Indie RPG Steals D&D's Thunder (Details on Page 6)

[joepub]

This is technically about a game in Playtest, but it felt like it fit the AP forum more.

It's just a little anecdote which I quite enjoyed and want to share with you:

At the local con (Weathertop, @ Vancouver) last weekend, I had a spare block. After running games in 3 of the past 4 blocks (and playtesting Kin in that 4th one), I was kind of beat. I decided I'd try to jump in on a Living Greyhawk game, just to see  what all the rage was about. Besides, it was the only game with open slots (3 of 'em, in fact).

Two others came up to the table with the same idea in mind. Here's a snippet of the dialogue:

Me: Hey! I'm interested in jumping in on this game. I dont have a L.G. character yet, but I can roll up a character pretty quickly.
Them (I'll just refer to the LG players as a collective Them): Well, you don't actually roll up characters for Living. It's more complicated than that.
Me: Wicked. Do you want to teach me it? I totally want to do a Ranger/Druid guy. I've got a pretty good...
Two Eager Guys: Hey, we want in too! We don't have characters either. Want to show us how to create characters?
Them: Well, I'm a 7th Level, and if we had three 1st Level's that'd throw off the APL of the party and make my character inelligible... so no.

I tried a couple different suggestions:
-We could drum up 2nd Level Living Greyhawk characters (That would take too long)
-I could borrow someone else's back-up character, and play it (A player can only ever have one of his characters play a given module once. Most players had already played this one. The reason that no one was signed up to play it is that they had already done so before. It was an empty table because the module was so popular, y'see.)
-I could borrow his backup and play it (Also wouldn't work)
-Me and the Two Eager Guys could just create a single character and do some kind of shared authorship deal (That's explicitly against the LG codes)

After a while, I got frustrated, and turned to the Two Eager Guys:

Me: Guys, let's go play something else. I've got a game in playtest called Polarpunk, and it does chargen as part of the session, and is quick and fun.
Two Eager Guys: Yeah?
Me: It does all the strategic combat and hack/slash that you were probably looking for here, and is quicker to play and isn't full of this...
Two Eager Guys: Ridiculous bullshit?
Me: Yeah.
The LG Players: Well, you can always just watch this, you just can't play...
Two Eager Guys, to me: Cool, we're in. What's it about?
Me: It's a post-apocalyptic game set in a second ice age. You have to reclaim the earth and kill the polar bears that have conquered it.
Two Eager Guys: No fucking way! That's wicked.

While explaining the setting and rules, two more players got interested and joined in.
It ended up being a wicked playtest - full of motorcycle battles, gang wars, battles in powersuits, and scavenging of ruins.

I just am really happy to have a game where I can say "You know what, fuck this Living Greyhawk shit guys. I can prep a game in five minutes, explain the whole system in twenty, and have us playing before these guys even finish reading the intro boxed text."

[Andrew Morris]

Wicked, indeed, Joe.

[Calithena]

I just am really happy to have a game where I can say "You know what, fuck this Living Greyhawk shit guys. I can prep a game in five minutes, explain the whole system in twenty, and have us playing before these guys even finish reading the intro boxed text."

Me too. Let me know when it's ready for sale!

The thing is, D&D used to be this game. I can remember so many times after we'd switched our preferences to Champions, Call of Cthulhu, Paranoia, James Bond etc. back in the early-mid eighties we went back to OD&D/AD&D anyway for quick adventures just because it was a no hassle to set up system. I think people ignore that feature of games at their peril. The session spent getting ready necessary for so many RPGs is not something anyone who's not already seriously into RPGs is going to be willing to spend time on.

[joepub]

Me too. Let me know when it's ready for sale!

I was supposed to have the playtest version ready for distribution already, but my computer died. Once I learn the art of computer necromancy, do you want the playtest doc sent your way, Sean?

[Calithena]

Absolutely. I might even be able to get in a playtest for you, though it's hard to guarantee that - gaming time is scarce right now and between Hero's Banner and my minis game I'm not finding too much time. But since it's just a one-shot at a time deal it may be possible, so do feel free. calithena at g mail dot etc.