The Train, The Train!!! and Other Weekend Musings

The heck with all the craziness that's non stop, the first full week of the year has  been pretty good.  

First off, remember the local train show I took Millie to before Christmas.  Seems like they pulled my name on one of the raffle tickets, so I won one of the train sets.  

I didn't think too much of it, other than 'cool' but upon examination, I was impressed.  The set itself retails for a few cents short of $200, and the oval track is  36" by 54", which means we couldn't set the whole set up on the dining room table without some fear of cars plunging off a sheer cliff.  I still have room in the basement to set something up.

Speaking of trains, we have the next day for our Call of Cthulhu campaign, Sunday, February 28th.  It corresponds with the Allentown Spring Thaw Train Meet, so we can do our annual Daddy Daughter Train Day.  In reality, we go to the train meet in the morning, and I drop them off at my Mom's in the afternoon so I can game in Easton.

We've done well on the gaming front this week.  Lots of Life, Dungeon Roll, and Zombie Dice to keep Maja busy.  Saturday I dusted off the terrain and we ran half of the scenario I had planned for Savage Showdown. The AAR will be heavily edited for some initial lack of conviction for our heroes, the climax on the fight  will surprise a few.

And with multiple nights down at the painting table, we should have some creations appearing shortly.  I'm only doing one or two steps on each project until my painting ADHD starts to fade away, but accomplishment helps dealing with the ailment.  Pics soon to follow, I hope.

I couldn't go down for the second session of Hoyce's AD&D game.  My mother in law is back in the hospital for a third time in three months (Medicare's going to have a field day with the hospital's lackadaisical attitude and general incompetence.)   While my wife stayed at the hospital, I got to take the kids to yet another Chuck E Cheese birthday party

The sketcher gave me a ZZ Top sized goutee.

Delicious Chocolate Chip Camo Mechs

One of constant things in my social media feeds is "Pinterest versus Reality"  where people try to duplicate the uber recipes, arts and crafts, etc, with hilariously bad results.

A while back, I discovered a video of painting  chocolate chip camo.  Looked easy enough.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5HkkS7Sr1U&sns=em

And of course, the first thing to come off my bench in three months looks like this...

Dervish and Hunchback

I mean, they're not horrible, and if I were painting a wargear from Heavy Gear, the dark chocolate circles would be about the right size.  

A solid attempt that I may revisit later, but I've gotten figs off the table, and two more 'mechs out of the Battletech Introductory Boxed Set finished.

In the queue: (1)   The palm trees project is taking longer than expected, especially since I misplaced the Khaki after finishing these guys up.  Plan on finishing trunks and flocking by Sunday.  (2)  Martian Spiders to not like the bright orange paint (yes, Bright Orange), but after three coats,they've finally surrendered.  Baby steps with this one.  (3)  **NEW**  Some old school fantasy figures to fill in the time between the first two projects. 

Gnome Vehicles From... Atlantis???

With the holidays finally over, save Orthodox Boxing Day, there's time again to delve into the archives of GwtG contributor Mike Lung for another source of vehicles for Gnome Wars.

On the discussion on where he obtained some of his vehicles for his German Gnomes:

"... they are toys I converted from the Disney Atlantis movie. Unfortunately, they are getting a bit hard to find since the movie was released a while back. But you can find them on Ebay and other sites occasionally if you are lucky for around $6-$10, but often for a lot more. I would think they would show up occasionally in Disney toy lots as well. Also, one has to be careful not to get the die cast toys which are way too small or the McDonald's toys which are not so useful. They did a number of vehicles that work...a big water truck that makes a wonderful German bierwagen!; a mechanized diner/chuck wagon which I use for my Swiss bunny drawn wagon; a cargo truck full of ammo (the truck I used for my German artillery); a open bed truck; and armored car; and a light tank . Here's are some examples currently on Ebay:

 

 

The Return to the Lair... with Beer!

By Odin's Raven!  Everyone in the house fell asleep at a right an proper hour last night, enabling me to descend into the basement.  Paint brushes have been held, paint applied!

As I've mumbled incoherently for a few weeks, the dust is off of the three projects that have been sitting on the bench since the Fall.   Funny thing is, the newest project of the three might be finished tomorrow night, while I need a weekend re-supply of glue if I have a chance to finish off the palm tree project.  Martian spiders just aren't taking the orange base coat well, so I might be moving onto other things and dabbling with that at times.

My sister and brother-in-law had grabbed some random bottles and cans of interesting beer for Christmas, so I enjoyed a Fireside Chat from the 21st Amendment Brewery.  I like my Steigmaier Winter Warmer better, but Fireside had a nice wintry mixture of wooden console radios, coal stoves, and fearing nothing but fear itself.  Very nice.



FDR, Mechs, and Palm Trees:  What made America great.

I also tried the Harmontown podcast again as my distraction at work and the painting table.  The last two episodes have violently in different directions, from discussions on depressions to drug-addled Paul Lynde impersonations, but they have both been awesome.  Working through the back catalog this afternoon as well.



(Hackmaster) Burning Trogs Rule! #21: Gwen's Journey

From the hasty journal of Gwendalyn Lorax, lone surivivor of the Far East Burning Trogs:

21^st of TriDec, Parts Unknown
I am now the only one of the Trogs that are known alive.  Marek died by his own fire - he aged himself - or was aged - his mind gave out on him.  Brother Thomas died by large lizards in the forests that were chased out by the fires.  I sailed down a rocky hill on two small shields. Some old blind man saw me,but I snuck away.

I wandered for days -scratched and bloody - I came into a town found an inn and was able to get a bath and a room.  I do not know where Cecelia is .  I do not know where Zorin and Janus and Whitey are.  I hope they are alive.  I was able to find a light robe to replace my rags.

Inn is called Ye Olde Singing Golden Horde.  Bartender is J'orell.  I ask about jobs.  I need money.  J'orell is nice to me.   People listen to my story and buy me drinks.  They tell me about an evil witch that wandered into town.

I ended up in Khaziria.    Kabulah comes back with an associate.  He has brother Danelsior.  They want me to find Needa.  Find Blacksmith - they want me to deliver a package they will give me 25 gold and a halfling Ramsah to deliver a packge and a map.  I'm very drunk.  I miss Mitgan.

Terval Sit has ears like me.  Godfrey the Great has breakfast, grain but no berries?  Strange.  Small metal box with a key lock.  I go to buy scimitar.  Godfrey wants to haggle, but they laugh at him.

Hugh the blacksmith - healing potion in lock box - does not work on daughter.  Needs something stronger.  We go to desiccated holy temple to get cure all water.    Find a statue of a man with a bull's head and axe.   Save the girl

Great celebration....

13^th QuadDec City of Seral, Khaziria or Hyrkania

Sold axe,we got a lot of money for it. Probably not as much  as it was worth, but we needed to liquidate.

26th of QuadDec
 Leave Seral for home. We found passage on a boat out of this land.  This was a much better boat ride than the time we were with the slavers!

3rd of HepDec,  Mirros,  Kingdom of Marakeikos.

Arrive at Debie’s Mighty Singing Keg.  We found Janus, Whitey, and Corina, Zorin!   I get a new signet ring and we order a new banner.

6^th of HepDec,  Celsior, Kingdom of Marakeikos

Home Sweet Home!

The Slavers Series nearly killed off a few characters, forced another to run away, and nearly broke Gwendalyn the druid psychologically.  I decided to use Gwen's player's entry in the journal to sort of cover the PTSD she had been experiencing.    Yet, alone in a distant land, she pulled her up by the bootstraps, found a mission in life, new friends (and a protege), and a chance not to sulk in the corner.    Turvel Sit (half-elf mage) and Godfrey the Great (Charlatan!) were the replacement characters for Brother Thomas and Marek.    Gwen could easily handle the mission (some d20 adventure, I suppose that's lost from my mind), but with two low power 1st level characters fumbling around her, her confidence could easily grow.

Gwen's player, Kelley, was ready to write her druid off, and had brought Ramsa, a mute halfling fighter, to the table.   I denied her the chance to start fresh, rather setting up the story to provide a poor halfling fighter as her reward/bodyguard.  Yes, the first mentor/protege relationship in the campaign was a bit strange.  

Couple additional notes:  Plot is very simple, if you can't translate Gwen-write.  After wandering the distant lands around the slaver city of Roarke, Gwen stumbled into town, and used her story and good looks to gain charity from the villagers.    She was hired to visit a nearby town with a locked box for the local Blacksmith.  She was paid more money than she had been seen in weeks, and given a halfling(!) as payment.  Ramsa the halfling did not verbally protest this arrangement.  Terval and Godfrey agree to travel with her, because that is what adventurers do.  

They arrive in the other village and find the blacksmith. His daughter is very ill, and the potion inside the box is supposed to cure her.  It does not.  

The only other alternative is to travel to an desecrated temple and and find some cure-all water in it.   Somehow Gwen's storytelling misses the epic fight between the bull statue and the party, but the good guys (barely) win, the girl is healed, and there is great celebration.

Gwen sold the magic items for passage on a ship (with her new friends) from Seral back to Mirros.  When she made it the Trogs' old watering hole in town,  Zorin and Company were plotting their next move.   The disappearance of the party travelling to Linnard shook their confidence to the core, despite their heroics in retaking Frandor's Keep. 

But that... is for our next story.

Next:  #22 The Redrock Cohort

(Review) Evolution Games, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania

For the third time in two years, I have "new" FLGS.  I discovered Emerald Vale Games by chance when I spied a flyer during Free Comic Book Day at the local shop.  It was a brand new shop with growing inventory, focusing their sales directly towards their clientele, but also willing to cater to the more peculiar consumers, like myself.

Soon space was and issue, and they moved down the road.   There was a lot more room for Magic and roleplaying, but it sacrificed standing inventory browsing space.  My purchases were relegated to snacks for the girls, some paint, and a horribly underpriced blister pack of GW dwarves.

Opening up a game store is everyone's lifelong dream, but few people think things through.  Late hours devoted to store caused some strife between the co-owners, and they split up in the middle of the year.

Emerald Vale Games has died. Long live Evolution Games.

The store has moved yet again, and again, a short distance.   7 Lee Park Avenue in Wilkes Barre is just three or four blocks away from location #2, but it's also conveniently attached to the owners deli.

Location: Of the three store locations, the first had the best potential.  Signage could be seen off of a busy

highway.  The second was around the corner and buried in the tiny strip mall.  The latest location is on a primary street in a city neighborhood.   There is plenty of on street parking and there is a small parking lot in the rear of the building.

The Store:  The last store had been selected solely for CCG special events.  This one has a much smaller CCG area, as well as separate rooms for wargaming and role playing.  Store stock is still cramped to view.  Magic singles and packs are still in cases, with a solid supply of board and card games directly across in a narrow avenue of the store.  The good news is this avenue leads to the register, which is through a window. Compared to the second location, it's much more secure.  

Clientele: The store still has a diverse selection of games being run, although it's finally obvious who are the "regulars."  Most are nice, a few lack the social skills you would expect at any game store. My biggest complaint appears to be the amount of fried food from the deli reaching game tables.  It's bad enough 

to see baskets of greasy food reaching the tables in the midst of the game, but I hope they're sweet potato fries, otherwise the deli's fryers hadn't been cleaned in weeks.

Gaming:  Role Playing includes Pathfinder, Rifts, and a variety of D&D. CCGs such as Magic, Yu Gi Oh!, and Force of Will have events.  Of course, Game Workshop events for the new games are scheduled, as well as a very active BloodBowl community.

Games Workshop The GW minimum stock orders result in some backstock behind the counter and a good deal of stock that's still sitting on the shelf, with little movement.

Inventory:  The shelves are brimming with stock, which allowed me a few options to snag up a Christmas gift for my wife's cousin.  The binders of Magic singles are gone, now only a few stagnant selections in the case.  They do process special orders, but I'm not sure who to contact outside the owner, who I haven't seen in months.  It does make Amazon look like a better option for my "secondary" mainstream gaming interests.  Truth be told, my wife spent less than 15 minutes on my Christmas gifts this year, compared to a whole lot of running around for in stock items at the store last year.   I have three or four items pre ordered through them (Osprey and Steve Jackson) and a few that should be available now, but I've heard neither text, email, or call regarding them.

The high point this all was the inclusion of  Reaper Bones.  This allowed me to allow the kids pick up something on our trip, outside of drinks and chips. Of course, I've only seen a tiny restock of the figures over the last couple of months.

Looking towards the front of the store.

Looking towards the back...

December activities

So, after a third location , what do I rate Evolution Games on my world famous Gaming with the Gnomies Five-Gnome System?


A whopping Two Gnomes.

The sense of community is there, the customer base has been developed, and there is something to do if you walk into the door. I bet you many of the regulars consider this the greatest store ever.

However, I've spent far too many years working in shops that, if we relied on our most fervent followers, we would have been out of business within a year. I'm not interested in the 200 or so people who come in regularly. I'm more worried about the 100,000 other people within a half hour drive. Specifically, the "Games Workshop Mom." Would a suburban mom with a $300 budget be willing to walk into the store, talk to a staff member, get assistance regarding in-stock items and be able to get the rest resolved through a special order?

Would she even be able to find the place? I can't even find a website with a google search, if it exists..  

Back to the GW Mom, if she finds the place (and doesn't just use the GW site), she's met by a oddly shaped store on what locals , and only two employees (the owners) who would be able to help, who aren't always there. Relying on loyal (and professional) customers for support is a crap shoot at best.

Don't believe me? I'll go back to my wife using Amazon rather that the store for Christmas.

(IOU) Floyd "Red" Kresge

Happy New Year!

To celebrate the upcoming 10th Anniversary of the Risus IOU campaign, I present a character from the first game that I uncovered on a flash drive over the holidays.  Red Kresge.

Floyd "Red" Kresge
Funnel Cake Carnie (4)
Talented Mechanical Engineer (3)
Unassuming Mechjock (2) For Mech Piloting Only, use stats of the FunnelMech for Combat
Abe Vigoda Fan (1)

Equipment: FunnelMecha (6) Transforming FunnelCake Wagon, with two Gatling Cannons and rear Heavy Duty Flaming Oil Jets. A "1" on the wild die means the propane apparatus is busted and 1 die is removed from FunnelMecha until repaired.

Background/Description:

Travelling Carnie with a talent with propane mecha and a mean funnel cake. On IOU scholarship for General Science right now...

His family was killed during his first weekend at IOU by the infamous Snake Ganhdi. Holding back tears of grief, he used his FunnelMecha to defeat Snake, destroying the mecha in the process. Red's body was never recovered.