More Progress... the Asylum

After a delay of a day due to some shenanigans at the store which interrupted a night off, I have finished the game mechanic bits for the Asylum. Next up are a group overview and backgrounds for the individual members, plus all the fiddly bits like quotes, appearance descriptions, etc.

Depending on what happens later on today, I should be able to finish the backgrounds for at least one of the characters, if not two. Given the group, they are a mixed bag of nuts, but they can be scary because they have a purpose and a mission.

I almost forgot that I have some gaps to fill in from an earlier post...

• the Orderly -- A goon that drugs folks by shoving a veritable cornucopia of pharmaceuticals into the mouths of the unwilling. Barring being able to turn people into vegetables with pills, the Orderly is just as willing to beat a person into a mental lima bean.
• Rubber Room -- What stretches through cracks? Chokes necks and breaks back? It would be the one they refer to as Rubber Room. That said, the pliant one shows a softer side at times, shielding innocent witnesses to the brutality that the Asylum practices on a routine basis.
• Lobotomy -- Two drills, no waiting... Lobotomy is the tactician of the group, and is a highly skilled fighter with a mean streak a mile wide. His favorite trick is to grab a victim around the neck from behind and drill. Mess ensues...
• E.S.T. -- The name is short for Electro-Shock Therapy, but the only folks getting short-circuited are his targets. Be prepared for pain and the smell of ozone when this guy hits the proverbial dance floor.
• Dr. X -- All minds are pliant under to auspices of the "good doctor". Whether it's conjuring up nightmares or lulling victims off into hypnotic slumber, Dr. X seems to always have the right prescription on hand.

Once I get the background bits done and into the Hero Designer files, I will be more than willing to fire those files off to a few discernable folks for perusal. However, current players in my game need not apply for that job... =P

peace... GopherDave

Progress Update... the Asylum

Currently working on the Sixth Edition HERO System mechanics for the Asylum, a group of villains I've been throwing against players since third edition. Three of them are done from a game mechanics standpoint. Two more to put together, and then I will need to do various background details that involve actual writing. In that regard, I have been taking notes (both mental and electronic) on both individual histories, as well as a group history. Progress is slow, but it is progress.

From the art standpoint, I have been talking to a couple of folks, but I am not going to put out any sort of art direction until I get some more details worked out with game system licensing (which is in the VERY PRELIMINARY stages).

As it goes, in the group we have...

• the Orderly -- A goon that drugs folks by shoving a veritable cornucopia of pharmaceuticals into the mouths of the unwilling. Barring being able to turn people into vegetables with pills, the Orderly is just as willing to beat a person into a mental lima bean.
• Rubber Room -- What stretches through cracks? Chokes necks and breaks back? It would be the one they refer to as Rubber Room. That said, the pliant one shows a softer side at times, shielding innocent witnesses to the brutality that the Asylum practices on a routine basis.
• Lobotomy -- Two drills, no waiting... Lobotomy is the tactician of the group, and is a highly skilled fighter with a mean streak a mile wide. His favorite trick is to grab a victim around the neck from behind and drill. Mess ensues...
• E.S.T. -- (mechanics in progress)
• Dr. X -- (mechanics in progress)

When I hit a wall with character work, I fire up Adobe InDesign and tool around with the look of the packaging. I've done one version of things in that regard thus far, but I am not real happy with it. So I'm going back to the drawing board.

I am also still looking for a project name. I've got a couple of ideas, but I'm not truly enamored with either of them. One references the police agency in the world in charge of keeping super-powered folks in check ("the H.U.R.T. Files" or "the H.U.R.T. Locker"), while the other refers to the main "super-prison" in the world ("the MESA Mandates"). Again, not my favorites, and I am still looking.

peace... GopherDave

Stay On Target...

I hate my phone camera... I had to doctor this shot up to get even close to colors I was actually wearing today... =P

Okay... This is going out to all, I dunno, ten of you who actually read this thing. I am officially putting out the call for artistic types who can work in a superhero style/medium to do simple character portraits for a number of NPCs I'll be putting together over the next few weeks. The pay isn't great (in fact it'll be lousy), but it may get better with time.

See? Not only am I thinking about doing these things for personal satisfaction. I am seriously considering going through the motions of actually publishing (PDF only) these things for a modicum of payment. Some license stuff has to be worked out first, and I actually need to put some of these character stories that are in my head onto "paper", but I am slowly cementing a plan of action on how to get all of this done. They say it never hurts to have goals, and in regard to my being actually published in the game industry, I think this is it. I attempted this once before about twenty years ago, but the timing was absolutely wrong.

Now, while I'm not certain that the timing is right, it's at least better. Plus, I've been kind of inspired as of late...

My first projects...

the Asylum -- The approach to what the Asylum does is horrifying, sickening, and brutal, but what they are actually doing (and to whom) will present a serious moral challenge to the heroes they face. The subject matter around this group is dark, adult, and borderline explicit. Five characters, each with their own motivations, untied by a common thread.

Gateway Guardians -- A team of NPC Superheroes based in St. Louis (Arcflight, Big Muddy, Cardinal Red, Echo, and Jetstreak), meant to give a game world more flavor and help any overworked and/or novice GMs populate their game with good characters outside of their own PCs.

(Solo Villain Collection #X) -- It seems like this project needs some sort of cool "product name", but I really don't have one for it, yet. I'm thinking six to ten villainous characters for each "volume", possibly united by some sort of theme as well. Or maybe just a collection of whatever goobers I happen to bash out on the keyboard that month.

(Heroic NPC Collection) -- A smattering (five to eight) of heroic (and anti-heroic) types meant to add flavor and drama to a GM's game world. The characters presented here won't be tied to a geographical location, and so they can dropped in just about any place the GM puts their campaign.

I'm off, now... to go create "folks" and send off e-mails to potentially get this project up and running from a commercial standpoint...

Laterz... GopherDave