RPG Design: Gamist Restrictions On Classes

Last year, I discussed the important issue for tabletop RPG Design of Balancing Classes.   This week, I wanted to discuss a particular approach to game balance: Gamist Restrictions On Classes.

First made famous in Original Dungeons & Dragons (1974) and OD&D's linear and spiritual descendants, RPGs that use character classes typically have various limitations baked in at the RPG Design-level in order to differentiate the abilities of different game characters and to provide niche protection (e.g., only Clerics can turn undead, Magic-Users cannot cast spells in armor, etc.).

These limitations also reflect OD&D's war-game lineage (e.g., unit types often have sharp and unexplained differences).  For example, no one asks why the Knight in Chess is the only piece in Chess that's able to jump over other pieces.

However, these limitations can go too far IMHO, particularly when they provoke bizarre mental contortions trying to justify themselves.

For example, there is the eternal D&D question, "Why can't wizards use swords?"

As with Spell Points, Gary Gygax, the co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons, was also famously not a fan of wizards using swords.  For example, in The Dragon #16, he pontificated:

"Why can’t magic-users employ swords? And for that matter, why not allow fighters to use wands and similar magical devices? On the surface this seems a small concession, but in actuality it would spoil the game! Each character role has been designed with care in order to provide varied and unique approaches to solving the problems which con- front the players. If characters are not kept distinct, they will soon merge into one super-character. Not only would this destroy the variety of the game, but it would also kill the game, for the super-character would soon have nothing left to challenge him or her, and the players would grow bored and move on to something which was fun."

However, not only does Messr Gygax's argument feature classic logical fallacies but it is patently ridiculous.  By itself, wizards using swords will not create a "super-character" that will "kill the game".

This particular topic is something of a personal bugbear for me, as it also exacerbates Linear Fighters, Quadratic Wizards in D&D.

Thus, by "Gamist Restrictions," I'm referring to those RPG Design limitations on character classes that fly in the face of verisimilitude for Gamist reasons (typically game balance).

For Sorcery & Steel, my rules set, I've endeavored to avoid any Gamist Restrictions.  Consequently, wizards can use swords (and any other type of weapon), as well as armor!

Movie Review: "Hero" (2002)

Much like there were many Swords & Sorcery films released in the wake of the epic "Conan the Barbarian" (1982), there were a number of Wuxia movies at the turn of the century that sought to capitalize on the popularity of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (2000).

This week, I wanted to take a look at one of the better efforts, "Hero" (2002):

Very, very loosely based on the story of Jing Ke's assassination attempt on the King Zheng of Qin (who would go on to become Emperor Qin Shi Huang, founder of the Qin Dynasty) in 227 BC, "Hero" is a low fantasy historical adventure film by "Fifth Generation" director Zhang Yimou.

Set in the Warring States period of China, the story follows a nameless swordsman (appropriately named Nameless), a minor government official who purportedly has killed three assassins (Sky, Snow, Broken Sword) who have been giving King Zheng sleepless nights and caused him to take drastic security measures.  This gets Nameless an audience with the King and what follows is a cat and mouse game between the two, and we see various versions of the events (a la Rashomon (1950)), as the King drills down to the surprising truth.

Compelled to surpass "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (directed by Taiwanese multiple Academy Award winner Ang Lee) out of nationalistic pride, "Hero" was the most expensive mainland Chinese film to that date, with an all-star cast headlined by legendary martial arts star Jet Li and including Hong Kong staples Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung, "Crouching Tiger" starlet Zhang Ziyi and long time mainland Chinese actor Chen Daoming.

"Hero" has solid wuxia action, especially between Li and fellow action star Donny Yen.  The other action scenes are more dreamlike, but are still fine.  One of the best parts of the film is the amazing cinematography, featuring amazing landscapes and gorgeous use of color.

However, the story has some issues, not the least of which is, without completely spoiling the ending, that this movie was unsurprisingly criticized in the West as being pro-authoritarian.  By this, I mean that, unlike the position taken by the film, the people of the Warring States didn't really have a sense of being part of one country at that time, while the film has a clear message of the importance of sacrificing lives and liberty in favor of central power.

Unsurprisingly, this is exactly the message that the Chinese Communist Party pushes.  And, as Director Zhang Yimou is a loyal member of the Communist Party, it's not surprising that he was awarded the prestigious position of directing the Opening Ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Anyway, "Hero" is a fine entry in the wuxia genre.  However, take its historicity with a giant boulder of salt and it's better to enjoy the film as pretty but vapid entertainment.

RPG Design: Thief Skills

A couple years ago, I discussed the Thief Class and the importance of Balancing Skills,  and last year, I discussed the importance of Balancing Classes.

This week, I wanted to riff off those discussions and take a look at the mechanic for Thief Skills in 2nd edition AD&D compared to earlier editions.  Like earlier editions, in 2e, there is a chart stating the base scores for Level 1 Thieves, to be modified by Dexterity, race, and armor, if applicable.

Then, however, the Player gets to do something pretty different for TSR D&D:

"Each time the thief rises a level in experience, the player receives another 30 points to distribute. No more than 15 points per level can be assigned to a single skill, and no skill can be raised above 95 percent. including all adjustments for Dexterity, race, and armor. As an option, the DM can rule that some portion of the points eamed must be applied to skills used during the course of the adventure."

I've mentioned before that 1st edition AD&D is my favorite iteration of Ye Auld Fantasy Game, but I do really like the 2e approach to Thief Skills.  It is basically a type of Point Buy for character advancement that allows the player to customize to suit in this area, while still retaining the archetypal flavor benefits of using a class.

This is able to work with Old School D&D since the OD&D game engine is robust enough to have multiple independent sub-systems, which in turn means that DMs can mix and match sub-systems as desired with limited or no mechanical repercussions (e.g., changing Thief Skills has no knock effect on combat mechanics).

Inspired by the mechanic for Thief Skills in 2nd edition AD&D, in my own rules set, I have added a skills system influenced by Call of Cthulhu, allowing players to customize their characters to a much higher degree than in Ye Auld Fantasy Game.

Video Game Review: "Darkest Dungeon" (2016)

I wanted to give a shout out to arguably the best recent CRPG, "Darkest Dungeon"!

Developed by Red Hook Studios (the moniker being a sign of their Lovecraft fandom!), Darkest Dungeon is a low fantasy dungeon crawling and team management CRPG.  In terms of background, in the finest Lovecraftian tradition, The Ancestor of the player spent too much time delving into Things Man Was Not Meant To Know, hordes of monstrosities were subsequently unleashed and now it's up to the player to set things right.

Dungeon by brutal dungeon, you direct a legion of adventurers to clear your blighted estate, often at the cost of the latters' lives and/or sanity, until you face the eponymous Darkest Dungeon.

Like the grim and gritty setting, this is a grueling and challenging game, in large part because, in the best Old School tradition, Random Number Generation (RNG) has a huge impact on gameplay!  More than once, a string of bad die rolls will turn the situation upside down and you'll be screaming  in frustration at the screen.

In a big departure from the majority of dungeon crawlers, in this game, much like a soccer manager, you are more focused on developing an entire roster of adventurers to meet various goals and challenges, as opposed to leveling up a specific party.  If you miss the forest for the trees, it's easy to get too invested in a particular  adventurer or group of adventurers, spending way too much resources on them.

Mixing side scrolling movement (a la Castlevania (1986), Old School!) and turn-based combat, tension mounts palpably as you explore various procedurally generated dungeons and the hordes of opponents whittle away at the party's health and sanity, not unlike Call of Cthulhu!

There's little hand holding in this game, and one poor decision can cost you, so you need to constantly pay attention (who's attacked so far this round?) or the situation can quickly devolve into a TPK!  Moreover, this is another way that the game punishes you if you get too invested- if a dungeon delve is going poorly, sometimes it's better to cut bait and run than risk ruining or losing one or more characters to death or insanity.

In addition, between the classes, their skills and camping skills, quirks, dungeons, monsters, curios, etc., there's a *HUGE* amount of crunch to absorb, so don't feel like looking things up in the wiki is cheating!  In addition, FilthyRobot has put together an excellent and informative series of class guides, beginning with the Abomination:

Overall, Darkest Dungeon is an amazing Old School game!  It rewards planning, preparations and smart play, but sometimes stuff happens and you just have to bounce back.  The art style is apt and the artwork is moody and evocative, as is the voice acting, and the attention to detail is superb.

So, if you are looking for an intense, Old School dungeon crawler that demands your best and keeps you on your toes, you'll love (and, at times, love to hate) "Darkest Dungeon".