The new game

I decided that my notes were reasonably complete enough to make a stab at typing up a draft version of the black ops angel game that I'm working on right now. There's still several things that I don't know how they're going to work, but I feel like I have a reasonably complete idea of what the overall structure of the game should look like and what my objectives are for the type of play I want to achieve is.

Whether or not I can come close to achieving that is anyone's guess. But I sure plan on giving it a go!

As might be implied by the subject matter, and from previous posts, this will be an incredibly tongue-in-cheek endeavor - which will be a bit of a relief after the unrelenting seriousness of Thou Art But A Warrior. Here are some amusing excerpts from what I have of the document so far.

"Opposing team, your job is much easier. You know that God wants to kills bunches and bunches of infidels. So obviously you want to Protect the Popular Cult Leader from being Framed in the Hague, Assassinate the Weapons Researcher in China, and Brainwash/Covert the Popular Cult Leader at the Pentagon.

Easy? No? Well, nothing worth doing ever is."

I plan on opening the book with an intro comic to set the tone of the game and explain the ideas behind the setting. I was writing up my thoughts on how it should go, and this little bit amused me...

REPORTER: What about the fact that Satan and those traditionally affiliated with him deny responsibility for the outbreaks that have killed millions. A spokesman for the terrorist group HALO blamed the attacks on God.

PRESS SECRETARY JESUS CHRIST: Well, Satan is a liar. Next question.

Lastly, here's something I'm working on for the phase of the game when the two sides battle head to head. I'm not going to bother trying to explain the rules, because I haven't got them all figured out yet. Never the less, I think it looks pretty nifty.

CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE

Anyhow, I had a lot more planned out than I realized because when I sat down to translate my 5 or so tiny pages of handwritten notes into english, I wound up with 5+ typed pages of notes in Word, and I haven't even touched half of what I've done so far. Which is heartening, because I've gotten more done than I thought I had.

My goal is to have a mega-ultra-super rough draft that I can test bits of the system for by October - as that will be when we're having the next gaming mini-con/reunion for the old Ohio group. What with GenCon and the house, though, I don't know that that's terribly realistic. But I'll keep that goal in mind all the same.

Status update

1) Status update the first: THE HOUSE

We moved in yesterday without any serious incident. It is, as of yet, very very messy. It will be occupying much of my time.

Unfortunately, my notes for the angel game I'm writing are lost in one of these many boxes. Dammit. I guess that's incentive to pack.

2) Status update the second: THOU ART BUT A WARRIOR

I got the proof back today, and am pretty excited about it overall. There's two really minor things that make me Sad: the page numbers are oddly placed (I laid out the book using Word - fuck you, Word!), and the ad for Emily Care Boss' games is low-res.

I'm super sad, because revising it would cost me fifty bucks and make my timeline totally not workable. So I have to print my first hundred copies with slightly retarded (but correct) page numbers, and a low-res ad.

Woe.

But hey, you know. Learning experience.

Finally between projects

On Friday, Thou Art But A Warrior officially went to press. Hurrah! I wish that means I could work on my black ops angel game, but moving is going to take precedence. We take possession of our new house on the 27th and are currently up to our eyeballs in boxes.

All of my art supplies are currently packed, so it'll be a bit before you see any art around here that's not me spending a few minutes goofing around on Eat Poop U Cat. I could explain this, but I think it's funnier out of context.

Thank GOD. It's finished.

So the book is done. Finished. Thank God.

I decided pretty last minute that I wanted to get the title of the book calligraphed in Arabic and I am super, super, SUPER excited about how awesome it makes the cover.

So here's the cover and title page, just because they're too awesome not to share.

I'm sending the book to the printer in the morning. But no rest for the wicked; now that I'm finished with the book I get to finish packing the apartment. Oh well.

Scheduling conflicts leading to hilarity

So we're trying to schedule a night for our Skype group to keep playing our game of Contenders and failing. My friend Aaron just sent the following email. The fact that I laughed as hard as I did is proof that I am a nerd.

___________________

load libEmail
load libSnark
load libPasvAggr

set Kit
set Anna
set Travis
set Aaron
set Bacon to {Kit,Anna,Travis,Aaron}

get numberOfMeetingsToday from Anna
make numberOfMeetingsToday equal n
n equals 0

run all
tell gmail to send to Bacon
set To: to Bacon
set body to
if today equals {n+1}
then Anna equals Fail
else Anna equals Cool
print result of if {then or else}
endif
endtell

idle for 5 minutes

tell gmail to send Bacon
set To: to Bacon
set body to
if Anna equals Fail
then set Aaron to cry
endif
also
get makeUpDay
if makeUpDay equals Friday
then set Aaron to unavailable
endif
endtell

while running
if Aaron is set to cry and unavailable
call for Kit to equal {head - 1}
set house to burn
endif

while running
set Travis to doucheBag
also
Travis tell {Kit,Anna} sendToDisplay "You can all suck my balls!"
set Travis to flippingYouOff

end run all

Someone shoot me in the head

So I finished the interior layout. It's done. Finished! (Shit. Except that I have to fix the index. Oh well. Almost finished!)

And then I discovered I hate my cover. HATE it.

FUCK.

TABAW is almost finished! Also, I'm going to hell.

So work is proceeding apace on Thou Art But A Warrior. It looks like I will meet my self-imposed printing deadline, so - hooray! Thank god the end is in sight.

I've been taking much-needed breaks by visiting Eat Poop U Cat. Thou Art But A Warrior is so full of Serious Thought that sometimes I need to look at something silly like Batman in women's underwear to relieve the stress.

Tonight I took a longer break and drew a panel, for which I am totally going to hell. I mean, generally Eat Poop U Cat will make me go to hell, but this really will.

If you think that's twisted, here's the sentence it's based on: "The children's suspicions were confirmed--Uncle Mort sliced further into his stump of an arm anytime his miniature hippopotamus needed to be fed."

I laughed almost the entire time I drew it. Ah, good times. Good times.