SCI-FI FANTASY FRIDAY! ADVANCED BASTARDS & BUGGERY! #1

FANTASY FRIDAY

What's that? It's been like six months since my last true Sci-Fi Fantasy Friday or Fantasy article? Since that is the case, I would like to begin by apologizing to my readers that enjoyed those articles. This last semester has seen me in a creative slump. And, as of today, as I write this article, I think I am still in said slump. Yet, for you and for myself, I will dig down deep and give you something interesting.

Today's subject is about a new Dungeons and Dragons game. In fact, this game is so new that I only began it on Tuesday. Before I get into it, I want to assure I will be continuing The Action Society & YŌKAI soon. If you have a preference over which one you would rather see continued first, please leave a comment or send me a message about it.

You can see the last chapter in both below.

Action Society: Rise of the White Spider, Chapter 8

Yokai, Episode 3: Uncle

Now, back to today's fair. I have been talking about doing something based on my Advanced Dungeons and Dragons experiences for quite some time. I would love start scribbling down "The Bumble Bootsbane Chronicles", but I am saving that for when my fiction is better tempered by experience. Rather than get into a year-spanning epic about the D & D character that most mirrors my heart, I want to tell the tales of Bolt Blackwood and his compatriots. This campaign is special because it is the first time I've felt I've played a dubious player character and, as a result, things were pushed in interesting directions I've never experienced.

Warning, some names of people and places have been changed for creative license reasons and to mend up the holes left by a poor memory. To read the first chapter, click read more below or the following link.

Advanced B & B. Chapter 1: Advanced Introduction

For added context, reference Community "Advanced Dungeons and Dragons"

WORD OF THE DAY! 5/26/12.

stupefaction [stoo-puh-fak-shuhn]
noun
1.The state of being stunned, astonished, in awe, etc.
2. Overwhelming amazement.

EX. I am still in a state of stupefaction about the premier of Toonami's return tonight at 11 PM Central Time.

WORD OF THE DAY! 5/25/12.

co-op [koh-op]
noun
1. A cooperative store, dwelling, business, program, project, etc.
verb
2. To convert to a cooperative.
3. To make a cooperative arrangement.
adjective
4. Video Games. Referring to game play, or a game mode, involving two or more players cooperating to obtain a goal.

EX. My favorite co-operative series is most definitely Valve's Left 4 Dead. I enjoy the co-op first person shooter so much that not only is it my favorite zombie video game, it is my favorite zombie anything. I love the simple fun of trying to work your way from point A, with a group of allies, working to maintain and improve supplies, and ultimately, survive until they reach Point B. The interesting bits come in the points BETWEEN A and B. I love the silly back and forth between characters, though not as much as the player's, the suspenseful moments between sprints of violent action, and, most of all, the moment when all four players come together to succeed over a foe.

For this reason, my friends and I have dressed as Left 4 Dead characters for the Memphis Zombie Walk two years running. We dress as survivors in a parade of zombies! The first year, some of the zombies booed us (all in good fun).

 In the picture above, joined by Dr. Harold Toboggans (Bottom Left), you can see, Steven as Ellis (Top Left), Myself as Coach (Top Middle), Valerie as Zoey (Bottom Middle in Red/White), Justin as Nick (Bottom Middle in Blue), and Zach as Bill (Bottom Right).

This year you can expect to see me swinging my axe and shouting in a baritone as I lead my friends through a horde of zombies.

WHOO! YEAH BABY!

MIXED BAG. ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND.

ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND:

AN AWESOME KICK-STARTER

The first time I saw Jason Chan's artwork, related to this project, was in an io9 concept art writing prompt. This was the first image:

It is a delightful mix of whimsy and horror. I thought it was terrible interesting and the image stuck in my head. Believe it or not, I am not a huge fan of zombies. The exception to my lack of fondness is a co-op zombie series, everyone's favorite zombie fps, Valve's Left 4 Dead. And I gotta admit, the first thing that came to mind with this image was four player co-op. Apparently, I wasn't the only one who got that vibe.

Jason Chan actually came up again, by chance, when I was looking through artwork for Magic: The Gathering. Why? Jason Chan did the card art for the first Mythic Rare I ever purchased, Platinum Angel. I did a quick Google search, found his art blog, and discovered he had done the art for several of my favorite cards, including several of the cards in my Avacyn: Battlescruiser decks.I've been following his blog since then, admiring his awesome video game concept art, as well, and then I saw an article pop-up about Zombie Playground. I was stoked to discover Jason Chan had done the zombie playground art and even more stoked to discover that he was teaming up with Massive Black Inc. to bring us a Zombie Playground videogame.

The title is a kickstarter project. It is planned to be a highly stylized, arcade-style, third-person shooter. The game will be on PC/MAC to start and will be downloadable. The premise is simple: you play as elementary school children who have to survive in a zombie filled school. The game has action rpg elements and will involve a number of characters with unique weapons, skills, and personalities.

These are just a few characters in the concept art.

The game sounds awesome, but it is missing one thing; your support. Zombie Playground is going to need at least 100 K to reach their goal and fund the title. As for this article's writing, it is only a fifth of the way there, and needs your monies. The project has a number of rewards for your support from a small donation getting an early copy of the title for fifteen bucks to the biggest prize being credited as an executive producer and the principal getting modeled after you. But that's not the point.

The point is to make this game a reality. Donate now and see this awesome dream become an awesome title.Imagine what they could do with $1 millon.

Let's kick-start this mother!

CLICK HERE FOR THE KICK-STARTER!

JASON CHAN's ART BLOG

MASSIVE BLACK's WEBSITE! 

ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND ART TIME LAPSE

CONCEPT ART WRITING PROMPT: ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND

WORD OF THE DAY! 5/24/12.

agalmatophilia [a-gal-mah-toh-fee-lee-a]
noun
1. Sexual attraction or romantic affection toward a statue, doll, mannequin, robot, or other similar figurative object. The attraction may include a dsire to have an encounter with one of these objects/subjects, animate or inanimate, or watching encounters between such objects, or the thought of transformations involving such objects.

EX. At first, agalmataophilia probably seems pretty crazy but it is, actually,  quite common in science fiction. Some popular examples of robo-sexual (reference: Futurama) relationships between automatons and "hyoomahns". There is of course a plethora of manga/anime with such a premise, such as Chobits.

More example robot-human relations would be would be Marvel Comic's kinky marriage of Scarlet Witch and Vision, Ishinomori's depressing Pinocchio robot Kikaider and Mitsuko, and the super creepy Johnny-5's relationship with Stephenie in Short Circuit. It goes all the way back to Fritz Lang's Metropolis's robotic seductress.

My favorite? Tootsie Noodles + Megagirl 4 Ever!

(Expect more about this on Monday. *wink wink*)

"THE WAY I DO!" SCENE

WTF WEDNESDAY! DOUBLE FEATURE: EAST 2 WEST! #1

WTF WEDNESDAY PRESENTS

DOUBLE FEATURE: EAST 2 WEST! #1

Few nations easily get into the position of weird and entertaining that Japan can achieve by a mix of having a unique cultural heritage and unabashed artistic passion. I think this is the reason that the West, especially America, has always been very interested in Japanese history. To be fair though, that any nation in the West, is arguably capable of producing equally weird entertainment.

In celebration for this commonality in our cultures, I will couple something a little quriky from Japan with something fairly dorky from America. The thing they have in common? They're both awesome.

日本橋高架下R計画

And first up we have a delightful anime music video filled with a cute, but clumsy character surviving unbelievable mishaps. The video is filled with summer imagery; soft, warm colors, a twinkling little happy song, and, all-in-all it is a fun experience.

GAME OF THRONES THEME ON FLOPPY DISKS!

And now for some fun from the West. Game of Thrones is arguably full of just as many WTF and dark moments that would make any anime proud. But we're considered with this awesome mechanical production of the theme song on floppy disk drives. Enjoy this obsessive compulsive venture.

See you next week! さよなら！

WORD OF THE DAY! 5/23/12.

swagger [swag-er]
verb
1. To walk or strut with a defiant and/or insolent air.
2. To boast or brag noisily.
3. To bring, drive, or force something blustering.
noun
4. Showy manner, conduct, or walk with the sole purpose of displaying one's arrogance and conceit proudly.

EX.  Squirtle used Swagger. It was not very effective. Bulbasaur is dismissive of said swagger.

WEEKLY ROUND-UP! 5/14-5/20/12.

WEEKLY ROUND-UP PRESENTS:

POKE-POLITICAL HUMOR WEEK!

7. WORD OF THE DAY! 5/17/12. Vindicator.

At this point, it would be completely pointless for me to tell you to go see The Avengers at your local cinema. I might even recommend it in 3-D, if this wasn't as common knowledge as how awful Adam Sandler is, possibly, a terrible scam artist on top of being the driving force behind a production company that puts out pure malevolent garbage every year. And it would be equally without purpose for me to declare that Pikachu is best rodent.

6. WORD OF THE DAY! 5/19/12. Buzz-Saw.

Alas, poor Woodman, you never had a chance. First, you were kind of a terrible idea. A wooden robot? Really?! Secondly, you're attacks are pretty useless. I've never heard of someone being killed by a flying leaf. And thirdly, and most importantly, how is a wood-based robot going to last ten seconds against a psychopath boy robot shooting buzz-saws?

5. WORD OF THE DAY! 5/15/12. Brutality.

I suppose that the pokemon experiences of Red/Blue are just so inexplicably branded in the minds of people in my age group that it is nearly impossible not to deign Satoshi Tajiri, Creatures Inc, and Game Freak to be diabolical geniuses.

4. MUSICAL MONDAY! PARRY GRIPP IS MADE OF INTERNETS!

Not much to say here. As usual, I listen to the previous weeks Musical Monday subject when I type these and Parry Gripp is just made of happy feelings.

3. WTF WEDNESDAY: THE ADVENTURES OF KIM JONG UN
 
"I am the morbidly obese one! Top doctors say his weight is ideal for his height and build!"

Thank you, North Korea.

P.S. Now, kindly liberate yourselves.

2. WORD OF THE DAY! 5/16/12. Recruitment.

 Think about it; Kanto is f'd up. 10-year olds, presumably nuisances, are expected to leave home and survive by enslaving monsters. Its a farce! Seriously, who wouldn't want to join Team Rocket? At least they're honest and evil, instead of whimsical, deceptive, and evil.

1. TABLETOP TALES: AVACYN: BATTLE CRUISER OPERATIONAL DECK!

Commons are the back bones of any good standard deck, especially in limited. Avacyn's Pilgrim is a card I want to have two of in my first hand every time I play this deck, alongside a forest. He'll help you hardcast those angels with ease and chump blocks in a pinch. Odds are, I'll probably tinker with this deck, take it back to standard, and take it to a Friday Night Magic event some time soon. As usual, I appreciate any advice and comments on my decks.

WORD OF THE DAY! 5/22/12.

politically sensitive [puhl-it-ih-kuhl-ee-sen-si-tiv]
noun
1. Referring to language reflecting awareness and sensitivity to another person's physical, mental, cultural, or other disadvantages or deviations from a norm; a person is not mentally retarded, but rather mentally challenged; a person is not obese but rather has an eating disorder, etc

EX. Who would've figured that political sensitivity would tear the Justice League part.

P.S. Batman's parents are dead.

P.P.S. Most superhero's parents are dead. Get over it, Bruce.

WORD OF THE DAY! 5/20/12.

situation comedy [sich-oo-ey-shuhn-kom-i-dee] / sitcom [sit-kom]

noun

1. A comedy drama, especially a television series made up of discrete episodes about the same group of characters, as members of a family.
 

EX. Screw traditional live-action sitcoms and forget animated sitcoms, we need the world's first hybrid sitcom simply titled, "Oh, You!" on Cartoon Network. Each episode only needs to be long enough for the puppy to do something ridiculous and his owner to get out that epic catchphrase.

If "Oh, You!" doesn't sweep across America in a week and people keeping watching truly awful sitcoms that either demean a group of people or tread over the same story lines over and over in ad nauseum.