Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Merry Christmas!

Been awhile since the last post so now's a good a time as any to update the 'ol blog. Was finally out for a good hike yesterday around Hamburg's reservoir and the Appalachian Trail. I snapped some pics with my camera phone and hope to start a little hiking log with pics once I get them uploaded to my hard drive.

My sister, her husband, and two nephews are home from Arizona and staying in our basement until around the 3rd of Jan. It's a little hectic at times but it's very good to see them all again. Gift-giving was fun and profitable (meaning plenty of $$ for rpg buying or, more likely, a casino trip or two!). More importantly, everyone was happy, safe, and together--what the holidays are all about. Here's hoping you all have the same.

Sunday, December 09, 2007

Ebay Sale!

I've decided to sell off some of my d20 collection. What does that mean? Well, cheap books for you if the titles appeal to you. More may be added in the coming days, but I've got about 40 items up now here: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZvantas1

Monday, December 03, 2007

December Already?

Where does the time go? Yesterday it went to cleaning my room--11am to 8pm of reorganizing, Pledge-ing, and vacuuming. I had to get back to work today to rest!

The group has a throw-together module on Sat. since Brad realized at the last minute that he couldn't make it. That left me quickly cobbling together the plot for an adventure for our planar PCs. I knew early on in the campaign, while doodling notes for possible future adventures, that I wanted these PCs to come across a world already ravaged by Orcus' meteor throwing weapon (as seen in the finale of the previous high-level campaign found somewhere in the murky history of this blog).

I knew I wanted the group to fight spellstitched ghasts (from MMII) in waves, be "rescued" by a mind flayer in need of armed allies, and eventually save a band of survivors by taking them back to Sigil. All of that happened, thanks in no small part to lifting a monster (lava creeps--CR2 my ass) and a small wizard tower from Goodman's DCC #8. After guided to safety by the mind flayer, they are led to the refugee camp. When the mind flayer speaks of a teleportation ring mentioned by fleeing drow, the PCs concoct a plan to use it to take everyone back to the glyph gate. With luck, they could escape with minimal casualties (as the gate was last seen under heavy undead guard, not the least of which included a dracolich!).

There were 3 near-PC-deaths and every refugee (including the mind flayer, separated from his colony during the meteor bombardment) survived, so it was a good game. Doesn't look like we'll be playing next weekend so perhaps that time can be spent Xmas shopping.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Green Ronin Mega-Huge Sale-a-thon!

Until Dec. 12, GR is practically giving away their outstanding catalog of books. As I understand it, they were having the sale through their distributor only, meaning if you wanted to take advantage of the fantastic prices ($2, $5, etc.), you had to go to your FLGS and order the books. I'm guessing that online fan outcry was such that Paizo configured a way to get these cheap titles to fans via their web store. The proof for this theory is here: http://paizo.com/store/sale/greenRonin

Happy shopping!

Monday, November 12, 2007

Thanksgivaway!

OBS is offering up pdfs for free this week as donated by some nice publishers over there. One of which happens to be BtS: Vampiric Touch on Wednesday. If you still haven't checked out my signature series, now is the perfect time! Check out the free pdfs here: http://enworld.rpgnow.com/thanksgiveaway.php?&src=ThanksGiveAway

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Goodbye d20

For those who may not have heard yet, Scott Rouse (the D&D manager at this time) has said: "There will be the OGL and Wizards D&D products period. No d20 STL (tiered or otherwise) to be even more clear." Check out this thread for more: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=211378&page=1&pp=30

On one hand, I'm a bit sorry to see it go, but on the other hand, did it stand for quality anymore? People have enough "d20" product to last until the end of time. Now, d20 publishers will have to somehoe distinguish their products from the pack if they still want to be paired in the consumer's mind with D&D (unless, as Scott mentions in that thread, WotC does include a usable compatibility phrase with the OGL). Eh, in any case, I'm glad that I kept the d20 logo off of Tricky Owlbear products so far. :)

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Two New Releases & Happy Halloween

If all goes as planned, two new pdfs with my scribblings should be released Thursday. The first is my contribution to Axel Carlsson's Behind the Monsters: Barghest and the second is the first in a line of pdfs for Highmoon. The piece is called "The Museum of Infamous Heroism" and the line of products is called Domains of Adventure. If the line proves popular, I think I'm going to be penning most (if not all) of them. Ah, to be busy. And then, of course, there's continuing Behind the Spells (I know, I'm bad for letting them go this long) and the occasional BtM solo (such as Skeleton and Gargoyle coming up).

And a Happy Halloween to everyone out there (with a special birthday greetings for my nephew Aiden who is 6 today--already a fan of Transformers, thanks to yours truly). So what Halloween traditions do I have? At 32, I'm a tad old for trick-or-treating (although not that old in spirit). Oddly enough, I'll be popping in the second season Halloween episode of the much-missed series Millennium. That episode and the Xmas ep in that same season are what quality TV is all about (mmm, the latter more than the former, but both still good). Actually, pretty much all of MM's season 2 was fantastic but that's a post for another day. Until then, enjoy your spooktastic holiday!

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

New Job

For those who might have seen my first "New Job" post some weeks back, well, I deleted that one as the job did not come to pass (long story, but I gained some inside info which made me quit before I officially started). Today was my third day working for a small pharmaceutical company called PPS in Shartlesville, PA. The people seem nice enough so that's a plus. My official title is Lab Tech which I'm told encompasses a few jobs. At the moment, I'm training to take samples of raw materials (they make skin products there) and then testing them for contaminents. The whole thing was rather daunting at first but in just these three days I learned what to do and actually prepared a few samples on my own today. I'm told they want me trained on lab machines they currently have consultants come in to work. That's fine by me because then I'll be the only one who has in depth knowledge of those machines (special knowledge = more $$ right?). For now, the job seems like a keeper as I can feel good growth coming in the future once their current restructuring is complete.

Friday, October 19, 2007

A New Publisher & Open Call

Generic Universe Publishing just announced its entrance into our world. The company is headed up by noted author/editor/developer Patrick Lawinger and can be found here: http://www.genericuniverse.com/writingRPGs.html

Actually, this is a link to Patrick's discussion of writing for RPGs (always useful) but you can easily surf the rest of the site from there. Don't forget to check the News section if you're looking for work as there is an Open Call for writers right now. I'd like to submit something but my Tricky Owlbear obligations might eat up too much time. We'll see. It would be neat to submit to a start-up the same theme/type of submission that launched my own freelancing career (the Urban Blight contest creating city locales for Mystic Eye--here's hoping GUP surpasses the fame and longevity of that company!). I met Patrick briefly during my GenCon trip in '04 (I think it was that year) and he was very nice and, from his various message board posts, certainly knows what he's doing in terms of the RPG world. I suspect working for Patrick can, at the very least, lead to a good learning experience.

Monday, October 15, 2007

AE: Waterskin

I see Mark at Skortched 'Urf has released my latest contribution to his Adventurer Essentials line of products. Have a look and don't forget to listen to the neat little audio commentary as well: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=50743

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Random Acts of Knowledge

If you're anything like me, you just love to gather up and store useless bits of knowledge. Now, instead of googling for something interesting, you can use everyone's favorite ever-evolving online encyclopedia--wikipedia! I think I saw this trick mentioned on lifehacker.com. You just hit the "Random Article" link and...voila! On my first hit, I got something which turned out to be good reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Pellew%2C_1st_Viscount_Exmouth

Good luck and let me know what interesting things you stumble across!

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Campaign Souvenirs

When groups game, campaigns come and go but how many groups create some type of keepsake for really good campaigns? I've done this on three occasions:
1) A notebook for each player which kept the "campaign log."
2) A cassette soundtrack featuring liner notes describing the modules/event each track was played during.
3) Personalized pencils with the adventuring group's name.
4) As #2 but in cd form.

To be honest, I'm probably the only one that's really enjoyed these (especially the music collections) over the years but I maintain that years from now one of the players will stumble across one of these items and be blessed with a hit of nostalgia, saying to him/herself, "Good times." That's what keepsakes are all about, right? Maybe I'm just an oddball but has anyone done anything similar?

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Dragonlance Movie Song

Here's a brief clip of the "Qualinesti Hymn" from the upcoming Dragons of Autumn Twilight film. Looks like its release form (direct to DVD or cinema) is still unknown at this time. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54Ure_45SSw

Review-BtS: Dispel Magic

In this week's Digital Front podcast, Behind the Spells: Dispel Magic gets a long awaited review. Surf on over to thedigitalfront.com and have a listen!

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Here Comes Autumn...

...and thank God! Yesterday was the first since summer began that I was seen wearing long pants. Today is no different. A crisp wave of cool air has moved into our section of the country and boy does it feel refreshing. When my parents return from an errand later today I will most certainly be getting out onto the mountain. It's been a day shy of 2 weeks that I've been hiking and that's way too long.

My grandmother is recovering nicely (if a bit slowly--but for 84 years old it's good progress), to the point of walking around on her own (albeit only on the floor her bedroom is on). Hopefully she'll get out of her sleepwear today and then she might start to feel normal again. Physical therapy comes tomorrow and that can only increase her recovery speed.

On the job front, I still have nothing solid to report but have found a couple promising leads I'll follow up on tomorrow. With life settling down again on the homefront, I'm finally starting to enjoy my time off so if a job doesn't manifest for another 2 weeks (or more), that's OK with me.

And how about some rpg chatter on here? Well, I'm slowly working on BtS: Sanctuary (with Feather Fall soon to follow). Daniel at Highmoon Media mentioned on a forum that my locale "series" for him will be see its first release in October (I say "series" because I wasn't really certain that I was still writing more than one locale given the 8 or 9 months since I turned in that first one and that I now have a corporation to oversee, but we'll see what happens). And speaking of Daniel, those interested in listening to news of the pdf market should head on over to http://thedigitalfront.com/ where podcast interviews with industry folk are being posted. This is Daniel's new venture and I wish him much success with it!

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Welcome Home

Today, after a harrowing two weeks, we brought mom-mom home from the hospital. Even the doctor's are amazed at her progress (not to mention us!). She is in good spirits and can resume activities with no restrictions (although we're keeping her off the stairs for awhile). She'll have physical therapy at the house a few times a week but I bet that won't last longer than a month. We're glad to welcome her back home again.

Friday, September 07, 2007

Friday Update & How I (Almost) Met Michael Palin

Well, the gourmet food run didn't work out...in fact, it didn't even start! I overheard a phone conversation the boss was having with another person interested in the job. When the boss mentioned there was no salary, all commission-based, I turned and fled (after the obligatory "oh, that's how it is; well I'm not comfortable" response to him). Another job seems promising but cannot give full-time hours/pay for 2 to 3 months after a part-time trail (the part-time pay is $300/week but that's cutting it too close for me especially if the job isn't my thing). The search continues.

My grandmother is doing extremely well and is ready to be moved from the ICU. One small problem--no beds! Folks in the ER need beds and there aren't enough to go around so mom-mom may have to stay in the ICU until she's ready to go home. I was with her an hour yesterday after my aborted job run and she was in pretty good shape--a little dementia yet but at least she was sitting in a chair instead of lying in bed. I might make the run out there today with my mom later.

Game on for tomorrow! By request, the planar campaign gets its next installment. The PCs have had some down time and now their approx. 8th-level selves will have an adventure like no other (or is that just a good catch phrase?)! I came up with a plot before bed so it might not hold up well under scrutiny as I work on the adventure today.

And now to Michael Palin--one member of the astoundingly funny and famous Monte Python's Flying Circus group. On the way home from the hospital yesterday, I heard an interview with the man on Philadelphia station 90.9 FM. He was touring for his new book Michael Palin Diaries: 1969-1979, the Python Years. After they played the Lumberjack song at the end of the program (which is about all I heard, coming in late to that station), they mentioned he would be having a talk and signing at the Free Phila. Library on Vine St. @ 7pm that evening. I gathered Scot & Zlaty (after not being able to reach the Cuthberts, admitted Python fans) and headed down. We arrived in a more or less timely fashion but parking was hard to come by. We parked very near the art museum and hoofed it 2 blocks or so. By the time we arrived, security was letting no one else into the building because it was too full--even the standing room was taken! Drat! Probably a couple hundred feet away was a comedy legend I couldn't see. And that's how I (almost) met Michael Palin.

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Good News

My grandmother, although still in the ICU, has been successfully removed from the ventilator and she is all but tube-free, talking and more or less coherent. She's a remarkable lady and I hope they can get her out of the ICU soon. It's amazing that it's only been a week since she went in for her mini-stroke symptoms.

On the job search front, I called a company today who needs someone immediately. It has to do, apparently, with gourmet food/delivery and sales. Although I'm not enamored with the "sales" aspect of it, I agreed to go on a no-obligation run with the boss on Thurs. morning. Wish me luck!

Sunday, September 02, 2007

Job Hunt

Got my results back from the postal exam yesterday and my score was 77.10. That doesn't sound particularly good to me since I think it's out of 100 but oh well the letter said I'm eligible and on the register for the next 2 years so that's a good thing. In the meantime, Shirley from the herb shop next to the drug store gave me the card of a sales rep who's looking for help. Turns out he's a published author who was on Oprah so just for that reason alone I'll have to open a dialogue with him. :) Good things are rolling in and it's only day 1 of my "extended vacation."

Grandma Update

Last night things looked grim. Mom called us at the Cuthbert's where we were trying to relax during some gaming. It looked like mom-mom was bleeding again but they did not know from where. So instead of waiting to resume surgery Sunday (today), they had to go back in last night. My mom said the doctor didn't sound hopeful so we all congregated at LVH again and feared the worst. Not terribly long after we were there, the same surgeon as last time emerged to give us...a good report! They could find nothing that indicated mom-mom was bleeding again (very odd but good!) and after checking everything thoroughly (liver is viable and healthy), they sewed her back up. Over the next few days they'll work on taking her off the various machines and see about getting her into shape to come home. Better news we could not have gotten.

Edit: Turns out the anamolous bleeding came from her abdominal wall but all is OK.

Friday, August 31, 2007

Highs and Lows

Much like the temperatures over the last couple days and those forecasted for the weekend, the events of this week(end) are up and down. On the positive front, tomorrow is my last day at work. It'll be very nice to have a break for awhile from a routine (or rut, in this case). On the low side, my grandmother was taken to the hospital on Tues for symptoms which appear to have been a "mini-stroke". All seemed okay until today when a persisent stomach pain was worsened by incredibly low blood pressure. A cat scan (done today to investigate a possible aneurism area in the brain) revealed fresh blood in her abdomen. Two cups of blood turned into 2+ liters in a couple hours time by the time she was operated on.

I went to stay with my mom and a couple of her friends at Lehigh Valley Hospital tonight while word was waited on from the surgeon. Fortunately, the procedure didn't take as long as expected and we were briefed--one of mom-mom's arteries going to her liver had somehow ruptured and she had a large hematoma (sp?) between it and the stomach. The surgeon described how he had to physically move her stomach and whatnot around to find the leak. When it was discovered, he literally pinched it closed with his hand while it was sewn off. She had to be given 4 liters of blood after receiving 2 earlier in the day.

She's been through a lot already this week and she must rest up for more. They had to leave her "open" with packing for more surgery is required on Sunday. The liver appeared in good shape for now and hopefully another artery running to the liver will take over where the ruptured one failed. After that, we were told it will be a long recovery as mom-mom is weaned off the various machines she is now on. Perhaps the most amazing thing that happened tonight was that, although heavily sedated in an induced coma, she opened her eyes while the lot of us were speaking at the foot of her bed. The nurse said, "Oh my God, she opened her eyes!" There was no eye movement, but my mom is sure she heard us. As you can imagine, the whole thing was very emotional. But I have faith that she'll eventually get home because the area # she is in matches out house number--260! I'll take that as a sign from above.

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Bulging Shelves

I suppose with 4e now officially on the way, I can justify clearing off some shelf space. Just how many rpg (mostly d20) books did I think I needed anyway? Well, for those interested (and with more shelf space than I), I'm starting some auctions: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZvantas1

Wed. edit: Added some more items including a signed HC copy of Blackmoor!

Monday, August 20, 2007

Planar Campaign Revs Up for Second Season

As I've mentioned before here, my campaigns are run like TV seasons--10 adventures to a season. Yesterday, we began season 2 with the PCs in "Vecna-verse", the alternate universe they stumbled into last time (where Vecna won his bid for power in Die! Vecna! Die!). Now in the Realms, the PCs are given a possible route home by the god Azuth (the gods were cast down by Ao just before Vecna's transformational wave restructured the universe and destroyed all other deities). The location of the group's salvation was named, appropriately enough, Gate...this is an actual locale mentioned in a couple Realms products (The North box set and FR5: The Savage Frontier).

Both sources mentioned that the place was inhabited by a smallish beholder calling itself "the keeper" and it was served by superior bugbears. Also mentioned was that the portals here took the form of many different colored stone slabs inside a large black-stoned chamber. Hmm, not much to work with there. Naturally, I was curious as to why someone would build such portals and devised a little Realms-specific background--a Netherese wizard (one of the principal architects behind that empire's floating cities) fled north following that empire's destruction and continued his experiments concerning gravity (the force that binds the multiverse together--ah-ah! the perfect theme for Gate, I thought).

So, now I had a bad guy and some minions (bugbears from the MM as well as a couple classed versions I found in Mongoose's NPC book) but I needed more monsters and a dungeon map. Oh, the dreaded dungeon map. I'd rather stock a dungeon than create one myself. Fortunately, there are a plethora of products out there with wonderful maps. Some I find useful are those from the new Rappan Athuk box by Necromancer Games and indeed anything by map-master Ed Bourelle (also check out his book of maps from Green Ronin, featuring "themed" maps without fluff attachment). Another go-to source of dungeon maps is the 2e Ruins of Undermountain box. Not only does this box have four big poster maps of nothing but dungeons, it has very large areas that were left featureless. This weekend's adventure was not the first time I lifted a chunk of map to mold into what I needed.

How about monsters, though? Time was short for my prep and I went, as I often do, to some 3rd party d20 books in an effort to give my players something fresh and new to fight. Two books saw use aside from the MM yesterday--Denizens of Avadnu and Tome of Horrors III. I was particularly pleased with the latter's gravity elemental. That thing was nasty when combined with a spiked ceiling. ;) I think the other critters were also well received (except perhaps the boneneedle spiders whose poison regrettably never came into play). Two new monsters each from these sources, a large water elemental, and a couple traps later, I had a working adventure! Unfortunately, I had to make up the "smallish beholder" en route, backing its Hit Dice off to 8 (the party's avg. level was 5th) and dumbing down its eye rays.

I also ran out of time to actually plan how one opens these many-colored slab-portals. Whoops! On the drive over to the game barn, I decided it would have something to do with one of my favorite techno-magical cop-outs--control crystals. Found in the Netherese wizard's chambers, these crystals would need to be stuck into the appropriate slots in the portal room's control consoles to activate the portals. However, you needed to stick the correct rod into the correct hole to open a portal. Fortunately, Scot's PC picked up the wizard's gravity workbook and he and Chuck's PC deduced which crystal would open a portal to alternate worlds.

The PCs were told last module that a blast of raw power would be needed to adjust the open portal so that it would access their home reality. Although Mike was at GenCon, his PC Kytor still provided that service (NPC style) and the PCs made it home even as bugbear reinforcements poured into the portal chamber. Chuck's PC, however, needed to heroically stay behind to keep the gate open for everyone else (the beholder intentionally damaged the console before it was slain). That character's fate remains a mystery.

Hmm, that long post was part recap and part "behind the scenes" adventure design. In any case, much fun was had and everyone will be leveling up for next time. If this first adventure is any indication, the campaign's 2nd season will prove to be quite exciting! I'll be bringing back the PCs chief nemesis--the jaguar-folk--as well as scratching the surface perhaps of who or what constructed the glyph gates (the normal portals the Protectorate uses to explore the multiverse from a base in Sigil).

Friday, August 17, 2007

4e/OGL Matters

According to Scott Rouse, D&D Brand Manager, it appears that there will be no fee involved with 3rd party use of the 4e SRD. 4e will definitely be supporting the OGL and a new SRD will be released. The question is, will 3rd party publishers have access to such a document before the new core books will be released. It'd be nice, I say, but not necessary. Publishers will just have to take a page from WotC's book and release fluff-tastic products before the new edition emerges to the public.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Star Trek's Braga Answers Questions

Check out this link: http://trekmovie.com/2007/08/12/vegascon-07-braga-reflects-on-a-life-with-trek/

Brannon Braga was at a convention answering questions about his 15 years of Trek writing and producing and I learned some interesting things. He's always been a favorite writer of mine back from the TNG days. Even more interesting, is that he started to visit this site and answer questions in the comments section. Neat! I couldn't resist making a comment of my own. We'll see if I get a response. I sneak in at comment #182.

Edit: Woohoo, a response!
Bret -
You rock! Thank you so much for the thoughtful comments. “Deadlock” was one of my faves, too.

4th Edition

Wether you think it's too soon or not (I do!), get ready for the 4th Edition of D&D. Apparently, in addition to WotC's site having a big "4DVENTURE" default page instead of their normal site at the moment, this new forum was leaked too early over there: http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3702448&postcount=217

Early word has it that 4e will not be open to all via OGL unless some kind of licensing fee is paid by prospective 3rd party publishers. This means that freelancing can be kept alive (assuming I even buy the 4e stuff) but what this means for Tricky Owlbear is anyone's guess. :(

Saturday, August 04, 2007

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Mallyate Finally Reviewed!

After a couple years, my pdf Mallyate, originally written for Ronin Arts, has been reviewed (and favorably I might add): http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?reviews_id=16370

It should be interesting to see if a review spurs more sales of this older product.

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Cone of Cold review

Chris Gath continues to review the Behind the Spells series with the newest review: http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=review&reviewid=3650209

In writing news, I finally finished the short story for the Crown setting. I'm happy with the plot and the structure but I'm not sure the protagonist really came into his own. Ah well.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Wild West Kobolds

I was just struck by an image of a kobold wielding an Old West style revolver. Could this idea blossom into the first support material I write for Temporality? Perhaps a writeup of these techno-enhanced kobolds and a mini-adventure are in order.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Vampiric Touch

Since I'm still writing them, I'll keep announcing here when the Behind the Spells pdfs are released. Now for sale is Vampiric Touch--the first pdf offered for sale by the Tricky Owlbear. Grab it here: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=22456

Saturday, July 07, 2007

The Owlbear Lives!

Head on over to http://www.trickyowlbear.com/ to see what my brother has brought forth from the primordial ooze of cyberspace. And for the official press release, go here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=200823

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

Happy 4th!

Sorry about the lack of posts but this week I'm dog/house sitting while busily prepping things for Tricky Owlbear's launch this Sat. I think I'm going to celebrate the holiday by taking a quick trip to Phila. Park for a spot of slots. :)

Sunday, June 24, 2007

Pirates!

This seemed to be the theme for the weekend. Yesterday I DM'd our high level Realms characters against a threat most of them had encountered before--neogi! These "spider-snake" privateers once again went up against the Defenders of Cormyr and suffered defeat. The highlight for me had to be when the commander neogi led the PCs aboard the disabled craft to "get hidden treasure" to barter with for its life. Instead, the sneaky little devil activated the ship's magical self-destruct!!! Brad's monk PC throttled the beast but it was too late. Fortunately, everyone survived the detonations and they were able to return later and sift through the rubble for some great treasure. Hmm, another good part would have been when an umber hulk tried to charge through a steel door and got its ass handed to it. Okay, there were many good moments. :)

Today, after a farewell get-together for my sister and her kids, Scot and Zlaty and I went to see the latest in the Pirates of the Carribean movies. Was it any good? Eh, it wasn't terrible. The acting was good and the movie looked great. Hans Zimmer delivered a good score at the beginning for the film's Singapore opening but quickly fell back into original Pirates material for the climactic battle (at least it sounded that way in my opinion). And then there's the plot. I'm pleased that everything was wrapped up but there were too many new elements introduced in order to do so. I guess, though, when you have to clean up the wretched second film's mess, that's a tall order for any writer (much less the pair of writers given credit here). At the end, I was hoping they'd crank out another Pirates if only to see a good adventure involving the fountain of youth. To hope a movie spawns (yet another) sequel pretty much tells you that this one couldn't have been too bad at all.

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Willi Weekend

This weekend saw the spring open house of Willi Singleton (see www.willisingleton.com for details). Willi is a famed potter and just all-around nice guy who fires up his handmade kiln twice a year and then has two shows at his home for local buyers. Let me tell you, it's worth the trip if you're anywhere in the Hawk Mtn. area. I usually grab something every time I go because of the appreciation value and because the stuff's so damned cool. I've got close to a dozen pieces now from little bowls to coffee mugs and now a little plate I nabbed yesterday. Linda had never been to a Willi show so I took her and my mom up there today (after being there yesterday with Katy).

Naturally, we all found something to buy (the two girls having two items apiece). When I handed over my bowl for purchase, Willi (who personally checks out everyone and gives little info tidbits about the pieces), wrapped it in paper and handed it back to me saying, "This is for you for bringing everyone up here." Wow, I was floored. It's true that I spread the word of his work and then shuttled my family members up there but never expected a reward for it. Too cool and it saved me $22.

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Don't Spoil It!

I'm an avid Stargate and the SG: Atlantis spinoff watcher. With Star Trek off the tube (as far as new episodes go), the SGs are the only really good sci-fi fun left on tv (year, BG is okay but they've got like 10 months in between seasons and now I just saw that the next one is their last). In any case, there is a difference in how I watch the Stargates from how I used to watch the last Star Trek incarnation (Enterprise)--spoilers. I used surf on over to trektoday.com regularly to see what was coming up for Enterprise. As a result, when interesting things did happen on the show, the emotional impact was lessened--I already knew that X was going to happen to Y. With the Stargates, I just watch them as they come. My non-spoiler approach led to a real response when a character on SG: Atlantis kicked the bucket. After that, I went online just to see the whys of the decision to kill off that character. What I found was a website already in place to bring the character back. WTF, I thought. Turns out, the leak for this death had been out for some time but since I didn't look for such info, I never ran across it. Turned out to be some damned fine tv watching so the moral of my tale is: Don't Spoil It; you'll gain that much greater viewing satisfaction.

In other news, we played some good Spycraft last Saturday in which the outcome is war between the US and a Pan-American Alliance primarily fueled by Venezuela. Should be much fun for the games ahead! Heather was back at the table after her successful bout against the evil bloot clots. We're all happy to have her gaming and healthy again.

Monday, May 28, 2007

Another Year OIder

Today I hit the big "32." Okay, so maybe it isn't all that big but when you have as much gray hair as I have you start to wonder if your calendar is off. ;) On tap for today is some BtS work and then Linda's taking me to dinner in Manayunk at a pub called Kildare's. Hopefully, we can get in a bit of birthday shopping as well. Not sure what gifts to expect from others today but then I usually just buy what I want normally so I can't blame others for not knowing what to get me. And not to slight the holiday--have a great Memorial Day one and all!

Yesterday we got in a few hours of Spycraft under Chuck's able and knowledgeable GMing. Unfortunately, Heather could not attend the session as she had a surprise stay at the hospital for a couple blood clots! They found them after an ultrasound was used to uncover why a vericose vein was bothering her. We're all very pleased that the meds are working and she should be returning home Tuesday. Here's sending some love the Cuthbert's way this weekend.

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Beware the Owlbear

As posted in my sister blog, Tricky Owlbear's command group (okay, just Scot and I) met with the accountant and the paperwork is on the way to form our corporation. For the next in the Behind the Spells line, I've decided to do one of the newer spells in D&D's lexicon: Vampiric Touch. Was the spell named for that most infamous of undead or did it acquire that name at some other time? What new ways can this spell be used and what magics has it inspired since its creation? All of these answers and more will be revealed...(It's good to jump back into this fun series!)

Behind the Spells at Paizo.com

It took awhile, but the files for the Behind the Spells series have apparently reached the HQ of Paizo (if you need clarification, they were, until recently, the publisher of Dragon and Dungeon mags). I don't surf over to their site too often, but I might have to now to promote my baby. Have a look: http://paizo.com/store/downloads/roninArts/behindTheSpells

And now I've begun a discussion thread here (because who better to promote them? :) ): http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizo/products/v5748btpy7y0m

Monday, May 21, 2007

Where'd the Work Go?

As freelancing is at a snail's pace these days, the weekend didn't see much action in that regard. I did, however, get my lawn and my sister's lawn mowed over the two days. Yay me. But back to the freelancing. This has probably been the longest dearth of real writing I've had in years. "What's the deal?" you might ask. I think it has to do with preparing Tricky Owlbear for launch. I did manage to more or less finish BtM: Owlbear this weekend but I'm hesitant to really go scrounging up work with others until I get into a comfortable rhythm with my own company. For a change of pace maybe I'll do another Adventurer Essentials pdf or perhaps even a time travel adventure which I kinda said I'd do to further support Temporality. And of course there's that short story that still needs writing for Dark Quest's upcoming Crown setting. After Scot and I meet with the accountant this week about setting up our corporation, we'll see what's what.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Pizza With Everything

On our "late" nights at work (7pm), we're wont to find dinner of some kind before we close. Yesterday, the boss decided he'd like to split a personal pizza instead of having the turkey sandwiches I proposed (and had brought the fixing's for). Fine, I could do pizza, no problem. I picked up the food from the usual venue and headed back. Now, I should mention that it was quite windy yesterday. Why mention this? Because as I was passing by a parked car, the wind whipped the box out of my hand and it landed on the rear windshield/side of the car!! As it tumbled from my grasp, my right hand came around in a futile effort to stop the box and its contents from spilling. That only succeeded in smashing the poor pizza onto the car. The wind must have whipped open the box top as well (it all happened so fast) because after I quickly gathered the shattered remains of dinner from the vehicle, the smash site was marked by a giant grease stain. There was no sign of tomato sauce of cheese so I thought, "Good enough!" and hurried away from the scene.

I thought the boss would be upset but quite the opposite. After I made the aforementioned turkey sandwiches he was still giggling which then inspired a new round of laughter. We couldn't eat for the crying. He kept saying he could picture someone inside the dentist office across the street saying, "Why did that guy just throw a pizza on my car?!" Best laugh I've had in some time.

Monday, May 14, 2007

Lost Vault of...WTF?

Some time ago, Brad started running a lead-in adventure to Red Hand of Doom. The first adventure is DCC #2: Lost Vault of Thazhar Rho which we finally finished (after 3 or 4 sessions) on Saturday night. Lost Vault has it's share of neat encounters but suffers from a lack of plot coherence and a drawn out ending wherein PCs must fail their Will saves in order to fight the other-wordly demon. Brad runs a good game so I'll not fault him for this pre-written adventure. Let's just say that I hope the next adventure (one of the "Bleeding Edge" line from Green Ronin) before Red Hand is a bit less...chaotic. :) In any case, we had a great time as always and it looks like Sat nights might be better for everyone's schedules than Sunday afternoons. I'd prefer to mix the game times up a little but we'll see what happens.

Mother's Day turned out well. I got some good writing accomplished for Behind the Monsters: Owlbear and my dad cooked a good and large dinner of flounder, chicken, steak, shrimp, cooked potato slices, cucumber salad and finishing with a store bought cheese cake. Yum! I bought my mom an iron stand in which to place seasonal homemade slates for display in the garden. As it turns out, she was planning on buying the very same thing this week once the garden was weeded! The gift was, admittedly, at the store owner's suggestion where I bought it but I can still say that great minds think alike since I did agree to buy it. ;)

Monday, May 07, 2007

Hiking Weekend

Now that nice weather seems to have settled into my corner of the northeast, it was a great weekend for hiking. Saturday and Sunday saw about 10 miles of hiking total, all around our community's reservoir area. Sat. took me to Pulpit Rock (search the net if you'd like more info about these sites) and Sunday, after an 11th hour cancellation of our module, I took a long haul up to the Pinnacle. Whether you're hiking alone or with others, the experience never fails to bring a sense of serenity (OK, and maybe a few gnats, flies, and mosquito bites).

Serenity proved valuable for the wacky day at work today. First there was a pushy couple who couldn't figure out how their blood pressure monitor worked--turns out you actually have to wrap the velcro strap onto the velcro portion of the cuff, go figure! Second was one of our nicer customers who had put her shirt on inside out. When I noticed the tages below her chin, I said, "Are you going anywhere else this morning?" When she responded to the affirmative, I said, "Well, you should know that your shirt is on inside-out." "Oh," she exclaimed, "Is there anyone else here?" She moved to look toward the front of the store and, seeing no one, proceeded to remove her shirt and place it on the correct way! No cheap thrills here as she was an older and, ahem, larger woman. I admit this incident doesn't top "Testicle Tuesday" but it's certainly blog-worthy. :)

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Campaign Fun

Been quiet here lately but sometimes there's just not a whole lot to write here that I think might be worthy. The group did manage to get together for an adventure with our high level FR PCs. This is the campaign that was "ended" some months back when they defeated the plans of Orcus and the meteor throwing device he was using to pummel planets and grow his undead legions. Since then, the PCs have helped to stop a githyanki incursion (spurred by planar tears which occured with the destruction of the ethereal-based tower which controlled the meteor thrower). The PCs also brought about the final destruction of the Crystal of Shadowed Deeds which housed the final essence of Bhaal in our campaign. Last time, the group was called to Suzail for a public festival in their honor but was instead caught up in an elaborate githyanki revenge plot against them.

For Sunday's game, I was torn. We weren't certain we were even playing until later in the week and, as readers of my blog know, I like to have a whole week to plan an adventure. With time at a premium, I went to my collection of premade modules--DCCs in particular. The PCs are between levels 11 and 15 and I decided on DCC4: Bloody Jack's Gold. I had read the adventure once before when I considered writing a sequel to it for Goodman Games. When that fell through, the module was shelved until last Friday. Then my sister and I were invited to my brother's Saturday night (which turned into a late-night Atlantic City trip!) which meant even less time for module prep.

The result? I didn't use the DCC after all. Not only did I not get the chance to re-read it, but running it wouldn't have felt like it belonged in that campaign. After 30 adventures, a campaign definitely acquires its own feel (I'm not sure how to describe it--the PCs and players know what to expect from their companions and the types of monsters and plots just seem "right"). So, after getting back home close to 3am Sat night, I grabbed Mysteries of the Moonsea off the shelf for a quick look. I'm quite happy with the adventure site format in the region books. It didn't take long to settle on "Abarat's Folly", a site where a long-dead elven wizard constructed a tower with portals that, at the time, linked several other elven communities. Seems a cadre of devils from Myth Drannor discovered a way into the tower (but, according to the writeup, could only leave the tower by another portal which a key must be found to).

Plot aside, the area of the tower was quite close to Elventree, a locale already traversed by these PCs and home to a friendly druid NPC as well. There was also something intriguing about the tower itself; it was comprised of some kind of magically enhanced ivory. Even in a sleep-deprived state, my brain drew a connection to my Stargate-esque planar campaign where the PCs there explore the multiverse through glyph gates seemingly made of this same ivory-ish substance.

The easy addition of some leftover ivory slabs and notes (yet to be revealed to the group) from the elven wizard detailing the mysterious race that left the materials there spells a crossover campaign event! I had always planned on (eventually) investigating the glyph gates' origins in the planar game but can now do so with appropriately high level PCs. I suppose the moral of all this is that even the most hastily cobbled together adventure can yield great things. It helps to have a helluva good group of players too. ;)

Monday, April 23, 2007

Engage Random Speculation Drive!

First WotC decides not to renew Paizo's license to produce Dragon/Dungeon. Now, Margaret Weis announces this: http://www.dragonlance.com/features/articles/10040.aspx

This isn't overly upsetting. These folks have produced all the d20 for Dragonlance anyone could want (OK, I really do want to see all of the classic DL mods updated; doubtful since the license expires at year's end). With this fresh news, the internet buzz can be heard even in the peaceful meadows of this blog. What does it mean? Is Wizards prepping for 4th edition? Have their corporate masters gone off the deep end? Eh, who cares really. This freelancer won't make any predictions because such time and thought is better spent on writing. (Of course, once official news is given, let the bitching or celebrating begin!)

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Bless Review & Bells Aplenty

Chris Gath weighs in with his thoughts on Behind the Spells: Bless here: http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=review&reviewid=3472465 As always, I thank Crothian for his continued reviewing of the series. Now, if only one of these could coax a 5-star review out of him. :)

In non-RPG news, I participated in a bell festival today in Orwigsburg, PA. Comprised of about 10 bell choirs from various churches, the event was, in my opinion, poorly attended. Poor advertising? Or maybe bells alone just isn't much of a draw. That said, there were old and young alike and all seemed to enjoy themselves. My choir played in 4 of the mass choir pieces and performed our own piece. At Donna's (our director's) behest, I migrated at appropriate times to another choir to help ring the other 4 mass choir pieces due to lack of ringers. I find bell ringing relatively easy so while I was a bit nervous at the prospect of going in nearly cold, it didn't turn out too badly.

Today's bell activities lasted from just before noon until after 9pm. This included packing up our stuff, moving it to Orwigsburg, practice, break, practice, break for dinner, and finally the performance at 7pm. Needless to say, no freelancing was accomplished today. It's time for a shower and a cup of hot tea.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

History of D&D

The background of everyone's favorite roleplaying game continues to surprise me the more I read about it. Here's an exhaustive recounting of D&D's history from inception to v3.5 that gamespy.com did for the game's 30th anniversary. It's in multiple parts which you'll see after clicking the link: http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/538/538848p1.html

Monday, April 16, 2007

New Game Fizzles

Well, we tried C&C and...it didn't work out as I had hoped. On the surface (i.e. before really playing it), the game had its charms for me. As one who waxes nostalgic for 1st edition (hand me those rose-colored glasses), I saw much to regain in playing C&C. Once the playing was done, however, and only the assassin PC survived, we decided that one adventure under these rules was enough. Look for my C&C ebay auctions soon. :)

To offer a bit more detail, I assumed that dropping the base d20 skills and feats would be a great idea (further streamline an already nicely streamlined set of rules). Beneath the surface lied chaos. Skills/Feats had morphed into oddly placed class abilities. The cleric couldn't Listen as well as the assassin because he didn't have that ability. Um...okay...maybe a bad case of ear wax? The stuff that seemed logical upon first look just turned out to be oddly cumbersome in play. We'll take d20, with all its quirks and faults, back now, thanks.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Old Job, New Game

For a number of different reasons, I gave my notice at the drug store on Thursday. My bosses appeared saddened, which I assumed would be the case, but it had to be done. Professionally, my life is quite stagnant. I tried to leave the druggie twice before, actually. The first was when I graduated high school and was prepping for my Moravian College life. However, the bosses at the time offered a substantial pay increase (IIRC). Since I was commuting and the cash would definitely come in handy, I stayed on. Upon graduating from college, I gave my notice a second time, assuming I was going to find something in my English field. Again, the bosses rose to the challenge and offered me full time with benefits. Since the job wasn't difficult and already familiar (I had been there 5 years at that point), I stayed once again. That was 10 years ago. Now, with 15 drug years under my belt, I desperately need a change.

A few years ago I was going to give my notice again but then my sister joined the crew and I thought that might give things a breath of fresh air (not to mention a pharmacist switch right before that). Things were good for awhile but around July of last years I sank into a depression that I still haven't quite fully shaken off yet. Now, anyone who knows me knows I'm a happy fellow, given to joke and laugh ad nauseum. But whatever it was that hit me suddenly last year really knocked me for a loop. Panic attacks, stress, and then depression were on my shoulders. And the more I tried to analyze things, the worse they got.

I managed to persevere without seeing a physician (stupid, I know) and finally crawled out from under the depressive blanket around the holidays. But things were different. I just wasn't happy at my job where formally I loved it. I didn't need a ton of bricks to hit me to know it was time to change. I had always espoused the motto that if someone wasn't happy at a job (or wherever) then they should just change it. Life's too short to be miserable. Well, giving my notice this time was the most difficult I've done in recent memory. I've been treated well at the druggie but you just know when change is needed. I'll miss the place and the folks inside and I hope they don't have too much trouble filling my spot. To soften the blow, I'm giving them until the end of August before I go. Well, I also gave them longer since my sister also recently left to take care of her two young boys and we're still down a man from that.

Do I know what I'm going to do come September? Not really but I can honestly say that it feels a weight is slowly lifting from my mind. There's a lot of brain flotsam left over from my mental struggle of the last 8 or so months but I have confidence that everything will be OK.

As for the "new game," the group is finally trying out some Castles & Crusades tomorrow. I've had the core books and a few supplements for some time. We don't have our whole crew tomorrow (although we do have a prospective new member) so it seemed like a good time to try something new.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Recognition

I'm almost ashamed to admit it, but from time to time I'll Google myself or one of my projects just to see if there's any buzz about me or my scribblings. I don't check every gaming forum out there so Google is a handy tool for helping me keep my thumb on the net's gaming pulse. On tonight's search, I came up on the infamous therpgsite.com's forum (infamous for its no-nonsense founder). Much to my surprise, Behind the Spells, Temporality, and Dread Codex were mentioned (the last not by name but a link was provided). I consider myself a small fish in a very large pond so when I find any kind of recognition (much less favorable), it brings me no end of joy. Have a look (my name creeps into the latter pages)...
http://www.therpgsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2196

Sunday, April 08, 2007

Easter Greetings

In recent years, our family has become anything but typical. Instead of the grand Easter ham-filled feasts of yore, this year sees us huddled happily around a bucket of KFC and side viddles. Don't get me wrong though, I'm happy with some yummy fried chicken for the holiday and I suppose we're not all that atypical of families in this day and age. Scot, Zlaty, Katy and I plan on going to see TMNT after dinner which should provide some enjoyment.

In writing news, AE: Waterskin has been accepted and should be released before too long. I'd also like to thank Mark at Skortched 'Urf for his candid email discussion pertaining to his business sales for a starter pdf company. I've said it before but Mark's company, with its friendly attitude and product audio commentaries, will go far IMHO.

I also managed to cobble together a brief outline for my Crown short story for Dark Quest. I'm tackling one of the city setting's new races--ethereans. I hope my fiction muscles haven't atrophied too much since I started freelancing.

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Technology Gone Awry

Today at work was an interesting day. Not 20 minutes after I arrived the printer decided to crap out on us with one big paper jam. After a call to our printer folks (which I think is the same as our software folks but don't quote me on that) and a step-by-step removal of printer sections, we were better able to get at the paper. Even then, removal of the jammed article was proved to be much like a poorly played game of Operation. In the meantime, customers were streaming into the place and, without label-making capability, we had to write Rx labels by hand (pretty cool I thought, if a bit time consuming). After about 5 hours, the printer was functional again...to a degree. The printer houses a compartment for Rx labels and for normal paper (for printing bills and information sheets). Printing from the latter caused a little toothpick-like lever to move which brought the printer to a halt. Labels were OK and since that is what is needed the most we were able to crawl across the finish line for the day. A new printer is on the way and hopefully will be at the store early in the morning (thank god I'm not working though).

I could segway nicely into a technology rant now but I'm not sure I feel like typing that much. Long story short, the more mechanized society gets, the more can go wrong. Sure, things will always break down at some point. But having more and more tech around just escalates that risk factor to an almost daily occurence. And what the hell did we do without our precious cell phones? People, let's use some common sense. When you're making a transaction somewhere, leave your phone call for after you leave the store. No one else wants to hear about where you are right now, what you're doing right now, or what you're about to do before you go home. You know what would be fun? Cell phones that explode if you run over 1 hour a day. Yeah, that's what I would like. No one needs to talk on the phone for over an hour a day unless it's their job. Superfluous use of cell phones is one of the many reason I think people are stupid. And, unfortunately, they're everywhere.

Sunday, April 01, 2007

Pre-Blog Interview

Since my blog seems like a good place for information storage, here's a link to an interview from about 3 years ago. It involves writing for roleplaying games. I tried to keep the answers uncomplicated so as to be more beneficial to those looking to break into the industry (or those who knew nothing about the biz whatsoever). Have a look: http://www.absolutewrite.com/specialty_writing/bret_boyd.htm

Thursday, March 29, 2007

New Links & Book Chatter

If you're a local friend, you'll be happy to note the addition of Dr. Ryan Clouser's LJ--Bummin' Around. He not too long ago married and is living in New Hampshire. I wish him well and hope he doesn't take too long to visit his family (and the rest of us!) back in Hamburg. Ryan participated in my D&D group for many years before college broke up that first fantastic group. Off and on he was able to play again in the first Protectorate campaign as the cunning, smart-ass elven rogue Elron Blackbane. Sadly, Ryan outgrew fantasy gaming before his passion for medicine took him away from the group (although I bet he'd sit in on a session if given the opportunity).

The other link is to Chuck Cuthbert's LJ "Captain's Mast" and I don't know why I haven't gotten it on here before this (chalk it up to laziness). Not only did 2000 bring a new edition to D&D but it brought the group Chuck and his wife Heather. The duo showed up at the drug store one sunny Saturday and asked if I was the Bret who played D&D. Seems my dad and Chuck knew each other and gaming came up. Thank goodness it did because I don't know if we would even have a group today without the Cuthberts. This was abour the time that Everquest ate up two of my other players. The Cuthberts filled those vacant spots admirably and 3rd edition also saw the return of Brad (Chilled Monkey Brains), who had pretty much taken 2nd edition off. ;) Gaming has been the best it's ever been over the last 7 years and the recent addition of Mike Ferguson makes the experiences even better.

Freelancing has been lagging as I'm pulling more hours at the store this week. No days off but it was voluntary as I need the money. :) With any luck, I'll be able to dive back into the regular routine come Sunday. There's still a Crown story to knock around and I must revise my submitted draft of Adventurer Essentials: Waterskin. No biggie but then there's always the Tricky Owlbear products to prep. Not to mention regular gaming!

In the midst of everything, I'm still trying to get some reading in. I finished Margaret Weis' Amber & Ashes a couple weeks ago, detailing the character Mina from Dragonlance's War of Souls trilogy. I've enjoyed MW's work (especially the Star of the Guardians trilogy) and Dragonlance so this seemed a no brainer. Unfortunately, the book was less than spectacular. Mina is not a compelling character without the Dragon Queen behind her and the plot is, well, laughable (the god of death is using love and eternal life to gather more followers--okay...) and the mandatory kender Nightshade is just no Tasslehoff. And have I mentioned that Mina knocked a death knight's head from his shoulders with a...wait for it...crowbar? I should have stopped right there but I really do hate not finishing books.

After that was a quick page turner from Robert E. Howard. I bought a Conan collection last year and finally got around to the first story (something about a phoenix...the book isn't in front of me). It was good, centering on Conan slaying those involved in a coup attempt and slaying a shadowy ape conjured to slay the coup's leader (and Conan pretty much just wanting to slay things in general). Following this tale comes Keith Baker's third installment of his Ebberon trilogy--Gates of Night. I've been quite impressed with Baker's stuff but the plot just for this book just isn't as compelling as the characters themselves. I'm about two-thirds of the way through and, don't get me wrong, I'm still really enjoying it but less so than if the characters were driving the story and not the other way around.

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Death and Taxes

Since I'm not feeling that well today and it's time to meet with the tax man, the title seemed appropriate. :) Woke up today with some dizziness and accompanying nausea. Fortunately, a co-worker came in to take my short Sat. shift (especially since I'll be working every day next week from Monday to Sat.). The dizziness has mostly subsided now and I didn't throw up my lunch so we'll call it a victory.

On the freelance scene, I'm delving into a setting called Crown written and developed by fellow freelancer Alex Carlsson (see Wanderman's Realm in the Links). Dark Quest is ramping up the huge city-setting for release and the project is to be accompanied with a release of short stories. Yup, I'm writing one of them. Today is spent reading the writer's bible and churning some ideas in the brainpan. Tomorrow I've got to invest some time in Tricky Owlbear projects.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Hoards Review

Chris Gath must have stored up some reviews during his quiet period because we have another review from him. This time it's for DQG's treasure resource Hoards: http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=review&reviewid=3407388

Not much going on today except work. The snow we received late last week is receding nicely thanks to almost spring-like temps (and go figure, it's spring in about 20 minutes). Tomorrow I may be taking my grandmother to the doctor as she has not been well since the weekend. It's my day off so I offered my chauffering services.

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Casino Trip, part ?%#^&

On Wed., Linda and I took a little trip down to Delaware Park (for me it must be the 7th time this year or so). Well, could I get any machine to cooperate? Nope! Money flew from my wallet faster than a horny guy at a prostitute convention. Linda, however, had a fantastic day; every machine she touched turned to gold and, by the end of the trip, was at $400. Although I was supposed to buy dinner for her birthday, she graciously bought for us that night (I know, I'm not off the hook yet). I may not have won but I still had fun.

So it's another snow day here in Hamburg but everything appears to be on the melt already. Thank the gods spring is not far off. Still haven't finished AE: Waterskin. Just can't seem to get enthused about it I suppose. I did start on the format for Tricky Owlbear's Behind the Monsters line and think I've outlined a fairly compelling reason for that monster's creation. Let history be my judge if my answer is better than Gary Gygax's "I named it after a plastic figure."

If you're a Dragon subscriber, you've undoubtedly received your April modron-packed issue. I'm glad these monsters are back for 3e. Ever since I saw Dave Sutherland's rendition of those geometric-shaped creatures from MMII, I've loved them. Don't ask me why my 10-year-old brain found those old illustrations so interesting but it did. Thanks to Ken Marable and the folks at Dragon for returning these little guys to us.

I'm looking forward to playing my mostly insane Traveller captain Sarz Banx tomorrow at the game barn. It's been awhile since we shared in a good space romp.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Company Formation

As Tricky Owlbear slowly winds its way through the birthing canal, I've decided to tap the general RPG public (at least in the business forum at rpg.net and ENWorld) for comments and suggestions involving online small business formation. If you or someone you know is in the pdf biz, stop by and drop your two cents: http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?p=7044646#post7044646 or here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=190861

Monday, March 12, 2007

I'm A Patron!

If you've never heard of Wolfgang Baur (well, where have you been), he's had an illustrious career in roleplaying since the TSR days. This accomplished designer is now also designing adventures for folks who donate to his Open Design project: http://customadventure.livejournal.com/

Yesterday I signed up for the $100 patron level. This gives me exlusive access to behind the scenes posts and a hand in crafting the adventure as well. There are still two adventures vying for patronage but I'm confident that the ghouls underdark mega-adventure will pull ahead. It should prove to be a great learning experience in adventure design and hopefully a lot of fun to boot!

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Snow Day & OSRIC

A few inches of the white stuff has fallen outside and, given I just washed the car on Sunday, am not particularly inclined to go anywhere today. So, it's time to work on AE: Waterskin and think about an OSRIC adventure to send to Expeditious Retreat Press (Joe Browning heavily hinted that they were accepting submissions when I mentioned wanting to pen an adventure so I might as well get in some OSRIC practice with them).

The problem I have with OSRIC is two-fold. First, where can I get some monsters? The rules for the 1st edition-compatible system were released, which is all well and good, but where are the critters? I saw there's a book on Lulu for them but does this include the classic goblins, orcs, etc.? Second, it's been so long since I played non-d20 D&D that I don't know how the heck I ever balanced encounters. I recall eyeballing them by using a monster's HD but is that in any way relevant? Guess that's what playtesting is for.

Sunday, March 04, 2007

PC Death!

It turns out we were playtesting Mike's contribution to Goodman's mid-level The Adventure Continues DCC collection (not yet announced) today. It was a fun romp into a mysterious forest in search of a rogue water supply. I won't say more about the adventure but I will say that my dwarven Ftr1/Sor3 died a wonderful death! When my brother's PC was out on a rope about to be cut by a bad guy, I bull rushed the foe. Unfortunately, my bull rush was so good and the floor so slippery that we plunged from the edge of the melee area and to a 120-foot demise. At least I took the bad guy with me. :) Other highlights included a morality issue with our Lawful Good fighter (declining a chance to surrender = death to the foe in my CG dwarf's book) and trying out a couple spell secrets and one new spell from Behind the Spells. At the end of the day, I think we all had a good time; especially since my 4-hour character creation won't go to waste with a raise dead on the horizon for next time.

Saturday, March 03, 2007

Gaming Tomorrow!

Tomorrow at this time we'll be knee deep in the first (hopefully of many) game run for us by friend and fellow freelancer Mike Ferguson. We'll be playing in the world of Aereth, the DCC campaign world from Goodman Games. I'm glad because it gives me a very good excuse to look through that box set tonight and get familiar with another great sounding environment. I'll be playing a sorcerer so I can enjoy actually using my Behind the Spells spell secrets and variants for my own pleasure. As always, it'll be much fun to play and not worry about DMing duties.

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Works and Memoirs (update)

It's easy for me to lose track of what I've written and/or contributed to and, naturally, the list needs updating now and again. Here's the link to the first of two posts where I list what I've been involved in: http://dmbretb.blogspot.com/2006/04/my-body-of-work-and-some-memoirs-part.html and you can find the second post here: http://dmbretb.blogspot.com/2006/04/works-and-memoirs-part-ii.html

Since that time, Temporality and Hoards have been published and the Behind the Spells series ended up with 36 issues. And I have to add a new publisher to the list.

Skortched Urf' Studios: This is a relatively new pdf company but their body of work is adding up fast. As far as I can tell, it is run by one man named Mark who is from Virginia. You can read about the company here: http://www.skortchedurfstudios.com/ What caught my attention with SU was their Adventurer Essentials line. After taking a look at the entry for Holy Water, I released how similar this pdf line was to my own Behind the Spells. When I looked at the company's freelancing page and saw they actually pay per word, I knew I had to submit something for the AE line. Mark is easy to work with and I think his podcast commentaries for the products will be something that is copied by others in the not too distant future.
Works (pdf):
Adventurer Essentials: Torch
AE: Waterskin (in development)

And speaking of the torch, the first review just rolled in: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?products_id=21163&reviews_id=15378

Minor Fame

At work yesterday I greeted the wife of one of the local doctors. Her son Rob was a friend of my brother, Scot. She mentioned that Rob was involved with the special effects that went into the new movie Zodiac. Neat, I thought. Apparently, Rob works for a company headed by one of the first guys to be involved in George Lucas' ILM (Industrial Lights and Magic). Knowing I was a writer, she asked if I had any books published lately. For just such an occasion, I keep a copy of Temporality at the store. She was impressed and asked how many books I had solo credit for, to which I replied 3 but there was a 4th on the way--Complete Guide to Dragonkin, Dread Codex (print through RPGNow), Temporality, and Behind the Spells. It floored me when, some time after she left the store, she called back to ask if she could buy one of each and then have me autograph them to Rob. She thought it would be a real treat since we're sort of connected via Scot. Needless to say, I was shocked but of course agreed to let her know when the lot was assembled (whenever BtS makes it to me).

Today I'm hoping to put the location pdf to bed for Highmoon (did I mention we're making this statless and then have rules releases to follow for d20, etc.?). Then I guess it's on to AE: Waterskin for Skortched Urf. Oh, and check out the new blog in my Links section--Tricky Owlbear Den!

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Sequel Anger

Are you okay with the way games and movies are numbered/named for their sequels? Well, don't be this guy's friend! Hilarious stuff: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEVzPCY2T-g

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Review and Planar Fun

Before the last review has even grown cold, here's yet another staff review of Hoards: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?products_id=21028&reviews_id=15299

I DM'd the season 1 finale of our planar campaign this past Sunday and had a blast. As usual, I didn't completely write out the adventure but it went pretty well and ended as I'd hoped. The PCs were transported into an alernate reality where the events of TSR's adventure Die Vecna Die! had played out in the Maimed Lord's favor. Deities across the multiverse had either been slain by the wave of power following Vecna's ascension in Sigil or, as in Toril's case, but been toppled to the earth in mortal form.

Sigil was a wasteland with all bodies missing their left hand and eye (which the PCs soon discovered were used to make great flesh golems). A gate leading to Waterdeep from the Protectorate Embassy was used to return to Toril to see what was going on. Turns out a Realms-wide inquisition was going on to capture the fallen gods. Vecnan troops were in power in major urban centers and the PCs almost fell victim to them after Scot's hound archon picked a fight with a street patrol. After a Prot. agent contacted them (recognizing Heather's PC Ahre, albeit from this alternate reality), the PCs knew their only way out of this preedicament was to ask one of the gods (who were forming a sort of Divine Cooperative in a dead magic area to the north).

The PCs took a portal or two to help get to the community and met Lathander and Azuth, the latter telling them that a portal existed which can penetrate into alternate prime material worlds. It's guarded by a lesser beholder, naturally. At that moment, the mortal form of Bane arrives with Vecnan troops, having betrayed the Cooperative's location to the Maimed Lord. The dead magic area drops and the ensuing melee challenged the PCs to the fullest. Probably the best part was when Bane held Greg's character and then one of the skeletal reaver's (a monster I adapted from the persistent soldier from my Dread Codex book) beheaded him with a scythe coup de grace! Now that's a way for a PC to go! Woofgar nearly suffered the same fate but, after he died, Scot realized that the hound was immune to hold person! A lucky survival thanks to a rules loophole. :) The adventure ended with the Cooperative victorious and my favorite line being uttered by Scot, "I loot Bane!"

Monday, February 19, 2007

Hoards Review

This is the third very positive review for the treasure resource. I'm pleased this latest makes mention of the interior art since I had on the art director cap for this book. Read it here: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?products_id=21028&reviews_id=15290

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Providing Light and Heat for Generations...

Skortched Urf' has released my contribution to their Adventurer Essentials line. AE: The Torch also has a neat little podcast describing the pdf. This is a cool feature I hope other publishers get on board with as it really is nice to get the publisher's voice and perspective. Check it out here: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=21163

Research

I'm doing a little research over on ENWorld as to what drew people in to our favorite game. By better understanding the emotions of gamers (especially those deep core emotions of their first D&D experiences), it may be possible to build products that tap into those emotions and, thus, guarantee some sales. It's just a thought. See the thread here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=188535

And if you don't want to post there, leave a comment here! What drew you to D&D and perhaps continues to be a factor in your continued gaming? For me, it's the interactive storytelling; to be able to craft a story and have instant feedback on it. I also love the fantasy genre, so that helps too. ;)

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

General Update

Research and preparation continues for Tricky Owlbear Productions. I am hopeful that before too long we will have a functioning framework from which to produce some cool pdf products for your game! I've decided that, appropriately enough, the first product should be a free pdf about owlbears. :)

We had a game this past Sunday with our high level FR PCs that was pretty much a throw-together last-minute adventure, but still fun methinks. This Sunday sees the season finale of my planar campaign where the PCs have ended up in an alternate reality! I should be done with a rough outline today so hopefully I'll be ready for this nail-biting adventure.

Let's see, what else is going on...Phil mentioned that the cover artwork for the BtS collection is underway. I'm still working on the first locale pdf for Highmoon. The Adventurer Essentials: Torch pdf for Skortched 'Urf has a cover and will likely be available soon. Finally, Hoards hasn't been racking up high sales yet but has garnered its second positive review: http://www.rpg-resource.org.uk/index.php?article=2845&visual=4

And today's day off is a snow day. There's been significant snow and ice accumulation here so it's a good opportunity to catch up on, well, everything.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

The WotC Response

Believe it or not, I received a timely response today from Rich Redman about my Tricky Owlbear inquiry. The crux of the reply was, and I quote..."I’m not a lawyer, and we don’t provide free legal advice, so I can’t answer that question. I guess the bottom line is that we won’t grant permission for this sort of thing. If you’ve got your heart set on that name, you really ought to consult a lawyer with expertise in copyright and intellectual property law – but for all I know you are that sort of lawyer."

Sort of a no/maybe answer, if you ask me. As Rich is the Asst. Brand Manager of Licensing, I don't really no how much weight his opinion holds. Legal or not, I can't really see Wizards hounding us for a name change given the amount of OGL infractions I've seen them let through in the past. And thanks to Joanna for her input in the last post. I didn't really think a lawyer was necessary either. If anyone has any pointers for starting and growing a company, I'm all ears.

Monday, February 05, 2007

Enjoying the Ride

Freelancing (or hobbylancing as I like calling it) has been a real pleasure over the years. Is it really 2007? Have I been published now for 6 years? It's almost been like a dream and I've been enjoying every moment (even though I'll never be paid for all of those moments). Despite the fair number of print books my name has been attached to, I'm also grateful to have carved a little niche in the pdf community. Sales of gaming pdfs can only be on the rise with the advent of newer and faster technologies to download, transport, and read them. Guess I'll be sticking around to give gamers something to read.

Which leads nicely into more discussion of Scot's and my new company venture--Tricky Owlbear Productions. I just emailed WotC to see if using the owlbear name in our company's name would be OK. I'm sure it will take a few days to reply, knowing Wizards. In the meantime, we downloaded the publishing start-up package available from RPGNow and Scot has been perusing its contents. He plans on retaining a lawyer's services to incorporate our little venture once a name is decided upon (or cleared for use). I'm looking forward to putting out products my way (although, admittedly, I did that with my Ronin Arts stuff as there was little, if any, interference from Phil). Certainly, the whole thing will be a learning experience if nothing else. Does the pdf world need yet another company in the already muddy waters. Nah, but there has never been a better time to jump in and give it a go!

In writing news, my pdf for Skortched 'Urf has been accepted and my payment already delivered (a sure-fire reason to write more for them). Adventurer Essentials: Torch will hopefully be ready for sale before too long. I've been given the go-ahead for another one. Now I'm working on the locales project for Highmoon with all due diligence. The "Museum of Infamous Histories" will, at this point, be a multi-system pdf, featuring stats for d20, True20, Castles & Crusades, and perhaps even OSRIC. A fine looking map of the museum was done by Lonnie Ezell of the Dragons Landing podcast fame: http://www.dragonslanding.com/dli/

It seems where the latter part of 2006 was on a steady decline, work-wise, that was only a slope before the next hill. I've built up plenty of steam during the descent. Whether or not I shoot over the next rise triumphantly, I've sure as hell been enjoying the ride.

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Flashback: 1983


I was 8 years old (and not quite playing D&D yet) but I have fond memories of the D&D Cartoon. Today, those memories are refreshed with the purchase of the cartoon's shiny new dvd box set. At Best Buy, the set even comes with a unique mini of a silver dragon, which is what sealed the purchase there as opposed to a cheaper online buy. The set comes loaded with extras including a radio drama-style presentation of the unaired finale entitled "Requiem" written by long-time toon scribe Michael Reaves. Although I've been viewing the series off and on since buying a bootleg set from Ebay, I've long salivated to have a nice official version in my collection. Welcome home.

A small addendum to the post--Chris Gath gives us the next in his ongoing Behind the Spells reviews with Shatter: http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=review&reviewid=3321354

Friday, February 02, 2007

PDF Marketplace Changes

Besides the upcoming formation of our own company, the pdf world was shaken up a bit today when Ronin Arts and Expeditious Retreat Press pulled their roots from One Book Shelf, Inc. (formerly the RPGNow.com and DriveThru.com merger). One place I see as blossoming from this is the new site for pdf buying: http://www.yourgamesnow.com/

My dad is doing fine (thanks again for all the well wishes!) although he's already stretching the limits of doctor's orders by carrying groceries and driving! We Boyd men are a stubborn lot. ;)

Forgot to mention previously that I finished Ed Greenwood's Hand of Fire the other week. Not to spoil anything, but I can tell you that this is the final book of that series, for sure. Greenwood wields his Realms' villains effortlessly but, unfortunately, wields them rather unweided-ly. It was tough to keep the bad guys straight without a score card--Thayans, Zhents, Cult of the Dragon, independant assassins and wizards, Harpers, etc. Still, it was better than City of Splendors. Now I'm halfway through Keith Baker's The Shattered Land for and it really is good. As readers of shared world fiction, we are too lucky to have the opportunity to read stories by the creators of those worlds themselves. Much like his first book, Baker's prose speeds along effortlessly and is a pleasure to read. If you're playing a warforged PC in an Eberron game and need some roleplaying help, grab these books.

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Surgery Successful

Thanks all for the well wishes, everyone. My dad is fine after having 2 stents put in (there were 2 blockages at 90%). He's being put on some drugs to keep this from happening again (or at least in the near future--we know how these things go sometimes and my dad isn't exactly the healthiest eater). Fortunately the whole thing was over in just over 24 hours since yesterday. He's staying overnight and must stay away from work for a week. All's well.

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Healthwatch

My dad has been experiencing chest pains since the end of October. However, he never let on to anyone how bad it was. He confided in me this weekend that even eating caused him pain. "Eating a lot?" I asked. Nope, eating anything! I said he had to get himself checked out ASAP. After a quick visit to our local doctor, he was sent immediately out to Lehigh Valley to a cardiologist who then pronounced that he had the textbook signs of artery blockage. Tomorrow he's going in for heart cathaderization (sp?) in what is, I assume, a routine procedure these days. With any luck, he'll be home by nightfall no worse for wear. Take note folks, just suck it up and go to the doctor if you're having health issues. I'm certain if left untreated this would have led to my father's untimely demise and there's no reason for it. With the information age upon us, it's too easy to surf the net and self-diagnose oneself over the course of many weeks trying this and that approach when a simple chat with a physician will do the job better and faster.

As for the unexpected flurry of writing activity, Mike from Skortched 'Urf responded with some additions for my Torch pdf. I'll be making those tonight and that should be that for my first contribution to their "Adventurer Essentials" line. For Highmoon's locale project, I sent a scaling details for my map to Daniel last night. This first effort details a museum dedicated to housing relics belonging to the most vile creatures in history. The curator doesn't wish to showcase these as evil but rather promote the good deeds accomplished in reaction to those who owned these nefarious artifacts. I think I'm calling it the "Museum of Infamous Heroism."

Lastly, 80sTees.com is having a 20% off sale if you use the code "January20" when checking out. The code is good through Feb 3.

Hoards on the Market!

The book I helped usher to completion (including a first stint as art director) is now for sale. It even has a good review already! Check it out here: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=21028

I've also completed a small pdf for Skortched 'Urf Studios for their "Adventurer Essentials" line. Their first effort concentrated on holy water. I decided to come at the line with the almighty torch. The format hearkens back to Behind the Spells and if my effort is met with good vibes, I'll likely pen quite a few more pdfs for the line. I'm also working on a locales project for Highmoon Media. How did I get so busy all of a sudden?

Finally, my brother and I are embarking on a pdf journey of our own. How does the name "Tricky Mummy Productions" sound? :)

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Ebay Sales

I'm planning on making a substantial payment to the credit card gods this month but can always use more in the offering plate. ;) Thus, check out my current Ebay auctions and help a brotha' out, yo. That, and it sounds like my computer is about to die (or the fan, at the very least) so there's that too.

Link: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZvantas1

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Abortion and d20?

Ummmmm, okay...

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?p=3297635#post3297635

I'm not sure I could have thought of this product idea even if you'd have paid me. Maybe I'm not hip to the whole Modern scene, but would people actually want to use their precious roleplaying time exploring abortion?

Friday, January 19, 2007

Casino Trip, part III

As previously stated, I drove Linda, Kristi, and myself to Delaware Park Wed. Did my lucky streak continue? Well, there's no damned dollar sign in my entry title now is there mister smarty pants? ;) Regrettably, of the $180 I took to gamble, only $20 survived the trip. Linda and Kristi split a $150 payout and were nice enough to buy my dinner at Ruby Tuesday. In a way, I suppose, losing was good because it has broken the "need" I had developed to keep going back.

In other news, Chris Gath posted a review of Bts: Wish & Limited Wish here: http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=review&reviewid=3286374

Now I'm off to find something to eat. Gotta keep it bland since something I had for lunch did NOT agree with my insides and was just forcefully expelled. It's tempting to stay home but more tempting to use that 25% off coupon for Borders. We're playing some Vampire this weekend so my Sunday is booked. Tomorrow is up in the air but I hear it's going to be pretty darned cold. Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Ca$ino Trip, part II

I decided to take a drive down to Days of Knights in Newark, DE (as I had back in June). After picking up two of the Game Mastery map packs by Paizo, I bopped on over to the Delware Park Racetrack and Slots. The fever to play was still with me after Saturday's haul and I wanted to have a look at this place anyway. After parking quite far away, I entered the slots area to find a nice clean establishment. The typical bevy of old people were plunking in their coins and zipping in their dollars as I fairly jogged to find the bathroom.

Emerging refreshed and with a relaxed bladder, I took a tour of the place while dropping $40 out of the $160 I had brought. When those first two twenties gained me nothing, I decided to really hunker down and follow my own slot rules, the cardinal of which is this--look at the previous payout on the machine! The first to catch my eye was a $400 payout...at a $1 machine. Normally, I avoid the buck ones like the plague. But I still had plenty of twenties left and the payout spoke for itself. After alternating between one and two credits played, I went for three (the maximum) and won myself over 250 credits. I needed to remind myself that these were dollars now and not quarters as per usual. So I played down to an even 200 and moved on, very pleased with that turn of events.

Well, I guess the dollar machines were calling me beause I spied another decent payout at two machines near the entrance. Instead of using my $200 voucher (and risk losing its contents), I decided to play through the rest of my cash since even if I used it all I'd still be ahead. Lady luck continued to watch over me as this $1 machine hit for over 250 credits again! This time, I played to the 250, cashed out, and moved to the next machine on my right. After a precious few spins, it hit for over 100! The woman a few machines down spared me a glare. I turned and nodded knowlingly to her. :)

At the end of about an hour's worth of slot playing, my twenties were gone but my vouchers totaled $550!! Will my luck continue next week or even tonight (I purchased some Powerball tickets because, what the hell?)?! Wish me luck!

And for a bit of rpg news, friend and fellow freelancer Mike Ferguson has mentioned me in his own entry about 2007 over at Musings (see link on the right since I'm web challenged). I wish him luck on his resolutions and hope to see him quite a bit at our gaming table this year.

Monday, January 08, 2007

Ca$ino Trip!

After work on Saturday, I decided to travel to Atlantic City with my parents, Scot, and Zlatka (the machines were calling to me). After walking a bit and having some dinner and ice cream, my parents broke away to walk around while the remaining trio went into Caesars. Zlaty was unfortunate enough to get a clogged printer at a Wheel of Fortune $1 slot. There was still $7 left to cash out so we waiting 20 minutes or so for an attendant. I had spent $20 by this time and we had a limited window of time for gambling. After moving over to Ballys, I went straight for the machine which hit for $70 last time. Sure enough, it hit again for me at around the same payout.

After playing down to $50 the three of us moved over to the Wild West part of Ballys. Scot and Zlaty played a machine while I went across the aisle. After only a few minutes my voucher had shrunk to $30. Things weren't looking good (although I was really only down $10 by this point). My gambling companions had moved a few machines down from me; Scot racking up a few bucks on a "Crystal 5s" 25-cent machine. I moved to watch while Zlaty sat beside him "bringing him luck."

After a minute or two, the machine showed one of its "x5" faces and two matching bars. Instant $80! Scot decided that was good enough for them and prepared to leave. I said, "Are you sure you don't want to keep playing?" Since this machine had displayed a propensity for hitting, I felt certain the streak would continue. Scot declined so I said, "Well, I'm sure as hell going to play!"

I sat down and like a three pulls later (betting max each time of course), the machine showed two "x5"s and a double bar! The $$ indicator shot up and didn't stop! Scot and I were trying to figure out what I would win. When the amount did stop, I had hit just above $400. Not too shabby and I guess I really did feel the place calling to me. Despite a strong desire to stay, we immediately cashed out and went home. Smart move this time but Linda and I have already planned a trip back to AC next Wed. We'll see if the same machine hits again and if we can show restraint.

Friday, January 05, 2007

Thoughts for 2007

Not much to report here on the 'ol FR. I'm kicking around some ideas I can submit to Ronin Arts or Adamant Ent. while catching up on my reading. Our Spycraft game was a howling success and I can say I laughed until I cried. There really isn't much of a better way to ring in the new year than with a game with good friends (and relatives as well in this case!). Twice I though agent Gray Squirrel was a goner but I managed to survive.

Now we look to the year of 2007. Since I smashed my crystal ball back in 2001, there's no way to predict what will come. As I just mentioned, I've got some pdf ideas rattling around in the 'ol brainbox. Wouldn't mind doing some more adventure work for Goodman Games (still waiting to here on that open call from Sept!) either. Do I have any desire to break into the "big leagues" yet? Nah, I'm happy enough as a hobbylancer without busting my butt to do work for WotC (if such a thing were even possible). That said, an article with Dragon would be nice but getting proposals through the email shield I'm convinced Paizo has in place is daunting to say the least. Every proposal to them has either been rejected (I can live with that) or not even responded to. That's frustrating and damned inconsiderate.

With hobbylancing recently at an all time low, perhaps I can turn my creative juices to my group's gaming and my planar campaign. I'm even now brainstorming for the campaign's season finale. When last we left our heroes, they had defeated the Cult of Chaos and returned home...but something has gone terribly wrong. Emerging from the glyph gate, the group witnessed a Sigil in ruins as if from a great war. I don't want to give to many hints, but the finale has to do with an alternate timeline which picks up where one of TSR's edition-spanning adventure's leaves off. If you're thinking of a certain villanous god missing two body parts that you're on the right track. ;)

But back to '07. Besides what I might create, there's a couple items still to be published. Hoards from DQG, Behind the Spells print collection from Ronin Arts, and A Matter of Faith from Highmoon. There are some items I wouldn't mind returning to before 4th edition rears its ugly head including:

*Guide to Illusionary Characters--D&D meets holograms. Rules for creating and playing an illusionary PC.

*Invasion: Freeport--This adventure, with the able assistance of Brad, is in complete outline form. Perhaps I can breath life back into it and see if Phil is interested in publishing it. I'm certain Gareth would be if Phil declines. If memory serves, I got the go-ahead and then decided to wait for GR's announcement as to what they were doing with the setting.

*Temporality introduction adventure--To help spur awareness of my time travel book, an intro adventure to using its components seems in order. I started sketching a plot last week.

*Foul Locales redux--One of my creative loves continues to be locations for d20. I almost started a series based on Ed Bourelle's tiles but we never seemed to get off the ground. If only I had some cartography skills, then I could present a finished product to a pdf publisher. I suppose I can just ask if they'd be willing to hire one for this proposed series.

That's all I can think of at the moment. A semi-ambitious schedule considering my recent bout of creative dryness. With any luck, at least two of these will come to pass in 2007.

Contrary to Popular Belief...

...I'm still around! Feeling a little nostalgic for the old blogging life tonight so decided to stop in and post an update. Oh, life, yo...