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Category: Commentary (Page 2 of 14)

Time for a Change

After working so many exhausting hours and looking forward to a few more weeks of it, I have decided that I need a change.

I am good at what I do, but it is only fun to me when others say Wow, I could never do that. Unfortunately, I try doing things that I am not good at. There is no voice in the back of my head that says beforehand NEW IS GREAT, BUT YOU SHOULD ASK SOMEONE FOR HELP BEFORE IT ALL GOES SOUTH

I regret my epic failures for how it affects others.

So here is what I am going to do:

  • I am going to do fun things with board games and RPGs.
  • I'm going to do an anchor podcast about Old Games in New Frames. (Not just making everything into a Black Hack game, but making Swords & Wizardry stuff and 5e material.)
  • I'm going to finish the project my son and I started in making his boardgame.

Sure, I'm scared as all get out that this will be yet another grand start that will end in failure and unfinished projects. But I have to do something. The current state of things is way too frustrating.

Fear and Loathing in Middle America

Yes, I'll pay the Joesky tax.

I rarely post about personal things outside of my son and last year's fundraiser. Today I was really frustrated with a lack of progress on various projects. I thought about why I stopped doing commercial work years ago. At that time, I was all talk. All I could generate at the time were ideas, not finished products. I fell into the same cycle over the past two months and was unfortunately feeling sorry for myself.

After some encouragement from Matt Stater and Chris Stieha its past time to quash that noise. Just to drive the point home, my son tonight told me that he wants to make more games with me.

With that in mind, NagaDemon is coming and it is time to finish some projects. I've tested a couple of them while some other projects are just let's see what sticks. More importantly, I've got a partner in crime to make stuff and a group of folks to playtest anything.

Here are some thoughts leading up to a new race. The uplifted dolphins are a fun race/class for a game. Want to have more fun, ponder my son's question:

What if the dolphins could make their own bubbles and float into the sky? Why not into outer space?

One of these days, I'll finish Spelljammer for White Star and these dolphins will be in it. (No, I haven't read the Uplift War, but my wife has.)

Anyway, after reading a G+ post about Talislanta and thinking about Pars Fortuna, I figured it's time to have my own "No Elves" one-shot game. The group is up for it and it will give me time with the boy. Since we have the uplifted dolphins, here is the symbiotic sword and armor race for Swords & Wizardry.

Paragons

Paragons live as animated swords and suits of armor. Because they are usually seen together, humanoids considered Paragon Swords and Paragon Armor as members of the same race. This is not true, Paragon Armor live in entirely separate communities than Paragon Swords. Paragon Armor is self-animated by the community the live in. Each community will animate a chosen blacksmith suit of armor to create more suits of Paragon Armor. After the lifeless suit of armor is created, the community will engage in a ceremony to animate the new suit of armor. Suits of armor never change size, but are considered mature at four years of age. Most suits of armor last for twenty to thirty years in normal circumstances. Communities of Paragon Armor conduct trade with the neighboring towns or villages offering services as night guards in trade for metal.

All Paragon Armor that is not paired with a Paragon Sword dream of returning to their homeland to disperse into their family and friends.

Paragon Swords, exist as a race of philosophers incapable of moving on their own more than ten feet a day. Although the community does not require food, it does require a suitable shelter. Each Paragon Sword community has one shelter, or deliberation hall, of about 20 to 30 members. Every community requires a number of their own to leave the deliberation halls and journey in the outside world to avoid madness. Those chosen for this journey are paired with a Paragon Armor.

Once paired, the sword becomes the brains that control the armor. However, the personality of the armor is not destroyed. Instead the two paragons keep each other company. The sword provides teaching in philosophy and the animated armor provides knowledge of humans, manufacturing goods for trade, and general information about the outside world.

The PCs that play a Paragon represent a paired sword and armor.

Limited Object Animation: Paragon swords have the ability to control and move their paired Paragon Armor. Once per day, a Paragon Sword can animate one object up to the weight of a suit of leather armor. This ability cannot be used to animate a normal or non-Paragon sword.

Throw the Sword: Paragon Swords can launch themselves ten feet once per day. They attack with a -2 penalty, but do 1d8 damage.

Poison Immunity: All Paragons (armor and swords) are immune to poison.

Breathless: Paragons do not breathe and do not require air. As such they cannot be suffocated and are unaffected by any gaseous attacks.

Immutable Bond: Paragon Armor will only use its paired Paragon Sword, forsaking all other swords of any type. They can collect any other weapons and use them, but will carry only the Sword that comprises the pairing.

Tests of Purity: Paragons can integrate magic helmets and magic shields into their armor at a risk. When attempting to use a magic helmet or shield, the character must make a successful saving throw or lose all sanity for 1d8 rounds.

Classes: Player-Character Paragons may be Fighters only.

In campaign worlds with psionics, a paired Paragon Sword and Armor may advance to 8th level.

Non-player Paragons are unpaired. Paragon Swords can defend themselves using illusions, but having only one attack per day. (Paragon Swords lose their illusionist abilities once paired). Paragon Armor acts as a 2HD creature that does 1d6 damage with their gauntlets or weapon. Paragon Armor that is not paired with a Paragon Sword will not wield any kind of sword or blade.

Personality: Paragon Swords are impracticable and aloof. They have little understanding of the world of men. They are loyal to ideals and principles and seem to be unemotional creatures.

Paragon Armor come across as mild-mannered, hard-working adults that are not prone to say very much. They are loyal to their friends (humanoid or Paragon) and value industriousness.

A paired Paragon Sword and Armor can appear at rare times almost schizophrenic due to internal squabbles between the two Paragons. Otherwise, they will blend in with the human population almost perfectly. Mankind has grown accustomed to small hamlets where "ghost armors" live.

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