Trip's Life (Recent episodes)
18 July 2014 - Friday
Boo, I'm on call again! Well, gaming has been cancelled, so I guess
it's a good weekend for it. Now I just need to exert my vast psychic
powers to put the customers into a coma until Monday.
Make a comment!
17 July 2014 - Thursday
Gaming makes me sleepy. Bah.
The Forever Watch (David Ramirez) reminds me of Eclipse Phase with
the cyberware and repression and psionic powers, although it's not similar
in detail. The horrendous secrets of the generation ship are indeed
horrendous, but sadly I do not get the impression that anyone in the
setting ever tried very hard to deal with them in any except the most
obvious (and difficult, repressive, and wasteful) way. So, it's
not really an idiot plot, but it doesn't make me think the humans deserved
much better than they got.
Make a comment!
16 July 2014 - Wednesday
Today, Earthdawn.
Isidari and Kamakani got mixed up in a star-crossed secret love
affair that was foundering on confusion over whether half a dead
antelope left in someone's room was like a horse's head in the bed, or
like half a mouse dragged in by a cat. In the end it all worked out,
though, and Kamakani was able to make off with the ancestral shield of
shininess (to add to its luster with further great deeds, of course).
Isidari made contact with the skyship captain who Beatrice was
manipulated (by dragons! dragons, I tells ya!) into encountering, so
next week we can try to get a ride to Parlainth without any... Imperial
entanglements.
Make a comment!
15 July 2014 - Tuesday
Way #923475623990 in which current Boss S is incalculable orders of
magnitude better than old boss G3: she knocks before coming into my
cube!
It seems like Two Serpents Rise just came out, but here
is Full Fathom Five (Max Gladstone) already! This time,
it's the Carribean-analog, for offshore banking with ill-gotten gods. It
turns out that gods raise even more moral questions than banks.
Characters from the previous two books are involved, because
international finance theology is a tangled web.
Make a comment!
14 July 2014 - Monday
Boss S is in this office this week, instead of down in the San Diego
area as is her usual habit. I'll have to try extra-hard to not burn the
building down, I guess.
The heroine of The Glass Sentence (S E Grove) lives in a
world that has shattered into regions from various past and future ages, so
it's not surprising she can't keep track of time, but one so rarely thinks
of dissociation as a superpower.
Truth and Fear (Peter Higgins) is the sequel to
Wolfhound Century, set in the same cognate of early-C20
Russia with a technological revolution based on scavenging the dead
shoggoths angels that fall to Earth. From about a third
of the way into the book, it is clear what the epic doom of the climax
is going to be, but it is so Epic there will have to be another book to
hold all the fallout.
The hardcover edition of this book, being the second in a series,
helpfully has the number 2 on the spine. Why do more publishers not do
this? (Rhetorical question: I already know it's because the publishing
industry hates me personally.)
Make a comment!
13 July 2014 - Sunday
This is an Immortal
Empire week, so I trundled up to Palo Alto instead of down to San
Jose.
Dave and I both have plots that involve anomolous geothermal activity
in the capital, so we should probably come up with some way for them to
fit together into one huge pile of flaming truffid-infested doom. With
bunyips and catgirl ninjas on top. (But not bunyip ninjas, because that
would be Silly.)
Make a comment!
12 July 2014 - Saturday
Sort of conscious. I guess. Vaguely. Enough to watch terrible anime.
Also, I watch good anime! And order pizza which everyone falls upon
even though mere minutes ago they were saying they didn't need anything.
- Princess Tutu 15-16: I guess it's good that Lilie is
like that with everyone, not just Ahiru?
- Slayers Evolution-R 10-11: Pokota is brave, at least.
- Shakugan no Shana season 3 21: Subvert the dominant
paradigm incantation!
- Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood 57: It seems oddly
appropriate that someone so horrible should be nameless.
Hinterkind (Ian Edginton, Francesco Trifogli) is remarkably
low-magic for a post-faerie-apocalypse setting. It's mostly
post-apocalypse, although the cities are overgrown rather than blasted.
Make a comment!
11 July 2014 - Friday
And then my brain fell out and I spent most of the day as
non-interactive cat furniture. I fail at working.
Volume 2 of UQ Holder! (Ken Akamatsu) remains shounen and
mostly cheery, although the naked girl count is much lower than in
Negima!.
Make a comment!
10 July 2014 - Thursday
I ended up staying up until after midnight doing a thing, or at least
shepherding the sequelae of the thing. After gaming last night. Glurgh.
Dance in the Vampire Bund: Forgotten Tales (Nozomu Tamaki,
Tikurakuran, Gemma, et al) is doujinshi by the original creator. It seems
like there should be a word for that.
The print version of 13 True Ways
won't be out for a while, but Pelgrane makes the PDF available
with the pre-order (if they can send it to the printer, they can send it to
gamers!). Muahahaha.
Unlike a typical supplement, this is just more of everything that is
in the main books: more classes, more monsters, more magic items, more
setting description. (Not more icons, though.)
The new classes are Chaos Mage (for those who thought Sorcerers were too
predictable), Commander (build up command points on your turn, spend them
to make your comrades more effective on their turns), Druid (more choices
than you can shake a shillelagh at: spells, melee, different spells, pet,
healer, shapeshifter, ...), Monk (same wire-fu and 3-round sequences as in
the playtest released a while back), Necromancer (not just a spell list any
more), and Occultist (the artwork has an amorphous monster, but the powers
are all fate magic). Also, you can now multiclass, or technically
dual-class, since you only get two classes, and are effectively a level
behind in both (plus you have to split your allotment of talents and
stuff between them).
New monsters include devils, which may or may not be just cleverer
demons (there are 13 ways to include them in your campaign, plus 3 bonus
ones), and metallic dragons (which may or may not be good, but in
neither case are they sure about you, murderhobo). Several of
the major cities of the Empire and associated lands are described, for
them to rampage around in.
For the GM, there are seed descriptions for 13 dungeons and 13 flying
realms, a somewhat more detailed description of one flying dungeon, and
four NPCs contributed by Kickstarter backers.
Now I want to run 13th Age, but
most of my gamers are in San Jose. Bah!
I didn't see any of the previous ones, but the fourth draft of Magical
Burst is pretty swell. It has all the important elements for a game
based on Puella Magi Madoka Magica, like [SPOILER] and
[SPOILER] and horrible creepy [SPOILER], and also DOOOOOOM.
It's by the same person who did Dragon
World, so it's not surprising that the mechanics are powered by a
cousin of the
apocalypse, but there are plenty of mechanics for additional magical
DOOOOOOM.
I would like to be able to run this, but since every GM has to come
up with the dark secrets for their own campaign, I'm not sure I would
ever be able to.
Make a comment!
9 July 2014 - Wednesday
Look, more work. Look, less brain.
The Earthdawn
PCs finally returned to civilization, which has baths and training for
6th circle and nosy reporters and baths.
Squabbling over loot is indeed not heroic.
I didn't think I remembered all the backreferences in The
Apocalypse Codex, so I reread The Fuller Memorandum.
Oh, the doom!
Make a comment!
8 July 2014 - Tuesday
Bah, work.
Finally, in volume 7, Sankarea (Mitsuru Hattori) has gotten
to the Zombology Underground!
After reading The Rhesus Files, I realized I didn't
remember everything that happened in The Apocalypse Codex, so
I went back and reread it. Biology is so horrible. It's great.
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (J L Murray) is
uninspired urban fantasy, Christian mythology subspecies.
Make a comment!
7 July 2014 - Monday
I am so clever that I scheduled a day off to recover from my vacation.
Thus, I accomplished nothing of utility.
Avalon is going to Helsinki tomorrow.
As of volume 1, Gakuen Polizi (Milk Morinaga) promises
yuri-smooches but delivers nothing like sense.
Make a comment!
6 July 2014 - Sunday
Despite small-child drama, we left Roseville in good order and more or
less on schedule. They have only driven us off temporarily, however!
All paws are still fuzzy and accounted for, thanks to Marith checking
on them!
Since we got home at a reasonable time, there was enough brain to play
Fading
Suns! The PCs delved into the bowels of the ancient complex of
terraforming mystery, which contained unexpected red-hot crystals (Vau
tech?), an alarming killer robot, an easily-cowed junior priest, and a
somewhat dubious but possibly well-intentioned archbishop.
Playing a smart character is really hard and I suck at it.
Make a comment!
5 July 2014 - Saturday
Happy happy Josh Day!!
Al and Sherilyn's house is now tuned to the Teenager Channel, with
extra splashing.
Winner of History
of the World: Me!
Winner of Munchkin
Pathfinder: not me.
Make a comment!
4 July 2014 - Friday
I did not ever get around to going swimming today, but many other people
did. Indoors, we played History
of the World very slowly and chillaxed.
Other people probably don't pass long car rides by recounting the
Iliad. This is because they are not as cool as us.
I hadn't seen fireworks in a few years. I forgot how pretty they are.
Al and Sherilyn grilled me about Avalon, but I wasn't sure at the
time if it was okay to spill the beans about her being someone in a
multiple system, and only 17, and stuff. But it is okay! For some
definition of "okay" that probably means "arguments on the Internet".
Anyway, she is still adorable.
me =) by Avalon (Tue Jul 15 17:38:52 2014)
I am happy to be grilled or answer questions if anyone does have those things, people here have been through rounds of coming out. =)
Avalon! by Trip (Wed Jul 16 08:08:32 2014)
That is just a small part of why you are adorable.
Make a comment!
3 July 2014 - Thursday
Indeed, I did not go to Roseville naked, for which Ken and Dave were
probably very grateful. Wearing a swimsuit was bad enough, at least in
terms of radiation exposure.
Jus (fka Ja Baby) is getting quite good at swimming, although she
still uses floaties.
There was grilled food after swimming, and some Dungeon
World.
Make a comment!
2 July 2014 - Wednesday
Even when it's only virtual Friday, I spend my Friday evenings doing
exciting things like laundry. But I'm pretty sure no one wants me to go
to Roseville naked. Probably not even Avalon.
The Shadow Throne (Django Wexler) is the sequel to
The Thousand Names, in which the maguffin of the previous
book has almost no impact on a French-like urban revolution. There will
probably be a lot more doom in the next book, when the streams inevitably
cross.
Fifth in the "Laundry" series (Charles Stross), The Rhesus
Files leaves the Earth-scouring doom of The Apocalypse
Codex to fester for a bit and concentrates on people annoying Bob in
the office. This goes poorly for many, as one might expect.
Only by Avalon (Sun Jul 13 17:45:26 2014)
if I am in the car. =)
xoxo!
Re: Only by Trip (Mon Jul 14 09:12:04 2014)
I think you may be silly.
Make a comment!
1 July 2014 - Tuesday
I only have one more day of work this week, which makes this
Thursday, right? But the library still thinks it's Tuesday.
Make a comment!
30 June 2014 - Monday
It's Monday, but at least it's a short week.
I bought one of those recirculating water dishes for the cats, in the
hopes that it will induce them to drink more.
Toshiro (Jai Nitz, Janusz Pawlak):
mechanical samurai plus crazed American adventurer vs unearthly
jellyfish!
Shaman Rises (C E Murphy) is the really pretty triumphant
conclusion of the "Walker Papers" nonology. Everyone should buy it so
people will pay Kit to write more books, and also because it is good!
Make a comment!
29 June 2014 - Sunday
Although we have a new gamer, only NPCs died! I hope we did not confuse
Miriam too much by all trying to explain Fate
Accelerated to her.
Dave's character has totally not become evil. We know, because he said
so!
Make a comment!
28 June 2014 - Saturday
Lethargy, sloth, and somnolence.
- Princess Tutu 14: Ayse is right about the Raven being
[SPOILER]. Last time I saw Tutu, I was not nearly so
aware.
- Slayers Evolution-R 7-9: Sometimes, the treasure
is the enemy.
- Shakugan no Shana season 3 18: I think they could have
done a better job of making both sides seem sympathetic, alas.
- Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood 56: IM IN MY BASE KILLIN
UR D00DZ.
Up to volume 3 of Locke & Key (Joe Hill, Gabriel
Rodriguez), and it is still pretty bizarre and creepy. The art style bugs
me, though.
Make a comment!
27 June 2014 - Friday
Blblblblblbl.
Make a comment!
26 June 2014 - Thursday
Blblblblblbl.
Make a comment!
25 June 2014 - Wednesday
Customers, why do you still explode so late in the day?
The Spirit War and Spirit's End (Rachel Aaron)
conclude "The Legend of Eli Monpress", with more or less complete
explanation of the cosmological doom and resolution of the immediate
problems. It is pretty much a happy ending, although at very few points
during the series did I expect anything else.
Black Science vol 1 (Rick Remender, Matteo Scalera,
Dean White) is what happens when a lab-based soap opera manages to
develop interdimensional travel.
Make a comment!
24 June 2014 - Tuesday
Customers, why do you have to explode so late in the day? I want to
take things back to the library!
Oh wait, I can't take things to the library, I have to go to San Jose
to play Earthdawn!
Fortunately the GM went super-easy on us so the wormskull did not
destroy us utterly.
The first three books of the "Legend of Eli Monpress" series,
The Spirit Thief, The Spirit Rebellion, and The
Spirit Eater (Rachel Aaron), are pretty cool. Spirit-based magic
+ greatest thief ever = very many outraged mages. Despite the main
character being charming and the mage sent after him being cute, though,
this is one of the least romanceful fantasy series I've read since
Tolkien.
By the end of the third book, it is clear that there is Cosmology
going on, and not anything the PCs are going to like.
Jack Glass (Adam Roberts) is the story of three murders
(one gruesome, one dubious, and one physically implausible), in a
moderate-future solar system full of orbiting slums ruled over by grand
and petty tyrants. The cover blurbs try to make it out to be fancy
literary SF, but it's actually pretty unexceptional in terms of genre.
Silly customers. =) by Avalon (Mon Jun 30 23:37:24 2014)
xoxoxox
This is really an excuse to comment.
No excuse needed! by Trip (Tue Jul 1 12:16:34 2014)
Comment whenever you like!
Make a comment!
23 June 2014 - Monday
So, Monday, we meet again! But this time, things will be different!
Things are not different.
Make a comment!
|
