#Prima Games

[quakeroc]

thank you prima games, very handy

[angelic-petty]

[falloutuniverse]

FNV Companions - Prima Game Guide

[prima-materia-ttrpg]

The "why" behind Game Design

I've been doing a lot of thinking and talking with my friends about Prima Materia, as I often do these days. For the past few weeks there's been something itching at the back of my mind, I'm making mechanics that are starting to work well but for whatever reason they don't "feel" like Prima Materia to me. They technically fit in with the design pillars I've assigned myself; grounded, cinematic, dynamic, and fantasy, but I've felt like things are missing. Going beyond that, I don't think someone would properly grok the game if they were to read my past blog posts. If I read my past blog posts without knowing what Prima Materia is, I would think it's a game mostly focused on combat with some interesting worldbuilding.

I decided to talk with one of my friends about this, and the conversation led to me trying to properly articulate the kinds of things I want to happen in Prima Materia and compare that with the direction the design is going. In particular, how do I imagine a campaign going? What do people actually do in the game? While these are questions that can be applied to most ttrpgs, I hadn't realized how important it was to answer them concretely to make correct design decisions for my game rather than the design being driven by vague subconscious conceptions of a game that does not yet exist filtered through some core design pillars and my own limited experience in playing ttrpgs.

What do people actually do in the game?

This is a wide question, and has a wide answer.

When I think of what it would be like to actually play or GM a game of Prima Materia my mind tends towards uncovering secrets, diplomatically dealing with situations, and overcoming obstacles that require lots of preparation to pull off without getting seriously hurt. Secrets should be important to the party and world, and depending on the tier of play can be anything from uncovering new alchemical magics to metaphysical secrets of the universe that can act as MacGuffins for a longstanding party.

The more I think about it, the more I believe that uncovering secrets is one half of the beating heart of Prima Materia, and the other half is preparation for overcoming obstacles to achieve the uncovering of those secrets. Characters in the game aren't meant to be incredibly powerful but rather incredibly skilled at their area of expertise, whether that be being good with a sword, knowledgeable in certain subjects, good at diplomacy, or making useful items. That's the concept of the game that's in my head that needs to be concretely written down (and how convenient for me that I've just done that).

Going Forward

A lot of the ideas and drafts I've written or verbalized to friends make a lot more sense in this light of uncovering secrets and preparation, as lot of those ideas hinge on uncovering secrets or being prepared. There are lost manuscripts I've been itching to put in that grant skill bonuses as well as character features due to the knowledge contained within. The Alchemist profession alone is a class that takes the ideas of preparedness and uncovering secrets to 11, where you create new spells and tinctures and unlock more and more useful things to make as well as ways to make them.

There are several design decisions I've been making recently that do not spark joy for me. They will be dealt with, and going forward I will have this to keep in mind as what I want the heart of the game to be.

If you read this far, thank you very much! It means a lot. The astute among you who read my last post will notice that this is suspiciously not a post about the Sepia as I promised, and that's because I thought this post was important. I will of course try to get the Sepia post out next week, but if that fails I will bring you an update on my most recent mechanics experiment which will surely have transpired by then.

[retrogamelovers]

Do you still enjoy using strategy guides?

[tigressaofkanjis]

Transformers: Lost World - All Leaders + Their Weaknesses

Classes: 

Miner – Can dig in the ground for deep planted materials and break Energon 

Farm Skill – Digs soil and can overturn used spots. Can craft and break down materials.

Gatherer – Can hold excess supplies and materials and can retrieve items for you out in the field 

Farm Skill – Taking ready crops and organizing them, feeding animals 

Infiltrator – Can cut down trees, vines, and ice for materials or to unblock paths. Can climb cliffs and to higher areas. 

Farm Skill - Tidying up the farm, animal stalls and the Transformer stables, keeping the area and its inhabitants mess-free and happy, and can also plant seeds.  The more Transformers and animals you have, the easier it is for your farm to become disheveled, and all your Companions will grow upset over time. 

Scout – Can sense nearby hotspots of energy and alert to items in the wild 

Farm Skill – Retrieves water for crops or animals in their station 

Wrecker – Can demolish rocks and heavy-duty minerals, unblocking paths as well. Can climb cliffs and to higher areas. 

Farm Skill – Crafting or breaking down materials for crafting is their best use though they can also dig soil and patrol the farm’s boundaries for extra tidiness 

Healer – Can heal any Transformer you take with you as well as yourself to a degree 

Farm Skill – Tendering to planted crops or animals, keeps them healthy when you are away 

Combatant – The best for fighting other Transformers to subdue and tame them as well as great warriors for challenges and battles. Can climb cliffs and to higher areas. 

Farm Skill – Transformers can get bored, but their favorite pastime is friendly battle. Keeping a Combatant to maintain hobby stations will keep your friends happy. 

Leader – Jack of all trades, can do almost everything on and off the farm. Certain leaders lack one skill compared to other leaders though so be mindful where you place them. 

Farm Skill – Practically everything. 

All Leader Class Transformers have to be fought to tame. And once acquired, they can perform any job the others can...except one. Depending on the Leader, their skills vary.

35. Grimlock - While he excels in combat and most chores, Grimlock is a very weak Healer type. He doesn't do well in trimming crops to maintain health and providing direct care for creatures.

36. Predaking - He cannot be a Scout. Finding items aren't exactly what he cares to do but using water on crops and to replenish animal's water buckets is very hard with half his abilities relying on fire.

50. Ramhorn - Ramhorn has immense difficulties with being an Infiltrator. He has neither the patience or the specialty to deal with vines and trees as well as cleaning up messes. He would rather make messes than clean them.

51. Ravage - Stubborn-headed, yes, but his size does limit him to what he can do. Ravage cannot be a Wrecker class as giant obstacles are a bit too strong for him. He also is better at rearranging crafted items than actually dealing with them.

85. Optimus Prime - Excels in everything except being a Miner. He doesn't have the strongest knowledge of unearthing materials nor digging plots for crops.

86. Megatron - Megatron may be the head honcho of the Decepticons but he isn't going to do everything. Megatron has quite the difficulties with being an Infiltrator. He doesn't deal with mediocre blocked paths nor dealing with a messy camp. He'll leave those chores for other bots.

94. Elita One - Elita has no patience for being a Healer. She sent bots to the infirmary during the war; that's the only relationship she has in terms of medical and natural care.

100. Ultra Magnus - High and mighty Ultra has a lack of association with being a Scout as he isn't the best at tracking things nor retrieving water.

101. Motormaster - He boasts a lot but sucks at being a direct Combatant unless he's cornered. And he doesn't care for seeing to keeping his peers happy in friendly battle.

115. Sky Garry - Good Garry is a star example of a bot except as a Miner. He prefers the sky, hence his name, rather than sticking to the ground and certainly digging in it.

116. Slipstream - Her intelligence rivals many and she finds that while in no sense weak, she doesn't deal with obstacles a Wrecker would. She's also not a great craftsman, preferring to draw up the schematics than physically do them.

134. Tidal Wave - A great behemoth of a Transformer, he is a terrible Scout. A little too big to recognize materials and hidden things from his height, he'll leave the watering and seeking tasks to bots better suited for it.

135. Omega Supreme - The sentinel of Iacon, Omega is a kind soul deep down and surprisingly doesn't like to be a Combatant. He would rather farm than harm. He can also do his chores faster, covering the maximum amount of ground work than most others.

136. Astrotrain - The dark train is an irate fellow who despises being a lackey often times so getting him to be an Infiltrator is most difficult. If he can't crush it underfoot, he doesn't care about doing it.

141. Tarn - He doesn't much care for keeping animals much so it's best not to entrust him with feeding them as a Gatherer. He also doesn't care about collecting supplies out in the wild. If you want your stuff, it's more or less up to you to get them.

166. Nemesis Prime - Nemesis (no, not the ship) is spiteful and won't respond to being a Healer. If they aren't dying, there's no need to fix them. Enough said.

173. Dai Atlas - While he is a good Councilmember, Dai Atlas doesn't do well as a Wrecker. He prefers to fix things than break them. He had no problems with animals though.

175. Sentinel Prime - The cocky Prime has one weakness and that is being a Miner. Grunt work more like to him. He will take out large obstacles, but he won't touch honest ground work.

176. Star Saber - He excels in being a strong Autobot but he is not great at being a Gatherer. It's not that he's forgetful or ignorant, he just isn't used to having to gather supplies and feed animals. Maybe he will want to learn someday.

186. Galvatron - The follower of Unicron holds not a lot of regard for life, especially organic life. So, his weakest point is the chores of a Healer. One day, he may come off his high horse and tend to the animals and crops properly but until then, don't leave them unattended in his care please.

187. Prima - A sweet soul throughout, Prima is a natural caring bot but he is not good at being a Scout. He has a million and one things on his mind, tracking items and keeping water for your animals and crops aren't exactly high on his priorities list.

188. Vector Prime - Vector is a lover, not a fighter. He will not indulge himself or others in battle as a Combatant unless in an emergency. Ironically, he has quite the power behind his attacks. he just doesn't utilize them.

189. Micronus Prime - If it can't be levitated, he doesn't deal with it. Micronus will care for all life but has no regard for heavy-duty tasks or things that require patience like crafting. So, you won't find him as a Wrecker anytime soon.

190. Solus Prime - Solus is the best craftsman in the galaxy. Maybe that's a little dramatic but she is the creator of many artifacts and relics you may find. But she is not the best Infiltrator. She makes messes but she has trouble keeping her own station clear much less your camp, and slicing through little annoyances is not what her talent calls for.

191. Liege Maximo - Liege has many things, including a Glitch-Mouse up his aft, but he doesn't deal with being a Miner. He has far too many other chores he would prefer than digging around for useless things.

192. Megatronus Prime - The angry Prime is not good at being a Healer though he may try. Despite his dark nature, he doesn't always act as he looks, but he understands that taking general care of animals and crops are just not in the cards for him.

193. Quintus Prime - Quintus is a terrible Combatant. He can create and destroy but physical fighting he lacks solely because he's not used to it. Fighting Unicron was one thing, other Transformers the same size and possibly with the same level of powers is quite different.

194. Amalgamous Prime - With a horrible sense of perception among all his quirks, Amalgamous doesn't like being a Scout. Getting him to find your car keys would somehow leave your house burning down. He's just not good at it.

195. Alchemist Prime - As a natural soothsayer of the barkeeping world, Alchemist adores animals but his greatest weakness is actually being a Gatherer. he can talk for days but can be easily distracted and forget that while everything needs a drink, they also need to eat.

196. Nexus Prime - Nexus doesn't like to be responsible for others' idiotic decisions so naturally, he makes a terrible Healer. He will fight but he won't aid you as you die. That's a you problem.

197. Onyx Prime - The Beastmaster of the Predacon race understands and loves creatures great and small, but he is not the best Wrecker. He would rather let those more capable with brute strength made for it go ahead and do what they need to. He'll keep with the animals and crops.

198. Alpha Trion - Alpha Trion is a master librarian but he is not the strongest Combatant in the field. He would rather read and take care of life than fight it. While not a pacifist per say, he's definitely not someone you would take into battle a lot.

199. Unicron - The dark god holds a deep hatred for many things, but he lacks most as a Healer. His blood with siphon life in direct exposure, so how would he even begin to help them even if he wanted to?

200. Primus - A sacred soul and the leader of Cybertron overall, Primus is the bearer of life itself. While not heavily responsible for organic existence, they are a valiant and benevolent kindred breed. But if Primus were to be not as good as others in one specific field, they are a bit perplexed by the skill of being a Miner. Digging is not something they have had a lot of practice with given their normal size.

[bite-the-bloody-hand]

Little update to the Zell character sheet. Still playing around with how his hair falls but I think it looks okay-ish. Not quite sold on the silhouette & waviness considering how tightly he keeps it braided. We continue to adapt

[pearlpleultraviolence]

pardon my usage of Rachel Amber vocabulary if you will kind Sir but those daises are rather “hella cool” — my own pic! 🤍

[mrnoontide]

🎪🎴 Moodboard inspired in the story Arcanum (season 1) from the app game Romance Club 🎴🎪

[decamarks]

Hi! I hope this isn't weird but I sent you an email about my zine... iwi No pressure, just wondering if you got it! Thank youuu!!!

AH, I'M SO SORRY! I don't actually check that email very often; I should probably be more consistent about that, LMAO.

Anyway WOW this is an awesome looking zine... I'd been idly imagining something along the lines of a narratively inclined game manual for a while—it's really cool to see that such a thing exists! Definitely considering picking up a copy for myself...

Everyone go look at it → https://valdritch.square.site/product/wothezine/1

[y2kbeautyandother2000sstuff]

Pokemon Red and Blue Prima Strategy Guide

mid-late 1990s

Found on Ebay, user special-agent

I should still have this in my parent's attic!! I loved this book and I still have my original late 1990s lime green Gamboy Color.

[angelic-petty]

インターネット最高！！！

[prima-materia-ttrpg]

Species Highlight - Ternaki

It is time to talk about the technicolor space elves. The Ternaki aren't technically elves because elves don't exist. How dare you have fun. But boy do they come in a lot of different colors! They also happen to be immortal.

So here's the process behind making the Ternaki, and what their lore and history currently looks like.

The Ternaki started with a pretty simple idea. "What would an immortal species actually do culturally?" The answer, of course, is not singular. But I wanted to see what interesting things I could come up with for a species that has nothing but time. How would they think and view the world? How would that worldview change as they got older? How differently would a 100 year old think from a million year old individual? Of course there are a million other questions that follow this same course of reasoning.

One of the first things I decided to include was war scrimmages. That probably sounds weird, but I will explain. War scrimmages are a sport for the Ternaki, treated the same way that one might treat paintball if it were as big as football or soccer. They have four innings that last 25 years each, with the victor declared at the end of the 100 year game by tallying points. Generally, taking towns gives you a decent amount of points. Battles are scheduled ahead of time, and for a town to be the site of one of these scrimmages is a time of celebration. Their war scrimmages are non-lethal, and their generals are some of the most prominent celebrities among the Ternaki; particularly if they consistently find creative ways to outwit their opponents.

The second thing I decided to include was a sacred view of life. The Ternaki generally believe that life should be preserved whenever possible, that the death of a Ternaki is a tragedy, and the death of someone who isn't immortal even more so because they had so little time to begin with.

From here, I set out to make the idea of life being sacred the core philosophy behind the rest of the culture. I also decided that I wanted Ternaki to be unfathomably old sometimes so I could play with some fun ideas about how those old Ternaki think. As a result, they did not evolve on the planet Patek, but rather, on Ternak. Ternak is another planet (and god) that was destroyed when Ternak's star went supernova over a billion years ago. This was such a significant event that their language has different tenses based on whether something predates the death of Ternak.

Ternak, unlike Patek, cared for the sapient creatures on his surface and saw them as his children. The first Ternaki prophets were simply Ternak's friends, who walked and talked with his avatar on the surface of the planet. Ternak did his best to teach them the sacredness of life, because he had seen much of it extinguished in the last age of the universe. He also gave the Ternaki the gift of immortality, saying "You will not fully know me until you see the last stars in the universe blink into nothingness as I have." Once the Ternaki were able to leave the planet, Ternak saw his duty to teach them as done and allowed them to leave the nest. He cut off communication with his children until the star he was taking care of was in its last days, billions of years later. The Ternaki, having at this point spread out through the galaxy, came back on their huge city-ships to witness the last moments of their god. The Ternak system filled with them, and Ternak sent out a message, simply saying "thank you." Legend tells that Ternak also sent an avatar to his closest friend during the congregation, though what he may have said to them is not known.

The Ternaki of Patek

A spaceship 20 kilometers long looms in the Patek system. Inside, a Ternaki woman calls over her colleague. "Look at this" she says, "seven sapient species are on this planet, all in the paleolithic."

"How unusual. My scans of the moon yielded similar results."

The two bring their findings to the ship's captain, presenting a data pad. The Ternaki woman expounds her findings with all the excitement of a consummate professional; "As you can see, based on our scans of the planet and its moon, both are teeming with life. There are also some very strange readings, the planet has multiple new sapient species. On top of that, we believe the moon was captured by the planet and seeded with life."

The captain looks over the data pad, seemingly unenthused. "Perhaps we have found one of Ternak's brethren. Continue your research."

This scene played out ten thousand years ago amongst Ternaki who were much more ancient than that. The Ternaki on that ship were looking for a place to settle down and play civilization for a while, and Patek fit the bill as a place interesting enough place to settle.

Starting with 200,000 people, they found a quiet subcontinent to start the first city to call home. They named the city Sifia, a traditional name for the first city on any planet that roughly means something about a place where new light springs forth. No one really kept track of the etymology.

In the current day, the Ternaki on Patek number close to 160 million. Throughout history, they have been a constant if sometimes enigmatic presence; changing the course of history through their interactions with other cultures. Most Ternaki born on Patek don't know of their extra-terrestrial origins per say, but are aware of the important things such as the story of Ternak preserved through poetry, and countless conversations which involve him recorded in the Ternak Ben'at.

The Ternaki on Patek adhere to religious law, much of which consists of recorded arguments between their spiritual leaders and legal experts, the Ravoshi. The job of a governmental Ravoshi is often to argue in the public gathering place of a civic building with other Ravoshi to constantly hone and clarify religious law. Generally, two Ravoshi will talk about a topic from the Ternak Ben'at or other legal records. A third Ravoshi acts as a scribe and transcribes the argument. The Ravoshi will quote law at each other and give their interpretation of what it means. A third Ravoshi, or sometimes even a citizen, is allowed to interject their own opinion on a topic though this is rare. Ternaki legal battles are much the same, the only difference being the presence of a defendant and a judge.

Punishment for failure to adhere to religious law is not usually done. The only crimes which are punishable are those which involve things such as murder, theft, or sharing technology with other cultures that don't have it. Murder is punished by exile, theft is punished generally with community service, and sharing of technology is punished by exile until the bit of technology you shared becomes obsolete. The laws that apply to outsiders are generally more lenient, though they do lean more towards exile in those cases.

All in all, the Ternaki legal system is very complex. Clans of Ternaki also have their own Ravoshis that aren't hired by the government. They often act as leaders in their communities, solving disputes and taking care of religious rites when they are observed.

Ternaki Clans themselves are the closest thing to what they have to families. Some clans are rather small, and make up a village. Others have hundreds or even thousands of members. Some clans do farming, others are focused on spiritual and legal training; with young members expected to become Ravoshi. Trading clans tend to be the largest, and are the main conduit for import and export to and from the Ternaki subcontinent. Some clans don't have a particular focus, but as they age, individual Ternaki usually find a niche that captures their whole attention for hundreds or more years. Ternaki craftsmanship is some of the best on Patek because Ternaki have quite a lot of time to hone their craft and work on projects. Each sailing ship, building, and gun they make is a work of art made with care, sometimes over the course of a century.

Because of their view on how life should be lived, money isn't used often in many Ternaki communities, though there are places in large cities that use money on occasion. Some Ternaki establishments will deal in money, particularly when they sell luxury goods; but these prices are almost never final as Ternaki often like to haggle over price as a social game. In the case of food and restaurants money is usually optional, especially if someone hasn't eaten in a while. Some Ternaki do take money seriously, however, as they use it to trade in other cultures that take money seriously. The average Ternaki that isn't in a trading clan may carry very little or no money, and not understand why it's needed. A Ternaki in a trading clan or who otherwise often finds themselves away from home will see it as a tool to trade with others outside the Ternaki subcontinent, and have a much better grasp of what its purpose usually is.

I think that's where I'll stop, that's a lot of information and I think I've explained the Ternaki well enough for a blog post. I finally finished writing the combat mechanics, so next week will definitely be about that. If you read this far, thank you very much! Also, I have a website now with playtests you can download! Go make a character or something!

Also thanks @donutboxers for the artwork for this post!

[randomminty]

You are a real one for remembering Lorelei's OG RBY/PokeSpe design. (I love her anime one it has such wild librarian/office lady vibes.)

YAAYY i love her rby design... while were here i think we should all look at her scrapped gen 2 design as well

Important. They were going to give her a little jacket

[pedroam-bang]

A Plague Tale: Requiem (2022)

[hexagonalhavoc]

*Changes my Hex oc for the 30th time*

Her name is Prima and she was the main character of yet another terrible game made by GameFuna. Because of that she was turned into what was supposed to be an anti-virus defense program dubbed “Mantis.” She’s very glitched out and in constant agony but she has a girlfriend so it’s all okay