Shadowrun – Batjutsu

RPG TV Shows Fusing

In January I came across tweets about combining RPGs with TV Shows using #GamingTVShows. There were several people participating and plenty of excellent tweets. Always good to expand the #RPGMentalToolKit 😉

It was fun to think about, of note for myself was I said I’d make a comedy one-shot of: Coronation Street Fighters; sadly I had writing deadlines, which I hit, huzzah. Now I have some more deadlines, so I’ve not been able to start that yet. I also kept pondering and adding more to the list, which eventually helped spawn the idea for my forthcoming Play-by-eMail (PBeM) Twin Peaks like game I’ve nicknamed #Lynchcraftian. Of course it turns out Lynchcraftian has been used before in regards to summarising David Lynch’s work.

Regarding the comedy one-shot for SFRPG and Coronation Street. The moment I started working on it, I of course decided I wanted to do a good job, but:

I have not watched Coronation Street in years and I don’t have the time nor interest to research plotlines.
Artwork is always an issue, particularly for me and my poorly wrists.
I have two impending deadlines.

There are still many Street Fighter issues of Punho Do Guerreiro to translate, which would be of more use to the community than a silly one-shot. Plus I have other projects I’d prefer to focus on, that might even help me earn some money 😉 After my current deadlines, I might work on the idea, as as part of writing warmup; reminding myself to keep it light of course.

I have also remembered the wonderfully fun artwork of Jim’ll Paint It, which literally encapsulates this zany idea.

*Jim’ll Paint It* Coronation Street Fighter II

My silly list of RPG TV show fusion ideas. I think there are some gems in here:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer – am I doing it right? 😉
Jim Bowen’s Marvel Bullseye
Coronation Street Fighters
Forever Knights of the Round Table
7th Sea Heaven
The One Ring Show
The Strange Angel
Sapphire, Lace & Steel
Cult Kult
Mr. Robotech
Saturday Nightbane Live
Better Call Saul of Cthulhu
Dream Parks and Recreation
Black Mirror Crusade
Spaced (GURPS or D6)
The Walking Deadlands
The Good Life with Master
Mad Men in Black
His Dark Materials Heresy
Heavy Top Gear
GURPS Numberwang
Golden Ball Heroes
Eclipse Catch Phase
John Carter, Warlord and the Biker Mice of Mars
Hollyworldoaks
To University Challenge Tomorrow
Westworld End Games
Marc W. Miller’s Travel Man (play as Richard Ayoade)
Fading Sons and Daughters
What We Do in the Shadowruns
The Golden Girls Sky Stories
Savage Builds Worlds
QI the Warring States
Don’t Tell the Bluebeard’s Bride
RuPaul’s Dungeon Race
Stormbringer Chasers
Have I Got New World of Darkness For You
Mock the Werewolf
Numenerawang
Stupid Man, Smart Pathfinder
Panoramanoria
Caught Red Markets
Eating with My Ex Machina
Poldarkaris
8 out of 10 Cats Does Cthulhu
Airwerewolf
My Little Cyberpony 2020
Law & Orpheus
The Benny Hillfolk Show
The Unknown A Team
Black Books Crusade
Twilight Zone 2000
Delta Green Street Fighters
The Garou Dancer
Sesame Street Fighter
The Likely Changelings
Whatever Happened to the Likely Changelings?
I’m Alan Pendragon
Middle Earth Behaving Badly
Gimme Gimme Gamma World
Faulty Towers of Castle Falkenstein
Last of the Summer Changeling
First of the Summer Changeling
Saved by the CthulhuTech
Bushido Hills 90210
Demon or No Demon
The Secret Diary of Aberrant Mole, aged 13¾
Everybody Loves Earthdawn
Everybody Hates Shadowrun
Will and En Garde!
Aberrant the Last Airbender
Boy meets Apocalypse World
Curb Your Esoterrorists
Whose #Promethean Is It Anyway?
The #Mechwarrior Singer
The SLA Industries Gong Show
The Joy of Painting Street Fighters
#Lynchcraftian
The Werewolf Waltons of the Apocalypse
City of Mists on the Prairie
Howard’s Everway

#RPGaDay2018 Day04 Memorable NPC

Most memorable NPC?

As it’s become my thing I started off with a list and created my Pie Chart of Indecision to help me work out my answer. I mixed it with NPCs from supplements as well as NPCs that I’ve created; although I didn’t include any from my work at KJC Games, oddly I don’t consider them mine anymore.

Firstly a quick nod towards the various Mr Johnsons from Shadowrun, although technically a fusion of NPCs that could be classed as cheating, but I think it is fair to include due to the fact the name tends to get a strong player reaction.

From CRPG there are quite a few NPCs of note, whether Planescape Torment, Vampire Bloodlines, etc., but I went with Deekin Scalesinger from Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide. Such a brilliant expansion, and an NPC I’ve chatted with several people about over the years, including my dad who also adored those games.

Samuel Haight from the classic World of Darkness, a rampaging angry individual who went after power to help him get revenge. I’ll probably talk about this character more for Day 5.

NPCs that I’ve actually made myself from a Changeling campaign I ran back in the 90s, one of the players joked about having a 6point Chimerical Companion background. We decided to make an incredibly powerful chimerical creature who didn’t really do anything and the player was quite happy with that. It was a fusion between a

Spider & a Cat, which was nicknamed Spat; fortunately there was no spitting jokes. Spat lived underneath the Sluagh’s hat, and it would only occasionally come out when it wanted a stretch; there were a few times when Spat having a stretch coincided with the party having a major problem. Technically Spat considered the Sluagh PC as its companion, 1pt of course 😉 Fortunately this never took the spotlight away from any PCs, I very much believe in player agency not NPCs regularly saving the day, or that my scenes should over-ride player actions.

Probably my most memorable NPC I can think of is Shinjo Mifune an L5R Unicorn Bushi that looked Gaijin yet was blessed by several Fortunes. Mifune started out as NPC friend of a Crab PC. They got along during the Crab’s Gempukku due to them both being treated as outsiders, the Crab loved that Mifune epitomised Bushido. When a new player joined the group we discussed various characters and the story, we decided to let them take over Mifune and they did a great job of keeping continuity plus adding more depth. Mifune eventually became close with the NPC Magda from the wonderful boxset City of Lies. This campaign has been played on and off for over a decade, so Mifune & Magda’s story is not yet complete.

Kickstarter Sigmata RPG p2

This follows on from Kickstarter Sigmata RPG.

I am currently playing about with campaign ideas for this game, as well as future ideas merging with other games. Chad’s previous game Cryptomancer included a suggestion about a mechanical bolt on approach for other games, hence my thinking along this line for Sigmata. If you’ve not checked out the Sigmata Kickstarter page yet, here is a quick overview. The game is linking together serious and silly ideas, drawing upon numerous political ideas, people movements like the Arab Spring, as well as 80s pop culture. Major influences include things like Synthwave, plus films like Akira along with Saturday morning cartoons like Transformers and G.I. Joe.

Sigmata is an RPG in the Cyberpunk genre of games, joining the likes of famous RPGs like Shadowrun and Cyberpunk. For a few people defining Cyberpunk is an almost religious process. My simple take on the subject is that Cyberpunk is a broad encapsulating term that includes all sorts of products; I agree with the following genre overview:

Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a futuristic setting that tends to focus on “a combination of low life and high tech”^[1] featuring advanced technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cybernetics, juxtaposed with a degree of breakdown or radical change in the social order.^[2]

Sigmata allows players to play as Cybernetic badasses, who have access to diverse and interesting capabilities. Players (receivers) receive their powers via hearing signals, which are broadcast via radio towers. When the players have access to a very strong signal they are akin to superheroes in power level. The game includes a campaign tracking system, which in particular intrigues me.

I plan on running Sigmata by itself first, so I can get a good appreciation for the game and the practical experience of the rules. Additionally the Sigmata Kickstarter already has many goals unlocked, which includes alternate time periods to play in. This alone should keep the majority of gamers engaged for years to come. Lots of game options at launch, most impressive.

Merging with other RPGs

Whilst Sigmata is much more than just resistance tracking and signal towers giving powers, but these two ideas in particular are what I am very keen on exploring in other games. Following on from my previous post and my habit of mentioning RPG mental tool kit/belt, I’ll provide a list of ideas, like I wrote for my Changeling Kickstarter blog.

I love the idea of adding the Signal to a fantasy game, whether a high fantasy setting like D&D’s: Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Planescape, etc., or a grim-dark setting like Warhammer. Part of my thinking is that Sigmata could provide Avatar-like potential, as well as an extra level of campaign goals, but with mechanics of how to track such things. Whilst I have run very politically and rebellion focused campaigns in D&D previously, it was a long-time ago, and I didn’t make any mechanics for tracking resistance movements.

Consider how many fantasy settings have tyrannical rulers, but not just mortal monarchs, but also Magocracy or Theocracy, etc. Many magical settings include abilities empowering communication, speed of travel, as well as divination, all of which would really mix things up. However, what if magic cannot be trusted, and the party has to travel to hand deliver importance evidence, trying to avoid a scrying government, relying more on individual power, charm and guile. In a world of rare powerful magic the Signal could provide the party a much needed edge. Whether playing Rokugan with the Legend of the 5 Rings system, or the D20 system, there is interesting potential for Sigmata crossover.

Cthulhu mythos could take the Sigmata into dimensional territory, as well as paranoia and insanity. Imagine a game with cults having infiltrated tyrannical governments, so not only do the players need to resist things, but the fate of the world is at stake. Players (receivers) wondering where the signal comes from, and whether their newfound power cost something like sanity, or worse!

The World of Darkness is a game setting has all sorts of potential. The Signal could be related to any one of the existing supernatural groups, or something new. A Changeling campaign based in the Dreaming could have tyrannical Sidhe ruling commoners with an ‘iron’ fist, maybe the Signal allows a commoner to overcome the increased power of their innate nobility that Sidhe have in the Dreaming. A Werewolf game could have Garou being empowered by the Signal, which could be a new techno-spirit, providing new tools in the fight against the Wyrm. The same applies to a Mage centric game, but the metaphysical debates and paranoia regarding the Signal would be what I would want to focus on. An interesting twist to the Jyhad, such as Anarch vampires fighting Camarilla Elders, or Hunters avoiding Kindred. This could also work with the Chronicle of Darkness games.

Although the Trinity Continuum is about to be relaunched in the near future, the Trinity, Aberrant, Adventure settings of old included a powerful signal altering people. I am currently running Trinity and will be for a while yet, so I may start including things.

GURPS Riverworld, this setting is based upon a great sci-fi novel, which has its own sort of towers and effects on the world. I will avoid spoilers here; I guess most of those that have read it will appreciate where I am going with my thoughts. For me the wonderful GURPS reference books epitomise the RPG mental tool kit, so there is easily infinite scope regarding Sigmata ideas added into the GURPS system.

Shadowrun or R. Talsorian’s Cyberpunk games should be quite easy to merge with Sigmata due to the genre closeness and the typical adversarial nature of Corporations. Since powerful cybernetics already exist in these games, imagine if they were further empowered, which radically alters things. The magic in Shadowrun could also be enhanced, maybe in a way like with the D&D ideas I mention above.

I hope I’ve convinced you to at least check out the Kickstarter page for more information. Join in and #RepeatTheSignal.

Kickstarter Sigmata RPG

At the time of writing there is a week to go for the Sigmata RPG Kickstarter. The main designer is Chad Walker, and this alone is reason for me to be interested; I’d like to persuade you as to why this should spike your interest. It’s worth noting that I’ve written about Chad’s Cryptomancer game previously; a great game idea plus it adds something original to the role-playing community.

I am a big fan in reading practically anything to expand my RPG mental tool kit/belt; I need to work out some comedy picture ideas to demonstrate this point 😉 Since Cryptomancer added important real life concepts like Cyber security to RPGs, and Chad is a big believer in life gamification, I am quite optimistic regarding what he plans to add to the RPG community with Sigmata.

From the Kickstarter overview:

“SIGMATA: This Signal Kills Fascists” is a cyberpunk tabletop role-playing game about ethical insurgency against a fascist regime, taking place in a dystopian vision of 1980’s America.

Players assume the role of Receivers, the superheroic vanguard of the Resistance, who possess incredible powers when in range of FM radio towers emitting a mysterious number sequence called “The Signal.” When the Signal is up, Receivers lead the charge against battalions of Regime infantry and armor or serve as the People’s Shield, protecting mass demonstrations from the brutality of a militarized police force and neo-Nazi hooligans. When the Signal is down, however, Receivers are mere mortals, desperately fleeing from a powerful state that senses their weakness.

It’s called the Sigmata, a Signal-induced stigmata, because it is a both a blessing and a curse. At least when you’re marked by the state, you can’t sit on the sidelines anymore.

Just based upon the full Sigmata title it should be clear that Chad takes the concept of life gamification seriously, just from daring to mention the word fascist. Politics is always a complicated subject and now it seems to be even more complicated. Personally I’d say political actions/events always matter, but cycles vary and some actions/events matter even more. I think it is reasonable to state that the current cycle matters in particular, so it’s no surprise to read comments questioning Chad’s reasoning for attempting such a project; especially since some view RPG as politically neutral, but I’ll write about that tricky subject another time.

I love the fact Chad is tackling such a tricky subject. Even though I have played a lot of political heavy RPG games, I am sure this forthcoming specialist game will present a more sophisticated game world to explore than the typical RPG. The mechanical explanations Chad has given reassure me that the rules will support the narrative/game goals. I am sure Sigmata will be adding a powerful mental tool to my RPG mental tool kit/belt.

There is a lot to unpack with Sigmata, and I plan to do so over the next few blogs. Meanwhile I hope I’ve convinced you to check out the Kickstarter page for more information. Join in and #RepeatTheSignal.

#RPGaDay 13

If you are not familiar with #RPGaDay, then please read this page first. For the 13^th day of #RPGaDay the question is:

Describe a game experience that changed how you play.

My tweeted answer is: #RPGaDay 13 #RPG, balancing challenges & avoid being too epic.

I have tried to keep growing over the years, both in relation to myself, and also how I play/GM RPGs, I have often reflected on how fortunate I was to role-play with so many different people. From being 11 and the silly amount of D&D sessions at school, to playing with much older role-players when I was 16, to being mentored by people at my local games shop, and the great influence by gamers at college. Like other gamers, I am sure this question can result in a floodgate of reflecting and cool stories. Thus there were a few different answers that I started writing for this, each competing for the limelight. I also wrote some blog posts last year about some of my early RP experiences that fitted this question:

The first role-playing game I ran greatly influenced how I saw the hobby. It was shortly after my first role-playing session, so I was still extremely new to the whole concept of role-play, and of course an inexperienced 11 year old. I came up with a very simplistic adventure idea, since I was pressed for time to prepare the game. Due to my lack of experience I struggled to balance encounters, and I escalated too quickly to being epic about things!

Thankfully one of the players appreciated that I’d been willing to run the game, since everybody had wanted to play. Sadly I forget the person’s name now, but this 11 year old gave surprisingly sophisticated feedback, explaining why he thought my session had been clearly run by someone struggling and going overboard. His explanation was roughly:

It quickly became obvious to him which were my weak and tough encounters, thus the party acted accordingly. He advised mixing things up, tough goblins and monsters near death, and to give clues to this.
The party gained too much loot at the end. If one gold coin is valuable than a hundred is a treasure, whilst thousands is ridiculous.
The plot reasons I’d come up with were silly, and it was all to epic, making it even sillier.
He added that whilst giving out lots of treasure did make one player happy, who at the time was running around the room bragging, but for him he felt it was worthless, since it was all too easy.

This advice started my journey in thinking about plot, balance, character meaning, value and the near-paradoxes of gaming. In turn I have passed on this advice, along with other ideas, to new players and GM’s:

Explore and enjoy low level things when they are new, don’t be in a rush to throw epic encounters in.

This also led my 11 year old self to try and appreciate what was happening in a game at that moment. Not to fixate on what loot we would find, or when we next levelled/spent XP. This of course applies whether the party are 1^st level D&D characters, neonate vampires, poorly equipped Solo/Street Samurai, etc., or powerful versions of those characters.

During my teenage years this advice led me to appreciating little character details. Whether playing Warhammer or Cyberpunk, etc., that as a player epic-ness is my character’s story, and the decisions I make. That as a GM, to allow players to explore their character details, to make decisions and have an impact, and not just to ram my epic plot down their throats. The big plot event down the line will mean more to players who are invested in their characters.

#RPGaDay 05

If you are not familiar with #RPGaDay, then please read this page first. For the 5^th day of #RPGaDay the question is:

Which RPG cover best captures the spirit of the game?

There are so many amazing game covers I contemplated picking, I’ve listed ones I nearly choose below. Since this question has no correct answer, choosing one was quite difficult. I went with:

#RPGaDay 5 Usagi Yojimbo, also the only game I’ve bought simply due to the cover.

Since any RPG using existing intellectual property (IP) brings with it a lot of sentiment, be it: Star Wars, Trek, D.C, Marvel, Middle Earth, Babylon 5, Street Fighter, etc., could be thought of as having a bonus to any dice roll to help capture what the spirit of a game would be; I’d go as far as claiming that it’s an automatic success. This is why I think it puts any RPG cover for such an IP in to a special category. This is not to diminish some of the amazing front covers for any RPG using a big IP setting; I’m just saying that for me I already have an opinion of what the spirit is.

I had no idea what Usagi Yojimbo was when I bought it, so I am ignoring the fact the game used an existing IP; also it’s clearly not as famous as the IPs mentioned above 😉 I vaguely recall thinking it might be a bit like TMNT, but it looked less zany, more serious. Also my first introduction to Greg Stolze, whose varied great work I’ve enjoyed many times over the years.

I almost choose the stunning artwork used for Tales from the Loop. So many are saying it really captures the spirit of the game, but I have not played it yet so I thought in inappropriate to pick. Whilst the game is partly inspired by Stranger Things, but it does not use the title, so I think it is fair to not treat like the big IPs like Star Wars.

Minimalist Front Cover Shout-Outs

It’s hard make a front cover whilst keeping details to a minimum. It makes sense to make epic fantasy/sci-fi pictures for an RPG, since the fan base is usually the sort of people that will plaster their walls with pictures of dragons and spaceships. So it is understandable that the majority of RPGs use an epic scene for their front cover, especially given how important drama is for any RPG.

Two games that deviate from this norm, that I also think use the front cover to capture the spirit of their game are:

Traveller’s text on a black background somehow works; maybe because it is a gripping short story, atop the black which represents deep space and vulnerability?
Code and Dagger (Cryptomancer) does a great job of encapsulating that game.

Other Shout-Outs

There are so many other front covers that I nearly choose: Cyberpunk 2020, Warhammer 1^st Ed, Shadowrun, L5R, Deadlands. Of special note to me is Aberrant, there is a lot going on in the picture that captures the drama of the setting, without it being too busy.

Like many others I have spent too much time on pinterest if you’d like to look at more RPG artwork: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/batjutsu/