This past weekend I had the chance to help beta test _The CITY: a GURPS Adventure_ in Morgan, Utah before it is presented at this years CONduit (May 18-20, 2001). And let me tell you, it was a total blast. In just my small group we had a fighter, spellcaster, and two rouges. At every turn, there was lots to do for each and every one of us. (Not that you need to game in a group, there were plenty of lone-rouges having fun too.)
The Adventure: The fantasy story flowed very smoothly seeing as that there were close to 30 participants and 5 game masters running the show. (Note; the game can hold up to 40 players at one time.) Both die-hard role-players/storytellers and munchinkin combat maniacs will get their fair share of quality gaming opportunities. No matter where you start, each "sector" (Warriors, Thieves, Mages, Clerics & City Center) is mapped and well planed out with various set & random encounters. (You can read about some of these encounters and NPCs on the DreamWeavers webpage.) I would highly recommend that you explore different sectors, collecting vital information and treasure along the way. (We had just barley cleaned out an evil tower, freeing the tormented ghost within and capturing a nice cache of magical items right before the citywide endgame encounter with all 30 players vs. the big boss. Just in time...) Moving from sector to sector in this large city is managed admirable with a waiting board/flowchart, unless the players at your new destination are engaged in combat. But even that moves along at a nice pace. All in all, the characters are well balanced to the adventure and the adventure is epic.
Meta-Gaming: The GMs are very organized and knowledgeable of the game mechanics, the numerous PC and NPC characters and the overall story-line. Although I had never gamed in a GURPS campaign before, it was very easy to pickup. Every single player kit is nicely packaged and includes everything you needed to start gaming right on the spot. Of note; spellcasters receive a handy printout of all their spells, plus full descriptions. Every item (e.g., weapons, armor and magic items) are printed on "business card sized" tickets (for trading/sale/thieft) and in game rewards are marked on your characters passport (for my lacking of a better name).
I would highly recommend this adventure to anyone who is interested in having _fun_ at CONduit 11. And from what I understand, Steve Jackson himself will be there to present the awards/prizes (based on the stamps in your passport) with some help from the DreamWeavers local sponsor, The Golden Spike Store. Please feel free to post additional questions here on the CONduit gaming message board or contact the DreamWeavers.
Lets game...
JCooperC + SALT2002@aol.com
http://members.tripod.com/diskwars
CONduit #11: 2001 Gaming Assistant & Ad Sales