Books
This week I read:
Volume 1 of A Folklore Bestiary from The Merry Mushmen
It was good, I’ve got some gameable content from it (the Angelheads will likely be making an appearence in my Dolmenwood game, and the swamp-lair of the Cuca will probably show up as a mini adventure site). Though I do wonder if them making these increasingly-specialised zines (there’s three now!) is worth it compared to just putting out new issues of Knock more frequently.
Roleplaying Games
Cartographic Curiosities
It feels like it’s been forever, though it’s only been 2 months.
One thing that really stood out to me this session is that it’s much slower going with the revised exploration rules: the players managed to fully explore one hex and partially explore two more (I revised a previous ruling where I allowed the players to fully explore a hex which was bisected by a river: I’ve decided that now they need to actually cross the river to explore the other side), and that took them three full days. Rations and camping gear are now way more important, which is a good thing.
Along the way they rescued a minstrel—who the minstrel PC is forming a nice rivalry with—encountered a bunch of insufferable but incompetent do-gooders, and had their first run-in with the forces of the Nag-Lord: a group of Crookhorns protecting a river crossing and demanding a toll from all who use it.
The Crookhorns slightly outnumber the party, so the players formed a plan: send out the PC and NPC minstrels to distract as many of the Crookhorns as they can with music and then jump the other Crookhorns, gaining a one-round advantage in the ensuing melee. It’s a good plan, the two groups are pretty evenly matched, which means that some PCs or their retainers would likely die even if they won the fight, but this plan might be enough to turn the tide of battle and make it a much stronger win. We’ll see next time.
Sylea Rising
Another Vargr session this week, the players started looking into a dangerous new drug which their shady contact is concerned about (it’s bad for business). One of the PCs took the drug, which I should really have anticipated and prepared for, but I was able to come up with something. Surprisingly, Traveller doesn’t have rules for addiction, so I had to repurpose the disease rules.
Well, all’s well that ends well: that PC is in rehab, and the others have a concrete lead they can follow up, they found the warehouse that the drug is stockpiled in. Now they just need to stake it out and wait for a delivery to arrive.
Next session might be the continuation of this, or I might jump back to the other party. I’m planning to run a Rule of Man Commemorative / Chariots of Fire combo for that group. I put two warring states on the sector map way back at the beginning of the campaign to be the perfect location for Rule of Man Commemorative and at last it’s going to happen!
Impossible Landscapes
This week I’ve been reading Impossible Landscapes and the Delta Green core rulebook cover to cover. I’m now about half of the way through both. The game is still a couple of months away, but I want to have read through these (and the Handler’s Guide) fully at least once beforehand, so it’s all in my brain, sloshing around. I might also re-read The King in Yellow, always a fun time.
Miscellaneous
The landlord finally signed my new tenancy agreement, so I’m definitely staying here for another year, at the same rent too. Which is making me ponder some home improvements again…
I kind of want a rack for all my computers and networking gear, but I’ve been putting it off for a while because it’ll be a pain to move. But (1) if I put things off until I’m in my forever home it’ll be years before I do them, and (2) I have other things that’ll be a pain to move (like a dining table and several bookcases) so is adding one more thing so bad?
Maybe this year will be the year I do it.
I also have a couple of ratty old posters which need replacing and framing. Or maybe I’ll go for different posters? It’s a map of Discworld and of Ankh-Morpork, which I’ve had for some years now, but to be honest I’m less of a Discworld guy than I used to be. I’ve not read any of the books in a long time. Maybe a big framed Dolmenwood map, or some of my Traveller maps, would be an improvement?
And then of course there’s a whole array of other, more minor, improvements: a new chair, better air conditioning, more storage space… so many things to change, so little money (and so much effort when I finally do move out).