Now lets take some steam off, and something to tantalize your thoughts about the future, VVH

        Quite the post that last one was, honest to gods it should be the last, we talked, we understood, I hopefully rallied you and inspired you, and all is behind us, now onward! I believe I've said before that I am currently creating one of my most ambitious projects yet, something which I am still working on this very moment, and something which I hope you all will enjoy when I reveal it, and when I do, oh it will be something talked of(Hopefully)! I've decided to make this post shorter, determinately shorter, whereas I've said this before, I believe I'll keep true to this, this time. I am currently mulling around the idea of where I will introduce this character and how, how do I go about introducing one of my most villainous creations to date? Well first of it will definitely have to be when I merge my two wonderful groups into one, something I am very much looking forward to, and honestly isn't too far off. Perhaps to introduce this person, I'll make it very clear how viciously evil and cunning he is, with plenty of backstory, all in all I hope it all turns out well, though that's the hope of any GM.
        As for the future I foresee the next game taking place most likely in Alsanaan, as I am currently in the throes of creating that continent, and here's a heads up, it will not have the same Realm Divide as Eharlith does, there will be regional bonuses, but I'm going to experiment with other ways to go about this, perhaps religious sects, or ancient peoples or what have you, something altogether different, and of course this will all be transferable between all the continents of Entrathia. As an example you could be in Thrassia as an Alsinian delegate, and have the Alsinian traits or bonuses, such as a foreigner, or you could use the generic foreigner realm section I created if you can't make up your mind (The Foreigner realm really was my way to give you something more neutral and universalist, in case you were wondering).
        Well along with continuing to improve my creation, and to work further on preparing new lands and societies for the great merger (I'll find a fantastically appropriate name for the coalescing), I believe that is enough said. Told you this would be a shorter post, I hope you all look forward to a revamped and completely badass character, as well as Alsanaan making its grandiose entry onto the world of Entrathia, along with ALL the other works I am currently immersed in.
As always
till next post, roll your D20
Ryan

Apologies and one last reiteration (You may want to read this)

I do not believe I'll add a picture to this one, it will be short and to the point, I am tired of 'Political Correct' rewriting and extrapolation on what I am saying, should you not understand, what can I say?

        First off, I am sorry to Nikki for the brash way I acted after almost killing a trusted friend and ally in our game, I was laughing raucously while I was completely unaware of the emotional tax it was imposing, for that I am sorry and will take matters far more seriously in the future. Secondly I am going to post this one last time, (if you're thinking "I haven't heard this before" then clearly you have not been listening to me for the past 10 years) things are changing, as the background of this blog is evidence of, things are changing. I have lost friends, I have gained few friends in return, but far more impacting and loving then the ones I knew, I have moved out, I am attempting to cope with everything suddenly thrust on my shoulders, I am a hairs width away from smiling the signature Ryan smile and walking away from it all, as my attempts and rigorous movements in what I thought the right way continues to fail. Now if you're suddenly shocked as to how I believe things are failing, it is due partly to the fact that for so many games now I have been met with rancor, argumentative dispositions, vexatious attitudes, and honest malice towards my attempt at playing, running, and general life choices. As I write this I am reminded that life is full of adversarial challenges, that without the bad how could we possibly enjoy the good, but in the case of Pathfinder, it is meant to be an enjoyment for BOTH sides, I am now demanding that whenst I run that I enjoy it as well, I am going to sound selfish, but after 24 years of bending in each direction for all my friends, I believe I am warranted. Regardless of what I am met with, and how I am too continue on, Pathfinder was my solace in the storm, the eye of the hurricane that is this strange path we all take, for life is but a storm, one moment you may be enjoying clear skies and a calm sea, the next battered against the rocks. I believe I've done pretty damned well weathering that storm until recently, and only recently it's been more than challenging, though hope demands that I believe it will get better, and I do believe it will. As for Pathfinder while it is my solace laden ground, my serenity, there is also dramatic and intense scenarios, that just comes with the territory of being a writer and creative thinker, it is both a curse and a blessing to be creative (I can talk with anyone about why it is a curse, you need only arrange a time to hang out :] )and so with playing these ever evolving games, I am changing and morphing this world in such a way that will demand sacrifice, anxiety ridden feelings, excitement, entertainment, and more often than not, humor. This is no longer the game I run where it takes place on 3 small pieces of graph paper with 10 pages of binder paper with some summaries of the places filled out, this has become a Tolkien esque world, a George R.R. Martin structure, and a Rowling land of fantasy and mythic legends and enough history to make Chris Harman want to write a novel about "A peoples history of Entrathia". Now I am absolutely not saying this to sound arrogant or self involved, quite the contrary I am saying this to inform you and make sure it is an understood fact that the world of Entrathia is revolving around itself, not you. That you are an actor on the stage of life and that this land has breathing living individuals, you can choose to be part of it, drift through it, or watch from afar, the choice is yours and it will continue on regardless. Now this is not to say you do not matter, refer to my previous posts to see the impact you make, just understand its a world with immersion and beings with backstory, political agendas, religions, etc...
        So what does this have to do with a reiteration, THINGS WILL DIE AND CHANGE. Let me make this clear COMPANIONS, PEOPLE, LOVED NPC'S, CIVILIZATIONS AND SO ON WILL FALL AND DIE. Death, which the people of Entrathia know by many names, Undelo, Kosenmori, and many others, has a very final and infinite existence. Death is everywhere, though some may choose to ignore it, some embrace it, and some understand it and accept it with quiet reverence, but it most certainly is there. You can attempt to stave off the inevitable, you can look for subversive ways around it, you can attempt to circumvent me at every single juncture without remorse, but one way or another things fall. Now this does not mean my world is some Gothic tragedy and that all is bleak and terrible, is that how this world, earth is? Some may say yes, but more often than not we see beauty in it, regardless of the constant threat. So, be aware of the more than true aspect that you may lose a companion, a friend may be slain by a dragon, that a civilization may crumble from being besieged, but life moves on, let the loss of companions and allies be a rallying call to you, let it bolster your resolve and move you farther into the lore of my world, let it take you on a wind bound flight through the whimsical fantasy that my world has to offer, be saddened yes, but do not harbor malcontent towards me, rather take this sorrowful event and make it yours, reinvent it to something that is now your oath to avenge or right the wrong. Do not feel anger or viciousness, damn it all I am giving you all the tools to turn a campaign into not just another romp through the dungeon, not just another save the princess tale and poem, I am giving you the tools and environment to have a real affect on those stories you read about in novels you love, I am giving you the option to change the world that you see in those series you wish you could put your character in and impact the antagonist or protagonist in what way you choose, I am giving you an open world with SO much within that players years from now, that see this and have wild wonder of the history of the world they play in, can enjoy the changes you have made and given to future gamers that experience my world and the history of. It will recur, it will come about in a way that some whom have played my previous games will go "OMG I remember that, wow, now it's in the history books, included in such a way that...wow" (Hopefully that's the usual response) I have opened the flood gates and hope that we enjoy the new flowing river that is this collaborative world, story, history, and legend together. Do not be angered by the deaths and sacrifices, if it feels beyond your control. Remember how many times I have granted you a luck roll, D20 roll, hero point, skill check, saving throw, all the monumentally massive amount of leeway I grant, remember and know that some times, out of the small microscopic times that inevitable death occurs, remember and know the purpose and impact it all has. With all these things, truly, am I railroading the game? Am I being a malicious fucker? Am I hapless and shameful? If you still believe so, if you believe I don't put the story and fun first, than I will hang up my soon to be got cloak of the GM, I will store my books away, I will enclose my map in a cartographers tube, and gladly bow out and allow someone else to take the reigns. For if all those second chances, attempts to help, granting hero points, giving luck rolls, allowing skill checks when not granted, letting a natural 20 change the tide of an almost impossible task, a role playing diplomacy or in character out, and overall hand of fate intervening allowance, still doesn't prove that I grant you more than any GM probably out there, then truly I am not equipped to GM, and I will, without any vehemence or harsh feelings otherwise, step down and have someone, if they choose to, take over in my stead.
        So I hope this offers some insight, for the last time, that when any of those loveable NPC's, allies, or what have you die, that no matter how hard we think about it, there was no avenue out of it, that there was just not a rational or even magical rationale towards saving the person. That with ALL the boons I grant there just wasn't that one time where you had any amount of luck, hero points, or anything for that matter, and even when I try my damnest, and I almost always do, it just occurs, and death may happen as well.
        This actually became far longer than I expected, I was hoping to make it sweet and to the point, but with alllllll this writ and text, maybe now it will become clear, maybe the light will don on and we can all return to the immense amount of joy we have when we play, and if someone is about to die, close to death, or does actually die, maybe now this LONG LONG LONG update will be remembered, and instead of arguing and attacking me and believing me to be unfair, perhaps just that one time out of literally hundreds of games and thousands of chances, it just didn't take. If after all this it still isn't clear, still is unreasonable and you believe I am vindictive or thoughtless, then as before I will quite literally without any sore feelings or fury will step down. But, I don't foresee that happening, hopefully until my eventual stepping down from life as it were, so I hope this helps to shed light on perhaps a hazy and slightly ambiguous topic.
        OH! And please don't let this bully or maneuver you into being hyper-cautious or paranoid, this was only a friendly update and reminder, take it as you will!
As always my friends
Roll your D20, and your luck roll,
Ryan     

Should we run away?! GODS YES!!!

        Well that picture about sums up this post...mostly. Let me quickly touch base on the last post and just sum things up, We should have back story, I'll put that back story in my world, your decisions and choices of said back story, and in the game in general, have a real impact on my world...that's kinda the shit I think! Now then, on to running away, I just recently watched a wondrous video on the Cthulhu Mythos, and how every game, save for a choice few, get the old ones wrong, in general. As is mentioned rather regularly throughout the video, Cthulhu is misrepresented in many of the games we play as it is something we can fight and conceivably kill, NOW I know what most of you are saying and doing at this point *scoff* "C'mon Ryan, we never think we can KILL Cthulhu, maybe just banish him or make him sleep or NYAAAH OH GODS HELP ME!!!" Yup, I understand that, but lets try to be abstract here, and bare with me if you well. To put any health bar or any type of way were Cthulhu can be "banished" or put back to sleep or what have you ultimately defeats the purpose of Cthulhu and such beings, which is our undeniable smallness in this world, and in whatever fantasy world you can imagine. Now I'm not going to steal the entire message and bit of the video I watched, suffice to say it was wonderfully done and offered great insight into the mythos of Cthulhu, and lets face it, there's a lot we don't truly grasp, which is often times a good thing in Call of Cthulhu. In any case this fact that Cthulhu is unkillable, banishable, sleepable, leads to one thing, RUNNING. Running per se is looked on with usually demeaning glances from others, as hey, come on again man, we should explore and satiate our curiosity, "I just want to see what it does!" Well for a long long time now I've been forgiving and understanding to those whom are curios or want loot, but now, slowly but surely that is changing. Let me make one thing clear now and for most likely the foreseeable future, my mission is not your death (as I've said numerous times) but should you not get the clear and obvious signs, should you attempt to take the forbidden treasure or text which I very painfully explain as evil or powerful, then you may die. Let me say that again, you may die and your soul is torn to shreds and you character sheet suddenly bursts in to flames. Now, what does this have to do with running away, there is nothing wrong with backing down from a fight. There is nothing wrong from calling it a day and attempting to survive. You can always stay and fight, and that is commendable, but honestly if you die, I'm not going to suddenly randomly revive you, YOU COULD HONESTLY SPEND THE REST OF THAT GAME EITHER A. Making a new character or B. Watching everyone else play. Let me say that again, as this has literally happened before, YOU may not play anymore at that game, you can always throw another character together and I am 100% ok with that, but if in the end I throw something so infinitely evil at you, something so unknowable and powerful, something so immensely insane that you cannot help but delve deeper, I hereby write this oath, you may in fact die, and I wont get you out of it, and in the result of going to resurrection, old powerful beings are funny at how they kill people, they may keep your soul, or make it that much more difficult to revive you, i.e. you shall pay much more gold than usual asking price. 
        Now, we've talked about that, and honestly I feel like I'll still get angry glances or people arguing with me incessantly, which drives me more and more to stopping altogether, there is some small amount of light in this darkness, most players, recently have seen that I don't just wantonly throw ancient evil beings of DOOOM at you, rather it's sparse and quite virile when I do. I make it clear, I have detect magic almost blind you, I have ancient runes lining the coffin or ancient tome or what have you, I GIVE YOU GODS DAMNED SIGNS! So, with that we may find a work around if you curiosity just can't be satiated, or if perhaps a quest is involved obviously I'm not going to force you to awaken him, as that would mean I would kill most if not all and that would be the end of that. In my worlds, till as long as honestly I GM, Cthulhu, ancient beings, creatures of that power will not be winnable. Let me make that clear, NOT winnable, but that's ok, running away is a choice which you can exercise and will not detract from that story. Take this iota of advice from me before I leave you my attentive and wonderful players, we're all in this together, I do not go out of my way to kill players, read my previous posts and that should be painfully obvious by now, but as of late death will become far more real, I allow many things but in this case...well I think it's pretty plain to see. Be aware, have fun, and if you decide to take the game off the hinges and go "Fuck da police!" on everything and challenge the biggest baddest mofo out there, don't be surprised if you...become worse for wear. There are more powerful beings out there, that's just how I work, that's how my world works, understand that, and you'll do just dandy :). But aside from all else, lets have fun shall we, perhaps even the GM can join in that fun? ( : D Welp hopefully this touched base on the fact of Cthulhu, the inevitability of such creatures, and how running away is a fine option, which I nor anyone else should look down upon. I mean no malice towards anyone, and we're here to have fun, this was just something that I believed should be understood, with that, now you know. Though this isn't Call of Cthulhu, so you most likely wont die a death of tentacles and insanity, at least in Pathfinder you can garner power to fight back most unnamed horrors! Welp, that's about it for me.
as always
Till next post, Roll your D20
Ryan        

That's a great backstory, perhaps tell me before the game starts...?

        I Pinch....
        *Ahem* well then, where was I? Ah yes, back story!!! Also, missed the week mark, though it's within this week so I'm going to say that still counts. Back story...something which every character should posses, and some may, and some may not, and to those fulfilling the latter I say, Poppycock! Now that you've decidedly made up your mind to make back story for your character in every campaign we run, let's discuss how we'll fit that into my world, ENTRATHIA! Firstly I am completely open and willing to have back story intertwine within the main plot itself or as a subplot, or as just an amazing side note for lack of anything else. As to how one goes about ensuring it gets used in an awesome way and is prevalent to the story, that's a bit trickier. Let's say you are an all powerful Magus, you have journeyed from peasanthood in order to obtain the magical prowess you know you have within you, but alas a diabolical villainous crab had stolen your keepsake from home, that which reminded you of your roots and helped to center your mind whenst casting spells, all is lost! That's a pretty epic back story, albeit a very short one, but we're just throwing ideas around at the moment, now I'll most definitely enjoy it, but if I start the campaign where you're in some random caravan, met in a bar, imprisoned or what have you, it may seem as though I have torn you from what would be rational steps and plopped you in some random situation, and there we have distrust and disenfranchisement taking place. Now, I'm sure you would say that you don't mind or it would make sense, but partially why I'm mentioning this is because I read another RPG blog touching base on this, and it certainly resonated with me. On the one hand I want to get the party together in some way and introduce the game in a provocative and alluring manner, and in the other hand I want to make your character as involved as humanly....or elvenly.....or orcly....or so on, as possible. Conundrum to say the least, but not a lost cause. In the following weeks...nay years to come I will be dabbling with plot hooks that have a direct connection with character back story and choices she or he may have made in the past before reaching the "Game start point". With that I will also involve characters in the story by making the story suddenly coincide or be directly mired within the back story that the player may have cooked up. Let's not kid ourselves though, this will be a learning process, one which I will take great pains to get correctly, but in any case hopefully it will become clearer and more immersive as time goes on. I suppose the purpose of this smaller blog post was to just touch base on this subject, share my opinions, and muse about where my players and I may be going, although honestly I feel it's already taking motions in that direction. Now I am immensely tired but I believe I may post again in the morning as I know I have more to write about, but am having a slightly more difficult time at this hour articulating it. *YAWN*
In any case as always
Till next post, Roll your D20
Ryan        

Game Master's need breaks too! Thrassia, the continent of the eldest families

        I may or may not add a picture to this post, most of this only calls for writing and explanation. Greetings one and all once again! I keep skirting by, posting within the next week, but perhaps not  the next week when it comes to a 7 day week...erm well that aside this is most definitely curtailed to my players whom wait with avid excitement and brimming anticipation for the next game, they are coming! I was going to say winter is coming, but that doesn't fit perfectly into this post, though winter is my more enjoyable season so more games would abound then. In any case there are some days where I sit quietly staring at my map, thinking and contemplating the next step, there are days where I play video games, incessantly. Suffice to say my thoughts are predominantly on expanding and extrapolating on my world, Entrathia! Though coming out with the latest and greatest games to tantalize and entice you, oh avid players, is not an easy task. You see, there are many many many many many many GM's whom have a small haphazardly made map, a few notes here and there, a computer paper page filled with hooks and plots, and that's all she wrote, as a manner of speaking. With each twist and turn the players take, the GM twists and turns right back, as a reed in the wind, bamboo bending to the gusts and flurries. And then there's GM's like me...I was once a GM whom swayed and twisted, formed and changed alongside the players, keeping my story on a story by story evolution, having some notes and so on. Now, I am still in a certain way very much like this, as I cannot have everything in stone or I would surely explode from the stress and anguish over players going their own route, I have learned VERY quickly that ALL GM's, and if they deny this they are damned liars, all GM's keep things somewhat vague and up in the air, in order to sway and bend with the story. (This does not include Pathfinder Modules or pre-made scenarios, exclude that for now) Now as I was saying I bend and sway, yet also I now have a fully formed world, one and a half continents currently in production, and many more being thought up and worked on as much as I am able or willing. With this static world, with towns, cities, monuments, canyons, mountains, and all manner of things within, there comes a responsibility to create a cohesive and determinate timeline and setting and people. THIS.IS.NO.EASY.TASK! Now before you attempt to prove me wrong or believe I take this WAY to seriously (and I certainly may falter on the latter, that is something I accept), here are a few things my mind begins to get jumbled on when I think of making said cities and things related. Oh that's a cool name for a city, Port City Nerux, it's kinda like Neelix from Star Trek Voyager, and that guy was the tits! Oh oh oh oh, and inn's and taverns must be made and quickly...oh crap but then when were they founded? And have any interesting things happened in those past instances, whom used to own it, was it sold or part of the original settlement that became the Port City Nerux, and what vagabonds and villains have been berthen here? How about during all those great wars? What did they do? Did they stand idly by or did they take up arms? Did they just stick it out and bar tend to the next conquering armada? Is the tavern chaotic Neutral? Does the tavern master give a feck if evil bastards come through or are they thrown out right quick? Does it have a cellar with rats in it? That's too damned cliche, how about kobolds, Why in Earus' name would there be Kobolds down there? Is there a sewer entrance? Is that done too much? Maybe it should be something else? A secret tunnel, maybe they tunneled in through a natural cave nearby? That's a long ways to go, maybe the Tavern Master knows and is hiding something, has this been a constant thing hiring less than savory creatures to be down in the cellar, what's the point? Maybe they loot foolish tavern goers, maybe this tavern is chaotic neutral, or evil for that manner. Do the guards frequent this place? Or is it just patrons? Or maybe they have a legendary brew....or perhaps are looking for one, what are the quests, religions, people, places, things things things!!! ...........Yup, that's literally about a quarter of my thought process.....on an inn, a singular inn...yup. HAH! I gotta say I did chuckle slightly at that. SO what does this all pertain to? Why, GM breaks of course, while some GM's can keep on gaming and gaming and gaming and gaming, as if they were immortal and didn't sleep and had 500 heads and shat fire, I unfortunately do none of those things, save for a lot of super hot chicken wings the night before causing the latter...:3. So alas there may come a time, and I mean this as VERY rarely, as if it were a 'mew' under that damned pickup truck you had to tip over rare! I may need to take a week or two, sometimes three, in order to gain my bearings and catch up on everything I am so behind on. Now, this is never to spite you lovely players, NEVER, rather it gives me time to improve the world, expand on topics, sort out all that mess going on up in my noggin, it's quite the mess. While on my break I will play video games, watch movies, digest foods and books about fantasy...that eventually inspire me, usually, and all sorts of things; though rest assured I am and will work on this when I am done breathing and have taken enough notes to get something down on gods damned paper. So, Game Master's need breaks too, and we most certainly will take one, this is not out of anger or being tired of you, the players, it is to catch up and expand on the world we've created, and it will almost always be about that. This world will never be finished, I've come to an understanding about this, I may get every damned year written out for Entrathia, but the future, as they say, has no limits. So there will always be things need doing, and I will endeavor to do said things, and in the end, we will all enjoy it all the more for that, at least I sure as fuck hope so :D.
        THRASSIA! Just roles off the tongue doesn't it? Well this section will be very much smaller than the last as I don't have a whole lot on Thrassia yet, but that, and Alsanaan, and the old eastern continent the Seigi No Ha-ans....ins......eans......yeah, where the Hidden Empire natives came from. That one in particular I'll dedicate a massive post to, as that continent where the Hidden Empire people originated from is quite a doozey of an epic place, something we'll all get to enjoy soon enough, trust me! As for Thrassia, what I can tell you is that it is the continent is where supposedly all sentient beings, well... Elves, Dwarves, Men, Orcs, and so forth came from. As for the veracity of said statement, perhaps we'll have a neolithic game someday, that could be fun, be part of the very first progenitors...hmmmm. Also in Thrassia, what is accepted fact is that the eldest family names dwell there, and they are immensely powerful, they control a large amount of the wealth and commerce that is traded throughout the shores of their lands and Eharlith. Oh, and Thrassia is home to dragon riders, something which will be oh so epic to doll out, I look forward to that game, and like winter, it is coming soon! ....ish. Well after I manage to finish most of Alsanaan, which I should get back to, I believe I'll probably finish Georamia, so as to have the entirety of the massive continent of Eharlith, Alsanaan, and Georamia, which are all on the same land mass, completed and I will then be working on the next big thing. So much to do, so little time, literally, makes that GM break all the more prevalent, in any case I wont bitch too much, and look forward to when I have more done and ready to have you guys enjoy thoroughly, or at least hope you enjoy. With the creation of all these lands and backstory and the millions of other things, I am only doing this because, A. it's fun and we all love it, B. I want you guys to have a GREAT and memorable experience, C. I love drawing maps, I'm a cartographer at heart. Well then, that Thrassia section was short and rather disjointed, but my mind is foggy, and I think it's high time I veg out and maybe chomp on some chocolate. I hope this helped to, once again, give you some insight as to why I do what I do, and perhaps some things which help you be better players, or GM's?! Who knows right :).
As always
Till next post, Roll your D20
Ryan    

Powering up magic users and play testing for Conventions

        Firstly, I almost missed my week promise for updating, or at least my assurance that I would endeavor to constantly update my blog every week. All is well though, as for what these two subjects, as it is evolving always into two items, proclaimed, yes! Magic users and the need to play test for my up and coming convention bout. I have the sign up I need, I have the info for the most part, now all I need is to get a two day game ready and good to run, we shall see how that evolves later, as for the Magic users though, that is something that is in dire need for being extrapolated on.
        Magic users are the quintessential component of all parties, they use spells to enhance a situation, to eradicate monsters and threats, to the be the nuts and bolts, for lack of a better term, of the party. Yet they are drastically in need of fine tuning, and while another Gamer, GM, or rule maker may have already done this and to great effect, as far as I'm concerned I shall tackle this subject, and hopefully gain some ground on giving spell casters a chance to truly shine. As for the picture, it has always held a special, albeit dark, corner in my heart, as it is a seemingly magic user with a massive tome chained about his or her neck, with glowing orb like objects behind said caster, I enjoy the look and feel. Now, as for my attempt to enhance magic casters this will be done in a simple, hopefully, process, that is by granting spell casters new and stronger feats. For too long have the spell casters had to take "Meta magic" feats only to have to spend spells one higher, with great confusion intermingling with said spell expenditure, or having to use up two or more spells for one spell enhancement. I propose a different feat type methodology that taxes or balances magic casters in a different way whilst still granting a great boon to said magic users. There shall be a variety of changes, all of which will be focused on less spell expenditure and more on balancing in other ways, a very enlightened friend of mine suggested perhaps docking AC for a round, or perhaps sapping health in exchange for a powered up spell, all of which are intriguing ideas to me, as a spell caster using a powered up spell presumably would use his or her life force or mobility in exchange for enhanced magic. All these ideas are just that, Ideas, I will mull them over, play test them in different groups, question and ask as much as possible to make sure it is powerful but not over powered "OP". We shall see how the effect takes hold of new and better feats, some I may grant as bonus feats, I may give out a pamphlet to only spell casters to grant them multi casting, POSSIBLY, all to be seen I suppose.My intent here should be fairly obvious but I will make sure to touch base on it to make sure. This is not meant to change the rules in any way, or circumvent Pathfinder, I do not enjoy their magic feats as much but I am more than exuberant, TO THIS DAY, about their system and open ended-ness of gaming and RPG's and so forth. The only major change I MAY make is that of multi casting and so forth, though if I were to do such a thing it would be under strict combat rules and so forth, the rules of Pathfinder shall remain! I just might tweak it here and there. All in all I hope it adds some selection to me fellow casters and gives them more enjoyment and variation on their choice, not being inhibited by the lack of feats or seeming uselessness whereas fighters, melee, and ranged gets all sorts of benefits, we shall see.
        Play testing, it is something I am constantly undergoing and doing with each and every single game I GM, and play to some degree. I am a sponge, while in some areas I am dense rock, quite literally letting whatever is happening bounce off me and fly into the nether yonder, some things I ingrain into my very being. While I GM, play, and so on and so on, this is happening. I am ALWAYS looking for a way to enhance and expand my games, to make them better than the last, to offer something that makes the players go "O.O Wow, that's pretty damned impressive." Always I am on this quest to find this reaction, and to make a damned fine game, fun and enjoyable, immersive and leaving you on the edge, whether for revenge or more action, or more story, I always always always am looking to do this. Now, as for play testing for a convention, that is a whole other beast altogether. As my previous post makes clear, I just GM'ed my first con, Ever, it was quite the experience, and I must say GMing for a pack of random older gentlemen was a humbling and massively fun experience, especially because I could be lenient while still challenging them. (Slowly but surely I am toppling the wrongful reputation of GM's, we are not masters of death and annihilation, WE ARE HARBINGER OF STORY AND FUN, DAMNATION!) With that experience I found that GMing for a Con is not as impossible as I had thought, with a large amount of preparation and story conjured forth, it should be possible, though I surely cannot do this on my own. So I guess this is more an informative than opinion piece, I will be play testing and jotting down notes and ideas, winter is coming, and with that Pacificon and my hopes to GM an amazing and memorable game, that of course is to be seen. Should any of you have suggestions or comments, or anything for that matter, by all means, other wise I look forward to preparing for the eventual game that is to come, I just hope it can be as fun as I intend, my only little tiny tid bit on such game at this moment is, I am thinking of how far back I want to set it, it may in fact take place during one point in the "Calamity" again, this is nothing substantial at the moment, just vague ideas. I hope these two subjects, though it wont always be two, offered some amount of interest and intrigue to delight your minds, if so I am happy to grant as much, if not well I tried :).
As always
Till next post, Roll your D20
Ryan          

The fabled three 20's in a row, and stories within Entrathia

        You may not see it, oh and I think 8 spaces will make a good indent, but this is a third 20 rolled...in a row, by the gods it at last has happened!!! I may have some other friends whom have achieved this feat while completely indifferent to the fact, this took place during game, under duress, and with the hopes that the creatures be killed swiftly. When this took place one could imagine my expression, at the time I was behind my shield, none the wiser, but when I heard this was the third 20, after asking him to roll again, I was quite literally lost for words. Nigh on 10 years now I have waited, joked, and hoped for such a thing to happen, and it did. Jon Bernier, you my friend shall remain a legend amongst my games, written in the pages as much as I can spare. Now, not to belittle this victory I must add which creature he killed, NO IT WAS NOT A RAT! Quite the opposite, it was a powerful undead creature called a "Gaki" but they party being as high a level as they are, were dispatching them with little difficulty. You see the boss was waiting in the background, and after killing most "Gaki" the boss came forth in a flurry of vehement hatred and evil, sadly the thrice 20 was not on him, though I truly wish it had been. In any case the "Gaki" died instantaneously, as is my condition for rolling three 20's in a row, NO matter what creature or boss it is, and we all rejoiced. While it may have seemed wasted, I gave him a +2 to his AC for the boss fight, just as a way to give him a little extra against the real baddy. It was an epic game, and I was happy to have my wonderful crew to enjoy it with. I think this goes without saying that I have always spoken of the three 20's in a row, so this was a massive big deal to me, and am glad for it having happened. Good job Jon.

        Moving along! I am almost positive 99% of you will instantly recognize this for what it is, and will be all giddy over the Skyrim insert here, and it is for a definite reason I do this. I will make my opinion on this short and my explanation and reveal of my world longer. How many times have you gone through Oblivion or Skyrim seen the books, and been thoroughly impressed? I am sure all of you are in agreement that it is impressive, but I am also relatively sure that many have thought "Now these large old leathery books look amazing in their own right, and I am totes going to put those in my personal library, but for such a thick and weathered book, it is only a story of 5-20, 20 being the usual max! Now I am not overtly nit-picky and I am eternally grateful for the creators for going into such intricate detail, but I have always wanted a world where when you find books some may be slim pickings and short, but some, some may be Massive! I intend to make good on this, as we speak I am in the throes of making my massive book I have been berating games over for many many...many months now, actually a good 2 years in reality. Far to long if you ask me, as SO many of us loveable writers end up spending an eternity on these things and forgetting about them after reaching page 700, but we surely wont forget when we get a chance to brag or claim we are "Writing a novel." I don't wish to berate said people, they labor and want to create something magnificent, I truly understand that, but I am nearing my completion, or at least my breaking point, and will be...somehow...editing this piece, and inserting it into my world. Now I wont go into detail as I want this to be the ultimate surprise to my groups when I do, but when I insert this into my world, I solemnly swear you all will absolutely flip your Polyhedrons on what I have planned, and if you do not and have lied in my oath, well then I will stand there a dumbfounded and slightly disappointed GM. I suppose I should be a little more subjective, I do hope you flip your Polyhedrons, but truly I do not know, I do not know if you all have had similar thoughts about books in fantasy RPG's but I certainly have, and I am a complete sucker for immersive games, I mean the type of game you suddenly find yourself reiterating in real life *cough Nikki cough*. We shall see how this turns out, but as for the stories themselves, I have a few other shorter stories...though they may become bigger with time, about, you guessed it, Dragons, Artifacts, gods and goddesses, heroines and heroes, and all manner of glittering prizes. I do hope you all enjoy it, as I endeavor to GM games with great story and great action, action packed, as the old timely movies used to advertise.
Well As always
Till next post, Roll your D20
Ryan