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Topics - Ampersand

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Apocalypse World / Breaking away from the archetypes
« on: January 20, 2015, 02:31:49 AM »
The playbooks are archetypes and they evoke a particular kind of character. Brainers are clinical psychics, Hocus are holymen, and Skinners (in my experience, 4/5) are wandering musicians. The game is all about intepretation of vague but solidifying tags, but I don't always get to see much variation. Savvyheads are machinists who build robots and waterpurifiers whose advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, what if it was played as just magic? An alchemist who creates humonculi by reaching through realities fraying edge and their controlled growing environment.

I've toyed with the idea of a Brainer artist whose brain relay are murals based on the area/close tag and  enjoys taking receptivity drugs with guests in their studio abode. Take artful and gracious later on and we have a budding celebrity who has some captivating and cerebral work. But it does completely ignore the high tech tag on the brain relay. For the MC's in the house, is that taking too many liberties with character creation?

Would anyone on here like to share their more unconventional characters or idea they've kept on the back burner?


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roleplaying theory, hardcore / Joint MC'd Games
« on: January 16, 2014, 10:21:00 PM »
My regular MC and I have been playing for a few years together, and all of our campaigns have been set in the same mythos. He has been talking about co-MCing a new universe with me. I've really playing through fictional history and enjoyed designing threats  for different parts of the new world but I was wondering about the logistics of this. I see three options.

1) We MC simultaneously and tag in/out between scenes.
2) We take turns MCing every other session.
3) We MC one full campaign and then switch.

I'm wondering if 1) going to be too confusing and awkward. 2) and 3) seem more accessible and also allow for us create/play as our own PC's.

Thoughts?

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Apocalypse World / Campaign Idea: When The Circus Came to Town
« on: November 18, 2013, 04:09:07 PM »
My MC and I were throwing ideas for a campaign. Something with semi premade character sheets. We offer positions within the Circus with a bare skeleton of a theme on it (playbook and act) and the players fill the rest (name, look, history).

Ideas we've spun so far.

Regular Playbooks:

Savvyhead: Using Reality’s Fraying Edge (Crystal Ball or Tarot Deck), Oftener Right, and Things Speak we have a fortune teller.
Brainer: Using Casual Brain Receptivity and In-Brain Puppet Strings we have a mentalist and hypnotist "Alexander Id, the man who knows"
Operator: His signature weapon and act is fire breathing. Although it's not enough to be a full time act so he has gigs on the side to afford what he wants.
Skinner: A lot of flexibility in this one, and I don't mean just as a contortionist. With the Pet option one could be the Snake Charmer or Lion Tamer.
Battle Babe: The melee custom weapon could be throwing knives. Dangerous and Sexy can keep people still for some William Tell.
Driver: Could ride Evel Knievel on a motorcycle as well as lead the Circus' caravan when they hit the road.

LE Playbooks:

Hoarder: Runs the Freakshow cough cough "Museum of Marvels". Human, animal, and fantastic plants alike are part of his menagerie. The hoard would be conscious and truly hungry. What wonders are behind those doors? Will you join the collection? The potential for drama here makes me giddy.
Marmot: Beloved circus mascot and the hoarders child in all but blood.
Grotesque: Fan made but this kind of scenario might be the one where they really do fit in.
Faceless: The stong man made up in clown paint. Terrifying. Fear his sledgehammer and squeaky over sized shoes.
Maestro D': The Ring Master of this traveling show. Where people go for the spectacle, the illusions, the thrills, and maybe even good old fashioned fun for the family. The establishment always has new venues, players can be integrated into the crew and tighten relationships. The de facto leader and face to this mob under the big top and functions like the Hardholder would in most campigns.

This is all we have at the moment and I'd love some input or ideas from you guys. "Every crowd has a silver lining" and all that.



4
Apocalypse World / Writing Apocalyptica
« on: February 21, 2012, 12:21:38 PM »
Hey folks,
I'm in a poetry class and we're writing a series with common theme as final project for a small chapbook. This has helped me flesh out my game and so if you have anything written. Post here for kicks. Seems like a fun idea to barf forth.

Cheers,
Ampersand

***

The Golden Age of men had already ended. This is my world
where bullets fly, things break, bodies litter the ground that
undomesticated dogs have reclaimed in the name of nothing.

My best friend is a crowbar painted yellow. It busts open
doors, heads, windows, ribs, and locks with no distinction.
It helps me conduct my business (breaking knees) and leads
a symphony of thuds, yelps and crinkling bones. The sounds
 of rusted hinges surrendering  is a prelude to my favorite part.

I’ll never get tired of listening to broken glass.  It sounds sweet
as it falls, clattering like silver jingle and snow onto the streets.

My name is Atlas and I enforce the laws of Old Man Rickets.
I live in the Castle Hotel. Broken glass sounds pretty. It’s fun,
bubble wrap fun. My best friend is a crowbar painted yellow.

5
Apocalypse World / Character Evolutions
« on: July 12, 2011, 12:51:33 PM »
The taking a new playbook improvement has always appealed to me. Nothing in Apocalypse World is static so why should the characters be? The one thing that never changes is that everything changes- for better or most often not.

So I'm just curious to what other players have seen. What character changes where obvious from creation? Did they work out? Did some of these changes only become a good idea because of play? Did some transitions work perfectly or did you end up rolling snake eyes?

I guess I'll start it off. I had a skinner who ended up falling in love with an NPCs wife. They ran away together but she required a high standard of living. It worked perfectly with the Operators obligation gigs and that went smoothly. It was very problem/solution mechanics wise.

In the game I'm in now I was playing a quarantine. He's lost, confused, failed some open your brains and ended up "enhanced" by another players savvy head. He's resigned himself to needing these implants but he's got a lot of frustration. Then it dawned on me he'd make a great faceless. It makes sense that to cope with all the insane stuff happening to him he'd become a little twisted. It's more story based than the skinner turned operator.

So, yeah. There's some of my favorite character evolutions. I'd like to hear about your's.

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Apocalypse World / AP: New Edo
« on: June 21, 2011, 02:46:48 AM »
The genesis for this idea:

"So guys, you ever see the movie, 'The Warriors'?"

"Nope."

"Kay, well, what do you know about feudal Japan?"

"I'm sold on this already. Let's go."

* * *
The Cast:
Atticus Brown: Maestro D', runs a "seen/be seen" lounge called The 36 Chambers with a sparring area upstairs for people to show off their fighting abilities. Used as a neutral ground among the ruling gangs in the city, and as a place for mercenaries to gain employed. His morals are "profitably ambiguous." Sells mushrooms on the down-low. Looks like the guitarist from The Black Keys.

Ivan: Faceless, looks like what would happen if the bad guy from "Cry-Wolf" found samurai armor and a chainsaw. His balaclava has one eye-hole sewn shut, and most of his body that isn't covered by armor is wrapped in bandages. Socially awkward, with boundary issues. Has an almost child-like simplicity in his wants, but acts like a shark around blood. Is a battle junkie that hones in on the sound of violence. Pretty much forces Heron to be his wing man.

Heron: Skinner, handsome playboy sell-sword who dresses like a Yakuza. Very slick with a katana. Has full-sleeve Irezumi tattoos. Semi-alcoholic, self-absorbed yet charming, and acts impulsively with women. Probably Ivan's only friend that he hasn't scared away or murdered. Has a habit of drinking before opening his mind. Calls his maelstrom "an absinthe-fueled wonderland from a bird's eye view."

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the nerve core / Oil Riots in Egypt. The End is Now?
« on: January 29, 2011, 02:51:27 PM »

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