CJ Ruby & Robert Thomson (Exploding Aces) Q&A Log

[19:03] <+Robert> I'm Robert Thomson, co-owner and publisher for 4 Winds Fantasy Gaming
[19:04] <+cj_ruby> I'm Cj and I wrote and designed Exploding Aces with the help and encouragement of Robert, here.

Dave Chapman (Doctor Who, Conspiracy X, WILD) Q&A Log

[19:01] <~Dan> Alright! Dave, when you're ready, please introduce yourself and your games. When you're ready for questions, and after extended answers, please give us a "(done)" when you're ready to move on.
[19:01] <~Dan> The floor is yours!
[19:01] <+DaveChapman> Hi, I'm Dave Chapman. I've worked on lots of games for Eden Studios, including Buffy, AFMBE, Ghosts of Albion, Terra Primate and most notably I'm line developer for Conspiracy X 2.0
[19:02] <+DaveChapman> I was also system designer and lead writer on Cubicle 7's Doctor Who Adventures in Time and Space
[19:02] <+DaveChapman> and now I'm working on my own project called WILD for my little publishing name Autocratik.

Clint Black (Deadlands) Q&A Log

[19:02] <+PEGClint> I am Clint Black, Savage Worlds Brand Manager for Pinnacle Entertainment. Makers of Savage Worlds, of course, Deadlands, Weird Wars, and many other RPG settings.
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[19:05] <~Dan> (Oh, as I mentioned earlier today, please give us a "(done)" when you're ready for the next question. Or the first question, in this case. :) )
[19:05] <+PEGClint> As Brand Manager, I work on the core rules and supplemental books, including helping out with setting books. (done)

Cakebread & Walton (Clockwork & Chivalry, Airship Pirates, Renaissance) Q&A Log

[19:01:00] <Dan> Okay, Ken, Peter, the floor is yours! When you're ready, please introduce yourselves and your products. :)
[19:01:23] <KenWalton> I'm Ken Walton of Cakebread & Walton
[19:01:42] <PeterCakebread> And I'm Peter Cakebread of Cakebread & Walton
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[19:02:30] <KenWalton> We produce RPGs including the following - Abney Park's Airship Pirates, Clockwork & Chivalry, and the new Renaissance Deluxe RPG. (done)#
[19:02:34] <Dan> (Howdy, Omega! Q&A with Cakebread & Walton in progress!)
[19:02:36] <Omega> hi
[19:03:04] <Dan> Anyone have any questions right off the bat, or shall I start?
[19:03:28] <Dan> (I'll wait a sec in case anyone's busy typing.)
[19:03:57] <Dan> Okay!
[19:04:08] <Dan> Let's divide and conquer here, so to speak.
[19:04:24] <AngusA> Ken, you've been involved in the RPG industry for a very long time. Can you tell us a little bit about some of your early work and what prompted you to form your own company in the end?
[19:04:47] <Dan> (Ah. Didn't wait long -enough-. Sorry, Angus. :) )
[19:05:03] <KenWalton> My first publication was an article for WFRP in White Dwarf, far too many moons ago.
[19:06:10] <KenWalton> Then I wrote several things with my ex-wife, Jo Walton, including GURPS Celtic Myth, Realms of Sorcery for WFRP, and a load of adventures for Arcane magazine.
[19:07:11] <KenWalton> Pete and I had written some fiction together, and realised we worked well together, and Cakebread & Walton was born.
[19:07:14] <KenWalton> (done)#
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[19:07:47] <Dan> (Welcome, Murazor! Q&A with Cakebread & Walton in progress!)
[19:07:58] <Murazor> Awesome!
[19:08:03] <Murazor> In this chamber?
[19:08:07] <Dan> Yup!
[19:08:21] <Dan> I was about to ask a question of my own, but do you have any, Mur?
[19:09:01] <AngusA> How long did it take you to decide your first project together would be Clockwork & Chivalry? Was it the only game idea you played around with or did you have a pool of ideas?
[19:09:30] <AngusA> What drew you to an Alternative English Civil War setting?
[19:09:44] <AngusA> (brb)
[19:10:04] <PeterCakebread> Ken's usually full of ideas. Originally he mentioned the setting in relation to doing a novel, but we quickly realised it would make a great game.
[19:10:53] <Dan> (As an aside, since Angus has gotten the ball rolling in that direction, let's focus on Clockwork & Chivalry (and Renaissance) for a bit before moving on to Airship Pirates.)
[19:11:07] <PeterCakebread> I'm a history nut, and the English Civil war is a fairly untapped period.
[19:11:43] <KenWalton> I'd been doing a degree in the history of science, studying alchemy in the ECW, so our interests meshed nicely for C&C.
[19:12:14] <Murazor> Yes, Dan, I have a question
[19:12:29] <Murazor> What is Cakebread and Walton?
[19:12:30] <PeterCakebread> The various factions, and the richness of the period make it a pleasure to write (done)
[19:12:31] <Murazor> ;)
[19:12:49] <Dan> Ah, that is best answered with a quick link, I suspect. :)
[19:12:55] <PeterCakebread> A small UK games company - Ken and I design and write RPGs
[19:13:16] <KenWalton> Here you are http://www.clockworkandchivalry.co.uk/
[19:13:22] <Dan> In fact, that's probably a good idea generally... Could you post the... yes, that. :)
[19:13:50] <Dan> What drew you to use BRP for Clockwork & Chivarly, and how did you tweak it to make a good fit?
[19:13:57] <Murazor> ooh, nice
[19:14:09] <Agamemnon2> ahh, that answers my question nicely, thanks :-)
[19:14:23] <Agamemnon2> '(I was going to ask for an elevator-pitch style description of C&C)
[19:14:34] <Murazor> Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector (of the realms)
[19:14:43] <PeterCakebread> We love the D100 system and it seemed a good fit for a grim and gritty game like C&C
[19:15:45] <PeterCakebread> We have developed our own rules SRD, based on Newt Newport's OpenQuest, especially tailored for black powder era games
[19:16:28] <PeterCakebread> The SRD is freely available, and forms the basis of Renaissance Deluxe, which is a generic black powder ruleset, out this month.
[19:16:41] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[19:16:47] <Murazor> Both of these games are BRP based?
[19:17:33] <KenWalton> Elevator pitch - Royalist alchemists fight Parliamentarian clockwork fighting machines in the English Civil War. With zombies and dragons. (done)
[19:17:41] <Dan> Could you say a bit about the "weird" aspects of the C&C setting?
[19:17:51] <Dan> (Or, rather, a bit -more- about the weird aspects? :) )
[19:18:06] <Dan> The clockwork and magic systems and so forth?
[19:18:49] <Murazor> Straight-up English civil war would have a good game in itself, actually, even without clockworks and magic
[19:19:17] <KenWalton> Yes, both C&C and Renaissance are BRP-based - we've tweaked to make the combat fast and brutal, and added our own Alchemy and Witchcraft systems as well as lots of equipment and weapons for the early modern period (1500-1800 ish)
[19:20:04] <Dan> (brb -- please continue!)
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[19:21:04] <PeterCakebread> Clockwork machines are built by the Parliamentarians, and mainly deployed by the New Model Army (although rogue designers exist), the Alchemists are mainly Royalists, fighting for Prince Rupert. There are also a host of Witches, zombies, and other weird and wonderful twists (such as a trip to the Moon).
[19:22:02] <PeterCakebread> There are currently two published adventure books, and Clockwork & Cthulhu, available for the setting. (done). (done)
[19:23:13] <AngusA> Clockwork & Cthulhu is a setting book for Clockwork & Chivalry or a stand-alone setting in its own right?
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[19:24:30] <PeterCakebread> Standalone (with the free Renaissance SRD) - although the Clockwork & Chivalry Corebook obviously provides loads more shiny stuff for those that want it.
[19:24:48] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[19:24:53] <Dan> So does it include all of the same rules for clockworks, alchemy, and witchcraft?
[19:25:22] <Dan> (Although I guess the latter two are in the SRD.)
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[19:25:41] <PeterCakebread> Clockwork & Cthulhu doesn't - yes - you have everything you need to play it in the free SRD.
[19:26:22] <Dan> Do you distinguish between Mythos-based magic and alchemy/witchcraft, and if so, how?
[19:26:35] <PeterCakebread> But if you want a lot more setting info then Clockwork & Chivalry provides a ton more background info to the Seventeenth Century, etc.
[19:26:42] <AngusA> Are you thinking of expanding the Clockwork & xxx line any further? What other crossovers or timelines do you think you might play with?
[19:27:13] <Dan> (Question pause while they answer those two questions, please.)
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[19:27:42] <AngusA> (brb - maybe in a fair while. Being dragged off shopping. Have fun folks!)
[19:27:53] <PeterCakebread> Dan - there's some distinction (and special rules for tomes, etc.), but most alchemists and witches don't realise they're doing Mythos Magick, and it should all be pretty seamless.
[19:28:00] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[19:28:21] <Moxiane> Kaor
[19:28:42] <Dan> (Howdy, Moxiane! Q&A with Cakebread & Walton in progress! :) )
[19:28:56] <Moxiane> Ah
[19:28:59] <KenWalton> We're not planning any more cross-overs for C&C in the near future - but we're currently working on Dark Streets - Bow Street Runners vs the Cthulhu Mythos in 28th century London
[19:29:16] <PeterCakebread> 18th Century!
[19:29:20] <KenWalton> Oops!
[19:29:24] <Dan> I was gonna say... O.o
[19:29:28] <PeterCakebread> Or all my research is going in the bin!
[19:29:40] <KenWalton> :-)
[19:29:51] <Moxiane> Although that does sound awesome. :)
[19:29:54] <Dan> If you don't mind a rather specific question...
[19:30:10] <Dan> ...I note that you use attribute modifiers for skills...
[19:30:11] <Spooner> You are giving away the subject of the first expansion for that game then (Buck Rogers crossover).
[19:30:21] <KenWalton> Dark Streets will use the Renaissance rules - gangbusting and investigation in one of the grimmest settings imaginable.
[19:30:25] <KenWalton> (done)
[19:30:32] <Dan> ...and that in the case of melee combat, it's Int+Str. Can you say a bit about the thought that went into those decisions?
[19:32:02] <PeterCakebread> We based our rules largely on the OQ ruleset (though anyone familiar with OpenQuest will notice a lot of mods) - I think we weighed it up, and thought it was reasonable for melee combat.
[19:32:19] <PeterCakebread> (done)
06[19:32:47] * Moxiane would guess it's a mixture of knowing where to hit and being able to hit hard.
[19:33:04] <Dan> I find that with a lot of faction-heavy settings, it's difficult to assemble a PC group and to get them to experience the full scope of the setting. Any thoughts on the subject?
[19:33:20] <Dan> (I find this especially true in a wartime setting.)
[19:33:30] <PeterCakebread> Mox - Yes - and you can only have so many variables, or it becomes too complex. (done)
[19:34:08] <KenWalton> Dan - we've deliberately given rules to encourage people of different factions to work together for the greater good.
[19:34:30] <KenWalton> In the civil war, people on opposite sides were often friends, or even relatives.
[19:35:00] <KenWalton> The Kingdom & Commonwealth campaign largely involves the party trying to keep the peace between the factions rather than fighting for one side.
[19:35:04] <KenWalton> (done)
[19:35:11] <Dan> Ah, I see. Cool.
[19:35:45] <Dan> How "swashbuckle-y" are the rules? I know you said it's a gritty game, but is there any room for Errol Flynn hijinks?
[19:35:48] <PeterCakebread> A C&C party will normally be full of tensions, but also friendships - the background connections help cement the harmonious dysfunctionality...
[19:37:17] <PeterCakebread> They're more brutal than swashbuckly, tbh, but there is plenty of guidance on setting the tone and flavour of the setting, encouraging heroics and derring do.
[19:37:25] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[19:37:59] <Dan> Are there fencing styles and so forth?
[19:38:01] <KenWalton> Players don't necessarily die easily, but they do spend a lot of time tired and wounded! (done)
[19:39:07] <KenWalton> No, no fencing styles, though, like all D100 games, it would be pretty easy to add them if you want them. We tend to like our combats quick and decisive to play, to we wrote the rules to suit ourselves :-)
[19:39:12] <KenWalton> (done)
[19:39:27] <Dan> Fair enough. :)
[19:40:07] <Dan> Going back to the "kewl powerz" aspect for a moment, can you describe the scope of what clockwork, alchemy, and witchcraft can accomplish, respectively?
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[19:41:26] <PeterCakebread> Clockwork comprises mainly of military kit - Iron Horses (think motorbikes, crossed with battering rams), Leviathans (huge tanks), and the like.
[19:41:54] <PeterCakebread> Alchemists have a whole host of powerful spells and potions - can summon elementals, have familiars, etc.
[19:42:42] <PeterCakebread> Witchcraft offers powerful spells -for good or ill, but Covens can create uber-powerful magick.
[19:43:53] <PeterCakebread> Thou Shalt Not Suffer (one of the adventures) pits the Adventurers against witches (and the Witch Queen of Cornwall). (done)
[19:44:06] <Dan> I noted that unlike the usual BRP magic (insofar as there IS such a thing), alchemy and witchcraft do not rely on personal magic/power points. Could you say a bit about that?
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[19:45:24] <KenWalton> Alchemy relies on alchemists making Philosopher's Stones in their labs - the more powerful the stone, the more powerful the spells that can be cast - but try to make one too powerful and you can blow yourself up.
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[19:46:09] <KenWalton> Witchcraft requires often rare ingredients and rituals.
[19:47:02] <KenWalton> Witches have a MAG stat, which is their level of power - a number of witches gathering together can add their MAGs to cast more powerful spells - hence covens. (done)
[19:47:06] <Dan> Just based on my skimming, it looked like Witchcraft can get REALLY nasty... if a witch has components from an intended victim.
[19:48:00] <KenWalton> Oh, yes - but getting a lock of someone's hair can be quite difficult, and the penalties for being discovered are inevitably death!
[19:48:03] <KenWalton> (done)
[19:48:12] <Dan> Yup, I figured. :)
[19:48:42] <PeterCakebread> Much of the setting is based on Seventeenth Century perceptions of how things work (and what Witches can do), so things are often far from pleasant!
[19:48:53] <Dan> So what fantasy "standards" appear in C&C, and to what degree to they interact with Mythos "standards" in Clockwork & Cthulhu?
[19:48:54] <PeterCakebread> (done)
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[19:49:39] <Dan> (Howdy, nick3! Q&A with Cakebread & Walton in progress!)
[19:50:28] <PeterCakebread> Well, there are dragons, ghouls, ghosts, and a whole heap more, but no elves and dwarves. Mostly we've turned to English mythology for Clockwork & Chivalry.
[19:50:34] <Moxiane> So it's not a hidden magic setting?
[19:51:06] <Dan> Magic is being used openly in the war, so I'm guessing "no". :)
[19:51:36] <KenWalton> No, magick's out in the open - massive spells cast on battlefields, etc. Though its far from commonplace. Alchemy that really works is a new "science" which has only come in in the last few years.
[19:51:57] <Dan> Courtesy of John Dee, perchance?
[19:52:34] <KenWalton> No, Bacon actually :-)
[19:52:44] <Dan> Ah. :)
[19:52:44] <Moxiane> Mmmm... bacon.
06[19:52:49] * Dan chuckles
[19:52:53] <KenWalton> :-)
[19:52:56] <Moxiane> Dan: Moose.
[19:53:10] <Dan> So do the creatures of English mythology exist in Clockwork & Cthulhu as well?
[19:53:32] <Dan> Is it literally Clockwork & Chivalry with the Mythos added in?
[19:53:35] <Dan> Moxie: *chuckle*
[19:54:15] <KenWalton> Dan - yes it is. We've tied in a lot of the mythos with local legends and era-specific flavour.
[19:54:38] <Dan> Does C. & Cthulhu include stats for the non-Mythos monsters too, then?
[19:55:28] <PeterCakebread> No - because you need the (free) SRD to play, or the C&C rulebook (or Renaissance Deluxe).
[19:55:45] <Dan> Oh, that's right.
[19:56:03] <PeterCakebread> It has all the Mythos related rules needed, and three large adventures, but the core rules are not included.
[19:56:25] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[19:56:51] <Dan> Do you touch on the relationship between the "conventional" supernatural and the Mythos? Do you try to link the two in any way, or are dragons a completely different deal than Hunting Horrors, for example?
[19:57:31] <Moxiane> And are there clockwork mythos-esque monsters?
[19:58:19] <PeterCakebread> Well the adventures feature a mix, and there are some interwoven backstories, and Mox- yes!
[19:58:33] <Dan> Nice. :)
[19:58:37] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[19:59:15] <Dan> Before we move on to Airship Pirates, does anyone have any more questions about C&C? Anything we haven't covered, Ken and Peter?
[19:59:57] <PeterCakebread> No - I think that covers it :)
[20:00:32] <Dan> Okay then! Would you care to describe Airship Pirates to the benighted masses? :)
[20:00:33] <Dan> (And brb.)
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[20:01:54] <PeterCakebread> Abney Park's Airship Pirates is a post-apocalyptic Steampunk game, set in the world of the music of Abney Park.
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[20:02:51] <KenWalton> Sing along to the music here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri3zPE5OqJg :-)
[20:03:58] <PeterCakebread> It uses the Heresy game engine, from Victoriana, is dynamic and swashbuckle-y, and is set in a dystopian future.
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[20:05:08] <PeterCakebread> The masses have been herded into Neovictorian cities, in the outside wilderness Neobedouin tribes try to survive (and not be eaten by uber-beasts).
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[20:05:57] <Dan> (Howdy, Tonpa! Cakebread & Walton Q&A in progress!)
[20:07:35] <PeterCakebread> The Skyfolk live in sky cities, innovators and/or pirates. The Emperor tries to hold back all progress in the Neovictorian cities (innovation gets you consigned to a Change Cage).
[20:07:51] <PeterCakebread> (done)
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[20:08:10] <Dan> (Howdy, vy! Cakebread & Walton Q&A in progress!)
[20:08:44] <Dan> To what degree did Abney Park's music lend itself to "direct" translation into a setting, and to what degree did you have to extrapolate?
[20:08:54] <KenWalton> Oh, and Airship Pirates includes time travel too...
[20:08:59] <Dan> And how closely did you work with Abney Park in the process?
[20:09:52] <KenWalton> We worked really closely with Captain Robert - he had a clear idea of the setting in which his songs were set, but we had to fill in a lot of the detail needed for an RPG.
[20:10:13] <Dan> So it was post-apocalyptic from the get-go, rather than Victorian?
[20:10:17] <KenWalton> Robert did the layout of the book and found the artists, so it was very hands-on
[20:11:01] <KenWalton> Yes - the idea is that the band Abney Park got hold of a time-travelling airship and tried to make the world a better place but messed it up big time.
[20:11:10] <vytzka> good evening
[20:11:27] <Dan> Were you aware of the story behind the songs beforehand, and who approached whom to make the game?
[20:12:03] <KenWalton> The Emperor admired the Victorian period, and wiped out a vast portion of the population, making the rest of society (at least those within the walls of his Change Cage cities) conform to his Victorian ideals.
[20:13:06] <KenWalton> Yes, we'd heard the songs and noticed there was a story there - we approached Abney Park expecting a polite "huh?" but got a resounding "Awesome!" instead...
[20:13:12] <KenWalton> (done)
[20:13:20] <Dan> Very cool. :)
[20:13:30] <Dan> Were they gamers, or at least familiar with gaming?
[20:14:28] <PeterCakebread> Some of them are...and we know they've played the game :)
[20:14:42] <Dan> Well, naturally. :D
[20:15:59] <Dan> Why did you use Heresy, as opposed to, say, BRP?
[20:15:59] <KenWalton> (done)
[20:16:28] <Dan> Not that there's anything wrong with Heresy, mind you... just an interesting choice.
[20:17:23] <KenWalton> The game was published through Cubicle 7. We wanted something swashbuckly and cinematic, and when C7 offered us use of the rules, we realised they'd be a good match, and would also allow gamers to use Victoriana supplemets with the AP rules.
[20:17:55] <Dan> Was that Angus's idea, by any chance?
[20:18:28] <PeterCakebread> We both had Victoriana, and liked it. And we had the scope to add our own shiny things (like the "Awesome bonus" and airship combat).
[20:19:11] <Dan> I love the "Awesome bonus," as an aside. Puts me strongly in mind of Feng Shui's bonus for cool stunts.
[20:20:02] <PeterCakebread> Yes, Angus was very supportive, right from the start. He was firmly behind the concept from the beginning. We had a choice of systems, but it seemed a good fit.
[20:20:23] <Dan> Oh, I see. I was wondering if he suggested Heresy himself.
[20:21:14] <KenWalton> I must admit the Awesome Bonus was a bit influenced by Feng Shui, which I played a lot of when it first came out. (done)
[20:21:46] <PeterCakebread> Yes, Angus did, although there were others in the mix at the outset.
[20:21:48] <Dan> So aside from the aspects already mentioned, what are some of the other "weird" aspects to the setting? I'm thinking in terms of mutants, uber-beasts, automatons, etc.
[20:22:40] <KenWalton> The wilderness is filled with ancient predators brought back to life by the Emperor specifically to eat people. He's not a nice man...
[20:23:30] <KenWalton> There are mutants in the cities, known as misbegotten, which are caused by the nasty chemicals around the Neovic factories.
[20:24:21] <KenWalton> And there are automatons, who are supposed to be soulless machines, but some of them have achieved consciousness and have to pretend to be servile - up until they can escape and become airship pirates, of course! (done)
[20:25:06] <Dan> Also, to what degree does time travel impact the setting (aside from being part of the backstory. Or forestory. Or whatever. (Time travel is confusing.)
[20:26:06] <PeterCakebread> We've given guidance on how to run the time travel aspect - you'll probably screw things up, but at least your head shouldn't pop with paradoxes.
[20:27:14] <PeterCakebread> From the feedback we've had, most GMs want to run a heap of games in the default setting, before letting their players get their hands on a time machine.
[20:27:56] <PeterCakebread> Time travel is very rare (only Abney Park and the PCs have time machines) - but it can create havoc!
[20:28:17] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[20:29:13] <Dan> About the uber-beasts... Why did you go with mammalian mega-fauna and not, say, dinosaurs? And are there other uber-beasts hiding out there? I'm thinking specifically of the picture of the airship menaced by some form of kraken...
[20:30:34] <KenWalton> Robert had an idea of carnivores hunting humans, but not dinosaurs, which have been a bit overdone in some ways.
06[20:30:54] * Dan nods
[20:32:00] <KenWalton> As for the art - our brilliant artists were given quite a wide brief - we decided that some of the pictures would just be inspirational for GMs without being explained - sort of visual adventure seeds. Much of the world is unexplored and unexplained.
[20:32:56] <Dan> Given the nature of the setting, would that kraken have to be some kind of mad science experiment?
[20:33:15] <Dan> (Or I guess it could be a creature from the future...)
[20:34:02] <PeterCakebread> Probably - there's no shortage of mad scientists in the Airship Pirate's world - although, yes, the party may have gone back in time and caused the kraken to exist.
[20:34:59] <PeterCakebread> Maybe they fed the wrong kind of super-food to a squid...
06[20:35:23] * Dan chuckles
[20:35:40] <PeterCakebread> Some of the world will be expanded upon in future supplements.
[20:35:55] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[20:36:16] <Dan> How would you describe the tone of the game? Victoriana and Airship Pirates are both steampunk, but Victorian seems -remarkably- bleak, while Airship Pirates seems a lot more upbeat. Thoughts?
[20:36:34] <Dan> (Victoriana, rather)
06[20:37:57] * Murazor looks back in
[20:38:36] <Dan> (Murazor: Now talking Airship Pirates.)
[20:38:37] <PeterCakebread> Yes, the Neovictorian cities are bleak. The overall theme is about freedom (and gaining freedom). The Neovics live in a dystopia. The Neobedouins have a dieselpunk feel. The Skyfolk are sheer Steampunk - goggles an' all. T
[20:38:42] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[20:39:26] <Dan> How would you describe the tech level? As I said, I'm still reading and so am still getting a feel for that, but from my skimming ahead... (more)
[20:39:51] <Murazor> If I were to get one of these two games, which would you recommend?
[20:39:52] <Dan> ...it seems like there's this weird mix of "new" steampunk vs. post-apocalyptic "modern" tech.
[20:40:34] <PeterCakebread> Mur - That's like asking us to choose between our babies.
[20:40:40] <Murazor> (Since both intrigue me for different reasons)
[20:41:13] <Murazor> I know; but I have too many games I'm not running as it is! :p
[20:41:43] <PeterCakebread> Tech-wise - the Neovictorians are steampunk, the Neobedouins use salvaged tech (think Mad Max), and the Skyfolk are more innovative, but have to be careful they don't push it.
[20:42:03] <Dan> At the base level, I think you'd have to start out asking whether you want swashbuckling or grittiness, Murazor.
[20:42:38] <PeterCakebread> Mur - I totally get that! If you fancy a gritty historical fantasy, Clockwork & Chivalry; if you fancy a Steampunk romp, Airship Pirates.
[20:42:54] <Dan> So what's the bleeding edge of Airship Pirates technology. (Other than time travel, of course.)
[20:44:04] <Dan> (brb)
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[20:44:31] <KenWalton> The Imperial Air Navy airships pretty much set the limits - the best are kind of like 1930s airships, while the pirates fly about in what are basically wooden sailing ships with a gasbag. Lots of broadsides and splicing the mainbrace! :-)
[20:45:11] <KenWalton> (done)
[20:45:49] <Murazor> Peter: I'll have to shoot in that one of my most successful rounds of GMing had the players running an airship
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[20:46:53] <PeterCakebread> Mur - then Airship Pirates should be up your street!
[20:47:06] <Murazor> In Terry K Amthor's Shadow World setting, using the HeroQuest system
03[20:47:07] * Dan-brb is now known as Dan
[20:47:50] <Dan> So the Imperial Air Navy has war zeppelins?
[20:48:19] <KenWalton> Alternatively, if you played C&C, you could be on a clockwork ship going to the moon (in Kingdom & Commonwealth II) :-)
[20:48:34] <Dan> And is that the limit to what the Emperor will tolerate, or is there some other reason for tech topping out there?
[20:48:40] <KenWalton> Yes, the IAN are the terror of the skies.
[20:48:47] <Dan> (Like, why can't someone get an airplane running, for example?)
[20:51:09] <PeterCakebread> Airplanes do exist, but there's few places to build them, land them, etc. The wilderness is very hostile, the Neobedouin are kept on the run, the Skyfolk and the Neovics are in a state of constant tension - there's a truce, but military plane building would break it.
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[20:51:56] <PeterCakebread> That's not to say the Skyfolk don't have a whole host of individual transportation devices (think Stop the Pigeon/Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines).
[20:52:10] <Dan> Heh. Awesome. :)
[20:52:34] <Dan> What's the top-of-the-line in terms of both personal and heavy weaponry?
[20:52:59] <PeterCakebread> As long as they're just buzzing around (and crashing into) their own Skylofts, they're ok, they mount a twin gun and they're Imperial Air Navy fodder.
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[20:54:22] <PeterCakebread> Steamguns, cannon, lightning guns, etc.
[20:55:19] <Dan> I get the impression that the steamtech is pretty gonzo... is there any setting explanation for it, and why it wasn't developed in the "real" Victorian era?
[20:55:24] <TQuid> woot
[20:55:24] <Dan> Or is that just the way the setting is?
[20:55:25] <TQuid> Hi folks.
[20:55:32] <PeterCakebread> Mammoth guns and steam gatlings, there is a host of stuff. Airship combat usually involves broadsides and ramming (or avoiding!).
[20:55:55] <Dan> (Howdy, TQuid! On the tail end of a Q&A with Cakebread & Walton. :) )
[20:56:04] <Murazor> In addition to fuelling my interest in running a steampunkish skyship adventure, this discussion reminds me that I should resume and finish wating Last Exile
[20:56:11] <TQuid> Ooh!
[20:56:45] <KenWalton> The steampunk tech is just the way it is - more cinematic than realistic. All from the crazy mind of Captain Robert Brown! :-)
[20:57:04] <PeterCakebread> The AP Victorian era is different - in part because Abney Park changed the past.
[20:57:08] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[20:57:11] <Dan> Oh, before I forget, guys: I would love to review Clockwork & Chivalry as well as Clockwork & Cthulhu. But we can discuss that later if you prefer. :)
[20:57:31] <Dan> For now, with the time we have left, do you guys have anything else you'd like to cover re: Airship Pirates?
[20:57:58] <PeterCakebread> You would be welcome, Dan :) Great! (and our new one, Renaissance Deluxe, too, if you like).
[20:58:08] <Dan> (Absolutely.)
[20:58:21] <Dan> (Actually, Ken already got me a PDF of the latter to review.)
[20:58:33] <Murazor> Good show :)
[20:59:03] <PeterCakebread> Look out for Under the Lamplight, for Airship Pirates. It's written by Andrew Peregrine, and is the Neovictorian supplement (currently being pageset by Captain Robert).
[20:59:20] <PeterCakebread> (done)
[20:59:27] <Dan> Airship Pirates is gorgeous, btw. Captain Roberts did a fantastic job.
[20:59:47] <KenWalton> We were impressed too! There are some fantastic artists involved.
[20:59:52] <KenWalton> (done)
[21:00:19] <Dan> Oh, and Peter? I sent you a Friend request on FB. Not sure if you knew who I was at the time. ;) )
[21:00:34] <PeterCakebread> Cool, I'll add :)
[21:00:44] <Dan> Ken, Peter, thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by and talk to us!
[21:00:51] <Dan> It's been very informative.
[21:01:07] <KenWalton> You're welcome - thanks to you too! :-)
[21:01:11] <Dan> And please be aware that you are more than welcome to stop by any time to just hang out if you like, and/or to discuss your games.
[21:01:12] <PeterCakebread> Thank you too, Dan, and everybody. Many thanks for having us :)
[21:01:23] <PeterCakebread> Cool :)
[21:01:35] <KenWalton> Cool, now we know where you are ...
[21:01:37] <Dan> Authors are free to shill here. It's just that you have the floor to yourself during a Q&A. :)
[21:01:52] <Dan> And heck, we've picked up several authors as regulars along the way.
[21:02:08] <Dan> (Say hello to DWPearce, one of the Doctor Who authors, over there in the corner. ;) )
[21:02:26] <PeterCakebread> Excellent - I'll look in (now that I understand how it works. I'm a complete technophobe!).
[21:02:57] <Dan> Cool. It took me a while to get this thing all figured out, myself. Honestly, I just stumbled into the channel owner roll.
[21:03:00] <Dan> role
[21:03:13] <Dan> as in, I showed up one day and found that the place had literally been abandoned. :)
[21:03:18] <Murazor> Author of the TV show, or a game I haven't heard about?
[21:03:30] <PeterCakebread> Tee hee - ghost irc
[21:03:31] <Dan> Murazor: The Doctor Who RPG.
[21:03:40] <KenWalton> Haha! It's a slippery slope, I see...
[21:03:46] <Murazor> Right
[21:03:47] <Dan> Peter: Yup, exactly. This used to be the official chat for RPGnet.
[21:04:05] <Dan> Then Skotos Tech took over and wanted their own web-based chat to be the official one.
[21:04:09] <PeterCakebread> I'm gaming Doctor Who, every so often. Good game!
[21:04:12] <Dan> So we were kinda cast adrift. :)
[21:04:15] <TQuid> Huh! Didn't know that Dan.
[21:04:18] <Dan> Yes, it's awesome.
[21:04:25] <Dan> Oh, Peter, Ken...
[21:04:36] <Dan> ...once I get the log, I'll be posting it on my blog.
[21:04:38] <Dan> Do you have that link?
[21:05:02] <Murazor> You know, there are those who mockingly refer to IRC as a relic of a bygone age
[21:05:33] <KenWalton> Invented soon after the telegraph, I believe.
[21:05:43] <Murazor> They're always taken a bit aback when I respond that I'm on it regularly
[21:06:08] <Dan> Murazor: I get that reaction often, too.
[21:06:11] <Dan> "That's still a thing?"
[21:06:17] <Dan> Ken/Peter: http://gmshoe.blogspot.com/
[21:06:34] <PeterCakebread> Thanks, Dan.
[21:06:35] <Dan> (You can see Angus's Q&A log there, by the way. :) )
[21:07:04] <PeterCakebread> Yes, I read Angus's Q&A - now it's bookmarked too!
[21:07:05] <KenWalton> yes, we read that. We'll post the link round as soon as its up...
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[21:07:27] <Dan> Yup, I'll let you know when it's up. Should be tonight, barring any unforeseen circumstances.
[21:09:07] <PeterCakebread> We have to go (stories to plot) - talk to you soon :)
[21:09:16] <Murazor> So long
[21:09:25] <KenWalton> Thanks, and bye! :-)
[21:09:31] <PeterCakebread> Cheers, Mur.
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[21:10:02] <Dan> And I should get back to multitasking now... Please feel free to hang out as long as you like, guys!
[21:10:02] <Dan> Or do you need to run?
[21:11:08] <PeterCakebread> Yeah, we need to go and storyboard some stuff - deadlines, deadlines, deadlines...Bye!
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Jeff Combos (Hollow Earth Expedition, DeadFellas) Q&A Log

[19:02] <~Dan> Okay! Jeff, when you're ready, please introduce yourself and your company/games. When you're finished, and after extended responses, please give us a "(done)" when finished.
[19:02] <~Dan> The floor is yours!
[19:02] <+jcombos> Hi everyone. I'm Jeff Combos, president of Exile Game Studio and creator of the Hollow Earth Expedition RPG.
[19:03] <+jcombos> You may also know me from such Kickstarters as Deadfellas: the zombie mafia card game and the most recent Perils of the Surface World.
[19:04] <+jcombos> But my day job is in the video game industry. I'm a Narrative Producer working for Microsoft Studios--which basically means I get to help craft stories for games and other media.
[19:04] <+jcombos> Done. You can start throwing rotten fruit now. Or questions. Whichever.
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[19:05] <~Dan> Any questions, folks, or shall I get the ball rolling?
[19:05] <~Dan> Okay then!
[19:06] <~Dan> Just to be clear, I've known Jeff since he was first getting started and have reviewed Hollow Earth Expedition...
[19:06] <~Dan> ...so much of what I'll be asking will be stuff Jeff knows I know. :)
[19:06] <~Dan> Jeff, can you give us the Reader's Digest version of Hollow Earth Expedition?
[19:06] <+jcombos> Sure.
[19:07] <+jcombos> Hollow Earth Expedition is a pulp adventure RPG. It's set in the 1930's, so I often describe it as Indiana Jones meets Jurassic Park.
[19:07] <+jcombos> But it's all about feeding Nazis to dinosaurs.
[19:08] <+jcombos> But as a pulp game, I tried to do something a little different with it.
[19:08] <+jcombos> Instead of trying to cram every pulp trope into a single book, I narrowed the focus and made the core book all about exploration. It's basically the Indiana Jones-style book.
[19:09] <+Murazor> Time to retire for the night
[19:09] <+jcombos> And then I made two more sourcebooks that covered the other pulp flavors.
[19:09] <+Murazor> Zleep
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[19:09] <+jcombos> Secrets of the Surface World is weird science and secret societies, so it's the Shadow and the Rocketeer-style book.
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[19:10] <~Dan> (Howdy, Wondy!)
[19:10] <+jcombos> Mysteries of the Hollow earth was next, and it was all about half-human beastmen and savage creatures. So it was the Pelucidar-style book.
[19:10] <+jcombos> Next up is Revelations of Mars, which will cover the Barsoom flavor, sword-and-planet-style pulp.
[19:11] <+jcombos> So this means you can pick and choose the style of pulp that is right for you and not have to unhinge your jaw to try and swallow it all.
[19:11] <+jcombos> That's HEX in a nutshell.
[19:12] <~Dan> (Just a sec while I go upstairs, here...)
[19:12] <~Dan> Actually, while I'm doing that... want to tell the folks how Ubiquity works?
[19:12] <+jcombos> You bet,
[19:13] <+jcombos> Ubiquity is the game system that powers HEX. I started work on it back during the d20 madness because I figured people would get tired of that and want something different.
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[19:14] <+jcombos> And that's pretty much what happened, even though I never thought the bubble would burst like it did.
[19:15] <+jcombos> In any case, Ubiquity is an enhanced dice pool system, which means it's got the nice, reliable results but I've fixed a couple of things I don't like about dice pool systems.
[19:15] <+jcombos> First, you often end up rolling dice too often.
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[19:16] <+jcombos> So if you pick a lock, search a room, hear someone coming, and then jump out the window, that's four dice rolls.
[19:17] <+jcombos> To fix that, I made rolling a success a 50/50 chance.
[19:17] <~Dan> (back)
[19:17] <+jcombos> So you could roll any standard die you want and just count even numbers as successes.
[19:17] <+jcombos> d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, and d20s all work.
[19:18] <+jcombos> But the real reason I did that was so you could divide and dice pool by two and determine how many successes you'd get on average.
[19:19] <+jcombos> So if my Lockpicking dice pool is 8, I'd roll 4 successes on average.
[19:19] <+jcombos> And if the difficulty to pick the lock is 4 or less, the Gamemaster can just rule that my character picked the lock without breaking a sweat--or rolling any dice.
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[19:20] <+jcombos> So in the example I gave before, I could pick the lock, search the room, hear someone coming and only roll dice when I jump out the window.
[19:20] <~Dan> (wb, NiT!)
[19:20] <+jcombos> Taking the Average lets you collapse the mechanics out of the way when you need to move the story along and pull them out again during tense moment.
[19:21] <+jcombos> But since the math behind it is solid, you're not sacrificing game balance to do it.
[19:21] <+jcombos> But there was still the problem of rolling too many dice.
[19:22] <+jcombos> Often, people were rolling buckets of dice with each roll.
[19:22] <+jcombos> So I ended up accidentally designing a new set of dice to fix the problem.
[19:23] <+jcombos> Binomial distribution is how you figure out things like how many times a coin will come up heads when you flip it. By applying that to an 8-sided die, it let me simulate rolling multiple dice.
[19:24] <+jcombos> Picture a die with just 1s and 0s on it. Four of each.
[19:24] <+jcombos> That's a binary die. I roll it and just add up the face value. That's like rolling one regular die.
[19:24] <+jcombos> That one's a white die.
[19:25] <+jcombos> Now picture a red die with 0,0,1,1,1,1,2,2 on it. That simulates two dice being rolled and all you have to do is look at the number on the face to see how many total successes you rolled.
[19:26] <+jcombos> And finally, picture a blue die with 0,1,1,1,2,2,2,3 on it. That simulates rolling three dice.
[19:26] <+jcombos> So if you needed to roll six dice, you could just roll two blue dice, or three red, or six whites.
[19:27] <+jcombos> Or you could even roll one of each. As long as the total value of the dice is correct, you can roll any combination of dice you want.
[19:27] <+jcombos> It's all statistically sound.
[19:27] <+jcombos> I know this description is kind of complicated, but the end result is super simple for players.
[19:28] <+jcombos> I roll dice and add up the total. Done.
[19:28] <+jcombos> So mechanically, that's how I made it so you roll less dice, less often when using the Ubiquity system.
[19:28] <+jcombos> But that's not even the heart of the game.
[19:29] <+jcombos> The heart of Ubiquity are Style points.
[19:29] <+jcombos> Each character has a Motivation (like Greed) and a Flaw (like Thrill-seeker).
[19:30] <+jcombos> Whenever you pursue your character's Motivation or he or she is harmed by a Flaw, you get a Style point that you can spend later for bonus dice on a roll.
[19:30] <+jcombos> You can also spend them to boost Talents, resist damage, or change the plot.
[19:30] <+jcombos> And as a Gamemaster, you can give out Style points to reward the kind of behavior you want to have at your table.
[19:31] <+jcombos> But in the end, the more fun you have with your character, the more effective he or she becomes.
[19:31] <+jcombos> OK, that's probably more than you wanted to know about Ubiquity.
[19:31] <+jcombos> But I will also add that I've licensed it out for three other games at this point. So people like it.
[19:32] <~Dan> Heh. No problem. :)
[19:32] <~Dan> Those three games are...?
[19:32] <+jcombos> Desolation by Greymalkin, All for One and League of Adventure which were both published by Triple Ace Games.
[19:33] <+jcombos> And I've had some other licenses out there but I can't talk about those yet.
[19:33] <~Dan> Really? That's good to hear!
[19:33] <+jcombos> You're telling me!
[19:33] <+jcombos> :)
[19:33] <~Dan> The industry being what it is, I'd say Ubiquity is something of a hit for that reason. Did you think it would catch on?
[19:33] <+jcombos> Honestly...I never dared to dream that it would.
[19:34] * +etaoinshrdlu peeks in
[19:34] <+etaoinshrdlu> Hi, folks :)
[19:34] <~Dan> Howdy, eta!
[19:34] <&egyptian> The new computer components...they are here!
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[19:34] <+jcombos> I was so focused on making the game as good as possible, I didn't want to get lost in flights of fancy.
[19:34] <~Dan> Okay, Jeff, here's something I've been wondering for a whlie now...
[19:34] <~Dan> (Welcome, dktrelktron! Here for the Q&A?)
[19:34] <~Dan> dktrelektron, even
[19:34] <+jcombos> Welcome!
[19:34] <+etaoinshrdlu> Howdy, Dan!
[19:34] <+dktrelektron> actually just checking out the chat for the first time
[19:34] <~Dan> When we first talked about HEX way back at GenCon '05...
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[19:35] <~Dan> dk: Cool! We're having a Q&A with Jeff Combos, author of Hollow Earth Expedition. Please feel free to hang out and ask questions. #rpgnet2 is also open for general chat while the Q&A goes on.
[19:35] <~Dan> Howdy, tech!
[19:35] <+dktrelektron> thx
[19:35] <~Dan> ...(back to question) you said that the world of HEX was pretty much our world in the 1930s. Except the world is hollow and has dinosaurs and such. (I am wildly paraphrasing here.)
[19:36] <~Dan> In essense, all the weirdness was Hollow Earth-related.
[19:36] <~Dan> Although you mentioned a few gizmos here and there, like mole machines and so forth.
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[19:36] <~Dan> With Secrets of the Surface World, however, it seems that the surface world is quite "conventionally" pulpy on its own.
[19:36] <~Dan> As you mentioned earlier, the Shadow would fit right in.
[19:37] <~Dan> And, of course, we now know that Mars is inhabited (and may or may not need women).
[19:37] <~Dan> So...
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[19:37] <~Dan> ...were you being coy at the time, or did all of this stuff develop over time? :)
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[19:37] <~Dan> (Howdy, Squide! Pulpy Hollow Earth Expedition Q&A in progress!)
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[19:38] <+jcombos> I won't deny that the game world has developed over time, but it's pretty darn close to what I had in mind even back when we were talking about it on '05.
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[19:38] <&Le_Squide> (Ah, cool!)
[19:38] <~Dan> So were you just trying to avoid giving anything away? :)
[19:38] <+jcombos> Some of the best sci-fi and action properties are predicated on a single, simple "What if?" premise.
[19:38] <+jcombos> What if we cloned dinosaurs? What if people could plug computers into their brains?
[19:39] <+jcombos> And from there you develp the world around these questions to explore all the ramifications of the change.
[19:39] <+jcombos> In this case, the question is "What if the Hollow Earth was real?"
[19:39] <+jcombos> Which begged the question, is it natural or did someone make it?
[19:39] <+jcombos> I thought the latter was a more interesting option, so I went with that.
[19:40] <+jcombos> So a lot of the more conventionally pulpy aspect of the game world comes out of this--why does magic work? Where do psychic powers come from?
[19:40] <+jcombos> This is a world where Atlanteans are real, and really powerful.
[19:41] <+jcombos> But all that are left of them are faint footprints in our genetic code.
[19:41] <+jcombos> And the treasures and artifacts that they left behind at the center of the Earth.
[19:41] <+jcombos> So really, Dan, my answer would still be the same today as it was then. It's just I'd have a lot more explaining to do today. :)
[19:41] <~Dan> Heh. Fair enough. :)
[19:42] <~Dan> (As always, anyone's free to jump in with any questions. :) )
[19:42] <~Dan> How long have you been in the hobby, and have you always been fascinated with pulp?
[19:43] <+jcombos> Good question.
[19:43] <~Dan> Before you answer...
[19:43] <+jcombos> I started playing D&D when I was about 8.
[19:43] <+jcombos> ...
[19:43] <~Dan> Sorry. I just wanted to state for the record that you have a clear love for the subject matter. I've seldom seen an author who so "gets" a genre.
[19:43] <~Dan> (Please continue. :) )
[19:43] <+jcombos> Well, thanks.
[19:44] <+jcombos> But the truth is, I wasn't a pulp fan until I started working on HEX.
[19:44] <~Dan> Really? Huh.
[19:44] <+jcombos> I was a gamer, sure. I'd been playing RPGs for years--decades, really.
[19:45] <+jcombos> And I'd done some freelance writing for White Wolf in 1994 and again in 1995-6.
[19:45] <+jcombos> Both times it was for Wraith: the Oblivion. A far cry from HEX, really.
[19:46] <+jcombos> But then I got sucked into the tech industry for a few years.
[19:46] <+jcombos> And eventually realized that I wanted to put out my own game.
[19:47] <+jcombos> So I started Exile in 2003 and started developing game ideas. HEX was third on the list.
[19:47] <+jcombos> The first idea was a licensed property that I spent about 6-9 months trying to nail down.
[19:47] <~Dan> Is that something you can reveal? :)
[19:47] <+jcombos> And when that didn't happen, I started looking at my second choice only to discover that someone else had done it already.
[19:48] <+jcombos> (I'm going to keep that close to the vest, because I still hope to do it one day.)
[19:48] <~Dan> (Gotcha. No problem.)
[19:48] <+jcombos> So I started to take a closer look at HEX. It had a lot going for it.
[19:48] <+jcombos> And the more I dug into it the more excited about it I got.
[19:49] <+jcombos> And really the only reason it was so low on the list was because it was riskier.
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[19:49] <+jcombos> Here I was, a no-name developer, with a no-name game using a no-name system. I was afraid no-one would buy it.
[19:50] <+jcombos> But I decided to go for it anyway.
[19:50] <~Dan> (Howdy, Gemini!)
[19:50] <+Gemini> (Hi.)
[19:50] <+jcombos> And that required me to consume a lot of pulp books, understand the tropes and conceits, and reproduce something that felt like it fit, but wasn't a rip off.
[19:50] <+Silverlion> Sometimes you just have to Jeff.
[19:51] <+jcombos> So along the way, I became quite a pulp fan.
[19:51] <+Silverlion> What's next on the agenda?
[19:51] <~Dan> (Q&A with Jeff Combos in progress. Currently discussing Hollow Earth Expedition. Dinosaurs! Nazis! Rocket Packs!)
[19:51] <~Dan> (Oh my!)
[19:51] <+jcombos> Indeed so, Silverlion.
[19:52] <+jcombos> So I consider myself incredibly lucky that HEX found an audience.
[19:52] <+Silverlion> Does HEX cover pulp "supers?" (The Shadow, Spider, etc?) I might have missed that in my day to day chores while I was  away.
Session Start (gryphon.magicstar.net:#rpgnet): Thu Sep 20 20:01:56 2012 -0500
[20:02] *** Dan has joined #rpgnet
[20:02] *** Topic on #rpgnet is: #rpgnet welcomes Jeff Combos (Exile Games) 9/20, 00:00 GMT! || Q&A schedule: http:/​/​tinyurl.com/​cvr8p9y || <Dan> I still can't get used to the lack of ... undies
[20:02] *** Topic set by StormBringer (21 hours ago at 11:19 PM)
[20:02] *** ChanServ sets mode +qo Dan Dan
[20:02] *** ChanServ sets mode +o Dan
[20:02] <&Le_Squide> Do you have any idea what the "crossover" is between people who play HEX and other RPGs?
[20:02] <+jcombos> You mean what kinds of RPGs HEX fans play?
[20:02] <~Dan> (Sorry, guys. Forgot that my cord was unplugged and the juice ran out. Squide, could you please cut-and-paste anything I missed back into this window for the log?)
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [20:59]jcombosIndeed so, Silverlion.
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:00]jcombosSo I consider myself incredibly lucky that HEX found an audience.
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:00]SilverlionDoes HEX cover pulp "supers?" (The Shadow, Spider, etc?) I might have missed that in my day to day chores while I was away.
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:01]jcombosWe have an entire book dedicated to supernatural powers and weird science to make characters like that. It's called Secrets of the Surface World.
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:01]jcombos(And I'd throw the Rocketeer into the mix as well.)
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:01]|<--Dan has left gryphon.magicstar.net (Broken pipe)
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:02]jcombosIn fact, at Gen Con one year, I ran a high-powered HEX adventure called "League of Extraordinary Pulp."
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:02]SilverlionIndeed. Rocketer, Green Hornet...:D
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:02]Silverlioner...if I can type..
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:02]jcombosAll of the characters were famous: Indiana Jones, Doc Savage, The Shadow, The Rocketeer, The Phantom, and Mandrake the Magician.
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:02]jcombosIt was tons of fun.
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:03]-->|Dan (~Dan@MagicStar-14EED086.tx.res.rr.com) has joined #rpgnet
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:03]=-=Mode #rpgnet +qo Dan Dan by ChanServ
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[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:03]Le_SquideDo you have any idea what the "crossover" is between people who play HEX and other RPGs?
[20:04] <&Le_Squide> [21:03]jcombosYou mean what kinds of RPGs HEX fans play?
[20:05] <~Dan> (Thanks!)
[20:05] <~Dan> (I'll just throw in that I played Doc Savage in that game Jeff mentioned. :D )
[20:06] <~Dan> (Sorry, Jeff -- please proceed! :) )
[20:06] <+jcombos> So if you're asking what other RPGs people play, we have a lot of Call of Cthulhu fans, Savage Worlds folk, and my personal favorite D&D converts.
[20:07] <+jcombos> (There are also a fair number of White Wolf players too.)
[20:07] <+jcombos> But D&D converts are a lot of fun for me.
[20:07] <~Dan> Because of the culture shock? :)
[20:08] <+jcombos> Now, I love D&D. But whenever I run into someone here in town that has a regular D&D game, I offer to show up when they want a break and run a single-shot HEX adventure.
[20:08] <+jcombos> I've done that a bunch of times now.
[20:09] <+jcombos> And it usually goes something like this:
[20:09] <+jcombos> The groups usually get together on a weeknight, eat some food and play for 2.5 or 3 hours.
[20:09] <+jcombos> Which generally means two or so encounters.
[20:10] <+jcombos> So I tell them to prepare themsevles, 'cause I'm going to show up, hand out characters, teach them the rules, and run them through an entire adventure start to finish in 2.5 hours.
[20:11] <+jcombos> And that's generally what happens too. But I'm not bragging. I'm not special. It's just that the game is that fast because of the way you can collapse the rules out of the way of story.
[20:11] <+jcombos> Generally after that, my local game stores will sell some HEX books.
[20:12] <&Le_Squide> Neat!
[20:12] <+Silverlion> Cool.
[20:12] <~Dan> Jeff, you realize that you've turned yourself into the RPG equivalent of a Saturday morning kiddie cereal commercial spokesthing, right?
[20:12] <+jcombos> But it's fun to show up and feel like you're running a movie for an evening.
[20:13] <+jcombos> Have I? Cool!
[20:13] <~Dan> "Hi, kids! Tired of the same ol' D&D? Try new HEX!"
[20:14] <~Dan> I have some more HEX-related questions, but I don't want to neglect DeadFellas. Want to say a bit about that?
[20:14] <+jcombos> "Now with extra Nazi marshmallows, so you can eat 'em like a T. Rex!"
[20:14] <~Dan> (Exactly! :D )
[20:14] <+jcombos> Sure. Deadfellas is a card game about whacking Mooks in the zombie mafia.
[20:15] <+jcombos> And although I did some design work on it, it was a game that a couple of friends brought to me.
[20:15] <+jcombos> Jesper was the original Art Director on Magic: the Gathering.
[20:16] <+jcombos> And Brian was the artist that had done all the artwork on Gimme the Brain and Lord of the Fries for Cheapass Games.
[20:16] <+jcombos> They'd approached James Earnest about publishing it, but he wasn't doing much with Cheapass at the time, so they came to me to see if I wanted to publish it. And I jumped at the chance.
[20:17] <+jcombos> It's fast, it's fun, and it's silly.
[20:17] <+jcombos> But it also let me give Kickstarter a try. And that has been an amazing and educational experience.
[20:18] <~Dan> That does seem to be the "in thing" these days.
[20:18] <+jcombos> I've done two of them so far an I'm going to do more. Revelations of Mars will get a Kickstarter when it gets closer.
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[20:19] <+jcombos> It's not going to be popular forever. But if you use it right, it can be more than just getting money out of people.
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[20:19] * ~Dan nods
[20:19] <+jcombos> With the Perils of the Surface World project, I actually got to make the book better because of the backers. They made an impact on the quality of the book. It's so cool to get to do that.
[20:20] <~Dan> From the bonuses at the various funding levels?
[20:21] <+jcombos> From the stretch goals, yeah. I'm having a new cover illustrated as we speak, and I'll be adding sample characters to the book. Both of these are expensive bells and whistles that I wanted to do but couldn't at the price point it was going to be at.
[20:22] <+jcombos> But now it can have all that. Thanks to the many generous HEX fans. So Perils feels like a book I made with them, and that's pretty cool.
[20:22] <~Dan> Yeah, that is cool. :)
[20:22] <+Silverlion> Awesome.
[20:22] <~Dan> Speaking of perils, what was the thought behind going with the surface rather than the Hollow Earth for your first published adventure campaign?
[20:24] <+jcombos> We'd been putting out a lot of Hollow Earth adventures for Free RPG day and the one in Mysteries of the Hollow Earth. It was starting to feel like the surface world was being neglected.
[20:24] <+jcombos> So we decided to mix things up by doing surface world scenarios. Next up will be Hollow Earth stuff, though, so people will surely be happy with that.
[20:25] <~Dan> Seems like right now, the players are either on the surface or stranded in the Hollow Earth. Any plans on making the Hollow Earth more accessible? Or would that defeat the purpose?
Session Close (#rpgnet): Thu Sep 20 20:27:52 2012 -0500


Session Start (gryphon.magicstar.net:#rpgnet): Thu Sep 20 20:28:25 2012 -0500
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[20:28] *** Topic on #rpgnet is: #rpgnet welcomes Jeff Combos (Exile Games) 9/20, 00:00 GMT! || Q&A schedule: http:/​/​tinyurl.com/​cvr8p9y || <Dan> I still can't get used to the lack of ... undies
[20:28] *** Topic set by StormBringer (21 hours ago at 11:19 PM)
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[20:28] <+jcombos> The trick with the Hollow Earth is that it's actually very easy to get into. It's just hard to get out of.
[20:28] <+jcombos> And that's why we don't know much about it.
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[20:29] <+jcombos> But really, I've been giving accessiblity more thought.
[20:29] <+jcombos> But for the IP in general.
[20:29] <~Dan> (Did your answer to my question start with "The trick..."?)
[20:30] <+jcombos> (Yes, it did, Dan)
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[20:30] <~Dan> I was kinda unsure of how to handle my players when they started out on the surface...
[20:31] <~Dan> ...because it kinda felt like the preliminaries before the Big Game, no matter what happened. Know what I mean?
[20:31] <+jcombos> Yeah, things really get interesting once they get into the Hollow Earth.
[20:31] <+jcombos> I tend to like getting people there quickly if that's my destination.
[20:32] <+Silverlion> "Suddenly you are swallowed by a giant vole?"
[20:32] <~Dan> And the other factor was that while you've added cool stuff on the surface, it seems like once they get to the Hollow Earth, they're there for the duration.
[20:32] <+etaoinshrdlu> (I misread that as "Yellow Earth"; feel free to disregard)
[20:33] <+jcombos> True. We try so hard to make the point that getting out is hard that it can seem like there is no getting out.
[20:33] * ~Dan nods
[20:33] <~Dan> But, by the same token, if people could just come and go, it wouldn't feel right.
[20:33] <+jcombos> Right.
[20:33] <~Dan> Not sure what the happy medium is, there.
[20:34] <+jcombos> But with the right kind of conveyance, you could make going back and forth easier.
[20:34] * ~Dan nods
[20:34] <~Dan> A mole machine, or an Atlantean gate, for example?
[20:34] <+jcombos> Airship, Drillng Machine, or Atlantean Gate could work to bridge the gap.
[20:34] <~Dan> Okay, so I missed one. ;)
[20:34] <&Le_Squide> Are you planning to highlight that in any upcoming books? More support for back and forht campaigns, I mean?
[20:35] <+jcombos> And if you found a device to trigger the Bermuda Triangle (or one of the other Vile Vorticies) you could transport there and back in a traditional vessel.
[20:35] <+jcombos> Good question, Squide.
[20:36] <~Dan> (While you're answering that, could you touch on the time factor as well, Jeff?)
[20:36] <+jcombos> I wasn't going to put it into the main sourcebooks, because people tend to view that as cannon and I think the back and forth should be on a slider that each Gamemaster can slide.
[20:37] <+jcombos> But we could put it into an adventure, where most people view it as an option to play with.
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[20:37] <+jcombos> As for the time factor, I wanted time to move slower in the Hollow Earth. This is one of the reasons dinosaurs are still around.
[20:38] <+jcombos> But whatever is causing the time dilation is not working right any more. So the effect is erratic.
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[20:39] <+jcombos> So you could have a game where you go into the HE and pop out with minimal time having passed, or come out with years having gone by.
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[20:39] <~Dan> Oh? I didn't realize that. Cool.
[20:39] <~Dan> (About the erratic time dilation, I mean.)
[20:39] <+Silverlion> Solid idea there.
[20:39] <+jcombos> It's something we didn't highlight well enough in the core book, I think.
[20:40] <~Dan> I'd like to make an observation that I've made before about HEX and hear your thoughts on it, Jeff.
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[20:40] <~Dan> (Welcome to #rpgnet, Rania!)
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[20:41] <~Dan> With the exploration and getting stranded and so forth...
[20:41] <+Lioness> just me with a dodgy connection
[20:41] <~Dan> ...HEX actually puts me more in mind of Jules Verne and Victorian sci-fi than it does adventure pulp in some ways. (more)
[20:41] <~Dan> Granted, characters like Doc Savage had their Lost Worlds...
[20:42] <~Dan> ...but it was more along the lines of one-off adventures. "Doc Savage Meets the Dinosaurs" and so forth.
[20:42] <~Dan> Any thoughts along those lines?
[20:43] <+jcombos> Well, Jules Verne was absolutely one of the inspirations, so I can see why you'd make that comparison.
[20:43] <+jcombos> And the Hollow Earth would be much more one-dimensional without a back story to give it more depth.
[20:44] <+jcombos> For example, it's full of Atlantean technology--potential weapons for the Third Reich.
[20:44] * ~Dan nods
[20:44] <+jcombos> And the Nazis are going to try to get their hands on an endless variety of gizmos.
[20:44] <+jcombos> That's a story you can tell over and over again with the Hollow Earth as the savage backdrop.
[20:45] <+jcombos> Does that answer your question?
[20:45] <~Dan> It does, thanks.
[20:46] <~Dan> Speaking on related genres, let's talk Revelations of Mars for a moment.
[20:46] <~Dan> You describe it as "sword and planet", which makes me think John Carter first and foremost.
[20:46] <+jcombos> Sure.
[20:46] <+Silverlion> Yes. Whats going on "on mars?"
[20:47] <~Dan> Which could be considered a form of early pulp, but isn't quite the same as the sci-fi found in 1930s pulps, unless I'm mistaken.
[20:47] <+jcombos> Well, John Carter is a major inspiration.
[20:47] <~Dan> Are you blending sword-and-planet with rayguns-and-rocket ships?
[20:48] <+jcombos> But you're right, there is a major difference between 1950's Mars and 1930's MArs.
[20:48] <+jcombos> Just read Bradbury's Chronicles of Mars to see the difference.
[20:48] <~Dan> Well, I was thinking 1900s Mars and 1930s Mars, but the same principle stands. :)
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[20:48] <+jcombos> RoM is going to be more 1930's Mars. Which means more John Carter and less Buck Rogers.
[20:49] <+jcombos> But there will be a little Buck in there.
[20:49] <+jcombos> My original thought was to make it much more Flash Gordon, though.
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[20:49] <~Dan> I guess it would have to be, as rocket ships flying rings around Mars would be noteworthy even on 1930s Earth, I think. :)
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[20:50] <~Dan> Was that the main concern?
[20:50] <+jcombos> But the end result, with all the half-human species, felt more "Hollow Earth on Mars" and not distinctive enough.
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[20:51] <+jcombos> It felt like more of the same, and I want Mars to feel different. I want it to hit the sword and planet flavor of pulp. So that's what we're working on now.
[20:51] * ~Dan nods
[20:51] <~Dan> So folks fighting with a sword in one hand and a raygun in the other for no logical reason beyond "cool"?
[20:52] <+jcombos> Well, someone like that would be holding a powerful artifact in their hand.
[20:52] <~Dan> Ah... Atlantean tech? Or would that be telling? :)
[20:53] <+jcombos> But think of rayguns the way blackpowder weapons were once used. There was an era where they were effective, but a lot of combat was still up close and personal.
[20:53] <+jcombos> Oh, Atlantean tech for sure.
[20:53] * ~Dan nods
[20:53] <+jcombos> Or a bastardization of it.
[20:54] <~Dan> Will RoM have the same "you're stranded" aspect as the Hollow Earth?
[20:55] <+jcombos> Somewhat. The ways to get to Mars are rocketship, abduction, Atlantean gate, and projection.
[20:55] <~Dan> Rocketship being a pulp gadget in this case?
[20:55] <+jcombos> At least two of those offer return trips. :)
[20:56] <~Dan> Heh. :)
[20:56] <~Dan> Can you reveal any new "kewl powerz" or the like that will be found in RoM?
[20:56] <+jcombos> Yes, Dan. That's right.
[20:56] <+jcombos> We've got three new psychic powers in RoM.
[20:56] <+jcombos> One of which is pyrokinesis.
[20:57] <~Dan> That's hot.
[20:57] <+jcombos> Zing!
[20:57] <~Dan> (Couldn't resist.)
[20:58] <~Dan> Looks like our regularly-scheduled time is about up; however, you're welcome to hang out as long as you like, Jeff.
[20:58] <~Dan> While you still have the floor, though, anything else you'd like to mention that we haven't brought up?
[20:58] <+jcombos> Unfortunately, I have to run. That book is not going to write itself!
[20:59] <+jcombos> Nothing in particular. Thanks for having me on Dan.
[20:59] <~Dan> Absolutely, Jeff! Thanks for your time. I'll have the chat log posted shortly and will give you the link.
[20:59] <+jcombos> Awesome. Thanks!
[20:59] <~Dan> Talk to you soon! :)
[20:59] <+jcombos> Talk to you later.
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Angus Abranson (Chronicle City) Q&A Log

[19:01] <~Dan> Okay! Angus, when you're ready, please introduce yourself and your company. :)
[19:02] <+AngusA> Hi, I'm Angus Abranson and founder of Chronicle City, a new games company I set up after leaving Cubicle 7 at the end of last year.
[19:02] <+AngusA> Previously I founded Cubicle 7 back in 2003 with Dave Allsop (SLA Industries creator and also an amazing artist - having worked on lots of Magic The Gathering, D&D, Paizo, etc products)
[19:04] <~Dan> (Oh, and please give us a "(done)" when you're ready to move on. :) )
[19:04] <+AngusA> and eventually took the company fulltime in 2009 alongside Dominic McDowall-Thomas, with the financial backing of Rebellion. We went fulltime primarily due to having acquired the RPG licenses for Doctor Who and Lord of the Rings.
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[19:04] <+AngusA> Prior to that I worked at Leisure Games, a big games store in London (England) either part-time or fulltime since the mid-80's.
[19:05] <+AngusA> I also worked on a number of British RPG magazines in various capacities including assistant editor. The likes of Valkyrie (which we launched at Gen Con back in 1994), Roleplayer Independent and RPI.
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[19:06] <+PantheonPrez> I crashed out suddenly - sorry!
[19:06] <~Dan> (No problem!)
[19:06] <+AngusA> My first games company was formed with some friends back in the early 90's which published a set of Cyberpunk Miniature Skirmish rules called ;Dark Winter'. The company was called Network X and even though we sold about 2000 copies at the time it was a very small and unknown game so I'd be surprised if anyone here had heard of it (let alone had a copy).
[19:07] <+AngusA> The fact we sold 2000 back then and it was an 'unheard of game' says something about how sales figures have changed over the last 20 years.
[19:07] <+AngusA> (done)
[19:07] <+Snake_Eyes> is Dark Winter still available?
[19:08] <+AngusA> No, Dark Winter went out of print probably around 1995.
[19:08] <+Snake_Eyes> do you release any of your out of date products as pdf?
[19:08] <+AngusA> I've maybe seen 6 or so second hand copies floating around in the last 15 years. Of which I brought two as the sole copy I had was falling apart.
[19:09] <~Dan> What was the reason for leaving Cubicle 7? (Sorry if that's common knowledge.)
[19:09] <+AngusA> If we had a catalog of out of print products then we'd certainly look at releasing them in PDF - if we had the files.
[19:09] <+AngusA> With SLA Industries we actually paid for high quality electronic scans of the books so we could convert them to PDF.
[19:10] <+AngusA> Many of the original files had vanished over time (SLA journeyed from Nightfall Games to Wizards of the Coast to Hogshead Publishing, back to Nightfall then to Cubicle 7 and now back to Nightfall again)
[19:11] <+AngusA> The original files for the early books went walkabout at somepoint on their journey whcih caused issues in reprinting the books or making them available as PDF.
[19:11] <+AngusA> I sent a set of my own copies to a company that pulled them apart, scanned them, and then rebound my copies and sent them back to me along with the digitised versions.
[19:11] <+Snake_Eyes> ah okay, okay, sounds like youve done a lot over the decade, was just thinking it is nice to read old rpgs, esp skirmish rules for minis
[19:12] <+AngusA> Those versions are avaialble as PDFs now through Nightfall Games.
[19:12] <+Snake_Eyes> oh thx
[19:12] <+AngusA> Hardly anyone worked with PDF files back in the 90's so many older games are not in compatible formats, which does cause issues.
[19:12] <~Dan> That's a shame.
[19:13] <+AngusA> When RPGNow/DriveThru took on older companies such as Fantasy Games Unlimited they had to scan the books to create the PDFs from them.
[19:14] <+AngusA> In regards to Dark Winter, it was something I quite fancied polishing up, expanding and re-releasing but Network X was run by four of us and we all lost touch with one another so it was impossible to move forward without 100% consent from all involved.
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[19:14] <~Dan> (Howdy, JP!)
[19:14] <+AngusA> Plus I know one of the guys didn;t want anything to do with games any more and wanted to let the game be part of the past.
[19:14] <+Snake_Eyes> ah i see how that could be a problem
[19:14] <+JP> (Heya!)
[19:15] <~Dan> (JP: Q&A with Angus Abranson!)
[19:15] <+AngusA> There are a number of good games which probably won;t see the light of day again due to multi-person ownership and all parties having to agree on licensing/re-issues.
[19:15] <+Snake_Eyes> AngusA, what were the first games you played? and what started you writing rp?
[19:16] <+AngusA> It's one of the problems when you have multiple authors and shared ownership.
[19:16] <~Dan> Yeah. That's the situation with Nexus: the Infinite City, which was (IIRC) the first game Robin D. Laws co-wrote.
[19:16] <~Dan> But Jose Garcia, the other author, apparently vanished.
[19:16] <+AngusA> The first game I played was AD&D back in 1984. I'd just moved to America and my cousins played.
[19:17] <+Snake_Eyes> ^but any mechanisms are not copywrite, only the setting, right?
[19:17] <+AngusA> On my first day in the States they took me out shooting, on the second day they introduced me to AD&D.
[19:18] <+AngusA> I'd previously played a lot of the Fighting Fantasy (Choose Your Own Adventure style) books so took to AD&D straight away and loved it.
[19:18] <+AngusA> -Mechanics aren't copywritable but the way you word them is covered. So you'd have to explain them using different language.
[19:19] <+AngusA> Very easily done. Settings are obviously an issue.
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[19:19] <+SnakeEyes> (sry interwebz)
[19:19] <~Dan> (Did you see my Cubicle7 question earlier, Angus?)
[19:19] <+AngusA> Just scrolled up and saw it, thanks.
[19:20] <+AngusA> We never actually gave any reasons for my leaving the company.
[19:21] <~Dan> If that's a touchy issue, I understand.
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[19:21] <+AngusA> I think there were a number of reasons surrounding it so you wouldn't be able to pin a single reason down.
[19:22] * ~Dan nods
[19:22] <+AngusA> Musical differences is an oft used explanation ;)
[19:22] <~Dan> No problem. :)
[19:22] <+AngusA> Dom and myself are still friends and still talk regularly. He's supposed to be coming over for a games night at some point as we still live pretty close to each other.
[19:23] <+AngusA> So it was all very amicable. I've also not got a bad word for the guys who run Rebellion who own Cubicle 7.
[19:23] <~Dan> I know it's got to be hard to get a game published and have it be a success. How hard has it been becoming a successful game publisher?
[19:23] <~Dan> Good to hear, re: amicable. :)
[19:24] <+AngusA> I don;t think there is a set formula for being a successful publisher. There's also a lot of wiggle room in regards to what a successful publisher is. It will mean different things to different people.
[19:24] <+Midwoka> (Angus left the company due to their new policy of "stealing puppies and turning them into cigarettes")
[19:25] <~Dan> How do you even get started?
[19:25] <~Dan> (Heehee. Hi, Middy. :) )
[19:25] <+AngusA> Not losing money would be a good definition for some, making money to others, getting your books in front of people and have them play it to others.
[19:26] <~Dan> The industry being what it is, I personally would consider "being able to make a living at it" a big success.
[19:26] <+AngusA> I was in a conversation earlier where 'having a dedicated fanbase' was used as a success story - even if the company was selling very few copies.
[19:26] * ~Dan nods
[19:26] <+AngusA> It certainly means different things to different people.
[19:26] <~Dan> Sure.
[19:26] <+AngusA> Being able to make a living in the RPG industry is hard, but not impossible.
[19:26] <+SnakeEyes> do you use kickstarter or similar?
[19:26] <~Dan> Would it be safe to say that you're "living the dream"? :)
[19:27] <+AngusA> I'm sure pretty much everyone who works in the industry does it for the love as opposed to the riches and fame that comes with it.
[19:27] <~Dan> Sure.
[19:27] <+AngusA> I'd be very surprised if RPG fulltimers couldn;t be making more money doing a different job, and also have a lot more free time to boot.
[19:27] * ~Dan nods
[19:28] <~Dan> Doing what you love and making a living at it is exactly what I meant by "living the dream". :)
[19:28] <+AngusA> But it's a fantastic industry with fantastic people. It's very creative, and I think that draws a lot of people to it.
[19:28] <+AngusA> The creativity is addictive. You want more.
[19:29] <+AngusA> Being able to be part of a process that creates games that people will enjoy, play and create memories and friendships out of is fantastic.
[19:29] <+AngusA> I've always enjoyed working in jobs that people will have fun out of at the end of the day.
[19:29] <+AngusA> I used to DJ and the buzz came from seeing people dancing and having fun.
[19:29] <+AngusA> There was nothing really like it.
[19:30] <~Dan> So here's where I reveal the depth of my ignorance: How do you interact with the authors in a business sense?
[19:30] <~Dan> What's a "day at the office" for you?
[19:30] <+AngusA> I ran Dragonmeet for 12 years (a London based convention we started in 1999 which I ran up to last year) and walking around the show seeing people enjoying themselves made the sleepless nights and stress worth it.
[19:31] <+AngusA> A typical day at the office starts with a full intray and usually ends with an even bigger one after 8-16 of trying to clear it :p
[19:31] <+AngusA> 8-16 hours
[19:32] <~Dan> Heh. :)
[19:32] <+AngusA> Seriously though, a lot of the day is spent on doing admin work and also communicating with authors, companies, customers and brainstorming ideas.
[19:33] <+AngusA> Most of my time at the moment has been talking to the various companies I already work with to prep their print files, etc, and sort out release schedules.
[19:33] <~Dan> Do authors come to you asking to be published? Do you go looking for talent? Some of both?
[19:33] <+AngusA> Also talking to prospective new clients, and also to a number of companies about licenses.
[19:33] <+AngusA> Kickstarter has also been a fairly big thread in my intray at present too.
[19:34] <+AngusA> It's a bit of both. I do get quite a few companies contacting me about publishing but if I also contact some authors/companies myself.
[19:35] <+AngusA> If I come across a game that I like the look of, or that intrigues me, then I will contact the company if I can't see that they are in retail or distributor channels to see if there is any interest.
[19:35] <+AngusA> I get a lot more people/companies contacting me about their games which is great as I obviously can't see everything.
[19:36] <+AngusA> I love discovering new games and concepts.
[19:42] <~Dan> That has to be gratifying. :)
[19:42] <+AngusA> It was one of the things I most loved about working in retail. Seeing the new ideas and settings every new releases day.
[19:42] <+Silverlion> Is there anything you particularly look for?
[19:43] <+AngusA> It is certainly very nice to be contacted about games, and I'm always open to talk about the games and try and help even if it's not something we'll end up publishing through Chronicle City.
[19:43] <+AngusA> Primarily, for a new RPG, it's the ideas and setting.
[19:43] <+AngusA> It's very important for the concept to grab me.
[19:43] <+SnakeEyes> what rpg / board games do you play at the office?
[19:44] <+AngusA> We do a lot more board and card gaming at present than RPGing.
[19:44] <+AngusA> Recently we've been playtesting a lot of board and card game designs.
[19:45] <+AngusA> But for the 'in publications' board/card games we're big fans of games such as Dominion, Ticket to Ride, Setters, Takenoko, and the Eurostyle of game.
[19:45] <+AngusA> I also really enjoy the more involved games such as Civilisation and Diplomacy - but rarely get to play them due to the length of time and amount of people you really need.
[19:46] <+Silverlion> Do you think the quality of componants in  Eurogames can be useful for RPG's? (I.e Like Warhammer 3E?)
[19:46] <~Dan> (brb)
[19:46] <+AngusA> RPG-wise the one I've been playing the most this year is probably Airship Pirates which we co-published when I was at Cubicle 7 with Cakebread & Walton and Abney Park.
[19:47] <+AngusA> I also still manage to play a bit of Traveller every now and again.
[19:47] <+AngusA> I also playtested the new Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition at a convention over the summer - and loved the changes they've made.
[19:48] <+AngusA> Call of Cthulhu is probably my #1 favourite RPG - which was really why I started the Cthulhu Britannica line at C7 and also used BRP for The Laundry.
[19:48] <+AngusA> re: quality of components.
[19:48] <+SnakeEyes> what is the best single piece of advice to give an aspiring writer of rpgs?
[19:48] <~Dan> (back)
[19:49] <+AngusA> The components of Eurostyle boardgames are very good, but I think you would start blurring the lines between having a RPG or a character driven board game if you brought in too many components.
[19:50] <+Silverlion> Interesitngly said.
[19:50] <+AngusA> I think there is a good call for a RPG-like board game to act a bit like a stepping stone into the actual RPG hobby. A bit like the old Heroquest game that Milton Bradley released in the early 90's.
[19:51] <+AngusA> I was always amazed that Hasbro/WotC didn't release a new edition of Heroquest using a stripped down d20 rules set during the initial boom.
[19:51] <+Silverlion> That or "Dungeon!"
[19:51] <+SnakeEyes> i think there are some dnd board games^
[19:52] <+Silverlion> Now, put out through a second company, which likely means less money.
[19:52] <+AngusA> The ease of publishing adventures and expansions for the game would have been great and it would also act as a big time saver for DMs if they hadn't been able to prepare anything or as a quick gap-filler between games.
[19:52] <+Silverlion> What are you working on now?
[19:53] <+AngusA> You could ease new players in, as they would be more familiar with the board game concept, have the characters go through the first 3 or 4 levels and then introduce an 'Advanced' version in a book form that would allow them to create there own characters, adventrues, etc without level limitations. They could even play without the board!
[19:53] <+AngusA> Dungeon is coming back out through WotC later this year.
[19:53] <+AngusA> It has a great price point too so I think it should do very well./
[19:54] <+AngusA> A lot of my time is spent on assisting the various companies I'm working with but I am managing a bit of my own writing and development work.
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[19:54] <~Dan> (Howdy, CC!)
[19:55] <+AngusA> I'm also talking to a few companies about possible 'licenses' which takes a fair amount of planning for the pitches, etc.
[19:57] <~Dan> This may be an odd question, but to what extent to you see games you publish as "one of yours"? Granted, you aren't the author, but you're helping them see the light of day. Do you feel like a "proud poppa"?
[19:57] <+AngusA> Homegrown Chronicle City titles - or atleast the ones I can talk about, although they are in various states of development/writing - include Project Victoria (a Victorian era superpowered game), Genesis Descent (a cyberpunk techno-thriller) and a Pathfinder project I'm very eager to see get off the ground as soon as possible ;p
[19:57] <+AngusA> I also started writing out some notes for a new game which would definitely fall into the 'indie' category.
[19:58] <+AngusA> But I've no idea if that will go anywhere as yet.
[19:58] <+AngusA> Games that I help develop or do concept work on I definitely have a close relationship to.
[19:59] <~Dan> Project Victoria? How much will that resemble Kerebus Club?
[20:00] <+AngusA> The games we publish on behalf of other companies I'm certainly proud of and am very pleased when they get recognition. I'm first and foremost a gamer and want to see people playing games and being intorduced to new games.
[20:00] <+AngusA> Being able to be part of that process is great, and I love helping other companies reach a wider audience.
[20:01] <+AngusA> The backgrounds are very different between Kerberos Club and Project Victoria.
[20:01] <+AngusA> Project Victoria was actually one of the first games I started working on when I set up Cubicle 7 back around 2003.
[20:01] <~Dan> Oh, you're the author?
[20:02] <+AngusA> At the time I was worried it was going to be close to Victoriana - which another company called Heresy Gaming was about to release.
[20:03] <+AngusA> Yes, I started designing and writing Project Victoria and recruited some friends at the time to help (including Andrew Peregrine who ended up as the line developer and principle writer of Victoriana 2nd Edition after I brought Heresy Gaming in 2005).
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[20:03] <+AngusA> As it turned out Victoriana was a very different concept to Project Victoria, but when I brought Heresy Gaming we put Project Victoria on the back burner.
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[20:05] <+AngusA> I briefly looked at it again when we went fulltime with Cubicle 7 but we had a lot of games on our books that we were developing by then (Doctor Who, The One Ring, Laundry, Starblazer Adventures, etc) plus of course already had one Victorian era game in Victoriana 2nd Edition and were also working with Arc Dream who were going to release Kerberos Club.
[20:05] <+AngusA> So it was shelved again, and I unearthed it and started to dust in down earlier this year to review it again.
[20:06] <+AngusA> (done)
[20:06] <~Dan> Does it have its own system?
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[20:07] <+AngusA> When we first started working on it we were playing around with either using a unique system or the old FASERIP system that TSR's Marvel RPG from the 1980's used.
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[20:08] <+Silverlion> You should have used that :D
[20:08] <~Dan> (Howdy, Gemini!)
[20:08] <+Silverlion> :D
[20:08] <+AngusA> I even spoke to WotC about licensing the system (I think I ended up actually talking to Jeff Grubb!)
[20:08] <+AngusA> but WotC weren't interested in licensing any other system than d20 at the time.
[20:09] <+Gemini> What system?
[20:09] <+AngusA> Then Phil Reed later retro cloned the system to the Four Color System.
[20:09] <+AngusA> The old TSR Marvel FASERIP
[20:09] <+Silverlion> MSH/Faserip.
[20:10] <+Gemini> Ahhh, I don't know anything about it lol
[20:10] <+AngusA> I'm still considering using the system, or a very close variant of it, for Project Victoria but no firm decisions have been made.
[20:11] <~Dan> How gritty/gung-ho is the setting?
[20:11] <+AngusA> Project Victoria might not even happen, lots of things on and it is a pet project (which I need to find more time to dedicate too!)
[20:11] <+Silverlion> Someday I'll get my Fantasy/D&D/Police Procuderal/Swat game using a version of it mate...
[20:12] <+AngusA> The setting is fairly gritty. It's certainly not 'costumed heroes in a Victorian setting'.
[20:12] <~Dan> How would you describe it?
[20:12] <+AngusA> In a society that is very precious about class and social standing just because you may happen to have a super power does not mean that you're welcome in polite society.
[20:16] <+AngusA> You'd have to had been born in the upper class to be so.
[20:16] <+Silverlion> Kerberos Club did that as well. Might be interesting to see a game that busts the classism, through the setting "variation?
[20:16] <+Silverlion> Anyway, whats the high point--short elevator pitch version of what it will be aimed to do?
[20:17] <+AngusA> For most who developed powers, who were not of noble birth, the choice would pretty much boil down to either entering the employ of a gentleman (and thus be part of his entourage - but don;t expect to be able to drink in the same lounge at the 'club').
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[20:18] <+AngusA> or go into the employ of the local underworld boss - which is more likely if you were born in the street as they're the ones who would protect you against the establishment/coppers/etc
[20:19] <~Dan> Is this a "single-source" supers setting, or an "anything goes" one?
[20:19] <+Gemini> Why don't the super-commoners band against the noble class?
[20:20] <~Dan> (Question pause while Angus catches up. :) )
[20:21] <+AngusA> There is a background story as to why superpowers only started appearing in the mid-19th century
[20:21] <+AngusA> which ties into the Great Exhibition and Prince Albert.
[20:22] <+AngusA> There was a definite plan on Project Victoria being the first of three settings.
[20:22] <+AngusA> Each moving the world forward a number of decades.
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[20:22] <+AngusA> Each revealing more of the origin story.
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[20:23] <~Dan> So a pulp/Golden Age setting at some point?
[20:23] <+Silverlion> Hrms.
[20:23] <+Silverlion> I think I shall be inspired.
[20:23] <~Dan> Welcome, Guest21462! You can set a nick with the /nick command.
[20:23] <+AngusA> In answer to Gemini's question - the same reason why commoners didn't rise up against the noble classes in real life.
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[20:24] <~Dan> Ah. Got me again, Snake. :)
[20:24] <+Snake_Eyes> (sry Dan, interwebz again! grr)
[20:24] <+Gemini> hmm. ok
[20:24] <+Silverlion> I see what your getting at Gemini.
[20:24] <+AngusA> There are supers (I had called them Prometheans in the original text) amongst the middle and upper classes too - and they also have others of lower classes in their employ.
[20:24] <+Silverlion> So what would the future of this world look like?
[20:24] <+AngusA> There are also a number in the military.
[20:25] <+AngusA> In some places there will be unrest, but generally that is put down quite quickly.
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[20:25] <~Dan> Are there any "weird" aspects to the setting beyond the supers?
[20:26] <+AngusA> Also most of the 'commoner' Prometheans will be in the employ (willingly or otherwise) or local crime lords whom have their own agendas - which aren't usually political nor ones they particular want to draw attention of the 'establishment' to.
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[20:28] <+AngusA> The Prometheans are largely a British phenomena - not exclusively, but largely, due to the background events surrounding The Great Exhibition of 1851.
[20:29] <+AngusA> This obviously over balanced things in the favour of The Empire.
[20:30] <~Dan> Well, to be more specific, is there anything supernatural/sci-fi about the setting other than superhumans? Is there a lost world with dinos or bug-eyed Martians or vampires?
[20:30] <+AngusA> But certain countries, Prussia in particular, countered this with a number of major developments in technology - most notably in their military aspects.
[20:30] <+Silverlion> So the rest of the world will have to play catch u[
[20:30] <+AngusA> Prussia has flying fortresses (air battleships)
[20:30] <+AngusA> amongst other things.
[20:31] <+AngusA> NO vampires, or martians.
[20:31] <~Dan> But steampunk tech, it seems?
[20:31] <+AngusA> Who knows what resides in the heart of Africa or at the Northern/Southern poles.
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[20:32] <+AngusA> A lot of the world is still waiting to be explored in the 1870's which is where the game is largely set (Second generation Prometheans for the main)
[20:33] <+AngusA> There was certainly an element of 'steampunk' in some aspects of the game, although not as blatant as in many others. It was more industrial tech or super-science.
[20:34] <+AngusA> (done)
[20:34] <~Dan> What were the other games you mentioned of yours?
[20:35] <+AngusA> Genesis Descent, which was another title that was in development whilst I was at Cubicle 7 but suffered delays because of everything else that was happening there.
[20:36] <~Dan> What's it about?
[20:36] <+AngusA> It moved with me when I left and I've done a bit more work on it this year and am rebuilding the structures so I can pass it along to a team to help flesh it out and write it all up properly.
[20:37] <+AngusA> It's a dark future techno-thriller cyberpunk campaign.
[20:38] <+AngusA> Life on Earth in 2054 is tough for many. Climate change and natural disasters have not only torn many from their usual way of life, but have also prompted conflict over scarce resources such as water in some areas. Meanwhile, technology brings more and more comfort to the privileged. Political and civil unrest, as well as outright war in some areas, has seen
[20:38] <+AngusA> the geo-political landscape change. The empires of the late 20th and early 21st centuries are falling as new countries take advantage of the upheaval to assert their dominance. Amongst this turmoil, corporations have seized the initiative. In many areas, where governments don’t have the resources or stability to protect, treat or feed their citizens,
[20:39] <+AngusA> corporations are the sole providers of law and infrastructure. America may have been the first country to send a man to the Moon, but it was a corporation that sent the first man to Mars.
[20:39] <~Dan> (brb -- please continue)
[20:39] <+AngusA> Genesis Descent has three levels of play: Street, Company and Agent. Allowing players and Gamemasters to tailor the type of campaign they wish to play. From the ghettos and organized crime of shattered Los Angeles or London, through the halls of corporate-controlled states and their near orbit control centres, to UNIS Agents working tirelessly to assist
[20:39] <+AngusA> governments and keep corporate power in check.  Genesis Descent is a dark, stark techno-thriller near-future setting where the world is falling apart as mankind reaches out to claim the stars…
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[20:42] <+AngusA> I wanted to create a dark futuristic setting that could possibly come true, with a few liberties taken for artistic effect.
[20:43] <~Dan> (back)
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[20:44] <~Dan> No "weird" aspects to that one, I take it? Straight cyberpunk?
[20:44] <+AngusA> Looking at current science trends, etc. It's actually pretty hard as science and technology is moving so quickly these days that the world of 2054 will be a very different place to the one we live in now - even though much of the landscape will be the same.
[20:44] <~Dan> (Welcome to #rpgnet, TR!)
[20:45] <+AngusA> If you look round today we still have buildings from 50 years ago, we still have cars that would be easily identified by a 1960's citizen, but it's technology that has stormed ahead.
[20:45] <+AngusA> We've gone from computers being the size of rooms when I was a kid to iPads.
[20:46] <+AngusA> The last fifty years has changed so much of the world in so many ways.
[20:46] <~Dan> Absolutely.
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[20:46] <+AngusA> It's a balancing act of bringing those changes in to a game that is still familiar for todays players but also completely alien in other aspects.
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[20:47] <+AngusA> The thing is, with some of the scientific advances that could actually happen, we wouldn't actually believe them if we put them in a 'realistic' futuristic game.
[20:47] <+ReaperWolf> Hey all just jumped in to see how this thing works.
[20:47] <+AngusA> So we have to tailor the setting to fall in line a little to what 2012 man would still find believable without the game seeming too futuristic or silly.
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[20:48] <+AngusA> (done)
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[20:48] <~Dan> Welcome, ReaperWolf! Just doing a Q&A with Angus Abranson. #rpnet 2 is open for general chat. :)
[20:48] <~Dan> That's very true, Angus. I've often thought that the more "realistic" sci-fi movies like Aliens were actually way too conservative in their tech innovations.
[20:48] <~Dan> (#rpgnet2, rather, ReaperWolf)
[20:48] <+AngusA> I've been a subscriber to New Scientist magazine for over ten years now and love it as a resource for setting and fiction ideas.
[20:49] <+AngusA> A lot of the things that are in development, or being experimented with, would easily be thought of as fiction if you read them in a novel.
[20:49] <+AngusA> It's a fantastic source of ideas.
[20:49] <~Dan> Let's see... In the time we have left, is there anything else you'd like to cover, Angus? Anything we haven't brought up?
[20:49] <+AngusA> I probably don't understand a tenth of it, but it gets the gears in my brain churning and throwing up interesting ideas :p
[20:49] <~Dan> Heh. :)
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[20:50] <+AngusA> I'm happy. I was here to chat about whatever you guys fancied :)
[20:50] <+AngusA> Do you, or anyone else, have any quesions about anything?
[20:50] <+Snake_Eyes> what is your favorite dungeons and dragons module AngusA?
[20:50] <+AngusA> hmm.... that's tricky as I really liked a lot of the old classic ones.
[20:50] <+AngusA> Temple of Elemental Evil, the Giants and Slavelords series, etc.
[20:50] <+Snake_Eyes> :) groovy
[20:50] <+AngusA> I have actually played the original Ravenloft (I6?) a number of times - and in different systems/settings too.
[20:50] <+ReaperWolf> Maybe this was already covered but I joined late but what put DungeonSlayers on your radar?
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[20:51] <+AngusA> We even played Ravenloft using a super team and FASERIP - and were still defeated!
[20:51] <+Silverlion> I have played and run Ravenloft a dozen times.
[20:51] <~Dan> Heh. :)
[20:51] <+Snake_Eyes> i6 is ravenloft i10 is gryphon hill, correct
[20:51] <+Silverlion> I believe so.
[20:52] <+AngusA> I came across Dungeonslayers in 2010 I think when Uhrwerk Verlag published the German edition. I regularly attend Spiel in Essen, Germany, every year (Spiel is a massive games show which attracts @ 150,000 people!)
[20:52] <+AngusA> I knew Patric (the owner of Uhrwerk) and he gave me a copy of the game to have a look at.
[20:53] <+AngusA> Originally it was going to be translated and published by another company but when I started Chronicle City Patric asked if I wanted to do it, which I did :)
[20:54] <+AngusA> The PDF is completely free to download ((Link: http://www.dungeonslayers.com/?page_id=228)http://www.dungeonslayers.com/?page_id=228) to everyone and has gone down very well
[20:54] <+Snake_Eyes> ty for the link
[20:54] <+AngusA> Having the PDF available for free didn;t hurt the German sales, ehich have been very good, and I'm interested to see how the printed edition sells in English.
[20:55] <~Dan> I took a look at it, but something bugged me about the system... I think it was weapons adding to the attack roll, maybe?
[20:55] <+AngusA> Certainly having the core rules for both Eclipse Phase and Pathfinder available free online didn't harm either of those books, so fingers crossed.
[20:56] <~Dan> Huh. I didn't realize Pathfinder was free online.
[20:56] <+Snoof> The SRD is, I believe.
[20:57] <+AngusA> The German team are working on a post-apocalyptic version called Gammaslayers, but I don;t expect to see that (even in German) for a year or so.
[20:57] <+ReaperWolf> And if rumors are true StarSlayers sci fi too.
[20:57] <+AngusA> They do have a Gammaslayer Facebook page (all in German) : (Link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gammaslayers/228542307213487)http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gammaslayers/228542307213487
[20:57] <~Dan> Angus, you're free to hang out as long as you like, but before it gets any later, I'd just like to thank you for stopping by (and staying up so late!) to talk to us!
[20:58] <+AngusA> Thanks for having me.
[20:58] <~Dan> I'll get the log posted to my blog shortly and will send you a link when it's up.
[20:58] <+AngusA> If anyone wants to stay in touch Chronicle City is on Facebook at (Link: http://www.facebook.com/chroniclecity)http://www.facebook.com/chroniclecity