GM's Day Sale

The March Fo(u)rth GM’s Day Sale is now on at DriveThruRPG.

Neuromancer

Apple TV making William Gibson’s Neuromancer after people have been trying for forty years. Curious to see how the tech will work because you can do most of it now apart from minor things like retractable finger knives and private space stations.

Of course, nowadays the sky above the port being the colour of television tuned to a dead channel is black with a No Signal bar.

Discworld: Adventures In Ankh-Morpork

Modiphius has acquired the Discworld licence, and has announced an RPG. signup news here with a link to a survey. Aiming to Kickstart in the winter.

No word yet of a system. They’ve adjusted their 2d20 house system for different complexity levels but can they adjust it for characters who aren’t really competent?

(The survey mentions 2d20 among other systems when asking what we play.)

Discworld has previously had an official GURPS book with two editions and a supplement (as well as first getting RPG-ish eyes on with an introductory article in White Dwarf magazine in its early WFRP days) but a bigger line would obviously work. The main issue would be making it feel like Discworld specifically and not just like a typical fantasy RPG session going wrong in an amusing manner.

The licence says tabletop games, and there have board games already including a version of Thud! so there may be more there too, as the survey mentions those while focusing on RPGs and Discworld favourites. I would expect miniatures too, as they like making miniatures.

The trick is for it to be funny without people acting funny. Never get the impression that Discworld characters think of themselves as anything other than serious (while they may acknowledge the situations they find themselves in are absurd, they still treat them as serious issues to sort). Difficult to run/play. But yes, they’ll sell a few copies!

Ian

I'd put my money on it being based off one of the many variations of the 2D20 system. Its pretty narrative, reasonably light and tends away from DND style hack n slash, something that Discworld definitely is not. In all, the thing I am happiest about is that Discworld has not been licensed to WOTC. They've made a mess of so many things and don't show any signs of improving either. Modiphius is a solid company with a good track record and from my experience they have handled the other licenses they've picked up really well.

LIam

February the 29th

I feel that February the 29th should be a holiday. I mean, what else are you going to do with it?

The Crow (2024) photos

Empire shares first look photos from a Vanity Fair interview (read one free) with director Rupert Sanders. The first two are from happier times, the third shows what we’ll be seeing in the main story.

I have doubts, but I saw Wicked Prayer so I can do this too.

“I grew up listening to Joy Division and the Cure, and this movie is a bit like a Cure song – the beauty of melancholy.”

Rupert Sanders

Iwájú

Iwájú, a new animated series from Disney and Kugali, a family adventure in a solarpunk future Nigeria. (Trailer)

The series dropped today on D+ so I plan to spend an afternoon with it.

Our Brilliant Ruin

Our Brilliant Ruin is now live on Kickstarter. An entropic apocalypse approaches a fin de siècle world. What will you do as it all winds down?

Also important to me is making sure that everyone who wants it can have a copy of the game. We’re planning to make the full core book PDF available to everyone who wants it for free, whether or not you back the project. Your support helps make this possible (and hopefully ensures everyone at your game table has their own copy on game night).

Justin Achilli

Heart: Dagger in the Heart

Dagger in the Heart is a big 144 page adventure for Heart: The City Beneath, by Gar Hanrahan. Interest in Heart rising.

Buttons are good

The TV is now on its third remote control. The original lasted over a decade and was taken out by a cup of coffee, while the replacement lasted fourteen months and just stopped acknowledging some buttons, which does not bode well for the new replacement of the same model.

Moon lander Odysseus

Next time maybe do the expensive safety check rather than sending something to the Moon where it might fall over and lose half its operating window.

Brond

I just had a terrible idea for a reference leaning into the location and Gothic theme at the Glasgow Nationals, as ain’t nobody gonna get this, sadly. Brond, the 1987 Channel 4 miniseries based on the novel by Frederic Lindsay about a Glasgow Uni student who witnesses the literally winking murder of a child by the titular criminal / spy / perhaps I was being too literal but I always thought he was the Devil, and it gets worse for him from there. My brother had the theme on EP, and it certainly doesn’t hurt my theory. This may be how Demon: The Descent looks to a character on the outside.

Star Trek Adventures second edition

Star Trek Adventures second edition news signup.

So in today's big announcement; I worked on the Star Trek Adventures Second Edition RPG!

There's so much this new edition offers - as well as streamlined mechanics and support to play in every era of Star Trek.

Alison Cybe

Nationals playtests

GUGS playtested some Nationals games this weekend, seven weeks ahead of the event. I hear it went well! Though not many games are at that stage yet. Which is kind of a relief for mine.

A Haunting

My prompt for thinking about true stories was the documentary series Amityville: An Origin Story, hence my including the note about stories people claim to be true. Going from a true tragedy to a byword for schlock.

A True Story

Have you ever taken a true story, or a supposedly true tall tale, as the basis for an adventure or campaign?

I’ve borrowed elements for setup here and there - I’ve always wanted to base an adventure on scientists going into a dormant volcano to get data to better predict eruptions.

The invasion of Ukraine two years on

This act of evil and stupidity continues.

Tomb Raider RPG

You wait years for a Tomb Raider RPG and then one is announced nine months after the free one.

Madame Web

Madame Web (2024)

As I suspected when seeing the trailer:

Madame Web could easily lose eight minutes that didn’t work and a couple of costume choices and be a pretty fun movie taking an interesting idea and running with it, but I presume they were required to connect it to the titular obscure Marvel character.

Someone with Final Destination style sorta-helpful visions of the future trying to save people from a murderer, that’s cool.

Someone with one non-combat superpower having to take on a full-tilt supervillain, also cool.

Disgruntled hero having to deal with the kids she has to protect, also fun.

The stuff I’d lose which I assume they were stuck with:

ChatRIP

Delighted that after someone made an evil supercomputer it was undone by people messing with it, as has long been the case with evil supercomputers in SF. Shame they didn’t get it to sing Daisy, Daisy but we can’t have everything.

The Bad Batch 3.01-3.03

Star Wars: The Bad Batch

3.01: Confined

“Imprisoned on Tantiss, Omega adjusts to a new life.”

30 minutes plus credits including a two-minute Previously cut and scored for drama.

“When have we ever followed orders?”

The opening three episodes start with a slow-burn setup of Omega’s captivity.

Animation showoff bit: multiple scenes gloomily lit only by computer screens and dim overhead lighting.

--

3.02 Paths Unknown

“Following a lead, Hunter and Wrecker make a startling discovery.”

24 1/2 minutes plus credits. Despite not moving unusually fast, it starts in such a hurry that the theme tune cuts off early.

The music cues referencing Aliens should give you a hint of what the ruined abandoned genetics lab is like.

Design showoff bit: the very Heorot-looking Devaronian palace.

--

3.03 Shadows of Tantiss

“Omega and Crosshair hatch a daring plan.”

24 1/2 minutes plus credits.

In case Hemlock being in charge of a torture-happy genetic experiment and leaving troopers to die as they called for aid in 3.01 wasn’t enough, it says a lot about someone if he’s happy that the Emperor is coming for an inspection.

Animation showoff bit: dramatically backlit Crimson Guard.

This show sometimes really shows off how far the CGI woodentop look has come.

Nationals 2024 plans

Plan one: something along the lines of Last Dance with the Goth scene front and centre. Buuuuut I lack plot.

The backup plan is to do a fairly standard mystery but crank up the Vampire: The Masquerade setting’s Gothic-Punk vibe above its default levels.

A club called Angels Fall

Elysium in a gallery after midnight

A meeting in a cemetery with a blind Hecata

Dark alleys

Subway stations

A chase across rooftops

Already largely ruled out Victorian as there’s a Victoriana/Steampunk category.

Now halfway from the Nationals GM allocation to the event and... well, got a backup plan...

Mitch Benn's Gilbert & Sullivan's Dracula

Mitch Benn’s Gilbert & Sullivan’s Dracula.

And then, Mitch Benn’s Gilbert & Sullivan’s Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

Conpulsion 2024 RPG programme

Conpulsion 2024 RPG programme as of six weeks to go.

Modern fantastic fight scene idea

Superheroes, urban fantasy, that kind of thing.

Modern office building with motion-activated lights. The human(oid) heroes set them off. These seemingly corporeal(ish) monsters don’t.

The Hugos disqualification scandal

Kat Jones has resigned from Hugos administration for Glasgow 2024 Worldcon, among other effects.

Propulsion at 20

Propulsion, the 24-hour gaming marathon at GEAS (named later, I believe) started on this day in 2004.

Not really viable for revival currently due to the bigger student union building being unavailable for a year, among other reasons, but maybe someday...

Bumblebee director for Masters Of The Universe?

Travis Knight is also a key member of Laika animation studio.

Hearing! Yay!

Hearing restored thanks to block removal. Easier than the last two times this ear has gone wonky.

Mood while waiting affected by radio playing I Will Survive, Dizzy and Blockbuster. I swear.

(And since one was used, I got to ask what “the thing with the light and magnifier that you look in ears with” is actually called, having wondered for years. An oroscope.)

(So now you know.)

Happy Valentine's Day to all who celebrate

And now, Mardi Gras parade videos.

Roses are red

Salsa is often red

Fire engines are red

Iron Man’s armour usually has some red in it

Superman’s cape is red

Roses are nice I guess?

Pancake Day

Pancakes achieved (thanks mum!) for, as is traditional, the only day they are!

D&D 5.1

Dungeons & Dragons is to get new and heavily tweaked but backwards-compatible 5e rulebooks starting with the Player’s Handbook due September 17th, Dungeon Master’s Guide November 12th and Monster Manual February 18th 2025. A full set to further confuse D&D edition numbering.

Bagpuss at 50

Bagpuss first aired on this day in 1974. Still in regular rotation through my childhood and past.

Super Bowl LVIII

Good Super Bowl. Overtime is a lot more fun than a penalty shootout. Now to catch up on the trailers and other adverts (exception for Selling Jesus) because we don’t get those here.

Nationals looming

Nine weeks to Nationals and... pretty much done with the Conpulsion quiz. Which is earlier, sure, but...

D&D at 50, for real, maybe?

Sounds like D&D at fifty might be about now.

Happy Lunar New Year to all who celebrate

A happy Year of the Dragon!

John Rogers on cons and heists

John Rogers, creator of Leverage and also writer of the Crimeworld supplement for FATE Worlds, on con and heist story structure. He covered some of this in Crimeworld as it also needs the act structure.

Sometimes context can add a lot

I missed this week’s What We Do In the Shadows (episode 4.08) on BBC Two and am catching up on Disney+.

(Yes, I could be a year ahead. I’m not. I like watching TV on the TV, it’s bigger.)

Episode 4.08 is presented as an episode of Laszlo’s favourite home makeover show Go Flip Yourself.

Complete with fake intro.

AND DISNEY+ PUT THE ‘SKIP INTRO’ BUTTON ON THE FAKE INTRO.

That’s beautiful.

Happy 50th birthday to Seth Green.

Dialogue for somewhere like Buffy or something

He looks like the Sad Trombone noise.

Vampire: The Crowded Streets chapter two

We have a Victorian Ravnos witch (alternate bane so she can have a house and shop) and a Lasombra computer security expert (also alternate bane so he can function).

So not my subtlest ploy, but an emailed video file of a ritual murder got them both called in...

Bluesky

Bluesky is now open. See how that goes.

National Werewolf Day

Yes, apparently.

Our Flag Continues To Mean Death

Our Flag Means Death season two reaches here much faster than S1 did. The tonal swing of Stede’s shenanigans and Blackbeard’s reign of terror is pretty sharp.

King Charles has begun treatment for cancer. Noting this here to remember it.

They made a Curseborne movie already?

Not really. Probably. Longlegs trailer at Empire.

Bonus: You’ve got the teeth of the hydra upon you.

Dialogue for... probably nothing really.

My mother was courted by one of the Crench boys when I was a kid. I knew the family had gotten rich by dubious means, so when she asked I said I wasn’t a fan. But honestly I was more concerned that if she married him and we took his name I wouldn’t be able to pursue a career with ranks because I could never be a captain.

Nationals T Minus 70 Days

Ten weeks to go! (If I can read a calendar...)

I’m currently undecided between two or three possible ideas. They all lean into the Gothic theme to some extent as I’m running Vampire, one of the categories that exists because of the theme.

One using it as backdrop and tone for a relatively “normal” adventure which is fine but a bit... “normal”, one about a band a la Last Dance which is good for a vibe but trickier for rising action and the like, and one Victorian melodrama which loses the clash of the mundane and horrific and also steps on the Victorian category’s shiny booted toes so is very much the “or three” option.

It’s okay that I’ve already been thinking about this for six weeks, right?

It's Groundhog Day

... again.

Feels strange not trying to create a player character.

Curseborne has questions

Curseborne from Onyx Path has a site now, which gives a hint of what it is through an online questionnaire.

Modern supernatural with various monster types, which is not really a surprise but nice to know. The quiz reveals thirty answers, some of which sound like creature types and some sound social or political, so guessing a mix of type and faction and possibly a third axis.

For those wondering I got Archivist, to the surprise of no-one. Possibly less.

Though with a minor change I got Lykan, presumably for mentioning friends and a willingness to fight. And possibly wearing jeans.

Also an email, bottom left.

Bonus amusement: the free-to-use pictures in some of the questions include the one I used for a Vampire PBP title image. There are only so many atmospheric lonely-city free pictures out there.

February

Welcome to the still shortest month even with an added day.