Loot-O-Matic: Coins Of Different Kinds

Following on from my previous post where I set out to "fix" the 7.5 random treasure generator issue of spitting wealth at you like a broken ATM, I have got as far as tweaking the coinage. Here's what I have so far:

Money Table (2D6, DARO)

2-9: Iron (Worth 0.01SP each)

10-16: Steel (Worth 0.1SP each)

17-22: Copper (Worth 0.1SP each)

23-27: Orichalum (Worth 0.2SP each)

28-31: Bronze (Worth 0.5SP each)

32-34: Silver (Worth 1SP each)

35-36: Gold (Worth 10SP each)

37+: Mithril (Worth 100SP each)

When rolling for the amount of coins, roll 3D6, TARO.
All coins weigh 1WU each.

Anyone with the original 7.5 rulebook will notice that I have made some considerable changes. I have altered the value of the coins, how many coins you get, as well as removing some completely.

I like the idea of the monsters in Trollworld running under a seperate currency, so I kept the Iron and Steel pieces but the idea of Elven Silver and Trollish Gold seemed a little too specific to me. I was also at a loss as to why they were worth so much on the original table. What can you actually do to silver to increase its value by a factor of 50!? I've also recast the role of Orichalum, which is now the new "2 Copper Piece" instead of the extremely rare mythical metal of Atlantis. I just figured that with Mithril being available, do I really need another thin on the ground resource? Mithril's cool enough. :0).

At this point I should probably point out that whilst the treasure may seem to have gone from one extreme to another (bountiful to pitiful), this table and the one in my previous post were created with a method of treasure generation slightly different from the norm in mind.

Players now roll 1D6 for every 10 MR that their opponent had (or fraction of 10) and, any D6 that rolls within the monsters "range" allows one roll on the random treasure generator. So a MR 40 beastie might allow up to 4 rolls on the generator! (Possibly 5 if that were 41).

The only problem with the "range" idea is that beyond Buffalo Castle, I can't think of any solo that uses the range mechanic. Of course I could be wrong. Either way it's not a problem for three reasons:

1 - I plan to work my way through every solo I can lay my hands on and assign ranges, posting them up here.

2 - I also plan to create a generic list of all monsters commonly found in Trollworld; adding ranges; which should cover most of what I miss with point one.

3 - A new feature I'm working on called the Wandering Monster Stable will give you themed wandering monster tables; including ranges; that you can insert into any solo you already happen to own that uses the wandering monster mechanic. The idea being that you can season your solo's to taste. :0).

A Little Experiment On A Monumental Scale

It's taken a lot of re-reads and a fair bit of time but, I am finally in position
where I am not only looking forward to playing Race For The Galaxy solo but, I also feel fairly confident so without constantly referencing the rulebook.

Much of the confusion arose as a result of the sheer mass of symbols that the game uses to denote it's functions. It's like trying to read hieroglyphs without a Rosetta Stone to hand. Not easy. Not by a long shot. I'm past that now though (thankfully). I'll still keep the rulebook to hand but, I now feel that I can muster enough basic vocab to order a coffee in a galaxy far far away and not be served with a rusted tin bucket by mistake. ;0).

So with this new knowledge under my belt, something that I thought might be fun would be to build whole empires from my play reports (which I also plan on sharing). It's something that I have done before when playing Munchkin, creating some weird and wonderful delvers, so why wouldn't it work on a galactic scale?

Will the people favor trade, politics, diplomacy or, military might? Let the cards decide.

The only factor that the cards won't really determine is ownership of the empire in question as Race For The Galaxy doesn't really go anyway towards covering such matters. Still, having an instant power block to throw into games like Starfaring and New Khazan seems like a pretty sweet deal.

Just add alien lifeforms. ;0).

Crossovers #2: Unsettling Times In Catan

A Nuclear War Card Game / The Settlers of Catan Crossover created by Rick Loomis. Edited and re-posted here by me.

You are playing The Settlers of Catan as normal, with the following exceptions:

• Create a draw pile using all of the basic cards from the Nuclear War Card Game.

• On your turn you may discard any two resources in order to draw a card from the "Nuke Deck".

• You may also discard the following combinations of Nuke cards for the following benefits:

A Secret Card = One Resource of your choice.
A Top Secret Card = One Resource of your choice.
A Special Card = One Resource of your choice.
Two Propaganda Cards = One Resource of your choice.

• When you have a combination of either a Bomber or a Missile and a Warhead that can be fitted to it, you may use them to destroy any City or Settlement on the map.

• If attacked that player may opt to shoot down that Bomber or Missile if they have the appropriate Antimissile. If they do so, the attack is canceled and play immediately passes to them.

• If the Bomber or Missile is not intercepted then you spin the spinner. Missiles fail to affect their intended target on a spin of "Dud Warhead", Bombers on "Bomber Runs Out Of Fuel" and, blasts of only a 10 Megaton yield on Bomb Shelters. Anything else destroys the target and a marker should be placed on it's smoldering ruins. Nothing else may be built there for the remainder of the game but, for all purposes within the rules there is considered to be no Settlement there.

• If you used a Bomber to drop a Nuke and did not spin the result "Bomber Runs Out Of Fuel",and it has not dropped 50 Megatons worth of explosives, leave the bomber face up in front of you. It may be used to drop further Warheads in the future.

You can read the original text here or, order your copy of the Nuclear War Card Game here.

Crossovers #1: One Way Ticket

A Nuclear War Card Game / Ticket To Ride Crossover created by Rick Loomis, Ken St Andre, and Laura Samuelson. Edited and re-posted here by me. :0).

You are playing Ticket To Ride as usual, with the following exceptions:

• Create a separate draw pile containing all of the Warheads, Carrier, and Antimissile cards from the Nuclear War Card Game.

• On your turn you may draw a card from the "Nuke Deck" in the place of drawing or taking a Train card. Cards drawn from the Nuke deck are treated as train cards, so on your turn you may take any combination of two Train / Nuke cards or, one face-up Wildcard as a draw action.

• Instead of taking your normal action on your turn you may choose to nuke a railroad if you have a Carrier and a Warhead that match. The nuked railroad and all other DIRECT connections between the two cities are destroyed and route markers returned to their prospective players.

• A Nuke may be countered if the player being attacked has an Antimissile capable of taking out the attacking Warhead, and wishes to play it. If not the train markers on the targeted line are returned to their players piles, and no-one may re-build that connection for 1-4 turns, depending upon the yield of the blast:

10 Megatons = 1 Turn.

20 Megatons = 2 Turns.

50 Megatons = 3 Turns.

100 Megatons = 4 Turns.

• These turns are counted down at once the player that launched the nuke has taken their turn, so please note that the player that launches the nuke will be the last to be given opportunity to re-build there! Also please note that Bombers remain in play until they have dropped a full 50 Megatons worth of nukes, or are shot down by an Antimissile.

• Once a Ticket is completed, it is cashed in for points immediately (because that railroad may not be there for long) but, kept by the player who completed it. At the end of the game, the player with the most completed lines receives 10 bonus points.

You can read the original text here or, order your copy of the Nuclear War Card Game here.

Crossovers: Because Two Games Can Be Better Than One!

Whilst sifting through my Facebook feed this morning, I found a very interesting post from Rick Loomis over at Flying Buffalo. A very interesting post indeed!

Both he and Ken St. Andre are very talented games designers and, it seems that like myself, they can't help but wonder what could be done "better" when they sit down to a game. Even games with high production values. This isn't because we like to think that we know better though.

As I see it, all games designers, and indeed all creatives are free to express themselves and their ideas as they wish through their work. I wasn't there at the birth of the brainchild so who am I to say that they got it wrong unless they've made some glaring error?

So, for me, tinkering with a game is more like seasoning to taste and, we all have different ideas on what tastes good, and what's foul. That's why there are so many games out there! A creative individual sees  something they like, cuts away what they don't and those changes change again and again through active play until what you have is a completely new game that doesn't resemble anything like the original, except the theme.

Frankly, it's a great way to go, and you have to consider that the fans have a lot more freedom than designers. Fans can rummage through other games for components without the fear of being sued! Designers have to make everything look fresh, new, and different. So as a fan, you have a lot more freedom, and, thanks to the Internet, great chunks of the gaming community have ways and means to share their ideas.

What's all this building up to though?

A lot more crossover related content from me hopefully. There are a lot of interesting ideas floating around and I want to hook in the ones that catch my eye to share with you all, starting with the two recent additions by Ken, Rick and, Laura Samuelson.