Investigative Theory for "Wizards" Sour Quarter

With talk about Hasbro profits down, it seems to me that an obvious item has been missed.


RPG's only require some dice a pencil and paper, a set of rules and your imagination.  In a bad economy like this one RPGs are a great way to entertain yourself and your friends at very little cost. Extra expenses get cut first and supplementary products to RPG rules fit squarely into that definition.


Hasbro/WotC is a corporation. Its their business model to produce constant new product. This is a terrible idea as explained in the quote I made from the Lejendary Adventure preface.
WotC and even Paizo with their subscription model, are walking a very fine line with success and disaster.  RPG's are maybe twenty percent business and eighty percent hobby. These guys need to focus on giving us material and other products that help us with our hobby, not our book collection. That means useful product. Its no wonder sales are down for the number one RPG game, its got nowhere to grow and once the players have the rules, they don't need to keep buying more, they can make their own rules, adventures, campaign worlds and monsters if they like, in fact as a hobby they are expected to. 


TSR made "products of your imagination" and understood that these were hobby materials, not unlike balsa wood and model rocket engines. 


In 2011 I'd like to see everyone that plays an RPG publish at least one item as a PDF and release it to share with others, even if its just a copy of your character. I'm sure when we all have a little more disposable income we'll be buying more product, but lets hope that we're a little more choosey and show the large publishers that they need to create useful quality products with the idea in mind that every sale they make beyond the game rules is not to be expected but to be considered "gravy" because really its just a sauce to the meat and potatoes of our hobby.

Mechanics of Love

They other day I was thinking about how in all the groups I've played RPGs with there has never been a PC that had any kind of romantic, sexual, or any kind of relationship, other than that of a formal one of a party member acting with other party members and NPCs.
I've read about grand romances and marriages that have occurred in other peoples games over time and began thinking about how I could introduce that kind of narrative to my campaign. I don't think my players are inclined to follow this dramatic vein in roleplaying so I thought what might be preventing them. I came to the conclusion that it was because neither I or them had ever discussed attraction while playing. 


Below is a mechanic for determining attraction and the conditions related to it that can lead to something further. In addition it provides benefits for trying to look attractive and being involved in a relationship in game.
I don't personally think this is better than good roleplaying but its interesting to me anyway.

Attraction

When encountering other characters the referee should check for attraction. This can be done at anytime during the encounter and could be due to any factors governed by charisma. One check per encounter unless the referee determines that something significant has changed (For example a character that was found severely wounded appears later at camp all cleaned up). Attraction is passive so there is no level bonus for C&C and no ability bonus for 3.5 OGL. It is assumed that players can choose their character’s sexual orientation and only characters that are within that orientation need be checked against. I’m sure min/max players will love choosing asexual. 

Roll for resistance versus attraction:

C&C: CL is the attracting character’s CHA modifier without level/HD bonus.

3.5 OGL: resistance is a Wil save vs. CHA score of the attracter. No ability modifiers except for the ones listed in the Attraction Modifiers table below.

Mutual Attraction

Mutually attracted characters will automatically comply with requests by the other character as long as it is not contrary to alignment or harmful to themselves. 

Mutually attracted characters are unable to properly use persuasion and seduction against one another. Although the referee can let them think they can try.


Infatuation.

Infatuation is a condition fostered through interaction between characters and those that are attracted to them. 

A roll for resistance vs. infatuation must be made under the following conditions:
• Attracting character is present (once per day)
• Any time an attracted character fails a save vs. persuasion

An infatuated character adds +5 the the CL or DC for Persuasion and Seduction saves (C&C save vs. CHA, 3.5 OGL vs. Will)

Jealousy

Any time an infatuated or in love character witnesses affection between the attracter and someone else they must roll for resistance to jealousy. In love characters receive a +1 bonus per month in love to a maximum of + 5 until year 2 is reached at which point an additional +1 is granted and thereafter again after every five years. This reflects a greater level of trust.

C&C vs. CHA CL = affection giver’s CHA modifier plus level.

3.5 OGL vs. Wil plus affection giver’s CHA modifier.

A character that fails a roll against jealousy immediately become hostile toward the character the attracter is interacting with. The player can choose to have their character be passive in their hostility if they choose but the details must be worked out with and approved by the referee.

Persuasion 

A character can make a persuasion attempt against a character that is infatuated  or in love with them. Persuasion acts as if the character had cast a charm spell. Persuaded characters take a -5 modifier to seduction. Characters cannot be persuaded to copulate unless they are in love. See Love below.

Seduction

Seduction is an intentional attempt at attraction. The character must make an attraction attempt vs the intended target. The character must be undisturbed in much the same way as casting a spell.

CL = CHA modifer +level/HD minup target’s WIS modifier

DC = 10 + CHA modifier minus target’s WIS modifier

If successful the target gets a saving throw (C&C vs. CHA, 3.5 OGL vs. Wil)

A character under seduction acts as if they had been placed under a geas spell by the seducer.

Seduction can be used to influence a character who is attracted to copulate.

Love 

Any characters that are mutually attracted can choose to fall in love.

Characters that are in love probably do not refuse requests of copulation. A character in love can be persuaded into copulation. Afterwards that character can choose to fall out of love if they desire. Being in love bestows the following benefits.

Ability Modifier Adj.

Intelligence     +1

Wisdom               +1

Charisma            +3

Rejection

Characters who are in love with someone who no longer reciprocates that love must make a resistance roll or suffer from rejection once per day.

C&C save vs. Attracter CL = CHA modifier plus level

3.5 OGL save vs. will DC = 10 plus CHA modifier

Minus 1 cumulative modifier for every time the attracter is hostile toward the character or instigates jealousy.

Characters who fail their save suffer penalties equal to the bonuses for love and can thereafter no longer receive love bonuses from the previous attracter.  Characters who make their save receive the full bonuses for love.  Characters who suffer from rejection must thereafter make a successful save once per day for a week to negate the effects of rejection.

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Copulation

Characters that copulate receive the following benefits and penalties per day.

Ability Modifier  Adj.

Strength               +2

Dexterity              +2

Constitution        +1

Intelligence         -1

Wisdom               -2

Charisma            -2

Copulation is addictive so a character who has not copulated once every 1d12 days takes the following penalties unless they save vs CON.

Ability Modifier Adj.

Strength          -1

Dexterity         -1

Charisma    -1

Intelligence  -1

Wisdom          -1

Characters who abstain from copulation must make a successful save 1d4 more times

before they lose their compulsion.

List of Attraction Modifiers to Charisma

Category Sub-category Bonus

Dress Fine Clothing +2 CHA modifier

Nudity or Partial Nudity x2 CHA modifier

Actions Flirtatious +1 CHA modifier

Suggestive +2 CHA modifier

Erotic +3 CHA modifier

Adornments Common +1 CHA modifier

Fine +2 CHA modifier

Luxurious +3 CHA modifier

Status Symbol                                                +1/-1 CHA modifier 

                                                (Uniforms, Symbols of authority etc). per difference in
                                                                                                                         standing

Makeup (as per culture) +1 CHA modifier

Modifiers stack, thus a crown, an object that is Luxurious and a Status Symbol is +3 plus difference in social standing.

© 2011 Scott Hadaller

Anethemalon Planes of Existence

Neutrality in the Cosmos

In putting together a cosmological chart for my Anethemalon campaign, I found a couple of things looking like add ons in 3.5 D&D and 3.5 OGL cosmology.


The first thing that I took note of was the Concordant Opposition. This appears to be an outer plane to place the powers of neutrality or balance.  My take here is that the balance is always shifting. It is not a thing of itself. It has its champions and they play out their cosmic shifting actions on the stage of the Prime Material Plane, the home of neutrality. This is the place between all of the outer alignment planes (or celestial/spiritual planes) that act against one another and where their shifting is felt. Here too the Positive and Negative Material planes mix along with the Elemental Planes to create reality. The mixing creates the uneven neutrality that is the Prime Material.


The other thing that really seemed unnecessary to me is the Shadow Plane. This is supposed to be some negative plane of the dead or something. With the ethereal plane being the home of ghosts and other disembodied creatures, how is the Shadow Plane required?  In my thinking the ethereal plane is created from the interaction of the positive and negative material planes. Not all of the ethereal is of the disembodied undead, but the negative parts attract and trap them on their way to the spiritual planes. Also the ethereal is what prevents the inner planes (or as I call them the temporal planes) from collapsing. The ethereal creates enough resistance, due to the repulsion of the positive and negative material planes, to prevent the elemental planes from negating each other. Just enough of everything is allowed to seep in, mix and create the universe. 


As noted above, the Prime Material is a mixture and as such is the only plane without an opposite, thus creating a stronger case for the redundancy of the Shadow Plane.


Neither Shadow or Concordant Opposition are in the AD&D Cosmos (Prior to Jeff Grubb's Manual of the Planes) It looks like Gygax actually thought about how this whole thing might work. I won't be including either.

Fantasy Economics

Earlier today I found this bit of writing on the Castles & Crusades Society fan site. Its available at the Tempest Damnosa blog.


It is a very interesting look at fantasy economics in a way that I think could provide greater depth of encounters between player characters and NPCs. There is a wealth of information here and I suggest that anyone interested in adding more importance to the exchange of wealth and its consequences in their games take a look.

Part 1: Agriculture and the Economy
Part 2: The Unguilded Townsmen
Part 3: Guildsmen of the Town
Part 4: The Nobility
Part 5: The Clergy
Part 6: Feudal Law
Part 7: The Royal Bureaucracy

Finishing "Deities of Anethemalon"

Spending the day adding the last few details to my Deities of Anethemalon document.

So far this is just a list of nine deities corresponding to the nine alignments. It's a simple start based on the format in "Of Gods & Monsters".

Once I'm done with this first step I'll post it as a PDF.
I plan on at least doubling the list of deities based more on role rather than on alignment.

At some later point, I want to create the list of gods for the age that precedes this one.


This setting is actually one where the gods have lost interest in the affairs of mortals and many have left the world. At the campaign start time, several of the deities on this list are new compared to others as they are the replacements to the gods that disappeared. This creates a push-pull between the gods as the new ones are more interested in gaining new ground and the older ones are reluctantly forced to act from the pressure being put on them. Let's just say the gods know something here that most mortals do not.

Monetary Systems for Anethemalon Campaign

So here is the monetary system I plan to use for my upcoming Anethemalon campaign. (The Dying Empires was my original campaign cobbled together from my earliest adventures, I was 10 - 15 years old at the time, and is related to Anethemalon).
This campaign is supposed to contain the "masterpiece" super adventure I wanted to create just before I stopped playing RPG's in the early ninties. Its the main reason I began looking at RPGs again and how I discovered the OSR. My plan is to use Castles & Crusades because I want an AD&D feel and access to resources, but can really do without the cumbersomeness. C&C plays with the fluidness of Moldvay/Cook/Marsh D&D, the version of D&D my group and I played the most.

Dying Empires & Anethemalon Campaigns

5 gp = 1 pp 

1 gp = 2 ep

1 gp = 20 sp

1 gp = 200 cp

or 

10 ep = 1 pp

2 ep = 1 gp

1 ep = 10 sp

1 ep = 100 cp

pp = Sovereign (s)

gp = Crown (c)

ep = Royal (r)

sp = Noble (n)

cp = Guilder (g)

Common currency is the Royal.

C&C Conversion with gp being common and equal and 1 Royal being half a gold piece

2 pp = 1 C&C pp or 10 C&C gp

1 gp = 1 C&C gp

2 ep =  1 C&C gp

20 sp  = 10 C&C sp or 1 C&C gp (2 sp = 1 C&C sp)

200cp = 100 C&C cp or 1 C&C gp (2cp = 1 C&C cp)

This is essentially the same rate of conversion as AD&D but the pieces are named by value rather than material and the common piece here is the Royal or ep. I'll probably make up an equipment list with conversions to Royals based on the C&C lists with some other sources added on to present to my players.