AI & RPGs

So...

 Is it just me, or does it seem that AI is attempting to find its way into the world of RPGs? The past few years have seen numerous AI controversies, the latest shitstorm being an article by 4 Pillar Games (who?)  about the late great Greg Stafford. Chaosium issued a rebuke, citing the lack of 'human care and creativity' in the piece, while acknowledging the growing use of AI tools in content creation.

And Chaosium is totally right to point this out, and have put their money where their mouth is by issuing a strict no AI policy for RPG art and content.

But the tide of AI slop will keep trying to seep into the once welcoming alehouse of roleplaying games. How can we fight this trend?

We have to know what to look out for.

Danger #1 The Corporate Boardroom

Of course, the ones pushing AI are corporations and the billionaires behind them. The CEO of D&D took flak in 2022 for complaining that the game was 'undermonetized'. Since then, D&D editions have split into more costly books, with proposed subscription plans designed to make players into the golden goose. But 'monetization' in the age of AI means getting machines to do for free what humans do for pay, and AI is being positioned to replace the unpaid labour of the DM. Just look at the proliferation of AI SaaS to run a game for you, which is still in the slop stage, but getting better by learning from those brave enough to try it.

We've seen this pattern before with tech, of people wielding the tools that are later used to destroy their livelihood. I myself paid off my MA student loans translating communications for Japanese car makers, but the Trados database I was forced to compile was later sold to corporations to train LLMs. When the 'translate' button appeared on my workplace email in Japan in 2020, I was happy to save hours reading Japanese and letting AI do all the work for me, but knew I could never make a dime translating as I once did.

These corporate types don't realize that one of the joys of D&D or any roleplaying game is making your own content and not being limited to game company products. I would say that the often mentioned shortage of DMs is due to the thankless work of mastering the games rules and a scenario of varying quality, while also paying for costly books. With AI, instead of a group sitting around a table, they offer to cut you off and let you play anywhere, anytime, which like many AI developments, seems to both shoot itself in the foot by eliminating paying customers, while totally misunderstanding the human or social aspect of what they are replacing.

Speaking of tools...

Danger #2 Technical Tools

Besides the corporate pressure to use AI to play games, AI in tools used for art and composition are almost impossible to avoid these days. Readers may recall that I had an AI scare where a designer's Photoshop that incorporated AI tools had added an extra finger to a character in a cover. The designer apologized, refunded payment, and explained that with image manipulation, AI is impossible to avoid unless you turn off lots of functions, which defeats the purpose of the software.

Note that the designer was a friend who I knew for decades and trust implicitly. He is also a graphic designer who has worked in magazines that are in a downward spiral of cutting costs and personnel, and my friend has stayed employed by staying atop of his design craft and tools.

Which leads us to my next point...

Danger # 3 The Pressure To Be Professional

Looking at RPGs on Kickstarter or from game studios, I can say that RPG art has never been more polished. I myself have felt the pressure and doubted that my self-taught illustration skills, coming from a family of professional self-taught indigenous artists, would complement my game.

Now, I am staunchly confident in my 'outsider art' as perfect for NUNA. I am a fan of UK game designer Tanya Floaker, whose great indie zine style games are a treat to read, and something I hope to get to a gaming table soonish. The OSR has already proven that individual creators can make a go of it with compelling works, and Old School Essentials seems to have found its niche doing so. And since I've turned into a game designer, I have met so many indie designers working on their own game and pushing the envelope in ways that an AI never could.

Onward!

Danger # 4 Slop RPGS

At some point, an AI generated RPG will hit the market. If it hasn't happened already and gone unnoticed, I am sure it will happen soon, whether its producer (I won't call them creator) announces the fact or not.

I get a lot of RPG ads, and I have to say, lots of them LOOK like they are made or influenced by AI. There are generic fantasy RPGs that sound like every other fantasy heartbreaker out there, without any of the verve or passion of the OSR when it first started spitting out retroclones over a decade ago. Then there is the art, largely figures or portraits of faces without much expression, and devoid of the kinetic or frenzied action of early RPG amateur art.

Just as AI children's books have appeared and distributed soulless, derivative works into the hands (and minds) of babes, the danger of AI is not only profiting off gamers, but also poisoning the well of imagination and community by switching over from human creations & social games to pale AI imitations that isolate gamers even more.

Danger # 5 Commoditizing A Social Space

Between the corporate pressure to use AI to play games, its invisible seep into tools, the pressure to use AI to look professional while keeping costs low, and the inevitable appearance of Slop the RPG, all this leads to the danger of losing roleplaying as a valuable social space. I have so many conversations with fellow Stormbringer enthusiasts about how online gaming is a pale substitute for sitting around a table, weaving tales and rolling dice together. What will be even worse is if people are playing RPGs run by AI whose only programming is to flatter the ego and pastiche all that has come before, and that was scraped from human works without permission or payment. I am happy that Free League AND Goodman Games will be making their own Stormbringer games, as both companies excel in getting people back to the gaming tables with their high quality, human-designed products that epitomize love for the game and gamers.

Conclusion - Folk Resistance

When I started this blog back 13 years ago as the first wave of the OSR abated, I was doing it mostly out of nostalgia and an unfulfilled creative urge. Now, I see it as both a creative outlet for me, as well as a source of deeply sociological games that represent people who have been portrayed stereotypically in media, such as indigenous people and the Japanese.

Now I am happy to consider my efforts in making a game as an additional part of the folk resistance against an unnecessary and exploitative technology that is being rammed down our throats in ways that destroy both our social bonds, natural environment, and economic viability.

Viva la resistance!

Sources

"Statement from Suzanne Stafford and Chaosium regarding a recent AI-generated article about Chaosium founder Greg Stafford." chaosium.com

https://www.chaosium.com/blogstatement-from-suzanne-stafford-and-chaosium-regarding-a-recent-aigenerated-article-about-chaosium-founder-greg-stafford/?srsltid=AfmBOoqJjAlPemRnG4GhbaPND0mk6nlFs2nS9BOC9H48F9GG1luDoxku

Wizards of the Coast Believes D&D Is "Under-Monetized" 80lv.

https://80.lv/articles/wizards-of-the-coast-believes-d-d-is-under-monetized

"I Tried AI D&D So You Don't Have To."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhGn0SagCkQ

Chaosium no AI policyhttps://www.chaosium.com/blogfrom-the-qa-our-creator-contracts-require-work-submitted-to-be-creators-original-work-and-not-contain-any-ai-generated-art-or-text/?srsltid=AfmBOorjFhgE1Kn72HyfXV1CHMwCWPBdaBPip7mY3091PZwKMJEVWVxo

AI Art Apology & NUNA

A few followers of NUNA pointed out what looked like wonky AI fingers in some draft art for the game last year. I was totally flooded with the Kickstarter + work + single fathering, and so didn't pay enough attention.

My apologies. I had told the NUNA team that AI art is unacceptable from the start.

I talked to the artist, who is a graphic designer. He uses Photoshop, which has AI tools and enhancements, some of which are options, some of which were hardbaked in. He finds it harder to do without them year by year. The fine line between photo manipulation and AI art is blurring rapidly.

He apologized and returned the pay I had sent him.

Let me be absolutely clear.

First, I abhor AI art. I hate the way it steals from real artists, and detest the schlocky, canned art products it creates. It is threatening the future of art itself - why work hard to be an artist when with a click you can churn out AI schlock?

Second, for my current RPG project, the Japanese social game Giri-Ninjou, I am making all art myself. By hand. I think this is perfect for a small, indie product.

In fact, I had a HUGE problem finding good artists for NUNA. Especially indigenous ones. Some didn't like RPGs, some didn't get the project. Lots that I saw make amateur or folk art, again, not suitable. My own art looks like 90's first time pen ink RPG art, and pales in comparison to all the professional level Kickstarter RPG art I see. Just look at Coyote & Crow, my inspiration, and you'll know what I mean.

Once again, my apologies, and expect nothing but human made art from me.

PS Living out a suitcase in Vancouver now, but on the trail of some academic work. Wish me luck!

MORE AI Content??!?!??!

 OK, this is the last one I swear!

This is practicing step by step prompting for an assignment in the AI course I am taking..

Here we go.

Helen Konek, 1949

PROMPT

Hello. Please do the following step by step. First, read the lyrics for the songs written by Michael Moorcock. Next, read his Eternal Champion series. Finally, write a paragraph profiling a different Eternal Champion who is an Inuit.

Sure! Here’s a structured approach to complete your request:

THE BREAKDOWN

### Step 1: Read the lyrics for songs written by Michael Moorcock

Michael Moorcock has written lyrics for several songs, often collaborating with bands like Hawkwind and Blue Öyster Cult. Some notable songs include:

1. "The Black Blade" by Blue Öyster Cult

2. "Veteran of the Psychic Wars" by Blue Öyster Cult

3. "Sonic Attack" by Hawkwind

4. "The Wizard Blew His Horn" by Hawkwind

5. "Standing at the Edge" by Hawkwind

These lyrics often contain themes of science fiction and fantasy, resonating with Moorcock's literary works.

### Step 2: Read the Eternal Champion series by Michael Moorcock

Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion series includes a complex and interconnected universe featuring various incarnations of the Eternal Champion. The primary series and books include:

1. **Elric of Melniboné** series

2. **Corum** series

3. **Hawkmoon** series

4. **Erekosë** series

5. **Von Bek** series

The Eternal Champion is a recurring figure destined to maintain the balance between Law and Chaos across different worlds and timelines.

### Step 3: Write a paragraph profiling a different Eternal Champion who is an Inuit

After synthesizing Moorcock's themes and style from his lyrics and the Eternal Champion series, we can create a new Eternal Champion character with an Inuit background.

---

THE RESULT

**Aaluk of the Frozen Lands** is an Eternal Champion hailing from the icy expanses of the Arctic. Born among the Inuit tribes, Aaluk possesses a deep connection to the spiritual and natural world, embodying the spirit of her people and the harsh yet beautiful environment they inhabit. She wields the Iceblade, a legendary weapon forged from the heart of a glacier, which can control the elements of ice and snow. Aaluk's destiny as an Eternal Champion is to protect her world from the encroaching forces of Chaos, represented by the malevolent entity known as Qaumaneq, the Dark Light, who seeks to engulf the Arctic in eternal darkness. Guided by the ancestral spirits and aided by her loyal sled dogs, Aaluk traverses the frozen wilderness, battling monstrous creatures and confronting the inner turmoil of her dual existence as both a savior and a harbinger of necessary destruction. Her journey is one of balance, where the preservation of her people's way of life and the natural world stands against the inevitable march of change and conflict brought by the forces of Law and Chaos.

---

This character integrates the mythological and environmental elements characteristic of Moorcock's work, while introducing a unique cultural perspective through an Inuit Eternal Champion.

CONCLUSION

Once again, we have a bit of the trite AI content (Iceblade, sigh), as well as some stereotypical depictions of Inuit and the arctic. Yet because my prompting skills are improving after learning techniques such as chunking, we see some interesting details (female protagonist, loyal dog sleds, inner turmoil, Quamaneq). Still, it is a pale imitation of a Moorcock character, no matter how happy I am to see a fellow Inuit as the Champion Eternal, I feel this is not up to the standards we expect of a Moorcock character.

The hidden danger of AI, however, is that this level of generated knock offs becomes the norm as it is mass generated by AI, and that people forget what the sublimity of true art really looks like.

AI Generated Content?!?!?!?!

 So, I am doing a great Coursera course on AI to help me bone up for a chapter on AI and Society I have agreed to write to help me widen my appeal to Canadian universities. I had to prompt and refine something so here is what I did (not the pic, the content below it).

AI Generated Elric pic from the web

Chaos Prompt Engineer?

Here is the prompt I wrote:

Create a new monster for the Stormbringer RPG using the article Moorcock Bestiary on the Tomb of Tedankhamen blogger.

Based on the content from the Tomb of Tedankhamen blog, here's a new monster for the Stormbringer RPG:

AI Content

### The Shadowed Harbinger

#### Description:

The Shadowed Harbinger is a dark entity from the Plane of Shadows, embodying fear and darkness. It appears as a tall, cloaked figure with an ever-shifting form, its face hidden beneath a hood that reveals nothing but an empty void. Whispering shadows trail in its wake, spreading dread and confusion.

#### Attributes:

- **STR**: 3D6+6 (15)

- **CON**: 2D6+6 (13)

- **SIZ**: 2D6+6 (13)

- **INT**: 2D6+6 (13)

- **POW**: 3D8 (15)

- **DEX**: 3D6 (10)

- **CHA**: 1D6 (3)

#### Abilities:

- **Fear Aura**: Any creature within a 10-meter radius must succeed on a POW vs. POW roll or be paralyzed by fear for 1D6 rounds.

- **Shadow Manipulation**: The Harbinger can manipulate shadows to create illusions or hide within them, granting it +30% to Stealth and allowing it to disappear and reappear within 20 meters.

- **Life Drain**: On a successful melee attack, the Harbinger drains 1D6 POW from its target, healing itself by the same amount.

- **Dark Vision**: It can see perfectly in complete darkness.

#### Combat Skills:

- **Unarmed Attack**: 75%, 1D6+3 (Life Drain effect)

- **Shadow Whip**: 60%, 2D6, range 10 meters

#### Armor:

- The Harbinger has a natural armor of 6 points due to its shadowy form, reducing damage from physical attacks.

#### Special:

- **Difficult to Harm**: The Shadowed Harbinger can only be harmed by magical weapons or spells.

- **Binding Ritual**: To bind the Harbinger, a sorcerer must perform a ritual requiring a rare shadow gem and the blood of a fear-stricken creature. The ritual includes a POW vs. POW struggle, where the Harbinger's POW is rolled as 3D8.

This monster, inspired by the various entities and binding rituals discussed on the blog, offers a unique challenge to adventurers in the Stormbringer RPG【9†source】【10†source】【11†source】.

Verdict

This monster, like the AI Elric portrait I added above, is incredibly trite and boring compared to what I slavishly created for this blog and for a zine coming out this year. I don't know if Moorcock has voiced his opinions on AI art, but I hope he'd agree that this soulless, corporate content pales in comparison to anything human passion and imagination can create. There is a meme making the rounds (couldn't refind it sadly) that goes something like,

It took AI to make me realize how terrible art without soul can be.

Truer words were never spoken.

Fuck AI 'art'