The Inside Scoop on Gaming

One of the biggest challenges facing a GM in a "realistic" campaign is the inevitability that one of the players has had a more relevant experience that applies to the situation. Sometimes it's the martial artist who knows just how many pounds of pressure it takes to break a human bone. Sometimes it's the gun nut who knows all about calibers and millimeters and what kinds of guns terrorists and police carry. Sometimes it's just somebody whose life is at least as interesting as the RPG character he or she plays.

But there's an upside to the realistic sticklers of the gaming world. There's hard data on all those topics you may not know, and it's just a matter of looking it up. Right?

Not quite. Not many books are devoted to giving you concise, detailed background information about a variety of topics. At least, not 'til now...

Enter the Writers Digest series. These books are meant for writers, giving them a refresher course in a particular topic that will provide a jumping off point for further research. They just happen to be perfect for GMs too, who have to deal with an instant audience (the players) and usually have under a week to come up with a "script" (module).

I purchased Body Trauma for this very reason. A lot of RPGs are heavy on combat but not in describing the actual damage, usually to avoid the gore (that's right kiddies, we'll warn you all about demonic magic in RPGs but won't bother to mention the critical hit chart with "head explodes" at 00). This is a great disservice to gaming. Making combats descriptive really spices up role-playing, and makes the combat more animated than silence while dice clatter across the table.

Body Trauma hits on a bunch of topics, all detailed in by David Page, who just happens to be an ER doctor. It's a good thing too: he finds fascinating what most people find disgusting.

Part I covers the First Responder's perspective, from the ER room itself to surgical politics. But I didn't buy the book for that stuff.

Part II is where the fun starts. Here, Dr. Page goes into detail about the effects of concussions and facial injuries, trauma to the neck (from slashing to strangling), the dirty dozen chest injuries, what happens when internal organs get smacked around, and more.

Part III is of interest to fantasy gamers, with a long list of bites and stings and the effects of impalement, burns (someone fried by a lightning bolt can actually suffer bone fractures from extreme muscle spams), and altitude illness. As if that weren't enough, child abuse, rape, and organ donation round out the book.

Is this book useful to gamers? Part III is. The book has plenty of diagrams and lists, usually a sign of a good reference. It also suffers from "I'm-a-writer-too-itis." Dr. Page sometimes get overdramatic at various points, enthusiastically spewing plot ideas unnecessarily, and at other times not giving enough information to really do the topic justice. Sometimes we just get a list. Sometimes we get a curious amount of detail, like the effects of the dreaded Botfly -- think rotgrubs and you've got the idea.

There's not much in the way of medieval weapons and their impact on the body. The impalement section hypes up the horror and doesn't provide much in the way of facts (how many pounds of direct pressure does it take? We many never know). Nevertheless, for modern gamers, it opens up a world of possibilities. Some of the gems I picked up:

Car crashes, even when people are seat belted in, causes terrible damage as the internal organs slap against each other. Just because your body didn't smash through the windshield doesn't mean the force doesn't do horrible things to your internals.
Strangling can cause clotting that takes effect much later. Characters can suddenly turn purple hours after the attack.
Bullets don't just poke a hole in the victim, the drag the clothing and bone matter behind them. Bullets also strike bone and then cause the bone to explode as well, sending secondary projectils into the surrounding flesh.

Ultimately, Body Trauma is a servicable, if somewhat overdramatic guide to the human body and all its griefs. It's of much more use to gamers role-playing in a modern universe however.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

The Howdunit Series: Body Trauma
Author: David W. Page, M.D. Category: Writer's Guide Company/Publisher: Writer's Digest Cost: $16.99 Page count: 232 ISBN: 0-89879-741-1 Capsule Review by Michael Tresca on 02/04/99. Genre tags: Modern_day	One of the biggest challenges facing a GM in a "realistic" campaign is the inevitability that one of the players has had a more relevant experience that applies to the situation. Sometimes it's the martial artist who knows just how many pounds of pressure it takes to break a human bone. Sometimes it's the gun nut who knows all about calibers and millimeters and what kinds of guns terrorists and police carry. Sometimes it's just somebody whose life is at least as interesting as the RPG character he or she plays. But there's an upside to the realistic sticklers of the gaming world. There's hard data on all those topics you may not know, and it's just a matter of looking it up. Right? Not quite. Not many books are devoted to giving you concise, detailed background information about a variety of topics. At least, not 'til now... Enter the Writers Digest series. These books are meant for writers, giving them a refresher course in a particular topic that will provide a jumping off point for further research. They just happen to be perfect for GMs too, who have to deal with an instant audience (the players) and usually have under a week to come up with a "script" (module). I purchased Body Trauma for this very reason. A lot of RPGs are heavy on combat but not in describing the actual damage, usually to avoid the gore (that's right kiddies, we'll warn you all about demonic magic in RPGs but won't bother to mention the critical hit chart with "head explodes" at 00). This is a great disservice to gaming. Making combats descriptive really spices up role-playing, and makes the combat more animated than silence while dice clatter across the table. Body Trauma hits on a bunch of topics, all detailed in by David Page, who just happens to be an ER doctor. It's a good thing too: he finds fascinating what most people find disgusting. Part I covers the First Responder's perspective, from the ER room itself to surgical politics. But I didn't buy the book for that stuff. Part II is where the fun starts. Here, Dr. Page goes into detail about the effects of concussions and facial injuries, trauma to the neck (from slashing to strangling), the dirty dozen chest injuries, what happens when internal organs get smacked around, and more. Part III is of interest to fantasy gamers, with a long list of bites and stings and the effects of impalement, burns (someone fried by a lightning bolt can actually suffer bone fractures from extreme muscle spams), and altitude illness. As if that weren't enough, child abuse, rape, and organ donation round out the book. Is this book useful to gamers? Part III is. The book has plenty of diagrams and lists, usually a sign of a good reference. It also suffers from "I'm-a-writer-too-itis." Dr. Page sometimes get overdramatic at various points, enthusiastically spewing plot ideas unnecessarily, and at other times not giving enough information to really do the topic justice. Sometimes we just get a list. Sometimes we get a curious amount of detail, like the effects of the dreaded Botfly -- think rotgrubs and you've got the idea. There's not much in the way of medieval weapons and their impact on the body. The impalement section hypes up the horror and doesn't provide much in the way of facts (how many pounds of direct pressure does it take? We many never know). Nevertheless, for modern gamers, it opens up a world of possibilities. Some of the gems I picked up: Car crashes, even when people are seat belted in, causes terrible damage as the internal organs slap against each other. Just because your body didn't smash through the windshield doesn't mean the force doesn't do horrible things to your internals. Strangling can cause clotting that takes effect much later. Characters can suddenly turn purple hours after the attack. Bullets don't just poke a hole in the victim, the drag the clothing and bone matter behind them. Bullets also strike bone and then cause the bone to explode as well, sending secondary projectils into the surrounding flesh. Ultimately, Body Trauma is a servicable, if somewhat overdramatic guide to the human body and all its griefs. It's of much more use to gamers role-playing in a modern universe however. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)

The Howdunit Series: Body Trauma