Dusting off the Archive

Hello, there!

It’s been over two years since I last posted anything here on the Archive. It seems that I’ve been a victim of my own success, and I’ve spent a lot more time writing adventures and running convention games than refereeing a regular campaign. That’s just one of the drawbacks of working in the gaming industry. Your recreation becomes your vocation.

I made a promise to myself that I’d have more fun in 2014, however, and as part of that resolution I decided to run a game that has absolutely nothing to do with the elves, dwarves, and other fantastical creatures that make up the majority of my day-to-day gaming work. In short, I’m running the classic 1976 version of Metamorphosis Alpha. Metamorphosis Alpha (or “Metalpha” as I like to abbreviate it because that makes it “metal”) shares a lot of the same imaginary topography as the original three little booklet set of Dungeon & Dragons. Metalpha is all about exploration, discovery, and often sudden death, with everything you need in a skinny rulebook. After carting both Pathfinder and Dungeon Crawl Classics tomes with me to gaming events, a softcover 36 pp. rulebook is a dream come true!

I also decided to give Metalpha a go based on my experiences with the OSR. Although I had been playing D&D since 1980, I never had much experience with the original White Box rules. Participating in the OSR taught me the value of returning to the roots of game to discover where certain rules and creations originated, thereby giving me a greater understanding of the game. I’ve been a big fan of Gamma World since 1981 when I was introduced to the original boxed set, but have never run Metalpha. I theorize that by doing so, I’ll be rewarded with a deeper appreciation and understanding of my second-favorite RPG. So far, that assumption seems to be true.

I’ve reorganized this blog to accommodate a new influx of Metamorphosis Alpha-related material. Like before, I’ll use this venue to post after action game reports, PC sheets, house rules, rule clarifications, and newly created material for Metalpha. All the original Labyrinth Lord campaign posts are still here; I just bumped them down the sidebar a bit. In time, you’ll hopefully get as in-depth a view of my Metamorphosis Alpha game as you did my Labyrinth Lord Stonehell campaign. I hope you enjoy the ride and find entertainment, inspiration, and things to outright steal here. So let’s visit the depths of outer space where a generational starship, forever changed by calamity, drifts through the vacuum…