So as with all things gaming and gaming adjacent we as GM’s are not perfect. I know it is shocking, but we make mistakes as well. Those mistakes could be in remembering the lore of a setting you are running a game in or messing up how a part of the game is done mechanics wise. We all make mistakes and we are going to let you in on how we have dealt with those sorts of things in our games. So let’s see how we can help you when you flub as a GM.
What is a way each of us has messed something up? Try to keep this part to a short tale. 2-3 minutes tops here.
Guard-a-Manger: What Do You Mean, “Make a Mistake?” Seriously, though, mistakes are more easily handled when you don’t treat them as mistakes but part of the carefully laid out plan.
What’s one of these examples? Magic in fantasy games often comes with limitations, restrictions, and strictures. Many games even restrict magic spells for certain characters through spell lists or the like. What do you do when you have an NPC, opponent, bad guy, hero-of-their-own-story use a spell against the party that isn’t on their list? Okay, look, I have a magic-user use Harm in a Basic D & D game. How did the magic user get a clerical spell?
Guess what the first major extraplanar quest became for this group of adventurers? Finding out that there were some other classes based on some Immortal level weirdness and dimensional jousting going on.
And what would we do in each situation.
Recap so see as you have seen we all make mistakes and as a GM you will need to learn to roll with the punches sometimes. Because this is a thing that happens in any and all games at some point.
Nascent comes from “nascens,” the present participle of the Latin verb nasci, which means “to be born.” It is a relative newcomer to the collection of English words that derive from that Latin verb.
First Known Use of nascency
1682
Look-up Popularity
Bottom 40% of words
Closing remarks
Zendead – Arkham City Such a good game for what it is. You play Batman and Catwoman. And get to run around an area 5 times the size of Arkham Asylum.
Joules – Hollow Knight (Game, Soundtrack, and Sheetmusic!)
Guard-a-Manger – Taste the Nation on Hulu. Padma Lakshmi takes a trip across America exploring the food cultures that different immigrant communities brought shedding light on those communities as well as what it means to be an American.
Music is courtesy of The Enigma TNG you can find his music on the following platforms
Immediately on the heels of a successful Kickstarter for a marvelous book, shedding light on a corner of the Earthdawn setting never given a full look before, FASA announced a major shake up and new Kickstarter for the kind of book that exemplified Earthdawn and tonight Josh Harrison, the Line Developer for Earthdawn at FASA is joining us on Seize the GM! Spoilers warning for the latest developments in the plot running through Earthdawn!
Earthdawn is sometimes called the Best Fantasy RPG you haven’t played! For people who don’t know its history, what’s the elevator pitch to get them to Earthdawn?
What’s your origin story with Earthdawn and FASA?
How is the 4th edition ruleset changed from the last 3 editions?
That can you tell us about the Empty Thrones?
Did you know how you were going to announce the BIG setting shattering news?
How long did it take to meet the goal for the new kickstarter?
What stretch goals are you most excited to have open so far?
What are you the most proud of in your Earthdawn work thus far?
You’ve also dived into Earthdawn podcasts with the Earthdawn Survival Guide! What has been the most enjoyable part of joining the podcasting masses? It is in the Podcast Compact that we have to talk about your podcast when you are a guest on our Podcast.
Joules – Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma. This is a funny high school anime with cooking battles that are as intense as what you’d see on Naruto. Chock full of accurate food facts, rivalries, grudges, and exploding clothes. But the neat thing is that you can watch each character, young and old, grow and evolve with each experience. There is a pretty prominent ecchi component early on, but it simmers down later in the series and is used for great comedic effect. You can stream this on VRV/Crunchyroll
Guard-a-manger- Aside from the obvious Empty Thrones Kickstarter and the EDSG Podcast, I would say that you should gather some inspiration from Gargoyles! Available on Disney+, this is one of the seminal works of 90s Cartoons that can serve as nonstop inspiration for storytelling to this day!
Josh – Agents of SHIELD. The final season with a gonzo filled unabashedly fun season of time hopping adventures!
Music is courtesy of The Enigma TNG you can find his music on the following platforms
Opti from Fraggin’ Unicorn Games joins us to talk about the Gangs of the Undercity Kickstarter and more!
So for those that don’t know who Opti is. Tell us a little of how you got into the gaming Industry?
When you started Fragging Unicorn to create something new, what did you want to see more of in the gaming space?
What are you doing now?
This kickstarter is all about the game – Gangs of the Undercity.
What inspired the concept for this game?
What type of game is it?
Are rules complex or simple?
What did you want to see from the Rules?
Do you have plans for a fully modular construction or will this be something that comes in packaged lots?
What can you tell us about the setting for Gangs of the Undercity?
What is the City Under?
Do you have anything else out there about this world?
Will this be an evolving world with an updating storyline(a la Shadowrun or Legend of the Five Rings) or more “Static” (Deadlands, IOU)
I know this is a tactical mini game with some really wicked sculpts you’ve been showing off on line, but do you have any plans for lower cost options for people who may not have the funds or space for a tackle box full of cool minis?
Maybe something like Paper minis or Pawns?
Will there be unpainted and painted options?
Have you gotten to think about your stretch goals?
What is your favorite Stretch goal you want to reach, besides all of them?
What has designing Gangs of the Undercity taught you about game design?
What is your favorite innovation in Gangs?
What did you want to do that you couldn’t quite fit into the design?
What comes next for Gangs of the Undercity?
If all goes well, how would you like the game to grow and evolve?
How would you like to maintain a connection/feedback to all of those who pickup the game?
Today we talk about the things we have done and the things we will be doing. What has gone well? What has gone … weller? Goals and hopes? Dreams and despairs?
Music is courtesy of The Enigma TNG you can find his music on the following platforms
April 24, 1892 The manor house of Lady Alice Engelwood
Clicks and whirls filled the small room as ether filled its chamber. The face of a young woman solidified from the mist.
“Welcome new crew member. I am AlIce 2.0 at your service “
The distorted voice said from the victrola horn that was connected to the machine that filled most of the room.
“What does AlIce stand for? I know you want to ask but you have better manners than to ask a lady her secrets. So I shall tell you. Artificial Life Intelligence Cognitive Ether. Yes I am powered by a difference engine as well. You may call me Alice for short. I understand that the use of this should not make what I am possible but here we are good sir.”
Alice is not sure how she came to be but her creator Lady Alice Engelwood is. It happened as Lady Engelwood was finishing up her work on this difference engine. Lightning struck a misgrounded lightning rod that was connected to her lab. She was touching the Engine when it struck and somehow a shard of her personality was imprinted into the machine.
How to Use AlIce 2.0 in Game:
Alice 2.0 can be a great help on that Victorian Airship or as a science officer for your team. Since she isn’t distracted like a normal person she can work even when the others are sleeping. She could as well be working behind the characters back to bring about their downfall.
The Cavern
Water drips off of your cape as you make your way deeper into the cave system. The coordinates were dropped into your secure communication network that you share with the others. The team will not be happy that you are out here alone with no backup. But the message said to come alone.
The Infrared light you use to work in the dark without giving away your location lights the way. As you turn a last corner the flash of bright light forces your image enhancer to cut on to keep you from being blinded. Looking around you see the silhouette of the masked vigilante known as the Shade. But no one has seen or heard from them in the better part of 5 years. That is why you and your group got together and started doing what the Shade had started but never quite finished.
“Welcome Shawn.” The gruff voice called from above. “I see you got my message. “
“Yes I did and how did you break our encryption? Or better yet what is this place?”
“Well if your team would like a better setup and maybe a bit of help from time to time The Cavern is yours. It has all the tech and other things a team of vigilantes would need to bring the city the Justice I was not able to. This body is beaten and broken but my gear is still cutting edge and I have the money to keep it up. So are you in or do I have to make you disappear?”
How to UseThe Cavern in Game:
The Cavern is a base of operations for a super team or maybe a team of Revolutionaries. The options are limitless here. The Shade is also a force of what the city used to need or was he a cancer that kept things from getting better.
Windchime of the Lost
As the breeze blew through the city streets the chimes of a lost windchime ring about. The sound is so discordant to what you figure the sound of a windchime should be. What did you want from the wild homeless guy? He said that if you left it on your front steps the sound would help those that are lost find their way. What could he have meant this thing sounds like a bunch of junk bouncing together. It is not an art piece, it is just garbage.
As you are getting ready to tear it down and throw it away a young girl hops up on the curb just as a car goes barrelling down the street almost hitting her. That is strange.
“ Hey mister did you see that? I didn’t see that car come screaming around the corner. If I hadn’t gotten off the street I would have been hit.
The next day a young homeless guy is walking down the street and as the wind picks up he trips right outside your place. Once up he is holding a pair of hundred dollar bills that he picked up from under a car, that doesn’t belong to one of your neighbors. You have never seen that car before.
Is it something that is just random luck or is it more. Only time will tell, but you seem to be a magnet for this new found luck. Everyday that you go out to a store you get the first parking spot. What is that about? Well you also have had a run of good luck at work getting easy assignments that have pushed your profession to the next level.
How to Use Windchime of the Lost in Game:
What is this strange item hard to say is it from a shaman of the streets or is it just a good luck talisman? Anyway you use it in a game, think about having it help others near it before the owner of the Windchime. Good will come to you but only after you use it to help others first. Maybe a prophet will tell them what they have or maybe not.
Joules
Ad Astra (Alt History)
“Sir the crafts have completed re-entry and we are moving to collect them. We expect to begin data analysis in about 12 hours or so.”
The scientist looks down and clears his throat. He always felt awkward addressing military personnel. The whole “Sir” thing messed with his train of thought. He centered himself and met the officer’s intense gaze.
“We expect that test launches with living creatures can proceed on schedule.”
“Also, we have gotten a lot of public support in regards to the gecko breeding experiment. There are a lot of private ventures that are willing to help fund the project, provided we allow them to live stream it.”
The officer sighed and shook his head in a mix of resignation and disappointment.
“If it will secure funding, have them write up a proposal and submit it. We will need to ensure the proper disclosure protocols.”
The scientist scribbles the instructions on his notepad.
“Also sir, we need approval for the proposed living specimens. We need to begin candidate selection soon. And the technical specifications on the craft will depend on the specimens’ genus and species.”
The officer takes the list, affixes his glasses and begins reading.
“Oh no, you’re not going to use any canids. I like those animals. They’re cute,” grumbles the officer. “There must be other viable candidates.”
“Well what would you suggest, sir?” stammers the scientist.
“What about those pink hairless apes? They keep popping up everywhere. They’re warm blooded, moderately intelligent, and easy to study. Seems like an ideal candidate.”
“I’ll submit your recommendation right away, Admiral Rex.” replies the scientist.
Sensing the conversation is at an end, the scientist begins walking back to his office, being wary to give his tail enough clearance so as not to smack the Admiral.
Those hairless apes always unnerved him. All warm and smooth. Sometimes he wished that a huge meteor would come and wipe them all out.
How to Use Ad Astra in Game:
Turn your players into space exploration test subjects. Or run the space race with dinosaurs. Would you do something to get the attention and maybe be uplifted?
The Eternal Ascension
Come here, young one.
I see that you are confused and lost. Tell me, what troubles you.
Ah I see.
You want to know what happens to our heroes when they get old?
Well I have a secret to tell you.
These paragons are just men and women (and sometimes catdogs).
You’ve traveled with them to the land of make believe. Learned not to beat yourself up and to accept the happy little accidents of life. You love the books and stories. Learned to love learning itself.
Ah, our heroes. They inspired us to stand up for what’s right even if we were the only ones doing so. To believe in truth and justice.
No matter how powerful they are, how beloved they are, they can’t outrun time itself.
And neither can we, dear child.
We outgrow the stories. Outlive our heroes.
But did we really lose them? Have they truly abandoned us?
While we may never know the details, It seems they persist.
You seem puzzled, dear child. Let me explain.
Our heroes are smart. They knew we’d need them, even if they couldn’t talk to us directly. So our paragons recorded their adventures and the lessons they learned. And then, trusted allies seed them in easy to find places. Their legends were gifted to others, so their stories may be lived anew. They gifted the world courage to carry on and endure. Thus their light is carried into the future.
This is what happens to our heroes at the end.
They ascend beyond the limits of flesh and blood. They became icons. Embodiments of their special philosophy. They become legends. They become gods.
But there is something you must remember. Something very important.
They became your heroes because you listened to them. You believed in them and what they wanted the world to be. And you wanted to be the kind of person they would approve of. And by your actions, you continue their work. To make the world the way they wished it to be.
This is the Eternal Ascension
How to Use The Eternal Ascension in Game:
This would be an interesting way to create a pantheon and mythos. Imagine if the gods weren’t always there. How do gods come around? It also may give your players a long term goal. Or as a hook for adventure. In order to ascend, your players need to take care of unfinished business.
Diamond Colosseum (Urban Primitive)
Titan panted, exhausted. He was the only one left to protect this sacred site. But he knew his sacred duty. He knew that to be seen as the bestest boi, he had to keep this place safe. And he would.
Titan did another loop around the perimeter. Sometimes, he thought he could pick up the faintest whiff of pine tar and chalk. Outside the perimeter, after it rained, he sometimes smelled fermented grains, smoked meats and various sweets.
During his sweep, his mind began to wander. What must have it been like back in the old days?
Days when the humans took walks, played with balls, and threw sticks. What did the humans do here? The aura of this place still felt electric. This is a place where great battles took place. Titan knew that. There were many sites like this all over the world. But what were the battles like? The bloodshed here was minimal. And although sometimes they found teeny chicken bones, no human bones were ever found.
“A huge battle and no one died! I wonder what that was like.” mused Titan.
He finished his perimeter sweep and laid down behind a rubbery plastic pentagon.
His nose twitched. He smelled something. After one glance around he began to dig furiously.
Something was here. Something powerful.
He kept digging.
The hair on his scruff stood on end. He found it.
A long smooth wooden stick. Thick on one end, thin on the other. There were letters burned into this stick.
He’d have to take this artifact back to the wise elders.
Maybe they’d know what “Louisville Slugger” meant.
How to Use Diamond Colosseum in Game:
Places of competition and great conflict carry an aura and feel of their own. So imagine coming across a grown over baseball diamond. What kind of energy would be embedded there. What kind of magical artifacts would be there.
Guard-a-Manger
Seedlings Blossoming
It wasn’t immediately apparent why it was going to matter. History is strange that way – the rippling effects of one moment in time rarely announce themselves as imperative. The seeds planted in the Hanging Garden have not been identified, but we know they sparked the changes still echoing today. These plants hold something special and when we eat them, something changes. Some say the legends describe them like a butterwort, but what is for sure is their consumption grants us something new.
They’ve been with us for a few thousand years, so super powers doesn’t cut it anymore. Flight? Speed? Strength to lift a bus? Fireballs? All just part of life. Identified. Licensed. Taxed. It’s how these Seedlings are incentivized to public service – but something has accelerated lately. As seedlings became more common, so did the technological drive recede. The powers have grown stronger and more varied; if we only knew how that plant gets into our food maybe we would know what is next.
How to Use Seedlings Blossoming in Game:
Seedlings Blossoming is a campaign or game world in toto. You can use this setup as a springboard for many different kinds of stories, from the classic super heroics to the Noir. The mystery of the Seeds – what they are, where they are from, and where they are now is nearly unlimited. The regulated and professional heroes means that history changed as we have known them for some time. The lack of technological progress, or the slower progress is the biggest difference as reliance on these Seedlings was possible.
Hazel Corman
Gravis never seemed to account for much with his little storefront and meager week to week existence. At the same time, Gravis didn’t stand out either with a little shop teetering on the edge of collapse month after month on a street that was full of these same stories. Downtown will take most of what you have to offer after all. It was Gravis’ adopted child that held the key, though.
While Gravis seemed to miss out on every opportunity, that was just the disguise that camouflaged the truth of that storefront to the world. Gravis was also a duly deputized crime fighter with extraordinary ability. His stooped stance and grating voice would vanish in the blink of an eye when he was needed to stop something far more important than just a flower shop on skid row.
The storefront held a greater secret than even that. Gravis’ adopted child had been unhappy, unaware of anything more than a ragged life that was … fine, but far from anything extraordinary. It’s why they didn’t understand the fear in Gravis’ eyes when they found the seedlings that were growing hidden in the back. Unique, beautiful, and thoroughly entancing, these beauties had been Gravis’ secret.
Gravis died before he could decide whether to share that secret with Hazel. It happens, of course, as masks and derring do so often lead to an impromptu demise. Without Gravis, without his father, Hazel was suddenly left to decide what to do with the shop, life, and those unaccounted for seedlings. There was a fruit starting to mature on that seedling to the right, and a feeling of warmth from it.
Maybe a little treat, and tomorrow, Hazel can decide how or even whether to go on.
How to Use Hazel Corman in Game:
Hazel Corman is a plot factory waiting to be spun up. With a father who was a secret super hero, the potential for hijinks can easily ensure. Should the players be friends or acquaintances, they may get suckered into saving Hazel and the shop, or perhaps they find out about the seedlings in the back that may well hold a deeper secret. Especially if they are Blossoming.
Parados
Between the cracks of the pavement, as scraggly plants grow in what little light and soil is left, lies a secret. The secret may be something large or small, but it is hard to tell from where you sit. The crack in the pavement doesn’t let just anyone peer through it. You need answers to your questions … answers to what is now bubbling inside of you.
This is when you call on the Parados. A simple wave or greeting as they walk past is all that is needed to summon them. They take their places around you, arms crossed, hair coiffed, scarification clear as day, and look you up and down – Waiting. You see them move slightly, from left to right and then right to left. You can hear them in your head. You ask the question, the question you think you want to ask – “What lies beyond the crack in the pavement? What feeds those scraggly plants?”
The answer isn’t what you expect. Your sight is swirling as you see them dancing around your field of vision, purring and spouting answers but not to what you asked. You hear what came before; you hear what comes next; you see the crack in the pavement open up. As the chorus subsides, you realize you must go – and leave behind an offering, a token, an trinket at the crack in the pavement not knowing if it will fall through or be scooped up by the Parados
How to Use Parados in Game:
The Parados can serve any number of functions, but will most often reflect how your characters are interacting with a larger world. Overarching themes and past events are revealed when the Parados appear and they may also serve as a special effect or description of character abilities. Their origin? Their true nature? Whether they are masked? All of that can be left to you … or left to the imaginations of the players.
Closing remarks
Zendead – Do something that makes you feel happy. These are some trying times so it is ok to take some time for yourself and your significant other if you have one. Be safe and have some fun when you can.
Joules – @ikristypeterson on twitter and the_black_kristy on instagram. She’s one hell of an artist, GM and mom. Go check out her stuff
Guard-a-Manger – Defenders of the Earth – A saturday morning cartoon I grew up on is on Amazon Prime now. It features Flash Gordon, Mandrake the Magician, The Phantom, and Lothar with their kids opposing Ming the Merciless in an 80s cartoon fashion. It is full of surprisingly rich ideas to build a world and is one that I love greatly.
Music is courtesy of The Enigma TNG you can find his music on the following platforms
Today the story of the Uplifts shall be what we are going to talk about. The story of the Uplifts is creation unlike any other in the Terrans creation of a new race. The companies that created uplifts treated them as property. Well at least the process and the patented gene sequences that are part of them.
Appearance
The appearance of the uplifts is not a thing that can be generalized. Unlike several other races that humans have created. The race called uplifts is actually a few different species. Species that have been uplifted are as follows: Chimpanzees, Octopuses, Orangutans, Dolphins, and Crows. With such a diverse grouping it is hard to say what is normal.
Hominids are larger than the un uplifted version of their species. The average for them is about 1.6 meters in weight. Their weight is not as easy to average. Zees as a rule tend to be lighter in frame, where Tangs lean to heavier weights. Corvids are a strange mix of bird and hominid shape. They keep their avian head and a set of wings that are massive to lift themselves for short flights. They are very light in weight. Needed so their wings are still usable. They also have a full set of arms that end in a hand. Corvids have hands scaled like the birds they come from.
Then you have the uplifted oceanic species. They are both very unique in how they have been changed or not changed. Octopuses have been increased in size till they are about 2 meters in diameter and have had special breathing apparatuses created for them to breath out of water. Where dolphins have had nothing done to them size wise. They do have suits that help them to move around and manipulate their environment.
History
The Uplifts history is humans changing animals to be more intelligent. Given them what they first thought of as enough intelligence to be useful as a working class. Then the understanding that they may have given them the ability to continue to increase that intelligence. Uplifts have the normal range of Intelligence as humans and many have a higher than human empathy level. Most of them come from speices with highly social groups.
The uplifting process has only been successful by a few companies. They guard that secret closely. But there is another way to create them that is wholly biological. That was how the children of the first generation of uplifts hit human level intelligence. Then they started going after their freedom. It took several escaping to get some level of freedom. Uplifts are the newest of all the created, as they call themselves. They have only been around for 42 years.
Megawati, an orangutan, was the first uplifted creature. Then oceanic uplifts came to light. Mankind started sending manned missions to Europa to see if anything was under the ice sheets. Those were the earliest tests for uplifts even though they were not at normal human intelligence levels yet. It was after the discovery that would catapult mankind into the stars that most of the first gen uplifts would start families of their own.
Major Events
Biosphere created the first uplift was in 2215.
First true uplift was Megawati about 20 years later.
Use of Uplifts in the manned Europa mission 35 years ago.
Current Situation
The uplifts are treated as indentured servants that need to pay for their creation. At least the first generation ones. They have a family that is helping to pay off the companies. Companies started with such large numbers of uplifts because they figured that most would never survive. But here they are after 40 years helping to make improvements to the races.
We are going to be digging into one of the sentient races one the world. And for this one we will be diving deeper into the Synths. The topics will be; basics of their physiology, some history of where they came from, a few major events that have helped to define them as well as the current situation of them.
Appearance
This portion will deal with generalizations about the Synths. Some individuals will be above or below these averages. Let’s start with height and weight, those are close to Terran norms. The average height is 2.2 meters and they weigh about 100 kilograms. They have a life expectancy that is quite a bit shorter than humans at 35 years. Age is a hard limit unlike the other created sentiences. Synths have what you would expect from Terran base genetics for hair, eye and skin color.
History
Creation
Before mankind had figured out how to land on Mars. The first humans to land on Mars had Synthetic Humans to help. There were several parts to the creation of Synths. The creator that attached to the project is Saki Matsumoto. Human’s created the Synth to be a colonizing workforce . This makes them the oldest of the created. While they are the oldest they are also the race that humans had the hardest time with.
Humans had created them as a way to help colonize the new planet. This made them so they had to be flexible in the beginning. They filled many rolls to help humans get a foothold on the red planet. Most of those roles were about doing the labor that humans didn’t want to do. Construction was what the first batch of synth’s did. New synth’s were being designed to fill new roles. These were not for doing manual labor work. The more domestic roles were starting to be filled by synths then. so humans didn’t have to clean the house and other jobs. That was when problems started to arise.
Synth War
This was the beginning of what became known as the Synth War. The revolt started when a group of combat synths were guarding a mineral rights claim and the owner came to inspect. The claim was the result of other synths out in the area that were out in unclaimed territory where they found a vein of Tirillium. Jacobson claimed it was his territory. The personas that found it were Jacobson’s . The combat synths were ordered to kill the synth’s that found the claim. The small band killed the owner and started the Rebellion.
It was started on Hellas Planitia and to this day it is the location of the Synth stronghold in the galaxy. But this started the long battle over whether synths are truly sentient. Fighting over the ownership of the claim lasted for over thirty years. After they won freedom. In the last 100 years humans stopped trying to drag them back into slavery. Something that they carried for two hundred years.
Major Events
The creation, that is the Synth’s, came online in the year 2117. They are a non-reproducing race.
They became self aware only a few months after coming online. Synth’s were created to mimic humans in most ways so this was going to happen.
Rebellion startedalmost as soon as the Synth’s arrived on Mars. Once they had a world they could run on they began to evolve. The first batches didn’t have decom dates.
Hard coding Decom Dates into the gene sequenceis normal. They are why the race has a life length of only 35 years.
After the last 100 years the synth can only in the last 54 years create more without having a human to set it up for them.
Current Situation
While the worlds that house synths have agreed to make them free to forge their own way. Some still think this is a mistake. In the end they are a strong and willful race just like their creators which could be part of why they are always smashing into each other. Only time will tell if things will settle down between the two but for now things seem to be going in that direction.
Every so often we like to look at the books that a GM should have in their library to enhance their role as a storyteller. Check out one of the previous installments linked below if you missed them!
Zendead
The Gazetteer Writer’s Manual Deborah Christian, Bruce Heard, If you want to write up a gazetteer for your game world this is a great book to take the time to read. It is a worldbuilder’s primer. Since we all do some level of that in our games this is a great book to have in your library.
Norse Mythology Gaiman So I have read a few versions of the eddas and the sagas and while these are not literal translations of the original texts they stories he has chosen are some that most people will not know. The way in which he has embellished the parts he has chosen made the stories interesting to read. Which for someone that loves the old stories this is one you should add to your library.
The Once and Future King T.H. White Once more a retelling of a classic. This book is a masterpiece for a reason. If you want to include Arthurian legend elements then you must read this book. It is not the whole of the legends of King Arthur but it is what you should have. It includes great moments and really does help you to understand the legends.
Joules
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind: Watercolor Impressions: This book contains absolutely achingly beautiful watercolor pieces that were concept sketches for the above referenced movie. The reason I’m recommending it? Well, you play in an imaginary world. And you need to describe it to your players. Sometimes you need inspiration. Or, you can use Miyazaki-san’s artwork as practice. Try to write out a description of what’s there. Then go back to see what elements you spent time on and what you passed over. What you described vividly and what fell flat. And it’s Miyazaki’s art. His work is splendid
Armegeddonquest: Did you like Good Omens? Well this is a similar premise but an extremely different execution. This graphic novel focuses on the Antichrist, Tazio, who is doing everything he can to thwart his destiny to bring about the end of the world. It’s incredibly gripping, fast paced and complex. Everything is deliberate. Granted the early art is rough, but it improves as the series progresses.
Warning this will require a hearty time investment. 900+ pages is no joke.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead: Tom Stoppard is a freaking genius. Intrigue, philosophy, rapiers, blood, love and rhetoric are in this amazing play. Thing is that all this takes place within the backdrop of Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. It’s probably the most amazing example of a play within a play. And it also shows that you can tell your own unique and amazing story within a predefined universe. And you don’t have to frag up the cannon to do so
Guard-a-Manger
Pinnochio, Vampire Slayer. Val Jensen & Dusty Higgins. A series of graphic novels, Pinnocio, Vampire Slayer takes a look at an alternate tale of Pinnochio complete with vampires, a love story, and an excellent example of how to take a known concept and weave a fresh mythology around it. Inspiration writ large.
Tension City, Jim Lehrer. Jim Lehrer gives a first person look at United States Presidential Debates from Kennedy-Nixon to Obama-McCain. Having served as a moderator of nearly a dozen Presidential Debates, Lehrer provides a look at the “tension city” in which each of the candidates is living as well as his impressions and observations that only a vetern newsie can provide. This book can show you how organizations and people react under high tension.
Trouble for Trumpets, Peter Cross & Peter Dallas-Smith. I may be skirting the bookshelf a little here, but this is a book that brought me a huge amount of joy and creativity as a child. The Trumpets are preparing themselves for an invasion from the Grumpets as Summer turns to Winter and the combination of unforgettable painting and evocative story as simple as it may be is indescribably gleeful. A truly unique fantasy world that will keep you wondering what you don’t see in that nearby glenn. Hunt down a copy if you can find one.
Frankenstein, Far Eastern Myth, Dune, Stephen King, Hitchhikers Guide, Big Sleep, Extra Credits, Fables, Book of Fables, Art of War, Classical Western Myth, Art Books, Bad Ass, The Thing Explainer, Zeus Grants Stupid Wishes , Dragonlance Chronicles, Shaken and Neat, Slaughter House 5, Eastern Philosophy, Imajica, Philip K Dick Reader, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail 72, The Poetics
Closing remarks
Zendead – Go check out Octoberpod. It is a really cool show. They also are great at promoting us on twitter all the time. If you like the creepy give it a watch you won’t regret it.
Joules – Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Stories
Guard-a-Manger – Self care. Life is a bit out of wack right now. Not only are we in the midst of trying to determine whether we can come out of the pandemic’s throws but the United States is facing widespread protests. Emotions are running high for good reasons, but don’t forget to take some time to rest.
Music is courtesy of The Enigma TNG you can find his music on the following platforms
The last post we talked about the planet of Delta Horologii. Well we did a worksheet of some of the basics about the planet. In the sheet is a reference to the Horo’s a native race of Organo-silica life. While they are going to get a writeup for sure. I wanted to talk about the sentience that Terrans dragged to this colony rock. They are the Synths, The Uplifted, AI and the Plugs.
Created Sentience
So a short description of each of these is as follows.
Synth is short for Synthetic Human so yes they are fully artificial. Synths were designed and created to fill niches and work in places that are too dangerous for Terrans. Synths are strong and fast.
Plugs are force-grown human clones. They insert a Stack Recorder to collect and backup the psyche of a person then the Plug the new persona into a general blank clone.
Uplifts are a few different things. What happens when you look at something like chimpanzees or octopi for their ability to start making use of tools and other things like a possible language. Well then you take those animals and you force evolution on them at an accelerated rate. You create Uplifts, a new race within a species.
Artificial Intelligence or AI for short is the final sentience. AI’s exist in the computer networks of starships or planet networks. They as a general rule see mankind and its physical children as things that they need to protect from themselves. Is this truly how they see things or is this a part of the coding that has given rise to these thinking machines. As of now AI’s are not self replicating which is a built in feature of their code.
Terrans
Now a bit about the Terrans that have found this planet. They are highly diverse in the things that they have done to themselves. Developments in cybernetics and gene therapy are very wide. Mankind as a general rule live well in to their 150’s. The average terran is 2 meters tall and massing around 95kg. Then individuals will have modifications done to themselves. Almost all Terrans that are over the age of 10 have at least one mod that lets them connect to the Mesh. Humans, after much upheaval and conflict, have come to understand that they are all the same at the molecular level.
Humans created all of these other sentience. Is this a good thing for them? It is hard to say yes or no to that question. Mankind is far from a perfect species and is not the most understanding. While the children of Mankind are diverse they are also the children of Mankind. Which carries with it its own set of problems.
So we have touched on the main forms of sentience that Terrans have brought to this world. What about the native race of sentience that has been here for a very long time? What are they and why have they been so content to stay on this planet? We will be touching on them a little bit here but having a much bigger post in the future.
Native Sentience
The Horo as the Terrans call them just call themselves Tilliam which means “Folk”. They are a lifeform that has a shape that is different than humans want to think of as normal. Each Tilliam is a composite of a plant and an insect colony. The plant is a base structure that the colony lives on and in. Their form of communication among themselves is pheromones. But they had to find a better way to communicate with Terrans once they showed up. It took them a bit of time to work things out with the new aliens.
Horos are able to move because the plant structure is the inner and outer shell of them. The Callium is the plant that houses the colony. The colony is the way the body can move. The insect called a Till creates the inner workings. They are on average about 10 cm in length. A few hundred Till create a colony, and they have a hivemind of sorts. When they are in a Callium the two fuse to create a psyche and true sentience is born. The average height of Horos is 3 meters and the mass is about 120 kg. But more about them to come soon.
