The Silence is Deafening

Good afternoon, Blogosphere! It's been almost a month since I last updated and I've been living under the rock of impending finals and moving to a new apartment. I apologize for my radio silence, and hope to start updating a little more regularly from here on in.

Anyway, what's the last month been like?

Well, school devoured me for a brief period of time. I had multiple presentations to deal with in my reading classes, and lots of latin to translate. Our class has spent the last three weeks translating Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone out of Latin into English. Harder than it sounds, but a whole lot of fun for a nerd like me. I also completed the presentation for my Capstone paper, which is all about authors who defy fantasy cliche's in their writing. This has given me an excuse to read a ridiculous amount of Dresden Files -- seriously, I got through three this weekend alone. I'm hoping to spend the summer catching up with those books, more Goodkind, and maybe interspersing some other random fiction. I don't have any summer classes looming, so it's a good time to get my recreational reading done!

Writing-wise, I gave up on Script Frenzy right about the time I started packing up to move and getting bombarded with school stuff. It's a shame, but hopefully I'll be able to pick up the idea at another time. My plans for the summer include having a finished first draft of Stella Felicis, a second draft of Attunement, and to continue making notes for a new idea that doesn't have a name yet but is kind of sixth-sense, ghostbustersish.

Social life has been about the same - we've missed two weeks of D&D due to moving and Jim being out of town, but hopefully that'll start up again Sunday at the new apartment, which is looking great (I'll post pictures soon as I get everything moved in, I promise). The move went pretty smoothly, and my other task for this week besides school is to clean everything out of my old apartment in preparation for the lease going up on the 30th.

Also on a social note, I picked up a boyfriend at the beginning of April. Jeff's a videogame addict (he's won multiple Starcraft tournaments. I am a geek and consider this a hot commodity in a significant other) and a philosophy major. We hang out and talk about stuff a lot, as well as playing videogames and going out dancing and trying interesting beers.

Here's a picture of us at GuNk's Zombie Prom up in Omaha a couple weeks ago:

We look festive.

So yeah. Book wise I'm starting on Blood Rites, the sixth Dresden Files book. Gaming wise I'm finally back playing Diablo II in my spare time. Still in Act III of Nightmare, but I hope to celebrate the completion of my Gay and Lesbian Lit paper by stomping Mephisto's face before TV Monday (Who's excited for new Chuck tonight? This kid!). I also hope to be getting some new games after Thursday (when I'm finally done with finals). Not that I can afford that right now, but I have very kind friends. I'm also considering running something in the Serenity RPG system this summer. We'll see though.

Time for me to get back to work on the final that's due tomorrow. Adios bloggers, I'll hopefully be posting more as the days go by. :)

I've Never Been Much For Blogging Daily Anyway

It's been an exceptionally busy week here at Taking Ten. As well as lots of school-related junk, we celebrated the birthday of my friend and future roommate Amy (I got her a tricorn pirate hat, which she loved, and sang her Elton John at karaoke) on Wednesday, which was amusing. I also finished Stone of Tears and have now moved on to Blood of the Fold, which I am enjoying just as much.

I also got my tattoo on Tuesday: it's a small yin-yang in the center of my back between my shoulderblades. It hurt like a bitch since it's on my spine, but it's healing nicely. Itches a bit today, but that just means it's healing. :3 Of course, whenever someone slaps me on the back, it stings. Gotta love friends.

Other life news includes apartment hunting (Amy and I found an amazing place in the middle of town: nice neighborhood, 1100 square feet, less than $600 a month, secured entry, big rooms, balcony... it's perfect) and getting my car tonight. It's a black '06 Honda Civic, 2-door. Her name is Kaylee.

Because yeah, I'm the queen nerd and name my appliances and vehicles. Go me.

Tomorrow is GamerKhan VI, which means my usual plans for sleeping will be thwarted. That's all right though; I'm used to going without sleep, and can probably nap if necessary. I'm all set and ready to cook, organize and hostess it up as well as hanging out with all my favorite nerdy friends. It will, as always, be a blast.

Anyhoo, I'm going to spend the rest of my evening getting a bit more writing done, reading more Sword of Truth, and watching my friends play Civilization IV.

On Writing Longhand and Other Things

So as I mentioned, I'm writing the first draft of my newest novel, Stella Felicis (a working title, I'm not sure I'm a fan of it at the moment) in longhand. I bought a few small college-ruled notebooks (kinda like the Moleskine ones, just cheaper) in Seattle and have been working on the story with pen and paper instead of on my usual medium, which is frantic typing.

It's a very different experience. I backtrack even less than I usually do. I can write anywhere (including class -- there goes my productivity next week), and I feel somewhat more accomplished than I would writing a few pages in MS Word.

There is of course the huge downside, which is my RSI. Today my left wrist, and part of my arm, is in quite a bit of pain and tingling unpleasantness.

So yeah. Tomorrow I'll be scheduling a doctor's appointment. It's the first time I've had to get this checked out in almost three years, but its getting to the point where it's becoming necessary.

Guess that's the price I have to pay for pursuing my dream.

Not the best day I must admit. But I'm dealing with it the way any self-respecting nerd should: Sunday D&D, Mountain Dew, cookies, and eating cream cheese frosting straight from the jar.

Yeah, I'm hardcore.

School tomorrow. Hopefully I won't suffer too horribly. At least now I'm going to take advantage of my work schedule to read. :3

GamerKhan one-shots

Here's the list of the one-shots for Gamerkhan VI, taking place Saturday the 27th of March. Message me with questions, for directions to the location, to sign up, whatever you like.

12:00 – 4:00pm
DM: Tim St Arnold.
The kingdom of Verasin is in chaos. The once shrouded Kurnic Assassins Guild has been forced out of hiding by the genocidal Consortium of the Light. The two forces have picked the City of Renal to be a point of contest between them. With the Four Heroes of Kurnstas away and the remaining assassins subdued, killed or on other missions it has fallen on the rising ranks of the guild to go into the shadows and deliver Kunrstas' blessings to their foes. You have been chosen to engage on a mission of certain death; yet, with your help you may save the guild from destruction before the Heroes can return. As the city holds it breath can you defeat its foes before they are able to launch their religious crusade?

A couple of key notes for the one shot. First this is an assassination campaign, meant to be about stealth and assassinations rather then kick the door in beat everything to a pulp and keep going, please keep that in mind when going forward (not trying to push you away but its not your average one shot). Second, you will be a level 3 NPC, so find something that works for you, also all races are allowed I just need to know what they are to modify them. Which leads me to the next point, there is no magic in this one shot, let me repeat that: NO MAGIC IN THE ONE SHOT. So please do not pick an adept or any other NPC class with magic capabilities I wont let you play it, I will modify races to make them playable but if they will take to much modification I will ask you to change your choice. Other than that all weapons, armor and supplies will be provided for you so no worries.
4 players

Alan Wigness
Hyrule has been ruled by a single royal bloodline for hundreds of years, and for all those years there have been those who stood in the Shadows, defending Hyrule from any who seek to destroy it. They are the Sheikah. Now as the Kingdom of Hyrule is entering an unprecedented age of prosperity, the Sheikah face a foe greater than any they have met. Will history remember this day, or will the Sheikah fall from Shadow into obscurity?
D&D 3.5 Core only
Level 8 standard point buy
Must take 3 levels of Rogue
Six Players
Players: (six slots)

***

4:00 – 8:00pm
Axis and Allies Minis
Run by Tim Auten
Another game of Axis and Allies minis.
Any number of players welcome.

Steven Davis
d20 Modern
Level 7
d20 Modern Basic Classes
Make your own characters (contact Lora for the d20 modern information, or use google)
Any number of players

God has decided to retire so he can spend more time bowling. However, before he left, he sent everyone an email describing his abdication and what would happen next. Most of them were caught by spam filters, but the ones that got through were still circulated:
------------------------------
From: god@god.god
To: The World
Cc: Hell, Heaven
Subject: Retirement
I have retired so that I can spend more time bowling. As I will no longer be ruling the
universe, I am leaving things in the care of my archangel, Michael. Parties who are
interested in taking control are free to search the city of Flameville, USA for my crown, which houses all of my powers as ruler of the universe. Thanks, -God.
------------------------------
Whether through gullibility or brilliance, your character believes this email is true. You have headed to Flameville to search for the crown, but first, you're going to get coffee at a bistro on the outskirts of the town. There are a number of weirdos in this cafe, and some of them may know more than they're willing to admit.

Characters will be Level 7 in one of the basic classes (each one is based on one of the ability scores). For initial stats, roll 4x d5+1 and take the highest 3. Do that 7 times and take the highest 6. Yes, they should be really high. As for background, I will accept any kind of character, but I expect you to at least have a reasonable motive for seeking out control of the universe.

Finally, I expect players to have a sense of humor and a fairly relaxed attitude. If the description so far wasn't enough of a warning, I will be mocking religion, tradition, and many other things as well, so sensitive players should probably stay away.

A Gig in Samaranth
DM: Beta
An adventure of wacky hijinks and adventure, set in the border city of Samaranth. Characters will be premade by the DM, and first preference will be given to players who have NOT been in one of my one-shots. Accepting up to six players. The system is Umzamo, my 3.5 variant. If you know 3.5, you should have no problem picking it up.Oh, and you're all bards, or minstrels, if you prefer.
Players: Tim St. Arnold, Alan Wigness, Alex Rule, Judy Radloff (two slots)

***

8:00-12:00am or later
Kyle Harrison and Alan Wigness’s Boardgame
The game has a maximum of six players.

The game is a cut-throat fantasy adventure. You are a group of evil adventurers working your way through a temple of pure good to reach the ultimate prize: the Elixir of Immortality. The elixir is guarded by a very pissed off angel. You and your evil comrades must work together to gain power and eventually defeat the angel. However, the elixir only appears if a person is alone. So, in the end, you have to kill all of your allies.

The object of the game, of course, is to get the Elixir of Life by conquering the temple, defeating the angel, and killing your buddies. So, throughout the game, you're all working together but still making sure you're more powerful than anyone else.

The game is d20 based; bringing your own dice is recommended. The players control both their own evil race/evil class combination (rolled at random) and the enemies (the good guys). The enemies all have associated decision-making algorithms. Also, the enemies' stats and algorithms are all known to the players so that keeps everything fair and balanced.

My advice to the players is this: if you have a choice between helping an ally who isn't TOTALLY screwed and grabbing some loot...grab the loot.

Amy’s Campaign
4th Edition, characters will be level 30 and premade by the DM. The players will be evil, and attempting to effectively reorganize the ruling order of the gods. So yeah, Deicide is expected.
Five to Seven players permitted

Chris’s Campaign
Pre-determined players and campaign. Something about celestials. I think.
Players: John Fuqua, Alpha Thomas, Evan Phillips (FULL)


***

Remember, four hours is your ballpark time, so don’t panic if you go over (especially the later campaigns). The schedule is flexible and subject to shifting slowly backwards. So don’t freak out kids.

To sign up, PLEASE message me – even if you tell me in person, I want a message so I can keep track of everything, as I won’t always be near my computer to sign you up. Therefore, message me on facebook so if two people sign up for something that there’s only one slot for, I can give priority to the person with the earlier message.

Thanks folks! See you at the KHAN!

Adventures in Portland

It's been an excellent vacation thus far; I've been sleeping in, going on adventures, reading a ridiculous amount of good fiction and even getting some gaming in!

So where do I begin?

Well, there's the reading: I finished up Wizard's First Rule and moved right on to Stone of Tears. Goodkind's writing style is excellent, but very intense, so I have been taking frequent breaks with this second one. I doubt that will last long though - I expect the story will grab my attention just like the first book did.
I also picked up the first book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians book and read it straight through in two hours yesterday, prompting me to pick up the second one this morning when I was at the Lloyd center shopping. I also devoured that one in two hours, and something tells me tomorrow I'll pick up the third. I really should wait until I get back to Nebraska and borrow them from Jim... but they're really good! So we'll see how that goes.

I also went to numerous bookstores, including Powells, my favorite book warehouse in existence, where I picked up many fun items to read and enjoy, including a few cheap gaming books <3. Always a good thing! Other things: Portland has a pirate store. Seriously guys, an honest to gods pirate store. A store full of nothing but cool pirate merchandies and accessories and party favors and costumes. I squee'd. Like a silly girl. And then bought shiny things. :3



So yeah. Epicsauce.

I've also gotten some good DDO in, and I'm hoping tonight will be the night I get through enough quests to hit level five. Hoping Jim will up for some joint questing to boot - our Cleric-Sorc team is utterly doomish. We pwn everything in our paths.

Speaking of which, tonight I joined in on a D&D Encounters group at Guardian Games, an excellent little gaming store in Portland I wish I could live in it is so awesome. The gentlemen I gamed with were lovely individuals, and we had a blast running through an encounter with some muggers. I played a pre-made Half-Elf Cleric. It was fun, and took the edge of my dice-rolling jones.

Everyone say it with me: Lora, you're a huge nerd.

Speaking of more nerdery, I've started a new novel! Even better, I'm writing it in longhand, something I haven't done in years. The novel is going to be a bit more adult-oriented fantasy set in a space age. Mmm, genre-mixing. It's delicious.

So that's my week. I've seen sights, eaten lots of delicious food, stayed up really late, read books, gamed a bit, spent way more money than I should, and had an all-around good time.

Kinda looking forward to heading back to Lincoln though. I miss my friends, for they are awesome.

That's all for now. I have 5th level to reach!

The gaming, the gaming

So I haven't had the opportunity to update since Thursday, and things have changed considerably since then. Like my D&D campaign not meeting because one of my players had to work later than expected and another needed to get up early Saturday morning. So I spent my Friday in the best way: playing Halo with Jim (which I sucked at, but that's because I've never played Halo before. True story), ate an awesome dinner and then spent the evening playing DDO, which went well except for the part where I kept getting disconnected. I have no idea why, but it happened, and it sucked. But I survived, and got to kill a lot of kobolds, which was excellent.

Saturday also went well; The company of heroes attempting to stop the Red Hand of Doom fought several nasty beasties and managed to survive despite lots of near-death experiences (Both Chris and Jim got pretty close to dead at various points).

And we are currently entering into I think our seventh or eighth hour of Amy's campaign. We have been playing for hours and are currently fighting a crowd of wights and a Beholder. I have class in seven and a half hours. We are nowhere near done with this fight.

I will try to blog more tomorrow, but expect to be completely and utterly incoherent and exhausted, as I have nine thirty class, three hours of work, and then two-thirty class. If exhaustion continues, I might skip latin, because I have to read a book and write a paper tomorrow. And go to a reading. And email my group with my notes.

Yeah. We should have finished this session two hours ago. We're idiots. But DAMN is playing D&D until the wee hours fun. It's absolutely fantastic. I adore this campaign, and the Torchwood / Dark Knight / Lord of the Rings soundtrack in the background is doing WONDERS for the mood.

I'm gonna go plink away at a beholder now. Wish me luck.

Campus wi-fi hates me

So I'm at work again on a Thursday night. I'm using one of the work computers because campus wi-fi keeps bugging up, which is very frustrating when one is trying to play DDO and you get kicked off the server. Its okay though, since I'm not playing with anyone at the moment (Jim has raid in WoW and Chris works until nine) and as much as I wanted to help the Waterworks PUG I knew I'd probably get dropped off the wi fi again. And I was.

Curses.

So now I'm blogging and hoping the wireless will stop being all angry. I'll give it one more shot, and then probably give up on DDO until I get home. I got invited out, but exhaustion and carlessness have caused me to decline. As much fun as dancing and/or drinks at Old Chicago sounds, I need to save money, and it's cheaper to stay home and quest. Not in the least because I'm almost to level four and the internet won't freak out on me at home.

In other news, the first session of my D&D campaign is tomorrow night. I've been working on the encounters and let me tell you, I'm excited. I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with this group, and hopefully they will have a lot of fun with me too. Yay for a weekend filled with D&D :)

Finally, I'm putting together a book list for my trip to Oregon. I plan on doing a little shopping while I'm out there (since I'll be in Portland, home of Powells, my favorite bookstore in all the world), so right now the list involves Wizard's First Rule, Wedge's Gamble and The Kryptos Trap. I hope to pick up some more Sword of Truth books out there for cheap. :3

Oh, and I got my new power cable for Miranda! My big laptop is now capable of being portable once again! This brings me no end of joy and happiness, and it also means I can run videogames on graphics settings that don't suck horribly!

Screw it, if the internet refuses to fix itself, I'm going to play some Diablo II. Now that I have juice in my computer, I can run my Necromancer through Act III of Nightmare without hideous lag! Yay! :D

The Hazards of Repetitive Activities

So the weekend is off to a flying start. I had to get up crazy early for my meeting with my teacher, but that went well. She gave me tea. After that (we got done at about eight twenty in the morning) I camped out in Panera, ate a bagel and watched Big Bang Theory until it was time to meet for class.

Class and work went by pretty fast, and then Chris (the roomie) and I headed out for lunch. We ended up going to HuHot, a.k.a delicious Mongolian barbeque fun, for lunch, and then went back home so Elanthia (my wizard) could help power-level Urusai, Chris's Bard. I also hit level 3 (yay) and we made it through Misery's Peak before going to hang with Adam and Jim, which is where I am now, chilling out and watching Chuck.

We made it through a few good quests in Stormreach as a group though, but we had to stop when Jim got called to a raid and my RSI started acting up.

Yeah I have Repetitive Strain Injury in both my wrists, more severely in my left wrist than my right (I'm left-handed). Got the initial diagnosis back in my Freshman year of college, so when it flares up, usually after too much handwriting, typing or similar activities, I have to wear a wrist-brace, use ice packs and take painkillers.

Puts a bit of a damper on the gaming, which definitely qualifies as an activity that requires excessive use of my hands and wrists, among other things. So I'm done for the day, and hope to pick up the questing tomorrow before and after Red Hand of Doom, my Saturday Pen and Paper D&D game, which meets at 2:30. Before that? Car shopping!

So now I'm gonna play silly online games and catch up with season 3 of Chuck. It's a great way to spend a Friday Night, and DAMN is it good to be a geek.

Losers of Friday Night on their computers, unite! :D *end Twitter inside-joke here*

Dungeons and Drama

Another Monday dawns: I've never been a fan of Mondays. If I ever succeed in my plans for world domination, I will forbid the existence of Mondays entirely I think. But until then I will continue in my quest towards another weekend.

Today's definitely a little on the busy side. I have Latin homework to poke with a stick while I'm at work as well as reading Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for my Gay and Lesbian lit class. After Latin I'm running home to dump my books and shower and relax a bit before heading back to campus for dinner and a study party with my friend Cori, who I haven't hung out with in forever.

After that my plan for the evening is to do a few quests in DDO, and then watch Chuck while working on my Latin drills.

Clearly I lead a thrilling life.

Last night was D&D, and while I love Amy's campaign, I think all of us players are getting a wee bit antsy and ready to advance the plot. We're currently sidequesting into the realm of Threst where there's been something of a disturbance involving undead creatures and a halfling rebellion. Isn't a bad thing necessarily, but our main quest is on the other side of the continent, so I know at least I'm wondering when we'll be back on that track. Possibly by the time Amy and I become roommates a month or two from now. That said, I'm having a blast playing Illyria, my character, and I try to do what I can to balance out the party, which tends to bicker when decisions need to be made. Is just the way of things: we've got a gnome illusionist with a legendary alcohol tolerance (James, who often has to leave early due to having morning classes in Omaha), a shifter cleric who can heal a crapton but is hesitant to put forth his opinion for fear of conflict (Adam, my quoting buddy), a halfling rogue who serves the Raven Queen with much enthusiasm (Alex, whose propensity for undead smiting makes things difficult since we have the Chosen of Vecna in our party - a thirteen year old boy who unintentionally reanimates dead things), and a half-elf paladin who tries her damndest to keep us all on track, resulting in her bouncing between being the Patron Saint of Lost Causes (as I dubbed her) and the Only Sane Man (Jim's character. Yes he's playing a chick, and yes he's heard all the jokes, so don't even start).

So yeah. Party strife. We have it.

Hopefully next weekend's session will go better. We might actually make it into Threst, finish the sidequest and be on our way back to find the pesky MacGuffin and be one step closer to attempting to save the world. Huzzah!

And I will say, for all my complaints about sidequests and party drama, I still love this campaign. The fact that I'm willing to play 4th ed for the sake of this story and playstyle is a testament to Amy's storytelling and DMing abilities. So take everything I say with a grain of salt. It is Monday, and we did have a rough ending to the session last night. Give me a couple hours and some caffeine and I'll be right as rain.

Just as soon as I get through my Latin homework that is. *sigh* Now I just need to remember how far we got in the sentences. *grumbles*

MMO's and Vehicles

I'm a big fan of weekends; any day that gives me an opportunity to sleep in past eight thirty in the morning and play videogames and D&D is as good day in my book.

I've started playing DDO: D&D Online, at the recommendation of my roommate Chris. I've never tried playing an MMO before -- I've tended to avoid them because of their two major flaws in my book. 1) They cost money. 2) They take up a lot of time.

However, DDO has managed to eliminate the first of those qualms, in that the Eberron setting is completely free and unlimited. Issue #2 is still there, but all that involves is a little self control.

Not that I have a lot of that, but as long as I remember to get my homework done before I run around killing Sahuagin and becoming a more awesome Wizard.

Speaking of which, homework is definitely pressing on my mind. Paper due in my creative writing class tomorrow morning about a book I've been reading called Leaving Atlanta. It's a good book, but I made the mistake of signing up for a craft device that doesn't really have a specific definition: emotional core. Not hard to explain of course, but its not really something I can do research on. Which might diminish my grade. Unfortunate, but true. Then again, if I mention that research on the topic was difficult, that might help.

Ah, the power of Bullshit.

So until I get on that, I'm gonna watch Chuck and finish reading the book I need to read. I love this show. It's most definitely one of my favorites.

My other thought for the day is about my car. Well, my nonexistent car. Next month I'm finally acquiring my own vehicular transportation. I haven't had a car that even remotely resembled my own property since high school, and even then, my sister and I shared it. Once I went off to the big bad world of college, the car remained in my sister's possession, and then got sold two years later when she headed off to that same big bad world.

So yeah. I can't wait to have a car. I can't wait to be free to drive wherever I want to drive, to have the opportunity to just head to the gaming store whenever I want, to go visit friends on the other side of town without them having to come pick me up.

I've also been thinking about that car, and that it'll need a name. A ridiculously geeky name.

Any recommendations? I'm debating between a Star Wars name (The Milennium Falcon or similar), a fantasy steed (Shadowfax, for example) or something from literature or comic books. Suggestions are welcome, and I'll probably gather and list the finalist names closer to the actual acquisition of the vehicle.

So that's that. Time to crap out a three-page paper, finish reading a book, and watching Chuck. And later, I get to play D&D.

Gotta love Sundays.

Day in the Life

So today, Thursday, is traditionally my busiest and longest day, and no exceptions were found on this particular occasion. I woke up after staying up late for Karaoke (which is a staple in my minimal social life - I go every Tuesday, Wednesday, and almost every Thursday and Saturday) and dragged my sorry exhausted ass out of my warm, comfortable bed. I survived my first class - Reading for Writers, which I actually enjoy quite a bit as we talk extensively about writing techniques. That and I can get away with not giving my full attention and working on stuff for my D&D campaign. So yeah, managed to get three brand new pages of notes written in longhand. Also did that over lunch and during Gay and Lesbian lit.

No such luck in Latin, but I actually enjoy paying attention in latin. My nerdery extends heavily into the realm of linguistics - I'm taking a dead language for fun, I can understand a substantial amount of elvish, and I have a strong desire to learn Klingon.

Please, keep the heckling to yourself. I am well aware of how sad that is.

I also work six hours today, and am currently in the fifth hour of that shift. I don't mind though, as I work at a library. So I've spent the bulk of my shift catching up with Chuck (one of my favorite shows), chatting online with many friends, and plotting out D&D-related things.

I'm really looking forward to starting up my campaign; I haven't run anything in a really long time, so starting off something new will be a fun challenge. Not in the least because two of the players, my friends Adam and Amy, haven't played 3.5 before and started with 4th, so I and the other two players, my roommates Chris and John, have been slowly educating them. It'll take some time, but we're enthusiastic, so it's no trouble.

My plan for the rest of the evening is most likely going to involve more karaoke, as my friends Adam and James are willing to drive out to Brewsky's to enjoy some singing and alcohol. Though probably not for me, as I'm decidedly poor. Yay poverty!

So yeah. My life may not be exciting, but is definitely nerdy.

Time to watch more Chuck and count down the minutes until I can pack up and head home. I'm looking forward to it.