Tuesday 19 January 2010

Win £30 in a new 1KM1KT competition: The Cyberpunk Revival Project

Go to the special forum
Mistercho, blogger, philanthropist and Scotsman has kindly stumped up thirty of his British pounds to sponsor a competition over on 1KM1KT. I think we should all enter. Not because you love Cyberpunk as much as I; not because the idea of modernising the typically 80s feel of Cyberpunk is a tantalising goal but because forcing Misterecho (a Scotsman) to part with thirty coins bearing Her Majesty's mug will be one of the most life changingsteps he will ever have to take. That and crossing south of Berwick Upon Tweed to buy printed matter!

What's it all about

Quite simple really. Cyberpunk is really an 80s phenomenon and although there have been authors in naughties to paint their own particular impression of the genre, we as roleplayers have a somewhat dated bible. The competition is to forge a setting (and rule system, if you're so inclined) that has more modern concerns and does away with shocking neon 80s fashion and dated ideas about the net. Misterecho's thought processes spawned a fascinating thread on 1KM1KT, which I am glad to have participated in as well as learnt much from. Pop along there for some inspiration.

I do love the original Cyberpunk, and Cybergeneration. And Corporation. And other other Cyberpunk games. I know others have done this well but we think it should be done again. For free this time!

For those who love to link this sort of madness, please use the flyer above (resize as you need) or if you fancy, this simple banner:

Win 30 pounds for writing a modern Cyberpunk Setting

It's free to enter, so what do you have to lose? Apart from your sanity. But then, you're a roleplayer, is your sanity realy intact? It's probably worth a swing for trading the tattered remains for £30!

Sunday 17 January 2010

The Free RPG Blog 60 Second Guerilla Podcast

Guerilla Podcast

I have created 10 Sixty Second Guerilla Podcasts and am in the process of casting them across the internet. The aim is to spread the word of free RPGs by producing free RPG reviews in 60 seconds and having them played inside other people's podcasts. Over the next month or two, you will hear them in some of your favourite podcasts. Each one focuses on a different topic, some you'll recognise but presented in a very different way.

Let's make a game out of it

Rather than tell you where the podcasts appear, I'm going to leave it to you, the readers, to find them. Shortly after the last one is aired, I'll create a big list of where they are. If you hear a Guerilla Podcast then please post in the comments the podcast where you found it! Let's see if you, the readers acting as a team, can find the Guerilla Podcasts before I post the big list. I bet you can't!

Podcasters, fancy playing one?

I still have a few Guerilla Podcasts to hand out, if you're interested then please email me at brainwiped@gmail.com and I'll send you the details! You'll get a big, fat thank you and a link to your podcast when they are all played out.

Tuesday 12 January 2010

Get oiled up in Barbarians of Lemuria by Simon Washbourne

The Barbarians of Lemuria is a free swords and sorcery roleplaying game set in Lin Carter's world of Lemuria. It mounts wild fantasy cliches, breaks their spirit and rides them around its prehistoric world. You play muscle bound (or scantily clad) warriors and sorcerors who spend their time fighting, wenching, gambling, drinking and all manner of vices. You're no paragon of virtue because they just don't have as much fun. Is it just another lite fantasy game? No. Allow me to explain...

Character Creation

You begin with four attributes: Strength, Agility, Mind and Appeal. You bestow 4 points upon them - a value of zero represents human average. You do the same with combat abilities: Brawl, Melee, Ranged, Defense. Hit points are 10 + strength. All very comfortable, like an old pair of slippers.

Careers act as a skill package and is a good technique for keeping a system light. Rather than list lockpick, force door, pick pocket etc etc, you simply write "Thief". A good range of Careers is provided of which you select 4, assigning points as you require. It is suggested that the careers are chosen with a narrative in mind: "I was down on my luck so spent a year as an money lender's clerk - a chance encounter and I became a pit fighter..."

Hero points provide that heroic flair by turning a miserable failure into a success. They can also boost damage, save the hero from teetering on the brink of death and anywhere a player can justify something heroic can happens. The lid of the jar is stuck! Stand back, fair maiden of unlikely proportions, for I am A HERO! You start an adventure with 5 hero points and they replenish each session - unless you were rubbish heroes, then the GM may dock some. Harsh. Advancement points do what they say on the tin.

Equipment is handed out on a common sense basis. Heroes don't buy anything. There is a just-enough-to-remain-light list to choose from.

MicroMechanics

The mechanic is breathtakingly simple: roll 2D6 + Attribute + Combat Ability or Career level + Modifiers to get 9. Criticals occur on double 1 or double 6. You can use Hero points to boost your Critical Success or recover your failure. Combat is an extension highest Agility goes first and you take it in turns to prod each other with the 'shing' end of your weapon. Dodging doubles your defense score but means you can't swipe back. Damage levels is weapon dependent - you roll a die.

Magic

The magic system is a light delight. Each session you get 10 + Magician career points to spend on magic. The more points your spend, the more hocus pocus you can conjure. Spells are either cantrips or first, second or third magnitudes. The spells aren't listed explicitly but examples of each level are provided. Godly magic can be tapped by Druids - which requires some sort of worship but the magic system is the same. Each level of spell requires a more effort. The highest level of spells require a personal ordeal, sacrifice, the correct arrangement of stars and demonic transformation! This is great! Not so much that it makes powerful spells difficult to obtain, instead it makes them more within reach - but with a lot of effort.

You want an earth shattering tomato of doom to shatter the will of your enemies? No problem. Cut off a toe, sacrifice a bull in heat, ensure that the Bear is in the north and risk growing horns. Then you can have your giant army crushing tomato!

Flavour

Barbarians of Lemuria is a tasty delight, there are sample characters, flora and fauna, races, a list of 19 gods, a glossary, Lemurian personalities, a maps and places. There is a solid GM section with general tips and some sample sagas (campaigns) too. Everything teeters on the brink of not being lite but the text is so readable and the graphics numerous enough that it does make for light reading. Perhaps that is part of the secret of a lite game - not bulk of background and reams of rules but good writing and stopping just short of what is overkill.

Simon Washbourne? Surely I know this fellow?

We have shaken hands with Simon before in the splendid Tales from the Wood. The softly spoken Gent also featured on The RPG Haven Podcast where he talks about how Barbarians of Lemuria has been polished, expanded and is now a commercial game. If anyone has difficulty understanding his accent, I speak West Country and can translate.

Bit's I'd Change

I'm on thin ice here, although I am reviewing the free version on 1KM1KT, Simon has updated this game and released it. The layout can be very tight (not much space between columns) in places. Conversely, there are also chunks of white space and the ordering could be tightened. The graphics are delightful but some of the line art will have trouble printing clearly on all but the highest resolution home laser printers. Not that I have not brought out my usual gripes to play. They remain in their toy box for the next generic fantasy RPG.

Conclusion

Barbarians of Lemuria is a complete fantasy roleplaying game with its own distinct aroma. Quotes from Lin Carter's original source help tie the setting together. Barbarians of Lemuria is a good example of how to cure the problems I find with generic, lite, fantasy RPG. There's not towering pillars of setting nor spells but it gushes with flavour. It is a lite RPG and that is its strength. If you're looking for a lite fantasy RPG that binds cliches together in a comfortable and tasty manner then Barbarians of Lemuria is for you.

Thank you Simon for keeping it free!