Gaming on the Cheap

I tend to be on the lookout for bargains and deals when it comes to games and gaming accessories.  I hit the usual discount racks or used game areas of my local gaming stores every time I pay them a visit.  I am fortunate that Tulsa has a really awesome used book store - Gardner's - that has gaming items also.  They used to have much more but some of the employees became hip to ebay and many of the items are put up on their site.  I have found other sources to buy low cost gaming items.

Dollar General and Dollar Tree

If you have gamer friends on social media then I am sure you have seen these two items pictured above in the last six moths.  I found the Skeleton Army at Dollar General.  I believe they are supposed to go on cupcakes or used as some sort of Halloween decoration.  They are a little bit bigger than the Reaper Bones I use but does it really matter? I bought the dice at Dollar Tree for one dollar a pack.  I had intended to go back and buy some more but they were wiped out by the time I returned.  I have been on the lookout ever since but I have not had any luck so far.  

Hobby Lobby

I found these sets of brushes at Hobby Lobby for $5.99 to $6.99 each.  As you can see, there are at least six brushes in each set.  If you buy these brushes at Hobby Lobby you are paying more than a dollar less than what you would be paying for just one brush from the "official sources".  I am still very much learning the art of painting and I think it makes no sense to use top of the line equipment to practice.  I have had no issues using the cheaper brushes.  You just have to clean and care for the brushes; that is true regardless of cost.  Honestly, I have had good results with even cheaper brush sets from Wal-Mart.  In a nutshell, shop smart.

Inserts

Now for the best deal on this list because it is free because I am just re-purposing these inserts or packing material or whatever they are called.  These are the extra things packed in with coffee makers or other small appliances.  I have kept a stack of these things from the last six or more items I have bought.  You could always ask friends or family for theirs if you needed many more.  I am going to paint the one above on the right a silver color and add yellow lights and maybe some sort of turrets on the top.  It will be an outpost, research lab, or some other structure for Warhammer 40K or the big box Ogre set.

What are you ideas and suggestions?

Doctor Wolfula

If you enjoy stuff like Joe Bob Briggs, Svenghoulie, or those old weekly Saturday night monster shows from the 80s then Doctor Wolfula should be right up your alley.  This is a link to his most recent video; a review of Terror Train.  He is my go to horror youtube channel.  

Upcoming Projects

I always seem to have several creative projects ongoing at one time.  I admit that I am not very focused in that aspect of my life.  I just can not focus solely on one creative endeavor or I will burnout and put it down and there is no telling when I will pick it back up at that point.  Listed below are some things I am currently working on and will post about in the near future.

DRAGONRAID

I remember seeing the ads for DRAGONRAID in issues of Dragon Magazine from the 1980s.  I always wanted a copy but I never did see it in any of the stores so I never got around to adding it to my collection.  All these many years later and I discovered that the company printing the game is still around and I decided to order a copy of the boxed set to satisfy my curiosity.  I am pretty impressed just with the contents stuffed inside this box.  I will be going through the contents and offering up my thoughts and observations; not necessarily a review.  I suspect it will take 3 - 5 posts to do that and maybe it will lead to more posts in the future.  

MINIATURES

I am continuing to paint more miniatures for use in games.  Most of them have been from the Reaper Bones line but I will not hesitate to pick up whatever works for my games.  The picture above shows a row of possible player character minis (top row) and some encounters (Kobolds, Mind Flayer, Minotaur, and a Mimic to name some) that will most likely see use in the games.  I am sticking to what seems like the mostly used encounters right now so I will get maximum use from my efforts.  I plan on adding more exotic types of miniatures when needed. 

CAMPAIGN WORLD

I am scaling things back.  No, not the possibilities and opportunities but the information.  I used to crave all the encyclopedic facts that some campaign worlds offer but that does not fit my current mood.  I am taking the "less is more" approach as the map above can show.  The bigger world is still out there and all sorts of possibilities await the characters but all of it is starting small and local.  The actual discovery of the larger world needs to take place instead of having all of that information logged at the start.  Gaming like that is cool but I am at a point where I would rather just play instead of trying to figure out all sorts of minutia beforehand. Simply put, bang for the buck. 

OTHER

The above list is by no means comprehensive. I have a notepad handy for jotting down ideas and expanding on stuff I have already in progress.  There will certainly be posts about GURPS Dungeon Fantasy RPG, The Fantasy Trip, D&D 5E, house rules, my own games, and all sorts of related items.  Stay tuned...

Ghost Pirate Entertainment - PG PSYCHO GOREMAN (Spoiler free Movie Reaction/Review).

I recently subscribed to Ghost Pirate Entertainment on youtube.  I thought others might enjoy his videos so I am sharing a link to his most recent review, Psycho Goreman.

Reverse Flash: Origins Episode 1

One of my favorite things to do on YouTube is watching fan films. While there are the fair share of cheesy fan films out there, some of them truly shine.  I believe that some of these franchises are even being handled better by the fans rather than the rights-holders.  Friday the 13th and Star Trek Continues are two great examples of properties the fans have handled really well.  

Another property that has been handled extremely well by the fans is Reverse Flash.  I will admit that I am not an expert on the character.  I have read some comic book issues with the character years ago and I have yet to see a single episode of the CW version of The Flash.  With that being said, I am a big fan of the Reverse Flash: Origins fan series on YouTube.  It does not come off as goofy or amateurish to me.  I have watched the entire series three times and I am looking forward to more episodes.  

Do you watch fan films? Do you have any favorites or recommendations?

Miniatures I Have Painted

I have only been painting miniatures for a few months.  I never bothered with it back in the day because I believed I would not be able to paint "good".  Fast forward years later and I have a teenage son who has become interested in Warhammer: Age of Sigmar and Warhammer 40,000.  I agreed to buy a small Games Workshop novice set for Warhammer: Age of Sigmar to serve as a test run. If we were satisfied with the results and game play then we would continue.  The Stormcast Eternals pictured below are the first seven miniatures I painted.  

I was pleasantly surprised that I was satisfied with the results.  I realize the paint job is not something that is going to get me commission work or anything like that but that was not my goal.  I simply wanted the figures to be a reasonable representation of the character without looking like a sloppy mess.  I think I achieved that and I found painting to be extremely relaxing. I picked up some Reaper Bones miniatures to paint for a future roleplaying campaign. I began with typical minis like orcs, goblins, kobolds, and player character classes.  Here are two examples below.

 3 Orc Spearmen

 Player Character (Human Fighter or Paladin)

I stress again that my miniatures are for in-game use only and not for competitive painting at all. I am just displaying them here because I was surprised at how satisfied I was with the results. I have discovered that I enjoy painting them and I can see where I have shown improvement even so I will continue. I am still experimenting with paint.  I have used Citaldel, Reaper, The Army Painter, and Vallejo; I have not decided on a favorite. 

Do you use or paint miniatures? What are some of your favorites?

Wow! It's Been a While....

I finally got a new HP laptop and some really great internet service so I thought I would check out the old blog to see where I need to pick things back up at again.  Yikes!  I had not realized it had been 3 4 years (new year) since I last posted!!!  I really need to get back to blogging again.  I have a goal of easing my way back into the old routine so I will try to post once a week from this point on but that may increase.  Who knows?  So, in an attempt to catch up on some things here are some items that may be of interest.

Latest Gaming Purchases

Over the last few years I have purchased gaming products.  I have the three core D&D 5E books and Tasha's Cauldon of Everything.  I am enjoying these books and will try to get a game together some time soon.  I also have the Pathfinder 2E Core, Bestiary, and Lost Omens manuals.  I really dig the Pathfinder stuff also and I am looking forward to seeing how things develop with each.  I also picked up the Aliens RPG Core, Ogre, and the Dungeon Fantasy boxed set.  The last kickstarter project I backed was The Fantasy Trip Legacy Edition by Steve Jackson Games.

New Gaming Interests

My son has gotten really interested in Warhammer: Age of Sigmar and Warhammer 40k that basically means I just got interested in both of them to at least a minimal level. I discovered that I can actually paint to a level that I am satisfied with so I have also begun painting Reaper miniatures to gather a collection of standard encounters; orcs, goblins, minotaurs, mind flayers, mimic, etc.  I may not be the best painter in the world but I am painting for in-game use and representation instead of painting competitions so it all works out in the end.

Other Stuff

I own the first two seasons of TITANS and I am really looking forward to the third season.  I have watched the entire Swamp Thing series twice and it is a shame it did not continue.  I have the first season of Doom Patrol on DVD but I just have not gotten around to watching it yet.

I have Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ so I have seen several other movies and shows.  I got caught up on The Walking Dead.  I am still enjoying the show; even without Carol or Rick.  I am watching all of The Orville at the moment and it is much better than I pictured.  I binged the entirety of The Mandalorian.  That show is amazing and much better than the sequel trilogy. 

On a personal note, I am in the process of house hunting at the current moment.  I am at a point in my life where I need to crap or get off the pot so I am seriously looking.  Fingers crossed on a quick and easy process.

The Future

Expect more posts to come.  I am going to try to maintain once a week for the immediate future. I suspect most of the posts will be about gaming and fandom in general but who knows... 

What's In The Drawer or On The Desktop?

It has been some time since my last post but I was just overloaded with work commitments and other things. Things seem to have slowed down and I took an extended break due to burnout. I was brainstorming about posts and one of them generated a quick and steady flow of ideas. I am sure that other bloggers have done this before but here is a list of items found on a desk top or in a desk drawer during an adventure.


1. Small stack of blank parchment.
2. Quill and a bottle of ink.
3. Unmarked key.
4. Loose coins.
5. Map.
6. Crumpled piece of parchment.
7. Page ripped from a book.
8. Sealing wax and a stamp.
9. Letter opener.
10. Reading glasses.
11. Magnifying glass.
12. Candle.


I'm quite certain that's just the tip of the iceberg. What would you add to the list?

Mucker's Guide

We are pleased to announce the launch of the SteamCraft Mucker’s Guide (Player’s Guide). https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/666449184/steamcraft-rpg-players-guide

Funding ends May 24th 11:59 PDT.




About the Mucker’s Guide

Faster character creation rules
New edges/Flaws
New items and equipment
New steampunk gadgets
New spells
Introduce the societies mechanic to aid in character creation and development. PCs will have the option to join overt or secret societies at the beginning of the game. These societies will grant benefits to PCs but the societies will also require service from the characters. Societies is optional, but the goal of the mechanic is to help players understand how their characters fit into the world and give players and gamemasters ways to focus and structure play. Societies will provide agendas and personal goals for the characters that help develop your character’s story and the overall metaplot of your campaigns that goes beyond your character being a Mucker.

and much much more!

About SteamCraft

In the spirit of Gibson and Sterling's The Difference Engine, SteamCraft takes you to an alternate, dystopian world where gears, goggles, and airships dominate life. The Industrial Age is joined by an early Information Age, combining into a gritty world where corporations use technological advances to amass hordes of wealth and power at the expense of the working class.  Meanwhile, technomages' ability to create by mixing magic with machine lurches ahead of their wisdom to control their creations and where scientific exploration is best done in coal powered airships venturing beyond the charted world maps.

Just as Shadowrun mixes cyberpunk and fantasy, SteamCraft mixes steampunk and fantasy. The scientific wonders of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells mix with fantasy elements like dwarves and elves.  The result is a world filled with ancient horrors as well as man-made beasts such as Clockwork Beholders.

SteamCraft uses a d100/percentile system that is simple and intuitive to understand and easily modifiable to fit your game’s needs.

Characters are skill-based enabling players to create and customize their team roles and individualize their characters as they prefer.

About the Writers

Monica Valentinelli is a writer, editor, and game developer. Her portfolio includes stories, games, comics, essays, and pop culture books. She is the Line Developer for the Firefly RPG. Additional gaming credits include Vampire: the Masquerade, Hunter: the Vigil, Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn, and Robert E. Howard’s Conan.

Philip A Lee is a writer, editor, and game developer. In addition to his previous work on SteamCraft, he is most known in gaming circles for his work on BattleTech and Shadowrun.

Chad Bowser is a game designer living in Kernersville, NC. He has done work for various gaming companies. His credits include co-writer and designer of Cthulhu Invictus and writer for Victoriana.

You can learn more and back us at: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/666449184/steamcraft-rpg-players-guide

[mobile post] Current Events

This is just a quick post to recap what has been going on around here. Most of this stuff is relevant to gaming or this blog directly; some of it is related in a secondary manner.






Computer
Simply put, I need a new computer because the desktop I currently own is passing 15 years of use. It has served me well but it definitely not up to snuff anymore. That is why so many of my recent posts have "mobile post" as part of the title. I am not quite sure what I am going to get but I am not worried about playing video games or anything like that; I need something for reading (forums and general web surfing) and writing (blogs, hobby stuff, and other personal writing). I am considering some sort of chromebook for those purposes. Does anybody reading this know enough to give an informed opinion? Can I work on documents offline? Can I install Open Office or Libre Office?






Fanzine
I am a big fan of the games put out by Perilous Journeys Publishing so I want to help spread the word and support Perilous Journeys (fantasy), SteamCraft (steampunk), and new games they release in the future. I figured the best way to do that would be through a fan periodical. I am finishing up on the first issue and it will be released soon.







Reading
I have been on a Brandon Sanderson kick lately. I have read the first two Mistborn novels and I am currently reading Words of Radiance with the last Mistborn novel of the original trilogy and Elantris up next. I borrowed the Numenera rulebook and it is pretty cool; reminds me of running across Talislanta for the first time. I have also begun to really take an interest in the FUDGE rules.




Writing
I am still working on projects in the background. The main ones are currently a game "highly inspired by Adventures in Fantasy", an alternate bio-tech disaster setting book for a zombie apocalypse game, and updating my Toldara campaign world for one or more games.


The holidays are over and I am back to work tomorrow night. More later..