Obliettes & Otyughs

Reply to Zak's GM Questionnaire

2012-01-18T06:29:00.000-08:00

So, Zak had this GM Questionnaire, here are my answers:

1. If you had to pick a single invention in a game you were most proud of what would it be?
I’m currently working on weird mutations wizards get when they get to powerful, I’m liking that, but it’s not finished yet.

2. When was the last time you GMed?
January the second.

3. When was the last time you played?
Somewhere around late November. But that campaign has ended in hiatus, as all the campaigns in which I'm a player.

4. Give us a one-sentence pitch for an adventure you haven't run but would like to.
The dungeon goes deeper and deeper down, problem is: it’s located at the coast and the high tide is coming.

5. What do you do while you wait for players to do things?
Look up something, eat something, describe the situation some more to give the players more information.

6. What, if anything, do you eat while you play?
When GM’ing I sometimes forget to eat things because of the talking. But there’s usually salty snacks, brie and toasts.

7. Do you find GMing physically exhausting?
Not really. When I do get tired during the game, it’s usually because of the rest of the day.

8. What was the last interesting (to you, anyway) thing you remember a PC you were running doing?
Getting drunk, being the last in a tavern, then rush out to fight 11 zombies. By myself. Drunk.

9. Do your players take your serious setting and make it unserious? Vice versa? Neither?
It happened sometimes during my Call of Cthulhu campaign. It also happens during my DnD games, but I don’t mind it there. During my Gamma World games I applaud it.
The vice versa happens during my Gamma World games, but it’s not really an issue there.

10. What do you do with goblins?
Reasonably normal humanoid buggers. Every tribe is different.

11. What was the last non-RPG thing you saw that you converted into game material (background, setting, trap, etc.)?
In my upcoming island hopping game there will be some loosely Odyssey inspired islands.

12. What's the funniest table moment you can remember right now?
The players of my longest DnD campaign seem to think it was the point when druid talked with a badger and I decided it was a particularly grumpy and unhelpful badger. I think it was mostly my voice that did it. In the end the badger helped the group, they rewarded him with a Summon Swarm of worms spell in which they buried him.

13. What was the last game book you looked at--aside from things you referenced in a game--why were you looking at it?
The 3.5 PHB to help a new player with creating a character.

14. Who's your idea of the perfect RPG illustrator?
Ivan Bilibin has made some nice Russian fairy tale illustrations. He wouldn’t be the perfect one, though. Wim Hofman also made some very nice adventurer’s in his illustrations for children’s books*.

15. Does your game ever make your players genuinely afraid?
My Call of Cthulhu games made some of my players regularly scream. Two had kind of hallucinations after a particular game (one thought he saw a decapitated head on his fridge (turned out to be a carton of milk), the other thought she saw a dead girl in her bedroom). They never looked forward to bike home after these games.

16. What was the best time you ever had running an adventure you didn't write? (If ever)
I like running the Call of Cthulhu scenario ‘The Haunting’ for people who’ve never played rpg’s/CoC before. Every time I add something new, and every group comes up with different plans.

17. What would be the ideal physical set up to run a game in?
Some loungy chairs, couches set up in a circle, a low, large table in the centre, GM behind a higher table where he can see everyone and has enough room for notes, books, a pc to search for music/pictures/things.

18. If you had to think of the two most disparate games or game products that you like what would they be?
I guess the tone of Gamma World and Call of Cthulhu differ pretty much from each other.

19. If you had to think of the most disparate influences overall on your game, what would they be?
‘The Travels of King Wikkepokluk’ by Wim Hofman (a children’s book about a king who tires of his kingdom being the belly of a beast and searches with his three loyal subjects for a different kingdom to rule over. I’m not sure how the translation is, but the original is pretty great) and I guess the pc-game Baldur’s Gate has influenced me quite a bit.

20. As a GM, what kind of player do you want at your table?
A friend, or someone who could be a friend, who can decide what to do in combat pretty fast.

21. What's a real life experience you've translated into game terms?
I’ve not yet translated in a game, but in a few weeks I’m starting an island-hopping DnD campaign in which I like to incorporate my sailing experience of last summer (sailing at night, during a storm, with most people on board having very little sailing experience).

22. Is there an RPG product that you wish existed but doesn't?
A Regular Show system. But I’m on the verge of making that myself.

23. Is there anyone you know who you talk about RPGs with who doesn't play? How do those conversations go?
Hm, I usually don’t talk about rpg’s with people who don’t play. The people who I have talked about rpg’s and didn’t play at the time, have become players. When explaining the game, I usually compare it with the card game ‘Werewolves of Millers Hollow’.

*Just take a look at these!

The second part of the d100 forest table.

2011-12-15T06:49:00.000-08:00

Right. It's been a while.

Here's the second part of the D100-occurrences-in-a-weird-forest-table. And a link to download it as a pdf.

51. One of the pc’s grandfather (possibly deceased) sits on a tree stump, asking the pc’s if anyone is up for a game of chess. Grandfather might be an undead creature.
52. One of the pc’s grandfather sits on a tree stump, asking the pc’s if anyone is up for a game of chess. Game is easily won, as the old man is quite demented.
53. Cabin is found, no people, but it looks like everything is recently left behind. Burning fireplace, warm food, etc.
54. Woman imprisoned, claims to be princess, doesn’t seem to know her country had fallen centuries ago.
55. Impossibly old knight errant, unable to fulfill final quest.
56. Humanoid boars busy with dark ritual.
57. Dark young of Shub-Niggurath.
58. Bats with human-heads.
59. A family of laughing deer is seen in a clearing. Laughing deer can tell someone’s fortune if enticed to eat from one’s hand.
60. Magical beast’s blood can transform metal into substance which isn’t as hard as metal and looks like grayish water.
61. Deer seems to be normal until it stands upright, removes hooves to reveal hands.
62. Deserted tent. No traces of anything else.
63. Trees with strange bulges. If bulges are cut open, they reveal roots feeding on bodies.
64. Magic man. Huge jerk.
65. Skeletal humanoid on skeletal horse slumps ever onward.
66. Delusional water nymph hands out rubbish quests.
67. Alongside the river tiny towers made of rocks are found.
68. A baby is found crying in the woods. Probably trickster fey.
69. An actual baby is found crying in the woods.
70. At night, a fox rummages through belongings, goes off with paper, ink and pen.
71. The wind demands a race. Will probably win, can be outwitted.
72. Forest hag looks different to all viewers.
73. Forest hag captures pc, demands hair of royalty for release.
74. Horn dangles from tree. If blown, a knight in green fights the one who blows.
75. Drunken man builds rubbish shelter, claims to be the best at survival.
76. Most excellent forest party, if participating; save or party forever.
77. Corpse is hanged from highest branch of tree.
78. Corpse is hanged from highest branch of tree, is actually ghoul.
79. Person shaped crevices found in cliff side.
80. When hunting, an animal is felled with a face on it’s body where a face doesn’t belong.
81. Overgrown ruins. Ruins look suspiciously a lot like a known city.
82. Fire elemental looking for a human bride/groom.
83. Man offers services. Asks for no compensation.
84. Well. If drank from, lips turn grey.
85. Procession of creatures worshipping the frog god.
86. Half mummified monk busy on pilgrimage.
87. Ghoul busy with eating it’s own lower half, glueing itself stuck to a rock with saliva.
88. A drunk man has a prophecy involving the pc’s, but he’s too drunk to make sense of. When sober, he doesn’t remember anything.
89. Upon waking up, the pc’s find a fly trapped in a jar at their feet.
90. When standing in moonlight everything looks different.
91. Insects are attracted to one of the pc’s.
92. After drinking from a certain well, the pc’s have strange cravings.
93. A cube of flesh lies on the path.
94. If a squirrel is skinned, writing on the inside of the skin is noticeable.
95. In a part of the forest the seasons are mixed up.
96. Skulls, skulls, skulls.
97. Some animals’ bones are made of wood.
98. There’s a well. Any skin/flesh or organs contacting the water disintegrate. Only bone remains. Everything still functions. Also known as the Fountain of Looking Totes Rad.
99. Troll wants to know what you think of his rubbish poem.
100. Mushroom. If eaten replaces nails with teeth over the course of 2d10 days.

ConstantCon 2011: Gamma World: Punch Dracula

2011-08-03T07:49:00.000-07:00

Alright, tuesday august 9, GMT 18:00 and PST 10:00 I will be running a short Gamma World (7th ed.) adventure via google+. 4 players.

The pitch is that a charismatic, pale, cloaked and mysterious stranger just kidnapped the hottest babes and dudes of your post-apocalyptic village. And now you're mad, because:
A. That charismatic, pale, cloaked and mysterious stranger just kidnapped the hottest babes and dudes.
B. That implies you're not hot enough for him. What gives.

Create a 4th level character using this automatic sheet, just set level at 4, pick an armor and weapon (melee and ranged) type (light is good for high Int/Dex, heavy is good for high Str/Con).
Think about what you are, what you look like and what your weapons are. I will provide your powers at the start of the game.

If you want to play: I can be contacted on bennetakkerman (awt) hotmail (dawt) com and can be found on google+ as Bennet Akkerman.

The Hazards of Love

2011-07-29T08:29:00.000-07:00

This saturday I'm part of ConstanCon 2011, at GMT 19:00 and PST 11:00 I will run a short game of DnD 3.5.

For those who are not familiar with 3.5:
Pick a class, a race and roll abilities (4d6 drop lowest). We will smooth it out together.

For those who know the 3.5 system:
Create a level 2 character, roll 4d6 drop lowest for abilities, with equipment worth 300 gp.
Use these condensed skills instead of the normal ones:
Stealth (Dex) = hide + move silently
Perception (Wis) = listen + spot + search
Disable Device (Int) = disable device + open lock
Diplomacy (Cha) = diplomacy + gather information
Acrobatics (Dex) = Balance + Tumble
Linguistics (Int) = decipher script + forgery + (1 speak language per 2 ranks)

Characters are presumed to be already a group and are on the road from point A to point B, on the road Adventure happens. The adventure will at least feature talking skulls, heartbroken wizards and halucinogenic mushrooms.
The game will take around 2 hours. I can be contacted via bennetakkerman (at) hotmail (dot) com.

occurrences in a weird forest

2011-07-27T06:59:00.000-07:00

It's Gary Gygax's birthday. It's the first post of this blog. Let's celebrate by sharing this half of a d100 table of occurrences in a forest. Complete table will follow later.

D100 occurrences in a weird forest:

1 A fox dances on its hind legs, disappears when noticed.

2.       Leaves rustle, but there is no wind.

3.       Wind blows, but the leaves don’t rustle.

4.       A root unearths itself, tripping a character.

5.       A frog carries a crown towards some place.

6.       A progression of people wearing animal masks is solemnly chanting.

7.       A silver piece is found in the liver of an animal.

8.       Waking up, a character finds feathers braided in his/her hair.

9.       A voice is heard singing. If the pc’s follow the voice, they have high chance of getting lost.

10.   A wooden creature, looking similar like the Slender Man, is stalking the pc’s.

11.   A tree is found, bearing feathers instead of leaves.

12.   An hole is found, it seems to go on forever.

13.   At night, pc’s can spot moving lights in the distance.

14.   Wooden copies of the pc’s are found below a felled tree.

15.   When cut, a tree leaks blood instead of sap.

16.   A giant humanoid tree is found. It doesn’t move or talk. Creatures in a time stasis can communicate with it.

17.   Upon waking up, the pc’s find their weapons dangling inches above their head.

18.   Normal animal encounter, but the animal can only be hunted/ hurt/ killed if the pc’s rhyme.

19.   One of the pc’s is infected by a fungus. Spends his/her day sick, at the end he/she vomits d100 sentient shroomlings.

20.   A delicious smell leads the pc’s from the path to a set table with an enticing meal on top of it.

21.   Branches seem to deliberately brush pc’s as they walk past.

22.   An ugly plant is found, if consumed the eater transforms into a troll over the course of 3d10 days.

23.   Magical animal with dark intentions.

24.   Fey passes as human, trades magical items for body parts of the pc’s.

25.   Part of the forest is in greytones.

26.   Something is whispering things to the PC’s in an unknown language.

27.   Cave feels like home.

28.   Specific mushroom allows the eater to see through skin.

29.   Specific berry lets the eater see dark blots instead humanoids.

30.   At night, owl calls seem almost humanlike.

31.   A tree of flesh and bones is found. Eating it is a bad idea.

32.   Fey offers a service now in turn for a service performed by the pc’s in the future.

33.   The dead dance.

34.   Murky lake seems to beckon.

35.   Rations have gone moldy in one day.

36.   Familiars or animal companions (if any) seem to mistrust the pc’s for one day.

37.   Screams are heard.

38.   PC wakes up with memories of different person for one day.

39.   The whispering won’t stop.

40.   Flower vaguely looking like a woman, if eaten a male will transform into a female over the course of several days. Female gains a beautiful singing voice.

41.   Freak weather.

42.   Animals seen dining on dead humanoid using cutlery.

43.   During night, roots attempt to strangle sleeping pc’s.

44.   Pc’s can hear nothing more than birds singing.

45.   Woodpecker bores holes in the bones of a giant.

46.   Night is 16 hours long.

47.   Goblin challenges pc’s to a game. Weird stakes.

48.   Gems hatch as beetles.

49.   Standing stone has a heartbeat.

50.   Rations have become hard as stone.