Talien's Tower

The Well of Stars by Michael J. Tresca [Review]

2012-01-16T20:25:00.000-05:00

"I hope, oh how I hope, that Tresca, best known in the sci fi/fantasy community as a gaming guru, casts aside his game guides and only turns out fantasy books. This is by far the best book of its kind since I first stumbled across Another Fine Myth by Robert Aspirin. Yes, it’s that good. So run, fly, gallop or snowboard out and get The Well of Stars right now! You don’t need to eat! You don’t need to sleep. You need to read this book. I promise you will be in love too."

The Well of Stars in Print & Kindle!

2011-11-02T09:30:00.000-04:00

What if the fuzzy little fat guy decided to keep the ancient evil artifact instead of destroying it? What if the elf, ranger, and dwarf were the bad guys? When the world runs out of heroes, it turns to a necromanceress and her zombie servant, a one-eyed villainous prince and his incontinent pondscum dragon, and a rebellious captain of the guard to save Welstar. These second-string heroes might just find love, life, and happiness along the way...if they survive!

My first novel: The Well of Stars!

2011-10-13T17:27:00.000-04:00

My first fiction novel!

Coming soon!The World in the Hands of Unlikely HeroesWhat if the fuzzy little fat guy decided to keep the ancient evil artifact instead of destroying it? What if the elf, ranger, and dwarf were the bad guys? When the world runs out of heroes, it turns to a necromanceress and her zombie servant, a one-eyed villainous prince and his incontinent pondscum dragon, and a rebellious captain of the guard to save Welstar. These second-string heroes might just find love, life, and happiness along the way...if they survive!

Long Live Play

2011-10-06T20:18:00.001-04:00

It's nice that they made a commercial dedicated to me. Remember that month-long outage where my PS3 was useless? I forgive you.

I'm in a GE Video

2011-08-30T22:46:00.003-04:00

Yeah, that's me.

PR News LinkedIn Webinar - How to Use LinkedIn as a Powerful PR Tool

2011-08-26T10:15:00.002-04:00

On Thursday, September 22, 2011, 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. EST, I will be a panelist on a discussion about LinkedIn!

LinkedIn is a powerful PR tool to increase brand awareness and build a community of clients, customers and stakeholders. While you may use the site for personal networking, many PR professionals may not be leveraging the platform’s features to find potential employees, share news about your organization or discover new clients.

This Webinar will provide the tactics that you need to expand your knowledge of LinkedIn’s PR applications, and become a digital leader for your organization. Our panel of experts will show you how to use this powerful platform to build and engage a community, raise brand awareness and interact with the media. You’ll learn how to use LinkedIn to connect with potential clients, get your message heard, increase engagement and drive traffic to your Web site.

After just 90 minutes, you’ll have a better understanding of how to use LinkedIn as part of your everyday communications initiatives. In this Webinar, you’ll learn how to:

Build a powerful profile for your brand

Optimize your company profile with keywords and phrases

Identify and connect with key influencers

Create and manage a group for your clients, customers and stakeholders

Participate in LinkedIn Answers to establish thought leadership

Integrate content from Twitter, blogs and other social media platforms to your LinkedIn profile

Build and maintain relationships with journalists

Use crowd sourcing techniques to test new products or services

Drive traffic to your Website or corporate blog through status updates

Post job openings and recruit new talent

With more than 100 million registered users on LinkedIn, PR pros must add this powerful platform to their digital arsenals. more

Awfully Familiar Signed to Dark Quest Books!

2011-08-16T22:28:00.002-04:00

I just signed a contract with Dark Quest Books to publish my fantasy fiction novel, Awfully Familiar! 2011 is turning out to be a banner year: my non-fiction book The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games was published, The Well of Stars is forthcoming from Three Ravens Books, and now Awfully Familiar will be published by Dark Quest Books! Woohoo!

I Got the Adventurer Badge from WOTC!

2011-08-11T22:23:00.003-04:00

I earned the "Adventurer" badge on Foursquare when I visited the Wizards of the Coast booth at Gen Con. This amuses me greatly.

My experience with the Dungeons & Dragons Documentary

2011-07-25T06:48:00.000-04:00

In what I hope is just the beginning of a series of dialogues with the creators of Dungeons & Dragons: A Documentary, Anthony Savini and Andrew Pascal taped me today talking at length about my book, my thesis, and my experiences with Dungeons & Dragons across all kinds of media.

Read more at http://www.examiner.com/rpg-in-national/my-experience-the-dungeons-dragons-documentary

My Book Discounted from $35 to $3.99!

2011-07-21T21:48:00.002-04:00

McFarland has nominated, and Amazon has accepted, the Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games for inclusion in a special Kindle ebook promotion. The book normally retails for $35 in dead tree format so this is a whopping discount of $31.01!

I Will Be At ConnectiCon!

2011-07-07T22:57:00.003-04:00

This is my first visit to the con. I'll also be getting back to my RPGA roots by playing some 4E D&D games. Can't wait!

Here's the panels I will be participating in (don't believe the program booklet):

* Podcasting Basics Saturday at 10:30 AM (Tresca/Elliot)
* Lovecraft in my Peanut Butter Saturday at 3:00 PM (Tresca/TBA)
* Improving your game Sunday at 12:30 PM (Tresca/Carpio/TBA)

For more info see the convention web site. See you at the con!

Infographic: Taking Down Terrorists

2011-06-21T06:37:00.004-04:00

This is one of my favorite infographics, because it details much of the tactics in my current Delta Green campaign (from The Atlantic):

Review - The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games by Michael J. Tresca

2011-05-26T23:00:00.001-04:00

For anyone who is looking for a definitive history of the development of role-playing games, this book is likely to be a little bit of a disappointment. For anyone looking for a comprehensive treatment of the social aspects of role-playing games, this is also likely to be a bit of a disappointment. This book is neither of those things. It is a kind of hybrid that gives a rough outline of the history of role-playing games, and a brief glimpse of the social framework that these games engender. This book is more the first salvo in the effort to take on role-phttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.giflaying games as an academic subject, rather than the final word. As a launching point for a more complete treatment of either, this is an excellent beginning.

Examiner Success Stories: Building virtual worlds and real audiences

2011-05-20T18:53:00.000-04:00

Michael Tresca is a game designer, author, communicator and artist. He had been a professional freelance writer in the gaming field before he discovered Examiner.com. He was drawn by the freedom the site offered so that he could define his own column. That’s when he became a role-playing game Examiner. But defining the column was rooted in the much larger story of defining the Internet and the World Wide Web. His master’s thesis, The Impact of Anonymity on Disinhibitive Behavior Through Computer-Mandated Communication, was published in 1998. By analyzing posts from a law enforcement news group, it revealed the dark side of human interactions via computers.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Examiner Success Stories: Building virtual worlds and real audiences - National RPG | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/rpg-in-national/examiner-success-stories-building-virtual-worlds-and-real-audiences#ixzz1Mw6H3wZR

Review: 'The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games' PB

2011-05-11T21:07:00.001-04:00

ICv2 reviewed my book and gave it three stars:

Because the book covers miniatures games, tabletop role-playing, computer games and even Live Action Role Playing, the book is at best an overview and history, but has fascinating points to make. Anyonhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gife seriously interested can spin off from the many entries in the bibliography for further study. This serious study will only be of interest to adults.

My first fiction book to be published: The Well of Stars!

2011-05-09T21:24:00.005-04:00

Hot on the heels of news of my non-fiction book, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, I'm pleased to announce that Three Ravens Books has accepted my manuscript for The Well of Stars!

Filled with macabre humor, high sorcery, and a quest to save the world, The Well of Stars follows the adventures of three unlikely protagonists dragged into a plague-ridden war after the original heroes failed. It features a quirky necromanceress, a one-eyed prince with memory loss, a former opera-singer turned zombie, a snooty elf with terrible aim, an incomprehensible dwarf, a ranger who couldn't track his way out of a box, and snowboarding Eskimos.

That's right, The Well of Stars, featuring Welstar, the fantasy universe in which I've set two decades of stories, characters, and games. Welstar has been a Dungeons & Dragons 1st- and 2nd-Edition role-playing game campaign for all of my high school and college, a world on the text-based online multi-user dungeon RetroMUD, and the setting for three novels and over a dozen short stories.

This has been a long time coming and it feels good to be on the cusp of reaching my lifelong goal of fiction publication -- with my premiere fantasy setting no less. Stay tuned for more information as the book develops!

Yep, that's me

2011-04-15T10:36:00.002-04:00

It's creative, I'll give them that.

My I-CON Schedule

2011-04-15T09:42:00.001-04:00

Michael "Talien" Tresca is a game designer, author, communicator, and artist. Michael has authored numerous supplements and adventures for publishers of Open Game License and D20-compatible games, including AEG, MonkeyGod Enterprises, Goodman Games, Otherworld Creations, Privateer Press, RPGObjects and Ronin Arts. His articles and reviews have appeared in Allgame.com, D20 Filtered, Dragon Magazine, Gamers.com, Pyramid, and RPG.net. He has participated in panels about electronic and tabletop role-playing games at Bakuretsucon, Dragon*Con, and I-Con. Michael is the National RPG and Sci-Fi Movie Examiner and recently published a book by McFarland Publishing, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games.

When he's not writing, Michael can be found as his alter ego, Talien, on RetroMUD as an administrator. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, a preschooler, an infant, and a cat. All are fluent in English.

This guest can be seen at the following programming:

Gaming Guests Meet & Greet - Friday from 6:00pm - 7:00pm in SAC 305
Blog About It - Friday from 7:00pm - 7:30pm in Javits 109
You Got Your Lovecraft in My Peanut Butter - Friday from 7:30pm - 8:00pm in Javits 109
State of the Industry - Saturday from 10:00am - 11:00am in SAC 305
What Makes a Great Villain? - Saturday from 11:00am - 12:00pm in Javits 100
Zombies: Not Just for Breakfast Anymore - Saturday from 6:00pm - 6:30pm in Javits 109

New Review: Flawed, yet very useful,

2011-03-29T15:46:00.002-04:00

Compared to earlier works on the history of role-playing games, Tresca does an admirable job. From Tolkien to tabletop to digital, as well as some other variants, he shows the main paths by which role-playing games have changed and evolved, in style and content. He even pays special attention to the way certain phenomena (particularly larps) have much more complex roots. Tresca has made a serious attempt at being inclusive, even as he concentrates on American fantasy games, and while he does not get all of the facts always right, the effort has to be applauded. Nordic immersion debates and Forgean design theorists, for example, do get discussed, so it is obvious that he has done his homework.

There are some more serious problems, though. Most prominently, the author tends to ramble. He spends loads of time explaining unnecessary things like game minutiae, quoting friends and family, and mentioning anecdotal material probably of interest to mostly just himself. Certain definitively significant games are never discussed, and several references he uses are missing from the list at the end. The effect is that the whole work comes through as ambitious and impressive in scope, yet sloppy.

Somewhat flawed as it may be, Tresca's book is nevertheless absolutely mandatory reading for all serious role-playing scholars. As far as providing an "official history" of role-playing games goes, I think he has all in all succeeded quite well.

The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games [Kindle Edition]

2011-03-05T16:42:00.003-05:00

My book is on sale electronically! Which explains why I suddenly sold a bunch of books last week. It retails for twenty bucks, which is a heck of a lot cheaper than the "library priced" $35 the book normally goes for.

I'm Going to I-Con!

2011-03-04T20:13:00.001-05:00

After a two-year hiatus I'll be once again attending I-CON as a panelist! Also a first -- I now actually rate a picture! Check out my hopelessly square picture and bio at the I-CON site. I'll post my schedule next. more

R.I.P. Uncle Frank

2011-02-08T06:39:00.002-05:00

Frank M. Tresca, of Islip Terrace, L.I. passed on February 1, 2011. Beloved husband of Georgeann Tresca for 35 years. Loving father of Michael, Daniel, Tina Tresca, Maria Weinfurt and the late Dominic Corso. Cherished grandfather of Michelle, Anthony, Isabella, Kyle and Jillian. Adored father-in-law of Bill, Sarah, Rhonda and Sonia. Dear brother of Michael and Donald Tresca. Fond son-in-law of Jennie Cundari. Band member of Express, Long Island's premiere oldies dance band.

Book Review: MMORPGS NEED TO RESPECT THEIR ELDERS

2011-01-05T13:10:00.002-05:00

I got to thinking about MUDs and why the aforementioned issues are still prevalent in today’s MMORPGs after reading The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, which is authored by my brother, Michael Tresca. Having just read the book cover to cover this past weekend, I can personally attest to the fact that Michael has researched and put together a comprehensive analysis of RPG industry. To say he’s an expert on the subject would be an understatement. Having played the tabletop version of Dungeons and Dragons since he was eight years old, and then almost every PC and console Fantasy game on computer, console and arcade platforms, Michael does a fantastic job of chronicling how Fantasy role playing games have transformed into the games we play today. The book also covers the psychology of why players choose particular character classes and how changing forms of communication have impacted the evolution of the adventuring party. We learn a bit of history in how J.R.R. Tolkien and Gary Gygax among others forged the Fantasy genre and what influences of the time inspired them to do so. The book also explores, compares and contrast the difference between MUDs and MMORPGs. In fact any budding RPG game developer would do well to keep this book in their library as a reference. You can purchase the book at Amazon.com from this link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&keywords=078645895X

Read more at my brother's web site, Eyeballistic.

Book Review: The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games

2010-12-25T06:37:00.002-05:00

I've just finished reading Michael Tresca's new book, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, and I wanted to share my thoughts. It's a grand history of both role-playing in its many forms and Tresca's own games and explorations over the last several decades. His love of games and imagination rings clearly throughout his perceptive analyses and clear, cogent descriptions of games, ideas, and behavior. He brings a thoughtful, theoretical background, based in his own wide experience in gaming and his graduate work examining the behavior of online gamers.

I highly recommend The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games for both its historiographical content and its exploration of the theoretical boundaries of various forms of role-playing and our sprawling hobby overall.

The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games book review

2010-12-25T06:35:00.002-05:00

The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games is a great book to learn how and why certain RPG game mechanics came about. Surprisingly, it is one of the few of its kind.

Every RPG really has the same goal in mind, for the player to achieve agency with his or her character. That is, they want the player to feel like they actually are their character. This is the essence of "role-playing." Whether this is achieved by taking on the role of an established character like Kaim Argonar in Lost Odyssey on the Xbox 360 or creating your own character in Dungeons and Dragons at your kitchen table, the general principle has remained the same for decades. The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games is a must-read for anybody interested in playing or ever creating an RPG.

Read more at National Xbox 360 Examiner.

The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games

2010-12-22T11:02:00.001-05:00

My book is on sale now! If you'd like to purchase it for a 30% discount contact me and I can set up your order.

Tracing the evolution of fantasy gaming from its origins in tabletop war and collectible card games to contemporary web-based live action and massive multi-player games, this book examines the archetypes and concepts within the fantasy gaming genre alongside the roles and functions of the game players themselves. Other topics include: how The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings helped shape fantasy gaming through Tolkien’s obsessive attention to detail and virtual world building; the community-based fellowship embraced by players of both play-by-post and persistent browser-based games, despite the fact that these games are fundamentally solo experiences; the origins of gamebooks and interactive fiction; and the evolution of online gaming in terms of technological capabilities, media richness, narrative structure, coding authority, and participant roles.

Read more at McFarland Publishing.

Happy Anniversary!

2010-11-13T08:14:00.004-05:00

Happy 11th anniversary to my lifelong partner, Amber. I love you! more

Announcing DREADSPACE

2010-10-28T22:05:00.001-04:00

Just in time for Halloween, I am pleased to announce DREADSPACE!

DREADSPACE is the best way to stay up to date on the latest news on horror, sci-fi, and gaming. It includes updates of all my movie reviews and previews from my national Sci-Fi Movie Examiner column; game content, reviews and advice from my National RPG Examiner column; the anti-zombie blog National Center for Reanimation Prevention and Control; and my action gaming horror column The Horror! at RPG.net. DREADSPACE will also feature excerpts and info on where to purchase my upcoming non-fiction book, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games. You now get all of this content in one space...DREADSPACE.

For discounts on my book, RPG sales, and free PDFs, please become a fan of facebook.com/dredspace or follow twitter.com/dreadspace.

What are you waiting for? Join DREADSPACE on Facebook and Twitter today.

Happy Halloween!

Want to Review My Book?

2010-09-25T09:18:00.001-04:00

If you are a professional reviewer and would like to review my upcoming non-fiction book, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, please send me a note and I will ask the publisher to send you a copy.

In Media Res: Conclusion

2010-09-11T23:05:00.001-04:00

Morowitz had the dream again about his sister. He learned to love and hate the dream at the same time, yearning for closeness with the only relative he ever really knew but loathing the inevitable pain that came with it.

But this time a man in the suit was there. His sister was gone.

"Wow, now this is one interesting dream." He walked over, only partially visible through the leather mask Morowitz was wearing. "That can't be comfortable. Is it?"

Morowitz shook his head.

"Here." The man took the mask off of Morowitz, then released his other bindings so he was no longer strapped to the chair. "That's better." He was very tan, sleekly handsome, impeccably dressed.

"Are you going to hurt me?" Morowitz rubbed his wrists.

"Hurt you? Oh I should think not!" The man pulled up his own chair and sat down across from him. "I'm here to recruit you."

"Recruit me?" squeaked Morowitz. He was still a twelve-year-old boy in his dreams. "Who ARE you?"

The man smirked. "You can call me…The Opener of the Way. Way for short. I suppose you could call me The Opener…" he mused, "but really that's a little weird, don't you think?" more

In Media Res: Part 7 – Morgan's Plan

2010-09-10T22:58:00.001-04:00

Morowitz's plan, if he even had one, was dumb. But what Morgan watched Bean do to Jones was far, far worse.

The thrum of a police helicopter filled the air. A spotlight danced over the road, leading up to the cabin. A dark shape loped ahead of it. It had to be Morowitz.

Morgan shook his head. Dumb plan. He deserved to die.

Morgan remembered them all now. Johnny "The Smasher" Morowitz was the muscle, known for crushing skulls with his bare hands. Billy "Taste-Test" Bean was a serial killer who was fond of eating the brains of his victims. George "Incinerator" Jones was a pyromaniac…

Morgan looked around. Pyromaniac! Even in death perhaps Jones' skills could be put to good use. more

In Media Res: Part 6 – Tightening the Noose

2010-09-09T07:00:00.001-04:00

Morowitz ran. The spotlight danced behind him, unhindered by brush or bruises from the car crash. It was all he could do, huffing and puffing, to stay ahead of it. The dirt road, tightly enclosed by brush, led an incriminating trail back to the cabin.

The light lingered mercifully on the car crash and what was left of Jones' corpse. It bought Morowitz time to get back to the cabin.

Morowitz's thoughts raced around in circles. He was a caged animal, trapped. He couldn't fight his way out of this one. There was nowhere to go.

His sister laughed at him from the dining room. What the hell was that? more

In Media Res: Part 5 – The Hunters Return

2010-09-08T20:57:00.001-04:00

Jones looked back and forth between Morgan, who had his pistol drawn, and Morowitz, whose eyes fluttered wildly, knife still at the ready.

"Guys," said Jones. "There's a car coming!"

Morowitz snapped out of it, gasping. He looked around.

"We have to get out of here." Morowitz turned his back on the pistol-wielding Morgan and sat in the driver's seat. "You coming?"

Morgan didn't move. Bean was gone. Jones hopped in the passenger seat.

A full-size Chevy pickup truck towing a camper wound its way down the dirt road towards the cabin.

Morowitz stomped the gas pedal.

The sedan lurched forward, lights off, a dust cloud in the fading light.

"What are you doing?" shouted Jones, who realized at that moment he hadn't put on his seat belt. more

In Media Res: Part 4 – Power and Pain

2010-09-07T06:47:00.001-04:00

Morgan stepped out into the doorway of the cabin, cleaner and dressed differently. The clothes didn't fit perfectly but they would do. The others were looking at him strangely. He knew something was up.

Morgan kept one hand on the pistol but didn't pull it out. "What?"

Morowitz stabbed an accusing finger in the direction of the open trunk. "Did you do this s**t?"

Morgan peered into it. "Dead bodies, huh?"

"One shot to the head each," said Bean. "Clean. Quick."

"Maybe I did," said Morgan. "So what?"

"So what?" asked Morowitz. The big butcher knife was in his hand. "Maybe I don't trust someone who shoots little girls with a gun. Hand it over."

Morgan backed up. "No."

"I'm not gonna ask again, little man." Morowitz took another menacing step forward. "Hand it over or I will inflict a world of hurt…"

And then Morowitz remembered too… more

In Media Res: Part 3 – Things go Bust

2010-09-06T12:49:00.001-04:00

Morgan rifled through the clothing of the man of the house, indifferent as to the fate of its owner. Dead, he decided, if they were lucky. Morgan was a cold-blooded killer, he knew that much. But he wasn't some psycho – not the type to skin a man's face off or eat his tongue.

He wanted to scrub the stink of the place off of him. They were into some weird, deep s**t – cult stuff, the kind of things that made the news. And Morgan didn't like the idea of making more news.

He was going to have to ditch the others, and fast. Morowitz was too surly and unpredictable. Jones was too quiet. And Bean was just plain too f**ked up. He didn't trust any of them.

Morgan turned the water on. After squeaking and shuddering in protest, the pipes complied.

The blood washed away. Morgan put one hand on the bathroom wall and bowed his head, letting the water pour over him, enjoying the sensation.

When he looked up, he saw that he'd left a fading, bloody handprint on the shower wall. It looked like the blot downstairs. And that reminded him of something... more

In Media Res: Part 2 – The Thing in the Trunk

2010-09-05T09:29:00.001-04:00

Outside, there was a barn with a fenced in yard about forty yards from the house. Neighing indicated that there were horses inside. Morowitz shook his head in disgust at just how rural their surroundings really were and made a beeline to the car.

It was wedged tightly into the ditch. Morowitz put his bulk behind it and gave it an experimental shove. It moved, but not by much.

"Well don't just stand there m***erf****ers!" He shouted. "Get to it!"

Bean, pocketed his knife. Jones placed the homemade explosive down by the entry to the house. They both put their shoulders to the car and shoved along with Morowitz.

Shrieking and groaning, the vehicle slowly made its way out of the ditch. When it finally was level again, Morowitz checked the ignition.

"Keys are still in it," he grunted, pleased.

"Did we drive this car here?" asked Jones.

"Maybe."

"Uh, guys…" said Bean. "You may want to take a look at this."

The trunk had partially opened in their efforts to dislodge the vehicle. In the darkness, a single unblinking eye stared up at them, illuminated in the waning light.

Morowitz lifted up the trunk. "S**t."

Inside were two women, dead. The younger was just a teenager, not more than sixteen. The other was probably her mother, judging from the family resemblance. They shared more than looks – each had a red bullet hole in their forehead. more

In Media Res: Part 1 – …Said the Spider to the Fly

2010-09-04T07:43:00.000-04:00

A reporter stood in front of the wreckage of a large bus labeled "Liberty Center for the Criminally Insane," across which rescue workers clambered and scuttled.

"The unprecedented flooding and earthquakes that shook the nation yesterday have been further complicated by yet another tragedy that has let four dangerous convicts escape a maximum security facility. Liberty Center inmates were transported by bus out of the flood zone when the earthquake struck, flipping several prison transports. Four inmates took advantage of the confusion and escape with a hostage, one Dennis Gelon. The fugitives are considered armed and dangerous. Police advise residents to stay indoors and avoid walking anywhere…"

Morgan grunted. "Now we know who we are." more

In Media Res: Prologue

2010-09-04T07:36:00.000-04:00

Morowitz rubbed his forehead. "All right. I'm not good at this planning s**t. I'm guessing one of you is and that's how we got here. So start talking."

Morgan shrugged. "Looks like we're inmates." He rifled through the dead guard's possessions. He pocketed the contents of the wallet after taking out a nametag, which he tossed on the table between the dead man's feet.

"Dennis Gelon," read Jones. "A guard at the Liberty Center for the…" he trailed off.

"Criminally Insane," said Morgan ruefully. more

My Book is Live on Amazon.com!

2010-05-06T20:15:00.002-04:00

My upcoming book, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, just went live on Amazon.com! You can preorder it now! more

It's a Girl!

2010-05-01T07:43:00.001-04:00

Amber went into preterm labor and Violet Elizabeth made her grand --and speedy -- entrance into the world at 2:24AM on Thursday the 29th, weighing in at 3lbs 10oz. She is currently in the neonatal intensive care unit, but is stable, doing well, and feeding.

This blog has moved

2010-04-10T14:38:00.001-04:00

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Grace Under Pressure: Conclusion

2010-04-05T20:41:00.001-04:00

Guppy wept. Cthulhu was visible as a dim glow off in the distance, approaching swiftly.

"That's it then," said Guppy. "It's over."

He put the Wallaby on cruise. There was no point in fleeing. There would be nowhere on Earth they could escape to.

Hammer didn't say anything. He just kept staring at Jim-Bean's heart monitor, listening to the mechanical whine heralding his death.

Cthulhu reached the Horseshoe. With slow, ponderous deliberation it rent the submarine, tearing great gouts in its hull.

Beep. Jim-Bean's heart monitor beeped once.

"Guppy," Hammer said slowly.

"What?" asked Guppy.

Hammer pointed at Jim-Bean's heart monitor. His suit had lost pressure and the sensors were completely missing on one arm, meaning he'd probably lost a limb. But the heart monitor still worked.

Huge bubbles fled to the surface as sparks and flaring light from electrical systems lit the scene of the Horseshoe's demise.

Beep-beep. Jim-Bean's heart monitor bleeped again.

"I think you'd better speed up," said Hammer. more

Grace Under Pressure: Part 8 – The End of the Beginning

2010-04-05T06:19:00.001-04:00

Jim-Bean was dying. No more pain. No more worry.

The light faded. Jim-Bean was already blind, his eyeballs long since destroyed from the radiation, but there was a light within his own mind that shone brightly. Even that was fading. He was falling, falling, falling…

He deserved peace, didn't he? Jim-Bean had been abandoned, experimented on, treated like a dog. He had been betrayed, violated, and used. He was crazy anyway, increasingly losing his grip on reality.

Stupid humans. They could fend for themselves from now on. It was better this way.

And yet. And yet.

Jenny was in his mind's eye, straining. The babies were being born. His babies. His children. Boys and girls all jumbled together. Nurses whisked them away, except for one. One of them, only one, was stillborn.

The doctor said something to Jenny, holding the limp little creature up for her to see. She wailed a scream of anguish that woke Jim-Bean up out of his stupor. Dead? Dead!

No, not dead. The other six were alive. But the doctors were hiding it from Jenny, hiding it from him. Those were his children. This was his future. They were the inheritors of the earth, and Majestic was trying to cover it up.

Jim-Bean forced himself back into consciousness. He took a deep breath, and found that gills had formed in what was left of his chest.

The virus! The PI virus had infected him, turned him. Now he was one of them. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 7 – …and Hand Grenades

2010-04-03T07:21:00.000-04:00

Jim-Bean and Hammer were dressed in pressure suits, which were sturdier than the diving suits. The Horseshoe had largely depressurized. Water streamed everywhere. They moved past dead bodies floating face up in cramped corridors.

Hammer's cistron was hooked into the HUD in his suit. "According to the deck plans, this is the entrance to the reactor." They both grabbed hold of the huge wheel on the door. Nuclear warning signs were plastered everywhere in bright yellow.

It wouldn't budge.

"The pressure from outside must be too great," said Hammer. "We'll have to blow it."

"We don't have enough explosives to blow it!" shouted Jim-Bean. He was always shouting now, because there was a roaring in his ears.

"That's the only way. We'll have to make do—look out!"

Jim-Bean turned slowly as Hammer extended one pistol and fired past him. A Deep One's head exploded. Deep Ones crept down the corridor, hopping along walls, jumping from pipe to pipe, swarming like ants down a tunnel.

Hammer raked the area with gunfire. Suddenly red warning lights began to swirl and klaxons shrieked behind him.

The Deep One corpses piled up. Hammer spared a glance over his shoulder. The outer door to the reactor had just slammed shut again.

"Jimmy! Jimmy, are you nuts? You can't survive in there!"

"Maybe not." Jim-Bean's voice betrayed no hint of concern for his plight over the comm. "But I can certainly handle it better than you can."

Hammer reloaded, fumbling with the pistols in the darkness. The suit's limited visibility and the gloved fingers made it difficult.

"Damn it, Jimmy!"

He didn't get a chance to say more. The Deep Ones, finding their courage, launched another assault. More of them plunged down the hallway. more

Grace Under Pressure: Part 6 – Horseshoes…

2010-04-02T08:41:00.001-04:00

The agents were all battered and bruised. Caprice lay unconscious on the floor with a bloody head wound, a strip of gauze over one eye. Archive sat rolled up in a ball, whispering to himself over and over: "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!" Guppy was in the pilot's seat. Hammer sat at the co-pilot's seat next to Guppy, but he wasn't entirely sure what to do.

Ho had it the worst. He just laughed and laughed and laughed.

Behind them, Jim-Bean languidly kept one arm on each chair. He stared in fascination at the collapsing black mountain. Something was emerging from it, wings unfurling like a butterfly exiting a cocoon. It was so alien and yet strangely beautiful to him.

The psychic pressure was pounding now, like a heartbeat. Jim-Bean had trouble focusing.

The comm. crackled. "Mayday! Mayday! This is the RSV Horseshoe, we need immediate help, is anyone there? Christ!" There was the sound of banging in the background. "…They're outside now…listen, we're under attack! Repeat, we are under attack!" There was a muffled explosion. "Wallaby! Wallaby!" A sudden crack. Then a couple of heavy thumps and static.

Guppy yanked the wheel hard as the Horseshoe, still sparking and falling into the subterranean depths, suddenly loomed into view. The Wallaby skidded off the side as the huge metal form slid past as the Horseshoe sank into the depths, down towards the thing that was assuredly coming for them all.

"That's it!" Hammer turned to Guppy. "The Horseshoe is nuclear powered, right?"

Guppy blinked. "Yes, but…"

"Guppy, that thing can't reach the surface. We've got to stop it. No matter what it takes…"

Hammer and Guppy exchanged a look. They had their differences in the past. Guppy had threatened to kill Hammer; Hammer had Guppy committed. But in that moment they weren't enemies, or allies, or fellow agents. They were all that stood between humanity and the end of the world. more

10% Off Alien Invasion

2010-04-01T19:05:00.002-04:00

My sole book on Lulu, Alien Invasion, is on sale at LuLu.com for 10% off. Enter code APRILFOOLS. Today only! more

Grace Under Pressure: Part 5 – Who's There?

2010-04-01T06:30:00.000-04:00

"No!" shouted Hammer.

Cho Chu-Tsao was momentarily distracted, turning to look at the satchel tumbling down towards the altar. Her defenses lowered, Hammer fired a bullet between her eyes. She slumped backwards, mouth open in surprise.

The ensuing explosion blasted the plinths off their bases. Guppy was nearly beheaded by one of the rocks as it whistled through the air.

The shockwave stunned the agents. In the ensuing dust and debris it was clear that the altar had been ruined. Hammer, Archive, Guppy, and Caprice struggled to their feet.

A figure strode towards them out of the cloud of dust. Hammer's pistols were up in a flash.

It was Jim-Bean. He dusted his hands. "Great, so now that's over…"

The rubble shuddered. A huge piece of stone slid off the back of the Deep One bodyguard. It was bloody and battered, with one goggle eye smashed in. In its arms was the frail Ko, looking like nothing more than a sickly child in its arms.

"The stars are right again," Ko whispered as he expired. "What we failed to do by design…you did…by accident…"

He died with a smile on his lips.

The bodyguard made a low moan. But it was not mourning over the dead man in its arms. As the dust settled, a horrible fact became clear: the door was open.

By blood and force, the seal had been penetrated, its doors blasted open. In the darkness, a mountainous mass pulsed softly with the same unnatural glow as the rest of R'lyeh.

Jim-Bean's mouth fell open. For once, he was without words.

"Run…" whispered Hammer, straining to tear his eyes away from the slumbering mass at the center of the dome. "Run!" more

Grace Under Pressue: Part 4 – Knock, Knock…

2010-03-30T06:35:00.001-04:00

They swam into darkness through weird black coral, rising up in tightly clustered poles that hindered their progress. Hammer gasped out of the pool, sucking in a stale lungful of air.

The other agents emerged behind him in a massive chamber. The ceiling, if there was one, was concealed by mist.

At the center was a subterranean dome. Before it were five oddly shaped tombstones, each with a symbol in Aklo engraved upon it. A raised altar with an Elder Sign at its center pulsed in time with the glowing symbols.

A huge doorway jutted from the surface of the dome. It had the features of Cthulhu's head, a skull-faced beast with tentacles for a mouth. Three figures stood at the portal.

Cho Chu-Tsau, arms raised, was chanting in time with the pulsing symbols. Next to her, reading aloud the chants from a book and swathed in ceremonial robes, was the frail Dr. Ko. But the third figure was what disturbed the agents most.

It was a fish that walked like a man. Its giant, catfish-like head was somehow part of a purplish, malformed humanoid body. Two of its whiskers rose up over its head like horns, and two others dropped like a moustache over its gaping mouth. It had a distinct oriental cast, stripped to its waist in pants and sandals. A huge cannon was strapped across its back, a wicked-looking sword dangling from its belt.

Hammer called them all to a halt. The room's darkness was complete. The agents had an advantage, as all eyes were trained on the portal.

"Archive, Hammer, you take out Chu-Tsao. Guppy, Caprice, you're on Ko. Jim-Bean, you and I will take out…"

Jim-Bean was gone.

Hammer swore. "Move!" more

Grace Under Pressure: Part 3 – In the Mouth of Madness

2010-03-29T06:27:00.000-04:00

The agents entered into the labyrinthine passageways of the sunken nightmare city.

"From what I could decipher from the laptop on the Joey," began Guppy, "there's three cultists down here. Cho Chu-Tsao, Agent Powers, and William Davis Ko."

"So Powers wasn't the only defector," said Caprice.

"No. In fact, it looks like Majestic ended up funding Ko's research. They gave him access to some piscid humanoids, codenamed BLUE HADES, retrieved from PROJECT JENNIFER—"

"Deep Ones," corrected Archive.

Guppy looked at him. "Okay, sure. Ko got his hands on some Deep One DNA."

Hammer nodded, his eyes tracking signs of Chu-Tsao's passage. "That explains the fish-hybrids we found in Chicago. Tiger Transit was originally funding Ko's work."

The trail led through broad and high corridors overgrown with dimly glowing algae and fungi. Mysterious reliefs on the walls depicted nightmarish horrors.

"Right," said Guppy. "And I think Majestic-12 wanted access to Ko's experiments. But I guess he was a double agent."

"So Ko's research for Majestic-12 picked up right where he left off with Tiger Transit?" asked Caprice.

"Yeah," said Guppy. "Worse, actually. He stumbled upon a flu-virus under PROJECT PI. The Pi prion can convert human DNA to Deep One DNA in a matter of hours."

Jim-Bean paused for a moment, coughing.

"You okay Jimmy?" asked Hammer.

"I'm fine," said Jim-Bean. He kept walking.

"They tested it on the native population," continued Guppy. "And from the gist of the emails, they were going to unleash it on Ho's men too."

"So we did Ho a favor!" laughed Jim-Bean.

"Yeah," said Caprice slowly. "A favor."

The twisting trail led to a stone slab hallway that descended at a slight grade as it proceeded into a small hillock. There were signs of a lot of traffic in and out of the temple. The agents filed inside, weapons ready.

The entrance opened into a passageway nearly ten feet wide and fourteen feet tall. Toward the bottom, where the walls were better protected from the elements, strange hieroglyphics covered them. The floor sloped at a nearly twenty degree angle.

"So what are the cultists up to?" asked Hammer. "They want to turn the whole world into a bunch of fish people?"

Archive shook his head. "That's not enough. They need a leader."

"Or a god," said Jim-Bean. He pointed ahead of them. more

Grace Under Pressure: Part 2 – Losing Powers

2010-03-28T07:18:00.001-04:00

As the Wallaby approached the dark mountain, a massive opening revealed itself to be navigable. It led into a kind of pool in a huge cavern.

"Sensors indicate a breathable atmosphere," said Caprice. "But we'll need to put on pressure suits—"

Guppy sighed as a warning light flickered on his console. "Jim-Bean just opened the airlock."

Jim-Bean gave the Wallaby's cameras a thumbs-up.

"Caprice, you watch Ho. I don't want him out of your sight."

Feng Ho, if he was aware of his plight, didn't show it. He watched Jim-Bean curiously on the monitor, like a puppy wondering when its master would return.

Caprice rolled his eyes. "I get to watch the mind-controlled zombie? Great." more

Grace Under Pressure: Part 1 – Welcome to R'lyeh

2010-03-27T22:57:00.002-04:00

"Is that fallen masonry?" asked Hammer.

The chunks passing beneath the Wallaby were larger and larger, and had different shapes. Cubes, rectangles, then columns, octagons...it was clear that they were not natural.

"No," said Archive gravely. "R'lyeh."

At first irregular and far between, the glowing patches increased in number and size, eventually flowing together into a soft latticework across the sea floor. While nowhere near as bright as the Wallaby's spotlights, the glow did serve to illuminate contours and shapes in the dim water beyond the light.

The coral grew thin, with only a few stalks clumped here and there. In its place lay the rudiments of buildings.

It became clear that they were are at the beginning of a broad canyon-like avenue, lined with squat structures revealed by the spotlights and the sickly glow that was increasingly widespread. The buildings became more elaborate the further that the Wallaby went. Very quickly, the tops of the structures were beyond the range of the spotlights, and their height could only be guessed at by the faint phosphorescence that coated them. They were enclosed by mammoth towers, stolid halls, all cracked and dim, showing the wear of centuries, perhaps millennia. The architecture was of ancient origin, but showed traits found in nearly every style ever produced by man.

"Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn," whispered Archive.

"What?" asked Hammer, irritated by Archive's odd behavior.

"In his house at R'lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming," whispered Archive, hugging himself. "We are in a very bad place." more

Grace Under Pressure: Prologue

2010-03-26T06:27:00.001-04:00

30,000 FEET BENEATH THE PACIFIC OCEAN—The agents were in hot pursuit of Cho Chu-Tsao's smaller mini-sub, the Joey. It was difficult to tell if they were actually overtaking her in the Wallaby, though, as the pings they got back from her homing beacon were erratic.

There was a hideous wrenching noise and then the power flickered. The Wallaby swerved to starboard.

"What was that?" asked Hammer.

"We lost the starboard impeller!" shouted Guppy, struggling with the controls.

"Can you tell me where the problem is?" asked Jim-Bean. "If so I can probably take a look."

Caprice brought up a map of the Wallaby. It really did look like the Millennium Falcon. A starboard section blinked red. "There."

Jim-Bean grunted. "I think I'm close enough…" He took a few steps towards the back of the bridge. "Yep, I can see it."

His eyes glazed. "Looks like…looks like there's something stuck in the impeller. Muck and debris fouled up the blades. The grill at the front of the impeller tube has been smashed in."

"The muck must have closed over the grill completely. That'll cause the impeller to create a vacuum that pulls the loose corner of the grill inwards," said Caprice.

"Do something fast!" shouted Guppy. "We're spinning in circles here!" more

Chapter 53: Grace Under Pressure - Introduction

2010-03-25T06:41:00.000-04:00

This story hour is from "Grace Under Pressure" by Jeff Barber and John Tynes and "Project Pi" by Peer Kroger from Worlds of Cthulhu #1. You can read more about Delta Green at http://www.delta-green.com. Please note: This story hour contains spoilers!

Our cast of characters includes:

Game Master: Michael Tresca (http://michael.tresca.net)
Joseph “Archive” Fontaine (Dedicated Hero/Acolyte) played by Joe Lalumia
Jim “Jim-Bean” Baxter (Charismatic Hero) played by Jeremy Ortiz (http://jeremyrobertortiz.blogspot.com)
Hank “Guppy” Gupta (Smart Hero/Field Scientist) played by Joseph Tresca (http://www.eyeballistic.com)
Kurtis “Hammer” Grange (Fast/Dedicated Hero/Gunslinger) played by George Webster
Sebastian “Caprice” Creed (Fast/Charismatic/Smart Hero/Techie) played by Bill Countiss

Grace Under Pressure is a perfect fit for Project Pi, combining a deep sea submarine expedition with the excitement of heavily armed SEALs. While I was really attracted to running Grace Under Pressure with miniatures, time didn't allow for it. Events moved quickly, as the agents are still in pursuit of Cho Chu-Tsao, there's a giant submarine tumbling into the depths behind them, and they're about to descend into R'lyeh.

In R'lyeh, our old friend Dr. William Davis Ko is back – turns out he's a traitor to Majestic-12 and continued to fund his Deep One research in conjunction with the Pi Virus. John Powers, also a traitor to Majestic-12, was icing on the cake. From there, it was just a matter of having Cho Chu-Tsao, Ko, and Ko's bodyguard duke it out in front of Fat Dragon's nifty temple which my two-year-old son helped me put together.

I knew this scenario was trouble though. I even mentioned it on Nebulos' story hour, who ran it as a d20 Modern game like I did. The problem is that the scenario doesn't really have a survival conclusion. Basically, the PCs have a very high chance of getting "Deep One on them" with the only solution being a tradeoff with the final villain in front of the Cthulhu shrine. Assuming the agents sell out to save their lives, it leaves the little matter of Cthulhu awakening.

The resolution, as implied by the scenario, involves nuclear subs might firing a missile at Cthulhu. We didn't have a nuclear missile because I changed the scenario around. But I did have a nuclear-powered submarine.

Both scenarios are concerned about avoiding awakening Cthulhu, which just seems silly to me. I mean, seriously, you can't beat a Star Spawn of Cthulhu in combat, so if you're going to blow one up with a plot device, why not just use the Big Guy himself?

So I used the Star Spawn as the Big Scary Monster you THINK is the final boss but isn't. My brother even asked, "why do they call this game Call of Cthulhu? Do we ever get to meet him?"

And then he did.

I had my Call of Cthulhu action figure from SOTA toys, which I used in my Arcanis story hour. It's been a couple of years, so the players completely forgot about it. In fact, I was careful to bundle him up in a plastic bag so that nobody accidentally discovered him before his big reveal. It had exactly the effect I hoped. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Conclusion

2010-03-24T06:44:00.000-04:00

Guppy sat down on the bridge of the Wallaby. His eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store as he switched the power on. It hummed to life with all the fanfare of a Mac computer. "I recognize this…this is the submersible that was stolen from an Australian facility!"

Caprice sat down on the chair opposite him. "Yeah I heard of the Wallaby. It keeps pressure equalized at any depth."

"The Wallaby can operate under its own power for two weeks," said Guppy. He flipped more switches as the diagnostics whirred to life.

"It looks the Millenium Falcon to me," said Hammer, standing behind Guppy.

"Better," said Guppy, grinning for the first time in awhile. "The Wallaby has combination of pontoons and ballast, a single set of impeller motors, and a mini-sub cradle."

"The Joeys," said Ho robotically. "There are two. Tsao took one."

"I've got her signal," said Caprice. "We can track her."

The horseshoe shuddered again. "Let's get the hell out of here," said Hammer.

"Aye, aye, captain!" said Guppy. He pushed a lever forward and the sounds of couplers disconnecting rumbled the perimeter of the Wallaby.

The Wallaby pulled away, spinning as it caught in the current and propelled itself quickly away from the larger ship.

"I just realized," said Jim-Bean, laughing to himself. "If the mini-subs are Joeys and this thing is the Wallaby, then that Horseshoe thing is…" he broke out into fits of laughter. "…a KANGAROO! HA!"

Jim-Bean's hysterical laughter was all that echoed throughout the Wallaby as they descended into a deep sea trench. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 6 – Insecure

2010-03-23T06:45:00.001-04:00

Hammer came up first, sputtering in rage. Half of him was amazed he was still alive. The other half considered how to murder Jim-Bean on the spot, if he could even be killed anymore.

Jim-Bean stood, smiling. He was unharmed by the blast. Water streamed in from a dozen places, electrical wires sparked, and computer equipment was everywhere.

The other agents slowly rose to their feet.

Hammer turned to face Jim-Bean, hands at his sides. It was not a friendly gesture.

Jim-Bean smirked as he held up a broken vial. "Looking for this? It was destroyed in the blast. Too bad."

It was the vial of BIOSAN-4. Hammer now had no means of stopping him.

"Don't be mad, Hammer. We don't have time for this nonsense and that was the quickest way to end the conflict."

"End it? You put all our lives in danger! Are you trying to kill us?"

Jim-Bean laughed. "If that were the case you'd already be dead." He sighed. "Besides, we're after the book, remember? And I know who can lead us to it. Ho, come here," commanded Jim-Bean.

Colonel Feng Ho meekly joined Jim-Bean. "We need to get to the auxiliary bridge."

Ho led the way. Hammer, suddenly realizing just how powerless he was, went along. The other agents, dusting themselves off, followed. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 5 – We All Live in a Giant Submarine

2010-03-22T06:40:00.000-04:00

"They're down there," said Jim-Bean, pointing at a narrow ladder to the bridge. "They're waiting for us."

"All right. We're going in hard and fast," said Hammer, pistols cocked. "Jim-Bean, you take point. I'll provide cover. Caprice, Guppy, see if you can make it to the control panels. We need to find out what happened to the book. Archive, you hang back, provide support as needed. Ready?"

They nodded.

"Jimmy, go!"

Gripping the ladder with the insides of his feet, Jim-Bean slid down the rail. He was immediately peppered with gunfire. Jim-Bean held one hand out and the bullets ricocheted off harmlessly.

Hammer was next. He hit the ground hard, rolled and came up firing. The gunfire stopped for a moment as the guards ducked behind control panels.

The other agents followed, each letting loose a volley of retaliatory fire so that another agent could slide down.

Lining the walls of the chamber were seven consoles with matching chairs. The consoles were for RADAR, the diving control center, the quartermaster post, radio, sonar, SINS (Submarine Inertial Navigation Systems), and the complex’s computer. A periscope flanked by a radio antenna and a radar antenna stood in one corner of the room.

The tcho-tcho guards piloting the horseshoe were dressed entirely in black — slacks, turtleneck sweater, and deck shoes. Colonel Feng Ho stood at the center of the mass of men, firing his pistol.

Canister-shaped grenades were tossed over into the center of the room.

"Gas!" shouted Hammer. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 4 – Yours and Mine

2010-03-21T17:53:00.000-04:00

Guppy was glad that they all wore suits that could withstand freezing temperatures. They had all packed flippers and some basic SCUBA gear, with their air tanks for the HALO jump converted to SCUBA tanks. But mostly Guppy was just following Caprice's lead, who decided to go ahead with infiltrating the base while the others were arguing about it.

Guppy could make out Caprice ahead of him, visible only by the sluice of water he cut as he swam steadily towards the giant horseshoe.

Then something tugged on his leg. Guppy panicked and looked down, his mind conjuring images of some tentacled beast sucking him into the depths. But it was just a fishing line, connected to a blinking round sphere.

Guppy untangled his leg and swam faster.

An explosion behind him blasted seawater high up into the air. The shockwave pounded Guppy a second later, flipping him over and over. He wasn't sure if he hit another mine or if the shockwave set it off, but a series of explosions tore through the surface of the water.

Battered and bruised, Guppy felt himself slipping out of consciousness… more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 3 – Horseshoes and Hand Grenades

2010-03-20T07:52:00.000-04:00

Bits of flaming wood landed all around them. Jim-Bean had his eyes closed, palms outward as if to ward off a blow. He dropped his hands when the wreckage stopped falling.

"So much for the peaceful native population," muttered Hammer. "Everyone on the island saw that explosion."

"I know where they were transmitting to," said Guppy. He pointed. "This way."

They marched off into the foliage. The inland part of the reef, although only a few dozen feet wide at best, resembled a tropical forest. The soil was thin and poor for farming, but substantial enough to support many growths of coconut palms. Tangled vines and low brush covered the inland area where the palm groves did not.

The agents burst out into the open beach. The reef encircling the lagoon was composed mostly of limestone and covered with bright and colorful coral. The beach was sandy but narrow; beyond the shore, the landscape sloped sharply upward.

Guppy looked down at his cistron. "According to my calculations, something with a huge radar array was receiving the signal from the mission. But I don't see how something that big could be…" he looked up. "…so close…to shore…"

Only a few hundred yards off sure was a huge, battleship-gray, horseshoe-shaped structure. The top ten feet of the complex was above the surface of the lagoon. Five crane mechanisms were visible around the perimeter of the top deck, framed by the night sky. Anchor chains stretched down at an angle into the ocean. Various seams and fittings were discernible. The horseshoe complex gave off a low, steady hum.

Six rotating searchlights were placed around the perimeter of the top deck, occasionally scanning over a statue at the center of the horseshoe. Connected by chains, the fifteen-foot tall statue was carved from a black glossy stone marbled with rust red and blue-green veins. It depicted a squaminous beast, hunched over, wings flared, with tentacles dangling from its face. It looked down into the emptiness between its two outstretched and clawed hands, as if to eat the world that’s not yet in its grasp.

"Whoa," said Caprice. "Guess we know what Tiger Transit's been spending their money on, huh?" more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 2 – On a Mission

2010-03-19T06:24:00.000-04:00

The missionaries’ building was a small wood-frame house on the south side of the island. Hammer stealthily padded up to the veranda. It was marred by signs of damage and forced entry. The front door was hanging on one hinge, three-quarters open.

"Something very bad happened here," said Guppy, stating the obvious.

They all looked to Jim-Bean, who had one hand out before him, eyes closed. "All clear," he said. "Nobody's home that I can see."

They entered a main hall. It appeared to have been used as a triage area/emergency room/waiting area for the natives needing medical attention. Ten empty wooden chairs were lined up around the walls, and the walls were pockmarked in several places by what looked like bullet holes.

Caprice ducked into one room and Guppy followed. What’s left of a radio and a simple transmitter were scattered about. The few pieces of electronic equipment were all mangled by gunfire. Two chairs were overturned on the floor.

A bird shrieked in the distance. "Woooop! Woooop!"

Guppy ducked into an adjacent room. The words “Meteorological Office” were printed on the door to the room in English. It had been smashed open.

Radar equipment, a barometer, a hygrometer, a wind gauge, a weather vane, and a radio were housed in the room.

Guppy fiddled with the devices. They were all intact and operable.

"Wooop! Wooop!"

"What the hell is that?" asked Caprice from the other room.

"I don't know," said Guppy over his shoulder. "Something big and weird." He turned the radio on. Nothing happened. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Part 1 – Playing HALO

2010-03-18T06:26:00.000-04:00

The wind screamed past Hammer as he went into free fall.

He was dimly aware of the other agents falling beside him, arms and legs spread. Their altimeters clicked away as they descended.

For a little while there was nothing but Hammer's breathing. It was peaceful, silent.

They plunged through the cloud cover. The air was nothing but mist and Hammer could feel the dampness fighting to get through his suit. There were flashes of lightning here and there, but other than that it was quiet. White. Beautiful.

He fell out of the bottom of the cloud. The ocean glittered beneath them in the moonlight. A storm was roiling overhead, but it hadn't yet broke and the moon was still partially visible, illuminating the contours of the island.

It was the worst possible weather for a HALO insertion. But they had little choice.

"We're clear. Deploy parachutes in five…four…three…two..."

Hammer took a deep breath and set his jaw so that he wouldn't bite his tongue. He pulled the ripcord.

The parachute exploded out behind him. There was always that breathtaking moment between deployment and the parachute filling with air. In those moments men learned their fates.

The parachute deployed and it felt as if God flung him around by the scruff of his neck. Hammer grabbed hold of the parachute controls and steered toward the landing target.

The heads-up display on his mask showed that the other agents deploying, one after another. Guppy deployed his chute right on time -- Hammer was concerned that, given his past experience, he might deploy it too early. But Guppy was the least of his problems.

A red light flashed on his HUD to the tune of a soft but persistent warning beep.

"Jimmy, what's up?"

"I'm fine," said Jim-Bean.

Hammer had to concentrate on steering. He craned his neck, but in the darkness and with the storm swirling overhead it was hard to see anything.

"Why aren't you deploying your chute?'

"I don't need one," came the monotone reply.

"You can fly now?" asked Caprice sarcastically.

"Yes," said Jim-Bean. more

Righteous Triad Fists: Prologue

2010-03-17T06:35:00.000-04:00

"Alulu Island is located in the west central Pacific Ocean, about a thousand miles south of Japan between the Ryukyu Islands and the Bonin Islands just north of the Tropic of Cancer. It's an independent atoll not associated with any island chain. It's less than a mile in diameter from outer shore to outer shore, and is outside the domain of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. It's under 'unofficial' protection of the British government. British missionaries maintain an outpost on the island, which also serves as a weather station. We also had an undercover agent working there who suddenly ceased all communications with home base."

"Tsao's flying halfway across the world to get to this little island? Seems like an awful long way to fly to perform a ritual," said Caprice.

"Recently, a force of mercenaries assembled from the survivors of central African and Latin American campaigns descended upon the island. Shortly after this became known, all contact with the island was cut off. It is believed that Lt. Col. Feng Ho, commonly known as Mad Merc, is the organizer of this invasion. Guppy?"

Guppy punched a few buttons on his cistron, no small feat with the gloves he was wearing. An image of Ho flashed on their cistrons.

"In the aftermath of World War II, Ho was discharged from the Chinese Army after an incident in which many innocent civilians were killed. Since that time he has kept a very low profile. Since then, he served as a mercenary in military actions around the world. We believe Cho Chu-Tsao flew to Alulu Island to rendezvous with Ho, and that Ho is responsible for silencing all communications."

"Why don't we just—" began Jim-Bean.

Hammer held up one hand. "Before you recommend bombing the place with Jericho Jets, Majestic's not willing to intervene until reliable intelligence is received from the island. The primitive native population of something more than one hundred individuals who may be under forcible detention, and their lives as well as the lives of the missionaries may be jeopardized if military action is attempted."

"What's a couple of hundred natives…" began Jim-Bean, but Hammer cut him off. more

Chapter 52: Righteous Triad Fists - Introduction

2010-03-16T06:49:00.000-04:00

This story hour is from the "Righteous Triad Fists" by Allan T. Grohe Jr. in The Triad Sourcebook, "Mad Merc: The Alulu Island Mission" from Dragon Magazine #56 by Rasmussen and Thompson. You can read more about Delta Green at http://www.delta-green.com. Please note: This story hour contains spoilers!

Our cast of characters includes:

Game Master: Michael Tresca (http://michael.tresca.net)
Joseph “Archive” Fontaine (Dedicated Hero/Acolyte) played by Joe Lalumia
Jim “Jim-Bean” Baxter (Charismatic Hero) played by Jeremy Ortiz (http://jeremyrobertortiz.blogspot.com)
Hank “Guppy” Gupta (Smart Hero/Field Scientist) played by Joseph Tresca (http://www.eyeballistic.com)
Kurtis “Hammer” Grange (Fast/Dedicated Hero/Gunslinger) played by George Webster
Sebastian “Caprice” Creed (Fast/Charismatic/Smart Hero/Techie) played by Bill Countiss

Righteous Triad Fists is a hidden gem buried in a supplement for a game that has nothing to do with Call of Cthulhu: The Triad Sourcebook for Hong Kong Action Theater. The design team received the rights to use elements of the Mythos from Chaosium, so when I was putting together my series of scenarios to take down Tiger Transit, I knew I had to include Righteous Triad Fists.

The plot from Righteous Triad Fists relied heavily on a pregenerated cast of characters, so instead I just took elements that might be useful – Colonel Feng Ho, and the hopping cultists. Yueng Ng Wa, the deep one bodyguard, makes an appearance in the next installment.

The Island Mission does most of the heavy lifting here, providing an island and a giant floating submarine dock. The agents almost didn't end up on the dock – they correctly decided that it was a job for Jericho Jets to blow the thing up, a decision Guppy and Caprice disagreed with. There was a tense moment where the team almost broke up, but thankfully I was able to prod the players into rejoining the plot, and then for good measure had them suffer the consequences of their actions.

Despite the significant amounts of detail spent on the floating drydock, the agents skipped most of the details and went straight for the control room. This worked out just fine in the end. more

The Jaded Temple: Conclusion

2010-03-15T21:54:00.002-04:00

"What were you able to find out Guppy?" asked Hammer.

Guppy reviewed his cistron. His face was still smudged with dirt from the explosion. "The scrolls were written during the Tang or Song Dynasties and may have originated from an oral tradition handed down during the Hsia Dynasty. They took the form of riddles, prophecies, parables, and rituals passed down from the Heavens to the Emperor."

"I've heard of these scrolls. Confucius was said to be the last man said to have read all seven scrolls. The originals have been lost for centuries," said Archive.

"Together, the Seven Scrolls detail the key to the cycles of reincarnation and to the Heavens," added Guppy. "Each scroll supposedly imparts certain levels of knowledge and they build upon one another, so that one cannot master the secrets of the seventh scroll without having read the first six."

"Interesting," said Hammer. "Not sure what this invocation is but it can't be good."

"It's a ritual of reincarnation," said Archive. "Whatever Cho Chu-Tsao's planning to wake up, it's already dead."

"It also seems like Tiger Transit broke off relations with Dawn Biozyme and instead started a dialogue with Hunt Electronics," said Guppy. "Something about similar research."

Hammer sighed. "We know all about that. Don't we Jimmy?"

Jim-Bean, who seemed to be in a daze, snapped out of it. "Huh? Oh yeah, red flowers." more

The Jaded Temple: Part 4 – Out of the Ashes

2010-03-11T20:27:00.001-05:00

Jim-Bean rose out of the ashes, sputtering. He looked around.

"I think I contained the blast," he said. "You guys can get up now."

Slowly, Archive, Caprice, and Hammer got to their feet.

"Where's Guppy?" asked Caprice.

"Here," said Tau, holding a blade against Guppy's throat. Guppy's eyes were wide with fear. Tau was edging towards the exit. "Don't make ah move or ah will kill him."

Jim-Bean shook his head. "No you're not," he said slowly. "You're not going to kill anybody. You're going to put your sword down and come over here."

The leader of the Tcho-Tchos froze. Slowly, his arm jerking unnaturally, every muscle fighting the instinct, he threw his sword to the ground.

"I said," Jim-Bean repeated, "come here."

Tau released Guppy. He took one halting step after another. more

The Jaded Temple: Part 3 – KABOOM!

2010-03-07T21:18:00.001-05:00

They were in the city’s sewer system. The walls and floor were covered with slime, which made footing treacherous. Jim-Bean led the way.

He stopped at a door. "They're behind here."

"Can you unlock it?" asked Hammer.

Jim-Bean shook his head. "I don't think so. It's an electronic lock."

"Guppy, you're up," said Hammer. "Open those doors."

Guppy pried open the control panel, spliced some wires, and hooked his cistron up to them. The door whisked open.

There was another door at the far end of the hall.

Jim-Bean stalked forward. "That's the computer room." Jim-Bean blinked. "More ninjas. Lots of them."

"This is suicide," said Archive. "We don't have much room to maneuver in here and they're waiting for us."

Jim-Bean smirked. "Don't worry. I'll stand in front."

"Guppy, you've got one job – hack that terminal. I want names, addresses, any information we can get our hands on," said Hammer. "Jim-Bean, your job is to make sure Guppy does what he does best."

Jim-Bean nodded.

"Caprice, this door's yours. Go."

Caprice set to work hacking the second door.

"Get ready," said Caprice. "In three. Two. One…"

The door whisked open. more

The Jaded Temple: Part 2 – Dead Weight

2010-03-03T06:45:00.001-05:00

The ancient thing that led the White Shadows took another step forward. Archive held up the Elder Sign before it. "By the power of the Elder Gods, I repel you!'

The mummified White Shadow shifted into a combat stance…and then turned and fled.

Everything happened at once. The other White Shadows struck, shuriken hissing through the air. Jim-Bean held up one hand and they bounced a few inches from his face.

"Remember!" shouted Hammer, taking aim with his hand crossbow. "No guns!'

Then the White Shadows were upon them. Caprice ducked a sword swipe, unslung his rifle, and clubbed one of the Shadows across the head with it. The attack knocked Caprice off balance long enough for another strike from a different Shadow. Caprice barely blocked the blow in time with his rifle butt.

Guppy patted himself down. He hadn't planned on engaging anyone in combat and was pretty sure he shouldn't be in a "high tension environment" according to his Majestic-appointed psychologist.

"Easy," he thought to himself. "This is just like a videogame. You're just fighting ninjas on an elevator. It's just a game…"

Then he found his taser.

A sword swipe just missed Guppy's chest. Guppy lunged in retaliation, shoving the taser in the guts of his foe and pressing the button.

The White Shadow jerked and twitched, stumbling backwards. He fell flat on his back.

"No guns means NO SPARKS!" snarled Hammer. He fired his crossbow and one of the Shadows went down, a bolt protruding from his head.

Caprice blocked another blow from a blade. He caught a flash of greenish fluid on the blade in the dim light. "They're using poison!"

"You do NOT want to be poisoned!" shouted Archive. "I lost a pinky that way!"

"How?" asked Caprice.

Archive dodged a sword swipe. "I ate it." more

Paper & Pixels: Done

2010-02-28T23:20:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow morning, the final draft of Paper & Pixels: The Evolution of Fantasy Gaming, goes out in the mail. It's been a two year, exhausting journey since I first came up with the idea for the book and we still have at least nine to fifteen months to go. But I'm glad to have made it this far!

This song is now stuck in my head

2010-02-27T00:31:00.000-05:00

The Jaded Temple: Part 1 – Zombie Ninjas

2010-02-25T06:37:00.000-05:00

Dark flashes of movement blurred out of the shadows. They were surrounded by men in black outfits wielding thin-bladed swords. They all wore peculiar masks over their faces, expressions of fanged beasts, jovial fat men, and weeping courtesans.

"So much for not setting off any traps," muttered Guppy.

"Oh great," said Caprice. "More ninjas."

The leader stepped forward and slowly drew the mask away from its face.

It revealed the head of a mummified corpse, its eyes empty and dry and its wrinkled mouth open in an eternal moan, with a long moustache gauzy with cobwebs.

"Worse," said Archive. "Zombie ninjas." more

A Relative on the West Coast...Probably

2010-02-24T19:12:00.000-05:00

The Jaded Temple: Prologue

2010-02-23T06:22:00.001-05:00

CHICAGO, IL-- The temple looked harmless enough. It was located at the edge of the area of the city known as Chicago’s “New Chinatown.” The building was constructed of wood and stone; most of the structure was obscured from view by a ten-foot-high stone wall encircling the grounds. A clump of small, leafy trees blocked the temple from casually prying eyes that looked through the single wrought-iron gate in the wall.

At night, the area just inside the perimeter wall was illuminated in spots, and human shadows could be seen moving inside the temple itself when a body passed before a lighted window. A lone guard patrolled the perimeter wall, his outline clearly discernible in the dim light. There were no other signs of movement outside the temple building.

Hammer lowered the nightvision binoculars he requisitioned in a hurry from the Chicago SWAT team. Sprague had ordered the raid so quickly on the supposed Tiger Transit headquarters that the agents weren't given much time to prepare.

"One guard, from the looks of it. Caprice, you still know your way around a rifle?"

Caprice leaned next to him on the roof of the building across the street from the temple. He grinned and patted the sniper rifle slung over his shoulder. "Sure, but won't that blow the place up?"

Hammer shook his head. "It shouldn't, not out here. We fired several rounds in a Fumo Loco greenhouse – blew out the glass first. So long as there's air circulating we were okay."

Guppy chimed in over the comm. "It's inside that you have to worry about."

"Uh…" Archive interrupted. "Where's Jim-Bean?"

Hammer looked through the binoculars again. "Son of a…"

A shadow that was undeniably Jim-Bean sauntered up to the gate. The soft glow of his lit cigarette marked his path.

"Looks like we are go," said Hammer. "Everybody move!" more

Mystery Science Theatre 3000 Presents Jack Chick's "Dark Dungeons"!

2010-02-19T06:18:00.000-05:00

Chapter 51: The Jaded Temple - Introduction

2010-02-18T06:33:00.000-05:00

This story hour is from the "Chinatown: The Jaded Temple," in Dragon Magazine #62 by Jerry Epperson for Top Secret. You can read more about Delta Green at http://www.delta-green.com. Please note: This story hour contains spoilers!

Our cast of characters includes:

Game Master: Michael Tresca (http://michael.tresca.net)
Joseph “Archive” Fontaine (Dedicated Hero/Acolyte) played by Joe Lalumia
Jim “Jim-Bean” Baxter (Charismatic Hero) played by Jeremy Ortiz (http://jeremyrobertortiz.blogspot.com)
Hank “Guppy” Gupta (Smart Hero/Field Scientist) played by Joseph Tresca (http://www.eyeballistic.com)
Kurtis “Hammer” Grange (Fast/Dedicated Hero/Gunslinger) played by George Webster
Sebastian “Caprice” Creed (Fast/Charismatic/Smart Hero/Techie) played by Bill Countiss

There are a lot of gems hidden in archives of Dragon, back when a magazine was willing to fill its pages with a multi-page layout of an area that might – MIGHT – have something interesting in it. These were the days when vast pages would be taken up with scenarios that read more like blueprints, with no clear narrative path for the agents to follow. In this case, it's a temple that just happens to be hiding radioactive isotopes.

I knew that I wanted the agents to take on Tiger Transit's headquarters in full force, and that I would eventually need a layout for them to infiltrate. With the Portuguese translation of the Seventh Scroll of Hsan, the Focloro Verdadeiro, slipping through their fingers, the agents are rushed. There's no time for preparation – I threw them right into the next scenario. The twist is that the Tcho-Tchos are trafficking in Fumo Loco, which is highly flammable. That provided a fun twist: Sprague specifically prohibited firearms lest the whole place go up in flames.

This really perturbed Hammer, as I knew it would. But it also provided for some interesting twists. In the end, it comes down to Mok Bin Tau, leader of the White Shadows, and Jim-Bean, the increasingly erratic psychic abductee. We know this will end badly.

Defining Moment: Hammer gets fed up with not using his pistols.

Unit 23: Conclusion

2010-02-13T19:34:00.000-05:00

Archive ticked off the items they had discovered: "…an African juju bag, a Hindu incense burner, a South American feather cloak, an ancient reading glass, a book on physics and sorcery by Sir Isaac Newton, a crystal ball, and a book on torture by Count Ferencz Nadasdy."

"Sounds like nighttime reading to me," said Jim-Bean.

"Were you firing…grenades into that warehouse?" Guppy asked.

Jim-Bean smiled. "Why should the ninjas and bikers have all the fun?"

Hammer, standing a bit apart from the other agents, was getting reamed out by Sprague over his cistron. After a few more grunts and nods, he hung up and marched back to his companions.

"Sprague's pissed, isn't he," said Caprice.

"You could say that. We lost all our police backup. No cops, no SWAT, and…" he looked specifically at Jim-Bean, "no Jericho Jets."

Jim-Bean snapped his fingers.

Hammer took a deep breath. "So it's up to us."

"Us?" asked Guppy. "Just us?" more

Aliens Rap

2010-02-12T06:16:00.001-05:00

This...this is a thing of beauty:

Unit 23: Part 3 – The Thing in the Van

2010-02-08T06:24:00.001-05:00

Archive, Hammer, and Jim-Bean stood uncertainly at the entryway to Unit 23, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

Amidst the swirling smoke and occasional spurts of blood, black figures darted in and out. Hammer kept his pistols trained on the entrance, waiting to see what came coughing out of it. Archive stood beside him, muttering an incantation.

Jim-Bean wandered into the melee, firing grenades at random. more

Paper & Pixels: Done!

2010-02-06T22:09:00.001-05:00

The final draft is complete at 90,000 words. A couple of more edits, a couple more interviews (if anyone else bothers to get back to me before the end of next week...yes that means you), and this sucker's done.

Unit 23: Part 2 – Those Darn Ninjas

2010-02-05T23:12:00.001-05:00

Caprice, pistol out, made his way through the smoke and the screaming towards the van. All around them, Satan's Sadist bikers engaged with White Shadows.

A throwing star whistled past Guppy's ear, skewering the big biker near the flipchart in the forehead. He foamed at the mouth and fell over.

"We've got to get out of here!" wailed Guppy.

"Chill." Caprice threw open the door. Milliard was slumped over the wheel.

Caprice unceremoniously dumped Milliard. There weren't any keys on the body.

Caprice shoved Guppy in ahead of him and jumped into the cab of the panel van.

"Can you hotwire it?" asked Caprice.

"S-sure!" said Guppy. He wiggled under the steering column.

There was a thump on the hood of the car, thin blade drawn for a strike. Caprice fired his pistol three times, instantly cracking the glass. The safety glass was a spider web of cracks, making it difficult to see anything.

"Almost there…" said Guppy.

A blade shrieked through the top of the cab, just missing Caprice's head. He pointed his pistol upwards and fired the remaining bullets in his Beretta.

Another thump and a body bounced off the hood.

"Got it!" The van hummed to life. more

10 Places You Can't Go in the World

2010-02-04T20:57:00.001-05:00

Just in case you thought there were no mysteries left in the world. more

Unit 23: Part 1 – Twenty Three

2010-02-02T21:39:00.001-05:00

Snowdog and his Indian accountant stepped out of the limo in front of a warehouse.

"Are you sure this is the place?" Guppy asked nervously. It'd been awhile since he'd been out in the field. He had been running tech support from behind a desk, recognition from Majestic that he wasn't really up to the kind of stress demanded by a field op.

Located in Chicago's 23rd District, they stood before a disused warehouse amongst an entire wasteland of abandoned and run down industrial units. It was exactly what it is intended to be – a quiet makeshift spot away from traffic where illegitimate business could be conducted.

"Unit 23, 2323 E. Schiller Street," said Snowdog, actually Caprice in his street rapper persona. "Dis is it, yo."

Guppy nodded and, taking a deep breath, they sauntered their way into the warehouse. more

Unit 23: Prologue

2010-01-27T06:32:00.001-05:00

Chicago police and SWAT swarmed the checkpoint, boxing in a perimeter around the warehouse where the White Shadows were supposedly storing rare artifacts and crates filled with Coca Loco.

"You sure it's in there?" asked Jim-Bean, peering through binoculars at their target, a warehouse.

Hammer glared at him. "You're girlfriend gave us the info—"

"She's not my girlfriend," snapped Jim-Bean. "She's…"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Is "mother of your children" better?" asked Hammer sarcastically. more

Unit 23 Story Hour: Introduction

2010-01-26T07:08:00.000-05:00

This story hour is a combination of the latest Delta Green Mailing List contest entry, "Unit 23," by Graham Kinniburgh, "Two Minutes On High" by Michael P. Nagel from Unspeakable Oath #11, and "Righteous Triad Fists" by Allan T. Grohe from The Triad Sourcebook. You can read more about Delta Green at Delta Green. Please note: This story hour contains spoilers!

The odds of someone posting a scenario that perfectly fit the window when I needed something involving tcho-tchos are incredibly small. As fate would have it, Graham posted a scenario that was just perfect. It's not that surprising, given that my tastes in Delta Green action run similar to Graham's. I ended up using his scenario as the glue between At Your Door and what I like to call "Cthulhu Must Die."

This scenario actually draws on a third scenario, Righteous Triad Fists. Instead of having the battle be over The Seventh Scroll of Hsan, we have a Portuguese translation in book form. The goal is simply this: get the book, stop the cultists. Of course, it's much more complicated than that…

I had no idea I would end up with a full host of players that day. Because d20 is level-based, Caprice and Guppy have fallen behind in levels, so I was careful to separate them from the combat initially. What I didn't want was to have a bloodbath where the low level characters get knocked flat while the high level characters pound away on the opposition.

I pretty much butchered Graham's entry – I completely tossed the items he had listed as a homage to Marc McFadden, who recently passed away, along with the allusions to "The Lizard King." I replaced the Banzai 23 with Satan's Sadists, from At Your Door. And most importantly, I wanted to role-play some bidding, which gave our two weaker characters a chance to shine. Since Caprice is involved, that means our favorite cover is back: SNOWDOG!

I've also learned that, although it's fun to place 20 ninjas and 20 thugs on a warehouse map and have them duke it out, it's really not practical to make all those rolls. I learned my lesson running a massive D&D scenario with a similar number of opponents and skipped the boring parts. Narrative combat is key, rather than what miniature is on what part of the page. more

The End of the Arcanis Story Hour

2010-01-24T01:26:00.000-05:00

Well folks, that's it. Even with me posting every friggin day, it took six years to get this campaign published on ENWorld. I'm not entirely sure, but it may be the most read story hour on the board and possibly the Internet -- if not, it's definitely ranked highly amongst them, and I have all of you to thank for that.

It's been a fun ride. But after awhile, posting so frequently was starting to become cumbersome. Toddlers don't like it when you type on the computer, and you can only play Yo Gabba Gabba videos in another window for so long before they get antsy. As much as I enjoyed writing and publishing this story hour, it was becoming a bit of a chore.

You'll notice that there's a little plot point with Sebastian that was never resolved. That was Hell in Freeport, which we still joke that we might play one day. If there's enough interest from players here, we may just get everyone together to do it -- or I may cheat and do a narrative game (where I tell the players what happens, we skip the combat, and just role-play the story and I write it later). But right now there's no pressing need...I'm working on my book, we've got our modern campaign to contend with, and the birth of my second child is imminent.

Oh right. So, the whole reason the campaign ended was because my son was born. That was nearly three years ago! Although the story didn't quite match the outcome (Ilmare's child was a girl) the timing was right...because our second child, due at the end of May, is a girl. And no, her name is not Anulee.

At least for a little while, I'm happy to leave the characters we lived with for so long to their happy endings. Quintus and Ilmare finally have their (admittedly weird) family they always wanted. Kham is a certified pirate with his very own ship. Beldin has respect and power. And Vlad's filthy rich. I like to think they will live out their lives to happy old age. I think they earned it.

Except Kham of course. He'll die a quick death -- if not drugs or alcohol, it will certainly be women. But I digress.

I'm in touch with all of the players in the game, so if you have any questions or you want to hear more about any particular character, I might be able to drag them onto the boards or at least relay your questions.

I've been reading a lot of Dr. Seuss lately to my son, so I think it's appropriate to quote him here:

But on you will go though the weather be foul.
On you will go though your enemies prowl.
On you will go though the Hakken-Kraks howl.
Onward up many a frightening creek,
though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak.
On and on you will hike. And I know you’ll hike far
and face up to your problems whatever they are.

You’ll get mixed up, of course, as you already know.
You’ll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.

And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)

Kid, you’ll move mountains!
So…be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordecai Ale Van Allen O’Shea,
you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!

Good night and God bless. more

I Did It!

2010-01-24T01:06:00.000-05:00

Paper & Pixels just cleared 94,000 words. All of my book sources have been entered. Now it's just a matter of revising it all, entering quotes from primary sources, and getting the artwork together in three weeks.

Whew!

City Under Siege: Part 8c – Aftermath

2010-01-24T01:04:00.000-05:00

Bobbin led the strange man up to the Imperial Suite. It consisted of four rooms, the first being a reception area, complete with furniture Ducayne had purchased.

Whoever he was, Bobbin knew he was wealthy. He guessed that Ducayne was a Coryani escaping the war; although his manner of dress suggested an Altherian, his pale skin was more akin to a Milandisian. And yet he had a hint of a Canceri accent. He was probably an adventurer.

Ducayne hesitated at the door. It was painted with the words: DO NOT DISTURB in red.

“In the past, I am aware that you have suffered some unfortunate…incidents, here.”

Bobbin spread his hands over his apron to wipe the sweat from his palms. “That’s true. Between the samat attack and Coombs’ bombs, the Last Resort has suffered quite a bit of damage. But thanks to our arrangement, we’ll be able to pay off all the old debts. Unfortunately, orc labor’s not cheap anymore.”

The stranger allowed a slight smile. “Those days are over. From now on The Last Resort is under my protection.”

“That’s…comforting, sir.”

“That is all, Mr. Brandydale. Thank you for your time.”

Bobbin nodded and stepped backwards. Before the door closed, a squeaky voice reached his ears.

“So I gotta stay on watch all day in here, boss?”

“Not just here, Skiz,” said the man who called himself Ducayne. “I have other work for you to do…”

Then the door closed and Bobbin was glad he could hear no more. more

City Under Siege: Part 8b – Aftermath

2010-01-23T08:24:00.000-05:00

Emric smiled at each of the remaining council members. Twelve seats surrounded the throne. Dirwin Arnig the gnome was there, along with the Altherian Liam Blackhammer, Lady Elise Grossette, Marilise Maeorgan, and the high priestess of Yarris, Sister Gwendolyn. Then he addressed the crowd, more man than boy.

“Freeport has lost much this past week. But in any time of sorrow, Freeport returns stronger than ever before. We mourn the loss of Captain Xavier Gordon, Captain Marcus Roberts, Captain Hector Torian, Captain Garth Varellion, and Captain Buster Wallace.” He nodded at the five empty seats, each represented by a wreath of flowers. No one mourned the loss of Arias Soderheim and no flowers were on his seat. “But in the interest of rebuilding Freeport, I hereby announce the following new Council Members.” He turned to special seats facing the throne.

“Petra Fricke.” The crowd cheered. The leader of the Guild of Craftsmen was a popular choice. Petra came forward, bowed, and demurely took her seat.

“Captain Baldric.” The crowd cheered again. After all his efforts, Baldric had finally gotten the seat he so sorely coveted.

The grizzled old captain hobbled up to the dais, tears in his eyes. He bowed awkwardly and took a seat.

Kham leaned over to whisper to Beldin. “What’s up with Baldric?”

Beldin shrugged. “Something about losing his cat…”

“Morgan Baumann,” said Emric, “Captain of the Kraken’s Claw.” Cheers went up. Captain Baumann had fought heroically during the battle and redeemed herself in the eyes of many, but not all. Morgan’s detractor glowered at her from a nearby seat.

Baumann marched up, her eyes filled with tears of pride. She saluted Emric and then sat down in the Council seat provided for her.

“High Priest Egil Thompson of the Temple of Althares.” A man of medium height and build, with fairly short brown hair, brown eyes, and no distinguishing features, clapped loudly, leading the crowd into applause. It was Steel, K’Stallo’s form for when he wished to walk amongst humans.

Egil was popular but his suspicious connections to ssanu, even if they were friendly, tainted his legacy. Egil humbly bowed before Emric and took his seat. His appointment to the Council paved the way for a bill guaranteeing amnesty for the Hitthkai ssanu. But that was for another day.

“High Priest Peg-Leg Peligro of the Temple of Cadic.” More wild applause. Most Freeporters knew Cadic was the reason Freeport was saved and they venerated him as much if not more than Yarris. Few caught Lady Gwendolyn’s frown.

Peg-Leg stumped his way up to the dais, managed an awkward bow, and took a seat.

“Drak Scarbelly, Captain of the Bloody Vengeance.” There was an audible gasp. Then all the orcs in the room went wild, cheering and hooting, and even crushing humans in bearhugs.

Scarbelly hobbled up to the throne and bowed low, lower than any of the others. He slowly, painfully took his seat.

“And last but not least, filling the Privateer Seat…Kham val’Abebi, Captain of the Divine Fury II!” more

City Under Siege: Part 8a – Aftermath

2010-01-22T21:32:00.001-05:00

General Menisis ran down to the area of collapsed wall and wrapped Roderick in the banner of the Pride of Chendo. In moments, the young man’s eyes fluttered to life.

All around Vlad and Quintus, il’Huan bodies lay motionless. Ichor was splashed everywhere, mixed with human blood. Most of Quintus contubernium and almost all of Vlad’s canton were dead.

Quintus, battered and bloody, limped over to pick up Precision. He handed it to the General.

Menisis smiled but shook his head.

Quintus offered it to Roderick, who turned away, tears in his eyes.

“Then it goes back to the Order of the Blade, I suppose,” said Quintus.

Menisis saw Vlad slowly walking towards him, but he made no move to defend himself. “I have a note for your Emperor. Listen well. It is but this: I am coming for you.” more

City Under Siege: Part 7d – The Return of Leviathan

2010-01-21T06:27:00.000-05:00

Kham fired again, and another burst of crystals exploded, wiping a second star off the thing. Leviathan turned towards him with purpose.

Beldin sailed up to the thing’s face. With a mighty roar, he hacked down on the star, cutting it right off Leviathan’s head. Tentacles grabbed him once more, encircling Beldin’s entire body such that he couldn’t even move.

Sebastian sailed past and, with one extended fist, strafed the surface of Leviathan’s head. He struck one of the stars and it sizzled off the thing’s flesh.

“One more star left!” shouted Kham. “Come here you big squid!” He was down to his last pistol. There was no Skiz to reload it for him anymore, but then he wasn’t using normal ammunition either. “Come get some!”

Leviathan lifted one huge, dripping claw and SMASHED Kham and the Divine Fury in half.

“NOOO!” shouted Sebastian. With a roar, he clapped both hands together and unleashed a torrent of eldritch energy from the very depths of his black soul. more

City Under Siege: Part 7c – The Return of Leviathan

2010-01-20T06:21:00.000-05:00

“I did it!” shouted Enzo, cavorting on the deck of the longship.

The tcho-tchos had turned on the skohiir, slaughtering them and feasting on their flesh. It was an orgy of violence and celebration at the return of their god.

He watched, ecstatic, as a ring of black energy warped out from Leviathan. “Wait…what’s he doing?”

Enzo watched in horror as the decks of ship after ship collapsed, dead. All throughout the fleet, orcs and elves, Freeporters and tcho-tchos, turned to shriveled husks where they stood.

“But master…” was all Enzo got out before he too collapsed on the deck, dead. more

Crisis in Freeport: Part 7b – The Return of Leviathan

2010-01-19T06:39:00.000-05:00

“Fire!” shouted Kham.

The Divine Fury fired all of its cannons. The blast surged into Leviathan’s flesh but the wounds bubbled and sealed.

Sebastian flapped up and around it, a fly annoying a giant. A blast of cold spread from his hands, scouring Leviathan’s head, but the frozen flesh was merely reabsorbed.

Using Cho Sun’s ring, Beldin rode a tidal wave to engage Leviathan. He hacked at its legs, but the thing ignored him.

Flames came next from Sebastian, and again the endless replicating form swallowed up the burnt flesh.

Beldin rose higher on the wave, and this time Leviathan took notice. Tentacles squirmed outwards and snatched him off the wave.

Sebastian threw an orb of acid, and it simply disappeared into Leviathan’s arm with no effect.

Beldin struggled in the tentacles. One tentacle burst the dwarf’s shield into pieces. Another snapped Windcutter in half before his very eyes. Leviathan was toying with him.

“Damn it, Beldin!” shouted Kham. He concentrated, and suddenly he was in Leviathan’s tentacles and Beldin was on the deck of the Divine Fury.

“Wow, you’re even uglier up close.” Kham drew a bead with two pistols. His eyes flashed, and a swarm of crystals burst from his pistols, shredding one of the stars from Leviathan’s head. The avatar recoiled. more

Crisis in Freeport: Part 7a – The Return of Leviathan

2010-01-18T07:38:00.000-05:00

Another ship fell to the mighty sea creature, crushed by its many tentacles. The hideous beast’s maw scooped up the survivors and swallowed them whole. As it did so, its eyes crackled with a dark blue energy. Suddenly, a beam burst forth like a lightning bolt toward the tower in the middle of the sea. The tomb of Leviathan absorbed the beam and glowed with a dark blue light.

Kham looked down at the Leviathan Pistol at his belt. It glowed with the same dark blue light.

“Uh…”

“I see it,” said Sebastian. He was holding the Leviathan Bell and Sextant.

“Me too,” said Beldin, who held the Leviathan Hook and Spyglass. “This can’t be good.”

A powerful bolt of energy left the kraken and shot towards the tower, followed by a deafening thunderclap. The tower began shrinking, collapsing in on itself, as the energy surrounding it grew brighter. Suddenly, the Leviathan artifacts were ripped from their grasp. The Pistol, Bell, Hook, and Spyglas floated in the air toward the tower.

“This is bad,” said Kham. “Very bad.” more

City Under Siege: Part 6d – The Battle Begins

2010-01-17T07:40:00.001-05:00

Quintus’ contubernium charged forward, following Roderick val’Tensen’s attack to engage the forces of his father, Adolphos val’Tensen. And just as he feared, Vlad was leading a canton in his direction.

The two forces collided on the battlefield with a clash of steel. The Milandisian cantons presented a thicket of polearms to the longspears of Quintus’ forces. The longer reach sliced through shields and pierced shoulders. Men screamed and cursed, but they pressed forward.

Then they were face to face. Quintus lowered his shield and drew his gladius, only to see Vlad draw Grungronazharr.

“Vlad!”

“Quintus!”

They locked blades halfheartedly.

“You’re fighting for the wrong side!” said Quintus. “Why are you following Adolphos?”

“Me?” Vlad struggled to push him back. Quintus was stronger than he remembered. “I thought you were loyal to the Emperor?”

“The Emperor is mad!”

“Menisis invaded our lands,” said Vlad, gritting his teeth. “You are siding with a conqueror.”

“I don’t want to hurt you,” shouted Quintus. “But I will if I must!”

“Likewise,” said Vlad. They shoved off, disengaging.

Vlad pointed and a blast of flames extended from his finger. Quintus muttered a prayer to Illiir that absorbed the attack.

Around them, their men engaged in a bloody conflict, parrying and striking, with neither side gaining the upper hand.

Adolphos and Roderick met in single combat. After an exchange of ferocious blows, Precision went flying out of Adolphos’ hands.

Adolphos fell to his knees. “Do it! What are you waiting for?” he snarled up at his son.

Roderick hesitated, blade raised. “I can’t!” he sobbed, lowering his blade. “You’re still my father!”

Quintus clenched one fist and it glowed with holy flame. He pointed it at Vlad.

The Milandisian held Grungronazharr high and the flames washed harmlessly over him.

The two stood panting before each other, unsure how to proceed.

“You’ve gained new powers since last we met,” said Quintus. “I’m impressed.”

“And your prayers are more powerful than I remember,” said Vlad.

They lifted their weapons to strike again when a tremendous explosion obliterated much of Enpebyn. The blast knocked armies on both sides flat. more

City Under Siege: Part 6c – The Battle Begins

2010-01-15T22:44:00.001-05:00

Enzo Ularaboo did not stand out amongst the crew on the barbarian longship, covered in skins and gaunt as a scarecrow. While most of the warriors stood head and shoulders above him, Enzo kept pace with his drum, beating a hypnotic rhythm that set the oars of the ship in motion. It was appropriate, he thought, given the task ahead of him.

Until the arrival of the elorii ships, the skohiir barbarians were filled with a desperate hope that they might escape. But Freeport was stubborn, and its armada’s galleons much faster than the longhships. The tcho-tchos who led the attack were non-plussed. Like Enzo, this was all part of the plan.

One of the tcho-tchos nodded to Enzo, smiling a mouth full of filed teeth. Enzo nodded back. That was the signal.

Enzo stopped drumming and lifted the horn of summoning, a weapon of immense power that he had spent every waking hour searching for since he fled Freeport that fateful day, hands behind his back and a bag over his head. Enzo was sure those fools who did that to him were out there. They would pay. They would all pay.

The tcho-tchos put down their oars and looked at him expectantly. Enzo’s chest swelled with pride; he had never had so many men look at him with such awe, even if they were short cannibalistic men.

Enzo blew the horn. Once, twice, three times.

Its three deep calls drowned out the sounds of battle. Time seemed to stop as all the combatants looked around them, unsettled by the thunderous noise.

The sea began to roil and splash violently.

“Rise!” shouted Enzo. “Rise Son of Leviathan, and free your master from R’lyeh’s tomb!” more

City Under Siege: Part 6b – The Battle Begins

2010-01-15T13:15:00.001-05:00

After repulsing the attack on Freeport, the Captain’s Council demanded revenge. Emric Ossan-Drac, in his new role as Sea Lord, made his first declaration an act of war. Without delay, Freeport’s fleet set sail after the barbarians to hunt them down and punish them for daring to attack Freeport.

Admiral Rankin took charge of the situation, gathering a fleet of over fifty ships in just two hours. Captains Gordon, Roberts, Torian, and Varellion from the Council accompanied the fleet. Drak Scarbelly pledged two orc ships for the effort, including his own, the Bloody Vengeance.

Kham stood on the deck of his ship, the Divine Fury. The fastest of the fleet, they came upon the barbarian longships near sunset.

As dusk approached, a light fog spread out over the sea, reducing visibility. Through the vapor, the deep red disc of the sun hung low on the horizon. A half mile out, at the limit of vision through the haze, was the barbarian fleet. They began to turn to do battle.

“They are brave to meet their end in this way,” said Beldin. “We greatly outnumber them.”

“The seas will overflow with blood this night,” said Sebastian.

Sebastian took to the air. Beldin simply walked off the side of the deck. Held aloft by Cho Sun’s ring, he kept walking straight towards one of the longships.

“Prepare cannons!” shouted Kham.

“Preparing cannons!” responded his first mate. When they were ready, the first mate shouted. “Cannons ready!”

Sebastian’s tiny form was visible in the distance, raining flames down upon one of the ships. Beldin was sinking a longship with Cho Sun’s ring, a whirlpool churning beneath it.

“Fire!”

“Fire!” repeated the first mate.

The fusillade of cannonfire tore through another one of the longships. Against long-range fire, the barbarians were helpless. It was only a matter of time before they paid the ultimate price for their folly.

Sebastian and Beldin returned. “They must have been desperate indeed,” said Sebastian. “Victory is at hand.”

”Ships ahoy!” shouted the first mate.

Kham scanned the horizon, desperately looking for the new threat. At last he saw them. Moving quickly toward the Freeport ships was another fleet.

“Elorii warships,” said Kham. He recognized the sleek and fast ships.

“Reinforcements,” said Sebastian. “Finally, the orcs will see that the elorii are not their…” he looked up “…enemies.”

The sun, having risen in the morning sky, went out.

“ARROWS!” shouted Sebastian. “Get behind me!”

Thousands of arrows had been launched from the ships with perfect aim. They flew in a volley so thick that the sun itself was obscured. more

City Under Siege: Part 6a – The Battle Begins

2010-01-14T06:36:00.000-05:00

Quintus stood at the side of General Menisis val’Tensen and Roderick val’Tensen, in a secret meeting between the lines of war. On the other side of the fire stood Adolphos val’Tensen, Lady Teodora val’Borda, and Vlad Martell. Between them stood Divelos Norvitecus, senior monk of the Blades of Hurrian.

“I have gathered you here to offer Precision to he who most deserves it,” said Divelos. “During this time of war, it was prophesized that the blade would be used by a val’Tensen. As per Hurrian’s will, I have brought it with me, here, to decide who shall wield it.” He held the sword before him in its scabbard, a delicately as a mother putting her baby to bed.

Vlad and Quintus exchanged uncomfortable glances. It was clear they were on opposite sides. more

Crisis in Freeport: Part 5 – Free Drak!

2010-01-13T06:51:00.000-05:00

Beldin stood at the entrance to the Fortress of Justice, along with Commander Stern. With a barked command, the guards let them in.

Inside, two hundred and fifty citizens, mainly women and children, huddled together in the training area.

“Who’s in charge here?” demanded Commander Stern.

“I’m Sergeant Lassiter,” said a grizzled guardsman. With the death of Commissioner Williams at the hands of Price Rurbach, it had fallen to Lassiter to lead the Fortress until a suitable replacement could be found. “What’s the meaning of this?”

“You’ve got to let Drak go,” said Beldin. “Right now.”

“Are you mad? He’s a criminal!”

“He’s only guilty of wanting to be Sea Lord,” said Beldin. “And I can think of several other people who you should be arresting if that’s the case.”

“There are orcs on their way here,” said Stern more urgently. “And they’re going to storm these gates if we don’t do something.”

“Fine, fine,” said Lassiter. “But this is on your head.”

They jogged over to the Tombs, where only a solitary jailer and two guards were on watch.

“Open Drak’s cell,” snapped Lassiter. “We’re letting him out.”

“But sir!”

“Now, private!”

The guard complied. Drak Scarbelly hobbled out of his cell.

“Well, well, well, if tis’ not me old friend, Beldin Soulforge.” The orc pirate smiled with a mouthful of yellow teeth. “And what be th’ problem t’day?”

“Barbarians are attacking the city,” said Beldin.

Drak nodded. “So I heard. This all coulda been avoided if ye just gave me th’ sextant. Instead o’ trying to pass it off as evidence o’ that human brat’s lineage.”

“You’re not going to have a Freeport to rule over at this rate,” said Beldin.

“Give me th’ sextant, then.”

“I don’t have it,” said Beldin.

“Then I guess ye’ve got bigger problems.”

Beldin huffed. “If you don’t help us, humans AND orcs will die. All of us! This is Freeport’s last chance!”

Scarbelly looked him up and down with his good eye. “Then I’ll make ye a compromise. I want a guaranteed seat on th’ Council.”

“What?” said Lassiter. “You can’t possibly be considering…”

Beldin put one hand up. “We need to consider everything right now.”

“That’s madness,” said Stern. “From criminal to Councilman? The citizens of Freeport will never stand for it.”

“Citizens?” asked Drak. “There be a whole horde o’ them outside yer gates, and I don’t mean th’ barbarians. Treat th’ orcs like decent folk and ye’d be surprised what ye get back.” He turned back to Beldin. “Swear on Sarish and I’ll see what I can do.”

Beldin stroked his beard, deep in thought.

“Ye don’t exactly have a lot o’ time here,” said Drak impatiently. more

City Under Siege: Part 4c – Get Them Guns Blazin’!

2010-01-12T06:33:00.000-05:00

Oppius stabbed one of the Inferno’s crew. “Do we have a plan to get off this ship or was this a suicide mission?”

Quintus skewered two men with his longspear. “Would it matter to you either way?”

“Not really,” said Oppius. “I was just curious if I was throwing my life away on the deck of this stupid ship.”

“Get down!” shouted Hervius from behind them.

They knew better than to ignore the sorcerer’s command. Lightning streaked over their heads, frying several of the advancing crewmembers. But more were coming.

“It’s done!” shouted Hervius. “But I used up too much energy…”

“What?” asked Oppius. “What does that mean?”

“It means I only have enough energy to perform one hop,” said Hervius, his features grim. “And there is no platform within distance for us to relocate.”

“Yes there is,” said Quintus. He pointed at the other airship, which was a few hundred feet away.

“That’ll do,” said Hervius. “Mundai ianua!”

They were suddenly in the hold of the Judgment of Nier.

A deafening explosion from the other ship caused the few crewmembers down below to run upstairs, ignoring the legionnaires who had just appeared in the far corner of the hold.

“Great,” said Oppius. “You just teleported us into the holding cell of the enemy.” more

City Under Siege: Part 4b – Get Them Guns Blazin’!

2010-01-11T06:21:00.001-05:00

Sebastian flew over Freeport. He could see barbarians closing in from everywhere. Shrill war cries and screams came from the outskirts of Drac’s End. Citizens fled in panic. He could also make out the orc mob, just leaving the Field of Honor and making its way toward the Eastern Gate of the Old City.

Sebastian moved on. His destination was one of the many towers facing the harbor, each armed with a Fihali cannon. In fitting pirate fashion, Freeport had even stolen its own defenses.

The towers stood about fifty feet high. Bodies lay scattered around the gun closest to the harbor. Flaming wreckage from one of the barbarian ships indicated they had gotten one good shot off, but the tower itself was on fire. Sebastian guessed a misfire; Fihali weapons were never meant for human hands.

Sebastian landed. He had the opportunity to inspect fihali technology when he was aboard their ship. That information served him well. To fire, the cannons required life force and magical energy. He threw an enchanted dagger down the barrel, satisfying the first requirement.

But the second was not so easy. Strange hand impressions were at the base, suited for a clawed fihali. Sebastian put his hands in the depressions…

And screamed as the cannon tore magic out of him by sheer force. It felt as if his eyeballs and been strained through his fingertips. The results were spectacular: The gun roared and with a huge kick, belched forth a massive fireball the likes of which he had never seen. The ensuing fireball sailed over the harbor. more

City Under Siege: Part 4a – Get Them Guns Blazin’!

2010-01-10T21:38:00.001-05:00

“Airships!” shouted Quintus.

The Judgment of Nier and the Inferno hovered over Enpebyn, bristling with Altherian weaponry. The cannons slowly winched into place.

“We can’t stop that kind of firepower,” said Tertius, slowly lowering his horn from his lips.

The cannons began blasting away, tearing huge chunks of masonry off of Enpebyn’s walls. Guards flailed like rag dolls off the sides of the fortifications, screaming as they went.

“Hervius!” ordered Quintus. “I ignited blastpowder once. Can your magic do the same?”

Hervius shot Quintus an odd smile. “Most certainly. But I would need time.”

“Can you get us up there?”

“Some of us,” said Hervius. “But we will be spotted.”

“I can conceal us,” said Tertius. “You just focus on getting us close to that ship.”

Quintus nodded to Tertius. “Let’s do it.”

Tertius whispered a spell. Nothing happened.

Oppius frowned. “So much for that…”

“It worked,” said Tertius. “Just stay within ten paces of me.”

“Quintus, Oppius, Tertius,” said Hervius. “Hold onto my cloak.” He was watching the Inferno. “We’re going to have to do two quick hops. I can’t reach the distance from here.”

“Wait,” said Oppius. “Two quick hops? Where’s the first hop to?”

Hervius pointed at a crenellation along Enpebyn’s wall right in front of the Inferno. The floating Altherian gunship would most certainly blast it to oblivion in a matter of seconds. “There: Mundai ianua!” more

City Under Siege: Part 3b – Barbarians at the Gate

2010-01-09T09:04:00.001-05:00

Elabac stood with his comrades, surrounded by bodyguards, at the Forges.

“We are to defend this forge…with our very lives!” wheezed Elabac. “Do not…falter!”

The dwarves stood stoically, waraxes and warhammers clenched in their hands, visors low, shields before them.

The enemy’s numbers were vast. The Legion of Unsettled Quietus, a Nerothian legion, moved in lock step. But for the clanking of armor and the rustling of arms, they made not a sound.

“Undead,” whispered one of Elabac’s young apprentices.

“How can we withstand such an army, Master Elabac?” The young one’s beard wasn’t very long, less than a foot. “They are so many and we are so few!”

Elabac patted the young dwarf on the shoulder. “Have…faith.” more