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Tony Kahn announced “The Rankings are coming back to AEW going forward, starting this month! AEW is having a very exciting January, and this is only the beginning of an…

The post Video of the Day – Doctor Who: Regenerating and Bi-generating, 2023 appeared first on Blogtor Who.

Title: The Vicious Vixens of Dakuwanga # 1 Publisher: Biting Comics Words/Story: Ben Lacy Art: Nico Toran Lettering: Nikki Powers Character Design: Educardo Guzman Price: $ 14.00 US Rating: 4…

If you're like me at all, and I'm willing to bet in this regard you probably are, when you explain to "outsiders" that you're a gamer, they immediately think you like to sit around and play video games all day. In my case, I do sometimes, but I don't define myself by console or PC (like "those" gamers usually do.) Still it's far too hard to explain (many times again...) that I mean table-top RPGS. 

Of course it doesn't help that I have the opportunity to fiddle with the Xbox controller far, far more than I get to sling dice. A lot of times it's just a substitute, but it's far from a suitable-sub. First off, I'm usually a completionist. If I can 100% a game, or think I can, I'm going for it. My gamerscore is currently standing at 99,300....but that's probably more a factor of having an Xbox for so many years than my awesomeness of playing. I do have 38 games 100%'d and some of those were a PITA. IIRC one I had to set my calendar and play on a certain anniversary day (couldn't cheese it by changing my system clock), and some have recockulus requirements (one step beyond ridiculous).

Even though there are computer RPGS, they are just so not the same and I FINALLY got to the point with my current game (Starfield) where I 100%'d it and can walk away. I am so effing glad to be done and I'll admit the game stopped being fun maybe last week when I realized I could crank up the difficulty to the maximum and still play easily. 

There is such a wide divide between TTRPGs and Computer RPGs, and I think I was experiencing all of the issues that highlighted this difference:

• Save Scumming: TTRPGs don't allow you to screw up and "go back" to an earlier point and try again. Even worse, you can't save at an opportune time to "rinse & repeat" actions to try and try again for a better loot outcome. The RNG (random number generator) gods aren't always so kind, so at one point I tried for a couple hours to get a better pistol, which I never got (but I did get a kick-ass sniper rifle).
• Cheesing the AI: probably has an actual name, but it's too easy to watch the AI routine do it's thing, establish patterns, or just ...well wait. If I shoot a guy in the head and his buddies see him die, they will only spend a small amount of time looking for you, before just giving up and going back to their routine. I don't think a GM would let the players get away with hiding for a minute......
• Grinding: This is almost the worst thing with computer games, having to just re-do things over and over because you need to get a certain amount of experience to get that skill you need, or a specific number of widgets to be allowed to progress. While TTRPGs have you doing stuff to get XP to level, I cannot think of a single time a GM has let you re-run an encounter or scenario/adventure over and over. With Starfield a lot of "unique" missions (bounties for the most part) were set in different locations that were exactly like others. It got to the point in Starfield where I knew that on the 6th landing of this one facility there would be a dead scientist, and on a certain table would be a hookah (noticeable because the "tobacco" vials looked like something out of Resident Evil).
• Achievements: This probably doesn't sound like a problem, and you'd think after this post I wouldn't see it as a problem, but in-game I did some things that I wouldn't have done otherwise....just so I can get that achievement. I think I would have stopped playing last week if not for "needing" to get to level 100, and the cheesy stuff I needed to do to get from where I would've quit at level 65 to that level 100.
• Bugs: There is a bit of a tie for the actual worst part of a computer RPG, with one part being bugs/glitches in general. Bethesda is kind of known for being buggy as hell, and fixing bugs is something they eventually get around to. On my game there was a power I couldn't use without basically crashing the game, another I just couldn't earn, and so....so much more. In my game there were portions of a city that just....disappeared. I eventually found it. It wasn't so much that it didn't render, just it rendered at an altitude that put in in space. On the plus side one bug kept me from being able to steal spaceships I should be allowed to, but let me get access to a line of starships I was not supposed to be allowed to.
• Solo play: The other tie for worst part is having to play by yourself. A HUGE part of TTRPGs is the social aspect of playing with others. Sure, there are MMORPGS, but they take these computer problems and ramp them up to the Nth degree.

Let's just say I'm looking forward to getting some face-to-face gaming in next weekend with the NTRPG folks. 

Comic strip collection Doctor Who: The White Dragon arrives from the makers of Doctor Who Magazine on the 1st of March

The Doctor’s comic strip adventures continue! Written by Scott Gray and Jacqueline Rayner, with art by Martin Geraghty and Russ Leach, The White Dragon is the second collection of Thirteenth Doctor tales, taken from the pages of Doctor Who Magazine. It hits shelves on the 1st of March but is available to pre-order now.

The stories are diverse in their settings, ranging from psychic creatures causing havoc in 1950s small-town America to a dilapidated English manor that’s rumoured to be a gateway to hell! Along the way there’s a a martial arts masterpiece as the Doctor teams-up with Bruce Lee in 1970s Hong Kong. Plus visit a forest planet that harbours an arboreal horror before taking in a sinister pantomime.

The 124 page volume also includes special behind-the-scenes features with exclusive material revealing how the strips were created, including artwork and commentary from the writers and artists. The collection also comes wrapped in a new cover by David Roach. The cover depicts Bruce Lee’s mortal combat with the four armed champion of aliens threatening to conquer the human race.

 

The Doctor and her fam discover a possessed town in 1950s America in The Piggybackers . Art by Martin Geraghty, David A Roach, and James Offredi (c) Panini The full list of stories in the White Dragon collection

• The Piggybackers (DWM 549-552, Scott Gray & Martin Geraghty)
• The White Dragon (DWM 559-562, Scott Gray)
• The Forest Bride (DWM 570-571, Jacqueline Rayner & Russ Leach)
• It’s Behind You! (DWM 572, Jacqueline Rayner & Russ Leach)
• Hydra’s Gate (DWM 574-577, Jacqueline Rayner & Russ Leach)

 

Doctor Who: The White Dragon. Cover by David Roach (c) Panini Doctor Who: The White Dragon is out on the 1st of March, and is available to pre-order now from the Panini web store, priced £19.99

 

The post Doctor Who: The White Dragon – Pre-Order Now appeared first on Blogtor Who.

INTO THE INDIEVERSE! The G-Men Travel Across the Indie Comics Publishing Worlds. Antarctic Press & Ben Dunn’s Superverse Tony Kittrell’s Advent Universe Dan Shen’s Argo Universe David Gallimor’s Gallaverse and a…

With great power and responsibility, begins a great legacy. A terminally ill Peter Parker (Spider-Man) has been out of the superhero life and trying to find a cure for his…

Will These #Comics Make Good Movies or TV? Ep 56 #Superman #StarWars #BountyHunters #CobraCommander #mcu #dcu#Imagecomics issues in this #comicreview episode. Hosted by award-winning screenwriter and producer Frank Zanca, find…

ABLAZE PUBLISHING Indie Games Hardcovers Volume 1-2 Collected Set, $59.99 Mirka Andolfo’s Un/Sacred Hardcovers Volume 1-2 Collected Set, $39.99 Versus Fighting Story Graphic Novels Volumes 1-2 Collected Set, $19.99 ABRAMS…

ACTIVITY PAGES TO DOWNLOAD

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The post Preschool – January 21st appeared first on Church of The Rock.

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The post Elementary – January 21st appeared first on Church of The Rock.

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The post Collide – January 21st appeared first on Church of The Rock.

Benighted Betrothal (2023)

by Sandor Gebei

Published by the Melsonian Arts Council

Level 3

Dubbed “a viking soap opera”, this is a small sandbox adventure describing the general area of a small northern village beset by inner conflicts, ancient curses, and mysterious locales in the wilderness. A wedding is being planned to unite to rival viking clans, others (potentially including the player characters) are planning to disrupt it, and things are set up to go astray in a dozen interesting ways. The module is mainly a toolkit to run these calamities: the soap opera aspect comes from the complicated web of personal enmities, obligations, and relationships which make the situation so unstable.

This is a slim, small 40-page hardcover with generous production values and just as generous empty space. References and summaries are provided, stretched to take up multiple pages with illustrations. For instance, there is a one-page location summary with a facing player map, then the same map is reproduced again for the GM on two more pages with just about the same content. That, in turn, means, the written content is rather slim; I would estimate this is around the size of a 20-page pamphlet using conventional layout techniques and the usual amount of interior art. It is effectively written; words are not wasted, and the module should be easy to use in play. But in the end, it is still  lighter than it should properly be.

The focus of the module is on open-ended problem-solving, and you receive useful components for that. The tiny town of Gnupr is mainly presented not so much as a location (this section is a bullet-point list of items like “Longhouses – 20’×60’ longhouses; half wood, half turf”, or “Smithy – source of constant noise”) as a network of social relationships and hidden agendas. Common knowledge, rumours, key NPCs, and a table of hired swords are used as the moving parts of the sandbox. Written with brevity, they are rich with potential to instigate exploration and conflict. For instance, rumours may be things like “Even our mortal blood has magic. It opens portals, they say”, or “Have you noticed how Thorwald acts all weird ‘round Helvi?” An NPC, such as the bride’s mother, might be described as “Not young anymore but still beautiful. Does everything to stop the marriage between Ingrid and Varghöss due to the terrible truth that [they] are half-siblings. She will not share this information with anyone willingly”. This is good an effective, although the book’s empty space might have been used better for a default progression of events, the description of a few possible developments or plans that may come to pass, or other sorts of useful information (it might be a natural idea to steal the bride-price for a combination of personal gain and to prevent the marriage, but where it may be kept and what form it may take is not provided). You mainly get the raw building blocks and get to assemble them yourself, or use random rolls to do so.

The Very Tiny SandboxThe module’s other section is focused on the surrounding wilderness. The emphasis here is on ancient, mythical secrets which are the source of Gnupr’s present troubles: undead infestation, witchery, a dragon, and more are involved. They draw on the stranger aspects of Nordic legends (or might have been made up by the author, but if so, the fit is excellent). However, the wilderness section is much more sketchy and underdeveloped. There is a chart of 12 random encounters which are usually more complex than a simple monster fight – more like open-ended situations to build on and integrate into the action. A group of manhunters are seeking a fugitive (related to multiple denizens in Gnupr), a group of kindly nomads are herding their goats, which walk on two legs at night and are breastfed by their women; a swarm of crows coalesce into an ominous seer. This is the stronger part. The five wilderness locations (four monster lairs and an enigma) are honestly not much. There are interesting NPC antagonists, including a young dragon and the hag behind some of the village conflicts, but they are small in both scope and number. The wilderness feels tiny. This is partly intentional, as part of an inwards-focused situation-based setup. Most links lead back to the central conflicts. But unrelated elements also serve a role; and they are not present. It is also the case that even the largest of the locations, the hag lair, is essentially a three-room dungeon with three paths each terminating in a cave. The rest are even more aspatial. Not everything needs to be a dungeon crawl, or a pointcrawl, or another sort of crawl, and yet…

Benighted Betrothal is a decent, functional scenario whose primary value lies in its intricate social conflicts, and presenting them in an open-ended way that makes it adaptable to different needs, accommodating different styles of player problem-solving. Where it is weaker is in two areas. The location-based components are underdeveloped, and the wilderness adventure sites are just minor lairs. Ultimately, it is nice, but you come away with the impression this is a case where more would have been more. The “tiny hardcover” format perhaps drives this home more than a more conservative presentation would have, but the issues are there.

This module credits its playtesters.

Rating: *** / *****

Determining who’s “better” between Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse is like comparing apples and oranges – both are classic cartoon characters adored by millions, but they appeal to different audiences…

The post Video of the Day – Radio Times: Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Cover Shoot, 2024 appeared first on Blogtor Who.

Alpha Red #1 Forty years ago Satan was betrayed by his right-hand demon and cast into the body of a human, then cursed with immortality. So the Devil has been…

DC FIRST LOOK: Teen Titans: Starfire – Kami Garcia and Gabriel Picolo Return with a New Installment in Their Bestselling Young Adult Graphic Novel Series! Available for Preorder Now, on Sale July…

I've been toying with the idea of Pocket Settings for years. I see a Pocket Setting as something that can be detailed in 16 pages or less - preferably, much less. A setting that will handle adventuring from 1st level, through about 5th or 6th, after which the world the PCs will likely be exploring the world at large (or the outer and inner planes).

These generated maps are from https://watabou.itch.io/perilous-shores , and are free for anyone to use. Heck, if you do decide to turn one of these maps into a setting of your own, I'd love to hear about it.

I'm partial to the first map, as it has a natural barrier to the southwest, that could be inhabited by humanoids and serve as a borderland, while there is also a water route to the mainland.

Three Lakes is definitely cool. Surrounded by mountains, it serves as a natural barrier to keep the PC's in the local area, at least for their initial levels.

Nice sized area with plenty of locations to explore and a large, centralized lake.


Another isolated setting, with water to the south, mountains to the west, east, and north, with a marsh as a possibly method to access the large world.
Tell me what your thoughts are...

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 We came face to face with a dark wizard in the deserts of Cha'alt. We're outta of dynamite and hunkered down in the desert. And then the bastard wizrd lobs two purple laced fire balls our way! We didn't take kindly to this. Dr.Justice our engineer started to cobble together some of the energy weapons from the bandits camp last game session here. With in a couple of rounds we were Needleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11243274667834930867noreply@blogger.com0

Background

Jeroboam was the first king of Israel after Israel had become divided into two kingdoms; Judah to the south and Israel to the north. During his reign, Jeroboam had become brazen enough in turning away from following Yahweh that…

“…he made two golden calves, and he said to the people, ‘Going to Jerusalem is too difficult for you. Israel, here is your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt.’ He set up one in Bethel, and put the other in Dan. This led to sin; the people walked in procession before one of the calves all the way to Dan. Jeroboam also built shrines on the high places and set up priests from every class of people who were not Levites. Jeroboam made a festival in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival in Judah. He offered sacrifices on the altar; he made this offering in Bethel to sacrifice to the calves he had set up. He also stationed the priests in Bethel for the high places he had set up. He offered sacrifices on the altar he had set up in Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month. He chose this month on his own. He made a festival for the Israelites, offered sacrifices on the altar, and burned incense.” (1 Kings 12:28b-33, HCSB)

Jeroboam continued this pattern all the way until the end of his life and 22 year reign. 

What Struck Me

Towards the end of his kingship, we learn that his son Abijah has become sick. Jeroboam then reveals something about himself that I think we all know deep down inside: At the end of the day, when the chips are down, it’s all in God’s hands.

Why do I say this?

Look at what Jeroboam does in response to his son’s sickness…

“At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became sick. Jeroboam said to his wife, ‘Go disguise yourself, so they won’t know that you’re Jeroboam’s wife, and go to Shiloh. Ahijah the prophet is there; it was he who told about me becoming king over this people. Take with you 10 loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.’” (1 Kings 14:1-3)

For probably the first time in his life, Jeroboam now needs a real answer to a real problem. But in order to get it, he has to camouflage his wife and send her off to a prophet of the God that he had been turned away from for decades. Jeroboam now acknowledges what I believe that we all know deep down inside: that Yahweh is the God above all Gods. 

Jeroboam’s End

Sadly, even though Jeroboam had this brief admission (demonstrated by his plan to disguise his wife and send her off for answers), he never turned back to Yahweh…

“Jeroboam no longer retained his power during Abijah’s reign [King of Judah]; ultimately, the LORD struck him and he died.” (2 Chronicles 13:20)

Turning to Romans

“God’s anger is revealed from heaven against all the sin and evil of the people whose evil ways prevent the truth from being known. God punishes them, because what can be known about God is plain to them, for God himself made it plain. Ever since God created the world, his invisible qualities, both his eternal power and his divine nature, have been clearly seen; they are perceived in the things that God has made. So those people have no excuse at all! They know God, but they do not give him the honor that belongs to him, nor do they thank him. Instead, their thoughts have become complete nonsense, and their empty minds are filled with darkness. They say they are wise, but they are fools; instead of worshiping the immortal God, they worship images made to look like mortals or birds or animals or reptiles. And so God has given those people over to do the filthy things their hearts desire, and they do shameful things with each other. They exchange the truth about God for a lie; they worship and serve what God has created instead of the Creator himself, who is to be praised forever! Amen.” (Romans 1:18-25, GNT)

Just like Jeroboam, we all know that God is God, even though we might not make golden calves as he did and beyond…

“Jeroboam appointed his own priests for the high places, the goat-demons, and the golden calves he had made.” (2 Chronicles 11:15)

However (just like Jeroboam), we all at times we “do not give him [God] the honor that belongs to him,” nor do we “thank him.” Instead, our thoughts sometimes can “become complete nonsense,” and our minds periodically become “empty” and “filled with darkness.” At such times, we occasionally say that we “are wise.” Yet in these moments… we “are fools.”

May we learn from Jeroboam’s story, so that we may not be “given over” to “do the filthy things” that our hearts sometimes “desire,” doing “shameful things with each other”; possibly exchanging “the truth about God for a lie,” by worshipping and serving “what God has created instead of the Creator himself, who is to be praised forever! Amen.”

Godspeed, to the brethren!

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