Being in the Main the Mouth of Olde House Rules
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
Gratification in the Gaming Age...
Tuesday, February 6, 2024
No Clouds Above, No Men Below...
Ageism might be the last acceptable predjudice; and given the young/old divide implied by the OSR, you definitely see this in the gaming community. Case in point: last week on Facebook (because it's always Facebook), some grognard posted a meme waxing nostalgic about their younger days and marathon sessions. No putting anyone else down, no ugly edition warfare, just reminiscing about a happy childhood. Well along comes the inevitable contrarian, who suggested it sounded like "old man yells at cloud" stuff...
Really? Also, absurd. So here goes. Simply (1) being old, (2) preferring older editions of whatever system, and (3) enjoying happy memories doesn't make you the proverbial old man (or woman) yelling at clouds beyond the rather thoughtless imaginations of some. By this reasoning, every grognard should immediately burn their rulebooks and rend their garments over these false memories of happiness. If you're denigrating the younger generation and their rulebooks, you are this guy. But simply liking your favorite stuff is far from it.
I get it (and rather suspect it's tit for tat). The young are denigrated ad nauseum for being born decades too late. Their games, famously forgiving, are too soft (as though generation X stormed the blood-stained beaches at Normandy). It's Marxism. Storygamers are entitled swine (take that, Forge). This is old man vs. cloud multiplied, and every bit as ridiculous as the reverse. Games are played for fun, and each offers a different experience. Unless a ruleset involves bona fide homicide, it's hardly Hitler's invasion of Poland...
But it's not all bad. Last year (also on Facebook) someone posted a gag module called Against the Grognards. I pointed out that grognard implied the aged, broad brushing them as stereotypical Boomers who resist everything. What they meant was Gatekeeper, a sadly universal phenomenon transcending generations. And you know what? My Facebook friend agreed, changing the title and making it all the funnier. Laziness is easier than nuance, accounting for much confusion. But preference and nostalgia alone are no offense.
Tuesday, January 2, 2024
Action: Reaction Rolls, Take Two...
Tuesday, December 5, 2023
Spotlight On: Wyrdwarden...
Some of you might have heard about the Mydwandr Supplement License allowing you, the community, to publish your own content for the game, with great leeway to fill in its various (and by design) gray areas. But what you might not know is that it's already bearing delicious fruit with Wyrdwarden, a Solo Campaign Exemplar by newcomer Tim Fox.
Now as the name suggests, it's primarily designed for solo play. Create your heroes, roll to decide exactly where in the world they begin, and proceed through a series of adventures well in keeping with the spirit of the setting. Spanning enemy fortresses and remote villages in need of able assitance, it's more than just a module. It's an entire campaign that clearly understands the soul of Mydwandr. If you pine for solo play, this is a great start...
But here's the fun part. While ostensibly meant for solo play, it's useful for traditional referees as well, and with little to no additional effort. From a gazatteer's reckoning of the seasons (something not covered in the core rulebook) to random tables for everything from wilderness features to place (and character) names, among others in keeping with Mydwandr's unique linguistics, it's a ready made campaign reference in the style of the old days.
The adventures are speedily converted to traditional tabletop, with the aforementioned random tables filling in many a blank. Referees willing to put their own spin on things will find lots of space to do so, aided by the product's strong foundation. Setting the above aside, there's an abundance of original content in the form of new monsters (hazards), which might be worth the price. Insectoid Antwyrd? Check. Fungal Mycanoids? They're all here...
Now all of this is held together with a series of creative exercises to set the mood, a concept underutilized across the gaming hobby and most welcome here. Wyrdwandr comes in a digital version (a bargain at $4.99) or a spiral-bound printing in the style of old and easier to use in the heat of play. Mydwandr fans should definitely consider giving this a look...