into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: May 2015
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015_05_01_archive.html
Thursday, May 28, 2015. Neuroscience and Gaming: Your Life Is a Hex Crawl. Neuroscientist Steven Novella blogs about a recent study on the brain cells involved in navigation through space. Previous research discovered the existence of place cells, which the brain uses to track locations; the new study discovered grid cells, which the brain uses to direct motion through an environment. Evidently, the brain uses a hex map. Subscribe to: Posts (Atom). I blog on higher ed and miscellaneous stuff here. Lament...
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: August 2015
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015_08_01_archive.html
Friday, August 7, 2015. Zak Smith's VICE Article on D&D. Zak Smith, artist, adult film actor, award-winning DIY game designer, and fellow resident of Los Angeles County (Hollywood division), has written a thoughtful article on the persisting appeal and vitality of Dungeons and Dragons in an age of video games and Hollywood blockbusters. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it feels as if some kind of giant open pop-cultural loop (or loops) have finally been closed with the publication of this article.
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: Fighters in the Twilight Empire
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015/07/fighters.html
Wednesday, July 22, 2015. Fighters in the Twilight Empire. The fighter abilities are inspired by the "warrior skills" in Empire of the Petal Throne. And not the Greyhawk. Supplement, since all attacks inflict 1d6 damage regardless of weapon type. The barbarian and cavalier training packages are inspired by the fighter sub-classes of the same names from the 1st edition AD&D Unearthed. Where it is a special ability of elvish troops. Speaking of not-so subtle OD&D references, scouts also have "outdoor s...
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: A New Force in the Field of Tabletop Gaming Awards Has Arrived!
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015/07/a-new-force-in-field-of-tabletop-gaming.html
Thursday, July 30, 2015. A New Force in the Field of Tabletop Gaming Awards Has Arrived! Behold: t he Ramanan Sivaranjan Awards for Excellence in Gaming, 2014 edition. These awards are nourishment for thoughtful old-school gamers of refined taste, such as yourself (I hope! But are like poison for the mindless hordes of adolescent EN World gamers and their ilk. Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). I blog on higher ed and miscellaneous stuff here. And on gaming stuff here. View my complete profile.
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: Clerics
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015/04/clerics.html
Friday, April 17, 2015. Armenian icon, 16th century). Hit Dice: 1d6 per level. Attack Bonus: 1 per 2 levels. Spell Points: 3 per level. Weapon Proficiency: club, dagger, mace, staff. Powers: cast cleric spells; spirit ward. Cleric Experience Level Table. A cleric is a devoted follower of a god or spirit. Some clerics are hermits or wanderers, but most are leaders of religious communities. In order to learn a new spell, a cleric must spend one week in prayer and study per level of the spell, and he must m...
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: Clerics in the Twilight Empire
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015/07/clerics-redux.html
Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Clerics in the Twilight Empire. As mentioned in the last post. Clerics in Twilight Empire. Are not assumed to be members of militant orders unless they have the Templar training package. As such, their fighting capability and weapon and armor proficiency is the same as that of mages. To compensate for this, clerics gain spells more rapidly than in standard OD&D. In the previous version of cleric training packages. Are now treated as multi-classed cleric/mages (as in their original...
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: June 2015
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015_06_01_archive.html
Tuesday, June 2, 2015. These Two Game Reviews by Bryce Lynch Are the World's Best Primer on Adventure Design. 1 Review of Hoard of the Dragon Queen (by Wizards of the Coast, for D&D 5th). 2 Review of The Rise of Tiamat (ditto). What follows is my summary of Bryce Lynch's 30 (as I count them) principles of adventure design, based on these and other posts from his excellent blog, Ten Foot Pole. I have divided the 30 principles into 6 categories, starting with General Tips. 1 General Tips: The 5 C’s. Relate...
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: The Twilight Empire
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-twilight-empire.html
Wednesday, July 22, 2015. The Fall of the Pantarchy. In ancient times, the Pantarchy ruled the world of Telleth-Rumi, and worlds beyond. The Pantarchs followed the Cosmic Balance, worshipping an array of celestial, elemental, and infernal spirits. They summoned creatures from other worlds, built inter-dimensional gates, and grew etheric ships from living crystal, which they used to sail the black seas of space. The Aeons of Man. Knowledge of human history is based primarily upon the Chronicle of Tetractys.
into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com
Into the Dark: April 2015
http://into-the-dark-rpg.blogspot.com/2015_04_01_archive.html
Friday, April 17, 2015. Cleric Training Packages Table. Piero di Cosimo, Anthony the Great. Items: clerical vestment (10 g); healing poultice (100 g); holy water (25 g); silver cross ( 25 g). Skills: divinity; scholarship; scribe. Powers: bonus spell points (4 per level). Weaknesses: reduced attack bonus ( 1 per 3 levels); reduced hit dice (1d4). A canon receives 4 spell points per level, instead of 3 per level. A canon uses 1d4 instead of 1d6 for his hit dice. After the sacrifice has been performed, the...
SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT