Friday, July 30, 2004

London Underground Map translated into German

London Underground Map translated into German

Opens to an image of the map. I thought it was amusing. I wonder if this is what it would have been like, if WWII had gone differently?

Francis Crick Dies

Francis Crick Dies

"Francis Crick, who along with James Watson discovered the double-helical structure of the DNA molecule, died Wednesday of colon cancer. He was 88."

Cineplex Odious

Cineplex Odious

"Meet Warronnica Harris and Terrell Tolson. The Florida couple got popped this week at a St. Petersburg theater after Harris, 23, allegedly refused to end a cell phone call as the opening credits for 'Catwoman' rolled. When an off-duty police officer working at the theater tried to curtail her chat, Harris announced that 'she could talk as much as she wanted on her phone,' according to this police report. In short order, Tolson, 25, joined in, allegedly telling Officer John Douglas that he would kick the cop's ass. The report quotes Harris as saying she would 'hit the cracker in his head.' In a bid to subdue the duo, Douglas blasted them with pepper spray. Harris and Tolson were eventually charged with disorderly conduct--and spared having to sit through another Halle Berry bomb."

Thursday, July 29, 2004

Woman Arrested, Cuffed for Eating Candy

Yahoo! News

"A government scientist finishing a candy bar on her way into a subway station where eating is prohibited was arrested, handcuffed and detained for three hours by transit police. "

Monday, July 26, 2004

The Howell Crop Circles and the Illuminati

The Howell Crop Circles and the Illuminati

"Here's something that has been circulating in the form of photocopies in the Grand Rapids area since last fall; I have now translated the newest version of it into an interactive online essay. Looks like this crop formation's been largely decoded! Read closely..."

Thursday, July 22, 2004

Timelord: Adventures Through Time and Space

A site of derivative material for the Time Lord RPG, orginally published by Virgin Books. I think that its a pretty good game for capturing the feel of Dr. Who.

Timelord: Adventures Through Time and Space

Bulwer-Lytton Awards

2004 Results

The winner:
"She resolved to end the love affair with Ramon tonight . . . summarily, like Martha Stewart ripping the sand vein out of a shrimp's tail . . . though the term "love affair" now struck her as a ridiculous euphemism . . . not unlike "sand vein," which is after all an intestine, not a vein . . . and that tarry substance inside certainly isn't sand . . . and that brought her back to Ramon.

Monday, July 19, 2004

Wednesday, July 14, 2004

Free Stuff from TOGC: SRD 3.5 (d20) handouts

Some nice, cleaned up and layed-out pdfs, suitable for handing out to players in most cost conscious groups. Not a bad job with the look, a suitable alternative.

TheOtherGameCompany.com

Just remember though that the SRDs do not reprint the experience progression material. So, you will need a PHB for that and perhaps another thing or two.

Wednesday, July 07, 2004

Mary Sue Litmus Test for Fantasy Fiction

This came up on a discussion on a gaming email list. I wasn't sure what it was, but I thought that it would be worth saving for a later point. It looks like it might have some use for character creation.

NaNoWriMo.org : View topic - Mary Sue Litmus Test for Fantasy Fiction

from http://www.subreality.com/marysue/explain.htm (the second result googling "Mary Sue")

"So you're scratching your head and wondering who the heck Mary Sue IS, hm? Well, "Mary Sue" is an unkind term used to describe a certain kind of character, a style of writing. She (or he) is created to serve one purpose: wish fulfilment. When a writer invents someone through whom he/she can have fantastic adventures and meet famous people (fictional or real), this character is a Mary Sue. (We don't have a name for the male version -- suggestions?)

Although storytellers have been rehashing Mary Sue since the dawn of time, she did not receive her current name until the early 1970s. The original was Lieutenant Mary Sue ('the youngest Lieutenant in the fleet -- only fifteen and a half years old') as immortalized in Paula Smith's 'A Trekkie's Tale,' which she wrote and published in her 1974 fanzine Menagerie #2. (According to Katherine Langley: 'Paula is still active in fandom and, to be sure, suitably bemused that Mary Sue lives on.')"