TBBYANR: Beyond the Pale Gate

I was reading a post over at Pork's Expanse! about taking this time during a lull (lull? what lull I am blogging my tail off over here!) in blog posts to read or find a blog you don't often read.
http://theporkster.blogspot.com/2012/10/find-that-blog.html

Frankly I think that is a brilliant idea. There are a lot of quality blogs out there waiting to be read.

So to that end I wanted to revive an old favorite feature of the Other Side, "The Best Blog You Are Not Reading"

The idea behind TBBYANR is simple. Find a blog in my blog roll that has under 40 followers and let you all know about it.  Why 40?  Because back in the early days I languished at 40 followers forever.  While I was appreciative of every single one (and still am) sometimes it felt I was talking to myself.

Today's TBBYANR is Beyond the Pale Gate. http://ramblingsfrombeyondthepale.blogspot.com/
Very much an oldschool blog, focusing on the OSR.
The author's (David) style is self-described as train of thought, but that is fine with me.

What really made choose this one was his recent post on Copyleft, http://ramblingsfrombeyondthepale.blogspot.com/2012/10/im-copyleft-type-of-guy.html
I don't totally agree with him on all points, but I agree with what he is saying in principle.   Plus my current "game" computer is running Linux now as well so I can relate.

I also liked the fact that despite his self professed Old School leanings he professed to really enjoying the Pathfinder Basic Box, http://ramblingsfrombeyondthepale.blogspot.com/2012/09/blasphemy-from-my-month-of-madness.html

And he likes Jimi Hendrix! So that is always a plus in my book.

If I had one complaint it is the background to his blog. It looks awesome, but it makes it difficult to read some of the posts.
ETA: He has changed that and it is much easier to read!  My old eyes are thankful.

So please. Check this blog out and if you do, drop David a note and let him know what you like about his blog.

If you have a blog that you think would be be good for TBBYANR, let me know!

October Challenge: Vampyr (1932)

Vampyr (1932)

This is one of those movies I have known about forever but never had the chance to see. Well now I can say I have seen it.

Vampry is loosely based on  J. Sheridan Le Fanu's short stories in "Through a Glass Darkly" including the most famous one, Carmilla. The movie, while slow, is full of atmosphere and is generally very creepy.  The whole thing seems like some sort of weird dreamscape than anything else.
There are many scenes in this film that are quite famous really.  The one legged guard with his independent shadow, the look of pure terror on the face Allan Grey (Julian West  aka producer Nicolas de Gunzburg) and the scene where he put into a coffin. One of my favorites are where the skulls all turn to watch the vampire enter a room. It worked just as good here as it did 80 years later in Doctor Who.   I am going to need to use that sometime.

There is a lot here that reminds me of Nosferatu, not just the black & white or the fact that they are both German cinema, but something in the tone.  These vampires are death and pestilence. I like have the vampire has the ghosts of convicted murderers in it's service (well, at least in the book that Allan is given).

The tale is nothing we have not seen before. Vampire attacking humans and feeding off of them.  But in 1932 this was all still new ground.    The interesting twist in this movie is the doctor character is actually in league with the vampire.

I am glad I finally got to see this.


Tally: Watched 10, New 8

What are you watching?

White Dwarf Wednesday #35

White Dwarf Issue #35 came out for November 1982.
Our cover art is a cool looking druid-like character. Though  given the content it is more likely to be a necromancer.  More on that soon.

Ian Livingstone talks about the differences between favorite game (opinions) and popular games (sales), as well as the differences between the USA and UK markets.  This is a gulf that will become wider.

Lew Pulsipher comes out of the gate with the Necromancer class. If I had a dollar for every necromancer class I have seen, I'd use that money to buy one I hadn't.  Let's be honest here, evil necromancers, black priests (also by Pulsipher) and the Death Master (from Dragon) make some of the best antagonists ever.  While today this one reads a bit like a cliche, this was really before the cliche.
There is this whole human sacrifice factor, but these guys are supposed to be evil.
Mechanics wise the XP per level seems a bit low and for an AD&D class they only get up to 5th level spells.  He makes up for it (a little) in special abilities.   Now I am more of the old-old-school where Necromancer means speakers to the dead and they implore them to do their magic for them.  But this is still better than the weaker necromancers I have seen, or worst, the uber-powerful gods of the dead at 5th level.
One of my first re-occuring bad guys was a cross between this and the Dragon mag Death Master.

Starbase has some Traveller advice for Referees who get caught unaware.
Now mind you, I still think the best book for running a game, any game, can be found in the 1st Ed AD&D DMG. But a lot of people in other games don't know that.  So this article is good Traveller specific advice, but it all sounds like something we had all already been doing in D&D for years.

Open Box has some classics.  Richard Meadows gives 9/10 to Games Workshop's Judge Dredd.  Everything I knew about JD came from the pages of Dragon and White Dwarf.  I don't think I ever truly appreciated it as a property or as a game. Next up we have some classic D&D and AD&D modules. Jim Bambra doesn't spend a lot of time on any of them but in general he likes them.  G123 and B3 get  10/10. He thinks that B3 should replaced B2 in the basic set, though he never goes into it's shady past. U1 gets 1 9/10 for the home team of TSR-UK, and L1 gets an 8.  I think it is partially because of this issue that L1 and X2 were always high on my list of modules to run.  Speaking of which X2 only gets a 6/10, which he downgrades because of the urban areas and chaotic nature of the module.  See that is what attracted me to it!  Oliver Dickinson wrapps it up with Chaosium's Borderlands.  Which always made me thing of B2. He gives this adventure pack a 10/10.

Phil Masters is up with Whips in D&D.  Some text and combat tables (for AD&D) follow.
Quickly after that is Andrew Brice and RuneRites with some weapons for RuneQuest.    I always felt that articles like this could be combined.  Give us the flavor text then follow up with multi stats for various games.

Lew is back with his Part II of A Guide to Dungeon Mastering.  This one covers Monsters and Magic.  Mostly this is about the judicial use of magic items and not making the characters or the monsters too powerful.

Next up a Traveller Scenario for 6 or more players by Marcus L. Rowland, the Green Horizon.  Your jump drive misfires and sends your to 20th century Earth; 1944 to be exact. The goal is to repair your jump drive and get back to more friendly space.  All the while avoiding the Nazis.  I don't really recall this adventure to be honest.

There is a page on Games Day 82 with some pictures.

Letters has some questions on why clerics can't used edged weapons or shed blood (or is it both?). Some issues with calling the Vietnam War "obscene" yet gleefully tossing around fireballs. And oddities about the Mind Flayer god.

Fiend Factory has an adventure and monsters around the Lords of Kanuu. The Spidron is a powerful evil creature based on a recent episode of the Tomorrow People.  The Beggar Louse is basically a giant louse of different types. Wrapping up with some evil bats and undead rats.

Treasure Chest is mixed again with some magic items, a word search and a new spell.

We end with some ads and one of the first ads for Star Frontiers in the pages of White Dwarf.

We are winding down 1982 here and in my personal history I am about to hit some of the best days of gaming in my youth.  It will be interesting to see if this age and my memories of it are in anyway reflected in the pages of White Dwarf.

October Challenge: Underworld: Awakening (2012)

Underworld: Awakening (2012)

The vampires and the lycans are back in the 4th installment of the horror/action franchise.
I felt this was one of the weakest of the movies, picking up more or less where movie 2 left off.

Selene is back and so is her hybrid vampire/werewolf boyfriend.  Only now their war has spilled out and everyone knows about them.  The Vampires are almost extinct and the lycans are all ready there.

Great for a bit of dumb fun and there is a surprise in this one.










Tally: Watched 9, New 7

What are you watching?

Monstrous Monday Round-up #2

Well Monday 10/8/2012 was the 2nd Unofficial Monstrous Monday!  This time I am waiting till Tuesday to post these.
Here are some of the great critters.

• Rusalka, http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/2012/10/rusalka.html
• Giant Stickman, http://gothridgemanor.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-mondays-continue.html
• Children of Mukade, http://dreamsinthelichhouse.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-children-of-mukade.html
• Mud Skeletons, http://towerofthearchmage.blogspot.com/2012/10/new-monster-mud-skeletons.html
• Pwnee (love this name!), http://www.savageafterworld.com/2012/10/mutated-monday-savage-menagerie-pwnee.html
• Mr Ward, Zombie Nerdcore Rapper, http://punverse.blogspot.com/2012/10/masterminds-monday-mr-ward-zombie.html
• Naleseyo, http://hereticwerks.blogspot.com/2012/10/naleseyo.html
• Typhoid Mary, http://sorcerersskull.blogspot.com/2012/10/typhoid-mary.html
• A Field Guide to Doomsday is back with Drive-In horrors, http://afieldguidetodoomsday.blogspot.com/2012/10/spawn-of-devastation-drive-in_8.html
• And this classic one from last Halloween, http://afieldguidetodoomsday.blogspot.com/2011/11/devastation-drive-in-robot-monster-1953.html
• Fate SF has a couple for us, The Zhop and The Balanggtik. I wonder if the the Balanggtik is somehow related to the Pwnee above.
• John at The Everwayan also has the Tikbalang, http://everwayan.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-tikbalang.html. They could be related to the Balangtik (natch, same author) and the Pwnee too. 
• The Observer, http://mutantsmagic.blogspot.com/2012/10/new-mutant-future-monster-observer.html
• Soot Drake, http://thedwarvenstronghold.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-soot-drake.html
• Silver Divinity has a Restless Spirit, http://silverdivinityrpg.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday.html
• Hit Adjacent Ally has the Vomiting Spirit of Voor, http://hitadjacentally.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-vomiting-spirit-of-voor.html
• Precious Monsters talks about Zombie vs. Vampires, http://www.preciousmonsters.com/2012/10/zombies-or-vampires-which-are-more.html
• Sabrina Fish talks about why this is her favorite writing season, http://sabrinaafish.blogspot.com/2012/10/my-favorite-writing-season-is-here.html

Great monsters all!  So looking forward to the monsters I'll get on the 29th.

October Challenge:Season of the Witch (1972)

Season of the Witch (1972)

I never knew this little gem existed till last month and I knew I needed to add it to my queue of movies.  It features direction by Zombie Master George Romero and the title song sung by Donovan (ok his song Season of the Witch was used in it) and a bunch of pretty much unknowns.

The movie is slow and typical Occult 70s fare, but still fun.

Joan is unsatisfied in her life and marriage and turns to Witchcraft to spice things up.
It's not horror so much as it is occult thriller-ish.

Still though not a bad flick and certainly has a great 70s vibe about it.







Tally: Watched 8, New 6

What are you watching?

Rusalka

This is one of those creatures that has been haunting my hard drive for a number of years, games and editions.  It was the seeing them again in White Dwarf that made me dust them off and put on a fresh coat of paint for Monday.
Enjoy!

Rusalka


Armor Class:  6 [13]  / 2 [17] when incoporeal
Hit Dice: 4d8* (20 hp)
No. of Attacks: 1 (physical)
Damage:  1d6
Special: Charm, drowning
Movement: 30’ (90')
No. Appearing: 1
Saves As: Witch 4
Morale: 9
Treasure: None / See below
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 360


Rusalka is often used, and confused, for a lot of different water creatures.  But the true Rusalka is a fearful undead creature.  In all cases the Rusalka is the undead spirit of a young woman that had drown.  The circumstances of her death vary; some say she drowned with out being baptized first, others again say she died while drowning her own children (which will sometime result in a Navky or Utburd).  But most say the surest way to become a Rusalka is to be a witch.
The Rusalka is most often found near the area where she died.  Often hiding near a tree close to the water where she died.   She can wander away during night, but she must return before sunrise or face complete destruction.  She can move about during the day, but she can't attack.  Also during the light of day she can be seen for what she is; an undead creature.
They may become incorporeal at will, but are forced into it at sunrise. In anycase she can only be hit with weapons of +1 or better.
The Rusalka will attempt to charm her victim into an embrace. She will then attempt lure the victim into her watery grave to drown them as they had been drowned.  The victim she chooses is often tied to her reason for dying. If she comited suicide over love or was spurned by a lover she will go after victims that remind her of her former love.  If she curse for drowning a child, then she preys on children or mothers with small children.  Rusalkas that were drowned for witchcraft will seek out victims that remind her of her captors; men of religion, war or other magic-using characters.
The Rusalka may be turned as a Wraith, but the only way to truly destroy one is to find her corpse and give it a proper funereal. A pyre is usually the preferred choice.
The Rusalka has no need for treasure so she never keeps any. There will be treasure left over from her victims.  Typically this will be a few gems, 2-20 (2d10) of 5 to 20 (1d4 x5) gp each.

OGL Section 15 Rusalka Copyright 2012 Timothy S. Brannan.
All text is Open under the terms of the OGL. Art is in the Public Domain.
Links are not considered part of this entry and are not under the OGL.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rusalka

Don't Forget! MONSTROUS MONDAY

Don't forget, MONSTROUS MONDAY is coming up.

The LinkyList is now fixed and working, so sign-ups may resume!

Please link back to http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/

You can sign up here now.

October Challenge: Blade (1998)

Blade (1998)

So my son wanted to watch a horror movie, but he is not a fan of horror films.  But he does like action and Marvel.  So we decided on Blade.

I have seen this one before and it is stupid fun.  Vampires killing each other. Ancient vampire gods. Good times.
Blade is one of the few Marvel characters I still like.  Maybe because he created by Marv Wolfman who would also be responsible for the New Teen Titans.

A couple of points of interest.
This is one of the very first "Cinematic Marvel Universe" movies, though I am not sure if it fits into it proper.

Udo Kier is in this as the head of the vampire council. I think you can do a horror movie fest just on movies he was in.   I might have to do that sometime.




Tally: Watched 7, New 5

What are you watching?

October Challenge: The Omen (2006)

The Omen (2006)

Generally speaking remakes of horror movies are not very good.  Every so often you get one that is better than the original.  The Omen (2006) is not really any better, but it looks better and it is certainly better acted.
The original Omen I watched as a kid and it was goofy fun with the Anti-Christ.  But a lot of the movie was very stiff.  The new Omen is a better movie, even if the story is exactly the same (give or take).

Famously released on 06-06-06, I remember the ads for this one well.  Fitting for my 6th movie.
The best I can say about this is that I like Julia Stiles a lot better in this one.  Pete Postlethwaite did a good job as Brennan and did (I'll admit) a better job than Patrick Troughton who I have said before was the best actor in the Original Omen.

If you know the original story you know this one.  Thankfully we were spared the sequels that followed.

Tally: Watched 6, New 5

What are you watching?

Zatannurday: Deviant Art

I was out looking for artists that might be interested in submitted art to my new books. No luck in that department, but a lot in the looking for awesome pics of Zatanna one.

Here are some artists.  Make sure you go to their DA page as well and tell them how good they are.



Commission: Zatanna by *Offworldtrooper on deviantART


Zatanna Con Commission by *olivernome on deviantART


Zatanna by *shoot-o on deviantART


Zatanna by *SeanE on deviantART


Zatanna and Constantine commission detail by *MarcLaming on deviantART


July 20 - Top hat by *CallMePo on deviantART


Zatanna Motor City Con 2012 by *ComfortLove on deviantART


Zatanna - Comic Con Paris 2012 by *MahmudAsrar on deviantART


Zatanna bust by *MichaelDooney on deviantART


Zatanna by ~Klatte on deviantART


zatanna by *crisdelarastudio on deviantART


Zatanna by =ExoroDesigns on deviantART

October Challenge: Solomon Kane (2009)

Solomon Kane (2009)

Pity poor Robert E. Howard.  Considered one of the best of the pulp writers of the age, the movies made from his works, Conan and Solomon Kane, have languished.  In the case of Conan, three movies across two franchises and not a one is considered true to the character.  Then there is Solomon Kane.  His movie is out in theaters now despite being filmed over three years ago.

Now I have just started reading some Solomon Kane, so I will say this.  The movie is brutal but it holds close to the books at least as far as I can tell.

While this could have descended into the pits of hell know only as "made for the SciFi channel" this is actually a very good movie.  James Purefoy is almost Hugh Jackman like in his portrayal of Kane.

The build up to the end is slow, but it starts with a very bloody fight, so it does pull you right in.

While it could be classified as horror, dark fantasy might be a better term for it.


Tally: Watched 5, New 4

What are you watching?

Review: Doctor Who Defending the Earth (2012)

The latest Doctor Who source book is out for the "Doctor Who: Adventures in Time and Space Game".
This book is the UNIT source book, "Defending the Earth".

Like all the Who books this one is full color.  While it skews more to the new Who series, there in a lot of Classic Who material here including stats for the 3rd Doctor (Jon Pertwee).

The UNIT (Unified Intelligence Taskforce) is tasked by the UN with protecting the Earth from Alien threats.  This book allows you to create UNIT bases, personal and comes with two sample adventures.

In many ways a UNIT based game can be more interesting that a Doctor-based one.  In this everyone can have a nicely defined role.  You have field scientists, soldiers of all sorts and even civilians.

Among the features of this book are the expanded firearms and mass combat rules. The History of UNIT. Personnel, which includes plenty of new traits for military, science and civilians. And two UNIT based adventures.

This is one of my favorite sourcebooks for DW so far.  Not just because of the limitless possibilities, but also because there is more attention paid to the older series than other books (note I am not saying this is a flaw of the other books, but it is a nice feature of this one).

I also see this as one of the more flexible books.  You can set up a small UNIT command base and let the wackiness ensue. In fact, my own playtests adventures with DW could easily be converted into a UNIT game.  Think back to the 3rd Doctor's adventures, these were mostly Earth based with UNIT.  All of those are great ideas for a game.  Or even the Sarah Jane Adventures.

I would be remiss if I didn't point out the cross-game compatibility with this and Primeval.  While such a thing is never stated in either book and I am certain that it was not design consideration, there is nothing the ARC can't do that UNIT can't also do and visa-versa. By adding them together you get something very cool AND adventures to last for a couple of campaigns.

As with all books in this line, it is full color, well laid out and full of stills from the show.

A great addition to the collections of gamers or Who fans.

October Challenge: Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead (2008)

Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead (2008)

I might be stretching the definition of "movie" here, but at just about 2 hours I challenge you to find something more frightening than the Vashta Nerada aka "The Shadows that Melt Flesh".

We have mysterious deaths, a monster that hides in the shadows that can strip your flesh bare in seconds AND then use your bones and space suit as a means to walk around.  This is the scariest monster in the Doctor Who universe.  Daleks, aim for the eyestalk. Sontaran, back of the neck.  Cybermen, gold in their chest plate.  Vashta Nerada, just run.

Doctor: "Almost every species in the universe has an irrational fear of the dark, but they’re wrong, because it’s not irrational. It’s Vashta Nerada."

All against the man that monsters have nightmares about;
The Doctor.  When they come after him this is the exchange.

Doctor: Don't play games with me! You just killed someone I like, that is not a safe place to stand! I'm the Doctor, and you're in the biggest library in the Universe. Look me up.
The monsters move  back.

This is a pitch perfect horror episode and no one comes out of it scarred.  I think this quote near the end sums it up.

Donna: How about you, are you alright?
The Doctor: Oh, I'm always all right.
Donna: Is "All right" special time-lord code for... not really all right at all?
The Doctor: Why?
Donna Noble: Because I'm alright too.

Plus not only did this give us one of the scariest monsters for a show known to send kids hiding behind the sofa. It also gave us River Song who might be one of the most interesting characters in the history of Doctor Who.

"When you run with the Doctor, it feels like it'll never end. But however hard you try you can't run forever. Everybody knows that everybody dies and nobody knows it like the Doctor. But I do think that all the skies of all the worlds might just turn dark if he ever for one moment, accepts it. Everybody knows that everybody dies. But not every day. Not today. Some days are special. Some days are so, so blessed. Some days, nobody dies at all. Now and then, every once in a very long while, every day in a million days, when the wind stands fair, and the Doctor comes to call everybody lives."
- River Song.

Tally: Watched 4, New 3

What are you watching?

Rabbit's Foot and other Lucky Charms

Adventurers live a dangerous and sometimes short life.  They are constantly looking for any edge they can fine.  Many spend years questing for even the most minor of magics, others though turn to older magic to aid them.  For these characters these older, simpler magics provide them with the edge they need.

Many times these minor talismans can be purchased, but more often than not they are nothing more than a gaff or a non-magical variety.  Unfortunely these items posses such minor magics that they are difficult to detect with the use of the standard Detect Magic spell.

4-Leaf Clover
These naturally occurring, but rare variety of the common three-leaf clover provide a minor luck bonus.
Once per day it can provide a  +1 bonus to any roll the player makes.  The player must state this intent before the roll is made.  The clover can be used 4 to 7 (1d4+3) times before it becomes inert.
GMs have to decide how rare these are but typically a roll of "00" on a percentile die.

Horse Shoe
If blessed by any priest or cleric (not necessarily by a Bless spell), this item gives the processor a +1 to all rolls (attacks and saves) vs. Fae folk.  This includes all sorts of nymphs, pixies, dryads and even elves.  It is not effective in the hands of an elf or those with elfish blood.

Rabbit's Foot
A specially prepared left hind foot of a white rabbit killed during a full moon and enchanted by a witch using her Create Talisman power (or feat).   This item provides a +1 to anyone one type of roll per day.  So in one 24 hour period it can add +1 to an attack, +1 to a save, +1 to damage and so on.
Witches cannot use these items themselves.

Lucky Copper
Adventurers can be a superstitious lot.  One of the more common ones is to keep the first copper piece from their first treasure hoard. If they do they gain a +1 to any roll till they gain their next treasure.  The +1 can only be used once.

OGL statement Section 15 "Lucky Charms.  2012 Timothy S. Brannan"

October Challenge: Ginger Snaps (2000)

Ginger Snaps (2000)

The best thing about cable during Halloween is all of the horror movies you can find.  I remember hearing about this one when it was out and then promptly forgot about it.  No fault of the movie, just me.

The relationship between emergent female sexual  urges and horror/monsters is old ground here at the Other Side.  This though is the first time I have tackled the link between it and the werewolf myths.  We will see later how this plays out in "Jack and Diane", but tonight we have Ginger.

Ginger and her sister Brigette are the weird girls in school. Obsessed with death, dying and all that fun stuff and ignoring the in crowd when they can.  That is till something not-quite a dog bites Ginger.

There is serious Buffy the Vampire Slayer vibe about this flick.  Came out right around the same time to be honest, so that is no surprise.

The movie was not was I was suspecting and the ending was a surprise.
I enjoyed it to be honest, I am not a big fan of werewolf movies in general.  The leads were great and I am going to look for them in other movies to see if they are as good as this in all flicks.

Tally: Watched 3, New 3

What are you watching?

White Dwarf Wednesday #34

White Dwarf #33 takes us to the state of gaming of October 1982.   Unless I did my math wrong this is the last time I will write about a month in the same month I am writing in till issue 49 (Jan 1984).  Give or take.

So let's talk about this October some 30 years ago.  What do we know?  Well the cover always reminds me of the Hawkmoon RPG cover.   Ian Livingstone talks about Game Day '82.

Andy Slack is up first with Droids for Traveller.  It is easy to poke holes in Traveller tech; computers that only run one type of program and the like, but for some reason I never liked Droids in Traveller.  Maybe it was because they seemed to be too "Star Wars" and Traveller was more "Dune" and "Star Trek" to me.  There are lot of different types of functional droids, robots and even an android here.  Though there are some obvious ones that are missing; and I don't just  mean Galaxina (1980) or Cherry 2000 (1987).
The article takes a lot from Asimov's ideas on robots too.  So ingrained are these "Laws" that I never thought to question them, despite the inclusion of a Warbot in the article.  Assassin droids were something we all knew about from Star Wars, at least in concept, so there seemed to be a mismatch here to me.

Mike Costello is next with a new feature, Microview, to cover computers.
This first installment, Space Invader, is about how "microcomputers" (we will be using this term for sometime to come) can have an affect on your gaming.  Mostly in this brief first issue it is about what he calls GAP or Game Assistance Program.  I am sure will hear more on this exciting new world!

In the "Clip and Save" file Lew Pulsipher is back with a Guide to Dungeonmastering, Part 1 Setting up Adventures. There is some great advice here that can be applied to any game, but D&D is assumed.  Again, unlike the previous two articles that have dubious quality in today's age (again, no fault of the original authors), this article is just as useful today as it was 30 years ago.

Open Box is next with out independent reviews.  First up is Cults of Terror for RuneQuest by Chaosium. Oliver Dickson calls it "essential reading" though he has some issues with some of the content.  Mostly due to it not fitting together in the way he likes. It gets a 6/10.  Aftermath! from FGU is next.  We have been seeing the ads in WD now for a little bit and now we get to learn about this Post-Apoc game.  Andy Slack loves it and gives it a solid 10/10.  Worlds of Wonder is next and it is a very interesting one.  WoW was Chaosium's first entry into the Generic RPG market, or one system for multiple games. We would see this many times over and over.  GURPS became the undisputed king of "Generic" systems, but WoW was one of the firsts.  Based on the Basic RPG system that powered RuneQuest and Call of Cthulhu you got various "Worlds" to play in.  Trevor Graver gives it a 7.10 and marks it down for being only the bare bones.  These days that same criticism would be touted as a feature in a Sandbox game.

RuneRites for RuneQuest is next with some monsters.  I always liked the monsters for RuneQuest, they seemed so much more strange to me.  I worked out conversions based on Call of Cthulhu so I could use them in my D&D games.

After that are some letters and then on to an AD&D adventure from Paul Vernon, Troubles at Embertrees.  Designed for 5-8 1st to 2nd level characters. It is a densely packed 4 pages.  The adventure itself seems fine. The inclusion of the new monster sets it up above a simple wilderness adventure.

Starbase introduces us to Morality in Traveller (oh nos! Alignment! not quite...)  and new race, the Mahwrs, a large, bi-pedial bat like creature.

Fiend Factory gives us our 200th monster since WD #6.  These monsters are all undead or something like that; appropriate for October.  Morbe are neither undead or alive. They feed on Con points and once they get to 18 they are human again. The Unborn are souls that died in childbirth.  The Rusalka is an evil, dead female magic-user, the Wraith Warrior and the Goldfinger, which are like an undead battery.

Treasure Chest has some magic weapons.  Of note is the Houri's Dagger, though it does not mention the Houri from issue 13 specifically. We get some Hellfire arrows, demon's knifes and the Druid's Cudgel.

We end the issue with some ads, including an ad for Gangbusters.

A lot of interesting bits in this issue.  First it is nice to see that WD can transition ot monthly format without too many hiccups.  I did not feel any part of this issue was filler. This issue continues the trends of the previous ones, but doesn't start any, save for the feature on computers. Traveller, D&D and RuneQuest still reign supreme as they have from the early days.

I will note that WD has not raised their price from 75p in a while.

Also the ENTIRE time I was re-reading this and writing this post I was humming "Winds of Change" by Jefferson Starship.  I went back and checked, Winds of Change was released October 4, 1982.  I must have been listening to that the first time I read this magazine.

Baker Street Justice Society 1899

A very, very cool piece from Paul Hanley.


The Baker Street Justice Society by *PaulHanley on deviantART

Featuring some of my favorite characters from Doctor Who in Victorian times.
This upcoming Christmas we will get another Victorian tale and a new companion, and much to my delight, Vastra and Jenny are back.

Of course I have stated Madame Vastra and Jenny for both Ghosts of Albion and Doctor Who. I really should do some more.  Sherlock Holmes is certain on my to do list.  Jago and Litefoot might also be a lot of fun to do as well.

Maybe a Doctor Who Victorian Age Source book is in order!

October Challenge: Sweeney Todd (2007)

Sweeney Todd (2007)

Oh Tim Burton. Sometimes I think you are a mad genius. Other times, well maybe only half that.
Sweeney Todd is horror. Is Victorian and does star Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. So really it has "win" written all over it? Right? Right???  Well yes and no.

I enjoyed this movie. It was a lot bloodier than I expected it to be. For some reason I had forgotten there was singing in it, but that is fine.  Part of me of course kept thinking of this a Edward Scissor Hands gone really, really wrong.

Depp is great in this. As he is in everything. I loved him in Sleepy Hollow when I watched that last year.
And one can't but help see Bellatrix in HBC during this as well.

My one complaint about this movie was it seemed to be over so fast.
Ah well.

Surprisingly, this is a new one for me.

Tally: Watched 2, New 2

What are you watching?

Faith: The Last Witch

Faith Scott, the Last Witch

Faith is the “Last Witch” of the newest book from Elizabeth Kolodziej’s “The Last Witch” Series.  The most recent book Witch Devotions (the 3rd) is out now.

I have read the first book and I enjoyed it. I also have the second, but have not read it all yet, the third one is just now out.

Faith is an interesting character and I enjoyed watching her growth throughout the first book and the bits I have picked up in the next two.  She is still young and kind of naïve, but learning more.

So what do we know about Faith?  Well she is new to her magic, but comes from a long line of powerful witches, so her power has the potential to be quite powerful.  She does have a family spell book, a Book of Shadows in one of my games. But while most of the witches in Faith’s line learned while they are growing up, Faith didn’t have that advantage.  She did learn later on from an instructor.

According to the author, Faith resembles an Earth Witch. So she is quite adept at making potions, charms, herb use and healing.  She also has a number of elemental based powers; power that help her innate abilities.  It was this description of her that got me thinking that Faith would work great as a witch in one of my games (though my games have plenty of witches in them; no ‘last witch’ in sight!) She can use her magic to increase her speed or strength.  Not quite at the level of a vampire, but more than a mundane human.

We know Faith can manipulate energies, but I saw that more of an ability rather than a spell.  Since she also has other innate powers I was thinking she might be a good fit for “WitchCraft” or even the “Buffy” RPGs.

Faith, like a lot of other types of witches, can live a very long time, maybe even hundreds of years.  This is also in line with most of my games.

So here is Faith, The Last Witch in Ghosts of Albion/WitchCraft RPG stats.

Faith Scott (played by Isla Fisher in the game)
Motivation: To learn as much about her power/herself as she can

Attributes: Strength 2 (7 with magic), Dexterity 3 (8 with magic), Constitution 2 (7 with magic), Intelligence 5, Perception 6, Willpower 5

Life Points: 35 (75 with magic)
Drama Points: 15

Qualities & Drawbacks: Adversaries (various) 2, Attractiveness +2, Contacts (Supernatural) 1, Hard to Kill 3, Honorable, Love (Trent), Magic 5, Magic Family, Magical Philosophy Earth/Elementalism (closest game wise), Nerves of Steel, Obligation, Occult Library (Fine), Secret (She's a witch who belongs to a powerful magical family), Supernatural Senses (Basic and the Sight), Telekinesis,

Useful Information
Actions: 1/2 or 2/2
Perception: 1d10 + 11
Lesser Sensing: +16
Endurance Points: 32 (62 with magic)
Essence Points: 25 (using Magic squared)
Speed: 10 (30 with magic)

Skills 
Acrobatics 2
Art 1
Computers 1
Crime 1
Doctor 1
Driving 0
Getting Medieval 2
Gun Fu 0
Influence 3
Knowledge 5
Kung Fu/Fisticuffs 2
Languages 1 (English)
Notice 5
Occultism 5 (still learning, but has picked up a lot in the first two books)
Science 1
Sports 1

Maneuvers

Name	Score	Damage	Notes
Punch	+5 or +10	4 or 14	Bash
Kick	+3 or +13	8 or 18	Bash
Dodge	+2 or +7	-	Block
Grapple	+4 or +9	-	Blocked by Dodge
Magic	+15	Special	Varies by Spell
- Deflect	+15	-	Deflects magic

The extra pluses are from her Magic boost.

Given her role in the books I debate on whether or not to give her “Chosen One” from Army of Darkness.  In the end, I figured that she wasn’t quite up to that level just yet; maybe in the new book.

Monster Monday round up, part 2

I think I will wait till Tuesday next week to do the monster round up.  Plenty more were posted since my post yesterday.

• Vicious Stickmen, http://gothridgemanor.blogspot.com/2012/10/monster-monday-vicious-stickmen.html
• Hit Adjacent Ally gives us two, Banshee Raiders of the Red Moon and Clockwork Devils of Taltun, http://hitadjacentally.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-late-post-2-new.html
• Noose Golem and Gun Droid, http://mutantsmagic.blogspot.com/2012/10/new-monsters-noose-golem-gundroid.html
• Shadopeople for Everway, http://everwayan.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-shadow-people.html
• Alien Aspects (for FATE), http://fatesf.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-mondays-alien-aspects.html
• Dreams in the Lich House, The Faceless, http://dreamsinthelichhouse.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-faceless.html
• Dwarven Stronghold, Eye Imp, http://thedwarvenstronghold.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-monday-eye-imp.html
• The Erare - The Gutter Deaths, http://swordsandstitchery.blogspot.com/2012/10/monster-monday-erare-gutter-deaths.html
• Yoggidam, http://hereticwerks.blogspot.com/2012/10/yoggidam.html
• Web Witch, http://mutantsmagic.blogspot.com/2012/10/new-labyrinth-lord-monster-web-witch.html

So 17 18 19 22! total entries for the first unofficial Monster Monday!  Not too bad really!

Can't wait to see what everyone is doing next week.

October Challenge: The Woman in Black (2012)

The Woman in Black (2012)

I wanted to start off my October Horror movie Challenge right.  I wanted something with a good actor and a pedigree.  I choose the 2012 version of The Woman in Black.  Starring Daniel Radcliffe and Ciarán Hinds (good actors) from Hammer Films (pedigree).

I am never sure how much to put into these reviews.  They are not reviews in the fullest sense but I think recapping the entire movie would be a bad thing for others participating in this Challenge.  I don't want to spoil the ending for anyone.

So I will say this.  Daniel Radcliffe never once reminded me in word or deed that he was Harry Potter in this.  He is a great actor and has a great carrier a head of him.  I went into this film expecting only a nice period piece haunted house movie and that is what I got.  The story is one we have all seen dozens, if not hundreds, of times before, but that did not make it less enjoyable. On the contrary I rather enjoyed this movie a lot. It also goes to show you that there is no such thing as a simple ghost story.

Not that the movie is perfect either, it had it's own issues. But all in all this is a great start to the Halloween season.

Tally: Watched 1, New 1

What are watching?

Monster Monday round up

The first unofficial Monstrous Monday just happened (don't worry, you are only required to post on Monday October 29th for the bloghop) and we have some great monsters here at the Other Side and elsewhere!

• Wine Nymphs, http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/2012/10/wine-nymphs.html
• Pincushion, http://www.savageafterworld.com/2012/10/mutated-monday-savage-menagerie.html
• Silver Tongued Devil, http://towerofthearchmage.blogspot.com/2012/10/new-monster-silver-tongued-devil.html
• Impundulu, http://elflairgames.blogspot.com/2012/10/witch-monster-impundulu.html
• Corpse Chariot, http://dungeonofsigns.blogspot.com/
• Night Nurse, http://sorcerersskull.blogspot.com/ (not sure if this is a participating monster, but I like it!)
• Wermilok, http://hereticwerks.blogspot.com/2012/10/wermilok.html
• Crocoduck, http://freedomofnonbelief.blogspot.com/2012/10/monstrous-mondays-crocoduck.html
• Tabonga!, http://afieldguidetodoomsday.blogspot.com/2012/10/spawn-of-devastation-drive-in-from-hell.html (stuff of my nightmares as a child)
• Mastermind Monday - Whisper, http://punverse.blogspot.com/2012/10/mastermind-monday-whisper.html (Mutants and Masterminds!!)

Did I miss any?  I thought about trying to pick my favorite, but these are all so good.

I am so pleased with this turn out.   While these are mostly RPG-focused I do want to remind everyone that your post doesn't have to be RPG related to be in the bloghop.

Looking forward to more!

 

Wine Nymphs

This monster comes from the "Play with This" series from Shon Richards, aka Erotiterroist.
 http://erotiterrorist.blogspot.com/2012/09/play-with-this-wine-nymphs.html

Given that this is the time of harvest and the wine should pour, this little fey would be fun for my first October Monday Monster.

Wine Nymph

Armor Class:  9 [10]
Hit Dice: 1d8+1* (5 hp)
No. of Attacks: Special
Damage: nil
Special: intoxication, charm
Movement: 30’
No. Appearing: 2-4
Saves As: Elf 1
Morale: 8
Treasure: None
Alignment: Neutral
XP: NA

Wine Nymphs are a special sort of fae that only live in the bottles of very fine wine.  Not all wines have these nymphs, but the one that do are especially coveted.
The nymph spends her time swimming and frolicking in the bottle of wine.  They appear to be tiny pixie like creatures; exceptionally beautiful but no wings.
As the bottle is drained the nymphs inside shrink.  One the bottle is empty the nymphs are gone as well.
They have no attacks and cause no damage. Their dancing and semi-disrobed flocking though act as a weaker Charm Person spell (victims gain a +2 bonus to their rolls).  Once charmed the victims have only one desire, to drink the bottle of wine.
While the antics and stories of the wine nymphs feature in many tales from bards and skalds, some occult scholars believe that wine nymphs are actually a form of imp or demon, compelling us to drink and partake in wanton revelries.
One thing the scholar and the poet agree on is more, much more, research needs to be done.

Auction time

Going through all my games for the upcoming Games Plus auction.

Made some deep cuts this year.  I am enjoying playing all sorts of D&D and still love my horror games, but I have so many games that I could never, ever play them all.

So gone are my Cortex books (kept a few) and True20 ones.  Unloaded a few modules and a few older D&D books that I had duplicates of. A few other games.

I might end up regretting it all, but right now I feel it was all the right choices.

Zatannurday: MachSabre Superwomen

One of my favorite artists is MachSabre, aka David Reynolds.

Long time readers here might recognize the name or at least his art.  David was one of the two Davids of the ShadowGirls fame and I have featured his art here many times.  I am doing that again today. Mostly because I like his art and Dave loves Supergirls.

So to celebrate the announcement that David is part of a new comic, Shadow of the Black Banshee, here are some of my favorite pieces, featuring of course Zatanna.


Zatanna by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Raven by ~MachSabre on deviantART


The Scarlet Witch by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Ms. Marvel vs. Power Girl by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Hawkgirl by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Kim Possible 02 by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Last Daughter of Atlantis by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Starfire by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Wonder Woman by ~MachSabre on deviantART


Wonder Spin by ~MachSabre on deviantART

This one of all the Batgirls was my desktop bitmap forever.

Chiropteras by ~MachSabre on deviantART

And of course you have all seen this one,


Commission - Tara and Willow by ~MachSabre on deviantART

But imagine my surprise when I found this one!


Willow and Tara Cuddling by =AstronSoul on deviantART

AstronSoul is just another fan like me that had D Rey make this.  I think it is cool.

October is coming...

Ok everyone.  October and Halloween is coming.
This like Thanksgiving, Christmas and the Fourth of July all rolled into one here at the Other Side.
There is a lot going on here this next month so here is what is on tap.

First and foremost I am anticipating the release of The Witch and Eldritich Witchery.

Keep an eye open here for more details!

To celebrate the release, I am joining this bloghop.

http://closeencounterswiththenightkind.blogspot.com/2012/07/wicked-after-dark-halloween-giveaway.html

I am joining a bunch of other Halloween themed giveaways (mostly paranormal erotica, but hey) and I am going to give away a PDF copy of "The Witch"  to one lucky winner.

I am also participating in a few other bloghops/blogfests you may have heard. ;)
There is Monstrous Monday, which you can post something about your favorite/least favorite monster on October 29th.  I am going to be participating every Monday!

This is being cross promoted with the Savage Afterworld's Mutated Mondays.

There are a wide variety of sites that have joined, so please consider it.  It should be a blast!

And again this year I am joining Krell Labs in participation in the October Horror Movie Challenge.

The central site for this year seems to be the Facebook site.

Hope I am not biting off more than I can chew.

Busy...

Wow. What a week.

I may or may not be ready for October yet.  I need more Mt. Dew I think.

More updates soon.