Goodbye RPGBN, it has been fun

I applied for membership with the RPG Bloggers Network not long after it was formed and was accepted. For this I have been thankful.

My thankfulness is not due to any financial benefit or recognition that I have received. Those are not the reasons I even mess with this blog. Granted being a part of the network has increased traffic to this site a little, which is nice, but the most positive part of my membership comes from the opportunity I have had to participate in this community of bloggers. Being a part of this community has put me in contact with some really great people and some really great blogs.

Since I became a member the number of blogs seems to have grown by leaps and bounds. While I followed some of the blogs belonging to other RPGBN members long before the network was created, many others I never knew existed until they became members. The network has definitely worked to expose members and readers to new and entertaining content.

Sure, there have been things that I have disagreed with, choices and opinions, but if we all agreed this whole community would be pretty dull. I pay absolutely nothing for the benefits of my membership and though I have made the rare suggestions when things were brought up to the community, I took no offense when they were ignored. The point being this is not a democracy, my vote doesn't need to count, nor does my opinion. I just appreciate the fact that the views and opinions I do express on my site are allowed to be shared on the network. The founders of this network may not agree or even care about what I have to say, but they give me a larger venue to express those views. Thanks.

Recently when a blogger's application for membership was turned down, many in the community became upset and openly spoke out against those that make the decisions, and since this is a free country they had every right to do so. While I did not agree with their decision, I didn't really speak up. As I said before I'm not the one who pays for and maintains this network, the decision is not mine to make. When I joined I agreed to the rules and other than a few times I mistagged some posts, I have been left alone to do my thing. If the powers that be felt the blog was inappropriate, then so be it. That decision doesn't mean I can't read that particular blog or promote it on my site. The way I understand things, the reaction to their decision has brought them to the conclusion they need to turn the network over to someone else. It saddens me that the very people that created the network no longer feel they belong here, that their creation has turned agains them.

The founders of this network did us all a truly great service and asked only minor compliance for our voluntary participation. We are all free to leave at any time, no questions asked. I make no money from this site, all of the for profit writing I do has absolutely nothing to do with this blog or the RPG industry.My site is nothing more than a minor hobby, something I do for fun. From what little I know about the inner workings of this network, they have never tried to force members to give them money or a share of profits from the bloggers who do make some money from their sites. Sites that likely saw an increase in traffic due to the network, maybe not substantial, but there had to be an increase. To me that is a pretty nice thing for them to do.

While I have nothing but praise for this network and have truly enjoyed my participation, everything has not been peaches and cream. As with any group of diverse personalities, I have seen an increase in animosity and, to be blunt, dick wagging from some members. Just like most message boards, there has been an increase in the number of elitists that take all of this and themselves far too seriously and feel that they somehow know more or are better than others. I find this type of behavior disappointing, but understand that it is simply the way of the world, especially on the internet.

The elitists among us will continue to think very highly of themselves and that is fine, a positive self image is a great thing to have. Unfortunately, they seem to only be able to maintain that self image by trying to prove their superiority and get their jollies by insulting others and creating turmoil. Now that the network is up for grabs, those same elitists have the opportunity to gain control and bask in their delusions of grandeur. I just don't want to be here to see this network go down the toilet if that happens. Too much good has and still could come from this community but I don't have a good feeling about the future direction of the network. Hopefully I am wrong, the community will rebound from this, remain strong and it won't be left to the elitists and their sycophants.

In a recent discussion the fact was brought up that most of the readers of rpg blogs are other bloggers, not the much larger community of gamers and industry professionals. Though I do know that some pros read at least a few of the blogs, there are far more gamers that have no idea we exist than there are people who read our blogs. Granted a few truly dedicated and talented among us will be able to turn their blogs into a career in the industry, but they are the exceptions that would have succeeded with or without the network. For the most part this community is about us patting each other on the back and complimenting each other on posts, which is all fine and good, but in the grand scheme of things means nothing. In our small corner of the multiverse, megaverse if you are a Palladium fan, we get to feel that we are contributing something, but realistically we're just a bunch of fans sharing ideas. The fate of the industry does not fall on our shoulders. Our bitching and whining won't make 4e go away or make Palladium/HEX/d6/Savage Worlds.... the most popular rpg in the world.

I won't lie, recent events on the network have soured me on blogging and I apologize if my attitude seems overly cynical. The fact I have become disillusioned is why I am planning to take a little break from the Geek Gazette and if that means I get removed from the network, then so be it. It is probably for the best anyway. I have a book to finish, a family to support, campaigns to plan and a Masters degree to earn, blogging just doesn't seem that important at the moment. I wish everyone on the network the best of luck in the future and I definitely want to thank Phil, Dave, Danny and Graham for all their often unappreciated hard work as well as the opportunity to participate in what they created.

Happy Halloween and best witches,
Michael

PC/NPC Portraits

Image From Fantasy Clip Inks Warriors Set 1

This weeks image courtesy of William McAusland and the gang over at Outland Arts.

Scooby Doo vs Cthulhu

I found this site with Call of Cthulhu stats for Scooby and the gang and thought this might be of some interest to those running CoC this Halloween. If nothing else this would be a fun way to run a light hearted CoC game with everyone's favorite paranormal investigators.

Scooby Doo Cthulhu

Star Wars and Zombies?

As a Star Wars fan I am intrigued by the release of Death Troopers, the first ever horror novel for the Star Wars universe. The books is written by Joe Schreiber and should be available in a bookstore near you, or online, Tuesday October 13th. I've already got mine ordered.
I don't really play Star Wars RPGs anymore, but I may break out my d6 or d20 SW book and try running a one-shot based on this premise. As a lifelong fan of zombie horror and of Star Wars this seems like genre mixing made in geek heaven.
While it is gratifying that there is so much zombie activity in nearly every form of media, and very cool to have zombies in SW, it is also kind of sad that someone felt it was necessary use a gimmick like this in the Star Wars universe. Still I'm a sucker, I did buy all of the Marvel Zombies comics after all, so I have to get this book. Besides, it would make a good halloween game for Star Wars gamers.

Death Troopers (Amazon.com)

Inspriation for your Halloween Games

It is the Halloween season once again, my favorite time of year. If, like me, you are planning on running a game or games filled with conspiracies, horror and the paranormal this month nothing makes your game better than adding a little dose of the real world. I have compiled a list of places I go for inspiration when I want to inject a some realism and familiar elements into my games. These are just a few of the places I frequent and shows that I listen to, I may post a more extensive list at a later date.

Paranormal Podcast(my personal favorite paranormal internet show)
Paratopia Podcast
Paranormal News
About.com:paranormal
Altnews
Eerie Radio
Above Top Secret
Cryptogon
Unexplained-Mysteries
T.A.P.S.
Urban Legens and Superstitions
Coast to Coast AM
Fortean Times
Black Vault Radio
The Unexplained World

All of the podcasts I've listed should be available for download on both the show's website and itunes.

More Halloween Gaming

The other day I was reading through the new Mysteries of the Hollow Earth book and it hit me, HEX would be great for running horror games. Now I've only played the Ubiquity system a few times but I really liked it. The game is fast, fun and character creation is a snap. I hate having to roll tons of dice to get results, but that is easily fixed by taking the average, or just have the GM and player both roll a d20 and which ever number is higher "wins".
There are hints in the books of Cthulhu mythos possibilities, the game is a pulp setting and just because it is set in a reality where the earth is hollow doesn't mean you have to have every adventure set below ground. There are still plenty of surface world adventures to be had.
The characters have low health, so they have to be cautious, and and if you pick up the Danger Magnet 2008 Halloween special there are articles for running horror themed games. Including Cthulhu, zombies and one about killer dolls, which reminds me of the Supernatural episode I watched last night.
I personally think that HEX is a good system for running these types of games, especially with a group of occult and paranormal investigators. I wonder why they haven't put out a Horrors of the Hollow Earth sourcebook?
Exile Game Studio
Amazon
RPGNow

Also I completely forgot to mention a great horror themed setting for Rifts players, Madhaven. Of the Rifts sourcebooks I own, which are more than I have ever actually used, this is probably my favorite. There are some great creatures as well as rules for using them in Beyond the Supernatural. Definitely worth checking out.
Palladium
Amazon

Now before I start hearing lectures about how any system can be used to run any type of game I want to say that I know. I do, however, think that some systems are better suited for certain types of play than others. One example of this is Mutants and Masterminds. Despite a couple of the books having stats for Cthulhuish creatures, I think one of them was Book of Magic, the game just doesn't feel right for that type of game. I think this point is even brought up in at least one of the books. Sure you could reduce the power levels to the point it could work, but the game is meant to be run as a superhero game, something the game does extremely well. For me atleast this is the best superhero system out there, but for horror, not so much. Now if you want to have your supers go up against an elder god, like in that episode of JLU, you can, but I still don't like the system for horror. Sci-fi, supers and some fantasy, yes, horror, no.
Of course the same argument could be made for Rifts, and I would not disagree. Which is why I recommend using a lower powered party if you want to use the setting in Rifts, at which point I think it would work very well. Otherwise just use the monsters in the book for a Beyond the Supernatural game.

Image From Fantasy Clip Inks Spell Casters Set 1

Image courtesy of William McAusland and the gang over at Outland Arts.