D&D Monday - Gaming Paper and More

Today's entry is going to tie a lot of things together.  But it's a gaming entry, so if you're not interested, feel free to find some other blog to read today.

A few months back, I decided to pull my D&D parties out of The World's Largest Dungeon because I had gotten inspired by Dragon Age: Origins to create a quest-based campaign.

You might recall that I was excited a couple months back because I bought a cool new device which would allow me to draw pictures on the computer more easily, allowing me to create maps, like the one on the right.

Only one of my groups has been able to start this new quest, but we spent a session or two with the party traveling over land, and then at our last session they had to enter a short dungeon I created.  We finished it up on Monday night.

The cool thing about the dungeon is that it was constructed from panels in the Mega Dungeon 1 product from Gaming Paper.  I mentioned this late last year, because it was the first product which drew me to Kickstarter.

 

Mega Dungeon 1 is one large map of one large (mega!) dungeon, but it is more than that.  The map is constructed of 100 panels, each of which takes up an standard sheet of paper, and is printed on two sides.  One side is a room with "furnishings" of some sort, the other side is the same space unfurnished.

Obviously, for a two-night adventure, Mega Dungeon 1 is too big.  But that's the beauty of how it's constructed.  I was able to take 10-12 panels, from various places in the dungeon, and lay them out next to each other to form a smaller dungeon.

The result was a very fun little adventure.  Before I started trying to assemble the dungeon map, I only had a basic theme for what the party would encounter.  As I found panels which fit together, I got inspired by the rooms and furnishings on the panels.  I used only one side of some panels, but I used both sides for some, as well.  [I can't say more about that, because the second group of players has not started this campaign yet.  But it's cool!]


Anyway, I really enjoy how inspiration can arise from finding new tools like the drawing pad, or from the supplies and resources we use, such as the Gaming Paper product. 

Or, as Hannibal used to say:  "I love it when a plan comes together."

New Dice

I have new dice, and I'm not afraid to use them!

In fact, I am anxious to use them.

One of the results of playing Dragon Age: Origins has been this: I am inspired to create a quest-based adventure for my Dungeons & Dragons groups.  I have been working on it when I snatch some bits of free time, and it's coming along nicely.

And one of the results of working on D&D is a desire to buy something; something game related! 

For those of you who have not played D&D, there is very little on-going expense required for playing the game.  However, a quirk of my very American personality is that I get a kick out of buying things.  So, while I would not be required to buy cool graph paper for the game, I do.  And while I have more than enough dice, there are simply times when I feel like buying more.  It's not sensible.  But's it's a fact.

There is no true game store in Rochester these days -- for three years now! [I'm sorry - Games by James is a chain store, so it's not a true game store.  And it has no in-store place to play games, so it's ruled out for two reasons.]  The closest thing we have is Book Review, so the Dudes and I stop there on some lunch breaks to browse, to be tempted, and occasionally to purchase something.

We've been there a few times in the past two weeks, and it's during that time period when I've been creating the Splintered Worlds campaign.  So when we visited yesterday, I felt compelled to buy dice.  I saw two  sets which called to me: Green-Purple (w/ gold numbers) & and Copper-Green (white.)  I was in no mood to choose between the two, so I bought them both.

Just look at them!

They are so pretty! 

I can hardly wait to roll them in a game.

Let's play!




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Dragon Age: Origins - Complete

After almost 60 hours of playtime, we completed Dragon Age: Origins. It was excellent. It was difficult, which it should be -- you want a sense of accomplishment to an adventure game.

I knew I was loving it, and that I needed to recommend it to some friends.  I am very glad I did.  Pete and Mike will like this.  Eric will really like this, though he bought another game instead, so I hope he enjoys it and can recommend it back to me.  Still, one of the cool things about the game is not knowing what's happening, so I can't talk much more about it than I did in the two posts I have already written - when we started, and Betrayed.  (And even Betrayed was probably a spoiler.)

I am convinced I will re-play this game, choosing an entirely different character, and being careful to complete more of the early game.  I especially want to have access to all of the potential party members, and I think I left two of them in areas I encountered very early.

So, to help myself remember details, and to compare with friends who play, and with myself when I re-play, I have two sections below - "For the Record - Non-Spoiler" and "For the Record - Spoilers."

Those few of you who are going to play the game, stay away from the "Spoilers" until you've completed it once.

For the Record - Non-Spoilers

• Character: Stefan, Dalish Elf, Warrior, Dual-Weapon focus
• Completion Date: 9/3/11
• Time Played: 58:53:34 (Epilog); 58:36:54 Fort Drakon Second Floor just before final battle

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For the Record - Spoilers

• Level at Completion: 19
• I had to go to "Casual" each time I beat a Dragon.
• I backed up to agree to support the Queen, because the first time through, when I got to the Landsmeet, the split of support was close to half and half, and the Queen lied against me, so I had to fight a huge battle.  When I supported the Queen, I was able to work the conversation to offering a one-on-one battle with Loghain.
• I got Morrigan to like me enough to let me kiss her.
• Morrigan offered to sleep with me.  The first time through, I declined, because her plan did not seem heroic -- which makes sense for Morrigan's character.  I was worried that her plan would result in a Very Bad Thing. 
• Morrigan left me when I did not agree.  I completed the game without her.
• Now that I completed the game that way, I am trying to continue from that point, accepting her offer.  At least that leaves her in the party for the final battle (though I am finding that some of the battles are harder without Oghren.) 
• Very near the end of the fight (2nd time) (this is a real spoiler -- are you sure you want to read it?)  I discovered a ballista on the corner of the roof.  By this point, the Archdemon was probably at 10% life.  And, for some reason, it stayed on the main platform surface.  So I could just sit at the ballista and shoot 100+ points each shot at it.  I did stop just short of killing it, so I could take the final blow.
• The end was quite different, having accepted Morrigan's offer.  I got to request a boon, and so I requested the land for the Dalish (even though Alistair had granted it on his own with the first ending.) And I told him I was going in search of Morrigan.  I don't think it mattered, though.

Betrayed

We started playing Dragon Age: Origins this month.  It's pretty much the only game I think about these days.  Good game.

Well, in DA:O, my main character has been joined by several other characters.  Each time I set out on a quest, I gather three of them and we perform acts of heroism.  And we pilfer.  In this sort of game, it's standard practice to get money and equipment from the creatures you beat.  But, you also encounter chests with stuff in them.  And some of them are locked.  So you need someone who can pick locks.  Someone who is a thief.

Someone like Zevran.


Zevran joined my little band early on after he and a group of lesser assassins tried to kill me.  For fun and profit.  Mostly for profit.  Since I had beaten him, he was under a virtual death sentence -- a failing assassin can run, but if he's found, the other assassins will assassinate him.  It's what they do.  So, when he offered to change allegiances and join me, I agreed.

For many hours of game play, Zevran was an annoyingly crude thief, but he was a thief.  He opened chests.  I got him equipment to help him survive, and to be helpful in a battle.  In return, he opened chests.

A couple of days ago, he betrayed me.  We were ambushed by more assassins, but rather than stick to his word, he joined them in attacking me and the rest of the party.  We died.

Oh, but Zevran cannot beat the power of the re-load.  I had saved the game state just before we were ambushed ("You never know when you might wander into a dragon's lair.  Save often.")  So I reloaded.

And after I reloaded, I took every stitch of equipment from Zevran, save one small dagger.

Then we headed into the ambush again.

Zevran looked pretty silly standing there in his g-string, betraying me again.

I wiped the silly smirk off his near-naked face.

Stupid assassins.

Dragon Age: Origins - We Have Begun

As I have mentioned before, I purchased a Playstation 3 (PS3) just after Christmas, at the urging of my boys.  Until recently the only games I had bought for it were the X-Men arcade game (my initial reason to want the PS3) and then Uncharted: Drake's Fortune - again at the recommendation of Lucas and Adam.

For months, though, I have not had a new game.  Well, on my birthday, all my kids pooled together to get me a nice sized Best Buy gift card, and so -- with all that virtual cash burning a virtual hole in my wallet -- I looked to the boys again for advice on a game I might like.  And, if possible, would there be something Sherry might like to watch me play.

Dragon Age: Origins was the result.  I have been playing it for several days now, and wow, am I glad they thought to recommend it!

It is a "Role Playing Game" variety of video game.  As you can tell from the name, it is a fantasy-world game; magic, swords, monsters - just the sort of thing I'd like.  It reminds me quite a bit of the Dungeons and Dragons-based Baldur's Gate games, but there is a more manageable amount of complexity, I think.  At least, more manageable if Sherry is watching, and that matters.  She is really enjoying watching me play, keeping track of the status of the other three members of my party while I am in battle, helping me remember quest details and so on.  We are on a long quest to rid the land of the monstrous beasts which are once again attacking the civilized world.  Ultimately, we will have to face an "Archdemon" -- who will likely take the form of a really cool, but evil-to-the-core dragon.



The game expects the player to recruit a party of adventurers -- up to three of which may join the player for most missions.  The advanced design, and helpful AI allows the non-player characters to have fairly full stories, and reasonably complex personalities. They react to the main character's choices -- even to his choice of words. Deciding how, or whether, to placate other party members is a very interesting challenge in the game, and nicely supplements the development of the "hero" as he (or she) works on the many quests on the road to the final battle.  [The figure pictured on the left is one of the non-player characters, Morrigan, a mage who joins the player character early on.  I really enjoy her abilities.  And I quickly recognized her voice as that of Claudia Black, who I have enjoyed immensely in Farscape and Stargate.]

I anticipate this game will take us several months to get through, since Sherry will be back to her "school schedule" before we know it.  But that's great.  We'll have something to wind down with for an hour or two on the weekends.

It's making me think I should finally finish Baldur's Gate sometime.  But for that, I might need a new PC.

Uh oh.