Thursday, November 5, 2015

Silly Lyrics

For the past couple months I've been working on learning to play guitar. I had a little instruction on how to finger the strings and use a pick when I was a teen, but aside from that I'm self teaching, using the internet for some resources. I'm also using sheet music, which I'm partially literate in from playing other instruments, instead of tablature, which gives nothing for how long notes should be held, rests, or other useful notation.

One of the first songs I practised with is Ode to Joy, as it is simple, I like the tune, and I feel is a good starting point with instruments. While playing it my mind decided to put some lyrics to it, and after a bit of refinement I managed to make it into a silly song. Here are those lyrics:

Christ is risen, he's a zombie,
And he's come to eat our brains.
With a spoon, right out o'our skulls,
Just like a bowl of ice-ed cream.

He will eat them, with lots of sprinkles,
And maybe with a cherry on top.
He will eat them for his breakfast,
And if there's enough, for lunch.

I'm sure a lot of religious folks would consider it sacrilegious, but I honestly don't care. There's also no hidden meaning with the lyrics; it's just a silly song about a fictional character that rose from the dead, and since all of the wounds were still present is closest to being a zombie than any other form of undead.

So, next time you play or hear the song, give these lyrics a try to lighten the mood.

Sunday, February 15, 2015

D&D 5th Edition Campaign

I've decided I'll post the adventure synopses for my D&D 5th edition campaign here.

The opening plot hook for the campaign in a custom world is this:


A humanoid of unknown race has washed down river and was found by fishermen. It's been long dead, slain by the many arrows still sticking out of its body, showing its crude armor to have been inadequate. All that the kingdom knows about what is up river is that there was once a powerful empire located in the mountains, though legends say all of their lands were cursed when they fell. The kingdom is seeking all who are willing to travel to those lands and find out what is now there.
The two characters (currently) in the campaign are Gerald, a tiefling druid, and Deynes Foulker, a human rogue.  Extra equipment the starting town provided them with, since it will be some time before they will find another market, is as follows:

Donkey with pack saddle, carrying: bedroll, blanket, 2 person tent, 50' hemp rope, 3 empty sacks, shovel, tinderbox, 2 water skins, map case, fishing tackle, ink, inkpen, mess kit, 10 sheets parchment, 10 days of rations, 10 torches. This leaves 310 lbs carrying capacity left for personal gear, and has a total value of 38 gp, 7 sp, and 5 cp. They also get 110 gp for personal gear selection.

Optional rules being used in the campaign are Spell Points instead of spell slots, Massive damage with a minimum damage threshold equal to the creature's Constitution score, and Cleaving through creatures.  This provides a little more flexibility with spellcasting, and a more dangerous and cinematic combat experience.

*          *          *


Adventure 1 Synopsis (day 1)
Gerald and Deynes met each other and Frerick Bennington, the town Reeve, in Cromwellshire, which is located on the edge of the known kingdoms.  They learn the strange creature resembled a cross between a frog and a human, wore reddish armor made from a material that most resembled hardened leather, and had crudely constructed arrows sticking out of its body.  It had only been dead for 3 to 4 days, and was found by the fisherman Tommas two days ago.  The villagers burned the body the day before the characters arrived, fearing it would bring the curse of the old empire onto their town.

Gerald recalls this lore about the curse of the old empire.
Ages ago, long before even the oldest elf was born, there was a large empire in the mountains that lay to the North.  Stories about how and why it fell vary, but the one piece of information they all share is that its lands were said to be cursed from its downfall.   What exactly the curse would do isn't really known, but many legends agree that it would twist the nature of any creature in the lands, cause the plants to become hostile with thorns and brambles, and that even the dead might stay restless. ”

Investigating the area where the creature washed ashore leads Deynes to find a piece of its armor buried in the sand.  Neither Deynes nor Gerald are able to place what creature this hide once belonged to.  Tommas kept the arrowheads after the body was burned to use as fishing lures, and after inspecting them Deynes finds they don't belong to any known criminal organisation.  He also realises that though they are heavily barbed they are crudely made, and whatever forge they came from was of poor quality.  Tommas also tells them that the wood of the arrows was lighter than any in the area, and burned faster than any he had ever seen.

Frerick lets them know that after about 10 miles of grassland they'll come across a forest to the north.  The villagers sometimes go hunting or gather wood there, but never venture far in. They claim they then feel like they're being watch, and the bushes rustle when there's no animals or wind to cause it.  Frerick had believed the villagers to just be jumping at shadows with such tales, but now that the strange creature had washed ashore he fears it could be something far worse than they thought.

Gerald and Deynes then decided to head north along the river to see what they could find of the creature, what killed it, and what danger may lurk for the known kingdoms.  A little after entering the forest they spot two boars, and knowing how they defend their territory the party decides to strike first.  Gerald opens by casting Entangle while Deynes shoots at them with his shortbow.  The first boar dropped from a single arrow that hit true.  The second boar stuggled in vain against the grass, roots, and undergrowth that held it fast.  Deynes' second arrow also flew true and stuck the struggling boar down.

After butchering one of the boars and having a large meal they continued on till nightfall. They set up camp, and Deynes took first watch.

Each character received a total of 150 experience.  50 xp each from the fight with the boars, and 100 xp each from investigating in the town.

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Savage Worlds Complex Standalone Ranged Attack Macro For MapTool

I've recently learned about the RPG system Savage Worlds, and I must say I like a lot of what I've seen. It's a nice lightweight system, and I love how it's designed to be fast, furious, and fun (yes, I know it's the tagline). There are the occasional spots I'm inclined to make houserules around, but I plan on running a campaign with as little houseruling as I can get away with to start.

With that said, I am already working on making a couple house rules. One of the characters in the campaign has a Habit (minor) of drinking, and much to our surprise we found no rules in the core book on how to handle inebriation aside from the Liquid Courage Edge. This is definitely a rule I need to make sure I have handy and stays regular, and I need to make sure the inebriation houserule I make works with the Liquid Courage and Fast Healing Edges, possibly following along with how poisons work.

With that said, I'm instead going to talk about and post the code for a complex, standalone MapTool macro. By standalone I mean it contains everything it needs within the macro itself, and for those who know anything of my MapTool macros when I say complex, I mean complex. If you don't have much experience with MapTool macro scripting you can still use the macro without issue if you stick stick to modifying the variables at the top. Each has a comment above it giving guidance on each variable, so it is easy to update it to most ranged weapons.

Which reminds me, there are currently a couple limitations with it. It only handles ranged weapons with a fixed damage code, and it must be placed on the token using it. The reasons for those limitations are because of what it is able to do. The fixed damage code limitation is because of the number of firing options it allows for: semi-auto, double-tap, 3 round burst, full automatic fire, using multi-attack, and laying down suppressive fire. The reason why it needs to be on the token using it is due to the manner in which I have it keep track of its ammunition.

Speaking of, it keeps track of it's ammunition, and includes the option to reload it right from the input dialog box. I also have it state how much ammunition full-auto and suppressive fire will use at the top of that box, along with its Rate of Fire and current out of total ammunition. Here, take a look:

Oh, and if you select a number of attacks greater than the firing option you choose allows, it will automatically reduce the number of attacks for you. It also accounts for the penalties and bonuses to attack and damage rolls for the firing options it has, and has an input field for additional modifiers (such as from cover, range, etc) to the attack roll (but not the damage roll). It will also only roll the Wild die once for Wild Cards, as per the core rules, and checks if the token using it is a Wild Card based on whether they're a PC or NPC.

But I suppose that's enough blabbing for now. You can download a copy of the macro through this link..

Friday, July 27, 2012

D&D Next

Well, I just spent the last two weeks moving into a new apartment. I still have to run around places and update my new address (hooray for cell phones meaning I don't have to change my number!), and the place will be quite a mess until things are unpacked and organised.

Oh, and we're going to get two adorable savannah kittens that are only 4 months old next week. Savannah cats have a high propensity to be non-allergenic (by using slightly different proteins) and to like water. One of the kittens already loves to hop in the shower, and we'll make sure the other one also likes water, so we can regularly bath them to further cut down on allergens left everywhere. As people might wonder, I am allergic to cats (luckily not severely, but still), as is one of my mates, so that is part of what directed us to look for this breed in particular.

What does all of the above have to do with D&D Next? Absolutely nothing! But I figured I'd throw in a status update anyways.

I just recently (like two days ago) signed up for the Dungeons & Dragons Next playtest. I found I wanted to know more about the next edition, and my poking around the intarwebs led me to conclude that the best way to find out was to join the open playtesting for it.

Now, I can't reveal any mechanics or whatnot because of the non-disclosure agreement I accepted in order to get a hold of the stuff, but I can still put forth my opinion on what I think of it in general terms. So far I have been liking what I see, to the point that I want to run some adventures in it to get a good feel of the mechanics in action. I never got that with 4th edition, as it read almost like a tabletop rip-off of World of Warcraft. 

I also find that the blending of all previous editions they're doing is actually working out really well, which is of great relief as I was pretty sure it would be a total flop and be overly bulky and easily exploitable. Oh how glad I am to be proven wrong on that. I've noticed elements that bring me back to when I started with AD&D 2nd edition, familiarity and customisability from 3.0/3.5, and even some elements from 4th that, while I feel like it throws in more power-gaming, actually seems to work fine worked into the flavour and style of previous editions.

From what I have seen there also seems to be a better balance in some of the abilities in contrast to level, which makes it a more comprehensible world for me. There's also more balance between the classes at similar levels, so gone are the days when physical fighters rule at low levels while casters become demigods later on.

There's also a more open ended feel to it, and encouragement to let the story take precedence over the rules scattered throughout. I love this as it helps to discourage rules lawyering, and makes it so that you don't have to listen to the dice gods when they are in opposition of what makes sense.

The only criticism I currently have about it is this: I want more! I want more options, more material, more stuff to work from to build my own fleshed out adventures and campaigns with the rules. I suppose I'll just have to settle with what is available right now, and ensure that I give feedback to help the process along (even if only a really, teeny tiny bit).

Monday, July 2, 2012

Old Weldster

Well, even more stuff has happened, as it's always wont to do. For starters I'm now 30. While I know that in the grand scheme of things it's still young, it certainly doesn't feel like it when you hit it. Something about the arbitrary way we count our age that puts 30 into firm adulthood, having to be someone who's always responsible, and is either is or is finishing being established and settled.

Yeah fucking right.

I can't say my level of responsibility has changed since I joined the Air Force and got married at 19 (technically joining the USAF was a week before that age, but whatever). I've never been sure on exactly what makes one "established" or not, as it's not like each person is their own business, but I'm really only now expanding my circles of friends and gaining tenuous connections with professionals. As for being settled, well, I start moving into a new apartment in just over a fortnight.

By now, though, you're probably wondering what all of that has to do with the title. Well, it did cover the "old", but not the latter half. That's being a pun on "old spinster" and the new skill I've been learning from a friend: welding. Of course, "old spinster" really doesn't apply to me since I'm married, have a boyfriend, and get to do things like hugging and kissing my spouse's girlfriend, but my mind came up with the pun and I decided to use it. (It certainly beats having some form of "Yet Another Update", which I've done to death, rebirth, death, resurrection, death, undeath, and back again.)

According to the friend who's teaching me, and who doesn't give out compliments unless she feels they're earned, I've been picking it up pretty quickly and well. She's later gonna show me some other types of welding and such, and I'm really looking forward to that. I'm in turn showing her Linux, which she's liking.

What else... Oh yeah! I've been working on a custom RPG and it's actually at the beta stage now. Currently I just need to throw in some force skills so I can run a Star Wars campaign for testing it. I've watched episodes 1-6, the Holiday Special (ye gads...), and plan on watching Battle for Endor (but don't have any plans on watching Caravan of Courage) to wrap it up, so that I can base the force skills off of what's seen in official live action movies (I'm ignoring the Clone Wars series for this).

For playtesting I'll again be using the wonderful program MapTool, which is a virtual tabletop program that supports macros (automated dice rolls and other functions) and allows everyone to connect over the internet. If you're interested in the game mechanics or how the campaign progresses you can check it out over on HouseruleGaming.

Monday, April 30, 2012

I'm so terrible at updating

Well, a lot has happened over the year and a quarter since I last posted to my blog.

I've been officially diagnosed with non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder. Taking a small dose of melatonin while keeping up on sleep hygiene (which I had already been doing) and ensuring I wake up at the same time has allowed me to have a regulated, 24 hour schedule. It's still pretty shaky at times, but I have predictability in my schedule now which is awesome to have.

On December 19th I started taking estradiol, prescribed by my doctor. I've noticed definite changes beyond with spironolactone itself has done, including being much more in tune with my emotions, more redistribution of body fat to my face and hips, and some additional breast growth (I'm now a full B-cup).

My spouse's girlfriend has moved in with us, making it a 4 person household. It's wonderful having her here. She's also artsy/crafty herself and has helped get me back into sewing and drawing more.

My boyfriend went back to college and has now graduated with honours with a BA in biology. He was even able to get a job lined up before graduation as a food quality auditor.

I have also created a web-forum: houserulegaming.net. It was created as a place for people to talk about game rule interpretations, house rules, and home-brewed systems. After a big brouhaha drama-splosion at the forum I had been a moderator of, the admin, several members, and myself left it and I've expanded my forum to have a more complete community area aside from the game area.

I've also been going to a veteran's transgender support group, which has been awesome. In some ways I'm not necessarily getting much out of it, as I've lived as my target gender for years and have done a bit as far as transition goes, but I have gotten useful information, learnt additional viewpoints, and been able to help other people in figuring themselves out.

I've also been able to get more control over my anxiety and depression. I'm now on sertraline and frequently saw a therapist who was able to greatly help me overcome a lot. I no longer need someone I know with me when I go to appointments, and can even use public transportation without problem (and for free, as I found out that service connected disabled veterans are able to do). With as many strides as I have made I know I'm still a long way from being fully functional (if I can ever get to such a point). I ended up having a bad panic attack due to the large crowd at my boyfriend's graduation commencement ceremony (so sadly missed it), and so need to make another appointment with my therapist as several days later I've still not really recovered from it.

I think I will leave this much as the update, and try to post more frequently.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

No, I'm Not Dead, Just Inactive For 16 Months

So, it appears that I have been inactive for 16 months. Didn't plan on to, it just sort of happened. I "blame" improperly medicated depression for it, as I became very reclusive for most of it. Even ended up not signing into any messengers, forums, or other forms of online communication for a 3 month period in there.

The funny thing is, I thought the medication I was on was working fine. Then, what with one thing and another, I ended up with a gap from when my prescription ran out to when I had an appointment to get it renewed, and it was then that I realised I was doing better off of the medication than I was on it. I know I still need medication to help keep my depression and anxiety in check, but that's why I have an appointment with a psychiatrist in the next week.

Oh yes, I should give a quick update of some stuff that's happened...

My boyfriend, Vene, got a decent paying job (even if the hours suck). Because of this We've moved to suburbia, so we're no longer next door to the middle of nowhere. It's really nice being able to get to a lot of shopping and such in about 5 minutes, instead of taking 40 minutes to get only adequate shopping. Still going to take about half an hour to see my doctor, but that's a perfectly reasonable amount of time to see one that knows my medical history and that I know is trans friendly. Oh, and the place we're renting now is about 3 times larger than our old place, for not much more in rent.

Oh yeah, I also got my name legally changed. I now think of my old one as my maiden name, even if I didn't realise I was a maiden for the majority of the time I used it. :รพ I've also had a couple sessions of electrolysis. Would have gone with laser hair removal, but I've got red hair so it's sadly not an option. I need to make more appointments for it, but I'm waiting till after I see the psychiatrist to make them, as I might get something that messes with my sleep-wake cycle (or lack thereof).

On a slightly related note, I've realised I'm allergic to a lot of make up, as a lot of them use mushrooms for "anti-aging." I am able to use mineral make ups, which is nice, as sometimes my face gets pretty irritated from a razor.

Well, in order to keep this short, and give myself more material for later posts, I'll wrap it up here.