What have you done in an RPG? (part 3)

The rules are the same: you can add your previous scores to today's for your final level. For everything you HAVE done, add 1 level. Remember to share your stories!

21. Had your character eat or drink something risky, and suffered the consequences

22. Pick-pocketed something extremely valuable

23. Put-pocketed something into someone's pockets that later got them into trouble

24. Bought, built, or took over your own fortress

25. Had your own mount (vehicle, or even starship)

26. Used a wand of wonder (or an unbound mobius array) so many times that you became a very different person than when you started

27. You and your party wiped out an entire army in battle

28. A song was composed about you

29. People described your character as a “unique build,” “innovative,” or “totally nuts”

30. You tamed something deadly and made it your pet

What Have you done in an RPG? (part 2)

The rules are the same as yesterday, and you can add yesterday's score to today's for your final level. For everything you HAVE done, add 1 level. At the end of the week, total up your points and we'll see who our most experienced RPG player is! And, if you want to comment and share an experience, feel free to do so—it will be awesome to hear some of the crazy things you've done in an RPG!

11. Discovered something valuable, but kept it for yourself and didn't tell your party

12. Caught and exposed a character in your party for lying or stealing

13. You were the only survivor of your party in a deadly battle

14. Hauled a dead character from your party all the way back to town for raising or resurrection

15. Accidentally set off a trap that seriously injured or killed members in your party

16. You were responsible for failing to be stealthy, alerting dangerous monsters to your party

17. Spent all your money and had to borrow from others in your party

18. Made so much money that you agreed to lend to others in your party, with interest!

19. Made a bargain with a villain behind your party's back

20. Rolled horribly at a crucial moment, and your character died

What Have you done in an RPG? (part 1)

For everything you HAVE done, add 1 level. At the end of the week, total up your points and we'll see who our most experienced RPG player is! And, if you want to comment and share an experience, feel free to do so—it will be awesome to hear some of the crazy things you've done in an RPG!

1. Killed the main villain in 1 round

2. Died for doing something reckless and stupid

3. Fudged a dice roll to avoid tragedy

4. Was one of the victims in a TPK

5. Insisted on an action even when the GM was clearly trying to warn you away.

6. Spent hours looking through rulebooks for loopholes to design an unstoppable character

7. Decided that the main quest was boring, and improvised your own

8. Got your character thrown into prison

9. Ran ahead of your party and accidentally (or intentionally) aggro'd monsters

10. Successfully stole something from another character in your party

Video Comic Progress (part 5)

One more mention goes to the voice actor, Alexander, who is playing the Reln character. Last Saturday he sent me almost all of his lines already recorded and asked for feedback. He did such an excellent job, I at first didn't think there was anything that should be changed. But, after reading the script as I listened to his lines, his excellent choices of inflection and phrasing gave me some more ideas. It wasn't at all that there was anything to criticize—it's just that he's so good at this, I wanted to see if we could work together to convey even a few more nuances through his part. You see, he's actually a professional voice actor, and to be able to work with a talent like him is quite a privilege! I'm really excited for you all to hear his take on the Reln character—someone he classified as a “sassy Spock!” I'll keep you posted as things develop!

Video Comic Progress (part 4)

I'm not sure how much I'll be able to put together and what limitations I'll run into, but I do have plans to use sound effects and possibly some music for the video comic. I already have some effects sounds for gunfire and shouting, but once I get everything put together with the visuals and the voice parts, I'll see how many effects I can add in without distracting from the great voice acting. Although I intend to use music, there are always copyright issues with that. I am a composer, so it's possible I'll be able to write something original to add in, but it will probably have to be played with a synthesizer. I'm going to wait on the music until the end, because with everything that is going to be happening in this video comic, music might distract more than enhance.

Video Comic Progress (part 3)

Another exciting bit of news is that a friend of mine that I met at the Shoreleave convention last summer is interested in helping me with the background art, and we've been sharing pictures and graphics to develop the different scenes. Becky is also going to be taking on the role of the female Krissethi character and had some great character development ideas for the Krissethi. I'm hoping to implement her ideas in future videos (I'll do more if this one turns out well!) that will develop the characters beyond this one short mission. Unfortunately, I found that this video comic doesn't have a huge amount of room for developing the 7 main characters while keeping the action and plot moving along, all in about a 10 to 12 minute video. I'm hoping to at least give a glimpse of each personality through this project!

Video Comic Progress (part 2)

The gelatinous, amoeba-like Omul characters in Solar Echoes use telepathy to speak. I've always imagined their “voices” to sound like reverberating echoes in a large hall, so I'm planning to add some reverb to the Omul voice part. The Omul character was chosen by Solar Echoes artist John Fell, who was very excited to participate in this project. I can't wait to hear his version of the Omul, and though I plan to add reverb to his voice, it'll still be him. It's going to be kind of weird hearing him speak for the first time after the last few years of commissioning and communicating with him through email, and even weirder that I'm probably going to remember him as an Omul from now on! I still haven't settled on how I'm going to make my Chiraktis character sound, though, and I'm playing around with layering other sounds against my voice track. The trick is making sure it's all still clear so you can hear it despite the effects. If anyone has ideas, I'm all ears, please share!

Video Comic Progress (part 1)

It's been an exciting week and weekend regarding the Solar Echoes Video Comic! I've gathered a number of interested voice actors, and earlier last week I sent them a few pages of the unfinished script to help them decide which character they might want to act. I finished writing the script on Friday, and after sending it out to everyone, I got confirmation on the voice parts as everyone locked in who they wanted to be. Some of them have already begun to send me files with samples of their lines, and it's so cool hearing these characters come to life! Since I had one more spot remaining for the Chiraktis character, I decided I'd jump in and voice act his part. I've been using a program called Audacity to record his lines and have been playing around with pitch, reverb, and a few other effects. I'm intending to leave most of the voice parts unaltered, but a few might undergo some tweaks.

Has your technology waived your privacy rights? (part 5)

All of this may sound alarmist and some may write it off as conspiracy theory, but everything I've discussed this week is based on articles you can easily find online yourself. That doesn't mean everything you read online is true, of course, but the internet provides us with an objectivity we didn't have available to us a few decades ago. Judge for yourself, but the fact is, this technology is real and it is here. My own Samsung “smart TV” has a setting I had to turn off when I bought it, because Samsung indicated they archive recorded data from my conversations in front of my TV for marketing purposes. At least they are transparent about it and gave me the option to turn it off, though if I hadn't done my reading, I might not have known. Plus, I have no way of knowing if it really is off other than the setting claiming it is, but thankfully my TV is in my basement away from the rest of my home. It's not that you and I necessarily have anything to hide, but it should bother you that someone uninvited is potentially prying into your private conversations in your own home. Your home is probably the last place on this earth where you still feel comfortable being yourself and sharing your earnest views and beliefs with your family. In this volatile, over-reactive, hyper-sensitive, politically correct society, we've already lost a lot of ground for our freedom of speech. Let's not give it up in our own homes, too. Alexa and Google Home, you're not welcome in my home!

Has your technology waived your privacy rights? (part 4)

Even if you're not concerned about companies like Google or Amazon listening in on your conversations, there's also the question of device security. Hackers have been known to hack into baby-cams to spy on homes while sitting in a car just outside, so what's to prevent similar hacks against Alexa, Echo, and Google Home? If a hacker can listen in on your conversations at home, private data could be easily mined. Even a fake telephone call from a “bank employee” asking about your PIN number could prompt a conversation after you hang up where you confirm your PIN with your spouse, revealing it to a hacker listening in. Travel plans, work schedules, and other private information could easily be recorded by a hacker that is quite pleased you installed a listening device in your home for him. Rogue hackers might not be the only intrusion to worry about, either. It is now known that the NSA had tapped into private fiber-optic networks that connect Google and Yahoo's data centers, giving them easy access to any user's data. You can bet they already have their fingers into the data archives of Alexa and Google Home.

Has your technology waived your privacy rights? (part 3)

Do you really want your conversations at home archived by a Google listening device? This is the same company that currently has been experiencing a range of outcries against it from its own employees. Google workers complain about an oppressive environment where only one viewpoint is tolerated and blacklists exist against coworkers who have expressed other values. One lawsuit claims employees get bonuses for bashing conservative employees. Another class action lawsuit waged against Google involves claims that Google has a bias against white conservative men. Other claims accuse Google of using illegal quotas to hire women and minorities, and that to Google, diversity is “women or individuals who were not Caucasian or Asian.” It's also established that Google runs an internal employee email list that encourages employees to report on each other for anything that made them uncomfortable. Google claims it is using this to deal with anyone who exhibited “unwelcome behavior” and insists they are trying to promote a “culture of respect and inclusion,” yet many employees are complaining about a crackdown on anyone with viewpoints considered “unwelcome.” The list goes on, but the question remains: do we really want a company that plays “Big Brother” with its own employees listening in on our home?

Has your technology waived your privacy rights? (part 2)

Is Alexa or Google Home a violation of our right to privacy? According to Joel Reidenberg, the director of the Center on Law and Information Policy at Fordham Law School in NY, "So reasonable privacy doesn't exist. Under the Fourth Amendment, if you have installed a device that's listening and is transmitting to a third party, then you've waived your privacy rights under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act." Basically, if you have chosen to put a listening device in your own home, anything you say there can and will be used against you. So far, maybe you only have to worry if you commit an obvious crime such as the Arkansas homicide mentioned yesterday, but free speech hasn't exactly been so free lately, has it? With political correctness, hate speech, and other “thought crimes” being widely monitored these days, a few careless words can easily be misconstrued and a person quickly condemned, with jobs lost over inappropriate posts on social media or even from mere accusations lacking any proof beyond hearsay.

Has your technology waived your privacy rights? (part 1)

Amazon's Alexa (or Echo) and Google Home are devices that many are putting into their homes. These devices have a speaker, a microphone, and an internet-connected AI system that responds to your voice commands. The idea is to hook this hub into various parts of your home, using it to play music, order pizza or Uber, help with recipes, check weather or traffic, translate languages, control smarthome devices, or even ask it random questions. However, these devices listen to all the conversations in your home, and this information is archived. Third-party organizations have access to this data and can use it to better market their products to you. Amazon and Google insist that their devices aren't constantly recording you—only after you activate their “passive listening” with a command word such as “Alexa.” If this provides any comfort about the device, it is important to note that police in Arkansas subpoenaed someone's Alexa records in connection with a homicide at his home. In this case, Alexa was being used to provide evidence in a murder trial, but how else might it be used?

Solar Echoes Video Comic (part 5)

I'm only into the first few pages of the script so far, and I already have over half of the voice actors I need in just 1 day! Things are starting to roll fast with this project now, and as always with these things, once I start talking about them, they start to become real and take on a life of their own. I feel the pressure to get this script finished and polished, and I'm already working on artwork prep on Photoshop, but might get some help with graphics from a friend of mine who will also be voice acting the female Krissethi in the comic. Once I have a few scenes ready, I'll be dropping the character art in with the various expressions I need for the dialogue, and I'll be pasting the text into those dialogue frames for each character. I'm trying to optimize the procedures as I go, making graphical assets I can easily re-use and modify as I go. I might also be dropping in some sound effects and possibly original background music! There's a lot involved. I hope this little video ends up being a fun window into the fun sci-fi universe that is Solar Echoes!

Solar Echoes Video Comic (part 4)

I'm looking forward to trying a few ideas with the video comic, using little graphical events to embellish the progression of the story. Once I get things together and start working with the video tools, I may have to alter course, but I have been thinking of ways to have a few more graphical interactions beyond expression changes. Subtle things, maybe, like a light shining on a console and then a character stating that there's an incoming call. I usually figure things out and innovate once I get working with all the tools that are involved, so visualizing every last detail right now will likely overlook other potential details that might avail themselves. If I had an artist working alongside me, it would be a lot easier (but a lot more expensive), so I'll have to do my best to fill that artist's shoes and work with what I've got. Hopefully it will come together and look solid, using the artwork I've already commissioned in addition to my marginal skills with Photoshop.

Solar Echoes Video Comic (part 3)

One concern I have about the video comic is sound. I would love to have voice actors saying the lines of the characters, and there's a small possibility that I might have a few people interested in trying. If I do use voice acting, I'd need to send out the script to each actor/actress and have them send me back clean audio recordings of their lines. Then I'd mix it in with a video editor as I put together each frame, timing it properly so the text could be read along with the lines. I'm probably not going to have equal sound levels across the different actors if I do this, though, because everyone will have access to different levels of recording equipment quality. Hopefully that won't make this approach too problematic. If you think you have a good voice and have some acting skills, please contact me and maybe we can have your voice star in this video!

 

 

Solar Echoes Video Comic (part 2)

My plan for the video comic is to include the team of characters in the free Operation: Flash Strike demo. These characters are also in the Solar Echoes Character Pack, which includes details of their backgrounds. I'll loosely base them on these individuals. It will be fun to get to know these characters and see how they interact with each other as a team—they're sort of a dysfunctional family trying to get along and do their job as Union Guard agents. My plan is to have them go through the Operation Flash Strike mission together, and I will draw from my memories of what different players have done when playing this mission. I've run many demos, so it will be fun picking the funny highlights and clever choices various people have made. Then, I'll roll those best parts together and try to create a fun and engaging short story about this team of alien misfits. If you have played Operation Flash Strike and remember something that happened you'd like to see appear in this story, please share it with me and I'll see if I can fit it in to the video somehow! You can download Operation: Flash Strike for free here, direct from my dropbox:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/rz093jqqf7f430i/AACAM64n8TPtFgzIzR9XI7C2a?dl=0 

Solar Echoes Video Comic

I'd like to have your feedback. I've started working on the video comic for Solar Echoes, which will feature John Fell's alien character artwork (with their various facial expressions) and a short story. The team of alien agents will go on missions, and their dialogue will be shown at the bottom of the images in a caption box that I'm working on. This is all in the style of a Japanese RPG, where story is communicated through various character stills. I have several options for backgrounds, though, and I'd like to get your help. Typically, in JRPG's, artwork backgrounds are used behind the character art. In the image below, you'll see a sample of my ideas for two other options. Artwork is expensive, and so the various locations the characters will need to visit could cost a lot for an artist to design. However, one of my ideas is to use actual photos instead of artwork. I can doctor these photos a little in Photoshop, too. The third option is to use photos of actual Solar Echoes gameplay, with miniatures, maps, and other objects. I think this would be great for showing tactical positioning during battle scenes. Here are a few rough images of the three options. What's your opinion?

Solar Echoes in 2018: What Do YOU Want?

As always, I'll be putting out new supplements and missions for Solar Echoes throughout the year, but I definitely want to consider and respond to the feedback of all of you--the fans and supporters of this game. What kinds of things would you like to see happen in the Solar Echoes universe this year? Are you interested in a short Solar Echoes skirmish game involving cards? Would you like to see a supplement released that details new alien lifeforms (monsters) to face in battle? Maybe a list of interesting NPC characters you could drop into your campaigns as recurring characters? These are just a few ideas—I want to hear from you! Please send me a message and let me know your ideas. This game, after all, is for you and I'm excited to help expand the potential of the Solar Echoes universe!

Solar Echoes in 2018: Conventions and Books

This year I may be dialing back my convention attendance a little. Some of the bigger local conventions, like Balticon, Shoreleave, and Shorehammer are definitely going to remain on my radar, but smaller conventions may not make it to my calendar this year. Although I really enjoy seeing familiar faces and gaming with old friends, some of the smaller conventions haven't involved many new players, and the entire reason I attend conventions is to expose new players to Solar Echoes in hopes of generating more interest for the game. Another reason I may be dialing back convention attendance a little is because I'm running out of physical copies of the core rulebooks. This year I may need to address the issue and make some big decisions. The current physical editions are already outdated and are essentially collector's editions now: anyone that purchases one gets an automatic free download of the updated digital edition at RPGnow.com. I've also considered a major overhaul of the core rulebooks, including re-formatting, more graphics and tons of color. The barriers to this are cost, though, and also the question of whether doing another physical print run would be cost-efficient, especially if more color is involved. I've thought about Kickstarting a project to improve the core rulebooks, but that's a huge investment and I'd need a LOT of artwork done, plus, the logistics of physical sales vs. digital aren't very encouraging—most profit is made through digital sales. You may have noticed the huge increase in the quality of digital titles released this year, and I am trying to keep to those high standards. One other option is pursuing a Print-On-Demand option, where customers can decide to purchase and order the digital books printed in soft or hardcover through a POD company. I have some big decisions to make this year!

Solar Echoes in 2018: Video Comic

The next thing that you might see early this year for Solar Echoes is a video comic. Last fall, I commissioned artist John Fell to add some facial expressions to most of the alien characters in Solar Echoes. Obviously, the Omul has no facial features, but the other characters all have various ways of showing emotion. The Human, Reln, and Krissethi were of course the easiest, because they all have eyebrows and mouths that can easily be used to convey emotions like happiness, anger, and fear. However, the Chiraktis was a bit tougher—the insectoid has no eyebrows, has fixed eyes that can't be narrowed or widened, and has a pair of mandibles in place of a mouth. The plant-like, mouthless Erwani also presented a lot of challenge, because its four radial leaves and fixed eyes on top of two long stamen really narrow down the options for expression. The Archaeloid's eyes made it a little easier to work with, though, but the Archaeloid lacks eyebrows and has a beak-like mouth that is also fixed and unexpressive. After thinking a lot about how animals show expression (like my dog tilting its head or positioning his ears in various ways), I suggested to John that he use different approaches for these characters. The Chiraktis could tilt its head to show curiosity and use the positioning of its antennae and mandibles to convey various expressions. The Erwani's stamen could be positioned in different ways to convey emotion, as well as the four radial “facial” leaves. And the Archaeloid's tentacles and eyelids could also be used to open up a wider range of emotions. So, with all of this now finished, I will be putting together a short video adventure featuring these alien characters, in the style of typical JRPG video-game storytelling. Be ready for opportunities soon to share your feedback in the development of this project!

Solar Echoes in 2018: Painted 3D Miniatures

Probably the first thing you'll see soon is some amazing painting from Wicked Gaming Studios: they've told me the Chiraktis miniature is about ready, and they're going to send pictures this weekend, hopefully. The miniature was printed for them by Shapeways in a high-definition, Black Acrylate plastic, and they are going through the process of preparing it by cleaning it, priming it, and applying various coats of paint. Even though I've given them artwork to reference, I'm really excited to see what kind of artistic spin they will use to bring the Chiraktis figure to life! If everything turns out ok, they'll then proceed to working on the Krissethi figure I sent them. I'll need to get a digital sculptor to refine a few of the remaining 3D models for the Black Acrylate plastic, though, because Shapeways has indicated some areas of detail (that printed fine in other materials) are a little too thin for the Black Acrylate. They are very minor details, but it looks like I might need to have them altered a little so they will print in this new, high-quality plastic. Black Acrylate is favored by professional painters, so if you want Solar Echoes miniatures, you won't need to use it unless you are a real pro. I can't wait to see how Wicked Gaming Studios maximizes the potential of the Solar Echoes 3D printed miniatures! Tomorrow...what other things are in store for Solar Echoes in 2018?

It's 2018, Happy New Year!

It's a new year for Solar Echoes! Below is a brief time-line review of all the things that have happened with Solar Echoes in 2017, but the rest of this week I thought it would be interesting to look ahead and consider what this new year might hold. Check out this list of the main highlights from 2017:

2/7 Explorer's Guide to Sa'mesh supplement released on RPGnow.com

2/17-19 Solar Echoes at Dreamation convention in New Jersey

4/15-16 Solar Echoes at JohnCon convention at Johns Hopkins University

5/2 Updated Solar Echoes Player's Guide: New character sheets, dice system, and rules

5/5 Free learn-by-play demo, Operation: Flashstrike released on RPGnow.com and website

5/7 Solar Echoes Character Pack overhauled/updated on RPGnow.com

5/27-28 Solar Echoes at Balticon 51 convention in Baltimore

6/24 Operation: Void Hunter mission released on RPGnow.com

7/8-9 Solar Echoes at Shoreleave convention in Hunt Valley, MD

11/25-26 Solar Echoes at Chessiecon convention in Hunt Valley, MD

12/1-3 Solar Echoes at Shorehammer convention in Oceant City, MD

12/13 Operation: Broken Citadel mission released on RPGnow.com