Numenera – Batjutsu

WILD Kickstarter

I have been eagerly anticipating WILD: Dream Dive Training Simulation for several years. I started following the project after reading about it on Dave Chapman’s Autocratic blog in 2017. It has been interesting watching this project develop and to now come together for this Kickstarter campaign. The Kickstarter gives an excellent overview of Dave and Stoo’s backgrounds and why this project is in expert hands. So, what is the game about?

“WAKE · INITIATED · LUCID · DREAMING a roleplaying game using Tarot cards to explore the minds of dreamers”

Plus:

“The WILD: Dream Dive Training Simulation is a tabletop roleplaying game that can be played solo, or with a group of friends with or without one player taking on the role of the DreamMaster.”

The game draws inspirations from many sources, in particular Inception. Other references: Falling Water, Reverie, Paprika, The Cell. Jumping ahead slightly to the likely important query about death and dreams? You can ‘die’ in the dream, which will wake the user, but there is a chance of consequences; so this is closer to Inception than a Nightmare on Elm Street.

“The development of the ALIS dreamshare device has changed the world.”

The Kickstarter has unlocked the ALIS user manual. This extra level of detail should empower the players’ imaginations, enhancing the immersion level of a game. An important part of how the ALIS works is that the primary dreamer matters in regards to how their dreams can be affected. An imaginative person is more likely to accept ‘wilder’ aspects; how much a dream can be stretched. A bland person’s dreams are more likely to break if pushed a lot. So understanding a dreamer’s plausibility scale for each individual will be part of the puzzle.

Originally Dave had been working with dice mechanics he called: Rapid Die Movement. The design moved to using Tarot cards (using one shared deck); the Kickstarter has unlocked custom artwork and cards for the game.

Digital Tools have been unlocked, a Website and a Mobile App. There will be a virtual deck that will allow cards to be drawn from it; the tools will explain card meanings. Additionally a digital character sheet, plus there will also be help with a walkthrough of character creation.

WILD – Fusion Power/Bonus

I do not know of an RPG with this specific dream focus. There are of course games that include dream manipulation, such as Changeling: the Dreaming with Oneiromancy, or the Dream related Contracts in Changeling: The Lost. Cthulhu has the Dreamlands, etc. But those games do not explore the ideas in the same way, plus lack mechanical framework around such exploration. So besides looking forward to playing WILD, I also look forward to fusing WILD with other games. In particular Mage: the Ascension and the World of Darkness / Chronicles of Darkness games I have mostly focused on recently. I explored fusion ideas in my blog post for One Child’s Heart, a game about entering the memories of a child to help provide therapy via a CLERS device. One Child’s Heart is exploring different territory to WILD, but interestingly, I can see these games complimenting each other wonderfully.

A Tales From the Loop game is another fusion idea I have had. ALIS could have been created after studying technology gained via the Loop. Likewise, the ALIS should be easy to add to the Cypher System games of Numenera or The Strange.

I have also been imagining a fusion with Street Fighter. A chance for a training simulator, aka the Matrix? Likewise fights with Agents, but the Agents being the subconscious defending itself like Inception.

Besides modern day role-playing settings, I can imagine using WILD to provide Fantasy or hard Sci-fi with something a bit different. For example, I have a campaign (#FatefulMemories) that is a fusion of: D&D Planescape (FR) + Mage: the Ascension + Cthulhu. Currently, the party is trying to understand the nature of a person who has been split in two, with one half being in Sigil, the other one being in the Forgotten Realms; these beings communicate with each other via their dreams, so could a dream quest be a way to figure out how this occurred and how they can be re-merged? The ALIS could be an artefact utilising crystals from different Realms, or maybe something linked to the Sehanine Moonbow, the Lady of Dreams, or similar god.

Please go and check the WILD out. Watch the fabulous introductory video explaining the technology, which should seal the deal. There is also a Hardship Sleeper level, providing a backer the PDF for just £5; very generous of the team.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stoo-goff/wild-dream-dive-training-simulation/description

The Dark Orb Meets WILD RPG Creators Stoo Goff & David F. Chapman

Effekt Interview: WILD Kickstarter

RPG Impact 9

Continuing with RPG Impact. I’m saving one of the best till last, leaving me with many choices for no.9. There are far too many RPGs I love, I could have chosen: GURPS, L5R, Aberrant, Nightbane, plus games in the last ten years like Blades in the Dark, Ryuutama, and the wonderfully adaptable system Powered by the Apocalypse, etc. After a lot of indecision, for my ninth RPG, I choose the Cypher System.

I finally got around to looking at the Cypher System because of Torment: Tides of Numenera. Initially, I was not a fan of the system, and the Numenera setting seemed too disjointed / dreamlike, however, I persevered, and both the system and setting grew on me. Monte Cook Games has made some impressive game settings, and whilst neither the system nor the settings are my favourite, they have left quite the impression on me in terms of accessibility, ease of play and most of all creativity. Thanks to Bundle of Holding and Humble Bundle I was able to purchase lots of PDFs for Cypher System, Numenera, and The Strange; hence why no physical book picture for this post. I’ve looked at the Invisible Sun preview, cool stuff; I know a few Mage the Ascension fans who highly rate Invisible Sun, so hopefully one day I can give the game a try.

I’m a fan of fusing RPGs together, partly due to having played so many things; it keeps old systems from feeling stale or predictable. A Play-by-Email campaign I’ve been working, sort of Twin Peaks meets World of Darkness plus Call of Cthulhu, which I’ve nicknamed Lynchcraftian, has some Cypher System & Settings influences.

Part 10

#RPGaDay 01

Chatting with role-players online and researching is something I quite enjoy, although like most people I do worry about the time sink factor. Yet despite that I’ve decided to take part in #RPGaDay, which was started four years ago by Dave Chapman:

A few years ago I felt there was a negative undercurrent in our hobby. Sorry to say that, but I felt it was there, and inspired by one of those “aDay” things for bibliophiles I thought that I could try to get the world talking about tabletop RPGs in a positive and encouraging way.

Besides the fact it is something I find really interesting, I debated with myself about the time factor. I have so much going on currently, plus my health/energy management to consider, but I finally convinced myself using the following key arguments:

It will be more good writing practice, since RP is my primary passion. I will want to write a lot, but also not just waffle.
Given the number of tweets, I am likely to come across interesting points.
A few friends have recommended that I blog more.

Since leaving KJC Games I have too many unfinished projects. Of course I have run a lot of other peoples’ games, but until recently not my own. I imagine a few friends will remind me of previous conversations: “Finish your RPG Guide, and stop procrastinating by doing another decade’s worth of research.” Although I’ve not double checked with them, I think they will be happy that I am using this month as extra motivation. I believe it will provide me many chances to re-examine ideas from a fresh perspective; due to lots of editing I am somewhat sick of reading my own stuff.

The following is the list of questions for this year:

My answer to the question for day 1: What published RPG would you like to be playing right now?

#RPGaDay “Shadow in the Shardnet” campaign #L5R, I’ll be adding #Cryptomancer Shards to L5R. @Papa_Shell @FFGames @alderac #RPG #RPGFusion

— Richard Brewster (@Batjutsu) August 1, 2017

Anyone who has read my recent blog posts on Cryptomancer won’t be too surprised by my answer involving that lovely game. Although I’ve not blogged about Legend of the 5 Rings (L5R) yet, it is one of my favourite RPGs; I’m one of those people that has 10 favourite RPGS, 10 favourite bands, etc. I’ve been running the same L5R campaign since the game came out, so my group and I have a lot invested in the game; one player has the same character he started back in 1997. As my campaign has ‘featured’ the Shadow a lot, and secret organisations, I think Cryptomancy would fit right in; I’ll expand on this idea another time.

I nearly choose Tales From The Loop, as I am quite intrigued by that. I love the book Roadside Picnic, the Stalker computer games, and of course Stranger Things. A friend backed the Kickstarter, and loves the finished product. There are so many other games I’d like to be playing: Numenera, FATE, WoD, Aberrant, plus many more to get in to; we are living in an RPG rich age.

Although I have written a lot about this today, I am not planning on writing so much for each of my answers. I likely will, but this will be another chance to practice: if I had more time I’d have written less.

If you are interested in #RPGaDay, and you’d like to know more, then check out Dave Chapman. Also of note is Brigade Con, as Dave mentions on his page, they have been helping to run #RPGaDay, also check out Casting Shadows blog. There is also a webpage https://rpgaday.com/ providing a feed of the numerous tweets.