Desyth
2008-11-18, 11:17 AM
***Disclaimer***
I know there is a semi-Ultima conversion out there already, but wasn't a big fan of how that was done. It was more of a total conversion, with a ton of duplication of effort and limited options. I want to, with this mod, take the Ultima universe as a template and transfer it to the DnD gameset and expand it as much as possible while staying pretty close to the Ultima spirit with a minimum of dramatic convention.
**Intro**
I'm working on, and will post details as soon as I have them, an Ultima semi-conversion for DnD 4e. This will be a hybrid of Ultima, Ultima Online and DnD stuff. For example, I'm planning on keeping the races, classes, skills and feats the same as 4th edition. I'm up in the air with the magic system, definitely am incorporating the lore, moongate system, open ended gameplay, and Karma system. I've decided that at least for the initial campaign, I'll have my players follow the basic storyline of Ultima IV initially. The main quest would be, following with the game, to be to get all of the Virtues as a party, and have that party become the embodiment of the Avatar for future 'save the world' missions, possibly based on the other games. I've chosen this type of homebrew and edition to use it with for the following reasons:
Gypsy Test - C'mon, this is just a pretty sweet way to do things. I wouldn't have the cards limit people by class, just determine which virtue they are most suited for. Since I'm not anywhere near capable or willing to run a campaign with eight people, everyone will be doubling up at least, and the cards add another layer of flavor and a potential bonus if that character obtains that specific virtue.
Races and Classes:
These would come from DnD's 4th Edition. The "magic" of Britannia's Moongates would have transformed certain members of the party to their requested races. This would, of course, not work with the standard Racial lore from the PhB.
Opening Scene - That unique twist of the players actually BEING the characters in the game is something I've always wanted to try with my group. I want to see how this factor changes and hopefully enhances their rp. Also, since the 'Avatars' are people from this time and place (2008, for those of you stuck in the 80's...like me), they could freely reference cultural icons and trends from this time, which could lead to a very different feel to the game, and truely give them an 'other worldly' feel.
Lore - The group I'm with has played Ultima Online and knows the players in Britannia, the map, and some inside jokes from our time on Chesapeake, but have never played the single player games. When they finally figure out where they are, the excitement will be cah-ray-zay.
Spells - Not sure how to do this one. I've toyed with a few ideas.
The first is allowing every character to have a mana pool with the size dependent on their class. The words of power would each have a mana requirement to them. For instance, "In Mani" (basic healing) is composed of the words "In" and "Mani". "In" has a value of 2, since it doesn't hold any real power, and "Mani" has a mana value of 8, as it specifies how the magic would be used. Any character can try this spell by simply uttering the words of power. It might fail (players don't know their mana pool size, and there would be armor failure percentages and a skill roll as well) or might succeed. The mass healing version of the spell "In Vas Mani" would hold the same formula as above, but be significantly higher in mana cost and power due to the "Vas" word. This word, since it specifies multiple targets, would require something in the nature of 15-25 mana, and would by its nature preclude its use from barbarian classes and the like.
The second and MUCH easier way of dealing with the magic system is just having it be the 4th edition magic system. Only classes who can use magic can use the words of power, and I'd just go through the list and sync up words to the powers and have it be a requirement of the spell.
Economy/Magic Items - Gold would be hard to come by, as would be magic items. I'm torn between using the magic item system from UO and DnD, and am leaning more towards DnD and the moment, for simplicities sake: No rebalance is required. The potions would follow Ultima's convention though, and would probably require the integration of the Alchemy skill. Players could freely buy/build houses and boats, and would require a few quests at least to get the plans, materials, labor force, etc, required. They could even carve out fiefdoms in the areas they have the most influence which leads me to my next point....
Karma/Fame - Totally using this system from Ultima Online. Players wouldn't be privy to this information, of course, and would only be able to get a sense of where they stand from NPC's reactions and potentially at the shrines of appropriate virtues.
Dungeons - The main problem I come up with when it comes to making DnD universe's is the tedious nature. I know that there is a certain extent to which this cannot and should not be avoided, but with Ultima's extensive map collection, the world and dungeons are already built and planned out. I have to fill it with NPC's, Monsters, Traps, and loot. It's a huge timesaver. I also plan to use, primarily, the monsters from Ultima. This will severely limit the diversity of combat, but will evoke some "ohhh, I remember him!" moments, and if worst comes to worst, nothing is stopping me from dropping in a displacer beast or something.
Thats all I have at the moment for an initial brain-dump. Let me know what you think, any suggestions you have, anything I've forgotten that would be really awesome to include, etc. I'll be working on this for a bit this weekend and over Thanksgiving, so I'll have some more of this stuff hammered out and better organized.
I think that such a combination between these two systems can really make for a unique gaming experience and lead to some really cool results. When the game starts (mid to late January) I'll post updates, user impressions, and feedback as I get it.
I know there is a semi-Ultima conversion out there already, but wasn't a big fan of how that was done. It was more of a total conversion, with a ton of duplication of effort and limited options. I want to, with this mod, take the Ultima universe as a template and transfer it to the DnD gameset and expand it as much as possible while staying pretty close to the Ultima spirit with a minimum of dramatic convention.
**Intro**
I'm working on, and will post details as soon as I have them, an Ultima semi-conversion for DnD 4e. This will be a hybrid of Ultima, Ultima Online and DnD stuff. For example, I'm planning on keeping the races, classes, skills and feats the same as 4th edition. I'm up in the air with the magic system, definitely am incorporating the lore, moongate system, open ended gameplay, and Karma system. I've decided that at least for the initial campaign, I'll have my players follow the basic storyline of Ultima IV initially. The main quest would be, following with the game, to be to get all of the Virtues as a party, and have that party become the embodiment of the Avatar for future 'save the world' missions, possibly based on the other games. I've chosen this type of homebrew and edition to use it with for the following reasons:
Gypsy Test - C'mon, this is just a pretty sweet way to do things. I wouldn't have the cards limit people by class, just determine which virtue they are most suited for. Since I'm not anywhere near capable or willing to run a campaign with eight people, everyone will be doubling up at least, and the cards add another layer of flavor and a potential bonus if that character obtains that specific virtue.
Races and Classes:
These would come from DnD's 4th Edition. The "magic" of Britannia's Moongates would have transformed certain members of the party to their requested races. This would, of course, not work with the standard Racial lore from the PhB.
Opening Scene - That unique twist of the players actually BEING the characters in the game is something I've always wanted to try with my group. I want to see how this factor changes and hopefully enhances their rp. Also, since the 'Avatars' are people from this time and place (2008, for those of you stuck in the 80's...like me), they could freely reference cultural icons and trends from this time, which could lead to a very different feel to the game, and truely give them an 'other worldly' feel.
Lore - The group I'm with has played Ultima Online and knows the players in Britannia, the map, and some inside jokes from our time on Chesapeake, but have never played the single player games. When they finally figure out where they are, the excitement will be cah-ray-zay.
Spells - Not sure how to do this one. I've toyed with a few ideas.
The first is allowing every character to have a mana pool with the size dependent on their class. The words of power would each have a mana requirement to them. For instance, "In Mani" (basic healing) is composed of the words "In" and "Mani". "In" has a value of 2, since it doesn't hold any real power, and "Mani" has a mana value of 8, as it specifies how the magic would be used. Any character can try this spell by simply uttering the words of power. It might fail (players don't know their mana pool size, and there would be armor failure percentages and a skill roll as well) or might succeed. The mass healing version of the spell "In Vas Mani" would hold the same formula as above, but be significantly higher in mana cost and power due to the "Vas" word. This word, since it specifies multiple targets, would require something in the nature of 15-25 mana, and would by its nature preclude its use from barbarian classes and the like.
The second and MUCH easier way of dealing with the magic system is just having it be the 4th edition magic system. Only classes who can use magic can use the words of power, and I'd just go through the list and sync up words to the powers and have it be a requirement of the spell.
Economy/Magic Items - Gold would be hard to come by, as would be magic items. I'm torn between using the magic item system from UO and DnD, and am leaning more towards DnD and the moment, for simplicities sake: No rebalance is required. The potions would follow Ultima's convention though, and would probably require the integration of the Alchemy skill. Players could freely buy/build houses and boats, and would require a few quests at least to get the plans, materials, labor force, etc, required. They could even carve out fiefdoms in the areas they have the most influence which leads me to my next point....
Karma/Fame - Totally using this system from Ultima Online. Players wouldn't be privy to this information, of course, and would only be able to get a sense of where they stand from NPC's reactions and potentially at the shrines of appropriate virtues.
Dungeons - The main problem I come up with when it comes to making DnD universe's is the tedious nature. I know that there is a certain extent to which this cannot and should not be avoided, but with Ultima's extensive map collection, the world and dungeons are already built and planned out. I have to fill it with NPC's, Monsters, Traps, and loot. It's a huge timesaver. I also plan to use, primarily, the monsters from Ultima. This will severely limit the diversity of combat, but will evoke some "ohhh, I remember him!" moments, and if worst comes to worst, nothing is stopping me from dropping in a displacer beast or something.
Thats all I have at the moment for an initial brain-dump. Let me know what you think, any suggestions you have, anything I've forgotten that would be really awesome to include, etc. I'll be working on this for a bit this weekend and over Thanksgiving, so I'll have some more of this stuff hammered out and better organized.
I think that such a combination between these two systems can really make for a unique gaming experience and lead to some really cool results. When the game starts (mid to late January) I'll post updates, user impressions, and feedback as I get it.