tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11273693600975581072024-03-19T06:05:03.320-07:00Dragon Grumbleskaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-30506227963163374542017-08-23T20:21:00.002-07:002017-08-24T07:14:29.962-07:00<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Life
below armpit level<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I just spent 4 days using a mobility cart at GenCon 50. I
never realized that my fellow gamers were so: (take your pick) oblivious, rude,
unthinking, self obsessed, cruel, mean-spirited or just plain f***ing annoying.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After 20 years with Fishing Has No Boundaries, an
organization that provides opportunities for folks of all ages with
disabilities, I thought I had a pretty good grasp of some of the hurdles they
faced in doing “ordinary” things, having helped them overcome them. I was
completely and totally ignorant as to what it feels like to be in a wheelchair
(or in my case, on a mobility scooter). I was invisible (except for a few hours
one afternoon; more on that later). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I will
now speak in generalities; not everyone, by any means, exhibited this behavior.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I cannot count how many times I had to tell someone to “Look
up!” when they had their face in their phone and stepped in front of me (keep
in mind I am in motion). Now if this behavior was being exhibited on the
highway, I would be OK with that as it would weed out that gene from the pool
in short order.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I was frequently battered about the head and shoulders by
backpacks and bags of games. I got a few looks that seemed that the offender
didn’t think I should be in his way.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I had idiots jump in front of me, giggling sometimes, with
lame “Sorry”’s and smirks. No, Jerkwad, if you were really sorry you would not
act like an ass-hat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I had strings of gamers (gamers all in a group) line up like
ducklings following Mama, and then make a game of how many could dash in front
of me and make me stop. All accompanied with phony smirks and “Sorry”’s. You
weren’t sorry, you brain dead moron; if you were you would have paused and let
me through.<br />
<br />
The insincerity really hacked me off.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Karma can be a bitch, and one vacuous smartass got his ass
bitten for many of the others. Motoring along the sidewalk, where it happens to
be sort of divided by a bunch of planters, this rather large fellow jumped from
his side in front of me on my side, gave me the mealy-mouthed “Sorry” complete
with smirk, just as I rammed his Achilles tendon with the scooter, absolutely, completely
by accident. I could not stop in time. As I loudly proclaimed what a foolish
move it was to jump in front of scooters everyone around looked just as I hit
him and saw him limp away. I hope it got infected.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Brother and Sister gamers, get your act together on this.
Lots of gamers have to spend their lives in chairs or on scooters, and the
general herd treat them like crap, as though they do not exist. I spoke with
quite a few attendees who are in chairs all the time, or on a scooter. Every
single one of them said that what I was observing was what they dealt with
every day. Some of these fellow gamers are considerably more fragile than I.
Look around you and take that into consideration. One of them used the phrase
that became my title; anything below armpit level is often virtually invisible
to too many people. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I was ashamed of the way my fellow gamers were behaving, and
mine is only a temporary condition. I empathize with those living with those
circumstances on a daily basis.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Later:
One afternoon , instead of a gaming-related cap, I wore a VietNam Veterans cap.
People were marginally (but only a little) more considerate and seemed to see
me better. They also offered help, if needed, every time I stopped.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-15347702454150144992016-11-15T20:21:00.000-08:002016-11-15T20:21:52.995-08:00The Cosmic Gobsmack: Me and Mr. CMy gut started bothering me a week or so before the last GenCon.<br />
<br />
I had a previously set appointment for Aug. 21st and told my Family Dr., who recommended a CT Scan two days hence.<br />
<br />
It detected a mass.<br />
<br />
I was scheduled for a colonoscopy 5 days later, the 28. The day I found out I had colon cancer, even though I was not scheduled for another test for a year. It was guesstimated to be small and require that no more than 7 or 8 inches of my colon.<br />
<br />
On Sept 28th they removed half of my colon and a tumor my surgeon characterized as "...big as (his) fist".<br />
<br />
Two days ago, Nov. 14th, I had the first of twelve chemical infusions to be administered every two weeks over the next six months. I have already experienced brief flashes of some of the platinum's side effects; I understand they only get more intense and of longer duration. Last night I stuck two fingers into a jar of cold pickles and thought I was grabbing a Taser on low power. Drinking cold water feels like drinking slushees.<br />
<br />
I want to write about what all of this has been like. I will.<br />
<br />
I want to keep writing about games and gaming. I will.<br />
<br />
I have several projects mentally assembled but yet to be born, but born they will be.<br />
<br />
I have two collaborations/assignments that need to be done. They will be.<br />
<br />
I cannot promise how often I will be able to post here over the next 6 months; I'm told to expect flashes of "chemo-brain". But I will, when I can.<br /><br />When asked at GameHole Con two weeks ago what was driving me, I said that the two fuels I intended to rely upon are Ornery and Acerbic.<br /><br />To the countless people that have sent me prayers, good vibes, sincere wishes of many sorts, many of them from folks I have never met: You overwhelm me with your love and support; that is what will get me through the bad days ahead.kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-42197849490429459792016-08-20T09:37:00.000-07:002016-08-20T09:37:00.630-07:00Credit, Recognition, and The Pillow Test <div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
During the past several years several people have asked
me various questions on the same topic or subject, and my feelings about it. I
guess it has come time to state it publicly, once and for all.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Gary Gygax and Brian Blume hired me to be the company
editor, that company first being Tactical Studies Rules, and then TSR Hobbies.
I edited some of their business letters; I edited some of Gary’s stuff; I
edited whatever game the company was working on (but more as a proofreader in
those instances); I edited <i>Strategic
Review</i> and then when I edited <i>Blackmoor</i>,
all of our lives changed a little that day.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The word “edit” was pretty loosely applied back then. In
the heyday of newspapers there was a person or desk called “Re-write”. This
person took the facts as dictated from the reporter not actually writing their
own story and made them coherent. I did a ton of that. Another skill necessary
for a good editor is making the words that you have flow; they are there for a
reason and should be pleasing to the mind reading them, they should be <i>euphonious in your head</i>. Sometimes this
means substituting words and other times reconstructing sentences and
paragraphs. But the most called-upon skill in those days was my ability to
divine what the author meant and re-write in his voice, at the same time
filling in all the gaps. In some cases those gaps were rather substantial, and
I ended up creating significant portions of transitory and “tying together”
material. In some of the <i>D&D</i>
supplements it was as much as 30% of the content. This continued, to one degree
or another, for <i>Eldritch Wizardry</i> and
<i>Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes</i>. With
the former I wrote lots of stuff, for the latter not so much.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This was what I was hired to do. Gary put his trust in me
that I was not going to screw up the basic system and gave me my head. So,
technically, I wrote a small chunk of <i>OD&D</i>.
In accepting that trust and responsibility, I certainly had a major hand in
directing the evolution of the game as we know it today. It was what I was
hired to do; this is why I am only ever listed as the editor. I was one of many
that were thanked in the fronts of the <i>AD&D</i> books, and I was OK with that.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
To be bluntly honest, had I known then that <i>D&D </i>was
going to become what it did become, I might have argued for, and gotten, “more
credit”. But we first TSR employees were a team when it came to creating stuff.
A lot of our early product was worked on<i>
en masse</i>; we all had a hand in it. When it came to stuff like new spells
and potions, I do not think it possible, without Mr. Wells’ time machine, to
clearly say who did what in the majority of cases. Certain artifacts and magic
items were proposed by various individuals; for some of those I can remember
authorship. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We “First Five”, Gary, Brian, Dave Sutherland, Mike Carr
and myself (founders of what is now called The Old Guard by GaryCon) shared
ideas freely. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
A couple of years ago I revealed the process for what
became <i>Basic</i> and <i>1E</i>. Before then, no one had every asked me about it and I had
not felt it necessary to blow my own horn. I revealed that I was certainly <i>godfather</i> to <i>1E</i> and <i>Basic</i>, having
spent nearly seven workdays closeted with Gary making decisions on which was
which and what went where, as well as what got nerfed and what got beefed up. Then
I sort of withdrew from that part of the company to concentrate my efforts on
my division of the company, Periodicals.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
A chance to do a professional, “slick paper” magazine
about games and gaming is what most drew me to TSR in the first place; getting
to help on this new game was a side dish. Gary promised the chance to turn <i>The Strategic Review</i> (beginning to
notice a fondness for certain letter combinations?) into a “real” magazine with
advertising and some color. As a recent grad of Southern Illinois
University-Carbondale with a fresh degree in Communications, and former junior college
newspaper staffer, I was ready.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Gary and I had discussed a magazine at some length before
I was asked to come on board this “new venture” he was brewing. I thank whatever
fate or providence or my lucky stars or whatever for my wife, Cheryl, nearly
every day. She had the faith in me, and the letters RN behind her name, and
enabled to me to pursue this crazy dream with Gary while she provided the
majority of our support those first years (we had our first child, Amanda,
before I went to Wisconsin). We started two magazines: <i>Little Wars</i> and <i>The Dragon
Magazine</i> (how I originally named them). </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
LW was devoted to all things historical; we had several
sets of historical minis rules as well as some historical boardgames then.
Sadly, our success in fantasy almost fore-doomed any success in historical; we
were very soon known as “those fantasy guys” and not taken seriously for
anything else. I still maintain that <i>William
the Conqueror – 1066</i> was an outstanding innovation in boardgaming that
blended in the feel of minis long before similar systems of today. Eventually, <i>LW</i> was absorbed back into <i>The Dragon</i> as it became more
well-rounded.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>The Dragon</i>
proved the adage that a rising tide lifts all boats. Gaming took off at the
same time and we rode the rocket. The mag was very successful financially and
generated a lot of profits. A substantial number of artists got their first
stuff published by me; some went on to TSR. Several new writing voices were
first published in one mag or the other. Several years later a couple of them
showed up as “talking heads” on a couple of history programs. It was heady
stuff to find new talent; I hated to leave the mag more than anything I have
ever done.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
What we “First Five” had really done hit me in the gut
whilst I was watching the second <i>LotR</i>
movie. We had cleared the forest and pulled and burned some of the stumps, then
planted that first meager crop. Our efforts <i>then</i> made this possible <i>now</i>. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Granted, as I have stated elsewhere several times, we
were at a confluence of culture and events and society that enabled this to
happen, but it damned sure was not something inevitable or anything like that.
We busted our asses and in so doing created all the jobs that came after; we
laid one hell of a foundation in 1975.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I wonder how many Harry Potter books were sold to old
players, buying them for their kids? </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The social impact of what we devised, without a name then
but called role-playing now, has been surprisingly significant. One of the
great pleasures for me now at cons is hearing how our silly little game
impacted people’s lives, sometimes for keeping them from mischief, other times
enabling them to come out of their shells and learn to interact with others.
Gary and I had already recognized the latter, having congratulated each other
once for (here I paraphrase) giving nerds something in common to talk to each
other about.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There is little that delights me more than someone
recounting the two summers they adventured and stayed out of real-life trouble
with their pals, or how playing the game enabled them to find self-confidence. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
After I left TSR I founded a new magazine, <i>Adventure Gaming</i>, with the support of
the now-defunct <i>Ral-Partha</i> (which
lives on in memory and spirit in <i>Iron
Wind Metals</i>). It only lasted 13 issues, falling victim to the failed
“trickle-down” policies of the Reagan administration; hobby and book shops were
disproportionately hard hit by the melt-down. So I got out of the business I
had helped take off.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I was many things for the next 20 years: Dad, Husband,
soccer coach, salesman, draftsman, softball player, HS soccer announcer, soccer
ref and still played the occasional boardgame, and then got a Masters in Educ.
So I could teach. My children are of an age that was not impacted by Sat.
morning <i>D&D</i>, so I essentially
stayed away from the hobby for 22 years. When I came back to GenCon in 2006, I
was stunned.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I live in Cincinnati, which is less than two hours from
Indy. I came in from the East, running West on Southeastern Ave. When I got to
the intersection with Washington, I saw little flags hanging on the light poles
welcoming GenCon. I saw signage everywhere saying the same. I was gobsmacked by
the numbers of the opposite sex (I never know how to refer to them; if I use
the word “ladies” I offend some; if I use the word “females” I offend others;
if I use the word “girls” I offend them all.) There were kids, too. What a
wonderful metamorphosis had transpired. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Every time I see others RPG’ing, I smile inside. I helped
make that happen, I helped make that matter, and I had helped to touch to those
lives. What we created spawned an entire library of knock-offs, an industry
devoted to capturing that magic that we discovered in ’74 and ’75. We made,
literally, millions of memories possible. We created hundreds of jobs, possibly
thousands depending upon how you choose to analyze it.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
So when I am asked why it seemingly does not bother me
that others’ names might be better known than mine, I tell them that it really
does not matter to me that my name is not on a marquee in lights. I walk
through game cons with the same thoughts I have each night as I go to sleep: I
know what I did. I rest incredibly easy every night knowing that I had a hand
in something that has had such a profound impact on society and culture. Future
historians might puzzle over the cultural significance of droopy pants and how
or where it started. No such questions exist for the birth of role-playing;
those historians simply say “1974-1975 and “The Little Brown Box”. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I have been “a gamer” for over 55 years now. My gaming
history is demarcated by “pre-RPG” and “post-<i>D&D</i>”; I avidly play all three
main types of gaming: boards, minis and RPG’s. And they are all different now
because of what we did from 1975 to 1980, when we lit the fuse that ignited the
gaming experience. So I lay my head on my pillow each night knowing that.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
What recognition I have received has concerned my
magazines more than my other work at TSR, and that’s OK. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
And you know what? Next year I plan to go to my 50<sup>th</sup>
HS Reunion. When I walk in there, I know that out of 700+ fellow alumni and
alumnae, none of them has had the impact on modern culture and society that I
was a part of. And most of them will have no idea how I helped change modern
popular culture, and that’s OK, too. I know.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-21875937686945077732016-08-12T19:52:00.000-07:002016-08-12T19:52:07.270-07:00Gen Con #49, 2016: How big is too big for a convention?<div class="MsoNormal">
First Impressions…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The residents of Indianapolis have every reason to think
that GenCon attendees are some of the dumbest sheep around.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This was the most visibly diverse GC ever.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The vendor hall grew to monstrous proportions.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Attendance was flat, but Thursday was mayhem.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The Debut of <i>The
Dwarvenaut</i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The Charity Auction was a smashing success.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Has Gen Con gotten too big?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now some details…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
GenCon attendees, for the most part, are some of either
the most rude, or dumbest, pedestrians ever. The lights in Indy are really
simple; a white icon of a person walking or an orange hand with a countdown in
seconds. When the white icon comes on, you walk. When the orange hand comes up
it means <i>DO NOT START ACROSS NOW</i>; the
countdown is to alert those already in the crosswalk how much time they have
left before the light changes so <i>GET THE
HELL OUT OF THE CROSSWALK! </i>Well, not for GC attendees, apparently, who
lumbered out into the crosswalks halfway through the orange countdown and made
the long-suffering drivers wait while they plodded across. C’mon, folks! Show
some courtesy to your hosts and quit acting like a herd of buffalo.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When Indiana’s benighted Gov. Pence signed a bill last
year that basically said it was OK to discriminate in IN for just about any
reason, <i>GenCon LLC</i> was the very first to threaten to pull out of Indy.
Eventually, Pence’s lackeys convinced him (remember, this is the guy that
thinks it is cool to be Trump’s running mate) that Indy might get upset with
him to lose the $70 million that GenCon means to Indy, and so allowed the bill
to be rescinded.<br />
Never has GenCon been as openly diverse and embracing of everyone as it was
this year, proving again that we are all just gamers first. All sorts of
costumes draping all sorts of body types, some attendees were just letting it
all hang out.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Costumes have become a very big deal. Some of them are
amazing and evidence hours of work and lots of dollars spent. Some of them are
puzzling, I must admit. But it all seems to be in good fun, for the most part.
I can’t help feeling though, that the idea of costumes at GenCon feeds some
peoples exhibitionist tendencies. So, Dude in the leather G-string that paraded
around for 2 days legally naked (and all the rest of the similarly benighted),
save it for your mirror at home. I truly do not care how well you’re ripped;
put some damned clothes on. GenCon isn’t Naked City IN (where they have real
naked contests). If any female in attendance had shown that much skin, she would
have been cited for Public Nudity.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I no longer smoke tobacco, but I still make regular trips
to the smoking areas to see old friends and use my vape. It was during a few of
these sojourns that I noticed a phenomenon that I do not pretend to understand.
Apparently, some of the vapers there are looking for future employment as human
smoke-screens; WWII destroyers should have been so efficient. What is with the
huge clouds? Isn’t all that juice wasted?</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Attendance was pretty flat this year, right around 61K
attendees, same as last year. Turnstile numbers (how many attend each day added
together over the 4 days) were way up. I think I know why. Thursday was insane;
I’m guessing that a whole lot of gamers decided to take the whole four days. I
do know that some items at some booths were gone by Friday noon. For the first
time ever, I thought to buy a GenCon souvenir; they had a nice messenger bag I
liked. They were sold out on Thursday.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Other than a tragic inability to understand traffic
rules, the crowd was as well behaved and courteous as you would expect a gathering
of gamers to be. I witnessed many acts of kindness and none of boorish
behavior.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The vendor hall this year was the largest ever; I believe
they may have added about 11 rows when they expanded. I do know that my achy
and arthritic knees and ankles gave out the first time at Row 19; I completed
my circuit the next day. Artist’s Alley was embroiled in controversy over who
got in and who didn’t, including a couple of long-time denizens of the Alley
whose work was not accepted this year. My god, has this also become politically
corrupted now with petty jealousies and spite?</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
On a positive note, I was able to pick up three
boardgames (<i>Shadows over Camelot</i>, <i>Powergrid Deluxe</i> and a new game that
looks quite interesting called <i>Council of
Blackthorn</i>) that I think my group might like, as well as a couple of silly
card games. I got really lucky on a boardgame I saw coming up for auction after
my shift was done; a FASA game I did not have from the series they did on James
Clavell’s stuff, called <i>Shogun</i>. I
scribbled a Proxy on the bid card and got the game for about 65% of the Proxy.
It was much later when I opened it and found it to be un-punched!</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Every year there are new vendors at GC, and this year was
no exception. There is an ever-increasing number of what I call “non-game”
vendors, selling jewelry and knick-knacks as well as esoteric stuff like kilts,
steampunk clothing and accessories, mapping software, replica weapons and
stuffed animals. These last must be something to do with anime as the majority
of them had Asian features. Ah well, I don’t have to understand it for you to
have fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
About a year and a half ago, some film-maker types had
the idea that Stefan Pokorny, CEO and mastermind of Dwarven Forge, was an
interesting guy. They followed him around for over a year making a documentary
about him. They named the movie <i>The
Dwarvenaut</i>; it had been shown only a handful of times at film festivals
around the country before GenCon, where it debuted to the public.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>(Full Disclosure
demands that I say up front that I consider Stefan to be both an amazingly
talented guy, but better yet, my friend.) <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I spent a bunch of time in the DF booth; the crew of
ladies that Susy assembled were great to spend time with.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There is a glaring error in the credits of the movie (the
post-production clods spelled my name incorrectly), so I was signing copies of
the DVD’s and Blu-Rays with the correct spelling. They were specially priced
for GC (50% off Amazon’s price) and signed by both Stefan and myself.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The movie is very, very interesting. (I am in it very
briefly, and act sort of annoyingly; so, no ego in this recommendation.) Stefan
is an amazingly talented artist capable of producing <i>Fine Art </i>as well as amazing sculptures of castles and caverns and
dungeons and monsters and the like. The Blu-Ray has some extra stuff much more
interesting to us gamers, like a 15 minute documentary on GaryCon and more.
Treat yourself and pick one up.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Last year, the Charity Auction raked in about $12K; we
smoked that figure this year with over $17K. Cardhalla raises a hefty chunk,
and the people at Mayfair Games donate a hefty chunk of cash each year. Frank
and I got them rolling and fired up the first hour and the rest of them ran
with it. I still get a great deal of pleasure working in the Charity Auction.
Next year we will have Twinkies again (inside auction reference for those in
the know). </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The question now is this: has GenCon gotten TOO big? The
Best Four Days in Gaming (as they like to style themselves) may be getting too
big for its own good. They had a record number of ticketed events this year.
Those events were spread all over hell and gone. Just about every downtown
hotel, with the exception of The Conrad, had games running somewhere. The
convention spilled over into the Lucas Oil Center this year, making for a venue
that is very spread out.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
My first GenCon was in ’74; a couple hundred of us crammed
into a non-air conditioned venue in August. The air was redolent and we all sweat
through it together; the shared experience bonded us. The sweat is still there
in Indy, while the venue has superior ventilation, it is still a daunting
proposition. Sadly, I have heard a lot of gamers over the past year say that
they just weren’t feeling Indy anymore. Particularly in the Midwest, we have
several very viable smaller cons that are growing. Two that stand out in my
mind are Gary Con and Gamehole Con, both in WI, one in March and the other in
November. <i>(Full disclosure demands that I acknowledge my pledge to Gary's offspring to support GaryCon, as long as I am
physically able, that I made upon his death.)</i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Everything changes with time but the mountains, or so the
old saying goes. I know that there are enormous game conventions (or shows) in
Europe that dwarf GenCon. I cannot wrap my head around what they must be like. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The “fun” I seek when I go to GenCon is no longer gaming
related, at least not in the way it once was. My enjoyment comes from seeing
old friends, looking at new products and working the crowd in the Auction. I no
longer get to play games at GenCon. I am fortunate in that I get to attend
several cons each year as a Guest; at these events (TotalCon, GaryCon, NTRPGCon
and Gamehole Con) I get to play games with strangers and friends; that is what
game cons have always been about for me.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-42410408915146799262016-07-21T09:25:00.001-07:002016-08-02T11:46:53.932-07:00Where's The Beef?<div class="MsoNormal">
Who remembers Clara Peller? She was the irascible “little
old lady” in the Wendy’s ads in the early to mid ‘80’s demanding to know
“Where’s the beef?” She made a million bucks demanding answers, in a sense.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have a new question for the Gygax Mem. Fund (GMF). I have
searched the records of the State of Wisc; I have contacted the Probate Court
of Walworth County, Wisc.; there has been no Will probated after Gary’s death.
Gail Carpenter Gygax (GCG) would have the world believe that Gary died
intestate. I happen to know that he had one while I worked for him; he told of
the unique provisions that he had modeled after his (I believe it was)
Grandfather. I wonder what happened to that one?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nearly two months ago, the GMF, through one of its shills,
promised us a complete audit by a third party firm or accountant. Where is it?
The tax returns provided, some years after they should have been available
(according to the laws concerning 501-c-3’s chartered in WI) do not add up.
Literally. They don’t add up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They also show another disturbing trend. According to the
expenses listed on the returns, the GMF has ground to a virtual standstill.
Allowing for the fact that GCG was ill for a good deal of time one year, I find
it odd that the GMF raised more money during the year she was ill than they did
the following year when she was apparently healthy (or at least healthier).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now the GMF wants to sell us bricks. Come on… where will
they likely end up? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
According to public records available for the State of
Wisc., there has been no meeting with the City Council in Lake Geneva about
“the site” for some time (a couple of years?).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One has to wonder and can only speculate in this tangled
web. One might speculate as to the values apparently displayed. If the Memorial
is so very important to her, why did she feel it was necessary to spend time
and money Trademarking Gary’s name, even going so far as to force his sons to
give up their publishing effort, Gygax Magazine? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Tower of Gygax—possibly the best way we gamers could have celebrated
Gary and his creation, was essentially killed by GCG. It started out as a
volunteer effort to do something to remember and pay tribute to Gary. A bunch
of us old farts and a bunch of younger ones all designed and wrote up one or
more rooms for The Tower, the premise being that if you survived a room you
were immediately in another. Deaths were frequent, and expected frequently. When
a player died, he got up from the table and was immediately replaced by the
next guy in line; we had all ages and laughed ourselves silly more often than
not. Then GCG told GenCon that they did not have GCG’s permission to use the
name Gygax. If they wanted to use it, she demanded a piece of the action.
Trouble was, there was no action. So, what could have become a living, dynamic
tribute is now just a memory. (Ironically, Indiana is the only state where that
might work.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What’s next? An admission cost to a Memorial that is no
closer today to being built than it was four years ago? One can only speculate…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
All of us that have a stake in this issue, who made
contributions and bought books, deserve to know what is going on. Otherwise must
we begin to see this as yet another failed “kickstarter-like” project foisted
off onto the gaming community?</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-84037982051066359302016-05-17T13:56:00.000-07:002016-05-18T07:40:39.254-07:00Interview with DARLENE, May 2016<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Darlene, best known
for her iconic work in illustrating </i>AD&D (1E<i>) and the </i>Greyhawk <i>maps, and
I go back a long way together. Even before TSR was buying her art, I was buying
it for </i>Dragon Magazine.<i> We share many
interests and it was with great delight that I found out about her involvement
with this unusual system and that she was “back with us” in the gaming field. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>For the remainder
of this piece, we will only use initials—less typing.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i><br /></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i> </i><span style="font-family: "times" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: So, D, what have you been up
to lately?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: I've been up to my share of
mischief. But what I have on my mind to talk about today is my artistic
contribution to a (virtually) new 336-page hard-back fantasy role playing game
published last December, 2015.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: So tell us... </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: The book is called <i>Mythos Arcanum</i> and its game system was
inspired by old school <i>D&D</i>.<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: I have skimmed it, mainly to
see all the gorgeous art; what makes this different from all of the other
clones?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgslvogACjyMDEhyphenhyphen-oIiKV5H-HNmAgAeXDJlBNibGm2N0DKvbfvCu8A41ScuPaaybFlbYYYQPMsj_PP_XmpFY7fKc6vgBgcdNaFXpT1De7oqolDgwsQmAqf1QSAiI68o11xpoCodbG57lLR/s1600/MAGI+Cover+Spread+2015-lo.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="408" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgslvogACjyMDEhyphenhyphen-oIiKV5H-HNmAgAeXDJlBNibGm2N0DKvbfvCu8A41ScuPaaybFlbYYYQPMsj_PP_XmpFY7fKc6vgBgcdNaFXpT1De7oqolDgwsQmAqf1QSAiI68o11xpoCodbG57lLR/s640/MAGI+Cover+Spread+2015-lo.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: The author, Joe Aragon
juxtaposes modern day rules with allegorical content. It's different from older
fantasy role playing games in that, during the course of the game, it
encourages players to explore meaningful self-reflection with their characters.
The first concept behind this game is to have fun. Joe Aragon simply broadens
the basic package of fun with a new, mind-expanding component. By allowing
philosophical queries of illusion and reality to surface, <i>Mythos Arcanum</i> becomes a gateway for young minds to explore the
nature of reality.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Q: How did you first get involved
with the project and the author?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Joe sorta courted me…</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: “Courted?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: (laughing) In a chivalric
sense and only as an artist. I have never personally met Joe Aragon. He
contacted me around 2010 via email asking me to create a logo for his company,
Mythos Arcanum Games Imagined (MAGI), which I did. After that, he persistently
raised the possibility of me creating interior illustrations for his book. We
e-mailed back and forth for a spell. At the time, I was closed to that possibility
and tried to communicate my reluctance to return to RPG illustration. Joe
pointed out that my endeavors in fantasy illustration were not just relegated
to the past. He indicated that a lot of people would welcome seeing new RPG art
from me. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: Wasn't I telling you that
very thing? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Yes, you were. You pointed out
that people still remembered me even though I was out of the loop for 30 years.
Many fans honor the <i>Greyhawk</i> maps as
classics and still relate to my illustrations as integral and formative to
their early gaming experiences. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Tim, it's due to your prodding as
much as Joe's that we are even having this conversation today. You have a
leading role in my return to the RPG fantasy scene. That's why I thought you'd
appreciate hearing about my new RPG endeavor. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: I do. Continue.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Initially, I refused Joe as I
had not done any serious illustration work for over 25 years. With a full time
job, I felt I did not have the time. Then there's the fact that monetary
compensation for RPG interior art in the industry is notoriously low--at least
compared to rates in the real world.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: What made you finally decide
to work with Joe?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> D: I relented after I finally <i>grokked</i> <i>(Oooh, a Heinlein reference) </i>Joe Aragon's innovative concept behind
his new game system. In <i>Mythos Arcanum</i>,
Joe Aragon improves upon an issue that has never been satisfactorily addressed
in RPG game settings. Consequences exist for the taking of life. Joe calls it,
"philosophical role-playing" and explains it like this: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">"In a standard fantasy
role-playing game, a knight might kill a group of bandits. For this, he is
awarded treasure and experience points. In <i>Mythos
Arcanum</i>, in that same situation, the knight might have to face up to that
what he's doing constitutes murder and that killing the bandits may not be the
right thing to do." </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As in real life, it does not
matter if the unfortunate man who met his demise was a thief or murderer.
Nothing ever condones the taking of life. The laws of karma are in full play. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: There have been a few
occasions when thinking about our whole genre that I have been somewhat
appalled by how casually we shrug off all the killing. I then remind myself
that it is all make-believe. This game seems to be a lot less blasé about that.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: The moral lesson (of there
being consequences for ones choices and actions) is a vital lesson to learn
deeply in today's world--especially in the case of young players. So yes, I
could easily devote my time and energy to produce something worthy and
beautiful for the next generation of table top gamers. All could benefit from
knowing some key life lessons.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Oh, yes--another reason I'm on
board regards the game's take regarding the nature of good and evil. He writes
this about the issue (page 106): "The intended spirit of <i>Mythos Arcanum</i> is purposely designed to
portray the universal struggle of good <i>vs</i>
evil. Various archetypal character classes are created as symbols of these
principles in order to play out scenarios of good versus evil in a medieval
fantasy setting. As the heroes fight against monsters of darkness and villains
with selfish agendas, they explore various fantasy realms of the imagination.
It is assumed the players will play the side of good or at least neutral as
they strive against the ever-present and destructive agents of evil,
destruction and darkness. This is not a game to indulge an individual's
attraction to those things both dark and sinister... There are many other game
systems designed for such endeavors." </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That's why I think this is a
fantastic RPG system to introduce to young people and why I went the extra
mile.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: I have a slight issue with
his characterization of other games indulging attraction to the sinister, but I
still find the premise refreshing. On another note, you mentioned being worried
about starting back up with doing illustrations. How did that go?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Well, I got off to a very shaky start. That
was five years ago. I was the opposite of prolific. I think I astounded Joe
with my snail pace, averaging about one illustration every moon cycle. Since I
had not touched pen to paper in years, it took me a while to get acclimated
enough to find my groove. Once I finished the art, I scanned it. Usually, this
is the final step, but I found it was but the first. Dogged by the
perfectionist within me, I found myself “cleaning up” imperfections on the
scanned electronic version. I'd readjust the proportions of figures, alter
backgrounds and props, re-crop, re-define, and sharpen the lines.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: So you like using the
computer.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Like it? My computer is more
than an artistic tool. I love the fact that I can zoom in really close without
straining my eyes physically. The best part is the computer’s ability to “undo”
strokes--which is impossible with ink on paper. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Also, with the computer, I can
contribute a lot more detail. In a piece of art, I love to balance richly
textured areas with non-detailed areas. I seem to use the mouse in the same way
I use a pen. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: Wait a moment--you don't use
a stylus? Don't all computer artists use those?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Apparently not. I never
invested in a stylus. I forget the reason. I simply learned to use what was at
hand to work with. Every dot and every line equals one mouse click. It's no
different than the pointillist technique I did during the day, and takes about
as long.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: Let me get this straight;
you’re saying that all of your art in this gorgeous book was done using just a
mouse? Including this one that looks like a woodcut?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNRl3x9_2o5_bHJzJLvoUa_yl9BEmPxX3TP8ZWK__78zYrdg2SDbcfqoP1BeiSrpFQvCZTGDiSAJd6M-Km_-S00aMpLL9jej7_jZJGEqt_nLblChALvj6BIsL-l31IShVEkNZp-lzdF-sT/s1600/5.4-AnimalFriendship-lo.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNRl3x9_2o5_bHJzJLvoUa_yl9BEmPxX3TP8ZWK__78zYrdg2SDbcfqoP1BeiSrpFQvCZTGDiSAJd6M-Km_-S00aMpLL9jej7_jZJGEqt_nLblChALvj6BIsL-l31IShVEkNZp-lzdF-sT/s400/5.4-AnimalFriendship-lo.jpg" width="282" /></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Good eye! And I mean that in
more ways than one. (Happy your eye operation was successful)... Yes, I opted to preserve the mystique of
something from yesterday-year. It was not hard because I seem to naturally
drift towards doing a woodcut effect anyway. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: Wow, D--The book is profusely
illustrated.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: This was the result of a successful
2014 fall Kickstarter campaign. One of the stretch goals was to have me fill in
the gaps. I am not the only illustrator. Between everyone, every monster,
racial type, and character class is fully illustrated. Jim Holloway created the
cover art and about 27 of the interior illustrations. The other artists who
contributed are Rowena Aitken, Vaggelis Ntousakis, Laura Siadak and Martin
Siesto. So all of a sudden, I had a bunch of illustrations to complete in
addition to the book's design.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: How many illustrations did
you do?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Officially, I created 52
illustrations of various sizes. But while I was designing the book, I thought
it would be neat if the Herb Lore section could appear like an old Herbological
Guide Book. So I gifted the project with 34 small spot illustrations of plants.
Simply to delight the reader, I also created 17 symbolic emblems in the Deity
section to fill it out. I think these special little touches entice the
imagination. So to answer your question, I did over 100 new illustrations for
this book.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Q: Isn't doing all this detailed
work time consuming?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Very. But if something is
worth doing, it is worth doing well, don't you think? The successful
Kickstarter helped to free me from the 20th century notion that "time is
money." In that world, it makes no economic sense not to declare a piece
of art finished as quickly as possible. That doesn't work for me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Time is art. That's my new
paradigm. I added detail because I love the richness of juxtaposing different
textures. Besides, I consider the time I devote on my illustrations to be a
gift to my fans. Locked into my work is
the spiritual substance of my artistic focus, beneficence and devoted presence
which can be felt through the images. Sensitive players can touch Joe's strange
and beautiful World of Rocheron within <i>Mythos
Arcanum</i>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: You mentioned designing the
book?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Before I came on board with the project,
around 2011, the book was technically ready to go to press. However, the
previous layout person made all the customary mistakes novices always make when
they attempt to design a publication. Even if space is dear, people must avoid
starting a new section in the middle of the second column of a left hand page.
Equally bad is splitting up graphs and text so that a page has to be turned to
glean important information. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Amateurs at design also tend to
be <i>horrorvacuists </i>(having a fear of
white space) so they are compelled to fill up every available area of every
page. Unfortunately, this practice produces uninviting walls of text which are
a chore to read (decipher). The alternative is to sculpt the white space to
improve the reading experience. That's why I urged Joe to reconsider publishing
the book as it was. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: And you improved upon this?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Absolutely. I wanted the design
for <i>Mythos Arcanum</i> to be the best the
industry has yet seen.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I took a tremendous amount of
care with the design of each page. Stylistically, I adopted the use of a
medieval canon as the underlying grid design for the book. This resulted in a
healthy amount of marginal white space bordering each page. A page's superior
readability depends on the correct interplay of positive and negative elements
and shapes. When plenty of white space surrounds the text, readability always
improves. Studies show, when something is more easily read, comprehend is
improved.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJi24mJBaCGYpJHMfyuUpep-l852LGWUM_Jw9CinJ52HiRRk7FlhcwooaTAspF3MSO5GgkGYG16wIqUce_79sh4Jlr98V2Hw0rS6PXyHE_5TlDKEN1mI43s89KfONe51i83fSO5IrFRKxX/s1600/Phi-Template.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="412" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJi24mJBaCGYpJHMfyuUpep-l852LGWUM_Jw9CinJ52HiRRk7FlhcwooaTAspF3MSO5GgkGYG16wIqUce_79sh4Jlr98V2Hw0rS6PXyHE_5TlDKEN1mI43s89KfONe51i83fSO5IrFRKxX/s640/Phi-Template.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Another important thing about
text columns most beginners don't understand is the optimum ratio between the size
of the font to the length of a line of text it's set in. The optimal line to
character ratio is between 50-60 characters, including spaces. That's why
12-point type set solid in a one-column format is so difficult to read. The eye
too easily loses its place when jumping down to catch the next line. The space
between lines should be two points above the point size.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: Page breaks are sensible.
There is an index. Information appears to be easy to find. The illustrations
all seem to make sense in conjunction with the text. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: Superior design never calls
attention to itself. To serve the meaning of the text so that information is
more accessible, great design steps away from the limelight... It's neutral,
invisible, subtle and unassuming.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: I can tell this subject is
near and dear to your heart, but moving on...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What final things would you like
your fans to know?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: I went the extra mile in this
book for my fans. I wanted to acknowledge and give something back to them for
all their support throughout the years. I also wanted to pay it forward to the
future generations of table-top gamers. Thus did I place all my time, effort,
sincerity, and breath of creation into what I once considered to be my one
final RPG project, my swan song.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: And now? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: I'm sticking around. I'm
staying.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: OK D, it's time for your plug. How may people
obtain a copy?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: First, I wish to be very
clear. The copies I am offering are among those I already purchased from the
author. The copies he may have available on his website are not a part of this
offer. Since I am selling these books as collector's items, purchases will
directly benefit me as the artist.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In exchange for their purchase,
people will be getting something special from me. For each book sold, I'll
create a special bookplate (<i>ex libris</i>)
to be placed into the book, personalized with the name of the purchaser
specially lettered by me. I would also affix my signature to the plate, making
this a signed copy. Viola! Instant collector's item! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: I get it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: I believe collector's items
are worth more if they remain in their original packaging. Therefore, each book
sold would remain shrink wrapped. Each <i>ex
libris</i> I personally create will be shipped in the same package as the book.
I will spring for priority mail within the continental United States.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Interested parties can send a
$100 check made payable to: Darlene to P.O. Box 877, Mount Gilead, NC 27306 </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And I CAN now accept credit cards on my web site. This is
the link to the payment part of the site: <a href="http://darlenetheartist.com/?page_id=139">http://darlenetheartist.com/?page_id=139</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TK: Thanks, btw, for my signed and
personalized copy of the book.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">D: My pleasure.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There you have it, fans of
Darlene’s work. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-24883863383513686352016-05-02T08:33:00.004-07:002016-05-02T08:33:44.609-07:00More questions for the GMF<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gail Carpenter Gygax has tried to divert the intent of the
questions I posed into a personal attack. I did not name anyone. I posed the
questions to the legal entity known as GMF. Are we to assume that Gail
Carpenter Gygax IS the GMF, in and of herself? There are two other names on the
papers; are they just figureheads? If that is the case, why bother with them at
all?\</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gail Carpenter Gygax construed my questions as a witch-hunt
(her strange choice of words, not mine) and then shamelessly twists it into an
attack on Gary and his memory, a scurrilous, pathetic tactic to divert
attention. Hiding behind the memory of
her dead husband (my friend of almost 30 years) is a dodge. Answer the
questions, please. Anybody that knew Gary and I while he was alive knows that I
would never do as you accuse. Shame on you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Irrespective of my beliefs of what Gary would or would not
have liked to be remembered for and how he would have liked it to be done, I
have supported this project from its inception, both monetarily and in print.
Until the GMF achieves some semblance of transparency, that will no longer be
the case. I cannot, in good conscience, tell others that they should become
involved in a project in such a shambles that operates in secrecy and contrary
to WI regulations and laws.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many questions still cry
out to be answered, and now the subject of bricks comes up. Until there is a
site, there is no way to know how many bricks can be sold. Forget the bricks, forget choosing a font; they are a part of the
overall architecture. Get a REAL working sketch of the proposed edifice; this
means find and commission a sculptor. Get an agreement in place as to a site;
gamers will visit or not—the site is immaterial. (As was pointed out by Gail
Carpenter Gygax when she was cited by the local paper saying “…those guys [gamers]
will go anywhere…”) or words to that effect. “Those guys”?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why is GMF talking about bricks? Raising more money to sit
idle and earn no interest for another year suits no one.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am beginning to wonder just who (and what) this memorial is for.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-52066126221945952912016-04-28T19:23:00.000-07:002016-04-28T19:23:48.325-07:00What is going on with the Gygax Memorial Fund?<div class="MsoNormal">
Merriam-Webster lists as a second meaning for the word
stakeholder <span class="oneclick-link"><i><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">”</span></i></span><i><span style="background: white; color: #3b3e41; letter-spacing: .3pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> one that has a<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stake" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); outline: 0px;"><span style="background: white; color: #ae0015; letter-spacing: .3pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">stake</span></a></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><i><span style="background: white; color: #3b3e41; letter-spacing: .3pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></i></span><i><span style="background: white; color: #3b3e41; letter-spacing: .3pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">in an enterprise</span>”</i><span class="oneclick-link"><i><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">It is my contention that all of us, myself included,
that donated money to the Gygax Memorial Fund (hereinafter referred to as GMF)
are stakeholders in the effort. As such, we have a right to know what is going
on; what has been done to finalize a site? How is the money being spent? What
is it being spent on? Just how much money is there in the GMF?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Recently, <i>Tenkar’s
Tavern </i>( a blog at <a href="http://www.tenkarstavern.com/">http://www.tenkarstavern.com/</a>)
asked a series of questions of Gail Carpenter Gygax, most of which went
unanswered; some of the answers raised more questions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Why were so many tax returns for GMF only made public
recently (since Tenkar’s inquiries), which is at variance for WI requirements
for transparency of all organizations operating
as a 501-c-3 Not-For-Profit entity?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Looking over the myriad papers, all sorts of things
stand out<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">The single biggest head-scratcher is realizing that
apparently none of the money in GMF is invested in ANYTHING! In the part of the
required filings where investment (interest is accounted for in this section)
proceeds are recorded, there is a glaring zero. Where is all of this money
(close to a quarter of a million dollars) “sitting”? In a checking account
earning zero interest? Is this a sound business principle?<br />
<br />
One of the avowed principles of the GMF is to provide scholarships; the GMF
could have provided a $2500 scholarship on the lost potential of last year
alone. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">I have never done real well with higher math and
business principles; I’m OK at arithmetic ‘cuz I use a good old calculator.
Totaling up the tax returns available online, they seem to indicate that GMF
received $244K between 2010 and 2014. The most recent statement shows that the
GMF has $222K</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">One document shows a person working .10 (1/10<sup>th</sup>)
of an hour per week; that’s six minutes a week or 5 hours for the year. When I
asked that person about it, he had absolutely no idea what it was about. How
does someone work just six minutes per week?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Who is on the Board (or whatever name your
organization uses for the group that oversees and directs it’s activities)?
When were they elected? Why was an original member not informed that he had
been replaced? Where are the organizational meeting minutes (as required by WI
statute)? Are the meetings open to interested parties? Stakeholders?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">In a year that saw almost no income “because of
illness”, how was $1700 (four times the income for 2014) spent on “office, conference
and meeting” expenses?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">What were the 260 hours claimed spent doing?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Just what is the target $$ goal of the GMF? How much
do you think you will need to accomplish your goals? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Has there been any success in changing the minds of
the city officials that seem adamantly opposed to the location you want? What
is the location that you have now, but don’t wish to use?<br />
<br />
What is being done on the website? Why have you listed as “Audio Visual
Engineer” a person that has had no contact with GMF for some years?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">When will all the relevant, and required, documents be
made available?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Why has there been no visible progress for close to
two years now?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span class="oneclick-link"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">On behalf of the
thousands of stakeholders in GMF, what the heck is going on?<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span></span>kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-8618207095636182082016-03-31T18:10:00.001-07:002016-03-31T18:10:12.646-07:00When Others Tell You What You're Doing, and they haven't got a clue<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>I was awarded a
Masters Degree in Education by Xavier University in 2005. I state this not as a
boast, but to establish the basis for what I am going to discuss at length:
teaching and learning.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i> I use terms that apparently offend differing
parts of slightly more than half of our society for various reasons unbeknownst
to me. Those terms are: lady and female (in my world, those of our species not born
with a penis). I always assume one to be the former until proven otherwise. I
have a wife, a daughter, grand- daughters and a great grand-daughter and expect
them to be viewed by others similarly. I am a product of the Boomer generation
and make no apology for that.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Recently, my efforts
to bring more ladies into RPG’s have been misunderstood, impugned and insulted.
What follows is how this all came to be. If I repeat something here I said
elsewhere, I’m either sorry or it is important. In general, I use the term “wargaming”
as the tent that holds us all, boardgamers, minis players and RPG’ers.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Several months ago my wife stunned me with a request to put
together a <i>D&D</i> adventure for her
and a bunch of her lady friends from Zumba class, none of whom had any RPG
experience. I put together a very linear adventure (not so much “railroading” as
limiting potentially distracting factors) with the intent of analyzing early
actions for the lessons to be learned; sort of learning-on-the-fly. I gave them
pre-generated Player Characters with minimal info; all they had was their six
stats, their THAC0 and their HP. I explained each in about 30 words or less on
a handout and we were playing in 15 minutes from sitting down to the table. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Four hours after beginning they had chased down the wicked
bugbears who had stolen their patron saint’s finger to put in their soup, retrieved
said phalange and rendered the bugbears <i>hors
de combat</i>, and they all had a working knowledge of RPG’ing. We played with
a single sheet of paper, a writing utensil of some sort and a handful of dice.
Oh, yes, we also freely exercised our imaginations, had numerous laughs and
wondered where four hours had gone so quickly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I realized that I had touched upon something dormant in our
hobby—rules overload and how this affects someone wishing to participate in the
hobby we love. That stack of books we all lug around is really intimidating;
newbies (of either sex) often feel that they will be at some sort of
disadvantage if they don’t know everything in those books when they first sit
down at a table.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
How shocked would you be to know that I had the only set of
rules for at least three quarters on the whole campus, and possible in all of
southern Illinois in ’74-’75? The only reason someone in the group (well over a
dozen avid RPG’ers ) finally broke down and bought a set was because I was
graduating and taking mine with me to my new job at TSR.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have taught in co-ed schools and I have taught in same-sex
schools. The two types of schools have radically different dynamics. I have
worked with every age of student, from pre-K to HS. More studies than I can
count or care to list here have had some very interesting research results when
studying classroom dynamics and environments. To sum up, very briefly: learning
occurs differently in same-sex classrooms than in co-ed settings. I am not a shrink,
nor have I read much in that field except as it might pertain to education and
class rooms, so I claim no special expertise in this subject. Percentage-wise,
more girls excel in the STEM fields in all-girls schools than do in co-ed settings.
There are all sorts of social and societal forces at play here, as well as
which students’ families can afford private schools which virtually all
same-sex schools are today. In the end. what it ultimately boils down to is
comfort; how embracing, inclusive and comfortable is the learning environment? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Girls learn differently when not in the presence of boys;
the same is true for boys when not around girls. All sorts of factors are at
work here: less fear of embarrassment in front of the other sex, no showing off
for the other sex, no being thought of oddly for showing interest in something
not associated with your sex, the list goes on and ends with just less
distraction.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From the beginning in Prussia, scores of years ago,
wargaming was a male, military pursuit. It was serious business, used to train men
to more efficiently kill, maim or capture more of the other sides’ men in war.
As the wargaming hobby evolved, from serious killing-efficiency exercise to
parlour entertainment for the wealthy, it remained a male pursuit, by and
large.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It is too easy for us in the 21<sup>st</sup> century to
declaim how horrid things were in the past in terms of today’s values and standards,
but that is what they were then. If a woman was interested in something such as
pushing brightly colored blocks of wood representing units of troops about on a
large table, <i>she </i>was the one thought
to be “odd”. (Gaming has always had a close relationship with Irony.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I started <i>The Dragon</i>
magazine (the original name I gave it) in 1976. It was not until 1978 that we
got our second female subscriber (out of about 2700). I am sure there were
ladies buying copies in stores, but I had no way of knowing where or how many
or who, or what, <i>etc.</i> I got very few
submissions from female writers, and almost always used ones I did get, no
matter how badly they needed editing. I sought out lady artists; they were
damned few and far between. I continued that trend with <i>Adventure Gaming</i>, my later magazine. This was in the early’80’s and
still less than 5% of my subscribers were female.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am going on about this to show how I have been wargaming
for over 50 years now, almost exclusively in the company of males, until
relatively recently.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After the success of the little thing I put together for my
wife and her friends, I thought to do
something like it for conventions, and maybe turn it into a teaching tool of
sorts. I have spoken to lady gamers who do not role-play; fear of the seeming
immensity of the rules is a factor. I have seen females of all ages sitting on
the edges listening but not playing; I want to change that. I want to do it in
a non-threatening setting that has so far worked very well; I have two more tests
scheduled at <i>NTRPGCon</i> and <i>GameHole</i>. For GH, I intend to run a ladies-only game for experienced players.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My intro-game is in no way wussed down; the danger is there
or it would be no fun. It is a hell of a lot simpler because I play <i>D&D</i> the way it was played at <i>The Dawn of Role-Playing. </i>It is enough
to tell the player to “roll a d20 and get a 12 or higher”; looking up the various
charts and tables is a buzzkill; that’s what the DM does.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am beginning to understand J.D. Salinger a little better
lately.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If I had started a game club at a school, I would have
introduced them to RPG’s in the same way: boys-only and girls only
introductions; they will both learn it faster that way. Only after that would
we start a “mixed” campaign. Given that beginning, I would expect the co-ed
groups to be much more equally balanced as to leadership and problem solving
roles being filled more equitably.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The issue has arisen that my game is mis-advertised as “For
Ladies Only” if a male is the DM. Supposedly, my games place any lady players
in it “in my power”. The idea that a DM somehow “has power over” the players I
find abhorrent and counter to everything I have ever published, edited or
written. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The <i>Dungeon</i> <i>Master/ Game Master/ Ship Master/Person
behind the Screen</i> has control of the <i>game</i>,
not the players. We try to exercise that control sparingly; a good example
might be not letting the party find a level that is not yet done by not letting
them see a hidden door or secret passage. Another example might be subtly trying
to get the party to rethink a scheme they are set upon embarking on that you <i>know</i>, deep in your bones, is not a very
good idea as it entertains very little chance of success and likely to end in a
very gory and unsatisfying conclusion. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
No DM can control what the players do. Where do you think
TPK’s (Total Party Killed) come from? Wandering Volcanic Eruptions? I have not
had a single party spontaneously combust.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am genuinely sorry for any player that has suffered under
a DM with a “me <i>v</i>. them” mindset.
Those are the people that work at summer camp so they can lord it over and
terrorize the younger campers, instead of showing them how to catch a fish or
shoot a bow or whatever campers do today.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am asked repeatedly “How can I know if I’m a good DM?”. My
answer is still the same’ “Do your players come back every session? If the
answer is ‘Yes’, you’re doing fine.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I intend to run my “Ladies Only game” again at North Texas
RPG Con and at GameHole Con. I offer a comfortable, non-judgmental environment
in which persons with different plumbing than mine can come and learn through
doing. No control, no lording. Just fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
To my naysayers and haters I say this; I know what I am
doing and I have been doing RPG’s longer than 98% of those doing them today.
That you would ascribe to me your fears, prejudices and past bad experiences
without asking my intent or studying my efforts is a sad commentary on
yourself, all alone in your tiny echo chamber.</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-2078170846636957002016-03-21T21:02:00.000-07:002016-03-21T21:02:16.361-07:00Two great cons, too close together<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I am a very lucky gamer; I get to go to around half a
dozen cons per year (seven in ’15, five in ’16, who knows in ’17?). The fact
that I am retired is one enabler; tickets for airplane rides and nice hotel
rooms when I get there is the main motivator for me to go play games with
strangers all around the Eastern U.S. Some days it is very cool to be Tim.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I just enjoyed two cons only two weeks, and 1063 miles,
apart. The 1<sup>st</sup> was <i>TotalCon</i>
(full name-<i>Total Confusion Con</i>) #30,
in Mansfield, MA; the 2<sup>nd</sup> was <i>GaryCon
VIII</i>, in Lake Geneva WI. They are both run by dedicated volunteers for the
most part, and both are great fun. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
In chronological order:</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>TotalCon</i>
(hereinafter referred to as <i>TC</i>) has
been going for 30 years now; they know what works for them and their market.
Nearly all the volunteers that I have met over the several times I have been
asked to come are avid gamers of one sort or another. They have the best kids’
programs and games of any con I have ever attended anywhere.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
2016 (Feb 18-21) was no exception; it was a great con
despite all the obstacles thrown up by the new ownership of the Holiday Inn. (I
was apprised of their worries well before the con; everyone had their fingers
crossed.) The new owners fumbled the ball badly, not once but several times.
There were a lot of grumbling attendees, but I hope that by now they have realized
it was not all, or even very much, the fault of the organizers. Refurbishing
was supposed to be done by Feb. 1-it was not. Over five dozen parking spaces were
lost to trailers, construction stuff and dumpsters. At least two halls were so
full of detritus and scrap that you could not pull a small suitcase through
them. Rooms were not ready; I went from supposedly being closer to the action
to being shuffled to the farthest wing of the complex. (Have I forgotten to
mention that the con virtually takes over an entire, rather larger, Holiday Inn
complex, complete with indoor pool and spa?)</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Other than the hotel hassles, as far as I could see TC
went off without a hitch. It was certainly a pleasant change from last year,
when the snow was piled higher than second- story windows.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I had my own tubular meat side-missions. Jenn Gerber took
me to <i>Casey’s Diner</i> in Natick for
their <i>“All Around”</i>. It is a very nice
dog with a pleasing snap when bitten, on a steamed roll that we would call here
in the Midwest a New England Split or a Clam Roll, topped with mustard, onions
and relish. Very tasty and highly recommended. For such a tiny diner (that you
must go to to fully appreciate the funky ambience) it makes a mighty dog, and
some of them are gamers.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The next day Angelia Parenteau took me to the New York
Diner in Woonsocket, RI. It seems that folks from RI, sometimes known as <i>Swamp Yankees</i> for reasons unknown to me,
don’t eat <i>hot dogs</i>. At least, they
don’t call them that; they advertise Hot Wieners or Hot Weenies. What Angie got
me to try are known as “gagguhs” (a linguistic mutilation of the word gaggers);
thankfully, they are better than their name would seem to indicate; mustard,
onion and meat sauce comprise the toppings. The dog was good, the meat sauce
interesting but the bun was a standard hotdog bun and somewhat uninspiring.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When you go to a given con a few times, you begin to make
“con friends” that you only see there and hope to see each time. TC is no
exception; I have made many con friends there and look forward to seeing them
each year.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Home for 10 days and then off again:</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b>Another Tale from
the Red Road<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The Mad Mage, my bombardier/navigator, and I got an early
start on Wed AM; first stop for us is always <i>Corkys Dogg House</i> in Cedar Lake IN, a tradition I started with The
Axeman (Rich Franks) when we went to the last <i>Lake Geneva Game Convention</i> before Gary died. It is my annual truly
authentic Chicago Dog experience. This year, tho’, was different; I went for
the Polish sausage. First you must understand that the Vienna Beef Co makes one
of the best mass-produced Polish in the country. There is a certain method of cooking it that I think
was once called “Maxwell St. style”. You take a frozen sausage and drop it in
the fryer; when cooked the skin is crunchy and crackly and the insides just
right for eating. Memory did not disappoint. It was sublime. The Mage (Jim Wampler) treated
himself to a pair of them this year; Damn the Chron’s, Full Gulp Ahead!</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The weather this year was downright cold. I know, I know,
I used to live there, but that was 35 years ago; Cincy weather has been much
milder. And my bones are older.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Gary Con VIII</i>
(hereinafter referred to as <i>GC</i>) was
going to a new venue- The Grand Geneva Resort. It used to be, way back when,
The Lake Geneva Playboy Club. Yes, the
same site we tried (in ’77, I think) when it was the Playboy and nearly killed
GenCon.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
With no half-nekkid Bunnies about for many years now, the
Grand Geneva has morphed into quite a posh place. GC would not be able to
negotiate room prices anywhere near what they do get now if it took place “In
Season”. I had a gas fireplace in my room…</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
For the first time since <i>GC </i>1, I had two events with only three players signed up. I am
guessing that whatever perverse thrill drove players to seek violent and
notable deaths in my previous adventures has worn thin. All those TPK’s were
fun for us all, but as the singer sang, “… the thrill is gone.” I am going back
to storytelling and puzzle- and mystery-solving. There will be plenty of
hazards, fear not, but I now wish to ferret out more subtle minds to duel with
and confound. I love pitting myself against the collective mind of the party.
(Probably more on this in another blog)</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
As luck would have it, I had tossed a new favorite game
into my pile of stuff when I packed my car. The game is <i>War of Kings</i>, a Kickstarter project I backed because it had neat
pieces and has since turned into a favorite for 2-6 players; the 6-player is
brutal. I offered to run back to my room to get it and teach it to them. I had
played with one or more of the guys in both groups, so I did not have to persuade
very hard. I figured that I owed them 4 hours of gaming, so what the hell? All
six guys loved it and we had two really fun games of 4 players each time. They
were all skilled players and the game is subtly simple, so both contests were
spirited. I think I may have sold a few copies…</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I ran my infamous “mouse-game” and we had a great time,
and everyone lived, to boot. (Sorry, no spoilers)</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The Finals of <i>Circus
Maximus</i> were great on several levels: all the players were skilled at the
rules; all were paying constant attention; we used my custom track that is 44 squares
longer and finished in about two hours. Lots of mayhem, three chariots flipped
and one driver trampled. All in all, the mob was pleased.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
My big moment came at the Charity auction. I had made the
offer to allow my scraggly ponytail to be snipped for charity. I am happy to
say that I got $200 for it; I turned down an offer of $400 to shave my head.
All in all, we raised about $12,000 for the charity. When you consider that <i>GaryCon</i> can raise $12K with an
attendance of about 1200, it makes you think what <i>GenCon</i>, with an attendance of well over 50K, could raise at its
Charity Auction if it really tried. The gage has been tossed.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The transition into the new venue was not without
problems; however, the majority of them were not visible to the general public
and so little suffering resulted. As this con has run a tighter ship each year,
I am confident that they will grow into this new venue just a like a hermit
crab grows into a new whelk shell.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The “GaryCon Vibe” was present, even in new digs. I have decided
that this past Con is the last that I will attend and NOT see all the old
friends I mean to. Every year there are old friends that I know are at the con
but I keep missing; from now on I am leaving Sat. night open to catch up with them
and be in better fettle to return on Sunday to Cincy.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Frank’s party was outstanding, I got to spend some time
with some old friends, got to spend some quality time with new friends—<i>GaryCon VIII</i> was great. I hear the
resort is already taking reservations.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-7749337690641732522016-02-02T19:38:00.000-08:002016-02-03T07:42:14.419-08:00How I helped to pull the rope that tolled the bell for OD&D<div class="MsoNormal">
Everything printed after the original three little booklets
having to do with <i>OD&D</i> (the game
as it was played before the publishing of <i>AD&D</i>)
was about suggestions, not rules. One of the founding tenets of <i>D&D</i> as it was played in its
formative years of ’74 to ’77 was about rulings, not rules. Another was that it
was expected that Dungeon Masters (DM’s) would mine for ideas wherever we could
find them: books, fairy tales, movies, old comics, the pulps--all were fair
game for ideas upon which to build an adventure or campaign.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>OD&D</i> (what the
original, first version has come to be called) was simple, as in rules light,
certainly not simple to understand in reading the three. (Often the term “Old
School” (OS) and “OD&D” are used more or less interchangeably.) Every DM
sculpted his campaign as he (they were all males in the beginning) saw fit.
DM’s in those heady, halcyon days when everything was new and wonderful were
direct descendants of our Neolithic ancestors who threw sheep shoulder bones
into the fire and read the cracks. We “read” something just as exotic—platonic
solids made of pretty colored plastic and covered with numbers. (The original
d20’s had no “-teens”, just 0-9 twice.
We rolled a d6 alongside to add 10 or not.) There were no <i>Jump Across a Chasm</i> charts; we had Dexterity (Dex) and Strength (Str)
we could factor in to determine the chance of a Player Character (PC) making
it. Folks with high Dex stood a better chance of jumping the chasm through
which a raging torrent flows; they rolled a d20, the DM rolled a d20 and the DM
made a ruling. Was it arbitrary? Mostly not. I treated dice like Nordic
runestones; rolling high numbers was good; rolling 4 or less often meant it did
not work out so well—everything in between was where we read the cracks in the
sheep shoulders (and most of the time I paid no attention whatsoever to the die
I rolled). Oftentimes, just “rolling under your Dex” was all it took.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We all as DM’s created our own worlds in which things worked
in certain ways. Don’t like psionics? Fine, they don’t exist in your world.
Think that vampires as presented are too tough or not tough enough? OK, make
them fit your world. Think something ought to work a certain way, or not work a
certain way? No problem, they worked the way you felt “right” in your world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I took the first set of rules to the Southern Illinois
University-Carbondale’s Strategic Game Society (The SIUSGS) in the autumn of
’74 shortly after the GenCon I attended that summer, a few of the guys (no lady
members, back then as all we played were boardgames and miniatures (minis))
asked to see them, just to look at them. They were flustered and could make
little sense of them just casually scanning; it did not seem to bother anyone
in the slightest that only I “knew the rules”. We played 6 or 7 times a month
for at least six months before any of the dozen or so players felt like buying
a set of their own. It was two months before anyone else bought dice. The
point? You did not need a bookbag full of books to play Old School. You did not
have to familiarize yourself with dozens of charts and tables to be able to
play. All you needed was dice, pencil and paper and imagination. We had no
minis in the beginning; we used dice to teach ourselves mental spatial
reference skills. “Greg, you’re blue; Tom, you’re green and the orcs are red”.
To this day I prefer an OS type of melee, where it is flowing and fast and
one-on-ones only happen later in subsequent rounds; you might be fighting three
goblins but have hit each one only once so far… .</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By now most everyone knows that TSR published the G Series
of modules to serve as a common framework for convention games and tournaments
(which were, in and of themselves, a perversion of the game’s ethos). We had to
standardize play and grade behavior against a rubric.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The untold story up to this point is <i>why</i> we published the
Supplements. I will give you my perspective:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Greyhawk (GH)</i> was
the only “true” supplement in that it contained the Alt Combat system and a few
other things that simply could not be squeezed into the three original little
brown-boxed booklets referred to often as the 3LBB’s—the three little brown
books. It was truly supplementary material to flesh out the game. At first it
was thought that miniatures gamers (the original target audience) would be more
comfortable with the standard weapon damage. At some point someone had a “What
were we thinking?” moment and admitted that minis players were already
inveterate tinkerers , and Damage by Weapon Type was born. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As <i>GH</i> was named
after Gary’ campaign, it was widely perceived as “Gary’s supplement”. Wishing
to be fair, TSR told Dave that he could have a supplement also, and refine and
tinker with the overall system should he wish to. This became <i>Blackmoor,</i> the second supplement, so
named for his seminal campaign. As he stated frequently before his death, Dave
was not very happy about “his supplement”. (The reasons behind that have all
been dealt with at length in other venues. I go into a chunk of all that on the
thread I have on Dragonsfoot.org.) In it we introduced new ideas and
suggestions for building a temple and cult around it and making it a focus in a
campaign as an example for others to mimic; remember that “borrowing” was encouraged.
We showed players ways to go underwater and adventure. We were literally trying
to open minds to possibilities. It was the last true supplement; the following
books were horses of different colors.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gary had very distinct ideas on how he thought his game
should be played. One quirk? He found it intellectually incomprehensible why anyone
would wish to play anything but a human Player Character (PC). He found the
idea of “half-breeds” to be repugnant, and not just half-orcs, either. He
simply could not wrap his head around it at first. However, he knew there were
some battles he could win and some not worth fighting, especially if they drove
sales. There were other challenges to the game, which brings me to the subject
of hubris.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u>Dictionary.com</u> defines hubris thusly; <i>“…</i><span class="oneclick-link"><i>excessive</i></span><i> <span class="oneclick-link">pride</span> <span class="oneclick-link">or</span>
<span class="oneclick-link">self-confidence;</span> <span class="oneclick-link">arrogance.”</span></i><span class="oneclick-link"> We
had a little pride, but a lot more arrogance, now that I look back on it. We
absolutely felt that we “knew” the way the game “should be played”. We fought
off the waves of sexual weirdos on the East Coast with their fascination with
Girdles of Sex Changing and more; no Moms were going to let their kids play <i>that</i> stuff. We outlasted the hordes
clamoring for Spell Points, the most unbalancing feature at the time that would
have had wizards ruling the worlds. (Another of Gary’s quirks was that he
really did not like wizards and that human fighters should be the heroes of the
campaign.) We persevered against the adherents of critical hits and hit
locations; didn’t they realize that fighting a really bad guy with something
like a Vorpal Sword was going to cost them limbs causing them to bleed out? We
preserved the original abstract concept of hit points. We felt that these
challenges to the game, as well as many others too numerous or petty or
insignificant now to name, needed to be quashed so that the game remained true
to Gary and Dave’s vision.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">At one point a bunch of would-be “improvers” flat-out
told us we did not know what we were doing and should let the game out into the
world, giving up all rights. Now that was arrogance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">We shaped and guided the evolution of the game with the
supplements. When magic began to
proliferate, we saw a way to shape it and expand it in an “approved”’ fashion
with new spells and artifacts. We also addressed an area of imbalance
overlooked for some time; monsters with psionic powers like Mindflayers were
too horrible even in a fantasy game as they wielded an unstoppable weapon. So
we came out with a psionics system that was grotesquely misunderstood and
misused from its very publication. (As the author of a great deal of it I
acknowledge that it could have been done better and explained more
clearly—hindsight.) This was <i>Eldritch
Wizardry</i>. These were always presented as suggestions and ideas, never
rules. It said so in every <i>Foreword</i> I
wrote, but we also hoped that our “gentle nudging” would steer the game back.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">Time passed and the game continued to grow as well as
expand in unexpected directions. Level-creep--PC’s at high Levels that were
never considered, let alone allowed for, began to proliferate. In the early
years PC’s “retired” at Lvl 9 or 10 and a new PC started; this level-creep was
eating up the game. We were getting pleas for help from DM’s and players alike.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">The tipping point came one day in a letter I had to open
that day that spurred a supplement
almost that very week. (I must have “had
the duty” that day; we took turns opening and reading mail to TSR.) In this
powerful thought provoker, a bewildered DM wrote the following, more or less (I
will paraphrase a bit<i>): </i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><i>“Dear TSR, I
don’t know where to go with my campaign next. Last session, my players went to
Valhalla. They killed Loki, all the Valar, a dozen Valkyries, Thor and Odin and
destroyed the Bifrost Bridge. “</i> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">I read this aloud to Gary and Brian; when
we picked ourselves up off the floor or regained our senses, as the case may
have been, ( I swear to you that this is true) we knew level-creep had gone too
far. That week saw the impetus for one more supplement gather enough steam that
I set out to edit the last of the RPG-oriented supplements, <i>Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes</i>. This was
the closest to a rule book that we came; we felt that PC’s should not be
powerful enough to knock off gods. So we gave them really high amounts of HP:
Odin 300, Thor 275. We charted out character levels undreamed of in the
original game.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">One other crucial point to consider about the
supplements is that they produced money on a regular basis and helped the
company grow. They were predictably reliable cash cows.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">Earlier I mentioned that we ran a lot of tournaments at game
conventions. They were huge moneymakers for us, particularly at <i>GenCon</i> where we got all the admission
and event fees. Even with modules, we were still finding it nearly impossible
to find a large enough pool of DM’s that thought enough like us to feel
completely comfortable. It also came to pass that various lawsuits came to be
filed at this time that caused a desire to create a new brand. TSR came to the
conclusion that it was time to actually codify <i>D&D</i>; thus was <i>Advanced
Dungeons & Dragons</i> born, and the death knell of the loosey-goosey,
fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants OS style of play. There were so many things we
did not see coming, the most reprehensible of which is the rules-lawyer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">I have told the story elsewhere: Gary and I spent a week
in his office at the end of which the general outline of <i>Basic D&D</i> and <i>AD&D</i>
had been laid down. <i>Basic</i> was toned
down for younger players and made simpler to understand for easing them into
it. <i>AD&D</i> was a tarted-up,
codified version of <i>OD&D</i> that
would now compel everyone to play the same. Worse, it was now a whole hell of a
lot less engaging to the imagination; everything could be found on a chart or
table. <i>OS</i>, or <i>OD&D</i> if you will, is more mentally engaging and more
challenging than all the subsequent editions, not less. It is also tons simpler
to play.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">The sequencing of the releases of those first three
hardbounds was a masterpiece of marketing. We knew everyone would have to have
the whole set and released them in an order sure to sell them all well, and it
did. And it killed the <i>OS</i> style of
play for a great portion of then-current players; new players only saw <i>AD&D</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">So why do I continue to play <i>OD&D</i> when I mid-wifed <i>AD&D</i>?
Because it is all the things <i>1<sup>st</sup>
Edition AD&D </i>(1E) is not. It is not slaved to charts and tables,
although it has some. It is not arguable; it works that way on my world because
I say so. It is about gathering information, not relying on Skills and
Abilities to do the work for you. It is about playing well, having fun and
living to fight another day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">I see a dearth of those skills and abilities in newer
versions. I think that in some ways <i>OS</i>
required a higher caliber player as well as requiring trust at the table; I see
the art of running a great table being less respected (and practiced). I
actually had a young man in a game at GaryCon tell me I was doing it wrong one
time and that I was not being fair; the table stared in open-mouthed amazement
all the while. I told him that I was sorry he wasn’t having any fun and that he
was free to leave the game; he did not ask for a refund, although I am sure I
could have gotten him one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">Old School-style was more difficult and much more
nuanced than what later editions engendered. It required more roleplaying, it
required asking lots of questions; thus was “the caller” born. The term “the caller”
surely had many other synonyms, but it was a vital role in early role-playing.
When the entire party started to ask questions for one reason or another, the
DM could be overcome by the cacophony. The caller had to be able to sort
through his compatriot’s babble and then turn around to the DM with a coherent
set of questions, as well as making sure that all his party was heard;
sometimes the player that hardly ever opened his mouth had a spectacular
insight. Contrary to what you might be thinking, the caller was not always the
“dynamic leader-type” that every group seemed to produce that made decisions or
swayed the decisions through force of will. But that role was one hell of a
character builder. Ofttimes, the caller was the one that led the party in
exploring.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">Another salient point to keep in mind is that we gamers
then (yes, I count myself in that group) were not all possessed of the greatest
set of social tools and skills, not all of us, anyway. (I was an exception in
that I had been four years in the Navy during Nam, been an NCO, l was married
and had a child while going to college; also four years is a lot of time in
which to mature.) Lots of players “found their voices” playing RPG’s, gaining
self confidence and self assurance. I am not making this up; one of the more
common themes I hear at cons is how playing RPG’s (particularly <i>D&D</i>) brought people out of their
shell and into a social world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">The caller’s day is done; charts and tables and skills
and abilities have all superseded that role; thinking creatively has been
stifled; if it isn’t on a chart or table, it can’t be done. In one of my games at
GaryCon one time, I had a dwarf PC kill two huge polar bears single-handed.
That was not on any chart, but in <i>OS</i>,
it could happen. It’s all fantasy, after all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link">I guess what I have been leading up to is <i>not</i> another Edition War salvo, but
simply this; OS/<i>OD&D</i> involved
<i>more</i> roleplaying, not less, and <i>more </i>thought
and consideration and just plain thinking. <i>OS</i>
may be simpler, but in no way is it easier.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="oneclick-link"><i>Several
trademarks referred to belong to other people and companies.</i></span><i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com39tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-62341672545294288422016-01-20T20:41:00.003-08:002016-01-21T15:41:33.130-08:00Twisting in a wind of words<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fact: I don’t rank video games with our game types; I see
digital games and I see tangible games. I have not been into video games since
my son who is now 36 had an Atari. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was vaguely aware of this Gamergate shit when I saw some
seminars were cancelled at an event in Austin. I thought they were some sort of
electronic bullies or vandals; I had no idea of the misogyny involved. I
deplore their behavior; they seem to be a bunch of teen-aged cyber-bullies and
assholes. I have not read any of their manifestos, so I had no idea that they
had made an otherwise ordinary word used in medicine and science to describe
one half of our species into a pejorative.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think more people that are not male (just what term can I
use?) would find a lot of enjoyment playing RPG’s. (BTW, an apostrophe to
indicate plural acronyms is correct by all the style books I have followed. It
might be changing, but it is not there yet; it is not indicative of the
possessive case.) As a former teacher (a real teacher, not someone with
honorary degrees and being brought up on sexual abuse charges; thanks for that
comparison) I was quite good at crafting teaching aids and handouts, as well as
having developed a very effective tool that involved role-assumption/playing in the classroom. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In my opinion, role playing has become too rules-heavy. Most
of the excessive rules are about stuff you may never do or encounter as a
Player Character, or only do so after a considerable time playing. In that
instance, you learn by doing. I do not like Skills and Abilities ratings for
that reason; I am firmly entrenched in the ethos of the Old School about
learning by doing and never being afraid to try something. So I figured out a
method to boil it down to the basics needed to have fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I wanted to run games for only not-males; Jim Ward and Merle
Rasmussen have done so in the past and related how much fun they were; I
briefly sat in on one of Jim’s, observing. I wanted to try it for myself and
thought to accomplish two tasks, teach the basics and run a fun adventure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Through innocent use of otherwise ordinary words I have
offended some people, for which I apologize. I did not know that the word “Female”
had been used as a pejorative in a war of words of which I was ignorant. I did
not know that offering to boil down the mass of rules was going to be seen as
some sinister insinuation that not-male gamers are too dumb.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By restricting to only beginners that were not male, I thought
to provide a friendly and fun atmosphere. This is based on classroom
experiences; nobody wants to sit there thinking they are missing out on
something or the only one not getting it. Frankly, I do not wish to introduce
RPG’ing to a bunch of younger males (at least not below 12 or 13); that is
based on classroom experience. In that regard, and that one only, you can label
me sexist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was vilified by someone I do not know in a public forum,
instead of being contacted (God knows I am easy enough to get hold of) and
informing me of the concerns my listing apparently raised. Had that happened, I absolutely would have
done a quick edit (I sent the same description to GaryCon and have not heard a
thing about it except several inquiries about signing up.) Attacking a
stranger, in a public forum is a cheap shot, in my opinion. (I do not consider
myself some sort of celebrity and am constantly humbled by the people that see
me as that); I’m just an old dude that still plays games, likes to write adventures and was once
involved in the beginning of our modern hobby, involved with a minute section
of the population.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When attacked, I defend vigorously. I felt I was unjustly
attacked and attainted for a word that has more than one meaning and is a
pejorative in a tiny percentage of the population. I hope my attacker got a
warm rush of satisfaction.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I really am sorry, and a bit befuddled, by all that has transpired
over a listing in a convention website. I am not guilty of any of the behaviors
that my words have been twisted into, and never have been.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have been told that the instigator of this likes to stir
the pot. I would not know because I cannot recall having met her; I did Friend
her on FB when I saw a bunch of mutuals but I probably “know” less than 10% of
my “Friends”; there are over 2000 of them. I never even saw her initial post on
my Wall.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So what is the “politically correct” term for members of our
species possessing ovaries and not testicles? I still intend to call infants baby
boys or baby girls; if they change their mind later I will change what I call
them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, having gotten all of that off my chest, I reiterate that
I am sorry some people were offended when they read what I wrote. But this game is still off-limits to males.</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-413019120085044802016-01-18T15:28:00.000-08:002016-01-18T19:05:25.424-08:00Much ado about nothing- PC in RPG's<div class="MsoNormal">
It seems that I have become the January Whipping-boy for some
disgruntled female gamers for a description I submitted for a game I plan to
run at TotalCon for ladies only. This is what I submitted</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><i>For Ladies Only—</i></b><i>This
adventure is written specifically for the wives, girlfriends and daughters of
gamers, as well as those females wishing to delve into the field without a
lifelong commitment. It has been boiled down to the basics of role-playing as
it used to be: A sheet of paper, some dice, a pencil and some numbers on that
paper accompanied by an open mind and a sense of adventure. Ladies, come see
what the fuss is about.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Apparently that description makes me something of a
misogynist in some eyes. Why?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The adventure I have created sprang from a favor I did for
my wife. She came home one night from her Zumba class and asked if I could put
together a small adventure for some of the ladies from her class, which I did.
The ladies were interested in seeing what all the fuss, or interest, was all
about. We had a great time and I think one or two might do it again with others
of their acquaintance.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have been a gamer for close to 53 years. Until the advent
of D&D, followed by its many clones, the gaming hobby was at least 97%
male. At GenCons in ’74 and ’75, I can recall no more than half a dozen females
(not named Gygax) present and a couple of them were clearly either bored
girlfriends or an older sister stuck with taking a younger brother for the day.
RPG’s came along and the ratio of females <i>began
to increase. </i>In all the adventures I have run at all the cons I have
attended since 1975, the percentage of females at my table has never, ever,
exceeded 30%. (And I am pretty sure I have never gotten a rep for being nasty
to ladies, in games or in real life.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Since 2006, when I got back into the industry, I have been
fortunate enough to have been invited to cons all over the US, east of the
Rockies. I have had the pleasure of working the GenCon Auction for several
years. I bring this up only to point out that I have had a lot of contact with
gamers all over at least half of the country—a pretty wide polling sample.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lots more ladies are now gaming; I think that is wonderful
because in RPG play they often bring a different perspective to the table. I
base this on my experience running games that had ladies in them. When thinking
back about parties that have survived con adventures of mine, I think the
preponderance of them contained females. Given that I am noted for lethal
games, and given the fact that many con gamers seek a glorious Viking’s death
to provide yarns for those left behind, I think the survival of those
particular parties is worthy of note.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I have spoken to many lady gamers I know that do not
RPG, but are wicked-good boardgamers and some great minis players, not to
mention a couple of chariot racers I have lost to, their most common response
to why they don’t RPG is something having to do with being intimidated by “All
those rules and rulebooks.” (I paraphrase a little here, but the gist is true.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I started my first campaign in 1974, I had the only set
of rules for at least eight or nine months, and the only set of “funny” dice
for about two months. We had outrageous fun without all the paraphernalia so
common today. At my con games, the only things allowed on the table are writing
utensil, character sheet, dice and the compendiums of all the OS spells and
prayers that I put together. This is what I am rendering it back into-simple fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are any number of other reasons why ladies might be
reluctant to “force” their way into what they see as a “guy thing”, or what
they have been <i>told</i> is a male thing.
Ridicule and snide remarks are the two I heard most often cited; just being
made generally uneasy or being made to feel an interloper are others. Some just
don’t want to embarrass themselves in a roomful of guys. (Nor would I care to
embarrass myself in a room full of ladies.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(I have also been taken to task for calling them “lady
gamers”. A 15 year old girl playing at my table is not a “woman” yet; when she
turns 18 she is legally an adult. I would not dream of calling female gamers
“girls”, either. I always treat, and refer to, a female as a lady until she
proves otherwise.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, NO, I do not think all the ladies present at cons are
“just girlfriends drug along”, or any other such silly crap attributed to me or
my words.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
ALL I want to do is offer a safe, fun and easy intro into
RPG’s for those of the female sex that might be interested in learning from
someone that has been doing it longer than most.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why do some people see insult and offense when none is
meant, or inferred? The little bit about
“lifelong” commitment should have tipped you that I had my tongue at least
partially in cheek.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Another question: why do some people take to social media
without first talking to the individual involved? How dare they presume what my
motives are?<br />
<br />
By the way, <i> I </i>hold a Master's in Education; I am reasonably certain that I know what I am doing.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com67tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-12975290965652097962015-12-27T22:31:00.000-08:002015-12-28T08:56:26.268-08:00Gaming in 2015<div class="MsoNormal">
Gaming, in all its forms, is alive and well going into 2016.
The increasing popularity and sales of games of all sorts, but particularly
boardgames, is a continuing phenomenon defying traditional models. The last
three times boards did really well were during recessions. Hasbro is running
ads that entice families to play a game together. This is wonderful; we have
known the social value of gaming for decades.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Goodman Games continues to kick butt with their “…Crawl
Classic” titles; they have a new Kickstarter kicking off any day now for a
post-apocalyptic beauty called <i>Mutant
Crawl Classic</i>; I have seen early manuscripts and it is a gem.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Asmodee and Fantasy Flight have combined, which I view to be
a good thing as it will strengthen them both. Maybe we will see reprints on
what would appear to be orphan titles. ‘15 saw several smaller companies fold
their tents and steal away into the night, while other merged, combined or
worked out co-op deals to streamline costs.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In 2015 the gaming hobby called out a serial offender on
Kickstarter who has now changed his name and is again soliciting money to
fulfill things he already got the money for. What a bozo; we’re not that
gullible, Ken.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Iron Wind Metals, the spiritual successor of Ral Partha, had
a successful KS and revived an entire line once RP’s called <i>Chaos Wars</i>; minis, rules for using them
and an RPG adventure I wrote as a stretch goal for them that has bad-guy PC’s.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As 2015 winds down, there are three movies dealing with
RPG’s in work, although two are locked in legal wrangling that has been going
on seemingly forever. The whole situation stinks; movies do not belong in court
suing each other. What bullshit…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Speaking of bullshit, the end of the year saw some very
pointed questions being voiced concerning the long-awaited and long overdue
Gygax Memorial to which so very many of us contributed. The answers I have seen
have been most unsatisfactory; vague, dismissive and illusionary. Questions
concerning why the website has been virtually dead since Spring, why there has
been no effort to keep the public informed as to any progress or plans—none were
fully or openly answered. Other questions have been raised about the legality
of actions not taken by the 501-c-3; it would appear that is has been illegally
run, not according to the laws and regulations of Wisconsin concerning the
transparency of not-for-profits charted in that state.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One reason for the lack of action might be that Gary’s 2<sup>nd</sup>
wife spent months and 10’s of thousands of dollars to steal Luke’s, Ernie’s and
Alex’s surname from them, or at least the free use of their name in anything
whatsoever remotely connected to games and gaming; there are dozens of areas; I
saw the legal filings. This led to a fracas with <i>Gygax Magazine</i>, where apparently she “graciously allowed” the
magazine published by two sons named Gygax. As part of a settlement with the
mag and TSR Games, the parent company, she demanded that all parties to the mag
and all shareholders in the company sign a thing saying we would never talk
nasty about her. As I was the Contributing Editor for the mag, and a tiny
stockholder in the company, I was told I had to sign. I essentially told them “that’ll
be a cold day in Hell.” My name was removed; Luke and Ernie left the company.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am baffled at the lack of perspicacity by her, thinking
that I would sign away any future journalistic endeavors or rights to speak out
whenever I choose about what I choose. But when I think about it a moment, it
becomes less of a surprise when I consider that this is the person that pulled
every one of Gary’s products off the market upon his death, as well as tried to
go around and commandeer anything he had collaborated on with anyone. Speaking
impersonally and objectively, anyone with the slightest hint of familiarity
with history knows that upon the death of an artist or author the demand for
their creations is immediately spiked. For someone seemingly out to milk every
nickel out of her dead husband’s name, you’d think she would have milked that
cow dry, too. Now she owns the trademark on a brand that has decreasing
recognition value with each year. Right now I would speculate that a full 30%
of gamers have no recognition of the name; that number increases every year.
She killed his final system, the system he was proudest of. There is a lasting tribute…<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-61002906675518112015-12-26T12:35:00.001-08:002015-12-26T12:35:32.814-08:002015 Year End Blog<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As I have
become older I have begun to pay more attention to those end-of-the-year lists
of “…famous or important people that died last
year…” that all the magazines and news shows love to compile. I also find
myself occasionally looking at the obits in the paper.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A shrink
might tell me that I am learning to face up to my own mortality; maybe it is
just morbid curiosity. It is an undeniable fact that each year I recognize more
names and faces on the lists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In no
particular order, this is a compilation of those departed that had an influence
of one kind or another on my life:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Spock</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—No offense intended to the
incredible Leonard Nimoy, but does anyone my age see his picture (with or w/o
pointy ears) and think anything else? Yes, he became a skilled director and
producer; no, he sucked at singing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Donna Douglas --</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Never again will Elly May Clampett take her critters to the “
see-ment pond”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Maureen O’Hara </span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">– Even when her movies were in
B&W, you just <u>knew</u> she was a ginger. Bold, brassy and sure of herself,
she bested Errol Flynn and John Wayne, not once but several times.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Anita Ekberg</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—Just when the hormones began to kick
in, I saw a semi-nude, B&W photo of her. She was my second really hardcore
crush/puppy-lust actress. (My first was Sophia Loren.) Anita inspired thoughts
in my fevered young mind that the nuns would have had to beat out of me had
they but known.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yogi</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—When I was growing up a White Sox
and Cubs fan, I hated the Yankees with a deep and visceral loathing. Every
damned year the damned Yankees were in the Series, or so it seemed to the rest
of the baseball world, but nobody hated Yogi Berra. His “Yogi-isms” are legion,
and many attributed to him not his, but he was always smiling. He was a fierce
competitor who really turned it up two notches in the Series, but I still loved
it when the Pirates beat them in ’60.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Frank Gifford </span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">– I remember the first <i>Monday Night Football</i> broadcast. My wife
and I were entertaining another couple, playing cards, when it came on; I don’t
think the cardgame was ever finished. Counterpoint to the often-bloviating Howard
Cosell and the loopy folksiness of Dandy Don Meredith, Gifford told us what was
going on in clear and concise words; that he also had the bona fides of a
stellar career in the NFL made what he had to say important.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rowdy Roddy Piper</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—Piper aspired to be an actor, not in
the ring but on the screen. He was a very popular pro wrassler’, mostly a bad
guy but sometimes good, headlining some of the biggest pay-per-view cards. He
changed the face of pro wrestling when he got into the feud with Hulk Hogan,
involved Cyndi Lauper and ushered in the age of Rock’n’Wrestling. He also
appeared in a bunch of movies, mostly forgettable, and several TV shows<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Omar Sharif</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—What a consummate actor, and one
hell of a bridge player. When he rides up on that camel from the haze of the
desert, who can forget Sherif Ali of <i>Lawrence
of Arabia</i>? When he marvels at the crystalline sculpture of the ice on the
windows in that frigid winter in Dr<i>.
Zhivago</i>, who can forget that intensity? The fact that he was once one of
the top bridge players in the world and spoke six languages fluently only added
to his cosmopolitan appeal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Geoffrey Lewis— </span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">His was a face you kept seeing in
films and on TV; he was a masterful character actor, usually playing a bad guy
but not always. He seemed to pop up regularly in Westerns and he worked with
Clint Eastwood a lot. I admired the way he slipped in and out of the skins of
those characters<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">James Best—</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is a crying shame that Best will
most likely only be known to later generations as Rosco P. Coltrane of Hazzard.
He was a very good character actor in the movies, appeared nearly 300 times on
TV and taught in college after he semi-retired, as well as becoming a respectable
painter. Once asked on a talkshow I saw but do not remember the name of, why he
had “stooped” to <i>The Dukes,</i> he was
refreshingly honest; he said the money was too good to pass up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Percy Sledge --</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I just loved this man’s voice—pure liquid gold.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rod Taylor </span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We traveled through time and fled the
Morloks with him, and we ducked indoors to flee <i>The Birds. </i>He made lots of movies, some good, some not. Taylor was interesting,
no matter the film; sort of the old “mans man”.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Leslie Gore—</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">She cried at her party because she
wanted to. I don’t know why but that song left a deep impression on me.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Grace Lee Whitney—Yeoman Rand- </span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">She only played in 8 of the first 13
episodes of <i>Star Trek</i>, but she left a
leggy, blonde impression on us all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Fred D Thompson</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—This guy led one hell of a life, and
I mean that in the best possible way. He was an eyewitness to history as a
staffer in the Watergate Hearings who later became a State Senator for
Tennessee for two terms, a presidential contender/candidate and later a TV star
on <i>Law & Order. </i>That must have
been one hell of a ride.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Robert Loggia—E</span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">ven though he had 231 TV and screen
credits, his was another “face” that you recognized from other stuff. He was in
TV in the ‘60’s, nominated for an Oscar in the ‘80’s and continued working
until his </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px; line-height: 21.4667px;">Alzheimer's</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> manifested. He had a very distinctive, gravelly voice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Louis Jordan—</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When he started appearing in American
films, suddenly smooth and sophisticated became cool. Clever, good-looking
types could win the girl easier than the big “beat ‘em up” dudes could. Manners
and charm became important<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Gary Owens—</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I laughed (or at least chuckled) every
time I heard his voice, a sort of stereotypical “this is important stuff”
spoof. He epitomized, as well as satirized the role of the Studio Announcer on <i>Laugh In. </i>A lot of us wanted to sound
just like him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">B.B. King—</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The man could play blues guitar like
no other. His influence runs so deep it is nearly impossible to encompass it
all; there are damned few guitarists playing today that have not known his influence,
whether they knew it or not. He was legendary for giving new talent a chance to
shine; he had Joe Bonamassa opening for him before Joe was old enough to drive.
I leave it to future generations of musicologists to measure the depth of his
influence I just know that it is HUGE.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Christopher Lee---</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Where do you start to lost his creds?
WWII vet, singer, actor, producer and director, Sir Christopher did it all. He
was a consummate bad guy in dozens of roles. He was nearly a stock player for
Hammer Horror for years. He made two heavy metal albums and was awarded a</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">"Spirit of Metal" award at the 2010<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_Hammer" title="Metal Hammer"><span style="background: white; color: #0b0080; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Metal
Hammer</span></a> <span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Golden God awards ceremony.<span class="apple-converted-space">.
While never an avid fan of horror movies myself, his work in the Tolkien movies
as Saruman was superb. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><span class="apple-converted-space"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Well, hell, that was pretty depressing. But I think it is increasingly
important to note not just the passing of time but also the passing of those
that helped fill that time with sorrow and joy, delight and anguish, amusement
and entertainment. My one consolation? I won’t see my name on any lists like
this because when it happens, I’ll be dead.</span></span><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-25674919558741175442015-11-12T20:19:00.003-08:002015-11-12T20:19:37.707-08:00Tales from The Red Road--Gamehole 2015<div class="MsoNormal">
I did not go to this con last year with the rest of my
partners from Eldritch Enterprises; I was not going to spend 8 hours in a
vehicle going to Wisconsin in Nov.; it just seemed counter-intuitive, ya’ know?
Wisconsin, November, Winter—not necessarily ingredients for a happy recipe. And
I have had to face the fact that I am just too damned old to do these trips
alone anymore; too much danger of nodding off on the way home and such.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This year, I had my favorite accomplice in mischief and
mayhem for my boon travelling companion, The Mad Mage, <i>a.k.a.</i> Jim Wampler. Jim and I have now made several con treks
together but have not yet strangled one another, run out of BS stories or
otherwise grown to loathe and despise each other. In other words, good
travelling companions not married to each other; a rare distinction, in my
mind.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In terms of route, this trip was a no-brainer; I-74 W
through Indy and on to Bloomington, IL; from there I-39 N to Madison. None of
the crap associated with having to go anywhere near Chicago. (Alas, no Chicago
dog at Corky’s, either.) With the construction on the bridges on I-65 being the
incredibly horrid situation that it is (poor Lafayette is damned near
embargoed) we were not going through that again.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eight lo-o-o-o-ng hours after departure, we arrived in
Madison. (I spent the trip in an elastic, wrap-around back-brace. I’m not too sure but what it
would have been less painful without it.) Good old Dennis got us to the Clarion
with no trouble (I have the voice of Dennis Hopper downloaded to my GPS). Jim
went off to his solo room upon check-in a couple of floors above where I was
rooming with Frank Mentzer in a nice little suite with kitchen amenities. So
far, so good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now comes the only gripe of this tale. It is true that there
was a covered passageway from the hotel to the Exhibit Hall. It is also true
that it was one damned long walk. When I go back, which I most certainly will
probably do if asked, I am going to look into one of the little motorized
scooters like Tom Wham and Jim Ward had; we can have races and pari-mutuel
betting.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Thursday night, the Con had organized a bus for a bunch
of us Special Guests (their distinction, not mine) to go out to see the
warehouses of ACD, one of the larger game distributors. It was a bit
overwhelming as the place is huge; wall-to-wall, nearly floor-to-ceiling games
and game stuff. And, we got anything we wanted wholesale. I picked up a
promising six-player (<i>Provincia Romana</i>)
and an odd little card game about who’s the better person based on the gifts
you give at Christmas. (There are six of us in my twice-monthly boardgame
group; I am always on the scout for good games for 6.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When we had sated our gaming appetites, it was back on the
bus to satisfy another appetite. We were whisked off to a reception at the Free
House Pub where we were treated. Thanks, Alex. There was a time when I could
have punished you for that, but those days are long past; I no longer drink
like a fish, nor eat like once I did. Alas and alack…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The con had a very respectable Dealer Area, and I saw
independent designers with a table all over the place, showcasing their games.
The hall seemed to do a good business; every time I could get by it held a
respectable crowd. I found another 5-player eeuro-game based on trading in the
Med that was marked down 75%. At that markdown, if it is a stinker I am not out
so much.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My first game was Friday at high noon. Somewhat out of
character I had entered this simple minis game into the schedule rather late in
the process, so it did not get much face time and had a scanty sign-up. Too
bad, because the few that did sign up seemed to have a good time. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A few years back, WizKids came out with their sailing CSG <i>Pirates (of every body of water we can think
of)…</i>. The hook to this CSG (Collectible Strategy Game) was/still is the
pretty ships, hundreds of them. The rules were awfully simple (some might argue
to reverse those two words), about what you would expect from something this
entry-level. In <i>Gygax Magazine</i> #3 I
published my upgraded rule set called <i>Master
Mariner.</i> <a href="file:///C:/Users/tim/Desktop/Blogs/Tales%20of%20the%20Red%20Road%20(Autosaved).docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The rules could be favorably compared to <i>Chainmail
</i>in complexity. The game went well; the two sides swanned about a bit trying
to get position, closed and ended it in about a four turn bloodbath. Most
satisfying. I have plans to run this game at any con I drive to, and already have
plans on how to make it bigger and bloodier.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
RPG’ers continue to surprise me in the ingenious ways they
can come up with that get them wiped out. I ran three RPG’s: two TPK’s and one
survived through my magnanimity. In one of them which I had run at least eight
or nine times they found a whole new, never-before-tried way to get
slaughtered. Seeing this, all new waus to die, is part of what keeps me coming
back to the table, as well as writing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The con seemed to me to very well run; the organizers seemed
to have a really good handle on things. They had a special little refuge for us
Guests that was quite nice and very welcome. I saw lots of minis games of
various stripes, lots of boardgames, a plethora of RPG’s (some a bit too many too
tightly crammed into too small an area), Chris Clark had his Starship Bridge
thingy that seemed to be quite popular, there was a special painting area and
Dan “the Bard” Marcotte had a Bard Camp set up. (For those that don’t know any
better, he’s not some dude wandering around trying to look like a Ren Faire luterist.
He writes hilarious songs about RPG’ing that only a player could pen. Check him
out online.) The Fight in the Skies Society was very visible (they have a
killer banner) and many, many biplanes were riddled with bullets. There was a
huge DCC tournament that featured much bloodshed and was enjoyed by all the
combatants; one-on=one mayhem reigned. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There were a bunch of seminars and panels going on that had
quite a few interesting topics and many, many game authors were present
answering questions about their games and talking about new stuff coming.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The consortium that puts together <i>Gamehole</i> <i>Con</i> should all
spend a small amount of time patting themselves and each other on the back for
a job well done. OK, that’s enough. It was hard to credit that this was only
their third convention, so smooth was the operation I saw. I had a hell of a
good time, saw old friends and made new ones; can anyone reasonably ask for
more from a con?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div>
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/tim/Desktop/Blogs/Tales%20of%20the%20Red%20Road%20(Autosaved).docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Several years ago I had submitted them to Wizards, where they supposedly sat
un-looked-at in two different persons’ file cabinets. When I finally tracked them
down, through three different employees (two had left), I was told WotC was not
interested. Oddly enough, their last releases and expansions were about 80% of
what I had submitted. As far as I am concerned they were lifted from my
submission and the Hasborg can try and sue me over them. </div>
</div>
</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-24339915951346373802015-10-27T12:20:00.002-07:002015-10-27T12:20:31.155-07:00What we really meant—Pt. 1--AC<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In recent weeks I have found myself, as part of an exciting
new project I have embarked upon, doing a lot of synopsizing what some have
come to see as complex or confusing concepts. One example that springs to mind
is the old stat known as Armor or Armor Class (AC). In <i>OD&D</i> it was a really simple system that ranked plain old street
clothes as AC9, while at the other end of the non-magical spectrum was plate
mail and a shield at AC2</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If Hit Points (HP) are considered to be your ability to
avoid/evade a mortal blow (which they were in <i>OD&D</i>), then AC was how hard you were “to hit” (in this case
threaten your well-being to some degree).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“To Hit” is another term that does not exactly mean what it
seems to mean based on just the words. Confused yet? Consider “the Mountain”
from <i>Game of Thrones</i> on HBO. This is
one HUGE dude encased in metal. If three or four puny (normal-sized) guys attack
him, chances are that their weapons will actually make physical contact with
The Mountain lots of times; this is not what is referenced in “To Hit”. Of
those several physical contacts, only a small proportion of them will actually
strike with a potential to do actual damage; <i>i.e.</i> pierce the armor at a weak point or joint, or slice or pierce
some flesh. Those are what are winnowed out of the combat to be represented by
the To Hit number.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Back t0 AC; something as small and ephemeral as a pixie or
sprite, or small and quick like a stirge would be somewhat difficult to simply
swat out of the air like an over-sized wasp. To simulate that facet of their
being I make them hard “to hit” by giving them a very good AC.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(<i>OD&D</i> had a
descending AC system starting at 9 and going down; other systems use an
ascending system, where 1 is street togs and 7 or 8 is really buff. Readjust
this in your head to match your system; the concepts remain constant. Something
slow and ponderous, such as a pachyderm, would be easier to strike, but the thickness
of the skin somewhat mitigates this as well as the high number of HP an
elephant or mammoth might have.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
AC does not always indicate what is being worn. AC is a
combination of several concepts, not only the weight of the metal being worn.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To maintain perspective remember this: we were trying to
bring miniatures to the table top. Several of the seemingly complex
considerations and calculations were second nature to miniatures gamers. We
tried to abstract a lot of what was second nature in minis to a whole new
milieu—Table-top Role-playing (and this before it was even <i>called</i> role-playing).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Once this concept is grasped in the abstract, it then
becomes more clear why extraordinary attributes can affect AC, or otherwise
make the PC harder “To Hit”. These same attributes also can grant the PC more
HP, all in recognition of how that last, fatal blow is just that, fatal. I have
never counted anything more than “dead”; hit 0 HP and you died. Whether or not
your PC can be Raised or Resurrected is another matter entirely. We had PC’s
brought back from dead several times, although not always with absolute best
results.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
But anyway, that’s what we meant.</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-4651792767963449422015-09-29T12:35:00.005-07:002015-09-29T12:43:45.509-07:00Gamers & Their Toys: Of Dice & Men*<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The cliché of the frustrated golfer chucking his putter into
a water hazard after a missed “gimme” or wrapping his wedge around a sapling
after yet another shanked chip-shot is fairly well known. Archers discard
“arrows that miss” (as though they maliciously acted), and anglers will leave
an expensive lure hanging in a tree “… cuz it wasn’t catchin’ nothin’ anyhow”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is a very old saying that goes something like “It is a
poor workman that blames his tools.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But we gamers do it a lot. Gamers want to feel a mystical
connection to their dice; that their dice are “with them” and provide good
numbers when needed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gary Gygax was quoted several times about dice and our
connection to them. The gist of his comments had to do with DM’s rolling dice
more for the sound they make than anything else. In OD&D, that can
certainly be true. I have often picked up a couple and ostentatiously rolled
them to get a quibbling party of adventures re-focused.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A long time ago, in a galaxy far away, I wrote a completely
tongue-in-cheek article about dice lice. The wee, tiny critters live in the
spots or numbers of dice. They live on dead skin cells and dust, with the
occasional comfit of felt or velvet lint. Too much direct sunlight could be
deleterious to their continued well-being, so games were better played at night
or in the basement. If you were “feelin’ the same vibe”, they would give you
the number you need. If you had angered or neglected them, well, whatever
happened, you had it coming for the callous treatment of your platonic solids.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While I am not saying it has never happened, I will say that
I have never known a bowler that named his ball or an angler that named a lure,
nor a carpenter that named a hammer. Hold that thought.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We might have a favorite hammer or driver, or have
confidence in a given lure type or color, but that is a preference usually
arrived at over time in most cases. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fishing lures and dice have a lot in common. For one thing,
they rely on eye-catching colors. There is a saying amongst us fisherman that
new lures first have to catch the fishermen; it requires testing to see if they
actually catch fish. The manufacturer only cares that it is purchased. Fair
enough. The same is true today about dice; they come in a zillion colors and
combinations and are made to various standards. I myself own only one set of
dice that I absolutely trust to be accurate; a trio of icosahedrons certified
to be accurate by the Japanese Standards Association and manufactured in the
‘70’s. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lest you think that these weird fetishes are the purview of
RPG’ers alone, let me assure you they are not. I used to play <i>Fight in the Skies</i> (now re-titled <i>Dawn Patrol</i>) a lot, and only flew if I
had my three <i>FITS</i> dice: two black
with white spots and one orange with black spots d6’s. I still favor black dice
with white spots and numbers; pouring all those sinister dice out on the table
at the beginning of the game is a big psych-out sometimes (along with my
thoroughly deserved reputation for TPK’s at cons; it’s like letting the condemned
see the axe beforehand).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In Jolly Blackburn’s delightful comic, <i>The Knights of the Dinner Table</i>, the protagonists are sometimes
slaves to their own dice and dice superstitions. They name some of them;
certain dice types (colors, speckles, streaks, etc.) are considered to be
intrinsically classier or better or more reliable, which we all know is bunkum.
Don’t we?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What happens when a given die, usually the overworked and
oft-maligned d20 (icosahedron), goes “sour” and starts delivering horrid
results? I have heard of some rather interesting rituals designed to get back
the die’s mojo or punish it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sometimes at cons you will see a single die, more often than
not the d20, sitting forlornly in the center of an empty table. This is a
severe form of “dice-shaming”, as though being exposed to all the con for
providing poor numbers on crucial rolls will somehow rectify this behavior.
Alternately, they could have been purposely abandoned so as not to infect/curse
the rest of the dice in the bag.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then there are those that resort to capital punishment by
drowning, being smashed to smithereens with a hammer and death by microwave
radar. The first is pretty much self-explanatory; chuck the offending die into
a large body of water. Insofar as drowning, how exactly do you drown something
anaerobic? Just askin’…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have met several gamers that claim to have done variations
on the second; some refer to it as decimation, a not-quite-correct usage of the
word. The tales go generally that all the dice are lined up/taken out of the
bag, the miscreant is isolated and subsequently smashed with a mallet or
hammer. One guy claimed to put a few shards back in the bag to “serve as a
reminder”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not solely limited to SF gamers is death by microwave,
wherein the die is bombarded with energy waves until it forms a puddle. Make
sure that speckley die contains no metal flakes; they can arc-out the magnetron
(according to one tale I heard).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oddly enough, I ran across a third method to enact dice
reform that does not involve any dice losing their existences. The big question
for you to answer is: Do you believe bad dice can be rehabilitated? A company
called Etched It has presented us with a more humane option; their Despicable
Dice Dungeon. <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/249858884/despicable-dice-dungeon?ref=shop_home_active_1&campaign_label=convo_notifications&utm_source=transactional&utm_campaign=convo_notifications_010170_10683759063_0_0&utm_medium=email&utm_content=&email_sent=1443461274&euid=ZO1vWioH9hRON_3t-5susWXrs_fx&eaid=31138463749&x_eaid=bc279336ff">https://www.etsy.com/listing/249858884/despicable-dice-dungeon?ref=shop_home_active_1&campaign_label=convo_notifications&utm_source=transactional&utm_campaign=convo_notifications_010170_10683759063_0_0&utm_medium=email&utm_content=&email_sent=1443461274&euid=ZO1vWioH9hRON_3t-5susWXrs_fx&eaid=31138463749&x_eaid=bc279336ff</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Disclaimer: I have not
met these folks and have no financial interest in their operation. But if you want to tell them you heard about it here, I'm cool with that.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What a clever idea. Perhaps a few days in Dice Jail will
bring them round. For serious failures I could see where two weeks in solitary
in the bottom of the bag might just do
the trick. Would it not be better for “Ole Rosey” to get a second chance
after a stint in the cubical hoosegow than be melted to a puddle of goo? It
would certainly be cheaper, because as we all know, if you have a set of
“matched” dice, e.g., a 4-, 6-, 8-, 12- and 20-siders all of matching material,
the remainder of the set becomes sort of superfluous once it is incomplete.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With all of our harsh reactions when the dice let us down,
this offers a more temperate response. Come on, it’s not as though our dice are inanimate, unthinking platonic
solids of various material and compositions incapable of any actions on their
own, is it? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<i>*I salute all the ladies that play; you weren’t in the book title I am
parodying<o:p></o:p></i></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-30447569334673468232015-09-27T09:29:00.003-07:002015-09-27T09:29:57.222-07:00The Undervalued and Often Overlooked Art of Editing<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One of the overriding tenets of playing <i>OD&D</i> back in the very earliest days of the game (mid to late
70’s), particularly if you were the DM, was that anything is fodder for the
campaign. Let me clarify that; good campaigns were a pastiche of every neat
idea someone else had back then. As we were groping our way through the dark
tunnels of ignorance then, we cobbled together every good idea we had read,
seen or heard into our campaign’s framework.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I “borrowed” from Tolkien, Leiber, Anderson, Carter, deCamp,
Burroughs, Howard, the Grimms and any other writer that had an idea I liked. We
did not consider ourselves thieves as what we were doing benefitted no one but
ourselves and harmed no one. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There were no pre-packaged adventures (or modules) until <i>Judge’s Guild</i> started publishing; we did
not value them very highly at TSR and we were content to let them do so under
our license. We did not even approach the idea at TSR for some two years, give
or take, and then it was for a different reason, but also the same underlying
reason: money.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We did not see the money-making potential at first. We only
did the G Series so we could continue to make money with our huge convention
tournaments.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I take a little flak now and then for being something of a
fly trapped in amber; I play <i>OD&D</i>
as I played it in the 70’s. Even though I mid-wifed <i>AD&D</i>, I stuck to my “little brown books” (the digest-sized
original three and the four supplements) and have seen no reason to change.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the two decades I was out of the industry, I was not
reading any of the RPG stuff coming out. I stuck to boardgaming and minis,
refusing even to run an RPG here in Cincy for my friends. I did a Rip
VanWinkle; I missed out on all that transpired during that time. I missed all
the “Edition War” crap. I missed scads of bad “next-best-great game” hopefuls.
I also did not read anybody else’s ideas. (When I wrote <i>Curse of the Weaver Queen</i>, my partners were leery because of
previous Lolth modules which I had never seen, let alone read. I did it
anyway.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Recently, I briefly relented and thought to see “what the
other guys are doing”. I can tell you something they <i>aren’t</i> doing: they <i>aren’t</i>
using skilled editors. It has recently been my displeasure to look at a couple
items by a couple of respected authors/designers who have had wide success in
the past, as well as a handful of efforts by newcomers that looked promising
based on the settings. Where is the editing? For that matter, where are the
proofreaders or copy editors?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will not make the claim that either I, or my companies <i>Eldritch Enterprises</i> or <i>Celtic Studios, </i>are perfect in this
regard. I am sure that someone has found a typo or two by now that we missed.
We peer-review every <i>EE</i> release; that
means that all three of the other partners vet every manuscript, proof every
galley and scrutinize every layout.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some of the recent products I have tried to read look like
they evaded <i>SpellCheck</i>; the idea that
anyone that knew what they were doing edited them is risible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yes, as most reading this know, I am/was an “Editor”. I hold
the skill in high regard. The first job of an editor is to understand what the
writer is trying to express; if he or she can’t “get” something, chances are
scores more won’t either. This is not ego or hubris; this is what editors do
first. They seek the germ of the idea and then ensure that it is
understandable. If, or when, they find a rough (or missing) patch, their
second-most important skill is to be able to smooth out the rough patches and
create new ones to knit them all together, in the <i>author’s</i> voice.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some of the articles I published in my various magazines (<i>Dragon, Little Wars</i> and <i>Adventure Gaming</i>) are as little as 30%
author and 70% editor. Some of those early authors learned from what we had
done and later became really good writers; others never noticed. In all cases,
we strove to keep the articles in the author’s voice.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(Secret: Some of us writers don’t always write well on any
given day. We might think it was good, but not that day.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I see this appalling trend as bringing down the level of the
whole FRPG field; the crap is outweighing the good stuff and threatening to
suffocate us all in mediocrity and banality. I haven’t seen stuff this sloppy
(some, certainly not all) since the heyday of the over-enthusiastic, sloppily
edited and self-proofed fanzines.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is THE DARK SIDE of self-publishing. Any tool with a
printer can call himself a writer. Any tool that can work <i>InDesign</i> can now call himself a designer or layout specialist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What they lack is well-written, easy-to-understand-and-play
content. Just chucking a handful of ideas, some thoughtful and some not thought
out at all, and a garbled setting into a manuscript won’t cut it. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The purpose, or usefulness, of good editing is to provide or
ensure clarity and understanding. You simply cannot hope to have the latter
without the former. The biggest pearl in the world can remain hidden in ordure
if you can’t see it. For myself, I prefer not to rake my fingers through it to
find the pearls.</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-47349924654119863202015-09-25T20:40:00.001-07:002015-09-25T20:40:12.728-07:00I went to Gatlinburg and got a rock<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Disclaimer: While I do
not hate country music, there is only a little that I like. I really </i>hate<i> overly-commercialized tourist-y areas. I
would rather vacation on Edisto Island, SC, than Myrtle Beach. (MB is pretty,
but ohmygod, the crowds.) So where did Cheryl plan a little mid-week vacation
for us? Gatlinburg TN.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For those reading this unfamiliar with that locale, it is in
the Smokies and is really three small towns strung out along Rte 441, also
known as The Parkway: Sevierville, Pigeon Forge and the aforementioned
Gatlinburg. Pigeon Forge is the home of Dollywood, Dolly Parton’s version of CW
Disneyland.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From what I know of the area and its history, Dolly coming
in and doing what she did (bought up an old park that was on its last gasps and
heavily revamped it) breathed new life into the area and revived all three
towns. That’s cool; I have always liked Dolly, ever since she did the movie <i>9 to 5. </i>I begrudge her nothing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That said, I must admit that the whole area is really
strange, like it is caught in some sort of incongruity-loop. The attractions
vary from the ridiculous to the unexplainable to the just plain weird. In
between there are almost as many go-kart tracks as there are fudge shops (a
goodly number of both), interesting crafts-men and –women, and a bizarre
fondness for making fun of all the stereotypes of mountain folk; everywhere you
turn there is “hillbilly this” and “hillbilly that”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We had a few great meals at recommended restaurants; the
Apple Barn blew me away when they brought warm apple fritters with a cup of
fresh-made apple butter as soon as we were seated. That beat the heck out of a
bowl of salsa and corn chips, let me tell you. Their chicken and dumplings were
superb. Then there was the Old Mill; I ordered the meatloaf, figuring on a
couple of hefty slices; I got what looked to be an individual meatloaf that had to weigh a pound! We made
killer sandwiches the next day for lunch.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ll take you on cruise down 441…(not necessarily in the
correct order) The coming weekend was the Rat Rod Rally, an annual gathering in
Pigeon Forge of hundreds, if not thousands, of old cars, pick-ups, hotrods and
other strange wheeled vehicles. They were parked facing 441 up and down both
sides facing the Pkwy. There were some incredible rides; the trade-off was that
the speed limit seemed to have been reduced to 17 MPH as everyone gawked at the
cars. There were folks tailgating and just sitting in camp chairs facing the
street watching the traffic, a good deal of which were old and interesting.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some of the various theme restaurants seem pretty bizarre;
even more bizarre than the Ripley’s attraction with the upside-down front façade.
The Titanic does not, in my mind, bring to mind fine dining renown. In my mind,
it brings to mind images of screaming and panic, people behaving badly and
heroically at the same time. It does not make me yearn for a chicken-fried
steak. Maybe I have a quirky stomach, but an atmosphere of impending doom does
not make my mouth water.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then there was the Stampede. I like watching trick riders
and rodeo. I like eating. Somehow I missed the gene that thinks eating a meal
at a table that is on the edge of the “arena’ is a good idea. No matter how much
or how little you try, that fine dirt does nothing for mashed potatoes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There were jousting eateries (more of that fine dirt
seasoning), Arthurian/fantasy eateries and name brand restaurant chains were
all represented, but one stood out as the oddest, at least to my mind. It was
called Biblical Times; I couldn’t help but wonder if you ate fried pita, mashed
chickpeas and yogurt off of wooden platters. Nahh, probably not. Loaves and
fishes?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That part of the mountains is beautiful country; we were too
early for any fall color. We took a ski-lift up Mt Harrison and listened to a
three-man bluegrass band, took a cable car up the side of a different mountain.
Ober Gatlinburg has two rides down the mountain; one a little sled in a cement
quarter-pipe and the other fastened to a steel track/pipe. I thought it looked like a cool ride, but I couldn’t get Cheryl
to do it with me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you like driving go-karts, this is a great place with
lots of venues and every kind of track. NASCAR has a big driving attraction
there that looked really interesting. It is probably a good thing that my son and his family were not with us; we would have spent a fortune on those karts
trying to kill, err, beat each other. Hell, I probably would have had a stroke.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The only attractions rivaling the karts for numbers were the miniature golf venues. Monsters, farms, one up a mountain that you had to ride an incline to get to, every climate-theme except Arctic, it was there. We played three rounds over three days at the same venue that had three different courses and a great multiple-rate.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You could not force me back there in-season at gunpoint;
off-season it was a nice drive and we had some good times.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oh, the rock? Well, when you live in the mountains, rocks
are something you can expect to have a lot of, virtually lying around
everywhere you look. We walked into a place called The Sandman in the Old Mill
area. They dealt in rocks, primarily flat-sided rocks, and they have a
sand-etching machine. They have combined perhaps the oldest communications
format—drawing on a wall, with the newest—a computer-controlled etcher. They
photo the rock you are considering, then allow you to see whatever you want
etched on it on the screen, and they have bunches of different fonts, dingbats
and icons. We found an unusually colored stone and had it engraved, already
knowing exactly where it was going in our back yard. When we got it home, it
was perfect. </div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-41105670731501906162015-08-24T08:05:00.002-07:002015-08-24T08:05:28.254-07:00Gettin’ Legal in the Mile-high city<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I recently had occasion to do a couple of novel things;
well, sort of novel. We’ll just call them cool …</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
First, I flew 1<sup>st</sup> Class for the first time since
‘Nam. Getting boarded first means you get to sit in your bigger, wider, more
comfortable seats and watch everyone shuffle in line to their tiny, cramped
seats. Until the other day when I did it, I used to shuffle by those same folks
in the front of the plane and wonder what the big deal was. Well, the big deal
is you get a more comfortable seat at the price of now being the one stared at.
I hope I never looked that resentful, ever. The food is much too “healthy” for
my tastes; if you don’t eat yogurt or cereal with skim milk, you are out of
luck. Coming back the lunch was some sort of pasta all mixed into a bunch of
vegetables that were all disguised with some sort of opaque dressing, topped by
some strips of chicken with grill marks so perfect you suspect they have been
stenciled or branded on. The tomato juice was good, nice and tomato-ey. I
resisted the urge to get hammered in flight; who drinks that early in the
morning, or in the case of the return flight, mid-day, except lushes? Even if
the booze is free? (Coming home on leave during the war was different; then,
you drank anything they were willing to give you, and thanked them most
profusely.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Another thing I did was the reason I was in Denver. A
producer sent me tickets to come there to be interviewed for a
film/story/documentary-thing they are making. I will keep their confidences, as
they have asked me to and so say only that it involves games and gaming. (Well,
duh!) </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It can be both intriguing and painful, dredging up memories
from 40 years ago, but worth it in the end. The funny thing about rooting
around in memories that old is that they have a habit of dislodging odd
memories that then come back several hours after the question was asked. Let me
state the obvious: it really, truly sucks to be the last guy alive from the
original crew. (On the other hand, the distinction does mean that I still
breathe, not a bad thing at all.) I realize too that I have an obligation to
answer questions about that time as fairly and honestly as I can. The historian
in me demands that I do it, even though I realize that I could, if I was wired
that way, take credit for stuff with nobody to gainsay me. Howsoever, those
danged nuns instilled in me a set of values that prohibits my doing that.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And now to that “other” new thing I did, that I am sure some
of you have been wondering when I would get to. I went to my first legal pot
dispensary. Talk about a dream come true… I thought I was dreaming. Walking
into it reminded me of Amsterdam, except way better. They scan your ID and then
give you a number, like at the deli. When your number is called you are allowed
into one of the showrooms to so your browsing. We stopped at
LivWell-Enlightened on S Broadway; I have no way of knowing how big or small
they are compared to other retailers and I did not get an extra bud for this
plug. Ask for Amber, she’s a sweetie. After asking her for a recommendation or
two, I selected a gram of Zeta Sage #1, a most satisfying sativa strain, and an
equal portion of El Diablo #1, a very wonderful indica strain. The potencies
were purported to be 18 and 21%, respectively. They were both just tasty as
hell. The privately-owned building we did the filming in and hung out around
the whole time had a very nice little balcony on the third floor that was about
the same height as the canopies of the trees in the surrounding neighborhood. I
spent a good deal of time on that balcony those two days. Here in Ohio, we have
a ballot initiative on the next election that would allow personal use. I
dearly hope it passes because the lack of furtiveness in CO is really relaxing.
They are hard as hell on driving stoned, as well they should be, but just
chillin’ at home? It’s all good in The Mile High City.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-44335320283187441172015-08-08T12:09:00.000-07:002015-08-08T12:09:01.922-07:00How big is too big? Gaming Cons today<div class="MsoNormal">
I am fortunate in that I get to go to seven cons every year.
I start in Feb. at TotalCon, then CincyCon followed by GaryCon followed by
Nexus, then NorTex then GenCon and wrap up with Gamehole Con in Nov in Madison
WI. Every one of these cons has a certain vibe to it and is special in its own
way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The biggest, by a very wide margin, is GenCon with 61K
attendees this year. The smallest con I go to is NorTex—the North Texas Role
Playing Game Convention,aka NTRPGCon, with an attendance of about 350. (Full
disclosure: They all put me up and some either reimburse for gas or send me
plane tickets while some even give me meal money. I would not know how to go
about appearance fees; I would be too embarrassed.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
NTRPGCon has about 10 attendees for every industry guest;
Doug Rhea, the mastermind behind it, likes it that way. It is far and away the
most laidback con of all the ones I attend, enabling wonderful conversations
and interactions between all sorts of people, famous or not. It has an intense
vibe of fraternity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
GaryCon has The Old Guard, a loosely defined group of former
TSR staffers, that gets together each year at the con. As senior member, I am
assembling them all at once for a group photo next con, before our ranks have
too much more time to shrink. GaryCon is in Lake Geneva, birthplace of FRPG’s
and has a sort of “pilgrimage to the source” aura surrounding it. Once there,
it has a distinctively old school vibe of just a bunch of us gamers getting
together to game. If you left your backpack out on The Virtual Porch in the
morning, it would still be there, untouched, many hours later. It has that feel
from the old days of “we’re all in this together”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nexus is struggling to find its niche; it is changing dates
again for a better fit but seems to show some promise. I hope it gets past its
teething pains.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
CincyCon is my local con; 30 years ago we drew thousands,
but not nearly so many nowadays. I want to see it get better and am trying out
different things with them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This will be my first time at Gamehole. Everything I have
heard about it augurs well for its continued growth; being in early Nov. gives
them an edge in that not much in the way of gaming goes on in Nov.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
TotalCon is unique in that it has a long history, has had
more than its fair share of ups and downs and takes over a very large Holiday
Inn complex completely. Further, they have had a program embracing the children
for longer than any other con I know of.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
GenCon is just too damned big. Admittedly, I don’t game at
GenCon-I work the Auction. But lots of my friends do game there and it seems
that theirs’ is a mixed reaction this year. With venues scattered about
downtown, and events such as <i>True Dungeon</i>
having meticulous time requirements, I think a bit of dashing here and there is
required a bit too often. GenCon is beginning to feel like that first week at
college where you dash about like a headless chicken.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then there is the commercial side of cons. All of the cons I
attend have vendor areas; vendor table rentals and booth rentals constitute a
meaningful portion of revenues. TotalCon and GaryCon have relatively small
vendor rooms, although GaryCon’s may expand with the new venue. CincyCon has a
smallish area and NorTex restricts their booths to the perimeter of a large
open area. The point is, the smaller cons see the vendor area as an adjunct to
the total experience of the con.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It seems to me that the driving purpose, the <i>raison d’être</i> of GenCon seems to be the
Dealer Hall and the vendors. I have already complained bitterly elsewhere about
the abusive way the floor-plan was derived--solely for the benefit of the
vendors and to the detriment of the gamers, in my opinion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
GenCon used to be, and to a lesser extent Origins, the date
we at which we aimed for new releases; it was the single largest confluence of
that many gamers. There was but a fraction of the companies back in the 70’s
and 80’s that there are now. I cannot imagine the pressure to succeed, to make
or break your company, if it all depends upon the splash you make at GenCon. It
is extremely likely that several great games or products get lost in the
blizzard of releases every year because they did not spend a lot on the box or
were overshadowed in their booth area by one of the mega-booths or any number
of other good reasons. How can Joe Figamo, who has his entire life savings
wrapped up in the best new game idea in decades, hope to compete with the smoke
and mirrors of one of the big companies in his modest little booth with modest
graphics and just a couple of products? He will be lost in the tumult. The next
great “strange” game (just as D&D was certainly strange in ’74) may die at
birth. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
As for myself, I will continue to work the Auction as long
as they will have me. If not for my involvement in the Auction, I would not
attend any more. In no way, shape or form do I recognize today the first con I
attended in ’74. In itself, that is neither good nor bad; I just don’t like
what it has become, and I have all the other cons I go to that can feed my
gaming need.</div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-14177464709920964402015-08-07T20:10:00.000-07:002015-08-07T20:10:01.043-07:00Tales from The Red Road--GenCon 48<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>61,243 people paid to
go to GenCon 48, 2015. Sixty-one Thousand!?! Are you sh****ng me? I remember
600 being a milestone…<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>GenCon is so big that
it seems to have outgrown the convention center. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Next to CincyCon, GenCon is the easiest con for me to get to
each year; a little over two hours drive time with good traffic and no
construction. I got to the Westin with no problems; in fact, this was the first
year I managed to drive straight to it with no circling the block. Checked in,
dumped my junk in the room and set out to see what I could see.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I followed out three gamers; two in jeans and T’s. The third
fellow was so heavily inked, both arms and legs, that I thought he had
patterned tights on. Then I saw the hideous <i>Pink
Flamingo</i>-style bright pink-framed sunglasses. What completed the ensemble
was the lace and silk, full-sized tutu he was wearing. Yup! I’m at GenCon.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
GenCon is a working con for me, centered around my stints on
the auction stage. What follows is a series of recollections, some gleaned from
multiple sources, some from my treks through the sadistically laid out dealer
area. They come in no particular chronological order, they are sort of bobbing
about in the back of my head like so many apples in the washtub waiting for the
Halloween party to begin.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Saw some great costumes again this year, including a few
surprises. There were several ladies rocking the “Kaleesi” look of the long
white flowing gown. Sadly, none were looking for that moment when she emerged
unscathed from the fire with her babies. There were a couple of ladies wearing
outfits that would probably get them arrested in Indy if they were dancing in a
club; to be fair, they both pulled it off quite well. There was a guy on Sat.
in some sort of power-armor outfit that was awesome to behold but had to have
been just hotter than hell to wear. I am guessing he had some sort of cooling
system; I saw him out in the sun posing for pics and not even sweating. Then
there was the little goblin baby. He was a cute infant carried by his costumed
Mom, wearing a hat that was supposed to make him look like Yoda. His tiny
little head did not fill the hat so the ears drooped to the side and down in a
most appealing fashion; I got a picture of him. Sat. was a delight and the
Grand Parade (or whatever they call it) was great. There were lots of kids in
costume this year, some in strollers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Until you have had a Sucking Chest Wound, you won’t know
donut nirvana. For the last couple of years GenCon and Indy have arranged for
the city’s food trucks to be available, an arrangement I heartily applaud. Not
to be outdone by the brick-and-mortar eateries that replace mundane menu names
with themed named, they too have joined into the fun. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After walking the length of both lines of trucks on Fri and
not seeing anything I wished to risk my digestion on (the trucks rotate every 5
or 6 hours so the menu varies by shift), I elected to try the most
unprepossessing looking of all the trucks. It was old-aluminum silver and
simply said “Coffee and Donuts”, parked at the very end. While waiting in the
modest line, I saw what I knew, deep in my gut, that I had to have, a Sucking
Chest Wound. It was the best $3 donut I ever ate; a cooked-to-a-turn Berliner
filled with pureed raspberries and glazed with lime icing. It was a near-religious
experience, and the sugar-buzz was notable.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Whoever laid out the Dealer Area should be publicly flogged
or be subject to a lobotomy or possibly both. This year’s Dealer Hall was the
worst laid out I could imagine. Which brings me to dealers’ booths, their size
and their placement. This might be the next “mine’s bigger than yours”
battlefield in the game industry. There were so many frustrations I hardly know
where to begin. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Who is supposed to be impressed by the size of these
mega-booths? Most of them seem to be a great waste of space. There is a “come
into my parlor” vibe to some of these huge booths, but they waste floor space.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dealer halls used to be laid out like a cornfield-nice neat
rows with oversized or odd-shaped areas at the back or on the sides. Not any
more, sad to say. If you throw enough money at the con, you can have a booth
that effectively blocks two or three aisles perpendicularly. This forces gamers
to either squeeze their way through a booth they have no interest in, or, worse
still, find a detour around it and try to pick up where you left off so as not
to miss any vendors. There were about three dozen vendors this year that have a
legitimate gripe about being in these “lost aisles”. I was studiously trying to
miss nothing on Friday (I do the Hall in two days, half each day) and still
missed two small aisle fragments. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I do not have any magic solutions; there are, however,
people that specialize in this kind of stuff and should be working for the Convention
Ctr. The aisles now are so narrow that you take your life in hand dodging the
deadly “Gauntlet of Backpacks”. Geez! What is it with gamers and their damned
packs? Nothing beats having an already-large guy with a huge pack turn into you
with no warning. It sort of like fighting with pugil sticks, except you don’t
get one.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This was my tenth GenCon since I got back into gaming (2006).
The con has grown more than 60% in that time, but it feels less and less like a
game convention and more like a big commercial get-together to buy the new great
stuff. Events and venues are spread all over downtown Indy; too many satellite sites.
(When I finish thinking this through, big con vs. small con will be another installment.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It is always great to see old friends. I got to spend some
time with Duke Siefried whom I hadn’t seen face to face in some years. My good
friend Diesel (the artist Dave LaForce) was there and had a new piece of art which
I promptly snatched up-a Celtic-themed card box. I got taken to dinner twice at
The Palomino, which I highly recommend. “The Pal” is seldom crowded (they don’t
buy into the GenCon promo gig) and the food is excellent. Thanks again, Dave
and The Acaeum.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Auction, the biggest game auction in North America, went
pretty well. Frank and I did an extra stint when we did Thursday night, but the
buyers were eager. This year did not see any really choice or special items up for
bids. There were three “White box” D&D’s but none very choice. A mint copy
of the original Titan was probably the choicest item. From what I heard, the
Charity Auction did pretty well this year as well.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is talk of taking over the stadium in 2017 for the 50<sup>th</sup>
GenCon. If it truly gets that big, I am going to have to give serious thought
about continuing after that.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-87675976750950531042015-07-27T23:50:00.002-07:002015-07-27T23:50:19.436-07:00Going a'viking-with a twist of lemon<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>This version repeats some of what I shared earlier.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The whole trip experience is becoming a bit surreal; I
know we did it, my wife Cheryl, and I, but the warm fog of remembering is
already stealing in…</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
After days of packing and weighing suitcases and deciding
on clothes (the weather had been frightful, for Europe, in the days previous),
The Day arrived. It was a 1st Class experience from the beginning when the limo
pulled up out front to take us to the airport. Check in was relatively smooth
and off we went for our requisite dehumanization by the friendly folks at TSA.
Even that was not awful, but then came the pat-down. It seems that something
about me set off the something-or-other and I got a bit-too-familiar pat down.
Nothing discovered, off we went to await our departure to Philly..</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Then we landed at the most awful airport on the East
Coast, in my experience—PHL. What is the story with this place? Every single
time I have had to fly into Philly’s airport, whether stopping or connecting,
there have been delays. We sat in that plane for almost 90 minutes waiting to
take off! I pity anyone trying to make a connection in Amsterdam, our
destination and the embarkation point of our Viking River Cruise to Basel,
Switzerland.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
In Tim’s World™, children over 15 months and less than 10
years old would not be allowed on flights lasting more than 3 hours. Imagine
sitting in one of those super-expensive massage chairs that run up and down
your spine. Now imagine sitting in that chair while it experiences electrical
shorts at irregular intervals in random spots up and down your spine. Got the
picture? Doze..JOLT!...doze…doze…JOLT! That was the kid behind me kicking my
seat. And this a trans-Atlantic flight lasting forever. If the seat-kicker
behind me was not enough, we had a drunken bimbo. I had noticed when we first took
off that she seemed to be sort of high-maintenance with her imperious
demand/requests. She got so drunk that she caused an incident back in the plane
not once but several times near the restrooms. At one point two attendants, one
male, escorted her back to her seat and forbade her to have contact whatsoever
with any other passenger, on pain of arrest upon landing. I honestly think that
if we had been over land, and not the Atlantic, that they would have put down
and had her carted off. Needless to say, it was not a restful night.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
At last, we land in Amsterdam, breeze through the airport
and are met by a Viking person and whisked off to a bus and thence to the boat,
Cheryl somewhat fresh, having grabbed few hours sleep, and me feeling like I
have been dragged behind a bus for 6 or 7 blocks.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The boat is really nice and we are in luck as our
stateroom is ready. The word “stateroom” is somewhat misleading, unless you
think of Rhode Island every time you hear the word “state”. Still and all, it
was very nice and no bigger than it needed to be. Believe me, it was far finer
digs than ever I had in the good old USN. For one thing, we had a really nice
shower and all the hot water we could want. If only, back then…</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We crashed for a nap of a few hours and then found out we
had 3 or 4 more hours before Departure, so we walked into Amsterdam; we were
there three years ago and feeling confident. What a city! We wandered here and
there, never once feeling anything but safe, no matter the width of the alley.
I discovered a lovely little establishment, a coffee house, by the name of The
Jolly Joker. I found it following my nose. It is both disconcerting and amazing
in Amsterdam for the lovely odors wafting on the breeze. When I glanced at the
menu, I got no farther than the eponymously-named Jack Herer. It did not
disappoint. Not a teeny bit. Back to the boat for dinner.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The first dinner was a harbinger of good times to come;
three courses, side dishes, cheese plates, fruit plates and all the beer, wine
or soft drinks you could hold. (Sidebar: Cheryl and I are not heavy, or even
frequent drinkers, so we got the regular deal which consists of unlimited
“house wine”, “house beer” and Coke products, not to mention lemonade and tea
or coffee during all meal times. The beer was Bitburger—a mighty tasty brew.
There were various wines, both red and white and they kept giving you more if
you weren’t attentive, along with fresh glasses of beer every time you looked
away. There was a premium perk called the “Silver Package”; that cost $65 per
person and was unlimited booze all over the boat. I met not a few that were
punishing Viking on that deal. We had interesting table mates every night, some
more interesting than others, one obnoxious, but more about him later. Next day
was the first stop on our tour, to look at working windmills at a place called
Kinderdijk.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b><i>Weather-watching in Europe<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Europe was experiencing some abnormally hot weather in
the weeks leading up to our departure. One day one of the places on our
itinerary was 88° F, then two days later 73°, so guessing how to pack was
chancy, at best. The one constant was Amsterdam; never really hot, but always
raining. Our guide for the windmills told us (as we were huddled like forlorn
ducks under umbrellas that did nothing to stop the horizontal rain), that The
Netherlands gets 200+ days per year when it rains. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
That sort of explains why they are so good at managing
water, not to mention that over 40% of The Netherlands is below sea level. The
place we visited, Kinderdijk, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a designation
shared by dozens of other sites around the world that represent in a meaningful
way important aspects of a culture or society. Without windmills and they
water-engineering they embody, there would be no “Low Countries” as we know
them. Entire families live inside a great many of these windmills, some of which
are more than 200 years old and still fully functional. One rather grand
specimen had housed a family containing 13 kids! The “Old Woman” of
nursery-rhyme fame didn’t live in a shoe, she lived in a windmill.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Sadly, the weather was miserable the whole time: no sun,
cool temperatures and rain. Cheryl schlepped out to climb up into the mill; I
chose to dry off and warm up. The ingenuity of the cog, or gear, assemblies
that transfer the wind power to the pumps is quite fascinating.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Later that afternoon, as we resumed our cruise upriver, I
got a chance to visit the pilothouse. Samuel Clemens (he rode the Rhine when he
visited in the late 1870’s) would think he was on board a spaceship, and his
first question would probably be “What happened to the wheel?”</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b><i>About the boat<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
My ancestors never had it so good on their longships. We
sailed on Viking Kara, a one year-old engineering marvel. The bridge is a
mechanical marvel in itself; it sits on a giant scissors jack so it can be
lowered to get under low bridges. It is so long that it has a video camera aft
so that the fantail is visible to the skipper at all times. It has four
propulsion units, each with two smallish props, that can rotate 360° as well as
two thrusters. There is no sense of getting underway, so smooth and
vibration-free are the props. No rowing in fierce winds, bailing all the while
for this crew.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I jokingly remarked that we were in steerage, the lowest
deck. There was virtually no difference in cabin sizes that I could detect;
same number of cabin doors on both lowest and middle deck; there might have
been a couple bigger ones on the top deck. The top two decks had tiny balconies
outside their cabins, but they were virtually worthless on this trip, as
several that had them stated.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The whole boat shined and sparkled. The crew was
magnificent and the service was almost eerie; every time you turned around
someone was asking if there was anything they could get you. If you did not
cover your wine or beer glass, they were bringing another before you could ask.
The food was absolutely first rate. Each morning there was a continental breakfast
in the lounge and a full breakfast in the dining room with eggs, waffles and
omelet’s to order, five kinds of juice, gallons of coffee, fresh fruit in
abundance. Lunch was served on board every day for those that came back for it;
many opted to eat wherever we were that day. Every night was a three course
dinner and featured an <i>a la carte</i>
menu if you did not care for any of the choices (there were always three
entrees offered) that included steak.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Two members of the crew stood out, in my opinion. The
first is Ria (I have forgotten her last name), who was the Program Director.
Where she gets all of her energy must be a closely held secret. She was funny,
knowledgeable and tireless. The other is Peter Burkhard, the Hotel Manager.
When I asked about going through locks he took me into his cabin/office and
provided me with a complete list of all the locks we would traverse and the
approximate time we would go through; there were quite a lot. (More about Rhine
locks later.) He really blew me away when, on the last night aboard, they got
him to sit down at the baby grand and play. Boy, could he play! He was
exceedingly gracious and a great asset to Viking.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There was music for every dinner; usually local musicians
or music students and it never failed to shine. It was quite a boat.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b>The Itinerary<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The plan called for us to visit a different city each
day; on one day we stopped at two. I’ll be brutally honest and admit that they
sort of blurred together after a bit, but I’ll do my best to sort them out for
you.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Amsterdam</i>-I
have already commented on our brief stay here, not much to add.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 2: Kinderdijk</i>-
I talked about this earlier; nothing to add here.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 3: Cologne-</i>
We have all seen the iconic pictures of the great Gothic cathedral of Cologne
that somehow survived the Allied bombings. Hit by eight bombs of various size,
it stood at war’s end, damaged but resolute. The cathedral, now a UNESCO World
Heritage site, is awe-inspiring up close. To stand in front of it, neck craned
to see the spires so far overhead, and to think that it is over 750 years old
was a profound experience for this retired history teacher. The inside of the
cathedral is equally impressive, as it was meant to be when built, proclaiming
and testifying to God’s greatness and intimidating the flock into being good
sheep. (As a historical backdrop and background, every place we would be
visiting in Germany and France was originally a Roman outpost on the edge of
their civilization.)</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
No trip to Cologne (Köln in German) would be complete
without a trip to the 4711 company, home to THE “scent of Cologne. This perfume
lent its name to all good-smelling things with “eau de cologne” being lifted
from their name. My Mom loved the stuff and one of her first gifts to my then-fiancé
was some 4711 soap.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Just as the city of Pilsener, in Czechoslovakia, lent its
name to a type and style of beer, so has Köln, as we learned on our Brauhaus
tour that night. They are justly proud of their local brew “kölsch”. We visited
4 different brauhauses that night and I can report that they were all quite
good and two were excellent. I also learned that a one-inch head on a beer is a
good thing for two reasons: it insulates the beer from the air and it also
keeps it colder, longer. Who am I to argue with some of the best beer brewers
on the planet? German beer is a far cry from the pale, watery stuff that often
poses as beer here in the States.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Cheryl and I just had to visit the <span style="background: white;">Schokoladenmuseum
Köln</span>, now owned by Lindt Chocolates. It was not just exhibits of old
wrappers from around the world, but also all the areas it is grown now and many
historic tools and molds. They explained how hollow bunnies are made and we got
to watch machines making little chocolate squares from molding to wrapping. The
very interesting afternoon ended in the Chocolate shop, where chocolates from
dozens of European makers were on sale.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="background: white;">One strange, but most pleasant, sight was the four young
German men busking on the edge of the Dom square; they were playing Mozart, and
playing it very well for a very appreciative audience gathered to watch.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="background: white;">Cologne also has a very moving tribute to the victims of “the
brown time” (what several of the guides called the Third Reich). Besides a
piece of rather abstract sculpture dedicated to the victims of the Holocaust
and commissioned by the city from an Israeli artist, there are over a thousand
small brass inscribed squares scattered around the city. The first we saw of
these “Stumbling Stones” (the name our guide gave them) was one dedicated to
200 Romany who were rounded up and sent to the death camps. The rest are placed
in the cobblestones in front of every house that held a Jewish family that was
rounded up and sent to the ovens.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 4: Köblenz,
Scenic Cruising, and Rudesheim- </i>Marksburpg Castle lay upon the crest of a
mighty hill under which we had moored. To get there we had to take a gondola/cable
car across the Rhine and up the hill. The sky was shining blue and the river
busy, which made just this little jaunt exotic and entertaining. Of all the
forts and fortresses I have seen in various places around the world, this was
by far the most imposing and impressive. Built in 1836, it was so formidable
that no one ever tried to attack it, a fact that potentially thousands of foes
no doubt endorsed. I could see no way that an army of that time could have
possibly taken that fort with the weaponry in use then. Our tour guide was
dressed in period costume and assumed the persona of a gentleman officer of the
Royal Engineers sent in mufti to spy it out. He was very, very good. One need
only walk to the edge of the parade grounds overlooking the Rhine to note its strategic
importance as it broods on the hill overlooking the confluence of the Rhine and
Moselle rivers.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We boarded a bus to rejoin the boat which had moved on to
Braubach, and then set sail for lunch on the Rhine as we made for Rudesheim. We’ve
all heard of Irish Coffee, right? How many have heard of Rudesheim Kaffe? Even
I, who do not normally drink coffee, could grow to like it the way they make
it. Probably something to do with the brandy in it, I would guess.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
In the interim, we sailed the part of the Rhine known for
the castles. It was a gloriously clear and pleasant day and some of the castles
are quite impressive. We sailed around the fabled Lorelei Rock at the Rhine’s
narrowest point, less than 100 yards wide.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>A Note on the Rhine
River: While I fully understand the importance of the Rhine to all the
countries through which it flows, it does not impress this boy, born in a
Mississippi River town in Illinois and having lived along the Ohio for over 30
years now in SW Ohio. Naively, growing up I thought when someone referenced an
important or mighty river, the Muddy Miss was my point of reference and I
thought all really important rivers must be that big and wide. When I read in
the war histories what a formidable defense line the Rhine would be, I envisioned
trying to cross the Mississippi somewhere along where I lived and shuddered,
little knowing that the widest spot I would later see was about the width of
the Rock River where it emptied into the Mississippi.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Make no mistake, the Rhine is busy with all sorts of
commercial barge traffic. The barges on the Rhine are nothing like those on our
major rivers. For one thing, they are considerably smaller and shorter, owing
to the confines of the river. For another, whole families live aboard what we
would call “the tug” or “the tow”, that part of the barge that provides the
motive power. They have the family car parked on the aft deck, or their
motorcycle or fishing boat or jet-ski. One even had a swingset on the bow for
the kids. I wonder what they do for school?</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 5: Heidelberg
and Speyer-</i>Heidelberg was spared bombing in WWII. There was no industry and
old, moneyed American families had an interest in the University. For whatever
the reason, the city maintains its medieval charm and dimensions. We had the
most amazing bus driver I have ever seen. How he managed to navigate some of
those cobblestoned streets was nothing less than magical. The locals were coming
out to watch and would often give him a hand when he did it.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Perhaps the most disconcerting sight of our trip happened
in Heidelberg. As we were walking towards the famed ruins of Heidelberg Castle,
setting of the opera The Student Prince, we walked along a familiar-looking
street of bookstores full of texts, bookbags, T-shirts and the like. What I did
not expect to see was Mark Twain’s visage gracing T-shirts, book bags and
posters. It seem that Heidelberg is mad for Samuel Clemens who famously resided
there for some months in the late 1870’s and then went on to write a
much-beloved, and totally fictional, account of his summer in Germany.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Heidelberg Castle
still enchants as it did 150 years ago. Even in ruins it is still magnificent.
It seems that Louis XIV of France was not comfortable with all the castles
along the Rhine. Being the grandiose frog that he was, he proceeded to destroy
every one during the War of Palatine Succession, between 1594 and 1603. Thanks,
Louis.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Speyer is a sleepy little town with the largest Romanesque
cathedral, the <i>Kaiserdom</i>, in Europe.
It’s a huge church, and imposing. Speyer was once a cultural center for Jews
and has the oldest existing example of a ritual underground Jewish bath house
in all of Europe.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 6: Strasbourg,
France- </i>Welcome to the Alsace. The first you see are the street signs;
every street has three names, one in French, one in German and one in Alsatian.
Makes for some big signs. Strasbourg is mad for storks. Every chimney has a
nest, or so it seems. Storks on your chimneys are considered good luck. The
slate roofs look like they have been iced (frosted) in stork droppings stretching
six and eight feet down the roof. I’m not sure where that part figures into the
luck bit; must be an Alsace thing.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The streets in Strasbourg are a most delightful jumble of
architecture; an obviously German building nestled cheek-by-jowl with a
patently French building, one side of the block French, the other German. The
Strasbourg Cathedral is one of the most impressive Gothic cathedrals in all of
Europe. Sadly, it was a Sunday and most of the shops were closed, although we
did score some outstanding macaroons.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 7; Breisach and
the Black Forest</i>- All my life I have heard of The Black Forest of Germany,
home to cuckoo clock makers and woodcarvers carving wondrous things. We decided
to take the bus tour to the Kaiserschtule in the Black Forest. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The countryside was gorgeous as we wound our way up in
elevation in our Mercedes tour buses. Along the way we were lucky enough to see
some really rare (like only a couple of hundred left rare) horses native to the
area. They were some plug-ugly horses but had a certain
so-ugly-your-heart-goes-out quality to them. We also passed enormous farmhouse
that were centuries old; one magnificent structure was 1000 years old and still
being lived in. The thatch roofs were unique.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Another of the great ironies presented itself with this
tour. Dressed in traditional Black Forest garb, our lady guide was a Guatemalan-American
who’d come to Germany 8 years ago to study the language and had found a husband
and stayed; charming lady who knew her stuff.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We drove up into the mountains and stopped at an inn that
had been there since Marie Antoinette made her Grand Procession to France to
become Queen. The main commercial building was shaped like a giant clock but we
did not wait to strike the hour and see what happened. Instead of watching the
clock/building, we were watching an incredible young male chef make Black
Forest Cake. Oh my god, I gained half a pound just watching him drench it in
schnapps and ladle layer after layer of whipped, unsweetened cream, then
showering it with chocolate shavings and topping each piece with a rosette
containing a cherry. It was a profound gustatory experience without any
calories.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When we came back from the Forest, we walked into
Breisach, a very pretty city with a most impressive Basilika, and about a dozen
ice cream (Eis) stores. The Germans are heavily into what they call ice cream
but we would call gelato. Every city we visited had Eis stores; the range of
flavors staggers the imagination. Liking ice cream myself, and married to a ice
cream junkie, we had several tasty treats. I had a lime gelato that was sublime
before we returned to the boat for the night.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
That last night was the Farewell Dinner and it was grand.
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Day 7: Basel,
Switzerland and the endless trip home- </i>We departed the boat at 4:30 AM for
the airport in Basel, I have no idea what Basel looks like outside of what we
could see in the bus headlights. The airport was very busy and there came an
end to our up-to-now idyllic trip. We could not get boarding passes because our
tickets were in the system twice. I give kudos to the gentleman at the British
Airways who took such extraordinary measures to get it cleared up. It took him
20 minutes, but when he finished he handed me boarding passes for the whole
flight, including each connection. Then through Customs, which was mercifully
perfunctory.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Next came Heathrow, where it seemed we went through twice
as many lines and got questioned by twice as many guys at desks. At least the
European versions of TSA are a hell of a lot more civil and sensible; no
removing belts and stripping off your shoes.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The flight from Heathrow to Philly seemed to take two
lifetimes. By then my circadian rhythms were so screwed up that my body felt
like I needed to be awake. Cheryl was blissfully sleeping while I watched two
whole movies: <i>The Agony and The Ecstasy</i>
(an old, familiar favorite) and <i>Chappie</i>,
which I highly recommend to all fans of mild science fiction. I thought it was
a very thoughtful film while still very entertaining. Then I read some.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Customs at Philly was surprisingly easy and efficient,
but that was just another tease, and Philly would preserve its perfect record
of never, not even once, allowing me to make a connection on time. This time,
it was not the airports fault, but rather, the result of asinine rules
instituted by the FAA and the Secret Service. Air Force One was landing at
Philly, so the entire side of the massive airport that AF One taxied across was
frozen in place; all boarding stopped cold, all planes were halted and
forbidden to taxi or take off for 40 minutes, until the motorcade took off. Thanks,
Prez. Sort of smacks of the imperial, doesn’t it?</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
It was a grand excursion and far exceeded our wildest
expectations, and provided more memories than one mind can possibly hold for
long. Luckily for us, Cheryl has made up an enormous loose-leaf binder for the
150+ photos we printed that will serve as a memory-jogger for years to come.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b><i>Rhine locks<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
All of the locks I am familiar with on US rivers operate
pretty much the same way as locks have worked since the days of the Erie Canal;
two large gates/doors that swing open and closed from the sides. The bottom is
usually the river bottom. Germany did it a different way when they had to
replace all the bombed out locks and dams. Their locks are like a concrete
trough with one-piece gates that raise and lower. Tow boats/barges fit side by
side with about one foot clearance on both sides. Some had as much as a 20’
difference; they filled quite quickly due to the fast flow of the Rhine.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b><i>Rhineland vineyards<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
German vintners grow vines along the Rhine on hills so
steep goats avoid them. Seriously though, the hillsides they cultivate are too
steep for any machinery; all the growing, tending and harvesting is done by hand.
Virtually every scrap of land that will hold a vine has one all along the wine
area. I had some great Reislings on the Kara.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b><i>130 Strangers on a boat for a week<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>(I promised several
people that I told I would be writing this that no real names would be used.)<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Sailing on a small-ish boat like this means no escaping
people you’d rather not choose to spend time with, as well as providing opportunities
to meet really nice people. As the Kara was a non-smoking vessel, including my
e-cig; so, as is often the case nowadays, we social pariahs who gathered “at
the ashtrays” each evening soon got to know each other. (At one point I
overheard someone referring to us as “the Knitting Club”; I corrected her and
told her we preferred to refer to ourselves as “the cool kids”.) I met a mother
and daughter, from Arkansas and Texas, respectively, that were very fine ladies
to chat with. Mom did very specialized educational testing and daughter flew
all over selling medical instruments; we each had areas of common interests. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
One night, we cool kids were sharing pot stories, most of
which centered on recent experiences in Amsterdam. One couple related a
hilarious tale of going into one of the coffee houses and getting a couple of
joints. It seems that they had both dabbled with pot 15 or 20 years ago and
were interested in doing it again somewhere where they would not be hassled for
it, sort of a brief trip down Memory Lane. They told how they sat down on a
bench together and smoked one joint. Upon finishing they confided to one
another that they were suddenly too stoned to stand up and walk back a few
blocks to the ship, so they sat there for half an hour until they felt up to
the task. They had us all in stitches.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Another night when we were all sitting topside admiring
the late sunset and the myriad stars soon visible in the clear skies, I caught
a whiff of a lovely odor and thought I was imagining it. Nope, such was not the
case. I was sitting next to “the couple” when she reached over and asked if I
would care for a toke. I did, and we did, and we sailed up the Rhine digging
the moon and stars with a most righteous buzz on. It does NOT get any better
than that.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We met a couple a few years older than us from England
that we hope to stay in touch with. We exchanged addresses and ate dinner
together several nights. She is six and a half stone of grit and spunk; he is
an artist if considerable skill. His sketching on the day we were traversing
castle country led to introductions and the rest. They are truly lovely people
and our having met them and possibly formed a friendship is one of the very
high points of the whole trip.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The low point, in regard to becoming acquainted with our
fellow passengers, has to be The Aussie. If I believed that he adequately
represented the people of Australia, I would kiss off the whole damned continent
and let the Chinese have it some day in the future. My first meeting came when
we were unfortunate enough to sit down at the same table for dinner one night.
The gist of his lecture that night, delivered in a booming voice (yeah, me
calling someone else booming, I know) was that anyone that did not understand
all the nuances of two versions of cricket were poor, benighted fools; football(soccer)
was a boring, sissy game and anyone and anything not Australian was somehow
lacking. I figured that he had had a snoot-full and was just an obnoxious tippler.
Unfortunately, I was wrong on that score.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The next night, having escaped dining at the same table
again, I was more than a little dismayed to find that he had taken up residence
in our smoking area, and he did not even smoke. By now, we cool kids knew some
about each other. The Aussie started off expounding about the metric system vs.
Imperial/American. In his ranting, he asked something about why we had not
adopted it, historically. Someone there identified me as a History teacher, so
he directed his question somewhat smugly at me. When I got about half way into
the historical reasons Americans were never going to adopt anything proposed by
Napoleon, he most rudely cut me off and said we were all “SHTEW-PUD” (hard to
nuance his pronunciation is print). Twice more he asked me questions as a
History teacher and twice more he cut me off mid-answer and declared we were
all SHTEW-PUD! I got up and walked away, thinking to myself that yes, it was
easy to tell that he was an engineer—he thought he knew everything. Too bad he
doesn’t know what an ass-hat he is, and the disservice he does his country.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The people we interacted with in Germany were very
friendly, as were the people in Strasbourg. Virtually everywhere we went we ran
into a persistent annoyance. Every time I tried to get a picture, there were
oblivious Asians ruining the shot. I have no idea how they got there or what
tour groups they were with; we had no Asians on our boat. Some were Japanese,
some Chinese and some Korean; lots I have no idea. It simply seemed that every
time you tried to shoot a castle, there was an Asian with a camera on the
damned balcony! How the hell did they get up there in the first place? Nice
shot along a canal? Forget it as there are half a dozen girls striking poses,
or else an enormous cluster gathered under a selfie-stick. I really hate to say
this, but it seemed they just did not give a damn for anyone around them. It
was really frustrating, but the only even slightly negative thing to happen. More
of an observation, really; is it a cultural thing?</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
What a trip it was; even after waiting 15 months to take
it our expectations were exceeded. I wish we could afford to do something like
it every year, but unless I buy a winning lottery ticket that is not likely to
happen. If ever you get the chance, the Rhine is well worth seeing.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>I am off to GenCon in two days. I will have another Tales of the Red Road about mid-August.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1127369360097558107.post-15179863208451207352015-07-21T12:23:00.001-07:002015-07-21T12:23:50.189-07:00The Valley of the Rhine : A Modern Viking voyage--Pt. 1<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>Author’s Note: As I
will probably be sharing this in bits and pieces, the final result may seem a
bit disjointed compared to what will come here. I think I will follow my
tangents and worry about ordering them later. I thank you for your indulgence.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The whole trip experience is becoming a bit surreal; I
know we did it, my wife Cheryl, and I, but the warm fog of remembering is
already stealing in…</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
After days of packing and weighing suitcases and deciding
on clothes (the weather had been frightful, for Europe, in the days previous),
The Day arrived. It was a 1st Class experience from the beginning when the limo
pulled up out front to take us to the airport. Check in was relatively smooth
and off we went for our requisite dehumanization by the friendly folks at TSA.
Even that was not awful, but then came the pat-down. It seems that something
about me set off the something-or-other and I got a bit-too-familiar pat down.
Nothing discovered, off we went to await our departure to Philly.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Then we landed at the most awful airport on the East
Coast, in my experience—PHL. What is the story with this place? Every single
time I have had to fly into Philly’s airport, whether stopping or connecting,
there have been delays. We sat in that plane for almost 90 minutes waiting to
take off! I pity anyone trying to make a connection in Amsterdam, our destination
and the embarkation point of our Viking River Cruise to Basel, Switzerland.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
In Tim’s World™, children over 15 months and less than 10
years old would not be allowed on flights lasting more than 3 hours. Imagine
sitting in one of those super-expensive massage chairs that run up and down
your spine. Now imagine sitting in that chair while it experiences electrical shorts
at irregular intervals in random spots up and down your spine. Got the picture?
Doze..JOLT!...doze…doze…JOLT! That was the kid behind me kicking my seat. And
this a trans-Atlantic flight lasting forever. If the seat-kicker behind me was
not enough, we had a drunken bimbo. I had noticed when we first took off that
she seemed to be sort of high-maintenance with her imperious demand/requests.
She got so drunk that she caused an incident back in the plane not once but
several times near the restrooms. At one point two attendants, one male,
escorted her back to her seat and forbade her to have contact whatsoever with
any other passenger, on pain of arrest upon landing. I honestly think that if
we had been over land, and not the Atlantic, that they would have put down and
had her carted off. Needless to say, it was not a restful night.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
At last, we land in Amsterdam, breeze through the airport
and are met by a Viking person and whisked off to a bus and thence to the boat,
Cheryl somewhat fresh, having grabbed few hours sleep, and me feeling like I
have been dragged behind a bus for 6 or 7 blocks.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The boat is really nice and we are in luck as our
stateroom is ready. The word “stateroom” is somewhat misleading, unless you
think of Rhode Island every time you hear the word “state”. Still and all, it
was very nice and no bigger than it needed to be. Believe me, it was far finer digs
than ever I had in the good old USN. For one thing, we had a really nice shower
and all the hot water we could want. If only, back then…</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We crashed for a nap of a few hours and then found out we
had 3 or 4 more hours before Departure, so we walked into Amsterdam; we were
there three years ago and feeling confident. What a city! We wandered here and
there, never once feeling anything but safe, no matter the width of the alley.
I discovered a lovely little establishment, a coffee house, by the name of The
Jolly Joker. I found it following my nose. It is both disconcerting and amazing
in Amsterdam for the lovely odors wafting on the breeze. When I glanced at the
menu, I got no farther than the eponymously-named Jack Herer. It did not
disappoint. Not a teeny bit. Back to the boat for dinner.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The first dinner was a harbinger of good times to come;
three courses, side dishes, cheese plates, fruit plates and all the beer, wine
or soft drinks you could hold. (Sidebar: Cheryl and I are not heavy, or even
frequent drinkers, so we got the regular deal which consists of unlimited “house
wine”, “house beer” and Coke products, not to mention lemonade and tea or
coffee during all meal times. The beer was Bitburger—a mighty tasty brew. There
were various wines, both red and white and they kept giving you more if you
weren’t attentive, along with fresh glasses of beer every time you looked away.
There was a premium perk called the “Silver Package”; that cost $65 per person
and was unlimited booze all over the boat. I met not a few that were punishing
Viking on that deal.) We had interesting table mates every night, some more
interesting than others, one obnoxious, but more about him later. Next day was
the first stop on our tour, to look at working windmills at a place called
Kinderdijk.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>I’m gonna stop here
and share. I have to make sure my notes are in order before regaling you with
tales of our other stops. TK<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
kaskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02409538940478005867noreply@blogger.com1