The Doctor and the vampire ballet of Christmas

The Doctor Who Christmas special starts ten minutes before the end of the BBC2 showing of the ballet Sleeping Beauty, newly adapted by Matthew Bourne to feature duelling vampires.

In related news, the Tenth Doctor reading classic vampire stories. One of which bears more than a passing resemblance to Sleeping Beauty.

Sleep well... if you can.

(Edit: my request to Santa and/or Auntie Beeb has apparently been answered, Sleeping Beauty starts early! ... Not that I’ll actually be able to watch it.)

Christmas giftage 2013 (subject to updates)

So far, from my gaming group: The Sarah Jane Adventures series three and an Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirt via wishlist, The Black Beetle book one and a Batman ski hat not via wishlist. I do like pleasant surprises.

(Given: The Skinner for Werewolf: The Apocalypse 20 as I gave my former Werewolf GM W20 for a big birthday last month, Neil Gaiman’s Unnatural Creatures, Behind The Sofa second edition, Hawkeye volume 1 and Dark Horse’s Star Wars: KOTOR v1, my favourite of a great run of Star Wars comics.)

As you can perhaps tell, bit geeky.

The Ashen Christmas Stars

Holidays in the late 25th century, by Gar Hanrahan.

Machine Age Productions

David Hill and Filamena Young, writers and in one case an OP colleague, had their computers stlen right before moving to Japan. Machine Age Productions games are available here and they have a funding page here. Off to buy Maschine Zeit and a couple adventures...

Alcatraz (2012)

Alcatraz held my interest for its twelve-episode run, mainly due to being on Sundays after I got back from gaming. (I prioritised its JJ Abrams stablemate Person Of Interest on the Thursday showings.) Still, it has issues.

And some are sorta relevant to gaming, so here goes.

All kinds of spoilers ahead, as I assume this is okay with a year-after-its-run showing.

Spoilers for future plans as well.

The Black List

The annual roundup of the best unmade film scripts of the year, chosen by Hollywood writer rep agencies, is always an interesting cross-section of current concerns in entertainment. And usually has at least one weird high-concept thing in the top ten. Topping the list this year is a comedy-drama about infidelity, followed by a history of MI6. We also have political chicanery, teenage rebellion, a wise tree monster and a killer spaceship.

Blood And Smoke

Blood And Smoke is out in PDF. Books to follow. Early adopters to get a discount when PDF+POD becomes available. (Note: you must have your account set to receive email updates from White Wolf.)

(Now it’s out I might start putting up shortish Actual Play reports for my test game, as they feature some characters in the book. (No, not Walker.) And I might start focusing on some of the changes a bit more.)

Likewise, the new MET Vampire: The Masquerade standard (not-all-Bradstreet) PDF is with backers.

Big day.

The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug

If you ever want a demonstration of what effect a different GM can have on a game...

Starting with Sir Peter Jackson’s most obvious cameo following concerns his last one was invisible, this rampages entertainingly through a mostly familiar story, throwing in subplots and new characters and tie-ins and gags.

Bonus: A sneak preview of C7’s Hobbit Tales storytelling card game.

The Vampire's Christmas

I stumbled across this graphic novel a while ago while thinking about (a) vampires and (b) Christmas, and finally got a copy by the power of online shopping. It’s by the creator of Cry For Dawn but less pin-up and almost not porny, and fairly amusing, particularly when (as on the cover) the vampire Esque breaks realism and pulls a Wile E. Coyote expression. The other vampires behind him are not actually featured, so it includes less world-building than the cover suggests. (I’d love some Vampire: The Requiem wrapping paper.)

Santa Claus - The Session

Following on from this bit about Santa Claus (or the lack thereof) in The World Of Darkness, I found this Comics Alliance article about his DC and Marvel guest appearances. And inevitably this came together to get me thinking about having Santa at the gaming table...

I have yammered on at frankly unnecessary length about Christmas specials for Doctor Who already. Seriously - 1 2 3 4 5 - but not really about Santa. (“Or as I call him, Jeff.”) Probably because the show’s done so much else with various bits of Christmas imagery, and the TARDIS solving the all-the-presents-in-one-night question is too obvious. Anyway, some is Who-ish but the first at least is probably of general use for those considering a Christmas adventure. Although, as noted, no Jeff. Santa.

Here are Santa’s official D&D stats in PDF. They may not be edition-current.

Santa’s Buffy stats by SteveD seem to have fallen off the net. Anyway, like any self-referential superhero universe there’s room for charming tributes and twisted adaptations, as is generally the case for holiday episodes. One example I remember had Buffy and gang rescuing Santa from corporate demons who had kept him captive for years, and Christmas-hating grinch Spike getting the toy train he should have received as a boy. If your game can go cheesily heartwarming, now is probably the time.

I once had Santa clash with the rival Santas from the free White Dwarf boardgame Sleigh Wars in the skies above my Ghostbusters game franchise HQ. I’m not proud.

Well, maybe a little.

Ultimately, will this push the game too wacky? Or just wacky enough?

One million public domain pictures

Need handouts or other art for something ancient, mediaeval, Victorian? The British Library has your back. As explained here.

You are here.

You meet these people on the road. They seem wary.

You find this map...

Looks safe...

Come at me, bro!

On the left, my next player character.
I will find a suitable game. I will make one if I have to.

And this is why I get coal.

This RPGnet thread proves to met that Santa in the World Of Darkness seems too much. But Shadowjack makes it work.

And I say this as the guy who wrote this post.

Game Geeks reviews Primeval

via Tim: here. And the Companion too.

Superheroes and childhood wishes

Warning - I’m about to surface analyse a bunch of stuff and may be stating the obvious. I has cold.

Superman is at his core a combination of several obvious childhood wishes. “I wish I could fly!” “I wish I was really strong!” “I wish I could see through things!”

So is Batman. “I wish I could catch all the bad guys!” “I wish I could run around all night!” “I wish bullies were scared of me!”

Dragonmeet

Lovely day, lots to see and do. I spent most of the time in the seminar rooms, and they were all interesting. Also got to meet and get my first Lone Wolf book signed by Joe Dever!

So very tired. Trains are bad.

Heroes

It’s easy to play one. Hard to be one.

Real heroes are a rarity, an inspiration. Of course, the heroes we imagine can inspire us as well. Hope is a precious thing, something we have to share.

Be good to each other, folks.

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

Dragonmeet and blatant namedropping

GMS Magazine podcaster Paco Garcia Jaen talks with Dragonmeet convener, Pelgrane Press production manager and TWH producer Cat Tobin about Dragonmeet 2013.

A home from home

The new and improved white-wolf.com is up now, with a somewhat classic black-and-borders look and links to all the necessary places like The Onyx Path and By Night Studios.

If you follow one rulebook recommendation of mine...

Buffy revised core rulebook pdf for $4.99 via Flames Rising. Also Mutant City Blues and other games.

Vampire Challenge epilogue:

Tobie Arad following JanetT's version of the challenge.