Passages – how have I missed this game?

“Its ‘Sliders’ in the Victorian age. If you really dig the 19th century, you’ll dig the game. It’s got lots of good little details and trivia about life in the Victorian era (society, etc),

Not that I’m going to get it just yet…. a bit tapped for funds at the moment, and I’ve recently spent a bit on rpgs. I just picked up the thirty dollar PDF for Starblazer Adventures.

I’m going to be running a biweekly space opera campaign, and I wanted a rules light game. While FATE (the system behind Starblazer) isn’t truly rules light, it is dice and mechanic light. So it should be a nice fit. Besides, thats the system which will drive the Dresden Files RPG – and that is a game I’m really, really looking forward to. (Not really to play – it wouldn’t be my cup of tea for playing, or running (though I do like their standard werewolves), but to read).

Anyway, Passages is on my buy list, in time.

Comics gone ape! I got my copy last night. I haven’t had time to read it in detail, but its much better than what I was expecting. There are several comics I’m going to have to track down now. (Monkeyman and O’Brian for example).

If you like comics and gorillas, this book is a must!

Mind, thats kind of a small niche.

I play Everquest – a lot. A whole lot more than I should, for certain. And, you will on occasion get a bout of high school drama.

I led a raid to kill a famous, but low level dragon. Lady Vox, for those in the know. Anyway, in most ways the raid went well – the dragon died, none of the 17 or so people killing her died, and nobody fell into the pits to get eaten by bears.

About 5 items “dropped”…. i.e, were available to be rolled on by those attending.

One guy won a roll on a melee haste belt. Well, the next day, he has the belt up for sale on his trader in the bazaar. This sent the server into a tizzy. Its a small server – very small. The smallest by far, of the EQ servers.

I was the only one to side with him. He won it, he should be able to do what he wants with it. Well nooooooooo, the belt should go to someone who would actively use it. /shrugs

To keep from being blacklisted, the guy is wearing the belt, and will be wearing it for quite a while. Absurd? Yeah, yeah it is. But the stereotypes of online gamers have a huge degree of truth to them.

No real point to this post, actually.

Man, I miss Everquest.

This post has no value. Except – I miss EQ.

Well, while I mostly dicked around this weekend, I did get a few things of value accomplished. Two of the least, was starting to work on a couple of skills that I want to pick up.

Using a slingshot, and learning to play Go.

A few weeks back, I bought a hunting Slingshot. I plinked around it with it a little a couple of weeks back. Just enough to be impressed with how powerful it is. If you take an empty cereal box, then a rock will go through the box, easily.

So I set me up a little target saturday, and spent an hour or so plinking away. I started at long distance… about 30 feet or so. Targets at slingshot tournaments are at 33 feet, with a 3 inch bullseye. One guy put 156 consecutive shots into that 3 inch bullseye, at 33 feet. My target was a 20 ounce coke bottle, filled with water. Out of over 100 shots I hit it……… ZERO times. Nada. Zilch. I love new skills. You are never worth jack shit.

The Chinese game of Go is similar. I was interested in it years ago, but never did anything with it. I bought a couple of books on it, bought a cheap Go set, played one or two games, and never picked it up again. Well today, I dug out those books. I found a decent short set of rules on the Internet, and downloaded a free Go playing program off the Internet. Go is such a strategic, intense game, that computers generally suck at it. They can’t win an even game against even a weak master.

I just played 2 games against the computer. It stomped my motherfuckin ASS both times. Complete, utter destruction. It was a brutal smackdown.

Life, is good.

I’ve been out of Everquest for months. And haven’t missed it till recently. But the itch is starting back, without a doubt. However, the Everquest I really loved has been dead for years. So, I’m looking a bit further afield. Another big drawback is that my macbook isn’t very powerful graphics wise, so it will have to be a low end game. And, it needs to be an online RPG.

So far, I’m looking closest at Pirates of the Burning Sea. Its set in the Caribbean during the age of Pirates (go figure). I am most interested in playing an English Free Trader (aka merchant). Heh. Anyway, its a strong possibility.

I’m not sure I want to sacrifice that much time though.

Gary Gygax died yesterday. Millions of geeks, me included, are sad. He and Dave Arneson invented Dungeons and Dragons, and launched an industry, plus a hobby which has touched millions.

I remember the first time I saw him speak. It was back in his heyday, at one of the early Dragoncon’s. (When Dragoncon was still good.) I was early for the panel, and now I can’t even remember what it was about. But that room was filled to overflowing. Every seat was taken (I got one!), there were people sitting in front, there were people lining every wall. The overflow, I learned later, spread up and down the outside hall. And the man was gracious, and entertaining. I fondly remember that hour, even if I’ve forgotten the details (it was over 20 years ago).

I got to speak to him for the first time a few years later. He was signing Mythus books with Dave Arneson (again that duo!). Anyway, there had been a mixup in times, and his hadn’t been announced. So nobody was there except those of us wandering by. I stood and talked to him for 10-15 minutes. One of the man’s strengths was his social skills. Even though his legacy (D&D) attracted the socially challenged the strongest, he didn’t suffer that weakness. While a geek through and through, he didn’t suffer the social lack which most geeks (myself included) do.

He was a genius. While he didn’t change the world, he did change lives. Many lives, over many years.

Rest in Peace Sir, you did good.

What the fucking hell is THIS?

Spiderman and Mary Jane are not married anymore.

What the FUCK? (Its worth a repeat).

Well, at least this way they came up with a semi plausible reason. Mephisto has the power.

But still, it just…… sucks.

So, I downloaded a copy of Peter Pan from Project Gutenburg today. You see, I need to refresh my memory, because I had a striking thought for a series of adventures, all built around Faery Tales. This is based off the D20 horizons sourcebook Grimm – which is, in fact, quite Grim. (*1) Its the old faery tales, with a much nastier twist (and some of those old tales had some nasty elements in their own right).

I was at the libraries web page, looking at Holly Black books, and read mention of a book called Faery Reel, or some such. Its a collection of Short Stories, and a quick description of one sparked a fire in my brain. Captain Hook is resurrected again and again, for the amusement of his immortal foe, Peter Pan. Oooooh, I can work with that.

I haven’t read Peter Pan, it appears. Its like nothing that I remember. I do find the old style writing somewhat tedious, I admit. I’ll bet people reading modern books 80 years from now will think the same thing though. Hmm, it might be interesting to go back and read 2-3 books from the 40′s, then the 50′s, all the way through till today.

Anyway, more later, maybe.

(*1) Thats the old version of the book. Fantasy Flight games has put out a new, non D20 version of Grimm.

Alright, I’m out at drivethrurpg looking at stuff I really shouldn’t. (I am a PDF gamebook whore, totally). And I stumble across this blurb for the game Monsters and Other Childish Things: Completely Monstrous Edition.

So now, its brand new, in this edition – its an expanded one shot from some time ago. And quite a few folks seem to like it. See its about kids and their Chtuhlu monster pals. But now, the part that intrigues me, is that one of the monsters is named Mr. Whispers. I mean isn’t that the coolest name for a invisible friend/demonic beast from hell? Some guy on a message board liked gnarly toes. Thats kinda neat, but it pales in comparison to the genius of Mr. Whispers.

First off, Happy Christmas Eve!

Second, over at Green Ronin, they are offering a free downloadable adventure for the Faery Tale’s RPG. This is a fun little RPG that is playable by kids 6 and up. It is also quite fun for adults. Here is the blurb for the adventure….

Firefly Games and Green Ronin are pleased to present a special free holiday adventure for Faery’s Tale Deluxe. It Happened One Christmas, written by Scott Bennie with art by Jennifer Meyer, is a 10-page PDF challenging your faeries to help restore the true spirit of Christmas to a town cursed by a cold-hearted prince.

This particular adventure is heavily kid focused (it lays it on thick……) and looks like it would be a lot of fun.

Thanks to Jigsawdiva for the pointer to this site – determine your D&D stats. So here is me

Chaotic Good Human Wizard (5th Level)

Ability Scores:
Strength- 10
Dexterity- 10
Constitution- 11
Intelligence- 15
Wisdom- 10
Charisma- 9

Alignment:
Chaotic Good- A chaotic good character acts as his conscience directs him with little regard for what others expect of him. He makes his own way, but he’s kind and benevolent. He believes in goodness and right but has little use for laws and regulations. He hates it when people try to intimidate others and tell them what to do. He follows his own moral compass, which, although good, may not agree with that of society. Chaotic good is the best alignment you can be because it combines a good heart with a free spirit. However, chaotic good can be a dangerous alignment because it disrupts the order of society and punishes those who do well for themselves.

Race:
Humans are the most adaptable of the common races. Short generations and a penchant for migration and conquest have made them physically diverse as well. Humans are often unorthodox in their dress, sporting unusual hairstyles, fanciful clothes, tattoos, and the like.

Class:
Wizards- Wizards are arcane spellcasters who depend on intensive study to create their magic. To wizards, magic is not a talent but a difficult, rewarding art. When they are prepared for battle, wizards can use their spells to devastating effect. When caught by surprise, they are vulnerable. The wizard’s strength is her spells, everything else is secondary. She learns new spells as she experiments and grows in experience, and she can also learn them from other wizards. In addition, over time a wizard learns to manipulate her spells so they go farther, work better, or are improved in some other way. A wizard can call a familiar- a small, magical, animal companion that serves her. With a high Intelligence, wizards are capable of casting very high levels of spells.