I am going to Gary Con ! ! !

It is official that I am going to Gary Con VIII in 2016, I am so excited.

This convention is one of the best as far as Old School gaming goes. It honors the Life of Gary Gygax, the creator of all modern Roleplaying

I have done many NJ/ PA cons and have been invited to run games for many people over the years in various places. I have never attended Gen-Con or other huge cons requiring lots of travel.

I made the decision to go after talking to Luke (He is a veteran of all the major cons) and we both bought Gold Tickets and booked a hotel.

What makes this special is it is a Convention dedicated to OLD School gamers, like myself.

This means that I should have plenty of Players... I got the badge I wanted because I want to be able to Sign up for a couple of games run by VIPs

Games I have Submitted to Run at Gary Con



03/03

8:00 AM - Noon

AD&D - Entrance to Classari

This is a showcase piece of my creativity, combining some of the best Rooms, traps Monsters I have created...
You are tasked with going into the lost Gnome kingdom of Classari and retrieving bloodausan uklayas
5th-8th level... bring your own or be issued a generic

6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Toon - Foo-Fuu Toon... Catch that Bird

Capture the exclusive bird to collect the key to the ACME superstore shopathon
Bring your own or use one provided
Levels Silly to utterly rediculous
No one under age 3 and a half permitted due to goofy content, ability to roll 2 6 sided dice and drool occasionally recommended... bring your best gookie!

8:00 PM - 12:00 AM

AD&D - So you think you have an Attitude!

Only Dwarves need apply... 13th-15th level... bring your own or be issued a generic.... The followers of the God of Attitude and Drink are sent on a quest for the Ultimate Ale.
Beginners welcome.
Age 13+ please.
Pregenerated characters provided.

03/04

8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

TOON - PizzaToon / A Toon Love Story

2 Shorts
Pizzatoon, deliver pizzas to ....
A Toon Love Story, where is the groom ?
Levels Mild Insanity to Outright bambooled

4:00 PM - 8:00 PM
AD&D - AAAAHHHH

Pregen Characters Provided... I promise a truly Epic adventure that will generate stories for you to tell in the tavern
This features some of the greatest concepts and Role Play that I have ever put together. The characters provided are all high level
and saying anything further goes would ruin the integrity of the game.
Age 15+ please.
ONLY Pregenerated characters will be used.

8:00 PM - 12:00 AM
AD&D - By The Light of the Slippery Moon

12th - 16th Level
Adventurers on a Merchant Ship bound for far off Ports....
ONLY Pregenerated characters will be used.

03/05
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
TOON - Daytoona Beach Party Bingo Blast

Beach Olympics... 'Nuff said
Bring your own or use one provided
Levels 1-1220

No one under age 3 and a half permitted due to goofy content, ability to roll 2 6 sided dice and drool occasionally recommended... bring your best gookie!

4:00 PM - 8:00 PM
AD&D - The Quest for the Gate Between Worlds

Levels 6th -10th
Find the Gate to get back home, now if you can only get past the .....
ONLY Pregenerated characters will be used.

03/06

2:00 PM - 6:00 PM
AD&D - AAAAHHHH

Pregen Characters Provided... I promise a truly Epic adventure that will generate stories for you to tell in the tavern
This features some of the greatest concepts and Role Play that I have ever put together. The characters provided are all high level
and saying anything further goes would ruin the integrity of the game.
Age 15+ please.
ONLY Pregenerated characters will be used.

Let's talk modules...

Let's Talk Modules

Running modules:

I am not big on going through modules or on running most modules, they have to be really cool in order to run them. I cannot improvise as much with a module and as a creative person, I always thinking that some portions are added simply as filler because the author did not know what to write or needed more pages.

Music that Inspired me

A recent post online asked what Pieces of music inspire you to break open the books and write so I thought I would revisit this and expand on it

There are several bands that inspire me, and a few pieces of music that really get the creative mood going.

First piece of music to really get my mind going was:

I discovered this at around age 10... one of the benefits of having older brothers

Queen - Queen II -

Black Side (Side Two)    

No.         Title                                                        Length 

1.            "Ogre Battle"                                             4:10

2.            "The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke"            2:40

3.            "Nevermore"                                              1:15

4.            "The March of the Black Queen"               6:33

5.            "Funny How Love Is"                                2:50

6.            "Seven Seas of Rhye"                                2:50

As a whole, this is pure imagery in such a fantasy and whimsical way

Now once upon a time - an old man told me a fable

When the piper is gone - and the soup is cold on your table

And if the black crow flies to find a new destination - that is the sign

Come tonight

Come to the ogre sight

Come to the ogre-battle-fight

The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke is describing this painting , again, the imagery 

Click here to listen

Richard Dadd  "The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke" 

Other Queen Songs:

The Prophet Song

Death on Two Legs

Killer Queen

Keep Yourself Alive



Jethro Tull  - The Broadsword and the Beast

Broadsword

I see a dark sail on the horizon, set under a black cloud that hides the sun. Bring me my broadsword and clear understanding. Bring me my cross of gold as a talisman

Beastie

From early days of infancy, through trembling years

of youth, long murky middle-age and final hours

long in the tooth, he is the hundred names of terror ---

creature you love the least. Picture his name before

you and exorcise the beast.

Other Jethro Tull Songs that have inspired me are numerous, I have listed a few 

The Minstrel in the Gallery

Skating Away (on the thin ice of the new day)

The Entire AQUALUNG album

Songs From the Wood

Other Music:

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Tarkus album and Pictures At An Exhibition

The Doors - Crystal Ship / Land Ho / Riders on the Storm

Clannad - I will Find you 

Classical Music

Also Sprach Zarathustra

Blue Danube

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

Night On Bald Mountain

The Valkyrie: Ride of the Valkyries
Carmina Burana: O Fortuna  (Used in Excalibur) 

I love music that evokes images Such as Squeeze's Pulling Music from a shell

They do it down on Camber Sands

They do it at Waikiki

Lazing about the beach all day,

At night the crickets creepy

Squinting faces at the sky

A Harold Robbins paperback

Surfers drop their boards and dry

And everybody wants a hat

Updates and thoughts

Some of my new purchases... 

I was searching for new dice and was asked to evaluate a set of gold dice, they were nice and he wanted to sell them, I consulted with one of my players (Luke) who owns metal dice that were similar... They seemed to be in the 30 dollar range but I needed to look further into it. They were 16mm as opposed to the standard 20mm.  I ended up not buying them 

I did find a brand new pair for a reasonable price, with no shipping charge

Absolutely stunning 

Gold Dice... 

Flip Battle Map and Plastic Travel Tube for protection

RPG, love this system

Freebie

The Elves of Sannatogga

This is my current campaign that I am running. What happens when you take a group of elves and displace them where there are no Elves....

Started out on a ship as galley slaves, then the ship is under attack, taken over and the Elves are set free in another part of the world unknown to them.  with nothing but a few crappy swords and some gold from the slavers spoils 

First they encounter a race that has the ability to make people forget that they ever met them.. 

Then, they find that there are no Elves in this area of the world and they have not seen any other races

Then make their way to a Town and Small Kingdom and have to win over people and prove they are friendly, then they are asked to clear out a nearby cave system of the current foul creatures that have taken it over. 

Philly GamersCon....

The pathfinder table

SO I went to the Philly Gamescon on April 17th and 18th. I had a pretty good good time all in all. 

Friday, I played in my first Pathfinder game. What I did not realize was that I signed up for a Pathfinder Society game and needed to register. So I was given a folder with the information for Pathfinder Society and how to register

So now, My Dwarven Cleric, Gundababba, is now registered

All in all , it was a good quick adventure for the 3 players and we all got a book for playing from the Pathfinder Society.

I have to say that on Friday it was mostly Greybeards like myself in attendance, That was kinda depressing because it would mean that when we go, RPG's will be gone...

Gregory the Grey Beard

SATURDAY


Arrived at just a bit before I running my fisrt game only to find that someone took over my table... normally not a big deal but I was assigned the table next to the wall and did not want to be in the middle of the room... I am very animated sometimes when I run games and I like to walk to about...

Con Staff was very good about it, even if the card players did not like it (I was running 2 Games at the same table and both games were supposed to be filled.)

Game 1 - So You Think You Have an Attitude

My Drunken Dwarves game had only three players but they made the most of it. It is a fun game to run and always gets loud. 2 of the 3 were in my second game

Game 2  - AAHH

This is my masterpiece, this game was full. I handed out the Pre-generated Characters and set the game... Everything worked rather well... even if they did over pay the price to get to the town.

I was very happy to see a good balance of younger players and Greybeards at the con on Saturday. I do not take pictures of people so I have none of the game tables.  Next time I will ask permission and take some.



Kudos to the Staff, my experience was Great and I am very experienced with Cons, I felt taken care of.

The only slight complaint I had was the dealers room.. The guys in there did not have a great selection and I was going to buy on Saturday but when I got to try, it was closed. Next time can you announce in the Game room that the dealers room is closing so people have a chance to buy.

These are a few of my favorite Games....

Having been around Role Playing Games for most of my life, I have a few favorites that I would like to expand on:

First, Dungeons and Dragons, the grandfather of all modern role playing.



It was a game without a winner, where you tried to become someone else... and our gaming group was pretty tight through HS

The game is Trait based -  Strength, intelligence, wisdom constitution, dexterity and and charisma are the basics. Then there are charts for battles and armor class ratings... lots of percentiles to do accomplishments such as thieve's skills...


I mastered the game and then went on to have several gaming groups and did many conventions in NJ

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Vampire, the Masquerade

I had several friends that played Vampire, I had resisted playing for a while because it really was not something I was into..... well, after the first few sessions, I was hooked..  The D10 system was straightforward, it was skill based and not based on traits,,,,

I found that I enjoyed it because it was (at least the games I was playing) set in the current modern era

Soon, I had a weekly group that played and I kept finding stranger and darker story lines for them.

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Toon, The Role playing Game

Some of the best games I have run and played in were Toon games... it takes a lot to be in the right frame of mind for Toon. You have to be fully prepared and on your toes at all times.

You have to act before you think, this means keeping a few running gags in pocket at all times so you can do them at the most (in)appropriate times..

--------------------------
Dangerous Journeys

This is my favorite Role Playing System because it is completely built on Skills, making a character takes forever, but once completed, the game is so rich and diverse

This is a game for people interested in ROLE playing and being able to do things not normally found in games.


Battletech

More of Strategy than Role Playing, I do enjoy a good game.



Dream Park

Built on the Cyberpunk 2. 0 system, this is fast flexible and fun... does a great job of combining many genres even it is does not do one batter than others... 

Becoming a Pathfinder Player / Path Master

Let me just say I am committed to the Original AD&D and D&D system as some of us "Old Timers" are. We dismiss anything after TSR as JUNK

About 2 weeks ago, I decided to pick up the beginner box for Pathfinder. This is my first exposure to the D20 system... I read all the material for D&D 3.0 and about the D20 system many years ago and it did not appeal to me. To me, changing the base system of AD&D make it a completely different game and not related to AD&D or to D&D.

SO I have heard several good things about Pathfinder (Open Game License) and since I despise Wizards of the Coast (Magic is gamer's crack and really has no place at conventions, nor does it lead to full blown Role playing) I made the choice to give it a shot

$30 Dollars later I get the Beginner box set...

Looking through the materials, I find it to be very well done.

This is a nice box set that allows you play almost immediately. I would have like to have different colored dice in the sets, it would have been a nice touch that anyone buying the set does not only get red dice (did I mention I have 2 of these sets)

The Cardboard heros and monsters are well done but I have figures so I will never punch them or open the bag of stands. Same with the dice, I have no need to open to the dice.

CLASSES AND RACES

The classes are pretty much standard from the D&D basics... Fighter, Cleric, Mage and Rogue
I kinda despise the term Rogue, it it a left over of the 2nd edition softening up of the entire system.... A Thief is a thief

Races - Human, Elves and Dwarves - Standard races, nothing exciting or new here... Humans get a +2 bonus to any trait without having the penalty of -2 that Dwarves and Elves are stuck with....somehow, the Halfling is not in the set


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CHARACTER CREATION

So I read the Hero's Handbook first and then went though character creation step by step.. I decided to make a Dwarf Cleric. So I followed the 4D6, drop the lowest, arrange as needed method...

Pros of Character Creation

•  Using the 4D6 attributes in D&D
•  Seems fairly easy, I did get confused creating the character with all the page turning.

Cons of Creation

•   You add a lot of plus to the modifiers between race and Class... I started out with a 19 in wisdom and a +5 ... meaning my failure rate on wisdom based stuff was going to be low rate right off the bat
•  Feats and Skills... If you are doing a skill based system, then play a skill based system,  I am not fond of a half breed system (hence why I never liked the D20 system when I first read up on it)
• I had to figure that Class Feats and Skills were not automatically given, even though it says to mark the class skills... not sure if this was merely my error or a book clarity issue
• 
  
• Did I mention that if all modifiers add up to less than +3, you can reroll all your rolls

Summary:
I made my character, bought what they need and getting ready to learn the Combat... Every class starts with the same money in basic. My experience is somewhat in the middle, while being fairly easy, I think it is simplified by the system used... The over use of feats and Skills can lead to making powerful characters


So my Dwarf Cleric, Gundababba, has no scores under 13, the Armor Class is 18...

playing in a lot of different RPG's over the years, this 18 AC is really daunting... I assume that a Monster needs an 18 or higher to hit him (with any bonuses) and he is not wearing a heavy armor.

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COMBAT....

Roll a D20 and add any initiative modifiers
    Order from Highest to lowest
Spells are instantaneous at least in the Beginners set
Initiative is rolled once for the combat and not done each round (if you lose, you lose until the next battle)

Not fond of this at all, seems to be just a way to speed up actions....

So I have a +4 to my Mace attack, +5 if I use a hammer.... so I basically can hit most things with a 12, unless they have pretty good armor.

For example, the Goblins in the set are AC 13, so if I roll a 9 or better at first level, I hit and do 1D8 damage +4
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SPELLS

Pretty much the standard ones used in AD&D, no real comments about them

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NEXT STEPS

So I ordered and I am reading the Pathfinder: Core Rulebook

I am playing in my first Pathfinder game in April at Philly Gamescon