Check it out!

Things have been a bit confusing around here so let me get it all straightened out.

Hero's Ruin as a blog is no more. My friend Noah and I have decided to venture into the world of game design and production and have called our company "Hero's Ruin Game Co." As such, we decided that it wouldn't be appropriate to continue with a personal blog of the same name.

But that doesn't mean there won't be a blog, in fact, I've started a new one!

If you are interested in checking out the new blog, head on over to our new site, Tragic Missile! (http://www.tragicmissile.com/) I've already got a couple articles up with more to come!

I'd like to thank everyone who read and commented here. This blog was seen plenty of chaos but I was glad to see folks still enjoyed it. I look forward to seeing a bunch of you over at the new place!

I'll leave this blog up for a while just so folks can see this and older posts. I am considering moving all of my old content over to the new site as well. Please note that many of the images inside the posts themselves will be disappearing as I clean out my flickr stream.

Thanks and happy gaming!

Too Late for Halloween?

We played our annual Halloween game this past weekend and it went off without a hitch! I've got to say, I'm pretty proud of the job I did writing and running this adventure of horror and mystery.

As with all of our Halloween games, it was based on a horror movie. This particular incarnation was based on House on Haunted Hill, a classic "spend the night in a haunted mansion" scenario. 

 Vincent Price, star of House on Haunted Hill

The premise was simple: A wealthy lumber baron by the name of Malcom Dodson invited the  players to a birthday party; it took place at the defunct Essware Asylum for the Feeble Minded. The invitations included an offer of 1000 gold pieces to each player who attended. The only requirement was that they entertain Malcom's wife Flossie, who had fallen into poor health. Flossie was an avid reader of adventure books and bards' tales. What better gift than to provide her with real adventurers who could regale her with first hand tales of danger?

The players jumped at the opportunity for a bit of easy coin and a free meal. They arrived on schedule and enjoyed an evening of food, liquor and tales of horror provided by Francis, the asylum's current caretaker. They met Malcom, Flossie and a pair of wealthy landowners known as Klaus and Verner Kull. Francis told them of the asylum's spotless reputation, it's charitable works and the escaped inmates that brought the whole place down in a psychotic riot. They toured the various wings and discovered a large slab of iron behind the grand staircase. They retired to their rooms for a good night's sleep and an early start the next morning.

Or so they thought...

The silence of night was shattered by a blood curdling scream! Viktor the monk and Stella the mousefolk wizard dashed toward the scream while their eccentric cleric, 'St. Jubal the Insane' was assaulted by his own bedsheets. The haunted linen lashed out in an attempt to strangle him but he managed to call for help. The group's fighter, Maximus, heard the pleading and came to the door to find it mysteriously locked. As he tried forcing the door he began sinking into the floor, the house was trying to eat him!

Meanwhile, Viktor and Stella made their way to the main hall. Peering over the second floor balcony they spotted the lifeless corpse of Flossie on the floor below, apparently pushed from the catwalk opposite them. They didn't have long to investigate, as they heard Maximus calling out for help. They ran to him and found him laying in the hall holding a doorknob with one hand and a glass of scotch with the other. He and Jubal relayed stories of their encounter and the group proceeded to Malcom's room, where he was pounding on the locked door, demanding release.

Following his release from his own room, Malcom discovered his dead wife and flew into a rage. She not only fell, but was brutally stabbed, the dagger still present in her belly. He began accusing everyone present of the crime and revealed that the Kull brothers were his bodyguards and not wealthy landowners. Malcom locked the doors and gathered everyone in the parlor, including the chef, servants and maids. He was determined to find the culprit.

Stella and a maid ventured to the kitchen to retrieve more wine while everyone else mulled about the parlor. The lights suddenly went dark and Jubal was possessed by the spirit of Flossie. He screamed an ominous message before falling to the floor. As his body hit the ground an earsplitting bang came from the main hall. In same time frame, Stella managed to save the life of the maid, who was attacked by a spectrally wielded butcher's knife in the kitchen. Thank goodness for darkvision.

Shaken, the party gathered in the main hall to find the iron slab behind the stairs had split, revealing a staircase to forgotten levels below the asylum. Being adventurer's, they dove right in.

The dungeon crawl was pretty straight forward. They battled various undead mini-bosses and collected a relic from each one. Each encounter was difficult, but also had a particular weakness; discovered by searching their respective rooms in the upper levels of the asylum.  Each relic solved a piece of a puzzle which in turn, opened another level below. There were a variety of spectral traps including ghostly shoves into cells, attacking chains, devouring floors and grasping hands that melted out from the walls. The bad guy gallery included the head doctor and his nurse, the pharmacist, a flagellant cleric, a disorderly orderly and the head of staff.

My favorite encounter was the cleric's ghost. They managed to acquire his relic without combat by convincing him that they were true believers... Of course the 'convincing' required that they scourge themselves for some pretty hefty damage to prove their faith.

The lowest level pitted the group against the true evil of the asylum, an immense human heart, wrapped in chains and formed from the memories and torment of the former inmates. It was a grueling fight as the heart sent out waves of pain, cursed the adventurers and attacked with ghostly chains. The tide of battle turned when St. Jubal plunged a toy soldier (an item found earlier in the dungeon) into the heart, shattering it's magical defenses and denying it it's normal damage resistance. After a long fight the PCs came out on top although a little worse for wear. Maximus had only 1 point of strength left (the rest was drained) and was on the verge of death. Viktor also found himself permanently cursed, an affliction that causes him to lose his actions 50% of the time.

We didn't have a human heart laying around, so we used a soda can on the map in it's place.

By the time they resurfaced the sun was up and Malcom rewarded them for their efforts with 1250 gold pieces each. They were happy they broke the curse on the house and Francis informed them that they are welcome any time. He intends to turn it into a tourist attraction.

Unfortunately, they failed to discover that Malcom had actually murdered his own wife, as he was tired of her sickly condition. It was the spilling of her blood that awakened the evil in the house in the first place!

All in all it was a fun game. It ran until the wee hours of the morning, a fact no one realized until we were packing up. A few of us headed for a diner around the corner and had a completely different adventure, but thats a story for another time...

Until next time, happy gaming!     

        

Death and Wealth

This is something I've been thinking about this week. How do you deal with death in your game?

Well, maybe not death exactly, but the resulting loot overflow that follows. Say Ted the fighter, Ron the thief, and Deborah the ranger have roughly 30,000gp worth of equipment apiece and during one unfortunate encounter, Ron perishes. After some discussion, Ron's player decides to create a new character and the remaining party members bury/cremate/dispose of the body. Do they take his loot or leave it with the corpse?

NOT BLACK LEAF! Chick comics always give me a chuckle.

Let's say they take the dead player's equipment and gold and head back to town in the hopes of finding a new companion. Fortunately for them, they just happen to stumble across Don the wizard! Very convenient! Ron Don the wizard is of a similar level to the party and has all of the trappings that a wizard of his level should!

The problem mechanics-wise is that you now have a three person party with the wealth of four. Heck, if they split Ron's loot three ways they could each purchase something downright powerful.  Knowing that deceased characters will be quickly replaced with new ones, it seems almost beneficial if a player or two dies every now and then, just for a quick influx of cash.

This is an issue we've ran into recently and have had to house rule it, as we've had a few characters replaced with new ones. Our current rule is that a dead character's equipment (not including quest related items) go with the character. Maybe the equipment was destroyed by the fireball that killed him (or, as the rules would state, the gear would catch fire the moment after he died, as it would no longer be 'an attended object'). Maybe they buried him with his gear. It isn't unheard of for knights to be buried in their armor w/sword or even some policemen to be buried with a firearm. Maybe they sent his equipment and share of the loot off to his family? Who knows?

While the game takes place in a fantasy setting, elements of reality still exist. In reality the passing of someone close is both psychologically and financially stressing. For some reason in the fantasy genre that slice of reality has been flipped to a point where the death of a close friend is actually beneficial.

What's your take on it?

Until next time, happy gaming!    

Honor Friendship and Deceit

While I've spent much of the past two weeks writing, participating and thinking about gaming, there just wasn't any room for blogging! I guess that's a good thing?

Two weekends ago, "Group A" went for a double header. A Saturday game that started at 1:00pm and didn't end until 9:00pm.... On Sunday!

It's my game-face!

Now before you get any wild ideas, we did break for food, stretches, conversation and a bit of TV. We also returned to our respective homes and got a good 8 hours sleep between Saturday and Sunday but for a brief moment in time, it was like middle school where all that mattered was "what's going to happen next?"

And what happened next was nothing short of great storytelling. The setting was a desolate wasteland in a pocket dimension linked with the planes of hell - an immense fortress on an equally immense chunk of rock floating freely in a vast nothingness. The land was parched and dry, geysers of boiling blood dotted the landscape and all around wandered wretched demons and devils, scrounging what they could outside the fortress walls.

The party was a ragtag group of adventurers with little in common, linked only by mutual respect and over a year of adventuring together. They've helped each other through thick and thin and now, they were really in the 'thick' of it. They were in search of a devil named Kulkus the Deceiver. They were to find him and kill him.

-The Cast-

Blanklee, their resident fighter is a mountain of a man. Born in the snow covered lands of Viklingr, he is as hardy and strong as he is ugly and socially inept. Months prior, in a moment of weakness and poor judgement, Blanklee made a deal with Kulkus. Overcome with guilt, Blanklee went back on the deal and turned himself over to the church. After a formal heresy inquiry and with a little help from his friends, he was released from custody under one condition - that he seek out and destroy Kulkus the Deceiver.

Karl Steimer is a battle-priest and the group's unofficial morale officer. Often going off on lengthy tirades about the dangers of evil and of mankind's need to be free of temptation, Karl is a model follower of the human deity Albrich Vul. He stood by Blanklee's side during the entirety of his inquiry, risking his own career on the actions of his companion. 

Gertrude Saddylmoor was once the well-to-do wife of a wealthy adventurer-turned-celebrity. When he was ruthlessly murdered before her very eyes she swore revenge and trained in the ways of stealth and combat. With the help of her friends she sought out her husband's killer and avenged his death. Children in the city of Sessovir tell tales of her exploits. Not knowing her true identity, they gave her the name "Black Widow." Gertrude also stood by the side of Blanklee during his trials, using what political and social influence she had to pull strings.

Alvernus "Alvi" Thornwuld was a modest priest on a simple pilgrimage when he joined up with the group of adventurers. Thinking it would be safer to travel with "experienced professionals," he found himself thrown into one dangerous situation after another. Typically in the back lines during combat, Alvi has saved the day on more than one occasion, mustering his courage and risking life and limb to keep his new friends alive. Alvi's knack for good fortune has earned him a position as a kind of "mascot" for the party.

-The Game-

The players were only one part of a much larger force. An Imperial force known as "The Order of the Destructors" were waging a large-scale frontal assault on Kulkus' fortress. During this time the party was to infiltrate the stronghold from below, gaining access via a little known cave located on the underside of the floating island. They were accompanied by an Imperial Demon Hunter and a sorcerer with celestial bloodlines. The adventure led them through spider infested caverns where Blanklee was swallowed whole by a gargantuan fiendish spider and ancient catacombs filled with ravenous undead who cackled in glee as the party fell into their various traps. The imagery on the walls and armor worn by the dread grave knights hinted that this place did not always reside here, but may have been ripped in entirety from the prime material plane. 

Breaking through the catacombs they found themselves in the lower levels of the keep. They battled their way through the torture chambers and prison levels, freeing an imprisoned friar in the process. Reaching the surface levels they remained inside the fortress, although they did peek out the door to witness Kulkus' secret weapon, an immense two headed giant! Cursed with the blood of fiends, the beast was a tower of muscles, tusks and weapons.

They quickly made their way up Kulkus' tower, dispatching guards and ruining his alchemical laboratory, slaying the infernal alchemists and ransacking their potion stockpile. Unfortunately one of the alchemists escaped, giving Kulkus ample warning to their intrusion.

When the party finally ascended to the open roof of the tower they found Kulkus waiting with a host of minions from lowly lemures, to wizards and bearded devils. Kulkus boasted and laughed at the party, offering them wealth, power and titles if they would only bow to him. The heroes refused and engaged with the forces of evil.

 The setup.

The battle was hard fought and their wounds were grievous. Blanklee was surrounded by devils and fighting Kulkus' new champion - a fighter of similar abilities to Blanklee himself. Every hit he scored was healed quickly by their foul cleric. Blanklee on the other hand, bled freely from many open wounds, his own clerics preoccupied with combat elsewhere on the rooftop. Gertrude was trapped in a dome of ice with a cluster of low level minions, effectively preventing her from helping her comrades and the sorcerer was attempting to locate Kulkus, who had conveniently turned invisible.

 Gertrude trapped in an ice dome, behind her Blanklee is quickly overwhelmed.

Discouraged by his lack of progress, Blanklee's strength of spirit was fading. He watched his companions struggle against the tide of evil and his player - a long time roleplayer and friend named Jim- had a hard decision to make. I could see it in his face and I knew something was up when he pulled out a coin and flipped it while still maintaining his character at the table. Jim passed me this note...

Johann Dangles -called 'J. Dangles' by the players- was a player character in a previous campaign. He has since become evil and is the main "Big Bad Evil Guy" in our game world.

 Fortunately for the players, a few of them spoke infernal and relayed the message to everyone. The table was stunned. The brief silence was broken by Karl who ordered retreat. A devil and his minions were one thing, but with Blanklee against them, they knew their chances were nil.

Karl grabbed the now unconscious demon hunter and ran down the steps, hoping to somehow escape the cursed place with Alvi hot on their heels. The sorcerer cast featherfall and took a leap from the tower to land on the bridge below. Blanklee, now a villain under player control followed the sorcerer in the hopes of cutting off Karl and his former allies. Free of fear thanks to his own ring of featherfall.

 Gertrude surrounded and alone.

Gertrude was left behind, having just escaped the dome of ice and with no chance against such a formidable force, she took a running jump from the tower with no means to slow her descent. She grabbed hold of Blanklee betting that she could "hitch a ride" but he easily pushed her off, leaving her to plummet to certain death.

With a little quick thinking the sorcerer cast a pit spell below Blanklee before slowing Gertrude's descent only moments before she hit the ground. The party used their limited time wisely, escaping while their former fighter was trapped within the pit. They barreled through the fortress and ran straight out the front doors to find what was left of the Destructors standing victoriously over the massive corpse of the two headed giant. Blanklee, no match for an army of trained clerics and warriors returned to his new master at the top of the tower.

His new employment was not long lived though. Kulkus made contact with a plethora of devils, begging for reinforcements. He was denied at every request except for one. A tall skeleton in dingly black robes appeared and offered aid and reinforcements on behalf of his master. In exchange he wanted only one thing - Blanklee. Kulkus, already having a suitable champion willingly made the deal.

The party, now short one 'killing machine' have regrouped and on their next adventure will venture back to the tower to slay Kulkus and destroy his domain once and for all.

Ugh, sorry for the long post but it was an interesing game! Hopefully I'll have some time tomorrow to sum up this past weekends game which was equally exciting.

Until next time, happy gaming!       

Game Stagnation

While I've never had much of a problem with game stagnation, I have talked about it with other players and GMs. I hope to offer a few tips to help prevent your own game from going stale.

Game Stagnation- A slow down of general interest, drive and passion in a game. This can be the caused by a variety of events including (but not limited to): major story completion, lack of GM ideas, players tired of their own characters, lack of variety, redundant game types/styles, concurrent but non-associated off-the-shelf modules, etc, etc...

There are quite a few solutions to this problem, but I prefer to avoid it altogether as it can leave a sour taste in everyone's mouth. Here's a few tips to keep game stagnation from rearing it's ugly head at your table.

Run Away!!: As GMs, we put the players in dangerous situations all the time. Sometimes they aren't prepared and they run away. Enemies can do that too! Throughout any given campaign don't be afraid to let a few people escape. You don't need to think it out ahead of time, just let some guys run away and fill in the blanks later! This way, even if the "main story" is completed in your campaign, you have plenty of fuel to keep the game going.

- Maybe that escaped evil cleric was actually the Big Bad Guy's adviser. Maybe he was secretly raising his own undead horde behind his master's back. The confusing aftermath of the main story would be an excellent time to strike!

- Perhaps one of the generic guards or thugs encountered early fled in grief because the party killed his father right in front of him. Ashamed of his cowardice and seeking revenge, Deadguy Jr. seeks the council of a local witch who helps him make a revenge pact with some evil outsider.

- Towsfolk X remembers the adventurers from a previous game and seeks them out to rescue Towsfolk Y. In this case, keeping hold of game logs and notes can be very useful. Players love to feel connected to the world around them - "Hey remember when you beat up my cousin in that tavern brawl? Well he's gone missing!" 

Player Background: Before you start a campaign ask your players to provide background stories for their characters. Let them go wild! Remember, you share the world with them, it's only fair that they get to create pieces of it too. These stories can lead to major campaigns in themselves! In our current game, Brad is trying to figure out why his father -a legendary monster hunter- has devolved into a slobbering drunk. Luci, an avid entomologist, is searching for the mythical "ruby eyed emerald grasshopper," and Blanklee is trying to save his soul from eternal damnation!

On a side note, you are still the GM. Feel free to fiddle with player backgrounds in order to keep them on their toes. At one point, our "amnesia afflicted" bard was searching for his criminally insane identical twin and our thief was in search of the man who murdered her husband. About halfway through the campaign, they realized they were looking for the same man! If that weren't enough, as the heroes finally found the nutcase, he released his secret weapon... the truth! He told the thief that he didn't murder her husband, his identical twin brother (the bard!) did the deed! That was some downright M. Night Shyamalan $#*! right there!

As an additional tool, you should consider using the "3x3x3 NPC" technique in your game. I hate to admit it, because I was only reading about it a week ago, but I forget where I saw this idea originally. At it's most basic, you ask your players to come up with brief descriptions for 3 allies, 3 acquaintances and 3 foes. This gives you ample fodder to throw into any game or even to base an adventure off of.

Keep it Fresh: Did you just play 3 knock-down, drag-out adventures in a row? Break the cycle with a mystery adventure, trap dungeon or all-roleplay adventure. Take the players out of their element - put them underwater or in the clouds. Have them run into old characters. The point is - don't be a one trick GM. I may prefer comedies but I like to watch action movies and documentaries too. If you were a movie studio, the players would be customers, and customers like a little variety every now and then.

There are plenty more ways to keep your games from stagnating. Hopefully these few methods here will be useful to a few folks out there? What do you do to keep things exciting and fresh?

Until next time, Happy Gaming. 

Crocodile Rock!

Our home-brew campaign features an Egyptian inspired race which are far removed relatives of the elves. One of our players (Tom) is a monk of this particular race and has had a hard time finding a suitable figure to depict his character.

Surfing around the mini sites I stumbled onto crocodilegames.com. They have an excellent selection of figures in their online store, including Egyptian/fantasy themed armies! After browsing around for a bit Tom and I decided on a figure for his new character.

My wife was kind mega awesome enough to order it for me today while I was at work. Unfortunately she ordered the wrong one by mistake. I can't blame her - the product numbers were easy to mix up. I wanted WGE-140 and she ordered WGE-114. Phonetically, they sound very similar and I have been known to talk fast when excited.

The wrong (but still cool looking) figure. Image property of Crocodile Games.

I sent an email to Crocodile Games when I got home from work asking if I could swap out the products. My better half pointed out that they were both at the same price-point so I figured I would give it a shot. No harm in trying, right?

I imagine him saying "I love you this much!" Image property of Crocodile Games. 

Right! I received an email back in short time from Chris telling me it was no problem and that they would swap the figures out! I didn't have to amend my order or "return and re-buy" or any nonsense like that. I know it probably doesn't seem like a big deal to most folks, but I've had my fair share of nasty customer service experiences in the past so this was a pleasant surprise.

I'm excited to see how the figure turns out. I'll be sure to post an image when it's done. I'm considering picking up their Necropolis Guard set as well. They would make an excellent themed hit-squad or group of assassins (who may or may not be hunting down Tom's character, shh!).

On a side note, I was going to originally write " I received an email from a sales rep named Chris..." but after browsing the "About Us" section on their website it seems that I may have been talking to the head honcho of the company! Pretty cool stuff!

Until next time, Happy Gaming!

Whatcha thinking about? I dunno...game stuff...

Just a few thoughts as the week goes on...

Firstly, while progress continues on my desert themed monster book, it is much slower than I anticipated. A single monster from scratch takes well over three hours until I'm satisfied with what's on paper and even then I sometimes feel a bit "iffy." But plod along I will, the hard part is almost done!

Next up, my wife and I have been discussing our vacation this year and are seriously considering attending our first game convention. We're thinking of attending Mepacon in November. It's not terribly far, but far enough to stay at a hotel and call it a "real vacation." It'll be a nice change, I spent almost all of last year's vacation time working on our house.

In game news from our table, this weekend's game will probably be postponed due to scheduling. It's a group 2 kick in the door style game and the first part of a mega-dungeon. Two (possibly three) players can't make it and I don't want them to miss the fun, or have their party mates hindered with lack of man power.

I've also noticed this Kickstarter floating around other blogs lately. I really enjoyed the trailer so I figured I'd show it here. It's a documentary on the history of Dungeons and Dragons.

That's all for now. Until next time, happy gaming!

The Inverse Metagame

Special note: I did not realize how long and boring this post was until after I typed it. I apologize in advance for this wall of text, but game theory is something I fully enjoy exploring.

I was reading a post from Cobblestone Chaos about meta gaming and got to thinking about it in my own games.

While meta gaming will always happen, we try to avoid it as much as possible. The players and I really enjoy playing things out as they should be - the PCs exploring a world of unknowns with only their skills and wits to save them. I am glad that I can be free to leave the adventure sitting out on the table when I leave the room. If I accidentally blurt out something that I shouldn't, I know they won't use it to their advantage. "What would [character name] do in this situation?" is a question asked more often by the players than by the GM and I wouldn't have it any other way.

There are occasions however, where it's almost impossible for a GM to get away with his nefarious schemes without giving his/her secrets away. These are the occasions where I pull out my own brand of meta gaming. It can't be so simple as a lie - that's regular ammo in the GM arsenal. It needs to be theatrical if possible. I find the greatest meta gaming payoffs occur when the seeds are planted much earlier in the adventure.

Say you have a villain that the players have not met. VillainX is a wizard with a penchant for abusing magic jar. The players first encounter him inhabiting the body of a local mercenary or townsfolk, leading a horde of minions. Before taking any mortal wounds, VillainX leaves the body and escapes. Rather than having the body fall to a lump on the floor, you add a little flavor.

"The soldier's body falls face-first to the floor, writhing in uncontrollable spasms. After a brief moment the seizure passes and he lifts himself unsteadily, his forearms shaking as they support his weight. He blinks a few times before speaking, "Where am I? What happened?"

While this might seem like simple fluff, it hides something much more sinister. The players will immediately realize that something is wrong and with a little interview and research, they will at least determine that he was charmed in one way or another.

Fast forward to the next encounter. VillainX has decided to inhabit one of the players! We don't roll a lot of secret saves at our table. I may ask the players to roll and not give them a reason but I rarely make rolls for them. This creates the unique problem that no matter what, (unless you insist on many red-herring rolls) they know something has happened. I pass a note to the afflicted player. It tells him to act casual, to pull out his weapon and act like it has some magical quality he's never noticed before, telling the other players to come take a look.

Everything goes down as planned except for one player -a new guy who doesn't trust anything- he immediately unsheathes his weapon and attacks his party mate. The jar'd player plays along and acts surprised as the rest of the party subdues the new guy. While they play it out a decent bit, I know the cover is blown. Everyone smells something a bit rotten that they can't justifiably role play around. Something is wrong with their companion and they know it.

 
Whats a GM to do? Easy, grow the seeds planted earlier in your adventure! Have the afflicted player fall to the ground, writhing and shaking just like the soldier from earlier in the adventure. Pass him a note describing what the experience was like in the magic jar and let the players go about their business.

Unfortunately for them, he was never released from the jar! Think about it. Wizards are smart people, they read giant tomes and cast complex spells, who's to say VillainX wouldn't trick the players into thinking their friend has been released from the spell? Using their previous experience with the soldier against them, VillainX pretended to release the PC from the jar in order to gain the party's trust! What better way to do that than to relinquish control back to the actual player? While the PC may think he's controlling his character, he is really playing as VillanX! Have the PC's make bluff checks or sense motive checks if need be and then WHAM, have the PC attack with the still unsheathed weapon!

GM tricks can be used to great effect to circumvent player knowledge or for any multitude of reasons.

-Have a one-trick pony of a wizard who just loves fireball? Place a room full of low-mid level baddies moving crates and barrels which (unbeknownst to the wizard) are full of oil or gunpowder!

-You could run a mystery-based adventure with tons of very obvious evidence pointing toward the wrong guy because he's being framed! My personal favorite is the werewolf/wizard who uses magic to frame others for his own crimes and then accepts payment for "killing the werewolf" who conveniently turned back to a human upon death.

-The old "double trap" technique. Trap makers, like wizards are smart folks. Players may find a pit trap and jump over it only to land on a different, perhaps much more painful trap.

Just remember to use stuff like this sparingly and only to help balance out the game. Otherwise the players will feel cheated and that's no good for anyone.

Thanks for reading, happy gaming!                 

Keeping in the loop.

Not a lot of riveting stuff at the moment. Progress on my desert themed monster compendium is going strong. I need to start thinking of a name, I have a few rolling around my head, so we'll see. I've also begun another project in collaboration with Ben, one of the players in my regular gaming group. He's going to be doing illustrations on a Pathfinder friendly "rogues gallery" style project. Just an index of villains with full stats, images and backgrounds. I have a ton of unique ideas and I'm really pumped.

We played our group 1-b game this past weekend. It was a blast, a game of many revelations! Luci, our gnome alchemist was brought out of a magical coma only to find a large growth on the back of his neck. You see, a good intentioned but completely insane gnome illusionist managed to implant his own consciousness into Luci's body in the form of a tumor at the base of his skull. Did I mention aforementioned illusionist has been dead for 200+ years? Everyone wants to cut the thing off but Luci won't let them. What does he know that they don't?

Additionally, our group's spellsword -Dr. Brad Acula- (that's his name, seriously!) had a run-in with his father. Unbeknownst to his party-mates, Brad is actually the son of the world famous monster slayer, a man of legend: Felix Dragomir. The normally sharp witted and able bodied Felix was not himself however. He was visibly intoxicated and was witnessed making a few shady exchanges with a local alchemist of ill-repute. What could be behind the legend's fall from grace? Brad aims to find out, but his father doesn't seem willing to tell.

The adventure itself was a heavily modified module from an old Ravenloft series. It ran too long so we stopped about halfway through. Scheduling with so many players is always an issue, but I can't wait to finish it up!

That's about all I have at the moment.    

Until next time, happy gaming!

Different Games, Same Table.

By their nature, pen and paper role playing games are a different breed of entertainment. While I veg out to plenty of tv shows, video games and movies, I always find myself drawn back to the table. It's a mysterious attraction which is admittedly difficult to explain to folks who've never played a role playing game before.

"What do you mean you don't 'win'?"

"You play on a table? Is it a board game?"

"Wait.. It's just books and dice?"

These are common questions that can be surprisingly hard to answer. What is it that really sets P&P games -and gamers- apart? If you asked me, I'd probably say "Everyone gets to play a different game at the same table."

 

Say we went to a movie together. We might have different opinions. I may hate it and you loved it. Maybe I'm just not into musicals and you happen to be a fan of the main actor. We could have many differences of opinion but as long as George Lucas isn't involved, the movie doesn't change, we both watched the same exact thing. The same applies to video games, tv shows, stage plays - the list goes on. Video games are particulary adept at making you feel involved. Terms like "open world" provide an illusion of freedom that is still limited by file size and technology.

Don't get me wrong here, I'm not bashing any of these forms of amusement. I'm as big a fan of them as anyone. It's also not my intention to disregard sports or art or other wonderful ways to pass time and create. I'm just trying to explore and describe the unique qualities of pen and paper gaming. For the sake of the uninformed, I'll try to briefly sum up what an RPG is before I continue on to why it's so special...

In a tradional role play environment, a group of friends or even strangers come together around a table and create fictional characters that they will use to explore and adventure in a fictional world. This is done primarily through imagination and communication. These could be valiant knights, savage barbarians, gritty pulp era cops or space explorers. The variety is endless. The 'world' and it's inhabitants are directed by a GM -the Game Master- historically referred to as a Dungeon Master. The players control their characters' actions and the GM controls everything else.

Unlike other games, the GM and the players do not play against each other to reach an end or final goal. They work together to unfold a continuing story. The GM provides the setting, and adjusts it according to the players reaction. This isn't to say that the players and GM are never adversarial. In addition to controlling the environments and personalities of the game world, the GM also controls the monsters, the villains and other obstacles that hinder the players advancement through the story and this is where the dice come in.

Whenever a player wants to perform an action in the world where they have a chance to fail, they roll dice. The dice represent the chaos and unpredictability of the world. Do you want to hit that goblin with your sword? Roll some dice to see if you hit him or catch air. Want to smooth talk the local sheriff to let you out of jail? Roll it and see if he falls for your bluff. There are an infinite number of things one can do in a pen and paper role playing game. The only limitations are in your imagination and imagination is the very essence of the game.

As an aside, if the idea of playing "imaginary games" seems too childish for you, just call it "creativity." It might help you sleep better.

Sheesh, I was trying to go somewhere with that wall of text up there which has escaped me at the moment...

Oh yeah! I was trying to put a finger on what sets P&P RPGs apart. You see, with all this imagination going on, it's sometimes easy to forget that other people are playing and imagining alongside you. What makes the game so special is that it can be different for every participant. I may imagine the world to look grim and dark with armored soldiers, grizzled old wizards and deceptive thieves while the player across the table could be picturing a lush, bright world with shining knights, bumbling sorcerers and dashing rogues. Everything from the smallest stone to the largest beast is open to each players interpretation. To me, that is the best thing any game could offer.

There aren't many mediums that offer this level of invlovement nowadays. In a world dominated by passive entertainment, pen and paper games offer more than just 'turning on and tuning in.' They are social games. Participatory games. Imaginative games.

You can be more than a player, you are a creator- an active participant in an evolving story. That's what sets P&P gamers apart. Anyone can play games, role players bring them to life. 

 

Until next time, happy gaming.

I tried to resist. I really did.

So I caved in. I ponied up the hundred bucks and bought into the Reaper Bones Kickstarter. We're talking over 200 minis for $100! That's less than fifty cents a pop! The amount of paint needed to color all these guys will easily cost 3x as much as the figures themselves. I don't even know where I'm going to put them all!

This is what it must feel like to be a hoarder.  Here's the current list of figures that are included in the vampire level package.

  I also foresee many motorcycle Sophie figures popping up on eBay in the near future.

In other news, my "completed" monster list for my compendium is up from 6 to 8! Almost there!

Until next time, happy gaming! 

Our Last Session.

After looking at that title I gave myself a chill. By last I don't mean "final." I mean the "session prior to our next". I don't think I could ever imagine not playing again.

Anyway, our last game went well. We played in Vince's apartment and his girlfriend got the pleasure of meeting our motley group of table top heroes. I have to say that they were great hosts and she seemed authentically interested in the game. While she didn't play as a character, she still contributed, joked and asked questions from time to time. Very refreshing!

The game was our "Group Two; kick in the door" crew. A rag-tag group of adventurers plodding through the the southwest deserts and southern jungles of our campaign world. In this game they were hired by a wealthy merchant prince to recover a staff of unknown power from the lepidon kingdom to the south. Lepidons are a lizardman-like race in our campaign.

The dungeon was a short an sweet sunken temple. More or less a series of chambers in a straight line, it was laden with traps and inhabited by a white-skinned subterranean race of lepidon religious zealots who used an intricate network of tunnels to sneak around the party.

More or less inspired (leaning towards way more) by the first ruins in Raiders of The Lost Ark, the heroes were forced to tiptoe their way through the darkness, poking ahead with a quarterstaff because they had not one rogue among them. During their slow journey forward Vince's ranger "Steve" was pulled into a tunnel and forced to wrestle his way free with the help of my wife's nearby witch. After successfully sneaking past the albino lair, they obtained the scepter and were attacked by four immense animated statues who had also been supporting the ceiling. With the place falling down around them, the party dashed for the exit, setting off the numerous traps they worked so hard to avoid -including the giant rolling stone trap- believe it or not, one I've never used before.

By far my favorite part was the escape. Bloodpaw; our mousling paladin was too slow with his small size and heavy armor so Nagatha the witch was forced to scoop him up and carry him out, taking a bit of damage in the process.

While I'm excited to play again we have a few hiccups that are holding up our next games. An injured player, a newlywed and my reconstruction have all put a dent in our schedule, but this stuff is normal for summer. I think by late September, early October we'll be back into the swing of things.

Until next time, happy gaming!   

Am I Dead Yet?

Lack of time, lack of updates! Our kitchen remodel is coming along nicely and will hopefully be (mostly) done by the end of the week. I also have a promising job opportunity so lets hope for the best there too!

Now that the pesky 'real life' stuff is out of the way, lets get on to more important things!

While my internet presence has been lacking, my gaming has been all sorts of productive. We played a very successful game two weekends ago. It was a module that Paizo produced back before Pathfinder - when they were making content for D&D 3.5. We ran GameMastery Module E1: Carnival of Tears. It was great. I had to do some modding to fit in my campaign world and it's pace was a little slow for my group, but overall it was a fun adventure. It was an event-based, time-sensitive game and that's where it bogs down for us. My group plays it fast and loose. Sometimes they rush through things that a built in timeline just won't accommodate, but fast forwarding the in-game time is no big deal so it really isn't much of a complaint.

Don't worry, that cover-guy isn't actually in the game.

The monsters were very memorable however. I was particularly happy when our resident monk was turned to animated ice by a type of fey called a "frosty chiseler." He maintained all of his abilities but took extra bludgeoning damage and would hurt himself if he tried to do more than simply move around. Prior to that he was stricken with a nasty curse that made his head appear to be that off a novelty doll (in this case, a carnival stong-man doll). All in all, his bad luck made for quite a laugh to the rest of the group. We have a 'group 2' game coming up this weekend that takes place in the southern desert kingdoms of our campaign world. If I could find the time I would love to map out the world and get their full tales down on paper if just for the internet to enjoy.

In other 'other' news, I have been working on a new project. While my original project to turn a campaign into a self published series didn't pan out too well (actually, it near-complete, but my attention went elsewhere). I have started, and made serious progress on a new self-publishing attempt. I won't spoil it complete, but maybe the layout will give you a hint. I've got 16 entries ready to go. Art and stats are all that's left!

 Until next time, happy gaming!

Monster Mash: Where to Draw the Line?

I've played RPGs for a long time and as such have seen my fair share of 'monster mashes.' That is to say, taking two creatures and combining them into one. From the early days of the Owlbear to half-elves, half-dragons and 'Squarks,' combining creatures is a staple in the fantasy genre. That's why I was surprised when I found myself frustrated while working on a high power NPC for our current campaign.

Who in their right mind thought this was a good idea?  

I don't want to spoil it for my players, but I'll let a tidbit slip. I was working on a vampire. An extraordinarily long lived vampire who -for the most part- isn't that bad of a guy. He rules a small kingdom, treats his subjects well, governs fairly and provides for the poor.

He also happens to drink the blood and kill any criminals who are caught within his territory.

I'll leave the 'nature of evil' topic for another post, but I just wanted to set it straight: No matter how much good he does, no matter how fair and benevolent he is, he is still an undead abomination who maintains his (un)life by feeding on sentient living beings. Because of these actions, he is an evil creature.  But I digress...

 Apparently, Roger Corman did!

While researching vampires I came across this thread on the paizo boards. To sum it up, a PC was interested in playing a dhampir paladin/sorcerer with the sanguine bloodline. For those not in the know, that roughly translates to (deep breath!): A half human / half vampire who fights for the glory of god (and/or cause of good in general) who supplements his holy blessings with the ability to spontaneously cast arcane magical spells. Additionally, through his vampiric bloodline, he would be able to consume the blood of the recently deceased as a means to regain lost hit points.

Woo! that's a lot!

That thread, and the flurry of responses it received got me thinking about how muddled up rules and ideas can become with so much monster mashing. I am fully aware that the dhampir is not unique to RPGs and can be found in everything from old Balkan folklore to modern pop culture. Regular fiction is not the same as a game though, and needs no in-depth explanations. Unfortunately, players often do want explanations which for the most part, I am happy to provide.

Although to be honest, I have no explanation for dhampirs in our game world - because they don't exist. As I graphically explained to a PC today, vampires are not living things and as such, don't have much 'fruit in the loins' and as such, couldn't procreate.

What I'm getting at here is, has the monster mash become too much of a crutch for the game community? Should it be viewed as legitimate content or just filler for books and supplements? I understand that gaming companies are businesses and need to keep pumping out products, but do we really need a Monster Manual XXV? Or would companies be better off expanding on actual content, exploring game theory and when publishing monster books, emphasizing quality over quantity?

I do realize that this is nitpicking on my part, but it is still something that gets my goat. Here's a question for the Game and Dungeon Masters out there: Out of all of your 'monster books' what percentage of monsters have you actually used, and what are your thoughts on monster-monster hybrids?

Until next time, happy gaming!     

Where Does the Time Go?

I swear, it feels like I lay down to bed on Tuesday and wake up on Thursday! Weeks seem to fly by and while I get a good amount done, it never seems like enough.

This past weekend we traveled north about 5 hours to Sinnemahoning, Pennsylvania. My mom has a cabin tucked away in the woods where we spent the weekend 'getting away from it all.' It was a pretty good time. A lot of driving and a lot of good country food!

Bent tree or portal to another dimension? OOOoooOOOhhH.

The highlight of the weekend was our visit to the Austin Dam. Rather than ramble on about our vacation, you can read about it by clicking here. While pictures can give you a good idea of what it looks like, you really need to see it in person to get the whole experience. If you are ever in the area, I suggest you check it out!

 Brutal

 

In other news, my wife and I did a whole mess of painting last week. We plopped ourselves in front of the TV and cranked out almost twenty mini's! Here's a few of them for your viewing pleasure.

 The ill fated wizard my cousin played. I had just painted him and then (of course) he died

.

 A man in stocks with some jerk kids.

A pair of ogres. The bottom one is Part of the Reaper Bones lineup.

My friend Noah actually made this figure!

Nobody here but us evil wizards!

We've got our Group 1 game this weekend and to be honest, I am completely unprepared. After fending off an underground town from demons, the group cleric has decided to temporarily remain behind and help the townsfolk rebuild their homes and their faith. (In reality, Kevin -the cleric- is getting married!) That leaves us with Blanklee, a brutal fighter trying to redeem himself through religion and Gertrude, a wily thief with a knack for trap finding. Ideally I would like to have the town implore them for help. In it's current state the town would be vulnerable to any number of nasties ready to pounce on opportunity. This would give my players something to do and keep them close to their cleric for future adventures. At this point any ideas or suggestions are appreciated. I'm close to pulling the last resort (gasp!) digging out an old Dungeon magazine!

Besides that, I'm pretty booked up for the next few weeks with games and home renovation. I'm looking forward to the games, the renovation on the other hand, is getting expensive...

Until next time, happy gaming!     

"Lawful Evil Dwarven Cleric" kinda sounds Swedish!

FUN FACT! The title of this post came from my good friend Noah. Years ago -when myspace was still the social media network of choice- he commented my page with the statement: "Lawful Evil Dwarven Cleric: if you say it fast it kind of sounds Swedish!" Since then it's become one of our groups "staple catchphrases." 

We had our "Group One; Sub-group B" Game this past weekend. It was a blast! We introduced two new players to the game and like my wife an I, Andre and Katie are from Philadelphia! They both had a bit of rpg experience and really brought a breath of fresh air to the table. They role played like champs and played skillfully to boot.

 Katie casting "Burning Hands." I'm not sure if homeowners insurance covers that.

The story is a bit confusing, as we've had a few character changes, but let's just say we "hobbled it together." After sorting out who was playing what, the players were brought together by fate (namely: the gm). The"heroes" were all staying in the same town for one reason or another when a series of murders and disappearances occurred. Banding together, the group set out to find the culprits and claim their reward; which was stated on the wanted poster as: "no less than 5000 Gold Piece value!"

As they investigated, rumor began to spread that the victims were found devoid of blood and that the bodies would mysteriously disappear from the crime scenes. Fearing vampires, the townsfolk and even a few of the players began carrying holy water and braids of garlic to drive off any would-be blood suckers.

After sleuthing around the township and countryside, the party was able to piece together the location of the "vampire's" lair: an old compound in the woods built by a long dead cult of flagellants. Taking the side of caution, the group waited until morning and set off  in search of the fortress.

Entering the abandoned fort, they did not find vampires, but a small army of zombies! Through combat and investigation the party discovered that an evil dwarf cleric had raided a traveling sideshow and converted it's employees and attractions to a force of terrible undead. The main attraction of this show was a pair of chupacabra, which he used to kill and drain victims before he raised them as zombies!

Not to be confused with the deliciously elusive "Chalupacabra"

After defeating the zombies, chupacabra, the cleric and a mohrg, the party returned to town to claim their reward! Welcomed as heroes of the community, they were rewarded by the mayor and people of New Prindepth with 110 head of fine cattle, worth just about 5500 gold pieces!

Rest assured, they sold the cattle off and took a 15% loss, but with the loot they found, they'll have quite a nice pot o' gold once they find someone to sell it all!

Until next time, happy gaming!

Boss Fights!

I know my posting is sparse, but I console myself in knowing that I haven't been writing about gaming because I've been too busy playing games!

Our "group one" game happened two weeks ago and it was fantastic. Blanklee, Karl and Gertrude have continued their journey toward the Sunderforge, where they hope to destroy a fiendish artifact. They stopped off for a brief moment at a grey elf settlement, where they were to meet an an emissary of the red elves - who was waiting for them. He would escort them through the Weirdwood: the warped and haunted remains of the once great red elf forest.

Unfortunately for them, the settlement had been overrun by a band of demons summoned to hunt down the party and take Blanklee to hell. They faced off against a horde of lesser demons, defeated a fiend hunter who had been tracking them for days, helped out the remaining townsfolk and finally destroyed the demon leader, a terrible vrock by the name of Gul'tuch.

The players facing off against a group of dretches. (no dretch figs, settled for slaves)

While the game itself was fun as normal, the players made it really clear that the boss fight was the cherry on the sundae. I had done my best to build a little suspense. NPC's warned them of the vicious creature ahead, and since even the minions were no pushover, the party had some real fear running through their veins. For the first time among this group of players, I actually heard them utter, "You know, we got what we came here for, we can just leave and not mess with whatever's behind that door."

Fortunately, they decided to stay. They couldn't let this monster kill the rest of the townspeople. They buffed up with spells (something they almost never do!) and kicked in the door, steel swinging. The fight went pretty much as planned. There were two human/fiend minions in the room with the vrock; one to act as healer and the other as a diversion. Two players went after the bait while the rogue pursued the healer. Meanwhile, the Vrock began a strange and violent dance in the center of the room. As the two minions fell, the Dance of Ruin completed, blasting the room with damage and nearly destroying Alvi (the NPC cleric and unofficial group mascot) in the process. The party rallied themselves, healed their wounds and threw themselves against the creature. While they did take a fair amount of damage, a series of incredibly lucky saving throws allowed them to win the day with no casualties!

In other news, my good friend Jim -player of Blanklee- has started his own figure wall project. A few months ago I discussed my process of using old typesetting drawers to display my minis and Jim has started his own similar similar project. Below is a preview of whats to come!

At the top is a troll he just started working on. It'll look totally badass when finished.

Until next time, happy gaming!
 

     

My Favorite Monsters: The Otyugh

We had a great, I mean GREAT game this weekend, which I hope to touch upon tomorrow. Tonight however, I would like to discuss one of my favorite monsters: the Otyugh!

What could possibly be so disgusting even an Otyugh has to facepalm?

Squat, hideous, tentacled, sharp toothed and repugnant of odor, the otyugh is everything a dungeon monster should be. They feed primarily on the refuse and decaying matter found in dungeons. Bodies, garbage, offal and other viscera are delicacies to these filthy creatures. Upon discovery of their tendency to eat "unwanted leavings," my gaming group bequeathed otyughs the dubious title of "sh** monsters." Since then the lowly otyugh has become somewhat of a party mascot, appearing as often as possible - and with such memorable names as 'Engelfart Humperstink.' 

 "If you excrete it, I can eat it!" This is my otyugh mini. I confess, there's a few corn kernels on the back side.

While they eat carrion and feature all of the great 'monstery' qualities, my favorite aspect of the otyugh is that for the most part they are pretty laid back dudes. They aren't evil, in fact, more often than not they are neutral. And better than that? They don't howl and shriek, but are capable of regular conversation. Otyughs frequently make deals with dungeon dwellers, exchanging protection services for payment in... well.. you know...

Poop.

Fortunately for the world at large, otyughs are mostly solitary. I don't think an otyugh society would be enjoyable for anyone and I shudder to think of their system of currency. So next time you need a spare monster to drop into a dungeon, don't forget the good old otyugh! Personally, I'm thinking of a quest revolving around a mid-level otyugh ranger NPC. The possibilities are endless!

Until next time, happy gaming! 

 Bonus picture! A close friend of mine (and player of games) started this giant purple worm about two weeks ago which I finished up for him. That's teamwork!

No Thank You: Geek Culture

The phrase "Geek Culture" lives in a special place in my heart. A seething, angry and dark place full of hatred. In fact, I hate all of the negative words associated with the culture such as nerd, dork etc. I do not embrace it as a badge of honor or as some backwards way to get back at "the man." When confronted with accusations of geekery I am the first and usually loudest to respond. My original gaming blog was titled "Orcs and Dorks," and it took some time to realize why I hated the name.

I... We are not geeks, nerds or dorks. While I sometimes use the word gamer, I don't need a label to tell the world who I am. I am so much more than the hobbies I participate in. If I was forced to label myself I would say that I am a hard worker, a dedicated husband, a good friend, an artist and a player of games. Only when we sit around the table -dice in hand- do I become the GM. The Game Master; a title in my eyes, not a label.

I bring this up because of recent observations out in the real world. I talk about gaming anywhere, and to anyone. I love to convert the skeptical or the naysayers into supporters and players. We've got so many people hooked on games at work that it's a regular topic of conversation. If we aren't talking about Pathfinder, we're playing Kittens in a Blender at lunch and when we aren't doing that, we're playing trivia. It's a nice feeling to walk into the break room and hear a sixty year old master plumber or electrician hopefully ask, "Hey are you guys doing trivia today?" I don't sit and look at the 'cool table' in the lunch room, wishing I was there. I run the cool table.

Today's game, circa 1984.

I worry that the embrace of the so called geek culture is just a trend - and trends change with time. Fantasy and sci-fi might be popular teefury shirts topics right now, but who's to say how long that will last? Dr. Who and Game of Thrones will eventually run their course. Harry Potter has been dethroned and Skyrim will eventually take that final arrow to the... never mind.

Take heart though. This post isn't some message of anger and impending doom. Just my opinion and some advice. Don't keep your hobbies hidden away in the metaphorical dungeon. Embrace them, talk about them and ask other people if they would be interested. In my experience table top gaming is not very friendly to newcomers, or people who are interested but don't know where to start. It's hard to start playing D&D if you've never played it before and sometimes a friendly face makes all the difference. If you play in a game/hobby shop and see some lone guy or gal wandering around, glancing at the tables invite them over! Use Craigslist, Meetup or even Facebook to link up with other gamers. And while I've never been a fan of trends and bandwagons, I'll be damned if I don't use Game of Thrones as a jumping point to get people into gaming.

 Behipster's head may just explode from irony overload.

I often fantasize about owning a game shop - and during those daydreams I don't imagine it filled with the stereotypical nerds we've come to expect from TV; but people of all races, ages, genders and social circles. Entertainment that is open to everyone and no one has to keep it as a secret hobby or describe it as "that one nerdy thing I do." When I look at the folks I game with I don't see gamers, I see friends and not one of them fits into the mold of a geek.

I'm currently planning a series of "First Timers" games to run in a few months time. Pre-written games with premade and easy to understand character sheets for folks who have never played before. A casual rpg experience just for the fun of playing and I'm happy to say that I've already received lots of interest from prospective players. My goal is not to start a new group, I've got more than enough games on my plate at the moment. My goal is to spark interest and encourage others to start their own gaming circles.

An early photo of Jeff.

I would like to finish this up by talking about a friend of mine. Really he is the reason behind this post in the first place. Jeff is a coworker and friend who is from a generation far older than myself. I'm not exactly sure how old, the lab hasn't sent back the carbon dating reports yet. Jeff is by no means a table top game player, although he does love trivia. If I mentioned gaming a year ago it's something he would laugh at and poke fun of; but today on my way out the door something surprising happened. I told him to have a good weekend and he wished me the same but followed it up with, "I heard you have a big game this weekend, have fun!" 

I mark that up as a victory in my book.

p.s. On a side note, if someone does give you grief about gaming, stand up for yourself! You can always ask them how many hours they waste in front of Modern Warfare 3.

How Much is TOO much?

Things are moving along slowly with our remodel and I apologize for the lack of posting (and reading!), but sometimes life has to take the driver seat.

Although I do want to talk about something to get my regular gaming fix.

I am fortunate enough to work with quite a few table top gamers, some long time players and others converted by myself, so many of our workplace conversations revolve around gaming culture. It was during one such conversation that got me thinking about out of this world characters.

I like to consider myself an open minded GM, allowing players to field many of their crazy ideas in our campaign world. Split personality? Sure. A character who secretly commits crimes so the party has something to solve? No problemo. A mute? Good luck, but okay. Lizardman Shaman who fuels his magic by consuming the hearts of humanoids? Go for it!

Where do you draw the line, if you draw one at all? I recently had a discussion about creating a male werefox wildmage who shoots spells from a rifle instead of regular casting. A sort of lycanthrope casting sniper. While the conversation was kind of theoretical, I could tell the player had put a lot of thought into it, and as a character it isn't a bad idea. Unfortunately it doesn't fit anywhere into our game world.

I am super tired, so I'll be cutting this short. But my question to other GMs out there is, "What crazy things have you allowed and when have you put your foot down and just said 'No.'?"