NOTE : This is part one of an ongoing series, and only describes character generation mechanics.  For gameplay mechanics, please see part two of the series . ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ Peasants & Pitchforks  is a fun little gaming project I’ve been working on. The basic concept is very much inspired by Dungeon Crawl Classics’ zero-level funnels, except redesigned purely with one-shot or convention play in mind. If you don’t know about DCC’s funnels, basically instead of playing one character, everybody plays a crowd of super-weak 0-level characters who take on a super-lethal meat-grinder dungeon module. There are tons of hilarious deaths, and only a handful of characters come out alive. My problem with DCC’s funnel modules is that they’re meant to be used as campaign openers and are not really optimized for one-shots. You end up playing these weak characters with a whole ton of rules you have no use for running in the background. For con games, I prefer rules s...

OK, this song The Replacements rocked out in 1984 is so punk, and it’s not even fast. It just drips with discontent and social discord. It’s making a big old piss puddle of dissatisfaction on the floor, that’s how angsty it is. Go ahead, listen to it again: you might drown in cynicism, but it’d be well worth it. Because this song strikes a chord — oh man, does it strike a chord. Who can honestly say they are completely satisfied with their lot in life? The mechanics of  this game  are totally broken, man. Paul Westerberg knew this, and you can hear it in the raw emotion in his voice. Damn. So good. And hey, you know who else knew this fact of life? Courtney Love. No kidding, and I mean seriously: she got to the top by marrying a rich rock star and putting out a decade-defining album of her own, and what did she find? Harrowing addiction problems, her husband blows his head off, everybody hates her for it, and she goes on to be literally despised for  decades ...

I've been wanting to start a blog for a while now, but could never decide what to write about. Bloggers always seem so...knowledgeable. What could I have to talk about that would interest anybody enough to read my blog? But of course, the answer was right there all along. It's just like with every kind of art: if you're going to create a masterpiece (or even an OK-piece), you can't fake it. You have to be honest and create something real. Create what you know. Of course great bloggers are knowledgeable. They're writing about what they know. And hey, I know stuff. I can do that too. So here's a little introduction to moi, and a bit about the things I know best (and by proxy, what you'll be reading about here at Epic Crit): My name is Dean Baker. I've been playing, GMing, rules hacking and designing tabletop role-playing games for many, many years, and have been an avid music-lover for nearly all my life. I'm keenly interested in literary theo...