How I Handle Money Without Counting Pennies

 

I'm tired of counting coins and cracking silvers into coppers and NONE OF IT IS FUN!

It's an almost proven fact - As math increases, entertainment decreases.

So here's how we simplify things:

The Basic Unit - A Handful of Coin. What kind of coins? Who cares. How many coins? Who cares. A Weapon costs a Handful of Coin. A toolkit costs a Handful of Coin or two. A days food and lodgings costs a Handful of Coin. If the cost of an item is significant enough to note, it probably costs a Handful of Coin. When you search a goblin for loot, it might have a Handful of Coin.

The Sack of Coins. More expensive items cost 1 or more Sacks of Coin. Horses, Wagons, Sailboats, passage for a long voyage, their costs would be in Sacks of Coin. If the heroes are being hired for a "simple" job, they're going to be paid in Sacks of Coin. 1 Sack of Coin equals 10 Handfuls of Coin. The hero can carry 2 Sacks of Coin before becoming encumbered.

Chest of Coin. For the big payments. Magic items, castles, warships, blackmail, it costs Chests of Coins. A Chest of Coin equals 5 Sacks of Coin. Heroes are encumbered if they are carrying a Chest of Coins, so better get a wagon.  

Thus we keep wealth descriptive, math is at a minimum, and you can easily gauge whether a hero should be encumbered by their loot or not. And it should be easy to guess-timate the price of anything.

I got the idea from movies, tv shows, Vikings, etc. They never talk about amounts. When someone buys something, they toss a handful coins down and get what they want. The villain always pays a sack of coins to his nefarious henchmen for a dirty night's work. Kingdoms pay ransom to their attackers in chests of coins. The vikings never sat and counted each coin when they were paid off. They just threw open the lid, looked at the loot, and the deal was done. 

Edit>> I thought about just using individual coins to represent the wealth, but then heroes would only find single coins. Getting a Handful of Coins sounds better.

Magic and Technology in the Same Setting...Why?

I'm not saying it can't be done. The premise of Shadowrun is sound, the world embraced technology because magic didn't exist. Magic awoke onto the scene so it makes sense that they would be in conflict.

But let's take your typical D&D Fantasy-Land. Magic is all around. Despite the claimed "rarity" of magic items, the heroes will come across a lot of it, usually in the hands of the villain. Magic has been tamed, identified, and spells can be repeated and taught. Magic is the technology. Given how powerful the idea of magic is (getting something for basically nothing), why would anyone pursue mundane technology? Technology would only advance in areas that magic can't. This is why it's important to know the limits of magic in your setting.

So would there be guns in Fantasy-Land? Traditional guns? Not likely, unless they were developed in a place of no magic and brought into Fantasy-Land. Why invent a gun when Flame Bolt and Eldritch Blast wands are options. A "Gun" developed in Fantasy-Land would likely be magic based, a wand shaped like a modern firearm. In which case, does it matter if you reskin wands as pistols?

Here's another instance of unlikely technology in Fantasy-Land, medical kits. Medical kits take time to use and they suck. However, the dearth of healing potions and low level healing spells are far more efficient and effective and would drive out the medical kit market. Heck, the presence of resurrection magic (if you are rich), throws a huge wrench into the circle of life (see Altered Carbon).

I'm not saying you shouldn't use magic and technology in the same setting, I'm suggesting that you think of them as one and the same. Whatever tech you want in a Fantasy setting, consider a magic-themed item that would do that. The gunfighter in a fantasy setting has been done before. Try adding some new spice to the old trope. If you absolutely want them in the same setting for contrast, make sure they each have limits that only the other can fill. Otherwise the inclusion of both may just feel like cheap fan-service.

Also, consider that if technology is there to make ordinary people as powerful as mages, magic will feel far less amazing in your setting.

Effort and Why I Dig It (ICRPG)

ICRPG uses a system called Effort, as in "this task requires more than the flip of the switch so let's see how far you get this round". Damage is effort, each round you see how much closer you've pushed the enemy toward Deadsville. Well Runehammer thought that such an interesting system should get used more often. Now, all complicated tasks have "Hit Points", and you must defeat them using the relevant skill and Effort. Now, the lock on the doorknob isn't going to be attacking you back so "where is the drama" you ask? It's in the form of a TIMER. 

A Timer is usually a d4, but it could be a d6. The GM rolls it and the players then have that many rounds to do the task before SOMETHING HAPPENS. What is it? Only the GM knows for sure and it's enough to make you pee your britches.

You don't have to use a Timer all of the... er... time, either. Suspense has to be a roller-coaster, with ups and downs for contrast. If every moment has suspense, players will become numb to it. Just pull it out every time you want the players to get worried.

Now Effort is rated by a specific die type: d4 for Basic Effort, d6 for Weapons or Tool Effort, d8 for Magic or Super-Tech Effort, d10s are skipped as they are used solely for Loot Tables, and d12s as ULTIMATE EFFORT!

Wait, all weapons deal d6 damage?

Yup.

But That's NOT REALISTIC?

What is? Take D&D for example and the humble spear. In reality, the spear was one of the most common weapons on the battlefield. It was easy to make, cheap, keeps your opponents out of reach, and could be mastered by an unskilled user. But in D&D, those extra attributes aren't calculated. As a result, every player (that I have witnessed) picks a Longsword, a Rapier, or a Two-Handed weapon because they deal the most damage for the character type. Using a spear is a detriment to the character.

Well ICRPG says "It doesn't matter anymore, use what you like". I LOVE this. My players can now use whatever type of weapon that makes them look cool (Rule of Cool) and all I have to do is add a few tags. They can even make up weapons. Putting them in ICRPG is a snap. What's that? You want fold-away short-swords that can unfold into climbing picks like Rayla's in The Dragon Prince?

Okay so that's Shadow Elf Butterfly Swords: d6 Effort; Tags: Alien, Climbing, Concealed, Fast, Light, and Sturdy.

That took me about 30 seconds and I don't have to worry about weapon balance.

So Effort shouldn't be looked at as Damage. It's a measure of progression to a specific goal this round. Hit points are the length of the track and Effort is the speed at which you run it. And the Hit Points say a weapon should complete it's task against an single-heart opponent in two rounds with two solid hits, maybe a little longer. Picking the lock on a one-heart chest is going to take 3 rounds minimum unless you score a crit.

Also, in the Movie-verse, is there a visible difference in damage between Subotai's sword and Conan's? How about the German Machine Guns, versus the American Machine Guns? When there was a difference, it was specifically called out. Guns deal the same damage but when Arnold grabs the Bazooka... The Movie-verse doesn't care that a .45 caliber bullet does more damage than a 9mm. You go bang, they fall down. While debating the merits of weapon details can be fun, it really has no place in fiction. The objects aren't the point of the tale, the characters are. 

Note: Hankerin hates the idea of balance. But there is such a thing as good game balance: The balance of player's options so they don't feel that their decisions in character creation led them to make a boring, useless, or inept character, unless that's what they intended. No one should be penalized for wanting to look cool. 

So in short, if I want to play a wandering Spear Master, in ICRPG I have the same shot in the spotlight as Grunter the Unwashed and his Clobberrock mk Many. In D&D, not so much.

Starpunk Update

For those that have been following my blog, I have been working on a sci-fi setting called Starpunk. It's kind of like Daring Tales of the Space Lanes but with an actual setting (and I'm leaning more toward a comedic bent). One of the biggest hurdles has been generating starships because the Sci-Fi Companion generator never sat right with me, and I have worked on a lot of Starship generator ideas. Here's what I have discovered:

a) I shouldn't need a starship generator ruleset. The point of the game is to play, not munchkin the ruleset to see what cool combo can be built.
b) The more complicated the starship builds get, the easier it is to introduce overpowered ships and weapons.
c) The more complicated the system, the less F!F!F! it got.

Well I finally have something worked out, at least for capital scale ships. It borrows concepts from a variety of sources but also required me to change my thinking process.

In every rpg that involves large starships, they have always treated them the same way as they treated smaller vessels: listing each individual weapon and its damage. If you ended up with two capital ships fighting each other, then you were expected to roll for each gun to hit, roll damage for each hit, etc. This takes too long, but thankfully it is rarely ever used since the players don't command these type of vessels in an rpg. What GMs should be concerned about is what affect all of those guns have on our hero's stock light freighter.

Here's my solution:
Don't sweat the details. Worry about the overall effect.

Capital ships have three weapon entries: Port Batteries, Starboard Batteries, and CIDS (Close In Defense Systems).

CIDS are what capital ships would use against small craft. It's treated as a single weapon, but with a RoF. The bigger the ship, the bigger its RoF (rated 2-4). A capital ship can make a single CIDS attack against each enemy fighter or missile per round.

If I do want to run two capital ships duking it out, the the Capital ships fire their batteries at each other. Each battery is considered a single attack roll. A starship can only attack with one side Battery per target unless they draw a face Card, and Ace, or a Joker for their action card. If they do, then the ship has maneuvered in a way to bring both side Batteries to fire on a single target.

Of course, if I'm going to involve more capital ships and fighters, then I would just bring out the Mass combat rules.

Sci Fi Companion Ship/ Vehicle Sheets

There was a request on the Pinnacle Boards for one. Truth to tell, I haven't had much to show off or talk about recently so this makes for a good post. Here they are.

My Travel Kit

I've been redsigning what I travel with in anticipation of PaizoCon 2017. Yes, it's 6 months away but I like to be prepared and last year I packed way too much and hurt my back.

I'd love to be this excited about a Pinnacle Con but they don't come up here. And with my home life being what it is, a 4 day break is a rare god-send.

So here is my PazioCon kit. Items not pictured that are going in the bag are my iPad with pdfs of books and Herolab installed, iPad backup charger, 5x9 notebook, 5x9 graph notebook, sketchbook, pill box, and hand sanitizer.

So from upper left to right: Player Character Folio which grants me 1 re-roll per game in Pathfinder Society, dice box with jumbo dice (my Fave), Plano box with items I will describe later, Summoned Creature cards so I won't have to flip through the Bestiary, and along the bottom are are affect cards for spells and what-not.

The Plano Box

This holds a couple of mechanical pencils, a laminated initiative card which can also be used for tracking rounds, Pathfinder Condition Cards and Buff Deck, 3x5 pad of index cards vertical ruled for notes, wet erase pens, minis of my characters, and a stand from a delivery pizza box that serves as a stand for flying characters (like my Faerie Dragon side-kick, "Riddywipple").

I have another Plano box for Savage Worlds stuff.

So far it has 2 decks of cards, my modifiers tokens, and some card stands for figure flats. 

My dice box

Geez these are expensive! And most are made of wood. I don't want to lug a wood box around a con. It's expensive, bulky, and can get damaged. So instead I took a relatively cheap Vaultz box that I got from Fred Meyer and glued some craft foam in the bottom as well as some blue felt. Now I have a place to keep my dice and a tray to roll them in, quietly, without damaging the table.

 And finally my messenger bag. I picked it up at Best Buy for about $50. The dice box and the Plano fit into the outer pockets nicely, freeing up the internal room for other things I will be carrying or buying.

It also has straps in the back if I need to carry my maps in a tube.

Well, that's my Con Kit. Actually that's about my everywhere kit since I never game at my house so I often have to travel light. If I am GMing I would also carry the Basic Paizo flip map and any adventure materials or extra Savage Worlds books I might need.

RPG Loot Crates - A Cool Idea I Will Never Buy

Who loves presents? Who doesn't?

That is essentially what a loot crate, dungeon crate, rpg crate, any of the new crates or blocks that are rocking the current geek fad are. It's a monthly subscription to a monthly Christmas, and like all Christmases, the gifts may not be quite what you desired.

I admit, I want in. I want to get some blind rpg stuff delivered to me so I can geek out with my new toys. However I just can't bring myself to make the investment. And Here's Why:

• It's all D&D. Well that's a blanket statement, but more or less true. And if I were running a company that targeted RPG players, I would also set my sights on the 300lb Gorilla that is D&D as well. The problem is that I game everywhere on the mythical timeline, and fantasy isn't my favorite. Some crate makers have admitted they do other settings, but very rarely. Therefore I have no reason to buy a year subscription.
• Wrong game systems. As mentioned above, they target D&D heavily, but I use Savage Worlds as my go to. And there are hundreds of other systems that people enjoy that are being ignored. Even the modules and magazines that accompany these crates are for specific systems (such as some edition of D&D).
• Vynil figures. Some people love them, I don't. I am very picky about why I collect, mainly because my ex-wife was a hoarder. If it's on my shelf, it better do more than look pretty. 
• How many dice do you need? This gets included a lot because every gamer needs at least one set of dice, right? But I am afraid that this cheap, useful go to item is going to be in every crate and I purged myself of the great die bucket long ago. 

That said, I believe there are some good ideas that can be made better here.

• Truly personalized crates. Have you ever thought of making one yourself to give to a special gamer in your life? Suddenly this can be an awesome birthday/Christmas/ anniversary gift and you can tailor it to the person's preferred gaming. What is more, you know you are getting what the crate is worth and - no buttons, no ads, and no stupid frakking inflatable crowns!
• I am considering a digital loot idea. Imagine a bundled download for purchase from Drivethrurpg that includes a map, paper figures, a one sheet adventure, and a map. I have no idea how I would pull that all off monthly but it would be catered to Savage Worlds, no subscription, and significantly cheaper since I am just creating virtual assets.

Anyway that's my brain hemmorage for today. I am currently awaiting approval for my Cavern Tiles to go live on Drivethrurpg. They can connect to the "Pay what you want" Sewer Tiles I have already uploaded and will cost $1.99. That's a 50 tile set, btw.

The Case For Horizontal Character Sheets

I like my Character sheets horizontal rather than vertical. To me it is easier to break up thematically similar sections and group them on a horizontal sheet. But there is another reason and the Penny Arcade/D&D "Acquisitions Incorporated" Series has highlighted it with this screenshot.

A horizontal character sheet takes less of the center real estate on a game table. Granted that this is an expensive Carolina Game Table model (from Clint and Jodi Black!), but how often do your players have to move their character sheets while you lay down a new map? How often do you have a wide enough table at your gaming location of choice?

Of course, if you are playing in the "Theater of the Mind" this is not likely a problem for you, unless you have large handouts.

FREE STUFF! My Eye of Kilquato Tools!

I've gotten word back from Jodi Black at Pinnacle. I am clear to release a PDF that contains all of my tools used for the Eye of Kilquato. Well, all except for my Status Tokens.

Get the file right here.

Edit: I update the file. They are supposed to be crocodile Cultists, I guess.

The World of Digital Products Versus Real Products

You are probably expecting another treatise on the value of PDFs over paper books. I feel that path has been tread over sufficiently. This is about the FUTURE! Oooooooowwwwweeeeeeeeooooooo

I was watching a discussion on collectible monetization recently (basically it's why you always get things you don't want in randomized booster packs, et al). Combining that with the insidiousness of iTunes, it has started me thinking about the value I am getting out of my printed RPGs.

In the video game industry, there is a big push toward microtransactions. In a worst case scenario (like Star Wars the Old Republic) you are charged for nearly every feature of the game, even those that are purely cosmetic. Content is being held hostage in an effort to squeeze more dimes from the player.

Then there is iTunes, you don't own that music you have purchased. You have leased it. If you were to switch to a "not iPhone" and quit using iTunes, all of the music you had thought you had purchased would no longer be available to you. This motivates you toward staying with their product. The longer you use their product, the more painful it will be to switch.

Dungeons and Dragons used to follow a similar paradigm, getting players to invest a large amount of money into various books. In a sense, Pathfinder is worse as it not only continues that philosophy but as a Game Master of the Pathfinder Society I have too keep my library update because the scenarios for each new season require rules from the most recent books. What remains to be seen is if Paizo (the makers of Pathfinder) are going to engage in the same disaster as WotC once perpetrated: the new Edition.

Imagine you had spent over $400 in rule books for the game of your choice and then they came out with a new edition 6 years later that made all of your purchases obsolete. What incentive would you have to buy into the new edition? The D&D fanbase may be the largest in the RPG community but it is also the most fragmented. Their are groups who have refused to update beyond the edition they originally bought into. Many of the 3rd Edition fans went to Pathfinder. As a result Wotc has lost some share of their market with each new edition.

Now let's look at World of Warcraft. Recently there was an unauthorized vanilla server that ran the original WoW before any of the updates, patches, or expansions. By some reports it had over 800,000 active players before it was shut down by Blizzard's legal department. But it brought to light that the game had evolved into something very different from the original and that unless you engage in illegal activity, you can never play that game experience again.

But therein lies the beauty of owning pen and paper RPGs. We can ignore the update or the new edition if we want to. We can lock ourselves into the game version we love as long as we keep the books. A system with a good core book is all you need. The micro-transactions of maps and figurines are not necessary. And with a hobby like ours, forcing us to lease the product rather than own it is difficult (not that some groups aren't trying right now).

So find a good system. Have fun. Keep the books. If there are too many books to carry then sure, supplement your load with PDF versions. Just make sure you are willing to lose them when all is said and done. The way things are going in the entertainment industry, non-digital books may be the only items you can truly claim ownership over in a few decades.

For me, the best system will always be Savage Worlds. With one small book and my imagination, I can do anything.

Economies Part 2 - The Rebuttal

Hey folks. There were a lot of good responses to my last post that were useful. I do want to address the idea of a Wealth stat - or die and the problems I have had with it. Also I wanted to go more into detail about how purchases add or don't add to the game play experience.

The Wealth Trait

This suggestion came up and to tell the truth I was using this several years ago in one of my first Savage Games. The problem I and my players found was in the swingy-ness of the rolls. For example-

• The player in question wants to buy a new pistol. He rolls his wealth die and fails. So he moves on to another vendor and decides to buy a car. He aces the roll and buys a car. This actually happened and left the player questioning how he could have enough money for a car but not a pistol.

So the randomness doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Even if you figure in some haggling, the odds that someone could haggle a new car down to below the cost of a common firearm breaks belief.

Which brings me to the gameplay experience

Now was there anything wrong with just letting the character buy the gun? It wasn't going to break my game so it really isn't an issue of balance. In Savage Worlds there isn't a power creep of items like you have in D&D.  Sure a Bazooka is more powerful than a pistol but it has several built-in drawbacks: weight, slow reload time, lack of concealability, and the fact that any law enforcement will shoot at you on sight.

The mechanic of purchasing equipment is binary, meaning you either can buy it or can't. There's no challenge in purchasing, no extraordinary successes. You either get it or you don't. I'm not sure that it qualifies as a fun game mechanic. Even in D&D, the characters eventually gain enough money to make purchase-limitations inconsequential. 

Ultimately equipment acquisition comes down to game balance. Do you want the characters to have access to that or not. If you deem the object to be too powerful, you will find a reason that the heroes can't have it even if they can afford it, and whether you are counting coins or not. 

Love to hear more feedback.

Economies - A New Way To Play?

If you are a fan of Savage Worlds and you haven't been tuning in to the Savage GM's Hangout, you should. 

So here I was wallowing in a lack of inspiration to get back into writing my blog or diving back into Starpunk, then I listened to their podcast on Money and my brain has reopened.

The podcast touched on an interesting point about in-game economies, and that is the fact that you don't necessarily need one. 

Here is the problem I tend to have with game economies like D&D. The players go out, defeat monsters, gain enough treasure to technically retire, and come home. When the next adventure starts, the hero has lost no money for living costs, just the money he has spent on his equipment. His treasure hoard builds and builds.

Some people like this style of gameplay. They need these rewards to feel like they have gained something at the end of each adventure. In fact the accumulation of wealth starts to be the focus instead of the adventure. Case in point - "I loot the bodies".

But can a game be played without monies and prices? Yes, and in fact some games have been doing it for a while: Military and Espionage games. In these games, a characters gear is usually picked or assigned to them by the agency they work for. But what about regular games where the heroes aren't a part of a wealthy organization? Games like Starpunk? Well...I'm thinking of just applying common sense to the problem.

Starting Gear

The hero starts with whatever gear makes sense for the character. If he's a bounty hunter then he will have a weapon, handcuffs, and possibly some armor. I might make it a simple armor if he's just starting out. If a player wants their character to start out with something a little more advanced, then they should make a compelling argument. It will likely give me something in their backstory that I can use against them later.

Buying Gear

If a hero wants to get a new piece of gear for some reason and it's believable that an average person could afford it, then they buy it. If they have the Poor hindrance then you might be more stingy about what they get. If someone has the Rich edge, that's going to open up a lot more options to the group. Getting special or illegal items may still require a Streetwise roll.



Voila, no bookkeeping.

One big reason I like this idea is that the price of equipment always seemed like an artificial barrier to me. Being poorly equipped should be a function of whether or not the character is prepared as opposed to what the character can afford.

Encumbrance

This is one that I will be keeping an eye on. If characters could conceivable acquire a great many tools and weapons, the player may mistakenly think that he/she has access to it all at any time. Nope. Like any adventurer he/she is going to have to pick and choose which gear they are likely to need and hope for the best.

So it's a simple idea and I don't see much that can go wrong. If a player wants a piece of equipment that you feel may unbalance the game, then money doesn't really come in to it (especially since in most games the players have hoarded enough money to buy the item). So balance issues will come up whether you are counting pennies or not. In the end you will still have to GM your way through game balance.

Leave a comment if you find a fault in the idea.

Updated Starships Doc

After some feedback I decided to expand the weapons systems available to starships besides just one cannon type. There are a few other changes as well, including prices for ships and ship cannons.

I opted for a very Slipstream approach to starship weaponry where vehicles have turret "slots" and the heroes can add in the weapons they choose. I'll add more weapon options if I come up with them.

I really envy the Savage Worlds GMs Hangout for actually having a group of people to bounce ideas around with in real time.

New Starships Doc

Designing My Starships

Why? Seriously, with the Sci-Fi Companion out now, why would I put myself through this pain?

Answer: To save myself some headache and heartbreak later. There is a lot that I do not need and do not want from the sci-fi companion for my setting. 

• I don't need star-fighters, or a hundred different scales of ship
• I don't need armor and AP (especially since one typically cancels out the other in the SFC)
• I don't need mega-weapons that kill with a single hit, or a ton of weapon varieties. 
• I don't need complicated rules for building a ship from the ground up since my players won't be focusing on that in-game.

This left me with a lot of streamlining.

• I have only one style of cannon for starships and it deals 3d6 damage (with no AP). This let me balance the Toughness of all of the starships that were roughly the same size. I might add different starship weapons later but they would have very different gameplay effects. 
• I built a basic chart of starship statistics, then adjusted them by applying a template (passenger liner, courier, military, etc).
• Capital ships exist, but they don't have stats. They are like the Death Star, huge and bristling with weapons. A typical starship has no hope of taking on one of these behemoths so I use my own version of the Obstacle Rules for when heroes flee these things.
• By homogenizing the starship scale, I can allow heroes to modify their ships capabilities.
• I don't need rules for how many escape pods or crew quarters a ship has. It is assumed that the ship is designed adequately for its roll.
• Ships have a Toughness and Shields act as armor. I decided to keep things simple at first. I may add more shield maintenance rules if it seems that starship combat needs more things to do.

So here are my Staship Rules and designs. Sorry no art for this yet but It's still a work in progress.

Starpunk and Cybernetics

I've been reviewing my ideas about using cybernetics in my sci-fi setting. It's odd considering I am also listening to the "Savage Daddy" who is building an actual Cyberpunk setting with the Savage Worlds Rules.

I've decided to drop "cybernetics" from my setting for a few reasons.

• This is future-tech, where cellular regeneration is common-place. They can regrow your arm if you lose it. We are actually closer to this technology now than we are to mind-controlled power suits.
• Cybernetics represent an ability to purchase a better character with credits. Like super powers, it's great when that is the status-quo. However, it goes against the feel that I am looking for. 
• I don't want to dive into the transhumanist angle.

So in my setting the merger of mind and machine never happens. You can get prosthetics that act like normal limbs and are controlled through muscle twitches, but they don't offer greater strength or super agility. They are just cheaper than having a limb-regrown.

I've created Prosthetic (Minor) hindrances that halve the penalties of the One Arm, One Eye, and One Leg hindrances.

GM Wednesday! - Getting Organized

You've probably heard a lot about Obsidian Portal or other Wiki systems to keep track of your campaign. You don't need me to tell you about them as nearly every website or forum is filled with helpful people that will discuss them with you. I don't use these sites anymore, and basically it is because I am too lazy. I am too lazy to learn the wiki code, or to lay out my entire campaign setting on a digital website. What's more, when I did use them my players never bothered with accessing it. They weren't up for doing homework and that is what I felt Obsidian Portal was. Every entry was homework.

Then there is Evernote or One Note. To me, these systems were like shoving clippings into a folder. Yes you could get a lot of ideas into one doc but they always seemed slapdash to me. I'm probably not using these right and I'm sure Your Mileage May Vary.

Believe it or not I just use MSWord. I can feel the hisses from here and I haven't even published this post yet. It's like this, I make my campaign as a living pdf/doc. If oyu know how to use headings in Word, it's awesome. Each Heading becomes a bookmark and you can move everything under a heading to a new location by dragging the bookmark. Not only that but when you export the doc to pdf, the headings instantly become bookmarks making searching your campaign doc just as easy as searching pdf books. I keep making whatever changes I need to the Setting Doc, export the PDF, and load it onto my tablet. If I ever need a hard copy, I have a nicely formatted document as if I was publishing. In fact, if the setting is a winner, I may just publish it.

Elevator Pitch

I open each doc with a paragraph that describes the gist of the campaign, the concept, and feel of what I want. I might also site some inspirations in case I find myself getting lost on the original concept.

Rules In Play

On to the nitty-gritty. Rules In Play section lists anything I want to change from the core rules for my world, both in play and in character generation. For instance, one setting I ran for Pathfinder had no half-breeds: Half-elves or Half-Orcs were not permitted as character races. There was also a list of character classes I boycotted for the campaign. All of this info would go in this section. 

Gear

I add any available gear into the document, even if it is also in the core book. The First part of this document can double as a primer for my players so having all the setting equipment in one place is handy.

Locations

I jot down interesting locations as I come up with them, whether or not I have plans for the pcs to go there. If the Players want to steer the their course away from my plans, I'm ready with a few choice locations of interest for them to explore. I'll give the place a name, list a trope if it fits one, and a few Aspects (ala Fate) so that I can keep the description short.

Example: Obsolam - Robot Graveyard. Where the Obsolete go to finish their run. "Praise Be to the Place We Dare Not Go". "Do not disturb our bones, for we are not yet dead".

Factions

Who are the power players and what do they want? Again I just list ideas as they come to me and keep the descriptions short and sweet. I may not use them so I won't waste too much time developing them.  Besides, I find that the best details about these factions come out in play a lot easier than trying to write them in a vacuum.

BTW don't edit yourself. It's better to have a bunch of ideas that you think might be garbage in your doc than a single blank page. You can always revisit the bad ideas and make them better.

Example: Lazarus, Inc. - Seeking immortality at any cost. Walking an unspeakable path. Funded by powerful people. "If I can't take it with me then I just won't go".

NPCs

If it's a connection, I'll add a couple of sentences describing their personality, what they do, and where the PCs met them. I build out combat NPCs on my NPC Cards and keep them in a little card file until I need them.

Hint: If you don't like printing my fancy pants NPC cards, buy some index cards. I like to get some 5x7 cards and cut them up into 3x5s. It get 3x5s with portrait orientated lines as opposed to landscapes.

Adventure Pitches

Just like Adventure Mondays. I toss in any old idea in one sentence so I can pull it out and run off the cuff whenever I need it.

Tablets

Invariable the question gets asked on RPG.net or your local game forum what is the best Tablet for reading PDFs. The answer is get what you can afford or what you want for other pursuits. Newer models are going to have more memory and better draw speeds, but a lot of how well a tablet handles pdfs has to do with the software you use to read them.

As for me, I'm running a Nook Tablet HD, which I picked up for $150 at the time. It's not the best tablet and I mainly use it for web surfing, youtube, and reading my PDFs. It was a nightmare for a while but then Nook went Android and I was able to download EBookDroid. It has the fastest response time I have found when switching pages and its free.

Game On!

GM Wednesday - D-Bags! (I'm Talking About Dice)

The ever popular Crown Royal bag. It's become a trope, a staple of gamers as the dice bag to own. In the beginning it was cool for a kid gamer to have a quality bag made by a liquor company. It said you were dangerous, beyond your years, or that your parents drink too much. Ask around the table and people will tell you that this is the bag to own. 

Bantha Pudu!

You can lead or you can follow. Traditions are made to be broken and you are your own man/ woman, and you know you don't need to spend your life as a cliche. Besides, the ever popular dice bag just isn't all that functional.

• Even when the drawstrings are closed, there is a gap that a die could pop through. So people fold over the top. The also wind the drawstrings around and around because to tie and untie them is madness. Even so, there's no guarantee it won't unravel and open in your pack, spilling dice everywhere. So much work for a cliché.
• A bag is an amorphous blob. Your pack is filled with flat, nicely stacking objects and then your dice get thrown in and eat up more room than they should or prevent other things from stacking nicely. Bleh.

So here are some better options.

Zippers! 

Get a pencil bag with a zipper enclosure from the school supplies department or an art store. Your dice won't fall out. It's the 21st Century folks! Use 'dem zippers! Magnetic enclosures might also work unless you have metal dice. It might sound cool to use a magnetic to store your metal dice, but you may find it hard to roll them if they get magnetized.

BTW this is what I currently use for my jumbo dice. It also holds pencils. Who knew?

Altoid Tins!

Yes the amazing Altoid company's tins will actually hold 2 x 7-die sets of standard dice and they are fairly good at staying closed. Plus you now have a nice tidy square for backpack or pocket storage. You can even paint the tin to make it more custom (although you might have to shellac it on at first to get rid of the raised lettering.

Other

I've also used zippered cel phone cases, hard glasses cases, a lot of things. Look around, get creative. Just remember, keep it small. Your dice should be handy, not a burden.

GM Wednesday - Travelling Light

Well it seems my post about "How Much Is Too Much" had a high popularity. It behooves me to continue the trend then, though I don't know how long I can keep talking about less things. But that does seem to be the formula with people who offer free advice.

Today let's talk about mobility. Most of my games are away, as in not at my house. As such I like to travel light where ever possible and especially for cons.

First up, take a look at your game system of choice because that is where the most weight is incurred. Games like Star Wars Saga or D&D have a lot of additional books and they are hardbacks. They're nice to own but a pain to carry. If you have them on pdf, good for you. If not, try to pare it down to two essential books you just can't do without.

Next let's talk luggage. Some people feel the need to tow their entire back-breaking collection for a single game. If that describes you, then you'll likely need or already be using one of these...

I use something like this for my Pathfinder stuff when I run Society games, but I'm only towing it from the car to the game shop and back. My load is large because it is also carrying snacks and drinks so I don't pay through the nose for it at the shop every weekend. 

I would never take this to con although I do "run into" a few people with them. My shins have the bruises to prove it, and that's why I despise these. When you have a ton of people milling about, trying to squeeze through to see tables or just get past, then those of you with these little low profile obstacles really come off as D-Bags. Every time I see someone with one who is browsing a table, their little tote is kicked back behind them right into the lane of foot traffic. Please, if you absolutely must use one for your game, be mindful and keep it out of everyone's way.

But let's say you have streamlined your kit. Well these are popular with the cool kids...

...and I am not one of them. Unless you can keep this load under 5 pounds, this bag is going to make your back hurt. It pulls your spine to one side and two full-sized hardbacks are going to make you suffer needlessly. Satchels only have two things going for them...

1. They're "in".
2. Easy access to your books due to the flap over closure.

To me, being cool is about never trying to be cool. Since the pros don't outweigh the cons on this bag, I don't bother with them.

Finally we have the ever popular backpack...

...which I recommend. Distribute that load between both shoulders and your less likely to need the magic fingers in your hotel bed at the end of the day (unless you... well I'll leave that to your judgement).

Most Backpacks have a zipper "clamshell" opening in the top and that frustrates me when I am trying to dig out a book. Go with a flap over (like what is pictured above) if you can and make sure the straps are padded for comfort. You make not look trendy, but your back will be happier.

So now it's time for weight saving.

• Bring generic wet erase maps like Paizo's flip maps, 1-2 of them preferred, if your game of choice uses tactical combat.
• Use tokens or figure flats instead of minis and only bring those that you know you will need. Leave the epic army at home.
• Leave the bucket-o'-dice at home as well. You can make a ritual out of picking your travel dice, sacrifice a character sheet to the dice gods, whatever you feel will make them lucky. Just pare it down to the essentials.
• Pens, pencils, and a small note book should suffice. I also carry a small sketchbook but that's because I Art.
• Only those game books you absolutely need to run an adventure. Preferably, you have pdfs loaded into a tablet. If that's not an option, make note sheets from the supplement books of the rules you need for your adventure. Bring the notes and leave the book behind.
• Make sure there is room for a medium soft drink bottle or water bottle as GMing is thirsty work. Don't load up a 2 liter or a six-pack. In fact if you need flavor in your water before you drink it, carry a bottle and a few of these. They are light weight and water is pretty easy to find. You can get single boxes of them at Walmart as the Amazon site sells them in bulk.
• Your adventure, either as small notes or the booklet if it's a published piece. They don't usually weigh much.
• A paper folder for your paperwork. Leave the 3 ring binder at home as it adds weight and bulk that you don't need.
• And lastly, pre-generated characters. At cons you don't need to waste time as people try to make new characters for a game they are likely to only play once. Also, they'll likely need all of the books for character creation to tweak their character just right and you don't need to haul that load. Still, make sure that you make a variety of characters so the players have choices. Don't just make 4 characters because you have 4 slots open on your table.

And now you're good to go. Like I said, the type of game system you play is going to be the biggest factor in GM encumbrance. Trim the fat as much as possible. Save your back and save room for sweet swag. I'll post my GM's kit as an bonus post sometime this week.

New Free Stuff Page!

So it seems that Google Chrome doesn't like Mediafire. That might explain why people have had a hard time with my free stuff downloads. Well I have collected all of the Free Stuff I have posted and put it onto Google Drive. And if you look right over there --------->

You will see a new FREE STUFF page that has links to all of the stuff I have posted.

More Sci-Fi Gear

For those not interested in the cards, here is the planned write up I did for Daring Tales. There is a few items listed that I didn't get around to modeling before I lost the majority of my free time. Anyway it's a useful little pamphlet if you are planning on a homebrew sci-fi game.

Cheers.

Future Tech

By the way, feel free to leave a comment. I see a lot of hit and runs but I'm not getting much feedback about the site.

PPS> I noticed some really bad editing in my pdf so I updated it.