incorporeal.org

bssteph: wererats have fallen by the hand of SNARF SNAPLEN, war pick master of gnomes and men! #dnd

2010-02-08T02:04:35+00:00

bssteph: wererats have fallen by the hand of SNARF SNAPLEN, war pick master of gnomes and men! #dnd

bssteph: just about to print off my new gnome barbarian for irc #dnd in defiance of the super bowl. SNARF SNAPLEN LIVES.

2010-02-07T23:13:53+00:00

bssteph: just about to print off my new gnome barbarian for irc #dnd in defiance of the super bowl. SNARF SNAPLEN LIVES.

Incorporeal configuration changes

2010-02-07T22:47:51+00:00

Over the past couple days, I have made a metric ton of changes to incorporeal.org and its services, many related to Apache and SSL. Notably, website access was probably a bit brittle over the past 24 hours. If anything seems out of the ordinary, please let me know.

bssteph: i'm going to pretend i didn't just get asked if i wanted to go to a leather and lace party. #fb

2010-02-07T04:56:12+00:00

bssteph: i'm going to pretend i didn't just get asked if i wanted to go to a leather and lace party. #fb

bssteph: @christulach yeah, milwaukee area was hit kind of hard... come over to madison, places here seem to be doing pretty good :)

2010-02-03T20:51:30+00:00

bssteph: @christulach yeah, milwaukee area was hit kind of hard... come over to madison, places here seem to be doing pretty good :)

bssteph: there's nothing that indicates the 6x9 paperback is the "new" #dnd publishing format, right? that's just for Essentials?

2010-02-03T15:49:28+00:00

bssteph: there's nothing that indicates the 6x9 paperback is the "new" #dnd publishing format, right? that's just for Essentials?

bssteph: this is a whole fish. that I ate. including some bones. bones that i ate, because it was whole. http://yfrog.com/3guj6nj

2010-02-02T02:32:09+00:00

bssteph: this is a whole fish. that I ate. including some bones. bones that i ate, because it was whole. http://yfrog.com/3guj6nj

bssteph: i just ordered "crispy fish" from an indochina place. title for the night: wherein bss learns the fish is whole. #fb

2010-02-02T02:09:29+00:00

bssteph: i just ordered "crispy fish" from an indochina place. title for the night: wherein bss learns the fish is whole. #fb

bssteph: @OverloadUT well, we usually have a guy or two skype in. but we use the tokens for resource management (HP, APs, surges, etc.)

2010-02-02T00:35:45+00:00

bssteph: @OverloadUT well, we usually have a guy or two skype in. but we use the tokens for resource management (HP, APs, surges, etc.)

bssteph: @OverloadUT oh yes at computer during #dnd. both me and my players use maptool, builder, compendium. the computer stigma needs to end.

2010-02-02T00:32:08+00:00

bssteph: @OverloadUT oh yes at computer during #dnd. both me and my players use maptool, builder, compendium. the computer stigma needs to end.

bssteph: doing a quick #dnd skirmish with the IRC gang to make up for the short session earlier... i love this

2010-02-01T04:21:06+00:00

bssteph: doing a quick #dnd skirmish with the IRC gang to make up for the short session earlier... i love this

bssteph: #dnd ended early due to computer fail with one of the skype players. sad times. :( at least i got them into the abyss!

2010-02-01T01:43:47+00:00

bssteph: #dnd ended early due to computer fail with one of the skype players. sad times. :( at least i got them into the abyss!

bssteph: one of my PCs just made my gelatinous cube crit itself! #dnd

2010-01-31T23:56:45+00:00

bssteph: one of my PCs just made my gelatinous cube crit itself! #dnd

bssteph: portal in a pit! #dnd http://yfrog.com/1drydhj

2010-01-31T23:12:33+00:00

bssteph: portal in a pit! #dnd http://yfrog.com/1drydhj

bssteph: spent the day on computer maintenance, firewalls, and new SSH keys. now to tie a couple things together for #dnd tomorrow...

2010-01-31T04:37:56+00:00

bssteph: spent the day on computer maintenance, firewalls, and new SSH keys. now to tie a couple things together for #dnd tomorrow...

bssteph: overall, i'm feeling kind of underwhelmed by the #ddxp announcements. understand the focus on new blood, but i want more supplements! #dnd

2010-01-29T02:27:35+00:00

bssteph: overall, i'm feeling kind of underwhelmed by the #ddxp announcements. understand the focus on new blood, but i want more supplements! #dnd

bssteph: @towo i hope someone suggested maptool to you. it's a great tool, and can be quite useful for combat

2010-01-29T02:08:44+00:00

bssteph: @towo i hope someone suggested maptool to you. it's a great tool, and can be quite useful for combat

bssteph: yes, i just tweeted an irssi command by mistake. you know you're jealous!

2010-01-29T01:56:24+00:00

bssteph: yes, i just tweeted an irssi command by mistake. you know you're jealous!

bssteph: speculation on the sept/oct #dnd releases found on amazon is still running through my head... perhaps next year i'll have to go to #DDXP

2010-01-27T15:27:44+00:00

bssteph: speculation on the sept/oct #dnd releases found on amazon is still running through my head... perhaps next year i'll have to go to #DDXP

bssteph: @newbiedm oh no, totally, i think it's a great idea. i've always thought that #4e could be put to other game flavors

2010-01-27T14:53:54+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm oh no, totally, i think it's a great idea. i've always thought that #4e could be put to other game flavors

bssteph: my hope for the nascent #dnd rules compendium: just mechanics plus official FAQ answers. B&W, no player stuff. #4e so far in one book

2010-01-27T13:46:49+00:00

bssteph: my hope for the nascent #dnd rules compendium: just mechanics plus official FAQ answers. B&W, no player stuff. #4e so far in one book

bssteph: @newbiedm the system guy in me thinks that this is #wotc's first stab at making #4e a framework, like GURPS, rather than just #dnd

2010-01-27T13:43:05+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm the system guy in me thinks that this is #wotc's first stab at making #4e a framework, like GURPS, rather than just #dnd

bssteph: @newbiedm wow, seriously, gamma world? never would have guessed. next bit of speculation, is the date a mistake by amazon? #dnd

2010-01-27T13:36:01+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm wow, seriously, gamma world? never would have guessed. next bit of speculation, is the date a mistake by amazon? #dnd

bssteph: playing around with bind zone files. that is tonight's definition of fun!

2010-01-27T04:39:36+00:00

bssteph: playing around with bind zone files. that is tonight's definition of fun!

bssteph: there are some things that i wish i would, for once, be wrong about. not just sandwich choices, that is. #fb

2010-01-26T06:29:22+00:00

bssteph: there are some things that i wish i would, for once, be wrong about. not just sandwich choices, that is. #fb

bssteph: is anyone having problem reporting events in #wpn? i just got my event rejected with a SQL-ish error for a long-time player. #dnd #wotc

2010-01-26T03:16:14+00:00

bssteph: is anyone having problem reporting events in #wpn? i just got my event rejected with a SQL-ish error for a long-time player. #dnd #wotc

bssteph: @aquelajames saturday and sunday, probably equally, 1.2 times a week. rarely, friday. once in a blue moon other days #dnd

2010-01-26T01:27:58+00:00

bssteph: @aquelajames saturday and sunday, probably equally, 1.2 times a week. rarely, friday. once in a blue moon other days #dnd

bssteph: @BillCorbett if you look at the tiger long enough, it seems kind of skeptical about the entire thing!

2010-01-25T05:42:45+00:00

bssteph: @BillCorbett if you look at the tiger long enough, it seems kind of skeptical about the entire thing!

bssteph: i hope that every DM lives for those moments where your players, after you drop a plot point, give you the "oh, wtf!?" look #dnd

2010-01-25T03:55:02+00:00

bssteph: i hope that every DM lives for those moments where your players, after you drop a plot point, give you the "oh, wtf!?" look #dnd

bssteph: the party may have stopped the big nasty ritual by killing the doommaster, but his evistros are flaying the party #dnd

2010-01-25T01:07:00+00:00

bssteph: the party may have stopped the big nasty ritual by killing the doommaster, but his evistros are flaying the party #dnd

bssteph: @Gen_Con badge ordered, now if only hotel reg could go so painlessly...

2010-01-24T19:09:40+00:00

bssteph: @Gen_Con badge ordered, now if only hotel reg could go so painlessly...

bssteph: when my design philosophy for an encounter is "my players haven't hated a creature in a while", yeah, i think it'll be a good fight. #dnd

2010-01-24T15:16:00+00:00

bssteph: when my design philosophy for an encounter is "my players haven't hated a creature in a while", yeah, i think it'll be a good fight. #dnd

bssteph: @frankenroc ah ha, you've reminded me to follow you. been forever!

2010-01-24T05:36:58+00:00

bssteph: @frankenroc ah ha, you've reminded me to follow you. been forever!

bssteph: checking the clock, it's time for my biannual TV nostalgia: i miss techtv so goddamn much.

2010-01-24T05:32:50+00:00

bssteph: checking the clock, it's time for my biannual TV nostalgia: i miss techtv so goddamn much.

bssteph: #dnd today cancelled, so taking the time to rewatch conan's show from last night and reorganize some of my DM notes/tools

2010-01-23T17:35:47+00:00

bssteph: #dnd today cancelled, so taking the time to rewatch conan's show from last night and reorganize some of my DM notes/tools

bssteph: RT @hodgman: Saying farewell to an entertainer. Jocks win. This time.

2010-01-23T06:24:32+00:00

bssteph: RT @hodgman: Saying farewell to an entertainer. Jocks win. This time.

bssteph: @newbiedm i've only had time to page through underdark, but i agree. very inclusive, could easily be a campaign setting book

2010-01-23T02:31:48+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm i've only had time to page through underdark, but i agree. very inclusive, could easily be a campaign setting book

bssteph: japanese and other logographs have it easy on twitter. they should be limited to 140 strokes, or i march for my rights! #twitequality

2010-01-21T00:30:53+00:00

bssteph: japanese and other logographs have it easy on twitter. they should be limited to 140 strokes, or i march for my rights! #twitequality

bssteph: even against level 4 PCs, fire beetles are BRUTAL. #dnd

2010-01-18T04:04:53+00:00

bssteph: even against level 4 PCs, fire beetles are BRUTAL. #dnd

bssteph: @christulach how was Thunderstone? I've had my eye on it for a bit

2010-01-17T15:46:49+00:00

bssteph: @christulach how was Thunderstone? I've had my eye on it for a bit

bssteph: confessions in the land of irssi, #18: "the last thing i ever said to her was 'window close'"

2010-01-14T21:11:36+00:00

bssteph: confessions in the land of irssi, #18: "the last thing i ever said to her was 'window close'"

bssteph: yay, back to using @twirssi, after finally bothering to sort out my Net::Twitter deps!

2010-01-12T05:22:31+00:00

bssteph: yay, back to using @twirssi, after finally bothering to sort out my Net::Twitter deps!

bssteph: asked my irc #dnd group for themes and they came through in spades. how would YOU introduce sigil in the heroic tier?

2010-01-11T04:33:30+00:00

bssteph: asked my irc #dnd group for themes and they came through in spades. how would *YOU* introduce sigil in the heroic tier?

bssteph: been running 4e #dnd off and on for 1.5 years. i just now noticed that the DM screen has the PC XP chart, on which i get asked every game!

2010-01-11T03:17:17+00:00

bssteph: been running 4e #dnd off and on for 1.5 years. i just now noticed that the DM screen has the PC XP chart, on which i get asked every game!

bssteph: callback to 2004: eating instant ramen while watching iron chef [america]. newsworthy this day: i have an appetite again #fb

2009-12-27T02:27:34+00:00

bssteph: callback to 2004: eating instant ramen while watching iron chef [america]. newsworthy this day: i have an appetite again #fb

bssteph: it took a half hour, but littlebigplanet is done updating/installing. i miss the simple days of instant-play cartridges.

2009-12-26T18:18:15+00:00

bssteph: it took a half hour, but littlebigplanet is done updating/installing. i miss the simple days of instant-play cartridges.

bssteph: synthesia is great. "piano hero" was apt, it feeds my rock band addiction while helping me learn n' stuff. http://www.synthesiagame.com/ #fb

2009-12-20T02:58:48+00:00

bssteph: synthesia is great. "piano hero" was apt, it feeds my rock band addiction while helping me learn n' stuff. http://www.synthesiagame.com/ #fb

bssteph: cloning is a solution too, although that leads to questions about whether or not my clone would let me be a layabout. #calvinandhobbes

2009-12-19T18:37:40+00:00

bssteph: cloning is a solution too, although that leads to questions about whether or not my clone would let me be a layabout. #calvinandhobbes

bssteph: i'd be buying torchlight right now if i didn't have 493849 other games to beat. and a couple additional hobbies. #whyiwanttimetravel

2009-12-19T18:28:43+00:00

bssteph: i'd be buying torchlight right now if i didn't have 493849 other games to beat. and a couple additional hobbies. #whyiwanttimetravel

bssteph: atrophied piano fingers were jolted back into activity today. they missed dancing. #fb

2009-12-19T03:41:40+00:00

bssteph: atrophied piano fingers were jolted back into activity today. they missed dancing. #fb

bssteph: the elemental locales chapter of the plane below is really sweet. #dnd

2009-12-18T01:05:15+00:00

bssteph: the elemental locales chapter of the plane below is really sweet. #dnd

bssteph: there. finished a good amount of gift shopping, of course including myself in the mix. etrian odyssey music incoming! #fb

2009-12-17T03:21:53+00:00

bssteph: there. finished a good amount of gift shopping, of course including myself in the mix. etrian odyssey music incoming! #fb

bssteph: holy crap etrian odyssey III!? 2010/03/04 in japan!? please hit the US! http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177242 #atlus

2009-12-15T02:20:19+00:00

bssteph: holy crap etrian odyssey III!? 2010/03/04 in japan!? please hit the US! http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177242 #atlus

bssteph: hooray, the plane below has shipped from amazon! not long now until I begin tormenting my HtA players... #dnd

2009-12-14T18:00:01+00:00

bssteph: hooray, the plane below has shipped from amazon! not long now until I begin tormenting my HtA players... #dnd

bssteph: @hoopycat that is one of the greater snow-related ideas i have heard in a long time

2009-12-09T22:40:13+00:00

bssteph: @hoopycat that is one of the greater snow-related ideas i have heard in a long time

bssteph: at the end of a driveway, shoveling becomes less about volume of snow moved and more about estimate of what your car can punch through. #fb

2009-12-09T22:13:40+00:00

bssteph: at the end of a driveway, shoveling becomes less about volume of snow moved and more about estimate of what your car can punch through. #fb

bssteph: it is snowing, and i just witnessed thunder and lightning. cue the lewis black routines. #fb

2009-12-09T07:05:55+00:00

bssteph: it is snowing, and i just witnessed thunder and lightning. cue the lewis black routines. #fb

In lieu of other topics, music

2009-12-09T07:04:22+00:00

The Paprika soundtrack reminds me most of the evening pre-slumber, engrossed in a fantasy world of my own design, a particular blind, optimistic lie of that winter season. Fitting for a film of dreams. The root emotions attached to the film and soundtrack are almost ephemeral, an electricity not precisely recreated since. They are remembered, but not revisited.

It is par for the course that music invokes memories, but exceedingly rare that a film also has such an impact and such an attachment — perhaps that is a greater sign of those times than anything else. A rewatching while unpacking into my new house, nearly a year later, gave the film a much more baleful tone, inexplicably. I prefer the first memory, even if it was a prelude to delusion.

bssteph: SWEET, a ring of half-assed regeneration. i'm very quickly falling in love with kingdom of loathing #KoL

2009-12-08T06:41:06+00:00

bssteph: SWEET, a ring of half-assed regeneration. i'm very quickly falling in love with kingdom of loathing #KoL

bssteph: finally the owner of a snowblower. FINALLY. not a "proud owner" until wednesday. i demand much from my infernal engines. #fb

2009-12-08T05:01:39+00:00

bssteph: finally the owner of a snowblower. FINALLY. not a "proud owner" until wednesday. i demand much from my infernal engines. #fb

bssteph: just finished some #dnd. short, only one skill challenge and a combat to mix it up in the middle, but went well. yay plot!

2009-12-06T02:03:50+00:00

bssteph: just finished some #dnd. short, only one skill challenge and a combat to mix it up in the middle, but went well. yay plot!

bssteph: this may not be a popular opinion, but i would be content if mystra never saw #dnd text again. #fr

2009-12-05T16:56:12+00:00

bssteph: this may not be a popular opinion, but i would be content if mystra never saw #dnd text again. #fr

bssteph: the next time i #dnd, it's going to be in tribute to the folks #wotc let go today. thanks for the good product and great writing.

2009-12-05T05:48:05+00:00

bssteph: the next time i #dnd, it's going to be in tribute to the folks #wotc let go today. thanks for the good product and great writing.

bssteph: @brianrjames warlock knights articles? them and their armies are about to feature in my campaign... evil laugh

2009-12-04T22:02:31+00:00

bssteph: @brianrjames warlock knights articles? them and their armies are about to feature in my campaign... *evil laugh*

bssteph: @newbiedm http://www.dlnexus.com/features/articles/18989.aspx http://www.dragonlance.com/features/articles/10040.aspx

2009-12-04T17:41:46+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm http://www.dlnexus.com/features/articles/18989.aspx http://www.dragonlance.com/features/articles/10040.aspx

bssteph: @newbiedm i can see maybe rights issues with dragonlance (the brand) being everywhere, but the game rights should be clear-cut

2009-12-04T17:39:26+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm i can see maybe rights issues with dragonlance (the brand) being everywhere, but the game rights should be clear-cut

bssteph: @newbiedm i did some digging on dragonlance and #wotc. looks like wotc licensed 3.x rights to soverign press. 4e = wotc's

2009-12-04T17:32:27+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm i did some digging on dragonlance and #wotc. looks like wotc licensed 3.x rights to soverign press. 4e = wotc's

bssteph: @geekzap @dickieadams i would be interested too, we use (and love) maptool for our 4e and have macroed a couple things, but not powers (yet)

2009-12-04T17:19:49+00:00

bssteph: @geekzap @dickieadams i would be interested too, we use (and love) maptool for our 4e and have macroed a couple things, but not powers (yet)

bssteph: @dr_botzo that is terrible, disturbing, and oddly festive

2009-12-04T01:11:30+00:00

bssteph: @dr_botzo that is terrible, disturbing, and oddly festive

bssteph: RT @mikebloy: I did not approve this snow. Please take it back and come back with an signed Request for Inclement Weather form 4567-A. T ...

2009-12-03T22:35:24+00:00

bssteph: RT @mikebloy: I did not approve this snow. Please take it back and come back with an signed Request for Inclement Weather form 4567-A. T ...

bssteph: i am the nerd reference implementation. i have no dump stats. i rewrite software and reroute packets with a hum. i roll 20s. #fb

2009-12-02T06:23:27+00:00

bssteph: i am the nerd reference implementation. i have no dump stats. i rewrite software and reroute packets with a hum. i roll 20s. #fb

bssteph: i am learning much in emulating your ways of human interaction! #fb

2009-12-01T06:45:42+00:00

bssteph: i am learning much in emulating your ways of human interaction! #fb

bssteph: stark reminder that a year has gone by: seasonal commercials i haven't seen in 11 months, only slowly realizing they were gone. #fb

2009-11-30T03:29:25+00:00

bssteph: stark reminder that a year has gone by: seasonal commercials i haven't seen in 11 months, only slowly realizing they were gone. #fb

bssteph: anyone out there on #dnd still need google wave invites? i have a couple to give to people i enjoy reading/following.

2009-11-29T08:14:00+00:00

bssteph: anyone out there on #dnd still need google wave invites? i have a couple to give to people i enjoy reading/following.

bssteph: why don't you own borderlands? it's $20 on amazon. http://bit.ly/8MnjLc

2009-11-27T02:21:27+00:00

bssteph: why don't you own borderlands? it's $20 on amazon. http://bit.ly/8MnjLc

bssteph: watching the #left4dead dedicated servers run is almost as fun as actually playing. oh, happy thanksgiving thing. #fb

2009-11-27T00:36:18+00:00

bssteph: watching the #left4dead dedicated servers run is almost as fun as actually playing. oh, happy thanksgiving thing. #fb

20091126

2009-11-26T17:02:14+00:00

Yet another desktop image.
In album Stephan's Album o' Randomness

bssteph: @BillCorbett yeah, the hollywood version of 'the steve wozniak story' gets it all wrong

2009-11-25T02:19:02+00:00

bssteph: @BillCorbett yeah, the hollywood version of 'the steve wozniak story' gets it all wrong

bssteph: RT @BillCorbett: And thanks to other MST3K alums, who made the show happen: @michaeljnelson @TraceBeaulieu @kwmurphy @FrankConniff @JEl ...

2009-11-25T01:56:12+00:00

bssteph: RT @BillCorbett: And thanks to other MST3K alums, who made the show happen: @michaeljnelson @TraceBeaulieu @kwmurphy @FrankConniff @JEl ...

bssteph: i realized that my randomly pounding on 2 PCs in sat's #dnd was learned behavior from the #left4dead director. mad interactions follow.

2009-11-23T06:15:31+00:00

bssteph: i realized that my randomly pounding on 2 PCs in sat's #dnd was learned behavior from the #left4dead director. mad interactions follow.

bssteph: maybe i'm just slow, but after five sessions and the party hitting level 3, i'm convinced: everyone-at-the-same-XP-total is win-win. #dnd

2009-11-22T17:30:18+00:00

bssteph: maybe i'm just slow, but after five sessions and the party hitting level 3, i'm convinced: everyone-at-the-same-XP-total is win-win. #dnd

bssteph: i broke two drinking glasses today while doing the dishes. later i will attempt running #dnd while juggling a chainsaw. #offtoagoodstart

2009-11-21T18:21:55+00:00

bssteph: i broke two drinking glasses today while doing the dishes. later i will attempt running #dnd while juggling a chainsaw. #offtoagoodstart

bssteph: someone on #dnd help: i was going to print the recent errata and put pointers in my books. reading it, wasn't there once more PHB errata?

2009-11-21T14:38:39+00:00

bssteph: someone on #dnd help: i was going to print the recent errata and put pointers in my books. reading it, wasn't there once more PHB errata?

bssteph: draconomicon II is pretty sweet. trying to decide if i want to sneak a bit into my #dnd tomorrow...

2009-11-21T01:37:52+00:00

bssteph: draconomicon II is pretty sweet. trying to decide if i want to sneak a bit into my #dnd tomorrow...

bssteph: regarding thin mints: curse you both, @jmtenny and @mikebloy! (and now you, poor reader, ARE NEXT)

2009-11-20T04:58:17+00:00

bssteph: regarding thin mints: curse you both, @jmtenny and @mikebloy! (and now you, poor reader, ARE NEXT)

bssteph: http://picardfacepalm.com/ #fb

2009-11-20T00:48:10+00:00

bssteph: http://picardfacepalm.com/ #fb

bssteph: dinner: leftover glass nickel pizza, mountain dew, thin mints, left 4 dead 2. #shamelessbachelor

2009-11-19T03:32:02+00:00

bssteph: dinner: leftover glass nickel pizza, mountain dew, thin mints, left 4 dead 2. #shamelessbachelor

bssteph: RT @mikebloy: uh oh. It may be time to start the girl scout cookie 12 step program. #fb

2009-11-18T20:20:49+00:00

bssteph: RT @mikebloy: uh oh. It may be time to start the girl scout cookie 12 step program. #fb

bssteph: more rambling about college-era nostalgia on my site: http://incorporeal.org/journal/index.php/bss/2009/11/17/nostalgiarama

2009-11-18T05:54:46+00:00

bssteph: more rambling about college-era nostalgia on my site: http://incorporeal.org/journal/index.php/bss/2009/11/17/nostalgiarama

Nostalgiarama

2009-11-18T05:53:51+00:00

On a whim today, I decided to dust off a bit of my Jpop (Ayumi Hamasaki, to be precise) and give it a listen. It is amazing what memories are invoked from just the first few tracks off of LOVEppears, which I first started listening to in 2000 — my first total immersion dives into computing (nay, computer appreciation), fleeting loves, the Milwaukee School of Engineering, Gentoo Linux, compiling Gentoo Linux, breaking all of my computers at least once.

Lonely nights in a warm bedroom, surrounded by computers, Ayu blasting through XMMS, heralding my first great interest shift. The daily commutes to MSOE punctuated with long sessions before and after class in the student center, tasting for the first time the sweet nectar of broadband, filling my belly with Japanese culture. My last serious interest in anime, my first serious appreciation for the potpourri of the Internet.

The whiteness of an Ayu wallpaper. My rust bucket truck. The couches in the Cudahy Student Center. The cheeseburgers they served there. Windows file sharing clients, their names long lost, from an age before the luxury of BitTorrent. A certain kind of orange present in my Trillian IM client. Shit, Trillian itself. Conversations never saved, never remembered, no longer the highlight of a lazy afternoon between classes. People not seen in years. Quiet conversations outside, in the cold, revisiting the high school roof.

All from Ayu’s “Trauma". If I had one hope, it was that I never lost these memories. If I had one fear, it would be losing the ability of music to invoke them.

bssteph: listening to some decade-old jpop. it's weird how ayu's Trauma still invokes images of MSOE, freshmanhood, and gentoo (ah, XMMS!)

2009-11-18T05:24:43+00:00

bssteph: listening to some decade-old jpop. it's weird how ayu's Trauma still invokes images of MSOE, freshmanhood, and gentoo (ah, XMMS!)

bssteph: can't sleep, clown will eat me...

2009-11-17T05:55:47+00:00

bssteph: can't sleep, clown will eat me...

bssteph: @ObsidianCrane interesting app. Masterplan looks okay, but its flow chart is not a mind map. players need a tool, something without baggage.

2009-11-15T15:25:18+00:00

bssteph: @ObsidianCrane interesting app. Masterplan looks okay, but its flow chart is not a mind map. players need a tool, something without baggage.

bssteph: #dnd tip: use a mind mapping tool, like FreeMind, to organize your campaign and keep a record of it in the process

2009-11-14T22:30:40+00:00

bssteph: #dnd tip: use a mind mapping tool, like FreeMind, to organize your campaign and keep a record of it in the process

bssteph: anyone out there ever used mind mapping software to organize #dnd games? wondering if wiki overhead is too high for my players #rpg

2009-11-14T09:50:47+00:00

bssteph: anyone out there ever used mind mapping software to organize #dnd games? wondering if wiki overhead is too high for my players #rpg

bssteph: btw @Mustin - TOU need to come around wisconsin some time!

2009-11-13T23:10:07+00:00

bssteph: btw @Mustin - TOU need to come around wisconsin some time!

bssteph: @Mustin dethklok was amazing in milwaukee - they still touring with mastodon?

2009-11-13T23:06:07+00:00

bssteph: @Mustin dethklok was amazing in milwaukee - they still touring with mastodon?

bssteph: RT @TheKrick: "scanning thru on-screen TV guide ... "Ice Twisters" on Syfy this weekend. @bssteph will love this." -- DVR already set, sir!

2009-11-13T05:50:26+00:00

bssteph: RT @TheKrick: "scanning thru on-screen TV guide ... "Ice Twisters" on Syfy this weekend. @bssteph will love this." -- DVR already set, sir!

bssteph: character of mine betrayed the party for demon's promise of power once. fun time and a new villain. game died soon thereafter though :( #dnd

2009-11-13T04:42:50+00:00

bssteph: character of mine betrayed the party for demon's promise of power once. fun time and a new villain. game died soon thereafter though :( #dnd

bssteph: @SlyFlourish @newbiedm PC-turned-villain is a great story mechanic, but to be treaded lightly. rather do it to (willing) retired characters

2009-11-13T04:40:30+00:00

bssteph: @SlyFlourish @newbiedm PC-turned-villain is a great story mechanic, but to be treaded lightly. rather do it to (willing) retired characters

bssteph: and now for a little nighttime reading: An Evening with Berferd. In Which a Cracker is Lured, Endured, and Studied

2009-11-12T05:47:42+00:00

bssteph: and now for a little nighttime reading: An Evening with Berferd. In Which a Cracker is Lured, Endured, and Studied

bssteph: left work at 2300, saw a numb-looking person coming in as i left, the parking ramp nearly empty. i've always enjoyed late nights. #fb

2009-11-12T05:46:36+00:00

bssteph: left work at 2300, saw a numb-looking person coming in as i left, the parking ramp nearly empty. i've always enjoyed late nights. #fb

bssteph: thanks to postfix and greylisting, I have woken up to 0 new spam messages and only solicitated email. wee!

2009-11-10T13:29:19+00:00

bssteph: thanks to postfix and greylisting, I have woken up to 0 new spam messages and only solicitated email. wee!

bssteph: @mikebloy pretty sure that very dilemma was cause for many, MANY crude doodles and how early [A]D&D interior art was acceptable

2009-11-09T04:10:07+00:00

bssteph: @mikebloy pretty sure that very dilemma was cause for many, MANY crude doodles and how early [A]D&D interior art was acceptable

bssteph: definitely have the post #dnd / #rifftrax lethargy tonight. must make it one more hour...

2009-11-09T04:08:31+00:00

bssteph: definitely have the post #dnd / #rifftrax lethargy tonight. must make it one more hour...

bssteph: busy person's summary of the day: left 4 dead still fun, dragon age: origins is awesome, now to update my linux boxes. yes, that is "busy"

2009-11-08T01:57:33+00:00

bssteph: busy person's summary of the day: left 4 dead still fun, dragon age: origins is awesome, now to update my linux boxes. yes, that is "busy"

bssteph: time for another Heirs to Arms spoiler: drink up. it's later than you think. #dnd #fb

2009-11-07T02:02:33+00:00

bssteph: time for another Heirs to Arms spoiler: drink up. it's later than you think. #dnd #fb

bssteph: the dark sun creature catalog is going to be paperback? what gives? also, forgotten realms one, please. #dnd #fr

2009-11-06T23:31:49+00:00

bssteph: the dark sun creature catalog is going to be paperback? what gives? also, forgotten realms one, please. #dnd #fr

bssteph: @newbiedm the DM should be honest if including exceptionally difficult encounters. drop hints, "you feel a sense of dread"...

2009-11-06T20:15:27+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm the DM should be honest if including exceptionally difficult encounters. drop hints, "you feel a sense of dread"...

bssteph: @newbiedm i would hesitate to call that a "problem", unless you're running a randomized meat grinder

2009-11-06T20:10:53+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm i would hesitate to call that a "problem", unless you're running a randomized meat grinder

bssteph: @matt_james_FR amen, brother (and oddly, that's about when #dnd #4e turned around for me too)

2009-11-04T20:13:50+00:00

bssteph: @matt_james_FR amen, brother (and oddly, that's about when #dnd #4e turned around for me too)

bssteph: tried writing a #dnd blog post, wasn't feeling it. short version: plus side to wizards' publishing calendar is DM mindshare, influence

2009-11-03T05:23:02+00:00

bssteph: tried writing a #dnd blog post, wasn't feeling it. short version: plus side to wizards' publishing calendar is DM mindshare, influence

bssteph: #dnd session complete. PCs took down the demonic acolyte bullywug mud lord (ah, templates), and now need to decide their next path

2009-11-02T03:25:19+00:00

bssteph: #dnd session complete. PCs took down the demonic acolyte bullywug mud lord (ah, templates), and now need to decide their next path

bssteph: @dickieadams ah, cool. that would work! now the question is do i use that or scratch my developer itch? :)

2009-10-31T17:05:10+00:00

bssteph: @dickieadams ah, cool. that would work! now the question is do i use that or scratch my developer itch? :)

bssteph: @dickieadams yeah. d20 encounters, which is not what i'm looking for :)

2009-10-31T16:48:22+00:00

bssteph: @dickieadams yeah. d20 encounters, which is not what i'm looking for :)

bssteph: @dickieadams interesting. maybe that will work for dungeons while i work on a 4e encounter generator

2009-10-31T16:41:42+00:00

bssteph: @dickieadams interesting. maybe that will work for dungeons while i work on a 4e encounter generator

bssteph: i want to both run and play in a random #dnd #4e dungeon, and i want to build a webapp to randomize. any tips? anyone done this already?

2009-10-31T15:46:02+00:00

bssteph: i want to both run and play in a random #dnd #4e dungeon, and i want to build a webapp to randomize. any tips? anyone done this already?

bssteph: BOX ELDER BUGS EVERYWHERE, SEND HELP. I CAN'T FIGHT THEM OFF FOREVERRRRRRRRRRRRRAGGGH gunfire #fb

2009-10-30T01:36:38+00:00

bssteph: BOX ELDER BUGS EVERYWHERE, SEND HELP. I CAN'T FIGHT THEM OFF FOREVERRRRRRRRRRRRRAGGGH *gunfire* #fb

bssteph: jesus h. christ that was the best episode of community. better than any episode of the office? QUITE PROBABLY.

2009-10-30T00:28:35+00:00

bssteph: jesus h. christ that was the best episode of community. better than any episode of the office? QUITE PROBABLY.

bssteph: i am dangerously verbose over email. there should be warnings in the headers, "this man is about to ramble and converse with himself" #fb

2009-10-29T06:02:55+00:00

bssteph: i am dangerously verbose over email. there should be warnings in the headers, "this man is about to ramble and converse with himself" #fb

bssteph: i am playing borderlands and loving it, but one thing bothers me: why would you name a planet pandora? that seems to just invite trouble

2009-10-29T02:11:19+00:00

bssteph: i am playing borderlands and loving it, but one thing bothers me: why would you name a planet pandora? that seems to just invite trouble

bssteph: For the gaming group, a Heirs to Arms spoiler: "Having torn away, is there a sensation left to feel?" #dnd #fb

2009-10-28T04:12:17+00:00

bssteph: For the gaming group, a Heirs to Arms spoiler: "Having torn away, is there a sensation left to feel?" #dnd #fb

bssteph: it's almost 7 PM. i'm at work, and i just settled on a bag of sun chips for dinner. yup, it's one of those nights

2009-10-27T23:52:22+00:00

bssteph: it's almost 7 PM. i'm at work, and i just settled on a bag of sun chips for dinner. yup, it's one of those nights

bssteph: @AsmodeusLore i hope that beholder is intentionally old school

2009-10-26T23:09:44+00:00

bssteph: @AsmodeusLore i hope that beholder is intentionally old school

bssteph: the internet is way, way too addicting. most of my weekend has been left 4 dead and reading video game nostalgia...

2009-10-26T02:13:16+00:00

bssteph: the internet is way, way too addicting. most of my weekend has been left 4 dead and reading video game nostalgia...

bssteph: i spent some quality time with an old friend tonight. we had not danced in a long, long time... i speak, of course, of Quake

2009-10-25T06:51:12+00:00

bssteph: i spent some quality time with an old friend tonight. we had not danced in a long, long time... i speak, of course, of Quake

bssteph: this "installing windows" cutscene blows

2009-10-25T03:45:42+00:00

bssteph: this "installing windows" cutscene blows

bssteph: my desktop, a couple disks lighter, is at the BIOS config, waiting for my #windows7 download. kind of a "your orders, sire" thing

2009-10-25T00:51:29+00:00

bssteph: my desktop, a couple disks lighter, is at the BIOS config, waiting for my #windows7 download. kind of a "your orders, sire" thing

bssteph: i have just purchased windows 7 home premium. excuse me if i'm constantly muttering about feeling filthy and vile for the next week.

2009-10-24T22:55:41+00:00

bssteph: i have just purchased windows 7 home premium. excuse me if i'm constantly muttering about feeling filthy and vile for the next week.

bssteph: @mendozacarl ah, nice reading of the rule applied to the problem, i like it

2009-10-24T17:29:33+00:00

bssteph: @mendozacarl ah, nice reading of the rule applied to the problem, i like it

Once more into the fray

2009-10-22T02:46:07+00:00

I’ve started another Dungeons & Dragons campaign. It started pretty awesomely, and it’s going to continue being pretty awesome. I think this is the first D&D campaign for the group of friends that I’ve put large amounts of preparation time and thought into — the past ones had been started ad hoc. I’ve been putting things on the wiki for the group, and as time progresses, I think I’m going to share some of the previously-private DM notes for myself.

One rather substantial page I’ve put together, though, is the player handout.

And this constitutes an update.

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-10-03T22:37:27+00:00

HEAD is 0c386661c45b55b238d8517c80dc38d258b49c88

Brian S. Stephan committed 0c386661:

don't output number of tokens sorted by SortInitiative

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-10-03T15:00:10+00:00

HEAD is 23e6e1e6a9140f1134896ef15a3275a5b76e626a

Brian S. Stephan committed 23e6e1e6:

NPC variables, same as PC but hidden

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-10-03T14:01:17+00:00

HEAD is 07387a39ddb1314caf3c8405ee4c7fa3b536a0a0

Brian S. Stephan committed 07387a39:

vision settings, with an example map

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-09-28T20:09:37+00:00

HEAD is 6be629aa0b2dc691168a7c3de4554f4d0ed2480b

Brian S. Stephan committed 6be629aa:

more HP/temp HP stuff, macros for damage and healing that set bar and HP states

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-09-28T14:53:08+00:00

HEAD is 61db907002978568dfd86f1538f9938e30e4f420

Brian S. Stephan committed 61db9070:

adding bloodied state, cleaning up light sources, adding auras

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-09-28T14:17:43+00:00

HEAD is 916bc09c015dea92c77a713dfc0b859b613b5e21

Brian S. Stephan committed 916bc09c:

Initial version of a sample campaign

bssteph created branch master at bssteph/maptool-dnd

2009-09-28T13:46:26+00:00

New branch is at bssteph/maptool-dnd/tree/master

bssteph created repository maptool-dnd

2009-09-28T13:35:24+00:00

New repository is at bssteph/maptool-dnd

I need a review board

2009-09-23T04:49:46+00:00

In case you were wondering, yes, I broke https on my site for around 24 hours. It’s fixed now.

Cherub sketch by Mike Vaillancourt

2009-08-22T17:21:24+00:00

A sketch of the Cherub Engel from CthulhuTech.

Gen Con 2009
In album Stephan's Album o' Randomness

Mike Valliancourt sig & sketch

2009-08-21T03:20:44+00:00

Sketch by Mike Valliancourt, for Fotophool.

Gen Con 2009
In album Stephan's Album o' Randomness

Third time's a something

2009-07-31T04:24:57+00:00

Monday, I twittered my greatest idea to date, and as it turns out, that was the impetus for something I’ve been meaning to start for a while, something that people have said I should do.

I now own an electric guitar.

It’s a Starcaster by Fender, commonly marketed and regarded as a beginner’s guitar, so pretty much perfect for me, as my guitar knowledge begins and ends with picking up acoustic guitars a couple assorted times in my youth and fumbling with the strings. This time, I’m going big. Instruction DVDs, guitar tab books, micro and macro goals.

Everything fell together today. I tuned (which I do not have an ear for), started with some basics, learned a chord or two. I think I’ve already forgotten the names, but hopefully at least the fingerings will stick to tomorrow. Still getting used to the feel of the strings, the precision of it all. Wondering if the action is a bit too high, which I’m astonished to write, as I had no idea what that meant 48 hours ago.

I enjoy the weight of it in my hands, slung over my shoulder. Brings back pleasant memories of the saxophone days, implement across my body. In fact, come to think of it, the fingering situation is not entirely unlike my only other significant instrument, the piano; abandoned in the 4th grade in favor of the saxophone, which made it a bit into college. It feels good again, to have sound at my fingertips, and know that I may once again be able to conjure musicks from the air.

This will (hopefully) be the first instrument I’ve actually practiced at home — piano and saxophone I was mostly able to float by on rehearsal. This one, though, I have no such luxury; my success or failure rests in my bedroom, tied to a small amp.

I seek to multiclass as a DM/bard.

(Okay, I want to do more than that, but I still insist that it’s a pretty awesome idea.)

Twitter removed from the feed

2009-06-20T00:59:04+00:00

As I’m using Twitter more these days, I decided that the multiple tweets per day were probably making the front page here overly noisy. With that, I’ve temporarily removed it from the feed, updates will appear there no longer. If it turns out that you really did like them being there (or are pleased that they’re now gone), please, tell me and I’ll act accordingly.

bssteph: #dnd books and such in the basement during irc game. space is key! http://yfrog.com/153saj

2009-06-19T23:41:39+00:00

bssteph: #dnd books and such in the basement during irc game. space is key! http://yfrog.com/153saj

bssteph: home with my new iPhone 3GS. exchanged my 2-week old 3G; the apple store in madison west towne rocks!

2009-06-19T20:30:04+00:00

bssteph: home with my new iPhone 3GS. exchanged my 2-week old 3G; the apple store in madison west towne rocks!

bssteph: bss' rule of proximal randomness: if not already printed by the system publisher, someone, somewhere, has made an injury location table #rpg

2009-06-19T05:43:16+00:00

bssteph: bss' rule of proximal randomness: if not already printed by the system publisher, someone, somewhere, has made an injury location table #rpg

bssteph: @newbiedm also, if a PC had a "never grants combat advantage" type effect, the grick would still get +2, i'd rule

2009-06-19T05:31:19+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm also, if a PC had a "never grants combat advantage" type effect, the grick would still get +2, i'd rule

bssteph: @newbiedm yes; both the bonus from combat advantage and the grick's ability are untyped (and the ability is extraordinary)

2009-06-19T05:23:27+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm yes; both the bonus from combat advantage and the grick's ability are untyped (and the ability is extraordinary)

bssteph: that's either lightning or a guy outside my house with giant strobe lights

2009-06-19T05:19:45+00:00

bssteph: that's either lightning or a guy outside my house with giant strobe lights

bssteph: @newbiedm point is, if everyone at the table only wants RP to fill in the gaps, it's their prerogative. i think 4e is good at crunchy RP

2009-06-19T03:53:45+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm point is, if everyone at the table only wants RP to fill in the gaps, it's their prerogative. i think 4e is good at crunchy RP

bssteph: @newbiedm i think attributing it to 4e is confirmation bias :) people want what they want. if the DM demands RP, do combatless sessions

2009-06-19T03:52:05+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm i think attributing it to 4e is confirmation bias :) people want what they want. if the DM demands RP, do combatless sessions

bssteph: @newbiedm choice in system is the common language for DM and players to say what they want. the rest is interpretation and preference

2009-06-19T03:45:25+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm choice in system is the common language for DM and players to say what they want. the rest is interpretation and preference

bssteph: @newbiedm people and groups (and DMs) put into the game what they want out of it, as it's always been. 4e #dnd doesn't change that

2009-06-19T03:43:57+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm people and groups (and DMs) put into the game what they want out of it, as it's always been. 4e #dnd doesn't change that

bssteph: excited for the #dnd ultimate dungeon delve at #gencon! my group has our tickets, i'm thinking we should make characters soon and practice

2009-06-19T01:26:13+00:00

bssteph: excited for the #dnd ultimate dungeon delve at #gencon! my group has our tickets, i'm thinking we should make characters soon and practice

bssteph: reminder: #dnd #ddi subscription rate increases in july, you can extend your sub. another year now at current price. i'm good until 2/2011!

2009-06-18T06:20:03+00:00

bssteph: reminder: #dnd #ddi subscription rate increases in july, you can extend your sub. another year now at current price. i'm good until 2/2011!

bssteph: @matt_james_FR similar #dnd tip: bug spray (such as OFF!) does an amazing job at cleaning ink from plexiglas and whiteboards

2009-06-18T06:10:55+00:00

bssteph: @matt_james_FR similar #dnd tip: bug spray (such as OFF!) does an amazing job at cleaning ink from plexiglas and whiteboards

bssteph: @jorenby nice nice. working on a couple verses myself. just realized that AC/DC is an amazingly relevant name! #dnd

2009-06-18T05:26:15+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby nice nice. working on a couple verses myself. just realized that AC/DC is an amazingly relevant name! #dnd

bssteph: running some #dnd (shards of jade) over irc/maptool in the basement! http://twitpic.com/7obnu

2009-06-18T01:43:03+00:00

bssteph: running some #dnd (shards of jade) over irc/maptool in the basement! http://twitpic.com/7obnu

bssteph: alright, #dnd people. need a way to involve remote friends in our gaming table sessions. penny arcade style webcam/skype? suggestions?

2009-06-17T05:13:14+00:00

bssteph: alright, #dnd people. need a way to involve remote friends in our gaming table sessions. penny arcade style webcam/skype? suggestions?

bssteph: @mudbunny74 ooh, thanks for the reminder re: cartographers' guild. didn't register before to get attachments. thanks! #dnd

2009-06-17T04:01:05+00:00

bssteph: @mudbunny74 ooh, thanks for the reminder re: cartographers' guild. didn't register before to get attachments. thanks! #dnd

bssteph: dear twitter #dnd denizens: are there any good sites with an assortment of fantasy maps? I need maps, have low time, and suck at cartography

2009-06-17T02:37:45+00:00

bssteph: dear twitter #dnd denizens: are there any good sites with an assortment of fantasy maps? I need maps, have low time, and suck at cartography

bssteph: now to check out the #eberron player's guide on my stack, which will be interesting as I have no experience with eberron except @ cons! #dnd

2009-06-17T02:16:58+00:00

bssteph: now to check out the #eberron player's guide on my stack, which will be interesting as I have no experience with eberron except @ cons! #dnd

bssteph: ahh, best solo drum #rockband session yet. battery, ace of spades, painkiller on hard. there was a time and sorry on expert!

2009-06-17T02:13:43+00:00

bssteph: ahh, best solo drum #rockband session yet. battery, ace of spades, painkiller on hard. there was a time and sorry on expert!

bssteph: think i'm going to pick up the eberron player's guide after work today. do i play in/run an eberron game? no. does it matter? no. :) #dnd

2009-06-16T13:58:15+00:00

bssteph: think i'm going to pick up the eberron player's guide after work today. do i play in/run an eberron game? no. does it matter? no. :) #dnd

bssteph: woo, just aced the #dnd #4e herald exam! finally got off my lazy bum. my players are in for it now :)

2009-06-16T00:47:06+00:00

bssteph: woo, just aced the #dnd #4e herald exam! finally got off my lazy bum. my players are in for it now :)

bssteph: @mikemearls to me dazed sounds like it sets a ceiling - you only get one action. or is there clarifying errata? or is this all pref.? #dnd

2009-06-15T19:11:31+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls to me dazed sounds like it sets a ceiling - you only get one action. or is there clarifying errata? or is this all pref.? #dnd

bssteph: @newbiedm further explanation: dazed is the exception rule (setting a ceiling) to the general rule (how APs work). exception > general

2009-06-15T04:01:00+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm further explanation: dazed is the exception rule (setting a ceiling) to the general rule (how APs work). exception > general

bssteph: @newbiedm i agree about dazed, but it's tricky. my stance: dazed doesn't take away 2 actions, it sets the ceiling to 1. AP gains nothing

2009-06-15T03:57:36+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm i agree about dazed, but it's tricky. my stance: dazed doesn't take away 2 actions, it sets the ceiling to 1. AP gains nothing

bssteph: @donttrythis love the idea of the museum of science & industry, but when i went last year, it seemed dated. need a mythbusters museum :)

2009-06-15T03:20:52+00:00

bssteph: @donttrythis love the idea of the museum of science & industry, but when i went last year, it seemed dated. need a mythbusters museum :)

bssteph: @senorpiquante "boatmurdered" is a great surname. another #dnd #greatfantasyname - snarf snaplen (IN MY OPINION of course)

2009-06-15T02:49:26+00:00

bssteph: @senorpiquante "boatmurdered" is a great surname. another #dnd #greatfantasyname - snarf snaplen (IN MY OPINION of course)

bssteph: omg twitpocalypse. time to load up on guns and get in the shelter. on a less sarcastic note, pretty sure twitterrific is affected :(

2009-06-13T00:39:17+00:00

bssteph: omg twitpocalypse. time to load up on guns and get in the shelter. on a less sarcastic note, pretty sure twitterrific is affected :(

bssteph: to those doing #dnd solitaire, why? rules mastery, to scratch a storytelling itch, no players, for the hell of it? random/published advs?

2009-06-13T00:19:02+00:00

bssteph: to those doing #dnd solitaire, why? rules mastery, to scratch a storytelling itch, no players, for the hell of it? random/published advs?

bssteph: "Geese have a tendency to attack humans ... [geese charge and] bite or attack with their wings." wikipedia doesn't mention the switchblades

2009-06-12T05:16:53+00:00

bssteph: "Geese have a tendency to attack humans ... [geese charge and] bite or attack with their wings." wikipedia doesn't mention the switchblades

bssteph: @mikemearls sounds cool. if you go through with it, will it show up in the #gencon catalog?

2009-06-12T05:06:32+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls sounds cool. if you go through with it, will it show up in the #gencon catalog?

bssteph: @mikemearls as in true totally random DMG style? that'd rock! get a giant d20 or spinny wheel or something :) i'd be there! #dnd #gencon

2009-06-12T03:45:04+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls as in true totally random DMG style? that'd rock! get a giant d20 or spinny wheel or something :) i'd be there! #dnd #gencon

bssteph: http://twitpic.com/75t29 had to negotiate with geese to pass at warner park. kind of scary. i think it's the hissing

2009-06-12T01:06:45+00:00

bssteph: http://twitpic.com/75t29 had to negotiate with geese to pass at warner park. kind of scary. i think it's the hissing

bssteph: last.fm client + itunes will scrobble the music i've listened to on my iphone when i sync. i think i'm in love

2009-06-11T23:59:23+00:00

bssteph: last.fm client + itunes will scrobble the music i've listened to on my iphone when i sync. i think i'm in love

bssteph: @jorenby swine flu declared pandemic, makers of HeadOn and those claimed-to-be-japanese foot pad things rejoice!

2009-06-11T17:53:07+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby swine flu declared pandemic, makers of HeadOn and those claimed-to-be-japanese foot pad things rejoice!

bssteph: need to find new acceptable way to remove myself from annoying conversations --- grizzly bear has started demanding benefits, is a bear

2009-06-11T06:01:35+00:00

bssteph: need to find new acceptable way to remove myself from annoying conversations --- grizzly bear has started demanding benefits, is a bear

bssteph: @newbiedm rules only say you get an "extra action this turn"; nothing about when to use it. also, paragon paths suggest AP use first #dnd

2009-06-11T05:26:20+00:00

bssteph: @newbiedm rules only say you get an "extra action this turn"; nothing about when to use it. also, paragon paths suggest AP use first #dnd

bssteph: two good albums: ohgr's devils in my details, heaven & hell's the devil you know #musicwhateverdamndayiplease

2009-06-10T23:46:50+00:00

bssteph: two good albums: ohgr's devils in my details, heaven & hell's the devil you know #musicwhateverdamndayiplease

bssteph: after mike's GURPS L4D tonight, it got me thinking that I really wish #cthulhutech mecha combat went faster

2009-06-10T04:22:28+00:00

bssteph: after mike's GURPS L4D tonight, it got me thinking that I really wish #cthulhutech mecha combat went faster

bssteph: WELCOME BACK @dr_botzo!!!

2009-06-09T00:29:30+00:00

bssteph: WELCOME BACK @dr_botzo!!!

bssteph: finally got to easter-time in my deadliest catch queue, judging by the commercials. almost to the new season!

2009-06-08T01:03:19+00:00

bssteph: finally got to easter-time in my deadliest catch queue, judging by the commercials. almost to the new season!

bssteph: @pdunwin not a bad idea! my characters don't mark, but our warlock would probably love that w/chocolate. #dnd

2009-06-08T01:01:12+00:00

bssteph: @pdunwin not a bad idea! my characters don't mark, but our warlock would probably love that w/chocolate. #dnd

bssteph: crappy mug shot (and playing with iphone) time: http://twitpic.com/6vht5

2009-06-08T00:58:55+00:00

bssteph: crappy mug shot (and playing with iphone) time: http://twitpic.com/6vht5

bssteph: @DaanRedblade any type of mat + acrylic sheets (cheap at home depot) work great

2009-06-07T22:03:00+00:00

bssteph: @DaanRedblade any type of mat + acrylic sheets (cheap at home depot) work great

bssteph: our DM believes in treats #dnd http://twitpic.com/6ufpo

2009-06-07T18:37:52+00:00

bssteph: our DM believes in treats #dnd http://twitpic.com/6ufpo

bssteph: it's time for another #dnd game via mark! invoker's level 4 now, wee. and andy is snooping me

2009-06-07T18:00:54+00:00

bssteph: it's time for another #dnd game via mark! invoker's level 4 now, wee. and andy is snooping me

bssteph: @matagin oh yes, i've come across iplay4e before and forgotten about it. very cool. #dnd

2009-06-06T14:45:50+00:00

bssteph: @matagin oh yes, i've come across iplay4e before and forgotten about it. very cool. #dnd

bssteph: playing with new iphone. any good #dnd related apps?

2009-06-06T05:23:50+00:00

bssteph: playing with new iphone. any good #dnd related apps?

bssteph: @rifftrax watching twilight right now. you guys, collectively, are the devil. the wonderful, maddening, sparkly devil

2009-06-06T00:25:52+00:00

bssteph: @rifftrax watching twilight right now. you guys, collectively, are the devil. the wonderful, maddening, sparkly devil

bssteph: owned :(

2009-06-04T00:12:01+00:00

bssteph: owned :(

bssteph: can someone confirm that the #dnd builder is wrong in giving my gnome +1 damage for wielding a versatile weapon (war pick)? yours too? #ddi

2009-06-03T01:22:26+00:00

bssteph: can someone confirm that the #dnd builder is wrong in giving my gnome +1 damage for wielding a versatile weapon (war pick)? yours too? #ddi

bssteph: @jorenby request from the gaming table: a #dnd themed rendition of AC/DC's T.N.T.

2009-05-31T03:42:10+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby request from the gaming table: a #dnd themed rendition of AC/DC's T.N.T.

bssteph: on the fence with the latest forgotten realms campaign guide. i like the unexplained sites, but wish their state were more obvious. #dnd #fr

2009-05-30T06:47:17+00:00

bssteph: on the fence with the latest forgotten realms campaign guide. i like the unexplained sites, but wish their state were more obvious. #dnd #fr

bssteph: #dnd orcs with greataxes means d12s! ♥

2009-05-29T03:34:08+00:00

bssteph: #dnd orcs with greataxes means d12s! ♥

bssteph: missing #dnd with @jorenby and gang because i'm running my irc game in mere minutes :( quite the embarrassment of riches

2009-05-28T23:21:55+00:00

bssteph: missing #dnd with @jorenby and gang because i'm running my irc game in mere minutes :( quite the embarrassment of riches

bssteph: @tdstelecom http://bit.ly/YDUfy

2009-05-28T20:04:35+00:00

bssteph: @tdstelecom http://bit.ly/YDUfy

Random nostalgia

2009-05-26T04:44:48+00:00

Two things I miss of La Crosse: the drives (as I have talked about a couple times) and the interesting topology of the area (again, experienced while driving). Madison, while great, is pretty boringly flat, and I don’t have a whole lot of reason to do excitingly long drives (especially ones with different, exploratory routes). I kind of want to do some sort of Wisconsin road trip.

Or maybe I should stop feeding my nostalgia with Wikipedia surfing.

bssteph: #cthulhutech seemed to go pretty well today, but i suck at judging how long things take. would have liked to get to the combat!

2009-05-24T06:20:22+00:00

bssteph: #cthulhutech seemed to go pretty well today, but i suck at judging how long things take. would have liked to get to the combat!

bssteph: the one time i'm motivated to mow the lawn, and the grass is still too wet. i think i saw a pokemon in my front yard

2009-05-23T16:47:53+00:00

bssteph: the one time i'm motivated to mow the lawn, and the grass is still too wet. i think i saw a pokemon in my front yard

bssteph: on my word, we aren't intentfully slighting #dnd by playing something else on game day. we're just itching for #cthulhutech migou action!

2009-05-23T03:08:22+00:00

bssteph: on my word, we aren't intentfully slighting #dnd by playing something else on game day. we're just itching for #cthulhutech migou action!

bssteph: time to quickly organize my random thoughts and plots for a game of #cthulhutech tomorrow!? it's been WAY too long...

2009-05-23T02:17:30+00:00

bssteph: time to quickly organize my random thoughts and plots for a game of #cthulhutech tomorrow!? it's been WAY too long...

bssteph: #dnd opinion crapshoot: running a game online. using maptool for combat, IRC for talky. IRC is preferable, but are there better maptools?

2009-05-22T14:17:00+00:00

bssteph: #dnd opinion crapshoot: running a game online. using maptool for combat, IRC for talky. IRC is preferable, but are there better maptools?

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/twirssi

2009-05-22T04:58:41+00:00

HEAD is 92f97d0a73263cfb7128c0b6138ea9168a5516bc

bssteph committed 92f97d0a:

Merge branch 'master' of git://github.com/zigdon/twirssi
Dan Boger committed ecf05626:

r643 - v2.3.3 - don't link retweets to their original tweet, because twitter is being stupid. Also, don't spam 'haven't been able to get updates' after the first 10 minutes.
Dan Boger committed 78088bde:

r636 - Warn when we can't fork
bssteph committed 4a4400ee:

Merge branch 'master' of git://github.com/zigdon/twirssi
Dan Boger committed cbabc868:

r619 - Fixed nick hilighting thanks to a pointer from @g45g
Dan Boger committed 9f73fa0d:

r618 - Fix reduced friends polling rate so that it actually works. Make monitor_file ignore lines that are not complete
bssteph committed af43fa73:

Merge branch 'master' of git://github.com/zigdon/twirssi
Dan Boger committed a66a6f42:

r616 - reduce polling for friends update, by default once every 10 minutes
Dan Boger committed 66c32ba6:

r615 - Release v2.2.2
Dan Boger committed 704a944f:

r614 - Fix searches, thanks to @Olatho finding a bug. Note that existing searches should be removed before upgrading, and re-added after.
Dan Boger committed 318479f0:

r612 - 2.2.2beta, Add tab-completion for twitter_unfriend
Dan Boger committed 24bd606e:

r611 - Tag 2.2.1 release
Dan Boger committed 9c8f7552:

r610 - Drop since_id for friends_timeline, just request the last 100 entries
Dan Boger committed 58fa7927:

r607 - Change calls to twitter to use the since_id param. Fix things so that we don't try to get the same context over and over while waiting for do_updates to complete.
Dan Boger committed 2492f53a:

r599 - fix nick in retweet
Dan Boger committed 2fa1c083:

r597 - Add a /retweet and /retweet_as commands.
Dan Boger committed 108f9ee0:

r569 - When a tweet is too long, show the URL on the same line

bssteph: breaded tilapia dinner, yum. some fable II later, and then working on the player site for mark's D&D game? i'm behind on my uploads! #dnd

2009-05-22T00:41:19+00:00

bssteph: breaded tilapia dinner, yum. some fable II later, and then working on the player site for mark's D&D game? i'm behind on my uploads! #dnd

bssteph: @aquelajames awesome. D&DI has been the best monthly service bang-for-buck ever. :) and now i'm off to pick up MM2

2009-05-19T22:09:47+00:00

bssteph: @aquelajames awesome. D&DI has been the best monthly service bang-for-buck ever. :) and now i'm off to pick up MM2

bssteph: @mikemearls @aquelajames in D&DI "complete sections of ... [PH3] material", how big is a "section"? feat tier, a class, one item? #dnd

2009-05-19T17:57:27+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls @aquelajames in D&DI "complete sections of ... [PH3] material", how big is a "section"? feat tier, a class, one item? #dnd

bssteph: the ending of halo 3: pretty good. maybe i would have liked it more had i played the first two :)

2009-05-10T05:09:57+00:00

bssteph: the ending of halo 3: pretty good. maybe i would have liked it more had i played the first two :)

bssteph: @dr_botzo bob hoskins was a huge fan of WHO WANTS TO BE A SUPERHERO? and guest-starred as stan lee's glasses in the final episode

2009-05-09T17:58:26+00:00

bssteph: @dr_botzo bob hoskins was a huge fan of WHO WANTS TO BE A SUPERHERO? and guest-starred as stan lee's glasses in the final episode

bssteph: @mikemearls roughly 90 minutes for standard enc., seen over 3 hours for hard. all things considered, timing is good. sometimes long = fun

2009-05-08T00:10:08+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls roughly 90 minutes for standard enc., seen over 3 hours for hard. all things considered, timing is good. sometimes long = fun

Finally combining Empty Matter and Incorporeal

2009-05-06T03:41:48+00:00

After putting it off for a while, I’ve decided to start merging the emptymatter.org and incorporeal.org domains, so that they all share the same services. (This has mostly been working for a while now.) I think I’ve always preferred the incorporeal.org domain name, so this will let me start advertising that again, hopefully without breaking what people are used to.

It may be a rocky ride for a bit.

bssteph: @mikemearls an aside, big fan of iron heroes, it was my group's primary game for a year or so. @jorenby even got a pic with you at a gen con

2009-05-06T01:13:44+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls an aside, big fan of iron heroes, it was my group's primary game for a year or so. @jorenby even got a pic with you at a gen con

bssteph: @mikemearls 4e class design sounds rewardingly difficult! how much (if any) is it balancing formulas vs playtesting and design zen? #dnd

2009-05-06T01:10:59+00:00

bssteph: @mikemearls 4e class design sounds rewardingly difficult! how much (if any) is it balancing formulas vs playtesting and design zen? #dnd

bssteph: @dr_botzo sounds like MUST SEE TV

2009-05-02T21:44:20+00:00

bssteph: @dr_botzo sounds like MUST SEE TV

bssteph: there are nostalgic nights where i realize how much i miss the MSOE experience. i really need to drop by there again sometime

2009-05-01T05:58:49+00:00

bssteph: there are nostalgic nights where i realize how much i miss the MSOE experience. i really need to drop by there again sometime

bssteph: @jorenby morlocks' first initiative with their new found power: new catchphrase, "MOR-LOCK-MIIIIIIITE!" response: tepid

2009-04-29T08:22:02+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby morlocks' first initiative with their new found power: new catchphrase, "MOR-LOCK-MIIIIIIITE!" response: tepid

bssteph: @SwineMeSwineFlu DATELINE GROUND ZERO: THREE LITTLE PIGS deemed "too frightening" to children; books burned. e. b. white fearful for life

2009-04-27T22:47:39+00:00

bssteph: @SwineMeSwineFlu DATELINE GROUND ZERO: THREE LITTLE PIGS deemed "too frightening" to children; books burned. e. b. white fearful for life

bssteph: @jorenby HEADLINE: h.g. wells awarded nobel prize in medicine (branch: temporalogy), doubly paradoxical as early dynamite used ground pig

2009-04-27T22:41:46+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby HEADLINE: h.g. wells awarded nobel prize in medicine (branch: temporalogy), doubly paradoxical as early dynamite used ground pig

bssteph: @jorenby chrono trigger method to avoiding swine flu: travel back in time, eat more bacon (NOTE: may be an excuse to eat bacon)

2009-04-27T16:42:43+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby chrono trigger method to avoiding swine flu: travel back in time, eat more bacon (NOTE: may be an excuse to eat bacon)

bssteph: GOLDBLUM! on law & order: ci is the most amazing thing ever. best show on TV? POSSIBLY. (contenders: house, WCG ultimate gamer)

2009-04-27T02:00:43+00:00

bssteph: GOLDBLUM! on law & order: ci is the most amazing thing ever. best show on TV? POSSIBLY. (contenders: house, WCG ultimate gamer)

bssteph: @jorenby you!

2009-04-26T21:10:16+00:00

bssteph: @jorenby you!

bssteph: bought two 3'x6' acrylic sheets for the gaming table. confused the guy at the home depot. somehow cut hand thrice. HUGE SUCCESS

2009-04-24T21:40:19+00:00

bssteph: bought two 3'x6' acrylic sheets for the gaming table. confused the guy at the home depot. somehow cut hand thrice. HUGE SUCCESS

bssteph: @bssteph power is back! trucks still outside. saw a fire engine earlier in the night, wonder if a power line was taken out

2009-04-20T05:18:46+00:00

bssteph: @bssteph power is back! trucks still outside. saw a fire engine earlier in the night, wonder if a power line was taken out

bssteph: power outage +service (?) vehicles outside = :( also means bedtime

2009-04-20T04:41:36+00:00

bssteph: power outage +service (?) vehicles outside = :( also means bedtime

bssteph: @michaeljnelson crazy excited to see you riff plan 9 at gen con this year! you're bringing your dice, right? RIGHT?

2009-04-20T03:07:06+00:00

bssteph: @michaeljnelson crazy excited to see you riff plan 9 at gen con this year! you're bringing your dice, right? RIGHT?

bssteph: 503 Service Temporarily Unavailable --- great! right when i got something in my cart!

2009-04-19T16:25:10+00:00

bssteph: 503 Service Temporarily Unavailable --- great! right when i got something in my cart!

bssteph: ninjaed! time for attempt #3

2009-04-19T16:11:03+00:00

bssteph: ninjaed! time for attempt #3

bssteph: these true dungeon events are already filling up, and i'm sitting here in the website death train!

2009-04-19T16:04:18+00:00

bssteph: these true dungeon events are already filling up, and i'm sitting here in the website death train!

bssteph: oh my god the gen con registration site feels like it's about to melt!

2009-04-19T15:58:30+00:00

bssteph: oh my god the gen con registration site feels like it's about to melt!

bssteph: @DaleNorth i have a man-crush on atlus. these next couple months are going to be like nirvana

2009-04-17T05:57:21+00:00

bssteph: @DaleNorth i have a man-crush on atlus. these next couple months are going to be like nirvana

bssteph: celebrating zombie jesus day by trying to fly through a chrono trigger DS new game +!

2009-04-12T16:57:02+00:00

bssteph: celebrating zombie jesus day by trying to fly through a chrono trigger DS new game +!

D&D Dungeon Master Journal: I. A Journey

2009-03-19T07:50:01+00:00

I’d been thinking about how I don’t write enough about one of my favorite hobbies, roleplaying (and, specifically, Dungeons & Dragons), and as such I decided to try to get in the habit of documenting my experiences in running a campaign again. Like many of my website projects, this journal will live or die by how much I periodically update.

A number of years ago, my first D&D DMing experience was, after picking up the 3.0 Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting at Gen Con, spontaneously starting a game with no direction following a couple hours of disarray at one of my group’s gaming sessions. It was definitely rocky, for me, and not without stressful times, but I think, ultimately, it was pretty well received, and there are some fond memories that we still speak of. Unfortunately, I fell a bit too in love with the campaign, and it died when I tried to hand it off so that I could be a player.

Since then, I’ve tried to start new games, including rebooting a Realms game at least twice, but they never really took. Maybe it was group-game saturation, or maybe I’d just gotten really lucky the first time, or (most likely) maybe my interests quickly wandered elsewhere, but the attempts faded into obscurity soon after the start. I moved on, to other systems and themes. But, deep within me, I’ve always had an itch to run D&D again.

Similarly, attempts to introduce gaming to a gang of friends on IRC had been well-received but died off with similar whimpers — too much disorganization among all of us, too little time on my plate, and not as much of the social aspect is probably what killed those games. The enthusiasm was there, but not the means to cultivate it. Again, maybe simply, the time was not right.

In one of these bouts of stagnancy trying to get a game of CthulhuTech going with the IRC group, I decided to pull the plug and instead present a more accessible (for all of us, in my opinion) alternative: D&D. I could scratch my itch with 4e and the new Forgotten Realms, and give the easiest path to my players, one with plenty of exciting books and options, and a very strong roleplaying line (incidentally, previous attempts at the Realms with that group, in 3.5, probably did the best of my gaming cultivation efforts).

For now, however, enough history. The decision was made roughly two weeks ago, and we played on Sunday for the first time, after spending around a week making characters.

Things went pretty well. The Character Builder (even the demo) is a great tool, and I think some of the moderate success so far belongs to how presentable the Builder makes character creation. People are thinking about backstories, and their character’s place in the world (the pair of Realms sourcebooks obviously helps that), and overall crafting some interesting characters to play — very cool. As I usually end up doing, we’re taking a liberty or two with the Realms, but mostly adhering to the setting and letting it help fill in the gaps — we’re all busy people, after all, and we can’t be creative all the time.

Unsurprisingly, those of us who were used to d20/True20 are having some issues getting used to the 4e world, or disassociating rules and quirks we’d picked up from previous games. The new 4e elements I think the players are doing pretty good on, but game concepts common to multiple editions (such as opportunity attacks, and what it means to be at negative hit points) catch us up on occasion.

The three combat encounters (and my fumbly skill challenge) have been a bit bumpy, but nothing critical has gone wrong, and we’ve all been learning things. For instance, this is my first time actually building 4e encounters, which is refreshingly simple once acquainted with the concepts and creature classifications. The players have the harder job right now, learning a new system and, for the most part, getting into the roleplaying mentality.

That’s been a bit bumpy too, I think the joking/sarcastic comment ratio is a bit too high for IRC; while those comments are always present at the gaming table, typing on IRC is time-consuming, and a lot of time is spent on chatter and quasi-in-person comments that aren’t acted upon (or meant to be). There is a fair amount of distraction factor as well, but as long as my players keep relatively up to speed (which isn’t always the case :\), it doesn’t bother me as much as it has in the past.

Ultimately, though, combining the above with the normal difficulty of identifying fake hostility and joking quips over the Internet has made a couple moments a bit tense for the players. I think some of it them being stressed — there is a lot to digest, and I need to keep the pace somewhat reasonable, or we’ll never get anywhere.

Nevertheless, I’m very pleased with how things are going. We spent most of Sunday playing, and there was immediately demand for playing again soon, so we snuck in a quick session on Wednesday. Combats are slow, but improving as people get a feel for their characters, their powers, and the system concepts in general. The improvement there is fun to see, but what pleases me the most is the enthusiasm in playing again.

I also hope to get some real experience in enhancing the game via the wiki, encouraging people to write whatever comes to their mind about the PCs and NPCs of the campaign, and even people and places of the official Realms setting, as they pertain to the campaign. I’ve tried one idea in particular with the quest “cards", and I have a couple more tricks up my sleeve that I hope will pan out.

This became much longer than I intended it to. In short (now that I’m done talking anyway), I’m pleased to be scratching my DM/Realms itch again, and I’m doubly pleased that my players are doing well and enjoying what I have offered them so far. If it keeps on going, this could end up being a hell of a lot of fun.

Player's Handbook 2 - a review

2009-03-18T06:57:49+00:00

So, increasing my all-consuming interest in Dungeons & Dragons 4e, I picked up the Player’s Handbook 2 today, and spent a good part of the evening paging through it. Despite my renewed enthusiasm for the game (now that I have some playtime on both sides of the screen), I still came at the book with a bit of skepticism — let it be known now, it was mostly unwarranted. What is great, what is good, and what remains, you ask?

Pre-content Thoughts

Normal D&D4e production values in printing and layout. Inside the book, it’s indistinguishable from the relevant sections of the PH1 — same style for races, classes and their powers, paragon paths, so on.

The art is hit and miss. The primary art (chapter opens, races, and the like) are all pretty good to very good, but some of the incidental art and paragon path illustrations could have used another look. Nothing ridiculously wrong like some of the Complete Divine art (which my group liked poking fun at), but occasionally underwhelming. I guess not all of the illustrations can be knockouts.

On the nitpicking anal-retentive side, I’m wondering if every book is going to have a slightly different colored spine — the blue of the book is slightly lighter than that of the Player’s Handbook, and while trying to color code the books is no fun either, I’m wondering if my bookshelf is going to look like a shuffled Crayola box by the end.

Those highly concerned with dollars and cents may feel a bit stiffed in terms of volume — the book runs at the same price as the first Player’s Handbook but comes in at almost 100 pages less, putting it alongside the Dungeon Master’s Guide (a useful book, don’t get me wrong) in page-to-dollar ratio. While the page disparity can be easily explained given the content in PH2, maybe knocking $5 off the retail price would have been in order.

Introduction

The obligatory introduction opens with the standard introduction section, laying out what is to come, and includes a cookie-cutter sidebar prodding players to describe their powers less systematically, and using backgrounds (introduced later) to help facilitate the character’s backstory.

More interestingly, the introduction concludes (thankfully, already) with a page on the primal power source (the new source in PH2. It’s a pretty good write-up, with an honest approach to characters of the wild, essentially stating “while primal characters may not care much about that divine hooey or the growth of civilization, they’re not diametrically opposed — all three sides have common enemies and bigger fish to fry". It doesn’t wax poetic or anything, of course, but it’s a nice framing of the power, and I wish they’d done the same for the powers in the Player’s Handbook.

Character Races

Five races are introduced: devas, servants of the gods being reborn in the common world; gnomes, trickster fey (no surprise there); goliaths, tough, rugged mountain nomads; half-orcs, orc/human hybrids presented as a unique line rather than halfbreeds (interesting); and shifters, bestial humanoids with trace amounts of lycanthrope blood (hence the shifting).

The latter three races tend to bleed together a bit in their focus on the wilderness (but hey, that is to be expected with the introduction of the new power source), but each has its defining qualities. None of the five seem like they were tacked-on, or an afterthought, and the description of each makes them more than caricatures (with the exception of the shifters, maybe). I was pleasantly surprised by the half-orc, which finally sheds its stereotype as a dumb thicky, constantly on the fringes of (both human and orc) civilization.

The second of the chapter presents some racial paragon paths, one for each PH1/PH2 race (with the exception of the half-elf, who gets improved multiclassing via a feat instead). The racial paragon paths take the traits of each race to their obvious pinnacle: shifters become moonstalkers and get hunting-themed abilities, gnomes become fey beguilers and get sneaking and illusion abilities, eladrin ascend to shiere knights and represent the pinnacle of the Feywild, and so on. Nothing appears wrong with the racial paragon paths, but they’re not quite my cup of tea, and they do appear to have slight difficulty in differentiating themselves from class-based paragon paths. But, for those looking to have their character become the adventurer by which all of their race are judged (heh, or stereotyped), these do exactly that. The powers stand out well without going too much one way or the other on the balance scale.

Again, I can see plenty of people being pleased with these, I just personally find the class-based paragon paths more interesting.

Character Classes

The meat and potatoes of the book. Eight new classes:

the avenger (striker), a divine agent of battle, predisposed to neutrality, dishing out their god’s will, and a pretty interesting class all told;
the barbarian (striker), the classic “I’m going to rip that one guy to shreds and damn the defenses” warrior;
the bard (leader), which I’m excited about for some strange reason — a fun-looking party support leader who buffs with a little bit of controller mixed in;
the druid (controller), the classic nature-based shapeshifter that is all about flexibility, with a litany of powers in and out of their beast form;
the invoker (controller), an impressive but somewhat derivative conduit for divine will, either protective or wrathful;
the shaman (leader), a battle guide with a companion spirit to act as another ally (setting up flanks, acting as a healing focal point, etc.);
the sorcerer (striker), a channeler of raw arcane energy that mixes the striker’s focus with burst and blast attacks;
and the warden (defender), a primal protector of nature (and of course your party) with a controller-like mass-mark ability and beast or tree forms.

All of the classes have their primary role clearly indicated, and the support text also points out common secondary roles, which is a nice addition, showing the diversity of the classes. Naturally, each class has their entire power list laid out as in the PH1, along with a number of paragon paths. System balance is solid here too; none of the classes or powers appear to be broken, with the exception of a rare higher-level power which will seem to have one too many dice or the like. Definitely not a deal-breaker, though.

What impressed me the most was that, just like with the races, none of the classes feel tacked on or doing something totally antithesis to the standard set by the first book — all of the classes stand up alongside their PH1 kin, acting as part of the overall design while still offering their unique qualities.

The chapter ends with epic destinies, which follow the tradition of being a storytelling mechanism along the lines of “I want my character to be remembered for…". The Harbinger of Doom stands out to me as a great example of that — as interesting features as the other destinies, of course, but framed with a certain foreboding that keeps the destiny mechanic on a whole interesting.

Character Options

An assortment of less significant mechanics fill this chapter. It begins with backgrounds, which serve the immediate purpose of describing your character before level 1 while adding some minor benefits to the character. These, in my experience, work pretty well — I used the regional benefits in the Forgotten Realms Player’s Guide for my game, and the backgrounds section of PH2 claims those as a subset of the overall background concept. A DM who is not interested in the mechanical benefits of the backgrounds may still be interested in presenting them, just to get the gears turning in players’ heads.

Of course, there is the normal collection of feats, feats, and feats (for each tier). At a glance, half of the list is focused on the new classes, with around half of the remaining feats related to new races. The feats, naturally, vary in theme based on the focus of the class or desired action, but, again, everything appears to have been balanced well. One feat of note is the replacement for the half-elf’s missing racial paragon path, a feat that allows the Dilettante racial trait to be used as an at-will power, with essentially limitless multiclassing options for those choosing the paragon multiclassing option. It sounds like a nice feat, and it gives some more love to the oft-disregarded half-elf race.

As would be expected, multiclass feats are included for the book’s new classes.

A more than modest selection of magic items is included, again mostly focused on the wants and needs of the new classes, but a number of the options are definitely useful for the PH1’s classes, including new forms of masterwork armor. The new implements (totems, and weapons as implements) are introduced, as well as musical instrument wondrous items, acting as implements for bards but usable by anyone.

A couple dozen new rituals are added, filling some utility needs introduced by the primal power (standbys such as speak with nature, control weather), introducing utility bardsongs, and throwing in the wildcard or two (reverse portal, for instance).

Appendix: Rule Updates

Seeing this section scared the hell out of me at first. If anything made d20 (3.0 or 3.5) unpalatable, it was its constant revising of the rules, adding new action types based on the miniatures games, or introducing new uses of skills, and the like. The issue, ultimately, with these changes was that no attempt was made to make the established order fit with the additions, leading to a hodge podge of exception cases and, ultimately, imbalance.

That was 3.x, however, and so far 4e has avoided that problem. The appendix serves mainly to rewrite the “how to read a power” section of the PH1, including both new keywords and expanding/re-explaining the terminology introduced in the first book. While this sounds like it could be abysmal, nothing I saw contradicts or breaks the established order, instead items are just clarified. For example, the appendix states that the sequence of “effect” texts in a power is not accidental, and indentations are indeed intended to create conditional hierarchies ("secondary attack” is indented under “hit” because it is only relevant if you hit).

A number of other minor power clarifications show up: a character does not need to have an implement to use implement-keyword powers, they just need the ability to use the relevant implement (the difference between carrying a wand and being able to use a wand), reliable powers go unspent if every target is missed. Nothing here seems earth-shattering to me (some of it, in my opinion, is and always was obvious), but it looks like Wizards sought to answer what must be common questions with this superseding text.

There are “new” stealth rules as well, but they focus on more clarifications: creating a diversion to hide (a usage of Bluff) and Stealth are contested with passive Insight and Perception. How Stealth works in combat is explained and presented a bit better as well. Perception is a bit cheaper now, becoming a minor action (hooray). Finally, a couple terms are added to the glossary.

All in all, these are best described as clarifications and minor bugfixes — if Wizards reprints the Player’s Handbook, I wouldn’t be surprised to see these included along with more standard errata fixes (the text of PH2 even presents them that way, saying what snippets of the book are replaced with the new text).

Conclusion

I’m pretty pleased with this book. I think its success is evident in the feeling I get upon having read much and skimmed the rest — that it is not “the new book for players", but a legitimate expansion of scope. It does nothing to ruin, shatter, or unbalance the year of D&D4e we’ve had so far, and it is not even fair to call it another layer of content; its new content is neither above nor below the Player’s Handbook in value, it simply makes the core player content larger, adding without obsoleting. Which is exactly the point of the book.

Player's Handbook 2 - a review

2009-03-18T06:57:49+00:00

Pre-content Thoughts

Introduction

Character Races

Again, I can see plenty of people being pleased with these, I just personally find the class-based paragon paths more interesting.

Character Classes

The meat and potatoes of the book. Eight new classes:

the avenger (striker), a divine agent of battle, predisposed to neutrality, dishing out their god’s will, and a pretty interesting class all told;
the barbarian (striker), the classic “I’m going to rip that one guy to shreds and damn the defenses” warrior;
the bard (leader), which I’m excited about for some strange reason — a fun-looking party support leader who buffs with a little bit of controller mixed in;
the druid (controller), the classic nature-based shapeshifter that is all about flexibility, with a litany of powers in and out of their beast form;
the invoker (controller), an impressive but somewhat derivative conduit for divine will, either protective or wrathful;
the shaman (leader), a battle guide with a companion spirit to act as another ally (setting up flanks, acting as a healing focal point, etc.);
the sorcerer (striker), a channeler of raw arcane energy that mixes the striker’s focus with burst and blast attacks;
and the warden (defender), a primal protector of nature (and of course your party) with a controller-like mass-mark ability and beast or tree forms.

Character Options

As would be expected, multiclass feats are included for the book’s new classes.

Appendix: Rule Updates

Conclusion

b2evolution is back

2009-03-18T04:30:58+00:00

Apparently, a week ago I updated b2evolution and then promptly forgot about it, leaving the config at its default. Instead of loading my journal, an error page appeared.

No one noticed.

bssteph pushed to master at bssteph/twirssi

2009-03-17T23:27:02+00:00

HEAD is 605ec8cdb439c778acdcb79d9799973385338c7d

Dan Boger committed 6d1d1ce8:

r497 - When we create the twitter window, notify the user
Dan Boger committed aceae708:

r494 - v2.1.1 released
Dan Boger committed da55cc5e:

r493 - When upgrading from github, skip the MD5 verification
Dan Boger committed 72b8880c:

r492 - don't show duplicates from the same file (such as search results/follow overlaps)
Dan Boger committed 4d57961e:

r491 - Add a new setting, twirssi_upgrade_beta. If true, will upgrade from git. Default remains to grab only released versions
Dan Boger committed 489e5ba1:

r490 - Make sure we don't create new search subscriptions by mistake, silly autovivication
Dan Boger committed 7205cb87:

r489 - v2.1.0 - tagged
Dan Boger committed eb3ecf0e:

r488 - Don't cahce tweets until we actually display them. Dump now dumps out the duplicate cache too. When we first call updates, nothing will be shown, instead of spamming 20x num-of-accounts
Dan Boger committed b677a10f:

r487 - Remove since_id from friend_timeline call; extend the duplicate cache an hour before last_poll
Dan Boger committed af54a1d3:

r485 - Add a failwhale if we can't poll for over an hour
Dan Boger committed f53ed11a:

Merge branch 'master' of git://github.com/faemir/twirssi
faemir committed 6121f119:

added preliminary support for identi.ca
Dan Boger committed bdc2070c:

r484 - Add binmode so that we don't break incoming UTF8 tweets
faemir committed b6a93850:
Dan Boger committed fabe4d57:

r483 - Remove block checking for /usr/bin/md5sum, as we never did use it. Only shorten links in replies when we need to
Dan Boger committed 6e2d1f7b:

r481 - apparently, returns return from evals. Adjusted code.
Dan Boger committed a6c66dd3:

r480 - Adjust the message emitted when twitter polling times out. Add a variable twirssi_notify_timeouts to hide those messages completely
Dan Boger committed a4096004:

r476 - v2.0.4 - Fix #topics hilights
Dan Boger committed ac43358c:

r475 - v2.0.3 - Add variable to control the colors of @nicks and #topics
bssteph committed abb94ae1:

">"> add twirssi_hilights boolean, disable to squash twirssi adding hilights for @yournick

And 16 more commits...

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-03-17T23:26:57+00:00

605ec8cdb439c778acdcb79d9799973385338c7d

merging upstream

20090305, Clean

2009-03-06T04:56:43+00:00

In album Stephan's Album o' Randomness

20090305, Busy

2009-03-06T04:56:29+00:00

In album Stephan's Album o' Randomness

Yet another aural association

2009-03-04T07:52:55+00:00

Joe Hisaishi’s soundtrack for Princess Mononoke (もののけ姫): spring and summer of 2001; warm days of my freshman year at MSOE spent waking up at 10 or 11, driving down to Milwaukee for a couple compressed hours of classes, driving back home and staying up until 3 or 4 in the morning (definitely, those were the days before week-long labs and projects).

I include the Japanese name for the film as this period was the height of my independent study of the language, and I remember teaching myself as best I knew how, learning hiragana and katakana, picking up what I could… listening to audio, letting the madness of watching Neon Genesis Evangelion at 3 AM take me. These events were the catalyst for becoming alienated from a group, which I reeled from for a bit, but in another sense, it was a self-defining moment, and worth the bizarre overimportance of how I’d been shunned.

Regardless, the songs from the album (and what I’m actually listening to now, Symphonic Suite Princess Mononoke) bring about memories of what I’m experiencing this very moment — dark nights alone in my bedroom, technology my implement of interest and my own curiosity my guide. The motif in song and memory is a kind of reserved contemplation; surely, I was at my most isolated and aloof then, but I believe it was therapeutic, and in the end it played no small part in crafting my personality as an aspiring intellectual (and maybe a bit of a misanthrope as well :).

At the end of the summer, I would dislocate my knee for a third time, and then things soon took an odd turn.

Theraputic

2009-02-21T09:26:06+00:00

Just purged a bunch of people from my Facebook profile. I hadn’t talked to them in years and/or have no expectation of talking to them years from now. I did a smaller purge along the same lines on last.fm a couple months ago. If social networks only matter as much as the links that constitute them do, then said networks need pruning from time to time — the network needs to be able to correct its bad routes.

That said, if by chance you are a purgee and are reading this, it is nothing personal. We hadn’t talked and I didn’t see that changing. If you have a problem with that, your options are to deal with it, or begin the slow path to proving me wrong.

Mmm, engineering

2009-02-19T03:37:12+00:00

… the Tacoma Narrows bridge failure has given us invaluable information … It has shown [that] every new structure which projects into new fields of magnitude involves new problems for the solution of which neither theory nor practical experience furnish an adequate guide. It is then that we must rely largely on judgement and if, as a result, errors or failures occur, we must accept them as a price for human progress.

— Othmar Ammann, leading bridge designer and member of the Federal Works Agency Commission

Sorry, nothing else to post. I just thought that was a very insightful quote, and I’d rather not lose it, or at least enjoy it a bit.

Total aside, I have incorporeal.org still, and I have no idea what to do with it. I need a project…

bssteph committed to blakesmith/twirssi

2009-02-18T23:25:02+00:00

abb94ae1f393fed98efadcafd77ca04eeb034bd8

add twirssi_hilights boolean, disable to squash twirssi adding hilights for @yournick

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-02-07T06:22:34+00:00

af8fafcbee68c42b6c85c68ca9c0fcaf418887c6

add twirssi_hilights boolean, disable to squash twirssi adding hilights for @yournick

Keeping a git fork in sync with the forked repo - Guides - GitHub

2009-02-06T00:32:24+00:00

I really suck at git... need more pages like this one

bssteph: @riffrafftheater dungeons & dragons? holy damodar and all his blue-lipped children, YES

2009-02-04T06:05:49+00:00

bssteph: @riffrafftheater dungeons & dragons? holy damodar and all his blue-lipped children, YES

bssteph: ahh... purged a bunch of old emails, cruft and noise i have no intent to deal with again. a fine convenience, the delete key

2009-02-04T04:51:39+00:00

bssteph: ahh... purged a bunch of old emails, cruft and noise i have no intent to deal with again. a fine convenience, the delete key

bssteph: @rifftrax the Great Crash, as it will be known, ends with but one declaration: GET OFF MY PLANE! agree?

2009-02-04T02:45:37+00:00

bssteph: @rifftrax the Great Crash, as it will be known, ends with but one declaration: GET OFF MY PLANE! agree?

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-27T02:17:30+00:00

ee0c503ce407c794199a9d00662aecb076d652dd

Merge branch 'master' into bss

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-27T02:12:41+00:00

714d0806bba11bade31e514170d247c4aa8cce81

hilight the nick of the person who tweeted @yournick, instead of hilighting @yournick, as the default irssi behavior would

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-23T01:44:37+00:00

d7a849845c4bf66a97c4a535e1c7a2323cb28864

hilight the $meta{account} in a tweet with the irssi hilight_color. needs a hacky irssi -> mirc lookup table :(

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-23T01:44:37+00:00

01e6bdc8186acbd3c5f570e2252a8f9fc1009b8a

include errors in the @lines array, make a format for errors

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-23T01:44:37+00:00

2cbdec5357caa3a57ae4fee320a8da2e420d2d4f

if the tweet contains the {account}, also print the message at MSGLEVEL_HILIGHT

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-22T14:08:34+00:00

d4c8bc60abe49b701daf33a080957e014f9cef00

print lines at levels appropriate to the tweet. notably, this logs DMs at MSGLEVEL_MSGS, which results in a highlight in the activity bar for most irssi configurations

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-22T06:29:09+00:00

3dabfbdfe64eae04d7872d1b4cbbc317401ea989

don't delay and format error messages, just print them

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-22T06:21:56+00:00

e7bb2465a311967042e04b63f5f4526a4b4f35bd

working version of irssi formats + delayed tweet printing. uses an array of arrays to stuff important info and prints shortly later

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-22T04:11:37+00:00

77ff80bc4cf6b780b63a41a7ce261546c571d00a

Merge branch 'master' into bss

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-22T04:11:37+00:00

01589291203dc715581ef6cabd47a84a7a1cb427

vim modeline: # vim: set sts=4 expandtab:

Perldoc

2009-01-21T13:55:49+00:00

i need to hit up perldoc probably more than i ought to

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-21T01:55:11+00:00

a4ff9e2802033503e7cfcafb19e056ff44b2deb1

fix text formatting (use ^O to end color coding), fixes blue accidentally flowing past end of name

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-21T01:28:34+00:00

72072cf458f1b196171415b4e99ebf9d9c37301e

Merge branch 'master' into bss

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-19T04:49:15+00:00

eb8697fedc9865c83592715868a60bc95aa13d85

adding example CTCP functionality, changing version to appropriate for example

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-19T04:49:15+00:00

c58a7b15969f448e6d0a01590a27fcafdaf48d57

adding *.swp to .gitignore

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-19T00:28:51+00:00

36ddf0e9a6a29ee5a2f84030bb1c1066f378efec

Tesla::URL: like ::Fact, but uses tinyurl

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-18T23:59:06+00:00

232efa00f94d0dc487db60da3c264c25b0174613

.gitignore for a bunch of files, since i run my bot out of this directory

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-18T23:54:26+00:00

5bbad592209eda12e69d4275faf061f24340d2cc

adding a sample bot, and the dumb and often totally incorrect facts file

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-18T23:46:19+00:00

66a7dbf47fb00f53c3764867a408108285611f7b

importing existing Tesla modules

bssteph committed to bssteph/tesla

2009-01-18T23:39:11+00:00

8fd408d33d7a77cf2c95a9d4351a13b651b44c55

README skeleton: very little to see here

bssteph created branch master at bssteph/tesla

2009-01-18T23:35:12+00:00

New branch is at bssteph/tesla/tree/master

bssteph created repository tesla

2009-01-18T23:25:54+00:00

New repository is at bssteph/tesla

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-14T06:35:31+00:00

4f42bf923dfe388f4e07af3bc3d78518a1192679

merge master 1.7.4 into working branch

bssteph deleted branch win-tweet-only at bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-14T05:56:03+00:00

Deleted branch was at bssteph/twirssi/tree/win-tweet-only

bssteph committed to blakesmith/twirssi

2009-01-14T05:39:27+00:00

8bfb8601326ddc503216c9dd3d81cecdd053256d

backport 904baf472cb939bcde8646676a7dda4562c4b10f: basic (but working) support for tweeting non-command input to the twitter window

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-14T05:17:02+00:00

5666afff1d282e2ce52d1326b6309b99983fa799

manually rebasing to 1.7.4... i think

bssteph created branch win-tweet-only at bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-14T03:51:57+00:00

New branch is at bssteph/twirssi/tree/win-tweet-only

bssteph commented on bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-10T19:19:28+00:00

Comment in 904baf4:

And disabled by default it is. I’ll mull over whether or not I want to make this any more sophisticated, and then I’ll let you know!

bssteph commented on bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-10T08:15:51+00:00

Comment in 904baf4:

For those who missed the conversation about this in #twirssi, the conclusion seems to be that if you move an item (#6) into the twitter window (#5), the item takes ultimate precedence and you cannot switch to the empty window and tweet.
Thus this patch does nothing if you have an item inside twitter_window… so it goes.

bssteph commented on bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-10T01:53:50+00:00

Comment in 5223d49:

Ah, I had not thought of the partial tweet issue, indeed. If the lines array is extended to include the context of the line, pushing into it will work fine.

bssteph commented on bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-10T01:42:46+00:00

Comment in 904baf4:

1 windows that share the screen. This kind of explains it: http://wouter.coekaerts.be/site/irssi/split In any event, this works as expected. I have my "twitter" window-thing at the top of my screen, and the "#twirssi" window-thing at the bottom. If the bottom window is getting the input, I don't tweet. If the top is (and "twitter" is still what's in it), I tweet.">
I think the problem is Irssi’s goofy language that is kind of self-contradictory. A "split window" isn’t a window with two items ("#twirssi" and "twitter", for example), but one of >1 windows that share the screen. This kind of explains it: http://wouter.coekaerts.be/site/irssi/split
In any event, this works as expected. I have my "twitter" window-thing at the top of my screen, and the "#twirssi" window-thing at the bottom. If the bottom window is getting the input, I don’t tweet. If the top is (and "twitter" is still what’s in it), I tweet.

bssteph started watching blakesmith/twirssi

2009-01-09T14:33:05+00:00

twirssi's description:

An irssi script allowing the use of Twitter from within the IRC client.

bssteph edited a page in the bssteph/twirssi wiki

2009-01-09T06:04:07+00:00

"Home" is at bssteph/twirssi-bss/wikis/home

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-09T05:50:04+00:00

904baf472cb939bcde8646676a7dda4562c4b10f

basic (but working) support for tweeting non-command input to the twitter window

bssteph committed to bssteph/twirssi

2009-01-09T02:36:43+00:00

5223d4907b82fb18426bbd7e53619ccb4855d778

convert tweet output to use theme formats, provide defaults

bssteph edited a page in the bssteph/twirssi wiki

2009-01-09T01:57:27+00:00

"Home" is at bssteph/twirssi-bss/wikis/home

bssteph forked zigdon/twirssi

2009-01-09T01:32:57+00:00

Forked repository is at bssteph/twirssi

bssteph started watching zigdon/twirssi

2009-01-09T01:21:47+00:00

twirssi's description:

An irssi script allowing the use of Twitter from within the IRC client.

Warehouse 23: Attack of Opportunity - T-Shirt, Large

2008-12-30T03:39:54+00:00

on the arbitrariness of d20 AoOs. i lol'd

Etrian Odyssey II: In the beginning

2008-12-28T16:21:44+00:00

So, after having completed the Item Compendium as mentioned as the last accomplishment remaining in my last Etrian Odyssey lovefest, I fired up Etrian Odyssey II and began anew adventures into the unknown.

After spending roughly an hour weighing my party options, deciding on what kind of party I wanted and where to focus my guild members’ attention (and then changing my mind at least three times), I stepped foot into the labyrinth with a War Magus, Ronin, Gunner, Medic, and Alchemist. I was then reminded what pain felt like, needing to take the shortest path possible from the start to the stairs returning me to Lagaard’s safety.

It was comfortable.

In the past couple hours, I’ve mapped the first floor and have been soundly beaten by a FOE whose warnings from the game I gleefully ignored, not at all surprised by the resounding rhythm of my party dropping one by one. I’ve determined where to send my farmers on my next pass, and I’ve come across a couple of EO’s classic “your curiosity will hurt, but the payoff is good” events (including one designed to remind you of your early days in EO). And I’ve run to town with a shattered party and very little money more than once.

Thoughts on the game (in the scarce couple hours I’ve played it) include a couple expediencies in the interface and gameplay pacing (always welcome), a more consistent (by my memory, anyway) difficulty, a tuning of almost every class with more customization options and, in some cases, removal or revision of the überskills. Another welcome element is the game’s enjoyment in reminding you of the past — the event mentioned above, the presentation of the password import feature, and the reaction from the townspeople when it’s soon known that, yes, you are that guild from that place called Etria. It’s a nice little touch.

I’ve decided that I’ll make these little journal entries semi-frequent (so you may see one or two more before I forget and stop updating the site again), and in adding an Etrian Odyssey category to the hierarchy of my nonsense, I noticed that it has been roughly a year since I started EO. Hopefully it will not take me that long to complete the sequel, but even if it does, it’s looking to be just as enjoyable.

More Etrian Odyssey

2008-12-23T05:52:28+00:00

I finally beat the ultimate boss of Etrian Odyssey today, meaning I’ve finished the Monstrous Codex and just have the Item Compendium remaining… but, that’s not the point of this post.

I’ve been slowly working more people down and getting them to play the game, and in doing so I’m reminded of what makes it such a great game. I think that some time in the past, I’d said that “the game hates you", and time has led me to reconsider that statement.

The game respects you.

Sure, maybe an aspect of it (primarily the narration, for me) is a bit steeped in nostalgia, but the game knows what you want (or what it thinks you deserve) and presents it to you as clearly and easily as it can — it leaves you with a dungeon and a myriad of options for tackling it. But, practically every step of the way, you’re in control of the progression — how fast you advance, how gut-wrenching you make the FOE battles, how much focus you put on your favorite party members and how rounded your guild becomes. It sets the stage and lets you be the players, without latching itself onto your experience by burdening you with high fantasy plot and saving the world for love. Other RPGs can and do provide you that; Etrian Odyssey is around to relieve you of it. It is pure, as only RPG-fundamental water can be.

For its respect, it demands the same in kind. Having spent countless hours on the game, I’ve come to see my guild as a living thing — something I have grown and nurtured from its nascent stage to its present near-god state, the characters’ skills and names (my retired characters were replaced with those of the same class and name, with a “II” suffix) acting as personalizing scars and records, a sort of living history of thirty levels of dungeon exploration. It’s fun for me to watch other people start their journey.

And how it encourages exploration. The first task, even, is to map the first floor to an acceptable degree, and it sets you up for what the game expects of you — to make something with the blank slate it has presented you. Learn the way that is right for you to map, to equip your party, to set your expectations for the venture into the Labyrinth. There are completion benchmarks, of course, but Etrian Odyssey is wonderfully content to refuse to rope you along in plot or in archetype, to the point that the former is bare and the latter is entirely up to you. Create a traveling party of Medics (a challenge I would expect is only slightly less hardcore than the Final Fantasy four white mage challenge — but primarily so because Etrian Odyssey gives its Medics more options) if you so choose. Ignore the sidequests for a while? Fine. Arm yourself to the teeth by creating a party of farmers to compliment your adventurers? Great!

As my time in Etrian Odyssey comes to close with the last dozen or so items left to discover, I’m looking forward to the sequel. Not because there are unanswered plot points in the first, or a new earth-shattering game mechanic or killer class, but because, absent being able to bottle the experience of progressing through Etrian Odyssey for the first time unaided, I want to relive those first timid steps into a dungeon adventure that, if nothing else, became mine as I was given the freedom to write its story by my actions.

I really believe this is a singular experience, and that console or computer, eastern or western, this is one of the best RPGs I’ve ever played.

CthulhuTech Tunes

2008-12-19T21:56:36+00:00

So, I’ve been thinking about that whole multimedia experience thing, and for the CthulhuTech game I’ve been running (which is to say, I’ve run it more than once, in a somewhat timely fashion) I want to try having some music playing in the background. This is kind of uncharted territory, so I’m open to suggestions.

I have some ground rules:

It should not be “busy” — lyrics are almost definitely right out, as is metal and probably anything that you can’t just let sit in the background. Letting it be part of the game, good. Eclipsing the game, not so good.
- No camp, either. The game may have horror threads woven into it, but I don’t want nonsense like howling wolves and creaking doors and so on.
It should at least vaguely fit the theme of the game. No happy romance anime music during investigating unspeakable horrors on the fringe of civilization.
There should be a lot of it within a theme, so I’m not managing the playlist more than I am the game. My initial thoughts are a looping “general play” playlist, a “conflict” playlist, maybe a “touching moment” playlist, and a “resolution” playlist.
This is more of a personal preference, but contemporary music is preferable, because it’s a modern game. Also, there’s a lot of bland background music, I’m not interested in that; not to restrict myself that is only known and appreciated by the masses, but I’m interested in “popular” music.

So, like I said, I’m open to suggestions. Mark suggested the Vitamin String Quartet for his hypothetical game, which is interesting, and a pretty good suggestion. And, they have a lot to play with, what with their covering basically every artist known to man. Other ideas of my own include Nine Inch Nails’ Ghosts I-IV, Dale North’s Silent Horror, and a couple video games with a modern/future/post-apocalyptic bent to them. Flirting with sprinkling in Nightwish’s instrumental half of Dark Passion Play into the appropriate theme playlists.

If you have other suggestions, or stories of what worked for you, let me know by leaving a comment or something.

Sweden's Ultra-Modern Underground Data Center - HotHardware

2008-11-22T17:00:47+00:00

these people need to start doing centers and offices in the U.S....

system76, Inc.

2008-10-21T03:55:50+00:00

system76 sells laptops, desktops, and servers preloaded with Ubuntu

spock's devsite > uvesafb

2008-10-13T03:46:29+00:00

woo widescreen framebuffer

The Glass Nickel Pizza Co.

2008-10-11T23:11:52+00:00

glass nickel lets you order online and that is awesome. great pizza too

Electoral-vote.com: President, Senate, House Updated Daily

2008-10-11T00:50:22+00:00

another polling site, again, finally bookmarking it

FiveThirtyEight.com: Electoral Projections Done Right

2008-10-11T00:36:01+00:00

Pretty amazing electoral college/polling graphs and maps. I've been going here for a long time, just bothered to bookmark it now

XSL Frequently Asked Questions

2008-09-21T15:51:46+00:00

invaluable for XSL work, it's saved me dozens of times this weekend

YouTube - ZDTVMultimedia's Videos

2008-09-02T04:05:19+00:00

oh my god. ZDTV/TechTV archive on youtube. leo laporte is telling me about Red Hat's IPO. badass.

OneUp Studios - The OneUps Volume 2

2008-09-01T23:10:20+00:00

OneUps Volume 2 shipping tomorrow!? two disc set!? sounds like I should order. i hate it when this stuff flies under my radar :(

HOWTO DVD to Matroska and H.264 - Gentoo Linux Wiki

2008-09-01T00:45:41+00:00

I need to stop losing this page.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

2008-08-21T00:00:17+00:00

Nathan Fillion, Neil Patrick Harris, and Felicia Day = awesome

Aaron Toponce - Irssi

2007-12-28T03:16:15+00:00

a bunch of nice irssi tips

Gentoo Forums :: View topic - Problem with booting "LiveUSB"

2007-12-14T06:35:41+00:00

LIFESAVER

How To: Run Team Fortress 2, Portal, Half-Life 2, HL2 EP 1&2 In Ubuntu Using Wine

2007-11-05T21:16:44+00:00

yay

A Cast of Thousands: Star Wars Saga Edition Character Generator

2007-11-03T15:17:45+00:00

LIFESAVER.

Filterset.G regexp for adblock

2007-10-28T14:00:08+00:00

HOWTO Create a DOS boot disk

2007-10-21T20:01:43+00:00

Civilization IV Playable on Linux

2007-10-18T01:29:58+00:00

Universal abit > Motherboard, Digital Speakers, iDome, AirPace, Multimedia

2007-10-01T00:22:12+00:00

How to boot an Abit board from a USB flash drive - Universal abit USA Forums

2007-10-01T00:07:59+00:00