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Resist Extinction

Extinction Roleplaying Game

I’ve posted a roleplaying game from the archives for you to download, read through, and enjoy. Consider this post the feedback thread if you want to share ideas or questions.

Extinction was an entry to a Mecha RPG Design contest. I cobbled it together fairly quickly based on some ideas that had been ruminating. While the game is mostly playable, it’s pretty simple and a bit of a mess. The rules could be more tightly focused and simplified. I’m not sure the premise is the most unique, but there are some sweet ideas in there.

I had been working on an updated version of this, but for now, I’ll just put this “ashcan” version out in the wild again. Enjoy!

Grab it here.

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WATERHACK Preview #2

WATERHACK goes live tomorrow on DriveThruRPG. I will be putting it on the itch.io side of things as well shortly. To whet your appetite (or thirst), here are a couple of pages from the core book.

Download a 2 page Preview PDF here:

I am open to doing a print version of the game, but I imagine there will be some errata and balance fixes as it goes out into the wild. I’ll wait until I get some of that feedback before working a print on demand option.

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We are on itch.io

I’m pretty happy with DriveThruRPG’s setup. At one point, they charged for free products, but I’m sure they realize that driving traffic to the site for free stuff increases the chance of people buying stuff. That’s good.

But I’ve noticed itch.io recently, and so I will be setting up another site there.

Right now, the basic 2D10 RPG is the only item available, but I’ll be adding more in the coming days.

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Updated 2D10 RPG Available

In honor of Teach Your Kids to Game week, I’ve updated the one page 2D10 RPG with a bit of editing, some slight adjustments, and font changes (hopefully to improve readability). You can get it for free from RPGNow. I still have been pondering a change to Occupations to turn the whole system into a dice pool – you roll an extra D10 if you use Occupations, Feats, and/or Special Items in play but keep the highest two rolls. Consider that a way to mess with the system if you find it is too easy for some heroes to wipe out goblins or space lords or whatever.

I will update some of the other PDFs and introduce a mini-setting in the upcoming week.

— Nathan

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Basic Hack Is Out

I’ve sort of been living under a hole or something, because the Black Hack and White Hack (and other variants) have basically been unknown to me. These are sort of old school versions of D&D, harkening back to some of the original fantasy games. Nostalgia is a powerful force, but some of the simplicity and wonkiness of those classic games are fun.

These new versions often add changes to keep the simplicity and streamline the game. I dig it. It means you have tons of resources that you can easily modify to work from all the variations of D&D, but you can also get playing quick and easy.

Black Hack is the chief among these.

It’s my kind of D&D-clone, using a familiar core and then going nuts in a bid for simplicity and speed. I love it. In fact, last night, I started a fantasy campaign with my kids using an even more stripped down version which I call the Basic Hack.

Here’s how it works:

  • Use your six core attributes and roll under to succeed. (I like the Black Hack’s attribute generation technique to keep things balanced.)
  • Pick a class. Fighters are good at fighting. Clerics can heal and turn undead. Wizards are good at casting spells. Rogues are good at sneaking and stealing.
  • Pick a race. Elves can see in the dark. Dwarves can find secret doors. Humans get a +1 to an attribute of choice. (You can easily switch this up or add more complexity.)
  • Hit points are standard. I gave the fighter 10 and the wizard 4. (Might want to give them more in the future.)
  • For class or race features, I give them advantage on the roll per 5th Edition. Fighters always get to roll two D20s when attacking for instance.
  • I’d give wizards and clerics two starting spells they can cast once per day. In a bid for simplicity, don’t worry about levels. Our wizard got sleep and magic arrow (aka magic missile). I’d give a cleric heal wounds and remove curse. The key is to pick spells that will have an impact in the story right away to make all the characters feel useful.
  • Weapon damage can be standard. I like armor as written in the Black Hack to keep things simple. (Plus, teaching your kids math is a bonus.)
  • No experience points, no levels. As the characters advance, give them magical items, extra hit points, new spells, or a new ability. Or let them raise another attribute.

I’ll be writing this up in a couple of pages to post on RPGNow this weekend sometime.

— Nathan

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