Sunday, March 31, 2024
Saturday, March 30, 2024
Vote for Eric Jacobson for HMGS Board of Directors
One day, I will follow the wise advice of William Tecumseh Sherman, but for now, I have been nominated as a candidate from the Historical Miniatures Gaming Society (HMGS) Board of Directors, so I will run, and if I get enough votes, I will proudly serve if elected.
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| A micro-armor Sherman in every garage and a 15mm chicken in every mini case. |
The biggest problem with the BoD that even a 5-year mission like Star Trek is subject to the whims of a small electorate and limited terms. The foundation of a program or plan might barely be set and a new group of candidates get elected with wild-eyed ideas. Do we want growth? Do we want stability? Do we want collaboration? I'm game to consider anything, so long as there's a practical application AND we have the manpower to pull it off. We're not shrinking down to two cons and we're not going to pie-in-the-sky Baltimore Next Level, but to review the options, and nip speculation with fact-based decisions through multiple lines of communication sounds fair.
And yes, most of that has been looked at before, but it's time to act like Sisyphus and push that boulder back up the hill.
Friday, March 29, 2024
Another Month of New Gaming (April 2024)
Issue #290 of Game Trade Magazine is available at your FLGS, or online in PDF form here.
ViscountEric's Gaming Want List
Nothing,
ViscountEric's Money-Is-No-Object Want List
Nothing
The Imaginary Store List (The Pegleg Gnome)
25th Century Games
Mutton Bustin ............................................................ $24.99
Pigeon's Eleven .......................................................... $14.99
Adamant Entertainment
The Far West RPG ..................................................... $59.95
Arc Dream Publishing
Delta Green RPG: Dead Letter .................................. $29.99
Arcane Tinmen
Dragon Shield Roleplaying: Game Master Companion - Midnight Blue ........... $119.99
Ares Games
Barbarian Kingdoms ................................................... $49.90
The Army Painter
There's a full selection of individual colors for The Army Painter's fanatic line of basic paints. I can safely say I never had an issue with any color of AP paint I used in the past, so I'm unsure what the true hubbub is beyond their AP's blurb on their website.
Bandai
Digimon TCG: Secret Crisis Boosters
Dragonball Super Fusion World TCG Starters and Boosters
One Piece TCG: Two Legends Boosters and Double Pack Sets
Basing the imaginary store on the area around me, there is a surprising upswell of One Piece fans, so it would be foolish not to stock it.
Bezier Games
Sandbag ........................................................... $14.95
Catalyst Game Labs
Leviathan: Great War - Starter Box .................. $69.99
This I'm not too keen on, although it should hit all the right buttons.
Overlords: In Training ..................................... $39.99
Cephalofair Games
Frosthaven: Play Surface Books. ...................... $70.00
Gloomhaven: Buttons and Bugs ...................... $20.00
Darrington Press
For the Queen .................................................... $24.99
Devir Americas
Espana 1936 ...................................................... $39.99
Dire Wolf Digital
Invincible: The Hero-Building Game ................. $55.00
Draco Ideas
Drums of War: Enclave ...................................... $29.99
Nexum Galaxy ................................................... $39.99
Dragonfly Investments
Space Puppies: Eclipse ....................................... $35.00
DV Giochi
Bang! Legends Expansion ................................. $19.99
Evil Hat Productions
Deathmatch Island RPG HC .............................. $30.00
Exalted Funeral Press
Dr Grordbort's Scientific Adventure Violence Setting Book (5e) .... $50.00
Dr Grordbort's GM Screen ............................................. $22.00
Dr Grordbort's Field Guide to Malfunctions Zine .......... $10.00
Fanroll
Dragon Plush Dice Bag ......................................... $24.99
Pathfinder Dice Goblin Plush Bag ........................ $24.99
Golden Lasso Games
Decuma: The R&D for Your RPG ........................ $35.00
Goodman Games
All Chimeras Great and Small (5e or DCC) ......... $9.99
Chaos Before the Mast (5e or DCC) .................... $9.99
The Exodus of Wolfsbane (5e or DCC) ............... $14.99
The Chateau of Stolen Memories (5e or DCC) .... $10.99 (5e) $9.99 (DCC)
Dungeon Delves (5e or DCC) .............................. $19.99
Dungeon Denizens (5e or DCC) .......................... $69.99
Dungeon Denizens - Cardstock Pawns (5e or DCC) .... $119.99
Dungeon Denizens Dungeon Dice (5e) ................. $15.00
Dungeon Denizens Dungeon Dice (DCC) ............. $34.99
Dungeon Denizens GM Screen (5e) ....................... $15.99
Dungeon Denizens Judge's Screen (DCC) .............. $19.99
Dark Tower RPG Dice 5e ...................................... $15.00
Dark Tower RPG Dice DCC ................................. $34.99
DCC - Against the Thieves Guild .......................... $10.99
DCC - Champions of the Goblin Market .............. $9.99
DCC - Blight of the Eastern Forest ....................... $29.99
DCC #072 - Beyond the Black Gate ..................... $ 9.99
DCC #076 - Colossus, Arise! ............................... $ 9.99
DCC #078 - Fate's Fell Hand (Sketch Cover) ...... $14.99
DCC #079 - Mini- Frozen in Time ....................... $ 9.99
DCC #082 - Bride of the Black Manse ................ $ 9.99
DCC #085 - The Making of the Ghost Ring (Sketch) .. $14.95
DCC #087 - Against the Atomic Overlord ............ $ 9.99 (Sketch $14.99)
DCC #088 - The 998th Conclave of Wizards ....... $19.99
DCC #105 - By Mitra's Bones, Meet They Doom! ...... $19.99
DCC #106 - Trials of the Trapmaster's Tomb ....... $ 9.99
DCC Dying Earth #010 - Passage of the Manse of Erudite Wonderment ..... $10.99
DCC Lankhmar #015 - The House of Jade and Shadow ........ $9.99
MCC - The Bane of the Ancients .......................... $ 9.99
MCC - Horror at the Mercc ................................... $11.99
Original Adventures Reincarnated #8 - Grimtooth's Old School Traps ..... $49.99
Fifth Edition Fantasy #026 - Against the Thieves Guild ............. $10.99
Diapers & Daycares: Parents Handbook - Your Basic Parody .... $11.99
Dwellings & Driveways: Keep on the Cul-de-Sac - Your Basic Parody ... $ 9.99
Neon Lords - Riders of the Superwarp ..................... $30.00
Neon Lords - Warpshine Runnerz .............................$30.00
Sky ov Crimson Flame ............................................. $14.99
Tales from the Magician's Skull #012 ...................... $14.99
X-Crawl Classics Core Rulebook ............................................... $59.99
X-Crawl Classics Reference Booklet ......................................... $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics Dungeon Judge's Screen ................................ $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #000 - Murder Mountain Smackdown ........... $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #001 - The Crawl Formerly Known as Terror on the Tundra .... $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #002 - Tropicrawl Cataclysm ........................ $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #003 - Please XCrawl Don't Hurt 'Em! .......... $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #004 - Death in the Dungeon of Tomorrow ... $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #005 - Bay City Firestorm .............................. $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics #006 - Dooms 2 Go ........................................ $ 9.99
X-Crawl Classics Complete Collection ....................................... $152.00
Grand Gamers Guild
Words of a Feather ....................................................... $34.99
Kobold Press
Tales of the Valiant RPG - Player's Guide .................. $59.99
Tales of the Valiant RPG - Monster Vault ................... $59.99
Konami Digital Entertainment
Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG 25th Anniversary Rarity Collection II Boosters
Legendary Games
The Dragon's Hoard (5e) .......................................... $12.99
#38 and #39 solicited
Mechanical Heroes (Pathfinder) ............................... $16.99
Mechanical Monsters (Pathfinder) ............................ $29.99
Loke Battle Mats
The Deck of Many Insults (5e) ................................. $17.99
Mana Project Studio
Cowboy Bebop RPG Rulebook ................................. $54.90
Big Shot Screen .......................................................... $27.90
Cowboy Bebop Quickstart .......................................... $ 9.90
Cowboy Bebop Spike Spiegel Dice Set ...................... $17.90
Cowboy Bebop Swordfish II Dice Set ........................ $17.90
Mind Inventions
Kingdom Battle ........................................... $24.99
Modiphius
Fallout RPG - Map Pack 1 - Vault ............................ $45.00
Fallout RPG - Settler's Guide Book .......................... $35.00
Mongoose Publishing
Traveller RPG - The Deep and the Dark ................... $59.99
Traveller RPG - Whisphers on the Abyss ................. $49.99
Paizo Publishing
Pathfinder RPG - AP Wardens of Wildwood 3 - Shepherd of Decay .... $29.99
Pathfinder RPG - Flip-Mat - Basic Environments Multi-Pack .............. $29.99
Pathfinder RPG - Monster Core Pocket Edition .................................... $29.99
Pathfinder RPG - Monster Core Pawn Box ........................................... $74.99
Pegasus Spiele North America
Alpaca ........................................... $24.95
Foxy .............................................. $24.95
Q-Workshop
Dogs Dice Set Charlie .................. $19.00
Renegade
GI JOE RPG - Beginner Box ......... $35.00
Transformers RPG - Beginner Box .. $35.00
Transformers RPG - Enigma of Combination..... $45.00
Smirk and Dagger
This Game is Killer: Alien on Board ................. $14.99
Steve Jackson Games
Munchkin: The Floor is Larva Expansion ........... $11.95
Two Little Mice
Outgunned RPG ................................................ $50.00
Outgunned RPG - Action Flicks ....................... $45.00
Outgunned RPG - World of Killers ................... $45.00
Van Ryder Games
The Revenant Society RPG HC ........................ $49.99
The Revenant Society RPG Deluxe Set ............ $79.99
Wizards of the Coast
D&D - Vecna Eye of Ruins ............................... $59.95
The Making of Original D&D 1970-1977 ........ $99.99
Magic: The Gathering - Outlaws of Thunder Junction
Boosters, Bundles, Collector Boosters, Commander Decks
Wizkids
D&D Onslaught - Sellswords 2 Expansion - Gold and Glory ........... $39.99
D&D Classic Monsters Collections: O-R ......................................... $9.99
D&D Icons of the Realms - Adult Crystal Dragon ............................ $79.99
D&D Icons of the Realms - Bone Roc ............................................... $69.99
D&D Icons of the Realms - Spiderdragon ......................................... $39.99
D&D Icons of the Realms - Tomb of Annihilation ............................ $299.99
D&D Icons of the Realms Set 31 - 50th Anniversary Booster Bricks
D&D Icons of the Realms Set 31- Classic Red Dragon .................... $29.99
DC Heroclix: Masters of Time Play at Home Kit .............................. $19.99
DC Heroclix: Masters of Time Booster Bricks
Warlock Tiles :City Sewers Core Set ................................................. $149.99
Warlock Tiles: Forgotten Sewers Core Set ......................................... $ 99.99
Wizkids Enounters in a Box: Pirate Attack ........................................ $29.99
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
(Gamma World) This Is Not a Test #25 - The Hisser Village of Notex
Our heroes, the De Facto Explorers, assisting the Hissers of Notex with the sky falling....
=================
Sneaky Pete: A mutated weasel scout. Pete's telepathy and night vision take a backseat when he whips out his electrical powers. Recovering from his injuries from the Glow near Ulmin.
Sonny Helianthus: a sentient sunflower artifact examiner with trusted Restorationist ties.
Slitheran Wurmtail (aka Squiggles): a mutated earthworm scout, in impromptu power armor, looking for trouble, and finding it often. Recently "gave birth" to a litter of sentient earthworm babies.
Lathar Bracken: A pure-strain human from River Bend. He's got the muscle, the face, and a mount for most encounters. Lathar's trusty beast of burden, No Name, travels wherever he does. Looking for trouble in all the right places. Recent jousting champion of Fair-Town and has been awarded... a peacock he has named Chambray.
Ramsay Kallax: Mutated Ram from the far-off KIA Academy with a predilection for ancient treasures... and the occasional head-butt.
================
The De Facto Explorers had crested a ridge and finally got a good view of the strange object of the Ancients off in the distance.
Hoping they were nearing the Hisser village of Notex, they worked there way towards the structure. As they approached, they realized this odd structure was atop an mesa over sixty foot above the the rest of the terrain.
The group took numerous breaks to use their spyglasses and binoculars to spy any activity on the structure. Nothing look amiss, other than the quite square base holding onto the structure. The cliffs below it seemed sheer, with a few masses of vines in random places. No stairs or trails were noticeable, but viewing further down caught a number of concrete towers enclosed with a fence.
Constant and closer review disclosed a number of buildings inside the wooden walls, as well as large gardens, and a large collection of tents. The vague figures moving around were made out to be hissers. Sneaky Pete spied through his binoculars one final approach. He detected figures in the the tower that were definitely snake-like, and as he panned across the field of vision, catching a hisser staring at him through their own set of binoculars. Pete waved. The hisser followed suit.
The group advanced forward, weapons slung, save Lathar, who mounted No-Name and readied his lance. The wall ahead of them was only three meters high, and over 120 meters across. Four large concrete towers loomed large in the corners of the facility, but two smaller ones flanked the actual gate.
A single voice shouted out, "That's far enough."
Sneaky Peter froze in his tracks. The rest of the group continued moving. Realizing that somehow someone was speaking to him telepathically, he shot back a response, 'Alright, we'll stop, but we were asked to come here for help. We mean you no harm.'
'Alrighty then, we got through to only one of you. Meet us at the front gate.'
Pete informed the others of his "personal" conversation and they proceeded to the gate. Within 30 meters, the towers appeared to have turrets on them, and hissers holding rifles of the ancients. The wooden fence also appeared to be a facade of the true defenses, a 2-meter metal wall behind the wooden one. The top of the metal wall was adorned with twisted masses of razor wire.
Upon reaching the door, Pete moved forward ahead of the group and the gate opened, "Hey, guys who sent us?"
"Justinian!"
"Justinian from the Explor... Hey guys what group he was with?"
"The Restorationists"
"Yeah, right.... 'Justinian from the Restorationists sent to us to help you with your problem of the sky falling.'
The same hisser responded telepathically, 'Excellent, we've been waiting for you, put your hands down and come in.'
The gate opened further and the Explorers ented, they were greeted by an older hisser with an eyepatch.
'I am Gorel, come inside and let us do our formalities. Not all the Restorationists are as trustworthy as Justinian.'
'Before we conduct business, we must discover the true intentions of everyone here, Pete. We will need the others to open up your minds, unless you are their official translator.'
Pete spoke of the proper etiquette, and convinced the others to be less resistant to the Hissers only form of communication.
Gorel motioned to another hisser, who carried a glass jar full of flat pieces of wood, with curved ends.
'These are our serum sticks. We need you to put them into your orifices.'
Everyone placed one stick in the their mouths, and after a few moments, Gorel asked them to remove them.
Ramsay's was colored green.
Sonny's was an odd flourescent yellow-green.
Squiggles; was solid yellow.
Lathar's was solid yellow.
Pete's was solid yellow.
Gorel examined them, 'This is sufficient. Follow me.'
The hisser led them down the main lane in the village. Spying down a row of smaller buildings, the could definitely see a destroyed house, and a garden area with a large crater destroying over half of the plot. He finally led them to a large L-shaped two-story wooden building the center of the fenced in area. Inside were Gorel and two other older hissers behind a table.
After Gorel spoke 'This is Pete and his friends from Justinian. They have come to solid our problem with the falling sky.' He introduced the other Hissers as Herka and Joveena.
Joveena connected with the party, 'You may have noticed the recent devastation the wrecked our village. The sky is falling, and it's destruction is getting closer to our villagers, no matter what we do. If we're lucky the sky is striking the great cliff. If we're luckier, they are landing on the far side of the cliff. Luckily this phenomenon has only hurt two villagers thus far.
Sonny requested to examine what was falling from the sky, and the elders concurred.
Lathar somehow picked up a telepathic whisper between Herka and Joveena. 'Tell them about the dish that does not serve...'
'Where's the dish?"
'It's the object atop the cliffs. It's usually been a beacon for our weary travelers returning home. portions of it have begun to move within the past few weeks.'
Lathar spoke out loud, "So do we want to get to this dish, or search around?"
Sonny reverted back to old ways, "I really want to see what's landing in the village."
Gorel led them on a short tour of the town. In the wreckage of a destroyed building, there was a lumpy, metal orb withing the wooden shards. One side of the orb had significant signs of of melting.
'Most of the items fallen from the sky are hitting the cliff face and bouncing off, or are just outside the walls. It's only a matter of time before someone's in the garden or a building when it's hit.
All eyes turned to Sonny, looking for an explanation, but the sunflower was just as perplexed as everyone else. He stared up at the dish and didn't see any obvious pieces missing off of it, and worst yet, he had nary a clue what the wreckage originally was!
They spent an hour trying to figure out a path or method to scale the cliff, Nothing seemed probable, and the Hissers never pondered how to get up there. Perhaps none of them ever experienced the flying mutation?
Next they investigated the crystal-clear, pure water source, emerging from the base of the cliff. There was no obvious source filling the basin, although the overflow would trickle along the cliff base, under the wall. The run-off then pooled in another location downhill, until that run-off led to the stream in the valley.
Finally, they toured around the cliff/mesa. The other side of it had an assortment of melted wrecked impacted. Returning back to the village, the party continued to ponder diving into the basin and finding it's water source. Sonny worked over the cliff, still as sheer as ever. Then he saw one of the rock sections jutting out 3-4 inches then making a 90 degree turn to the right. Following across, he met another right angle, and then going down, was an odd control panel to the right of it. A very dull glow in some of the buttons was barely detectable.
"Guys!!!!!!"
GM Notes: Everyone failed their search rolls, except for Sonny, who rolled a "1".
We spent the last 25 minutes of the session discussing that Squiggles could swim into the basin. "A swimming worm won't last too long." Even if they attached a line to him, or use some of the mystery metal for a sturdier support. I believe Mike suggested we simply impale the worm on the metal, "Just in case."
Next: #26 - The Room of Pain
Monday, March 25, 2024
(Gnome Wars) The Annual Swiss 3rd Engineer Regiment Easter Egg Hunt
A weekend with the girls was curtailed by something the Germans translate to "March Angriness" but we did manage to put together an Easter game.
First off, I ported over all the Dollar Tree buildings and let them set up the village to their liking, including a bridge over a pond of jelly beans.
- Each team of three gnomes, no firearms (egg hunts are dangerous enough!)
- Playing card initiative. Single Joker in the deck causes an event.
- Each figure gets two actions. 6" movement per action, picking up items is one action.
- Each figure can hold five eggs, picking a carrot (sack) allows them to pick up ten.
- Returning eggs to the home base secures those eggs. Dumping the eggs is a free action.
 |
| We did NOT add rules for Posey the Cat. |
 |
| Who conducts an Easter Egg hunt during a religious service? |
 |
| Big nasty pointy teeth!!!! |
 |
| Oh the carnage.... |
Saturday, March 23, 2024
(Planet 28) Immovable Force
With one girl completely immersed with all thing March Madness, and another completely indifferent, it was a good day break out a simple scenario and relearn Planet 28.
Scenario: Death Planet Iota is a junk planet, the final resting place for items sucked into various vortexes throughout the universe. Only the strongest, the smartest, or the most resilient tend to survive.
The Ratskins are all three.
Toughened by the planet (and thick layers of animal pelts) the Ratskins scavenge what they can find, and raid when necessary. Tough and heavily armed, they are a force to be reckoned with, even more so when they're hired for a task.
 |
| The Ratskins |
One of the local warlords has acquired a damaged aircraft which arrived on the planet. Desperate to find techs smart enough to fix it, he has squirreled it away in a heavily guarded complex which houses a number of other valuable items.
The complex is heavily guarded from the outside, but easier to access from the underground. The Ratskins will be paid more than most of the items they're destroying are worth. Anyway, what would they do with a spaceship?
The only internal guards are the Chimneysweeps, a Gnomish Police Force, currently being hired out as security by the warlord.
 |
| The Chimneysweeps. Disregard the heavy support gnome. |
Chimneysweeps Objective: Keep damage to a minimum. Three or fewer objectives destroyed is a victory, although the aircraft counts as three objectives by itself.
The Ratskins had snuck into a building, but triggered a silent alarm, which alerted the gnomes of their actions. They were still able to whip around the corner and unload onto the gnomes in the corridor only to completely miss. The gnomes gained their senses and returned fire, only to... completely miss.
The Ratskins and Gnomekind tended to avoid each other, this was their first true encounter. While the Rastkins were tough hombres, the gnomes were a different breed. Despite their slowness (10cm minus 1d6 cm per action) they had an iron skin. While the gnomes shots kept missing the Ratskins, perfectly square shots to vital areas seemed to simply bounce off, sometimes with a laugh from the gnome.
Ultimately a hail of SMG fire finally knicked and wounded one of the Raskins that they paused for a moment, only to have another shot have them headed back towards the underground.
On the far end of the board, the gnomes had injured one Ratskin, the Ratskin's shotgun-wielding brother started to unleash Hell. It was still difficult to wound the gnome with the blasts, but the shot sent him flying backwards multiple time.
With the one gnome constantly getting pushed back towards the firefight in the center of the complex. The one gnome thought valor was for another day and ran around the wall, letting the Ratskin leader set the charge unmolested.
With his compatriot already in the sewers, the lone Ratskin in the firefight in the center of the complex, exchanged fire, only for the blasts to continue to be absorbed by gnomish physiology.
Finally, as the gnomes may have all been reloading. The Ratskin dashed around his corner and headed towards a communication objective.
Meanwhile, the gnome in hiding regained some bravery, and regretted every second of it. He engaged the Ratskin leader in a melee that would be difficult to land a wounding blow. However the part couldn't hug each other, much less hurt each other, until the gnome, finally shoved him away and tried to escape, only to stumble between two Ratskins advancing.
By this point the security bot was fully operational and moving through the complex, with weaponry more than capable of injuring the Ratskins. As they fell back, the leader detonated both charges, destroying both objectives, and possibly leaving on of their kind either killed by the blast, or buried under the rubble. A partial victory for the Ratskins, a major one for the Chimneysweeps, although no one wanted to contact the client about the two large explosions in the complex.
 |
| Even a decent shot (2d8 =11) was absorbed by the gnome's armor (d8+d4). This was the theme all game. |
 |
| Obejective Two: Armed. |
The 2nd edition of the rules clear up combat and equipment, but a hot light armor die (d8) versus a poor to average damage dice (2d6 or 2d8) either mitigates or cancels out most of the damage. The lone Ratskin who needed a break test (less than 50% of hit points) was hit five times before it happened, and didn't completely break until a sixth shot got through for a whopping four points and dropped the break test save as 1-2 on 1d10.
Now throw in an extra d4 for the gnomes, and the Ratskins should have just outraced them while they had the chance.
This scenario was directly inspired by "Maximum Havoc" from Preacher by Day. and involved Chaos cultists who were a little squishier for some Lamenters. I may revisit this scenario in the future, but I have an Easter game to plan for both girls.
Friday, March 22, 2024
RIP James Ward (1951-2024)
James Ward, one of the pioneers in the early days of role-playing, passed away this week.
A few tidbits, just in case you don't know anything about him:
- The D&D Character Drawmij, is "Jim Ward" backwards.
- His writing credits included Metamorphosis Alpha and Gods, Demi-Gods, & Heroes (the 4th white book for original D&D.
- He wrote multiple of editions of Gamma World.
- I was a bit surprised he wrote far more novels than RPG material over the years.
Mister Nizz writes his memories far better than I do mine.
Thursday, March 21, 2024
The Mike Lung Gallery #89 - The Adventures of Bernard and Cindy, Part Two
Part Two of Mike Lung's "All Things Zombie" game with poor Bernard and Cindy.
The Adventures of Bernard and Cindy, Continued!
Emboldened by his success, in a moment of craziness Bernard
rushed from cover to meet the remaining zombies!
With his pistol and axe, he cut down two more of the undead.
However, Sally who was trailing behind was surprised by a zombie
woman hiding behind the truck.
Instinctively, she swung her bat just like at a ball game. With a gruesome “Crack”, the zombie
collapsed at her feet.
Stan and Sally were forever united once again!
Bernard shouted at Sally, “Come on! We need to go!” But she was too stunned to move.
Two more zombies shambled out behind the truck and tried to
grab her.
“Crack! Crack!” Both
zombies dropped to the ground with their heads shattered as Sally wildly swung
the bat!
With that, the campground went quiet. Bernard and Cindy approached the camper in
hopes of finding food and possibly shelter.
One last zombie lurched out of the camper, but Bernard was
ready and quickly put it down. The young
heroes were rewarded with some food and a bit of rest.
Campground carnage!
The End
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
(Gamma World) This is Not a Test #24 - Podogs Down by the River
Our heroes, the De Facto Explorers, off to possibly assist the Hissers of Notex
=================
Sneaky Pete: A mutated weasel scout. Pete's telepathy and night vision take a backseat when he whips out his electrical powers. Recovering from his injuries from the Glow near Ulmin.
Sonny Helianthus: a sentient sunflower artifact examiner with trusted Restorationist ties.
Slitheran Wurmtail (aka Squiggles): a mutated earthworm scout, in impromptu power armor, looking for trouble, and finding it often. Recently "gave birth" to a litter of sentient earthworm babies.
Lathar Bracken: A pure-strain human from River Bend. He's got the muscle, the face, and a mount for most encounters. Lathar's trusty beast of burden, No Name, travels wherever he does. Looking for trouble in all the right places. Recent jousting champion of Fair-Town and has been awarded... a peacock he has named Chambray.
Ramsay Kallax: Mutated Ram from the far-off KIA Academy with a predilection for ancient treasures... and the occasional head-butt. \
================
The explorers departed River Bend for the Hisser village of Notex in the lands of Huush. The first day was uneventful, save a debate whether or not to encounter the first Hisser village (not Notex!) at dusk or after dawn.
Deciding upon resting before before entering Hisser territory, they set up camp. After cooking a meal at beginning to rest, they all heard a large amount of splashing coming from upriver. Pete sneak up the riverbank, encountering two podogs, gleefully splashing in the river, without riders.
Noticing the pure-strain human, the podogs stopped frolicking and investigated the rations thrown by the shore. The podogs cautiously nibbled on the food and Lathar tried to approach. The animals did not appear to be as sociable as they first appear, hackles rising.
Lathar was confused by their reaction and looked back at his compatriots, "What do I do know?"
Pete only offered one suggestion, "Don't run...."
Lathar stared the podogs dead in the eye, hands out and extended, stepping back and around the beasts. The growling faded.
The rest of the crew got their feet wet, fingers on triggers, trying to distract the other podog.
Everyone on the river were in a uneasy truce, under a loud "BUUU-CAWWW" coming from atop No Name.
GM Notes: Jim (Lathar's player) was going so specific in his maneuvers, that he ended up doing the Time Warp (a la Rocky Horror), and that took up 20 minutes of game play.
 |
| A young Squiggles.... |
The peacock seemed a bit jealous of all the attention being laid upon the mammals and was quite vocal in its displeasure.
Pete, standing on a rock in the middle of the river, whooped accordingly, and while the podogs were distracted with him, he threw some of his meaty rations onto the riverbank. The podogs jaunted over and continued to eat.
Sonny thought better of the efforts, "Guys, let's cut out losses..."
Pete agreed, as well as a Squiggles, struggling with No Name and the peacock.
Lathar was still hesitant, pondering a dozen different actions that none of his compatriots would agree with. He slowly moved towards the beast to attempt to mount them. Nearing the largest creature, he could finally spot a large collar around its neck. The brass tag attached to the collar finally spun within view, revealing two words: "JACKPOT STUD"
Lathar called out, "Jackpot! Here boy!"
The podogs stared at Lathar and continued to move away slowly.
Pete was able to catch a glimmer off the tag, and notice the same tag, confirming that the pure-strain human was babbling. Locating the tag on the second one revealed "ONYX ARMOR."
Pete focused on Onyx with his telepathy, "Hey, we mean no harm."
Onyx's head shook, looking for something, Peter could hear him talking, "Who's talking? Where? Where?"
"Good boy Onyx"
"Who's that?"
"Onyx, we're you're friends"
"If you're friends, get this food away. It stinks." The podog was still confused and began leaping in the river.
Onyx caught the eye of Jackpot, and with a glance, they both took off upriver.
Pete, caught one last conversation from Onyx:
"Bruno, these aren't the bad guys, but they aren't our guys. They just have bad food. I hear another voice, it must be our masters."
"Right Onyx, but I would have beaten that guy in a staring contest, you betcha."
Pete relayed his information with the other explorers, and they returned to camp.
The following day, they found no further sign of the Podogs... their masters, or the bad guys. They made great space as they passed the Hisser village where they first encountered Artemus, as well as the area near Level A. No activity could be seen at either location.
Another day's travel, and they came upon another stream to cross. As they began to ford it, the water was unseasonably cold for the summer. Further inspection of the grounds found interesting tracks, very large snake tracks in particular, heading upstream on the creek. They followed a narrow, but well-worn path up hill. While they did not see a village, upon emerging out of the woods for a spell, they easily spied a large object atop of a raised hill:
Monday, March 18, 2024
(Kickstarter) Firefight at the Research Station by Things from the Basement
Things from the Basement has launched their most recent laser-cut MDF sci-fi buildings: Firefight at the Research Station
Things from the Basement has teamed up with Trench Coat Minis to cross-promote the new buildings, as well as Trench Coat's Trilaterum minis rules and figures.Sunday, March 17, 2024
Let's Talk About Henning
So, fun fact: My sister and her Canadian husband got married a little over 11 years ago in a civil service up in Boston, but their post-ceremony celebration that evening also had George Takei (oh my...) at the same bar.
That summer, they had a get-together up in Boston with all the family and friends from far and wide. The last activity we did the Sunday before we returned home was a visit 311 Broadway in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Why, you might ask?
I get the distinction of having my most famous relative headlining a Supreme Court case, Jacobson vs Massachusetts, a case where the Justices ruled compulsory vaccinations were constitutional because "the police power of the state may be allowed to constrain individual liberties through reasonable regulations when required to protect public safety."
So just to clear the air, Henning Jacobson, was not some wild anti-vaxxer by today's standards, or even the early 20th Century. After two horrible experiences with the antiquated 19th century vaccinations in routine circumstances that left family members dead or maimed in both Sweden and the United States, and decided to hold his ground when Cambridge instituted compulsory vaccination 1902 during an outbreak in the community. His case through the judicial process was paid for by prominent anti-vaxxers for the day.
In hindsight, the new manufacturing process and administration of the vaccine at the turn of the century had been completely changed, with miniscule reactions compared to the prior methods, but to quote George W. Bush, "Fool me twice, won't be fooled again." I'll also note that no family member who has taken the modern versions of the vaccine has come down with any reactions in the last 120+ years. (I'm almost disappointed that smallpox was removed from the in processing inoculations for US Military between 1983 and 2002, so I didn't get it when I was in the military. I'll gladly take it today, if needed, though I might pass if it still involved a live virus.) Very similar to the last few years of COVID, a mixture of traumatic anecdotal experience (there weren't sufficient medical records to justify an exception, even if one would be accepted.)
One of the other points of consideration I'd hope he did consider was his profession and its impact to the public. As a pastor of a Swedish Lutheran church with a sizable congregation, I see a matter of personal and public safety to consider, although I add that there was nary a mention from the pulpit that researchers could find, and only a scant few amongst all ethnicities in the city objected.
So why do I rant on about my Great-Great-Grandfather Henning, smallpox, and the like? Because the congregation he presided over, the church he helped build was at 311 Broadway in Cambrige.
When we visited, the church, now Faith Lutheran, as a grand old church with massive beams and fabulous woodworking built by Swedish immigrants. Like most mainline Protestants churches, it's original congregation fled the city and a much smaller and diverse group took up their mantle.
I've got to admit that when I introduced myself I still got a bit of the rock-star treatment. I even got to meet an elderly woman who was actually baptized by him before he retired... and somehow had his old church desk in her house! However with small little ones and a 5+ hour drive home, I couldn't take full advantage of the hospitality, just a chance to take some pictures, see some artifacts with ancestral ties and meet some very nice people.
I had not found an opportunity to revisit the church in the following years, and as of Easter 2023, that opportunity was now impossible.
Sometime after the Easter services last week, a fire started in the church. All those magnificent beams? All that fantastic woodwork covered in thick layers of varnish and lacquer? Now it was all fuel for a fearsome multiple-alarm blaze.
The congregation has been worshipping at different sites, thanks to the grace and generosity of other denominations in Cambridge.
When we returned home from our trip, I wrote a social media post mentioning how awesome it was that something my ancestor helped build and nurture might be something strong enough for one of my kids' grandkids could see one day. Nothing lasts forever, and for most things, much shorter than they deserve.
Friday, March 15, 2024
Preorders Now Open For Arena of Blood by Wiley Games
Wiley Games has just opened up pre-orders for their latest game, Arena of Blood.
Contrary to my initial thoughts, Arena of Blood is not part of the Fistful of Lead product line. Rather it's a new game, albeit with some familiarity.
In Arena of Blood, you are the proud owner of a gladiator school, with a stable of gladiators, all with different fighting techniques and abilities. Careful use of your fighters is crucial. Each gladiator has strengths and weaknesses.
Pit your gladiators against your rivals in the Arena of Blood! Matches are quick. Play a whole tournament in an evening!
Pit your gladiators against your rivals in the Arena of Blood! Matches are quick. Play a whole tournament in an evening!
If this doesn't scream Thursday night convention fare, to compliment the Friday night Gnome Joust and Saturday night Gnome Game, I don't know what does. Better yet, this sounds like perfect Sunday morning fare.
Thursday, March 14, 2024
The Mike Lung Gallery #88 - The Adventures of Bernard and Cindy Part One
We continue to post some old All Things Zombie (ATZ) scenarios friend of the blog and Award-Winning GM Mike Lung played almost a decade ago... with LEGOs. There's rumors that he was bitten by a LEGO zombie and started up the games again...
The
Adventures of Bernard and Cindy
Bernard
and his kid sister Cindy were alone in the woods. Something terrible had happened back at their
camp. When they returned from a hike.
The camp site was covered in blood and gore, and their parents were gone. Screams of terror could be heard from nearby
campers and dark shapes shambled in the woods.
Realizing their camper wasn’t safe, Bernard grabbed his father’s pistol
and Cindy picked up her baseball bat before dashing into the woods to find
safety and help.
After
a long terrifying day in the woods, Sally complained that she was too hungry
and tired to go further. Just then they
stumbled into a clearing and saw a parked utility truck with its flashers on. Nearby was another camper. “Sally, maybe there is someone here who can
help us!” But then they saw the bodies
strewn about the grounds. A distant moan
and then another alerted them to the danger.
More
moans erupted behind them. They were
surrounded!
They had no choice but to fight. Shaking with fear, Bernard raised his
father’s gun. “Blam! Blam!,” he shot the
ghoul that had once been Ollie. It fell to the ground but was still moving.
“Blam!” Not taking any chance, Bernard fired another round
into its head.
Desperately, they raced to the utility truck and searched it
for something that could help. Stan
picked up a hatched to help defend himself.
“Bernard! We need to
get out of here!” Sally screamed interrupting
Bernards search as more zombies approached.
They retreated to the edge of the woods where Bernard took
careful aim at the oncoming horde.
“Blam! Blam!” Two zombies
dropped.
End of Part I
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