HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: Rolemaster Power Points
From: atischer@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu (August Tischer)
Date: 21 Jan 93 13:35:40 EST

In both of the campaigns in which I am involved (one as a player,
the other as GM) we use this same system.  We do not use power point
development skill at all.  It should be noted, however, that I play
in campaigns where almost every spell user has at least a X2
multiplier or a spell adder.

Hope this helps.

August Tischer
University of Toledo
atischer@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu

Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: seawasp@vm2.cis.pitt.edu (Sea Wasp)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: Random Rolls
Date: 26 Jan 93 21:58:33 GMT
Article-I.D.: blue.2582
Organization: University of Pittsburgh
Originator: seawasp@unixd1.cis.pitt.edu

In article <1993Jan26.171711.16347@nastar.uucp> phardie@nastar.uucp (Pete Hardie) writes:
>Seems to me, that any 'godlike being' that is trapped as such has limits on
>its powers, and those might prevent this miracle healing.

	Ha. How many times have you heard of superiors or equals trapping
some renegade, who is later let loose (for good or evil) by someone who
was just lucky or very smart? 

	[I wrote]
>>	And so on. If you're a godlike being caught with his pants 
>>down, you may just need SOME distraction for those who are bothering
>>you to save your butt... and your butt will be toast if you don't
>>get it. So if mr. Cripple happens to have the ability to give you
>>the distraction, he can do a helluva service in a few seconds.

>Never mind how a cripple can be in such a place, and manage to 'distract'
>another godlike being

	Huh? Are you really THAT unimaginative, or are you just refusing to
think about it?

	Actual crippled character in question was a psionic who could
do quite a few things. None of awesome power, but pretty neat. There are
a couple of dozen other similar possibilities.

	How could he "distract" a being of that nature? Well, consider
this scenario: 

	Two Organian or Q-type entities are locked in a struggle. Both
are very nearly equal, and are almost completely focused on the 
battle at hand. Psi cripple, sensing this from a distance, focuses
his entire energies in a psionic attack on one, distracting that one
for one millisecond. 
	IN the millisecond, the other one nukes his opponent.

	Analagous to two people locked in perfect equal combat, with
one of them stung by a bee at a critical moment.


				Sea Wasp
From: wilder@nx04.mik.uky.edu (jeff wilder)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: SRII: Physical Adepts
Date: 26 Jan 93 22:20:13 GMT
Article-I.D.: mik.wilder.728086813
Organization: University Of Kentucky, Dept. of Math Sciences

In <1993Jan26.214511.1@vxdesy.desy.de> burke@vxdesy.desy.de (Stephen Burke) writes:

|My group has a strong tendency to lose money (look at the price of
|ammunition!). We generally end up collecting all the miscellaneous guns
|and armour along the way, just to make ends meet. On our last run (in Scotland)
|part of our pay came as several thousand nuyen-worth of (stolen) sheep - I kid
|you not. We were not amused.

hahahahahhahahahahHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAH <wiping tears from eyes>  Wow, I
love this.  Your GM is one sick puppy.  I'm not sure your team's getting
fleeced really fits the genre, but I sure as hell woulda loved to see
your sheepish faces...

--
==============================================================================
| Jeff W  uk06666@ukpr.uky.edu | Meddle not in the affairs of cats, for they |
| Wilder  & wilder@mik.uky.edu | are subtle, and will piss on your cyberdeck.|
==============================================================================
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: akuma@netcom.com (Steven E Barnes)
Subject: Re: RQ: River of Cradles (Possible Spoilers)
Keywords: runequest
Organization: Radio Free Arcadia
Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1993 11:15:48 GMT


So why can't Challana Arroy worshipers learn to use nets?
Seems pretty non-violent to me.  Of course, last I checked,
net was used by Krarsht worshippers, so it may be considered
a "bad" weapon, like the garrote.

-steve

Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: by670@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Marc-Eivind Cruz Evensen)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: SRII PhysAds
Date: 24 Jan 1993 17:15:31 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (USA)
NNTP-Posting-Host: hela.ins.cwru.edu


A couple of points to be made:

1. On tactics: We are not talking about tactics and their application in
   these scenarios. Either a sam or a PA can use tactics, suprise, etc. to
   gain the upper hand and make skills and stats less of a factor. What we
   have been discussing is the case in which a PA does have to stand toe
   to toe with a sam. This _can_ and _does_ happen in games. Sams are smart,
   or at least they should be, and with their hyped up senses (just as
   much, if not more than the PA), they will see an attack coming at least
   part of the time. In this case, we go toe-to-toe, and that's where
   many of these arguments come into play. Bottom line, tactics are great,
   they work _most_ of the time to give advantages and make life easier,
   but they don't always work, and then things get messy.

2. On dicote weapons: Availability is an issue that must be handled by 
   each individual GM, but size and area is not. A combat axe need only be
   coated on the blade, even over-estimating, the blade wouldn't be much
   more than 23 cm in radius. Let's estimate that the blade is a half-moon
   shape for ease of calculation, that would make the area ~ 830 sq.cm. for
   each side, meaning about 1160 sq.cm. for both sides. This doesn't count
   the area removed due to the hollow blade design of the combat axe. (oops,
   that should be 1660 sq.cm.) So a reasonable estimate for the cost of the
   weapon is 16000 over base price, and even this is based on simple
   calculations which probably greatly overestimate the actual size. This
   also assumes that you cover the entire blade, and not just the cutting
   surface.
   PS: how about given a troll some dicote shuriken? Wouldn't that be fun?

-- Marc
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: maillet@tls-cs.cert.fr (Luc Maillet)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: SRII: Physical Adepts
Date: 21 Jan 93 16:48:35 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: CERT, CS Dpt. Toulouse, France

In article <1993Jan20.095625.25402@uumeme.chi.il.us>, drac@uumeme.chi.il.us (Bruce Maynard) writes:
|> 
|> As for not being as fast as a samurai when first generated as a character, so
|> what? That ain't what I'm looking for with a PA...

  Well, in the Grimoire I, they described a particular type of PhysAd as "legend-
like" martial artists. Well, IMHO, Martial Artists like that ( i.e. Iniiates
that spend points on combat-oriented options ) are at least as quick as a sam.
IMHO, 1stEd was better. There was no need to break everything and put the whole
PA concept back together again.

								Redwing
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: gray@visix.com (Gray Jones)
Subject: Re: SRII: Physical Adepts
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 18:26:18 GMT
Reply-To: gray@visix.com (Gray Jones)
Organization: Visix Software, Reston, Virginia

Wow, some body posted that they got 21 Karma and 200000 nuyen for a run.

That's nuts.  In the Shadow Run game I played in, if we got 5 Karma points,
we did good.  Also, if we got 10000 each, that was tons.

"Back in my day, all the corp guys were guarded by Troll shamans and
Gamma Grade cyberguys.  We had to walk up hill, both ways, just to
have our fixer send us out to get him pizza.  Back in my day, that's
how it was and we LIKED it."

--gray
From: mudge@titan.ucs.umass.edu (A Happy Otter)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Random vs. Point allocation (easy killfile subject :))
Date: 22 Jan 1993 16:57:17 -0500
Organization: Hangar 18 Storage Co.
NNTP-Posting-Host: titan.ucs.umass.edu
Keywords: lemmings

   Having seen a bit of these arguements on point vs random systems I decided
to dump my two rubles worth in ( to no ones general surprise). Personally be-
ing noncommited on the whole business I can say that there can be just as mu
ch role-playing with both systems. However I have never really liked the idea
that everyone, even if it is restricted to the PC's themselves, starts out at
a similar level. I have played RPG's for longer then I can remember and I have
never encountered a group that got all bent out of shape if a party member got
a better deal in life then they did. Evidently from the posts here there are 
some though that do. I've played both types of games, and to be honest I've had
fun with both. On a personal level though I find that it is a bit unrealistic
to have a group that starts out with the same potential for similar stats. In
my generally cynical view this seems a little bit unrealistic. I've met a lot
of people in my life, "PC's" and "NPC's" and I've come to the opinion that th
ere isn't a huge point-allocation system governing the universe. You get what
you get..that means that some get everything, and some get a bum deal, thats
*Life* and from my experience, it is very likely for people of sometimes vastly
different ability to be in the same "party" without balancing out. Such is life
                             ...........

Mudge

"A toast my friends, to Eris! (to Eris!) Alright, who put the ice-nine in the 
soda?"

Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: durrell@pinball.arcade.uiowa.edu (Bryant Durrell)
Subject: Re: DragonQuest?!
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 04:39:16 GMT
Organization: University of Iowa

In article <1993Jan26.031400.10764@freenet.carleton.ca> aa699@Freenet.carleton.ca (Michel Boucher) writes:
>I can't say much about it, although I own it, as I've never had the
>opportunity to play it.  The gods only know what TSR have done to it...

TSR published a third edition of the original rules, to hold on
to the name, but that was some time ago.  (And I may be wrong, but
that's how I remember it.)  The current thing they're calling
DragonQuest is a dumbed down version of D&D as a board game, as I
understand it.  Color me repulsed.

-- 
Bryant Durrell					   durrell@chop.isca.uiowa.edu
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                 I feed on the flesh of the living, and I vote.
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: lsmith@mega.cs.umn.edu (Lance "Squiddie" Smith)
Subject: Re: GURPS worldbook: Space 1889 ?
Organization: The Little Squids of the Poor
Distribution: na
Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1993 20:00:54 GMT

In article <1993Jan21.170953.3970@news.tufts.edu> gharris@jade.tufts.edu (George W. Harris) writes:
>In article <C14osC.EC5@news2.cis.umn.edu> lsmith@atto.cs.umn.edu (Lance "Squiddie" Smith) writes:
>>
>>Well, two difference engines were built during Babbage's time. Difference
>>Engine technology is really sorta boring. 
>
>	I don't believe this is correct.  Babbage *designed* two Difference
>Engines.  An attempt was made to build the first, but it was abandoned half-
>way through.  No attempt was made to build the second until about 5 years ago.

This is quickly slipping out of the topic area of this news group. Anyhow...

Two different Difference Engines were completed in roughly Babbages time.
The first built was completed by a Swedish (?) father and son and partially
funded by their government. (I don't have the name with me, but I can 
certainly look it up if necessary.) The second was built for and used by
the British government for construction of assorted tables. Babbage 
built neither engine, but both were based at least partially on his 
plans. 

Charles Babbage was a little like Donald Knuth in that he spent a lot of
time playing around with the means of constructing the engine and how 
it would work instead of just building the thing. For example, one
of his experiments was testing different paper and ink combinations to
find which made the most readable tables. His biggest contribution to
technology may have been in the quality control and machining techniques
that were developed in the initial attempt to construct the engine.   

(That attempt failed due mainly to a disagreement with the head machinist
on the project. When he left, he was allowed to keep the parts that he had
constructed.)

Anyway, I can certainly provide the necessary references if necessary.
Difference engine technology isn't very complex and what can be 
accomplished with it is somewhat limited.

----------------------------
  Lance "Cr2O3.2H2O" Smith | "He is an aristocrat and a peanut. Citizen 
    (lsmith@cs.umn.edu)    |  St Just says that is enough to warrant his 
    Reynard and Tybert's   |  death. I do not wish to argue with St Just."
        Biggest Fan        |             _Mr Peanut and the Reign of Terror_
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: uplink@cwis.unomaha.edu (uplink 2099)
Subject: Re: SRII Combat System: Bugs, Mr. Rico!
Organization: University of Nebraska at Omaha
Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1993 08:12:00 GMT

	Huh.  Then that bug is also present in RTG's Cyberpunk 2020 RPG, too.
I have seen "normal" grenades take out large numbers of players on one
shot.  Players in that campaign quickly learned that grenades were more 
deadly that assault rifles.


--
*           _    / _/       /     * "It's been surreal!" - Gogo Dodo, TTA  *
*     / /  / /  /    '_ |  /' _/  * Please send all flames to someone else *
*    / /  __/  /  /  /  /    <    * email to uplink@cwis.unomaha.edu  . .  *
*  ___/ _/   _/ _/ _/ _/ _/|_/    * Hey! I _LIKE_ my pompous .sig!    ---  *
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: seurer@rchland.vnet.ibm.com (Bill Seurer)
Subject: Re: META:  Un-powered characters
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 16:37:11 GMT
Reply-To: BillSeurer@vnet.ibm.com
Disclaimer: This posting represents the poster's views, not necessarily those of IBM
Organization: IBM Rochester

In article <1993Jan26.130758.26004@vela.acs.oakland.edu>, mwlucas@vela.acs.oakland.edu (Michael W. Lucas) writes:
|> 
|> Hello, world!
|> 
|> What are people's opinions on playing characters without "unnatural" 
|> powers?  Do most gamers require that they have the ability to create a
|> character with psi, magic, cybernetics, or whatever, to make their 
|> character more than human?  Has anyone out there run a game with just
|> normal humans, setting their skills against the universe?  If so, how well
|> did it run?

I am sure that many people have played in a historical or modern day or
even space campaign where humans are "normal".  I have run campaigns
set in the Carribean around 1660 that worked quite well.
-- 

- Bill Seurer     Language and Compiler Development      IBM Rochester, MN
  Internet: BillSeurer@vnet.ibm.com    America On-Line: BillSeurer@aol.com
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,rec.games.frp.advocacy
From: phardie@nastar.uucp (Pete Hardie)
Subject: Re: Random Rolls
Organization: Digital Transmission Systems, Duluth, GA.
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 17:40:59 GMT

In article <1993Jan26.154607.25880@news.tufts.edu> gharris@jade.tufts.edu (George W. Harris) writes:
>In article <1993Jan25.171130.8107@nastar.uucp> phardie@nastar.uucp (Pete Hardie) writes:
>>Look at it this way - if one of the characters was Filthy Rich, he would get
>>only the CPs from this, as 6M zorkmids would be chicken feed.  The remaining
>>characters (save the Poor one) would get money and CPs.  So the solution is
>>to make the points mathc the money - or give Things worth that much cash,
>>but not let them be sold.
>
>	You've completely missed the point.  Why wouldn't the Poor guy get any
>character points?  Or, to put it in other terms, if the other characters spent
>their CPs on skills, why wouldn't the Poor character learn any skills?  He did
>the same things as the other characters.  The fact that he was poor to begin
>with is irrelevant to learning skills, so it shouldn't prevent him from 
>learning skills just becuase he found money.

Why doesn't the rich guy the the 10fold increase of usable cash?  Because the
player CHOSE to start with lots o cash, and KNOWS that this will mean s/he
will not benefit from smaller treasures.  The Poor player knows that s/he will
not get the benefit of lots o cash w/o paying off the Poor disad, or taking
another disad to replace it.  A simple answer is to trade Poor for Miserly.
Complaining that all PC don't benefit equally from treasure is like complaining
that non-mages don't benefit from mage-only magic items - life ain't always
fair.

This is all avoided, IMHO, by the GM not giving away lots of cash unless the
CP earned will balance this, or other circumstances will balance out the
CP effects.

-- 
Pete Hardie:  phardie@nastar  (voice) (404) 497-0101
Digital Transmission Systems, Inc., Duluth GA
Member, DTS Dart Team           |  cat * | egrep -v "signature virus|infection" 
Position:  Goalie               |
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,rec.games.frp.advocacy
From: phardie@nastar.uucp (Pete Hardie)
Subject: Re: Random Rolls
Organization: Digital Transmission Systems, Duluth, GA.
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 17:12:56 GMT

In article <1k2i9pINNk4g@beethoven.cs.unc.edu> bell@cs.unc.edu (Andrew Bell) writes:
>You seem to be suggesting that the cash and points payoff from an
>adventure should be fairly proportional.  I say "seem to" merely because
>I find the concept so bizarre that I have trouble believing anyone would
>say it directly.

I am saying that if hte adventure is netting enough cash to take someone
from Poor to Comfortable+, it should be a difficult thing.  How easy is it
to go from Poor to Comfortable+ in modern society?  How long does it take?
On average, quite a while, with a great deal of effort.  

Look at it this way - there are 3 characters, one Filthy Rich, one Average,
and one Dead Broke.  They go on this adventure and return with 3 XP and
$6.  How does each feel rewarded?  The rich one gets (effectively) only the
XP, since $6 is chickenfeed.  Joe Average gets $$ and  no XP, and the Poor guy
the same.  Why is the rich one 'left out'?

Basically, I feel that if the adventure generates a large cash reward, it
can't have been an easy task.

>The problem is that people treat the poor disad as being merely a matter
>of not having cash.  Treat it as a psychological disad ("easily taken",
>"wastrel", "blackmailed"), and make mere instantaneous poverty a low
>point disad, and there should be no problem with the changing financial
>status.

This is a good idea.

-- 
Pete Hardie:  phardie@nastar  (voice) (404) 497-0101
Digital Transmission Systems, Inc., Duluth GA
Member, DTS Dart Team           |  cat * | egrep -v "signature virus|infection" 
Position:  Goalie               |
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: dv52151@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (RedSwordTarga)
Subject: Re: SRII: Physical Adepts
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1993 07:50:29 GMT

johnelbl@matt.ksu.ksu.edu writes:

>I have just subscribed to this group, so i am not so sure about what has been
>completely stated. In the 2nd ed. Grimoire there are VERY nifty items for 
>pys Ad.'s such as Enchnced Centering and mystical armour.  Plus, using the
>new meta-magic Anchoring, it IS possible for a physical Adept to have a 
>9d6 initiative(sp).  1d6 for natural, 3d6 for phys. Adept skill, 2d6 for 
>Synaptic Accelerator(a little geasa), and 3d6 initiative increase anchored will
>give 9d6.(ouch)  Can Mr. Samurai match that??

Well, the only initiative boost you use is your best one. So he would get
the one for 3d6. That's all. Initiative boosts don't stack.

Axly
From: maillet@tls-cs.cert.fr (Luc Maillet)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: Rolemaster
Date: 25 Jan 93 16:58:12 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: CERT, CS Dpt. Toulouse, France


  Hi. I, too, am glad to see someone from ICE and be able to actually talk 
about Rolemaster.

  About Shadow World, well, I have the distinct opinion that the supplements
quality is decreasing. To be honest, the best supplement ICE ever made for
the World of the Loremasters is Cloudlords of Tarana. There is plenty of what's
more or less lacking in the latests products : information. On the land, the
plants, the animals, the people. How they live, what they believe in, what are
their supposed origins, and their legends. The latests supplements focused on
detailed adventure ideas, some of them filling half a book with it. That's not
what I look for in campaign modules like Star Crown Empire, Nomads of the Nine
Nations, Quellbourne, or the others. The Adventure Modules, like Tales of the
Loremasters, are perfect for that purpose.
  Also about Shadow World, I'm wondering where the whole world is going. The
whole timetable draws the image of a darker and darker world, something between
Twilight 2000, Cyberpunk and Aftermath, only in a fantasy setting. I personally
don't like it. As a side note, we have departed from the given timeline since
6050 TA. Our Kulthea is more quiet, more concerned with subtle plots than with
full-scale wars, especially since both Ondoval and Andraax left the world ( one
of them dead ).

  About Dark Space, I agree that it's a very good idea. And yes, it could have
used some supplements. Not much more, since I don't play in it.

  About Rolemaster in general, the various compagnons are of inequal quality.
One of my friends said about the RC6 : 20% that can be used, 80% useless. I
think there are some good ideas ( rules for weapons lengths, unified skill sys-
-tem - even if this one is not quite to my taste ), but not enough IMHO to fill
a book that size. The magical supplements ( SUC, EC, AC ) were better, even if
the AC lacked a "traditional alchemy" feeling and the rules to make it. By
"traditional alchemy", I mean the "chemical", medieval one. One who works with-
-out spell lists, only with knowledge and skill.
  But what Rolemaster lacks most is a complete rewriting. Sort of <Nth edition>
Rolemaster. With the basic rules exposed, the most-often-used professions des-
-cribed, a working ( and not optional ) unified skill system, and a 2 or 3-parts
Spell Law. This is becoming critically necessary. Major overhaul, with intensive
playtest of the main mechanisms. Oh, and if you could come up with a simple,
efficient, working "unified initiative system", it would be perfect.

  Ah, one last comment ( take it as a semi-serious criticism ) : ICE is famous
for being late. "Release dates" are most often "warning: this could be released
in the next six months".

  Don't get me wrong. I like Rolemaster a lot ( it my favorite FRP system, and
I've played it for 8 years now ). Perhaps that's why I'm so critic about it.

  								Redwing.

							maillet@tls-cs.cert.fr 
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: leifmk@Lise.Unit.NO (Leif Magnar Kj|nn|y)
Subject: Re: GURPS Paranoia
Organization: Norwegian Institute of Technology
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 93 13:43:46 GMT

In article <C1H6no.DEB@acsu.buffalo.edu>, v124jw4y@ubvmsd.cc.buffalo.edu (Benjamin R Pierce) writes:
 > In article <GOLDM.93Jan26110022@sage4a.rpi.edu>, goldm@rpi.edu (Mitchell E. Gold) writes...
 > >There are those of us who have kept the clean feel of Paranoia while adding
 > >the portability of GURPS by playing Paranoia as an extremely warped
 > >version of Spawn of Fashan.
 > > 
 > >Would I kid you?
 > 
 > 
 > 
 > Personally, I thought GURPS _was_ an extremely variant version of Spawn of
 > Fashan.
 > 
 > Aaaaah, for the days of frog-like beings armed with Saturday-Night Specials
 > who masqueraded as parachutists caught in trees...
 > 
 > 
 >                                                         --Ben

Spawn of Fashan?  Did I see something about this in SJG's "Murphy's Rules"
collection?  Wasn't this the game with just about the weirdest creatures in it,
like a species of ape-like beings whose sole ambition was to manage to put their
foot behind their neck?

-Leif Kj|nn|y
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: mab@wdl39.wdl.loral.com (Mark A Biggar)
Subject: Re: English as a Celtic language?
Organization: Loral Western Development Labs
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 02:55:04 GMT

The best definition I ever heard for English is that it grew out of the attempts
of Norman soldiers to pick up Saxon barmaids.  Norman of course is French with aScandnavian twist, while Saxon is as Germanic as can be.  There is very little
Celtic influnce left in English, except for in the area of family names quite
a few of which come from Irish or Scotish Galic speakers.

--
Mark Biggar
mab@wdl1.wdl.loral.com