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March 27, 2006

Just Under the Wire

Hello!

I think I ran my mouth so much in the dirt, that I didn't save anything for this section, so let me think a moment.

Hrmmmm. More eyes are reading this website now. I just know it. MidSouth Con is really growing and I felt more a part of it and had a lot to share from all the stuff that I've been going through. I really enjoyed giving people the answers that are really hard to find. What they do with them, is up to them. No amount of talent can take the place of hard work.

If you're just joining the website already in progress, poke around. It's been up and running for closing on two years now and it may not be as shiny as Butch's new website, it gets the job done. :)

Regards,

Sean

Posted by razorwise at 11:29 PM

March 20, 2006

Oblivion Expands

Hello All.

Now, I can talk a little bit about some of the things veiled in secrecy. Reality Blurs and 12 to Midnight have been working out particulars on Agents of Oblivion for quite some time. This is just smart business for both companies. I've grown to know the 12 to Midnight guys since becoming an SW licensee and they've been gracious and insightful and quite friendly. It's nice to have some seasoned peers to bounce ideas off of and we've developed a nice personal friendship. Here's the backstory. When the True20 setting search was announced, I told them my intention of entering and encouraged them to do the same. Their schedule then was full (much as it is now) and they couldn't afford to dedicate the time to speculation. Being newer and more nimble as a result, I shuffled a few projects around and we went for it. (Thanks, Theron! Apologies, RunePunk!)

I did tell them at the time that I thought Agents of Oblivion would be a good fit with their stuff and that if I made the cut we could discuss working together. So, imagine, getting the thumbs up from Green Ronin and not being able to talk about it for months. That's what I had to do, so, although I knew for a long time, I had to play dumb. When the announcements were made, we immediately talked and got things in motion. Agents of Oblivion is edgy and puts a different spin on horror by introducing espionage into the mix. The characters are not just random victims of happenstance. They know the supernatural exists and are trained to deal with it. Bringing 12 to Midnight's adventures into Agents of Oblivion provides a proven base of quality adventures that we can develop for True20 and SW.

However, we did not want any of our core following to think we were abandoning Savage Worlds. That's where we were fortunate enough to have Clint Black work up Modern Martial Arts. Clint, where would we be without you? :)

Regards,

Sean

P.S. I'd like to especially thank Ed Wetterman for offering his friendship and incisive wit even BEFORE he'd seen one thing I've written, Preston DuBose for his professionalism and insightfulness, and Jerry Blakemore for hanging out with me at GenCon last year. I look forward to working with you and the rest of the 12tM crew!

Posted by razorwise at 07:30 AM

March 13, 2006

Comparing True 20 with Savage Worlds

I initially began as a developer for Savage Worlds and noticed some analogs between it and M&M. When True20 came out, there were further analogs that intrigued me and got me even more interested in the system from a developmental angle.

I'll address some of the more pronounced similarities first:

1. A wound system that replaced the artifice of hit points.
2. A corrolary to the above is that the wounds actually impacted your character's performance.
3. Both allowed characters an ability to manipulate dice rolls that heralds back to WFRP first edition's Fate Points (i.e. Conviction points in True20 and bennies in Savage Worlds.)
4. Both allowed the character to earn more of these points during play as a reward for good play.
5. Both more or less dispensed with experience points writ large. True20 leaves the onus on the GM to determine when characters level up, while SW has a simple experience point system that more or less does the same.

Now to get into a few particulars where they depart.

Savage Worlds is a classless system wherein you can select from a broad array of edges to define your character. In True20, you have three broad categories of roles: adept, expert, and warrior and you get a certain number of skill points to distribute among skills and a certain number of feats (likened to edges) that particularize your role from someone else's. Additionally, as each race in Savage Worlds has its own specific hindrances and edges, so too are the races in True20 defined with their own specific feats. True20 also has a category of favored feats wherein a character of a certain race, dwarf for example, might always be able to take stonework as a feat, regardless of their class. Feats, you see, in True20 are more role regulated. However, they also have no real penalty for crossing from one role into another. Some may argue that you have differing bonuses from one class to another, but that's best left to a seperate discussion.

Now, on to combat. Both systems use their opponent's defense as a Parry or DC. In SW, you must roll equal to or higher than your opponent's Parry to hit them, exceeding the number by four results in what is tantamount to a critical. Now, you have a Critical Threshold in True20 akin to that in OGL, generally a 20, but certain feats and weapons can expand that outward. When you hit someone in SW, you roll damage against an opponent's toughness to determine the result. In True20, whomever is struck makes a Toughness roll to determine the amount of damage they receive. In both systems, the person being hit may spend a point of Conviction/benny to attempt a better result and incur less damage.

The magic system in SW is based off of spending an edge to get an Arcane Background and that, in turn, gives you a pool of power points and a set number of powers depending on the source of the Arcane Power. Additional power points and powers may be gained by selecting them with various edges as you progress. True20, on the other hand, uses a more flexible system of magic wherein powers are selected with Feats but there is no power pool. You can strengthen or weaken your power effect and that determines the chance of suffering fatigue from using the power. Additional powers may be gained with additional feats and the governing attribute of various effects is determined by the character's type of powers, but chiefly breaks down into Int for magic, Cha for psionics/mentalist, and Wis for miracles.

Attributes in SW are die based from d4 to d12 and True20 runs the gamut of -5 to +5. In True20, you simply add your attribute and your skill rank to the roll of a d20 versus the DC of the task, which can vary greatly. In SW, the TN of most everything is 4, but penalities can apply to the roll for various conditions.

Both systems have mooks, weaker opponents that are easily taken out by the characters, usually with one hit. They also have the traditional more powerful foes.

Both systems are very strong and don't so much have weaknesses, but may, rather, cater slightly to different playing styles. True20 is more front-loaded and may take a bit more time to create a character the first time through, but honestly, in either it or SW, character creation shoudn't take more than fifteen minutes once you're comfortable with the system.

Personally, I've found people quicker to understand True20 than SW as they only have to focus on one die, a d20, and then add whatever their requisite skill/attribute to a die roll to go against a specific number. Distilling it down to its essence, it's that easy. It's amazing to see a group sit around and all there are about 4-6 d20's on the table. Scary in a way.

Savage Worlds, however, requires a bit more time for the new gamer as there are a lot of different dice being thrown around, but experienced gamers take to it almost instantly and are surprised at the freedoms in it.

A few closing comments: True20 is a huge step away from d20. It's very sleek and streamlined and a credit to its designer. It does have an array of options and is better able to handle finer details, if that's the groups desire. With those rules, does come a bit of knowledge overhead for a GM and creating NPCs and adversaries is more labor-intensive than with Savage Worlds.

Savage Worlds, on the other hand, is innately geared towards pulp or cinematic play. I only mean that in the finest sense. Each setting book that comes out for it tweaks the system accordingly, so the game can be played in a style best suited to it. Its biggest strength is the ability to quickly detail out NPC's and adversaries and to run larger scale conflicts with ease.

Honestly, both systems are excellent and I'm proud to be affiliated with both companies. I hope this gives you a good contrast of True20 and Savage Worlds and I'm happy to entertain any further questions or expand on any particular points as I am able. Just look me up on the SW Forums or the True20 forums or shoot me an email.

Regards,

Sean

P.S. If you've read this far along, I'll let you in on a little secret. We've got a big announcement and surprise for all of you next week, so stay tuned, will ya? :)

Posted by razorwise at 08:13 AM

March 06, 2006

Is it March already???

Greets.

As RunePunk spirals closer to completion, I am again going to be attending the MidSouth Con here in Memphis and will be speaking on some gaming panels. It should be a lot of fun to look back on how far I've come in the past year. I certainly wish RunePunk was ready for release now and I could walk into the convention hall with a bundle of books with that "just from the printer" smell and lots of gorgeous, colored pages for fans to drool over. Not yet. Well, the year isn't over and the convention season is not quite upon us, so keep your fingers crossed!

Usually, I'm a bit more introspective here, but not today. I've got a ton of work to do, all game related. It is strange how things have transmuted during the journey from gamer to getting a license to getting published to making the True20 cut to wrapping up my first major book. The fun has never gone away, but there have been moments of frustration and fear that accompany the amazing heights of acheivement, however humble they may be. I hold to the maxim that "quality will out" and hope that you guys find all of my good efforts not wasted. I've tried to associate with great folks and listen to the advice of gamers of all types as well as those seasoned professionals without whom it would be even more daunting then it is. In other words, thanks to everyone who has lent their support, insight, and talents to Reality Blurs. We'll see that your attentions have not been misplaced.

Best Regards,

Sean

Posted by razorwise at 04:08 PM