Going to see Conan tonight

The newest Conan is out and about. I am rather pensive about going to see it as I am a looong time Howard fan and am more than a little concerned the movie falls very short of the themes and intents of the Conan stories.

Legend - the movie is 26

Steve and I were talking yesterday and it turns out that Steve did not watch Labyrinth (the 25th anniversary of Labyrinth was this year, see my post below). I told him that, having not watched Labyrinth, his childhood was without meaning and reference, that any memories he had were but impressions and fun house mirrors of hoped for and wished for moments of a past that never existed. Steve thinks I exaggerated.

He did watch Legend though. A movie I somehow missed at the screen and only visited later. Here is a clip of one of my favorite parts of the movie. (yes that is Tim Curry as Darkness). Ridley Scott directed the movie.

Deus ex machina in RPGs

After 3thirty years of gaming, I have seen this plot device used many many times. Basically, deus ex machina refers to an ending (usually positive) brought about by an event or agent in a manner that is very unlikely or impossible or minimally has no context or connection with previous events.

The most obvious example I can think of occurring in high school sometime. In this instance, our DM, Toma the Lip (yes he was called Toma the Lip or Lips), had ushered the party into an untenable situation and our failure in gaining some quest item and subsequent death was imminent. That is, until the servants of the gods erupted through the floor to slay our foes and show us the way to the gem or sword or beer. Whatever it was ceased to have any import as soon as we realized the gods were going to give it to us and make sure we used it as they desired.

Another funny incident in college occurred when our party was ambushed and faced death. The DM assumed we would surrender to the orcs. We didn't. Sooooo, suddenly an earthquake to shake things up. Terrified and confused, the orcs ran away. In one year of play previous, we had never experienced even so much as a rain (the characters anyway).

I have had characters trip and fall into a secret door, find an antidote to a poison sitting on a chair in a dungeon (that was funny), saved by a king (when I was 1st level) and on and on.

Deus ex machina all (I think anyway). Ok, so I can understand the desire for a particular end on the part of the person running the game, but to force an end is, in my opinion, destructive of the spirit of the game. If I knew I would win the ultimate prize, victory, quest etc every time, I just would not participate. That would be sorta boring. Sorta like playing chess against a cat.Its boring (unless one rubs the chess pieces with catnip).

Ok, I'm falling asleep.

Castles and Crusades Sale still a go

Another 24 hours at least. Gotta keep the posting up. So the sale is here.

With this hardcover combo deal get both the Players Handbook and Monsters and Treasure for the low price of $20.00. Order today and we'll throw in the adventure module Shadows of the Halfling Hall to book. ALL FOR $20.00!! (plus shipping).

Labyrinth (the movie) is 25 years old

Labyrinth is one of those movies that resonates for many people who saw it in their youth. By youth I mean early teens,late tweens, or whatever. It does for me. Portions of the sound track, the images, Jennifer Connelly and even, to some extent, the surface story itself. The deeper story is, in my humble opinion, about the passing of childhood. The movie is a narrative about loosing cherished beliefs and an exploration of the changing self as new rolls are cast upon those who are coming of age. In any respect, here is a good review.

The Labyrinth

The Gods of War bring civilization to man

War as the progenitor of civilization. This idea is cropping up again. I tend to view it as one of a few key ingredients to the rise of civilization, propelling growth, wealth and innovation. That is, it seems to be the case for the victors.

"This study is part of a larger, worldwide comparative research effort to define the factors that gave rise to the first societies that developed public buildings, widespread religions and regional political systems -- or basically characteristics associated with ancient states or what is colloquially known as 'civilization,'" said Stanish, who is also a professor of anthropology at UCLA. "War, regional trade and specialized labor are the three factors that keep coming up as predecessors to civilization."

fixed

Odin riding Sleipnir

13 Billion years ago....

The Universe was pixilated.

hahahahahahahaha - uh yeah. Anyway,

astronomers have discovered a mysterious, giant object that existed at a time when the universe was only about 800 million years old. Objects such as this one are dubbed extended Lyman-Alpha blobs; they are huge bodies of gas that may be precursors to galaxies.

From here 

Cool Structure - Hampi, India

From Unesco

The austere, grandiose site of Hampi was the last capital of the last great Hindu Kingdom of Vijayanagar. Its fabulously rich princes built Dravidian temples and palaces which won the admiration of travellers between the 14th and 16th centuries. Conquered by the Deccan Muslim confederacy in 1565, the city was pillaged over a period of six months before being abandoned.

Dragon's Lair - arcade game

Remember this man?

I'm a great fan of this game and its coming to the Iphone.

I don't have an iPhOnE.

Row of medieval houses -cool

Armor reduces performance - its science

A study published July 19 in Proceedings of the Royal Society B shows that soldiers carrying armour in Medieval times would have been using more than twice the amount of energy had they not been wearing it. This is the first clear experimental evidence of the limitations of wearing Medieval armour on a soldier's performance.

 Heavy Metal Hardens Battle: Body Armor Hindered Medieval Warriors

This is a whole lot of armor.

This is not