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  1. practicalm

    Worlds of Design: What Did You Expect?

    I've tried a couple of different approaches and either I don't have a large enough pool of players or they don't realize I'm serious about the style of game I'm trying to create. I create summary descriptions of the games I'm willing to run. I discuss what the player goals should be and I try...
  2. practicalm

    Planet/System Name Generators for a Space Opera Setting

    Try this https://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/planet-names.php Probably isn't completely what you are looking for but there are a lot of other options on the site
  3. practicalm

    Hostile AI input & suggestions

    The tone of the AI companion from The Culture novel "The Player of Games" is nicely sarcastic. If the AI is trying to stay hidden, then it should turn its core into a honey pot and convince the players there is something they want on it and they need to get it to their ship. It would be...
  4. practicalm

    Ben Riggs: 'The Golden Age of TTRPGs is Dead'

    I don't get this at all. The 80s had a wide variety of games published and some of those systems are still running today. Then the late 90s and early 2000s had a large number of independent games targeting different styles of play. I think it's always been bad having one company dominate the...
  5. practicalm

    Some mechanisms (often ported from the old days) are putting the incentives in the wrong place - blog post discussion

    The other trick is you could have traveling encumbrance and then fighting encumbrance where you drop your treasure while fighting. That makes it even harder for players to retreat but it does give something for the enemy to do, run and steal the player's packs.
  6. practicalm

    D&D General D&D as a Game- On the Origin of Hit Points and Start of the Meat Debate

    The tricky thing about GURPS combat between skilled sword fighters is they can last many rounds as they each try to get past their parry skills. Which isn't really fun. Feints, situational terrain, or teaming up is needed to fight a skilled enemy. I like the situation of having weapons where...
  7. practicalm

    Grade the GURPS System

    If you are going to twist the language to abuse this disadvantage then there won't be a way to stop you from abusing anything written down. Cash on hand doesn't have to mean in their physical possession. Should count savings, bank accounts.
  8. practicalm

    What is A Mountain?

    My great uncle lives in a town called Mountain Top in PA The whole area is lower elevation than the california state university east bay where I was at school. East coast people have a different definition of mountain.
  9. practicalm

    Streaming Services: Power Rankings Summer 2023, and What's Up With Paramount+

    While I think Netflix is still good for most people, I recently canceled my subscription because of my experience in trying to add my son as an extra user on my account. Add in that I actually was using their DVD service for shows that I couldn't get through the other services I have access to...
  10. practicalm

    Grade the GURPS System

    This is misinterpreting the Greed disadvantage significantly. The text says when riches are offered. Not when money is offered for anything. And it's relative to your wealth level so there is clear room on the amount of money that would indicate riches to someone. And it specifically calls...
  11. practicalm

    RPG Evolution: Wait, Are We Still Role-Playing?

    I've had my online handle for a long time and in many discords in voice that's how I'm referred because we don't dox people with their real names unless everyone in the group agrees. When our discord server had a physical meet up people would still refer to me by my online handle because that's...
  12. practicalm

    Dragon Reflections #70

    Standard rule Civilization was okay but the Advanced Civilization rules made the game much more interesting. If you like the trading rounds of Civilization look at Sidereal Confluence which is mostly just the trading round of Civilization with a little bit of tech buying and engine building. I...
  13. practicalm

    Video Games: Nostalgia Vs Extinct Genres

    Spaceward Ho! was a fantastic light 4x style game. Warlords series was a fun quick fantasy conquest game. There are a few games that are similar now but not with the same polish. I still play Puzzle Pirates which doesn't really have a successor.
  14. practicalm

    What's Your Favorite Name for a TTRPG and Why?

    Paranoia accurately describes the state the characters should be in
  15. practicalm

    Case Studies in Intellectual Property: Dick Tracy

    The 1945 Dick Tracy movie was good for its time and focus. I haven't seen most of the Republic serials.
  16. practicalm

    Magical Schools for the Greater Good

    Technically not really a school, but the So You Want To Be A Wizard series is fun.
  17. practicalm

    Lockwood & Co. - Netflix show

    I haven't been able to track down the books, and the world building in the show is interesting. Apparently 50 years before the start of the show ghosts started haunting the UK (and probably the world). Some children have talents of listening or sight and adults cannot see the ghosts at all...
  18. practicalm

    Thoughts on the Failure of Licensed IP in the Hobby: The Lack of Disney-fication is a Feature, not a Bug

    Ghostbusters was built along the idea of the players being franchise operators. I think they did stat up the original characters but the goal wasn't to be those characters. Back to the original post, Dungeons and Dragons does three things well that contributes to it's success. 1. Player...
  19. practicalm

    What are your thoughts on system-less worldbuilding/setting books?

    I have always liked the Citybook Series published by Flying Buffalo. Different businesses you can drop into your own cities if you need something and fairly easy to modify.
  20. practicalm

    Deadly combat systems

    GURPS is deadly. Guns and crossbows are not to be laughed at unless you are armored.
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