Gencon 2008 - What To-Do!
Apr. 21st, 2008 | 02:03 pm
The good news: I got what I wanted.
I'm currently slated to run through the 4 Pathfinder organized play scenarios from Paizo. And I would've joined Wolfgang's Open Design and Paizo's writing seminars if they hadn't overlapped with the organized play offerings.
I wish I could recall the opposite of a "dilemma", but it became the theme of my Gencon registration that I would be forced to choose between such desirable alternatives.
In any case, I'll also be learning to Cthulhu at one of the "You too can Cthulhu" games. The next day, I'll be running a Cthulhoid gauntlet of MU games. I'll also be testing the waters of LARP via a RISING Cthulhu LARP session. That plus my True Dungeon run should scratch that three-dimensional gaming itch I get once a year like a craving for fried chicken. And what is that about?
I've got a couple of "wished I coulda's" like peppering my schedule with miniature painting seminars and writers' workshops. But here's the clincher. I would give a pinky-toe if someone could explain to me how to build a Microsoft Word stylesheet and "translate" it into Adobe Indesign. I strongly suspect that's how Paizo and Wizards do their layouts, and I'd love to use those tools to give my gaming group consistent handouts and maybe even publish (virally) an adventure or two.
There were two seminars I suspect that would cover that very thing, and I must miss them in deference to the WereCabbages and the good that they do. It makes me sad. If any of you can assist, I would be forever grateful and willing to edit your work for free (on your timetable no less).
And though I wonder whether WoTC will eventually submit events to GenCon this year, I have sadly had to leave no room for them because I can always run RPGA games locally. Still, it's a glaring black hole in Sagamore if they're not there.
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4e and Me
Apr. 2nd, 2008 | 09:47 am
location: Work
mood: 
grateful
music: Standardization Conference Call
Here’s a respectable summary of the state of the game. It blurs lines, glosses over distinctions, and sensationalizes some details, but it’ll do for the intended audience. Or maybe not. To the lay (read: non-gaming) audience, it’ll work. To the online community, it might read like a story about Kodak trying to stay relevant in the digital camera evolution. Take it for what it is, and maybe I can give some perspective.
My Gamer Demographic
Age: 36
Profession: White-Collar Corporate Back-Office Job
Discretionary Income: Sufficient. By that, I mean I buy luxury gaming products like Ptolus or Castle Whiterock usually for holidays or birthdays. I can afford to go to Gencon yearly and do as my schedule allows. I’m currently subscribed to all of Paizo’s Pathfinder and GameMastery offerings. I am an Open Design patron, and I’ll continue to fund Nick Logue and Richard Pett’s retirement plans however I can. (This is by no means bragging; rather, it’s one of the perks of middle age and being in the middle of a career. It’s countered by bodily creaks and groans, risk aversion, and increasing loss of free time.)
Free Time: Low. I’ve got twin toddlers that are a blessing and a handful. It just seems infinitely harder to get a weekly game going or start a campaign or adventure path. Such is my dream. In the meantime, I end up playing RPGA games once or twice a month.
Social Network: My online network is huge. My real life gaming network desiccated after college. Our local RPGA group seems to be mostly people my age who prefer to catch games when they can without the stable time commitment of regular games. That’s cool, but it is what it is.
D&D 4e To Me
High money, low time.
Let’s call this my demographic. (If you’re a student or just starting a career, your experience and opinion may differ from mine, and that’s cool.)
The financial implications of 4e, that it will invalidate my 3.5 library and may involve subscription fees, are considerable. Yes, my lack of time means I’d have to convert or approximate the adventure paths I haven’t gotten to yet, the Heroes of Horror and other sourcebooks I wanted to use, etc. I wish had time to do it, but adding conversion to my game prep actually strains my available prep time, pushing me farther away from the target of a weekly gaming group. WoTC couldn’t put out sourcebooks fast enough to make this not an issue. Moreso, I’m told (via the official podcasts) there isn’t really a conversion process; it’s an approximation of 3.5 flava into a 4th edition incarnation. Personally, I don’t trust myself to avoid or even detect balance issues in the approximation; I’m not mearls. In any case, 4th edition better bring some benefits that will validate the costs for yours truly.
The biggest upside is maybe, just maybe, I can get a regular game going online. For me, this would be well worth MMO-price subscription fees. I acknowledge this is a value judgment; more so, I completely understand that this won’t appeal to people who already have regular gaming groups. I wish I was one of you! If the online experience (including microtransactions potentially required to simulate a gaming table with minis, maps, and handouts) starts costing me $20 or so a month, I’m going to start feeling gauged. I’ll then start putting index cards at FLGS’s, calling for players in local forums, etc, but I will resent WoTC for blowing a great idea with poor execution or greed.
Other than that, I can only express concern that I don’t get the WIIFM (What’s In It For Me). This, I’m sorry, is either bad marketing or bad concept on WoTC’s part. It’s bad marketing if the obvious benefits aren’t so obvious, especially if you’re planning to ask us for additional investment and fees. It’s bad concept if 4th edition isn’t evolved enough to actually be more than change for revenue’s sake. I can only defer my opinion until I have the 3 books and online experience in my hands in June. I can’t help but think that if something were going to turn me into a 4e fanboi, it would’ve already.
After all, I subscribed to Paizo’s entire offering set because I believe they get me. Similarly, I get gooey whenever Nick Logue, Richard Pett, and James Jacobs give vent to their dark sides, my wallet follows. I trust them implicitly to write the content I will happily consume. And while I’m sitting here thinking of the WoTC sourcebook content that rocks me, I’m drawing blanks. The WotC books I liked most were written by Erik Mona, Jason Buhlman, Wolfgang Baur, and pretty much either Paizo staff or Werecabbages. The WoTC books I refer to time and again are actually the 3 core books and the compendiums.
The Bottom Line
Hmm, that last realization was an epiphany of sorts. I found myself looking to my WWWD (What Would Werecabbages Do?) reminder bracelet, and I think my path’s become clear. I’ll explore 4th edition as a curiosity. I’ll certainly explore and report on the online functionality here. But I’ll continue to follow the cabbages like a vorpal bunny, consuming them, er their content, in any edition. They, at least for me, seem to be where the action is.
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Who's been reading my diary?
Apr. 1st, 2008 | 03:27 pm
location: Texas
mood: excited
music: Pulp Gamer GAMA seminar podcast
This just in, Nick Logue launched Sinister Adventures. The announcement's made my day, as ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
saint_demain's floored me with his creativity, accessibility, and personality. To my mind, he does for adventures what mearlsdoes to crunch; i.e, rocks it until Faberge eggs look like PAAS kits, the Statue of Liberty looks like macaroni art, and the apocalypse comes in a Zoroastrian ball of fire.
His words become my next tattoo. Now that my fanboi hyperboles are out of the way, I'll just say my gaming group is as excited as I am at the thought of swapping between Pathfinder, Open Design, and Sinister Adventures. (Note the common theme?)
Let the good times roll!
saint_demain's floored me with his creativity, accessibility, and personality. To my mind, he does for adventures what mearlsdoes to crunch; i.e, rocks it until Faberge eggs look like PAAS kits, the Statue of Liberty looks like macaroni art, and the apocalypse comes in a Zoroastrian ball of fire.His words become my next tattoo. Now that my fanboi hyperboles are out of the way, I'll just say my gaming group is as excited as I am at the thought of swapping between Pathfinder, Open Design, and Sinister Adventures. (Note the common theme?)
Let the good times roll!
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Gary Gygax, Part 2
Mar. 18th, 2008 | 03:09 pm
My earlier post on Gary's passing didn't really capture the flavor of the man. I'd like to correct that with this excellent link. It's the very least I can do.
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How to Shoo Away Independents
Mar. 17th, 2008 | 11:41 am
Dems, there is no virtue in suffering. No one cares how close you get. Take this from a Buffalo Bills fan.
More than anything, the unleashed Gibbs/Wolfson tag-team of mudslingers is doing more harm to the Democratic Party's chances than hanging chads. These two are systematically destroying any idealism by creating a "more of the same" slugfest that will keep the party fractured and actually improve McCain's chances.
And I really, really wanted to put the GOP into the penalty box for at least 4 years. If you keep acting like children, you only show that you're not ready for adult company. There's still plenty of room at the little table this Thanksgiving.
We honestly need a change in our infrastructure. Sadly, none of the three candidates really seem to believe that as strongly as I do.
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E. Gary Gygax (1938-2008)
Mar. 5th, 2008 | 08:44 am
Gary died, and we RPG geeks are all pretty upset about it. Gary's C.V. and bio can be find at the usual hangout, and I won't recount that here. The stats (or crunch) of a man's life are impressive if impersonal, but they aren't what's got us geeks down.
Gary lived the dream. He did what he loved while at the same time enabling us all to enjoy it. We strove to be better because of him, and both his contributions and his personable approach to them will be dearly missed.
Gary lived the dream. He did what he loved while at the same time enabling us all to enjoy it. We strove to be better because of him, and both his contributions and his personable approach to them will be dearly missed.
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Mandating Failure
Mar. 29th, 2007 | 03:05 pm
White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the president respects the role of Congress — and Congress should respect his.
"I think the founders of our nation had great foresight in realizing that it would be better to have one commander in chief managing a war, rather than 535 generals on Capitol Hill trying to do the same thing," she said. "They're mandating failure here."
--Taken from the AP story on Yahoo News.
Mandating failure?
I love press secretaries. It's always a thankless job, but I read it to remind myself that the language politic is very real. Moreso, it is at its best subtle, as if a turn of a phrase could be glib yet somehow shape an opinion 15 minutes later when you're doing something else. It's is insidious when it's at its most wonderful.
While I love the art form, sometimes it's just dark. As a connoisseur of noir (if I may call myself that without being accused of Francophilia), we can smell our own.
The agenda is simple enough. Create a bitter metallic aftertaste in the mouths of any American who opposes the executive office's extensive exploration of the limits of executive discretion and power. Simply put, you "don't have the stomach for victory" (you wuss), if you are against covert taps, waterboarding, stays of habeas corpus, etc. Moreso, you aren't a silent wuss, you are in fact, killing America's sons and daughters by cutting off their funding, making their spirits so low that they cannot hold a gun. Most importantly, you wuss, you are undoing all the hard work that is somehow working if you'd just look at it with a steel resolve from the right distance and perspective.
Wuss.
No, Mr. President. I decline adding your appellation to my e-mail signature. I decline writing you blank checks with which to misappropriate funds. And I decline aspersions of this sort.
And these declines are not manifestations of nay-saying. I approve of democracy, civil liberties, and even the possible errors in judgment that are realized as laws when collective yet uninformed bodies meet. But I affirm the hazards of civil liberty and even public idiocy as long as the playing field is fair.
It's not, and at the bottom of the steep grade, I have had the stomach to swallow my concerns-cum-objections-cum-protests. You would never say it, but your best argument that I was a wuss mandating failure might have been that I voted for your second term.
Fortunately, your term will end. And all the support you can truly call yours will be evident as our tail-wagging Congress tries to align itself with something that specifically won't leave a metallic bitter aftertaste in its constituency's mouth. And fortunately, there will be no part of that next big thing that you'll be able to call yours.
I've written your administration no blank checks, and I'm paying really close attention as to whose signing in my name.
Nerd? Sure. Geek? Absolutely. Wuss? Hardly.
"I think the founders of our nation had great foresight in realizing that it would be better to have one commander in chief managing a war, rather than 535 generals on Capitol Hill trying to do the same thing," she said. "They're mandating failure here."
--Taken from the AP story on Yahoo News.
Mandating failure?
I love press secretaries. It's always a thankless job, but I read it to remind myself that the language politic is very real. Moreso, it is at its best subtle, as if a turn of a phrase could be glib yet somehow shape an opinion 15 minutes later when you're doing something else. It's is insidious when it's at its most wonderful.
While I love the art form, sometimes it's just dark. As a connoisseur of noir (if I may call myself that without being accused of Francophilia), we can smell our own.
The agenda is simple enough. Create a bitter metallic aftertaste in the mouths of any American who opposes the executive office's extensive exploration of the limits of executive discretion and power. Simply put, you "don't have the stomach for victory" (you wuss), if you are against covert taps, waterboarding, stays of habeas corpus, etc. Moreso, you aren't a silent wuss, you are in fact, killing America's sons and daughters by cutting off their funding, making their spirits so low that they cannot hold a gun. Most importantly, you wuss, you are undoing all the hard work that is somehow working if you'd just look at it with a steel resolve from the right distance and perspective.
Wuss.
No, Mr. President. I decline adding your appellation to my e-mail signature. I decline writing you blank checks with which to misappropriate funds. And I decline aspersions of this sort.
And these declines are not manifestations of nay-saying. I approve of democracy, civil liberties, and even the possible errors in judgment that are realized as laws when collective yet uninformed bodies meet. But I affirm the hazards of civil liberty and even public idiocy as long as the playing field is fair.
It's not, and at the bottom of the steep grade, I have had the stomach to swallow my concerns-cum-objections-cum-protests. You would never say it, but your best argument that I was a wuss mandating failure might have been that I voted for your second term.
Fortunately, your term will end. And all the support you can truly call yours will be evident as our tail-wagging Congress tries to align itself with something that specifically won't leave a metallic bitter aftertaste in its constituency's mouth. And fortunately, there will be no part of that next big thing that you'll be able to call yours.
I've written your administration no blank checks, and I'm paying really close attention as to whose signing in my name.
Nerd? Sure. Geek? Absolutely. Wuss? Hardly.
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The Hype of the Moment (Part I)
Mar. 15th, 2007 | 10:59 am
The dollar bill has a soft spot for hype, and the internet is one incredible window into hype. From my vantage point, the internet gives me a vast view of where the hype is. And I'm not saying that a blog post is a lofty perch, but if the shoe fits...
Here's the thing. People appear to be investing with the hearts and not their heads. Over at the Motley Fool, they have a neat experiment called CAPS where users rate stocks to outperform or underperform the stock market.
Reading the raters' rationales (or occasional lacks thereof), I now see that Apple is completely overhyped, and Microsoft is completely lambasted. Emotionally, I understand that Apple makes people feel good and that Microsoft, well, you know, is evil. But my wallet's like Snoop Dogg with his mind on his money and his money on his mind. Microsoft's undervalued and Apple is overvalued.
And there it is, playas.
Here's the thing. People appear to be investing with the hearts and not their heads. Over at the Motley Fool, they have a neat experiment called CAPS where users rate stocks to outperform or underperform the stock market.
Reading the raters' rationales (or occasional lacks thereof), I now see that Apple is completely overhyped, and Microsoft is completely lambasted. Emotionally, I understand that Apple makes people feel good and that Microsoft, well, you know, is evil. But my wallet's like Snoop Dogg with his mind on his money and his money on his mind. Microsoft's undervalued and Apple is overvalued.
And there it is, playas.
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The Marshall Plan Workbook
Mar. 9th, 2007 | 12:17 pm
mood: excited
I'm excited to begin today my prep work for Nanowrimo with my first list of entries into this journal. I'll blog to keep me honest and moving forward, and I'd be thrilled if my dear readers took an interest. To actually get started on my first big writing project, I'm planning to do two things this year.
First, I'm writing a novel in November. See the link above for details. But before I do that, I'm also going to write two smaller works for two great magazines I know, Dungeon and Dragon respectively. The smaller word counts help, and I'm currently plotting the course to getting words on paper. I know full well that there's another challenge in getting the above published, but I'm methodical, patient, and just writing to give something back to the genres that help define me and make sense of the bizarre in the world. :)
Reading, outlining, and writing are the precursors to overcoming my inner critic and evoking a novel. I'd really like to be glib at this point and add that it's not just going to be any novel, but a great novel worthy of reading. But for now, I'm more interested in getting a novel finished. Afterwards, we'll talk about editing and revisions and if it has the legs to get published. But for now, I really want to focus on getting it done. This one definitely doesn't have to be the great American novel. It'll be OK if the literary historians look back at this first work and say, "Well, the collectors and completists among you can read it, but I'm only going to mention it as being his first..."
Fair enough.
In my head at this moment, I'm focused on finishing the novel. Then I'll focus on making it public. Then I'll focus on revising it to learn how to take constructive criticism better. Then I'll focus on learning the literary process (and thanks,open_design, for all the insight your Open Design experience provides)
Ah well, back to work.
First, I'm writing a novel in November. See the link above for details. But before I do that, I'm also going to write two smaller works for two great magazines I know, Dungeon and Dragon respectively. The smaller word counts help, and I'm currently plotting the course to getting words on paper. I know full well that there's another challenge in getting the above published, but I'm methodical, patient, and just writing to give something back to the genres that help define me and make sense of the bizarre in the world. :)
Reading, outlining, and writing are the precursors to overcoming my inner critic and evoking a novel. I'd really like to be glib at this point and add that it's not just going to be any novel, but a great novel worthy of reading. But for now, I'm more interested in getting a novel finished. Afterwards, we'll talk about editing and revisions and if it has the legs to get published. But for now, I really want to focus on getting it done. This one definitely doesn't have to be the great American novel. It'll be OK if the literary historians look back at this first work and say, "Well, the collectors and completists among you can read it, but I'm only going to mention it as being his first..."
Fair enough.
In my head at this moment, I'm focused on finishing the novel. Then I'll focus on making it public. Then I'll focus on revising it to learn how to take constructive criticism better. Then I'll focus on learning the literary process (and thanks,
open_design, for all the insight your Open Design experience provides)Ah well, back to work.
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(no subject)
Feb. 26th, 2007 | 04:11 pm
location: Kitchen
mood: 
(salivating)
music: Molto Mario theme
I kid you not.
This meat loaf recipe will turn you back on to meat loaf. Not the musician of the same name, but the 50's-inspired rectangular mongo-burger.
This is the second time I've made it, and it's a simple recipe. I'll give my standard recipe caveats though:
1. Don't blame the recipe if you start omitting or substituting ingredients based on what you have on hand. Omissions and substitions are a transaction between you and your chef; just don't blame the recipe.
2. Don't blame the recipe if you don't have/use the hardware. Please do create the lump of meat on the pan. There's always a method to Alton Brown's madness, and in this case, cooking the meat loaf freeform keeps the sides and bottom from getting overcooked and drying out. If you leave it in the bread pan, you will revert back to the dry meat loaves of yore. Suit yourself, but don't blame the recipe.
3. I do not have your back if you use ground turkey instead of beef. I mean this. It may turn out great, but I'm disassociating myself from that meat. I've never been able to flavor it enough, and even this spicy loaf might not impart flavor into ground turkey. If you're looking to keep your cholesterol low, either don't eat meat loaf or get yourself a statin...Lipitor should be going generic pretty soon.
But, if you heed my caveats, you will have one very tasty meat loaf. And I wouldn't steer you wrong. You will not have a cafeteria flashback, and I kid you not.
This meat loaf recipe will turn you back on to meat loaf. Not the musician of the same name, but the 50's-inspired rectangular mongo-burger.
This is the second time I've made it, and it's a simple recipe. I'll give my standard recipe caveats though:
1. Don't blame the recipe if you start omitting or substituting ingredients based on what you have on hand. Omissions and substitions are a transaction between you and your chef; just don't blame the recipe.
2. Don't blame the recipe if you don't have/use the hardware. Please do create the lump of meat on the pan. There's always a method to Alton Brown's madness, and in this case, cooking the meat loaf freeform keeps the sides and bottom from getting overcooked and drying out. If you leave it in the bread pan, you will revert back to the dry meat loaves of yore. Suit yourself, but don't blame the recipe.
3. I do not have your back if you use ground turkey instead of beef. I mean this. It may turn out great, but I'm disassociating myself from that meat. I've never been able to flavor it enough, and even this spicy loaf might not impart flavor into ground turkey. If you're looking to keep your cholesterol low, either don't eat meat loaf or get yourself a statin...Lipitor should be going generic pretty soon.
But, if you heed my caveats, you will have one very tasty meat loaf. And I wouldn't steer you wrong. You will not have a cafeteria flashback, and I kid you not.
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Why I Don't Write (But Will)
Feb. 22nd, 2007 | 08:05 am
mood: determined
I suppose I should probably write these ill rationalizations and ephemeral self-aspersions down. By the light of day, I hope to acknowledge and overcome them.
The important thing is to write them down so that I can confront them.
- They will not like my writing, reject it/me utterly and repeatedly, and I will be forced to either keep my self-concept in denial, or I will be forced to update my self-concept with the sad realization that I have no talent at what I love.
- It has already been done before and better by someone else.
- Even if it hasn't been done before, I can't do it justice.
The important thing is to write them down so that I can confront them.
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Again, Ian McKellan trumps Peter O'Toole every day. /sigh
Feb. 19th, 2007 | 09:17 am
mood: 
confused
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Whatever...I'd rather have been Ian McKellan
Feb. 14th, 2007 | 07:42 am
Your results:
You are Magneto
Click here to take the "Which Super Villain are you?" quiz...
You are Magneto
|
You fear the persecution of those that are different or underprivileged so much that you are willing to fight and hurt others for your cause. |
Click here to take the "Which Super Villain are you?" quiz...
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Sebastien's Got the Chops
Jan. 30th, 2007 | 09:55 am
mood: 
energetic
music: Sebastian Bach - I Remember You
So I'm listening to my iPod, and I discover that I somehow acquired a post-Skid Row performance by Sebastian Bach of "I Remember You". It was largely acoustic, and while I missed Dave "The Snake" Sabo's solo work, I was absolutely blown away by Sebastian's vocals.
I saw a VH1 special about a year ago related to wives of metal rockstars, and Sebastian's wife had been the focus that week. And I recall thinking, Sebastian's starting to remind me of Paul McCartney in that his voice is still excellent, but it just doesn't have the range it used to. I don't know whether that's due to age, smoking, or other hard living, but I've found myself noticing that in Paul, Sebastien, David Lee Roth, and others.
Anyway, about halfway through the song, Sebastian sustains a note that I wish I could sustain as long on my guitar back in the day. It was breathtaking, like a throttle opening on an Italian sportscar. And all I could think of is how gifted he is with those pipes.
This blog's for you, Sebastian Bach, and I hope you find continued success in your musical career. I, for one, miss you.
I saw a VH1 special about a year ago related to wives of metal rockstars, and Sebastian's wife had been the focus that week. And I recall thinking, Sebastian's starting to remind me of Paul McCartney in that his voice is still excellent, but it just doesn't have the range it used to. I don't know whether that's due to age, smoking, or other hard living, but I've found myself noticing that in Paul, Sebastien, David Lee Roth, and others.
Anyway, about halfway through the song, Sebastian sustains a note that I wish I could sustain as long on my guitar back in the day. It was breathtaking, like a throttle opening on an Italian sportscar. And all I could think of is how gifted he is with those pipes.
This blog's for you, Sebastian Bach, and I hope you find continued success in your musical career. I, for one, miss you.
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An Amateur Thespian Interview
Jan. 24th, 2007 | 10:05 am
mood: excited
So I get my copy of Vanguard: Saga of Heroes next Tuesday, and I decided I wanted to focus on a slow, enjoyable, role-playing experience. Unlike previous games where I felt like I had to constantly keep up with the Drizzt's, I wanted to experience an immersive world at my own pace.
But, I'm joining this MMORPG for online camaraderie as well, so I wanted to join a guild for the insta-friends factor. (Yes, I acknowledge that similarities can be made between joining an online guild and joining a college fraternity.) But I specifically didn't want to be rushed to level and raid dragon lairs. I just don't want to miss out on the journey, so I opted to join a role-playing guild.
To narrow the choices even further, I wanted a structured guild that was very much focused on role-play and not game mechanics or rushing to the endgame. And then I found Dark Province.
I was thrilled by the structure and the novel concept that a guild could exist as a virtual city within a virtual world. The officers were very friendly, and I had the opportunity to interview with them to ensure we were a good match for each other.
My interview went well, and I was accepted into the guild as a citizen, a resident fortune-teller who is also apprenticing as a blacksmith. What amazed me afterwards is how organic the interview felt. My character concept evolved naturally, and I began with a concept of a failed diplomat who had, through a series of bad choices and poor fortune, been relegated to cleaning ships' hulls for most of a youth that could've been otherwise quite promising.
To entertain my fellow shipmates, I became handy with a deck of fortune-telling cards similar to the Tarot deck. This became the tie-in to my in-game class of mind-controlling psionicist. And all of this came out of my little creative brain. I was accepted into the guild yesterday with an officer's note, "Welcome, Fortune-Teller."
I thought that was just a nod to my role-playing skills. And in a way, it was, but I was amazed to discover that there was already a role created for that position in the city/guild. As guidance for people looking for something to do, the guild offered this occupation as an example:
FORTUNE-TELLER
Fortune-tellers were often looked upon with disapproval from the ruling classes but their services were highly in demand. The Medieval Ages were full of superstition and very real belief in supernatural forces and powers. Most things that could not be explained by science or technology was thought to be the direct influences of these powers at work.
The common people were normally quite stressed economically and therefore they viewed the Fortune-teller as a potential advantage to overcoming future difficulties. If their future could be revealed they believed they could take steps to improve upon it.
Most Fortune-tellers were common rogues and tricksters who used a variety of simple illusions to create dramatic effects. Though they possessed no real skill at all for devining the future, they would be careful to use basic events and information to project a scenario that was generic enough to fit into anyone's situation. Once embellished with mild promises of prosperity it seemed a true magical experience had taken place. Often though the Fortune-teller's success was based on how much the person getting the reading wanted to believe.
Some Fortune-tellers did use lunar and celestial patterns to predict probable and basic outcomes in terms of weather. These natural signs could foretell famine or draught or even bad storms. If a Fortune-teller had success in predicting these events, his or her credibility was greatly enhanced.
Though there was a given ratio of success and failure based on mathematical probability, the fortune-tellers with luck and agility managed to earn positions of respect and wealth in some courts.
However, most were treated as witches or dark practitioners. And in some cases when their foretold events did not ring true, they were hunted down and killed.
Promising stuff, indeed. And there's plenty from a role-playing point of view to work with here. At first read, I immediately thought of customizing a Tarot deck by changing the card names to match in-game lore, writing down a few cryptic sayings I could pepper into my readings in-character, and boning up on how fortune-tellers applied their craft. Good stuff indeed!
What amazed me, though, was that there was already a role in the province for that.
But, I'm joining this MMORPG for online camaraderie as well, so I wanted to join a guild for the insta-friends factor. (Yes, I acknowledge that similarities can be made between joining an online guild and joining a college fraternity.) But I specifically didn't want to be rushed to level and raid dragon lairs. I just don't want to miss out on the journey, so I opted to join a role-playing guild.
To narrow the choices even further, I wanted a structured guild that was very much focused on role-play and not game mechanics or rushing to the endgame. And then I found Dark Province.
I was thrilled by the structure and the novel concept that a guild could exist as a virtual city within a virtual world. The officers were very friendly, and I had the opportunity to interview with them to ensure we were a good match for each other.
My interview went well, and I was accepted into the guild as a citizen, a resident fortune-teller who is also apprenticing as a blacksmith. What amazed me afterwards is how organic the interview felt. My character concept evolved naturally, and I began with a concept of a failed diplomat who had, through a series of bad choices and poor fortune, been relegated to cleaning ships' hulls for most of a youth that could've been otherwise quite promising.
To entertain my fellow shipmates, I became handy with a deck of fortune-telling cards similar to the Tarot deck. This became the tie-in to my in-game class of mind-controlling psionicist. And all of this came out of my little creative brain. I was accepted into the guild yesterday with an officer's note, "Welcome, Fortune-Teller."
I thought that was just a nod to my role-playing skills. And in a way, it was, but I was amazed to discover that there was already a role created for that position in the city/guild. As guidance for people looking for something to do, the guild offered this occupation as an example:
FORTUNE-TELLER
Fortune-tellers were often looked upon with disapproval from the ruling classes but their services were highly in demand. The Medieval Ages were full of superstition and very real belief in supernatural forces and powers. Most things that could not be explained by science or technology was thought to be the direct influences of these powers at work.
The common people were normally quite stressed economically and therefore they viewed the Fortune-teller as a potential advantage to overcoming future difficulties. If their future could be revealed they believed they could take steps to improve upon it.
Most Fortune-tellers were common rogues and tricksters who used a variety of simple illusions to create dramatic effects. Though they possessed no real skill at all for devining the future, they would be careful to use basic events and information to project a scenario that was generic enough to fit into anyone's situation. Once embellished with mild promises of prosperity it seemed a true magical experience had taken place. Often though the Fortune-teller's success was based on how much the person getting the reading wanted to believe.
Some Fortune-tellers did use lunar and celestial patterns to predict probable and basic outcomes in terms of weather. These natural signs could foretell famine or draught or even bad storms. If a Fortune-teller had success in predicting these events, his or her credibility was greatly enhanced.
Though there was a given ratio of success and failure based on mathematical probability, the fortune-tellers with luck and agility managed to earn positions of respect and wealth in some courts.
However, most were treated as witches or dark practitioners. And in some cases when their foretold events did not ring true, they were hunted down and killed.
Promising stuff, indeed. And there's plenty from a role-playing point of view to work with here. At first read, I immediately thought of customizing a Tarot deck by changing the card names to match in-game lore, writing down a few cryptic sayings I could pepper into my readings in-character, and boning up on how fortune-tellers applied their craft. Good stuff indeed!
What amazed me, though, was that there was already a role in the province for that.
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Why Alignment Matters
Jan. 18th, 2007 | 06:40 pm
mood: mellow
I am not the biggest fanboi of Monte Cook, but I wish I was. Monte's written works, design diaries, and responses to his fans and the community are the resources at my disposal as I try to learn the best in gaming from the best in gaming.
I told you I wish I was the biggest fanboi. Yet the very need for me to pursue this "reverse engineering" of Monte's design ideas proves I'm far behind in Monte's gamitech. If wishes were horses...
But I've come across a snag in trying to integrate Arcana Evolved into Ptolus for my own campaign world that I had to stop and think about it. And I'm pretty sure when you have to stop and think about something for yourself, that's great fodder for a blog. So here goes.
Arcana Evolved does away with alignment. The argument against alignment as a game construct is relatively straightforward. Alignment, while once intended as guidance for the budding role-player, became a DM's crutch. DM's went beyond matters of cosmology and ethics and not only relied on it as a game mechanic, but then troves of open-source writers added spells, items, and templates which only magnified the problem. And Monte rightfully asserts that evil is the evil knowingly done.
Well, that's all valid, but let's just take a second and look a what you've got to give up to get rid of alignment. First, let me start by saying that you do get rid of all that game mechanic stuff you found annoying. Yay!
And then it starts to get mixed.
You must do away with ready-made explanations for deities. Granted, in a direct reaction to the Forgotten Realms avatars of old, it does appear we've moved towards less actual manifestations of the gods themselves and more towards their followers doing their gods' biddings.
But the part I can't abide is you lump together demons and devils as just baleful. No sir, that's not good enough for me. In their own ways, demons and devils were the two entities that I genuinely feared more than the undead. Demons wanted something so much more than to kill everything, they wanted to destroy it all --chaos eternal. And devils wanted not to kill it all, but to corrupt everything. In both examples there were fates way way worse than death. And I don't want to lump it all together into some evil fruitcake.
There's a damn reason Eskimos have multiple words for snow.
I told you I wish I was the biggest fanboi. Yet the very need for me to pursue this "reverse engineering" of Monte's design ideas proves I'm far behind in Monte's gamitech. If wishes were horses...
But I've come across a snag in trying to integrate Arcana Evolved into Ptolus for my own campaign world that I had to stop and think about it. And I'm pretty sure when you have to stop and think about something for yourself, that's great fodder for a blog. So here goes.
Arcana Evolved does away with alignment. The argument against alignment as a game construct is relatively straightforward. Alignment, while once intended as guidance for the budding role-player, became a DM's crutch. DM's went beyond matters of cosmology and ethics and not only relied on it as a game mechanic, but then troves of open-source writers added spells, items, and templates which only magnified the problem. And Monte rightfully asserts that evil is the evil knowingly done.
Well, that's all valid, but let's just take a second and look a what you've got to give up to get rid of alignment. First, let me start by saying that you do get rid of all that game mechanic stuff you found annoying. Yay!
And then it starts to get mixed.
You must do away with ready-made explanations for deities. Granted, in a direct reaction to the Forgotten Realms avatars of old, it does appear we've moved towards less actual manifestations of the gods themselves and more towards their followers doing their gods' biddings.
But the part I can't abide is you lump together demons and devils as just baleful. No sir, that's not good enough for me. In their own ways, demons and devils were the two entities that I genuinely feared more than the undead. Demons wanted something so much more than to kill everything, they wanted to destroy it all --chaos eternal. And devils wanted not to kill it all, but to corrupt everything. In both examples there were fates way way worse than death. And I don't want to lump it all together into some evil fruitcake.
There's a damn reason Eskimos have multiple words for snow.
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All the Time in the World
Jan. 12th, 2007 | 11:11 am
mood: excited
music: Pink: Who Knew?
To be honest, I underestimated utterly how much time to myself I would have after having children. Looking back now, it's easy to see how I was wrong. I have had relatively no exposure to other parents of toddlers, and I honestly assumed they'd amuse themselves. Obviously, such is not the case. Christian and Connor (my twin 16-month old boys) both really enjoy the interaction and discovery that comes as they're growing into the world. And, of course, they want their parents along for the ride every step of the way.
And no matter how tired I am, how can I resist? It's just too important to me to share that experience...so much so that any other use of my time seems ungratifying.
Such is the background of this post.
So it breaks down like this. Unlike previous chapters of my life, I've got roughly 3 hours a night to indulge my interests. That includes perfecting card tricks, improving my guitar chops, playing computer games, or writing/planning Dungeons & Dragons adventures. My interests fluctuate at any given time, but that time (my time) is very precious to me.
So, I mention this because Vanguard: Saga of Heroes launches at the end of the month. Stay tuned to see what this does to my schedule because even I don't know yet.
And no matter how tired I am, how can I resist? It's just too important to me to share that experience...so much so that any other use of my time seems ungratifying.
Such is the background of this post.
So it breaks down like this. Unlike previous chapters of my life, I've got roughly 3 hours a night to indulge my interests. That includes perfecting card tricks, improving my guitar chops, playing computer games, or writing/planning Dungeons & Dragons adventures. My interests fluctuate at any given time, but that time (my time) is very precious to me.
So, I mention this because Vanguard: Saga of Heroes launches at the end of the month. Stay tuned to see what this does to my schedule because even I don't know yet.