The Savage Blogger

We've Moved!

2014-11-19T20:43:00.001-08:00

A few months back I decided to consolidate all of my gaming blogs into one. You can find all of the articles from here, as well as new Savage Worlds content along with other great RPG and miniature games at No School Like The Old School.

See you there!

Coming Soon: Nova Praxis Savage Worlds Edition!

2014-01-27T22:30:00.001-08:00

Awesome news today from Voidstar Studios who announced yesterday that they will be porting their Transhumanist science fiction RPG Nova Praxis to Savage Worlds and they've brought on a familiar name to help:

We're proud to announce that Nova Praxis is going to be released as an officially licensed Savage Worlds campaign setting. And is that the conversion is being done in conjunction with none other than veteran Savage Worlds developer and publisher, Sean Patrick Fannon, author of Shaintar.

I have always felt that Savage Worlds needed a a more "modern" science fiction campaign setting especially after enjoying novels like Alistair Reynolds' Revelation Space and Richard K. Morgan's Altered Carbon. I own the FATE edition of Nova Praxis and I was greatly impressed by the depth and scope of the game. I just don't think that my more traditional gamer friends would be interested in the more free-form nature of the FATE system. A Savage Worlds edition would greatly open the setting to a wider audience and with Sean Patrick Fannon in the wings, we can be pretty sure that this will be a well-made conversion.

Ave Caesar! Weird Wars: Rome Kickstarter is underway.

2013-07-31T05:34:00.002-07:00

Sound the trumpets! Send messengers to the four corners of the Imperium! The Kickstarter for Weird Wars: Rome is underway!

As can be expected from Pinnacle, they doubled their goal in less than 24 hours. Digital add-ons will be awarded to backers as they are reached, and since the book is more-or-less done, the PDF will be available as soon as the campaign is over with the print release scheduled to drop around Saturnalia... I mean, Christmas.

This actually comes at an opportune time as I have recently read some of Richard Tierney's Simon Magus stories and I'm on a bit of a historical horror kick right now. While it will most likely be set in the Weird Wars universe, I'm pretty sure that the rules can easily be ported out to work with Realms of Cthulhu. I've got a couple of contubernia of plastic legionaries from Warlord that I'm painting up now that should do quite nicely for this.

Tis a prize that's more than worth a few sestertii.

(This is turning into the all Savage Worlds crowdsourcing blog, isn't it? Well, that should be changing soon enough.)

New Kickstater: Ronin: Chrome & Shadow

2013-07-28T22:27:00.004-07:00

Yeah, I'm back again. So much to talk about, so little time.

Anyway, I just thought I bring up a new product looking for Savages to back it. Ronin: Chrome & Shadow is a new savage setting from Glove & Goggle Labs that bills itself as a "post-apocalyptic cyberpunk setting for Savage Worlds. Massive metroplexes, syndicates and megacorps in an irradiated wasteland..." Here, I'll let the setting's creator, James Barbery, make his pitch:

Currently, all of the pledge levels are only offering a .PDF of the game rather than a physical copy. James writes: "This is, unfortunately, intentional. A print edition is planned, but it will be included as an add-on because the book may need to be offered at or near my cost in order to be priced fairly to you. That means that I need to make sure that the project will be out of the red (which happens the second I hit goal) before I make any promises."

However, if you want a preview at what Ronin has to offer, as well as a glimpse of the setting, monsters, and character examples, you can download this free sneak peek .PDF.

“Achtung! Cthulhu” Kickstarter Underway

2013-02-16T18:55:00.000-08:00

Last year, new English RPG publisher, Modiphius, produced their first two their Achtung! Cthulhu series of World War II/Cthulhu Mythos stand-alone campaigns for Savage Worlds and Call of Cthulhu. As expected, the explosive combination of the two awesome genres made them instant hits. Now Modiphius is further fleshing out the Achtung! Cthulhu line with Investigator’s and Keeper’s Guide that expand upon the setting and they’ve got a Kickstarter going to help:

Now, the campaign is already funded, and the first stretch goal—full Savage Worlds support—has already been met. However, as with all these campaigns there are always more stretch goals to meet and there is plenty of time left.

Kickstarter: Wild Card Creator

2012-08-09T18:19:00.002-07:00

Now this is an AWESOME idea. I've used other character creation tools like MetaCreator and HeroLab in the past. They're great for keeping track of PCs and creating legible record sheets and most of them suffer from the same problem: adding new content. You either have to wait until the manufacturer or a third party programmer puts one out, our have the coding chops to make one yourself.

Wild Card Creator would make adding a new Savage Setting easy. All you need is the .PDF of whatever game setting you want to add and import it into Wild Card Creator. It will scan the text and upload all of new campaign-specific Edges, Hindrances, Gear, etc. will be added to the program! Cool, huh?

So far the Kickstart is off to a good start. They're a couple days in and they're already a quarter of the way into their goal. Stretch Goals include getting Pincacle artist Storn Cook to create character portraits, adding a Showdowns army builder, and a copy of an upcoming iOS/Android tablet edition! If you got the bucks, why not help out?

Noir is GO...and something else is a comin'

2012-06-14T10:29:00.001-07:00

The Deadlands Noir KickStarter is over. The original goal for the $8000 was not only met in one day, but doubled (or nearly enough). By the end of the campaign, Pinnacle raised over $117,000 to fund this project. Sensational!

In an update that was released after the campaign's triumphant completion, Shane Hensley revealed a few more Deadlands related projects that are in the works, including one scheduled for this August (which most likely means a GenCon release)...

That's right! Hell on Earth Reloaded is now just a few short months away! Express elevator to You-Know-Where GOIN' DOWN!!!

Chthonian Stars... SAVAGED

2012-05-19T21:02:00.001-07:00

It's a nice, warm. late-Spring night. Right now, I'm sitting out on my patio, drinking a root beer, listening to HLPS's audio-drama of At The Mountains Of Madness, and working on a Savage Worlds/Realms Of Cthulhu conversion of WildFire's Lovecraftian hard science fiction setting for Mongoose's Traveller: Chthonian Stars.

While I've certainly dabbled in conversions in the past, this is the first time I've really been serious enough to commit to one that I intend to make available online. At this time, I'm working on character creation and not hitting any snags... yet. Most of the Advantages/Disadvantages found in the original rules already translate well into existing Edges and Hindrances. I need to figure out if any new Skills would be needed. (Yes, Guts will be an available--and recommended--Skill.)

After that I'm going to have to start converting weapons and equipment into their Savage Worlds equivalents. Then I'm going to have to gen-up stats for the various new creatures NOT found in Realms. The hardest part will be trying to convert the various spaceships from their ori stats (if you've ever played Traveller, you know what I'm going up against) to SW. Fortunately, I've got the old Sci-Fi Gear Toolkit to help me. Once I got that done, I'll layout everything out on my Mac into a nice .PDF and post it... somewhere.

Stay tuned, Savages.

"And then SHE walked in..."

2012-05-15T20:32:00.000-07:00

Just in case you don't religiously visit their website every Tuesday to see what new savagery they're cooking up for us, today Pinnacle announced it's newest Savage Setting: Deadlands Noir.

Now hold on thar pardner! Ain't Deadlands supposed to one them rootin'-tootin' Western-type games. Even the sequels Hell on Earth and Lost Colony had obvious Western tropes mixed into these respective post-apocalypse and sci-fi settings and they seem to work well. However, Westerns and Film Noir ain't what y'all would call corn-patible. Right?

I was skeptical myself. Then I watched this at the Kickstarter site:

(Yeah, I recognized Cheyenne Wright's voice, too.)

OK, I'm sold.

Thats right ya' palookas. Every two-bit gunsel and gumshoe from here to the Windy City will be polishing up their heaters for a piece of the action. So cool your jets, ya' ugly mug and throw some sawbucks into the hat and get some of that hot merchandise, pally. I'm just a busted joe, myself, but I put in for the $75 package.

So whadda ya waitin' for? An engraved invitation?

I'm baaaaaack!

2012-05-06T18:17:00.002-07:00

No, seriously! I'm back this time.

I've decided to take a hiatus from school (I've got one final Java, I got a new job at yet another call center, and my thoughts are turning back to Savage Worlds. In the meantime, I've created a Facebook group for Milwaukee-area Savages to help get my fellow Cheeseheads together and organize some games. It's a little bare-bones right now, but if you live in Southeastern Wisconsin, and have a hankering for Fast, Furious, and Fun action, then join in on the conversation!

See you all there.

Savage Worlds at RockCon

2011-08-15T22:36:00.000-07:00

I"m going to be attending Rock-Con in Rockford, IL November 4th-6th and there are Savage things afoot. I'm going to be running a game of Space 1889: Red Sands Saturday morning in the 9 am to 1 pm slot. Pre-generated characters and miniatures (well, cardboard miniatures) will be provided. Other Savages are planning events of their own.

Also, if you like classic RPGs and/or Tékumel, I'm also going to be running an introductory game of the original Empire of the Petal Throne, Friday night. My partner in all things OSR, Victor Raymond, is also promising to take daring gamers on a trip into the empire of Tsolyánu where adventure, wealth, and very available priestesses of Lady Dlamélish await!

More details as they come.

Monkeying around with the design.

2011-08-02T22:02:00.001-07:00

I'm going to be adjusting the design of the site. Bear with me, please.

On "My" MARS...

2011-08-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite Savage Settings is Adamant Entertainment's MARS. While it is not mean to be a translation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom tales (although you can find that setting Savaged here), Gareth's setting still has a enough sword and planet action to spark the imagination. Of course, like many gamer's I've decided to tweek it slightly to match my own vision of the Red Planet.

In my MARS, most of the Gareth's setting is still intact: Mars is still a world of deserts, jungles, and ruined cities. Red men still fight fight the green savages of the wates as well as war with the White Apes. The Gray Men still plot and scheme in their dark, dank chasms and the Synthe-Men still tend their ancient machines. Callor, Baltan, Lonaria and the rest are still major centers of action and intrigue.

One of the notable differences between the Gareth's Mars and my Mars is the climate. Rather than being a cold and dry world, I've cranked the thermostat up to max and have the Red Planet bathed in nearly constant heat from an unforgiving, swollen, red sun.

Yes, you read that correctly. A red sun. Rather than setting it in the 19th Century or early 20th century, my Mars exists millions of years in our future. By this time our sun is entering the Red Giant stage of its life cycle and slowly swelling, engulfing the worlds of the inner solar system as it expands. Mercury is no more and Venus will be next in a few millions years. Earth is no longer habitable by anything we'd recognize as life, but the humans of the far future migrated to and terraformed Mars many eons earlier. For a time, Mars was a garden world and a haven for humanity until civilization fell into barbarism. Humanity's descendants, modified by the processes of natural selection and ancient genetic engineering, became the various intelligent races of Mars. (With the notable exception of the Grays, they aren't from around here.) If there are any "Earthmen" on Mars, they are part of the original Homo sapiens colonists who first came to Mars many millennia ago who have been somehow "preserved" (e.g. suspended animation tube), or they have been plucked from space and time by the Grays.

I'm also working on fleshing out the religions of Mars. Gareth made mention of one deity Faina the Provider, in the "Slavers of Mars" adventure. I plan on expanding the pantheon of deities a bit more, as well as work out the details of their particular rituals and practices.

Now that I've told you about my Mars, I want to hear about your Mars. Do you play the setting "straight up" or do you modify it like I did? If so how?

"Sad Savage. Saaaad."

2011-06-30T08:55:00.000-07:00

Excuse me, I need to rant a little bit.

The last year hasn't been very good to me. I lost my job last summer and despite my education and experience I can't seem to get hired, much less interviewed, for even the most menial of jobs. I'm beginning to worry that returning to school--and consequently running up thousands in student loan debt--to peruse a career in computer programming was a wise choice. I've got bill collectors hanging on the bell and my piddly unemployment checks aren't helping cover my bills. I keep waiting for the next shoe to drop; cancer, heart disease, or some other massively expensive medical condition that would send even the most well-insured individual into a lifetime of debt or bankruptcy.

As a result, I haven't done as much gaming as I'd like to as I wallow in depression. anger, and a fruitless search for a new job. I haven't been able to afford to go to any of the major conventions and it looks like that's not going to change anytime soon, if ever. I was looking forward to going Origins and "Savage Saturday Night" again this year, but that dream was shattered each time I received a letter from a respective employer telling me that I don't even warrant an interview. Even an evening at the friendly local game store is getting prohibitively expensive; gasoline, food, incidentals, etc..

And all of my ideas for campaigns lay fallow as well; a Realms of Cthulhu campaign where the PCs play mobsters as well as my Lovecraftian Dark Fantasy setting, my attempts to create playable (and possibly marketable) Savage Worlds rules for Tekumel, playtesting Totems of the Dead, running Space 1889: Red Sands, etc.. All of these cost time, money, effort, and enthusiasm that I no longer have access to. It's hard to get excited for anything when you're constantly worried whether or not you're going to end up living in a cardboard box by the end of the month.

I don't know that the Hell I'm going to do and I shudder when I think of what lies ahead. I don't want to hear maudlin reassurances about how things are "going to get better." because they're not. If anything, things are going to get a lot worse. So, "good bye" civilization and "hello" long, slow, slide into extinction. It was fun while it lasted.

New PC: Lálei Kardáma

2011-05-10T22:17:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been on an "Old School Renaissance" gaming kick and one of the most interesting projects I've run across is Humanspace Empires by The Drune; a science fantasy game that is set in the pulpy space opera "pre-history" of my favorite fantasy setting. I've had a chance to help playtesting this game and I really enjoy it. Even though there is still a few bugs to work out, Drune has done a fantastic job blending the best elements of the "Classic Fantasy Role Playing Game" with the original Empire of the Petal Throne to create a very playable dark scifi game.

That said, and with all due respect with Drune, the Savage within me will not rest until I have plugged Humanspace into the Savage Worlds engine! Therefore, here is my current PC in a playtest campaign that I'm currently embroiled, parsed into Savage Worlds using Powers and Edges from Slipstream:

Lálei Kardáma (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Female
Rank: Veteran

Agility: d8, Smarts: d8, Spirit: d6, Strength: d4, Vigor: d6
Charisma: +2, Pace: 6, Parry: 5, Toughness: 9(4)

Edges: Attractive, Arcane Background (Psionics), Rich, Command, New Power (Object Reading), Femme Fatale

Hindrances: Loyal, Vow-Major (Imperial Navy), Vow-Minor (Order of the Verdant Sphere)

Skills: Fighting: d6, Knowledge (Space Battle): d6, Notice: d6, Persuasion: d6, Piloting: d6, Psionics: d6, Shooting: d6, Stealth: d4

Powers: Empathy, Telepathy, Mind Reading, Object Reading

Power Points: 10

Gear: Z-Ray Pistol (12/24/48, 2d6+1), Psi-Sword (Str+ d6+8, AP 12, requires AB: Psionics to use), Skin Suit, Mark II Shield Belt, Communicator, Translator Orb.

Background: Lálei Kardáma was born on Epsilon Eridani 4 to retired Imperial Fleet Admiral Dör Varákka and Sóra Kardáma, his favorite concubine. Sóra , a member of the Order of the Verdant Sphere--an exclusive cult of wealthy and powerful sybarists who seek spiritual enlightenment through sexual ecstasy, initially raised her daughter to become a poised and educated courtesan-priestess of the Order. However, Lálei had other plans than a life of just parties and orgies, and using her father's influence (as well some of the physical and psionic arts her mother taught her) was accepted into the Imperial Naval Academy at 16.

In the academy, Cadet Lálei was schooled in starship mastery and command. Eventually, her psychic abilities came to her instructor's attention and entered into the prestigious School of Special Intelligence were she honed her talents. Upon graduation, Lálei quickly rose through the ranks of the male-dominated Navy through a skillful application of merit and seduction (she had the unofficially-coveted role of "Captain's Woman" on two of her deployments). The Deeds of Glory is her first independent command and she is excited at the prospect for further adventure and advancement.

Lálei is a quiet but ambitious woman who uses her intelligence and sexuality as both a tool and a weapon. She is a fair leader, but is merciless when crossed. Physically, she is small but shapely frame with a dark complication, deep-brown slanted eyes, and long black hair she keeps tied back while on duty. As a legacy member of the Order of the Verdant Sphere, she has the sect's symbol tattooed just above her vulva and will often request the presence of a comely crew member in her quarters to assist her with her "mediations" where she uses her climax as a springboard to reach new states of consciousness where she briefly communes with... something joyous.

Still kicking...

2011-04-25T19:33:00.000-07:00

Hey Savages:

Yes, I'm still around. I've been dealing with school and lot of real life crap, as well as some new gaming obsessions. But things are going to be quieting down soon and the Savage Blogger will be back and better than ever.

Savage Holidays!

2010-12-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

From everyone here at the Savage Blogger (and by "everyone, I mean "just me") have yourself a fun, safe, and Savage holiday season.

Staggering out of another semester.

2010-12-16T13:41:00.000-08:00

Another semester here at WCTC is about over. Three down, one more to go.

More Savagery soon.

Coming Soon: "Totems of the Dead"

2010-11-10T08:38:00.000-08:00

David Jarvis from Gun Metal Games, posted the following on the PEG forum:

Hi everyone,

I'm posting to let you guys know about Gun metal games' next setting for savage Worlds; Totems of the Dead!

Totems of the Dead is a fantasy sword & sorcery setting inspired by Native American stories and mythologies combined with the Vinland Saga.

Come explore the cliff-side ruins of the ancient Stone Shapers and seek treasure in the abandoned monuments of the Mound Raisers. Face off against the sasquatch, wendigo and Uktena serpent, or beat back nameless horrors that have awoken from a forgotten age. Rediscover the totems of ancient pre-human cultures. Stoke the fires of bravery in your own heart by singing your death song, and above all, struggle to survive in this savage world!

David also posted a sketch of the proposed cover art (see above) last night and another tantalizing tidbit this morning:

Yeah It's gonna be tons of fun.

In addition to Nordic-inspired Skadians and native american-inspired cultures, we have Atlantean slavers and free-roaming barbarians, aztec-inspired cultures, ritual sorcerers, feral shamans... just a bunch of cool stuff.

So it's The Song of Hiawatha meets The 13th Warrior with Conan the Barbarian along for a hot, hot threesome. Pure awesome! I can't wait to see what they come up with.

Savage Star Frontiers

2010-08-11T19:21:00.001-07:00

I got into this weird, wild, hobby when I was 12-years-old. One Christmas, an out of state uncle sent me a $25 gift certificate for Toy R' Us. My father turned me loose at the Brookfield, WI. store where I picked up a gyroscope and a box of pre-made microscope slides featuring insect parts. I was passing the bargain sale bin when I saw it: a copy of TSR's Star Frontiers: Alpha Dawn boxed set! It was only 12 bucks, the concept of a science fiction game was intriguing, and Larry Elmore's cover art was sooooo cool! I was sold then and there.

Much to my stuck-up parents and fundamentalist Christian relative's dismay, Star Frontiers had started me down the dark path of role-playing and forever it dominated my destiny. While I have since played dozens of systems, Star Frontiers will forever have a special place in my heart.

You can find several Star Frontiers/Savage Worlds conversion available online, including:

Greg Bruni's Star Frontiers/Savage Worlds Conversion: A very well laid-out conversion reminiscent of the original rule books.
CmdrCrody_2000's Savage Worlds RPG Page: Featuring several files of for SF/SW conversion.
Shark Nibbles #2: Containing Bill Littlefield's SF/SW conversion, archived at the Savagepedia Wiki.

Thanks to Richard McLean for tracking down the Shark Nibbles' article for me.

A Top Secret Dispatch…

2010-08-06T11:34:00.001-07:00

I just got a message from my operative at Gen Con:

THE LIFTWOOD GUNSHIP IS GOING UP.

That is all. More to follow next week.

Savage IRC!

2010-07-01T13:06:00.000-07:00

After some discussion on the PEG forums, Tyson Hayes (aka Tweek) has started a Savage Worlds IRC channel! Just set up your IRC client to irc.slashnet.org and sign onto #savageworlds. You can also use an online Chat client at #savageworlds IRC Channel (Mibbit) or if you're running Chatzilla on your Firefox Browser you can log in here.

Review: Serpent Scales #1 & 2

2010-05-19T16:30:00.000-07:00

Next to Tékumel, Ken Hite's The Day After Ragnarok has become one of my all-time favorite RPG settings of all time and it just gets better and better with each new release.

Among them, Serpent Scales: Fragments From The Wold After The Serpentfall, is a series of regularly-released PDFs that will focus in on a particular aspect of the DAR setting. In Issue #1, Ken Hite introduces us to "The New Konfederacy," the resurgence of everyone's 'favorite' militant, racist, redneck scum: The Ku Klux Klan! From their home base, The Grand Kounty (sic) of Birmingham in what used to be Alabama, these so-called "Night Riders" roam the Poisoned Lands spreading terror and chaos against those who don't fit their deranged notions of "purity." Their ultimate goal: the domination of Mayoralities and creation of a white supremacist empire!

This spunky little 16 page document gives an brief overview of the Klan's 20th century along with their organization and goals for the world of Ragnarok. The Grand Kounty is detailed in all of it's segregated, slave-trading, evil along with a run down of the despicable historical personages (Old Bull Conner is among them) that run it. A complete bestiary of Klan thugs including the terrifying Hell-Haints. Also included is a scenario generator that allows GMs to add the Klan to their campaigns.

The next issue is a little shorter. "[Happiness Is A] Sten Gun" is a 6 page brief on of the clunkiest, ugliest, and ubiquitous firearms to come out of World War II. It gives a history of the Sten gun along with its various models and rules on how to incorporate them into your DAR world. While not as in-depth as Issue #1, it does have one of the funniest headers I've ever seen on page 6.

Those who are familiar with Ken's Suppressed Transmissions articles from Pyramid know how he can weave myth and fact into fantastic seeds for RPG adventure. That's how DAR got started in the first place, and you can see it shine in Serpent Scales. Already two new issues are being planned; one will take place on legendary monster island ("Ahhhh! Godzilla!"), and other take us to Mexico where you'll find fascists, Aztec-themed serpent cultists and the luchadores who fight them for honor and justice!

School's out! School's Out...

2010-05-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

...the Teacher's let the Savages out!

Yes, summer break has finally come and I'll finally have to time to update this blog! Look for new content coming shortly!

Game Geeks Reviews DAR!

2010-04-22T10:39:00.000-07:00

Kurt Wiegel at Game Geeks gives his ringing endorsement of my favorite Savage Setting: