The Harn roleplaying game, both system and setting, is one of those games that seems to have been around forever. Publisher Columbia Games, however, continues to release supplements and the latest is Grave-Wights, a free 4 page PDF article put out in time for Halloween (even if this post wasn’t). Known for its gritty approach to a low-magic medieval setting, Harn is also about detail. Case in point, another recent supplement for HarnWorld contained detailed stats for domestic cats, as well as this information:

Habitat & Hunting

Domestic cats hunt in the twilight hours. They hunt vermin and birds. They can live in any habitat, but have a preference for warm areas.

Domestic cats prefer stalking their prey and jumping down upon it. A cat’s leap gives it more than sufficient height against vermin, although the tactic does not work as well against birds.

A female is fertile after 4-10 months. The gestation period is about 60 days. The average litter is 3-5 kittens. Males are fully grown after 5-7 months. Female cats den together. Males tend to leave one clowder and join another on a whim. Domestic cats rarely hunt together, but they return at least a portion of their kills to the clowder for the kittens.

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Looking to find a way to pass the time while waiting for US election results to post?  Try a game!  For election night gaming, we recommend:

• 1960 Making of a President – this wargame from Z-Man Games recreates the 1960 race between Nixon and Kennedy.  Borrowing many mechanics from the venerable Twilight Struggle, this game generates a lot of tension and gives players a good feel for the US electoral process (and while Twilight Struggle makes for some great political gaming, 1960 is a better fit for an election theme!).

• Perhaps you’re looking for something a little more…confrontational?  Check out Junta, the game where players attempt to end their time in a banana republic with the most cash.  This little gem has players elected to office, including the role of El Presidente, who divvies up cash to his subordinates.  Watch out though, unhappy subordinates can launch their own coup attempt and bring your government to its knees.  This is a great backstabbing game that plays best with 7 people, but provides a great example of how “things could be worse!”
• For the conspiracy theorists in your group check out Illuminati from Steve Jackson Games.  In this unique card game, players take on the role of a member of the Illuminati, creating connections between their various special interest groups to garner the most power and eventually dominate world affairs.  With some really wacky cards and innovative game play, this one will help you forget all about the real conspiracy theories!

So what are you playing on election night?

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The German company Public Solution has produced five RFID based games, published under the name Yvio, including Elefant, Tiger, and Co., Octago (by Reiner Knizia), Thinx, FreiBeuter Der Karibik, and Tarascon, with another game on the way. The games’ boards not only detect and identify pieces, but can generate random values and save game states for later use.

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