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RPGs

Random Research

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This post was prompted by two players having questions that required NPCs to do research. One PC is a cleric, the other a paladin. They worship different gods, one the goddess of fire/the hearth, and the other the god of death.

The cleric of the fire goddess has a masterwork matchlock musket. I assigned a d12 usage die for the powder. It is down to a d6. Few shots have resulted in a hit. I ruled that it takes one round to re-load, so it is far from overpowered. The one keg of gunpowder they found they soon lost. So finally in the capital they checked the chief temple and the keepers of lore are researching for the location of any other matchlocks and the recipe for gunpowder.

The paladin worships the god of death and has a war scythe. At the temple of death he asked about magic weapons. They are researching this question.

Faced with two such questions for which I had not yet developed an answer, the NPCs told the PCs that they would send word to the inn where they were staying once they had answers.

I took time between sessions to determine how long it would take for the researchers to have an answer and what that answer was.

The PCs left town in a hurry and are slowly making their way back. They teleported far away and are travelling back overland, hoping to reach the sea and sail back to the capital. They have no idea if the researchers have an answer for them or not.

The following is my thought process for coming up with the answers I arrived at for these two questions.

Research by Sage p. 32 1e DMG – d20 to determine the d% target number to know the answer. 

In this case know means either memorized or in their library.

Categories of General, Specific, and Exacting from the DMG are helpful.

Consulting the archivists and librarians of temples and libraries should work much like sages.

Sample questions:

Where are magical holy relics?

Where are magical holy weapons? (for a paladin, etc.)

Librarians, scholars, archivists, or alchemists could also be consulted.

How do I make x?

What are the ingredients for x?

PROCEDURE:

How likely are those asked to know the answer? Assign a target number based on how common the information is. 

A good example would be knowing about legends vs. knowing the exact details of which a legend speaks. 

Some may have heard of an ancient warrior’s sword, but that doesn’t mean they know where it is now.

Roll 1d6 for the number of weeks seeking the answer will take. 

(It’s not like they have the dewey decimal system with card catalogs with meticulously preserved books.)

(NOTE: The amount of time it will take is NOT known to either the NPCs or the PCs, only the GM. The PCs will be forced to decide if they stick around and wait for an answer, or come back to the location at some point in the future.)

Note this on the campaign calendar used by the GM. Start the count on the next day, as the current day already has its own business.

Determine what general time of day they find the answer, morning, afternoon, evening however you define those in your game, then what part of those, or just roll a d8 for an eight hour workday, then a d6 for which ten minute block of the hour, then a d10 for which minute, repeat the d6 & d10 for the seconds of that minute, if it matters.

This will set the scene for those waiting around with a promise to be contacted when the answer is found. Or else if they come back before the answer is found, they still don’t know how long until there will be an answer.

THE ANSWER:

The answer may be “we don’t know.” It will take the number of weeks rolled previously for them to come to that conclusion.

The answer may be vague or incomplete. The answer may lie in an obscure quote or riddle. Or the document may be damaged giving just a few words. For example, the holy relic is in the tomb of an ancient warrior, but no one knows the name of the warrior or the location of the tomb.

The answer may be precise and exacting. 

This all depends on the materials available to do the research.

Time and Survival of Sources:

Vellum and Parchment are more durable than paper, especially when it comes to water, but fire, rodents, insects, etc. lead to damaged (incomplete) or destroyed (missing) information.

A well known ten year old book with lots of copies is likely to have information that is easily knowable. If the particular researcher(s) doesn’t have a copy, it’s possible they may have read it or know where to either view or acquire a copy.

A rare or unique 1,000 year old manuscript may be “lost” in that people may have heard about it, or other writings mention its general contents, but no one knows exactly what’s in it nor where it is.

Other manuscripts are lost in that they are destroyed and no longer exist.

CONTEXT: 

Are they logically asking someone who has a chance to know or find out?

A cleric or paladin asking the archivists of a temple to their own deity are more likely to find answers about relics and holy weapons pertaining to their deity, or those their temple or religion have dealt with. The main temple in the capital city is more likely to have the answer than a shrine in a remote village. Unless that remote village just happens to be near where a warrior’s last stand occurred, etc.

If they go to a temple to a different deity, while they may get help for a donation, unless the question pertains to the deity and religious lore and practice of that group, they may not get a helpful answer.

Does the source exist?

How does the source exist? Primary source, secondary source, tertiary source quotes the secondary source, etc.

How old is the information? 

How well known is the information in the present?

Each factor will weigh the likelihood of a favorable answer.

An Example:

One possible procedure would be to give the chance of an answer a percentage. Say that in optimal conditions there is a 75% chance to get the answer desired by the players.

Note: If you’ve given the players information that an item or information is in the city they have travelled to, they need to be able to get the answers. The answers don’t have to come easily or quickly. They just have to have enough “breadcrumbs” that keep leading to the answer. 

Once the PCs have the answer, they may still have to solve a riddle, disarm or avoid a trap, or avoid, trap, or defeat a monster to get the item(s) they seek. As always, the level of challenge and risk should be worthy of that which they seek.

Modify this based on the following:

Do those doing the research have a source in their possession? If no, then determine if they can get it.

Do they know what source (book, scroll, tapestry, inscription, epitaph, etc.) has the desired answer? If no, determine if they possess a source that will lead them to a source with the information.

If they don’t have any documents that will lead them to a clear source with the answer, will they be able to give the questioners anything to narrow down the search for an answer? If no, then the PCs will have to try a different approach, or ask others, or go to a different location either in the same city or a different city.

You may decide that some form of divination or “bargain” could generate the answer. Something short of a wish. Wishes should be rare and PCs should fear to use them.

However, determine how old this information is, subtract 1% per century and 10% per millenia. 

Determine how common the information is in the present day:

Everyone knows: +5%

Most People Know: +1%

Specialists Know: 0%

Experts Know: -1%

No one knows: -5%

In the following add 1% for primary source, 0% for secondary source, -1% for tertiary source, etc. Roll d% to determine how well preserved the source is with 1% being very bad and 100% being perfect condition.

Source Exists and is Common and Accurate: +10%

Source Exists and is Uncommon and Accurate: +5 %

Source Exists and is Rare and Accurate: 0%

Source Exists and is Unique and Accurate: -5%

Source Exists and is Common and Inaccurate: -10%

Source Exists and is Uncommon and Inaccurate: -5 %

Source Exists and is Rare and Inaccurate: 0%

Source Exists and is Unique and Inaccurate: 0%

Source Exists and is Common and Known to be Inaccurate: 0%

Source Exists and is Uncommon and Known to be Inaccurate: 0%

Source Exists and is Rare and Known to be Inaccurate: 0%

Source Exists and is Unique and Known to be Inaccurate: 0%

RPGs

Newfound Appreciation of The 2d6 Table

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On September 12, 2019, I started a new Thursday night Roll20 campaign using Delving Deeper, called Delver’s Deep. Delving Deeper is a re-organization of OD&D(Original Dungeons & Dragons), AKA the 3 LBBs (Little Brown Books) in the first box set. My last post talked about campaign prep and linked to my podcast where I discussed it. [UPDATE: Here’s the companion podcast.]

I reviewed OD&D [Affiliate Link] , Holmes Blue Box Basic, Moldvay [Affiliate Link] , and Cook [Affiliate Link] . and Rules Cyclopedia [Affiliate Link] looking for the classic 2d6 morale and reaction tables. First, I was surprised to see that OD&D Book I, Men & Magic [Affiliate Link] only has the 3d6 loyalty table on page 13. It mentions checking morale, but I didn’t find an explanation of that mechanic via a PDF search.

[UPDATE: A comment posted that the reaction table is on page 12 of book 3, but it is labelled: Random Actions by Monsters. It has three tiers with instructions to modify based on various factors.]

The classic 2d6 table is in Holmes for the Hostile/Friendly Reaction Table. Since it didn’t use the normal language I had to flip though my book to find it. Moldvay has the 2d6 Retainer Reaction on page 21 and Cook has no table but uses text to describe the 2d6 Morale Check. Ouch, that’s hard to read at a glance. The Rules Cyclopedia [Affiliate Link] has the 2d6 table on page 93. I looked at Blueholme [Affiliate Link] and it has a 2d6 reactions table. all with the classic. five options tending towards neutral in the middle with degrees of positive or negative on the upper and lower end.

I had the realization the other day that a 2d6 additive table, where the results of 2d6 are added together has 11 possible options. 11 goes into 100 nine times with a remainder of 1. As I thought about 11 options and there being 9% if the table was evenly distributed, I recalled my EMT training and a past article on the Rule of Nines. This gives a 2d6 table a possibility of representing the chance of a hit being a particular location – at least by the number of available options. One slot for each arm, one for the head, two for each leg, and four slots for the torso.

I was driven by thoughts of a hit location table for a possible Western RPG. I keep going back and forth between doing my own Western RPG or a generic Western campaign building supplement. I looked to AnyDice to get the percentages in perspective, and was quickly reminded that two or more dice added together have a bias towards the middle. This article on AnyDice explains the details.

My hopes were slightly dashed for making a balanced table that gives a balanced chance to a certain area of the body. It is close enough, that it might be OK in practice. I’m no math guru. I know just enough about statistics to have a general feel for them, but the nuts and bolts of the analysis is beyond me.

Here are the mentioned tables for reference:

AnyDice 2d6 breakdown.

Breakdown of the odds for 2d6 added together.

The 2d6 Reaction Table from Delving Deeper with the total of the chance of results based on the sum of the values from AnyDice.

This shows just how strongly weighted the neutral result is.

I liked the number of options, five, on the 2d6 Reaction and Morale tables, so I used the same values to create a table for the god of luck in my new campaign. The name, Losefka, comes from the religion and deity generator tables from Table Fables II by Madeline Hale. I decided that if you were a devotee or cleric of the god of luck and fate, you would have a hold coin for binary decisions and roll the holy bones each morning to determine your luck or fate for the day in the following table, screenshot from my Roll20 macro.

I didn’t come up with special verbiage for the slightly negative and positive results. (I’m open to suggestions for cool way to phrase it.)

So far, there is a cleric of Losefka who has used the above table each day. There is a potential bonus/penalty for persistence in checking each day or failing to do so.

2d6 Appreciation

I have a new appreciation for the simple 2d6 additive table. The most common number of options for 2d6 tables in Delving Deeper are five options on the Morale and Reaction Tables. Seven options on the Wilderness Weather Table. Eight options on the Random Dungeon Location Table used for dungeon creation/stocking. If you want a number of results with even distribution, it is easier to use a single die of the right size for single digits or even divisible by 2, 3, or 4.

I have read lots of articles about 2d6 tables with the classic five tiers as in the Reaction and Morale Tables. When I searched for the tables from my recollection, I realized I had conflated re-use of the reaction/morale table and dungeon restocking. Various blog posts about both below: (It’s easy for all the blog posts I’ve read over 11 or 12 years of following the OSR to blend together. Some of these I read when they were new, and some from 2017 and later are new to me.)

In addition to the results one gets from adding 2d6 one can use 2d6 to generate simultaneous options for a single roll to get two independent d6 results, like for dungeon restocking. There are also d66 tables where one can get 36 different options using one die for the tens digit and the other for the ones digit. This is seen in Maze Rats [Affiliate Links] and Knave [Affiliate Links].

Conclusion

I don’t think I (and perhaps we) need to reinvent the wheel for tables. I am growing to like the simplicity of OD&D/Basic as expressed in Delving Deeper. Variations on existing tables can be used to get a good spread of options for all kinds of things from moral and reactions, to re-stocking, to wondering monsters, and checking one’s luck/fortune each day. While I think the d10/20 made a more balanced to hit chance for combat, we don’t necessarily need to use dice in all the Platonic solids.

I think it is more that we don’t need to invent tables and mechanics to allow us to use all the different die types. Some die types lend themselves to a more balanced approach. A prime example is the 2d6 hit location table that started this whole thing. There is a d12 with body parts on it that gives an even chance for any body part. The one I have is not balanced, so making a table and using a balanced die would give more far results.

If you need 2 results of equal probability just roll any die and go high/low. If you need 3 balanced results roll a d6 and divide by 2, etc. I think using the die type that best fits the spread of what you are seeking, whether a weighted value or equal odds for any result makes the most sense.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my dice, or magic math rocks, as some call them. I love the challenge of making a useful table for each die type. However, I have a growing love of simplicity and minimalism in prep and at the table.

For my Delver’s Deep campaign I am trying to use all the different resources I have besides Delving Deeper. AD&D [Affiliate Links] , Table Fables & Table Fables II [AMAZON Affiliate Link], d30 DM Companion [Affiliate Links] , d30 Sandbox Companion [Affiliate Links] , story cubes, various card decks, etc. I’m trying to avoid making everything too similar to everything others have done, and also creating more variety in the setting and dungeon so it has both unique and interesting results. Crafting a story to make it all fit together is half the fun!

RPGs

Tweaking Random Treasure Maps

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An idea came to me to make treasure maps more interesting. I used a combination of a table from Kelri’s 4 – ENCOUNTERS Reference.pdf, page 130 gives 3 tables, a 2d8 table for the form of the map, a percentile table like in the 1e DMG for what the map goes to, and the best one a d10 table for the status of the treasure. This is on page 120 of the 1e DMG.

Surprisingly, OSRIC does not have tables for determining the type of map one finds. While AD&D assumes a treasure map, OSRIC just says the GM will have to make their own treasure maps.

Just because one has a treasure map does not mean that the treasure the map leads to is real, or if real, is still there. In the DMG, 5% of all treasure maps are false maps.What does that mean? The treasure is gone, or it’s like a scam where there is no really Lost Dutchman Mine, or the monsters in the dungeon are hoping to lead the adventurer’s away.

I combined the ideas from Kelri’s map table, the 1e DMG map tables, Grim’s all the dice Treasure Map Generator, and Richard LeBlanc’s New Big Dragon A to Z d30 Treasure Map Generator.

Grim’s table is a way to indicate landmarks, obstacles, or destinations on the map. The d30 map generator is one of 30 d30 PDFs written as part of the annual 2014 A to Z blogging challenge. It details the materials used for the map, the condition of the map, and the language or code it is written in.

My need for these map tables arose several years ago, in my home campaign, I created a map seller and decided to randomly determine how many treasure maps he had. The party bought every map he had in the general location where they were adventuring. I determined there were 32 maps and the party bought 17 maps. I then determined all kinds of things about the maps using all these resources, plus some additional things.

I built a spreadsheet to track it. The first column is Source, where did the map come from. I used the name of the map seller. I did not determine where he got them, so that is another layer one could add. Then I had Quality of the cartography, Size in square feet, Condition, Language, Details, General location depicted on map, Treasure status, 6 columns for the general terrain, landmarks, obstacles to put on the map, and Notes about exactly where a pristine or mostly pristine treasure is in the dungeon or other location. Determining treasure can also lead to their being more maps. Here is a link to a PDF of what I ended up with. Don’t ask me how I got to this point. It was just a mis-mash of different tables jammed into something I wanted. It was a lot of work.

This leads to all kinds of ways to use each map in game. Can the player’s read or decipher it? Is it good enough quality for the party to figure out where it is? And it the treasure still there?

For really large treasures, some are still “there”. That is there are in the general area, but have been found and moved and hidden by others who found it first. If the moved treasure is still there, it has either been found recently, or the finders never returned to claim it. If the moved treasure is “gone” it was either retrieved by the initial finders or still others. A large enough horde might get found and moved and hidden many times over the millennia as different groups find it and take what they can carry, and hide the rest hoping to come back later.

Some treasure might be found and dealt with in interesting ways. I have one treasure somewhere in my world that was found by a reclusive individual who built a shack over a treasure found by adventurers in the past who moved and buried it. The recluse is either unwise or untrusting, I haven’t decided yet, but won’t leave his shack except when in need of something, and only carries enough money to buy what he needs in town. Portions of the horde are scattered about his “range” so that he has multiple nest eggs in case something bad happens, but the treasure is so huge, he can never move it all on his own.

My idea is to create a PDF in the coming months with these ideas.

Generate random treasure maps and determine if the treasures are intact, partially looted, or cleaned out.

Cleaned out can be complete, bits in the corners left, smaller piles & stashes of coins in nooks, crannies, crevices, or ledges, or undiscovered rooms.

There are tons of maps available online for dungeons and other adventure locations, but I’m not aware of any maps that actually lead to these locations. Is there anyone out there creating treasure maps or maps to various locations?

Here is the companion podcast episode #116 from Thursday, May 9, 2019.

RPGs

River and River Encounter Tables

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While listening to the podcast of +Colin Green, AKA Spikepit, on the Spikepit podcast, he asked for source material on river encounters and adventures. He also mentioned a swamp.

Until he mentioned swamps, I was thinking about the creeks I wandered as a boy in a rural/suburban landscape, and going on float trips on different rivers in college, and seeing the results of the major flooding in the Midwest in the late 90’s/early 00’s that affected huge areas. When he mentioned swamps I thought of The Screaming Swamp, my contribution to The Black Isle, that I mentioned a few weeks ago, when it was released.

My ideas for rivers involve random tables. Rivers come in all shapes and sizes, from dry creeks in the desert that only flow when it rains, to mighty rivers like the Missouri, Nile, or Amazon. They all have a source, tributaries, general direction of flow, branches, rapids, falls, and estuaries or mouths. They can be fast, slow, relatively short, or very long. They can freeze over in winter allowing wild herds, trade, or war to cross. 

I took these ideas and expanded them in my publication on DriveThruRPG: Rivers and River Encounters [Affiliate Link].

All rivers have a means to cross them, whether by fording, ferrying, boat, or bridge. They all have a means to travel them if wide and deep enough. The creeks I wandered as a boy were rarely deep enough to find a spot to swim, so traffic would cross them at the easiest spot to avoid them. Larger rivers, like the Missouri were first avenues of exploration and trade. Nearly any size boat can be found, up to small ships, and huge number of barges.

Intelligent races can attempt to wrest control of rivers for their own purposes, such as irrigation, dams to store water for dry conditions, dams for hydro power for grinding grain or sawing logs, or for generating electricity. Locks can be implemented to make a river part of a canal to make travel over difficult terrain possible. 

Where there is trade, there are towns, warehouses, shops, merchants, thieves, bandits, and river pirates. Where there is trade, the authorities come looking for taxes to pay to put down the pirates and thieves, and as the traffic becomes more peaceful, the taxes cover more and more.

Druids would argue against too drastic a change to a river, using their natural magic to thwart attempts to tame it.

Rivers have their own wonders both to behold and dangerous to the unwary. Huge bluffs overlooking the river make a great place to jump in, but also make a great location for a fort or monster lair. Sand and gravel bars impede traffic, but can air in crossing. They can also shift during flooding. Bends in rivers can host deep depressions suitable for the biggest fish, and the things that eat the biggest fish.

Low areas form bogs, swamps, marshes, and fens. Trees fall and form areas to block traffic, make a danger to traffic, and hide both game and predator. Beavers construct dams for their homes and to make an environment to their liking. While attractive to other wildlife, farmers and villages may not like it.

Rivers are also a source of water and great cities tend to only be built near them. They can become corrupted or polluted and poison the population and wildlife.

There are so many things to consider and so many possible tables. I’m not sure I’ll get to tables in this post, but will have as many things to consider for building my tables.

Terrain, geography, natural hazards, control of traffic, strategic points, wildlife (game and predator), monsters, thieves, bandits, and pirate. Navy, patrol, and tax and tariff collectors. Trade wars, embargoes, boycotts, boat and ship construction. Barge traffic. Source, width, depth, falls, tributaries, branches, bends, bluffs, fords, ferries, bridges, canals, dams, locks, estuaries, mouths. Watersheds. rain, floods, droughts, aqueducts, aquifers, caves, caverns, grottoes, cenotes, glaciers, ice, snow, spring thaw, flash floods, encounters, and more.

I foresee many rabbit trails of research on Wikipedia in my future for this. So many ideas all at once is hard to get them all down.

It occurs to me that there are two methods of placing rivers. There may be other ways, but I think they would be sub classes of the following. 

  1. Let the terrain you place on the map dictate where to put rivers.
  2. Draw the rivers first to dictate where you put the terrain.

The tables I plan to develop will aide with developing the river and it’s terrain, or help flesh out the river and terrain you provide. All well planned table should be able to give you ideas to make the things they suggest your own.

The Tables

Rather than plot out the whole river, the type will matter and the GM can pick what part of the river they need for a specific location or encounter.

SOURCE

All streams & rivers have a source, or starting point.

  • Spring
  • Glacial Melt
  • Mountain Stream

CROSSING

When a watercourse crosses your intended path, how do you cross it?

This can also be applied to other barriers, like gaps, gorges, peaks, etc.

  • Walk, Step, Leap, Running Jump.
    • For narrow creeks and streams you may be able to just step over them. 
    • The banks of creeks can be very steep on one side and low on the other.
      • I once slid down a shale cliff while holding the end of a rope intended to help me avoid sliding and getting banged up.  I finally stopped when the rope had played out a safe distance from the stream that was 30 to 40 feet below the top of the shale cliff. Climbing such a cliff is like going up the down escalator with pieces breaking and causing you to slide in addition to moving in the opposite of the intended direction.
  • Natural Bridge
    • This can be a tree, rock, packed earth, packed snow, ice, or the bodies or bones of one or more dead creatures.
  • Directed Natural Bridge
    • Yesterday, someone posted a link to this article on root bridges.
    • These are living trees, roots, or other plant matter guided by humans to cross over gorges and rivers.
    • The original picture online was quite elaborate and the surface of the bridge was packed with dirt and fitted with stones to make a solid surface. 
    • For a game setting, I can see elves, druids, and other forest denizens making such structures in the trees.
  • Ford
    • Stepping Stones
      • These tend to be smooth round stones that are commonly slick without water. Water makes them more so.
      • Wise locals will replace or overlay them with flat stones for more sure  footing.
    • Mixed stone & natural gravel
      • The shallow area has trapped the smaller rocks and stones creating a wet, but serviceable crossing. The intervention of intelligent species may enhance it or destroy it for it’s own purposes.
    • Sandy crossing.
      • More gravel and sand than stones. Area could be prone to liquefaction of the sand and “quicksand.”
    • Wet Crossing
      • Anything from getting your feet wet to not so deep you’re swimming for foot traffic.
      • Anything too deep to walk, but not needing a boat.
        • Riding a riding animal or pack animal.
        • A vehicle, whether drawn or pushed by animals or an engine.
    • Ferry
      • Where the water is consistently deep enough that foot and vehicle traffic can’t make it, but a bridge is not justifiable or impossible.
      • Ferries can cross a distance not much wider than the ferry, to great distances. In addition to crossing watercourses, they can cross lakes and seas to islands or cross straits.
      • Ferries can be tethered or free. The simplest tethered ferries use the tether to pull the ferry and cargo along. Some use a capstan powered by the crew or beast(s) of burden. The capstan is put on the shore for the most efficiency. It could also be a treadwheel powered by the crew or beast of burden.
      • Ferries have a fee that is what the market will bear. There is taxation of it, unless the ferry is initiated prior to civilization catching up with it.
      • Often ferries exist in slightly deeper water to a nearby ferry and is for those who want to stay dry, or for cargo that they don’t want to risk getting to market. In this case, the ferry can’t charge too much, or people will simply go to the ford.
      • Ferries are also used in locations that are too wide for existing technology or resources to bridge.
      • Ferries can be passenger ferries which only accommodate people and their personal possessions. Basically boats.
      • Vehicle and cargo ferries have ramps and flat decks to enable beast drawn vehicles and powered vehicles to embark and disembark.
    • Bridge
      • From simple footbridges for pedestrian traffic, to bridges allowing at least one wagon to cross. 
        • Narrow bridges will have a system to control the flow of traffic if it is only wide enough for traffic in one direction.
        • Daily shift changes, the length of the market day, etc. will influence the busiest time for narrow bridges.
        • Taxes, fees, and tariffs are often collected for maintenance costs and revenue for the crown.
      • Construction is most commonly the cheapest material available that can do the job. 
        • Wood will be used for the narrowest spans that are not easily forded. Heavy traffic may lead to replacement with stone for durability and less frequent repairs and breakdowns.
        • Stone can be used from the river, if enough can be found nearby. Otherwise you will need a quarry within a reasonable distance for the source of materials.
        • Brick can be used for narrow spans if the materials and technology exist.
        • Cement and Concrete technology can increase the distance that can be spanned if the knowledge to use pilings at the base of arches. Roman brick. Roman Architecture. Roman Engineering. Roman Roads.
          • Aqueducts also use bridges for water. In areas where they cross the same spans as other traffic, they could share the same bridge. Here’s some information on Roman Aqueducts.
          • Aqueducts can also be used to extend watercourses for waterborne travel, and are called navigable aqueducts.

Portage

Similar to how a watercourse can interrupt land travel, land can interrupt water travel. There can be low points in a river such as where there is a ford, gravel or sand bar, collection of large stones, debris over the years of floods, or low water caused by drought. 

Portaging is simply porting (carrying) your craft overland until you reach more water. Historically, one thinks of the canoes of trappers and trader, and the boats of Lewis & Clark. However, there have been instances of sizable boats and ships being portaged.

There are many types of things that can force the occupants of a water craft to portage it. 

  • Low water due to nature of watercourse or drought.
  • Obstacles
    • Sand bar
    • Gravel bar
    • Rocks
    • Landslide
    • Avalanche
    • Ice
    • Flood debris – rocks, trees, building, bodies, etc.
    • New bridges or ferry tether lines.
    • Collapsed briges
    • Sunken or wrecked vessels.
    • Large water creatures like hippos, or monsters.
  • Rapids
  • Falls

Control of Traffic

Whether traveling on or across a watercourse, others will want to control it. Control can be in the form of legal or extralegal activity. What is considered extralegal in the heart of civilization, might be the closest thing to law in the borderlands. 

Theft

Theft will exist in many forms.

  • Lone or small number of thieves. These will be the pick pockets and those who prey on lone travelers, taking their stuff.
  • Bandits – These will be those a bit more organized and may operate a protection racket at the crossing or narrow point in a river.
  • Pirates – These will roam up and down the river to take the trade goods and other valuables up and down the river. Land raids will be within striking distance of the river, their fast escape route down  river.

Law

Whether the sudden arrival to the frontier or the already civilized interior, the law will make its presence felt in the form of taxation, fees, tariffs, fines and more. 

  • Individual – Whether a self appointed law man or the designated constable of the appropriate jurisdiction. They might deputize assistants. A paladin walking through might disrupt the bandits or pirates, and have to stay on to avoid those he has freed from being taken over again. He might charge fees to help out, and been seen as taxes by some.
  • Garrison – Troops in some level of fortification from the monarch or local noble. They will be place in the most strategic point for control. If the high point is too far to practically control the choke point for traffic, they will s\establish a standing watch, or regular patrol to the point if too far to maintain.
    In a more civilized region or city, the garrison will be the gatehouse or tower built over the tollbooth. A village or town will arise around these locations.
  • Fort or Castle – Troops will have a more substantial and imposing base to project even more strength.
  • Way Stations and Hostels – Way stations for officials and hostels, AKA inns and taverns, will rise up along a road or a large river that is the main route for trade. On borderlands and the wilderness, the ruins of these from fallen empires might be the center point for a small village, or a hideout for bandits, goblins, or a lair of some monster.
  • Boats, Barges, and Ships – In addition to the traffic from civilian versions of these craft, the national or local ruler will patrol the river to protect their own investments in trade and to ensure taxes keep rolling in to keep them in power. 

Beginnings

The source of a river or stream is called the headwaters. Watercourses that begin as springs or flow from other openings in the ground are often considered holy places, or places of magic and healing.

Finding the source of major rivers has been seen as a prize. The Nile was one of the last major rivers in the world to have its source documented by science. There is a game that was released in the 80’s call Source of The Nile informed by this period of colonial expansion and exploration in Africa. More detail at Boardgame Geek.

  • Spring
  • Crack
  • Cave – Surface opening of underground river. Could be a very small opening that is enlarged by those who find it over time.
  • Glacial melt 
  • Mountain peak – the annual spring thaw and rains maintain the flow of water.
  • Marshlands 

Endings

There are two ways a river is considered to end, as an estuary in to a body of water, whether fresh or salt water, or the confluence of two or more rivers into one.

Freshwater bodies can be ponds, lakes, or inland seas. The size of the water body will determine the navigability of the watercourse. Lakes and ponds may have marsh or swamp lands at the estuary in a relatively level area. 

At saltwater bodies, those tend to be seas or oceans. Often the mouth of the river fills with sediment from silt and may limit the ability for seagoing vessels to navigate it.

Weather

Weather affects navigation of watercourses. Too much rain leads to flooding and until the chaos subsides navigation is dangerous. Drought leads to inability to travel, without portage. Seasonal variations in rainfall will lead to semi-predictable peaks and valleys in navigability. Winter in temperate and further regions will lead to ice partially or completely blocking traffic via the river. 

If frozen to sufficient thickness wild herd animals, followed by their predators can cross rivers that lack high banks. Bandits and war parties can utilize this new bridge also. Ice that is thin leads to accidents. Children feared lost beneath the ice or in danger of it could be an adventure hook. 

Drought of an extent to halt traffic will have repercussions on trade, irrigation, diplomacy, and many potentially dying of thirst. Water from a river is easier to access than boring through rock. Work projects to build cisterns for water storage for the next drought, and seeking water will lead to finding things of lost civilizations and provide many adventure hooks.

Geology

Hills and mountains and sedimentary rock along the banks will most likely hold some form of cave or cavern. They may be quite obvious or only be known to a few locals, or be the lairs of predators or monsters. Some could be bandit hideouts, hidden behind waterfalls, surface entrances to a cavern system that eventually leads to the underdark, or the interior world of the planet. I had an idea a couple weeks ago that the underdark is the zone between the outer and inner worlds of the planet.

Cliffs are natural outlooks and can slump if earth or soft stone, or boulders or dead trees can come crashing down. Wyverns might nest on a cliff overlooking the river crossing causing an impact on trade and thus taxes.

Conclusion

There is a lot more here than I could hope to compile in a single day. I hashed this out in about three and a half hours. This will fit into what I see as becoming a framework for building one’s own campaign world, with tools to help build locations and encounters. One need not detail every mile, bend, fall, and rapids in a river. Merely specify what one will find in a particular point along a river.

If you don’t want to map out a river journey, don’t suggest any information to your party to help them think of it. Make all journeys cross rivers and you won’t have to do much detail, of use the same methods for land travel, focus on the narrative of the journey with only highlights of the scenery. Placing specific encounters, or developing encounters that you can fit into any place along a river will ease your work load. 

This exercise of writing this article and generating the rough structure of tables has given me ideas that will percolate in the back of my mind and ideas will emerge when I need them during the course of play. 

I hope you find this informative and useful in crafting your own ideas.

RPGs

Forgiveness Factor

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While I was doing my dishes from supper, my thoughts wandered and for some reason, people from my past whose reactions to minor slights came to mind. I thought of those who had a negative reaction to something minor (in my perception), and some had a strongly negative reaction that colored how we interacted from then on.

RPG Angle

The RPG aspect of this came to me. What if we classified NPCs based on their reactions to slights, errors, and failures? This could apply to any NPC, but it would be more interesting to use it for pre-selected NPCs so you can plan out how a negative reaction manifests.

More simply, those who hire PCs to do a job might be offended by some cultural gaffe that is generally considered inappropriate. The leader of the town takes it personally and from then on only turns to the PCs for help when there is no other choice. Reneging on payment, setting them up to fail, and outright vengeance such as hired assassins. The reactions some people have to things can come across as flat out insane.

It could be that only one character has earned the ire of the NPC, and they try to convince the others to leave the offender out of their business dealings.

Rough Tables

Here are some rough tables to outline what I’m thinking. This definitely needs more polish, but I want to get the idea down while it is fresh. Keep in mind that these are for individuals who have a petty mind and make lemons seem sweet. They will be abrupt, just the facts, get the offender(s) out of their presence ASAP.

Some of the behaviors will be actively avoiding the offender(s). For example, never using the same door as the offender(s), pretending to not be home, pretending they don’t see or hear the offender, etc.

Minor Slight & how perceived by the offended:

  • Minor – No big deal (This doesn’t belong here because you didn’t make it to THE LIST.)
  • Minor but it rankles to their dying day. They tell everyone about it, and when the offender is present will point them out to all who will hear. Look down their nose at the offender(s).
  • Medium –
  • Major –
  • The worst thing ever! They see the offender as their nemesis.

Disposition to the Player(s):

  • Neutral – What can the player(s) do for me? Won’t voluntarily aid the player(s), without some great compulsion.
  • Negative, Minor – Will throw up red tape, delays, and generally unhelpful. Player(s) will sit in the waiting room and will always go in last, unless there is for some reason, another person or group higher on THE LIST.
  • Negative, Medium – Will instruct underlings to not help the player(s). Some underlings will be apologetic for their superior’s behavior. No guilt about sending player(s) on a suicide mission. Disappointed if they survive, even if a success.
  • Negative, Major – Underlings are instructed to actively delay, hinder, annoy, and seek to damage the offender(s). Damage may be to reputation, relationships, or life.
  • Negative, Ridiculous – Will hire others to maim or kill the offender(s).

Can it be rectified?

Is there anyway to remove the animosity? For some, they may just drop a notch on their disposition to the offender(s).

  • Charm Person and Suggestion can temporarily resolve it.
  • Forget if cast close enough in time to the affront.
  • Only a Limited Wish, Wish, or Alter Reality spell could do it.
  • Divine intervention.
  • Saving their life.
    • For some not even saving their life will make them change their mind.
  • Saving a loved one’s life.
    • For some this too is not enough.
  • Taking out someone higher on THE LIST than the offender(s).
    • May not work for some.

Conclusion

The above is only a rough idea of what can be done with this idea. A similar exercise with other traits of people you have encountered in life can be used to build a similar set of tables.  Not all tables need be rollable tables. They can be idea tables that you read to get a kickstart for brainstorming your own ideas.

Have you had success with filtering an idea through an RPG lense to get something to help you with game preparation or use at the table? Please share it in the comments!

RPGs

Ship Names

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During the AD&D games I ran at the last Marmalade Dog I needed a good ship name, and didn’t have a good one, so I asked the players, and got a great one, the Storm Witch.

I then decided that I could make a table to come up with other usable names.

The most basic such table is a list of adjectives and a list of nouns and roll a die for each column.

Of course, with adjectives you have colors and other descriptors. Powerful action oriented descriptors are cool, like the Flying Dutchman, or the Red Witch (Wake of the Red Witch).  Ships have the idea of motion and speed. A name that foreshadows a very fast ship is only fitting if the ship is fast. A slow merchant would tend to have a name evoking reliability or stability, or perhaps a humorous name. A pirate ship would most likely be renamed to something more suiting. a naval ship would have something indicating power, like Dreadnought, Dauntless, Intrepid, etc.

Certain colors tend to give an image of ferocity, danger, dread, etc.

Use the name to draw forth a description for the figurehead. For example, when the player suggested the Storm Witch, I immediately had an image in my head and could describe the figurehead to the others. A woman with hair blown about by the winds of storms.

Some ships might have a single name, like the Dragon, and others could have longer names. Come up with naming conventions by different nations or races. Elves might name their ships after stars or trees. Different human nations might emphasize something different with their ship names.

Below are some tables to mix and match and give ideas for naming ships. This could apply to naming water borne ships or spaceships.

Adjective/Noun (d10)

  1. Flying
  2. Soaring
  3. Sea
  4. Dusty
  5. Red
  6. Fast/Quick
  7. Sun
  8. Flaming
  9. Smoldering
  10. Smoking

Noun (d8)

  1. Witch
  2. Waif
  3. Spirit
  4. Sprite
  5. Dragon
  6. Kraken
  7. Merchant
  8. Maid

Sea Related Words

  1. Sea/Ocean/Waters
  2. Mist
  3. Wave
  4. Surf/Surfer
  5. Surge
  6. Storm/Tempest/Thunder
  7. Foam
  8. Deep/Depths/Abyss
  9. Whirlpool/Vortex/Eddy
  10. Maelstrom
  11. Aurora
  12. Wind/Squall
  13. Calm/Becalmed/Stagnant
  14. Shore
  15. Isle/Island
  16. Murky
  17. Shallows
  18. Reef
  19. Shoal
  20. Fathom

Ship Related Words

  1. Sail
  2. Oar
  3. Deck
  4. Plank
  5. Keel
  6. Mast

Crew Related Words

  1. Hand/Sailor/Crew
  2. Mate
  3. Captain
  4. Owner
  5. Carpenter
  6. Rigger
  7. Master
  8. Chief

Navigation

  1. Star
  2. Sun
  3. Moon
  4. Compass/Sunstone
  5. Sextant
  6. Astrolabe
  7. Eclipse
  8. Twilight
  9. Dawn
  10. Dusk
  11. Midnight
  12. Morning
  13. Evening

Type of Ship

  1. Merchant
  2. Galley/Bireme/Trireme/Longship
  3. War
  4. Pirate/Buccaneer/Privateer
  5. Escort
  6. Whaler
  7. Trawler
  8. Cruiser
  9. Caravel
  10. Corvette
  11. Ironclad
  12. Galleon

Sea Creatures

  1. Squid
  2. Octopus
  3. Turtle
  4. Whale
  5. Kraken
  6. Barracuda
  7. Shark
  8. Eel
  9. Ray/Manta/Mantaray
  10. Crab/Lobster/Crustacean
  11. Clam/Oyster
  12. Snake
  13. Crocodile
  14. Manatee
  15. Dolphin/Porpoise
  16. Trout/Bass

Other Creatures

  1. Harpy
  2. Hag/Nag
  3. Witch
  4. Dragon
  5. Wolf
  6. Chameleon
  7. Lizard
  8. Bird/Sparrow/Eagle/Hawk/Buzzard/Gull/Albatross
  9. Mermaid
  10. Nymph
  11. Horse/Mule/Pony/Stallion
  12. Cow/Bull/Bison/Buffalo
  13. Sheep/Ewe/Ram
  14. Deer/Buck/Hind/Roe
  15. Camel
  16. Hippopotamus/Behemoth

Weapons

  1. Spear/Javelin
  2. Sword
  3. Lance
  4. Dagger
  5. Trident
  6. Net
  7. Shield/Buckler
  8. Bow/Arrow/Archer/Bolt

Things

  1. Skull
  2. Rock
  3. Bone(s)
  4. Timber(s)
  5. Sand
  6. Fire/Flame
  7. Jewel(s)/Jeweled/Bejeweled
  8. Silver
  9. Gold
  10. Copper
  11. Quartz
  12. Opal

Colors

  1. Blue/Azure
  2. Green/Verdant
  3. Red
  4. Yellow
  5. Violet/Purple
  6. White
  7. Black
  8. Grey
  9. Brown
  10. Orange

Patterns

  1. Plaid
  2. Striped
  3. Barred
  4. Dotted
  5. Variegated
  6. Changing
  7. Pale
  8. Dark
  9. Scattered
  10. Hidden
  11. Mystery
  12. Geometric

Descriptor/Modifier

  1. Flying
  2. Soaring
  3. Sailing
  4. Fast
  5. Unvanquished/Undefeated/Victorious
  6. Indefatigable/Untiring/Persistent/Patient
  7. Fearless/Dreadnought/Dauntless
  8. Mighty
  9. Powerful
  10. Reliant

List of Pirate Ship Names

List of Royal Navy Ships – With links to ships that start with each letter of the alphabet.

RPGs

Not Another Awesome Kickstarter! – New Big Dragon’s Classic Edition GM Screen

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The day after I listed all the Kickstarters on which I spent too much money*, +Richard LeBlanc launches another one for his Classic Edition GM Screen.

The video says it all, and if you read the details, you will see that he has it all planned out. The layout is done, and he obviously has a sample and verified the weight, as the two backer levels with physical products have postage built in.

The initial level is just the PDF’s at $7, then a jump to $43, and for two of each physical item, $71. Barring humid conditions he plans to deliver the end of April. For someone as well organized and focused as Richard appears to be, I have no doubt that he’ll deliver.

This is how a Kickstarter should be done, all the work of the product is finished. There is UV protection for the screen to prevent/minimize fading.

It is more than just the two piece GM screen, it includes:

  • An 8 page GM reference document of all the tables on the screen.
  • 8 individual card stock character sheets for the 7 main classes and one generic sheet.
  • A spell record sheet.
  • A character record log.
  • A 4 page cleric spell handout.
  • An 8 page magic user spell handout.

All of this is illustrated by images by Arthur Rackham. I assume these area all public domain images, which will keep costs down.

The funding goal is not too large, $4,500, so I suspect it will fund quickly, unless no one really wants such a GM screen. He isn’t interested in stretch goals because he has a product ready to go, and wants it done. More projects should be simple, and at most do stretch goals that fit the overall tone and scope of the project.

$43 seems a bit steep. All the one gets is awesome. I am curious how much this would be without shipping. If it works with all/most original rules and clones, it is a definite plus. I am torn. I want it. The PDF only level is easily affordable, but I also want the physical product. I’ll probably fail my save vs. Kickstarter on this one, but we’ll see. I’ll try to give it a few days.

It would be neat to see a screen only option that includes the PDFs of everything. I’m not sure I would use the character sheets, and it wouldn’t be hard to print the spell lists from the PDFs. I wouldn’t want to write on those fancy sheets. If they were dry erase compatible, then I’d definitely use them.

*Is it possible to spend too much money on RPG materials?

UPDATE: See this article on The Dilemma of Pricing Kickstarters, by Richard LeBlanc, of the above mentioned KS. Very insightful. Those planning their own KS should pay attention. He plans a FAQ on top of this article.

RPGs

Translated Wrong

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Today, over at OSR Today, for Table Tuesday, they had a table about being translated into another existence.

When I read the title, I was expecting something about language translation.

It got me to thinking, so I came up with the following:

How close did the language “expert” get their facts? Was it a rush job? Are they not as skilled as they claim? Is the translator under the thumb of someone opposed to the party? Any reason you can think of for something to be wrong.

  1. Direction wrong. Varies from exact opposite direction, to slightly off, such as North-North-West instead of North West.
  2. Structure/Location wrong. Instead of a castle it is a hovel, instead of a dungeon it is a cave.
  3. Size wrong. Instead of a huge ancient red dragon, it is a young adult dragon. Instead of a hill, it’s a mountain, or a mountain range.
  4. Color wrong. The evil wizard wears blue robes instead of black robes.
  5. Name wrong. The name of a person, place, or thing is off just a little. Jan instead of Jane, vial instead of vile or viol (I played with a guy in high school who rarely grasped the difference.), H2S04 instead of H20, etc.
  6. Wrong race. Hobgoblins instead of goblins, ogres instead of pixies, make it good. Wyverns instead of dragons, etc.
  7. Wrong alignment. The person who has the information they need is of a different alignment. Perhaps it is the big bad himself, as yet undiscovered by the players, and only the big bad knows how he can be stopped.
  8. Wrong generation. They need Junior, and not the decrepit Senior. Or they need the skilled senior, and not the ineffective Junior.
  9. Wrong map. The translation might be spot on, but the translator either goofs and give you the wrong map, or is of ill intent and gives them a map to a very bad place.
  10. Scope wrong. Numbers are involved and they are a few orders of magnitude in the wrong direction. The fabulously huge treasure of gold and jewels, is a big sack of copper coins and some cheap garnets. Or the small patrol is actually an army.
  11. Language wrong. The translator is confused by a similar script of a branch language, but various vowel and verb form changes have any translation with the translator’s knowledge being wrong about everything.
  12. The next map the player’s find already has a translation on it that they can read, but it is wrong in one or more of the above points.

I think this is an interesting idea, and I’ll see about adding to it in the future.

RPGs

SKILL LEVEL OF THE CITY WATCH/TOWN GUARD

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Here are some ideas for how to determine the skill and effectiveness of the city watch.

Skill Level:  d6
1.) Incompetent – Due to being corrupt, apathy, ignorance, stupidity, asshole, drunkard, or combination.
2.) Raw Recruit – Means well but doesn’t know all the tricks. Makes mistakes out of ignorance and inexperience.
3.) Experienced – Doing this a while and had seen a few things. – Depending on level of motivation knows how to avoid reprimands and extra duty.
4.) Veteran/Seasoned – Doing this a while and had seen a few things.
5.) Skilled – Shows leadership potential, energy, drive, thoroughness.
6.) Leadership Quality – Waiting for an opening, or just good at the job and doesn’t want the added responsibility.

NOTE: A bribed in the pocket guard may not be incompetent. They may be very skilled and do their job correctly, accurately, and conscientiously, except for the one/group who owns them. They could be owned by threat of force rather than being bribed or a willing member of the network. Being under a charm or suggestion is also a possibility.

Training:
Similar to skill level is training. Are there regular drills? Are the guards familiar with the laws and do they apply them correctly?

Performance:
The way the guard goes about performing their duties will have a big effect. Are they too lenient or brutal in their enforcement? Guards that are too lenient, too strict, or too brutal will all have a negative impact on how the citizens view them.

Condition of the guard: d8
-Individually, at a particular post or roving squad, or the entire town. A post might be a specific gate, tower, neighborhood, etc. Festivals, celebrations, and quality of leadership can also affect this.
1.) -Alert – paying attention
2.) -Unobservant
3.) -High Alert – Monster incursions, assassination attempt, etc.
4.) -Nervous
5.) -Apathetic
6.) -Drunk
7.) -Drugged
8.) -Incapacitated

Motivation: d10
1. ) -Eh, it’s a job
2.) -I love my job and want to be the best!
3.) -Bribed – Will only go along as long as they don’t get caught.
4. ) -On the Take – Irregular payments from an individual or an organization.
5.) -Blackmailed – Item or loved one at risk. Remove the risk and the motivation changes.
6.) -Charmed – May have been charmed by an adventure party or the local wizard. Perhaps a town with a powerful wizard in charge has charmed all the town guard to make sure he isn’t interrupted, root out the thieve’s guild, etc. What happens when they make their save? Is their charm a potion in their food or drink?
7.) -I live here and so does my family. My job keeps them safe.
8.) -Conscript – I don’t want to be here, but I have too.
9.) -Bully – Likes telling others what to do.
10.) -Plant/Fake – Group of NPC’s have impersonated/replaced/joined the guard for some unknown reason. Monsters seeking to take the city, rob a tomb or temple, take out rivals, doppelganger, demon, etc. Will fit in so as not to be noticed. May not be able to withstand magical scrutiny, a la known alignment, detect magic, true seeing, etc.

Morale:
As usual, the level of pay, training, and rewards from management will affect morale. A detail on the gate to the rich part of town would most likely have a better morale and be more likely to do a good job. A small town in the midst of a drought, famine, monster incursion, military invasion, or other economic downturn might have guards that feel helpless and who won’t stand and fight. In addition to the backstory developed by the DM, the events unleashed on the campaign by the players could have far reaching and unintended consequences.

Strictness – The Law/Chaos scale is helpful to a degree. This can vary from a simple, stay out of trouble and don’t get the town leadership’s attention. The extreme would be any law broken must be attended to and the appropriate judgement and penalties distributed. Would a bar fight get you run out of town or locked up for a period of time? What if you got in a fight with a rival? Would it result in a price on your head? Are the town guard law enforcement officers looking for sources of revenue through fines for infractions of a huge legal code, or keepers of the peace looking to keep thing quiet?

Location – A border town whether it is between kingdoms, or the last bastion of civilization in the area will tend to have guards that are more alert. If not, the town is easy pickings for invasion/infestation. However, border towns can still have a poor quality of guard overall. Cities on the interior of a kingdom might have lax guards who have grown soft and are not up to an invasion or monster incursion.

Equipment – The type of weapons and armor and it’s quality will have an effect on the effectiveness and morale of the guard. If all they have is a badge and a nightstick, they won’t be of much use against a fully equipped party. If they all have plate mail, they won’t be up to a foot chase against unarmored miscreants.

If the gates, portcullis, battlements and walls are in disrepair, it will have some effect on morale. If there was an illusionist in power, a permanent illusion to hide the true condition of the walls could make a big difference to morale. As long as guards weren’t falling through holes, or walls were collapsing, it would work, Mysteriously injured and missing guards would have the opposite effect.

Quality of Officers – This will be similar to the skill level. A new lieutenant due to a political appointment, might want to do a good job but be incompetent from inexperience. Or they might just view it as an opportunity to order people around, and not really get the nature of the duties and responsibilities of the guard. Internal politics of a town or city could influence this also.

If officers are bullies and unresponsive to the needs of their men, this will impact morale. If there is cause for fighting on the walls, officers could have the equivalent of being fragged. For example, the men could fall back in fighting and let them fall, or push them over the wall.

Group Dynamic – Is the guard as an organization honorable and do their best to keep order and keep the town safe? If there is corruption, is it limited to a single gate or neighborhood, or is the whole guard corrupt? Does the corruption go all the way to the top? For example, if the thieve’s guild owns the town guard, do they also control the leadership? Is the leader of the town secretly the guild master of the thieve’s guild?

Popular Sentiment – How does the town view the guard? Are they corrupt, but keep the peace and keep the town safe? Or are they corrupt and a burden to the town? Is the leader/government of the town in on the corruption? Do any problems that get out of hand draw the attention of the nearest feudal overlord, or the king?

Other Groups – In addition the religious institutions, merchants,  guilds, farmers, and others with a stake in how the guards perform their duties. Will the leader of the main temple get involved? Will the mages guild decide to step in for the good of the town, or their own motivations?

How do all the motivations and goals of all the various groups that make up the town or city mesh? If all the groups in a town are more concerned with their own group’s agenda rather than the safety of the place, the guard may not be the best. If most of the groups understand that if the town is not safe that it doesn’t matter what their group’s goal is, then the guard is likely to be better funded and trained.

If town is only a placeholder of civilization to rest and resupply between forays into the local dungeon, then you may not need much detail on the guard. However, if you plan on a lot of city/town adventures, you will want to think about how all of these things inform what kind of guards the PC’s will encounter.

 

RPGs

General Tables

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Why do we get the ideas that we do? The other day, it came to me. I wondered, why don’t we have a collection of generic tables for the most common attributes of persons, places, and things? With the addition of adjectives and verbs, one can use simple tables to build up hints for ideas that are easy to flesh out.

For example:

COLOR (add sub-tables for variations on Red, Blue, and Yellow.)

  • White
  • Black
  • Brown
  • Red
  • Blue
  • Yellow

RAINBOW

  • RED
  • ORANGE
  • YELLOW
  • GREEN
  • BLUE
  • INDIGO
  • VIOLET

SIZE

  • Sub-atomic
  • Atomic
  • Microscopic
  • Miniscule
  • Tiny
  • Small
  • Little
  • Medium/Mid-Sized
  • Big
  • Large
  • Giant
  • Huge
  • Brobdignagian
  • Planatary
  • Galaxy-Wide
  • Universal
  • Infinite

DISTANCE

  • Close
  • Near
  • Here
  • Far
  • Distant

MEASUREMENT

  • Imperial
  • Metic
  • Other
  • Miles
  • Inches
  • Light-years
  • Parsecs

SHAPE

  • Specific
    • Square
    • Circle
    • Triangle
    • Rectangle
    • Rhomboid
    • Pentagon
    • Star
  • General
    • Roundish
    • Ill-defined
    • Non-specific
    • Lump
    • Pile
    • Heap

For a very general noun generator, pick a letter of the alphabet and a noun that starts with that letter. Perhaps categories of nouns, like the biggies, person, place, and thing.

Pick a letter and come up with something that describes a person, place, and thing, adding in a verb (action) and perhaps a description (adjective). For example, ‘S’. Sailor, Sea, Ship. This makes it easy to come up with a simple idea: A sailor sailed his ship upon the sea. So the action is sailing. Easily one can think of pirates, maritime trade, whaling, naval battles of any era, or even space battles.

I think the key is not to limit oneself. You can just as easily use a different letter for each thing. Just go with what works. If you happen to get a rush of ideas, don’t wait, jot them down, and you can have a large collection of ideas ready to flesh out for play.

For a plot, pick a book in your personal library that has a word that starts with that letter, in this case, ‘S’ in the title. I looked quickly and only see one book on my shelves that has an ‘S’ word in the title, and it is actually a periodical, “Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine”, April, 1980. It’s the only one I have. I liked some of the stories in that one, so I kept it. Perhaps I should read them again to get some ideas.

Another book jumped out because I mentioned he possibility of pirates, “Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates [Aff link].” This is nonfiction, but that doesn’t matter. Truth is stranger than fiction. There are some pirates that are little known today that inspired old movies and before that adventure stories. As I recall, there are some good ideas here. I haven’t read it in a decade.

Instead of reading either of these in their entirety, get the page count. For example, “Under the Black Flag”  has 244 pages before the Appendix with various tables and charts. To keep it simple, just do a d200 roll. That’s a d100 with a control die. Any die will do that has an even number of sides. For example, a d6. 1-3 is low, so add 0, and 4-6 is high, add 100.

A roll of 127 for page 127 gives us: The third page of chapter 7, Torture, Violence, and Marooning. Page 127 picks up mid-story about a leader of a mutiny that was captured, tortured, tried, and executed and his body hung in chains until the bones were picked clean.

I’m not a lawyer, so an adventure involving courtroom drama does not sound exciting to me. However, hiring the PC’s to go capture a mutinous crew and bring them and their ship back for justice sounds interesting.

Every story needs a complication, so an obvious one is a rival band going after the mutineers. Further complicated that the mutineers were justified in their mutiny and are actually freedom fighters out to overthrow the evil overlord.

If you want an original idea, try something like this. With an outline for a story like that, you can easily flesh out the band of mutineers, the other adventurers, perhaps loyal flunkies of the evil overlord who are also out to get the party. Throw in some random encounters, maybe roll on the ocean random encounter table to get a unique crew member, like a sahuagin sailor, or some large sea creature who pulls a ship.

Place the action in your world, and figure our how different ocean going peoples, nations, and real pirates figure into the mix.

Use the general/generic tables for colors, shapes, sizes, descriptions, etc. the AD&D Dungeon Master’s Guide has great tables for ambiance of dungeons and other ideas. Many other OSR rules have similar tables, like OSRIC, ACKS, Swords & Wizardry, plus many sites online.

Another option might be to pick an RPG blog at random from your blogroll, then go to that blog and look at its blogroll and pick one table at random from each of those blogs that has a collection of tables. Take the results of all these tables and see what you get.

I’m sure I have heard the inspiration for using a random page in a book in other places, but most recently, it was from +Adam Muszkiewicz at Dispatches from Kickassistan, with this article. Actually, he mentioned that during the sessions of DCC he ran at Marmalade Dog 20, back in January. He just recently wrote it up.

I like input and suggestions. Are there other general/generic tables that can be added to the mix? Other creative ways to take random elements to get an idea for an adventure? The main idea is not to require too much time to get a solid idea that you can have ready to play with minimal prep time.