Gamebook Peves

Nothing turns me off a Gamebook faster than after the general introduction and how-to-play sections, without so much as description of where you are or what you are doing it, says "Go to 432."

1! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH STARTING AT 1?!

Kids in the Hall Saturday

You don't find many enthusiastic ghosts, but maybe there should be.

Traps give me fits

Ugh, I've got almost everything written for a proper draft of "The Dark Door into Darkness" except the traps. This was never my my forte.

Language Warning

It's My Own Fucking Fault at Kinda Has Cancer.

Really,do I need a reason?

Headlight Glasses

These large lenses sit over the eyes and are activated by today's secret word. Once activated, they allow the user to see in absolute dark conditions for up to eight hours before needing to be turned off for twelve hours to recharge (they will recharge in four hours in direct sunlight). They are not magical and will not be extinguished by anti-magic measures.

The glasses emit a powerful light when active, allowing those around the user to see as if they were holding a powerful lantern. The light also attracts wandering monsters at twice the normal rate.

10 Things I Knew About the Goonies

http://www.tor.com/blogs/2012/08/10-things-you-might-not-know-about-the-goonies

 

via TOR.com

 

That being said, I think I now HAVE to set an adventure on the Island of One Eyed Willy.  

12 Questions to Ask About Your Magic System

Wish more fantasy game designers had asked the same questions...

 

http://io9.com/5936277/12-questions-to-ask-yourself-about-the-system-of-magic-in-your-fantasy-novel

 

via. io9

The Dark Door into Darkness

The Dark Door into Darkness is structured for solo play, so there are some Gamebook/ ‘Choose your own Adventure’ style segments where the player’s decisions determine the outcome. Here is a description of what may happen if a player chooses, poorly:

Long after the rock had cooled and the rumblings had stopped, they still tell the story of the night Pargshaft mine exploded. They say a cloud of smoke rose ten miles into the sky and that it rained ash for six days and night. Today, a peaceful crater lake lies in its place, surrounded by light woods and open lands that still bears the scars of that terrible day. Campfire tales tell of a lost cavern deep below the lake, filled with vast treasures and terrible monsters. Few believe the stories, but to this day, the serine lake bears the name of ‘{Hero’s Name}’s Folly”.

The Dark Door into Darkness

“Do not panic. Your destruction is imminent.”

Jeesh, not yet another, “I’m not trying to ignore this blog, but” post. Nevertheless, with everyone at work on vacation I’ve been soaking up as much overtime as I can to help pay for some of the bills we ran up when I was sick.

In what little free time I have to write, I’ve been working on an adventure called “The Dark Door into Darkness”. I’ve set it up so that dungeon is randomly generated, with random encounters mixed with an overall plot, which means it can be played solo or in a group. I’ve written it rules free so it will be suitable for any system, but if I can stand to look at it after I’m done, I will include RollCore and Labyrinth Lord conversions as well. I finished the monster section last night, so here is a bit if a preview:

Shadow These strange entities lurk in all the dark places of the world, thirsting for light. Shadows often attack adventuring parties in deep caves, but their main goal is not the party, it is the light sources they carry. Their appearance is malleable, and they often take the form of shadows of the Heroes they are attacking. Other times they take the shape of one of the nightmarish creatures that lurk in the deepest regions of the earth. Shadows cannot manifest in total darkness, and should their attacks result in all available light being extinguished, they will disappear.

Drunken Angel

There is a scene at the end of Drunken Angel an Akira Kurosawa film starring Takashi Shimura and Toshiro Mifune (both later in the Seven Samurai) where two gangsters get into a fight to the death. They’re both scared and desperate, and the fight is an awkward, scrambling affair where both are unwilling to commit too fully to an attack. What struck me was how real it looked.

The film is all overly dramatic really (it is about a drunk doctor trying to save a yakuza with TB), but at the same time I couldn’t help but imagine how Hollywood would have handled that scene and how many people honestly think that fights, especially between 'trained killers' look like this:

The Reason I Don't Support Kickstarters...

From Gutters ...

My Excel Map

Playing around with Excel Mapping (with some touch-ups in Paint) and I came up with this. It isn't actually for anything, just an exercise. However, it has got me thinking about what else you could do with a map like this in Excel: Just the random tables alone could be awesome...   

Lord of the Rings Lego Game

My wife works part time at a big-box bookstore and said that the Lord of the Rings sets have been flying off the shelves, and it kills me that I cannot afford them right now. But at least I will be able to get this game! Though if they come out with a Lego Balrog, I'm selling the car.

Talislanta Blog: Still no elves!

a new blog about a Talislanta campaign.

Shark Tooth Swords

Scares the hell out of me.

 

A great article from Discover Magazine

Sea Monsters A to Z

Tor.Com has a nice listing of Sea Critters