True Blood

True Blood is just fucking awesome. I just had to get that out there.

I’m actually a fan of Bill although quite a few people I know prefer Eric. I just like when Sookie and Bill are together and their cello music theme plays. It’s a great touch and I love stuff like that.

Can’t wait to see how this season plays out!

Game Summit: Meet the new RPG Den Ambassador

This is a quick post to let people know I’ve become the RPG Den Ambassador for this years Game Summit held in Ottawa on June 12th and 13th. Yay!

So what the hell does this mean. Well it means your truly will be organizing all the gaming goodness in the RPG section of this event (aside from Magic). Mostly it means D&D but I’ll hopefully be collaborating with some other groups to bring a wider spread of games. Anyone who has an idea or who may want to DM, let me know!

For those in Toronto thinking of going, I’ll be putting posters and hand outs at various gaming stores this weekend such as Double Dragon, 401 games, Hairy Tarantula, Silver Snail, etc… The card hand outs get you 2 free tokens which gets you more game time! for free!

 So Check out the site: http://www.gamesummit.ca/ and keep your eyes peeled for what I get up to in the RPG section.

 Also a big thanks to my friend Corey Tamas, one of the organizers, for the invitation to be a part of this.

Old School D&D

Upon some recent reflection, I realized I’ve been playing D&D in one form or another for the past 26 years. It all started with Basic D&D  in the school library in grade 5 (yes, back in the day this was once allowed). It then progressed into multiple campaigns of AD&D and AD&D 2nd edition, playing every weekend in high school and then.. a break.

But not really. Instead of pencil and paper and dice I switched to PC gaming and played titles such as Pool of Radiance, Eye of the Beholder, Baldur’s Gate, Ice Wind Dale, Neverwinter Nights 1 & 2 and a variety of other RPGs not specifically based on D&D including a forray into MMORPGs such as Guild Wars and LOTRO.

Now that I’ve launched back into D&D with 4th edition, I decided to dig up my old D&D manuals and minis and see exactly what I had collected back in the day. I thought I had a fair size collection but it turns out to be smaller than I thought.

Here’s what I found. First the manuals:

Lots of AD&D manuals and a few AD&D 2nd edition guide books. Note that I seem to be missing the players handbook and dungeon masters guide. I do know I have both for AD&D 2nd edition somewhere but have no idea where the 1st edition ones are.

Then I found some box sets:

Now I know I at one point had the original Greyhawk box set and while I still have the books and the maps, the box is long gone. Also a box full of the 3D castle buildings all fully constructed, while surviving a few moves, is no longer around. Remembering I had the Ravenloft box set was awesome as it is one of my all time fav settings, next to greyhawk.

Then I found the real old school stuff:

Note the original basic set, the one I first earned D&D from! Turns out there’s 3  sets of the books in that box. Not sure where or how I managed to collect the extra copies. The folders contain a bunch of hand written notes, character sheets and photocopies from old dragon magazines, containing a collection of classes including the Barbarian from 1976!

Now we go real old school, pre basic set in fact:

As it turns out, I think I had this more as a novelty and never actually used the rules from these books (after all, they were a bit before even my time). The dice though are some of my original gaming dice including a D30. These have seem some use and are in bad need of a crayon.

I then found a huge collection of D&D modules ranging from Lost caverns of Tsojcanth to Village of Hommlet to Ravenloft to Isle of the Ape. Some of which I never managed to play. There was also a box of Dungeon and Dragon magazines from when I had subscription for a few years. Stuffed in amongst the boxes was also some smaller boxes containing unpainted metal minis.

Then I found this (appologies for the fuzzy image) which is for a friend of mine who should appreciate it. It’s a character sheet of Glintas, my Tri(Thri)-Keen Lawful Evil  level 6 Gladiator from a Dark Sun campaign. One of the most brutal, ridiculous, brief and totally awesome campaigns we ever had.

Looking back on all this reminds me of how much I love(d) this game. I took some time off but I think that’s helped me appreciate it even more. I’m glad to playing again! And now I’ve got some old school stuff I might be able to bring forward to enhance our current games.

NorthBound Leather Tribe Video/Pics

A quick post, but long past due, as I’ve just noticed that NorthBound Leather has updated their NorthBound Live site with video and pics from the Tribe 2009 show. You can see me as a vampire in my custom NBL coat, although there are a wider variety of pics from the show in various Facebook albums.

Tribe Site: http://www.northboundlive.com/archivedevents/fashionshows/2009-tribe/index.php

You can see me in a few of the scene 7 pics, as well as well as one party pic (5th from the end) and in the video.

The show was so much fun and I love the coat, fits like a glove. Thanks again to Marty Rotman the designer for both allowing me to be in the show and the coat! I’d also like to thank the photographers (and other models) I’ve had the pleasure to work, it’s their pics of me that got me the spot in the show. My hats off to your immeasurable talents!

Check out their work on model mayhem:

Violens Photography
Jennifer Emily
Pet Flamingo Photograph
Kindreds Muze Photo

and me: http://www.modelmayhem.com/596052 :)

Wanting to Play D&D

Ya I know, odd title, since I currently play in 2 D&D 4e campaigns. However, more accurately, I DM in 2 campaigns, one of which I do actually have a character in. A Deva Cleric named Samael who wants to become a god. heh.

But really I want to be able to play, like actually be a player in a 4e D&D campaign. Don’t get me wrong, I like DMing; planning out the adventures, running the monsters and encounters and killing characters… erm.. ah.. well you get the idea. But I’d also like to be a player, to put a some dedicated role-playing behind one character and build them from the ground up (assuming I don’t play with a DM who like to kill characters…)

So I’m contemplating starting a 3rd campaign. In fact there’s already some interested players who wish to join. Now if only I can find a DM! Worst case scenario is that since I love D&D so much these days I’ll likely just create a character and be the DM.. But hopefully I can find someone who’s willing or easily coerced , if not now then perhaps as the campaign gets under way.

But what would I play? Re-enact my old Duelist character Kelben Arenson as some sort of ranger or swordmage? or something new, something bold, or like most of the computer based rpgs I play, something female. heh, maybe not. 

p.s. anyone I know who’s interested in DMing (skilled or not), let me know..

Tru Blood Blood Orange rocks my world!

Had to post this cause, well it’s just so good! The Tru Blood O Positive Blood Orange drink is fanfuckingtastic! It’s so good it’s instantly jumped to the top of my favorite beverage list (even above shirely temples and that’s saying a lot).

I managed to find some at SunRise records (of all places) and scooped up 4 bottles. It’s ridiculously expensive ($8.99 a bottle!!) but it’s worth every penny. I’m actively looking for other hopefully cheaper sources so if anyone sees it for less, let me know! Hell, buy me some and I’ll get ya back.

Online, including shipping the 4 pack works out to about $7.50 a bottle and the case of 24 is just over $5. Though that’s american and shipping may be more to Canada, it’s still very tempting…

mmmmmmmmm… Tru Blood. Speaking of which I can’t wait for the next season in June! On a side note Hung is returning, yay!

Update 2010.01.18: My 24 case of Tru Blood arrived. Yum! It’s so good. Must now resist not to drink it all in a week!

ADD and D&D

Dungeons and Dragons has always been a great source of laughs and funny scenarios. This wed’s session was no exception. A new term surfaced in describing the way I(we) play D&D to a new player: ADDDD or A(D to the power of 4). This came about because of all the attention to detail, the excessive props and my otherwise over the top approach to D&D. ADD of course referring to the old term of ADHD, not Advanced Dungeons and Dragons . I prefer OCD myself so it could be OCDDD.

Back in the day it was characters sheets, dice, pencil and some graph paper. Now you can still play D&D like that however since 4th edition uses a tactical combat system you pretty much need some sort or markers or minis for the characters and monsters and a battle map of some sort (a 1″ grid will suffice).

However that’s kinda lame and looks meh. So… I’ve gone to extreme (of course) and we now use minis plus 3D terrain, some from Dwarven Forge and some home-made, cast from Hirst Arts molds. But wait there’s more.. In fact when Dan (one of my players) mentioned ADDDD it got me thinking; just how far have I gone with this.

So here’s a list of everything we use (or have available and may use) that I’ve collected in the last 6 months:

• Books: All 4th edition books except for the FR and Eberon campaigns, Against the Giants, Manual of the Planes and the Plane Below.
• Minis: I’m too afraid to count. here’s a pic of just the Dragons:

Dragon Minis

• 2D Terrain
  • Almost all the WoTC D&D Tiles like arcane woods and fane of the forgotten gods.
  • Misc maps from GameMastery.
• 3D Terrain
  • Dwarven Forge: 7 sets of tiles from Dwarven forge which are awesome.
• Custom Terrain
  • Hirst Arts Molds: So far I’ve made some cavern pieces and some add-on hallway pieces that are compatible with the dwarven forge sets.
• Campaign Coins: Very cool coins I give out to players when they find treasure or when we play Three-Dragon Ante.
• Online Tools
  • WoTC online or downloadable tools such as Character Builder, Adventure Tools and Compendium.
  • Obsidian Portal: very cool site for organizing your campaign.
  • Google Wave: Haven’t tried but in theory could do a remote D&D session over a couple waves.
• Custom Props: I make or print symbols, maps and letters on old-looking parchment type paper complete with wax seals and fake blood.
• Music: I have about 30 sound tracks we use as atmosphere from movies and games such as Ago of Conan, Gladiator, 300, LoTRO, Braid…
• Misc
  • Card games: Three-Dragon Ante and Inn fighting
  • Energy Drinks: Another set of D&D themed energy drinks though I can’t recall the brand
  • Jones Soda: D&D themed Jones Sodas, yum!
  • Greyhawk: All my old greyhawk material such as Out of the Ashes, The Marklands and Greyhawk Players Guide.
  • Storage: Ikea display case for the minis, a fishing tackle box (great for traveling!) not to mention boxes and shelves containing all the stuff above.
  • Markers and Cards: Condition tracking using markers from Fiery Dragon Battlebox plus I’ve made custom ones similar to the markers the Penny arcade crew make, Initiative tracking cards, White boards for player/monster stats in battle, Item Cards from Game Mastery, Player Power Cards from WoTC.

So ya, It’s a bit over the top (Nicole mentioned I need help) but it’s fun! Also I’ve only just scratched the surface, there’s still tonnes of resources and ideas out there and other DMs and groups have collected giant hoards of gaming accessories. Now if you’ll excuse me I’ll go back to reading Draconomicon: Metallic Dragons.

Model Mayhem profile finally updated

Just a quick update today. I finally updated and had my Model Mayhem profile #596052 approved. I can be found here:

http://www.modelmayhem.com/jamesmace

I created this a while back but then left it. I’ve now uploaded some pics; a selection from different Gothic and Vampire shoots over the past 2-3 years. I’ve also listed some models and photographers I’ve worked with. If I’ve worked with you and haven’t found you yet and you have a Model Mayhem profile, please let me know so I can add you!

Now if anyone’s searching for a thin, tall goth/vamp, they’ll know where to look :)

Concert Update

Found out recently that Slayer and Megadeth canceled the show that was to be on my Birthday back in Nov. Though I’m not sure why the show was canceled, it works out fantastic as they’ve now rescheduled to Feb 19th. Tickets are in hand.  Hellz ya. The new slayer album is some straight up old school slayer with some really angry at God lyrics. Love it.

Also I’m hoping Hypocrisy makes it to Toronto on another leg of their tour or perhaps a 2nd tour. They had to cancel due to visa issues and delays and so didn’t get to play on the tour with Ensiferum, which means since I missed that show I didn’t miss Hypocrisy. Crossing my fingers…

Another band I’ve never seen (aside from Hypocrisy) is Rammstein. The new album is awesome and although there’s no north american tour dates as of yet I hope they come in the fall!

Would love to see Transiberian Orchestra but unfortunately I’ll be away in Florida when they play Copps Coliseum. Arch Enemy is coming in Jan which is tempting. I can’t wait for Epica and Tyr and Cannibal Corpse and hopefully I can make it in time to see Hate Eternal (opening for Cannibal Corpse/Hatebreed) this wed. \m/

Google Wave is freaky cool

Google Wave is in a word, interesting. I’m not sure how to describe it except that you seem to be able to do anything and everything from chat to video to playing games. Except that it’s a little quirky, a little slow and a little odd to get used to but it is a preview so this is all acceptable.

I finally have a few peeps I know on Google Wave and have actually been able to play some pong (poorly due to choppy sync issues), some chess (poorly due to lack of skill) and see real-time chat updates and such. Pretty cool. Now the real test. Can I used it to play D&D 4e. I’ve seen a few blog posts out there about how people manage their waves and their games and Quinn’s post on At-Will looks promising. I say looks because I have yet to try out playing D&D on a wave.

However, doing what I do best, I prepared for just such an eventuality, should the need ever arise (which it should since I’m in Windsor atm, arg). I scoured lists of gadgets and robots looking for anything that might help run a D&D session. Her’s what I’ve managed to find so far loosely organized by category:

Dice:

• Name: Dicy
• Description: A nice robot that lets you add [2d6+4] type syntax into your wave and it’ll spit out the results as [2d6+4=8+4=12]. This is handy for in place rolls wherever you need them with whichever dice and whichever modifiers.
• Address: dice-y@appspot.com

• Name: Wave Dice
• Description: A gadget that you can anchor in a blip, select which dice to roll and away you go. Unfortunately you can’t add you own additions or subtraction so there’s no d20+5. I do perhaps still see a use for this in combination with Fighty (see below) for rolling initiative.
• Address: http://wavedicegadget.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/dice.xml 

Mapping:

• Name: Fighty
• Description: By far the coolest gadget I’ve found whether for gaming or not, fighty lets you add maps from MapLib (also very cool), zoom and pan the map and add markers to the map. Why is this so cool? Because on MapLib you can add your own maps, ie your own battlemaps like for instance from Dundjinni. This lets you handle the strategy battle part without much fuss.
• Tip#1: add http://www.savevsgeek.com/fighty.php?id=6567 as a gadget for a plain sheet of graph paper although there’s already quite a few D&D maps that you can search for and use in your wave.
• Tip#2: Keep your maps in a separate wav (as mentioned by Quinn).
• Tip#3: Add the wave dice gadget to these maps to roll and initiative (just a though. You’d likely still want to track the results in a blip so dicy may be the way to go)
• Address: http://www.savevsgeek.com/fighty.php?id=xxx where xxx is the id from MapLib

• Name: Napkin
• Description: Barely worth mentioning but this or any other whiteboard type gadget could suffice for some sort of ad hoc battle map. While this may not be so useful for a battle map without a nice grid there could perhaps be other uses.
• Address: http://my-wave-gadgets.appspot.com/wave/NapkinGadget.xml

Misc:

• Name: Treeify
• Description: Treeify has a cool concept of being able to make a hierarchy of waves which I figure might be handy for organizing the 4 waves recommended in Quinn’s post. Have one root with the title of the campaign and then have 4 children; OOC, Combat (with fighty), Reference and the main IC (In Character) game. It might just be me but I’m having some issue getting this to work properly so the jury’s still out on this one.
• Address: treeify@appspot.com

•  Name: List
• Description: I thought this gadget might help make tables for when that was required however this app is in it’s very early stage at this point and not all that useful.
• Address: http://list-gadget.googlecode.com/svn/branches/stable/gadget.xml 

Along with cool ideas to add color coding and action tags, I’d like to expand on one of the 4 waves; reference. At the moment I’ve been playing around with Obsidian Portal, adding content into the wiki and such and I think that I will likely incorporate this into my regular campaigns (i.e. sans google wave) as a way to track characters, npcs, items, campaign dates etc… I think that if or rather when I can get a wession? (wave D&D session) going, I might skip the 4th reference wave and just provide links as required within the blips to the appropriate wiki or npc etc… on my obsidian portal campaign. This should help streamline and focus the info in the wave to were it’s needed.

Again, looks cool, can’t wait to try it out! Just waiting for all my players to set up their google wave accounts