#rogue one sourcebook

[bg-brainrot]

As @cosmicchocomuffin suggested!

Which class/subclass each BG3 character would play in D&D (with a little explanation):

Astarion: Draconic Sorcerer - he would pick a character that comes with power innately, no god, no pact, no strings attached, and he would pick draconic for the eventual flight. Also he would want a high Cha character so that he can attempt to be the face of the party.

Gale: Artillerist Artificer - he would pick another Int based class of course, and, as for Artillerist, he still enjoys being useful, so he'd like the fire power this subclass affords. He would take time every day to ensure his infusions are prepared for the day, not allowing the party to proceed without them.

Karlach: Circle of the Moon Druid - she loves animals and nature and would love to transform into them, but wouldn't want to deal with all of those pesky spells, hence the Circle of the Moon. She would definitely be the cause of half of the chaotic druid wildshape memes online.

Lae'zel: Way of the Astral Self Monk - she would pick monk because they're respected martial warriors, pick the subclass because of its potential to reach enlightenment. But to the surprise of no one, she actually gets really into her character to the point of drawing a blade on the DM (Withers).

Shadowheart: Assassin Rogue - the classic lone wolf class and given all of her Sharran training, she would pick this subclass for the ease of roleplay it offers, with its disguise and mimicry. She starts out aloof, but quickly divulges the entire 12-page backstory she created for her character.

Wyll: Monster Slayer Ranger - he heard people looked down on rangers and decided to give them a chance, then he saw Monster Slayer was an option and knew he picked right. The actual face of the party, simply because he's the only one capable of staying on track-- however, put him in front of a cool monster and you've lost him too.

Non-Origins:

Halsin: Nature Domain Cleric - as someone who loves to help others, he would pick a class with a greater lean to the healing side of magic and with a bit of the same druid utility, then pick the subclass to still have that connection to nature. He will happily go along with whatever the party wants to do, and has ended up in jail a few times for it.

Minthara: Order of the Profane Soul Blood Hunter - she would love a class that's willing to go to any extent to defeat their enemies, like a blood hunter, and the order of the Profane Soul just cranks that up all the more. She would be the classic murder hobo of the group if left unchecked, but she will back off when the rewards are good enough.

Jaheira: Battle Master Fighter - she would go for a classic, reliable class like fighter, with a subclass that utilizes her battle knowledge like Battle Master. She is definitely a guest player, who the DM taps in for a difficult boss fight or arc, so she somehow still ends up the mentor figure in the game.

Minsc: Path of the Beast Barbarian - he wouldn't play something too complicated, hence the Barbarian, and he would love to understand Boo better, so he'd pick the subclass for the Beast abilities that come with this subclass. He would never quite know what he's doing, but makes the best accidental one liners at the table so no one minds helping.

Disclaimer: I only picked stuff I at least have the sourcebooks for. While some extra stuff looked cool, I wasn't familiar enough to get the vibes properly.

[pinkyjulien]

▶ Johnny, Mikoshi, and SPI AIs

Years ago I bought some of the original TTRPG sourcebooks and only just recently started to really read through them 👀 It's a blast and I recommend every cp77 fan to get them!

I'm mainly focusing on the Cyberpunk RED era - it's set during the 2040's (2045) and exist as a canon, direct bridge between the Cyberpunk 2020 pen and paper, and the Cyberpunk 2077 game;

"[...] In addition, RED allows us to create something unparalleled in gaming history—a tabletop RPG that serves as the perfect onramp for the expanded and far future of the Cyberpunk 2077 arc. With threads looping forwards and back through the timeline, my partners at CDPR (Patrick, Adam, Marcin, Amelia—let's face it, the whole damned 600+ crew at the CD studio) and our crew at R. Talsorian Games have given you a deep, complex gaming experience you can explore on both the tabletop and the video screen." - Mike Pondsmith, Cyberpunk RED (2020)

In the Cyberpunk RED sourcebook, we get to read through the real events that took place in 2013, the kidnapping and "death" of Alt

"He's coming out of the Hammer, about midnight, and he sees them. Three punks,mohawks bright and bristly with reflected neon, wearing high-collared jackets; gang colors." - Cyberpunk RED, page 5

We also get to read the Arasaka bombing event, how Johnny really died- and who's responsible for getting him soulkilled... 👀

"On the other side of the room, Johnny crouches under a desk, fighting with his past between bursts of gunfire. I left Alt last time. Just abandoned her. Not again. Never again. Better to burn out, says the Hand. Yeah, Johnny says to himself—and he knows what he has to do." - Cyberpunk RED, page 121

I'm obviously not going to post the whole chunks here and DEADASS ENCOURAGE YOU TO CHECK THEM OUT FOR YOURSELVES - especially if you love Johnny, Rogue, Alt and the entire old crew, it's a real treat!

Anyway, the reason why I'm making this post is because I got further into the book and into the parts about AIs

We know our Johnny, the engram stuck in V's head, isn't a reliable narrator; we learn why and how in the previously mentioned stories on how these events went down - We also know that, well, our Johnny isn't really much of Johnny - He, and everyone who has been Soulkilled, are known as "SPI" AIs

"Soulkilled Pseudo Intellects (SPI) are AIs that were originally actual people but have had their consciousness digitized and now exist only on computers in the NET. The process is often not voluntary — Soulkiller programs produce this type of AI. Otherwise indistinguishable from Symbolic Analysis AIs, these "ghosts" were created in huge numbers as Arasaka put its infamous Soulkiller program to work targeting enemies and rivals alike. The majority of these SPIs have gathered in sanctuaries around deserted mainframes and city systems abandoned by Corporations or (as in the case of a number of bio-plague attacked cities along the Asian Rim) totally abandoned cities. Most of these "ghosts" just want a safe place to live; rumor has it that Alt Cunningham, the creator of Soulkiller and a digital ghost herself, has created a number of "ghost towns" in hidden places all over the remains of the Old NET. They pretty much want to be left alone." - Cyberpunk RED, page 263

We learn about other types of AIs in this section as well - but obviously this one grabbed my attention because, well, that's the Johnny we know - and that's also who, what V becomes after Mikoshi (talking here about the canon game events in some of the endings ofc)

It is so interesting and almost comforting in a way to read about this, to have a proper name and description of what we see and experience in game

I'm late to the party of course, I bet this was already a known thing - but wanted to share it here cause again, it was really really interesting to read and made me feel things hHHHH a lot to think about

[vintagerpg]

This week is loosely themed around cyborgs. We start with Cyborg Commando (1987). It was the first game from New Infinities, a company formed by Gary Gygax, Kim Mohan and Frank Mentzer after Gygax was run out of TSR. Gygax outlined the game, while Mohan and Mentzer designed it — Gygax was too busy writing the Gord the Rogue novels that were keeping the company afloat to do more than that. As it turns out, Cyborg Commando is a terrible game and released to become one of the biggest flops in the hobby’s history, which probably doomed New Infinities.

Xenoborgs have invaded Earth, oh no! The only thing that can stop them is CYBORG COMMANDO (tm) Force. They do this by rolling 2d10 and multiplying the results. I don’t really understand the math, but that rolling mechanic seems to make skill progression inconsistent — increasing the value of a skill doesn’t proportionally increase the chances of success. Better keep that in mind when testing your Household Organization skill? That is a real game skill contained in a list of seeming hundreds of skills, of which only scant few seem useful in shooting lasers at aliens. Which makes sense, because as far as I can tell, the combat system doesn’t take into account the skill system at all. Similarly, the player book provides information on how cyborgs work, next to none of which has real mechanical or even narrative impact.

Which brings us to the sourcebook, which details the invasion and the aliens. Sort of. There are lots of lists of things like population data. A lot of latitude and longitude coordinates. Very important for running a campaign. Half the book is dedicated to the aliens, which are giant bugs that grow organic guns. Like the info on the cyborgs in the player book, it is hard to see how useful knowing how xenoborg cells work is for play, or in crafting scenarios.

Nice art, generally though, provided by Diane Hamil, Valerie Valusek, Gary Williams and Todd Hamilton. And, while the game is a stinker, I do think that Dave Dorman cover art is pretty classic.

[cringecompanionapologist]

I Found a Doctor Who RPG Sourcebook and I'm Making It Your Problem

Actually, I found several. It seems that there is a sort of Doctor Who tabletop RPG with sourcebooks for each Doctor that include ready-made character sheets for the Doctors, companions, and major players in each televised story.

I could look into all of them, if I really wanted to, but the thing is, my computer is nearly a decade old, slowly dying on me, and hates screenshots, so taking and storing a fuckton of screenshots of absolutely everything isn't something I can do. So, I'm just pulling a few interesting bits from the Second and Fifth Doctor Sourcebooks. There's no structure to this beyond me thinking "I wonder what their character sheet looks like".

So, the Second Doctor stuff is not much at all. I got the Doctor himself.

I should probably note that I don't have much experience with tabletop RPGs, and none with this one in particular, so I only half know how to read these. This screenshot isn't even very good. I'm working off a free site with a terrible zoom function and I couldn't get the whole thing. The basics are that characters have a set of six Stats, a bunch of Skills, some traits that give them special strengths and weaknesses, and some basic character information. The Second Doctor's got a lot of stuff, some of which even gets explained.

I've deduced that there's probably a separate manual for the basics of how the game works, what the Stats mean, what the Skills do, etc. So a lot of Why These Numbers Are What They Are questions go unanswered.

Any way, this screenshot sucks so much that I can't bare the sight of it any longer, so we're moving on to the next one. Here's Jamie:

Wow! You can actually see things this time.

Most of the stat numbers don't go above 5, from what I can tell. So we can assume that Jamie's strongest stats are Coordination, Presence, and Strength, without any stat being too weak.

The skills are more mixed.

Athletics most likely refers to physical skills, Convince is persuasion, Craft is making stuff, I think, Fighting needs no explanation, Knowledge is...well...knowing stuff, Marksman is shooting/throwing accuracy, Medicine is obviously medical knowledge, Science is...look a lot of these seem like special subcategories of knowledge that are self-explainatory, Subterfuge I think covers "rogue skills" like spying and lock-picking, Survival is the sort of things Boy Scouts learn probably, Technology is computers and technobabble, Transport is driving and the like.

So, when it comes to strengths, Jamie is physically fit, but can't swim. He is very good at fighting because he's a male companion in the 60s that that was like at least 75% of their job. Marksman is apparently based in knife-throwing ability. Subterfuge...well, if you've seen The Enemy of the World, Jamie is actually a pretty good spy.

As for weaknesses, Jamie knows nothing about any STEM field.

There's also a little number for Technology Level. I've seen this number go as high as 7, but the 18th and 19th century characters seem to be placed at a 4. I didn't get a screenshot but Victoria is the same, despite the whole Industrial Revolution thing.

Then we've got some personality traits and such that effect things. Jamie apparently gets points for being attractive and brave, as well as for being accepted anywhere in time and space no matter what he's wearing. There's really not a whole lot to analyze here.

Now, the entire reason I did Second Doctor stuff was because the villains get character sheets and I wanted to see Salamander's. I added the Doctor and Jamie to pretend I had any other reason to be there.

I took this screenshot without using the zoom and it looks pretty good actually.

It turns out that those skill numbers can go above 5 as Salamander scores a 6 in Ingenuity and Presence, as well as a 5 in Resolve. Almost all of his stats are pretty high. As an RPG villain, he's a boss fight.

Instead of a full chart of skills, which only Doctors and Companions get, Salamander just gets a list. His higher points here are Convince at 5, Knowledge at 4, Subterfuge at 5, and Technology at 5. Convince and Subterfuge are his more manipulative skills as a politician, while Knowledge and Technology are because he did, in fact, invent the technology he got popular for inventing. His Tech Level, at a 5, is somewhere between Jamie and Victoria, and some of the more futuristic aliens. That does make sense for the early 21st century, even a slightly more high-tech 21st century than the one that actually happened.

As for Traits, a lot of them give him bonus skills that are actually explained, such as the ability to invent gadgets, resist mind control, menace people into doing what he wants and get even bigger bonuses in Technology and Convince situations, being a tech genius for his time period and a respected authority figure.

So, cool stuff.

The Fifth Doctor stuff I got is a bit more extensive. We'll start with the Doctor himself.

The good news is that it's a full screenshot. The bad news is that it's very hard to read. We can see a very high Ingenuity stat, because he's the Doctor. There's a Tech Level 10, because I'm guessing that's Level Time Lord.

I do have enough info to compare his Skill number to the Second Doctors.

Athletics has risen from 1 to 4 because of all the cricket. Convince drops from a 5 to a 3, because nobody listens to Five while Two was fairly good at getting people to listen to him. Fighting has risen from absolute 0 to 2, which isn't much but it's literally something. You can see a lot of numbers improve slightly as the Doctor has learned more things over time, like Medicine going from 1 to 3.

I actually looked over four different companions this time. We'll go in order of introduction. Here's Adric.

His Tech Level is confusing in the blurry screenshot. But, as for other stuff, his fast healing and ability to control the TARDIS a little are noted, though the reality warping of Block Transfer Computation isn't because it's too damn complicated and has it's own system.

Adric's skills in general are pretty low, but they don't seem to be too unfair. These sourcebooks started coming out around 2013, when the fandom's aggressive Adric hatred had started to wind down, possibly as people realized that all the season 19 companions had writing problems and the confused performances you often get with confused writing, but Tegan and Nyssa stuck around longer so improvements could be made, and Big Finish started doing damage control with them earlier on, especially in Nyssa's case.

I'm actually surprised Adric's Athletics score is as high as it is. His Science score being only a 3 and Knowledge 2 confused me at first, but when I thought about it, it a makes sense. Adric knew a lot about mathematics but basically nothing anything else, even other STEM fields. Nyssa had to tell him what photosynthesis is, which I learned in elementary school science classes. Between this extreme focus on a single subject, lack of socials skills, and somewhat stilted speech and movement, I think I like Adric as much as I do because all this stuff feels like autism and I was an autistic teenager when I first saw him.

He also gets good Subterfuge skills because he can pick locks, do sleight of hand tricks, and overall has a good skill set that was rarely put to use.

And now, Nyssa:

Tech Level 7 explains where Traken is. We'll get to compare several different planets I guess.

Nyssa gets a higher science stat, with an emphasis on biochemistry. She has a more diverse STEM skill set than Adric. Other than that, I don't have much to report here. The fact that she's upper class seems to affect her ability to interact with people who aren't. As you will see, Turlough somehow isn't given this problem despite it being more obvious with him than with Nyssa.

But before that, there's Tegan.

Technology level 5 for the 1980s. These tech levels seem to cover a lot of historical ground. 1746 and 1866 are both in 4 and 1980 and 2018(futuristic version) are both in 5. I wonder what separates these levels from one another.

Tegan is considered fairly ordinary, not a fighter like Jamie nor a scientist like Nyssa, so her stats are kinda bad. Looking at her traits, her skills seem to include running and screaming, with points off for being impulsive, argumentative, and loud. I don't think the people who wrote this liked Tegan very much.

Anyway, of course there's Turlough.

Trion is apparently Tech Level 7, the same as Traken. So that turned out to not be very interesting.

His main strengths are in Convince and Technology. He can half-understand the TARDIS at times and appears to be good at lying to people. The fact that he doesn't get running and screaming in his traits and Tegan does is sexism. He also gets to be charming, though not attractive like Nyssa or Tegan. Men can get this trait, since Jamie did. I think he's commonly seen as average-looking.

Also the fact that he's seen as lucky with all the shit he went through is hilarious.

Finally, as a bit of a bonus, Captain Wrack from Enlightenment has a character sheet. How do you even make stats for an Eternal?

Many of her stats are surprisingly low for basically a low-level god. Though she's got a high Knowledge score and a Tech Level of 12, since Eternals go beyond Time Lords, though it's more power than technology with them, isn't it? Do we just not know how to factor this in?

So when it comes to these tech levels:

18th-19th century Earth = 4

20th-21st century Earth = 5

Traken and Trion = 7

Time Lords = 10

Eternals = 12

That's all I got for now. I hope you enjoyed this bit of fussing over meaningless numbers.

[chevvy-ryder]

[NC_RES]_27022048-NCA steyr_v_portraits_030_CS.file ///core:_vijay_steyr.file\\\

—

⚠️ READ: Please do not repost/reupload any of my art here or to any other platform, or I will be forced to do anything to get it annihilated. Rogue cyberspace jacket by @pinkyjulien. The Witch pose pack by @busyvampire.

—

For a long long while I've wanted to shoot pics of how I see Vijay as a netrunner in cyberspace or how I imagine a Cyberpunk 2077 cyberspace interface in his style could look.

More under the cut. Beware you may read how my head breaks into pieces as I try hard to understand Cyberpunk's netrunning world lore. I copy pasted some texts from lore books about netrunning because I lack in explainging by myself — so if you're interested, there you go:

First I thought about making the background black, like how it's in the game when you stand in front of the blackwall or talk to Alt. But somehow that isn't it for me.

I've read a while ago netrunners can program their cyberdecks I-G interfaces with a so called 'CREATOR' program that makes netspace like the netrunner wants or has to imagine it.

"There are two other programs on a cyberdeck. One is the Operating System: a program that listens to the instructions the Netrunner thinks to it and obeys his commends. The other is the CREATOR virtual reality system, which is really a complex drawing program that tells the I-G that “when you get this signal from the Net, show the guy this image instead of the one he normally would see.” Our small and stupid computer also has a capacious memory; it can store and run various programs (as directed by its owner), and it also has a huge library of images that both CREATOR and the I-G interface draw upon to interpret what the Netrunner sees while in Netspace. […] By activating the Creator drawing program hardwired into his cyberdeck, the runner is basically modifying the deck‘s basic I-G interface program. First, a background is selected from a huge database of backgrounds, then modified by using simple controls to adjust color, shading and texture. Then the 3-D objects are selected from another database of objects scanned from real life, then stored in a compressed, high-resolution form. The objects can be decompressed and “assembled” into virtual reality on four different levels of resolution. When a runner saves a program, he is saving all the instructions for redrawing the virtual reality he’s created. Anyone entering the Virtual (either where it is stored on the runner’s cyberdeck or in another system) automatically activates the picture and causes the cyberdeck or computer to reconstruct it."

— Rache Bartmoss' Guide to the Net – The Cyberpunk Sourcebook for the Global Computer Net

I'm honest, I'm having a hard time to understand the netrunning world as decribed in the lorebooks. Somehow it always ends same for me like when I watch documentations about the universe expansion, dark matter and supermassive black holes for too long: my head hurts, I have too many questions and I think I'm the dumbest being on the planet. lol

But this gave me basically the idea to make it look like it looks now in the pics, so I imagined maybe Vijay programs it so that it looks like how he wants it. But if he enters other parts of cyberspace he may not have an influence on it as it changes into a different interface if I understood it right.

Anyways, I took a behind the scenes shot this time if you are interested how my 'set' looked. It was very experimental. Who needs a photostudio? x)

By the Way:

The glowing balls visibly in his hands or next to him stand for an anti-system program named 'Cascade II' Vijay uses. Lorebook says this:

"Cascade is not a daemon, bearing more in common with Virazz and Viral 15. lt can only be used against a system CPU. When used, it overwrites system code, causing the CPU to switch programs at random. Every turn there's a 2 in 10 chance that whatever program the runner has encountered will change to something else at random-files might switch to ICE, ICE to system controllers, etc. Anything is possible! lf used against a cyberdeck, the deck chooses a new program at random to run each turn. Cascade can only be stopped by preventing it from reaching the CPU, or by dumping the system code and reloading it ICON: A floating ball of energy."

— Rache Bartmoss' Brainware Blowout – The Hardware and Software Compendium for Cyberpunk

Most of the netrunning stuff will stay a mysterium forever for me and I get why netrunning in the game is made that simple as it is. You simply cannot transfer this massive cyberspace stuff into a videogame. I imagine that e.g. Night City would have to be entirely rebuilt as cyberspace with changing interface virtual realities – everything needs an icon, has code gates, data walls, all kinds of watch dog programs and so on. There's like terrabites of programs runners use. From what I undestood is the quickhacks used in the game do invade other runner's and machine's MicroNets and we basically see it only happen in the real world because we do not see a runners cyberspace window. They are described like this:

"While The Net is a global community exploring everything fit for man and beast, a microNet is a pinched-off part of cyberspace all to itself with very small scope and very defined purpose. MicroNets are in things like: your own cyberwear, your smartgun, that AV-4 you were chased by last night or the hot little red Audi convertible of that girl you’ve been trying to find an excuse to get to know."

— Rache Bartmoss' Brainware Blowout – The Hardware and Software Compendium for Cyberpunk

MicroNets can be accessed through connection from outside (like these kind of data points or when you got real world access to it so you can simply jack in as we know in the game) or 'microNetrun' via a runner's c-deck. And I think ingame quickhacks such as "Synapse Burnout" as we gamers know them are in reality more Anti-Personnel programs called "Brainwipe" "Zombie" or "Lich". Last two are the evolution of Brainwipe what is describet like this:

Brainwipe is the simplest of a series of black programs, all of which are designed to attack the Netrunner instead of his programs. All black programs can be carried by an intruding Netrunner and used to attack other 'runners encountered in the Net. Brainwipe tracks the victim down, fries his forebrain with a jolt of current, and reduces him to a drooling vegetable <1D6 each turn to INTI. The screaming Netrunner feels his mind melt away, until his INT is reduced to O and he dies. Lost I NT cannot be regained.

This surely is a program Jaysen will definitely make use of. Vijay could but doesn't since he doesn't want to kill people anymore (he used it in his early runner days with a drugged mind as well).

Okay, okay I need to stop or it gets worse.

[azzagrazt]

what books would you recommend to read to best understand Grazzt?

Thanks for the question, Anon! If you are asking about canon published material, our pickings are dangerously slim; Graz'zt doesn't appear in the works of Greenwood, Salvatore, or Weis and Hickman (as far as I am aware). For that, you have to go all the way back to Gygax's Gord the Rogue novels, which he first published to market the OG Greyhawk campaign setting and then continued after leaving TSR. I have not read the Gord novels or short stories, and as far as I'm aware, Graz'zt's appearances are limited. I think it is possibly one book?

You can get general overviews of Graz'zt from these published supplements (I won't load you down with literally everything, but these are the most comprehensive sources):

Planes of Chaos - an AD&D 2E supplement that offers one of our earliest comprehensive glimpses into the Man, the Myth, the Menace.

Fiendish Codex I: Hordes of the Abyss - this is a 3.5 supplement that remains one of the most detailed sources on demons in the entire game, although certain lore is no longer relevant. When this was published, succubi and incubi were abyssal fiends and chaotic evil; in 4E, it was decided that they were more appropriately lawful evil (which is true, I suppose), and so became devils rather than demons. This lore change is also where Graz'zt, as an archdevil and possibly the son of Asmodeus, comes from. His tendency to seduce and bargain is a bit antithetical to your garden variety chaotic evil demonic entity, and in changing the succubi/incubi, they reckoned they needed to address him (and his good friend, Malcanthet, the Queen of Succubi and fellow Demon Prince). So, Graz'zt and Malcenthet both became powerful archdevils who Fell and were corrupted by the Abyss.

The Book of Vile Darkness - this is a pretty infamous sourcebook, and it's… well, read the title, and you can pick up what it's about through context clues, I'm sure. TBoVD details his cult.

Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes (pg149, since I don't think the link will direct you to the page on this one) - this is we get his proper 5E stat block, as well as some fun lore bits about the kind of madness he can induce in people (sex addiction, substance abuse, extreme narcissism, etc.) and the environments he spends time in (I especially love the note about animals and low-int beasts in the area just going into extreme mating season behaviors? Horny and aggressive, just like him!)

The Demonomicon of Iggwilv (Dragon #360) - Dragon Magazine ran a series of articles on the Abyssal Lords to emulate Tasha's great work, and the piece on Graz'zt is, understandably, the single most detailed deep-dive to date.

If you are more interested in my literary influences, then that's a much bigger question! I'm happy to expand further if that's the case, but my biggest sources of inspiration are:

Not to be that guy, but... Paradise Lost, unfortunately, demands its spot at the top of this list. Pride, ambition, charm, and a fall from grace - corporate is asking you to find the difference between these pictures, but they are the same picture, etc.

Similarly, Euron Greyjoy. In Euron, we have a noble son with magic powers groomed to become something greater—until the greater power grooming him realized oh shit, this kid is way too evil to control. Shunned for being The Fucking Worst Ever, he doubles down and pursues his own, even more fucked up, magic, ultimately becoming a god-level abuser to everyone around him. Also, "Why did you cut out their tongues?" "Because I needed silence." has all the right vibes.

I feel like I might be bringing a little dash of Lord Henry from A Picture of Dorian Gray to the table? He is a master manipulator who thrives on influencing Dorian into a life of indulgence and moral corruption, and this is pretty much the exact means through which Graz'zt pursues souls. Win them over, break them down, build them up again, new and horrible.

... Griffith. I won't elaborate. :\

Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lector in Silence of the Lambs. Simply the everything about him.

Last but never least, he isn't literary, but the G-Man from Half-Life is an ever-present influence in how I hope to portray him. Not so much as Luz, but when I am writing Graz'zt as Graz'zt, I want him to be kind of like that guy. I have a post about it here, actually.

[reconstructwriter]

9 Fandom Folks to Get to Know Better

Tagged by the lovely @charmwasjess! *squees* awww thank you friend :)

3 Ships I Like: Ohhh, hard choice! So many blorbos, so many potential pairings...but if I must make a choice? Probably Fox/Jon Antilles, Jaster Mereel/Feemor and Rex/Ferus Olin. But I’d be perfectly happy with any combinations of the above. Clones and/or Mandalorians/Jedi is my jam!

First Ship Ever: Definitely Hawkgirl/Green Lantern back in ye ole Justice League Animated days. I was OBSESSED with Hawkgirl – her powers, her tom-boyish personality, the hawk symbolism. If I could re-design her costume and switch the mace for a sword she’d be perfect! And yes I wrote Hawkgirl/Green Lantern as one of my first fanfics. Starcrossed shattered my heart into a thousand pieces but oh I love it so!

Last Song You Heard:  Within Temptation’s Shed My Skin. I love her voice, love the instrumentals and the lyrics vibe with me.

Favorite Childhood Book: Ha! Redwall buddies! It was the firstseries I really got into. My sister did also and got competitive with me about who could read them faster. I can still recite the soup song from Legend of Luke. I am however salty that the few sword-wielding female characters (and also objectively the most interesting ones) Jacques denigrated to write were all side characters! *Sigh*

Why are mainstream creators allergic to sword-ladies?

Currently Reading: The Islands of Sina Una! It’s a 3rd party sourcebook for D&D 5e heavily inspired by the creators’ Filipino culture – precolonial of course – and even goes into detail about how said culture was translated into an RPG book. The world-building is rich and fresh in an RPG that's beating the undead horse of (stereotyped) medieval Europe. It’s got something for everyone – classes, Deities, treasure, environment, potential campaign hooks, creatures,, subclasses, spells, beings, magic items and of course Lore. The choices also fill in some holes left open by most D&D books – the setting itself on seven islands instead of land (stereotypical) or ‘ye obligatory aquatic adventure’. Want a necromancer-flavored rogue, an intelligence-based divine caster, volcanic Dwarves? Here you go!

if you like d&d I would HIGHLY recommend!

Currently Watching: I need to finish watching the OT Star Wars trilogy but the amazing @beskad streamed Skeleton Crew and it’s so good! The characters are fantastic and incredibly realistic, it’s a great mix of humor, heartwarming and heart-wrenching. It plays around with a lot of usual Star Wars tropes so even veterans are left surprised by what happens next. It’s villain is compelling and unique and may give you a bad case of obsession.

Currently Consuming: Cornbread my dad made with sour cream instead of butter in it. Definitely a good choice.

Currently Craving: Maybe Chai? Not really into the cravings right now because I’ve managed to scratch that ‘good, fast and cheap pizza’ craving and my sushi craving by gorging myself on both (two different days)

No pressure tagging: @panther-os, @beskad, @s-c-g-s-c-g, @amarcia, @shinobicyrus, @thejakeformerlyknownasprince, @ankahikoibaat, @dragonciphering, @gallusrostromegalus

[endless-bunny]

Pathfinder Iconics Update

Paizo just put out a blog post regarding some returning characters for War of Immortals, their next sourcebook for PF2, releasing later this year.

The book introduces two new classes, the Exemplar and Animist, which I talked a little about here.

(Nahoa, he/him, and Samo, she/her)

In addition to this, they're introducing a load of "class archetypes". These are archetypes that must be taken at Lv. 1, and unlike other archetypes you can only have one of them. They're much closer to PF1's approach to archetypes, in that they alter some of your class features. The ones we've got so far are mostly for spellcasters, things like the Elementalist, which changes the spell list a character can use, or the Arcanist, which changes how the character prepares and casts their spells. Three hybrid classes from PF1 were featured in the blog post from Paizo. While the Bloodrager — now an archetype for the Barbarian — is now represented by a new character, the other two class archetypes have some familiar faces attached.

Both of these characters are ones I've talked about before, though not in great detail. In the link above, I also talked about why I wasn't particularly expecting to see any of them back. That being said, though, I'm glad they are, and I think this is design space that has a lot of potential.

Zadim, the Avenger

Zadim (he/him, human [Keleshite])

The Slayer in PF1 was a hybrid of the Rogue and Ranger, focussing on tracking a single target and taking them down with deadly precision. The Avenger is an archetype for the rogue, requiring you to choose a deity and giving you certain divine abilities based on that, as well as adjusting your sneak attack to work with the ranger's Hunt Prey action, as well as your deity's favoured weapon.

Though he was always a worshipper of Sarenrae — and a servant of her divine cult — the Slayer in PF1 didn't have any specific Divine properties. To tie into the Avenger's new divine abilities, Zadim in 2e wields the same weapon as Kyra, the iconic Cleric. Both of them are devotees of Sarenrae, the Dawnflower, whose favoured weapon is the scimitar. (and he got to keep one of his kukris, for old time's sake)

Imrijka, the Vindicator

Imrijka (she/her, half-orc)

And here we have Imrijka, a character I didn't think we were going to see again for reasons addressed in the blog post itself. In my previous post, I mentioned that I thought the idea behind the Inquisitor class was sound, but that the particular way in which it was presented could cause problems at the table.

In Paizo's blog post, they say "Paizo’s move away from the term “inquisitor” is a deliberate choice due to the term’s negative historical connotations. Our intent is to provide our players with a more heroic title for a class mechanic that we know appeals to a large portion of our audience." which is... pretty much exactly what I said. Now, the class archetype is going to be called the Vindicator, with only vindicators of unholy gods being called Inquisitors.

The Vindicator is a class archetype for the ranger, trained in Religion instead of Nature, and their deity's favoured weapon. They gain access to more spellcasting than typical rangers with less emphasis on survival in the wilds, though like the ranger they still focus on marking a single target and doggedly pursuing them to the end of the hunt.

Her arsenal and accoutrements are almost entirely unchanged from her PF1 appearance. Even the pose is pretty much the same. Hey, if it ain't broke and all that. She's now clad in blue, the colour of her deity (she was a worshipper of Pharasma even in PF1, but the red attire was probably a deliberate choice to evoke certain real-world analogues that, as mentioned earlier, Paizo is now keen to avoid).

I've learnt a bit more about Imrijka specifically since my last post, particularly by reading Pathfinder Vol. 7: Spiral of Bones in which she is a key player. Turns out that she and Valeros had a fling in the past and they're actually kind of in love?

[Part 1: Classes with Different Iconics] [Part 2: Core Classes] [Part 3: The Remaining PF2 Classes] [Part 4: Classes Who Got Demoted] [Part 5: Prestige Classes] [Part 6: Who's left?] [Update: Rivani and Linxia] [Update: Lirianne]

[netripper]

wanted 2 share some songs for the 2011 au my bf and i have been playing around with for a year now :3

in the mouth a desert - pavement

f. boyfriend - ida

i can't be with you - the cranberries

this is a silverv story where johnny's 22, vic's 25, and they're in this tumultuous and beautiful romance in 2011; vic finding out she's "the other woman" prompts her to break up with him, and what follows is a month apart in which they each have to interrogate how they really feel about each other and what they want out of the future. also jackie's not dead and he's v's best friend still <33 vic lives with misty in the beginning before misty moves out to live w jackie, and vic's working in the clinic with viktor as an assistant/apprentice! she's still a photographer in this au too, which is smth johnny's really into (he cites andy fucking warhol in one of the old sourcebooks he is 100% into artsy bitches)

there's like. A LOT to this that i can't summarize in just 1 post but like aaa. Aaaa. the vibe is that of a late 2000s - 2010 indie film, think the flashback segments of blue valentine but with a more optimistic outlook on the characters' relationship, bc johnny and vic DO eventually make it work again. he drops the other ppl (sorry alt sorry rogue sorry groupies) and gets some help. admittedly therapy seemed like an insult at first bc his managers gave him a voucher after he had an on-stage breakdown the night he and vic broke up, but like listen. Listen. lead a horse to water and MAKE him drink

anyway ya this is just what happens when 2 indie bitches in love get ahold of 2 characters they love and pair together <3

here's vic's playlist (by me)

and here's johnny's playlist (BY MY BF!!! it's missing kerosene - big black so go listen to that one on youtube it's important!!)

[whimsicaldragonette]

ARC & Audio Arc Review: A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel

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Publication Date: September 19, 2023

Synopsis:

Major Rufus d'Aumesty has unexpectedly become the Earl of Oxney, master of a remote Norman manor on the edge of the infamous Romney Marsh. There he's beset on all sides, his position contested both by his greedy uncle and by Luke Doomsday, son of a notorious smuggling clan. The earl and the smuggler should be natural enemies, but cocksure, enragingly competent Luke is a trained secretary and expert schemer—exactly the sort of man Rufus needs by his side. Before long, Luke becomes an unexpected ally...and the lover Rufus had never hoped to find. But Luke came to Stone Manor with an ulterior motive, one he's desperate to keep hidden even from the lord he can't resist. As the lies accumulate and family secrets threaten to destroy everything they hold dear, master and man find themselves forced to decide whose side they're really on...and what they're willing to do for love.

My Rating: ★★★★★

*My Review and Favorite Quotes below the cut

My Review:

As should surprise absolutely no one, I adored every minute of this book. KJ Charles has such a way with words, and is so deft at creating characters who are either utter scoundrels (with good hearts) or thoroughly honest and good, and then bringing them together to complete each other.

I was expecting a continuation of Gareth's and Joss' story, though I was puzzled as to how she was going to manage that, and was surprised to find a time jump and Luke as one half of the featured couple. I quickly came to love that choice. Rather than putting more obstacles in the way of Gareth's and Joss' happiness, we get snapshots of their continued contentment as Luke and Rufus find theirs.

The mystery of the ten thousand guineas does get wrapped up, but otherwise it's a totally new story, and a very satisfactory one. I love the found family Luke and Rufus are beginning to build with his cousins.

I loved every minute of it and have preordered the audio so I can listen to it again once it comes out. (And probably fairly frequently after that, given my track record with KJ Charles' books.)

I loved how Luke and Rufus together managed to slowly bring Berengaria and Odo and Fulk around to their side and recognize their value as the story progressed. I think they'll all be quite happy together.

Absolutely recommend to anyone who falls for lovable rogues and brutally honest characters with good hearts falling in love despite themselves. It was utterly delightful. I loved it.

The characters are wonderful and complex and the way Luke and Rufus come together and complement each other perfectly while still having plenty of arguments and disagreements feels very real. KJ Charles is a master at characters who are perfect for one another despite appearances. Of course it always takes them a while to come around to the fact.

The audiobook performance was once again excellent. The narrator does a fabulous job bringing the characters and events to life and each character has a distinct and recognizable voice.

This, along with the previous book, are going onto my 'absolute favorite comfort reads' shelf. I know I will listen to them again and again - which, to be fair, is what happens with all of KJ Charles' books.

*Thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Casablanca, and Dreamscape Media for providing an early copy for review.

Favorite Quotes:

He’d wanted Rufus so much, and when the temptation had been there in front of him, along with the perfect excuse to give in to it, he hadn’t resisted. If you could describe grabbing what he wanted with both hands as “not resisting.”

[elmalo8291]

Thugs by nature.,

Absolutely—let’s craft the Tupákeros into a playable race for Dungeons & Dragons (or any fantasy TTRPG system). They’ll have a deep cultural identity rooted in resistance, agility, and mythic biology, pulling inspiration from real-world marsupials, mongooses, and coded linguistic significance.

---

Tupákeros

“Tu-pa-kero”

Creature Type: Humanoid (Marsupial)

Size: Medium

Speed: 35 ft.

---

Lore:

The Tupákeros are a fierce and agile marsupial race known for their unique resistance to toxins and their powerful spiritual codes. They evolved in lands plagued by serpentine tyrants, venomous beasts, and deceitful ruling classes. Over generations, they developed a reputation as snake-hunters, justice-seekers, and protectors of the oppressed. Each generation of Tupákeros is raised with the sacred oath to “bite back first,” a mix of survival instinct and ancestral law.

While outsiders see them as unruly or wild, within their culture, strength, honesty, and loyalty to truth define one’s worth. A Tupákero may look like a sleek-furred hybrid of a mongoose and a kangaroo—with strong legs, sharp teeth, and a thick tail used for balance or blunt force—but their souls are wired for resistance, coded with anti-venom and defiance.

---

Racial Traits:

Ability Score Increase:

+2 Dexterity, +1 Wisdom

Marsupial Physiology:

You can jump great distances without a running start. You can add your proficiency bonus to all long and high jump distances. You also have a pouch, which acts as a minor extradimensional storage (up to 10 pounds or 1 cubic foot).

Venom Negation (Biological Resistance):

You have advantage on saving throws against poison, and you have resistance to poison damage. You are also immune to the poisoned condition if the source is natural venom (such as from snakes, scorpions, etc.).

Snake-Cracker Strike (Mongoose Agility):

When you make an unarmed strike or a melee attack with finesse, you can use your bonus action to make a second attack that targets the head or critical zone of a creature. If the target is a snake, reptile, or creature with poison-based abilities, it takes an additional 1d4 bludgeoning damage on a hit. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest.

Urban Echoes (Cultural Insight):

You have proficiency in Insight and one Charisma skill of your choice (Persuasion, Deception, Intimidation, or Performance). Tupákeros navigate lies, power games, and manipulation with the skill of a streetwise elder.

Languages:

You can speak, read, and write Common and Tupákian (a hybrid tongue with rhythmic phrases and coded metaphors—often misunderstood by outsiders).

---

Subrace: Ruffian-Blooded (Optional Sublineage)

These Tupákeros bear the marks of rebellion in their blood. Descended from the first “biters” who stood against ancient tyrants, Ruffian-Blooded Tupákeros are tougher, meaner, and flashier.

Ability Score Bonus: Your Constitution score increases by 1.

Toxic Turnaround: Once per long rest, when you succeed on a saving throw against poison or a venomous attack, you may reflect the pain. The attacker takes poison damage equal to your level + your Constitution modifier.

Swagger: You gain proficiency in Intimidation or Performance. If you're already proficient, you gain expertise.

---

Roleplay Notes:

Tupákeros value truth, rhythm, and retaliation.

They're natural scouts, rogues, monks, and even druids, blending nature’s logic with urban grit.

They don’t just survive oppression—they weaponize it, outwit it, and turn its venom into legend.

---

Would you like this formatted for a 5e sourcebook PDF or expanded with feats, backgrounds, and city lore? Or want to blend it into the Taz: The Awakening mythos?

[cagemasterfantasy]

Ranger Ranking (5e)

Guide

1=useless

2=often useful

3=sometimes useful

4=perfect

Hit Points 3 standard for martial characters d10 hit points gives you plenty of hp to get through the day

Saves 2 Dexterity saves almost exclusively prevent partial damage from AOE effects and Strength saves are relatively rare

Proficiencies 3 Medium armor shields and martial weapons are great but without heavy armor almost every Ranger will go for a Dexterity-based build. Rangers also get 3 skills which is unusually high but since Rangers fall somewhere between a Fighter-equivalent and Rogue-equivalent it makes sense that they get an extra skill

Favored Enemy Note: For this rating I am aware of all of the other sourcebooks like Volo's Guide to Monsters and whatnot that introduce more monsters that you can use. For the purpose of this rating I am referring to the Monster Manual for the ratings

Aberrations 3 one of the more numerous creature types but very few have a CR (challenge rating) above 10

Beasts 1 Beasts are common at low levels but very few Beasts have a CR above 5 so you’ll stop facing them early in your career

Celestials 4 like Fiends but only select this in an evil campaign

Constructs 2 there aren’t a lot of Constructs in the Monster Manual and they don’t appear frequently because they’re hard to shoe-horn into many adventures. Plus how often do you need to track a Golem which was created to guard a room?

Dragons 2 Dragons are a tempting option because they’re so iconic and scary but they’re also a bad option because there are so few of them

Elementals 2 there are very few Elemental creatures which frequent appearances as enemies

Fey 1 there are almost no Fey in the Monster Manual and their CRs are all very low

Fiends 4 a great option especially in an all-good campaign. Fiends are numerous and run the whole CR range

Giants 2 there aren’t a ton of Giants and their highest CR is 13

Humanoids 2 Humanoids are hard to pin down. Depending on your campaign you may face a huge number of Humanoids or you may face absolutely none. Only select Humanoids if you know that you’re going to face them. Since you get to pick two types of Humanoids I recommend Humans and another race which is prominent in the campaign’s setting

Monstrosities 3 there are a lot of great monsters which qualify as “Monstrosities, but very few of them have a CR above 11

Oozes 1 there are almost no Oozes in the Monster Manual

Plants 1 there are very few Plant monsters in the game

Undead 4 iconic numerous and consisting of a long list of enemies running the whole CR range. Undead pop up in many campaigns even those where Undead aren’t a major theme so they’re a good reliable option

Alright back to regular rankings

Natural Explorer 2 you get 3 choices over the course of your career, so hopefully your campaign doesn’t involve a huge amount of traveling. The bonuses are fairly small but fit the flavor of the class

Fighting Style (Note I will only be going over the ones in Player's Handbook I will not be going over the ones introduced in Tasha's Cauldron of Everything aka Blind Fighting Druidic Warrior and Thrown Weapon Fighting. If you are curious to my rankings for those Blind Fighting and Druidic Warrior are both 2 while Thrown Weapon Fighting is a 3)

Archery 4 the obvious choice for ranged builds. +2 to hit is a big deal in a game where a max level character can expect a maximum of +11 to hit

Defense 3 AC boosts are great but Rangers are Strikers at heart and you need a Fighting Style which boosts your damage output. Of course Beast Masters may prefer to rely more heavily on their companion for offense so a boost to AC can allow you to protect yourself while your companion does the work

Dueling 3 note that this works while using a shield. 2 damage closes the damage gap between a longsword and a two-handed weapon. For many subclasses this is the go-to melee option because your Bonus Action may be monopolized by other things like commanding a beast companion or using features like Planar Warrior

Two-Weapon Fighting 3 one of the biggest issues with Two-Weapon Fighting is that you don’t get to add your ability modifier to your off-hand attack without this fighting style and taking this style makes it considerably more viable. Unlike Fighter Two-Weapon Fighting is a perfectly viable option for many Rangers. Hunter’s Mark adds a small but notable damage boost which closes the damage gap between greatswords and short swords making Two-Weapon Fighting highly effective for Rangers since the extra attack offers an additional opportunity to deliver Hunter’s Mark’s damage boost. However Two-Weapon Fighting struggles with the action economy. Hunter’s Mark requires a Bonus Action to cast or re-assign so in the heat of combat you often need to decide between using Hunter’s Mark or making your additional attack. Many subclasses also have features like Planar Warrior or Slayer’s Prey which also consume your Bonus Action as do many other Ranger spells so for many subclasses you’ll find that your Bonus Action is in use too often to make use of Two-Weapon Fighting. Two-Weapon Fighting can still work very well for Hunter but many other subclasses should avoid it. Before you commit to this take a good look at your subclass and see if you’ll need your Bonus Action to activate subclass features

Back to regular rankings we are almost done

Primeval Awareness 1 too expensive too limited too situational. The fact that this costs spell slots to activate is frankly insulting. Primeval Awareness is so laughably useless that if you simply removed it from Ranger no one would notice

Extra Attack 4 you’re no Fighter but 2 attacks is still a considerable boost to your damage output

Land's Stride 3 difficult terrain is very frustrating for melee characters so this will give you a big advantage in some fights

Hide in Plain Sight 3 you don’t get to move while using this but it’s very effective

Vanish 3 very helpful for sniping but not as important for Rangers as Cunning Action is for Rogues since you don’t get Sneak Attack. Also note that it doesn’t work with Hide in Plain Sight

Feral Sense 4 invisible creatures are hugely problematic and even knowing what square they are in is a big advantage. Being able to locate and attack them without penalty is a massive bonus

Foe Slayer 3 this is at most a +5 but a +5 to an attack roll can be a huge bonus in a game where +11 is the normal maximum

[cringecompanionapologist]

I Found More Doctor Who RPG Sourcebooks and I Can Almost Explain

I posted about this RPG before, with me just guessing at what the various stats are for. I haven't really done tabletop RPGs before, so I still don't understand a lot of it, but I can sorta understand some of what these character sheets mean.

The thing is, the main sourcebook for the game is from 2015, so it started off with the character sheet for The Doctor specifically meaning 12, and having a sheet for Clara, but no other companions. I think there were earlier releases of the game during 10 and 11's eras, but I focused on the most recent here.

There's a special edition sort of sourcebook that isn't specific to any Doctor and I used that one to define things.

Then, there are the regeneration specific sourcebooks for Doctors 1-11. I got most of my character sheets from those.

As for every Doctor after 12, I think another edition of the game with 13 was eventually released, but it isn't on the website I found all of these on. 14 and 15 are new enough that I don't think they have this sort of material yet.

So, here's me just rambling about whatever things I found interesting here.

Stats and Skills

Most of the interesting numbers on the character sheets are the 6 stats and 12 skill categories involved.

6 stats is a typical rpg format, since that's what DnD has. The classic DnD stats are Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. The Doctor Who stats can vaguely map onto these, though they're not exactly the same.

Awareness is based on a character's focus and observation skills. I'd say it's closest counterpart is Wisdom, but not really.

Coordination is reflexes. It's basically Dexterity.

Ingenuity is a combination of education level and problem solving skills. Some characters will have high Ingenuity scores based purely on one or the other. It's closest to Intelligence.

Presence is how good a character is at attracting attention to themselves and getting people to listen to them. It's a variation on Charisma.

Resolve is a character's force of will and self-discipline. There isn't really a version of Constitution in this game, so I see Resolve as the psychological version of Constitution.

Strength is...it's just the DnD Strength stat. They didn't change this one.

A human character can score a 1-6 on each stat, with 3 being average human. Other species can score above 6 in certain stats. Cybermen can be stronger than any human, for example.

As for skills, characters can have skill points in 12 categories: Athletics, Convince, Craft, Fighting, Knowledge, Marksman, Medicine, Science, Subterfuge, Survival, Technology, and Transport.

Athletics are physical skills other than fighting. That includes running, jumping, climbing, swimming, or more specific things like riding a horse or playing a sport.

Convince is...well, it's convincing people to do stuff or tell you stuff. This can mean lying, bossing people around, seduction, or just being so charming that people will do whatever you want.

Craft is making things. It's building, carpentry, metalworking, as well as some artistic skills like singing or playing an instrument.

Fighting is exactly what it sounds like, though it specifically means physical fighting, either via punching and kicking, or with a weapon like a sword or a club.

Knowledge is specifically knowledge of things that don't fall into the Medicine, Science, and Technology categories. So it's things like history or speaking different languages.

Marksman is combat based in shooting or throwing. It can be with a gun, a bow, a futuristic laser weapon, or a knife if it's being thrown.

Medicine is medical knowledge. How to treat wounds and illnesses, knowing antidotes to poisons, or knowing how to help people with trauma.

Science is knowledge of the SM of STEM. So it's stuff you'd learn in science class like chemistry, biology, and physics, as well as mathematics.

Subterfuge is basically your "rogue class" skill set. Sneaking around, picking locks, sleight of hand, that sort of thing.

Survival is knowing how to not die in various environments. This can be wilderness survival like building a fire from sticks you find in the woods, but it can also refer to specific terrain. You could need to survive while stranded in the ocean or space, or the tundra, and there aren't many sticks to make fire out of in those places.

Technology is the TE of STEM, so it's skill with computers and various gadgets, as well as engineering.

Transport is knowing how to drive or fly things. It can be driving a car, flying a plane, sailing on a boat, piloting a spacecraft, or controlling the TARDIS.

Tech Levels:

There's also those Tech Levels I was wondering about. These are loose categories of how advanced the technology of a character's native time and place are. I say loose because several centuries can be at the same level.

Level 1 is Stone Age. There are things that could be considered technology.

Level 2 is reached with metal. Most ancient and medieval civilizations go here.

Level 3 is around the Renaissance, defined by things like gunpowder and really big boats.

Level 4 is Industrial Revolution, where things are being mass produced in factories instead of by hand.

Level 5 is Space Travel, but very limited space travel. People can put things in space like rockets and satellites, but they can't go very far, not outside the solar system. Nothing can travel faster than the speed of light.

Level 6 is Star Trek, basically. There are ships that can travel faster than light and/or transmat systems that allow for some form of fast travel. There are colonies outside the solar system, but they're sort of isolated. Space is still being explored here.

Level 7 is Great and Bountiful Space Empires. Colonies in different systems or even galaxies are more easily connected. The only major limit is no time travel.

Level 8 is where time travel comes in.

Level 9 is like really good time travel. From what I've seen, this is literally just Level Dalek.

Level 10 is Time Lords and Time Lords only.

Level 11 is The Tech Level of Rassilon for very powerful Time Lords and TARDIS by themselves.

Level 12 is Eternals and other God People who can't be comprehended by mere mortals.

So, how about some notes on things? To avoid having to constantly flip between books, I typed out everything I wanted to know onto a spreadsheet.

Most the Doctor's stats stay the same between incarnations or increase slightly over time. Ingenuity starts at 7, but new series Doctors are at 9, because of all the life experience. Basically, Ingenuity 7 is impossible for a human, but actually a bit low for a Time Lord. The Doctor is ridiculously clever by human standards, but something of a failure by Time Lord standards, so this makes sense.

Strength probably varies the most because of how physically different the Doctors are. The First Doctor is at a 1, being a tired old man, while the Third is at a 4, above average.

Skills vary a bit more than stats. Some, like Knowledge, Science, and Technology just slowly rise over time like stats, but others jump around a bit.

In Athletics, The Fifth Doctor is slightly higher than most classic Doctors, because he plays cricket. He's literally an athlete.

Going from the Second Doctor to the Third, Convince plummets from 5 to 2. Basically, imagine both Doctors having to get past a guard. The Second Doctor would convince the guard to let him past somehow with the Third would probably just knock the guard out.

On the other hand, Two's Fighting skill is at 0. He literally cannot fight. While Three's is at 3, a common number for male companions who are often there to do the fighting. It is also the exact same score as the Brigadier.

Also the First Doctor and Ian have the same Fighting score. If you don't know why, watch The Romans. One can kick ass.

Marksman usually stays pretty low, since the Doctor doesn't like guns, but the Fourth Doctor's is at a 4. The Doctor's attitude towards guns is actually a bit more complicated than "doesn't like them". Some Doctors just don't like them. But, Four's attitude towards guns is more pragmatic. He doesn't carry weapons because people are less likely to attack an unarmed person who doesn't present as a threat. He'll pick up a gun if there's a gunfight going on, but he's never going to risk starting one.

Subterfuge is the same as Convince when it comes to the Second and Third Doctors. If they come across a locked door, and the sonic screwdriver can't open it, which one's more likely to pick the lock and which one's more likely to karate kick the door down?

As an added bonus to talk about, there's a much longer list of Traits, added strengths and weaknesses outside of Stats and Skills. One of these is Attractive, which can make someone better at Convince rolls just by being pretty. Eight is the only Doctor with this trait.

Companions with the Attractive Trait: Ian, Barbara, Katarina, Sara, Ben, Polly, Jamie, Victoria, Zoe, Liz, Jo, Sarah Jane, Leela, Romana I, Romana II, Nyssa, Tegan, Peri, Ace, Grace, Rose, Jack, Martha, Amy, River, and Clara.

And now that we're on the subject of companions:

So, nearly every companion is Tech Level 5, because that applies to the entire time the show has been airing and most companions are from the time their introductory episodes aired. But, we've got some companions from other times and places to go over.

Companions That Aren't Present Day: Susan, Vicki, Steven, Katarina, Sara, Jamie, Victoria, Zoe, Leela, K9, Romana, Adric, Nyssa, Turlough, Kamelion, Jack, River.

Out of those Zoe is still considered to be from Level 5. Though Zoe's from a futuristic space station, The Wheel is apparently not outside the solar system. Humans of Zoe's time probably still can't travel faster than light and the T-Mat systems from The Seeds of Death are probably still a few decades off. Also, it's still the 21st century, which is also now, despite not being now.

For historical companions, Level 4 seems to be preferred so they aren't too far behind the audience. Jamie and Victoria are both classified as such. Level 4 is apparently supposed to cover the 18th and 19th centuries, but that doesn't exactly align with the Industrial Revolution, which began around 1760 at the earliest. So, Victoria's 1866 being at Level 4 is obvious, but I personally don't believe 1746 should count and I'd have put Jamie at Level 3.

Meanwhile, Katarina's at Level 2, fitting the early Bronze Age. But, Katarina didn't last very long as a companion because the writers were nervous about having a companion who wouldn't recognize basically anything she'd see in a sci-fi show.

But, in the 1970s, the writers said "fuck it" and we got Leela, who, though not from Earth's past, is from a Level 1 civilization. The made it work by having Leela be very clever. She's a fast learner so she'll figure out what everything is before it becomes a problem.

As for the more futuristic companions, we've got Vicki at Level 6, which does seem to match what we see in The Rescue. Steven, strangely, is at Level 7, the same as Sara Kingdom. Steven is frustrating because we don't actually know when he's from, with sources varying wildly, landing mainly on "somewhere between the 23rd and 28th centuries", though I've seen people guess as far ahead as the 36th. If Steven is from the 36th century, that would fit with Level 7, not being too far from Sara's 41st. Vicki's Level 6 is the 25th century though, so if he's from before her, he should be Level 6. Usually all of the 2XXX years are Levels 5 or 6, so perhaps the sourcebook is going for the 36th century interpretation. Though his character bio says 23rd century...

Look, nobody knows what the fuck is going on with Steven. I would've gone with Level 6, just to be safe.

Speaking of Level 7 though, Humanity is up there by the 41st century, but some alien civilizations get there earlier. Nyssa, Turlough, and Kamelion are placed at this level. EU material references both Traken and Trion having either empires or a variety of colonies with influence over a long distance. The Trions apparently have agents hidden on every civilized planet, which would take Level 7 "space travel easy" technology to work.

Adric is a bit weird. He's put at Level 6, as the tech level of Alzarius, but his math superpowers allow him to understand Level 10 technology. He's basically a Time Lord via adoption.

Then we have K9 and Jack, both from the 51st century, where humans can time travel, and whoever built K9 can time travel. Actually, K9 Mark I is Level 8. K9 Mark II is Level 10, due to being constructed by the Doctor, a Time Lord. He had to be upgraded to match the tech of the TARDIS basically.

Lastly, though River technically should've been born in the 21st century, she was actually raised around Level 8 technology in the future.

I should probably say a few things about the Stats and Skills of Companions, shouldn't I.

A fun thing to do is to take the Ingenuity stat and compare it to the Knowledge skill. For Jamie and Jo that's a 3 and a 1. For Leela, that's a 4 and a 0. This means that, as much as the show seems to think they're stupid, Jamie and Jo are actually pretty normal in terms of intelligence. They're just limited in their knowledge. Leela is even given above average Ingenuity. She's very clever, but she doesn't know about anything at first. She ends up living on Gallifrey.

There's also companions with contrasting knowledge. Adric has Knowledge at 2, but Science and Technology at 3. Adric doesn't know much about things other than mathematics and things mathematics can be applied to, like computer programming. Zoe also has higher scores in Science and Technology than in Knowledge.

If you wanna know who scores high in what thing, where all the interesting big numbers are:

Highest Awareness Stat: Zoe, Brigadier, Benton, Sarah Jane, Romana II, Mel, Jack, Amy, Rory, River (All at 4)

Highest Coordination Stat: Leela, Mel (5)

Highest Ingenuity Stat: Romana (9)

Highest Non-Time Lord Ingenuity Stat: Nyssa (6)

Of course Nyssa gets to be special.

Highest Presence Stat: Polly, Romana, Turlough, Jack (5)

Yes, Turlough and Jack basically have the same Charisma stat. I love it.

Highest Resolve Stat: Barbara, Sara, Harry, Romana, Mel, Ace, River (5)

In general, companions are usually above average in Resolve, with a few exceptions. Susan, Turlough, and Kamelion are all 2s.

Highest Strength Stat: Steven, Sara, Ben, Jamie, Brigadier, Benton, Leela, Kamelion, Jack, Mickey

I would like to note that 3 is considered human average, but the women seem to average at 2. Draw your own conclusions.

Highest Athletic Skills: Mel (5)

That fitness obsession went a long way, apparently. Runner-ups, scoring 4, is Ben, since the navy is like that.

Highest Convince Skills: Jack (5)

Highest Craft Skills: Vicki, Ben, Brigadier, Leela, Romana II, Nyssa, Ace, Grace (3)

Highest Fighting Skills: Sara, Jamie, Leela, Jack (4)

Highest Knowledge Skills: K9 (6)

Robot computer memory banks should be considered cheating, so let's have some runner-ups: Liz, Romana, Peri, River, Clara (4)

If you're curious about why Peri's up here, since she's usually not associated with knowledge, it's all in Botany. She knows a lot about botany.

Highest Marksman Skills: Steven, Sara, Benton, Jack (4)

Highest Medical Skills: Grace (5)

The other doctors of Doctor Who (scoring 4): Liz, Harry, Martha, Rory

Look, the one time we see Grace doctoring she kills her patient. If she's a 5 at least one of these other 4 should be. I vote Martha.

Highest Science Skills: Zoe, Liz, K9, Romana (5)

Highest Subterfuge Skills: Sara, Polly, Jo, Kamelion, Rose, River, Clara (4)

Highest Survival Skills: Ben, Peri (4)

I think Peri earned a 4 just on remaining sane while traveling with 6.

Highest Technology Skills: K9 (6), Romana, River (5)

And among the (4 scoring) mortals: Susan, Vicki, Zoe, Turlough, Kamelion, Mel, Martha

Highest Transport Skills: Sara, Jack (4)

As a final list, there's a trait called Vortex that means "able to fly the TARDIS". Naturally, all the Doctors have it, but here are:

Companions Who Can Fly the TARDIS: K9, Romana, Adric, Turlough, Jack, River

So K9, Romana, Jack, and River all come from civilizations with time machines. Adric is established as having an abnormal understanding of Time Lord tech. Turlough...he can just fly the TARDIS. There's a novel that takes place after Planet of Fire, following Turlough, and he invents a time machine. Turlough is just Good With Time Machines.

There are other companions that controlled the TARDIS at various points, but whenever it happened, it was played like a big deal. These companions had at least one moment when they controlled the TARDIS and the Doctor didn't even seem surprised.

So, I believe that's all for now. This probably wasn't very coherent. My computer is mostly broken and once I get a new one in a few days I'll post coherent things with it.

[jeronandor]

[baereaved]

So, the obvious question: If Rogue hates Night City, and if it's dangerous to be on the street there, especially with Arasaka likely wanting to hunt her down after 2023, why stay? And after that, in 2045 or 2077, why stay in Night City for all this time?

Many reasons.

Night City's one of the most dangerous places in the world, but Rogue is one of the most dangerous people. Razor-sharp reflexes and cunning honed through growing up on the streets and fighting her way to the top. Staying in Night City protects her more than it puts her at risk, because it's her turf. A sterling reputation, dozens of contacts, and a perfect map of the city tattooed inside her eyelids gives her an advantage she wouldn't have anywhere else. Not only that, but Night City is notorious for its threatening atmosphere. Just in trying to reach her, Rogue's enemies will run into trouble whether she intervenes or not; that's just how the streets are. It suits her, and honors her nature: only an edgerunner would be safest while toeing the line.

Part of it is also fear. She knows nothing aside from this life. Rogue is a woman who plans, and analyzes, and acts once prepared. Spontaneity is recklessness. It gets you killed. Change? Drastic change, like throwing away everything you know to start over somewhere new? It's not even an option to her. In this way, Rogue is in a prison of her own design. Maybe she could find a better or happier life somewhere else, maybe even a peaceful life. But Rogue's never known peace. She knows what she's good at and sticks to it, which means staying in Night City. If she were to ever leave for a quiet, peaceful life somewhere out there, well... the boredom would kill her faster than any of her enemies could hope to.

But the most notable would be that, well, she can't. Emotionally, she can't. Rogue is wrapped up in sentimentality. Decades of love and pain and feeling live inside her, just as those same traits thrum under her feet as she paces the streets. It's her Hotel California: "Check out any time you like, but you can never leave". Even if her brain wanted to ditch Night City and never look back, her heart wouldn't let her. She loves it, hates it, needs it. For all the people it's killed, somehow Night City keeps Rogue alive. And she returns the favor.

[sparkyyoungupstart]

Yeah I’ve got some recs!

Pokemon World Tour United: It uses the Pokemon Tabletop United system, although the players and DM remove mechanics as they see fit. It follows two main players - Carl Cobalt, a kindhearted but inexperienced young man with a Cyndaquil named Treble; and Rose Jenny, a young girl with a Growlithe named Bango who doesn’t want to follow her family’s traditions. They go through an altered Kanto League featuring various guest players and also butt heads with some Rockets while befriending others and stumbling upon a devious plot. It’s almost finished, and while they’re on hiatus trying to complete their last few episodes there are still plenty to listen to to get started.

Cool Kids Table: Made by the same guys behind PWTU above, this is an anthology series that uses a variety of systems. Some plots concluded, some are still ongoing, and some are just oneshots. The series itself is on hiatus due to various things coming up in the cast’s personal lives. I still think they’re worth a listen, especially these arcs:

All I Want For Christmas: The first arc, only 3 episodes long, using the All Outta Bubblegum system. It's Christmas Eve 1996, and the most popular toy is Turboman. Soccer mom Chrissy, teenager Britney, and toy collector Jed fight their way to the toy store in an attempt to get one of the last two available. I recommend trying this one out because it’ll be a good litmus test to see if you like this crew.

The Fallen Gods: Their DnD 5e arc that’s still ongoing. Using the Dragonlance setting it follows half-elf disaster bi sorceress Tuatha, human barbarian himbo Flint, and elven rogue/ranger Solvin as they get forced into helping to find the lost Gods, who hid themselves as powerful artifacts to protect themselves. They don’t want to do this and they cause a lot of damage along the way.

Sequinox: Their other ongoing story, using the Sailor Moon RPG system. Four girls who are just barely friends - popular girl Hannah, rambunctious Chell, strange but nice Sid, and introverted Yuki - discover they are Sequinox, a team of Magicals Girls with the powers of the seasons, who’s duty it is to fight the stars themselves and protect Earth from The Night Queen.

Jemjammer: An all-queer DnD 5e show set in the Spelljammer setting (albeit a homebrewed version as it started before the official sourcebooks for it came out). The cast are Jylliana the socially awkward Aasimar Cleric, Cacophony the bombastic elven Bard/Rogue, Aelfgifu the half-elven Ranger/Warlock who’s not used to people, and eventually Arturos the Triton Fighter Himbo. They get roped into adventures in Wildspace. While the first little bit is them bouncing from place to place, they slowly but surely start piecing together that there’s a greater evil at work and decide to oppose it. There’s also romance, goofs, and many brunches to be had.

The Eternity Archives: This is also an anthology show, but only for systems - the characters and plot are overarching. We follow a trio of “librarians” - Linda the regular human office lady, Ziva the lizard warrior princess, and Ryl the tiefling nerd. They are tasked by an interdimensional library with gathering objects or people who have accidentally fallen into the wrong universe. In pursuing them, they travel to those various worlds - each one using a different game system. They’ve done such things as 5e, Monster of the Week, Henshin, Wanderhome, and more. There is an overarching plot, but the focus is more exploring the characters via the systems they find themselves in.

Eidolon Playtest: This show uses a system of their own making, Eidolon: Become Your Best Self, which combines themes of Persona and JoJo in the sense that gameplay revolves around the characters being able to summon a powerful supernatural entity representing their innermost self. No matter the setting expect heartwrenching revelations, hilarious antics, terrible music puns, and lots of queer stuff. It does have a large cast (10 people including the GM), but it’s split into two separate groups who don’t overlap until late each season.

The first two seasons form a complete story, which is split into alternating POP and ROCK sides. The POP side follows a group of university students and their professor as they attempt to avoid The Estate, a heavenly institute that has guided humanity from it’s inception. The ROCK side follows a group of wannabe gangsters and their pet fox as they accidentally stumble upon a briefcase of contraband that they can sell for millions - if they get it to the drop point in time.

The currently airing third season, as well as the fourth after it, form another complete story. DISCO is set in 1979 and follows the antics of the Mystery Solvers Club, who suddenly uncover the presence of the supernatural in their town and try to protect themselves and their loved ones from the fallout. SKA is set in that same town in 1999, where the latest incarnation of the Mystery Solvers Club also pursue various supernatural mysteries - including the disappearance of the 1979 club members 20 years ago.

CtrlGroup: Another anthology podcast with a rotating all-BIPOC cast and various different games, some of them multi-episode and some just oneshots. It’s also currently on hiatus, but all my favourite arcs are completed plots. Specifically I’d recommend the following seasons:

It Came from Lake Mary and Return to Lake Mary: Using Monster of the Week in season 1 and MonsterHearts in season 2, this series follows a group of youngsters as they combat various supernatural threats to their hometown while dealing with the horrific ordeal of growing up.

Attack of the Feels: Using Lasers and Feelings, this space romp takes place in the world of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and follows ragtag crew of a spaceship as they meander though surreal and satirical plots across the galaxy.

Compass Rose: Using a system made by castmember Dennis, The Last Shounen. It’s an anime-style campaign where a party of super-powered fighters with mysterious backstories travel across a magical world in order to find themselves.

Pirates of the All-Sea: Using Thirsty Sword Lesbians, this campaign follows a group of pirates from all walks of life as they fight for love and freedom from the powerful kingdoms they’re rebelling against.

Teen Titans Academy: Using the B.R.A.W.L. system. The daughter of Nightwing and Batgirl, the daughter of Red Arrow and Starfire, the son of Mr. Miracle and Big Barda, and a demon-possessed boy raised by John Constantine all enroll in Titans Academy to make their parents proud, but in their attempts to do so discover a sinister comic-book villain plot.

Interstitial - Crossover Driven Actual Play: Using the Interstitial: Our Hearts Intertwined system, and beginning as a playtest of said system by it’s creator Riley Hopkins, this series thrives on weird crossovers and emotional bonds between characters you really didn’t think would ever interact. Each season is it’s own self-contained story.

Season 1 (Identity) is set firmly in the universe of Kingdom Hearts. Marche Radiuju, college burnout Roxanne, Hazel the OC, and Criss Angel Mindfreak are tasked to fight off yet another new incarnation of Organization XIII as they chase them through various Disney worlds.

Season 2 (Authority) follows Atticus the OC, Catwoman, Salem Saberhagen, Sans Undertale, and Cyborg John Cena from the Future as they evade the multiverse-hating Authority and strike out to choose their own destiny.

Season 3 (Proximity) follows a team comprised of Miles Edgeworth, Hamato Raphael, Pidge Holt, and Char Aznable as they work to pull off the ultimate heist.

Season 4 (Infinity) is still upcoming! But it’s inspired by Infinity Train and will follow Mob, Audrey Jensen, Shadow the Hedgehog, and Trish Una in the titular train.

Our Sparks Ignited: Another show using the Interstitial system, though this time it’s explicitly set in the Magic the Gathering Multiverse. Prior knowledge of MtG isn’t required, but it does help. A group of planeswalkers (Teapot the time-lost waif, Zayfa the mad-scientist centaur (I play her!), Una the noble Samurai, and Niklas the Perfectly Normal Man) form a surrogate family of sorts while doing interplanar odd jobs for others. But their journeys can’t help but point them towards multiversal threats, and soon things get personal.

Pokemon: Adventures in the Millennium!: Another pokemon podcast that uses Pokemon Tabletop United, and was inspired by PWTU above. This one follows three trainers across Sinnoh - Julian from Alola and his Litten Erik, searching for his archeologist parents; Belle from Kanto and her Nidoran Myra, running from a dark past; and Gabriel from right here in Sinnoh who hopes to become pokemon champion with his one-armed Krabby Clawbert. But they soon become embroiled in a scheme that pits science against magic, present and against future, and these friends against old rivals. It’s been on hiatus for almost a year now, but I have it on good authority that it’ll be coming back some time this year (because I’m the one who GMs it :P)

Hope some of these spark your interest!

give me some good dnd (or other ttrpg) podcast recommendations cuz i finished all the main taz arcs (balance being my fav by far, with ethersea in second) and want more

i remember i checked out critical role a couple years ago but just could not get myself into it at all. a few months ago i listened to part of an episode of dimension 20 (i think the fantasy high arc) and i didn't get too far into it because the mood wasn't right but i didn't dislike it and would be willing to try it again now that i'm in a different mood

so far my preferences are:

-i'd prefer one with a main overarching plot, as opposed to just an open-world deal with the party going on a bunch of unrelated adventures with no end goal in mind (this was one thing abt ethersea that i didn't quite jive with tho the characters and worldbuilding kinda made up for it)

-i want there to be a comedic element to it, rather than all serious all the time. but i do also want there to be serious/emotional moments too

-i like strong relationships between characters (with found family being my fav but i'm not picky) and sweet/emotional moments

-it needs to be something that i can just *listen* to. it's okay if there's optional visual components but if they're necessary to fully enjoy it then it won't work for me

-i think i prefer party sizes around 3-5ish but this isn't a hard and fast type rule. but i feel like larger casts tend to sound less appealing to me

-uh idk you probably know my taste in other media if you've been following me for a while, like what kinds of tones and themes and elements i tend to gravitate towards in a story