Scale

Over a decade ago I wrote a post about using Heroic/Homeric/Bronze Age/Mycenaean Greece as a setting for Barbarians of Lemuria.  Well, I was thinking about Ancient Greece again this morning and I got to wondering how big a map hex map of equivalent size would be.  If you total up the area of the Peloponnese, Attica, Boeotia and Euboea it comes out to around 11,340 sq/m¹.  If you put that in terms of a 6 mile hex map, that is an 18x18 hex map!  That's not a large map compared to some hexcrawls and sandboxes.  Someone, I'm not quite sure who, also did a 6 mile hex map of Greece, the Aegean and Western Turkey.  The entire map is 99x81 hexes.  Smaller if you shave off some of the sea hexes on the western and southern edges of the map.

There is soooo much history and mythology crammed into this area that it boggles my mind.  It could be a giant playground for a game.  A GM could take just a portion of it, such as one of the four areas I mentioned above, because it's still crammed with potential.

In Classical times this area contained Athens and Sparta and the consequences of their rivalry and machinations.  There was also the important cities of Corinth and Thebes to round out the four biggies.  Olympia and its games were located there.  Many battles were fought in this area and much diplomacy was conducted.  If you go back to the Bronze Age/Mythological era you can add so much more.  Mycenae, Argos, Pylos and Megara.  Many of the mythical beasts roamed its wilds, too.

This changes my perspective on how big a map has to be to be effective.  I've always liked the idea of Chicagowiz's "Just Three Hexes" campaign starter and this, in a way, reinforces that.

¹ All numbers are approximate and for demonstration purposes only

White Box Cyclopedia

I finally had a chance to sit down and take a closer look at James Spahn's White Box Cyclopedia.  I haven't done a thorough read through yet but I did do a serious perusal.  And as I thought, what I saw made me excited.

The White Box Cyclopedia is the Swords & Wizardry White Box rules with all of the extra trimmings. 

The PDF comes in at around 290 pages.  And it has a lot!  It has the entirety of the White Box rules plus many extras and options to choose from. 

It covers the four usual races.  Here called heritages.  It also has 10 optional heritages, such as gnome, half-orc and shadow elf.  It also includes five heritage-as-class options.

The WBC offers the original three classes:  cleric, fighter and magic-user as well as 18 optional classes.  Some of the optional heritages and classes were developed by Mr. Spahn years ago.  It's nice to have them consolidated in one place though.

Much of the rest of the book is taken up with the usual.  Combat rules, equipment, travel, magic, treasure, etc.  It does include seafaring and naval combat as well. This is all to be expected.  What I really like, in addition to the extra heritages and classes, is all of the other additions.

For example, there is a section on reputation, knighthood and chivalry.  According to these rules, any character can become a knight.  Of course, some have a greater chance than others but everyone has some chance.  If you are brave and heroic, you might be able to do it.  There are guidelines on how to achieve knighthood, reputation, being knighted, maintaining your standing.  And it's all an add-on system you can layer on if you want.

The combat section contains options, some that I have seen elsewhere as house rules, to add variety to combat.  Including one of my favorites, Splintered Shields.  You can add none, some or all to tune combat to your taste.

There is a section that discusses setting up campaigns. It also briefly describes four different campaign settings and how to tune the rules and options to make WBC work optimally for the settings. This includes which classes and heritages would work best, how to tune magic for the setting and other modifications and options that might help.  The settings are called City of Thieves, Fairy Land, Gothic Horror and a sword & sorcery setting, Riddle of Steel.

I think the campaign section sums up best what I like about WBC.  WBC has the basic game but it is also a toolbox.  A toolbox that allows you to take the solid foundation of S&W WB and turn it into exactly the game you want it to be.  I know many good GMs can do this themselves but there are others, like me, who can use help when doing so.  With this toolbox, I am much more confident I can tune basic White Box to run any of the settings I have running around in my mind.

 

My Incomplete Appendix N

I've occasionally talked about books and movies that have influenced my gaming but I have never listed my personal Appendix N.  

My list includes fantasy, science fiction and some historical fiction.  It also include a few non-fiction titles, particularly from my youth.  It includes things that I read or viewed through my life, from childhood until now.  Most probably look familiar but there may be a few surprises.

• Agent of Byzantium by Harry Turtledove

• Barbarian Lord (Graphic Novel) by Matt Smith

• Beowulf: Dragonslayer by Rosemary Sutcliffe

• The Conan Stories and Novel by Robert E. Howard

• The Dark Knight Returns (Graphic Novel) by Frank Miller

• Firefly

• The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

• Goat Song and The Walled Orchard by Tom Holt

• The Greek Armies by Peter Connolly

• The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein

• I, Claudius by Robert Graves

• Island of Ghosts by Gillian Bradshaw 

• Lest Darkness Fall by L. Sprague De Camp

• The Mote in God's Eye by Jerry Pournelle and David Niven

• Non-Stop by Brian Aldiss

• Revolt on Alpha C by Robert Silverberg

• "The Road Not Taken" by Harry Turtledove

• The Roman Army by Peter Connolly

• The Sand-Reckoner by Gillian Bradshaw 

• Space Viking by H. Beam Piper

• Star Trek (TOS)

• Star Wars (the original trilogy)

• Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein

• Thundarr the Barbarian

• Watchmen (Graphic Novel) by Alan Moore