Batman is tired and does not sleep, while Robin tries to help but is clearly overmatched by the villains.
The art reminds me of classic DC, a style I really like because it is full of action and crisp. I enjoyed reading this one and had to pace myself to avoid going through this in a single go.
I rate this one a strong 3/5 because some of the stories, while enjoyable do not seem to advance the plot very much.
It has indeed been a full year since I attended a con in person. The last one was Weekend in Rokugan 2020 Before everything wnet sideways... I remember it fondly.
Fast forward another year and WiR was upon us again. I had vacation time lined up and getting excited about an in-person con. Alas, WiR2021 would not be the first in-person convention of a restarting world...
I got to play one of the catch-up adventures on Monday night GM'd by Cory-M, on what is typically my gaming-free night. My writing night, if you will.
On Tuesday, I was out with ActionMan for his soccer night in Dekalb County - a surprisingly distant trip! ActionMan is improving and he still enjoys playing.
Wednesday night, we had to cancel the Akhamet campaign and I canceled my True20 campaign to join one of the new events (#50) GM'd by Jason Beck. It was interesting playing as an Emerald Magistrate in an adventure where you have to deal with a fellow magistrate who is effectively a total jerk, but he does outrank me, so I must obey...
Thursday, I picked up the second new adventure, #51 run by the author and campaign master himself, Chris-W. This adventure led directly into the Saturday night battle interactive. A special thing I did: I killed two oni, the first kills I did in at least twenty adventures! My specialty is protection and healing, not damage. I was able to buy up my Willpower to 4, a major and useful investment
Life prevented me from playing anything on Friday.
Saturday morning, I played a non-L5R game of Dark Heresy. I am digging that campaign too, even if it may be a tad too simple. Now we could've done better, but our dice rolls were a complete pile of garbage. I mean constant fails.
Finally Saturday evening came the big event, the Battle interactive. It was a battle in the Shadowlands. A terrible place filled with even worse things to face. I mean all the undead, rotting, squishy, nasty, venomous, bile-filled nasty things. Fear is the order of the day. Whenever you go beyond the Great Wall, you never come back quite the same. This time, I should have been in command, but I defered command to one who was more skilled and had experience fighting the Shadowlands, it turned out to have been a very good decision in the end.
We were able to tackle two of the heroics: We fought a horde of zombies, Lost/revenant samurai, and a force of maho-tsukai and undead knights. The first combat was easy, the second was effectively won on us rolling ridiculous initiative, and the final fight had maho-tsukai and bone knights. The final battle was quite a major challenge as our initiatives fell and this one got really hairy. We lost our commander because I failed a spellcasting roll for being too ambitious with it. In the end though, we all survived (thanks to a well-used cert). Two heroic encounters were an interesting challenge as we cleared out the enemy siege engines.
In the end, I thought this was a very clever way to run events and make sure people got to play the games leading up to the big battle interactive. Really mad props to Chris, Cat, Cory, the GMs, and the writing team.
A big thank you. I will be back next year, whether in-person (hopefully) or online. Oh! And I will be at Gencon too!
For Christmas in 2019, I received this book, The Man with Two Names by Vincent B Davis II. Historical fiction set in ancient Rome: I'm in.
The story takes Sertorius as the main character. If you don't know Sertorius, he is best known for being a Roman General who rose against Rome and took control of Hispania. He struck a deal with Mithridates the Sixth of Pontus into what could have been the death knell of Rome. It precipitated the fall of the Republic for sure.
The story starts as Sertorius grows up in the wilds of Italy, then becomes the head of the family, despite being the younger brother. Then he heads to Rome to get help for his people and gets involved in the politics of the city. Crooked, twisted, complex, and corrupt are all great ways to describe what happens. After that, Sertorius joins the army and head to Gaul to stop the Cimbri.
The high points of the story are how naturally, his characters mingle with the greats: we meet a young Julius Caesar and Gaius Marius. The dialogues feel natural and interesting.
Some of the real high points are the military briefings. I could not help thinking VBD attended many of them. He is indeed a military man, and it shows. Still, we don't get stuck in the weeds. A good flow, an interesting story, compelling characters.
Now since receiving that book, I learned that he is making a series, which drops it in my eyes.
So for a rating... I have to give it a 4/5. I will ask for the next installment.
Fourteen years ago, I attended a small convention in Montreal. I attended mostly for its Living Greyhawk component. It was a good time. I wish I could point you to an AAR from back in those days, but I think I played and was granted a special mission to become one of the Dwarf Queen's handmaiden for Torgga Copperbraids who was a Cleric/Wizard.
Fast-forward to 2021. Living Greyhawk is a distant but cherished memory. However, the convention is still around and I got lucky enough to get invited to run games. Now with the current situation I would not have been able to physically travel to Montreal, BUT that's where the Interwebs come into play.
Now a pleasant surprise I got was after dinner, I came back upstairs (where my mancave is located), a little late for the start of the slot. I did not have much hope for something still being available.
Going through the tables, I joined one where there were a few people, I joined and stepped out when it was Pathfinder 2e. Then I hopped on another one where there were only 2 people.
JP: "You looking for people?"
Both: "YES!"
Turns out the game they were playing is called "Praetoria Prima," a historical game set in Ancient Rome. WHHAAAAAAAAT? How do you think I would be able to stay away?
The setting is during the reign of Emperor Nero (around 60AD). The PCs are part of the Praetoria Prima, a covert operation team whose aim is to protect the Emperor, his household, and the stability of the Rome. Interesting. The game has no supernatural component and plays a very investigative way, much like a Call of Cthulhu.
The system is a modified version of the classic World of Darkness. It is "fine" a little over-clunky but workable. Once you understand how it works, it runs well.
So my Marius Tullius Crassus, a patrician (mix of socialite/ diletante/ and politician) and Neferita, a medica (scientist/ doctor/ philosopher) investigated the death of a man. The plot was pretty expansive and featured quite a few red herrings. However, we found a good way to resolve the situation, allow Nero to save face, and punish the guilty one.
Thank to Fil-de-Crystal for running this an making me discover this game. I will look for it on future cons. The game is no longer available but I learned of an effort to buy it and expand it. I would really like to know where that is going. There is much to be done with this setting and something I would perhaps want to explore.
DAMMIT Another project on the back burner!!!
Few NPCs flat out inspire dread than Rahadin, Strahd's half-brother/ butler/ handyman. When I first read Curse of Strahd, I immediately fell in love with him as a villain. Without scruples, without regrets, he is simply a highly-functional psychopath who should be in an asylum. Locked away for good.
But this is Ravenloft where horror is ever-present. Where even the small things have a dark past.
When I began plotting how I wanted to run the campaign, I envisionned Strahd as someone with a past, with relatable emotions, goals, qualities, and flaws. Strahd is the main villain of the play but one you can understand. Though he suffers from his own insanities, he is that villain you can work with. You can guess some and rationalize his next moves.
Not Rahadin.
This idea for the Dread Knight came to me as I pondered why the Dark Powers would allow him to die, but force Strahd to stay behind. No. They would not.
A crazy idea came to me for a CoS sequel... one where Strahd was back but he no longer was in charge. Where the dark force that held Barovia together was the mad dusk elf.
I stopped myself. I many ideas in mind for this "Ravenloft II" but at the time, I was working on House on Griffon Hill... Rahadin Dread Knight of Ravenloft had to be stopped at this small product. Needless to say, The British Shark's art and James' RPG Art on the cover sell it.
Therefore it is with great pride that I can announce that Rahadin Dread Knight of Ravenloft made the Silver Best Seller list from the DM's Guild! Thank you so very much. More content is coming. Soon. I swear. Really.
Most important: FOE will be present in-person.
I'm not 100% sure if we will have an online component. If some GMs are willing to run online FOE games, I will make that happen.
So... what setting? Akhamet is a given as it is very popular. And volunteer GMs want to run it. I will gladly accomodate them! I did have a completed adventure for last year.
Which leaves me with the other three: Olympia, Rhym, and Saggakar.
I need an intro mod for Olympia. I don't know If "Princess Phoedra" or "Tomb of Antikles" are good enough. They are stable, fun (to play and run), and are ready to go but may require additional work on my end. Writer's worry?
Rhym is an interesting case. I have an adventure written and ready to go for it, one that plays into the story of the planned special for last year. So I got that one in my pocket.
Tyrants of Saggakar is a funny setting. While I really enjoy it, it is a much harder sell to passersby than any of the above. I did spend a lot of time last year working to update the setting, but I don't think it is ready for a big reveal just yet. Still, this one is my sweet little one and a threat that many people rightfully feel with dread.
As a special bonus, I just learned that another adventure of mine, may be at Gencon. I am waiting for confirmation, but a non-D&D game may be on the program! I am excited and will post more about it if/when I get any more details.
Now... this one has been a long time coming and it does not represent the actual number of copies of the setting that are out there, with the many paper copies floating out there. Akhamet is a big-time success for FOE and one of my greatest pride as a writer and as a game designer. That many people really enjoy the setting, with its many intricacies, quirks, and pseudo-historical elements, is something I really appreciate and value.
To add to my great delight, the adventure has three five-star ratings!
I really miss running new material for in-person conventions for it. It is a real delight as players who never knew of the setting quickly pick up, usually with a basic middle school knowledge of Ancient Egypt.
If you don't have it, get Akhamet Campaign Setting today. It is on-sale during the GM day sale!
May Pharaoh's light shine down on you!
It is with great joy that I am proud to announce that Curse of Strahd II: Griffon Hill Manor has just reached Copper Bestseller level! Many FOE products are reaching these milestones in a quick succession, making me even giddier!
Thank you, thank you to everyone who bought the product, the six victims who survived this wacky idea, and my wife who tolerated my evening antics.
This adventure is the first of a new style of mini-campaigns I ever wrote, with the upcoming Witches of Pikemaster written in a similar way, with chapters giving the PCs a sandbox with a number of threads to investigate and problems to resolve.
A sequel to CoS is an ambitious project and one I am very proud of.
You can get Curse of Strahd II: Griffon Hill Manor today on the DM's Guild. As a bonus, the DM's Guild currently runs a 10% off sale! Bonus for you.
