| The Life and Times of the 5th Horseman of the Apocalypse |
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| The No Swing/No Experience" rule... |
[10 Oct 2009|12:17pm] |
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I have come to realize that I am a career DM. I'll only be really happy, behind the screen, indulging my control freak tendencies. This does not mean however, that I will overlook being taken for granted. Either myself, or my players. I have created the No swing/No experience rule specifically to mix things up. I have seen players try and steal magic items from other party members, I have seen what should have been a very heoric class, run from a battle, I have seen a rogue walk through the midst of a battle hidden by an ungodly Hide skill, and not attack so he can let everyone else die off, ostensibly to maintain an overall higher party level, but the player secretly smiling because everyone else died but him. I've had enough of player frustration, because of lack of team play. If I am to be forced to cater to Hack n' Slashers, then I'll be doing things to ensure that I remain engaged and interested. I will not apologize, nor will I retract any of the rules I have laid down. I have grown up, it's time everyone else joined me at the big kids table. This means and end to munchkins, and end to Power gaming, and an end to Min/Maxing.
As always...., Thanks for listening.
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| Campaign design, from the ground up. |
[25 Sep 2009|07:26am] |
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So, I have been working on a new campaign. It's one I've been wanting to try for a while, Cthulhu meets D&D. A few decisions I've already made...
1) I'll use the Paizo Pathfinder Rules.
2) I will write this from the ground up, no using Dungeon magazine adventures.
3) I will try and incorporate all of the great old ones.
Time to break out the D20 CoC book, I'm so glad I bought it.
Originally I had thought that the Great Old ones were going to try and draw the PCs world into thier own, then maybe they were going use the PC's world to fuel thier return to thier own realm thereby destroying the PC's world. Then I got to thinking about it, and remembered that the motivations of the Great Old ones are not normal. So just keep it simple. I believe that the Great Old ones will be residents of the Far Realm. This way the PC's actually have a chance of facing down Nyarlathotep at higher levels.
Having made a few basic decisions, now I have to sketch and outline (yeah right), every time I've tried that, it's failed. Back to what I know. Grab a sheet of paper and start with ideas. Whittle away the ideas, and refine the ones that I can make work.
I started by grouping monsters according to thier affiliation to the various Great Old ones. During this process, I asked myself if I was going to leave Cthulhu imprisoned within Ryleh at the bottom of some ocean, or have him wandering the Far Realm, I have yet to answer this question... Frak and Felgercarb...
Monsters grouped, I now started working on adventure ideas, just one quick sentence descibing the basics about the adventure I thought of. Of course my mind wouldn't just let me escape some of those ideas with just one sentence. Hence the paragraph about the Spring Festival adventure. Some of the ideas come from Lovecraft stories I have read, others from things I've heard from Pat (for those who don't know him, he is my ultimate Cthulhu resource.), and yes I have blatantly ripped off ideas from some movies. Some of the ideas just came to mind while writing down other ideas. So now I have 15 or so rough ideas, and I have come to the dangerous part of this process, distraction... Some of you will know what I'm talking about, others probably won't. I have accomplished the fun part of this, and now run the risk of getting distracted by all the ideas this process has sparked....
Whew! that was a close one, I set everything aside for a week and pranced off (yes I said Pranced) pursuing other projects, before my discipline reasserted itself and I realigned myself to the original purpose at hand.
I'll think starting at the top of the page is a good place. This means the Grasslands village. So after 30 minutes of contemplation I have managed a page of adventure. All of the basic concepts of the adventure, with a few details thrown in to ponit me in the right direction. This suits my DMing style, but if I ever share this with anyone it just won't do. So I have come to a crossroads, do I try and flesh out this adventure and make it usable, and understandable by everyone, or just keep going with what I have....Keep going before you get distracted again DUMMY!
Having accomplished my first adventure outline, I find myself stopped cold by yet another quandary... While perusing my various tomes of monsters and creatures, I have noticed that the majority of my ideas would make short work of an average group of first level characters, so do I have the players start characters at 3rd level or try and figure something out that won't destroy relatively weak 1st level characters? This question occupied me for about a week... ^@#%$*#()@(*#$&^@!, I hate it when that happens.
OK, I've answered myself, 1st level it is. I'll have to figure something out. GOT IT! Now to work out the details. Having been sidelined for a bit, my original focus is fading, and I must think, or in my case overthink. My current dilemma is trying to make sure all the players remain engaged. Time to break out the books. The books to which I refer, are the "Elements of Fiction Writing" series. Four books devoted to helping fiction writers write better stories, I find them useful for campaign writing (I suspect that campaign writing is similar to writing fiction on it most basic levels).
this is where I am right now, and I posted all this here, so others might benfit and this might even help someone else stuck in the process. That, and my MS is acting up, and I was bored off my paws.
As always, thanks for listening.
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| Farewell |
[20 Sep 2009|09:28am] |
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I voice my thoughts and cares into the wind, so that god may hear them.
I turn my face to the heavens, so that god may see my pain and heal me.
I bid you farewell. May you go your way in peace.
Via con dios Boss.
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| The root of the problem |
[08 Sep 2009|04:45pm] |
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I think the republican conservatives are just bitter that they lost the election. When did they decide to revert to a 5 year old's mind set, and throw a temper tantrum?
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| Streamofconciousness |
[28 Aug 2009|10:33am] |
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Ok, so here I am watching Richard III with Ian McKellen, absolutely splendid. I have also recently aquired the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, absolutely splendid. No I will not automatically switch my game over, however I will go looking for players. Do I really care if someone reads an earlier post? No not really, my passive agressive way of telling him he needs therapy, or that he's been annoying lately. I wonder what drug hte woman in RIchard II was shooting into her leg? What should I make for dinner? Oooo guess it doenst matter about the drugs, she's being suffocated. Gee I wonder what Raechel is doing? There is a really big praying mantis on the window, sorry dood didn't know you were stuck in there all night. Am I suffering from GM burnout? Kind of like that spell in the early 90's. Maybe I should drop out all together and go back to smoking pot and being a delinquent. Maybe I'm too old for that now. Why is it that sometimes I feel every day of my 41 years, and other times I feel like I'm 20 again. Wow, Richard was a real bastard... ewwww gonna make the 14 year old princess his queen. Ooo maybe I can work on the Spelljammer helm mechanics and incorporate the energy channel features from Pathfinder. That might actually work. I wonder what the squirrels are bitching about. Sqeezy is a cute skunk, I hope he comes back. Martian Rails yay! Wow 11am already, where did the morning go? And here comes a wave of hostility, not at anyone, just a general feeling of hostile. Praying mantis is still on the window, I hope he's still alive. Hmm phone call.
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| Toally Unacceptable |
[27 Jul 2009|08:28pm] |
The NFL is morally bankrupt!
I saw in the news today that the NFL will be allowing Michael Vick to play football again. I don't like or watch football in the first place, however seeing this story, just reinforced my belief that professional football players are criminals and degenerates. All he got for his crimes is 23 months of house arrest, after all the death and pain he is responsible for? Unacceptable! Lets put him in a ring and let him fight to the death...
I am so disgusted with this decision. There are actually people out there that idolize these degenerate animals, what the fuck are they thinking, they encourage thier kids to be like them. What kind of example does this set? Why aren't more of you outraged? If enough people express thier outrage, you will be heard.
OK rant over for now.
Thanks for listening.
EDIT I stand corrected. Michael Vick did indeed serve 24 months of jail time. However the sooner he gets hit by a bus the better. This is what I get for letting my emotions get the beter of me while I'm watching the news.
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| Hail! |
[11 Apr 2009|12:10pm] |
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Both God Kings have passed. All hail the God Kings!
Gygax and Arneson are wandering the planes, we mere mortals shall miss them.
Somewhere in my next game, there will be a Ring of Gaxx and The Invulnerable coat of Arn.
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| PayPal can suck me!! |
[24 Oct 2008|10:20am] |
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Recently,l I received an email from PayPal stating that my account with them had been reviewed and placed on limited status. Being curious as to why this is, I logged in and attempted to discover why this had occured. The website is not very helpful. It will tell you how to resolve it to thier satisfaction, but gives no real clear reason why this happened. SO being a resourceful human, I called.
I was informed that Paypal requires me to send them a copy of my drivers license, so that they can confirm the name on my license matches my credit cards. This may not seem strange to you, but I have no first name! I have just a letter, yes my parents have a sense of humor. I don't know who at Paypal decided that an initial isn't good enough, but they kiss my shiny white hiney! You might think I'm overreacting to such a simple request, but I really don't feel comfortable letting a company store that information on a computer, no computer is safe, any computer system can be hacked. The friendly (if terribly ignorant) customer service agent, would only spout the standard company line about how my account has been limited, and there was nothing I could do.
So folks, Paypal has lost a customer. From now on, I'll have to do things the old fashioned way, and send money orders.
P.S.
Whoever the bozo is at Paypal that thinks he's being clever, and thinks I'll breakdown and give him a name... Dood, I'm 40 years old, and have dealt with National and State government officials regarding my name, you can smeg off. I don't have a first name, never will, just a letter. If you don't like it tough shit.
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| Make of this what you will |
[15 Aug 2008|07:58am] |
Five great realms in darkness deep,
Five stone vaults under mountains steep,
Four lost halls of stone thats old,
Four wicked cities the mysteries hold,
Three black pits of endless thunder,
Three gray labyrinths of earthly plunder,
Two shadowed kindoms of undeath foul,
Two hidden sanctuaries for the ebon cowl,
One roaming prison under watchful eye,
One great hall uncloaked to the sky.
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| Wohoo!! |
[02 Jun 2008|09:07pm] |
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Well two things worth noting...
One: I just got in the mail today, after a great deal of looking, a copy of Dragon #277. This may not mean alot to most of you, but to me it means I finally got to read the origins of Erevis Cale. Bravo Paul!!! Very cool story. If only some of my characters had backstories that impressive. You have now officially replaced William Gibson as my all time favorite author.
Two: I didn't want to say anything, until I got plates, but...
I got a new car. I got a 2005 Dodge Magnum, yes, it's a station wagon, but it's a station wagon with muscle. I love my car. It's red, has a V6, and can do 90 miles an hour, and still have room on the accelerator. Yes, I have seen you 50 year olds with you BMW convertables, and WOW you got the nubile young captain of the Cheerleading squad in the seat next to you. Hey guess what, I got the rest of the squad in my car, and we are all going to go skinny dipping... Haha!
Thanks for listening.
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| No why, just is |
[22 May 2008|08:26am] |
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So, it's been a while since I posted. Just bored, and nothing really to say. No real rants, just been coasting through life.
I have been thinking however....
I play tag on my way to work in the morning, with some guy in an Audi station wagon. Just makes me wonder what he thinks about the guy in the big red magnum that follows him through traffic every morning.
One more thing...
I turn 40 in a couple of weeks. Why don't I feel like I'm 40? Intellectually I know I'm turning 40, but emotionally, I don't feel 40.. it's very strange.
One more thing...
Where does this melancholy feeling come from? I don't feel that way all the time, just every once in a while. Probably more than than most people.
just things to ponder.....
Thanks for listening.
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| Writer's Block: What? Everyone Doesn't Like Me? |
[26 Mar 2008|09:10am] |
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Because I'm 40 years old, and I will tell you if you look, talk, or act like an idiot. There is no exscuse for ignorance. That, and I'm generally antisocial and grumpy by nature.
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| With a heavy heart... |
[05 Mar 2008|12:10pm] |
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I learned yesterday of the passing of great man. E. Gary Gygax, one of the men responsible for Dungeons & Dragons died. I never met him, but he influenced me, and the direction of my life. If it wasn't for D&D, I wouldn't be the man I am today. The game taught me a love of reading, it taught me how to use my imagination, and it helped me make friends. It is with a heavy heart that I will dig out my 1st Edition DMG, and wish Mr. Gygax a fond farwell.
Go your way in peace, you have my most profound thanks.
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| Tired |
[28 Dec 2007|10:29am] |
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I'm tired of Life not being fair, I'm tired of that being an excuse for people to be rude, I'm tired of having MS, I'm tired of assholes in my life, I'm tired of people being stupid because it's easy, I'm tired of the "gimme" attitude I see lately, I'm tired of people not following the rules, I'm tired of poeple breaking the rules because they think they have a right to, I'm tired of being the goto guy at work, I'm tired of people ducking thier responsibilities. I'm tired of people blubbering, I'm tired of being polite when they start blubbering, I'm tired of listening to everyone whine about thier lives when they're better off than most, I'm tired of Illegal aliens dragging down my property value, I'm tired of politics, I'm tired of religion, I'm tired of network news, I'm tired of the sense of entitlement everyone seems to have adopted lately, I'm tired of perky people, I'm tired of people driving while talking on cell phones, I'm tired of Customers who spend $500 bucks a cycle thinking they're more important than customers who spend 10 time that, I'm tired of people telling me I should live up to my potential, I'm tired of people murdering family pets and not getting arrested for murder, I'm tired of seeing commercials telling me to give money to save the starving kids in africa, I'm tired of dumb advertising campaigns, I'm tired of stupid people, I'm tired of Corporate america, I'm tired of the "New Millenium", I'm tired of feeling worn, I'm tired of people ignoring the "No Soliciting" sign on my front door, I'm tired driving a 10 year old car, I'm tired of parents not being responsible for thier children, I'm tired of children, I'm tired of sensless cruelty, I'm tired of violence, I'm tired of typing.
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| How do they do it? |
[27 Nov 2007|07:32am] |
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Well... I'm currently working on Issue #2 of my little newsletter, that is a poor attempt to replace Dragon magazine. Yes I'm still fairly bitter about the loss. Erik.. I dont know how you did it. I don't even have a deadline. Keep in mind I only give this out to friends at the FLGS, but still. This is of course why I'm not a professional writer, or editor, or game designer. Anyway, it gives me a chance to put some things out there that I use in my games, or will use in my games. Oh yes, I can't let go. I keep a small pathetic kernal of hope alive, that one day WOTC might bring back Dungeon and Dragon in print versions, but I doubt it.
I have whopping circulation of 15... WOW, can you believe it? Seeing as how it's free, that aint too bad. No contributors yet, but hey, most of the guys I know just want something on paper to read. They are not real big on writing.
What I want to know is this...
I am really the only person still upset about the demise of Dungeon and Dragon in print, and the advent of the "Digital Initiative". Everybody is so enthused about this stuff, why? Weren't you having fun with 3.5, wasn't that good enough for another couple of years?
There is still so much I wanted to do. So many things I wanted to try. yes, yes I know my books aren't rendered useless, but now everyone will be abandoning thier 3.5 books, they won't want to play 3.5 anymore. Yes I am bitter. I think it's more a function of my age, but I am bitter.
So, wish me luck on keeping something of Dragon alive, even if it is in black and white. It's something.
Thanks for listening.
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| YESYESYES!! |
[01 Nov 2007|09:40am] |
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Omigod 80's collection, Disk 3 |
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Good morning ladies and germs!
Yes, it's true, after today I'll be on vacation, yep I said it...VACATION! One whole glorious week of basking in on the beach of no responsibilities. Nothing to do but play with the dogs, read my books, and play GalCiv2. I can actually try and get the new campaign typed up, and looking like something, other than the jumbled up outline it is now. I'll get the boxes done for the Cthulhu tarot decks, and I'll catch up on some much needed sleep.
So there you have it, me on vacation. *sigh* Ain't life grand.
Thanks for listening.
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| Dark Conspiracies |
[25 Oct 2007|09:06am] |
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So, I may be just imagining things, but I read a post by Paul Kemp (who btw is probably the most fantastic story teller of the past 5 years), and it got me thinking. Mostly about my MS, my health insurance, and the research into some of the diseases that plague a huge chunk of americans.
With all the research going on, and the billions of dollars being spent on said research, why hasn't there been any significant progress made? I hear the occasional news clip about this or that bit of research making minimal progress, but where are the significant discoveries? Why aren't the researchers making more progress? Are they being paid to keep the research at a crawl? Are they being paid by the drug companies, which make more by treating a disease, than by curing it? Hmmm, makes me wonder. Let's take diabetes for starters. I now have two friends diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Not that big of a surprise considering the world we live in. Almost everything has high fructose corn syrup in it. Surgar is in almost everything we eat, in one form or another. I hear lots of celebrities going on TV begging for more money so the researchers can find a cure, so why haven't they? they know what the problem is, they have semi-effective treatments for the disease, but why haven' they found a cure? How hard can it be? The subjects body doesn't produce enough of it's own insulin to combat the surgar intake. They have mapped the human geneome, so what's stopping you from comparing a healthy human, with someone that has diabetes and finding the gene that controls insulin production, and then turn it on? Don't tell me you can't, you've done it before. Now let's move into a subject that directly effects me, MS. Multiple Sclerosis effects the central nervous system. It reprograms your white blood cells so that they break through the blood brain barrier and stip the protective coating (myelin) off of the nerves. The really nifty part about this is that the doctors still have no idea how this happens, or why. I personally think that it's envionmental. The highest concentration of people in the world with MS, just happens to be in colorado. We're closer to the sun, our atmosphere is thinner, and even the tree hugging, nature biscuits can get MS. So it's not a question of lifestyle. My wife and have figured out some things. One, I'm fairly certain that a drastic chemical change in your body can trigger MS. I quit smoking and drinking huge quantities of Mt. Dew, and that's when MS hit me. Two, Benign Positional Vertigo (getting dizzy) is an onset symtom of MS. Three, stress is not good for your MS, it aggravates the condition to no end. So, they have identified the protein that reprograms your white blood cell, why can't they figure out how to remove it? I have heard of great strides in the field of nanorobotics, can't they manufacture nanobots to go into someones body and start removing the proteins? We can send someone to the moon, and then forget how. We can transplant organs from one person to another. We can put 8 gigabytes of information onto a device no bigger than my pinky, but we can't seem to cure disease. Something is wrong here. Oh yeah, and before anyone thinks that making a movie (i.e. Michael Moore's Sicko) is really going to make a difference, think again. Our wonderful democracy has buried it. people are apathetic in this country. Yes we have a free country, but what good does it do us when the people that run the country, arent in touch with the people of the country. Sure, go out into the masses, smile, shake hands, and tell everyone what you plan to do if we elect you into office, but can anyone see the reality of the situation. the american government was designed to be slow and innefective....
Ok, I'm gonna stop now before I say something I'll regret later.
Thanks for listening.
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| Just Grrrr..... |
[24 Oct 2007|08:09am] |
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I, much like my cat, am a creature of habit. I like things to be the same way, and stay that way. I don't mind the occasional distraction, but overall I like things to be normal and mellow, and stay the way I'm used to it happening. Lately however, life has been rearranging my furniture, and I don't like it.....
Let's start with WOTC not renewing the paizo license to print Dungeon & Dragon. I liked getting magazines in the mail, reading is a somewhat tactile experience for me, I like the feel of the book in my hand. I like the New Book smell. That's where my cranky started.
Then WOTC announces 4th edition, nice...great...but they cancelled the third Abyss book. I really wanted to see the book on Yuguloths, Grrrr.
Now the last straw wasn't WOTC's fault, it was my wife's employer. IHS announced to it's employees, that they would no longer be carrying Kaiser insurance after the end of next year. Now I really depend on having Kaiser insurance, without it, my injections will run 1600 bucks a month. So now the clock is ticking. One of us has to find a new job, and it has to have kaiser insurance. I suppose ideally we could get a job with kaiser (hope springs eternal) but I'm not gonna count on it. OK I'm through whining for now.
Thanks for listening.
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