Old School Essentials: Characters Review

It's been a few months since I've reviewed anything. Today, I mean to correct this by reviewing Old School Essentials' Character PDF book. As you can see by the counter on the right, I backed the 2022 Kickstarter having missed the original Kickstarter a few years ago. 

Title: Old School Essentials: Characters
Author: Gavin Norman
Rule Set: OSE/B/X
Year: 2022
Pages: 73
Number of players: 2 or more
Rating: ★★★★(★) 5ish of 5 stars

Right off the bat, I must justify the star rating. This work is currently a pdf of a future physical book. It makes heavy use of gorgeous artwork, sometimes on two-page spreads. It will not print well without an inordinate amount of care or skipping the artwork spreads altogether. A half measure might be to print these spreads on photopaper, leaving the back side of the page blank or cobbing something together with glue. 

Neither seems like a good solution. The physical book will merit at least 5 stars and I will happily update this once I start to see the physical product. This is a flaw of my rating system, not really a reflection of the goods in question. Judging by the physical copy of the Rules Tome I picked up at Iron Buffalo Games, we're in good hands. 

Because I am a history major, I am throwing up my first star for a rock-solid impressum. A lot of authors, especially PDF producers skimp on the credits either throwing them in the back of the book with the legalese or not publishing them at all. OSE: Characters gets it right.

Perfect! Names and dates, as needed. Where "city of publication" is missing, we get websites which I feel is an excellent compromise. 

So, in just 73 pages, we have a modern take on the original B/X rules. Gone are the errors and counter-intuitive stuff from B/X, everything has been fixed. The level limits are mitigated by a simple chart in the event that your human gets too big in the britches. No sense in making a whole 'nother set of rules when these simple guide rails will serve so well. 

What you get is a simple and clean way to build Clerics, Dwarves, Elves, Fighters, Halflings, Magic Users and Theives. Additionally, you get flavoring from B/X and AD&D. You have Clerics with no spells to start, alignment languages, and many more. My personal favorites are hirelings, building castles and towers and an introduction to domain level play.  

It also has a handy guide to TH0AC and something called "Ascending Armor Class". It seems reasonable, but lower is better as it doesn't invalidated the classic statement: "Comes with 24 illustrations, charts and tables". That kind marketing speak was a big part of my youth and huge influence on me. "Higher is better" a statement best reserved for space stations, raves and your spouse's Christmas party. 

Anyway,  I recall reviewing a different set of PDFs by Old School Essentials. I'm slightly bent that October is a long ways off and I shaved off the gold part of the star so I have some reason revisit this. When I get my hands on a physical book, my rating system will be completely broken when I come back and give this title the whole 5 gold stars that it deserves because there is no ranking higher. I really enjoyed this one for a variety of reasons which mirror why I like the original Basic and Expert sets back in the day.  

Now if you missed the Kickstarter, if you have no way to pick up this set online, be sure to check your local game shop. I found my first OSE book by accident at Iron Buffalo Games. Nothing is better than finding a treasure in a place close to home. 

Continuing... out of order.

Back in April, I posted a bit of a story with no title. It still has no title despite each chapter having one. I have about 7000 words written. Or about 25 pages. I've taken several stabs at NaNoWriMo, but never actually finished. Apparently, November sucks for me. If I actually crank out 50,000 words or more, maybe I'll publish it. 

Now, bear in mind, that the text in this post is subject to change. You are getting a live version, not a fixed snapshot of a work in progress. 

I had a long day today, so things are very ruff. You'll find typos and mixed-up sentences, I am sure. Up until 15 minutes ago, I didn't realize that I had one character was in two places at once. While based off of something I would use in my high magic D&D campaigns, I typically like to keep time and space fixed so I don't drive my players or myself nuts. 

This started with an idea for a D&D campaign, it has morphed into something more. Perhaps it doesn't reproduce D&D exactly, but it rhymes with it. I have a cast of characters like a party. Each character has a role like a class, but I changed things up willy-nilly to fit the story. 

The whole setting is based on Roman culture but displaced in time and space. If it was set in Rome, it would be about 200 years after the Fall of the Western Roman Empire. However, it is not set in Rome or even Europe. If you have ever been north of Buffalo or Rochester in New York, you will notice the similarities in the terrain. 

Although this section is an external character study of Justo and Gerwinder, Serena and Rolf's powers are highlighted in the extreme. 

Serena has a lot of shoutouts to Disney's Encanto, particularly the character Luisa Madrigal. She would be a divisive woman to ancient Romans. She behaves as if she is the actual wife of Hercules, which is very dangerous scenario in ancient times. She is a free woman with no duties or obligations to the rule of law because her husband cannot be taken to task or court. For the purposes of this story, there is a general belief that Hercules is an absent demi-god meaning that Serena can roll as she sees fit. 

I also use her to describe realistic clothing worn by Roman women, topped off with a fantastic expy Girdle or Belt of Giant Strength. 

Rolf doesn't know he is god touched. He is a priest of Mercury and you'll notice some of the trappings of a D&D cleric. He can turn undead and cannot use a bladed weapon. He knows the first, but not the second. His magic is thematic to Mercury, so he can cast haste on himself and others. He can probably do this once per day. 

Gerwinder's flight depicts Traveller's "slow drug" in action. 

It is an oddity that Serena is Rolf, Sarah and Leon's sister while also having the cult title of "Sister". I hope that isn't too confusing. The multiple references to "cults" is in line with the ancient meaning of the word, which lacks the current negative implications. It is all about the rites and ceremonies in practicing religion. In this particular case, Serena is celebrating Hercules by not being present for his feast day, an event that excluded women. 

Since Heracleia takes place in late July or early August and the wheat harvest is anywhere from July to mid-September, we have the implication that Sister Serena is a bit of a globe trotter. 

Geoff is Rolf, Leon and Serena's brother-in-law. He is a fighter-farmer, which is something every legionary and auxiliary aspired to be. He is an earnest citizen of his new culture. He is probably an example of a lawful good alignment in action. 

Leon is the opposite of Geoff in every way, being landed and noble in a very simplistic way. He is the oldest son in a large family, of which we have only met a handful. Don't be fooled by Leon's actions in this section. He is a prime example of lawful or neutral evil thinking in action. He is putting weapons in the hands of people enslaved by Father. What a wonderful way to inherit young. 

   

Obi-Wan Kenobi - Episode 3 review

 Oh, so much ground to cover for a Wednesday. But Ben comes first. I'll save the other exciting events of the week for the weekend. 

Episode 3 picks up where the last episode ended. Ben and Leia are on the run from the Inquisitors. This episode is odd because it solidifies what happened in the Clone Wars cartoon while seeming to undercut what happened in Rebels. There are a ton of shout-outs to both series in this episode. 

In the last Episode, Reva betrayed the Grand Inquisitor and makes a powerplay with the rest of the Inquisitors. She jumps in the driver's seat and takes the Empire for a spin. She manages to locate and isolate Ben and Leia, which of course leads to typical Empiric missteps. Often, Star Wars plays these types of events for laughs but Ben's encounter with stormtroopers is anything but funny. The two heroes end up on the short bus with a bunch of stormtroopers which could have been played for laughs but instead, we get sorrow and tension before the stormtroopers learn to just walk away. 

Meanwhile Third Sister, or Reva if you like, tries to get the Empire back on Ben's track. She is only partially successful. This is what I like in a villainous character, driven but totally luckless. Reva and the other Inquisitors are forever stuck in a battle of brawn more than will. Where the others are ruthless, Reva is honest. That is one of the most dastardly traits of a villain. She has an awareness of what the Inquisitors are and doesn't fully mean to emulate them. Much to their pain. 

The big cameo is Vader's appearance, a direct result of Reva's power-grabbing stunts. It's a pity that the other Inquisitors are unable to learn from past mistakes and can only emulate important actions. Which leads to vying for power and bad ideas.  

Emperor Claudius

I've had a theory since seeing Rogue One, which is weird because Rogue One is in Obi-Wan's future. In the original three Star Wars films, Vader was a beast. There was nothing scarier than that black suit and dark breathing. But it comes at a cost. There is only so much energy he has to spend. When not in the suit, he's in the tank just trying to be ready to get in the suit. He is worn out, exhausted from the constant pain of his injuries. This was very evident in Rogue One and to a lesser extent, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. It comes back in Obi-Wan Kenobi, as Vader sits on his throne. He is more Claudius than Conan. 

He's not his best by any measure. Perhaps a better analogy would be Vader and Tiberius. 

This is the Vader we get in Kenobi. While weak, he dominates the stage, making everything seem small and cramped. This episode opens up the world when Leia and Ben are on the road through deserts and mines, but everything collapses in when they are being stalked by the Empire. 

As the trap closes on Ben and Leia, the scenes take on a more realistic tone. The lightsabres are back to being physical objects as they were in the first 3 movies. Their glow is powerful, almost overdone pitting Ben's blue light against the red of Vader's blade. There is not a hell of a lot of swordplay here. The two battle like boxers coming off the ropes, which makes a lot of sense. Ben is older and Vader is maimed. 

Like the last episode, a lot of smaller characters make their way into the action hinting at a much larger world. Like Rebels, these people play a role they do not completely understand. We don't have a rebellion just yet. But boy is one brewing up. 

The episode ends in a cliffhanger as Reva almost captures what she needs. Curiously, she ends the episode spouting kindness and reassurance, which is the last thing you want from a villain. 

I look forward to the next episode. 

For the Black Rabbit of Inle

I have the garden growing again. I have the mulch in but it needs to be weeded again. 

I have 2 tomatoes, 3 cucumber plants, 2 strawberries, 3 dill plants running wild, thyme, rosemary, basil, two sweet peppers, and a spicy pepper plant, plus some radishes. I have 2 empty slots. 

My daughter mentioned how her rabbit would love the garden. Hmm. Ideas sunk in. 

First, I don't know why she named The Black Rabbit of Inle, "Bo Bunny". Second, it'd be nice to have some plants around the house over the winter. 

The dill, strawberries, and thyme are holdouts from last year. They withstood the ash and fire, the lack of water and weeds. Bringing a few plants inside really couldn't be worse than what they weathered.  

I started another batch of seedlings. Cucumbers and oregano. Once they spout, I'll try some tomatoes and beans. The idea is to get a couple of liftable containers going outside this summer and bring them in for the fall and winter. 

The other half of this project is four more basement lights. LEDs with a Bluetooth controller. With a brighter basement, the garden may actually winter-over inside for next year. I have no idea if that will work, but that is my plan.

The worst-case scenario is The Black Bunny eats them all. 

Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 2 Review

I'm struggling with these spoiler free reviews. There is a practical point where I have to assume the reader has seen episode 1 and the trailer.

So I guess it would be fair to say to you, dear reader, there will be some spoilers after the title card.

OK before I dig into the spoilers, I have to mention that I might not be the demographic this show is targeting. Or I'm exactly the targeted demographic. 

This series is obviously light on the budget. It comes across more like the newer Doctor Who episodes. This type of TV makes wonderful memories of cowering behind the couch while also speaking to the child viewer. Not only does it have that non-specific fear vibe, but the quality also is not your typical CGI to insane levels that Star Wars is known for. It doesn't quite drop into the Three Walls of a Star Trek set, but is more akin to the more adventurous scenes of more typical science fiction shows. 

It has some of the glow of Bladerunner and Tron, while also having the gray cardboard concrete of any number of movies and TV shows from my youth. I kind of love it. 

And now on to the story. Thank God there is a story beyond "and Ben sat in the desert for 10 more years..." I was expecting Hutt and Sand people. And I am really glad they tapped the Inquisitors as villains. Reva, the Inquisitors' very own watergirl for all the respect she gets is devious as she is evil and ruthless. Not a supervillain by any measure, but she gets the job when it comes to luring Ben out of the desert. 

Ben ends up on a world where privacy is king. What had been a hindrance to the Empire is now shared equally with the hero as he hunts for the kidnapped 10-year-old Leia. I hear the actress is actually 8 and I see that she is excellent. 

One of the funny things about Star Wars is, the galaxy is old and things are often presented as "it is because we say it is". In this episode, we get to see why something bad stuff is simply glossed over. The Jedi are truly dangerous to society at large and the embodiment of this is not the Inquisitors or The Jedi, but Leia. Pay close attention to her actions and activities and try to imagine how bad an untrained force user is in the world. 

Anyway, Ben's mission is simple. Get the girl home from a sad-sack world that is all the worst the Star Wars galaxy has to offer. 

There are a few cool cameos in this episode Ewan's daughter and a certain rockstar. Neither is particularly jarring at first glance, but Esther Rose McGregor lands a gut punch line if you figure out who she is. She's someone's daughter. 

And we are back to children. Ben has to win over this precious princess in order to save her from the villains. This is where the writers duck and weave and throw a crackpot idea to separate Ben from the princess. The results are fun, but the whole idea was bad. It's the one disappointment I had. 

As we approach the end of this episode, hope is snatched from the jaws of the Dark Side. Every character would or could have been a beast that either gets owned by their own actions or actually turns out to be a little more heroic than the audience would have believed. It plays rather well. 

On the other hand, as Leia and Ben make their escape, there is a moment of fear. This is the moment where Ewan McGregor pulls off some of his best acting, in a show that doesn't lack good acting. We get the see and feel the moment Ben realizes Anakin is out there. 

I was disappointed by the 35-minute run time, but hey, this was essentially a two-part which ran for 80 some minutes. As I understand it, this show will drop on the typical Disney Wednesday. That means the next review will be in less than 3 days. I can't wait. 

Distractions and Reminders

I didn't mean to start collecting comics when I was a kid. I always had this or that lying around but until the mid-80s, I read them rather than collect them. 

Then I found this one: 

As you can see, I read it until the cover fell off. It was a fantastic story of loss and grief. I was all about the X-Men. I had tons of them plus every tangential story. And when Marvel started to add Wolverine to every title, I had those two. 

But I actually read them. 

In 1999, I got a job at Mattel. This is where I met the rabid collectors of crap. Barbie, Hot Wheels, Matchbox cars. People were nuts. I knew more than ever, that I didn't want to collect something for the sake of simply having it. 

When my kids were born, I knew that I wanted them to read and comics were a great place to start. Giving a toddler a comic probably isn't a great idea so I waited a bit longer. The X-Men films were also not child appropriate, so more waiting. But in 2014, I took the family to see Guardians of the Galaxy. 

My wife hates superhero movies, but she sat through any number of them for the kids. "This is their Star Wars," she said. 

Funny true story: Just the other day, my daughter and I were talking about Thor: Ragnorok. 

Me: Catherine. We should make your mom watch Ragnarok.
Kitty: Sure.
Me and Catherine: What?
Kitty: I really like that show.
Me and Catherine: ...

25 minutes later.

Kitty: Are we going to start watching the show? I don't really like superhero movies.
Me: What do you mean? You said, "I really like Thor: Ragnarok."
Kitty: Oh... I thought you said "Fraggle Rock".
Catherine: Thank God! I thought I was going crazy.

Now it's just me and the kids going to the movies. 

But it all started with comics. 

This weekend we had a little flooding in the basement which forced me to again rescue what I have left. As I found this or that in the piles, I ran them upstairs for the kids to read. 

Good times. 

You'll notice that my son Paul is absent from the picture. He is away right now, on deployment to god knows where. As much as I miss him on this Memorial Day, I know that he will be home in a few weeks thanks to the efforts of those who did not come home at all. I believe that because so many gave all they had so that the rest of us could have a better world. 

And will we take some time to enjoy a comic or a movie together and it will be Good Times again. 

Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode Wan Review

 The title card says it all. 

It's 45 years later and the story is again riding on Obi-Wan Kenobi and friends. When Star Wars first came out, it was groundbreaking and unlike anything that had been done before. So unlike prior films, it was accidentally planted in the realm of science fiction, like that other groundbreaking series, Star Trek. 

Well, it's never been science fiction. It's pure fantasy in a technological world. Which is very different. 

This time out, we get to see Obi-Wan and the Empire at odds with each other when both are at their worst. The time periods in Star Wars have always been shakey to me. Rather than think in years, it's better to just run with "this show is before Star Wars and after the prequels". Nailing down years in a galaxy far far away and a long time ago is rather difficult and really the series does not suffer for it. However, there are a pair of very obvious clocks in this series in the form of characters. 

Since this is before Star Wars, we get to see a different type of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Sir Alec Guinness made Old Ben the stately figure we all grew up with. He hated every moment of it, no matter how much we loved him for it. Back in the prequel years, Ewan McGregor was forced into the mold of what Sir Guinness gave us and I really enjoyed his interpretation of what this old war hero was all about. But it wasn't exactly what I expected of Ewan McGregor. He seem hemmed in by what had gone before. 

With this new series, we see a new, new side to Old Ben. It will be no spoiler for the reader to talk about the prequels. With just under 7 hours of content, the prequels covered a lot of ground. It introduced a younger Obi-Wan and the Jedi Council then ripped them away as the Republic shifted to the Empire and the Sith destroyed the Jedi Council.  

The next 7 hours of film, the original 3 films, give the viewer the old washed-up version of the Jedi which has faded into legend and myth. To this, we can add some unusual choices for bridging material. Three cartoon series have filled in the gaps to some extent: The Clone Wars, Rebels, and The Bad Batch plus two live-action features, Solo and Rogue One which ducked away from Jedi story entirely. The viewer should be very aware of what the Empire has been up to all this time. It's quite a lot really and all of it is bad. 

This series should answer the questions we do not know the answers to, where has Obi-Wan been all this time? 

The last time we saw Obi-Wan, he had delivered Leia and Luke to adoptive parents with an uncharacteristic smile. It was very strange to see Obi-Wan's world completely destroyed and his only hope in the hands of two children he would not see as prospects for change for many decades. That unnerving smile at the end of the prequels didn't seem reasonable but in light of what was happening to Obi-Wan in the series, it could have been either a complete mask of his true disgust or indicative of being on the horrible end of a complete breakdown. 

After seeing the first episode of this new series, I think perhaps that it is the second. Obi-Wan has suffered a very real breakdown and the smile was merely an indication of how broken he was at the end of those stories. This new series starts with a very slow slog through Old Ben's life as he performs the most mechanical and boring duty: survive on a wasteland planet and hope that nothing bad happens to Luke. Of course, that is not where the episode ends. There are some important evolutions to Ben's duties and outlook on life in those 50 minutes. 

Rather than tell you about this or that plot point and spoil it for the reader, I will merely point out which aspects of the show I enjoyed. First, the first episode was written by Stuart Beattie and Hossein Amini of Pirates of the Caribbean and Gangs of New York fame. Respectively, of course. I cannot stress how far away from the laughs of Captain Jack Sparrow Ben is, and I can happily report that Obi-Wan Kenobi is not nearly as gritty as Gangs of New York was. Thank the Maker!

With this material to work with, the series director could deliver the typical rich setting that Lucas was known for in the first three Star Wars films. However, rather than CGI the crap out of everything, there are a lot of practical effects which reminded me of both the original three movies and TV shows like Dr. Who. A lot is done with very little, which is nice to see in a Disney production. As much as I like Disney, there is something to be said about economy in storytelling.  

Being made for the small screen, the scope and extent of the stages needed to be limited. I am pretty certain that there is CGI I couldn't see in every scene, but hey, that's the best type of CGI. The story is a limited one from Ben's point of view and the nature of made-for-TV actually hints at far wider vistas than what the show delivers. The viewer's impression is that the edges of the screen simply lose details. There is not a cast of 1000s, a lot of scenes are filmed top down so as to hide the edge of the stage. and sometimes, the detail simply peters out at the edges. 

That's actually great. 

It calls back the original movies while also having a psychological purpose. Ben is so burned out at this point that he is far beyond kiting checks Big Lebowski style for trivial amounts. His world has collapsed to just what the viewer can see. 

Actually, it's less. 

As the first episode progresses, the viewer receives a very different rendition of the character than McGregor gave 20 years ago and a wildly out-of-character performance relative to what Sir Alex Guinness gave us 45 years ago. It's not surprising that this would happen, because Ben is neither one of those characters in this series. What will be fascinating to see is the transition between old and new Obi-Wan and how that comes to be. 

I look forward to episode two. 

Building a Better Shelfie - Part 3

This is the halfway point. Shelf four is all business. 

There are pencils, dice, scissors, and a stapler next to my glasses and some dice I find handy. The cup holds all of my loose change. 

The books on the left are either favorites I like to reread or stuff I need to read. 2010, Sanctuary, How to Make War, and Project Hail Mary are current favorites. The others are things I need to read. On the right are my glasses and a copy of Chainmail which was POD at DriveThruRPG. For less than $8, it was a steal. Under that is a copy of  A Billion Suns by Osprey. I had no idea Osprey made games. Hmm. 

Under that is the book, City by David Macaulay. This is a fascinating read and look, Macaulay's artwork is amazing. I hope to do a review of every one of his books. Back in the 1994, it was made into a 5 show series on PBS. You can buy a copy or watch on PBS or Youtube. 

PBS decided to rename it Roman City. Fair enough, it's about a fictional Roman city. It also improves upon the book by giving a larger scope to Rome's mythology and history.