All about the Hack - The Indie, Cthulhu, and Jack Hacks

When the Black Hack came out, it sent a good number of waves out into the world with the ideas that it generated, and from it rose a number of inspired products that covered other types of games, rather than the standard fantasy genre that the original Hack covered.

Given the nature of the Black Hack, each of the new hacks is working towards making the type of game they cover easier to run whilst keeping the feel of the game in question.  To do this, they present the basics of the rules boiled down to the essentials, and then make them interesting to play.

Today I'm looking at The Indie Hack, The Cthulhu Hack, and the Jack Hack...

Bear in mind that with each of these, you do still need the OSR rules to work with, mainly for the run of the mill things like creatures and weapon stats, although most of these books have stat blocks and character information for the bits that they cover in detail.  Something that was introduced in the Black Hack was the concept of Usage Dice, which add to the results that are rolled and are slowly degraded in ability and discarded when overused, each of these new Hacks has a particular slat on their Usage Dice, which I'll come to in each review.

First up is the Cthulhu Hack

Paul Baldowski's epic release that covers in 22 pages what the main CoC rulebook takes a few hundred to do, the version that I have was one of the first ones, with the original cover artwork.

The Cthulhu Hack works with the regular OSR statistics, but the Usage dice for this hack are Flashlights and Smokes (keeping with the 1920's) to get the ideas flowing.  Flashlights are for finding Physical clues, Smokes are for looking into Social clues.  When you're out of dice, you're out of ideas, burned out, you've got to do something to get yourself back on track, and as a mechanic, it reminds you that you're not as indefatigable as the creatures you're up against, which I really like.

There are character archetypes and rules on sanity, not massively involved like others you may have seen, but faster and easier, with less chance of a character being permanently retired as a result of something bad happening.

It makes for an excellent swift game of horror, and as Paul keeps evolving it, it's well worth picking up.

Next up is the Indie Hack.

Slade Stolar's inspired look at putting in the narrative elements of modern gaming into the OSR world of solid crunch has a lot going for it, not least of which being...

Colour...

It also has a simple numerical mechanism for making the character better at some things whilst making them worse at others and also rules for generating relationships between characters so that they can assist each other.  Characters don't have to accept the help that they get, but there are options, something that was never present in the OSR.  It's not the same as Usage Dice, but it does make for an interesting change.

What it also has is more character types and creatures than either of the other Hacks, so there's lots of choice to work with, and there's a lot of artwork in there that's nicely suited to the product, even if it is in colour (get back all you purists...)

Liked the ideas presented, and if OSR had had something along these lines way back in the day, the face of modern gaming might have been very much different from what it is now.

Finally there's the Jack Hack

John R Davis takes a look at the world of Victorian horror, with an interesting take on the idea of morality in the form of White and Black usage dice.  The White usage dice carries with it no inherent risk, The Black carries the possibility of having psychological consequences when used.  While no one would want to take the risks if they have the choice, when the white die is exhausted, or at the GM's discretion, the Black can (or must) be used.

It's a simple mechanic, and it's simplicity makes it easy to consider using till you see all the negatives that can come from using it.  It doesn't take much for a downwards slide to begin, and then your characters are in a world of hurt...

The rest of the book is hooks, locations, prompts, and plots, as well as a whole field of NPC's to work with.  It doesn't leave much on the setting beyond the notation that you're in Whitechapel, but if you're playing RPG's, it's almost a certainty that you read books and stories, so the genre is well enough (in my opinion) to be assumed.

And if not, watch a season of Penny Dreadful, more than enough information there to keep you going forever...

All three hacks are available from Drivethru for less than the price of a happy meal from Mcdonalds...

If I didn't already have them, I'd skip dinner tomorrow...

Book Review - Children of Time

As a writer, I like plots where you don't give everything away, I believe that if you tell people what's going on as you go, you're depriving them of the fun of figuring it out for themselves.  The problem with this, of course, is that when you do that with things you write, you find yourself looking for the same in other peoples writing.

Sometimes you find it too easily, sometimes there's lazy storytelling that leads to you looking at the page (or the screen for that matter) and going "It was them that did it..."

Which is really disappointing...

So imagine how cheerful I was at the ending of Children of Time, where I absolutely did not see it coming...

Children of time starts with the end of humanity, as Dr Avrana Kern aboard the Brin 2 (Nice nod to the David Brin Uplift series) oversees the beginnings of humanity seeding the stars with uplifted animals to help them build new colonies when they themselves finally arrive.  What humanity hadn't counted on is the lunatic fringe deciding to sacrifice everything so that they could retain their tenuous position in the foodchain.  Everything changes in a second and the bright future that we were on the brink of is laid wasted before us.  

Eighteen hundred and thirty seven years later, the crew of the Gilgamesh awaken to the realisation that something has gone wrong, and following a signal, head towards the beacon of the Brin 2, only sign that humanity is still out there.  On the planet around which the signal orbits, the new race of creatures seeded by the Brin 2 begins it's long journey into evolution, but they aren't monkeys...

They're spiders...

The book proceeds in alternating chapters, one on the Gilgamesh, one on the Planet, and it's difficult to keep a story going in two places unless you're watching 24, invariably one of the perspectives can fade into obsolescence while the other thrives.

Which may have been the idea...

It's apparent that the Gilgamesh isn't equipped for what it now needs to do, originally designed as a carrier of people, it's now a reformatted century ship, and with the chain of command demolished beyond their own locality, civilised creatures revert to territoriality and try to claim what they can for themselves as their way of life starts to fall.  While on the planet below, generations rise and fall, and with each one, they learn a little more of themselves, a little more of the world around them, and they begin to rise and above them, teaching them of the world that they came from, is Dr Avrana Kern, who is on no-one's side but her own...

This book is brilliant, it's paced even, neither side gets all the limelight, and seemingly unimportant things become vital at later points.  It charts the complexity and need for change in worlds still emergent (which by definition would include the one that we're all stood on), it shows what people can do if they have hope, and equally what they will do if they have no hope.  

It's not a fast read, the story is told over generations of both races, but the building of the plot is essential to the end reveal, there are some moments of dramatic genius (Dr Kern's realisation that she's been helping spiders to evolve all along for example) and the end reveal is one of hope, when all along all that had been present was the darkness of two civilisations ending.

Well recommended

(Un)fold, something new on Kickstarter exploring the link between creativity and mental health

I do back a lot of things on kickstarter, most of the time they're just cool things that I like the look of and have the spare funds to buy in on, sometimes they're things where I just think that the persons got a dream and I want to help them achieve that dream and sometimes...

Sometimes it's something that you've thought about and never got around to addressing...

This is (un)fold, potentially the first in a series of publications aimed at exploring the link between mental health and creativity, and by that I mean not just the theory that every creative person might be a psycho lurking just under the surface...

Although that said...

I know a lot of creative people, between the games companies that I work with, the writing groups I'm with, and the various groups I'm in that get creative with all sorts of other things, from prototyping to photography, and if I'm honest, in creatives that I know, there is a higher percentage of people who have anxieties of various types.

I'm not saying that those who aren't very creative don't have anxieties of their own, but certainly they're less evident than in the people who spend their days dreaming up new worlds and ideas.  Maybe it's because we spend our time dreaming up things that we can see all the possibilities out there and sometimes it's hard to ignore those possibilities when we see them.  Maybe it's because we're putting ourselves out there all the time, and everything we create is a little bit of ourselves on view to the world, and we wonder whether or not everyone see's more of us in what we do than we wanted to put on show.

Maybe...

For myself, I'm an Introvert masquerading as a monstrous Extrovert, always have been, those who've seen me at conventions know all about the big personality. I'm large and in charge, the life and soul of the party, no one's ever going to doubt the Dodd in high gear, because that's not what I am out in the world, that's the part of me that faces impossible odds and doesn't think of what might go wrong.

But what do I see when I'm in the dark, and the demons come...?

Never going to tell anyone, because it's no one's business but my own, possessed of gigantic mirth and gigantic melancholy, and those who know me, know how well I can hide both, but they're there. I see those same things in the words and deeds of the other creatives I know, so I'm interested in this Kickstarter because it might well be something that goes some way towards addressing both my thoughts and the thoughts of others like me, and for that I'm backing it.

They're inviting articles from anyone who works creatively in some way (doesn't matter how) and wants to share their thoughts on the matter, and I think that it's worth lending a hand here.

The kickstarter can be found at

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/161012329/unfold

Feel free to spread the word

Kickstarter delivered: Control

I like games that don't need you to read an operations manual to play, simple rules with artwork that fits the concept and fast gameplay.  But I'm also a sucker for something where I can get behind the premise of it, all games are a combination of working out the odds and going with your gut feeling, so it's particularly good when you get something that goes with all of the above.

So a game that's all about time travellers trying to build a time machine whilst sabotaging the other travellers efforts got my attention for certain...

This is Control

The premise of the game is very simple, each turn every player gets one action, they can draw a card, play (install) a card, burn one of their cells on the table to use the effect of it, or defuse an opponents card by playing a card of equal or higher value over it.

The winner of the round is the first one to make 21 exactly with the cards they have installed.  This makes for a very short game in some cases if people have exactly the right cards in their hand, it also means that as soon as any players points reach 11, the other players have got to consider that the next card played may be the one that ends the game.

There are two different types of card, Silver and Bronze, silver have an immediate effect when they hit the table or have an effect when something affects them, Bronze can be burned to trigger a different effect.

We believe that using a rift to take out a nova should always be done to the sound of the Death Star Exploding...

There are two different types of card, Silver and Bronze, silver have an immediate effect when they hit the table or have an effect when something affects them, Bronze can be burned to trigger a different effect.

As the game goes on, the types of card on the table and the effects that can be played really start to mesh, there are some cards that can destroy all bronze or silver cards on the table, other cards that can stop actions, steal other cards, allow you to play extra cards, and so on.

As soon as a player scores 21, the round is over, no chance to retaliate or change things, the traveller has travelled.  When a round is won, the player gets a time token.

And they're really shiny...

Collect three tokens in a two player game or two in a three or four player game and you win

Abbie being modest about the win...

Two minute learn for a ten minute game (and that's with four players), the combinations are really interesting, the game gets involved quickly and if everyone is concentrating on what everyone is doing, the interplay can get very complicated, which is excellent when it's such a simple premise.  At a glance, everyone can see how everyone else is doing, but keeping up with the different abilities on the table makes every game different.

The production values are excellent, custom box with real metal counters, the cards have been done to bicycle standard and the box is thick card.  Don't know what the retail value is, but if it's anything like what I got it for on kickstarter, this is going to be one to watch going forwards.

Zombie Boot Camp - Not quite full contact LARP, but fun...

The month before the wedding, we went on a Stag Do organised by my brother (He who finds awesome things), and in a change from regular Stag protocol (go around a hundred pubs and drink them dry), we decided to travel a hundred miles south to Worcester and engage in a day of beating and shooting things...

This is Zombie Boot Camp...

Before...

The day started with weapons training and orientation, first how to hold a shield and baton and how to lock the shields together to resist charges, easy enough if you're already trained in the doing of it, but problematic if you have no prior.

Our group had several with prior...

The other group sadly had no such experience.

After...

and as we ended up going up against each other, that really wasn't too fair, but the rules were simple, if you got hit, hand in the air and walk back to the other side, easy way to get most of your people through it play it like bulldog, throw the biggest buggers in the middle and let the fast movers run around the side.  Easy enough stuff, but the shields were designed for people with smaller arms than most of our gang, so we ended up with a variety of friction burns where the shield was rubbing against it.

Then we're on to rifle training, grabbed a rifle and went out into the training area, ran through a few drills to get used to the weapon and work on firing positions and movement tactics.

Again, simple enough stuff, just enough to get people into the spirit of not shooting each other in the ass (or indeed, shooting themselves in the foot..) although the rifles all had splitters in the end of the barrel so the paintball came out as a shower of paint rather than anything that was going to leave a mark.

Somebody wake up Hicks...

Then to the meat of the day, two live exercises where we took a van ride to a deserted area not far from the training camp, there to put the new skills to the test, not so much 28 days later as 28 minutes later, but it's all good.

Before...

So, the idea in the first place was to wander around an industrial estate, watch out for civilians or scientists to recover, beat the s*** out of zombies, and then pull out of there.  Easy enough, but here's where the problem occurred for me...

I don't LARP these days, but I have done, so I'm familiar with hit protocol, don't target certain areas, if you get hit, acknowledge the hit, and make sure you're not hitting too hard in return.  We'd had the briefing at the beginning of the day, we knew we were going to get pulled around, pushed over, specific rules like not being able to grapple with the zombies, don't hit in the head, and don't use the shield as a weapon.

Fine with that...

Unfortunately the zombies didn't have the same rules...

After...

Now I have to say that I understand that you can't have the zombies going down in seconds or every fight is going to be a real short one, and I understand that for most people, they're going to be too busy hacking away at things to think about what's going on.  However, after the fourth time the zombies had pulled the shields sideways to disengage them, then started making one-two hits against the shields (the first to knock the shield back, the second to hit you because your shield is now against your head), a few of us were starting to get a little frayed.  I got ragged to the ground at least once, and that was because I was keeping to protocol and not grappling, but the fact that the zombie in question was specifically pulling against the shield and ignoring the hits going in at ground level was more than a little irritating

Damage Immunity: Blue plastic batons...

When the zombies didn't go down under a few hundred hits, then just fell over when it was time to move on to the next area, it was difficult for many of our group to stay enthused, it didn't feel like we were winning at anything, just staying in one place long enough to set up the next area, then moving on.

Nothing like a few hundred rounds a minute to make you feel safer...

The shooting went better, zombies go down when you shoot them, and it's far less physically demanding than getting ragged around and hitting something a few hundred times, sensible to do the more physical stuff first and move to the easier stuff to finish.  We also got the sense that what we were doing was having an effect, mainly because the zombies didn't want to get any closer when we were scoring hits, even with the splitter in the barrel, so we got the sense we were actually succeeding at what we were supposed to be doing.

Overall, not a bad day. If I'm honest, I probably wouldn't do it again, although they have an alternate event that runs at night that I would find more interesting, and sadly they stopped doing the werewolf version, which I think we'd have got into a lot more, because everyone loves Dog Soldiers...

The problem for me was that when we were mashing the zombies, they were ignoring the hits, and while I understand why they were doing that, it's a problem when you're wanting to make some effect and everything you do is being ignored.  It's also a problem when your rules of engagement are different to theirs, and again, I understand why that's the case, but it's very frustrating when you're trying to keep to those rules and the other side is ignoring them.  In at least one case, I know one of our side smashed a zombie into some tyres after it ragged one of us over and then kept coming, we got the warning for it, and we kept to the rules after that where we could, but it wasn't easy.

I think that it's an excellent day out for those with no experience of LARP, certainly the other groups had a lot of fun, and it's run by a good group, they're offering a very specific experience and they deliver, just don't go expecting full contact LARP, because it really isn't.

More details can be found at zombiebootcamp.co.uk

The Missing Ink - Book Review

There are a lot of books on the art of writing and far less on the nature of what we write with…

So it was with some interest that I took up The Missing Ink by Phillip Hensher, a book dedicated to the nature of handwriting, how we write, what we write with, and how things have changed since the inception of writing.  Always good to get another perspective on how everyone enjoys the hobby that brings me most joy.

It has to be said, that when I read the authors opinion that “Someone who uses the Greek E probably had an early homosexual experience, might have had one last night as well…” I suspected that we might have nothing in common beyond a shared love of writing…

And reading further, perhaps not even that…

I read fast, so average books take me a few hours at most, this one took me a few days, and not because it was a very large book, but because I put it down halfway through and only just picked it up to finish reading. 

It’s a dry read, there are a number of things on how handwriting evolved, the different styles used by various countries and how the style of writing in general has changed over the years.  The problem I had is that there’s no passion in the writing, it’s like reading an article on Wikipedia, there’s no opinion to what’s being written, only the facts of the matter. 

Well, I say there’s no opinion, there’s plenty of opinion, it’s just limited to ridiculing anything that’s not like him…

Or Obese people having Obese writing for example…

Or praising the all-conquering Biro and Its phenomenal technical prowess…

Or relating the tale of when he went out with several hundred quid to buy a very specific pen in London and somehow couldn’t manage it, ending up returning home with a version of a pen that he already had…

Which, if I’m honest, wasn’t what I was hoping to get out of the book… 

It could be interesting if you have no idea of different writing styles, or why the Biro was such a revolutionary tool, or if you like reading witness accounts where people are either judgemental or ashamed of their handwriting, or they’re really enthused and committed to their handwriting, with the punchline being that they’re gay…because that’s the really relevant part of their love of handwriting…

With the exception of the part where he speaks of reading a deceased colleagues journal and seeing within the handwritten notes something of what she was, I found nothing in here to suggest that the author wasn’t just writing something that he’d been paid to write.  There wasn’t that spark of engagement that most people who write for pleasure have, he didn’t engage with what he thought, only what he judged other people on…

So if you’re looking for a basic guide on the history of handwriting and a lot of unsubstantiated buffoonery, great, this one’s for you…

If you’re looking for something more involved and less judgemental, Wikipedia’s free…

On the subject of cheap fountain pens...

There are several schools of thought when it comes to fountain pens, some see them as a work of art, some just prefer writing with them to using disposable biros, but for me, it's always been a question of functionality.  A pen can be the most beautiful thing in the world, but if it can't be used to write with, then really what's the point?

For those just starting out with fountain pens and don't want to spend too much money on the matter until they've made a decision on whether or not they actually want to continue with it, the question becomes if using a cheap fountain pen is the best way to determine if you're interested in continuing with the style in general.

With this in mind, I've pulled a number of pens out of the roll I use to give people a try at using a fountain pen, to see if I still use the cheaper ones when I have more expensive ones to work with.

The first set are very cheap chinese pens, the top two costing around £2 each (free delivery), the lower autograph pen costing around £8.  The Baoer writes reasonably, you sometimes have to go over the line more than once to make sure you've got a solid line, but it's a good heavy pen.  The second pen (no identifying manufacturer) is a very heavy pen along the lines of the larger Jinhao pens, the flow is very fast and while it's a broader nib than I'm used to, it's very much for those who like ot know they've got a pen in their hands.  The last is made by Autograph, solid metal pen with a european medium nib, nice construction, sometimes jams with thicker inks.

The next set are a Preppy disposable (but still refillable) fountain pen, writes comparable with most Japanese extra fine nibs, but a very light barrel, retailing for around £3, the next step up being the Plaisir fountain pen at around £9, with a nib equivalent to a Japanese fine and a slightly more well constructed barrel, and the last being a Sailor Hi-Ace, again around £9, Japanese extra fine line again, lightweight plastic body and it comes with a converter.

The thing here (for me anyway) is that all of these pens write just fine, sure, they're not as smooth or fast flowing as the custom pilot MR I use every day, and they're not as solidly constructed as the Lamy Al-Star that sits next to the MR, but they're fine pens and they make for perfectly good tools, with the interesting thing being that several people just getting back into writing with fountain pens (or just taking it up for that matter) find it easier to work with these pens than they do with the specialised versions that I've got.

The question however, was whether or not I still use the cheaper pens when I've progressed to customised pens.  After all, why would you go back to using a rusty Rover when you've got a Ferrari in the garage...?  I still use the Hi-Ace on a regular basis, the others not so much, I've got too used to the pens I like most and use all the time, particularly the ones where I've built and rebuilt them to my own tastes, but the exercise tonight has got me thinking, so I'm going to move up the ladder tomorrow and have a look at the mid range priced pens that I've got to see how often I use them...

However, I am interested in everyone else's thoughts?  Do you all still use cheaper pens or is it just the nice pens that you use now you've been around a while?

And Absent for a few days again, but with a really good reason this time...

Today, it's not a post about games or pens, or any of the things that I normally write about, this Wednesday just gone, I had a day that will forever be one of my happiest memories.

There are few times in a mans life where he cries, fewer still when those tears are of happiness and leap unbidden to his eyes.  But on Wednesday of this week just gone, I cried unashamedly, because I was there when my son embraced all his tomorrows and got married...

The day started quietly, the wedding was at two, so we left at twelve with plenty of time, went around to my brothers place to collect the rest of the family and get the convoy going to Leeds Town Hall, and all was going well, with more than an hour to go before the ceremony, we started on the fifteen minute journey into Leeds town centre, and that's when the first problem occurred...

There is no parking in Leeds, not one tiny bit of it, and as we circled around and around, the time started getting close, so we turned into one of the shopping centres and made a rapid run down to the town hall with minutes to spare...

And the Wedding CD's still in their box at home...

Cheerfully we're a resourceful bunch, so five minutes later, Megan by the speaker with a phone connected up to the speakers and we're back in business...

And as the quiet words of Ellie Gouldings Love me like you do filled the room, I glanced at my son, standing proud, not an ounce of hesitation in him, and I felt the tears coming, like a tide of happiness held back by the inadequate floodgates that are my eyelids.  Doesn't do for a man to get all soppy, so I gritted my teeth and tried to keep quiet, made the mistake of glancing back at Jude, tears brimming in her eyes, then at Mum, then Megan, all the same...

And I was gone...

Didn't make a noise, but I'm pretty sure I was crimson with the effort of holding back the sobs before the end of the ceremony...

One of the few photos I got when my eyes weren't blurry...

No hesitation from either of them, and in minutes, they were man and wife, and in that moment, something changed, not for them, for me, because in that moment, someone else picked up the shield I'd been carrying for the 25 years, 11 days, 7 hours and 20 minutes previous.  While I'll always, always be there for them both, I could let go in that moment, because it was clear to me that she would give everything for him, and he everything for her, and a peace I've never known came to me because apart they're both strong, but together they can face anything.

So we went outside to get a few photos

Special thanks to my brother Michael in the top right corner for the traditional Vulcan Wedding Blessing

And then back to the Clayton Hotel for the reception...

It was family only at the ceremony, so for many at the reception came the realisation that occasionally, just occasionally...I do wear suits...

Course, I'm always in the shade in comparison with my radiant wife :)

Played a video of the ceremony to all those present, with a few highlights of the day...

Abbie, Mark, Andy, Me, Jude, given the number of Leos in that lineup, the collective noun for Dodds should be a Pride... and none of us could have been prouder then...

All speeches well received, we got to the serious business of good food and better music...

The evening was excellent, I have videos of people dancing that I'm not allowed to share, a perfect antipodean reaction to being filmed dancing, more photos than I could easily upload of riotously happy people, and at the end of it, all smiles everywhere.

A man could not ask for more than I got that day, they're now off on honeymoon to Crete, no doubt more photos when they return in a week or so.