The Inside Scoop on Gaming

This product is available for view and/or download at http://www.peginc.com/hoe/marshal/HoEPris.html.

The first scenario that you play's an important one. I'm not just talking about the first scenario that you play for a particular game system, or with a new group; I'm talking about the first scenario ever, the one that gave you your first idea of what kind of potential a role-playing game can have. Mine, for example, was the little dungeon crawl that came with the Basic Dungeons and Dragons set, and while it wasn't bad, it was missing just about every innovation that came in role-playing after that point - no characterization, no story, just a simple dungeon hack. There's nothing wrong with that.

So it's with that in mind that I can recommend "The Shape of Things A’Comin’" without hesitation as an excellent introduction to a neophyte band of role-players. It's got a simple plot, a great villain, lots of hooks to keep the players moving, an interesting setting, and captures the vividness of the setting in a few stroke. More importantly, you can pretty much borrow it for any setting that you'd want and adapt it without any difficulty. I don't want to call it a masterpiece, but it's a damn fine example for those who want to write their own adventures. The fact that it's free, and on the Internet, is just icing on the cake.

In a few brief strokes, here's what happens: While trying to find a crossing point on a river, the characters find an abandoned prison complex - and, in a neat coincidence, are simultaneously attacked by some villainous scavengers. While the fight rages, the wind picks up, and the characters are forced into the shelter of the prison. The interior of the prison is nicely laid out, complete with the little stuff - a few shotgun shells, a riot helmet, works of fiction - that you'd expect to find in a ruined prison. (It reminded me of the immortal computer game Wasteland, actually.) It's that kind of attention to detail, to the little things that post-nuclear survivors would find valuable, that gives me the impression that the author of the scenario knew what he was doing.

There's plenty of clues and foreshadowing as to what happened, although I'd be inclined to give broad hints about some of them. There's some nicely creepy moments - seeing a human figure that simply melts away when spotted, dozens of skeletons missing teeth, weird noises - for fans of horror. There's some NPCs who die horribly so that the players don't have to lose one of their own to the monster to know how it works. And the monster itself is perfect for playing bloody hell with the characters, the kind of monster that can't be taken down with gunfire. The players actually have to think to bring it down; better yet, there's three seperate ways of doing it.

There are faults within the adventure. For one thing, the maps are a touch on the small side, and it'd be nice to have a .pdf file of them so that you could print them out; in addition, there's a distinct lack of texture to them, which means that they look a little bland. The other fault, and this one is slightly more major, has to do with the way that the game handles supernatural weaknesses. The creature can be destroyed with some explosives that were used in creating the monster in the first place, but it's stated specifically that they've got a mystic link with the monster itself. Other kinds of explosives won't work. It's basically sympathetic magic, which works nicely if you know about it in advance, but the problem is that the players are going to have to be aware of it to begin with. It'll seem unfair if a bundle of plastic explosive doesn't hurt the creature, but the old explosives in one of the scenario's MacGuffins works just fine. On the other hand, the sympathetic magic connection is an old one in the Deadlands universe, so perhaps it's taken for granted within the context of the game.

So, in short, it's a great little adventure. I'd recommend at least checking it out.

And do me a favor: If your players are baffled by the mystery, just come out and tell them what they need to know. It'll give them an idea of what to expect, how the game works, and it'll give them the impression that they can win by themselves, rather than by playing "read the GM's mind". I've made that mistake too many times in my career to watch it happen again. :->

-Darren MacLennan

Style: 3 (Average)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

The Shape o' Things A'Comin'
Author: Unknown - any input would be much appreciated Category: game Company/Publisher: Pinnacle Entertainment Group Line: Deadlands Cost: FREE Page count: n/a ISBN: n/a SKU: n/a Capsule Review by Darren MacLennan on 09/18/00. Genre tags: Science fiction Horror Far Future Post-apocalypse Old West Superhero Generic	This product is available for view and/or download at http://www.peginc.com/hoe/marshal/HoEPris.html. The first scenario that you play's an important one. I'm not just talking about the first scenario that you play for a particular game system, or with a new group; I'm talking about the first scenario ever, the one that gave you your first idea of what kind of potential a role-playing game can have. Mine, for example, was the little dungeon crawl that came with the Basic Dungeons and Dragons set, and while it wasn't bad, it was missing just about every innovation that came in role-playing after that point - no characterization, no story, just a simple dungeon hack. There's nothing wrong with that. So it's with that in mind that I can recommend "The Shape of Things A’Comin’" without hesitation as an excellent introduction to a neophyte band of role-players. It's got a simple plot, a great villain, lots of hooks to keep the players moving, an interesting setting, and captures the vividness of the setting in a few stroke. More importantly, you can pretty much borrow it for any setting that you'd want and adapt it without any difficulty. I don't want to call it a masterpiece, but it's a damn fine example for those who want to write their own adventures. The fact that it's free, and on the Internet, is just icing on the cake. In a few brief strokes, here's what happens: While trying to find a crossing point on a river, the characters find an abandoned prison complex - and, in a neat coincidence, are simultaneously attacked by some villainous scavengers. While the fight rages, the wind picks up, and the characters are forced into the shelter of the prison. The interior of the prison is nicely laid out, complete with the little stuff - a few shotgun shells, a riot helmet, works of fiction - that you'd expect to find in a ruined prison. (It reminded me of the immortal computer game Wasteland, actually.) It's that kind of attention to detail, to the little things that post-nuclear survivors would find valuable, that gives me the impression that the author of the scenario knew what he was doing. There's plenty of clues and foreshadowing as to what happened, although I'd be inclined to give broad hints about some of them. There's some nicely creepy moments - seeing a human figure that simply melts away when spotted, dozens of skeletons missing teeth, weird noises - for fans of horror. There's some NPCs who die horribly so that the players don't have to lose one of their own to the monster to know how it works. And the monster itself is perfect for playing bloody hell with the characters, the kind of monster that can't be taken down with gunfire. The players actually have to think to bring it down; better yet, there's three seperate ways of doing it. There are faults within the adventure. For one thing, the maps are a touch on the small side, and it'd be nice to have a .pdf file of them so that you could print them out; in addition, there's a distinct lack of texture to them, which means that they look a little bland. The other fault, and this one is slightly more major, has to do with the way that the game handles supernatural weaknesses. The creature can be destroyed with some explosives that were used in creating the monster in the first place, but it's stated specifically that they've got a mystic link with the monster itself. Other kinds of explosives won't work. It's basically sympathetic magic, which works nicely if you know about it in advance, but the problem is that the players are going to have to be aware of it to begin with. It'll seem unfair if a bundle of plastic explosive doesn't hurt the creature, but the old explosives in one of the scenario's MacGuffins works just fine. On the other hand, the sympathetic magic connection is an old one in the Deadlands universe, so perhaps it's taken for granted within the context of the game. So, in short, it's a great little adventure. I'd recommend at least checking it out. And do me a favor: If your players are baffled by the mystery, just come out and tell them what they need to know. It'll give them an idea of what to expect, how the game works, and it'll give them the impression that they can win by themselves, rather than by playing "read the GM's mind". I've made that mistake too many times in my career to watch it happen again. :-> -Darren MacLennan Style: 3 (Average) Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

The Shape o' Things A'Comin'