Hey folks, you can now purchase the long awaited Fantasci, a science fantasy setting for Modern20, at the RPGObjects superstore!
It will also soon be available at RPGNow/DTRPG/OBS soon. I'll drop a line when that happens as well. Though buying from us is preferred because, uh, we get more of the money.
There's two books available now for the setting, with a third on the way.
First, there's the Gazetteer of Aurianis, the free guide to the home setting for Fantasci.
Second, there's the character building guide, with new occupations and feats, as well as a Modern20 Magic System.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Alexander was Great, not Greek
I bet Greek people who play Civ IV were happy to see Pericles added in the most recent expansion, Beyond the Sword.
That's because, unlike Alexander the Great, the first leader, Pericles is like, you know, Greek.
Having Alexander be the leader of Greece makes as much as sense as having Julius Caesar be the leader of the Celts or having Alexander be the leader of Persia and Egypt.
Alexander might have been born King of Greece (cause his father had conquered them) but he was no more Greek than Stalin was Polish.
That's because, unlike Alexander the Great, the first leader, Pericles is like, you know, Greek.
Having Alexander be the leader of Greece makes as much as sense as having Julius Caesar be the leader of the Celts or having Alexander be the leader of Persia and Egypt.
Alexander might have been born King of Greece (cause his father had conquered them) but he was no more Greek than Stalin was Polish.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Hellstrom Voyage Chapter 2
Chapter 2 of "the great experiment", my first attempt at writing a novel live in front of the world, the Hellstrom Voyage, is up.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Who I'm watching
I give a lot of thought to the industry, especially on the PDF, and as I've been thinking, my thoughts have been wandering to a few companies in particular.
I watch each of these guys for something they do that I wish I did as good as them.
Green Ronin: For the management team. As Gaorge Bush once said, they've got that vision thing.
Ronin Arts: They've slowed down considerably because Phil is running the world these days, well ok, he's running the Free World (TM) but why quibble. Still, this is consistently the company that made me go "I wish I'd thought of that".
New formats, new genres, new product types, always trying new things.
The Le Games: Advertising. No one works harder to get their products into people's heads than these guys. In fact, it was one of their recent marketing efforts that sparked the train of thought that sparked this post.
And if that isn't meta enough for you, go... I don't know, somewhere more self-referential than here.
I watch each of these guys for something they do that I wish I did as good as them.
Green Ronin: For the management team. As Gaorge Bush once said, they've got that vision thing.
Ronin Arts: They've slowed down considerably because Phil is running the world these days, well ok, he's running the Free World (TM) but why quibble. Still, this is consistently the company that made me go "I wish I'd thought of that".
New formats, new genres, new product types, always trying new things.
The Le Games: Advertising. No one works harder to get their products into people's heads than these guys. In fact, it was one of their recent marketing efforts that sparked the train of thought that sparked this post.
And if that isn't meta enough for you, go... I don't know, somewhere more self-referential than here.
End of an era
So I went ahead and de-activated the original Vigilance and Darkness and Light at RPPGNow the other day.
I know what you're thinking "shouldn't he have done that in 2005"? Probably. The standards of d20 design have come a long way since then, not to mention I (thankfully) am a much better writer now than I was then, especially in terms of knowing my way around a d20 supplement.
The fact that Blood and Vigilance, the spiritual second edition to these books was as different from them as it could be (in fact the only way to make it more different would have been to remove the word Vigilance from the title of B&V) should tell you what I thought about the design.
Still, I didn't deactivate them for mostly sentimental reasons. Ugly they may be, but they sure got me started, and I received an email about twice a year asking me how I got started. When the PDFs were there, I could just "go look".
But, when looking at things from a cold business perspective, as I sometimes do, having those be the cheapest Vig Press books was not a help to me. Someone buying those might very well have been doing so to check out my solo design work.
Not good.
So, they've been deactivated. From now on when someone asks me how I got started, I'll just send them the PDFs instead.
I know what you're thinking "shouldn't he have done that in 2005"? Probably. The standards of d20 design have come a long way since then, not to mention I (thankfully) am a much better writer now than I was then, especially in terms of knowing my way around a d20 supplement.
The fact that Blood and Vigilance, the spiritual second edition to these books was as different from them as it could be (in fact the only way to make it more different would have been to remove the word Vigilance from the title of B&V) should tell you what I thought about the design.
Still, I didn't deactivate them for mostly sentimental reasons. Ugly they may be, but they sure got me started, and I received an email about twice a year asking me how I got started. When the PDFs were there, I could just "go look".
But, when looking at things from a cold business perspective, as I sometimes do, having those be the cheapest Vig Press books was not a help to me. Someone buying those might very well have been doing so to check out my solo design work.
Not good.
So, they've been deactivated. From now on when someone asks me how I got started, I'll just send them the PDFs instead.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Modern20 adventure update
Been giving some more thought to a Modern20 adventure. How's this look.
Welcome to Abducted, a Modern20 adventure. In Abducted, a leading astrophysicist is abducted after delivering a controversial lecture predicting that a meteor will strike the Earth. The PCs must find him and learn both the reasons for his abduction and the truth of his dire prediction.
Since different Modern20 campaigns will have a different level of paranormal occurrences, Abducted will provide a number of options for tailoring the adventure to your campaign, with options for no paranormal influence, alien influence and supernatural influence. Finally, specific advice for using this adventure with the Hunters campaign model presented in the Modern Dispatch will be provided.
Welcome to Abducted, a Modern20 adventure. In Abducted, a leading astrophysicist is abducted after delivering a controversial lecture predicting that a meteor will strike the Earth. The PCs must find him and learn both the reasons for his abduction and the truth of his dire prediction.
Since different Modern20 campaigns will have a different level of paranormal occurrences, Abducted will provide a number of options for tailoring the adventure to your campaign, with options for no paranormal influence, alien influence and supernatural influence. Finally, specific advice for using this adventure with the Hunters campaign model presented in the Modern Dispatch will be provided.
Curb your enthusiasm (Clash of Roses)
No, not the show, Clash of Roses.
It has come to my attention that the True 20 license (the new free one) doesn't go into effect until May, so I'm going to have to do a few books in between now and then.
It has come to my attention that the True 20 license (the new free one) doesn't go into effect until May, so I'm going to have to do a few books in between now and then.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Clash of Roses: True 20 sourcebook set during Shakespeare's History Plays
So this is a book I have been thinking about for a long, long time.
Anyone who knows anything about me, probably knows that I'm (if possible) a bigger Shakespeare nerd than I am a gaming nerd.
I've pitched this book to various companies, got a go-ahead to do it as a Legends title for RPGO, but something just didn't feel right about it, so it kept getting pushed to the bottom of the pile.
However, the recent announcement that the True 20 license was going free, along with a basic desire to do it on my own for some bizarre reason, clicked and so I've decided this will be the first full-size sourcebook from Vigilance Press for quite awhile.
Since Prometheus in fact.
As before, I'll be setting up an insider's group, so if you want to see the game under construction and shape its development, there'll be a way for you to do that.
Anyone who knows anything about me, probably knows that I'm (if possible) a bigger Shakespeare nerd than I am a gaming nerd.
I've pitched this book to various companies, got a go-ahead to do it as a Legends title for RPGO, but something just didn't feel right about it, so it kept getting pushed to the bottom of the pile.
However, the recent announcement that the True 20 license was going free, along with a basic desire to do it on my own for some bizarre reason, clicked and so I've decided this will be the first full-size sourcebook from Vigilance Press for quite awhile.
Since Prometheus in fact.
As before, I'll be setting up an insider's group, so if you want to see the game under construction and shape its development, there'll be a way for you to do that.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Friend of the Blog post
As a special for you loyal blog readers, if you'd like to check out my World Metahuman Factbook: Germany, here's a special link to get it for a dollar.
Cause you guys are clearly awesome, reading my ramblings and all.
Cause you guys are clearly awesome, reading my ramblings and all.
Possible Adventure idea
Ok, so Steve's comment on "What If" got me thinking about modern20 adventures.
Here's an idea:
A leading astophysicist recently announced that an asteroid, projected by most scientists to narrowly miss the Earth, will in fact hit it. He was kidnapped while leaving his lecture.
The government has charged the PCs with finding the scientist and bringing those responsible to justice. Early reports indicate a UFO cult is responsible.
The adventure would have a "believer" option (aliens *ARE* involved) and a "skeptic" option (aliens? pffffft)
What do ya'll think?
Here's an idea:
A leading astophysicist recently announced that an asteroid, projected by most scientists to narrowly miss the Earth, will in fact hit it. He was kidnapped while leaving his lecture.
The government has charged the PCs with finding the scientist and bringing those responsible to justice. Early reports indicate a UFO cult is responsible.
The adventure would have a "believer" option (aliens *ARE* involved) and a "skeptic" option (aliens? pffffft)
What do ya'll think?
Monday, February 11, 2008
TV Show review: Breaking Bad
Not many TV shows grab my attention but I picked up the pilot of this show from Itunes and loved it enough that I'm watching the rest.
It stars Bryan Cranston, who was brilliant as the father on Malcolm in the Middle, and the show is the creation of Vince Gilligan, one of the X-Files writers that also was the show runner on the awesome Lone Gunmen spinoff and who wrote many of the signature Lone Gunmen episodes such as "The Unusual Suspects".
It was this combination of a brilliant actor (cause, you know, comedy is the hard one) and a brilliant writer along with a very bizarre premise that got me to check it out.
Speaking of the premise, Cranston's character in Breaking Bad is a high school chemistry with a disabled child and a pregnant wife who learns he has inoperable lung cancer and has two years (at most) to live.
So he decides to set up a Meth lab and make a nice fat nestegg to leave his family.
It's smartly written, definitely for adults and a quirky black comedy that I can't stop laughing over even when the episodes are done.
It stars Bryan Cranston, who was brilliant as the father on Malcolm in the Middle, and the show is the creation of Vince Gilligan, one of the X-Files writers that also was the show runner on the awesome Lone Gunmen spinoff and who wrote many of the signature Lone Gunmen episodes such as "The Unusual Suspects".
It was this combination of a brilliant actor (cause, you know, comedy is the hard one) and a brilliant writer along with a very bizarre premise that got me to check it out.
Speaking of the premise, Cranston's character in Breaking Bad is a high school chemistry with a disabled child and a pregnant wife who learns he has inoperable lung cancer and has two years (at most) to live.
So he decides to set up a Meth lab and make a nice fat nestegg to leave his family.
It's smartly written, definitely for adults and a quirky black comedy that I can't stop laughing over even when the episodes are done.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
What if?
So I do a lot of different types of books, but here's where you get to chime in.
If I could write the perfect book, the one you always wanted me to write, what would it be?
If I could write the perfect book, the one you always wanted me to write, what would it be?
Friday, February 08, 2008
World Metahuman Factbook: Germany
It's been awhile since I mentioned this but now it's finally out!
World Metahuman Factbook: Germany lets you take your 4Color campaign on the road, to the site of the last two World Wars and ground zero for the Cold War. With reunification, things haven't exactly quieted down since then.
In a style similar the CIA World Factbook, only involving robots and lasers (so way cooler), WMF: Germany details 5 NPCs, a new criminal organization and a new power. All the NPCs are illustrated, and each comes with one or more plot hooks.
Since the 4Color system is free, it's a great to get a lot of game for a little cash.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
RPGObjects Podcast #2: now with more insomina!
Our second podcast is live at the RPGObjects site, with tips on integrating computer hacking into your game, the ever-popular "what we're playing" segment and an old-style radio drama to support the upcoming Modern20 release of Wizards and Wiseguys.
Friday, February 01, 2008
Fantasci: I have seen edits
Ok, so we (meaning- me) got knocked off our game here for a bit by my computer difficulties but Fantasci took a big step closer today, I have seen edits!
We're really excited about this one and we're trying to come up with some creative ways to market it, as a way to help both Modern20 and Fantasci.
We're really excited about this one and we're trying to come up with some creative ways to market it, as a way to help both Modern20 and Fantasci.
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