Azri Drakara Bonus Material: Extended World Profiles for Cepheus Subsector...

Good Afternoon, All:

When I released One-Act Adventure: Vengeance By Proxy three years ago, I included statistics on the Cepheus subsector of Azri Drakara. However, I did not include the Extended World Profiles that seemed popular with the Rodan Subsector sourcebook. As bonus material for those who have purchased the adventure, I'm including those below:

Theodorus (Azri Drakara 0101 E532374-6): Starport Class E (Frontier); Medium (Low-G); Very Thin; Dry World; Low Pop (1,000); Balkanized; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Poor World. Dracosian Republic.

Archytas (Azri Drakara 0102 B410787-9): Starport Class B (Good); Medium (Low-G); Trace; Desert World; Mod Pop (20,000,000); Civil Service Bureaucracy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Non-Agricultural World. Dracosian Republic.

CEPHEUS (Azri Drakara 0106 A767986-C): Starport Class A (Excellent); Large; Standard; Wet World; High Pop (6,000,000,000); Civil Service Bureaucracy; Mod Law; Avg Stellar Tech. Naval Base. Trade Codes: Garden World, High Pop and High Tech. Dracosian Republic.

Gorgias (Azri Drakara 0108 C410301-A): Starport Class C (Routine); Medium (Low-G); Trace; Desert World; Low Pop (1,000); Anarchy; Low Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base, Scout Base and Consulate. Trade Codes: Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Diogenes (Azri Drakara 0109 B300623-A): Starport Class B (Good); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Mod Pop (7,000,000); Participating Democracy; Low Law; Early Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Non-Agricultural World, Non-Industrial World and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Lacydes (Azri Drakara 0110 D100368-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (7,000); Colony/Captive World; High Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Meneus (Azri Drakara 0201 C300411-A): Starport Class C (Routine); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Mod Pop (20,000); Corporate World; Low Law; Early Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Stilpo (Azri Drakara 0206 B68A544-A): Starport Class B (Good); Medium (Low-G); Dense; Water World; Mod Pop (700,000); Representative Democracy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World and Water World. Dracosian Republic.

Tisias (Azri Drakara 0207 B623445-A): Starport Class B (Good); Medium (Low-G); Very Thin (Tainted); Wet World; Mod Pop (20,000); Representative Democracy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World and Poor World. Dracosian Republic.

Xenos (Azri Drakara 0208 D627215-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Medium (Low-G); Very Thin (Tainted); Wet World; Low Pop (400); Corporate World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Pliny (Azri Drakara 0210 D100364-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (8,000); Colony/Captive World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Bion (Azri Drakara 0301 B896634-6): Starport Class B (Good); Large; Dense (Tainted); Wet World; Mod Pop (9,000,000); Self-perpetuating Oligarchy; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Naval Base. Trade Codes: Agricultural World, Garden World and Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Crantor (Azri Drakara 0302 B6A2432-8): Starport Class B (Good); Medium (Low-G); Exotic; Dry World; Mod Pop (70,000); Self-perpetuating Oligarchy; Low Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Fluid Oceans and Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Lysis (Azri Drakara 0303 B76A8B9-8): Starport Class B (Good); Large; Standard; Water World; Mod Pop (900,000,000); Non-charismatic Leader; High Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Naval Base, Scout Base and Consulate. Trade Codes: Rich World and Water World. Dracosian Republic.

Simmias (Azri Drakara 0305 C88875A-7): Starport Class C (Routine); Large; Dense; Wet World; Mod Pop (90,000,000); Feudal Technocracy; High Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Agricultural World, Garden World and Rich World. Dracosian Republic.

Theocrates (Azri Drakara 0306 D755698-6): Starport Class D (Poor); Large; Thin; Wet World; Mod Pop (8,000,000); Impersonal Bureaucracy; High Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Agricultural World, Garden World and Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Polemon (Azri Drakara 0308 C673425-6): Starport Class C (Routine); Medium (Low-G); Standard (Tainted); Wet World; Mod Pop (80,000); Participating Democracy; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Charon (Azri Drakara 0404 D300214-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (300); Corporate World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Alexinus (Azri Drakara 0405 D897312-7): Starport Class D (Poor); Large; Dense (Tainted); Wet World; Low Pop (1,000); Corporate World; Low Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Garden World and Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Pereus (Azri Drakara 0406 C552888-7): Starport Class C (Routine); Medium (Low-G); Thin; Dry World; Mod Pop (500,000,000); Civil Service Bureaucracy; High Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Poor World. Dracosian Republic.

TELECLES (Azri Drakara 0502 C667ACA-A): Starport Class C (Routine); Medium (Low-G); Standard; Wet World; High Pop (20,000,000,000); Charismatic Oligarchy; High Law; Early Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Garden World and High Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Plutarch (Azri Drakara 0503 A566627-A): Starport Class A (Excellent); Medium (Low-G); Standard; Wet World; Mod Pop (4,000,000); Participating Democracy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base, Scout Base and Consulate. Trade Codes: Agricultural World, Garden World, Non-Industrial World and Rich World. Dracosian Republic.

Evander (Azri Drakara 0505 C83448A-8): Starport Class C (Routine); Large; Very Thin; Wet World; Mod Pop (70,000); Civil Service Bureaucracy; High Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Carneades (Azri Drakara 0508 B686777-8): Starport Class B (Good); Medium (Low-G); Dense; Wet World; Mod Pop (20,000,000); Balkanized; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Agricultural World, Garden World and Rich World. Dracosian Republic.

Atticus (Azri Drakara 0510 D200214-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (500); Corporate World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Hypatia (Azri Drakara 0601 B545455-A): Starport Class B (Good); Medium (Low-G); Thin (Tainted); Wet World; Mod Pop (10,000); Feudal Technocracy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base. Trade Codes: Garden World and Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Alexandria (Azri Drakara 0603 D6A7215-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Medium (Low-G); Exotic; Wet World; Low Pop (400); Corporate World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Fluid Oceans and Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Democritus (Azri Drakara 0607 A410525-A): Starport Class A (Excellent); Medium (Low-G); Trace; Desert World; Mod Pop (900,000); Participating Democracy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Protagoras (Azri Drakara 0610 C300335-8): Starport Class C (Routine); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (1,000); Self-perpetuating Oligarchy; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Thales (Azri Drakara 0705 C000315-A): Starport Class C (Routine); Asteroid (Zero-G); Low Pop (3,000); Corporate World; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. Naval Base, Scout Base and Consulate. Trade Codes: Asteroid Belt and Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Parmenides (Azri Drakara 0706 C667342-9): Starport Class C (Routine); Medium (Low-G); Standard; Wet World; Low Pop (3,000); Representative Democracy; Low Law; Early Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Garden World and Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Anaximander (Azri Drakara 0708 X410221-8 Red Zone): Starport Class X (Interdicted); Medium (Low-G); Trace; Desert World; Low Pop (400); Participating Democracy; Low Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

Damo (Azri Drakara 0709 C300310-A): Starport Class C (Routine); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (6,000); Corporate World; No Law; Early Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Aesara (Azri Drakara 0710 D100215-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Low Pop (600); Corporate World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Siro (Azri Drakara 0802 B200434-A): Starport Class B (Good); Small (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Mod Pop (50,000); Self-perpetuating Oligarchy; Mod Law; Early Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World and Vacuum World. Dracosian Republic.

Lucius (Azri Drakara 0804 C843597-6): Starport Class C (Routine); Large; Thin (Tainted); Wet World; Mod Pop (500,000); Impersonal Bureaucracy; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Non-Industrial World and Poor World. Dracosian Republic.

Catius (Azri Drakara 0806 B754464-7): Starport Class B (Good); Large; Thin; Wet World; Mod Pop (30,000); Colony/Captive World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. Scout Base. Trade Codes: Garden World and Non-Industrial World. Dracosian Republic.

Tycho (Azri Drakara 0808 D410366-8): Starport Class D (Poor); Medium (Low-G); Trace; Desert World; Low Pop (2,000); Colony/Captive World; Mod Law; Pre-Stellar Tech. No Bases. Trade Codes: Low Pop. Dracosian Republic.

0810-400 (Azri Drakara 0810 X400000-0): Starport Class X (Interdicted); Medium (Low-G); Vacuum; Desert World; Barren. No Bases. Trade Codes: Barren World and Vacuum World. Non-aligned.

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

Fantasy Friday: The City of Skulls...

Good Afternoon, All:

Here's a location that I'm using in my current Madlands Campaign. This particular site was inspired by the City of Human Skulls described in Edgar Rice Burrough's Out of Time's Abyss. Of course, I had to jazz it up and introduce several campaign elements, basically making the locale my own as I integrated it into the campaign.

My campaign world includes Hawkfolk in the mountain ranges, taking the place of such avian species as the aarakocra or the raptorans. However, the name aarakocra is just too cool and too classically D&D not to find its way into my game. That's why this clan of warped Hawkfolk are called the Kokora, and their aerie-city thus becomes the Aerie Kokora. It was fun to watch the faces of the players that got it when I first gave them the lore as part of an earlier adventure.

My players have gathered a majority of the information below, so I don't feel bad about posting this for your thoughts and insights. As always, your thoughts, comments and constructive feedback are always appreciated.

Aerie Kokora
Location Name: The City of Skulls, The Aerie of Clan Kokora
Ambiance: The Aerie of Clan Kokora resembles adobe pueblos with humanoid skulls in the walls, along ledges and eaves, etc. Built for an avian race, most upper rooms have opening in the ceiling to the outside. On roofs, one can see columns topped with human skulls, painted white and blue/red/yellow (mostly blue).
History: Once a city of Hawkfolk, its citizens converted to the worship of Kalima, Mistress of Murder. The Hawkfolk of Clan Kokora are now corrupted and twisted by demonic influences. Assassination and murder are now the defining characteristics that determine social position and advancement.
Encounters: Encounters in this area are generally with Kokora or dinosaurs (in underground caverns and surrounding jungle regions).
Treasures: The Holy Anvil of Dworkin is kept within Kalima's Tower. Chests of treasures taken off of victims captured via fly-by attacks at night are also abundant throughout the city.
Hooks and Hotspots: The River of the Dead flows beneath the city, where remains are dumped for removal. Several caves and caverns along the path of the underground river serve as lairs for creatures such as otyughs and vermin. Kalima's Tower (a Temple to Kalima) serves as the palace for 'He Who Speaks For Kalima', the Priest-King of Clan Kokora. The Kokora do take slaves, which they frequently sacrifice to Kalima at the new moon.

Life Level: Medium (High outside the city, but Low inside the city)
Hazard Level: High
Difficult Terrain Density: High (built for flying people)
Resource Level: Low

Herbivores: Stegosaurus, triceratops
Predators: Tyrannosaurs
Scavengers: Pterodactyls, osquip, scavenger worms, velociraptors
Hazards: See humanoids
Humanoids: Kokora, humanoid slaves/sacrifices
Exotic: Otyughs

2d6	Encounter
2	Otyugh
3	Humanoid Slaves/sacrifices
4	Kokoran Priest/ess
5	Scavenger Worms
6	Osquip
7	Kokoran Clan Patrol
8	Velociraptors
9	Pterodactyls
10	Triceratops
11	Stegosaurus
12	Tyrannosaur

With Regards,
Flynn

Traveller: Some Formats for Writing Up Worlds...

Good Afternoon, All:

In the upcoming supplement Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Covenant of Discipline, I would like to provide an overview of the capital world of this interstellar "psionic theocracy". I'd prefer to stick with something that is roughly one page in size, and provides an adequate amount of detail for sparking multiple adventure ideas. I've started the process by analyzing two different resources for world write-ups: the description of Zhodane in the Classic Traveller Alien Module 4: Zhodani and the free Gypsy Knight Games product, Quick Worlds 20: Atargatis. I am also looking at the one-page world capsules in the old MegaTraveller adventure Knightfall.

From the Classic Traveller Alien Module 4: Zhodani, you can see something akin to the following arrangement of information:

SYSTEM NAME
Brief descriptive sentence.

STELLAR DATA
Describe the star(s).
World Orbital Data: Describe orbital data.

WORLD DATA
Describe the world's physical data.
World Social Data: Describe the world's social and technology data.

SATELLITE NAMES
Describe world's satellites.

THE INNER SYSTEM
Describe the worlds of the inner system.

THE OUTER SYSTEM
Describe the worlds of the outer system.

WORLD NAME
Describe world's geography and topography.
Climate: Describe world's climate.

If you look at the free Gypsy Knight Games product, Quick Worlds 20: Atargatis, you'll see something like the following:

SYSTEM NAME
Basic Stats
Extended World Profile

System Details

Inner System Diagram

Physical Data
Atmospheric Details
Hydrographic Details
Geographic Details

World Map

Population Details
Government Details
Legal Details
Technology Details
Trade Details
Base Details

Cultural Details
Planetary Calendar/Timekeeping

Population Center Details

And finally, the One Page approach from the MegaTraveller adventure Knightfall:

SYSTEM NAME
Basic Stats
Primary: Stellar data details in a statblock format.
World Name: Planetary data details in a statblock format.

Library data capsule (two column format)
World map in this section as well

Inner System and Outer System orbital maps

Obviously, the more data you put in, the more room the write-up is going to take. That being said, I think that I'm most easily going to get what I want if I use the more nostalgic format found in the Classic Traveller Alien Module 4: Zhodani. Still, the One Page approach really strikes a chord with me because of the One Page Manifesto. I'll keep digging away at it and post some thoughts here for your consideration.

In the meantime, if you have any suggestions, comments or constructive feedback, you are always welcome to leave a comment.

With Regards,
Flynn

Traveller: Suggestions For A Shorter Skill List...

Good Afternoon, All:

In one of my posts for Stellar Quest, I provided a list of Specialties (essentially skills in that system) that were useful for science fiction gaming. Obviously, it's much shorter than the traditional Traveller skill list. That list has inspired me to explore the possibility of consolidating the existing skill list from the Traveller System Reference into a much shorter skill selection, perhaps using skill specializations to help further distinguish specific variants of a primary skill from one another.

In order to properly reduce the skill list to its most effective and concise nature, I am taking the Savage Worlds approach to skills. In essence, I want to define somewhat broad skills that are actually used in play, and get rid of the chafe. If it hasn't had a significant use in my own campaigns or the Convention sessions I've ran at Gen Con, I'm going to drop it or make it a part of a much broader skill.

The first draft of my consolidation efforts are included below. The primary skill is listed first, and appropriate specializations are included in parentheses following the primary skill. Obviously, this is simply a thought experiment.

A Shorter Traveller Skill List, First Draft:

• Acrobatics (Flying, Zero-G Environs)
• Astrogation (Normal Space, Jump Space)
• Athletics (Endurance, Heavy-G Environs)
• Bureaucratics (Admin, Advocate)
• Computers (Comms, Programming, Remote Operations, Robotics, Sensors)
• Culture (High Society, *Specific Cultures*, Streetwise)
• Engineering (Demolitions, Electronics, Gravitics, Mechanics)
• Gun Combat (Archery, Energy Weapons, Slug Weapons)
• Gunnery (Heavy Weapons, Screens, Spinal Mounts, Turrets)
• Jack-of-All-Trades
• Linguistics (*Specific Languages*)
• Medicine (Human, Veterinary, Xeno-Medicine)
• Melee Combat (Natural, Bludgeoning, Piercing, Slashing)
• Perception (Investigate, Research)
• Persuasion (Broker, Carouse, Deception, Leadership)
• Profession (Artist, Construction, Gambler, Steward)
• Sciences (Life, Physical, Social, Space)
• Stealth
• Survival (Orienteering, Recon, *Specific Climates/Terrains*, Tracking)
• Tactics (Military, Naval)
• Transport (Aerospace, Aquatic, Armor, Ground-based, Riding)

After reviewing the list above, do you think that your personal Traveller game would benefit from such a consolidation of skills? And if so, do you have any suggestions, comments or concerns regarding the contents of the first draft of the list above?

With Regards,
Flynn

Fantasy Friday: A Lordly Petition (A One Shot Adventure)...

Good Afternoon, All:

It's time for another installment of Fantasy Fridays. Today, I thought I'd write up a brief One Shot using a pretty major variation of the my One Page Plot format. I'm in the process of writing up some adventures to put in my GM Notebook, and figured that sharing one of them might be helpful, particularly in terms of getting feedback and additional suggestions. As inspiration, I am using Polti's 36 Dramatic Situations to inspire this particular round of adventure creation. The theme for this One Shot is Supplication.

Plot Name: A Lordly Petition

Synopsis: The Lord-Mayor of a frontier town must send the PCS to present a request for assistance before his Liege to protect his lands from a Raiding Warlord.

NPC Goals: The four primary NPCs involved in this adventure follow.

• Lord-Mayor: A retired guardsman, the Lord-Mayor is a wiry, loyal warrior. Given the ferocity of the recent attacks by the Raiding Warlord, the Lord-Mayor seeks to hold out long enough for the Liege's reinforcements to arrive. If he cannot hold out, then he will stay behind to hold the raiders off while guards escort his wife and daughter to safety.
• Liege: A gluttonous man, the Liege is a rotund yet competent administrator of the lands under his control. The Liege desires to conserve as much of his resources as possible, so that there's more money in his coffers for fine wine and epicurean delicacies.
• Raiding Warlord: A talented tactician turned rogue, the Raiding Warlord is a stern, cruel warlord. Leading his band of mercenaries, the Raiding Warlord has been secretly hired by the Neighboring Lord to raid the lands of the Lord-Mayor and create havoc. Unbeknownst to the Neighboring Lord, the Raiding Warlord also seeks a magical relic that is rumored to be in the possession of the Lord-Mayor.
• Neighboring Lord: An ambitious, scarred fencer, the Neighboring Lord inherited his title from his father. The Neighboring Lord desires the Lord-Mayor's daughter, and hired the Raiding Warlord in the hopes that the raids will force the Lord-Mayor to send his daughter to him for protection. In addition, the Neighboring Lord is willing to hire an assassin to kill the Lord-Mayor and his wife using the Raiding Warlord as the scapegoat for the murders, so that he can petition the Liege for the Lord-Mayor's daughter's hand in marriage. If push comes to shove, he'll even volunteer his own guards as reinforcements to put himself in the position to make that happen.

Locales: The four primary locations that may potentially be involved in this adventure follow.

• Frontier Town: This small walled village holds the manor of the Lord-Mayor, and has been recently filling up with refugees from the outlying farms impacted by the Raiding Warlord.
• Liege's Court: The high court of the region, this is the place where petitions are made and justice is meted out.
• Boar Woods: This small forest is owned by the Liege, and serves as his private hunting reserve. A minor trade route leads through the woods from the Lord-Mayor's lands to the Liege's castle; and might make a good place for ambushes from either the Raiding Warlord or the Neighboring Lord.
• Raider's Camp: The base camp for the raiders, this hidden location on the frontier holds most of the treasures captured by the Raiding Warlord, as well as the bulk of his mercenary forces when they are not out raiding.

Plot Hooks: The player-characters may become actively engaged in this scenario through the plot hooks that follow.

• Hired To Deliver The Petition: The party might be hired by the Lord-Mayor (or they may volunteer after a raid) to deliver the petition and secure reinforcements against the forces of the Raiding Warlord.
• Hired To Recover The Magical Relic: The Raiding Warlord may hire the party to infiltrate the Lord-Mayor's township and recover the magical relic believed to be in the Lord-Mayor's possession.
• Hired To Stop The Petitioners: The Neighboring Lord or the Raiding Warlord may hire the party to stop the petitioners from delivering the petition to the Liege.
• Hired To Kill The Lord-Mayor: The Neighboring Lord may hire the party to enter into the Lord-Mayor's good graces and then assassinate the Lord-Mayor and his wife. They must make it look like the Raiding Warlord is behind the assassination.

Possible Challenges: Some possible non-combat challenges that empower the party to attempt either a roleplaying or skills-based resolution instead of a combat resolution can be found below.

• Petitioning the Liege: The party may have to present the petition to the Liege in court, and argue on behalf of the Lord-Mayor to receive reinforcements. Failure: No reinforcements. Partial Success: Reinforcements offered by the Neighboring Lord. Success: Reinforcements from both the Liege and the Neighboring Lord.
• Searching the Lord-Mayor's Manor: The party may have to stealth into the Lord-Mayor's manor in search of the magical relic sought by the Raiding Warlord. Failure: The Lord-Mayor attempts to arrest and imprison the party as thieves. Partial Success: The party does not find any relic, but does have a chance to obtain some treasure; the Lord-Mayor puts a bounty on the head of whoever stole from him. Success: The party discover a treasure map that points to where the relic is buried.
• Learning the Petitioners' Plans: The party may have to somehow figure out the petitioners' plans if they are going to intercept the Lord-Mayor's petition. Failure: Must follow the petitioners and hope they catch up; alternately, may be hired to assassinate the Lord-Mayor and his wife instead. Partial Success: Learn of the petitioners' plans in time to arrange an ambush, but the petitioners become aware someone is following them and are more wary. Success: Learn of the petitioners' plans in time to arrange an ambush, and the petitioners do not suspect a thing.
• Finding the Raider's Camp: The party may attempt to track down the Raider's Camp through a combination of tracking and interviewing survivors. Failure: Find an abandoned camp that was used by the raiders until a week or two ago. Partial Success: Find the Raider's Camp, but are detected in the process. Success: Find the Raider's Camp without being detected.

Possible Confrontations: This scenario may include combat encounters that are most easily resolved through warskill and prowess, such as those that follow.

• Ambushed By Raiders: En route to the Liege's castle, the party may have to fend off an ambush by raiders. Alternately, the party may be the ambushers that are attacking the petitioners. Failure: Those not slain are captured and interrogated for information. Partial Success: At least some members of the party survive to continue the mission. Success: As Partial Success, plus receive a clue that the Neighboring Lord and the Raiding Warlord are in league with one another. (In the alternate scenario, the party gets what they came for, in addition to surviving.)
• Obtaining the Buried Treasure: In following the map, the party discovers that the relic has been buried in a cave that has since become an animal lair. Failure: At least one member of the party gets eaten, and no one can access the buried treasure. Partial Success: The party slay the beast(s), but cannot locate the buried treasure. Success: As Partial Success, except they also recover the buried treasure.
• Attacked By Assassins: The party may  have to deal with assassins sent by either the Neighboring Lord or the Raiding Warlord, depending on their past actions and successes/failures. Failure: At least one member of the party is incapacitated or slain, and the assassins accomplish their goal. Partial Success: The party fights off the assassins, who flee to report back to their employer. Success: As Partial Success, except no assassin survives.
• Attacking the Raider's Camp: The party may attempt to attack the raiders. Failure: At least one member of the party is incapacitated or slain, and the party is unable to stop the raiders. Partial Success: The party slays enough of the raiders to break their morale, who flee the camp to report back to the Raiding Warlord. Success: As Partial Success, except no raider survives to report to the Raiding Warlord.

Possible Complications: This scenario may include encounters that embody a plot complication that must be overcome, such as the ones that follow.

• Boar Woods Bridge Is Out: In an effort to hinder the movement of the party, an enemy has burned the Boar Woods Bridge, leaving the party to figure another way across the river.
• Angry Refugees: A small camp of refugees left homeless by the Raiding Warlord and kicked out of the Lord-Mayor's village for disruptive behavior attempt to take out their anger on the party.
• The Lord-Mayor's Daughter: Impressed by the stories of her father's adventures, the Lord-Mayor's Daughter is looking for a dashing adventurer to develop a crush on. She will sneak into his room when she can, or follow him when he leaves, only to get into trouble and need to be rescued. This won't settle well with the Lord-Mayor.

Possible Climaxes: The final encounter that should represent the biggest and most dangerous encounter of the adventure. This section should also include some notes on possible consequences of success and failure, and a sentence on how to tell when the adventure is over, whichever path the players decide to take.

• The Big Battle: The forces of the Raiding Warlord and the Lord-Mayor meet in a final, climactic battle. During the battle, efforts are made to assassinate the Lord-Mayor and his wife.
• Attack on the Lord-Mayor: The party is involved in either defending the Lord-Mayor and his family, or trying to kill them, depending on who hired them. This should be a big fight in the Lord-Mayor's manor, possibly involving more than two factions in the fight (Lord-Mayor, Raiding Warlord, Neighboring Lord).

The adventure is over when any of the following conditions are met:

• The Raiding Warlord is defeated (or pretends to be defeated after acquiring the relic.)
• The Lord-Mayor is slain and his daughter delivered to the Neighboring Lord.
• The party demonstrates that the Neighboring Lord has hired the Raiding Warlord to attack the Lord-Mayor, and the results of that action has been resolved.
• The party delivers the petition, then elects not to return with them to defend the village.
• The party obtains the magical relic, then elects not to take it to the Raiding Warlord and flees.

Rewards: In addition to whatever payment is negotiated for the party's service, the equipment carried by their enemies adds to their reward. If they track down the Raider's Camp, then the raiders' treasure becomes part of their reward. If the party decides to track down the relic and keep it for themselves, that also becomes a part of their reward.

Obviously, this approach is much more open than normal, with a very fluid suggested structure that does not dictate the actual flow of events. After reading the above, do you have any suggestions on improving the core scenario? What do you think of the organization of data?

Thanks In Advance,
Flynn

GM Mentoring: Top Ten Essential Points to Running a Convention Game...

Good Afternoon, All:

I've gathered a number of resources below in regards to creating and running a Convention game scenario. While I'm not going to reiterate everything you can find in these resources, I do want to include what I view as the Top Ten Essential Points to Running a Convention Game, regardless of the gaming system.

1. Have Fun: Whatever happens, so long as you and all of the players at the table are having fun, then they will walk away with a great gaming experience. This is the ultimate rule for running convention games, and all other rules are intended to help you accomplish this goal.
2. Use a Simple Scenario: Create a scenario that you intend to be run from beginning to end in 3 to 3.5 hours, assuming a four hour session length. Generally, these scenarios are fairly linear, limited to 3-5 scenes, and have a reasonably limited focus.
3. Be Prepared: Have all of your materials ready. Know your rules. If you don't remember a particular rule for a situation that will be occuring in your scenario, make crib notes so you don't have to interrupt the game to look up the rule.
4. Use Pregens: Use pregenerated characters if at all possible, and generally speaking, it's always possible. Creating characters in the session steals time that could be better spent actually gaming.
5. Move the Game Forward: Your scenario should always reward forward motion. Many players are aware of the time constraints, and feel that they are entitled to a complete scenario with a beginning, middle and end, all within the time allotted for the game. Letting a game stall for something like shopping for magic items or gathering rumors that do not contribute to moving the scenario forward goes against this general expectation. Don't be too subtle in your clues.
6. Keep Them Alive For Most Of The Game: Remember that you are running games for people who paid to be sitting at your table. As the customer, they expect their money's worth. As the GM, you should aim to keep them alive for most of the scenario. Aside from a series of poor rolls and even poorer decisions, a character should really face death or some other form of removal from the scenario until the climactic final scene (or more than two-thirds the allotted session time has passed.) If death is a regular occurrence over the course of a scenario due to the setting or the system (such as the use of clones in a Paranoia game), apply this rule to any condition that can remove a character from the scenario permanently.
7. Be Prepared To Skip Ahead: Even if you plan for a reasonably short scenario, you may be running for a group that pushes the envelope and really drags things out. Be prepared to skip ahead to the final climactic scene if they haven't gotten there when you are an hour or so out from the end of the session. If you didn't design your scenario with that in mind, you should at least give some thought as to what you can drop if you need to make adjustments.
8. Be Prepared To Stretch It Out: Sometimes you may create a scenario that, in the hands of the gamers at your table, reaches the end too quickly. Be prepared to introduce one or more minor scenes or obstacles to add to the length of the scenario if the players move the game forward too quickly. Finishing a complete scenario in two hours can be rewarding, but if your players paid for four hours of gaming, they may be disappointed. Even if you don't have this as part of your current scenario, you should at least give it some thought ahead of time so you can be prepared, just in case.
9. Avoid Breaks: Taking breaks in mid-session always tend to last much longer than you plan, and that impacts the time spent gaming. With that in mind, you should do what you can to avoid breaks in mid-session. Go to the restroom before you get to your table and set up, just to make sure nature doesn't force you to interrupt the flow of your session. If you think you'll have to take a break, plan for it and be strict on your starting time when the break is over.
10. Pretest Your Scenario: If at all possible, run the scenario at home with another set of players before taking it out to a Convention. This allows you to see what works, what doesn't, and what might need to be modified or expanded to make the game even better.

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

Resources

Roleplaying Tips Weekly Supplemental #8: "Running Games At Conventions"

Gar Hanrahan's approach to writing con scenarios

In Like Flynn: One Shot Adventure Creation

How To Run a Great Convention Game

GM Mentoring: Want Some Advice On Running Convention Games?

Good Afternoon, All:

This past weekend, I attend a great regional gaming convention called Owl Con. Hosted by a gaming club at Rice University in Houston, TX, Owl Con is one of my favorite conventions. With very few exceptions, I have always had a great time roleplaying in the scenarios I've encountered there. This time around, I had one session being run by a GM who viewed the session as no different that what he'd run for his gaming group on their usual game night, and because of that, we didn't get much accomplished. I found it frustrating, as I walked away from the experience almost wishing I'd played something else instead. This is a pretty rare occurrence, as I'd mentioned before. I could tell he was a good GM, possibly even a great one. However, since he didn't plan for the time constraints and rigid structure inherent in a convention gaming session, I didn't get to see his abilities showcased as I would have liked.

I've been running convention games now for almost a decade, and have a fairly decent reputation for providing a satisfying gaming experience whether I'm running Traveller, Savage Worlds or D20. I'd like to think it is because I'm good at running games, but honestly, I'm sure a lot of my success in this endeavor is due to my decision to research how to run a successful convention game before I designed my first adventure for that environment.

Should I consider a short series of posts on how to design and run Convention scenarios? What do you think?

With Regards,
Flynn

Fantasy Friday: Thoughts on Character Themes...

Good Afternoon, All:

It's time for another installment of Fantasy Fridays. Today, I'd like to discuss the concept of character themes. I believe I've mentioned them before, when discussing Background Abilities, although not necessarily by that name. From the interviews I've read regarding the seminars at DDXP last weekend, it seems that themes will potentially play a significant role in 5th Edition D&D (5E) character development, at least optionally so. Similar in concept to AD&D 2nd Edition's character kits, the theme provides certain abilities to a character based on its origin, background or affiliation.

Under 4E, themes provide the following benefits:

• You automatically gain the theme’s granted power.
• You can choose to take additional theme powers when you reach the appropriate level.
• You unlock feats or paragon paths that use the theme as a prerequisite.

Offered in comparison, the character kits of AD&D 2nd Edition offer the following potential benefits:

• You might gain access to bonus languages.
• You might have changes to forbidden or permissible weapons.
• You might gain bonus non-weapon proficiencies.
• You typically gain one or two special abilities.
• You might gain one or two hindrances.

Looking at the common elements, I'd guess that 5E character themes will likely grant the following:

• You automatically gain some bonus to skill checks or ability checks related to your theme.
• You may gain a special ability specific to your theme.
• You may gain access to special abilities as your character develops, which replace special abilities that you would normally get.
• You may also gain a special hindrance or two, depending on your theme.

Translating that to MyD20 Lite, a character theme would provide the following:

• You gain a bonus skill related to your theme.
• You gain a talent related to your theme at 1st level.
• You gain access to talents at higher levels that are reserved for the theme.
• You gain a special hindrance related to your theme.

Note that in my version, a special hindrance is mandatory. I believe that character flaws enhance roleplaying. If I'm going to give away a free skill and a free talent, I feel it's only fair to promote character roleplay that emphasizes the nature of the character's theme, and a flaw is a good way to capture that, game mechanically.

I doubt that I'll do much in terms of exploring this concept in MyD20 Lite until I have a group that wants to play D20 again (as we are currently enjoying Savage Worlds. However, if I design a new MyD20 Lite campaign setting, I'll definitely explore the concept. I may decide in the end not to do anything with it, but I'll at least put some cycles to the concept.

What are your thoughts regarding character themes?

With Regards,
Flynn

Azri Drakara Career Path: Merchant House...

Good Afternoon, All:

Given that the Traveller System Reference Document lacks details for the common career paths, publishers are encouraged to come up with their own versions that fit their campaign setting concept. Several publishers have released a number of career paths under the Open Gaming License, the most notable being the two Career books by Spica Publishing.

For the Azri Drakara campaign setting, this opens up new opportunities to create career paths for character development that encapsulates my campaign concepts. Below is an example of one such career path, this one aimed at Merchant Houses. This career path generates members of Merchant Houses, the largest commercial enterprises found in the Dracosian Republic.

Note that the Mishaps and Events tables are not included, as I'm still experimenting with how I want to do those in the Azri Drakara campaign setting.

Career	Merchant House
Qualifications	Int 5+
Survival
Broker	Edu 5+
Security	End 7+
Trader	Edu 6+
Advancement
Broker	Int 7+
Security	Int 5+
Trader	Int 6+
Skills and Training
d6	Personal Development
1	+1 Dex
2	+1 End
3	+1 Int
4	+1 Edu
5	Gambler
6	Melee (gun)
d6	Service Skills
1	Advocate
2	Broker
3	Carouse
4	Comms
5	Persuade
6	Vacc Suit
d6	Advanced Education (Edu 8+)
1	Admin
2	Advocate
3	Computers
4	Diplomat
5	Medic
6	Social Science (any)
d6	Specialist: Broker
1	Admin
2	Advocate
3	Broker
4	Deception
5	Drive (any)
6	Persuade
d6	Specialist: Security
1	Gun Cbt (any)
2	Gunner (any)
3	Mechanic
4	Melee (any)
5	Vacc Suit
6	Zero-G
d6	Specialist: Trader
1	Astrogation
2	Engineer (any)
3	Mechanic
4	Pilot (spacecraft)
5	Sensors
6	Steward
Ranks and Skills
Rank	Broker	Skill or Benefit
0
1	Broker	Broker 1
2	Senior Broker
3	Administrator	Diplomat 1
4	Senior Administrator
5	Planetary Director	+1 Soc
6	Executive Director
Rank	Security	Skill or Benefit
0	Crewman
1	Ensign	Gunner (any) 1
2	Lieutenant
3	Commander	Tactics (naval) 1
4	Captain
5	Commodore	+1 Soc
6	Admiral
Rank	Trader	Skill or Benefit
0	Crewman
1	Ensign	Steward 1
2	Lieutenant
3	Commander	Advocate 1
4	Captain
5	Commodore	+1 Soc
6	Admiral
d6	Material Benefits
1	Weapon (melee)
2	+1 Edu
3	+1 Int
4	Weapon (ranged)
5	1d3 Ship Shares
6	1d6 Ship Shares
7	1d6+3 Ship Shares
d6	Cash Benefits
1	3,000
2	7,000
3	15,000
4	15,000
5	30,000
6	60,000
7	70,000

Enjoy,
Flynn

Missing Traveller OGC: Career Paths, A Discussion...

Good Afternoon, All:

With the exception of the Scout career path, the Traveller System Reference Document (TSRD) provides no additional information on career paths. Therefore, any publisher seeking to publish such details must either create his own Open Game Content or make due with a reference to the core rulebook and leave it at that.

As you well know, I'm not the kind of guy that would leave it at that, particularly if I want to someday have a Player's Guide to Azri Drakara. That pretty much means that I am obliged to create my own career path write-ups for the Azri Drakara campaign setting. Of course, that begs the next question: What career paths should I create for the setting?

Below, you can see a list of the various career paths that my personal favorite versions of the Traveller system. Obviously, I want to provide the basic career paths for the Azri Drakara setting in such a manner that traditional Traveller character concepts can still be created, but I don't want to violate the Closed Content clause of the OGL. The names of the career paths are Open Game Content, since they can be found in the TSRD, and more information can be extracted with a little difficulty from the Open Game Content from Traveller T20, but really, a lot of this is just going to be my own creation.

The core career paths from Classic Traveller:

• Army
• Navy
• Marines
• Merchant
• Scout
• Other

The career paths added to Classic Traveller via the Citizens of the Imperium supplement:

• Barbarian
• Belter
• Bureaucrat
• Diplomat
• Doctor
• Flyer
• Hunter
• Noble
• Pirate
• Rogue
• Sailor
• Scientist

The core career paths from MegaTraveller:

• Army
• Barbarian
• Belter
• Bureaucrat
• Diplomat
• Doctor
• Flyer
• Hunter
• Law Enforcer
• Marine
• Merchant
• Navy
• Noble
• Pirate
• Rogue
• Sailor
• Scientist
• Scout

The core career paths from Traveller T20:

• Academic
• Army
• Barbarian
• Belter
• Marines
• Mercenary
• Merchant
• Navy
• Noble
• Professional
• Rogue
• Scout
• Traveller

The core career paths from Mongoose Traveller:

• Agent
• Army
• Citizen
• Drifter
• Entertainer
• Marine
• Merchant
• Navy
• Nobility
• Rogue
• Scholar
• Scout

Given the commonalities, I am inclined to start with the following core career path list:

• Academic (Doctor, Scholar, Scientist)
• Central Security Service (Agent, Law Enforcer)
• Colonist (Barbarian, Citizen, Hunter, Professional)
• Merchant House (Merchants)
• Public Service (Bureaucrat, Diplomat, Noble)
• Republic Rangers (Scouts)
• Stellar Navy (Navy, Marines)
• System Defense (Army, Flyers, Sailors)
• Traveller (Belter, Drifter, Rogue)

If I had to go with an even smaller list, I'd just use Merchant House, Republic Rangers, Stellar Navy, System Defense and Traveller, since these reflect the contents of the original core career paths from Classic Traveller.

What do you think?

With Regards,
Flynn

Fantasy Friday: Thoughts on 5E...

Good Afternoon, All:

It's time for another installment of Fantasy Fridays, and today I'd like to talk about the new kid on the block, D&D Next aka D&D 5E. I suspect that there will be some similarities between 5E and my own creation, MyD20 Lite. Both are based on the concept of integrating elements from all editions to create a game that is considered by its designers to be the best of all worlds. While MyD20 Lite is a lot more static than the modular approach presented by 5E, it may come to pass that I can play a 5E game that is very similar to MyD20 Lite in terms of complexity and play experience, simply by choosing which modules I implement in my games. If that happens, I won't be upset by that at all. If it doesn't, I still have MyD20 Lite, so I'm not that worried about it.

When I consider the role of modularity that has been proposed for 5E, a number of things come to mind. From a game design perspective, almost all of the differences between editions in terms of characters boils down to using different names and different mechanics to represent one concept: character abilities. Whether it is the special abilities of a character class, race, kit or theme, as well as feats, powers or spells, they are all just different types of character abilities. (In MyD20 Lite, I call these talents and spells.) I can easily imagine that 5E will capture character abilities in one or two basic formats, making it easier to consistently present them to the players. I don't know what Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) will call these abilities, and they may make different subsets for different modules. I'm sure that calling them by the name associated with a specific edition will alienate those who do not like that edition while potentially gaining some traction with those who do support that edition. Thus, I wouldn't be surprised if we see class substitution levels, racial substitution levels, skills, feats, spells and powers, all listed as different modules yet operating under the same kind of underlying game mechanic. That way, no matter what we may call it to soothe its integration into the game, it is still the same game mechanic underneath.

Beyond that, I can imagine taking either the 3E or 4E engine as the basis for the core system, and streamlining it to cover the bare basics of game play: combat, task resolution, character creation, basic magic items, and the like. Really, at its core, D&D is about using a d20 with modifiers to equal or exceed some target number, and if successful, good stuff happens. The rest is simply well-structured window dressing. What we call the whole gaming experience is really the result of how good the DM is, how well the players click with one another, and how much structure the window dressing provides. The twin mechanics of Ascending AC/Descending AC found in Swords & Wizardry shows us that we can include both approaches to satisfy either desired approach. Assuredly, there are other means by which the math can be juggled to provide reasonably similar experiences for the various approaches used by different editions, although task resolution using d6s, d20s and d% make that goal a bit more complicated. That being said, I really expect the core system for 5E to be easily expressed in under 32 pages, excluding character creation, monsters and any encyclopedia-like collection of character abilities.

This weekend is DDXP 2012, which will be the first time that the common gamer will experience the current draft version of 5E. By the end of this weekend, we should have a better idea of the direction things are currently going. The gaming community will likely be abuzz with the ideas they like, the things they hate and uninformed opinions born of knee-jerk reactions. The more vocal minority, often the extremists of any group, will rattle their swords, eager to be heard over the clangor of their peers. I only hope that WOTC finds a balance between all of the disparate opinions, perhaps with a multi-modular approach, so that I can get the game I'd like to see, without a lot of extra stuff getting in my way. (There's a reason I don't play Pathfinder, although I did give it a go. Pathfinder is just a more complex version of v3.5.)

I am making every effort to remain open-minded to the concepts we've heard so far about 5E. I did the same thing for 4E; this time around, I hope that I'm not disappointed by that choice. So, what are your thoughts regarding the next edition of Dungeons & Dragons?

With Regards,
Flynn

Adventures In Rodan: Seeking Your Thoughts...

Good Afternoon, All:

In Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector, I introduced the second of sixteen subsectors for the Azri Drakara campaign setting. (The first subsector that I released for Azri Drakara, Cepheus Subsector, can be found in One-Act Adventure: Vengeance by Proxy.) With Rodan being a frontier subsector, I sought to provide a location for Referees and players alike to begin exploring this campaign setting without having to absorb a lot of background material. Over time, of course, future supplements will expand on the setting, but the goal remains that Azri Drakara is intended to be accessible and usable, particularly with the core Traveller rules.

Although I provided several patron encounters in the introductory book, I know that every campaign can benefit from more adventure ideas. Even if a Referee decides not to use the Azri Drakara setting, he can always adapt the ideas for use in his own Traveller campaign. As I'd mentioned earlier this month, adventures don't sell well, but I'm still going to give it one more try and see where things go from there.

I imagine that, in addition to the core adventure, I will probably add a few patron encounters, and perhaps a few more things along the same vein of adventure inspiration. Ultimately, though, the core adventure will be the heart of that product. With that said, what kind of adventure or story would you like to see published for Azri Drakara and Rodan Subsector?

I already have a few ideas, but haven't settled on any of them as yet. Perhaps you as readers of this blog can share your thoughts on what would make an interesting topic to explore within the setting. My first thoughts are as follows:

The Deadly Secret of Sakri: This adventure idea would explain the secret behind Sakri's unusual history.

The Mines of Theon: This adventure idea explores the mining world of Theon, and introduces more detail into Merchant Houses, particularly House Garrett.

The Port Rhom Incident: This adventure idea develops the concept of Rhom as a haven for smugglers and pirates, and introduces the psionic humans known as the Disciplined.

The Ruins of Hipparch: This adventure idea focuses on the exploration of a Progenitor site on the world of Hipparch.

Search For The Star Crystal: This adventure idea centers around an encounter or series of encounters involving the Star Crystal.

So, what do you think of these ideas? What other ideas would you like to see explored in an adventure set in the Rodan Subsector of the Azri Drakara campaign setting? Here's your chance to help set the course and direction of future products for Samardan Press.

With Regards,
Flynn

Missing Traveller OGC: Weapon Damage Tables...

Good Afternoon, All:

In continuing to address missing Open Game Content from the Traveller System Reference Document (TSRD), this time around I am addressing personal weapon damage. Much of this is simply generalized from my thoughts on Stellar Quest weaponry, but with damage dice appropriate to the 2d6 Open Gaming System found in the TSRD.

Melee Weapons
Weapon damage seems pretty consistent with the following approach, based on weapon size.

Table: Meleee Weapons By Weapon Size

Weapon Size	Range	Damage	Example
Diminutive	Melee (close)	1d3	Under-sized dagger
Tiny	Melee (close)	1d6	Dagger, unarmed attack
Small	Melee (close)	2d6	Short sword
Medium	Melee (reach)	3d6	Long sword
Large	Melee (reach)	4d6	Great sword
Huge	Melee (reach)	5d6	Over-sized great sword

I will likely use the following chart for determining what weapons a particular race may use.

Table: Weapon Usage By Creature Size

Description	Small Creature	Man-sized Creature	Large Creature
One-handed, light weapon, concealable	Diminutive	Tiny	Small
One-handed, light weapon	Tiny	Small	Medium
One-handed	Small	Medium	Large
Two-handed	Medium	Large	Huge

A more flesh-out example of a weapon's table will likely appear in this blog at a later date, but this will serve as the basis for it.

Ranged Weapons
Ranged weapons determine damage based on what propels the projectile, or in the case of advanced weaponry, what delivers the damage itself. As there are two general sizes of personal ranged weapons, one-handed (pistols) and two-handed (rifles), damage is determined based on weapon size as well.

Table: Ranged Weapons By Size And Power

Weapon Size	Damage	Example
Muscle-Powered	2d6	Throwing dagger, bow, crossbow
Gunpowder, pistol	2d6	Pistols
Gunpowder, rifle	3d6	Rifles
Gunpowder, shotguns	4d6	Shotguns
Gauss, pistol	3d6	Gauss pistol
Gauss, rifle	4d6	Gauss rifle
Energy, pistol	4d6	Laser pistols
Energy, rifle	5d6	Laser rifles
Fusion/Plasma, pistol	5d6	Plasma pistols
Fusion/Plasma, rifle	6d6	Plasma rifles

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

Fantasy Friday: Quick and Dirty Template Inspirations...

Good Afternoon, All:

I was fortunate enough to catch an article on Gnome Stew this week entitled Quick and Dirty Overland Encounter List Template, which referenced another article entitled Quick and Dirty Location Template. Together, these make for a very interesting way to capture a location's data on one page. If you are the type to create lots of notes on your campaign setting as inspiration strikes, having a template that you can use is often very helpful. I've combined these together into one template below, and added my own version of the encounter table format as a reference.

Location Name: What is this location called? (Official name may be different.)
Ambiance: How does this location look and feel?
History: What elements of this location's history provide adventure ideas?
Encounters: What flavor of encounters could be found here?
Treasures: What special treasures may be found here?
Hooks and Hotspots: What adventure hooks and special sub-locations can be found here?

Life Level: How much diversity exists in plants and animal life in this area? (High, Medium, Low)
Hazard Level: How dangerous is it to live here? (High, Medium, Low)
Difficult Terrain Density: How difficult is it to move around in this area? (High, Medium, Low)
Resource Level: How significant and desirable are the local resources? (High, Medium, Low)

Herbivores: What eats the environment here?
Predators: What eats the other creatures here?
Scavengers: What eats the dead here?
Hazards: What makes it lethal to live here?
Humanoids: What humanoids live here?
Exotic: What supernatural or unusual creatures exist here?

2d6	Encounter
2	Rare
3	Uncommon
4	Uncommon
5	Common
6	Common
7	Common
8	Common
9	Common
10	Uncommon
11	Uncommon
12	Rare

Here's an example of the template filled out for a location I may be using in a future fantasy campaign.

Location Name: Mazhtekha Valley
Ambiance: The ruins of a crumbling granite ziggurat break through the foilage of lush jungle valley.
History: Many generations ago, a blood cult brought captured vampires to this isolated site to sacrifice them to a dark blood god. A failed summoning ritual cursed the cultists with an overriding lust for blood, and they destroyed one another trying to sate their thirst.
Encounters: Many encounters in this area focus on the twin themes of blood and ancient curses.
Treasures: The Blood Rubies of Mazhtekha, a collection of five enchanted fist-sized rubies, are hidden within the ziggurat.
Hooks and Hotspots: A huge vampiric blood ooze patrols the jungle floor at night, retreating to the ziggurat during the day. A cabal o vampires seek the remains of their former sires (or perhaps an item he was known to carry), and the sire was rumored to be among the vampires used in the failed rite.

Life Level: Medium (mostly plants, as creatures with blood must be very quick or flyers to avoid being eaten)
Hazard Level: High
Difficult Terrain Density: Medium
Resource Level: Medium

Herbivores: insect swarms, flying snakes, bats
Predators: stirges, jaguars, assassin vines
Scavengers: ghouls, carrion crawlers
Hazards: huge vampiric blood ooze
Humanoids: degenerate cultist descendants (treat as cavemen),
Exotic: vampires

2d6	Encounter
2	Vampire(s)
3	Carrion Crawler(s)
4	Ghouls
5	Stirges
6	Bat Swarm
7	Centipede Swarm
8	Flying Snake(s)
9	Assassin Vine
10	Jaguar
11	Cavemen
12	Vampiric Blood Ooze

The nice thing about this particular template is that it really isn't locked into the fantasy genre, so you could, in theory, use it for any setting you may be working on. Ultimately, it should be used for locations that are fairly homogenous. If you use this in a Sci-Fi campaign, I'd suggest that you not use the template for a planet, and instead use it for a region on the planet's surface, or perhaps a complex or settlement instead.

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

The Aboleth: An Exercise In Converting Open Game Content...

Good Afternoon, All:

Animal encounters, like monsters, are an exciting part of any exploration adventure in Traveller. Sadly, there aren't a lot of sources for creature stats in Traveller. However, there are plenty of Open Game Content sources written for other gaming systems. The beauty of operating under the same license, though, is that you can take the Open Content from one system, translate it and then use it for the second gaming system and still be perfectly legal about it, so long as you follow all the requirements for doing so. (That means including a copy of the OGL in your product, and updating the Section 15 of your copy of the license to include all the references found in the original source's copy of the OGL. After all, you have to give credit where credit is due.)

With a little elbow grease, you could easily come up with some conversions for D20 monsters that would fit in your campaign or adventure. Let's take, for example, the aboleth. For those that do not know, the aboleth is a revolting fish-like amphibian found primarily in subterranean lakes and rivers. An aboleth has a pink belly. Four pulsating blueblack orifices line the bottom of its body and secrete gray slime that smells like rancid grease. It uses its tail for propulsion in the water and drags itself along with its tentacles on land. An aboleth weighs about 6,500 pounds. An aboleth attacks by flailing with its long, slimy tentacles, though it prefers to fight from a distance using its illusion powers. While D20 paints a picture of the beast as an intelligent psionic creature that can create spawn that serve it, we can easily use the core of this concept as an awesome encounter in Traveller.

The aboleth's stat block under D20 looks something like this:

Aboleth: CR 7; Huge Aberration (Aquatic); HD 8d8+40 (76 hp); Init +1; Spd 10 ft. (2 squares), swim 60 ft.; AC 16 (–2 size, +1 Dex, +7 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 15; BAB/Grapple +6/+22; Atk Tentacle +12 melee (1d6+8 plus slime); Full Atk 4 tentacles +12 melee (1d6+8 plus slime); Space/Reach 15 ft./10 ft.; SA Enslave, psionics, slime; SQ Aquatic subtype, darkvision 60 ft., mucus cloud; SV Fort +7, Ref +3, Will +11; Str 26, Dex 12, Con 20, Int 15, Wis 17, Cha 17; Skills & Feats: Concentration +16, Knowledge (any one) +13, Listen +16, Spot +16, Swim +8; Alertness, Combat Casting, Iron Will; Environment: Underground; Organization: Solitary, brood (2–4),or slaver brood (1d3+1 plus 7–12 skum); Treasure Double standard; AL LE.

Using the above, we can start the translation pretty easily. First, the physical ability scores translate almost directly by dividing by 1.5. That gives us: Str 18, Dex 8, End 14. Since this is not an animal under D20, I would use the highest animal intelligence (Int 1) for our new creature, just to avoid the whole sophont issue. Wisdom should probably convert easily to Instinct (Ins), so we're looking at Ins 12. Pack is determined entirely by the D20 creature's Organization descriptor, so I would translate that as Pack 1 or Pack 2.

I can double check my physical ability scores by converting 6,500 pounds to kilograms, and then looking on the Size Table. The aboleth is not quite Size 12, so let's call it Size 11 and compare. Both Str and End are calculated by 5d6 at that size, which gives us an average of 17.5. Yes, we're within a reasonable proximity of that. Dexterity is calculated by 2d6 (average 7), and our converted Dex lies in that range. Looks like we are good to go for stats.

Stats complete, I move to the next step, which is identifying the creature type in Traveller terms. Obviously, the aboleth is a Swimmer, and from its description, I'm going to call this a Riverbank Swimmer. We know that the aboleth is a Carnivore, and I'd initially consider either a Siren or Trapper. Looking at the examples for each in the Traveller core rules, I'm going to go with a Trapper.

Skills are probably best handled per the Traveller rules, although I'd assign Melee (natural weapons) skill levels based on the BAB divided by four. In this case, my version of the aboleth has the following skills: Athletics 2, Melee (natural weapons) 2, Recon 1, Survival 1.

We already know that the damage of our natural weapons will be 2d6, based on the creature's Strength. I don't see tentacles on the list of weapons in the Weapons Table under Animal Encounters in the Traveller core rules, so I'll use Thrasher for my weapon, instead.

The natural armor modifier of +7, after being halved, becomes our new armor value for this creature.

At this point, I could let it go, but I really want to capture more of the unique flavor of the aboleth for the game. Looking at the creature's Special Qualities and Special Attacks, I note a few of them that easily spring to mind as cool possible effects for a creature encounter. Enslave, or psionic domination, would be very interesting, especially since characters cannot do this. Also, changing the slime from a transformative agent into a paralytic one seems like a reasonable change in keeping with the Trapper motif.

For Enslave, I'd suggest that I first create a Psi score and skills for this character. Using Charisma or Wisdom as the Psionic Strength score seems reasonable, which creates a Psi 12 for this particular creature. Let's give the aboleth skill in Telepathy (2 ranks, perhaps). Enslave should be at least as tough as Assault, so let's go with the following for Enslave:
Telepathy, Psionic Strength, 1–6 minutes, Formidable (–6).
Costs 8+Range.

For the paralytic slime idea, we'll treat this like a poison of sorts. When the aboleth hits its target and deals damage, the target must then make a Difficult (-2) Endurance check to resist paralysis. If the target fails the check, they are paralyzed and collapses, unable to move for the next 2d6 minutes.

The end results of this effort can be found below:

Type	Habitat	Strength	Dexterity	Endurance	Intelligence	Instinct	Pack
Aboleth
Trapper (Carnivore)	Riverbank Swimmer	18	8	14	1	12	1
Athletics 1, Melee (natural weapons) 2, Recon 1, Survival 1, Telepathy 2
Thrasher+1 (2d6), Thick Hide (3). Number encountered: 1d3
Psi 12, Enslave. Paralytic slime (End check, DM-2, or be paralyzed for 2d6 minutes).
The aboleth is a revolting fish-like amphibian found primarily in subterranean lakes and rivers. Four pulsating blue-black orifices line the bottom of its body and secrete gray slime that smells like rancid grease. It uses its tail for propulsion in the water and drags itself along with its tentacles on land. An aboleth attacks by flailing with its long, slimy tentacles, though it prefers to fight from a distance using its telepathic powers.

And this is how you can use other Open Game Content resources to increase the materials available for your own campaign.

With Regards,
Flynn

Missing Traveller OGC: Weapon Ranges Table...

Good Afternoon, All:

As a publisher of Traveller products, one of the things I find the most frustrating about the Traveller System Reference Document is that much of the specific information related to the mechanics of weapons and combat is missing. I understand that this is intended to require publishers to make vague references to the Traveller core rules, thus insuring that Mongoose Publishing continues to have strong sales of their core book, at the very least. However, I feel that such hamstrings me on specific projects, and so I have been creating Open Game Content of my own to cover the absent material.

For example, the Traveller System Reference Document does not have a range table for personal combat. Now, to be fair, the Mercenary System Reference Document does contain a parabolic weapons range tables that slipped past the censors, giving us an idea of how it should look. In that same document, we also see a few weapon stat tables, which give us a format we can use, if we want to maintain consistency. However, as a publisher, we cannot simply duplicate the material that is considered closed content in our own books, so I cannot copy the range tables to include in my own products. Instead, I'll have to come up with my own, if I want to include them.

With that in mind, I'm going to take a step back and describe the difficulty of each range category as a Task Resolution difficulty rating. This harkens back to my MegaTraveller days, giving me a sense of nostalgia, yet it also creates a system that is consistent with the rules as they are written, and thus easy to grasp. Looking at the current core rules (closed content) and converting the penalties and bonuses to the best fitting task descriptors, I come up with the following range table for use in my games and my own published material:

Table: Personal and Space Weapon Ranges

Weapon Category	Personal	Close	Short	Medium	Long	Very Long	Distant
Melee (close)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	--	--	--	--	--
Melee (reach)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	--	--	--	--	--
Ranged (thrown)	--	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Difficult (-2)	--	--	--
Ranged (pistol)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)	--	--
Ranged (rifle)	Very Difficult (-4)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)
Ranged (shotgun)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)	--	--
Ranged (assault weapon)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)	Formidable (-6)
Ranged (rocket)	Very Difficult (-4)	Difficult (-2)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)
Space (missile)	Difficult (-2)	Difficult (-2)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)
Space (short)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Very Difficult (-4)	--	--	--
Space (medium)	Difficult (-2)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)	--
Space (long)	Very Difficult (-4)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)	Very Difficult (-4)
Space (very long)	Very Difficult (-4)	Difficult (-2)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Average (+0)	Difficult (-2)

That should do it. It changes the odds in a few places, but puts the emphasis on the skill system, which I think is appropriate. That, and it places all of the range tables in one location, where it will prove more useful when resolving combat.

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

Fantasy Friday: Six Monsters From South America...

Good Afternoon, All:

Welcome to Post #400 on "In Like Flynn," and an introduction to Fantasy Fridays. As I mentioned before, going forward, this blog will focus more on the 2d6 Open-Gaming System referenced in the Traveller System Reference Document. While a majority of my efforts will be focused on that goal, since that's what has proven to be the most profitable overall, we all know that I need outlets for other activities. Thus, I'm creating a new weekly feature for my blog which I am calling Fantasy Fridays. Every Friday, I will post something not related to Traveller, but fitting in with the Old School fantasy vibe that I enjoy. The system for such discussions may vary, but the content will always be rooted in fantasy.

I sometimes find inspiration for new monsters and flavorful encounters by reading Wikipedia entries on the mythological creatures of a given culture. While D&D has many of the creatures common to the Greek and Roman myths, there's a lot of unexplored territory in other cultures of the world. For example, let's look at South American mythology. The following six creatures sound like they'd make for a memorable encounter in one of my games.

Alicanto: The Alicanto is a bird with wings that glow at night with beautiful, metallic color and eyes that emit strange lights. It feeds on gold and silver; miners have followed them to undiscovered riches in times past. However, if an Alicanto discovers that it is being followed, it will lead its greedy pursuers to their death. For stats, I'd treat the Alicanto as an eagle with an eyebeam ranged attack that inflicts 2d6 damage if it hits.

Caipora: A mischievous fey, the Caipora resembles a dwarf with the head of a fox, and often rides a wild boar. It loves to play pranks on people that enter into its forest, and viciously protects the forest from the destructive actions of civilization. For stats, I would treat the Caipora as a satyr with a confusion ability instead of charming pipes, and a vicious bite instead of a head butt.

Cherufe: The Cherufe is a evil giant made of rock and magma that inhabits volcanoes. They have the power to induce earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, and thus are feared by villagers living near volcanoes. The only way to abate the Cherufe's appetite for destruction is to offer it a sacrificial victim, preferably a virginal maiden. For stats, I'd probably start with a large fire elemental, and add the ability to cast earthquake and meteor storm three times per day or something like that.

Luison: Resembling a dire wolf with humanoid features, a shaggy mane and dagger-like teeth, the Luison reaks of death and decay. Luisons inhabit cemeteries and other places of death, where it feasts on corpses and rotting flesh. For stats, I'd use the dire wolf, and give it the fetid stench associated with the troglodyte. You could even add a fear effect, if you so desired.

Muladona: The ghost of a woman cursed for tempting priests with lust, the Muladona resembles a fire-spewing headless mule. Its coat is a deep purple, and its silver-shod hooves produce a hideous sound as it trots. Despite being headless, the Muladona can still wail like a banshee and can breathe fire from its neck like a hellhound. For stats, I'd treat the Muladona as a banshee with the hellhound's fiery breath and the movement of a mule.

Peuchen: The Peuchen is a shape-shifting creature that can assume any animal form instantly. In its native form, however, the Peuchen resembles a gigantic flying snake with a gaze that can paralyze its victim, allowing the beast to suck its blood. For stats, I'd start with a giant constrictor snake, add some form of flying movement, add the basilisk's gaze attack (except that it only paralyzes instead of petrifies the target) and perhaps add the stirge's blood drain ability.

Looking through the pages on Wikipedia, I'm sure you'll find other inspirations. However, these should prove useful if you are looking to create a different gaming experience for your players.

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

The Year Ahead: In Like Flynn in 2012...

Good Morning, All:

While times have been rough, I haven't forgotten about my blog. Indeed, I've been giving it a lot of thought over the last few months. Essentially, I view my blog as serving two purposes: 1) to provide me with a way of expressing my creativity and getting feedback from those interested enough to post comments; and 2) to help me develop things for my game and for my publishing imprint, Samardan Press.

This morning I looked through the sales numbers for various products I have sold under the Samardan Press label. As I have done before, here's a rough breakdown of total sales to date, by product, sorted by System and then Title:

Title	Lulu-Print	Lulu-Electronic	RPGNow	Total Sold	System	Type
Fantasy Concepts Campaign Resource	27	107	42	176	FC	System
OGL Alternatives: Alternate Advancement System	0	32	31	63	Generic	Rules
Modern Options: The Tome Of Talents	0	18	7	25	Modern	Rules
MyD20 Lite Bestiary: Common Creatures	1	3	5	9	MyD20	Monsters
MyD20 Lite Player's Guide	4	19	48	71	MyD20	System
Book of Races	7	9	29	45	S&W	Rules
Hammersong's Legacy	5	5	1	11	S&W	Setting
Flynn's Guide To Alien Creation	36	52	144	232	Traveller	Rules
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: A Primer	3	1	21	25	Traveller	Setting
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Republic Starships	3	0	31	34	Traveller	Vehicle
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector	3	3	35	41	Traveller	Setting
Flynn's Guide to Magic in Traveller	16	18	96	130	Traveller	Rules
One-Act Adventure: Vengeance By Proxy	13	12	0	25	Traveller	Adventure

From the numbers above, it is easy to see that my best sellers are my Traveller products, followed closely behind by Fantasy Concepts. MyD20 Lite and Swords & Wizardry bring up the rear at third and fourth place. On a product by product basis, Fantasy Concepts outdistances everything, but Traveller sales are still strong, easily twice that of MyD20 Lite on a per-product basis, which in turn is twice that of Swords & Wizardry. Since Fantasy Concepts was a one-off product, it would help my business to focus primarily on Traveller products in the coming year.

In terms of product types, I can see that I have the most sales with Rules-related sourcebooks, with a particular emphasis on my core system books in particular. Surprisingly, monsters don't sell as well, although my starship book is doing much better than I actually expected. We learned last time that setting books don't do well, but I've been surprised at the performance of the Traveller setting books I've written. Adventures are doing almost as well as my setting work, and they tend to support a product line that features a setting, so I may have to change my mind on their place in my publishing future. I think I'll publish a new one in the next few months and see how well it does. Besides, I like to put a lot of background information into my adventures, so it will be like a mini-setting sourcebook as well.

With that in mind, I'm inclined to put my efforts toward the following directions with future products:

• Traveller products will continue to be my main focus.
• I still intend to release at least one more MyD20 Lite product to complete the set, but otherwise, I am not going to be active here until I see how the D&D 5th Edition playtest material looks. MyD20 Lite was my solution to the same problem they are facing, and I may discover that their efforts may render mine mute.
• I will publish one more Traveller adventure, to see how it fairs and whether it proves profitable to publish adventures or not.
• I will not publish any of the other ideas that were bouncing around in my head, at least at this time, because it detracts me from focusing on the things that will actually help me become a more successful publisher.

The direction of In Like Flynn is also going to shift. My focus going forward will be on the Traveller system, although that does not require me to be focused on just Science Fiction. After all, the system can still be used to run fantasy-based games, so expect that this blog will also sport some of its usual Old School Fantasy flavor. (Besides, I know me, and I'm still likely to slip a few traditional gaming system posts in here from time to time.) Note, though, that this blog will be expanding into the realm of Science Fiction, so expect to see that diversity in future posts.

Thank you all for your patience and your presence on this blog, and I look forward to what 2012 holds for us all. It should be a fun year!

With Regards,
Flynn

Latest Release - Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Republic Starships...

Good Morning, All:

Another week of hard work and here we are, another Samardan Press publication! Please feel free to check it out, and consider it for your favorite Traveller fan this holiday season!

Enjoy!

---

Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Republic Starships is a campaign resource and sourcebook for Traveller that describes starships common to the Dracosian Republic. This book provides an overview of the use of starships within the Republic (including a hierarchy of military vessels, the proper use of distress signals and an alternate approach to the Ship Shares material benefit), detailed descriptions for 18 different space vessels, and a complete set of space encounter tables and rules.

Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Republic Starships is another product in our outstanding Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara series. This series provides details on the Azri Drakara sector, a region in space where Referees and players can engage in all manner of science fiction adventuring. Although designed for use with the Traveller system, the Azri Drakara setting can be used with any science fiction roleplaying game!



You can find this product in PDF format at both RPGNow and Lulu:
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Republic Starships on Lulu.com
Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Republic Starships on RPGNow.com

You can also pick this product up in hardcopy via Print-On-Demand at Lulu:
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Republic Starships Print-On-Demand on Lulu.com

Watch for future releases of the Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara series from Samardan Press in the coming months!

With Regards,
Jason "Flynn" Kemp

Latest Release - Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: A Primer...

Good Afternoon, All:

After a week of illness and another week of hard effort, I wanted to announce that Samardan Press released a new product today, Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: A Primer. This product was inspired by a reviewer's comments over on RPGNow.com, so I felt it might be appreciated.

Enjoy!

---

Out towards the rim of the Milky Way galaxy, a thousand parsecs away from Old Earth, far from that little yellow sun called Sol, lies a region of space known as the Azri Drakara sector!

Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: A Primer is a campaign resource and sourcebook for Traveller that introduces a complete game setting which can be used with the Traveller system, or even other science fiction rules sets. This book provides an overview to the setting, including a history of the Dracosian Republic, a map of Azri Drakara sector, an introduction to 11 different interstellar polities that exist within the sector, details for 15 intelligent species (both human and alien) frequently encountered within Azri Drakara sector, and some design notes providing a behind-the-scenes peek at some of the elements included in this new Traveller campaign setting.



You can find the PDF version of this product on both Lulu and RPGNow:
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: A Primer by Jason Kemp in Games
Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: A Primer - Samardan Press | RPGNow.com

You can also obtain a physical copy of this product via Print-On-Demand from Lulu.com:
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: A Primer by Jason Kemp in Games

Please check out future releases in the Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara series from Samardan Press in the coming months!

With Regards,
Jason "Flynn" Kemp
Samardan Press

Latest Release - Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector...

Good Afternoon, All:

I simply wanted to make an announcement that Samardan Press released Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector today.

Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector is campaign resource and sourcebook for Traveller that provides a complete game setting which can be used with the Traveller system, or even other science fiction rules sets. This book focuses on the 40 primary worlds located within a single subsector on the frontier of the Azri Drakara sector. It provides astrography maps, world data, library data, rumors and a number of patron encounters to help you begin your next science-fiction campaign among the borderworlds of the Dracosian Republic.

Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector is the first product of the Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara series. This series provides details on the Azri Drakara sector, a region in space where Referees and players can engage in all manner of science fiction adventuring.

Watch for future releases of the Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara series from Samardan Press in the coming months!

You can find the PDF at both RPGNow and Lulu.com:
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector by Jason Kemp in Games
Flynn's Guide To Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector - Samardan Press | RPGNow.com

You can find the Print On Demand version at Lulu.com:
Flynn's Guide to Azri Drakara: Rodan Subsector by Jason Kemp in Games

Enjoy,
Flynn

Latest Release - MyD20 Lite Bestiary: Common Creatures...

Good Afternoon, All:

MyD20 Lite Bestiary: Common Creatures, the latest release from Samardan Press is now available!

Running a game of MyD20 Lite just got a lot easier!

The MyD20 Lite Bestiary: Common Creatures is intended to provide the Referee with a basic list of more than sixty different monsters that are common to many fantasy campaigns, some of which have multiple stat blocks for variant monsters, leading to almost seventy-five different unique monsters ready to populate your adventures! In addition, you'll also find rules on how to create your own monsters in the MyD20 Lite system!

MyD20 Lite's small, spartan rule-set frees up your creativity to create a fantasy role-playing experience without the hassles found with larger, more complex gaming systems.



You can find the eBook/PDF at Lulu or RPGNow:
http://www.lulu.com/product/ebook/myd20-lite-bestiary-common-creatures/18167675
http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=95870

You can obtain a physical copy via Print-On-Demand at Lulu:
http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/myd20-lite-bestiary-common-creatures/18172392

Please check out the MyD20 Lite Player’s Guide as well!

With Regards,
Jason "Flynn" Kemp

Change of Plans: MyD20 Lite Referee's Guide...

Good Morning, All:

At the moment, I am preparing to release my next MyD20 Lite product, which I am calling MyD20 Lite Bestiary: Common Creatures. It is a small collection of more than sixty monsters that can be used with any MyD20 Lite campaign. A majority come from the work I've done on the Referee's Guide, some from Hammersong's Legacy (updated to MyD20 Lite, of course), and some are introduced just to cover some of the bases regarding common creatures. This 40-page supplement should be available before the end of the week, in both PDF and Print-On-Demand.

In essence, I'm looking at breaking the Referee's Guide up into smaller parts so that I can get more of it out there now, and then add the parts that are still missing as I go along. Expect to see a Treasure supplement in the next few weeks, as well as Referee Advice. Other bits and pieces will follow, and eventually, I'll compile them all into a single book, once I've finished everything. While this doesn't give the MyD20 Lite fans a complete book all at once, at least it gives them something that they can use right now. Eventually, I may even create my own version of the D&D Rules Compendium and bring it all together into one giant hardcover book.

Of course, if the MyD20 Lite stuff doesn't sell well, then I know that the material isn't in high demand and I can stop beating myself up about not getting it done. If that's the case, I will wait until I have an actual MyD20 Lite gaming group instead of the Savage Worlds game I'm running right now before I finalize the whole system. Since I tend to write more for things that I can use in my game, in one form or another, that will probably be the biggest motivator toward getting things done. Right now, though, my Savage Worlds game is going strong, and I'm really enjoying it, so I wouldn't expect that additional external motivation just yet. But if there are a significant number of people waiting, I'm more motivated to get it finished and out there where it can be used and enjoyed.

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

World Consolidation: The Kingdom of Synovia...

Good Morning, All:

One of the first kingdoms to define in this project is also one of the kingdoms that has appeared in some form or other in the most campaign worlds that I've created, the Kingdom of Synovia. In fact, a friend and fellow GM liked the name so much that he started using it in his campaign worlds. I originally came up with the name back in my college days, while studying for Anatomy and Physiology. (The fluid of the knee joint is called synovial fluid.) From its beginning, Synovia has typically been a city-state with an Ancient Greek flavor, albeit often with heavy medieval elements mixed in as a result of being the central hub of a classic D&D-esque fantasy setting.

Synovia, Kingdom of
The Kingdom of Synovia is actually a walled city-state that governs and protects all lands within fifty miles of its gates. Having survived the apocalyptic Dark Times, the kingdom may yet fall as varying factions vie to put an heir on the recently vacated throne.
Capital: The City-State of Synovia is the capitol of the kingdom.

City-State of Synovia (Large City, Pop. 20,000): Aristocracy (House of Lords, made up of influential Noble Houses, nominally led by a patrilineal king); Reaction To Outsiders: Indifferent; Resources: Processed metal goods; Important NPCs: Sir Andrus Phaetren (heroic male human warlord and heir apparent to the throne), Lord Nigritus (dour male human admiral and lifelong rival of Sir Andrus), High Magus Ravenwolf (jovial male human elementalist).

Population: 100,000, with 20,000 living in the City-State of Synovia proper, roughly 10,000 among the major townships that support Synovia and the remainder in the villages and farms on Synovial lands. The population is predominately human, with a significant minority of dwarves and valefolk.
Common Language(s): Trade, Synovial and, to a lesser extent, Duar and Vaelic.
Society: Based on Ancient Greek society, with the use of medieval British terms to make it more accessible to gamers. Synovia is a classic starting point for many campaigns.
Government: Synovia is ruled by its aristocracy, the House of Lords, who are comprised of the lords of those noble houses that hold both wealth and political power, with a patrilineal monarch as its nominal ruler. Most political decisions are made in the High Courts.
Diplomatic Relations: Synovia is traditionally at odds with the Slavic-influenced country of Pasalovakia, and on good terms with a nearby dwarven kingdom (usually a variant of the Duar Triumvirate).
Trade & Commerce: Synovia deals primarily with raw ores and processed metal and ceramic/pottery goods. It can survive on what its farmlands grow, but imports exotic foodstuffs.
Military: Synovia has a standing army of about 10,000 soldiers, many recruited from farms and villages under Synovia’s protection as part of the land’s taxes. During times of peace, the military actively patrols the local lands to protect its citizenry. During the tumultuous times following the recent death of Synovia’s sovereigns, some Houses have used the military to extort more taxes than usual from the citizenry to support the city dwellers in the aftermath of the Dark Times.
Major Settlements: In the consolidated version of Synovia, there are three major townships that support the kingdom.

Greenfell (Township, Pop. 1000): Lord-Mayor (appointed by the Synovial King); Reaction To Outsiders: Friendly; Resources: Lumber; Important NPCs: Lord-Mayor Volus of Greenfell (loyal male human mercenary/aristocrat), Solarius the Tailor (jovial male human spymaster). Greenfell is the closest township to the neutral trading camp/tent-city known as Trader’s Point.

Newport (Township, Pop. 2000): Town Council (voted by populace); Reaction To Outsiders: Indifferent; Resources: Port city; Important NPCs: Amandrea (stoic female Cyclops oracle), Father Claudius (pious male human cleric of Joven), Johanus the Hawk (alert male human commander of the guard). Pilgrims sometimes come to Newport to seek the advice of Amandrea, the Oracle that lives on the largest island in Newport Bay. The Temple of the Three Graces houses the greatest healers, magical and non-magical, in the kingdom.

Silverdale (Township, Pop. 1500): Town Council (Lord-Mayor appointed by Synovia King, remainder voted by populace); Reaction To Outsiders: Friendly; Resources: Silver mines; Important NPCs: TBD. Silverdale is a day’s travel from the most commonly known entrance to the Vaults of Celebrus, making it a popular city for adventurers and mercenaries seeking their fortune in the ruins.

Major Organizations: Bandits have taken advantage of the turmoil in the city to harass the outlying villages, leading to the formation of the Synovial Rangers, who are comprised of and protect the citizens of the threatened regions. The Thorns of Alonna, an order of holy warriors devoted to the goddess of nature, have a high presence in the rural lands in and about Synovia.
Symbol: Synovia’s current emblem is a golden dragon rampant on a crimson background.

One of the things that I learned from this experience is that the template above requires a lot of work to fill out. I may have to simplify it even further. Any suggestions you might have would be greatly appreciated.

With Regards,
Flynn