Lone Wolf Fists: High-Octane Technical Writing

Nothing super mind-blowing this week. I've been going through the amazingly free technical feedback I've got on the writing and doing a new, more unified draft.

The technical re-writes have proven to be more fun than expected. I've adopted a more casual, less stilted tone and all the examples of play have been refreshing.

I've got an idea about how to structure the book for better comprehensibility. My thinking is that it needs to have a "first reading" for GM and for players, and then act as a reference document on subsequent readings. I think I can minimize the wordcount by using examples linked with mechanics to clarify and educate, as well as act as a handy reference tool.

Callout boxes are being used for that essential initial reading. When a new concept is introduced on the initial read through, it's given a callout box as an additional clarifying/teaching instrument. These also give me the opportunity to speak directly to the reader, usually with a more casual voice. This lends a friendliness to the text that it current lacks.

In other news, we were apparently the ninth-most downloaded PWYW for a little bit, which is great (free advertisement!). We just surpassed a hundred downloads too! I don't know how many of you fine people have tried running games, but I'm very excited to hear your feedback. You can leave it here, or of course join our playtest discord conversation here. 

Stay tuned for more, true believers!

Lone Wolf Fists: Time to fight some tanks

Last one for today, but I saved the very bad-assest for last-est

Yes, you can fight tanks and giant demons now. A few notes:

1) I really need to think of a more evocative name than "Systems"
2) Examples would be super helpful

They're coming up. My dream is to make a list of example tanks, vehicles, and a bunch of unique and awesome demons. We'll see how that goes. As for now? I think I'll take the rest of the day off and get back to work tomorrow. See you then, true believers!

Lone Wolf Fists: How do I map this setting, brah?

Working on the map right now. I did a terrible freehand sketch, then a terrible MSPaint sketch, so I settled on doing it in hexographer

Yeah look at that ruined, broken world. It kinda looks like it's on fire. Go Hexographer!

I've been struck with the need to add a new size category to the maps. Right now its:

Largest: Entire Map. All the linked-together Regions

Middle: Regions. City/country sized areas with content keyed to them

Smallest: Battlefields. Apartment-to-football-field sized areas where characters fight

In this set up, Regions are composed of Battlefields. That means that countries are diced up into rough neighborhood-sized chunks; that's a ton of Battlefields.

I'm thinking of adding a "Point of Interest" tier, big enough to contain several Battlefields but small enough that several of them can fit within a Region. 

That will allow GMs to make a given Region come alive with multiple, discrete areas of content. Somewhat similar to the map>hex>dungeon>room content of D&D (if this concept is totally alien to you, I humbly recommend you learn of it the way I did and read these fantastic articles on the illustrious Alexandrian site)

Note: I'm not certain of the legality of using this exact map in a product I sell. I'm also somewhat hesitant about using hexes, since they're largely maligned by modern gamers. So this is just a little rough visual draft to help me create and key some content, not a final map by any means.

Lone Wolf Fists: tying up loose ends

Well these fellows have been too long in the coming; the "actually use the Fist of the North Star moves" faction! Man, why did I delay these guys so long? Seems like I should have led with them...

Oh yeah, I remember why; they're dead

The rest of the lore will remain unwritten until I figure out a compelling way to write "Yup, they're dead and all their stuff is ruined"

Thankfully, "ancient ruins filled with traps and martial secrets" are a genre staple, so it won't require much imagination to make that awesome

I'm a little nervous about their Chakra-busting technique. It's a little dull and same-y in the mechanics department. My hope is that this is one of those designs that blossoms in-play, rather than merely having an impressive write-up.

Lone Wolf Fists: gearing up for some more writing

After a relaxing week of not working myself into a coma, I'm pleased to begin work on the "proper" LWF playtest.

Due to my ever-unpredictable luck, I managed to miraculously recruit an enormously talented (and generous) technical editor. His feedback has been mind-blowing; it will form the bedrock of the re-write towards respectability (or what passes for it in these rarefied circles XD).

Of course, there's missing content to address as well. That's got to come before the re-writes just to keep things straight!

In an additional twist of weird fortune, a few of my artist buddies have been eyeballing my operation and are interested in maybe making some art for us. Who knows? You might see some proper art in the very near future!

So it'll be a big week come Monday. In the meantime, I've got a dungeon to finish for a (potentially) one-shot game tonight. Maybe it'll become my new Saturday night thing!

Hang tight true believers!

Don't forget to pick up your eye-burningly bad alpha-draft playtest copy right here (all proceeds go toward art, layout, editing, etc. expenses of the final product and we thank you!): http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/244258/Tian-Shang-Lone-Wolf-Fists-Eyebleed-playtest-version

And of course, if YOU want to submit some feedback (or ask any questions, join the glowing ranks of our alpha test, or otherwise just chill with your fellow apocalyptic mutants) hop on over to our discord server with this link right here: https://discord.gg/NqSrMKJ

All feedback welcome, don't be shy

Lone Wolf Fist: the Eyebleed playtest

Well, that's 14 days of life-shattering work done, right there.

I just uploaded a still somewhat incomplete playtest document to DTRPG for their review (which is apparently in the 1-5 business day range, who knew?). There are a few significant elements missing from the work; like, the map and the content therein is a notable exclusion.

But its probably better this way. There's enough in the book for enterprising GMs to playtest, and that's the important thing.

Jesus... I'm going to let the rest of this caffeine bleed out of my system then catch up on some sleep. Stay tuned for more updates over the next week true believers, including those feedback cards I promised, the Five Star Spirit Lore, and of course a link to the Eyebleed playtest (so named for the current state of the creator's eyeballs) when it becomes available.

Oh, and if you're one of those unhealthy individuals who wants to constantly click F5 for the next work week, this is our publisher's page and presumably it'll pop up there whenever its approved.

Later: It's here! Come and read this mess!

Lone Wolf Fists: Interlude

Here I am in the eye of the storm: there’s nothing but wasteland in every direction. Why am I doing this to myself? Who am I writing this for? Why NOW, after so many years?

Because I’m tired of getting my ass kicked by the Exalted guys. I’m tired of GURPS and Fate being cited as kung-fu games while the true gems of the genre are ignored. I’m tired of thread after thread asking “What can do kung-fu?” or “What can do DBZ?” and being answered with “Just re-skin your favorite tasteless Styrofoam system!”

I’m impatient. Layout if horrifically difficult and time consuming and Vic, poor bastard, is paid about as much for his work on this project as I am.

I want my signature to point to my game. I want OTHER PEOPLE to start threads about Tian Shang.

I’m tired of years of work with nothing to show. Just like that doomed, miserable EX3 kickstarter, I just can’t ask people to take me on faith for years. I want to have something to show them.

God I don’t think I can do this: not in two days. But dammit, I’ve got to try. I’ve got to do as much as fast as I can, because if I keep putting it off I’ll never do it. What then? Grow old with my regrets?

To hell with that. One clan left. I can do this. One clan, then just draft the rules. Pull it together.

Okay. Time for a coke and then back to it. Rules first, then the last clan. Going to have to release without the map, push that to next week. That’s fine.

Let’s kick some more ass

Lone Wolf Fists: Sacrificing the weekend

Here's our sixth faction, the Radioactive Scorpions:

I think it's time for a little breather before the last faction joins the fray. Enjoy the half-Djinni nuclear punk faction!

Lone Wolf Fists: Trench coats and katanas are still kewl

Got some more coffee, feeling better today!

So, I grew up in the 90's and in the 90's, if you were:

1. Dark
2. Edgy
3. Wore a Trench coat
4. Something Something JAPAN
5. From Hell/demonic somehow

You were the bee's knees (as we said in those halcyon times). This next faction arises from that aesthetic. Also, copious amounts of 90's anime that required all of those things to be awesome. Demon City Shinjuku, Vampire Hunter D, the bad guys from Ninja Scroll...

So I present, the Shadow Vipers

There's more for these guys a bit down the line; I didn't make these demon rules to NOT use them. I want to flesh out some rules for characters to summon and bind demons too, because if its in the game, the players should have a fair shot at using it to blow up the world.

Lone Wolf Fists: Unhealthy Life Choices (of mine, which I'm regretting)

Wooo, well, guess who did 2/3rds of the work and busted his deadline by an entire day?

Yer lookin' at 'im.

Anyway. Here are the magical lightning guys.

I promise I'll wax poetic about these guys later. As for now, I'm burned.

Here are the little blue psychic kids from Akira. I mean, my totally original creation.

Argh. These guys are too cool for my caffeine-deprived blood to give them a proper gush. Take my word for it, they're awesome.

I'm going to take a little break and start working on the remaining three factions. Need. Coffee....

Lone Wolf Fists: Disrupting the work-life balance (of the author)

Oh yeah, you thought I was done, didn't you? You thought I wouldn't put blind adherence to an unrealistic release schedule over my own health and peace of mind, didn't you?

You were wrong! Behold the first half of today's work and tremble!

First, the mutation list to whet your appetite for post-apocalyptic goodness. Dare you roll a d100 and consult this list?!

Some of these have little spark notes for the full rules in parenthesis next to them; others are in various states of being written. The very last one turns you into a little blue person like the psychics in Akira, because an entire faction of those guys is a little dream I'm bringing to light with this project.

Next, the Dharmas. What heroic destiny will you pursue in the ashes of the world?

As you can clearly see, the poison-scorched world of tomorrow is a harsh one, but it has its heroes!

Next up today, not one, not two, but three more factions. Can I write and post them all before I die of exhaustion? We shall see!

Lone Wolf Fists: Progress

I wasn't kidding: this thing is happening

Here are the first two work-in-progress Lores for the factions. I've got the Brotherhood of Freaks and the Emerald Kirin here. All the spots in red need content that I'll generate when mapping and developing the world (or similar later design stages)

There's the Brotherhood. I'm going for a similar splat appeal to the Nosferatu from V:tM. They rode the line between iconic and pulp beautifully.

 And the Kirin. I like the idea of a faction of savage paladins fighting to return the natural world that was annihilated in the apocalypse. But... I also like them being real jerks.

I've got the other factions queued up for later in the week. On top of that, I'm revising the core Tian Shang rules for LWF; that's a big, technically difficult and extremely dull project that I'm pecking at in the background.

Stay tuned for more updates, true believers!

Lone Wolf Fists: Open Playtest (it's coming!)

Howdy everybody! I did some posting earlier this week and got a few of you fine folks interested in my little post-apocalyptic setting for Tian Shang: Lone Wolf Fists

Reading the excitement that the game generated got me back to working on it. In a flurry of creative energy, I wrote down a first draft for:

•        All seven clan’s fighting styles
•        Monster and Demon rules
•        The goals, plots and hooks for all seven clans
•        A 100-point mutation list
•        Psychic rules
•        Gritty wounding rules
•        Mortal hero rules
•     A streamlined Content Generation/Delivery method
•        A new, easier-to-read rules layout with new rules

So, I’m tired! But very accomplished!

I estimated two weeks from the post date I would have a nice document for you all to test to your heart’s content. That was about a week, ago, and barring any significant delays I’m still pretty confident in that figure.

When I get it done and formatted, my plan is to put it up on Drivethrurpg.com as a little pay-what-you-want book. This way, I can track acquisitions to see what the audience currently looks like number-wise, and also if you want to tip a little scratch into my jar for art and editing and layout and etc., well you can do just that.

I also plan to make a little feedback sheet for those of you who want to sample the playtest and give me your thoughts. Everyone who does so will receive credit for their playtesting (I mean, of course).

Look forward to it true believers. I’ll see you all in about a week!