How to GM: How I Come Up With Antagonists

Antagonists are not easy to come up with. Notice I didn't say villains. Villains are evil for evil's sake and all that, complete with a mustache twirl or two. Villains are a subset of antagonist, at least in my mind. So if you're going to do a villain you should be able to create antagonists; I'll be writing on how to make villains next week, which use a similar process to when I make antagonists, but there are a few notable tweaks that we'll cover in that article. Antagonists are simply characters that are opposed to the players and their goals. They do not have to be "evil", nor should they be unless necessary. They might do things that are evil, but ultimately antagonists need only be opposition. If anything, I find that compelling antagonists live in a fleshed out setting, have a simple and sympathetic need which impacts the players, evidence of the problem not having a ready solution, and then ensuring the antagonist's plans affect your player characters in ways that they cannot ignore.

 So the first question that I think needs to be answered is why have more antagonists than just outright villains? This is something I've been thinking about lately, a lot. Antagonists can be more varied, for the simple reason that they are only opposed to the players. You can (and should) have morally good antagonists, with honor and strong internal compasses, who oppose the players, because of their own internal goodness. You should have antagonists of every moral persuasion anyway, but throwing genuinely good people that the players like at them leads to incredibly good drama. And then at that point an actual villain becomes that much more unique and special, because creatures that actively glorify in evil are extremely rare, and need to be used sparingly.

The other reason why I try to prefer antagonists in my games is because the answers become much more difficult to navigate. If someone has a legitimate beef with the system that you live in, a system that creates order and stability, is it really right to destroy the system for their sake? Do you really have what it takes to weather the storms of social change, should it come to that? The players may find themselves hating the fact that they are opposing a particular group, and that's really not a bad thing, particularly in DnD, where murderhobos are the norm.  So I usually prefer antagonists because of the questions that they raise. So, for instance, don't have the goblins go after a town because they're evil, have the goblins go after the town because they're starving to death and the humans won't give them food. Can you convince the goblins to back off long enough to get food for them? They're not hungry, they're starving. They may not be that noble, or even rational (hunger has a way of doing that). Can you convince the townsfolk to give the food necessary to get these goblins to survive (don't forget that the townsfolk may have legitimate concerns about the goblins).

If any of that actually interests you, read on!

Setting is the first key to a good antagonist. We'll have to do that in a different post, but you need to make sure that your setting is something that generates a response from the players. The setting needs to have hooks built into that get a reaction from the players, both good and bad. Obviously, make sure that no lines for the players are crossed, but there needs to be something in the setting that upsets the players, no matter how minor it may be.

Got something?

Good.

Take that thing that upsets the players and have it be key into making the antagonist what he is.

If slavery is something in your world and your players have an especial problem with it, make damn well sure the antagonist was an especially cruelly mistreated slave.  Feel that twinge? That's good. That's a sign that you sympathize with the dude. And you should. You're playing him. He's one of your characters. Take that twinge, and stoke it. Whatever it takes to make that twinge into heartbreak, do it. If the antagonist comes from a place of pain there is a greater chance of him lasting longer, mostly because you'll be trying very deliberately to keep him alive.

Do. Not. Be. Stupid. About the above paragraph. Everybody has limits. Respect yours. If you accidentally push yourself too far (and that is easy to do) walk it back. Find something that is a little less painful, or at lot. I can't tell you what those limits are, but if you don't know what they are tread lightly, at least at first. You're here to play a part, not to put yourself in a mental ward. I've been there and contrary to popular belief the cookies were not worth it.

Now that the antagonist has a righteous issue with the setting, you need to have that issue generate a need. This should not be a complex need, and it should probably be more than a little emotional. This doesn't mean the antagonist should be emotional, just that what he wants needs to be grounded in something basic, primal, human. Weave this need into everything the character does. And then work out the practical stuff that the antagonist needs in order to realize his goal. So, to continue with the slavery thing, that person wants to free his parents. Oh, but wait! His parents are slaves to the king. Who just happens to be a jerk. So in order to free his parents the antagonist has to overthrow the government. That means he needs a revolution. That means riots, propaganda wars, and destabilizing whole regions and trying to make the king look bad in the process. Or maybe he's just out for assassinating the king, could be he has a successor in mind. 

Of course the next thing is to make sure that all this affects the players' characters. When in doubt as to how to do this make it personal: kidnap or injure loved ones, burn homes to the ground, corrupt allies, whatever it takes to make this guy be hated by the players. Make sure not to antagonize your players, but you had better antagonize their characters. Whatever it takes, do it. It doesn't even have to be something the antagonist does directly, but it could be something indirectly linked to him. While it's bad that the antagonist hurts someone the PCs love, isn't it just a tad bit more tragic to have that person be injured as side result? Sometimes the most heartbreaking things are when it's really nobody's fault, even if the player characters are not so understanding.

Antagonists are some of the most fun a GM can have. You can make problems that the players need to take a moment to stop and think about, which can be a lot of fun. So make sure to key the antagonists into the setting in a way that the players don't like, make sure his needs are simple and primal and sympathetic, while still opposed to the players, and then make sure the players can't avoid this guy. Make sure to respect all the boundaries involved (yours included) and you should get pretty far with what I've outlined.

May the Power Protect You: Adam Park (MMPR Black)

The next few posts are going to be on the second generation of MMPR. I will not cover zords in these posts, as they're relatively self-contained and advising on them wouldn't change terribly much between the differing characters. Yes, these are Kickstarter-exclusive characters. They use the same deck with a different character ability, which changes their playstyle quite a bit. 

Gosh, Adam Park is so much fun to play. Whenever I'm not wanting to play support with Jason (DS or Regular) I get the hankering for tricks and flashy stuff, and Adam fits the bill. He isn't as good at the sweeping stuff that Zack does, but becomes a bursting monster. He's a bit harder to use than Zack, and he doesn't really hit the same highs, but he's far more self-sufficient and is possibly the most utility-based character in the game. And there are players who will find him to be a lot more fun.

Adaptable is possibly my favorite character ability in the whole game, as of the writing of this post. Swapping the top card of your discard pile for whatever you like in your hand is not nearly as situational as you'd think. Chances are if you played the card you really would like to play it again. I mean, why use one Sweeping Strike if you can play two? You control what goes into your discard pile more often than not, and there's nothing stopping you from sniping cards as they get discarded. The ability is so flexible that you can play it any number of ways, almost overwhelmingly so.

Smooth Moves is one of my favorite combos in the game. Play Smooth Moves, swap it out for a card in your hand, and play it again, on the same trigger! That's two energy and four reduced damage from an attack. Having two copies of Smooth moves in your hand turns the craziness all the way up, because rangers may play multiple cards in response to the same trigger, 3 bonus energy and 6 reduced damage. This is the most powerful set of reactions in the game. It's pretty situational, but when it happens Adam can really save the party's bacon. Look out for it, use it, and get the high fives.

Risky Blow and Mammoth Slam become truly fearsome in Adam's hands. Pull Mammoth Slam out of your discard pile to wreck shop, or set up your discard pile with Risky Blow. These two cards, set up together, allow Adam to get his discard pile more quickly and then manipulate it to his advantage. Adam's average damage is going to be higher than most of the other characters, but his nuke damage is never going to be all that high. Adam's damage is nice and constant.

Adam Park is the most consistent damage dealer in the original MMPR. He doesn't spike, but he doesn't have any real low points either. He's super reliable, at the cost of not having any real damage highs. He's a bit risky to play because of his need for a discard pile but he makes up for it by being one of the most reliable characters in the game. If you want to have someone that can do a lot of cool things without necessarily being a damage-dealing monster Adam is perfect.

A special thanks to Jonathan Ying, who clarified a few rules questions that I had and who happens to have excellent taste in Rangers.

Sabina's Castle: Session Twenty-One

Anneli: The female elven main character, played by Andy. Last session she had led a human expedition into the ruins of Argentum Prime, where she had been possessed by The Ghost of a dead prostitute who had been killed by Salomo, her aide. She fought off a bunch of orcs, got run through by one of them, and was rescued by Marian, who had brought her back to their base to recoup. Her unit had been dispersed by The Ghost.

Marian: A human member of Those Who Sailed, who somehow got to the Island of Eternal Youth to make a wish. Marian has appointed Anneli as her successor to the group by giving her a toy sword  that came from her eldest son, Thomas, who is long dead.

Nomi: Anneli's elder sister. She had become a dark elf, had captured one of their friends, and then taken Anneli's toy sword forcibly. She's also been a horrible terror to the humans and killed many of them. They talk of Nomi in hushed whispers.

The Dagger of Betrayal: Presumably a weapon of Leviathan, the Creature Who May Not Be, the Dagger of Betrayal allows one to control the person who is stabbed by it. Spar had been given one to stab into the back of Tara. He had died in that attempt.


Anneli was back in Dream. She was in an open field, with an enormous tree next to her. On the branch sat a small White Bat. It spoke to her with a surprisingly deep voice. Anneli needed to save a friend who was in deep trouble, and there was no time to waste. The White Bat told her he didn't know exactly who it was, but promised that it would help her defeat Nomi.

Anneli wasn't convinced. This was Dream, after all, and the White Bat was clearly in control. How did Anneli know she could trust him? A hole opened in Dream and Marian poked her head in. She looked relieved to see Anneli, who had just gotten up and left in the middle of the night. Anneli was suspicious, but Marian coaxed her out of Dream; she could see right through herself. Anneli took a good hard look at Marian but it didn't appear to be a trick. Marian explained she had been in Dream before. It was a strange place, but Anneli could trust what happened in there as actually occurring. Marian promised to be there when Anneli returned. So Anneli stepped back through.

Anneli realized that she had her sword strapped to her side. The White Bat told her that her friend was to the south. Anneli followed him as he flew. The White Bat told her she would need to climb a fence. An enormous wall materialized in front of her. Anneli found she could put her hands into the wall, and so she began to climb. The wall grabbed her foot and she couldn't move. The White Bat asked her if she was going to move. Anneli began to yank her foot and found herself singing an elven mariner's song. The wall became a gigantic rigging; Anneli got a nasty cut as she yanked her foot free. She continued to climb.

When she got down Anneli found herself looking up at an enormous castle, with a moat and bridge. And hornets. Enormous, lazy hornets. There were a ton of hornet nests built into the castle. The sound of their wings was physically painful, but Anneli was able to withstand it. At the end of the drawbridge was a small door. Anneli crossed the bridge, drew her sword, and began to hack at it, commanding the door to open. The Ghost took over and hornets began to gather. Seeing the hornets The Ghost screamed and threw herself into the moat. When Anneli got control back she found herself in the water, surrounded by gigantic wasps. Anneli dove, but didn't get a very good breath and came up too soon. She received a number of extremely painful stings. Pulling out her sword she killed three while treading water, and the rest flew off, not wanting to deal with so energetic a target.

Anneli pulled herself up on the bank, and found herself wishing for more cover. Trees and bushes appeared around the castle, providing cover from the hornets. As she walked by a rock a green hand reached out from under it and grabbed her ankle. The Ghost came out again, drew Anneli's sword, and began stabbing the troll that came out from under the rock, right in the face.

The troll had a bow tie on. He was also asking (politely, between yelps) for the stabbing to cease and desist.

When Anneli regained control she could not apologize enough. The troll was pretty good-natured and forgave easily enough. It helps when wounds regenerate so quickly. He asked what she was doing and she told him she was looking to rescue her friend, at the guidance of The White Bat. The Troll asked why she hadn't said so before?  He and The White Bat were good friends, and for a long time! The White Bat flew down and congratulated Anneli for getting this far and seeing The Troll. They took her right in the hacked down front door, down the stairs that were in the front hall.

They went to one of the dungeons, where Anneli found herself drawing her sword. Nomi was neck deep in a gigantic wasp hive, hands holding an object.

It was a Dagger of Betrayal

Lore note: The profane objects known as Daggers of Betrayal were known to the elves in their elder days as instruments of slavery, used by the Khen-Zai to force an elf to do something he refused to do. The elves despise Daggers of Betrayal on an almost genetic level.

Anneli asked The White Bat what that was doing in Nomi's hand. The White Bat told her to ask Nomi herself. Anneli threatened revenge, no matter how small, if The White Bat was showing her a lie. The White Bat promised this was the truth. He wasn't pulling any strings. Nomi had come to them, not the other way around. Nomi had sealed herself into the hive. The White Bat merely observed.

Hesitantly, Anneli approached Nomi; Nomi's eyes were glazed over and her lips were moving. Anneli couldn't make it out. She asked who had hurt Nomi.

No response.

Anneli screamed at her sister, who finally noticed her. She croaked out the words "I won't. I won't."

Anneli cut off the hand that held the Dagger of Betrayal.

She woke up in Argentum Prime, next to Marian, who was very happy to see that Anneli had made it out. Marian pointed out that Nomi was on a nearby hill of debris. Marian had not been noticed, and Marian had made no effort to make contact. She asked if Anneli wanted to talk with her sister. If so, Marian had her covered, and her hands glowed as she spoke.

As she got closer Anneli was shown a most wretched sight. Nomi's clothes hung bag-like on her frame. Her hair was falling out and her lips were cracked. Her eyes, so bloodshot there were hardly any whites to them, were staring into the ground. In one hand was the toy sword. In the other was a Dagger of Betrayal. Anneli reached for the toy sword. Nomi's grip became a vice. And all of a sudden she shot a deathly look at Anneli.

But then she smiled.

A real smile.

Like she used to. Anneli couldn't even recall the last time she had seen it.

And she let go of the toy sword.

Anneli knocked the Dagger out of Nomi's hand. Nomi pitched backwards, into Anneli's waiting arms. Nomi had always been far heavier than she looked; she was even lighter than her frame suggested. Nomi asked if she had succeeded. Was Anneli free of the Dagger? Had she been stabbed with it? Anneli told her it was on the ground, far away. And Nomi began to shake. A barking noise came from her lips; her throat and eyes were too dry for anything else. Anneli wondered if Nomi would break all her ribs, she sobbed so hard. Nomi stroked Anneli's hair as she shook, weakly tensing and relaxing her grip on it. She whispered that she just wanted Anneli to see the world as she remembered it, before their continent had become the Ring of Tears. For hundreds of years it had been her only goal. But when the dark elf cult she was a part of had given her the Dagger to use on Anneli, so that way they could get her wish at the Island of Eternal Youth? Nomi couldn't do it. So she took the toy sword, hoping to find the Island on her own. But the sword had to be given, and it wasn't, and so she couldn't leave, but she couldn't stay either.

Anneli called Marian over and put her sister into Marian's arms. Nomi's eyes were too weak to see Anneli that far away, and she called out for her baby sister, over and over, bony hands flapping in the still air.

Anneli couldn't answer.

She told Marian she had hoped Nomi had been coerced, forced, that it wasn't her sister's fault. And the truth was so much more complicated that that. Regardless, Anneli needed to return to the fort. As she turned to leave Marian blurted that once, a very long time ago, she had searched for a Dagger, but could not find one. Had she found one at that point she would not have hesitated, unlike Nomi. Daggers of Betrayal had to be used by someone who knew the victim; you stabbed a random person the sheer malice in the dagger would turn back upon the user, transforming them into something monstrous. Marian told Anneli, between tears and gritted teeth, that whatever Anneli thought, the fact was that Nomi still had something in her.

Anneli told Marian she didn't know what to think. Regardless, she had to get back.

The Undertow: Session Five

Mikansia: the main character, a female sword singer elf played by Lena. Last session Mikansia finally met her father, the vile Krakeru. Entranced, she asked him to show her The Music, a term for a mysterious phenomenon that Krakeru raved about. Krakeru's response was to rape his own daughter. And then bring down the ship that Captain Akseli and Firstsword Yngvar were using to defend Elfwatch.

Elfwatch: the human fort that was set up to watch over Elfharrow. Last session the dark elves took advantage of the tunnel system beneath the fort to launch a surprise attack. They were driven back, but not before killing a number of humans, setting fire to several buildings, and causing general mayhem. They've now begun a siege of Elfwatch.

Captain Akseli: Mikansia's superior commander sword singer, from The White Tower. He had flown down with Firstsword Yngvar to find Mikansia after she had deserted the sword singers to find Krakeru. He comforted Mikansia in the wake of the rape and has since become an emotional bedrock to the young elf. He claims to have known Makirta, Mikansia's mother, but has said nothing more about it.


Two weeks passed. The tunnels beneath Elfwatch were collapsed. The dark elves began their siege and everyone hunkered down. Mikansia, Captain Akseli, and Firstword Yngvar were treated as officers, with their own rooms, as representatives of The White Tower. No other elves had survived the crash. Supplies weren't gone yet, but the grain was in a bad spot, and so what wasn't fit to eat was made into everclear for the enlisted soldiers; Mikansia always kept a stash in her room. It helped her sleep at night.

One day, as she was leaving a briefing in the evening with Captain Akseli and FS Yngvar, she heard the Music. She knew it immediately. It was coming from Renough, the General's aide. Mikansia gasped and fell against a nearby wall. She couldn't move. Renough ran to her, asking if she was alright. The Music got louder. Captain Akseli and Firstsword Yngvar came running. Captain Akseli picked up Mikansia, while Firstsword Yngvar menaced the distressed Renough. Captain Akseli hurried back to Mikansia's room. Mikansia thought about resisting how comforting he was, but couldn't bring herself to do so. She shouldn't need comforting. Soldiers move on. She shouldn't need any comforting, from anyone.

Captain Akseli gently fished the key out of Mikansia's pocket, opened the door, and stepped over the threshold and the hot mess that was Mikansia's room and tucked her in. Mikansia tried to get up, but Captain Akseli gently told her to rest. He asked if Renough had attacked her. She shook her head, not sure if she was going to tell him about The Music or not. She decided to hold that back, for now, as she'd already had a moment of craziness in front of him. So much was already in doubt about who she was and her place with the sword singers, why complicate it further by telling the captain about The Music, at least yet? So she said nothing. Captain Akseli stood up and called Mikansia to attention. She stood up, surprised. He told her to take the rest of the night off.

He left.

She went and drank all the alcohol in her stash. She wasn't drunk enough to sleep.  So she went out, to the bar, and sat down. On her way she heard the whispers about her and smiled as someone stood up to defend her honor. A fat hair lady by the name of Emsa ran the bar, and she was happy to see Mikansia. She pulled out a fresh new  batch of everclear for Mikansia and they talked awhile. Mikansia and Emsa complained about what pigs the men of the fort were. Seeing that Mikansia was having an especially bad night, Emsa lightly touched Mikansia's wrist.

Mikansia didn't realize that she had stood up hurriedly and swatted Esma's hand off.

She could hear other patrons shouting at her, and her other wrist was grabbed. It wasn't gentle. She drew one of her daggers and swung, fortunately only hitting air.  Everyone had begun to back out as she held the dagger out in front of her. And then she heard The Music again. There was Renough, peaking around someone. He bolted for the door.

Mikansia caught Renough just outside the bar, grabbed him, and pulled him around the corner, out of general knoweldge. She demanded to know how he made The Music happen, and he realized that she could hear it too, much to his relief. She realized he was scared and aroused, just like her. She was one hair's breath from killing him. Renough told her he would do what the voices in the music demanded: kill the General of the fort. Mikansia heard someone coming, so she let Renough go.

Mikansia went and sobered up before going to see Captain Akseli. She told him about The Music and how Renough was being turned to kill the General. Captain Akseli ran out to alert the General.

Mikansia was alone. Again.

Mikansia tried not to go back out. But she wasn't drunk enough to be able to get rid of the nightmares. So she headed back out. On her way to the bar she ran into a group of human men, all of them dead drunk. One of them looked at her, and there was a sorrow in both of them that made them stop.

Everyone else moved on.

The man told Mikansia about his friend, who had jumped off of the wall earlier that day, in an effort to kill himself. So many dark elf arrows had hit him that he never touched the ground. The man tripped and Mikansia caught him. He stank of everclear. All of a sudden he hugged her. It was tender. He felt safe. So did she. Looking into her eyes he told her she was somehow hurting worse than he was. He pulled a huge bottle out of his jacket. He asked her if she knew of a place that was quiet. He didn't want to be in a crowded and noisy place that night.

As they groped about in the dark Mikansia found him awkward. And bumbling. And smelly. He asked for her name; she froze. He said that where he came from, way down south in the Fer Kingdoms, that it was good manners to know what the girl's name was. She said he didn't need to know. And then she showed him.

The morning came. Mikansia woke up, vulnerable and alone. Her head ached. There came FS Yngvar's knock. Stumbling, Mikansia covered herself with a robe, after cleaning up.

It didn't matter. Firstsword Yngvar knew with but a look. He was disgusted. He told her that Renough, who had been captured last night, had begged to see her. Captain Akseli, busy with other matters, had requested that Mikansia go see Renough; the Firstsword told her it wasn't actually a suggestion, so far as he was concerned.  As he turned to leave he told Mikansia to clean up some more. She needed to be presentable, after all.

As Mikansia left her room "One Night" stumbled into her. He apologized profusely: he hadn't meant to leave her that morning, but he had woken up late for his guard shift and had to hurry. This was his first break and he had come to explain himself. Mikansia told him there was nothing to explain; it didn't matter if he had been there or not. She hurried away.

When Mikansia got to the prison she could hear The Music again. Renough was relieved to see her. Captain Akseli had walked in, not even a minute previous. He asked her if she could still hear The Music coming off of Renough, and Mikansia confirmed she could. Renough tried to get her sympathy, begging for help, but Mikansia had a panic attack when he mentioned the night the elven ship had crashed and Krakeru had screamed; that was when Renough had started hearing The Music, and he wanted to know why. Mikansia found she was being walked past the guards by Captain Akseli. Furious at herself for once again being a mess in front of Akseli, she tried to pull herself together. As she worked to calm herself again "One Night" came running. He asked Captain Akseli what was wrong with Mikansia, and was told not so politely by both of them where he could stick his concern.

There was shouting back inside the prison.

The cell was covered in blood.

Renough had been brought food. He'd grabbed the fork they'd given him and stabbed it into his throat repeatedly. The Music was gone. Mikansia's body relaxed. She turned on the guards and asked how they could be so incompetent. One of them retorted she should go have another panic attack, maybe go screw another one of his buddies too? He was one of the "One Night"'s companions from the previous evening. Captain Akseli flew off the handle, accusing the guard of disrespect and slander. His commander would hear about this! Walking out behind him Miksansia told the guard with an cold glare that it would be tragic if he spread that story any farther.

And for one second her eyes, if she could have seen them in a mirror, would have reminded her of Krakeru's. She caught up with Captain Akseli outside. Firstsword Yngvar came walking up and Captain Akseli fumed at him for a few minutes about the disrespect humans seemed to have. Firstsword Yngvar shot Mikansia a look, but said nothing. She left them to their counsels.

She bumped into "One Night" again. He said he didn't want to bother her, but he thought the last night was special. They had connected, he had felt it, and he just wanted to make sure he wasn't crazy. It was his first time, after all, and he was glad it was with her. Mikansia, gently as she could, told him the night was nice, but that was all it was. She walked away. She did not look back.

Risk Legacy: War Five

So we now have the drafting rules, which means that instead of going first based off of a role, everyone has to choose between the following: turn order, placement order, how many coin cards, and faction choice.

Matt: 2nd turn, 8 toops, 4th in placement, 0 coin cards, Khan Industries, started in Western United States
Logan: Mutants, 2nd placement, 8 troops, 1 coin card, 4th turn, started in Central Africa
Ben: 1st placement, 10 troops, 3rd turn, Enclave of the Bear, 2 coin cards, started in Southeast Asia
Nathan: Imperial Balkania, 1st turn, 6 troops, 3rd placement, 0 coin cards, started in Ural

Year One
Imperial Balkania changed the culture of Russia, permanently, making them a full military culture. They expanded into Yakutsk (which had the city called The Phillipines) and Afghanistan (named city here). They reaped the resources from the cities that they could. Khan Industries took over all of North America. Enclave of the Bear took all of Australia and Afghanistan from Imperial Balkania. Khan Industries permanently radiation poisoned East Australia. The Mutants took all of Africa, glorying in the fallout wasteland that was North Africa.

Year Two
 Imperial Balkania took Siberia and Kamchatka and then tried to break into Alaska, but failed. They then took Scandinavia. Khan Industries took Kamchatka, Yakutsk, and Siberia from Imperial Balkania, but couldn't take Ural and the HQ that was there. Enclave of the Bear took China and Mongolia, and then took Kamchatka and Alaska from Khan Industries. The Mutants, whose brains somehow evolved in the face of all the radiation of North Africa, took all of South America.

Year Three
Imperial Balkania took Afghanistan back from Enclave of the Bear. The two factions then forged an agreement to leave each other alone and pursue their own agendas. Ural was reinforced. Khan Industries tried to take back Alaska from Enclave of the Bear, but failed. Central America was then reinforced, in anticipation of the incoming Mutant invasion. Enclave of the Bear, who had been quietly gathering resources, revealed a surprising number of armies and began a campaign against The Mutants. Down went Egypt, the freshly bunkered East Africa (which required two missile salvos to take down), Madagascar, South Africa, and then Central Africa (along with the HQ in it). The Mutants took back Central Africa and their HQ, but reinforced Venezuela. An upsurge in popularity gave Enclave of the Bear even more volunteers, which they used to reinforce their forces.

Year Four
 Imperial Balkania expanded into all of Europe. Khan Industries took back Alaska, at great cost, and then went back into Kamchatka. They then attacked and took Icleand. They then put their forces into Greenland. Imperial Balkania attempted diplomacy, calling them out for the uncalled-for attack. but their entreaties were ignored. Enclave of the Bear attacked but were driven back in a hail of missile fire. They retook Central America from The Mutants, regaining that HQ. The Mutants broke into Central America and tried to take the Western United States, which was Khan Industries' HQ, but lost. They then withdrew back to Venezuela.

Year Five
Imperial Balkania retook Iceland. Khan Industries retook Central America and Iceland, with heavy losses. Enclave of the Bear took Siberia, Yakutsk, and Kamchatka from Khan Industries. The Mutants retook Central America, put a huge force in North Africa, and then reinforced Venezuela.

Year Six
Imperial Balkania summoned a small, but effective, surprise fighting force. They retook Greenland, with heavy losses, but then took Greenland, Ontario, and then the Western United States (which is where Khan Industries' HQ was). Khan Industries took Western United States and Ontario back, but the damage was done. Enclave of the Bear, pulling out more volunteers from seemingly nowhere,  took advantage of Khan Industries' weakness and took Alaska, Alberta, and then the Western United States. Wearied, everyone ended the war.

South America became known as The Mutant Defense.

Everyone simmered in their faux peace.

It's Still on the Shelf: Star Wars RPG (Fantasy Flight)

So I was talking with a buddy of mine who was considering playing in a one-shot I'm planning. I had originally pitched White Hack at him, but it wasn't heavy enough for his tastes. So he asked me what games I had. And if I could list them. And describe them. I looked over at my bookshelves and groaned inwardly.  This is something of an answer.

What is it: The Star Wars RPG line from Fantasy Flight Games is actually a "trio" of books, each of which handle the three implied settings of Star Wars: criminals, war, and the Force. It's expensive. It's over the top. It probably couldn't have been handled in one book? I don't know? Point is, they're divvied up. You pick the setting you want and move on. Or, if you're like me, you sigh from the depths of your soul and 180 bucks later???

The Star Wars games rely upon using unique dice, which help add some granularity to the action going on. It's not quite as simple as you succeed or fail, but you are instead consulting the dice kinda like a seer who consults the bones from some pagan culture or whatnot. It usually takes a minute, which is fine by me. I don't mind heavier dice mechanics, but your mileage may vary. As you decipher the symbols and realize what just happened, the players and the GM begin to talk it over. The players get to decide what any advantage gained from the roll does, while the GM gets to decide the disadvantage. Both sides have veto power. There's also a Destiny Point economy, where you can fudge in differing things into the game, as well as influence dice rolls. It's intended to be very subtle, one point at a time, but I always took that limit off and players seemed to have a much better time with ti. There's not a lot of guidelines to any of this, per se, but there are plenty of examples that one can measure against in the books.

It's this lack of advice that ultimately make the game a pain to run. You're supposed to award people XP, but it took a long time of me searching the book and going onto a forum to find out exactly how much and for what the players were supposed to get XP for... which as it turned out was whatever the heck I wanted to award them for. Which is fine, but it took far too long for me to get to the intent of the system for such an important thing.  So, if you're going to use the book, make sure to take this paragraph in mind and have a pretty clear list of things players can get XP for!

Why I haven't played it lately: Honestly? I don't find it scratches the Star Wars itch. For me Star Wars is about the interactions of tradition and the collective with the individual in their particular place in history. It's about the characters' search to fit within that framework. Yeah, there's lots of fun action and fiddly bits and whatnot, but those things serve the narrative, they are not the narrative itself.

That and Burning Wheel exists. You have to be able to compete with that level of janky, complex, unique gaming before  I really take notice anymore. FFG Star Wars just doesn't. It runs fine, once you figure out that you're just supposed to make everything up as you go along. Heck, I'd probably use the Career hooks to incentivize the players if I ever ran it again. But it's just not enough. Not for now.

Why's it still on my shelf?? I still like looking through the books, and I still have Star Wars games in mind, and some day I'll probably want to go back to it. We'll see. For the moment I'm at where I am with Burning Wheel. That is enough for the moment.

Risk Legacy: War Four

Matt- Khan Industries, starting in Indonesia
Ben- Die Mechaniker, starting in Brazil
Nathan- Imperial Balkania, starting in Madagascar
Logan- Enclave of the Bear, starting in Alaska

Year One
Khan Industries expanded into all of Australia, and then took Southeast Asia. Die Mechaniker took all of South America, as well as North Africa. Imperial Balkania took all of Africa and conquered North Africa. Enclave of the Bear came down from Alaska and took Venezuela from Die Mechaniker.

Year Two
Khan Industries blitzkrieged across Asia, took Egypt, East Africa, South Africa, and then Madagascar, cutting the head off of Imperial Balkania. Die Mechaniker reinforced itself and stayed put. Imperial Balkania retook East Africa, but could not regain Madagascar. Khan Industries managed to drum up more troops than expected in South Africa. Enclave of the Bear took Peru from Die Mechaniker, and then took almost all of North America. This surge of expansion allowed them to gain even more troops, which were used to fortify their armies.

Year Three
Khan Industries, bolstered by their successes, completely kicked Imperial Balkania out of Africa, and they gained even more armies for their trouble! Die Mechaniker reinforced itself, refusing to move. Imperial Balkania reformed in Ural and then took Afghanistan, specifically for the city of Borderlands. Having pulled itself out of nothing, Balkania leveraged the resources of the city it had taken to prop itself up further. Enclave of the Bear took all of North America and then reinforced Greenland.

Year Four
Khan Industries, having taken all of the resources from Imperial Balkania, leveraged them into more resources. They then attacked Die Mechaniker in Brazil, at their HQ, and took it over. But Die Mechaniker wasn't finished yet. In their secret bunkers they had made a nuclear device. As they went down, Die Mechaniker pushed the big red button.

North Africa was reduced to an irradiated hellscape. The people who survived the hellfire that rained down on them, mutated beyond belief, swore revenge against Die Mechaniker. The world watched in horror as they spread through the world.

The world rallied, as they usually do after a horrific war. NEW Brazil was founded in Brazil, Zombieland in East Africa, and Barbie in East Australia. Politics became more prevalent than it ever had before, because nuclear war was simply not an option. Not again. Never again.