Well howdy there, anyone who still happens to have Strange Stones in their RSS readers! Yeah. I know. Long time, no blog. I just haven’t had anything I felt compelled to share. But I have been gaming some, at least:
- The year-plus Call of Cthulhu campaign I was playing in just went on hiatus after, well, more than a year.
- The Dungeon Crawl Classics game I started up with some friends has made it through three sessions and the fourth is going to happen, just a little delayed because of work schedules and new babies and such amongst the crew.
- Another guy I know is talking about starting up a 1st edition AD&D campaign that I’m leaning towards playing in.
- Oh, and I got to play in a session of Mythic Iceland (BRP) that was pretty cool.
And since it’s now October I find my mind turning to:
- The Chill/Ghostbusters thing I always want to run around Halloween but never do (and probably won’t again this year)
- The Thanksgiving game I’ve run the past few years with my oldest of gamer buddies (but probably won’t this year due to some logistical stuff)
- The half-dozen or more games I want to run, kinda sorta (but probably never will, for assorted reasons ranging from lack of player interest to lack of time in anyone’s schedule and beyond)
But hey, I’m gaming at least semi-regularly and that’s a good thing.
In Other News
The Sword’s new album comes out in just two weeks. And the advance tracks I’ve heard have been tasty. So that’s exciting.
And speaking of music, I’ve been playing a lot of bass lately (I’ve been playing bass almost as long as I’ve been gaming), having taken up with an absurdist jazz punk art noise rock ensemble here in Austin. We’ve even, in spite of the expected limitations of the genre, had a couple of actual gigs and there are at least a couple of additional shows on the horizon. And some recording that should actually lead to some kind of released album of some sort. So that’s a thing or two.
What Now?
Well, I’m not going to shut the blog down or anything. There’s stuff here that people keep finding and enjoying (the mighty G-Man’s BoL adventures, if nothing else). And really, who knows when inspiration will strike and I’ll have to start posting like mad again or risk burning up from the inside? So there’s not really an answer to the question I’m afraid. I just decided I should poke my head in and say hello, yes, I’m fine, thank you, how are you? So I did.
Cheers,
tvp
p.s. I’ve been trying to read a lot more of the Appendix N classics lately, too. Poul Anderson’s The Broken Sword is on my table right now. Just beneath it in the stack you’ll find Clark Ashton Smith, the smattering of Lovecraft I’ve never read, Beowulf, the recent non-Conan REH compilations, Vance, Moorcock, and more. Yay, books!
Welcome back, man! Good to see that you are busy! I might have something for you to look at in a week or three…..
Bat-daddy! I’m always up for a looksee at what you’re working on, my man. Even if I’m not posting much I’ll be around, so let me know when the stars are right 🙂
Will do, O Venomous One! Got something brewing almost ready for beta that I can expand upon with the blog, your insight would be most helpful as you are the rpg guru.
RPG guru? Me? I think you must have me confused with someone, daddio. I know a thing or two, sure. But I’m no guru. But thanks for thinking of me that way 🙂
And regardless of my status (or should I say level?), I’ll be absolutely delighted to take a look at what you’re cooking!
Please slide an email my way when you get a chance, old top!
So glad to read this post. I figured someone with your creative energy couldn’t stay submerged for too long.
Since I get most of my gaming action vicariously these days, could you tell us more about your experiences with DCC? Your the ref, right? Did you do the funnel thing and if so how did it go. I’ve heard some positive buzz about this game and how it actually plays vs. looks on paper.
Aw, shucks, G. You’re too kind!
Let me see what I can squeeze out of the ol’ brain regarding DCC. I’ll use that as my excuse to write another post rather than dumping the short version here in the comments. It’ll probably be a day or two before I can get everything put together, but since you asked so nicely I promise not to let it slide.
Wait! Is this some sneaky plan on your part to get me blogging more regularly? 🙂
absurdist jazz punk art noise rock ensemble – excellent !
It is excellent, in a very strange way 🙂
I’ll be sure to post links when we have the recording part of things done so you can check it out. Also, we’re apparently now the subject of a documentary, thanks to the guitarist’s brother-in-law. Madness!
Cant wait for the next Sword album. I am literally salivating in anticipation. Also, good to see some action in here. I like your stuff. I have wanted to buy DCC for a while now, and look forward to reading your opinions on it.
I agree wholeheartedly regarding The Sword, amigo. If you haven’t yet heard the title track for Apocyphon you should definitely check out the video for it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeUOPr4HTlU
You can also hear the new cut Veil of Isis at RollingStone.com
Thanks for digging what (little) I do here, too. I’m working (slowly) on a piece talking about DCC, so with luck I won’t disappoint.
Cheers!
Hey man, glad to see you’re still posting and it looks like you’ve been doing a lot of gaming. Good stuff, look forward to reading more about DCC.
I miss CoC, my regular group is less regular than we used to be. I’ve been reading a lot about Cthulhu Invictus lately, looks like something that might be interesting to try out, or perhaps hash up with the BoL rules.
Well howdy there, G-Monk! Yep, I’m still alive, though certainly not as prolific as I was there for a while. The good news is that actual gaming is at least partly to blame for that 🙂
I definitely understand the whole “regular group isn’t do regular anymore” situation. I’ve been there more than once. Hopefully something will break and y’all can get back into the swing of things sooner rather than later.
Cthulhu Invictus with BoL sounds like a tasty treat indeed. Let us know if you wind up making such a concoction happen, dude!
A Chill type game? Cool! I’ve long been a fan of Chill. And obviously a fan of D6.
Here’s hoping you find your gaming mojo and get back to posting up ideas.
Hey Grimace! Sadly, the Chill/D6 thing didn’t happen. Actually, nothing of note has happened since I made this post. Real life keeps getting in the way of the fun, dagnabbit!
Thanks for the well-wishes, too. The mojo is swimming against the tide, but it’s trying to make it back at least. Fingers crossed a little downtime over Thanksgiving will be just the break it needs to find its way home 🙂
Cheers to you, amigo!