Champs...Again

A typical orky game. Dropped passes. Strong running. A lot of stomping of the opposing team's quarterback. If you roll with the greenskins in Blood Bowl, that's the game you're going to see.

But what a beatdown!

It's tough that Zach Charbonnet tore his ACL, as he's our third down / red zone back. For all Kenneth Walker's talent (and he IS talented...extremely), he doesn't have the same nose for the endzone. If Charbs is on the field yesterday, that 19-0 lead going into the 4th quarter is probably more like 27-0. 

But I'll take it. Heck, I would have taken a 6-0 victory. Just like I'd take a 1-0 victory in Blood Bowl. Because a win is a win is a win. And a trophy is a nice memento to commemorate a really good season. Which is what the Seattle Seahawks had this year...a really great season.

Way to go, boyz. Well deserved. This time I'll be at the parade.

Waaagh!

Coming Together

Another interlude. The reviews will continue tomorrow; just pushed 'em back for a day.

Sunday afternoon I had a chance to watch the Seattle Seahawks clinch a Super Bowl berth for only the fourth time in their 50 year history. I've attended three of the four NFC championship games that they won, missing only the game versus the 49ers (when I was residing in Paraguay). The 'Hawks have had a great season, and man, that was a tough game...another time and on a neutral field, the results might well have been different. Skaven are a bad match-up for orks, and the Rams have often had our number since we moved back to the NFC West in 2000.

I haven't written much about the Seahawks (or Blood Bowl) this year, in part because I've been super busy (I don't think we've broken out the BB set since September) but ALSO because...as the writing was on the wall that Seattle was fielding one of the best teams in the NFL, I felt more and more that talking about it might, well, jinx it. And I didn't want to jinx it. I mean, I had to help keep the Pope's streak alive, right?

But now we're back in the Big Game, where I fully expect Mike Macdonald's ork squad to stomp the living hell out of the dark elves. It's not that Vrabel's not a good coach or that Drake Maye isn't a nice surprise this season. It's just that they aren't Bellicheck and Brady...and I trust that with two weeks to prepare Mac will have this team tuned and ready to tee off on the second year QB. This is not the McVay-Stafford-Nakua offense we just saw. Yes, the Seahawks might still lose...but if they do. it's going to be due to some catastrophic system failure. They're just the better team...this year.

I'm thinking something in the 27-9, 31-6 range?

REGARDLESS (that is, win or lose) the streets of Seattle will be mostly empty on Super Bowl Sunday. That I've experienced before. It's always fairly dead on this, our country's unofficial national holiday, but in the city of one of the two championship-vying teams...well, most people are going to be glued to their screens. Or, at least, engaging in some sort of party/celebration with fellow Seattle-ites, regardless of whether or not they have any interest in the game results. That's the power of sport: the power to bring people together. Common ground...a way of making connections with our fellow human beings.

Right now, in addition to the nation-wide blizzard/Ice Age that's wrecking crap all over the country, we've got this whole ongoing issue of federal agents MURDERING PEOPLE in Minnesota. I mean, the current presidential administration has been nothing if not an extensive exercise in corruption and criminality, bribery, kidnapping, lying, extortion, and murder (no, Virginia, the actions taken by our U.S. military in Venezuela and off its coast are not "lawful" no matter what lies the administration spins). But video of masked "law enforcement" officers pumping ten rounds in the back of a prone, restrained, and unarmed individual is FUCKING EVIL SHIT and kind of ANTITHETICAL TO EVERYTHING THIS COUNTRY IS SUPPOSED TO STAND FOR. 

I'd think most of us could find some common ground on that, too. 

Just so people know: I am paying attention. And while the gaming thing is all well and good as a nice little escape from the ho-hum mundanity of daily life (and fun to boot), it's NOT a great thing to use it as an excuse to check out and be apathetic when it comes to real life atrocities being committed in one's own backyard. Yeah, the stuff in Gaza and Ukraine and Iran, etc. are pretty damn horrific. But now our government seems bent on waging war against its own citizens? Any citizen that dares stand up to it? Anyone who interferes with ICE actions by protesting or filming with a cell phone is in danger of being pepper-sprayed, beaten, "detained," and possibly SHOT IN THE FACE. Yeah...no.

Can't stand for that.

However, sadly, unfortunately, the LAST thing, the WORST thing for folks to do, is to fight back with anger and hate and violence. I can already see that possibility on the horizon: revolution. Civil war. Guerillas. REAL "domestic terrorism" where anyone with a mask or a badge is dragged out and lynched and a well-armed America population starts pushing back with bullets. THAT would be the real end of this American Experiment. That would be really, really shitty.

Plus, Trump would just invoke martial law and set himself up as "Dictator for Life."

SO. Be brave. Be resistant. Be engaged. And most of all, be TOGETHER with your fellow Americans. Regardless of the differences you have with them. Build bonds; build connections. Stand and oppose, but do not give in to hatred and violence. If we allow grief and anger to consume us, then evil wins. 

That's it. Adventure reviews will resume tomorrow.

Judgment

Currently at the American Airlines Lounge of the DFW, drinking an extra dry Bombay gin martini (three olives) and wearing my 'Hawks jersey as I watch the Seahawks game...we've got three-four hours before our next flight so we should be able to watch the thing in its entirety. Had a bit of a WTF moment today when I turned on the internet and found we'd invaded another country and kidnapped their president (and his wife), but...well, the booze and the football helps take my mind off that particular piece of madness.

So instead, let's talk adventure writing contests.

Once again it is time for Ben Gibson’s delightful Adventure Site Contest (ASC3), in which dungeon designers from around the globe test their design chops in delivering a delightful evening’s play in the form of a smallish adventure…something larger than a lair, but not quite a full-blown dungeon. An adventure site…something that might be stumbled upon during a hex-crawl or between larger mission objectives.

There are, of course, parameters for the contest. Gibson has stated that:

• The site must be small, something in the neighborhood of 8 to 24 keyed locations. 
• There should be a coherent “story” to the place (one I would call a “theme”) not just a bunch of encounters thrown together. 
• There is a hard limit of two pages of text, not including maps and (possibly) a title/cover page. 
• There must be at least one map.
•  And the adventure must be written for an “old school” edition of Dungeons & Dragons, specifically OD&D, AD&D, or Basic, or a “very close” retro-clone. ACKS, itself a BECMI (Basic) derivative, is specifically noted as a example of the latter.

These are the criteria for being legal entries in the contest…the regulations one must consider to be the “rules of play.” By my count, this disqualifies nearly half the entries from consideration.

Yeah. I’m a hard ass like that. Also, my time is finite.

Every ASC judge has their own personal criteria for judgment, and I am no different. Every entry I review will be given a “star” rating…from zero to five…that best describes my opinion of the adventure as a “made for use at the table” adventure module. For me, three stars (“***”) is the MINIMUM level to be considered playable D&D.

What is “playable D&D?” Playable D&D means: an adventure that a DM can pick up and use, at table, as written, within the designated system, regardless of the adventure’s subjective “quality.” Most, if not all, pre-1985 TSR-era adventure modules fall into this category. Before D&D began to drift into a region of posturing and railroad stories, the game was still a game to be played, and the designers (generally) knew the rule systems within which they were working, and adhered to those systems. While some may consider procedural-based D&D an obsolete relic of the past, the fact remains that it is a functional mode of play, ignored only at one’s peril, unless one’s group wishes to drift wholly into the realm of freeform, narrative-driven play (which may indeed be a form of enjoyable entertainment but is not, strictly speaking, a GAME with rules and objectives).

Four stars (“****”) is what I refer to as “solid D&D,” what every designer and Dungeon Master should aspire to. Five stars (“*****”) is a rating I reserve for truly triumphant game design…not only does it exhibit exacting and appropriate knowledge of the system, but it ELEVATES the material, using it in original or unusual ways that demonstrates exemplary design chops. Last year, I only awarded five stars to two of the thirty submissions.

Anything less than three stars falls outside the realm of “playable D&D.” Two stars (“**”) generally indicates a lacking or deficiency in one or (more usually) several categories. In my opinion, this often comes from the designer’s attempt to translate what “plays” at the table to the medium of the published adventure…things that designer (as DM) simply assumes or “wings” in play gets left out of the textual instruction, forcing the consumer to have to improvise in a way that may or may not conform to the designer’s expectations. This is BAD design…DMs who use published adventures are doing so for a multitude of reasons, but clearly they want the adventure to be functional without the need to do extra work themselves (reading the thing should be enough “preparation”). A two star adventure requires additional work on the part of the would-be DM just to run the thing, i.e. to make the adventure “playable.” One-third of last year’s entries fell into the two-star category.

A one star (“*”) adventure is one in which the designer exhibits a lack of understanding with regard to the game and/or system they purport to be designing for. Such designers are advised to go back and study the rules and instructions for which they are designing, because it matters little to a DM how creative and imaginative a scenario if it fails to function in the system for which it has been designed. For example: if an adventure is written for B/X or OD&D and uses monsters only found in the (AD&D) Fiend Folio, this is an example of non-functional, one-star design. If I am a B/X DM and I pick up a pre-written adventure “written for B/X,” I am expecting an adventure that can be run with the books I own and use. I should not be expected to know what a “githyanki” is (for example) because there is no such creature in the B/X rule books, and the inclusion of such a creature in the adventure requires the inclusion of its stat block and description or else the adventure is non-functional. Nearly one-quarter (7 of 30) of last year’s entries fell into this category.

Finally, the coveted “zero star” rating is reserved for adventures that are NOT adventures. These are ideas…perhaps even INTERESTING ideas…but not actionable content. A very rare categorization for Mr. Gibson’s contest; in the past, I’ve only seen fit to “award” this rank to one submission.

We’ll see what happens this year.

To ALL the contestants that I am about to read (and cast judgment upon): congratulations for making it this far. Regardless of how I judge your entry, you should take pride in the fact that you created something, that you got off your ass and put your name and reputation on the line. Regardless of whether or not I like your adventure, you have already shown your courage and mettle and should take pride in the accomplishment. You’ve put in the work. And if I judge your adventure harshly, please know that I am not saying QUIT. YOU SUCK. GO HOME. I am only asking you to try again and do better.

Please do not be discouraged. You’ve already beat out countless numbers of DMs who couldn’t be bothered to try.

Judgments to come.

Adventure Site Contest II

My apologies for neglecting to mention this, but Ben Gibson is currently running the second installment of the Adventure Site Contest (ASCII).  Deadline for submissions is January 1st, so if you're sitting around watching NFL games this morning (as I am), that's something you can work on during the commercial breaks...at a maximum of 3 pages, these short-form adventures are ideal for seeding throughout your campaign world.

Little something-somethings for "off the beaten path."

I will NOT be competing this year, but as one of the judges, I will be reading...and reviewing...all the entries. If you've long cherished any interest in hearing me lambast your design chops for poor treasure counts, this is your chance! Hahaha!

All right, that's all for the day. The daughter and I are going to the Seahawks-Bills game this afternoon. She'll be wearing her Josh Allen jersey (*sigh*) not because she's a Buffalo fan, but because she finds "Joshy" to be tasty eye-candy (*double sigh*).  Ah, well...it is what it is, and professional sports are supposed to be entertainment; everyone's entitled to a favorite player.

[some of MY all-time favorites? Emmitt Smith and Mike Alstott. Never owned a 'Boys or 'Bucs jersey, though...]

Have a good week, folks!

: )

Mystery Dice Goblin

Sometimes people ask me to review their products. Sometimes they send me their products. My time is limited and my bandwidth for a lot of these things is...even more limited.

Mystery Dice Goblin is a group that sells dice and dice accessories (bags, etc.). Like all gaming nerds, I've purchased plenty of such things over the years, to the point that I'm a bit jaded: if I'm going to buy a dice bag or box, it better be some sort of hand-crafted, artistic nonsense, and better be in a price point that doesn't make me feel like an idiot (or is just so cool that I can't live without it). Usually, I'm a "pass" on most such things.

And dice? I have enough dice. 

But they sent me some of their signature product: their "mystery dice" bag: a small, resealable bag with a full set of seven dice. They sent me three such bags, which my kids and I quickly divided up.

And what do you know...the gimmick works! It's kind of cool to rip open a mystery bag and 'oo' and 'ah' over the dice inside. All three of the sets were different, with gemlike finishes and inset, colored numbers. Of the three sets, two of them were nice enough that they might have been worth purchasing even had they been visible (sadly, my set was not to my taste...but two out of three ain't bad).

Pic is from their web site...

As a stocking stuffer, or birthday party gift bag or similar, these are great little packets for handing out to kids (or adults) who are into geeky dice games. And the price is good: a six pack of mystery bags is only $40, which is cheaper than a standard $8-10 box. And, as said, the gimmick's fun. Like ripping into a Cracker Jack box to get the prize. Dig it.

All right: Friday commercial done.

In other news: disappointing Seahawks game last night, but we've watched a lot of disappointing Seahawks-Niners match-ups the last couple years. Two dwarf teams in a row (Giants, too)...and dwarves are rough for orks. Especially when the dwarves are GOOD (which is the case with San Francisco, injuries or not). *sigh*

Watched The Spine of Night the other day. Not bad. But not great. The story felt very post-apocalyptic up until the end when it gets all mythical, fallen gods, and blah-blah-blah. Would have preferred fallen space men in a 50th century Earth, but oh well (AND, if one is looking for inspiration for a PA, warring city-state campaign world, the first hour or so is pretty groovy). Some of the (still) art was great. Some of the animation was pretty...mm..."pedestrian."  In other words, the movie was a mixed bag and uneven. However, for what is (basically) a 90 minute film that would have been par for Heavy Metal magazine, it wasn't terrible. 

And...this ain't the greatest blog post. But it's Friday and I'm busy. Later gators!

New Orks

September drizzle...finally starting to look like Seattle fall around here. Not that I don't like an abundance of late year sunshine (sure makes the soccer games less miserable), but when I need to recharge my batteries...and I've been sick as a dog the last few days..."comfort," for me, is more a piece of "normal" or "usual."

Anyway...I had a couple of deep think-thoughts I was intending to blog about, but they were semi-political in nature, and for a Monday morning that might not be everyone's cup o tea.

Let's talk Blood Bowl instead.

; )

SO...I don't think I've had a BB post since the end of the Pete Carroll era. 

[checking Ye Old Blog archives...nope, sure haven't]

I've written this before, but FOR ME...and understand I'm a weird kind of guy...NFL teams have their equivalence in the Blood Bowl realm. That is, to say, each NFL team identifies as a particular team type (again, in my mind) by the way and style in which they play...and in which they play best. For some teams this is fairly obvious, for others it's murky, but it's there. 

If you follow American football, you see it. New coaches (often) talk about "wanting to change a culture" when they join a team...but it doesn't really happen. You can change the perspective of being a perennial loser (or winner), but the identity of the team? No. Even high profile free agents tend to take on the existing culture of the team, once they get there. Peyton Manning didn't change the Broncos into the Colts, for example.

Yes, I'm weird. And part of my perspective...this mix of Blood Bowl and the NFL in my brain...no doubt has to do with my BB hobby beginning with the 2nd edition game, when the setting still included conferences and divisions analogous to the actual NFL. Back before they made the thing into something resembling English Premier League with its cups and tourneys and tiers. 

*sigh* I digress. 

ANYhoo. The Seahawks. New coach. New "culture." Except it's the same culture. It's just a different coach. They're still orks. 

Which, again, doesn't mean their dumb or mean or cheaters or whatever. What I'm saying is that they are a team whose culture plays like orks...the way an ork team plays in a game of Blood Bowl. 

The Miami Dolphins, on the other hand, are a wood elf team. I've been saying that for years...at least since 2010. Lot of reasons for this. Marino, of course (he was the 'Fins captain till '99...years after BB was first published). But also the weather in Miami...televised games at their stadium always conjures to mind the "summer lands" of Games Workshop's dark Tolkien setting. Regardless, it fits...especially with their current, high-flying, high speed, high octane offensive juggernaut.

[that Zach Sieler guy? He's the Treeman on the team. What a beast]

Treeman

Yesterday's 24-3 (Seattle) victory is what happens when things start going horribly wrong in a game of orks versus wood elves. 

I say this as a person who's played a lot of ork v. wood elf teams (my son's favorite squad). Things do NOT always go that way...sometimes you see the elves doing their swift footed crosses and dodges and sprints down the sideline for a plentitude of touchdowns. But sometimes the orks start breaking the armor on the elves, and it snowballs into a beatdown.

Tua is a great QB. Listening to the post-game analysis this morning, it is clear the orks dodged a bullet by not having to face Miami's normal trigger-man; the Dolphins ran their same offense even with their back-ups. Thompson and Bailey just weren't going to get it done; it's like when the team thrower gets injured and...because the wood elves are so expensive...you're forced to play the game with a journeyman line-elf. Who still has a high AG score, but no re-rolls (team or otherwise) available. If Tua had been available, we're probably talking about a much closer game (especially with orks coughing up the ball as orks do) if not a crushing home loss.

Geno Smith has played great through the first three games of the season; his profile in BB terms:

Ork Thrower MA 5 ST 3 AG 3 AV 9

Skills: Pass, Sure Hands

His new back-up, Sam Howell (a starter in Washington last season), has this profile:

Ork Thrower MA 5 ST 3 AG 3 AV 9

Skills: Pass, Sure Hands

All apologies to Geno's ego and strong right arm (both are notable) you'll notice that he is, still, just an ork thrower; Howell, who looked good in preseason (and great against Seattle's train wreck defense last season) is pretty much the exact same thing. They are cheap (by quarterback standards), they are serviceable, and they need good coaching and good skill pieces around them to function at their highest level. Which fortunately they appear to have in spades this season. 

An ork in Washington, and an
ork in Seattle. Yeah, just another ork.

And, no, don't say "duh." There are QBs that can elevate the team around them. You know the guys: the Mahomes, Rodgers, Allen, etc. factor. Some QBs do this, or have another factor (Lamar Jackson's legs, for example) that force an opponent to account specifically for the guy's particular skill set. That ain't the case with Seattle's quarterbacks.

Meanwhile, the coaching change...for the better...has been noticeable. Yes, the Seahawks are 3-0 after playing a rookie, a rebuilding New England, and a pair of back up QBs, but the difference is Seattle was losing those games a year ago; they were getting killed by the Colt McCoy's and Mason Rudolph's of the league. That the team can take care of business...beating bad teams that they should beat...is a promising sign of things to come. As a fan of the team, I find myself not just hopeful but darn near optimistic. Despite the crap-tastic orc sloppiness on full display for some 2-3 quarters of the game (bumbled snaps, batted passes, double-digit penalties, etc.).

No dropped passes Sunday, though. And the defense was on point...great goal line stands, at the end of both halves. Nice to see some real orkish thump on that side of the ball...haven't seen that for three or four years. Good, good stuff. We'll see how it holds up on the road next week in Detroit.

All right, that's enough BB stuff for one day. The NFL season is in full swing and the home team is trending up. What with the drizzly weather and my cough nearly gone, that's about all the joy I can handle for one, late September day.

; )

[don't ask me about the Mariners]

Happy Super Bowl!

There is something distinctly American about Super Bowl Sunday...and that's part of why I love it. Oh, I dig on football and sport and competition in general, of course. But this year, as with most years, my team is not in the big event...and, yet, that will not stop me from watching. And it will not stop me from rooting HARD for the Kansas City (Amazon) Chiefs to upset the favored San Francisco (Dwarf) 49ers.

Because I hate the 49ers...and it is O So American to root against things we hate. 

And I embrace that about America, as I embrace many of the ridiculousness things about my country. No nation is perfect...we all have our flaws and foibles. Some are worse than others (in my estimation, of course) and some of those of the US of A are worse than a LOT of other countries. 

Still...we don't make things better by running out on it.

This is (as usual) a silly post to write, but it's what's on my mind at this moment as (again, as usual) I am pressed for time. The family is upstairs getting ready for church, while I'm drinking coffee in the kitchen, wearing a blue sweater over a Captain America t-shirt. I am not much of a suit/slacks guy...just plain old blue jeans (but clean and un-holed) for Yours Truly.  Hoping I'll have time to get some ribs in the oven in time for the second half (no grilling today...it's pouring rain in Seattle)...but chances are the fam will want a Sunday brunch after Mass.

Which is fine. It's just what Americans like to do...and we are having an extremely casual Super Bowl event this year: just us, "snacky food" (as my daughter calls it), making spot wagers with each other over what type of commercial comes up during the break.

The usual really.

Hope everyone has a safe and fun (American) holiday. Later, gators.

; )

Space Wars

So the Seahawks season is over and, despite yet another close win (against a 4-13 halfling team...big whoop), the orks are out of the playoffs (*sigh*). I may discuss that in later post (or the playoffs in general), but at the moment I'm not in the mood for Blood Bowl.

[not that Blood Bowl hasn't been on the mind a bit...the kids have been clamoring for it in recent days and are in the process of painting up a couple BB teams (wood elves and amazons; Christmas gifts from last year, if I remember correctly)]

It should come as little surprise that in MY household, there's been plenty of game playing that's been going the last couple weeks (during the holiday vacation season). What might be surprising is that almost none of it has been D&D related. Instead, it's been card games, board games, and war games...specifically a new war game that was on the boy's Christmas list: Star Wars Legion. Prior to New Year's eve (when we had to clean the table for a dinner party) our dining room was dominated by battlefield detritus and unpainted models. Now...well, the battlefield hasn't returned (yet) but the table is once again dominated by scores of miniatures...primed miniatures that are in the process of being painted.

Since it IS game related and it's been the main thing occupying my attention lately (at least, the bandwidth I reserve for gaming), I figured I might as well write something about it.

Under the tree this year.

Star Wars Legion is a miniature war game; the core box set comes in two varieties Republic vs. Separatist or Empire vs. Rebels. The rules for both are the same, but the models included in the box are different. We, of course, have the latter set because...duh. 

I find the game VERY reminiscent of 2nd edition Warhammer 40,000. Not necessarily in game play (initiative and turn procedure is NOT 40K-esque, and the thing uses custom dice rather than standard d6s), but in terms of army construction and general paradigm. Each player picks up a faction. Unit types are given "rank" categories, which limits how many of each type can be included in the army list. There are normal generals and whatnot or "special" (Unique) figures based on film characters. There are "upgrade" cards that can purchased for specific points...very much like 40K's "war gear" and "psychic power" cards. And just like 2E 40K, the special characters, can punch above their point value, absolutely dominating the battlefield...something that the 40K designers endeavored to rectify between 2E and 3E.

[when it comes to 40K, I logged the most "game time" playing 2E, though I spent more years collecting & building 3E and/or 4E, before chucking the thing around the time of 5E]

Which is FINE...it is very Star Wars. Luke Skywalker should be able to carve his way through a unit of stormtroopers. Vader should be a big, menacing presence on the moving (slowly) about the battlefield. Mandalorians with jetpacks should be highly mobile, elite units. Etc.

The game has a LOT of fiddle to it: a lot of special rules and spot mechanics and tokens, reminiscent of Magic cards...a fairly obvious influence on the design of Star Wars Legion. But I like the game...a lot. For a NUMBER of reasons:

1) Star Wars is fun. Star Wars as a war game (stormtroopers vs. rebels) is a blast. The models are all recognizable by anyone with even a passing knowledge of the films, and their capabilities are well-modeled by the game mechanics.

2) Really quality components (easily stored in a nice box) and fairly straightforward rules that, after a couple play-throughs, are fairly easy to grok. No issues for the 12 year old, despite being for ages 14+.

3) Dirt-cheap investment. Anyone familiar with GW stuff knows how much money can be spent on the miniatures hobby. I remember when a single rhino tank was $35 or a landraider was an "outrageous" $50ish. Just checking Amazon this morning, the prices on these are up to $89 and $140. 

Holy. Crap. 

Star Wars Legion, by contrast, are cheaper to buy BUT (more importantly) have an 800 point structure limit. The core box provides two forces of circa 500 points...you can customize a legal army with the purchase of 2-3 extra units, probably with less than $70ish total in extra expenditure.  They're cheap enough you can outfit multiple "800 point armies" of the same faction for little money (the core box is currently available on-line for $95...compare that to 40K!). I bought myself a late Christmas present of the "Blizzard" box: three snowtrooper units (21 models), 2 speeder bike units (4 models), another Vader, and an AT-ST (!!) all with associated cards, upgrades, and extra tokens. Total price: $105. Scheduled to arrive tomorrow. One of these days I'll throw down the extra $13 to buy General Veers, and my "Hoth assault" army will be complete. 

[never mind...just took 2 minutes to place the order. It's still only $15 with tax...arrives tomorrow, too]

Arriving tomorrow.

Back in 1996 I paid $18 a pop for each two-pack of space marine terminators. I got six (total), all with thunder hammers and painted them up to be Khorne berserkers. Less than a year later, they were outlawed by 40Ks new rule set and (so far as I know) have never since been a legal 40K unit. Screw you, Games Workshop.

4) Easy assembly. The kids have been doing (most of) the cutting and gluing...I just do all the priming, out in the garage (to save on their young lungs). Even the really fiddly models (the AT-RT, the Mandalorians)...the kid put them together no problem, without adult help.

5) Lego compatible. Over the years, my kids have acquired quite the collection of Lego sets, many of which are Star Wars themed. While these have been used for plenty of "Lego wars" in the past, they are pretty close to the same scale as Star Wars Legion...which means that we have ready-made "terrain" for our battlefield. Who needs plastic forests and spray-painted "hills" when you can battle in the Tattooine cantina? Plus, I just like repurposing toys...or anything...in ways that make it useful. 

6) Fast gameplay. The game plays quite fast...once you get a handle on how each unit's special rules and instructions work. That part is kind of a pain, as each unit generally has at least 1-2 special rules associated with it (even before adding various "upgrade" cards), and you're bound to make mistakes in the first battle or two (we did). However, the limited NUMBER of units (that 800 points is only enough for 6-7 groups), combined with fast turn sequence means you get ramped up pretty quick. The whole "issuing orders" phase (a card drawing mechanic that takes the place of initiative rolling) allows for interesting tactical maneuvering, and the quick attrition means game play speeds up substantially as the game goes. Six turns (again: memories of 2E 40K) goes VERY fast, but battles are tight right to the end. We dig it.

7) With regard to rules, I'm generally fine. Yes, Luke is a beast. He's also been shot to death in every battle we've played. Same with Vader. The only mechanical issue that bugs (or that I'm not used to) is that troop models cannot be screened by other troop models. So, even though the stormtroopers advance in front of DV (because Darth is Sooo Slooow), rebel forces can ignore the troopers, focusing fire on the commander behind. In practice it hasn't been a big deal...but it does feel odd.

Anyway. War gaming is fun. War gaming in spaaaace is also quite fun. Even the nine year old is into it (she's currently painting her Amazon team, but has a Chewbacca and Leia for SWL and plans to get in on the next battle). The kids are getting to an age when I can fo this kind of thing with them...an age where I can unpack my old crates of 40K minis and not worry about them smashing them crazily, or pitching one in a tantrum of frustration (always a possibility with young or immature players). 

But I'm kind of over 40K. I mean, there's a lot of sly Star Wars references in the original 40K game (which I own, but have never played), and I'm tempted to run some first edition 40K using the SWL miniatures in place of GW stuff (now that would be a hoot!). I thought about introducing them to 40K proper, but even though I've got the stuff for it...what edition would I teach them? I mean...how many editions are there now? Eight? Nine? I've got rule books for the first four (five? Maybe) editions. But do I have a favorite? Not really. It's such a simple system, but there are changes to every version that changes the game in significant ways. 

Nah. I think I'll stick with the new Star Wars game for a bit. I'm sure 40K will still be around in ten years...in a twelfth edition with $300 tank models...if the kids want to try it out.

*** EDIT: Sorry, almost forgot: Go Dawgs! ***

And Finally (*sigh*) Blood Bowl

This will not be a long post. 

We are 12 games through the (now) 17 game season...more than 70%. The end is fast approaching and the Seahawks are probably looking at missing the playoffs. Losing to the Rams twice means the skaven have the tie-breaker over us (even though they are a bad, bad team).  The Packers, Lord help us, are probably going to get 10 wins down the stretch with their remaining schedule. And the Vikings, despite all their woes might...might...even have a chance to sneak in over us. 

Even after a 6-3 start. Even after acquiring everything Pete Carroll said they needed to acquire in the off-season, two years running: offensive linemen. Pass rushers. More stellar defensive backs. Bobby Wagner. And more offensive weapons (Charbonnet and Smith-Njigma) to add to a full cupboard of offensive weapons (Metcalf, Lockett, Walker).

What. The. Hell. Is the problem?

Orks. Orks being orks. That's it.

Oh...and Jamal Adams. And Geno Smith.

Smith is...fine. He's an ork thrower: no more, no less. Not every team in the NFL is composed of high elves and wood elves...they just ain't. There are those teams, make no mistake. But the Seahawks have never been that type of outfit...not when they've been good, certainly not when they've been bad. They are a waaagh team; always have been. We can go down the list:

Jim Zorn: ork thrower

Dave Krieg: ork lineman (but with a lot of star skills)

Rick Mirer: ork thrower (add dodge...happy feet!)

Warren Moon: ork thrower (with a LOT of arm talent, despite being long in the tooth)

Matthew Hasselbeck: ork thrower (good number of star player points)

Tavaris Jackson: ork thrower

Russell Wilson: goblin (with a lot of star player skills)

[there really no need to mention guys like Gelbaugh, McGwire, Stouffer, Whitehurst...oh, boy, we've had some baaaaad ork QBs]

None of these guys fit the mold of the high elf...or even human!...thrower. And that's fine. In Blood Bowl, ork throwers are plenty serviceable. No, they're not going to be setting any passing records (on this team...Moon did most of his damage before coming to the 'Hawks).  But that's not the orks' game. They are grinders that play solid defense.

Problem here is you're counting on a damn goblin to play linebacker.

I am sorry, Jamal Adams. I know I've called you trash before (and a "pigeon") later retracting the former accusation. But you're an idiot. Not only were you the obvious target in the Dallas game (giving up a touchdown and 2-point conversion on back-to-back plays against the dark elves), but then you take shots at a critical reporter's wife? Pretty f'ing classless, considering the impact you've had this year while healthy (spoiler: zero sacks, which is especially damning when you consider A) this is supposed to be his specialty and B) 12 different Seahawks have at least one sack this season, including guys who aren't even starters). What an a-hole.

SO...ork thrower (Gino). Fine. But, generally, not going to win you any games with his arm. Going to have some good offensive performances (vs. Detroit, Dallas) and some stinkers (Rams, Niners) depending on how the dice fall. That's to be expected. But when you're giving up a bunch of points on defense, it makes it tough for the orks to catch up...in Blood Bowl, ork teams are just not built that way.

I've talked about it before: the NFL has a LOT of similarities to BB, the way it's structured. Most NFL teams have a maximum of 7 or so STAR (i.e. standout) players on their roster; the others are position guys who are...fine. Nothing special. How the Stars perform (and how the coaches use the players they have) are going to go a long way towards determining the outcome of games. Seahawks current stars this year include:

Kenneth Walker III (blitzer)

Abe Lucas (black ork blocker)

DK Metcalf (blitzer)

Tyler Lockett (goblin)

Jackson Smith-Njigba (goblin)

Bobby Wagner (blitzer)

Devon Witherspoon (goblin)

And Walker's hurt. And Lucas has been injured for most of the season (he just came back, in the Cowboys game, and it showed on offense).

Charles Cross is a black ork blocker. Jordyn Brooks and Charbonnet are standard blitzers. The tight ends (and Jake Bobo) are simply lineorks. And Adams is nothing but a goblin who woofs at opposing teams every time he makes a tackle on some "big guy," even though he gave up 12-15 yards (and a first down). 

Embarrassing.

Sevenbastard suggested (in the comments of my last post) there might be some worry about the Seahawks winning another game this season. This is not my worry...I am CERTAIN the Seahawks will win another game. Heck, I'm 95% sure they'll win THREE more games, achieving a 9-8 record...a winning season in a year where every team plays 17 games. 

But I don't see them making the playoffs this year...not if they insist on continuing to play Adams on defense...and they have shown that they absolutely Will NOT Stop playing this guy, no matter how bad he sucks. They let Ryan Neal WALK even though he showed...again and again...that despite his cheap salary, he was a better asset on the field as a replacement when Adams was injured. It may just be that the Seahawks managed to get to the playoffs last year precisely because Jamal was out (he played only one game in the 2022 season) and Seattle was forced to make do with "lesser" talent. 

You play the pigeon, and opposing teams will target the pigeon. 

And 9-8 simply will not cut it this year when it comes to making the playoffs. And THAT is disappointing. Because there is a LOT of star power on the Seahawks team...real star power, real talent. And it would be nice to see them do some damage in the playoffs.

Ork teams cannot rely on goblins. That's just not good roster construction.

SO...just like the 90s, we're going to see a middling record, and a middling draft pick and a tough time clawing our way out of this hole. The Seahawks aren't exactly "risk averse" (when it comes to picking players), but they can be loyal to a fault, and doubling down on their mistakes (like Adams) is going to hurt them. It's already hurt them. Second chances are cool, but sometimes you have to admit you were wrong and cut bait.

*sigh* It's oh so silly. It's just entertainment. It's just live-action Blood Bowl.

By the way, I am fully aware that I am (probably) being overly harsh on a guy who's selling his body for my entertainment. Oh, well. I'm a fan...that's what fans do. He's paid millions of dollars (in a league that has a hard salary cap). I'm allowed to be critical. 

At least I continue to watch the Seahawks. At this point, I've all but decided to boycott the Mariners.

WAAAGH!

Yesterday, as my son and I left Lumen Field following the Seahawks' overtime victory over the Rams, I started chanting, 'Let's go Lions! Let's go Lions!' and it didn't take long before other voices joined me in the cheer. Not that I had any faith in Detroit's ability to beat the Packers at Lambeau.

And then the Lions, with nothing to play for but pride, curb-stomped Green Bay.

I'm not a man to have the optimism of Ted Lasso (or Pete Carroll)....I've been disappointed just a few too many times over the years.  But I don't consider myself to be a true cynic, either. And so I was surprised at how, well, stunned I was that the Lions actually won, sending the Seahawks back to the playoffs for the 10th time in the 13 year tenure of Seattle's head coach. Amazing. 

On the arm of Geno Smith. Double amazing.

While I'm not one to shy away from admitting when I'm wrong (I'm actually well-practiced in it), my assessment of Smith's quarterbacking ability has not changed all that much. Still: as a pro bowler this year (triple amazing!) I feel I have to assign his Blood Bowl profile some extra skills. It's only fair to upgrade him to 'star player' status when he was one of the stars of the team this season.

Here he is:

Geno Smith

#7 Ork Thrower  MA 5 ST 3 AG 3 AV 9

Skills: Leader, Pass, Safe Throw, Sure Hands

It's been a good year for Geno, for the team, and for Seattle sports fans.  The Russel Wilson era has finished, the Pete Carroll era continues. Looking forward to Saturday's playoff game versus the Niners.

Have a good week everyone. D&D posts to resume shortly.

Go Seahawks!

; )

Moral Compass

So. Let me be the first to admit that any "fame" (notoriety) or "fortune" (beer money) I have acquired in the RPG hobby is almost entirely due to the internet. 

And yet I am hopelessly naive about the business of using the internet in any kind of effective way. I have a (personal) Facebook page that I never update or look at. I have a Twitter account that I only use to follow local sports team reporters. I don't use Instagram or TikTok or..."Mammoth?" (that's a thing, right?) or even have the apps to access them.  I don't really worry about "cancel culture" or being "cancelled;" if the few hundred folks who check up on what I have to say suddenly stopped doing so, it really wouldn't affect me very much at all. I'd probably even continue writing books (slowly)...just because I've now, at this late point in my life, found that I enjoy the act of creating and self-publishing game material.

But, of course, I have the luxury of acting this way, because I don't rely on this RPG stuff as my livelihood. It is not my means of supporting (feeding) my family. It is not the way that I pay my rent. I can act in cavalier fashion, because if no one purchased another book from me or if I never wrote another blog post again, it would not affect my quality of life one iota. Hell, it might improve my quality of life, if I tossed everything aside and started a bagel shop or something (I don't know...just spitballing). I could still play D&D (with friends and family) even if no one outside my locale wanted anything to do with me...and to be clear there are VERY FEW people outside my locale (even in the RPG community) that even know I exist, even now. 

I'm just some dude: a faceless name in this niche of a niche hobby.

James Raggi is not a faceless name. In fact, as far as publishers go in the so-called "OSR" I daresay he's the BIGGEST name in the biz. Gavin Norman's OSE may sell more than Lamentations of the Flame Princess, but LotFP has been around longer. Dan Proctor and Stuart Marshall may have penned their retro-clones earlier, but the scope of their ambition was far more limited than Raggi. Goodman Games may be a powerhouse in the OSR world, but they have an entire team of individuals doing the work that Raggi has taken on his own shoulders...at least, that would be the assumption based on press releases (Joseph Goodman isn't quite the shameless self-promoter that Raggi has been over the years). 

Everyone else is 'small potatoes' in comparison...and with good reason. Raggi's impact on the OSR business has been immense. Turning his passion into a livelihood, as opposed to a garage-band hobby. Cranking out high quality product rather than vanity press releases. Pushing the envelope of artistry and taste and innovation within the OSR realm. Taking risks and blazing trails in ways that few, if any, had the gumption to do.

All that might make me sound like some kind of "super-fan" of Mr. Raggi. I'm not. I've purchased exactly two of his products over the years: a PDF of Death Frost Doom and a slim hardcover of LotFP volume 1, "Rules & Magic." Most of his products are simply items in which I have no interest. Many of the ideas that fascinate and entertain James as an artist and creator hold no water for me. It's not that I find the content abhorrent, revolting, or morally repugnant...it's just not 'my thing.' Same as I'm not into the cutesy D&D exemplified by Strixhaven Academy and such.

Likewise, I don't follow his blog these days (haven't for years, ever since it became mostly biz-related / promotional), or keep up on Raggi's role in whatever's the latest OSR drama. LotFP does, however, continue to exhibit it's own gravitational force in the waters I swim, and so I am at least peripherally aware that the company continues to limp along, existing.

On or around January 2nd, I had the chance to listen to Raggi's video declaration of "commercial suicide;" for those uninterested in the state of James's physical, mental, and financial health, I'd recommend skipping to minute 18 in the video. For those who don't want to bother, I can sum up pretty easily: going forward, James has decided that his company (LotFP) will publish products by artists and creators regardless of any controversy surrounding said individuals or any public outcry for giving such individuals a platform to express themselves creatively. 

I think I've listened to the entire screed some three times now (generally with the speed turned up), and I find myself 100% supportive of his position, his reasoning, and his moral compass. In fact, regardless of any commercial success or "suicide" that might result from such a stance, I think it's the only rational position...or position of integrity...that Raggi, as the man he professes to be, as the possibility he professes to believe in, can take.

Back in 2021 I wrote a post describing how I would henceforth forgo questions of politics (or opinion or belief) when it came to my gaming purchases...and, in part, this was due to with the fatigue of arguing politics and the downright inanity of trying to "vet" or police every product that crosses my path. Raggi's non-manifesto manifesto is a cry for logic and reason...a statement based in the fact that the internet (and social media) is not necessarily reality. For all any of my readers know, I may well be something extremely different from what I represent on this blog...people I've never met in person, but with whom I've had plenty of 'net interaction might be completely fictitious avatars representing, well, anything (any person) who has a finger that can poke at a keyboard.  Those of us who allow ourselves to be controlled by "internet opinion" or any story/rumor/gossip/scandal are...hoo-boy, we are asking for it.

But set all that aside (i.e. just keep it in the back of your mind while I write the next bit): we humans (yeah, all of us) are HUMANS...fallible humans. Some of us are real fuck-ups when it comes to getting along with our fellow humans on this planet...and, yet, there still exists within all of us the chance to create something of positive value for our fellows and (the possibility, at least) future generations...REGARDLESS of our failings.

Set aside the "gaming scene" for a second and let's look at a different scene: the National Football League.  The NFL is an industry that generates billions of dollars per year...it is gigantic. And, yet, the employees of this organization (players, coaches, owners, admin staff) contain individuals who are fallible humans. Some beat their domestic partners. Some are sexual predators. Some are rapists. A handful have been murderers. And many of these individuals could (in their younger years) have been accused of the same kind of BULLYING that schools have attempted to crack down in the last decade or two. 

And yet...and yet many of these people do HUGE, POSITIVE things for their communities, donating their time, their fame, their fortune to helping individuals in need. Visiting cancer wards in Children's hospitals on a weekly basis. Digging wells in Africa. Rebuilding homes wrecked by hurricanes. Donating millions to disenfranchised children and victims of domestic violence. Raising money for cancer research. And THAT is just the "charitable" aspect of the NFL...the NFL itself creates jobs and revenue for all the people whose livelihoods are tied to the sports: hotels and restaurants and bars and service industries and all that goes with the billions of dollars of television revenue. That's putting food on tables and gas in cars.

All that besides the entertainment the League brings...and besides the way sports teams galvanize communities, bringing together individuals of all different races and religions and beliefs in support of their hometown colors.

Some of the people in this world are real pieces of shit: guys like Harvey Weinstein for example. I'd imagine that many of his victims are happy that he was convicted in a court of law and is now in prison. Probably there are those who wish Weinstein's punishment had been harsher or had happened decades earlier (the allegations of his sexual predation and rapes extend back to 1980). 

But say Weinstein had been jailed and thrown out of the movie business decades earlier; what would be the impact on the lives of individuals. Weinstein was directly responsible for the launch of many young actors and filmmakers careers. His company produced many uplifting, moving, and groundbreaking films. He's been an activist and philanthropist on a number of health and social issues; he was a founding member and board director of the Robin Hood Foundation since 1988, raising hundreds of millions to fight poverty. Miramax (Weinstein's company) release and distribution of The Thin Blue Line in the that same year is directly credited with gaining the release of wrongly convicted death row inmate Randall Adams...I'd guess he'd have some nice things to say about Mr. Weinstein.

[this 2017 analysis of Academy Award acceptance speeches from 1966 to 2016 found that Weinstein had been thanked or praised in 34 speeches—as many times as God, and second only to Steven Spielberg]

Point being: Weinstein is an example of human potential...a person with the capacity for doing both good and evil in this world. Plenty of other examples are available, from Alfred Nobel ("the merchant of death") to Marion Zimmer Bradley (whose aid was invaluable in getting many young authors...especially female authors...their start in the publishing biz). The longer people are around on this planet, the more opportunities they have to do both good and bad. Doesn't mean we should condone harmful actions (harmful actions should be condemned), nor am I trying to imply in any way, shape, or form that "the end justifies the means," or that good actions excuse bad actors; they do not. I'm only pointing out that good can come from anyone.

Back to LotFP: Raggi is not about supporting "the good;" his concerns (aside from those of his profession) is supporting creativity and art without judgment...at least, without judgment on matters and concerns outside of the art being created. And as I wrote above, I support this position. If I were James, I'd be running out and soliciting creators from ALL points of the gaming spectrum, making LotFP a truly egalitarian publishing house catering to beliefs from every side of the market: left, right, center, and "weird."

Because creativity isn't bad...the act of creation is a positive thing. I truly believe that. Some acts of creation are more positive than others...greater or lesser lights, I suppose. But creation is better than destruction; far too much of the latter in our lives. Creating, sharing, building...people need more of this, as much as we can get, at least until our species reaches that enlightened stage where a critical mass understands that we are all part of one body, one world, one existence. 

[sorry, don't want to wax too philosophical, but one should realize that positive and negative are simply two forces going different directions and assigning one as "good" and one as "bad" is actually a mistake as both forces are necessary and essential for existence. However, as the vast majority of people on this planet tend to be unenlightened individuals who get bent out of shape over destructive forces...especially when those forces occur in our own lives...and tend to fear death and not see the eternality of the human soul, I think it's best to focus (at THIS STAGE of our species' development) on the less problematic (causing) side of the force equation, i.e. the positive, and let God handle the rest. For now]

Now, I am sure there are folks out there who feel that it is against their principals to support (i.e. pay money to) a company that supports (i.e. does business with / pays money to) individuals, talented or not, who are 'bad actors' (i.e. people who behave in a fashion one disapproves of). I grok that. I have principals that determine how and what I support, too (for example, I refuse to shop at Walmart...for many reasons). 

But I also recognize the truth and wisdom in Raggi's statement: just because a hate-filled person (say, Hitler) writes a hate-filled book (say, Mein Kampf) doesn't mean people who bother to read it will become hate-filled, any more than "bad" people who read, for example, The Bible will suddenly become holy, Godly types. I suppose there are "impressionable" types who are easily manipulated, but the sheer amount of manipulating material in the world today utterly dwarfs the tiny amount of game material being produced ANYwhere, let alone by one lone indie publisher in Finland. Imbeciles and the ignorant are likely to fall into vast pits of crazy long before they succumb to the influence of elf-game propaganda.

Creation is preferred to destruction. Vote with your wallet. Encourage better creations (whatever "better" means to you). But don't discourage the act of creation itself

I still can't say I'm a super-fan of James Raggi's LotFP imprint. But I am a fan of the possibility for which he stands. Hopefully, his health will improve in 2023 as a result of this new authenticity.

Happy Friday, folks. 

; )

Imagining 2023

Happy New Year!

My first post of the 2023 and don't let the title of it give you any preconceived notions...just had to call the post something.  I am currently sitting in the lobby of my local VW dealership getting my 22 year old Jetta diagnosed as to why it won't start (battery seems fine). *sigh* First pain in the ass of the new year; I really don't want to buy a new car but I really want to have two vehicles that drive.

[while it may seem decadent for a pinko liberal like myself to even own two cars, it sure makes it a lot easier to coordinate being in multiple places simultaneously when you've got a family of four. Just saying...]

Anyhoo, it affords me a little time to write. Plus: free coffee.

Looking back over 2022, I see I got a couple of my half-dozen resolutions knocked out, which is...well...a pretty shitty track record. In addition, all the weight I had lost seems to have come back over the holiday season (since Thanksgiving...). Go figure, right? So, really it's more like one or one-and-a-half resolutions. I do still fit into my snow pants...

I suppose writing an adventure that made the cut for Prince of Nothing's most recent NoArtPunk contest counts as having an adventure "published and reviewed" (here's the review), but that's not quite what I meant when I wrote the resolution. Still, maybe another half point?

***LATER***

Car's fixed. Only cost more than I care to spend (about half what I made in book sales for last year). Lots has happened in the meantime (7:15pm as I sit down to write more); currently I'm having a beer while waiting for soccer practice to finish. Yes, turns out D's team is back on the field already (shocker).

Monday Night Football has been suspended. A player, a Bills safety named Damar Hamlin, was injured on the field, unable to breathe unassisted. I've seen a lot of NFL injuries over the years...never have I seen a game suspended like this for anything but extreme weather (lightning storms in Seattle once). That's rough. I wonder if Hamlin is related to ex-Seahawk safety Kenny Hamlin who was  beaten over the head with a sandwich board in Pioneer Square suffering brain trauma as a result and missing the 2005 Super Bowl. "The Hammer" Hamlin we used to call him. 

Sad. Rough. Still a lot of people dying in Ukraine, though.

[which is not to say I didn't send up a prayer that he'll be all right. Just as I send up prayers for the folks in Ukraine]

Perspective. 

Okay, the game's been postponed indefinitely. I appreciate that people are a bit more important than profits for the League.

I, of course, am not terribly worried about profits...I mean, other than the ones that pay my rent, fund my kids' soccer, and gets my car up and running. I'm little different from most people: self-absorbed. Well, at least I continue to notice it. ALSO: it's the New Year...let's hope (and work) to do better.

[truthfully, I am. But I won't go into those details as they're a little on the "personal" side]

I am sure there are folks who think it's all a joke: considering the New Year, making resolutions, blah-blah-blah. "You frigging hypocrite! You want to change, just change! Don't wait till some arbitrary calendar date like January first!" And, while there's truth in that, it's NICE that there's also a designated date and time that folks of my culture have set aside for personal reflection and consideration. A designated "life evaluation" point similar to the evaluations one might receive (annually) on-the-job or in school. A time to set expectations; a time to consider methods of growth.

SO...here, without further ado, are my resolutions for the New Year:

1. Write at least ONE PAGE (let's say 1,000+ words) every day, rain or shine. At this point, it doesn't much matter to me what I'm writing, just that I'm writing. I want to create a habit of work, even when I don't "feel like it."
2. Write at least two blog posts per week.
3. Cut back on my alcohol intake substantially. No stocking beer in the fridge (that actually helps) and limiting myself to one beer when I'm out. A little wine when cooking or at festive events.
4. Cut back on the caffeine and be back to decaf only by the end of February (I was on decaf before my in-laws came to town, but I've only got one coffee maker and they like their joe).
5. Cut the the sweets out entirely...once we've finished the holiday goodies that are left over (I don't like to waste food).
6. Get an hour of decent exercise in every day. 
7. Be more attentive to my wife. 
8. Publish an adventure on DriveThruRPG.
9. Make time to play D&D once per week.
10. Consolidate and organize my campaign notes for my world rather than having them scattered over dozens of random documents.
11. Cook one new dish every month (and learn to cook at least one Mexican dish). 
12. Run at least one game for adult players, either in person or on-line.
13. Find a way to one gaming convention this year.

Okay, that's enough. Let's see how many I can get through THIS year.

; )

[posting this Tuesday, January 3rd]

That's A Lot Of Germans

6:30am and the Tampa Bay Bucs are about to kick-off to the Seattle Seahawks in Munich, Germany. I woke up before my alarm, round about 6:10. The rest of my family is asleep (even the dog, next to me on the couch)...we were up till midnight or so last night.

Today's my birthday, though, and they left me a couple gifts and decorations to greet me. Very kind.

[the Bucs go three-and-out on their first possession. Punt down to the 25]

They did NOT, however, make me coffee. I'm going to have to do that. Might even use mix in a little of the caffeinated stuff.

[Seahawks get a first down to DK Metcalf, then get a delay of game penalty and take a big sack on 3rd and 10. Another punt and the Bucs are in great field position]

Later this morning (around 10), I'll be going to my son's soccer game. My mom's making dinner for my birthday...that's at 5:30. In between, I'll be finding some time to take a long siesta, probably with the dog (she sleeps a lot), and play some games with the kids while my wife makes my annual pineapple upside-down cake.

[Bucs get their first first down on a pas to Mike Evans, then try a 52 yard field goal after failing to convert 3rd down. It misses; 'Hawks get the ball back and Geno goes back to work]

Lot of Germans at this game. Well, a lot of people. A pretty good portion seem to be wearing Seahawks gear (though about a third are just wearing random team jerseys...supporting their favorites I presume). Seems pretty loud no matter who's on the field.

[Seahawks move the ball well, then a stupid (unnecessary) penalty on Damien Lewis makes it 3rd and 24. Geno gets back 15, but the Seahawks still punt down to the 7. Bucs start moving the ball by going to the ground game, hoping to set up Brady's play-action. Seahawks making Leonard Fournette look better than he is...shades of rhe first couple-three Seahawks games this season]

End of the 1st quarter. Bucs are marching, having just crossed the 50. The beagles's gotten up a couple times, but then keeps going back to sleep. Sky's getting light, but no sun yet. And Amazon has some sort of advertisement with a yeti at a party? What the hell is that and what does it have to do with Amazon?

All right. I'm going to go.  Time to make coffee. Have a happy Sunday, everyone!

[Julio Jones catches a short pass over the middle on 3rd and 10 and turns it into a 31 yard touchdown reception; appears to have been a busted coverage from the rookie corner, Bryant. We'll see if the Seahawks can answer back. Hopefully. It's my birthday after all!]

; )

Random Notes

Just warming up the mental muscles this morning...maybe the typing fingers, too.

• The Seattle Seahawks boarded a plane to Germany today for a game versus the Bucs in what will be the first ever NFL game in that country. They're off to Munich which is, perhaps, my favorite German city ('course I've only ever been to three or four cities in Germany...).  I've heard ticket prices are something in the neighborhood of $500 with some 3 million folks trying to get in the game; one would assume the sport would appeal to a large segment of the culture. For my part, I wish I could go just to get back to Bavaria, which is MY version of Disney Land (i.e. "the happiest place on Earth"): mountains and castles, beer and schnitzel, cathedrals and museums, the Autobahn...sheesh. An abundance of riches. Hope the 'Hawks have fun.

• In sad news, a child was murdered at a local high school, another victim of gun violence. Not a crazed psychopath with mass shooting agenda, just a hormonal 14 year old with far-too-easy access to a handgun. Now, multiple lives have been ruined: victim and shooter, family and friends, students and teachers. I know the school well; it is the public school that serves the same neighborhood/community as my kids' elementary school. Many siblings (at least six) of my kids' classmates attend the school. A sad, frightening day yesterday. 

• In happier news, Washington State continued to be a bastion of sanity and democracy judging by the election results of 2022...and it appears such was the case for a lot of the country, stymying the predicted Red Wave. That makes me somewhat...hopeful? I won't say more than that, because delving into the politics of this country makes me equal parts sad and angry, and I know it tends to rile up my readers. Thank you to everyone who voted (one way or the other): our democracy only has a chance of being a representative reflection of our society if we make our voices heard. Voting is the way we do that.

• In my publishing "business:" sold a bunch of books lately. Must be the holiday season. Thank you to everyone who's given me money: as I've written before, it's much appreciated and encourages me to do more.

• In general gaming: picked up a copy of Jeffrey C. Dillow's RPG Adventures in Fantasy Gaming. First published in 1980, I'd never heard of this game before finding it on the shelf. Compact, hardcover (the good kind), lovely illustrations, it is somewhat reminiscent of Fantasy Wargaming being based off a wargaming model (by which I mean: something like a combo of ODD+Chainmail with a heavy emphasis on the Chainmail). Unlike FW, though, it seems far less inclined towards the medieval/historical and far more fantastical and...dare-I-say...American-ish (Fantasy Wargaming is distinctly Euro-centric, in my opinion). Looking forward to the chance of digesting it. Appears to have at least a couple of adventure scenarios in it that I might purloin (including rather nice maps).

[oh, wait...here's a review]

• In television: started watching Reservation Dogs with the wife. Fantastic show. Equal measures funny and heartbreaking. I've had some extremely limited experience with tribal nations in Washington (both in general and as part of my former job) and my aunt in Montana worked as a federal liaison to the tribes for the last couple decades. Oklahoma isn't the same as Washington and Montana but there are shared similarities of reservation life.  Just a really well made, well cast, well written production...must see TV.

• In Dragonlance/D&D: nothing to report. However, it is my birthday Sunday and perhaps I can wrangle some D&D play out of the family. We'll see. After getting up at 6am to watch the Seahawks play in Germany, and then heading out to watch my son's morning soccer match, I might just decide to take a nap. But we'll see. 

Okay. That wasn't a terribly bad "warm up." Now let's see if I can get something a bit more substantial.

Monday Morning

Mmm.

Lot of distractions lately, and I'm not just talking about the putrid football coming out of the local team.

[make no mistake: the Seahawks are not good. And I was at that Monday Night Football game where they beat Denver. That victory was 85% crowd...I haven't heard the stadium that loud since the NFC championship game against Green Bay. Hell, I'll even give myself credit for starting the chants of "Geno! Geno!" but, at least in our section, we meant it in a sarcastic, raucous way in order to poke the eye of...and stick it to...Russell Wilson. If you rewatch the broadcast, you'll see that the chants started in the second half (when the offense was stinking up the joint and the ONLY thing Smith was  doing was running the ball like a poor man's RW). We weren't actually backing the QB; we were yelling nah-nah-nah at the Broncos and their $250M man. Longtime fans who remember the AFC West will remember how much we hate Denver]

No, the majority of distraction is all family-related. Good things to be sure...not financial issues or health issues or marital issues or anything like that. School, church, and a TON of sports activity. Yes, sports participation for the most part (two kids on four teams, one of which I'm coaching), but also 2-3 fantasy leagues (that I'm running, or helping to run, for extended family), a Blood Bowl season of 16 teams, and then the ongoing, must-follow fun of the NFL, Sounders team (struggling), Mariners team (ascending), and local college programs.

[let's not forget the Seattle Storm's playoff run...yeah, it ended a few weeks ago, but I didn't post much even in August, and the Storm was part of that. Much love and respect to Sue Bird] 

Fact is, Dungeons & Dragons has, in general, taken a backseat. Oh, I did get something written up for the second installment of Prince of Nothing's "No ArtPunk Contest"...a little high level one-off for AD&D that came out to some 17ish pages. This one actually got some play-testing from the kids (Diego, Sofia, Maceo, and Winston), and much fun was had.

[a couple quick notes about that (for interested parties): none of the players have "high level" characters, so they used pre-gens made specifically for the adventure (these were included with my submission adding another six pages for a total of 23). Second, on average a party of 10th to 14th level are looking for the same x.p. as a party of 16th, 18th, or 20th level so treasure scale for high level adventures aren't all that tough to write...the main thing is to create scenarios that take into account the higher level of resource attrition. I might talk about this in a future blog post]

But other than that, I haven't been doing anything as far as running/designing for D&D. I was playing in my son's AD&D campaign...absolutely destroying the Keep on the Borderlands (that's a future post, too), but even that's been put on (hopefully brief) hiatus as our focus and priorities have shifted.

And so we come to the "Blues" part of my Monday Morning: I know I've been lax in blogging, but there's two things that have delayed/prevented me from posting. I've kind of decided that I really, really want this blog to be about gaming, specifically D&D, AND I want it to be as positive and constructive as possible...which I've probably said a dozen times in the past but this time (yeah, sure) I really mean it.

I've got multiple posts sitting in draft form on Ye Old Blog because they just tend to go off into fairly negative rants (also, they're not all that good...you folks aren't missing much). And while it's easy to denigrate someone's play style or design work or gaming ignorance...or even The Company's failings...that's all a waste of my time. I mean, it's not like I haven't vented that a gazillion times already, right?

I want to be helpful. It IS useful to tear things down to build them back better and stronger, but I have to make sure that that's what I'm doing. Doing that takes focus...and the distractions get in the way of focus. Right now the majority of my focus has been on my family and (probably not surprisingly) the kids I'm coaching. I could certainly blog about the latter...but, then, that's not D&D, right?

[by the way, ripping on the Seahawks isn't exactly positive, but players and coaches in pro-sports are paid millions of dollars to entertain fans. I don't feel zero remorse about expressing negativity and disapproval to guys making that kind of money: that's the job, dudes]

So, a bit of a quandary. But I'll give it a shot, in the next few days, to get things going. I should have a little more time coming up (especially after next weekend). I'll try to put together a list of topics and see if I can't bang out a couple per week in the next few weeks.

Orks Be Doing Ork Things

In the middle of yet another soccer tournament (both kids) which started yesterday, but did have a chance to watch the final Seahawks preseason game last night.

Orks. Back at it.

Blood Bowl coaches know full well that you don't...you can't...rely on orks to have a great passing attack. Great defense, pounding run game...yes and yes. But in the "modern" Blood Bowl game, putting your hopes in the stone-hands of orcish receivers (not to mention thick-headed decision making of orcish quarterbacks) is a non-starter. And if you have any doubt about it, just look at the QB "competition" that went on in preseason this year as the 'Hawks attempt to replace aging (and now overpaid prima donna) goblin star Russell Wilson.

Geno Smith. Drew Lock. Jacob Eason.

Bad, bad orks.

It doesn't matter that the team has DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, star players both. Everything around them is ork. Receivers #3 through #5 (well, really, all the receivers just vying for a spot on the 53-man roster)...typical goblins and lineorks. But the QBs...the QBs.

Did you know that the Seahawks are the only coaching staff in the NFC that do not have a former quarterback in some coaching capacity. Not as a head coach, OC, QB coach, or even some other assistant coach. How do you coach a player to play the position of quarterback in the NFL when no one on the staff has any experience playing the position?

Answer: you don't. Because you don't need to. They're orks.

We loves Geno Smith, my Precious, but he is a career backup. Naming him the starter for a team that hopes to get back to the playoffs is...so...very...orkish. Pete Carroll is showing his green bloodedness. Again.

A decade of star quarterbacking from Wilson never scrubbed the memories of Charlie Whitehurst from my mind's eye...the archetypal "Checkdown Charlie" (semi-affectionately known in some parts as "Clipboard Jesus" based on his appearance and long-practiced role of standing on the sidelines as a stalwart QB2...or QB3). Pete Carroll duly proclaimed at the beginning of the 2011 NFL season that they had no reason to trade or draft for a new QB (to replace pro-bowler Matt Hasselbeck, released in the off-season), because they HAD their QB in the form of Whitehurst and could win with him just playing "solid" football, in front of a great running game and fantastic defense.

The Seahawks went 7-9, missed the playoffs, and would (very fortunately) draft Russell Wilson in the next season. On the way to that, Whitehurst around midseason for a dude with a torn pectoral muscle. 

The Geno Smith experiment will be Whitehurst 2.0.

Do I need to cite stats for this. Probably not...the number of people reading this post who care about the Seahawks, their quarterback situation, and Blood Bowl in equal measure are probably, um, few. Probably just me. Which is, you know...fine. Nerds gotta' be nerds, y'all. But for the curious, Geno's stats passing stats for this preseason (three games), which won him the job as a starting quarterback for an NFL team (only 32 of those in the world) boil down to:

23/39, 256 yards, 0 TDs, 0 INTs, 4 sacks (36 yards)

No touchdowns. An average of 6.6 yards per passing attempt (not including some terrific "yards after catch" from some of his checkdown throws to running backs). An aversion to risk. A tendency to hang onto the ball and take sacks.

But it's the "zero interceptions" that Carroll cares about. Never mind that preseason is ALWAYS the height of Smith's season potential, when he faces vanilla defenses, and has easy reads to make. Never mind that he choked away multiple games last season (in relief of the injured Wilson), having unforgivable turnovers (picks and strip sacks) in the 4th quarter. Never mind that his ONLY won a single regular season game (playing as a starter) in the last five years.

Never mind that the Seahawks CUT Smith in the off-season, allowed him to swim the waters of free agency, and then signed him back on a one year deal. And then handed him the job. 

*sigh*

I have to go wake up the kids now for day 2 of the soccer tournament. Thank goodness. And thank goodness for the Mariners and the Storm. JB out.

[by the way: there is no need for me to post BB stat lines for Geno Smith. If you want to include a Geno Smith in your Seahawk-themed Blood Bowl team, the basic (unaltered) Ork thrower will suffice. The same holds true for your Drew Lock backup...just make sure you chuck a lot of long balls for picks when desperation time sets in and your team is trying  ANYthing to generate offense. Oh...and good luck with that]