First Class

X-men: First Class. I went in to see this movie with high hopes that I acknowledged would probably be shattered. The last two X-men movies were... well absolute shit. I mean that, Wolvereen Orgins remains one of the worst movies I've ever seen of all times. I think Mega Piranha was a better movie... Fucking Mega Piranha. The idea of a prequel that focused on Charles and Erik, coupled by a promising looking preview, actually got my hopes up. What happened at the theature, I was not expecting... This may be one of the greatest movies I have ever scene.

There were certainly some problems, mostly due to there being characters that were just not needed in the long run (Banshee, Angel, (not Warren), Riptide, Darwin, I'm looking at you) As long as you just accept that these guys are here just as a nod to fans and are ment to be just bit characters, it is easy to overlook. Also I didn't care for the actress that played Emma Frost, she seemed way to Stepford Wife-ish in both apperence and attitude.

Those issues become extreamly minor when paired against what this movie does right. I thought it was well paced, they fit in a lot of action and plot in just about every scene. Not so much that it feels rushed but enough that I can't think of any scene that seemed to drag on. The villian was certainly over the top at times, but he had a real prescence of being a huge threat but still having swave nature. He would have felt right at home as a James Bond villian.

Ah but I havn't meantioned why this movie was good, all of these things are in line with the other X-men movie, so what made this movie so much better? Easiy, the amazing reputation between Xavier and Erik. They got it right. They got it right in a huge way. This is not the two chracters as we have seen them on film thus far. It focuses on showcasing each of there strengths and weakness. It shows Xavier being at times cold, distant, and arrogent, while Erik being heroic, nurturing , and kind. It makes you want to keep rooting for him (Erik) and hoping that he will make the correct choices, despite knowing how it's going to end. Seeing the relationship between those two grow makes for an extreamly good show.

The cinematography was good, they took a few chances with how they shot things but scoring high marks with the results. It seemed very grounded in terms of realisticly fitting into the setting (the 1960s if you were unaware.) While there is humor to be found in it, the movie takes itself seriously and allows for the audience to do so too.

I don't think I can go much more into this without a spoiler tag so...

for the tldr; summary: freakin' awesome. I'll rank it right up with Iron Man and Dark Knight.

Rob's Top Twelve List of Best Designed Games

Been a while since I posted anything and while I wasn't in the mood to write any fiction: I did want to get into the habit of writing so I thought I'd pull a play from Doug Walker's play book (http://thatguywiththeglasses.com) and pull out a a favorite list of game I thought were really well designed. Why top twelve? Because I felt like one-upping Doug.

Note: These are the games that I've played that I felt are the best designed, not specifically my favorites.

Without any further ado: My Top Twelve List of Best Designed Games

12: Gobblet
Originally I had this spot with Connect Four, but as I was writing that I remembered a superior descendant of Tic-Tac-Toe

Tic-Tac-Toe is one of the most basic games anyone has ever come up with. It is simple elegant and requires a little strategy. The big issue is that it can be "solved." If the first player knows what she is doing then she can never lose. An AI said it best with "the only way to win is not to play." This keeps it from being anywhere near my list... its awesome "sequel" however does not have this issue, and thus turns into a game that: nearly anyone can pick up, is fun, and isn't "solvable."

11/10 Thunderstone /Dominion (No perticular order)
I feel pretty comfortable letting these two share a spot. Deck building games have become quite popular, with Dominion leading the charge. In terms of straight forward mechanics, I think Dominion is better designed. It has simpler mechanics and all the mechanics blend seemlessly with one and other. Thunderstone is more complex and alows for more interesting strategies, but some of the mechanics are awkward and feel very much tacked on (especially, since if you remove the dungeon... you are in fact playing dominion.) This game would be much higher on the list if there wasn't some issues with the balance level of the cards. I have yet to play a game that included village and it wasn't the first pile gone, and the cards with discard abilities in thunderstone are overly potent. There is also a pretty low "blue shell factor" which is annoying in a multipalyer game (I will go into what that means in a future post if you don't know)

9: Star Craft The Board Game
I was a pretty huge fan Twilight Imperium and this game takes the parts about it that I liked the most and stream lines it. While the set up time of the game is a bit off putting it is worth it. Combat is very well handled and leaves a chance for multiple different strategies and builds. The different races and factions are very well balanced with one and other. While there are many different options none (so far in my playing) has come across as "must do to win." What else can I say besides... "GG"

8: Battle Star Galactica
This game which is Shadows over Camalot INNNNN SPACCCEEEEEE, has an awesome mechanic which a traitor (cylon) can secretly undermine the players. Also each character has great and fairly well balanced abilities. The game is certainly balanced on the side of the Cylons but that isn't specificly a bad thing. There is a great challenge to the game and while the humans may not win often, it feels great when they do. This would rank higher then Shadows if it wasn't for the fact that the awesome subterfuge mechanic that I love so much MIGHT be unused as it has been pointed out that one most damaging thing a Cylon can do is reveil themselves asap. If I can disprove this theory, which I really want to, I will gladly edit this list.

7: Shadows over Camelot
What I concider to be the essentual co-op game for people who love co-op games. The knights are well balanced with each other, and none are really required (although King Authur may be fittingly close.) Each quest has related but slightly different mechanics that are both easy to explain to anyone with a little knowledge of poker and requires a little planning. The fact that the traitor is optional is very interesting, and the traitor has good reason to try to go undiscovered until the end.

6: Texas Hold'em
My personal favorite flavor of poker. I love how much strategy goes into poker when the vast majority of the cards are public knowledge. While luck is of course still a factor, it makes the game focus more about your: knowledge of your odds, ability to bluff and read your opponents, and risk vs reward assesment. That is a HIGH amount of pay out for keeping the same basic idea of poker and adding a twist (kinda of like what Gobblet did to Tic-Tac-Toe.)

5: Spy Alley
Probably the most underated game I have on the list, with everything else being popular to either hardcore gamers, mass market, or just the general population; Spy Alley is an simple game with simple mechanics, but those mechanics are so well thought out and designed that it creates a game that is both a lot of fun and really interesting. Since I am sure few people reading this have played it let me go a bit more into the game itself:
Every player is secretly dealt a nationality. To win they have to get all the required gear for their nationality. Everyone's gear however is public knowledge, and anyone can skip their turn and risk being eleminated from the game to eleminate you by trying to guess your nationaliy. This core mechanic is something I really enjoy and certainly was something I thought about when I was designing Obsession for Murder. That influence along cinched it a spot on this list.

4: Carcassone
How could I not put this on here? The play style is unlike just about everything else. It's expansions seemlessly add to the game and complament the existing rules. There is plenty of strategy, fun, and replayability. Just about everything is perfect. This game needs zero justification for being on this list, and instead concider everything that I write to be me justifying the why I put any game above it.

3: Settlers of Catan
Right up there with Carcassone in turms of Eurogame classic. The reason it is higher then Carcassone goes against how I ussually rate games, it is the more complex of the two games but it WORKS. The multiple different strategys for this game work really well, from trying to fight to get longest road, trying to get a solid "cock ring" around a perticular sweet spot, focusing on building cities or getting cards. Wheeling and dealing for trades, everything in the game works well with one and other.

2: Go
One of, if not the oldest games still played today; there is good reason it has lasted so long. The mechanics of it are very very simple. You want to control the most spaces by surrounding it. The only way to do this is to place your piece on the board. That is is, there are no cards, no dice, no "this piece can move here or attack this way or move twice on it's first turn" It is simple challenging and for a long time was number one this list. The reason it isn't is also one of the reasons I actually like it so much: the end game. The game ends when both players agree that it has ended. Players must agree who owns what, if there is a disagreement, then play continues. This is a rather elegant and polite way of ending a game, in theory, but the ideal that it could actually continue indefinitly if someone was stuborn or just an ass is rather frusterating from a mechanical level. Again: I honestly like that aspect of the game but I think it hurts it when looking purly at the mechanics.

1: Quarto!

We have come full circle, as I have begun and ended this list with what can be concidered an evolved form of Tic Tac Toe. I recently played this again after a long time of it collecting dust on a shelf, and was blown away by despite how straight forward the rules are, how much strategy goes into the game. Like Spy Alley, I can not assume people have played this one so let me explain. Quarto! is for two players, who take turns playing pieces on a 4x4 board. There are 16 unique pieces, each having a different comination of four attributes. A piece can be: tall or short, dark or light, Flat topped or indented, or circular or squared. The idea is that you want to be the one to play a piece that connects four shapes all shairing one trait. The challenge is that you are giving your piece by your opponent making for a very short, easy strategic game. It isn't my favorite game on this list, but the simplisity of the rules while allowing for such a rich game that doesn't get old as you play it again and again, the reoccuring, well used theme of the number 4 in the mechanics, and the speed which the game can be picked up and played leaves me feeling this game design was an overwhelming success

Repo: The Forged Campaign (Updated 6-16-10)

Game Terms:

Spirits: Wills of an unknown orgin without hosts, they can occasional latch onto Unbound spells and use them to influence the world.

Unbound (Magic): Arcane magic that is freely cast, coming right from the caster; the magic of warlocks and sorcerers. Thought to be anywhere from irresponsible to evil.

Bound (Magic): Arcane magic that is strictly controlled, bound to artifact or specific ritual; the magic of Artificers, Alchemy, Rituals, Splices and Swordmages.

Splices: Forge Co.'s main product. They replace people's limbs and organs for a large fee that the person may put on a “payment plan” for. The splices can be anything from cosmetic changes to making you dramatically more powerful. Failure to make payments may entitle Forge Co to claim a repossession and send their Mercenaries the Repo-men to collect their property from your body (which is legal.)

Zydrate: The act of getting Splices is painful. Zydrate is a powerful painkiller that is especially useful for nullifying the pain related to acquiring splices. It can also very addictive if overused.

Last War: “The war to end all wars” started 45 years ago and ended 17 years ago against the Sorcerer-Kings. This was a major turning point in the history which marked the start of the Warforged, the start of Forge Co, as well as the start of classifying magic as bound or unbound.

The Silver Flame: The world has no moon. Instead there is The Silver Flame, the closest thing the world has to a god. An ever brightly glowing silver flame high in the sky, it illuminates a bit more then a full moon would, casting every night in a silver twilight. It is still there during the day, but the sun does drown it out then. It is pure Divine energy and the source of all Divine power in the world.

Setting Summery:

The company of Forge Co. had its humble beginnings crafting artificial limbs for veterans of the Last War. It grew rapidly as it started to introducing limbs and organs (later called “Splices”) for nobles and adventurers to just replace their existing ones. Years later, under pressure from the growing influence of Forge Co. The allied Kingdoms have agreed to allow Forge Co to Reposes their property in case if someone does not pay their dues.

A note on Splices:

As an Adventurer having splices will be a very useful. They can grant you addition powers, action points, or even a bonus to your stats. The type you have and the amount you have will determine how much Zydrate you require to get through the pain (which will have an in game affect.) It will also determine how much you owe Forge Co. It IS going to be risky to take Splices, especially if you rack up a large debt. Playing without splices however, will mean your character will be a little less effective on the battle field.

Races/Classes

Divine: Divine magic is very strained. The gods have left the word, disgusted by the Sorcerer-Kings's attempt to take over the heavens. They retreated from the world, but in their wake left The Silver Flame. There is no code of conduct enforced by the Flame itself. Many religions still prey to the old gods, but just as many prey to the Silver Flame itself, seeing it notas a conduit to the divine, but the true divine itself.

Cleric - Paladin - Avenger – Invoker - Runepriest

Martial Classes: Nothing changed.

Fighter – Ranger – Rogue - Warlord

Unbound Magic:

Sorcerer: You draw your power the same way that the Sorcerer-Kings did, focusing on raw power and having a wide range of ability's, but little control over spirits who may influence them. Non-hybrid Sorcerer's gain an extra At Will power of their choice, but are vulnerable to spirits. All Spell Sources are legal, but Chaos is by far the most common, where Dragon is the most rare.

Bard: Bards are the most controlled of the Unbound magics, gaining some acceptance even by people who otherwise loath and fear unbound magic. They intertwine their spells with rhythm and harmony, which works as a light binding against the spirits. They are still considered unbound however because they do not NEED to do this to their spells in order for them to work. If a Bard is distracted and makes a mistake while casting a spell, there is a chance a spirit can slip in. Alternatively, some bards can even use their music to call spirits towards their spells.

Warlock: You do not concern yourself with the idea of spirits overtaking your spells. You in fact invite them too. All Warlock spells call upon spirits into them, preventing other spirits from taking hold. Most of the pacts function as normal except where noted:

Fey: Warlocks with the Fey pact are very rare as the world's connection with the Fey is slipping further and further away. As a Fey Pact Warlock the entity that empowers you has you try to reconnect the two worlds.

Vestige: The most noteworthy Vestiges in this world are the remains of the Sorcerer-Kings. If you open yourself up to listen to the voices of the Vestiges, they will make sure you hear theirs over any other.

Bound Magic:

Artificers: Forge Co. is primarily made up of Artificers. An artificer adventurer may or may not have a connection to the company.

Swordmage: Trained as bodyguards for Forge Co. If you are a sword mage you either are or were a Forge Co Employee.

Wizard: Wizards go through rigorous training through a very early age to be able to properly control their spells. The close binding of their spells prevents maleficent spirits from claiming them for power.

Primal: Cut off from the usual primal power that they tap into, the primal classes do what they do best: adapt. They instead have an amazing control over the Spirits that try to turn arcane magic it it's whim. They would have been thrown out and cast aside as unbound magic users, if not for their ability to subdue the spirits was key in eliminating the Sorcerer-Kings.

In game effect: It is hard to manifest the greater primal powers: It costs a healing surge in order to use a daily attack (not utility) Primal Attacks are however especially effective against Spirts

Barbarian – Druid -Shaman -Warden -Seeker

Psionic: Psionic powers have just started showing up in the world, some attribute it to an odd side effect of Zydrate. While it is true that most people who have these talents either use Zydrate or are decedents of the first people who had some. Nothing conclusive has been proven.

Ardent – Monk -Psion

Races

Dragonborn

On the front lines of the last war and suffered the greatest losses. Many are bitter that no one acknowledges their sacrifices enough to satisfy them. They tend to be the outspoken against Unbound Magic

Dwarf

The Dwarfs have a rich and powerful empire: trading in the Metal and ore used for Forge Co's inventions.

Eladrin - Gnome

Connection to the Fey has all but disappeared, the few Fey on this side struggle in the strange world. Many of them either try to find a way home, or fall into depression.

Elf

Herders and farmers, They live in the little bit of agriculture to be found. Because there is little traditional food sources they have expanded both their vegetation and livestock.

Half Elf - Half Orc - Shifter

They fit right at home either amoung humans or amoung elfs. Humans often mistake them for other humans with Forge Co enhanced parts (which are very popular.)

Halfling

Halflings don't have a land of their own, but they run a postal service and thus are treated fairly well where ever they go.

Human

Humans are still the most numerous race, with the same amount of flaws and virtues as before.

Tiefling

A new race, formed by the Sorcerer-Kings as servants, using magic on Humans to warp their minds and flesh. Ultimately they turned against their masters, but they are still still looked upon with suspicion. They and the Kalashtar concider themselves cousins.

Kalashtar

A new race, formed by the Sorcerer-Kings, by binding a spirit to a human as a form of punishment. Unlike the Tieflings they are often seen with pity, as two souls intertwined without means to seperate them. In truth: the human and Spirit side of the Kalashtar fall in love with one and other and form a bond that they see as beautyful. They pity humans do not experience this for themselves. They have since discovered a way to reproduce, binding a willing spirit and a human together. When A Kalashtar speaks telepathically, it is it's spirit side talking.

Deva

No Deva have been reincarnated since The Silver Flame was formed, leading the few surviving members of the race extremely concerned.

Goliath

This race is filled with proud traditionalists, they speak out and reject Forge Co

Minotaur

Bred as livestock for slaughter by the elves. Most give into the maddness of the beast; few care if they are intelligent or not as long as they feed the masses.

Wilden

Bred as vegetation by the elves. Their bodies are almost like very large potatoes. Few care if they are intelligent or not as long as they feed the masses. Can not benefit from Splices.

War Forged

Originally manufactured by Forge Co. during the war, they now act as living advertisements, they themselves can not benefit from Splices as they are concidered to be made up entirely by Splice Techology. They start off with 10 more points to buy stats, each one is literally own Forge Co. despite having free will.

Genasi - Shard Mind

Occasionally Spirits bind themselves to enough spells and arcane power to gain a humaniod form, this results in either a Genasi, or a Shard Mind, depending if the spells it mostly collected were elemental in nature or not. They both have the “Spirit” Trait

Drow – Githzerai

Are not races that fit the theme of this campaign, if you really want to play one, talk to your DM about making a special exception.

Repo: The Forged Campaign

Game Terms:

Spirits: Wills without hosts, they can occasional latch onto Unbound spells and use them to influence the world.

Unbound (Magic): Arcane magic that is freely cast, coming right from the caster; the magic of warlocks and sorcerers. Thought to be anywhere from irresponsible to evil.

Bound (Magic): Arcane magic that is strictly controlled, bound to artifact or specific ritual; the magic of Artificers, Alchemy, Rituals, Splices and Swordmages.

Splices: Forge Co.'s main product. They replace people's limbs and organs for a large fee that the person may put on a “payment plan” for. The splices can be anything from cosmetic changes to making you dramatically more powerful. Failure to make payments may entitle Forge Co to claim a repossession and send their Mercenaries the Repo-men to collect their property from your body (which is legal.)

Zydrate: The act of getting Splices is painful. Zydrate is a powerful painkiller that is especially useful for nullifying the pain related to acquiring splices. It can also very addictive if overused.

Last War: “The war to end all wars” started 45 years ago and ended 17 years ago against the Sorcerer-Kings. This was a major turning point in the history which marked the start of the Warforged, the start of Forge Co, as well as the start of classifying magic as bound or unbound.

The Silver Flame: The world has no moon. Instead there is The Silver Flame, the closest thing the world has to a god. An ever brightly glowing silver flame high in the sky, it illuminates a bit more then a full moon would, casting every night in a silver twilight. It is still there during the day, but the sun does drown it out then. It is pure Divine energy and the source of all Divine power in the world.

Setting Summery:

The company of Forge Co. had its humble beginnings crafting artificial limbs for veterans of the Last War. It grew rapidly as it started to introducing limbs and organs (later called “Splices”) for nobles and adventurers to just replace their existing ones. Years later, under pressure from the growing influence of Forge Co. The allied Kingdoms have agreed to allow Forge Co to Reposes their property in case if someone does not pay their dues.

A note on Splices:

As an Adventurer having splices will be a very useful. They can grant you addition powers, action points, or even a bonus to your stats. The type you have and the amount you have will determine how much Zydrate you require to get through the pain (which will have an in game affect.) It will also determine how much you owe Forge Co. It IS going to be risky to take Splices, especially if you rack up a large debt. Playing without splices however, will mean your character will be a little less effective on the battle field.

Races/Classes

Divine: Divine magic is very strained. The gods have left the word, disgusted by the Sorcerer-Kings's attempt to take over the heavens. They retreated from the world, but in their wake left The Silver Flame. There is no code of conduct enforced by the Flame itself. Many religions still prey to the old gods, but just as many prey to the Silver Flame itself, seeing it notas a conduit to the divine, but the true divine itself.

Cleric - Paladin - Avenger – Invoker - Runepriest

Martial Classes: Nothing changed.

Fighter – Ranger – Rogue - Warlord

Unbound Magic:

Sorcerer: You draw your power the same way that the Sorcerer-Kings did, focusing on raw power and having a wide range of ability's, but little control over spirits who may influence them. Non-hybrid Sorcerer's gain an extra At Will power of their choice, but are vulnerable to spirits. All Spell Sources are legal, but Chaos is by far the most common, where Dragon is the most rare.

Warlock: You do not concern yourself with the idea of spirits overtaking your spells. You in fact invite them too. All Warlock spells call upon spirits into them, preventing other spirits from taking hold. Most of the pacts function as normal except where noted:

Fey: Warlocks with the Fey pact are very rare as the world's connection with the Fey is slipping further and further away. As a Fey Pact Warlock the entity that empowers you has you try to reconnect the two worlds.

Vestige: The most noteworthy Vestiges in this world are the remains of the Sorcerer-Kings. If you open yourself up to listen to the voices of the Vestiges, they will make sure you hear theirs over any other.

Bound Magic:

Artificers: Forge Co. is primarily made up of Artificers. An artificer adventurer may or may not have a connection to the company.

Swordmage: Trained as bodyguards for Forge Co. If you are a sword mage you either are or were a Forge Co Employee.

Wizard: Wizards go through rigorous training through a very early age to be able to properly control their spells. The close binding of their spells prevents maleficent spirits from claiming them for power.

Primal - still in debate:

Barbarian

Druid

Shaman

Warden

Seeker

Psionic – still in debate

Ardent

Monk

Psion

The first year of Queen Malachite Beryl, the fifth day of the Raven Queen

A child has entered my Queen's domain, I did not know why at first but then the tragedy was explained to me. Oh Kari, I swear to you that I shall watch over her. I can only hope that Sirius knows not what he did. Malachite's betrayal goes unknown to my allies for now, but she has sent some of her best soldiers after them... to approach them as friends, and then to slay them. If it is their time then I shall welcome them with open arms to my Queen's Kingdom, seat them at the largest table of the largest hall for a grand meal, before they go off to their own deitys domain. If it is their attacker's time... then I celebrate their choice to worship no god, for that means it is up to my queen to decide their fate, and she has already promised me a chance to show my... disapproval.

The first year of Queen Malachite Beryl, the third day of The Raven Queen

My allies had brought my body back to my home village, giving me a funeral very respect worthy. Beck, the one my Queen spared during the battle that slayed me, has become devoted to my Queen. I'm glad to see my Queen's mercy not wasted. While they were traveling back however, tragedy has been taken place in Negus capital.

Beryl has begun an aggressive campaign against it's neighboring kingdoms. Daily the souls of guards, advisers, and royalty enter my Queen's domain; courtesy of the Shaokin assassins that stayed with her.

The world of the living should not hold so much interest to me, truly while I was alive it didn't mean nearly as much to me. It is... a distraction from my duties in my Queen's court. Yet I am not the only one distracted. There are old and powerful souls here that have served my queen for centuries longer then I have, and they too are looking back upon the mortal plane. It does feel like there is a storm coming and this is just the begining.

The first year of Queen Malachite Beryl, the twenty forth day of Corellon.

My living allies, they do not understand. This was no accident, no rage brought on by her first "shadow shift" as the Shaokin call it. This was matricide. My queen whispers to me, tells me that the fallen lady shall not leave the land of the living. That she remains to watch over her daughter. Ever the loving mother despite what was done to her. Normally my queen would not be so interested in this, but she senses how much more death this will lead too. Although her kingdom will swell with subjects, she seems distraught over it; as much as she gets distraught over anything. Still it is not my place to guess the motives of my queen, she has given me a place to serve her. What more could one of her faithful ask for?

-Fermata, humble servant of the Raven Queen.