Tag: roll playing games

This Week in Comics (My Pull List 3-27-24)

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Bruce

So If you read my last post about Indiana Comic Con you know about that. I wouldn’t say “Worst Con Ever” because I’ve been to worse Cons, but I would have to say it wasn’t what was advertised, or at least if this is the direction Comic Cons are going- I don’t see the need to attend them, unless I want photos and autographs (which I don’t). Heroes Con in Charlotte and Baltimore Comic Con seem to be the hold outs when it comes to die-hard comic cons, I’m sure there are others, but those are the ones that jump out.

I have said in the past that I’m torn between a bunch of different things I like- with retirement I’m trying to decide what I really want to focus on. Yes, I know I don’t have to focus on one thing, but with limited resources I need to decide what I really want to invest in. First there’s comic books- something I have been interested in since I was probably six or seven years old. Something I keep returning to when I need to escape. I returned to comics the last time when I was in grad school and needed to escape the pressure of classes. Tied closely to that is drawing. Again something I return to over and over again. I don’t see this going away anytime soon.

After Billund I have renewed my interest in building with LEGO Bricks, but mostly sets and not full on MOCs (My Own Creation). The thing keeping me from diving in again is the community. While there are some amazing people, the local LUG seems to be a a bunch of people who are into being in power and not willing to change or adapt. One of the reasons I retired was that I felt the robotics program could not evolve as long as I was in charge. It needed new ideas and other people to be responsible. Same goes for our local LUG. “We’ve always done this way” seems to be their mantra, and they will argue until you just give up.

I have met some of my best friends through MINI Coopers. I’m not a car guy, but I do love the MINI Community and the people in it. Like LEGO, the local group seems stuck in doing the same things over and over again with the same people in charge. There is another group in Fort Wayne which I’ve attended a number of events, then there are the national events like MINI Takes The States which are awesome. If only MINI would go back to making smaller cars, but as long as the Roadster is running (and when I get the classic back to working) things are fine. Unfortunately when people start talking to me about cars, I realize just how much I don’t know.

Geocaching is Sue’s thing. I have made a lot of friends while hunting down Tupperware in the woods, but I’m definitely not as competitive or completist enough to geocache more than when I’m traveling (see comments on Caching in my posts about Denmark).

I’ve been into games since I was in middle school playing the Marquis de Iblis in D&D. The problem with gaming is having to rely on other people and in this day and age it is impossible to coordinate calendars. I’m tired of thinking I’m going to play only to have it cancelled at the last minute. This is the thing on the chopping block, I’ve invested a lot into games, but if they aren’t being played, it’s kind of silly. I’m torn between attending Gen Con this year because I could use the resources in other interests… and I don’t really need anything more. Although it is an amazing Con and I highly recommend it if you are into games.

This Weeks Comics:

Primer #1 (of 4) – Primer is an all ages comic introducing Ashley, a foster kid who can just be trouble. She get’s placed with a couple who are polar opposites and tries to escape, only to discover one of their secrets… Since it’s a first issue there is a lot of character background going on, which is good. Sadly it looks like this will only be 4 issues, hopefully it will continue, The premise is interesting.

The Flash # 7 – What happened to Max Mercury and Impulse?!? In this issue we find out. Something weird is also going on with everyone else, but I’m sure Barry will figure that out while Wally is in the garden looking at statues and finding out about the Arc Angles… no that isn’t a typo. Angle not Angel.

Detective Comics #1083 – This version of Batman is hopefully going to get out of the desert and return to Gotham to save it from the Orthams who have made Gotham a better place (on the surface, but under that chocolate coating is it still an ooey gooey mess of corruption and bad stuff?) The Question finds evidence, but is it too late? A then Dr. Hate’s story comes to a conclusion… or does it? So many question marks…

Black Hammer The End #6 – So, this is the end… Will Lucy save the world from the Anti-God? What about the extremely large cast of characters gathered throughout the previous 5 issues? DC took 12 issues to do what Dark Horse and Lemire are doing in six…

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #18 (Legacy #300) – Big issue in which Miles goes up against the Cape Killers who have more impressive powers even if they don’t want to use them! Will Miles finally confront Rabble and save Brooklyn? Who lives? Who dies? Only the next issue will tell.

Amazing Spider-Man #46 – The Sinister Six return and try to help a reluctant Sandman escape Ravencroft (no relation to Ravenloft in Barovia). Spider-Man and Jackpot (MJ) try to thwart the attempt made by Electro… and succeed?

Star Trek Defiant #13 – OK- if you read the last issue there are no spoilers, if you didn’t- shame on you. IN the last issue we find out what happened to those weird bug creatures that had infiltrated the Federation way, way back in ST:TNG’s first season (Episode 25- Conspiracy). The alien enemy I think we all thought would be the new big bad, but they never showed up again, instead the Borg took their place. They have taken over a Starbase (for Lower Deck fans , not Starbase 80) and Worf and the crew of the Defiant have been sent there (probably by someone taken over by the alien bugs). Now they need to escape but seeing as this is only part 2, we’ve got a long way to go in this arc. I’m OK with that.

Ultimate Spider-Man #3 – Wow. Just like the original Ultimate universe we are starting to get into some interesting stuff! Spider-Man gets help with his costume (with amusing options). He also meets and teams up with an old friend (who is a new friend in this universe).

Alan Scott Green Lantern #5 – The penultimate issue in which Red Lantern reveals more about his origin and we finally meet the real bad guys and (redacted) show up to make the next issue awesome.

Nacelleverse #0- This was recommended to me at Indiana Comic Con (but I won’t hold that against it). Basically take some of your 1980-90’s toy lines and create a comic book encompassing all of them. Robo Force, Biker Mice from Mars, Sectaurs, Power Lords, and The Great Garloo are brought back in a story featuring Garloo. If you don’t recognize any of these brands… you (like me) won’t have the nostalgia button pressed, but it still was a good story setting up a series and the return of these toys to market. Toy marketing has always been a part of cartoons and comics, so this just updates it a bit to tug at the heartstrings of people who now have more deposable income and don’t need their parents permission to buy stuff. Unless they are still living in their parent’s basement.

Time2 Omnibus – I had the chance to meet Howard Chaykin at Galaxy Con. I went to a panel and then paid for a workshop. He’s done a lot in his career but the one I got caught up with was “American Flagg” a take on the future in which a lot of the things going on in the comic seem logical if things continue the way they have been (Have you ever seen “Idiocracy”?). Time2 started off connected to American Flagg- kind of in the multiverse alternate timeline crossover kind of way. It then branched off on its own. A future based on the 1930’s style with gangsters and robots and jazz and… It reminds me somewhat of the Will Eisner’s Contract with God, with a cool American Flagg science fiction twist. This omnibus actually was released a while ago, but I finally picked up a copy.

Uncle Bruce’s Guide to Dungeons and Dragons Or like it was known in the late 70’s and 80’s: Satanism 101

Posted on May 5, 2023 by Bruce

Role playing games are basically choose your own adventure stories in which everyone gets to decide the path the story goes. They range in complexity and are usually set in a Fantasy, or Science Fiction world. Think about it, being a level 14 elementary school teacher might be adventurous, but after a while grading papers for nights on end can get a bit boring.

Dungeon & Dragons is the grandfather of them all (I’m sure someone will argue the point, but for me it was a great starting place, and still is).  Based on a fantasy world in which magic is in the air and mythical creatures exist.  Just watch the beginning of Disney’s “Onward” from 2020- just watch out for gelatinous cubes. 2023 will bring a new live action film which looks rather good – “Honor Among Thieves”  as of this writing all we have are trailers, so- Caveat Emptor.

Starting out:

What do you want to be?  You pick your character, the person running the game “The Dungeon Master” also known as “Game Master” also known as “Jeff” or in your case ‘Uncle Bruce” is more of a narrator and rules arbitrator.  They set the world before you and adjust to what the group decides, guiding them through the story to hopefully a happy ending.

Do you want to be an elf or a dwarf?  Do you want to swing a sword or throw lightning bolts?  When you create a character there are pros and cons to every choice.

Character Creation Basics:

Attributes:

Strength- How strong you are

Dexterity- How fast you are, how accurate you are when hitting something

Intelligence- How smart you is

Wisdom- How wise you are- can you be fooled?

Constitution- Health, How much damage can you take?

Charisma- How people see you- Are you a pretty boy? Are you someone people fear? Do people naturally trust you?

Races/Species:

Each race/species has their own pros & cons.  One thing to always consider is what are the disadvantages and how big are they.  For example:  I have learned that for me having a character that has “darkvision” is better than carrying a torch around.  Torches tend to be like bright targets to dungeon dwelling monsters.

The basics are:

Humans-  Just your average “Joe” or “Josephine” +1 to all ability scores, no darkvision

Halflings (Hobbits) – Short, furry feet no darkvision +2 Dexterity, Lucky (reroll 1’s

Lightfoot – +1 Charisma, Stealthy

Stout – +1 Constitution, advantage vs. Poison

Dwarves – Like mining and beards. Darkvision advantage against poison

Hill Dwarf- +1 Wisdom

Mountain Dwarf +2 Strength

Elves – can be rather full of themselves  Darkvision, +2 Dexterity

High Elf- +1 Intelligence, Wizard Cantrip

Wood Elf- +1 Wisdom

Drow- +1 Charisma, Superior Darkvision, disadvantages to sunlight usually seen as evil- c’mon they worship a giant spider goddess

Lesser known: which means the DM can say “no” or make it really weird every time you need to go into a town. “The townspeople shutter their windows as the Dragonborn walks by…”  “The priest at the local temple gathers a mob to drive the Tiefling out of town before evil descends and destroys this season’s harvest”  “There’s something weird about the way people look at you.”

Gnomes – +2 Intelligence, Darkvision, advantage on INT WIS & CHA saves vs. magic

Forest Gnome +1 Dexterity, minor illusion cantrip, talk to animals

Rock Gnome- +1 Constitution Tinker

Dragonborn – Don’t ask me how, but half dragon half human +2 strength, +1 Charisma

Draconic Ancestry breath weapon varies

Tieflings – demons get around =1 intelligence, +2 Charisma, darkvision, Thaumaturgy cantrip Hellish rebuke spell, darkness spell at 5th level

Half Elf – Elves slumming it +2 Charisma, +1 two other scores, darkvision, advantage vs. charmed and sleep magic

Half Orc – Orcs meet up with humans who are into bad boys & girls- you know the ones trying to rebel against their parent’s authority  +2 Strength, +1 Constitution, darkvision, extra damage on a critical hit

Character Classes:

What is you job/profession?  What are you doing adventuring around?

The basic character classes are:

Fighter – hits things with a sword

Magic-User – when in doubt, cast a fireball at things.

Cleric – OMG! Help me!  Usually uses the divine to help and support characters.

Rogue – Where’s my wallet?  Hides, and picks locks.

There are others, but these are pretty much the root of all characters each has their pros and cons and in the old school D&D subclasses:

Fighter: Strength or Dexterity, Constitution or Intelligence (if you want to cast spells)

Barbarian: Fighter with anger management issues  Strength, Constitution

Paladin: Fighter + Cleric  (Holier than thou attitude) Strength, Charisma

Monk: “everybody was Kung-Fu fighting”  Dexterity, Wisdom

Ranger: Fighter + Druid  Dexterity, Wisdom  Think Robin Hood

Magic-User:

Wizard:  Knowledge is POWER  Intelligence, Constitution or Dexterity

Sorcerer:  I was just born this way Charisma, Constitution

Warlock:  Power from a devil or Demon. Charisma, Constitution

Cleric: Wisdom, Strength or Constitution

Druid: Wisdom, Constitution

Rogue: Thief, spy, con artist Dexterity, Intelligence or Charisma

Bard: A little bit from column a and a bit from column b.  Charisma, Dexterity

Check to see when things happen for each class- When do you get certain powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men?  Each class will have a point where you can increase an ability score- this would be when (if you wanted to) exchange this for adding a feat.  

“I think your Alignment might be off.”

Every fandom has their version of Alignments. I agree with one of my old DM’s who had one rule- we do not play evil characters because that is who we are fighting against. To put it simply these are the Alignments. I have found that while it is fun to play something that isn’t “you” it is harder than you think, since your own morals tend to get mixed up in how to react to situations. For this I tend to play either Lawful Good or Chaotic Good which is determined by my characters background.

The Naming of Names

The last thing you should do after rolling everything out and figuring out who your character is would be to give it a name. I have found that this can be the window into the player’s soul. If you are serious you create some fanciful name that fits within the world. You may just name it after a character from a story. How many fighters are named after Arthurian knights, or Conan the Barbarian? How many wizards are named “Gandalf” or something similar? How many elves are named “Elrond” or Halflings named “Frodo”? The name should be meaningful for you and who cares what other people think? As you will see, I’m a little silly when it comes to my naming of characters, because that’s the way I play. I don’t take the game or my character too seriously.

Over complicating things at the start…

There are a few things that are listed as optional or at the “DM’s discretion” sometimes these are little things that aren’t a big deal, just understand that while your character can be used in another game, another DM may not have the same open-mindedness that another one has. Also keep in mind that everyone has a different level of experience or even access to materials. When I am playing with a new group, I always start with a simple straightforward character out of the Player’s Handbook. I don’t add anything outside of the basic rules. I figure until I know the group, this is the best. I chuckle when a new player who has just finished rolling out their character sits next to someone who starts off with, “My character is a Warforged.” Which is from a book that the DM and the player might have access to, but no one else. Then they announce that they are an Artificer, that class is from a different book, so now instead of a world inhabited by elves, dwarves and humans, we now have droids with blasters…

What happens after your first adventure?

Good question. For a lot of people that is the time where they need to decide if they like the character they have and want to continue or if they want to try something else. Sometimes, after one adventure, a player will realize that they like what another player’s character was doing and will want to start new. Sometimes, one adventure automatically leads into another – hence the chance to have an EPIC campaign rivaling the Odyssey or Le Mort D’Arthur or Game of Thrones or Toy Story.

The Awesomeness of Third Level-

Most character classes require you to make some choice at third level.  The idea is that you have a basic knowledge of how the game functions so now you can customize your character to better meet whatever your vision may be.  By this time if you have not come up with a backstory, you may want to since it helps in roleplaying.  You should look at what those options are and maybe start steering your character that way from the beginning.

Uncle Bruce’s Role Playing Evolution:

I started off playing a Lawful Evil assassin (Thief subclass) and basically did everything that in real life I would never do.  The Marquis de Iblis served me well through many adventures throughout high school.

In college I played a magic user who carried a katana.  We used the Middle Earth Role Playing System based on ICE. He was pretty much a bait and switch character.  You saw this vagabond on the road, thinking he was a down and out fighter and then from out of nowhere you got hit with a lightning bolt.  Greyf was actually used by my DM at home to confuse his hone group during one of their adventures.

I returned to D&D playing a rogue in a few games (Cecil), a Wizard in a few games (Bibbiti Bobbiti Boo) a Barbarian in one game (Oogachucka) finally settling on a series of Bards (Lennon McCartney, Simon Garnetfunkel, Peter Paulenmary, and now Arlo) to me the bard is the most versatile of the classes allowing you to heal, cast spells, and fight. The Bard College you choose at third level helps to refine what direction you want your character to go.