Name This Game: Post-Apoc Mythos-Punk
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Name This Game: Post-Apoc Mythos-Punk
I'm writing a quick RPG for a contest (the deadline is the 20th), and I'm stumped for a title.
The basic premise is that the "apoc" in post-apoc was caused by a mass invasion of otherworldly Lovecraftian Horrors. The big Horrors ate up most of humanity, then, satiated, departed through the underwater gates through which they'd come. But they left behind many thousands of survivors scattered all over the Earth -- the crumbs left over from their meal, essentially -- along with thousands of smaller Horrors who stuck around to claim the table scraps.
It's been discovered that grafting parts of these Horrors to yourself confers some of the Horrors' powers, such as supernatural strength or toughness. Doing so also heals any injury -- as long as the patient is even barely alive, a graft will bring him back in a hurry -- so for many survivors in the post-apoc landscape, grafts have been a grim necessity if they want to stay alive. It's amazingly easy to transplant these grafts, almost alarmingly so. Stick a severed tentacle to the stump of your severed arm, and it'll do most of the work on its own. They almost seem eager, in fact.
However, grafts come at a hefty cost (besides hunting down Horrors for harvest, that is): The more you have, the less human you are. The game has two main stats, Human Nature and Horrific Nature. As one goes up, the other goes down. If your Human Nature goes down to zero, you're officially one of them. But some people are cool with toeing the line. They just want the power, or they're out of their minds, or they think the Horrors are the next evolutionary step, or all three. A lot of those people are at least as dangerous as the Horrors themselves, but there are those who manage to balance Horrific power and sanity. While the old world economy is a thing of the past, there's a thriving trade in Horror parts.
The players are a band of survivors trying to make their way through this Horror-stricken wasteland. They might fight against the Horrors or roving gangs of cannibals, or harvest Horror parts for fun and profit, or whatever. You get the idea.
What do I call it?
The basic premise is that the "apoc" in post-apoc was caused by a mass invasion of otherworldly Lovecraftian Horrors. The big Horrors ate up most of humanity, then, satiated, departed through the underwater gates through which they'd come. But they left behind many thousands of survivors scattered all over the Earth -- the crumbs left over from their meal, essentially -- along with thousands of smaller Horrors who stuck around to claim the table scraps.
It's been discovered that grafting parts of these Horrors to yourself confers some of the Horrors' powers, such as supernatural strength or toughness. Doing so also heals any injury -- as long as the patient is even barely alive, a graft will bring him back in a hurry -- so for many survivors in the post-apoc landscape, grafts have been a grim necessity if they want to stay alive. It's amazingly easy to transplant these grafts, almost alarmingly so. Stick a severed tentacle to the stump of your severed arm, and it'll do most of the work on its own. They almost seem eager, in fact.
However, grafts come at a hefty cost (besides hunting down Horrors for harvest, that is): The more you have, the less human you are. The game has two main stats, Human Nature and Horrific Nature. As one goes up, the other goes down. If your Human Nature goes down to zero, you're officially one of them. But some people are cool with toeing the line. They just want the power, or they're out of their minds, or they think the Horrors are the next evolutionary step, or all three. A lot of those people are at least as dangerous as the Horrors themselves, but there are those who manage to balance Horrific power and sanity. While the old world economy is a thing of the past, there's a thriving trade in Horror parts.
The players are a band of survivors trying to make their way through this Horror-stricken wasteland. They might fight against the Horrors or roving gangs of cannibals, or harvest Horror parts for fun and profit, or whatever. You get the idea.
What do I call it?
Mike Olson
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After the Nightmare
The Hell-lands (which would be what people call the wastelands)
Legends of Humanity
I don't know.
-Chris
The Hell-lands (which would be what people call the wastelands)
Legends of Humanity
I don't know.
-Chris
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Becoming Cthulu
Children of Azathoth
Ulthar's Failure
Hastur's Corruption
Aaaaaaaaand . . . I'm spent.
Children of Azathoth
Ulthar's Failure
Hastur's Corruption
Aaaaaaaaand . . . I'm spent.
Yeah, Zelda's hot, but Samus does that thing with her gun . . . . :eek:
Wanna know what Colorado gamers think? Check it out!
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The Forgotten World
The Abandoned Earth
Those Left Behind
-Chris
The Abandoned Earth
Those Left Behind
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- devlin1
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[quote="jimmy corrigan"]
expectations are important[/quote]
Winner.
Thanks for playing, everyone.
No, seriously, thanks for all the suggestions. I still have some time left to think about it, so if anything else comes to you over the next few days, post away.
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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Shadows of Apocalypse
Shadows of Humanity
Survivors
Wasetland Warriors
Days of Mythos Past
-Chris
Shadows of Humanity
Survivors
Wasetland Warriors
Days of Mythos Past
-Chris
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- devlin1
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I know this is going to sound like total bullshit from an arrogant fucking asshole, but Leftovers occurred to me, too. It's really good if I go with a more darkly humorous angle. I think the odds of that are pretty high, since I can't really see me being deadly-serious for more than a few paragraphs, let alone a few pages.
Mike Olson
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Well, given that I came up with that same name independently of you, it seems like confirmation that this is the name of the game. It's too perfect not to use. Go for it. :)
-Chris
-Chris
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- devlin1
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Something else I'd thought of for fans of Palladium's TMNT RPG (of which I am not one): After the Ftaghn. I wouldn't actually use it; I just think it's funny.
Human Nature appeals to me, too, although you're right, it's not especially evocative of the setting. I mean, it sort of is, but it feels unfair to give Horrific Nature such short shrift.
Human Nature appeals to me, too, although you're right, it's not especially evocative of the setting. I mean, it sort of is, but it feels unfair to give Horrific Nature such short shrift.
Mike Olson
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- smartmonkey
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Tribe 7.
Oh, shit, wait.
I like simple, single word titles. Graft, for example, might work well.
Oh, shit, wait.
I like simple, single word titles. Graft, for example, might work well.
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So! Update.
I went with Leftovers, and the finished version (or at least the one I submitted) is available here, in case anyone wants to check it out.
I'm pretty happy with how it came out. After one round of judging (out of three), I'm in first place, so woot!
I went with Leftovers, and the finished version (or at least the one I submitted) is available here, in case anyone wants to check it out.
I'm pretty happy with how it came out. After one round of judging (out of three), I'm in first place, so woot!
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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[quote="dnd3eplayer"]"The stars were right" - Haha, i love it.[/quote]
I thought that was great myself.
Good luck to you, Mike! It looks like a great game, and I can't wait to play it at Hyphen-Con.
-Chris
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So I am looking at participating in one of the other game design contests. Based on some of the design requirements I was looking at designing a game with this concept.
Humanity achieved its greatest achievement: Unified Field Theory. It was also their undoing. For some unknown reason, humanity understanding the very foundation of the universe caused the universe to unravel. As the universe collapsed, scientists realized that places that resisted the unraveling, were also the same places where science and reason seemed the most prevalent. Places filled with superstition and religion were the first to go. Now things of fantasy are pouring into the last bastions of human reality.
Now all that remains as a bulwark against the destruction of reality is a determined group of scientists whose job is to go to those places threatened with ceasing to exist, and convince the people of the area that all of these monsters and superstitions aren't scientifically possible.
The players take on the role of those scientists. I was thinking of calling the game "Reality: Check".
Opinions?
Humanity achieved its greatest achievement: Unified Field Theory. It was also their undoing. For some unknown reason, humanity understanding the very foundation of the universe caused the universe to unravel. As the universe collapsed, scientists realized that places that resisted the unraveling, were also the same places where science and reason seemed the most prevalent. Places filled with superstition and religion were the first to go. Now things of fantasy are pouring into the last bastions of human reality.
Now all that remains as a bulwark against the destruction of reality is a determined group of scientists whose job is to go to those places threatened with ceasing to exist, and convince the people of the area that all of these monsters and superstitions aren't scientifically possible.
The players take on the role of those scientists. I was thinking of calling the game "Reality: Check".
Opinions?
Whenever I get confused about D&D alignment morality, I just imagine Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Ghandi arm wrestling shirtless on the back of a killer whale.
In other words, I remember that it doesn't really make a whole lot of sense and deal with it best I can.
In other words, I remember that it doesn't really make a whole lot of sense and deal with it best I can.
- devlin1
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[quote="Count Zero"]So I am looking at participating in one of the other game design contests.[/quote]
Which of those fairly baffling images are you using? I like the themes, but the images feel like a necessary evil.
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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- devlin1
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BTW, I'm going to be developing Leftovers further on Roll Some Dice, an RPG blog I just started the other day. It's for all of my non-FATE RPG ideas, which is most of them.
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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I just finished reading Leftover and so far I like what I read. I look forward to giving it a spin and following the blog.
I really like the parts about the relationships and harming them when combined with your horrific stat.
I also like how you can instantly heal yourself by gaining a new Graft.
The only part that confused me was the healing chart. It looks like you have number of wounds listed twice so you could probably just write it like this:
1 W = Diff 10
2 W = Diff 19
3 W = Diff 32
4 W = Diff 55
5 W = Diff 84
I really like the parts about the relationships and harming them when combined with your horrific stat.
I also like how you can instantly heal yourself by gaining a new Graft.
The only part that confused me was the healing chart. It looks like you have number of wounds listed twice so you could probably just write it like this:
1 W = Diff 10
2 W = Diff 19
3 W = Diff 32
4 W = Diff 55
5 W = Diff 84
- devlin1
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The more wounded you are, the harder it is to heal any of your Wounds. So if you only have 1 Wound, you only need a 10 to heal it, but if you have 5 Wounds, you need a 28 to heal 1 Wound. I want recovering from injuries to be a real pain in the ass.
Thanks for the feedback! Glad you like it. If you do give it a shot, definitely let me know how it plays, because... uh... I haven't experienced that yet myself.
Thanks for the feedback! Glad you like it. If you do give it a shot, definitely let me know how it plays, because... uh... I haven't experienced that yet myself.
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
Spirit of the Blank: A blog.
Roll Some Dice: Another blog.
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
Spirit of the Blank: A blog.
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- devlin1
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BTW, the third and final judge dropped out of Game Fu, so... I win by default! First judge had me in first, second had me tied for first, so I eek out a win with two points on the closest competition.
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
Spirit of the Blank: A blog.
Roll Some Dice: Another blog.
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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- devlin1
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[quote="mordraine"]Huh. I saw you were in the lead after the first two rounds. Did the third judge give a reason why he pussed out?[/quote]
Fuckin' life or some shit like that.
Mike Olson
"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
Spirit of the Blank: A blog.
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"In this economy, it's not easy to feed a growing family. So we eat Haunkkah gelt for dinner and look at a picture of broccoli." --Paul F. Tompkins
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[quote="devlin1"]Which of those fairly baffling images are you using? I like the themes, but the images feel like a necessary evil.[/quote]
I was going to use image 6 and the Last Outpost Theme
Whenever I get confused about D&D alignment morality, I just imagine Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Ghandi arm wrestling shirtless on the back of a killer whale.
In other words, I remember that it doesn't really make a whole lot of sense and deal with it best I can.
In other words, I remember that it doesn't really make a whole lot of sense and deal with it best I can.
- Count Zero
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[quote="cczernia"]I'm not sure I get it. So, the object of the game is to go into fantasy worlds and convince people that the fantasy aspects of the world don't really exist.
My problem is this concept is too over the top. My question is, is this a game you would want to play and why. What makes this fun?[/quote]
Actually, it isn't a fantasy world. It is our world. Think of the idea as more of a post-apocalyptic game. Basically, the world is in ruins except for those last few bastions of reason. Basically, I am looking at the idea of reason being the "real world" rather than the constant theme of "the shadow world" such as World of Darkness, and similar games.
I do have concerns that the concept won't work as a game. I was looking at games like esoterrorists, and thinking it could be an investigation style game. I am thinking about damage being your acceptance of science and reason. As you begin to doubt, you become vulnerable to the "things that shouldn't be."
Just like any investigation game, it is fun because of the mystery. So the game really revolves around investigating what is going on, and proving that it is impossible. Imagine the X-files in reverse, where Scully is the hero.
Also, will it be fun to play? Not sure. It is just a really rough concept. Sometimes you have to go down a design path and see if it works. It might fail completely, but you don't know until you try. I can always pull design elements from it for a different game.
Whenever I get confused about D&D alignment morality, I just imagine Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Ghandi arm wrestling shirtless on the back of a killer whale.
In other words, I remember that it doesn't really make a whole lot of sense and deal with it best I can.
In other words, I remember that it doesn't really make a whole lot of sense and deal with it best I can.