[Random] I miss...

Old school web pages- with tables and frames and buttons and links and so on- that I could code myself. I love Blogger, but I hate arguing with formatting and creating pages with no content just so I can have links to put on the Beginner's Project.

Glass soda bottles delivered to the house.

Dark Conspiracy

Sleeping (yupe, I am awake due to work. I'll go back to bed when my shift is over and then I'll crank out some good stuff for ya guys)

Creative outbursts (coming up with WW is giving me a headache but maybe that's due to being sick)

21 Jump Street (sorry, folks)

My ork army (sometimes).

Sick

Despite all my best efforts to avoid the crud going around, I think I am sick. [BOO].

(My son, husband, and about 3-4 of my closest friends all had this crap and I've managed to dodge until now. Maybe I finally failed my cover save.)

I'm not sure what energy for blogging I'll have in the next couple days. But upcoming stuff includes:


all those 40K posts so I can make links for the Beginner's Project.  

By the way: I am looking for links/material related to each army- specifically folks that talk about their armies in easy to understand terms. Laeroth is a great example. Got something good? Please send it my way.


Hawaii write up (I need some music to convey that run, too)
WOD write up (music considered, not decided yet)

Weekly Whimsy- (some very old school lyrics in mind for this one)

new schedule, maybe 

I'm grabbing some pen & paper cause I think better that way. See you soon, with some material, I hope. 

[WOD] People list

The following is a list of PCs in my WOD game. I've listed them with the most "senior" player (person playing the type the longest) at the top.

Changelings:

Avere- K
Eile-Myself
Terrance-BB
Nathan/Waco-TR
Evie- C


Mages: 

CoyoteJoe- TH
Momento-J
Giovanni-P
AnotherYetToBeNamed- DH

Giests-

TK- E
Axel Axel-MS

Werewolves: (Omen pack)

Raaf- BM
Ed (appearing soon) -R
Ginger- SB
David-G
Victor-SW (possibly not in pack yet)
Te-SS (possibly not in pack yet)

Hunters- 
Bruce- M- (my son)

MS and SS recently changed characters- MS was playing WalkerLee, a Mage. WalkerLee died a few sessions ago. SS was playing Dottie, a Vampire. Dottie is still living (or unliving) but SS wanted to play a new character type.

There are still at least 3 people interested in joining, if not more.

Below are important NPCS I know of:

Rovan- Alpha Werewolf of Austin (A TRUE Badass)
Krin-Beta to Rovan (Also a Badass)
Brother Thunder -Totem for Rovan & Krin 
Brother Dreamcatcher- Totem to PC Werewolf pack 
Black Talons- Pack of Black Blood Talons whose territory is the park
Ghosts- Pack of Irraka whose territory includes the Hedge Row
Demolition- Pack of ???- who have a HUGE territory

"Mr. Flowers"- Mage (troublemaker? what he is, I don't know) 


Duncan-Changeling owner of The Hedge Row
Frank- TK's Ghost/Geist
3 Men in Black Suits- Vampires (I THINK) who fronted the money for The Hedge Row

Caleb- A college aged person who was in a coma (and is now dead) due to weird juju- a fairly important Mage NPC




Any questions?

[40K] [Beginner's Project] Advice

This will be added to later. 

 Here you'll find advice aimed at newer players, collected from folks willing to share their wisdom and points of view. Please feel free to ask questions and offer anything that you think should be added.

sonsoftaurus said...
- Best advice I could offer is that rules come and go, so don't build an army just for a current set of good rules. Build the army you like.
Also in the same vein:
-  Think ahead


Nikephoros said...

    1. Pick an army you find aesthetically pleasing first and foremost. If you hate the look of your minis you wont want to paint them, and you wont want to play them.

    2. Start small. Two troop choices and an HQ. Play with just that until you get the swing of things and decide you want to commit your time and money to wargaming.


Wienas said...

    Play at lower point levels to start out with. You can find the Combat Patrol rules (aka 40k in 40 minutes)online. This set of restrictions keeps the games quick and without super-powerful units. You can play 3 games in the same time as a 1500-1750 point game. It's a good way to wrap your head around the rules.


Dave G _ Nplusplus said...

    Agreed with the others, pick an army that appeals to you both via fluff and appearance. Enjoy your choice nomatter what others say.

    Enjoy painting for yourself rather than trying to emulate others.

    Take your time modding and painting - if you rush, they won't look so good and then whatcha gonna paint?

    Play some games down at the local store using their minis or with friends / family using theirs.

    Play the game for fun, not to win.

    Don't get hung up on rules, be casual.

    Own the board and have a plan - the moment all you're doing is reacting to your opponent, they're winning. (Though defensive play is a good way to start)


kennedy said...

    I've got 3, I suppose.

    Some of the best advice, in my opinion, is: Don't listen to too much advice. Pick one or two people you can really trust and LISTEN TO THEM. Don't let the many flapping mouths of the Internet weigh you down with BS.

    Another thing I'd say is: Stick to your first force until you know it inside and out. Don't start a new army before you're really ready. I see loads of new players with 3 crap armies and no idea how to play any of them. It's better to become a good player with 1 army and then go from there.

    Lastly, but not least: Don't get married to ideas. If you start an army with the idea that you're gonna play X style, don't be afraid to deviate if that is what ends up happening. Let yourself grow and change.


Von said...

    Listen to Kennedy. He talks sense.


The Antipope said...

    I would actually suggest to the new player to do a bit of a soul-search before picking up a new army. What are his motives first of all? Does he have more of a "gamer" attitude and likes to play tough games and win? Then a competitive army would be most fitting (IG,SW).
    Does he enjoy painting more? Then maybe an army with a lot of fresh, cool looking models would suit him/her best (like the new DE).
    So, yeah I think it all depends on his/her attitude torwards the hobby.


Thor said...

    Anything I've had said has already been said. All great advice above.
 

Max said...

    With hobby stuff, try out lots of things and don't worry that you might screw up. With paint you can always just strip the mini and try again. With greenstuff, just slice it off and try it again.

    Don't be afraid to go back and change things- how I went about painting my Guard was start with the basics on everything at first. Then when I learned a few new painting techniques I went back and updated my models with my new skillz. I'm still doing that, and they just keep on getting better and better.

    Game wise, play lots of games. There is no substitute for experience. Make sure you're with someone who knows the rules down cold and, after you've played a few make sure that you are allowed to make mistakes. Nothing teaches you to remember to run/assault than not doing it and having your unit blown away.
 

Admiral Drax said...

    Enjoy losing and make it cinematic!

[Blogging] Music

Over my head, I hear it loud and clear
Music, music, over my head, I hear music- King's X, Over My Head
------------------------------------------------------------------

My recent post asking for advice on a gift of music for TheDude has pushed me to post something I've had in the "rumination stage' for well over a month; a post about music.

I've meant to talk about the sounds in my head (no, I'm not crazy!) as well as tell you that every lyric, quote and riff I put on here is for a reason. I try to create a mood, evoke an emotional response, or offer something relevant to the content of the post when I put quotes up- and I hope you enjoy.

The fact that talking about music inspired TheDude to comment on my blog for the very first time does have a little to do with this decision, but not a huge amount. [Hey you!]

When talking about music, it's important to note that TheDude & I have some pretty different tastes. I swear, that man loves anything loud, crass, tasteless and offensive- just because it is all of those things. In addition to loving punk and metal (which are generally loud, rude, crass, offensive and/or tasteless), he's a HUGE GWAR and ICP fan and searches out the Psychopathic Records stuff on a fairly regular basis. And, as Christian can attest- his biggest "failing" (at least in my book) - he loves DEVO. (Someone take pity on me, please. It's terrible.)

He's also something of an amateur rock historian, so he has some very strong roots in old school stuff. One of his favorite "joke Jeopardy" categories is "musical trivia only I know for $800, Alex". The man is amazing when it comes to knowing who played in what band when and where they went after that. He knows the names of SESSION players.(For real- who does that?)

Our first date involved music very prominently. We went to all three of the local CD vendors- a pretty standard afternoon for the two of us. He wound up buying several CDs (again, pretty standard-he'd often drop half his paycheck at the CD shop). One of them was 247 Spyz Gumbo Millenium. He read the liner notes while we ate, in a desperate attempt to figure out how to talk to me (his best friend).

For a while early in our dating/marriage history, we didn't go on dates, we went to concerts. For my high school graduation present, we went to Queensrych, with Suicidal Tendencies opening (THAT was a crazy show). My earliest "scrapbooks" were ticket stubs from all the shows we saw.

We took TheBoy to see Weird Al as his first concert. His second? Judas Priest and Anthrax with the classic lineups as a Boy/Dad only affair. The kid was 10, 11 and we made sure he was exposed to Halford.

When we got a dog, we decided to name him after someone or something musical, and among the possible names were Joey, Mastadon and Cash. We named our dog after The Man In Black, folks.

I am still thinking of what to get The Dude for Christmas, as he's dang near IMPOSSIBLE to shop for anymore. Any time I think I have an idea, he's already scored whatever I wanted to get him. So I'm thinking music. I know he likes it, and I know what he does (and doesn't) have very well.

[Weekly Whimsy] Lexicon

[Welcome to Weekly Whimsy! Loquacious' love of language laid low.]

Do You Even Understand The Words Coming Out of My Mouth? - Chris Tucker, Rush Hour 

------------------------------------------------------------

I am very purposeful and pay close attention to intent when I chose my words. Some days, I am a lot more casual and off the cuff, and others I'm much more deliberate. I'm always aware of what the words I am using mean, even if it's a simple complement, or a quick one-liner. I'm especially careful when talking about myself in regards to gender.

I was given a challenge a while ago to find a single word that one could use to describe "women" without the word having reference to or connection with "men".

As a student of words, meaning, history and how they fit together, this was a pretty interesting challenge. I started a collection of words commonly (and sometimes not so commonly) used to describe the female kind and started taking notes. By using Webster's, Roget's, Bartlet's and a few other (more obscure) resources, I have a pretty comprehensive list here.

[An important comment on sexism here: I'm specifically and deliberately talking in a fairly "binary"sort of way on this post merely because it's expedient. I have no grudge or disdain for the trans community, and I am not trying to leave them out of any future conversations; just this one.]

Also, this post is intended mostly as a tool for discussion from all comers, and really has less relevance to the gaming community than my past entries- but it's a subject I find truly fascinating. I thrive on the intellectual considerations behind the words we choose, and hope that by considering this, I can bring some illumination and introspection to the way we interact with each other.