Troll Lord Games

Well as I mentioned in the "what's the scoop" thread, here's a place to talk about your ideas for the upcoming Basic Set. What plans (if any) do you have for it? How do you hope to use it? What do you want to see from the Trolls to support it? And so forth.

If the thread seems to get legs, maybe we can get a sticky (if we don't end up with our own board at some point ).

I'll start:

I see the Basic Set as having three main uses in my gaming "arsenal."

1) I hope to use it as a "pick up game" system, where characters can be quickly made and a game quickly played (one-shots, conventions, etc.). It should evoke a nice old-school feel while still being a "current" game.

2) I'm hoping to use it to introduce people who aren't familiar with RPGs in general to the game. In the past I've used Basic/Expert D&D, but BC&C will have the advantage of being in print. If people take to the game, then hopefully porting their characters to the "full" version of C&C will be simple enough.

3) I hoping to give a copy of BC&C to my niece as a Christmas present (if it's out ) or a birthday present in the spring if it's not (she'll be 8). With her parent's green light, of course. She already plays Heroquest with her dad sometimes and has described to me a very complex game of playground "make believe" that she and her friends play at school that sounds suspiciously like an RPG. When my oldest daughter is a bit bigger (she's 4 now), I'll try and start her on BC&C.

I don't think I'll ever give up my Moldvay/Cook 100%. For me though, it's all about the feel of the game, and that's something TLG tends to do right IMO. So if they can give me another option along those lines, then I'm psyched.
BC&C: BRING IT ON!

Ditto for me, plus games with my wife, who is literally in love with Mentzer.

What I would like to see next? HALFLINGS!!!!!!!
And:

1) Expansion of the level range of characters, extended equipment lists and gives rules and indications for wilderness adventures. I am thinking Mentzer Expert here, really: guidelines on hirelings and experts, building of castles, simple skirmish and naval battle rules.

2) How to add other classes to the system (something like PC4)

3) A small sample of additional classes.

I think I'll read it. And then, well, I'll decide what I can do with it. Not sure right now... I miss gnomes already.

I'll be picking up and playing BC&C for sure. I will be playing in my homebrew campaign world of the Rhuinlands. However, depending on the groups I'll make BC&C feel a little lighter then even C&C. A total, pick up and go game right from the beginning. Matter of fact, I'll probably keep a copy of BC&C in my car at all times so that there is never an excuse not to pick up and play should the need arise.

As for the exact details, I'm not sure at this point.

I will demo games for sure at my FLGS. Maybe a campaign could break out, who knows!

-O
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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

Well, I will certainly run games for my boys.

Run demos for young ones in the area.

Flesh out my campaign setting, "The Old Isle" that I've been working on for a couple of years.

I also imagine I will try my hand at creating spells, creatures, magic items, npcs and pregenerated characters for folks on this forum.
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John Adams

Omote wrote:
Matter of fact, I'll probably keep a copy of BC&C in my car at all times so that there is never an excuse not to pick up and play should the need arise.

-O

Whee! If Steve follows my suggestion and pre-punches the books for 3-ring binders, I'll buy a 2nd copy and keep the dice in a pencil pocket (remember those from grade school?), some pregens on index cards tucked into one inside cover pocket, and the screens in the other!

Nothing. I've got C&C now. I see no need to water it down. Maybe if I sucker some woman into reproducing with me, I'll use BC&C with my offspring.

Furst, my son will be receiving one (hopefully for Christmas, but likely as a late Christmas gift). Every kid's first RPG should come in a box. I will be running a game for him and some of his friends using basic C&C.

Second, I intend on running intro games at my FLGS and I just prefer the idea of using a basic boxed set for this purpose. Plus I believe it is easier to sell people on a game that comes in a box with everything they need to play (dice, screens, etc.) rather that make multiple purchases.

Third, I just want one for my C&C game to keep everything in a neat box. It just isn't old school if all my papers can't be kept in a game box. I know, I'm weird...
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Thomas A. Tullis

Fat Dragon Games
www.fatdragongames.com

Castles & Crusades...more D&D than D&D.

As a gift for my son.

I'll buy a few, one for me and two for my nephews. One has been wanting to try and CK a one shot and the other would also make a good CK, so I'll be looking forward to this release.
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Count Rhuveinus - Lejendary Keeper of Castle Franqueforte

"Enjoy a 'world' where the fantastic is fact and magic really works!" ~ Gary Gygax

"By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes:" - Macbeth

nothing. not interested in a 'basic' game.. have the full rules, they are simple enough to teach anyone. see no use in this one.

Sorry Trolls, its a miss in my books.

Cheers,

J.

Having always been a bigger fan of Basic D&D than AD&D, I have a lot of interest in this. I do have to agree that C&C is pretty easy as it is, so Im not sure if Ill need to actually replace it with the basic set.

What will I do with it? Well, Ill certainly read itand Ill probably read it more often than the full C&C books. I only say this because I still (completely) re-read my Basic D&D books 2 or 3 times a year, and rarely read through any other RPG books I have. I just find it a refreshing boost when I feel overburdened by other RPG books.

If it really captures my fancy, I may play it instead of C&C. If I think its faster, more freewheeling, and allows me to do more of my own thing while still providing a solid framework, I certainly will.

THere is a good chance that I will use it to run demo games at the FLGSs. I used to run a lot of Savage Worlds, but now I'm really going to focus on C&C, so it is only natural that I start running demo games for that. A basic set would be a really good tool for this, as well as a good all-in-one product to direct those who play the demo to pick up (hopefully at the same store).

Most importantly, I hope the box is too big so I can store all my adventures in it Ill probably order 2 or 3 sets if that is the case (Im anal about organization), all my old boxed sets are jammed with the adventures for those particular games.

Party Poopers wrote:
Not going to buy it. See no reason for it. It's a dumb idea. Everyone who is excited about it is stupid...

You can't destoy our excitement about this product!
Why would anyone say such things?
Oh well...ya...maybe Bighara DID asked them what they are going to do with Basic C&C
Anyway, trying to dominate the Troll forums with another 10 page Basic C&C thread!
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John Adams

jman5000 wrote:
nothing. not interested in a 'basic' game.. have the full rules, they are simple enough to teach anyone. see no use in this one.

Yeah, but what about the young kids who may want to buy a game and teach/run it themselves and may not have a mentor or older sibling or parent to help them out. It's my understanding that this basic game is geared towards young people or those that have never played a RPG.
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Count Rhuveinus - Lejendary Keeper of Castle Franqueforte

"Enjoy a 'world' where the fantastic is fact and magic really works!" ~ Gary Gygax

"By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes:" - Macbeth

Rhuvein wrote:
Yeah, but what about the young kids who may want to buy a game and teach/run it themselves and may not have a mentor or older sibling or parent to help them out. It's my understanding that this basic game is geared towards young people or those that have never played a RPG.

*chuckles* Jman's quite right. If he finds no utility in the basic set, there's no reason why he should buy it.

More generally, hopefully game store owners will have at least one box open that folks can peruse to see if such an item is to their general interest, though. ^_^
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"We'll go out through the kitchen!" Tanis Half-Elven

Peter Bradley

gideon_thorne wrote:
*chuckles* Jman's quite right. If he finds no utility in the basic set, there's no reason why he should buy it.

I don't disagree but the thread is not about whether or not there is "utility" in the product, but how those of us that are interested, plan on using it.
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Count Rhuveinus - Lejendary Keeper of Castle Franqueforte

"Enjoy a 'world' where the fantastic is fact and magic really works!" ~ Gary Gygax

"By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes:" - Macbeth

gideon_thorne wrote:
*chuckles* Jman's quite right. If he finds no utility in the basic set, there's no reason why he should buy it.

More generally, hopefully game store owners will have at least one box open that folks can peruse to see if such an item is to their general interest, though. ^_^

I'm hopeing that game store owners faced with a parent or young gamer looking to get into the hobby and asking advice about where to start will be pointed to C&C basic.

It will be a much more playable game, something that has more longevity than the type of "basic" D&D sets that have been put out (;ate;y) that are little more than a taste and require you to take the full (3 hardcover book) plunge to get into the hobby after a mere 1 or 2 game sessions.

Still, the game store owner will be faced with the choice of making the moral descission and pointing them to C&C basic for a good long term game that teaches the game, or trying to get them hooked on a game line that will bring them in much more cash in the long run.

[quote="grubman"][quote="gideon_thorne"][quote="Rhuvein"][quote="jman5000"]nothing. not interested in a 'basic' game.. have the full rules, they are simple enough to teach anyone. see no use in this one.

[/quote]

Yeah, but what about the young kids who may want to buy a game and teach/run it themselves and may not have a mentor or older sibling or parent to help them out. It's my understanding that this basic game is geared towards young people or those that have never played a RPG. [/quote]

*chuckles* Jman's quite right. If he finds no utility in the basic set, there's no reason why he should buy it.

More generally, hopefully game store owners will have at least one box open that folks can peruse to see if such an item is to their general interest, though. ^_^[/quote]

I'm hopeing that game store owners faced with aparent or young gamer looking to get into the hobby and asking advice about where to start will be pointed to C&C basic.

It will be a much more playable game, something that has more longevity than the type of "basic" D&D sets that have been put out that are little more than a taste and require you to take the full (3 hardcover book) plunge to get into the hobby after a mere 1 or 2 game sessions.

Still, the game store owner will be faced with the choice of making the moral descission and pointing them to C&C basic for a good long term game that teaches the game, or trying to get them hooked on a game line that will bring them in much more cash in the long run.[/quote]

sorry, I don't buy it. most (but certainly not all) will

a) recommend the games that they have on their shelves

b) recommend games that will bring the most revenue in

or

c) recommend the games that are popular

for the vast majority of game stores, I don't believe C&C, in any iteration falls in any of those categories.

I hope it changes, but I'm not counting on it.

Cheers,

J.

jman5000 wrote:
sorry, I don't buy it. most (but certainly not all) will

a) recommend the games that they have on their shelves

b) recommend games that will bring the most revenue in

or

c) recommend the games that are popular

for the vast majority of game stores, I don't believe C&C, in any iteration falls in any of those categories.

I hope it changes, but I'm not counting on it.

Cheers,

J.

You'd be suprised. In my area C&C has a very prominent spot on the shelves, even has it's own sub-forum in the FLGS forums (the only RPG to have it's own sub-forum). I

t's all about the fans in the area. If you want your store to carry more C&C stuff you need to offer to run a demo (or two) game on one of your days off. If you do that, your store owner will make sure he has (at least) the rulebook in stock to sell to the players right after the game (If your session is goot, trust me, the players will go right to the shelf and pick up a copy of the rules).

Not only that, but you'll meet prospective players for your own game.

A basic set would make this that much more simple and easy to sell. Once a community is formed (and for a FLGS a community is 5-10 people who are actually buying products) the sotre owner will be more than happy to carry your game and pimp it to others.

I'm picking up Basic C&C to run good swords and sorcery type, heroic fantasy. What else needs to be done with it?
-O
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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

There's quite a few C&C players in the Tulsa/BrokenArrow area apparently. I just did a face to face with a chap who runs a shop in the BA area and plan on arranging demo days up thataway. Its a short trip for me.
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"We'll go out through the kitchen!" Tanis Half-Elven

Peter Bradley

gideon_thorne wrote:
There's quite a few C&C players in the Tulsa/BrokenArrow area apparently. I just did a face to face with a chap who runs a shop in the BA area and plan on arranging demo days up thataway. Its a short trip for me.

Do the Troll Lords have any type of "official" demo program set up?

Perhaps "start-up" sets for demo guys, complete with nifty handouts, catalogs of products, a Troll Lord Games T-Shirt (not black ), questionnaires, approved demo adventures, 15% off coupons to hand out to the participants, ect.

(as Im writing this Im guessing the answer is: no )

grubman wrote:
Do the Troll Lords have any type of "official" demo program set up?

Perhaps "start-up" sets for demo guys, complete with nifty handouts, catalogs of products, a Troll Lord Games T-Shirt (not black ), questionnaires, approved demo adventures, 15% off coupons to hand out to the participants, ect.

(as Im writing this Im guessing the answer is: no )

*chuckles* Official? Not really. Me walking into local shops is about as 'official' as I can manage.

The key thing is to get people playing. Sitting in a store and running a game is a sure fire way to manage it. Most game shop owners don't seem to mind. The fellow I talked to sure didn't. He had a mob of folks in there playing cards even as we chatted.

As for 'approved demo adventures'. Hell, anything that showcases the two mechanics of the game in the most effective light, sans 'house rules', will do.

Show folks what the game can do, then explain how people can use what they have with C&C mechanics. The combo of the two sells a book every time I explain it.
Dunno why? Might have to do with the fact that I don't have an axe to grind over any edition.

The chap in the local game shop just wants to do something fun. It's finding what that means to each person and then showing how C&C can get them there that promotes the game in the least confrontational and friendly manner.
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"We'll go out through the kitchen!" Tanis Half-Elven

Peter Bradley

gideon_thorne wrote:
*chuckles* Official?

Well, it was worth asking before I go off and do some demos , some companies have programs set up to help pimp the game. It'll certainly help that both the stores I'll be doing it in carry a pretty good line of C&C stuff.

grubman wrote:
Well, it was worth asking before I go off and do some demos , some companies have programs set up to help pimp the game. It'll certainly help that both the stores I'll be doing it in carry a pretty good line of C&C stuff.

*smiles* Its on the Trolls 25 year plan, that much I know.
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"We'll go out through the kitchen!" Tanis Half-Elven

Peter Bradley

gideon_thorne wrote:
*smiles* Its on the Trolls 25 year plan, that much I know.

And that's the answer to what I'm "doing" with it.... waiting for it.

BB

Put it on the shelf next to the spot where I plan to place my CKG....

It's a lonely shelf....

I plan on rewriting sections of it.

I am looking for an RPG that my ten year old and his buddies can, out of the box, read the rules and play without adult aid. RPG's are intriguing to him, but looking at a hardbound manual of rules from a kid's perspective is horrible, not fun. The old retro Basic D&D is what I have him doing right now (GASP....not C&C?) but will swing over to C&C Basic when it comes out!

Yeah, I'm awaiting the Basic set for my 7 y/o son. We've made a few brief forrays into RPG's with him in the past when he was younger. But now he's wanting to get into a game more regular. I was hoping this would be out by now so he could have his own box set but alas, it looks like it is not to be.