Blackmoor Vituperative

I think it’s telling that the only people in the Star Wars movies that treat robots as though they were people are Luke (who is desperately lonely) and Anakin (who is a mass-murdering, child-killing psychopath). To everyone else, the fact a machine can talk means no more than it does for you and I when our car tells us the door is open or our phone tells us that we have an appointment in 15 minutes.

That a robot has a red arm means exactly as much as the fact an old yellow Fiat has a red door.

Watched the first half of a movie called “Trainwreck”. The only funny lines were spoken by a big beefy weight-lifter looking guy (IMDB tells me his name is John Cena), but he was only in the first fifteen minutes or so of the movie. After that… not remotely funny. Not even interesting. Watching the sandwich artists at Subway put together an Italian sub is more entertaining. It’s not even interesting in an “oh my god this is horrible, who thought this was a good idea” way, like that Reese Witherspoon/Sofia Vergara movie “Hot Pursuit” (which is truly terrible, and I do not recommend you watch it). It’s just dull. I started checking the time at 18 minutes. At an hour, we decided to “take a break”.

It’s going to be a long break.

There is a computer game called Baldur’s Gate. It’s a fantasy adventure game based on Dungeons & Dragons, along the lines of Lord Of The Rings. An expansion for the game was released recently, and in that expansion there is a minor character named “Mizhena” who, if you engage with them and repeatedly ask them questions, will eventually tell you that they are transgender. If you are unfamiliar with Dungeons & Dragons, you might not realize that transgender characters have been a part of that game world for 30 or 40 years. It’s not new. It is, however, new to the Baldur’s Gate game.

As a result, a small segment of the Baldur’s Gate fan base revealed themselves to be vile bigots. These bigots created a “controversy”, objecting to the inclusion of this character in the game.

This “controversy” comes at an interesting time. Today, April 8 2016, is the 48th anniversary of the broadcast of the Petula Clark Show on NBC. Petula Clark was a very popular singer at the time, having fifteen consecutive Top 40 hits in the USA, starting with “Downtown” in 1965. Clark was joined on her special by Harry Belafonte, who had made Calypso and Caribbean music popular throughout the world with his singing in the 1950s. During a duet toward the end of the show, Clark touched Belafonte briefly on the arm. Doyle Lott, a vice president from Chrysler, the show’s sponsor, was present at the taping. Lott objected to the “interracial touching”. He pressured NBC to remove the “forced” contact between Clark and Belafonte, to remove this “social justice” from the show. However, Petula Clark stuck to her guns, and the special was broadcast with the “controversial” touching. When the show aired, it received high ratings.

It’s been over 40 years, and the Doyle Lotts of the world are still manufacturing controversies to defend their bigotry. I think it is right and just that people are enjoying the music of Petula Clark and Harry Belafonte to this very day, while Doyle Lott has been reduced to a footnote in the history of civil rights.

There are many cases where people of good will can and do disagree. That is usually the case, in my opinion. However, these cretins who wail and moan and gnash their teeth any time they see someone other than themselves represented are not people of good will. They are the bartender who says, “We don’t serve their kind here.” They are the prejudiced priest who refuses to heal the half-orc in the party. They are the pig-faced sheriff that says, “We don’t take kindly to outsiders around here.” They are the craven peasant accusing a midwife of witchcraft. They’re the corrupt king who doesn’t want the adventurers to fight the dragon because it’s never his daughter that gets sacrificed to it.

These are not people of good will. They are not defenders of the sanctity of gaming. They are, by their own choice and by their own hand, villains.

I have created a chart for Trail Of Cthulhu, showing when it is a good idea to spend Stability to improve a Stability roll, and when it isn’t (note: it usually isn’t). Maybe this will be useful to someone.

For myself, I do not think I will use this mechanic as written. I think that I will use the following house rules.

1. Players can’t “spend” on Stability rolls.
2. A player may choose for their character to lose half* of the potential Stability loss instead of rolling.
3. A character’s Stability can’t go to -12 unless it is already -11. The character’s Stability has to drop to -11 before it can go any lower. (This gives the character one last chance to survive.)

That’s orders of magnitude simpler, and will always work out better for the character than the standard “spend” rules.

(* Rounded in the character’s favor. Always round in the character’s favor.)

This afternoon’s matinee at Castle Blackmoor … Tomorrowland (2015).

It’s actually quite a bit of fun after it gets started. Unfortunately, it takes a full half-hour to get started. We were close to giving up on it. So if you’ve not seen it, give it a try, just don’t expect the movie to actually start until about a half-hour after the opening credits.

Here is how I play music (MP3 files) into a Google Meet.

Hardware

• Windows 10 desktop
• Wireless headset with over-the-ear type headphones

Software

• Google Chrome
• Audio Repeater Pro
• VB Cable A+B
• VLC Media Player

Setup

1. Install “Audio Repeater Pro (64 bit)” and “VB Cable A+B”. Don’t mess with the settings. Just install them.
2. Run “Audio Repeater Pro (64 bit)”. Use these settings:
   • Input Device: Microphone (Logitech G935 Gaming Headset)
   • Output Device: CABLE Input (VB-Audio Cable B)
   • Stream Format: Processing Format (default)
   • Stream Buffer: 40 milliseconds (default)
   • Process Audio: (not checked)
   • Stream Gain: 100%
   • Stream FX: FX Chain (default)
   • Bypass FX Chain: (not checked)
   • Click “Start”.
3. In the task icon area of the taskbar, right-click the speaker, and select “Recording Devices”.
   1. Right-click Microphone (Logitech G935 Gaming Headset), and select “Set as Default Device”.
   2. Right-click Microphone (Logitech G935 Gaming Headset), and select “Properties”.
      • On the “Listen” tab, set to UN-check “Listen to this device”.
      • On the “Levels” tab, set to 90.
      • Click OK.
   3. Right-click CABLE-B Output, and select “Properties”.
      • On the “Listen” tab, CHECK “Listen to this device”.
      • On the “Listen” tab, set “Playback through this device” to “Speakers (Logitech G935 Gaming Headset)”.
      • On the “Levels” tab, set both to 100.
      • Click OK.
4. In the “Playback” tab of the Sound application.
   • Right-click the headset, and select “Set as Default Communication Device”.
5. Run Chrome.
6. In Chrome, go to Google Meet, and join the meeting.
7. When the Meet window opens, click the three dots in the bottom right corner and click “Settings”. On the Audio tab, use these settings:
   • Microphone: CABLE Output (VB-Audio Cable B).
   • Speakers: Speakers (Logitech G935 Gaming Headset).
8. Open VLC Media Player.
   1. Add songs to the playlist.
   2. In the Audio menu, select Audio >> Audio Device >> CABLE Input (VB-Audio Cable B)
9. Invite people to join the hangout.
10. Play songs in VLC. Other people in the Hangout will hear them. To avoid drowning myself out, I set the VLC output level to about 80%.

Recording

Here are the settings I used to record in Flashback Express.

1. In the Tools >> Options menu, look in the Sound section.
2. Under Sound Source, select “PC Speakers (what you hear)”.
3. In the drop-down under “PC Speakers (what you hear)”, select the headset.
4. Now, when recording in Flashback Express…
   1. Under “Record”, select “Window”.
   2. Check “Record Sound”.
5. Still in Flashback Express, in the sound section, check “Record Sound”, and for the source select “Speakers (Logitech G935 Headset)”.

When done with the hangout

1. Close the Hangout window.
2. Click “Stop” in “Audio Repeater Pro (64 bit)”, and close it.
3. Close VLC Media Player.

Time travel is stupid.

I enjoyed John Wick. It’s another Keanu Reeves movie: more or less a remake of Payback, but still a lot of fun. It built its own little world. I like that.

This reminded me of the good old days, with Lloyd Montgomery​ GMing and Dan Donovan​ playing the guy they won’t let retire in peace.

Sometimes a whole lot of people just need to die.

It’s no small secret that I don’t even consider Man Of Steel (2013) a Superman movie. It’s not a bad science fiction film, in the same vein as Hancock (although I prefer Hancock), but the guy in that costume is not Superman.

Superman knows right from wrong, but like Gene Roddenberry’s “Star Fleet”, he is very careful about using his power to save people from *themselves*, because he knows that it often makes things worse, and he respects the rights of individuals even if their decisions disappoint him.

Superman has a sense of humour, and he’s easy-going. Why wouldn’t he be? He is powerful enough to deal with any ordinary problem, and there is virtually nothing that ordinary people can do to hurt him. He’s like a lumberjack in a room full of puppies and kittens (we’re the puppies and kittens).

Above all, Superman cares. That’s why he fights corruption as reporter Clark Kent — contrary to what some people have claimed, Clark Kent is not the disguise. Clark Kent is who Superman *is* — a man raised by decent people, who cares about others, and who wants to help make the world a better place.

He also just happens to have the powers of a god.

This is the fourth and final new arcana for the Spellbinder specialization: Thought.

Thought Arcana

Thoughts are as clay to be molded.

• Novice: Learn Sense Minds and Share Thoughts.
• Journeyman: Learn Sift Thoughts; gain the focus Intelligence (Thought Arcana).
• Master: Learn Insert Thought; one spell stunt at -1 SP when casting Thought Arcana spells.
• Source: Brandon Blackmoor bblackmoor@blackgate.net

Sense Minds

• Requirements: Thought Arcana (Novice)
• Type: Utility
• Cost: 4+
• Casting Time: 1 Minute
• Target Number: 11
• Range: 10 yds
• Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower
• Source: Brandon Blackmoor bblackmoor@blackgate.net, based on Bloodhound, Fantasy Age Basic Rulebook

You can perceive the presence and location of thinking entities. When you first cast the spell or as a major action during the duration, you can search for minds within 10 yards of you. The spell can penetrate barriers, but 2 feet of rock, 2 inches of metal, or a thin sheet of lead will block the spell. You can’t sense a creature with an Intelligence less than -2, one that doesn’t understand any language, or one that makes a successful Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs. your Spellpower. If the target fails the Willpower (Self-Discipline) test, you know their precise location, but you can’t actually listen to their thoughts. This lasts for 10 minutes, and you can keep it active for 2 MP per further 10 minutes. While the spell is active, you will be able to cast spells from the Thought Arcana against the target as though you could see them.

Share Thoughts

• Requirements: Thought Arcana (Novice)
• Type: Utility
• Cost: 4+
• Casting Time: 1 Minute
• Target Number: 11
• Range: 10 yds
• Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower
• Source: Brandon Blackmoor bblackmoor@blackgate.net, based on Voices Of The Wind, Fantasy Age Basic Rulebook

You can silently converse with any single person or creature within 10 yards of you that you can see or that you have located through the use of the Sense Minds spell. An unwilling participant may block the communication with a successful Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs. your Spellpower. An unwilling participant is under no obligation to respond to you if they fail this test, but they will still hear you. You can switch to converse with a different target within range as a major action. Share Thoughts lasts for 10 minutes, and you can extend it for 10 minutes for each 2 MP you spend.

Sift Thoughts

• Requirements: Thought Arcana (Journeyman)
• Type: Attack
• Cost: 8
• Casting Time: Major Action
• Target Number: 11
• Range: 10 yds
• Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower
• Source: Brandon Blackmoor bblackmoor@blackgate.net, based on Burning Shield and Ensnaring Roots, Fantasy Age Basic Rulebook

You can perceive the thoughts of any single person or creature within 10 yards of you that you can see or that you have located through the use of the Sense Minds spell. You can’t perceive the thoughts of a creature with an Intelligence less than -2 or one that doesn’t understand any language. The target may attempt a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs. your Spellpower. If the target succeeds on this test, the spell ends, and the target becomes aware that you were attempting to pry into their mind. If the target fails this test, you learn their surface thoughts — what is uppermost on their mind at that moment. As a major action, you can either shift your attention to the thoughts of another creature within range or attempt to probe deeper into the same creature’s mind. If you probe deeper, the target may attempt another Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs. your Spellpower. If the target succeeds on this test, the spell ends, and the target becomes aware that you were attempting to pry into their mind. If the target fails this test, you gain insight into their motivations, their emotional state, and their general intentions. Sift Thoughts lasts for a number of minutes equal to your Willpower, and you may, if you wish, monitor the thoughts of a single target this entire time.

Insert Thought

• Requirements: Thought Arcana (Master)
• Type: Attack
• Cost: 8
• Casting Time: Major Action
• Target Number: 14
• Range: 10 yds
• Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs. Spellpower
• Source: Brandon Blackmoor bblackmoor@blackgate.net, based on Watery Doom, Fantasy Age Basic Rulebook

You can insert a single clearly stated thought into the mind of any single person or creature within 10 yards of you that you can see or that you have located through the use of the Sense Minds spell. You can’t place a thought into the mind of a creature with an Intelligence less than -2 or one that doesn’t understand any language. The target may attempt a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs. your Spellpower. If the target succeeds on this test, they recognize the thought as not being their own, and they know that you placed it there. If the target fails this test, they believe the thought to be their own. They will treat the thought with all of the same seriousness as any other sincerely held belief, and they will act accordingly. This is not mind control: the target is not your puppet. How they respond to this new thought will depend on their existing desires, fears, and loyalties. Some examples of appropriate thoughts are:

• “I will be richly rewarded for bringing [the caster] to my master.”
• “The nobles are plotting to kill me.”
• “These are not the gnomes I am looking for.”
• “I have much to gain by trusting [the caster].”
• “My father wanted me to make my own path, not follow in his.”