Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Maleficent Trailer 2

The next trailer for Maledicent is now out.  Angelina Jolie still has cheekbones you could get cut on but her evil is downplayed.  Sure we are told she is Disney's greatest villain (though I think Jafar might edge her out to be honest) we just don't see it.


Here is the synopsis according to Disney's site.  http://movies.disney.com/maleficent/about

"Maleficent" explores the untold story of Disney’s most iconic villain from the 1959 classic “Sleeping Beauty" and the elements of her betrayal that ultimately turn her pure heart to stone. Driven by revenge and a fierce desire to protect the moors over which she presides, Maleficent cruelly places an irrevocable curse upon the human king’s newborn infant Aurora. As the child grows, Aurora is caught in the middle of the seething conflict between the forest kingdom she has grown to love and the human kingdom that holds her legacy. Maleficent realizes that Aurora may hold the key to peace in the land and is forced to take drastic actions that will change both worlds forever.
Not a surprise here really.  But in truth villains need to be more complex than simple evil for evil's sake. I still hope there is plenty of evil in her too.

Still though it's Angelina Jolie as Maleficent. It is  going to be fun.

Id still like to see this movie though:




Monday, January 20, 2014

Psionics?

So old schoolers (and people with opinions).  Do you use Psionics/Pychic powers in your game?

We used to use the quite a bit in the 1st Ed days then I pretty much dropped them till I started playing WitchCraft in the late 90s.

Call me strange, but I never really liked to mix my magic and psionics.  When I did I made them very, very different things.

What about you? What did your all like to do or still do?

Hero Forge

Have you seen this new Kickstarter?

Hero Forge is new application of the character builder idea.  Like in most character builders you design your character based on some built in elements and print it out.  With this one the printer is a high quality 3D printer and your output is a miniature for your game.


http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/heroforge/customizable-3d-printed-tabletop-miniatures

Personally I think this a fantastic.  At work we have been wanting a 3D printer, just kind find a good reason to buy one.  We call it a solution looking for a problem.  Well here is the problem!

The cool thing is if you configure a 28mm mini you like you can scale it up to 3" and 6".

Here are a couple of other sites to help explain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9PrmTjUWPY
http://kotaku.com/building-your-rpg-characters-in-the-real-world-1501393509

They blew past their funding goal in 72hours and are going great.
So they don't really need my money, but this looks so nice.

I already have some minis I really love, and I can't paint to save my life.  But this still looks really awesome.

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Zatannurday: What's Up Doc?

Zatanna and Bugs. I suppose this was bound to happen. Both are Warner properties.
Saw this one on Facebook and soon there were a lot more in my various feeds.  Not enough to make it a trend or a meme but enough to make me notice.


Zatanna - Ehh, what's up, doc? by MZ09 on deviantART


Zatanna and Bugs Bunny by Helob on deviantART


Cod, pu s'tahw by Aeolus06 on deviantART

And not the first times either. She pulled him out of her hat in the DCAU. Well sorta...


Friday, January 17, 2014

Custom World Maps to Globes?

I love old maps and old globes.

But what I would really love is a globe of my game world.

All I have is this map:





I didn't even make that. That comes solely from the skills of +Rich Trickey and +James Mishler.
Nor really do I have the skills to do it myself.

But I have always wanted a globe of my game world. Something I could use, but mostly put on display in my game room.

Anyone know of anyone that has done something like this?  Anyone know of place where I could get one made?

D20 Dark Ages: D&D 40th Anniversary Blog Hop Challenge

I have been following d20 Dark Ages for quite a while now.  To celebrate 40 years of D&D Stelios is hosting a blog hop in February and I am joining in!



I think it is going to be a lot of fun to do AND to read what everyone else has to say.  In truth you can pick over the last few years of my blog here and find my answers to most of these.  But getting them all into once theme and place will be nice.

So go to his blog, sign up and start working on your posts!

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Ghosts of Albion: Shaniezak demon

Been going through a lot of my Ghosts of Albion materials.  Seeing if I would like to run anything for Gen Con.  One adventure I have ran in the past and would love to try under different systems is "Obsession".
I could run it under a different system each night...

Well I am not likely to run it under Ghosts of Albion anymore and it would not really work under the OSR rules.  Since I running to a meeting here in a bit, here is a demon for you that would work for any game.

I am not embarrassed to say that this was one my influences on this adventure and demon.  I thought Astrid Plane was hot.

Shaniezak Demon

“This creature at first reminds you of a fetal human.  Its wrinkled pinched face, bald head and fat features bring to mind a cherub, only this no angelic child.  Its eyes are a black with orange irises, set in a head that seems too heavy for its unseen neck.  Two fat arms extend for it like normal, but its own obesity has made the thick digits of its hand all but useless.  Its skin around its upper body is a sickly yellowish hue, like it had been soaking in bromide wash, tuning dun brown as moves down.  Its entire body is covered in a sheen of foul looking slime.  Where its legs would have been has fused into a single thick fluke that noisily slaps against its host.  Tufts of black hair appear hear and there on its body. Most disturbing though is its maw.  Starting from it’s sternum down to its malformed waist is a gapping maw. Slime issues forth from it as it suckles against the body of its host.  Its head has turned nearly 180 degrees around in order to peer at you though it’s damned hellfire orange eyes.

The entire creature brings to mind the working of an insane artist asked to make a portrait of a child.  Instead of a mother and babe we get this abomination and its host that is no more than a bag of skin over bones.  It starves while the Shaniezak gets fat.”
- From the Journal of Tamara Swift


Long ago the Shaiezak demons were banished to lowest parts of the Nether Realms where they fed on the waste and offal of other demons. There they were to be forgotten, but sometimes these disgusting parasites are summoned to the Earthly realms to cause havoc.

Shaniezak (demon enhanced human)
Ghosts of Albion
Type: Possessed human
Attributes (numbers in parentheses are original values): Strength 7 (3), Dexterity 3, Constitution 7 (2), Intelligence 2, Perception 3, Willpower 7 (2)
Ability Scores: Muscle 20, Combat , Brains 12 (9)
Life Points: 69 (30)
Drama Points: 2
Special Abilities:  Emotional Problems (Cruel), Emotional Problems (Obsessed with someone), Hard to Kill, Increased Life Points, Magic Immunity, Unattractive (1)

Shaniezak (demon enhanced human)
Basic OSR
Armor Class:  5 [14] (aura of protection)
Hit Dice: 6d8+12* (39 hp)
No. of Attacks: 2 fists
Damage: 1d4+2 (x2)
Special: Makes saves vs. Magical attacks as Wizard 10
Movement: Twice base creature
No. Appearing: 1
Saves As: Wizard 6 (10 vs. magic and spells)
Morale: 12
Treasure: Special: The Shaniezak possessed human will collect trinkets from their victims or the focus of their obsessions.
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
XP: 450

The Shaniezak appears at a demonic parasite attached to a host body.  It gives the host certain powers, strength, increased health and magic immunity but feeds the darker emotions of the host; fear, envy, hate and obsessions.  The demon prompts its host into greater acts of violence and depravity to feed off of fear of the victims and the frustrations of its host.

An Exorcism spell will remove the demon, but kill the host in the process.  Since the removal of the demon always kills the host many opt just kill both.