Micro Lair #1

I decided to have another go at drawing maps Dyson style...here are the results.

Goblin Hole

Game Design Question

So as you can tell, I'm writing a new RPG (isn't everyone nowadays?) and I have a small dilemma; I have one attribute that I want to represent a characters overall personality (charisma/ cool/ allure etc) as well his sense of aesthetics (creative vision/ sense of style/ imagination etc), but I can't think of a good word that encapsulates it.

The way my attributes are structured, I only have room for one attribute to cover it, so I can't split it into two. 

Right now I'm calling it PRESENCE, but that doesn't seem to fit quite right, so I would thought I was ask on here since there are a lot of people out there much smarter than I am.

I was thinking EMPATHY, but I'm not sure if that's right either. Any suggestions?

EDIT: Upon further review, AFFINITY is starting to sound like the right choice.

Encounter Inspiration #3

My Rogue is Being Replaced...by Everyone

Just a strange observation...nothing to see here.

I've been playing a rogue in my weekly Pathfinder game, and its a lot of fun, but I'm noticing a trend: I'm not really that useful. When I say useful, I mean in the way that I originally envisioned myself being useful...you know...as a thief. 

Encounter Inspiration #2

I've been following Dyson for a while now and I'm a huge fan of his maps, so when I saw this picture I was inspired to try my hand at making a small map to use as an encounter sometime in the future.

Seems o.k. for a first try, still not up to Dyson quality yet, but there's always next time.

Encounter Inspiration

I keep stumbling on pictures of real places that inspire me to create encounters around them. Thought I would share some of them once in a while. Hope you like them.

Calling All Designers...or...Help Me Obi Wan Designer, You're My Only Hope!

So, I'm in the process of doing initial copy for a new RPG that I have been working on for WAY too long. The problem is, I've never even thought of publishing anything before and this is turning into a pretty hefty project. 

I have about 80% of the rules completed before I start editing and re-writes, then I need to find artwork because I couldn't draw a stick figure if there was a gun to my head. And then I start page layout. Let me back up...then I learn HOW to do page layout...then I do page layout.

After that, I've been looking into self-publishing, but I'm sure there are pitfalls to avoid there. I'm not sure about copy-writing, trademarks, ISBN's etc, etc, etc...

So if there are any designers out there that have published products before and have any kindly words of advice...I should would appreciate them.

Audio Book Review: Ready Player One

I know the book has been out for a few months now (release date: June 2012), but I just got around to discovering it. And as I spend quite a bit of time on the road commuting back and forth to work, I usually discover them first in Audio Book form rather than book form, so that's how I found this one.

First, let me start by saying that this book will not appeal to everyone. It is a science fiction novel in the Cyberpunk genre and to really REALLY enjoy it, you should be at least familiar with growing up in the 80's. I, luckily, am a fan of cyberpunk AND grew up all over the 80's so I had a distinct advantage going into this one. That's not to say that someone not from that era won't enjoy Ready Player One, but there are a virtual ton of reference to 80's pop and geek culture strewn throughout the novel that might be lost on those unfamiliar with it.