[A to Z April] E is for Enik, Lord of Maltrai (npc)

Lord Enik was born and raised on an estate in the city of Maltrai, on the far side of Dran from Coldtreath. He currently lives in rooms on the top floor of the the Yellow Knight Tavern in Coldtreath.

Both of Lord Enik’s parents--the Duke and Duchess of Sharifon Wood--are still alive, although his father is in poor health. He has not spoken to any in his family for nearly three years. The youngest of seven children, Lord Enik is embarrassed by his parents and family; they have made efforts to contact Lord Enik, all of which have been rebuffed.

The Duke and Duchess of Sharifon, as they are called, have many powerful enemies because of their position and influence, as well as the love the people have for them. The Necktree Guild is a clandestine, criminal organization that has stretched its reach from one side of Dran to the other. Simply by being a member of the family, Lord Enik is constantly spied upon and assassination attempts are not uncommon.

Lord Enik carries with him a secret: he possesses a magic blade, but a blade that is cursed. The curse is a dread one, and one he dares not share with even his closest friends. This secret has caused deep rifts between himself and most of the friends he has in Coldtreath. It also keeps him constantly looking over his shoulder.

During his travels from Maltrai to Coldtreath, Lord Enik was arrested and jailed for a murder he did not commit. His guilt seemed certain, but before allowing a sentence to be placed upon Lord Enik’s head, the magistrate in the case was perceptive and sought out the truth, asking a local mage to utilize a rare spell to determine his guilt or innocence. Despite being found innocent, this experience colored his faith in the Courts and legal systems in general. He is convinced that were his secret to be known, he would not be so fortunate as to escape the headman’s axe again.

Lord Enik stands a gangly 6'11" tall, topped by an unruly shock of brown hair with green eyes peering from his gaunt face. Under no circumstances would he be called an attractive man by most people, mostly because of the gold ring that pierces the bridge of his nose--a mark of prestige and nobility in Maltrai, but a practice found distasteful and barbaric in Coldtreath.

He is motivated by curiosity and sloth, but tempers both with a healthy fear of his secret being discovered. He is far from satisfied with his current situation, but lives each day as best he can considering his curse.

Lord Enik of Maltrai CR 11

Human Aristocrat 10 / Fighter 2
CN Medium Humanoid
Init: +3
Languages: Common, Elven
____________________________________
AC 12, touch 10, Flat-footed 11
hp 6145
Fort 6, Ref 3, Will 7
________________________
Speed: 30
Melee: +12 Rapier 1d6+3 Crit (18-20)x2 or +12 Dagger +2 1d4+5 Crit(19-20)x2 or
Ranged: +9 Dart 1d4 +3 (range 20)
Full Attack: +12/+7 Rapier 1d6+3 Crit (18-20)x2 or +12/+7 Dagger +2 1d4+5 Crit (19-20)x2, or +9/+4 Dart 1d4+3 (range 20)
Space/Reach: 5/5
Base Atk 9; Grp 12
Combat Gear: Rapier MW, Dagger +2*, Dart (quantity 10), Leather MW Armor
________________________
Abilities: Str 16, Dex 8, Con 10, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 11
Feats: Alertness, Armor Prof. Heavy, Armor Prof. Light, Armor Prof. Medium, Cleave, Great Cleave, Improved Initiative, Martial Weapon Prof., Power Attack, Quick Draw, Shield Prof., Simple Weapon Prof., Weapon Focus (dagger), Weapon Focus (rapier)
Skills: Appraise 14, Bluff 0, Diplomacy 4, Disguise 4, Gather Information 13, Intimidate 0, Knowledge (dungeon) 13, Knowledge (geography) 13, Knowledge (nature) 3, Knowledge (nobility) 1, Ride 1, Spot 5, Survival 6, Swim 6
Possessions: Combat gear plus Potion of Cure Light Wounds; Potion of Eagles Splendor, Potion of Cats Grace, Potion of Darkvision, 100 gp, 10 sp
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*The dagger is actually called the Grey Spirit Blade. It is a cursed blade.

**Many thanks to WotC's "PC Portraits" Archive for the image.


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Previous "E"s:
2012: E is for Elder Oath
2011: E is for Erol Otus

[A to Z April] D is for Duk (npc)

Duk’s earliest memory was of a ferocious battle in which her parents were brutally killed by a band of filthy dwarves. The fact that her father was human did not deter the dwarves; the simple fact that he was living with elves was his crime. The marauding dwarves would likely have killed her too, but a more powerful being intervened: she insists to this day that her life was saved by an angel.

Above her in the air she saw a female elf of blinding beauty: bronzed skin, black hair, and eyes the color of the night sky. This figure towered over her, red and aquamarine robes fluttering in a non-existent breeze. The figure held out her hand to Duk and lifted her from the ground, encircling her in her arms, and before Duk knew it, she was alone in a glade of trees. The angel pointed and Duk saw a village. This village, a conglomerate of outcasts from various races, became Duk’s home.

The people of the village were considered barbarians by those in the nearby cities. It was a difficult existence; farming was nearly impossible and animals were nearly non-existent for hunting. It was a dirty, spare, hardscrabble existence. But they survived, largely by their worship of the dark elven goddess, V’rixus. In fact, although Duk has not yet realized it, it was V'rixus herself that saved Duk from the dwarves.

Duk’s talent with hunting and thievery has brought her great respect and trust within the small community. She has grown to love V’rixus and entered the service of the Goddess of Avarice, Strength, and War with great fervor. However, she is sought after--with a price on her head--by members of the Hammer and Shield guild. She finds protection within the arms of the village; her neighbors warn her, hide her, and lie for her when strangers come into town.

Her hatred for dwarves and extreme avarice drives Duk in her daily life. She fears all that is Good-oriented. Her cynicism has amplified that fear; she will now flee if confronted with too much Good. Despite her fear of good, her experience has made her an easy mark for individuals in distress.

She remembers a massive gemstone that belonged to her parents. Her mother would set it in the window and let Duk “chase” the rainbows cast by its prisms. She is convinced the gemstone contained magic; unfortunately, when she returned as a young woman to the ruins of her family home, the gemstone was nowhere to be found. She knows in her heart that the dwarves took the gemstone with them. More than anything else in her life, she wants that gemstone back; not only does she seek its magic, she seeks to recover that connection with her mother. She also believes that between that gemstone and her devotion, V’rixus will somehow restore her mother to her.

Duk is considered to be mildly attractive; she is nothing that would start a riot, but neither is she homely. Her brown eyes are deep pools of pain set off by her striking blonde hair. She is average height, thanks to her father, but stands out in a crowd because of her unusual thornbush-like tattoos that wind their way up both arms and up her neck turning into mystic shapes that appear as lines of power on her face.

Duk CR 7

Female Half-Elf Barbarian 5/Cleric 4
Chaotic Evil Medium Humanoid
Init: +1
Senses: Low-light Vision
Languages: Common, Elven
____________________________________
AC 15 (Dex +1, Hide +4), touch 11, Flat-footed 14
hp 68 hp
Immune: Sleep
Resistance: Enchantment +2 save
Fort +10, Ref +3, Will +6
________________________
Speed: 40
Melee: +12 Scimitar 1d6+4 or
Ranged: +9 Sling 1d4
Full Attack: +12/7 Scimitar 1d6+4
or +9 Sling 1d4(range 50)
Space/Reach: 5/5
Base Atk 8; Grp 11
Atk Options: Rage (+4 Con, +4 Str, +2 Will save, -2 AC) 2 per day; Turn Undead (3 +Cha bonus / day)
Combat Gear: Scimitar, Sling, Hide Armor
Spells Known: (CL 4)
2nd — (DC 13): Bulls Strength*, Silence, Sound Burst
1st — (DC 12): Bane, Doom, Enlarge Person*, Entropic Shield
0 — (DC 11): Detect Magic, Detect Poison, Guidance, Inflict Minor Wounds, Light
*Domain Spell. Domains: Strength, War
_________________________
Abilities: Str 17, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 11, Wis 12, Cha 9
SQ: Fast movement, Illiteracy, Improved Uncanny Dodge, Trap Sense, Uncanny Dodge
Feats: Blind-fight, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Heavy Armor Prof., Light Armor Prof., Martial Weapon Prof., Read/Write Languages, Shield Prof., Simple Weapon Prof., Weapon Focus (Scimitar)
Skills: Climb 6, Concentration 4, Diplomacy 1, Gather Information 1, Heal 3, Intimidate 5, Jump 5, Know arcana 0, Know history 0, Know religion 2, Know the planes 0, Listen 6, Search 1, Sense Motive 3, Spellcraft 0, Spot 5, Survival 6, Swim -3
Possessions: Combat gear plus Acid (flask), Bag of Holding (1), Boots of Elvenkind, Flint and steel, Potion of Bull’s strength, Potion of Cure light wounds, Potion of Cure moderate wounds, Waterskin, Whetstone, 207 gp, 9 sp, 9 cp

**Many thanks to WotC's "PC Portraits" Archive for the image.


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Previous "D"s:
2012: D is for D’leth Inemas
2011: D is for Drake, Carrion

[A to Z April] C is for Cleft Helm (item)

Aura: Faint abjuration; CL: 12th
Slot: Head; Weight: 1 lb.

DESCRIPTION

When newly forged, this helm was a simple domed, steel helm including a nose guard. Bands of reinforcing mithral run around the base of the helm and from the top down on the cardinal positions. Heavy rivets appear around the mithral bands holding the bands to the steel. There is a crack that bisects the helm at the top with the right side of the crack bent slightly higher and away from the rest of the helm. The helm is crafted to fit tightly to a dwarven head and lacks any straps or fasteners, relying instead upon common dwarven physiological features to stay on the head.

When worn, the helm grants damage resistance (DR 5/piercing) to its wearer. If the wearer has damage resistance from another source, the amounts do not stack; instead, the source that grants the greater resistance applies.

If a creature other than a dwarf attempts to wear the helm the resistance applies. However, during combat such a wearer must make a Dexterity check (DL 12) every round after any successful attack(s) upon the wearer. On a failed check, the helm slips from the wearer's head to clatter upon the ground.

BACKGROUND

Centuries ago, this helm was owned by the great dwarf, Urthen Kilmalk, a paladin of the dwarven war goddess, Norlydd. During a great battle against an invasion of dark elves from the Undercity of Eryndaedrauth, Urthen led the dwarven forces in a spectacular defense of their home of Therduum. Eventually only the dark elves' champion remained, Berglin'inyon of House Everharn. He strode forward, stepping over the dead and dying bodies of his fellow dark elves, and lashed out at Urthen. The paladin valiantly blocked the elf's blows time after time, but was unable to bring his own waraxe to bear in more than defense. After a lengthy battle, the elf slipped; seeing his chance Urthen swung his mighty blade, slicing the elf's abdomen open. Holding his entrails in one hand, the dark elf retaliated and speared Urthen through the helm with his sword, piercing the dwarf's brain even as the elf slipped to the ground to die in a pool of his own blood.

With his dying breath, Urthen uttered a final prayer to Norlydd. In her mercy, and in recognition of his years of faithful service, Norlydd imbued the helm with a part of his still-living spirit. Urthen's brethren carried his remains behind the gates of Therduum, where he was entombed, still wearing his armor and bearing his axe. At some point, a thief or group of thieves were able to penetrate Therduum's defenses and made off with several sacred artifacts, including the cleft helm of Urthen Kilmalk. It is believed that the helm still glows with Urthen's spirit and that Norlyyd's boon will be granted to the wearer of the helm. However, it is also likely that the divine protection can be bypassed by an attack similar to that of Berglin'inyon's, as it would penetrate through the damaged helm.


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Previous "C"s:
2012: C is for Charred Brimstone Mist
2011: C is for Chiala Ereand

[A to Z April] B is for Belt of Invulnerable Embrace (item)

Belt of Invulnerable Embrace

Slot: belt; Aura: strong abjuration; CL 15th; Weight: 1 lb.

Only a couple of these belts are known to exist. They are considered to be minor artifacts and are highly sought after by adventurers. No two are exactly alike, either in appearance, adornment, or materials used. The methods used for creating such artifacts are long-lost to history, although the legends of every major race boasts at least one of these belts.

These belts protect their wearers from damage from all types of energy and provide damage resistance against physical attacks. They may be activated only once every 24 hours. Specifically, these belts grants 20 points of resistance to all types of energy. These belts also grant damage resistance 20/-. In addition, unlike most forms of DR, these belts are effective against touch attacks, as well as inhalation, ingestion, or contact attacks. They form a nearly impenetrable magical shell around the wearer.

Unfortunately, they are also impermeable to air as well as other substances. As a result, after the first round of use, the wearer has no air to breathe and is thereafter subject to suffocation rules. The wearer can hold her breath for 2 rounds per point of Constitution. If a character takes a standard or full-round action, the remaining duration that the character can hold her breath is reduced by 1 round. After this period of time, the character must make a DC 10 Constitution check in order to continue holding her breath. The save must be repeated each round, with the DC increasing by +1 for each previous success. When the character fails one of these Constitution checks, she begins to suffocate. In the first round, she falls unconscious (0 hit points). In the following round, she drops to -1 hit points and is dying. The wearer can dismiss the belt’s effect at any time up to the point that suffocation begins. If a character begins to suffocate, when the wearer drops to -1 hit points control over the belt is immediately canceled and the effect--and all granted protection--dissipates.

**Many thanks to my buddy Simonathi Starym for a bit of game testing, advice, and tweaking on this year's A to Z.

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Previous "B"s:
2012: B is for Beetle, Soul (monster)
2011: B is for Bulette

[A to Z April] A is for Acktok's Violet Mark (Spell)

Acktok’s Violet Mark

Evocation [light]
Level: Sor/Wiz 2
Components: V,S,M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Target: One piece of chalk or other writing instrument
Duration: Permanent
Saving Throw: none
Spell Resistance: no

Developed primarily for use by delvers, this spell causes a pale magic glow to surround a single piece of chalk or other writing instrument used in the casting. The chalk may be used once every minute and is never consumed regardless of how many times it is used. The possessor of the chalk can inscribe a single message of up to ten characters every minute on any solid surface. The inscription is only visible to the one who possesses the chalk and it glows in a violet light. The chalk itself sheds light similar to a candle. The glow may be affected by a 2nd-level or higher magical darkness effect. The light is too dim to have any special effect on undead or dark-dwelling creatures vulnerable to light and does not cause any harm to any creature that comes into contact with the chalk. Each application on a target requires a standard action by the possessor. The inscription may also be visible by anyone under the effects of an arcane sight or true seeing spell, but is invisible to lesser detection spells such as detect magic, as the inscription also acts as a misdirection spell with the surface being the revealed nature.

The wizard Acktok frequently found himself a member of adventuring and delving parties. After spending a small fortune on chalk–which he used to mark the parties’ passages through the dungeons and caverns–Acktok decided to develop an inexpensive and easier way to mark cavern walls. What he developed was a way to mark individual blocks, bricks, or stones with a violet light only visible to himself so that a return pathway could be easily followed.

This spell is known only from a spellbook and notes found in Acktok’s rooms. He was reported lost and presumed dead by a lone surviving member of his final adventuring party. That individual-–a rogue by profession–-barely escaped with his life following an ambush set by a band of bugbears who found Acktok’s chalk after he errantly lost it in a battle. They followed Acktok's glowing lights and laid in wait for his party to pass by, while Acktok used an arcane sight spell to retrace his steps.

Components: a piece of chalk and a drop of purple ink.

**Many thanks to my buddy Simonathi Starym for game testing, advice, and tweaking on this year's A to Z.

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Previous "A"s:
2012: A is for Albert “Rat-tail” Gail
2011: A is for Adventure

A to Z 2013: Gearing Up

Oy. Where did March go?

I'd intended to do so much more with the month, but it seems like it just got away from me. At least I've been able to do a bit more prep work for April's A to Z challenge than I did last year, which was more than I did the year before. So, at least I'm progressing.

Last year I was able to map out about one-half of the month's topics before the month started. This year, I not only have all 26 topics already named, I actually used some random generation to fill out my calendar to do so. Let me try and explain just how anal-retentive I was this year.

I started with the WordPerfect calendar I used last year. Each day already had a section for the topic (Item, Spell, NPC, Monster, Locale) and a place for the name ("A is for ____ ") filled out. It was simply a matter of changing the dates to fit 2013.

Then I opened up a spreadsheet page. Not having a d5 in my collection (yet), I remembered I had "Beverage" last year on my list of topics. Then I grabbed my handful of office d6s. I can already hear the sound of many palms slapping many faces. But this is how I wanted to determine my topics this year. I rolled a total of 30d6 assigning each roll to a topic heading as well as a date on the calendar. (I'd randomly assigned each of the six topics a number.) This gave me the following aggregate results:

Topics	Quantity
NPCs	5
Spells	2
Monsters	5
Beverages	6
Items	5
Locales	6

I looked at those numbers for a long while. I really didn't want to do five monsters. Neither did I want to do six beverages. And then I thought: Maps. I haven't posted any maps in a while. This might motivate me into making some maps.

But I don't have a d7 in my collection either. Yet. So I grabbed my office d8 and assigned two more numbers: "Random" and "Map." On a "Random" I would then re-roll the d8. I stuck these randomly in my already-prepared list. This gave me the following results:

Topics	Quantity
NPCs	3
Spells	3
Maps	3
Monsters	2
Beverages	2
Random	6
Items	5
Locales	3

And would you believe the "Randoms" rolled out to be one each of NPCs, Spells, Maps, and Monsters, and two Beverages? So my final tally looks like this:

Topics	Quantity
NPCs	4
Spells	4
Maps	4
Monsters	3
Beverages	3
Items	5
Locales	3

I think I'm O.K. with these numbers. I think I can do this. However...I also reserve the right to change my mind mid-month. Occasionally something will spring up in my brain that I didn't consider at the first of April--something that just HAS to see the light of day. I'm going to endeavor to keep the totals the same; if something new crops up, I'll swap it out with an existing topic. Granted, this may require some re-naming to happen as well. But that's all wrapped up in creativity, right? And the ability to be flexible even while on a pre-ordered plan.

So, I think I'm ready for April. As much as I can be, anyway.

So bring it on. Let's get writing.

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[From the Mailbag] Edge of Space Review

Long day yesterday at the firm. Really long. Mind-numbingly long. Yeah...almost fell asleep sitting at my desk. Day filled with the cream of my whining clients. (Don't get me wrong: I have some really good clients, but then there are some.... Oy. But that's a post for another day.)

To make matters worse, I'm stuck in the malaise of writer's block, which incidentally is not a good thing considering the April A-Z Challenge 2013 is on the ever-approaching horizon. On top of that, I'm looking at at least another three weeks until the gaming group gets together.

And then I got home, opened the mailbox, and found this:
Courtesy of Matt Jackson over at Lapsus Calumni and his Chubby Monster Games imprint.

First of all: talk about fast. I ordered these on Friday afternoon and they were in my hands on Tuesday afternoon. Amazing turn-around. However, the mailing also was the source of one of my only complaints about the product: the mail carrier was less than careful with the envelope, so there was some minor bending and wrinkling on the "Incident" booklet. I can't figure out a solution to this that doesn't also involve a price-hike; so I'm going to put them under my unabridged Webster's for a day or two and see if that doesn't do the trick.

Content:

• Edge of Space: Science Fiction Roleplaying Game Manual: 
• The content of the game manual itself is quite nice. Presented very neatly and concisely written, the system is, to me, pretty tight. It's certainly not a WotC-esque "cover every eventuality in the rules" kind of game system. Instead, it's got just enough crunch and fluff to give a GM a foundation on which to build. Character creation and -options seem fairly straightforward and generation seems like it would be fast. I could easily envision using this with my group at one of our New Years' Eve family parties without needing any advance character/player prep time.
• There is only a single race of aliens presented in the manual. Therein lies another of my complaints, albeit a minor one. We are presented only with "bugs" (and "The Master"--the BBEG Bug) in this instance. I would have liked to have seen a wider variety of aliens; perhaps only one or two more would have done the trick. However, I've salved my complaint and told myself three things:
• One--this is only the introductory material. More aliens are likely forthcoming. For an introduction, do you really need more than a "standard" alien race?
• Two--although one "type: Bug" is presented, there are actually five different bugs here. The Master, the Grunt, the Shooter, the Brain, and the Recon. So, technically you're wrong about only "one" alien. Now shut up and play.
• Three--the content itself says that the "Bugs...are by far the most common aliens encountered." That implies that there are other aliens and we might see them later. (See 'Thought One,' supra.)
•  Incident at Intrepid Station Adventure
• My first thought? Hey look, self, new aliens! Matt provides a really nifty "infection" rule. Although I don't often like the "GM takes control of the PC" idea, this one makes sense and is not an arbitrary rule.
• There's enough fluff here again to provide a good foundation on which a GM can build--or not, if she chooses not to do so. There's enough backstory that most players will be satisfied with the information.
• I particularly like the fact that Matt's specifically using "Space Marines" here. Most of my OSR readers will understand my glee at this jab. If you don't, pick your favorite search engine and look up "space marine", "copyright", and "Amazon"--you'll get a pretty good overview in the first few search results. Again: Go Matt!
• Matt's also included one of his fantastic maps. My readers know my fondness for maps; there are a few mappers out there whose works I keep on my metaphoric cartographic 拜拜 (bài bài) stand: Three of those mappers are Dyson Logos, Tony Dowler, and Matt Jackson.

All in all, I'm more than happy about this find. A great, tight system that I can quickly teach to the kids and have some good laser-pistol-blasting fun. One punctuation error jumped out at me, but I'm anal-retentive that way. The layout is easy to read and the self-made booklets are a great size. They're really well-executed and well-made. (While you're at it, jump on over to Lapsus Calumni to read about his efforts in book-making. I found the whole idea kind of inspiring.) All of this for only $7.00.

In addition, he's also offering a PDF download that includes the manuals, a nice embiggened map, and an "image version" of the map for your favorite virtual table top program.

For all that, I give this four hammers out of five. (I would have gone five out of five, but I'd like to see what comes next from Chubby Monster Games and Edge of Space. This way I can save room for that final star...I figure that's better than giving something 6 out of 5 stars.)

Buckle up, boys and girls...we're going on a bug hunt.

The Thing in the Basement, Part II

After I wrote this post on Monday about my childhood neurosis and ongoing phobia about the basement in my childhood home, my wife goes and posts this image to my Facebook page.

 

She thinks she's pretty funny. She got a good laugh out of it. Me? Not so much.

The Thing in the Basement

Dylan Hartwell, the Digital Orc had a post last week that I somehow missed until this morning. It brought to mind a memory from the past.

Some may call it a memory, others may call it "emotional scarring." Tom-ay-to, to-mah-to.

The home where I grew up had a partially unfinished basement. There was the family room at the bottom of the stairs, then the room doubled back, following the stair-wall to a bathroom and my oldest brother's bedroom. Then there was a door that led to the hallway under the stairs. This area, nearly two-thirds of the basement area--was known as "the messy room."

Immediately inside that door on the left was a series of built-in shelves, attempting to make use of the space under the shelves. On the right was the "fruit room." Straight ahead was the furnace, water heater, water softener, and the laundry. The rest of the space was piled with boxes, clothes, old toys, dad's table saw, etc. There were two pathways through and around "the mess" which led to my father's study.

That room freaked me out.

The whole basement did, actually. The family room was where my oldest brother dragged me on Saturday night to watch "Thriller Theater" or somesuch program with him. It's where I was exposed to great, bad horror movies. It was where I later peeked over the couch as I watched my brothers watching Alien on our very first Betamax. (It was rated 'R' of course so I was restricted from watching it.) But it wasn't just the movies. I was convinced that there was something that lived down there...somewhere. (Actually, I KNEW where it lived. It lived under the stairs, in the space behind the folding chairs and card tables. It lived back there between the decades-old cocktail napkins and paper plates. It lived back there and KNEW, somehow, when you were alone in the basement.)

It also didn't help that the stairway itself wasn't square. One wall gradually slanted inward, so that the bottom of the stairway was narrower than the top. It wasn't really noticeable except to your subconscious mind.

The lights to the entire family room and hallway "complex" were controlled by light switches at the bottom of the stairs, but on the family room side of the wall. Very early in life I mastered the art of hitting ALL the light switches at once as the sprint upstairs began. Just typing this, I can feel on my right arm the sensation of "something about to grab me" that I was always convinced was just about to happen. And you know the worst times? When you'd MISS one of those lights and have to go back downstairs to turn just the one off. Because then, you know, the creature was AWARE that you'd been down there and AWARE that you had to come back down and he was closer to the stairway than he normally was and....

Well, you get the picture.

The basement was finally finished nearly two decades ago. I have a wife and kids of my own. The "messy room" no longer exists. Dad's gone now, but mom still lives in the home. And do you know, even now, some 40 years later, I still feel like my 3-year-old self, fighting the desire to sprint up the stairs as I hit all four light switches with my "about to be grabbed" right hand?

A to Z: Round Three

Yep, it's almost time again for a little self-imposed creative flagellation daily post writing.

I've got to spend some time today setting out and planning my post titles. It takes some effort and time to do that; unfortunately that seems to be the easiest part of the April A-Z blogging challenge.

As they say around my firm: "If it wasn't for procrastination, nothing in the law would ever get done."

What is the "A to Z Challenge" you ask? Well, if you don't already know:

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out, the A to Z Challenges to post the letter of the alphabet every day during the month of April, with Sundays off for good behavior. Since April 1 falls on a Sunday, that will be the day we start with A. Whether you go with a theme or freestyle, your post must match the letter of the alphabet for that day....This is a great opportunity to discipline yourself, grow as a blogger, and make new friends -- come join us!

It's four years old this year; I've played along three of the four. I'm truly looking forward to pushing myself again, even in spite of -- or perhaps because of -- the effort it takes. It's a great discipline and growth process. Jump aboard! It's blowing up! (I'm three weeks early and I'm #997!)

Sign up HERE.
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Game Night: Highs and Lows

Ahhh. It's game night. I need this tonight. Real life has been extra tough lately, as I may have mentioned in previous posts. It's a game night of highs and lows, however.

• High: The start of a new campaign, with a new DM rotating into the seat behind the screen.
• Low: The announcement last week that a member of our group was hanging up his dice and PHB.
• High: The joy of a new character, and a new character class for me. I've never played a rogue before.
• Low: The miniature for my new character has still not arrived at my FLGS and so I'm stuck with a pre-painted plastic miniature that doesn't really represent my character.
• High: I get to use my new dice. Oh yeah, I got new dice. Picked up the set at my FLGS when I went to check on the miniature for my new character. 
• Low: Some nagging physical ailments are causing me repeated "breaks" and "intermissions" from the table.
• High: Hey...it's a game night. That outweighs everything, right?

It looks like my highs outweigh the lows. It's a good night.

Here's hoping you all have a good gaming weekend. Keep your dice dry, eh? And give us a report when the weekend is over.

LTUE Wrap-Up

I don't suppose any of you are really sitting on the edges of your sofas wondering what happened to two days' worth of posts from LTUE: Life, The Universe, and Everything Writing Conference. But there may be a couple of you interested: well, I wish I could really tell you. Unfortunately, the morning of Day Two dawned with some manner of gomboo bug inhabiting my body.

No, really. It was almost as if I had one of those Alien face-huggers latched onto me.
I was exhausted and I felt as if I'd been stuffed in cotton. I had a really powerful bad cough. Congestion. My eyeballs were practically throbbing, for crying out loud. I had aches and pains all over. Developed a weekend-long migraine by Friday night.

But I went anyway, because it was important to my wife. Despite my illness, I think she had fun. I don't remember anything about any of the panels, except for remembering listening to Larry Correia talk about writing action scenes. I think I may have dozed off in other panels. My sickness, unfortunately, meant that we didn't travel back down for the Saturday session. Apparently I wasn't the only one; some Typhoid Mary apparently attended the Conference because I got reports that there were quite a few attendees and possibly even some presenters that wrote off Saturday and didn't attend. I still feel bad about my wife missing out on Saturday, though, and need to find some way to make it up to my her.

One highlight that I do remember was having lunch at a little sandwich shop talking shop with Tracy and Laura Hickman. Great people and a great conversation. It had been awhile since we'd lunched and had a good chance to talke and catch up, so it was definitely a highlight of the conference.

The second highlight was this:
I was finally able to procure my copy of XDM: X-treme Dungeon Mastery. And I was able to get it signed by both Tracy Hickman and Howard Tayler. I've been trying for a couple years to get this, but the financial stars, the times, and the places have just not worked out. Until 2013.

Descriptive blurb:

The cure for the common game! Throw off your chains! Too long have your role playing games been held in the bonds of substandard gamemasters, bound in needlessly complicated rules sets, and enslaved by players who will avoid doing anything unless it counts toward leveling up! It is time to take a stand!

Learn from the masters the ancient secrets of how to:
Officially become an XDM and impress dates. (Do-it-yourself secret initiation rites included.)
Master the secrets of designing adventures that tell stories.
Create magic illusions that can even make your players disappear!
Use actual fire in your game properly.
Hijack the game as a player, and how to deal with a player revolution as an XDM.
Plus loads more!

Perhaps the best description comes from the book's Wikipedia entry: "The book is written as though from the perspective of a secret society of game masters passing on ancient secrets of role-playing games beginning in Babylonian times and extending to the present. Within the satire, the text offers advice on performance techniques, adventure game design and classical story structures." The book prescribes a system called X20: rules-light in that everything is decided by a roll of 1d20 and a decision by the XDM as to success/effect. Such a system would definitely frustrate rules lawyers, as the only rules are what the XDM decides are the rules.

It's an overly simplistic description of the book, but a good one. The book is full of humor, tips, tricks, suggestions, and great illustrations by the creator of Schlock Mercenary, which is arguably the best and funniest webcomic Space Opera on the internet. Howard autographs his books with customized artwork and this book is no different; the last page in the book was left blank just for this purpose. And here's my own, personal autograph from my book. This is Boric as seen through Howard Tayler's eyes.

Anyway, back to the face-hugger gomboo.... It pretty well put me out of commission for over a week. Then it's taken a week more to get caught up with leftover work at the office. Hopefully I can get some of my random thoughts out on paper. I still owe Tim Shorts some critters for issue #4 of The Manor. So I have a bunch of stuff to do, and Guilder to blame for it. I'm swamped.

At least I have my health...kind of. As you know, If you haven't got your health, then you haven't got anything.

Happy GM's Day

I'm sure that y'all know by now it's International GM's Day...no, seriously. It really is. My own DM didn't know that this was "a thing" until I told him.  Of course, then we had to discuss the irony and coincidence that Gary Gygax just happened to pass away in 2008 on GM's Day. Almost along the lines of Jefferson and Adams both passing away on July 4 within a few hours of each other. Even though I'm a bit late, I need to get my well-wishes in to all the GM's I know: both those who've run games I've been in and those I only know by reputation.

Kudos to you all! Thanks for all the hard work you put in, the critters you create just to watch them die within seconds, the intricate traps you prepare just to watch adventurers bypass the entire section of adventure, and for the hours competition-class paint jobs on miniatures that see a five-minute life on the table.

Keep your dice dry, and may you receive everything to which you're entitled today!

LTUE: The Hobbit--Film vs. Book Panel Discussion

As I mentioned earlier, I'm spending the next few days at the LTUE: Marion K. "Doc" Smith Symposium on Science Fiction and Fantasy, in beautiful downtown Provo, Utah.

A few tidbits from the first panel discussion, Tolkien's The Hobbit: The Book and the Movies. The panelists involved were Paul Genesse, David Farland, Blake Casselman, and Tracy Hickman, with Paul acting as moderator.

At one point, the topic was raised of "What were your quibbles with the movie?" David Farland leaped in with some minor complaints about the pacing, particularly focusing on the scenes in Bag End. He said that he went into the movie really wanting to love the dwarves...and came away not having fallen in love with them at all. He pointed out that too much time was spent at Bag End. Then he made the mistake of using the word "pacing."

The microphone was passed to Tracy Hickman and the question repeated, "What were your quibbles? What was there about the movie that made you mad?" He smiled and said, "What made me mad was the audience." There was rousing applause to this sentiment. "All the cell phones, the texting, the little lights all over the theater. It made me want to throw popcorn at them all." Again: rousing applause. "This is why the 'free refill Coke' is such a good thing; that way you can dump your drink on them and...." Laughs and applause.

Then Tracy continued: "Seriously, though, my problem with the movie is with people who have a problem with the pacing." At which he and David Farland looked eyes and David laughed. Back to Tracy, with a few tidbits of wisdom from him.

• We are so inured to the Bruce Lee, fast-paced...action-from-a-firehose movies that we have lost the art of enjoying the journey.
• Look at The Maltese Falcon: that one didn't truck along. Casablanca wasn't action-packed or fast-paced.
• As writers, the audience expects us to write our prose cinematically.
• Enjoy the pace--the journey--rather than worry how long it takes to get there.

The microphone was passed back to David Farland who conceded that he didn't really mean "pacing" per se. What he intended to complain about was the fact that the time at Bag End could have been used better by developing the relationship between the dwarves. He wanted to be shown how to differentiate between the dwarves, and that he said, was what he meant by "pacing." Tracy nodded at that and voiced his agreement to that idea.

Blake Casselman made a comment in passing that he really appreciated the whole Moby Dick theme included in the movie, meaning Azog, the White Orc. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of time to develop that idea, but it's an idea worthy of a number of essays itself.

Paul Genesse had a good, pithy observation on Radaghast: "Look, I know you like ALL like Radaghast, but when the smoke came out of his ears, I rolled my eyes. Radaghast is my Jar Jar Binks." Even though I really liked the Radaghast character, I had to laugh. I can respect his opinion.

O.K. Off to another panel discussion. More later.

The Answer is '42':LTUE

The answer is, of course, to the question of Life, the Universe, and Everything.

Wow. I just realized I used the same joke last year.

That's where I'm spending my Valentine's Day, and the next two days as well...with my wife at the LTUE writing conference in Provo, Utah. Yup, I'll be rubbing elbows with such writers as Tracy & Laura Hickman, David Farland, Larry Correia, and Paul Genesse. It's a great opportunity to learn about writing, get writing tips--of all sorts--from all sorts of authors, artists, and filmmakers.

I'm starting the day listening to David Farland, Tracy Hickman, Paul Genesse and Blake Casselman discuss The Hobbit: The Film and the Book. Great stuff.

I'll try and remember to add some more information over the next few days.