Tunnels & Trolls: First Edition

I recently received my signed and numbered reprint of the first edition Tunnels & Trolls rulebook.  It's a fun read, and I love the awesomely old school art, particularly the little wizard guys who show up quite a lot.  It's looking to be a fantastic year for T&T.  I can't wait to get ahold of my Deluxe edition!

The Reaper takes his due :-(

R.I.P. Blue Oyster Cult keyboardist/guitarist Allen Lanier

Miniatures Monday

An old school orc who looks like he should be hanging out in a Tunnels & Trolls or Fighting Fantasy adventure!

Choosing the system for the world

The other day, I was going through some of my old gaming notes, and I came across the notes for my Savage Sorcerers of Sungor campaign.  It was a straight up sword and sorcery campaign with no elves or dwarves.  If it wasn't human, it was a monster.  Nothing shockingly original, and not particularly good unless you were into barbarians killing wizards in spider haunted towers and the like, but the notes got me thinking.  I had originally done it as a Hero System campaign, but as I grow older, my interested in crunchy games system continues to wane at an accelerated pace.  So if I were to dust it off today, what would I use?
The first game that came to mind was of course my current go-to system Savage Worlds.  It's got enough crunch to make combat interesting, but is still streamlined enough to be easy to prepare for.  The next game that came to mind was Fate Core.  I've really been wanting to try this, but just haven't had the opportunity.  I'm not sure how well it would doe sword and sorcery though.  It might just be too abstract to do it well.  the last system that came to mind was Barbarians of Lemuria.  This might actually be the best choice as the game is designed for a world almost exactly like Sungor, but like Fate Core, I've never actually tried it out in practice.  It might make for an interesting exercise to  stat-out the same adventure for all three systems and see which one looks best.

Bernie the Flumph: The Sanctum of the Wizard's Well [Mini-Map Monday]...

Bernie the Flumph: The Sanctum of the Wizard's Well [Mini-Map Monday]...: Taking another stab at isometric maps, all free hand on board with illustration pens. Click to big it!

I totally want to use this map.

A Mysterious and Magical Device

Should you find yourself at the Crazy Mocha on Liberty Avenue, stop in and visit the wondrous creation.  For only $5 it will dispense one of it's locally hand made treasures into your eager hands.  I absolutely love finding things like this.  They bring a little magic to the world, and make me happy.

Talisman

The magical quest game!  I've always had a soft spot for Talisman.  Sure, it's essentially a simple race game.  Roll dice to move, do what is written on the board or the cards, and be the first one to the end.  Nothing deep, nothing complicated, and it can go kind of long sometimes, but I still find it fun, even though it gets a bad rap as a kids game.  I think the first thing that struck me about Talisman, was the artwork.  Ever since the box cover of second edition, I've loved the artwork.  Just look at that dude fighting the dragon in front of those winding stairs which lead to some mysterious tower, no doubt filled with riches!

I had the poster from the box hanging in my dorm room in college for ages.  

Of course when Fantasy Flight Games released a new version with cooler components, I bought that too.  And what an upgrade it was in terms of production value.  It got the typical Fantasy Flight treatment making it the most impressive looking version yet, IMHO.  The game is pretty much the same, and there are quite a few expansions available for it, all of which add new cards and characters, while some introduce whole new boards to add on to the main one. 

An now I can play Talisman Prologue on my iPad.  Life is good.  Now if only they would make a mobile version of Dungeonquest! :-)

Of course, I still want this..

I should see if anyone wants to play some Talisman this weekend.

Miniatures Monday - Number 100!

Wow, 100 Miniatures Monday postings.  It's kind of hard to believe that I've painted that many miniatures of the past two years.  So, for my special 100th Miniatures Monday posting, we have a very special guest.  Yes, he's a barbarian, but, he's a very special barbarian.  Does anyone recognize him?

Inspirational Imagery

I've always loved the cover of Different Worlds magazine issue 5.  The weird tower-like hill, with the strange cyst-like dwellings is eerily evocative.  The barbarian warrior with the spear also has a great Conanesque feel.  This is what fantasy roleplaying looked like in my mind back in the late 70s and early 80s.  In truth, this is what is still looks like to me today. :-)

Miniatures Monday

Here is a rather odd creature.  Some sort of rhinoceros / centaur.  A Rhinocetaur perhaps?  Of course, with an axe that size, I guess he can call himself whatever he likes.

Miniatures Monday

A fearsome two-headed troll!

Powers & Perils

Back around 1984, I picked up this little gem, Powers & Perils from Avalon Hill.  It was poorly organized, and deadly dull to read, but it did have a cool box cover.  In all the intervening years, I never played the game.  I never even made a character, as I was convinced that it wasn't possible.  But recently, I've decided that any roleplaying game that I own and have never even created a character for must be disposed of.  I've just got too much crap., but for some odd reason, I can't let go of this game.  Maybe it's the fact that it was part of my childhood, maybe it's the artwork, or maybe it's just because it has a box.  I'm a sucker for boxed RPGs.  So I set off to create a character for it.

It was a trip.  The rulebook is filled with abbreviations and formulas that made me feel like I was reading my college calculus book, but I got though it and rolled up Goram the Grim.  He's a fighter of sorts.

I can't say that it was fun, but it was certainly interesting, and surprisingly not as complicated as I had believed.  Oh, sure, there was a lot of math, and I made a few mistakes, as the scratched out numbers on the character sheet show, but it wasn't THAT bad.  All in all, it left me with a slight feeling of accomplishment.  If you are interested in learning more about Powers & Perils, I would direct you to this website.  Everything you could ever want to know is there.

For those of you who are really interested, here is the scratch paper I used in this endeavor.

Tunnels & Trolls Swag

So, here is the Flying Buffalo swag that I got as a supporter of the Tunnels & Trolls Deluxe Kickstarter.  I'm really looking forward to my deluxe hardcover copy showing up in August.  Admittedly, I wasn't the biggest fan of 7th/7.5 edition.  I'm more of a 5th edition guy, but I'm looking forward to the new version.  I already have my PDF of the updated Buffalo Castle, and it's awesome.  With Star Wars:  Edge of the Empire hitting in July, and Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls in August, it's shaping up to be a good summer for role laying games (at least from my perspective).

Miniatures Monday

This week, we return from the stars to a more grounded fantasy.  I'm not sure where he got those horns for his helmet, or how he even keeps his head up straight, but this dude is hard core.

Star Wars Sunday

Party on the A-Wing!  I don't remember Admiral Ackbar having a beer in the movies, but maybe that was in a deleted scene. :-)