I have just been reading “Wizards Presents: Races and Classes” and “Wizards Presents Worlds and Monsters”. They are previews of the 4th Edition of D&D. I groaned when I saw them, and opened them with trepidation. After all, how many times must I redesign my world to play the current version of D&D? Now, please take what I say with a bit of common sense – these books are previous of the production and as such things may change. Also, they don’t actually go into the mechanics of the game in any detail, so I have no idea how the game will actually play. However, the way it is going sounds damn good! So good in fact, that I wish it had been out years ago and so I would have done all my redesign to fit with the new concepts and abandoned the old.
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from davethebrave

Top ten game designers...

I can't write a top ten game designers. There are two reasons why I can't in all honesty do this. 1) I don't actually have a huge diversity of experience of different RPG's and I don't play computer games very often and board games are crap (other than chess, which is entirely different and "not in scope" of this discussion...ach, fucking work is messing with my head); 2) I can't be arsed.

And I know the point of the list was to list those most deserving of more publicity or recognition for what they did than they got, but I don't know or care about that - I am very deserving of more pay and I get fuck all so I don't give a shit. Who cares?

But if I was going to do a list, it would have these people in it:

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Haven't been on for ages as I have been really busy both in and out of work. I still am, but I am currently skiving as I can't be arsed. [skiving = "not doing my work that I should be doing"]. I need to go in to the office today (have been working from home for ages) and so I will go at 11:30-ish, do what I need to do, and come straight back again, which should get me back here at maybe 12:30-ish, so not too bad. At least the day is sunny (if cold) and so I should enjoy the ride.... prrr :)

I have far too much work to do. I am stressed... no, actually, truth be told, I should be stressed but at the moment I am in denial so I am relaxed hehe.

Nothing much to say, as usual.

Taken from fatelvis138

Link: The Time Travel Test written by admiral_J

So, Object Modelling anyone? No, it isn't even as exciting as it sounds. Data Mapping anyone? Ditto to that too.

My brain hurts.
My tendonitus (sp?) has really kicked in to my lower arms.
My fingers hurt will all the scrolling, cutting and pasting and general mouse-work.
And I am bored shitless.

All this to look forward to for the rest of the week and more. All this in my current wage of two-thirds-of-not-enough!

And apart from the word shitless, I didn't even swear. I told you I was bored, didn't I?


At least Scotland beat England in the rugby! Dancer!

Go on, you know you want to - no, you know you have to!

Take the quiz at dicepool.com

We got a questionnaire through the door today, all about local policing issues and how we felt the police were doing and the local police community partnerships were doing etc. So, I filled it in.

My main moan in it was the FACT that both the councils and the police actually sanction bigotry in Northern Ireland by actively promoting bigoted anti-catholic parades and turn a blind eye to the bigotry, intimidation, vandalism, and down-right disgrace that are all the flags, paramilitary murals and banners. Sigh.

I did ask myself as I was doing it though, "What's the fucking point?" No one around here will listen. "It's part of the culture". I know. In that respect, it is a filthy culture.

I am expecting the local branch of the Orange Order, the UDA or the UVF (or all three) to carry out my killing any time over the next wee while. Or it might just be a councillor, since they are for the most part one and the same anyway (Orange and paramilitary that is). Or the police themselves. Yeah, wouldn't be at all surprised at that either.

Nicked this from blacknarcissus2, though I have no idea why I would do this to myself or indeed why I would post the results, but I did so I have. Ach, go on, have a go!

Your Vocabulary Score: A-

Congratulations on your multifarious vocabulary! You must be quite an erudite person.

It's just as well it wasn't a spelling test though because that really is my downfall.

Finally go this fucking thing to embed! Yeah.

Nicked this from mr_burrito who is a friend of davethebrave - I thought I would share it with you because I thought it was funny :) [lyrics not work-safe]

Just got a new PC. Spent Fuck-loads of money on it (£930), so that Photoshop and Poser and the like would run properly (read - quickly). Intel Core 2 Quad, NVidia GeForce 8600 GT, and 4 Gig of RAM. Sweet. Only problem??? Fucking Windows is STILL Fucking Shite!
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yawn. what is the point of this anyway?

While I really detest christmas with a passion I feel a particularly strong sense of emotion at Hogmanay, and I always try to think of something profound or even vaguely interesting to say, but as usual I never manage it. This year I decided that, as most of you will not have read any of the words I pretend to call poetry I could re-hash some old stuff and no-one will notice!

I wrote this 7 years ago now - in May of all times!!! Anyway, it's shite but then I never claim that anything I write is any good - I just write to get it out of me.

So, without further adieu...
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A guid New Year to ane an' a'!
Slàinte mhath!
Ker.

Taken from davethebrave
..peeved I am not an elf though :( The rest is reasonable, though I should think my Int score should be a bit higher - 17 I'd say, but yes, Dex is definately my primary stat. :) And I think there should be a few more levels on there... 5th indeed!!! And in the detailed stats, I think they got the evil and good round the wrong way, somehow. However, one thing is shown to be correct - I am definately not a toss-bag paladin!

I Am A: Chaotic Neutral Human Druid (5th Level)
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So, Unionists in Northern Ireland don't like the current Irish advertising campaign, saying it "does not reflect unionist culture" in Northern Ireland.

Have a read about what the pricks are talking about doing...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7118103.stm

Woopdy fucking do. WANKERS! Come to Ireland and see some BIGOTED FUCKING CUNTS walking down the street playing songs about being up to their knees in Fenian (read: Catholic Irish) blood! FUCKING FUCKING HELL!

I was outraged that the Unionist council of North Down (where I live) chose to promote the fucking bigoted July parades in their tourism literature for Bangor (the town I live in). Outraged! Now I am fucking angry like fucking angry AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

It really DOES make me wonder - if I had been here during the Troubles maybe I would have been in the IRA - I mean, if they can get away with such BIGOTED SHITE in a "so-called" peaceful society they I dread to think what the average non-Protestant-Unionist thought about how the government, the councils, the police and the army thought about them when the violence was going on. I am angry enough now - during "peace"!!!

Fucking Fuck Fuck!!!!

Some people deserve to be FLAYED ALIVE and fed to insect swarms.

 .

...  no offence meant to England, but it is always work-related and it is always boring.
Anyway - hae a guid yin this wickend!

Don't know why I bother though...

Happy Birthday
the_demon_lover
xxxxxxxxxxxxx

While reading davethebrave's journal yesterday it became apparent that there was a little movie out called "Control" which I just HAD to see.
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Dear rest-of-the-world. I am going away to Swindon in England for three days training of pointless shiteness. So have a good week, and all that.

This was going to be a reply to davethebrave but it was so long I thought I would bore everyone else with it too! I am good like that :)

RE Worldbuilding:

Currently I have been revisiting a spreadsheet I developed for all the countries in one of the continents, giving figures for things such as urban and rural population, banditry, resources, how big the army is, how good or otherwise their relations are with their neighbours, etc. The idea is to have a fairly comprehensive list so that, as the DM, I have resources at hand to help me give ideas as to what is happening in the world around the characters. It’s all to help me with the fact I don’t like the idea that nothing ever changes in the world except for the scenarios that the characters complete. So I like to give rumours of the area, whether spurious, scandalous or just something people would be concerned about, and most importantly, that have nothing whatsoever to do with the characters.

It used to go something like this: The characters are 2nd level, they hear rumours of a small band of orcs in the hills. The characters go to the hills and kill the orcs, steal their treasure, and look out for the next scenario. For a very long time (years) I have tried my damndest to get away from such linear stories.

So, the same 2nd level characters hear various rumours, such as the one above, plus the fact that there are gnolls raiding caravans in the grasslands to the north; the town guard is recruiting more people supposedly because it is worried about resent sightings of goblin patrols to the south, but the real reason is because of the resent disappearances of two minor councillors within the town; some farmers in the west have been attacked, some reports claiming that they were attacked by strange elves with dark skin; the head priest of the local temple has gone off in a peace-keeping delegation to the neighbour in the east to try to ensure trade continues despite resent attacks on border villages by bandits claiming to be working on the king’s orders to clear out thieves and vagabonds; a minor lord is seeking workers and guards to rebuild an old ruin a few miles into the nearby forest, currently thought to be the home of a strange witch and her sorcerer consort who do not like visitors; there have been some whispers of an underground cult who raise dead to do their bidding, and what with the high priest gone, people are worried… Much more rounded, much more open for the characters. "So, what are you going to do?"

The problem is, I have a job and no time to do any of the thousands of things I would like to be doing or to have done already. I aim too high, I get nothing done. :( And I am not getting any younger, either :(

Sigh.