Stop Blanket-Blaming the Game Master by Seth Skorkowsky

TL;DW(atch): It's up to both players and the GM (not just the GM) to ensure a great roleplaying experience! I encourage you to watch, Seth does some great videos about the roles and behaviors of players and GMs (warts and all).

MR Welch Recaps D&D's Entire History Off the Top of His Head

 

Gaming Hope Springs Eternal...

Me imagining I'm Conan brooding about roleplaying...

Yes, I actually do sometimes wonder why I keep shouting into this blog void. Thanks for theoretically asking, theoretical reader! 

Maybe I'm just stubborn. Maybe I have some instinct to never release my death grip on my desire to roleplay. Maybe this desire is some vestigial defense mechanism left over from my sometimes-garbage childhood, when books and roleplaying were escapes from abuse. Maybe this never-ending obsession with roleplaying is unhealthy, a crutch, something I should relinquish.

Maybe I will, someday. But not today. Not for the foreseeable future. Granted, I'm pretty myopic (a classic nerd trait) so my foresight is pretty limited, especially without my glasses. 

I've been soldiering on, keeping this here blog (is blogging dead? I'm sure my Gen Z kids don't even know what it is...) alive for...some reason. Maybe the reason is merely one effort to stave off thinking about the inevitability of death. Isn't that part of life? To defer thinking about mortality for as long as possible? 

I'm really not that nihilistic, though, I swear. Sure, I'm struggling with depression, but most of us seem to be in this current reality, amirite? When I feel overwhelmed by the sadness, I wander down to my basement lair (yes, not being ironic) and peruse my roleplaying bookshelf. As usual, I'm assaulted by simultaneous happiness and gloom (that's life, also). The implication of those rows of books never loses the bittersweetness: here is all the material for more than a lifetime of gaming wonderment, which I'm not doing. 

In case you haven't noticed (or even care, oh theoretical reader), I've been mostly posting images for years. I've been posting gaming art that inspires me to...well, to keep dreaming of gaming on a regular basis. Shit, I'd take even a semi-regular basis at this point in my existence. 

You may have also (theoretically!) noticed the number of posts since 2017 have been in the 40's. Since 2017, I've made the number of posts match my age. Clever, eh? Nope. No, it's not. But anyway, since I'm an English major and math is like occult magic to me, I decided years ago to match my age until I actually (maybe someday) post more blogs organically than my age in a given year. Alas, once again, this was not that year. 

SO, expect the usual annual barrage of end-of-year image posts, folks! I gotta hit 46 this time around! 

I started this blog over a decade ago because I...well, I got excited about roleplaying again. I wanted to add my voice to the chorus of the OSR, in whatever way materialized. But I've always been a scattered one (thanks, mental illness, much appreciated). And like most other efforts in my life, I gave it a lukewarm, half-hearted try. But perhaps I'll tell myself once again that there is honor in the trying. Maybe I'll let myself still believe that, too. 

So, I'll continue to consider myself a patron of gaming, and continue to spend money on supporting roleplaying Kickstarters and buying roleplaying books online and at the FLGS that still exists not far from my house (go eff yourself, COVID, and fight on, FLGS!). I'll keep adding to the growing collection of roleplaying books I'll probably never use to actually, you know, roleplay.

Perhaps dreams are enough to sustain me. At least for another year. Someday, the dreams may run out. After that...I'm not sure what I'll do. I dare not think about it. So I'll continue to be like the protagonist of The Raven, and continue to ponder, weak and weary, over all of my quaint and curious volumes of forgotten roleplaying lore. Until some dark bird finally tells me nevermore (okay, maybe I just stepped over the line of trite and maudlin emo territory but...there it is...)

Well, thanks for theoretically reading! I hope the new year is more conducive to roleplaying, even if it's just in our minds. 

End-of-Week Elmore (12/7/18): WTF? (Caption This)

Um...I honestly don't know what to say about this one.

I've been doing my End-of-Week Elmore art posts for about SIX YEARS now (YIKES!), and besides the one where some human skins were used as saddles (DOUBLE YIKES!) I haven't seen a more bizarre illo from this Old Master of fantasy art.

So, I need your help to caption this sucker, and together maybe we'll make some sort of sense out of the madness depicted! Please leave a caption in the comment field for this post. The contest will run until next Friday (i.e. the next EoWE post).

What's the prize for the caption I deem the most creative and/or hilarious? Internet immortality and the praise of yours truly! There's never been a better no-prize in the history of the world!

Honestly, I forgot how long I've been doing these posts. I really need to go back and do some sort of retrospective. I'm not sure if I should be proud of myself or maybe embarrassed. Perhaps a bit of both should be in order? Mostly, I just feel the usual shock and awe that so much time has passed so quickly.

Anyway, looking forward to your captions!

P.S. Come to think of it, when I consider the "people skins as saddles" illo, the one featured in this post is probably the prequel to that one.. The guys jumped out and scared the buffalo, for which they were skinned and used as buffalo saddles! Damn, Larry, what were you smoking at the time?

The "Anywhere but Where the GM believes" Player

In thinking back over my gaming career, I came to think about the types of players that annoyed me over the years. Of course there's the Rules Lawyer. We've all encountered that particular beast, haven't we? Then there's the player type I call the "Anywhere but Where the GM Believes" player.

Have you ever had a player who, when you checked in with them, they would tell you they weren't actually in that location? This is more than splitting the party. It's the situation where a player keeps correcting you as to their character's location. The player never seems to be specific enough about their character's movements, no matter how many times you ask them to be more specific. 

Example #1:

GM: "Okay, the party enters the cavern-"

Bruno the Dwarf's Player: "No, I'm not in the cavern."

GM: "But I asked the whole party if you were all going into the cavern and you didn't say you weren't going in with everyone else, so..."

Bruno the Dwarf's Player: "No, I'm not in there. I stayed in the tunnel."

GM: "Ooookay..." [followed by annoying situation where you have to jump between the rest of the party and whatever Bruno's player wants to do]

Example #2:

GM: "Your group has been in the tavern for about a half hour, when-"

Bruno's Player: "I never entered the tavern."

GM: "You never told me you didn't enter the tavern with the rest of the party..."

Bruno's Player: "Well, I'm outside..."

You get the idea.

Have you ever had a player like this? If so, do you think they were purposely trying to mess with you, or just not paying attention, or some other reason they did this sort of thing?

Vintage Roleplaying Book Porn at the House of Fun

So there's a store called House of Fun in my little South Jersey burg, and it's a collectibles store mostly known for having vintage toys.

I went in there the other day with my son because he's developed an obsession with Aliens and Predators. Specifically, Aliens Versus Predators. Now, I haven't let him watch any Aliens or Predator films yet except for a TV edit of Alien, given how young he is at the moment.

He gained knowledge of Aliens and Predators from a friend who picked up a toy from House of Fun. So, the boy had to get his hands on a similar Alien-type toy using his Christmas cash.

Yeah, boys will be boys, right? I'm just glad he's into a classic creature that his old dad likes, too. The old stuff still has some appeal!

ANYway, as the boy was agonizing over what Alien toy to choose, I wandered around the treasure trove playland of the store.

And I came upon a bookcase:

Yes, indeedy. Suffice to say I plunged into this bookshelf with abandon, going through every item, extending our visit waaay beyond what the boy wanted, unfortunately for him.

Sorry kid, your dad is an inveterate old-head nerd, and finding stuff like this is a wonderland!

Want some more? Take a look: 

I felt like I needed to pick up these 1st Edition AD&D screens...but I didn't...mostly because I think the owner of the store is going to try and sell them at a pretty penny. He seems to go by what they cost on Ebay...and these suckers are pricey! I might go back and ask though, just in case. 

I'm not playing AD&D 1st Edition and not planning to do so any time soon...but when has that ever stopped me?

Never heard of Feudal...it's a game from the 60's, so that's probably why (I'm not from the 60's)

Boot Hill boxed set...contents seemed pretty incomplete.

There was a ton of stuff but I just took some shots of my highlights. There were a lot of D&D modules, MERP modules, and Ravenloft stuff as well.

And there was a copy of the Elfquest RPG, sans box. 

I bought that. 

I've always had a thing for Elfquest. I've always thought that someone should do a Basic D&D conversion of Elfquest. 

Hmmm...

Yes, I'm still insane and a nerd. What else is new? 

Anyway, gotta run for now, but just wanted to share!

The Year Without a Free RPG Day

Well, there was a Free RPG Day today, but just not for me. 

Maybe it's because my favorite FLGS (All Things Fun) closed its West Berlin, NJ location. I have to admit to feeling a bit of nostalgic despair at the thought of looking for a new game store to celebrate the day. There are a few within easy travelling distance, but my heart just wasn't in it. 

I also didn't want to remind myself that I'm not actually gaming right now. Got a lot of irons in the fire these days, but regular roleplaying isn't one of them. I've been tinkering with the idea of running some good old Basic D&D and a dungeon crawl using...well, one of the many resources I have on hand, namely Stonehell Dungeon. 

Meh, just wallowing in self pity due to lack of gaming and general disconnection from the roleplaying blogosphere. 

So, time to stop wallowing! I'm thinking that I've invested a lot of cash in Goodman Games and Dungeon Crawl Classics, so instead of running Stonehell with Basic D&D or Labyrinth Lord, I should be brushing up on DCC instead and using those rules.

Speaking of DCC, I'm a bit disheartened by the long wait for the new rule book for the 4th printing Kickstarter but I'm sure it will be worth the wait. Here's what I'm getting:

Nice and unholy, eh? 

So, hope springs eternal for the future of my personal gaming situation! 

Speaking of Goodman Games taking my money, I hear tell there's a little something called "Mutant Crawl Classics" that's about to hit Kickstarter! Obviously, it's going to be their version of Gamma World, just like Goblinoid Games came out with Mutant Future a few years ago.

Yeah, I keep telling myself I won't get in on this Kickstarter, but you never know what might happen. It's a crazy old world! 

Aaaand speaking of post-apocalyptic futures, I've been entranced by previews for a PS4 game called Horizon Zero Dawn (kind of a daft name, sounds like they randomly chose three words out of a dictionary). Here's the trailer for the game:

I don't have (and don't plan to get) a PS4 anytime soon, but OF COURSE my sick and fevered brain immediately started to think I could mimic the setting of the game using Mutant Future. I'm a wackjob and a glutton for punishment. 

Anyway, that's all for now. Have a great Father's Day tomorrow, all you male Dad gamers out there!

Of Gaming, Raging, and the Dying Light

Did you ever watch professional wrestling, especially the old WWF?

Do you remember those matches were the "good" wrestler (aka the Face) would be nearly defeated, on his knees, being beaten down by the "bad guy" (aka the Heel)?

Do you remember how the Face would suddenly get a burst of defiance that made him seemingly invulnerable, shrugging off the blows of an unbelieving Heel? How the good guy would rise to his feet again, eyes wide with righteous fury as he shook his head at the now-ineffectual attacks of his enemy?

I want to be the Face. Only instead of wrestling, my arena is roleplaying.

I'm being eaten alive, folks. From the inside out. Sound dramatic? Perhaps. I AM indeed a dramatic person, and I'm not ashamed of it. What is life if not spiced with a dramatic flair, I ask you?

The Curse of the Collector

Over the last few months, I've become increasingly worried about myself. I've taken to staring at my RPG and board game collection longingly. I never wanted to become one of those sad ex-gamers who just collects games but never plays them...but I fear I AM becoming one after all.

You see, I'm still collecting RPGs. I just invested in two more games in the last week or so. One of them is the latest incarnation of the Lone Wolf Adventure Game box set (just the words "box set" make me incredibly happy and tingly with excitement...no sweeter words exist for an old-school gamer than box set, IMHO...) The other game is the new edition of Warriors of the Red Planet.

What made me buy these latest games? When it comes to Lone Wolf (which I just featured in my first-ever unboxing video), the justifications leaped through my mind: "It's very rules light, you could get a game up and running in no time! Come on, man, let's play SOMETHING already! Let's play with your kids, with your old friends, with SOMEBODY! Call that FLGS a few towns over and tell them you want to use their space and get some new players! Gimme a fix, man!"

Yes, a fix. I'm in withdrawal. The simpler the game, the more likely I could fit some sessions into my schedule! I love everything I've seen of Warriors of the Red Planet, but seriously I don't think I could handle even the relative simplicity of those rules (which I would say are no more complicated than Basic/Expert D&D).  Lone Wolf seems my most likely path!

Farewell to All Things Fun in West Berlin

I've also been depressed by the fact that my beloved All Things Fun game store in West Berlin, New Jersey has closed its doors. There are so few of those incredible FLGS havens in my neck of the woods, the closing of one is a huge blow to the gaming community here. 

During the several years I was gaming there with friends on Wednesday nights, a grand time was had by all! I hadn't played an RPG for years, and ATF was the perfect place to return to the hobby and meet new gamers. It's also the place where I got to game with some of my favorite game creators, the Troll Lords!

Fare thee well, All Things Fun! I salute you!

The Gamer Shall Rise Again!

But forget all the hand-wringing, the gnashing of teeth, and the lamentations you just read! I'm determined to rage against the dying of the gaming light! As the roleplaying gods are my witness, I'll never go gameless again! 

It's time to rally like the Ultimate Warrior! 

It's time to kick ass like Ragnar Lothbrok (did I mention a new season of Vikings starts tonight)! 

It's time to fight on! To roll on! TO GAME ON!

Thanks for indulging me. If you're feeling something similar to what I'm experiencing, I'd love to hear from you!

Lost Post: I love Dragonlance, and I don't care who knows!

I'm about to wrap up the least productive writing year this blog has ever seen. Don't really feel great about it, but it is what it is. I have my reasons for my lack of attention. Long story short: I'm doing other things with my spare time other than gaming.

But gaming will always be on my mind and in my soul. Rest assured of that. Which means I will continue to occasionally haunt the roleplaying blogosphere and will post now and then here.

As for this soon-to-end year, I have some final plans: just for the proverbial shits and giggles, I'm going to post 40 posts this year, the year I turned 40. Please believe me when I say I didn't plan this out. That would just be too corny, even for me.

As one of my final 2015 posts, I've decided to dig out a post I started writing this year but never published. Call it a "lost post." I started it early in the year, and rereading it reminds me how one's priorities can change over the course of 365 days.

Here's the post:

I've put things off for too long.

I want to pay homage to the world of Krynn in campaign form. Not just from nostalgia, though that is part of it. No, I am truly inspired by the setting. I think it is definitely viable. And being inspired by a setting is what I need, to engage my full attention as a GM. Because as any long-term reader of this blog will tell you, I'm nothing if not riddled with Gamer ADD!

I tried to start a Dragonlance campaign once a few years back but didn't feel ready. But I feel it is now time.

Krynn needs a champion on the blogosphere, and I will take on that mantle!

So, how's this for a declaration: My choice for system mastery is Castles & Crusades! My choice for setting mastery is Dragonlance!

End post.

Wow, that was some hyperbolic stuff. How do I feel now? Well, I still love Dragonlance, and have since I was a kid. I won't ever apologize for that fact. The world may be a much-despised one among the grognard set, and perhaps the creative teams behind the setting did it a disservice over the years.

But I still want this blog, if and when I do write here, to be a haven for Dragonlance love.

As for C&C system mastery, well, I think I've had that for some time now. Even having not actually played using the rules for over a year, I'm very confident I could jump right back on that horse, no problem. I still think I would use that system to run an eventual Dragonlance campaign. It upholds the character archetypes that I still love to this day, and which are the solid backbone of the Dragonlance world.

Anyway, there you have it. A glimpse into the mind of this blogger. See you soon for another post!

End-of-Week Conan Score! (6/12/15)

I love library book sales! My county's library system has a massive sale a couple times a year at the large main branch, and I always try to get there for at least a quick glance over the tables. And I usually find some treasure hidden there. 

For instance, the annual summer sale just happened to be held this week, when I'm off between jobs. Low and behold, as I stopped by and perused, my eye fell upon the beauty pictured above: a collection of Howard tales, a book club edition from 1977. 

(It's not shiny cause it's awesome, it's shiny cause someone covered it in plastic!)

Cover artist is Ken Kelly, of course. For a long time I mistook his work for that of Frazetta. As it turns out, that was for good reason: Kelly is the nephew of Frazetta's wife! So Kelly had access to study Frazetta's work pretty directly.

The book also has some interior art from Conan's Weird Tales days:

THAT'S RIGHT, you didn't read that wrong: this bad boy was edited by none other than Karl Edward Wagner!

And don't let the title fool you, there's more inside than Howard's great "Red Nails":

And check out the sweet map of Hyboria:

Just thought I'd share! Have you ever had a sweet score from an old book sale? 

Have a great gaming weekend, all! 

Welcome to April! (could this be NSFW?)

I don't want to be another fool (see what I did there?) to screech in awestruck wonder that it's "already April 2015"! But come on, where is the time going this year, eh?!

 

Ah, spring! What red-blooded male doesn't start having images of fair maidens dancing in his head at this time, I ask you? Thus, the illo above, by a fine artist named David Palumbo that I just personally discovered. I find the image to be a mash-up of classical portraiture and modern art. What do you think? What pops into my mind is...this looks like something Rembrandt might have painted if he knew about cyberpunk.

 

I usually try to avoid serving too much "cheesecake" on this here blog, but then again, could the illo above actually be considered cheesecake? I find it tasteful, with a bit of eroticism thrown in. How about you? I guess it might be a bit NSFW.

 

Anyway, give Mr. Palumbo's site a peruse when you get a moment. Be warned, there are nekkid ladies in some spots, so his site I suppose should DEFINITELY be considered NSFW.

 

Well, my prudish musings are at an end! Enjoy!

Have I mentioned that I love Robotech?

Awww yeah! My childhood self would have crapped himself at this sight!

 

Note: If you can relate to this post, please comment below! I'd love to hear stories of your own Robotech nostalgia!

 

When I was a young teen, there was no Internet, no Netflix, no DVR. Heck, there were no DVD players. I guess there was laser disc. But there were VCRs. However, those things were clunky and not easy to program. And even if you programmed the damn thing, someone else in the house was going to mess things up. Because, you know, you're a kid. People don't respect your right to see your friggin' shows.

 

No, when I was a mere lad, there was none of the futuristic entertainment technology we take for granted today. Therefore, all TV was pretty much "appointment TV." Meaning, you got in front of that tube, or you didn't. And if you didn't, you missed that show you so desperately wanted to see. Too bad, so sad. Here's a tiny violin, playing just for you.

 

I'm about to get all "back in my day" right about now. Seriously, the kids these days (heh, I actually wrote that) don't know what it's like to be at the whim of the TV overlords. Nowadays, TV is all about "on-demand," of course. Now, we are the new rulers of our entertainment destiny.

 

But that's not what I had as a kid. Nope. As a kid, I had to book it home after school to catch the shows I loved.

 

One of those shows was Robotech. I loved the hell out of that show as a kid. I discovered the series at a tender young age, somewhere in the mid-80s. Robotech was something "new" back in the day. It was called "Japanimation" at the time, not anime. Wow, that sounds weird now. And maybe racist?

 

Anyway, there were only two times of day that Robotech came on back then. During the week, one channel showed it at 6 AM and 3 PM. Kid-me thought 6 AM was an ungodly time when no decent, sane person should be awake. And, school got out at 3 PM. You see my dilemma?

 

So, that school bell would ring, and I would force my chubby body to run as much as possible across town so that I could catch as much of the show as I could. I remember running through freezing cold, slipping on ice in my haste. I remember running through sweltering heat, until I arrived at home, chest heaving like a bellows and sweat pouring off of me.

 

I usually caught about 20 minutes of the show on a good day. But those were precious moments that made a huge impact on the burgeoning sci-fi fan in me.

 

On those rare serendipitous occasions when I actually got an episode on tape, I watched the hell out of it. Over and over, in awe of the sci-fi action, the giant robots battling, and the soap opera of the relationships between the characters. I mean, the show had a race of space giants that were as entranced as I was by the thought of kissing a girl. How could I not relate? How could I not love this show?

 

As time went on, as things happen, my interests moved on to other shows. I became absorbed with other pastimes, such as roleplaying of course. But my love of Robotech remained, lingering within me, and manifesting in an abiding passion for giant robots and space opera.

 

I even tried, once, to combine my love of roleplaying with Robotech. I bought a couple of the Robotech roleplaying books pumped out by Palladium...but never played the game. One of my big roleplaying regrets.

 

Recently, Robotech has made a resurgence in my mind. And, of course, I turned to the miracles of modern connectivity, and quickly found a certain 20-disc set. I bought it for a song. A gateway to hours upon hours of Robotech goodness that I never could have imagined as a kid!

 

 

I'm about to embark once again on a voyage into a space epic, one that will no doubt take me through time AND space. I give a nod to kid-me, to let him know that it's time to come home and enjoy one of his favorite shows in a way he never could. On his own terms, finally.

 

Come with me, young man. We have places to go, giant robots to pilot, and space ladies to woo!

"Hi, my name's Anthony, and I'm a Dungeon Master."

Wherefore Art Thou, Oh RPG Blogger?

Well, I've finally gone and done it. I became one of those RPG bloggers who drops off the face of the earth one day, and just stops posting with no explanation.

 

I apologize to one and all...or at least, to those who may actually care!

 

I could make a joke about how everyone's been SO devastated about my absence. But perhaps some of you miss me?

 

Hey, someone emailed me to ask if I can add a print function to my blog! To that emailer I say "please be patient, I'm working on it"!

 

Anyway, without boring you, here's the short story: I've finally reached a critical mass of insanity in life that, as scary as it sounds, I lost complete track of the blogosphere and in particular my own blog. For once, I was totally unable to think about the blog for a few weeks.

 

As I said, scary. It's scary because I don't like the implications. In other words, my life circumstances finally pushed thoughts of roleplaying (which are usually on my mind at some point during the day) to totally subconscious levels.

 

I just don't like that idea.

 

But I've made my life this busy, and I really have no regrets. I'm happy with what I've been doing in life other than roleplaying. But there's still something that pains me about the whole thing.

 

Okay, enough self pity. What's my point, eh? Well, here it is: I'm officially stating that I'm going on an indefinite hiatus. It really sucks to write that, but there you have it.

 

Alright, I've got to run, but for the time being know that I may not be writing here for the time being, but I'm indeed reading what all you wonderful folks are writing.

 

Until we cross paths again, happy gaming to all!

Awesome Aquisition: Fighting Fantasy gamebooks

The branch of the county library near my house has a perpetual book sale. There's shelves and shelves of donated books for sale in one corner of the library (they also sell books that have been removed from circulation because they haven't been checked out for a few years).  

 

Every time I'm in the library, I take a tour through the books for sale. And once in a while, there's something really good waiting for me. This time around, it was a goodly number of Fighting Fantasy gamebooks! Freakin' SWEET score, right?!

 

Now, the only FF gamebook I've ever played was Forest of Doom, when I was a teen. For some reason, it seemed like it was hard for me to get a hold of the books back then, and anyway I was focused on playing D&D. But I remember having a lot of fun with Forest of Doom when I was alone, and the art was like nothing I'd ever seen...very different from what was in my D&D books, that's for sure.

 

I don't have a full list of the specific books I grabbed, but as you can see from the shot I took, I got Citadel of Chaos...and there's a copy of Forest of Doom, Starship Traveller, and City of Thieves, among others. No Warlock of Firetop Mountain, unfortunately. 

 

Oh, and there's a couple SORCERY! books in the bunch as well.

 

Anyway, I'll post the full list of books sometime soon, when I have a chance to go through them. Can't wait!

Blog Spotlight: A Return to the Keep

I haven't prominently featured someone else's blog here for a while. It was back in October 2012 when I featured the Dicechucker blog. I did it, partially, as part of a "bandwagon jumping" effort: Tim at The Other Side was posting a series about "The Best Blog You Are Not Reading" (TBBYANR) at the time, and I thought it was a great idea. However, I didn't keep up with that endeavor (come to think of it, I'm not sure if Tim did either).

 

Anyway, that was the past. I'd like to tell you about a new blog called A Return to the Keep (not to be confused with Back to the Keep) that I think shows a lot of promise. Blogger Blackwarden has a lot of enthusiasm that I've been missing in the blogosphere. Of particular note is a re-reading of Moldvay Basic.

I know some of you might groan at that prospect of yet another someone posting about a rule set read-through; I for one really like getting an in-depth view of what another gamer thinks about the rules. It gives me a new perspective, and the potential for new insight.

So check out A Return to the Keep! I think you won't be disappointed!

Some Dragonlance love on the blogosphere at io9!

Enjoy some non-Elmore Dragonlance art, emphasis on the beefcake

 

So, as I predicted this past Friday, my wacky brain has shifted direction once again when it comes to choice of campaign setting for my next stint as GM (whenever the heck that would actually happen).

 

Yes, I've swung back to Dragonlance. And a voice welled up inside of me to scold me on the subject, saying: "Hey stunad, didn't you promise in a post last October to make your blog a bastion of Dragonlance love for the OSR crowd?"

 

(note: those readers of non-Italian descent may have to Google the term "stunad") 

 

Why yes, I replied to that inner voice, I did indeed state such an intention, and have been found sorely lacking. Hand me the hair shirt, my penance shall begin anon.

 

Ahem. ANYway...I think it's time again for me to revisit that intention. To that end, I did some web surfing on the subject, and came upon this interesting bit of Dragonlance love over at i09:

 

Why Dragonlance should be the next fantasy film franchise

An interesting read, but I'm not holding my breath of course.

So, please excuse me while I go get my Dragonlance mojo worked up. See you on Krynn, folks.

Are you ready to Ragnarok?!

 

Yep, it's darn cold in the Eastern United States today again, including the realm of South Jersey, in which I dwell. But I wonder how cold it would be if some gargantuan cosmic wolf swallowed the sun.

 

Yes, I'm talking about Ragnarok! Why am I thinking about it? Because Fate of the Norns: Ragnarok is on sale at RPGNow! In particular, the PDF is 50% off for the next few days (frankly, you can get the hardcover for a lot less on Amazon...just saying...)

 

I've been intrigued by this RPG for some time now. It might be time to take the icy plunge at last. Does anyone out there have any direct experience with the game, especially actual play? Inquiring minds want to know! I'm also very interested to learn more about the use of runes instead of dice to play the game.

 

Well, hope to hear from you. In the meantime, I'm going to go set myself on fire...

Another tour with The Black Company...

So, as part of my usual frenetic shifting between reading materials (thank you so much, ADD), I've decided to go on campaign again with The Black Company. It's been a while since I last journeyed with them. I really love the beginning of the first book, during their dissatisfying stint in Beryl, then subsequently meeting Soulcatcher and heading north. However, I feel that the tale bogs down a bit when they reach Oar. But I suppose that part of the story gives a good glimpse into the infighting between the Taken, and the beginnings of the doubts that the Company has about their new employer, The Lady.

 

Have you read about the deeds of The Black Company? If so, please share your memories of the tales, what moments/scenes might have stuck in your mind, etc. Also, have you ever gamed in the world in which the stories are set?

End-of-Week...Whitaker? (12/27/13)

 

Hey HEY you crazy roleplaying cats out there! Yes, your eyes do not deceive you. Above you see images of a Ghost Dog roleplaying game. Yes, Ghost Dog. That movie starring Forest Whitaker where he's some sort of modern urban samurai, apparently. I was digging around in the dusty shelves of a local "comics and sundry" store that sells new and used RPG books, seeking treasure. And I came across this gem. I flipped through it, but didn't have time for a thorough read. So I can't tell you anything about it as far as the mechanics are concerned. It looked fairly bland in terms of production quality, with some pretty grainy stills from the movie scattered throughout.

 

I never saw the movie, so I can't discuss the quality of that, either. I just have the impression that Ghost Dog wasn't a great film. Perhaps I'm wrong. Can someone give me a review? Am I missing out on some hidden gem, a cult classic that deserved the RPG treatment?

 

ANYway, I DID find a VERY pristine copy of the Marsh/Cook Expert rulebook in the shelves! The guy at the register sold it to me for five dollars. Not bad! So that was a bit of a holiday treat for myself. Speaking of the holidays, I had a joyous time with the family, thank you very much for asking. I hope you all had similar!

 

As for this here suffering blog, I'll be doing an end-of-year post in the next few days. Just want to do something of a wrap up and consider what the next year may bring. As you've probably read here, I'm taking another indefinite break from roleplaying to free up time for other endeavors in 2014. But I might get up to some gaming here and there, read some RPG books, etc. So stay tuned, kids. Until then, happy gaming!