Links · Legacy archive
Interesting Gaming Websites
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Interesting Gaming Websites
#161http://www.geocities.com/kenstandre/
Note: Gristlegrim Dungeon should be checked out by anyone who is interested in the old Labrynth project.
Ken St Andre is one of the great gamers of old and a writer. He is the primary creator of Tunnels and Trolls, which at one time was the main alternative to Dungeons and Dragons. T&T was never a serious game, but it was always fun. In fact, T&T and Ken Andre has added more to the gaming subculture than you might expect. So the next time you hear "Nah Nah you missed my vital spot" or "save for mere death", know that you are hearing a T&T injoke from 30 some odd years ago. -
Doc Sidhe RULES!!!!
#162http://www.aaronallston.com/
In addition to being a fun guy, he has contributed a great deal to both Gaming and Speculative Fiction.
Aaron Allston: Biography
I was born in 1960 in Corsicana, TX. Related to too many strange people ever to lead a normal life, I began writing at the age of 11; I perpetrated my first short story at 14 and my first novel at 16. (Mercifully, both are hidden away from the eyes of men.) I studied journalism, among other things, in high school in Denton, TX, graduating in 1979.
I moved to the nation's capital, Austin, intending to continue journalism studies at the University of Texas while writing on the side, but neither a semester at the university nor a year with the Austin American-Statesman proved agreeable.
After leaving the newspaper in 1980, I was hired by game designer and publisher Steve Jackson as circulation manager for Space Gamer magazine; over the next two years, I became assistant editor and then editor of the magazine. I also began designing game supplements on a freelance basis, for Steve Jackson Games and then for Hero Games. In 1983, shortly after Space Gamer won the H.G. Wells Award (see the Origins Awards) for Best Role-Playing Magazine of 1982, I went freelance full-time as a game designer, doing most of my work for Champions publisher Hero Games and Dungeons & Dragons publisher TSR.
My first novel, Web of Danger, game-based fiction supporting the Top Secret/S.I. game line, was released by TSR in 1988. In 1993, Baen Books published my second novel, the original fantasy Galatea in 2-D. Subsequently, I gradually moved from game design to full-time fiction writing. -
Risus: The Anything RPG
#163Risus is a fun, free, full service lite rpg. It is a little slapstick in its presentation, but it is a functional game. It has quite a following as well. If you don't know about Risus, I suggest you check out the basic rules at least. Who knows, someday you might need to play it some day when you just need a quick game fix, or you don't want to disturb your current campaign without all your players present. These are not the Ultimate Risus Pages, but these are the ones I am vaguely familiar with.
Risus Main Rules and the main Risus link page
http://www222.pair.com/sjohn/risus.htm
Risus Yahoo group
groups.yahoo.com/group/risus/
International Order of Risus (I am not making this up)
http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/International%20Order%20of%20Risus
Risus Tenhut (And serious Risus)
www.larseriklarsen.dk/lel/gamerules/risus/
Risus Supers
www.angelfire.com/tx2/webgamer/supers.
Risus Fantasy Augment
http://codepoet.org/~markw/risus/fantasy.html
Unearth Risus (Okay lots of goodies from someone who has been playing a bit too much D20)
www.larseriklarsen.dk/lel/gamerules/risus/
Risus Goodness
http://www.scarletmars.com/RPGs/RisusOptions/Index.htm
Risus (Call of Cthullu and rules in Deutsch)
http://www.edlbauer.de/risus/
Risus in Space
ereshkigal.tripod.com/risus/
Risus IronSide
http://www.eyeballkid.co.za/ironsides.html
Risus Kitchen
www.geocities.com/risuschef/
Risus Firefly (sigh)
http://webpages.charter.net/anjinm/g_risus.htm
Risus Belgarion (sigh)
unterhund.8m.com/risusbel/rintro.html
Risus Martial Arts (Sigh, but funny)
http://codepoet.org/~markw/risus/martialarts.html
Risus Bunnies and Burrows From the depths of gaming history, this game will not die. B&B is early roleplaying with a nod to Watership Down and anthromorphic stories.
mywebpages.comcast.net/boydmayberry/Bunnies.html -
paper dice
#164http://www.puam.be/freedice/
Not much to include in this one. There are a variety of paper dice sites out there. If this is not perfect for you, feel free to google search for paper dice and dice models and see some other ones that are available. -
Happy Father's day
#165http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=503
Love him, hate him, or don't know why we think he is important, everyone has an opinion about him.
Despite a few paternity claims to the contrary, Gary Gygax is the father of modern gaming. He created the first mass market rpg. He created (or helped) the first western game. He helped run the first gaming magazine. He ran the largest game company for a decade or so. He created a legacy that every game designer can be envious of.
So Happy Father's day. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#166Why would we hate him? He brought forth from the bowels of his mind the predecessors to the games we know and love. -
The reasons for hate...
#167Old time gamers usually have a love/ hate relationship with him. For decades he was either in charge of, or nearly in charge of TSR, the original DnD company. TSR was frequently called "The Evil Empire", even before Regan made the term popular. In the early days, all game companies were friendly, gamer run companies. Game designers would actually answer your questions about the game if you called the company. You could be on first name basis with their staff, just by being a gamer and sending in a letter or two. It was a friendly world of soft cover, saddle stitch materials, which costed just a touch over their price to produce, made by gamers for gamer, for no other purpose than to help other gamers enjoy themselves.
The TSR business was run with ruthless efficiency, crushing other hobby companies with certain business deals and litigation. They sued their own writers when they pressed their contract rights, including the person who some say actually invented DnD. They mass marketted the TSR brand, so for years people thought all rpgs were DnD. They are only partially responsible for the DnD Cartoon; to the grace of their karma not responsible for the DnD movie. They produced shlock with just enough material that you had to have it to run a proper game. And there were new editions and versions that were changed just enough to make your old material (and all those damm books) obsolete.
Hmmm. Come to think about it things really haven't changed that much.
Think of it as the Microsoft, WhiteWolf or Wizard of the Coast of its day. It was the big dog that dictated what the hobby was, where it was going, and ran over everything in its way.
If more gamers knew their hobby lore, perhaps D20 would be less prevolent.
All that aside, love or hate him, he has done a great deal for the hobby. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#168So the guy wanted to make money. It's a capitolist country. And after all, TSR went kaboom. -
Free is Good!
#169http://www.freeroleplay.org/
The Free Roleplaying Community (FRPGC) is dedicated to free content advocacy in the gamer community. To read more about us, our philosophy and what we hope to achieve please read our FAQ. See our contact page for information on how to get in touch and how to join our on-line discussions.
Q. What is the Free Roleplaying Community?
A. The Free Roleplaying Community (FRPGC) is a group of roleplayers and game designers dedicated to producing free content for roleplaying games. We support the freedoms of speech, press, and association and, in particular, the right to create roleplaying material unimpeded by private monopolies. We believe that all material for roleplaying games, particular the rule systems and game mechanics, should be freely and openly shared with the whole roleplaying community.
Q. What do you do?
A. The FRPGC sets out to write and support free roleplaying content. To enable this we will be publishing our own material, including FRINGE: a generic roleplaying game engine that can be customised to create your own systems. We will also be supporting FRINGE with supplementary documents including new rules and campaign settings. Finally, we will also act as an advocacy group to promote free content in the roleplaying community.
Q. What is "free content"?
A. Free content is any work in any media, whether documents, images or other types, published so that they impart certain freedoms. It's important to make the distinction between gratis free and freedom; as the immortal RMS states, when we say "free" we mean free as in "free speech", not "free beer".
These freedoms are summarised as follows:
The freedom to use the content, for any purpose.
The freedom to study the content, and adapt it to your needs. Access to an modifiable copy of the content is a precondition for this.
The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbours.
The freedom to modify the content, and release your own modifications or supplementary material to the public, so that the whole community benefits. Access to a freely modifiable copy of the material is a precondition for this.
These freedoms are based on the freedoms defined by the Free Software Foundation (FSF) for free software. Unlike the FSF, the FRPGC believes that the sames freedoms should apply to all works, whether software or document.
They allow you to publicly "redistribute copies, either with or without modifications, either gratis or charging a fee for distribution without having to pay or ask permission, and doing so privately without even having to mention they exist."
In order to preserve these freedoms you have to place restrictions on your works to ensure their freedom. These restrictions can include copyleft and that an modifiable version is always made available.
Q. What is copyleft?
A. If you want to publish your material without any restrictions whatsoever you can simply release it as public domain. However, this means that anyone can come along and make non-free versions of your work. In order to ensure that your work remains free many free/open licenses add certain conditions. This is reasonable so long as those conditions ensure freedom and not remove it. One such condition is copyleft: a term devised by the Free Software Foundation meant to be a play on the term "copyright". Basically, it means that when redistributing your content you cannot add restrictions to deny other people the central freedoms.
Q. Are you opposed to "intellectual property"?
A. First of all, we dislike using the term "intellectual property" (see the FSF list of words to avoid) which is often used to generically lump widely different legal systems like copyright, trademark and patents together. It also gives the distorted impression that somebody can own an idea like you might an object or a piece of property. In legal terms you cannot own an idea. Instead, you can gain exclusive rights to certain ideas or concepts for a period of time, after which they revert back to the public domain - where they belong, in our opinion.
So, to answer the question, we are opposed to the concept of intellectual property. However, we are not necessarily opposed to copyright, trademark or patents. The original intentions of these legal systems were noble ones: to protect the rights of innovators and creative individuals in order to foster further innovation and creativity. However, the original intentions have been hijacked by greedy commercial organisations and the laws unfairly distorted to protect their monopolies. Instead, these laws are encroaching on our liberties, reducing creativity and innovation at the expense of the public and to the benefit of big business. Example of this include the ludicrously long periods before copyright expires and the ability to patent basic, common or fundamental concepts. It is these extremes that we oppose and seek to reverse through freedom.
Q. Why is an modifiable version required?
A. Without access to an modifiable copy of the content the freedom to modify and publish changes is meaningless. The GNU General Public license defines the 'source code' of a work to be "the preferred form of the work for making modifications to it."
Q. What is a Free Content License?
A. A free content license conforms to the four freedoms mentioned above. Of all the 'open' or 'free' licenses available, the FRPGC considers the GNU General Public License (GPL) to be the most established, legally sound and reliable of all of the these and all our material is licensed under its terms. Please see the official FSF GPL page for more information on the GPL.
Another suitable free content license is the GNU Free Documentation License, or FDL. Unfortunately, the use of Invariant Sections in a FDL work cannot be considered 'free' as we define it. It is for this reason the FRPGC always recommends using the GPL instead. Please see here for detailed discussion with some of the other problems with the FDL.
Q. Which Licenses are not Free Content Licenses
A. The Free Software Foundation also maintains a list of those content licenses that are not free which can be found here. Additionally, there are also some roleplaying-related content licenses that claim to be free despite the fact they impart few or none of the freedoms mentioned above. These include:
The Open Gaming License (OGL)
The OGL is purportedly a "strong copyleft" license published by the Open Gaming Foundation, an organisation which models itself on the Free Software Foundation. It allows you to define certain parts of you work to be "Open Gaming Content" which are free in the sense we define it. However, since it allows the mixing of copyrighted and "open content" it can't really be considered to have strong copyleft, if it can be considered a copyleft license at all. In fact, it does not fit even the mild restrictions of the unofficial open source definition and so cannot even truly said to be open. What is more, allowing the mixing of protected and open material can actually prohibit you from using the open content at all. Finally, it does not ensure an editable version of the open content is made available. So, in practise the OGL imparts none of the freedoms mentioned above.
The October Open Game License (OOGL)
The OOGL appears to be an almost word-for-word derivation of the GNU FDL, with a few of the terms changed and modified to "protect trademark", thereby breaking the freedoms. The Free Software Foundation publish their licenses for all to use but clearly state they do not permit people to make unauthorised modifications. The FSF consider unauthorised modification of their licenses to be illegal copyright infringement. The FSF have politely requested the "publishers" of the OOGL desist but so far they have not done so. Because of its dubious legal status and its similarity to the FDL we recommend you use the FDL in all cases where you are thinking of using the OOGL.
The Fudge RPG Legal Notice
For a long time the FUDGE (Freeform, Universal Do-it-yourself Gaming Engine) was the closest thing to a free roleplaying game as we define it here. Unfortunately, whilst FUDGE is free to distribute, its not free in the sense we define. Commercial FUDGE publications require permission from the publisher along with a special royalty free licence. The terms of both these licenses are, in our opinion, extremely reasonable, but break freedom #1 from the list of freedoms since it prevents commercial redistribution.
The EABA Open Supplement License
The OSL is a license published by BTRC for their generic "End All Be All" (EABA) roleplaying system. This license allows you to produce "EABA-compatible" supplements. Unfortunately, the OSL is not a free license as we define it: it has trademark restrictions preventing copying and does not ensure an editable version of the content be made available. What is more, EABA itself is not covered by the license making the process of producing a supplement a veritable legal minefield.
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Version 1.0
The Free Software Foundation recommends the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License for all non-software and non-documentation works. However, because none of the CC licenses require a modifiable copy of the content be made available it cannot be considered to be free. All other CC licenses are similarly non-free.
Open Publication License, Version 1.0
Although the FSF recommends this popular content license, it does not require a modifiable copy of the content be made available and so cannot be considered free. -
In the realm of Free
#170http://www.hoboes.com/html/RPG/Gods/
Journey deep into abandoned castles, solve intricate puzzles, fight strange creatures, and wield arcane power. Adventure with a group of intrepid companions in the tradition of “The Three Musketeers” or “The Lord of the Rings.”
Like the adventurers of old in Egypt, you will delve into long forgotten tombs, but in your adventures magic will fuel danger and creatures of myth will stalk the darkness. You will search uncharted wilderness for lost knowledge and hidden treasure.
Where the hand-scrawled sign warns “beyond here lie dragons,” your stories begin.
Gods and Monsters is a free RPG. It is well thought out and complete. It is something Strolen even likes. -
Aria
#171Aria is one of those award winning, stunning game designs, that everyone who knows about it loves, but nobody plays. The game was designed to be played at several levels, with players running countries/ groups, through time.. then at critical moments of history.. moving down to running specific characters built upon the archetypes. An excellent concept that was very ahead of its time. Like the Edsel (which was the most technologically advanced car of its time), it was so far ahead of the curve that very few people "got it". So the game left print. Now only a few die hard fans still use the game, but it is worth looking at for everyone.
Review
http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/reviews/rev_2882.html
Top Links
http://www.sfko.com/aria/main.html
http://www.sfko.com/aria/mechanics/mechanics.html
http://www.sfko.com/aria/links.html
Other good links
http://www.hut.fi/~vesanto/aria2/
ftp://ftp.cs.pdx.edu/pub/frp/aria/
Email
Aria list
aria-l@brownvm.brown.edu
Capra fantasy setting
capra@gojira.monsta.com. send "subscribe capra " in the body to capra-request@gojira.monsta.com.
Newsgroups
Game Support Sites (Official & Unofficial)
http://www.fantasylibrary.com/lounge/gsupport.htm
GM sites
http://www.upl.cs.wisc.edu/~woodelf/RPG/RPG.html -
The World of Gwelith
#172http://www.gwelith.com/index.htm
Welcome to the World of Gwelith, a world of ancient gods, evil dragons and mighty heroes. The age of destruction bought about by the Elder Dragons has long past. New avenues of adventure and opportunity have arisen. The ancient tombs and cities of the Annan lie undiscovered since the second age, waiting to be found and plundered.
But darkness lies just around the corner. Far to the east the Goblin Hordes are stirring after their invasion forces were defeated twenty years ago. Followers of the Lost Gods are multiplying and finding their way into all levels of society. In the New Kingdoms, the Saith are again expanding and kingdoms are falling before them.
A nicely fleshed out world with surprising details in certain parts. Earned a bookmark from me. Excellent original graphics to go along with everything. Make sure you check out the gallery -
Learn about other places
#173The web allows us quick and easy access to information about other places and times. A few quick articles and you can be inspired to do wonderous things in your campaign.
http://www.szirine.com/
ABOUT SZIRINE
What is Szirine? Szirine is a literary magazine on world cultures and subcultures.
Szirine is published by the World Cultures Foundation, Inc., which aims to increase awareness of world cultures and subcultures. For more information on activities, events and projects sponsored by the World Cutures Foundation, Inc. please contact us at ccaprio@szirine.com.
************************************************************
Who is Szirine? Szirine is a persona, a character, a spirit, a yearning, a hunger for life. It is the knowledge inside you that is masked during the day. The beauty of cultures, lands, individuals observed by a silent writer. The acute observations we make without writing them down. Curiosity and contemplation that are given as divine gifts. The invisible embrace of life. Dreams of adventures in far off lands. The drive for self expression, for digging beneath the banal, for wisdom. It is the smile of a Kouros.
What is Szirine's Mission? Szirine aims to expose to the English speaking world cultures and subcultures that don't normally find space in US mass media. Szirine gives voice to great writers and observers of life, cultures and subcultures. Szirine is a perfectionist, and pushes its writers to strive for the greatest depths of thinking, perception and expression. -
Gamers say...
#174No claims on the quality of these sites, they were listed as the ones that many gamers go to. They are in a loose list of how often they are hit.
www.rpg.net
www.indie-rpgs.com/
www.pen-paper.net
www.sjgames.com
www.herogames.com
www.enworld.org
www.rpghost.com, forums.rpghost.com
www.dragonsfoot.org
www.gamingreport.com
www.ogrecave.com
www.cumberlandgames.com
www.nocturnis.net/
www.DJND.com
www.rpglibrary.org
www.theminiaturespage.com
www.Wizards.com
www.White-Wolf.com
www.edenstudios.net
www.montecook.com
www.TravellerRPG.com
www.traveller5.com
www.yog-sothoth.com
www.burningwheel.org
www.rpg-sandiego.org/
eclipse.netlab.com.au/forums/index.php
http://www.darkshire.net/~jhkim/rpg/
www.westendgames.com/forum/
www.alderac.com
www.mongoosepublishing.com
www. guardiansorder.com
www.palladiumbooks.com
www.irony.com
www.nexusnine.net
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www.rpgnet.gr
www.rpg.gr
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Site de l'Elfe Noir www.sdn.org
Guide du Rôliste Galactique www.roliste.com
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www.rollspel.nu (swedish site)
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www.grofafo.de
www.arcane-codex.de
www.x-zine.de
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www.Roolipelit.net (Finnish) -
Get your daily dose
#175http://www.sciencedaily.com/
Okay, you are asking me why I am posting this site. Two reasons actually. The first is from two quotes. The first is a quote from Gibson, "The best science fiction is the science news of today." So if you are going science fiction, here is your plot resource. If you are not doing science fiction, I give you Orson Scott Card, "a good idea is a good idea, it just need the right window dressing". Robots become golems, nano-machines become a new type of enchantment, telecommunication becomes viewing orbs, and so on. The second is, sometimes you just need to double check some real science to make sure your realistic fantasy make sense. This is a good place to start.
ScienceDaily is one of the Internet's leading online magazines and Web portals devoted to science, technology, and medicine. The free, advertising-supported service brings you breaking news about the latest discoveries and hottest research projects in everything from astrophysics to zoology. For three years in a row, ScienceDaily has been chosen by the editors of Popular Science magazine as one of the "Top 50 Web Sites." (For more about our awards, please click here.)
ScienceDaily is unique in that the magazine's articles are selected from news releases submitted by leading universities and other research organizations around the world. Each news release is posted in its original form, with a link to the organization's home page, to aid journalists and others interested in finding up-to-date and relevant background information for a particular story. In this way, ScienceDaily takes what has been compared to the "C-SPAN" approach -- delivering science news in its original, unedited format directly from the source (in this case, the news bureaus and public affairs offices of major universities and research institutions).
In addition, ScienceDaily offers links to major science media and other sources of science news on the Internet, as well as a collection of thousands of interesting science-related sites (courtesy of the open-source Open Directory Project) aimed at helping web surfers in their online explorations. Readers can also browse through our online encyclopedia (courtesy of the open-source Wikipedia project) to find in-depth science, health, environment, and technology articles on various topics. And readers can subscribe to free weekly e-mail bulletins that summarize the top science news stories of the past week.
For universities and other research institutions, ScienceDaily provides free posting of news releases. -
Places to Go, People to Be
#176http://ptgptb.org/index.html
Places to Go, People to Be is the online magazine for all roleplayers: please contribute an article! Our current issue is March 2003. Yes we are still alive! We will publish again. Why not subscribe so you'll know when we do?
Ok, so they aren't very current, but the quality of some of the articles is outstanding!! You will get lucky as you browse through issues. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#177Ahem. I read about the evil empire and Gary Gygax.
Moonhunter is completely right when he talks about TSR and the strategies they employed.
I have to step up and defend poor Gary Gygax though. He was a terrible businessman... He sold TSR shares to pay of debt, he lost even more after a divorce and this introduced some pretty nasty people into the firm. The Blumes had control of TSR by the early 80's and soon he was rendered powerless to do anything.
A little quote here, Brian Blume shouted this for all to hear:
I don't care what Gary said. I own controlling interest in this company and it will be done the way I say!
The Blumes hired a lot of family members into the corporation, leased 70 automobiles (most to their own family) and generally did a terrible job.
Later Lorraine Williams took charge and it is mostly because of her that TSR has such a bad name. She is infamous for her statement that she held gamers in contempt, that they were socially beneath her. She also took care to remove every mention of Gary Gygax from the late 80's TSR books.
Gary wasn't really that bad... He only created the firm and the game and then got kicked out. -
Write an RPG in 24 hours
#178I am admused by this.
The 24 Hour RPG site is now up and live: www.24hourrpg.com
Basically, it's an event that you're encoraged to do whenever you want to. However, from today and for the next three weeks, the "Grand Act" is taking place- Sort of like a Group Marathon, or a Blood Drive but with RPGs instead of Blood. We're hoping to get a lot of participants during this period.
Anyway, the rules are pretty well spelled out on that site above, but I'll paste them here. Also, there's a Yahoo group that's been made to discuss the event and the games:
The Time. There is no set date for when you can begin your own 24 Hour RPG Event. Just go for it when you have time. Occasionally, though, we will be featuring the 24 Hour RPG Grand Act, which is a set date of 1-2 weekends where we hope to recruit many people to engage in the Event together, like a marathon.
No Sign Up. You don't need to sign up or tell others that you want to participate to actually engage in the 24 Hour RPG project. Just find a time that works for you, do it, then share your results with your peers on the 24 Hour RPG Yahoogroup (and Submit your results here).
No pre-planning. You may not work on the RPG before your 24 hour period starts. This means no pre-creation of a system, no preparing vignettes or setting text, no artwork . . . nothing! It is understood that your 24 hour game may use elements of previous ideas, dreams, or game systems but you agree that all work on the game is to be done in a single 24 hour block of time.
Size Limit. What do you feel is a complete RPG? This exercise will show the world what your concept of complete is. The goal of the 24 Hour RPG Project is to write a complete RPG that spans 24 pages. It's a hefty goal. Heck, it may be an unreachable goal. But give it a shot anyway. Try to write as much as you can- See if you can make it to 24 pages in 24 hours. That's roughly 16,000 or so words.
You Must Do All Of the Work Yourself. This means no friends assisting you with editing or artwork. Do it yourself. Show us what you can do. Clip-art is, of course, legal.
All Participants Trade PDFs at the end of the project. When you complete your 24 Hour RPG Event, you can upload your game here and post a message to the 24 Hour Games Yahoo Group so that other participants can check out your game. If you participate in the Grand Act, after the chosen weekend is over all participants will exchange PDFs. This is your chance to see how your work measures up against that of others operating under the same duress as yourself. This may very well be the most important part of the exercise since you're very likely to learn some new ways of doing things just by looking at the accomplishments of others.
What Happens If I Don't Finish? There's a very good chance that many of the participants will not complete a game within 24 hours. These unfinished projects should still be shared with the group and, if your head isn't in too much pain, you should consider completing the RPG as you have time.
What Then? It's expected that if you participate in this activity, that you submit your game to this site to be archived for 'posterity'. In other words, you should leave a free copy around, to inspire others to engage in the next round of the event. But you are free to develop and publish your game from there- Feel free to add more to it and publish your game in any form you want. But for the original that was submitted for this contest, you should keep it available for free. You should also not edit the original- If you decide to do more work on your game, to polish it up and make it solid to your liking, go ahead and leave the Original available anyway, just as a record to show others how far your work has come. You are free to upload your 24-Hour RPG game, then later a Revised version, if you wish.
Game Format. You can write the game in any format you wish. However, the only format that we will currently accept for posting is HTML, simple TXT or (Preferably) PDF. If you don't have a program that will convert other files (MS Word .doc files, etc) to PDF, please ask us on the Yahoo Group- Someone will be able to convert your file for you. We don't want to post .doc files for security reasons. If you have another format that you wish to experiment with (MP3, Flash, etc) please Contact Us or post to the Yahoo Group and we'll see what we can do!
Who Will Participate? Again, anyone who wants to. Whether you're an "Industry Professional" or a burgeoning writer with no credits to your name, as long as you follow the rules you can participate. Anyone who wants to participate can participate. No sign up required.
When Will This Happen? You can engage in the project at any time you want to. Just follow the rules above. You can also participate in the Grand Act if you wish, but it's not necessary to enjoy the thrill of the 24 Hour RPG Event. Whenever is convenient for you! -
Wikipedia is cool
#179http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roleplaying_game
is the page I like, but you can start at
http://en.wikipedia.org/
Wikipedia is great for generating information on a given subject. If you are looking for a quick encyclopedia like information uplift, this is the site for you. Remember, a quick bit of information can make you look like a well informed genius on the net, so hitting this, dictionary, and thesaurus sites will impress your friends on the net.
There are some very useful links at the bottom of the RPG article. -
The Nerevarine's Online WorldBuilders Resource
#180http://www.geocities.com/worldbuildingonline/
You go girl. It will not win any awards for webdesign, but it is a solid list of useful info that is organized for use. Many of the sites listed here are worthy of their own listings on this list. By the way, the list itself is too large to post here, so you have to go to the site.
Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! Visit! -
Conspiracies Rock!
#181http://www.abovetopsecret.com
This is an interesting way to look at the world. For gaming, you can take any number of these posts as "inspiration".
From their FAQ:
Deny Ignorance.
This motto has life.
It has purpose.
It demands ATS members to think.
It is a state of mind.
It is a sense of purpose.
It is a statement agaisnt the paradigm.
It is a rage against the mindless status-quo.
The idea of "deny ignorance" isn't a goal that ATS hopes to accomplish. Instead, it's a challenge. A call to all those who come here to aspire to a higher state of awareness through informed discussion and debate.
Deny ignorance is what we do.
It's how we think. It's how we talk. It's how we listen.
Ignorance is the creeping crud of history that has clouded our minds and dulled our brains. Is the evil that men do, the reason history repeats, and the cause of intolerance.
We deny it. it's not welcomg here. Within these boundaries, it has no strength.
Here, ignorance is denied. -
I HAVE THE POWER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#182http://www.he-man.org/
It is frightening what some fans will do. This is truely a great site, as these people have dedicated their existance to the cartoon and toys.
What is "Masters of the Universe"?
"Masters of the Universe" is a cartoon based on action figures by Mattel, Inc. and was animated by the now-defunct Filmation. The syndicated show, which featured the exploits of a super-strong hero named He-Man, debuted in Sept. 1983, and throughout the course of 2 seasons, aired 130 episodes. "Masters of the Universe" also goes down in marketing history as being the first cartoon of the '80s to be based on an action figure line after FCC deregulation.
About it all:
In 1996, Matt R. set out with his own idea. Matt wanted a comprehensive guide for MOTU filled with tons of images and detailed information about MOTU, especially about the toys, books, and comics.
This guide was originally a stand-alone program fans could download for use on their computer. But, Matt eventually found it was easier to maintain and access if he had the content online, so he created his own website.
During this time, Jason Moore had setup He-Man.org. His idea was to have a complete resource for all MOTU fans online. After realizing he did not have the time to complete this task, he invited Matt and Adam to host their sites, the two largest on the internet, on He-Man.org.
Eventually, Matt and Adam decided to join their efforts and create the ultimate Masters of the Universe resource. And after a year of dedicated effort, the two sites merged forming our very own He-Man.org.
Debuting as a comprehensive masterpiece in 1999, He-Man.org has continued to grow beyond the capacity of anyone's imagination. Known world-wide as the #1 resource for MOTU, the site has become a daily stop for fans and creators alike.
Although they have moved on, their vision continues to grow every day. We will always be thankful for their efforts. Without them, we wouldn't have the resource we have today. They truly are Masters of
the Universe... -
For a different type of fantasy....
#183We don't always want to play with swords and magic. Sometimes reality is checked in. So here is some useful links for many peoples' favorite toys. They are mostly "Equipment/ Price list suitable sites, but you can get some interesting information and resource material off some of them.
** Firearms Tactial **:www.firearmstactical.com/
Firearms Tutorial: http://medlib.med.utah.edu/WebPath/TUTORIAL/GUNS/GUNINTRO.html
***Security Arms –Pictures of Firearms ***.: http://www.securityarms.com/
Advanced Armament: www.advanced-armament.com
American Slider: www.americanslider.com
Ammo Guide: http://ammoguide.com/
Bagmaster: www.bagmaster.com
Barrett rifles : www.barrettrifles.com
Berretta:www.berettausa.com
Blackhawk industries: www.blackhawkindustries.com
Blackheart: www.1stoptacticalgear.com
Boonie Packer: www.booniepacker.com
Buck Knife: www.buckknives.com
Buffer Technology: www.buffertech.com
Bushmasters: www.bushmaster.com/
Capital City Firearms: www.ccfa.com
CIA: www.cia.gov
**CIA Factbook **: www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
Cimarron Western Firearms: www.cimarron-firearms.com
Colt: www.Colt.com
Concealed Carry Clothiers: www.concealedcarry.com
Cop Search: leolinks.com
Corbion: www.corbion.com
Cowboy Guns: www.usfirearms.com
** DARPA **: www.darpa.mil
Debritos: www.debritos.com
Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms: www.atf.gov
Desantis: www.desantisholsters.com
Don Hume Holsters: www.donhume.com
DPMS: www.dpmsinc.com
DS Arms: www.dsarms.com
Eo Tech: www.eotech-inc.com
Espionage Info.: GovernmentIntelligence.com
European American Armory: www.eaacorp.com
FBI: www.fbi.gov
Firearms and Liberty (take with salt) : www.firearmsandliberty.com
Fn : www.fnhusa.com
Forbus: www.forbusholster.com
Galco intl: www.usgalco.com
Gemtech: www.gem-tech.com
Gerber Blades: www.gerberblades.com
GG&G: www.gggaz.com
Gunshot Wounds articles: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/forensicmedicine/llb/gunshot.htm
.\Investigation School: www.pvteye.com
Glock inc: www.glock.com
Gould and Goodrich: www.gouldusa.com
Gun Vault: www.gunvault.com
Harrts: www.harrtsrecoil.com
Horus Vision: www.horusvision.com
Island Group: www.islandsecuritystore.com
Kahr :www.khar.com
Kel Tech: www.kel-tech.com
Kershaw Knives: www.kershawknives.com
Knife Mart: www.KnifeMart.com
Lancer Books: www.warbooks.com
Laser Max: www.Lasermax-inc.com
Magsafe: www.magsafeonline.com
Maxsell corp: www.maxsell.cm
McMillian: mcmfamily.com
MD Tactical: www.mdtactical.com
mec-gar: www.mec-gar.com
Meprolight: www.meprolight.com
MI 5: www.trousers.co.uk/mi5/
Military Book Club: www.militarybookclub.com
Military site: http://www.1st-militarysite.com/
Muscle Products: www.mpc-home.com
*NET BOOK OF FIREARMS*: http://www.kitsune.addr.com/Firearms/Firearms-No-Frames.htm
Operation Parts: www.operationparts.com
***** Paladin Press ******: www.paladin-press.com
Pearce Grips: www.pearcegrip.com
Police Officer Support.: www.officer.com
Police Online: www.policeone.com
Pro Edge Knives: www.proedgeknives.com
Remington: www.remington.com
Rugers: www.ruger-firearms.com
Rock River Arms: www.rockriverarms.com
Savage Arms: www.savagearms.com
Schmidt Bender: www.schmidt-bender.com
Sentry Solutions: www.sentrysolutions.com
Shooters Choice: www.shooters-choice.com
Shooting Systems: www.gunaccessories.com
SigArms: www.sigarms.com
Smith and Alexander: www.smithandalexander.com
Smith and Wesson: www.smith-wesson.com
SOG Specialty Knives: www.sogknives.com
Spyderco: www.spyderco.com
Spy Toys: www.espionage-store.com
SWAT Products: www.policeoneproducts.com
TacMIII: www.tacm3.com
Taser International: www.taser.com
US PI SCHOOL: www.spytechangency.com
Wilson Combat: www.wilsoncombat.com -
Celts Rock!!!
#184I have once again reached my limit for psuedo euro medieval fantasy Tolkein inspired realms. If I see another I might have a Captain Penguin like Brain Sploooge. There are so many interesting times and places that are not variations on the DnD default world (with all those critters, and races, and silly magic). Case in Point: Celts are a great source of inspiration for spirituality (both Christian and Wicca). They have been underutilized as sources for game material. I choose to change this (and of course there will be links).
Features of Celtic life:
-iron-age cattle-culture-largely agrarian economy.
-which was a nomadic, warrior, heroic,tribal, hierarchical and aristocratic society.
-fosterage of children.
-oral word-based culture; most of the people illiterate but had great memorization skills.
-they loved to hear great stories.
-greater equality for women.
-a sense of closeness and immanence between the natural and supernatural.
-a mandate for hospitality.
-emphasis on family and kinship ties
-polygamy.
-high respect for the learned and the artisans, with a strong politically powerful group, the "Aos Dana", composed of druids, brehons, poets and bards.
-payment of fines to forgive crimes.
-Roman historians said that they were boastful threateners, given to loud bombastic self-dramatization, yet quick of mind, and naturally talented in music and art.
-the calendar was divided into two parts, the light part and the dark part, with four great feast days marking the year:
Samhain (November 1) (our Halloween) which was the Celtic New Year, marks the end of the harvest, and the beginning of the dark half of the year. All lights are extinguished until relit by a central bonfire. This day is a "gap" in time and consciousness when travel to the other world and through time was possible.
Imbolc (February 1) (our Ground Hog Day) St.Bridget's Day, which marks the first day of Spring and the middle of the dark half, the time for the reemergence of green things. This marks the first flowing of milk in the udders of the ewes. Associated with the goddess BrÃÂÂd.
Bealtaine (May 1) The first day of the light part of the year. Cattle are driven through great bonfires to protect them and ensure fertility. Young couples jump through the fire also.
Lúghnasadh (August 1) marks the beginning of harvest and celebrates the victory of the god Lúgh against the earth spirits that would keep the harvest. Lúgh is very much a "Christ" figure in that he died for the sake of humans, pierced and hanging from a tree.
http://celt.net/
Online Celtic community
http://celt.net/Celtic/menu.html
**** a history piece ****
http://www.joellessacredgrove.com/contents.html
Good pieces on Celtic History. Lots of tid-bits. Images. And Wicca information.
http://merganser.math.gvsu.edu/myth/
Mythology
http://www.religioustolerance.org/druid.htm
History beliefs, et all Druids
http://www.celtic-clipart.co.uk/
Adorn your campaign documents
http://www.ireland-information.com/freecelticfonts.htm
Fonts
http://www.majestictech.com/the-celtic-net/celticlinks.html
celtic links.. lots
http://www.thecelticcenter.com/
More modern Celtic info
http://www.ucc.ie/celt/
Scholarly look at Celts
Mythology and language help
http://www.luminarium.org/mythology/ireland/ -
Google-Fu Dojo
#185Often time the best way to search is by using the right engine for the job.
Most people only use Yahoo! or Google or MSN or what ever engine is under the portal they visit. There are dozens of search engines out there.
The best one for you is based on two criteria:
1) Does the web search for the subject or area of the web you are interested in? You may need a specialty search engine rather than a general one. Also every site does not reach every part of the web, so each one will return different answers.
2) Does the search engine return results in a format that make sense to you. 2000 valid responses are useless if you can't understand them quickly.
So which one is right for you and the question you are asking? To know that requires you to do some searching on the web, trying out various sites. The best way to do this is to ask several engines to search for the same entry, preferably one that you might search for a great deal. For me this would be things like RPG, Free RPG, Game Resource, and Online Writing. Which is searched by Google, Google, Yahoo, and Yahoo.com respectively.
For my job, I search addresses and phone numbers in Yahoo!, because I can get a city listing, then find the phone number or address/map. I use google to find company listings because it is faster (don't forget to try simple keywords directly, so www.company name.com or www.flowers.com to find fast entries). I use resource sites from the post office and phone company as last resorts because they are harder to navigate and return slower responses. There are some specialized medical dictionaries I use as well.
So try them out. See what they have for you.
One good place to start is on the Search Engine Guide:
http://www.searchengineguide.com/searchengines.html
If you want a little more info, before you go diving in.
Google
http://www.google.com
Google has a well-deserved reputation as the top choice for those searching the web. The crawler-based service provides both comprehensive coverage of the web along with great relevancy. It's highly recommended as a first stop in your hunt for whatever you are looking for.
Google provides the option to find more than web pages, however. Using on the top of the search box on the Google home page, you can easily seek out images from across the web, discussions that are taking place on Usenet newsgroups, locate news information or perform product searching. Using the More link provides access to human-compiled information from the Open Directory (see below), catalog searching and other services.
Yahoo
http://www.yahoo.com
Launched in 1994, Yahoo is the web's oldest "directory," a place where human editors organize web sites into categories. However, in October 2002, Yahoo made a giant shift to crawler-based listings for its main results. These came from Google until February 2004. Now, Yahoo uses its own search technology. Learn more in this recent review from our SearchDay newsletter, which also provides some updated submission details. In addition to excellent search results, you can use tabs above the search box on the Yahoo home page to seek images, Yellow Page listings or use Yahoo's excellent shopping search engine. Or visit the Yahoo Search home page, where even more specialized search options are offered.
The Yahoo Directory still survives. You'll notice "category" links below some of the sites lists in response to a keyword search. When offered, these will take you to a list of web sites that have been reviewed and approved by a human editor.
Ask Jeeves
http://www.askjeeves.com
Ask Jeeves initially gained fame in 1998 and 1999 as being the "natural language" search engine that let you search by asking questions and responded with what seemed to be the right answer to everything. In reality, technology wasn't what made Ask Jeeves perform so well. Behind the scenes, the company at one point had about 100 editors who monitored search logs. They then went out onto the web and located what seemed to be the best sites to match the most popular queries. Today, Ask Jeeves instead depends on crawler-based technology to provide results to its users. These results come from the Teoma search engine that it owns, which is described below.
AllTheWeb.com
http://www.alltheweb.com
Powered by Yahoo, you may find AllTheWeb a lighter, more customizable and pleasant "pure search" experience than you get at Yahoo itself. The focus is on web search, but news, picture, video, MP3 and FTP search are also offered.
AOL Search
http://aolsearch.aol.com (internal)
http://search.aol.com/(external)
AOL Search provides users with editorial listings that come Google's crawler-based index. Indeed, the same search on Google and AOL Search will come up with very similar matches. So, why would you use AOL Search? Primarily because you are an AOL user. The "internal" version of AOL Search provides links to content only available within the AOL online service. In this way, you can search AOL and the entire web at the same time. The "external" version lacks these links. Why wouldn't you use AOL Search? If you like Google, many of Google's features such as "cached" pages are not offered by AOL Search.
HotBot
http://www.hotbot.com
HotBot provides easy access to the web's three major crawler-based search engines: Yahoo, Google and Teoma. Unlike a meta search engine, it cannot blend the results from all of these crawlers together. Nevertheless, it's a fast, easy way to get different web search "opinions" in one place.
Teoma
http://www.teoma.com
Teoma is a crawler-based search engine owned by Ask Jeeves. It has a smaller index of the web than its rival crawler-competitors Google and Yahoo. However, being large doesn't make much of a difference when it comes to popular queries, and Teoma's won praise for its relevancy since it appeared in 2000.
AltaVista
http://www.altavista.com
AltaVista opened in December 1995 and for several years was the "Google" of its day, in terms of providing relevant results and having a loyal group of users that loved the service. This is still a key site because it will easily search for responses in other languages, and has a translation service.
Gigablast
http://www.gigablast.com
Compared to Google, Yahoo or even Teoma, Gigablast has a tiny index of the web. However, the service is constantly gaining new and interesting features. Give it a whirl, if you want to try something experimental yet dependable.
LookSmart
http://www.looksmart.com
LookSmart is primarily a human-compiled directory of web sites. It gathers its listings in two ways. Commercial sites pay to be listed in its commercial categories, making the service very much like an electronic "Yellow Pages." However, volunteer editors at the LookSmart-owned Zeal directory also catalog sites into non-commercial categories for free. Though Zeal is a separate web site, its listings are integrated into LookSmart's results.
Lycos
http://www.lycos.com
Lycos is one of the oldest search engines on the web, launched in 1994. It ceased crawling the web for its own listings in April 1999 and instead provides access to human-powered results from LookSmart for popular queries and crawler-based results from Yahoo for others.
MSN Search
http://search.msn.com
Formerly one of Search Engine Watch's top choices, MSN Search is definitely one to watch.
Netscape Search
http://search.netscape.com
Owned by AOL Time Warner, Netscape Search uses Google for its main listings, just as does AOL's other major search site, AOL Search. So why use Netscape Search rather than Google? Unlike with AOL Search, there's no compelling reason to consider it. The main difference between Netscape Search and Google is that Netscape Search will list some of Netscape's own content at the top of its results. Netscape also has a completely different look and feel than Google. If you like either of these reasons, then try Netscape Search. Otherwise, you're probably better off just searching at Google.
Open Directory
http://dmoz.org/
The Open Directory uses volunteer editors to catalog the web. While you can search at the Open Directory site itself, this is not recommended. The site has no "backup" results that kick in should there not be a match in the human-compiled database. In addition, the ranking of sites during keyword searching is poor, while alphabetical ordering is used when you choose to "browse" categories by topic.
Other things to look at
http://www.searchenginewatch.com/links/article.php/2156351
Specialty search engines. Really specific ones as well.
http://searchenginewatch.com/links/article.php/2156181
Invisible web. There is helpful information locked away in databases that can never be indexed by search engines. These sites find it.
Metacrawlers
These sites submit your request to several sites at once and pull back the first 10 or so responses from those pages. The results can be confusing and not always accurate...
Dogpile
http://www.dogpile.com
Popular metasearch site owned by InfoSpace that sends a search to a customizable list of search engines, directories and specialty search sites, then displays results from each search engine individually.
Vivisimo
http://vivisimo.com/
Enter a search term, and Vivismo will not only pull back matching responses from major search engines but also automatically organize the pages into categories. Slick and easy to use.
HotBot
http://www.hotbot.com
Technically HotBot isn't a meta crawler, in that it doesn't search several search engines all at once. However, it is unique in providing direct, dependable and easy access to the web's four major crawler-based search engines: Yahoo (use the HotBot button), AllTheWeb (use the Lycos button, and note that LookSmart results appear for more popular queries), Google and Teoma (use the Ask Jeeves button).
Kartoo
http://www.kartoo.com
If you like the idea of seeing your web results visually, this meta search site shows the results with sites being interconnected by keywords.
Mamma
http://www.mamma.com
Founded in 1996, Mamma.com is one of the oldest meta search engines on the web. Mamma searches against a variety of major crawlers, directories and specialty search sites. The service also provides a paid listings option for advertisers, Mamma Classifieds.
SurfWax
http://www.surfwax.com
Searches against major engines or provides those who open free accounts the ability to chose from a list of hundreds. Using the "SiteSnaps" feature, you can preview any page in the results and see where your terms appear in the document. Allows results or documents to be saved for future use.
Excite
http://www.excite.com
Formerly a crawled-based search engine, Excite was acquired by InfoSpace in 2002 and uses the same underlying technology as the other InfoSpace meta search engines, but maintains its own portal features.
Search Engine Watch
There is a site about nothign but search engines. Here is a listing of their most common search engines and their purposes.
http://www.searchenginewatch.com/links/index.php -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#186Soo,... what is the best page of the ones mentioned?
There are so many, so I would like to jump directly to your favorite.
Can not waste valuable time on the lesser ones. You know? :) -
Ahhh Grasshopper
#187What works well for me, might not work well for you. Google-fu is very JKD that way. Some people need breadth of search, others need depth, others need a 100% correspondence on the first hit, while others like to wade through a few sites before they focus on one. You need to find your own style of search, one that fits your needs, attention span, and reading speed.
I read fast and like spartan responses. I search dozens of pages before I decide to go back and investigate just one of them. (back linking to the seach page, so I have a continued choice). I use Google, Yahoo, Dmoz, Altavista, and a whole bunch of specialty sites that are not easy to use, but are useful for specific pieces of search. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#188Thank you for the answer,... even though it was slightly non-conclusive, which I can understand by the way. -
Martial Arts Rock!
#189A different kind of fantasy... this time via the fist of fury route.
http://martialarts.about.com/
Good Info
http://www.martial-way.com/
Basic encycopedic info
http://directory.google.com/Top/Sports/Martial_Arts/
Google category is great
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martial_Arts
Is there nothing this does not do well?
Portals
http://www.budoseek.net/
Martial Arts Portal. The First and one of the most Consistant
http://www.martialartscity.com/
Portal
http://www.martialartsplanet.com/
Portal, Active
Other links, some commercial some just related.
http://www.centuryma.com
http://www.combatchannel.com
http://www.dianeleeinosanto.com
http://www.dragonfest.com
http://www.edgedefense.com
http://www.fighting.net
http://www.genelebell.com
http://www.hsing-i.com
http://www.jet-li.com
http://www.junecastro.com
http://www.karate1.com/index.html Clip Art Cool
http://www.karatediva.com
http://www.kendo-world.com/ - Intl Kendo Site
http://www.kickboxing.com
http://www.martial-arts.com
http://www.martialinfo.com
http://www.martialshop.com
http://www.maritalway.com
http://www.newgladiators.com
http://www.paladin-press.com
http://www.ralphgracie.com
http://www.stephaniecheeva.com
http://www.superaction.com
http://www.taichi-web.com
http://www.taijiworld.com
http://www.uniquepublications.com
http://www.whoshowdown.com
http://faculty.washington.edu/kendo/budo.html
Way too many links about a variety of weapon and non weapon arts
United States Martial Arts Federation - http://www.usmaf.org
Non-profit organization dedicated to the unification of the martial arts community in an atmosphere of mutual respect for all styles and systems. Club directory, affiliates, biographies, events, FAQs and general information
American Center for Chinese Studies - http://www.kungfu.org/
Organization devoted to Shaolin Kung Fu, T'ai Chi, Shuai-Chiao, H'sing-I, Pa Qua, Chinese medicine, and Taoism. Features links, articles, history, affiliate schools, and related information. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#190This is something VERY much in it's infancy but that I hope to get off the ground.
I'm developing an RPG Story Resource - so that whenever someone is stuck for an adventure, campaign or encounter seed they can pop along and get some inspiration. Likewise if they have ideas to share, or want some help working up an idea. The empasis is very much on story ideas, and one other key section dealing with Game Master theory.
Please take this for what it is, an emphasis on story-development, not a competitor to multi-issue forums like Strolens.
I've literally started work on this today - but if anyone feels they can support or benefit from a quick visit then please take a look.
At the very least add it as a bookmark, as I intend to fill the pages with inspiration and ideas great and small.
Here's the link:
http://p078.ezboard.com/brpgstoryresource
Many thanks. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#191I have yet to get upset with the presence psuedo euro medieval fantasy Tolkein inspired realms recently, but I found this site. It would make an excellent background for a game.
Renaissance information with a concentration of the Elizabethan era.
http://renaissance.dm.net/index.html
Life in Elizabethan England
http://renaissance.dm.net/compendium/index.html
God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! God Save the Queen! -
Huh?
#192http://inventors.about.com/
I know. I know. You are wondering why I am posting this as a game resource. I am posting it because the site provides people quick and easily digested information on technological development. History marches on, things change, new technologies (AND MAGICS) are developed.
Most fantasy worlds seem to be stuck at a certain medieval level of technology, without the reasons Europe (or even Japan) were stuck at that level. Everyone says, "oh magic is the reasons things no longer advance in their fantasy world". To that I say, "bunk". If magic stopped/ slowed technological growth, how did society reach its current point of technological development? Especially since many of the medieval inventions were redevelopments of earlier technological discoveries.
I just want you to consider the possibilities of technology, appropriate technology, and the societal reasons for certain technologies to be invented/ perfected/ distributed.
After all, all it takes is one DeVinci or Edison or Guttenberg and the world becomes a different place. -
Not so HUH.
#193Writing is one of the keys to gaming. GMs and tabletop players learn story structure and description through writing. Play by post and forum RPers should learn proper writing so they can communicate and game more effectively. I found a good site with tons of useful links here:
http://www.mamohanraj.com/writelinks.html
WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! -
Maps! Maps! Maps!
#194http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/faq.html
The Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection (PCL 1.306) is a general collection of more than 250,000 maps covering all areas of the world. Many of the maps are included in our online catalog, UTNetCAT. More than 5,000 map images from our collection are also available online.
LOCATION
The Map Collection is on the first floor (PCL 1.306) of the Perry-Castañeda Library, or online here...
Not only does this site/ collection have hundreds of modern and historical maps that are open domain, it has a good collection of links to other map sites. Use these maps directly (by simply changing the names) or as inspiration for your own maps. -
Solo Gamebooks
#195http://www.the-underdogs.org/gamebook.php
Let us explain
As a child, I grew up with a lot of "Choose Your Own Adventure" gamebooks popular in late 1970s and early 1980s. This page showcases some of the best gamebook and solo adventure/RPG series ever made, including some rare gamebook comics. Since there is a very small chance that these books will see the light of day again, especially since many copyright holders (such Byron Preiss) no longer exists and all these books have been out of print for over a decade, I have decided to scan and compile these gamebooks from my own collection into PDF format, so that old-timers can relive the old days, and younger visitors will have a chance to experience first-hand this primitive-but-fun form of interactive entertainment that was popular long before the rise of computer games.
Here is a list of game pdfs and some links that would be useful for those who like text and solo gaming. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#196Sacred Texts on the Web
Wow. I mean wow. If you ever need a place to go for inspiration for religions or myths, go here. They have got almost everything. Articles that I found very interesting include the Oahspe (weird as hell), the Basque folklore, and some of the Finnish saga of Wannamoinen that inspired a lot of Lord of the Rings.
I'd have to say my favorite is either Oahspe or Shinto, which is hilarious!
An excerpt from Shinto:
"When they had finished giving birth to countries, they began afresh giving birth to deities. So the name of the deity they gave birth to was the deity Great-Male-of-the-Great-Thing; next, they gave birth to the deity Rock-Earth-Prince; next, they gave birth to the deity Rock-Nest-Princess; next, they gave birth to the deity Great-Door-Sun-Youth; next, they gave birth to the deity Heavenly-Blowing-Male; next, they gave birth to the deity Great-House-Prince; next, they gave birth to the deity Youth-of-the-Wind-Breath-the-Great-Male; next, they gave birth to the sea-deity, whose name is the deity Great-Ocean-Possessor next, they gave birth to the deity of the Water-Gates, whose name is the deity Prince-of-Swift-Autumn ; next they gave birth to his younger sister the deity Princess-of-Swift-Autumn. (Ten deities in all from the deity Great-Male-of-the-Great-Thing to the deity Princess-of-Autumn.) The names of the deities given birth to by these two deities Prince-of-Swift-Autumn and Princess-of-Swift-Autumn from their separate dominions of river and sea were: the deity Foam-Calm; next, the deity Foam-Waves; next the deity Bubble-Calm; next, the deity Bubble-Waves; next the deity Heavenly-Water-Divider; next, the deity Earthly-Water-Divider; next, the deity Heavenly-Water-Drawing-Gourd-Possessor; next, the deity Earthly-Water-Drawing-Gourd-Possessor. (Eight deities in all from the deity Foam-Prince to the deity Earthly-Water-Drawing-Gourd-Possessor.) Next, they gave birth to the deity of Wind, whose name is the deity Prince-of-Long-Wind. Next, they gave birth to the deity of Trees, whose name is deity Stem-Elder; next, they gave birth to the deity of Mountains, whose name is the deity Great-Mountain-Possessor. Next, they gave birth to the deity of Moors, whose name is the deity Thatch-Moor-Princess, another name for whom is the deity Moor-Elder. (Four deities in all from the deity Prince-of-long-wind to Moor-Elder.) The names of the deities given birth to by these two deities, the deity Great-Mountain-Possessor and the deity, Moor-Elder from their separate dominions of mountain and moor were: the deity Heavenly-Elder-of-the Passes; next, the deity Earthly-Elder-of-the-Passes; next, the deity Heavenly-Pass-Boundary; next, the deity Earthly-Pass-Boundary; next, the deity Heavenly-Dark-Door; next, the deity Earthly-Dark-Door next, the deity Great-Vale-Prince; next, the deity Great-Vale-Princess. (Eight deities in all from the deity Heavenly-Elder-of-the-Passes to the deity Great-Vale-Princess.) The name of the deity they next gave birth to was the deity Bird's-Rock-Camphor-tree-Boat, another name for whom is the Heavenly-Bird-Boat. Next, they gave birth to the deity Princess-of-Great-Food. Next, they gave birth to the Fire-Burning-Swift-Male deity, another name for whom is the deity Fire-Shining-Prince, and another name is the deity Fire-Shining-Elder." -
Modern Fantasy... or is it?
#197http://www.urbanlegends.com
Urban legends cover all facets of life, including cinema. And since two major themes underlying urban legends are sex and death, it seems only natural that the genre of the horror film is rife with lore. Being a convenient scapegoat for numerous societal woes since their conception, and being vilified on the same grounds as rock music and comic books, horror films are a perfect breeding ground for such urban legends. Stories abound, ranging from the innocuous (rumors still persist that King Kong Vs. Godzilla was released with two different endings, with Kong winning in the stateside release, whereas Godzilla triumphs in the Japanese version), to the downright macabre. (Many horror fans still think that such films as Le Jorobado de la Morgue, Buio Omega, and Der Todesking utilize real corpses to supplement the staged effects, despite documentation to the contrary. Due to the inaccessibility of many foreign films-especially low budget productions such as these-it is easy to see how such rumors can persist.) Some of these legends remain fairly obscure, relegated to being spread word of mouth by naive, uninformed fans. Others persist outside the fan following, infiltrating mainstream America.
Other good sites
http://urbanlegends.about.com/
http://www.snopes.com/info/whatsnew.asp
http://www.warphead.com/urbanlegends/
http://urbanlegend.f2o.org/magazine/
http://www.ctrl.org/
A conspiracy theorist is a modern day heretic. Through its control of the media and ultimately the historical record itself, the established power structure denies the exposure of the hidden conspiratorial framework which allows it to operate with impunity.
http://www.conspiracybomb.com/azconspiracy.htm
As everyone knows, we are never allowed to know who is really
controlling our lives/the country/the world. But is this knowledge a
dangerous thing? To clear up this question beyond reasonable doubt
Life provides a comprehensive guide to the theoretical corridors and
sinister back offices in which true power (and general paranoia) may
(or may not) lie.
http://www.threeworldwars.com/intro.htm
Introduction to conspirtaoral history
http://www.coasttocoastam.com/
http://skepdic.com/illuminati.html
http://www.serendipity.li
http://www.fromthewilderness.com/
http://www.emperors-clothes.com/
http://www.globalresearch.ca/
http://www.questionsquestions.net/
http://www.threeworldwars.com/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conspiracy_theory
Okay.. take the CBC with a grain of salt and remember who and what they are...
http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/conspiracytheories/ -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#198 -
It's alive
#199http://www.rpgconsortium.com/main.cfm
Long ago this was a very active site. Then everything stopped. (Mostly the central core group went away). In the last month or two, it has resurged. So help it keep going.
About the RPG Consortium
The RPG Consortium is a community and resource web site for roleplaying and the roleplaying community. We are dedicated to serving roleplayers where they can kick back and talk about non-rpg topics as well as rpg topics. We also provide many tools for the roleplayer to enhance gaming as well as resources for other RPG webmasters.
We're also known sometimes as the RPGC or The Consortium.
The History of the RPGC
Originally, the RPG Consortium was started as a resource site for the Amethyst Alliance's Partners back in April 2000. At it's beginning, the partners pooled together and shared the forums as their community solution.
Since then, the RPGC have had it's ups and downs. For a while there afterwards, the web site has been operating on auto-pilot. Partnering webmasters had started into busier lives and dropped from the program from inactivity and some have moved on to created their own community features on their sites.
The Amethyst Alliance was going through some long awaited changes and on September 2003 when the last of the partners moved their forum features on their own site under the RPG Consortium Network, the RPG Consortium decided to announce it's closing.
The news hit hard to many of the loyal and mostly long time members. After hearing the members dismay, the owner decided to keep the RPG Consortium. Since one of the Amethyst Alliance's plans were consolidate all her resources into one site with a new name, it was decided the RPG Consortium will be the new site.
The RPG Consortium Today
The RPG Consortium is now trying to rebuild what it and the Amethyst Alliance once was hoping to get back full time into supporting the RPG Community. We hope that you will stay around and join in with all the fun we're trying to provide here. Please be patient, as with all communities, there's a set expectation among the current members. It may take some people more time to understand how to interact with each other here.
What was the Amethyst Alliance?
The Amethyst Alliance was started among a group of people who met each other through a PBEM (Play by E-mail) game in August 1998. From their launch, it has been a hectic time, trying to get everything up from scratch. It was among the first of the RPG sites out there on the internet that provided roleplayers with a community to talk and share their passion about RPGs.
The original mission statement of the Amethyst Alliance was simple:
Amethyst Alliance, The International Roleplaying Guild, is dedicated to the spread of roleplaying related information of all game systems and genres, making that information accessible to people from all over the world and from all walks of life; additionally, the Alliance is dedicated to the positive spirit of cooperation in regards to the promotion of roleplaying games, to new and veterans players, and -most importantly- having fun.
It is a mission statement that worked well for the Amethyst Alliance for years. The RPG Consortium will now be carrying on the same traditions that the Amethyst Alliance held true. -
Interesting Gaming Websites
#200Graphical multi user dungeon, or MMORPG, or what it's called these days: Runescape
This is a semi-free graphical rpg with lots and lots of other players. Have you always wanted to forge your own armour or build your own campfire? Do you want to haggle with other players on the marketplace? Then RuneScape might be the game for you!
A word of caution to the elderly: The most frequent words uttered from one player to another seems to be "R U N00B?", "U R N00B!" or "Whats ur lvl?".
But that aside it seems a favourite pasttime of the younger generation and I personally know several 7-17 years old that spend their entire evenings on this game. (And yes, it IS free of charge but you can upgrade your account and gain access to more "good stuff". It'll cost you though)
Enjoy