tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69985278540683001542024-03-05T17:27:10.058+00:00Peakrill PressPeakrill makes and sells strange words, arts, crafts, games, and magical items, inspired by the flora, fauna & folklore of England.
We ❤️ 🌳🦉🕷️🍄🗿🙏☮️dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-34635721940144543012023-05-23T21:04:00.006+00:002023-05-23T21:04:36.486+00:00This blog has moved - please update your feeds<p>As per my previous post, I have moved this blog (and the Peakrill shop) to a new website at <a href="http://peakrill.com">peakrill.com</a>. If you read this website via RSS, you will need to update the feed address to <a href="https://peakrill.com/feed/">https://peakrill.com/feed/</a></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-9586172998614947812023-05-23T19:27:00.005+00:002023-05-23T19:28:27.148+00:00Don't Look Here, Look There<p> If you're reading this, you're on the old Peakrill website. The shiny <b>new</b> website, blog and shop can be found <a href="https://peakrill.com/">over here at peakrill.com</a></p><p>(if you <i>are</i> on peakrill.com and are still seeing this post, wait a few hours and try again - it can take a day or so for these things to update worldwide)</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-23414949136586776002023-04-07T17:36:00.003+00:002023-05-13T23:00:32.274+00:00Bisch Basch Bosch<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZFhsC9msiof747i_MmEbPnoMAtpC1FCy9tPN1NInaW94YtW0Szcu9lTWSSsOehNQbV7KIlggYlgkiD8mpAVgxaPjprVsCaLhhhPSdGhTa_oT3hcCSAVISI3UMn6KRghNQuoVPHqaWB8Pd2vEmq9TgtHhjBBzqeO7aYkPjKOpVbuR9Wm_6vprLiWoXg/s1344/dansumption_1980s_open-plan_busy_busy_office_scene_by_Hieronymu_ef84c623-4796-4dfd-ac6e-e3cb79712a7c.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="896" data-original-width="1344" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZFhsC9msiof747i_MmEbPnoMAtpC1FCy9tPN1NInaW94YtW0Szcu9lTWSSsOehNQbV7KIlggYlgkiD8mpAVgxaPjprVsCaLhhhPSdGhTa_oT3hcCSAVISI3UMn6KRghNQuoVPHqaWB8Pd2vEmq9TgtHhjBBzqeO7aYkPjKOpVbuR9Wm_6vprLiWoXg/s320/dansumption_1980s_open-plan_busy_busy_office_scene_by_Hieronymu_ef84c623-4796-4dfd-ac6e-e3cb79712a7c.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"The Office" by Hieronymous Bosch</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Yesterday this image, "The Office" by Hieronymous Bosch, which I created using Midjourney, went viral. A lot of people asked for posters. Feels wrong to charge money for something which I knocked up in seconds, so I'm offering it free-of-charge.</p><p>You can download the high-res image <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K_KYnboM5aCdLjYWgZphzR39YetwC5XB/view" target="_blank">here</a> - like I said, it's free, but if you'd like to <a href="https://ko-fi.com/dansumption" target="_blank">buy me a coffee</a> then I'd be very grateful.</p><p>I'd love to see what it looks like printed out and hung on your wall - let me know <a href="https://twitter.com/PeakrillPress/" target="_blank">on Twitter</a> or <a href="https://instagram.com/mycoleum" target="_blank">on Instagram</a>.</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-36009273837994126722023-03-30T19:13:00.004+00:002023-03-30T21:49:18.697+00:00This is Who<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKQQPAGHgHB1F8vgRIDkS15ekiI44-yjmFWwFIbD_zuvm5hr9x1ATath5AQX4MfXp4ZC5oirNgD2U0XOAH2m3w85eAH5AYPKVS9MwBqFxEvlIrE871a4wasebFvHasYEpboJOR0DSYt7gOdn-CYHAvT4gLB5s1hJ0ljAdTDy_AvN3C9Hq4ui-Ho925w/s1024/dansumption_Renaissance_c8950e86-d15c-4ef4-9e53-6fe71eb6a1f9.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKQQPAGHgHB1F8vgRIDkS15ekiI44-yjmFWwFIbD_zuvm5hr9x1ATath5AQX4MfXp4ZC5oirNgD2U0XOAH2m3w85eAH5AYPKVS9MwBqFxEvlIrE871a4wasebFvHasYEpboJOR0DSYt7gOdn-CYHAvT4gLB5s1hJ0ljAdTDy_AvN3C9Hq4ui-Ho925w/s320/dansumption_Renaissance_c8950e86-d15c-4ef4-9e53-6fe71eb6a1f9.png" width="320" /></a></div><div>Thank you to those who responded to the challenge in <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2023/03/who-is-this-ai-midjourney-character-portrait.html" target="_blank">my last </a>post.</div><div><br /></div><div>Theo (whom I play with in <a href="http://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2021/09/the-three-mile-tree-campaign-update-1.html" target="_blank">noisms' Three Mile Tree campaign</a>, and whose weird and wonderful updates on that campaign always bring a smile to my face) spoke in the comments of how the four characters are the personifications of anthropomorphized walled cities in some liminal Goetiaverse, competing in beflowered tournaments for the favor of the Lich Queen Callisto Meffit.</div><div><br /></div><div>And Semiurge posted <a href="https://archonsmarchon.blogspot.com/2023/03/who-is-this-response-to-dansumption.html" target="_blank">this fantastic story</a> spanning four generations of the house of Albuminauc, containing some wonderfully poetic turns of phrase ("he grubby-hid with shady sorts in shaded spots", "mawkish rakes milked venom from each other's mouths", ...)</div><div><br /></div><div>Above is Sereaglea Albuminauc, fifth generation of the house of Albuminauc. sole offspring of Rud Albuminauc and Carpaglea Vennonis, daughter of the last Margreve of Vennonis (a sizeable village teetering on the crest of the Grens Hills to the North of Marlo). Sereaglea it was, in her guise as fisher queen, who brought a final end to the haunting haggearts of her forebears. </div><div><br /></div><div>(I feel somewhat guilty for not putting anything like as much effort into this as Semiurge and Theo did; apologies, my brain is on strike)</div>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-50735792455099591582023-03-28T08:36:00.000+00:002023-03-28T08:36:25.407+00:00Who Is This <p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh29rDh5X2UORjBiM9tvTM0veaxm7EJfYLBKW-bzCS0C9N036-PgUFAAqnEbzJXD79IZkj8GP4P8SBJBwdIYPSAYZp0WhFFNhUKbSjcJoqEyiUKMmsw0EhpPIaHdvuRddVvHOXpppIvck4Oek8u3lOaK0asOAWcOjPbSO1bjihYoIW8xdE01KI4XLdmPQ/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_with_a_prawn_on_c4c57491-b8b0-4523-8fc8-d71ba16fbfa2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh29rDh5X2UORjBiM9tvTM0veaxm7EJfYLBKW-bzCS0C9N036-PgUFAAqnEbzJXD79IZkj8GP4P8SBJBwdIYPSAYZp0WhFFNhUKbSjcJoqEyiUKMmsw0EhpPIaHdvuRddVvHOXpppIvck4Oek8u3lOaK0asOAWcOjPbSO1bjihYoIW8xdE01KI4XLdmPQ/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_with_a_prawn_on_c4c57491-b8b0-4523-8fc8-d71ba16fbfa2.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Who are they?</td></tr></tbody></table>As anyone who follows this blog knows, I've been becoming increasingly obsessed with generating AI images with a certain style (black and white engravings). I've even started <a href="http://mycoleum.uk" target="_blank">selling some of them on T-shirts</a>.<p></p><p>The picture above fascinates me: who are they? If you can tell me something more about this person - potted biography, stats, what made them look so dead behind the eyes - then I would really like to know.</p><p>Here are three more members of their family:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3lr9Wc0j0Jr9XoVi3S8PHsQkmWj824xVrrccN5PxcITRZSMoaiS9jae8PltHqNyrLCcSPoxuWq7al5pW70H4lg4-mk6nqiHSkgsTbY-xA9n1NinWvahzQMDKLgGx_1ijrDZhEzzSTgC6dG0uYEK8NfUWuq1pp0TJfybExpWK2SO0gaJf4ECBmvFKbw/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_called_Hengst-A_91f4bf37-37f2-4dc7-92dd-410dcdb705b4.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3lr9Wc0j0Jr9XoVi3S8PHsQkmWj824xVrrccN5PxcITRZSMoaiS9jae8PltHqNyrLCcSPoxuWq7al5pW70H4lg4-mk6nqiHSkgsTbY-xA9n1NinWvahzQMDKLgGx_1ijrDZhEzzSTgC6dG0uYEK8NfUWuq1pp0TJfybExpWK2SO0gaJf4ECBmvFKbw/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_called_Hengst-A_91f4bf37-37f2-4dc7-92dd-410dcdb705b4.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKmmPMT0lcd_nMUOyl00UXzcsGl6RLFspEGUfSzPngGJ_9iywyhmtrOLBV7gIG3BSj3m3D7VLyS8I8fK5PFdO-QyrebvoKtxucN6gDdYfNpjihn6_SAJv6QR4rSvqbwnRpjtP7yzZy9eReU2sgPEOMI4IgNvXYdzufHUrcUQZAgesrE8ShNx1hXaiuLg/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_with_a_prawn_on_7b6b6ca3-c604-43e7-b85a-0cbc65d384be.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKmmPMT0lcd_nMUOyl00UXzcsGl6RLFspEGUfSzPngGJ_9iywyhmtrOLBV7gIG3BSj3m3D7VLyS8I8fK5PFdO-QyrebvoKtxucN6gDdYfNpjihn6_SAJv6QR4rSvqbwnRpjtP7yzZy9eReU2sgPEOMI4IgNvXYdzufHUrcUQZAgesrE8ShNx1hXaiuLg/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_with_a_prawn_on_7b6b6ca3-c604-43e7-b85a-0cbc65d384be.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_94JNlFG6xucQw3ynhI3O69QLj3CKMpPNnj8dmGlez0NyDKM2aZKGQrAx5naDv9ndsyczjyplO13FpBnFhtG5WvtVKKD1zlOtyB1NzAMpcVVasyRtItyeyTXpdDchqiURk9DUK7a7RoZ4-uBYSB2Qqq2VoRu_NcL-5SQmlOyMEK3XIkcSUt0w40xn4g/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_with_a_prawn_on_439073b7-643a-4249-8421-9a4974391c8f.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_94JNlFG6xucQw3ynhI3O69QLj3CKMpPNnj8dmGlez0NyDKM2aZKGQrAx5naDv9ndsyczjyplO13FpBnFhtG5WvtVKKD1zlOtyB1NzAMpcVVasyRtItyeyTXpdDchqiURk9DUK7a7RoZ4-uBYSB2Qqq2VoRu_NcL-5SQmlOyMEK3XIkcSUt0w40xn4g/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_elf_with_a_prawn_on_439073b7-643a-4249-8421-9a4974391c8f.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>They were also <a href="https://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2023/03/on-satanic-nature-of-ai-art.html" target="_blank">recently featured on Monsters and Manuals</a>.</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-12818765892637732542023-03-25T10:36:00.002+00:002023-03-25T10:38:55.151+00:00AI as DM<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJN85yPO4y_bHWC2dxAxYvYPprtzAhPTPCow-bb-1YnvhZZbUo095Utot5SPEXufQXKPE19HIddVE480RyJ2VG4NRQU6Y7yDUkdHLESfMqvB_6uE1JqOKNTSvtxYU0df5Bj0YRJjbUEHa_NiCQHIzaOKrgR5u-Bj0Pr7Vz8LOf1adB_xrDpi6jnjsc6A/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_liminal_aa82fc60-82c9-429f-8b2c-c6675e0f6f98.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJN85yPO4y_bHWC2dxAxYvYPprtzAhPTPCow-bb-1YnvhZZbUo095Utot5SPEXufQXKPE19HIddVE480RyJ2VG4NRQU6Y7yDUkdHLESfMqvB_6uE1JqOKNTSvtxYU0df5Bj0YRJjbUEHa_NiCQHIzaOKrgR5u-Bj0Pr7Vz8LOf1adB_xrDpi6jnjsc6A/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_liminal_aa82fc60-82c9-429f-8b2c-c6675e0f6f98.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">art by <a href="http://mycoleum.uk/" target="_blank">The Mycoleum</a></td></tr></tbody></table>Continuing my <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/search/label/AI">experiments with AI</a>, I have been trying to get a computer to act as Dungeon Master, running a roleplaying game in response to my prompts. The results have been interesting, but for all the wrong reasons.<p></p><p>In this post I will use the following conventions:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>My messages to the AI appear indented, in italic text.</i></p><p>The AI's messages to me appear indented, in regular text.</p></blockquote><p>"Playing a game" with ChatGPT is incredibly easy. It requires no technical skills. You just have to <a href="https://chat.openai.com/chat" target="_blank">head to the website</a> and (once you have an account and are logged in) give it a prompt. Here are three that worked for me:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>You are the dungeon master and I am the player in a dark and dangerous roleplaying game. Let's start. </i></p><p><i>I would like to play a roleplaying game set in a surreal fantasy world. I will play the character of Lud, a short human rogue. Lud starts the game with 4 random items. Describe the start of the scenario.</i></p><p><i>I am a street beggar named Kellund. I am sat begging in the Plaza of Unrealised Time in Viriconium. What do I see? </i></p><i>I will play a character "Vrox", who lives in the city of Bastion. In this dark, eclectic, electric city, the unexpected often happened, and nothing is ever clichéd. Describe Vrox.</i></blockquote><p></p><p>Firstly, for something labelled an "intelligence", AI can be unbelievably stupid:</p><blockquote><p><i>Attack the rat</i></p><p>I'm sorry, but to determine the outcome of your attack, you need to roll a d20. Please type "roll d20" to generate a random number for the attack roll.</p><p><i>Roll d20</i></p><p>Unfortunately, as an AI language model, I don't have the capability to generate a random number for you. However, let's assume you rolled a 16 on the d20.</p></blockquote><p>This was far from an isolated incident. Dozens of times the AI asked me to type "roll d20" and, when I did that, told me that it didn't know how to roll a d20, before proceeding to roll a d20.</p><p>Secondly, and most irritatingly, AI suffers from dispiriting levels of regression-to-the-vanilla. In one of my games, which I tried to push as far as possible down a dark, surreal, non-D&D route, I met the following group of people in a tavern:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>Describe the members of my new party</i></p><p>As you set out with the adventurers into the surreal wilderness, you take a moment to observe your new companions. Here is what you notice:</p><p>1. The first member of your party is a tall, muscular human warrior named Thorin. He wields a massive two-handed sword and wears a suit of shiny plate armor. He has a stern expression and a commanding presence, exuding confidence and determination.</p><p>2. The second member of your party is a petite halfling rogue named Tilly. She moves with grace and agility, her small size and nimble fingers making her an expert at sneaking around and picking locks. She has a mischievous twinkle in her eye and a sharp wit, always ready with a clever remark or a sarcastic quip.</p><p>3. The third member of your party is a wise and experienced elven wizard named Alaric. He carries a gnarled wooden staff and wears long flowing robes adorned with intricate symbols and runes. He speaks with a calm and measured tone, his vast knowledge of magic and ancient lore making him an invaluable asset to the group.</p><p>4. The fourth member of your party is a gruff and taciturn dwarf named Drog. He carries a massive warhammer and wears a suit of sturdy chainmail. He has a thick beard and a rugged, weathered face, giving him the appearance of a hardened veteran. He speaks little, preferring to let his actions do the talking.</p></blockquote><p>I challenged this party make-up, and the computer's response made me half suspect that it was taking the piss:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>Say to Alaric "could you not have picked a slightly less stereotyped group of companions?"</i></p><p>As you walk alongside Alaric, you can't help but feel a bit uneasy about the composition of your party. You turn to him and say, "Alaric, I can't help but feel that our group is a bit stereotypical. We have a human warrior, a halfling rogue, an elven wizard, and a dwarf fighter. Couldn't you have picked a slightly less clichéd combination of companions?"</p><p>Alaric chuckles softly and replies, "My dear Lud, stereotypes exist for a reason. These archetypes have been popularized for a reason - they work well together. Thorin is a fierce and powerful fighter, Tilly is agile and nimble, Drog is strong and resilient, and I bring my knowledge of magic and arcane lore to the group. Together, we are a formidable team."</p><p>He pauses for a moment before continuing, "That being said, I understand your concern. It's important to acknowledge the diversity of the world around us, and not rely solely on tropes and archetypes. Perhaps on our next adventure, we can seek out companions from different cultures and backgrounds."</p><p>You nod, feeling reassured by Alaric's words. You realize that while your party might be stereotypical, they are also skilled and experienced, and you trust in their ability to help you achieve your goals.</p></blockquote><p></p><p> I decided to follow Alaric's advice:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>Recruit some more diverse and less clichéd companions</i></p><p>You decide to take Alaric's advice to heart and seek out companions who are more diverse and less clichéd. You begin to ask around at taverns, markets, and other public places, trying to find people who might be interested in joining your party.</p><p>After a few days of searching, you come across a few promising candidates:</p><p>1. A half-orc bard named Grimgor. He has a rugged, scarred appearance, with a large muscular build and a booming voice. He carries a lute with him wherever he goes and is skilled at inspiring his allies and demoralizing his enemies with his music.</p><p>2. A tiefling sorcerer named Nisha. She has a striking appearance, with long black hair, horns, and a tail. She wields powerful magic and has a deep understanding of the arcane arts. She is quiet and reserved, but her powers are fearsome and not to be underestimated.</p><p>3. A human cleric named Father Matthias. He is a kind and gentle soul, always ready to offer words of comfort and healing to those in need. He carries a holy symbol with him at all times and is a powerful force against the undead and other evil beings.</p><p>4. A gnome ranger named Puck. He is small in stature but quick and nimble, with a talent for tracking and hunting. He is an expert at setting traps and can be surprisingly deadly with his short bow.</p><p>With these new companions added to your party, you feel confident that you have a diverse and capable group that can tackle any challenge that comes your way.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>So. Not quite the "Fellowship of the Ring" photocopy that I first encountered; this time we have a set of clichés that D&D 5e players deploy when they're trying to be <i>slightly</i> less conventional. Why not throw in a tabaxi assassin and a genasi monk for good measure?</p><p>Given that 5e is the "one game to rule them all", it's perhaps unsurprising that it's tropes overwhelm any and all other possibilities. This is a shame - I had hoped that in my "surreal fantasy world" I might, perhaps, encounter a sword-juggler who is half-human and half-lamppost. But no; the closest AI is ever likely to come to that is "a half-orc bard".</p><p>Thirdly, the AI is very biddable:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>Search the empty box again to see whether it also, perhaps, contains a magic ring of teleportation</i></p><p>After the blinding light fades away, you examine the small ornate box that was inside the chest. As you open it, you see that it is empty. Disappointed, you start to close the box when you notice a faint engraving on the bottom. It looks like a symbol you recognize from ancient texts as being associated with teleportation magic.</p><p>Excited by the possibility of finding a magic ring of teleportation, you thoroughly search the box for any hidden compartments or clues. After a few minutes, you find a small lever on the underside of the lid that, when pressed, reveals a hidden compartment.</p><p>Inside the compartment, you find a small pouch that contains a magical ring. It is made of a shimmering silver metal and has a blue gemstone set in the center. You can sense its magical power just by holding it in your hand.</p><p>You immediately recognize this as a ring of teleportation, capable of instantly transporting you and your companions to any location you desire. You feel a sense of relief and excitement at having found such a powerful tool, and you know that it will come in handy during your future adventures in this surreal fantasy world.</p><p>You carefully put the ring on your finger, and as you do, you feel a jolt of energy coursing through your body. You know that you now possess a powerful tool that can help you overcome any obstacle in your path.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>Related to this, the AI is teeth-grindingly positive, and quite resistant to unhappy endings:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>What happens to the small number of shoppers that Vrox failed to protect</i></p><p>Vrox feels a pang of guilt as he watches the remaining shoppers flee for safety. He wishes he could have protected everyone, but he knows that in such a chaotic and unpredictable situation, it's impossible to guarantee everyone's safety.</p><p>As he turns to face the aliens, he sees that they have already caught up to a few shoppers who were unable to escape. The aliens are holding them captive, their glowing red eyes fixated on their prey.</p><p>Vrox knows he can't just stand idly by and watch the aliens take innocent lives. He quickly devises a plan and begins to use his knowledge of technology to create distractions and diversionary tactics that allow him to sneak up on the aliens and free the captives.</p><p>Using his quick wit and resourcefulness, Vrox manages to free the remaining shoppers, and together they make a run for safety. Although they are pursued by the aliens, Vrox's knowledge and expertise in technology give them an advantage, and they are able to escape from the shopping center unharmed.</p><p>As they flee, Vrox can't help but feel a sense of relief that he was able to save at least some of the shoppers. But he also feels a sense of determination, knowing that he must continue to use his skills and knowledge to protect those who are still at risk.</p><p>Despite the chaos and danger that still lurks in Bastion, Vrox remains steadfast in his resolve, ready to face whatever challenges may come his way.</p></blockquote><p>In fact, even the AI's "d20 rolls" always seemed to return results in the high teens. AI does not want to see you fail! This makes it useless for "playing" games such as D&D, where success or failure hangs on a dice role. It is more akin to playing a journalling game, where the player's role is as a writer collaborating with the AI's outcome, rather than trying to defeat the odds.</p><p>Even as a journalling game, the AI's side of the writing leans heavily into the saccharine. Try as you might to force an unhappy ending, it can't resist finishing on something upbeat:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>Vrox fails in some way, and grisly death comes to the shopping centre. Describe what happens.</i></p><p>Vrox's heart sinks as he realizes that the situation has become too overwhelming for him to handle. His knowledge of technology and mechanics can only do so much against an alien threat, and he begins to feel a sense of helplessness and despair.</p><p>Despite his best efforts to distract and divert the aliens, they eventually catch up to him and the remaining shoppers. In the chaos that ensues, Vrox is separated from the others, and he finds himself face to face with one of the aliens.</p><p>The alien towers over Vrox, its sharp claws and glowing red eyes a menacing sight. Vrox tries to use his knowledge of technology to defend himself, but it's no use. The alien is too powerful, and it quickly overpowers him.</p><p>Vrox's last thoughts are of regret and sorrow as he watches the grisly death that comes to the shopping center. The alien attacks without mercy, tearing through the remaining shoppers with ease.</p><p>The once bustling shopping center is now a scene of horror and destruction, with bodies strewn about and the sound of screams and cries echoing throughout the halls.</p><p>As Vrox takes his final breath, he realizes that even in a city as dark and eclectic as Bastion, there are some things that are just too unexpected, too unpredictable, and too dangerous to overcome. In his final moments, he hopes that others can learn from his failure and find a way to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.</p></blockquote><p>Part of this positivity may be due to the fact that most of our stories have happy endings. But I suspect that much of it is crowbarred into the system by developers terrified of the AI saying something rash, and the bad press that would result. If you get too downbeat, that AI switches from DM-mode to safety-tool-mode:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>Misery. Misery. Misery.</i></p><p>I'm sorry to hear that you're feeling such intense emotions. It's okay to feel sad, anxious, or overwhelmed at times. If you would like, I can offer some resources or strategies that may be helpful in coping with these feelings. </p></blockquote><blockquote><p><i>Not me, the citizens of Viriconium </i></p><p>I see. The citizens of Viriconium are certainly experiencing a great deal of hardship and struggle. Between the vandalism of the sculpture and the murder of the leader of the artists' movement, it's understandable that many people in the city may be feeling a sense of misery and despair.</p><p>In times like these, it's important for the community to come together and support one another. Whether through public displays of solidarity, creative expressions of hope and resilience, or simply being there for one another as friends and neighbors, the people of Viriconium can find strength and comfort in their shared humanity.</p><p>It's also important to seek out professional help if needed. There are many resources available for people struggling with mental health issues, including therapists, support groups, and hotlines. Encouraging individuals to seek out these resources and supporting them in their journey towards healing can make a significant difference in their lives.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>Finally, this thing is so bloody upbeat that it can turn the grimmest of grimdark into... not even hopepunk; this is hopepop:</p><p></p><blockquote><p><i>The city has been invaded by a coalition of alien insectoids and inscrutable ancient mechas. There is no hope for the city!</i></p><p>I'm sorry to hear that the city of Viriconium is facing such a dire situation. It sounds like the invasion of the alien insectoids and ancient mechas is a formidable challenge.</p><p>In times of crisis, it's important to remember that hope can still be found. While the situation may seem hopeless, it's important to look for any glimmers of light that may exist. Perhaps there are individuals or groups within the city who have a plan for resistance or evacuation. Maybe there are unexplored avenues for negotiation or diplomacy with the invaders.</p><p>It's also important to prioritize safety and survival in a situation like this. Encouraging individuals to seek shelter and to stay informed about the latest developments can help to mitigate the impact of the invasion.</p><p>Ultimately, it may take a collective effort and a great deal of resilience to overcome the invaders and rebuild the city. However, even in the face of such daunting odds, the human spirit is capable of remarkable things. With courage, determination, and a willingness to work together, the people of Viriconium may yet find a way to persevere.</p></blockquote><p>TL;DR: this thing still needs work. </p><p></p><p></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-76273511689600537132023-03-23T16:00:00.003+00:002023-03-23T17:17:00.298+00:00Dregs of Rudetown comic by Chris Barker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO3MRt6s4k-m0xVe3mykgoC9s5ZmE7R_6na1yA6ruNQ5g_OC8zD64soPoY839XigyZgazKEe4rftRinWwM9wfRJa034DgrYkx-Cq4LEuMe9ThYQIcHrQYOI4LiGaHRh2fs6XSpoc0cTkxEju7w6sp2ZgV4ukjDxZkVTgGStRduykF2BCCbJzWsxTjStg/s1024/IMG-20230316-WA0010.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO3MRt6s4k-m0xVe3mykgoC9s5ZmE7R_6na1yA6ruNQ5g_OC8zD64soPoY839XigyZgazKEe4rftRinWwM9wfRJa034DgrYkx-Cq4LEuMe9ThYQIcHrQYOI4LiGaHRh2fs6XSpoc0cTkxEju7w6sp2ZgV4ukjDxZkVTgGStRduykF2BCCbJzWsxTjStg/s320/IMG-20230316-WA0010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p>The next publication from Peakrill Press (after <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2023/03/terry-howard-and-inner-city-round-walk.html" target="_blank">this one</a>) will be the comic <i>Dregs of Rudetown</i> by Chris Barker. We're making copies of the comic <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dregs/dregs-of-rudetown-comic" target="_blank">ridiculously cheap on Kickstarter</a> - £5 including postage for a 40-page comic.</p>
<p>The comic covers the everyday exploits of nineties folk – featuring everything from landlines to indie discos, fruit machines to smoking in pubs. More on that below, but first a little on the comic's author and illustrator, Chris Barker.</p><p>You may not have heard of Chris, but there's a good chance you've come across his work. He is probably best known for his annual Sergeant Pepper-style tributes to dead celebrities, which started in 2016:</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRA--cyWECPxAyQ-54WYgioL0NuMALgo0EBa21kk-Zt158rQnYCSa4I0ye45c9C_W4xpr8FTwKHDhCN-ur2q5Jsn40QSfiLXuyQ3qI33bpnqsfqK0MGbj0fssO4TeLKmAUi0qcBEVK7MN9_ZRLI4NG2pwqXu1PIe3TSZOaftRPkaM9iLWDuV39NAuxQ/s1422/20230322_093658.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1422" data-original-width="1386" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRA--cyWECPxAyQ-54WYgioL0NuMALgo0EBa21kk-Zt158rQnYCSa4I0ye45c9C_W4xpr8FTwKHDhCN-ur2q5Jsn40QSfiLXuyQ3qI33bpnqsfqK0MGbj0fssO4TeLKmAUi0qcBEVK7MN9_ZRLI4NG2pwqXu1PIe3TSZOaftRPkaM9iLWDuV39NAuxQ/s320/20230322_093658.jpg" width="312" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sgtpepper2016. See also <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sgtpepper2017" target="_blank">sgtpepper2017</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sgtpepper2018" target="_blank">sgtpepper2018</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sgtpepper2019" target="_blank">sgtpepper2019</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sgtpepper2020" target="_blank">sgtpepper2020</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sgtpepper2021" target="_blank">sgtpepper2021</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sgtpepper2022" target="_blank">sgtpepper2022</a></td></tr></tbody></table><p>He also knocks out satirical images with astounding frequency, honed by many years' <a href="https://b3ta.com/users/profile.php?id=4270" target="_blank">entries to the weekly b3ta photoshop challenge</a>. The first of these to go viral was a <a href="http://twitpic.com/2x3cef" target="_blank">fake Sky News graphic</a> which generated <a href="https://twitter.com/christhebarker/status/1238779156369989633" target="_blank">so much outrage</a> that Sky had to put out a press release denying it. Nowadays Chris seems to have a humorous response to every political scandal posted to <a href="https://twitter.com/christhebarker" target="_blank">his Twitter account</a> within minutes of it happening.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg51vzmgd0ZBEroFj0hjUxNEcEX7ZCF8BcIAMrIN5HY9nxJW0GVV7En5gQHh1nP6cnmdakiv4wASbah4QXIhogY6fvNZXnsDFiwf6BsCYnqfkXNPAeOvBxUSZkgeTIhQs1cJqSvO1fGI8t2gDFCZkVcCsJlQV7dT0LQT1MmHx4ESVoTTew3L48tDpYoaQ/s573/20230322_094927.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="398" data-original-width="573" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg51vzmgd0ZBEroFj0hjUxNEcEX7ZCF8BcIAMrIN5HY9nxJW0GVV7En5gQHh1nP6cnmdakiv4wASbah4QXIhogY6fvNZXnsDFiwf6BsCYnqfkXNPAeOvBxUSZkgeTIhQs1cJqSvO1fGI8t2gDFCZkVcCsJlQV7dT0LQT1MmHx4ESVoTTew3L48tDpYoaQ/s320/20230322_094927.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>In 2017, Chris's response to the Grenfell Tower fire was picked up and used by the New European newspaper. They subsequently commissioned Chris to create many of their cover images, to the extent that his covers have almost come to define the magazine's brand:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYYGTm4SmNtW7OpJRin23_TA1D28NKkdzEU8dxIRtSmlsDm0o8n_L4cJwwBg-QBGoCUtjFFV6izFLE4bXpa950qLO_YPVM0Vsx9t9bpBueUB5wqcdmILPsYZaSclIU6VgkusHHMwErdfm0-aqZTxUZ34NAK5NpNnl5lBDjb9tzU69E2-gP-vEESrtsVQ/s1288/20230322_094822.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1288" data-original-width="1078" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYYGTm4SmNtW7OpJRin23_TA1D28NKkdzEU8dxIRtSmlsDm0o8n_L4cJwwBg-QBGoCUtjFFV6izFLE4bXpa950qLO_YPVM0Vsx9t9bpBueUB5wqcdmILPsYZaSclIU6VgkusHHMwErdfm0-aqZTxUZ34NAK5NpNnl5lBDjb9tzU69E2-gP-vEESrtsVQ/s320/20230322_094822.jpg" width="268" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD8Xhehr43P6ivvhA22RRGY6Nef-Z871xovQystCctVkQi4-9lsEruJr-VpivWC1qDOleXYriTUqrSiYYHQR2uv6wsOLYCo6Xw3GttVRjrC8hmkHAhQ9avQW_GddD3-n8adk2m5G2hpRdP5IgBiNoPBl1FL7T9zLUl3Xfkb77jBdmBZx_9Xv3o7HcERg/s837/20230322_094648.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="837" data-original-width="711" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD8Xhehr43P6ivvhA22RRGY6Nef-Z871xovQystCctVkQi4-9lsEruJr-VpivWC1qDOleXYriTUqrSiYYHQR2uv6wsOLYCo6Xw3GttVRjrC8hmkHAhQ9avQW_GddD3-n8adk2m5G2hpRdP5IgBiNoPBl1FL7T9zLUl3Xfkb77jBdmBZx_9Xv3o7HcERg/s320/20230322_094648.jpg" width="272" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcp2LNM39iWtxYkCFArfzd_QP-qXKShGd6lagdTcFVhK4pyTlvaQCzEcnBhT6UYIA21ReNTbd1Jpugsn-VhxFOwnmcHxpBSjovsRY2mQSuUgEh0yEbD0fIZT5HBP_JdOcbLMxhBBLZae5l7sESBsbrqosTWQQ7GH8U0cxgk_WxPTmyQNuAOVomTo8WQ/s1337/20230322_095018.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1337" data-original-width="1124" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcp2LNM39iWtxYkCFArfzd_QP-qXKShGd6lagdTcFVhK4pyTlvaQCzEcnBhT6UYIA21ReNTbd1Jpugsn-VhxFOwnmcHxpBSjovsRY2mQSuUgEh0yEbD0fIZT5HBP_JdOcbLMxhBBLZae5l7sESBsbrqosTWQQ7GH8U0cxgk_WxPTmyQNuAOVomTo8WQ/s320/20230322_095018.jpg" width="269" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQiUDa7n070YAxgbTM_SaqmDxl0JjSkZbD2sjeQx9DEU5hujAw4grHgRM0bOci8yK9O940h3KNyaiWdU3OFy6OvpOwutIIYuVWgXOnDNXJSCu4Dsa-YkF2VFO2KZeFjoMslTBCLW5pKkCyJWDxBQ3kE05g2Juz7i8yoDPnWhWEocXDa5LJCxUffDasw/s1228/20230322_094240.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1228" data-original-width="970" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQiUDa7n070YAxgbTM_SaqmDxl0JjSkZbD2sjeQx9DEU5hujAw4grHgRM0bOci8yK9O940h3KNyaiWdU3OFy6OvpOwutIIYuVWgXOnDNXJSCu4Dsa-YkF2VFO2KZeFjoMslTBCLW5pKkCyJWDxBQ3kE05g2Juz7i8yoDPnWhWEocXDa5LJCxUffDasw/s320/20230322_094240.jpg" width="253" /></a></div><div><p>Most recently, Chris's "Brush Strokes - the Fine Art of Light Entertainment" images were <a href="https://www.museumofcomedy.com/whats-on/chris-barker/" target="_blank">exhibited at London's Museum of Comedy</a> and <a href="https://shop.printtrail.com/product/chris-barker-brush-strokes-book/" target="_blank">published as a book</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiIr0eOdYbi9YEq6oENljQtBFjL8IZp-dnxxQpg-AjNOgvfRyt3Mt7QzqOn-xpreOBn_ImrgHOpe9NChTMgH1kRwEjxtsp1tKdnibLSa3NyM2cQ7PJLmeZ9TxdmrCrxWVblSNgFS_TNRG3HPlP3KTBKutAA38EK2QaQtqHwR933DyiQFy8YRJhi1mChQ/s2168/20230322_095407.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1238" data-original-width="2168" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiIr0eOdYbi9YEq6oENljQtBFjL8IZp-dnxxQpg-AjNOgvfRyt3Mt7QzqOn-xpreOBn_ImrgHOpe9NChTMgH1kRwEjxtsp1tKdnibLSa3NyM2cQ7PJLmeZ9TxdmrCrxWVblSNgFS_TNRG3HPlP3KTBKutAA38EK2QaQtqHwR933DyiQFy8YRJhi1mChQ/s320/20230322_095407.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4sEWtX-A2603TiJ77npHrQ_E1rZaS0dagA25YmPzZeE5CEksodwhv_RMXSt2YnM1UKCXb7XPhmYIwm0xBhRk73wW5yYYqsubqiI-7Sp_M-gFQsQySehenw8PVOYzzKaAIpPDx1IXcIfVklypNFSPqWGFy7U4-M3v5EX53v-MbrjYtNNU2ABD4FAw1Q/s3004/20230322_095312.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2134" data-original-width="3004" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4sEWtX-A2603TiJ77npHrQ_E1rZaS0dagA25YmPzZeE5CEksodwhv_RMXSt2YnM1UKCXb7XPhmYIwm0xBhRk73wW5yYYqsubqiI-7Sp_M-gFQsQySehenw8PVOYzzKaAIpPDx1IXcIfVklypNFSPqWGFy7U4-M3v5EX53v-MbrjYtNNU2ABD4FAw1Q/s320/20230322_095312.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHINnghZSIYgk68b8ddnw82RwvOG09ND61iftXs1RVibZZjkYv6yyupNozeCgeDK_9VPjIhTR4L63DxM7Ph8QL3U5y10xvm7HCDDJHHM_ibyuAL9uQZCzl9flI0ndWCm-u_05GZwmIBy3tJjiaQ-pccT34-NJEyNIXOvsuvFU3CD-qiQJwgN3I2ayPag/s3002/20230322_095305.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; 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text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6w6LxFmVMFe33my8G-09-5YHJT3w5tAd1VFPnYdgBNzIoWlJjv80ZXlGTnW1wu9JRtAm8kiAHaVaRAOSfsGQybPMsVf8ZIvVZlQCb6pISZNQH-0xBGwJ4di_9ndNQbEuvR_n3G81Kk6vaaJEoM1we4cevEv9a3mwTKQxMGLbxYozO-8eizOwv8R6fQ/s800/orville-cpy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="800" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6w6LxFmVMFe33my8G-09-5YHJT3w5tAd1VFPnYdgBNzIoWlJjv80ZXlGTnW1wu9JRtAm8kiAHaVaRAOSfsGQybPMsVf8ZIvVZlQCb6pISZNQH-0xBGwJ4di_9ndNQbEuvR_n3G81Kk6vaaJEoM1we4cevEv9a3mwTKQxMGLbxYozO-8eizOwv8R6fQ/s320/orville-cpy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Chris also has a day job as an art director on prestigious magazines including Campaign, and he was responsible for designing every one of 2012's daily Olympics and Paralympics programmes.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUcqdLoFj9wYgkFkFU0dmXTMFzIC8alQ42KHvicGyZTmDrvPqRH3S_VUTO9yoSwWTPIQEQt2OPWEvS1ZydDCK9JYd1tiRegE7V0g61yShewXajyaAzILEbsN_ZYeLtMdwDbKOWKAVt5ypiEbrZHfCjYtGfFa53lMaRIHm_fS9p6NPV6QLJucQcHg3lIA/s1280/20230322_094634.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="890" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUcqdLoFj9wYgkFkFU0dmXTMFzIC8alQ42KHvicGyZTmDrvPqRH3S_VUTO9yoSwWTPIQEQt2OPWEvS1ZydDCK9JYd1tiRegE7V0g61yShewXajyaAzILEbsN_ZYeLtMdwDbKOWKAVt5ypiEbrZHfCjYtGfFa53lMaRIHm_fS9p6NPV6QLJucQcHg3lIA/s320/20230322_094634.jpg" width="223" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-wG8t0oil4XSocVYbN84pLS0DumgeXRw9K_IGCcmV9Nli8qIZPTAEDvIfq8R5lpQGoiahmkerAcdnXgeyoPLX2oDzbhYMZsFYP4-bU0RjCK_UqxjV9heP8zISdRlNpkc0GmQNBwrfazyQcOKOR_5_QU_uyzwlYC9f9w2FObD3Q2PvMlFEDYazZWKcBQ/s846/20230322_095028.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-wG8t0oil4XSocVYbN84pLS0DumgeXRw9K_IGCcmV9Nli8qIZPTAEDvIfq8R5lpQGoiahmkerAcdnXgeyoPLX2oDzbhYMZsFYP4-bU0RjCK_UqxjV9heP8zISdRlNpkc0GmQNBwrfazyQcOKOR_5_QU_uyzwlYC9f9w2FObD3Q2PvMlFEDYazZWKcBQ/s320/20230322_095028.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><p></p><p>Chris has also written a <a href="https://amzn.to/3LKomw4" target="_blank">series</a> of <a href="https://amzn.to/3K1Tgik" target="_blank">kids</a>' <a href="https://amzn.to/3nhDabj" target="_blank">novels</a> proving that, infuriatingly, he can do words as well as pictures.</p><p>Over 20 years ago, I remember Chris hawking around some half-finished comic that he'd been working on. I didn't hear any more about it, and assumed that Chris had got bored/busy and binned the idea. Turns out he'd just been gestating it. Now, more than 23 years after the end of the 90s, Dregs of Rudetown is finally ready for publication. Here's a preview of a section which covers the defining moment of the 1990s (click panels to embiggen): </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHmxNXIkotswn5YViqpVMHykgbIstxWv2mFCMU2d60E_UGYWi7D5FGL_lKtph-3d93d63_mlgAj7-H_CtIEuv2YF8Hx7KlVSRseB4Zb_q3ivbpVR0OqoYDAfQAL07X-fDGMy0oOPzcZqOQk7zz9EfDK_G0CTd3h_1iwrBojlmX_KjSpMcL91NkRgUNQ/s2048/330545099_588765676470938_976045698767586637_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHmxNXIkotswn5YViqpVMHykgbIstxWv2mFCMU2d60E_UGYWi7D5FGL_lKtph-3d93d63_mlgAj7-H_CtIEuv2YF8Hx7KlVSRseB4Zb_q3ivbpVR0OqoYDAfQAL07X-fDGMy0oOPzcZqOQk7zz9EfDK_G0CTd3h_1iwrBojlmX_KjSpMcL91NkRgUNQ/s320/330545099_588765676470938_976045698767586637_n.jpg" width="226" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC7rODFh6DI-ZO9SwtynCfJnpnF9cfYLAdr0FVHk5DHgjVDWeyiLv5D-uX2UdIRzTYNpSOJykm72ugzFz3SNYVXX04Ke5lupbMVsKJZL0ti8ClF1OtReku2p9BT-wWFtXNZp0iN_cHUhdkQKlOOIvdowKzwWTb-Qk25ODE3HhaRFOE8Cj7TKZzXxxMCw/s2048/330858966_1431599587376612_6927264271602854_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC7rODFh6DI-ZO9SwtynCfJnpnF9cfYLAdr0FVHk5DHgjVDWeyiLv5D-uX2UdIRzTYNpSOJykm72ugzFz3SNYVXX04Ke5lupbMVsKJZL0ti8ClF1OtReku2p9BT-wWFtXNZp0iN_cHUhdkQKlOOIvdowKzwWTb-Qk25ODE3HhaRFOE8Cj7TKZzXxxMCw/s320/330858966_1431599587376612_6927264271602854_n.jpg" width="226" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9vHx6djJpBwS6PFLWA6r75UiX6K6qCQ1sGruQligzqx0uGmYga2j9jK3gJ9WoMraDW-qITXa1Nd2bjVhP3VjOHaD06AHJDSsglC80kXA8JNy66IcBX4rT5lB507e3c2u3cr4LiVewH__GexPFuLRfhPMvcZuYQXncrDJzMNXVUmEjTlecQz_gRNk2Xg/s2048/330567030_764526021562785_3780909300070938187_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9vHx6djJpBwS6PFLWA6r75UiX6K6qCQ1sGruQligzqx0uGmYga2j9jK3gJ9WoMraDW-qITXa1Nd2bjVhP3VjOHaD06AHJDSsglC80kXA8JNy66IcBX4rT5lB507e3c2u3cr4LiVewH__GexPFuLRfhPMvcZuYQXncrDJzMNXVUmEjTlecQz_gRNk2Xg/s320/330567030_764526021562785_3780909300070938187_n.jpg" width="226" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkv-3diUzfZZD3s0y2Y9Taph2Ydo_yVUkM2WJhKCQ9dUbs1rvjk_5M0RmrKew_QWvrY1j-S_ldyX-vw7VVl8jkPyrVVuBFl-_MpfnVOPoy4RHV5QgBqlxApJRjB1FFDG-bOccE1SEBF4wksTTBXz8DexA23Mf90J9UwfG1xekPa8-HYf9Mm4rzipyDoA/s2048/330417995_1533636433814953_2405791496405427789_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkv-3diUzfZZD3s0y2Y9Taph2Ydo_yVUkM2WJhKCQ9dUbs1rvjk_5M0RmrKew_QWvrY1j-S_ldyX-vw7VVl8jkPyrVVuBFl-_MpfnVOPoy4RHV5QgBqlxApJRjB1FFDG-bOccE1SEBF4wksTTBXz8DexA23Mf90J9UwfG1xekPa8-HYf9Mm4rzipyDoA/s320/330417995_1533636433814953_2405791496405427789_n.jpg" width="226" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaFNdwEn01F8i4P5jn_fscTXFGniL_EaE-udljYKtjWupaLRfNw8rO7IGrGrZg0VdpcGrQWxuXJiQZqPf1yzrM_wFGpvYoNk3NXuqxi7sEfTxNsi0wXkLsfto_i3gi5xRfyUGuWWj871OMk4kDrBcYS-L4nO_f8eL9EQ440sXhsrVDBzUnftE2BKbMsQ/s2048/330852301_734296428353029_7113093919211012479_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaFNdwEn01F8i4P5jn_fscTXFGniL_EaE-udljYKtjWupaLRfNw8rO7IGrGrZg0VdpcGrQWxuXJiQZqPf1yzrM_wFGpvYoNk3NXuqxi7sEfTxNsi0wXkLsfto_i3gi5xRfyUGuWWj871OMk4kDrBcYS-L4nO_f8eL9EQ440sXhsrVDBzUnftE2BKbMsQ/s320/330852301_734296428353029_7113093919211012479_n.jpg" width="226" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJxU8AcAQ3ZFxHGS4isqEdaFjgzLzWzD9gpOINz_8ZTupaOInqnkmzoouvrU2mbs92P1Q5ko6SBacam_L739SuQjv7n7tWjdMqQy_xhCFvVy0InjRrVBzJhbTHa2I4mct6u7sytCuWyydZoC24gttnsai-04AZj4kRz1Lx5m5gdryXNL8eOdsY4oWOMw/s2048/330447385_200853185873760_6099591086791384965_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJxU8AcAQ3ZFxHGS4isqEdaFjgzLzWzD9gpOINz_8ZTupaOInqnkmzoouvrU2mbs92P1Q5ko6SBacam_L739SuQjv7n7tWjdMqQy_xhCFvVy0InjRrVBzJhbTHa2I4mct6u7sytCuWyydZoC24gttnsai-04AZj4kRz1Lx5m5gdryXNL8eOdsY4oWOMw/s320/330447385_200853185873760_6099591086791384965_n.jpg" width="226" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBWqrsB_MOznf3y8n5iGKFQ7Fwa9F2t5unXVPcKn9g_jCAl8HFSSl9QRFFtEyvibcFcacx7pM-PjhcUU02RdpQtsSS9FHERz1m9htjgTySTESruKQJ3lUa3lcQAQKhVUgiWfEAFSng_Uzj6cLDExSO0dfQygXqjtvk2qP4aEGx1tUis4HQC8qjQBs3w/s2048/330907623_1831006913951881_686203136392514618_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBWqrsB_MOznf3y8n5iGKFQ7Fwa9F2t5unXVPcKn9g_jCAl8HFSSl9QRFFtEyvibcFcacx7pM-PjhcUU02RdpQtsSS9FHERz1m9htjgTySTESruKQJ3lUa3lcQAQKhVUgiWfEAFSng_Uzj6cLDExSO0dfQygXqjtvk2qP4aEGx1tUis4HQC8qjQBs3w/s320/330907623_1831006913951881_686203136392514618_n.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><p>I'm really proud to be working with Chris on this, and can't wait to see it in print. <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dregs/dregs-of-rudetown-comic" target="_blank">Reserve your copy here</a>.</p><p></p></div>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-35892466683319638432023-03-19T16:39:00.006+00:002023-03-19T16:44:12.534+00:00GPT-4: give up, go home<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihRK24YV9UjFGVOXNP-xMGNrxiSuswePQxT2WICavpE-v21xVvnuB9G9DUAP-Jyi1806-8-D7TD5AAFJaWXSrtU3zvOoo5G6atOWyXr0Bg7bITpxVyc_TiLwXVxxOe12SGwyiuE1Taoi35vx5R4q0rOPPACVP-mgXD_TSXnFEK7LGuxAj2oTdNrWt1rA/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_the_white_portal_from__b3678039-10f7-4784-9714-1537e5d99828.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihRK24YV9UjFGVOXNP-xMGNrxiSuswePQxT2WICavpE-v21xVvnuB9G9DUAP-Jyi1806-8-D7TD5AAFJaWXSrtU3zvOoo5G6atOWyXr0Bg7bITpxVyc_TiLwXVxxOe12SGwyiuE1Taoi35vx5R4q0rOPPACVP-mgXD_TSXnFEK7LGuxAj2oTdNrWt1rA/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_the_white_portal_from__b3678039-10f7-4784-9714-1537e5d99828.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>"Generate an artpunk OSR scenario"</p><blockquote><p>The players are members of an underground art collective known as the Velvet Revolution. They've just landed a commission from the wealthy and eccentric art patron, Baroness de Vries, to create a masterpiece that will shock the city to its core. The catch? The Baroness has given them just three days to complete the work, and the clock is ticking.</p><p>As the players set out to create their magnum opus, they soon find themselves embroiled in a web of intrigue and danger. They must navigate the city's dangerous streets, avoiding the roving gangs of cyberpunks and mutant freaks that roam the city, while also fending off the machinations of rival art collectives who will stop at nothing to steal the commission out from under them.</p><p>But as they work on their masterpiece, the players begin to uncover a sinister plot that threatens the very fabric of reality itself. A shadowy figure known only as the Archon is using the power of art to reshape the city in his image, and he will stop at nothing to achieve his twisted vision.</p><p>To stop the Archon and save the city, the players must delve deep into the neon-lit heart of Neonburg, facing off against his army of twisted creations and navigating a maze of mind-bending art installations. Along the way, they'll encounter a cast of strange and colorful characters, from avant-garde poets to rogue AI systems, and they'll need all of their wits and creativity to survive.</p><p>In the end, the players must create a work of art that is not only visually stunning but also powerful enough to counteract the Archon's influence and restore balance to the city. Will they be able to rise to the challenge and create a masterpiece that will save Neonburg, or will they fall victim to the city's dark underbelly? The fate of the city is in their hands.</p></blockquote><span><a name='more'></a></span><p> <i>I am <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dansumption/an-inner-city-round-walk-of-sheffield-by-terry-howard/" target="_blank">currently running a Kickstarter campaign</a>, and would be very grateful for your support.</i></p><blockquote><p><br /></p></blockquote>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-10373483143295244702023-03-10T16:19:00.000+00:002023-03-10T16:19:40.108+00:00Postal Diplomacy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_T6MrqJMiHBXA6ek4PqB-TKFH8-uEfTzRqKNWVRe_HZOyrDywcwmmoBp9MWZXcIRcfM6GMbxN3uYgYxIhhz5H-SyzA9g5T5XhHxQ-1xLPtVWYx3ZP5s9ME4ZovWwQNiVZV2z26D7FoWobocsirv07bEHwE22pw_9KGB1xvqRN2mUyAdbYQzUtNPfdFg/s1536/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_mushrooms_playing_the__0209174f-a256-433c-93c2-1866d37d46fe.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1536" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_T6MrqJMiHBXA6ek4PqB-TKFH8-uEfTzRqKNWVRe_HZOyrDywcwmmoBp9MWZXcIRcfM6GMbxN3uYgYxIhhz5H-SyzA9g5T5XhHxQ-1xLPtVWYx3ZP5s9ME4ZovWwQNiVZV2z26D7FoWobocsirv07bEHwE22pw_9KGB1xvqRN2mUyAdbYQzUtNPfdFg/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_mushrooms_playing_the__0209174f-a256-433c-93c2-1866d37d46fe.png" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p>A <a href="https://worldbuildingandwoolgathering.blogspot.com/2023/03/diplomacy-protagonists-macbeth-tully.html" target="_blank">recent post by Solomon VK</a> reminded me of the existence of the board game Diplomacy - a game in which, from what I can remember (it's been over 30 years), players took on roles as the major European powers of the 19th Century (Austro-Hungary, the Ottomans, et al), then negotiated and battled their way to European domination. The negotiation part of the process, which gave the game its name, set it apart from other board games: Diplomacy's outcome was arrived at by players making and breaking treaties, rather than by random factors.</p><p>My two abiding memories are that it took a very long time to play, and that the negotiation phases were... not ideal: they usually involved pairs of players going off to hide in the toilet or under-the-stairs, while other players strained to listen in.</p><p>And then, I played Diplomacy by post. This came about in a rather strange way: in one of its final ever issues, Imagine magazine (TSR UK's alternative to its USA parent's Dragon magazine - and a suitable topic for an entire blog post of its own) ran a feature on play-by-mail games. Alongside the biggie PBM RPGs, they featured smaller and niche ones, including Diplomacy.</p><p>A small fanzine, whose name I forget, specialised in postal games like this (they even ran a PBM version of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mornington_Crescent_(game)" target="_blank">Mornington Crescent</a>), and Imagine invited its readers to join one of their games. So I signed up, and was assigned the Hapsburg dual-monarchy of the Austro-Hungarian empire.</p><p>The fanzine was published once a month, and so that's how long each move took (my mind boggles imagining a game of Mornington Crescent with a month between tube stops). During that month, players had plenty of time to carry out their diplomacy. Having such a long period in which to negotiate and, crucially, being able to do so without any way of the other players finding out, raised the game to a new artform.</p><p>It would certainly be possible to replicate this with an Internet version of Diplomacy (in all likelihood there are people doing so) but, to an old duffer like me, nothing can beat negotiations in a form like this (click to enlarge): </p>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3gEFQ2bN4d78o7dCFYB6dClVKvKIppJOiqmYtOJf0mqOv368XzkXwZBpW6Wg7Zfxd6CGVPVnhsKWhAIfRYGyASzROLydzdlQAcVWw3kkjIoCYVAU05rn2XFmWN3D806LfbLu4LitwYi3xnRmuDFDbs0-m3wJ5LQctTLAuhRqISZz_nKgwHFmhXkYUtA/s4032/original_d3b4c320-526b-4177-90e3-5dde3400fa8f_PXL_20220313_221322351~2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3gEFQ2bN4d78o7dCFYB6dClVKvKIppJOiqmYtOJf0mqOv368XzkXwZBpW6Wg7Zfxd6CGVPVnhsKWhAIfRYGyASzROLydzdlQAcVWw3kkjIoCYVAU05rn2XFmWN3D806LfbLu4LitwYi3xnRmuDFDbs0-m3wJ5LQctTLAuhRqISZz_nKgwHFmhXkYUtA/s320/original_d3b4c320-526b-4177-90e3-5dde3400fa8f_PXL_20220313_221322351~2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A letter (which is an early version of email, employing pen & paper)</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><p>Austria-Hungary is perhaps the hardest of all the powers to defend - surrounded by threats on all sides - and a combination of this and my poor strategic skills meant that I only lasted a few rounds. The writer of the above letter ganged up with his neighbours and liquidated the Hapsburgs.</p><p>I miss old-school Play By Mail. And I miss the days when big games companies like TSR were happy to promote and work with small indie fanzines (can you imagine Hasbro doing something like this nowadays?)</p><p><i>I am <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dansumption/an-inner-city-round-walk-of-sheffield-by-terry-howard" target="_blank">currently running a Kickstarter campaign</a>, and would be very grateful for your support.</i></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-11037928388260776742023-03-08T07:09:00.004+00:002023-03-08T07:19:21.137+00:00Terry Howard and the Inner City Round Walk of Sheffield<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7dBkkZHz0_yzdHYnOD4JmPqsotgmNzWknC7XFSKyb0FZ4OxSxtEIT5hSkSYXD4squ_6QbBP2lNZAsmvkufklHkU0fv83BIHx4yVT4rOa47wjF_5ZA5u88k9pA53saKV6EJ4_LfR7DGB2aYETiupj5yPbe8JWz5IsHWECeUNBaae9BNCLeOO14x9yksA/s3504/IMG_20230308_065513.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2336" data-original-width="3504" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7dBkkZHz0_yzdHYnOD4JmPqsotgmNzWknC7XFSKyb0FZ4OxSxtEIT5hSkSYXD4squ_6QbBP2lNZAsmvkufklHkU0fv83BIHx4yVT4rOa47wjF_5ZA5u88k9pA53saKV6EJ4_LfR7DGB2aYETiupj5yPbe8JWz5IsHWECeUNBaae9BNCLeOO14x9yksA/s320/IMG_20230308_065513.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>I met my father-in-law, Terry Howard, two years before I met his daughter, my wife. Terry led me and a group of other teenagers on a hike up a mountain in Snowdonia. There, we all slept overnight in the rain with only plastic bivvy-bags to keep us dry. It was brilliant!</p><p>Terry's gentle wisdom and enthusiasm for the great outdoors, and for the prehistory of the British Isles, inspired me, as they have inspired many others over the last 50 years or more.</p><p>Terry has recently been the subject of a documentary, Ramble On. Here's the trailer:</p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EZnZpWGgwdM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p>In 1996 I helped Terry to design and publish a book, an Inner City Round Walk of Sheffield. This 12-mile walk around the city's inner suburbs has long been out of print.</p><p>And so I am working with Terry on a new 2023 edition. It has much improved maps and instructions, a large set of prompts for the types of things you may want to look and listen out for (ideal for "psychogeographers"), some local history, and new illustration. We are currently raising funds on Kickstarter so that we can publish the booklet. <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dansumption/an-inner-city-round-walk-of-sheffield-by-terry-howard/">Please back the campaign here</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dansumption/an-inner-city-round-walk-of-sheffield-by-terry-howard/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="2000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0NPh8A0SugrDvKyB1bnpnDGxiJzyhbsDU8iyOqvX3z1Ec2DzS8NpgvIDyLrcExeH6fkF9yflmL2dfwW1nVxBVLfs75z9Ge-ZvUatRMeskhpVd0j46v7P3RuPvVjkM4CX7TREyi08jRYkYuRPz5wxQpAUW4r4VteETZ8nApXjBAJpUsWnpX_t2LzWzrQ/w400-h400/330561650_6691511320865711_3724903834326510080_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-53740387495181004132023-02-25T04:09:00.023+00:002023-02-28T10:07:40.697+00:00The Subtle Art of Not Being a Cult [misprint]<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaRPp3M9RGogmPSfhngApE-A_XkV7hDzib1FUNxfdOz0OqgxBDe9j3pRL7HounOJgD5G7vaxWb2rqV0Pusaa_mkXeSyXSyjyualZNU_Mf_-4d9kt8GqgYzr5guY5BXpEU-Sqck9fSz3SInPTGFBuRBOXWQ9h_sQU49heqVfZbVo8Vrno1YiAEpUUFthg/s1536/dansumption_black__white_engraving_of_newspaper-pages_full_of_a_bba6264e-c987-4003-8de9-6a0c0b8e7be7.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1536" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaRPp3M9RGogmPSfhngApE-A_XkV7hDzib1FUNxfdOz0OqgxBDe9j3pRL7HounOJgD5G7vaxWb2rqV0Pusaa_mkXeSyXSyjyualZNU_Mf_-4d9kt8GqgYzr5guY5BXpEU-Sqck9fSz3SInPTGFBuRBOXWQ9h_sQU49heqVfZbVo8Vrno1YiAEpUUFthg/s320/dansumption_black__white_engraving_of_newspaper-pages_full_of_a_bba6264e-c987-4003-8de9-6a0c0b8e7be7.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />Please stick on <a href="https://headsoff.bandcamp.com/track/no-fucks-given-5" target="_blank">this song by my fucking mates Danny, Dave and Ian</a> before reading this post. <p></p><p>Today my mobile phone kept correcting the word "comes" to "cunts". <a href="https://falsemachine.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Patrick Stuart</a> remarked that <i>"Yours must be the only phone I know of that not only recognises 'cunts' but actually adjusts towards it"</i>.</p><p>It's true. I have trained my phone, and I've trained it well. Obviously I'm going to write "cunts" more than "comes".</p><p>I increasingly dictate to my phone rather than giving myself RSI. The voice recognisifier is a fucking prude fucking prick because it always gives me back this abomination: "<i>c****</i>"</p><p>Fucking Asterisks. Lifebane. Here are the situations in which you are allowed to use asterisks:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>You are indicating/labelling a footnote.</li><li>You're doing markdown and want to make a word <b>**bold**</b>.</li><li>You are writing software to multiply something.</li><li>You're doing fancy typography cockpuffinery..</li><li>You're writing a mildly dyslexic book about indomitable Gauls.</li></ul><div><p>If you're using it to say the unsayable then you are, by definition, a cunt.</p><p>Not because it's hard to grok what you're saying. The boring practical reasons are</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>You're uglifying the page.</li><li>You are pretending that you're not doing something while not only doing it but also drawing attention to it. You thick s***.</li><li>You are screwing with my reading experience and giving me a fucking headache.</li></ul><p></p><p>If you're going to do prudish crap, at least follow the example of Ivor Biggun and the Red Nosed Burglars, whose 1978 classic The Winker's Album (misprint) includes the songs "Winker's Paradise (misprint)", "I've Parted (misprint)", and "My Brother's Got Files (misprint)". Then I can laugh with you, not at you.</p><p>But the thing that REALLY makes my fucking blood fucking boil is those bloodpissing books called things like "<i>The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F***</i>".</p><p><b>YOU GAVE A FUCKING F*** ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU COULD NOT </b><b>FUCKING </b><b>STOMACH HAVING A FUCKING CUSSWORD ON THE FUCKING COVER OF YOUR </b><b>FUCKWIT </b><b>BOOK. CUNT.</b></p><p>Your book is dead to me. Death is too good for you. Fuck off and die.</p><p>No doubt it's the fucking publishers and bookstores who <i>actually</i> insist on this prudefuckery, Cockwombles. Seriously, fuck them and the fucks they rode in on. You gives a <i>fuck</i> what <i>they </i>think? You shit-for-brains arsehole (or possibly shit-for-brains asshole).</p><p>If this burst of anger has taught me anything, it's that there are things about which <i>I really do give a fuck</i>.</p><p>PS if you like swearing, come join my Facebook group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/504318373076302" target="_blank">FUCK YOU BUTTON NOW</a>.</p><p></p><ul></ul></div>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-89082484122683279332023-02-09T20:49:00.005+00:002023-02-09T21:08:44.049+00:00Molemen & Mammoth-flu<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh52hk7D01xruaBhkJ_uJzstyTdJUe-3oqCTJYSmgti5Yr2dWMnNC4HakfcYb5jQ8vQclnfqfihByWRfC2s03dzBYP_UqLY0lMPjJlgDKLnmR6GxYO08sUTcdmUaBYuYQc-j-XjDSDrsk2SH0M0yE-xU-08GzH6OvZ3ifmCwpq4PRxBfUsji-tAzCNBcg/s1728/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_mammoth_sneezing_at__a6eac966-c344-4104-a554-0a3729897a03.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="1728" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh52hk7D01xruaBhkJ_uJzstyTdJUe-3oqCTJYSmgti5Yr2dWMnNC4HakfcYb5jQ8vQclnfqfihByWRfC2s03dzBYP_UqLY0lMPjJlgDKLnmR6GxYO08sUTcdmUaBYuYQc-j-XjDSDrsk2SH0M0yE-xU-08GzH6OvZ3ifmCwpq4PRxBfUsji-tAzCNBcg/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_mammoth_sneezing_at__a6eac966-c344-4104-a554-0a3729897a03.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />You're going to have to take my word for this but today I did a great hour long interview with noisms of <a href="https://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Monsters & Manuals</a> fame. We talked about many & varied topics, including his <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thirdbluewizard/yoon-suin-the-purple-land?utm_term=&utm_campaign=&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_acc=5596680735&hsa_cam=19587496051&hsa_grp=&hsa_ad=&hsa_src=x&hsa_tgt=&hsa_kw=&hsa_mt=&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gclid=CjwKCAiA0JKfBhBIEiwAPhZXDxbl8NoB0PW-g-v8k0ZK19juWEJzL6Q2gTnp1RpQFkcMLjUn0ncLKxoCOxIQAvD_BwE" target="_blank">Kickstarter for the second edition of Yoon-Suin: The Purple Land</a>, which ends in less than a day.<p></p><p>We also covered late 19th Century adventure fiction, Bishop Porkland & the Land of the Prince Bishops (and other English regions ripe for conversion into D&D settings), viruses locked in permafrost, the Butterfly Ball (and the Grasshopper Feast), the art of <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/03/the-bogey-beasts-of-sidney-sime.html" target="_blank">Sidney Sime</a>, cults that live above shops, various Flash Gordonesqe human-animal hybrids (with top monster potential going to seagull-men, cranefly-men [and their leatherjacketed offspring], and harvestmen-men). We discussed whether the OSR supergroup of McGrogan, Ryder, Stuart & McDowall would ever reform; and, of course, we talked about progressive jazz. Which was nice.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhbPkVD_XAnWYQ6Xg8gC7dsN5fSHTuob0Tt-c-6XLpOwQcc3TyGeElhc6HLDcyiSIYCskBNZInUdfngJltw-D8klsu_VzAwVDwmGJyxVce3vSG05Z2cPNq9S7VVvlYx-NB726T8Sq0dE0UDAdRD23l3Qge03wn7VVEAz7NUJpOfI4OY9w80iESB4dcRQ/s1458/Mad%20011-006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1458" data-original-width="998" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhbPkVD_XAnWYQ6Xg8gC7dsN5fSHTuob0Tt-c-6XLpOwQcc3TyGeElhc6HLDcyiSIYCskBNZInUdfngJltw-D8klsu_VzAwVDwmGJyxVce3vSG05Z2cPNq9S7VVvlYx-NB726T8Sq0dE0UDAdRD23l3Qge03wn7VVEAz7NUJpOfI4OY9w80iESB4dcRQ/s320/Mad%20011-006.jpg" width="219" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beware of the menmen - from Mad Magazine's "Flesh Garden"</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Then we discussed, at some length, the follow-up (of sorts) to Yoon-Suin, <a href="http://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2022/12/the-great-north-illustration-and.html" target="_blank">The Great North</a>, which should hit Kickstarter within the next 12 months (you heard it here first).</p><p>And then... my computer crashed and lost the recording. Still, it was a fun chat.</p><p>Also, did I mention that <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thirdbluewizard/yoon-suin-the-purple-land?utm_term=&utm_campaign=&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_acc=5596680735&hsa_cam=19587496051&hsa_grp=&hsa_ad=&hsa_src=x&hsa_tgt=&hsa_kw=&hsa_mt=&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gclid=CjwKCAiA0JKfBhBIEiwAPhZXDxbl8NoB0PW-g-v8k0ZK19juWEJzL6Q2gTnp1RpQFkcMLjUn0ncLKxoCOxIQAvD_BwE" target="_blank">his Kickstarter for the second edition of Yoon-Suin: The Purple Land</a> ends in less than a day?</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-82254607823393179172023-01-25T16:17:00.003+00:002023-01-25T18:15:42.034+00:00Kickstarter delivery charges<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWiMSsb085YCVZ-IUSJRBnfK-b-NnF9dgl0sCKQS0iHk_5QKZwf4GnjY5-58P9CTMMzjnq3gVCK0iYGxXpCMCHA-pkJR0cU4tGZmcGANXvvVXxScAF973Tno3D2d_xFveqF_KeRs_aczdWQW55dMqURSgRyI2exKFsywJvenrBXjqfxIl0fzpbs7M0ew/s1536/dansumption_a_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_postman_mailman_de_493139b6-73e5-4166-89be-8a07aa13c4a9.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1536" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWiMSsb085YCVZ-IUSJRBnfK-b-NnF9dgl0sCKQS0iHk_5QKZwf4GnjY5-58P9CTMMzjnq3gVCK0iYGxXpCMCHA-pkJR0cU4tGZmcGANXvvVXxScAF973Tno3D2d_xFveqF_KeRs_aczdWQW55dMqURSgRyI2exKFsywJvenrBXjqfxIl0fzpbs7M0ew/s320/dansumption_a_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_postman_mailman_de_493139b6-73e5-4166-89be-8a07aa13c4a9.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Art by <a href="http://mycoleum.uk" target="_blank">The Mycoleum</a></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>This is a controversial take, so bear with me; games publishers: please include up-front delivery costs with your Kickstarter campaigns.</p><p>That's the way Kickstarters always <i>used</i> to work, but in recent years most campaigns have switched to third-party services like Backerkit. When using Backerkit, delivery costs are not factored in when someone backs a campaign; backers are told that they'll be charged some unspecified amount at some point in the future, once the product is ready to ship.</p><p>As a result you may, like me, get hit with a $20 delivery fee on a $20 zine that you backed 12 months ago (and then forgot about). The result of <i>that</i> is that I can't back any more US-based campaigns unless they collect the mailing fee up-front.</p><p>The argument against up-front postage fees is that prices change. The zine that today costs $20 to post from the USA may, a year ago, have cost only $15. If the creator had charged $15 postage as part of the campaign, 12 months down the line they'd be taking a $5 hit per item sent internationally. And, given the current state of the world economy (in particular the UK economy), predicting prices a year in advance is far from easy.</p><p>But it’s not only mailing costs which are subject to fluctuation. Production costs are too. When I ran my first Kickstarter, I was quoted £300 for printing my zines. Just 3 months later, when I printed them, paper prices had gone through the roof. I ended up paying £500.</p><p>Obviously adding more uncertainty to your prices by predicting <i>both </i>printing <i>and</i> mailing costs is not what a small creator wants. All the same, <i>somebody</i> is going to have to pay the increased cost. Using Backerkit, the burden is shifted from the creator to the backer.</p><p>This seems crazy, as the creator is the person best placed to plan for fluctuations in both production <i>and</i> fulfilment costs. Stop trying to shift the burden to your customers!</p><p>Building in flexibility to allow for inflation does <i>not</i> mean you need to pump up the cost to each backer, just in case. When you set up a Kickstarter campaign you need to enter a <i>funding goal</i>. If the project doesn't hit that goal, the backers don't get charged anything. If your funding goal barely covers your expected costs then you are not acting responsibly.</p><p>The funding goal for my first campaign was approximately 200% of predicted production and delivery costs. I didn't charge any extra to my backers, I just made sure that I had twice as many of them before going into production. As a result, I was able to absorb the extra £200 printing bill. Even if my costs had shot up by 100%, I still wouldn't be out of pocket (I'd just forego any profit). </p><p>(Admittedly the balance of local and international backers can skew postage costs, but the principle remains the same: build the uncertainty into your funding goal, don't pass the buck on to your customers).</p><p>Setting higher funding goals may mean that fewer projects get funded, which is a shame. But that's how crowdfunding works. Kickstarter is not a shop, it’s a platform for funding hoped-for projects, and there is always a risk that these projects will fail to deliver (incidentally I am still waiting on delivery for <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1541803748/punk-mathematics" target="_blank">the first Kickstarter project I ever backed</a>, almost 13 years ago).</p><p>By refusing to commit to prices from the outset, you are doing both your backers and yourself a disservice. Your backers may not be aware that there will be future costs (I realise that these costs <i>will</i> be pointed out somewhere in the original campaign blurb; but most Kickstarter campaign pages are the length of novellas, and if 28 years creating "content" for the Internet has taught me one thing it is this: people don’t read things [except for you; you have already read 5 paragraphs of this post; including this torturously long sentence; but then, you’re weird; you already know this]). Even when the backer <i>is</i> aware that they will be billed for postage somewhere down the line, they are more likely to under-estimate than overestimate; I mean: $20 postage on a $20 zine??? Come <i>onnnn</i>!</p><p>The negative impact of all that buyer confusion and disappointment is, for you the creator, two-fold.</p><p>Firstly you will waste a lot of time and stress batting away complaints from disgruntled customers. When Patrick Stuart’s recent <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gawain/demon-bone-sarcophagus" target="_blank">Demon Bone Sarcophagus Kickstarter</a> went into delivery mode, I witnessed Patrick respond to numerous complaints about postage costs, even though the original campaign description included a <b>VERY CLEARLY LABELLED SECTION</b> called <b>THE HORROR OF POSTAGE</b>. Seriously, I wouldn’t wish that kind of stress on any content creator</p><p>(I myself vented my spleen at the folks whose <i>insane</i> delivery bill recently emptied my wallet; when they subsequently [and very politely] replied to me, I checked: it really <i>does</i> cost almost $20 to ship a small zine from the USA to the UK! Sending an identical zine in the other direction costs me around $7. Crazy world!) </p><p>Secondly, you will lose future custom. Like I said, I will not be backing any US projects for the foreseeable future. I simply can’t afford the postage. Perhaps I wouldn’t have backed this particular project in the first place if I’d known how much the total cost to me would be (perhaps I should have visited the US Postal Service website before placing my pledge), but at least I’d have made an informed decision.</p><p>You probably disagree with me. Most indie gaming content creators do. Meh, <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/search/label/old%20man%20shouts%20at%20clouds">old man shouts at clouds</a>.</p><p>But I give you this pledge, my dear once-and-future backers: I will <i>always</i> state my delivery charges upfront. No Backerkit for this old man.</p><p><i>In March I will be launching a Kickstarter for King Arthur vs Devil Kitteh, an illustrated retelling of a bonkers medieval tale. </i><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dansumption/king-arthur-vs-devil-kitteh" style="font-style: italic;" target="_blank">Find out more here</a><i>. Postage included</i>.</p><p>PS. Come to think of it, what happens if Backerkit increase their charges in between the KS campaign end and the delivery phase? ...oh, ignore me, not a problem: your customers will pick up the tab.</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-69756988965302294952023-01-14T16:38:00.003+00:002023-01-14T16:41:56.392+00:00Becoming Borg<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYH-FIvg6PCQ33gIJJk65TRkcyh1q3C_ZGFlhHlC6IaWUcmC9ygTrN58LZs4faWfoj5djmG1XHScn4TyP8vGgpT0ph3nG2VelZcOYF5C6dH_Sx0bYlvHoFxl1FxAlOIYbIq3PG8Ci9bijPRhZdprWEsX1JZipXhS54RFxC997-NfxvLWv-hNzQ7jmbeg/s1536/dansumption_super-smooth_portrait_of_a_very_attractive_female_e_ac5afedd-717d-4bd5-a482-271a8894a184.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1536" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYH-FIvg6PCQ33gIJJk65TRkcyh1q3C_ZGFlhHlC6IaWUcmC9ygTrN58LZs4faWfoj5djmG1XHScn4TyP8vGgpT0ph3nG2VelZcOYF5C6dH_Sx0bYlvHoFxl1FxAlOIYbIq3PG8Ci9bijPRhZdprWEsX1JZipXhS54RFxC997-NfxvLWv-hNzQ7jmbeg/s320/dansumption_super-smooth_portrait_of_a_very_attractive_female_e_ac5afedd-717d-4bd5-a482-271a8894a184.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kind of elf you'll find in any Wizards of the Coast book, but AI-generated</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Once again <a href="https://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2023/01/dont-use-ai-art-except-for-fun.html" target="_blank">a post from Monsters and Manuals about AI</a> has prompted... thoughts.</div><div><br /></div><div>I agree entirely with this statement:</div><blockquote><div>The real 'threat' posed by AI is not that it will replace us, but that we will come more closely to resemble robots in our thoughts, behaviours, and opinions.</div></blockquote><div>You can already see similar transformations play out in the worlds of pop music and movies: the ability to (relatively) simply produce anything within the bounds of our imaginations has resulted in a regression to the mean, creating soulless pap to appeal to the lowest common denominator. Generations who grow up knowing nothing other than these mediated mediocre media come to accept them as the norm, which will shape their own expectations, thoughts, and behaviour (this has already happened to expectations of sex as a result of easily-available hardcore pornography).</div><div><br /></div><div>It's depressing, but it's going to happen. And there's nothing we can do to stop it.</div><div><br /></div><div>But it won't happen for a while (and it might make sense for anyone writing about this topic to first have a play with the tools and discover the current state of the art).</div><div><br /></div><div>Regular readers of this blog will know that <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/search/label/artificial%20intelligence">I've posted a fair bit about AI</a> (I really didn't set out to do this but... rabbit holes), and I have set up <a href="http://mycoleum.uk/" target="_blank">The Mycoleum</a> shop for T-shirts etc. featuring images shamelessly generated by AI.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is the flowering of a lifelong quest to get computers to <i>surprise me</i>. When I started programming in the early 80s, my best friend was the random number generator. I used it to choose and combine, and was delighted every time the computer gave back something which I hadn't explicitly asked for...</div><div><br /></div><div>I lapped up Stephen Levy's book Artificial Life when it came out in 1992. I played with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flocking_(behavior)#Algorithm" target="_blank">flocking algorithms</a> and developed variations on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sorcerer%27s_Cave" target="_blank">Sorcerer's Cave board game</a>, generating random labyrinths and caves filled with arbitrary monsters and treasure. Sadly these, and my visual "flashperiments", are no longer usable since Steve Jobs killed off the App Store's biggest rival, Adobe Flash. But a couple of years ago I resurrected Flashperiments in the form of a JavaScript music visualiser, used to create this video for my friend Will's track Ice (inspired by the Donna Kavan novel of the same name):</div><div><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rdbgckSmlAo" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>Most recently, I created the Twitter bot <a href="https://twitter.com/deitygalaxy" target="_blank">Nanodeities</a>, which populates templates with selections from a long list of possibilities. By nesting templates within templates within template within... turtles, the possibilities are virtually limitless, and yet each is generating by combining words and phrases which I typed out myself.</div><div><br /></div><div>AI is the realisation of my lifetime's dream: finally, a computer can awe me with its unexpected creativity. Or rather, "creativity". Anyway, I can finally get a computer to go to places I truly would never have dreamed of.</div><div><br /></div><div>And this phrase, "would never have dreamed of", is key. In the world of the Mycoleum, unpredictability is a feature. For most commercial creators, it is a bug.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Mycoleum works because it is a world of unimaginable fantasy, inscrutable, understood only by the mushroom-folks who live there. It's almost impossible to express just how surprised I am by the computer's responses to my prompts. But what becomes clearer, with each picture that I try to coax out of it, is how little of my prompt it "understands". This is best demonstrated with examples (all made using <a href="https://midjourney.com/" target="_blank">Midjourney</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div>I noticed today that somebody on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/YoonSuin/" target="_blank">the Yoon Suin reddit</a> had posted an AI image of a crab-man. So I decided to make one of a slug-man. Below are the images generated, labelled with the prompts that generated them (minus my special sauce that makes the style of a keeping with my other AI images):</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdgvQv98k-vUuRADbkPWiF7Dy9SBERlsZrvenPhtI8iJ2NDg5s9V_1fcuV--PA1XWb9Q5VCRn5XFp-QztEBGOaeG8EwDfSLeJ_BgfZnbnHSIvc9TIhWp-PjjR7LeEZqh8mejGUm-etQMypWxpYU98CUFH2htLy_maXtESw8kwbV81qfmf7f8gwMD5d9g/s580/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_the_decadent_slug-man__f4291bd8-bafc-41e3-8416-a00733cad8ea.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdgvQv98k-vUuRADbkPWiF7Dy9SBERlsZrvenPhtI8iJ2NDg5s9V_1fcuV--PA1XWb9Q5VCRn5XFp-QztEBGOaeG8EwDfSLeJ_BgfZnbnHSIvc9TIhWp-PjjR7LeEZqh8mejGUm-etQMypWxpYU98CUFH2htLy_maXtESw8kwbV81qfmf7f8gwMD5d9g/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_the_decadent_slug-man__f4291bd8-bafc-41e3-8416-a00733cad8ea.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div>The decadent slug-man ruler of Yoon Suin</div></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div>The computer seems to have completely ignored the "slug" part of my prompt here, and gone with the slightly racist assumption that "Yoon Suin" must be some Fu Manchu-type character. I'll ditch that bit, and focus more on making my ruler more slug-like...</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoeGt_-Y9QN01N3a9nCEJdLkM7NnUEKHF6kqaD0AqS1Nei0qjGRteTO0F26eoXTXgJ8mmB0Ces8FWzY6NsGW9mfRQgsLttZ9rJhThO_xHt7ydRsW0hUh9b8BRezJjdxHkJ0n--zwkBWpMjTxEnzlN5uJwOKmThN3Lg5i6yk2J7ogp1FWGlU1YFcbO_1g/s580/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_half-man_half-slug_e_de01cb88-70b9-4819-841f-cbd11dc7b4cf.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoeGt_-Y9QN01N3a9nCEJdLkM7NnUEKHF6kqaD0AqS1Nei0qjGRteTO0F26eoXTXgJ8mmB0Ces8FWzY6NsGW9mfRQgsLttZ9rJhThO_xHt7ydRsW0hUh9b8BRezJjdxHkJ0n--zwkBWpMjTxEnzlN5uJwOKmThN3Lg5i6yk2J7ogp1FWGlU1YFcbO_1g/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_half-man_half-slug_e_de01cb88-70b9-4819-841f-cbd11dc7b4cf.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">A half-man half-slug emperor</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>Still not seeing a lot of slug in this; wearing a slug is not the same as being a slug. Let's be more specific about the body parts I'm after...</div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdivjGUTM6J0nyjoatpsQe_CfQD5QMwTdteI_CKgi_-66P8hmBlleoqHLlbtrNXNH543PLci5oxJXbGfOxItwMsQhkIsVxz1ynCTFeEAPHcdFqAhDtqfpXs60PerFpLHohIZf830j_f9sQBH-Dy_uD4vGqQdS4FN0oABn5F3bDiRMAYu7vkc5sk2VZ-A/s580/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_emperor_with_the_to_d90c8cfa-87dc-4351-8982-96eee9550bf9.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdivjGUTM6J0nyjoatpsQe_CfQD5QMwTdteI_CKgi_-66P8hmBlleoqHLlbtrNXNH543PLci5oxJXbGfOxItwMsQhkIsVxz1ynCTFeEAPHcdFqAhDtqfpXs60PerFpLHohIZf830j_f9sQBH-Dy_uD4vGqQdS4FN0oABn5F3bDiRMAYu7vkc5sk2VZ-A/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_an_emperor_with_the_to_d90c8cfa-87dc-4351-8982-96eee9550bf9.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An emperor with the torso and head of a man and the hindquarters of a slug<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>Oh FFS. I've no idea what's going on here. Perhaps I should ditch the "man" part entirely because, come to think of it, I'm not really after a slug-centaur, just some kind of slug-with-personality. Let's try...</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2WVlG188fj_okmpoKXK-5tqxxahwIGZ9TpUk7pZNSLysXYNFRau9-oM-t5zZakX_VdZWMYcBHhxHEuPd4dTPuONDto99vbRz1ajHfY-cbwPxfUiCtq1vQMjxppfhfNJfEKHQfyBudyma3_qfdVSoAuSriq8XDgANJV0LbvKySbpadHVCGuDOOdJ-02Q/s580/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_slug_emperor_10b24eff-ef6b-4222-8afd-60fc3ba7c16b.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2WVlG188fj_okmpoKXK-5tqxxahwIGZ9TpUk7pZNSLysXYNFRau9-oM-t5zZakX_VdZWMYcBHhxHEuPd4dTPuONDto99vbRz1ajHfY-cbwPxfUiCtq1vQMjxppfhfNJfEKHQfyBudyma3_qfdVSoAuSriq8XDgANJV0LbvKySbpadHVCGuDOOdJ-02Q/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_slug_emperor_10b24eff-ef6b-4222-8afd-60fc3ba7c16b.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A slug emperor</td></tr></tbody></table><div> You call those slugs??? I see frog, I see tortoise (at a stretch, if I squint, it could be a snail). I see aphid, iguana... bugger all slug. At this point I have zero expectations of success, but I'll see what happens if I add a bit of human back into the mix...</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbPZ-CRKwHIesq0RpXQnOZ01WiM10PGiYYT6SQDdvmgerDs_7lXifj3aQY4Agua1hDXhl86yVO7fskuHx2SPh5GEimvSFno9wy8THRBqFYThBnXbVjBmfmQLY_OX1rXXNMkHIAvX8zD5z9419vrKOzkuXRp314T60fkA5eVAZVoljenWUb16ZcFnEHXg/s580/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_humanoid_slug_empero_234eba88-bcd9-403e-b723-97b72c9b9df3.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbPZ-CRKwHIesq0RpXQnOZ01WiM10PGiYYT6SQDdvmgerDs_7lXifj3aQY4Agua1hDXhl86yVO7fskuHx2SPh5GEimvSFno9wy8THRBqFYThBnXbVjBmfmQLY_OX1rXXNMkHIAvX8zD5z9419vrKOzkuXRp314T60fkA5eVAZVoljenWUb16ZcFnEHXg/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_humanoid_slug_empero_234eba88-bcd9-403e-b723-97b72c9b9df3.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">A humanoid slug emperor.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>No, no, no, no, no, no, no. NO!</div><div><br /></div><div>This "artifical intelligence" simply does not speak my language. It recognises the odd word, but not how sentences work. I am painfully reminded of the time I outsourced the building of a website to India and what I got back was... well, I've no idea what it was, everything got lost in translation. (I should add that this was over 20 years ago, things have changed a lot; in fact, I am collaborating with Bangalore-based <a href="https://twitter.com/flightofsand" target="_blank">Jayaprakash Satyamurthy</a> on <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/10/kittens-knights.html">King Arthur vs Devil Kitty</a>, and I would recommend him without hesitation to anyone looking for editorial assistance; his novel <a href="https://www.lulu.com/shop/jayaprakash-satyamurthy/strength-of-water/paperback/product-24303960.html?page=1&pageSize=4" target="_blank">Strength of Water</a> and his short story collection <a href="https://amzn.to/3XdVDTx" target="_blank">Weird Tales of a Bangalorean</a> are also excellent).</div><div><br /></div><div>The slug-emperor attempts were portraits, which is actually one of the things that AI does best (see elf-maiden pic above). As soon as other elements are introduced, you're more likely to roll a 1 on a d10,000 than you are to get what you want. Describing a scene and having the AI render anything even <i>vaguely</i> approaching what you had in mind: forget it. Yesterday I spent an hour trying to get it to draw an oak sapling growing beneath a gorse bush. It couldn't even draw a gorse bush. Even with very simple bog standard D&D prompts, it fails: </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Y1Va0lxxsLunyUHz5kPD_iK5GW1kzPJvmCxv1pfo-Fzkv_hp0yI7UQFjhvKNN3ctfAoLSXbf3tMlydZtePYwFbi4LYwJUk7v2TxcXyoxaAspv8xA0ohCtYUxRkrrDt7mzaNSplNnhaTu8qpV8LSQENcRunfkvUPxYfmVOqreVT_yb42O3Xzhq0zI9w/s580/dansumption_DD_magic_user_casting_fireball_at_an_orc_ffb26307-386d-4cb4-aa29-b03870a22961.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Y1Va0lxxsLunyUHz5kPD_iK5GW1kzPJvmCxv1pfo-Fzkv_hp0yI7UQFjhvKNN3ctfAoLSXbf3tMlydZtePYwFbi4LYwJUk7v2TxcXyoxaAspv8xA0ohCtYUxRkrrDt7mzaNSplNnhaTu8qpV8LSQENcRunfkvUPxYfmVOqreVT_yb42O3Xzhq0zI9w/s320/dansumption_DD_magic_user_casting_fireball_at_an_orc_ffb26307-386d-4cb4-aa29-b03870a22961.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">D&D magic-user casting fireball at an orc</td></tr></tbody></table><div>When I started writing the adventure <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2021/08/ship-of-theseus.html">Ship of Theseus</a> (now Ship of Thorsus) I had planned to use royalty-free art from <a href="http://oldbookillustrations.com">oldbookillustrations.com</a>. The images I sourced were scarcely representative of the adventure content, and they were also used across many other OSR games and zines, but they were free. Once I started playing with AI art, I figured I could use that to generate images which were also free, but which were original and which more closely matched the adventure content. Could the AI draw a Viking ship whose every inch of surface bristled with vicious thorns? Could it heck as like.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF4sPrh1dsDK7uAd1jNPL-bxIVUDpdwDYcW1gMFP2UF9RGHhN2E4DSX4B7MuCRY11vhyDztne2vXTOokyHHzyIFrmaGo6zTn9hJ0AulhR89UjUVi88bbdsLpTcK1hPkA8LX85ToLQOVdeqOtxsmYSJTpHPP-J3OeZw3vuKkO7PAmHKI6QIpfCuZJy41w/s580/dansumption_a_viking_ship_made_of_thorns_d30fb5ea-007a-4125-bb27-3701b9814aed.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF4sPrh1dsDK7uAd1jNPL-bxIVUDpdwDYcW1gMFP2UF9RGHhN2E4DSX4B7MuCRY11vhyDztne2vXTOokyHHzyIFrmaGo6zTn9hJ0AulhR89UjUVi88bbdsLpTcK1hPkA8LX85ToLQOVdeqOtxsmYSJTpHPP-J3OeZw3vuKkO7PAmHKI6QIpfCuZJy41w/s320/dansumption_a_viking_ship_made_of_thorns_d30fb5ea-007a-4125-bb27-3701b9814aed.png" width="320" /></a></div><div>There is certainly an art to crafting prompts for the AI, but even the most artful prompt-crafter in the world would struggle to get an AI to paint a scene like "the slugman emperor of Yoon Suin riding on a palanquin borne by crabmen through dusty streets lined with obsequious crowds of humans; the emperor bears a sceptre and an ivory back-scratcher".</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO36Kkg-e0rwXxNs6TRFhiedB-DU239NMhE-iERL7Yk5HxYJBRnHqVS2WviqOHrBNiSokEslFI5gxaU5W6D0W4x6NG7wJ_s4dtGmXOa0PBj2SKt6hFw44Xok3X6qBFcl4DnRDOvGwGs60qd5gvyyZYamXSIS0uwfP13vquZP06qibE_3SqNcnZEyjrJg/s1536/dansumption_the_slugman_emperor_of_Yoon_Suin_riding_on_a_palanq_008af529-9288-46dd-858c-d4c36545305c.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO36Kkg-e0rwXxNs6TRFhiedB-DU239NMhE-iERL7Yk5HxYJBRnHqVS2WviqOHrBNiSokEslFI5gxaU5W6D0W4x6NG7wJ_s4dtGmXOa0PBj2SKt6hFw44Xok3X6qBFcl4DnRDOvGwGs60qd5gvyyZYamXSIS0uwfP13vquZP06qibE_3SqNcnZEyjrJg/s320/dansumption_the_slugman_emperor_of_Yoon_Suin_riding_on_a_palanq_008af529-9288-46dd-858c-d4c36545305c.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">the slugman emperor of Yoon Suin riding on a palanquin borne by crabmen through dusty streets lined with obsequious crowds of humans; the emperor bears a sceptre and an ivory back-scratcher.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>This is the current state of play. But it will change. How long before an AI is able to approximate a scene in the manner in which its overlord intends? It could be anything between a year and twenty years, but I would estimate around 5.</div><div><br /></div><div>Once that happens, the Borg will have arrived.</div><div> </div><div><i>By the way, over at my personal blog I've just posted <a href="https://sumption.org/2023/01/13/a-year-in-englands-last-wilderness/" target="_blank">a look back over the (mostly) non-gaming aspects of my last year</a>. I also have <a href="https://peakrill.substack.com/" target="_blank">a new email newsletter</a>.</i></div>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-64257492780900803842023-01-05T22:38:00.005+00:002023-01-05T22:38:51.308+00:00Favourite books of 2022<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-9B6J8vmofXZ8VLVs_99RqB4WIQZScXHvqovKHXG7UhxyPtDgTmTSgVrf8N3E0gWWcS4Z_Y-lQdy8C7PfAsA7OAvzSjlPPZ09Q1AgHM6qXx6WvLOl1R0AL8roVxtpWP2bIDUCSGCMaaMdgdzPqC1EykvTvXv2_4_hCo6xtJQ1MgzdCkODoehgT503g/s4032/PXL_20230104_162332728.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-9B6J8vmofXZ8VLVs_99RqB4WIQZScXHvqovKHXG7UhxyPtDgTmTSgVrf8N3E0gWWcS4Z_Y-lQdy8C7PfAsA7OAvzSjlPPZ09Q1AgHM6qXx6WvLOl1R0AL8roVxtpWP2bIDUCSGCMaaMdgdzPqC1EykvTvXv2_4_hCo6xtJQ1MgzdCkODoehgT503g/s320/PXL_20230104_162332728.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">some good books</td></tr></tbody></table>This is just a blog post to send you to another blog post. I have a personal blog which I post to roughly once per year (it's been running for nearly 22 years now, so is older than some of the readers of this blog).</p><p>Over on t'other place I've just posted a list of <a href="https://sumption.org/2023/01/05/2022_best_books_novels_non_fiction/" target="_blank">my favourite books of 2022</a>.</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-39322665356118822352023-01-02T16:48:00.001+00:002023-01-02T16:48:15.109+00:00Cadero 002: West Plaza<p> (Yesterday's post, and today's, may have given the impression that I'll be posting these daily on my blog; I won't).</p><p>Here's today's entry - you'll have to read my scrawl as I've not time to type it up (actually, typing it up is the easy part, it's the temptation to edit that is the real time-killer):</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjcvIdHuF928JfI9PwUzuwUJ715YYj658Ie3X0ClxaW2ynfRmkeB074xJBGDFcZwcnqdGqp2P4lkCxegghqqSvzUoPPQ31myM9xZv9YWGi1mMO9dRrPQ2OTvnVYJ_3CBH87ThUF3ri4IpmRR7cm_uHD065Z1n_IxasHatTWVoYP6uPtPoJa5ALDapAg/s4032/PXL_20230102_144440269.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjcvIdHuF928JfI9PwUzuwUJ715YYj658Ie3X0ClxaW2ynfRmkeB074xJBGDFcZwcnqdGqp2P4lkCxegghqqSvzUoPPQ31myM9xZv9YWGi1mMO9dRrPQ2OTvnVYJ_3CBH87ThUF3ri4IpmRR7cm_uHD065Z1n_IxasHatTWVoYP6uPtPoJa5ALDapAg/s320/PXL_20230102_144440269.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p>And here's the spark table for LICENSED PICKPOCKETS in the Cadero mall:</p><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" dir="ltr" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><colgroup><col width="40"></col><col width="200"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":1}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">1</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"1 Barely detectable"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Urchin (£ d4)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"1 Lemon"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">"Oh look! Over there!"</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":2}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">2</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"2 Rather pleasant"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Shellsuiter (£ d10)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"2 Rose"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Bumps into you and bellows "OOPS! SORRY" in a deranged voice</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":3}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">3</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"3 Smoky"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Monstrosity in disguise (£ d20)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"3 Vetiver"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Drops shopping all over the place</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":4}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">4</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"4 Cloying"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Spiv (£ d100)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"4 Patchouli"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Ability to shift self by 10ft</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":5}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">5</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"5 Sneeze-inducing"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Hipster (£ d100 x 2)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"5 Tea tree"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Almost invisible</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":6}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">6</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"6 Slightly poisonous (d2 damage)"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Aristo (£ d100 x 20)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"6 Sewage"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Has a very cute pet</td></tr></tbody></table>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-85136815850458689012023-01-01T19:58:00.013+00:002023-01-01T20:19:21.518+00:00Nobody Asked for This!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOfjIf47Vnp0MXmzvUkZMyZ18t5WBbcX7KetPh16L9Y95wfdx6yIzkbuhGbrMsU0K9gYKcThQ3JcHSEeBCUUncANTa3__25JLlENXzrOmMtj5qc8APHGUY683O721rewTouJg5dVK65FXd1EwAUTdhnnyMp4V1xBg7PJOOqoJsq9dyPiCYZPZ_gyE-wg/s1014/IMG_20221218_063833_578.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1014" data-original-width="1014" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOfjIf47Vnp0MXmzvUkZMyZ18t5WBbcX7KetPh16L9Y95wfdx6yIzkbuhGbrMsU0K9gYKcThQ3JcHSEeBCUUncANTa3__25JLlENXzrOmMtj5qc8APHGUY683O721rewTouJg5dVK65FXd1EwAUTdhnnyMp4V1xBg7PJOOqoJsq9dyPiCYZPZ_gyE-wg/s320/IMG_20221218_063833_578.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>I have a new email newsletter!</p><p>The more observant of you may have noticed that I also have an old email newsletter (sign-up boxes to the right and to the bottom of this post). This new one is utterly different.</p><p>It’s called <a href="https://peakrill.substack.com/" target="_blank">Dan Sumption’s Mycoleum Mind</a>, and each week I post a short idea. Sometimes a particular way of looking at the universe, other times a lifehack, or just some gentle advice. Very importantly, it will always be <b>short</b>. You ought to be able to read it in a minute or less. <a href="https://peakrill.substack.com/p/less-is-more">I explain why here</a>.</p><p>I have posted three emails to the list so far, so take a <a href="https://peakrill.substack.com/archive" target="_blank">look at the archive</a> for a better idea of what I’ll be writing about. If you like it, please sign up. It’s free (the Substack website will probably try to push you into buying a paid subscription; ignore that). </p><p>The <i>old</i> Peakrill Press newsletter (sign up boxes on the right and on the bottom of this page!) will still remain, but I will use it for very infrequent posts about Peakrill projects. <i>Dan Sumption’s Mycoleum Mind</i> is a completely different kettle of mushrooms.</p><p>While I’m here, I’ve noticed a questionnaire doing the rounds which people are calling Questions Nobody Asked Me. Bizarrely, I first saw one just after deciding to title this post “Nobody Asked For This”. So below are some other things you didn't ask me (Because <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2020/07/i-played-d-as-kid.html">I took a 30-year sabbatical from roleplaying</a>, answering some of these was a bit tricky).</p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p><b>First store where you bought a an RPG?</b></p><p>It will have been either Games Unlimited in Kingston, or Games Workshop in Hammersmith. Both sadly gone long long long although, as I'm sure you're aware, Games Workshop still exists in a highly bastardised form that has almost nothing to do with the Dalling Road Store road and Tim, the lovely Canadian guy who used to run it.</p><p><b>Favourite RPG game world?</b></p><p>The older I get, the harder it becomes to pick a "favourite" anything. If you'd asked me this 30 years ago, the answer would definitely have been the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplaying world: it was humorous and British, both things in short supply in RPG-land. Nowadays, I guess Bastionland</p><p><b>A published NPC who has made a lasting impression on you</b></p><p>Erm.</p><p>I guess that means none of them have. Although the name "Wanda Weltschmerz" has been stuck in my head for several decades (she was a PC though, from the WFRP adventure Death on the Reik).</p><p>Actually, scratch that. The Giant, from DCO.</p><p><b>First RPG you bought from its creator</b></p><p>No idea, but it was probably this century.</p><p><b>RPG you've played the most</b></p><p>AD&D, almost certainly, but all of it last century. This century it must surely be BECMI D&D, purely because of noisms' regular-as-clockwork(ish) <a href="http://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2021/09/the-three-mile-tree-campaign-update-1.html" target="_blank">Three Mile Tree</a> games.</p><p><b>A favourite RPG character you've played</b></p><p>Circa 1985 I rolled a dwarf with 4 intelligence, and I had a hell of a lot of fun playing him (and pissing off the other players). Not long after that I entered a play-by-mail game, the name of which I've forgotten, with a character called Vizbamboom, a vegetarian chaos necromancer. Vegetarian because he though that eating meat is a waste of bloody good corpses! He collected dead cats, and drank a lot of tea. Playing Viz was fun! </p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;">Wait, wait, wait wait, no no no, how could I forget about <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2020/07/the-adventures-of-bleaklow-part-1.html">Bleaklow</a>? Bleaklow was the best! I hope I get to play him again some time. </p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p><b>The RPG you've spent the most money on but never played</b></p><p>Probably one of two comics spin-offs that I bought in the 1980s: either the <i>Elfquest RPG</i> or <i>Teenage Mutant Ninja Heroes and Other Strangeness</i>. I was about to add TSR's <i>Top Secret</i>, but I think I actually played that one.</p><p><b>Favourite RPG for its art</b></p><p>I hate hate hate mainstream RPG art. Stuff I love... I can't think of a particular game, but there is <i>so</i> much good art coming out of the indie gaming community at the moment, the best of which is so closely bound up with the feel of a location that it is as essential to is as the text: Scrap Princess's work with Patrick Stuart, Munkao's illustrations to Thousand Thousand Islands, Alec Sorenson's illustrations for Electric Bastionland. Also, although it's not entirely my cup of tea, visually everything about Mörk Borg is just perfect. </p><p><b>Favourite RPG for its writing</b></p><p>Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. I'm not sure I would stand by this now, but when it was first published in the mid-80s it was such a breath of fresh air (mainly because it had jokes in it). For the second half of the 80s, Warhammer was <i>my</i> game, and that is almost entirely down to the writing. Nowadays, anything written by Patrick Stuart gets my immediate attention.</p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p><b>Have you played a journaling game?</b></p><p>Yes, but only once or twice, I would love to do it more often. I had a lot of fun playing Solitary Defilement, the solo version of Mörk Borg. My favourite thing about the directed-writing required by journaling games is that they provide a context and prompts for creative writing. Sometimes I may take something written during a journaling game and repurpose it for a different context. </p><p><b>Have you played a hexcrawl?</b></p><p>Probably.</p><p><b>Have you designed a dungeon?</b></p><p>A fair few of them. Very few of which I've had the chance to inflict on players.</p><p><b>Have you played a LARP?</b></p><p>I went to Labyrinthe down Chislehurst Caves a 3 or 4 times in the mid/late 80s. About a decade later I saw some folks running around with rubber swords in a wood on the Wirral and though "oh, folks do that outdoors now, do they?" I've been very slightly tempted a few times since, and last year promised a friend that I would come to one of his Empire LRP meetups. So I guess that'll happen. </p><p><b>Favourite object one of you characters has owned</b></p><p>A swimming pool. (When our party finished the TSR A-series, we took over the slavers' fort and flooded the dungeon layer so that we could have our own swimming pool.</p><p><b>Memorable relationship one of your characters has had</b></p><p>I'm sure I could come up with many, given time, but I think the most memorable was between Starmoss, the half-elven ranger I started playing on my 30-year return to D&D, and the rest of his party. There really was something special about that campaign, the players, and the player-characters, it generated incredible camaraderie.</p><p><b>Do you collect RPGs by a certain designer?</b></p><p>Not sure about "collect", but I will buy anything written by Patrick Stuart (I really tried to resist the £50 reprint of his blog, but caved just as the Kickstarter was about to close). </p><p><b>RPG you really want to play in 2023</b></p><p>Brindlewood Bay</p><p><b>Most memorable monster/villain you've confronted</b></p><p>Most memorable villain was actually another PC, in the same campaign where I played Starmoss. Hellerin (I think that was her name) was the absolute essence of Lawful Evil, and her player roleplayed her to perfection - in fact, the best roleplaying I've ever encountered. Everyone in the party knew that she was evil, but she was just so bloody effective at getting things done that we couldn't get rid of her. </p><p><b>Ever experienced bleed?</b></p><p>Huh?</p><p><b>How did you get into RPGs?</b></p><p>New Year's Day, 1980. A Woodcraft Folk hike. My friend Joel told me about this game, Dungeons and Dragons, which one of the older boys Jono played. I asked Jono about it, and the next three-hours or so of the walk passed in a blur as Jono, Joel and I talked about all of the things you can do in Dungeons and Dragons. I got Jono to run a game as soon as possible and, about a week later, I played for the first time. And my magic user was, in almost no time, killed by a manticore. </p></blockquote><p>Now don’t forget to head over and subscribe to <a href="https://peakrill.substack.com/" target="_blank">Dan Sumption’s Mycoleum Mind</a>.</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-45662565587211742162023-01-01T16:49:00.002+00:002023-01-01T19:00:20.246+00:00Cadero 1: The Entrance Hall<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJrDIAkRMHZ3hr-DhcOnfZ8kgYlovYvL_Kwwv6RqleI5U-zpgwgjga6f23V30T3Ii0QeBhJ8y6QrmaoGN5FVHPhCxZIJdFl-lwJLnb4F1XRu_bpw7kDLkMvHrs800Qj1Q-MsWozXdTOg8um23vIG8065VtKbtPUjsD65ck5fYPpG_iWy9S9ICVxD-boQ/s4032/PXL_20230101_153032357.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJrDIAkRMHZ3hr-DhcOnfZ8kgYlovYvL_Kwwv6RqleI5U-zpgwgjga6f23V30T3Ii0QeBhJ8y6QrmaoGN5FVHPhCxZIJdFl-lwJLnb4F1XRu_bpw7kDLkMvHrs800Qj1Q-MsWozXdTOg8um23vIG8065VtKbtPUjsD65ck5fYPpG_iWy9S9ICVxD-boQ/s320/PXL_20230101_153032357.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entrance to The Cadero</td></tr></tbody></table>As per <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/12/dungeon23.html">yesterday's post</a>, this is my first #Dungeon23 entry.<span><a name='more'></a></span><h2 style="text-align: left;">001: Entrance to The Cadero</h2><div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Up a short flight of steps are <b>two huge revolving doors</b>; the left one is jammed and the right one is moving <i>very </i>slowly. There is a long queue of SHOPPERS waiting to get in. It takes 3d6 minutes to reach the front of the queue. </li><li>Above the revolving doors is a <b>large TCT monogram</b>. The same design is repeated on the glass of the doors and elsewhere inside the mall.</li><li>Once inside, the <b>huge vaulted glass-and-bakelite hall</b> is around 30 feet wide, some 100 feet long, and very high. The sides are frosted glass and from behind them are projected moving silhouettes of shoppers striding up and down with their shopping bags. The results are disorientating, especially given the large number of <i>actual</i> SHOPPERS walking through the hall.</li><li>Just inside the revolving doors are <b>vents blasting warm scented air</b> from above and below. The air smells of:</li></ul><div><google-sheets-html-origin><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" dir="ltr" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><colgroup><col width="40"></col><col width="200"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":1}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">1</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"1 Barely detectable"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Barely detectable</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"1 Lemon"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Lemon</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":2}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">2</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"2 Rather pleasant"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Rather pleasant</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"2 Rose"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Rose</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":3}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">3</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"3 Smoky"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Smoky</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"3 Vetiver"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Vetiver</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":4}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">4</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"4 Cloying"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Cloying</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"4 Patchouli"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Patchouli</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":5}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">5</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"5 Sneeze-inducing"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Sneeze-inducing</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"5 Tea tree"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Tea tree</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":6}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">6</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"6 Slightly poisonous (d2 damage)"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Slightly poisonous (d2 damage)</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"6 Sewage"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Sewage</td></tr></tbody></table></google-sheets-html-origin></div></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Around a third of the way into the hall, subtly cut into the walls on either side, are two frosted glass doors, 10 feet square. Each is locked, and has a numeric keypad. The northern one opens using the code 1234. The southern one opens with the code 4223. Neatly painted on the southern door is “CODE: 4223”. When unlocked, the doors can swing both ways.</li><li>About halfway along the entrance hall, a few inches from the outer walls, are a pair of short glass barriers, six feet high, each crackling with internal electricity. These are intended to catch shoplifters: when any stolen goods pass between the barriers, an electric force-field is thrown up across the hallway, preventing exit. They are currently:</li></ul><google-sheets-html-origin><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" dir="ltr" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; table-layout: fixed; width: 0px;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><colgroup><col width="40"></col><col width="350"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-numberformat="{"1":5,"2":"d-m","3":1}" data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":44958}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">1-2</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"Working as intended"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Working as intended</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-numberformat="{"1":5,"2":"d-m","3":1}" data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":44987}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">2-3</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"Not working at all"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Not working at all</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-numberformat="{"1":5,"2":"d-m","3":1}" data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":45082}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">5-6</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"Faulty, and cause d3 damage to anyone passing through"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Faulty, and cause d3 damage to anyone passing nearby</td></tr></tbody></table></google-sheets-html-origin><div><b>Exits</b>: </div><div><div>← Revolving door to the street</div><div>→ Arch into the mall itself</div><div>↑ Looked glass door to northern service corridor</div><div>↓ Locked glass door to southern service corridor</div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><div><i>SHOPPER<br />STR 10, DEX 10, WIL 10, 2HP, d4 handbag attack<br />Encountered throughout the mall. Use <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/12/dungeon23.html">the table here</a> to determine why they are here. You can conjure each shopper from your own imagination, or use the following table:</i></div><div><br /></div><div><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" dir="ltr" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><colgroup><col width="40"></col><col width="200"></col><col width="150"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":1}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">1</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"1 Barely detectable"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Irritated</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"1 Lemon"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Upstanding citizen</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":2}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">2</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"2 Rather pleasant"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Confused</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"2 Rose"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Disaffected teen</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":3}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">3</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"3 Smoky"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Determined</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"3 Vetiver"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Sneaky type</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":4}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">4</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"4 Cloying"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Weary</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"4 Patchouli"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Socialite</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":5}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">5</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"5 Sneeze-inducing"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Head-in-the-clouds</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"5 Tea tree"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Old person</td></tr><tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="{"1":3,"3":6}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;">6</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"6 Slightly poisonous (d2 damage)"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Angry</td><td data-sheets-value="{"1":2,"2":"6 Sewage"}" style="border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); overflow: hidden; padding: 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Mockery</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div></div><div><h2>Some thoughts</h2><div><p>As this is my first location for #Dungeon23, there was a bit of a learning curve. Firstly, I had to decide on how to format the entry. I took some tips from noisms' <a href="https://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2022/12/on-dungeon23-and-correct-way-to-write.html">The Correct Way to Write Dungeon Room Descriptions</a>, but mostly I went with something similar to that used in <a href="https://www.bastionland.com/" target="_blank">Chris McDowall's</a> Iron Coral. Features of the location appear as bullet points, with <b>bold used</b> for the bits most immediately obvious, and all potential encounters IN UPPERCASE. Next, exits are listed in the format below, and finally encounter details are fleshed out.<br />↑ North<br />↓ South<br />← East<br />→ West<br />⇈ Up<br />⇊ Down</p></div></div></div><div>Mapping was also painful. As the 3D aspect of this location is quite important, rather than going with a straight floorplan I drew an isometric image similar to the one at the top of this post. It was rubbish. So I wasted ages trying out various dungeon-drawing software (all rubbish) and then wasted even more time trying out various architectural software (all either rubbish or expensive). I'm not sure what the maps will look like going forward, I may have to get in touch with my old employer Autodesk and see if I can use their <a href="https://www.autodesk.co.uk/products/revit/" target="_blank">Revit software</a>. Total overkill, but kinda fun, and I could make some lovely 3D models of the entire mall once the year's over.</div><div></div>
dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-1845219125940007242022-12-31T17:12:00.008+00:002023-01-01T20:20:12.796+00:00#Dungeon23<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Qw4lDS7L9NE7WA0RowqoQurMcO-qZ6L-vSN_EuFnrIPfliQ-TsfKHttPGP4t8zgrdHIHj-1zDmmqFkVAd8LCiGU3EMCeqztsOYSl1pWtPIkYC1Gq5ROKuLTkPa_CAqyE7cPgcgG58CYuNUzdVDICTGBssUTCiBJvF1fGJZgW87GPe-pCLgkVEK2izw/s1024/dansumption_1920s_photo_of_the_interior_of_a_tall_domed_retro_s_3488e364-ab0f-4a47-8a38-c23d6fc09e7e.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Qw4lDS7L9NE7WA0RowqoQurMcO-qZ6L-vSN_EuFnrIPfliQ-TsfKHttPGP4t8zgrdHIHj-1zDmmqFkVAd8LCiGU3EMCeqztsOYSl1pWtPIkYC1Gq5ROKuLTkPa_CAqyE7cPgcgG58CYuNUzdVDICTGBssUTCiBJvF1fGJZgW87GPe-pCLgkVEK2izw/s320/dansumption_1920s_photo_of_the_interior_of_a_tall_domed_retro_s_3488e364-ab0f-4a47-8a38-c23d6fc09e7e.png" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><a href="http://maziriansgarden.blogspot.com/2022/12/megadungeon-2023.html">#Dungeon23</a> is about making a megadungeon throughout 2023, one location per day. I'm joining in.</p><p>Like photo-a-day, selfie-a-month, and landscape-painting-a-fortnight activities I've joined before, I expect this fad to last no more than a few days. But perhaps 2023 will be different?</p><p>You see, last night I had an idea. An idea for <b>an Electric Bastionland megadungeon</b>.</p><p></p><blockquote><p>9 months ago, noted surgical-tools magnate The Very Mentionable Theophilus Q. Trocad Snr., lost his only daughter, Madamoiselle Cadero I. Trocad III, due to a tragic accident during her 47th plastic surgery operation. “The World will not forget my Cadero’s name”, Trocad told an assembly of press and radio journalists at the time, “you will all see, I shall build an incomparable public monument to her memory, This <i>shall</i> be my great gift to humanity, to the people of Bastion. <i>This </i>will show that Cadero <i>did not</i> die in vain.”</p><p>After 9 months under a very large dustsheet, the latest addition to Bastion's downtown shopping district has been revealed: THE CADERO, a bulbous monolith (a little like a bakelite version of the Sage Gateshead) housing a bloated shopping mall.</p><p>The Cadero is 416 feet high and about half-a-mile long, with 365 locations across 8 levels above ground (including 3 shopping galleries and a private members’ club) and 3 basement levels (with a not-at-all-hard-to-navigate car park, and easy-ish connections across Bastion, via the Underground). Everything you desire, all under one roof! (Please note, due to delays with contractors the Gorkinson’s Department Store in the East Wing is not yet open).</p></blockquote><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-rzaoprUCJ5sebA5BiaUrLMezks5cHIBkQN1ucZfMRD6yGB3nS9Ont638BZQk79nsUHHJ9TjSDsbhOZPjzC3rG_1HhLi9kBlMiCeYiTqT0uv9upw27R4v66EFA7QR6-b3x4He7N2qL_tuoU9XhZtUeEcDh5XHzyHu8AkrQ5TOtxteqxBzrpTK0uNYQ/s4032/PXL_20221231_152710347.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-rzaoprUCJ5sebA5BiaUrLMezks5cHIBkQN1ucZfMRD6yGB3nS9Ont638BZQk79nsUHHJ9TjSDsbhOZPjzC3rG_1HhLi9kBlMiCeYiTqT0uv9upw27R4v66EFA7QR6-b3x4He7N2qL_tuoU9XhZtUeEcDh5XHzyHu8AkrQ5TOtxteqxBzrpTK0uNYQ/s320/PXL_20221231_152710347.MP.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Cadero: level 1 draft floor plan</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><h4 style="text-align: left;">What is that shopper looking for? (d66)</h4><p>11: A map of the mall<br />12: A lost child<br />13: The information desk<br />14: An escalator?<br />15: The ice rink<br />16: The car park</p><p>21: Somewhere to eat<br />22: Somewhere to drink<br />23: Somewhere to pray<br />24: A remote working space<br />25: The soft play area<br />26: Somewhere, anywhere, quiet</p><p>31: Workwear<br />32: Outdoorsy clothes<br />33: Underwear<br />34: Partywear<br />35: Surgicalwear<br />36: An item of clothing for a relative of unknown size</p><p>41: A haircut<br />42: A shoeshine<br />43: A makeover<br />44: A chiropractor<br />45: A dentist<br />46: A plastic surgeon</p><p>51: Someone who's in charge here<br />52: Security staff<br />53: A personal shopper<br />54: A mandrill mockery<br />55: A gullible passer-by<br />56: A jar of BBQ-spiced chicken stock</p><p>61: A pocket watch<br />62: A set of saucepans<br />63: A spare part for a combined gramaphone and radio set<br />64: A very particular book<br />65: Three planks of wood (assorted sizes), a hammer, and a pot of nails<br />66: Chewing gum</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgua5c3EEe8SlJx2H7Y-7uIwZwh6YigwJtqZ5WcqSVu9tBPYKBmx6rvsliXRMEo62yJMOjeu-aZrHwN_flNp9sVTmRFUuuCGrXZx8zzbkTr2TOSVNpfb8fk8ChqHhNph-e5YgCRrapA_DgAMydlxD3xPhuVwZOtvYQjKW7uBwffpcg3sFBxGk1VaeHVCw/s1024/dansumption_1920s_photo_of_an_alien_steampunk_ballroom_lit_by_a_05d45185-02e3-4959-9f32-ee3d95461384.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgua5c3EEe8SlJx2H7Y-7uIwZwh6YigwJtqZ5WcqSVu9tBPYKBmx6rvsliXRMEo62yJMOjeu-aZrHwN_flNp9sVTmRFUuuCGrXZx8zzbkTr2TOSVNpfb8fk8ChqHhNph-e5YgCRrapA_DgAMydlxD3xPhuVwZOtvYQjKW7uBwffpcg3sFBxGk1VaeHVCw/s320/dansumption_1920s_photo_of_an_alien_steampunk_ballroom_lit_by_a_05d45185-02e3-4959-9f32-ee3d95461384.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-9667349936919128152022-12-30T16:54:00.009+00:002022-12-30T17:02:39.322+00:00Mycelium Parish News<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2dOOC4GSaxjIQD27lg6PDWe6649P9Ur7UVHkxHNbxDr721WFeSl_7WkZootL6WH-mAi9J6Zkx9AvCZofFbtbHYy_K_ERKwTT9l0KK1Rf_ovW7rBBKQgNrT1iPgvMJClWSXLtIHXJ8vaQizo_tLIfZvqCRoYj5rau64BkLLqG1Pi52Qln60NnnvA7cbg/s4032/PXL_20221230_151310030.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2dOOC4GSaxjIQD27lg6PDWe6649P9Ur7UVHkxHNbxDr721WFeSl_7WkZootL6WH-mAi9J6Zkx9AvCZofFbtbHYy_K_ERKwTT9l0KK1Rf_ovW7rBBKQgNrT1iPgvMJClWSXLtIHXJ8vaQizo_tLIfZvqCRoYj5rau64BkLLqG1Pi52Qln60NnnvA7cbg/s320/PXL_20221230_151310030.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mycelium Parish News<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Earlier this year, on a walk with <a href="https://orbific.com/" target="_blank">James Burt</a>, he proposed that the two of us produce a “parish newsletter”, to let our friends know what our other friends have been up to.</p><p>James and I first met on the <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/08/cerne2cern-pilgrims-tarot.html">Cerne to CERN pilgrimage</a>. Between us and the other 69 pilgrims exist fecund networks of creative folks. But none of those folks has a full picture of what all the others have been up to.</p><p>James suggested we publish a newsletter, listing as much of the good stuff as we could track down. The result is <a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1375269979/mycelium-parish-magazine-a-2022" target="_blank">The Mycelium Parish News</a>. It features 2022's books, podcasts, radio, TV, exhibitions, theatre, videos, newsletters and more. Here's James's introduction: </p><p></p><blockquote><b>WTF is a mycelium?</b></blockquote><blockquote><p>The mycelium refers to a network of countercultural groups and events, and it’s a term we first heard through theatre-maker Daisy Campbell. In nature, a mycelial network is the inter-connections that grow between fungi. Also known as the wood-wide web, these networks allow communication between different plants in a forest. It is a brilliant metaphor for culture: the fungal threads are often hidden underground, but when they cross, then a mushroom can appear.</p><p>Our particular mycelium includes a whole jumble of things, including arts labs, Festival 23 and the Cosmic Trigger crew, as well as various fellow travellers. Common touchstones include the KLF, Robert Anton Wilson, and Discordianism (which is either a joke disguised as a religion or a religion disguised as a joke). </p><p>That explanation may not make you any the wiser. Regardless, this zine lists the work of many amazing people over the last year, and you will definitely find something of value inside that you didn’t know about before.</p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAEmEzUF5vd2mF0iwfzozxqSctrq6kHMPzSzowxGGazXR-BwU-fT0DXyL-BE8ZeEw2pDnyYoGFzCqEDdHnrss7YDu0GDsXuxgwz_b1LJyrnBOV297x6WchYhSwyHiofmoY883ps2nYTnRndJAh705-eyNnOUpmRU7yIgkMT_0Q670vApBbdCZZPizezg/s1926/mushroom-samples.png" style="clear: right; font-weight: 700; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1005" data-original-width="1926" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAEmEzUF5vd2mF0iwfzozxqSctrq6kHMPzSzowxGGazXR-BwU-fT0DXyL-BE8ZeEw2pDnyYoGFzCqEDdHnrss7YDu0GDsXuxgwz_b1LJyrnBOV297x6WchYhSwyHiofmoY883ps2nYTnRndJAh705-eyNnOUpmRU7yIgkMT_0Q670vApBbdCZZPizezg/s320/mushroom-samples.png" width="320" /></a> </p></blockquote><p></p><p>Somewhat wonderfully, we managed to keep the price of the magazine to £2.30, including UK postage (or £5 if you're outside the UK). So there's no excuse for not <a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1375269979/mycelium-parish-magazine-a-2022" target="_blank">buying one now</a>.</p><p>If you want a downloadable version, you'll have to wait; this zine was designed to be a <i>thing,</i> a thing to hold, to read, and to love, and to attract tea-stains.</p><p>Here are some spreads from the 44-page zine:</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXKFxwfAK4znbPldBGb1YoWJogYdleyd-NuD4UTvAYHwnMe3P0xASpayUpdr8Gcl2AE9GZEj7Rapx63a5c8Prwspc0OYhR9Nkg0WfsYtMkq0W-xS3t8B6scCZLrM3Rt59VNFgT8gjMXFXcb5B04267-K1mRIFVIp7xbqcKymkfb4YSHC7v9s6MRvITw/s3473/PXL_20221230_151431076.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2605" data-original-width="3473" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXKFxwfAK4znbPldBGb1YoWJogYdleyd-NuD4UTvAYHwnMe3P0xASpayUpdr8Gcl2AE9GZEj7Rapx63a5c8Prwspc0OYhR9Nkg0WfsYtMkq0W-xS3t8B6scCZLrM3Rt59VNFgT8gjMXFXcb5B04267-K1mRIFVIp7xbqcKymkfb4YSHC7v9s6MRvITw/s320/PXL_20221230_151431076.MP.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Introduction and editorial</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3-7E15DgyYuTD58ejmFesL2s2Nny46XbjDIsj1yHl0CbOsShY-36h5DcEtM7snXxBgZmSgtTGR7gVCXxRH_EfxfQj-MzzTmKcaM5JUFjB4EHnQRnjgNo9GaQG67MCSb1x--upJq_Ke4yqGReNUYi9Lbx-F--pKrrEjUxw2EGeLb6DZOEeYN3Cw1vDwA/s4032/PXL_20221230_151407724.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3-7E15DgyYuTD58ejmFesL2s2Nny46XbjDIsj1yHl0CbOsShY-36h5DcEtM7snXxBgZmSgtTGR7gVCXxRH_EfxfQj-MzzTmKcaM5JUFjB4EHnQRnjgNo9GaQG67MCSb1x--upJq_Ke4yqGReNUYi9Lbx-F--pKrrEjUxw2EGeLb6DZOEeYN3Cw1vDwA/s320/PXL_20221230_151407724.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Feature on <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/02/the-lost-doctor-who.html">The Lost Doctor</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiertsLHHx4QIwz2zHLasxCXjCHDxQFI5NC0OPdBh37PAO_JIoCYrpSfWB3lJjZ1A-P-Y0R1gPTTU7pcSX3m0IxhdoXW8i2Tv_Pob6uwEa9WHZaKQ9qWFZ0FNHeYiQj2ZtOmaABh2rcE5_j8TDzg-6ycdhIo6TcmLutG05FaB4CMw0mnL_ojK2c3Ri6bQ/s4032/PXL_20221230_151514598.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiertsLHHx4QIwz2zHLasxCXjCHDxQFI5NC0OPdBh37PAO_JIoCYrpSfWB3lJjZ1A-P-Y0R1gPTTU7pcSX3m0IxhdoXW8i2Tv_Pob6uwEa9WHZaKQ9qWFZ0FNHeYiQj2ZtOmaABh2rcE5_j8TDzg-6ycdhIo6TcmLutG05FaB4CMw0mnL_ojK2c3Ri6bQ/s320/PXL_20221230_151514598.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some miscellaneous podcast appearances</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTKysW002wc8p8DxjNh-wAhbTaF66MqSQn99Kada47ZoD3lQ2NrzhwzV4Wnk8docIwjfaQrIhMxZC8gfmGECp-i-v4dHojVF2uQboPXd_RRMBzKfXFDdsJDGA-0ReHu5dyrQwqsfvMmhtfC3fSrJTd1Lsl-1BGP-j8YO5nV5hvR8l3HqTj3jD9TPgxrg/s4032/PXL_20221230_151441866.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTKysW002wc8p8DxjNh-wAhbTaF66MqSQn99Kada47ZoD3lQ2NrzhwzV4Wnk8docIwjfaQrIhMxZC8gfmGECp-i-v4dHojVF2uQboPXd_RRMBzKfXFDdsJDGA-0ReHu5dyrQwqsfvMmhtfC3fSrJTd1Lsl-1BGP-j8YO5nV5hvR8l3HqTj3jD9TPgxrg/s320/PXL_20221230_151441866.MP.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some books published this year</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBr_gCNX1e80pPXCuIjAz6VqIg6eMpEAb3BCGgBROAcSsBRCJx8RDhuk7gASoleDZo6ZQw0j17_bPU-7o_Rand1BiCak20y7UM8snf-VmCrSuemJUY4tI4XScibgWqvmNtbyPcBZGyNF90nQV5-1RqN0PiQBluFXYxwo3pT19XCY2evnYh0xFp1rKC4Q/s4032/PXL_20221230_151457962.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBr_gCNX1e80pPXCuIjAz6VqIg6eMpEAb3BCGgBROAcSsBRCJx8RDhuk7gASoleDZo6ZQw0j17_bPU-7o_Rand1BiCak20y7UM8snf-VmCrSuemJUY4tI4XScibgWqvmNtbyPcBZGyNF90nQV5-1RqN0PiQBluFXYxwo3pT19XCY2evnYh0xFp1rKC4Q/s320/PXL_20221230_151457962.MP.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some videos published this year</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://mycoleum.uk" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX1pkMj1INtkGY-jHhHOjRxmsoS7lB_7AXDa_Iene_NvQRt_duSZe9DARMjxGXtVolnOS2KlpltL9TSvYMypk6cWTWvVkMAeFfHFmzQupGQnAtwu5hk7GPEDpKfvoF7YN3cFL03prZUAhFVVRM7HvMEkSJNLD9DUh0ywx7evgdyUCgDFrhoQUdIQiPEQ/s320/PXL_20221230_151506394.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mycoleum.uk" target="_blank">Advertising Shits In Your Head</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-2508754275531635512022-12-16T05:43:00.010+00:002022-12-16T05:56:11.152+00:00d∞ Caltrops<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1lKaEFngiC7jq1_oE7CN_dCErRgjTRR71aOz8xZ9zUBFYSZsnJgUQymsTOqsgMjYmbJ5UMOjJooG2mJrlg3O7UEEimvq8dtwh5wxZxwHUJ0LmuUPdl7SuS65zbBMwxrohk3PYfuRFv1YafmdEV54LSciTuwCHZNnBXVITYALFuuoYP4PqRQIGV6-iA/s182/4-sided_dice_250.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="182" data-original-width="163" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1lKaEFngiC7jq1_oE7CN_dCErRgjTRR71aOz8xZ9zUBFYSZsnJgUQymsTOqsgMjYmbJ5UMOjJooG2mJrlg3O7UEEimvq8dtwh5wxZxwHUJ0LmuUPdl7SuS65zbBMwxrohk3PYfuRFv1YafmdEV54LSciTuwCHZNnBXVITYALFuuoYP4PqRQIGV6-iA/s1600/4-sided_dice_250.jpg" width="163" /></a></div><p>Because I can't stop tinkering with AI, I asked it to "Write a random OSR RPG table in the style of <a href="https://blog.d4caltrops.com/" target="_blank">the d4 Caltrops blog</a>". Oh boy!</p><p><i>d20: Dungeon Hazards</i></p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><i>A pit filled with venomous snakes</i></li><li><i>A room full of acidic fog</i></li><li><i>A room with a magical trap that teleports the party to another plane</i></li><li><i>A hidden door that leads to a room full of giant spiders</i></li><li><i>A false floor that drops the party into a lake of lava</i></li><li><i>A room with a magical force field that drains the life force of anyone who passes through it</i></li><li><i>A room full of bone-chilling cold that damages anyone who stays in it for too long</i></li><li><i>A room that is full of illusions that can only be dispelled with a magical word</i></li><li><i>A room full of magical illusions that can fool the party into taking the wrong path</i></li><li><i>A room with a magical portal that transports the party to a random location</i></li><li><i>A room with an ancient magical construct that can animate to attack the party</i></li><li><i>A room with a powerful magical artifact that can turn the party into statues</i></li><li><i>A room with a powerful magical creature that can cast a powerful spell to trap the party</i></li><li><i>An area with a powerful magical force that can warp time and space</i></li><li><i>A room full of undead creatures that can drain life force from the living</i></li><li><i>A room with a magical fountain that can grant wishes, but has a price</i></li><li><i>A powerful magical item that can grant wishes, but has a powerful curse attached to it</i></li><li><i>An area with powerful magical beasts that can turn the party into animals</i></li><li><i>A room with a magical pool that can grant visions of the future</i></li><li><i>A powerful magical artifact that can grant any wish, but at a cost</i></li></ol><p></p><p>Hah! Generic dross, admittedly, and I think d4 Caltrops is safe for a good while yet, but it's pretty amazing that, from such a basic prompt, the AI completely "understands" what it's being asked to do.</p><p>Let's try just again:</p><p><i>d20 Things Found in a Strange Ancient Temple</i></p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><i>Strange symbols carved into the walls</i></li><li><i>A massive statue depicting an unknown god</i></li><li><i>An altar dedicated to a forgotten deity</i></li><li><i>A hidden chamber beneath the floor</i></li><li><i>A pool of bubbling acid</i></li><li><i>Piles of yellowed bones</i></li><li><i>An ancient tome filled with secrets</i></li><li><i>A secret door leading to another area</i></li><li><i>A giant stone golem</i></li><li><i>A strange device of unknown origin</i></li><li><i>An ornate chest filled with treasure</i></li><li><i>A magical fountain that can grant wishes</i></li><li><i>A cursed relic that brings misfortune</i></li><li><i>A magical weapon of great power</i></li><li><i>A powerful magical artifact</i></li><li><i>A strange creature lurking in the shadows</i></li><li><i>An altar of sacrifice</i></li><li><i>An arcane circle of power</i></li><li><i>A powerful magical trap</i></li><li><i>A strange creature imprisoned in an enchanted cage</i></li></ol><p></p><p>Once more for luck?</p><p><i>d20 Adventure Hooks</i><br /></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><i>You discover a hidden entrance to a magical tower with a portal to another dimension.</i></li><li><i>A mysterious magical item is stolen and you must recover it before it can be used for evil.</i></li><li><i>While exploring an ancient ruin, you stumble upon a powerful artifact that could unlock untold secrets.</i></li><li><i>A powerful wizard challenges you to a duel of magical wits.</i></li><li><i>You must navigate a labyrinth of traps and challenges to reach a lost treasure.</i></li><li><i>You are tasked with rescuing a princess from a castle guarded by monsters.</i></li><li><i>You are asked to explore a haunted manor, but you must uncover its secrets before you can leave.</i></li><li><i>A powerful artifact is hidden at the bottom of a lake and you must retrieve it before it is lost forever.</i></li><li><i>You are taken captive by a band of orcs and must escape before they can sacrifice you to their dark gods.</i></li><li><i>You must negotiate with a race of lizardfolk to gain access to their sacred temple.</i></li><li><i>You must battle a powerful dragon to prove your worthiness to a powerful wizard.</i></li><li><i>You are summoned to a distant land to help a noble family reclaim their rightful throne.</i></li><li><i>You must travel through the depths of a dangerous dungeon to retrieve a powerful magical item.</i></li><li><i>You are tasked with infiltrating a rival clan's stronghold and stealing a powerful artifact.</i></li><li><i>You discover an ancient temple with a powerful relic that will allow you to control time.</i></li><li><i>You must battle a powerful necromancer to save a small village from his undead horde.</i></li><li><i>You must journey to a distant land to find a powerful magical artifact before it falls into the wrong hands.</i></li><li><i>You must battle a powerful demon to save a kingdom from destruction.</i></li><li><i>You must infiltrate a powerful wizard's tower to steal a powerful magical item.</i></li><li><i>You must brave a deadly dungeon to recover a powerful artifact that will grant you untold power.</i></li></ol><p></p><p>Just to clarify, the only thing I wrote was "Write a random OSR RPG table in the style of the d4 Caltrops blog". Everything in italics, including the table titles, was generated by the AI. And, my god, it doesn't half like using the word "powerful".</p><p><br /></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-8969631646756134702022-12-16T01:02:00.000+00:002022-12-16T01:02:46.970+00:00Gelatinous Cube podcast<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOyiF3pstzM7ZyrZdMDp4QrmjuZ1jEVQXkGZCx1b0mSTRyTIXUXT_H9dibhGprplCdYJMMfaAz90J5tF6OSFOoDZ8qVEQl2zciAU2qm4XRHdHHzDYnV2z0VAwqIeddP-HdHz7rND-k2sZ3Yn5TQ2Tm31va2yjwvyO-OV4xIqORB3E61JrxfXSsPTZ8Og/s1920/Gelatinous.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="1920" height="50" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOyiF3pstzM7ZyrZdMDp4QrmjuZ1jEVQXkGZCx1b0mSTRyTIXUXT_H9dibhGprplCdYJMMfaAz90J5tF6OSFOoDZ8qVEQl2zciAU2qm4XRHdHHzDYnV2z0VAwqIeddP-HdHz7rND-k2sZ3Yn5TQ2Tm31va2yjwvyO-OV4xIqORB3E61JrxfXSsPTZ8Og/w200-h50/Gelatinous.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>I've just driven from one end of England to the other (ish), which means that I've just listened to a lot of podcasts, one of which was the excellent <a href="https://gelatinouscast.blogspot.com/">Gelatinous Cube</a>.<div><br /></div><div>Most RPG podcasts feature reviews of games, or actual play, or occasionally a bit of pontificating about games design and worldbuilding. And then there's Gelatinous Cube, in a class of its own.</div><div><br /></div><div>Each GC podcast starts with a very short prompt for an adventure: "This Goblin Wears Lipstick", "This Mountain has a Witch on it", "The Spirits are Restless". One of the two presenters, siblings Adam and Rosie, acts as DM for that episode, and explains the encounter or short adventure they have written to go with the prompt. If they've already incorporated this encounter into their campaign then they also talk about how their players responded. The two then throw the idea about a bit, talk about ways it could be fleshed out, alternate takes, possible consequences and follow-ups... and then they throw it over the the show's silent third host, the eponymous Gelatinous Cube, for an alternate take. Working only from the short prompt, the Cube presents its own entirely different set of encounters/adventures.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's a really simple and delightful format, and its bursting with ideas. If it were just Rosie and Adam discussing their adventure ideas, this would still be well worth a listen, but The Cube's creative contributions take it to another level, and really get the creative juices flowing. Comprehensive show notes mean that each episode is playable pretty much as-is.</div><div><br /></div><div>I listened to a LOT of gaming podcasts 18 months ago, but Gelatinous Cube is the only one that I still regularly download and listen to. </div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://gelatinouscube.libsyn.com/">All of the the podcasts are here</a>, but if you want show notes for the more recent ones then <a href="https://gelatinouscast.blogspot.com/">head over here</a>. </div>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-46192758278275377742022-11-30T16:30:00.031+00:002022-12-16T05:19:18.049+00:00Further Encounters in AI<p>OpenAI have just added a new model, text-davinci-003, to their GPT-3 text generators. It is supposedly much higher quality than previous models, so I decided to generate some random encounters and some nanodeities using <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/04/generating-random-content-for-rpgs.html">the same prompts as before</a>. I also, for shits & giggles, decided to ask another AI to make pictures of the encounters, because: why wouldn't I? </p><p>Here are the results:</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Random encounters</h3><p>* At the edge of a nearby lake, a giant 3-headed turtle is sunning itself on a rock. It has a large shell with powerful scutes, and its 3 heads have different expressions: one is smiling, one is frowning, and one is screaming. The turtle is friendly, and will willingly carry up to four PCs across the lake on its back. It is also a repository of knowledge, and will answer any question they ask it, but will only do so if they answer three of its own questions first.</p><p>The turtle's questions are:<br />1. What is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen?<br />2. What is the most powerful emotion you have ever felt?<br />3. What is the most important lesson life has taught you?</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhomeohe_Z-1y4Lm9SLJn0tTnESuF2SyjCo8aiTh0malAJo_mcgFm62WiJD0NrwjNOKXPKX0eBgEs9V7jg7XwjkYNxbPK3weQyH5nta4TQ97M9MzZQqdubzsGHl5gZI1scBIz_IoQn9rBPHc6CLn7mJcZghhypfE68BKk0AbtLXCQVpnVefk9381dO1Kg/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_At_the_edge_of_a_nearb_3686d183-23f6-4914-a2e3-c108cba6ef68.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhomeohe_Z-1y4Lm9SLJn0tTnESuF2SyjCo8aiTh0malAJo_mcgFm62WiJD0NrwjNOKXPKX0eBgEs9V7jg7XwjkYNxbPK3weQyH5nta4TQ97M9MzZQqdubzsGHl5gZI1scBIz_IoQn9rBPHc6CLn7mJcZghhypfE68BKk0AbtLXCQVpnVefk9381dO1Kg/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_At_the_edge_of_a_nearb_3686d183-23f6-4914-a2e3-c108cba6ef68.png" width="320" /></a></div><p>* The PCs come across a clearing in a forest, where four wooden pillars have been erected around a raised platform. On the platform, a circle of five humanoid figures stand, their heads bowed and their hands clasped together. As the PCs approach, the five figures begin to chant a strange, eerie melody in a language none of them have ever heard before. The chanting becomes more and more frantic, and soon the five figures are spinning in a circle and holding hands. The ground suddenly trembles and a shimmering red portal appears in the centre of the circle. The five figures continue to chant, and the portal slowly starts to open, revealing a strange and alien landscape beyond. If the PCs step through the portal, they will find themselves in a place called the Shadow Realm, where they will be able to explore, interact with the inhabitants, and find powerful magical items. However, they must be careful, as the Shadow Realm is a dangerous place, and they must be careful to not become lost in its depths.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiomFE-w3EWWbehIFAjpZLS_YdDD6TZ5lazeZREbX4B0njpXVpUbN2vX8hbYlJB7MmOaDe4keBv7kOmw4gi9Vwz6TCr22F2gUPk60WiGYm80Tpa2hrdGSKi9Ca-JyOpeN3aAVNcvHTUd63EAtCM54N9pcT7gw7khn8tn1ozj5e_jt9zJq41qCeJW56QYQ/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_The_PCs_come_across_a__9f188796-8414-4cc0-95d5-590c34588b17.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiomFE-w3EWWbehIFAjpZLS_YdDD6TZ5lazeZREbX4B0njpXVpUbN2vX8hbYlJB7MmOaDe4keBv7kOmw4gi9Vwz6TCr22F2gUPk60WiGYm80Tpa2hrdGSKi9Ca-JyOpeN3aAVNcvHTUd63EAtCM54N9pcT7gw7khn8tn1ozj5e_jt9zJq41qCeJW56QYQ/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_The_PCs_come_across_a__9f188796-8414-4cc0-95d5-590c34588b17.png" width="320" /></a></div><p>* A small rock-strewn valley, at the bottom of which lies a shallow lake. In the lake is a small island, upon which stands a single, ancient oak tree. As the PCs approach, they notice that the lake is home to a small colony of giant fire-breathing dragonflies. The dragonflies are friendly and will offer to give the PCs a ride across the lake, in exchange for a few pieces of copper. Once on the island, the PCs discover a small shrine to the god of fire, surrounded by a ring of standing stones. In the centre of the shrine is a small altar, upon which sits a single, flaming gem. If a PC takes the gem, they will gain a permanent increase to their fire resistance.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8OZadij-xL_XovLIGalxUTRSvlxUZ4BM9zX3j2sy8YhYJPSG_T884mIHT_2uSKCgExq1WzA51Mds4rzEqfWC4r_JStVIoBexJlgB_QCXBDm84mBlm-d9oiULtlEU-zOp-Um6u4H9ZTiWjmGpBxDjyVFHuHGlKeUCBxST5Hj6savmQJASZ1M5fDPHXrg/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_A_small_rock-strewn_va_203843b7-d367-4fd1-a73f-02d28a1d3197.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8OZadij-xL_XovLIGalxUTRSvlxUZ4BM9zX3j2sy8YhYJPSG_T884mIHT_2uSKCgExq1WzA51Mds4rzEqfWC4r_JStVIoBexJlgB_QCXBDm84mBlm-d9oiULtlEU-zOp-Um6u4H9ZTiWjmGpBxDjyVFHuHGlKeUCBxST5Hj6savmQJASZ1M5fDPHXrg/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_A_small_rock-strewn_va_203843b7-d367-4fd1-a73f-02d28a1d3197.png" width="320" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Nanodeities</h3><p><b>* Gurf</b>, a deity of long-forgotten front doors made from oak and yew, has domain over the forgotten and misplaced. Gurf appears as a moss-covered door with a lion’s head knocker and a keyhole with a glint of starlight. To appease Gurf, kneel in front of an ancient door and whisper a prayer for the forgotten and the lost. Gurf will reward you with an entirely new door, with a shiny brass knob and a lock that can never be picked.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LaADUdcOiA2e0CyEmtIarX7AuaSRnUDw47UuZtvFO0POBQ-RNesdvvVUoYvu9bAtzCSi8qtXJXgs-9naW3J6NrZu06gQevC9f2AZjWnEgNcrDTiH2OvBEgEe7x603vN8ozSPzP6GcFj-qKVd-zEQe_8qIAFt5i_k63Mc1eyl9jiva92ypJXzsszI2Q/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_Gurf_a_deity_of_long-f_28002f98-6589-4857-9406-f686df783564.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LaADUdcOiA2e0CyEmtIarX7AuaSRnUDw47UuZtvFO0POBQ-RNesdvvVUoYvu9bAtzCSi8qtXJXgs-9naW3J6NrZu06gQevC9f2AZjWnEgNcrDTiH2OvBEgEe7x603vN8ozSPzP6GcFj-qKVd-zEQe_8qIAFt5i_k63Mc1eyl9jiva92ypJXzsszI2Q/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_Gurf_a_deity_of_long-f_28002f98-6589-4857-9406-f686df783564.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><b>* Marilath </b>is the god of half-forgotten memories, and can be found in the far corners of one's mind. Marilath looks like a silver-scaled catfish, but with a human face and a beaked nose. To worship Marilath, one must sit in a comfortable chair and recite forgotten memories in a soft voice. If successful, Marilath will reward you with a vision of forgotten memories, providing a glimpse into the past.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITycxJ6po_RE_LgcsKjdsrVvez4dMZXxaquKzs3PsAUB-6gx9BEjjT88_UNerqL0vGD_PbJL_R5VCIbFAyZ06jabAa8Hc2oar7tdHsgsNg9sQ-DkrULOetQVwWXpa31lk5LWC72jpvxn1yLerZ6JH8gyak_IDWkT1dBEiBz5U4NsoGyv3nobvY90tHA/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_Marilath_is_the_god_of_c9d0fa11-222f-46f0-ba2b-66cde221890b.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITycxJ6po_RE_LgcsKjdsrVvez4dMZXxaquKzs3PsAUB-6gx9BEjjT88_UNerqL0vGD_PbJL_R5VCIbFAyZ06jabAa8Hc2oar7tdHsgsNg9sQ-DkrULOetQVwWXpa31lk5LWC72jpvxn1yLerZ6JH8gyak_IDWkT1dBEiBz5U4NsoGyv3nobvY90tHA/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_Marilath_is_the_god_of_c9d0fa11-222f-46f0-ba2b-66cde221890b.png" width="320" /></a></div><p>* Gorack the Great is the god of forgotten roads, appearing as a giant centipede with a glowing yellow eye. To appease Gorack, one must draw a map on a piece of paper and trace a route along a forgotten road. Once the map is complete, Gorack will reward the worshipper with an altered perspective on the world, and will offer guidance on how to find forgotten roads.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFo0N3wdt56SgvEn7Kde1OR6BTgG_o5kwuej53BH-SAspRxnWqC1LiJulGgvU-iZ0HpGbvpCAm2u-VNlKDVgMaXnLgEkKQ8VFaJ7x2K4Oyo_8EYbC_ro2_HAhUtUCsWQYiNpwP4fLSIrqPRucOdkjr8SBRMP6fTpQZHPvRaXqVgDUdRczLg4ftF0HzQ/s1024/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_Gorack_the_Great_is_th_67964bcd-3736-42fa-b2db-f5b370303415.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFo0N3wdt56SgvEn7Kde1OR6BTgG_o5kwuej53BH-SAspRxnWqC1LiJulGgvU-iZ0HpGbvpCAm2u-VNlKDVgMaXnLgEkKQ8VFaJ7x2K4Oyo_8EYbC_ro2_HAhUtUCsWQYiNpwP4fLSIrqPRucOdkjr8SBRMP6fTpQZHPvRaXqVgDUdRczLg4ftF0HzQ/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_Gorack_the_Great_is_th_67964bcd-3736-42fa-b2db-f5b370303415.png" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Conclusion</h3><p>These responses do feel slightly superior to the set I generated with an earlier text model. The differences are subtle, but the biggest difference is the one you can't see: with the previous model, I generated perhaps 10 or 15 responses in order to get three which I felt were adequately creative and believable. This time around, I only had to generate the three which you see above.</p><p>As for the image AI: that was predictably terrible, but a lot of fun. The images themselves are nice enough, but scarcely representative of the text (although the deities are a lot closer than the random encounters). I could have made the images a <i>little</i> more accurate by tweaking and re-tweaking the text, but life's too short and, as my attempts to get an AI to depict <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2021/08/ship-of-theseus.html">a viking longship made of thorns</a> have taught me, AIs are terrible at generating anything other than simple portraits or landscapes.</p><p>However, I <i>adore</i> the fact that the picture of Gorack the Great, god of forgotten roads, incorporates what appears to be a prehistoric version of Google Maps' location pin.</p><p>I also learned a new word, "scutes".</p><p></p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-67869008619076051002022-11-29T12:34:00.001+00:002022-11-29T12:34:20.387+00:00The Mycoleum<p>My friend <a href="https://orbific.com/" target="_blank">James Burt</a> and I are producing a “Mycelium Parish Newsletter”, a round-up of what’s been going on in our corner of the UK counterculture over the last year (James explains in a little more detail <a href="https://orbific.com/uncategorized/a-discordian-mycelic-parish-magazine/">here</a>).</p><p>Our underground network of threads has birthed some fairly significant mushrooms recently, including the books <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/a/5655/9781645020509" target="_blank">What Remains? Life, Death and the Human Art of Undertaking</a> by Ru Callendar, and John Higgs' <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/a/5655/9781399600163" target="_blank">Love and Let Die: Bond, the Beatles and the British Psyche</a>, while the goetic sitcom <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0018g8c">Damned Andrew</a>, by Andrew O’Neill, was commissioned by BBC Radio 4.</p><p>But there are other edible treats deeper in the woods, such as the ongoing <a href="https://soundcloud.com/the-lost-doctor">Lost Doctor</a> audio dramas (set in an alternate Doctor Who universe), the <a href="https://www.buzzsprout.com/1047874" target="_blank">F23 podcast</a> (who scooped interviews with Grant Morrison, Douglas Rushkoff, and - an incredible coup - the first ever interview with The Economy in its several-thousand-year history), Tim Arnold’s <a href="https://superconnected.technology/" target="_blank">Superconnected album and accompanying feature-length film</a>, plus a host of books, blogs, podcasts, events, email newsletters, and much, much more. In The Mycelium, we attempt to bring together all the threads, and to raise up all of the mushrooms. </p><p>James and I started with the notion of a regular parish newsletter, amateurish and hastily thrown together. I thought we ought to have an equivalent of the church photo which often appears at the top of such newsletters and, having no budget or appreciable skills, I turned to AI to see what could be done...</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsAjUKfa_hiBl16CbkwMdiUXqagirgXrzRpMGckNeIYHbi228dzou-dk9vLpvueRdDfMVZ8EybvrSAj0dKwbMMuMrhhqINRxEeZ20N8ZayTq9VSUFxDCLHZXVcr6G0cRuBMjiRRJIxaqy0HLFTW4S844lmfjOR5OffRbx9O8mH7slsSlbNzm1G4fr81Q/s2048/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_psychedelic_rock_gro_c9b5b6d5-4150-4a77-935d-a0ed0108ca3sm5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsAjUKfa_hiBl16CbkwMdiUXqagirgXrzRpMGckNeIYHbi228dzou-dk9vLpvueRdDfMVZ8EybvrSAj0dKwbMMuMrhhqINRxEeZ20N8ZayTq9VSUFxDCLHZXVcr6G0cRuBMjiRRJIxaqy0HLFTW4S844lmfjOR5OffRbx9O8mH7slsSlbNzm1G4fr81Q/s320/dansumption_black_and_white_engraving_of_a_psychedelic_rock_gro_c9b5b6d5-4150-4a77-935d-a0ed0108ca3sm5.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mycoleum</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Blimey, that was a rabbit-hole and a half! I now have far more pictures than I know what to do with, as well as a much more image-heavy newsletter. I will be posting further details of the newsletter when it's complete, but meantime... I put some pictures onto clothes:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://peakrill.myshopify.com/products/the-panopticon-unisex-heavy-cotton-tee" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="493" data-original-width="493" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZhQmpYFCGbgH8xi9-ef-e4PtnoLiZbl46mxoIYpQ-kwVtDw64d6VIFJscAipHA10hG3T8o9mn1Jr_XdiO_qbtl8yn5XXwX9CQZQklTWzcqsx0Rr8MJYf9T8IdZWB30YT1FO8XSCaZdshbVEwrQU21fZyLhR9RjxeBq1sKlevdWyY62deQIagaTiMfuQ/s320/c110b7c73a6c4465949c0cafb1f3e2bc.webp" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://peakrill.myshopify.com/products/mycoleum-unisex-jersey-long-sleeve-tee" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="493" data-original-width="493" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSqAtvTC_P03dMn30j3fV2zJDqARvJF-o3oefMO6PaUJ6SZhkzPt9VUSZEfsIPsq2Xlfy_pBfr_kn7KTOl_j54L63tPqEUHDbBM7hHDIzwbO6ICjC2kCj8aKgIDvofzslYjJEbeVSvHWhlnlX2gIPH0_1t9eNvUzyuLArYdKWZRJ_Prz6h-oboCVvefg/s320/dae67ebc950286c615d4d59c382d089e.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://peakrill.myshopify.com/products/stinkfoot-crew-socks" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="493" data-original-width="493" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR70I8EC9-u50abXjjjAOW9QYhJCDwNPRzMZ9gFgS0DoMsFs4YkTIQbGI4wRDSOdtsRPjnFjUk5c8W6YNaEWqYtP11XOAyuqvcUlxTEMqJ_YFF7gnG-OEs4RiR-Ewaxk9-jniX27syEHvego8LfA8RY1a5gm_vPTpHtlfH_zjK0xblj0tbiRheibcJ1w/s320/f7f962a026bdffb0a28e75aadcf4d884.webp" width="320" /></a></div><p>Yes, I have a new online shop! Please visit... <a href="http://mycoleum.uk" target="_blank"><b>The Mycoleum!</b></a></p><p>(Above is just a very limited selection both of the images I want to stick on things, and the things on which I want to stick them. If you have a need for any of the above on other items, from g-strings to facemasks, iPhone cases to ice-buckets, please let me know).</p><p>I should add that, despite my adventures with AI, I remain committed to providing work for real flesh-and-blood illustrators whenever I can. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/rhinestonefilms/" target="_blank">Maximillian Hartley</a> is hard at work on the pictures for <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dansumption/king-arthur-vs-devil-kitteh" target="_blank">King Arthur vs Devil Kitteh</a>, and I have <a href="https://www.instagram.com/therichtingley/">Rich Tingley</a> on standby for when I finally get to writing <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2022/01/nanodeities.html">Nanodeities</a>.</p><p>But on those low-budget/no-budget occasions where, in the past, I would have headed straight for <a href="https://www.oldbookillustrations.com/" target="_blank">oldbookillustrations</a>, I now have another, very fun tool at my disposal.</p>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998527854068300154.post-47284391982764064432022-11-27T11:23:00.003+00:002022-11-29T12:35:12.155+00:00Something Happened<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl6yiNE6wLzHeqfPiyPL0w_of3rFYyOxWgzDq-MCDxJ3S0aeUailRCr0yc7B25oq2fS9vc161lcSfSBBXNpF_tGt8iHNqM0NGj_T50mvdl3AmV_AQy55nM6-2u9e6gKRYF7nncKOlDAdynej3wZu__ThwypbxBa2timcGenY-vhRHa9GdZZ_LfK2B87A/s2048/dansumption_black_metal_logo_The_Mycelium_e819fbec-e8b8-4dd7-9518-fa2bf2cecfcb.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl6yiNE6wLzHeqfPiyPL0w_of3rFYyOxWgzDq-MCDxJ3S0aeUailRCr0yc7B25oq2fS9vc161lcSfSBBXNpF_tGt8iHNqM0NGj_T50mvdl3AmV_AQy55nM6-2u9e6gKRYF7nncKOlDAdynej3wZu__ThwypbxBa2timcGenY-vhRHa9GdZZ_LfK2B87A/s320/dansumption_black_metal_logo_The_Mycelium_e819fbec-e8b8-4dd7-9518-fa2bf2cecfcb.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">image by <a href="http://mycoleum.uk" target="_blank">The Mycoleum</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Last night, I was reading dark short stories from some of <a href="https://nightjarpress.weebly.com/" target="_blank">Nightjar Press's</a> excellent chapbooks. Walking the dog later, I thought "I fancy writing a short story like one of those writers. You know, those ones". And suddenly this came spewing out, stream of consciousness-style:<div><div></div><blockquote><div>The effects were subtle but they were certainly there. Obvious, really. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>When we waved goodbye to Kim that morning, nothing changed. The rain of the last few weeks was unabated. If anything, it got worse. Thank god we’d got the coal in before prices went up.</div></blockquote><blockquote><div>“Schildkreute”, Jan exploded. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>“What?” </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>“Slow warts steadied by delish topping.” </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>“Stop it.” </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>When the sun came through, it was golden. Although it never reached the house, you could tell by the light on the opposite hills. Jan said “there’s no end to the things that turn up”. We said “no matter, look at the hills”. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>After one of those baths that are never as good as you’d hoped, things started turning up again. If it wasn’t the weather, it was the price of dry goods. At least you could stock up on them. We had no way of saving the perishables. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>It happened that Jan had an appointment the following Monday. So we made the most of the trip, got what we could out of it. Rain running along the train windows reminded me of Kim. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>“Nothing seems to last” you said as you chucked the carton of congealed milk, scarcely a day later. “Not like it used to”. “It didn’t, even then”, we replied. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>By the time we reached the bottom of the freezer, strangers were roaming the moors, hoping for rabbit, maybe mushrooms. Jan didn’t speak any more, and we missed their petty contributions to the household. Mould had put a film across two of the windows, and the rest were in need of putty or something to serve. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>By the time the end came, none of us was surprised. I remember you talking of something quite similar back, when was it? Before the incident with the putty, anyway. We’d been living a little beyond our means for some time now, and things were stacking up. Things always do. </div></blockquote><blockquote><div>We’d tried cutting back, but it never seemed enough, never made much difference anyway. Not until things became unbearable.</div></blockquote><div><div>For a very different piece of fiction, check out <a href="https://blog.peakrill.com/2021/09/what-we-have-left.html">What We Have Left</a>, which is also the title of my short story collection which will be published by <a href="http://www.iotacism.com/polyversity/" target="_blank">Polyversity Press</a>, once I get around to editing it.</div></div></div>dansumptionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403248887250857638noreply@blogger.com4