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Post by xerxez on Feb 4, 2013 17:35:58 GMT -6
Vile, I saw your work only yesterday (been busy) and major Exalts!
You put a very elegant finished product and the changes you made to the Maze vastly improved it...I would say what you did was a lot for work and it came out excellent.
I appreciate you!
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Post by xerxez on Dec 22, 2012 21:14:51 GMT -6
Thanks kesher, I'll check it out. I e-mailed the author and invited him to the forum. Unless someone finds this book at a store and sees it hisself, I can't really do it justice. Its real nice.
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Post by xerxez on Dec 21, 2012 20:15:14 GMT -6
Hi guys. I stumbled upon a book I thought some would find as interesting as I did. It's a very lavishly illustrated art book that reads like a Marco Polo style account of a land of the author's invention...a land called Perigord. The book is styled in such a format as to be instantly translatable into basic, original, or advanced D&D or Pathfinder as a campaign starter or idea mine. Blogged about it here: jennerak.blogspot.com/
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Post by xerxez on Dec 19, 2012 17:35:42 GMT -6
Sorry Noffham, this is a case of tone not making it into text. I understood your original post and I apologize if my post came across wrong. Merry Christmas to you and everybody.
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Post by xerxez on Dec 18, 2012 21:07:41 GMT -6
Noffham, I'm most certainly not hating. I'm just stating the obvious for those who've seen it.
Much more was changed than those two items.
Arguably, its more about Thorin than Bilbo, for starters.
Bilbo didn't go chasing the dwarves until he was shooed out of the house by Gandalf.
They didn't come to Rivendell by the manner shown in the film.
They didn't almost get it into a scrap with the elves.
Thorin didn't descend the burning tree to duel the orc and wasn't saved by Bilbo.
Bilbo didn't try to sneak away from the cave where they were taken by the goblins (and their ponies should have been in the scene).
And unless my memory fails me, there was no place for the meeting between Elrond, Galadriel, Saruman, and Gandlaf during the Party's stay at the Last Homely House.
And this is just what I can recall at the moment. These aren't minor interpretation innovations--they are major changes and they pandered without needing to.
I have no hate for this movie. It simply was not JRR Tolkien's story. And I must disagree--I'm not thankful for what I get when it comes to film. Not when you tell me years in advance "Hey, we're making the Hobbit" and I go there as my 8 year old self again only to find that you have cruelly deceived me these many years. They ripped the book from my hands.
And just ask yourself--would Tolkien have liked it. I really don't believe he would have. Maybe now that he's wholly spirit and has perfect understanding he doesn't care, but in his lifetime, I ask you--would he have liked it?
I was not kidding--the 1977 film is FAITHFUL to the book, has great music, great voice actors, good pace...these are not arguable...and in my belief, very good art work and animation for the time. Smaug was a classic there. So it is still the go to Hobbit movie for the real story.
Now, yes, I am going to see the other movies but I was just saying.
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Post by xerxez on Dec 17, 2012 23:33:56 GMT -6
Fin, John Carter was actually pretty good to me, guess I'm inconsistent on that point as relates to being a Puritan regarding exact book-likeness of films based on literary works.
I guess I just feel strongly about this book and author, like I know many of us do whether we love or hate the movie or simply enjoy the movie.
Like Baron, I don't think tie ins to the other movie or creative needs of the film makers justified the alterations to the tale.
I did get the little part in the beginning, with Frodo and that tie-in, I think that was understandable given a need to let younger movie goers who saw the other movies to know where it fit--but from there I think P.J. should have striven to, yes, innovate on and interpret some things a bit yet keeping within the perimeters of the story.
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Post by xerxez on Dec 15, 2012 22:26:53 GMT -6
Geoffrey, I'm glad you brought up the Stone Giants.
That was not only felt conceptually wrong, it was bad CGI and is incomprehensible to people who've read the book, let alone people who have not.
I didn't care for the conceptual changes in the orcs, either, especially the Pale Orc.
I did not hate on this film. I went in trying to like it and give it a chance because I liked the LOTR trilogy.
It's just that, after waiting so long and really, really looking forward to "seeing" the story, my disappointment only grew with each successive scene--it was akin to going back to your old neighborhood, fully expecting to see the old sights and finding its all been torn down for a strip mall.
I must regard it as a failure on grounds of authenticity.
To be fair, though, it seemed the theater goers liked it. While we waited for it to start (we were 2nd in a very long line as we showed up 2 hours early...), the kid next to me was writing in runes on his ipad and scribbling rune notes he was teaching his little sister to decipher. He could write the runes as fast as you and I could write normally and I thought that was really cool.
No lie, I would love to see an "art" hobbit film based solely on the book. I know with the licensing issues it most likely would never happen but it'd be nice.
Some of the most powerful films I've seen are those that are based solely upon the book--one example that comes to mind is the Outsiders by SE Hinton and Francis Ford Coppola's screen rendition. I know Middle earth has different issues than a story like that in translating it to film, but still, I wish they'd taken the chance.
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Post by xerxez on Dec 15, 2012 11:29:25 GMT -6
Didn't see where to post this, so Fin, it may need moved. I can cut and paste it if a thread exists. NO SPOILERS other than to say the film itself was, well, not spoiled but a bit sour.
I went my son last night and it had been long awaited, for this was a story beloved and read aloud or given to us to us in both our boyhoods. And I went knowing it would not be exactly Tolkien but hoping it might get it as close as the first trilogy.
Let me say it was not a waste of time nor a very bad or even mediocre film. I recommend it seen on the big screen once or twice.
However, if you are a huge fan of the original book and Tolkien himself, I will simply state that, for people like you, the 1977 Rankin/Bass animated work must remain at present the definitive Hobbit Film.
All that I can say is that if P.J. had felt so obliged to re-write the entire tale himself, he might have at least retained the original protagonist of Bilbo Baggins.
He might also have realized he could have retold the entire Book through film in about 3 hours if he had not brought in addended cameos and plot lines, Indiana Jones style CGI flashbangs, and needles battle scenes that never happened in Tolkien's world of Middle Earth.
Thus, even though in the first twenty minutes it was so familiar and well characterized that I was willing to forgive any deviations on the understandable grounds of sheer scope, it quickly devolved into a hodgepodge of muddled subplots that became totally irreconcilable to the Unexpected Journey.
Forgive me if you liked it. I will concede that it did delve into some real ME history, and highlighted some characters that get no more than a single passing mention. Also, Rivendell was a truly glorious sight to behold in this movie, as was The Hall Under the Mountain. Gorgeous and awe inspiring. Acting and humor were great. And the jewel of the entire movie are the scenes with Gollum and the Riddle Game, which were very evocative of the book.
So all in all, the movie has very bright rays here and there, but it is my hope that someday, someone will make a live-action film adaptation of the Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.
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Post by xerxez on Dec 4, 2012 23:16:39 GMT -6
Rleduc offers the perfect advice in my opinion. I think it is very important that the DM have some familiarity with the basics of the setting but only for his or her own ease and comfort in running the game and to give it a flow and some serendipity. The serendipity is for dropping Tekumel Easter eggs for new players when you are unexpectedly given the chance by player actions or side jaunts.
Just keep it simple and the exotic character races, monsters, spell names, and the most striking Tekumelani cultural features will communicate the setting's essence if not it's intricacies-- I think keeping it dungeon based is good for getting D&D players accustomed, and also I think playing up the religious elements creates player interest.
I ran an EPT campaign for a few months and it was great fun but I did find that it is both an acquired and a rare taste--it required something a little more than many players were willing to give--they wanted the default D&D setting, it was easier, familiar.
I had a passion for it and some very good players but it is hard to sustain with people who aren't into it or simply won't try. Better to run a game with a committed DM and two to three players who like the setting than to soft soap it to accommodate a larger group.
I am a big fan of this setting and the Professor. I happened upon Tekumel materials when I was 18 years old stationed in the Navy in Hawaii. I remember buying the game books, reading the setting with fascination, and loving the exotic art. However, having been solely immersed in Basic and Expert D&D and the original AD&D books, I had a hard time breaking away from that way of thinking and I found Barker's setting a little incomprehensible at that time.
I gained a renewed interest in it a few years back and read two of the novels and bought quite a trove of Tekumel gaming materials via the net. Sadly, they sit upon a shelf but I have desired to take up a new game if I could only find the right players....
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Post by xerxez on Nov 22, 2012 21:28:41 GMT -6
Vile
I am absolutely thrilled to see the Maze of Nuromen in your project and I really love the changes!
Nice layouts. I hope many heroes find gold and glory in those misty depths. Gamosh and his cult were a particular favorite among my campaign materials and I hope someone can incorporate it into a larger campaign setting.
Let me know when it's all ready to order!
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Post by xerxez on Nov 19, 2012 17:57:46 GMT -6
I have to say that I like the diverse dragons of D&D and their unique breath weapons.
As a young DM I ran a good number of adventures once--almost a campaign within a campaign--where the characters hunted out lore of dragon kind for a wizard and gathering dragon relics and body parts of the various types for his magicks.
It was kind of neat getting into the good alignment dragons and seeing players of neutral or good alignment interact with them. I used Bahamut in several different gaming groups in the guise of an old man who sent the party on a quest and revealed his true form only after they had completed the quest. What fun those days!
I think the varying types were made up to offer variety!
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Post by xerxez on Nov 13, 2012 22:41:20 GMT -6
Been on hiatus for a bit, other than three sessions play testing a rules light story telling system I recently created. Have been prepping for an Empire of the Petal throne run.
But when I do run D&D, I have always preferred Holmes or Modlvay Basic and expert. Now normally I have players who prefer 2nd Edition or even Pathfinder but they know I won't run this and so they persist for 1st Edition AD&D because they grumble that Holmes or Moldvay doesn't offer enough options--yet some of our best games have been Holmes low level adventures.
I can run AD&D fairly well and to me it is essentially the original D&D with the supplements but that's a delicate matter of contention here. I like Holmes because it's simple, end of story. To me it was the simplest and most concise set of rules ever written.
When I run D&D, I tend to go with Dungeon based campaigns relieved with the occasional town adventure and wilderness/world building plot. But I think dungeons are where it's at. They are linear, they allow a DM to plan and be prepared for most contingencies, yet they will be different every time you run them with a different group of players.
As often as possible we play by candlelight and I try (usually unsuccessfully) to limit all communication to in character. I'm one of those weird players that is immensely disappointed by a D&D game that is a bunch of guffawing and masculinity re-affirming vulgarity with non stop joking all the way through. Really sucks, I'm like, you just shot my fantasy all to heck. I wanted to channel Tolkien or Howard and we're channeling Beavis and Butthead instead. If you feel insecure about playing and have to negate this feeling by acting super cool, perhaps you oughtn't play the game. I love humor in the game but not that kind, at least not every time, and its not cause I'm a prude--it just obliterates the aesthetic I seek in the games.
I do get that some people enjoy that and they like the hanging out and all and I respect it but its not my style of play. I joke that way at work sometimes with buddies and some are my gaming buddies, but by God when the books are open and the dice are on the table, we're not in Kansas anymore Toto and I expect to experience the realms of imagination, not endless a*grabbing.
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Post by xerxez on Nov 3, 2012 8:50:11 GMT -6
Came across a memorable old Italian film on Netflix. It had some cheese but the story was good, interesting conflict. It could be classified as a fantasy film if only because it includes a sooth saying Norse witch who uses magic and whose prophecy of doom is the thread running through the entire film. I rolled my eyes more than once but all in all I enjoyed it and thought I'd pass it on. The review below was well written so I included it, it gave the movie 3 stars out of 5 which I thought about right. Except the Shane reference...
This largely forgotten Mario Bava film is a curious blend of American Western and European Sword & Sandal film. Don't be fooled by the cheesy cover; this was actually a professionally produced movie, and it has more than enough polish to escape any moments of unintentional comedy. As such, it wasn't really my cup of tea, but fans of both the Western genre and the Italian Sword & Sandal genre should find elements here to appreciate. I see a reviewer here (Flashbulb) describing the film as "Shane versus the Vikings," and I couldn't agree more....The story involves a princess who is forced into hiding after her kingdom is ravaged by the hands of an evil warlord. While the prince is at sea, the warlord murders the king, and seeks to capture the princess for his own bride. Soon enters a mysterious stranger, however, who vows to set things right. After learning the princess' true identity, the stranger discovers that his past indiscretions have created a unique opportunity for self-redemption, as well as the possibility of grave danger....As a vintage Italian film, this really is one of the most polished I've seen, and it holds up adequately as a fairly unique entry in the two aforementioned genres. Bava was a talented director, and "Knives of the Avenger" shows the man in agreeable form during the later half of his career. (PS: the English dub is a good one, and a plenty adequate alternative to the original Italian).
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Post by xerxez on Oct 21, 2012 14:17:22 GMT -6
I already volunteered the Nuromen dungeon if you want it.
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Post by xerxez on Sept 27, 2012 17:36:24 GMT -6
Thanks Falconer--I have appreciated your posts on Middle Earth, they offer great tips.
I think you have hit the nail on the head with the cleric to ranger idea.
I have always seen the Dunedain Rangers as a religious order in a sense, as well.
I don't see any need for a priestly class via organized temple religion nor religious texts.
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Post by xerxez on Sept 26, 2012 21:38:38 GMT -6
I will be running a M.E. game soon, was looking over the old I.C.E. materials and in thinking about it, I know I.C.E. was adapting it for a role paying setting but in surveying Tolkien's worksI don't see clerics or even priests or temples nor any ritual worship. I may have simply forgotten.
What are the thoughts of Tolkien fans on religion in Middle earth? This isn't bait, by the way, and I really don't want to get into a contest to see who can pee the farthest when it comes to ME Lore, I am honestly seeking constructive input about a subject which to me is very vague in the books.
I don't think it was an omission--I think the spirituality of the good folk of ME is based on the subtle magic of ME and the Secret Flame and its an individual inner matter, and I'm thinking about omitting any cleric or temple system altogether.
I don't think Illuvatar or the Valar even care to be worshiped in this fashion, as I recall he was worshiped with some ceremony at Numenor before they turned to devil worship, but I can't remember.
Thoughts?
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Post by xerxez on Aug 23, 2012 19:57:01 GMT -6
Monk, I agree--it was a dud they say but I found it entertaining and well done.
I've never been one to judge a film by its box office nets because I don't think that highly of the American moviegoer's taste in film.
The Expendables 2 just banged out receipts and is very popular---John Carter was a far better film on just about every level.
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Post by xerxez on Aug 23, 2012 19:21:41 GMT -6
Crussdaddy, you probably know more about such things than I. I did find a website for Angelic that lists several films linked to IMDB, it appears they at least assisted in several projects. That is here: www.angelicpictures.com/index.htmlIn any event, I can only hope it's for real as I would like to see it. The Venus series has some tremendous material, Finarvyn. I absoultely loved it--it is cliffhanger page turner stuff with races, monsters and cultures that would inspire any DM. There is even a castle and city of re-animated corpses controlled telepathically by an evil prince on Venus...an undead army! Eat your heart out Romero. Frankly, it is not as good as the Mars series, being slightly less majestic and sweeping in it's panorama of a world. However, this is like saying that gold is not as good as platinum. Be forewarned that the books have a whiff of ERB's politics here and there which, one can be sure, are not politically correct. There is an overt nod to the KKK in one chapter, and unmistakable praise for racialist scientific theories that were conventions of ERB's day. This does not bother me in the least--the book was written in the 30's and during that period of American history... before expose journalism became vogue...the Klan enjoyed very widespread popularity and politicians routinely pandered to them if they wanted even a chance of being elected. Take in in the context of it's era and it would not be offensive to anyone in the least. The chief antagonists of the books I read were "Thorists", Thorism being a very thinly veiled motif of Marxism. You can't read the first book and fail to guess what ERB thought about Marxism/Socialism...he hated it, obviously, and regarded it with all the horror of his American contemporaries. If none of these things bother you (and they comprise mere sentences of the books) you will love the stuff! I read both books in two days and wished I lived on Amtor! I think ERB's materials can be interpreted and re-interpreted for many years to come--and I imagine that when you watch a lot of sci fi TV and theater films of the 50's and 60's, you are probably getting treated by people who were heavily inspired by ERB and his counterparts. All I can say is I hope that it goes off!
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Post by xerxez on Aug 22, 2012 21:06:32 GMT -6
Was anyone else aware that there was to be another ERB film released in 2013 by Angelic Pictures? I just read the first two novels and it was some great stuff. www.piratesofvenusmovie.com/
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Post by xerxez on Aug 2, 2012 22:03:32 GMT -6
I just remembered something about Fire and Ice that kind of creeped me out, though.
One night I was watching it again and the part where he is in the ice lands and surrounded by the beast men, there is some creepy music playing. I listened to this really close a couple of times and I plainly heard voices mixed under the music. They are yelling and screaming and you can make out phrases. I mean screaming besides the monkey men and the witch woman.
Somebody who owns the film please listen and tell me you can hear them as well so I will know I was not tripping.....
Here, I found the clip on YT--the track starts at 3:34. At the end of this sequence when he is going down in the hole in the ice I really think I hear someone saying "Help Me."
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Post by xerxez on Aug 2, 2012 19:10:00 GMT -6
Thanks guys for some good leads. I agree with those who love the Bakshi stuff, especially Fire and Ice, I also personally liked his animated LOTR. [Xerxez quickly Ducks at the tomatoes]
Krull was great, Ladyhawke is a great film except for the music, it kind of ruins it. Conan the Barbarian, def. Time Bandits is a good one too.
I agree with those who liked Beastmaster and Hawk the Slayer as well.
I got some good leads in here on new films.
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Post by xerxez on Jul 21, 2012 22:16:11 GMT -6
We played the 2nd session of our Barsoom adventure tonight, 7 hours of play, six last time.
Due to heavy bias among my friends, we chose 1st Edition AD&D. They didn't know we'd be playing Barsoom--took them a bit the first session but as soon as the Green men came in, they caught on.
I had four people join us in the second session.
The first group was in the British Isles, hailing from Londinium. They learned of an Arabian wizard near Shewsbury who sought hirelings for a task which turned out to be the exploration of a strange cave in the hills.
The party discovered the cave which had a circle of strange hieroglyphics on a wall which was inset with a large blue gem. When the thief touched the gem, there was a sudden light show, disorientation, and they woke up naked lying on the floor of a desert of Barsoom.
There was a city in sight, and they journeyed there on foot, only to discover it was a vast ruin built on the edge of a giant crater. A human warrior was holding his own against four Warhoon but starting to lose when they arrived. They rushed to help him, snatching up stones for weapon, and it was then that they discovered they were faster, stronger and able to leap. (I had elected not to repeat the whole John carter leaping and falling thing when the first woke up cause I was still stringing them along...)
A battle ensued wherein they learned how fierce the Green Men are and also saw thoats. After saving the human, they were accosted by his people who led them to a walled citadel inside the city, Horz.--here they were happy to be treated as honored guests until the jeddak of Horz appeared to regretfully inform them they must be killed because Horz' location could never be divulged. (After they had been given potions which changed their brains to be able to speak in the tongue of Barsoom).
Some interesting role playing ensued. In the end, the warrior they had saved, Pan Dan Chee, secured for them exile into the Pits of Horz, on the condition that he join them. Since no one had ever escaped the pits, the jeddak believed it was as good as execution--in fact he dreaded their fate as more tortuous than a quick execution.
Sealed within the Pits, they had two oil lamps but no weapons. However, they did find boxes of strange metal that contained battle harnesses, swords and daggers. They also discovered metal coffins containing two corpses so miraculously preserved as to appear neither dead nor alive--being unaccustomed to Barsoom and thinking them undead, they beheaded the unfortunates.
Shortly thereafter they were attacked by Ulsio, terrible six legged rats. One PC gained an infection from this encounter. They won but were soon troubled by strange, maniacal laughter somewhere in the caves.
End session one.
Session two, I introduced the four new players by having them secreted in coffins in an adjoining chamber, though they had come from the British Isles as well and had not been there in stasis for more than 6 mos. They had been a band working for the Thieves Guild and hired to steala great blue gem in the Orient at a Temple of the Swordmasters of the Harmonious Way. I narrated that episode to them briefly and told them it had gone of splendidly until they had actually grabbed the jewel and went bye bye.
They had been captured by the jeddak of Horz as well and also banished to the pits--after groping through the darkness, they had also heard the laughter and then felt a deep sleep upon them, not awakening until the other players opened their coffins and brought them to.
Joining forces and finding sword and dagger for all, they set out to find the source of the laughter. Soon they came upon a furnished cave with alchemist instruments, books, and the like, and in the midst was a stunted, physically digressed humanoid who cackled and babbled to them. His name was Lar Tum O, and he beseeches them to drink at his cistern. A woman lay in deep sleep on a table, whom Lar Tum O claimed to be healing.
Lar Tum offered to give them a key to a door that led out of the pits but instead he pulled out a crystal sphere filled with a liquid that turned to gas upon touching the air. Hurling the glass, Lar Tum O gassed the only character who failed to save--but using telepathy he seized control of three PC's who did not make their second saving throw--these he turned on their companions while he attacked with his dagger.
A vicious melee ensued which in the end saw the telepath slain and the party set free. The woman also awakened, and so did all of the unfortunates he had put in suspended animation with drugs and alchemy to preserve their bodies for his food. This was learned when they looked behind a curtain and saw grisly cannibalistic delights.
There was a door in that room and behind it they could hear people beating on the door, shouting about Green Men. They opened the door and met a party of nobles, who like the woman on the the table, knew Lar Tum O and believed they had only been drugged for a few hours when in fact they were millions of years old. They all scoffed when they were told the city was in ruins and there was no water above.
But they did say they had seen five Green men crawling from metal coffins, and had fled. One of the sleepers was the ancient lord of Horz and he knew the Pits--leading the party they came to a hall where the Green Men lunged at them. battle ensued, but the Pc's began to notice that the sleepers were aging rapidly.
To be continued.
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Post by xerxez on Jul 12, 2012 17:05:44 GMT -6
Thanks everyone--that was what my gut was saying and I am going to enjoy the unfolding revelations.
I assumed that they should not have John Carter's unique powers, however...although that could be fun. Just throw three times as much at them!
Llana of Gathol was great and I loved the Cannibalistic Alchemist type dude, he will make an interesting monster!
I just designed a new D&D 1st level dungeon I will be uploading next week called "Castle Kaza'mir". I think I will make this the path....we are beginning a new campaign called Albion and I can't think of a better way to get some freshness into the old game.
I will be using my Hidden Kingdom hex maps of Fantasy Britain, Basic and Expert or OD&D, and Barsoom. Should prove interesting as in the three years we've all been gaming, we've not yet done the extra dimensional. My gaming group has never done the cross genre and we have yet to battle a Dragon. Sheesh!
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Post by xerxez on Jul 11, 2012 16:54:56 GMT -6
I have designed a dungeon amid the Pits of Barsoom, having been inspired by the Burroughs book Llana of Gathol which is a real page turner.
I have a copy of Doc's Mars for OD&D booklet and I am so wanting to play some games on Barsoom but I am torn about how to do it.
Should I just share the culture and have them pick classes from Doc's book, or should I have them begin in a state similar to that of John Carter, strangers come to Barsoom via soul travel?
Since my group knows little or nothing about Barsoom, I wanted to let them discover it piece by piece, but then they can't pick their class from the booklet.
One option I considered was letting their D&D characters enter Barsoom by way of something like the Codex of Infinite Planes--but then of course you have to deal with dwarves and elves running around Barsoom! A way I thought of around this was to have them "soul travel" from the fantasy world and be in Martian bodies--magic users and clerics would find they no longer have their powers but they can be psionicists since their minds are geared towards the metaphysical.
Another option I have considered is to let them pick their class but make them be from some outpost or settlement that has been separated from the main of Barsoom for so long that the characters have no knowledge of anything.
Has anyone ever done this in any fashion? Or should I follow my gut and just run Barsoom as a separate game or short series of games and just give the players the needed information at the onset?
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Post by xerxez on Jul 6, 2012 15:07:32 GMT -6
Sides...and of course I am given to conspiracies...I wouldn't be surprised if the studio is involved in this effort. It sure took off in a huge way real quick.
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Post by xerxez on Jul 6, 2012 15:03:20 GMT -6
Andrew Stanton delivered a very decent film.
I went into the theater ready to hate on it and ended up thoroughly enjoying the film. Went back and saw it a second time, on IMAX. Have it on DVD. And this from a guy who hates Disney since it changed.
The real problem could be the average American movie goer and their love of the blather that comes down the Hollywood garbage chute on a daily basis.
We may not have a cultural context anymore wherein John Carter could be a hero and Barsoom fascinating to more than a few.
And although its now being castigated as an excuse by some, the fact is that marketing did have alot to do with why it didn't do better. Nonetheless, I'm firmly convinced this film will make a comeback, if only because it will lead a lot of people to the books.
I have faith that this material will see film again, and if it isn't Disney, so much the better. I'd like to see another interpretation of it actually.
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Post by xerxez on Jul 5, 2012 20:30:59 GMT -6
That is very likely, given Hollywood's bottom line.
Still, one never knows. LOTR found life again.
There are so many good fan made films for the LOTR franchise, I wish someone would do some Barsoom stuff!
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Post by xerxez on Jul 5, 2012 19:09:40 GMT -6
If anyone is interested it appears there is a large grassroots effort to salvage a John Carter franchise, and given the crappy films that have had no end of sequels, I'd say its worth it, since this was not a crappy film by any means. I signed the petition and there is also a volunteer form--I mentioned this forum to the people running the site and told them about John Carter's influences on D&D and told them they should enlist the gaming community. My blog has been very dead but I hope to revive it soon! Here is the link: backtobarsoom.com/volunteer-signup-and-skills-inventory-form/
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Post by xerxez on Jul 4, 2012 12:25:12 GMT -6
PS I don't recall what we did for the next adventure, but I had changed some of the elements of Welcome to Jakalla and introduced some clan and Temple politics and the players ran afoul of the Change cults but were under the protection of some powerful Stability personages. This led to some further quests.
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Post by xerxez on Jul 4, 2012 12:21:29 GMT -6
This was one of the best ever adventures I can recall!
Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it and the first timers to Tekumel got a good taste of the game flavor from it.
They decided to keep playing the setting (which they were both intrigued and intimidated by, as I was in refereeing it), but it was fun and our campaign ran for several months. We used the OEPT rules.
I drew a map for it-- as I remember there isn't one provided.
I used some Aztec maps from archaeology books as a layout of the general area of the dungeon and I also used the book images for visual props, deciding to sketch the entrance to this maze as lying in the remains of a ziggurat
I typed up a player handout where the employer who sent them to the dungeon gave detailed speech which introduced Barker's concepts of the tsurum and the Ditlana.
PLay went well and was very fun, lasted three sessions, the S'su sorcerer by the docks cast an illusion spell which as you know in OEPT can actually kill you if you think its real! And that took out our priest! The spider token on the door was fun too--one PC went to a demon plane and when he came back he was insane for nearly the rest of the journey.
The PC's were accompanied by a white Shen named Shu'Mish who was an outcast from Shen society because of his albino scales--the story of how he survived destruction upon hatching is still not clear but he still was perhaps the most memorable NPC of all our campaigns in any setting.
Great fun!
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