Saturday, August 30, 2008
Kudos
Here's some kind words posted for the Compendium from the man we hired to do layout for the book--the extremely talented Stephen Wark: http://www.chirographum.com/weblog/?p=3681
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Compendium Reviewed!
In case you don't check out the Tricky Owlbear blog very often, here's a note to say that the Behind the Spells: Compendium has gotten its first official review! Not too shabby: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?&reviews_id=18174&products_id=56664
Monday, August 25, 2008
Lord Soth original art for sale
AS the layoff continues, I'm combing through my collection of D&D stuff to see what might make some $$ if offered up for sale. One item I'm willing to part with (reluctantly) is this original ink drawing from Valerie Valusek featuring everyone's favorite death knight: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=130249814978&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=003
Consider giving this artwork a good home.
Consider giving this artwork a good home.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Movies of the Week
Scot and I decided to do a double feature this week in the form of Clone Wars and Mummy 3. Since we went from one theater into the next directly (taking time only to stop for more popcorn), I had to really pee til all was said and done. Were the flicks worth urinary disruption? Let's find out.
Clone Wars was, hmm, I can't really say I was highly anticipating it. It's always fun to revisit the Star Wars universe but the animation style I saw in the previews did not overwhelm me. Still, the movie turned out to be not bad at all. The action is pretty much constant which is good since the dialogue is still Lucas-cringeworthy as it has been with the prequels. The basic plot is OK (Republic wanting to gain shipping lanes through the outer rim) but when that plot hinges on Jabba the Hutt's son then you have to inwardly groan. If you haven't seen it, I won't spoil you by describing the Huttling itself but both my brother and I were surprised by its..ah..cuteness. Another cool little scene (yes, I said cool) was when Anakin and Asohka were trying to get the Huttling and themselves into the Republic ship. When the ship dropped its shields and a few droid ships kamakazied into the hanger before the heroes it was very unexpected! All in all, though, a mindless romp through the SW playground with the faces you know and the combat you love. Go see it with no expectations and you'll do fine.
As for Mummy, I wasn't sure what to expect. The previews lead you astray in that you think the gang will fight yetis...not so much. Quite the opposite in fact, which annoyed me slightly. The plot was even more simple than the earlier two flicks in the trilogy and the movie seemed to move a little to quickly from plot point to plot point. Yes, they didn't need to take much time to reintriduce Rick, Eve, and the gang, but some more character time would have been nice. I missed Rachel Weisz but welcomed back the actor who potrays Jonathan with open arms (he opened a nightclub named Imhoteps--classic!). At the end, my brother and I both agreed that we actually preferred Clone Wars to Mummy 3.
Clone Wars was, hmm, I can't really say I was highly anticipating it. It's always fun to revisit the Star Wars universe but the animation style I saw in the previews did not overwhelm me. Still, the movie turned out to be not bad at all. The action is pretty much constant which is good since the dialogue is still Lucas-cringeworthy as it has been with the prequels. The basic plot is OK (Republic wanting to gain shipping lanes through the outer rim) but when that plot hinges on Jabba the Hutt's son then you have to inwardly groan. If you haven't seen it, I won't spoil you by describing the Huttling itself but both my brother and I were surprised by its..ah..cuteness. Another cool little scene (yes, I said cool) was when Anakin and Asohka were trying to get the Huttling and themselves into the Republic ship. When the ship dropped its shields and a few droid ships kamakazied into the hanger before the heroes it was very unexpected! All in all, though, a mindless romp through the SW playground with the faces you know and the combat you love. Go see it with no expectations and you'll do fine.
As for Mummy, I wasn't sure what to expect. The previews lead you astray in that you think the gang will fight yetis...not so much. Quite the opposite in fact, which annoyed me slightly. The plot was even more simple than the earlier two flicks in the trilogy and the movie seemed to move a little to quickly from plot point to plot point. Yes, they didn't need to take much time to reintriduce Rick, Eve, and the gang, but some more character time would have been nice. I missed Rachel Weisz but welcomed back the actor who potrays Jonathan with open arms (he opened a nightclub named Imhoteps--classic!). At the end, my brother and I both agreed that we actually preferred Clone Wars to Mummy 3.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Faux Pas for McCain
Grabbed from Elaine Cunningham's LJ...
"An excerpt from a post by Michael Goldfarb on the blog of John McCain's official website:
'It may be typical of the pro-Obama Dungeons & Dragons crowd to disparage a fellow countryman's memory of war from the comfort of mom's basement, but most Americans have the humility and gratitude to respect and learn from the memories of men who suffered on behalf of others.'
Excuse me? It's a little unnerving to see this sort of sneering, dismissive, cheap-shot cliche employed on the blog of a presidential candidate. Insulting ANY portion of the electorate is bad politics, and employing shallow, silly generalizations is bad writing.Another thing that bothers me about this? The men and women in uniform who play D&D and read game-related novels--and there are quite a few of them--deserve better.Over the years I've heard from many servicemen who are a long, long way from home. I've mailed signed books, and donated novels and gaming supplies to base libraries.
For a couple of years, I exchanged emails with a young serviceman stationed in South Korea. He organized a yearly fundraiser at his base, collecting signed items the others might want to purchase and donating the proceeds to a local orphanage. I've talked to quite a few gamers at cons who have served in the military. And I've noticed that book signings near military bases generally have a stronger turn-out. (Submarine bases in particular--those guys like to stock up.) In short, it is my observation that "the D&D crowd" includes quite a few people who have shown themselves willing to suffer on behalf of others. Those I'm been privleged to meet, both in person and online, are exemplary young men. I'm guessing any one of them could teach Mr. Goldfarb a few things about the art of showing respect."
"An excerpt from a post by Michael Goldfarb on the blog of John McCain's official website:
'It may be typical of the pro-Obama Dungeons & Dragons crowd to disparage a fellow countryman's memory of war from the comfort of mom's basement, but most Americans have the humility and gratitude to respect and learn from the memories of men who suffered on behalf of others.'
Excuse me? It's a little unnerving to see this sort of sneering, dismissive, cheap-shot cliche employed on the blog of a presidential candidate. Insulting ANY portion of the electorate is bad politics, and employing shallow, silly generalizations is bad writing.Another thing that bothers me about this? The men and women in uniform who play D&D and read game-related novels--and there are quite a few of them--deserve better.Over the years I've heard from many servicemen who are a long, long way from home. I've mailed signed books, and donated novels and gaming supplies to base libraries.
For a couple of years, I exchanged emails with a young serviceman stationed in South Korea. He organized a yearly fundraiser at his base, collecting signed items the others might want to purchase and donating the proceeds to a local orphanage. I've talked to quite a few gamers at cons who have served in the military. And I've noticed that book signings near military bases generally have a stronger turn-out. (Submarine bases in particular--those guys like to stock up.) In short, it is my observation that "the D&D crowd" includes quite a few people who have shown themselves willing to suffer on behalf of others. Those I'm been privleged to meet, both in person and online, are exemplary young men. I'm guessing any one of them could teach Mr. Goldfarb a few things about the art of showing respect."
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Ebay
Before I forget and the auctions are over, I'm purging some unwanted Grenadier figs here: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZvantas1
I'll be sorting through my collection of stuff to see what else I can sell since my wallet's on life support for the time being.
I'll be sorting through my collection of stuff to see what else I can sell since my wallet's on life support for the time being.
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
And Now For Something...
...well you know the rest. Seems I'm going to have more free time to devote to writing as I was laid off indefinitely from my lab job this past Friday. The manager didn't want to do it to me in particular but things are so slow at the moment that, I think, some 15 of us are off on the unemployment train. Still, what with unemployment being extended to like 39 weeks and the pay (I hope) being enough to cover my monthly bills, it's a good thing. I picked up the Traveller core book and downloaded Mongoose's publisher developer pack. Now I can buckle down and crank out some Traveller goodness for Tricky Owlbear as we definitely need a new direction to go with our products.
In campaign news, my "Stop 4th Edition!" story arc has hit a unique landmark in that next session will see the integration of two adventuring parties into one mega-story! The planar PCs, who are the main PCs, are assaulting a land base of the evil chidahn, dragonfly-men from a foreign dimension. The chidahn are generating some kind of magical field around a gigantic artifact in orbit of a planet which is keeping their brethren in a prison pocket-dimension. When the artifact dies, it will loose its bond with the glyph gates which currently "caps" the prison demiplane. Unfortunately, the artifact's other function is to keep energy flows between the gates steady and, when it dies, the backlash of chaotic power will explode violently through each glyph gate in the multiverse--forever changing the realms they are on in ways impossible to predict (i.e. cause 4th edition). Now, if somehow the artifact can be destroyed on purpose instead of letting it die, the sudden collapse will actually "plug" the stream of power it controls--forever sealing the chidahn's prison while keeping the gate's from overloading. But how does one destroy an artifact the size of a small moon?
Enter the previous campaign's story arc involving Orcus and his meteor-thrower. While the planar PCs gear up to assault the shield-making chidahn base inside a dormany volcano, the Protectorate will make contact with the previous campaign's PCs since they are the ones most experienced with the doomsday weapon still in orbit of Toril. Will those PCs agree to help? Why wouldn't they, it's what adventurers do after all--save the multiverse! I hope everyone who's gamed in either campaign can make it next time for a Return of the Jedi-ish finale of epic proportions. One party takes down the shield while the other takes out the artifact. Simple enough, right? Mwahahaha! I'm looking forward to seeing how one group of players handles two PCs apiece as we switch back and forth between groups. One thing is certain--it will not be boring!
In campaign news, my "Stop 4th Edition!" story arc has hit a unique landmark in that next session will see the integration of two adventuring parties into one mega-story! The planar PCs, who are the main PCs, are assaulting a land base of the evil chidahn, dragonfly-men from a foreign dimension. The chidahn are generating some kind of magical field around a gigantic artifact in orbit of a planet which is keeping their brethren in a prison pocket-dimension. When the artifact dies, it will loose its bond with the glyph gates which currently "caps" the prison demiplane. Unfortunately, the artifact's other function is to keep energy flows between the gates steady and, when it dies, the backlash of chaotic power will explode violently through each glyph gate in the multiverse--forever changing the realms they are on in ways impossible to predict (i.e. cause 4th edition). Now, if somehow the artifact can be destroyed on purpose instead of letting it die, the sudden collapse will actually "plug" the stream of power it controls--forever sealing the chidahn's prison while keeping the gate's from overloading. But how does one destroy an artifact the size of a small moon?
Enter the previous campaign's story arc involving Orcus and his meteor-thrower. While the planar PCs gear up to assault the shield-making chidahn base inside a dormany volcano, the Protectorate will make contact with the previous campaign's PCs since they are the ones most experienced with the doomsday weapon still in orbit of Toril. Will those PCs agree to help? Why wouldn't they, it's what adventurers do after all--save the multiverse! I hope everyone who's gamed in either campaign can make it next time for a Return of the Jedi-ish finale of epic proportions. One party takes down the shield while the other takes out the artifact. Simple enough, right? Mwahahaha! I'm looking forward to seeing how one group of players handles two PCs apiece as we switch back and forth between groups. One thing is certain--it will not be boring!
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