Whimsy but not the Weekly Kind

Please take a moment to read my missive on GW's price increases over

here

I hope it's a good, worthwhile read.

[40K] Don't Forget!

Woops! It's Wednesday and I totally forgot to post until late... better late than never, though!

So our 40K League decided to do a team league next. 1000 points per person, static army (but not list) and using BRB (with 1 reroll allowed for missions) for deployment.

We rolled for partners, which was interesting. I was very concerned about messing someone up really bad; I'm new AND I have a pretty limiting rule in my codex regarding psychic powers. All went well, though as I didn't get paired with the Chaos or Eldar player(s). I got a really good partner- a smart, well versed player that has played nearly every army and even when he's trying to lose, does well.

I'm hoping that if nothing else, I will learn a lot from this experience, and maybe come out of it a better player. I mean I could do worse, right?

My advice on getting stuff for free came up at 40K night... it looks like I might be trading off some bikes in exchange for something yet to be determined (mostly because I don't have a burning hole in my arsenal). We'll see, I'm still considering. 

Other items on the agenda-- DON'T FORGET about the HOP Blog Roll Naming Contest! These guys pimped me up something fierce when I had my contest; and they let me write for them once a week- I gotta return the favor. Hit up your creative cells and give these guys something awesome!

Details here:

http://www.houseofpaincakes.com/2011/03/blog-roll-naming-contest-fame-and.html

 All right, next week- a batrep!

[Weekly Whimsy] Identity

[Welcome to Weekly Whimsy, where this woman works her wordy wit and wonders about the world.]



O, be some other name!

What's in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;- Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet



check out all the rest of my ramblings at House of Paincakes... it's worth the trip.

[MtG] Rethinking a Thought Experiment

So Dethtron over at HoP asked the readers to write themselves up as a MtG card. here's his exact wording:

If you got your very own Magic: the Gathering card what would it be?  Design yourself in the context of MtG.  Feel free to link to a picture if you feel it's necessary.  Use standard text notations for your card and be sure to include a casting cost, power/toughness (if you're a creature), special rules you may have, and a quote for the text box on your card.
I made a submission and then realized it wasn't entirely legal, so I changed it. Now I'm thinking about it some more, and I need to change it again.

Here's my original, followed by my correction.


Loquacious 5U
Legendary Lady 3/5

Vigilance (attacking does not cause Lady to tap)

(Kicker)2W (You may Kick as many times as you like)

If Lady was kicked, generate a 2/2 White Minion creature for each time Lady was kicked

T Lady and all Minions become unblockable until end of turn.

"YOU try to stop her!"

Correction: 
I just realized I did that wrong. It should be

2W & sacrifice a Minion Creature- Lady and all Minions become unblockable until end of turn.

(Tapping would defeat unblockable, duh.)
---------------------------------------

Well, I was close, but no cigar. Here we go, this time for the last time, I hope.

Loquacious 5U
Legendary Lady

Vigilance (attacking does not cause Lady to tap)

(Kicker) 2W (You may kick as many times as you like)

if Lady was Kicked, generate a 1/1 White Minion creature for each time Lady was kicked.

(t) 2W: generate a 1/1 White Minion creature

3W & Sacrifice a Minion Creature- Lady and all Minion creatures become unblockable until end of turn.

"YOU try to stop her!"

------------------------------------------------


I made her as a Legend to avoid a lot of the "destroy target creature" or "creature" specific cards.  I realize that as a Legend, she would work "better" as a White creature rather than a colorless. I mean, she can't be a General in an EDH army because there are white symbols on her card but not in her casting cost.

I sort of did that for a reason- I'm a terribad leader. I am, however, very persuasive when I want to be. I also wanted some insulation from many of the pro (x) cards out there. As a colorless, she would have less to worry about overall.


So, MtG players, (or friends in real life) any thoughts?

And what about your own?

[Weekly Whimsy] A Word On Rides

Welcome to Weekly Whimsy! An authoritative address on accessorization, accessibility, adaptation and admiration of automobiles among afficionados in our armada of acolytes.

[I adore words, just in case ya didn't know. On to today's topic!]

(No, you're not seeing double. This is posted over at iHOP as well.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Come along and ride on a fantastic voyage - Coolio, Fantastic Voyage 


There's something both fascinating and fabulous about any form of locomotion with a motor and wheels. The appearance of any kind of vehicle seems to turn certain brains to mush, reverting them back to their four
year old selves. I've seen it countless times, mostly in men, but a few of the women I know fall victim to it as well. It's especially pronounced when the motor is especially powerful, or is encased in a fancy or
visually attractive package. Throw a Lambo out, and -wham- instant stupid.

I'm personally turned into a blithering idiot by vintage muscle cars. I'm an absolute nut for the Shelby era cars, but have a serious case of lust for pretty much any long hood setback power car prior to 1969. A prime
example is this luscious hunk:

um.... droool... I'm supposed to be writing a blog entry... damn... Blink... back to the thought at hand...


This general fondness for machines and go-fast has a tendency to creep into popular culture. Who doesn't remember this?

Many gaming experiences have gone through some sort of vehicle-related trauma, some funny; some ridiculous. I recently played in a D20 Modern Miami Vice setting with detectives in partnerships; my “partner” Tim had an endless and morbid tendency to use cars rather than weapons. The night wasn't complete without a car being totally demolished at his hands. His coup de grace was dropping a bulldozer onto a cigarette boat from on top of a cliff, setting things into a fiery inferno. A good friend played in a Star Wars game where he “piloted” the ship into the docking bay, causing damage and mayhem along the way. I know I've heard countless other more than slightly amusing but yet mortifying stories involving various forms
of transport and the exploits of their handlers; most too ridiculous to recount here.

Perhaps the best examples of vehicular obsession I've seen are in 40K. Thor over at Creative Twilight has a bad case of Kult of Speed; Sandwyrm and Dethtron have hard-ons for mech; and some of the best conversions I've witnessed are machinery.

While they feature a large part in many armies, for the most part, jet packs and air bikes are left as is:

It's the wheels that get the conversion love. Examples include this figure, which I think my CSM playing friend will like:

(Said friend wants to convert at least one of his attack bikes into a trike- I think the chopper will give him some inspiration)


Then there's Kamui's brilliant and grungy battle wagon: (Seen at Creative Twilight)

And this breathtaking ork trukk by JB (seen at TheBack40K)

While I'm no expert, I do love talking about cars & trucks. A lot of times I don't understand the language, but I understand intent. I do have a little knowledge- I worked at a gas station which generated a small amount of information required for the job; and I help people sell their cars through advertising, so I have learned a lot of short cuts and more than a few hard and fast rules according to make or manufacturer. It's in the talking that I learn the most.

Asking questions to my friends often brings out their passion and energy for the vehicles in question. I completely enjoy watching a face light up, and seeing a normally quiet or introverted guy break out of his shell to tell me all about his latest modeling trick or the way he scrounged for bits to make something “just right”.

I've had a blast discussing and sharing some of the engines that make my heart race. I hope you've enjoyed the ride... {wink}

[Blogging] 12 in 7!

12 new followers in 7 days. That's over a 40% increase in calculable readership in just a week's time.

I'm quoted on Brent's blog- TWICE! [Not that I'm stalking...]

I got hit as an honorable mention at  iHOP's Haiku contest (and not at all shameless beg for content), made Weekly TopX and came in as a "winner "(?) of the most embarrassing story gig there too.

I'm seeing a lot of wonderful, insightful and generous commenting. I've been exposed to some fantastic writers, thinkers, gamers and just cool guys [with a gal or two thrown in there, too] over the week or so. I'm trying to comment on all of your great posts- I may have to get to you still. I promise I'll get there!

I'm beyond flattered and honored that you're checking out my little corner of the internet.

I have a really fun topic for Weekly Whimsy tomorrow, so stay tuned! 
Please feel free to drop me a note and tell me how you found me, what you like, and what you want to see more of [totally ended with a preposition and I just don't care].

be well...

Loq

Weekly Top X Shout Out- Be More Awesome

Those fabulous guys, Brent, Lauby and Dethtron made me part of IHoP's Weekly Top X! 

I have to say that this is a big step up from where I was just about two months ago, when I first saw the multitude of IHoP announcements pop up across the web. Nearly every 40K site I visited was proclaiming this "new idea" and these crazy guys who were trying to do something different in the 40K blogsphere and BUILD A COMMUNITY. (Anyone who knows me in real life knows this is a HUGE part of what I am trying to do gaming wise- so it struck a nerve. I had to be part of it.)

I read the announcement and marveled at the number of times they swore in a single sentence. I swear that much in real life, but rarely online (go figure). I knew my blog didn't have a focus yet, but I sort of talk about 40K (sometimes) and I figured that maybe the cool kids would let me hang out with them for a bit. I sent off an application letter (but failed in the essay), and they very kindly took me in as part of their nascent experiment.

I read quite a few of the blogs on the rolls and noted how much BETTER most of them were than mine. I knew I wasn't a bad writer, but I lacked anything resembling focus or cohesion. I decided that my blog needed way more awesome so that I could hang with the big boys, and started adding content at a furious pace. I also got some incredible encouragement and guidance from my buddy Christian around this time, and with a little thought and clarity, my blog began to not suck.

All this "blah blah blah" is an obvious and shameless suckup to the masters who have helped make me better. Since that jerk DaveHowitzer at Crew Shaken Not Stirred went and made frickin' COCKTAILS in the IHoP gang's honor, now I have to come up with something equally fantastic in order to stay on their good sides. (Just pointing out that I don't hate Dave- in fact I think he's pretty keen.)

I don't have a "theme" over here, really. I seriously struggled with how to define myself for the Members' Index Page. I'm not an Internet Personality (yet) and I don't have any gimmick to my thoughts or my space on the web. Trying to come up with something that's fitting to ME in order to honor the IHoP guys was a true challenge, but one I knew I could handle.

I ruminated for a bit and then it hit me like the voluminous volume of vocabulary I carry around-my name is my gig. I've gotten a multitude of comments on my online name, and its definition and appropriateness. What I find more than a little amusing is that these folks have no CLUE how much I talk in real life. My chattiness in the e-world is just a hint of what I'm like in reality, so I take a little perverted pride in getting noted for that talent. My haikus were worth notice, so I figured I was onto something.

Being full of words, I decided to come up with acrostic/anagram tributes to IHoP, Brent, Dethtron and Lauby. I've got a couple for each one. One's sort of tongue in cheek and the other's supposed to hit on their qualities in a more serious way. Here you are:

I; "H", Opine Profusely
Internet Houses Outrageous Perspectives

Brent's Really Excellent;  Not Typical
BoK Regular, Exceptionally Noteworthy Typings

Long Address; Underrepresented Blog, Yanno
Laudible, Authentic, Understated; Best Yet

Defiantly Evanescent, Totally Hot, Thoroughly Rockin', Offering Nonsense
Delivering Evil To Hostile Trollers, Rips on 'Net

No matter how hard I tried, I could not get "Hugs & Gropings" OR "Stalks Jawaballs" into Brent's little tribute. I feel a little shame, but I figure pointing out that Dethtron isn't just an asshat; he's a hottie more than makes up for it. (Dudes in suits are HAWT. Drummers are additionally hot.The end.) Ok, I know that's weird for most of you guys, so I'll stop with the salacious silliness and throw down the challenge-

What will YOU do to make YOUR blog more awesome? It could get you onto the Top X, gain you recognition and fans, and improve the blogging community! Get on it!

[IHoP] bangin'!

My honorable mention haiku(s)

It's a great world here
Brent and Lauby swear for us
we owe fealty

weekly top x great
shout outs and webby findings
could be yours awesome

it's a man's world here
girls game with hearts thunder
check World of Wonder