Inspiration: San Serriffe

In 1977, The Guardian newspaper published a special supplement about the island nation of San Serriffe.  Your knowledge of geography isn't at fault if you haven't heard of that country.  San Serriffe is fictional; the supplement was included in the April 1 issue of the newspaper.  This journalistic prank rises to the level of inspiration due to the amount of detail infused into it at the time and later.

San Serriffe consists of two islands and – as the map shows – the resulting shape is suggestive of a semicolon. Many aspects of San Serriffe (including the name itself) are typography related puns.  For instance, the Flong are San Serriffe's indigenous population.  With or without the 'jokey' terminology, San Serriffe offers considerable potential as a setting.

Timeline of major events:

• 10th Century: Islands claimed in the name of King Harsha Verdhana by Sant Sharrif of India.
• 1432–1439: Colonized by the Spanish and Portuguese.
• 1659: Annexed by Great Britain.
• 1815: Ceded to Portugal.
• 1824–1836: Era of the condominium between Portugal and Great Britain.
• 1971: Gains independence from Portugal.
• 1973: Oil discovered off Caissa Superiore, eventually leading to an influx of foreign investment.

These dates are accurate as far as 'official' history goes, but since the Fifteenth Century, “San Serriffe was colonized, conquered and retaken in rapid succession by the Spanish, the Portuguese, the British, the Italians and, on one memorable occasion, Luxembourg.”

I imagine San Serriffe currently to be a hotbed of international intrigue and espionage.  Yet there is also room for adventure in San Serriffe's colorful – if not confusing – past.  Surely, at some point, San Serriffe must have been a haven for pirates.  And just where did the Flong come from?  Lemuria?

An Exciting Game of Super-Human Role Playing

cover art by Alvin J. Belflower

Villains hold a certain allure; they appeal to our baser desires.  A game where players assume the roles of evil-doers would seem to have a great deal of potential.  Supervillains was an attempt to capitalize on the 'bad boy' mystique in terms of the comic book super-being genre.  According to the back of the box:

SUPERVILLAINS includes scenarios which may be played as board games, and complete rules for setting up and running a role playing campaign game.  The game contains a strategic map, a tactical map, die cut playing pieces, and all the dice, charts, and rules required for play.

In fact, Supervillains presents itself as three games:  a basic game (“...the same as virtually any Adventure board game”), an intermediate game, and an advanced game (with “as much freedom of character play as any other role-playing game”).  The role-playing nature of Supervillains is often ignored.  Lawrence Schick neglected to list it in Heroic Worlds, even though he catalogues Masters of the Universe – a product with less of a claim to being a role-playing game.

The cover indicates Supervillains was a Task Force game.  Task Force was a company in the 80s perhaps best known as the (then) publisher of Star Fleet Battles.  It also produced a variety of 'pocket games'.  Apparently, Supervillains is Rick Register's only design credit.

One bygone summer, when he was a kid, your humble host purchased this game.  It was money well spent as he derived extensive use of the product those halcyon months so long ago.  Nowadays, kids have detailed HeroClix figures for games of super-being combat.  Back then, all we had were cardboard counters and we were grateful.  Nostalgia notwithstanding, Supervillains is not without its faults.

Part of the trouble with Supervillains is the premise; it's not easy being evil.  All a superhero has to do is stumble across a villainous plot and thwart it.  A supervillain must formulate and advance plots.  Also, the motivations of supervillains are myriad.  Among the various sorts of supervillain there are:  a misunderstood alien who steals electronic components to repair his spaceship, an operative of a hostile foreign power, a mad scientist seeking revenge against the civilization that spurned him, a megalomaniac attempting to conquer the world, a thug who has no aspiration beyond robbing a bank.  Supervillains does nothing to address character motivations or the need for players to create plots.

The RPG aspect of Supervillains includes what I call a 'schedule' game – a type of game I have discussed previously.  “In the Advanced game,” the rules state, “the players will inform the Gamemaster what actions their characters are taking during each segment.”  (A 'segment' is a half-hour of game time.)  Continuing, the rules state that “encounters between player-characters...will be played out...”  This suggests that player characters are not grouped as a party, they engage the setting separate from one another.

Here is the complete introduction to the game:

          The fiendish Dr. DuNos was running wild through the city terrorizing the populace and creating havoc.  As public enemy #1, the master of sound, had managed to evade both DAGGER and The Sentinels.  The mayor of New York City was so distraught over the matter that he had been ready to resign over the furor, when the Controllers volunteered their services to track down and arrest DuNos.  The intangible Null-Man, the Living Vacuum, Electro-Thing, The Battery, Soundwave, and the Gyro-Changer all had long criminal records; but the mayor had little choice.  He gave the Controllers permission to attempt what no one else had been able to do.
          Given their own headquarters, the Controllers soon proved their loyalty to the mayor by doing their best to track down the infamous DuNos.  Although DuNos managed to evade them time after time, they were soon given another assignment in addition; to capture the notorious Holy Crusader and Company.  The Holy Crusader, the Giver of Light, Perihelion, and The Crab were all wanted for numerous and various crimes against the state, one of the most ruthless of which included the brutal massacre of an entire squadron of DAGGER agents.
          Laboring night and day with little sleep, The Controllers were finally able, through luck, to locate the Crusaders' hideout.  They prepared to engage in combat with the fiendish foursome.  Both sides tensed, as each was waiting for the other side to make the first move.  As these Superbeings stood poised for action, suddenly a whining sound filled the air and the sky grew darker as two DAGGER air cruisers passed overhead, containing forty agents, who were authorized to eliminate both the Crusaders and The Controllers, each for their various crimes.  It would be a long and bloody battle and many Superbeings and DAGGER agents would lie dead before the day was over, but perhaps the city, for a time, would be free of the supervillains.

Philosopher's Stone

Season's Greetings!

Remember Jeff Swycaffer's article, 'Elementals and the Philosopher's Stone', in Dragon magazine #27 from thirty-five years ago?

Y-you don't?  Well, no matter.  Presented below is your humble host's gift to you – an example of Swycaffer's “Philosopher's Stone” die that you can assemble yourself!  (Please use scissors only with adult supervision.)  Those familiar with with Swycaffer's original die may notice that the color scheme has been updated for 21st Century sensibilities.

Swycaffer identifies four properties:  dry, moist, heat, and cold.  Each of the classical elements shares two of these properties.  For example, water shares cold with air and moist with earth.  “This is reasonable,” Swycaffer informs us, “as the alchemists of the 1200s depicted the elements in this fashion.”  He then adds a good/evil axis perpendicular to this elemental circle.  'Good' and 'evil' are each joined to the aforementioned properties by four qualities.  The four qualities linked to good are light, pleasure, fertility, and begin.  The four qualities associated with evil are dark, pain, barren, and end.

In his article, Swycaffer introduces eight new elementals based on the properties and qualities.  He reminds us that the 'standard' elementals are described in Dungeons & Dragons – volume 2, Monsters & Treasure. Swycaffer treats “the demons of Eldritch Wizardry, D&D Supplement III” as 'elementals' of evil.  For 'elementals' of good, he recommends “the Angels of Stephen H. Domeman that appeared in The Dragon #17.”

A 'pleasure elemental' has 3 hit dice and an armor class of 9.  According to Swycaffer, such an elemental...

...Appears as a normal human.  It can cause, pleasure, peace, and happiness by its touch.  It can heal wounds for 7 points daily, and diseases once per day.  It has virtually no attacks.  This Elemental stays in the material world when conjured.

I think I would have given it a tickle attack.  An 'ending' elemental “[c]loses doors (as a wizard lock), dispels good magic, and curses as an Evil High Priest.”

With regard to using the die, Swycaffer suggests “an unusual party game.”  Just ask a question, roll the die, and interpret the result.

If any one of the triangular faces with the astrological symbols lands face up (a rare occurrence) Do not ask that question again!  The answer is far beyond the power of the stone's divination.

Personally, I think the die could be used to answer that age old question, “What does your character feel when he puts him arm into the hole in the cavern wall?”  In any event, you can impress your friends by owning a die where 'moist' is a possible result.

Peace and goodwill towards all!

assembled

UPDATE:  As indicated in the comments below, Jeff “Warsprite” Swycaffer let us all down in a big way.  The least I can do is supply a version of the Philosopher's Stone die where the arrangement of faces conforms to Aristotle's notions of the elements.

A New Concept (for 1982)

As a lad, your humble host watched General Hospital.  This was during the 'Ice Princess' storyline with its elements of science fiction and espionage.  The soap opera enjoyed unprecedented popularity and – understandably – this popularity carried over into merchandising.  Cardinal Industries obtained the license for GH and published The Game of General Hospital in 1982.

So what does this have to do with old school role-playing games?  Admittedly, not much.  However, the game was marketed as “a role playing board game...”  The back of the box reads, “This new concept incorporates the simplicity of a board game with the freedom of a role playing game.”  It certainly doesn't conform to modern notions of what a role-playing game should be nor did it conform to then current notions of what a role-playing game should be.  Yet it was designed and presented as a role-playing game – or at least something with aspects of a role-playing game.  That brings it under the purview of this blog.  In any event, your humble host fervently hopes that – in this season of good will and charity – you will indulge him as he confronts his inner demons.

On the board, there is a multi-branched track of spaces upon which playing pieces – representing characters – move clockwise.  Spaces (or areas of several adjacent spaces) correspond to exciting locations from the television series; for example, 'Hospital Reception Area' and 'Floating Rib Restaurant'.

The game is intended for two to ten players and this represents one of the problems of the game.  The dynamics of the game require a sizable number of players but its the roll-and- move nature means the game becomes more tedious with more players.  Each player adopts the role of a prominent General Hospital character, of which ten are available.  One side of each 5½" × 5½" character sheet shows attributes; the other side provides a brief character description as well as strategy tips for playing the character.

Attributes include 'Resistance to Romance' and 'Charm'.  Among the characters, Resistance to Romance ranges from eight to ten.  When a character attempts to romance another character, the Resistance to Romance of the target character must be equaled or exceeded on 2d6.  Charm ranges from +1 to +4; three characters have +1, two have +3, and five have +4.  Charm is added to the 2d6 roll in romance attempts.  As one might suspect, 'romance' plays a key role in the game.

The other individuating aspects of characters regard gaining and losing points.  The four categories of point gain/loss are:  Material Gain, Romance, Power, and Reputation.

Material Gain is a measure of money accumulated during the game.  It is presented as “x points per $5,000” with a maximum amount specified.  Heather Webber has “12 pts. per $5,000 (maximum 60 pts.)” while Alan Quartermaine has “10 pts. per $5,000 (maximum 35 pts.).”

Each character gains a certain amount of points per romance with a set maximum number; after that number each additional romance causes a loss of points.  There is also an award for being in a happy marriage at the end of the game.  As an example, Joe Kelly gains 10 points per romance (maximum two romances), –8 points for each additional romance, and 30 points for a happy marriage.

'Power' might be better termed 'social'.  Characters can 'help friends' by giving money, cards, or points (or a combination thereof) without getting anything in return.  One can also help friends by confirming or denying rumors.  Characters can also 'double cross' others by failing to comply with an agreement.  For instance, Jackie Templeton can give money to Robert Scorpio in exchange for denying a rumor.  Scorpio can accept the money but not deny the rumor.  This – not surprisingly – counts as a double cross.  Most characters gain ten points for committing a double cross with a maximum of one or two times and then receive a penalty for committing additional double crosses.  Monica Quartermaine and Heather Webber can commit unlimited double crosses.

Reputation can only cause a loss of points, not a gain.  It is expressed as “–x for every undispelled rumor at the end of the game.”  X ranges from as low as 5 points (Luke Spencer) to 15 points (Amy Vining).

Two characters of opposite gender can participate in a romance under certain conditions.  They must occupy the same location (and no other characters can be present).  Characters can engage in a romance (1) by mutual agreement, (2) if certain Fate Cards are played by one character against another, (3) one character can overcome the other's Resistance to Romance via Charm.  Romances last for three rounds or until the characters marry.  A marriage that lasts until the end of the game is a 'happy marriage'.  A divorce can result from any of three conditions:  (1) a spouse enters into an extra-marital romance, (2) a spouse “lands on the Campus Disco” space, or (3) a 'mental cruelty' or 'cheating on spouse' rumor is applied to a spouse and remains undispelled for three turns (not rounds).  Undispelled rumors that apply to a character at the end of the game apply equally to the character's spouse.  Spouses cannot play, confirm, or deny rumors on/for one another.  The game recommends “an equal number of male and female characters.”

The first character to gain 100 points wins the game.  Since some scoring doesn't occur until the end of the game, there should be a different end-game condition, such as one complete round after the third board of directors meeting.  The character with the most points would win.

The trouble with double crosses is that there is no reason to trust a character who still has points to gain from committing a double cross.  Perhaps a roll should be required when double crossing.  If the roll is successful, the character gains points as usual.  If the roll is failed, the victim gains points from the double crosser.  Perhaps the roll should become more difficult with each attempt.

Rumors are the result of certain Fate Cards.  A character may play a rumor upon another character if he or she gets another character to confirm it.  Rumors can be dispelled with 'evidence' Fate Cards or if two characters other than the victim deny the rumor.  My problem with the rumor mechanic is that rumors randomly come into play via Fate Cards and they are generic – most rumors can be applied to anyone (the exception being marital rumors).

I know you didn't ask, but here is how I would handle it if I went back in time and had nothing better to do than work on game design for Cardinal.  All soap opera characters have skeletons in their closets.  Let's have these represented in the game as 'dirt tokens' – each character has a fixed number of dirt tokens specific to him or her.  At the beginning of the game, one or more dirt tokens for each character is placed in a bag along with some neutral tokens.  On his or her turn, a player may attempt to 'dig up dirt' by paying a sum of money to the bank or by rolling doubles or whatever.  The player selects a token at random from the bag.  If the token is associated with a character, then the player can target that character, either through blackmail or hitting the character with a rumor.  The rumor can only be dispelled through evidence cards or by a majority of characters denying the rumor.  Every round each player adds a token to the bag; either a dirt token for his or her character or a neutral token, the nature of the token is not disclosed to the other players.  At the end of the game, the player takes a penalty for every dirt token he or she hasn't put in the bag.  (Putting a dirt token in the bag is risky, but it reduces the end-game penalty.)

The promise of “the freedom of a role playing game” does not ring true.  Each character is distinct, but play is constrained to opportunities presented by Fate Cards and the board.  A player cannot make his or her own opportunities nor is there a Game Master to facilitate immersion.  There is an optimal strategy for each character that is spelled out on the character sheet; 'playing a role' is reduced to min/maxing scoring opportunities.