So, here I sit now post-OGL, looking forelornly at the Rolemaster and Shadow World books on my shelves, and I’ve find myself wanting to play in that fantastic setting again. It’s been a long time since I’ve played Rolemaster, and to use it I’d have to delve back into the books and re-learn the system, then teach the system to anyone else that I’m playing with. While I would really love to do that, the chances of that happening are quite slim. The current game systems I’m playing are Dragon Age, Pathfinder, Savage Worlds and D&D 4e. I’m gaming mostly with my kids, some friends locally, and online with a few groups. My life is much too busy already with work, school and gaming to add another system to the mix, and I really enjoy the systems that I’m playing right now. So, of course, the simplest answer is to convert it to one of these systems, and the prime contender is Savage Worlds.

One thing that a conversion does is change the feel of the setting based upon the mechanics of the conversion system. Rolemaster is a gritty and realistic system whereas Savage World is a “high-octane” pulp action-based system. They’re very different systems, and much of the experience of these systems is how they get things done. Whilst Rolemaster has extended options for combat and is much more simulationist, Savage Worlds is designed to be fast-playing and cinematic. Rolemaster has a large selection of skills and abilities tied to racial and career packages, whilst Savage Worlds has a limited number. What is interesting is that both systems hold to an exploding dice roll mechanic that allows for better than average results to occur when attempting tasks.

So, the first step in the conversion will be recreating all of the races and character creation options, and the bestiary from the Shadow World Boxed Set (as I don’t currently own the most recent version of the setting – yet!). Then I’ll move on to the individual adventure modules. Given that I’ve got a lot of projects on the go right now, it will most likely be the summer before I have anything major to share. It’s going to be an interesting challenge to make this happen, because there’s so much disparity between Rolemaster and Savage Worlds, and I need to find a way to convert the power levels of the level-based Rolemaster to the attribute-based Savage Worlds. It might not even be possible, but I’ll give it my best shot.

So, here’s some initial advice for those who GM, based on my own personal experiences:

1. Remember that everyone has to have fun, and that includes the GM.
2. Remember that the rules are, as Barbosa says “…more like guidelines…” and feel free to use or not use them as you see fit, as long as everyone is having fun.
3. Remember that it’s only a game, but the only way to lose is to not have fun.
4. Reward the players. Often. Especially if they do what I call “Awesomesauce Moments”. These are moments where the players do something so spectacularly incredibly brilliant/hilarious/messed up that everyone ends up rolling on the floor laughing or talking over each other excitedly. You’ll know these moments when you get them. Revel in them, because they become the moments you’ll still bring up amongst yourselves 25 years later.
5. Give the players every opportunity to hang themselves. Always give them a way out. Let them choose if they want to take or it or not. And don’t be afraid to hang them. All choices have consequences, especially those in a game.
6. If you’re using a published adventure, don’t feel constrained by what it says. Break it, reshape it, ignore it. Make the adventure your own by customizing it for your group.
7. Let the players get away with murder. Literally. At least for a little while, and then start to mess with their sense of morality and then send in the authorities to chase them down This ties into the consequences of character actions. Characters don’t operate in a vacuum, like in many computer games, where they can get away with looting and murdering with abandon. The best character moments are often when the player does something that causes a chain reaction that leads to high drama and tension.
8. Know that it’s okay to not know everything about the rule system or adventure. Be as prepared as you can be, but don’t feel that you have to be perfect. It’s okay to kludge things. And it’s okay to change your mind on things, as long as it makes sense to do so.
9. “Role, don’t roll” as much as you can. Interactions between characters are strongest when it’s a dialogue between characters, not a series of dice rolls. Fudge stuff as you need to. Move the story along.
10. Follow the sage advice of Bill S. Preston, Esq. and Ted. “Theodore” Logan: “Be Excellent To Each Other”. This is also akin to Wheaton’s Law: “Don’t Be A Dick”. Or as my grandpa used to say “Civility costs nothing when you are nothing”.
11. Rely on your players to help support you. Assign one of the the task of rules support to look up rules while you continue to move the story forward, one to act as party “banker” to keep track of party loot, and one or two to chronicle the sessions you play. That will help you out a lot and allow you to focus of facilitating the game.
12. Find tools that you can easily use to help you automate games or keep track of information. You’re going to create a lot of information as you play, and it’s always a good idea to keep track of this. Some people use text documents, others use wikis, others use simple pen and paper. Find what works for you and go with it.
13. Shoot for the moon. Aim high with what you want to do, but know that it’ll take a while to create the campaign that everyone will still be talking about 10-20 years later. Also know that it’s not just your game, but everyone’s game, so everyone should be involved in the creation of the shared experience.
14. Prepare and review. Prepare for the adventure by knowing ahead of time what you’d like to happen, but know that players often put the kibosh on that. At the end of a session, review what happened and note what went well, and what didn’t and keep them for consideration in the future.
15. Find out what the players want to accomplish short term and long term for the game, and also what their characters want in the same way. This way you’re creating not only opportunities for characters but personalized experiences for the players.
16. Don’t railroad, but guide and herd. Let player choices organically grow the direction of games, but if you have to hit a particular plot point, make sure that you do it sneakily by guiding the players towards it, and making them make the choice to follow it. There will be times players don’t see the path, so shine a light near it and let them walk of their own accord.

I’m sure I can rustle up some more, but what would you suggest for GMs, both old and new?

So, what kind of personal projects am I working on I hear you ask? Well, I’m a huge fan of Pinnacle’s Savage Worlds, and I’ve recently written an adventure around a retelling of the Left 4 Dead video games, which has been playtested some and is in the final stages of editing before public release. I’m also working on a Savage version of the Shadow World setting, and a Savage game set in the Dune universe. I’ll be posting about these as I continue to work on them.

I’m also playing a number of great games right now, including two dedicated campaigns running via the Infrno social gaming website, where you can find me here. The first game is a Pathfinder-ized version of The Drow War, which has the exploits of the party posted here. The second is my Heroes of Ferelden campaign for Dragon Age tabletop game found here. I’m also running a homebrew Savage Worlds campaign for my kids, which is being turned into a commercial product that I’ll sell through Infinibadger. I’m also playing in a Pathfinder-ized Birthright campaign with the kids and some friends which meets every couple of weeks to play. Ah, tis good to be gaming!

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