From The Desktop: My Final Stance on the OSR Debate

My Final Stance on the OSR Debate

As many might well remember, this whole recent debate started with me distancing myself in a public statement from the OSR Movement, here.

No less than 30 minutes later, James Raggi posted this here.

The interrelated issue was this.  It is an honor issue with some of us TSR alumni, meaning, we stand by defending to the core our traditions which we are steeped in from being swept away, or minimalized, or compared to others with such broad categorizations.  Jim Raggi's reactions are here and here to Tim Kask's rebuttal and my supporting views.

For the record, here are my final thoughts on what I believe I have experienced about the OSR, its publications and its present and future.  And I say this not as the very first publisher to have released a product in 2006 to start this whole ball rolling, but as one who just continued rolling the ball that had been started so long ago, and in that matter, once again with the help of myself in 1973/74.  That is to say, that my observations are based on inforned inquiry that no other can equal by comparison as the inquiry starts at two milestone points and has contined to this very moment.

I am not part of the OSR, I never was and will never be.  For that natter, when OSRIC was first to be released the fellows in charge of that came to me and wanted me to participate with that.  I cordially delcined.  The whole issue of OSRIC's potential and merits were discussed in many threads on Dragonsfoot; some saw it as a good thing, others saw it as not needed.  I was among those who saw it as not needed.  And do note, if there was anyone best positioned to produce a D&D clone then it was myself.  But further note:  I have not done so to date.  Many asked why, and even more wanted me to do so, but I wouldn't.  I have explained my reasons to Allan Grohe and to others, and they are not as simple as "Well, we have the books already," as many might assume.  But here are the reasons as I know them and as they have grown and come better into focus through watching the "Clone Wars" (joke intended) rise over a short space of 4 years.

Very simply the reasons are:  I did not want to relive the past and I do not want to relive the past now.  I am a professional game designer. I want to design new things; and I have gone on record more than once in stating that here and elsewhere.  This has perhaps to do with my exposure to so many games and designs in my life, including RPGs.  Within that context I want these designs to reach out as examples for all as to what they can aspire to, just as Empire of the Petal Throne or D&D did through their publication.  This is my aspiration and no other.  I feel that if one strives for the best that the money will come, so one need not worry about that.  Setting such examples also raises the bar of the industry and brings in new players and in the case of RPGs, new DMs as well.  Bringing them in, again, and as I've stated so many times here and elsewhere, does not mean keeping them engrossed and participating--only good product and a sustained comittment to grow those who enter into to the hobby accomplishes that.

I do not feel that the OSR overall and as a group of companies is striving for that in whole.  And here is  my main reason for that:  There are too many clones of the rules.  IMO as a designer on one hand,  as a publisher on the other, and as a player on yet another, there are puzzles, consequences and obstacles galore with this now real development.  I could make a long list of the salient ones, but I am not here to lambast or to consult, but here's a big one out of the bunch from my "designer's" side:  all of the time spent with designing these iterations could have instead been given to producing a really rock-hard innovative product that captured the attention of the industry at large (like D&D and EPT did) or even could have earned a CRA at Origins, perhaps; it might have produced such a resulting wave of exposure to have grown the industry in a proportion it had never seen to date. Instead, time and effort was given over to various iterations which are fine as is, but really accomplish the same thing while directing attetion over and over again to a circluar motion.  This is a great disappointment to me, but when I thought about it, not unforseen.  Some of us got the idea, but unfortunately most did not.  Up and coming designers were empowered to create afresh, but instead imitated time and again.  This is fine if that is what you want to do, but even D&D finally had its weaknesses and they began to show when compared to many other product lines (such as Chaosium's).  Its strength was in the overall bones of the matter, but its life is, and has always been, what you add to those bones.  And independant companies and designers cannot nurture that strength to life without products which innovate and at the same time set examples for new waves of people to come who will be in part our indsutry's future game designers.

IMO, most everyone is playing it safe.  Was D&D safe when first projected as a product idea?  Heavans no.  It was out there.  People lambasted it, marginalized it and said it would never for too long occupy a serious gamer's shelf.  We heard it all.  Reduplicating it ad infinitum is a fine send up, but what really is telling is how much innovative flesh is added to it and through that how much punch such products deliver in a market now becoming saturated with sameness.  IOW, is this a short term "Can I do the same"? proposition or a long term, "I see what I have to do"?  Unfortunately, my gut feeeling says the former, though time will tell.

As for the rest, it has taken its course. It is not about US and THEM, it is as I said at JtL's Blog: it is about the ideology of "I".  As for being (in or part or with or through) the OSR by default, I reject that for creative and philosophical reasons.

(inserted transcript edited at request of original poster)


As a further step to point to the ridiculousness of this postulate, I recently phoned an old group of gamers I have been geographically removed from for years.  They still play AD&D with some house rules like many do.  After chit-chatting about old times, I got down to the crux of the matter:  In his estimation, I asked my friend, over the years how many players were still playing and how many had they brought into their games (and board games as well, as they are gamers, not just RPGers).  The groups varied from 4-7 over the years with 5 being a good average.  They estimated that in their years of play (and this is an isolated area of Wisconsin) that they had had as many as ten new players exposed to the game and out of those 2 still represented new full time players and some inactive and/or part time, possible players.  I asked him (I will call him B.) if they had ever heard of the OSR?  My friend said exactly this:  "What?" I explained; and he admitted that they had been doing just fine without it, but wished it luck.


And that's what I'm doing...

GUEST EDITORIAL by Timothy Kask UPDATED

Blog Administrator Note:  Most of you will be familiar with Tim Kask.  There is not enough good I can say about his overall contributions to the role-playing industry and specifically to the Dungeons & Dragons game.  His incisive commentary is always aimed at those whose foot will wear the shoe...   Tim maintains a Q & A forum at the ever popular Dragonsfoot and he is constantly busy with many other and varied game industry related activities.

Guest Editorial


There once was a very small, insignificant little man who looked upon a great edifice of imaginative design and construction, unlike anything ever built before. This little man of no training or skill of his own felt that the magnificent construction was not finished. He took it upon himself to sneak up the side of the marvel of design and add a flagpole to the very top. As he perched upon the very pinnacle of another’s innovative achievement, looking out upon vistas never even contemplated before, he exulted to himself that his was the great achievement, for was the flagpole not the highest structure in the land? Old Delusio fable.

If there is one thing that the Internet has taught us, it is that any delusional narcissist can find an audience for his rantings. You need no credentials to proclaim yourself an expert, you need no expertise; apparently, all you need is too much time on your hands, an agenda and a very wide streak of “I love me.”

Another thing that the Web has taught us is the viral speed at which labels and classifications can spread; like viruses, the mutations along the way can be extreme.

As an example, let me use the example of the phrase “Old School Revival.” (I have also seen references to “Old School Renaissance,” which is apparently much the same concept or “movement.”) What exactly does this mean? The more often I see the term, the more confused I get with the contexts in which it is used.

OSR (whichever phrase you prefer), is, on its surface, an oxymoron. For something to be “reborn” or revived, it must first be dead. The original spirit of D&D never died; it just was buried under all the crap that came out with editions after the second. A lot of us never bought into what has now become a video game with dice and paper. However, I digress…

The very vociferousness of the self-appointed denouncers goes against the very fabric of the game as we played it in the early and mid-seventies. These Inquisitors separate and divide; the real original style was: whatever works and produces fun is OK. It was about the fun. The DM outlines the plot components and the players fill in the details.

As far as I can tell, the individuals most closely involved in this movement to “be pure again” seem to number no more than several dozen. Oddly enough, a couple of the more opinionated, and to my eye more ignorant, seem to claim individual credit for the “movement,” as though they created and/or defined it.

Two particularly obnoxious individuals have set themselves up as some sort of Star Chamber in which they pass judgments that others are actually supposed to care about and heed. Aside from vociferous vituperation, what have they to offer?

Recently, a friend directed my attention to a blog from some “OSR evangelical type” that made some of the most ill-informed, unfounded and absolutely ludicrous statements that showed his total lack of understanding. One must assume that he simply ignored anything that did not fit with his sickeningly self-congratulatory belief that the OSR is now superior to the original TSR.

What does that even mean? As a charter member of the “original school,” I can certainly assert that this dogmatic, divisive “movement” has little or no idea of what it was like gaming back then. Their ignorance cannot be excused; enough of us from the founding years have certainly been very forthcoming on various websites over the past several years. (My thread on Dragonsfoot is 160+ pages and I have answered every question put to me in that venue.)

In recent years, I have been going to cons and running adventures of my creation. Virtually every group that had never played with me before were astounded that I could run a four hour adventure without ever cracking open a book. Not only that, I forbade books at the table. With one possible exception, every group I have exposed to my style of play, which has not changed rules for 30 years, had a hell of a lot of fun. At least, that is what they told me.

Fun is what it is all about. Someone once asked me what the measure of a good DM was. My response was that when your players show up every week to play, you are doing just fine.

What we produced was the product of our minds and hands, something that had never been done before, a totally new gaming experience. What we did fed our children, paid our utilities and made the mortgage payments every month. We did it by creating something brand new. We built a market in five short years that virtually dwarfed the hobby of five years previous. In addition, we did not do it with a government subsidy or grant.

Saying that current OSR material is superior to TSR material from 1977 (just a year I was there, nothing special about it) is like saying that today’s Mercedes-Benz is superior to the farm-cart-looking wagon that Herr Daimler motorized in the late 19th century. Well, duhhh. Look at all we’ve learned since then; it had better be better. Lots of people have the ability to improve; very few can create. That is why there is a distinction between a game designer and a game developer.

Unbelievably moronic statements have been made about Dragon Magazine to the effect that it was not like Knockspell and Fight On! (both of which I have written pieces for and one of which dedicated an issue to me and Dragon—for the purposes of full disclosure) magazines of today. Well, no shit, Sherlock. The Two you tout are fan magazines; Dragon was a gaming magazine. We were growing an industry and hobby that those responsible for such utter tripe now take for granted. Neither Gary nor I had the slightest interest in a house organ, one-trick-pony thing. We squared that between us before he hired me. Before D&D truly took off, we had already planned a gaming magazine. (Big dark secret: many of our early readers were not D&Ders; some became…)

Perhaps the most singularly asinine comment that I have had brought to my attention lately came from an obscure self-styled publisher from a small European country. He opined that TSR did not act like a book publisher. Once again: well, no shit Sherlock. We were not a book publisher, we were game publishers desperately trying to protect our IP so that we could continue feeding our families, paying the bills and having light to work by. (We put in some pretty prodigious hours in those early years.)

If not for the OGL, none of these blatherers and blowhards would have anything to crow about. (Man, what a mistake that was, eh?) (WotC and the Hasborg must have recurring nightmares about OGL, d20 and all of that debacle…good, the greedy soul-less bastards…)

Somewhere along the way, OSR seems to have lost its way. If it was a movement, what has it brought to the hobby? More hobbyists? Nope; in fact, it seems to be driving some to other rules systems. Better products? Nope, although there have been a few good ones like The Dungeon Alphabet that compare favorably. Innovation? Nope, again. Has anyone ever published something like Empire of the Petal Throne? Seems to me that the OSR is long on Nopes and decidedly devoid of any Yups.

Let this serve as notice: What I am writing and will soon be publishing is no way connected to, associated with or in any way part of anything that calls itself OSR. My stuff is me and my take on what can provide some fun role-playing.

There once was short man that convinced a giant to let him stand upon his shoulders so that he might better see a parade. So intoxicated did the short man become with the view and perspectives revealed up on the giant’s shoulders that he grew full of himself, forgetting that without those shoulders, he would have seen nothing at all. Another old Delusio fable

****UPDATE JULY 12 FOLLOWS****

Note:  Tim's Response to the Initial Serious Inquiries

I really did not want to name names; I was citing a couple of recent items as a metaphor for, or example of, what I see as a bizarre schism in our hobby. Mr. Raggi (please note use of honorific, Mr. Raggi”) has successfully identified himself, and the publisher is the individual he quotes.

First, I did not "trumpet" my contributions to any publication; I listed them in the interest of full disclosure. (If Time-Warner lists what stock it owns when doing a news story in TIME Magazine, I felt compelled to be no less honest. I guess that honesty isn’t always the best policy.) If I were of a mind to “trumpet”, I would have listed several others that I have written for, and the games I’ve edited and developed, etc., etc., etc., ad nauseum.

Second, I am not "bragging" about my DF thread; I simply used it as a reference to the fact that a great many of us "old salts" have spent considerable time answering questions the past few years, about everything from how decisions were made then to the way we play our own games now.

As a history teacher, revisionist history rubs me the wrong way. I find it particularly suspect when it is apparent that the revisionists have done little or no research in any attempt to understand context. Steve Marsh, Rob Kuntz, Frank Mentzer, Jim Ward, Zeb Cook and myself (and these are only the ones I know about personally) all have threads one or more places where we gladly answer these types of questions. I don’t preach on how to play the game; I preach about having fun playing.

As I try to get a handle on this whole self-identified movement, I see several people speaking of it as though it were their doing; so who is honest and who is not? I don’t really care, but it puzzles me. In reading various threads, looking at numerous websites and even viewing a couple of blogs, I find more negative didactism  (“that is wrong; this is right), dogmatism and dictatorial behavior evinced in the “Old School Revival” movement than was ever the case back where we all began. How did this happen? This also puzzles me.

Some of what I have read lately would be akin to my trumpeting the fact that I can print a prettier Bible than Gutenberg did, without once ceding the point that without the invention of movable type I would not have collected nearly 2500 fonts for my PC.

I chose to get involved in this because of what I perceived as an egregious failure to credit the foundation of what became this hobby that so many of us love. Mr. Raggi's self-congratulatory crowing about "better,” without once acknowledging that foundation upon which he built is disingenuous at best.

The fact that my (apparently) misguided attempt at full disclosure is twisted to become vainglory; the fact that I cite an example of readily available information is then distorted into “crowing,” what kind of game is this?

On yet another blog, my very credentials are being called into question, as well as my actual contributions to the game. Rob and I know the truth. I have long made the facts available whenever asked specifics; I have never felt the need to define “my” contribution to the game as we all felt that it was “our” game. Now I am having other thread posts cast in a light that does them discredit as they are being cited as an example of my supposed bias against AD&D as they are cited totally out of context. Why would I be biased against AD&D? I helped Gary Gygax define what became AD&D; it was my job. That I prefer to play my version of D&D (3 LBBs and 1st 3 Supp.), does not mean that I am biased. We all put a lot of stuff in the various rules for the purpose of allowing people to opt out of doing all the work. Sadly, we figured common sense would always rule; we were wrong.

I was not bragging about my DM abilities (I’ll let Rob do that); I was pointing out the apparent culture-shock induced by my “loosey-goosey” style as opposed to being bound by endless charts, tables and die rolls. We weren’t there to look at books, we were there to have an adventure.

I admit that I used a couple of harsh terms, and I publicly apologize to any individual that assumed that I was skewering them.

Now, it has been brought to my attention once more that Mr. Raggi has made overtures to contact me privately. No.

Public disputation should be settled in public.

Tim Kask
1st full time employee for TSR
Founding Editor of Dragon Magazine

NOTE THIS Related Link

Lessons to be Learned

Read this

Which influences every part of our culture, including game design.

Up on A Tree Stump #6: The "I" Factor

Please follow my programmed absurdity for a moment or two...

Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me!

Umm..

WE, WE, WE, WE, WE, WE, WE, WE!

Umm...

US, US, US...


Well, you follow, right?


It has come to my attention (again) that "I" and "my products" are being associated in some parts of the blogsphere with the OSR Movement.  Oh Dear.  That won't do. And let "me" explain why "I" am not "WE" or "US".

Start here.

Finished?  Thank you!  Now.  Please refer to the below extract from my Oxford dictionary:

movement |ˈmoōvmənt|noun
2 [often with adj. ] a group of people working together to advance their shared political, social, or artistic ideas : the labor movement.
 Let "US" examine this definition closely as it relates to "Me" dba Pied Piper Publishing.
1)  I despise politics.  I am very good at them, do not get me wrong.  I just hate their overall feel.  The best political movement in my estimation belongs to the ranks of those beheaded during the French Revolution.  So.  I am a very bad candidate for such things, really.  That disqualifies one.  Now...
2) Social agendas are often unclear and ill-defined; there are many which may or may not be worthy and I attach myself to some personally, but never in group mode.  As that relates to culture, geez, I helped create a socio-cultural phenomena which exists to this day, but quite unintentionally, the why of which relates to...
3)..."Artistic" ideas... Ooh!  We're on to something here!  Let me take out my Oxford, again, for some slight guidance in interpreting that...
artistic |ärˈtistik|adjectivehaving or revealing natural creative skill : my lack of artistic ability.• of, relating to, or characteristic of art or artistry : a denial of artistic freedom | her artistic temperament.
It appears that the examples all deal mainly with a singular case: "Her artistic,"my lack."  I would say that is generally good usage and appropriate for "Me" (and for other singular "Me"(s) which are not "Me") because of that.  I will also note, for the record, that I quit TSR Hobbies because of creative and company wrought political differences and pursued a free-lance writing career while educating myself.  This is covered in depth in my memoirs (which are making great headway), but suffice it for me to say now that I saw the vision changing which had been established from  early on and it assaulted my finer sensibilities and awakening tastes, then.  I knew what my choices were and I made them.  Further,  during an interview for Gateways Magazine #7 at DRAGONCON #1, the interviewer asked at the end of it if he could title the piece, having derived inspiration from the interview matter.  I said sure, shoot.  The title was, "The Maverick of Dungeons & Dragons."  I said, "Print it."  So for artistic measure alone, I consider myself quite singular and unique, not good for the corporate structure or flattened group think (unless one worked closely with Henry Ford in the day or in some more benign artistic companies today, by comparison, such as Tim Brown's outfit, for instance). 
So,  Where does that leave me?  Exactly where any true artist, IMO, should be.  Alone.  The OSR has its meritorious designers, but I am not here to cast a lot in favor or against them, and I hope the movement does likewise in exchange.  However, my pride at being a TSR alumnus is still with me, as I left the company but could not forsake the true friendships made and the times spent.  In fact, at DRAGONCON #1 EGG and I not only laughed and drank together for days, but we judged the final round together of the RPGA tourney I'd designed (Journey to the City of Brass).  He knew; and he appreciated everything we'd done together, and I did likewise. In keeping with my past association and camaraderie and the efforts of thousands who proceeded me at TSR, next up, a guest editorial...

The Dragon Approaches...

OOOH! Looky Here...

Here's a quick link and FAQ page.  Looks impressive!

Now, if we could only get someone to do "Werelords of East Bronx," we'd really have something!  ;)

Three Castles Award™ Guidelines Finished (UPDATED 1)

I was delayed by a very nasty bug which is going about, but I've recently finished the submission guidelines and forms for the 3C Award!

Doug Rhea and I will now go over same before making them available.

UPDATE 1:  Doug and I had email exchanges and a phone call that ironed out some minor details with the submission guidelines. They will be posted in PDF form tomorrow or the next day at NTRPGCON's site and I will link to that download with the next UPDATE.  

Final Reflections on NTRPGCon2

[I meant to post this earlier, but I have been suffering from a terrible bout with the flu and have been getting lots of rest over the last two weeks.]

My final thoughts are about many of the wonderful people I got to chat and game with.

My roommates were Dennis Sustare and Paul Jaquays.  We never saw each other in the room, that is how involved all three of us were.  I had the opportunity to give a panel discussion with Tim Kask and Dennis.  It was taped, and Badmike noted that it would be available some time in the (near?) future.

Tim Kask and I chatted for about an hour about many things game related and other.  We both discussed our convention scenarios we'd designed and the pros and cons of each and how players would be reacting and X, Y, Z points, etc. Tim's was a sprawling, detailed affair and he "worried" that the PCs would become stuck at one of its many parts.  I  later heard that that did not happen and instead all the players enjoyed his game immensely.

As with last year's convention, Matt Finch and I, being smokers, ended up in various running conversations outside the hotel.  His groups were a riot to listen to, as they were obviously very gung-ho on the adventure(s).  I also talked with several of his participants (John January, Chris Finch and others) who related their own versions of what was transpiring within the game (mostly amid chuckling while doing so).

After some design talk Sunday between Timeshadows, Steve Winter and myself on the merits of Kyrinn's rules and World of Urutsk, Steve and I played in the pick-up episode of her continuing scenario along with Urutskian "veterans" Amanda Marohl and "Doctor Joe."  We then signed some dice bags and I escorted Kyrinn from the convention site and said adios 'til next time.

Later, I watched Circus Maximus being played (I bowed out of playing as I was very tired by then for all of the convention activities).  I did champion Alan Silcock, who unfortunately flipped his chariot on top of his horses, which ended his run in the race.  So I silently picked Jeff Imrie as my next champion as Alan and I retired to the lobby where, among many other subjects, we discussed the merits of adventure design.  Alan runs Tegel Manor by JG every time he shows at conventions, and considering the sparsity of information available in that adventure, he does it the classic way, with quick imaginative thrusts and on the fly interpretations with a lot of gut instinct. Everyone enjoys his DMing immensely (probably because, as he said, "I make it all up as I go along"). Our discussion seemed timeless, and we caught up on many life events as well (including both of us talking about our childhood play experiences and early home environments).  Amid the many inspiring things that came out of this discussion is the fact that Alan wants to go beyond the usual "dungeon crawl" which he sees as a venerable, but worn, adventuring model, and aspire to greater heights of design challenge in such RPG scenarios.  So we had an excellent  give-and-take discussion on a specific scenario he is designing and as he had played in my Dungeon of Death we compared the two concepts for his possible design paths; and I made some specific suggestions and volunteered to help him at any stage in his design process.  We then returned to the CM game.  Sadly, by then, Jeff Imrie was being dragged behind his chariot and slowly dying.  So much for my picking champions, a curse it seems, as it worked out.

Other Highlights In Brief:

Talking at length for the second year in a row with Marshall Clayton Mahurin III.  Marshall is the miniatures guru of Texas and of this particular convention.  From what I understand, his collection of miniatures exceeds 10,000 and represents all historical periods as he is a classic gamer from BitD.  We talked shop on WW2 Navals, Napoleonics, and his current favorite, the American War of Independence.  I heard a rumor before departing the con Sunday that he will be fielding the battle order for a Chainmail version refight of Tolkien's "Battle of the Five Armies," this for next year's convention.  Now that would be a treat indeed!

Playing with Joan MacDonald's son in Kyrinn's Urutsk and DMing Joan as part of the team in Dungeon of Death (Rd 2).  Her son is a natural born player and I hope he plays again next year.  He thought I was a little paranoid in my approach as a player.  Heh.  If he'd only been there later when my PC took a bullet to the head that almost killed him...  As his mother said (at the Acaeum) "He'll learn..."

Having John Lile (KingofPain) play in my Dungeon of Death (Rd 2).  John played in Castle El Raja Key at the first convention so it was great to see him back.  He always lends penetrating views on the adventure at hand and this time was no different (even though this one caused him some in-game brain hemorrhaging).

Chatting with my old friend Allan Grohe (we were both so busy that we had little time to actually chat in-depth like old times); meeting and gaming with the dynamic artist and very soon to be married Amanda Marohl; catching up with the great Jason Braun (a treat as usual).

Talking for many (combined) hours with Doug Rhea before, during and after the convention; and noting Mike Badolato unselfishly adminning the convention in lieu of playing games; and of course playing with Badmike's dear friend, "Doctor Joe," in Kyrinn's games.

And, of course, what would a NTRPGCon be without a 'Cimmerian'?  It is REH territory, don't you know...?

The THREE CASTLES Award

How It Came into Being

I will take full blame for the initial award idea.  Very soon after returning home from NTRPGCon #1 I contacted Doug Rhea and suggested this, then drew three roughs for him to look at. In between I roughed out the award process and we discussed the preliminary rules by phone and email. A furious email exchange soon ensued between us where the idea started to take firmer root.  The initial plan was a very intricately designed plaque, but as it turns out, Doug was bitten by the scope and immensity of the idea, which is to award "The VERY Best" in RPG design. He now suggested that it be a 3D sculpture.   I, of course, stood back, not wanting to suggest expenditures which were not coming out of my own coffers.  No worry there, quoth Douglas!  So, in pictures, this is how it took shape:

Step 1) I commissioned Andrew Taylor (ATOM) to give us standard views of the three castles used in D&D's play-test,1972-1973:  Blackmoor, Greyhawk and El Raja Key.  Andy produced the following concept sketches from my detailed notes, all of which were splendid and accepted.

Step 2) I introduced Lauren Hawkins to Doug after David LaForce (Diesel) who Doug had originally contacted could not go forward with the design or the sculpt due to other concerns. Lauren (Journalizer from this blog) stepped firmly in with her 3D rendering mastery to craft the final composite design based on Andy's full-blown sketches, and from many angles.  There ensued another furious email exchange between Lauren, Doug and myself wherein we nailed down many specifics about the final design.

Step 3)  Doug passed  along Lauren's excellent finished design and many perspective sketches to the sculptor at Awardsideas.com.  The sculpting process was now in full gear.

Step 4)  Finish.  About a month before the convention and after 10 months of work in various forms from my initial ideas and drawings.  Doug and I, Andy and Lauren and the sculptor are all proud of it!  It's possibly one of the most expensive awards ever rendered for our industry and certainly each of these is a piece of art that any deserving RPG designer would be proud to have on their shelf.

The 3C Award:  What it Is and What it Isn't...

This award is for true excellence in RPG design.  The criteria for winning is very demanding. There will be only one award given per year so the competition could be very tough,  However, the judges can rule that no submission equals the rules standards and thus a year could have no winner.  This is not a placebo (or best of what has been submitted) award, as I noted at the convention introduction to the award where Doug and I spoke about it.  There will be several stages which pare down the entrants, and if by the final round none have met the criteria, no award will be issued that year.  As Vice-Chairman of the 3C Award Steering Committee, the process I am drafting for the adjudicators is both stringent but refined.  The competition is not only among the entrants. More importantly, each submission will be eyed for raising the bar when compared to past designs of excellence in our industry. 

NTRPGCon co-founder and Chairman of the 3C Award Steering Committee, Doug Rhea, will receive RPG submissions for 2011 between Oct 01 and Dec 31.  News on submission and closure dates will be posted on the NTRPGCON site very soon along with full submission guidelines.

Year 2011's 3C Award judges have roughly 200 years of game design and other far-ranging industry experience between them.  Many of the judges have been nominated for, or won, awards for work in our industry.  Their work as a whole has been noted for excellence and/or for raising the bar in game design or interrelated areas.  They are:  Dennis Sustare, Paul Jaquays, Steven J. Winter, Tim Kask and Robert J. Kuntz.

Enjoy the news and be looking for more updates here and at NTRPGCON.com !

Tomb of the Dark God

The greatest thing about Scottzs COLD TEXT FILE posts was all  of the speculation/imaginative inquiry that is fueled by it.  Of course as the initial instigator of said DARK GOD I have my own take on it, but campaigns differ, and as they should.  :)

Here's my TOMB MAP for  Mssr.  T (alias, the Dark God).  In my "Greylands" portion of the world, it is definitely connected to the CYST, but one might say in a 'coded' sort of way.

Bummer News Via Grodog (Via Jeff Grubb/Matt Forbeck)

Mike Cook, TSR alumnus, passed away of a heart attack.  I hate this kinda news as there is never anything good in it.

From Matt Forbeck:  "Through Jeff Grubb, I learned that Mike Cook passed away last week, a victim of a heart attack on the evening of his eldest son's graduation from high school. He was 60.

Mike was an executive at TSR in the '80s. Among many other things, he served as publisher of Dragon Magazine and Dungeon Magazine, and he helped design the first Buck Rogers RPG.

The memorial service is this Friday in Waukesha, WI. You can read a
short obituary here:
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/jsonline/obituary.aspx?page=lifestory&pid=143514072

"

Roll on Mike...

World of Urutsk at NTRPGCon 2

NTRPGCON was whopping good time, and I actually got to play this year, and not only play, but play in Timeshadow's World of Urutsk.

In fact I forgot how many times we sat down to play (3?) as the setting, her GMing, the whole was so engrossing that one soon lost track of the days and time spent.

Not many settings inspire me to play in them.  In the day, Empire of the Petal Throne did that, so did Dave Sutherland's game when he DMed, which was not often.  Of course there were old standby campaigns in LG, then, but many were dungeon-based.  You never got a chance to let loose and explore the ranges within these latter game settings which operated within a vacuum when compared to the latter two I mentioned. That of course was because one had to envision a world and make the parts fit together in such a way to allow players then to do so.  Kyrinn's Urutsk filled that need and then some and I found myself hooked and wanting to come back every day to continue journeying in the imaginative fields she'd let her players loose upon.

Gary Gygax and I had no limitations to what players could do, where they could go, how many could do it, or what time it took for them to do whatever it was they were doing. There were also no immediate IF and WHEN comparisons to others in the campaign stream.  This created free reign gaming for all participants, didn't lock them down to experiencing only one-sided group adventures and allowed for a no-holds-barred approach to not only playing but through this allowed he and I grand opportunities to constantly develop new game-world matter on the fly.  Kyrinn has the same approach--no restraints.  It was a breath of very fresh air.

When Gary Gygax began DMing participants in Greyhawk they soon grew to be a higher level than the new participants who later entered the fray.  This made adventuring with the two disparate groups near impossible for level-comparison reasons. The campaign game end of our game was already in gear then for our higher level PCs.  All we had to do was to manage the different player-participants through time-tracking, which we always fudged to get them joined up again if that need ever arose.  In other words, it was a given that many different adventures by different groups in different locals were indeed taking place and often at different times.  Kyrinn's world smack's heavily of this nuanced way of playing.  As a result, the challenge is to keep thinking and moving forward for both the player and the GM, and she not only portrayed a willingness to do this, but an imagination that could fill in and expand upon the threads of an already colorful tapestry and in doing so fulfill the imaginative expectations of her players.

The ability to expand upon these micro or macro game-planes at all times and at all levels is the mark of a great GM and a great story-teller, and she is both.  These in combination also act as a personal gauge for measuring the level of expectation that GMs exact from their creative wellsprings, and in this regard she excelled as well.  In all she ranked up there on the "Best GMs List".  Her world, her rules and her style were all mirrors of a consistency fed by a caring, concerned and dedicated designer.  Urutsk is a winner because of this.

Certainly it is true that a good GM can carry the day even with a spare tire and in the dullest of moments expected by others, still make those moments shine and the wheels turn as if they were ready-made for that very moment.  In my opinion this is a testimony to the designer and not an excuse to use for determining the opposite by those looking askance upon such matter.  Where the rubber meets the road, as they say, is where we start our journey, whether in playing or GMing.  Where dedication and imagination meet is where we find our gems of the game industry.  I was lucky to play in such a gem, and to be GMed by such a gem of a person, for three days in Texas. 

Photos courtesy of Allan Grohe and Brian Kawano (and if I missed someone, sorry, but thanks!)

NEXT UP:  The THREE CASTLES AWARD and what it is and how it came to be...

Link to Timeshadow's Play Report from the CON

Dungeon of Death: Rd 2, NTRPGCON2

I lifted this from the KingofPain on the Acaeum as he was a participant in round 2 of the adventure.  Thanks John!  Hope your brain came back to normal!  :)

As the adventure grew in the design process I dropped the idea of using the DS set for maps and drew new ones.

Alan Silcock played as well and said:  "then sat night saw me in Robs game, with the gang. this was also a tremendous adventure. we all kinda get lulled into the same kind of adventures all the time and it was a joy to play something that was quite frankly, totally out there!!! it was REALLY different from the norm and three hours of killing my brain trying to figure things out, totally fried me, but i enjoyed it immensely  despite the fact that the one monster that we encountered, i think had a death-wish on me, cos it hit me with pretty much everything in the arsenal and also the kitchen sink - personally, i would love to see more adventures like this - so a huge pat on the back for Rob, for coming out with something like this and pulling it off very well - thankyou Rob!"

Thanks to all for putting up with my deranged mind and game designs...  :)

"Saturday night in the "Dungeon of Death" with Rob Kuntz.  This was easily the most difficult game I played during the convention.  I think my brain was still bleeding this morning.  Not a hack-and-slash at all....not even a dungeon in the classic sense.  More like an interdimensional nightmare with an alien physics professor.  It was a lot of fun. " (KingofPain)

"Cimmerian, Killjoy32, LucyJoyce, and Smarmy1 in the "Dungeon of Death". "

"Rob and Smarmy1 interacting during the prologue in the asylum."

Next Up... Kyrinn Eis and her world of Urutsk (a hands down winner) that I played in all four days of the con...

North Texas RPGCon: Over and Out

I had more than a blast at NTRPGCon.  More to follow, but highlights were meeting and gaming with Kyrinn Eis (Timeshadows, the Urutskian Queen), running my Dungeon of Death twice, gaming and chatting with myriads of friends and fellow conventioneers, like Allan Grohe, Tim Kask, Chris Finch, Alan Silcock, John Lile, Brian Kawano, Jason Braun (and his counterpart in art Amanda) and a host of others, and announcing with Doug Rhea the annual "Three Castles Award" (photo included).  More as I recover and come up to ordinary speed.

Armies of Oerth, Part XXVI: Kingdom of Nyrond

Using the Field of Glory wargaming rules & Dragon Magazine #65, here is the final installment of Rob Kuntz's Orders of Battle for certain renowned armies from the World of Greyhawk.

Ratio: 250 men-at-arms per base.

The Kingdom of Nyrond's Army List

The strength of Nyrond, and the hostility of its rulers and nobles, have been the major protection for the civilized nations of the Flanaess against the depredations of the Great Kingdom and its mad emperors. Nyrond also went through a phase of near-imperialism, making both the County of Urnst and the Theocracy of the Pale tributary states for a time. This course was altered, however, when the wise King Dustan I. called Crafty, saw his realm threatened by internal strife and extenor enemiesand called up the Great Council of Rel Mord. Here, the king met with ambassadors from Almor, the Iron league, the Pale, and Urnst. All troops were withdrawn from the Pale and Urnst thereafter, the Nyrondese allowing both areas self-determination, and both, in turn, agreeing to a concord entailing mutual trade and military support. Almor was treated somewhat similarly, and aid was granted to the Iron League in the form of loans and treaties which assured the League of survival against the common enemy.

The current boundaries of Nyrond are: Nesser River - Franz River - Artonsamay River - Nutherwood - Gamboge Forest (northern terminus) - Rakers - Flint Hills - (lower) Harp River - Relmor Bay. Nyrondal contingents assist Urnst and the Pale against the Bandit Kingdoms, and a squadron of their warships sails Relmor Bay and the Sea of Gearnat in support of the Iron League. Strong garrisons of the Nyrondese Army are stationed in strategic positions to move to the aid of either Almor or the Pale in time of need.

Commander-in-Chief: King Dunstan I (F 16th level) = 1 base

Sub-Commander: General Garzenth = 1 base

Sub-Commander: General Bellord = 1 base

Heavy Cavalry: 5,000 = 20 bases
(3 models/base; knights on horses, heavy plate armour & lances, substantial shields)

Medium Cavalry: 3,000 = 12 bases
(3 models/base; riders on horses, leather armour & moderate shields, hand weapons)

Light Cavalry: 2,000 = 8 bases
(2 models/base; riders on horses, no armour & small shields, hand weapons)

Armoured Infantry:  8,000 = 32 bases
(3 models/base; foot troops, chainmail armour & moderate shields, hand weapons)

Medium Pole-Arms: 3,000 = 12 bases
(3 models/base; foot troops, leather armour & moderate shields, pole-arms)

Medium Infantry (Mercenary): 1,000 = 4 bases
(3 models/base; foot troops, leather armour & moderate shields, hand weapons)

Light Infantry: 1,500 = 6 bases
(2 models/base; foot troops, no armour & no shields, hand weapons)

Light Infantry (Levied): 9,000 = 36 bases
(2 models/base; foot troops, no armour & no shields, hand weapons)

Light Archers: 3,500 = 14 bases
(2 models/base; foot troops, no armour & no shields, bows)

This totals 147 bases with 359 models on them.

Nyrond has a secondary force which may be called upon for assistance. It consists of the following troops:

Sub-Commander: Earl Harhing = 1 base

Heavy Cavalry: 2,000 = 8 bases
(3 models/base; knights on horses, heavy plate armour & lances, substantial shields)

Heavy Infantry: 4,000 = 16 bases
(4 models/base; foot troops, full plate armour & substantial shields, hand weapons)

Light Infantry: 3,000 = 12 bases
(2 models/base; foot troops, no armour & no shields, hand weapons)

Light Infantry (Levied): 4,500 = 18 bases
(2 models/base; foot troops, no armour & no shields, hand weapons)

Medium Archers: 2,000 = 8 bases
(2 models/base; foot troops, leather armour & moderate shields, bows)

This totals 63 bases with 165 models on them.

To insure complete victory for their upcoming major offensive, Dunstan has called upon the aid of both the County and Duchy of Urnst. The additional allied force will be:

Armoured Infantry (Elvish-Elites): 10,000 = 40 bases
(3 models/base; foot troops, chainmail and moderate shields, hand weapons)

This adds an additional 40 bases with 120 models.

[Writer's Note: WOW! Now this is a massive undertaking to build: 260 bases with 644 models!]

This completes the Armies of Oerth series [for now, at least]. I hope these articles have helped inspire some of you to delve into tabletop wargaming, with a touch of the World of Greyhawk.  I will be compiling these articles with some additional information to make them even more compliant with the Field of Glory rules, such as troop points, special rules, etc. When it is completed, I will be making it available as a free downloadable PDF on my own blog,
Axe & Hammer.

Ciao!
Grendelwulf