Blog, Jvstin Style

Exalted: Out of the Labyrinth

Not quite "diaries", but Scott, playing Kunrad in my Exalted FTF game, has been giving summaries of plots, plans, adventures and agendas. Here is his latest email after Saturday's game:

> OK, we're now in the Labyrinth, and we'll probably be leaving
> by a different route than we entered. One MAJOR bonus of that is
> that if Lord Scythe has an ambush waiting for us on the way back,
> we're not going back that way. One major downside is that we'll be
> taking the scenic route back, which isn't Kunrad's favorite idea.
>
> Plans:
>
> Finish the Labyrinth expedition - Working on it, two more
> locations to go through that we know of. Hopefully it will be a bit
> before we get to the next one, Kunrad burned off 14 motes in that
> fight, which is about 30% of his available motes.

Done. We were too late to rescue our comrades, but not too late to
save them from the Black Exaltation, and we were able to reduce the
Mask's cohort of Deathknights by another 2. Not to mention the
destruction of 3 Monstrances, which will hurt him badly as well,
forcing him to replace them before he can raise more Abyssals. We are
just not going to be his favorite people in the future, I doubt he'll
invite us to any masqued balls in Thorns, and I doubt we should accept
if he does. :)

> 1) - Go to Yu-Shan for the Calibration Festival (and spread copies
> of the Manifesto about). This will depend on where we are relative
> to a gate to Yu-Shan when we come out of the Underworld. We know
> of one in Nexus, but from the sound of things Cold House is well
> south of Thorns so that may not be the best way to get to Yu-Shan
> (though it likely WOULD be the best way out).

Looks like we're going to Yu-Shan first, which will work out well
enough. Got to finish up the Manifesto, then, so we can hand Kojak a
copy and slap him on the back. :)

> 2) - Return to Great Kills to retrieve our mounts. Kunrad
> certainly doesn't want to leave Fred to the tender mercies of the
> Abyssals, and I doubt that any one else wants to leave their mount
> there either.

Still on the plan: after Yu-Shan, we exit via Nexus or some other
location even closer to Great Kills and make a QUICK trip back into
the Underworld to retrieve Fred, Czar, and the rest of the mounts.

> [Out here it gets fuzzy, so I'm changing to letters....]
>
> A) - Pilgrimage to raise Essence. Kunrad's been saving his EXP of
> late to be in a position post-Yu-Shan to raise his Essence, on the
> theory that more Essence is a good thing and we'll need more when we
> go back to reclaim the Temple of Sol Invictus in Meru.

This remains an option, and Kunrad now has 29 of the 32 points he
needs to raise his essence.

> B) - More forgework - Kunrad has some plans for various items for
> people (Dragon Iron needs a thunderbolt shield, Anathea and Lorius
> need more potent weapons, Viola needs the jade plates in her buff
> jacket replaced, hearthstone bracers need to be made up (see C),
> Viola needs a Dragon Tear Tiara, etc).

Still an option. Also, if DI wants, a grand daiklave can be made
up. It probably won't be as good as the one he had in the First Age
(Kunrad's currently limited to 3-dot artifacts), but if the siren-song
of the two-handed weapon's calling to him, it can be arranged.

> C) - Find more manses and make them ours - Ideally, all of the
> Solars in the group would have at least 2-3 Hearthstones each, and
> the DBs would have at least 1 each. Having the extra hearthstones
> would be VERY handy in a situation where we need to keep going and
> going and going, not to mention the potential abilities they give.

Definitely still an option, ties in with the research Kunrad and
Anathea were doing in Nexus on 1st Age sites in the Nexus region.
Also, it would not be a surprise at all if there were some old
manses/demenses near the factory cathedral: if that was Charen's base
of power in the late 1st Age, there likely were others in the area.

Goodbye Eric

Erick Wujcik Passes Quietly

Beloved role-playing game designer, Erick Wujcik, passed away Saturday evening, June 7, 2008. He died from complications related to pancreatic and liver cancer. Kathryn Kozora, his sweetheart of nearly 30 years, and other loved ones were at his side.

Erick was diagnosed with cancer in late November, 2007 and given 6-8 weeks to live. True to Erick's indomitable spirit and zest for life, he proved the doctors wrong by lasting more than six months. Most of that time was spent with friends and loved ones.

Erick Wujcik's accomplishments are many.

To the role-playing game community, Erick is best known for his many RPG games and contributions to Palladium Books®, including The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles® RPG, several TMNT® sourcebooks, After the Bomb® RPG and sourcebooks for it, Ninjas & Superspies™, Mystic China™, Rifts® China One and Two, Revised RECON®, Wolfen Empire™ and many others. He is also famous for Amber® Diceless, the first truly "diceless" role-playing game, published under Erick's own label, Phage Press. Erick also published Amberzine® and founded Ambercon™, a series of conventions celebrating gaming, friendship and the world of Amber, hosted at numerous locations around the world.

Erick Wujcik was also the founder, heart and soul of the Detroit Gaming Center, served as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Game Design at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2003-2008), and worked in the videogame industry for the last several years, including UbiSoft China and most recently, as Senior Game Design/Writer at Totally Games, Novato, California.

Erick Wujcik's greatest accomplishment, however, is his contagious joy for life and love of ideas and imagination that inspired people around the world. Whether they were one of his students at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, fellow game designers, or fans sitting in the audience at a convention or seminar listening to Erick speak, to those who had the pleasure of gaming with Erick (he loved to run games at conventions and everywhere he went), to those who knew him best, they couldn't help but to love him. Even the millions who only knew him through his published works or communicated with him online, considered him a friend.

Erick is survived by Kathyrn Kozora, Kate's granddaughter – his beloved Sara, mother Nora, sister Peggy, his Aunt Mary and Uncle Sam and Nancy, along with dozens of aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.

Erick's last months of life were the same as he had always lived, full of friendship, joy, grace and beauty. He went quietly into the night, like a snowflake falling gently from the heavens.

– Kevin Siembieda, Palladium Books®

© Copyright 2008 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.
Rifts®, The Rifter®, RECON®, Splicers®, Palladium Books®, Phase World®, The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Megaverse®, Nightbane®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Coalition Wars® and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. Heroes Unlimited, Beyond the Supernatural, and other published book titles, names, slogans and likenesses are trademarks of Palladium Books Inc., and Kevin Siembieda.

This press release may be reprinted, reposted, linked and shared.

Exalted!

On Worldwide D&D day, and the day poor Big Brown failed to win the Triple Crown..my friends and I played the Exalted game I ran.

(I did have an antagonist NPC named Gygax, as a tip of the hat)

The Exalted players accomplished their big goals today of taking two Abyssals seeking redemption to the tomb of their Zenith PC member in the lost city of Meru, in the heart of the Blessed Isle.

In other world, the LAST place four Solars want to be.

So, they drove away guards with a display of power, and tangled with Dragonbloods in the ruins of a Hanging Gardens, and Viola (the Zenith) took on a DB with the help of the group's allies.

Throw in a message to Viola from her former self, including deeding her an old pet (a jhereg) and an artifact, and a meeting with Damion (Felicia's son)'s guest PC, the players had a lot of fun.

Everyone got to do stuff, ranging from diplomatic defusing of a tight situation, to melee combat smackdown. Everyone enjoyed themselves, it was a good, if slightly short, session.

Heck, thanks to a quirk in the schedule, there is no Amber next week. Rather than having a week off...my quartet want to play.

What more can a GM ask?

TBR: Journey to the Center of Amber

Arne letter--Journey to the Center of Amber
Originally uploaded by Jvstin

Politics as she is played with 3d6

Charlie's Diary: Politics as she is Played with 3d6

A funny entry from Charlie Stross, where he gives 1st Edition D&D stats to the three major US Presidential candidates remaining.

And for those surprised that Stross would or could create such a thing--recall that some of the monsters from earlier editions of the venerable game came from the very pen of Mr. Stross.

Gygax's influence on today

Geek Love - New York Times
Senior Editor Adam Rogers uses the "Geeks conquered the world" meme to discuss the influence of Gygax on our modern world.

What drew me into RPGing?

A meme going around. In memory of the late E. Gary Gygax, how did I get into this thing called roleplaying?

Like many things in this world, you can blame my elder brother.

In addition to introducing me to the F/SF genres, he also introduced me to the basic set D&D, and not long later, Advanced D&D (we sort of skipped Expert, as I recall). Luap was my first RPG character, not very original I suppose. My younger brother played for a while, too. My brother and I also met a few gamers in Queens via a BBS. He ran a dream-based scenario once which would prove to be thematically seminal in my own gaming.

We played other games than D&D too--some more RP than others.

I GMed pretty early on, too, running a one-on-one game for a classmate in Junior and High school. In a tip to later indiegaming, my friend and I even experimented with narrative control as regards Hazzard's story.

My gaming went into a bit of a decline by the early 90's. The Brooklyn College group was withering on the vine, and there were no real new games that struck me, until one day, I walked into the Compleat Strategist, and found a game based on a beloved series of novels, by a guy named Erick Wujick. What's more, you could play this on bulletin boards on AOL. While my brother never got into this, I did in a big way, meeting people like my friend Bridgette, and reigniting my roleplaying activities...

Gary Gygax RIP

Via a couple of places, one of the original "dungeon masters", Gary Gygax, has died.

Luap, Justin of Aragorn, Ragnar, and Phocas, amongst other D&D characters of mine, salute you.Rest in Peace.

Update (via my brother):

OOTS nails it just right:

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0536.html

Nobilis Rises from the Ashes...Again!

random average: Nobilis, renewed.

If you haven't heard already, R.Sean Borgstrom has released as a PDF the first part of the long awaited Nobilis supplement "A Society of Flowers." In addition, EOS Press have announced that they are going to rewrite and re-release the core book.

Woot!

Story Games Name Project

THIS is a great book:

Story Games Name Project

Its done by the folks over at the Story Games board, a board of "Indie" Gamers. The book is a collection and compilation of names from various cultures and contexts for use in RPG games. Because all us gamers and writers know that coming up with unique and distinct names is difficult.

Heck, just ask the ghost of Zelazny, when he came up with the very similar "Merlin" and "Martin".

Anyway, my friend Arref has a very appropriate contribution to the book, too.

Go get it!

Saturday: Amber Gaming

I had a busy weekend.

On Saturday, we had our biweekly Amber game, War of Princes, in which I play Pierce Koultrin

I need to do some diaries for Pierce.

This session involved a trip to Zoetica and Valentine's personal shadow, New Angels. Pierce picked up on the point that this shadow, fully formed, was originally only an imaginary construct of theirs given life and form somehow, when they stumbled into it. They didn't think this was special, however, given their youthful nature, the fact that a shadow to the specifications and limitations of their knowledge came into being is a significant thing.

No wonder Fiona is so interested in the two of them.

Pierce mainly spent his time in New Angels exploring possible paths out in the company of Zoetica and Vanya. It became clear that Zoetica and Zoetica alone held the keys to making a path out of the mist-fog walls that blocked all sea routes, although Pierce is likely to help build a full fledged path from there, to Amber.

Pierce also deduced something about Zoetica's nature as well although he also talked about it with her and Valentine.

After some time there, the group made another trip to Tir (after the first one) to learn the results of the request made by Sand on our behalf. Unfortunately the Faerie of Tir were unable to trace back the manipulators of dreams to a source. Elsha, however, who has mysterious origins of her own learned that she was descended from "what came before the Fae."

This dead end was followed by a trip to the restricted (to family members) of the Castle Amber Library. We discovered an ancient treaty, the oldest legal document, which bound a mutual defense pact of four realms--Amber, Rebma, Tir and a fourth realm, Marianthe None of us had heard of this fourth realm and its the only record of its name anywhere.

And with dead ends leading to new mysteries, that's where we ended matters, until next time.

Thanks to "The Wuj"

Arref nails it.

It saddened me immensely to hear of Erick's pancreatic cancer. Indeed, if not for his little game, my life would definitely be far, far different. The likelihood of me here right now in a friends house, house sitting, in Minneapolis, would probably be nil.

All because of a game.

After Action Report: Using SOTC for an Amber game

As many of you know, I ran a SOTC-Amber cross at the Black Road this year. Spurred on by requests to do so, I decided to report on the results of my experiment.

(The website for the game is at http://www.all-roads-lead.net/jvstin/tcoa/)

A perusal of the rules on my site shows that I didn't actually change the rules that much. I changed around some skills, and honed some others. Notably, I made Pattern a skill, and made Art the basis of the skill of using Trumps. (the actual ability for the creation of Trumps I made an Aspect). Shapeshifting I made an Aspect, as well, and I used one of the Fate 2.0 sorceries as my own sorcery (I only had one sorceress anyway, so I never really got much of a workout on those rules).

I further simplified things by sacrificing stunts (which I will likely bring in a future version). It took a while for the players and the GM to get used to the system, but once I did, the players were enthusiastic. Some of the players caught on very quickly how to use their Aspects to their best advantage, and colorful action and adventure roleplay was the result.

I could have done some things better---I didn't emphasize Aspects on scenes much, which I should have done (especially during one episode where the dirigible some of the PCs were fighting in was on fire...i could have used that as an Aspect for the scene). Too, I didn't do much tagging of Aspects on characters, but I did try that a couple of times. Aspects really make or break this game, I think, and their enthusiastic use by players and GMs is a barometer of how the game is going to go.

Combat, too, highlighted for me that the current system makes it a little too hard to really get the characters in peril. I heard of a variation where the damage tracks are much shorter, but with the option of the characters taking a consequence to avoid taking damage. That is something I think I am going to employ in my next iteration of the TCOAverse.

The characters of TCOA: The Machinations of Duke Icarium were:

Helsa, ward of Gerard (Chris Bamberger): A strong woman type who found herself defending the fort when most of the combat heavy characters flew off in planes. Made extensive use of the aspect "Fights like a Valkyrie" and even managed to throw a mook clear off the roof (which I gave her an award for).

Jessamy, daughter of Bleys (Mel Mason): A mile-a-minute speaking naive daughter of Bleys whose use of Convent Education, amongst other things, was an inspiration in roleplaying. Mel cared much less about the system than making a distinctive and memorable character, and succeeded very well in that respect.

Mirion Blair, daughter of Gerard (Bridgette Ruggles). Mirion was an adventurous, emancipated daughter of Gerard whose piloting skills, as well as decent fighting skills, proved colorfully useful throughout the adventure. "I'll take the one on the right."

Concord, son of Bleys (JP Brannan). JP's "dull" son of Bleys wasn't so dull. His use of trumps, focusing on the creation of one while a battle raged around him, proved very useful. And an intensely high shift gained during one of his rolls led the GM to declare that his attempt to break through the barriers of a shadow had led to unexpected, catastrophic results.

Ginevra (Carolyn LaChance). Although she didn't get a chance to use her Aspects as much as she might have hoped, being the only other person really familiar with the system gave Carolyn a leg up in getting into "TCOA" mode. She was helpful in encouraging other players, and the vision of Ginevra in a wedding dress with guns blazing is pure iconic TCOA.

The players had fun, I had fun, and I'd definitely do it again. I liked the system so much that, in a subsequent game I ran which was pure Amber, I found myself missing the usefulness of the randomizer of the fate dice in deciding minor balanced issues in gameplay.

Long time ADPRG fame? ME?

Doyce has noticed that I ran my own take on SOTC and Amber together, and hopes I will write up fully how the experience went.

I do intend to do so, at length.

However, the way Doyce described me made me blink in surprise.

"Jvstin of long-time Amber DRPG fame..."

And the Stone God Did Not Make a Sound

A standalone Solo RP bit I wrote for Ingrey in Time Under Chaos. I thought I would share it with a wider audience.

Ingrey is a Chaosian Diplomat from House Wererathe who works at the Chaos Embassy to Amber, in Mel Mason's Time Under Chaos game, where Merlin sits on Amber's Throne, and Mandor is his Prime Minister...

And the Stone God Did Not Make a Sound

Returning back to the residential building of the Embassy complex
after Breakfast, Ingrey Wererathe stepped into and through the rooms
of the modest suite that comprised his living space. Even after some
decades in the service of the Emperor in Diplomatic Service, his
accommodations were comfortable, but not overwhelming in opulence
compared to people of similar rank. Pieces were made of Cherry, rather
than more expensive woods such as teak. The furniture was more
functional than stylish, designed for comfort and use rather than
impressing the few that Ingrey allowed in his sanctum sanctorum.

In point of fact, if Ingrey stopped to think about it, if the likes
of Vikund Anansi or Morgan Deirdreson were, for some bizarre reason,
invited to his rooms, they would be either sorely disappointed in the
lifestyle that the Minister-Counselor lived in, or, more likely, it
would reaffirm their opinion of him as a poor civil servant without
the sense and corruption to enrich himself with his position.

Ingrey slowly divested himself completely of clothes as he moved
through his quarters with purpose, pieces of his outfit pooling in
small piles, making a bread crumb trail of his movements. Ingrey's
destination was a small alcove like room, not much larger than a
closet. In point of fact, it used to be a closet before it was
retasked for its current purpose. Ingrey's needs for the storage of
clothing were not quite as high as some of his counterparts and
predecessors, male and female alike.

The alcove was lit by a small mage light which Ingrey made a point
of always keeping lit, night and day. Some might use candles, or other
sources of perpetual lighting, but Ingrey liked the arcane approach.
The small yellow light, held in a sphere which dangled on an iron
chain hooked to the ceiling, illuminated a simple low kneeling bench
and a trestle table like altar. Both were made of granite. The former
was sometimes cushioned, depending on Ingrey's feelings that
particular day.

After the encounter with Duke Uther Helgram, and her Excellency's
decree, Ingrey felt the need to remove the trappings of comfort in an
effort to better seek guidance. Ingrey felt more comfortable, more at
peace with his God, if he delved deep inside of himself and brought
forth his true feelings of humility.

Thus, he removed the red cushion that sat on the bench and placed it
temporarily outside of the alcove. With this done and returning to
the matter at hand, Ingrey lowered his knees on the bench and faced
the altar. And so, naked, on bare stone, he was before his God, as he
should be. Masks were laid to the side, and the Inner Ingrey, as it
were, could be shown.

Upon it, on top of the crimson colored cloth that draped the granite
altar, was a single statue. Some Devotees had crude, worn images on
purpose, insisting that the quality of the statue did not truly
matter, it was the personal devotion that counted. Some, far more
affluent, had more beautiful and expensive creations. Like the
diplomat that he was, Ingrey favored a middle, moderate course.

The statue was made of obsidian, with a red garnet for an eye, and the
extended tongue was of garnet as well. The statue was in the form and
shape of Serpentor Custodes, the standing tall representation of the
Serpent, on guard and ready to strike if needed, with some of the
sinuous body pooling in black coils as the rest rose to face the
viewer.

Ingrey spoke the opening Sura as he always did when he began his
prayers. He clasped his hands before him in prayer, head bowed.

"In the Name of the Serpent, the Most Gracious, the Most Wonderful."

"I seek refuge with the Serpent, the lord of the Turning,"

"From the evil of what he has created,"

"And from the evil of the darkening sky as it comes with its darkness"

"And from the evil of those who practice poisoning upon the guiltless."

"And from the evil of the envier when he envies."

Ingrey paused a moment and then began his plea.

"My Lord." Ingrey said, "I know not if the course I have taken is
the correct one. I have done what I must do as a Diplomat in the
service of his Majesty, but I do not know if my service to You strikes
the correct chord within my heart as well. Do you wish that I aid the
Duke Helgram, rather than hinder him, in his goal to destroy the
Patterns? Or does his mission displease You? Guide my hand, as it is
in the service of You, as I have done all of these years. I ask you as
a loyal servant to show me the path that I must take. I will walk it
for You, and with You, and my efforts shall reflect Your glory."

"And of my mentor, my superior, Paloma Baccaran. She is a loyal
daughter of the Church even if, to my knowledge, she does not have the
secret, inner relationship with You that I am privileged to have.
Help me, if it is your Will, to place her upon the Throne of Amber, to
be a fine Chaosian Queen for a King who is lacking in so many ways.
Help me help her bring the wisdom that you impart, to all of Amber,
both in the outer and the inner world."

Ingrey then closed his eyes, and opened his mind. It was a technique
he had learned many years ago, ever since those series of waking
dreams as a youth brought him to the attention of those in his House
who showed their devotion to the Serpent in manners above and beyond
the pieties of attending Church services. In his mind's inner eye,
the room's details were as rich as those in real life. It was a useful
thing, to have a shrine which was memorized so perfectly, that it was
as visible to Ingrey with his eyes closed as it was with them open.

In his mind's eye, though, the Serpent's obsidian beauty and form was
animate, liquid, alive, and aware. Ingrey felt the press of the gaze
of the garnet eye upon him and he felt the attunement that he felt to
the Serpent. It was personal and ineffable. With this attention upon
him in his mind, Ingrey repeated the plea and prayer he had just
addressed the stone statue, this time willing his mind to send the
words to the real Serpent who was represented as animate stone in his
mental vision, and was stone in the real alcove in which he knelt.
Even if he only imagined and conjured the sensation within himself,
the intense gaze of the mental construct of the Serpent washed over
him like a high tide upon a shore. The form did not answer, of
course, it would be impious for even a devotee of the Serpent in this
gnostic and esoteric fashion to imagine that any direct response would
come here.

And then Ingrey faithfully began to speak, both in mind and word, the
closing Sura.

"In the name of the Serpent, the most Beneficient, the most Merciful."

"I seek refuge with the Serpent, the Lord of the Thari"

"The King of the Thari"

"The God of the Thari"

"From the Malice of the Abyss which whispers in the hearts of the Thari

which withdraws from its whisperings after one remembers the Serpent."

"Those who whisper evil in the breast of the Thari"

"Demons and all beings."

With his prayer done, Ingrey slowly closed his mind again, opening his
eyes even as he closed his mental one. The familiar confines of the
room returned, the form of the Serpent returned to stone. Ingrey
bowed his head one more time, rose, and exited the alcove to retrieve
his clothes. Dressed, he walked over to a side table where a letter
box held some pieces of correspondence. One caught his eye. He
opened it quickly and easily with a gleaming silver letter opener with
an ivory handle. The envelope contained a letter in a neat script and
he recognized it. His mercantile Factor in the Courts, with news.

Picking it up in two fingers, Ingrey dangled the parchment before his
eyes and read the note. A rare, slight smile came across his lips.
With the latest portion taken from his most recent pay packet, his
invested funds in Chaos were at last nearly enough that he would be
able to now meet a bride price from even the likes of House Corrino.
His austerity was finally bearing fruit. And if the Serpent were
merciful and showed favor upon his devotee, he would one day have a
marriage union, as was right and proper.

Still, if he truly followed Paloma's decree now as part of her plans
to use him to sway the daughter of Mandor to her cause, he was going
to miss his Favorite, and no one to succeed her in his thoughts. No
one at all that might disturb the propriety of Mandorsdottir. Ingrey
frowned and pushed away the thought.

Ingrey placed the letter in another box, currently empty, to remind
himself to write an answer.

And then Ingrey left his personal quarters, making a mental note to
attend the official Church service on the morrow, and returned to his
duties.

Amber gaming via a Wiki

Phases of Tirna Nogth - Phases - Main Page

Right here on SSSN no less, and set in Tir. Check it out for more infomation.

Character Names

The Silver Quill - Character Names

Theresa talks about Character Names in detail

I do like names, too, although I am incredibly dull in picking them out and I generally don't pick them with the intent of meaning.

Most of my names come from the Greco-Roman and because I am attracted by a particular name rather than searching out the meanings. Finding out meanings, afterward, is amusing. But I don't choose a character name because it means particular anything. However, Cadmus, from A Common Disaster, perhaps by GM intent, had some of his mythology leak into his history.

Character names from Greco-Roman culture I've used include:

Marcus, Cadmus, Lorius, Hadrian, Iolaus, Castor, Pollux and Scipio

In a very minor key, I've also borrowed names from elsewhere. Ingrey, from TimeUnderChaos has his name derived from a character in a Lois Bujold novel. Vance, which was a failed character concept for House of Cards, was a tip of the hat to Jack Vance. Merivel Belmore, in Winter Chills, had his first name derive from the character in the movie Restoration whose "look" I also borrowed in the form of a casting call. Zavier, for Exodus, was taken from a Baby name book as a variant on "Xavier".

Trump Issues

MB&LK's Amber Bits: Trump Issues (2 of a Multipart Series)

It's All in the Cards
Part Two: The Communication (Sound/Voice/Telepathy) Questions

Do you communicate using thought or voice? Can you switch? Are there certain requirements to one or another?

If it's verbal, can someone overhear either speakers outside of the contact?

Can you be misheard in either case? Can you lie? (Caine does in canon, but is that a separate ability?)

Does it use _your_ (mental) voice?

What if you have laryngitis, or are in a form that changes your vocal cords?

If it is a mental contact, can you change the way you sound or add other effects?

What kind of sounds can you NOT hear inside a contact, if any?

Is there any kind of exertion (physical, magical, spiritual, whatnot) that can interfere with the communication?

Can you hold open a contact under any exertion at all? Does it depend on your attributes?

Does distance affect the connection?

Do you communicate using thought or voice? Can you switch? Are there certain requirements to one or another?

Speaking aloud into the connection is the easiest and what most users learn first. It takes some practice, IMC, to learn how to speak mind to mind alone without any vocal emanations. One of the NPCs in my game not known for being a psyche giant, Percy, son of Deirdre, is shown learning how to do this in a recent SB thread with his lover Brandeigh, daughter of Fiona.

If it's verbal, can someone overhear either speakers outside of the contact?

If it is verbal, people can hear "their side" of the contact. If Percy is in a Trump contact with Brandeigh, William, in the same room as Percy, can hear what Percy is saying. Shannon, in the same room as Brandeigh, can hear what Brandeigh is saying. William cannot hear Brandeigh and Shannon cannot hear Percy.

Inside the contact, Brandeigh can hear what Percy can hear, and Percy can hear what Brandeigh hears...although I've also run it where nothing can be heard, only seen.

Can you be misheard in either case? Can you lie? (Caine does in canon, but is that a separate ability?)

Misheard? Just like regular speaking, of course, it can happen. As far as deliberate deception...if someone is skilled at it, one could speak words and simultaneously speak mentally something else.

Percy and Brandeigh again in the trump call with William listening to Percy and Shannon listening to Brandeigh. The two of them, being trained, can speak aloud AND mentally at the same time.William and Shannon only hear their halves of the verbal conversation

Percy. "I think that its a good idea that we are forming a Regency council"
Percy (mentally) *I think its a bad idea, my love. William will try and lead it*

Brandeigh. "I agree with you about the Regency council idea
Brandeigh (mentally) *My sister is sleeping with William. I will have to watch what I say around her*

Does it use _your_ (mental) voice?

Yes.

What if you have laryngitis, or are in a form that changes your vocal cords?

For a mental contact, it doesn't matter. Your mental voice doesn't change. For a verbal contact, you are stuck speaking as you are.

What kind of sounds can you NOT hear inside a contact, if any?

You can't hear sounds that the other person cannot hear, since they are your conduit. For example, if Percy is deaf, then Brandeigh cannot hear anything on Percy's side.

Is there any kind of exertion (physical, magical, spiritual, whatnot) that can interfere with the communication?

Very short answer: Yes. A Power Word at a minimum, can alter a Trump Call. Anything which can influence a mental contact can affect a Trump call, potentially.

Can you hold open a contact under any exertion at all? Does it depend on your attributes?

Attribute based to hold open a contact...Psyche and Endurance. Forcing a contact open is a matter of will and persistence. You really can't FORCE someone to take a call that they don't want to, but you can harangue them into it by repeated attempts.

Does distance affect the connection?

Absolutely. Long range contacts are harder, and may only be possible for Trump Artists and/or High Psyche types.

Amberite Characters that I play

Theresa Thomas, creatrix of the Shadows of Amber message board, has a blog now of her own, called the Silver Labyrinth.

In a recent entry, she talks about the types of Amberite characters that she plays and admits that she used to play straightforward characters...

I still do.

I admit that its against type for Amber as a system, but the fact that my characters are almost uniformly white hats is something that is well known. My characters rarely if ever have any real hidden agendas, and certainly have a deficit of duplicity and double dealing. This is based on the player himself, who doesn't, for example, play Diplomacy all that well. I can't lie with a straight face.

And so my characters are pretty simple compared to the complex ones around them, something I always lament, but I don't think I can plausibly change. It's a feature as well as a bug.

The Dungeons and Dragons Cartoon

I've been Netflixing the old Dungeons and Dragons Cartoon that aired on Saturday Mornings back in 1983 and 1984.

Its surprisingly entertaining, 20 years later.

Nostalgic value doesn't always work for series (cf Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was mostly painful, not fun to watch). The D&D cartoon is a mixed bag, as any episodic series, but I have found myself enjoying it.

And, while Presto was my favorite character originally, back, then, it is the clever comments and character growth of Eric that makes him a favored character in my mind in my rewatching of the series.

And if you follow the Scooby Way of designing RPG parties, the D&D Cartoon falls into the paradigm. And, as you might expect, the most interesting episodes are those which don't follow the standard formula:

Hank (Ranger) is clearly the leader, the Fred of the group.

Diana(Acrobat) is the team's Daphne, getting along with everyone but rarely ever a starring role of her own.

Sheila (Thief) is another Daphne, although she is a Velma when it comes to protecting her little brother.

Bobby(Barbarian) is a Velma all the way...to the point of being willing to charge Tiamat the dragon with his club all by himself.

Presto(Magician) is often a Velma, too, but his spells cause as much harm as good sometimes. He has had a couple of episodes where he's been a Fred for the group.

Eric (Cavalier) is a shaggy. He gets the best lines, he complains a lot, but his point of view is often the otherwise unspoken one. There are a couple of episodes where Eric gets to be the Fred.

Uni(the baby unicorn) is of course, the team's Scooby. There is an episode, though, involving a lost herd of unicorns where Uni gets to be the Velma for that episode.

Designing your team the Scooby Way

Scooby-Doo!

If you haven't seen it before, this is an analysis of RPG parties by their roles as mapped onto the classic team of Scooby-Doo.

Reading this, if you haven't already, will make the next post about the D&D Cartoon much easier to understand.

Chaosians and the Logrus

Arref asks:

"To Logrus or Not to Logrus"

Much of what Arref says makes sense and dovetails with what I do, and think.

I have a couple of other thoughts.

Side effects of having the Logrus.

I've had good luck in playing up Logrus Madness and consequences of walking the Logrus, and it contrasts well when not every character has Logrus. Ordinary Pattern is pretty dull unless played well, I avoid Ordinary Logrus by having unusual Logrus objects, or idiosyncracies in Logrus Madness, or the like.

Also, I also play up the danger of walking the Logrus. It is a non-trivial act. Many people die or are permanently and irretrievable insane in a Logrus walk. While it helps with political and other ambitions, it is rational for some characters to put off attempting the Logrus. There are plenty of other things to specialize in and do very well in, and surprise one's opponents and foes with.

On the other hand, though, I also play up the consequences of a House rejecting the Logrus entirely, with the exiled heretical Lessimans.

Underestimate Flora

in the Shadow of Greatness: IMC :: Florimel, h.r.h.

Flora is underestimated at your peril.

Yes, Flora. Read Arref's view, and then come and read mine.

Fiona is probably the best sorceress on the Amber side of Ygg. Deirdre is the woman who can break Weir's back over her knee like matchsticks. Sand, in my game, is a Mistress of Dreams whose reach has already garnered respect from player characters. Mirelle is a mystery, a scion returned from bondage. Llewella casts her nets, but seemingly only in and from Rebma.

And then there is Flora.

The first five novels, from Corwin's POV, are not kind to the daughter of Dybele. Corwin is seen to manipulate, baffle and bluff her. Random discounts her. She is seemingly a low ranked ally of Eric's.

Seemingly.

Eric was not a stupid man. Eric nearly killed Corwin, and left him in a region of shadow, and when Flora discovered him, Eric let him stay under Flora's watch.

Eric may have been many things, but he certainly knew Corwin was his weakness. Eric would have not have had Corwin remain under Flora's care unless she either talked him into it, or he realized that she was the perfect choice.

And so Corwin, memory less, remained in the world of Florimel until the Redheads precipitated matters, and then we get the events in the books. Its not hard to, as Arref does, see Florimel's "mistakes" as careful moves in dealing with a amnesiac and very dangerous brother, and another brother (Random), soon thereafter.

Flora's skills are in diplomacy and making friends. She *always* winds up at the side of the winning faction, the winning team, with little realization that she managed to switch sides. And she can play her brothers' emotions like a harp.

Flora has not shown up much in the SBverse as of late, but, then, most of the characters are away from Amber. Characters who are there, though, no matter what plans they hatch, would do well to remember Dybele's daughter.

A Knight of Spirits, Swords and Sorcery

A backstory that I wrote, with GM input, for the Amber PBEM "Chains of Assumptions"

A Knight of Spirits, Swords and Sorcery

Prologue:

"I think your boy is a Squib, Brand." Fiona's sweetly acidic tone of voice came through the oaken door to the room where the ten year old Diomedes was sitting down. A single, thin, wax candle, unlit, white in color, sat in a silver candle holder before him as the red haired boy stared at it with obvious concentration, beads of sweat on his forehead.

"He's not." Brand retorted sharply. "Boys develop more slowly, but are inevitably stronger in certain attributes. Besides, have you ever considered that the fault might lie with the teach-" Brand's response was cut off by Fiona's already forming response. Diomedes' concentration and focus not only allowed him to hear the response, but his concentration intensified as he sought to defy the words his Aunt was speaking. He had heard them before, several times, over the last year.

"You're being sexist just to annoy me."

His father now sounded positively blithe. "And the fact that you're trying to shrivel my son's self-esteem like your last lover's-"

"Don't!" Fiona's voice raised. Then she continued, her tone much more controlled. "Don't be horrible just for the sake of being horrible. I'm concerned about him, and I don't think you're paying enough attention."

"So you confuse me with Random now?"

"No," she said firmly. "The boy has Bleys' physical prowess, that much is clear, but he doesn't have arcane talent. You were lighting candles at six. Mother even thought you were going to set Castle Amber on fire. Bleys and I managed it at eight. Rosalind..." Diomedes didn't hear Fiona's next words, as his eyes flickered from the candle to the wine glasses sitting on the far side of the table, and back to the dark mahogany table upon which all three sat. "...Any road, Dio should have been able to do it by now, in that room, if not before. Face the facts, brother, we are going to have to alter our plans if he doesn't have..."

And then they both felt it, the unmistakable pulse of arcane forces being shaped and worked. Brand was first out his chair and moving, excitedly bursting through the door to the room, followed, at a more stately pace, by Fiona. When they entered, however, and looked to the candle. It was still unlit, but it only took a moment for both children of Clarissa to see that, instead, both of their wine glasses, still full of wine, had turned into miniature fountains, with Brand's son proud, bright-eyed and smiling.

Seven Years Later...

Diomedes woke up from a start and lifted his head from the desk his head had been laying upon. After shaking his head slightly and rubbing his eyes, he looked at the softly glowing mage light floating above the desk, and beyond it, to the clock hanging on the wall. It was nearly midnight.

Diomedes looked down again at the paper, the quill and ink, and the tome from which he had been copying and making notes on arcane formulas. He squinted at the formulas, and then at the tome, and back again. Father had insisted that he document all of his work, especially if he was unfamiliar with any terms or methodology or aspects used. And, here, there were lines that were unclear. The Decan and Tarot hybrid symbolic system the Sorceress was referring to was not the one he was familiar with.

Sorcery was, as Theia had often told him, as much about dry research and study as it was about the use of power. And, clearly, some more research was needed here. Fortunately, Diomedes thought as he rose from the table and strode toward the exit to his suite, he had remembered a book that could very well answer the questions he had about Sorceress Gilman's system in the Castle Amber Library.

And besides, Diomedes wanted to stretch his legs.

Diomedes only remembered to create a small light when he stepped out of his room and into the semi-darkness of the Castle, late at night. With the lemon yellow light cupped in his hands like a ball, Diomedes confidently walked through the corridors. While he had only been back in the Castle a few weeks, surely the Library would be, Diomedes thought, would be easy to find.

He made a turn, convinced that this was the final stretch before reaching his destination, when something caught his eye halfway down the hall. A junction that he didn't remember seeing before, off to his left. Diomedes stopped at the junction, and turned to look down it.

The mysterious hallway looked much the same as any of the other hallways Diomedes had seen during his stay in Castle Amber. A pair of candle holders, bronze and cobra shaped, hung at head-height on either side of the opening. Candles were lit and glowing, adding to the illumination cast upon the scene by his glow globe. Diomedes peered up it. Candles flared along its walls, on both sides. And the walls glittered from the mirrors, countless in number, that hung along the mysterious corridor's length.

He considered the sight for a few moments more, and then, as if a needle pulled by a lodestone, took a leaden step across the mysterious corridor's threshold and began walking down it.

Diomedes took one step, then two and then more as he walked past the first mirrors in the hallway. All were different, save in that they showed his reflection. Frames of gold, frames of brass, and frames of wood. And then Diomedes stiffened and turned, toward a mirror of greenish copper in the shape of an Ouroboros serpent. The image in the mirror was not of Diomedes at all.

It was, instead, his aunt Deirdre.

Dressed in an elegant dress of black accented with silver, especially her girdle, and her hair worn long, she looked quite unlike the image that some of the Golden Circle had her as a bloody-minded warrior princess. No, she looked much more like the belle of the ball that he had seen a couple of times, and how his cousin Obi had described her on other occasions. Her mouth quirked up into a mysterious, perhaps even alluring smile when Diomedes turned to face her.

"You're not who was expected here tonight." she said by way of greeting, as Diomedes stared at her, his training and parentage the only things keeping him from being slack jawed at the sight of someone other than himself in the mirror. "No, you were not the one expected at all." she repeated.

Many potential responses ran through Diomedes' head like waves breaking on a rocky shore. Finally, after a few moments, he smiled and regarded the image of Deirdre.

"Who did you expect here, Aunt Deirdre?" he asked.

Deirdre seemed slightly amused by Diomedes response and she spread her hands. "That would be telling, Diomedes." She smiled again. "And it no longer matters, nephew, since it is you who are here now."

A shudder ran down Diomedes' spine as he faced the image of his aunt. Finally he nodded his head. "So what happens, now that I am here?" he asked as his hand reached toward the glass. As he did so, the image of Deirdre appeared to withdraw slightly from the surface of the mirror, and she had a laughing smile.

"With you, here, Diomedes?" Deirdre's smile was mysterious, teasing, amused. "Who can say whom you will meet? Certainly not I. It will be interesting to observe..." Deirdre's voice began to fade out from Diomedes' ears as her image in the mirror appeared to recede, and shrunk.

"No, wait, Aunt Deirdre..." Diomedes cried, but she was quickly gone, and the mirror's image changed, to show Brand's son as an ordinary mirror would.

Diomedes whirled to look back toward the entrance to the hallway, but hesitated from taking a step in that direction. For, as he looked back the way he came, the hall seemed to run endlessly, as endlessly as it did in the direction he had been traveling.
There appeared to be no obvious way out. Diomedes turned back to the greenish copper mirror.

"Ad Astra per Aspera, eh?" Diomedes said, and turned to follow the corridor in the direction he had originally been traveling.

The next mirror was perfectly round and framed in silver. Metallic silver, or perhaps chrome, and its edges were smooth and rounded, like the glass had been wrighted and set inside a silver tube with no end. His uncle Gerard peered at him.

"Wake up boy! You're dreaming," the big man boomed at him from within the glass.

Diomedes blinked his eyes, paused, and hesitated before replying, "No Sir, I was on the way to the library."

"No you weren't," Gerard answered hastily. "You only thought about it, and then you fell asleep. Now you're dreaming while sleeping in an uncomfortable position. That's no way to get a good rest. You should really wake up."

Looking down at his hands, Diomedes splayed his fingers experimentally, and then reached up to touch his face. "I really don't think so Uncle. I feel wide awake."

Gerard rolled his eyes impatiently. "That's what dreams are like boy." The dark haired giant with his closely shaved moustache and beard sighed. "Better press on then, don't stop. The sooner you do, the sooner you'll be free of this." Then Gerard turned to walk off on his side of the mirror. Diomedes shrugged and started to make his own way down the hallway again; he glanced back only once. Gerard had almost disappeared in his mirror, but was caught glancing backward at his nephew. Exchanging a last look, both men continued on their way.

The next couple of mirrors only held reflections of himself, but the next after that had a fleeting image that made Diomedes turn. He only caught the briefest sight of a girl, maybe nine or ten, with large brown eyes. As Diomedes turned to get a better look at her in the mirror, she disappeared out of sight.

Diomedes stared at that oval mirror with a tarnished silver frame for a moment, shrugged, and then continued. The next mirror was of similar character, and held a light brown haired man clad in brown and black, who prominently wore a strange ring on his right hand. He regarded Diomedes carefully for a moment. Diomedes furrowed his eyebrows in turn, trying to place him, certain that he should know who he was, but he was unfamiliar all the same.

The man raised a finger to his lips. "Shhhh." Then he glanced to the left and then to the right. "Not this time, not yet," he said very softly. Then the man turned away, fading into nothingness as he did so, once again the mirror replacing the conversant image with a silent reflection of his own countenance.

"Perhaps." Diomedes said, to no one at all. "No one else wants to speak to me."

"And I'm no one?" a voice called. A few steps further down the hallway Diomedes came to large mirror, nearly full length, and framed in priceless jade with a sheer, nearly fully transparent sheet of fine silk serving as a drape over it. "Look at me," the woman's voice almost but not quite pleaded. Diomedes could see the shape of a woman with long hair silhouetted behind the gauzy fabric. Reaching up slowly he pulled the silk aside.

The young Rebman lady was beautiful as to hurt his eyes, and while not immodest by Rebman standards, her dress (or lack thereof) would have scandalized the nobles that haunted his Castle. She didn't care a bit.

"Why?" she asked cryptically, though there was something about the way she asked that seemed to imply that she expected him to understand. "Diomedes, just tell me why?"

"You promised me a dance," she added firmly, almost sternly. "You promised me a good many things. You could try." Then she wrapped her arms around herself and a look of almost infinite sadness showed in her eyes. Closed as her body language was, she never looked away from his eyes.

"Who are you?" Diomedes asked, bewildered, but she only stepped backwards in the mirror and vanished. The silk slipped back over the glass of its own accord.

"I asked the same question and you were every bit as evasive," came a cutting voice. Diomedes whirled around to find another mirror framed in crystal. He stared at his own reflection, but the face was oddly unrecognizable, himself but not. This Diomedes looks hard, cold, and shrewd. "You humiliated me. Cost me nearly everything, you and that bitch. But mark my words, Fiona's Kin, mark them well. I will have my revenge, and it will be fivefold anything you can imagine. You know the ironic thing, even as you expect it, you'll never see it coming in time to stop it." Then the mirror turned the color of milk and would speak to him no more.

He stared down the hallway for a few moments, and then continued walking. The next several mirrors were fruitless as augurs or communication devices, only showing a pair of other Diomedes, to either side, walking down the hallway, too.

Diomedes grew so used to the sight as he passed dozens of pairs of mirrors that he didn't even register that that one of the mirrors showed something different until his brisk stride carried him almost

It was a man with short dark hair, and a thin dark beard and mustache. He was dressed in red, with silver accents. Diomedes actually saw him a second time, in a second mirror, before he turned and stopped and faced the stern looking man who seemed to be standing in a study, a den, or a library room of some kind, all done in dark wood.

"I almost supposed you were going to continue to walk past me again." the man in red and silver said in an accent that Diomedes could not place. Yet, he seemed familiar. Briefly, Diomedes turned to look back down the hall the way he came, before looking back at the figure. This seemed to amuse him.

"I'm no longer in that mirror, of course." the man said patiently. "Not that it matters, son of a brother born long after my time."

"...born long after my time..." Diomedes said aloud, regarding the man warily. "You're one of my lost uncles, then?" Diomedes eyes widened slightly as he began to work it out, but before he could speak further, the man smiled thinly.

"Yes, I am Osric, and you are not at all whom that I expected. I was expecting someone else, Diomedes."

Diomedes raised his eyebrows at Osric's identification of him but the eyebrow raise was brief and was overwhelmed by other emotions and thoughts.

"At least." Diomedes responded, his hands slightly sweaty with nervousness. "I am not the only one who feels this way. I didn't intend to enter this..."

"Hall of Mirrors?" Osric said, cocking his head and regarding Diomedes. "No, you're being here is an accident, a quirk of fate. And so it should be taken advantage of, don't you agree, nephew?"

"Taken advantage of in what manner?" A chill ran down Diomedes spine, and he stepped back a half pace from the squarish mirror with the image of Osric.

Osric shook his head slightly. "You are right to be wary and distrustful, tis the coin and hallmark of our family. However, in this instance, I do not mean you harm. What I mean is that an unexpected person in a place of spirits and portents, sounds to me like the perfect opportunity to divine the future." From one of his pockets, Osric revealed a trump deck. He held the deck in his left hand, even as his right hand reached toward the surface of the mirror.

"Come, let us do a trump casting."

Diomedes hesitated, and dumbly stared at Osric's hand for a few moments. The man in silver and red seemed slightly amused by this.

"Are you unfamiliar with that art?" Osric asked. "Has it been lost to the scions of Amber in the time since my brothers and I walked its halls? I thought you a Knight of spirits and spells." He looked at Diomedes, as if looking at him for the first time. "Perhaps you're still a Page. Or perhaps you prefer blades to magic?"

Diomedes shook his head at Osric's speculations, and finally stepped forward to reclaim the distance he had gained by his previous retreat. Diomedes then stepped forward again and extended his left hand toward the glass. Diomedes tried not to be surprised when Osric's hand extended from the mirror and clasped his own. With the tingle of a sensation like stepping through a waterfall, Osric pulled Diomedes through the mirror and into the study.

"Good." Osric said, as he gave Diomedes a moment to get his bearings.

The first thing that Diomedes did as soon as he was through the glass was to turn around. He was gratified to find a mirror that was a copy of the one he had passed through, and the dizzying sight of a hallway full of mirrors imaged in the glass. For the briefest of moments, he thought he saw, in one of the mirrors in the Hallway, the image of his Aunt Deirdre, smiling and observing. The image flickered out of sight, no matter how hard Diomedes concentrated on the confusing sight.

"This is all still part of the Hall you know." the voice of the son of Cymnea came from behind him. Diomedes turned from the mirror reluctantly, to find Osric now seated at a desk, a glass carafe of some dark purple wine, and two glasses to his right on that desk.

The only other thing on the mahogany desk was a deck of over sized cards. Trumps.

Osric gestured first to the chair in front of the desk, and then to the carafe and took the cards up into his hands as Diomedes reached for the carafe, removing the stopper and taking in the aroma of the wine.

"Epiran?" Diomedes inquired as he poured the glasses full of the wine and taking one and his seat. Osric did not answer. He continued to calmly shuffle the cards, as if he had not heard Diomedes' words. He placed the deck back on the desk.

"Cut the cards three times." he instructed. "Hand them back to me, and tell me which side is the top."

Diomedes nodded and sipped at the wine briefly before setting it down.

Taking the cards into his hands, he cut the deck three times, keeping to about halfway through the deck each time. Finally he handed the deck back to Osric. "The top faces me."

Osric nodded silently and began dealing the cards. To Diomedes' limited exposure, it looked something like what was called in shadow a Celtic Cross, but subtly different. The cards themselves, however, were familiar, the same ones his branch of the family employed for such things, the tarot of the Amber deck itself.

"Covers" he said, and put down the upside down card. It depicted a couple, together, by some sort of shore, with three cups brimming over. Three of Cups

"Crosses", and Osric placed grandfather, Oberon, upright, his eyes looking at Diomedes.

"As the Emperor" Diomedes whispered aloud. Osric ignored him, and continued.

"Behind" and the reversed card placed a nude woman, and a bird, in the night. The Star.

"Ahead", and Osric placed, reversed, the intensely gazing face with the tools of the profession below. The Magician.

"Crowns" and Osric produced a reversed, somber figure trudging through a landscape. The Seven of Pentacles.

"Beneath". And the long haired man sitting in place had closed eyes for Diomedes. The Hermit.

"Yourself" Osric intoned, and placed a card on fire, a figure trapped within a cage of wands. But the card was upside down, the Ten of Wands.

"Family and Friends" Osric explained, and another upside down card, with two figures standing in a set of swords buried into the earth. The Eight of Swords

"Hopes and Fears" Osric said, and laid down the smiling woman pouring a libation. Temperance.

"And, finally, Outcome." Osric said, and laid down the last card, and Diomedes stared at the edifice suffering destruction. The Tower.

"Given the nature of time in this place, this path may take years to unfold. As I said, being here in the Hall has great significance." Osric said, as he leaned over the deck. "Have you interpreted the cards before?"

Diomedes thought back to lessons with Aunt Fiona and Uncle Bleys, and nodded. "Yes, although I do not claim to be an expert in these matters. Trumps and Tarots are not my specialty"

"I like not the beginning and its conclusion." Diomedes continued "It starts with a lack of happiness, and ends in ruin and destructive breakdown and ruin. Uncle. It almost sounds like Oberon is the only thing that stands between me...and terrible things. Dreams leading to disgrace."

Osric looked at the cards again. "I think you misread this fortune somewhat, Diomedes. You clearly need a little more seasoning when it comes to the interpretation of a spread. The Tower, for instance." Osric's forefinger rubbed along its edge as it lay on the table. "is a powerful card to be sure. On the other hand, there is a liberation involved in the cataclysm. Just as Death is not a card that means solely what it means in the most shallow sense, neither does the Tower. And your hopes, as symbolized by Temperance, may yet mitigate any real disaster."

Diomedes looked at the cards, skeptically. He shook his head slightly, and when he looked up, Osric smiled.

"Time will tell, as it always does. I wager you will remember this spread, and as things unfold, it will come back to mind. I was hoping to offer a Tarot reading to the person who was supposed to come through tonight, but I don't think that you are a bad alternate choice."

"Deir..." Diomedes stopped and started again. "Another of your siblings said something about that. Who was supposed to come here, Uncle Osric?" Diomedes asked. "And how do you know anything about me, when not even my father was alive when you were in the Castle?"

"Now, Diomedes." Osric said, rising from his seated position. "An answer to either question would be telling. Its time for you to depart."

Diomedes rose from his seat, but he felt a reluctance to move further. He studied Osric, and took a step backward toward the mirror. "Nothing more to be gleaned tonight?" Diomedes said, as if hoping that Osric might reveal something more.

"Nothing." Osric came around the desk and put a firm grip on Diomedes' shoulder. With a strength that Diomedes associated with Eric, or Deirdre, Osric turned and urged him through the mirror. Diomedes stumbled as he reached the surface of the glass, and didn't remember anything more.

Diomedes eyes opened. His head was resting on the open pages of a book. He was slumped over his desk in his room, the yellow light of his room creating a deep, defined shadow against the book. Diomedes blinked as he moved to a upright, seated position.

Was it all a dream? Did he imagine the strange visit to the Hall of Mirrors? Diomedes yawned, and rose from the desk to stretch away the discomfort to his muscles caused by sleeping in such an awkward position.

Diomedes looked down at the book. It was unfamiliar, and definitely not a book that he had in his quarters before he fell asleep. On the left page that the book was open to was dominated by a depiction of the Tower of Babel, in the process of being destroyed in a cataclysm of some sort. On the right, the text swam to his still sleepy eyes, but the first words jumped out at him.

"The Tower is a symbol in the standard Tarot deck..."

~The End~

"Yes, Emperor"

"Yes, Emperor"

Comedy, Series Premiere.

Hapless minor Chaosian Lord Merlin Sawall (Ben Affleck) finds himself unexpectedly propelled to the top of the hierarchy of the Courts of Chaos and made the new Emperor of the Pole of Reality. Waiting for him there to tell him how to do his job is Lord Humphrey of House Appleby, Permanent Lord of Administrative Affairs in Thelbane, the Palace of the Emperor.

Also making Merlin's life crazy are Sir Bernard of House Woolley (Derek Fowlds), his new Private Secretary obsessed with the minutae of proper Thari, and Merlin's brother Jurt (also played by Ben Affleck), who is convinced he could do the job better.

Future episodes will have guest appearances by Merlin's mother Dara (Tilda Swinton) and Merlin's other. scheming brother Mandor (Jeremy Irons).

IMC: The Re-drawing of the Pattern

One of the themes that I've used in some of my one-shots, and only now becoming apparent in SB in the instance of the Moonriders is the consequences of Oberon re-drawing the Pattern at the end of the first five novels.

If Pattern provides as much direction and form to shadows that are already in existence as creating them, then what exactly happened from the time that the Primal Pattern was damaged, until Oberon's repair of the Pattern?

Certainly the Black Road was a consequence of weakening the Pattern, allowing such a strong instance of Chaos to penetrate where it had difficulty otherwise. But it is Oberon's re-drawing of the Pattern that is the real kicker, and what I've made good use of.

Why should the post-redrawn Amber side of the universe be precisely the same as it was pre-damaged Pattern?

--Dworkin drew the Original Pattern, Oberon redrew and repaired it. Its certain that the Pattern would be at least subtly different, in the Post-Patternfall world.

--Oberon died during the process. We're not told where on the Pattern he died
---Did Oberon really finish the process? Perhaps Dworkin finished his son's work, Oberon's repair of the Pattern was enough to provide enough sanity for Dworkin to finish the job. Or, Oberon did finish it, but since the effort killed him, his repair was not as careful as it might have been. Things can be missed.

Think of it this way, changing metaphors. When I got a new computer, after the failure of my hard drive, I lost a good many things that I could not find again on the Internet--fonts, programs, and so forth. In some cases I have gotten substitutes, in some cases I have lost them forever.

And its certain that I've forgotten things. Every so often I will remember a particular program, or document, and only then remember that it was on the old HD and not replaced, gone and forgotten.

So, too, for the Amber side of the Universe. Prisons, major changes to the universe post-Pattern creation, and the like can wind up being lost, or imperfectly placed back.

I've done it in a number of games, Ghosts of the Past, for example. A couple of the Regency games have touched on this theme as well.

And, although it may not be clear just yet, and I don't want to speak more about it for fear of spoilers, I've done it in SB as well. Things re-drawn and remade are not the same as the originals, the Pattern and its influence included, and the differences can lead to all sorts of complications.

Interaction Matrix in the ADRPG

The 20' By 20' Room: All Road's Lead to Amber . . .

Jim Henley talks about the ADRPG, and this portion struck me:

I find myself thinking that, actually, an Amber campaign could profit from adding a step between character creation and the first session of the campaign: a Dogs-style "What they want from the Youngers" list. But not "the Youngers" as a whole: a matrix listing what each elder wants from each PC. It could be anything from "Flora wants Brigit to be more ladylike" to "Bleys wants Alexander to help him conquer Amber" to "Corwin wants to keep Gustav from finding Yg."

Here's the mechanical effect I think the exercise assumes and promotes: The PCs have to have enough power relative to the Elders to be worth wanting something from.

That is a bugbear that many Amber games and campaigns have trouble with, in my experience. How do you balance the power of the Elders, as implied in the rulebook, versus the player characters.

I have had trouble with this as a player. A PBEM in which I am in has a much more balanced level between the youngers and the Elders than I am used to, to the point where I consistently undervalue my PCs strength and worth to the Elders. On the other hand, the GMs have made it clear that the Elders take the PC's abilities very seriously indeed.

As a GM, my main use of the Elders has been a relatively light touch, so that the PCs have *room* to do what they want without the PCs running to Mommy, Daddy, Uncle or Aunt every time and expect things to be solved. In my "Tales of the Regency" Convention serial game, since the game is set during Gerard's Regency,Gerard is the only elder, and thus the PCs *have* to rely on themselves, and Gerard *has* to treat the PCs with respect.

I don't like the Model of Elders completely outclassing the PCs in everything, and avoiding this model is key to trying to implement Henley's idea. You get some insanities in poorly run games like a martially focused Deirdre, not being known for Sorcery, still is a better sorceress than Fiona's daughter and protege, because she is an Elder. PCs should, in their sphere of competency (assuming they've spent the points), be strong enough that the Elders will respect them. Do that, and then the Interaction Matrix sounds like a fine idea. You wouldn't want to do it for a one-shot slot game, but a new campaign, absolutely.

Arref on Clarissa

in the Shadow of Greatness: Mysteries of Amber :: Clarissa

Arref once again shows I am only a pale shadow of him, and my ideas are poor beer compared to the rich wine of his own, as he begins a two part exploration of the history of Clarissa in his world.

Go, read, enjoy.

Game IRE #26: Gone Fishing

It's been too long since I've had time to think of an IRE that isn't depressingly tied to natural disasters, political disasters or other such unhappy topics. Fortunately, living in the Great White North has given me something to work with.

Last weekend in Minnesota was the Fishing season opener. It's a very big deal in the state with over 10,000 lakes, a large economic boost to the lake dominated northland part of the state. Gas stations, among many other places, sell fishing licenses. The site of where the Governor of the state goes fishing on fishing opener weekend is news here, even in the urban Twin Cities. (And no Governor would dare not go fishing this first weekend). Going "up to the lake" is a tradition among Minnesotans during this first weekend of the fishing season, which runs until the winter.

So, let's go fishing for this Game IRE

Of the various aspects of the Fishing Opener, the idea that the Governor of the state's fishing plans are news amuses me the most and seems the most game worthy.

Let's take Burning Wheel, since I play that with the IndieGamers group. Set a group of characters to accompany a high noble (doesn't have to be a king) to accompany him to relax on his summer estate by the lake.

Naturally, with the high noble there, his vassals are going to show up, seeking succor, alliances, intrigue and more. I can see plenty of opportunities for duels of wits, and depending on the tone of the game, actual duels, romances, and more. And perhaps there is something lurking in the lake, something that strikes when the noble actually deigns to go fishing himself (perhaps a tradition or ritual in this world). The characters may have the opportunity to save the noble's life, or not...

IMC: Gming

See Page XX - an RPG column by Robin D Laws

Robin Laws, RPG author and theorist, has a new column on Pelgrane Press (authors of the Dying Earth RPG), this time on the perils of Gming.

The hobby needs a continual stream of folks willing to take on the time-consuming and sometimes thankless task of running games. The fear is always that an overly candid discussion of the various pitfalls of the RPG experience could send would-be GMs running to the comparative shelter of their Xboxes...

A couple of things jump out at me, especially this one:

Most players stuck in a rut of circular discussion are desperate for a way out. A few words from you can carefully guide the discussion back out of the ditch. The key here is not to make decisions or suggestions for the group, but to underline and organize the good suggestions they've already made. Be content neutral, but help to shape the discussion productively.

This is why I usually use NPCs in multi-player groups against some foe. If the PCs are stuck, or can't agree, or can't move forward, the NPC can be the voice of reason to help guide the players toward *a* resolution rather than swimming in circles. In SB right now, for example, I have an NPC I slotted into a bunch of PCs for that very purpose, but he has not been needed, since in this case the PCs have been working very well together.

And of course, as a capstone, there is this:

When it comes right down to it, though, I guess I'd sooner regard myself as an accepting person than the GM of a brilliant game.

Amber Characters patterning

in the Shadow of Greatness: What kind of Amber PCs do you play?

So what kind of characters do I play? Maybe you can spot the theme...

Arref asks, as hooked from the Masters' Council:

Cadmus, my PC in Deb Allen's A Common Disaster. Doesn't know his parentage, aware that he's a pawn of forces beyond his control. Young, enthusiastic, explorative, highly respectful of others and their boundaries. Helpful. Very much a heart character.

Marcus, my PC in Bridgette's Age of Retribution. He's the oldest of my PCs in several senses, including age within the game. He represents competence, seeing his abilities as a toolkit.

Diomedes, in Jim and Karen's Chain of Assumptions is my Brand kid. For all that he's a redhead, he has a personal sense of honor, and definitely doesn't like those who exploit others. My sense of protectionist is definitely in him. And like the other two, he has sorcerous abilities as well, and confident in their use.

Harold Decuma Maun, in Galactic Renaissance, is one of two candidates to the Dukedom of a planet. A ladies man, but one with strong empathy, so much that his hurting of people through his actions rebounds on him ten fold. (Yet another trait in common with me...)

Merivel Belmore is a doctor in the Game of Thrones world of Winter Chills. A Maester (big surprise there, eh) with medicinal skills and a pained past regarding his father.

There are some minors/less frequently seen PCs, many of them NPCs in various games.

Tynan MacCarter, a technophilic trump artist willing to use his technology to assist...and to harvest information from his cousins as needed.

Delwin of Syene, the Lord of Night, the partner to his sister Sand, sexy, powerful, dangerous.

Laertes of Rebma, a descendant of Lir, and therefore able to walk the Pattern in Thy Kingdom Come. And once he did that, inadvertently, it was only the beginning of his troubles. Trump Artist.

Hadrian of DuMarque, a Trump Artist with a Wyvernet companion. Dreamy, artistic, friendly, explorative.

Archard of the Empire of the Gleaming Banner. A Dreamer, too, and a loyal son of the Empire.

Scipio, son of Flora. Flirtatious, political, and charming, a womanizer and social animal of the first rank.

Lucien, a gambling son of Random, and a Trump Artist. A freewheeler in the mold of his dad.

Tannim, a dragon-descended Chaosian who travelled from the Courts to Amber and back again in search of the consequences of his heritage.

Aram, an Astromancer son of Eric who considered himself old enough and confident enough to both argue a point with Random over leading an expedition, as well as letting a more aggressive PC take point when needed.

Fifty Two Pick Up

Fifty-Two Pick Up!

An idea I wish that *I* had thought of, Jim Groves has started a LJ devoted to a organized effort at reading his way through the marvelous world of House of Cards.

Since my reading of the HOC stuff has been sometimes scattershot, I intend to follow along in this manner, too. And the comments have mainly been from the horse's mouth, the HOC players, themselves. Check it out.

Book Reviews 2006 (13-15)

One big fat book amongst this trio has slowed me down, but I have an interesting and diverse trilogy of books this time.

Deadhouse Gates, by Steven Erikson (His second Malazan novel)

Spin, by Robert Charles Wilson

and

Lords and Ladies, Terry Pratchett

Deadhouse Gates : Book Two of The Malazan Book of the Fallen (Malazan Book of the Fallen)by Steven Erikson

The second in the Malazan novels that are slowly making their way from England to America, Deadhouse Gates continues in the tradition of the first novel in presenting a rich fantasy world where even the putative protagonists are clothed in shades of grey. Strange magics, alien elder races, and dark shaded fantasy very much in the vein of Glen Cook. The Malazan novels are very much as if someone took the Black Company novels and supersized them with lots of worldbuilding goodness. Like its predecessor Gardens of the Moon, Deadhouse Gates is not always an easy read. If anything, with the story of the Malazans and their refugees retreating from the forces of a religious fanatic (on a different continent than the first novel) is grimmer. Characters die. Disasters occur.

Still, since this IS my cup of tea, I enjoyed it. It may not be yours, and I recommend, for anyone interested, to try Gardens of the Moon : Book One of The Malazan Book of the Fallen (Malazan Book of the Fallen) first.

Recommended with Reservations.

---
Spin by Robert Charles Wilson

Patrick Nielsen Hayden pimped this book hard, hard enough for me to pick it up. And its been nominated for a Hugo.

And now I know why. Wilson has been moving up in my estimation for some time, from Mysterium, through Darwinia, to the wonderful Chronoliths. I somehow missed Blind Lake, but I suspect that, connecting the curve, that Spin is still better than that novel (it, too was nominated for a Hugo, however).

The plot is simple. One day, some force puts up a shield that blacks out the moon and the stars. It quickly becomes clear it is not a shield, but a bubble, and that the subjective time of those on Earth is slower than the outside universe. In other words, in 40 years, Earth Time, the sun and solar system (and the rest of the universe) will have aged 4 billion years, and the swollen red giant Sun will engulf the Earth...

Like other RCW novels, the character interplay is first and foremost, more so than the science itself. Oh, we see some really cool things, and the idea of the Spin itself is a Neat Idea, but Wilson focuses heavily on Tyler, Jayson, and Diane and makes their struggles in this world come alive.

If you've read and enjoyed previous RCW novels, don't hesitate in picking up this one. If you haven't, this is, IMO, better than any of his previous ones, so starting here is a good choice, if you like your SF with a heavy dose of character development as well as cool geeky stuff.

Highly Recommended.

---
Lords and Ladies (Discworld, Book 14) by Terry Pratchett

Finally comes the 14th Discworld novel, which means I'm still way behind on my "Read Discworld Project." Lords and Ladies returns us to Lancre and the trio of witches, Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg,and Magrat Garlick. In this one, an invasion from Faerie, the wedding of Magrat to the King, and a visit by the Archchancellor make for yet another Discworld stew.

I think the book picks up steam and momentum as it goes along, being a little too short on plot at the beginning (with a heavy hand on the humor). Once things get going and Pratchett hits his stride, he hits it well. So while its not my favorite of the Discworld novels, its a pretty good one. This one, unlike any of the others I've read, specifically warns the reader that this is not the best novel to start with in Discworld, since it not only follows characters best seen first in previous novels, it falls right on the heels of Wyrd Sisters.

For the Discworld fan who is, like me, working their way through the canon, this one is Recommended.

Acus 2006, Pictures and More

Mainly intended for those who are not readers of my livejournal, a look into my time at ACUS 2006.

A few pictures are available here on my space on Flickr.

As far as me and the games I have run...

Jim picked me up at the airport in the early afternoon. As he alluded to in his own blog, the original plane I was to take to Detroit had gotten struck by lightning, and so a new plane was necessary to fly to Detroit. This delay was partially responsible for the near-miss that Jim alluded to.

After some meetings of peoples, in and around the hotel and the con suite (including making a deal for GURPS Ice Age and picking up the last Amberzine), Jim and I had dinner with Deb,BriAnne and Josh. As always, Deb cooks well, and Jim and I were well fed by her risotto.

Abdullah and Le Cygne

My first slot was my weakest as a player. While I had a great time as a player in Weirmonken, I had disadvantages that I as a player was unable to overcome to let my character have the same result. I don't blame anyone, particularly, I merely didn't assert myself well. With loud and boisterous players on the left, and strong and active players on the right, and with a PC who was shorn of the brains of his brother, Abdullah was sort of lost in the shuffle. This became more acute when the scenario never got to the level of sanguinary action that is Abdullah's one and only bright spot.

Oh well. It was funny to see HOC's Chance/Martin and watch Chime jump ship for the better deal, and see other players shine.

Cadmus and A Common Disaster

Next up was my Cadmus, sorcerer, and potentially perpetual loser to Kenric's sparring.

The foci of the game revolved around, primarily, the effort to support Anna's quest to get Taggart, and the Martin/Gareth attempts to retrieve Brendon, with lesser notes of Kenric's revelation of her heritage (complete with Patternwalk) and Roarke's adventures in the land of the Pyre.

It was a long time in coming for Anna to get into the position to finish her tormentor and I am mostly proud of Cadmus' role in all this. I think I probably should have stepped back a little more at the end rather than participating, so as not to dilute Anna's triumph.

Still, I think a good time was had by all, and the group ACD shot is the only picture of me that I have at the entire con.

Basil and And so It begins Again

I had pretty low expectations going into the game. Mike Kucharski had, for reasons I could not possibly fathom at the time, asked me to come back. I didn't think that I had distinguished myself the last time, and had lost all the material I had done with Basil at ACUS 2005.

Still, I wanted a chance to play with Bridgette, since I knew that I was skipping Texorami. So, with regret, I skipped Equalizer (and a chance to play alongside Deb in order to play.

I had a great time. While a lot of the plot and focus was on Bridgette's Odette having a debutante ball in Chaos, my character got some good stuff, even in the midst of a lot of other things going on for everyone else. Basil wound up getting transported to Tir, walking its Pattern and getting to Chaos, convinced that Odette was in danger...

...and being right, but unable to do anything about it. Instead, the older, more established PCs took the forefront of protecting Odette. By turns, Michael had managed to get most of the PCs in Chaos by one way or another, not just mine. My trip was just the most mysterious. So, for next year, Basil has plans to study under Dworkin and get some useful skillz, and maybe probe at the mystery of who put Basil in Tir, since Dworkin, the likely culprit in Basil's eyes, denied knowledge of it.

Aram and The Shadow Solstice

My last PC was the Astromancer that, if I had played in Equalizer II, would have shown up the slot before. Instead, Aram led (loosely) Karen K, Bridgette(yes, I didn't realize we had both gotten in) and Glen Seymour in an adventure to stop the death of suns across the golden circle. Bridgette is a dynamic and aggressive enough player that Aram didn't try to put too much of a rein on her or her character and was content to just point Catherina and let her ride and lead as necessary. We were down a player, but creative use of powers and abilities made up for the lack of punch, especially given the dangerous nature of the ultimate powers behind the problem.

And now my own games...

TOTR: The Road to Fair Elphame

My first game of the con was the least stressful for me as a GM and possibly the most fun for me as a GM. Yet another in the Tales of the Regency Series, with a couple of returning characters, I set the characters into Arden to find the missing Warden pro tem, Carl. With elfshot, chessboard pieces, characters who followed the rules and characters who played by *their* rules, the Mayhem in my three games got off to a start here.

Poor Quince is now in Faerie for a hundred years subjective time (366 days Amber time), and Carl has to stay out of Arden for that period, too. If I run any more TOTR games, I will have to take these rather unexpected consequences into account.

Where Unicorns Dare

My failure at the cave, err, the con. While the players professed to having fun, basing a game so heavily on the movie meant that when you had several players intimately familiar with the movie and its conventions, the plot was gotten through in record time. In a near-first, I not only didn't have too much plot, I plain ran out of plot. In retrospect, I can think of a couple of things I could have done, but I didn't think on my feet fast enough to implement them.

My bad.

Strange Bedfellows: Ethereal Dreams

I was anxious, nervous, excited, and a lot of other bundled emotions about doing a con offshoot of Strange Bedfellows. I should have designed the game entry a little better and described things so that more of the actual SB players could have attended without difficulty. And then there was the player who bailed with her character...

Aside from that, there were some very SB moments in this game. Cyllene on a space ship. Carl scaring the living daylights out of poor Valerian. Basilisks, Mind FlayersYithonghu, Dream Repair, and even a Pattern Sword. Who could ask for more? Well, I could of course, but my penchant for perfectionism is well known.

Will I run Strange Bedfellows:The Ruins of Intrigue next year? We shall see.

HOC Gathering and other Social

Aside from taking too many pictures at the HOC Gathering, I had a lot of fun listening and chatting, when I did of course. I consciously avoided trying to take too much of the spotlight, remaining relatively quiet even when the conversation turned to SB and ACD. I can be too much of a blabbermouth as it is to overdo it with my friends. It provided a relaxing way to end the con and a chance to say goodbye to most of my friends.

House of Cards

in the Shadow of Greatness: House of Cards, sign of the times

Arref encapuslates why its very fun for him to play in House of Cards. Its only a shadow of it, but its fun to lurk as well and I am very glad that I do.