The topic for Day 21 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge is Peerless Player. Let’s make sure I get the definition right. So Peerless means “matchless or incomparable”. I’ve had the opportunity to both play and GM a lot of players. I remember the friendships, I remember the jokes (even some of mine were pretty good), I remember the puzzle solving, I remember having fun. There really isn’t one that stands out as “Peerless”. So instead I’m going to say to everyone who has played in one of my games or thrown the dice with me as a fellow player. Thank you. Thank you for the memories. Thank you for the laughter. Thank you for getting me out of situations I got myself caught in. Thank you for the camaraderie. Thank you for the fun. There is no way I could name you all. Some of you are not even here any more and I miss you.
To those that I haven’t had the chance to game with, I hope to toss the dice with you soon. Let’s have pizza while we game. If we can (sigh) get the schedules to work out.
Do you have a memory of a peerless player? Have you played with me or in one of my games? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
When I saw the topic for Day 22 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge, Notable Non-Player Character, I wasn’t certain where I was going to take this. We’ve played against various NPCs in past games. Some NPCs have helped us. But none really pop-out as “notable”.
So I think I’m going to talk about some tools that will help GMs make NPCs for their games that I haven’t mentioned in previous blog posts. Some of these are PDFs published by different companies. Some of these are online tools that I have used in the past. They are in no particular order. This list is also just a sample of what tools are out there.
Basic Fantasy Tools– This website is a list of links to different tools that will help quickly generate various NPCs (as well as maps, treasure lists, HP box generators and more).
Fantasy Name Generators– Tired of Bob the Blacksmith, Bob the Guard, Bob the Milkmaid, Bob the Evil Warlock? Here is a website that will help GMs come up with various names based upon cultures and races. I’ve used this site in the past when making characters for the Character Creation Challenge.
Lazy DM’s Companion– This PDF was created by Michael E. Shea and contains both an NPC Generator and a Villain Generator among other things that may help DMs.
Frontier Space Referee’s Handbook– Like most GM handbooks, there are sections on NPCs. This particular book has quite a few pages dedicated to generating a Master Villain. This includes origins, type, motivations, power base, henchmen and more.
The Adventurer’s Guide to Non-Player Characters– This was primarily written for the RPG “For Gold & Glory” but it could be adapted for any OSR style game (or more). This actually treats NPCs like classes. So there are Arcanists, Aristocrats, Commoners, Soldiers, etc. It also talks about wages, personality and appearance.
The last thing I wanted to talk about was using illustrations to represent your NPCs. There are plenty of stock and historical illustrations that can be used that you don’t need to bother with AI image generators. I’ve tried these image generators in the past and honestly they just suck. I’ve talked about how plasticy they make everything seem. Just skip those all together.
What tools would you use to help generate NPCs? Are there any memorable NPCs that you recall from past games? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
On Day 21 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge and our subject is Classic Campaign. There are campaigns that I’ve played in as a player and run as a GM.
As a player I think the most classic campaign was the Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 campaign that I’ve talked about before with Tovark the Sun Elf Wizard with Xon his toad familiar. I think one of the things that made it a classic campaign is how well the DM ran it. We were wondering between sessions on how we were going to handle our situation. I remember trying to make sure I had the excel character sheet up to date and added links to all of the different feats, spells so I could quickly look them up.
As a GM I think the most classic campaign was the Star Trek Roleplaying Game by Decipher. I still have players reminding me of what happened in the different sessions. I had assembled a schedule of self-made and published adventures from different sources leading to a final “bad guy” situation that the players would have to overcome. The only thing I wish is that we would have been able to complete the campaign to it’s conclusion (schedules and players moving away prevented this).
What classic campaigns did you play or GM in? What made it a classic? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
OK, so we are asked to talk about an Amazing Adventure for Day 19 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge. I had a chance to talk about the FASA Star Trek adventure “Demand of Honor” and the B/X Dungeons and Dragons Adventure “The Keep on the Borderlands” in a past RPGaDAY Challenge post. So let’s look at my collection and see if I have another that I’d like to point out as an amazing adventure.
I think I’m going to talk about an adventure that I saw, but never had the chance to play or GM. S3 Expedition to the Barrier Peaks for Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 1st Edition. It was also covered in the Original Adventures Reincarnated #3 by Goodman Games when they had the license to publish these.
I’ve always been a science fiction fan, so when I saw that my friend had a SF module for Dungeons and Dragons, I went a little crazy. Spells and rayguns? What sorcery was this? From what I understand it was something that was being conceived before TSR released Gamma World. I had inquired if we could play it, but alas, we were never able to get around to it. Apparently this adventure had enough of an impact for Goodman Games to give it the OAR treatment. Could this be a future game that I’d have to run? I don’t know as I’d really like to be a player at the table for this one.
Reader Feedback: LexTenebris on Mastodon posted this to me in response to Sensational Sessions. “It occurs to me that another great game that fits the mold of having a secondary even tertiary characters, which allows you to stay in play is Follow, which as a free version.”
Do you have an amazing adventure that you’d like to talk about? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
Reaching Day 19 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge and our topic is Sensational Session. This one is a little vague. Yesterday we had “Memorable moment of Play” which is just about the same thing. So I’m going to talk about what I think would make for a sensational session.
In my humble opinion, a sensational session is where everyone (GM included) has something to do that contributes to the game in a timely manner. I’ve played in a WEG Star Wars game that had so many players in it, my character could take his turn and then I could take a 15-20 minute nap before needing to do something again. I’ve played in a Cyberpunk game where the hacker had a mission to complete, so the rest of us left to get some food. These are not good sessions.
Now that I’ve been typing up this blog post, I think the RPG that has succeeded in giving everyone the opportunity to play no matter the scenario is Star Trek Adventures. They had the concept of a “Secondary Character” that you can create before hand or create on the fly. If you are playing the Conn officer on a Starfleet vessel and there is an away team going to the planet on a rescue mission, instead of the player being bored, they could create a secondary character that is a member of the security team.
Sure, there might be sessions that are geared more towards one or two players, but remember that there are other players at the table that have taken just as much time and effort to be present for the gaming session. With how limited our gaming time seems to be, lets make sure that everyone gets something sensational out of them.
Feedback from a reader: Phil Hatfield on MeWe responded to my Quick to Learn post noting that he thought MiniSix was an easy to use game systems. It looks like it is free on DriveThruRPG so I’m going to check it out. He also stated that the FATE system was very simple. This is one I keep hearing about, but never had a chance to try.
Do you have any thoughts on what makes for a sensational session? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of August 19th through August 25th. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.
“We humans learn more often from a failure or a mistake than we do from an easy success.” Dr. Pulaski- Elementary, Dear Data, Stardate: 42286.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
Happy Birthday to Jonathan Frakes. @jonathansfrakes https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Jonathan_Frakes #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #StarTrekFilm #StarTrekDS9 #StarTrekVOY #StarTrekENT #StarTrekPicard #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
“You should know that I now prefer pacifism to actual combat. Energize.” Worf “We’re all gonna die.” Riker- The Bounty, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
“I am coming for you, my progeny.” Ilthuran- Starstruck, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekProdigy #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
August 21 “Unhappiness is the state which occurs in the human when wants and desires are not fulfilled.” Spock- I Mudd, Stardate: 4513.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
August 22 “I never thought I’d meet a species that forges such intimate bonds with lesser creatures. It’s surprising the things you humans choose to invest your emotions in.” Dr. Phlox- Dear Doctor, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
August 23 “The fun in the program, Data was in the attempt to solve a mystery.” LaForge- Elementary, Dear Data, Stardate: 42286.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
“The next time someone has something nice to say about you, maybe you should just take them at their word and feel good about yourself.” Kes- Lifesigns, Stardate: 49504.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
“‘Gorn Protocols. To be distributed upon an encounter with the hostile species.’” La’an “Break in case of Gorn.” Ortegas- Hegemony, Stardate: 2344.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekStrangeNewWorlds #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
August 25 “I’m supposed to be a doctor, I’m supposed to put my patient’s needs above my own.” Dr. Bashir “You didn’t want to be lonely anymore. Nobody does.” O’Brien- Chrysalis, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet #Quote
What are your favorite daily Star Trek quotes selected for this week? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.
There have been panels at past conventions where gamers were able to tell the “There I was…” stories from their gaming adventures. I think this is part of the reason we love roleplaying games so much. You never know what is going to happen when a bunch of geeks get together and roll some magical math rocks. The improvisational and quick thinking efforts of both the players and the GM can sometimes lead to stories that we want to talk about later on in life. I know that when I’ve bumped into old gaming friends, we usually bring up a session or two that stick out in our minds. To this day I giggle when I think about blowing out a candle, a Gorn captain saying “dude”, or insects disguised as gold coins.
Do you have a memorable moment of play from a past RPG session? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
Hmmm… an interesting topic for Day 17 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge. An engaging RPG community. As humans, we are social creatures. We need to bond together with others that share similar interests. This is why we gather together in clubs, such as Starfleet Command’s Seventh Fleet for Star Trek fans, or organizations. I remember being in a RPG club back in the 80’s that was being run through a local gaming store. Later I remember there being the Gaming Clubhouse that was next to Comics Utah in Sugarhouse.
In our current days of the internet, I think that meeting up with gamers at local comic stores and conventions is still the best way to meet fellow RPG enthusiasts. Something about the face-to-face brings about a bond that isn’t quite there with online interactions. However I’m not an old-man yelling at a cloud and I have enjoyed meeting people online as well. Participating in challenges such as the RPGaDAY and the Character Creation Challenge has helped me find quite a few good blogs, message boards and social media connections.
If you are looking on social media, do a search for the hashtags that are associated with the gaming community such as: #TTRPG, #RolePlaying, #RPG, #RPGaDAY or #CharacterCreationChallenge. By following these on BlueSky and Mastodon I’ve been able to interact with quite a few other RPGers. On Facebook I always submit my entries to I’d Rather Be Killing Monsters, RPG Blog Hub and others. Sometimes there are groups for specific titles. Sorry I don’t have links for these, I don’t really access Facebook on my computer. Reddit has also become a goldmine for RPG connectivity. Like Facebook, there are also specialized communities for different RPG titles on there. And I’ve become very involved in the RPG scene on Discord. I love being able to follow Discord servers of RPG publishers and Bloggers/Youtubers. Yes, there are also a lot of good Youtube videos as well.
Some of the message boards that I’ve interacted with include the RPG.net Forums and RPG PUB. There are others that pop up during the Character Creation Challenge that I’ve linked to in January. There have also been some Star Trek RPG message boards that I wish were more active like Old School Trek.
Connecting with fellow bloggers has also helped. Some of these are (and not limited to) Barking Alien, Gaming with the Gnomies, The Other Side and more. If you search around there are a ton of blogs about a wide variety of subjects. If you are looking for a good one specifically about Star Trek Adventures, I’d recommend Continuing Mission.
So there is opportunity to find an engaging community both in real life and cyberspace. Do you have a community that you would like to recommend? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
For Day 16 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge we have been asked to talk about an RPG that is Quick to Learn. This sounds really similar to the Day 6 entry of an RPG that is Easy to Use. In that post, I talked about a game that I had played that covered the subject. To mix things up, I’m going to post about a game that I haven’t played yet, but sounds easy to use from reading the rules.
Back in the 2022 Character Creation Challenge, I was able to make a character for Tiny Dungeons 2nd Edition. The basis of the system is that you roll 2d6 when attempting a task and if you roll a 5 or a 6 on either die, then you are able to complete the task. If the GM determines that you have an advantage while attempting the task, they will let you roll 3d6. Likewise, if it is determined that you have a disadvantage, you only roll a single d6. When I created characters for Tiny Frontiers, Tiny Spies and Tiny Wastelands the system was the same. Making a character was also quick and easy.
I thought someone had mentioned the Tiny d6 system in response to my Day 6 entry, but I couldn’t find it. So thank you to the person who reminded me of this system. It sounds like a good system to use for a quick pick-up game or a convention one-shot. I’d like to try this at a future SaltCON and see how it is received. Another advantage of easy rules is, if I can understand it quickly, I can try to get some friends involved quickly as well.
Is there an RPG that you thought sounded easy from reading the rules? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
Welcome to Day 15 of the RPGaDAY 2024 Challenge. Our topic of the day is Great Character Gear. The gear for a character can be an interesting thing. It can be a micromanaging aspect of the game (Do I have enough arrows? Is the character overloaded?) or it can be a new trend that I’ve noticed. The gear is more of a temporary trait that affect the character/scene in the game. If it’s the later, then usually the rules state ‘You start with this’. Sometimes I appreciate that a lot, especially if I’m getting down to the wire on getting the character completed.
The starting gear is always an interesting aspect of roleplaying games to think about. Having created a lot of characters in the Character Creation Challenge, I’ve noticed some things. By the time I get to the “obtain equipment” section of the process, I’m either really happy to pick out the gear, or I’m really annoyed because the character creation process sucked to high heaven. Sometimes I just say “I pick the equipment I think the character would have.” Especially if the equipment obtaining process is convoluted.
One of the most weirdest (and stupid) processes of obtaining character gear came from the True20 system. Immediately I saw how the wealth bonus could both be abused by players and how the wealth system would punish players. Then when I saw how it compared to D20 Modern wealth system, I knew that I’d be using the later if I wanted to run that type of a game.
I like homebrewing for gear in games based off of Intellectual Properties (i.e. shows, books and comics). It allowed me to port over something I had seen into a RPG environment. I did this with Star Trek Adventures in a past RPGaDAY entry.
Another aspect of equipment is when the GM wishes they hadn’t given that out or forgot that you had obtained it. In a past D&D 3.5 campaign, the DM forgot that I had obtained a bottle of matter from the negative plane. In a moment of desperation, I used it as a grenade. Luckily the party survived the encounter. But it did kill the nasty monster that was kicking our butt. The DM had told his son about the encounter later and he reacted with “what was he stupid for using that?”
Do you have a memorable equipment that was given to a character? Have you had a good or bad experience equipping characters during the character creation process? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com with any comments.
