Subject: MYSTARA-L Digest - 20 Aug 2006 to 21 Aug 2006 (#2006-137) From: MYSTARA-L automatic digest system Date: 22/08/2006, 17:00 To: MYSTARA-L@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM Reply-to: Mystara RPG Discussion There are 3 messages totalling 186 lines in this issue. Topics of the day: 1. Technological artifacts (3) ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp The Mystara Homepage: http://www.pandius.com To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 21 Aug 2006 00:00:51 -0700 From: "David S. Leland" Subject: Re: Technological artifacts I haven't used them extensively, but I think that if you and your players find the idea entertaining, knock yourself out! My advice when running them through DA modules or other tech complexes, or otherwise bringing in tech, try your best to not use any descriptions based on our real-world ways of describing things that clue them into the fact that it's tech. Not that you can fool them forever, but if you speak in a manner assimilating the tech into a fantasy perspective, it will keep them guessing and later encourage them to treat it as fantasy and play in character as if they are ignorant. Here's an example (light panels in ceiling): OK: The corridor is lit by glowing squares in the ceiling at 10' intervals. BETTER: The corridor is lit by smooth translucent square stones embedded in the ceiling and glowing with what appear to be _continual light_ spells. Another (tech grenade): OK: In your hand you hold a metal sphere with a black band around its circumference. It's covered with glowing buttons. BETTER: In your hand you hold an ornamental orb of polished steel. It's encircled by a ring of black at its equator and the shapes embossed across its perfectly smooth surface glimmer with obvious enchantment. (Where possible emphasize the incredible workmanship as if this were hand crafted, and avoid language that immediately makes clear functions that would not be obvious to a non-techie (e.g. buttons in some cases). Rules of thumb I'd follow: 1) Avoid numbers where possible. Specifying numbers is more sci-fi flavor. 2) Emphasize incredible "craftsmanship" of items the characters would assume are hand- rather than machine-made. 3) Avoid language that immediately makes clear functions that would not be obvious to a non-techie. 4) Refer to the closest materials the characters are familiar with rather than the true ones, where appropriate, and don't say "-like" or use similes; speak of them as if they simply ARE the materials the characters would assume. 5) If in your game you are used to just referring to things as magic when they appear as such (i.e. you're not trying to keep characters guessing about whether things are magic) then treat tech the same way, so that glows are evidence of magic. 6) Generally, make descriptions longer, since you're explaining what something looks/sounds/etc like as if it's totally foreign to them. 7) Make them sound fantastical! 8) Remember that players can always ask questions like "do these look like buttons," so it's not like you're being mean. But keep it up when responding, e.g. not "sure, they could be buttons" but rather "there's no obvious groove surrounding the embossed shapes but you can certainly try pressing down on one if you like--which one would you like to try" Cheers, Magus Coeruleus Havard Faanes wrote: > Has anyone used Blackmoor artifacts extensively in > their campaigns? I am wondering if this could work > without ruining the fantasy flavour of the campaign: > > * Old Technological complexes: These could appear as > little more than dungeons, pergaps with some > Gigeresque feel to them, and even weird experiment > creatures still living inside. Buttons and levers to > open doors or have other functions could be > interesting too. > > *Tech gadgets: Some of these would have seemingly no > function to PCs, but may be sold off to wizards and > historians trying to learn more about Blackmoor. > Others could be weapons, appearing to Mystarans > somewhat similar to wands and rods and have charges > just like such items. They would be covered with > strange runes (Blackmoor letters). > > * Robots: As from the DA modules and WotI, or perhaps > simly golems. This is what they would appear like for > the PCs anyway. This is probably a good time to dig > out the Meks too... :) > > Any other thoughts on this? What would be things to > avoid when introducing such elements to your campaign? --------------------------------- dleland@ucsd.edu http://cogsci.ucsd.edu/~dleland --------------------------------- ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp The Mystara Homepage: http://www.pandius.com To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 21 Aug 2006 06:48:09 -0700 From: Geoff Gander Subject: Re: Technological artifacts I found that what worked for me was, as has already been said, using alternate language (i.e., no technical terms). What was also helpful was throwing in components, instead of whole items. Unless extremely favourable conditions prevailed, any complicated piece of Blackmoorian machinery (like a robot) would probably not be intact by the Gaz era. So, thinking about what a robot (or any other device we use today) comprises, if one were to take some components, beta them up a bit, and scatter them about, they would certainly look bizarre. For an example, imagine dropping a passenger airliner from a great height, and letting the wreckage sit for 1000 years or so - would we necessarily recognise a random piece of it? Possibly not. Now imagine how a person from a medieval setting, who would have no idea that such technological device could exist, might react to seeing the same item. In my campaign, the party found a remote monastery in northern Darokin, where they sheltered for a while. In the catacombs beneath, there was a great chamber containing all manner of things the monks (and the elves who inhabited the fortress before them) gathered on their wanderings. The party had already acquired a wand of sunflame in a previous adventure (they only ever used it once, probably because they were afraid something nasty would happen if they rolled a natural "1" in combat - I never gave them any inclination to think otherwise...*evil grin*), but they came across the following (digging through my memory): - two amazingly lightweight metal rods, connected by what appeared to be a ball. The two rods swivelled after a fashion, and the opposite ends of the strange device had what appeared to be tiny bits of metal (possibly unwound springs) sticking out. [This item was the arm of a utility robot - the bits at thr end were wires to connect it to the shoulder at one end and the hand at another, and the ball was of course a rolling joint. The players never figured it out.] - a tapered metal barrel with no lid or bottom, with faded writing on the inside. [This was the chest component of a combat droid, the innards long since having been removed. The players used Read Languages to translate the writing, which read, "Bl..k...r Droi...rks" (Blackmoor Droidworks). The players figured it out, but they kept that knowledge separate from the characters, who thoughts it was an ancient storage container of some sort.] Geoff ******************************************************************** The Other Worlds Homepage: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/OtherWorlds.asp The Mystara Homepage: http://www.pandius.com To unsubscribe, send email to LISTSERV@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM with UNSUB MYSTARA-L in the body of the message. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 21 Aug 2006 12:31:11 -0700 From: Stone Marshall Subject: Re: Technological artifacts My players and I once ran DA:3 The City of the Gods. They brought back some grenades and blasters with them. When they were empty....that was it. Thats the only time I allowed tech in my fantasy Multizar the Mage

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