#3E-Engineering

[cortexreaver]

days since last Went to write down ideas for classes combat mechanics etc and realized i unconsciously jacked at least one of them from dragon age origins incident 0️⃣

[dailyadventureprompts]

Monsters Reimagined: Kobolds

I started playing d&d during 3rd edition, which presented kobolds as a trap happy gaggle of dragon obsessives who were counted as the weakest but smartest of the traditional dungeonfodder humanoids. Other than being lizardy they were presented near identically to goblins, both being petty and cruel and resentful over their small stature and the place it meant they occupied in the world. This overlap is actually one of the reasons I haven't gotten to kobolds before now, as I kinda felt like I covered most of it in my writeup for goblins a couple years ago.

Since Kobolds are a reoccuring request however I eventually decided I was going to give the people what they wanted. My plan was to talk about d&d dragonsimp kobolds vs. warcraft candleloving kobolds vs. jrpg dogpeople kobolds, and how all of these relate back to creature's mythological origin but hey wait a minute the official forgotten realms wiki says WHAT ?

Huh, that sounds like a weird sort of projection from a man who's super insecure about his height. I wonder if the original dragon magazine listed as a source here has anything more to.. Oh.... OH-NO

Living space, huh? Extinction of weaker peoples, eh? A religion based around survival, insularity, obedience, and the defeat of stronger enemies through attrition, yadon'tsay? Man, the canine kobolds might be on to something because there's an ORCHESTRA of dogwhistles going on here.

Friends, there's a lot to unpack here, so like a kobold with a pickax lets dig in

Where it started: the connection between kobolds and goblins and gnomes predates d&d back to mythological roots, as all are names shared by the european folklore character of "weird little guy who lives under the hill and plays tricks on us". Kobolds have an even more delightful bit of etymology attached, as miners blamed them for magically transforming valuable silver for (at the time) worthless cobalt. Originally my rehash of kobalds was going to centre on them as tinkerers/engineers for this reason, as alchemical cobalt batteries sound rad as hell.

Kobolds are in this way also part of the greater traditions of "mine spirits", Knackers, tommyknockers, and the like. Who play tricks on miners, and are just as likely to cause disaster when displeased as they are to warn of it when befriended.

Then the d&d authors did what they always do, they pilfered the name of folkloric creatures for the game while ignoring actual mythology, drawing hard and fast lines and making up rigid catagories as they went.

What's wrong: Given their proclivity for traps, sneak attacks, and guerilla tactics you end up getting a LOT of comparisons between Kobolds and the Viet Cong… which I find very telling.  So many of the original d&d antagonists were vessels for middle aged geeks of the 70s and 80s to hit back at their insecurities ( whether it be challenges to their masculinity, sexuality, or something more existential) it doesn’t surprise me at all that d&d has an enemy that let american boomers rehash their nation’s at the time biggest military debacle. 

Kobolds are so weak and undeserving you understand, they’ve only survived because they’re tricky, but this time we’ll get them, if we come in with enough firepower and hirelings to get through the meatgrinder we can finally hit them where they live and deal with them for good. 

D&D worldbuilding imagines kobolds as “the other” from an occupier’s lens: resentful of their rightful displacement, nursing their hatreds in the shadows, emerging only to attack or to steal and despoil what they’ve been denied. They have no ambition, no culture, no wants beyond being a threat for the new dominant power. They’re cowards for using traps and poison and tactics on those here to plunder their homes. 

What’s worth Salvaging:  While the 3e revision of kobolds as dracomaniacs is a welcome change from their old lore I’m not especially fond of it. Overuse of dragons is one of the things that most turns me off general fantasy media. Any group of sapient creatures serving a dragon is just as likely to form a dragoncult, it doesn’t make kobolds special. 

That said, if you did want to double down on kobold dragon worship you might consider spicing in a few elements from my revamped version of Tiamat, painting their reverence not just as ego and overcompensation but as a desire to emulate and become…certian kobold enclaves possibly using sorcery or alchemy to transform a chosen among their people into a fully fledged wyrm. 

While we’ve mostly tossed alignment to the curb where it belongs,to distinguish kobolds from goblins it might be worth leaning into their lawful aspects; Underfoot foremen and notaries and  work crews addressing things with a utilitarian collective effort before scurrying out of sight when the shift change occurs.  Where as goblins are screwball and slapstick onto the verge of cartoonishness, perhaps kobolds are practical and industrious to the point of causing problems: They dam a river to access a sacred cave heedless of the disruption and flooding it’d cause, they tear down, occupying and restoring a derelict mill and restoring it to function regardless of who owns it, undermining the foundations of the duke’s palace following a vein of copper in the nearby hills. 

This efficiency-focused attitude also helps thematically define mechanically minded kobolds against gnomes and dwarves as the game’s other tinkerers:  They share the practicality of dwarven artisans and the inventiveness of gnomish artificers, but lack the sentiment the other two place on what they make.  Kobold craft is often regarded as lower quality, but that’s because resource efficiency and easy replaceability are primary metrics upon which they judge something. 

Artsource

[thydungeongal]

It is known that your favorite edition of D&D is B/X, but setting that one and its Basic ilk aside, what is something in each "mainline" edition that you think makes that one shine bright, something it does great like none of the others? Mainline here meaning the original, both AD&Ds, and the three WotC editions (counting 3rd as one edition).

There's a lot to love about each edition of D&D, yeah!

The original game, or 0D&D as a lot of people call it, is truly a weird little mess of rules that regardless laid the groundwork for a lot of things to come, but I think it should be seen as more than just a weird prototype of better things to come. It is ultimately the predecessor to both Basic and Advanced and while those games are very different in terms of play, looking at 0D&D it's easy to see where both games got their ideas and how they decided to iterate on them. But at the end of the day 0D&D still stands apart from the others in the sense that it was an exciting new frontier of play and as such the game's text is also very open to wild adventures. The game openly promotes the idea of adding robots and aliens into the list of monsters, because why not, there's no clear shape of what D&D as a game and genre even looks like yet, so why not let it be whatever you want? It also has lots of procedures in place for creating extremely cool emergent interactions which no other edition since has done! Like, orcs can be encountered with huge caravans of gold! Sometimes orcs are lead by a dragon or a Balrog or an ogre! It's weird and fun!

AD&D 1e is ultimately an evolution of 0D&D, and in many ways it's like 0D&D + its supplements + a bunch of neat tricks learned on the way. Ultimately what sets AD&D 1e apart from the other editions for me is the absolute wealth of procedures in the DMG for helping the DM create and run a world that feels like a living, breathing place! And there's so much guidance for how to start a campaign with small beginnings and then let it expand in scope!

AD&D 2e is actually my second favorite TSR edition in terms of rules text. There's a lot to be said about AD&D 2e being a clear step away from the original playstyle of the Dungeon Game, and it's most apparent in the way the game got rid of procedures for creating your own dungeons and stocking them with treasures, but the actual rules for playing and running the game are probably the clearest AD&D has ever been. I also feel 2e was the era when the greater shape of D&D as the game we know it as today started to form: while a lot of the stuff that we associate D&D with has been there since the beginning, I feel AD&D 2e is when things finally start to take on their ultimate D&Dness, if that makes sense?

D&D 3e I'm extremely fond of because it was actually my first edition of D&D, but beyond that, taken on its own terms, D&D 3e is unparalleled among the D&Ds in terms of how systemic its rules are. D&D 3e was kind of a mess when it came to the quality of its rules and what sorts of outcomes they produced, but I still love the dang thing because the underlying philosophy is extremely ambitious and cool! AD&D 1e is the edition with procedures to help the DM generate the world; AD&D 2e has lots of really cool rules and procedures that almost make the game run itself; D&D 3e has a physics engine that could make the act of play almost feel like an immersive sim! I understand why very few games have attempted to replicate that systemic design of D&D 3e, but I think there's a lot of cool stuff there.

D&D 4e is the most fun the combat minigame of D&D has ever been and it has unironically the coolest worldbuilding of all editions of D&D. I feel we've talked enough about how D&D 4e is actually extremely cool and for attractive people who like tactical combat, so let's focus on the worldbuilding: D&D 4e mixed up the cosmology of D&D in a way that made it feel like something from mythology instead of a neatly laid out world model. Being a B/X fan I of course love it when the implicit cosmic struggle is one of order versus chaos, and D&D 4e pretty much brought that back! All the major conflicts of D&D 4e's cosmology hinge on the conflict between order and chaos, and it actually adds nuance to what could otherwise be an extremely black and white cosmic struggle. The D&D 4e cosmology is messy and mythic and feels like it works on fantasy logic instead of the weird mystic science that ultimately powers the D&D cosmology of other editions.

And finally, D&D 5e. While I am a vocal 5e hater it has less to do with the game itself and more to do with its suffocating effect on the hobby, because as a game it's got a lot of cool design in places. Concentration is a really elegant fix to the game plan of just stacking all your buffs before combat and then wading in. Advantage/Disadvantage does away with the minutiae of adding together a bunch of different bonuses from various sources and does it in a way that is both mathematically satisfying but also really fun in play! Rolling more dice is fun!!! The way critical hits are handled, via just doubling the number of dice rolled and keeping the modifier the same, is great, because you get the "rolling more dice is fun" factor without the doubling of modifiers that had the potential to cause slowdown in D&D 3e. I like the addition of background as a character creation axis alongside class and species!

[clockworkdragonffxiv]

I started my D&D campaign back in April of 2020 shortly after the COVID Lockdown hit. I was bored out of my skull and stressed, and a friend had expressed his frustration with his own D&D group and I just went "Fuck it."

I hadn't played DnD since college. I had never GM'd a tabletop game. But I had nothing better to do. So I went on to Discord into, like, the three channels I'm active in and rounded up a gaggle of friends from FFXIV and from my old City of Heroes group. For my starter campaign I used the very first Eberron campaign ever published for I think 3e or 3.5e, converted to 5e, "The Forgotten Forge."

And three and a half years, multiple cases of COVID, two rounds of cancer and chemotherapy, four or five moves, three kidney stones, multiple bouts of depression, and a half dozen job changes, we finally finished the campaign at level 16, having convinced the Lord of Blades to devote his talents to building the new Warforged nation and healing the Mournlands using the unique techno-organic warforged plants and animals we'd discovered, instead of his original plan which was to absorb the power of a Creation Engine and a Demon Overlord into himself, achieve apotheosis, and drown the world in a tide of blood.

My original plan for the final battle has in large underlined letters the phrase "Biblically Accurate Chainsaw Angel" and included a speech with lines like "LET THE SEAS BOIL AND THE SKIES FALL! LET THE WORLD BURN!"

Also probably ending up with the players picking the Red, Blue or Green endings from the End-o-Matic 9000.

But that didn't happen.

So instead, the campaign that started with our little group of heroes stumbling onto the murder of a professor with the clues to a hidden workshop, ended with the wedding of Seeker the Warforged Artificer, the man who'd talked the Lord of Blades down (despite having a Charisma of 8) and now holds the title of Maestro Seeker, is an advisor to the national leadership, and is the teacher of a whole new batch of warforged, and the warforged medic Solace, an NPC whose existence began as a joke about Seeker having a whirlwind romance with a medic in the space of about 23 minutes while the rest of the party were running errands.

Hot damn was that a lot of work. Three and a half years, and despite it starting in modules by the second I'd decided I didn't like the story as it was written, threw it out, and told my own story. Featuring friendly little fire elementals named Phil, packs of extremely patriotic and laddish mimics named Jimmy, an eight foot robotic sweetheart named Friend whose primary weapon was an equally massive tower shield and her totally-not-boyfriend warforged druid/allosaurus/swearasaurus Din, a wrestling match with a hobgoblin that nearly turned lethal when an 18 foot tall warforged titan came in with the steel chair, an alligator with a gun, and banishing the elemental dragon powering a flying battleship while A) the team was still on the battleship and B) it was still several hundred feet in the air and C) it was the only thing keeping it there... it's done.

And it was all worth it. God I love these guys. So here's to you, Katie, Jacquie, Mike, Stan, and Will. I'll see you all next week for our next adventure.

[geostatonary]

What's the relationship between CMWGE, Nobilis, and Glitch? The bits of understanding I think I've picked up so far are that they're all (diceless?) ttrpgs and are in vaguely the same setting but at least one's setting is an AU of another one's? They sound really cool, but really confusing, but really cool despite and/or because of the really confusing, and continuing to just pick up the random bits that tumbl my way is Not Enough. Help?

Okay!

Let's talk a bit about publishing for background

In 1999, Jenna Moran (formerly R. Sean Borgstrom) published the first edition of Nobilis through Pharos Press, resulting in what is often called the "Little Pink Book". This was a small run, and it proved successful/interesting enough to get picked up by Hogshead Publishing in 2002, resulting in the second edition of Nobilis, which is often called the "Great White Book". This is the one a lot of people think about when they think "Nobilis", and really put it on the map in the tabletop gamer consciousness. In 2011, the third edition of Nobilis was released through EOS Press. There was a lot of drama involving the publishers and distributors for the last two editions but that's not relevant to your question. Also, a fourth edition is in the works.

Chuubo's Marvelous Wish-Granting Engine (CMWGE) was released in 2015 after a successful kickstarter, initially through EOS Press and then through Jenna's own efforts and the support of a generous benefactor due to her separating from EOS for some of the aforementioned publisher drama. Its technically a multimedia project that also has two associated novels, The Fable of the Swan (2012) and The Night-Bird's Feather (2022).

Finally, Glitch: A Story of the Not was self published in 2022 after another successful kickstarter. This is the most recent of her games within the collective game line, sometimes referred to as "gluubilis" or "the Ash Tree Engine".

Why'd you tell me all that?

So you'd have context for this.

Mechanically, each of these games represents a development on the preceeding works; every later game iterates and develops on the previous games and concepts. This looks something like this

1e/2e Nobilis > 3e Nobilis > CMWGE > Glitch/4e

in terms of major mechanical divisions and advancements.

All the systems are diceless and there's a lot we could say here, but probably the biggest single innovation would be the introduction of Arcs and Quests starting in CMWGE, providing a strong narrative xp framework for all the future games to engage with and be built around.

In terms of the setting, all the games except CMWGE take place on the Ash-Tree Earth in which the universe is a big tree in a cup of fire that's presently at war with the forces of the Void. Nobilis explores play as the Nobilis, individuals empowered by the rulers of Creation to defend it against the Excrucians, the representatives of the Void. Glitch flips this around and has you play as one of those Void beings who used to fight in the war, but is now abstaining from it for any number of reasons.

CMWGE takes place in a world that was drowned in a sort of ontological uncertainty called the Outside. It's set in a possible future where the war of Nobilis and Glitch doesn't reach a conclusive end, but rather the world was cast into an interregnum during which any number of things are possible and also you can have slice of life adventures and shit. None of that background is actually necessary to know to play CMWGE, but I think it's enriching and also it'll help explain some of the various otherwise insane things we the players and fans will say about it. Again, though, nothing actually like. Holds you to that if you wanna do something of your own. CMWGE is notable for being the most customizable of these systems by far.

What's next?

A couple recommendations!

First, I'd recommend reading some of these games! Glitch and Nobilis 3e are imo the most accessible of the game books + they're ones still in use, but CMWGE is also absolutely worth checking out; just be aware that it's handing you a toolbox, so there's a lot more big chunks of mechanics to work through. Honestly, don't be afraid to skip around these books and look at whatever catches your interest. They're very rewarding reads! If you want to read fiction, The Fable of the Swan and The Night-Bird's Feather are both also really good starting points.

Next, talk with people about them! The scene is kinda scattered, but you can still find people on tumblr, Twitter, and cohost at the very least who're talking about this stuff. There's also an official discord and an older fan discord (you can ask me for an invite to that one) where people are pretty active.

Also, just, try playing the games! A lot of the apparent complications are a lot easier to parse and understand when you actually see them in play, and they're fun games.

Finally, don't be afraid to keep asking questions! Given the chance, a lot of us won't shut up about these games, myself included.

[theinstagrahame]

Another month and a bit, got some more great games coming through! It's time for the indie/small press RPG mail call round-up!

Die - Bizarre Love Triangles: I generally love Rowan, Rook and Deckard's work, and really enjoyed the roughly half that I read of The Wicked and the Divine by Kieron Gillen. So, the original book was a match made in heaven for me. The promise of a Collectible Card Game adventure for it? Done. Sold. I'm there, and sign me up.

Inevitable: I think a lot of people had similar reactions when they pulled Inevitable out of its box: Whoa, this is big. The last few books have been closer in size to the middle row of books, but there's apparently too much ruined Western Arthuriana for one book to contain. Played this on a stream, it's good.

Yazeba's Bed and Breakfast: I honestly can't wait to dig into Yazeba's, because it seems like the kind of game we need more of. It's that Found Family experience, the whole character-based gameplay that people love, but also designed to really keep things fresh even on repeat playthroughs. I'm really curious to finally dig in.

Wickedness: This was offered as an Add-on to the Yazeba's Backerkit, and I was intrigued by the pitch: You and two other players form a coven, and you do queer witch stuff. It's a beautifully made book, and I've got a lot of friends who I think would dig it.

Songbirds 3e: I picked up an earlier edition of Songbirds in an Itch Charity Bundle, and was really intrigued by the game. Snow does amazing things with layout and vibes, and is a really excellent game designer. I really wanted that edition in hard copy, but never found it, so a third edition was an instant get.

Kids on Bikes 2e: I know KoB mostly through the Brits on Bikes podcast, and I really enjoyed the system. I love systems that make use of all the dice in interesting and fun ways, and I really couldn't wait to see what a new edition would look like.

Apocalypse Keys - Doomsday Delights: I've recently been reading the Hellboy comics, and thoroughly enjoying them. I also already have Apocalypse Keys, which does an incredible job of making the comic even more queer, so completing the set with the fun stretch goal books was kind of an obvious call.

The Wolf King's Son: Vincent and Meguey Baker make amazing games, including the engine that runs so many of the games I like. I've been following their recent series of zines, and this popped up in that feed. I haven't checked out Under Hollow Hills, but even based on what I've seen from this, it's a must-have.

Pitcrawler: Wizards are the 1%, and we Pitcrawlers, disposable adventurers, are here to rob from the rich. It ticks all my boxes, and it looks good doing it. The campaign also hit while I was about halfway through my Magnus Archives listen, so it was an instant back for me.

Outliers: Everything Sam Leigh makes slaps, so yeah. Weird corporate science horror? Solo adventures? Hell, even the Far Horizons Co-op association really got me.

Here we Used to Fly: Picked this up also because of @partyofonepod, who played a really beautiful and bittersweet episode with the creator. I have always been a little too anxious as an adult to consider breaking into an old theme park, but I definitely have my share of fun memories of them as a kid. I'm also starting to envision other games this would pair really well as an epilogue to, should I ever get back into the AP scene.

Another game has arrived in the mail since I started this, but that's gonna be next month's first game, I guess!

[krinsbez]

A BT/Pulp Heroes Thing: Scrooge McDuck's BattleMech

So, I know that DuckTech lost the poll by a considerable margin, but we had a lot of good convo about it on a certain forum board, and I wanted to share something with y'all.

Specifically, that poster Sciox came up with a build for what they thought should be Scrooge's 'Mech!

(I apologize about the formatting getting messed up, I've never done anything like this on tumblr before, and I am not sure how to convert)

Below the cut...

BattleMech Technical Readout

Name/Model: Banshee BNC-3E Scrooge

Technology: Inner Sphere

Technology Rating: E

Tonnage: 95

Role: Sniper

Configuration: Biped BattleMech

Era/Year: Star League / 2475

Rules (Current): Standard

Rules (Era): Standard

Rules (Year): Unavailable

Total Cost: 9,603,945 C-Bills

Battle Value: 2,295

Chassis: Star League XT

Power Plant: Pitban 285

Walking Speed: 32.4 kph

Maximum Speed: 54 kph

Jump Jets: HildCo Model 10

Jump Capacity: 90 meters

Armor: Starshield with CASE

Armament:

1 M-7 Gauss Rifle

2 Donal PPCs

1 Holly SRM 6

4 Harmon Starclass Medium Lasers

2 Magna Mark I Small Lasers

Manufacturer: McDuck Enterprises

Primary Factory: Hesperus II

Communications: Dalban Comline

Targeting & Tracking: Dalban HiRez-B ================================================================================================ Equipment Mass ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Internal Structure: Standard 9.50

Engine: 285 Fusion 16.50

Walking MP: 3

Running MP: 5

Jumping MP: 3

Heat Sinks (Double): 11 [22] 1.00

Gyro: Standard 3.00

Cockpit: Standard 3.00

Armor Factor: 240 15.00

Type: Standard

Internal Armor Structure Value Head: 3 9 Center Torso: 30 40 Center Torso (rear): 17 R/L Torso: 20 30 R/L Torso (rear): 10 R/L Arm: 16 21 R/L Leg: 20 26 ================================================================================================ Weapons and Ammo Location Critical Tonnage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Small Laser H 1 0.50

Jump Jet CT 1 2.00

Small Laser CT 1 0.50

CASE RT 1 0.50

Jump Jet RT 1 2.00

4 Medium Lasers RT 4 4.00

PPC RT 3 7.00

SRM 6 RT 2 3.00

SRM 6 (Ammo 15) RT 1 1.00

CASE LT 1 0.50

Gauss Rifle LT 7 15.00

Gauss Rifle (Ammo 16) LT 2 2.00

Jump Jet LT 1 2.00

PPC LA 3 7.00 ================================================================================================ Alpha Strike Statistics ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Point Value (PV): 48 TP: BM, SZ: 4, TMM: 1, MV: 6"j Damage: (S) 4 / (M) 4 / (L) 4, OV: 3 Armor (A): 8, Structure (S): 8 Specials: CASE

[transterasakagang]

yoshida taisei and autism

there are many characters within 3e that are frequently posited to be a form of neurodivergent and for obvious reason considering the commentary the series draws upon. but a character i veeeery rarely (bar myself + friends) see included among the likes of itona or okuda or sugaya when discussing autistic headcanons despite it being imo one of the most blatant is yoshida

disclaimer one: i am in no way claiming that yoshida being easily read as autistic was intentional on m*tsui’s part lol. id never give that man the credit for that especially considering his track record of dealing with sensitive subjects

disclaimer two: this is NOT intended to be a diagnostic tool. this is simply me (an autistic guy) discussing my own traits i recognise in yoshida that, along with how much i have studied his character, cause me to have the strong conviction i do regarding headcanoning him as autistic. also u dont actually need to have any in depth reasoning to view a character as such either im just insane and have been meaning to fully write this up for eons

so without further ado!!!

firstly, the absolute most blatant trait of yoshida’s that would attract neurodivergent readings is his passionate interest in motorcycles. but id like to go into the extremely far extent to which his interest goes and how it, as a result, reads very much like a special interest

i have often talked about how i dont believe “interest” is strong enough a word to describe the sheer passion yoshida holds for motorcycles. he is associated with them to the degree that its his most recognisable trait by classmates and those in any way familiar with the series

examples of the extent of immersion in his interest exist within his character profiles. his graduation album profile (trans. @/irraydiance) comments on how “he’ll tackle any problem as long as he can apply the knowledge of motorcycles” and has korosensei tell him that he hopes he’ll be able to express his motorcycle knowledge in “a way everyone understands”. a defining factor of a special interest is how it impacts the way in which one understands and interacts with the world around them, we see things through the context of our special interest. yoshida is explicitly stated to have this apply to him — he can achieve anything, he just needs to be able to view it through his obsession with motorcycles. the “in a way everyone understands” is noteworthy wording, as it easily relates to our realities as autistic people and not being understood by the world, including how our intense special interests are perceived.

additionally in his graduation album profile is his reasoning for dropping down to e class which literally is: he spent too much time with his motorcycle. special interests are characterised by an obsessive fixation that makes it hard to do things that dont involve it — things like studying!!! it’s in this sense they can impair our day to day lives. and korosensei picks up on this, in yoshida’s roll book time profile (trans. @/ansatsu-database) he identifies yoshida as “the embodiment of what one likes one will do well” and tries to entice him into mathematics by calling it “useful when tinkering with bikes” - giving yoshida an incentive to bother with it. his roll book time profile is also where we learn that collecting bike related memorabilia is the main thing he spends his money on, and the “collection” aspect of special interests comes up again in chapter 154 where we see him at home with a little motorcycle figurine on his desk. it is also because of his obsession with bikes and his hobby tinkering with them (also influenced by his parents repair shop) that he, according the graduation album, possesses engineering knowledge beyond that of a university student.

it is our first in series introduction to yoshida’s passion for motorcycles in vision time and the context surrounding this introduction that gives us the best grasp on the sheer extent of this intensity. vision time sees the breaking point of terasaka in the face of yoshida and muramatsu beginning to trust korosensei — the way in which korosensei gains the trust of the boys differs significantly but the core similarity that is important to note here is how he directly appeals to what he knows they care about most at this point. with muramatsu he tutors him and helps him improve his grades, appealing to muramatsu’s extremely strong desire to succeed (a recurring theme in his character) as well as his desire to prove himself

with yoshida, however, korosensei appeals to what he knows from observing and talking to him is most important to him: motorcycles. he appeals exactly to what yoshida strongly reacts to and clings to: he engages with him in his interest. he goes out of his way to make a model of a motorcycle and dress in biker gear and to describe yoshida as excited by it would be an understatement!!! look at this boy stim!!!

korosensei engaging with yoshida in his motorcycle interest is likened to muramatsu improving his grades — something INCREDIBLY significant within the context of 3e/kunugigaoka in general and that effectively demonstrates the intense extent of yoshida’s interest. furthermore, through this appeal by korosensei yoshida exposes himself to the class he had before distanced himself from: he is seen openly stimming and openly laughing, something before unimaginable from him, all because of this act from korosensei, because of motorcycles

terasaka destroying the motorcycle model prompts a reaction from yoshida that again is placed on the same level as terasaka literally throwing muramatsu against a tree, equating the two as inflicting similar damage which is reinforced again in yoshida + muramatsu’s comments towards terasaka later

his special interest in motorcycles also leads him to develop smaller but still seemingly intense interests in other vehicles, the most notably being trains. in the character databook there’s a page on the clubs some members of 3e were in before being sent to e class and yoshida is revealed to have been a member of the railroad research club - specifically, it notes how he’s “especially crazy” for steam locomotives which led him to take a railroad tour out of his own volition. trains are a common interest for autistic people (not for me personally, but i know while it is a “stereotype” it IS true for many) which is why though im sure its entirely coincidental i bring it up because i think its funny how one of the most easily read as autistic characters would be given it

how he connects with itona links to this also. itona holds an interest similar in intensity to yoshida regarding electronics and it’s the core way through which the two bond — sharing these interests with each other and becoming a “tech team” the class can rely on. notably, yoshida’s thought process behind giving itona his first bike ride is the same as what i’ll mention more later: it works for him, it must work for itona, not factoring in the differing contexts.

the second trait of yoshida’s i feel might be the next most obvious is his very prominent sense of “justice” by his own rules of black and white thinking. this is implied offhandedly somewhat in hazama’s databook profile where she and yoshida are stated to be the “most rational” out of the terasaka gang, compared to terasaka, muramatsu and itona. but there are a few instances that explicitly demonstrate this idea

the “rules” yoshida has for himself with his thought process to determine something as angering to him largely center around this idea of “fairness”. to him something is either fair or unfair and there appears little room for nuance — terasaka destroyed the motorcycle, that’s unfair, he gets angry — grip using underhanded tactics against karma is unfair, he gets angry — takaoka’s grudge on nagisa is unfair because nagisa defeated takaoka fairly, he gets angry — karma and nakamura positioning him the way they do in the civil war is deemed “not playing fair”. he never lets what he deems “unfair” go uncommented on. less emotionally focused is when he calls out gakuhou by commenting on how korosensei has played by his rules fair and square, so gakuhou should just give up

additionally, this manifests in yoshida’s reasoning for choosing “kill” during the civil war. while compared to the rest of the terasaka gang his reasoning is much more up to personal interpretation in that he only says one brief thing - that one brief thing has him say how he too thought of ways to save korosensei but, evidently, couldnt find one and so accepted this was the only other option. this line of thinking on yoshida’s part of wanting to save koro leads me to think it wouldnt be a stretch to suggest that his idea of “saving” after he realized it wouldnt work for korosensei fell decidedly upon prioritising saving his friends and classmates by continuing with the assassination and thus avoiding what the fallout for failing to do so would be. it again connects to his fixation on “fairness” and how black and white his thought process can be considered in that he quickly acknowledges that its a one life vs billions of lives situation with seemingly little emotional input. this is true in a fair less “noble” or objectively “just” way in the very first episode regarding his willingness to participate in terasaka’s plan to sacrifice nagisa to kill koro-sensei ergo “save the world” and get a billion yen - we can only speculate given what his role was, but the way yoshida probably justified his involvement at this stage to himself is likely to fall on the same wavelength as what else i have discussed.

connecting to anger, however, is the third point: yoshida is a sensitive guy who is easily overwhelmed by the force of his emotions + struggles to regulate them

yoshida rarely gets openly angry or upset, but when he does he seems to get very overwhelmed by it in how it essentially bursts out of him (much like his joy!). the island arc is an excellent example of this in how he is (understandably) extremely distressed by the prospect of people dying due to the virus (especially muramatsu and hazama which is why theyre positioned in the background of the panel!!!) and it causes him to burst out in an example of overwhelmed panic

notably, he is the only character to have an outburst as big as this displaying the difference in emotional regulation, and doubly notably is how the only other time before this point we had seen yoshida display emotion like this was the motorcycle incident in vision time. i think, from experience lol, that his behavior here and from here on out does resemble the teeterings of a meltdown, that hara (his childhood friend) seems able to soothe him away from for the time being. but he remains extremely notably on edge for the remainders of the arc. which again, would be understandable for anyone, but he is the only character (bar terasaka) who is depicted to this extent distressed. this becomes ESPECIALLY more easy to read as a teetering-on-meltdown because of how yoshida’s distress in part stems from how this ordeal has entirely disrupted how he imagined this “vacation” to unfold. it is notable that before the poisoning, it’s yoshida who asserts that they will kill koro-sensei and then relax - especially as part of the terasaka gang previously distant with the assassination, this is all that is in his mind. and then the not only does the attempt fail but entirely unexpected disaster strikes and it is yoshida who frantically points out “we didn’t come to this island to be killed”

the departure scene captures this element of him as well, having him be one of the students openly sobbing during the final roll call for one

linking to him being overwhelmed is a few instances of his hypersensitivity when it comes to sensory issues, and then presumed hyposensitivity. regarding the former, the fascinating examples are found in his roll book time profile. theres a comment by karasuma that notes how when playing cops and robbers yoshida “was able to sense karasuma’s presence, when many students failed to do the same until he touched them” — connoting some form of possible tactile hypersensitivity on yoshida’s end, which could also explain why he never wears the school blazer instead opting for the cardigan all year round unless forced.

the other example found here is his favorite food: monster energy drink. he is the only character with a fave food listed who provides something like that — everyone else gives examples of actual, you know, cuisine. realistically, it’s likely a gag about how common a sponsor monster are at motorcycle races particularly in japan, BUT at the same time it can be interpreted as him having a hypersensitivity to taste where monster energy drink is a “safe food” for him. many autistic people, including myself, with hypersensitivities to taste or texture in food have a safe food that is often a processed snack food due to their predictable nature

regarding hyposensitivity, i think his special interest in motorcycles factors into it. motorcycles provide the rider with a feeling of immense adrenaline due to the pressure and extreme feeling of movement exerted onto them — hyposensitivity to pressure is the reason many autistic people love things like weighted blankets and vestibular hyposensitivity leads to stimming by rocking, spinning etc. regarding yoshida, his remedy for both of these things is riding his motorcycle

another “blatant” aspect of yoshida’s character that can open way for easy autistic interpretation concerns his communication, such as: how blunt he can be!! understandably this is often overlooked by him being in the proximity of itona, which is fair, but yoshida is similarly blunt without the awareness of how socially acceptable it is to be so. most notably this manifests in how he talks to korosensei in chapter 154 where in response to muramatsu saying he guesses korosensei “had his own worries” yoshida says “some pretty stupid worries compared to how depressed the rest of us were”

aside from the above instance the biggest moment displaying him misreading a situation + suggesting something that to him is a completely logically sound idea is during kayano’s reveal + attempted murder of korosensei

finally, mention of that moment brings me to his atypical thought process which is on full display here as he suggests in full sincerity that mimura play air guitar + distract kayano with his “badass skills” and doesn’t understand why others react to it in the flummoxed way they do because in his mind this is an easy, obvious, natural connection to make - mimura’s air guitar had a prominent impact on him, that should apply to everyone!!! the differing context doesnt occur to him, why would it? autism often causes us to fixate on small details rather than the “bigger picture” - this is a similar thought process with its disregarding of contexts that earlier in the story has him take itona on a bike ride to take his mind of the tentacles

conclusively, through connecting many of yoshida’s character traits to autistic symptoms + traits, most of which discussed here i personally experience with my own autism, i think he can extremely easily be read as autistic and joins the pantheon of class 3e students who also can also extremely easily be and are frequently read as such (okuda, sugaya, itona)!!!

TLDR: yoshida taisei has autism. i rest my case

[carbone14]

Troupes de la 3e Division d'infanterie britannique – Sword Beach – Secteur Queen Red – 8 h 45 – Opération Overlord – Opération Neptune – Hermanville-sur-Mer – Calvados – Normandie – France – 6 juin 1944

Photographe : Sergent James Mapham - No. 5 Army Film and Photo Section, Army Film and Photographic Unit

©Imperial War Museums - B 5114

Au premier plan se trouvent des sapeurs de la 84 Field Company Royal Engineers, qui font partie du No.5 Beach Group, reconnaissables aux bandes blanches autour de leurs casques. Derrière eux, on aperçoit des infirmiers médicaux de la 8e Ambulance de campagne. En arrière-plan, on peut voir les commandos de la 1st Special Service Brigade débarquer de leurs péniches de débarquement.

[ttrpgbrackets]

Propaganda Below

Inhabit 3: Claim the Shell

The wraith may enter a relic [ghostly] or a Skinlands [mortal world] object and use it as a surrogate body. He has full control over all its functions and can move parts on their own, though he can't make it do anything else outside its own capabilities. For example, a wraith possessing a revolver can cock the hammer, pull the trigger, and swing out the cylinder and eject spent shell casings, but he can't levitate or aim the gun, nor grasp and load fresh ammunition. His senses function normally, though they're spread across the object's entire surface. If a Skinlands object ie destroyed while the wraith inhabits it, he may bring it across the shroud as a relic (though creating a relic from a container doesn't also create relics from its contents). System: the player spends 3 Pathos and rolls Strength+Inhabit (difficulty of the local Shroud, or 8 in the Tempest [part of the ghostly world behind the veil]). The number of successes required for success depend on the item's size:

1 success Handheld: tablet or notebook computer, handgun,power tool, book 2 successes Two-handed: small appliance, greatsword, web server 3 successes Human-sized: motorcycle, crew-served heavy weapon, office furniture 4 successes Vehicular: speedboat, garage workbench, assembly line laser wielding robot 5 successes Industrial: locomotive, marine diesel engine, newspaper printing press 6+ successes Structural: House, airliner, ship

Claim the Shell lasts for one scene. If the object is destroyed while the wraith is within it, his shadow [evil alter ego] gains 1 temporary Angst per success required to Claim it. However, he may convert the item into a relic by spending 1 Willpower, plus 1 Corpus per success required to claim it.

What makes it cool?

If you read that list of examples and don't get it I don't know what to tell you, but I'll try… This is an ability dripping with flavour. It takes a classic ghost trope, the possessed object, systematises it with just enough limitations to be interesting, considers how it would feel to be that ghost with the sensory description, which is great for a gm, and provides a list to spark your imagination. From an in-game perspective, ghosts can't normally interact with the material world, so getting something like this isn't just incredibly exciting, it basically writes its own stories for at least a couple of sessions as you play around with it. Oh, and you can get (Rare, valuable) relic objects even if the person you're trying to kill with a battleship somehow defeats you! This ability alone makes me want to play wraith every time I read it.

Argent Trickster's Rook

Flashing a wicked grin as she rolls the dice or turns over her cards, the Lunar claims faces unwisely wagered against her. She performs a sacred hunt by challenging a human to dice, cards, or a similar game of chance, convincing him to stake his shape as his wager. She needn’t convince him that she can actually take his form, and may convince him through vague language, metaphor, or half-truth. Her own wager must be one that her target would consider equal in value to the theft of his shape. If the Lunar wins — including by cheating, as long as she isn’t caught — she concludes the sacred hunt and claims her target’s form. Her target must be genuinely playing to win. If the Lunar’s target wins or catches her cheating, the sacred hunt fails, and she can’t take his shape through this Charm until next story. She may still attempt sacred hunts against him by other means.

What makes it cool?

This is literally a way for a shapeshifter character to win your form in a gambling game. The "normal" way for a Lunar to take something's form is a literal ritual hunt, which ends with eating part of the target, and this is one of a few ways to steal a human's form without killing them. There's just something really fucking cool and evocative about winning someone's face in a game of cards.

[landoflustfulladies]

How is 3e different from 5e dnd?

So there's a lot that sets it apart, despite a similar core mechanical framework. I'll try and hit some high notes though. TLDR same basic engine but with a lot more depth. I will probably still ramble a lot so, uh, time for readmore...

First off, there's a lot more numbers. Instead of the advantage disadvantage system, a lot more things have a direct numerical effect on your rolls. Flanking an enemy for example, gives you a +2 bonus to your attack roll. Being surprised doesn't give enemy advantage, instead you lose your dexterity bonus to your AC cause, well, you aren't dodging.

Second off, just about everything has a bit more depth to it. For example, in 5e weapons have a damage die and maybe a couple tags. In 3.5, there's first off a lot more weapons and use some different dice combos. As an example, falchions and scythes do 2d4 damage. The versatile tag was actually a simplification of the fact that any weapon can be wielded in two hands (well, except light weapons). Wielding a weapon in one hand adds strength to damage, but two handing it boosts your strength bonus to damage by 50%. Oh, and you know all weapons in 5e crit on a 20 for an extra die on damage? Well, default crit in 3.5 is a 20 for double damage, but some weapons have more threat range. A light mace, a shortsword, and a rapier all do d6 damage but the mace crits on a 20, the shortsword on a 19, and the rapier on an 18. That and some weapons do more on a crit. A heavy pick is d6 damage and crits on a 20, but does four times as much damage on a crit. I have gone on this long just about different weapons with different pros and cons. My players all spent significant time thinking about their primary weapons.

Oh yeah, you know how feats kinda sucked in 5e? In 3.5, they are practically character defining. Good news is you get them more often! Every character starts with a feat for free, humans get a second one, and then every three levels you get another one! These are in addition to stat boosts every four levels. Now, some things that were feats in 5e are free in 3.5 (like being able to charge), and some that are feats in 3.5 are free in 5e (like being able to use dexterity to hit with light weapons), bit of a give and take there. But yeah, do it right and you can be pretty insane!

Oh yeah, skills work way different! Instead of picking a handful at character generation to be Proficient in, you get a certain number of Skill Points each level based on your class and intelligence, and you can distribute those between your skills as you please (capped at 4 ranks at level 1, goes up by one each level). Your class has a list of Class Skills you can buy at the normal rate, but you can still buy non class skills, they just cost double and have half the cap. What this means is a fighter might not be as good as the rogue at sneaking but he can still be good at if he wants. This also means you can choose to get a smaller bonus to your rolls in exchange for taking more skills by spreading your points around!

Oh yeah, did it ever strike you that everyone was as good with their weapons as the Fighter, the Designated Hitting Stuff Guy? Well, in 3.5, instead of everyone getting the same proficiency bonus, each class has their Base Attack Bonus. Fighters and other classes with Full BAB go up a point every level, things like Rogues and Clerics go up at a rate that comes out to about 3/4 levels (so at level 20 they get +15), and folks like Wizards get Slow BAB where they go up every other level. So yeah, the fighter will actually be better at hitting things.

God I could go on but even on my bigass monitor I can’t see the top of my post so I should probably ease up. God, and I haven’t even gotten to prestige classes... Uh, those are basically a fancy way of multiclassing that have certain requirements before you start taking them in exchange for being more specialized than regular classes. A lot of 5e subclasses were based off prestige classes from 3.5, so you can probably still play your favorite stuff. There’s also a lot more base classes! Swashbuckler is its own class as an example, instead of being a subset of rogue, it’s an absolutely devastating finesse DPS.

Oh, and monster variety! There are so few monsters in 5e compared to 3.5! I have six different books full of monsters open when I’m planning encounters! Seriously, so much more to work with!

[casbooks]

Books of 2023

Book 15 of 2023

Title: NCIS History Special Agent VietNam Authors: Douglass Hubbard Jr. ISBN: 9780915266333 Tags: A-1 Skyraiders, AUS Catherine Anne Warnes (Murdered) (Vietnam War), CH-46 Sea Knight, CIA Bill Bludworth, CIA Foster Fipps, CIA Robert Gambino, CIA William Colby, H-34 Choctaw, HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, HKG Hong Kong, HKG Royal Hong Kong Police, John F. Kennedy, KHM Cambodia, KHM General Lon Nol, KHM Khmer Rouge, KHM Kompong Som, KHM US MSTS SS Columbia Eagle Incident (1970) (Vietnam War), KHM US MSTS SS Mayaguez Incident (Vietnam War), LAO Laos, LAO Nong Khai, LAO Vientiane, Law Enforcement, Military Intelligence, Military Police, Nungs, OV-1 Mohawk, OV-10 Bronco, PHL US USAF Clark Air Force Base, PHL US USN Naval Station Sangley Point, PHL US USN NCSA Philippines, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, President Lyndon B. Johnson, PRK North Korea, RUS VMF Russian Navy, RUS VMF Submarine Force, SGP Singapore, SpecOps, THA Bangkok, THA RTAFB Don Muang Royal Thai Airbase, THA Thailand, THA USMC MCAB Rose Garden/Nam Phong (Vietnam War), True Crime, UH-1 Huey, UK MI6/SIS Secret Intelligence Service, US Alvin Glatkowski (Mutineer) (Vietnam War), US Ambassador Henry Nolting, US Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge, US Ambassador Maxwell Taylor, US AP Malcom Brown (News), US Bob Hope (Entertainer), US CIA Central Intelligence Agency, US Clyde McKay (Mutineer) (Vietnam War), US DEA Drug Enforcement Agency, US Edwin Ross Armstrong (Defector), US Horst Faas (News), US Maw Maw (Black Power Organization), US MSTS Military Sea Transportation Service, US NBC Garric Utley (News), US Project 100000 (Vietnam War), US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, US Special Agent Basic School - Washington DC, US Students for a Democratic Society, US USA 101st Airborne Division (Screaming Eagles), US USA 199th Light Infantry Brigade (Redcatchers), US USA 23rd ID (Americal), US USA ASA 8th Radio Research Station, US USA ASA Army Security Agency, US USA CIC Army Counterintelligence Corps, US USA General Creighton Abrams, US USA General William Westmoreland, US USA Green Berets, US USA Kitsie Westmoreland, US USA MI 525th Military Intelligence Group, US USA MI Army Military Intelligence, US USA Special Forces, US USA United States Army, US USAF General Robert Rowland, US USAF OSI Office of Special Investigations, US USCG United States Coast Guard, US USCG USCGC Chase (WHEC-718), US USMC 12th Marines, US USMC 1st Light Antiaircraft Missile Bn, US USMC 1st MarDiv, US USMC 1st MAW, US USMC 3rd MarDiv, US USMC 3rd Marine Counterintelligence Team, US USMC 4th Marines, US USMC 4th Marines - 3/4, US USMC 5th Marines, US USMC 7th Engineer Bn, US USMC 7th Marines, US USMC 9th Marines, US USMC General Herman Nickerson, US USMC General Leonard Chapman, US USMC General Lewis Walt, US USMC General Paul X. Kelley, US USMC General Robert Cushman, US USMC Major Les Barrett (Provost Marshall), US USMC Major Roger Simmons, US USMC Marine Security Battalion, US USMC Robert Garwood (Defector) (Vietnam War), US USMC Salt and Pepper (Defectors) (Vietnam War), US USN Admiral Earl F. "Rex" Rectanus, US USN Admiral Robert S. Salzer, US USN Commander Joseph Rochefort, US USN Construction Battalions (Seabees), US USN LtCdr John G. "Jack" Graf (POW) (Vietnam War), US USN MSC Military Sealift Command, US USN Naval Security Group, US USN NCSA Naval Counterintelligence Support Activity, US USN NCSU Naval Counterintelligence Support Unit, US USN NISO Naval Investigative Service Office, US USN NISOSF San Francisco, US USN NISRA Naval Investigative Service Resident Agency, US USN NISSU Hong Kong, US USN NISSU Naval Investigative Service Satellite Unit, US USN ONI Office of Naval Intelligence, US USN SEALS, US USN UDT Underwater Demolition Team, US USN USS Blue (DD-774), US USN USS Card (AKV-40), US USN USS Hampden County (LST-803), US USN USS Pyro (AE-24), US USN Washington Navy Yard, USAF Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service (ARRS), USMC 1st Force Recon Co, USN Admiral Elmo Russell "Bud" Zumwalt Jr, USN Admiral Jerome H. King, USN HA(L)-3 Seawolves, USN NIS Naval Investigative Service, USN PBR Patrol Boat River, USN PCF Patrol Craft Fast Swift Boat, USN US Navy, USN USS Pueblo (AGER 2), USN VAL-4 Black Ponies, VNM 1968 Tet Offensive (1968) (Vietnam War), VNM 4th Coastal Zone, VNM An Hoa Basin, VNM An Long, VNM AN Thoi, VNM Annamite Mountains, VNM Arizona Territory, VNM ARVN General Hoang Xuan Lam, VNM ARVN General Nguyen Chanh Thi, VNM AUS ADF Australian Army Training Team (Vietnam War), VNM Ba Sac River, VNM Battle of Hue City (1968) (Tet Offensive) (Vietnam War), VNM Battle of Khe Sanh (1968) (Tet Offensive) (Vietnam War), VNM Battle of Saigon (1968) (Tet Offensive) (Vietnam War), VNM Ben Hai River, VNM Ben Tre, VNM Ben Tre Province, VNM Binh Thuy, VNM Bright Light Operations (Vietnam War), VNM Buddhist Monk Thich Tri Quang, VNM Ca Lu, VNM Cam Lo, VNM Cam Lo River, VNM Cam Ranh Bay, VNM Camp Eagle (Vietnam War), VNM Camp Evans (Vietnam War), VNM Camp Reasoner (Vietnam War), VNM Can Tho, VNM Carrier Pigeons (Vietnam War), VNM Cau Mau Peninsula, VNM Charlie Med, VNM Chau Doc, VNM Cholon - 95 Nguyen Duy Duong St, VNM Cholon - Five Oceans BOQ, VNM Cholon - Hong Kong BOQ, VNM Cholon - St. Francis Xavier Church, VNM Cholon Provost Marshalls Office (Vietnam War), VNM Chu Lai, VNM CIA Air America (1950-1976) (Vietnam War), VNM Con Thien, VNM Cua Viet, VNM Da Lat, VNM Da Nang, VNM Da Nang - 20 Duy Tan Street, VNM Da Nang - 23 Doc Lap, VNM Da Nang - 23 Doc Lap Bar (Boom Boom Room / Blue Elephant) (Vietnam War), VNM Da Nang - Bridge Ramp (Vietnam War), VNM Dai Lac, VNM DMZ Demilitarized Zone - 17th Parallel (Vietnam War), VNM Dodge City, VNM Dong Tam, VNM DRV NVA General Vo Nguyen Giap, VNM DRV NVA North Vietnamese Army, VNM DRV VC Phung Ngoc Anh - Dragon Lady (Assassin) (Vietnam War), VNM DRV VC Viet Cong, VNM Emperor Bao Dai, VNM Fall of Saigon (1975) (Vietnam War), VNM FSB Ryder (Vietnam War), VNM Gia Dinh, VNM Go Noi Island, VNM Green Beret Affair (Vietnam War), VNM Hai Van Pass, VNM Haiphong, VNM Han River, VNM Hill 327, VNM Hill 37, VNM Hill 55, VNM Hill 621 (Son Tra Mountain) (Monkey Mountain), VNM Hill 65, VNM Ho Chi Minh Trail, VNM Hoi An, VNM Hue, VNM Hue - Hue University, VNM Hue - Le Loi Street, VNM Hue - Purple City, VNM Hue - The Citadel, VNM Hue - The Forbidden City, VNM Hue - Thua Thien Provincial Headquarters, VNM I Corps (Vietnam War), VNM II Corps (Vietnam War), VNM IV Corps (Vietnam War), VNM Kien Hoa Province, VNM LBJ Long Binh Jail - USARVIS US Army Vietnam Installation Stockade (Vietnam War), VNM Leatherneck Square (Vietnam War), VNM Liberty Bridge, VNM LZ Baldy, VNM Mekong Delta, VNM Moc Hoa, VNM Montagnards, VNM My Khe Beach (China Beach), VNM My Lai, VNM My Lai Massacre (1968), VNM My Tho, VNM Nam Can, VNM Nguyen Cao Ky, VNM Nguyen Van Thieu, VNM Nha Be, VNM Nui Mot (The Rockpile), VNM Nui Son Ga (Charlie Ridge), VNM Operation Market Time (1965-1975) (Vietnam War), VNM Operation Sea Float/Solid Anchor (1969-1973) (Vietnam War), VNM Operation Starlite (1965) (Vietnam War), VNM Parrots Beak, VNM Perfume River, VNM Phouc Tuong (Dogpatch), VNM Phu Bai, VNM Phu Quoc Island, VNM Plain of Reeds, VNM Port of Saigon, VNM Quang Ngai Province, VNM Quang Tri, VNM Que Son Valley, VNM Qui Nhon, VNM Rach Gia, VNM Red Beach Base Area (Vietnam War), VNM Route 1, VNM Route 4, VNM Route 535, VNM Route 9, VNM Rung Sat Special Zone, VNM RVN ARVN Army of the Republic of Vietnam, VNM RVN ARVN MP Quan Canh Military Police, VNM RVN ARVN MSS Provincial Military Security Service, VNM RVN ARVN RF/PF Regional Forces/Popular Forces (Vietnam War), VNM RVN General Duonh Van Minh (Big Minh), VNM RVN Marines, VNM RVN MSD Military Security Directorate, VNM RVN Ngo Dinh Diem, VNM RVN Ngo Dinh Nhu, VNM RVN RVNP Can Sat National Police, VNM RVN RVNP Police Chief Colonel Nguyen Van Luan, VNM RVN RVNP Treasure Fraud Repression Unit, VNM RVN SVNAF Da Nang Airbase, VNM RVN SVNAF General Nguyen Ngoc Loan, VNM RVN SVNAF South Vietnamese Air Force, VNM RVN VNN LDNN Lien Doi Nguoi Nhai Navy Frogmen, VNM RVN VNN LLHT Luc Luong Hai Thuyen Navy Coastal Force / Junk Force(Vietnam War), VNM RVN VNN Republic of Vietnam Navy, VNM RVNP CSDB Can Sat Dac Biet Special Branch Police, VNM Saigon, VNM Saigon - 98 Phan Dinh Phuong Villa, VNM Saigon - Brink BOQ (Vietnam War), VNM Saigon - Capital Kinh Do Theater, VNM Saigon - Caravelle Hotel, VNM Saigon - Cercle Sportif Saigonnais, VNM Saigon - Chi Hoa Prison, VNM Saigon - Continental Hotel, VNM Saigon - French Fort, VNM Saigon - Le Lai BEQ, VNM Saigon - Plantation Road, VNM Saigon - US Embassy (Vietnam War), VNM Saigon Provost Marshalls Office (Vietnam War), VNM Soi Rap River, VNM SOM SS Yellow Dragon Incident (Vietnam War), VNM Song Tu Cau, VNM Tam Ky, VNM Tan Chau, VNM Tan Son Nhut Air Base, VNM Tan Son Nhut Air Base - Defense Attache Office (Vietnam War), VNM Tan Son Nhut Air Base - Grey House (Vietnam War), VNM Thach Han River, VNM Thu Bon River, VNM Thua Thien Province, VNM Thuan An, VNM Tien Sa Peninsula, VNM Tu Cau Bridge, VNM U Minh Forest, VNM US CIB Combat Information Bureau - Da Nang (Vietnam War), VNM US MACV Military Assistance Command Vietnam (Vietnam War), VNM US USAF Air Force Advisory Group (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC AHCB An Hoa Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC CAG Combined Action Group (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC Camp Horn (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC CAP Combined Action Platoon (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC DHCB Dong Ha Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC ECB Elliot Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC FLC Force Logistic Command (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC III MAF Marine Amphibious Force (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC KSCB Khe Sanh Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC MMAF Marble Mountain Air Facility, VNM US USMC QTCB Quang Tri Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USMC VCB Vandergrift Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USN Camp Tien Sa (Vietnam War), VNM US USN CBMU 301 (Vietnam War), VNM US USN CBMU Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit (Vietnam War), VNM US USN COMNAVFORV Commander of Naval Forces Vietnam (Vietnam War), VNM US USN Da Nang Officers Club - Stone Elephant (Vietnam War), VNM US USN HSAS Headquarters Support Activity Saigon (Vietnam War), VNM US USN LSB Ben Luc (Vietnam War), VNM US USN LSB Logistic Support Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USN LSB Nha Be (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NAF Naval Air Facility Cam Ranh (Vietnam War), VNM US USN Naval Communication Station Cam Ranh (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NCSA Saigon (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NCSU Da Nang (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NCSU Saigon (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NISOV Naval Investigative Service Office - Vietnam (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NISRA Da Nang (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NISSU Cam Ranh Bay (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NISSU Chu Lai (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NISSU Quang Tri Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NISSU Vung Tau (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NSA Naval Support Activity - Da Nang (White Elephant) (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NSABT Naval Support Activity Binh Thuy (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NSAD Naval Support Activity Detachment - Cua Viet (Vietnam War), VNM US USN NSAD Naval Support Activity Detachment - Thuan An (Vietnam War), VNM US USN River Patrol Boat Flotilla Five (Vietnam War), VNM Vietnam, VNM Vietnam War (1955-1975), VNM VNN VNI Vietnamese Naval Intelligence, VNM VNN VNNSB Vietnamese Navy Security Bloc, VNM VNN VNNSS Vietnamese Navy Security Service, VNM Vu Gia River, VNM Yankee Station (1964-1973) (Vietnam War) Rating: ★★★★(4 stars) Subject: Books.Military.20th-21st Century.Asia.Vietnam War.Naval, Books.True Crime

Description: “NCIS History-Special Agent Vietnam is a comprehensive account of naval counterintelligence and criminal investigations in Vietnam. Doug Hubbard's first-hand experience provides unique insights into this little explored topic of the war, and the addition of a broad spectrum of his photos complements the narrative with a real life appeal. In an era when the term "terrorism" was not yet in vogue, NIS' investigations of insurgent attacks against US troops is a grim reminder of current threats our military faces in Afghanistan and around the globe on a daily basis.” Michael Sulick, Former Director, CIA National Clandestine Service “Although the Viet Nam War gives up its secrets grudgingly, former special agent Douglass Hubbard unveils an intriguing account of U.S. Naval Intelligence operations in the Republic of Vietnam. Drawing on his three years’ service in Vietnam and his subsequent research and interviews, Hubbard weaves a masterful story with 'NCIS History Special Agent Vietnam' that is equally inspiring and frustrating-just as the war itself proved to be.” Colonel Joseph H. Alexander, USMC. (Ret.) author of the Battle History of the U.S. Marines “Doug Hubbard Jr. explores the seamy underside of the Vietnam War from his ‘catbird seat’ as a special agent of the Naval Investigative Service. At the most there were never more than twenty-one of these Naval Intelligence officers serving in-country, and they had to deal with an overload of such unsavory matters as counter espionage, sabotage, black marketing, currency manipulation, simple theft, drug trafficking, subversion, rape, and murder. Sometimes these investigations came to a brilliant resolution that Sherlock Holmes would have applauded. More often they foundered because of command apathy or indifference.” Brigadier General Edwin H. Simmons, USMC, Chief of Staff of the First Marine Division in 1970, former head of the Marine Corps History Branch, and author of Frozen Chosin: US Marines at the Changjin Reservoir “Doug Hubbard’s exposition with NCIS History Special Agent Vietnam defines a period of counterintelligence development in the Vietnam conflict and records its events for the first time. Compiled personal recollections of wartime special agents make this historical narrative a defining work in the legacy left by the group of Naval Intelligence professionals who devised rules for counterintelligence and force protection in the challenging and dangerous arena of Vietnam in the 1960s. Theirs was a monumental contribution to the U.S. government’s efforts to achieve stability in the Republic of Vietnam, particularly in the early days of the mission when much was accomplished by a select few.” Maynard C. Anderson, former Assistant Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Security Policy

Review - It was a decent book with a lot of historical information on the Vietnam War and NIS's members. The main problem with the book was how light it was on actual cases vs pages and pages of commentary of who was assigned when and where. Another major issue were the multiple misspellings (Viet Congo is a common one) and repeated paragraphs. It's not unreadable, but it had issues. But for the historical information, and a few insights into deserters, fraggings, and a few interesting cases, it's worth a read.

[thydungeongal]

Fantasy Adventure Games part 2

You know what, there's still a lot of trad stuff that I haven't even touched out there, and I would be remiss if I didn't feature some of the other, newer entries into the field. This is a continuation of this post.

So, once again, staying with very trad fantasy games:

Dragonbane by the Free League. An English translation of the latest edition of the classic Swedish fantasy RPG Drakar och Demoner, Dragonbane is a very traditional fantasy roleplaying game whose design is clearly heavily informed by RuneQuest but in its latest incarnation also owes a lot to the game structure popularized by D&D 3e (a game that still informs a lot of game design to this day). Dragonbane is, at its core, a skill-based, no-levels fantasy game, but that still has classes of a sort to grant structure to character creation and advancement. Its playstyle has been dubbed "mirth and mayhem" by its creators, and it emphasizes quick resolution and a sense of randomness. The presentation is also top notch, with art by Swedish fantasy artist Johan Egerkrans.

Forbidden Lands by the Free League. Another game published by the Free League, Forbidden Lands is a classic fantasy RPG with a focus on sandbox play and exploration in a strange, scary world. Forbidden Lands uses a variant of the Year Zero engine from Free League's Mutant: Year Zero games, a type of d6 dice pool system. With out-of-the-box mechanics for exploration, foraging, negotiations, and hunting, as well as running one's own stronghold, the real star of the show is the ready-made sandbox setting that comes with the game, begging to be explored.

Against the Darkmaster by Open Ended Games. The creators of Rolemaster, mentioned in the previous post, for a brief moment held the license to the Middle-earth setting of J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium and produced a slightly lighter version of Rolemaster to support playing in that setting, titled Middle-earth Roleplaying, or MERP for short. While the game is now long gone, it is still fondly remembered, and in 2019 Against the Darkmaster, a game that is essentially a tribute to MERP made by long-time fans of the game, was Kickstarted. Against the Darkmaster, or VsD for short, is a game in the heritage of Rolemaster, but with inspirations taken from modern RPGs, including the officially licensed modern LotR RPG The One Ring (which is another soft recommend from yours truly). VsD is a gritty and dark traditional RPG that seeks to empower its players to play out stories of a fellowship of heroes struggling against the forces of darkness, very much in the genre of Lord of the Rings, Dragonlance, and the Chronicles of Prydain. If you want crunchy, epic fantasy with a hint of darkness, this one's for you.

Fantasy Hero by Hero Games. A fantasy adaptation of the HERO System, the system that powers the classic superhero RPG Champions, Fantasy Hero is the closest thing I have found to an engine for running a fantasy immersive sim. The core philosophy of the HERO System is that its open-ended power creation system can be used to build anything, and Fantasy Hero directs that energy towards empowering fantasy adventures. The HERO System is very crunchy, almost like a TTRPG physics engine, and it's a dream come true for a certain type of gamer. Heck, I've personally considered using it to run a fantasy sim campaign where spell research is conducted through the power creation system. It's so cool. There is a one-book version of Fantasy Hero out there, called Fantasy Hero Complete, but word on the street is that the better way to run it is using the Hero System 6th Edition rules with the Fantasy Hero 6th Edition genre supplement on top.

Earthdawn by FASA. Once officially tied to the fantasy cyberpunk RPG Shadowrun as its mythic past, due to ownership issues Earthdawn is better understood as its own, standalone game without any ties to Shadowrun these days (and even in the past the actual ties were minimal). Earthdawn casts the player characters as magically empowered individuals who direct their magic into various disciplines, so that a Warrior in Earthdawn isn't simply someone who fights: they are someone who utilizes magic to subtly empower their fighting ability. Earthdawn is very much kin to RuneQuest in how it ties its game system to its world's underlying metaphysics, while being more in line with your traditional dwarves and elves and wizards fantasy. The setting of the game is post-apocalyptic fantasy, with a demonic scourge having recently ravaged the land and people for the first time stepping out of their magically sealed vaults to explore the world. In addition to Earthdawn fourth edition, there is an alternate, simpler version of Earthdawn titled "Age of Legend," which uses an extremely simplified system based on dice results of "Yes, and..." and "No, but..." style prompts. The fourth edition released by FASA is a very traditional, crunchy RPG.

Talislanta by various. Talislanta is a classic fantasy RPG set in an extremely unique fantasy setting that promises ABSOLUTELY NO ELVES. Talislanta is a very unique vision of a fantasy RPG with a very idiosyncratic setting, unique metaphysics, weird sights, and extremely easy to learn yet deep system. The system is very simple, with a basic d20+modifiers resolution mechanic, with varying degrees of success built in, and this system is used for absolutely everything, including combat, skill resolution, and magic. Speaking of magic, Talislanta's magic system is based heavily on keywords and schools, with magic-users being potentially able to produce almost any kind of magical effect the player can imagine under the keyword system, but with certain types of magic simply being more fit to certain purposes and some types of magic not being able to produce certain specific magical effects. What's more, legacy editions of the game are available online for free.

Anyway, that's enough for now.

[jcmarchi]

Hot Lap Racing Digital Sweepstakes

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/hot-lap-racing-digital-sweepstakes/

Hot Lap Racing Digital Sweepstakes

Hot Lap Racing is a “simcade” racing game powered by an in-house racing physics engine developed especially for the game. Discover the history of motorsport from GT to Formula 1 and race against your friends or compete online against more players!

Experience 15+ licensed and custom tracks for more than 70 layouts!

50+ cars: Pick from a diverse lineup of over 50 vehicles representing various motorsport categories and eras, such as Formula 1 cars from the 60s to the latest endurance releases.

Cars include the Peugeot 9×8, Alpine A110 GT4, Alfa Romeo 155 DTM, Brabham BT24, Formula Extreme created by the community, Ligier JS P320,Renault R5 Turbo 3E Tracks include Salzburgring, Jarama, Laquais, Navarra, Oschersleben, Gingerman Raceway, and more!

Challenge over 30 champions from the history of motorsports!

Software description provided by the publisher.

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Ready to go for a spin?

We have ten digital codes to give away to celebrate the release of Hot Lap Racing for Nintendo Switch™ and PC. All you have to do is choose your platform below to enter for your chance to win one.

Daily entry is available until 11:59 PM CST, July 31, 2024. You will be contacted via email after the sweepstakes closes, so be sure to use an email you check frequently. Full sweepstakes rules are available with entry below. Good Luck!

[mariagarrote]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Johnston & Murphy Men’s Cap Toe Dress Shoes.