AndyMML's page

So...is there fireball or does magic deal damage on par with your average axe-swinging barbarian?

I ask because I can't flip through your product before buying like I would a book at the FLGS. Said book-flipping strongly influenced my decision to pass on 4E.

The effects of magic can vary based on the campaign setting and the type of magic being employed. Most of the time magic is at least on par with melee combat. Your example with the axe swinging barbarian is likely accurate for most Adventurer’s type campaigns. In our Spartan level campaigns the effects would be a little more subtle and in our Heroic style campaigns magic might be a little more powerful. MML is very customizable and some of this is up to each individual GM.

You can look through both our printed books on Amazon.com using their “Search Inside” feature. We tell you this so you can see the products and get familiar with them. However, we’d humbly suggest/request that if you decide to purchase that you do so from the folks here at Paizo, since that’s where your search started.

If our response to your posts ever seems a little slow (as it was here, we do monitor a number of message boards) you can always prompt us using email at info@metalmagicandlore.com

Does the magic make or break any encounter? If the players are running characters that are melee-focussed are they going to set themselves up for disaster against magic-users?

In other words, you say the system is scaleable...but is it balanced?

Thanks for the question.

The simple answer is yes, the system is balanced. Every component, whether it is melee combat or magic, is designed to work with the other parts of the system. As the basic game’s development concluded and just prior to it’s release we play tested MML extensively – I don’t recall the exact number of hours, but it was in the hundreds. This was to make sure the rules functioned well and that there were not any unintended glitches with the rules to produce the “disasters” you were enquiring about.

In the three years that the game has been released and in circulation the majority of the feedback we have received has been extremely positive. We haven’t had any reports of magic overwhelming opponents or unbalancing the game.

Because MML is based on attributes and skills it nearly impossible to create superhuman characters that will simply overwhelm their opponents. Also, for the most part, the magical effects are not on a grand scale. This means that the effects are more subtle and encourage planning, strategy and overall better game-play.

We hope this answers your question and appreciate your interest in Metal Magic and Lore.

The sale on the PDF version of Metal Magic and Lore as well as the New and Seasoned GM Bundles ends tomorrow, June 20th.

We're in the process of a major update on our website. The first steps were to update our "Home" and "Latest Lore" pages and to expand our "About MML" page. We confident that these changes begin to address the requests for more information and descriptions of the game and its components. We'd love to have any feedback at all on our new modifications - if you have a moment to check it out, let us know what you think!

Thank you to everyone who purchased the electronic version of MML over the past several weeks. Also, thanks to the folks here at Paizo for their gracious help in putting this promotion together.

We appreciate all of the inquiries on the messageboards, as well as the emails and visits to our website. And mentioning the website, we heard your comments regarding what everyone would like to see changed. We’re working now on some long overdue updates and upgrades – check back with us over the coming weeks this summer to see some of the changes we are going to implement.

Thanks again for all of the support. We’ve decided to extend this promotion another couple of weeks – so the PDF version of the rulebook will remain on sale here at Pazio until June 13th.

Sorry for the confusion, the promotional sale of our PDF Player's Rulebook and electronic bundles will be extended to June 20th.

Thank you to everyone who purchased the electronic version of MML over the past several weeks. Also, thanks to the folks here at Paizo for their gracious help in putting this promotion together.

We appreciate all of the inquiries on the messageboards, as well as the emails and visits to our website. And mentioning the website, we heard your comments regarding what everyone would like to see changed. We’re working now on some long overdue updates and upgrades – check back with us over the coming weeks this summer to see some of the changes we are going to implement.

Thanks again for all of the support. We’ve decided to extend this promotion another couple of weeks – so the PDF version of the rulebook will remain on sale here at Pazio until June 20th.

Sorry for the confusion, the promotional sale of our PDF Player's Rulebook and electronic bundles will be extended to June 20th.

Thank you to everyone who purchased the electronic version of MML over the past several weeks. Also, thanks to the folks here at Paizo for their gracious help in putting this promotion together.

We appreciate all of the inquiries on the messageboards, as well as the emails and visits to our website. And mentioning the website, we heard your comments regarding what everyone would like to see changed. We’re working now on some long overdue updates and upgrades – check back with us over the coming weeks this summer to see some of the changes we are going to implement.

Thanks again for all of the support. We’ve decided to extend this promotion another couple of weeks – so the PDF version of the rulebook will remain on sale here at Pazio until June 13th.

Thank you to everyone who purchased the electronic version of MML over the past several weeks. Also, thanks to the folks here at Paizo for their gracious help in putting this promotion together.

We appreciate all of the inquiries on the messageboards, as well as the emails and visits to our website. And mentioning the website, we heard your comments regarding what everyone would like to see changed. We’re working now on some long overdue updates and upgrades – check back with us over the coming weeks this summer to see some of the changes we are going to implement.

Thanks again for all of the support. We’ve decided to extend this promotion another couple of weeks – so the PDF version of the rulebook will remain on sale here at Pazio until June 13th.

I read most, if not all of this series, years ago, and I absolutely loved it. I am glad to find it published again!

I saw this back when I went to [strike]neutral ground[/strike] Compleat strategist, in NYC a few years ago, and honestly, seemed a little complex to me. based on just kinda the information and product description I was given (I believe one of the reps was there?) It's not quite heroic enough for my tastes. I do say that if you're into semi-realistic Medieval rpgs it might be right up your alley.

Shanwolf -

Thanks for dropping by and telling us about your experience.

I can see how just from a verbal description MML might seem a little complicated to a person who has never played the game. Not to mention that the hardcover rulebook does have a rather hefty feel to it.

I remember the time period you're talking about, during which both myself and my co-author hosted a number of demos and a small tournament at several of the gaming stores around NYC.

I can tell you that people who do sit down and play the game report that it is easy to learn and easy to use. Since those demo's a few years ago, we've added a great "Quickstart" kit to the product line that will actually walk you through melee, missiles and magic in a gladiatorial setting. A number of pregenerated characters included in the kit means that you're ready to roll dice as you're reading the first page. We've had great success with this kit and gamers tell us that they were able to get up and running in minutes by using the Quickstart materials.

If you're interested, maybe its worth taking another look at MML.

Andy.

Thanks Andy, both from the response here and the email.

I can certainly understand how plans can change, and I do appreciate that some of the critical rules that would be needed to run the game (character advancement) were made available as an inexpensive pdf.

The more I'm delving into the Playersbook, the more I'm understanding just how modular it is. Its really an outstanding toolkit for gamers who are looking for a detailed system that can be customized without "breaking" the game.

As I mentioned above, I've already started to create a new homebrew setting for MML that I hope to run later this summer. I'm lucky in that my players are pretty open to trying new games.

If anyone is interested, I can let you know how things work out.

Kharin -

Absolutely, we'd love to hear from you.
Please do update us on how your campaign develops and how the player's like the MML system.
We're always available to answer questions, or just to bounce ideas of off.

Andy.

I was just stopping by - does anyone else have any questions on Metal, Magic and Lore?

We be happy to chat about any aspect of the game or our products that intrests folks.

Khairn, you’re most welocome.

Its clear you’re a gamer who has some experience with the systems we at 5th Epoch grew up on – Aftermath is an old favorite. We also loved Squad Leader.

We’re glad you’re satisfied with your purchase overall. The entire game is written to be flexible and scalable. We find that a lot of GMs write us and say similar things about creating their own races and cultures. I think that’s why most people find the amount of setting information appropriate. However, we appreciate your opinion – can you tell us the top two or three details that you thought were missing, that if they were present would make the setting more complete for you?

The honest answer on the Experience and Skill Acquisition rules is that we originally envisioned two hardcover books to start the product line – one being for more Players and the other more for GMs. This did not happen the way we thought it did, so we immediately released the “experience” information in the GMs Starter Kit, which has a very modest price tag ($1.95).

We apologize if the product information was unclear to you. I think it can be best summarized as follows:
- The Heavy Armor packages contain a little more lore on the races (a total of 12 additional pages if you consider all 6 PDFs). As you might guess these armor packages provide more protection than those listed in the Player’s Rulebook (in some cases a lot more). These packages save a lot of time as assembling armors can take serious effort if you’re not familiar with the armor system.
- There are currently two Bestiaries with one more to be released imminently and another later this year. Bestiary I contains five undead and Bestiary II contains five bipedal beasts, which depending on your campaign setting, might or might not be considered minor races. Again, we appreciate your opinion on the price of these PDFs. However, we think its fair to point out that the material is not only stats for the Beasts. Every entry contains a full page illustration by Ryan Pancoast who is a dynamite artist. Every entry also has a good bit of lore. The front of the booklet also contains some expanded rules for working with beasts and a complete explanation of the Beast stats and ratings.
- We have GM’s Quick Reference sheets which are designed to stand alone or work with a number of generic GM’s screen products.
- The Deeping Vale adventure starter is a great way for GMs to get the feel for how to put together an MML scenario. It’s a great adventure and there’s plenty of room for GMs to customize and really make it their own. This product also has some nice new maps.
- The MML Player’s Quickstart Kit helps get the game going in a few minutes with a step by step process to explain melee combat, missile and magic. There are pregenerated characters included in this kit for the ease of the GM.

We don’t have any information on tricks and traps. It seemed to us that there we so many products out there on these subjects that we’d just be flooding the market. Magic Items will be covered in one of our upcoming product releases entitled “The GMs Guide to Heroic Adventuring”, which is slated for release in the latter portion of this year.

We appreciate your purchase and your support. The fact is that as an independent published it is an uphill battle sometimes. We need the support from people like you, in the gaming community, to purchase our products. I’d love to be able to say otherwise, but we aren’t getting rich selling these games. We do it because we love gaming. We bring the absolute highest quality products we can to the market. We know they play well, because we test them ourselves.

So we’re hoping a lot more folks decide to jump in on this promotion and see what Metal, Magic and Lore is all about!

Andy.
Co-Author of Metal, Magic and Lore

Thanks for following up with your question. The basics of the MML magic system can be summarized as follows:

Section six of our Player’s Rulebook is dedicated to the subject of magic. The MML magic system is skills based. There are no magic classes or professions, nor are there any spell levels or the like.

Our magic system does have a number of unique features. There are three schools of magic included within the Player’s Rulebook: Symbols, Wizardry and Elementalism. One of the better features of the system is that all three schools could be employed simultaneously if the magician has the proper skills. All use of magic is tracked through a single number, that we call “evocation points”. This makes the use of multiple schools of magic during game play not only possible but easy. Another unique feature is our system of magic precedence which helps to sort out what happens when different types of magic come together and compete.

Spells are not forgotten when they are cast. As long as one knows the proper spell all that is required to put it in play is a successful skill check.

Since the MML game system was designed to be very scalable, the game works equally well if magic is common or extremely rare. In some settings the magical school of Symbols might be used on its own. In others all three schools can be commonly in use. The MML world presented with the rulebook is somewhat middle of the road – all three schools of magic are in play, but knowledge of them and their actual usage becomes rarer as time passes.

Hi Folks. My name is Andrew Kozak, and I am one of the Metal Magic and Lore’s co-authors. I’m happy to chat with you in this forum and answer all of your questions about the game. Sorry for the slow response, but I didn’t spot this thread until I read Khairn’s email to our info account.

You’ve read some reviews already so I think you know the basics about the system: skills based, percentile, no character classes, realistic immersive feel, etc.

Are there any specific questions I could answer?

You’re welcome, its my pleasure to get some more information about MML out there.

We built the MML world from the ground up with the idea of creating a richly detailed lore to serve as a backdrop to the game. This lore integrates a lot of different pieces in the game – everything from weapons and armor, through technology, magic, economics and even racial preferences for skills. At the current time we have a single continent mapped out – the area is something equivalent to continental Europe. Its an expansive area that includes a lot of different geographies. As we develop the MML product line, we are drilling down into the details of regions and countries as we go. An example would be the gazetteer-like information on the northern Middle Kingdoms we include in the Deeping Vale Adventure Starter.

I’m glad you’re considering MML. If you’ve got any other questions, fire away!

Sad to say I visited their website and wasn't impressed. It could really use a better layout with previews and examples beyond the general description and four thumbnails of art. I'm assuming, since it is percentile based, spells are cast against a target number determined by combining an ability score and skill ranks into a defense score that serves as a target number. Again that’s pure assumption since I don’t own it. The price of the PDF is a nice temptation as well as a good entry point but I’m still hesitant since there’s nothing that really tells me what the game is about or even what it’s like. Does it have its own setting or is it a general rule book? What races are playable? It says there are no classes and that it’s skill based, okay, do you instead choose professions as your focus? These are questions that should be answered on their website but aren’t, not to mention showing how the magic system works.

Visit their site here.

By way of introduction, I am Andrew Kozak, one of the co-authors of the game. I’m happy to chat with you folks in this forum and answer your questions about our products.

First off, thanks for your comments and interest in Metal Magic and Lore (MML). Your comments about our website are well taken and we are working on improving things with more information and the like. These changes will be implemented through the end of this spring and over the summer. More immediately, I’d like to begin addressing your questions.

Yes, MML is a percentile based system. MML is skills based and there are no character classes. There are six playable races which are familiar to most RPGers: Men, Gray Elves, Wood Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes and Hilfolk. We’ve developed the races based on our own world-specific lore, so I think that the more routine elements mix well with our own creativity and innovations. We have a single rulebook, which is one of the PDFs being offered in this promotion. This “Player’s Rulebook” contains the basics of our setting and there is addition information being released as this develops; some of this material is included in our “Deeping Vale” adventure starter, which is offered in one of the promotion’s product bundles.

The choices involved in character development are fairly open and are based on the type of campaign the GM would like to develop. There is a dedicated character generation section which guides GMs and players through a number of these choices. The number of skills and their relative effectiveness are based on the campaign type – the game is highly scalable so it works equally well with what we call our “Spartan”, “Adventurer” and “Heroic” campaigns.

I hope this begins to answer your questions…

To Our Friends at Paizo –

We at 5th Epoch continue to visit shows and connect with gamers who might enjoy our premier fantasy role playing game Metal Magic and Lore.

We recently made an appearance at the Archon convention in Columbia. This was a great success and we thank Khat Jackson for his efforts. We also thank our new friends and fans from this event as we really do appreciate the support!

On October 23 -25 we will be attending the Charcon convention in Charleston, WV. We are looking forward to meeting new people and enjoying several MML events. The folks at 5th Epoch will run demo games all weekend. Corey Lake will run a Gladiatorial tournament on Saturday and our “Deeping Vale” adventure on Sunday. This promises to be a great event, so if you’re in the area, come on by.

We hope to see you there!

Just a quick word to say hello to our friends on the Paizo message forum.

Its been an exciting Summer for us at 5th Epoch Publishing. We recently attended the Origins Game Fair, which is a great event to connect with fellow gamers and we had a great time this year (as always). In July we released our 9th Metal, Magic and Lore supplemental PDF product, or Bestiary II, and this is available right here on the Paizo website.

We are looking forward to Gen Con ’09 which is a just a little over two weeks away. Once we catch our breath after the Con, we’ll be back onto content development. We plan the release of or third Bestiary and a MML Travel Guide in the coming months.

Our own website has been fully updated and expanded. We are constantly at work on the site and update it as often as our hectic schedule allows. Drop by and check us out at:
www.metalmagicandlore.com

Thanks Andy, Vito, and Ryan for such a wonderful rpg! MML pays emphasis to realism (especially when it comes to combat) from what Ive seen, and that is exactly what I want in a game. I like when my players are hesitant about combat. The setting im considering creating for use with MML will be in a realistic post-medieval (1500s-1600s) land. And most of the campaign setting will detail a vast urban metropolis where the wealthy and noble live in extravagence and the poor suffer from poverty and disease in the city's poorer districts. Some random thoughts I have when thinking about the setting are realistic swordfights with rapiers, little to no armor except for some ceremonial varieties seen on king's knights, little to no magic except maybe some life elementalism which is kept hidden from the city's populace, clothing and customs appropriate to Reniassance-era Earth, breakthroughs in science, architecture, and art, a vast scholar's college in the city, no races except for Men. This setting would be very very heavily-inspired by Ellen Kushner's fantasy series (Swordspoint, Privelage of the Sword, and Fall of Kings).

I know MML is written for the medieval fantasy setting of the Middle Kingdoms as a default but I just want to take the rules to a more realistic and advanced timeframe. Just wanted to know if something like Im thinking is possible with MML?

The short answer to your question is “yes”.

We wrote the entire game to be flexible and scalable so that GMs can breathe life into their campaigns with little, if any, restrictions. One of my earlier campaigns focused almost entirely on the race of Men and the only Beasts were those animals found in nature. Magic in that game was restricted with the common man on the streets believing that magic either didn’t exist or was associated with evil, occult practices.

A world history and racial descriptions are part of the Basic game Player’s Rule Book. However, these elements are not overwhelming or written in a manner such that the game system will not function without them. I think you’ll find that with creativity and a little hard work your campaign world will work quite nicely with the rules presented.

I have not read the books you’re referring to, however it sounds like they are a cool back-drop to your own imaginings. I’ve recently experimented with some new concepts for campaigns, and I’ve even jotted down some notes for a campaign setting in the Steampunk genre.

One of the keys to a great MML campaign is immersing the characters in a rich setting that inspires wonder, awe and adventure. The game’s rules reinforce that feeling of reality established by the GM. So, the two work together to provide the player with a truly exciting gaming experience.

As your ideas develop, we can highlight some other aspects of the MML game system, such as skills and character background/social class.

Best Regards,

Andy.
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore.

Just lettin my fellow gamers know that as of right now I am in Camp Virginia, Kuwait, awaiting a flight on a C 130 to my final destination. Already I miss my wife and daughters :(. But I am excited to get Metal, Magic, and Lore to keep me busy and happy and contented!

I have a wife and two daughters as well - it would be a tremendous hardship to be away from them for an extended time. Myself, and the rest of the guys at 5th Epoch, really respect and appreciate your service.

Looking forward to seeing your posts letting us know how your campaign is developing.

Thanks again, and stay safe.

Andy.
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore.

Our MML GMs Starter Kit is complete and available for sales right here in Paizo.

The GM’s Starter Kit contains great information and tools for new and established GMs alike. The Kit contains an Initiative Management System with provides the GM with a tabular format to track initiative and all those events that happen in the course of a combat round. This tool allows the GM to spend less time keeping records and more time enjoying the action. The Kit also contains the MML Skill Advancement and Acquisition rules, which are useful for tournaments and an indispensible addition to any campaign. Finally all of the character sheets found in the Player’s Rule Book have been revised and updated. A new spell sheet organizes a magician’s available spells in a clean, well organized format.

Feedback on this and any other 5th Epoch products is welcome.

I'll write again in the near future to let everyone know our intentions for PDF product releases through the summer.

Thanks & Regards,
Andy.
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore.

MML GMs -

Work on the GM’s Starter Kit continues. At the last moment, we decided to add three pages to this PDF (bringing the total up to 24 pgs). This addition will allow us to include upgrades of not only the character sheets for all six character races, but the back up sheets as well. These upgraded sheets will update the ones found on pages 318 through 320 in the Player's Rule Book and include the skills/possessions sheet, the armor worksheet, and the spell/symbol listing sheet. We're going to need a few extra days to finish our work, but we feel this small delay will add value to the product, so its worth it. We'll keep everybody posted as to our progress.

- Andy.
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore

Andy, I cant find the page on facebook. What's it called? I just found out that i probably wont recieve my books for another two weeks so im gonna order the undead pdfs and the armor pdfs for wood elves and gray elves. Im really leaning towards completely rewriting my beloved elfish woodland setting Arko and placing it in a more mature and dangerous image. In Arko my elves have had their magic taken from them so it could work. What is the difference between gray elves and wood elves in MML? Im just curious and i cant find out for myself yet. Thanks!

The group on Facebook is simply called “Metal Magic and Lore”. It’s under “common interests/hobbies”. Link follows:

In the standard MML setting, the Wood Elves are part of what we call the “tribal Elves”. These are large groups who have separated themselves from the rest of Elfin society. The tribal Elves, and especially the Wood Elves, are secretive and live in remote areas. Many live deep in the great forests, hence their name. Wood Elves practice simple magic, ranging from the less intricate Symbols to Mysticism (Life Elementalists). Other tribal groups live to the far north, others still in desert regions. The more exotic tribal factions and locations are not detailed in the Player’s Rule Book, and are left for future supplements, or for GMs who want to put their own ideas into play.

The Gray Elves hold to tradition, even though their society has declined from its apex in earlier Epochs. They try to live in accordance with the values handed down by their ancestors. Gray Elves practice metal craft and posses the ability to forge armors from strong steel and a special bronze alloy. Gray Elves are the foremost practitioners of magic and are active in all three schools: Symbols, Mysticism (magic of the five Elements) and Wizardry.

I hope that gives you an overview. There’s a good deal more background information in the PRB chapter 2: Character Creation, as well as additional information in the Armor Supplements.

BTW – If you like Ryan Pancoast’s illustrations, you’re in for a treat because he did some outstanding work for the Bestiary I: Undead PDF.

Best Regards,

Andy.
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore.

Thanks for gettin back to me Andy and Ryan. My wife just let me know that she has my MML rulebook and fresh blank campaign journal as well as some more Glen Cook novels to keep me inspired, and she'll be sending them to me ASAP. I cant wait to dig into MML and make my setting. I've even been toying with the idea of converting my beloved homebrew high fantasy setting, Arko, to MML. I created the setting 8 years ago and I have a ton of lore and material for it. Converting it from D6 Fantasy would nicely fill my time over here in the sandbox.

MML reminds me somewhat of Epic RPG which is a good thing. It used D10s, was classless, and you created characters based on how they were raised. Such as what their parents did for a living, who they were apprenticed to as a teen, any important things that happened to them and so on and so forth. I cant wait to get into a game like that again with MML.
Also I was wondering if as of right now you have any plans on putting a forum on your website specifically for MML? In my experience Ive found that it is an incredible resource for a game and the focus could lay completely with MML which cant really be done on a site like Paizo.

Thanks

We do have plans to add a forum to the MML website. Unfortunately this is very likely going to take some time for us to accomplish. I say unfortunately because we recognize the utility of an interactive environment dedicated to Metal, Magic and Lore.

Right now we are focused on getting some additional products to market. While these items are optional supplements, there have been a number of our players and fans of the game who have asked for more material in specific areas. So we have to focus our resources where they are most needed.

However, we do have a group page on Facebook. We operate this page as a place where gamers can come and exchange information specifically about MML. We post pictures of recent games and tournaments, as well as previews of artwork featured in upcoming products. The membership of this group has nearly doubled over the past month, so we see this as an increasingly useful tool for our players.

Best Regards,
Andy.
Co-Author Metal Magic and Lore

Well, I just ordered it along with a blank journal to write my campaign setting in. Im really excited as it'll keep my mind occupied in the craziness over here in the Middle East. The campaign ideas Im thinking of is a very frontier-esque wilderness setting with magic being based completely on runes and glyphs. I want it to be kind of a developing province of some far away empire. Im thinking of doing away with most monsters and making what monsters there are extremely rare. Hostilities to the characters will come from wild animals, the treacherous environment, and of course other humans. Im going to have an emphasis on realism and grittiness. Do this ideas sound doable with MML. Thanks.

Yes, absolutely. Your ideas are clearly doable in MML.

Your description brought me right back to a campaign that I ran for a number of years in the early 90’s. We affectionately called it the “Kendall campaign”, and you’ll recognize him as one of the example characters in our book.

My campaign was set in the Middle Kingdoms (see the map on the end sheets of the book). I pictured this as a brutal feudal land where power hungry nobles vied for power in an atmosphere of near-constant warfare. Some areas were quite remote and government was strictly on the local level.

In the Middle Kingdoms, magic is outlawed and practicing any of the arcane arts is an offense punishable by death. Magic was limited to symbols and a limited selection of Wizardry spells. Magic items were extremely rare and the ones that the party did get a hold of had almost exclusively non-combat uses. The single character in the campaign capable of using magic went to great lengths to conceal his skills (for good reason) and was primarily a healer, and herbalist.

The focus of the game was travel and survival. In that campaign, I used very few Beasts, and the ones I did use took the form of semi-intelligent, or sometimes intelligent/cunning, minor races. So, most of the combat was against Mannish foes, armed with a wide range of weapons and armor.

My central themes for the campaign were a realistic immersive feel and creating heroic characters who were still human.

I think you’re off to a great start with your new campaign. Keep us posted as your ideas develop further.

- Andy.

You're welcome, my pleasure.
Stay safe.
Let us know how you like the game and how your campaign ideas develop.

It will be a few months until I return home and start up another fantasy campaign, and I have started thinking that I might want to just get away from D&D and all its baggage for a while. I love D&D, don't get me wrong. It could, though, be nice to explore some new pastures. So if you would, please tell me what other fantasy RPGs you recomend.

I am currently considering Warhammer Fantasy RP. Riddle of Steel I don't think would match our play style. But beyond this and some Earthdawn back in the day I really have no ideas about what games to investigate.

Thanks.

Tam

Tam –

We’re having a similar discussion on a few other threads in this section, so your post caught my eye. I’m not yet completely sure what you tastes are, but please allow me to suggest Metal, Magic and Lore.

I’ll tell you immediately that I am co-author of the game, but since you asked the question I figured I throw our hat in the ring. D&D is a great game and I grew up playing it. However, MML is very different. Our game is focused on skills rather than classes and we strive to build an atmosphere of realism throughout the book.

Check out the discussions under the threads “My Fantasy Holy Grail” and “Metal Magic and Lore Authors Update”. If MML sounds intriguing then I’d be happy to chat with you further.

Best Regards,

Andy.
Co-Author
Metal Magic and Lore.

nrtrandahl wrote:

Ive been getting into the idea of this system and doing some browsing on it. You may have a buyer here! I just have another question: What dice does MML use? Does it use a single die or a single type of die or what? How are rolls resolved? Thanks.

To answer my own question, I just read on your website that MML uses a percentile-based rolling system. Thats very refreshing as I havent used a percentile-based system since my friend ran a rolemaster session for me 11 years ago as pitch to get me into roleplaying. Does combat get nice and gritty with lots a bloody variables? If I design a setting for it I will just use that symbol magic you had mentioned. Ive got alot of ideas brewing!

I could continue my beloved high-fantasy setting Arko on D6 Fantasy but I could create a very low-magic gritty dark world with MML!

We wrote the game with three campaign settings in mind: Spartan, Adventurer and Heroic. I'll focus my comments on the Spartan setting here because it sounds like you would enjoy that one the most.

In Spartan settings there is deliberately little magic used. Player characters in these settings often find themselves with limited resources and a skill set that must be developed through game play.

Speaking directly to your question, we use percentile dice for all task resolutions within the system, including combat. The MML system is free of classes which we felt are cumbersome and restrictive. Instead we based everything on skills which can be combined in any way the player and GM see fit.

The combat system is fairly detailed, but this does not get in the way of the action. The flow of combat is straight forward and fast paced. The percentile dice are used to attack and defend. If there is a successful attack, then a percentile dice is used to determine where on the body the blow will land. Injuries are scaled to the amount of damage received in relation to the hit points a combatant has available. We kept things neutral in our descriptions but it would be easy for GMs to fill in the details.

Combat does get gritty as fatigue sets in. Limbs become disabled as the wounds become more serious. An important point I wanted to make is that the rules are flexible and scalable. A good degree of detail is there for folks who don't mind a little extra complexity.

Using just Symbol magic will place your game solidly in the Spartan setting. There is little magical healing available so wounds received in combat become a big deal.

I hope this begins to answer your questions…

Best Regards,

Andy.
Co-Author Metal Magic and Lore

Is this a relatively new system? I havent heard of it before you had mentioned it to me in another thread. Im pretty intigued by it.

Yes, we're relatively new. The Game was debuted at Origins 2007. We appeared at the 2008 Origins and Gen Con conventions where we ran events to introduce more folks to the game.

We've been on Paizo since November and we're in the process of preparing a number of PDF offerings that are optional supplements to the game. We also maintain an updated Errat Booklet as a free download.

As I mentioned above, we have our own modest website at:
http://www.metalmagicandlore.com

Our game is part of a number of other forums such as RPG.net, Skirmisher Publishing, and Planet Strat. These are useful to see what gamers are saying about the game in general. We also have a small, but growing, community on Facebook.

I do hope you check us out, becuase the description in your post captured a number of things that are central to Metal, Magic and Lore.

Best Regards,

Andy.

Might I suggest Metal, Magic and Lore?

I’ll tell you straight away that I am a co-author of the game, but I think our game will interest you.

We do not a written in campaign setting. All of the information on the character races was written so that a variety of settings could be accommodated. We provided enough information to give the game flavor, but not in a way that stifles each GM’s creativity.

We have a single rule book, the Metal, Magic and Lore Player’s Rulebook. We do have supplemental game material in the form of PDFs, but they are not required to play the game.

Our rules are pretty straightforward, although there are many nuances that could take some time to master.

An epic fantasy setting is no problem with MML. Limited magic is also no problem. We have Symbol magic, which was written with our Spartan campaign setting in mind. The Symbols are great because they do take some work on the part of the magician to use and the effects are fairly subtle. This places the emphasis on the setting and physical deeds. There aren’t easy ways of out situations, so even travel across the land becomes more interesting.

Artwork was taken very seriously when we published the game. I think we have some beautiful illustrations in the book. Our premier illustrator, Ryan Pancoast is still very much active with the project. You can see some of the work Ryan did for MML at:
http://www.ryanpancoast.com

It seems like we have what you’re looking for – so consider Metal, Magic and Lore. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Best of luck on your upcoming deployment.

Thanks & Regards,

Andy
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore.

Fellow Gamers -

A quick update about what's new with 5th Epoch Publishing and the Metal, Magic and Lore RPG.

We just updated our website, see us at:
http://www.metalmagicandlore.com

Early in the month of February we posted our binder covers as a free download here in the Paizo site. The covers were popular with the folks who follow the game in NYC, so we wanted to share them with people who enjoy the game, and live outside the tri-state area.

This past week we posted our newly revised Errata Booklet PDF. This free download addresses the errors and ommisions we found in the Basic Game Player's Rulebook. It also contains three Dwarven SAPs that had a series of numbers omitted and an Index. A number of fans had indicated they felt an index was missing from the book, so we took this opportunity to get this tool out there.

We are working hard on a number of PDFs that will be available here through Paizo. The next one to be completed should be our GM's Starter Kit. I'll write a little more about this in the coming days.

Thanks to everyone for their support and we're happy to answer any questions. So, post away!

Best Regards,

Andy.

Wildfire -

Glad you liked the look of the undead - they are a fearsome lot and I think your group will find them very challenging. Some of the implications with undead as they interact with the MML melee combat system are subtle. Its very interesting to watch a party of adventurers begin to fatigue as they fight undead beasts who never tire...

Every once in a while someone will ask about a PDF version of the PRB, which is our only product not available as a PDF. Sorry to say, at this time we aren't planning to offer that option. However, all of our upcoming GM's material (Travel Guide, Adventure Guide, Bestiaries, et. al.) will be available as PDFs.

We thank you for your enthusiasm and hope you enjoy the game! Let us know how your campaign goes.

Best Regards,

Andy
Co-Author
Metal, Magic and Lore

Hey friends -

A quick update about what's new with 5th Epoch Publishing and the Metal, Magic and Lore RPG.

We just updated our website, see us at:
http://www.metalmagicandlore.com

Early in the month of February we posted our binder covers as a free download here in the Paizo site. The covers were popular with the folks who follow the game in NYC, so we wanted to share them with people who enjoy the game, and live outside the tri-state area.

This past week we posted our newly revised Errata Booklet PDF. This free download addresses the errors and ommisions we found in the Basic Game Player's Rulebook. It also contains three Dwarven SAPs that had a series of numbers omitted and an Index. A number of fans had indicated they felt an index was missing from the book, so we took this opportunity to get this tool out there.

We are working hard on a number of PDFs that will be available here through Paizo. The next one to be completed should be our GM's Starter Kit. I'll write a little more about this in the coming days.

Thanks to everyone for their support and we're happy to answer any questions. So, post away!

Best Regards,

Andy.

John -

My name is Andy and I am one of the two coauthors of “Metal Magic and Lore”. I’ve watched this conversation develop over the past few weeks and wanted to add a few thoughts.

First, I can assure you that Islandhopper wasn’t paid to give you his feedback. Initially we weren’t exactly sure who this was speaking about the game. This, in our view, is a good thing. We want the folks out there who have tried the game to relate these experiences to others who might also be interested in MML.

From what I have read the gamers who post to the Paizo message boards are an intelligent and diverse community. That’s one of the reasons we were so excited to be bringing our products to the Paizo website. We have a thriving base of MML players here in NYC, and we’re excited about having an even broader spectrum of people speaking about the game.

We currently have two PDF supplements available for download and another four should be available within a week or so. Right behind those armor supplements, we will release our Bestiary I, which provides some pretty challenging opponents for MML adventurers.

We thank you and Islandhopper for your interest in Metal Magic and Lore, and we look forward to participating in further discussions about the game.

Best Regards,

Andy.