Post by Cybermortis on Jun 23, 2016 13:22:20 GMT
HyperRPG is a Twitch channel created by the same man who helped set up the GeekandSundry Twitch channel, and who brought Critical Role to that channel.
HyperRPG has a similar, but different and slightly less polished feel and focus to the older and bigger channel. The focus here is tabletop games, older video games and as you might guess from the title RPG's. They are assisted in this by being based in Seattle, which gives them direct access to game developers. More of which shortly.
RPG wise they have stared doing a Valiant game on Mondays, Wednesdays there is a ShadowRun game and Friday there is a Battletech game called Death From Above. The last two seem to be their most popular shows.
The ShadowRun and Battletech games are not there by accident...nor run by people with a passing interest in those titles. One of the supporters of the channel is Harebrained Schemes, a video game publisher who owns the rights to both. They have already produced a Shadowrun Computer game or three and are developing a Battletech game that will be out in 2017 - this was partly crowd funded and hit its goals almost at once.
For those who know their BattleTech things should get even more interesting, because the support given to the Death From Above game (DFA) isn't just 'sure, you can use it if you mention us'. The game is GM'ed by one of the main creators of Battletech, the actual creator has appeared and most of the cast work on the Battletech game...including the commander who is also the guy in charge of Harebrained schemes. They also do small segments helping answer questions about the BT universe, rules and the game they are running. Plus updates on the state of the video game every month.
DFA originally consisted of two shows. An RPG episode on the Tuesday and a table top battle on Friday. The Tuesday show has been rolled into the Friday show, mainly because the work schedule for the video game is picking up as its release is early next year, and the fact that most of those in it work on the game was causing problems. So the RP elements are fairly small in the new format, but this doesn't seem to be a major flaw as to me the RP program was usually the weaker part.
The current DFA show has a fairly short RP segment that sets up the tabletop battle. The battle itself is fought on a large tabletop battlefield using large 3D printed models, the designs of which come from the online game so they don't always to the date the game is set (3024). When the Mechs take damage they damage the models using wood burners, drills and on occasion hammers. This damage is repaired on a show called Watching Paint Dry on Wednesday, which is hosted by Viking Lass who is also the one who inflicts the damage on the Friday show. (She got this job after the creator of Battletech melted a massive hole in the chest of one model...maybe not realizing that they cost some $400 each)
The cast are not professional or experienced RPGers nor actors, and in several cases didn't even know how to play the tabletop game. So its actually interesting to see how they have progressed - Talon, the character who is in command of the Mechs in the field, has turned into a very decent tactical commander.
The most interesting aspect is that the show has perma-death. Characters killed in the game don't come back...and the cast member has to leave the show. I'm not going to spoil things by telling if this has or hasn't happened yet.
The rules are a mixture of house rules (you have to reroll to confirm head hits for example), changes brought through donations such as getting rerolls or the weather changing (both for the 'heroes' and those they are fighting) and modified rules created for the upcoming computer game. Such as changes to the movement order, with lighter mechs moving first and weapons fire being inflicted when the mech moves rather than all at once. (This works well in practice, and doesn't mean that the lighter mechs are useless or the side with the heavier mechs has too big an advantage). Some of these rule differences appear from the start, others were brought in later on.
Overall this is a channel that is still trying to find its feet a bit, having been running for less than six months. But it has potential, some good hosts and is aimed at an older audience. It also seems to have a loyal and good natured following, and certainly as far as the BT show goes viewers who are more than willing to answer questions and provide a lot of knowledge about the universe to new comers.
Past episodes of most shows are available on YouTube, and the official website for the series can be found here; hyperrabbitpowergo.com/
HyperRPG has a similar, but different and slightly less polished feel and focus to the older and bigger channel. The focus here is tabletop games, older video games and as you might guess from the title RPG's. They are assisted in this by being based in Seattle, which gives them direct access to game developers. More of which shortly.
RPG wise they have stared doing a Valiant game on Mondays, Wednesdays there is a ShadowRun game and Friday there is a Battletech game called Death From Above. The last two seem to be their most popular shows.
The ShadowRun and Battletech games are not there by accident...nor run by people with a passing interest in those titles. One of the supporters of the channel is Harebrained Schemes, a video game publisher who owns the rights to both. They have already produced a Shadowrun Computer game or three and are developing a Battletech game that will be out in 2017 - this was partly crowd funded and hit its goals almost at once.
For those who know their BattleTech things should get even more interesting, because the support given to the Death From Above game (DFA) isn't just 'sure, you can use it if you mention us'. The game is GM'ed by one of the main creators of Battletech, the actual creator has appeared and most of the cast work on the Battletech game...including the commander who is also the guy in charge of Harebrained schemes. They also do small segments helping answer questions about the BT universe, rules and the game they are running. Plus updates on the state of the video game every month.
DFA originally consisted of two shows. An RPG episode on the Tuesday and a table top battle on Friday. The Tuesday show has been rolled into the Friday show, mainly because the work schedule for the video game is picking up as its release is early next year, and the fact that most of those in it work on the game was causing problems. So the RP elements are fairly small in the new format, but this doesn't seem to be a major flaw as to me the RP program was usually the weaker part.
The current DFA show has a fairly short RP segment that sets up the tabletop battle. The battle itself is fought on a large tabletop battlefield using large 3D printed models, the designs of which come from the online game so they don't always to the date the game is set (3024). When the Mechs take damage they damage the models using wood burners, drills and on occasion hammers. This damage is repaired on a show called Watching Paint Dry on Wednesday, which is hosted by Viking Lass who is also the one who inflicts the damage on the Friday show. (She got this job after the creator of Battletech melted a massive hole in the chest of one model...maybe not realizing that they cost some $400 each)
The cast are not professional or experienced RPGers nor actors, and in several cases didn't even know how to play the tabletop game. So its actually interesting to see how they have progressed - Talon, the character who is in command of the Mechs in the field, has turned into a very decent tactical commander.
The most interesting aspect is that the show has perma-death. Characters killed in the game don't come back...and the cast member has to leave the show. I'm not going to spoil things by telling if this has or hasn't happened yet.
The rules are a mixture of house rules (you have to reroll to confirm head hits for example), changes brought through donations such as getting rerolls or the weather changing (both for the 'heroes' and those they are fighting) and modified rules created for the upcoming computer game. Such as changes to the movement order, with lighter mechs moving first and weapons fire being inflicted when the mech moves rather than all at once. (This works well in practice, and doesn't mean that the lighter mechs are useless or the side with the heavier mechs has too big an advantage). Some of these rule differences appear from the start, others were brought in later on.
Overall this is a channel that is still trying to find its feet a bit, having been running for less than six months. But it has potential, some good hosts and is aimed at an older audience. It also seems to have a loyal and good natured following, and certainly as far as the BT show goes viewers who are more than willing to answer questions and provide a lot of knowledge about the universe to new comers.
Past episodes of most shows are available on YouTube, and the official website for the series can be found here; hyperrabbitpowergo.com/
