Summary: Ethan, Nathan, and Jeremy continue the cavalcade of guests with a Skype-in of Chris Dias of Dias Ex Machina Games. They talk about Amethyst in it’s current and future forms, as well as Chris’s open letter to WotC. They talk about game design, setting, and all things gaming, as per usual! Here are some links in reference to what Chris talked about: Best of Techan Podcast Techan Game Forum Thread Questioning Piracy Part One Two Three Four Five and Six An Open Letter to Wizards of the Coast Follow-Up to An Open Letter to Wizards of the Coast And, as promised, here is the picture from the book that we spoke about (click to enlarge): In the Three Parter, we are hit with a trio of reviews starting with Nathan’s take on iTabletop, then Jeremy’s look at Amethyst: Evolution, and finally Ethan’s look at the Mutant & Masterminds Gamemaster’s Guide. Total running time on this episode is 150 minutes. About Dias Ex Machina Games Dias Ex Machina was formed during sushi in May of 2007 with the soul intent of being the vehicle for an Amethyst role playing game (based on a long running campaign). In July of 2008, the company’s founder and its co-writer made the decision to abandon the previous D20 Amethyst in favor of adopting the GSL and converting Amethyst to 4 th Edition Dungeons and Dragons. Soon after, the company formed an alliance with Goodman Games for print distribution. Amethyst Foundations was released in 2010 is extremely favorable reviews. Along with Amethyst, DEM also produces the upcoming NeuroSpasta role playing game—promising a universal Modern/Science-Fiction adaptation of 4 th Edition D&D rules. DEM considers itself the source for alternative games utilizing the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition architecture. About Amethyst Which side will you choose? Which weapons will you wield? Venture into lands once claimed by skyscrapers and factories, now overrun by elves, goblins, and dragons. Ride gracefully on horseback or plow through the wilderness in an armored transport. Earth is torn between the order of science and the chaos of fantasy. The realm of magic has invaded our world, forcing man into the last few bastions of technology. These two worlds cannot mix. Will you embrace the wonder of legends and myths or accept the reality of refrigerators and washing machines? For 500 years the planet was locked in stalemate, but no more. The Stones of Amethyst have risen. When brought together, they could decide the future of the planet, cast off the remaining shred of technology, or close off the world of magic forever. Choose your path and commit to the quest. Monsters will hunt you; machines will track you. No gods will help you; no prophecies will choose you. The fate of the world rests with you. Buy Amethyst: Foundations from RPGNow or Noble Knight Games Buy Amethyst: Evolution from RPGNow About iTabletop We’re sure there are many different ideas out there, but we’ll just tell you what it means to us. As Gamers ourselves, we’ve seen time after time members of our game groups move out of town, go into the military, get so busy they can’t even make the trip from across town, have family responsibilities that keep them home, etc., etc., etc. One by one the group dwindles and eventually dies. We’d be willing to bet you’ve probably seen the same thing happen in your groups at some time or another. So for us, an Online Virtual Tabletop, or VTT, first and foremost allows folks to play their tabletop games with their group, no matter where they are or when it’s happening. Of course there are a few more things that we think are important for an Online Virtual Tabletop: It has to make you feel like you’re really there,in the same room, with the other players The software has to take a back seat to the group interaction – meaning its so simple, easy to use and non-distracting, you pretty much forget it’s there It’s prefera[...]
