50 Games in 50 Weeks: Action Castle
You may have played early text adventures like Zork or, well, Adventure. They feel strange to those who didn’t play them at the time, like Victorian mechanisms: quaint contraptions for which one can see the intended use, but appear hopelessly outdated and silly. But there is an ineffable power to interacting with words. Action Castle […]
A story about sex?
Reminder: You can get issue #1 of Red Ax for only $2.99 at DriveThruComics. I call Red Ax a story about “sex, ownership, and the lies we tell ourselves.” That’s a mature, adult claim. I make it partly to shake readers up; I want people to think this is not another fluffy action story. I […]
The Story of Red Ax is now being told
As I mentioned in previous articles, I’ve written a comic. A fabulous artist, H. Davidson, drew the first issue. Now you can download issue 1, free today only. It’s 25 pages of black-and-white art, plus a full-color cover. This issue introduces the characters, sets up the story, and demonstrates my writing style and H’s amazing artistic skills. This will let you know if you’ll like the rest of the story. Now, […]
50 Games in 50 Weeks: Microscope
One fun thing about the role-playing hobby is its kaleidoscope of worlds. I get to leap into so many interesting, thought-provoking worlds. Players often move into world building at some point. And, of course, world building is hard. There are so many variables. Microscope is a structured game of cooperative world-building. It’s a game you play with friends, but instead of exploring worlds or telling specific stories, you’re […]
Better Off?
Yesterday, I finished reading Better Off by Eric Brende. It left me breathless and thoughtful, pacing the length of my hotel room. It’s a book about living without electricity, and the destructive cycles of modern technological dependence. These books worry me in many ways. Usually, I just dislike their mindless tone, as though anything the author can’t personally comprehend is automatically suspect. Fortunately, Brende is honest about his prejudices and thoughtful […]
Exploration of Houston, A Museum, and Japanese Art
As I travel for work, I’ve found it’s easy to spend a week in a place and barely leave my hotel room. After 8 hours of standing in front of a class, actively teaching them, I don’t have much energy to explore. So, I spend half an hour Sunday evening planning a small excursion for some evening that week. Houston was a challenge. I stayed in the business district, where everything closes at 5:00 to 6:00pm. But after some digging, […]
50 Games in 50 Weeks: 1974 Dungeons & Dragons
While at PAX East this year, I was determined to play a game of original 1974 Dungeons & Dragons, primarily to be able to say that I’d played it. Fortunately, I was at PAX East with the Gamer Assembly, and they were interested in the idea, too. We played the Temple of the Ghoul scenario, my go-to adventure for old-school gaming. It has a skittish village population, an abandoned temple on a hillside, stirges, powerful supplies if the heroes are […]
Red Ax: Who Are Your Characters?
This is part of an article series I’m writing about my upcoming comic book, Red Ax. Writing has always been an act of discovery for me. I devise a scenario, populate it with characters, and add layers of plot and complication. The characters begin as cocktail party acquaintances. I can slot them into big buckets: the strong and silent type, the quiet and broken type, the brash and greedy type. As I write, they become friends. I learn why […]
50 Games in 50 Weeks: Take 6
Take 6 is a card game that relies on two left-brained skills, math and probability, which usually cause my brain to leap out of my skull and run away screaming. The game involves taking a hand of cards, each of which has a number on it from 1 to 104. Each player then lays out a card, in turn, building six columns. When building a column, a higher-value card must go on top of a lower-value one. Once […]
50 Games in 50 Weeks: Pathfinder Arena
I have a difficult time reviewing this without getting snarky. So I’m going to get a bit snarky. While I was at PAX East 2012, a friend and I walked by a table the size of a Mini Cooper. It was ringed with miniature walls and its surface sprayed with a sandy finish, so it looked like a miniature gladiatorial arena. Beautiful work. We approached the two men who stood nearby and asked them […]