You are getting sleepy...

From the Moldvay-edited D&D Basic Set...

Sleep
Range: 240'
Duration: 4-16 turns

This spell will put creatures to sleep for 4d4 turns. The caster can only affect creatures with 4+1 hit dice or less. Only 1 creature with 4+1 hit dice will be affected; otherwise, the spell affects 2-16 (2d8) hit dice of creatures. The undead cannot be put to sleep. When affecting a group of creatures of mixed levels (hit dice), lower level creatures will always be put to sleep before higher level ones. Any “pluses” are ignored (for example, 2+1 hit dice is treated as 2 hit dice). Creatures with less than 1 hit die are still considered as 1 hit die. Any sleeping creature may be awakened by force (such as a slap). A sleeping creature may be killed (regardless of its hit points) with a single blow with any edged weapon.

EXAMPLE: A party encounters 4 hungry lizard men. Sarien, an elf, casts a sleep spell at them. The DM rolls 2d8; the result of 7 means that 7 levels of creatures are affected. Lizard men have 2+1 hit dice each, treated as 2 for the effects of this spell. Three lizard men fall asleep: 7 divided by 2 equals 3 &12;, but a creature cannot be “partially” asleep from the spell.

Perhaps listing only a range and no area of effect is intentional†, but what if it isn’t an area-of-effect spell? I’m considering the following clarification:

Before rolling the HD affected, the player must indicate which creatures are being targeted. The caster must be able to see the targets. Then, after the roll, the DM determines which creatures are actually affected, giving preference to the lower HD creatures as described above.

So, the caster could choose to only target a higher HD creature to prevent lower HD creatures from soaking it all up. And I think I’m OK with that, since there’s a trade-off here. e.g. Target fewer creatures with more consistent results or target more creatures with more random results. In also means that Sleep won’t accidentally affect an ally, and that’s the way I’ve usually played it anyway.

†For what it’s worth, in the Rules Cyclopedia, an area of effect was specified. I believe it said a 40-foot square.

Free RPGs

After hearing Chris Pramas talk about Green Ronin’s Dragon Age (tabletop) RPG on The Game’s the Thing, I was sold...

...but...

I’ve got some really great RPGs that are free.

(“Free” can mean a lot of things. In this instance, I mainly mean that anyone with Internet access can download the game legally at no monetary cost beyond what they’re paying for Internet service.)

1. Labyrinth Lord
2. GORE
3. The (3.5) d20 SRD

Just to name three. There are many, many more.

Is Dragon Age really worth choosing over all of them? It’s “stunt system” looks worthy of consideration and possibly emulation. Other than that, though... It does look like the kind of introductory system we haven’t had since Frank Mentzer’s Basic/Expert/Companion/Master sets. Worth gifting perhaps.

I even come up against the same question with games I already own. I really like Dragon Warriors, but it’s really not so different than Labyrinth Lord.

With Labyrinth Lord...

1. I have a print version
2. I can print more hardcopies myself or go to a print shop and have hardcopies printed and bound
3. I can put it on my iPad and iPhone and whatever device I have a decade hence
4. I can search it
5. I can copy & paste the rules to make up my own customized version
6. My players would have free access to the rules and could do all those things as well
7. If I wanted to publish something for the game (either for free or at a price), I could legally do so without having to pay for the right
8. I can do all of this forever

With Dragon Warriors or Dragon Age...

1. I have a print version (DW) or could buy a print version (DA)
2. I could buy a PDF version for an additional cost

What’s more, Labyrinth Lord is based on my favorite edition of D&D. It has an expansion that makes it easy to import as much or as little AD&D flavor as I wish. It has a similar expansion for the flavor of original D&D. There’s a compatible post-apocalyptic game, Mutant Future. There will soon be a compatible version of Starships & Spacemen.

As you can tell, I’m a big fan of what Goblinoid Games is doing, but there are a lot of other really good free RPGs out there too.

Is any non-free system better enough than the free systems to bother with?

Even if they were, I don’t think I want a system that is that different.

Free Dragon Warriors Introductory Book

Magnum Opus Press has a free Introductory Book for their Dragon Warriors role-playing game available through DriveThruRPG.com. It looks like it will serve as a decent “player’s book”.

Dragon Warriors

I got my last Christmas present today. (It was bought with Amazon gift cards.) Dragon Warriors

I first learned about DW in 2005. I was pretty impressed then. So, I was happy to hear it was making a comeback. I was a little worried since it is being published by Mongoose. Turns out, though, that it is through Mongoose’s Flaming Cobra imprint, which apparently means that the real publisher, Magnum Opus Press, handled all the text.

So far, I’m really wishing I had discovered this game in 1986. That was when Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay came out. I guess it was my third RPG (behind Traveller and (A)D&D). Warhammer was a nice change from (A)D&D. There’s a lot I like about the game, but enough that I’m not crazy about. I think DW would’ve fit the bill better. In some ways, I could call DW a cross between classic D&D and WFRP.

In the introduction, Dave Morris (one of the co-authors) describes DW thusly...

Fantasy games like D&D—or, these days, World of Warcraft—belong to the George Lucas or Chris Columbus branch of role-playing. Dragon Warriors would be a movie by Guillermo del Toro or Tim Burton.

Incidentally, I think this book would make a good introduction to the hobby for the person doesn’t have a local group to join and must form their own.

So, member of my group, expect me to foist it on you at some point. ^_^