Saturday, October 25, 2008

You all wake up in cell with no idea how you got there...

Only slightly less hackneyed than "You all meet in a tavern..." for a campaign start. It's used mainly to annoy the folks who go into great detail about the specific gear with which their character is equipped. ("My character carries an Springfield GI Model 1911A1 with Trijicon sights, a 20 lb recoil spring, full-length guide rod, Swinson trigger, Wilson beaver-tail grip safety, damascus steel commander-style from STI, and a Gunsite lo-ride safety." "Actually, Bob, your character is wearing the same prison rags as everyone else, and isn't packing so much as an improvised shiv. You have no idea how you got here.") While discussing this at the start of a friend's Star Wars game recently, Jason said, "Yeah, you notice it's never 'You wake up at, say, a fancy dinner party...'" This started the gears turning in my head, and got a terrified reaction from my buddy D when I said, "You know, that'd be the perfect start if I ever run a GURPS: Illuminati game." Think about it. Your characters are typical Joe or Sarah Sixpacks who suddenly wake to find themselves in tuxes or ball gowns and domino masks in very swank digs and a bunch of similarly attired folks and the casual conversation around them involves things like, "Yes, we'll be discussing the Reptoid situation with Mr. Johnson after the ritual. "His" work on the web has been nearly effective as his previous jazz guitar playing in advancing their cause, don't you think? And talk about hiding in plain sight!"

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

The Omnivore's One Hundred

Omnivore's One Hundred

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk/ linking to your results.


The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (if alligator counts)
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl (Or any other bowl, for that matter)
33. Salted lassi (Sounds good, though)
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo (Dude! I'm from New Orleans! Of course I've eaten gumbo!)
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more (Only half that price, alas...)
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (Via Kaopectate)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake (All of the above, actually...)
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict (But I do make a decent Eggs Sardou)
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa (No, but I'm going to have to try it)
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

63%, assuming half credit on two of them, and some of the ones I've missed are on account of having not heard of them before.

Friday, October 3, 2008

Of all the gin joints in all the world...

Your result for The Classic Leading Man Test...

Humphrey Bogart


You're the original man of honor, rough and tough but willing to stick your neck out when you need to, despite what you might say to the contrary. You're a complex character full of spit and vinegar, but with a soft heart and a tender streak that you try to hide. There's usually a complicated dame in the picture, someone who sees the real you behind all the tough talk and can dish it out as well as you can. You're not easy to get next to, but when you find the right partner, you're caring and loyal to a fault. A big fault. But you take it on the chin and move on, nursing your pain inside and maintaining your armor...until the next dame walks in. Or possibly the same dame, and of all the gin joints in all the world, it had to be yours. Co-stars include Ingrid Bergman and Lauren Bacall, hot chicks with problems.


Find out what kind of classic dame you'd make by taking the
Classic Dames Test.

Take The Classic Leading Man Test at HelloQuizzy