Don’t Rest Your Head Exhaustion Powers in “Wanted”
January 27, 2009
I recently had 14 hours to kill on a flight to Seoul, and I watched “Wanted”. I really enjoyed it. I don’t even know if I think it was “good” or not, from an objective standpoint. What I was interested in was the similarity between the crazy stuff I saw in the trailers and “exhaustion powers” I was reading about in the game “Don’t Rest Your Head”. In that respect, the movie didn’t disappoint. Read more
Supernatural is not X-Files 90210
November 29, 2008
I’ll admit to not giving Supernatural, the TV series a fair shot. I watched a couple episodes when it first came out, and whether it hadn’t hit its stride or I just wasn’t in the right mood, it fell flat with me. I was reminded of the “monster hunter” X-Files episodes that weren’t connected to larger story arc. Combine that with the fact the show was on the teen-oriented CW (or maybe WB back then) network and a little meanness, and you get “X-Files 90210”. And I wrote it off as just that. But I was wrong. Read more
Don’t Rest Your Head: Initial Thoughts
October 16, 2008
As part of developing EpicTable, I’m always on the lookout for interesting dice mechanics. I’d heard that Don’t Rest Your Head, from Evil Hat Productions, had some interesting mechanics, so I picked up a copy…and promptly lost several hours to reading and to the sudden compulsion to build white, black, and red dice pools for EpicTable.
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Yetian Inspiration
September 3, 2008
I’ve always had a certain fondness for the yeti, who along Bigfoot/Sasquatch and the Loch Ness Monster, rounds out the "Big Three" cryptozoological creatures. Living in the Himalayas, out of reach of modern society, the yeti or "abominable snowman" has a certain mystique and a few grains more plausibility than the other two.
I recently saw the third of the Brendan Fraser mummy movies, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, which had a scene involving yetis, and well…at least it got me thinking about yetis…. Read more
Artist Spotlight: Adam Vehige
June 21, 2008
Back before EpicTable was “EpicTable”, when its name and image were still bits of uncongealed thought floating in the primordial ooze that was Realityforge LLC, I was looking for a mascot. I needed a logo, but what I wanted was a mascot. As a long-time Iron Maiden fan, I wanted my virtual tabletop to have its own Eddie—an iconic character to represent my product line through the many versions, twists and turns that lie ahead. Arguably, I spent way too much time trolling through online artist communities, but in the end, I found Adam Vehige. Read more
Welcome to the Sideshow: The Dark Art of David Hartman
June 15, 2008
I don’t recall how I stumbled upon David Hartman’s site: http://www.sideshowmonkey.com/. Maybe I don’t remember how I got there because I spent the next couple hours lost in this dark little world he’s created.
Did I mention it’s dark? Yeah, a lot of David’s work is pretty dark, and it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea (which is an oddly inappropriate expression to use when talking about monsters, zombies, and the like), but there’s a comic/pulp feel his work that I really like. Read more
Pulp gaming inspiration: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
June 15, 2008
I just saw the latest Indiana Jones movie: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Now, I can’t give you a very objective critique of the movie, because it has crumbly jungle ruins, crystal skulls and monkeys. And if there’s anything that blows my objectivity, it’s crumbly jungle ruins, crystal skulls and monkeys. Read more
Fear Itself – The Sacrifice
June 13, 2008
Did anyone happen to see the recent episode (“The Sacrifice”) of NBC’s new horror anthology, “Fear Itself”? I just got around to watching it, and I was surprisingly impressed. There was kind of Colonial Gothic horror feel to it, with the bestial vampire, the old-fashioned dresses, bloody axes, an old fort…. Even the premise–a community protecting the outside world by keeping a creature contained within their midst–was pretty cool.
One has to assume that the place is warded to keep the creature in, and I’m sure there are other logical flaws (like why did it take so long to think of burning the creature in the pit used for sacrifices?), but the atmosphere and visuals were very nice. I can definitely imagine this as a chapter of a Gothikus game (a story game in development, chronicled over at Polyhedral Hepcat).
Sound of a Desert Nightmare
February 17, 2008
Awhile back, I talked about artwork that inspires me as a GM. My game is currently in a three week hiatus while I plot the campaign’s next chapter, which includes a trip to a not-very-nice desert location.
My plotting was thrown into high gear this weekend when I just stumbled upon the album, “Necronomicon”, from a band called Nox Arcana. Read more
Inspirational Deviants
January 15, 2008
Awhile back, I was searching for someone to create a mascot for EpicTable. I wanted a mascot–an iconic figure, not just a logo. Some creature that would be to EpicTable what Eddie is to Iron Maiden. My search led me to Adam Vehige and his gallery on deviantART.
Along the way, I spent (way too many) hours paging through some really great artwork. I’ve found myself returning to these sites when I need inspiration for an important villian or location.
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