A bit of a 'where I'm at' update today - a good opportunity for me to take stock as a number of things draw to a head.
My house is being auctioned tomorrow. Think expensive thoughts for me! My family and I need to go somewhere bigger and closer to my parents, who mind the kids frequently. The house-sale journey has been a stressful one, and still isn't done with, as we need to find a good place for ourselves still. There are a few options, but nothing has yet leapt out and yelled 'buy me!' at us. I'll keep looking, I'm confident that something will come along. Exciting times. Of course, I was laying awake at 1am last night thinking of all the good times I've had in my house over the last 7 years and how much I love the place. It's amazing how regrets can tack themselves to even the most wonderful events in our lives. Still, life marches on and I look forward to finding a new house and making some wonderful new memories.
Lately, I've been putting a lot of effort into my local Legend of the Five Rings community and I'm starting to see some return; I ran an 11 player tournament last week (with 3 regulars absent) and a 6 person demo of the RPG. It's satisfying to see and I quite enjoy organising (and coordinating with the other community organisers around Australia), but I really want to get the push that takes me over 15 and towards 20 in the community. I can only keep working away. Huge props to Good Games Burwood for their continued support of us and the game.
I recently completed a small personal quest; obtaining and playing The Great Fire of London 1666, which was wonderful fun and comes highly recommended. My gaming group has been a little depleted lately, as one member makes his way in the world and finds free fridays increasingly scarce and another has been plagued by sickness. With any luck, tonight will see us settle in to play a few fun things - I'd like to try out Reef Encounter, or maybe Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game - Fame and Fortune, but would be equally happy with just tossing some Tribbles Customizable Card Game or Nightfall cards and drinking a little wine. I need to destress.
The school term is coming to an end and I'm feeling ready for the holidays. Avery and I have a Lego set or two to complete and I've gotten him into painting the many miniatures laying about the house, which he greatly enjoys (and I have a rainbow-coloured Lizardman as a consequence), so we should be able to work around his computer/TV addiction. Should be fun.
Coming up on the 'Geek for me, an April Fools' jape, a Star Trek PbF,The Greatest RPGs Battle and more Iron Reviews (when will those other guys just give up and crown me champion of RPGG Stadium?). I also grabbed an Ipad and I'm looking for good uses for it, so if anyone has suggestions or wants to find me on Game Centre, go ahead.
So, all in all, I'm doing well. Life is kind to me and I'm giving it the big thumbs up, or at least looking away from the sad corners of it that had been empty for so long. Hope this post finds all of you coping well also - let's sit down and have a game some time soon.
It isn't hard to get me to show my emotions - my heart is pretty much perpetually worn on my sleeve. In this post, however, I want to open up the box in which I keep my memories and share some stories with you today of a good friend of mine, who was an expert when it came to evoking emotions in others. His name was James O'Rance and his death last friday has ripped a sizable hole in my heart.
I say James was an expert in evoking others' emotions, but I am not for a second trying to paint him as a master manipulator or politician - he could have been both of those things if he chose to, but he never displayed the craving for attention that one associates with political drive. No, James was simply a wonderful, amazing person who you couldn't just like, you had to find charming, entertaining, warm or fantastical. You couldn't just see James, it was an event - you'd be hobnobbing with James, hanging with James, painting the town red with James. His presence made everything larger and more vivid, yet somehow more real also. He was a man who couldn't help but be everything you wanted in a friend at the moment you wanted it.
This is not to say that he was some sort of social chameleon; he had a number of interests all his own and would passionately discuss them with anyone who would listen. He loved HeroClix, Warhammer 40,000, Ancient Egypt, Comics (especially the Inhumans) and Roleplaying, amongst a number of other things. He was the only other person I've ever met who loved Mummy: The Resurrection enough to own every book published for it and work it into games.
James was one of the best game designers I ever had the chance to game with and a creative player par excellence. He will always be remembered for his incredible 60 player freeform game set in the Planescape universe, Door to Everywhere. He also ran amazing games in the World of Darkness, high level Science Fiction and deep philosophical fantasy. He was an amazing GM, but it is as a player that I shall always remember him.
He effortlessly picked up a character sheet and ran with the ball, so to speak. He played in almost every game I ran at a con, from tense negotiations in Rokugan to Wrestling/Superhero mash-ups, James was a good fit for every table. Two occasions when we played together in particular spring to mind; in a Call of Cthulhu campaign, he played a gung-ho adventurer with me as his cowardly manservant, armed to the teeth and constantly telling him not to go into the basement from which the strange noises eminated, not to take his hot air balloon into the jungles of Africa. The other was the last time I played with him. The game was James Bond 007 and I was a maverick in a team of agents, going off to do my own thing. While the other characters got angry at me for my antics, he remained focussed on what I had discovered and how it could advance the plot. Everytime we played together, James and I found synergy. One of the things I'll miss the most is the effortlessness with which we did that, the way we were able to bounce off one another so easily. I know others shared this with James also. He was a truly amazing gamer and a great friend.
The last time I saw James, he was playing Heroclix at the FLGS. We had a mundane conversation that will be forever burnt into my memory now. I was passing by his table and asked him how he was going. He smiled and said he'd tell me after this roll. After he defeated his opponent (good roll, James!), we chatted about how cool it was that with the new Star Trek Clix, you could send Superman against the Enterprise. I suppose that as last conversations go, one where you both Geek out is a pretty good one.
I was in the middle of a gaming session on Friday night when I heard the news (will I ever be able to look at Black Crusade again?) and it was absolutely gutting for me and my friends. We spent the rest of the night lost in thought, occasionally letting out a burst of tears or an anecdote, or simply mumbling about how we couldn't believe it. James is the first person in my life that I have lost who was around the same age as me and the first I have lost unexpectedly. Even now as I sit and type this, it seems unreal to me that he won't be able to read it. But as much as this small electronic tribute is for the memory of my friend, it's also about me finding a way to express the profound sorrow that makes my heart so leaden now. Every action is taken through malaise, every sight is obscured by a hazy, drowsy fog. My wonderful, amazing, spectacular friend is gone and even though I can remember all these wonderful times with him, all I can think of is the times together that we will never have now. I have no regrets about my friendship with James, except that it ended.
I don't honestly know what he believed in, but I like to imagine that his soul will reincarnate as something truly, awe-inspiringly beautiful. Because if there was one thing about James, it was the fact that he was an expert when it came to evoking emotions in others. Positive emotions like wonder, humour and joy. It's something he was brilliant at and something the world can't afford to lose any of.
Where's my enthusiasm gone these days? I'm sure that I used to be so insanely eager to game that I'd play anything from Fluxx to F.A.T.A.L. just to say I was gaming!
Actually, I don't think I ever would have said yes to F.A.T.A.L. to be honest, but you know what I mean.
But I'm getting pickier. I avoided an online auction of Boardgames recently because the lots had games in them I didn't want as well as those I did. I haven't found time to write and run an RPG in months!! Worse still, one of my friends has and I find myself feeling picky and disinterested in it - which is not how I want to be! I want to be gaming!
In fact, I've been feeling downright grumpy lately. I shot down an offer to play Sentinels of the Multiverse because I wasn't tremendously excited by it the first time I played, then was dismissive of some of my friends because they tried a variant of Eminent Domain (a game which, whilst by no means perfect, probably doesn't need meddling with to be fun). While I don't regret having a different opinion, I do dislike feeling like a troll.
I've cut my comic order back to nearly nothing (although I may well pick up a few trades based on the advice of MasterGeek Talks Comics, which I'm enjoying immensely) and I haven't touched a video game in months either. I tried to update my RPG wishlist for the Christmas exchanges and found that there's nothing new I want... My time on the Geek is feeling a bit flat too; like I'm going through the motions. I haven't done anything big, new and exciting here in a while and it's like I'm losing my touch.
The irksome truth is that I'm finding less time to game and when I do, it feels like my taste is drifting away from that of my group. This is not a preferable state of affairs.
Much as I use a crab as my avatar, I'm not crabby in general and I don't like being a drain on the energy of a group, I much prefer to generate it with them.
I need a shot in the arm. Some inspiration I can't ignore, a reason to be passionate about my gaming again, a project, a pump, a cause. Anyone got something for me?
I look so tired cause I don't get much sleep And I've got too many commitments that are too hard to keep
-- Billy Joel
This time of year (September - December) is always a busy one and I'm likely to see less of you guys over the next little while than I'd like, so I thought I'd put up a little update of what's happening and where I am for the next little while.
What I'm doing out in the real world
I wish the real world would just stop hassling me.
-- Matchbox 20
Towards the end of October, my students who are in their final year of school will be sitting the Higher School Certificate Exams - the ones that they have to do well in to make it to university, for the benefit of my international friends. This is a twofold stress because as they come closer to the exams, they start to submit more and more practice work and ask for more consultation with me, as well as the fact that I'm a senior marker of said exams.
The marking operation goes for about 3 weeks and involves working 4-9pm (on top of a regular school workday) four days a week, plus 9-5pm Saturday. This means that I have Sundays to recover before going at it all again.
Reports are also due this time of year, so between the moments when I'm teaching classes and planning, I have to write those and proof read everyone else's (as I'm the Year Adviser for Year 11 - think of Professor MacGonnagal from Harry Potter - I've got her job, minus the fun magical stuff).
Having recently relocated our staffroom, all my stuff is in boxes. Thankfully, as of last week, I have some bookshelves, so I can start unpacking those boxes in my moments of leisure...
What I'm doing on the Geek
And early morning when I wake up I look like Kiss but without the make-up
-- Robbie Williams
Well, I have a large bag of magazines and articles that need entry into the RPG database as well as a few fruit boxes full of videogames and packages that need to be scanned and uploaded to the VGG database. Of course, those take a backseat to the ongoing commitment I have to the Iron Reviewer contest.
I have a Geeklist in the works that looks at the early RPGGotWs and how they would respond to the newer questions being asked since the usership of the site has increased. Speaking of Geeklists, this one has really caught my eyes and you all know how I love Microbadges...
Oh, and I'll of course have to set up a voting thread for the RPGGSSC
The entries are looking quite amazing, by the way. I'm very much looking forward to seeing which game you all want to play...
What I'm doing in the gaming world
These foolish games are tearing me apart
-- Jewel
Tomorrow I should be picking up Star Trek: Fleet Captains while I'm at the FLGS for my regular Legend of the Five Rings tournament (I've become the organiser of those too, lately - ain't life grand?). On Tuesday night, I'll be at said FLGS (Good Games Burwood) demoing some board games, then Friday it's maybe-RPG, maybe-Board Games with my regular group (personally, I'm really itching to run/play Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (3rd Edition), but at the moment that's probably a pipedream at best).
Next weekend, I'll be attending a Star Trek Customizable Card Game (2nd Edition) tournament. I've discovered this game recently, having played the first edition a lifetime ago. It's remarkable for the fact that Paramount has let the fans use the IP to make their own printable expansions, as Decipher folded the game up five or six years ago. It's also a lot of fun and worth checking out for Trekkies and CCG players alike - have a look at http://www.trekcc.org/
What I'm doing with my family
Without you, it's no fun It's like a total eclipse of the sun
-- Smashmouth
That's right, I have all these wonderful people that I love to fit in there somewhere as well! Is it any wonder my to-do list never shrinks...
My 16 month old daughter is now walking, talking and waving hello to anything animate. My son, now 4, is obsessed with Lego, in particular Hero Factory and Ninjago. This is cool for me, because I'm also a big fan! We also introduced him to Seven Dragons the other day and he loves it!
Alice, my better half, has made it clear to me that I have to buy fewer games and save for a bigger house to store the ones I have, so I'll probably only be involved in the RPG Secret Santa (and T.O.S.S.E.R) this year, even though I had a lot of fun last year with the others.
I can only love her more for the fact that she keeps me grounded. Is it weird that I like to be nagged, just a little bit?
The Point!
Is that I'm going to be crazy-level busy over the next few months. I feel like every time I post, it's about how I'm not going to have time to post, but really, I'll be checking in daily without having time to contribute a lot. Pull up a pew in the Tavern and have mug of Stelio's Owlbear Honey Toblerone sometime, but if I don't answer back it's because I'm mentally writing a to-do list
According to Powerthirst, when God gives you lemons, you FIND A NEW GOD!!
While the sentiment is utterly rediculous in context, I must say that it's shaping up to be a lousy week and I feel the need to do something about it - make some lemonade, as it were.
Let's look at what's going wrong and what possible fixes exist:
My grandfather died Monday Morning.
OK, there are no fixes here. I loved him. I'll miss him a lot. But he had cancer, we saw it coming and we had a chance to say our goodbyes. A death in the family always helps to put things into perspective; I have a wonderful son who got to know his great grandfather, a family that can be loving and supporting through the grief (we all got together Monday night and had a bit of a wake, but it ended up being an opportunity for us to sit around and laugh about the wonderful times in his life that he shared with us. I have a marvellous woman by my side (Tuesday night was our sixteenth anniversary) and tons of great friends who came over on Sunday to play Board Games and help me forget my troubles. I'm feeling down, yeah, but I know I can cope with all this. If I'm not as prompt in replying to your geekmails or posting to your thread, this may be why.
Also, diet time. Life is too short.
Dave appears to be leaving RPGG
On Tuesday Morning, Dave (Wavemotion) got into a fight with another admin, snapped and left. This was on the back of other difficulties he had been having with a user who had done the same thing to him. There is irony and sadness and disappointment and loss here; Dave has been a true leader in this community from the day I joined it (well, actually, before that). I'm not going to retell the story in detail - it isn't my story and I'm only on the periphery here. But I'm bothered by it. I keep looking at the situation and trying to find some magic words to bring a man who I've come to think of as a good friend over the past two years back here where I feel he belongs - but there aren't any magic words. So instead, I'm thinking 'What would Dave do?'. RPGG has always been a grassroots community - the Admins offer support and guidance, but it's the users who make things happen. So here's what I'm going to do:
1) I'm going to watch the place while Dave's gone - I'll be looking in on every new thread, list, blog, review and session, watching out for new users who need a hand or problems that I might know the answer to. In the end, I'm no-one - just another user, but if I can help to keep the spirit of this place going, I most certainly will.
2) I'm going to hold a competition. I don't know what yet, and I have no to offer as a prize, so I guess I'll have to offer up a real prize. Keep your eyes open, I'll think of something in the next couple of hours.
I am exceedingly busy at work right now and feeling exhausted upon making it home. If I don't attend to you, get involved in your thread or otherwise seem my usual Crabby self, it's just RL getting in the way for a while.
News around the 'Geek relating to me is the topic today and there has been some, even though I've been too busy to contribute as much as I would've liked recently.
The first piece of news is that my FLGS is interested in reprinting a number of my Board Game and RPG reviews (notably those from the Iron Reviewer contest) on their website and setting me up with a regular column there. We're still working out details, but I'm pretty chuffed about the notion of being in print elsewhere. It's also more incentive for me to win the Iron Reviewer competition... More on this as it happens.
Behind the scenes I've been working on the previously-announced-very-slyly AEG Week which will be happening sometime later this year. Like KODT week last year, this is a wonderful opportunity for the community to celebrate the games that we love and I'm thrilled to be a part of it. Again, more details on this project as it comes to fruition.
Finally, it's worth having a look at the Arcade over on VGG at the moment; 1nf1n1ty is the 'Dictator of the Week' and he's keeping things tremendously fun and throwing away his like it was going out of style. The wackiness in Arcadia isn't always my preferred brand, but they certainly know how to have a good time.
I'm writing this in a hurry and haven't provided any links, sorry, but check out all the awesome stuff happening around us here on the Geek and keep having a blast!
Today, I will cover two topics - mostly because one of them has been thoroughly covered already.
In recent weeks, I've been part of a revival of the Legend of the Five Rings card game in Sydney. In times long past, we had a thriving community here, but it had slowly died down to nothing. A revival has been launched, just in time for AEG's new Multiplayer version of the game, War of Honor. For a full rundown of how this project is going, have a look at this session report:
Avery and I have slowed down our Lego purchases recently in an effort to conserve $$ for a very important special project currently underway. Nonetheless, in recent times we've built a castle:
Avery has also started to collect Minifigs, marking them off on a list as he gets them. I've also picked up the Ninjago: The Board Game board game, but haven't yet had the chance to try it out.
Just in case anyone hasn't discovered it, Lego is more than just a toy, it's a great bonding experience.
Batman and the Martian Dilemma (so called because the 'Jeeves' character served as the 'Wooster' character's batman in India and that's just our flavour of wacky) went swimmingly. A session report is under construction currently by Rhiannon and the group has requested more - which is very reassuring as I didn't know that the game would work at all. I had thought that the plot was a bit ham-fisted and was worried about railroading the players into playing a Jeeves and Wooster story, but they didn't seem to feel it was a problem and went with the wackiness.
L5R seemed to go even better in its own way. returning from a ten month hiatus and introducing new players at first seemed daunting, but once everyone was in the room, it went beautifully. The session report is here if you feel so inclined. The feedback has been great (one of the new players has been trying to develop his character in five different directions during down time and he keeps trying to pin me down to a date for the next session), but I felt that the combat in the session dragged a bit - I need to find ways to speed it up, or have more villains who are willing to give up.
So, it's been a month since I last blogged. This is a tragic flaw in many blogs - they let themselves fall behind and soon become forgotten. But what a month it's been! I've been flat out at work as report and exam time rushed upon me, along with my school's registration by the government (we passed! Yay!). It's all still happening (I'm typing this in between parent/teacher interviews - never a wasted moment!), but things seem to have significantly slowed down and I'm making some time.
Rather than write a massive catch-up post, I'm going to work through my categories and make some shorter posts to catch up those of you loyal enough to remember my rantings of old, starting with this one about my family.
It's my daughter Kalinda's first birthday today and she's going along like a freight train. She has a tooth and a second coming through, she's standing and taking tentative steps, she has a well-developed sense of humour (she laughs at me anyway!) and she's bright as a button, using sign language and pointing to indicate what she wants - all healthy signs for a one year old.
My son Avery has a fever at the moment, which is putting a bit of a dampener on his sister's birthday, but his development continues apace. He started Preschool earlier this month (the source of the pox which he currently suffers) and he's still a passionate follower of Scooby-Doo, Ben 10 and Batman: The Brave and the Bold.
My better half, Alice, seems to be enjoying the madness of our lives as best she can, caring for two children and a crab.
And me? Well, I can't say too much, but the past month has brought me significantly closer to my dream of owning a game shop. Sadly, the closer I come, the harder it is to remain committed to or get excited about my current position; it's not that teaching isn't fun anymore, but when you've been eating Chocolate ice-cream for 7 years and someone offers you Choc-Mint, you jump at the chance. As always, I feel that I'm a lucky man with a good life, but a new flavour of ice-cream is looking good right now.
See Below.
Evil Bob: Lawful good since 2038!
My grandfather died Monday Morning.
to offer as a prize, so I guess I'll have to offer up a real prize. Keep your eyes open, I'll think of something in the next couple of hours.
