L'amore tra i mostri: Session 7, Q4-6

Continued from HERE.

4. How can the fight be brought to the enemy, gaining ground for the heroic motivation? 

Be the PCs first: 
Encounter: infiltration
Place: Northern Wilds, same time
After The Spring's apparent betrayal of the group, the mad orc lies covered in webbing. Liliana takes the figurine The Spring had snatched from her, examines it,  and [successful INT check for being a spy] realizes that the orc was running TO something with it. She surmises that it is a key and, at a nearby outcropping of rock that would have been directly where The Spring was headed, she tests her theory.

Be the GM next:
Story Cube: falling star
There is, in fact, a noticeable place to insert the figurine. When Liliana does so, the rock outcropping falls into the ground, revealing a downward passageway that leads into darkness. An unearthly, sinister air comes from within.

Be the PCs once more:
Don Pantaloni casts Light, and the heroes descend into the depths.


5. How can any heroic gains from the results of Q4 suddenly be undermined as new information about the true face/scheme/power of the enemy becomes known?

Be the GM first:
Story Cube: waves
Encounter: revelation
Place: Subterranean Cove, Northern Wilds, same time
As the group goes deeper into the underground, they hear the sounds of lapping water and men at work. From their height and from what they can make out with their eyes, they are able to guess that they must be nearing some sort of subterranean cove created by the river they'd followed for the last few days.

Be the PCs next: 
Don Pantaloni extinguishes his Light spell, and Liliana spies ahead.

Be the GM once more:
Liliana sees a large number of ruffians - presumably from Port Aghi - working under the supervision of another Dark Adept. They are carrying crates from a watery area to a place deeper into the interior of the cove out of her sight. There may actually be a boat somewhere within this underground opening...


6. How can the adverse results from Q4 and Q5 be further intensified, forcing the heroes to commit to a do-or-die course of action in accordance with the heroic motivation? 

Be the GM first:
Story Cube: rainbow
Encounter: intrigue
Place: Subterranean Cove, Northern Wilds, same time
From deep within the cove's interior, colorful lights begin to radiate. The ruffians doing the hauling suddenly halt and appear scared. The Dark Adept commands them to continue their work.

Be the PCs next:
Gino turns himself into a squirrel and scouts ahead, hoping to remain unnoticed [skill test succeeds].

Be the GM once more:
Indeed, to the east, Gino-squirrel can see two small boats aground within the cove. Beyond them is a dark, subterranean river tunnel that might very well head all the way to the coastline. To the west, the druid sees the cavern from which the colorful lights are emerging. Getting closer, he finds [Story Cubes: abacus/germ/crying] that the source of the lights is the soundless, distorted image of a hideous, unidentifiable form - a monster in suffering as the space around it folds and bends. The ruffians reluctantly continue to bring the crates toward the bizarre spectacle, dumping their contents - shiny stones, beads, and gems - all around the perverse image. With each new batch of shiny stones, the image begins to stabilize...

L'amore tra i mostri: Session 7, Q1b-3

Continuing the adventures of...
Captain Carlino Orsini, human fighter, soldier
Don Pantaloni d'Oro, elf illusionist, noble
Liliana Casale, human rogue, spy
Gino "The Oak" Leone, human druid, guide


1b. What actions consistent with the heroic motivation do the heroes take that bring them into conflict with a looming hostility inherent within the setting?

Be the PCs first:
Encounter: pursuit
Place: Northern Wilds
To continue the investigation into how sailors from the Merchant Prince's elite Sea Claws became zombies in the possession of an orc chief, Orsini allows "The Spring" - the insane, oracular orc who had led his own tribe to ruin because of prophetic visions - to guide Don Pantaloni, Liliana, Gino, and him to the place where the chief stole the zombies from whoever the Five Dancing Demon Kings are.

Be the GM next: 
Story Cube: bowl of food
The Spring brings them to a small river which he says that they must follow northward, deeper into the Wilds. After [the new exploration rules] three days and 30+ miles later of moderately paced travel and no untoward encounters, the group enters a region where Gino [fails skill check] finds himself struggling to find food and water that is safe to ingest. The flora and fauna have progressively become more inhospitable and, although the druid felt as though they were headed toward a coastline, he is equally fascinated and worried about his unfamiliarity with the natural life in the area. The Spring says that they are getting very close.

Be the PCs once more: 
Gino purifies some food and drink for the group. Orsini makes the decision to press on for only a few more hours. Afterward, if they haven't found anything, they'll turn back and head back toward Stefan's tower.


2. What unusual event occurs soon afterwards? 

Be the GM first:
Story Cube: goblet
Encounter: intrigue & combat
Place: Northern Wilds, a few minutes later
In a nearby clearing, Liliana scouts a group of four unidentifiable cloaked and hooded figures in a clearing. The Dark Adept among them senses the approach of the heroes and he commands his Dark Acolytes to attack!

Be the PCs next:
Liliana prevents the group from being surprised, but the Dark Adept is still able to seriously hurt Orsini with a frighteningly evil spell of wounding. Two Dark Acolytes get a couple of hits in on Gino before the husky druid is able to beat them down. Orsini is soon able to get at the Dark Adept and fell him with a single blow. When the enemies are slain, Liliana pulls off their hoods and searches them.

Be the GM once more:
The villains are ordinary men - scruffy, in fact - and resemble the kind of lowlifes one might find at Port Aghi [see Session 2, Q8]. On the person of the Dark Adept, Liliana finds [Story Cube: playing with dolls] a small figurine that none of the four recognize. The Spring laughs and announces that these men were minions of the Five Dancing Demon Kings.


3. What elements of the results of Q1a or Q1b and Q2 suddenly get twisted together in a surprising manner, increasing the danger to the heroic motivation?

Be the GM first:
Story Cube: gem
Encounter: betrayal & revelation
Place: Northern Wilds, same time
The Spring suddenly grabs the figurine out of Liliana's hand and runs off. The mad orc yells at the tops of its lungs - "They are here! I have brought them just as your visions told me I would! All has passed!"

Be the PCs next: 
Gino casts a Web spell at The Spring, making especially sure to get a lot of webbing on The Spring's mouth. The spell succeeds, and the orc is held fast - and quiet - in place. Don Pantaloni gives Orsini an "I told you so." Orsini demands that The Spring explain himself.

Be the GM once more:
The Spring just laughs [Orsini fails intimidation] and states, while spitting web into the air, "You four will be the ultimate sacrifice to the Dancing Demons..."

Updates to BGG's Solitaire Print and Play Contest

I was checking out BoardGameGeek last night for details on the yearly summer Solitaire Print and Play Contest hosted by the very dedicated Chris Hansen, and I was surprised to discover these two recently posted tidbits from him:

I will be taking classes this summer to finish my degree so I will not be able to host the contest during the June - August timeframe we've used the previous years. For 2013 I've reserved September - November for the contest. The exact dates of Entry and Voting deadlines are TBD likely the Entry Deadline will be around the first of November with the voting deadling at the end.

and, more intriguing:

A publisher has expressed interest in publishing the winner of the contest. This would be an optional prize left to the winner to accept. If the winner prefers not to publish or wishes to pursue other publishing options, they may refuse the prize. The publisher may also offer to publish other games from the contest that look interesting. I will give more details on this as I work them out with the publisher.

Hmmm... Much more HERE.

Why solo? To be dangerous...

After a very long absence from the Heroclix competitive scene, the six-month Batman-themed No Man's Land tournament series brought me out of retirement. I've mentioned it before on this blog when I discussed the earthquake mechanic and non-permanent terrain.

The tournament series ended this weekend, and, despite my extended time away from competitive play, I was the victor in four out of the six months. On Saturday, I won the final event which earned me the grand prize, the Batcave:

So, did I win because I was competing against bad players? No. In fact, most of my five to seven monthly opponents have been playing for many years, and two of them regularly attend multiple venues to win as many prizes as they can. Those two love quoting the rules, though they "accidentally" quote incorrectly when circumstances favor their side. (You know the type.)

So how did I - a mere solo player - dominate? I shouldn't have according to the members of a certain popular Heroclix message board who state that solo players are "pathetic" and need to get a life.

Well, I have a life, sunshine, and now I have your Batcave, too!

"Seriously, Alfred, you call that a gimlet?"

As a service to all of my future opponents, here's why I'm a dangerous competitor because I'm a solo player:

Randomness is my best friend.
For every game in this tournament series, we were forced to select our pieces from blind booster pack purchases, so our teams were randomly determined. Additionally, each month's terrain was a new map that players hadn't tried yet and, during each game, that terrain could drastically change if the earthquake mechanic was activated - thus, more randomness. The super-competitive players I faced HATED the earthquakes. Several times at the beginning of a game, an opponent would ask me out of earshot of the judge if we could "forget" the earthquake mechanic. I, of course, did not oblige. Solo players LOVE surprises. We love unexpected moments and emergent gameplay that never lets us rest for a single moment. When I play with my Heroclix solo rules, I face a random event every turn, so I don't fear randomness - I love it! My opponents' outright fear of the unexpected gave me a huge advantage.

I play a lot more than most others do.
Sure, I haven't been active in the competitive scene for a long while, but I've probably logged more Heroclix playing time through my solo rules than all of my opponents' competitive playing hours combined. I know the rules thoroughly and I've seen most of the pieces in action. Solo players don't need to rely on other people to perfect our games, and we don't need to travel far from our wine racks to enjoy our hobby. When I play solo, I don't play to win, I play to have fun - and that's the best way to improve at anything!

Competitive gaming doesn't stress me out.
Many exclusively-competitive players put massive amounts of pressure on themselves to win when they play because, without the competitive game, they have no other means to engage in their pastime. That pressure creates stress, and stress creates pessimistic thoughts, anxiousness, and an inability to concentrate. In contrast, solo players are enriched by a hobby that is always there and always rewarding. We share our hobby online, with our friends in real life, and we improve our social games through our solo endeavors. As leisure time goes, we're a pretty fulfilled lot! So, I felt no pressure during the tournament. I can't say the same for several of my opponents who lost more because of their own stress than because of anything I did.


There's another Heroclix tournament series starting up some time in the summer. Don't know if I'll attend or not, but I'm pretty sure that, after my Batcave win, if I do show up, this mere solo gamer will be taken a lot more seriously...

The 9Qs in Spanish

Pablo I. me envió una versión en español de la versión 2012 del 9Qs! Muchas gracias, Pablo!

Usted puede obtener la traducción AQUI.

(Above Spanish provided by Google Translate. If anything I wrote came out incorrect, confusing, or insulting to somebody's mom, blame Google.)