My posting is going to be a bit sporadic over the next week and half.
Work, family and other obligations are demanding my time.
Hope to have some great stuff for you all in April!
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Zatannurday: First Day of Spring
So since it is spring (and this week was St. Patrick's Day) lets feature the Mistress of Plant World, Poison Ivy!
Gotham Girls: Poison Ivy by J-Skipper on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy Cosplay by Yukilefay on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy (BTAS Vers.) - 01 by galaktikmermaid on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy + Video by Gwennys on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy Redesign by Flash-of-Lingt on DeviantArt
Best friends by Lady-I-Hellsing on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy by DawidARTe on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy by LadyMignon on DeviantArt
Poison Ivy by DanielMurrayART on DeviantArt
Poisonous Magic by Fairie-Tails on DeviantArt
[WOMEN OF DC] Real Power of the DC Universe by Windaria on DeviantArt
Here's to Spring!
Friday, March 20, 2015
Friday Night Videos: All Hail Dio!
This week I have a special treat. Well at least for me.
Tonight features what must be the quintessential videos and songs of what was known as "Sword and Sorcerery Rock".
And the lord of all of these was none other than Ronnie James Dio!
He fronted Black Sabbath, Rainbow and his own band Dio. He was a rocker and showman and by all accounts a great guy.
So here we have some of his most "D&D" songs ever. These were huge inspiration to me in the day and then again later one when I was working on newer games.
Man on the Silver Mountain might just be one of the first "Sword and Sorcerery" songs recorded by a "metal" group. Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple and after hearing Dio sing wanted him for his new band, Rainbow. Of course the reasons Deep Purple had problems continued to plague Rainbow, but not before we got Man on the Silver Mountain.
Dio left Rainbow and about that time Ozzy
Heaven and Hell is considered to be one of the penultimate Dio-fronted Black Sabbath songs.
Black Sabbath and Dio parted ways, but that gave us one of the best 80s metal bands and early darling of MTV's metal playlist. Many nights when playing D&D we had to stop to watch Holy Diver or The Last in Line.
Rainbow in the Dark became something of a theme during my Buffy playtests.
Kickstart Your Weekend: Elizabeth Chaipraditkul Interview
I want to spend some more time talking about WITCH today with the developer Elizabeth Chaipraditkul, +Liz C.
WITCH is getting a lot more attention and I wanted learn more about the game.
To say I am looking forward to this is an understatement.
Tim Brannan/The Other Side: Let’s start at the beginning, who are you and what is Angry Hamster Publishing?
Elizabeth Chaipraditkul/Angry Hamster: My name is Liz and I am the co-founder of Angry Hamster publishing. I’ve written WITCH and it is our flagship game for Angry Hamster Publishing. I’ve written for the Living Forgotten realms before and I am currently working on a project for Onyx Path Publishing.
TB: How did you get into gaming?
Liz: I was a very solitary kid, the kind of girl who spent all her time in her room playing with her Barbies and making up stories, so the moment I found out about gaming I jumped on it. I thought it was fantastic that there were other people out there that wanted to make-pretend as much as I did. I started out with form rpgs when I was in middle school and then in highschool I was introduced to D&D 3.5 and it took off from there.
TB: What are some of your favorite games? Why?
Liz: TTRPG-wise I would have to say Vampire the Masquerade. I love how gritty it is, the romance and the tragedy of an immortal existence. I blame Anne Rice and Joss Whedon for this. I also love Numenera and Monster Hearts. Numenera because it is unique and wonderful, I love adventure and this game is pure adventure. Monster Hearts holds a special place in my heart, because it is a game that perfectly encapsulates all the angsty supernatural/teen TV shows I love.
TB: Now the good stuff. What is “WITCH”?
Liz: WITCH is a dark, modern fantasy role play game where you play a member of the Fated a witch or warlock who has sold their soul to a demon for power. The game is set in our world, but then if we had all the cool stuff like magic and monsters. The game deals heavily with how characters will find a way to survive and triumph over their personal storylines and demons. This rather dark theme is set in a world that is utterly fantastical. The world of WITCH, unlike the lives of the Fated, is not dark at all. In fact is it wondrous, magical, and begging to be explored.
TB: What is here in WITCH to set it off from other Modern Supernatural games?
Liz: We place a large importance on character’s stories and their interactions with their personal demons. When I created this game I wanted the character’s lives to be as much a part of the main plot as whatever cool story the GM had cooked up. With the Fated constantly having to deal with their demons the game does that just that. In order for the Fated to gain more power they must summon their demon and make a new deal with them, demons are real characters who have wants and needs, and they will (probably) as the Fated to do something they are not comfortable with. How the Fated deal with their demons and how they still survive in their own lives is a unique feature in our game.
TB: Tell me more about the magic system in WITCH
Liz: Mechanics wise, our magic system is very unique. We don’t put a limit on how much magic players can use, they are able to use as much magic a day as they want, however, it comes at a price. Players can also do things such as Magic Alteration, changing the look and feel of their Spell, at will. This means that players can customise their characters without a penalty and each character’s magic will be unique.
TB: What sort of games/stories do you expect that people will use this for?
Liz: I’d like to say the two themes I love most in games and that is - adventure and drama. There is nothing like your coven recovering an ancient artefact just for one of you to give it to your demon for power power is there? I love exploring places that beg to be explored and interacting with a world completely foreign to you. However, as a player I am also very selfish. I want a personal story and I want drama. I always hope my GM is going to pick apart my backstory and find something crazy to run with. I believe that is what WITCH allows GMs to do.
TB: Going on the drama bit for a second. Would it be possible to do a Monster Hearts-like (a game I love) game with WITCH?
Liz: For sure! The setting isn’t limited to adventure, horror, etc. Often, in the WITCH games I run the player’s lives end up taking center stage, their relationships etc. The story I have in mind is always second and woven deeply into who the characters are. I also think that the Fated and their demons could have interesting relationships together. We have a story in the book of a woman named Mary, she was a Pagan and actually ended up married to her devil. I would not call their relationship love… actually the exact opposite, but how fantastic would that type of drama be in a story?
TB: Your Kickstarter is doing great. You are funded and heading into stretch goals. What what you like to do this with these funds? (the Cape Town and Athens additions)
Liz: Well, our most recent stretch goal is one of my most beloved and that is the Devil’s Deck. The Devil’s Deck is an altered Major Arcana of a tarot deck that the fated use to divine the future. It features heavily in our game and if we get 100 more euros in our campaign we unlock it for our players! Each one of our backers will get the digital PNP files for the Devil’s Deck. The next stretch goal after that is getting all our backers (who have pledges for a physical copy of the book) a hard copy of the deck. I really hope we get there!
TB: Cool so a Tarot set to go along with the Witch board! Any other goodies you would like to do?
Liz: Oh yeah! The next rewards is for sure going to be a GM screen or what I like to call - 4 page cardboard excuse to showcase the amazing art we have! I never use my GM screens as actual screens, but I love handy quick references and the art is always so amazing! Also, if the last two days go crazy I have also sourced custom dice, but we’ll see if we get there :D.
TB: What are your future plans for this game?
Liz: I have a companion that is half on paper and half in my mind. It will give players more options for higher Spell Levels and also introduce two new Fates. It will basically contain a lot of content that didn’t make it into the CRB. I am also working on a few adventures and I would love to get to write more about the Fates.
TB: Ok last question and this is for my own benefit. Who is your favorite wizard, witch or magic-user?
Liz: Argh! Just one? Okay, I am going to pick two - Tara (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Halaster . I love Tara, because she is perfect and wonderful in every way. I love Halaster, because he is crazy. Haha, I actually can’t describe him more than that.
TB: I absolutely LOVE Tara! Would it be possible to play Willow and Tara in WITCH?
Liz: YES! Well, I want to say no, because we know where the relationship ends up - but yes! Also, dark Willow would make such a cool higher Spell Level witch. In our game when you get to higher Spell levels you get to focus your magic into either redemption or utter damnation (and more, but see my answer above about wanting to write more books ^^). I totally see a tragic dark Willow and redeemed Tara story. Ahhhhh!
TB: Well Tara is alive and well in my games, so I will have to try stating them up!
Liz: I want to see that ^^.
TB: And finally where can we find you on the internet?
Liz: You can find more about WITCH at angryhamsterpublishing.com and follow us on Twitter @angryhamsterrpg. I also have a personal blog, which is epicxcloth.blogspot.com
--
In the process of talking to Liz I decided EXACTLY what my first WITCH game is going to be.
WITCH is getting a lot more attention and I wanted learn more about the game.
To say I am looking forward to this is an understatement.
Tim Brannan/The Other Side: Let’s start at the beginning, who are you and what is Angry Hamster Publishing?
TB: How did you get into gaming?
Liz: I was a very solitary kid, the kind of girl who spent all her time in her room playing with her Barbies and making up stories, so the moment I found out about gaming I jumped on it. I thought it was fantastic that there were other people out there that wanted to make-pretend as much as I did. I started out with form rpgs when I was in middle school and then in highschool I was introduced to D&D 3.5 and it took off from there.
TB: What are some of your favorite games? Why?
Liz: TTRPG-wise I would have to say Vampire the Masquerade. I love how gritty it is, the romance and the tragedy of an immortal existence. I blame Anne Rice and Joss Whedon for this. I also love Numenera and Monster Hearts. Numenera because it is unique and wonderful, I love adventure and this game is pure adventure. Monster Hearts holds a special place in my heart, because it is a game that perfectly encapsulates all the angsty supernatural/teen TV shows I love.
TB: Now the good stuff. What is “WITCH”?
Liz: WITCH is a dark, modern fantasy role play game where you play a member of the Fated a witch or warlock who has sold their soul to a demon for power. The game is set in our world, but then if we had all the cool stuff like magic and monsters. The game deals heavily with how characters will find a way to survive and triumph over their personal storylines and demons. This rather dark theme is set in a world that is utterly fantastical. The world of WITCH, unlike the lives of the Fated, is not dark at all. In fact is it wondrous, magical, and begging to be explored.
TB: What is here in WITCH to set it off from other Modern Supernatural games?
Liz: We place a large importance on character’s stories and their interactions with their personal demons. When I created this game I wanted the character’s lives to be as much a part of the main plot as whatever cool story the GM had cooked up. With the Fated constantly having to deal with their demons the game does that just that. In order for the Fated to gain more power they must summon their demon and make a new deal with them, demons are real characters who have wants and needs, and they will (probably) as the Fated to do something they are not comfortable with. How the Fated deal with their demons and how they still survive in their own lives is a unique feature in our game.
TB: Tell me more about the magic system in WITCH
Liz: Mechanics wise, our magic system is very unique. We don’t put a limit on how much magic players can use, they are able to use as much magic a day as they want, however, it comes at a price. Players can also do things such as Magic Alteration, changing the look and feel of their Spell, at will. This means that players can customise their characters without a penalty and each character’s magic will be unique.
TB: What sort of games/stories do you expect that people will use this for?
Liz: I’d like to say the two themes I love most in games and that is - adventure and drama. There is nothing like your coven recovering an ancient artefact just for one of you to give it to your demon for power power is there? I love exploring places that beg to be explored and interacting with a world completely foreign to you. However, as a player I am also very selfish. I want a personal story and I want drama. I always hope my GM is going to pick apart my backstory and find something crazy to run with. I believe that is what WITCH allows GMs to do.
TB: Going on the drama bit for a second. Would it be possible to do a Monster Hearts-like (a game I love) game with WITCH?
Liz: For sure! The setting isn’t limited to adventure, horror, etc. Often, in the WITCH games I run the player’s lives end up taking center stage, their relationships etc. The story I have in mind is always second and woven deeply into who the characters are. I also think that the Fated and their demons could have interesting relationships together. We have a story in the book of a woman named Mary, she was a Pagan and actually ended up married to her devil. I would not call their relationship love… actually the exact opposite, but how fantastic would that type of drama be in a story?
TB: Your Kickstarter is doing great. You are funded and heading into stretch goals. What what you like to do this with these funds? (the Cape Town and Athens additions)
Liz: Well, our most recent stretch goal is one of my most beloved and that is the Devil’s Deck. The Devil’s Deck is an altered Major Arcana of a tarot deck that the fated use to divine the future. It features heavily in our game and if we get 100 more euros in our campaign we unlock it for our players! Each one of our backers will get the digital PNP files for the Devil’s Deck. The next stretch goal after that is getting all our backers (who have pledges for a physical copy of the book) a hard copy of the deck. I really hope we get there!
Liz: Oh yeah! The next rewards is for sure going to be a GM screen or what I like to call - 4 page cardboard excuse to showcase the amazing art we have! I never use my GM screens as actual screens, but I love handy quick references and the art is always so amazing! Also, if the last two days go crazy I have also sourced custom dice, but we’ll see if we get there :D.
TB: What are your future plans for this game?
Liz: I have a companion that is half on paper and half in my mind. It will give players more options for higher Spell Levels and also introduce two new Fates. It will basically contain a lot of content that didn’t make it into the CRB. I am also working on a few adventures and I would love to get to write more about the Fates.
TB: Ok last question and this is for my own benefit. Who is your favorite wizard, witch or magic-user?
Liz: Argh! Just one? Okay, I am going to pick two - Tara (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Halaster . I love Tara, because she is perfect and wonderful in every way. I love Halaster, because he is crazy. Haha, I actually can’t describe him more than that.
TB: I absolutely LOVE Tara! Would it be possible to play Willow and Tara in WITCH?
Liz: YES! Well, I want to say no, because we know where the relationship ends up - but yes! Also, dark Willow would make such a cool higher Spell Level witch. In our game when you get to higher Spell levels you get to focus your magic into either redemption or utter damnation (and more, but see my answer above about wanting to write more books ^^). I totally see a tragic dark Willow and redeemed Tara story. Ahhhhh!
TB: Well Tara is alive and well in my games, so I will have to try stating them up!
Liz: I want to see that ^^.
TB: And finally where can we find you on the internet?
Liz: You can find more about WITCH at angryhamsterpublishing.com and follow us on Twitter @angryhamsterrpg. I also have a personal blog, which is epicxcloth.blogspot.com
--
In the process of talking to Liz I decided EXACTLY what my first WITCH game is going to be.
I am going to abandon the Fate version of my American Horror Story: Coven game I was playing around with and do it all under WITCH instead.
AND of course I need to stat up Willow and Tara as soon as I can.
Thursday, March 19, 2015
40 Years of Dungeon!
I am a big fan of the Dungeon! board game. In fact at any given time around here you can find a board set up and ready to go. So you can imagine my pleasure when this link to an interview with Dave Megarry started getting passed around last night.
http://www.advanceddungeonsandparenting.com/2015/03/the-dungeon-boardgame-at-40.html
http://gamersandgrognards.blogspot.com/2015/03/hump-day-40-years-of-dungeon.html
Though this might be rather elementary for anyone reading this blog, here is Ross Maker, one of the first players of Dungeon! showing us how it is done.
There is also some great history at The Zenopus Archives including some rough drafts of the first Dungeon! game, The Dungeons of Pasha Cada!
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-dungeons-of-pasha-cada.html
And Jonathan Becker has new rules for the newest version of the Dungeon! game over at B/X Blackrazor.
http://bxblackrazor.blogspot.com/2013/06/your-new-dungeon.html
He has some new monsters and treasures. Plus he has some rule additions that include more "classes". Some of these are are similar to the optional rules that appeared in Best of The Dragon Vol 1 (which was a combination of articles from the early days of The Dragon).
The Dragon articles add Clerics, Dwarves, Thieves and "Hobbits" (Halflings) to the Classic Dungeon.
The "Expert" Game from JB adds Heroes, Elves, Superheroes, Wizards, Clerics, Dwarves, Hobbits, Theives and Necromancers.
Based these here is an alternate character class for your Dungeon! game.
The Witch
Have fun!
http://www.advanceddungeonsandparenting.com/2015/03/the-dungeon-boardgame-at-40.html
http://gamersandgrognards.blogspot.com/2015/03/hump-day-40-years-of-dungeon.html
Though this might be rather elementary for anyone reading this blog, here is Ross Maker, one of the first players of Dungeon! showing us how it is done.
There is also some great history at The Zenopus Archives including some rough drafts of the first Dungeon! game, The Dungeons of Pasha Cada!
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-dungeons-of-pasha-cada.html
And Jonathan Becker has new rules for the newest version of the Dungeon! game over at B/X Blackrazor.
http://bxblackrazor.blogspot.com/2013/06/your-new-dungeon.html
He has some new monsters and treasures. Plus he has some rule additions that include more "classes". Some of these are are similar to the optional rules that appeared in Best of The Dragon Vol 1 (which was a combination of articles from the early days of The Dragon).
The Dragon articles add Clerics, Dwarves, Thieves and "Hobbits" (Halflings) to the Classic Dungeon.
The "Expert" Game from JB adds Heroes, Elves, Superheroes, Wizards, Clerics, Dwarves, Hobbits, Theives and Necromancers.
Based these here is an alternate character class for your Dungeon! game.
The Witch
| Witch (purple): Witches are users of magic similar to wizards. A witch moves like a wizard (or the default 5 in the new game). Witches gain spells in the same manner as a Wizard. The exceptions are she does not have access to Fireball and has Clairvoyance and Charm/Hold from JB's Expert game above. The witch can charm any monster to become a minion and fight for her. The minion will fight till defeated in combat. If the witch uses her charm spell in a chamber she must indicate which monster she is charming before the cards are revealed. The witch may only have one minion at a time. The witch attacks as a Wizard. The witch requires 30,000 gp to win. |
Have fun!
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Crazy Long Day
So work is kicking me in the but this week. I spent a lot of time today re-writing a bio-stats final exam. So I am a tad brain dead.
What do I know?
Well how is the new URL working for everyone? Anyone notice a difference at all?
Because of the URL change some internal links are a bit wonky. I will fix those as they come up.
Played around with the Android x86 OS on a lap top today. There is a lot of good about but I would need to spend more time with it. It won't replace Windows or Ubuntu 14.04 for me, but it was fun to play with.
Hopefully I will have something more intelligent to say tomorrow.
What do I know?
Well how is the new URL working for everyone? Anyone notice a difference at all?
Because of the URL change some internal links are a bit wonky. I will fix those as they come up.
Played around with the Android x86 OS on a lap top today. There is a lot of good about but I would need to spend more time with it. It won't replace Windows or Ubuntu 14.04 for me, but it was fun to play with.
Hopefully I will have something more intelligent to say tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Update your URLs!
I decided to splurge and get a custom domain for my blogs.
You can now get to the Other Side blog at this address: http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/
If by chance you still read my atheism blog, the Freedom of Nonbelief, then you can find that here: http://atheism.timsbrannan.com/
Eventually I will have something in place for http://timsbrannan.com but until then it goes to my Other Side Blog.
You can reach me at admin@timsbrannan.com or webmaster@timsbrannan.com.
You can now get to the Other Side blog at this address: http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/
If by chance you still read my atheism blog, the Freedom of Nonbelief, then you can find that here: http://atheism.timsbrannan.com/
Eventually I will have something in place for http://timsbrannan.com but until then it goes to my Other Side Blog.
You can reach me at admin@timsbrannan.com or webmaster@timsbrannan.com.
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