Space.... the final frontier in a galaxy far far away there was... Esper Genesis

Ok, so my DMing is switching gears slightly.  I have been introduced to what could mainly be called..  5E  in space!

A game came out a while ago, and I'm just getting into it.  Esper Genesis.  It's D&D, but in space.  so I thought I'd give it a try.  I'm a Sci-Fi nut, so I can bring my vast knowledge of sci-fi tropes into the game.  I am going to not do the standard galaxy that they have for the game, but rather, an amalgam of a lot of different sci-fi ideas.  I'll be pulling from Star Wars, Star Trek, Firefly, and others to name a few.

It ought to be fun.  First game is this weekend where we create characters and the players, if they succeed, get their ship, a dilapidated YT-1300.

You can find more info, and the FREE stuff they give you here:

Esper Genisis Free goodies and stuff!!

My Wings of Glory Planes

19	Caquot	Brown Balloon
19	Caquot M	Yellow Balloon
19	Nieuport 16	124E Escadrille Lafayette
19	Nieuport 16	62E Escadrille
07A	Spad XIII	Baracca
07B	Spad XIII	Fonk
07C	Spad XIII	Rickenbaker
07D	Sopwith Camel	Barker
07E	Sopwith Camel	Elwood
07F	Sopwith Camel	Olieslager
07G	Albatros D.VA	Udet
07H	Albatros D.VA	Weber
07I	Albatros D.VA	Jentsch
07I	Fokker DR I	Rahn
07J	Fokker DR I	Von Richtoften
07K	Fokker DR I	Kempf
08A	Fokker D.VII	Goering
08B	Fokker D.VII	Schafer
08C	Fokker D.VII	Udet
08D	Sopwith Snipe	Barker
08E	Sopwith Snipe	Baker
08F	Sopwith Snipe	Ryrie
08G	LFG Roland C.II	Von Richtoften
08H	LFG Roland C.II	Seibert & Pleger
08I	LFG Roland C.II	Luftstreitskrafte
08J	De Havilland Dh 4	Cadbury & leckie
08K	De Havilland Dh 4	American Exp Force
08L	De Havilland Dh 4	Atkey
101B	Spad XIII	Coadou
101C	Spad XIII	Madon
101E	Spad XIII	Chavannes
102C	Sopwith Camel	Stackard
102D	Sopwith Camel	KissenBerth
102E	Sopwith Camel	Maclaren
103B	Albatros D.VA	Von Hippel
103C	Albatros D.VA	Jacobs
103E	Albatros D.V	Von Richtoften
104A	Fokker DR I	Von Richtoften
104B	Fokker DR I	Kirschstein
104C	Fokker DR I	Lothar Von Richtoften
104E	Fokker DR I	Baumer
105A	Fokker E.III	Immelmann
105B	Fokker E.III	Hautzmayer
105C	Fokker E.III	Buddecke
106A	Halberstadt D.III	Camouflage
106B	Halberstadt D.III	Keudell
106C	Halberstadt D.III	Luftstreitskrafte
107A	Morane-Saulnier Type N	Navarra
107B	Morane-Saulnier Type N	Gilbert
107C	Morane-Saulnier Type N	Chaput
108A	Airco DH 2	Saundby
108B	Airco DH 2	Hawker
108C	Airco DH 2	Andrews
109A	Hanriot HD.1	Coppens
109B	Hanriot HD.1	Fucini
109C	Hanriot HD.1	Scaroni
110A	Aviatik D.I	Linke-Crawford
110B	Aviatik D.I	Sabeditsch
110C	Aviatik D.I	Turek
111A	Sopwith Triplane	Collishaw
111B	Sopwith Triplane	Dallas
111C	Sopwith Triplane	Little
112A	Siemeins-Schuckert D.III	Lange
112B	Siemeins-Schuckert D.III	Veltjens
112C	Siemeins-Schuckert D.III	Von Beaulieu-Marconnay
113A	Spad S.VII	Guynemer
113B	Spad S.VII	Soubiran
113C	Spad S.VII	23rd Squadron
114A	Albatros D.II	Szepessy-Sokoll
114B	Albatros D.II	Von Richtoften
114C	Albatros D.II	Boelcke
115B	Fokker D.VII	Sachsenberg
115C	Fokker D.VII	Stark
116B	Sopwith Snipe	Kazakov
116C	Sopwith Snipe	Sapozhnikov
117A	Nieuport 17	Baracca
117C	Nieuport 17	Thaw / Lufbery
118A	Albatros D.III	Frommherz
118B	Albatros D.III	Gruber
118C	Albatros D.III	Von Richtoften
119A	Fokker E.V	Lowenhardt
119B	Fokker E.V	Osterkamp
119C	Fokker E.V	Sharon
120A	Nieuport NI.28	Hartney
120A	Nieuport NI.28	Hartney
120B	Nieuport NI.28	O'Neill
120C	Nieuport NI.28	Rickenbaker
121A	Phonix D I	Lang
121B	Phonix D I	Urban
121C	Phonix D I	Gruber
122A	Nieuport 11	Chaput
122B	Nieuport 11	De Turenne
122C	Nieuport 11	Ancillotto
125A	Nieuport 16	Ball
13A	Nieuport 17	Lufbery / Thenault
13B	Nieuport 17	Nungesser
13C	Nieuport 23	Kibanov
13D	Albatros D.III	Brumowski
13E	Albatros D.III	Hautzmayer
13F	Albatros D.III	Voss
13G	UFAG C.I	Flick 23/D
13H	UFAG C.I	Luftahrtruppen 1
13I	UFAG C.I	Luftahrtruppen 2
13J	R.A.F. RE8	Longton & Carson
13K	R.A.F. RE8	Ferguson & Fry
13L	R.A.F. RE8	Aviation Militaire
201A	Bristol F.2B Fighter	Harvey & Waight
201B	Bristol F.2B Fighter	Arkell & Stagg
201C	Bristol F.2B Fighter	Headlam & Beaton
202B	Halberstadt CL.II	Schlachtstaffel 23B
202C	Halberstadt CL.II	Neimann & Kolodzici
203B	LFG Roland C.II	Luftstreitskrafte
203C	LFG Roland C.IIA	FFA 292B
204A	Airco DH.4	50 Squadron
204B	Airco DH.4	Cotton & Betts
204C	Airco DH.4	Bartlett & Naylor
205A	UFAG C.I	161 - 37
205B	UFAG C.I	Flik 62/S
205C	UFAG C.I	161 - 138
206A	R.A.F. RE8	30 Squadron
206B	R.A.F. RE8	Marsh & Mackay Dempster
206C	R.A.F. RE8	59 Squadron
208A	Hannover CL.IIIA	Hager & Weber
208B	Hannover CL.IIIA	Baur & Von Hengl
208C	Hannover CL.IIIA	Luftstreitskrafte
209A	Sopwith 1/2 Strutter	Costes & Astor
209B	Sopwith 1/2 Strutter	Collinshaw & Portsmouth
209C	Sopwith 1/2 Comic	78 Squadron
210A	Albatros C III	Bohme & Ladermacher
210B	Albatros C III	Meinecke
210C	Albatros C III	Luftstreitskrafte
23A	R.A.F SE5A	Bishop
23B	R.A.F SE5A	Dallas
23C	R.A.F. SE5A	Boudwin
23D	Phalz D.III	Houn
23E	Phalz D.III	Klein
23F2	Phalz D.IIIA	Holtzem
23G	Breguet BR 14 B2	De Greffer & Marshelle
23H	Breguet BR 14 B2	Griebil & Carron
23I	Breguet BR 14 B2	Browning & Duke
23I	Rumpler C IV C	8012 / 17
23J	Rumpler C IV C	MFFA 2
23K	Rumpler C IV C	8267 / 17
301A	Caproni CA.3	Buttini
301B	Caproni CA.3	CEP 115
301C	Caproni CA.3	Taramelli
301D	Caproni CA.3	La Guardia
302A	Gotha G.V	Aschoff
302B	Gotha G.V	Von Jorff
303A	Handley Page 0/400	RAF
303B	Handley Page 0/400	RNAS
304A	Zeppelin Staaken R.VI	Schoeller
304B	Zeppelin Staaken R.VI	Schilling
Deluxe Set	Albatros D.VA	Baumer
Deluxe Set	Sopwith Camel	Brown
Deluxe Set	Spad XIII	Luke
T & T	Nieuport 16	Navarre

It has been many years, but I have finally had the time to look back into my maps for wings of glory.  I am looking to see if there is any interest in this maps till.  I have posted on FB and the Wings Areodrome forums.  Perchance there might be?

Let's fly the friendly skies with The LingSter!

1 1/2 years in the making...

     It has been a really long time since I last updated.  Life has changed so much since my last update.  New games came out, new planes for Wings of Glory, new D&D projects to work on.  On a personal note, my home life has changed.  My wife passed after a 5 year struggle with ALS.  one of, if not the worst disease to ever be.  I now am alone with my son trying to live life to it's fullest.   Things have changed around the world.  What was once acceptable isn't anymore.  Blogs might even be a thing of the past, now with more and more people taking to twitch and youtube to give their thoughts. 

     On a side note, I have been working on restarting my campaign world of Valla Moor.  This time with a new group of people.  We are not at the level of Matt mercer and his Critical Role group.  But we all can strive to be better DMs because of his influence.  As a DM, I've always enjoyed putting together adventures and plotting the demise of my players, only to have the well laid plans of a villain be thwarted and the villain stopped. 

To anyone out there still reading blogs and actually reading this one, I say to you...  Roll for Initiative Monkey Boy!

It's been a long while, but here I am...

My wife continues to suffer with ALS, and I continue to have no time for anything because of the extreme help she needs daily.  BUT I still have a small amount of time to get in on Kickstarter stuff!!

Zombicide Green Horde

Hurry, just a little over ONE DAY LEFT!!  This is just what you get, there are a LOT of optional buys that are well worth the money...

Long time, still kicking...

Things hav been slow at my house.  My wife is in advanced stages of ALS, which forces me to not be able to break away to work on the wings of war map.  I really want to get it out to you guys and girls.

BUT, since I can take super short breaks, I have started to build a game based on the Halo Megablok figures...

they are cool minis and fun to play with for my 6yr old.

anyway, here are the sample faction boards so far.  

There are 4 factions.  there will be cards for each mini, and for each type of weapon.  I will have to post the rules later.

Unboxing...

The unboxing of black plague...

Missing the two special guest boxes I bought.

Awesome weapon...

It's an update...

I've been very busy with my wife's ALS.  It takes all my time and gumption to do anything, so.. my maps project is on temp hold.


In the meantime, I got this in the mail....

It's the rest of the black plague stuff for Zombicide!  

Walking Dead Minis...

Yea, more kickstarter goodness!!

Walking Dead Minis Game

This is just a few of the items found in the $125 pledge!

Here's a little something I wrote....

THE box came in the mail two days ago.  I finally got to unboxing the stuff inside!

Kickstarter exclusive!  Awesome!

its a big box.

Cool stats on the back of the box for each plane.

All four of the kickstarter planes

Yes, all four planes.

What comes in the Zep box besides the plane cards, ace cards, etc.  the map and the poster.  though I now have 4 copies of said poster...  

and what's inside the Handly...

Well packaged. Be careful when pulling the plane out, she's in there tight.

Yes, the plane is HUGE compared to that lowly Avitak flying next to it.  If she releases her bombs now, will the factory be obliterated?

Let's have a Cup o' Tea...

4pm and it's time for some tea.  Well, at least that's the English tradition.  But with this cup o' tea, I raise my cup because the English are coming through for me.  I am securing the rights to make my map a reality. It's going to be a slow road, and yet, slightly expensive.  Stay tuned for even more updates!

Need I say more...?

People Still Play D&D...

Yes, Dead Ale Wives club does it right.

Now, I was asked recently how do you play D&D?   Hmmm tricky question.  How DO you play D&D...

Well, my answer is complex.  so I put it simply.  D&D is a lot like acting.  An actor(the player) in a movie is playing a role.  A director(the Dungeon Master) tells the actor what the scene is.  the actor then does his part for the movie.  being a hero fighting bad guys, or a drama where they are in a court room discussing the next case.  BUT, this is scripted acting.  D&D is more improv really.  The DM gives you the scene, then you have to decide what your character would do in that situation.

In D&D, you have a character (the role) that you play.  When given the role, you fit into it and "roleplay" that character.  What are his mannerisms, what's he like?  gruff?  timid?  does he run screaming at the sight of a yellow canary?  All of this is decided before the game is started.  Once is determined, then the player can play his role better.

The DM then sets the scene.  He give out the atmosphere, or flavor text of the situation.  For example:  The rain is coming down hard.  Your cloths are soaked from the rain.  Your boots splash through puddles in the street as you run towards the nearest tavern.  Opening the doors to the tavern, you are greeted by the dimly lit interior.  Several patrons glance up in your direction, sizing you up then go back to their drinks and meals.  The smells of freshly cooked meat fills your nostrils.   The place is crowded, but there still does remain a table empty.  What do you do?

At this point, the players take over and tell what they would be doing.  Do you go in and sit at the table?  Do you look around the room to see how rough it is before going in?  do you back out slowly into the rain and find another place? Do you ignore the table and belly up to the bar?

Once your decision is made, you announce it to the DM.   "I belly up to the bar!"  or "I sit at the empty table".  or if you wanted to be deep in your role, you'd say something like this:  "Drugar stands tall, ignoring the people that looked in his direction.  I shake off the rain from my cloak and head towards the empty table where I take a seat, then summon a bar wench."   Doing something descriptive like that always gets you points with the DM and extra XP.

XP?  what the frik is that?   Well, that is Experience Points.  You get these points for doing tasks, killing monsters, quests, and yes, even roleplaying.  The less street talk, aka table banter, the better.

Some of my best players have been ones that role played their characters well.  If all you do is quote rules and sling dice, then it's not roleplaying, it's ROLLplaying.

Is that your Final Answer??

Why yes... Yes it is...

To keep it short:

Thank you for your interest in Google. We have reviewed your request to use Google Earth images. Google Earth images always require the Google Logo be displayed and cannot be altered in any way. If your map is an altered image, we cannot approve this use.


I guess I can't sell, or distribute the map in any way.  Sucks really.  So now I work on other avenues to work with this map and/or create anew.

Questions/thoughts/ideas always welcome...


P.S.  Project is NOT dead.  just have to work around it.  ;)

Permissions...

Request for permission to use Google brand features

Thank you for your request. Due to the great number of brand permission inquiries we receive, please allow for two weeks for us to respond. We will get back to you as soon as we can.

The Google Permissions team

Yea, just gotta bide my time and hope they say yes.

Legal Beagle...

I have been working hard on getting prepped for the eventual sale of my map.  However, since this is a map made mostly of Google satellite imagery, I need to get their permission to use them in this project to make any sort of money.  So in the immortal works of the Emperor...

Happy Flying!

Look to the right --->

Yes, look right... Or left if you're from down under and reading this upside down.  ;)

There is a poll for you to answer.  I'm trying to gauge response on my map and how much would you pay for it.  Please take a moment and let me know.  The quicker I get responses, the quicker I can get this out to everyone.

Gencon and the map...

For those who met me and or my map and are stopping by for an update, well, here it is.

I have several seemingly daunting things to do.

1.  Incorporate myself as an LLC

2.  Insure said LLC

3.  Get the full rights to the imagery that I used for the existing map, OR start from scratch building with imagery that is public domain or the license purchased through a company.

I think #3 will be the hardest to do.  it does delay the map somewhat as I don't want to get sued for this project thus terminating any future plans of mapping, (like my no mans land map).  The current map that Jim has from Ares games is ok, since he just paid cost to print it.

Stay tuned...

Gencon 2015 AAR Report: Battle over Margate

Scenario 2:  HMN1576939  German Bombing raid on England, July 7 1917.

Captain Kleine, commander of the England Squadron, has given the order for the raid to start at 8 in the morning.  24 Gothas are to take flight. Your mission is this, break off of the main formation with three bombers and attack Margate.  There are several factories working for the war effort.  As a tactical diversion from the main target of London, obliterate them and return home. 

Scenario 2:  HMN1576939  Defense of Margate, July 7, 1917

                The RNAS has found out that three bombers have broken off of the formation headed for London and are now headed towards Margate.  The RNAS has scrambled fighters to intercept.   Stop these bombers from bombing the factories in Margate.

The battle over margate, I had designed with 9 defenders, and three gothas.  4 of the defenders were coming from other Aerodromes, so these 4 were set up to come out of the clouds and drop into the battle 3 rounds in. I have directional dice to show what direction they drop in facing.  a cool idea for sure.  However, I was 4 people short, so the first four who died would take up one of the four to come in later.

Before the game, this was the shot from the Brits side.  The bombers are a long way off.

And a shot from the Gotha's side...

The game has begun, the bombers moving into position for the bombing run on the first target.

My players setting up their moves.

The bombers are set up for their attack run.

After a fierce attack run, the bombs have all missed their target.  Two hit the coal pile of the power plant, but the plant remained intact.

The bombers move on the second target...

One unlucky Brit got too close to two bombers shots and was riddled until only bits of broken wood rained down.  Bombs rain down towards their target!

Hit, you can almost see the building tear apart from the bombs hitting it!

A successful run!  Four good solid hits on the rail yard.  Mission completed.

A shot from the camel takes out one bomber as they turn for a second attempt on the coal plant.

At this point, only two defenders remain to stop the bombers.

Make that none.  The last defender is taken out.

The aftermath as the two bombers fly home, empty of their payload.  The coal plant survived, with minor damage.  They needed two hits on the plant, best to get one onto the plant itself.

The railyard was hit with major damage, a successful target obliteration.

Gencon 2015 AAR: Destroy the Zeppelin Sheds

Scenario 1:  HMN1576939  England’s Caproni CA.3 planes, June 1917.

Near the end of the Zeppelin Bombings of London, the British had two Caproni Ca.3 Bombers on loan from Italy, complete with their bomber crews.  They were stationed there for this mission, to destroy the Zeppelin Yard in Dusseldorf.  Two Caproni CA.3s and three escort planes head across the channel to destroy the sheds. 

Scenario 1:  HMN1576939  Defense of the Dusseldorf Zeppelin Factory, June, 1917

                Wire has come in informing that the British are flying towards the Dusseldorf Zeppelin factory.   Drive them away from the factory and do not let them destroy it.  We are staging our Gotha Bombers there for a raid on England next month.  Several have already arrived and have been hidden inside the sheds.

The Germans got wind of the British flying in to attempt to destroy the Zeppelin Sheds at Dusseldorf.  Scrambling some of the Flying Circus, the Germans attempt to stop the British from their bombing run.

 The bombers and their escorts get into position for the run, while being harassed by the circus.

A very unlucky German gets caught in between two bombers and an escort.  He didn't survive.

A German setting up for a flyby, opens up his guns on the bomber...

Kill Shot!  A bullet hits one of the bombs in the payload and it explodes, raining fiery debris over the countryside.

The pilot of the bomber didn';t line up right for a bomb run, he's got to now circle around for another pass.

German Aces chase after the British bomber.

Another look from behind a German plane.

The Bomber is still trying to circle to get a good run at the sheds.  not one bomb has dropped yet.  German planes surround him, the escorts are no match.

The killing shot, ends the attempt at bombing the sheds.  The Germans are successful at keeping the Gothas stations inside the sheds a secret for next month's raid on London.