Armchair Reviews: The Laundry RPG

The Laundry RPG is based on the series of novels, novellas, and short stories by Charles Stross that detail the adventures of "Bob Howard" in a setting that mixes espionage, office bureaucracy, math, computer theory, geek culture, and unspeakable gods.

Now, since I like the series, it stands to reason that I'd be predisposed to an RPG set in its milieu.

However, I have to say that I also like the RPG on its own merits. Here are the reasons why.

Layout

The book / PDF document has a great feel to it, as the layout has the look of a dossier of material. While most of the fonts are the same, there are 'paper-clipped' photos and annotations in different paper types and fonts to reinforce that feeling.

Writing

The style of writing is clear and clean, with a mixture of exposition and explanation and just enough of the humor and informality to be The Laundry. It doesn't dip into Stross's tendency to throw sink-or-swim bits of espionage telling detail or mathematical esoterica that work so well in the fiction, but would leave gamers screaming bloody murder.

Updated Character Creation

It looks similar to the fast character creation rules in Call of Cthulhu, and it should -- The Laundry RPG uses the same Basic Role-Playing system. However, there are some modifications and additions to that process.

Characteristic Rolls -- back in the day, there were only Knowledge Rolls, Idea Rolls, and Luck rolls that were all percentile chances based on a STATx5 formula. Now there are Effort Rolls, Endurance Rolls, Agility Rolls and Influence Rolls, also based on the same formula. I like it, because it makes attributes faster than the old method of referring to the Resistance Table (which still exists, but only for instances with opposing difficulties).

Personality Types and Assignment & Training -- in COC, your Profession determined your primary skill set. Now you have Personality Types and Assignment & Training which do the same thing, but with different rationale. This fits in with the Laundry getting people from all walks of life and backgrounds, and then shoehorning them into the org because they know too damn much about the wrong things.

Possessions -- you get some default equipment based on your work in the Laundry and your various skillsets.

Great Setting Resources

Chapters Nine, Twelve, and Thirteen give great starting background material for folks unfamiliar with U.K. government intelligence institutions and their international counterparts, and the Laundry itself, of course.

Chapters Nineteen and Twenty-One define some pretty important code words in the Laundry setting: BLUE HADES, DEEP SEVEN, GORGONS, and of course, CODE NIGHTMARE GREEN.

Chapters Ten, Eleven, and Fifteen share some of the gear and flavor of working in an occult espionage agency plagued by modern views of bureaucratic best practice.

Chapter Fourteen is a welcome chapter, as it deals with magic. Devotees of the series know that magic isn't as per traditional Cthulhu spellcrafting goes -- there's a layer of mind-straining electromagnetic and mathematical theory on it. Here's where we get to differentiate between mathematical sorcery, traditional sorcery, and the enigmatically named true sorcery. Also, some spells that are mentioned in the books make an appearance here.

Chapter Eighteen has the statted-out characters that appear in the series, as is tradition for many IP-related sourcebooks. What is great is the inclusion of stats for generic support personnel (Plumbers, Cleaners, Baggers, and Toshers) -- unlike the more maverick and isolated cell-structures of the American-based Delta Green RPG / sourcebook, the Laundry is an organization that supports its personnel as much as it tortures them.

Overall, a great book! I just wish that the PDF had a better set of bookmarks.

Reading Room: Adventures Dark & Deep - Player's Manual (Part 2)

My last post in this series saw several Adventures Dark & Deep character classes being evaluated and assigned common roles in my Enigmundia: Zan Lasario setting.

More Character Classes

Fighter

The quintessential warrior who lives to fight and fights to live. Fighters do not possess many skills, but have the broadest ability to use weapons of all sorts, and advance in fighting skill at the fastest rate of any class.

A must-have character class, of course. But can it tackle all the different types of fighters? Particularly the fencers and the martial artists?

Barbarian (Fighter sub-class)

A man from the uncivilized lands who relies on skill and instinct to give him superior fighting skills. The barbarian has an innate distrust of all things magical, and must rise to higher levels before he can even associate with mages or other spell-casters. The barbarian is a sub-class of fighter.

Despite the potentially offensive reference to uncivilized lands, the greater concern tends to be this weird, innate distrust of all things magical. Still, it can be argued that wilderness tribesmen only trust the druids / wise men of their own tribe and mistrust all other spellcasters.

Ranger (Fighter sub-class)

A woodsman, skilled in surviving in the wilderness, tracking prey, and the like. Rangers view themselves as guardians of civilization from the perils of the wilderness, and thus all rangers must be of good alignment. They are by nature loners, however, and groups of rangers are almost never seen. At higher levels they gain some small spell-casting ability. The ranger is a sub-class of fighter.

This is actually what I'd argue would represent the native tribesmen more, leaving the Barbarians a rarer, more feared encounter. Not so sure about them being loners, but they would certainly be familiar with the perils of the wilderness.

Mage

The model caster of spells, possessed of an enormous potential repertoire of spells, some effective in offense, some in divination, and some in protection. Although they begin relatively weak compared to other classes, at higher levels the spells of the mage make them the most powerful class in the game.

Most of these would come from the colonizing population, with a smattering of mestizos in their ranks. It would be centralized instruction, to keep the foundation of national magical power strong and controlled.

Illusionist (Mage sub-class)

A specialist spell-caster who uses his magical powers to influence the minds of others. The illusionist specializes in creating visions and shadows, but as they continue to gain in power, their illusions can become real. The illusionist is a sub-class of mage.

I'd actually bring this into the Gremio Poetica grouping of classes as well -- the artists and writers and poets and performers who can make the illusory seem real. The other possibility -- it is associated with the hedge witches and perhaps a character class for the shape-changing aswang as well.

Savant (Mage sub-class)

The savant is a scholar and worker of magic whose spells are focused on divination and dealing with creatures from the other planes of existence. At higher levels, no secrets remain so from the savant. The savant is a sub-class of the mage.

This could belong to either the Inspanialo (Spaniards) or the Katao (Filipinos) or the Tsino (Chinese) who are more concerned with these types of spells. In fact, the organization of scientists / astrologists / natural philosophers would have a number of these.

Thief

The thief excels at stealth and nimbleness of hand. Whether used to steal wealth from those who cannot keep it, or to discover and disarm deadly traps, the thief’s talents are useful for going where brute force cannot take you.

I actually prefer the term rogue, or LOTFP's specialist to reflect these guys. Thief, while old school, always intimates that theft is the primary goal of this class.

Acrobat (Thief sub-class)

The acrobat is a split-class; a thief of sufficiently high level and ability scores can opt to leave the thief class and become an acrobat. The acrobat is skilled at leaping, vaulting, tightrope walking, hurling weapons, and the like.

Can be a street performer, or a more cultured member of the Arts & Culture crowd represented by the Gremio Poetica. Most are street performers who do extra work on the side.

Mountebank (Thief sub-class)

A skilled con-man, the mountebank uses his formidable talents at persuasion and misdirection to confuse enemies and marks alike. Beginning at middle levels, the mountebank gains the ability to cast magical spells, which he uses in the furtherance of his craft. The mountebank is a subclass of thief.

An interesting class, one seldom seen, that seems to add to the interesting mix of civil strata emerging in Zan Lasario, perhaps more than con artist -- they are the default class of the various guilds and traders and businessmen in Zan Lasario.

Overview

The exercise has been very instructive, though of course not all the classes don't quite fit my needs exactly. And character classes are very important, as they tend to define what PCs will tend to be in the game.

Still, some do fit quite well, and may add interesting twists to gameplay.

Reading Room: Adventures Dark & Deep - Player's Manual (Part 1)

Adventures Dark & Deep, an RPG written by Joseph Bloch and carefully playtested by a community of gamers at the ADD message boards, has been of interest to me for the past year.

The conceit of this set of rules (which claims not to be a retro-clone) is that it is a "what-if" type of ruleset (placing it in the Alterclone or Neoclone arena), positing that the rules contain within might be what the AD&D 2nd Edition ruleset would look like if E. Gary Gygax hadn't left TSR when he did.

I'm only covering the Player's Manual (and only a small portion of it right now), but there is a Bestiary and a Gamemaster's toolkit for the curious -- also available for free on RPGNow.

Character Classes

They key area of interest for me is the character classes, and this is primarily due to my upcoming work in Enigmundia.

In Adventures Dark & Deep, there are a series of core character classes, with several other character classes known as sub-classes -- classes that give more special abilities than the core class but also have more stringent requirements. Let's take a look at them, how they are described in the book, and how I plan to use them:

Bard

A performer and entertainer, but one with the ability to cast spells through their music and songs. They specialize in manipulating the emotions and feelings of others.

I can use this in my Zan Lazario setting, though I'd prefer to expand this to other performing arts such as stage plays and storytelling. Just to break away from the image of the lute-playing bard. This tradition would probably come from both the "Spanish" equivalent and the "Filipino" equivalent cultures.

Jester (Bard sub-class)

Another sort of performer, but focused on distraction and misdirection. They rely mostly on their verbal patter and entertainment skills, but at higher levels gain some ability to cast spells.

Interesting, and comes across as an alternative to the more traditionally-trained bards, it's curious that it's a sub-class instead. May have to study it further as to integration into the setting.

Cavalier

The proverbial knight in shining armor who follows a strict code of chivalry. The cavalier is a skilled warrior, with a focus on horsemanship and melee weapons. They are forbidden most sorts of missile weapons, feeling them to be less than chivalrous.

Huh, that's interesting -- a class with missile weapons proscribed. Not so sure how that will work given the existence of gunpowder at the time, but it can help with the feel by reducing the presence of bows and arrows with the higher up military types. These guys can be from the Ispanialo (Spanish) noble families or from the warrior culture of the Katao (indigenous Filipinos).

Paladin (Cavalier sub-class)

A holy warrior. All paladins must be of lawful good alignment, and follows a code of behavior even more strict than that of the cavalier. He possesses innate powers to help combat evil, and at higher levels gain the ability to cast clerical spells.

Defenders of the faiths will be interesting in Zan Lazario, but they should be rare.

Cleric

The cleric is a priest, who may serve some deity or even an entire religious pantheon. They are skilled in combat, may wear any sort of armor, and have the ability to cast spells, most of which are geared towards healing, divination, and protection.

The presence of a Catholic Church-inspired faction is very important in Enigmundia's Zan Lazario, so these are obviously a must-have.

Druid (Cleric sub-class)

A priest dedicated not to a god or gods, but to Nature itself. They are limited in the armor they can wear, but their spells are very effective in dealing with the natural world, plants, and animals. At the highest levels, they are effective at manipulating the very elements themselves.

I'd make these guys to be the main mystical opposition to the clerics with a little reskinning. They're not necessarily enemies, but they're the main spell-casting opposition of the colonizers, hampered by a tendency to be anti-social and a territorial gunslinger culture.

Mystic (Cleric sub-class)

Another sort of priest, but one who attempts to come to an understanding of, and ultimately become one with, the multiverse itself. Their spells emphasize personal development and harmony with the universe.

Another indigenous tradition in Zan Lazario, these guys would tend to be more mentors and spiritual advisors to the leaders of the various local kingdoms and warrior clans.

Next Up:
Fighter, Barbarian (Fighter sub-class), Ranger (Fighter sub-class)
Mage, Illusionist (Mage sub-class), Savant (Mage sub-class)
Thief, Acrobat (Thief sub-class), Mountebank (Thief sub-class)

Reading Room: Two from the OSR

I rarely get to run games these days. But I do like to collect RPG games and sourcebooks. This means that most of my posting about RPGs comes from the point of view of a non-active GM or Player -- hence the title of blog.

However, I do like to read and occasionally put together an idea for a one-shot game that really allows you to get to the meat and the flavor of some games. I do this because it motivates me to read the damned stuff in my library (paper and electronic) and because it readies me for the off chance that I actually do get to run one of these games.

As far as systems go, I'm pretty much a HERO System fan when it comes to very detailed yet flexible rules -- and a number of other systems that I've run tend to get a sprinkling of HERO System philosophy in the house rules.

With simpler rules, I tend toward the much-maligned core mechanic unless the rules have some other design purpose than merely simulating a plausible genre reality.

What really catches my eye these days is settings. I can always whip up a HERO conversion if I don't like the rules, but good settings always inspire me and get the imagination going.

Therefore, my very short post this night -- so that I can begin reading -- are these two setting sourcebooks: Red Tide and The Majestic Wilderlands.

Both of these settings have been reviewed elsewhere online, and have caught my interest for different reasons.

Red Tide is of interest not only due to the intriguing campaign setup involving the Red Tide itself, but also the mix of cultures and unusual takes on normal D&D races and cosmology.

The Majestic Wilderlands caught my fancy because the wilderlands have always interested me (though I only knew it as the areas around City State of the Invincible Overlord way back in my gaming infancy), and I wanted to see the rules mods for Swords & Wizardry in the book as well.

Reading Room: Thieves by Retro-clone

"Hah! You thought I wasn't a thief, didn't you? Well, these
are leather pants, buddy. So there!"

Similar to my entries for the Fighter and Cleric classes, I'm reading through the retro-clone descriptions of the Thief Class to get some sense of the essence of the character class before building it in HERO System 6th Edition.

Yes, there is an 6th Edition Fantasy Hero book out, and I'll be referring to it as well for the mechanics. However, I'm trying to build something that hearkens back to then essence of the D&D classes -- Fantasy Hero really broadens the definitions and gives more options to allow different types of classes so something may be lost. Anyway, HERO prides itself on allowing folks to build exactly the characters they want -- I'm just trying to figure out what I want from the classes first.

Basic Fantasy RPG says:

Thieves are those who take what they want or need by stealth, disarming traps and picking locks to get to the gold they crave; or “borrowing” money from pockets, beltpouches, etc. right under the nose of the “mark” without the victim ever knowing.

Thieves fight better than Magic-Users but not as well as Fighters. Avoidance of honest work leads Thieves to be less hardy than the other classes, though they do pull ahead of the Magic-Users at higher levels.

They may use any weapon, but may not wear metal armor as it interferes with stealthy activities, nor may they use shields of any sort. Leather armor is acceptable, however.

Clearly, Basic Fantasy RPG doesn't avoid the implications of the character class name and makes the acquisition or procurement of wealth or items as the primary motivator for someone who's entered into the profession of rogue -- THIEF, I mean.

It's interesting that they point out that thieves are better fighters than magic-users, but point out their lack in hit points (even supplying a rationale for it). I hadn't noticed the hit point edge they gain after 9th level, but it's good to know.

The infamous leather armor restriction is there, along with the rationale that it interferes with theiving activities.

Labyrinth Lord says:

Thieves have a range of unique skills associated with their profession that make them very handy companions in adventures. However, thieves can be a bit shady and they sometimes are not as trustworthy as other classes.

A thief will usually belong to a Thieves Guild from the character's local town, where he can seek shelter and information between adventures.

Because of their need of stealth and free movement, thieves cannot wear armor heavier than leather, and they cannot use shields. They have a need for using diverse weapons, and are able to use any kind.

A thief has the ability to backstab. He must catch an opponent unaware of his presence, using move silently and hide in shadows.

A bit more coy about the inherent lack of morality and ethics that come with being a Thief ("You can't trust him! He's wearing leather armor -- he'll rob you blind!"), Labyrinth Lord mentions other classic thief bits: the Guild and the backstab ability.

Swords & Wizardry says:

Note: the Thief is an optional character class that the Referee may choose to allow or forbid, depending on the campaign.

The thief is a figure in the shadows, an expert in stealth and delicate tasks. As a thief, locks, traps, and scouting are your trade; you are the eyes and ears of the adventuring party, the one who handles the perils of the dungeon itself. In many ways, you are a scholar of the world; in the course of your profession you pick up knowledge about languages and even magic.

True, in combat you are not the equal of armored Fighters or Clerics, but they have to rely on your knowledge and specialized skills to get them safely into and out of the dangerous places where treasure is to be found. You are the guide; the scout; and when necessary, the deadly blade that strikes from the shadows without warning.

In your profession, it takes great skill to survive – the life expectancy of most Thieves is very short. However, if you rise to high level, your reputation in the hidden community of tomb robbers and alley skulkers will attract followers to your side, often enough allies to place you in power as a guildmaster of Thieves.

A high-level Thief is a deadly opponent, for such an individual has learned subtlety and survival in the game’s most difficult profession.

All characer classes are, of course, subject to DM approval. Swords & Wizardy, however, goes as far as stating that explicitly, indicating that the class is optional and isn't necessarily meant to be a part of the generally available character classes of the game.

The description of the thief class, however, is clearly pro-thief and one that can reflect a PCs own worldview regarding his chosen profession.

Of special interest is the note that it is the game's most difficult profession -- I hadn't though about it, but I do remember that there were no straight thieves in my AD&D games. All my fellow players multi-classed their thieves, thus leading to the party's clerics, fighters, and mages all trying to see "if that door is really locked".

OSRIC says:

Thieves sneak furtively in the shadowed alleyways of cities, living by their wits. They are often members of the criminal underclass, usually trained by a thieves’ guild in the arts of burglary and stealth. It is not uncommon for a thief to seek out the great rewards that can be gained from the adventuring life, especially when circumstances require lying low for a while.

Most thieves come from the teeming masses of a large city, wherein a thieves’ guild is often the only source of justice and exercises as much power as the city’s legitimate government. Of course, not all thieves are members of a guild. Some are freelancers, evading both the authorities and the guild, living on the edge of the knife. Some are even found working on the side of the law; agents or spies who use their skills in more accepted (though equally shadowy) pursuits.

Sensible adventuring parties will almost always include a thief, for the skills of such a character are invaluable in reaching inaccessible places via climb walls, pick locks, and so on. In addition, dungeons frequently contain traps which must be located and disarmed, and the thief’s cunning and stealth conspire to make him or her very useful in a scouting role.

Thieves in OSRIC are modelled on characters of fiction and legend, particularly characters from the works of Fritz Leiber and Jack Vance. Leiber’s “Lankhmar” series is highly recommended, particularly for its description of the operation of a typical thieves’ guild; but the high-level thief’s ability to read (or misread) magic scrolls is a nod to Vance’s Cugel.

OSRIC's take actually mentions the normal origins of such a character -- from the masses of commoners living in a large city -- and gives examples of variants on the profession different from the stereotypical cutpurse or footpad.

OSRIC also mentions the role of the class outside of combat, and makes allusions to the literary origins (and thus legitimacy) of the class in the game.

Reading Room: Clerics by Retro-clone

Go Aleena! Show him that blunt
weapons are more powerful than
sharp magical missiles!

Similar to what I did for the Fighter Class, I'm reading through various retro-clone descriptions of the Cleric Class in an effort to glean the essence of this particular character class before going to town on it in HERO System 6th Edition.

Basic Fantasy RPG says:

Clerics are those who have devoted themselves to the service of a deity, pantheon or other belief system. Most Clerics spend their time in mundane forms of service such as preaching and ministering in a temple; but there are those who are called to go abroad from the temple and serve their deity in a more direct way, smiting undead monsters and aiding in the battle against evil and chaos. Player character Clerics are assumed to be among the latter group.

Clerics fight about as well as Thieves, but not as well as Fighters. They are hardier than Thieves, at least at lower levels, as they are accustomed to physical labor that the Thief would deftly avoid. Clerics can cast spells of divine nature starting at 2nd level, and they have the power to Turn the Undead, that is, to drive away undead monsters by means of faith alone.

They may wear any armor, but may only use blunt weapons (specifically including warhammer, mace, maul, club, quarterstaff, and sling).

In the Basic Fantasy RPG therefore, the cleric class is envisioned as a certain type of priest -- not one who administers to a given community, but one who is sent out to directly oppose the physical forces (and other such minions) present in the world. It's not clear if the community / temple -bound clerics have the same abilities or can even shift back and forth between the two types.

The ability to turn undead here is based on the cleric's faith, implying that a cleric's faith increases as he/she rises in level.

Labyrinth Lord RPG says:

Humans who become clerics have pledged their lives to serve a deity. To this end, they conduct their lives in a way to further the desires and will of their gods or goddesses. Clerics may use divine energy in the form of spells, which are granted through prayer and worship. The power and number of cleric spells available to a character are determined by level. Clerics are also trained to fight, and they should be thought of not as passive priests but as fighting holy crusaders. If a cleric ever falls from favor, due to violating the beliefs of his god or breaking the rules of his clergy, the god may impose penalties upon the cleric.

Clerics can use any form of armor and weapons except for weapons that have a sharp edge. This eliminates weapons such as swords, axes, and arrows, but not slings, maces, or other blunt items. Strict holy doctrine prevents clerics from using any cutting or impaling weapons.

Clerics have the ability to Turn Undead. The potency of this ability is determined by level. The cleric is able to call upon the name and power of his deity to repel, and even destroy, undead. Turned undead will leave the area by any means they can, and will not attempt to harm or make contact with the cleric.

Here, the cleric is representative of a given deity and not necessarily of a broad pantheon. Again, however, they are differentiated as 'fighting priests' (who are apparently fond of blunt instruments). Labyrinth Lord differs by citing specific penalties for 'violating religious beliefs) as well.

Furthermore, the ability to turn undead is mentioned here as well, but the source of power seems to be the name and power of the deity and not necessarily the cleric's level of faith.

Swords & Wizardry says:

Clerics are armored warrior-priests (or priestesses) who serve the cause of Law or Chaos. Most Clerics have a patron deity or serve a particular religion. As a Cleric, you are a champion of your faith and moral alignment. You might be a shining knight of the faith, an exorcist of demons, or a sinister witchhunter. Because most of a Cleric’s abilities are oriented toward healing and protecting, Clerics tend to play a support role during combat: backing up the front line, but able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the party’s Fighters if the need arises—at least for a while...Clerics may not be of neutral alignment unless the Referee rules otherwise.

Swords & Wizardry takes a slighly different view on the cleric, making him/her not so much a member of the clergy but a roving champion of the faith -- especially since one of the stated examples is one such 'shining knight'.

It also reinforces the role of the cleric in combat as a healer, and a secondary fighter. This is interesting as the prior two descriptions tend to focus on the broader ability to ask for spells from their patron diety.

OSRIC says:

Clerics are moral and spiritual leaders, warriors of faith who preach the will of the gods, interpret omens and portents, and strike down the evil or unfaithful. Most clerics have a patron deity, but some are champions of a particular moral alignment, venerating all deities of that alignment in addition to a patron deity, and yet others are the servants of a particular pantheon of deities. In a world of swords and sorcery, force of arms often speaks louder than moral suasion, and clerics are trained to do battle against the enemies of their gods. Some clerics are fanatics, zealously seeking new converts or hunting heretics. Others seem almost burdened by an inconvenient or even oppressive relationship with the divine forces. Evil clerics—sinister villains who prey upon fear and jealousy—sow discord in the world and gather converts for their demonic masters.

Clerics play an important support role for an adventuring party. Most clerical spells are oriented toward healing, strengthening, and defending others. However, when the need arises the cleric is fully capable of taking a place in the line of battle and smiting down infidels and foes. Clerics employ their holy symbols rather than spell books as a focus for their meditation.

OSRIC also paints a broader view of the cleric -- a preacher, an interpreter of omens, and a righteous hand of the faith. It also is more generous in the definition of the cause that the cleric serves -- even allowing for a cleric to serve a given alignment. OSRIC does reiterate the healing role of the priest, and is the only one to specifically cite in the character description something necessary to gain the spells: the holy symbols they carry.

Consolidated Character Class Guideline Essences:

It would appear that based on what has been written, the Cleric is a secondary fighter (perhaps equal to the Thief in combat skill, or more) with the ability to heal (important in combat) and the ability to gain clerical spells. They are also capable of turning undead creatures -- suggesting that perhaps plagues and infestatons of these undead are not as rare as they should be -- using either their own faith or the authority granted them by their position.

Reading Room: Fighters by Retro-clone

In trying to get a good grasp of the different type of core classes for my setting project in HERO 6th, I've been reading up on the classes from various retro-clones that I have access to. So first up: fighter.

Basic Fantasy RPG says:

Fighters include soldiers, guardsmen, barbarian warriors, and anyone else for whom fighting is a way of life. They train in combat, and they generally approach problems head on, weapon drawn.

Not surprisingly, Fighters are best at fighting of all the classes. They are also the hardiest, able to take more punishment than any other class. Although they are not skilled in the ways of magic, Fighters can nonetheless use many magic items, including but not limited to magical weapons and armor.

Well, that's pretty clear. I particularly like the second paragraph which gives me an idea of how the standard template should be like in comparison with the other character classes.

Labyrinth Lord says:

Fighters, as their name implies, are exclusively trained in the arts of combat and war. They are specialists at dealing physical blows. Unlike other classes, fighters are particularly burdened in a group of adventurers because they are tougher and must take the lead to defend others. Fighters can use any weapons and armor.

Shorter than Basic Fantasy RPG, and talks about familiarities with all weapons and armor, and makes a distinction about the ability to 'deal physical blows'. Also there's an emphasis on the role of fighters in a party as defenders due to their toughness. However, there's a suggestion of professionalism here as well, with a word choice of 'exclusively trained' which differentiates them from talented fighters or dangerous barbarians.

Swords & Wizardry says:

Fighters are warriors, trained in battle and in the use of armor and weapons. Perhaps you are a ferocious Viking raider, a roaming samurai, a dashing swashbuckler, a deadly swordswoman, or a chivalrous knight. Whatever type of Fighter you choose to play, you will probably end up on the front lines of your adventuring party—going toe-to-toe with dragons, goblins, and evil cultists, hacking your way through them and taking the brunt of their attacks. The Fighter character is best-equipped of all the character classes to dish out damage and absorb it, too. Clerics heal and Magic-Users cast spells, but the swordplay and archery are generally up to you. You are going to serve as the party’s sword and shield, protecting the weaker party members and taking down the enemies before you.

Verbose in description, it also gives various cultural incarnation of the fighter class. Like LL it talks about the fighter's role in the party, and identifies the strengths of the class in comparison to other character classes.

OSRIC says:

Fighters are trained in the use of weapons and armour, usually beginning their adventuring careers after a stint of training as a town guardsman, soldier, man-at-arms, bandit, pirate, or mercenary.

Fighters are the backbone of an adventuring party; without them to hold the line, the other members of the party will be overrun before they can bring their own skills to bear. Fighters are the most powerful characters in melee or missile combat, whether on offence or defence. Together with the ranger and paladin, they have the most hit points, and their ability to survive the most brutal battles is therefore unrivalled.

They also have the best chance “to hit” of all the classes, particularly at higher level. They may use any kind of armour, shield, or weapon.

I rather like how it was written. It gave the breadth of roles covered by the character class, identified the role played by the character class in parties, and identifies the combat strengths of the character class when compared to the others.

Consolidated Character Class Guidelines:

Not suprisingly, a Fighter is consistently defined as someone capable of fighting well -- skilled with all weapons and armor, tough in a fight, and so on. Although, in terms of progression, the Underdark Gazette has an interesting view on fighter level progression.

It's not always clear whether the combat ability is purely due to training, or perhaps due to natural skill or talent or curse -- the descriptions differ slightly here. What does matter is that in face-to-face melee combat, the fighter is head and shoulder above all other classes.

Reading Room: Various D&D Rulesets -- Combat Rounds

I wanted to take a look at the combat round in various rulesets, sort of to see how it might be handled in my HEROic D&D project.

AD&D Combat Round = 1 minute
Pretty long, eh? So let's check out AD&D 1st Edition DMG which holds forth extensively on the rationale for the combat round:

Combat is divided into 1 minute period melee rounds, or simply rounds, in order to have reasonably manageable combat. "Manageable" applies both to the actions of the combatants and to the actual refereeing of such melees. It would be no great task to devise an elaborate set of rules for highly complex individual combats with rounds of but a few seconds length. It is not in the best interests of an adventure game, however, to delve too deeply into cut and thrust, parry and riposte.

But that's not all! It further goes on to say:

During a one minute melee round many attacks are made, but some are mere feints, while some are blocked or parried. One, or possibly several, have the chance to actually score damage. For such chances, the dice are rolled, and if the"to hit" number is equaled or exceeded, the attack was successful, but otherwise it too was avoided, blocked, parried, or whatever.

And goes on even more to say:

Because of the relatively long period of time represented by the round, dexterity (dexterity, agility, speed, quickness) is represented by a more favorable armor class rating rather than as a factor in which opponent strikes the first blow.

I understand how that combat round is an abstraction, but I'm certainly not in the one-minute combat round camp. Too long, and I find the exchanges and finer points of exchanges interesting (to a degree). And it doesn't make sense given the rate of fire rules in the PHB! Two minutes to fire one heavy crossbow bolt? One minute to fire an arrow from a composite bow? I understand the feint and exchange argument, but in the case of missile weapons you actually mark off ammo.

Fortunately, the PHB actually lays down the law very clearly early on without this very strange (dare I say defensive and unnecessary discussion on the combat round) by saying

In adventuring below ground, a turn in the dungeon lasts 10 minutes (see also MOVEMENT). In combat, the turn is further divided into 10 melee rounds, or simply rounds. Rounds are subdivided into 10 segments, for purposes of determining initiative (q.v.) and order of attacks. Thus a turn is 10 minutes, a round 1 minute, and a segment 6 seconds.

Nice and clean, and the rates of fire make more sense in terms of segments. But wait, the PHB says that the rates of fire should be considered in terms of "melee rounds". Oh well.

OSRIC, here I come. Maybe it's clearer over there.

But first, let's look at D&D!

D&D B/X Combat Round = 10 seconds
What does D&D BX say about the combat round? Well, I don't have my Moldvay Basic Rulebook with me, but my Expert Set book does state

As in the D&D Basic rules, time in encounters is measured in 10-second rounds.

Sweet, yes? Not great for my attempt to convert into HEROic D&D -- I 'd rather go with the 6 second thing so that I can just double it for the 12-segment combat turn of HERO -- but on its own, a nice measure for a combat round. No need for segments, just a small and manageable length for a combat round that fits the whole 'abstracted combat' argument in the AD&D book.

Well, in my opinion anyway.

I'm going to head over to my copies of the various retro-clones to see what they say on the matter.

Reading Room: AD&D 1st Edition - the DMG on Combat

I remember reading certain portions of the DMG very closely and half-remembered things that would normally be part of a game designer's notes being embedded in the rules. Here's an example from the chapter on combat:

Are crippling disabilities and yet more ways to meet instant death desirable in an open-ended, episodic game where participants seek to identify with lovingly detailed and developed player-character personae? Not likely! Certain death is as undesirable as a give-away campaign.

Based on this, one can surmise that the lack of hit locations, critical hits, and instant death aren't meant to be part of the D&D game. Of course, one would be guilty of taking things out of context. I'm sure that one can come up with spells and artifacts that resulted in instant death, blah blah blah.

The point is, there was a concern early on that D&D combat wasn't meant to be 'realistic' but 'plausible' from a certain point of view. It wanted players to have a decent chance of surviving combat (which by no means is an argument for the 'Challenge Rating' approach) with options of running away as part of the combat sequence. And one might argue -- based on this statement -- that despite the fragility of 1st level characters, D&D PCs are meant to overcome challenges and progress in a well-run (and well-played) campaign.

Reading Room: The Stars Without Number skin -- Part 06

This can't be good for my fingernails. I haven't taken off this
suit in weeks! At least I can relieve myself whenever I feel like it.

And since Philip Tang is a warrior in Stars Without Number, we also get a slew of skills associated with that class. As per rules, any skill granted by background or class is at rank 0, and upped by 1 when granted again by another aspect of character creation.

And then we get to select a Training Package as well, to reflect the warrior specialization. I'm looking at either Commando or Space Marine, but decide to go with Space Marine for the ship-based campaign I envision the character to be a part of.

Here's the final (revised) worklist of skills, since I was informed that the class skills only count when you're building your own Training Package:

• [Background] Combat/Energy Weapons - 0
• [Background] Culture/Spacer - 0
• [Background] Security - 0
• [Background] Tactics - 0
• [Class] Athletics - 0
• [Class] Combat/Any -- (okay, I guess Unarmed makes sense here) Unarmed - 0
• [Class] Exosuit  - 0
• [Class] Leadership - 0
• [Class] Perception - 0 
• [Class] Profession/Any -- (maybe a background in shipping and customs) - Customs Agent - 0
• [Class] Stealth - 0
• [Class] Survival - 0
• [Class] Tactics - 0+1
• [Training Package - Space Marine] Combat/Energy Weapon - 0+1
• [Training Package - Space Marine] Combat/Primitive - 0
• [Training Package - Space Marine] Culture/Spacer - 0+1
• [Training Package - Space Marine] Exosuit - 0
• [Training Package - Space Marine] Tactics - 0+1
• [Training Package - Space Marine] Tech/Astronautics - 0

Revised Final List of Skills

• Security - 0
• Combat/Energy Weapon - 1
• Combat/Primitive - 0
• Culture/Spacer - 1
• Exosuit - 0
• Tactics - 1
• Tech/Astronautics - 0

Reading Room: The Stars Without Number skin -- Part 05

The next step is to select a Background package (which grants skills) for my SWN character, Philip Tang.

The obvious choice would be a soldier, but I'm looking at a different background -- a man good at fighting and war, but from a background of serving and protecting. The security crew package stands out here, and that grants the following:

• Combat/Any (gotta choose one -- Energy Weapons)
• Culture/Spacer
• Security
• Tactics 

And I'm tempted to take him in the direction of Star Trek's Kirk, a rare man who managed to emerge from the ranks of security into a position of command, but I'm not sure he's at that same level of ambition and combat prowess yet.

Reading Room: the Stars Without Number skim -- part 04

Factions

Hello! I went to skip ahead and look at factions and skimmed through the 15 pages that cover it. Funny thing is, I did this to avoid the character creation exercise that I normally need to perform to understand a game -- but factions is essentially a mini-game to help simulate how various organizations and communities grow and achieve (or fail to achieve) their goals. Faction "character" creation, conflict resolution, goals, growth, and so on.

So we'll be getting back to that later. Lots of meat in that section as well, let's see how it plays in the future with three factions in conflict with one another.

Okay, time to go back to Character Creation!

Character Creation

The first step is rolling up character attributes. Rules do give the GM leeway for alternative rolling options, but we can use the default method for the first character build -- 3d6 for each attribute in order. Moving points between scores is allowed on a 1-to-1 basis, BUT this method has some limitations:
(1) no lowering a high score below 13;
(2) no raising a low score above 8.

So, let's see what we get:

Strength      14
Intelligence  11
Wisdom        10
Dexterity     11
Constitution  13
Charisma      10

Well, that was a surprise. Not bad at all. Rules say that the Warrior's prime requisites are Str and Dex, and that I can replace one of these stats with a value of 14 to reflect the aptitude for the class. Since Str is already at 14, I think I'll have Dex upped to 14 as well.

So, I've rolled up my attributes, and decided my character class, and adjusted my attributes accordingly. Next is to flesh out my new Warrior character in Stars Without Number. Here are the stats at this stage:

This is, of course, Andy Lau in Future X-Cops attire. I'll use him as
Philip Tang for now to give me a face and coolness to aspire to.

Strength      14 (+1)
Intelligence  11
Wisdom        10
Dexterity     14 (+1)
Constitution  13
Charisma      10

Let's roll up his name using the Resources section. I'll take a male first name from the English section and a surname from the Chinese section for this guy: 90 (Philip) + 78 (Tang).

Okay, Philip Tang, let's see what you're made of in the next installment of Reading Room.

Reading Room: the Stars Without Number skim -- part 03

(Game) Systems
So from page 59 to page 70, I read most of the main rules regarding skill and combat resolution -- including initiative, skill checks, attack checks, injuries, poisons, saving throws, damage and death, and ship-to-ship combat.

Pretty lean, but not vague. Now, sometimes I'm scratching my head about one rule or another, like why 1d8 for initiative and why ties are broken by the player to the right (or was it left) of the GM; sometimes, I understand why the phrase "it's up to the GM to decide..." is used -- because it IS up to the GM; and sometimes I'm blown away and stunned that there's an extended example on the ship-to-ship combat, when personal combat didn't get that much attention.

But overall, clear and concise. I don't know if that's because I've swung to the preference of leaner rulesets when tackling new games (and was a Hero fanatic for the longest time, now just a fan), or if it's because I've got so many ruleset options rattling in my brain that I'm not worried about how handle unusual circumstances or any gaps that I've not seen yet (see the mention of Hero fanaticism, and add to that a fascination for tinkering with 3rd Edition and various flavors, AND Fuzion as well).

A not-so-subtle reminder that space is dangerous enough
for traveling adventurers; why look for more trouble?

And I know why there's an extended example -- OSR gamers and 3E gamers alike I'm sure know how personal combat goes. That ship-to-ship stuff can be tricky if you've never done space battle wargames. Even if the rules are pretty much based on the same concepts (armor class, combat rolls, hit points, etc.) as melee combat.

All in 12 pages. Not bad at all. Maybe it's because they only put one illustration (see the pic to the left) in that entire chapter to fit every damn thing in there!

Next, I jump ahead to the faction rules, which I'm just a bit curious about. And am eager to see if I can pair with the Babylon 5 OGL rules for using influence for an organization you're a part of, and see if I can re-use for the eventual impending release of the 3rd Edition of the faction-riddled Fading Suns setting.

Reading Room: the Stars Without Number skim -- part 02

Character Creation
Stars without number has already managed to surprise me.

Awesomly iconic
art for the Expert
character class

With only three character classes, but multiple "templates" that fall under each character class, there's already a wide variety of possible characters represented by class and skills. The three classes are Expert, Warrior, and Psychic. Each obviously has something that sets them apart from the other classes. Psychics are the only ones who can use psychic abilities. Warriors get to ignore one (1) attack in a given skirmish. Experts get to re-roll one (1) failed skill attempt per hour.

Your Stat block is randomly rolled up, but there are rules that allow you to ensure that your character can function reasonably well in the game (minimum values for given stats based on class, reshuffling of points within certain parameters, etc.) Max bonus and max penalty on the 3 to 18 range of human stats are +2 and -2 respectively. Perhaps this is due to the 2d6 resolution mechanic for skills (ooh, classic Traveller), though it seems to make Stats less relevant given the d20 resolution mechanic for combat.

Two different resolution mechanics? Why? WHY? (Why not? I mean, Assassins got percentiles on their assassination attempts, and Thieves also get the percentiles, and there was the Turning mechanic. It's not that confusing, and very cleanly delineated. It's in the way that it's used. Even a single resolution mechanic can become very confusing if mishandled.)

Can't say more about this till I try out character creation proper, but I did skip ahead to check some other portions of the book to understand certain aspects of Character Creation (like the resolution mechanics).

So next time, we'll skip ahead to look at resolution mechanics and the factions rules, before I return and attempt a character.

Reading Room: the Stars Without Number skim -- part 01

While I am making my way through the book in the "reading this" sidebar, I do crack open other books on occasion and do a quick skim to satisfy my gamer ADD.

Stars Without Number caught my attention this time, for several reasons.

Aside from being free, it's also got an old school vibe to it, a sense of modern starship-based science fiction, and there are a number of (not free) books that have come out for it -- one of which details a stellar navy-based campaign.

So I decide to (electronically) flip through it and was impressed by the look and the production values. So let's do our quick skim read.

Overall impressions
The table of contents looks fairly comprehensive, the layout is organized, clean and readable with the greyscale tables and illustrations. Two of them look familiar -- I think I've seen them in other SF RPGs before (or perhaps the same artists work on them) -- but all of them are good to great in quality and really evoke a sense of the breadth and elements of the types of Science Fiction the game covers.

Default Setting and Campaign Premise
Page 5 of the game has a lovely two-thirds page summary of the setting and campaign premise. It is set a post-fall interstellar empire connected by psychic-powered jumpgates and spike drives (shades of Fading Suns and one of the classic Traveller period settings), that has become a mixture of lost worlds, small self-sufficient worlds and mini-empires after the events known as the Scream and the Silence.

Page 6 has a nice summary of the type of characters expected to adventure in the game, which I will quote in part:

In Stars Without Number you play the role of an interstellar adventurer. Whether a grizzled astrotech, lostworlder warrior, or gifted psychic, you dare the currents of space for the sake of riches and glory...

The dangers of the starfaring life claim legions of aspiring adventurers and precious few of them ever manage to die in bed. Still, humanity needs their courage, ingenuity, and reckless ambition if mankind is ever to recover its former glory.

Meta-game Stuff
After that, there's the also brief explanation of RPGs and a nod to the game's OSR roots in terms of mechanics and inspiration and then it's on to Character Creation!

next up: Character Creation