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Post by Scott on Dec 24, 2016 12:31:50 GMT -5
I have just over 1,000 words written for the adventure I'm writing. Just outline notes and ideas, but getting close to putting the first section together.
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Post by geneweigel on Dec 24, 2016 13:09:23 GMT -5
Yesterday, I was finalizing the structure of the base of one of the new areas for the TOEE area map as well. The area map for my module is the headache. It has to be black and white and all my areas have been drawn in color traditionally. When color graphic computers came out I was on the bandwagon right away in the mid-80's but I didn't use a mouse until 1988. I recall the program (on AMIGA computer) and I had to draw dot by dot to make it look "real". (Everything was never printed and erased unfortunately.). But even before color printing came into popular demand in the 90's I was color coding hex maps on everything with color pencils, markers and crayons. I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and sketch area maps for the published modules.
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Post by geneweigel on Jan 11, 2017 10:43:49 GMT -5
Been focusing on organizing my campaign world the last week or so digging through old adventure notes for all the played facts and locations.
My notes are a heap so I'm lining up everything. One country has five different names. Technically its "Egypt" but only in the past.
The freakiest is an old map of a fantasy medieval "America". My next "troll secrets" installment will use a tiny bit of gameplay detail from that.
Another weird one is a walled city that I built as a character and completely forgot about. I created a different city high above a mountain as DM then across the river, which is a border for borderlands (B2 was not placed here its just an area where calling "borderlands" was convenient so it had the name of the nearby country attached to stop the confusion), as a PC I decided to pay for a wall to keep the hostiles out while we explored. So it was the character's stronghold that grew from other player's building in the convenient area with my dumb character.
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Creative
Jan 17, 2017 7:29:31 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by Scott on Jan 17, 2017 7:29:31 GMT -5
The past week or so I've been working on RJK's maps. Trying to work them into my Greyhawk dungeon. I've also redid the Upper Works and added some detail to town and the wilderness around town and the dungeon.
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Post by GRWelsh on Jan 17, 2017 12:51:50 GMT -5
Now that you've had some time to look at it, what do you think of RJK's archive and the content?
I have to admit I haven't really reviewed it in detail yet. I glanced through it, just to make sure the DVD worked and that all of the content was all there, and then I loaded a copy on to my computer hard-drive and that's about it. My first impression was that it had less commentary and text detail to support the maps and documents than I was hoping for.
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Post by Scott on Jan 17, 2017 23:10:37 GMT -5
Here's the first draft of making RJK's 2nd level mesh with some other Greyhawk tidbits I know and Castle Zagyg:
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Post by Scott on Jan 18, 2017 7:15:43 GMT -5
Now that you've had some time to look at it, what do you think of RJK's archive and the content? I have to admit I haven't really reviewed it in detail yet. I glanced through it, just to make sure the DVD worked and that all of the content was all there, and then I loaded a copy on to my computer hard-drive and that's about it. My first impression was that it had less commentary and text detail to support the maps and documents than I was hoping for. There is a lot of cool stuff there, but I agree. I would like to have had more commentary. I understand that after 40 years the key may be lost, but some general contents, or some snippet detailing some PCs exploits on a level, etc.
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Post by geneweigel on Jan 18, 2017 8:16:50 GMT -5
I understand that after 40 years the key may be lost, but some general contents, or some snippet detailing some PCs exploits on a level, etc. LAKE GENEVA 1979:Rob has handrolled cigarette dangling out of mouth that has scrawled writing on it: "AREA 375) Greater Fane of Fraz Ur-...""Has anyone seen the key for the map that Gary left on the table yesterday...?"
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foster1941
Warlock
Duke of California, Earl of Los Angeles, Knight Bachelor
Posts: 475
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Post by foster1941 on Jan 18, 2017 13:29:38 GMT -5
It was disconcerting to see things that were described in that c. 2002 bibliography as if they were nearly publication-ready actually consist of 1 or 2 scrawled maps and a couple of barely-legible handwritten notes on the back of a cocktail napkin - that there were only at most a half-dozen pieces that were in something close to "playable" condition, and several of those had been previously published (Bottle City, The Stalk). However, once that shock wore off and I dug deeper into what was there, a lot of it is pretty interesting and I'm glad I have it. I don't know how much of it I'll ever use directly in a game, but I do think having read it will inform my future design-work (if only to make me less self-critical - that Rob claims to be a genius on the basis of this stuff, but my own stuff is every bit as good ).
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Post by geneweigel on Jan 18, 2017 15:04:04 GMT -5
In regards to Rob's stuff, I've already missed so much that I couldn't possibly catch up. I've never even seen the CREATIONS UNLIMITED Zayene material. I did see the Plantmaster original.
Its not that they might be interesting its just that I have so much stuff of his as it is that I don't know what to do with for instance CITY OF BRASS. Every time that I pick it up I get a headache.
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Creative
Jan 18, 2017 15:30:06 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by geneweigel on Jan 18, 2017 15:30:06 GMT -5
Here's the first draft of making RJK's 2nd level mesh with some other Greyhawk tidbits I know and Castle Zagyg: View AttachmentIt looks plausible in general (room layout) and specifically (reservoir area).
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Post by grodog on Jan 18, 2017 16:07:39 GMT -5
Its not that they might be interesting its just that I have so much stuff of his as it is that I don't know what to do with for instance CITY OF BRASS. Every time that I pick it up I get a headache. Understandably, since the published Kenzer version was only about 40% (or perhaps less) Rob's work. We do hope to fix that, eventually.
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Post by grodog on Jan 18, 2017 16:09:41 GMT -5
Here's the first draft of making RJK's 2nd level mesh with some other Greyhawk tidbits I know and Castle Zagyg: Scott: do you have a Castle Greyhawk document that compiles all of your discussions, saved bits of lore from forums/chats/emails/etc., similar to Joe Bloch's Greyhawk Lore document @ docs.google.com/open?id=0B_Cma19yAxHJQlBiMXUxa0Q3bDgAllan.
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Post by Scott on Jan 18, 2017 17:11:13 GMT -5
Here's the first draft of making RJK's 2nd level mesh with some other Greyhawk tidbits I know and Castle Zagyg: Scott: do you have a Castle Greyhawk document that compiles all of your discussions, saved bits of lore from forums/chats/emails/etc., similar to Joe Bloch's Greyhawk Lore document @ docs.google.com/open?id=0B_Cma19yAxHJQlBiMXUxa0Q3bDgAllan. No. I wish I did. I've forgotten and lost a ton of stuff.
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Post by geneweigel on Jan 18, 2017 17:22:17 GMT -5
Its not that they might be interesting its just that I have so much stuff of his as it is that I don't know what to do with for instance CITY OF BRASS. Every time that I pick it up I get a headache. Understandably, since the published Kenzer version was only about 40% (or perhaps less) Rob's work. We do hope to fix that, eventually. Yes, thats something that I'd be interested in. I feel like I missed the boat on that. I actually have touched on so many things "City of Brass" over the years in gamplay but I would like to have seen the DMG inspiration for Sutherland. Kenzer has no sense of D&D whatsoever. I think that they are rpg latecomers who don't understand anything but glib superfan nonsesnse. Even Chaosium (low on the food chain to me) has swaths of redeeming qualities. The Hackmaster thing is a double insult to people who value the original Gygaxisms and not just lip service it. Its a parody thats functional so it tries to retcon everything stale as "O.G. legit" so its got this cringingly dumb, politically correct centered POV "A killer whale isn't a like a puppy? 70's people aren't smart like us informed laymen, I guess. HARRR!!!" with a punishing "You wanted old school...DIE!!!!" childish play. I thought the COB was going to use HM for a vehicle but instead its the other way around and its worthless.
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Post by GRWelsh on Jan 19, 2017 10:20:27 GMT -5
You make me glad that I never bought anything Hackmaster.
I like the Knights of the Dinner Table comic strip well enough, but I didn't understand the purpose of turning their game into a "real" game, when we already have the real game that -- with a thin veil over it -- they are supposed to be playing. Knights was funny because it brings up a lot of ridiculous things that DMs and players actually do while playing, not because the game system is itself funny. Hackmaster seemed to be trying to build that humor into the game system itself, and I'm not sure that can work or is even needed.
A recurring theme with people who weren't there the first time around is that "old school" is just instant, arbitrary death all the time, but I never saw it that way and that's never the way we played it.
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Post by GRWelsh on Jan 19, 2017 10:22:41 GMT -5
Here's the first draft of making RJK's 2nd level mesh with some other Greyhawk tidbits I know and Castle Zagyg: View AttachmentI love it, but I'm not looking at it too closely because I'm planning on adventuring in there again.
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Post by geneweigel on Jan 19, 2017 12:07:24 GMT -5
Knights of the Dinner Table when it appeared in DRAGON was at least something to read out of that 2E mediocrity in the 90's. Ultimately, I didn't like it because its not something that I could see myself doing as a cartoonist.
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Post by Scott on Jan 19, 2017 12:20:37 GMT -5
Here's the first draft of making RJK's 2nd level mesh with some other Greyhawk tidbits I know and Castle Zagyg: View AttachmentI love it, but I'm not looking at it too closely because I'm planning on adventuring in there again. It will definitely change as I stock it.
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Post by GRWelsh on Jan 19, 2017 13:03:56 GMT -5
Knights of the Dinner Table when it appeared in DRAGON was at least something to read out of that 2E mediocrity in the 90's. Ultimately, I didn't like it because its not something that I could see myself doing as a cartoonist. I was mostly out of D&D and gaming for a few years, in the late 80's. From early 86 to late 89 I didn't buy anything, or hardly play at all. I remember after not buying anything TSR for a few years, what drew me back was Dragon magazine #150 (October 1989); that was the one with the Elmore cover of the witch walking on an Autumn landscape (still one of my favorite Elmore paintings). Unfortunately, I was also drawn back by 2nd edition and the "Hey this is new" feeling. AD&D never looked so professional and corporate slick, but in retrospect you're right, was a time of mediocrity. The art was professional, but the written material wasn't as good. Throughout the 90's I was lucky to have a DM who, although he used 2nd edition, ran a mostly home-brew game that still had continuity with his 1st edition campaign. I didn't buy much 2nd edition... I had some of the soft bound splatbooks, but I didn't buy Planescape, Dark Sun, Birthright, other hard backs, etc. What finally broke me out of 2nd edition was the Greyhawk revival material of the late 90's -- which I did buy -- and the announcement of 3rd edition. Also, that's around when I learned more of the details of EGG's ouster from TSR. I sold all of my 2nd edition stuff except for the PH and DMG (which I had to keep since Eric still runs a 2nd edition game to this day) but since then I've really only been interested in 1st edition AD&D and OD&D and TSR games of the Gygax era. For me, "Knights of the Dinner Table" was one of the highlights of the 90's era. Dragon Magazine was the one thing from TSR I continued to buy regularly. But I gave up on even that after the change to 3rd edition. That is when even the system itself truly became a different, unrecognizable game to me.
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