I'm here for you, Guy. You DO need an editor.
Speaking of which, when do we get some more Tristan goodness?
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Okay, that was sweet to see my "name" in the diary. Thanks! As I was dropping it into the doc file, I was tempted to purposly add something to "put words into [her] mouth," but decided against it. Awesome. Thanks again!
Ah, not genetic, but rather political clone. They're very similar in ideas and policy. But I still insist there's a resemblance.
Obviously not a clone then. Hey, if you’re going to parse speech, a clone is an exact genetic copy, and while a charismatic aptitude may have a genetic component, public speaking is a learned skill, which would not be reproducible by cloning. I can give Guy his use of “clone” as a figure of speech, but if you want to get technical, what makes him “Obviously not a clone then” is that they don’t look alike. Capt. Spaulding: I used to know a fellow who looked exactly like you by the name of Emanuel Ravelli. Are you his brother?
You pretty much got it. In other words, if you have a physical relationship, it's all good with the insurance companies, but not for siblings. That just seems a bit unfair to me. But let's bring this conversation back on topic. No matter what my political opinions or social beliefs in practice, I say that for Tristan and Lavinia - bring on the Sapphic Snogging!!!! Domestic partners, indeed!!! Oh, and -> :), just so P.H. knows my intent. ;)
I never realized that :) was a smiley icon before. You learn something new everyday. :) Happy :( Sad:p Sticking out tongue >:( Angry :D Laughing :O Surprised/Shocked Frankly, I'm pretty new to it, too. I don't generally like using them, but I think they are necessary sometimes since there is no "tone" in an e-mail and you want to convey that you are joking and not serious (as was my intent).
Well, like I said, I’m a Tory. Since this is a discussion that spans three related countries, it’s probably not anything we could even begin to chew on in the middle of a thread dedicated to the Lidu Diaries, anyway. I will point out that the U.S. is a confederated republic. As such, each state has the autonomy to regulate maters that the Federal government doesn’t bother. With. Regarding so-called “sodomy laws,” to which I believe you are referring, it is my understanding that they pertain to certain practices, not “existence.” Further, I don’t believe they are even much enforced anymore in the states where they are still active on the books (bad form from a legal point of view, but good from a social one). Anyway, what I was getting at is that the U.S. gives one the freedom to choose – you can go to California to get married, then return home to whatever state. I agree with your Mr. Trudeau about staying out of peoples’ bedrooms (and I won’t say anything about him because I don’t know anything about him) – I think government should, for the most part, stay out of peoples houses all together. However, when you talk about marriage, you aren’t just talking about the bedroom. In fact, from a legal standpoint, that is irrelevant. Marriage (and who can get married) effects taxes, healthcare benefits, inheritance, property rights and a whole list of other legal matters. Here’s a little intellectual exercise for you. A man marries a woman. They file joint tax returns. She is recognized as a spouse by his health insurance. Another man enters into a “domestic partnership” with another man. They file joint tax returns. He is recognized as a “domestic partner” by his partner’s insurance (same benefits as a spouse). Two siblings (two brothers or a brother and sister, it doesn’t matter), both single, move in together. They file joint tax returns. However, the sibling can not be claimed on the other sibling’s health insurance as a “domestic partner.” Why is that? (I don’t have an answer or opinion. Just an interesting question.)
Um, that little smily emote icon tells Guy that I was joking. We do that sometimes. See, the history on that was that we were joking about different flavors of "English." See the previous posts. The "copyright" joke - can you imagine if England (where the language, basically, originated) could have copywritten the language? Canada, the U.S. and other countries would then have to pay astronomical amounts to the U.K. in royalties. I can't take credit for that joke. That's John Cleese. However, if we're going to talk Canadian healthcare, then consider the exmample of the Jepps, who had to be flown to Montana to give birth because there was no sapce available at Canadian neonatal intensive care units. This was back in December of last year, if I recall correctly. This example is referenced in Mark Steyn's article titled "Is Canada's Economy a Model for America?" from the January issue of Imprimis. Sorry, but you spoke to my Tory streak.
When you celebrate Thanksgiving, what are you all so thankful for? That England didn't copyright the language? :)
And, apparently, vary/very. That’s okay, though, you DO have a very understanding editor. ;pStupid English language. Oh well, my fault for being born here, but thank god I don't have to pick it up as a second language. I consider British and American two different languages, and I happen to speak both fluently.
And, apparently, vary/very. That’s okay, though, you DO have a very understanding editor. ;p
There's going to be typos in this one. I didn't have time to edit it, but I wanted to get this entry up on time Yes, I noticed. I'm working on that. ;) You seem to have a problem with "since" and "sense." The spell-checker doesn't catch that, so I think I may have missed many instances in Volume 1. So, I guess what I’m saying, Guy, is, “Stop making ‘sense’!” Spell-checker. It sounds like an artifact that helps prevent arcane mishaps! HA!
Sey, Carborundum, is there a way to tell how many hits this link gets? Like, how many people download the file?
I've never even heard of that film (not a big movie fan myself) but I'm guessing that I haven't missed much with that one :) Well, I guess it depends on how you look at it :) I tend to subscribe to the Jeff Murdock (Coupling - British TV series) method of watching films. (Refer specifically to the first season episode entitled "Inferno" - his comments regarding Holly Hunter in The Piano). Yes, I am a complete disgustoid, as I believe all blokes are if they are truly honest.
Oh, my! Thanks for the Young Lady Chatterley homage. I think I broke out in a sweat there for a moment. Maybe the best installment yet! Yes, now that you mention it, there are several corollaries to D. H. Lawrence’s works, not just that one. See also The Rainbow and Women in Love. However, I was referring to Young Lady Chatterley the 1977 film (a film VERY loosely inspired by Lawrence’s work) which featured a bathing scene drawn very clearly to my mind while reading this installment of the diary. That's another book I'm going to have to dig out! Believe it or not I've not read, nor do I own, all of Lovecraft's books, but the Dunwich Horror is one that I think I own . . . somewhere. I'm not quite sure where that one's buried though! :) Wow, yeah, any self-respecting Lovecraftian must read The Dunwich Horror. If for no other reason, the Necronomicon makes its most significant appearance in this story. Read, man! READ!!
Also, did you know that there is a character named Lavninia in Lovecraft's The Dunwich Horror (Lavinia Whateley). I only mention it because of the Lovecraftian references throughout the diary. Of course, there does not seem to be any connetion between the two characters other than their name, but I just thought I'd share. Cthulhu dreams (and visions of sugarplums dance in his head) Sorry, I'm in an odd mood today.
Oh, my! Thanks for the Young Lady Chatterley homage. I think I broke out in a sweat there for a moment. Maybe the best installment yet! Seriously, though, this IS, after all, told from the point of view of a character, so the whole point is the character development. Romance is a very important aspect of that. I find myself as sympathetic to Tristan as I was of my own character and want to see her love requited. Bravo, mate!
Excellent. I’ll leave the two of you to work out those details. As for the file itself, Guy, I’ll work with you by e-mail.Wow, thanks carborundum, I might take you up on that offer. If someone is going to host these files for download I'd prefer that they were hosted by a fan rather then a disinterested 3rd party.
Well, I have done the best I could in the editing department and have added the most recent installment. Just so you are both aware, Guy and Carborundum, the file size is 1,236 kb. How would you like me to handle this? E-mail it to the both of you? I could certainly do that – just give me the word. Carborundum, you might give Guy a chance to sign off on the final draft before posting a link. I don’t foresee any reason why he wouldn’t – I’ve only corrected a few typos and spelling errors, prettied up the formatting, and that’s about it. Nonetheless, it is his story and his call. So, give me the word and I will shoot this file out to you!
Say, have you found a solution to your inquiry yet?
I noticed for the first time the picture you’re using for Shefton – that’s Villa from Blake’s 7! That was one of my favorite shows as a kid – but it’s one of ours. I knew he looked familiar, but I just made the connection.Troy picked that picture and is a fan of Blake's 7. Me? Never had heard of the show until he mentioned it, but I hear it's similar (in tone) to Firefly, so it sounds pretty good. I'll have to look into this Firefly Yeah, it started off a just brief recaps, when I was writing it. When Troy offered to take over the writing, he started doing it as more of a narrative. It's stuck that way since. And I am glad of it!
I think the suspicion is confirmed by Adameus knowing when Viselys’ birthday is. Like I said, I know there was more to it somewhere farther back, but I’ll take this as confirmation of my theory. I noticed for the first time the picture you’re using for Shefton – that’s Villa from Blake’s 7! That was one of my favorite shows as a kid – but it’s one of ours. I knew he looked familiar, but I just made the connection. Oh, and now that I’m re-reading, I realize that it’s kind of dry until somewhere around “BLOURP!!!” I think that’s where it went from a recap to a narrative. That’s also where it changed from present to past tense. But then with “Things that go boom in the night…” I think is where I started to associate with Idae/Adameus and all the different character development seems to start. Now it’s just such a joy to read!
I’m not sure why, but I was under the impression that Idae knew Viselys because he had watched him from afar for years. I don’t remember what it was, maybe it was just one line of dialogue, but finding one line in all the blog – for get it. Anyway, I didn’t think it was that he was trying to find him so much as have an excuse to get to know him. Does that sound right to you?
As I’m doing Lavinia’s Diary, I find myself looking much more closely at the blog – I’ve had to go back and re-read it from the beginning. It seems clear that Lavinia knows more about Adameus’ past than anyone because of some prior history. First, is there any more info you can provide about that, or can I take a little bit of creative license? Also, she seems to know that Adameus is Visely’s older brother (or at least that Adameus believes they are) Do you have any more information on that and, again, can I take some liberties? I realize that these are PCs we are talking about here, so it’s probably pretty sensitive area, but I think that this is a great opportunity to shed some light on that whole back-story.
(Lavinia’s Diary…) First, congrats, mate! Sorry about the long distance, but good on you otherwise! I should say a real life relationship is far and away better than the fiction of Lavinia and … whomever! Is she a gamer? Maybe she could write it. No, probably not, but it might be good to get a female voice behind Lavinia, no? It’s funny you should suggest that. I was starting to think about doing just that. However, I could have months before I start this STAP again. You’d need it by, when? This week? Next? Plus, I’m doing editing work on Guy Humual’s Lidu Diaries. Actually, that sounds more like an argument FOR taking on this project than not, doesn’t it? Okay, I’ll start on it. You just let me know how you want me to get it to you when I’m done (E-mail, post it here, whatever).
I wasn’t going to elaborate on it too much, but since there’s someone other than myself (and Tracer’s group) reading the blog, I feel justified. First, what great character development!! If Viselys is having difficulty right now with matters of trust and honor related to a hairpin of disguise, what is he going to do later in the STAP? (I’ll refrain from the spoilers as much as possible). You know, again I have to say, I’m feeling for Adameus (formerly known as Idae). He is feeling betrayed big time, and I think rightfully so. Throw in the whole brother thing and you have makings of Greek tragedy or a Shakespeare play. I mean, WTF? He’s right: How is a hat of disguise any different from boots of elvenkind or an invisibility spell? Hey, I hope that this was just good RP and not the PCs lambasting each other. I did like the Diamondback/Skald line. That was funny. After THIS fight, the Mother Of All should be mundane. I agree – this was among the best – which is hard to say with this blog. They are all so good. (Lavinia’s Diary…)
Oh, I don’t even know what to say. Brilliant doesn’t begin to cover it! This is what happens when you have good role players unfettered by hack-n-slashers. `Who would have thought that such a simple little item could become such a huge matter of contention? Imagine what you could start by introducing Lavina’s Diary…<wink, grin>
Agreed. Very appropriate. CR is a fair way to determine … well … fairness. I do not think it is the DM’s responsibility to consider party mix when planning encounters. The monsters don’t come out and say, “Oh, wait, you don’t’ have a healer. I’m going to go easy on you…” If they don’t have a healer, they die, and then they (the players, not the characters, obviously) learn a very important lesson about party mix.
I would suggest increasing the “gibbering” ability. All it takes is for one or two of your “hepped up” PCs to be out of commission or, better yet, to turn on the others, to really change the topography of this encounter.
I just had another idea. You could tell your blog writer what you want to get across and have him write it.
Ha! You’ve had over Three weeks!I know, I know...just had a lot of things getting in the way of my GM-ing duties lately. As much as I like the idea, I don't know if I'll get around to writing a diary for Lavinia...just too many other things occupying my time. Of course, you don’t actually have to write it. You can just say that it’s found and supply them with a page or two containing what you want to get across. As I recall, the idea was originally to underscore the original speech (including the mention of the love potion) which you could just copy and hand them. Oooh! Just had another great idea!!!! They find the diary, but pages are missing. All that’s left is the opening speech from “TINH,” a bunch of pages missing, then the last page saying, “we’re setting off on foot for Farshore…” The diary was left INTENTIONALLY. Of course, she yanked out all the “I’m falling for Adameus / Viselys is so handsome” pages. Maybe they find one or two of those pages along the way…
In the thread Lavina and Vanthus it is written:
Ha! You’ve had over Three weeks!
But have you finished Lavinia's Diary?
I thought I’d move this over from the Lavina and Vanthus thread since this one seems a bit more appropriate. I’ve done my best, but I can’t hold back any more. I’m in a cold sweat, I can't stop rubbing and scratching at my neck and my fingernails have been chewed to the quicks. It’s been three weeks. What happened? I’m sorry. I know it’s bad form to even ask – you owe me nothing; it’s your blog for your own use and I’m just a trespasser, but… <twitch, scratch, twitch, wipe the sweat> By the way, I couldn’t help but notice that you didn’t seem to make it to the T-Rex attack. I’m not ordinarily one to say “I told you so,” but… <Oh, my. I get extraordinarily cheeky when I’m going through withdrawal. I never noticed that before.> Please, help a mate out. It’s starting to hurt. Did you ever get Lavinia’s Journal put together? Is the blog just behind or have you blokes just not had a game for a while?
Are there any plans to publish the Savage Tide Adventure path as a stand alone adventure? Or would that be even feasible with how it was sold to Dungeon Magazine? Although I think you’ve already gotten your answer, I thought I would chime in with a direct, non-flippant response. As you allude to, there is a rights complication between WOTC and our gracious hosts who published Dungeon and Dragon magazines. From my understanding, WOTC will not allow Paizo to produce anything related to these APs and to do so without such approval would be a copyright infringement. I wish to be very diplomatic so as not to put our gracious hosts in a potentially compromising position, so I will choose my words very carefully. Sometimes, when rights laws are involved, some rights holders can be very stalwart – even uncompromising. Indeed, occasionally in these situations, reason, logic and even potential financial gain seem to have no relevance. I am not saying that this is the case with WOTC, mind you, but I am pointing out that this is a common stance for SOME, if not MANY, rights holders. As such, the direct answer to your question would be that there would be further marketing of these delightful adventure paths if Paizo and WOTC could come to and agreement. However, the likelihood of this seems so remote that many would say (and have) that it is a safe bet that it never will. I understand how this can frustrate you as a consumer. The unfortunate result of this kind of corporate posturing is that fans like you are left holding your money, desperately longing for a product that will never come. This is the kind of situation that drives the more nefarious among us to resort to alternative means.. As such, expect the previously mentioned .pdf files on a P2P file share near you.
Wow, thanks carborundum, I might take you up on that offer. If someone is going to host these files for download I'd prefer that they were hosted by a fan rather then a disinterested 3rd party. Excellent. I’ll leave the two of you to work out those details. As for the file itself, Guy, I’ll work with you by e-mail.
urm - unless I am seriously mistaken, Sir Humual is far from done with this excellent campaign journal. If I am correct, you will have many more hours of compiling ahead of you in the years to come! Umm, yeah, I got that. (?) I was just working with what there was so far . If Guy had found all this effort useful, it would be a lot easier to add on to this 200+ page document file each time he did an update than to wait until the STAP was comple. (!!) <Dude! Give him a break! The do call him Turin ”The Mad” after all.>
Well, if you want it, just let me know how I can get it to you. On the other hand, I could take some time to “pretty it up” (there are a few typos – no offense intended). Plus, as I said, I could continue to update the file, as I said, whenever you post an update. What would be great is if there were some way to upload the latest entry somewhere so people could download and convert it into a more reader friendly format. Sadly I don't have the computer skills to handle that. also I wouldn't mind making that file you created available to the public... Yeah, I don’t either. However, Tracerbullet once posted a file for me somewhere. I’m going to update the post that started all of this for me back on the STAP board and see if he can help us out. Assuming that’s okay with you.
It has been several weeks, but I have read ALL of this journal. There is so much I would like to say, but I fear my head will explode if I start mentally running through the list.
When I first starting reading them, I copied them to a Word file for reading when I was off-line … Yeah, I was hoping to not have to re-invent the wheel, but, I guess that’s what I’m going to have to do.
All jest asside, mate, do you have a "downloadable" version of your "Lidu Diaries"? I only ask for ease of reading's sake.
This romance is slightly different then your standard love affair because Tristan and Lavinia are both female. [cough, sputter, gulp] Is it getting hot in here [tugging shirt collar]. It’s almost an “inferno” in here. (see my comment from Thu, Jul 3, 2008, 09:35 PM above)
Here, here! This is the tally. "Because I said so" cut thought a lot of grot.
** spoiler omitted ** By the time I run this AP again, our group will be using Pathfinder. It’s hard to switch in mid-game. It’s also a bit chancy to pick and choose (like just using the spell descriptor for one spell), but I see where it would certainly help here. Sorry, I wasn’t really contributing to the inquiry. I just wanted to put in my plug for Pathfinder (shameless or otherwise).
I agree with this assessment of the spell. However, as the scenario demonstrates, this spell can completely unbalance a combat. Personally, I would never permit it in my campaign setting for that very reason. Well, I say that after having learned from your experience, Fenalik, so don’t take it as arrogance. I might have made the same mistake in your saturation. Or maybe I would allow it, but come up with some kind of house rule to prevent this sort of thing. Maybe it doesn’t work on something of animal intelligence or lower.
Wow! What a wanker! Pardon the expression, but how else can you say it? Not only did you have to deal with the Welsh accent, but from a pompous git as well, not to mention a bit of a lazy article! I’m so sorry, mate.
I’m sure it goes without saying, but thanks, mate. I’m taking my time, but I’ve decided I’m definitely going to run this AP again, I’m definitely going to go with the “Nixie shipwreck” option, and I’ll certainly want to do a Lavinia journal, especially if the romance subplot kicks off. The less I have to reinvent the wheel, the better. Thanks, again!
And New Jersey, too? Isn't that where the Sopranos are from (the mafia family, not the singers)? Now you’ve done it!! Seriously, it sounds like you have some very personal issues (especially with your Welsh grad school advisor). I won’t fan the flame any further. Good luck to you, mate!
Great. Then let me know if you agree. I think Tracer would love some feedback, too.
I just came across this link the other day that relates directly to what we were talking about. BTW, I didn't know Eddie was on one of your shows!
Wow! You've really had a go at all the scrappers, haven't you. You're either very brave or very daft or both. I, myself, might have taken offense but I choose to believe that my accent would sound “affected” rather than “silly” to you, and I’m good with that.
That...is...BRILLIANT. I got you talking like one of us now? Nice.
If there were any advice I could give, it would be "don't rush it!" If you rush it, it will "feel" rushed. I appreciate the kind words about my idea, but all modesty aside, if you like it, you have to take the time to make it happen right. Look, I saw your last blog entry. They just got to the Sargasso. That can take a whole game session, easy. I understand – you want the cool cliff-hanger. Why not make the cliff-hanger be approaching the island and seeing the wrecked Nixie? That’s a BIG cliff-hanger! Maybe better than being about to fight a dinosaur (which will be no big surprise anyway for anyone who has ever seen the iconic cover of the classic “Isle of Dread” adventure). Just my thoughts as an interested observer. |