I Like My Star Wars a Little Old Skool

66 behind the scenes photos from The Empire Strikes Back. 

My Cancer Dog

My Cancer Dog, from my other blog.

Mantis Shrimp!

To learn more about the Mantis Shrimp ... go Here!

Crazy Catwoman Lady

Source

Fantasy Maps

io9 has a collection of some utterly stunning fantasy maps. The one that caught my eye was the lands of the Phantom Tollbooth. I caught the last 30mins of the Chuck Jones film on TCM the other day. Instantly I was ten years old again, back when I absolutely loved the book.

Now I need to want to track down a copy to give it a read. 

This is what Roleplaying IS.

The always indomitable, Penny Arcade

Or at least, what it SHOULD be.

I've been link-dumping lately. I hate it and I apologize. This is not why I set this up. Work's been busy, and their have been doctors and tests all month (one year chemo free this month ... wOOt!). By the time I get home and take the dogs on their two hour walk (otherwise they aren't tired enough to sleep through the night), I don't have a lot of energy left.

To me, this comic beautifully illustrates the pure, distilled heart of tabletop roleplaying and like Gabe, I would be completely invested in a game like this.  You don't need Game of Throne level plotting, you don't even need good rules ... all you need is enthusiasm.

How else could we have played our way through almost twenty years of RIFTS? The rules were TERRIBLE, but the setting was awesome in its XTREME 90s kinda way and we just played; going through, around or flat out ignoring the rules. We didn't care about game balance, or game theory, rules fatigue, genre poisoning, crossover appeal or whether the plot was railroad, sandbox or even made sense. We cared about  spending time with friends and having a good time.

WATCH OUT! SKELETONS!  

Abandoned Power Stations

For all your post-apocalyptic needs

LINKAGE for more

A Duplo with Cheese

Linkage!

In a related mashup, Patton Oswalt has a theory of where the Gimp (now that would be a funny duplo fig) came from.

Great Scott, the Iranians!!

A scientist in Tehran (Iran, not Libya) claims to have invented a time machine to see into the future. Probably cooking with a cracked pot, but the science fiction fan side of me can't help having some fun with it ... what if it where true?  

Faster, Empire! Strike, Strike!

Hanna 'Guitar' Solo, Chibetta and Lana Calloway.

What would Star Wars look like if it had been filmed as a Russ Myers movie? Oh sure, we've all thought about it, but comedian Paton Oswald finally did something about it. He paid fig-modifier extraordinaire  Sillof to do some custom figs depicting just that. 

We have officially reached the nadir of mashing up pop-culture. From here on in, its all just the Dukes of Hazards in Jayne hats and Doctor scarves. 

Blast from the Past

The Pears are Up to Something...

Here is something I haven't seen in a while. I wrote this and it was picked up by an online publisher called Memetales that paired me up with the talented Tara Duffin. I think I wrote it in one go very, very late at night and I don't think it sold a single unit =), but I still think its cute.

O.G.R.E. Randomizers

Some fun randomizers.

Video Hits: The Elaborate End of Robert Ebb

A security guard's prank on a coworker goes very, very wrong.

The elaborate end of Robert Ebb from Robert Ebb on Vimeo.

Cartoon Map of the Tomb of Horrors

But first ... STARLOG Archives

Linkage to Original

The State of Things

-My online Crown of Command game is progressing. Slowly. But progressing.  I've got five players and I average about one play a day. The basic Adventure Card deck, with a slew of  Munchkin and Homebrew cards now added in, is now close to 1,000 cards. My personal favourite was the surprisingly well done set of  'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' homebrew cards I found. Now players can explore the Caves of AAAAaagh!, visit the Old Man from Scene 24 and take Sir Not Appearing in this Game as a follower.

Timescape Card

Object

Tactical Nuke

Win ANY combat at the cost of 2 Lives

One use only, then discard.

-RPGSOLO: this looks interesting. I found the link through the TWERPS yahoo newsgroup. Haven't had a chance to play around with it yet, but I am hoping to soon.

-A-Z Carnival

Its not too late to jump on this, but I'm having trouble coming up with a theme. I've given myself until Saturday to think of something.

-Antlion
From Real Monstrosities. I'm amazed that the dire/giant/rabid version sucker doesn't pop up more in rpgs. 

-I am also a raging Legomaniac and I follow the Brothers Brick religiously. The stuff there constantly fills me with awe, and not a small amount of jealousy (I want to be that talented ... I want that many bricks!). The stuff on the site is almost consistently amazing, but Mike Doyle's city of Odan  has blowed my mind.

SAD NEWS

-Roger Ebert's cancer is back

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/04/03/film-critic-roger-eberts-cancer-is-back/

I gotta say reading these kinds of things scares the hell out of me. Doesn't help that my next oncology checkup is next Friday. It also reminds me that I did most of last year's A-Z while in hospital hooked up to chemo drips, so I suppose that all things considered, I'm ahead of the game this year. 

-Ian Banks has cancer

http://io9.com/iain-m-banks-posts-a-sad-brave-announcement-of-his-im-468426237

If you have not had a chance to read any of Mr. Banks's novels, I cannot stress how good they are. If you are a fan of the rpg Traveler and you have not read Mr. Banks ... then go find them and we'll see you again in a month or so. 

-Jane Henson has died

The unsung collaborator of Jim Henson, her role in creating the most beloved children's franchise cannot be understated.