The Moral Stages of an AD&D Player

My brother was in town last week, and our reflections on our AD&D days of yore led me to think about how the ethical/moral assumptions of our gaming group changed over time--at least, in regard to how what sort of characters we chose to play in AD&D.

Starting out with a background of comic book superheroes, sanitized versions of Arthurian legends, and Tolkien, we tended to play Good characters (except for the odd Druid), because in our mind that’s how heroes were suppose to be. True, the actions demanded of characters can (from some perspectives) create a certain moral disconnect, but we were blissfully on troubled by that.  This era featured a large number of paladins and bards in our group.

Moving into high school, our characters spent more and more time bathed in moral shades of gray. Some of this was getting older and more “sophisticated”--in the sense that high school kids conceive the term. Another part was our influences changed: Conan, Fafhrd and Gray Mouser, and modern movie heroes were the touchstones we drew upon. This was an era where there were few paladins played, but many thieves and barbarians, and the not uncommon assassin. Fairly antisocial acts were common, and downright infamous acts might be committed on occasion.

My assumptions on the next stage rests on less evidence, as my high school group is long disbanded and scattered, so I don’t know how they would have evolved in their character preferences as they moved into adulthood. However, I can say that the late twenty- to forty-somethings I game with now seem to have synthesized both of the previous styles. Characters don’t tend to be paragon’s of virtue--though this is “realistic” given the career paths they tend to follow--but there is little of the outrageous villainy or gleeful antisocial behavior that sometimes showed up in our late teens.

Anybody else see these similar sorts of shifts with time in their gaming? Or maybe different ones?

Warlord Wednesday: The Challenge

Let's re-enter the lost world with another installment of my issue by issue examination of DC Comic's Warlord, the earlier installments of which can be found here...

"The Challenge"

Warlord (vol. 1) #26 (October 1979)

Written and Pencilled by Mike Grell; Inked by Vince Colletta

Synopsis: In the snow-shrouded Mountains of the Sun, a man literally drags himself along with single-minded purpose. It is Chakal, wounded--his right arm nearly amputated by Morgan’s bullet--who pursues the Warlord with a burning hatred and desire for revenge. A crimson-cloaked figure appears in the mists before him and offers him just that. The devil-priest Deimos offers to make Chakal the instrument of his vengeance, in exchange for his oath of allegiance. Chakal quickly swears his oath, and Deimos rewards him by ripping off his useless arm--and applying his magics to the stump...

A dozen leagues away, Morgan and Ashir ride along in their quest for the Eye of Truth. Ashir concedes that he may have exaggerated the ease of obtaining the jewel--the legends say the it will only be acquired after a great test is passed within the temple. Morgan wonders if someone else has already gotten the Eye, but Ashir assures him that’s not possible. He has stolen the medallion, dating from the time of the Sorcerer-Kings, which is said to hold the secret of the Eye.

The two rise higher in the mountains until they sight the Temple of the Sun on a rocky crag. Impulsive Ashir races ahead to claim the prize, but is attacked by a three-headed dragon as soon as he enters the temple’s outer gates. Morgan rides to the rescue and takes out two of the creature’s heads with some fancy shooting, while Ashir dispatches the third with his sword.

The two enter the temple and approach the central altar--and they find it empty! Morgan suggests that somebody beat them to it, but then a large parrot flies down and bids them welcome as “keeper of the key.” Ashir thinks its a demon, but Morgan brushes it off as pet of one the priests just repeating phrases it’s heard.

The parrot’s talk of a key gives Morgan and idea. He realizes the center of the medallion will fit a niche on the altar. He’s able to separate the soft metal piece easily and place it in the niche. Instantly, a glow emanates from the altar, and an image forms within the light.

Morgan is surprised as an eidolon of Tara emerges, accuses him of betrayal, and tells him there is blood on his hands. After the image dissipates, Ashir asks who she was.  Morgan, shaken, doesn’t reply, but instead points out that a new niche is now visible on the altar.

Another fragment of the medallion will fit it, but this time Morgan let’s Ashir place it in. Now it's Ashir who's assailed by phantoms of people of Kaambuka--including his father--who chastize him for abandoning his kingdom and leaving his people leaderless.

A new niche opens, and it's again Morgan’s turn to be tormented by the images--this time of Deimos and the death of Joshua. There are then two pieces left, and Ashir's resolve begins to falter, but a reminder from the parrot of “the great treasure” goads him into again placing a piece, and again been reproved by his father.

To Morgan falls the last fragment, and the last niche. This time Machiste, Mariah, and Tara appear. They all accuse him of one betrayal or another: to the cause he preached, to his friends, and to his mate. They taunt him that the path he walks leads to destruction, and he will face it alone.

When the cruel phantoms fade, the Eye of Truth is finally revealed. It’s not a jewel, but ball of magical energy. The parrot again repeats that one may “step forward into the Eye of Truth” to gain one’s heart’s desire. Morgan decides what his heart desires is a second chance; a chance to start over at the beginning and do it right.

He bids Ashir good-bye. Ashir urges caution: “A fool cannot change destiny and a wise man never tries.” Morgan is determined, though, and steps into the eye...and vanishes.

Ashir has little time to contemplate this as an energy blast whizzes past him. He turns to see Chakal, who now has a energy weapon for a right arm. He announces he’s here to kill Travis Morgan in the name of Deimos.

Morgan, however, is very far away. The Morgan who emerges from Eye of Truth in a primeval forest is a shaggy-haired primitive, armed with a club, and menaced by a likely surprised sabre-tooth tiger.

He did say he wanted to go back to the beginning...

Things to Notice:

• Morgan seems completely unfazed by the cold winds as he travels through snow-covered mountains despite his skimpy outfit.
• Deimos looks more nonhuman/demonic than in his last appearance.  All these deaths must be taking there toll.

Where It Comes From:
Kaambuka, Ashir's home city, likely derives its name from Kambuka (or Kambu) silver, a famous trade product of the Iron Age kingdom of Kamboja, located in what is now Afghanistan.

One wonders if Chakal's gun arm was inspired by the 1978 low-budget science fiction film Laserblast, but there may be more pertinent inspirations in comic books.

Audie Murphy (1925-1971), mentioned by Morgan in this issue when he does he trick riding/shooting, was the most decorated American soldier in World War II, and appeared in 44 feature films after the war, 33 of them Westerns.

Look Out! Pink Elephants on Parade

“I could stand the sight of worms,

And look at microscopic germs,

But technicolor pachyderms,

Is really much for me.”

- “Pink Elephants on Parade”

Those who become too inebriated or intoxicated, invite the astral invaders known as pink elephants into their minds. These creatures appear as gelatinous, multi-colored, bipedal elephants, with sinister, leering expressions and eyes as featureless as the abyssal depths. They are non-corporeal, and can only be harmed by magical means, except by other astral beings. They cause fear in those able to see them (unless they make a save vs. magic).  Unreasoning fear drives those that perceive them to fight for their lives against the elephants as if they are corporeal beings--which can lead to the victim inadvertently injuring themselves or those around them. During this period (which lasts 1-4 hours) the victim's mental faculties (Intelligence and Wisdom) and dexterity are effectively reduced by 1d4. After the resolution of the elephants' attack, the victim will sleep for 2-12 hours and awaken with a monstrous headache. There is a 33% chance that an encounter with the elephants will lead to more serious, permanent impairment of mental abilities, if a save vs. death is failed.

Pink Elephants: HD 3, AC 7 [12], Special: cause terror, noncorporeal.

The Ten Cent Menace

A weird menace haunts the newsstands and magazine racks of the City. Behind some seemingly innocuous--if lurid--paper cover there lurks an alien entity with an appetite for human minds. This entity has no official name, but is sometimes called the “shudder pulp” after the odd “some walked across my grave” feeling people often describe upon first encountering it.  A warning, perhaps--which they generally ignore.

The entity appears as a pulp magazine of the most prurient variety. It changes the specifics of its title and cover image on each occasion, but invariably teases tales of violence, sadism, and the macabre. There are some reports of the entity appearing as comic books as well, but these have no been verified.

A purchaser will find the pulp largely indistinguishable from any mundane publication of the type. The stories will be as expected from the cover, though perhaps a little less logical and more nightmare-like that would be typical. A Wisdom roll upon first browsing its contents gives the victim a change to recognize the inherent wrongness of the publication and avoid further harm. A failed roll means the victim will read the entire volume, over a period of time. unless there is some intervention.

Every story read (there will be 2d6 in the volume) will require a saving throw (with a progressive -1 for every previous story read) or result in the loss of 1d4 points of Wisdom. When a victim's wisdom drops to 0 they disappear from prime material plane, and no where knows where they are taken.

In addition, even having the item in one’s possession requires a saving throw every 1d6 days or else the possessor acts as if under a Suggestion spell and performs increasingly depraved acts (though starting at the relatively mundane) bearing some similarities to those depicted in the stories in the volume.

The entity may be destroyed by any of the usual means used to destroy a mundane magazine (HD 1-1). Destroying its physical manifestation breaks its spell, and limits further effects. However, it will likely re-coalesce elsewhere in a slightly different form in 1d10 days.

Truth, Justice, and all That Other (Gaming) Stuff

This weekend I picked up Green Ronin’s DC Adventures: Hero’s Handbook, which is the main book of their new DC Comics rpg. It utilizes the the latest iteration of Mutants & Masterminds' take on the d20 system--the version that’s going to be in Mutants & Masterminds 3e, which is suppose to be coming this fall.

My history with role-playing in the DC universe goes back to 1985 and Mayfair’s DC Heroes. That was the third superhero rpg we played--after Villains and Vigilantes, and the first edition of Marvel Super-Heroes. Mayfair’s system (later to be dubbed the Mayfair Exponential Game System and be acronymized as MEGS), was a little unusual and abstract, but it did allow a world to exist that went pretty seamlessly from street level to cosmic, and it used kind of cool, balanced “parallel mechanic” for physical, mental, and spiritual activities.

My group played a lot of DC Heroes in its second edition incarnation from 1989. Unlike, interestingly, our long-term Marvel game, we didn’t use “real” DC characters, but made up our own instead. In fact, I don’t know that those characters actually inhabited the DCU because I can’t recall if we ever interacted with any of the “big names.” I think we found it had a better character generation system that Marvel which, even in the advanced game, always seemed like it was an afterthought to the designers.

Anyway, back in the present day, I haven’t given DC Adventures a thorough reading, but right off the bat I notice a few changes. The ability scores have expanded beyond the D&D standards. There’s “stamina,” which is probable renamed “constitution,” but there’s also an agility in addition to “dexterity,” and “charisma” is missing, but “presence” appears. They don’t run the usual 3-18, but instead the score now seems to be the old bonus/penalty that was related to the score. This caused a moment of confusion when I paged through the book and saw Batman with a Dexterity of “7”--which is actually pretty high once I figured out what they were doing.

Some other changes seem inspired by other superhero rpgs. Powers seem a little more “effects based” than previously a la Champions, but I may be overstating this, because there doesn’t seem to be a huge change, here--maybe just in how they present it. “Fighting” is now an ability score--shades of Marvel Super-Heroes. In another MSHRPG call-back that made me smile, the determining of the damage condition from an attack is now decided by referencing a table which has color-coded columns of green, yellow, and red (and also blue) like the much-beloved Universal Table.

I haven’t reviewed the book enough to start the inevitable quibbling about the stats of famous characters, but overall it looks pretty good if you like Mutants & Masterminds, and makes me interested in seeing the third edition/

Professor Crowe & His Ugly Bird

Art by Daniel Kopalek

Professor Enoch Crowe and his familiar/partner-in-crime are wanted for the sell of unlicensed alchemicals, and fraud related to such, in the City and smaller municipalities in the Smaragdines and the South. The Professor (this title is an affectation--he holds no known degree) sells dubious nostrums from the back of his truck which he drives on a circuitous route mostly through rural areas, but sometimes visiting poorer neighborhoods of cities.

Crowe will typically have the following “cures” for sale, but will only be specifically hawking one at a time:

• Priapic Vigor - said to increase male sexual performance (allegedly made from extract of satyr musk, and other natural ingredients).
• Hirsutific Unction - said to cure baldness cure (from "essential oils" of de-odorized skunk-ape hide)
• Triodia’s Specific - An unguent (sometimes tonic) to cure venereal disease. (from alchemical purification of a species of lilly that grows in secret Ealerdish grottoes where nymphs are known to bathe).
• Panaceatic Lens Treatment - The patient sits under a head-sized dome of purplish crystal (actually colored glass) which he or she is told will “re-align their mental energies and vital forces to be in greater harmony with the universe.” Mostly, it does nothing, but Crowe can use it to given a suggestion (as per spell) to the patient.

Crowe can also produce some genuine minor magical potions, but only sells these to high-dollar costumers, and may just as like substitute a minor cursed potion, if he thinks he can get away with it, and might lose a sale otherwise.

Crowe’s partner or servant, is called by him “Dearest” or perhaps just “Bird,” but is known to everyone else as “Ugly Bird.” Ugly Bird is an harpy of a particular spiteful disposition--and this is in comparison to others of her kind who aren't paragons of compassion. She won’t generally be seen when Crowe is about his business of sales, but she is always watching, and never far from his side.

Prof. Enoch Crowe: MU4, HP12, spells commiserate with his level, and 1d10 real potions in his truck, besides his charlatan’s wears.

Ugly Bird: AC 7 [12], HP 17, 2 talons 1d4 each, Special: flight, unlike often presented, harpies in the world of the City have no “siren’s song” power.

200...and a Few You Might Have Missed

Welcome to my 200th post, 241 days since the inception of my blog.

Instead of looking back at my most popular posts, I'd like to re-offer some of my favorites that didn't find an audience the first time.  Since the readership is bigger now, maybe somebody we'll find some value in these "gently used" posts:

On January 15, Reel Adventure Seeds distilled four films in four different genres and one Warner Bros. cartoon down to their essense and recast them as fantasy gaming adventures.

Fantasy Pharmakon on February 12 maybe didn't grab people with its name, but it offered up some recreational pharmaceuticals from fantasy literature, suitable for game consumption.

Last but not least, March 16's Scum and Villainy presented a gallery of eclectic, urban rogues from the city of Terminus, in my world of Arn campiagn.

Thanks to all of you who've supported my efforts!  I hope you'll continue to enjoy 'em in the future.