* = I don't own a cat, but I imagine that this is the actual thought process the feline mind goes through. Perhaps that is the reason why I don't own a cat. Although I would make an exception for Willy. Willy is the Shiznittlepittlick!
I don’t have a lot to talk about his week as I’ve been ill with the flu, and my plan of withdrawing from society at large is a swinging success. If it wasn’t for being miserable because it feels like there is a ball of mucus the size of a volleyball lodged in the front of my face I’d be pretty happy right now. I’ve noticed my stress level has dropped dramatically, I had a fever a few times in the last five days and NO seizure, and I spent some serious time hanging out with my incredible wife. All things considered I have nothing to complain about.
SO, that means I’m going to complain; don’t you people have my shtick figured out yet? THQ has fleeced me out of about $80 and untold hours of my life with a game that doesn’t work.
If I could take legal action with any hope of being reimbursed I would. I have tried everything with this F’Ning game and nothing works. I’m to the point where I’m going to have to start deleting CAW’s that cause the game to freeze which is messed up. I’ve e-mailed about a patch and got the run around. The company went bankrupt and was chopped up and sold today. The chances of those assholes that made the game coming up with a patch now are virtually zero. I really hope that the folks responsible for this shit never get another job in this field again, because they and the folks at what was THQ responsible for quality control are nothing more than amoral THEIVES!
There is something else annoying me beyond the blatant lies and duplicity by the company that used to be known as THQ, and that is the bizarre Grognard irritation with the art direction of D&D 5E.
Listen ancient and knowledgeable ones, just because you don’t like it doesn’t mean it isn’t good. Is it a tad and I quote ‘Disney’ compared to Erol Otus? OF COURSE IT IS! I, for the life of me, will never understand Edition Warriors and their almost inescapable need to point out even the minutia of anything and everything not their ‘D&D’ and comment on it. More than anything else I can’t understand the continued beating of the dead horse. You guys WON! Seriously, you did. You got the old school PDF’s back, you effectively killed 4E, you have a thriving and amazing community that produces Retro-clones at a break neck pace, and now WotC is even moving the game ‘back to its roots’ to appease you and attempt to stave off the growing juggernaut that is Paizo. You fought ‘the law’ and YOU won. Can you bask in that for a little while before flooding the Interweb(s) with the dislike of the new concept art, which for the record I don’t love and I don’t hate, it is just ok. There is a place in the world for inclusion into this hobby, a place where all Editions live in harmony and only hate games made by White Wolf. THAT is the world I want to live in.
Oh and before someone gets upset by the White Wolf comment, I’m joking. I dig on their fluff, and Adventure is a smashing game and setting. I was just giving an example; I save my true hate for GURPS.
RANDOM ELGENERICO BREAK!
So I found this match online and thought it so awesome that I’m putting it here, so enjoy the wonder and magic that was Kevin Steen & El Generico battling Tyler Black & ‘The Zombie Princess’Jimmy Jacobs back in the day in Ring Of Honor;
Anywho, my last complaint isn’t really a compliant at all it is more of me just whining than anything else. Auggies Miniatures, THE place to buy miniatures on the secondary market of the Interweb(s), is NOT carrying Paizo’s Pathfinder Battles Shattered Star set. I pimp sites like Miniature Market and Cool Stuff Inc. all the time, and I honestly love them. They have great deals and incentives, I’ve never had a bad experience with either of them, and by and large their prices are excellent. However they pale in comparison to Auggies when it comes to miniatures prices. Auggies routinely has low prices, AMAZING customer service, and a great selection. When I read on Plastic Crypt, yeah that’s right I frequent a message board for pre-painted miniature enthusiasts what of it (?), that he wasn’t carrying this set due to his issues with Alliance and Diamond distribution I was sad. No, I was beyond sad, I was SUPER sad. Now I must haunt the Internet(s) looking for deals for the minis I want, my heart is heavy and my wallet will be light. I’ll still support Auggies every chance I get, but damn if it is not a shame that because of some asshattery at the distribution level that I can’t give that cat my money.
Speaking of the Shattered Star set it is our LAST set of previews!
First up is Portioque, who is the other Derro in this set. I believe this one is a Common. Considering I own a crap load of the previous DDMDerro mini, and frankly am in love with the idea of mobs of crazy Underdark Far Realm infected gnomes this one is a given MUST BUY for me. When it comes to this mini I do like it, it’s a tad ‘normal headed’ for me and my personal Derro tastes, I do like the strange color choice, and love the creepy hook weapon. The pointing stance also works really well for a ‘gang leader’ type, or even some type of Derro Invoker. Perhaps of the variety that has been shipwrecked for a long period of time and forced to slowly eat most of its own crew while shipwrecked on an island in a vast Underdark Sea. I’m not saying this might happen, I’m just sayin’.
Second up is the Clockwork Automaton. I think this might also be a Common. I’m not that guy who says keep your peanut butter out of my chocolate when it comes to ‘Magic Robots’ in my fantasy games. Hell, I don’t even mind if you throw in some full blown Sci-Fi in my Fantasy, it all depends on how well it is integrated. All that being said I sort of dig this mini. I think the pose is a tad static, and the color choices are just mediocre, but it conveys a mood there. It looks like an ancient guardian that could at any moment awakens and uses that pole arm to take off your greedy head. The cogs in the joints and the awkward elements to the rest of the sculpt don’t detract from it at all in fact they only serve to enhance it. This one is a MUST BUY for me as well, assuming I can find it. And then assuming I can find it cheap.
Next up is Tower Girl, I don’t get the name, but I also haven’t read the Adventure Path. I’m guessing that she fits the theme of Commons as well. Well that sure is a generic female thief isn’t it? See the thing is I don’t hate this mini; I just don’t particularly like it either. It is just sort of there. It is a generic pose, that looks like an old Mage Knight figure I might still have. In addition it really doesn’t fill a niche that wasn’t already filled. It’s just a gal with a knife. Now I’m not saying we don’t need more female minis, ‘cause we do. In fact I applaud the fact that Wizkids and Paizo seem to be making a focused effort to give us some amazing female miniatures that don’t fall into the scantily clad Frazetta leg candy we are used to. However, I just had hoped that they would continue to give us stuff we hadn’t seen before. This one just feels like a lot of been there, done that. I think it will most likely be a PASS for me, unless I can find it for under a buck.
After that we have Sheila, who I believe might be an Uncommon. Again, this falls into my ‘Tower Girl’ commentary. We get a passive stance female NPC or wizard leanin’ on a staff. I just have come to expect and want more, especially for the price. However, I think for a pre-paint the paint job is top notch here. The staff is cool looking without being over the top, and there is a regal standing brought out by the crown and paint job here that save this mini from having too much of that ‘samey’ feeling to her. Unless she fit a specific campaign need I think I’d have to PASS here as well.
They followed up with Ardathanatus, who I think is also an Uncommon. THAT’s what I’m talkin’ about! While I don’t think this is a Hellknight, think a fantasy ‘evil’ Judge Dredd, it certainly would fit most of the requirements. Do you have kick ass body covering armor, CHECK! Do you have a large, aggressive weapon for dispensing righteous anger and judgement, YUP! Can I see your stone jawed visage staring daggers in me, NOPE! And most importantly, do you have a rockin’, metal cape, YES I DO! Then while you may not be called a Hellknight, but you sir are a FRIGGIN’ HELLKNIGHT! My only real complaint here is that the minis is a bit trim for my taste in very dangerous guys with massive pole arms that want to chop off folks heads. As far as paint, it is hard to get armor wrong, and I dig the light and dark of the cape work. It all makes for a very effective mini that should get a lot of use at any table. It is a MUST BUY, if I can find it cheap.
We leave the land of humans for a bit and are given the albino troglodyteXulgath. I believe this thing of obscene beauty is an Uncommon. I want to go on record as saying I HATE what WotC did to my beloved troglodytes in 4E. They went from sort of Lizard Folk versions of Underdark, smelly Sleestacks to these brutish louts who looked terrible in miniature form. And yes I know I'm 'Edition Warring' right here, RIGHT after talking about how annoying it is, but its my blog so I'll 'Edition War' if I want to. ("You would too if it happened to you!")This is what I want out of my troglodytes; creepy, brutish weapons, an almost nastier version of Lizard Folk. They have captured that here in this mini, although I have to say I’m not completely sold on the polka dots. I don’t hate it; I just sort of don’t dig it. I like the pose, I dig the Stone Age weapon, and that pauldron is boss! I have to admit it is a MUST BUY, if for no other reason than that even a ‘meh’ paint job puts this version of a troglodyteLIGHTYEARS ahead of what WotC gave us in 4E.
Our last preview is the Cleric Of Zon Kuthon, who I think is an Uncommon. Erik Mona stated in his write up how hard it is to do ‘chains’ in pre-painted plastic, and I’d just like to add that chains in general are a pain in the ass. I have put together many a mini and felt like I had a decent handle on the chains aspect only to look at it later and be completely dissatisfied. So while this is as static a pose as you can possibly get, it works here. The chains being wrapped around this guy, the fact that it appears as if there is a slight paint variation between the chain color and the armor color, and that fantastically pale and zoned out expression that only a religious zealot can have make this one a MUST BUY for me. The red loin cloth only makes the black armor pop even more and adds a perfect sense of dread to a cleric of an evil deity. I need to read up on this Zon Kuthon since my only knowledge of this is from the kick ass book, City Of The Fallen Sky. If he’s as cool as his clerics he might be making a serious appearance in my next D&DCampaign.
Overall this set has a lot to love, LOTS of Lovecraftian goodness to it and has a lot of niche monsters that either needed an update or hadn’t had effective representation in the pre-painted miniature world. The thing that is killing me here is the potential cost. With Auggies being off the table these leaves me to try and find other avenues to meet my minis addiction, most other options tend to be much less cost effective. I’m contemplating doing the Brick route from my local comic book store, Hot ComicsRichfield & New Hope, MN locations (SHILL!). The cost is perfect, but the random element is annoying. I’m thinking two Bricks will get me most of what I want and then I can sell what I don’t like on Ebay to re-coup my costs a bit. It is something to contemplate. It is just annoying that a company I like, Paizo, and one that I tolerate, Wizkids, have such a wonderful product that is such a pain in the ass to get my grubby paws on.
How ‘bout we start to wrap this up with some…
RANDOM CRAP!
- I’ve been painting while watching CHIKARA almost every night for a while now, and am averaging at least two minis a night. Last night I finished eight. I’m trying to build little ‘Gangs’ or themes when I paint, it makes it easier to stay focused and sort of a challenge to find color themes that work well together. I’m also experimenting more with dry brushing, which I am HORRIBLE at, again. I’ve found that sometimes I get amazing results, like the cleric/cultist leader of The Yellow Sign that I painted last night, other times it’s splotchy and uneven, like the two Beast Men I just finished. Some of it might be my brush choices, and some of it is just my skill and patience. I figure if I just slow down and take my time I’ll be far more satisfied with the results. I’m eager to show off my progress on Saturday at the second Painting Miniatures & CHIKARA get together.
- Speaking of CHIKARA, I just finished the Anniversario weekend where Mike QuackenbushFINALLY beats Chris Hero.
That feud literally went on for like 2 years, across multiple promotions, and across multiple continents. There is a wonderful story being told here of Quackenbush overcoming a larger, equally competent opponent, and simply being the better man. You finally get to see Hero pay for all his betrayals, cheap tactics, and questionable deeds. And while the match is to me only a **** out of 5 Stars, the submission ending is outstanding. Really this was the only way to put Quackenbush over Hero, he had to make him quit. My main issue with the ending comes from the dreaded ‘CHIKARA Special’ submission hold, I have seen it implemented a lot and I just can’t figure out what it is supposed to be doing to the person in the hold. That being said ‘Quack’s’ promo after the match where he talks about coming up with something Hero had never seen and how he was going to teach the move to EVERYONE since it was a sure way to beat him was out-FRIGGIN’-standing. It is a great ending to a great feud, which spawned so many sub-feuds and stories. I’m eager to see where things go from here.
- My wife made chili in a bread bowl last weekend and it was delicious. So much so that I wish to have it again as soon as possible.
- On a side note my wife is amazing. She took care of me when I was sick, she puts up with my crap, and she is one of the best people I know. On days like today where I had to go to work without her, it reminds me just how much her simple presence means to me.
- This is making me openly weep;
It is the ‘Vampire’ level pledge rewards for the Reaper Bones Kickstarter. I will be receiving this PLUS a bunch of other stuff. I can’t wait till March to get my hands on it. I’m also terribly intimidated by the thought of painting all that. Perhaps I’ll be shocked by my improving skills and knock out some amazing stuff, or at least one can hope.
- So know how I pimp stuff on my blog? Well allow me to pimp 'Diamond' Dave Wheeler's work. First off you should go to his website, Mindblowstudios and check out his stuff. Here's an example;
That's right dude makes Custom Action Figures! Oh and he's an artist, has a line of comics, loves CHIKARA, and slow jams while walking down the beach. So if you are in need of some kick ass art being done, OR want your own Action Figure go on over to Mindblownstudios and talk to 'Diamond' Dave Wheeler, he does commission work! Go on, you KNOW you want to!
- A guy I work with gave me a mix CD of his favorite band, Alexisonfire, and I have yet to listen to it. I am officially an asshole. I’m going to try and do it tonight so I can talk about it not only with him, but also on the Podcast.
- Yeah, that’s right myself and the newly dubbed ‘Golden Palomino’David are knocking out a Podcast tomorrow night. There is a high chance of a guest, possibly some music talk since folks really dug the last ‘music-centric’ episode, and I’m sure we’ll make each other uncomfortable BECAUSE THAT’S HOW WE ‘DO’!
- Speaking of David, there was loose scuttlebutt that he may start blogging on a consistent basis. I for one really hopes he does, and if you listen to the Podcast and agree that the ‘Chubby Funster’ should bless us all with his wit and wisdom weekly in blog form let him know. Together we can peer pressure the HELL out of him.
- While being all hopped up on cough medicine the other night I had a dream that I was starring in a Nazi Vampire Apocalypse movie with Heather Graham as Eva Braun. It also had John Krasinski, Rainn Wilson, & Mila Kunis in it. It took place in the Eagle’s Nest in Germany. It was strangely vivid and bizarrely self-aware; I hope to dream a sequel someday.
- I miss my father.
I think that’s all I got…
“Tell me now Who's in charge here? I thought help was on the way It took so many years to get out of here Now I'm back where I belong Now I'm back where I belong Next to you Stuck to you Here's the rub.... There's no difference Between poison and the cure When the one tastes so great it's a crying shame That I'm back where I belong Now I'm back where I belong Next to you Stuck with you Say goodnight to your mother Say a prayer for your father Wake me when the thunderclouds are rolling in Take me to a hazy Sunday morning I heard your eyes and I touched your tongue When we were kids we never felt so young Take me to a hazy Sunday morning I heard your eyes and I touched your tongue When we were kids we never felt so young Take me to a hazy Sunday morning”
* = Everytime I'm down I just need to see a picture of Batman punching a horse and life is much better...
The Czar and El Iron Fisto retreat into the depths of the evil lair to try something a little new. David take us on a Death March Of Music. We rock through about 60 CD's of stuff you should be listening giving you snipits to wet your appetites. It is long, it is different, but the hope that is by the end you've learned something. Or not, either way we don't care. Well I don't, Dave does... Careers In Evil Podcast #16 - "I Give It A Solid C-..."
Friday night was the Cusack-A-Thon and although I had trepidations going into it, I really had a smashing time when things were all said and done. It was a weird night that way, the more things irritated me or frustrated me the more I really worked to just ignore them. By the time we closed shop on the night I was exhausted and satisfied that this was our last hosted Movie-A-Thon until at least March. We let people know we were ‘taking a break’ from most of the hosting that goes on and I was slightly surprised at the sort of ‘meh’ reaction we received.
Not that I think we or the things we host are that important to people, but it was just sort of an afterthought. Perhaps that means someone in our group is just chomping at the bit to take over the reins and start organizing and hosting things. I really hope so, I hate the idea that I’m letting people down by not having all these things at our home, but I really do just need a break. And you know if I do, then Cassandra definitely does.
Oh and I want to address something that sort of bothered me a bit. I know I get into a ‘Funk’ about once a year and I know that it can almost be like a Season Affect Disorder, but this decision isn’t either of these things. Sometimes you just look at the things and people around you and decide you have to look at doing things a different way. The fact is I am unhappy with the way I currently interact with most folks. I am worn out with how it makes me feel. I want to be a healthier person, form smarter relationships, and not just fall into the same old patterns that haven’t worked. So this is an attempt at correcting that, correcting myself, and hopefully I’ll come out the other end rested, smarter, stronger, and a better person for it.
So begins the self-imposed ‘exile’. I’m looking at this like an opportunity to get refreshed, figure out how I can build healthier relationships with others, and really just spend more quality time with my lovely wife. Who knows this may last two months or it may be permanent it depends on how it works out, either way I feel like a heavy weight has lifted from my shoulders, and I really needed that.
Since I knew that Movie-A-Thon would not start on time and the THQ’s ‘game’ won’t work I took some time prior to ‘Cusacking’ to watch the 2012 flick Dredd(*** ½ out of 5).
I didn’t expect much here, in fact I thought it would be pretty bad, I was wrong. You know it is not perfect, it didn’t have the budget to blow you away visually, but it had a nice visceral feel to it, sort of like Robocop. I really dug Karl Urban as Judge Dredd, it was perfect that he never removed the helmet. Once the movie gets inside the ‘Block’ it really picks up, it feels like a really crappy, dirty, post apocalypse world. In the confines of that building there is a lawlessness that sets the tone for the body count. I think I would describe this flick as a post-apocalyptic buddy cop movie directed by John Carpenter circa 1983. It has a feel to it that is gritty and raw. I have NO idea who played ‘Judge’ Anderson in this flick, but she was ‘hubba hubba’ to look at, and did a good job of portraying a woman but in the WORST situation possible while backing up the most unforgiving son of a ‘B’ in the world. That was the thing I think I enjoyed most about this flick is while Dredd just gunned down thugs nonstop there was an almost ‘Die Hard-like’ quality about the flick in the fact that you KNEW he was going to run out of ammo and a place to hide eventually. It was constantly speeding towards a bloody finish. Throw in a vicious if not suicidal enemy, some great situational violence, and Karl Urban just being a perfect Judge Dredd and you have very entertaining and only slightly flawed flick.
I devoured the second of Bruce Cordell’sAbolethic Sovereignty books, City Of Torment(**** out of 5) at the end of last week.
If you take off the last chapter of this book it is a self-contained sequel to Plague Of Spells. It has an ending and a satisfying one at that, you get resolution with the vast majority of characters, and it is tied together in a neat nice little bow. THEN you get that last chapter and the rug gets YANKED out from underneath you. I was so happy with this book, and up until that last moment in the last chapter, ‘ok’ with being done with this as two books, and then Mr. Cordell had to rope me back in with the END OF THE FRIGGIN’ WORLD! Kudos to you sir because you have drawn me back in. I'll keep the details to a minimum, but we finally do get some resolution between Anusha and Japheth as the star crossed lovers. I dug the fact that even though Raiden, Captain Thoster, and Serene were all working for the same end as Japheth overall, they were adversaries for a vast amount of the book. The book did a wonderful job of illustrating just how nasty a Warlock Pact is. Essentially you are guarnteeing your damnation. The Aboleths come off as alien enough, and the feeling of dread as Thoster's crew leaves the ship to go into the city itself is fantastic. My only complaint is a lame one, I thought Aboleths where WAY tougher than they are portrayed. Either that or this adventuring party is HIGH level, because they go through Aboleths like a hot knife through butter. The 'kill count' towards the end of the book is rundunckulous! All that being said I dug it, I dug it a lot. This series has just been big, fun adventure with a dark twist. Now I have to find the third book ASAP.
Zack was kind enough to lend me a few Warren Ellis’Graphic Novels that he felt I had to read. Now let me start off by saying that I am not a big Warren Ellis guy. I think he is a tad overrated, he tends to lean on deconstructionism a bit too heavily, he likes his ULTRA violence a bit much for my taste, and enjoys attempting to show how clever he can be to the detriment to his stories. He unfortunately falls into that dreaded Garth Ennis group of Brit/Irish/Scot writers who seem to loathe what they are writing but churn it out nonetheless. So I went in prepare to dislike this stuff here is what I thoughts;
- Fell(** ½ out of 5) –
This is the first in a series regarding a detective going ‘Over the bridge’ to the slum of Snowtown to work cases. The premise is simple; an outcast driven man in a city that is the cesspool of the world, a literal hell on Earth. Detective Fell is smart, almost too smart for his own good, driven, and ready to make a difference in a city that is a living nightmare. Each chapter, issue, is a walk down horrible case lane with murder, mutilation, rape, pedophilia, etc. This is the thing Fell is a likable character to a point as is the bartender that is his love interest, but the loathsome city itself overwhelms the book and mires it in a quagmire of wanting to be something ‘Se7en’ and falling WELL short. A decent read with unusual art, but nothing I would go out of my way for.
- Crecy(*** out of 5) –
This one is a ‘historical’ take on the Battle Of Crecy. We follow a longbow man’s journey with the British forces as they scamper their way back through the French countryside in an attempt to avoid an open battle with the superior French numbers. It is an exercise in terse and almost xenophobic explanations about the hatred between the English and French at the time. Let me say the art is wonderful, simply beautiful to behold. However, like all of Ellis stuff it is hard to get me to sympathize with folks who have spent the last three months raping and pillaging no matter how justified it may seem. This is the thing I find with the likes of Ellis, Millar, and Ennis they want to take any semblance of the ‘Heroic Ideal’ and shit on it. They want to make sure that you know that the guy you look up to is really a piece of unrepentant shit. I get tired of this. The reality is all characters are flawed because human beings are flawed, HOWEVER most of their ‘protagonists’ seem to languish and enjoy their horrific flaws. There is no moral conundrum there; it is a black and white simplistic reality. In the end it makes the shocking things less shocking because you know they are coming, and it makes the writing regardless of genre formulaic. I love 65% of this book, the other 35% I hated, and that is my feeling of Warren Ellis as a whole.
How ‘bout we rock out some…
RANDOM CRAP!
- ‘Diamond’ Dave Wheeler is moving to L.A. for like 4 months. I’d love to say that I wasn’t sad about it, but surprisingly was. That guy and I have a lot in common and he’s really fun to hang out with so he’ll be missed. The reality is I’m super excited for him to get an opportunity like this. It is pretty amazing.
- I am once again starving for chili.
- Speaking of David(s), we met Dark Dave’s new friend Jessi at Cusack-A-Thon. It is always daunting for new people to try and integrate into the group of folks who orbit David. It is a diverse mish mash of folks with strong personalities and opinions. That being said she was pretty awesome. She jumped in right away, brought plenty of real good grub to share, and can talk trash with the best of them. She’s a cool gal and I’m glad those two kooky ‘kids’ are friends.
- There is the hope that we’ll knock out a Podcast this week, perhaps even with a guest!
- I had the Texans Vs. 49ers in the Super Bowl at the beginning of the season. I was half right; it’ll be 49ers Vs. Patriots in what should be fantastic to watch. I really hope Brady gets one more Super Bowl and rides off into the sunset to impregnate supermodels and sire a race of unstoppable SUPERMEN!
- Zombie Dice is the shiznittlepittlick!
- After finishing that 2nd Abolethic Sovereignty book, I just love saying/typing that by the by, I finally started devouring Neil Gaiman’sAmerican Gods. I have high hopes for this one. On top of that I’m going to start re-delving back into the monstrous tomb that is House Of Leaves. I love reading.
- We might have to take a shot at making some beer cheese soup soon.
- So there was a Shattered Star preview last week, but it really was just about the miniature ‘Stretch’ goals for Paizo’s Kickstarter and frankly I’m not overly interested in that. Hopefully next week they’ll get back to blowin’ my mind.
- I painted on Sunday, basically all day. I think I finished about twelve minis. So in the last week I’ve knocked out around twenty. I had sort of theme going Sunday with a black and yellow main color scheme with a bit of royal blue as the tertiary color. It is for a Knight and his retinue. He has two short bow troops, a long bow guy, a crossbow man, a dude with a halberd, two guys with swords, and a Hobgoblin Man-At-Arms. I’m happy with the color scheme and the minis in general. I’ve now got to find a way to fit this dude and his group into a campaign. I’m thinking a disgraced Knight acting as a bandit preying upon unsuspecting caravans, or maybe just a guy in a more political setting who attacks the PC’s over a real or imagined slight. Now I’ve got to get back to working on my Orc Pirates.
- THQ better release this patch for WWE ’13 soon. I’m going to have to re-start My Universe just to be able to play now. I’m beyond frustrated with this currently. THQ get your SHIT TOGETHER!
Well that is all I’ve got in me today…
“I must be careful now in my steps Years of calculations and the stress My science is waiting, nearly complete One glass will last for nearly a week Let me not get down from walking with no-one and if I stumble from exhaustion These buckets are heavy, I fill them with water I could ask these people, but I shouldn't bother Oh no, I've stumbled, was I going too fast? Some get angry, some of them laugh They told me I wouldn't, but I found an answer I'm Van Occupanther, I'm Van Occupanther! Let me not be too consumed with this world Sometimes I want to go home and stay out of sight for a long time Let me not be too consumed with this world Sometimes I want to go home and stay out of sight for a long time”
* = Sometimes you just want to watch a massive Swiss man, Claudio Castagnoli or Antonio Cesaro I'm ok with both of his names now, European Uppercut a guy's head off OVER and OVER and OVER again. It is a thing of sublime beauty.
I’m contemplating a strategic ‘retreat’. Lately it has become obvious that the energy I pour into things is uneven and ends up being frustrating. Don’t get me wrong I love people, therein lies the problem, I just don’t think they contribute to my well-being. I stretch myself way too thin. I have this need to be the epicenter of things going on in my sphere of people, and I think that needs to stop. The satisfaction of holding all these events and parties and Movie-A-Thons has waned.
I think I just need a break. I mean c’mon we’ve had all sorts of Driveway Cooking Wars, Movie-A-Thons, Trivia Death Matches, D&D Sessions, Crappy BINGO, Game Days, etc. go on last year. There has been no rest for the ‘wicked’ and it has been at my behest. I’m burned out. People have burned me out. Perhaps if I pull back a bit, if I sort of come back down to Earth, and do some more things just about Cassandra & I, I’ll get a bit better perspective on things.
That is what I think the real problem is, I lack perspective. When I am ‘hurt’, or Butt Hurt, by someone, especially someone I know the wound festers. I then find myself over-analyzing and examining every little aspect of them and their relationship with me. I start to break things down, and when I do that all I ever focus in on is the negative. I start to wonder “Why do I even hang out or care about this person?” The reality is I talk myself into disliking someone over the stupidest reasons.
Look at J.B., sure he didn’t pour any energy into our Friendship and sure he could be a curmudgeon, BUT I can be a yippy dog vying for attention. I can be SO excited about everything under the sun that is new that it annoys people, I know it annoyed Jon. In reality distance did more to hurt that relationship than anything either of us did, because over those miles I think he lost his tolerance for ‘me’. So when he sort of checked out communication wise I started down that dark road of analyzing our relationship. When I did that I saw a lot things in it that I didn't like, and really two people, both he and myself, that I started not to like. In the end it just blew up.
I’ve realized I have a Best Friend, I’m married to her. She never stresses me out, she always makes me laugh, she takes the piss and vinegar out of me when needed, and more than anything she inspires me to move forward and be better for no other reason than I can. And while I do have a very small contingent of Friends I don’t need to, nor should I, rely upon them. It is too much pressure to put on these folks. I should never have someone feel bad, because they think I’m mad at them over a life decision that they’ve made. That’s just not cool. I also shouldn’t have someone get pissed at me for offering to help. They and I don't deserve that, no one does. I think distance will help with this.
I have a LOT of friends, and maybe as we get older this is what life becomes. Perhaps you don’t need this intimate Justice League Of America roundtable of ‘Super Best Friends’, maybe an army of good people are enough. All I know is this week has exhausted my patience, my vigor, and my taste for investing in people as a whole. A retreat from society and back into a more ‘quiet’ life is perhaps the best way for me to regain some of my sanity, perspective, and well-being.
Don’t get me wrong I’m committed to D&D (two groups in fact), I adore doing the Podcast, Movie-A-Thons are going to happen (just less frequently), and the Painting Miniatures with CHIKARA was glorious and will continue once a month. I think a lot of the other stuff will just go to the way side for a while. Too much pressure on myself and others just isn’t worth the time and effort.
That felt pretty good, admission of failure and weakness I guess can be cleansing. Hopefully this will cut down on my stress, feelings of ‘meh’, and general malaise. And if not, at least I’ll be alone for it. Well except for Cassandra and she somehow tolerates my B.S. insanely well. Let’s wrap this diddy up with some…
RANDOM CRAP!
- This is a depressing admission, but I am not looking forward to tonight’s Movie-A-Thon. For whatever reason I’m just not ‘feeling’ it tonight. However I know that my mood will change once people start showing up, but right now at like 2pm in the afternoon I’m dreading the next 5 hours.
- I started watching the 2002 He-Man & The Masters Of The Universe with Cassandra, AND she’s diggin’ it. Best. Wife. EVER!
- THQ got back to me and they are working on a patch. No time table, no real detail, just a hold on we’re working on it. I’m really irritated, and most likely will never purchase another game from them again. In the meantime I might try to play without any Custom Arenas. This would require me to restart My Universe. If I do so I think I’m going to have five major shows, adding a CHIKARA brand. Perhaps I’ll attack this a bit tomorrow morning.
- Got my check today, the payroll tax kicked back in. I’m down about $30 a paycheck again. Thanks government.
- I painted a bit last night, and was able to finish three miniatures and get another handful about half done. Currently the basement living room is a wreck with all my painting and miniature crap everywhere. I should clean it up, but I’m in that painting mode so I’ll see how long I can keep it this way without pissing off my wife.
- We still haven’t seen The Hobbit.
- There is a cool miniatures Kickstarter going on for Midgard RPG, it’s not a bad deal I’m just currently saturated with minis. Although I must admit some of the minis like the female Death Knight and the Ogress are really cool. There are only 9 days left so give it a gander and if you have the cash back it.
- My desire to go home right now is not measurable.
- I think I’d like to play an evening of GAMMA WORLD since I have the rules, not to mention it might give me some ‘inspirado’ for the Post-Apocalyptic Brick Strip I was contemplating. I’ll have to take a stumble through the Interweb(s) and see if I can find a good framework of an adventure to get my brain spinning with ideas, OR just watch some Thundarr The Barbarian. Either way will work.
- What do you call 10 Packer fans sitting down? An A.A. Meeting.
And with that hacky joke I’m done.
“Don't talk to strangers. Don't swim alone. Don't take the dicey shortcut. Don't turn the stone. Don't tell a secret. Don't fall behind. Don't let the Great Race of Yith Supplant your mind. Don't wrack your memory. Don't blaze the trail. Don't pine for primeval jungles. Don't pierce the veil. Don't look for answers Years down the road. Don't copy down the glyphs that Your visions showed. Are these dreams a clutch of stifled memories? Was there something in my mind? Don't clean the mirror. Don't be surprised When your reflection seems like A pack of lies. Don't ask the inmates What it's about. Don't cry in the library When you find out. Are these dreams a clutch of stifled memories? Was there something in my mind? There are things they say man was not meant to know... Is this shadow out of time?”
* = I'm not huge on X-Force, but damn if this page isn't incredible. An adolescent Apocalypse lamenting to Deadpool, who is his hero. Says a lot about a comic where X-Men proactively murder their enemies. Either way this page is fantastic.
* = Blogger was hatin' yesterday so I've had to go back in and add pictures today, sorry. As for the pic, it just goes to show that our Careers In EvilPodcast is SO interesting even Business Cat wants 'In'....
I wrote this entire blog yesterday, it was morose, long, and rambling regarding how frustrating I find people. It went into my normal meandering dissertation on friendship/Friendship and why I struggle with it, as well as going after myself for all the crap that I don’t like about myself. It is par for the course by now. For some reason I like to re-hash this subject ad nausea. So I was moody, frustrated, and felt crappy yesterday.
In fact I was short with folks who I do like and care about because I felt miserable. I didn’t realize how bad I felt till we got in the car and Cassandra uttered the ‘you look terrible’ line. By the time we got home I realized how right she was. I felt horrible, and then had the seizure that had been waiting on deck for the entire day. It sucked.
However after it was over I felt a lot better. In fact today, mood wise, I feel pretty damn good. Physically I feel awful, but ‘them’s the brakes’. I felt so good last night I spent like an hour on the phone with David mocking his pain and suffering over ladies, and just generally being annoying. He laughed in-between his utterances of hate so it was ok. So I’m beginning to think these mood swings that I sometimes have that leave me feeling emotionally and mentally crappy might just be pre-cursors to a physical issue. Maybe this is my body dealing with the intense headaches that feel like someone is scooping out my brain through my right eye socket with a soup spoon. I get tired, irritable, sad, and apathetic because physically I’m on the verge of breaking down.
The seizures used to scare me, a lot in fact. What I’ve realized over time is that after getting through the physical exhaustion, soreness, and elastic limb feeling the 48 hours after I generally feel a lot better. It is sort of like the Phoenix, not Jean Grey, rising from the ashes. So today I’m tired, sore, and a little wobbly, but I’m also feeling much more my gregarious self. Go figure.
ANYWHO!
I finished reading Bruce Cordell’s first book in the Abolethic Sovereignty, Plague Of Spells(*** ½ out of 5).
I know what you’re going to say, “Ben you usually hate on books that start a series.” I know, and I usually do, but this one, this one was a damn fine adventure yarn told at a break neck pace. It grabbed my attention and I devoured it in a day. The book concentrates on the Forgotten Realms setting just after the horrors of the Spellplague. It follows a group of adventurers and one lost soul as they streak towards an artifact of untold power threatening to end the world. The Spellplague has decimated the Forgotten Realms and destroyed the ‘Weave’ that allows most magic users to cast effectively. In its wake we find a world that was once very metropolitan for a fantasy setting back more to a ‘Points Of Light’ world. The book follows the Fey Pact Warlock Japheth who is bound to the elder Fey Power known as The Lord Of Bats. He’s managed to trick The Lord Of Bats though and rather than serve he has trapped him and stolen a sliver of his power. At the same time Japheth is an addict. He’s become addicted to a substance called ‘Traveler’s Dust’ which opens the perceptions of the user, but slowly kills them leading them to have their soul ripped apart in the Abyss. Through his Pact he has been able to stave this off. The problem is that Japheth’s Pact is bound within a stone that has been stolen from him by the unscrupulous and power hungry merchant Behroun Marhana who has been using the very powerful Warlock as an emissary since the theft. Behroun’s sister Anusha has eyes for Japheth, but is a flighty, spoiled young woman who is naïve of the world. All this changes when she realizes she can walk like a ghost of thought when sleeping. She realizes just what a bastard her half-brother Behroun is and follows Japheth on a mission to make a deal with unknown powers. She stows away on the Green Siren, captained by Aulruick Thoster who is NOT what he seems. There along with the wizard Serene they come into contact with an outcast Kuo Toa Whip, which is a priestess, Nogah. Nogah had found an artifact from the Far Realm, a place of madness, which had called to her. This item was serving as conduit to the Eldest Aboleth in the Forgotten Realms rousing from its slumber, we’re talking ‘End Times’ type scenario here. On the other side of the world the monk Raidon Kane has just awoken from his imprisonment at the onset of the Spellplague to find the world far different, and everything he knew and loved is dead and gone, leaving his one remaining mission to destroy all Aberrants. This is the set-up, where it goes from there is really fun. All the characters are distinctly flawed, but not so mired down in it that they are unlikable. They also seem to be invested in the journey and no one seems too important to be killed. It lends the adventure some weight, as I’m just invested in each character enough to want to see what happens next. I’m intrigued by what the Abolethic Sovereignty actually is and what there end game is, that’s why I’m already half way through the next book! Cordell has crafted something accessible, fun, and pulpy here and I like it.
It was another week so we were greeted with another round of Shattered Star miniatures preview!
First up is the Medium Earth Elemental. What to say? Well I like the translucent green spikey things on the arms, and really an Elemental of any type is a nice ‘Go To’ monster for any campaign. The thing is this looks so, well plain. There is no discernible face, and I’m ok with that; however we do get eyes, so overall it’s just not to my personal taste in Elementals. In addition I’m not a fan of the ‘bursting from the ground' pose, so to me this is just a ‘PASS’.
Up next is the Large Earth Elemental. This is just more of the same in a lot of ways. It take the things that I don’t like and keeps them, but it also takes the things I did like and amps them up. In addition this time we get a face, a nice Ben Grimm like face that looks like it is super happy to smash you in the mush. Again though the ‘bursting through the ground’ pose just bugs me, but that is a very personal thing. Overall this mini is also a ‘PASS’.
Third up is the Large Glass Golem. I don’t think that I’d have ever thought to use this particular monster in an adventure prior to seeing this mini, now however it is on my ‘To Do’ list. The frosted glass look is outstanding! It gives the mini an unearthly glaze that could allow it to double as a Ghost or Ice Elemental. The pose helps as well; it has an anguished and ‘unfinished’ look. The arms bent into blades along with that haunted face is just outstanding. I really hope we eventually get some Medium sized versions of this beast so we can build an Encounter around it in an abandoned temple; this one is a ‘MUST BUY’.
Bringing up the rear this week is the Fire Giant. My heart is swooning. This is the perfect ‘Warrior’ to all the other Fire Giants I already own; in fact I hope it is a Common so I can get two to three of them. I like the bronzed armor, the cracked black skin, and that raging face calling out the PC’s DOOM! The mini is just full of character and I dig that. If I had to complain about anything it is the spikes on the shoulder pads. The only people who should EVER be allowed to do that are the Road Warriors, and Hawk is dead. Modern fantasy folks, less can be more, don’t fall victim to the ‘Grim Dark’ of Games Workshop, we do NOT need skulls and spikes everywhere to tell me something is E-V-I-L-! Otherwise this mini is fantastic and a ‘MUST BUY’!
I’m sure I had more to talk about, but I can’t for the life of me remember what that is, SO….
RANDOM CRAP!
- Since the CHIKARA & Painting Night I’ve got another ten to fifteen minis done. I’ve got another six or seven on the verge of being finished. I’m finding that retreating to the basement, throwing on some CHIKARA and just painting is sort of relaxing, its better when I have someone or someone’s to do this with, but even alone it isn’t bad. I’m almost through King Of Trios 2009, and it is fantastic! I need to make some steady progress before March and the MUTHA LOAD of minis arrives. Anyone know how to ‘Pin’ miniatures, I have some who need it and don’t know how to do it.
- It sounds as if there is going to be a once a month Doctor Who group that is starting from the beginning of the series. I am excited to be a part of it.
- On a side note it appears El Generico signed with WWE.
Good for him, I hope dude makes fat cash and is able to capitalize on how most of the other ‘King Of The Indies’ guys have hit it big, BUT WWE is known for ruining things more often than not. Either way I’ll always have his stints in CHIKARA to enjoy, OLE!
- Fuck you THQ! My WWE ’13 won’t work and that pisses me off. Release a patch you stupid bastards.
- I’ve got to find a way to distance myself from folks who just are able to pull at me in ways that I don’t like. I set myself up for these frustrations and stresses, I over invest and care WAY too much about stuff. To the point that it effects my health. It is so messed up, half the time I want to have ALL my friends/Friends over and hang out to the wee hours of the night, the rest of the time I want to hide out in a cave and never come out.
- Cassandra made Meatloaf last night that made my heart smile.
- Cusack-A-Thon on Friday night! I’m pumped to watch Better Off Dead.
I had more to say, but it escapes me today, I think I’m just too worn out post seizure. Maybe a night of board games and pizza with my wife will get the pep back in my step.
“Curse with me Profane and discreet Make her move Cross veins and chamomile Soft and sweet Seasalt silver-meat Buried deep In crowskin overcoat Save your breath This may be the last There is no novelty here on the earth O'saviour! Forever threadbare and faded Drunken and arcane... Curse the day O'saviour! There's rotgutted whiskey in ladies For to ease the pain... Or drown away Save her! You've crushed all the bones and the cradles All along the way... Along the way”
* = Dewey, whos is a Scientist & the #1 fan of the Careers In Evil Podcast(SHAMELESS PLUGS!), made this diagram to illustrate an e-mail conversation between himself, David, and myself. It made me weep tears of joy.
The Czar & El Iron Fisto retreat to the Sanctum Sanctorum to fight with the recording equipment, to discuss the end of some relationships and the beginnings of something new, there is an attempt to contact Dewey, Ben hates on THQ, we do a dating questionnaire to let the 'Ladies' get to know David, we plug our blogs, Dave talks about masturbation in front of his mom, we rant about Doctor Who and The League, we talk about our New Year's 'Events', and Ben tries to tempt David into the dark, subversive world of Co-DMing. Join us or don't... Careers In Evil Podcast #15 - Technical Diffilculties
* = So the other day, right before the yahoos on both sides of the isle 'saved' us from falling over that mystical 'Fiscal Cliff' a guy I had known since I was a kid just demolished 'Teh Fazebook(z)' with crazy hard core Conservative blasts at the President and anyone who disagrees with his perspective. I 'un-friended' him. See I don't see Obama like he's portrayed in the pic I posted, and yes it is 'titsy'. He's just a guy who has one of the hardest jobs in the world trying his best to do 'right'. There are way too many key board political warriors, on both sides mind you, who would do better to just take a F'Ning deep breath and get some perspective outside their little bubble, and stop doing the ignorant bidding of pundits and rabble rousers who make money off their rage and fear. I felt bad cutting dude off, but I just don't need that shit in my life. I got enough stress worrying about real problems, like Dave's love life...Yeesh...
Anywho, yesterday went entirely too fast. Just WAY too fast. So we’re back in the swing of things and I have to say this is one of the rare times that I would prefer to wake up tomorrow and never, ever have to work another day in my entire life. I think it is just a matter of a serious case of ‘Holiday Fatigue’. I’m working on trying to get my sleep schedule back on track, organize my ideas, and actually try and get some ‘work’ done. Operative word is ‘try’.
In the meantime let me tell you about a little book I just read, Patrick Rothfuss’‘The Name Of The Wind’(***** out of 5).
DAMN, this is a great book, however it would have been even better if it wasn’t the first of a series. A co-worker told me about this one and I was a bit skeptical to give it a go, and for that I should be summarily slapped in the mush. It starts slow, those first 150 pages or so are a bit of a slog, but once it gets rolling it is a joy. The premise is your hearing the life story of the world’s greatest hero, or villain depending on your perspective, as it is being told to a Chronicler. Kvothe, the main character, is more or less in hiding or retirement or whatever you want to call it and is only telling his tale in order to keep it from being bastardized by others. The thing that I loved is that Kvothe is a lovable character who is deeply flawed, completely self-aware, and yet a slave to his passions. On top of that you are hearing him tell this tale from the position of a somewhat broken man. He’s given up on who he was, and in a way given up on the world at large. It feels like you are sitting around a fire hearing Hercules tell you of his adventures; of all the monsters he’s slain, the places he’s been, and all the horrible tragedies he has visited upon himself and others. That’s what drew me in so tight was the tragedy just below the surface of Kvothe’s life and what has led him to where he is. It’s never explicitly stated, well not in this book at least, what they all were, but you can see them bubbling right below the surface. My complaints are few really; it is long, it is the first of a series, and I didn’t really care about the stuff going on in the ‘present’ beyond the telling of the tale. I was irritated as the book came to a close knowing that I was going to have to seek out the sequel. But then one of the secondary characters let’s slip his motivation and just why he’s brought Kvothe & The Chronicler together, and it is BRILLIANT! That in itself has roped me back in for at least book two. So if you enjoy a good fantasy read that does a decent job capturing the vibe of Tolkien and the early life feel of Harry Potter then go track this one down it is a damn fine read.
Yesterday my lovely wife and I celebrated our 8th Wedding Anniversary by laying around in PJ’s and watching the 7th Season of the new Doctor Who(Infinite *’s out of 5).
I will admit this right off the bat, I cried. We both cried actually. If you aren’t caught up, this means you David, than you might want to skip this as it is SPOILER heavy. You have been warned. I thought about going through episode by episode, but really the way this was constructed it works just hitting it all as a season. Steven Moffat is crafting something truly special here as The Doctor is back at ‘ground zero’ at the beginning of the Christmas Episode. See we’d become attached to Rory & Amy as the Companions. They were the perfect couple, ‘The Boy & Girl Who Waited’, and fit this incarnation of The Doctor like a glove. And now, now they are gone. They are forever ripped away from The Doctor and their families by the Weeping Angels to only live on in memories and dreams. I knew they were leaving the show and that we’d be getting a new Companion, but damn did Moffat bring the pain in the way he did it. The Angels have now ascended into Dalek territory as Who villains. It was a shocker of a moment followed by the gut punch of one spouse deciding to leave EVERYTHING behind in order to sacrifice themselves in order to be together. In the preceding episodes Moffat did a wonderful job both building up both the loving relationship the Ponds had with The Doctor as well as just how damn dangerous it is to be a Companion. In the end even River Song doesn’t stay with The Doctor, but she does re-iterate the words of her mother, Amy for those that don’t know, ‘The Doctor should NOT travel alone’. That is where the Christmas Episode kicks off with The Doctor an inconsolable mess hiding in the Victorian Age of England like a modern day Scrooge. His only proper ‘Friends’ being the Silurian detective Madame Vastra, her wife Jenny Flint (sort of a lesbian inter-species married Holmes & Watson), and the displaced ‘Man Servant’ the Sontaran Strax, and even they can’t drag him out of his funk. I just want to let you know now Strax steals every scene he’s in, he’s a riot, and I had truly hoped that he’d leave the erstwhile detectives behind and become The Doctor’s new companion. Their banter was sublime. We are re-introduced to Clara Oswin Oswald, YES THAT CLARA, in this time period and that’s where things start to take off. See this one has a lot going for it; The Great Intelligence (from the 2nd Doctor & voiced by Ian McKellen) makes its 1st (?) appearance, we get killer Snowmen, The Doctor living in the clouds at the end of a giant invisible spiral staircase, a new version of the inside of the TARDIS , and a new Companion. If you watched Season 7 you’ll remember Clara from ‘The Asylum Of The Daleks’, where she DIES! Well she dies here as well. She is the ‘Twice Dead Girl’, and rather than just being annoying, it instead is fascinating and maddening! We’re left waiting for the next season and The Doctor, who has been going around and erasing his existence both Pre-Ponds and Post-Ponds, searching through time and space for this mysterious girl whom he was unable to save TWICE! Who is she, where did she come from, how come she can't DIE!? We, as viewers have the smae questions The Doctor has, and that is so brilliant. And we know we’ll get to see her, because she shows up at the end of the episode visiting her own grave. As for who and what she is, we have no idea, I will say I love the character so far. She’s a match for The Doctor in the intelligence department, she’s witty, vivacious, and WANTS to travel with him. She’s sort of Rose 2.0. Oh Mr. Moffat you are amazing. So as sad, and honesty slightly despondent, over the loss of The Ponds I am beyond intrigued with the fetching Clara. It’s as if they are sort of ‘soft’ re-booting Who here; The Doctor is an unknown quantity in the universe again, he’s distanced from River currently, his circle of ‘Friends’ is small, and he has a Companion who seems both ‘interested’ in him, but FAR more interested in EVERYTHING. Next season can’t get here fast enough. It’s a great time to love Doctor Who.
It was another week, and this time the good folks at Paizo dropped a CRAP TON of Shattered Star previews on us, let’s take a gander shall we…
First up is the Pallid Path Cultist, which I believe is a Common. I have to give HUGE‘ups’ to Wizkids for making this one sort of a hazy translucent color. You can’t tell from this picture but this thing looks almost like a shade. In fact it’ll make a great stand in for folks who use Skulks in their games. I for one will be attempting to get a smattering of these for use as Shadow Assassins looking to end the pursuit of power that one of my PC’s is currently involved in. I’m not overly fond of the glaringly white eyes, but I think it would be hard to alter that and keep that phased translucent look. I’m looking at this like I did the Shinning Child in the last set; it looks ok in a picture and fantastic in hand. At least that’s what I hope, either way it’s a MUST BUY.
Next up is the Ravenous Ooze, which I also believe is a Common. I don’t have a lot of use for Oozes overall as they just never really seem to work their way into my Campaigns, however I’m thinking of changing that soon as the 2nd Campaign gets ready to kick off. I think I could find a place for a few of these, like three. The mini itself isn’t overly impressive, but c’mon it’s an Ooze, what do you expect. I hope the color is a sickly off-white, slight yellow though and not a pearl color. I think just for the mere fact we don’t have many mini options for Oozes this one becomes a MUST BUY as well.
Third for the week is Shadow Hound, I believe it also might be a Common. We have a Shadow Mastiff, that is fantastic from the old DDM, and I believe we got one in the Drow pack from Dungeon Command as well. This one doesn’t look to be made out of the same translucent plastic, and I’m ok with it. It has a far more monstrous and otherworldly look to it, and it’s a dog I ALWAYS need more dogs in my miniature drawers. Because of its solid coloring I’ll have to get a better ‘in hand’ look at it before I can declare my overall opinion, but thus far it looks damn intriguing, intriguing enough to be a MUST BUY for this guy.
Last but not least is the Common Hellhound! This is one of my favorite Pre-painted minis I’ve seen in some time. It just looks amazing. The paint and shadow of the shading looks outstanding, the pose is canine and yet screams HOUND OF HELL, and it is a monster that NEEDED a good and proper representation in the world of miniatures. If this is a Common then I expect to try and wrangle at least five of them. I mean c’mon it looks incredible, and who doesn’t need some Hellhounds? It is a MUST BUY for me. Overall this set of previews blew me away with the sheer amount of good looking, well thought out, cost effective, and USEFUL stuff. If Paizo and Wizkids continue to knock it out of the park like this then I’ll be shocked to see WotC push out any new pre-paints in 2013. It’s sort of strange to say it, but it is almost as if Paizo has become a more fiscally sound version of the old TSR while WotC is just sort of floundering.
I think it’s time to wrap this bad boy up with some…
RANDOM CRAP!
- I guess we’re Podcasting tomorrow night. Dave is single again, and although we’ll touch upon it, we are NOT going to dwell on it. He’s a lean, mean, girl meeting, music talkin’ machine right now. I want to concentrate on that.
- I’m thinking that an Emergency Movie-A-Thon might be necessary here shortly.
- The Xbox has been doing some serious ‘Freezing’ here lately so I haven’t been able to play that much and haven’t been able to put all that music I uploaded into folks’ entrances. I hoping that by moving it up high, away from all other electronics, and giving it room to breathe that it’ll stop being so infuriating. I do have to say that with the new Hard Drive I get these rad ‘Match Highlights’ now and they are FANTASTIC! So at least I got that going for me. I seriously NEED to get back to My Universe as I have the ECW World Title to defend!
- Vikings Vs. Packers in the playoffs Saturday night!
- Speaking of Saturday, Diamond Dave Wheeler and I are co-hosting an evening of Miniature Painting and CHIKARA! I’m hoping for a decent turnout, like 2 more people, and to get some painting done. There is SO much to paint. We have Duergar to finish eyes on, I’ve got my massive Ape to get done, and I’d really like to knock out all those Pirate Orcs, regular Orcs, Goblins, and Kobolds I have sitting around. And that doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of all the stuff sitting around. Perhaps I can even rope Cassandra and ‘Original Recipe’Dave into painting a bit. A man can dream. Either way I’ll have fun hanging out with ‘Extra Crispy’Dave.
- New Year’s Eve was hard this year. It was made easier by watching my wife get tanked with her best Friend Mary, her awesome wife Christina, and their friends Derrick and Stacy. M&C are some of the most gracious people I know and they throw a heck of a shindig. Although I was a bit detached, I still had a great time. Oh and the food was insane!
- Could Andy Reid be the next Chiefs head coach? YES PLEASE!
- It was decided New Year’s Eve that on Wed. we would post at least one HUGE lie on Facebook all year. I’ve already got mine in today; it was Doctor Who-centric, I’m curious to see who gets onboard and what they post.
- My wife is the best. That is all.
- D&D is in a few weeks. I need to start hammering out the details of the evening, and in the process just how I’m going to close the Heroic Tier in a satisfying way. I have ideas, and I might even use the Podcast tomorrow night to get some of Dave’s feedback on it. I’ve found that I need someone to rope me in on my ideas, to give it some focus, and to not over plan. I’m hoping that by using these ‘mantras’ I can make the next session the best yet.
- I love tea, I really do.
You know that’s all I can squeeze out of my tiny brain today…
“I've only walked out on one single movie It was an action adventure It was a blood-sucking summer. And the posters in the lobby of the theater called it "Predator." I called it weak and unwatchable Carl Weathers and two future Governors You know, that's really unacceptable. We gotta stop falling for these double speakers from the double features We gotta keep `em in the theaters. So put your head up to the speakers This is what it's like to stop talking and finally hear me "It's not concern you're itchin' to burn, I know you're dying to know, homie I'm dying to listen and learn" So put your head up to the headphones This is what it's like to drown out the psychos "I'm concerned you're itchin' to burn, I know you're dying to do it, but homie you gotta see how it's done." So put your gun in the shoebox Put the box in the back of your closet and close the door. "Between the kegs and the "Maiden" CD, I think this party's got about as much heavy metal as it's gonna need." So put your head up to the speakers This is what it's like to stop talking and finally hear me "We ain't got time to bleed, we hit the highways and skating on thin ice Mercedes in the street." You ever feel like you're being tricked, tricked-out, dipped, dicked around with, or flat out lied to? Welcome to Hollywood D.C, where Reagan youth grew up cowboys off Ronnie's westerns That shoot em up, and steal the bucks Tell em what's live and giddy-up, yeah off into the sunset Years later we watched the Running Man and 2 of em ran and 1, too star-struck to stick with the plan, huh I shoulda switched to Marlboro's Them cowboy killers Cause Cowboys are killing Camel Lights. Some mustached punk that evil's Jafar, But for a middle eastern guy, I think Aladdin looked kinda white We open wide and catch a bite of villain image We swallow it, and feed it to the kids if the song's alright. It's just the way it be, eyes wide shut up And sit down, put your hands up for your turn to speak So put your head up to the speakers This is what it's like to stop talking and finally hear me "It's not concern you're itchin' to burn, I know you're dying to know, homie I'm dying to listen and learn" So put your head up to the headphones This is what it's like to drown out the Psychoes "I'm concerned you're itchin' to burn, I know you're dying to do it, but homie you gotta see how it's done." So put your gun in the shoebox Put the box in the back of your closet and close the door. "Between the kegs and the "Maiden" CD, I think this party's got about as much heavy metal as it's gonna need." So put your head up to the speakers This is what it's like to stop talking and hear me "We ain't got time to bleed, we hit the highways and skating on thin ice Mercedes in the street." I got my Nikon Let's get our Knife on And get a couple snapshots of a bad move Can you turn the light on Cause I forgot the flash Want these proofs to prove what not to do”
* = THIS is why I dig CM Punk so much. I ran into this picture online of him at a Punk show, ironic I know, in the middle of the 'Fury and Fray' just happy to be alive. Dude is livin' his dream.
