What would you like, that doesn't exist?

[akiyama]

For me, there are two ideas that James Maliszewski posted a long time ago that it would be nice to see in print.

Firstly, a guide to running high-level campaigns in old-school D&D. Building strongholds and ruling over fiefdoms. War and conquest. Epic, world-changing adventures. Handing over to the next generation. That kind of thing.

Secondly, a "Pulp D&D" retro-clone. I don't know exactly what James meant by this, but I have in mind a version of the D&D rules that is more of a generic fantasy RPG. The D&D rules embody a lot of assumptions about the world - for instance, there are spell-casting, undead-turning soldier-clerics who wear armour but cannot use edged weapons; for instance, there are colour-coded dragons, Tolkienesque elves and orcs, and creatures such as beholders and gelatinous cubes; for instance, prominant people tend to be of about 10th level or so.

It would be interesting to see a version of D&D with all the setting assumptions stripped out and replaced with a greater emphasis on creating your own stuff. Instead of Clerics and Magic-Users there could be a few optional variant magic-user classes with different ways of using magic. Instead of a list of monsters, there could be advice on designing monsters, and a copy of the Random Esoteric Creature Generator could be bundled in with the rules.

What would you like, that doesn't exist yet, or that might have existed, but never did?

[akiyama]

Some more things I'd like to see:

A sourcebook for running a D&D campaign in a fantasy version of the British Isles circa 800 AD. This would go very nicely with the 2e supplements HR1 Vikings and HR2 Charlemagne's Paladins.

A "megawilderness". I have in mind a module with 150-200 keyed encounters in a wilderness area divided into three "levels" and mapped on a small scale - say a half a mile to a hex, which would mean the PCs could cross an empty hex in 10 to 15 minutes. Subsequent modules might expand the wilderness with more "levels".

A collection of mini gamebook-style solo adventures, using the D&D system, with each adventure taking place in a dungeon geomorph. As you exit one geomorph, you can randomly enter another, so as a whole the geomorphs could make up one large adventure taking place in a semi-random, sandboxy dungeon. The dungeon could be expanded indefinitely by publishing additional geomorphs. I suppose one could also publish alternative mini-adventures set in the same geomorph maps to simulate the "restocking" of the dungeon", although that might be taking things too far. Or perhaps this would be an idea best exploited through a wiki, rather than a published product.

[palmer]

Orion slave girls. I would like them to exist. Your other ideas are good too.

[Malcadon]

A Buck Rogers-styled AD&D retro-clone that mixes elements of Space Opera (Flash Gorden, Star Trek), Aviation-styled Adventures (Sky Captain, Air-Wonder Stories) and Planetary Romance (Princess of Mars), with a lot of pulp-styled art. Such a game would have heroic Rocket Jocks, half-naked Space Princesses, alien Slave Girls, clunky Robots, Space Pirates, Alien Savages, Fu-Manchu sporting Warlords with funny costumed Henchmen, and the works! Escapist Fantasy at it's best!!! ;D

[palmer]

Heh! That's funny, Malcadon. I'm working on a bolt-on for AD&D that is exactly what you describe. I'm calling it Weird Space! It's just alot of outlines and notes at the moment. You might check out Al's stuff at , beyondtheblackgate.blogspot.com/ He's also doing something similar, and he's farther along than I am.

Also check out the game reports at Planet Algol, they're alot of fun.
planetalgol.blogspot.com/

[delve]

It would be neat to see if they ever published any of Arnesons game notes or Gygax's and Holmes. Or their game under a new name or something in that means or with the open publishing they COULD release the OD&D line again. It would be nice to see another old school D&D game published by something other than a toy manufacturer and have good dsitribution, sold in book stores, hobby shops. And in BOX set form. I like box sets. oh ya and metal figures... we need some more of those too *rerelease of old moldings would really be cool*.

[Malcadon]

Sept 14, 2009 18:26:06 GMT -6 akiyama said:

Secondly, a "Pulp D&D" retro-clone. I don't know exactly what James meant by this, but I have in mind a version of the D&D rules that is more of a generic fantasy RPG.

Its most likely a Sword & Sorcery styled game (less "Tolkienesque", and more Hyborian Age), with all the cruel, indifferent gods, the moral-ambiguity, the highly human-centric societies, the dark sorcery, and so on. Carcosa is a good example of this.

Sept 19, 2009 11:20:12 GMT -6 palmer said:

Heh! That's funny, Malcadon. I'm working on a bolt-on for AD&D that is exactly what you describe. I'm calling it Weird Space! It's just alot of outlines and notes at the moment. You might check out Al's stuff at , beyondtheblackgate.blogspot.com/ He's also doing something similar, and he's farther along than I am.

I have been seeing some people interested in seeing a BR-clone. Like Mutant Future, fans like the idea of a compatible sci-fi version of D&D. Unfortunately, I dont have the rules or the skills to do much about it (save for the art).

Another thing I what to see is something like Shadowrun, but not so Tolkienesque. SR always felt like they just took Cyberpunk 2020, and mashed it with 2nd ed AD&D! I would have liked to have seen something that held true to Gibson's Mirrorshades versions of things, but with fantasy elements would be vary pulp Sword & Sorcery. The sort dark sorcery from Hyboria, as well as Lovecraftian cults would be found there. Such sorcery is less flashy and useful (fireballs, read minds), and more occult-like and sinister (summon demon, curse of a thousand deaths). You also dont need to be born with an innate ability to cast spells, just the bastardry to research it. Humanity lost would only apply to major cybernetic alteration (I like minor alterations to be common), or exposure to demonic/eldrich entities. Instead of Elves and Trolls, there would be Mutants (not the comic book types, but just deformed freaks) and Cambians (half-demons who's mothers got raped by Nightgaunts on their sleep). SR and CP2020 also overlooked the darker elements of the cyberpunk genre (like drug abuse), but such elements should be embraced.

[akiyama]

I just thought of something else that would exist in my ideal world. A series of paperback books, each containing a mixture of classic fantasy and science-fiction stories. They would be issued monthly, like a magazine, and be smaller in size than a regular paperback, and no more than 150 pages long. In other words, pocket-sized. You could carry them around with you for reading on the train, during a coffee break etc.

[Malcadon]

Oct 3, 2009 3:32:56 GMT -6 akiyama said:

I just thought of something else that would exist in my ideal world. A series of paperback books, each containing a mixture of classic fantasy and science-fiction stories. They would be issued monthly, like a magazine, and be smaller in size than a regular paperback, and no more than 150 pages long. In other words, pocket-sized. You could carry them around with you for reading on the train, during a coffee break etc.

They got that. I got some on my bookshelf.

Unfortunately, this is the only digest-size science-fiction & fantasy magazine still available.

[akiyama]

Thank you Malcadon. I just checked out that magazine and discovered this interesting article:

The New Nostalgia: The Classic Pulp Story Revival

www.sfsite.com/fsf/2008/dt0807.htm

[ssfsx17]

I wish there was some super-intelligent AI that could understand all the blogs, house rules, external books, etc. that you liked, and mash them together into a well-edited and well-organized book. This AI should be able to finish its work in no more than 10 seconds.

For a more realistic wish, I wish that there were more decent players out there.

[Deleted]

The Originals Boxed Set:

A massive work including exhaustive information on Blackmoor Castle, and Castle Greyhawk.

The former written by Arneson, the latter by Gygax.

Published with no editorial changes, only cleaned up grammar and spelling; and no outside influences by corporate meddlers.

Oh, and signed by the authors, natch.

[chronoplasm]

A hybrid of OD&D and 4E that takes the best of both and fuses them together into something awesome.

[Malcadon]

More gratuitous nudity and violence in RPG art. I'm not talking about outright porn & gore (e.g. FATAL), I'm talking about more tasteful stuff like bloody blades and topless women (like Conan art, and AD&D before it got all "PC") - its that too much to ask for?!?