ChrisTalbot.com

You scored as Horror Gamer. You like a game that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Your character might get killed, but that doesn't matter as long as the game is run well. You'll probably like: Call of Cthulu, , Kult World of Darkness, Chill or even Pie Shop Horror Gamer 70% Cyberpunk Gamer 60% Comedy Gamer 45% Fantasy Gamer 35% Beer & Prezels Gamer 15% What sort of Gamer are you? created with QuizFarm.com

Do you think I could grind my way to chef status?

Tikal at SpielByWeb is back up and running. Yay!

You scored as Storyteller. You're more inclined toward the role playing side of the equation and less interested in numbers or experience points. You're quick to compromise if you can help move the story forward, and get bored when the game slows down for a long planning session. You want to play out a story that moves like it's orchestrated by a skilled novelist or film director. Storyteller 100% Method Actor 67% Tactician 42% Specialist 42% Power Gamer 33% Butt-Kicker 17% Casual Gamer 17% Law's Game Style created with QuizFarm.com

Dammit! I only really got into a Tikal game at SpielByWeb, and now the site is down. I guess Tikal upped the traffic by far too much, and now the site is down until the guy running it can get more bandwidth. :(

Things I learned at Pandemonium this year...

1. LARPers are fucktards and think it's okay to interrupt games to tell you how cool LARPing is.

2. Bring a can of mace next year to scare off the LARPers (or injure them if they won't be scared off).

3. Roleplayers and war gamers don't mix very well. They're like oil and water. Whoever scheduled RPGs in the war games area deserves to be maced like a LARPer.

4. Twenty-five bucks is still too much to charge for one day of gaming. Next year, volunteer to run a game to get in free. Apparently it doesn't even matter if the game runs -- you still get in free. ;)

5. Roleplayers seem to like being crammed into a room around small, round tables. At least the room seemed well-ventilated, though, as the Roleplayer Stink Factor was way down from what I remember.

6. Buy more raffle tickets. TABS has fuckin' wicked prizes! (And no, I didn't win -- hence the need to buy more raffle tickets next year.)

7. Pick-up games are your friends.

8. Scheduled events may or may not run. But if you have pick-up games, who cares?

9. Always chat with the vendors. You hear interesting stories and find out what their best deals are.

10. Chat with Dave from Wyldstar. He's always a hoot.

11. Next year, ask Dave from Wyldstar ahead of time where all the Tim Hortons locations are in the area. I think he has a map of every Tims in the GTA stored in his head ... and a Tims coffee would've been nice on Saturday morning.

12. Look for water pitchers. They exist. I came very close to buying water before someone pointed out there were dozens of water pitchers filled with ice water all over the games rooms. Maybe I should get my eyes checked.

I would've played outside as a kid so much more if I'd had one of these.

Neat. Tikal is now available for play on SpielByWeb.

On Saturday, I attended the Pandemonium gaming convention for the first time since ... well, since the first time I went about seven or eight years ago when the con was held at the Holiday Inn on King. While the con has changed management in that time, it seems many of the disorganization problems continue to pop up. That said, though, I had a lot of fun on Saturday (even if I still think the $25 entrance fee is a bit too much). The board/war game area was well-run by the TABS crew, and I got into three different pick-up games throughout the day -- first In The Shadow of the Emperor bright and early when I found Logan sitting alone in the board/war/minis game room because of a scheduling error that left him without a game, then a nearly four-hour game of Railroad Tycoon, and finally a pick-up game of Brawling Battleships with Dave B. just before the TABS raffles were dealt with.

Of all the games I played, I think I enjoyed In The Shadow of the Emperor the most, even if I did come in last in points. The game is pretty neat, as it's really all about politics and putting your lords into positions in various duchies and diocese in order to try to take power. One person is always the emperor, and that person gets a few little perks. Logan was chosen randomly as the emperor at the beginning of the game, and he managed to hold his title right up until the end of the game when Rob (who brought the game) finally earned the support of both Dave M. and I. I'd been a loyal toady all game until Emperor Speakman broke a tie between Dave and I in Dave's favour. When Rob challenged the emperor in the last turn, I threw my support behind the usurper. ;)

Still, it didn't really matter, the former Emperor Speakman managed to gain a hell of a lot more victory points than any of us. Even though I'd managed to hold onto three duchies for a good portion of the game, my final victory points were the lowest. Everyone was shocked except me. I kept getting pounded on all game just because people thought I was winning. :P

Railroad Tycoon ended up being a good game, although not a great game. Since it's an Eagle Games title, the board is frickin' hunormous, although it only represents a map from the U.S. mid-west to the eastern seaboard. It has some nice bits and some flexibility in what cargo you want to move, but it just doesn't compare to Empire Builder, which has a smaller board with a larger section of map (the entire U.S. as opposed to just half of it) and random cards that tell you what freight you have to move from one location to another to gain money. Also, Railroad Tycoon is based specifically on victory points, whereas winning in Empire Builder is based on how much cashola you have at the end.

There's not much to say about Brawling Battleships that I haven't said before. I've played the game a few times now. Sometimes I do well. Sometimes not. This time, not. Dave B. kicked my sorry ass pretty hard.

After everything was finished, a bunch of us from TABS made our way over to Casey's at Kennedy Commons for some drinks and dinner (although we had to wait in the bar for an hour-and-a-half). I was starting to get tired by the time we actually sat down to eat, and I was quite happy when I finally got home and saw my bed.

Provided TABS has a strong showing next year, I think I'll probably attend Panda again. I think I might try my hand at actually running a game of some sort so I can save a few bucks on admission. You see, if you volunteer to run a game one day, you get in free for that day. As I found out, it doesn't even matter if the game actually happens, you still get in free. Food for thought. ;)

Yesterday turned out to be a pretty good day. Jacquie, Logan and I headed off in the early afternoon to catch Underworld: Evolution. It was entertaining, but the storyline and Marcus' motives were pretty goofy. Still, like the first movie, it was dumbass fun with vampires and werewolves, so I can't complain too much about it.

I have the most awesome friends and family. A big group of people helped me say "good-bye" to my twentysomethings and cross the threshold into the thirtysomethings last night. Drinking, carousing, shit-shooting and other general merriment ensued, and I had a lot of fun as my last night as a twentysomething.

Thanks to everyone who made the trip to Pickering to celebrate with me. Thanks for all the gifts. Thanks to my parents for hosting the party. Special thanks to my Aunt Dorothy for making the boobie cake. And thanks to everyone for not killing me for the off-colour jokes I was making while cutting said cake.

To all those who couldn't make it for one reason or another, thanks for the birthday wishes, and hopefully I'll be able to catch up with all of you sometime soon.

Now boldly I got into the Big Three-Oh. ;)

I've been sick with a cold for the last couple of days -- y'know, the typical runny nose, scratchy throat, pounding head kind of cold. Not enjoyable. I've been chugging orange juice, vitamin C pills and (when the headaches come) Advil tablets. I keep hoping I can get rid of the cold before my big birthday party tomorrow night, but I'm now kind of skeptical about that happening.

It sucks. The last time I had a big birthday party (six years ago?), I was sick. Of course, I was a lot sicker at that party. I thought I was going to keel over and die that night. And it didn't help that Rawl kept feeding me shots and shooters. I made quite the mess of the King Richard's bathroom.

Now that I've gone into the Too Much Information zone, I'll stop... ;)

For those who haven't seen me recently, over the past few weeks, I've been letting my beard grow and grow and grow. I wanted to see how long it would get, and so I've been telling people that I've been aiming for the ZZ Top look. Well, I've been nagged enough about my so-called "rat's nest," so I shaved it off today.

But first, I took some inspiration from the adventures of Rawlio in Taiwan...

This is it -- my last week as a twentysomething. :P

Last night, Chris K. and I finished playing Fortress Berlin. In the end, the Germans won by default because I was unable to take the Reichstag. But damn, it was close! If only I had blown that roll trying to take the Reichstag in my last turn, I could've pushed a draw in victory points.

After five weeks, I'm glad the game is over. I really enjoyed it, despite some complaints I have with the counter designs and some wacky calculations on the combat results table. I need a break from the game now, though. We might come back to it in a few months and play a rematch, but it's time to move on to something else for the next while.

Tonight, the game I'm playing of Fortress Berlin ends, one way or the other. Can the brave Russians kick the ass of the Nazi horde and capture Hitler? Will Hitler commit suicide before he can be taken? Can the Berlin defensive force hold out until the end of turn fifteen and possibly gain a victory points-based win?

We shall see...