape except a tricky climb back out of the pit. If done differently a few times over the course of a campaign, it can provide an excellent challenge to the players.

Another classic item from dungeon delves could provide one of the greatest traps (and sources of player paranoia): the secret door. The door itself could be trapped in some fashion, but one of the best ways to fool someone is to have the door open onto a passage which after a short time provides its own trap - perhaps a dead end that once reached closes the door, locking the characters inside. Maybe a hidden jug of acid falls upon the first person to enter the newly exposed corridor, or even a monster is somehow released on the far end.

Whether hidden or not, a dead end can be a trap in and of itself. Perhaps a group of investigators have followed their nemesis through a dark alley, only to come up against a building or fence with no way over it. Behind them, henchmen await, ready to pounce while the heroes search for a way over or around the obstacles in question. The same scenario could be applied to inside a building or alien ship just as easily as it could a temple to a dark god. Placing the same style of challenge in a natural setting (such as a canyon or cave) would make for an interesting attack during someone’s travels.

As with every minor plot device, the GM must be careful not to overuse the dead-end trap too much; after a while, players become suspicious of such events as seeing a branch from their path where there is no exit but by which way they came in. Even if on this newest occasion there is great gain to be made, the players will often say “No, no, don’t go that way! It may be a trap, and we need our strength!” When that is the attitude the players show towards anything in a game, the GM has failed them; when it’s the attitude the characters themselves take, it’s a sign that the GM has done their job well.

Hopefully this brief foray into traps has been of some minor inspiration. Too often, a game lacks such devices when it could have been made more believable or interesting by the inclusion of some sort of challenge that was not directly related to the characters’ goals.

The Origins of RPGs

While the late Gary Gygax is universally hailed as the father of the RPG as we know it, one cannot forget his inspirations for Dungeons and Dragons. Robert E. Howard is plainly listed as one of his primary inspirations for creating D&D in the 1970's, and anyone who has read his Sword and Sorcery work will see why.

Robert Howard created Kull the Conquerer and Conan the Cimmerian, which were of great inspiration to Mister Gygax when he created his game. One can see the influences in this pop culture gaming icon's work rather readily, especially in early versions of the game where the settings are openly used. Gary always professed to be a fan of Howard's creations, and is sorely missed by both the roleplaying community and the fandom of Robert E. Howard.

I bring this up because I just came home today from the 2008 Robert E. Howard Days and Barbarian Festival in his home town of Cross Plains, Texas. One of the keynote speakers brought up a personal conversation he'd had with Mister Gygax about Robert E. Howard's influences on his games and ideas, and it reminded me - sometimes, the origins of a game can be more interesting and rewarding than the gamer would ever believe until they've tried.

I encourage all gamers, whether they play video games, table tops, miniatures, or live action games to investigate the humble beginnings of their games. On the way, they may well come across something that opens a whole new world for them. The whole wide world awaits.

Editions Of D&D and Me

Sometime this month, you've probably seen the advertisements or fliers for Dungeons and Dragons 4E (or seen the books themselves). I admit that I've not looked at them very extensively - nor do I want to. I do, however, have an opinion forming about it from what I have seen and heard; that opinion can be summed up in one word, and that word is 'no.'

Some of the more entertaining classes have been removed from the Player's Handbook; Barbarians were one of the better classes in D&D, and having them added back in was what initially drew me to D&D 3E. Now, one must wait for a supplement or an official release (both of which might cost you) in order to get them.

Another major change is on the list of player races. Gnomes have been removed, and Tieflings and Aasimar are now starting races with no real modifications. I'm sorry, but Tieflings and Aasimar were only supposed to be a rarity, even in Forgotten Realms (where they were apparently most common). Changing it that way seems to remove that last bit of believability that makes D&D so appealing to so many people.

Now, obviously there's nothing I can do, or could have done; but I still don't like these and other changes (such as a near requirement of miniatures and tiles according to the PHB's supplies list), and that's enough to keep me from paying good money to play it. I'll have a good enough time playing my now 'outdated' games that I shouldn't even miss the new stuff.

You may be wondering, what does Roy play, then? Well, for now, I'm engaged in preparing for an AD&D second edition game. My fiancee has a wonderful idea for one and has worked dilligently upon it. When we get together with her brother and his wife, then we'll start playing one of my favorite games of all time. Yes, it's very math intensive and archaic, but it's an excellent vehicle for that nostalgic feel.

One must never forget that their games are about entertainment and sharing; otherwise, it's only money and time you've handed off to someone else.