Daily Illuminator Archive for September 2023

All Archives

September 1, 2023:
Heading back to school? Don't forget your pencils, books, backpack . . . and games! . . . read article

September 2, 2023:
I've been on a Mac for years, and there's one piece of software that I use quite possibly more than any other. Currently on version 5, Alfred is a productivity booster that does . . . well, it's kind of hard to explain . . . read article

September 3, 2023:
A question for our fans: For those of you in the computer-desktop realm, how many monitors do you use? For years I've been a two-monitor guy . . . read article

September 4, 2023:
Mini Molds, on Kickstarter now, are hinged molds that turn any sort of soft clay (like Play-Doh) into table-ready roleplaying miniatures! The set includes four sculpts: a skeleton, a wolf, a goblin, and a bugbear . . . read article

September 5, 2023:
I'm a fan of retro computers. There's a certain thrill of getting a copy of Ultima IV working on a Commodore 128 hooked up to a humming CRT monitor . . . read article

September 6, 2023:
Popeye is known for many things: being a sailor, being tough, saving Olive Oyl, and now . . . playing tabletop roleplaying games? Yes, indeed! . . . read article

September 7, 2023:
Are you organized, artistic, and passionate about games? Then you may be the right person for our team, because SJ Games is hiring for an Art Director! . . . read article

September 8, 2023:
Dragon Con was as Dragon Con always is: loud and chaotic and exhausting and mad fun. At one point, the line for the vendors' hall was about 15 city blocks long (they wrapped it around a lot!) –​ I know because I stood in it . . . read article

September 9, 2023:
Your band of heroes has been picked to be part of a dedication ceremony at a new temple! It's an easy job . . . what's the worst that can happen? [squints, checks notes] Oh . . . read article

September 10, 2023:
A few years ago, our family delved into the Skull & Shackles campaign of the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game. In it, the heroes play would-be pirates who go out on seafaring adventures . . . read article

September 11, 2023:
Lightning flashes in a darkened room. The shadow of your brooding silhouette briefly illuminates the inky floor. "Why?" you ask yourself again, for the thousandth time. "Why did I miss the Kickstarter for Hexagram #11?" There's no need to brood; just lighten your mood with the news that Hexagram #11 is now available for purchase on Warehouse 23! . . . read article

September 12, 2023:
My first encounter with shortwave radio came many years ago. My parents inherited one from a relative and explained to me that this seemingly normal device would allow me to listen to broadcasts from all over the world . . . read article

September 13, 2023:
Monsters appear. Monsters attack . . . read article

September 14, 2023:
While Jean, Steve, and Irene were at Dragon Con Labor Day weekend, Jimmie and I took a short drive down to San Antonio to demo some games at San Japan.   San Japan is one of the biggest anime conventions in the central Texas area, with over 25,000 fans partaking this year in cosplay, video games, tabletop games, RPGs, sword fighting, car shows, and almost anything else you can think of. They even had a "Fans of Buc-ee's" meetup!    We had two demo tables going with Zombie Dice, Gelatinous, Deadly Doodles, Hack & Slash, and of course, Steve Jackson's Munchkin Presents Batman being played all weekend! Zombie Dice and Gelatinous were instant hits, and at one point our table erupted as someone rolled 13 brains in one turn in Zombie Dice to win the game!   Overall, San Japan was a huge success . . . read article

September 15, 2023:
Breaking news: Bigfoot Kidnaps President! No wait, we're getting an update. Martians Attack Fort Knox! . . . read article

September 16, 2023:
I suspect many folks reading this have sizable gaming collections. (At the very least, I like to imagine we're not alone in having a home full of game-laden bookshelves.) . . . read article

September 17, 2023:
We have an emergency game kit in the trunk of our car. Basically, it's for those situations where we find ourselves in a place without anything much to do, and we don't want to mess around on our various electronic devices . . . read article

September 18, 2023:
Supermarket tabloids have a dubious reputation for a reason. Most of them are full of lurid celebrity gossip or exaggerated tales of political intrigue . . . read article

September 19, 2023:
Avast, ye hearties! Set sail with Steve Jackson Games and our "Talk Like A Pirate Day" Sale! . . . read article

September 20, 2023:
Joyce Lairmore Jackson, my mother, passed away yesterday evening. She was 95 . . . read article

September 21, 2023:
Earlier this month, when Steve and Jean were in town for Dragon Con, we got to sneak away for a couple hours and visit one of my favorite places on Earth.     If you're a gamer in the Metro Atlanta area, you probably already know and love Giga-Bites Café. If not, allow me to introduce you!   Giga-Bites has a dizzying selection of boardgames, miniatures, roleplaying games, painting & hobbying supplies, dice, plushies, and anything else a gamer geek could possibly want . . . read article

September 22, 2023:
My first experience with GURPS was likely seeing a copy of GURPS Wild Cards on the games-and-geekery shelf of a Waldenbooks. (I believe I have just enough references in that previous sentence to date me like the rings of a tree . . .) . . . read article

September 23, 2023:
Let's say you have a game that you figured out a house rule or solution for something to make the game more fun for your group. As a pro-tip: Write it down . . . read article

September 24, 2023:
I'm an introvert who fights with my own brain a fair bit of the time. Here's a "life hack" that's worked well for me which might prove beneficial to some of you . . . read article

September 25, 2023:
Writing a headline should be easy, right? It's just a few words that summarize a story so people can decide whether they want to read more . . . read article

September 26, 2023:
I was cleaning out a box of adapters and computer parts the other day, and I came across myriad USB cables from bygone eras. Curious, I plugged one unusual device in . . . and it worked . . . read article

September 27, 2023:
Say what you will about Spotify, but its algorithm has an amazing way of taking you on unexpected musical journeys. I started on one of those journeys a couple of years ago when a song popped up on my Discover Weekly playlist called "The Dwarven Caravan of Rushock Bog," by an act called Hole Dweller . . . read article

September 28, 2023:
The other day I sang the praises of USBs, noting the first version of this long-lived format hit the market in general popularity in August 1998 – over 25 years ago. As I was posting this to the Daily Illuminator, I realized something really cool that was even older than that: the Daily Illuminator itself . . . read article

September 29, 2023:
Dragon Con is over, but the folks at Cigar Nerds Podcast have posted their wrap-up shows, and the most recent episode caught our own Steve Jackson as a guest. The "Nerds" in the name of the podcast is accurate beyond cigars, as the topics of this episode range from science, futurism, and games to Demolition Man . . . read article

September 30, 2023:
I recently realized one aspect that's pretty special about the tabletop gaming industry: neat, cool, game stores can be found in pretty much every size. I've been in palatial stores that offered myriad options and gaming areas . . . read article

TopDaily Illuminator Archives


Steve Jackson Games
Top of Page | Home