Erratica Reduex

So this Christmas, because it is a holy day at the end of the year, when the nights are longest, I decided to do something special for racerxmachina . I decided to do something I haven't had the courage to do in ages. I descended the 99 stone steps to the unlit cavern carved out of the living earth, I removed the ofuda, I broke the seals, and I opened the vault. With my left hand, I removed the recipe for EL GUAPO. With my right eye closed and wearing only red, I made one, this my signature drink.

And we survived to tell the tale of EL GUAPO.

There are skeptics out there, I know. "It's just a drink" they say "So what?" They can say that, they are safe in their own houses, with their whimsical and innocuous drinks such as martinis, mai tais and Long Island ice teas. They've never had an EL GUAPO in their hand, seen the earthy deep brown fluid inhabiting the glass staring back at them.

This is EL GUAPO: the mysterious drink that kills with it's love. The drink that Racerxmachina calls "The universal panty solvent. She says the ladies love EL GUAPO...they think. What they can remember of it anyway.

I share the secret recipe for EL GUAPOwith no one. Well, unless they ask me. Then I tell as much of the recipe as I can remember when sober.

To tell the truth, I'm normally not even completely sure what the recipe consists of. I just wake up in the morning to the smell of cinnamon and chocolate, and I notice the blender is pitted and it's gaskets need replacing.

I do know that a chemist once tried to analyze EL GUAPO; all we know of the aftermath is they never did locate his pants.

You do not have an EL GUAPO as a "Hair of the dog". Because if it were a hair it would be a hair twenty feet long weighing 300 pounds.

Anyway, the recipe (more of a list of suggestions and warnings, really) is back safe in it's vault. I have sworn off EL GUAPO for the next solar cycle. Except as a toast to departed friends, I may bring a small sample to Dundracon. Those who are brave may have a sip.

Woke up this morning, with a cat standing on my chest, staring right down at me, inches from my my face.
"Hello Dorothy."
*stare* "Achoo!"
"Yaack!"
Nothing like getting sneezed at right in one's eyes to put the coming weekend in perspective.

On the other hand, I have packed my Trousers of Wonder, and as many other costumes as I can manage into a bag.  I am working on cookies, survival scones, and beef jerky.  Now we just need to see what, if any games I get into this year.  Assuming I don't have a cat-transmitted cold by Saturday.

Congratulate me- I am on the schedule to run a game using the Under the Green Moon setting at Pacificon.

The game will be in the Sunday 11:30 slot, one I picked so that I'll have time to attend the evening LARPS I'm interested in.  It's listed as running 7 hours, but I doubt it will go that long.  Here is the proposal:

PR-400  Under the Green Moon: Box of Dreams, Box of Nightmares

by Eric Tolle, True20- minor variations, 7 hrs, 6 players, Game, Some gaming, Character and/or Armies Supplied

Under the Green Moon is a sword and sorcery setting set 30,000 years in Earth’s future. Over the eons, multiple waves of civilization have risen and vanished; leaving behind only ruins, and new breeds of humanity. Now, new empires are beginning their rise, and looking for any advantage over their rivals. In the independent enclave of Canyon Dust, an artifact of incalculable value has been found; a working Miracle Box from the ancient Great Builders. As multiple empires send agents to claim the Box and its unknown power for their own, tensions rise and old wrongs are brought to the fore. Will the Box be the spark that ignites a war? Or will it be the genesis of something even more horrific?

And that's it.  Hope to see people I know there!

Had a lot of fun at the convention, and now I'm back too making bunch of phone calls with a remarkably low connection rate. Bah. So lets do some random notes on the game.

• I have no idea why I get so anxious before conventions. Interrupted sleep and apocalyptic scenarios are the major result, but it makes it difficult to plan ahead of time. Fortunately, the convention itself was pretty much stress-free.


• The online game pre-registration and online posting of game attendees was simply brilliant. Conventions should have been doing this for YEARS.


• We arrived to a hotel with a power outage. It made a pretty good precursor to the pajama LARP.  Rain also cuts down on the "Why am I spending the whole weekend inside?" thoughts.


• If I'm ever in a game with a night-time or lights-out theme again, I will pack a flashlight. Reading character sheets in the dark using glowsticks is a major pain.


• It's an excellent LARP when one can't help make plans for what ones character is going to do after the LARP. It's a really excellent doubleplusgood LARP game when dancingshaman  decides my character has to die, and he wasn't even one of the people I stole from, lied to, swindled or tried to seduce in the game.  I liked my character-he was amusingly over the top.


• Rather harsh that, given that I heroically managed to sweep a group of assorted lovelies, (along with a doomsday weapon, blueprints for super-guns and a bunch of political treaties) away from incipient political violence. Admittedly, I DID torment the prickly fencer that's the daughter of the werebear and the lover of Dancingshamen's character, and I DID hide the empty case for the super-gun plans on her, and I teased her unmercifully. But she was really prickly, and she had to go and accuse me of being sneaky and lacking honor. Honestly!


• There's also the assumption that a chartered privateer of Avalon with a vice-admiralty waiting for him would simply merrily go to his death, simply for having gone and given a doomsday weapon and the plans for a super-gun to the lovely Ussuran scientist for safekeeping. Why, one would think he is an utter fool, willing to betray his country for a- well four- pretty faces!


• Or alternatively, a former pirate might use the opportunity afforded by being on his own ship to sneakily retrieve the doomsday device and the plans he gave away, drop off the charters, switch ships, and then up sail to Avalon, where the weapon plans will be given to the Queen, and the doomsday device in the shape of a watch will remain on his person, where it belongs. Which come to think of it, may be sneaky and lacking in honor. But oh well- once a pirate....


• Did I mention I LOVED that LARP? I never even had any interest in 7th Sea setting until that LARP, and now I want to know more about the setting. It was one of the most fun games I've ever been in, and that's especially a noteworthy achievement as the GMs stated that it was their first LARP. I am SO looking forward to playing that character in the next 7thSea LARP they do.


• I also enjoyed the Warhammer LARP, though oddly enough, the most important thing my character will do is after the game. But that was partially because I was playing a dwarf with a low, low, LOW social attribute, which I chose to play as being uncertain with the language a bit, and very taciturn when it comes to diplomacy (Damn those humans talk too much), except when talking about runes. And guess who was chosen to talk to priests about religion.


• I am totally going to have to get a pair of shoes with good arch support for these LARPS- I flaked on the last LARP because my feet hurt too much. While I'm at it, I'll make it a nice pair of boots. In fact, I need to get more costume stuff entirely.

As a sort of pre-birthday gift to myself, I've been considering going to Silicon, at least for the masquerade. I've also been wanting to show racerxmachina what a regular SF convention is like, especially a panel-oriented one. However, I haven't decided what day to attend.

Saturday may not be the day to do so, given the panels.  The best of the lot seem to be:

Panel - Back to the Moon - Private or Government?: I'd have to stay away from this one: I'd probably end up throwing a bomb or two.

Panel - What's New in Comics?: Again, too big a chance I'd open my mouth and say something regrettable.

Presentation - What About UFOs?: I don't think I could even manage to be in the same convention without being compelled to come in to point fingers and laugh.

Hmm. Let's have a look at Sunday:

Panel - Character-driven or Plot Driven?: This actually sounds pretty interesting, and could have some interesting debate.  I don't think it's an either-or situation in good writing, but it would be interesting to see what others have to say.

Other - Worth Writing about: Could be interesting, if the focus shifts to asking whether writers should be so obsessed with current topics. And there's always the chance to see if Larry Niven has been bit by the Brain Eater.

Panel - Smoke and Mirrors: strange but real special effects sounds like it could be Fun for the Whole Family.

Panel - Creating Fantasy Worlds: debating the various whys and wherefores of fantasy world creation sounds like fun too: at what point does fantasy world creation become more an entertainment for the author, than a gift to the reader?

Panel - Hard Costuming: Something racerxmachina  may well be interested in.

Panel - Space Pirates: given that this has been a hot topic for decades,and that I don't believe that they're possible, this could be a fun panel with lots of bombs being thrown out by multiple people. It could be a really fun brawl of a debate, if we're lucky.

Panel - Fiber Arts Show and Tell: Would racerxmachina  be interested in this? Why yes, I believe she might be.

So panel-wise, Sunday sounds much more interesting and entertaining than Saturday, but of course the masquerade is on Saturday.

Figures.

Consciousness creeps in slowly, like a guilty husband. Groaning, he lurches to his feet, blearily shaking dew and pine needles off. He looks eye out over the desolate landscape; desert, rock, mesas, dried riverbeds, more rocks, deserted internet start-ups....

“Eeeyurgh…oh, what a toot,” he mutters, taking a staggering step forward as the world revolves around him; he stops. Something is missing. He looks down and realizes with a shock his feet are bare! “Ai-yah! My sandals!” He stumbles around in a circle, as he always does when searching for something. “Where? What did I do with them?”

A room, he remembers vaguely. Lots of people. Happy people. Happy laughing drinking people. Celebrating great convention victory. “Aha!” he mutters thickly. He must have taken the shoes off to drink champagne from them, only to give up because you can’t drink champaign from a sandal. Also, drinking from a shoe is just yuck. But…where? The palazia, is deserted, windswept, lonesome.

"I need a drink", he growls, and abruptly another lack makes itself felt; he frantically searches through his gear then falls to his knees in despair. “My shaker! My chrome shaker with the chrome strainer and the chrome measuring lid! The shaker that’s been better than a brother to me! How will I fix my martinis without it?” Where could his shaker AND his sandals be? He sits and ponders the mystery.

Sometime later when a neighborhood vulture is deciding on a quick bite just to see if he twitches, he leaps up. “Volarie! Of course!” he hollers, scaring the bird. "In retrospect, it’s obvious. Some helpful spouse or something took the shaker and put it in the Volarie room with the sandals. And the Volaries, in their native friendly colorful state, probably mistook them for ritual objects".

His eyes narrow as he looks out into the harsh wilderness. “Don’t you worry my precious shoes and shaker. I will get you back. I will find whoever is responsible, and then…then there will be HELL to pay."

He checks his wallet. “I hope Hell will be happy with $2.37, because otherwise I’ll have to put it on my credit card.”

I didn't actually participate at Costume Con, I just went with racerxmachina to hang around with various con friends I haven't seen in a while.  It was fun just sitting in a chair in the main hall, looking at various costumes, ranging from the ab-so-LUTELY historical, to the fantasy historical, to the sexy, to the fannish, to the "OMG, why is that guy WEARING that!?"

The convention itself was both refreshingly low-key, and well, for a lack of a better world, professional.  These were fans united not only by the common interests, but by a common attitude of craftsmanship.  it was almost like some trainig conferences I've been to, except with more practical elements.

There were NO green "yes you may"  buttons.  To my complete lack of surprise.

It was interesting that though there were some stunningly elaborate costumes (unfortunately, I did not get to see my friend's costumes in the show, but the photos are marvelous), some of the best costumes were very simple.  The woman who had a simple Dutch peasant's garb seemed to have simple rough-hewn clothing at first, but on closer and lengthier inspection, the subtlety of the home-made fabric textures and colors impressed me quite a bit.

Fortunately I got time to do that inspection, thanks to RXM.  Asking someone about their costume at costume con is the equivalent to asking someone at a gaming con about their character.  Don't do it, unless you like a long discussion.

I'm also pleased to see that two of my friends, hosikageandfairegoddesswon major awards (YAY!) and may be ready to graduate from their categories.  It's good to see friends do good.

Let's see...in retrospect, taking the kitties to be neutered the day after Dundracon, and then starting a new heavy-learning-curve job the next day wasn't the best idea. I'm wiped, and will barely be able to crawl into the weekend. The kitties sudden notion that "Of course daddy (not mommy, she needs to sleep) will want to wake up and play "Pounce on Dad" at 5:30 in the morning!"isn't helping. I'm thinking it's some sort of strange revenge on their part.

Oh yeah, there was a con. I barely got into any of the games I was interested in, partially due to lack of tactics on my part (i.e. trying to crash games I wasn't picked for), an annoying last-minute announcement of game players, and the need to go down and feed the kitties twice during the weekend. So only three games (along with a couple games of Lunch Money). But the three games WERE interesting.

Friday night: After some alcohol and lunch Money, I crashed the playtest demo of Mecha vs. Kaiju, the True20 game about well, giant robots, and giant-er monsters. It was a lot of fun, though the RPing wasn't top notch. It was a great intro to the setting and system, both of which impressed me enough to buy the True20 book. About which thee will be more later. The game actually went seven of the eight allotted hours, so I ended up stumbling into bed at 3AM.

Saturday: I did some shopping, immediately picking up true20, My Life Life With Master, and a bargain bin version of Albedo. I consider that a good haul, and was pleasantly surprised to see RXM thought that MLWM was incredibly well written, dramatic and sad. I'll have to run a quick game soon. I then had to make a run down to San Jose to feed the kitties, and clean up the massive amount of water they had spread around. Damned reservoir water dish. I got back just in time for...the wrong game. Somebody scheduled me in a game that was NOT my choice. Which actually turned out well, because I ended up in...

...The Team Volari City of Heroes superhero game. Which was massively kickass. I ended up as one of the few non-powered people at a superhero conference, a Senator devoted to making the conference go smoothly...so later on the army could invade. For some reason, probably due to heat exhaustion (coat, tie, unventilated room- do the math), my goals went from "Make conference go smoothly so the war can start on schedule" to "Make war start right here and now by turning everyone on each other." At one point while I was tearfully explaining to the guy with no memory that the girl over there not only had done awful experiments on him, but that, (Gasp! HORROR!), a GM walked by, and hung around. I only found out later that the GM was having trouble cracking up and the massive amount of BS I was feeding the guy. Which is why I won a prize- truly I was shocked.

Sunday. More shopping. Second LARP- a superhero game based on Brave New World (the rpg, not the book). I was a reporter at a conference to discuss a "superhero registration act", and a bit disgruntled because I had no powers. Until I suddenly did, briefly, and used them to try to assassinate a senator. What's worse than having no powers? Discovering you have uncontrollable powers? How about discovering that you're a mind-controlled assassin for an evil villain who holds all the cards? Again the game was fun, though I couldn't help feeling that there was really no way to stop the bad guy. Pity there won't be a sequel, what with the villain starting W.W.III and all.

And then I went to feed the cats, and then went to collapse. I was interrupted by amywithani and palecur, who treated me to wine and celebrations for my new job. Having fantastic friends like them is a new experience I definitely want to get used to. I slipped into a brief coma, woke up long enough to stumble over to Team Volari for some mead, and to mock some music videos, and then I crashed hard.. Monday there was no game, but there was a brunch, and then a trip home to cats who were NOT speaking to the parents who abandoned them, no sir.

So , a few games, way too much shopping, and hanging out with really cool people. I think I'll be back next year.