Planejammer Chronicles

An Interview with Larry Elmore [Comic Con New Orleans 2012]

2012-01-31T07:38:53Z

Larry Elmore and Loki: NOLA Comic Con 2012

I’ve spent most of this past weekend covering the Comic Con in New Orleans for my local blog, HumidCity. I’m debuting this one here because it’s of particular interest to gamers, an interview with Larry Elmore.

We talk about Dragonlance, artistic freedom and the story behind the cover illustration of the first Red Box (yes, it’s a Gygax story).

Not only was a great getting to talk to him, but Mr. Elmore is a fantastically interesting and personable man. The grey hair really is the only indication that he is over 60, and he has a boundless enthusiasm beyond that of many younger creators.

Planejammer Roundup: Campaign of the Year, The New Game, and The Joys of Video

2012-01-14T03:03:36Z

I’m guilty as all hell.

Guilty of working on the Obsidian Portal wiki for the game rather than posting here. It’s my own fault and I make no apologies. You see, we started the new game last night. Ad Astra Per Arcana has kicked off the latest campaign in the Planejammer series as it enters it’s thirty-first year!

Before I go on about the new game and our experiments with video conferencing I’d like to thank everyone who voted for us. Our Spelljoined campaign, affectionately referred to as the Cincinnati game, won Obsidian Portal’s Campaign of the Year for 2011. I’ll be sharing photos of the trophy full of dice as soon as it arrives in the mail!

With the new game we decided to bring in one of the players from The Spelljoined via video. With modern technology four state lines should be as nothing to a bunch of determined gamers. First we tried the Hangouts function on Google+ which held up reasonably well for a while. Unfortunately as time wore on and we had been using it for an hour or so the video and audio artifacts began to multiply like orcs in an adventurer free zone.

Since we had Mac devices on each end we decided to try Facetime from the Mac desktop here in New Orleans. Without an available external mic we were limited to the factory offering. This was still not cutting it.

Then I had an inspiration – what about my iPhone? It’s got Facetime and relatively decent volume when in speaker mode.

At first it was clunky, but I think it turns out to be the best bet when only bringing one player into the came virtually like we were. I ran an audio-out to my stereo system and we adjusted her volume to the average conversational level of the room and it worked out perfectly.

We used a small stand for the iPhone so we could rotate her view, which took a bit of work. One terrific aspect of this approach, despite the extra work of playing camera-man as well as DM, came when doing combat. Unlike a stationary webcam I could easily rotate her view of the battle mat and miniatures, even setting the iPhone down on the battle mat itself. This afforded an on the ground view most players never see, one that garnered quite a look of surprise from Emily when we tried it.

While we have not looked into Skype yet, a service I use a lot but that was not available on the other end, I don’t thing we will need to. Despite the trailing audio cable using the iPhone in the way seems to offer the easiest way to really bring a single player to the table over long distance.

Between that and Obsidian Portal for managing character sheets and game data we have the makings of a great tool set for bringing in guest stars and other long distance gamers. In the future we will be trying to reboot the Spelljoined as a purely online game. Whether Hangouts, Oovoo, or Skype end up being our best bet for a game where everybody is on webcam remains to be seen, but I’ll make sure to report on our experiments as they evolve.

One last quick announcement. If you’re looking for a new fantasy novel to read on your Kindle? Check out Eria by Andrew Sanderson with the cover done by Planejammer artist, Emily Vitori, as it’s free for the next two days!

If you’ve been gaming over video I’d love to hear about what has and has not worked for your group, let us know in the comments or circle the Planejammer page on Google+ and interact!

Happy New Year From the Planejamer Team and Loren the Black

2012-01-01T05:38:15Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lN45wEudDM

Please Vote for Us as Campaign of the Year on Obsidian Portal!

2011-12-22T02:35:13Z

Campaign of the Year Award - The Dice Goblet

The Spelljoined won Campaign of the Month last April on Obsidian Portal. That means we are in the running for Campaign of the Year, and voting ends on the 31st!

Being a bit of a narcissist I would love to win this purely for my own egotistic satisfaction, however there is more than that in the equation. You see, we have two brand new game artists on our team and their imagery is what really brings it all to life. Just read through the Journals and you’ll see some amazing illustration as well as some truly entertaining writing.

As the DM I am the overall architect of their fate, but as you can see from the journals we have hit on a really good streak of gaming at it’s best – collaborative storytelling. Even if my rules design doesn’t grab you their art and the fiction they’ve produced most assuredly will.

Check them out our artists’ galleries on Deviant Art:

RavenKin did our logo and the more Manga looking artwork while
Syreene did the majority of the illustrations found here and on Obsidian Portal.

It would be a great kick in the pants to see them get this sort of recognition.

Vote Here for The Spelljoined because we would all really appreciate it!

Thanks,

-DungeonMasterLoki

The Stars Are Right….

2011-11-13T17:38:25Z

The Games and the development work will be on hiatus through the 21st, as we are relocating Planejammer World HQ back to its native land – New Orleans. Once we come back online there will be several new developments of interest (I hope):

We will be continuing The Spelljoined campaign as a once a month virtual game run over Hangouts on Google+. Several of the players and I will be blogging here about our experiences as this will be new ground for all of us.
The Ad Astra Per Arcana campaign will be taking over the regular Thurs night spot. Character generation will begin in Dec.
The first annual Planejammer Cheesecake Calender (2012) will debut for the holiday season!
Our Fantasy Space Netbook (Pathfinder compatible) should be finished and available though Beyond The Moons in the Spring.
Work continues on adapting Planescape to Pathfinder…

Please pardon any slowness on moderating comments or replying until the 21st. It’s all madness I tell you!

The Campaign Stat Block

2011-10-08T16:01:54Z

Statblocks are wonderful things. They are a nice, compact, and standardized was of presenting information ranging from cities, to ships, to NPCs.

Since it seems there are so many gamers out there bereft of a game, and so many DMs looking for players, that a stat block for campaigns might be in order. After all, if you’re looking for a game wouldn’t it be great to be able to get the pertinent details about play style and options right off the bat?

I’ve been using a simple one for years now and it’s worked very well, saves a lot of time when screening new players. It’s basically as follows:

Campaign Name
Rules: List the rules system and whatever add on’s you plan to use – critical hit decks, additional source books, etc. .
Setting: What world will you be playing in? Is it an established setting like the Forgotten Realms, a homebrew world, or something else?
Rating: I generally use movie style ratings (G, PG, R, etc.) along with warnings if adult themes will be addressed.
Emphasis: It is mostly combat, mostly role playing, or a blend of the two. Will it be heroic in nature or grim and gritty?
Psionics: Are there psionics in this campaign, if so are they treated as standard or differently.
Firearms: Do they exist? Are they primitive or advanced?
Starting Level: This is where you denote low, medium or high level games
Starting Characters: List any options beyond the core rules that players have access to while generating their characters.
Game Night: How often, how long per session, and location.

For Example, the statblock for my main game is:

Planejammer: The Spelljoined
Rules: Pathfinder, augmented with a large variety of non core WOTC books and third-party publications as well as extensive house rules. We also use the Paizo Critical Hit and Critical Fumble decks.
Setting: Spelljammer / Planescape [This means that most standard / homebrew settings can exist somewhere in the multiversal framework.]
Rating: Adult themes, NSFW.
Emphasis: Role Playing, not roll playing. XP bonuses for good characterization and role-playing are standard. XP Bonuses are standard for creating setting material- character journals, sketches, etc.
Psionics: Yes, using Psionics Unleashed for core psionic rules. Psionics are different, limited.
Firearms: Emerging Firearms
Starting Level: 3rd, Generated according to our campaign standard.
Starting Characters: Due to the multiplanar nature of the setting all character concepts will be considered. Eberron, Ptolus, Ravenloft, Greyhawk, Planescape, d20 Modern, Dragonstar, Dragonlance, Spelljammer, Iron Kingdoms and most other d20 based settings are subsets of the main game and are valid choices.
Game Night: Thursday Evenings 7-11 pm, starting early October 2010 at Mardi Gras Manor in Northside Cincinnati. All attendees must follow the rules of the house.

I have a campaign statblock on the home page of each of my games on Obsidian Portal as well. I find it makes it easier on casual readers.

Hope you’ve found this useful, good gaming!

Me? Trolling?

2011-10-05T17:17:39Z

Yes, it would seem that I am. Trolling, that is.

Today my debut post on the Troll in the Corner Website just went live today- Edition Wars Are Merely Failed Diplomacy Checks.

I’ve donned my asbestos underwear and quaffed a potion of fire resistance. I have a feeling I’ll need them.

New Rule: Dolorous Wounds

2011-10-03T21:29:56Z

As of this evening I am adding in something a bit Arthurian for our home campaign. Dolorous Wounds.

I saw this float past me on Owen K Stephen’s Google + Stream and immediately recognized it as something that would be great in a Planescape game. Here is his take on it followed by my own note on how it will be implemented in our home game. Players take heed, it is in effect as of next game and has already been integrated into the campaign wiki!

Some wounds do not answer to even the most powerful magic healing. When a character would normally be killed, the player may instead choose for the character to suffer a “dolorous wound.” The dolorous wound produces some physical ailment, agreed upon by player and the GM (normally a -1 penalty to one category of skill checks, most often Str, Dex, Con, or Cha-based skills, though a penalty to range modifier for losing an eye or a reduction of movement rate for a limp are also appropriate). The dolorous wound is so severe the damage is duplicated on the character’s soul, making it impossible to heal with normal magic. A special ritual may be able to fix a dolorous wound, but it has at least the cost and difficulty of a true resurrection spell.

DM Note: This option will only be available when offered by the DM. Dolorous wounds do not result from regular combat, the circumstances are always something legendary.

Many thanks to Owen for posting this as Open Content. If you use it elsewhere here is the correct Sec 15 entry for your OGL: Rules+. Copyright Owen K.C. Stephens 2010-2011; Author Owen K.C. Stephens.

Cooking – Craft or Profession?

2011-09-30T13:30:17Z

An interesting discussion came up during our Pathfinder game the other night. Is cooking a craft skill or a profession skill?

Now our gaming group has a mix of pros from different fields in it – insurance, graphic design, web producer, and the one that made this talk most fruitful – a chef. After much discussion it was decided that for our game the logic is as follows:

Craft: Cooking – denotes skill at cooking on a small scale such as in the home.
Profession: Cook – denotes one skill at and used to cooking for large numbers of people, such as in a tavern setting.

It’s a minor distinction, and one that most gamers would not bother with, but our games already have more skills available than usual so it fits right in. Its also one of those rulings made during a vibrant and interesting discussion, and those are the most memorable one.

Home is Where Love Is

2011-09-29T21:33:49Z

Gamers came together six years ago to support those of us who were impacted by Hurricane Katrina and the New Orleans levee failure. Now it’s our turn in the wake of Hurricane Irene to do so ourselves!

This is a special one, folks, and it’s full of awesome gaming stuff for fans of Savage Worlds, Call of Cthulhu, and Pathfinder. Included publishers: Fabled Environments, Fun Sized Games, Gun Metal Games, John Wick Presents, Malhavoc Press, Pinnacle Entertainment Group, Savage Mojo, Super Genius Games, Timeout Diversions, and Triple Ace Games. Do some good, and do some great gaming!

Hurricane Irene Flood Relief is a charity bundle created in support of upstate New York victims of flooding from Hurricane Irene. All revenue generated by the sale of this bundle will be donated to the Schoharie County Community Action Program to help in their work.