Problem Solving - Adventure

Problem Solving is one of my inspirations for Games. The stakes are high and so is the stress, but when we succeed the payoff feels great. I like the Scifi that draws inspiration from the NASA projects as well as many other practical engineering real world projects. Eliyahu Goldratt taught his Theory of Constraints as a Narrative Fiction - of a company in Dire straits - and the living history of the Space Program is also a great source of inspiration. 

One of the reasons I went into harder scifi is because I love exercising the concepts in the safety of a game. I was free to fail in a game and try again. 

So I found Dustin’s talk about NASA very important and inspiring because this critical thinking is unlike a ROLL, its us coming into the problem which is the main conflict of the story. The friction that raises the stakes and engagement of the players. if the facts and the limitations doesnt get absorbed and concrete to the person - then they have no engagement and will not enjoy the payoff of figuring out the problem. 

I wont spoil the really bad problem he highlights. But yeah that is where the DO-ers start thinking and start working to figure out the solution with the finite amount of time. This is where the montage of hard work, or rolls the PCs make to get ready before the big show down. 

Late Bronze Age Fantasy Setting - Against all Gods by Miles Cameron

 https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/59348054 

Against all the Gods Is an audiobook I'm currently listening to which is set in a FANTASY setting similar to the late Bronze age Collapse (1200 and 1150 BCE).  Like Hard Scifi - the core skills in running such a game is understanding the framework of society and building the details. 

I like it because it covers the earlier practices due to their material access and climate. That humans can still create sophistication and incredible techniques even with a smaller set of materials. This is a kind of setting I would like to run or play, or write about. 

Shameless Plug

I dont know who still reads Gaming Blogs or listens to them using Text-to-Speech Apps. I think people my age are into podcasts now, but sometimes prefer blogs when they dont have the time and want to skip tot he meat by scanning for key words. 

https://tryingtogamework.blogspot.com/ Is the overlapping Blog where I go to far outside Gaming and tend to talk about work and how I see work with the lens of a gamer. 

Know that I’m in my 40s and this is the same thing to me - its like I didnt grow up - I’m still a kid with just better toys or more experience with the toys I have now. All these skills are toys - to make a better game experience and gamify life to create a sense of agency, control, and acceptance of all things that dont make sense. 

I also have a youtube channel when I do gaming and work rants. I try to structure it - but I really have terrible working memory and my priorities are tangled with the need to make money and the needs of my attention to do only things my attention wants to do. The mess that is my skillset and perspective is the mess of being lucky enough to have enough and surviving to cultivate skillsets that are useless in the market - Gaming skills. 

Finished The Long War: Killer of men, Marathon, and, Poseidon's Spear

These books makes me want to run a GURPS game set in that era (early 5C BCE). Although I would recommend getting the Authors Bibliography, GURPS Low Tech, Greece, etc to run such a game. It would be a terribly small audience for such game sadly.

Its a great series, and similar to the The Saxon Stories by Bernard Cornwell. I was not much of a fan of the era, but these series made me a fan. I've always been curious about the Ancient Eras after finishing the lectures on Origin of Civilization, Ancient Empires before Alexander, and my own Chinese History studies that deal in the eras of the Shang and Zhou Dynasty.

I love how the author gets into the detail about training, conditioning, and discipline. It reinforces my own training and my own aspirations. When he does so it brings up is the amount of work it takes to be as good as the characters. Stuff I wish was an element in a game that people would enjoy like I do: enjoy choosing the best habits, routines, and training habits of my PC and managing his psyche. If I could afford a 40lb kit (which I cant) the stories in the book reinvigorate me enough to pursue crossfit weighted vest training as well as getting back into kali.  

I love it when characters love training and making themselves better. They dont kill stuff to make themselves better, they train and the world turns. I like stories like that and which biases me to this book.

What I love about historical fiction is how it uses techniques in Non-fiction writing to amp up the emotional score of an event and action. It gives a lot of perspective and comparisons. Its fiction but the writer has some limitations with the material he has to draw from. Working with those limitations show techniques I can take up for my own storytelling.

The books are great and I bought them in Google Play store, because Amazon won't let me convert them to epub so I can use my Text To Speech app (@Voice Read Aloud) to listen to them as I have 2 hour commutes. The books are so well written It can convey its emotions even through the App.

Check out the Hippeis bibliography for setting research if you are going to try to get into it. Like in my basic understanding of Medieval Agriculture and Demographics it puts a TON of things in perspective and it enriches the immerision in the setting. The way the agricultural studies was important in the book, as the Author notes, Its my key challenge in my Chinese history studies.  

Gaming to Learn Life Skills and a Greater Sense of Agency

You will notice Game in the Brain crazy about using games to learn and create a greater locus of control or sense of agency in life. If you know how I GM, which is publicly viewable for all its flaws to see I focus on EQ and Life Skill Challenges. So it should come as no surprise I change my "Just Happy to Game" subtitle to the title to you see:

Gaming to Learn Life Skills and Greater Sense of Agency (or Locus of Control).

I'm in the unique position that allows me to study using Gaming, and using skills hard won in gaming to do Work. I also tend to talk about key biz and life skills and principles that I have researched in the game.

A bit about myself:

Currently I've been given access to Lectures (from TGC) which I am to digest and create material for our company into policies and training. I work as a "Director" primarily focused on Fixing Problems as well as smoothing out relationships.

I think myself as Jarred Dun - the lowest tier of nerd and often the most annoying because of our voice of logistics and elaborating challenges. The array of skills I possess  are libreoffice, knowledge of these soft skills, and technically amateur if one considers the 1st world biz world (at the level that I can at least flash a rom).

As Games and Writing about Games in this blog empowered me more and more in work, it has come to a Tipping Point where It has become one thing and a lifestyle. I've "bought" the domain and pretty much working to fix it up to focus on the Mission and Vision.

I do have my own Game Systems which I plan to be free with goals that allow me to pay others (since I like working in my job) to help me pretty it up and make it easier to use and more bells and whistles.

Tools I want to Built into my Gaming:
These are things that I want to build into the Game systems and GMing tools and tricks in Game in the Brain. A ton of life skills,

• Success Zones
• Diagnostic Thinking Map
• Meta-cognitive Planning 
• 6 Hats
• Yes and
• IDEO's Defer Judgement, Quantity, Associative Thinking (connection making), Novelty 
• SCAMPER and various Random Association and Option generation techniques 
• Torrence Test of Creative Thinking
• Bloom's Taxonomy of mental processes. 
• Writing Challenges uses Random Element Association
• Multiple Equivalent Simultaneous Offers
• Targets Topics Trade-offs and Targets within Trade-offs
• How Diagramming
• Competency Modeling 
• Rule of 3 and 10 
• Social Intelligence Challenges
• Emotional Intelligence Challenges 
• Leadership - from the discipline to the humanistic virtue. 
• Various Communication and Influence skills.
• Various heuristics and how to use models and such tools.  

I know its Buzz Kill for so many out there, but this is what I like and being called weird and strange for such - to be more niche for a hobby that is already niche is not so good.

   

Scifi notes - accessibility and abundance tradeoffs

Disclaimer :written on a note 2 pardon my many mistakes. (the blogger app is barred in the Philippines play store and the app available has worn my patience)

I've almost caught up with my Sci if reading and one aspect of lost fleet where it doesn't focus (for good reason)  on imaginatining the blossoming of new cultures and the implication of the level of productivity that results from the automation from drones and AI and where humans fit in all that. It kinda tests my understanding of economics when I try to use gdp per capita, quality of life and poverty.

Too often when technology creates abundance it is of a slightly different quality.  Take cheese for example and the cheap cheese, the Philippines has an underdeveloped dairy industry. We still have the cheeses people used to eat back in the day, hard cheeses like qeso de bola, but we have this poorer quality but more accessible cheese (what people consider fake cheese and challenging what "is"  cheese). Instant noodles are the same, as well as preparred meals (microwave meals they now sell in convenience stores) . The idea that automation would produce something of a "different"  quality but sufficient while making the rest of us access it.
The people who have already access to its more original form and quality now may not appreciate it but the majority of those who didn't have now a bigger utility out of it. I may be a food snob sometimes but when I frame in terms of accessibility and the budget of the Philippines average mode income the perspective changes.

What if the artifical meat will never be as good as the real thing? Still it grants us the Protien we need and some of the satisfaction of eating meat. It may make an unprecedented accessibility of meat never known in human history.  Take that experience and multiple that to the possible things we may finally have personally  access but not at the level of quality or satisfaction  we once thought.  Heck working on a phone is different from working on an "ancient"  2000 laptop still it gets the job done. What if we use 7 inch tablets with blue tooth key boards and power management cable nodes instead of desktops or laptops? Would the life suits we would need in space have some lacking compared to space suits of older generation, an economic tradeoff for abundance and accessibility.

This is not limited to products, it's also in our relationships. What are our Internet relationships compared to our face to face relationships? What is a family when it depends a lot on the state to provide communal nursery to centralize and make more efficient child care as its adults are productive? How is this home and childhood differ from the childhood from a previous era's? How is our work different from cubicle or office work in a  era that derives productivity in more imaginative ways.

Combat readiness and secure population vs that with specialized and dedicated force in an era where productivity allows people to be worth 10s of people of work in a previous era?  Is the quality of security and defense different in the abundance of combat and security ready Personnel in these tradeoffs?

Hopefully you see how abundance and creative ways of what makes up productivity, relationships, and key human needs and wants may change humanity in ways beyond our imagination.

Another thing in abundance is the kinds of states and organizations! Technology and space will allow for the blossoming of new people's, cultures, and efficiencies. I can't wait for what they might be,  for good or for bad, but their experimentation and mutation is essential in creating the diversity for optimum happiness will thrive. Happiness is not truely rational so the results of which may be completely counter intuitive to us of this era.

This is where a collaborative shared world can happen among GMs. A living setting can happen

Inspiration: Death Note

Finally Got to Watch Deathnote and it is Amazing and gave me a lot of Ideas.

Anyway, the ideas expressed and storytelling in Death-note is great material for my GURPS modern fantasy game. Particularly a focus on Mages, Mafias, Mega-Corporations, and Ministries. The Planning need not be overly complex, I plan to use a GURPsified version of Wilderness of Mirrors game effects and resolution (basically Yes&/But method)

The idea is that in a 3 hour session of 5-6 players I have a budget of 30 minutes per player or 10 minutes of 3 scenes each (or 2 hours of 4 players). The scenes follow the following format:

• The Planners/Command characters rolls with his margin of success determining the pieces he moves and how much he allocates. The commander who has the largest margin of success goes first with the GM yes&/but.
• Each character tasked, including the leader, have a set up scene - Player will make up shit telling the GM how he is implementing the plan or his action with what skills and resources at his disposal. The GM yes&/buts based on the skill level and the skills employed by the character. This is a 10 minute scene at MOST. Ideally the GM cycles quickly to give everyone less waiting time and more things to do. More than one Player can be in this scene. 
• The GM is like, "ok what is your objective and how do you plan to achieve it given your abilities go!"
• Player is like "Dan will do X and Y, and will try to achieve...". Player can ask and go back and forth with the GM doing this. The GM takes note and writes down his response.
• The GM' with his yes&/but consume the NPC's margin of success like the PC, as he allocates an asset against that maneuvering pc or NPC asset. Since the GM is taking notes, he is mostly on the Listening and recieving end giving the players more opportunities for air-time. Players should feel free to use it as efficiently as possible to enthusiastically describe their actions. Give the GM the chance to make things more interesting by giving him a lot of material. 
• The GM ok, "so Dan is doing X and..."  He narrates how the plan goes, and since it is a "LAW" that no plan survives first contact he ends this player's scene a cliff hanger switching to the NEXT Player. the GM marks resources expended by the opposing NPC group/or opposing PC group.   No Rolls yet, but the player should put in the Chat Log what skills and multi-tasking he plans to use. 
• This continues as the GM cycles, by 1/3 the time everyone should have had a decent intro and their plan gets interesting. By the second round, the players are at exchanges with the GM with yes&/but depending on how much they are multi-tasking and their skill level. Gm and Player takes turn resolving each skill and part of the plan. Let the player narrate and capture his mindset, mood, and the feel of the scene. 
• Player: "Dan does this, and he is etc...  he is paranoid about the risks but..." GM goes, Dan is right to be concerned, etc... happens and X&Y are staring down at Dan with tendrils of magic coursing down the barrel of the gun.  Roll A at ...
• The Gm basically uses the build up and cliff hanger from the Intro to build up tension and to create a problem for the character that he has no time to make a solution for. it is together with the Player they navigate the problem. GM errs on the drama and emotion. 
• The GM devotes more of the Encounters resources from this point on until the Problem is resolved by the next 2/3rds of the game. He balances the challenges for every scene, weighing more time in a scene with more players (ideally). How much resources the GM puts into the encounter is noted and will be reaped by the end of the session. 

Inspiration, catching up with Anime lately

I was able to visit Toei here in the Philippines and have some friends who used to work there. I'm inspired by the production output the Anime Industry comes out and how many sorts of Sci-fi Fantasy it comes out with.

I found out that the production facility in the Philippines, has one division coming up with 4 episodes a week. This season has about more than 50 titles of anime's and the variety and content can be interesting.  Even with this advanced production line, the quality is pretty good.

Now that I'm catching up I'm surprised by the level of quality in the art and background. There has been greater use of 3d graphics like in Kingdom 2 and Galilei Donna as an example. The quality is only getting better and the market seems far from hitting a curve.

I'm wondering why doesn't a named fiction writer in the US subcontract Toei or the like and a get a production team and workout something with Netflix, Crunchyroll, or one of the many corporations that would actively consume the content?

Looking at all the Sci-fi and Fantasy Novels my friends are recommending, I'm wondering why isn't a company using those IPs and converting them to Anime or Manga. The production time can be very efficient, and this is an era where one can sell and produce their Anime made IP with close work with the right people.

As much as I admire Anime, many have targeted marketing in place. There is fan-service anime and a lot of unnecessary elements that don't add to the story but is there for broader audience appeal. Such activities makes me think that the market for anime has so much room that the way they re-use IP can be absurd.

I know some hardcore scifi guys would just HATE it if their favorite Hard Scifi novel would be done in anime, lolz. I could already hear the internet arguments and flame wars from this parallel universe of how they feel their favorite writers "sold out" at the same time, a NEW audience of young anime watchers are being introduced to variatioins of Hard Scifi and Fantasy that weens them out of such cliche tropes (so cliche you can name 10 animes/mangas that use the "special trope").

the smorgasborg of Mary Sue characters can cause a bit of violent reaction except for all the eye candy and visual graphics. One particular Anime that has caught my attention is Kyokai no Katana, which uses In-medias-Res, Fore-shadowing, and various other storytelling tools that makes it a non-linear story compared to many of the anime in the season. It also is an anime that is willing to leave questions unanswered (check out episode 06 shocking pink lolz).

Wow, Id wish some writer in Downton Abbey or The Goodwife would do consulting work for an anime script lolz. Really the way the scenes are organized can use a lot of help, and if its given the 3 scene treatment like in Downton it would just add value in how the resources are used.

Anyway, right now Its giving me a lot of visual energy since the G+ anime group tends to flood my wall with eye candy (some NSFW). Wish I had the luxury to practice everyday.  

Classics Re-Imagined: Ravenloft

Since I'm running a Kitchensink setting, I realized I can just mine old adventures for ideas and put them under the skin of the modern fantasy I'm currently running.

I actually had the original module BUT i never had the time to play it. So I ended up giving it away.

I remember researching/preparing for it. Instead of the old vampires I like this new generation of Vampires, since I got to read Anne Rice in highschool. too bad I never got to play Vampire, despite having the book. (like many gamers we have the books but we don't have the time).

So what if this was spun in a modern fantasy, but maybe passing the Bechdel test lolz instead of the damsel in distress or maybe more modern and humanistic themes.

So basically I can make a Ravenloft (or any adventure) in the Metropolis of Haven, where the BBEG is a Vampire. So now I have to think in 2-3 bound more than my players, trying to push some Imagination muscles how I'm going to avoid all those Gamer-predictable pitfalls lolz. Sigh

Anyway, I've realized I've barely touched the potential of a Kitchen-sink setting to explore ALL the old tropes and all the old adventures, but running them for my players in modern skin and with more updated modern problem solving and ethical dilemmas (players are free to completely ignore these unless they got it in their disads lolz).

I guess what would be removed is Dungeon Crawling and more of the 3rd gen RPGs "Scenes" where the GM just have to cite some key words for a given scene. Although i can provide some prep for Spatial Combat with roll20.

Filipino Mariners, my Inspiration for the Traveller Game

I was first exposed to the lives of Filipino Mariners when I worked for one of the largest seaman manpower companies of the Philippines as a 3d Artist, Magsaysay. We were attempting to make a computer-based training game, so we interviewed some seamen and sat in the training lectures. 20% of International merchant mariners are Filipinos, who work as Overseas Foreign Workers (OFWs) for what would be $2,500USD a month for contracts of up to a season to a few years. W

We were able to access also the books and material that they were required to master. I don't remember the details, but what I came away with was that it was mostly Organization (how the ship and its elements are organized, procedures and protocols) and Safety procedures. The procedures were dizzying because each country had their own.

Note that much of what I learned about it mirror the Risks, Pay-offs, and help detail Assumptions of Crewman Life.

The Economics of It. 
To Filipinos the wages for being a mariner crewman is that of a regional manager and high level executive but it is a career that they cannot sustain for very long over time. They payed very well compared to the typically less than $200USD/mo to be a factory worker.

Note that in the Philippines, such a relative would be supporting his other relatives in their studies and schooling. Typically one OFW will support his entire extended Family and have nothing remaining for themselves (and it happens often enough that many uplift themselves and many piss-away the money).

Its a skilled professions that takes less time to finish, they incur less debt and can quickly pay it off in a couple of years. It is also a dangerous profession, as the news can indicate (pirates, collisions, and accidents) and those who can imagine how it is to be caught in a storm while enroute.

Other than the hazards of working in a ship, Filipino Seamen have a serious problem with Hepa B, an STD (Sex Ed is severely backwards in the Philippines, I think it should be part of Mariner training) I also want to note that the maintenance cost of the meds is $200USD a month, if they stop being Seamen they can be assured of a lifespan that ends at 50-60. I don't know the statistic for the other STDs but if Hepa B is any indicator it may not be very good. We have purely capitalist medical services here in the Philippines, many will die and choose a "brave" death in using the money for the meds to pay for education - spirituality and family is the remaining comfort for many.

There is also some barriers regarding Filipino employment and advancement , having a reputation and status "servants to the wealthy countries" there are many instances where a seasoned and veteran Filipino seaman will not get a higher position because of his background. (i know of the journalists that sit on this information, because its just bad for business in such a precarious hold over the industry). So they swallow their pride and keep at it, suffering in silence. They would rather have their children study Law, Medicine, and Engineering than follow their footsteps in an industry that limits their advancement.

How I apply it to Traveller
 You will notice these Factors In my Traveller universe, as RETHE an overpopulated (30 Billion) and poor System exports most of the Mariner (Fodder) to all the great Shipping. In an advanced Technocracy, the lack of education of Rethe makes them second class susceptible to the Corporate Patron-Client indoctrination into their loyal (and expendable) corporate assets.

In a game about Trade and Merchants, Crushing Poverty and its effects are something I like drawing stories and inspiration from. For those in Poor States, Building Common Good is next to impossible and those few fortunate States fighting to maintain Common Good, is a battle they may slowly be losing (which natural results in Exodus of all the best and brightest). What can several generations build, can be so easily lost.

The problem of being an OFW is also an interesting one because it deals with National/State/Cultural Loyalties and Identity vs Economic Realities. In current events, it doen't look good because it seems as RETHE grows and gets wealthier from their remittances and its market being developed, there is a growing resentment. There are many factors to this, part of the reason Local administrators want to shift the blame of their corruption to "Cultural Issues".  

Manoral Life of Various Cutlures

Finished Downton Abbey, I wish I can see various cultural version of a Manoral Household as inspired by their visit to a Scottish Manor - I'd like to see a Chinese Version (maybe the Red Chamber), Japanese Version, Spanish Version, German Version, Mexican/South American, Middle-Eastern, etc... I'm so curious about what those look like and how different they are.

Of course there is the Philippine Version of Manoral "life" which I'm familiar with, it doesn't have the same servant culture but it has its own Patron-Client particularities that has similarities and differences from Spanish influence (while it obviously struggles to be Spanish).

I should stop thinking about Philippine History its so depressing it can ruin my day.

Nerds are Rogues Too!

Why is it the negative stereotype that makes nerds idiots, despite their brains? I mean real intelligence is adaptability, in the hobby that emphasizes in Preparation, Improvisation and Adaptation I nerds should really fall under the Rogue category.

I was grouping templates for my GURPS LOW TECH LITE when i decided to simplify it to two groups: ROGUES and MEN-AT-ARMS. Under the Rogues are the Sages, Courtiers, Mandarins, and Guild Specialists.

Courtiers can be nerds, life in the Low Tech era is struggling to distract itself from subsistence and the Arts, Fashion, and Literature are pursuits wielders of great power would pay a premium for. As an adventurer, this is a character who can see the romantic heart of a situation and exploit it for advantage or gain.

Mandarins are very similar as courtiers, but their skills are more pragmatic like statecraft, administration, law/legal expertise, and various other tech management skills that allow for a complex organization to function more productively than the sum of its parts. These are as much nerds as engineers, but society and manpower are their toys and tools.

Guildsmen and Sages are focused in specializations that are very valuable in a given context. Alchemists, Engineers, Guides and Ambassadors (local expertise for far away lands), Manufacturing, etc..  have skills both useful in adventuring as they are to rulers. A master smith or builder can mean the survival of a city, a master ostler/horse trader can mean the efficient cost of maintaining a cavalry force. In the macro picture they are powerful, especially those who'se capabilities put them in adventuring grade, but their value to the right people can shift the story in many ways... (for lack of a nail the battle was lost)

A subgroup of Guildsmen, a kind of mandarin is the Banker or the Goldsmith and Silversmiths. Some economic lessons pointed out that these guilds used their reserves to back loans and became a portable means of payment through their issuance of certificates. Money attracts Money, and these "Whitesmiths" can be very influential.

These are the nerds, but because of their power and influence, no one tells them to their face. In some eras the Warriors rule, but in others the Rogues are in charge. I guess as modern people, we lost the appreciation of hard won knowledge, and I want to bring that appreciation back - "in a world of the blind the one eyed man is king".

The Spear, the AK 47 of pre-modern times; Lessons on Tactics

http://goo.gl/aQEa5 this is a reddit discussion which I concur with, and want to save for use later on.

Been Playing Airsoft more, and learning more and more about tactical implementation.
I'm a bit of a slow learner, because I tend to be very uncertain and can't see all the datum very clearly. It takes me more tries than the average person to learn a particular lesson. It doesn't improve my understanding so much that I can perform better, but it does make it easy for me to teach and communicate.

I guess thats the draw back. Slow learner, but better Teacher.

Currently when it comes to tactics and flow of a skirmish, I find myself being predictable. Which is a good thing. In fact, I'm surprised how I'm exactly on the same page as my captain. There is this "second-thought" that has begun to happen when I realized I am predictable.

Before I act, I try to visualize what I'm going to do. I string the line of cover and displacement positions in my mind (as much as I can in a given situation; sometimes 2 steps, more depending on the complexity of the situation). Then the awareness of my predictability kicks in, it is a nagging voice that acts almost like an instinct.

But I need more data than most people, so I get pretty choked up what to do when I don't have enough information. Like when were were clearing a room, they were asking me to clear Left because I was right (cross fire position) and they were saying "clear left" to me :P which I figured out later meant I'm clear to move forward.

So i'm still struggling with predictability, but I'm getting there. I need more repetition and visualization. Even a chance to exercise buddy buddy movements with imaginary guns with my partner in an empty parking lot. I bet It looks weird but damn its satisfying when its executed well :P

Anyway I'm tasked to make the handbook for the team. Which is pretty sweet, and I'm converting stuff in my combat handbooks into meaning that is easier to digest for laymen... although they are rather easy to digest - those books are pretty straight forward but I'm the only one geeky enough to go through them (in my circle).

Still thinking my brothers would be awesome in this. One has already tried and joined me, when our parents were away (he drives them around on sundays). The other is a larp game writer.

Imagination Exercise: "Light" Armors

In this thread, Dan Howard dispels the gaming Myth about the flexibility of armor (apart from mail). In gaming "Light armors"like leather and Cloth is imagined as the thickness and comfort of winter or leather jackets when in actuality as armor they need to be much tougher and thicker.

Imagining Hardened leather is easy if I take a look at my old ROTC boots. In the discussion thread about Layering, armor strong enough to stop any blow is very inflexible. The boots I have, in their hardest part, would be roughly 1/5ths of a cm. I remember the boots with dread. They were so painful to wear because they didn't bend where my toes would. If you can imagine you leather shoes and look at the point where it would bend, and imagine how it would feel if that part didn't and you needed it to when you ran thats how painful the experience was. I took a hammer and tried to mash up the leather to give enough wear to bend but as much a I hammered at it the thing was as tougher than the toughest rubberized plastic I encountered. It is leather by the way by the texture I can feel.

Doing the math, an average 4mm or 4/10ths a centimeter around the area of a torso and sleeves 7150sq.cm would weigh has much as 5kg or 12lbs. Imagine the toughness of your shoe soles and what you put them through as lames (rectangular arrayed pieces) or scales. If you are going to do armor experiments take old boot leather, measure the thickness and whack at it with a sharpened sword. The Rigidity of the material Stops your thrust from going deeper by the friction it acts on the weapon. If you stabbed it with a small blade, may penetrate but you can feel the force ebb away because of the friction acting on the edge. You will have a problem pulling it out. That friction of pulling it out, is acting on the blade as you push it in.

10lbs of leather armor is only good for the Body (torso, abdomen and groin), one would need 4lbs for greeves and 2lbs for bracers, and helmets would be around 2lbs.

Layered Cloth is very effective in diffusing force when impacted . It is also unusually inflexible when layered up to 7-8 or 15 times and stitched together. Imagine a thick wad of cloth or paper, now staple its borders and afterwards try to bend it. I think in principle, 1cm of heavy gauge fabric is going to be that stiff.

Now consider strips of wood, bamboo or cane reeds woven into "basket" armor. We had some old rotting wicker furniture which we bashed up as a kid. They were unusually tough, especially when I still have them and they are around 15 years old right now. Flexibility and Elasticity allows an object to deform without taking serious damage to its structure. By itself only the thickest and heaviest wicker would be adequate for combat, it should be examined that they were used as durable practice shields and by Ancient armies.

Wicker Armor is begun to like and have incorporated in the game I'm designing. Light wicker is combined with layered canvas to make some pretty nice looking shaped cuirass/breastplates. It can appear as wide bamboo strips woven or thick multi-layered Canes with layered cloth stitched over it and comfortable linen beneath it. It can also be made to be fairly flexible at the abdomen area. The combination of wicker and cloth would be cooler to wear if the wicker did not trap air as well as cloth to allow ventilation to cool body and more comfortable by distributing some of the weight to the hips. I wonder if they can be made into greeves and bracers. i'd imagine thick bamboo or wood strips with layered cloth.

Treated and lacquered they serve as great ornamental breast plates for ceremony and parades.

I plan to make a large 3m 3-person giant Loom available in the setting. I'm not going to change the cost of cloth, because much of the demand usually run by the "state" to supply it sails, sacks, and all sorts of materials. It will off-set leather poor regions.

Game Experiment: Unknown Rules

What If I played DnD on the surface but all the mechanics used was something else. Players select Scale, Shield, and a broad sword. The "fantasy" stats would be AC5, 53lbs of equipment, and 1d8 damage but in the way I adjudicated it it was 2mm of steel scales over a cloth and leather backing, balanced lever capable of generating 180 joules of edged force in quick and defensive footing attacks (the way a skilled boxer would through a punch and shift quickly)?

A shield is +1 AC? 5% affect on defense. Experimentation by anachronistic reenactors have very strong evidence that this +1 AC item is practically 2/3 the defense of an individual scaled to the skill of the individual. In a close formation fighting its practically all the defense, since very little footwork can be used. Why would I let nonsensical munckin Logic dictate that shields are 1/20.

ARMA's take on Myths is an essential reading.

I'm getting at, what if the players don't exactly know that shields grant them 2/3 their defense. Or if all things being equal and two basically skilled combatants have 50% chance of hitting each other without a shield, with a shield they would hit each other 2/3rds less. Or 2/3 x 50%. rounded up that shield would grant a +6-7 to defense or AC.

Armor, just reduces damage by the amount they really did in historical experimentation. Meaning most metal armors are Blade proof, as long as they are made out of materials and worksmanship of closely equal quality and the force does not exceed what can be generated by all those within the 20% physical ability deviation of professionals (320-450J). At greater than 450J there is a chance of breakage.

As the GM, what if I start asking specific or targeting questions about footwork, balance, stance, metal quality etc. As well as provide unprecedented levels of details? Using deductive and inductive reasoning to provide inferential data from tiny differences and details. even if the player is not familiar with martial arts, but phrase concepts in economies of attention: Do you pay more attention to X or Y? In any given moment of around 6 seconds, how do you distribute your attention?

It all seems DnD in the surface until after character creation. Where all of a sudden even the economics goes "realistic" norms. Gold fluctuates to the value and relationship to goods and its monetary equivalents: typically ranging from 1:20 (gold to bronze) or 1:4000+ (gold to bronze).

Verbal -linguistic Intelligence. It is weird when races posses 7 or more languages (+2 with average int of 9-10). It is strange when Human Intelligence and abilities are dwarfed by demihuman races. By language count, elves and half elves are Int18, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, 16. Demihumans exhibiting Multi-lingualism comparable to human geniuses doesn't exactly put Int of the two different races at the same level. Learning a language a great cost and needs to be maintained through practice. Einstein's brain is an example of trade off Verbal Linguistic Int vs Visual Spatial Int. How can one say 18int human is equal to that of 18int demi human. Even geniuses have problems learning language, depending on which intelligence their abilities lie.

OSRIC game planned next week

I was at my bi-monthly Freethinkers meeting and its no surprise to find some of the members being the last generation of Old-school gamers in the group. In fact bringing out the book changed the topic of conversation. Some of the guys said: "Why not!"

The youngest generation I know that still played "old-school" is my generation (born 1979). My younger brothers don't have the same sentimental attachment as I do regarding that style of gaming. It should be no surprise, it is all a matter of timing after all. It was only around the early 90s DnD really got a more solid footing here in the Philippines. There is that cultural comprehension and economic requirement to have access to the hobby. We were the friends of the younger brothers of the younger members who initially got into it.

Looking back, Old school rules are funny. When I learned more about the world and furthered my education the design of the system can look very haphazard. Well It was, I'm not going to beat a dead horse about it. Although there is some fun to be had expounding the premises to their absurd conclusions.

Reductio ad absurdum is when one argues a premise to its logical absurd conclusion. It can also be funny. One of my favorite is when I look at the Thief and his abilities: why is it the thief can do certain things functionally better than anybody else is a good exercise of absurdity.

Looking at the old-school spells, abilities, races and classes with (Utility-Cost /Time) x Odds is also another way to look at all the old DnD. I find the scariest min-maxer is an adept game-theorist, with the skill of breaking things down to pure utility and who can do the math mentally.

I'm really looking forward to having some of the Freethinkers have a crack at Old School.

Gaming about Gaming

RPG Blog II's if If RPGs Were More Like Pro Sports… Reminded me of a discussion some friends and I were having: Why not go all the way for a CCG?

A friend of mine and his wife had an idea for a Gamer Card game. The object of the game is to have fun. You get it by having "Player" and "GMs" that contribute fun in points.

In the Card Game, Players try to recruit, steal, or convert people into players or GMs. These Character cards are used to run campaigns and adventures. Characters, Campaign and Situations allow certain other cards to be played. Playable action cards are made up of many gamer situations as well as system that will allow for in jokes (blank template card).

Theres dice rules and sub rules representing game systems and home brews. WOTC DnD, Old School gaming, WOD, FUDGE etc. will be represented in a way that they allow for the odd outcomes that usually result from their games.

Game ends after a "Game Year" and players tally the fun, stories, "take home lessons" and inspiration they get.

Playable cards would be like: Escalate Argument, Joke Gone too far, In-Joke (all new players get -1 reaction, all old players get +1 reaction), Moves because of Job, Has a Family, Needs time with Better Half, Nanny, GMing with dependents, Burn Out, Game Compulsion (-1 to social life, character obsesses to the point of being unable to balance other relationships) etc.

Ideally, players make personalized cards of friends and each other through a character creation system that is not joy-killing overtly powerful. Everyone puts their cards online to download and print so they end up "playing" a game all the way in another state or country. Old gaming buddies who moved away, retired, etc can be in the deck to relive old times.

Epic cards can be in the form of Gynax and Anerson, or Local Legends, Web Comic Characters etc.

Progress Report: Excuses

I've hit some speed bumps, like everyone else its work and I shouldn't talk about it here.

So far I've been busy revamping my stamina system. Physical and Mental Endurance management is a BIG deal for me and I want the game system to reflect that well. Its a detail that I've observed never taken into consideration in games but happens to drive more real life decisions more than people credit for.

Effort and Risk. Two things that should be in the decision making process that Reign in what players CAN or MAY do. If I can get this system in place and people get the natural hang of it, no problem.

Often when I munchkin I take advantage of systems that doesn't take the two into consideration. If I don't exploit it first in a way to show the GM the consequences before it ruins the game, it might come by to bite my fun down the line.

So in my system its pretty much built in. It took some time to test the math and the consistency of the rules, particularly of effort. Fatigue and effort systems are tricky, if you learned to manage and pace yourself at work or was the type to work till you burned out then you might agree with me that the balancing act may be harder than the task itself.

A little background of my observations come from a history of compulsive behaviors that run in my the family (mother and siblings), add in flow (perpetuating feedback loop) and lowered self-control during times of fatigue and exhaustion and it becomes very nasty and self destructive condition. Subtle Personality changes are quite notable depending on my energy levels, to my loved ones its not so subtle.

Anyway, back to the topic: Effort, energy, fatigue, sustainable work and that balancing act. Re-writing all that after I discovered my system was getting too complicated and not consitent. It should be a mark-down and forget system. i figured it out, and to my knowledge, it kicks ass that I as able to make very versatile. I'm happy and reassured to know no one saw that stoopid mistake.

Word Count - I've been studying up speed reading, and I've come the conclusion it is more ability than skill. I read about 150 words per minute at a good comprehension, that is rather slow. So I realized that I should cut down my word count for explanations at 100 or 50. I was thinking details would rock, like explaining the principles of sword physics BUT i realized if people would WANT to read on that they are better off going to ARMA than seeing it in equipment entry. At most it should specifically help the reader Wiki item and details online with helpful key terms.

A Song of Ice and Fire. I got my copy of the green ronin book today. For the quality of the paper, I'm just mildly disappointed that they couldn't get better artists. I was not aware the word count was sparse. I was hoping for a BIG map.

There is nothing like amateur art to inspire you to draw. Easy enough to do, but even if you manage to equal or relatively improve on it, you are never compared to the standards of professionals. Its a cheap shot, so the point is having some fun. As long as you just show the art and don't go around pointing and heckling what you improved on there is no harm in it.

Maps. I calculated that if I wanted to make a setting the size of the Europe, Levant (up to Euphrates) and the bit of Africa with enough detail to have days travel in hexes (32km) it would be around 64 pages on a letter sized book. Yeah, thats a lot of work, but 64 pages of maps is worth way more than 64,000 words. If I made a map, it would go a VERY long way in shortening the word count while leaving the GM feeling free to improvise. Of course a picture takes more work than 1,000 words IMO.

A TON of things to draw... but where to start. Ok, i just came from downloading a bunch of pics off the net from weapon sparing shots. Action shots, with center of gravities in dynamic motion. So I've got a lot of new stuff to edit, alter and trace over. The pictures are blurry, very small and pixelated.

Thats ok, I only really need is the silhouettes so that I get my joints and proportions right. Since this is an Ancient Setting (early Iron age), armor is rare so most of the fighting will be with shields and lighter blades (shortswords). So I'm beginning my set up processes. Maybe line up some work and expectations so that I can breeze through it.

Action shots are always useful in decorating the Combat Chapter. I recomend tracing the sparing shots in the flurry of action. One of the nice things about it is that

i wish had faster internet and find more social interaction shots. Several people talking and their emotions clearly visible from their body language. That would be the next bunch of pix I need to get to fill up the book art.

Next would be Group shots. Groups of people standing together in a relaxed mood is useful to illustrate the archetypes and parties. Travel shots, where a group of people are trudging along is another useful template to trace over.

Imagining how the book would probably be like after all those dreams and ideas were made real can be addicting but it keeps me motivated to chug on.

Thanks to china made slim drawing tablets and open source programs in making this hobby MUCH cheaper. The tablet I'm using is bigger than my screen. Here is another cheap tablet. It is a Chinese version of this tablet at 1/2 the price. I think if you order it in ebay Philippines and have it delivered it still comes out way cheaper. CDRKing is a china made electronics importer in the Phils that gets a lot of everything at 1/2 to 1/5 its regular price ($270 LCD projectors- dream gaming table). The capital is so cheap, makes me want to start a Digital Art and CG studio. Time to stop dreaming and start working.

GIMP ON! Some Art tips

Art tips for your Game Book.

I spent a good hour and a half learning all the Gimp Hot keys. I bought a notebook to write down all my notes for GIMP, Scribus, Inkscape and Blender. I was able to get most of the hotkeys down, at least all those I'll need when I'll be tracing or drawing over some art.

The hotkeys I'll need is all those that do most of the work without picking up the mouse. The work flow is, to do everything with the keyboard and tablet. Of course, GIMP and Photoshop is designed for this purpose in mind. The set up might require a mouse, so it is important to have an ide

Step 1: Learn all the Hotkeys. At least have them all down on a notebook or a print out where you can easily see them. The Drawing process (tool and selection hotkeys), including navigation of layers, basic manipulation of layers, saving and loading files.

Step 2: Work surface Preparation. Have an image in mind. You can sketch it out on a notebook or paper, where you keep your writing notes. Go online and download all the pictures that have elements or faces that look like what you want to accomplish. Have them all one folder.

Technique Tracing will cover some more details as you prepare.

Step 3: Know your parameters. Art for Books and Cards tend to be small. 400x640px already takes up more than 1/4 of the page, or 1/3 if you have generous borders. Small Pix are your friend. Details are painful and time consuming. When the image is naturally small you work with way less. Remember to Zoom out often to keep your eye on the "big picture". You might be wasting time with details no one can see.

Step 4: Set aside some time and manage Expectations. The advice from before: "If your standards are too high, your doing it wrong". Just get the job done in the amount of time you set aside. Its a learning process and expect the worse at the start and manage your expectations. If you want criticism you can go to 4Chan's Art/Critique page (warning for the material and 4chan's notorious reputation is well deserved) or set up a deviant art account. Expect thousands of hours before being professional. for inspiration look at Old-School RPG Art. It may look bad, but you can just emphathize the fun these guys must have had drawing it. Focus on the Fun and Enjoying the activity. In no time you'll get better at it.

Step 5: Learn by Doing. Its gonna take some time, so might as well enjoy it. All the techniques will sink in about 4-5 hours a week of frequent practice and note keeping (a process to concertize the ideas).

Well my credentials as it goes with doing this kind of thing.

Technique: Tracing. These days many great artists trace the outline and just improvise on the details. There are unforgiving deadlines and the job keeps getting more competitive. Not everyone has the most acute Spatial Awareness.

If you love GMing and RPGing you might tend to have other intelligences as your strong points, in the economy of abilities (aka trade offs). So there is no point to ever imposing unrealistic expectations.

For me, there is a lot of Psychological Preparation in Art. I'm studied art as my major, like many people. A lot of my best lessons come from the management of expectation in getting through with disappointment and criticism.

So if your probably got most of step 2 ready, one more thing to check out is watching quick sketching tutorials in youtube and deviantart.

Check deviant art for some artists that can be very helpful because they have a lot of tutorials or are inspirational. Here is the list of artists I'm following that may be relevant for viewing. Hopefully people won't get the wrong expectations, but they really do help in improving technique or ideas for angles and "shots":

http://lastscionz.deviantart.com/

http://limkis.deviantart.com/

http://ukitakumuki.deviantart.com/

http://tracyjb.deviantart.com/

http://le-mec.deviantart.com/ (le-mec has a Youtube tutorials)

http://hito76.deviantart.com/

http://inkthinker.deviantart.com/ (does a lot of work for RPGs)

http://leinilyu.deviantart.com/

http://omar-dogan.deviantart.com/

http://artgerm.deviantart.com/

http://cushart.deviantart.com/

http://cwhite02.deviantart.com/

http://david-nakayama.deviantart.com/

http://elpinoy.deviantart.com/

http://fooray.deviantart.com/

http://ionen.deviantart.com/

http://aleciarodriguez.deviantart.com/

http://your-fathers-belt.deviantart.com/

http://julioferreira.deviantart.com/

http://k-bose.deviantart.com/

http://kasai.deviantart.com/

http://keun-chul.deviantart.com/

http://kingmong.deviantart.com/

http://sam4uk.deviantart.com/ (A really good costume designer and cosplayer)

http://kunkka.deviantart.com/

http://marknewman.deviantart.com/ (Sculptor)

http://marcosceia.deviantart.com/ (Cartographer)

http://patriatyrannus.deviantart.com/

http://atrox1.deviantart.com/ (really good evolutionary scifi/fantasy monster maker)

http://pardoart.deviantart.com/

http://wraithdt.deviantart.com/ (you'll find historically inspired art)

http://vladimir3d.deviantart.com/ (great mech warrior/battle tech art)

http://namesjames.deviantart.com/

http://ralphhorsley.deviantart.com/

http://iririv.deviantart.com/

I'll post a sample work a few days from now, when I find some sweet free time and know what I actually want. No expectations, if you see my deviant art its been YEARS since I've last drawn. The practice is good despite how crappy it may look.

Last note: When you get a "technique" it is best to write it down. Even if it may be trivial. even if the drawing ends up below "former standards" it helps remind you of what your building on and from where ever you are starting from.

Is it not pleasant to learn with a constant perseverance and application?

- 1st quote of Analects of Confucius

Getting Serious with making my own RPG book (for myself)

Because I'm a cheap bastard. I've tried to draw my map and I've been using Autorealm. There are some serious considerations when using the program. One problem is exporting things to images. The damn thing won't follow what's on my view. I gives you the option to export view, but if I change the px size different from my screen size (and it doesn't have my screen size) the image comes out weird.

I've tried working systematically by narrowing down the best way to work with the program. I've removed the hex grid that slows it down really bad when I go to large macro views, since it has to redraw every hex/box. All manners of trying I can't get it to create an image with a decent amount resolution for printing purposes.

Looking at Campaign Cartographer 3, I'm not about to shell out $44 (I am a cheap bastard). I tried to Identify what I need: Particularly what makes a good map. In some forum discussions drawing is still one of the best ways. I do admit It simplifies a hell lot of things but it is best to be able to import symbols and images off the web and remaking it for my own personal purposes in my map.

A Map maker should be able to allow me to Make a Gi'normous continent and work on parts of it one at a time. The program should allow me to make efficient use of my time and effort. I don't need to recalibrate the map I just made with the other stuff I didn't get around to make just yet.

So what I really need is a Vector Drawing tool. When I checked the free GNU vector drawing program, I'm happy to find that the Cartographers guild people use Inkscape. While I'm downloading Inkscape I might as well check all the other programs I'll be needing to make my own self published RPG book.

Scribus is another thing I'm downloading. Its a desktop publishing software, so that when I finish writing up everything on Open Office I can just organize i and lay it all out there. Oh yeah I also use Open Office.

I'm not sure if I've said it enough but I also use GIMP as my free Photoshop substitute.

I really should get around to making a set of articles on a simple low-stress and skill process in teaching how to learn these things. Although, its more of a self-help thing and I'll need a by a separate note book so that I can keep track of the hot keys and personal reflections about the processes.

I was trained in 3ds Max but I've mostly forgotten it and I'm relearning it again but for the purposes of self reliance I'm going to learn Blender. I always wanted to render SOME of what ever setting I developed into 3d.

My other problem right now is a decent Scanner. I'm a "turtle" bringing a little bit too much stuff with me sometimes. I sometimes draw on my little sketch pads and can't get them to scan properly into the computer. I've got a cheap 3-in-1 B/W laser printer from samsung and scanner can't read my shadings. It gets more aggravating when scanning takes so much time and technically it is a nightmare to set up.

I've gotten a cheap-ass tablet to draw on and I will like to show people how easy it is to learn to draw on one, more comfortably than on paper. You can get spoiled drawing on a tablet. Super-easy erasures, variable opacities for tracing, multiple brush sizes, and getting the hang of pencil weights.

Finally getting to apply some advice a writer friend game me, to help me write more: "If you can't write because your standards are too high, you're doing it wrong." Thats one of the best advice I can getting the job done. Its a hobby and I'm here to enjoy it, if my self consciousness is getting in the way of me having fun -screw it. I can always edit it and fix it. The same advice can apply to drawing as well.

I'm planning to enjoy making this RPG book and finish it. Its going to be amateur but I'm doing it for me. I guess one day, I'll find the time to edit it all and improve on it, building over the stuff I will have a better idea relating but given what resources and time I have what ever comes out just has to be fun and fulfilling.

Some Further notes and concerns.

While exercising all I can think of is how much self management this is going to take. How much forward thinking, in the manner where I try to pessimistically assess how much real time I have and what corners I have to cut: that finishing IS a bigger deal that getting it just right.

I gotta give credit to OSRIC. Looking at it, made me feel like a little kid again, inside my head it was like: "making my own would be fun!". Unlike my other past times: playing computer, at least this one has a more tangible product that other people can potentially enjoy.

Some Basic Specs:

Home Printer Friendly

B/W

Half tone art

Letter size

Giant Map that can be assembled via Poster Print Option.

Some Other Useful things:

Flow Charts - I heard that Japanese RPGs make good use of flow charts. I like the idea and being clear and concise is always a big plus. It may take some of the "flavor" out but I can always stylize it later on in GIMP or Inkscape. Open Office Draw is more designed for Flow Charts. Character Creation, Combat, Story telling Flow, even sample adventures all can benefit a good ol'fashioned flow chart.

Add on Systems. RPG creation is a continuous process and you never can make enough stuff to make gaming easier. Mass Combat Rules, as an add-on Card Game System is not another thing i can add up. All kinds of "generators" will come in useful, for GM's who want to Auto-pilot the adventure creation system.