Reflecting on The Walking Dead

I've been thinking a lot about The Walking Dead recently, and not just because it a damn good TV series. I'm really enjoying the sub-story of the two former law enforcement partners. In many ways, it reminds me of an adventuring party after the party goes their separate ways.

Here's the deal: partners in law enforcement, are for the most part, a forced marriage of sorts. If you are lucky you may choose your partner, but many times it's the luck of the draw as to who you will be working with, day in day out, for months or years. This is the person that you have to rely on to risk their life for you without hesitation, and you for them.

It can be a very intense relationship, coming before family and friends in many cases. You will learn how they think, how they will react. Yet, for the most part, the only common interest shared, the only bond, is The Job.

It's pretty much the same for adventuring parties. Throw a bunch of strangers together into constant danger, where the only way to survive is to trust your fellows to risk their lives for yours... it just more like an arranged family then marriage. The bond is The Party.

I've made three honest to god, true friends in my numerous years in law enforcement... and not one of them was a partner of mine. Heck, the only times I see my old partners these days seems to be at funerals.

All of which is why I am truly enjoying the interaction between the two former partners in The Walking Dead, as it's as real a portrayal of any I've seen in movies and TV shows over the years.

(The Job, a very short lived TV series starring comedian Dennis Leary, is the closest I've seen to an authentic police oriented show. Brooklyn South also came very close - close enough that when I watched it on DVD recently I found myself feeling very sympathetic for the Desk Sgt ;)


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The Latest Brew

When I used to DM in college I had a pretty strict "No Booze" rule at the table.  It's not that I didn't drink, I just found it to be distracting at the gaming table - roleplaying was serious business!

Skip ahead 20 years and I find myself home brewing (beer, not adventures), using Sodastream for my sodas and now I am a proud owner of a Tassimo Coffee / Tea brewer.  Yeah, my gadget geekiness has extended to my beverages in my middle age.  The thing is, I don't drink coffee - it's tea for me.  My teenage son drinks his milk with coffee and my lady likes lattes.  I could have 3 machines or 1, and at least this way I can offer guests a selection of hot beverages.  So, I'm counting this as my Christmas gift to myself.  My first brew was an Earl Grey (just like Piccard) and now I'm sipping an herbal.

The kid's already in bed, so unless I find a pair of headphones I won't be watching any Black Adder tonight... I'll have to watch TWO episodes tomorrow ;)

You Know You've Made It...

When you get hit with UBER blog spam. Talk about a fishing expedition!

I'm sorry, but if you want to guest post on my blog, have some vague idea of the topics I post on, because apparently Elizabeth is fairly clueless.

Still, maybe they'll get a few curious hits from this... I checked out the dog last nite... it wasn't my cup of tea. Besides, the only beer drinker in the bunch drinks Stella... ewwww ;)


Dear Tenkar,

My name is Elizabeth, the assistant editor at My Dog Ate My Blog, http://www.mydogatemyblog.com. We have been blogging about politics, education, and technology for a few months now and we think it is about time to start reaching out to other passionate people.

I would love to have one of our bloggers write a guest post for tenkarstavern.com. If you have any topic or style guidelines for guest posts, please send them my way.

I am looking forward to talking with you more.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Greene
Assistant to the Editor - My Dog Ate My Blog
elizabeth@mydogatemyblog.com
Follow us @DogAteBlog



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The Dead Keep Walking

Maybe its just me, but The Walking Dead TV Series is playing out like a damn good post holocaust style RPG.  You can identify the PCs and the NPCs, the importance of weapons, a GM giving some great setting details and atmosphere - well, maybe comparing to a RPG is an oversimplification.

Still, there are some things that roleplayers can relate to - such as: "do we kill the guy that's infected and going to go bad now... or wait until he actually goes bad?"  I  can see my old group having that discussion, and having the infected player basically sacrifice himself?  Priceless.  Heck, the final scene of this episode could be seen as writing that player's new PC into the game.

It takes a lot to get me invested into a TV series these days.  The Walking Dead has done it for me.  Of course, I can never seem to stay awake to 11 on a work nite, but thanks to iTunes I can grab the episode in HD the very next day.

Lulu - 25% Off - Today Only

Lulu.com is offering a 25% discount on your entire order for 11/29 only. Use coupon code CYBER305.

It's a good time to grab Oubliette, Fight On!, Knockspell or any of the other print on demand / PDF RPG goodness you've been waiting on.


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We May Not Be the Young Ones Anymore

The Young Ones, a BBC comedy that I used to watch on PBS back in my college days, hasn't held up to the test of time, at least for me. I bought the series a few weeks back on Amazon, and finally put the first DVD in to watch last night. I was disappointed. The show seemed flat and forced at the same time. There were moments that were just painful to watch, and that was just the first episode.

I guess my taste in comedy has changed over the years, just like my taste in RPGs has changed. I used to really enjoy AD&D 2e, Complete Handbooks and all, but I'd never consider running it these days. My tastes have changed. I want something a bit more streamlined in my current day RPG choices.

I hope Black Adder holds up better. I'm going to pop that into the DVD player tonight and see if I have any taste left for classic British Comedy.




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I Survived Thanksgiving Weekend Shopping...

and all I have for myself are a handful of 2 dollar DVD's from Walmart.  Hmmm... they are a good batch tho:

All 3 Lord of the Rings Movies (widescreen) - yes, I already own the collector's editions, but for 2 bucks a pop I'll grab the originals

A crapload of DC Universe Animated Movies:
-Batman - Gotham Knight
-Batman - Under the Red Hood
-Superman / Batman - Public Enemies
-Superman - Doomsday
-Green Lantern - First Flight

Halo Legends - Animated

Alright, I didn't do bad for myself, and I think I've convinced the lady that I NEED the Alienware x-11 Netbook for Christmas, which is good - I convinced myself that my son needed it too ;)

Game Day Quandary

Yep, there's a bit of a Game Day Quandary at the moment.  In the once a month Castles & Crusades game I play in via Fantasy Grounds, our GM is in Europe (I believe the rest of us are all her in the states).  So our  Saturday nite games are like 2 in the morning starts for him, or something close to it.

He's floating the idea of moving the game to Sunday afternoons (my time), which puts me in a bit of a spot.  I'd like to make the time more convenient for him, but Sundays are for the kid... and if they aren't solely for the kid, its because we spend the weekend in the mountains and are returning Sunday afternoon.  It doesn't help that the decision to leave for the weekend doesn't usually happen until late Thursday nite... yes, at times, I can be fairly spur-of-the-moment ;)

Maybe I'll see how the rest of the group is leaning.  It's rough changing a game time that's been in effect for 2 years, as the rest of your life seems to sprout up around it...

What I Learned Changing a Lightbulb

Well, I just spent 45 minutes on my back changing a fog light lamp in my car. What a total PITA! Lying on the cold ground, working with little light in a cramped spot trying to get a tension rod to stay in place, a thought occurred to me...

This is the exact same crap that thieves in fantasy RPGs have to do. Except if they fail, they are risking more then a broken light.

This also changes my perspective on a thief's abilities. Given enough time, almost any trap or lock could probably be bypassed by a thief, but in most cases, they don't have much time. Therefore the relatively low success chances at low levels... They don't have the speed yet.



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So, yesterday afternoon I packed my bag real quick for a weekend in the Poconos.  I like to pack light (because everyone else in the car tends to pack heavy), and i wanted to get some T&T solo gaming in this weekend so I grabbed the T&T 7.5e boxed set and some of the Corgi T&T books.

I could have gone even lighter if I had left the 7.5e behind.  I forgo that the Corgi books have a nearly complete T&T ruleset included in each one.  They really are a great buy, especially if one wants to test out the system for cheap with a physical book.  If you can't find them in a used bookstore, Flying Buffalo still as them cheap.  Most are actually two solo adventures and the rules, so it's a great bargain.

Black Friday - The Strategy Game

I used to do the Black Friday deal.  You know the routine... up at 2am, wait on a line for something that you wouldn't be getting if it wasn't dirt cheap, just to find out that the only two pieces in inventory were sold to family members of the staff.

Nope, these days my strategy is to do most of my shopping online.  With the exception of hitting Walmart earlier this evening for a bunch of dirt cheap DVDs (and no lines), my Black Friday shopping was done online.  More sleep, still buy stuff I wouldn't usually break down and buy, UPS Delivery Guy gets a decent Christmas tip.

Second (cheap) monitor for my son's computer setup? check
Auxiliary Power Supply? check
Camera for my mother? check
Dirt cheap tetrabyte hard drive for above computer system? check
32 GB 3g iPad for a very important person that doesn't read my blog? check

Bulk of my shopping is done ;)

I'm very tempted by the Alienware 11" Screen Gaming Netbook for $599 - 1 gig of decent video ram, 2 gig of system ram,160 gb hd and an HDMI out has me drooling.  Adding 3g ups the price and adds a monthly cost, but this Win 7 netbook can almost double as an iPad AND a desktop replacement.  Maybe I can have a $699 version with 4 gb ram and a 250 gig hd added to my Christmas list.  It's on sale until mid December.

Many publishers are running sales at RPGNow.  Chaosium is running a sale on their site.  I think Troll Lord is too.

I'm gonna shop until my laptop protests ;)

iPads on Sale at the Apple Webstore

Apple has discounted its iPads for one day only.  That day is today, Black Friday.  Hit the Apple store and save $41 on the iPad of your choice (with free shipping too)

If you were going to buy an iPad this Holiday Season, today is the day to pull the trigger on your purchase.  To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time they have been put on sale (Marshals and TJ Max are selling some of the $499 iPads for $499 today, at limited stores in very limited quantities - trust me, they are all gone already).

Knee Deep in Gravy

Had an amazing Thanksgiving Dinner. Guilt feeling all over ;)

Should have a contest to announce this weekend. I need to confirm the generous prizes that Onebookshelf is supplying.


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Thankful Turkey Day to All

Well, maybe not so many thankful turkeys here in the states, as the most common main course on Thanksgiving is turkey,  those poor semi-flightless birds.  They can't even do Black Friday shopping ;)

I'll be hitting the usual suspects online over the next 24 hrs or so: Best Buy, Amazon, TigerDirect, Geeks... etc.

Many of the publishers on RPGNow are also running sales for the holiday weekend (or longer).  Goodman Games is 33% off, Louis Porter Jr has his stuff running 50-80% off, Fat Dragon Games is discounting from 15-50% - heck, just click here for the list ;)

Enjoy the day.  Eat Well.  Shop hard! heh

Free Traveller Starter Set - RPGNow

A big thanks to Bat in the Attic for posting this.  The Starter Boxed Set is the version of Traveller I started with, and for free the price can't be beat.  It should be free until the end of the year.

Treat yourself on the Black Friday weekend to a free game ;)

Oubliette Now Available in Print

I meant to give this a mention on Tuesday, but time sometimes get's away from one.  Oubliette is now available in print via Lulu.

You can read all about it at the Oubliette Magazine blog, or just head to Lulu and order the 4 issue compilation.

PDF copies of issues 1-4 are still available at RPGNow, and hopefully the next issue will be available in time for Christmas.

Going Solo

Before I start the posts comparing some Solo Gaming Experiences, I'd like to address the question: "why play solo anyway?"

Here are some possible reasons (not necessarily my own, but reasons why gamers in general may enjoy some solo adventuring):

I have no gaming group where I live.
I GM all the time, I'd like to have a chance to play and no one else wants to GM.
Sometimes I want to game when my group isn't available.
I want to game more then my gaming group wants to.
It's convenient and ready when I am.
It's fun (it better be, or why do it).

I'm sure there are dozens of reasons, but those are the basics as far as I am concerned.

I remember running solo / GM-less dungeon crawls using the random dungeon generator and the wandering monster tables from the back of the AD&D Dungeon Master's Guide simply because I wanted to play.

Games like Tunnels & Trolls address that desire to play a RPG when the individual player wants to by publishing solo adventures. Many of those early T&T solos weren't all that deep on story or plausibility, but they offered you an adventure that you could explore, face challenges, roll dice and if your were extremely lucky (or if you cheated) you didn't die. Solos tend to be fairly lethal, as you don't have a GM to soften the blow / make decisions on situations not covered by the rules / engage in role-play to avoid combat situations.

That all being said, if you survive the adventure, you can increase in ability and use that same character in the next adventure. Therein lies the secret to the success of a good series of solo adventures - continuity of the PC. You didn't get that in an endless quest book.

In my opinion, you need a simplified system to run solo adventures successfully. The more complicated the rules, the greater the need to have a GM arbitrate those rules. T&T works well as a solo system, as the rules can take a backseat to the character and story in a properly written solo. My instinct is that a system like 4e would only work as a solo if you greatly limited the options available to the player, and at that point i don't think you would be playing 4e anymore.

I've played T&T solos in the past, and will be running thru some more as part of this comparison of games that have solo adventures. It should be interesting to see if the complexity added to T&T core system by Mercenaries, Spies & Private Eyes enhances or detracts from the solo experience. As for LotFP Weird Fantasy, I almost ran my lady thru the tutorial instead of the T&T 7.5e Hot Pursuit solo... I'm glad I didn't, as I'd like to experience James' version of a solo - I expect it to be fairly lethal ;)



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My Thoughts on WotC's Virtual Table Top

I originally posted this in a thread on ENWorld earlier this week, but I'm reposting it here (edited slightly) as I think it has relevance - I am very interested in the VTTs that are, or soon will be, out there, and the Wizards' VTT could be a game changer when it's released, even if it is a buggy mess (not predicting - just saying).


The WotC VTT is probably NOT aimed at you if you are currently playing in a face to face group. It's aimed at those that want to play with their old college group that is scattered across the country.

More importantly, it is aimed at the lapsed players that bought the new Red Box and want to play with their old group which isn't a group anymore. Yes, there are other VTTs out there, but you would have to know about them to find them. WotC gets their VTT up and running, places a splash ad in the back of all it's books or each box, and people will suddenly KNOW about D&D's Virtual Table Top.

The other stuff (4e Character & Monster Builders, etc) won't be bringing in a steady stream of NEW monthly fees, it will just give stuff to those that probably already subscribe. The VTT can bring in NEW subscribers.

In all probability, if you are an ENWorld / RPG Blog-type regular, it's not aimed at you. If you made it here, and you want to game regularly, you either have a face to face group or you found one of the current VTTs that suits your needs.

If you bought the Red Box, haven't gamed since 2e and your group is in the wind, then this VTT is squarely aimed at you.


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More Time = Less Time

The upcoming 4 day weekend should thoroughly suck up all my time. I'll try to get a Solo gameplay post up tomorrow night before festivities / travel / shopping keep me hidden for a few days ;)

iPad Software Update OS 4.2

Most of you are going "who the hell cares about some software update on a blog about RPGs?" Well, I care, as most of my RPG reading, blogging, blog reading and such occurs on my iPad these days. ;)

The multi-tasking isn't multi-tasking like you have one your desktop, but i think it will suffice for copying and pasting for blog posts - which was a PITA under OS 3.0

The integrated mailbox is a feature I've had on my iPhone for a bit... very happy to have it now on my iPad.

The Air-Print feature, allowing one to print to a wireless printer I haven't tried yet. With any luck, I'll give it a try tonight.

Finally I can group my apps into folders. I'm a pack rat app collector, and now I have even more room for my apps. Woot!

Most importantly, my Apple Keyboard, specifically made for the iPad, wasn't always recognized by the old OS. I had to seat it and reseat it, sometimes within the same session. New OS? Seems flawless so far, but time will tell.






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