Video Hits Wed: NINJAGO take on the American Ninja Warrior Obstacle Course!

Video Hits Wed: The Pirates of Dark Water

The Pirates of Black Water was a one season, Hanna Barbara Saturday morning cartoon from 1991. Though not a hit at the time, it has gained a small cult status for its strange, Vance inspired world of Mer.    

My Beautiful Blue

Ms. McNarland and her voice have been blowing my mind for almost twenty year now. I've been lucky enough to see her live twice and I can attest that for such a small woman, she had an amazing and powerful voice. I distinctly remember her voice rattling my teeth as I sat on the second teir of Barrymore's Music Hall. 

Initially marketed as a 90's Riot Grrrl, she only barely fit the description but it did her get shown on MuchMusic enough to boggle my meager brain, still soaking in enough leftover teenage hormones to really make an impression. However, it was her voice that really got me and I have remained a devoted fan ever since. She has faded from the scene now, though she still does shows from time to time (east coast, please?). Most importantly she has become a mother and has taken to writing about her experiences in her new blog.

http://hollymcnarlandblog.com/

The Sword of Sir Pratchett

Forged of thunderbolt iron by the man himself, the Sword of Sir Pratchett was hidden after his death to prevent looters and agents of the Queen from seizing the sword after his demise. 

The sword is an artifact of incredible narrative power. When welded, all 1 in a million chances happen 1 time out of tweny; you become very skilled in running away, you gain +10 to all headology rolls, plus 50% chance of succeeding in the rite of Ask-Ent, and finally, you can always find a cheap sausage-inna-bun when you need one (1gp each, more in dangerous places and outer dimensions).

Video Hit Wed: The Barsoom that Might Have Been

I didn't  mind the John Carter movie. I think it was a serious  misfire, but an entertaining one. Here is a mix of some early concept art that was done before Andrew Stanton and Disney pooped out the mangled mess we ended up with. 

Rain of Tentacles

In Alaska, there have been reports of these creatures raining down from the sky, landing on gardens, streets, cars and unsuspecting passersby in Alaska. They are lampreys and scientists suspect that they are being dropped by gulls after being plucked from the ocean.

Spells
Rain of Petromyzontiformes
This spell summons a number of hungry lampreys (number appearing equal's spell level) to appear approximately 5' above the target. The lamprey's are disorientated, angry and slimey, and will cling to armour, clothing and skin. They do only minimal damage, but their presence creates a great disadvantage to the victim, forcing them to take a penalty to all rolls until the creatures are dislodged. It takes one complete action to remove one lamprey.

Rain of Tentacles
This spell is almost indistinguishable from an 'entangle' spell (or similar) except the victim is wrapped in strong, constricting tentacles that also moderate damage per round. A strength check is required to break free.

The Mega-Helm

Based on this offer from Capcom, I present .... the Mega-Helm! 

The Mega-Helm allows the wearer to recreate the effect of a recently cast spell. To use it, the wearer must concentrate as the spell is being cast. There is a fifty-fifty chance (modified by magical ability of the wearer) of absorbing the spell. There is also a 5% chance the helm will automatically absorb any spell caste in a 50' radius. 

The helm can only hold one spell at a time and attempting to absorb a second spell will automatically wipe out any previously held. Once the helm has 'copied' the spell, it can be cast d6 times per day (game-master rolls once per day). 

Rumor tells of an arm-piece of similar design with the ability to mimic the properties of magical wands, but to date, no credible witnesses have come forward. 

Deviant Art by MM4

Disney Crawl Classic

I love this. Living 4 Crits figured out a way to play Dungeon Crawl Classics with his young daughters. His solution is genius....

The Dry Valleys of Antartica

I love looking at strange real-world environments as inspiration for stories and campaigns. There are dry valleys in Antarctica that have little to no ice or snow, but are just barren, frozen wastes besieged by 200kph winds. 

You can just picture the heroes walking through this on their way to some forgotten temple filled with all sorts of Lovecraftian delights....

Photo by Peter Rejcek

Video Hits Wed! The Pan-Universal Parental Reconciliation!

The Middleman is one of my favourite shows from the past ten years. This was a table read from the original cast to promote the release of a new graphic novel. For more Middleman merch, please go here. 

Sharksword

The Shark Sword normally appears to be a normal longsword with a golden crossbar and pommel.

When activated (to do so, the welder must imagine a huge shark), the blade transforms into a huge and hungry shark!

The shark attacks of its own volition and its stats and damage are the equivalent stats of a large shark or equivalent (but magical!).The sword must be held in order to attack, but the welder can use a one handed weapon in their free hand with a penalty.

It being a shark, it also has a 50% chance of attacking it's welder! The sword will have time for one solid attack before being dropped.

If the blade is sheathed or dropped at any time, it will return to its original blade form. However, there is a 50% chance the shark will attack (once) before returning to its blade form. Killing the shark will permanently destroy the sword.

Queens of Space

Who knew that a French release of an Italian Disco hit could be this awesome?

Linkage

Video Hits Wed, ya Hosers! The Last Polka

In honour of Canada Day, I present the second greatest Canadian Music Movie ever made!  When its a Schmenge, you know you got something!

The greatest Canadian music movie ever made is of course, Hard Core Logo.