randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Feb 28, 2018 21:52:31 GMT -6
To this day, FASATrek is my favorite Trek setting. (Yeah, the RPG rules had issues. That was FASA, back in the day. Great settings, lousy RPG rules, decent wargaming rules.)
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Feb 13, 2018 22:22:57 GMT -6
This is all from memory (I don’t have my books handy; also, it allows me to fudge things a bit, heh!). But, yeah, it makes you wonder how tall Hobbits would grow if they drank ENT-DRAUGHT their whole life. (Are they indeed only “half” the height they should be?) When they do drink it, it describes their hair on their head and feet growing thicker and longer. (Would they grow beards?) I believe Treebeard mentions that Men and Elves can’t stomach the stuff. At one point when he’s talking to them, Treebeard says something like, “Oops! For a moment I forgot who I was talking to, and thought you were Entings!” At the beginning of LotR there’s all that business about a giant walking tree being spotted north of the Shire (an Entwife watching over her children?), and of course in the Old Forest there are Huorns (evil semi-sentient trees, eg., Old Man Willow; a force of them from Entwood wiped out the host of Isengard at the end of the Battle of Helm’s Deep). Not to mention all the emphasis on gardening—the whole Shire is a freakin’ English garden—the exact thing the Entwives were into. In fact Treebeard says the Entwives would have liked the Shire. Hobbits have an obsession with potatoes and mushrooms. They obviously have a very important connection to the soil. At the end of LotR there’s that whole business about that soil that Galadriel had given Sam, and when he planted things all around the Shire and used a little bit of that soil with everything he planted, there was a huge baby boom in the Shire. References abound to Hobbits being exceptionally “tough;” obviously the soles of their feet but also in general. (Gandalf in these situations is always muttering something like, “There’s more to them than meets the eye.”) Similarly, Treebeard describes that older Ents are not so bendable, but younger Ents are. I'm sold. And it's an awesome idea, to boot!
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Feb 13, 2018 8:46:44 GMT -6
Did Tolkein or the estate ever address this? Where did the hairy feet thing come from? The hair is suggestive of roots. Just one of many, many hints at their partial descent from the lost Entwives. I've never heard that suggested before, but it resonates. Do you recall any other hints? (I can think of a couple - Merry and Pippin "responding" to the ent-draught, and the direction the entwives went when they left.)
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Feb 10, 2018 9:41:45 GMT -6
I speak German, I’ll check them out. I really like the NPR “Star Wars” radio dramas that came out a couple of decades ago. If I am thinking of the same ones you are thinking of, they are older than that. And the radio drama of the original film (now known as Episode IV) had unique scenes and details not presented anywhere else. Definitely endorsed!
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Feb 9, 2018 12:25:00 GMT -6
As to which era or topic they plan to adapt, the internet seems ablaze with KOTOR rumors, but that seems to be more like what part of the fandom wants, and not necessarily what "D&D" and Disney might be eyeing. I am equally dismissive about assertions that some other part(s) of the old EU will be resurrected and adapted. Disney decanonized the old EU precisely so they could create new stories rather than being constrained by the published ones. Why they would reopen that can of worms is beyond me.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jan 26, 2018 7:31:02 GMT -6
- Twilight 2000 v2.2 was mechanically identical to Traveller: The New Era. That should make it easier to port high tech into a GI Joe-inspired setting.
- Merc 2000 is a great sourcebook for a non-TEOTWAWKI setting, albeit one that diverged from RL as much as the original Twilight 2000 did. Even so, Merc 2000 could take a GI Joe-Cobra overlay decently well.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Sept 17, 2017 6:50:13 GMT -6
I always use the new posts feature in forums as my home page. Lately, when I click the blue "New" button on updated threads here on OD&DD it takes me to the top of the last page in the thread, rather than the first new post since my last visit. Has something changed with ProBoards, or is this something that can be re-set? It's kind of annoying having to scroll through the page to find the last bit I read and then the new posts. Same behavior for me.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Aug 5, 2017 7:47:57 GMT -6
This hobby is very much young people (Or young-at-heart people) making soup for the camp out of whatever was leftover in the fridge. I would not read too much into it. That is an awesome analogy. And spot on, to boot.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jul 29, 2017 11:47:37 GMT -6
Justin Case
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jul 19, 2017 15:12:26 GMT -6
Sigh. Anybody who's ever played an ancient or medieval wargame knows fighters are not all the same. Heavy troops, light troops, skirmishers, missile troops, shock troops, are all different and all play their part. The problem is that the combat turn should have stayed one minute. The dice roll is a net effect after a minute of combat, not your "fancy manoeuvre." Once you stop thinking that the dice represents a single strike, it becomes easy. The last sentence, especially, should be graven in stone with gold fill.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jul 16, 2017 16:48:28 GMT -6
How compatible is this game with Chainmail? Or is that even a question? It's not, and is not intended to be. That makes sense.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jul 16, 2017 11:49:52 GMT -6
How compatible is this game with Chainmail? Or is that even a question?
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jul 2, 2017 16:42:20 GMT -6
I proposed to my wonderful girlfriend of 5 years today (Canada's 150th birthday), and she said yes. Sorry if this is inappropriate for the boards -- just super stoked. To those that saw me at Gary Con, you would've also seen her! Anyways thanks for humoring me with this post!! Sharing good news with the community is always appropriate, IMO. Congrats!
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on May 4, 2017 15:24:42 GMT -6
Splinter of the Mind's Eye also has several bits alluding to the fragmented nature of the Empire. It also implies that there are several Sith lords running around, not just Darth Vader. Frankly, this version of the Empire feels closer to the pulpy roots of Star Wars than what the series eventually became. I need to re-read Alan Dean Foster's 1976 Star Wars novelization and his Splinter of the Mind's Eye. The two comprise a "Star Wars Fosterverse". If you can find them, the NPR radio dramas present a different take as well, one that I consider very close to the "Star Wars Fosterverse" (nice coinage; I like it).
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Apr 20, 2017 14:52:55 GMT -6
Thanks to Gynsburghe for starting a thread that seems to result in several of you thanking me for being so awesome. Gotta love the love around here. Seriously, I'm glad that most of the internet uglies don't happen in this place. That's always been a high priority of mine. Eh, you and the whole crowd here deserve it - just don't start telling the other forums that they're doing it wrong and we have the one true board... Let them discover it for themselves...
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Apr 20, 2017 6:14:43 GMT -6
Well put, smubee. I know when to stop posting on a thread -- anywhere. I have a simple criteria. Have I stopped having fun? Or have I contributed to someone else no longer having fun? Then my contribution has ended. I read on some OSR blog somewhere that was trying to describe different OSR fora for people: it said that ODD74 was "boring." I take that as a great compliment. What it means is that we are not a bunch of drama-queens. We are not trying to entertain each other through posting. We are trying to support one another's fun encounter with a hobby (HOBBY) that we love. Thanks, Finarvyn! I prefer the descriptor "calm". I appreciate the absence of drama. I do, however, find this forum to be entertaining, due to the content. Where other fora have their (few) gems of content scattered in dungheaps of drama, the gems here are simply presented for all to enjoy.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Mar 27, 2017 19:25:25 GMT -6
Luke miraculously never turns to the dark side, despite repeatedly giving in to his anger. Vader choose Luke over the Emperor not as part of a planned coup but as a spur of the moment change of heart. But, the Other Skywalker plot is still dangling, and here’s why. Why would you introduce Another Hope only to decide, nah, don’t worry about it, Luke’s got this? Leia never needs to use the force to save the galaxy or redeem her brother. That always bothered me too. Luke had too easy of a time shrugging off the dark side, and Leia having all these latent abilities but never tapping into them is ridiculous. I blame Timothy Zahn for the last bit. For all the good stuff that he (IMO) did, keeping Leia effectively untrained was a major error (again, IMO).
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Feb 20, 2017 16:52:25 GMT -6
According to Gary she is a Demi-god, but her spell casting ability is around 28th level, which is closer to lesser deity. Iuz is "the Old" and he's been around as long as anybody can remember. Which means his mother has to be older. And her description makes her seem ancient. I'd say at least 1,000 years old. Unless one of the principals is a time traveller, voluntary or involuntary. I could see Iuz being cast back in time as an infant...
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jan 24, 2017 16:32:12 GMT -6
The attack on the Jawas seems to imply that the sand people were working with the Empire (otherwise, how did they get ghaffi sticks and make bantha tracks?) ISTR a statement (in the novelization?) that the Imperials had killed Sand People to get their weapons and mounts.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Jan 18, 2017 15:36:24 GMT -6
Now, IMO it's not a substitute for paper books, yet - but we might be getting there, in time. I dislike using anything smaller than my 24 inch monitor (the first monitor I have ever been happy with) and if I am able to retire when I get to 68, I intend to upgrade to a screen size of a min of 50 inches at the highest resolution I can get. There is also a Kindle application for desktop - OSX and Windows. This, too, allows you to access and read Kindle books, and does so on your desktop monitor.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Dec 9, 2016 20:31:52 GMT -6
IIRC Leia was being trained by Luke throughout the Thrawn Trilogy. I believe that you are correct. I did not recall that. My contention is, given the passage of time between RotJ and the start of the Thrawn trilogy, she should have been trained already. And her power level relative to Luke was terra incognita, as Zahn was the trailblazer for the post- RotJ era. Eh, roads not taken.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Dec 9, 2016 6:46:45 GMT -6
Zahn made, IMO, one major mistake. He was the one who established that Leia had not been trained by Luke. If she had sufficient potential for Luke to contact her in ESB, she should have been trainable. (And in later EU works, IIRC, she was.)
Aside from that, I enjoyed Zahn's work greatly.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Nov 15, 2016 18:33:32 GMT -6
I deeply wish that WotC* would release all those old TSR games in PDF.
*If they have the rights of course. Otherwise, substitute "current rights holder"...
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Nov 15, 2016 7:00:35 GMT -6
I don't know how many players makofan can handle, but I encourage you to come check this out! It is incredible, I have never played and I am seriously getting hooked on Traveller, yeah a rival to OD&D for me of all people! Classic Traveller is as Old School as OD&D while remaining distinctive. Despite the fun work that has been done to create OD&D-compatible sci-fi games, Traveller still rocks it! (Just not with near-c rocks... )
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Oct 26, 2016 6:16:15 GMT -6
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Oct 23, 2016 16:00:34 GMT -6
Still a little hazy on the "from scratch" rule, because to me worlds like Greyhawk are themselves imitative of the generic fantasy literary sources, so even if you haven't read much of the Greyhawk setting materials (I've only glanced at them,) you're going to have a lot of similarity. I at first took it to mean "all elements are invented by you, rather than pre-made and dropped into your framework". Almost all my campaigns have been 100% from scratch, under that definition, with only one or two campaigns where I dropped in a dungeon module or something like that. Only time I went below 80% from scratch was when I ran GURPS in the Yrth setting. I would consider the setting I've been working on for the last several years (The Nine and Thirty Kingdoms) as being 100% from scratch, but there is a fallen empire destroyed by a supernatural cataclysm, something that popped up in more than one published setting, including Greyhawk. But in my setting, it was a wormpocalypse caused by a religious conflict with the Chaos Druids. Is that different enough to be considered original? I vote "Yes".
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Oct 22, 2016 7:51:14 GMT -6
Which means I have created four worlds from scratch, as part of that project and by the definition used for it.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Oct 18, 2016 15:56:19 GMT -6
I have attempted to do so, usually more synthesis of "stuff I like" than anything from whole cloth. Hard to assess a percentage, though.
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Sept 26, 2016 20:50:02 GMT -6
|
|
randyb
Level 3 Conjurer
Posts: 92
|
Post by randyb on Sept 26, 2016 6:06:59 GMT -6
|
|