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Classic Adventure Design

robject

robject

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Things I just learned about adventure resources

</font>
  • Worlds: 2-4 pages of LBB text (Stats, Terrain, Climate, Local life, History) plus map are essential to paint a basic picture of a world.</font>
  • Locations: A floor plan or map paints a thousand words. Again, 2-4 pages of LBB text plus a map is essential.</font>
  • Starships: Minimize deckplan description text in adventures. Adventure text should be for significant or unusual features only.</font>

Worlds

Gerome and Patinir (A0), 1 paragraph each.
Vanejen (A2) 3pp, map
assorted world rumors (A3), 1 paragraph each, 4pp total.
Fulacin (A3), 9pp, map and animal encounter descriptions.
assorted world data (A4), 1 paragraph each, 3pp total.
Newcomb (A8), 6pp, map and animal encounter tables.
Bellerophon (A9), 5pp, map.
567-908 (A10), 3pp, map.
Scandia (A13), 1pg.
Ochre (A13), 3pp.
Cymbelins (A13), 2pp
Mithril (DA2), 12pp, map, event descriptions, weather table, animal encounter table.
Dinom (DA2), 9pg, maps, location/event descriptions
Janosz (DA3), 2pp.
Gadden (DA3), 1pg.
Pagliacci (DA4), 18 pg, map, animal encounter tables.
Raschev (DA5), 2pg, map.
Alenzar (DA5), 1/2pg.
Chamax (DA5), 1/2pg.
Pavabid (DA6), 1/2 pg.
Gaajpadje (DA6), 1.5pg.

Locations

Starhaven Tavern, Regina (A0), 1/4pg.
Research station (A2), 10pp, floorplans
Octagon Society shelter (A3), 4pp, floorplans
Ancient base (A3), 7pp, floorplans
Utane, Utoland (A6), 2pp, map.
Marion Starport, Yorbund (DA1), 1pg
Shadows pyramid complex (DA1), 16pp, floorplans and animal encounters.
Mithril Starport (DA2), 1pg, "floor" plan
Gravitic Palace (DA6), 12pp, floorplans
Gaajpadje Palace (DA6), 3pp, map
Rijudiya city (DA6), 4pp, map
Rijudiya Airship Port (DA2), 3pp, map

Starships

Scout/Courier (A0), 5pp, deckplans.
Kinunir (A1), 16pp, deckplans. Crew, 7pp.
Leviathan Merchant Cruiser (A4), 16pp, deckplans. Crew, 3pp.
Rock and Pebble (starship and smallcraft) (A6), 9pp, deckplans
Safari Ship (A10), 15pp, deckplans
Subsidized Liner (A13), 13pp, deckplans
Annic Nova (DA1), 13pp, deckplans
Lab Ship (DA3), 12pp, deckplans
Chamaxi spaceship (DA5), 2 pp, deckplans
Subsidized Merchant (DA5), 3pp, deckplans

Things

Submarine (A2), 2pp
Robots (A2), 5pp
Utoland Gazette want ads (A6) with paragraph descriptions, 6p.
Personality Overlay Machine (A6), 1/2pg
Hunterfoil watercraft (A9), 1pg
 
Things I just learned about adventure resources

</font>
  • Worlds: 2-4 pages of LBB text (Stats, Terrain, Climate, Local life, History) plus map are essential to paint a basic picture of a world.</font>
  • Locations: A floor plan or map paints a thousand words. Again, 2-4 pages of LBB text plus a map is essential.</font>
  • Starships: Minimize deckplan description text in adventures. Adventure text should be for significant or unusual features only.</font>

Worlds

Gerome and Patinir (A0), 1 paragraph each.
Vanejen (A2) 3pp, map
assorted world rumors (A3), 1 paragraph each, 4pp total.
Fulacin (A3), 9pp, map and animal encounter descriptions.
assorted world data (A4), 1 paragraph each, 3pp total.
Newcomb (A8), 6pp, map and animal encounter tables.
Bellerophon (A9), 5pp, map.
567-908 (A10), 3pp, map.
Scandia (A13), 1pg.
Ochre (A13), 3pp.
Cymbelins (A13), 2pp
Mithril (DA2), 12pp, map, event descriptions, weather table, animal encounter table.
Dinom (DA2), 9pg, maps, location/event descriptions
Janosz (DA3), 2pp.
Gadden (DA3), 1pg.
Pagliacci (DA4), 18 pg, map, animal encounter tables.
Raschev (DA5), 2pg, map.
Alenzar (DA5), 1/2pg.
Chamax (DA5), 1/2pg.
Pavabid (DA6), 1/2 pg.
Gaajpadje (DA6), 1.5pg.

Locations

Starhaven Tavern, Regina (A0), 1/4pg.
Research station (A2), 10pp, floorplans
Octagon Society shelter (A3), 4pp, floorplans
Ancient base (A3), 7pp, floorplans
Utane, Utoland (A6), 2pp, map.
Marion Starport, Yorbund (DA1), 1pg
Shadows pyramid complex (DA1), 16pp, floorplans and animal encounters.
Mithril Starport (DA2), 1pg, "floor" plan
Gravitic Palace (DA6), 12pp, floorplans
Gaajpadje Palace (DA6), 3pp, map
Rijudiya city (DA6), 4pp, map
Rijudiya Airship Port (DA2), 3pp, map

Starships

Scout/Courier (A0), 5pp, deckplans.
Kinunir (A1), 16pp, deckplans. Crew, 7pp.
Leviathan Merchant Cruiser (A4), 16pp, deckplans. Crew, 3pp.
Rock and Pebble (starship and smallcraft) (A6), 9pp, deckplans
Safari Ship (A10), 15pp, deckplans
Subsidized Liner (A13), 13pp, deckplans
Annic Nova (DA1), 13pp, deckplans
Lab Ship (DA3), 12pp, deckplans
Chamaxi spaceship (DA5), 2 pp, deckplans
Subsidized Merchant (DA5), 3pp, deckplans

Things

Submarine (A2), 2pp
Robots (A2), 5pp
Utoland Gazette want ads (A6) with paragraph descriptions, 6p.
Personality Overlay Machine (A6), 1/2pg
Hunterfoil watercraft (A9), 1pg
 
There's certainly nowhere near enough floorplans for non ship based adventuring out there.

You can find all sorts of deckplans on the interweb, but a resource of plans for bars, factories, starports, research bases, farms, canal systems, mines, prisons, shopping malls, space museums is severely lacking.

Obviously real world plans can be used, but they don't feature those special spacey bits we love to have in our games.
 
There's certainly nowhere near enough floorplans for non ship based adventuring out there.

You can find all sorts of deckplans on the interweb, but a resource of plans for bars, factories, starports, research bases, farms, canal systems, mines, prisons, shopping malls, space museums is severely lacking.

Obviously real world plans can be used, but they don't feature those special spacey bits we love to have in our games.
 
You can find all sorts of deckplans on the interweb, but a resource of plans for bars, factories, starports, research bases, farms, canal systems, mines, prisons, shopping malls, space museums is severely lacking.
Click to expand...
yeah, but 1) anyone can do non-ship floorplans, and 2) floorplans are one-shot deals, while characters live aboard a ship for much longer, and 3) it's not cool to have a floorplan of a place you don't own, but it is cool to have a deckplan of a ship you own.
 
You can find all sorts of deckplans on the interweb, but a resource of plans for bars, factories, starports, research bases, farms, canal systems, mines, prisons, shopping malls, space museums is severely lacking.
Click to expand...
yeah, but 1) anyone can do non-ship floorplans, and 2) floorplans are one-shot deals, while characters live aboard a ship for much longer, and 3) it's not cool to have a floorplan of a place you don't own, but it is cool to have a deckplan of a ship you own.
 
Originally posted by robject:

Things

Submarine (A2), 2pp
Robots (A2), 5pp
Utoland Gazette want ads (A6) with paragraph descriptions, 6p.
Personality Overlay Machine (A6), 1/2pg
Hunterfoil watercraft (A9), 1pg
Click to expand...
There is also the ATV in DA2, 2pp (plus 1p of vehicle-use rules). A map of the ATV's interior is provided but without a legend or any labels.
 
Originally posted by robject:

Things

Submarine (A2), 2pp
Robots (A2), 5pp
Utoland Gazette want ads (A6) with paragraph descriptions, 6p.
Personality Overlay Machine (A6), 1/2pg
Hunterfoil watercraft (A9), 1pg
Click to expand...
There is also the ATV in DA2, 2pp (plus 1p of vehicle-use rules). A map of the ATV's interior is provided but without a legend or any labels.
 
Originally posted by flykiller:

yeah, but 1) anyone can do non-ship floorplans, and 2) floorplans are one-shot deals, while characters live aboard a ship for much longer, and 3) it's not cool to have a floorplan of a place you don't own, but it is cool to have a deckplan of a ship you own.
Click to expand...
So true: bars and hotel rooms aren't worth the effort unless you recycle a few standard models.

But: some maps are good enough to revisit, including (1) starports and (2) cities. These two features go a long way in fleshing out a world.

Example 1: a map of Luck Gibson's Startown would be desirable. It only needs the resolution of Rijudiya city to be re-useful.

Example 2: the map of the tiny starport on Mithril speaks volumes to me. I see enough there to decide for myself what it's largely capable of, and I can show it to players; they'll know they're relatively far from civilization.
 
Originally posted by flykiller:

yeah, but 1) anyone can do non-ship floorplans, and 2) floorplans are one-shot deals, while characters live aboard a ship for much longer, and 3) it's not cool to have a floorplan of a place you don't own, but it is cool to have a deckplan of a ship you own.
Click to expand...
So true: bars and hotel rooms aren't worth the effort unless you recycle a few standard models.

But: some maps are good enough to revisit, including (1) starports and (2) cities. These two features go a long way in fleshing out a world.

Example 1: a map of Luck Gibson's Startown would be desirable. It only needs the resolution of Rijudiya city to be re-useful.

Example 2: the map of the tiny starport on Mithril speaks volumes to me. I see enough there to decide for myself what it's largely capable of, and I can show it to players; they'll know they're relatively far from civilization.
 
hmmm there is an OLD publication that is out of print that had stores, bars, clubs, train stations, apartment layouts for a couple diffrent price ranges. is was for shadowrun called Sprawl Sites. most of the stats would not me approperate but it was to a scale that coule be converted.
 
hmmm there is an OLD publication that is out of print that had stores, bars, clubs, train stations, apartment layouts for a couple diffrent price ranges. is was for shadowrun called Sprawl Sites. most of the stats would not me approperate but it was to a scale that coule be converted.
 
Originally posted by flykiller:
yeah, but 1) anyone can do non-ship floorplans, and 2) floorplans are one-shot deals, while characters live aboard a ship for much longer, and 3) it's not cool to have a floorplan of a place you don't own, but it is cool to have a deckplan of a ship you own.
Click to expand...
Anyone can do ship deckplans too. + they're not necessarily one shot deals. They can be reused and redressed several times. What if characters own a bar...?

I've used my old Star Frontiers maps several times, for city blocks, industrial installations, bars, shops etc. Re-used them with the same players, but in different circumstances and with different features: they didn't notice.

I can make my own floorplans, just like I can make my own deckplans (and do); just sometimes I don't have the time. And players tend to spend more play time off ship than on.
 
Originally posted by flykiller:
yeah, but 1) anyone can do non-ship floorplans, and 2) floorplans are one-shot deals, while characters live aboard a ship for much longer, and 3) it's not cool to have a floorplan of a place you don't own, but it is cool to have a deckplan of a ship you own.
Click to expand...
Anyone can do ship deckplans too. + they're not necessarily one shot deals. They can be reused and redressed several times. What if characters own a bar...?

I've used my old Star Frontiers maps several times, for city blocks, industrial installations, bars, shops etc. Re-used them with the same players, but in different circumstances and with different features: they didn't notice.

I can make my own floorplans, just like I can make my own deckplans (and do); just sometimes I don't have the time. And players tend to spend more play time off ship than on.
 
Things I've Learned Today About World Briefings

By looking at three good world briefings -- Vanejen, 567-908, and Bellerophon -- I sort of get the following template:

Total pages: 2 to 4 fullsize pages.

General

1. Vitals (UWP descriptive text): 10 - 80 words
2. Starport descriptive text: 10 - 90 words
3. System information: 10 - 140 words

(Optional: starport map)

World Map

Physical Description

1. Terrain: 100 - 360 words
2. Climate and Weather: 80 - 360 words
3. Flora and Fauna: 30 - 100 words

(Optional: city map)

Social Description

1. Settlements and Government: 300 words
2. History: 240 - 480 words
 
Things I've Learned Today About World Briefings

By looking at three good world briefings -- Vanejen, 567-908, and Bellerophon -- I sort of get the following template:

Total pages: 2 to 4 fullsize pages.

General

1. Vitals (UWP descriptive text): 10 - 80 words
2. Starport descriptive text: 10 - 90 words
3. System information: 10 - 140 words

(Optional: starport map)

World Map

Physical Description

1. Terrain: 100 - 360 words
2. Climate and Weather: 80 - 360 words
3. Flora and Fauna: 30 - 100 words

(Optional: city map)

Social Description

1. Settlements and Government: 300 words
2. History: 240 - 480 words
 
So, in my mind, an ultimate resource would be a 120-page book containing a briefing about every mainworld in a subsector.
 
So, in my mind, an ultimate resource would be a 120-page book containing a briefing about every mainworld in a subsector.
 
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