Ravings of a Textual Deviant

I used to toy around with origami, but nothing like this guy…The fanstasy gaming section of the gallery is way cool, but don’t neglect the other stuff.

Ginger’s question this week is

How do you use different frames of reference or mindsets in your games? In what ways do your characters or NPCs in games you GM think differently from the people around you? What sorts of things make them different (societal, mental, physical, etc.)? Do you feel that you?re successful in incorporating and showing the differences?

The way I tend to use mindsets–PC or NPC–in game can be summed up as follows: Everyone has their own personal mythology, with him/herself at the center of it. That means that everyone thinks differently from everyone else. Annika–about whom I was going on in the previous post–knows in her heart of hearts that she could have won Olympic gold in figure skating if she hadn’t gotten injured, causing her mother to fire her coach and forcing her to quit training. Whether or not she actually could have, objectively, is anyone’s guess. The point is, she believed it, felt utterly bereft by her mother’s betrayal (as she saw it), and spent the next five years in an undiagnosed depression. She is still driven to be the very best at something, which is why she’s utterly dedicated to her current job…which happens to be defending humanity from the alien menace. As a result, she’s very sensitive to criticism–constructive or not–and makes a immense effort to consistently improve her performance.

Nicky Finn (”an Irishman with a Reputation for Accomplishing Unsavoury Tasks on the Cheap”), in the Grand Ellipse, saw himself as a successful leader, helping “his people” get a little of their own back in a highly stratified and unequal society. Granted, it was in fact done by accomplishing unsavoury tasks on the cheap, but if the fancy are going to expect the worst of you no matter what you do, what’s to lose? (Objectively, he was an out-and-out violent felon who ran his gang mostly by threats and intimidation…but he didn’t see himself that way.)

More generally, I try to avoid modern attitudes in premodern settings–no “modern people in RenFaire get-up,” as Ginger so succinctly puts it. On the other hand, it’s important to remember that primitive/low-tech isn’t necessarily the same as stupid or unsophisticated. Different groups and societies have different priorities, and a character should reflect that.

Doug’s Friday night (modern d20) game has quite the body count. So far, we’ve had two PCs die in combat in the game. I have two backup character concepts, and under most circumstances, I don’t even bother with one.

What really surprises me is that Annika, my depressed ex-piano teacher from Nebraska, isn’t one of them. Especially as she has been known to use both grenades and flamethrowers at point-blank range–known locally as the “Li Method of Combat”. (Nor is Annika directly responsible for any PC deaths…again, despite having shot at, thrown grenades at, and flamethrower-ed her teammates on various occasions.)

Which leads me to an observation, which is this: the longer your character survives, the more likely it is that the character will continue to survive, as s/he gains the benefit of experience (both in game and in terms of levelling up.) Whaddaya think?

Ripped off from the pages of Nigella Lawson’s Forever Summer…

1 1/2 C + 2 T heavy cream
6 large egg yolks
1 3/4 C sweetened condensed milk
7 T tequila (use the good stuff)
2 T triple sec, grand marnier, cointreau, or otherorange-liqueuer analog
Juice of 6 limes
Zest of 1 lime (Zest the lime before you squeeze out the juice.)

In a mediumish mixing bowl, combine the lime zest, lime juice, triple sec (or whatever), and tequila. Set aside.

Separate the eggs. Whisk the yolks together in another mixing bowl, and do whatever it is you do with extra egg whites. (I freeze mine in zipper bags, with the best of intentions to make merengue or something, and at this point, I probably have the premier frozen egg white collection in the city.)

Heat the cream nearly to boiling, stirring nearly constantly so that the cream doesn’t form a skin. Whisk the cream into the egg yolks by pouring it into the bowl in a slow stream as you whisk briskly. Cook it over low to medium-low heat until it thickens. Have a sink or large basin of ice water handy. If the custard starts to curdle, put the bottom of the pan into the ice water and whisk like crazy.

Let the custard cool to room temperature, then whisk in the sweetened condensed milk. Be firm; it won’t want to blend at first, because sweetened condensed milk has the slippery-thick consistency of expensive shampoo. Next, whisk in the lime juice mixture. When everything is completely combined, you’re ready to freeze it.

If you have an ice cream machine, follow the manufacturer’s directions. If you don’t, pour the proto-ice cream into a plastic container with a lid, and stick it in the coldest part of your freezer. Every couple of hours, take it out and break up the chunks. I used a blender, but a food processor or hand mixer (on lowest speed) would probably work also. The idea is to get rid of any ice crystals and keep the ice cream from being crunchy. Eventually, it’ll be frozen smooth and solid.

Nigella comments that “This is surely what angels would eat on their hen night.” I agree, especially if the angels in question have PMS. She also suggests that for “utter, unapologetic perfection,” you can serve the ice cream in margarita glasses whose rims have been dipped in lime juice, then a half-and-half mixture of salt and sugar. I can’t speak to the serving suggestion, but the actual ice cream is fabulous.

Next time, I think I’ll try making chai ice cream…

I cleaned out all the ancient and not-so-venerable leftovers from my fridge today, and not a moment too soon, as I think that what used to be some tabbouleh was on the verge of developing independent locomotion. Something else–of entirely unknown origin–was about ready to start chipping tools out of fossilized bread. I won’t even go into the, er, aquatic life. I may well be responsible for the destruction of thousands of microscopic civilizations.

Which brings me to this question…

Why is that when someone is cleaning out the fridge, and stumbles across something really stinky and disgusting, the first thing most people do is say to the nearest unsuspecting person “Smell this–it’s awful!” And why, more often than not, does the unsuspecting person actually take the container and sniff the contents, to confirm that they are indeed awful?

Andy asked “I know you started excercising. Have you changed your diet as well? How often are you hitting the gym? I started excercising a couple of months ago. Though losing weight was only third on my list of reasons for doing so, I’ve been a bit depressed at what seems like a lack of progress.”

I had been slowly changing my diet for some time. The high-protein diets certainly seem to work for a lot of people, but who wants to eat like that forever? I thought about it and decided that for me, the important thing was not to eat more protein, but to eat more complex carbs and fewer simple ones–basically, more fruits and veggies; less sugar, rice, bread, and pasta. Also, I’m tending towards a wider variety of proteins (more fish, tofu, nuts, beans) and less red meat. My philosophy has always been that it’s hard to go wrong eating a wide variety of foods, so that’s not a huge change for me. Of course, that’s just what works for me; your mileage (poundage?) may vary. Also, these days, my beverage of choice is water. Lots of water–about two liters a day. The trick is to carry around a water bottle and sip frequently.

When it comes to changing my eating habits, I tend to cut waaaay back on certain things (like soda) rather than give them up entirely. As weird as it sounds, I don’t mind having soda only once a month, so long as I know that I can have it that one time. I can’t abide diet soda; I’d rather have the real thing less often. Same goes for other treats like real ice cream (no fat-free frozen yogurt for me, thanks) and chocolate. Which brings up another point; if I’m going for my occasional indulgence, I always make sure that I spend a little extra and get the very best stuff. After a while, I find that the so-so stuff just isn’t worth it. (I’m so spoiled on good chocolate that I don’t even want Hershey’s chocolate anymore. I can taste the paraffin.) Occasionally, I do give in to a craving for something substandard, and more often than not, I find that it wasn’t as good as I thought it would be. That cures a craving pretty quickly!

As for the exercise thing, I’ve been going to the gym five or six days a week. Three days a week, I do what I think of as a long workout, which starts with a brisk five-minute warm-up walk on the treadmill, followed by stretching, weight machines, then 15-20 minutes of some kind of cardio (elliptical machines, more treadmill, stationary bike, etc.), five minutes of cool-down (usually on the treadmill again), and more stretching. The rest of the time, I do a short workout, which is just five minutes of warm-up, 20-25 minutes of cardio, and five minutes of cool-down. Sauna, steam room, or hot tub afterwards are great motivators. Also, I try to vary my cardio work so that it doesn’t get boring. If I absolutely, positively, cannot get to the gym, then I’ll use one of my Pilates tapes at home, or take a bike ride around the neighborhood. (When it gets a little cooler, and my endurance is a little better, I hope to start using the bike for short trips, too.)

And I completely understand the lack-of-progress depression–I was deep in it, right up to the point that I stepped on the scale. I started feeling the changes (better endurance, mostly) before I visually noticed anything. In fact, as it’s only seven pounds, I still haven’t noticed a much of a change, which is why I found the number on the scale so heartening. On the other hand, I’ve been slowly increasing the amount of weight and the repetitions on the machines, as well as the amount of time I spend on cardio work, so obviously, some progress is being made. Also, you have to keep in mind that even if the numbers don’t change, it’s entirely possible to lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously. (You can actually gain weight at the beginning of that process, and believe me, I know that frustration well.) My friend Rachel, who has some experience in this sort of thing, tells me that she thinks it takes a minimum of 75 days to get visible results. (I’m not sure how she arrived at that number, but it sounds reasonable.) Finally, I keep telling myself that it’s not really healthy to lose more than 1-2 pounds a week, anyway. Losing weight too quickly would only mess up my metabolism and make it that much harder to lose weight…and it’s hard enough already, thanks.

So, not that I’m qualified to give advice or anything, but all I can say is stick to it and don’t weigh yourself too often. Once a week is probably more than enough. Oh, yeah, and if something hurts, stop. An injury is only going to slow you down in the long run, and this is all about the long run. If anyone who reads takes my so-called advice, on your own head be it. Other standard disclaimers apply.

The Grand Ellipse is officially done.

The final few articles of the London Times have been posted, as has the Finale. I’ll still take questions, if anyone has any.

Enjoy.

I seem to be on a Role. (I am genetically incapable of passing up a straight line. Ask anyone who knows me…)

Role Call #27 asks

If you were somehow forbidden from playing with your favorite system, genre or setting, what would you substitute?

The Smartass Answer: Anything that allowed me to hunt down and beat the snot out of the person who barred me from my favorite system, genre, or setting.

The System Answer: Of late, I use GURPS a lot, not because the mechanics are simple or elegant, but because of the wealth of source material. Also, GURPS Lite rules are available for free. If, for some reason, I was unable to use GURPS, I’d probably end up using d20 or Palladium, again for the richness of source material, not the mechanics.

The Genre Answer: My current favorite genre in which to run games is alternate history/steampunk. If I wasn’t going to use that genre, I’d probably find some way to warp high fantasy into something a little more interesting…or maybe just run Toon for a while. As a player, I’d go looking for just about anything else. As Cathy says, “Call me a game ho’, but honestly, I’ll play nearly anything.”

The Setting Answer: This would be a fun challenge for me, and probably the only part of the scenario I’d actually enjoy. I’d probably pick some point in spacetime that I knew nothing about–maybe the Inca Empire, medieval Iceland, or prehistoric Australia–read up on it, and come up with a game.

Role Call #26 asks

Can you summarize two campaign concepts you’d create for player with identical tastes to your own?

Actually, there’s one I’ve done already, which is the Grand Ellipse. Tidbits for history buffs, deep plot, and travel. I had a blast running it, and I would’ve loved to play it. (Although I confess that giving some of the PCs tagalong NPCs was for my own enjoyment, as well as a darned convenient plot device.) In fact, just about anything I’d run is something I’d want to play, including all the other Ellipses I’ve thought up so far.

Getting away from Ellipses, half a dozen other scenarios spring to mind–a Buffy the Vampire Slayer storyline set in, or just prior to, the Boxer Rebellion (jumping off from from the Angel episode a few seasons back); a Teenagers from Outer Space campaign based on some of my actual high-school experiences (just take my word for it that the truth is indeed stranger than fiction; I once got detention for going to the library during my lunch break); a Neuromancer ripoff in a Shadowrun setting; The Further Adventures of Baron Munchausen, which has been kicking around in the back of my head for a while, based on the Terry Gilliam movie; an as-yet undeveloped/brand-new idea for a Viking-era campaign (working title: Fimbulwinter); and of course, something in which the players got to play Central Asian nomads…maybe something set right after the Black Death in Kim Stanley Robinson’s The Years of Rice and Salt timeline.

I’ve hit the one-month mark, more or less, on my recent quest for better health. I had a “fitness assessment” (I wasn’t, just for the record) a few weeks ago, which was the last time I weighed myself until today.

At the risk of gloating, there is now seven pounds less of me than there was a month ago. (Ungrammatical, I know, but a Good Thing, nonetheless.) That’s net loss, not counting muscle gained and fat lost. And talk all you want about numbers on a scale not telling the whole story; it felt damned good to see some empirical evidence that all my hard work is starting to pay off.