Fan-freakin'-tastic
What a great time last weekend was - Pat, Scott and I had a good time exploring Portland, talking shop, arguing passionately, and playing games together. It was a good time for renewal and reflection, and I'll tell you what, my interest in Spycraft has been reinvigorated five-fold. Next year is going to be so amazing, your eyes are going to bleed from joy.
Quotes:
"Schwa."
"Heat is like Ocean's 11's grandfather -- one that has been through both World Wars, lost a leg in one, and feels compelled to tell you about it each time you visit."
"TOKI! TOKI!"
"L.A. has nothing like this."
"I bring the mad blue sparks."
"WHY IN GOD'S NAME DO YOU HATE MY SKILLS?!"
Awesome.
Job News
Remember back in the day, when I was talking about a cool game-related job that I was going for? Well, it was the creative writer position on the Magic: The Gathering development team, and I didn't get it. I just found out 2 days ago, after a 5-month long (!!) application process involving numberous letters, 2 homeworks assignments and agonizing waiting. I was in the top 10 out of 600 applicants, but not in the top 4 that got interviews - consequently, I was good enough to not blow off but not one of the 4 to be interviewed. Let's split the difference at 7.
The final hire is a Magic artist, seen here (bottom of the page). While I'm a little disappointed that the end choice was someone with an "in," I'm not surprised. Gaming is still very much a cottage industry, and considering the tight nature of relationships combined with the generally tight finances of most companies, having someone you already know and trust makes things that much easier. My having to move to Seattle also factored into the decision, I'm sure.
But at least I can get some use out of my materials. For my initial "creative project" in round 2, I created this one page example of my creativity while explaining why I wanted the position. Read and enjoy (and gaze upon my comic likeness - Fish XXIII informed me that some of you have tried in vain to find a picture of me out there). Comment below if you like.
"Does he look like a BITCH?"
I'm probably catching on to a trend a few years too late, but I thought this was funny as hell.
Weird Campaign Idea of the Month: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Back in the late 80's and early 90's, when D&D was struggling through its new second edition launch and the gaming market was in a bit of a slump, there was one shining gem that attracted new gamers to the market like nothing else - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness. Fueled by the success of the cartoon show and franchise properties, Palladium revised the original small run of the first edition and put out what is arguably their best and most universally praised product ever. In 7th grade, I ran an 8 player group during lunch hour, taking the mutant weasals and porcupines and elephants of our campaign through many chop-sockey adventures from the streets of New York to the reaches of outer space and the Mesezoic Era. From there, we expanded into other Palladium games like Ninjas & Superspies, Heroes Unlimited, and finally Rifts, but never was gaming so darn satisfying as when we were playing TMNT together.
I was fortunate enough at GenCon Indy this year to find some TMNT books for extremely low prices (as in, I rebought my print run for less than $15), and though I hate the system, the nostalgia is overwhelming. In considering all the new fun bits of the Dark Inheritance setting (now, or shortly, available in stores), one kept coming back to me. We've got the Martial Artist; we've got the Edgemaster; we've got Sword Basics and Mastery (both the Edgemaster and the new melee feats of DI appear in the Sharper Edge web supplement) and the coup de grace - we even have mutant animals, thanks to the Hybrid macro species.
So, with Dark Inheritance in hand, what else do you need? Pan-Asian Collective, with its excellent expansion on the basic unarmed combat feats, addition of new unarmed and melee feat trees, stances and all things Oriental, is a great place to start. Don't forget the Martial Arts Mook NPC class either - it's perfect for Hand ninjas. Mystics of the East, another web supplement, can also be great for squeezing in some mysticism with the Shinobi PrC. If you want to stay true to the game's roots,
Shadowforce Archer's physical adepts or mentalists would be good for modeling both the TMNT superhero Radical, or just plain crazy wuxia. Finally, if you want some true weirdness like the Triceratons or the little squiddy aliens that appear in the early TMNT runs, the Daemonhost of DI might be a good place to start.
Look for more from Mythic Dreams TBA that will further enhance this type of campaign, too. Enjoy, folks!
What a great time last weekend was - Pat, Scott and I had a good time exploring Portland, talking shop, arguing passionately, and playing games together. It was a good time for renewal and reflection, and I'll tell you what, my interest in Spycraft has been reinvigorated five-fold. Next year is going to be so amazing, your eyes are going to bleed from joy.
Quotes:
"Schwa."
"Heat is like Ocean's 11's grandfather -- one that has been through both World Wars, lost a leg in one, and feels compelled to tell you about it each time you visit."
"TOKI! TOKI!"
"L.A. has nothing like this."
"I bring the mad blue sparks."
"WHY IN GOD'S NAME DO YOU HATE MY SKILLS?!"
Awesome.
Job News
Remember back in the day, when I was talking about a cool game-related job that I was going for? Well, it was the creative writer position on the Magic: The Gathering development team, and I didn't get it. I just found out 2 days ago, after a 5-month long (!!) application process involving numberous letters, 2 homeworks assignments and agonizing waiting. I was in the top 10 out of 600 applicants, but not in the top 4 that got interviews - consequently, I was good enough to not blow off but not one of the 4 to be interviewed. Let's split the difference at 7.
The final hire is a Magic artist, seen here (bottom of the page). While I'm a little disappointed that the end choice was someone with an "in," I'm not surprised. Gaming is still very much a cottage industry, and considering the tight nature of relationships combined with the generally tight finances of most companies, having someone you already know and trust makes things that much easier. My having to move to Seattle also factored into the decision, I'm sure.
But at least I can get some use out of my materials. For my initial "creative project" in round 2, I created this one page example of my creativity while explaining why I wanted the position. Read and enjoy (and gaze upon my comic likeness - Fish XXIII informed me that some of you have tried in vain to find a picture of me out there). Comment below if you like.
"Does he look like a BITCH?"
I'm probably catching on to a trend a few years too late, but I thought this was funny as hell.
Weird Campaign Idea of the Month: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Back in the late 80's and early 90's, when D&D was struggling through its new second edition launch and the gaming market was in a bit of a slump, there was one shining gem that attracted new gamers to the market like nothing else - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness. Fueled by the success of the cartoon show and franchise properties, Palladium revised the original small run of the first edition and put out what is arguably their best and most universally praised product ever. In 7th grade, I ran an 8 player group during lunch hour, taking the mutant weasals and porcupines and elephants of our campaign through many chop-sockey adventures from the streets of New York to the reaches of outer space and the Mesezoic Era. From there, we expanded into other Palladium games like Ninjas & Superspies, Heroes Unlimited, and finally Rifts, but never was gaming so darn satisfying as when we were playing TMNT together.
I was fortunate enough at GenCon Indy this year to find some TMNT books for extremely low prices (as in, I rebought my print run for less than $15), and though I hate the system, the nostalgia is overwhelming. In considering all the new fun bits of the Dark Inheritance setting (now, or shortly, available in stores), one kept coming back to me. We've got the Martial Artist; we've got the Edgemaster; we've got Sword Basics and Mastery (both the Edgemaster and the new melee feats of DI appear in the Sharper Edge web supplement) and the coup de grace - we even have mutant animals, thanks to the Hybrid macro species.
So, with Dark Inheritance in hand, what else do you need? Pan-Asian Collective, with its excellent expansion on the basic unarmed combat feats, addition of new unarmed and melee feat trees, stances and all things Oriental, is a great place to start. Don't forget the Martial Arts Mook NPC class either - it's perfect for Hand ninjas. Mystics of the East, another web supplement, can also be great for squeezing in some mysticism with the Shinobi PrC. If you want to stay true to the game's roots,
Shadowforce Archer's physical adepts or mentalists would be good for modeling both the TMNT superhero Radical, or just plain crazy wuxia. Finally, if you want some true weirdness like the Triceratons or the little squiddy aliens that appear in the early TMNT runs, the Daemonhost of DI might be a good place to start.
Look for more from Mythic Dreams TBA that will further enhance this type of campaign, too. Enjoy, folks!
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