Print on Demand: a review whether you like it or not

As I've previously written, White Wolf/Onyx Path (one of my favorite RPG producers) has gone to a "digital first" model. This means that they will publish all their books in pdf first, then produce a print-on-demand (PoD) version of the pdf. Occasionally, they run Kickstarters for special editions of their books. So far, they've been doing this pretty successfully; their rate at getting books to the PoD stage is almost instantaneous, and I've been supporting (and enjoying) every Vampire-related Kickstarter they've done.

I'll reiterate my gripes, though: I don't like their current neglect of "brick-and-mortar" shops even though they've stated their disbelief in the traditional method of distribution. They state that they're working on finding a way to include game shops in their current model, but so far nothing's come of that. I may come across as biased, being an employee of a game shop, but you'll have to give me the benefit of the doubt when I say that I'd feel the same even if I wasn't an employee of a games shop. Games shops have always been a part of my hobby "career," both as a marketplace, and as a community center of sorts, and I work at one because I think they're great, not the other way around.

Also, pdfs are irritating. I've bought pdfs (mostly as a by-product of buying PoD products) and I've only skimmed them. I've never sat down and read a pdf gaming product. This might change if I ever bought an iPad or other tablet, but even with my brand new smartphone, I don't relish reading one. I have them to whet my appetite until my PoD arrives.

On to the meat of this article: Vampire: the Requiem Blood Sorcery. 

I ordered this book on Friday, September 14th; it shipped on Thursday, September 27th; I received it on Tuesday, October 9th. All together it took 3 weeks and 4 days to get to my grubby hands from when I clicked "buy." A far cry from taking a 45min bus ride to my local game shop and grabbing it off the shelf. Now I'm not naïve; I know that it takes a long time to order things, but it took almost two weeks to print it. Still, I'd rather have them make PoD products than just pdfs so I'm not going to gripe too loudly. Plus, if my only complaint is the time it takes to get to me, then it's still a worthwhile product.

And it is.

The product is a full-color softcover. This is the first PoD product I've bought, so I've yet to experience the quality of the black and white products or the hardcovers. I hear that the black and white products don't have "full bleed" (which means that there is a small white border around every page), but the color ones do.

The paper quality isn't as great as their older "traditional" products, but it's not shitty. The printing is clear, and crisp with no pixilization of any pictures or text, it's just not glossy and looks more like the kind of paper I could walk out to an Office Depot and buy. However, it doesn't cost me the lake of ink I'd need to print it off and it's already bound.

Were it not for the type of paper and the lack of anything on the inside of the covers it would look exactly like a softcover White Wolf product of yore.

As for the content, itself, it's a fine supplement. A lot of gamers feel that every supplement should be a necessary one, but I often divide supplements into necessary (or as far as an RPG product is necessary to one's life) and optional. Necessary VtR products would be "Danse Macabre" or the "Requiem Chronicler's Guide." These are books that either update the game system through errata or revision, or add so much (or so importantly) to the game, you wonder why they weren't included in the first place. Optional refers to books like "VII" or the "Clanbooks." Were these books to be left out of a regular gaming session the game would not feel lacking, but their addition would enhance the game in certain ways.

In short, the supplement is an optional one, but does give a little bit more detail, and character to the systems of Crúac or Theban Sorcery. Having never played a character that used either of these two systems, I can't comment too strongly on the new rules, but they look like they'd be interesting, and I'm definitely going to think about playing a "spellcasting" character in my next game.

All-in-all it looks like your typical White Wolf supplement, albeit with a difference in cosmetic aspects. It's got its usual WW style, and attitude, which is a good sign considering the changes they're making to the business side of things. At least we'll always have the same content, which is the most important thing.

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P.S. Unfortunately I may have bitten off more than I can chew in regards to my convention schedule in 2013, and so the aforementioned "Gottacon" tournament diary is cancelled due to the fact that I'm not going to Gottacon in 2013. I plan to go to GenCon and Lock and Load this coming year, and am also planning on getting closer to the black financially. As such, I can't see myself affording a trip to Victoria, BC in three months.

The Onyx Path

"Oh most glorious Carmin! Please will you step down from your golden throne of gaming and share your glorious opinion with the masses regarding White Wolf's change to Onyx Path?"
"HAHAHAHA! NO! You cannot begin to comprehend the wondrous sounds that I form regarding this pleasing news, for you are mere mortals, and are of the flesh! NOW GO!"
"Please, oh game master! We are aimless! We know not what to think regarding this news. Shall it usher in a new era for the World of Darkness both new and old, or is it but another sign of the end times?"
"SILENCE!"
"But oh handsome typer of game-related musings, we beg you! Tell us already."
"FINE! But I cannot be held responsible for what might result from your hubris. Now let me put on these fangs and this cape. I'm just going to... Climb down... From this... Throne... Ah, there we go! NOW HARK... I SHALL BEGIN:"

It was announced at GenCon this year (2012, in case you just woke up) that Onyx Path Publishing (OPP, but not the kind you're thinking of) will be the new publisher for White Wolf's (WW) properties. OPP is run by Rich Thomas, who has been with White Wolf since the beginning, as well as staffed by all the writers, and designers we've loved from White Wolf's heyday(s). They also own the properties to the Trinity universes (Adventure!, Aberrant, and Trinity (Æon)), and Scion. They've announced a new edition for Exalted, and are probably going to do a new edition for Scion as well. But don't take my word for it; check out their release schedule here.

A bit of background: In 2006 White Wolf merged with CCP (Crowd Control Productions. The makers of Eve: Online). At first it was great, because it injected more capital into WW and allowed them to do cool stuff. However, the cracks soon became apparent when CCP had to lay off a huge majority of WW staff because of the shortcomings of Eve. It soon became apparent that while passionate about WW's stuff, CCP was just not fit to publish pen-and-paper games. So, Rich Thomas decided to start his own company and called it Onyx Path Publishing. He's licensing the rights to make pen-and-paper products of the World of Darkness (current and classic), and Exalted (these games are still owned by White Wolf, which is a division of CCP... Try and keep up). He also bought Scion and the Trinity universes.

So where does that leave us today? With much optimism. OPP is still banking on the digital production model, which I have mixed feelings about. However, One Book Shelf has stated that they're looking into ways to include the retail channel in their model, which would be stellar. Really, I'd just like to see the core books and the storyteller screens kept in regular supply through the traditional means of distribution, at least, but I'm no businessman.

OPP is also promising a slew of new stuff! Of course, I'm most excited about any Vampire: the Requiem stuff, including the new campaign/update to the game system, but I think I'm going to fall for the new WoD stuff, and the new Mummy stuff. I don't think I'll contribute to the Mummy Kickstarter, but I'll get the books through Print on Demand (PoD, or Now in Print, as they're calling it, despite the fact that it abbreviates to NiP. What's with White Wolf and these fairly tame sexualized abbreviations?).

I'm most excited for the revisions to the WoD and VtR games. I like how they're not going to a new edition, despite the fact that I normally back new editions pretty faithfully. I'd just hate to have to do extra work to bring my old books up to speed, and I dislike the stigma that a new edition evokes amongst gamers. They're also releasing more fiction, which will be a definite buy for me. I'm reading through the Clan Saga from the Masquerade days, and really enjoying it, and I've always thought the fiction in the gaming books was fantastic.

It does seem to be an ambitious schedule, especially for a company that's going through some pretty ambitious changes. As one of my favorite gaming companies producing one of my favorite games, I wish them the best, and hope that all the huge decisions they've made in the last few years turn out to be fruitful.

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P.S. I've had 18,000 viewers as of me typing this!

Happy Birthday Vampire: the Requiem

Eight years ago today, Vampire: the Requiem and the World of Darkness was unleashed upon the gaming world. I wasn't involved in the game at the time, but it has since changed my gaming. Now, Vampire didn't change my life, or have me meet my beloved the way that some testimonials claimed (which are touching, as any passionate gamer might agree), but Vampire had a profound effect on my gaming life. So I guess insofar as gaming is a part of my life, I guess it did change my life... No beloved, though.

Anyway, here's what I typed, ad hoc, on the White Wolf forums. It's a short birthday wish to one of my favorite games of all time.

I was a huge D&D player in the '90s, but an even huger CCGer. Vampire: the Eternal Struggle still occupies a top 3 spot for my favorite CCGs of all time. I never got into Vampire: the Masquerade because I always thought there was too much there, and it would be too huge a jump (I was also in my teens in the late '90s/early '00s so the idea of a role-playing game with gothic imagery was out of my comfort zone). So it went largely ignored.

In 2006 I began working for a game shop and we stocked the White Wolf role-playing games. It wasn't until a year afterwards that I thought I'd just give the World of Darkness a try. I had played every other RPG I could get my hands on, except this one, and thought I'd give it a shot.

I can surely say that Vampire: the Requiem changed the way I feel about role-playing games. It was refreshing to be free of plot, and given ultimate reign in a role-playing game. Not to say that others are constrictive, but Vampire told me I could be as free as I want. It was the first game I'd seen that suggested I use certain rules in the main body of the text instead of in a sidebar.

Ever since 2007 I've "embraced" the other WoD lines, and even went back and gave the Masquerade a shot. Nothing has replaced the joy and the excitement I feel for the Requiem, though.

Today it sits on my top 3 role-playing game list just like its card game cousin sits on my top 3 CCG list. Thanks a ton, White Wolf (Onyx Path), and Happy Birthday to VtR!

So that's that. Just something short, sweet, and fanged for today's post. There's been a lot of news coming out of GenCon (natch'!) and I'm not going to comment on all of it, but I will comment on Onyx Path Publishing in Wednesday's post, because the World of Darkness is so near and dear to my heart. So come back tomorrow, (blood)suckers!

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V20

Vampire: the Masquerade burst onto the scene in 1991. I was 5 years old, and much too young to appreciate it.

When I first began gaming in '95, I had toyed around with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition but never "met" Vampire until D&D3 came out and I started going to game shops instead of Games Workshops or the library for my gaming. That's when I first saw White Wolf's games, and I was not impressed.

You see, at the time I was a little different than I am today. I was still a nice, and smart kid, but things that were outside the box were strange to me, and I was also the type of kid who jumped to conclusions before looking, and Vampire was "weird and gothy." I'm sure 14-year-old Carmin and 25-year-old Carmin would have some laughs if they met now.

Suffice it to say, I've never played Vampire: the Masquerade.

Fast forward to 2008, and I had already been working in an independent games shop for two years. After two years of seeing Vampire: the Requiem sitting on the role play shelf, I finally decided to take the plunge and I bought the World of Darkness (WoD or nWoD (new World of Darkness)) rulebook and the Vampire: the Requiem (VtR) add-on. I was hooked from the first chapter.

What I love about Vampire is the overwrought grimness of the whole setting, and the unapologetic intelligence with which the staff at White Wolf write. Every book they produce opens with a story, or set of stories before the credits and printing information are even displayed. VtR was also the first time I've seen (in writing) a games designer suggest a rule as opposed to offer an official ruling. Sure AD&D2 had optional rules in the blue boxes, but they were always add-ons or replacements for the basic mechanics, never was an entire mechanic merely a suggestion. To the mind of a role player who came to his formative  years during the late-'90s/early-new millennium this was revolutionary.

During the beginning of 2011 I hadn't paid much attention to the White Wolf website, so one day in May I decided to pop-by the new re-vamped (har-de-har-har) website and take a look at what was new (especially because I had heard that they were moving to a digital-first model of distribution. More on that in a later post). I saw an ad for the 20th anniversary of Vampire: the Masquerade (VtM, which is part of the classic World of Darkness (cWoD)). I was curious; here was the father to VtR, and though the two games share only superficial details, I wanted to see where my favorite RPG had come from. Though it was $100. I wavered for a month, but finally decided to buy it. I just received it today. Let's take a look shall we?

Now, before you express shock at the fact that a book I ordered in June finally arrived, take note that White Wolf only printed these books in September/October, and they were taking order for the whole summer as a "print on demand" sort of deal.

Here's the book:

That's a leatherette cover with the ankh of the Camarilla on the front.

Here's a shot of the inside:

The book is full-color, and 520 pages long. It's got silver gilded edges that are mirror-like, and it's got two (that's right, TWO) cloth bookmarks. 

Now here's what the book isn't: It's not a re-do of the game. It still has the old clans, the old mechanics, and the old storyline. The wonky die-rolling system of a combination of a die-pool and a variable target number is still there, and all the clan weaknesses and benefits are there as well. However, it's meta-plot neutral, which means that it doesn't further the meta-plot from VtM Revised (3rd edition), and is, therefore, compatible with wherever you decided to situate your campaign. There's still the Camarilla and the Sabbat, and the Anarchs, but it doesn't force the plot down your throat. 

The folks at White Wolf describe it (in their typical style, that I love) almost as a love letter to the old game that everyone loved. Their target audience was those those that played and loved the old edition, and this book is a celebration of that game. In fact, it's all you ever need to play VtM.

So why do I have it? Well, like I said, I love Vampire, and want to take part in all aspects of Vampire. I want to use the book for ideas, or perhaps even to play the old game. I also mentioned that it's all one would need to play VtM, therefore it seems like a good place to go from for a person like myself who is interested in the old Vampire system, but doesn't want to collect the hundreds of old books, or pdfs.

What started out as a "love letter" is becoming a saga, as White Wolf is releasing a bunch of products set in the classic World of Darkness (cWoD) under the "Onyx Path" line. These books will be new productions of the old systems (Vampire: the Masquerade, Werewolf: the Apocalypse, Mage: the Ascension, Changeling: the Lost, etc.) along with new supplements. They just released a 50-something-page adventure that's a loose continuation of the old book "Ashes to Ashes," called "Dust to Dust." The next book to be released for the Onyx Path is the V20 Companion (a book of "hacks" for V20). Similar things will be in development for all the cWoD games.

So, what do I think of this book? I love it! It's fascinating to look at where my favorite game came from, and satisfying knowing that what I bought was not a shard of a larger work, but almost like an omnibus. If I really wanted, I could go back and collect all the old books, but I don't have to. My enjoyment of this work of art can stand alone. And a work of art it is. Some art is re-hashed from the old supplements and core books, but because it's an homage to the old system this isn't a problem. New art by Tim Bradstreet are very impressive. 

My complaints with the book, stem with some faults in the printing. There's a magenta line running horizontally in the Clan Giovanni section. It's not enough to ruin the book, but it shouldn't be there. Also, the book is bowing:

I'm going to try and put some heavier books on top of it for a couple of days, but I don't think that will actually do anything. 

Was it worth the $100 I paid for it? Yes. Barely. Would it be worth the $100 if one was a fan of VtM from the beginning, and got huge play out of it in the '90s? Very much so. However, this thing was a limited run, and if you didn't order it before the end of the summer, you're shit outta luck. White Wolf is going to put the thing on print on demand through One Book Shelf soon, but right now you can purchase the pdf. From what I hear the book will either be in one volume in black and white, or two volumes in full color. I suggest you pick it up.

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P.S. As a bit of a housekeeping note, you'll notice that I tagged this as both "Vampire the Masquerade," and "V20." From now on, things that do not pertain to the V20 or Onyx Path will be labelled as "Vampire the Masquerade," while things that pertain mostly to V20 will be labelled as such. Expect to see much more "V20" labels than "Vampire the Masquerade" labels, as I'll be collecting just the V20 books. 

Top 5 Roleplaying Games: The (new) World of Darkness

An unlikely contender, I have to admit. For years, the World of Darkness, and Vampire: the Masquerade specifically, have been the butt of many of my gamer jokes. It has always had a reputation of being pretentious and overwrought, and maybe a little creepy. After all, shouldn't gaming be fun? Why should I sit at a table with four people I used to be comfortable imagining we're elves with? I say used to because there's something that dies in the fragile eco-system that is role-play when you're confronted with a morally grey encounter with a vampiric prostitute and a drunken changeling logger...

How, fucking, wrong I was.

Now, in the title I delineated that this is the new World of Darkness; this is because there was an old one before it. The Internet has distinguished these two by calling the current offering from White Wolf Publishing the NWoD, and the older one the OWoD. What's the difference? I don't really know. I never played the OWoD. But here's what I do know, thanks to the Internet:

The OWoD contained the following games: Vampire: the Masquerade; Werewolf: the Apocalypse; Mage: the Ascension; Wraith: the Oblivion; Changeling: the Dreaming; Kindred of the East (a V:tM spin-off); Hunter: the Reckoning; Mummy: the Resurrection; Demon: the Fallen; and Orpheus. Many of the games had some spin-offs like a Vampire game that took place in the same universe but in the Dark Ages, or a Werewolf game that took place in the Victorian era, etc.

Characteristics of these older games and settings were that they all had, what was called a, meta-plot. The meta-plots of the various games were all story lines that ran through the various games. in Mage: the Ascension (M:tA) for instance there was a technocratic group of people who were trying to take over the world, or in Vampire: the Masquerade (V:tM) there were two organizations: one called the Sabbat, and the other known as the Camarilla. They fought a bunch. One common thread in all their meta-plots was that the universe was going to end. In fact, one of the last products released for all the games was a book that dealt with how to bring your games to an end. For good.

The NWoD did away with these meta-plots and these apocalypses, and instead presented the worlds as a toolbox (or sandbox as they call it). This means that they present you with the way things are in this world and let you have it. They don't tell you about key organizations or players, just that there are these types of creatures and there are those types of creatures, now have at it. I think this is the reason I fell in love with this game in the first place. It's so freeing as a GM (or Storyteller as they call it), to be able to create my own affairs within the framework of the world. Like someone who heard rock and roll for the first time in the '50s my world was shaken when I saw the phrase "you might want to do this" in the rulebook. They might as well have said "or whatever" after a key part of a mechanic. I never had more fun crafting a campaign.

There, of course, were some rules differences but I can't rightly explain them, as I've never even cracked an OWoD book beyond the opening chapters of the V:tM rulebook. What I want to get at with the meat of this article is the NWoD currently supported by White Wolf Publishing.

The system is intuitive and fantastic. You have a characteristic, or a power, or a skill that is measured by a number of dots (•) that go from • to •••••. In order to succeed at an action you find the characteristic and the skill/power/trait that go together with the action you want to attempt. Then you roll your number of •s in d10s. You need 8s, 9s, or 0s to succeed with 0s giving you additional rolls. If you roll at least one of these numbers, you've succeeded. If you roll more, then you succeed harder. If you roll none, then you fail. Easy.

Combat is simplified as well. A couple of the gamers in my group who have played the OWoD have had some complaints about the combat system but I really like it. Let's say you want to shoot a guy. You'd roll your Dexterity characteristic and your Firearms skill together in d10s. Let's say my Dex is ••• and my firearms is ••. I now have five dice. If I were throwing something at him, or punching him the guy would subtract his Defence characteristic from my dice pool, but I'm shooting him so he doesn't (it's hard to dodge bullets). Instead he's got a Kevlar vest which takes 2 away from any firearms dice pool. I now roll 3d10 and look for 8s, 9s, and 0s. I roll an 8 and a 0. I pick up the 0 and re-roll it giving me a 3. I still hit twice with the 8 and the original 0 so I do two points of lethal (as opposed to bashing or aggravated) damage, and we see if the guy dies.

Beyond that each of the settings has their own special rules on how to use powers, or create supernatural characters, but I'm not going to focus much more on the rules because the game itself likes to put story before rules anyway, so let's move on.

Mage, whatever. This leads to a nicer cohesion between the various supernatural beings in the setting and can even allow for your group to contain a Vampire, a Werewolf, a Mage, and a Changeling, though this isn't very common, and all those groups have very good reasons for never wanting to hang out with each other at all.

So what is the World of Darkness? Well, it's our world, but darker. Despair runs thicker through the streets, over which loom gargoyles and other forms of Gothic architecture. Cities are more corrupt, crime and violence is everywhere, and law enforcement and heroes are few. This world is inhabited by dangerous things that lurk at the edge of light: Vampires, Werewolves, Spirits, demons, ghosts; and these dangerous things are the people you play.

Of course the game is as depressing, or as evil as you want. In my last (and first) Vampire: the Requiem (V:tR) campaign there was a creepy Nosferatu Vampire, striding the alleyways next to an amoral Kindred (Vampire) who seeks only knowledge, a lone wolf criminal, and a wealthy eccentric who was on a mission to find the killers of his father and a missing girl from his past. They actually banded together and chose the lesser of two evils threatening Vancouver.

After I really got into these games I began to see past what some people would consider pretension and overwrought drama of these games and see a very well-constructed platform from which to launch adventures taking place in the modern age (or in the past, as the Requiem for Rome book allows you to do). Not only was I intrigued by being allowed to play "serious" games in modern times, but I really liked the story emphasis that seems to seep from even the character sheets. I've played through Vampire: the Requiem, but next up a friend of mine will be running a Changeling: the Lost (C:tL) game also set in Vancouver, and just after the events of the Vampire campaign. It's a brilliant sense of continuity, and I relish the thought of being able to play on the other side of the Storyteller's screen. This is definitely one of my favorites and I can't wait to revisit the dark streets of the World of Darkness again, and hopefully regularly.

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