gmask1's recent activity

  1. Comment on What was your first computer game? (Soundcheck question 2023) in ~games

    gmask1
    Link
    I think my first computer game was Choplifter for Apple ][+. It was on a floppy disk with Super Puckman (sic) and another game that I loved but can't remember the name of - some kind of space...

    I think my first computer game was Choplifter for Apple ][+. It was on a floppy disk with Super Puckman (sic) and another game that I loved but can't remember the name of - some kind of space invaders game, but then the next level was shooting dots that got bigger until they turned into a gorilla or something and came flying down the screen.

    1 vote

  2. Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    I've struggled to engage with some of Lovecraft's published work - I've found it helps to disconnect them from the cthulhu mythos and treat each story as the standalone piece they were mostly...

    I've struggled to engage with some of Lovecraft's published work - I've found it helps to disconnect them from the cthulhu mythos and treat each story as the standalone piece they were mostly conceived as (if I understand history correctly, the mythos term was coined after the fact, by a different author). I've also found it helpful to read from the Baranger reissues of Call of Cthulhu and At the Mountain of Madness, which surround and spread out the stories with large art pieces that can help to interpret what's happening in the prose. I believe that a new Baranger volume was recently released for The Dunwich Horror.

    As a prolific letter writer, there's so many meaningful discussions between Lovecraft and other writers of the time. It's fascinating that so much material was created in between the published work, and better still, remains available to read and discuss. I find that these 'Missives' volumes are focused on the letters, the authors, the weird fiction publications, and a little Americana from the time.

    3 votes

  3. Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books

    gmask1
    Link
    I'm trying to get into the Miskatonic Missives: The Letters of H.P. Lovecraft, Volume 1, Number 1. The book is beautiful to look at, even more so to hold, and what I've read so far has been of...

    I'm trying to get into the Miskatonic Missives: The Letters of H.P. Lovecraft, Volume 1, Number 1. The book is beautiful to look at, even more so to hold, and what I've read so far has been of great interest. It's a me problem - I can't often motivate myself to make time to read.

    Nevertheless, the book is one of a set of three published by the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society and Helios Press; each book reproduce one key written correspondence from Lovecraft alongside relevant supplements, art, poems and stories from authors of the period and from more modern times.

    3 votes

  4. Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games

    gmask1
    Link
    Cyberpunk 2077, specifically Phantom Liberty. I played through the main campaign back at release, and have returned for a new play through with the expansion. I'm also trying to find aspects of...

    Cyberpunk 2077, specifically Phantom Liberty. I played through the main campaign back at release, and have returned for a new play through with the expansion. I'm also trying to find aspects of the original game that I didn't try on the first play through (which clocked in at about 67 hours if the save game prior to the final mission is accurate), like the street racing and finding the Delamain cars.

    The expansion storyline is -imho- really good, and more than long enough to justify the expansion tag, and the characters sticks to the same shades of grey and dour outlook as the main story. The side gigs and other missions layer some really neat extra content into the new area, giving the whole thing a pretty solid number of hours of new stuff to do. I enjoyed the original story when I first played through (playing on the Series X apparently didn't suffer many of the day 1 issues plaguing the launch), and Phantom Liberty is even a bit better.

    1 vote

  5. Comment on Ahsoka - S01E04 Discussion in ~tv

    gmask1
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    I wish I was one of the fans that watched and loved Rebels and Clone Wars - I caught a season of each, and then had a quick look in when Tom Baker (Doctor Who) was voicing a character. It feels...

    I wish I was one of the fans that watched and loved Rebels and Clone Wars - I caught a season of each, and then had a quick look in when Tom Baker (Doctor Who) was voicing a character. It feels like they finished years ago now. I imagine having a new series that is a live action continuation of the Rebels story must be wonderful.

    How deep is a deep cut in Star Wars movies and shows? Whatever happened at the end of Rebels (I'm sure I've figured some of the story beats) seems deeply embedded in the framework of this show. Which is to say that, while I'm a huge fan of the movies and the D+ shows, and while I'm enjoying this show, I feel a bit alienated. I'm not sure that this is a series for the average Star Wars fan that may or may not be up to date on a non-Legends version of Thrawn that appeared on an animated Star Wars series a few years. Or maybe the average Star Wars is exactly that, and I'm the outlier...

    1 vote

  6. Comment on Nostalgia -- what programs do you miss? in ~tech

    gmask1
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    I don’t know why, but my first thought was the Beagle Bros software and AppleWorks. I think it’s because I miss the thrill of buying big box software, where every piece of software seemed to be...

    I don’t know why, but my first thought was the Beagle Bros software and AppleWorks. I think it’s because I miss the thrill of buying big box software, where every piece of software seemed to be new and game changing and mind blowing for me (was a teenager at the time).

  7. Do you use props in your role playing games?

    ~games.tabletop Ask
    I'm not especially creative, but I love having props at the table for games. Some games seem like a better fit for props than others - for example, Call of Cthulhu's focus on investigation makes...

    I'm not especially creative, but I love having props at the table for games. Some games seem like a better fit for props than others - for example, Call of Cthulhu's focus on investigation makes having prop newspaper clippings, diaries and journals, maps and other ephemera feel natural and rewarding. It's made that much easier when the publisher provides them with a scenario, which is what Chaosium does for Cthulhu - the starter set handouts are freely available at their site.

    Recently, I've added a mix of etsy and more premium products to various games:

    • a fun set of inn menus, maps and store price list handouts for Lost Mine of Phandelver (link)
    • I'm waiting for the Silver edition of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist to release from Beadle and Grimm (link)
    • For the introductory Cthulhu adventure 'The Haunting', I found some really nice non-combat maps on DTRPG (link) and added the handouts from the HPLHS Classic Game Prop Set (link)

    I'm curious to know how other people use props at the table, if you make your own, or have found something on etsy or elsewhere that you'd recommend.

    14 votes

  8. Comment on Anger from voice actors as NSFW mods use AI deepfakes to replicate their voices in ~games

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    What skills have fallen out of human consciousness? I'm genuinely curious to know what skills we as the current generations don't know from two generations ago.

    What skills have fallen out of human consciousness? I'm genuinely curious to know what skills we as the current generations don't know from two generations ago.

    1 vote

  9. Comment on Anger from voice actors as NSFW mods use AI deepfakes to replicate their voices in ~games

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    I don't see it as entitlement. I suspect some of those other jobs that you mentioned - the switchboard operators, the register operators - also protested and made their cases. Many of us probably...

    I don't see it as entitlement. I suspect some of those other jobs that you mentioned - the switchboard operators, the register operators - also protested and made their cases. Many of us probably glossed over those events because they didn't enter our newsfeed as something that was impactful to us. This one is interesting to us because we're gamers and this is gaming news.

    AI learns by copying. To an extent, it can cut code, paint and illustrate, teach, etc. Most creative and knowledge-working jobs will be impacted to an extent. Today we're talking about voice actors; tomorrow, maybe entry level developer roles will be under threat.

    5 votes

  10. Comment on What consumeristic and somewhat pointless hobby do you have? in ~hobbies

    gmask1
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    I have a couple of hobbies that would make no sense to normal people - I love replica props for Lovecraft and Call of Cthulhu, and I have a weird obsession with laptop bags and all the different...

    I have a couple of hobbies that would make no sense to normal people - I love replica props for Lovecraft and Call of Cthulhu, and I have a weird obsession with laptop bags and all the different configuration and features.

    Then I keep having bursts of hobbies that I buy too much into, then burn out and move on. Like building guitar pedals (now I have unmade kits and a pile of switches and parts laying about). Thee was a tarot phase, a couple of RPG phases, now I’m eyeing off Pokémon and LOTR cards for Magic The Gathering.

    3 votes

  11. Comment on Without saying where you live, where do you live? in ~talk

    gmask1
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    Hmm.. well, it was my first day back at work in town. I got off the train at southern cross and slumped when I saw that the tram line at Colins Street and Spencer Street was being replaced. Had to...

    Hmm.. well, it was my first day back at work in town. I got off the train at southern cross and slumped when I saw that the tram line at Colins Street and Spencer Street was being replaced. Had to walk past Crown and city road to get to work.

    1 vote

  12. Do you spend more time creating a Tildes reply than on other platforms?

    ~tildes Ask (survey)
    So like many others, I'm a refugee from the Rexxit, and the collaborative, positive enthusiasm here is infectious. I've had an odd observation about my brief time here - when I think I can...

    So like many others, I'm a refugee from the Rexxit, and the collaborative, positive enthusiasm here is infectious.

    I've had an odd observation about my brief time here - when I think I can contribute to a thread, I find myself trying to step up my posting game - doing a bit of extra research, making sure I add links, and double checking my grammar (as best as I can!). I want my thoughts to have value or be meaningful here, moreso than anywhere I've contributed to in the past.

    Do others feel the same way?

    95 votes

  13. Comment on DMs and GMs what tool or tools do you use for world building? in ~games.tabletop

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    That sounds... quite brilliant actually. Foundry was in the 'slightly too hard for me, probably too hard for the rest of the group' bucket, but I think I need to look into the rabbit hole and see...

    That sounds... quite brilliant actually. Foundry was in the 'slightly too hard for me, probably too hard for the rest of the group' bucket, but I think I need to look into the rabbit hole and see what I've missed out on. Appreciate the detailed notes :)

    2 votes

  14. Comment on The argument for Dungeon Crawl Classics in ~games.tabletop

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    That's reassuring to know, and I'll keep an eye out. I checked the Goodman Games site and it appears that the current printing is sold through, and another is due in August. I haven't any luck...

    That's reassuring to know, and I'll keep an eye out. I checked the Goodman Games site and it appears that the current printing is sold through, and another is due in August. I haven't any luck finding a copy locally (Melbourne), but I think I can wait - I discovered that I'd purchased a DCC bundle of holding (link) some time ago, and it was in the middle of my DTRPG library.

  15. Comment on DMs and GMs what tool or tools do you use for world building? in ~games.tabletop

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    I use Fantasy Grounds for in person games whenever I've bought the FG versions of books (usually during a sale) - the ability to lookup and have multiple pages, tables or images of a book open at...

    I use Fantasy Grounds for in person games whenever I've bought the FG versions of books (usually during a sale) - the ability to lookup and have multiple pages, tables or images of a book open at once is massive, and with the ultimate license I can share books with any players that install the free FG client. I can tab between the rulebooks in FG and my session notes in OneNote.

    I hadn't thought about using it for journals... so in Foundry, can you hyperlink between content, or even out to the web? I've never considered another VTT - my group tends to play in person, and the VTT is more of a resource than a conduit to run a session.

  16. Comment on DMs and GMs what tool or tools do you use for world building? in ~games.tabletop

    gmask1
    Link
    If I were on the Mac exclusively, I'd use Tinderbox every time. The main drawback is that it's only on MacOS, but as a tool set for writing, organizing and visualizing, it would be my first choice...

    If I were on the Mac exclusively, I'd use Tinderbox every time. The main drawback is that it's only on MacOS, but as a tool set for writing, organizing and visualizing, it would be my first choice every time. Second choice would be... maybe Scrivener or - just to throw the net out as far as possible - Tiddly Wiki

    On Windows devices, I use OneNote, cribbing what I can from smarter people than me: Digital DM and this reddit post come to mind.

    For worldbuilding, I also have two physical tools - Deck of Worlds and Story Engine (link).

    1 vote

  17. Comment on Favourite audio dramas/fiction podcasts? in ~hobbies

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    If you enjoy Lovecraft's stories, look up Dark Adventure Radio Theater. It's an audio range that frames audio plays in a 1920's style of American radio drama. I've tried a couple so far and I'm...

    If you enjoy Lovecraft's stories, look up Dark Adventure Radio Theater. It's an audio range that frames audio plays in a 1920's style of American radio drama. I've tried a couple so far and I'm enjoying them (my normal go-to for audio productions would be British comedies like 'I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue' and 'Cabin Pressure'.

    2 votes

  18. Comment on The argument for Dungeon Crawl Classics in ~games.tabletop

    gmask1
    Link
    DCC looks amazing, and I love the level 0 funnel idea for setting the flavor of the game session. I began hunting for it a week or two ago, and the challenge I've encountered is finding it locally...

    DCC looks amazing, and I love the level 0 funnel idea for setting the flavor of the game session. I began hunting for it a week or two ago, and the challenge I've encountered is finding it locally (Australia). The heft of the book makes shipping an expensive option, so I'll have to be patient :P

    2 votes

  19. Comment on What have your experiences been with losing interest in video games as you get older? in ~games

    gmask1
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    Mid-40's here. Friends and I gamed on the Apple ][ back in school, then the 386, Pentium and so on and on. A lot of games don't interest me now, but when I do find a game that interests me, it's...

    Mid-40's here. Friends and I gamed on the Apple ][ back in school, then the 386, Pentium and so on and on. A lot of games don't interest me now, but when I do find a game that interests me, it's usually built on a world that feels alive (procedural or artificial, I don't really mind), so that I'm a small part of some larger place. Think anything from Cyberpunk and Minecraft, Truck or Train Simulator. I enjoy MMO's like Lord of the Rings Online and Star Wars The Old Republic for similar reasons.

    I guess that I'm not losing interest, but I'm definitely more particular about the games that stay installed.

    10 votes

  20. Comment on Any suggestions for getting into DnD? in ~games.tabletop

    gmask1
    Link Parent
    I was going to mention D&D Adventurer's League as well - it's not something I've tried, but my understanding is that it's designed with single session adventures and allows for interchangeable...

    I was going to mention D&D Adventurer's League as well - it's not something I've tried, but my understanding is that it's designed with single session adventures and allows for interchangeable dungeon masters (since sessions don't end in the middle of the adventure).

    3 votes