HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: durrell@pinball.arcade.uiowa.edu (Bryant Durrell)
Subject: Re: Vampire II
Date: Tue, 10 Nov 1992 18:42:42 GMT
Organization: University of Iowa

In article <1992Nov9.210348.2320@ncsu.edu> jmkaraka@eos.ncsu.edu (JOHN MARTIN KARAKASH) writes:
>Someone unattributed writes:
>|>Having just seen Vampire second edn. in the shops I was wondering if
>|>anybody had any info it. What differences are there between it and the
>|>first edition other than being hardbacked and more expensive?

>	No real big differences.  There are FEWER pages then before due to
>some editorial trimming.  They made only moderate improvements to the
>layout and such.

Actually, there are ten more pages in the second edition.  The pages
are of a lighter paper stock, which is perhaps why you're confused.
Also, IMHO, the layout is significantly improved.  The headers are
much more distinctive, which is a big bonus for finding things.  The
charts tend to have screens in them now, which makes them easier to
read.  And, tangentially, the art is far more attractive.

>	The one major difference is spending xp's.  The price of nearly
>everything is higher now, and some things that weren't priced before have
>prices now (humanity, new rituals, path increases, etc.).

Other major differences include the renovated Disciplines and the improved
combat system.  Both of these are pretty significant in play.

>	If you own a copy of Vampire I, I would not recommend getting V II.
>Just photocopy that one page or so if you need to use it all.

If you own a copy of Vamp I, you may or may not want to get V II.  I 
wouldn't recommend buying it to everyone -- if you've been running a
nice steady campaign you may not want to shake things up as much as
you will if you just swap in the new rules.  On the other hand, if I
was starting a new campaign I'd want to use these rules.

Be aware, though, that the changes aren't limited to that one page.

Oh.  And it's a glued binding.  Dammit.

Bryant Durrell
durrell@chop.isca.uiowa.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: curtis@eos.ncsu.edu
Subject: INFO! Btech, Po-Mo...
Originator: curtis@c00090-100lez.eos.ncsu.edu
Reply-To: curtis@eos.ncsu.edu
Organization: North Carolina State University, Project Eos
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 00:21:52 GMT


Hi.  I'm doing a research/thesis project on popular culture concerning gaming 
based around the FASA Battletech gaming system and all of the associated
media/materials/systems that surround it.  Any information 
concerning:

	The VR battletech,
	Battletech MUDS, etc,
	GENIE's new Btech simulator game,
	Battletech newletters, groups, etc,
	Anything concerning the Btech novelizations,	
	Any battletech software/shareware,
	FTP sites, 
	resource listings, 
	newsgroups,
	and anything related that comes to mind

would be excellent.  Thankyou.

curtis@eos.ncsu.edu
--
Newsgroups: 
Distribution: world
Followup-To: 
From: curtis@eos.ncsu.edu (Abba Jones)
Reply-To: curtis@eos.ncsu.edu (Abba Jones)
Organization: Project EOS - North Carolina State University
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: sba@cch.coventry.ac.uk (Blade)
Subject: Re: Vampire: Combat.. HELP!!
Organization: Coventry University
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 17:22:39 GMT

Has anyone played vampire the rpg. To get a good effect turn all the lights
off play it about 12:00 only use candlelight and have some haunting music
in the background it works wonders!
From: 9111123@ul.ie
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: RE: Rec.games.frp.cyber
Date: 6 Nov 92 07:22:46 GMT
Organization: University of Limerick, Ireland


 Hey I know of 2 players of C of C who play in my Dark Consp. campain;).

  Coyote
   Lap dog form HELL

********************************************************************************
*Coyote           *   "Four things greater than all things are,                *
*  9111123@ul.ie  *     Women and horses and power and War"                    *
*                 *      Rudyar Kipling(maker of exceedingly good cakes)       *
* I would be greatly susprised if anyone shared my views:disclaimer            *
********************************************************************************

Hell with it for all those who wish to know the name is Pat.
Xref: sparky rec.games.frp.misc:8138 rec.games.frp.advocacy:3164
From: sl9b4@cc.usu.edu (Deep Six)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,rec.games.frp.advocacy
Subject: Adventurers? (was Re: Carrying weapons..(was Re: META: Swords..))
Date: 11 Nov 92 01:47:05 MDT
Organization: Utah State University

In article <1dpv4gINN5va@escargot.xx.rmit.OZ.AU>, (Matt=Goodall) writes:
> seawasp@vm2.cis.pitt.edu (Sea Wasp) writes:

>>>	"Well, I'm an adventurer, get it?  Adventurer."
> 				           ^^^^^^^^^^^		
>>	In my world, Adventurer is a recognized profession. People 
> 	             ^^^^^^^^^^		
>>attack at any time. An Adventurer who was walking around completely
      			^^^^^^^^^^
> 	The useage of the word "adventurer" is beginning to annoy me. 
> Thanks to T$R, gamers everywhere use the word indisciminately in and out
> of character. Try the words "hero",
> "explorer", "mercenary", "trouble shooter" etc etc instead after all very
> few of your characters are actually professional "adventurers".

This is a good point. I think this has bothered me since the first game I
ever played. Where the hell did this concept of adventurers come from? It
certainly has no basis in history -- any half-intelligent knight, soldier, 
mercenary, what have you, would much rather sit in a castle with his feet 
up in front of a fire than strap on all that cursed armor and take a chance
at having one or more of his appendages avulsed from the rest of him. And
the adventurer has very little basis in literature. There are literary 
examples of ``parties'' who go out into the big wide world and have 
``adventures,'' but only in RPGs is the idea of adventuring parties 
institutionalized. 

The answer to the question ``How did the concept of institutionalized 
adventuring come to be?'' is (of course) to make RPGs ``funner'' for
players. Instead of concerning yourself with the messy details of how
the PCs happen to end up together, you just hang up a sign that says,
``ADVENTURERS WANTED.'' No fuss no muss. It's just like women PCs in 
medieval settings or magic shops (``Hi, do you havea wand of fireballs?'' 
``Yes -- aisle 5 in the pyrotechnics department''). They're all things
that probably wouldn't exist if the RPG world was real, but you stick
them in to make things ``funner'' or easier for players to play in.

But then again, it's one of those things you just can't really say anything
bad about. If someone criticizes Sea Wasp because there is an Adventure's
Union (``So always look for the Union label, when you're adventuring..'') in 
his world, his best and only defense is, ``Well, my players seem to enjoy it, 
so I must be doing something right.'' And he'd be right. It comes down to 
fun, but I really detest anachronisms designed to make games ``funner'' or 
more convenient for players, because in the long run the players miss out.

Time to change the subject line again, eh?
 
Okay,
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chadd VanZanten SL9B4@CC.USU.EDU  ``God is love. Love is blind. Ray
Charles is blind. Therefore, Ray Charles is God.'' --Socrates
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: chuk@giskard.acns.nwu.edu (Chuk Craig)
Subject: Entelechy request
Reply-To: chuk@casbah.acns.nwu.edu
Organization: Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
Date: Thu, 5 Nov 1992 17:33:25 GMT

A few months ago, someone posted about a Hero Games science-fiction
campaign setting they had created.  The setting was called Entelechy.  
I've unfortuneately deleted those posts, and would greatly appreciate 
it if anyone who had saved them could repost or e-mail them to me.

chuk

--

Charles E. Craig                           BITNET:  CHUK@NUACC
Academic Computing and Network Services    Internet: chuk@casbah.acns.nwu.edu
Northwestern University                    NeXTmail: chuk@giskard.acns.nwu.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: mathers@sibelius.trl.oz.au (Steven Mathers)
Subject: Re: META: Swords, etc
Reply-To: s.mathers@trl.oz.au
Organization: Telecom Research Labs, Melbourne, Australia
Date: Mon, 9 Nov 1992 02:28:05 GMT

|> strength we are talking about is akin to...a weightlifter.  It's alot like
|> longbowmen.  Longbowmen were trained from childhood to draw a bow which has
|> a pull in excess of 100lbs. several hundred times in one day.  This is STRONG!

Claymore weilders must have taken up a relatively small proportion of a
scotts army then, becuase you cant afford to have a large proportion of
your male population spending all their time loafing around playing with
swords.  Any fool can use a long pointy stick and a shield.
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: fshaver@eng.auburn.edu (Martin Shaver)
Subject: Re: Magic Systems
Reply-To: fshaver@eng.auburn.edu
Organization: Auburn University Engineering
Date: Wed, 4 Nov 1992 18:35:41 GMT

Take a look at _Ars Magica_ by White Wolf.  Mages cast spells based on "forms" which
can best be described as magical skills.  For example, to cast the infamous
fireball spell, the mage would combine his magical skills for creation ("creo") of
fire ("ignem").  Similarly, to destroy water he combines the skills for destruction
("perdo") and water ("aquam") would be combined.  There are many, many combinations
of skills and a Mage has only so many experience points, et al., to spend on
improving those skills.  Still, a Mage can attempt _any_ spell he would like to
try if he can combine the proper skills.  The more difficult, longer lasting, much
damage causing, further range, etc. the spell, the higher the chance there is for
failure.  Still, the magic system allows for some interesting possibilities.  It is
_very_ nice to be the mage.

Since the game is based in Mythic Europe (just like our historic
Europe only with real magic and faeries, etc.), someone at White Wolf thought it
would be neat to use Latin names for the names of the skills so be prepared to
see a lot of Latin.  Fortunately, no one is required to conjugate ...
From: mdlcpgs@lhn.gns.cri.nz
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: RE: Strong??: was Re: META: Swords, etc
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 92 02:21:12 GMT  
Organization: Institute of Gelogical & Nuclear Sciences, New Zealand.

>In excess of 100lbs?? Strong??
>I can lift 100lbs with my right arm several hundred times a day. I had a job
>which I was picking up hay. two people doing all the lifting/stacking of bales
>between 60-150 lbs (on a truck, and in the barn, ie twice for every bale/ 2
>people = lifted number of bales picked up) Two people picked up up to 1600
>bales in a day (would be more if there was more work) at rates of 210-420 bales

Pulling a string back to your ear with 3 fingers and then holding it for
long enough to aim is not so easy. Try your local archery club - they may
have a say 40lb self bow somewhere you could try it on. 40 would be as
much as I could do comfortably and 60 about as much as I could pull at
all.	Phil (definitely not strong)
From: cleggp@aix.rpi.edu (Paul Jason Clegg)
Subject: Re: List of Superohero RPGs
Organization: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 1992 00:36:26 GMT

In article <1992Nov6.002554.29734@news.ysu.edu> ag885@yfn.ysu.edu (Charles Gibbs) writes:
>
>OK, I'm trying to get a list of superhero RPGs.  Here's what I have...
>
>NOT SUPPORTED
>  Villians & Vigilantes (Fantasy Games)
>  Superworld (Publisher unknown)
>
>SUPPORT STATUS UNKNOWN
>  Guardians (Starchilde)

Games Workshop, believe it or not, actually had its own superhero game, called,
I think, Golden Heroes?  It's not supported at all, anymore, to my knowledge.

Also, I'm not sure that V&V is "not supported"; I thought I had seen a "new"
copy of the boxed set game at a store not too long ago...

While we're talking about it, what do people know and/or think about the
Guardians game?  I saw it once or twice, and I was thinking about picking up
a copy because it was cheap, and I love to look at different game systems.
Is it worth the 10-12 bux?

...Paul


Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: louis@ansoft.com
Subject: Re: List of Superohero RPGs
Keywords: Marvel,Champ
Reply-To: louis@ansoft.com
Organization: Ansoft Corporation
Date: Mon, 9 Nov 1992 15:12:56 GMT

In article <1992Nov7.035040.3540@Princeton.EDU>,
mfterman@dae.Princeton.EDU (Mutant for Hire) writes:
|> In article <1689711C89.MHART00@RICEVM1.RICE.EDU>, mason writes:
|> >So can anyone give a quick review of the best systems?  I've
|> >played both "Champions" and "Villains and Vigilantes", but I'm
|> >not happy with either system.  Are any of the others better?
|> 
|> Well, in the opinion of a lot of people, Champions _is_ the best
|> system around. There really isn't a strong #2 favorite, though
|> Marvel Superheroes has a devoted following here and there. The
|> main question is, what didn't you like about Champions? If its
|> complexity, Marvel Superheroes is easier, though it forces a
|> style of gaming due to the rules.

As far as Marvel goes, I played Marvel for 6 years and if you want to
run an easy-to-play comic book Superhero game it pretty good, but don't
try to run any other campaign type such as vigilantes or mercenaries,
the penalyies are too large (lose all experence/karma for killing)

On the champians game:
I recently purchased the hardback Champians Rulebook with the Champains 
Source book and one other section (3 total), and the only complaint I 
have is that it seem to be poorly orginized.  They talk about subjects
before they tell you what they are.  Example in the skills section 
they talk about 'package deals' in martials arts before tehey explain
what a package deal is.

Also I am part of the Champians mailing list and have down-loaded 
alot of champian characters from the net, and all of them seem to 
be based on 100 to 750 points.  I am currently trying to start a
campaign of Bounty Hunters/Mercenaries in a world of minor super heroes.
I started by saying the base should be 75, not superheroic - just heroic.  
But all the NPC I see posted on the net are capable of destroying the 
whole team (45d6...ARG!).

Is anyone running a heroic campaign with base 75?  Any tips?  Would 
you like to corrospond?

Or am I just running an old set of the rules and should I buy the
newest set?

thanks
Louis Reash      'It's deja vu all over again' - Unknown
louis@ansoft.com 'The brighter the picture, the darker the negative' 
                   - Batman the Animated Series 'Two-Face'
Disclaimer: My boss doesn't listen to what I say, why should you?
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: bcash@crchh410.BNR.CA (Brian Cash)
Subject: Re: Backstab in Shadowrun?
Reply-To: bcash@crchh410.BNR.CA (Brian Cash)
Organization: Bell-Northern Research Ltd.
Date: Fri, 13 Nov 1992 04:59:04 GMT

In article <1dv5adINNdab@aludra.usc.edu>, krischel@aludra.usc.edu (Taxi)
writes:
|>In article <1992Nov12.153227.10302@kth.se> petrus@stacken.kth.se (Lars
Petrus) writes:
|>>   We can not find a good way to deal with backstab situations in the
|>>SR2 book. This may very well be due to incompetence on our part, but
|>>here is the question anyway.
|>>
|>>   I'm thinking of situations like when a character sneaks up to somebody
|>>without being noticed, and cuts his throat with a knife. I want him *dead*,
|>>not subject to a wimpy knife attack with the strength (STR)L.
|>>
|>
|>It's real easy....if you sneak up on a person, he's automatically dead.
|>If you're shooting at an unconcious victim, he's automatically dead.
|>
|>Use common sense, don't try to find a crutch in a game mechanic....
|>
|>-Taxi
|>
|>
                  
Common sense tells me 2 things:

1) Some skill is required: alot of sneaking skill and some attacking skill.
2) Nothing works 100% of the time.

The only 100% kill region in a man (instant) is the heart
(brain shots are survivable!).  This requires some skill in
shooting, even at close range (the target might not be TOTALLY
still.)
Throat slits can be done incorrectly as well.

If the attacker is real good at sneaking and has any skill at all
in the weapon, a kill should be easy.  But never 100%.
I think SR2 mechanics (if you use ALL of them) will give you that.

Brian /-|-\
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: davis@cwis.unomaha.edu (James J Davis)
Subject: Re: SJ Games Licenses White Wolf's Vampire
Organization: University of Nebraska at Omaha
Date: Fri, 13 Nov 1992 21:36:31 GMT

guest@chopin.Physics.McGill.CA (Muhep Guest account) writes:

>Good God! GURPS has been emphasizing roleplaying since it hit the market:  
>I remember when it came out, the idea of awarding character points for  
>roleplaying and not violent, mindless action was considered "radical"!  

I don't know if it was "radical" but it was alright with me.  Several
other games were doing the same thing too.

>That said, you *do* realize that GURPS versions of White Wolf's products  
>will increase the scope of the possible character designs by a factor of  
>about 10? One of the Storyteller System's fatal weaknesses is its narrow  
>scope and confinement of the players to a few stereotyped roles, IMHO!

I agree.  I found the stereotyping in Storyteller to be chronic.  My own
opinion of Vampire the Masquerade is that the vision of the vampire was
very narrow.  Broadening this in GURPS would be welcome.

-james
From: kuvamp@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: AMBER mailing list?????
Date: 9 Nov 92 09:54:11 CST
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Services


I realize this is an atrocious waste o' bandwidth, but could someone out there
either confirm or deny the existance of the AMBER RPG mailing list?  Does it
exist, and if so, how do I get on it?  Please E-mail replies, so as not to
clutter the 'waves further, neh?

					Thanx,

					KUVAMP (Gareth Skarka)
From: pmwg1641@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Peter M. White)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: SRUN: Question?
Date: 9 Nov 92 17:57:44 GMT
Article-I.D.: news.BxGn88.2KK
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana

flax@frej.teknikum.uu.se (Jonas Flygare) writes:

>Ahh, but if you define tangible as the ability to feel, then alienation
>affects people around the victim so that they can't feel them, hear them, see
>them etc. A SEP-field, so to say. :-)
>Anyway, this needn't affect bullets cars and other lethal stuff around the victim,
>thus putting them in mortal danger. 

I think the point to stress here is to think of Alienation in psychological
terms instead of as a direct physical effect.  I would not rule
out interesting physcial effects, but those would mostly be covered under
Accident and Confusion.

>What I'd like to know, is if the caster 
>of alienation goes astral, can he/she/it or any other astral beings sense the
>victims to attack them?
>"Hey, look at that.. A Joe-shaped fireball..."

Remember: Shamans so not *cast* Alienation; rather, Spirits cause it.

Astral Space is a very special dimension where the truth is extremely
difficult to hide.  Recall that Invisibility will not function in
Astral, because the mage is not using senses, he is directly sensing
aspects of reality.  (Look!  There is someone with a spell sustained on them.)
i expect that a *careful* examination of the aura would reveal
something unusual, although it would be difficult to identify the
cause as a Spirit Power.

--Peter

______________________________________________________________________________
						|
     "Guards!  Let me draw their fire!"		|	p-white@uiuc.edu
		   --Scapegoat,_Marshal Law_	|
______________________________________________________________________________
From: ctatro@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Christopher D Tatro)
Subject: play by mail
Organization: The Ohio State University
Distribution: usa
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 1992 16:43:40 GMT

     A friend and I are trying to work out the details of doing some role 
playing by mail (I recently moved away and still wanted to continue with my 
character of many years) but really have no clue as to how to go about doing 
it.  The play would be mostly interaction oriented, with not much combat or 
stuff actually.  Anybody have any suggestions?
     Many thanks
          kristoff
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: parson@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Eric Parson)
Subject: Re: Harnic fluff (was Re: HARN)
Organization: Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center, Chicago
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 20:02:29 GMT

>|> schmunk@spacsun.rice.edu (Robert Schmunk) writes:
>|> > millerl@wharton.upenn.edu writes:
>|> > |> What kind of campaigns does the Harn setting encourage? Can you and
>|> > |> other Harnophiles post some fluff about your campaigns
>|> > 
>|> 
I guess that it's time for me to chime in.  As opposed to Robert Schmunk,
I've been out of the GM-ing business for almost 2 years (anyone out there
know that grad school is H*LL?).  Anyway, I'm looking to possibly start up
a Harn campaign around my area (any Chicago-ans interested?  [the email   
address is via telnetting!])  I could say what I'm planning (hoping?) but
that might spoil the suprise for some.  I'll just say what I've used in
the past.

One campaign where I was a participant, not the GM, we were confronted with
an incease of wolf problems near a not-so-distant village from the city of
Kiban, in Kaldor.  We then tangled, only moderately successfully, with
a werewolf.  This was where a lot of our players learned just how deadly
Harn combat can be.

I then followed up that serial with a series of smaller adventures leading
to the attempted assassination of the King of Kaldor and the Earl of Balim
(can you guess it?  yup, the Earl has his seat in Kiban).  This involved
comparatively a lot of magic for Harn, as well as running the gamut of
skills: who would want to kill the king, how would one do it and not be found
out, etc.  (If you want a clue, read your Asimov...)  

If you are asking about what are the benefits of running on the 
world of Harn, I would say that you as a GM don't have to try and work up
a whole locale/area/world political/social/economical heirarchy.  It's laid
out in sufficient detail as to need nothing more, but certainly is not
restrictive.  If you're asking about the pluses of running Harnmaster,
I think that you should go back to Robert's article.  Additionally, it
provides a good basic structure for one to role-play on.  There is no off-
the-cuff guesswork as to whether you should or shouldn't be able to do
something, it's right there in front of you.  Addtionally, for the GM, 
if you have a pretty good stable of NPC's (I happen to have *completely*
stocked Kiban), you have continual and consistant character personas. 
(If I go to bar YYY two times in the length of the campaign, I'm going
to meet the same barkeep each time.)  Of course, this is the goal of any
good game-playing.

Now that I've completely muddled the subject... :-)

			Eric T. Parson
				parson@pop.stat.purdue.edu