And so for the first time since I looked at Kickstarter, I have written off the possibility of ever receiving something I backed...

This is not a move I consider lightly, for this person has money of mine, and while it is not much, it is still money they took for the delivery of a product that I now believe has no possibility of being delivered.  The project in question is Pencil Dice by Ken Whitman and D20 entertainment.  I've got a few kickstarters on the hook at the moment and many of them are late, but I have faith in the companies that are dealing with them to deliver the product they promised.

On this occasion, I do not have faith...

There are many of the opinion that those backing KW and his various projects should have checked deeper into the nature of the person they were backing, and certainly, following this, I will be doing, but in the case of many kickstarters that I back, I back them because...

A) I'm at a stage in career and life where I have disposable finance, never had it before and enjoying it while I have it.
B) I like helping people out, and if I can do that by forgoing the cost of my sandwich for dinner, I tend to forgo the sandwich and put the pledge down instead, after all, one less sandwich is probably going to be good for me in the long run :)

However, this is the first time that I've taken the decision to remove something from the "Awaited" list, and it brings in with it a number of quandaries.  I'm not grievously wounded by the loss of the $5 that I put down on this one, and cheerfully Expo as a company didn't back the project as we couldn't get a guarantee at the time that the pencils would be delivered in time for the Expo just gone, but I am concerned that having seen the evidence of what Ken Whitman seems to have been up to over the last number of years, that he'll just wait a while and then try to resurface as another entity to continue what appears to be the largest Ponzi scheme in the history of gaming.

It could be that this is all a big mistake and that any day now those pencils will turn up, but the overwhelming evidence appears to suggest otherwise, I'll be the first to make apologies and penance should I be proven wrong, but it's not seeming likely.

What to do...?

And so I wrote this as a signifier of intent, I haven't decided quite what I'm going to do yet, but I think something has to be done, and in that, I suspect I'm not alone.  It's one thing to do it once, make a number of grievous errors and not manage to complete the kickstarter, or to find out that project delivery is not the same as envisioning said project, but it's another thing entirely to start projects that you know you cannot/will not deliver to fund other projects that you are more interested in doing.

So...

Something will be done, things like this affect the entire of gaming and indeed the entire of kickstarter and the trust that we place in project creators, which has a knock on effect for all projects...

And that won't do...

Sometimes you meet fantastic people...

Many of you know the lady in question, keep her privacy for me, only those who she tells should know....

It was half a lifetime ago that I met someone who would change my life in ways I didn't think possible at the time. I was 21 then, and closer to a raging feral than the paragon of self control that you all know now (Ha...), but as I visited a games store for the first time, I saw a young lady at the counter wearing ripped jeans. In the manner of all young men, remarked on the jeans in question, realising soon after that I had in fact just drawn attention to the fact that I'd been staring at her ass...

And indeed felt like an ass myself...

However, of such inauspicious beginnings are formed lifelong friendships, and as it transpired, the young lady quite took a shine to me. In the manner of young shy people, it took several people making major hints towards us that we liked each other before we finally got together, and several more weeks before we ended up sat around a table talking about the future and our hopes.  At this point she suddenly turned quiet and leaned back in her chair, saying that she needed to tell me something about her past, hoping that it wouldn't change things between us that much.  I nodded and motioned for her to continue, and she waited another minute before leaning forwards and putting her hands open on the table.

"I wasn't born a woman..."

I leaned forwards and took her hands with a smile, saying "And...?", she looked at me for a second in wonder and I could see tears in her eyes as she realised that I saw people as they are, not as how the world see's them.  It turns out that in the world, there aren't very many like that, and I was the first one who hadn't reacted badly.  When I spoke to people the next day, it turns out that all of them knew, and they'd presumed that I might turn violent when I found out (really, I was closer to a raging feral at the time), but here's the thing.

They'd let me go anyway, knowing that....

And although it's more a reflection on them, being willing to do that and watch the fallout than trying to stop it somehow, but it taught me that the world is a dark and vicious place and that it's not enough to stand by, we have to do the right thing while we can.  I learned something that night, that you love people as they are, not as you would want them to be. The lady and I stayed together for a good few months before parting ways amicably and remaining friends thereafter, and the resolve in me to be a better man was made ever stronger by the strength she gave me.

Why am I saying this now?

Because two months ago, the lady finished her journey and now lives physically as the person she always was mentally, not a problem in the world, surgery went perfectly and she'd doing brilliantly.  I cannot easily articulate the depth of my emotion on this matter, for I have feared for her greatly in the times that I've known her, and we've both been on the dark side of the world for many of the years inbetween, but those times are done, and just as my brighter tomorrows came seven years ago when Jude said I do, so the happy future I hoped for the lady half a lifetime ago is finally here.

This is more a call to all those still on the journey, don't lose hope, don't lose faith.  It may take half a lifetime to walk that path, but there'll come a day when it all comes together, and until that day, take the support of those of us who care, we will never know what you're going through, but we love you.

Just for being you...

RPG article in Tabletop Gaming Magazine

When Tabletop Gaming magazine first hit the stands at Expo this year, one of the things I noticed was that it was primarily focussed on the board game end of things.  With this in mind, I approached them with a view to featuring more content regarding RPGs and roleplaying in general, after all, gaming doesn't just occur on boards.

They agreed...

So, starting this month, and continuing if there's interest in it, there'll be a column on the new releases in the roleplaying world and not just the ones from the major publishing houses.  I've been around long enough to know that the big houses tend to be all that most people have heard of, and when you run conventions the size of Expo and a whole bunch of people have never heard of systems like FATE, there's a lot more out there that people could be enjoying, so there'll be coverage of independent games like Blades in the Dark and Hunters of Alexandria as well as the big releases like Dust and Dr Who, and details on where to find Conventions (and not just the ones I run...) where everyone can go try out new games.

If there's interest, there's every possibility that more RPG content will follow, so we'll see...

The magazine will be available in a number of high street stores, or you can order it at http://www.collectors-club-of-great-britain.co.uk/Store/Tabletop-Gaming--Third-Issue/_prod3415

Do I worry people that much....?

Browsing through Google as you sometimes do, I come across someone I know and find that I'm restricted from following them....

What exactly do they think I'm going to do...?

Must mail them a copy of the Jaws soundtrack....

For all those private moments when they're sitting worrying about me...

Maybe get my hair done up in a fin for Dragonmeet so they can see me coming in the crowd....

And so I've been quiet for a while...

For which there's been a damn good reason, several reasons in fact, not least of which that shortly after the last post, I had Wyntercon to run, and coming up in two weeks, I've got Dragonmeet.  The upshot of both of those has been that the last month has been mostly consumed by sorting out all that needed to be done there.

That in turn has culminated in a lot of delays in other things that I wanted to do and a lot of people asking me for things that I'd normally help with and have had to flat refuse, which isn't like me, but I'm learning as time goes on that actually one man can only make a difference himself some of the time.

Not an easy lesson...

That said, two of the largest kickstarters I've backed have just landed, and there'll be reviews of them shortly, being Dungeon Saga and Shadows over Normandie, and I've managed to read a few more books and experiment with a few more pens since last I was here.

I'm also making a concerted effort to cut things out of my life that are toxic, and there'll be more on that shortly too...

So to paraphrase a better man than I, sorry I've been away so long, I won't let you down again...

So what games are people looking forwards to?

Because it seems to me that most of the companies that I tend to back on a regular basis, I already have because everyone's kickstarting things these days, which is fine, because eventually I'll get all the things I'm after, but that takes a lot of the fun out of browsing the lists of things that are coming up shortly.

What's everyone else looking at?

The one's I've got coming are:

World War Cthulhu Cold War
Paranoia
Cthulhu 7th
ViewScream
Downfall
Blades in the Dark
Uncharted Worlds
Crypts and Things

And I am looking forwards to all of them, but with the exception of those that I've already got the quick start guide to, I'm finding that waiting for them while they're being made is not the same as knowing they're out there and I can just pay for the finished product...

Does Kickstarter dampen others enthusiasm as well?

Campaigns in Roleplaying. What do people look for?

I'm running these particular questions across a few of the RPG communities, because I'm gathering information for Modiphius and Longcon UK regarding what people are looking for in regards to campaign play.

This leads into the idea of organised play events as well as box sets and other games that have been put together as a series of events.  What I'm interested in is why people want to play longer games, linked games, and whole campaigns.

In the spirit of fair play, I'm including all my answers on the questions as well.

1: Which (if any) was your favourite game.

Jovian Chronicles: The Chaos Principle

2: Why?

Because it was billed as a cinematic adventure, and it lived up to the hype.

3: Did you get to the end of the campaign and if not, what stopped you...?

We did get to the end of the campaign, it took us three months of weekly play, five players in total.

4: If you did get to the end, was the reward commensurate with the effort taken to get there.

Knowing that we'd been part of the events that went on was a huge buzz to the players involved, having their characters involved at that level of operations was a massive step up from where we'd been previously.

5: What do people look for in a multi game session? Does there have to be a link between games...?


I look for progression, things that you don't get in a one shot, chances to make a difference in the game world itself.  I particularly liked the idea of the L5R games where the results of the tournaments were implemented into the game world, I liked that everyone was involved to that level.

And finally, which game would you most like to see a campaign for, and that question doesn't have to be a modiphius game, because I'm interested across the board.

How Kickstarters should be done... Lone Wolf from Cubicle 7

Looking through the list of things that I've backed on Kickstarter, it seems that a whole lot of them are scheduled to arrive round about now, this has the bonus of me getting loads of things all at the same time, and the negative of causing the family to wonder just how much I've backed on kickstarter.

Pleas of "But I backed this three years ago" are unlikely to be listened to...

Cheerfully, here's one that I backed that I didn't have to wait for, and what a win it's been...

This is Lone Wolf...

First thoughts, production values, well above and beyond, particularly for the price point that they've put this out at (my pledge came in at £26 including £6 shipping), solid box with inlay for use with the system (and when I say solid, I mean solid...)

Everything full colour and well illustrated.

Sample characters easily and clearly laid out...

with tons of information on them

Maps...

Plural...

If the pregens weren't enough, blank character sheets....

And thick card counters...

This is what companies should be doing to get people into games, good product, plenty of it, delivered at a price people can afford and that gives them all they need to play not just the first game but onwards from there.  There'll be some saying that it was a few months late, and to them I say the physical copy was late, but the PDF copy that everyone could use to get playing was there bang on time, and I'll forgive a lot when the finished product is this good...

Brief review on the system and book contents, the book of Kai Training is the character generation book, it covers everything you need to make a character and get adventuring.  System is D10 base and modifiers apply, there aren't many of these and even those who've not played any game before will have no trouble picking this up.

The Book of Kai Wisdom is the world and adventuring book, details on advancing characters, increasing skills, and what sort of thing the adventurers will find out there are in here.  Easily comparable with other starter sets for long established games such as Pathfinder or D&D (and I appreciate that Lone Wolf as a world is also long established), with enough content to start and carry through to completion a characters adventuring life.

And speaking of a characters adventuring life, the Book of Kai Legends is an adventure module with two prebuilt adventures and a lot of content.  It also contains basic guidelines on how to make your own adventures and stories.

In all, brilliant, this is what the industry needs to do more of, easily accessible games with plenty of content that are useful to beginners and old hands alike...

Well recommended.

Pengineering - The Heart of Darkness...

And so last week, I mentioned that I was testing out a few different inks to see if there was something that suited my need for a particular type of black.  There wasn't much in them, but the Heart of Darkness ink was an absolute black compared to the Bulletproof black which was dark, but not absolute, so Heart of Darkness it was to be...

As it happened, there was, but the problem was that you couldn't get that shade of black in this country without spending far more money than I was willing to put against it, or so I thought...

Having been unable to secure Heart of Darkness, I opted for Bulletproof Black and went over to Purepens to see if they had any in stock, imagine my surprise when I found that they were stocking Heart of Darkness right next to it...

This was an omen...

So, the next day, a box arrived containing the ink I'd ordered and a few things besides, the explanation was by way of a note that had clearly been crammed in there with everything else, further proof if I needed it that this is all the work of one man who just likes pens and ink...

What I got in here was the huge bottle of Heart of Darkness ink (128ml), with a badly stuck on sticker featuring an image from the Dark continent, and then two pens...

The first one being a "Free Tinker" to allow people to get used to the idea of playing around with fountain pens and see how they work for themselves...

Free...

The second being one of the regular noodlers pens called a "Charlie" which is already set up for use.

More on this as I get to work, but no cartridge in either pen, both designed to have ink dropped into the barrel and feed from there, samples to follow when I've got it worked out...

Sometimes... You've just got to change the Ammo...

And when your weapon of choice is a pen, the ammunition has to be Ink...

I've been writing for a while with Deep Dark Blue, but I found that over time, the colour was fading from the almost midnight colour I was so fond of to a far lighter shade, and so I switched back to black for a while, starting with the parker Quink that I already have tons of that sadly dries to a grey (a dark grey to be sure, but grey nonetheless...).

So I tried something else, Pelikans Edelstein Onyx, which has been working very well for me and I've been enjoying it immensely, but I heard word of inks that were produced by a man alone, he no longer ships them to england (except at great cost through certain suppliers), and mixes them himself, a one man band that took on all comers in the world, including such great ink companies as Diamine...

So I sought these inks out, coming with evocative names such as Heart of Darkness, Bad Green Gator, 54th Massachusetts and others, and some being described as "Bulletproof", which is to say that they're both bleach, ink, and scrubbing resistant, and the only problem being that they're not available in this country...

Unless you want to pay £50 a bottle...

Which I was not inclined to do without knowing the quality of the ink...

And so upon Ebay I found a seller who was putting out tester bottles of 2ml of ink in all the different types, and here now are those two ink samples, being Heart of Darkness (because you would, wouldn't you...) and Brilliant Black, which I'm going to fill my empty Edelstein cartridges with and test out, results when I have them...

Big B******* Walking club goes to North America....

Again to Langsett, this time with the time in hand to get all the way around and also with the ability to get into the higher areas of it.  For those not familiar with Ben Nevis, this is nowhere near as tall, but there are a number of similarities with it.

Look at it from the point of view that if you can't get up this one, don't even get out of the car at Nevis.... :)

That said, it was a spectacular walk and took us around the top of the Reservoir and up into North America...

In Sheffield...

I kid you not...

Read on...

The fenced off section of the main Dam

And when you get through the fence

Couldn't quite figure out how...

Blamed it on not being able to see anything for the sun...

And then down into the reservoir path proper

Translated, "If it's shiny, don't kick it...."

The edge of the reservoir showing how much rain we haven't had recently...

And the high point before we really had to start climbing.

Found a bridge...!  You knew we had to...

Doesn't look that steep, but it went on a way...

And here's where we found North America....

These ruins are all that is left of North America Farm, following them being used for target practise by a variety of tank brigades in the second world war, I suspect that a lot of the stone has been taken by people over the years and used for other projects, but it is interesting to see how far out of the way they built functional buildings back then.

And by this point, the local wildlife were taking an interest, so we made a trip down.

And this bit felt very much like Ben Nevis in a lot of ways, from the angle and turns.

To the steps and boundaries.

We took a walk around the river at the bottom

and the path on the hill we'll take when there's more light to be had (it was dark half an hour after this picture...)

Which gave us a spectacular sunset to observe

And of course, all you need is...

And random mini staircases in the middle of the forest...

Nights are closing in fast now, so we're moving the walks to Thursday where we can and setting off earlier rather than waiting till we both get back on tuesday nights.  As always, interesting suggestions for walks are always appreciated.

And the second part of the article...

Yesterday I spoke of why it is important that whatever people want to put out there should be allowed to be put out there, some people actually read the article, some people got the headline and made an assumption based on that, threats and stupidity ensued...

And that’s why I left that half of the article on there without finishing it, a number of people who know me wrote in and said “You left it like you had something more to say...”

Actually, I do...

It is vital, not good or right, but vital that people be allowed to say what they want, that they can speak whatever they want when and wherever they want, and there are two reasons for this.

1: Because as I mentioned yesterday, then we know they are there...

2: Because most people don’t go looking for problems, but they will act when one is presented to them...

What I’ve seen over the last few days has been nothing short of brilliant, because the overwhelming response from most has been that this is not their game and that they will have no part of it, and to all those looking in from the outside, they too have the choice to skim read the title and make a conclusion or look closely and see the truth of it.

And the truth of this..?

 Ranging from the white heat of those offended by the very existence of the product to the bemused shaking of heads from those who were not personally offended but thought the product stupid and immature, almost all of us have been saying that it’s a bad product that in no way represents the community.

Truth...

Some argue that it shouldn't be allowed to be put out there because it lowers the level of our community, it shows us up as immature children giggling at fart jokes.

False...

What it shows is that when things like this arise, we as a community rise up to say “This is not us...” and anyone coming to the table with this as evidence that we’re immature children will have to contend with the massive outpouring of “NOT US” that sits right next to it.

If they never get to put it out there however...?

It’ll still be there...

We just won’t see it, and one day it’ll be used as a point against us with all our detractors saying that no one protested it...

I’d rather know that there’s people in my community that do and say this, I’d rather them be in the open where everyone can see them on one side and everyone else on the other, I’d rather people be able to make their own conclusions rather than saying this sort of thing doesn’t exist in our community...

Because it does

And Freedom of Speech is exactly that, Speech, you can say what you want.  Not the same as Freedom of Action, where those who want it, buy it, and those who don’t, don’t...

On a day when a product like this becomes the top selling product on any website except the creators, then I’ll be concerned.

But it is not this day... 

Drivethru and Freedom of Speech

Trigger Warning:  All of them, the following piece contains frank opinions on a number of things, those who know me know that I have fought my whole life for those less able than me, I’ve always been there for those who needed me, and I fight for what I believe to be right.  I’ve got strong opinions that I keep to myself because I don’t feel the need to talk about them to others.

That changed just recently.

There’s been a lot of talk in recent times of what’s acceptable and what’s not in the world of RPGs, and a lot of it has centred around a particular product (That I shall not name to give it more publicity) that arrived on the store and set off an Inferno because it wasn’t immediately pulled down by the stores management.

I have to preface what I’m about to say because the potential for people to twist things for their own agenda is colossal, and we all have to be aware that there are always agendas when individual points of view are being considered..

The question posed was whether or not something can be considered inappropriate for general release due to the subject matter contained within, and to make a reasonable comment on that, you have to consider things in a broader perspective.

Is it appropriate to take it down because it offends certain people?

No... Never...

Why?

Because you’d never make anything, someone somewhere will always have a problem with something, no matter how much the rest of the world likes it (sometimes exactly because the rest of the world likes it.)

Is it appropriate to take it down because it contains certain subjects that are considered taboo?

No... Never...

Why?

Because the subject matter is not the problem, the way in which it’s presented is the problem.  It’s possible to talk about any subject from two different perspectives, one that uses the subject respectfully and carefully, neither sensationalising or condoning it, and one that uses the subject for shock and baiting tactics.

The First is acceptable, the Second is not.

To say that bad things don’t exist is naive at best, stupid at worst, and by not talking about them, the only thing you do is deny their existence to people who would otherwise not have known about them.

Would the world be better off thinking some things didn’t exist?

No... Never...

Why?

Because they do exist...

There are bastards in the world, All genders, all creeds, all religions, all orientations, bastardry is not limited to any part of humanity, and that’s where the subject matter becomes a problem, when it’s used for the wrong purpose.

When you write something, you have to consider what is it you’re writing.  If you write a scene where a bunch of fifty year olds are playing RPG’s around a table (bear with me here) you can present it in two ways, the first shows a bunch of childish losers who never grew up, the second shows two directors, one geneticist and a nuclear engineer all having fun with their friends.  If you write a rape scene, it can be presented as the horrific crime it is, it can show the devastation that it leaves behind, the wounds that often never close, and if they do, remain close to the surface.  Or you can use it as a tagline, something to draw people in to stare at.

Because most of humanity does stare when others are hurt or upset, they don’t step up and try to help, they don’t put themselves at risk.

They take out their phones and film it...

It was the second that the aforementioned product did, the title was deliberately provocative and those who wrote it knew that.  If they didn’t, they should seriously consider which world they live in, no one is that naive anymore...

And this brought up the question of free speech, with many heated opinions on all sides.

My take?

Are you free to speak of it?

Of course, those are the freedoms that the countries we live in granted you.

Are others free to speak of you in return?

Of course, those are the freedoms that the countries we live in granted them.

It is not right (note the use of the word right, not possible or reasonable) to restrict the opinions of any person just because you don’t agree with them.  If you cannot or will not make a reasonable argument to what they are saying, then you have the choice of ignoring them or walking away, because it’s very likely if they’ve been shouting about it, they’re going to keep on shouting about it.  Does this apply to everyone?

Yes... Absolutely...

Whether it’s over the Ether or in person, if you care about something, you’ll form a strong opinion to it, and you’ll be inclined to defend that position from anyone attacking it, which is only human nature.  What makes us most human is the ability to accept (Not agree) that someone else has a different perspective, and that as long as it’s not hurting anyone, we should let them have that.

Now here’s where the box of worms opens...

Most of the entrenched on both sides are now saying “But it is hurting me, I’m hurt because I want to say **** because it matters to me, and it hurts when I can’t say it because of those bastards.” Only for the other side to retort with “But it is hurting me, I’m hurt because I want to say **** because it matters to me, and it hurts when I can’t say it because of those bastards.”

And this goes on...

Every once in a while, someone has to step into the middle of these wars, and because these people identify with neither side, they end up getting shot at from both sides and whatever they do will not be enough.

This is where I found Matt Mcelroy this week after this went up.  Unlike a whole bunch of people who are talking about him at the moment, I know Matt. I’ve met him in person and while I haven’t spent as much time around him as I’d have liked, I know him enough to know he’s a good guy faced with the impossible task of putting in measures to satisfy both sides when both sides are only happy with their perspectives and recognise no middle ground.

Matt holds a tremendous amount of power as the person in charge of Drivethru, and with great power...Well...

Comes Great Headaches I have no doubt...

They’re never going to make things right for everyone, and whether they took a side or not, there’d be people upset and there’s still no win to be had...

There’s no win in this for anyone, only those who profit from the war...

For myself, I think the product that was put up was deliberate clickbait, I haven’t bought it so I can’t comment on it, and I also believe that absolute censorship is not the way forwards. It ends up like the BBFC before they were accountable, and we all saw how that ended up, the only films that got through in those days without a red triangle on them involved paint and the art of drying...

And in times like these, I’ll stand with the people trying rather than the people yelling...

And I’m with Matt on this, I’m not on anyones side, I’m here to help where I can...

Those who say I can’t help without choosing a side, this isn’t a war, you might think it is, but it’s not, not yet...

This is how wars start, lets try to stop it from getting to that stage...

Big B******* Walking club, On a week of Overtime, there can be no rest...

 And so, following the epic fail of trying to go to Langsett Reservoir last week, we set out again this week, this time with regular maps as well as postcodes with which to guide us, and amazingly...

We found it...

Langsett isn't much further down the road than Underbank, but it is designed to walk around and provides a reasonably scenic route as well as a good degree of up and down so the walk doesn't get too leisurely.  We found a number of interesting things on the walk...

High into the pass, or into the long dark of Moria...

Yep, avoid Moria...

 

Although the Watcher, could have been watching...

It may not look far on the banking to the left, but it really is...

At least there's a wall to stop you falling straight in...

Although neither of us wanted to meet the bird that made that birds nest...

Or find out what was re-enacting Predator but using trees instead of people...

A good bridge (yes, we always find one) over the stream.

Which showed us the path along the river that was (today) to be denied to us...

And no easy way down on the other side of the bridge...

 Meaning back up the hill (Damnit...) to the high path...

 

And so we found an opportunity for Cmdr Swift to practise his druidic talents...

Proof of his tree bending can be found by all those going here in future.

Although we left before the Kaiju that did this came back...

To retrieve the snack it had clearly left here the last time it came through.

Poetry...for me to put my arse upon...There's something not so poetic about that I think...

And an excellent Sunset...

No matter where you look at it from...

And the spotted cafe beloved of those watching the Tour...

So we couldn't go all the way round because the path was closed both ways on the far side of the bridge, but we're returning next week, and we'll have the whole thing this time, so more next week...