Ultima: OD&D / Swords&Wizardry WB

[chgowiz]

I thought I would slide the conversation to a thread that is titled more appropriately.

Here's where I'm at with the Ultima rewrite.

Split documents into PHB (basic game info) and GRG (Game Referee Guide - setting info):

PHB Document: docs.google.com/View?docID=dcmsh84t_110fdx3x3fx&revision=_latest

GRG Document: docs.google.com/View?docID=dcmsh84t_113cmdmtnhh&revision=_latest

• Basic info on starting 4 classes, races, attributes - done.
  
• Equipment info/prices added.
  
• Some additional work on setting info with regards to alignment (up to Referee) and starting coinage (using Ultima terminology)
  
• Added town guards reminder to GRG.
  

To do

• Add race descriptions, inspired by Ultima text.
  
• Add in Philotomy's Simple Combat rules (assuming he doesn't say "Nay" - then I have to improvise/adapt/rewrite)
  
• Put in basic playing the game info.
  
• Explain how normal characters can be thieves without being thieves.
  
• Write up rudiments of magic system for levels 1/2 - scrolls. Come up with example prices. (Ha. That should screw me really good, Mr. IHateTryingToCrunchNumbers) Try to explain magic points system from Arminath's example on ODD.
  

After the above, PHB Done for playtest purposes! (only doing levels 1 to 3 - will do advanced classes and further magic ongoing during/after playtesting)

Then I'll get started on GRG/setting info.

[chgowiz]

Update:

PHB Document: docs.google.com/View?docID=dcmsh84t_110fdx3x3fx&revision=_latest
GRG Document: docs.google.com/View?docID=dcmsh84t_113cmdmtnhh&revision=_latest

Progress:

Figured out how races work - stats and mechanics wise - be prepared for real differences from OD&D in favor of Ultima flavor. With that finished, I now have enough mechanics down to actually do chargen.

Started on Game mechanics themselves.

Wrote up how players can do things (and be thieves without being thieves)

Copied XP/Time/Movement from SW WB. Had a "DUH" realization that I'm "doin' it wrong" with regards to combat movement in my games. Movement rate of 9 means 9 feet in combat round, 90' in a turn. *headdesk moment*

XP will be the OD&D 100XP per HD. I use it in my games. I like it. It's proportional to a player's level, so a 3rd level guy gets 33XP for 1HD monster. It works.

Waiting to hear from Philotomy if I can lift his combat sequence "as is" - if not, I can recreate it as I've adapted to it. I've already written up how surprise works (which, surprisingly, took two paragraphs) and will finish combat next. I've put in his simple sequence already.

Created hex map of continent of Britannia (the one with Lord British's Castle). - oldguyrpg.blogspot.com/2009/04/ultima-update-picture.html

TODO list:

* Finish combat sections.
* Magic.
* Add some setting flavor to PHB (not much for playtest purposes)
* Do some basic Game Ref Guide writing - enough to set up setting, some monsters and treasure, enough so I could do a basic playtest.
* Do a dungeon.
* Playtest.
* Start on advanced characters, more setting info


Thought - I may need Naval combat rules from OD&D themselves - or adapt some simple S/Wish rules for Naval combat - frigate v. frigate or frigate v. monsters was always fun in the various Ultimas. Maybe after playtesting the basic level 1-3 game.

[doc]

Yikes! I feel like I've just been pummeled by the old Nostalgia Stick! I remember being a kid playing these games with my friend Sean. I had a Lark (although for some reason I recall it being spelled as Lork) who I believe belonged to a race named "fuzzy," though it's been so many years now that I'm really not sure if such a race was ever part of Ultima. I vividly recall Sean and myself throwing "spells" at each other yelling "Mittar!"

Doc

[Random]

Cracking open my Ultima 3 player booklet in case I'm crazy as well, yes, Fuzzy is a race.
I may not come in often to comment, chgowiz, but as a lover of (most) things Ultima (and also early D&D), this project interests me greatly.

I'm bummered that I have to wait to see the final product, and even if I don't like exactly how you've done things, I may be inspired to start up another Ultima campaign of my own.

For the sake of completeness, I would probably feel the need to hex out all four continents.

[chgowiz]

Apr 29, 2009 22:31:38 GMT -6 Random said:

Cracking open my Ultima 3 player booklet in case I'm crazy as well, yes, Fuzzy is a race.
I may not come in often to comment, chgowiz, but as a lover of (most) things Ultima (and also early D&D), this project interests me greatly.

I'm bummered that I have to wait to see the final product, and even if I don't like exactly how you've done things, I may be inspired to start up another Ultima campaign of my own.

For the sake of completeness, I would probably feel the need to hex out all four continents.

Random,

I'm going to do all 4 continents. U1 geography will be my starting point for my interpretation.

You don't have to wait, you can see it in progress as I'm writing it from the links above.

I hope you do start a campaign and please feel free to comment on what I'm doing. I am in "get it all on paper" mode, so I might not shift things according to comments - but I am collecting them all.

[chgowiz]

Apr 29, 2009 20:54:36 GMT -6 doc said:

Yikes! I feel like I've just been pummeled by the old Nostalgia Stick! I remember being a kid playing these games with my friend Sean. I had a Lark (although for some reason I recall it being spelled as Lork) who I believe belonged to a race named "fuzzy," though it's been so many years now that I'm really not sure if such a race was ever part of Ultima. I vividly recall Sean and myself throwing "spells" at each other yelling "Mittar!"

Doc

Yup, you remember just right. Mittar was "magic missile". And we would sit next to each other in the computer lab during lunch or after school, loading up our 5.25" floppies so we could get back to questing...

[chgowiz]

And now I've hit the same wall I hit before with my 3E attempt at Ultima - do I chop down the list of spells to what was available in Ultima 3? Do I try to bring up the spells in Ultimas into the OD&D list in general? And if I use Arminath's spell points/level list, I have to decide how much magic I want a mage to cast at third level (that's the level they move beyond scroll-based casting and into spell points casting)

[Random]

When I did my U7 game, I completely replaced the AD&D spells with the Ultima ones and that worked out fine. My friend Chad (playing the group's mage) seemed to have a blast with the entirely new spell list! The smaller spell selection can probably be made up for by the more flexible spell point system (think 3E sorcerers, for comparison).

[ant]

This is amazing work, chgowiz, and makes me want to start playing the Ultima games again on my C64.

Very tempted to use this for my next OD&D campaign.

[chgowiz]

I am looking for playtesters in the Chicagoland area - preferably latter two weeks in May. I'm looking for about 4 people. I'll pay for dinner. Seriously.

[chgowiz]

Here's the link to the Players Handbook PDF.

sites.google.com/site/chgowizsite/Home/The_Siege_Perilous_Players_Handbook.pdf

And here's my first map that will go in the Game Ref's Guide:

[chgowiz]

I've just released a rough draft/first draft of the Game Referee Guide - this has monsters for Ultima's 1-3 in it as well as a beginning geography/setting guide.

sites.google.com/site/chgowizsite/Home/The_Siege_Perilous_Game_Referees_Guide.pdf

At this point, I have no idea how much/little detail to put into each setting point and overall geography. Should I do it hex by hex? Should I do it more of major points and let each ref fill in the rest? I have 4 continents.

This release is more for playtest than anything else, but I am looking for feedback on level of detail desired.