It can be hard to stick the landing

Damon Lindelof on the struggle to end LOST. The main trick I see here is not to go on two years longer than you intended.

Discord

Discord has changed its front page to a cute welcoming cartoony vibe and started to rebrand as a less gaming specific place to talk. Which would have made naming my current V5 game after its platform extra ironic. Still a good name for a Vampire game though...

Judge Dredd Uprising: The Live Experience

Judge Dredd Uprising from the creators of The Crystal Maze Live.

A live immersive two-and-a-half hours in the world of Judge Dredd, coming to Brit-Cit next year.

Production design art shows a future Piccadilly, Cursed Earth ruins and, inevitably, the interior of an Iso-Block.

Thanks to Matthew Webb for the news.

I’m curious where it will fall on the immersive experience scale of tour to LARP. The size suggests more tour and its creators’ history suggests escape room.

A homecoming

Justin Achilli heading back to the World Of Darkness.

Actual play from the frontline of Red Right Hand

"When it's, like, 2am, you've been dragged away from work for more vampire BS, you've had to babysit a tonne of fledgling vamps while breaking into the zoo because some #Gangrel decided you needed to solve the murder of a leopard and now you're stuck in your truck, playing chauffeur to your Domitor that you're maybe secretly in love (or maybe it's just the blood bond talking) and a vampire you just met, but his reflection is probably going to give you nightmares. Oh, and it's only Monday morning. #justghoulythings"
- Aka, my poor ghoul, Val, is very tired and needs a pay rise.

Okay it sounds bad when you put it like that.

Carl Reiner

Carl Reiner has died, at 98. Among his many accomplishments, directing Steve Martin genre-busters Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid and The Man With Two Brains.

RPGaDAY 2020

A look ahead to RPGaDAY2020, revealing the one-word challenges, coming soon to a blog near you.

Ray Harryhausen

Ray Harryhausen was born 100 years ago today.

National Gallery Of Scotland site for Titan Of Cinema.

My own small contribution, how to make skeletons cool in fantasy adventures.

A catgirl in Buffy

The setting has werewolves, the game has Totem Warriors, but if I were to include a catgirl in Buffy it might look like this, thanks to Scream Team...

Red Right Hand 1.03

Who is hunting in the zoo domain of a Gangrel?

Sounds Like Hell 1.04

Sounds Like Hell
1.04

Mint: Can you interrogate the dust?
Andrew: Pretty sure no.

Love Will Tear Us Apart

Forty years ago today (27/6/1980) Joy Division released Love Will Tear Us Apart.

Link via Professor Brian Cox.

Based on the original video, the early Goth aesthetic was more orange and green than expected.

Pride in your Darkness

World Of Darkness merch for Pride, 20% of all net proceeds to the Trevor Project.

I think this is the first time we’ve had official Vampire: The Masquerade blankets...

Short NPC hooks

Today is my birthday - I’d like short NPC hooks on RPG.net. Inspired by the instant fandom for Bruno.

Ray Harryhausen quiz

The Friday Quiz from the National Gallery of Scotland focuses on Ray Harryhausen from his still-forthcoming exhibition. I got ten out of ten, though it did involve some deduction for questions about his influence.

Black Lives Matter links

Black Lives Matter

Ways you can help.

Contribute via Youtube ad revenue.

Birthday 2020

I will be doing birthday type things when it is possible and safe to do so.

Not going out, maybe ordering takeaway for the first time since March. Haven’t made much of a wishlist as not much has come out lately anyway.

Haul so far includes an Oxfam donation and surprising Red Right Hand art from Faye (hello, and thank you!) and cards, cheque and chocolate from the folks.

Werewolf: The Incredible

Further thoughts on the Werewolf family of games, inspired by the last couple of ideas and a post on a V5 group asking if they can be as political as the Vampire games.

Violence is usually an option, even more than in Vampire, but it doesn’t solve everything and often leads to more problems along the way. A political Werewolf: The Apocalypse game might feature the factional conflicts of the Tribes and other groups, much like the Clans in Vampire. The longest Werewolf chronicle I’ve played in was about a small sept of most of the Tribes stuck between feuding Silver Fang, Shadow Lord and Get of Fenris families and trying to get them to work together against the common enemy gaining in power while they bickered.

Another way to look at it is the werewolf-like Incredible Hulk. (I know the Marvel Universe has actual werewolves, but go with me here.) The Hulk can solve a lot of problems with smashing, but causes a lot with the same. A lot of his stories in comics, animation and solo movies involve his conflicts with human authorities mixed in with fighting other monsters.

And consider the 1970s TV series, which was basically in the style of The Fugitive, wandering from small town to small town and helping people in trouble, except that once per episode he’d turn green and roll over a car or throw a boulder at something. Werewolf can be like that too, games about something else where the occasional superhumanly strong fight happens and is not always the best idea.

Everyone Else: The Masquerade

Another World Of Darkness observation thanks to Julia - all the other games in the original five get a magical shield against being noticed, and only Mages have much of a problem as a result.

PCs as unwelcome arrivals

A World Of Darkness observation: In Vampire: The Masquerade, the PCs are generally unwelcome additions to their new society - hardly anybody wants more mouths to feed. (They’re a bit more welcome in general in Vampire: The Requiem as potential recruits to the covenants.)

In Werewolf: The Apocalypse and later games they’re a lot more welcome. Wraith: The Oblivion is the other exception in the five starting World Of Darkness games, where they’re often seen as raw material, but otherwise it’s made easier for them to sign up rather than being at best tolerated.

That idea that keeps cycling back

I would like to get my band-based Buffy game idea past one season. It’s becoming a thing now.

Happy birthday Joss Whedon.

Are you joking?

Various thoughts on comedy RPGs.

Red Right Hand 1.02

We have now introduced almost all the player characters, which is progress of a sort.

SPC introductions tonight include the blind medium Ligeia Di Giovanni and her seeing eye dog who is not bothered by Kindred like he should be.

Sounds Like Hell 1.03

Sounds Like Hell

1.03

Rowan: I think the slayer should go first.

Livia: Spoken like someone who’s not the slayer.

JAWS

Jaws was released in the USA forty-five years ago today, ahead of the Fourth of July weekend it features so prominently. (It came out here at Christmas.)

And remember, the mayor is the villain.

Frontiers

Last week, Dr. Kathy Sullivan became the first person to walk in space and dive to the deepest point of the ocean, down to the Mariana Trench in the Limiting Factor.

Sir Ian Holm

Sir Ian Holm has died, age 88.

Another Arthurian threat to magic

“Our mission is the extinction of magic.”

I take it the makers of forthcoming Netflix series Cursed have watched Merlin...

Juneteenth

An important day is US history.

Candyman 2020 teaser

Director Nia DaCosta presents a Candyman teaser by shadow puppetry, eerie and pointed.

Quantum Entanglement

A jumpstart for Trinity Continuum: Aeon, out in preview PDF for $1.99.

Also for Aberrant, the return of Duke Rollo.

Star Trek United Gives

On Twitter? In the US? CBS will give a dollar to BLM charities for every use of the hashtag #StarTrekUnitedGives.

Black Lives Matter links

Black Lives Matter

Ways you can help.

Contribute via Youtube ad revenue.

Captain Picard Day

Happy Captain Picard Day! It feels a little different this year, but that’s life.

Ray Harryhausen: Titan Of Cinema

The BBC has put up a preview of the Ray Harryhausen exhibition at the National Galleries of Scotland here in Edinburgh, which I hope to be able to see physically in the future.

Vampires Vs. Influencers

With Teeth, a film about “Internet influencers... trapped in the lair of a horrifyingly evil vampire.” And not about vampire influencers. Huh.

Onyx Path Convention overview

A lot of money was raised for good causes, a lot of games were played, announcements were announced (Squeaks In The Dark for the world of Pugmire!) and They Came From Beyond The Grave! received its first public playtest with suitably run-out-of-budget-at-the-end results.

Links to Youtube re-ups of panels in due course.

One side effect, I now have the Onyx Path Theme stuck in my head.

Being reviewed!

RPGnetter mirober is taking a deep dive look at the Trinity Continuum corebook and setting and just got to a bit I did! Very glad that the sketchiness of the GCI came through, and references to sources like The Medici Conspiracy are worth following.

Trying to figure out new Blogger

Trying to figure out new Blogger. I may be some time.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Heart Of The Forest

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Heart Of The Forest, from Different Tales, creators of travel story indie game Wanderlust Travel Stories. I am curious as to what this will look like.

Sounds Like Hell 1.02

Sounds Like Hell
Discord edition
1.02 (we’ll get to 1.01 when all the players are there)

Denny O’Neil

Denny O’Neil, writer and editor whose work has defined Batman for the last half-century, and whose Green Lantern and Green Arrow series moved the genre forward substantially, among many other things, has died.

The Bone Herder

The Bone Herder, an Afropunk fantasy horror adventure, created by Zaire Lanier with art by Tumo Mere and Sam Willoughby and concept art by Morgan Madeline, started after Gail Simone’s Comics School workshop and Kickstarted and funded in half an hour.

Shadow Service

Shadow Service, from writer Cavan Scott and artist Corin M. Howel, pits a witch detective against Section 25, Britain’s occult secret agency also known as MI666.

News via Paul Cornell on his newsletter.

Time loops

As well as Spider-Man: Miles Morales (apparently an expansion rather than a complete separate game :/ ) Playstation 5 announcement day brings the Solaris-y SF Returnal and the jazzier superspy-ish Deathloop, two Braid-ish games where dying causing time loops is a key part of the plot rather than a purely OOC save mechanic.

Not sure what this says about the year we’re having...

AlbaCon

AlbaCon, an online convention for charity, October 3rd and 4th.

Who You Gonna Call?

A Ghostbusters retrospective with Dan Aykroyd and Ivan Reitman, on YouTube as of today.

Possible next Vampire game theme

Nyctophilia by Militia Vox

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood teaser

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood cinematic trailer

The main character design reminds me of Van Zan in Reign Of Fire. (Not the first Matthew McConaughey character I would have chosen to be a werewolf! Though the axe-crazy monster hunting does kind of fit. And it does mean you can get a suitable miniature from Infinity or Hasslefree!)

And while it’s symbolic of the conflict, it makes me wonder if there’s a werewolf power somewhere to literally infiltrate by breaking into falling leaves...

RPGs supporting Black Lives Matter

DriveThruRPG Black Lives Matter bundles and creator spotlights.

BEOWULF: Age Of Heroes

Now on Kickstarter.

As it's now on page two

Black Lives Matter

Ways you can help.

Contribute via Youtube ad revenue.

Wraith: The Oblivion - Afterlife

There has never been a Wraith: The Oblivion computer game before. Now, Afterlife is coming... to VR.

No one got out alive... not even you.

Thanks to Darker Days for the link.

Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Convention

Onyx Path Con site. More here in the press release. This weekend.

Online GMing Zero Part Two

Knowing what the problem with sound was we managed to avoid that. Remote learning a fairy hefty new system, still not ideal of course.

Online GMing Zero

Okay, after half an hour of trying to figure out how to be audible, I think we have the makings of a Buffy game.

Now to do that again tomorrow for V5...

itch.io Racial Justice and Equality Bundle

A lot of PDFs for a $5 donation. As in, over 700. (Current link may not work due to overwhelming the bundle system.)

Cymera 2020

Cymera online is on, including RPG sessions with authors.

Black Lives Matter links

Black Lives Matter

Ways you can help.

Contribute via Youtube ad revenue.

No Kindred Hungry

A second episode of the V5 Sabbat game for charity, with The Night In Question Storyteller Matthew Webb.

Pelgrane NAACP donations

Pelgrane Press is donating $1000 and 10% of all their webstore sales in June to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. Good time to buy something.

What We Do Again In The Shadows

What We Do In The Shadows season two, starting here Thursday at ten on BBC 2.

Bat!

Also, those ghost effects are really nice. (And the question of vampires having souls to be ghosts came up in TWH.)

Legendlore

The Legendlore Kickstarter is now live!

Tiananmen

Thirty-one years ago.

Rather fewer players...

Update a week later on the number of players issue... the three double-booked players are all cool with playing Buffy, and one of the two Buffy-only players confirmed.. and then three players dropped out of V5. Erk. People are being prodded.

Jedi Temple Challenge

Ahmed Best talks to io9 about the Star Wars game show, Jedi Temple Challenge.

In every ensemble there is a chosen one

Just saw Derry Girls before Buffy and inevitably thought whether Erin or Michelle is the slayer.

Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Convention, June 12-14

From Onyx Path update:

We reviewed the plans for the Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Convention, which is ready to start on June 12th -14th to “provide fans and players of tabletop roleplaying games with a uniquely online convention experience. Onyx Path Gaming Con will be completely digital and accessible to anyone with a laptop, computer, or cellphone, allowing fans and players of Onyx Path games to connect with one another over their favorite game”.

In conjunction with Gehenna Gaming, hosts of VirtualHorror Con.

Ghostbusters advert outtakes

Are you troubled by strange noises in the night?

Take off the film clapperboard and they could be outtakes in-character. Although I don’t imagine the characters did that many takes.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer on E4

Buffy The Vampire Slayer on E4 and online is a restoration with some updated effects, and sometimes a bit brighter than is good for its creepy moments, though I haven’t seen any pan-and-scan howlers or uncropped boom mics yet, so fingers crossed its non-widescreen formatting keeps us safe...