All Jeff's all the time

Funny all the Jeff’s there are in my little net world:

Over at Jeff’s Gameblog, Jeff gives insight on a wide range of gaming topics.

Meanwhile Jeff G has updated Doom Island and gives us a look at his Joes and their adventures.

And when life is just too damn hectic come on out to the country and join Jeff down on the ranch for A Nerd’s country journal

Brother Stern

Brother Stern is a Warrior Priest of Heldar. He’s the latest of the characters being prepared for the Legends of Steel rulebook, and one of my favorite illustrations that Jeff has done. His kick ass axe is named “Red Pilgrim” in tribute to the late Brian Daley, author of “Doomfarers of Coramonde.”

Ellie Chidzey bikini pics!

just kidding...I could use the traffic.

Too Damn Funny!

A buddy of mine Ed W. found this over at the Strategy page.


If World War Two had been an online Real Ttime Strategy game, the chat room traffic would have gone something like this.

*Hitler[AoE] has joined the game.*
*Eisenhower has joined the game.*
*paTTon has joined the game.*
*Churchill has joined the game.*
*benny-tow has joined the game.*
*T0J0 has joined the game.*
*Roosevelt has joined the game.*
*Stalin has joined the game.*
*deGaulle has joined the game.*
Roosevelt: hey sup
T0J0: y0
Stalin: hi
Churchill: hi
Hitler[AoE]: cool, i start with panzer tanks!
paTTon: lol more like panzy tanks
T0JO: lol
Roosevelt: o this fockin sucks i got a depression!
benny-tow: haha america sux
Stalin: hey hitler you dont fight me i dont fight u, cool?
Hitler[AoE]; sure whatever
Stalin: cool
deGaulle: **** Hitler rushed some1 help
Hitler[AoE]: lol byebye frenchy
Roosevelt: i dont got **** to help, sry
Churchill: wtf the luftwaffle is attacking me
Roosevelt: get antiair guns
Churchill: i cant afford them
benny-tow: u n00bs know what team talk is?
paTTon: stfu
Roosevelt: o yah hit the navajo button guys
deGaulle: eisenhower ur worthless come help me quick
Eisenhower: i cant do **** til rosevelt gives me an army
paTTon: yah hurry the fock up
Churchill: d00d im gettin pounded
deGaulle: this is fockin weak u guys suck
*deGaulle has left the game.*
Roosevelt: im gonna attack the axis k?
benny-tow: with what? ur wheelchair?
benny-tow: lol did u mess up ur legs AND ur head?
Hitler[AoE]: ROFLMAO
T0J0: lol o no america im comin 4 u
Roosevelt: wtf! thats bullsh1t u fags im gunna kick ur asses
T0JO: not without ur harbors u wont! lol
Roosevelt: u little biotch ill get u
Hitler[AoE]: wtf
Hitler[AoE]: america hax, u had depression and now u got a huge fockin army
Hitler[AoE]: thats bullsh1t u hacker
Churchill: lol no more france for u hitler
Hitler[AoE]: tojo help me!
T0J0: wtf u want me to do, im on the other side of the world retard
Hitler[AoE]: fine ill clear you a path
Stalin: WTF u arsshoel! WE HAD A FoCKIN TRUCE
Hitler[AoE]: i changed my mind lol
benny-tow: haha
benny-tow: hey ur losing ur guys in africa im gonna need help in italy soon sum1
T0J0: o **** i cant help u i got my hands full
Hitler[AoE]: im 2 busy 2 help
Roosevelt: yah thats right ***** im comin for ya
Stalin: church help me
Churchill: like u helped me before? sure ill just sit here
Stalin: dont be an arss
Churchill: dont be a commie. oops too late
Eisenhower: LOL
benny-tow: hahahh oh sh1t help
Hitler: o man ur focked
paTTon: oh what now biotch
Roosevelt: whos the cripple now lol
*benny-tow has been eliminated.*
benny-tow: lame
Roosevelt: gj patton
paTTon: thnx
Hitler[AoE]: WTF eisenhower hax hes killing all my sh1t
Hitler[AoE]: quit u hacker so u dont ruin my record
Eisenhower: Nuts!
benny~tow: wtf that mean?
Eisenhower: meant to say nutsack lol finger slipped
paTTon: coming to get u hitler u paper hanging hun cocksocker
Stalin: rofl
T0J0: HAHAHHAA
Hitler[AoE]: u guys are fockin gay
Hitler[AoE]: ur never getting in my city
*Hitler[AoE] has been eliminated.*
benny~tow: OMG u noob you killed yourself
Eisenhower: ROFLOLOLOL
Stalin: OMG LMAO!
Hitler[AoE]: WTF i didnt click there omg this game blows
*Hitler[AoE] has left the game*
paTTon: hahahhah
T0J0: WTF my teammates are n00bs
benny~tow: shut up noob
Roosevelt: haha wut a moron
paTTon: wtf am i gunna do now?
Eisenhower: yah me too
T0J0: why dont u attack me o thats right u dont got no ships lololol
Eisenhower: fock u
paTTon: lemme go thru ur base commie
Stalin: go to hell lol
paTTon: fock this sh1t im goin afk
Eisenhower: yah this is gay
*Roosevelt has left the game.*
Hitler[AoE]: wtf?
Eisenhower: sh1t now we need some1 to join
*tru_m4n has joined the game.*
tru_m4n: hi all
T0J0: hey
Stalin: sup
Churchill: hi
tru_m4n: OMG OMG OMG i got all his stuff!
tru_m4n: NUKES! HOLY **** I GOT NUKES
Stalin: d00d gimmie some plz
tru_m4n: no way i only got like a couple
Stalin: omg dont be gay gimmie nuculer secrets
T0J0: wtf is nukes?
T0J0: holy ****holy****hoyl****!
*T0J0 has been eliminated.*
*The Allied team has won the game!*
Eisenhower: awesome!
Churchill: gg noobs no re
T0J0: thats bull**** u fockin suck
*T0J0 has left the game.*
*Eisenhower has left the game.*
Stalin: next game im not going to be on ur team, u guys didnt help me for ****
Churchill: wutever, we didnt need ur help neway dumbarss
tru_m4n: l8r all
benny~tow: bye
Churchill: l8r
Stalin: fock u all
tru_m4n: shut up commie lol
*tru_m4n has left the game.*
benny~tow: lololol u commie
Churchill: ROFL
Churchill: bye commie
*Churchill has left the game.*
*benny~tow has left the game.*
Stalin: i hate u all fags
*Stalin has left the game.*
paTTon: lol no1 is left
paTTon: weeeee i got a jeep
*paTTon has been eliminated.*
paTTon: o sh1t!
*paTTon has left the game.*

Legends of Steel Q&A

For a while now you have seen reports on this blog regarding the progress of my Legends of Steel game. I decided to do a little FAQ on the project and add some of the fantastic original art that Jeff Hebert has come up with for the project. Enjoy!


Q. What is Legends of Steel?

A. Legends of Steel (LoS) is a role-playing game that pays tribute to the genre of sword and sorcery- specifically the movies, television shows and comics that deal with sword and sorcery- movies like Deathstalker, Red Sonja and Hawk the slayer- TV shows like Conan the Adventurer, The Beastmaster, and Xena; warrior princess- and comics such as Claw-The Unconquered, King Kull, and Thongor. LoS is light on the rules and designed for fast play. LoS is a perfect game on the fly and ideal for folks new to gaming as well as “old school” gamers who love more than a little hack n slash.




Q. What niche do you see LoS filling?

A. I have always envisioned LoS as a “beer and pretzel” type of game- light in tone and unpretentious-much like the genre LoS attempts to emulate. There are several exceptionally well-done “Rules Light” systems out there (Risus by S. John Ross and the 1PG system from Deep7 Games immediately come to mind). But none that I know of deal specifically with the Sword & Sorcery genre as it is presented in popular media.
We all know that fantasy has been extensively covered in the gaming world, from grand epics such as The Lord of the Rings to the grim and gritty world of the Black Company, but there has never been a “Deathstalker” game or a game based on Marvel comics’ “Skull the Slayer”.





Q. What are you trying to accomplish with LoS?

A. For as long as I can remember I have been a fan of the Sword & Sorcery genre- even longer than I have been a gamer. Since I began gaming I have often “tweaked” the systems I played by tossing out rules I disagreed with and adding others I came up with. In some cases I tweaked systems so much they became unrecognizable from the original. Then of course there was the eternal search that all gamers go through to find the perfect set of rules (hint: there is no such animal). After thousands of hours and hundreds of dollars, I decided that the only system that would satisfy me was one I created myself. And the genre I chose to anchor my game in was Sword & Sorcery.
I suppose you could call LoS a labor of love. I look at this project the same way a guy who restores classic cars sees a rusty old 57 Chevy, It’s a challenge that will very soon be met. Of course I would love to sell 20,000 copies of LoS, but I have no illusions- the reality for me will probably be a print run of maybe 50 copies through a small vanity publishing outfit, enough to give out to friends and family. If I do offer LoS to the public, it will probably be for a nominal cost to cover materials, with anything over that going towards buying more art for it or to maintain a LoS website. The bottom line for me is that my kids and my friends get a kick out of playing it. If that’s the case then the project was a success.




Q. LoS just sounds like another D&D clone, how is it different?

A. First off, in LoS there are a wide variety of advantages and nifty things that the characters can use right from the start. LoS characters begin the game as competent veterans who are able to perform feats and actions without having to wait several levels or banking away thousands of experience points, to gain a level of competency.
Secondly, the focus of LoS is more on the character than on the campaign. LoS is built on a much smaller scale than say Middle Earth or The Forgotten Realms. The adventures in LoS are intended to play out in a session or two, much like a television episode or a three-issue run of a comic book, rather than a grand campaign, but that’s not to say that LoS couldn’t carry campaign play – the rules will stand up to long term play as well as any other system.




Q. What mechanics are used?

A. LoS uses percentages for all attribute, combat, and task resolution rolls. Ten sided dice decide weapon damage. We wanted a system that would be quick and easy to figure out. Nothing could be simpler than a straight percentage chance.
Even if you have never played a role playing game in your life you can still comprehend that your character has a percentage chance of succeeding in their task and if that percentage is exceeded then the attempt fails. No convoluted charts or confusing tables of numbers- just a simple percentage chance to succeed or fail.


Q. Will there be illustrations?

A. Oh hell yes! I'm a very visual person. Good art is a must. I have always hated seeing a real cool premise for a game ruined by substandard artwork. It’s as if the writers were sitting around the table discussing artwork and one of them said, “My brother knows how to draw, let’s have him do the cover.” I hope to avoid that pitfall with LoS. The graphic portion of the project is an integral one. The tone for LoS is light but still heroic, similar to the style of superhero cartoon animation seen in recent years with the Justice League and the X-Men animated series. LoS was after all created partly in tribute to the Sword & Sorcery comics of the 70’s.
Currently on board with us is Jeff Herbert who not only has done illustrations for Hero games, but he is also the creator of the innovative Heromachine software. And we will be looking at other artists whose graphic style will complement his as well as translate well to the genre we are paying tribute too. Savage vistas, creepy ruins, chicks in chainmail bikinis, and of course undead villains, LoS will have it all.


Be a Hero…Be a Champion…Be a LEGEND!

Works in progress

Since its been awhile since I posted any kitbashes, I thought I'd post a couple of works in progress.

Bring on the bad guys!

We had a Joe show here in Sacramento a few weeks ago. I picked these up from Ed Cassar. I needed some bad guys and these boys totally fit the bill.

What does the Evil DM watch?

· Deadwood- It’s violent, gritty, has more Profanity per second than any other show in the history of television, and probably one of the most fascinating villains I’ve ever seen in a series.



· Rome- I just started following this series but from the first episode I find myself hooked. HBO has another winner on it’s hands.








· The Shield- Michael Chiklis as Vic Mackey- the most corrupt cop you ever loved. He kills, steals, lies, cheats, and beats the shit out of anyone in his way. But you still end up rooting for the guy.

Bored at work?

Baen has a free Ebook library where you can download SF and fantasy titles from some very respectable names in the genre. Read them online or print them up and make it look like your reviewing reports.

Mystara friday

While searching the outpost the group makes its way to the HQ building. They peered in the building through the windows and see that the entire room was covered floor to ceiling with thick cobwebs. The cobwebs and the darkness obscured everything in the office. So Troilus decides to open the door and have a look in. the moment he does, several thick strands of webbing shoot out from the room and attach themselves to him, dragging him from the doorway into the giant mass of webbing. Some of the others try to attack the webbing but either their weapons are ineffective or they themselves are caught up by strands of webbing which wrap around their throats and threaten to choke them to death. In the mean time Troilus has been sucked into the center of the web and is slowly having his life drained out of him.

Next week…Holy Might

The God Squad

Catholic Heroes





I generally don’t delve much into religion or politics online but I found this website interesting –The religions of comic book superheroes. Check this link too

Mystara Friday

This week the group arrived at the outpost. The weather was most foul and the outpost appeared abandoned. Sgt Troilus had a plan to perform a recon on the outpost but that plan was quickly forgotten as Throd charged the front gate pounding and cursing it through the rain. Ignoring the dwarves actions, Troilus climbed the palisade and entered the out post, only to find it abandoned. He quickly opened the gates and let in the rest of the rain soaked party. As the group was preparing for a systematic search of the outpost once again Throd expressed his frustration at the rain, cold and lack of a killable enemy and began to howl and curse. Finally having enough of the dwarfs antics Corporal Chillum calls the dwarf out and begins to give the warrior a dressing down like a raw recruit. This did not set well with Throd who responded with a solid punch to the Corporals gut. Though winded Chillum responded with a roundhouse kick to the side of the Dwarves head, before the fight could progress any further, it was broken up by the rest of the group. A complete breakdown was averted but the tension was still very much there as the group split in half to begin the search of the outpost, half checking out the HQ building, the rest securing the gate and caring for the mounts.

LoS update

I received some feedback on a draft version of the game. The feelings were positive for the most part. It appears I need to clarify some of the combat procedures and make sure to give plenty of examples to illustrate the system. To that end I'm coming up with a group of Archetype heroes, which I will use as recurring characters to illustrate different examples of rules and their implantation. I’ve also been getting some suggestions on the layout of the cover for the game book. Things are shaping up and this project is becoming more and more tangible every week.

Mystara Friday – The Beginning

I’m going to try a new theme day dedicated to the Email Basic D&D game I’m running: The Mystara PBEM. Every Friday I’ll try and give a brief synopsis of what transpired in the game that week. First off, let me give you all some background.

The game is played on line via email using Yahoogroups. We are using the rules from the Basic D&D rules Cyclopedia. The setting is the Official TSR D&D campaign world of Mystara. For this particular adventure I am utilizing three multi media resources – a novel, a published module, and a Television series.

There are seven Player characters in the game:

• Callum- a Warrior
• Finn Askoldson- a Cleric
• Krondak- a Dwarf
• Pryolei- a Druid
• Rolmir- a Mage
• Throd- A Dwarf
• Troilus- A Scout (Thief)

The setting is as follows:
In the northwestern portion of the Grand Duchy of Karameikos, in the heart of the Cruth Mountains, near the river Magos, is the mining camp of Ganik's Ridge. Ganik's Ridge is a lawless collection of tents and ramshackle buildings serving the needs of the miners in the region. Gold was discovered close to eighteen months ago and camp grew up virtually overnight. The area falls under the nominal protection of the town of Luln and the commander of Riverfork Keep. The garrison at the keep is kept busy combating river bandits and smugglers. Luln has been too preoccupied with keeping tabs on the Black Eagle Barony to expend resources on Ganik's ridge. This attitude is changing however as the gold from the strike continues to sustain itself, and the regions resources are beginning to be better appreciated. The Magistrate of Luln and the garrison at Riverfork have joined forces to build an outpost closer to the border to keep an eye out for incursions from Darokin as word of the gold strike spreads.

Into this setting rides Sgt. Troilus, A scout in the Army of the Grand Duchy. His last assignment before leaving the service is to deliver a small contingent (a corporal and three privates) of replacement troops to Outpost 23, a border garrison a days ride up-country from Ganik’s Ridge. While riding through Ganik’s Ridge, Troilus decides to bivouac his men in the camp for the night. While exploring the camp Troilus runs across his friend Krondak, a Dwarven adventurer and part-time bounty hunter. Krondak is in camp with his Dwarven comrade Throd who has just won a deed to a gold mine during a game of craps. Krondak and Throd invite Troilus to join them in examining the mine to see it’s condition. Since the Dwarves must go to the outpost as well to have the commander officially transfer the deed to Throd, they can all leave for the mine together, once Troilus droops off his charges and officially musters out. While discussing their various options at one of the local eateries, Troilus is recognized by his distant cousin Pyrolei. Pyrolei and his three companions, Callum Finn, and Rolmir have just returned from several weeks of gold panning in the river, with little to show for their efforts. Soon Bread is broken, tankards are drained, oaths are sworn, and wenches are spanked. And before you can say Gygax, we have a party of fortune seekers setting out on a bold new adventure!

Next week: The Outpost.

The coolest game I’ve never played.

I have the game.
I have most of the expansion sets.
I’m all over the premise.
But I still haven’t played the damn thing!
Never the less their website rocks!
Check out the downloads section, especially the movies and comic book.