Daily Illuminator Archive for April 2014

All Archives

April 1, 2014:
I've been considering buying a Can-Am Spyder, but the open air experience doesn't quite fit nicely with Texas summers -- there just aren't enough nice days in Texas to make it an enjoyable ride -- so all I've done is think: "That would be fun." Instead I've taken the leap and registered for the Elio, a new closed-cockpit trike that looks like it's going to be a lot of fun to drive. Right now the Elio isn't ready for purchase, but the company is taking what are effectively pre-orders so I've dropped down my cash and secured a place in the first wave of release . . . read article

April 2, 2014:
Did you forget? How could you?! . . . read article

April 3, 2014:
Adam Power, an obscure character from an obscure line of toys and a three-issue DC comic series from 1983, is back and ready for fun! You may or may not remember the Power Lords toys of the early eighties (Wikipedia can help you out), but once you see what my buddies over at Four Horsemen Studios have done to relaunch the series I think you'll be impressed . . . read article

April 4, 2014:
I frequently find myself on long walks with my wife Nikki Vrtis (who you may recognize as responsible for nearly all the production and some of the editing on the GURPS side of things) and our seven-year-old son. Weather permitting, we've walked four to five times a week as long as we've been together . . . read article

April 5, 2014:
Why are you still in front of your computer/smartphone/tablet/cybernetic eye? It's International TableTop Day; you should be at your FLGS learning about new games and showing new folk how to play the games you already know . . . read article

April 6, 2014:
Last fall, I attended the inaugural WaCon game convention in Waco, Texas, and had a fantastic time. (Far better than this orange-blooded Longhorn ever expected to have in Baylor country.) . . . read article

April 7, 2014:
Character templates are massively handy for GURPS players. However, there hasn't really been much information about how to build these useful tools . . . until now . . . read article

April 8, 2014:
Going to PAX East? What a coincidence, so are we! . . . read article

April 9, 2014:
Patent trolling - which is often no better than simple extortion - threatens thousands of small businesses every year. Through a haze of shell companies, lawyers, and deliberately vague paperwork, the trolls shake down tech startups, inventors, and often even end users. "So . . . you have a fax machine in your office? . . . read article

April 10, 2014:
Remember Miranda, our fantastic and hard-working Prepress Editor? Well, all her fantasticness and hard work paid off in a big way! . . . read article

April 11, 2014:
Did you guys have fun on International TableTop Day? We sure did! . . . read article

April 12, 2014:
Most of you are aware of the Geek & Sundry Web series TableTop, hosted and produced by Wil Wheaton. A few of you are aware that I was fortunate enough to be on an episode in Season 1 playing Chez Geek with Paul & Storm (and Wil, of course) . . . read article

April 13, 2014:
As I mentioned recently, my wife (the inimitable Nikki Vrtis) and I like to come up with diversions that we can do with our seven-year-old son while walking (because, really, there's only so much conversation you can come up with if you engage in daily walks). One game that was a favorite of Nikki's family on long Michigan car trips was -- appropriately enough -- "The Trip Game." In this game, one player starts with a premise and the first letter of the alphabet: "When I went on a trip to the store, I brought . . . an awfully angry antelope." The next player continues, trying to remember previous installments: "When I went to the store, I brought an awfully angry antelope and a big blue baseball." And so on: "When I went to the store, I brought an awfully angry antelope, a big blue baseball, and a charming caterpillar." Each letter-phrase can be as many words as players find reasonable . . . read article

April 14, 2014:
Hey, have you checked our job postings lately? You should! . . . read article

April 15, 2014:
On Thursday, April 17, Randy and I will be in Dallas attending the Peachstate Hobby Speed Gaming event. I'll spend Thursday morning and afternoon manning our exhibit space, speaking with retailers, and showing off our latest releases, all in preparation for the evening's "Speed Gaming" fun . . . read article

April 16, 2014:
With more snow flurries inflicting themselves on parts of the country lately, you might find yourself saying, "Maybe we should go down south!" If you're living in the action-packed world of Car Wars and are willing to drive a vehicle fitted with armor and armaments, we at Warehouse 23 have you covered. AADA Road Atlas V3: The South is your guide to the perils and possibilities of Florida, Arkansas, South Carolina, and more. Learn what gangs are active where, how dangerous various cities are, and how to get from Point A to Point B with as little (or much!) trouble as you'd like . . . read article

April 17, 2014:
I've been participating in the alpha (and now beta) playtest of something really, really hot. It's called Storium, and it's on Kickstarter now . . . read article

April 18, 2014:
The Industry Insider Guest of Honor list for Gen Con was published a little while ago. Lo and behold, our own Andrew Hackard, Munchkin Czar extraordinaire, is on the list! . . . read article

April 19, 2014:
On Tuesday, March 18 at 1 pm and again at 4 pm I was fortunate enough to present our upcoming games and expansions to retailers attending the GAMA Trade Show. Each of these one-hour presentations was fantastic fun, and I cannot thank all of the attending retailers enough for showing up to hear me chatter on about games . . . read article

April 20, 2014:
As I've discussed twice previously, my wife (international Woman of Mystery and Doc Savage fan Nikki Vrtis), myself, and our seven-year-old son frequently take walks. When we do, we like to pass the time by coming up with games we can play while trudging hither and yon . . . read article

April 21, 2014:
Check out the stuff that's in stores as of today! Munchkin Journal Pack 1 Chronicle all your adventures, secret plots, and laundry lists in the Munchkin Journals! Three pocket journals, one each with a cover from Munchkin, Star Munchkin, and Munchkin Cthulhu . . . read article

April 22, 2014:
Did you know that most libraries have board games? And did you know that they often run events where you can play these games? . . . read article

April 23, 2014:
I've been a fan of Rob Balder's Erfworld since it launched. If you like comics, and have not encountered Erfworld, you should click over there and start at the beginning, but you'll have to make a Will roll at a large penalty to avoid the compulsion to just keep reading until you're up to date . . . read article

April 24, 2014:
Lenny, Miranda, and I went to Quest Night this past weekend with my wife Nicole and my friend Mike (and one random stranger, to make a group of six). Let me back up a bit and tell you what Quest Night is . . . read article

April 25, 2014:
If you're in the game industry and want to learn more about upcoming Steve Jackson Games goodies, then you should come to the Alliance Southwest Game Gathering! Not only will Randy Scheunemann be giving a "What's New at Steve Jackson Games!" presentation, we'll also be running demos of Mars Attacks -- The Dice Game . . . read article

April 26, 2014:
Unleash your inner power, true believers . . . but do so carefully, for your magic tampers with the laws of the universe. Such are the eldritch energies explored by Pyramid #3/66: The Laws of Magic, the latest issue of Pyramid that looks at matters magical through a lens of bringing order from chaos . . . read article

April 27, 2014:
Warehouse 23 is turning 15 this year! In celebration of being considered a slightly older minor in the eyes of the law, we're putting all Steve Jackson Games stuff on W23 (both physical and electronic) on sale! . . . read article

April 28, 2014:
Described as "Gaming Figures" on the project page, the Marauder 1/18 scale action figures are potentially fun for GURPS players who would like to dramatically expand their games and use much larger hexes than the usual gaming scale. These figures use modular gear to create a variety of modern military soliders, and I'm betting someone with GURPS High-Tech and GURPS Tactical Shooting could use these -- along with some giant sheets of hex paper and/or properly-scaled terrain -- to create one amazing display for a convention game . . . read article

April 29, 2014:
I can't help thinking about Al Pacino in Godfather 3, who famously said, "Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in." But here I am. SJ Games has decided to relaunch Car Wars, and they reached out to me and asked me to come back and be in charge of it . . . read article

April 30, 2014:
Coming in August! Munchkin Princesses Princess Power! Join the ranks of royalty . . . then go right back to killing monsters and taking their stuff. In style. We're putting the rage in peerage! Munchkin Princesses: all the noblesse, none of the oblige. -- Brian Engard . . . read article

TopDaily Illuminator Archives


Steve Jackson Games
Top of Page | Home