The truth sets you free;
Good or bad, the truth is there;
Just look for it, see.
Archive for the ‘Game’ Category
Today I spent several (read: about 4) hours working with and toying with a neat little web application framework called Django. It’s very much like working with Ruby on Rails, but a little bit more intuitive.
The downside is the documentation is only slightly poorer than Ruby on Rails’ documentation, which is to say, not very good. The tutorial helped quite a bit with the basics, but even that does not work “out of the box“.
I’ll keep working on it, as I’m interested to see if I can whip up an AJAX implementation for it, making data entry web applications easy to put together.
That’s right, in a matter of a few hours, I can build you a character database, fanboy!
I like both online games I’m currently playing in, but I know I’m spending too much time online, playing them. I don’t want to give either of them up. I really like Liz’s game so far, even if I’ve had little time to dedicate to it. And John’s game, well.. What’s NOT to like about it?
On the other hand, my character hardly needs to be around in John’s game… Liz’s game is in the other end of the spectrum. If I’m not there on game nights, I miss way too much.
Conundrums.
Slashdot has an excellent article on Gen Con Indy 2005.
There’s only one mention of White Wolf, and that’s mainly about the launch of mage. They do mention the relaunch from a couple of years ago in the same paragraph. I’m not sure if I like the Atlantis back story, but it looks like the game will definitely follow along with the changes to vampire and werewolf.
There’s quite a bit covered, but most of it comes from WotC. I’m interested in Ebberon, but only because the sasquatch keeps bugging me to play and/or run a campaign of it. It DOES look neat from that “things that should not mix, but ARE mixing” point of view.
Hopefully in the next couple of days, all of the VST’s will have created an account on this site, and requested a blog category for their Domain’s Mortals Venue.
If you have the access, you can click the “site admin” link on the right side bar to access the ability to make new posts, publish them, and edit old posts.
You may also create your own categories, but please be mindful of whether or not a new category is needed or not – a new category for one post is overkill – especially if the post can fit in another category just as well.
Enjoy, and try not to break anything!
So I’ve sent in three reports as ARST Mortals, and what have I produced besides this?
Well, first of all, my first report was for two weeks of dis-orientation.
Conspiracy
Our first plotkit involves a conspiracy, right here in the South Central region. Some individuals believe no one, including your characters, can think for themselves, and plan to make sure you don’t have to.
Strangeness
Camden, Arkansas has experienced some strange behaviour as of late. People disappearing, or simply quitting their jobs of fifteen years for no apparent reason. Some are blaming the Poison Springs nearby. Some are blaming the recent changes to the water system. And yet more claim to have seen a strange creature or mutant in the woods, hunting the animals.
News
APRIL 22, 2005
CAMDEN, AR
During a Lyrid Meteor Shower of unprecedented activity, a relatively small impact occurred in the Poison Springs National Park. Park services were able to contain the resulting fire, but are concerned for the dead, but apparently unharmed, wildlife in the area. The area has been quarantined by the Department of Energy’s NEST team due to abnormally high radiation levels. Containment is expected to be completed sometime in November of this year. Until then, park officials have asked the visitors do not attempt to go near even the quarantine line. The NEST team lead, Jared Walters, has stated that deadly force has been allowed, but will be reserved as a last resort.
Multiple organizations working together
- Ars Technica – A group of programmers and “hackers” who make it their life’s work to gather data, disperse it, and publish it in either a public or private forum.
- Suits – A group of government employees, realistically very few actual Agents of law enforcement capacity, that have limited access to government reports on aliens and their existence.
- Underground Newsies – Independent “newspaper” publishers who distribute their “papers” via obfuscated channels, usually ending up in the subscriber’s US mailbox.
- Sneakers – Similar to the Ars Technica people, but instead of being dedicated to technological methods of dispersing the information, they use theirs sneakers – that is, they use more personal means like walking.
- Scene Investigators – Public figures who investigate the UFO phenomena at known “crash sites” and “secret bases”. Some are rightfully labelled as “kooks”. There’s a possibility these are simply the cover for the real investigations going on with all the groups.
One large umbrella organization
- Several distinct divisions, similar to those above
Cell-based structure
- Each “cell” should have among them the skillsets necessary to work as the multiple-organization schema, above
- A way of communicating, probably through normal newspaper want ads or something more obscure (hidden text in a web page’s source code, an internet bulletin board with secret areas, etc)
- A cell can be spread across a region, only coming together when needed, or on a regularly scheduled event
Above all, paranoia, paranoia, paranoia!
Another option is to run it like an intelligence organization – no one knows everything about every situation, but if you call up the chain, those “higher” up can move down it to find all the pieces to see the “big picture”. This is used for the REALLY big secrets – like where all that evidence is stashed for the day enough is gathered for the grand revealing.
Aliens. UFOs. Conspiracies. What’s the truth? What’s the lie? Can we trust our government? Or have they been compromised?
The truth evades most of us, but not all of us. Some of us have seen, and now watch.
What kind of structure should this organization have?
Should we build it in cells? Can we trust a single person to head us up? Do we need a committee for every action?