The Nonsense Exchange

Nerd Test

2008-03-20T08:53:57Z

Stolen from Emmelinemay

2008-03-14T15:35:15Z

This image is just bloody terrifying if you ask me.

Shall also do well for "sarcastic applause" posts, should I need them.

D&D 4th Edition Post - Gamers Only!

2008-03-12T10:49:36Z

It's struck me recently whilst reading all of the D&D 4th Edition News and tidbits that have trickled out over the last few months - 4th Edition puts the players at the centre of the story in a way that 3rd Edition never did.

3rd Edition excelled at being a consistent system - if a Wizard fired three Magic Missiles at you, you knew he was either 5th of 6th level. A skill check was always the same, regardless of how success or failure would affect the story. Characters had to live by the rules of the world around them.

However, in 4e Edition this is not quite so true. For example, we've been introduced to some changes relating to healing. Put simply, once per fighter any character can heal themselves for an amount of damage - it's called Second Wind, and reflects the character taking a moment in a fight to recover themselves and keep on going. Characters that take a Short Break (5 minutes) can use their own healing to heal all the way back up to full (although you only have a certain amount of personal healing per day). Taking an Extended Break (six hours) heals you back up to Full Hitpoints, regardless of the amount of healing you have left.

At first glance, these all seem a little odd. But when you think about how it serves the story of a group of heroes fighting through tough situations, overcoming trials and accomplishing great deeds it makes perfect sense. Does Conan need to be healed by a Cleric every time he takes a couple of sword blows? Does John McCain in Die Hard get any healing at all? No - the story dictates that these characters can keep on going without magical assistance, and it makes sense that Player Characters (being the central part of the story, as they surely are) should be able to do the same.

Of course, there are still options for magical healing. We've seen abilities of both the Cleric and the Paladin that allows them to heal others (or themselves) and from what we've been told the Warlord will have similar abilities (more along the lines of "Get up and fight!" than "The power of my God shall heal you!").

I think this is a brilliant move. It places the characters (and thus the players) at the centre of the story, meaning their actions are important. Not everyone in the world heals completely overnight, but allowing the characters to do so avoids a lot of problems of campaigns being derailed by PC's heading back to the village every two days to get healed up.

Worldwide GaryCon

2008-03-06T12:01:50Z

This is an idea that has been spreading around the internet:

"By now most of you have seen the news about Gary Gygax.

I suggest that as a way of honoring Gary Gaygax we have a "GaryCon" across the globe this Friday and Saturday night.

By "We" - I mean every gamer possible who plays RPGs. Everywhere.

All of us play either Dungeons & Dragons this Friday and Saturday night

-OR-

We play the RPG rules system of our choice - but we do a typical D&D-type dungeon crawl. ...either Friday or Saturday night.

Everywhere....every city or town possible."

I may be running a little something with villainous_mog on Saturday, depending if I'm working, but I'd certainly suggest to anyone else that can manage it that this'd be a great way to mark his passing.

Open Letter

2008-03-05T08:01:32Z

To the arseholes who tried to get into littleangel_103's car, broke the front passenger door lock so the door won't shut properly and took the blades off both the front and back windows. You can really just F*** off and die.

No love,
Me.

tallarn @ 2008-02-19T18:58:00

2008-02-19T18:57:43Z

Indiana Jones game!

http://indianajones.lego.com/en-US/Games/Default.aspx

And it's LEGO!

RPG Style Quiz

2008-02-13T09:53:01Z

Law's Game Style
created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Tactician

You're probably a military buff who wants to have the chance to think through complex problems. You want the rules, and your GM's interpretation of them, to match up what happens in the real world or at least be consistant. You want challenging yet logical obstacles to overcome.

Tactician

83%

Storyteller

75%

Power Gamer

67%

Method Actor

67%

Specialist

50%

Butt-Kicker

50%

Casual Gamer

33%

Books 2008

2008-02-08T08:33:18Z

9. Sound Bites: Eating on Tour with Franz Ferdinand

A very pleasant little book by the lead singer of Franz Ferdinand, who used to be a chef (amongst other things). It collects a column in a newspaper detailing the food he ate as they did their world tour. Very evocative of different places, and very enjoyable to sift through and feeling the highs and lows of eating out around the world.

8. The Business by Iain Banks

Another non-sci-fi piece from Mr Banks, and another that I thoroughly enjoyed. It charts the story of Kate as she lives her life as part of the largest and oldest capitalist organisation in the world. Hinting at large events at work in the background, whilst going into the details of her own life, with some cracking one liners, too.

7. Wizard of the Crow by Ngugi wa Thiong'o

Astonishing African set book detailing the politics and postcolonial problems in a fictional African state, with a large range of characters. It's a wonderful tale of human idiocy, corruption, love, humour, tradition and personal politics, and I really enjoyed it. Although it must be said that bits of it are a little too true to life in terms of some of what is going on at the moment.

6. The Steep Approach to Gaberdale by Iain Banks

I've kind of wandered into Iain Banks addiction, but he's probably the author who's books I'd always stop to read. This is a present-day fiction and I loved it. Clever characters, a deep story and a real sense, as usual, that these are real people in an interesting situation. One of his better ones.

5. Making Money by Terry Pratchett

Yes, I know it came out several months ago, but it was an Xmas present from littleangel_103's parents, so I've only just got it. It's a cracking good story - he seems to have got cleverer with age whilst losing a little of the laugh-out-loud sidesplitters of old. I think the one thing the Discworld needs is some new recurring villains - the City based stories tend to be full of people who don't seem to be able to recover from a setback in their evil-plotting ways. Aside from that small gripe, I really enjoyed it.

4. Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer
This is the third Artemis Fowl book I've read, and now that I've got over my dislike of the Fairy Technology I'm really enjoying them. Fast paced, full of action, snappy dialogue and tons of imagination. I grinned a lot all the way through.

3. Elidor by Alan Garner
After an expression of "WFT?! He hasn't read it?" from RedFraggle, I am now proud to say I understand what all the fuss is about. This is a fantastic short(ish) story for children, bringing up a whole range of tantalising hints as to what's going on as the central characters battle through a world they don't understand. And I love the sudden-stop finish.

2. Secret Purpose by David Baddiel.
Yes, that David Baddiel, also known as 'that comedian that works with Frank Skinner a lot'. This is an entirely serious book about the way some of the Jewish population of Britain, particularly those that had only recently arrived from Germany, was treated during the war in terms of the internment camps on the Isle of Man. I very much enjoyed the book, and felt it was true to life and true to how things were. Thanks to littleangel_103 for recommending it - I might have a look for Baddiel's other novels now.

1. The PreHistory of the Far Side By Gary Larson
I have read this before, and it is a collection of cartoons, but hey, it's my list and I'm counting it.

Kevin Shwe, Kevin Shwe, Kevin Kevin Shwe

2008-02-08T08:30:22Z

Someone whom I used to work with, Kevin Shwe, has found himself in the final of a competition for the BRIT Awards. It was a competition for deliberately silly dancing and you can vote for him here: http://www.pricelessdanceoff.com/voteKevin.html

Click on View Dance to skip the interview! If I could find a way to embed the video here then I would but it seems that's not possible.

Indigestion

2008-02-06T13:52:55Z

OK, so I had indigestion on Sunday night / Monday.

I felt much better by this morning - but I've eaten half a sandwich from our home made bread and my stomach feels about ready to explode again. Feel drained and uncomfortable - might I have developed an intolerance to bread, or might it be something to do with the home made bread we've baked? The only other thing I can think of that might be in common both times is a bowl of muesli that I've eaten.

I really don't want this to happen on a regular basis - any ideas?

Bleh.

Free Tickets

2008-02-01T09:45:27Z

We have two spare free tickets for the Times Destinations Show (http://www.destinationsshow.com/) and we're heading over there tomorrow to browse and get excited about holidays, eat some nice food and possible see some of the fun acts they have on.

It's at Earls Court - if anyone wants to join us then let us know. This message is also going up on littleangel_103's journal.

We've been the last couple of years and enjoyed it. Plus, you can get some nice freebies.

Open Letter To The Daily Mail

2008-01-20T21:40:38Z

Dear Paul Dacre(1),

I draw your attention to the following extract from the recent column by Richard Littlejohn:

"It might not be fashionable, or even acceptable in some quarters, to say so, but in their chosen field of “work”, death by strangulation is an occupational hazard. That doesn’t make it justifiable homicide, but in the scheme of things the deaths of these five women is no great loss. They weren't going to discover a cure for cancer or embark on missionary work in Darfur. The only kind of missionary position they undertook was in the back seat of a car."

The sheer disdain for the life of these women, mixed with the unbridled sexism and lack of respect for human life, absolutely takes my breath away. How you can justify paying someone to write such a hate-filled, pathetic excuse for journalism is beyond me. It beggars belief that Mr Littlejohn, who obviously does such sterling and public work in his own "cure for cancer" and "missionary work in Darfur" sidelines, feels that he can make these kind of comments about women (and they are women first, regardless of the way they earn money). I am utterly disgusted and furious that you felt it appropriate to publish these comments.

I would hope that you might ask Mr Littlejohn to consider the lives both of these women, and of their family and friends, before spewing any more of this pathetic excuse for writing.

yours sincerely,

Mathew Freeman.

Thank you to the blogger at the Fword.org that flagged this up for me. You can also read more details at http://feministfire.wordpress.com/2008/01/18/5-women-dead-richard-littlejohn-says-its-no-great-loss/

Please write in. It only takes a moment.

(1) Paul Dacre is the Editor of the Daily Mail and can be contacted at:
The Daily Mail
Associated Newspapers Ltd
Northcliffe House
2 Derry Street
London
W8 5TT
Email: letters@dailymail.co.uk

Online Quiz Challenge!

2007-12-13T15:37:36Z

http://ukchampionofthehousehold.buzzthegame.com/home.php?game=c3561941

Click on the link, then click on option 3 "Take a Friends Challenge" and answer the questions by click on the answers - dead simple!

I'd just like to ask everyone to use the LJ username when they put in their nickname, so that we can all see how everyone has done. And please feel free to share this link on with other people from LJ - let's see how many people we can get on the leaderboard!

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

Edit: Fixed link.

From Neil Gaiman's Journal

2007-12-13T09:38:40Z

...which probably means most of you have already seen this, of course...

"Someone wrote to me to advise that there was far too much fun being had reviewing Bic pens on Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000JTOYLS/ref=cm_rdp_product). There seems to be even more fun too muchly had reviewing Tuscan milk by a factor of approximately 25 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00032G1S0/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top).
What intrigues me most though is through this page, I now know that if I ever need Uranium Ore, a JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser/Tank, or simply a Fresh Whole Rabbit, Amazon will be my first stop. To which I can add nothing."

Take a look. Take just five minutes and have a look. It will make you smile.

Album Meme

2007-12-12T08:58:55Z

I've altered the rules slightly to have a lot less names in it - basically, if I get a name I'll try for another one.

Basic rules - go to Wikipedia, click once on random article for your Album Title, again for the band, and then a further fifteen times for the track listing. Here's mine:

Seduction Community by Horta Oest

1) Saar mark
2) Eugenia bayatensis
3) John Fitzalan, Lord of Oswestry
4) Christelijk Nationaal Vakverbond
5) Kamran Khan
6) Activation
7) Kohtla-Järve Viru Sputnik
8) Jalgaon sex scandal
9) Elbow
10) Compression fitting
11) Biomorphic robotics
12) Recceology
13) Cade's Road
14) Cephalic
15) Tears of Stone

Clearly, this is some sort of prog-rock opus, probably written in the late 60's under the influence of drugs and drawing heavily upon both Eastern Europe and Industrialism.

I'd really like to hear the lyrics for Kohtla-Jarve Vriu Sputnik.

Found a new userpic!

2007-12-04T08:54:46Z

This one is going to be used for Weird Science, The World Is A Crazy Place etc posts.

Happily taken (with permission) from http://www.macguff.fr/goomi/unspeakable/vault00-cast.html - The Unspeakable Vault...of Doom!

Report

2007-11-06T17:15:19Z

My Yahoo email appears to be down - is anyone else having problems?

Before I get into a serious write up of yesterda

2007-11-04T09:53:27Z

I read the rather wonderful Irregular Webcomic (www.irregularwebcomic.net) and the author has just introduced a randomiser feature.

Now, I admit that this may not be quite as funny for you as it is for me, but I've been playing with it and...well, take a look at some random webcomics.

http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/random.php?i0=1521&p0=0&i1=1410&p1=3&i2=1300&p2=3&i3=1637&p3=1

http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/random.php?i0=1681&p0=1&i1=1351&p1=1&i2=1130&p2=3&i3=1078&p3=2

http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/random.php?i0=1503&p0=0&i1=0996&p1=1&i2=0983&p2=2&i3=1131&p3=3

http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/random.php?i0=0811&p0=0&i1=1371&p1=1&i2=1630&p2=2&i3=1260&p3=3

OK, I'm done. The webcomic is generally excellent, though.

IKEA

2007-11-02T16:26:30Z

All I am prepared to say right now is that IKEA's "Customer Service" has just gone beyond 'bad', 'terrible', 'awful' and 'diabolical' and has plumbed new depths of utter uselessness.

Six Word Stories

2007-10-17T09:50:24Z

Stolen verbatim from villainouse_mog:

"Via Literacity, Hemmingway apparently once wrote a six-word story he considered his best work (and it does rock, I have to say). So on Wired, a bunch of other authors chimed in with their own efforts. I couldn't narrow it down to just one, so here's my top three:

Tick tock tick tock tick tick.
- Neal Stephenson

Osama’s time machine: President Gore concerned.
- Charles Stross

Please, this is everything, I swear.
- Orson Scott Card

Nor could I possibly not attempt one of my own:

You're probably a hallucination, but hi!

Anyone else want a stab?"

My attempt is as follows:

"Send more troops! We are - AAAAAARRRRRGGGH!"

Lovecraft Meme

2007-10-17T08:57:39Z

Happily stolen from failing_angel.

Your Score: Poisoned Blood Line

You scored 1 Unearthliness, 3 Sheer Horror, 4 Power, and 4 Intelligence!

To most people, you seem normal enough, although some people wonder about you and most are not comfortable being alone with you in low-light situations. The truth is that at some point in your ancestry, someone did forbidden things with some non-human, possibly lower life form that has forever cursed your blood. It would be best not to know what sort of hybrid you really are, lest it drive you to extremes...

Link: The Your Lovecraftian Entity Test written by popegrutch on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

F-Word Feed

2007-10-11T16:10:32Z

Apparently there has been a bit of a screw up on this matter, and the actual location of the feed is as follows:

http://syndicated.livejournal.com/fword_org_uk/

I've checked the link and it does work, so please spread the word!

F-Word Blog - taken from littleangel_103

2007-10-10T15:54:51Z

The F Word News Blog now has a feed on LJ - thanks to the lovely ministrations of the similarly lovely ladycat. It's under fworduk - please pass on to all and any who you think may be interested.

Huzzah, says I!

A Pledge

2007-09-27T15:57:57Z

Following on from littleangel_103's post and also cloudwalker_3, I would also like to make this pledge:

“I pledge to never commit, condone, or remain silent about men’s violence against women. I pledge to never coerce anyone I know into having sex, or to pressure them into any kind of unwanted physical contact. I will always seek clear communication instead of assuming consent. I choose to respect, listen to, seek equality with and to share power with every person I date, and every person I know.”

Elephant and Castle

2007-08-15T09:52:46Z

If you're planning to go anywhere near Elephant and Castle Tube Station, be aware that the Northern Line exit is currently closed because of an 'unsafe structure'.

We were walking around the area last night and bus delays and so on are going to be severe around the area. Also, our favourite Chinese resturant, Tai Tip Mein was closed. :(