The Rogues' Gallery

[Weave]

Welcome to the CBG, jtougas!

Glad to see some crossover between the two boards :).

[the_taken]

I decided to start posting here again. It's been a while, but I've been meaning to get back into RPGs, even though I never play anymore.

I go by the alias of the_taken anywhere I sign up, and will likely have 'taken' somewhere in my name on this forum at any given time.

Gaming systems you use: I've used many gaming systems over the years, most prominently third edition of D&D and it's spin offs (3.5, Pathfinder), but also AD&D and (shudders) 4e. I've also had some exposure to the dice pool system used by White Wolf's games in the World of Darkness setting and Exalted, and the percentile heavy system used by Game's Workshop's Dark Heresy and Rogue Trader sequal. I've played allot of Warhammer 40K, the wargame, and have allot of rule books for Classic Battletech. I also have made tons of house rules and perused and used many of other people's for all of those settings.

Lately, I've been trying to make an RPG of my own. It's slow going.

Strengths and weaknesses in game design: I'm a very rollplay centric player. Partially, this has been because not a few Game Masters I've had weren't good a facilitating roleplaying, but also because I've had tons of game sessions fall apart because people weren't sure what exactly the rules meant.

I also have trouble keeping myself motivated on a single project for long periods of time, though I've been working on that allot (which is an epic project in and of itself).

That said, at the start of a project, I can produce so many creative ideas that it can sometimes be a chore to get them all down on paper. Most often, I generate ideas when someone presents me with a general idea of what they have already, and am always open to having people ask me for ideas.

What published settings have you used/do you like?: Truth be told, I haven't used an actual setting, despite getting several setting specific books. However, I have used tons of D&D modules set in the generic setting, whatever it was called back in 3.5

I am in the process of writing my own campaign setting for an RPG of my own design.

[LordVreeg]

Welcome back!

[LoA]

Well, might as well get this out of the way while i'm here.

-Gaming systems you use
A mixture of 3rd, 3.5, and pathfinder while using the E6 system

-General gaming history
I was introduced to Dnd a few years ago by friends, and we've played many text based games.

-Strengths and weaknesses in game design
I can come up with some pretty interesting ideas, but i tend to have commitment issues, or i tend to overdo it, and it collapses.
I also don't like getting to heavy into mechanics, hence why i use E6.

-What published settings have you used/do you like?
Okay here's how i tend to explain this.
    Eberron is that extremely hot, awesome, sweet n sassy, tomboy that i'm madly in love with, and am totally committed to her.

    Dragonmech is that sweet, cute little nerdy chick, that i'm friends with, and we even hang out sometimes, but we aren't really going out, and in fact, Eberron seems to like to have her hang out with us, and are great friends.

    Dark Sun is that environmental, hyper wacko, that while you think she's really hot from a distance, you know for a fact that you two  would never get along, and you would certainly never bring her home to meet your mother.... (atleast for me)

[Matt Larkin (author)]

What is E6?

[Ninja D!]

What is E6?

I'll take this one, just to get it answered quickly.

E6, if I remember correctly, stands for Epic 6. It is a variant of the D&D 3rd edition rules system (I can't remember if it was based on 3.0 or 3.5, not that it really matters.) This variant system is meant for much more gritty play and characters are considered to be "epic" at level 6, which is then the highest level they can achieve. I think it's a brilliant idea, though I've never played it to know if it actually works out that way. The place to go for more seems to be right here.

[LoA]

I'll just add on to this really quickly. The general idea of the system is, is that there are four levels of play in the 20 levels of character provided. levels 1-5 are gritty fantasy, levels 6-10 are "Epic" (lord of the rings), levels 11-15 are Wuxia, and levels 16-20 are on superhero godlike levels, and anything above level 20 are demigods or above.

The idea of E6 is to cap of at level 6, and then continue to progress through feats from then on out. This keeps the game at a Tolkien fantasy level, and there are alot of advantages to this. Less prep work, more focus on story, your players don't get the uber game breaking spells, etc.

[the_taken]

Don't forget to list the down sides of the rule change.

Upside, multi-classing is fixed somewhat, the power of creatures is more manageable, most of the game breaking builds are impossible, and since only a few bonuses are handed out there's not as much worry about breaking the RNG.

Downside, the fighter class gets shafted since unlimited feats can be gained, monks still suck, spell casters still have a better class feature than everyone else and the unlimited feats just make them better, you can't have those awesome godlike builds.

[LoA]

Don't forget to list the down sides of the rule change.

Upside, multi-classing is fixed somewhat, the power of creatures is more manageable, most of the game breaking builds are impossible, and since only a few bonuses are handed out there's not as much worry about breaking the RNG.

Downside, the fighter class gets shafted since unlimited feats can be gained, monks still suck, spell casters still have a better class feature than everyone else and the unlimited feats just make them better, you can't have those awesome godlike builds.

What you say is true. I just prefer LotR level play, as apposed to god like super play.

[LordVreeg]

I look forward to the intro posts from our new members here!

[LordVreeg]

I saw some new people...they need to post here...introduce thyselves...

[snakefing]

Way too old, way too childish, way too stressed.

About all you need to know.

[Stryker25B]

My screen name, Stryker25B refers to my first unit and MOS in the U.S. Army (3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25B Information Technology Specialist) I've been in the Army for 13 years now, finishing up the rest of my current enlistment in Washington, D.C.


-Gaming systems you use
Dungeons and Dragons (2e, 3e, 4e)
White Wolf (Werewolf and Masquerade + Dark Ages)
Shadowrun
Rift
Warhammer Fantasy
Warhammer 40k
Vo|t (I dabbled a little bit, enough to enter a contest at least)

-General gaming history

Um, wow, lets see. I started with Dungeons and Dragons (you know, the beginner boxed set from like 18 years ago in which Elf was a CLASS) and quickly moved into AD&D 2nd Edition. At the same time I was exploring White Wolf, Shadowrun, and Rift. I moved into 3e and that was where my D&D time left off until a few weeks ago when I dived into 4e. So I missed the whole 3.5e revolution. In addition I spent a good deal of time with Warhammer 40k; not just playing but also designing campaigns that spanned many sessions.

In 2007 was enrolled in classes at the University of Advancing Technology and earned my Bachelors of the Arts in Multimedia Game Design. Since then I've largely taken a break, since it was a hard 4 years being in the Army and taking college courses, but I've now started returning to the tabletop gaming scene.

-Personal likes and dislikes

Likes - Anything original and entertaining

Dislikes - DRAMA

-Strengths and weaknesses in game design

Stating that I have a degree in game design is not enough; anybody can buy a degree and do enough to get by. I never looked at game design AS game design, though. I have always considered it world building. If the world the game takes place in is not interesting and captivating to players, why would they want to be a part of it? I feel like I'm very strong at weaving a world that can hook people.

My major weakness in game design is lack of patience and time to see it through. My first campaign, Kaliir, has been literally 20 years in the making, from the time my best friend and I opened up Hero Quest. I knew I wanted to design my own world for tales to be told in. I've still got that awe and wonder in me; so much so that I've had a hard time just sitting down and committing things to paper. I hope to change that here.

-What published settings have you used/do you like?

Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, Ebberon, Ravenloft, Spelljammer, Planescape

-Major influences on your world-building

The authors of worlds have always been a huge inspiration for me. Ed Greenwood, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman to name some of the biggest influences. Great storytelling also motivates me, and I consume books like a depressed woman eats chocolate. Probably the largest influence, though, has come from my players and DMs over the years. It was they who helped me learn the things I would need to know to make a world that people wanted to be a part of.

[Matt Larkin (author)]

Welcome, Stryker! I used to love Shadowrun (3e). We kind of stopped playing it, though. I had high hopes for Rifts but found it kind of a jumbled mess with no real game balance.

[LD]

>>from the time my best friend and I opened up Hero Quest.

Haha! I still have that. It was an excellent product! Down with Zargon!