Commission: Rory's musketeer

Part two of the commission-trade I did with Rory. This time, a musketeer-type character. She is a member of the Dark Archive faction. The colors of the faction are a purple flame on an open book. This in itself causes a problem, as I wanted to give him a character with a somewhat different color scheme! So I aimed for something more red.

The boots and gloves are of a dark color with a purple twinge. The pants and shirt have a simple pattern of red and pink, just enough to not look "empty" and the right amount to fill the space. The tabard has the Dark Archive's motifs repeated a number of places.

One funny thing you may notice about the model. I had to cover the sword with 3 layers of glue to give it strength. This is why the sword is no longer "perfect".

JP

Commission: Rory's Witch

This is the first of a pair of miniatures I painted for my good buddy Rory.

How this came to be is an interesting story. Rory and I were talking on Facebook. Over the course of the conversation, he mentioned that people laughed at him for playing with unpainted minis - rightfully, I should say. I mentioned that I painted for others, showed him some of my work (which he already knew about). And I got me a commission!

Now the story would be fairly interesting already. On the topic later was his availability as a writer. More talks. In the end, we agreed that he would write a short adventure for me in return for two painted minis! Like a number of artists on DeviantArt, we traded artwork! I'm pretty stoked.

Here is what he asked me and how he described his witch:

I'd like the witch to be med-dark purple dominant, is fair skinned, black hair (perhaps some white highlights) and purple eyes.

I think I miffed on the hair... but the white hair really pops. I really like the end result. She looks really nice. The face and contrasts of the purples/reds on the clothes.

JP

I'm not slacking! Teaser Pics!

I know many of you have been commenting how I've been slacking and not posting here and not pushing any new FOE products... That's not true as I have been working VERY hard, on a lot of stuff behind the scenes.

I've teased you with the Gytha book, which I had to redo because of feedback from LPJ. and I must say... the changes he recommended really made the product look better! It should be out before Christmas. I promise. To go with the book, I plan to have not one but two adventures that support the product. So not only can you know some of the secret of Gytha, but you will also discover more about the Protectorate plans for the city. In all, there should be around 6-8 adventures that will use the Gytha sourcebook! At least that's what I have planned... And that does not include the specials one-shots.

I've also teased you about some new iconics. Well they are coming! I have been waffling about who and what to do about them. I commissioned a great artist I met on Deviant art, for a few pieces and they look sensational! I will have more coming from her in the future...

I'm sure you can guess the races for the characters. That's the easy part. I am personally waffling as to which classes I want to make them. A cleric, or an oracle? A fighter or a paladin? A rogue or a wizard? The thing with Iconics is that they need to showcase the world, not just be "generic" characters.

However, LPJ has some great iconics... so should the FOE ones have more oddball concepts? Those are things I try to figure out and decide. Of course, these guys have to be exciting and fun and showcase the campaign. I am definitely open to suggestions.

One funny thing that happened... I gave a bunch of ideas to Irene (the artist) and asked her for a nature-type p'tan/catfolk. She misunderstood what I wanted and drew a woman with feline features... a human. I was a little bummed, but I really loved the character she had. So I asked to keep it and add extra features to the characters, for someone I wanted drawn for another project... So I pulled a bait and switch.

I've talked about a new banner... I have received it! I have yet to officially unveil it, but nothing prevents me from teasing you some more!

You might've noticed similarities between the iconics and the "mysterious character" in the banner. If you have, then you get bonus points. All of them were drawn by the same hand! I really like her characterization, it has just a touch of cartoon-y without being "too much." I think we have a good relationship and we will be doing more work together in the (very) near future.

Oh yes... since everything is "Under Construction" there is a 'dozer and a hardhat in the picture. Thanks to ActionMan for the assist.

So there you have it... a few things that are moving forward... with pics to prove I'm not lying to you!

JP

Sunday Humor: My new gurps group

I just thought this was incredibly funny. I remember watching most of those shows.

JP

[Old pro tricks] 5 ways to start thinking of an adventure

Someone on Facebook posted a simple question - it seemed simple - "How do you start working on an adventure?". My gut instinct was to say "at the start", but then I thought to myself that I do not always think of it that way. In fact I generally do not think that way...

I realize this is not a complete guide to writing adventure, they are just ways to start thinking about them.

Here are 5 different ways I think of adventures.

1- From a plot In this case, I think of an overall plot. "The guy wants to do something." It is as close to start with the beginning as it gets. Here you have an idea of a plot as a whole.

2- From the characters "What if the Avengers did [...]?" Here you have WHO the PCs are and have to work from there. This is a good way as it often dictates some tropes: villains, type of stories, locations, genre. You would not take superheroes for a very down-to-earth plot, just as you would not use the cast of CSI for a superhero adventure.

3- From the villain Similar to the previous entry, however, here you start with a villain. "What if Magneto decided to [...]" as with the heroes, your villain will provide you with some of the elements of setting.

4- From an encounter Here you think of an encounter - not necessarily a combat - but some type of situation the PCs have to resolve or deal with. "What if you all just woke up without any memories?" This is really interesting because it can be whatever. I will admit that this is one of the most common ways I come up with ideas and plots.

5- From a twist The "M Night Shyamalan"... Here you start with a twist: usually a revelation that changes the rest of the story. The PCs realize that they have been manipulated all along, or they realize that all the NPCs they met so far are ghosts.

JP

COMMISSION: THREE STAGE GNOME PART 2

Part 2 of the Three-Stage Gnome: (Part 1)

Our adventurer now has a few adventures behind his belt and his equipment has greatly improved. He is turning into a "real" warrior.

JP

FOE: Chicken vs egg

Yesterday, I tweeted the following question:

Thinking about running a @kickstarter for a @FreeRPGDay adventure... Thoughts?

There seems to be a lot of differing views on that.

The two main positions are: "Why pay for something I will get for free?" versus "Without KS how can you produce the adventure?" It's something of a "chicken vs egg" situation. Without backing, I'm not big enough to fund

Why pay for something that will be free? Obviously, the goal is to provide something to backers that is gonna be unique and fun, but as a businessman, I need something that will provide me with some additional sales down the road. With more sales, I can afford to do more and better-looking products.

If you are a 3pp, I am very likely to reach out and get your thoughts and pick your brain on your experiences with Kickstarter, with Free RPG Day, and with publishing in general. I'm really trying to create a road map for myself and for FOE. We've been doing product that I think look better and better in the past year.

Is it time for us to take that next step? Was is that next step? Is Kickstarter part of it?

A lot to think about.

JP

Stuffing'd Eggs: a real-life recipe!

The morning after Thanksgiving, I posted a number of pictures of a family recipe. A lot of people have asked me for directions. So as a public service announcement, I am posting the recipe here. This is not an exact recipe.

You will need: stuffing (a lot of it), eggs, cheese, salt, pepper and paprika (last three not shown). Papazooka as Kitty calls it. If your stuffing is a tad dry (mine was), you will need to add some broth, so I used vegetable broth. I added some cranberries to the dish, but they were found "unsatisfying".

With the stuffing, create little cups in the buttered muffin tray.

I added cranberries only to a few as a "surprise". The kids thought that was really exciting!

Crack eggs into the small stuffing cups. I split the yokes into their own cups.

Add cheese to the top. As the eggs are not even, cheese can compensate for those cups with a lower levels of egg. Plus, everyone loves cheese! Next add the salt-pepper and the papazooka.

350 for ~20 minutes, until the eggs are cooked and the cheese is melted.

I like to flip them over before serving and allow them a few minutes to cool.

Enjoy! So you know, twelve is just enough for our family!

FOOD!!!

JP

Commissions: many WIP

It like it's been forever ago that I posted a commission piece.

OH WAIT, no, I posted Chad's minis last week!

Bah! Here are a few teasers... Mostly to prove to myself that I'm not slacking in that department... One of those pics is a surprise to its future owner... try and guess which one.

And for good measure what I am currently working on: North American Indians, Aztec civilians, Llamas, Cryx Undead pirates, swarms, a mega-dire-rat and two Razor Coast weresharks. In addition to the commission work... A few evening of cleaning up.

This reminds me that I REALLY should do a how-to paint like JP (or: How every other painters told me not to do). These have been base coated and await final touches and bases...

JP

Happy Thanksgiving

This year, I see life in a brand new way: not only did I turn forty, but I also had a brush with the grim reaper... All of this has made me re-think a number of things, and showed me how blessed I am.

First off, I have an awesome family, with an awesome wife and great kids! My wife has always been great. (Though I suppose that she keeps me around just because I don't like chocolate...) True, I may strangle the young'uns sometimes, I would not trade them for the world and seeing their little faces is one of the highlights of my day.

Second, I am so thankful for the great friends I have made over the years, from my native Canada, to France, to Ireland, to Colorado, and now Kentucky. Having so many people really make me a rich man! If you read this, I consider myself blessed and am thankful for you.

Finally, the small things. I won't go into details, I will keep them between myself and the Lord above...

Quite simply: Thank you Lord for the many blessings you have granted me and mine.

Thank you

JP

PS: Thank you for that bird and the feast around it. It was great!

New iconics for Legacies?

For the last while, I have been thinking about a lot of things regarding the Legacies campaign. Since we came up with the original 8 or 9 character, these characters have evolved through a number of adventures. But I wonder if it is time that we add a few characters to our own suite of iconics.

Question is... WHO?

A P'tan ranger? A kalisan oracle? A gevet male?

So many exciting choices. Which ones do you wish to see? Which ones should I worry about?

JP

Sunday Funny: Cardiac humor

I thought this was pretty funny. Not gaming related, but funny nonetheless. I now have to take one of them every day for the rest of my life.

Gostor: Not bolted down released!

Anyone who plays with me or who has read this blog for any length of time know that I find the idea of storing any form of wealth in coins like uncle scrooge is simple ludicrous. Wealth has to be found in things, in items that one can use. This Gostor product, like most of them so far all come from personal charts and tables I generated over the years. This product brings them all together into a consistent whole. The writing was tightened and the tables made clearer.

This product is available now from RPGNow.com for the sum of 2$ I rather than go with 1.99, I just rounded the cost of ALL Gostor products to 2$, bringing the price of some of them down.

Gostor products are written in a way that they can be added to a campaign simply without too much fuss. Like others in the series, this one is system-agnostic, meaning you can use it with any system you use, from fantasy to sci-fi!

Let me know what you think!

JP

Real Life: How I narrowly escaped death

American Heart Association: Click here
Canadian Heart Association: Click here

JP

Commission: Allison Jakes Kickstarter Exclusive

Following up on the post about Aiakos, Chad got himself two model. The second one being Allison Jakes of the Cygnar army.

I will admit to not being very impressed by the mini when I first looked at it up close. Another boring blue model... But after priming, I noticed that she was wearing mostly clothes instead of armor with a few armor pieces and a loincloth/skirt.

She suddenly became more interesting!

Now painting leather is something easy. Easy to do an okay job: a based brown, a dark wash and (maybe) a little brush touch-up.

Doing some good leather, especially when there is that much of it is much harder to go well. The technique is the same: base, wash, but instead of the dry brush, I did a "wet brushing" which dulls the previous without altering the color too much. Then I added highlights on the belt straps to differentiate them from her clothing.

The armor plates and the skirt got a "boring" treatment of blue with white highlights. The leathers is what really pops to me on the model and I not wish to detract from that.

Difficult to see, but I used very watered down blue on the sword to give it a blue sheen.

JP