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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2016 17:56:40 GMT -5
I'd been thinking about making the switch for some time now, and here's what I came up with. Yeah there's a lot of uncredited stuff in here, I'm just sharing it for those who might be interested. Swords & Wizardry - Northwind
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2016 10:29:19 GMT -5
Why I switched from OD&D to SW
I love OD&D, but it's not exactly user friendly when recruiting new players. When bringing in new players, especially in a Gaming Store environment, I have found that SW is a better organized and plainly stated version of OD&D, at least the cobbled up version I run ... see above. I hope this doesn't banish me to some otherworldly plane of existence for heretics here at Ruins of Murkhill ...
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2016 10:29:29 GMT -5
Our FLGS here in Dover, Ohio is probably no different than a lot of FLGS. There's an overwhelming presence of Magic the Gathering and a splash of D&D5th. Last week, my gaming group unanimously decided to play at the store, for several reasons - some out of a lack of old school representation, others to attracting new players. We played last night and were surprised at the amount of interest our gaming attracted. We have a new player, and possibly several more to join us in the continuation of our descent into the Barrowmaze. SW proved easier for brand new players to grasp and before long, they were playing like old hands.
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Post by tetramorph on Mar 26, 2016 13:30:42 GMT -5
Nice. I know what you mean and that is why I worked up and use my supplement. It has a lot in common with s&w, eg, single ST, etc. Fight on!
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Post by bestialwarlust on Mar 26, 2016 14:04:34 GMT -5
Pretty cool I like what you did. I've been doing the same thing using Delving Deeper as my game of choice for OD&D. I've been building my own pdf that contains the game and my house rules all in one book.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 31, 2016 12:09:05 GMT -5
I posted this on my blog and I'm posting it here to kinda farm for opinions and ideas ...
Swords & Sorcery ...IN SPAAAACE ...
In a flash of madness, my fevered mind had either an inspired or depraved thought, depending on where you stand on things. I'd like some input on this, even though it wouldn't affect you in the slightest.
My campaign has featured such creatures as Mi Go and Daleks, as weird encounters. There are several things stewing in the background that are just as weird, and of the same tone; Aliens. Now, I know some folks don't like sci-fi in their swords and sorcerer fantasy, but my group has rolled real well with it, as to even employing a technological artifact, a Radium Rifle, into their go to equipment - it has of recently run out of pellets, but who knows when they'll find more - even if they knew how to reload it.
Now for the question ... should I incorporate White Star into my Swords & Wizardry? They fit really well. The potential for unique and interesting characters is good. But as for the cons, I really don't want my PCs to leave Northwind ... there's years of campaign potential in this world.
Any Ideas?
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Post by Admin Pete on Mar 31, 2016 12:13:42 GMT -5
Why would your players automatically have to leave Northwind? Or are you saying if you merge White Star in you are sure the players will leave the Northwind part behind?
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Post by Deleted on Mar 31, 2016 12:22:14 GMT -5
Well ... no ...
I could limit the access to starships and such, and clearly some character classes, such as Pilot, wouldn't exactly fit into a Swords & Sorcery kinda world (or maybe that's the making of a cool character concept?) ... Maybe all Sci-Fi characters are visitors/marooned on the world ...
I like the Sci-Fi element, as long as it doesn't completely dominate the feel of the campaign ... I'm looking to blend in not unlike Tekumel's past or even Humanspace Empires ... Real subtle, but clearly there, if that makes any sense ...
Still looking for input though ... Thanks!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 31, 2016 13:03:10 GMT -5
Mayhaps I jump the shark ...That happens sometimes when I take my meds later than usual ...
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Post by Admin Pete on Mar 31, 2016 13:32:25 GMT -5
If you don't want them on a star ship at this point in time, then don't make that an option. Are you just wanting to introduce a bit more tech into the game? They could always find a crashed star ship and then adventure and over the next 10 years find several crashed star ships and cannibalize them to make one that will fly.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2016 14:37:01 GMT -5
I guess what I'm going for here is science fantasy ... Artificially Intelligent Astral Plane Drives in Starships ... Aliens that are not just interplanetary, but interdimensional ... Lovecraftian/Dreamworlds/Realms ... Space Wizards and Time Travelers ... Psuedo-Planet of the Otyughs (No, really a Junk/Waste Planet in the Astral Plane where Otyughs are placed as a form of terraforming) ... A real Heavy Metal Magazine vibe ... The Transmaniacon MC (A selective group of rough and tough-take-no-shi- er, uh, crap, reality hopping wizards that ride modified brooms call 'sweeps') ... Veterans of the Psychic Wars ... This would be a layer of Northwind I have only touched on in games past, but maybe bring out more of it ...
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Post by Admin Pete on Apr 1, 2016 14:51:04 GMT -5
Sounds pretty cool to me!
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Post by robkuntz on Apr 2, 2016 9:29:07 GMT -5
I guess what I'm going for here is science fantasy ... Artificially Intelligent Astral Plane Drives in Starships ... Aliens that are not just interplanetary, but interdimensional ... Lovecraftian/Dreamworlds/Realms ... Space Wizards and Time Travelers ... Psuedo-Planet of the Otyughs (No, really a Junk/Waste Planet in the Astral Plane where Otyughs are placed as a form of terraforming) ... A real Heavy Metal Magazine vibe ... The Transmaniacon MC (A selective group of rough and tough-take-no-shi- er, uh, crap, reality hopping wizards that ride modified brooms call 'sweeps') ... Veterans of the Psychic Wars ... This would be a layer of Northwind I have only touched on in games past, but maybe bring out more of it ... Finally! Someone (besides me) who breaks with the rampant and overused medieval axis to Fantasy! Kudos twice and thrice over! As C. A. Smith intoned many years ago: "Tell me many tales, O benign maleficent daemon, but tell me none that I have ever heard or have even dreamt of otherwise than obscurely or infrequently. Nay, tell me not of anything that lies within the bourne of time or the limits of space; for I am a little weary of all recorded years and chartered lands. "Tell me many tales, but let them be of things that are past the lore of legend and of which there are no myths in our world or any world adjoining. . . . Tell me tales of inconceivable fear and "unimaginable love, in orbs whereto our sun is a nameless star or unto which its rays have never reached." To the Daemon, A prose Poem by Clark Ashton Smith I heartily embrace your choice to start exploring Fantasy as unknown rather than as known! Keep us informed when you are not so busy creating.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2016 9:15:01 GMT -5
Space … and Beyond.
Sages and Psychics have long known that raw intellect is power in the Astral Realms. The invention of the Psychic Drive changed exploration and civilization forever. It's not certain who developed this technology, nor does it matter anymore. The Astral plane was open to non Psychics and Arcanists across the Multiverse. The speed of thought travel, at first, required the harnessing of mental or magical means, but the Psychic Drive – a vat created mind of pure intellect and logic - proved more reliable to travelers. Hundreds of dimensional boundaries could easily be crossed into thousands prime material planes and the gravity wells of millions of worlds. Even Time itself became a region to be explored...
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Post by robkuntz on Apr 3, 2016 9:40:09 GMT -5
My Lost City of the Elders has an "area" called, "The Room Of Worlds," so I am emphatically catching your vibe...
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Post by Deleted on Apr 14, 2016 6:17:57 GMT -5
Northwind Cosmolgy, a Brief Look ...
The two primal forces of the Multiverse are Chaos and Order. Order makes something out of nothing while Chaos seeks to change something until it is reduced to nothing. While galaxies, stars, and planets are orderly constructs within the Multiverse, the spaces between them are ruled by chaos and decay.
Early explorers from a forgotten Prime Material Plane learned the hard way that the spaces between stars harbored nothing but certain death, due to the abundance of Negative energies - an entropic effect that, derived from Chaos, gives power to the Undead. Stars, on the other hand, radiate Positive energies, derived from Order. Thus, interplanetary travel within any given Prime Material Plane proved impossible.
It was then, explorers of adventurous hearts turned to the Astral Plane as a means of conveyance. At first, travellers braved the Astral alone without modern conveniences - just an explorer and his Silver Cord; but this proved to be overly dangerous and impractical to nation-states. It was the invention of the Psychic Drive, a vat created lifeform that consisted of only a mind of intellect and Psionic power - yet subservient enough to be controlled by calculating machinery, that opened up the Multiverse to travellers and explorers from a myriad of dimensions and Prime planes. The Psychic drive could transport a physical vessel and crew to the Astral Plane, where travel time was literally at the speed of thought and, after some considerable mapping expeditions, other worlds could be reached. The nature of this nearly timeless travel was limited to orbital range, where time distortions did not affect the crew or the destination, thus aviation skills were still required to make this travel feasible.
Explorers also found that the Ring of Outer Planes was also accessible through the Astral, and some isolated gates and Color Pools also lead to Inner Elemental Planes as well. Entire Parallel Dimensions were laid open to intrepid explorers ... even travel through Time itself, though risky and potentially damaging to Order's Law, was possible with the right coordinates through the silvery Astral Seas.
The dangers of the Astral are many, through both natural weather patterns of the plane to denizens or even settlers of the Silver. Psychic Winds and Storms can set a Psychic Drive off course (or worse) and creatures such as the Githyanki can set upon travellers as pirates (or worse.)
The Northwind region is technically Pleiadian territory, though this means little to many of the entities inhabiting and claiming dominion to the world. Travellers coming to this world will be contacted by Pleiadian Guardians and be given a strict guideline of behavior on this world, enforceable through their considerable technology, Psionics, and extra planar contacts such as Archons and Seraphim. The Northwind region of this world has battlegrounds aplenty, seen and unseen by its inhabitants, that are being waged and the Pleiadians do what they can to limit non-Northwindic interference in the complex warfare on this world.
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Post by robkuntz on Apr 14, 2016 7:04:42 GMT -5
A deep excursion into the possibilities of the imagination.
"Keep it close. Keep it safe" (Gandalf, from the FotR, the movie)
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Post by hengest on Apr 17, 2016 20:24:49 GMT -5
This is cool, cool, cool. I couldn't run this with six months to prepare and the world's most fun group, but I would love to play in it.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2016 9:48:29 GMT -5
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Post by robkuntz on Apr 27, 2016 11:23:41 GMT -5
All flash but no substance. More boom boom instead of zoom zoom...
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Post by Admin Pete on Apr 27, 2016 12:27:52 GMT -5
I think your stuff is better, don't let something else stunt its growth.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2016 10:10:03 GMT -5
Our FLGS here in Dover, Ohio is probably no different than a lot of FLGS. There's an overwhelming presence of Magic the Gathering and a splash of D&D5th. Last week, my gaming group unanimously decided to play at the store, for several reasons - some out of a lack of old school representation, others to attracting new players. We played last night and were surprised at the amount of interest our gaming attracted. We have a new player, and possibly several more to join us in the continuation of our descent into the Barrowmaze. SW proved easier for brand new players to grasp and before long, they were playing like old hands. What's the one in Dover? I know of the two in New Phila.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2016 12:13:34 GMT -5
I meant New Philadelphia, I was just being lazy and calling it Dover ... the two cities are so connected it hardly made a difference to me.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2016 12:42:14 GMT -5
No worries. Just wondered if there was another shop around town.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2016 11:37:03 GMT -5
Our FLGS here in Dover, Ohio is probably no different than a lot of FLGS. There's an overwhelming presence of Magic the Gathering and a splash of D&D5th. Last week, my gaming group unanimously decided to play at the store, for several reasons - some out of a lack of old school representation, others to attracting new players. We played last night and were surprised at the amount of interest our gaming attracted. We have a new player, and possibly several more to join us in the continuation of our descent into the Barrowmaze. SW proved easier for brand new players to grasp and before long, they were playing like old hands. What's the one in Dover? I know of the two in New Phila. It just dawned on me that you might be local ... do I know you? (yes, I can be quite slow on the uptake at times with this damaged brain and all ...)
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Post by Hexenritter Verlag on Feb 3, 2018 15:47:47 GMT -5
Crap I missed out - it sounds very interesting though. Glad that your campaign had created a buzz at the shop.
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Post by Mighty Darci on Feb 10, 2018 10:44:03 GMT -5
JMiskimen how about an update, how is this going?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 10, 2018 15:35:10 GMT -5
I've put Northwind on hold for a while while exploring 5E and other games and campaign settings - and having lots of fun doing it. (Believe it or not, you CAN run 5E old school...)
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Post by Hexenritter Verlag on Feb 11, 2018 0:57:00 GMT -5
Heresy - keep away heretic, may Gygax take your soul.
But on a serious note, 5e is okay but not my flavor of D&D; though I'd play it in a one off or mini-campaign.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 11, 2018 9:00:01 GMT -5
You might be surprised, ebon666heart, as was I ...
Old school is an attitude ... a method, not rules.
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