I assume I’m not the first person to make this joke, sure.
deborah-the-destroyer-google-docs
Deborah the Destroyer
Because even Black Ops Necromechanic Engineering (BONE) teams have senses of humor. And, for that matter, kids. No, really, you want men and women with families for that kind of job. Keeps them focused on the exoteric world, and not on the bad half-heard whispers on the edge of hearing.
Continue reading Item/Adventure Seed: Deborah the Destroyer.
This is apparently a thing. Here, here, and here.
the-great-wheel-of-turkeys-google-docs
The Great Wheel of Turkeys
OK, here’s the background. The Druids discovered America, OK? – In as much as anybody ever did, really. Thanks to the joys of temporal paradox and inter-dimensional timeline amalgamation, pretty much EVERYBODY discovered America, including Christopher Columbus… but the point here is that there has been a Druidic presence on the North American continent for thousands of years, and that very much includes their arcane dendroidal computing architecture.
Continue reading Adventure Seed: The Great Wheel of Turkeys.
I can’t help but wonder if somebody else has had this idea before.
Thundercows
These bioengineered animals were designed to circumvent the high-technology ban that Galactic civilization slaps on trade between advanced and primitive planetary cultures. Said ban is interesting, actually: the primitive planetary cultures hate that ban because they can’t buy cool gadgets from advanced civilizations. The advanced planetary cultures also hate that ban because they can’t sell cool gadgets to primitives. And the Galactic government hates the ban because everybody screams at them over it and the paperwork is sometimes almost literally murderous. And yet, nobody can ever manage to get the relevant laws repealed. It’s either weird, or a conspiracy: take your pick.
OK, this looks like the stuff:
If my sole contribution to RPGs is to have helped mainstream this kind of thing then count myself well pleased.https://t.co/14OW73XgMr
— Kenneth Hite (@kennethhite) January 20, 2017
As the linked text indicates:
Secret Antiquities is a new series of game supplements for DCC [Dungeon Crawl Classics] RPG. Part journal, part zine, Secret Antiquities documents Esoteric America, a weirdly historical campaign setting inspired by real American history, folklore, and urban legends as seen through the unique lens of DCC RPG.
All y’all know me, by now. You know that this is the stuff that I crave. This is the stuff that I like to write. I dunno if the guy’s taking submissions, but I’m grabbing the first issue sight unseen anyway.
Basically, Amazon Createspace allows companies like Steve Jackson Games to release titles (in this case, GURPS titles) for softcover print-on-demand. They’ve already tried this with three existing titles: now SJG is going to try three more. If there’s enough demand, SJG will start assigning staff to convert more titles. There’s the faintest possibility of a suggestion of a hint that ‘even older titles’ might be made available, which could mean 3rd edition GURPS, or – dare I hope it? – In Nomine.
Continue reading Steve Jackson Games doing more with Amazon Createspace.
OK, here’s the premise: the group at Full Frontal Nerdity are going to play a game where ‘The object is to construct the game as you play.’ The board is whatever you come up with, the pieces ditto, and the rules get defined by all the players. And that’s mostly it.
[…And I’m deleting this next part, because I just realized that it wasn’t an actual witty observation about Kickstarters and indy games. It was, instead, a fairly comprehensive torpedoing of the joke behind this particular strip. Which wouldn’t have been very nice of me, especially since the joke was enough to make me laugh.]
Still, might be a fun thing to try on a weekend. With players who aren’t like the ones at Full Frontal Nerdity.
Blame this.
the-new-saxony-silk-rat-rattus-sericum-google-docs
The New Saxony Silk Rat
(rattus sericum)
This species of domestic rat appears to have been cultivated for its wool for at least six thousand years. It is somewhat larger than a Norwegian rat: feral specimens average about a foot and a half long, and about three pounds in weight (a fully-bred Silk Rat is a bit larger). The species is fully domesticated, and make affectionate, intelligent, and loyal pets. The wool of the Silk Rat can be gathered or sheared without harming the rat, and is particularly valuable for its uncanny resemblance to silk. Depending on the location, in fact, Silk Rat wool is either openly sold as a silk substitute, or it is passed off as actual silk. The species is typically kept in check by local predators; most carnivores find them tasty snacks.
This is remarkably well-played. Shoot, Arby’s social media people apparently even have a small budget. Or at least somebody good at cutting up cardboard.
.@SJGames We had a similar expansion pack in mind. Trade ya’. pic.twitter.com/E6Y5CbkK9E
— Arby's (@Arbys) January 18, 2017
Blame this.
astral-nap-will-hard-google-docs
Astral Nap [Will/Hard]
Default: none
This skill is useless unless the user has some way to visit the astral plane (such as either the Astral Travel power or the Planar Visit spell). A successful roll will allow the user to carefully balance his astral form so that it and his physical body are effectively ‘orbiting‘ each other; this allows the caster to stay in astral form for a total of eight hours without spending more FP/HP, or re-rolling. However, the user may do nothing else except ‘sleep;’ he may not even lucidly dream. Also, the user is hideously vulnerable while in this condition: no active defenses may be used at all, and any damage done will mentally Stun him for (20-IQ) seconds, noncumulative.
I… I don’t know why either, folks. Sometimes I just don’t have a choice.
the-sanditon-enterprise-google-docs
The Sanditon Enterprise
The book is privately printed: the title page claims that it was written by Jane Austen in 1818, and revised by her in 1824. This would immediately indicate that it’s a fake, of course; but it’s a contemporary fake, because everything about the book suggests Nineteenth Century construction. The book does not particularly appear to be esoteric or otherwise unusual. The contents, however… well.
