I have read most of Diana Gabaldon’s books in this series so when I heard Starz was creating a show based on the books I was very intrigued. What attracted me to the story was the time travel aspect with a bit of paganism (albeit small) thrown into the mix. Oh did I mention men in Kilts (admittedly most are nothing to look at…)?
Clair and Frank
The story takes place (in the beginning) a few months after World War II in 1945. Clair Randell and her husband Frank go on holiday to Scotland to reconnect after they had been apart during the war. They arrive at Inverness just before Samhain (Halloween) and spy on a pagan ritual (dancing only, no blood sacrifices here) being performed at a stone circle. Clair decides to visit the standing stones again to collect some flowers she saw the night before, but when she does she is teleported back in time and find herself in 1743 when she touches one of the stones.
Standing Stones
She must get her barrings and adapt quickly to survive so she can make it back to the standing stones and return to her husband in 1945. However there are things that stand against her, one is her husband’s ancestor Jack Randell and the other is her heart as she slowly falls in love with Jamie a curly red head Scotsman (who look good in a kilt).
Clair and Jamie
The show debuted on August 9th and I had to say I have already watched it 3 times. It does the books justice (if my memory recalls the books correctly) and at the end it leaves you wanting more.
As most of you know the Doctor returns on August 23rd and BBC has released the official synopsis for the first episode “Deep Breath”.
The synopsis reads, ‘When the Doctor arrives in Victorian London he finds a dinosaur rampant in the Thames and a spate of deadly spontaneous combustions. Who is the new Doctor and will Clara’s friendship survive as they embark on a terrifying mission into the heart of an alien conspiracy? The Doctor has changed. It’s time you knew him.’
Deep Breath
I am going to miss Mat Smith’s Doctor, I loved his quirky ways…. I guess all we can do is hold our breath to see just what type of Doctor Peter Capaldi brings!
A picture gallery of “Deep Breath” can be found here!
Below is a quick overview of creating a character in the new Monte Cook Games RPG The Strange.
Each players starts out as a human on Earth and have three stats that represent who you are. These are Might, Speed, and Intellect. Might is your strength and durability, Speed is your endurance and coordination, and you Intellect is how smart and charismatic you are.
Each stat has these three components Pool, Edge, and Effort. Pool is your base measurement of each stat, Edge is used to reduce cost of what you are trying to do, and lastly Effort which is what you spend when you really want to accomplish your task. What Type you choose (see below) dictates the values of your starting stat pools. In addition to the base values you have 6 points to distribute as you see fit.
Now to the coolest part of character creation. Creating a statement that describes yourself “I am a adjectivenoun who verb.” My first character statement was “I am a stealthyspinner who solves mysteries!”.
The adjective is your Descriptor and 13 are included in the base rules. This is what adds flavor and depending on what you choose enhances your character in different ways (Not all are positive).
The noun is your Type (class) of which there are three. The Vectors characters are the soldier hunter types. The Paradox characters are the scientists sorcerer types. The Spinner characters are the entertainer political types. Each of these Types have a different starting pool, Vectors receive more Might, Paradox more Speed, and Spinners more Intellect. As you level (there are 6 tiers) you gain specialized skills and abilities of your chosen Type.
The Strange – Types
The final piece is the verb which is your Focus. When you choose your Focus (each player character must be unique) you receive a special connection to one or more of your fellow player characters. Like the Type choice (see above) when you level you unlock different and improved abilities. One other thing to mention about your Focus is that it may or may not translate when you travel to a Recursion. When it does not you will need to choose a different Focus.
So there you have it a very quick overview of the character creation for The Strange RPG.
The Strange is due to be release this month so make sure you keep checking MCG website if you are interested in learning more!
If you missed my first post about The Strange check it out!
Who is Monte Cook you ask? Really… Well if you do not know who I am speaking about you need to come out of the cave you have been hiding in and look him up. He has worked for several RPG companies the most notables are TSR, Wizards of the Coast, and Paizo.
I had the privilege meeting Mr. Cook and I am sure he remembers me from Gen Con (Right Mr. Cook? ::Chuckles::) I mean you only met thousands of fanbois during that 4 days!
Most will know him for his contributions to 3rd Edition Dungeon & Dragons… well until recently that is. In September 2012 Monte Cook Games turned to Kickstarter to crowd-fund a new RPG that was set a billion years in the future in a science fantasy post-apocalyptic setting called Numenera. The rules (Cypher System) were streamlined to focus on the story and action of the players characters. The Kickstarter raised over $500k which was over 25 times the funding amount needed and with that extra funding was able to add supplemental books and accessory for the setting. The list can be found on the kickstarter page.
Numenera RPG
Bruce Cordell (You know who he is right, please tell me you do!) came up with a concept for another setting that used the base mechanics of Numenera (Cypher System). Just over a year later in October of 2013 MCG launched their 2nd kickstarter called The Stangelooking to raise $60k. In November 2013 they successfully funded The Strange pulling in over $400k which allowed them to add supplemental and accessory for the setting. The list can be found on the kickstarter page.
The Strange RPG
What caught my attention The Strange kickstarter was one paragraph.
“The Strange is a game that crosses multiple worlds, called recursions, which player characters can explore and defend. In The Strange, your characters change with each world they travel to, taking on new aspects suited to help them function in that recursion’s unique laws and structures. But dangers found in these recursions threaten not only characters, but also our very own Earth. If characters persevere, however, they can not only save themselves and Earth, they may even gain the ability to create a recursion of their own!”
I love the idea that characters change depending on the recursion they are in. How can you ever get bored of a character that changes to fit into the world they enter? Two of the recursions that have been revealed are Ardeyn and Ruk and these are just the tip of the iceberg. I was however very intrigued with one recursion that I saw on a map posted by MCG and the name is Oz. Yes that is right recursions can be brought into existence by the fact millions of people are aware of a fictional place and it’s occupants. This is explained in detail in the core book but one line says it all.
“Many recursions were seeded into the network by the creative resonance of pure imagination (so-called “fictional leakage”), and over time these recursions have matured into places that are quite real.”
This opens up so many worlds that you and your friends can explore, the list is practically endless. You can bet I will be creating a recursion of Middle-Earth, the Walking Dead, and who knows I might even create a Harry Potter / Zombie mash-up!
If you think this sounds cool and intresting just head on over to www.montecookgames.com and read more about it on their blog or better yet get the free preview here!
Stay tuned Nerds next up “Creating a Character” in the Strange!
Kickstarter is a pretty cool site to find awesome up and coming projects of all types. It is even better if you have an idea and you need help funding to get it off the ground. I have backed several projects and I think that it is pretty cool when you can help someone achieve success.
I have been watching one game for a couple of weeks and is about a week away from closing and another that has just started up.
The first is Factions it is a science fiction war strategy game where you can customize the playing field, your factions, and strategy. This one is just under 50 percent and ends in 8 days. Why not back it if you think it looks like something you would enjoy.
The second is Game of Legends is role-playing board-game with a financial part. The board looks impressive and it looks like a whole lot of fun.
I will most likely post a couple of these every so often if I think they are nerdy enough!
So the other night Vin Diesel was making his rounds to promote Guardians of the Galaxy (you can see my review here!) I am sure some of you know that I love me some Vin Diesel so when I heard he was going to appear on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon I had to watch. I knew he had a nerdy side but I had no idea he played D&D! Head on over and watch him talk about his character Melkor and where if got the name. If you need a hint here is a picture I found!
Melkor – King of the Dark Lord
I am sure Vin had no idea who he named his character after. The first Dark Lord of Middle -Earth is pretty ambitious.
If you have not seen it yet here is a preview of Wild Magic. Oh and on the page what do we see… none other the the Dragon Born! Nice rendition I have to say! OK… sorry back to Wild Magic The 50 different possible effects are diverse. For instance if you roll a 33-44 then your next damaging spell you cast does max damage or if you roll a 91-92 if you die you come back to life immediately and my favorite if you roll a 49-50 you cannot talk and pink bubbles come out of your mouth.
5E: Wild Magic5E: Wild Magic Table
We have also been given a peak a couple more feats. Namely Dungeon Delver, Durable, and Elemental Adept. I have to say all three of these are pretty cool!
Oh My F…… God! OK Nerds you have to go see this movie. I mean really… leave now and hit the theaters! I saw it last night and I have to say it is the best Marvel movie to date for me. The music was was awesome! The story was incredible! The acting was Phenomenal!
Guardians of the Galaxy
The fact you can sit down and not know anything about these characters and become vested almost immediately is impressive. I love the fact the writers understood the characters and took the time to make sure they stayed true to their paper counterparts! I found the balance between action and comedy to be spot on and the story line moved at a good pace.
It is hard to sometimes look at a CGI character and suspend disbelief and fool your mind into thinking they are actually real. I had no problem doing so whatsoever with Rocket, Groot or any of the other CGI characters.
Well done to the cast and crew of Guardains of the Galaxy! I cannot wait to see more of this franchise as it comes to life on the big screen!
Oh and one last thing… if you are like me and stay to the end for the little skits Marvel Studios likes to do. I just have to say it quacked me up!
Later Nerds!
Category: Movie, Review | Comments Off on Review – #Guardians of the Galaxy
Have you ever felt that the alignment mechanics where cumbersome or broken? Well so have Quasar Knight Enterprises and they have created Death to Alignment! for Pathfinder.
Here we are again! Wizard of the Coast has released 4 more pages of the upcoming 5th Edition Players Hand Book. This time around they have given us the Paladin and the Barbarian.
The Paladin:
The picture of the first page depicts a half-orc paladin of Torm the lawful good God of Law. I actually like this character concept and think it would be fun to play!
5E: Paladin 15E: Paladin 2
The Barbarian:
The barbarian page shows a norse looking man hefting an axe over his shoulder. Um… Wait… Is that Grizzly Adams?
5E: Barbarian 15E: Barbarian 2
I am sure we will have more to share from the 5E PBH so stay tuned Nerds!
