Why We Write

Today is Memorial Day in America. Social media feeds will be full of flag pictures and tributes to veterans. As you can see by the picture, I'm no different. That handsome gent is Louis Wieland, Jr. He is the namesake of my gaming library. He was my grandfather and he served. But, most importantly, he knew how to tell a goddamn story and he passed that love down to me.

He didn't have heroic war stories. He talked about the mundane stuff that happened where he was stationed. He understood that people are the important part of stories. You get the people right, you get the story right. It was my first, most important lesson as a storyteller. I'm as grateful for that as I am grateful for his time as a soldier. All of this is his fault.

So, if you have the opportunity, listen to a war story from a veteran today. They want to tell one and you'll want to hear one. That's the best way we can honor their service and remember their sacrifice.

Save Game - First Save Point Reached!

I just submitted my first draft of Save Game to the heads under the Evil Hat. A playtest this weekend really helped tighten up the manuscript and the focus of the game. I'd also like to thank everyone for their support and enthusiasm in working on the game.

After the jump, there's an except for the random aspect generation I use to give each character flavor. My playtesters giggled with evil glee picking the words for their fellows to use while creating their aspects. I thought it was a clever twist to the phase trio from Fate Core.

Save Game - The Really Real World

Save Game is a fairy-tale land based on video game source material. It’s not the first tale to be told using these stories as a basis. Many other tales feature some connection to the real world, like a person trapped inside a computer or being able to look through a screen out into the real world. How important is a connection to the real world for your game?

Games that end with the rescue (or destruction) of Cartridge Gardens likely don’t need much thought about the subject. For games that proceed to other islands, some consideration about the effects on the real world can give the game more texture. Is the Glitch a virus looking to overtake all systems to gain sentience? Is it a local virus eating through the computer of one family that could wreck their daughter’s paper?

How important is the Real World to you in Save Game?

Echoes of War - Bucking the Tiger

Today is a pretty exciting day for me. The newest Echoes of War adventure is out. I'm always excited on release day, but it's a double dose because it's the adventure I wrote for the line. Bucking the Tiger features a murder mystery set at a Wild West themed casino, as an old friend of the Crew gets killed just before she's able to make good on a marker.

You can download Bucking the Tiger here.

My friends over at Plot Points Podcast asked me to come on and discuss the adventure and the Firefly RPG. The episode is split into two parts. The first part is primarily a discussion of the show and the RPG. The second focuses on the adventure. There are spoilers in the discussion, but a neat thing about the adventure is that is plays differently every time.

If you'd like to get the podcast on iTunes, click here.

If you'd like to listen in your browser, click here.

C2E2 2014 - Instant Classic Con Report

High light: This was the first year where I felt like I made some good connections at c2e2. The previous years I got a lot of people telling me I needed an artist to draw pages to put into people hands. This year, by wandering around Artist's Alley, I got a lot of cards from potential collaborators. 

Low light: The lines for the big names I wanted to meet were huge. So I must continue to merely chat them up on Twitter.

Best experience: Driving down with Ben and Brad and getting some good conversation with best friends both days.

Worst experience: A damned sinus cold that sent me back home before seeing Thrilling Adventure Hour.

Best bargain (had to buy it, no freebies): The first three Punisher Essentials for the price of one.

Best Freebie: The Jonah Hex sketch that Jimmy Palmiotti did on the trade he signed for me. He drew something in two minutes that looks better than anything I could do in a year. 

Most welcome surprise: Running into the Ms. Marvel cosplayer whose picture I showed to Ms. Marvel's author and passing on well wishes.

Most unwelcome surprise: I as all set to spend a ton of money at the WeLoveFine booth, but they had a very limited selection. I always get compliments on my stark Industries polo and they didn't have any other polo shirts on site.

Best costume: A spot-on Chewbacca, complete with the slightly loping walk.

Best costume try: My friend Suzanne made a good Scully but everything really clicked when she got an ID badge from a nearby booth.

Most amusing costume: The guy dressed as weapon X in little more than boxer briefs and a helmet. Glad to see some beefcake on the floor.

Coolest booth and why: One of the 50% comic shops where the owner told an amusing story about how wearing a LexCorp Security polo let him help a little boy find his lost parents.

Strangest moment: Realizing an artist in Artist Alley did commissioned character sketches for my first ever Shadowrun characters some twenty odd years ago. His reaction? "Burn them. Burn them immediately."

Favorite item available in the Exhibit Hall: There were a ton of 50% off trades booths, which always make the trip worthwhile.

Stuff bought:
Cat lady art
Jonah Hex trades
Rat Queens
Punisher Essentials
Wonder Woman

Stuff got for free:
Signatures
Iron Man mask

Stuff that was wanted that was unavailable:
Atomic Robo Vol. 8
Atomic Robo Real Science Adventures 2

Hawkeye trades

Best Quote:
"If it's a flock of seagulls, what do you call a group of Castiels?"
"A confusion."

Save Game - The Boss Monsters

Here are the descriptions of the bad guys in the campaign included in the game. Each generation is a different island, so we're focusing on the 8-bit island in this project. The biggest heroes have already fallen to the Glitch. They call themselves the Zeroes, and they look to destroy the final free city on the isles. Presstarton is your home and if you fall, it falls, and the Arcadian Isles will be overrun with the Glitch.


I'm sure you'll see the inspirations for the Zeroes, but I hope you get a kick out of the twists, too. They were heroes once, just...like...you...

Firefly RPG - Core Book PDF

Is it U-Day? No, it's PDF day! The electronic version of the Firefly RPG is out at DriveThru RPG.

The book comes with a great Episode, What's Yours Is Mine, but surely you want more Episodes after that?

Wedding Planners: The Crew escorts a young ingenue to her wedding to a wealthy arms manufacturer - whether she likes it or not.
Shooting Fish: The Crew comes to the aid of a Shepherd by entering a no-holds-barred boat race run by an overbearing mayor.
Friends in Low Places: The Crew gets caught between a corrupt Guild trader and the Alliance officer looking to bring him down.
Freedom Flyer: The Crew helps an old friend outrun bounty hunters to put the pieces in place for a new life.

If you want to try before you buy, Serenity Crew offers write ups for the main Crew and 12 original archetypes. Add an Echoes of War Episode for a few nights of adventure!