The Stars In The Sky

I've hit a bit of a wall while constructing my world. To try and get some of the creative juices flowing I've recently spent a great deal of time stargazing. While lying down on the grass looking at the stars i was able to write a bit about the night sky on my world.
What happens after death has long been a concern for humans but on my world the inhabitants know that when they pass their soul will leave them and orbit the planet as their corpse is returned to the earth. While above the planet they circle around it like starving animals waiting for a chance to be reborn. The souls in the night sky vary in brightness, color and the speed in which they orbit. To one not used to it, the night sky is a magnificent display of dancing will-o'-the-wisps, but to an inhabitant it reminds them of their inevitable death and that it may take them centuries of being no more than a light in the sky before they can be born anew.


also just for funsies here is a link for a music video i think is pretty coolio
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLw5b70OJH8

Just something cool

this isnt really fantasy related but it is pretty amazing thanks to my friend "N" for showing me this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuGaqLT-gO4&feature=featured

Introducing Michaelina!

Maid RPG, a d6 based tabletop RPG in which the player is an anime style maid working in a master's mansion. It is light and fun game that can be anything from the ~moe fueled adventures of a group loli maids in a perverts mansion to maids vs. giant fighting robots, whatever the group chooses to play. Maid RPG is fairly light in the rules department and heavy in RP. It is in this format that i have created my character Michaelina (Since there isnt really a feminine form of Michael).

(S)he is a transgendered maid who had an abusive father and no mother. He was the oldest of 4 sons and filled in for his mother who had died giving birth practically raising his 3 younger brothers until they were grown and left home. While they went off to college he became a maid. He is 6'2", and shoulders as wide as texas, and needs to wax/shave daily to avoid having a full beard. In his spare time he is a computer hacker and he fights using a scythe that he can summon from thin air.

That is an example of a character that you can randomly roll for on one of Maid RPG's many character creation tables.

Hopefully my group will start play in a week or so, i'll post on how it goes but it sounds extremely fun so far.

http://maidrpg.com/

Busy Lately

I havent been able to write much recently i've been very busy with things and stuff. My friend recently told me about an rpg called Recettear - An Item Shop's Tale wich is a game from the point of view of an item shop owner. Its pretty good you can get it from steam and its worth the buy.


http://dwarvesandgoblins.blogspot.com/

my friends blawg

Keeping Players on Task

Keeping players alert, interested, and on task is sometimes an issue especially in a group of immature or inexperienced roleplayers.
Random encounters with enemies is one way to try and keep your players focused on the table but it gets repetitive and boring after vanquishing random wandering goblin swarm #70.
Being a great speaker is a must for DM'ing even more so when the group is composed of younger players or people who are constantly joking around.

Some helpful tips for a Game Master running any RPG

Details: A GM should develop good plots and engaging encounters. It will take some time but don't slave for hours if you don't need to. Develop a system for making things easier for yourself.
Only make NPCs from scratch if they are going to be important (all major villains should be customized).
Write down what you will need so you don't have to flip through books.
Write out encounter sheets beforehand, listing the character names and the enemy so that you can write down initiative scores and get to the fight faster.
Keep it short, sweet and to the point.

Make the game for your everyone: Watch your players and find out what they like to do in a game.
Are they obsessed with magical items, or hoarding gold?
Do they prefer diplomacy or would they be happy killing all day?
Try to make your game something that your players enjoy, but spare some room for what you enjoy as well.
Try to find a balance, so that everyone gets a little bit of what they really like.

Dont be black and white: Try to make your world more than a clear-cut divide between lawful good and chaotic evil.
Add elements of all of the alignments.
Not all good people are lawful and not all evil characters go around killing everyone in sight for the hell of it.
Your players will be kept on their toes, and your world will become much more interesting for the shades of gray.

Make enemies interesting: Pick a variety of enemies, choices that will throw your players off, and surprise them.
Try to make enemy monsters as well as of characters with actual character classes.
Keep in mind the abilities of the enemies and make them into combat tactics. Take the intelligence and intent of th enemies into account. Show your players that their characters aren't the only ones who can think and strategize.


Those are some very basic tips just remember that even if you are the DM you are playing too, make it something everyone can enjoy but remember that you are in charge of the game.
http://www.kismetrose.com/dnd/DMTipsTricks.html

Character Design in a Fantasy Setting

I just recently started on character design which has always been a bit of a weak point of mine. Having a character be ridiculously incompetent is generally bad but making a Mary Sue is worse. Some resources i have been looking into to make my NPCs seem realistic and memorable.

Fantasy Character Development Help
Character Development Tips

I'm still looking for advice on the creation of realistic characters and am spending time rereading novels or watching movies to get a good idea on how others have designed their characters.

World Building and some tools i've found useful

If you have never heard of world building it is basically creating the world(s) that will be the setting for you sci-fi / fantasy story
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World-building 

I have just started creating a world which will be the setting for a roleplaying game i will be dm'ing and possibly for use in any short stories i may try to write (http://cychosys.com/  for anyone interested in the system i'll be using)

Since this is my first time constructing my own universe I spent a while gathering info and tips on how others build their worlds

Some links that i have found useful so far are
http://hiddenway.tripod.com/world/  (page full of links to worldcon resources)

http://laetusinpraesens.org/docs/alien1.php   (alien encounters)

http://www.sfwa.org/2009/08/fantasy-worldbuilding-questions/  (questions a world builder should ask themselves in regard to the people and cultures of their world)

http://www.mikevanpelt.com/adhoc//outlines.html  (general info for fantasy based worldcon)

I just just started with my world so not much about it yet, but in the future i will post some info about it

i am so god damn manly i don't use periods while typing

uni

school is starting for me tomorrow and the drive to and from is going to be a bitch. thanks everyone for the support and i will make sure to keep on supporting my followers. if you're in college too have a good year.

Mead Making

A drink enjoyed by many fantasy characters in taverns and inns is mead.Mead or honey wine is an alcoholic beverage, made from honey and water via fermentation with yeast and is featured heavily in many folktales, myths, and modern fantasy.

http://www.stormthecastle.com/mead/index.htm

That site has many different ways to make mead from recipes taking 2 weeks to some taking 6 months to a year.

its a cool project for a weekend and great for b&s i made some mead from this once and it was pretty decent i would recommend trying it

http://www.stormthecastle.com/mead/fast-cheap-mead-making.htm
recipe i used