Changes and getting to the new normal.

 

Well it's been a bit since my last blog post. But there have been some changes in my life that occurred and I've been rather busy with that. So let's get into a few details here.

I work for a FLGS (Friendly Local Game Shop) and have done so for almost four years. The name of the place is Aesop's Treasury Books and Games. It's a job I took because I could no longer do factory work due to how badly Covid affected my lungs. The owner had been my friend long before he owned the store, he even officiated my wedding, so when I needed work he helped me out. In turn I found a job that really worked for me. 

Well eventually his store had outgrown the space it was in. So last October he found a new location but it needed a lot of work. I began doing some more hours at the shop so he could be over there getting it done. When I had time I also dropped by the new space and helped move debris, give my opinion on things and help set up fixtures. 

January we closed the old shop and moved everything in six days. I never want to do that again. It was a nonstop run to get it all moved over, reset, adjusted and ready to go by opening. Even then we had things that hadn't got done. Also a new part time employee was hired to help out. We opened the doors on January 21st. 

We were hopeful for a good boost in business. We exceeded expectations. Our new employee got a trial by fire on a grand opening day that was extremely busy. It's been going very well ever since.

So now we were dealing with ordering and checking in a LOT more product than usual while dealing with a LOT more customers coming through the door. It's been quite a task that's for sure. Which meant extra hours and more mental exhaustion than I had been previously used to. 

With GAMA coming up the owner thought about skipping it this year because of how busy we were. I advised him not to as did several others. Every year he finds some great new stuff at the show and brings it into the store. So he went and we all worked a lot extra that week. But he came back with some great stuff, a lot of new things on order and some new, much needed, connections for our supply chain.

So I was offered a promotion. Given the title of 'General Manager' and, unlike most other places I worked for, I got good pay raise with that title. Also I'll be working full time now, have the ability to make orders, and we'll be getting another part time person or two coming in over the next month or so. This job is the first one I ever that I actually, honestly, enjoyed. I'm happy to see it has grown this much and the owner has taken me along with it. 

With all this going on I was just pretty mentally and physically taxed. Which is why I stopped blogging for a bit. But now that things are a bit more settled down, or at least I'm more used to the level they are at, I should be doing more once again. Starting with doing some more content for this blog and working on the next release for Truly Rural. 

2026 Gaming Resolutions

 

Once again it's that time of the year. My new years gaming resolutions presented in six pack formula.

First lets look at last year (you can see the post HERE).

1 - Achieved although it morphed. See this years number 2. 

2 - Achieved. 

3 - Not so much. Got one thing out and just barely. And no playtesting on my own games. It stays the number 3 for this year.

4 - Didn't really happen. Had opportunity but other issues made it not happen.

5 - Achieved. Continuing that course.

6 - Somewhat achieved. Had off and on moments that's for sure. It's going to number 1 this year.

While I did decent with last years I didn't manage them all. But that's okay, it did help motivate me to get some stuff done. Here we are with the gaming resolutions for the new year. 

1 - Keep updating my blog on a regular basis. At least two posts a week of some sort. Just sometimes hitting that wall really knocks me down. But this is what's helping me keep my mind off the dumpster fire of a world that is happening around me so I can have a few moments to breathe. 

2 - My Tuesday night group fell apart when the time frame was no longer viable for me and a couple other players. But now a Sunday midday group has formed to take it's place. So I want to keep that going just like before. Currently I swap out GM duties with a friend each week. 

3 - More releases for my Truly Rural Productions stuff on DrivethruRPG. I'm especially motivated to do this after getting my first medal for "Be A Better Player Vol One". Most will be collected material from my blog. Going to keep pushing it on Ko-Fi and itch as well even though nobody seems to buy my stuff from there. I'm also eyeballing the Year Zero Engine for doing a full game release at some point, but likely not in 2026. Of course this means facing my imposter syndrome head on more than ever before.

4 - Run a few other games than normal. First up is Vaesen at some point. Got everything I need but just need to get my butt in gear and do it. Really enjoyed playing it at DieCon this year and love the whole premise. Then I also want to run 1st ed Vampire the Masquerade, but I'm not sure everyone in my current group would like it.

5 - Continue building the little webpage I have going for the Sunday group. If it gets decent enough maybe I'll share it outside my little group of players. Maybe slowly work towards my friends homebrew system getting published at some point.

6 - Cull some of my gaming collection down. I really need to focus on what I am going to use, things with memories attached and stuff like that. So much of what is on my shelf will never be used nor do I have any really attachment to. Time to clear out some stuff and focus. 

Jaded Gamer Diary - Quick State of Affairs

Been a very busy weekend and week so far for things offline. Cyberpunk Sunday should be back next weekend, I just missed it this time around with stuff that is going on. Just never a moments rest for the wicked.

January first will see the release (finally) of Clandestine Societies issue two. Now I can start work on compiling material for issue three. 

Got some more small cyberpunk themed things in the works as well. One being a collection of small companies and groups that low level runners could run into. 

Also got some fantasy material that I need to do something with. Just not entirely sure the direction I want to take it. A themed focused release or more of a random collection like Clandestine Societies is.

You can find my material up over on DrivethruRPG, itch io and on my Ko-Fi page. Not professional, not slick, but cheap. 

Should have more blog posts up hopefully. But 'tis the season for family stuff to interfere with everything so we'll see. 

Roll A D10 - Number Generator

 

I've decided that what we all really need is a good random number generator for our games. So I've been hard at work for the past couple of months on this and have finally decided to showcase my idea. Now this is the product of hours of work and extensive playtesting with my group (thank you Jason, Larry, Lori, Tuck, Kal and Kelly). Here we go.

Roll a D10 and consult the chart below to generate a random number. This particular one is way useful in any game that needs you to generate a number 1 through 10. 

1 - Two

2 - Six

3 -  Ten

4 - Eight

5 - One

6 - Five

7 - Three

8 - Nine

9 - Seven

10 - Four

Here's another one I'm working on for generating a number between one and six. You roll a D6 and consult the chart below. Now this one is more simple but I'm still working out a few flaws in the design that keep popping up. So bear with me while I work out the details over the next couple months. 

1 -Two 

2 - Five

3 - Six 

4 - Seven 

5 - One 

6 - Three

Currently working on another random number generator that uses a D20. However that one is more complicated and is taking some extensive playtesting before making it public. For more of my absolute brilliance you can donate to me on my Ko-Fi page this fine April first. 

Review - Uncle Rays Chips

 

Don't eat these. 

Uncle Ray's Sweet Black Pepper Bacon potato chips. Yeah... that doesn't wasn't bacon. There was a smoking flavor there but it wasn't the good kind. There was a sweet flavor there, but again it wasn't the good kind. Black pepper, never tasted that at all. Plus these bad flavors coated your mouth and lingered for much longer than anyone would want. 

These are bad. 

2024 year in review

 

Well we made it another year on the mudball spinning around the big light bulb. So how'd I do this year?

Managed to keep my Tuesday night gaming group together. Had a couple people leave had a few more replace them. It's all good and we're still having a lot of fun. I ran Cyberpunk 2020, Cyberpunk RED and Little Fears this year. This next year I hope to do even more. 

Health wise I've been slowly pushing toward improving myself. The progress is slow but I'm going in the right direction. Had to start using a CPAP when I sleep because my sleep apnea was seriously bad. I do feel a lot better in the mornings than I used to. Need to get an exercise routine in place that I can stick to so that's in the works and will hopefully work out.

My stuff over on Drivethru/itch/Ko-Fi hasn't sold worth a damn. But I haven't really done much new at all. Hoping to get a couple more things out this year. 

In other news I haven't said much about. My son has become my daughter. She started transitioning this year and is paying for everything herself (we can't afford anything above just barely scraping by) while at college. It was unexpected but I'm being supportive and trying to use her new name and pronouns. But I'm an old man who has trouble remembering things anymore so it's hard and I keep correcting myself. I'll get there eventually. 

Anyone following my blog has noticed that it's really went up in posting over the last month or two. I've got no way to keep myself from thinking about the bleak future after this last election other than diving into that. Trying to be creative is the only way I can stay positive enough to keep going.

Still working at Aesop's Treasury. It's so much less stressful than any other job I've ever had. Probably added years to my life after the hell that working at Red Wing Shoe turned into. My boss, and long time friend, is great to work for. He's been really great to me above and beyond what anyone has to be. 

This was also the year I grew completely sick and tired of all the different streaming services. Going to try and lean into physical media products for now on. Like DVD's, Bluray, music CDs, etc. Which, since my wife and I really enjoy thrift store shopping, can be a way to find a lot of really damn good deals. So it's time to start watching out for complete series sets and whatnot. 

So this year wasn't to bad. Hoping next year doesn't hit the toilets. 

Jaded Gamer - New Year Social Media Edition.

 

Going into the new year, social media edition. 

It's time to take a look at the various social media platforms I use and what I'll be doing with them in the upcoming new year. Because sometimes you just need to look at all your time sinks and let some go to get some of that time back.

BlueSky - I'm all in on this one. Currently It's my preferred platform for social media. Just wish a few more folks were over there and that a few features were present as well. They may be in the future as they are always rolling out improvements.

Twitter - Pulled the plug on this one. I'm out. Didn't delete my account so nobody else could take the name. It really turned into a shit hole that's for sure.

MeWe - I'll keep using it, but really besides the groups there isn't much going for it. 

Threads - More useless than three day old shit. I'm done there.

Instagram - Random posting of memes is about all I can find a use for it. Bailing on it here soon as well.

Facebook - To many folks I know are still there. To many locals are still there. I'll keep using it until other folks leave. Much like MeWe groups are the only real big perk.

Mastodon - I'm on the dice.camp server. It's nice. I'll keep using that one as well.

Discord - Really getting tired of trying on there. Sometimes it feels like it's working out, other times not so much. Not really my vibe for the most part, but there are lot of people there and discussions that I like. But just having to drop in at just the right time before they scroll past is not a fun thing.

Jaded Gamer Diary - The edition nobody wanted until they did.

 

The edition everybody said they weren't going to buy.

It started quite some time ago. Here locally every little leak about the new edition of DnD (DnD One, 5.5, 6th already, etc) people were bitching about. The usual bullshit, some saying it's going "Woke", or the usual grognard saying now ADnD was better like they always do, many saying it's just a cash grab. Whatever. But everybody was bound and damned determined to tell everyone, especially those working at game shops, that they weren't going to be laying down any cash for the new version.

Already we had seen a huge drop in sales for new DnD material. Ever since Wizards went full moron with the OGL debacle we have a hard time selling their product for the line. So we got stuck with extra copies we really don't want.

So, my employer and FLGS, didn't order that many copies. A lot less hobby covers and only a few regular covers. Now he also had to preorder ahead for all three corebooks. So raising the number you wanted to get was damned near impossible.

Then guess what happened? C'mon guess. You know what the answer is. 

Everybody bought the damn thing they said they weren't going to buy.

So our hobby covers sold out really damned fast and we couldn't get anymore. Had a few folks accuse us of having a bunch stashed back to sell later at a higher price. Others doing the usual pouty fit. Some even saying they knew they should have ordered it online from some other shop that "actually stocks it". The fuckers who said they weren't going to buy it at all ever are suddenly mad that we didn't have it for them to buy.

It's times like this that I feel DnD has more jackasses in it's community than any other game. Then I remember to how I've seen Vampire: The Masquerade fans act many years ago and they still hold that number one spot. 

Food Review - Super Stack Chili & Lime

 

I should have suspected something. My boss at work asked me if I wanted the rest of his chips that were in a Pringles knock off can. He said they weren't to his liking, but as soon as I said sure he was out the door with a quickness. All it took was eating one to know why he didn't want them anymore.

It's a burst of flavor. Just not the kind you want to have in your mouth. Not so much the chili flavor but the overwhelming level of citric acid and fake lime flavoring that just absolutely should be illegal. Probably is in some countries. I have absolutely no idea how in the hell people can eat these things. These will leave you with a twitching eye and a yearning for the time before you knew these existed.

Do not buy these, do not eat them, don't even make eye contact with the can. 

Jaded Gamers - Block the Toxic.

 

Okay now let me get started on this one. I'm all for whoever wants to play tabletop role playing games should be allowed to do so. The biggest scumbags should be allowed whatever hobby they want to dump money into if they wish. HOWEVER nobody else that is that hobby, or the communities they form, are required to put up with them. 

This is not gatekeeping plus it accomplishes a few things. First it protects your own mental well being. Nobody should have to put up with toxic individuals spewing hate into their field of view. Second it protects your ability to have fun participating in your hobby. Once you aren't having fun there is a good chance you may drop out and move on. Third it reenforces to assholes that nobody has to listen to them. Which needs to happen a lot more often.

A lot of the feelings of accepting anybody that wants to come to the table stems from the early days of tabletop roleplaying. When finding new people or those who were interested were far and few between. Back then people put up with some assholes just so they could either have a full table of player or so they could be a player at a table. Now that's no longer an issue. Plenty of people to chose from so be picky about who you bring into your circle.

On social media platforms block them. Don't be afraid of that button. People have FINALLY leaned hard into this idea over on BlueSky and guess what? It's fucking working. They are still there but the reach of their hate is drastically diminished. So diminished that some have simply given up and moved on back to where they came from. If the social media you use doesn't have a full block function then it's time to find one that does and move. Trust me, it's not worth wading through the shit for a little bit of interaction. 

At your table you can tell them to leave. Introduce them to the world outside of your private gaming area. If you are at a table that lets every asshole in to do as they please. Then you really need to find a new group. I know that's hard but sometimes it has to be done. Take the other good players with you, help them find a place away from the pricks who are making things terrible. 

Don't let anyone guilt trip you into thinking that you have to provide a place for everyone. Because you sure as shit do not. 

Another thing is do not let them attempt to gaslight you into thinking that their toxic bullshit is something else. The old "You're only doing this because of my politics" or "You just can't handle people telling you the truth" crap is an absolute pile of garbage. Also they are major big ass red flags. They pull this shit you need to kick them away even faster.

Jaded Gamer Diary - The bad folks

 

Having now worked in a game shop for a few years I have a whole new understanding of the dynamic of the people who go there to play. Not all of it good. Most of it is, lots of great people, some enjoyable folks and plenty of opinions on the games but then there are those who make me shake my head.

The GM that nobody wants to play under. Got a couple of these. They are the ones who think they are gods gift to the gaming world. The experts, the know it all, the wanna be elite. Not to mention abusive and a bully most of the time. Always bragging about how epic their games and never leaving the counter as they vomit forth this self congratulatory monologue. 

Of course their groups consist of another type of gamer.

The Players that nobody wants in their group. Several of these as well. These are the ultra creeps who leer at every woman who walks into the place, the hygiene challenged, also some abusive bullies who focus on tormenting their fellow players. Oh and the fucking experts when it comes to how to play the game. The guys you don't call chuds because that would be insulting to the chuds. You may also find a few GM's that nobody wants looking to play in some games as well. But, to no surprise, they are also Players that nobody wants.

Also lets now forget about the Self Injectors. They see a group playing a game and they immediately walk up and start talking. Usually telling them how to do it better while interrupting the group nonstop. Almost always leads to them asking if they can have a seat at the table to play. Acts insulted when you tell them to fuck off because you're playing a damn game.

I've experienced these in the past. But damn I get a front row seat now.

Promise You Won't Freak Out | Nimona | Netflix

Nimona, the movie Disney tried to bury only to be picked up and saved by Netflix, is nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Picture. 

Metal.

DARK DUNGEONS Full Trailer (Ultra HD)

I backed the Kickstarter for this oh so long ago and have the DVD. About time to  have another viewing party one night. It's freaking amazing. 

List of artists Midjourney scraped

 

Well it appears that things aren't going well for the Midjourney AI art generator folks right at the moment. They've been made to release a list of artists and sources they trained their AI with. 

You can find that list RIGHT THERE.

So many folks on there. Elmore, Easley, Brom, Frazetta, Kirby, Steranko, Foglio... the list just goes on and on. They even went and used Studio Ghibli imagery, stuff from video game companies, just anywhere they wanted. Don't see Midjourney being around for much longer as the lawsuits are probably going to start getting really heavy here soon.

Hasbro/Wizards doing stupid shit... again

 

Once again Hasbro/WotC is doing stupid shit that people are getting a bit angry over. Although this time it's affecting peoples lives directly. Hasbro seems to be so fucking stupid that they thought the really high sales of 2020 and 2021 during the pandemic would continue on as the new bar to measure sales by. Even after 2022 told them otherwise. So now they are laying people off right at Christmas because (gasp and shock) sales are down. 

Yet all the mother fuckers at the top are still making 5+ million a year. Remember when Nintendo had the WiiU bomb? Yeah it was pretty rough. But the company didn't go through cutting people. Instead the people at the top gave up their bonuses and some of them gave up their pay just so everyone could keep working. But the greed here in the states is WAY to huge for that. 

But I'm hoping that a few more folks see just how shitty Hasbro/WotC is based on how they treat their employees. I mean if they treat the people who make the products they sell like garbage then just imagine of how they think of consumers. We've already seen that, they think of people as little walking wallets to pick from. They are a shit company.

More folks need to finally more away from their crap. Move out of that warm snuggly DnD blanket, creep away from the MtG crack dealers. Move on to other games out there on the market. We saw it happen earlier this year when they stuck their whole damn leg in their mouths with the OGL debacle. Now this. More people need to look around at other options. Maybe to a company that actually treats their customers well. 

Closing out this year in gaming

 

Looking back at this year in my personal gaming life. It's been a pretty good one that really ramped up in the end.

Started off the year playing in a Cyberpunk 2020 campaign where I had a rockerboy who was the front man for the "Ass Martians". All the other band members were players as well. That campaign was so much fun. 

Also got to play in both Alien and Fallout games. Alien surprised me by now good the system was and how well the stress mechanic helped control the mood of the game. Fallout was a bit hard for me to get into because I have almost zero knowledge of the video games. But it turned out to be quite fun as well. Simple system, crazy things to fight, two thumbs up.

Then I stepped back for a few weeks and took a break. That's when I decided to pick up the GM reigns once again and started my own Cyberpunk 2020 game using the "Land of the Free" boxed campaign from R.Tal. Put together a new group for it and we've been having a blast.

But that got sort of put on the backburner as I made the list to run playtest material for a company I really love. So my group and I have all put in NDA's and have started on that. Looks like we'll be doing even more for them in January. 

Was also gifted the Battletech beginners box by a good friend. So I'm trying to find some time to work that into my schedule as well. Was a fan of the game way back when it first came out and the current version looks so much better than it did back then.

After working at a game shop for nearly two years now I've started stepping back into the community in an attempt to wrangle folks together. Like I used to do many years long ago. So time to 'dig where you stand' once again. Although I will have to look for somebody else to stand next to me since the person who did that back then passed away in 2022. Norm you are still missed old buddy.

What are my hopeful plans for next year? Well I'll do a 'gaming resolutions' post closer to New Years Eve for that. But I must say that I'm so much more positive this year than I have been in a long time. 

Attacked by Lanasa Again

It's a good thing Don has kept receipts on everything Lanasa has done and said, plus he can afford an attorney. So many others cannot. This should be a warning to everyone to be careful who you get involved with in the gaming industry. 

Notable releases on DrivethruRPG today

 Over on DrivethruRPG there are a couple of notable releases that dropped today. One is a new RPG and another is an old one finally going into Print On Demand. 

First off is the Walking Dead Universe rpg from Free League Publishing. Now while I'm completely burned out on zombies across all forms of media I am aware that this thing is going to be pretty big. Got a huge fanbase and they've been building up the interest for a while now hinting about this game. Using the Year Zero Engine that so many are familiar with means folks can pick up and run this game rather quickly as well.

Pick up the core rule book here.

Or pick up the starter set here. 

Next up is something completely different. 

The Dying Earth series of novels by Jack Vance were one of the big inspirations behind Dungeons and Dragons, especially concerning the magic system (aka Vancian Magic). Eventually it got it's own full fledged RPG several years back but has become harder to find in print recently. Finally it's now available in Print On Demand so you don't have to pay ebay or noble knight prices anymore.

You can order the POD here. 

As always if you enjoy this blog you can click on the 'support this blog' page up top. 

The Hobby Is Dying

 

There is a lot to this very simple meme that I agree with. I've seen so many older folks who've been in the hobby for many years doing everything possible to push new people out. Especially those new folks who may have a different idea of what they want from a roleplaying game. This has been going on for decades.

Saw it with Vampire the Masquerade when White Wolf suddenly exploded with their idea of a roleplaying game that leaned into telling stories. Including focusing less on rules (at least with the early first editions) and more on character motivations and goals. All the people who were running ADnD 2e were upset when suddenly there were all these new people who were coming into their sacred spaces. Especially when they had zero interest in doing standard fantasy sessions. Instead of realizing that more variety and styles were growing the community they instead decided to draw lines in the sand.

This continued on through various pops of popularity for other indie games in the years after that. Every single time it was the 'old guard' getting angrier and angrier over these 'new kids' coming in and supposedly ruining everything. 

Now we see the screeching still going on as they twist their nuts into knots over the fifth edition of Dungeons and Dragons. They scream it's to easy, they coddle the players, it's impossible to die in the games. But yet more people are enjoying this edition than any other edition ever before. I've also seen more 'noobs' turn and look at the old guard and tell them to go fuck themselves. That, I must say, warms my old over worked heart. The dickheads are finally drowned out, those who drew the lines are the ones who lost. Yes there are still some folks who love the old school games. But their numbers are nowhere even close to the number of people who are actively involved playing and running new games while going in new directions.

Finally the asshole grognards are now seeing nothing but a shit load of people flipping them the bird as progress moves forward and leaves them behind. All we can do is laugh as they declare, even to this day, that the hobby is dying. When in fact it's flourishing better than ever before. 

Jaded Gamer Diary - Grifter comeback alert

Watch out folks it's looking like Satine Phoenix is getting ready to squirm her way back into the ttrpg community again. Here's her post she put up over on Instagram. 

I appears this abuser and abuse enabler is trying to paint herself as a recovering 'victim' as well. For those who don't know about her and her shitball husband Jamison Stone here is a link to page covering a lot of their recent bullshit. Also here's a link to their Kickstarter that is turning into a royal crap bonanza. Also remember she was a hardcore Zak S supporter when he was really riding the wave of being a full on shitlord. Defended that asshole Mike Mearls when he sold out abuse victims to their abuser. Still friends with other wastes of sperm and egg like Grim Jim. 

Hell you can just use google and pull up plenty of shit she's been involved with. Also I'm pretty sure Stone will be right behind her trying to grift everyone out of their money so they can keep living their 'high end game geek chic' lifestyles. 

Be warned if you see any of them involved in anything. Do not give them a slim dime because they are making it by screwing others over and treating them like shit in the process. 

UPDATES

Here's a link to an article about them on thefandomentals.