Ask Me Anything: Sassafras

What systems have you tried? Any particular style/setting preferences? I have a similar D&D background and found Fate interesting for a more story driven game. I am playing a Tiny Dungeon and light it for the light rules aspect, very simple. I also checked out Shadow run, an odd fusion of cyberpunk and fantasy but the game atrophied.

Do you actually make mix tapes with old school tapes? (or is that just an expression I am too uncool to know?)

What's your favorite simple dish that you like to cook regularly?

I've tried Call of Cthulhu, which I actually liked alright, that was also somewhat easy to understand. Dungeon Crawl Classics which I had a hard time getting into, and then a system which's name I'm completely blanking on right now. All I remember is that it used the Star Wars dice.
EDIT: It was Genesys, and I actually also tried one called M-Space.
I've also made a character in Pathfinder 1e, but I never really got to play with it. I like a good balance of roleplaying and combat, but like games that are accessible. That's where I struggle with Pathfinder for instance, I have a hard time wrapping my head around all the different character variations.

Not physically no. I guess I should just call it DJ mixes :)

Would you ever try playing a solo game of dnd 5e? Just curious.

Uuh, tough call. I like making stews, mostly because you can get a ton of flavour out of not too much effort (although you need some time). I also love to make pizza, making the sauce from scratch and cold-proofing the dough.

As a DM or a player? If I had a pre-written solo campaign, then I'd be willing to give it a go as a DM. As a player I would definitely also give it a shot.

Danish has a lot of popular media that seems to have made it out in the world. The Bridge, Klovn, The Rain and I can remember reading Valhalla comics as a child. Any hidden gems from Denmark you can recommend?

I tend to skew more internationally in the books and films/TV I watch, so I might not be the best to ask this. However, a personal favourite Danish film of mine would be "Adams æbler (Adam's Apples)" which is a dark comedy with a pre-Casino Royale Mads Mikkelsen and Ulrich Thomsen (who's also had a bit of an international career) about a convict that gets released into a rehabilitation program at a church. It gets quite psychologically brutal, but is also weirdly hopeful and quite funny. Although as with everything comedy related, I can't say how much gets lost in translation.

I remember watching that movie in school. Didn't realize Mads Mikkelsen is in it, but then again, that was before I knew him from Casino Royale and Hannibal.

Oh yeah he's the priest. If you look at Danish cinema from like 2000-2009, he's in almost everything xD

As someone who isn't a fan of 5e, is there something that appeals to you about it specifically, or is it just what is comfortable for you? And as a huge DCC fan, what didn't stick with you? Are there any games you'd like to try?

I think for me, some of it is for sure that I'm comfortable with it, but I also think it's a really intuitive system. It's quite easy to get the hang of and I think it treads the line between being customizable and not falling into complete chaos (which, rightly or wrongly, is how I envision Pathfinder so far) really well. I think with DCC, at least part of it was the randomization of the character creation which I found limiting (although it did sort of force you think outside the box based on what you got, which is good for me sometimes). I think maybe part of it could've simply been my frame of mind at the time, I've had a few spells of stress and exhaustion that isn't conducive towards learning a new system. But I at least don't remember the rules as being very easy to wrap my head around. Nothing against WhtKnt who ran it though, he is a very good GM and the setting was very cool.

I'm open to trying most games. I'd love to really try and give Pathfinder an honest shot, I just haven't been lucky with my games. Same goes for Vampire the Masquerade. I don't know much about Fate or Savage Worlds, but the general interest there seems to be in those systems has also piqued my interest.

If you could edit a session or campaign you participated in and make it work for TV, what would modify?

Ooh, that's a fun question! Can we retroactively ask every AMAler that?

Good question. I loved the underdark setting in my Out of the Abyss campaign, but would probably have built up the NPCs more if I had to convert it to TV. It’s a big sprawling party of characters if handled deftly, which I don’t think I nailed.

Same goes for my one homebrew campaign. I think I had a cool setting and some cool storyline ideas, but very thinly sketched NPCs.

What was that setting/campaign?

It was set in a city that was the last stop before a vast desert. The idea was that a great evil was lurking in the desert, waiting to be set free. The initial part of the campaign would be trying to stop that from happening. I would like to revisit it some day, but it needs some work.

You can add an NPC with a vested interest to the desert and others connected to the evil in some way. Throw in a local or two with lots of contacts and lore. Local story teller, gypsy fortune teller, urchin hanging around the party for spare coin. Add a conflict with the local guards and it thieves guild, possibly as a result of one of the above NPC, for city drama.
My problem is always connecting the bits together. Good luck

I really enjoyed that game, and thought you DMed it expertly despite the challenge of a dozen NPCs.