It is dawning on me that I could well spend my declining years pleasantly engaged in answering posts here...
Okay, back to the task at hand:
Larcen said:
Hi Gary,
Glad to see your still answering questions! Sorry about the long message to follow, but an opportunity to question you is too good to pass up!
After reading what you have said about Lejendary Journeys I was interested enough to go check out your website for more info.
First, let me say that the free download, "Weyland Smith & Company", was hilarious. Leave it to you to crank out 59 pages of pure magic and creativity. I especially liked how you included generic, non-specific "rules" right in the body of the funny descriptions for each item. Where do you get the ideas for such great magic items?
Heh, and that is also little booklet is available from Hekaforge so the GM can have it on hand when he wants to mess with the players
Of course as a typical boy I used to get "joke and novelty catalogs in the mail--I'd send a dime to get them, in fact, esprcially the one from Johnson Smith & Company. Then I'd carefully read them, long for the many marvelous things therein, fron snapping gum packs to cigarette loads, even fencing foils. Yes, I did save up and buy "stuff" too. Luckily I was out of the house when my father's after-dinner cigar when KAPOW!
Anyway, remembering fondly those days, I decided to do something like that for RPGs. Eventually I'll expand the work and add it to the "Gygaxian" Fantasy Worlds reference line, perhaps.
However, I was disappointed not to find more information on the LJ game itself, other than the sample Avatars. I was kind of hoping there would be a sort of free "LJ Lite" (a la "GURPS Lite" available at the Steve Jackson site), or an introduction to some of LJ's mechanics, or at least more information on how to read the sample Avatar sheets themselves. At lot of the abbreviations on the sheets were meaningless to me. Can you post a sort of key on how to read the Avatar sheets? I hope I simply didn't miss it somewhere.
Heh, and that's LEJENDARY ADVENTURES, amigo
The website that has virtually all there is on the game system is
www.lejendary.com Hekaforge does plan to do a primer for the game, a small book with a low proce point, so that those interested but not sure, can have a go without spending $30 or more to see if it is their cup of tea.
There is a brief glossary of terms in the players' rules book, and I'll suggest to Gambit that this be posted on his website...
(Just did that via eamil, so onwards and upwards.)
On a different topic, here are a few off the wall questions:
What kind of music do you enjoy listening to, and do you use atmospheric music for any of your gaming sessions?
When I am really engrossed in work I prefer silence, and if there is some background noise and confusion, then classical or Spanish guitar music to muffle the intrusive noise. In general I enjoy classical and Spanish music, blues, modern jazz, old R&B, some electrinic classical compositions, even some opera. Mosic with lyrics I generally find distracting, as I want to listen to them, not concentrate on my work.
When we game I don't play music, as I find it interfers with the conversation and roleplay.
The anniversary of 9/11 is coming around so it's on my mind. Where were you, and what was your reaction, when you first heard of last year's tragedy?
I was at the computer, and Gail happened to be taking a break, drinking coffee and watching FOX News. She called me in to see what was happening, so I saw the coverage of the second plane hitting. I immediately assumed it was a deliberate attack when I saw that horific scene. Unbelievable, heart-breaking, and absolutely infuriating!
On a lighter note, do you think Al Quaida would loosen up if they gamed more?
I've got a game for them...
Finally, there is a project I have been hoping someone would do for some time now, and quite frankly am surprised no one has thought of it yet. And now that I think of it, YOU are the only person I would trust to do it justice. Here is the idea: A sourcebook for ROLEplaying. No rules. Just roleplaying. In it, there would be complete descriptions of how each and every monster (in whatever game system suits your fancy) talks, acts, parlays, etc. Right down to common words used, voice inflections, and accents. Obviously no one race can be pigeonholed into one stereotype, so I am talking the common mannerisms of average members of each race. For example, unless you read this new book, you would never know that kobolds speak in quick high-pitched voices and repeat themselves over and over again. Or you would not know about the fact that hobgoblins talk in slurred, almost drunken voices and have a habit of belching midsentence and using the word "Dunno" a lot. Hobgoblins also tend to slouch and hunch their shoulders and move their heads back and forth a lot. See what I mean? I am talking hard, fast stuff that the game master can use AT THE GAMING TABLE to make his roleplaying come to life. I think this would be extremely helpful to would be aspiring game masters everywhere, like me! What do you think of this idea?
Anyway, thanks for giving me, my friends, and gamers everyhere a wonderful passtime and hobby like no other.
The work you suggest would likely be helpful to many a gamer, GMs and players alike. However, I wonder who could possibly manage the task? To write such a book would require a couple of years time, I should think. Also, to be generally universal to FRPGs, a lot of publishers would have to give premission for use of their proprietary creatures, I should think. The upshot is I really kike your idea, but I am doubtful that it can be done. It's surely too much work for me to undertake....without a govrnment grant, that is
Gary
