Gen Con 2011

We are here at Gen Con 2011.

So far there seems to be a LOT more people here this time.

Ready to run some games!
If anyone in OSR land is running an old school game then I'd love to join ya.

I am going to be running my boys through S4.

Best thing I have heard so far: A little girl, not more than 5 was with her family walking to "Will Call" where she proudly exclaimed "I am a real gamer now!"

Dinosauria! Characters: Lady Valerie Beaumont

Another character for Dinosauria.  The immortal Lady Beaumont.
Valerie has the distinction of being the first character ever created for Obsession.  Looking forward to seeing how she gets played in the new game.

Lady Valerie Beaumont

Life Points 47
Drama Points 10

Attributes
Strength 3
Dexterity 5
Constitution 4
Intelligence 6
Perception 4
Willpower 5

Gender Female
Height 5’7”
Weight 130 lb
Hair Auburn
Eyes Light-Green
Actions, 2 mental, 2 physical

Qualities
Age 2
Attractiveness +3
Fast Reaction Time
Hard to Kill 3
Immortal
Magic 2
Nerves of Steel
Occult Library (Impressive)
Resources, Gentry
Status

Drawbacks
Adversary: (Various) +4 (from Age)
Love: Tragic +4
Minority: Woman +2
Secret (immortal)

Skills
Armed Mayhem: 5
Art 1
Athletics: 2
Crime: 2
Drive/Ride: 2
Engineering:
Fisticuffs: 2
Influence: 4
Knowledge: 5
Languages: 5 (English, French, Latin, Greek, Algonquin)
Marksmanship: 1
Notice: 4
Occultism: 4
Physician: 1
Science: 1
Wild Card (American History) 6 (she remembers most of it)

Combat
Manoeuvre Bonus Base Damage Notes
Sword +10 12 Slash/stab
Parry (sword) +10 — Defence action

Punch +7 6 Bash
Dodge +10 — Defence action
Grapple +9 — Resisted by Dodge

Magic +11 — By Spell

Defensive Magics Bonus = Willpower+Occultism+Magic+Mod
- Deflect (0) +11 Deflects spells 45º

Known History:
Widow from Lord Charles Beaumont who died some 5 years previous, she has spent the last year becomming familiar with society again. Her husband was a known traveler and adventurer who had a nose for the strange and unusual, and some even say that this may have rubbed off on her.

Lady Beaumont will be making her first appearance in a beautiful blue dress, that is at the height of fashion with a delicate white/pearl colored shawl. Her evening hat is the same color of her dress, with just a bit of mesh weave along the front.

She does carry a small cane to help her walk, she seems to lean on it more for support than actually needing it to walk.

Lady Beaumont is just over five feet tall and she has the most alluring green eyes.

Secret History:
Lady Beaumont was born in 1569 and is immortal.
She was a young English girl that made her way to the new world in the year 1585.  She came to the new world and settled in the Roanoke Colony where she lived for a couple of years.  Then something happened.  She was caring for the young Virginia Dare and then woke up several days later and several miles from home.  When she had managed to return to the colony, everyone was gone.  She also discovered that she was immortal and was certain that the two were somehow linked.
Valerie spent the next few years roaming the new world.  She learned magic from some of the few true witches in Salem and more from the Indigenous Americans.

She has since returned to England but now considers herself an American.

She is acquainted with the Protectors of Albion and has worked with Walter Edwards before.  She is also very good friends with the American Statesmen Benjamin Franklin and considers him a dear friend.  All of these people do know her secret.

She has a ring on her right little finger that manages a glamour that "ages" her.  A gift from a former lover. Currently, she appears to be in her mid-40s.  Without the glamour, she appears as she did when she discovered her immortality a young woman of 18.  Her mind though is as someone approaching 300.
She walks with a cane, but that is a mere affectation.  The cane houses a sword of fae steel (very rare indeed as the faerie are loathed to work steel).  She is quite adept at its use (having practiced for centuries) and in her hands, it becomes a deadly, formidable weapon.

Valerie is given more freedoms in Victorian society than would normally be due to a woman.  She has status, money and is widowed, all which contribute to her status, and she is an American so society often looks the other way for her.

Monster Mash Blogathon: The Screaming Skull

The 50's Monster Mash at Forgotten Classics of Yesteryear.
http://forgottenclassicsofyesteryear.blogspot.com/

You have to love any movie where the producers take the time to warn you away from their film at the beginning and guarantee you a free coffin if you happen to die of fright while watching the movie.  It is the kind of kitchy thing I associate with the 50s; horror before what would be the heyday of Hammer films.

The Screaming Skull is one such movie.  Though I can imagine the fine print on that "guarantee" does not cover dying of boredom.

I watching this film because a.) I was doing research on Screaming Skulls and b.) I had it on DVD with a collection of other Horror films.  Turns out the DVDs I have won't play in my computer so I ended up watching it on You Tube.  I guess the copyright has lapsed.

Newly married couple Eric (John Hudson) and Jenni (Peggy Weber) have come home to Eric's house.  Well it is not really his house. It is his late wife's.  Seems she had all the money and then died when she slipped and hit her head.    There are not a lot characters in this drama (which might actually make a descent high school play); the reverend and his wife and the creepy gardener Mickey.
Jenni almost immediately begins to fret when she discovers a painting of Eric's first wife.
There are many scenes of walking.  Walking to the pond. Walking to the house. Walking all over the place.
We finally get to something when Jenni discovers an old human skull.  She freaks out and tosses it out the window.  Later no one can find the skull and we learn that Jenni spent time in an asylum for hearing voices.
The skull pops up again and Jenni screams. We hear other screaming too, but Eric is quick to point out the peacocks outside.  Eric blames the somewhat mentally challenged gardener on all of this, Jenni thinks she is going crazy.  They decide to burn the painting and when it is reduced to ash there is the skull again.  Jenni screams and Eric claims he can't see it.  After she faints Eric hides the skull back in the pond.  Case closed right? Eric is trying to drive her crazy.  Well now the skull is after Eric, it flies up and attacks him, he runs, it manifests as a ghost and he throws a chair at it.  He tries to strangle Jenni, but in the end he drowned in the pool where he had been hiding the skull.  Leaving us to wonder was it a ghost or did Eric snap as well.
In the end we see the gardener talking to the skull telling it everyone is gone and everything will be fine now.

Again, I watched this for the Forgotten Classics blog, but this doesn't really qualify as a classic.  It was not bad, it just wasn't good or interesting enough.  Yes the central mystery of the skull was interesting on paper but the I am not sure the movie did such a great job of selling it to me. We should be able to watch Jenni's descent into madness more.  Eric's duplicity and Mickey's...well he was creepy in a way, but he only really just took up space. Coming back to Eric, the problem is we suspect him right away.  His first rich wife is dead and now his new rich wife might be going crazy.  The only mystery here is why can't the rest of the cast see it?

Of course there is not much here to connect to the myths of the screaming skulls unless you tie it in with the house more.  Marion, Eric's first wife and owner of the house, is like a screaming skull in that she wants everyone out of the house, but if she is in fact a ghost her desire is to murder Eric.

I would like to say more about this film, but there really isn't much to say.  Delete the scenes of people walking and tighten up other fluff you might an hour long movie.   I think a remake has the potential to be very scary.  Husband trying to drive his new wife crazy so he can get her money too and a potential real ghost in the mix, has the elements of a suspenseful movie, this one just isn't.  It's not good enough to give it a strong review and it is not bad enough to make fun of.  The acting is not bad and this group of actors went on to do other things. I suppose I should point out that Alex Nicol was both Mickey and the Director, but even that is not really enough.  Unlike some of the other choices for today it is not a classic either in a good sense or a bad one.

In the end you might have more fun with the MST3k version, but it was fun to watch this film for the the Blogathon.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Screaming_Skull
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052169/

Gen Con Countdown

Going to Gen Con!  YEAAHHH!
I so need this vacation.

I'f you want to come by and say hi, here are the games I am running.  I like to get to the table early to set up.

RPG1120388 Obsession (Revised) Thu @ 7:00 PM 4 hrs
Location: Crowne Plaza :: Grand Central Blrm D :: 8 Cost: $4

RPG1120389 Dinosauria! Fri @ 1:00 PM 4 hrs
Location: Crowne Plaza :: Grand Central Blrm D :: 6 Cost: $4

RPG1120390 Dinosauria! Fri @ 7:00 PM 4 hrs
Location: Crowne Plaza :: Grand Central Blrm C :: 3 Cost: $4

Dinosauria! is completely new with new characters designed to get people up and going fast.  The 1:00 pm will be "kid friendly" and the 7:00pm one will be more older kids and adults.

Obsession is revised version of the adventure I ran last year.  If you played last year then this one is not very different except for some details and the starting of the adventure.

I am also running S4 with my boys in our hotel Saturday night.

Zatannurday: Secret Seven

Zatanna is one of the characters of the Secret Seven.
What is cool is she gets to share some page time with another one of my faves, Raven.

But what is going on with Zee's outfit??
Preview of Flashpoint: Secret Seven

Thanks to DC Women Kicking Ass.
This is not from the reboot but rather the alternate timekine/world of Flashpoint, so maybe we will be spared this one again.  I mean I know that Zee is no prude, but this looks like she was shopping over at Marvel. ;)

And I don't have the vaguest idea what this one is about.

This one though, one of the covers is kinda cool.

Zee has this whole Fairuza Balk thing going on.

Ghosts of Albion at Cyphan Con

I am at the Cyphan Con here in Chicago (ok, at Rosemont).


I am in the Gatwick Room of the Hyatt Regency O'Hare in Rosemont.

• Friday 7/29, 1:00 to 5:00 for Ghosts of Ablion: Obsession
• Saturday 7/30, Noon to 4:00 for Ghosts of Albion: Dinosauria!

Gaming info here: http://www.cyphan.com/cyphan/GAMING.html

Come by and see me!

If you tell me you saw it on my blog then I'll give you something special.  No idea what that will be to be honest, but I'll find something!!

Dinosauria! Characters: Walter Edwards

Players of "Obsession" will see a familiar face here.

Chief Constable Walter Edwards
Life Points 43
Drama Points 20

Attributes
Strength 3 (+1 Peeler)
Dexterity 3
Constitution 3
Intelligence 2
Perception 3
Willpower 2

Qualities
Acute Sense (Vision) (2)
Contacts (supernatural)
Hard to Kill 3 (3)
Peeler (5)
Nerves of Steel (3)
Situational Awareness (2)

Drawbacks
Obligation (Important) (Peeler)
Recurring Nightmares (1)

Skills
Armed Mayhem 4 (+1 Peeler)
Art 0
Athletics 4
Crime 3 (+1 Peeler)
Driving/Riding 1 (+1 Peeler)
Engineering 0
Fisticuffs 4
Influence 2
Knowledge 3
Languages 1 (English)
Marksmanship 2
Notice 5
Occultism 2
Physician 1
Science 2
Wild Card 0

Useful Information
Observation: 1d10 +8
Initiative: +4
Armor: 0
Fear:
Actions: 1 Mental /1 Physical

Combat
Manoeuvre Bonus Base Damage Notes
Dodge +6 — Defence
Grapple +8 — Resisted by Dodge
Punch +7 6 Bash
Pistol, small +6 9 Bullet
Truncheon +7 9 Bash

Chief Constable Walter Edwards is no stranger to the occult nature of his city. While he was a regular Peeler he saw something that very humans ever witnessed. He saw a large man trying to rough up a working girl. Edwards, believing he was stopping a potential beating of a dolly-mop rushed in, truncheon ready. What he saw when he got there was not to be believed. The “man” was over 7ft tall and had horns growing from his head and had fire for eyes. The creature laughed a horrible, inhuman laugh, and it ran and jumped over a 12ft. wall. The papers were soon calling the creature the “Spring Heeled Jack”, but you know he was something like the Devil.
He met up with others then, some who had similar stories, other who seemed as strange as the creature, but he learned of a new world that day.
Edwards was given a gift, a special pair of glasses that allow him to see the supernatural world. Ghosts, lines of power, faerie creatures and worse walked the streets of London.
Edwards has starred into the Abyss and it starred back at him. Though unlike so many others he had the courage to take the next step, and the next and the next. Monsters or humans, he represents law and order in this city and law and order he will have!