Computer + Video Games - Commodore Is Awesome

DREAMS COME TRUEiA F.R.P. game is only as goodas the G.M. that runs it. To giveyou some idea what characteristicsa good G.M. should have — theyshould like to see their friendssquirm with fear they should havean inventive and imaginativemind, they should he able to thinkon their feet, making decisions atthe drop of a hat.Once the G.M. is decided upon.the other players read the booksthat they arc allowed to and thencreate their characters as allowedby the rules. You should put asmuch background, detail andpersonality into your charactercreation as you can. The closeryou are to your character, themore you will role play itcorrectly, Again this is animportant process, as ultimately.when your character gets killed alittle bit of your heart should bebroken.Just imagine the G.M. tellingyou this; "You are sitting in a dark,dingy tavern which is thick withsmoke. There are about seventeenother people in here who all lookvery shady to say the least.' Some ofthese folk are small squathumanoid', some are dark skinnedand reptilian looking, whilst themajority are tall, humans who arewearing armour and carrying avariety of lethal looking weapons.Whilst you are supping your ale.you see a small, old, craggylooking man approaching you. Heis dressed in black robes and lookslike he is going to pull somethingout of his pocket. What are yourreactions?"As your character, you decidewhat would you do. You couldattack him, talk to him, run awayor do anything else that may comein your mind.This is the gateway to adventureand now you hold the key!This is a form of F.R,P. y postwhich also can include diplomacy,tactics and strategy, The G.M.here is the P.B.M. company andthey send you all the informationyou need_You are spoiled for choice at themoment as there are P.B.M.games covering all the followingtopics; gangland warfare,supremacy of the galaxy, Swordsand Sorcery, football, gangster.sci-fi and world domination! Whenyou have made your choice, youmay have to send off an amount ofmoney — ranging from 50p up to£10.00. However OM is theaverage for a start-up and somecompanies charge nothing at all.Within a few days you shouldreceive a rulebook plus anyadditional info about the game.This usually consists ofnewsletters, source books, notesof historical interest or currentevents plus various pieces ofbackground info.The next step is to read therulebook several times to makesure you understand the rules.Then, you create your character oiteam, adding a full background ofyour choice. This may includeaims, attitudes, beliefs, moralsand history, to name but a fewthings.You keep a copy of thisinformation, called a start-upsheet, for your own reference andsend the original to the company.After about a week or so youshould receive your turn sheet andit should contain detailedinformation of your startingposition. rumours of happeningsthat you may care to investigateplus additional info that yourcharacter or team may havediscovered.Then it is up to you to use yourskills to explore the unknown,develop your team, make friends— or enemies— use yourdiplomatic skill and generallysurvive. The main aim IS tosurvive in the hostile environmentout there.Once you have entered yourideas and decisions on the turnsheet you return it to the G_M_ Indoing this you have completedyour first turn. In about two weekstime the G.M. be it human or acomputer — then examines yourturn and using dice, imagination.ancient mystic formulae orcomputer programs. analyses it,enters various comments andreturns it to you.Each time a G.M. analyses yourturn, you pay a charge for thisservice. You are informed of thiswhen you get your start uppackage and it is usually a fixedprice. The average price of a turnat the moment is approx between1.50 and £2.00.This is the chance tor you Coactually show your skill —or thelack of it — with a sword. You getthe chance to play the part ot ahero or heroine you create in a livesituation.If you fancy dressing up inarmour, wielding a sword — madeof wood. wrapped in a lot of foamand covered in gaffa tape —running around in dark, damp.cold. wet caves getting totallycovered in mud then fightingzombies, skeletons and goblins,Live Role Playing is for you!It's your chance to see if you areas mighty as Conan or as wimpy asUkko the Dwarf_The way to get involved in this isto telephone a live role playingcompany. Make a booking. sendyour money off on average£6.00 an adventure — and within acouple of days you will receive fulldetails of what the game is allabout, where to go and whenYou can book individually orfor up to a group of ten people.On the appointed day you travelto the caves or castle where youare kitted out with all theaccessories. If you want tobringyour own costume that's fine, itcan be as outlandish as you want,but no armour is allowed at first asyou have to "earn" it and theability to wear it.You get instruction on the useof various pieces of weaponry,safety regulations, the rules of thegame and how they are applied.Then, as is the way in F. R.P., youare asked to stat what characteryou want to play. Then you areinformed about your powers,abilities and weaknesses,You usually get the chance toplay either a warrior, scout,magician or priest.Once everything has beenexplained and all your questionshave been answered. you are setan adventure. This can be done inmany ways, but here is just oneexample.You will be approached by amerchant, who tells you that hisdaughter has been kidnapped byan evil magician. He will pay youa princely sum if you will rescueher and return her safely. Themoney he pays is real in gameterms and with this you can buybetter armour, magic potions ormore vicious weapons.If you agree, he takes you to adungeon entrance and your partyis left to investigate. You usuallyhave three real candles betweenthe ten of you and this means thatyou cannot sec more than two feetin any direction! You then amblealong a maze of passages and it isup to you how you deal with thereal life monsters, traps. andpeople that you encounter.A typical adventure lasts two tothree hours. It is advisable to wearsome old warm clothing that youdon't mind getting filthy dirty ordamaged. Boots are a must. If youarc under 18 years of age, youMUST get a letter of approvalsigned by your parents before yougo.COntinued On page 87