Recent content by Ralif Redhammer

Yeah, Spire is a striking game, with a deeply detailed setting and the mechanics to back it up.

Considering SDCC pulled almost twice what Gen Con did last year, I'm not surprised.

I played the 1997 Blade Runner game on the Switch. Originally released in 1997, it's got some great moments, but is constrained by the technology of the time it was created. It evokes the mood of the film quite well, even having a number of the original actors reprise their roles in it. But...

As much as I love that piece of art, it's represents what drove me to stop using wyrmling category dragons in my games. A dragon should be fearsome and majestic, not an overgrown winged alligator. But it is a great work of art. You can instantly recognize each character's class, their pride in...

It's a great convention, to be sure. But I've gotten sick every time I've gone, and numerous other people I know have as well. It's during flu season, and is in a relatively small space with an ever-increasing number of tickets sold. I would advise wearing a mask and taking any other precautions...

Sir Terry has a wise and funny quote for every occasion.

That's the thing - is there an artistic vision or is it just a set piece/stage for the action scenes. The latter is, in my opinion, one of the things that really is hindering big genre movies, whether it's Star Wars or Marvel or whatever. The scenery doesn't tell a story, it showcases the...

I think it goes back to excellence of execution. The digital environments of the prequels don't feel real, but when you look at LOTR or The Fifth Element, they do. Heck, that goes back further - look at the matte paintings of Blade Runner versus Hawk the Slayer (though I would argue that a bad...

The answer to all that is probably the CGI environments. No longer constrained by real places or physical artifacts (matte paintings, miniatures, sets), people just free jazzed on their digital sets. There's a distinct untethering from reality.

Circe is a phenomenal read. I really need to get around to The Song of Achilles some time.

Considering one of my tattoos is the holy symbol of Moradin, it's no surprise I've probably played a dwarf more than any other species. I do like playing gnomes as well, though I tend not to like the prankster illusionist archetype.

Even in a player-driven game, it's okay to have external events that they have to react to now and then. That's life, and it shows that the world is in motion beyond just what they do. In my experience, some players are good at pursuing their goals and some look for the GM to serve their goal...

This is only the third of his novels that I've read, and I've enjoyed them. But I've read a bunch of his short stories, and I'll agree, they are really good. Second Variety, The Defenders, and Vulcan's Hammer in particular stand out to me.

I finished reading Somers' The Electric Church. Mixed feelings on it. Great ending, fast-moving and engaging plot, solidly garbage world, but the main character just didn't click with me until towards the end. Now I'm reading PKD's The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch.

There's the D&D 3e Ghostwalk sourcebook, as well as The Skeletons, where you play the undead guardians of a tomb.