So many things, so little time

 Hello,

     Long time no post per usual for me.  Another busy year fades in the rearview mirror.  As I started to come into my slow season, it happened. I got Covid. Fortunately the symptoms were mild. Still, I had to quarantine.  I moved upstairs and my family moved downstairs. Suddenly I had nothing but time. Five days of isolation....

Quarantined Eevee

      I cannot remember the last time I had this much personal free time. At first, I just alternated between playing Pokemon Shield and watching episodes of the Clone Wars. It felt like being a kid again. I was not bored for even a moment. In fact, I felt overwhelmed with all the things I wanted to do!  I want to complete the national pokedex in Sword & Shield. I have 15 issues of Knight of the Dinner Table to catch up on. I have 30 episodes of the Clone Wars to catch up on so I can join my youngest daughter in watching the series together. I have not blogged in 11 months. I just started season two of my D&D Beyond campaign. I want to paint miniatures again. I am listening to the next book in my favorite sci-fi series.

Tyrus Rechs

     The list goes on. I want to get a 3D printer and make my own minis. I have board games I want to play. Ok those (the board games) require other humans but  I am looking forward. Speaking of looking forward, I can't wait until I can attend gaming conventions again! I want to go to the movies. 

     I am enjoying myself immensely. Five days of nothing but time is not enough to even put a microscopic dent in my gaming to-do list. 

     What do Tyrus Rechs and Eevee have in common? Nothing! Ta-ta for now!

The Wizard's Chest

 Hello and welcome!

     I discovered a new game shop on Broadway near downtown recently. The Wizard's Chest.  When I say new, I mean new to my experience. Turns out the shop has been locally owned and operated for 38 years! How did I miss this? Well the Denver metro area is large and there are many game stores hidden about like gems in a dark cave. Still this seems like a landmark game store and I can't believe that it took me 7 years to come across it. It sits right on Broadway for heaven sake! How many times did I drive past it? My wife says I am oblivious most of the time. Sheesh, I guess she is right. 

The ground floor

     The Wizard's Chest is 16,000 square feet! The ground level is devoted to costumes, make up and accessories. The basement level is devoted to board games, RPGs and miniature games. There is also a good sized space devoted to demos, events and open play. Of course at the time of this entry the pandemic is still making it's presence felt and that area has been closed off. Attending an event there in the future is definitely on my list! 

     The store was well stocked and the staff was friendly and helpful. They also have a rewards program. You earn 5 quest points (lol) for every dollar spent. As you accumulate points you level up. Each level gains you more rewards all the way up to Guardian of the Gates. This earns you a private game party at the castle including dinner for up to 8 people. Along the way you earn discounts, free shirts, gift cards etc. Also the store was very clean and organized. 

I want to rant a bit on the issue of game stores and cleanliness. Sadly I would say the majority of the game stores that I go into are not clean or organized. The trash cans are over flowing. There is fast foot trash on the counters and tables. Product and paperwork is spilled carelessly about behind the front counter and the bathrooms are in serious need of attention. This can easily create an odor to the store as well. I have been to some game stores where the owner is friendly and knowledgeable but the space is a mess and it smells bad inside. Ok I am done ranting on that subject...for now. 

The D&D shelf

     I have been to The Wizard's Chest twice and enjoyed my experience both times. I am looking forward to taking my kids there so they too will experience the magic of a good game store. I always buy my gaming supplies at a FLGS (friendly local game store) rather than shop online. The gaming community would suffer if we don't support these spaces. 

Wheel chair ramp to the basement

I have not placed a special order yet at the Wizard's Chest. This is another area that most game stores fail at. I will let you know in a future points how they score in this area.

If you live in the Denver metro area and are a gamer or into costumes, you owe it to yourself to visit the Wizard's Chest!  

Stairs to the basement

     

Lorazira Gost Background

      Hello! I finished my first D&D 5th edition character. I posted her here. Ok yes I made a female character. I had to put that 6 I rolled somewhere.....just kidding. It fit the character and was fun to make :-).

     I was born into the noble family of Gost and grew up in the ancient city of Waterdeep. I had many brothers and sisters, well half brothers and sisters I should say. I was a bastard child born from an indiscretion with an elven visitor to the court. Some would say I was lucky not have been sent away or worse. I did not feel that way at the time. I was largely ignored as a child and was sullen as a result. When not in studies under the tuterage of a hired scholar, I would spend my time reading poetry and stories of old from the myriad of volumes in the library. 

    This past summer when I was wandering the grounds of the family estate,  I discovered a secret entranceto the dungeons below hidden inside one of the family crypts. The crypt had always been locked before but on that day it was left slightly ajar.  I had overheard bits of conversation as a youth regarding the dungeon when the adults did not think I was listening. I had even asked once and was scolded not to believe in such silly stories. I knew now that this is what lay before me. I slipped inside, my elven half allowing me to see inside the dim crypt as if it were brightly lit. Reading the names of the dead and tracing my fingers along the intricate patterns carved into the stone, I discovered that one of the rose's carved into the name plate of my long dead great great great Uncle Theosteles could be pushed in. Upon doing so a flagstone on the floor nearby slid open. The grinding noise was soon accompanied by a brief but cold, dank breeze. What secrets lay in the dungeons below the house of Gost? Clearly, getting caught here would not bode well for me. I should leave and not speak of it....

      I crept down the steps and began to timidly make my way into the dungeon. There were many rooms filled with ancient tapestries, large iron bound chests and stone statues draped in cloth. In an alcove in a room deep within the labyrinth of rooms and corridors was one such statue, small and squat, covered in a heavy dark green velvet cloth thick with dust. Had I heard whispers coming from under the cloth? Fear of being lost, fear of being caught surely were causing my mind to play tricks on me. I pulled the cloth off revealing a monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body, prodigous claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind. It had an alien feel and was made of a dark green stone flecked with bits of gold and silver. I was at once filled with a sense of horror and fascination. I think I fled after that. I am not sure as my memories immediately following my discovery are disjointed and dim. It was that night that the dreams started although I know now that they were not really dreams but an alien mind communicating with me. It promised me power in return for service. Did I agree of my own free will or was I compelled, unable to resist the powerful call of the whispering ancient mind? I cannot say. The promised power did begin to manifest after that however. Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Chtulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagle fhtagn!

Ramblings

Rambling:

adjective

     (of writing or speech) Lengthy and confused or inconsequential

Addict:

noun

     An enthusiastic devotee of a specified thing or activity.

The byline (am I using the right word?) of this blog is: Ramblings of a gaming addict. Keep that in mind.

     I have been collecting Knights of the Dinner Table (KoDT) for years now. I have all the core issues. Number one (which I bought years ago on Ebay for $300) through to the current issue #279. If I had all the issues stacked together, it is possible they could stop a .50 cal round. Sadly the responsibilities of life have kept me away for far too long. I knew that I was behind but is turns out that behind meant two years of unread issues. Two years...I have been picking up my issues from a comic book shop some 70 miles away (another story) in what I thought was a religious manner. When I finally sat down to pick up where I left off I discovered I was missing two issues. One of the issues that was missing was of course the issue after the one I last read. Sigh....so clickety clack on the  Kenzer Co website and I ordered the missing issues. A long story long, they arrived in the mail today! I just opened it and read the editorial. I was smiling all the way through as Jolly once again hit all the right geek notes. That reminded me that my second post ever on this blog in December of 2012 was regarding KoDT.  It is still a favorite after all these years. 

     I have also been reading the 5th edition of the Player's Handbook (sorry Hackmaster but I still love you too) and I am working on creating my first 5th edition character. Let me tell you it has been fun. Played another session of basic D&D with my good friends online this week. I felt the magic again. Is this the midlife crisis of a geek? Who cares.

Gaming during a pandemic

     Hello fellow gamers! What a year. This whole pandemic thing has really cramped my gaming life. Heading down to my FLGS for some game time?  Uncheck. Attending conventions? Uncheck. Gaming with my close friends around the table? Uncheck. Hopping on the light rail and exploring new fun  spots in the city? (Like the 1up arcade bar that I discovered just before the  pandemic hit) Uncheck.  

     2020 was going to be a big year for me. I was all  set to attend my first ever Gen Con. I was going to travel to the convention  on a road trip in my RV. It was going to be magical. I had my badge, I had  my reservations at a nearby RV park. My route was planned. Time off  scheduled. I had started playing Malifaux 3rd edition. I was part of a  group that gathered weekly at Enchanted Grounds. I had set up a painting table and was working on painting my Malifaux crew. 

     I had comitted myself to working less in 2020 so I could spend more time pursuing my hobbies. I had a blog that was collecting dust, I had 12 issues of KoDT to catch up on, I had minis to paint. I had good friends I had not seen much and was missing. We used to get together on a regular basis and game around the table. 

     Yes 2020 was going to be the year I returned to my favorite pastime with a vengeance. Adult responsibilities be damned! Then the pandemic began. The future became uncertain. Cities were locking down. Food and toilet paper needed hoarding. It was dangerous to see your friends. All focus shifted and my great plans died a swift and horrible death. Nearly a year has passed. The carcass of my gaming life lays half submerged as it is slowly buried by hot wind blown sand.  But wait.... Nestled within the mumified corpse lays a small cocoon of hope. A rare and short rain sweeps across the landscape and the cocoon, awakened by the brief moisture, stirs slightly. Life still beat within.

     The shock of the pandemic has faded, and the adjustments to life have started to feel routine. Worked has slowed some as it does in the winter. I have had some time to reflect and remember. I fired up my Switch, I went through my KoDTs and realized I was 24 issues behind. I blew the dust off of my blog. I started playing some basic D&D with my friends online using Table Top Simulator through Steam. I poked my head into a FLGS and picked up a copy of D&D Beyond. 

     I am back and it feels good. I believe it will be yet another year before we are full normal again. There will likely be casualties. Some friendships or gaming groups may have faded too far, some favorite hangouts may not have survived the economic storm. Time will tell. Hopefully I will be around to tell the stories. 

     

     

Malifaux 2e Battle Report

Buenos Dias fellow geeks!

     I sauntered down to my FLGS last Sunday to spend some time with my friend Jason and to play some Malifaux 2e. I am going to attempt to write my first battle report. Jason, feel free to amend any details I get wrong!

THE TABLE

   

 I brought the Viktoria's to the table and Jason brought Pandora. Squatter's Rights was flipped for the Strategy with Close deployment.  I failed to note each players chosen schemes...sadly, as you will see, they became irrelevant.

     Teddy was positioned to drive up the center of the table with 3 sorrows and the Doppelganger in tow. Pandora was hiding in the trees, just out of range of the Viktoria's and Candy was on the right flank. Primordial Magic settled in safe behind a rock deep in Pandora's deployment zone and crapped out an extra card every draw phase.

     Knowing that the Sorrows (incorporeal) can AOE 1 wound each on failed willpower checks, I positioned Bishop in the center to take advantage of his ignore incorporeal ability and planned on not bunching up my crew to try and mitigate the Sorrow's potency. Taelor was also positioned center to employ her relic hammer against Teddy (construct). The Ronin moved into the trees to provide ranged support. The Viktorias and the Student of Conflict took the right flank to deal with Pandora and Candy. With Sister's in Spirit & Syncronized Slaying for upgrades I hoped to slingshot into combat and alpha strike Pandora.

TURN 1:

     Teddy moves forward and goes for my Victoria of Ashes that has moved up into the trees. I move Taelor to engage Teddy so that Jason can feel the pain of her relic hammer but she is just out of range of a charge. (Grrr..)  The Sorrows move up the center along with the Doppelganger. Bishop moves up and the Ronin take some shots at the Doppelganger to little effect. Pandora and Candy move forward to the right flank.

TURN 2:

Bishop charges the Sorrows as planned but fate is not on his side. He does inflict some wounds on the Sorrows but their ability (or Pandora's) allows them to shift some of the wounds to Pandora causing the charge to fall flat and none of the Sorrows to die. Another round of fire from the Ronin does little. Teddy pushes away from Taelor and ends up engaged with a Ronin. 



   

TURN 3:

          The Viktorias chain activate and strike at Candy and Teddy. Perhaps I should have stuck with my plan to take down Pandora but I grew impatient.  Both targets die but at the cost of my Viktoria of Blood and my Student of Conflict. Pandora charges in & smacks Viktoria around, leaving me with one less model. I had yet to claim a single squat marker or work either of my schemes. On the left flank Bishop falls to the Doppelganger and the Sorrows. With my top 3 models gone and Pandora set to sweep across the table with the Sorrows in tow, I decided to call it and the win went to Jason and his infuriating Neverborn. 

Indoctrinating little ones into gaming culture

Hello!

     I can't believe it has been nearly a year since my last post! Work dominates my life nearly 10 months of the year. January and February I get to unfurl my geek flag. So here I am, flag flapping in the wind.
     I was at my FLGS shortly before Xmas looking through the different board games. I am always on the look out for kid games that break the "Chute and Ladders" mold. Lo and Behold on the shelf was a copy of My First Carcassonne published by Z-Man Games (Makers of Agricola & Pandemic) under license from Klaus-Jurgen Wrede. From 2000-2012 the English version of the game has been distributed by Rio Grande Games. (Makers of Dominion and Race for the Galaxy) Anyways I digress... having played and enjoyed the original Carcassonne, the Hunters & Gatherers and the Wheel of Fortune editions I brought it home, wrapped it and placed it under the tree.
    Finally Xmas came and went, all the hub bub ended and the time came to sit down and play with my two little girls and my wife. My daughters are newly 4 and just about to turn 6. They had fun punching out the tiles while I read the rules. The game is for 2-4 players ages 4 plus and has an average play time of 20 minutes. The production values of the game are good. The tiles are much larger and thicker than the standard tiles for other Carcassonne games as are the wood pawns, making it easier for little hands to manipulate. The artwork is geared towards kids and is well done.
      I read the opening flavor text to everyone: " Each year, the inhabitants of Carcassonne celebrate their national holiday. As is the tradition in Carcassonne, the people celebrate by setting loose sheep, hens and cows into the street. From dawn till dusk, the kids of Carcassonne have the time of their life trying to bring these animals back."
 and the game began!
    Like the adult version you place tiles and little wooden cookie cutter shaped people. The goal of the game is to be the first one to place all your little wooden people referred to as "pawns". Pawns can only be placed on closed streets that contain at least one pawn on that street that match your color.

     We played three games back to back. My 4 year old had fun placing the tiles and was good at lining them up properly but didn't quite catch on to the strategy of closing the streets to place her pawns.  My 5 year old caught on after the second game and won the 3rd game with no coaching! Both kids enjoyed themselves and have asked to play again. If you have small kids ages 4 + and enjoy Carcassonne yourself then this game is a good buy. I would love to see some expansions that increase the complexity of the game that parents can add as their children get older and become more game savvy.
     "Once the day is over, the children return home, exhausted after a long but exciting day. The families gather around impressive camp fires to celebrate and share the tales of their day, while every inhabitant of Carcassonne savors the delicacies of the region."
     "The elders then take great pleasure in telling tales of knights, princesses, dragons and fairies, to the wide eyed kids. Once the tales are over, the children dream of such lands and adventures before finally falling asleep. And at long last, the animals return to their calm stables and pens."
     "Of course, the return of these animals is to the delight of all, especially the kids of Carcassonne, who take great care of their animals..."
     Game on and don't forget to be kind to animals!