Well! I Never...

Last week I talked about the forthcoming Amaranthine RPG from Machine Age Productions. Their fund raising initiative with Kickstarter has surpassed the level required for the print run of the game. Now the additional funds will be put to use in producing an anthology of short fiction based on the game and setting. Meanwhile more information has come out regarding the game. Amongst the materials is an interview/discussion with David A. Hill Jr. on the Bear Swarm podcast. This interview covered topics and ideas that I did not get into previously. I wanted to point out a couple of items. The first was a line that showed up elsewhere discussing the game and the aspect David and I touched on regarding Amaranthine and success. The quote is "Amaranthine are measured on a scale of Batmen. The baseline is Batman." That's a pretty provocative idea.

The second item that came up in the podcast was in regard to a post on the Machine Age site called "Determining Facts" that describes a system of using declarative statements to outline the interactions between characters in the game as they happened in the past. The statements are broken into four groups with “I’ve always,” “I’ve once,” “I’ve sometimes,” and, “I’ve never.” This would cover relationships like I always kill you or I once loved you--and goes well with the Relationship Wheel. These statements can be used to structure current and future meetings between those characters. The article also talks about the story benefits of breaking these declarations, but I will let you read that over there. This framework of course is also be very useful in setting up how different characters will get along or not in your own works of fiction. Some authors have done this for years to varying degrees.

There is one other bit that I didn't cover from my discussion of the game with David. He told me, "One of the things Amaranthine can do is sort of enchant people and make them sycophantic. So, many Amaranthine have followers, and little mini-empires. This means that indirect war is just as likely as rooftop battles." This ties in nicely with a point touched on in the podcast regarding whether average people know about the Amaranthine. The short answer is mostly no, they don't. This is because the Amaranthine are just the famous and powerful in the world. Their past lives and their extraordinary abilities are just a part of that indescribable je ne sais quoi these people have, or the root of that mystique.

Just a heads up. I do not expect to post here for most of May. I'm taking my annual break for backend coding work on my sites, including this one. I may slip in one post or none. Follow me on Twitter to keep on top of when and where I post. I am @robertmale.

Mood: real.
Music: Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper and Kiss From A Rose by Seal.

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Special Post: Amaranthine RPG Needs You

Welcome to a very special edition of Dark Corners, please don't mind the extra length. Today I have a post collided with an almost interview with David A. Hill Jr. of Machine Age Productions, makers of Maschine Zeit--I hope to discuss that game later. David and the crew are running a Kickstarter campaign to fund the print run of Amaranthine right now. Additional funds pledged will mean additional game materials will be available sooner and your pledge earns you items like copies of the game, and those bonus materials and products as per your pledge. I am very excited about this game. As the teaser says, "Leap across rooftops to battle the enemy you've fought fifty times before. You know that every time you meet, one of you will die. It cannot be you; in this life, you have too much to live for."

Amaranthine is a role-playing game where the fabric of the setting, of the back-story of the characters, is heavily influenced by their past lives. One of the key aspects is something called the Relationship Wheel. When David and I began talking about Amaranthine I mentioned that I rarely touch on game mechanics here from a dice standpoint, but rather the effect. What it does for the story the GM and players are forming. David told me, "Almost every important roll in Amaranthine stresses a relationship." Of course this is apparent in the talks on the site, and he also summed it up well when he said, "The effect of the Relationship Wheel is really the important part anyway. The dice are just a mechanism to see that happens."

The Relationship Wheel is part of a system that stresses escalation of conflict or tension, and the character interaction aspects in the game. My interest focused on the current effect this has on the characters within one life's cycle, as opposed to where it was in the past--if you will, a focus on the here and now of your game. It is built into the character's psychological make up to push their relationships, strain them... a good metaphor is pulling the bond your character has with someone important to them like an elastic band until it snaps back. Often it hurts your finger because you did it wrong. There's the pain when it hits, or it pulls too far and it breaks on both sides at once, half snapping back, the other half lashing out at the other end. When you get into love triangles or a conflict-à-trois--like I've previously discussed--then pulled or broken, if something was loaded in the elastic the question becomes what was it targeted at--intentionally or not--and what damage does that payload do?

David said, "I like to look at it like Spider-Man and Mary Jane. As he goes swinging around on rooftops saving the world, it adds tension to their relationship. Sometimes, he needs to do specific things with her to really cool down that side of it."

Also a part of the game is the idea that the Amaranthine do not do it just once. Even in a single lifetime they do it over and again even when they know it will hurt. I imagine they can't help it. It's hard to break a habit like that.

Talking about how this also works with mortal--or really in this case practically immortal--enemies David told me, "It's sort of a fight or compliance with fate. Say I've killed you three times before. When we meet, and you remember that, are you going to assume I'm -not- fated to kill you? Of course you're going to assume it. So, you might try to kill me. It causes this vicious cycle, because then of course I'll attack back."

In the first post describing Amaranthine it was said that "Amaranthine isn’t about resolving conflicts, it’s about exploring them, creating them, fostering them, then watching them explode." I see this as especially true when we are talking about the meta-game level where players are working to push and strain, to create conflict, to add drama and get something out of it both as players, and for their characters/in-character. That's a fascinating aspect.

In a bit of contrast David told me, "When I say we don't focus as much on success or failure, I mean to say Amaranthine are awesome. For the most part, we assume they'll win. Or at least, they -can- win if they're willing to put enough on the table. Really, we're more concerned about those kinds of hard decisions."

I had to ask myself, what does the character get out it? Heartache is likely. Death is a possibility. I imagine as the cycle continues the highs become higher and the lows become lower--I touched on this in my haunting cycle of escalation two weeks ago (Don't Wear Us Out, Josh)--but what is being gained in the highs? On one hand if we're talking about personal relationships there's great sex, there's a strengthening bond. Professionally there are big deals, favours owed, mergers or coalitions, the benefit of more influential networking, etc.

I asked David, do the Amaranthine become aware in their own way that they could build karma up to their benefit? Do the more villainous or mercenary amongst them escalate conflicts with their adversaries for the express purpose of getting the upper hand the next time around, whether, as David said, in direct conflict with that adversary or through undermining them via their associates?

His answer was, "The karma question is one I've not touched on yet. It's something I've been thinking about. Fate and destiny are ingrained heavily into what Amaranthine is, so of course that's one way to look into it. We spend a bit exploring the weight of responsibility when you know more, and are capable of more than anyone else."

Back to that first post on the Machine Age Productions site, there is a description of the Relationship Wheel as having two ‘neutral zones’ along the wheel, and a ‘hot’ zone and a ‘cold’ zone. ...if the wheel is for a lover, the hot zone might offer bonuses when trying to influence them. The cold zone might offer bonuses to resist a strong emotional response when they’re in danger. With a nemesis, the hot zone might offer a bonus to all-out, guttural attacks against them. The cold might offer bonuses to attacking their sycophants to indirectly harm them."

All in all this looks like another fascinating game from David and the crew at Machine Age Productions. Again, if this game interests you please consider donating to the Amaranthine Kickstarter for the print run and other materials.

Mood: thrilled.
Music: Infinite Dreams by Iron Maiden and Crazy by Aerosmith.

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They're Not as Scared, Josh

I talked a bit more about the On Dark Rhoads blog over at Inchoate with "Gearing Up for the Rhoad" and got into some technical and non-writing aspects like commenting and general blog shoptalk.

Last time here we talked about pace and tension. What does it really mean in regard to the scare factor of the tale though? For that matter what does the format do to the scare? Certainly as much as horror is known for it scares, for leaving the audience creeped out if only for a little while, it is about the horrific too, obviously, but as a kind of milieu it is about the situations, beings, and the like that are horrific or monstrous. As such it doesn't always have to scare or horrify at least on the small scale--nor constantly either.

A story about a haunting is a horror story even if you are not scared by it. Stories with monsters are likewise horror as well by virtue of the monsters, though this might require it not additionally being say a medieval fantasy story. It is a matter of degrees and a question of intensity. It is the outlook that matters. Monster heroes in a city will be urban fantasy for instance rather than horror if it lacks horror. It's all shades of grey as far as the presentation goes. Often what distinguishes horror from the other similar genres in this no man's land is how the unnatural elements affect the characters. This is especially true of horror role-playing games. The game need not scare or horrify the players per se, but the setting, the conflict, and the scenarios had certainly better present the characters with fear and horror or a sense of dread.

I see the same delineation in horror fiction even as others insist the product, whatever it is, book, movie, or game, must frighten them or affect them personally to be successful and therefore count. As an example consider the movie Paranormal Activity. I don't mean to compare my haunting tale to it for either its admirers or detractors, but it is a good example from an illustrative viewpoint. Some who live with an actual haunting were dismissive of the bulk of the phenomena as not being scary enough to carry the horror. Others cannot fathom staying anywhere haunted and are floored by these kinds of movies. To bring it back to the original questions I would like the scare factor to be there. I would like nothing more that to have people, well, haunted, by the events, and suspicious of their own surroundings. Was that book where they left it? Wasn't that water glass on the right a moment ago where now it's on the left? At the same time it's okay if they don't do that, as long as the experience through reading the entries was enjoyable.

Come back next week for a special post (instead of my usual day off) regarding a forthcoming role-playing game called Amaranthine from David A. Hill Jr. of Machine Age Productions makers of Maschine Zeit. David is running a Kickstarter campaign to fund the print run of Amaranthine right now.

Mood: relaxed.
Music: Hotel California by the Eagles and Someone Else? by Queensryche.

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It's Not What They Think, Josh

If you didn’t know already I’ve been gearing up to unleash a fiction blog. Not just any fiction blog, but one tied to a work in progress role-playing game. There are several issues involved in creating this blog on many levels. The issue I am interested in discussing now has to do with going against expectation. I can't help but spoiler some things. Sorry. Let me start with the basic premise behind the role-playing game. The game is called "This Mental Eventide" and revolves around the emergence of a large number of psychics. A man named Joshua Gavin Rhoads is the author of the blog. He initially hints that he has a secret that he wants to tell everyone but has to build up to it. The secret is the haunting. From there he begins to detail the various happenings. Here's the catch--and the worst spoiler of all. Josh is not haunted. Rather he is being plagued by his own burgeoning psychic abilities.

One of the elements to this setting is that there are no ghosts or earthbound spirits. There are hauntings sure enough, but they are residual hauntings--those are the echoes or events repeating on a loop--or the work of psychics. All in all this makes for a protracted scenario in which nothing is what it seems. There is the possibility that an abrupt turn of face would be off-putting to some. The haunting has to fall within the extent of Josh's psychic abilities. Since he is the cause of all of the phenomena it has to have some meaning to him or otherwise be in character for him. The incidents must be something he subconsciously wants or they happen in reaction to what he feels toward different people and events. Some will be very obvious, but others may seem particularly inexplicable, or at least unfathomable at first blush.

At this stage only one power is evident. Josh must have telekinesis. It covers a myriad of ghostly phenomena that are poltergeist-like in nature. I have an inkling of one of his other powers, but I won't mention it. The development of the game is incomplete so I do not know how many psychic abilities he should manifest, when they will do so, and what if any progression there is between them. Likewise Josh is a bit of a blank canvas. I have certain traits squarely in mind and the rest is open. I do not even know what his profession is yet. One of the keys to a setting like this, and especially these kinds of scenarios involving adults, is that these people have real lives first before the emergence of the fantastical or the horrific. These unanswered questions play into the next topic I want to write about with regard to this project.

Mood: secretive.
Music: Can't Stop Rockin' by ZZ Top and Black Dragon by Luca Turilli.

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To A Creepy New Year in 2011

Hello and welcome to the New Year of Horror on Hump Day! It's been a long hiatus, though maybe not the longest I've taken. Publishing a horror magazine will do that, even at the length of Killing Time - Horror E-Rag. It's become something of a tradition to look back and then look forward. Let us begin.

Looking back I am immediately struck by the recent posts about movies and television both before and after Hallowe'en's thirteen blogs. Both by the number and the ideas I hoped to express about them. There was even some motivational material, because honestly with all the negativity out there about the genre and its failings someone has to get on topic, push forward, and try to be a force of change.

To some degree it's a sad state of affairs that it has to be me, but really who better? I've always been trying to push for better horror, and painting the way as a consumer. Some could ask, who am I tell to anyone how to make something better? The answer is, I'm someone who enjoys horror so much I had to become a creator. Even that much commitment isn't necessary. All it takes is a passion for the material, the movies, the books, the games, the tropes, the feelings, the whole shebang.

The look back became the look forward. Might as well continue mixing it up. The past year I talked about a setting with witches, and more pertinent to the discussion witch hunters. It's kind of funny because I recently saw the animated video for "American Witch" NSFW by Rob Zombie, which seemed to me to be a companion piece to the "Lords of Salem" NSFW video, which I had seen significantly longer ago. The Lords video is very evocative of just how frightening the Witch Hunter General and his closest men are, to not only the common man, but also to even the blackest hearted witch.

I intend to look at some more settings. Like early in 2010 I also intend to look at horror from a RPGer's perspective because what is a pen and paper RPG for the person running the sessions (known as the Game Master among other names), a position akin to director on a movie set and at the same time scriptwriter--if both of those only worked with or wrote the minor characters and the setting/sets. I'm re-explaining this both for new readers and because there's been some recent controversy, but that's not something I intend to get into here. Beyond that, I never know what I'm going to write about until I start planning for the next week. Here's to new horrors and new looks at it.

Mood: stoked.
Music: American Witch by Rob Zombie and Werewolf Women Of The SS by Rob Zombie.

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Scareless Horror

One of the distinct qualities of the horror genre is that it does not strictly have to rely on actually causing the emotion for which it is named. A crime novel cannot be without a crime in it. An action movie must have action. A science fiction role-playing game has to have science--though admittedly it need not be fictional science, the fiction stemming from either plot or character or the fact the gaming isn't real is sufficient.

Horror can have no scares for the reader or viewership. It can have no horror for the characters involved. What it needs is to have certain elements. A good example of this is the current trend with vampires. For these stories to be, say urban fantasies, they would have to have certain tropes that make it fantasy. This would cause its own problems since much of what describes fantasy is rooted in medieval or Tolkienesque fantasy.

Certain character types just scream horror (or fantasy) even if they engage in drama or action or comedy. Sometimes these rise to the level of cross genre, other times they do not. This seems to be very true of drama. There are no cross-dramas. Drama is integral to anything and everything that is dramatic or a dramatisation. So too is horror except in a pseudo form of reverse. This makes for great versatility and draws in a larger audience, which is good for all involved.

Mood: harried.
Music: Coming Soon by Queen and Black Lodge by Anthrax.

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Horror Witches Rising

I started writing this first new entry after the May hiatus without even looking to see if I had already written an entry for this date. I was last writing about role-playing games and magic systems. I may return to it, but first I wanted to inject some horror back in and make this an entry true to the Horror on Hump Day nickname. I came back to the topic of magic again recently when I started considering a project about witches. The type of project doesn't matter since it may never happen in that format, and if it does it will be low on the work priority scale below even my slow burning role-playing game work. Before I get to the witchy goodness I want to point out the great thing about RPG work is stories that don't work out, or I don't have time for, work well as scenarios in an RPG session(s) and the research for the games works just as well for stories.

Witches. I'm talking about nasty, vile-hearted, selfish, devil-worshipping witches, horror witches. The wart-nosed old hag comes to mind, but is actually of less use. Really, when supernatural events start happening and children are found ritually slaughtered everyone looks to the hag. Let's also ditch the broom unless this is a historical setting. Honestly, flying on a broom has become something done by cute girls in countless anime. Looking back at historical legend let's also ditch crazy things like houses with chicken's legs running around. Now, again, horror witches. They may sign a pact with the Devil, including giving up their first born, or they may be unaffiliated and truck with whatever forces they wish if any at all. Familiars are good, but they need some consideration regarding their apparent connection to the witch.

In a story a character, male or female--witchcraft isn't sexist--with an animal hanging around all of the time is a dead giveaway. To keep the witch's identity a secret distance events involving the familiar. The witch might be revealed when the beastly companion feeds, using the witch's teat of course. Somewhere on the witch is a superfluous nipple--aureole not included--or even a short tentacle upon which the familiar suckles blood and magical energy, part of the witch's soul, or some other intangible. Here's an odd bit of folklore I discovered when researching for "You Accused the Wrong Woman" for Killing Time - Horror E-Rag™. One method of detecting a witch involved making a cake using urine from a victim of the witch. The victim would see the witch after smelling the vapours from the hot cake, or if not then, after having eaten some of the witch cake.

Mood: enchanted.

Music: Witch Hunt by Stratovarius and Season of the Witch by Vanilla Fudge.

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Come Together, Coven Me

It's not uncommon. People are social animals. It stands to reason that magic will be a social event for people. Sure there will be loners, there always are, and as with any social context the morality of the majority or at least the strongest personalities will prevail, forcing some to reclusion for their nefarious deeds. There are many advantages to gather multiple spell casters together to work on a shared goal. We've already mentioned pooling points, magical essences, or mass quantities of will focused together as one reason. This is something that can even involve non-casters as well, depending on the setting. So, what are the other reasons for the joining of mystical forces? As with most things the first and easiest answer is logistics. These can be logistics of a martial type, but they can also be a matter of non-violent nature.

The first logistical need anyone might have is coverage. How much of an area does a spell cover? Even boosted the scale has to be less if cast by only one person. Aside from the raw size of the area multiple participants can achieve different shapes or configurations of coverage. The areas need not even overlap; the desired effect may be to affect multiple locations at the same time. Time itself can be another strategic obstacle overcome by more than one caster, especially for prolonged effects. This time-restraint may be a matter of fatigue in the short term or sleep in the long term. It may also be a matter of focus and attention that is mitigated by separate participants in a lengthy casting or ritual. Either the area or time factors are a matter of scale so don't forget to cover truly epic scales, or at least as epic as the setting allows.

Focus and attention are not limited to being maintained for long periods of time. One mind can only handle so many details at one time. Here is an opportunity to craft spells that are really impressive, like the Swiss clocks of spells. Again, consider the epic scale, dozens upon dozens of effects or a handful of effects on numerous targets. This can be devastation or construction, detriment or enhancement. Nuance is a good thing here. Layering might be a consideration as well as the tweaking of effects as they are created. Here the skill of the participants becomes important with less skilled casters doing the simplistic parts and the more skilled ones doing the tweaking, and certainly orchestrating it all. Where normally the novices would be given the grunt work only the more experienced members may have to power to shoulder the power requirements. It all depends.

Mood: relaxed.

Music: Come Together by Aerosmith and Legions by Stratovarius.

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Magic Power Point Presentation

When it comes to the mechanics of magic in a role-playing game two options rise to the top of the list as far as importance. The first is the number of points with which a character has access to for the casting of spells. The second as discussed last week is the time it takes to cast the spell. The points portion of the mechanics can be broken down into several factors that must be considered and balanced. It can be difficult to discern what to deal with first. There is the need to determine the number of points required to cast each and every spell. There is also the number of points to which any single character will have access. It makes sense to determine the spell costs first. Doing that requires starting with the low-end costs and building up to the more costly and thus more impressive and powerful spells, but how to weight them?

The cost of one spell compared to another should be based upon many different factors. These factors can include how long the effect of the spell lasts, how far the effect can be cast away from the spell caster, how large of an area the spell affects, and just how powerful is the effect? What determines how powerful or impressive a spell is? Does it depend on game factors like damage? Is it more powerful if it affects multiple people? Does it matter if it is flamboyant or a spectacle to see? Is it a matter of how much it bends reality and defies the known laws of physics? Is it about the way it can change the playing field and alter the storyline? This last is hard to quantify. Death is a game changing matter when it comes to the players, the protagonists of the story. How does a powerful spell affect the setting if too many can cast it?

Once at least a rough baseline is set for the cost of spells then a look can be taken at how many points to which a single character or player should immediately have access. Factors for consideration include how many spells in rapid succession should a player be able to cast? This will also require knowledge about the other types of characters available so that the spell cast does not run out of options long before his companions. How powerful is a starting spell caster? How should they progress in power? Both of these should be compared to other character types as well, to maintain fairness and promote players to choose a spell caster. From a points standpoint there is an advantage to having more than one spell caster in the player party. Leaving points aside are there other advantages to multiple casters?

Mood: eclectic.

Music: Soma City Ward by Slash and Kill or Be Killed by Twisted Sister.

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