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In Indie Game Design

2/17/2003 C. Edwards: Matinee: Anti-Hero vs. Femme Fatale
It seems like I’ve been working on this forever (since well before Halloween), but I’ve finally got my card game in good enough shape that I can see actual play-testing…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: C. Edwards, clehrich, Mike Holmes.

2/16/2003 RobMuadib: TMW:COTEC - IV, SA, and the Joy of SeX
"Sometimes you gotta stop and smell the roses." - Anonymous Hey all, I am still plugging away on the Game Concepts shared play chapter, and in enumerating the various elements…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: RobMuadib, Ron Edwards.

2/15/2003 Jasper: The West Wind: Structuring Play and "Feel"
Okay, so the new (and very largely complete -- as in no holes) version of my current game is up here: The West Wind v.0.3 Magic is written up:…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Jasper, Mike Holmes.

2/14/2003 xiombarg: Faster, Better, Cheaper is Back!
As a break (and to clear my palete, as it were) from Unsung, I finally incorporated Mike's playtest comments into Faster, Better, Cheaper. Everyone, new and old, please check it…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: xiombarg, James V. West.

2/14/2003 clehrich: Aurora: New Book and Forthcoming Species References
So over here at Aurora, we've just finished the Ships Book, which is some 400-odd pages of game material on ships -- design, specs, stats, shipboard life, etc.…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: clehrich, greyorm, Mike Holmes, ADGBoss, Dave Panchyk, Ron Edwards, Walt Freitag.

2/14/2003 RobMuadib: TMW:COTEC - Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?
"Where does he get those wonderful toys?" -- The Joker, Batman (The Movie) Hey all, I am still procrastinating over the Game Concepts: Shared Play chapter. I have finished outlining…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: RobMuadib, Mike Holmes, Le Joueur, Ron Edwards.

2/13/2003 ThreeGee: DRAGON SUN : JAZZ NINJA
Hey all, I have finally typed my scrawled notes on DRAGON SUN : JAZZ NINJA into something vaguely resembling English, and I would appreciate impressions. This is only the rough…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: ThreeGee, ADGBoss, Jeph.

2/13/2003 Jamie: Chargen to fit the setting
First 'New Topic'. Be gentle... This question has arisen as I ponder the chargen system in a game I'm working on. I have basically opted for a twist on the…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Jamie, szilard, Ron Edwards, Bankuei, Comte.

2/13/2003 Ashlin_Evenstar: Ember Twilight: Setting vs. System
Greetings! I believe this is my first time to start a thread here, so forgive my nervousness. :) But I've run into a dilemma and I'd very much like your…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Ashlin_Evenstar, ethan_greer, peteramthor, clehrich, ADGBoss.

2/12/2003 Andy Kitkowski: Comments from the Masters: How do you avoid Using It All?
So one of my biggest design hurdles these days (aside from throwing something together, running it with friends, seeing how it flies, taking notes and doing it again ;^) )…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Andy Kitkowski, Jasper, Jack Spencer Jr, Mike Holmes, Clinton R. Nixon, Jeph, Zak Arntson, clehrich, Mark Johnson, Stuart DJ Purdie, M. J. Young, Paul Czege.

2/12/2003 Shreyas Sampat: A Magic System for Exquisite (maths questions)
So, I'm trying to design two parallel magic systems for my game Exquisite. As it stands, there are 15 'facilities' a character has; these are the product of three attitudes…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Shreyas Sampat, Mike Holmes, szilard.

2/11/2003 kbomb987: New indie RPG game - Cryn The Dark Reflection
Just released my first rpg demo. I'm looking for opinions on whether I should pursue making the full game or not. The demo is about 30-45 mins of gameplay. It's…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: kbomb987, Mike Holmes.

2/9/2003 Jonathan Walton: Storypunk - Reviving the One Party System
This is a attempt at distilling a long-running project that started out as something called "Quixote & Coyote" and ended up as something called "Storypunk." The original threads are linked…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Jonathan Walton, ADGBoss, Spooky Fanboy.

2/8/2003 Jeph: Spin System: inspired by The Pool, TROS, and Princess Bride
[size=18px]One: Characters[/size]     The first step of character creation is to write a short (about fifty words) paragraph describing your character. This is not a term paper, nor is it a…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Jeph, Brian Leybourne, Valamir, Palaskar, Mark Johnson, ethan_greer, Blake Hutchins.

2/7/2003 ADGBoss: Currency Question Character Goal vs Character Sheet Goal
Hello everyone, been away a little while and have managed to make it back after the holidays. Seraphim is doing fine, I am refurbishing the ADG websites (www.azuredragon.com) and re-focusing…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: ADGBoss, contracycle.

2/7/2003 Stuart DJ Purdie: High school cheerleading squad (Sweet Valley High style)
Well, after an interesting discussion with a friend, during which the subject of RPG's came up, she mentioned that she was not aware of any RPG's that interested her, in…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Stuart DJ Purdie, Andrew Martin, contracycle, Paganini, ethan_greer, szilard, Mike Holmes, Jeph.

2/6/2003 ethan_greer: Toast: Kewl Powerz
So, as some may be aware, the magic system for my pet game Toast (the greatest role-playing game of all time) is "pending." I have some ideas, and I'm wanting…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: ethan_greer, Mike Holmes, ADGBoss.

2/6/2003 RHJunior: Size-to-strength ratios
Lord almighty. I've been hunting all over the web for information on size-to-strength ratios--- trying to find out how much, for instance, a 3-ft tall human should be able to…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: RHJunior, Psycho42, marknau, dalek_of_god, Mike Holmes, Ron Edwards, Andrew Martin, Gwen, b_bankhead.

2/5/2003 Tony Irwin: Theme-Chaser rewrite
I've rewritten my text for Theme-Chaser. It was from reading (and rereading) the rules for Universalis and Paladin that I think I've gleaned a few tips for how better to…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Tony Irwin, ThreeGee.

2/5/2003 xiombarg: Death
Okay, even if you haven't before, please take a look at Unsung. In addition to the optional Enemy system, I've added a section entiled "Death" I particularly want comments on,…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: xiombarg, Mike Holmes, Ron Edwards.

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Subsequent Topics
In Indie Game Design

2/19/2003 RobMuadib: TMW:COTEC - Game Concepts: Shared Play Chapter PDF
Hi all I have just finished the first draft of the Game Concepts: Shared Play chapter for The Million Worlds: Chronicles Of The Eternal Cycle (TM). This chapter lays out…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: RobMuadib, Mike Holmes.

2/19/2003 Hyper Jacks: My Game Idea
Hi, I am new to this forum and stumbled across it accidentally. I have been working on a game and thought I would run the ideas acorss the forum to…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Hyper Jacks, Spooky Fanboy, Ron Edwards, Jack Spencer Jr, greyorm, quozl, Jeremy Cole.

2/19/2003 Clinton R. Nixon: The Shadow of Yesterday (immense)
I've been working on and off for the last few weeks on my newest game, The Shadow of Yesterday. It's a post-apocalyptic fantasy game that sprung from my head like…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Clinton R. Nixon, szilard, Valamir, James V. West, Alan, Walt Freitag, Jake Norwood, quozl, Ron Edwards, Paul Czege.

2/19/2003 AdamG: ideas towards a resolution mechanic
I’ve been working on a system, and a bit towards setting, on a game I’d like to play. I’m just putting this out there to see if anyone has any…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: AdamG, Jeph, Matt.

2/20/2003 Jake Norwood: La Famiglia: First Draft
I would like to turn everyone's attention to the first (and partially incomplete) draft of La Famiglia, a Mafia game that revolves around Reputation. I'm really proud of it, as…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Jake Norwood, ThreeGee, Valamir, simon, Ron Edwards, Mike Holmes, Rob MacDougall, Bankuei.

2/20/2003 cusidhe: Drought of Refersing Rain
Greetings all, First time poster, long time lurker. I have been followingthe development of four willows weeping's game Refreshing Rain for some time. I have noticed that little has come…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: cusidhe, Shreyas Sampat.

2/21/2003 Cryostorm: Union-TOS: Check This Out, Please
Uh, Hi! My name is Cameron Harsh, and I just found this site two nights ago. I was impressed and thankful to find it. You see since last night when…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Cryostorm, quozl, Mike Holmes, ethan_greer, Harsh Attack, clehrich, Valamir.

2/21/2003 clehrich: Shadows in the Fog: New Stuff
[size=14px][b]Session Structure[/b][/size] A number of people have suggested that I put in something about session structure, and this is more or less a sketch of the piece to be inserted.…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: clehrich, Spooky Fanboy, Le Joueur, contracycle, Walt Freitag, Mike Holmes, Piers Brown.

2/21/2003 Jonathan Walton: Storypunk and Transparency
So I was writing the introductory "What is a Roleplaying Game?" section of Storypunk in my head today. It started out by talking about different types of social contracts: those…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Jonathan Walton, Ron Edwards.

2/24/2003 SleeplessNightsofRPGs: hi, I need some information
Hi, I am a 3.5 + GPA high schooler, and I want to get into the video game world for a job, especially RPGs (Squaresoft is my dream). I would…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: SleeplessNightsofRPGs, Dave Panchyk, Kester Pelagius, Bankuei, Mike Holmes.

2/24/2003 SleeplessNightsofRPGs: my game: Clash of the Worlds
Hi, I am currently in the process of making a RPG series called "Clash of the Worlds". I am running the first two chapters of "CotW: From Past to Present"…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: SleeplessNightsofRPGs, greyorm, Drew Stevens, Mike Holmes.

2/25/2003 Simon W: Barbarians of Lemuria
Hi. I'm totally new to all of this, although I have been watching the posts and getting new role-playing ideas from many of you - mainly some of the GM-less…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Simon W, Jasper, contracycle, Matt.

2/26/2003 Gwen: Magic System: Definitive or Open-Ended?
I am working on a Midieval Era game and the magic system is based entirely on alchemy. Various alchemical potions give consumers the ability to fly, to maintain a fire…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Gwen, clehrich, greyorm, ethan_greer, Valamir, Ron Edwards, Clinton R. Nixon, Paul Czege, Ben Morgan, Emily Care, contracycle, M. J. Young, Fletcher, Mike Holmes, cruciel, Andrew Martin.

2/27/2003 arkcure: Mysticism vs. Magic
Hello, Right now I am grappling with the idea of magic and mysticism in a near future setting. While I do feel that there should be some level of mysticism,…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: arkcure, cruciel, Airshipjones, clehrich, Andrew Martin, contracycle, simon_hibbs, M. J. Young, MoonHunter.

2/27/2003 Sylus Thane: Searching for the Beginning of Frontier
In searching for a way to bring my version of the multiverse (Frontier) to life I have been searching for a way in which to present my different settings. In…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Sylus Thane, Mike Holmes, szilard, Harsh Attack, Allan, richks.

2/28/2003 Gwen: The Rise of the Nihilists: System Mechanics
It seemed apparent in my other thread that perhaps I would be better served to adopt a system mechanic more befitting the odd, dream-lyke setting I created. I suppose it…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Gwen, szilard, Mike Holmes, marknau, Garbanzo.

3/1/2003 Gwen: The Rise of the Nihilists: Setting
I suppose this will also help with the understanding of the game, but I didn't want to lump this discussion in with the Mechanics discussion. I will try to sum…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: Gwen, Spooky Fanboy, ethan_greer, Ron Edwards.

3/2/2003 ghoest: Function System: Designing Problems
So, I've been working on my own system that is modularized and can easily be modified or redesigned if needed (you can find my designing notes at www.indigames.com under the…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: ghoest, Mark Johnson, Mike Holmes, Jack Spencer Jr, Andrew Martin.

3/2/2003 bcghawk: developing new system from ground-up...HELP
Hey! new to the board and need new recommendations for "real" system; thoughtfully nicknamed word problem the rpg were the players play themselves (so they actually worry about the situations…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: bcghawk, Mike Holmes.

3/2/2003 ks13: Character Creation Problem: No Classes or Templates
Over the past few months I have been busily designing my game, thanks in huge part to the Forge and the ton of great discussions going on here. I presented…
In Indie Game Design
Participants: ks13, arkcure, Sylus Thane, Le Joueur, Ron Edwards, Mark Johnson, KeithBVaughn, James V. West, Mike Holmes, anonymouse.

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