Intermezzo

I’m feeling fairly drained from school and other things that fall in the category of “real life.” No less enthusiastic, but a little less inspired at the moment. I feel like the worst thing I could do is to give into the ennui, throw my hands in the air and say things I don’t really mean and that I’d regret later. I also don't want to just close up shop, not even temporarily. What I’d really love to do is to go recharge via camping, but sadly that isn’t in the cards right now. Something to do with the new job, still being in school, and a lack of banked vacation time…

Anyway, after doing a big research paper for the class just ending, and another big class with a lot of writing coming up I’m considering doing something of a palette cleansing blog-wise, and step away from RPGs for a little bit. I’m thinking that it’s time to do something with all my minis and terrain again, and I’ve had that itch… especially since I haven’t touched a miniature or a piece of terrain all year. Not to build/paint anyway…

So here’s what I’m going to do. Almost 6 years ago I planned on making a Hirst Arts Bell Tower out of the fieldstone line. I started it 2 years ago and built it wrong, thinking I knew better than the directions, and gave up on the project.

Guess what?

Not mine, but along the lines of what I’m planning

Project’s Back On!

And I'll be documenting my progress here!

I can tell you're so excited.

I ain't afraid of no ghost!

You might not have know, but Ghostbusters is back in theaters this month! Seems like Thursday nights only, but still, a chance to see it on the big screen! I know where I'll be tonight!

New Poll - Classic Movie Monsters

I’m rather insanely busy finishing up a big research paper for class, so in lieu of a real post here’s a new holiday themed poll.

What is your favorite classic movie monster?

• Vampire
• Werewolf
• Invisible Man
• Gill-Creature
• Phantom
• Mr. Hyde (Dr. Jekyll)
• Frankenstein's Monster
• Mummy

The good news is I’m almost done, and I’m hoping to be back up to speed by the end of the week.

Sunday Inspirational Image - Pumpkin Wizard

Fey Thoughts

I’ve been thinking about fairies a lot recently. In 4e parlance I’d probably use the word Eladrin, but for the rest of you, I’m talking about the fey nobles (Titania, Oberon, etc.). While I’ve not always included the fey in my games, I find myself more and more inclined to do so.

However... I don’t want my fairies to look like this:

or this:

They aren’t little humans with shiny wings. They aren’t TinkerbellI or Oona. They are strange, alien creatures

Not this sort of alien!

I want them to be distinctly Other. Something that’s just kind of creepy, yet beautiful and potentially terrible at the same time! I’m not sure where the idea first came to me, but it was probably looking at the various masks that are in my house, and the pictures of the masked characters of Venice. It got me to thinking about the scene in Labyrinth where Jareth sweeps Sarah into the masquerade ball.

What if fairy nobles appeared in full masquerade garb? Fully covered, head to toe, hats, gloves, and garb all highly elaborate. Full face masks, with only their eyes appearing. No skin showing at all!

I would rule the mask only removable by killing the fey noble, and underneath would be nothing! Like when Old Ben Kenobi is killed by Vader and the robes fall to the ground.

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As you can see, I'm not dead, it's just been a busy week!

Another one bites the dust...

Once again another blogger is shutting up shop: Austrodavicus, aka Dave (good name) of There's Dungeons Down Under. And because I hate to see things disappear from the blogoverse, here is his post on random books.

Good luck Dave!

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A Random Table and an Update
Part 4 is taking longer to write than I expected (who would've thought there'd be so much criticism of the OSR). It looks like it may even have to be in two parts. So in the meantime, here's a random table I whipped up as a filler:

Quick and Dirty Random Book Finder

Roll one of each dice type and read the results in the order below.

Item found (1d4)

1. Tome
2. Scroll
3. Sheaf of parchments
4. 1d4+1 volumes

The writing is (1d6)

1. None, blank pages (either invisible ink or ignore all other dice)
2. The finder’s native language
3. A known language
4. An unknown language
5. Some sort of code
6. Undecipherable Writing

The item is (1d8)

1. Of no value or interest whatsoever
2. A good read, but of no value
3. Interesting and helpful, but of no monetary value
4. Worth a small amount to a collector
5. Will fetch a decent price
6. Worth lots, easy to sell
7. Rare and incredibly valuable
8. Dangerous to possess

Other features (1d10)

1. Nothing outstanding
2. Illustrated
3. Decorative borders
4. Tooled-leather cover/case
5. Creepy-looking handwriting
6. Illuminated calligraphy
7. Includes what appears to be a treasure map
8. Dried, pressed flowers
9. Appears to be written in blood
10. Written in gold ink and encrusted with tiny precious stones

Subject matter is (1d12)

1. Fictional
2. Historical
3. Myths and Legends
4. Theological
5. Cultural
6. Metaphysical
7. Scientific
8. Geographical
9. Astronomical
10. A bestiary
11. Artistic
12. Magical, add 10 to the d20 roll

Effects of reading the item (1d20)

1 – 10. Nothing unusual
11. Reader is confused by what has been read
12. Reader absolutely refuses to give up the book
13. Reader develops an obsession with the subject, becomes a collector
14. Reader has an overwhelming urge to destroy the book
15. Reader hears a strange unearthly music
16. Reader goes into a trance for 6 turns, awakes with no memory of what happened
17. Reader has a prophetic dream next time they sleep
18. Reader receives a mild curse or affliction
19. Reader receives the effects of a Bless spell for 6 turns, one time only
20. Contains 1d6 spells

Optional: Author (1d30 – roll 1d4 times and arrange to taste)

1. Var
2. Ing
3. Gav
4. Char
5. Pyp
6. Zis
7. Ux
8. Ney
9. Gon
10. Loy
11. Haar
12. Bog
13. Tain
14. Ket
15. Arv
16. Xan
17. Dreb
18. Jyr
19. Een
20. Wos
21. Ika
22. Foag
23. Wan
24. Liat
25. Qaa
26. Meg
27. Yiss
28. Naaba
29. Ros
30. Oss

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And I once again pledge to never nuke my blog.

Short Adventures PDF

I've collected the 25 short adventures into a 16 page PDF.

Click on the mustached dragon to download, or visit the downloads page.