8.10.2013

Musical Inspiration, vol. 15 - Machinae Supremacy

This feature has been a long time coming, as every time I do one of these Musical Inspirations, I think about choosing one of these guys' songs, but always go for something else. I think it's just too obvious.

The Swedish-based New Frontier band produces music heavily influenced by the sounds of classic video games, and Hero is no exception. The lyrics also evoke the mood and thought processes that one sees often in JRPG characters, and can translate well to a "rockstar gaming" style of tabletop play.

I hope you enjoy this track and check them out further, though sometimes their music will make you want to play MegaMan or R-Type.

Machinae Supremacy - "Hero"



They try to beat me
but they will not ever defeat me
This time we're on my battlegrounds
I'm gonna win, trust in me
I have come to save this world
and in the end I'll get the girl!

I've missed it, so twisted
and unsurpassed in my head
This sense of power has awakened in me
I feel I could take on the world
a day like this
my rage is brewing like a storm

[Chorus]

And now the storm has grown
out of control
Right here, the voice of anger
taking tone
Cause now the fire
in our hearts explode
Baby, let's blow this joint
and build our own

Sometimes you just need to
level everything with the ground to
make room for all the things
you wanted somehow
And I have known it all along
the day is coming
when you will reap your evil ways


[2 x Chorus]

And build our own!

[Chorus] 
 
*As always, I don't own this, blah blah blah.

Dark Heresy, Session 4: Tattered Fates

And so, we had changed our minds, deciding to first search for our contact.

After hours of roaming these streets, asking where we might find a scholar, we were directed to an ill-kempt section of this city, likely forlorn because the drunkards and stimmheads that inhabit this hole care next to nothing for knowledge, or know that knowledge, itself, begets heresy, and rightfully steer clear of things such as tomes and dataslates that might fill their heads with dreamy thoughts. I begin to wonder, as I go over these thoughts if the whole of the population haven't already been accursed by these...books. There are great librariums here in this "Refutation" district, after all, which might implant all sorts of notions in one not steeled by His word.

Here, despite my reservations about these tomes and such, was indeed where we found our 'White Scholar', an ally in task and servant of our Inquisitor, as well. Here, he shared his knowledge of this damnable world and gave insight to the perils which we face; dread cults - perhaps beholden to the Ruinous Powers, Drusus spit on them - which had in the works, or in planning, a ritual of some sort that would destroy this world (or the system, I was unclear) if it came to fruition. He rambled on more, and I'm hoping I was not the only one trying to pay attention, as we were beset by some of these heretics, whom had been identified as members of a cult known as the Pilgrims of Hayte.

I quickly lost interest in the scholars words, and indeed, have mostly forgotten some of what the man said because I was given the opportunity to bring His judgment to those sworn against Him. Though they demanded the life of our fellow acolyte, our strikes were true, and though that damned Xantippa invoked the warp disastrously yet again, we won the day against our foes. I claimed the warp sorceror's armored vest and they were stripped of their weaponry before we began to ask the Scholar where we might find a place to fence our ill-gotten goods.


Cast of Characters
Rhia, Gunpoint (Hive World) Investigator (Arbiter 4) - Angela
Xantippa Thebe, Son of Nightmare (Void Born) ?? (Imperial Psyker 4) -  Paul
Ishta, Son of Nightmare (Void Born) ?? (Imperial Psyker 4) -Tami
Nicodemus, Regulus (Imperial World) Inditor (Adept 4) -Taylor
Mohrdecai, Cadian (Fortress World) Sergeant (Guardsman 4) - Me


Notes: Wednesday night was just incredibly fun and funny. We mostly just talked and had a good time more than playing. Passed around some hot sauces that were among some of the hottest I've had, especially the stuff David had gotten when on vacation, and ate a heap of candy.

We were originally supposed to play Paul's game, having skipped last week, which would have been Dark Heresy, but Paul and David decided that David would run his game...and they both forgot to share that with the rest of us. Next week is anyone's guess, as Paul said that once he started scripting his game, it only came to about one more session. Perhaps he will expand or run as-is, and maybe we'll be back on Quaddis.

8.04.2013

My Reincarnation Table

A few weeks ago, The Digital Orc (go read his blog, it's good) asked me in a comment for the table I use (and have shared with my current group and others in the past) when a character has Reincarnate cast on them. It took me longer than anticipated, but I've finally gotten the chance to clean it up and here it is!

Now, don't let that make you think that it will look pretty. Far from it. I make sloppy notes for my games, with little regard for layout, and at best, this is just functional. The file is in Word .doc format, but I can post it in something else if people have any problems with it.

I don't think, given my usual blogging fare, that I should post a disclaimer saying that this list is taken entirely from 3.x sources. This is simply because that's what my group plays, and honestly, if you are playing any version of D&D, or retroclones thereof, it's my personal opinion that you do yourself a disservice by not mining other editions for content. I do it all the time with my personal games, but I digress.

Anyway, some might point out I didn't include races from X book, or updated to Pathfinder, or whatever. Yes, I know this. This chart was crafted specifically for two games I ran in the past, and I still like and use it. I'm sorry if your favorite race didn't make the list. There are, I think, 92 separate roll results on the primary chart alone. That's enough to last you a bit.

Some might also say that I maybe should have skewed more toward the base/classic races of D&D, but they do get a small bump on the chart, and I really just like options. I like gonzo stuff in my games, I like crunchy characters with options, and I also like roleplay situations built upon becoming something that perhaps noone in this part of the world has seen before.

I could certainly improve the thing, I'm sure, but my group and I get heaps of enjoyment out of it. You can improve it, if you would like. If you play older editions, I hope you at least look into some of the monsters, and maybe even do some conversions, if they don't exist in your rules. I would be incredibly interested in seeing stuff like that.

As always, please comment if you have any questions, suggestions, etc.. I look forward to it.