4:36 PM
One of those philosophical questions
3:16 PM
Big, Meaty, Manly WWI Bombers from DVG!
Dan Verssen Games (DVG) just released a follow on module to their WWI verson of the popular game series Down in Flames (published by GMT and in PDF form by DVG). For those of you who haven't been keeping up, GMT was going to publish a World War One version of the succesful Down in Flames series, that plan has not panned out. So Dan has taken the work done on the WWI game and added it to the product line of his own company, DVG. Dan recognizes the value of online play such as by Cyberboard and Vassal; he sells a Vassal module for his games as an equally priced product complimenting the PDF download. This is a practice I won't support with my dollars, as I think that the Vassal mods should be free. HOWEVER, I will gladly reward their efforts with a PDF purchase, and have done so for DiF World War One.
In this installment, the WWI series focuses on WWI HEAVY BOMBERS.
I'm particularly psyched about this installment, primarily because it expands the action decks (which I thought were skimpy in the first PDF installment) as well as the aeroplane selection (which I also thought was far too skimpy considering the breadth and depth of selections to choose from). And to top it all off, the Bomber module focuses on the large, slow planes that I love, such as the Ilya Mouremetz, Handley Page (see graphic), Italian Capriotti, and of course the Gotha series of bombers from Germany. Basically all the material from the Riesenfleugzug expansion from Luftschiff, made into a card game.
I will be picking this one up, but I'm not exactly eager at the SRP of 20 bucks. That's pretty steep for a PDF download to begin with, and the Module does nothing for me (combined module plus PDF=30$ USD!!!!). Considering we have to do all the printing and mounting work, and the design being somewhat already set in stone, I was surprised at the hefty price.
Oh what the heck, what am I saying. I'm so predictable. I'll end up getting it. Nigel, want to split it with me?
4:29 PM
Cold Wars T-Shirts
Will be done by Sun Dog this year.
the theme for COLD WARS is "The Road and the Wall, greatest feats of military engineers throughout history"
"Vauban"
http://www.abeedle.com/img/CW2007back1-copy.jpg
"Python"
http://www.abeedle.com/img/CW2007back2-copy.jpg
Ignoring the fact that everyone likes Python, of course...
Let me know which you would choose!
4:04 PM
Clio Round 2: Topics-- J is for Jackson
Here we go, Round Two. This round's subject is THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR, thus all answers will fit into the conflict that took place in America fro 1861 to 1865.
The Secret Letter is J.
Again, J can be a first or last name, but not an article or title.
Category 1: (easy) Name a Battle from the Western Theater of Operations, in which the Army of the Tennessee participated.
Category 2: (somewhat easy) Name ANY Battle or skirmish that transpired in the Trans-Mississipi military region.
Category 3: Name a general from the CSA, NOT Stonewall Jackson (too easy)
Category 4: Name a general from the Union Army, primarily known for the Western Theater of Operations (e.g., he did not serve in the Army of the Potomac for most of his war career)
Category 5: Name an outstanding female personage active in some manner during the course of the American Civil War, on either side.
Category 6: Name a Civilian politician, active on either side.
These are all somewhat easy, some are harder than others. GENERAL can mean brigadier general on up, and, of course, encompasses temporary brevets for generals of volunteers.
Good luck!
2:55 PM
B is for Bonaparte Results
Karen Spurny returns to form as she delivers a spot on performance in turn one. To no one's surprise Bill follows with the rest of the pack trailing. Newcomers Bellambi (SL) and Turlington (US) do surprisingly well right out of the gate.
8:06 PM
Fantastic Return from the Midseason Cliffhanger
Yes, I know I've been late in starting this series after the mid-season cliffhanger. Blame it on the new job.
When last we checked in, the Cylon/Human standoff over the Algae planet had come to a head. The nukes are deployed, the triggers set, and all that is awaited is the go signal from Adama. Deanna and Baltar are speeding to the planet in a group of 5 Cylon heavy raiders filled up with Chrome Jobs. Oddly enough, the Cylons blink first, and 4 of the 5 Heavy Raiders return to the base stars. Deanna and Baltar, of course, make it to the planet's surface. Nice to see the humans come off on top of things, for once.
On the surface, the humans are ambushing the chrome jobs. Lee, in a nicely ironic move, deploys his own wife, Dualla, to rescue Starbuck, his lover, from the crash site. Both Dualla and Starbuck recognize the irony. Nice, taught dialogue here. oooogy!
Meanwhile, Athena ('the good cylon') has learned her daughter is not dead and on the base ship. She convinces Agathon to shoot her so she can get over to the Cylons. That's an amazing scene... Especially the ensuing standoff between the Boomer cylon and Athena cylon.
Deanna and Baltar manage to make it to the Eye of Jupiter temple.. turns out the Eye is really, really the rapidly approaching stellar nova. Funny thing that they happen to be there at that exact moment, eh? Deanna manages some mystical mumbo jumbo and yes, she does see the five cylons that are revealed to her, but not us. She says "Excuse me, I had no idea.." I wonder what that means??? Could it mean that it was Baltar all along?
The nova happens to provide the requisite cliffhanger action... and we learn just how serious Deanna's transgressions are in the eyes of Cylons. She gets recalled to the resurrection ship and informed that for going where she should not (the final five) she will now be "boxed" and her entire model retired. Hard guys, those cylons!
During the fracas, Baltar gets coldcocked by Galen and smuggled back to the Galactica in a bodybag. Presumably, for trial or perhaps a trip out an airlock.
Athena and Caprica six overcome the Bommer Cylon on the other ship, who was kind of flipping out because it was clear that the Hannah baby doesn't like Boomer but loves her genetically identical mother, Athena. SOMEHOW, they manage to leave the Cylon ship (how, we are not told) and arrive on Galactica, where Athena and Hannah return and Caprica is put in the brig at gunpoint.
And thus the season ends; very taught, the work of the show's best director and one of the best writing teams. Very good, didn't open up too many holes, and I liked the resolution... we are clearly seeing a dissolution of Cylon Unity and Single Purpose-- they are not all working from the same game plan like they used to.
I realize this one is in just under the wire, I'll try to get a reaction piece done later on this week.
5:24 PM
Yes, she's my daughter
...sigh.
This morning we went to IHOP for pancakes after church, which is kind of a treat. My darling children wolfed their provender down like starving refugees before I even had put the fork in my mouth (okay, maybe they went a trifle faster).
Even 12 year olds get restless and bored... and Annie's eyes lit upon the pile of creamers. "Daddy! I want to do the fork in the eye trick!" "What??? What are you talking about??" "Daddy, you know, that trick you do that grosses people out!" "OHHH!... well, NO!" "Why not?" "You'll put your eye out, kid!" Why do you want to do that, anyway?" "I wanna be like YOU, Dad!" (sigh.. they know what strings to pull..)..
Well, she weedled until I finally agreed to letting her try it, but with a plastic spoon, not a metal fork. As the waiter arrived, She solemnly intoned "behold, as I gouge out my eye with this plastic spoon! AIIIIIEEEE" (and she lunged the spoon in to puncture the creamer). I was hugely gratified to see the eye goo (creamer stuff) squirt out and cover the waiter, and to hear his shriek of surprise.
I think I'm having a bad effect on my children. For details on the eye poke trick, click on the link above.
I've also discovered a wonderful new video illustrating this trick on the net.. now you get the idea.
4:44 PM
Premium Morricone.. if you have the bandwidth
My friend Dave Starry sent me this bit, knowing that I am a fan of the 60s thriller Danger:Diabolik starring John Law, as well as the famous movie score composer Enio Morricone:
Hello Mr. Nizz, just thought I'd steer you towards this since I know you're also a Diabolik fan. I've been a bit of a music blog junkie of late and uncovered the soundtrack available for download at this site...
Click to proceed
The blog in question will take you to a RAPIDSHARE account, which apparently requires you to set up an accout. I guess I can live with that!
1:30 PM
Good old fashioned Giddy Fun
And so I went to Liberty Mountain in Pennsylvania, for a taste of the skiing lifestyle and all that goes with it, lodges, hot chocolate, athletic looking moms in snowsuits (oh, wait, my mind was wandering there a second)...
In truth, I pretty much suck as a skiier. My body seems to want to hurtle out into space, legs akimbo, instead of staying on terra firma as God intended it to. So many of my skiing experiences, such as they are, have been either of the "bunny slope" variety or else resulting in me ending up in a painful twisted pile under a tree somewhere. I don't mind. The entire package is so much fun that it's hard to have a bad time.
Still, we opted for tubing, since that requires little skill and generally, just weight and momentum. That is something (he says, patting his tum-tum) that I can provide. My charges vanished upon arrival, leaving me to tube away with other abandoned folks.. I found myself enjoying the experience tremendously... launching out into space with an inner tube to land on, propelling me down the hill, was an experience not to be missed. I had an mp3 gizmo with me, and listened to Bob Marley's greatest hits ("Anthology") as the little tow rope gizmo hauled us back up the slope.. there's something about the general sillyness of the activity, combined to listening to "Lively Up Yourself" whilst being towed up a mountain that just made my sense of glee grow exponentially. The attendents probably thought I was some form of snow tubing escaped mental patient. The biting air, the blowing (real, not artificial) snow, it all conspired to liven my spirits tremendously. Winter does that to me, and I have sorely missed snowfall this year.
I can recommend this Liberty Mountain highly-- the facilities were excellent, the staff very efficient (albeit, perhaps a tad overzealous about checking passes on a weekday with no crowd, but that is no matter). Alas, I left the camera at the lower lodge, so no pictures for this one, except the webcam link to give you an idea of what the setting was like.
http://www.skiliberty.com/webcams/Tubing1.jpg
Fate was on my side. The last run of the day featured me making a spectacular face-plant right into one of those barrier berms there, overbalancing and being ungraciously dumped down the hill after my tube. And the webcam failed to record it.
I hope to go back before the season ends and try my hand at real, actual skiing at some point..
5:09 PM
"Nailed" it..
Click to enlarge the thumbnail...
from Malfunction.net, all rights reserved.
5:01 PM
See me on camera...
I'm taking my scouts up to Ski Liberty for some skiing/tubing tommorrow. I'll be wearing a silly hat. Catch me on the webcam here:
I promise, I'll wave at least once.
4:32 PM
As of today..
Peter Card (UK)
Daniel Ryan (US)
Eric Miller (US)
Andy Turlington (US)
Richard Low (US)
possibly
Eva Bellambi (US)
and the anonymous person who posted their answers in the comment line (send 'em via email, won't you?)
Ciao..
12:27 PM
Nice to know I haven't changed..
I made this 'quiz' a few years back.. I seem to have scored identically back then. Nice to know I'm consistent as the years go by.
 | You scored as Mad Man. You tend to ramble off the point of CSW from time to time, bu nobody minds it much. Possibly you enjoy getting a laugh by treating everyone to your ascerbic one-upmanship. In any event, you contribute to the witty badinage that is CSW.. constantly!
What CSW TYPE are you? created with QuizFarm.com |
12:06 PM
Not I
I stumbled across the following snippet on UbuWeb. Apparently Sam "Waiting for Godot" Beckett was interested in film at some point in his life and wrote this short film play in collaboration with Alan Schneider, who directed it.
data="http://ubu.wfmu.org/video/flash/flvplayer.swf?file=Beckett-Samuel-And-Scheider-Alain_Film_1965.flv&autostart=false">
Description:
Starring and Introduced by Billie Whitelaw
Not I takes place in a pitch black space illuminated only by a single beam of light. This light illuminates an actress's mouth. The mouth utters a monologue of fragmented, jumbled sentences which gradually coelesces into a narrative about a woman who has suffered an unpleasant experience. The title comes from the character's repeated insistence that the events she describes did not happen to her.
The stage directions also call for a character called 'the Auditor' who wears a black robe and can be dimly seen at the back of the stage, occasionally raising its hands in a gesture of impatience. When Beckett came to be involved in staging the play, he found that he was unable to place the Auditor in a stage position that pleased him, and consequently allowed the character to be omitted from those productions. However, he did not decide to cut the character from the published script, and whether or not the character is used in production seems to be at the discretion of individual producers. As he wrote to two American directors in 1986: "He is very difficult to stage (light--position) and may well be of more harm than good. For me the play needs him but I can do without him. I have never seen him function effectively."
From Wikipedia, "Not I"
I've been a fan of Samuel Beckett's literature work for many years, but this was a surprise for me. Interesting stuff, reminiscient of La Chien Andalou.
12:04 PM
I eat with Gusto, Damn,you Bet!
I downloaded some Jonathan Richman for the drive in today, in the wee dark hours. Thought I'd share:
Hello Everyone, it's time for poetry
I submit to you the following it's entitled:
"I Eat with Gusto, Damn! You Bet"
By one Jonathan Richman.
When I eat like I do it,
I use not fork nor spoon
No grace or culture to it
When I call my own tune.
For I eat with gusto, damn you bet
A regular canine cruncher
Except truth be told I'm sloppier yet
Than many a dog food muncher
I eat a pound I eat a ton
And no there ain't much I cuts up
And while I'm having merry fun
Bystanders puke their guts up.
The FBI sent someone by
Who handles health affairs
I had not finished my cream pie
When he chanced up the stairs
Why did he turn the other way?
Why did he leave so quick?
Will he come back another day?
Did something make him sick?
I eat with gusto damn you bet
A regular doggie diner
"No don't bring me napkins waiter sir,
Just bring some trash can liner."
Whilst wandering by a juice bar
I spyed a tempting beverage
Since I would have been last in line
I used my fearsome leverage
For in my pocket was some food
Which I took from the wrapper
The patrons watched it being chewed
And of course headed for the crapper.
For I eat with gusto damn you bet
For gusto I'm the boss
For yay my nose it is in the salad
And lo my chin it is in the sauce
I eat with gusto damn you bet
We're sailing around the cape
"Keel-haul him," said the Bosun
"There must be no escape."
One sunny day in Paris an elegant cafe
A phone call there a phone call here
And the gendarmes took me away
I said "qu'est-ce qui se passe ici"
I said " mais qu'est-ce que c'est"
They said "Such eating it is criminal
And crime it does not pay."
For I eat with gusto damn you bet.
My banner yay unfurled
My shirt is covered with mustard
And my hair with ketchup curled
Goodby to Egypt, Greece and Rome
The ancient world goodbye.
May squalor be my summer home
And filth be my neck tie.
For I eat with gusto damn you bet.
Uh, And Uh, I eat with gusto damn you bet
My country tis of thee
I eat for social progress
I eat for victory
Somebody died who watched me eat
In a restaurant one spell
He woke up and saw me eating beans
And knew that he'd gone to hell
For Uh, "He eats with gusto damn we bet."
They're calling from the south
They want to stop my gusto
They want to close my mouth
"You eat with gusto, yeah that's great
Now let us off this bus."
Wait a minute I haven't finished eating up stuff yet.
"We'll call you, don't call us."
Copyright, 1989, Jonathan Richman on "Jonathan Richman"
10:27 AM
Now that you mention it, it's a natural
(Click on Thumbnail to view "X-Nuts")
10:15 AM
Please
Don't submit answers via COMMENT function below. Comments aren't secret, and thus can be viewed by other players. The whole point of playing is to make a guess based on what you think the other player will answer. So, whomever just posted an impressive display of Napoleonic history knowledge in the previous post, I'm sorry, but I had to delete it so as not to blow the gaffe.
And one clarification via email:
Please define Italian Regiment - Do you mean, Kingdom of Italy, or does it include the Kingdom of Naples and the Foreign Regiments that served in the French Army i.e. the Tirailleurs du Po?
Kingdom of Italy, Kingdom of Naples, or any Italian Regiment allied in French Service.
Thanks!
Mister Nizz
1:56 PM
"B is for Bonaparte"
The Secret Letter is B.
The theme for Round 1 is the History of the Napoleonic Wars. For the sake of argument, we will set boundries of 1803-1815 for the time period (not exactly accurate, but close enough). Your answer must represent a subject from the Napoleonic Wars, specifically those events which transpired on the Eureopean continent, Russia and nearby parts of Africa during this time period. This round is geared towards land warfare only, as we might be visiting the Jolly Tars in future rounds.
Category 1: (easy) Name a battle from the time period
Category 2: (easy) Name a Coalition Leader from the time period
Category 3: (medium) Name a Civilian (non military) governmental leader from the time period
Category 4: (obvious) Name a Famous Woman from the period
Category 5: (stumper) Name of an Italian Regimental Commander
Category 6: (mega easy) Name of a French Marshall from the Marshallate.
Good luck! This is a classic Round 1 set, not too hard to answer with a little research. Perhaps one of the categories presents some difficlulty...
1:52 PM
BPD 3 starting up
Our third BPD game is Clio, named after the Muse of History. This is fitting, as the game will be themed after historical subjects. Each Round will change the historical subject, but, like past games of By Popular Demand, use the same basic BPD rule structure. For the sake of general rules haggling and argument ceasing, here is the basic rules to By Popular Demand, as written by Ryk Downes:
http://www.sholing.force9.co.uk/bypop.htm
For the unitiated, By Popular Demand (BPD) is a word-guessing game, similar to Scattegories.
This is a simple game for any number of players who may join in at any time. It normally runs over a number of turns predetermined by the GM (Me, Mister Nizz)
Signing Up
Simply put, as in any game I run through this blog, Clio is open to anyone who wishes to play, including regular readers of this blog as well as former players. Simply communicate your intentions to me via the section on Communicating with the GM.
Standard Game
Each turn the GM (me) lists 6 categories and an initial letter. All you have to do is find something that fits the category and begins with the initial letter; you will score points equal to the number of people who offer the same answer as you. The winner is the person with the most points at the end (after a predetermined number of turns). I always run a game for ten rounds.
Example: The initial letter is A and the category is "cities in Holland". 13 people give Amsterdam as their answer and score 13 points each, 6 people suggest Alkmaar and score 6 points each, 3 suggest Arnhem and score 3 points each.
Communicating with the GM
The idea is... send the message with your selections to the GM, don't post it in a public place for the world to see it (and copy it, therefore getting a higher score)
There are several ways to message me privately:
1) Tried and true email
2) If you are on Consimworld, you may use the little Instant Message dohickey at the bottom of every page (This is MY PROFILE there)
3) If you have Skype, I'm "misternizz" there. I check about once a day in the evening.
Schedules and missed turns
Rounds will last a working week or so (Mondayish to Fridayish), depending on people's schedules. If you miss a turn, don't sweat it. The scoring is variable enough to allow a come-from-behind victory. I won't be hardnosed about it if you get an answer in, oh, say, by midnight Friday.. unless I announce that I'm extending a deadline. I am pretty easy about turn deadlines, until it starts stretching into two weeks.
I will allow a little slack time at start to give the game a chance to fill. I don't think BPD is much fun unless we have at least 6 players, so that is my minimum to start.
3:59 PM
Turn your back for one... second
The little skeezix.. and I told him to stay away from the airplanes, too!
Later on, we had a dignified discussion where I encouraged Gar to take stock of his actions in lieu of the trouble he had caused.
2:51 PM
Mmmmmmmm that's tasty
And such good branding, too!
1:16 PM
Another one!
Biz buz baz - Part I (solution posted later)
The inhabitants of BZ-land have been cutoff from the rest of the world for generations and their culture has drifted. For example, although they write out numerals in the Arabic manner, when counting verbally to nine, they use “biz” for 5, “buz” for 7 and “baz” for 9. Even more confusing, for numbers above 9, their system requires “biz” to be said once for every time the digit 5 appears in the number, and also an additional “biz” for each time 5 is a divisor of that number. Similar rules exist for numbers that contain and/or are divisible by 7 (“buz”) & 9 (“baz”). Numbers that do not result in any biz-es, buz-es or baz-es merely retain their original name. Hence 10 is spoken “biz”, 27, “buz baz”, and 35 is “biz biz buz”. However, 31 is “thirty-one”. Also, due to their simplicity and isolation, the BZ-landers have no need for numbers greater than 5000 ( “biz biz biz biz biz” ). To them, after that there is just “many”.
One consequence of this system is that verbal counting numbers are not always unique; hence math operations that can be done on paper are hard to interpret out loud. Can you answer the following? Analytical solutions preferred, if they exist. (Full disclosure: the author created the questions and found all answers by creating a list, but believes that some or all of the questions can be answered with analysis, logic and insight).
1) Once you reach the sixth “biz biz biz”, what is the largest number of consecutive numbers that are named by their conventional (English) names before you reach the seventh “biz biz biz”?
2) What is the smallest value that is correctly represented by “biz buz baz”?
3) Is there such a number as “biz biz buz buz baz baz”?
4) Is there such a number as “biz biz biz buz buz baz”?
5) Can you find a sequence of three numbers, n, n+1, n+2 where n=biz, n+1=buz & n+2=baz?
borrowed from one of my favorite logic/mathematics/puzzle sites, Perplexus.info! Don't peek!
12:05 PM
A rather nice freebie for Arkham Horror
A website called "Free Pie Coupon" has started hosting a rather innovative "Online Arkham Location deck" which can also be downloaded or played in a smaller size to fit on your screen.
Fun and informative, but not as helpful as I would have liked. You can't really do deck management with it, which would be useful. YOu would still have to check your hands on paper off screen. Still, nice effort and nice to look at!
4:31 PM
What's that I smell??
It's another crop of projects from the SciFi Network! Peee-YEW!
Actually, I shouldn't be so disparaging, but this is the network that brings us live wrestling and movies about mutated farm animals, so any ray of hope is a good one!
AS REPORTED IN SCI-FI WIRE (copyright, 2007, Sci-Fi.com), and commented by me:
(Crapometer scale: 1="Smells like a daisy" to 10="Fertilizer")
Clooney, Others Develop SCI FI Shows
SCI FI Channel unveiled a new slate of programs in development, which includes shows from executive producers George Clooney, Darren Star and Mark Burnett. SCI FI made the announcement Jan. 12 at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour in Pasadena, Calif.
Diamond Age, based on Neal Stephenson's best-selling novel The Diamond Age: Or a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, is a six-hour miniseries from Clooney and fellow executive producer Grant Heslov of Smokehouse Productions.
When a prominent member of society concludes that the futuristic civilization in which he lives is stifling creativity, he commissions an interactive book for his daughter that serves as a guide through a surreal alternate world. Stephenson will adapt his novel for the miniseries, the first time the Hugo and Nebula award winner has written for TV.
Crapometer Score: 2. Clooney has attached his name to some great projects and has proven himself to be an actor of no little talent. The source material is aces; this is the same Neil Stephenson that brought us Snow Crash and the first envisioning of Virtual Worlds after Neuromancer. On the other hand, he was all over the slow, ponderous and very odd remake of SOLARIS (that didn't need to be done in the first place, as the first version was head and shoulders better). So, perhaps, Science Fiction, in particular Victorian style, may not be George's forte. Still, it's the best of the batch.
Also in development:
Avery House, produced by Burnett and Tagline Entertainment's Kelly Kulchak and Ron West and written by Dava Savel. The series deals with a bed and breakfast in which the innermost thoughts of both guests and owners miraculously come to life.
Crapometer Score: 6. Sounds like a lame and familiar premise to me. Wasn't there a Night Gallery episode similar to this?
Untitled Darren Star/Mike Werb Project, a 90-minute action show from Sex and the City's Star and writer Werb. The show centers on four convicts who are given new identities and technologically enhanced bodies to join a covert wing of the government on a mission to battle threats from science run amok.
Crapometer Score: 8. Darren Starr. Come on, how many times has a variant of this plot line been done? Well, never by the creator of SEX AND THE CITY, you say? And that's good.. how?
Revolution, from creators Ed Redlich (Without a Trace) and John Bellucci, is about a group of pioneers on a remote space colony who find themselves under siege by their homeland, Earth.
Crapometer Score: 3. Good premise, I hope it borrows heavily from THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS, which it should... but it probably won't. Sigh. 3 just for being on the SF network these days.. Unfair, I know, but recent projects have proved me right.
Middletown, from writers Coke Sams and Matt Lindahl, is a two-hour pilot about a small town in Middle America that becomes the final battlefield for Earth when nefarious aliens make the town their Ellis Island.
Crapometer Score: 8. Sniff Sniff... what is that?? Oh, yeah, that Alien Invasion movie they made LAST YEAR with a very similar premise. Even Bruce Campbell couldn't make that turd flush.
Johnny Midnight, from writer John Sullivan and executive producer Howard Deutch (The Replacements), is a two-hour pilot about a slacker who discovers that he has powers that can save the world from malevolent forces.
Crapometer Score: 5. Hey, I know!! Let's call it.. HERO! I love it!!
Starcrossed, from executive producers Jane Loughman and John G. Lenic, is a half-hour comedy behind the scenes of a long-running space opera, with the pilot written by David Hewlett (Stargate Atlantis).
Crapometer Score: 3. IF (and only IF) this is a reference to the famous long-running space opera comic/stage play by Mike Kaluta, this could be an amazing project. Otherwise, I'd need to know a lot more about it to develop enthusiasm.
Witch School is a "docusoap" about a school for aspiring conjurers.
Crapometer Score: 9. Uh huh. Precocious teens with amazing powers in a high school setting. It's NEVER been done before!!
12:55 PM
Finger Lickin' GOOD!
4:27 PM
Elvis Meets Nixon
Elvis-Nixon meeting has fans shook up
By GILLIAN FLACCUS, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 41 minutes ago
YORBA LINDA, Calif. - The meeting between two of the most improbable cultural icons of the 1970s lasted all of 30 minutes, but it has fascinated the nation for years.
A photo of a cloaked and bejeweled Elvis Presley solemnly shaking hands with a grim-faced President Nixon remains the No. 1 requested document from the National Archives, nearly four decades after the secret meeting took place on Dec. 21, 1970. Now, on what would be the King's 72nd birthday.
Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Birthplace is giving the curious public a good, long look at the relics of the coming together of The King and The President — and it's got Elvis fans all shook up.
The free exhibit Monday includes the outfit Elvis wore (a black velvet overcoat, a gold-plated belt and black leather boots); Nixon's outfit (a gray woolen suit, tie and size 11 1/2 black shoes); letters; and a World War II .45-caliber Colt revolver that Elvis gave to Nixon.
"The two of them together somehow is almost incomprehensible," said Bud Krogh, Nixon's former deputy counsel who set up the impromptu meeting that day 36 years ago. "The king of rock and the president of the United States shaking hands in the Oval Office doesn't compute for a lot of people."
The chain of events that led to the meeting began when a stretch limousine carrying Elvis pulled up outside the White House. One of his guards handed over a letter from Elvis addressed to Nixon requesting a meeting to discuss how the rock star could help Nixon fight drugs — including getting credentials as a "federal agent at large."
"I will be here as long as it takes to get the credentials of a Federal Agent," Elvis wrote. "I have done an in-depth study of drug abuse and Communist brainwashing techniques and I am right in the middle of the whole thing where I can and will do the most good."
The Secret Service agents alerted Krogh. A self-confessed Elvis fan, Krogh met with Elvis, decided he was sincere and scrambled to get him into a noon meeting with Nixon.
About 2 1/2 hours later, Elvis walked into the Oval Office wearing his flamboyant outfit, as well as sunglasses and two huge medallions. But when Elvis entered the Oval Office, Krogh recalls, he froze.
"I think he was just awed by where he found himself. I ended up having to help him walk across over to the president's desk," he said.
Elvis and Nixon talked for about 30 minutes, during which Elvis showed Nixon pictures of his daughter and a pair of cufflinks given to him by Spiro Agnew. He also showed Nixon police badges from around the country and asked again for a badge from the U.S. Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.
Nixon agreed to give him the badge — but only after learning that the chief of the narcotics bureau had turned down the same request earlier that day and told him the only person who could overrule his decision was the president.
"Oh man, we were set up! But it was fun," said Krogh. "He said all the right words about trying to do the right thing and I took him at his word, but I think he clearly wanted to get a badge and he knew the only way he was going to get it."
At Elvis' request, the meeting remained secret for more than a year — until The Washington Post broke the story on Jan. 27, 1972.
Since then, the Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace has more than made up for Elvis' ruse: T-shirts, cups, notepads and watches bearing the famous black-and-white photo remain the top-selling items at the museum's gift shop.
"We've known for years that that photograph is an icon image," said Sandy Quinn, the museum's assistant director. "It is The President and The King."
3:57 PM
We're not quite this bad...
Close, perhaps. Brian Barling's cartoon on the geek today was a knee-slapper..
Click to Enlarge.
Copyright, 2007 Brian Barling. All Rights reserved.
2:38 PM
Congrats to Ron Wuerth
Ron pretty much aced this, I think.. I have to check.
Here's the long, drawn out answer (thanks to PERPLEXUS.INFO for providing the puzzle and solution)
Solution:
8 4 6 | 9 2 7 | 5 3 1
1 7 2 | 6 5 3 | 4 8 9
9 3 5 | 4 8 1 | 7 2 6
- - - - - - - - - - - -
6 9 3 | 1 7 5 | 2 4 8
5 2 7 | 8 4 9 | 1 6 3
4 8 1 | 2 3 6 | 9 5 7
- - - - - - - - - - - -
2 1 9 | 5 6 8 | 3 7 4
7 6 4 | 3 1 2 | 8 9 5
3 5 8 | 7 9 4 | 6 1 2
12:07 PM
Pop-Top!
More deaths in the Iraqi "Justice" show over the weekend. Barzan al-Tikriti, Saddam's half brother and Awad Hamad al-Bandar, a judge under the Hussein regime, took the long jump over the weekend. Tikriti's death was particularly gruesome:
One of those present, public prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi, told the BBC that when the trap door opened, he could only see the rope dangling.
"I thought the convict Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti had escaped the noose. I shouted that he's escaped the noose, go down and look for him. I went down a few steps ahead of the others to see: I found out that his head had separated from his body."
(source: BBC, copyright 2007 -- FULL STORY)
Unlike the case of Saddam, where I was somewhat ambivelant about execution, I really was repelled at this event. As I've posted many times, I remain a staunch opponent of capital punishment (not just here in the states, but elsewhere). Here in the states, there are a few states left that allow hanging as a means of execution. The concept behind hanging is that the massive jolt to your spinal column snaps it, causing instant death. Alas, that's only if the knot has been tied by a reasonably experienced hangman. There have been far too many instances where the intended victim has slowly twisted at the end of a rope, gradually suffocating. Or in a case where the victim is too heavy or has dropped too far and too fast, having his head pulled right off of his body, as was the case here-- Tikriti doesn't look very overweight in that photo.
Iraq is a sovereign nation and the justice system is still going through birthing pains, but I hope it isn't going down the path of vengeance. The hangings over the weekend do not inspire confidence.
11:49 AM
Various Games posted here
Nanofic: I don't feel like killing this, and have found the requisite files on the requisite datastick to resurrect. Need to have some idea of what everyone's last turn was, however. Contact me, Otto, JR, Allan and Jason.
(apologies for the stall-- my day job is a bitch...)
BPD: A new game starts this week! The categories will be historical subjects! Email me at hussar (at) hotmail (dot) com if you have an interest.
Zendo: Do you have the Buddha nature? I'm think of starting a relaxed session of this excellent logic game by Looney Labs shortly. I've discovered a great new PBW site called SUPERDUPERGAMES that runs versions of Zendo using the classic pyramids, but also with numbers and words. I prefer the pyramids, myself. I'm not sure if a game could be started on there and just run by me, the other people interested in playing may need to register, too. Realistically three weeks to a month out, as I need to play a game on their site to see how it works. Zendo is entirely dependent on how rigorous the demands of COLD WARS are, however.
References:
http://superdupergames.org/ (website)
http://wiki.superdupergames.org/games/zen (SD's Zendo Wikki, with their house rules)
http://www.wunderland.com/icehouse/Zendo/ (Zendo Home page)
http://www.wunderland.com/WTS/Kory/Games/Zendo/HowToPlay.html (Original Zendo Rules by LL)
http://www.sholing.force9.co.uk/bypop.htm (*BPD RULES*)
http://mrnizz.blogspot.com/2006/10/nanofictionary-by-email.html (NanoFIC via PBeM)
10:33 AM
Hey Kids, Click to make your own Jedi Master by Origami!
Note Bene: the Instructions are not in English, but they are easy to follow.
4:29 PM
Speaking of which, Allen Varney weighs in
I've plugged the ESCAPIST on this blog many times, and Allen Varney (as my favorite correspondent) at least a few times. In the most recent issue, Allen weighs in on a topic of interest to me, rendering 3D imagery so we appear to be viewing a 3D world on a 2D screen:
Every "three-dimensional" game you play is a pussy. On your flatscreen TV or monitor, your so-called 3-D game presents nothing but an illusion of depth, a sleight, a fake. When will we get computer gaming in three real, no-kidding spatial dimensions?
Allen Varney, "Will Computer Games Ever Truly Breach the Third Dimension?", Escapist Issue 79
As I hinted at earlier, I don't consider what we are looking when we gaze into a VRML style world to be "three dee" with a capital 3. At best, it's a visual art form that cunningly represents the image of depth for 2D or flatscreen viewers. It would take a revolution in computing to have the true three dimensional technology suggested by "cyberpunk" genre fiction. Allen discusses what steps have been made in this direction, which are still somewhat rudimentary, and arrives at a similar conclusion to what I did; stick with 2D until the new tech is easily affordable, and that may be never.
This is an interesting column, which I'm used to from Allen, and a nice survey of TRUE 3D tech.
2:34 PM
Not as unique as I thought I was
9:40 AM
Astonishing Imagery of Mars Surface
I just noticed this over at the New Scientist Space news feed. Text abstract is copyright New Scientist Space 2007, Full article referenced HERE
Probe's powerful camera spots Vikings on Mars
12:29 05 December 2006
NewScientist.com news service
David Chandler
After three decades lost on the Red Planet, Viking 2's backshell is spotted from space (Image: NASA) It is a feat millions of times more impressive than finding a needle in a haystack. The new Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has spotted about a dozen spacecraft on the Martian surface and, incredibly, taken pictures of such sharpness that scientists have been able to identify individual rocks that were first photographed by the Viking landers in 1976.
The new series of pictures released late on Monday show both of the Viking landers, never spotted from orbit before, as well as their nearby heat shields and backshells. These are the top and bottom covers of the capsules in which the rovers decended through the Martian atmosphere to land.
The MRO has also found the Mars rover Spirit , the pyramid-shaped structure in which it landed, its backshell and parachute. The satellite probe had already found the rover Opportunity and its landing structure, sending back images within its first week of operations in October 2006.
That's pretty astonishing stuff, isn't it? I was aware that the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on the MRO had the best optics that had ever flown into Martian orbit; it takes a picture like this to illustrate how powerful they are! The MRO is easily discerning objects that are roughly the size of a kite. I suspect that NASA released these pictures for the PR benefits, but doesn't diminish the achievement. It's kind of nice to see that old space junk lying around after 20 years, like it will in 100 years, and in 1000 years, and 1,000,000 years...
11:04 AM
7:18 AM
Our comprehensive plan for supporting the troops in Iraq
6:36 AM
The World is what you Make it
Images: Mouseover for caption, click to enlarge
I reported on my first steps in SECOND LIFE recently. I was pretty impressed in general and still am. The virtual worlds concept itself, first hinted at in postmodern science fiction novels NEUROMANCER and SNOW CRASH, is still pretty mind-boggling to envision. Until recent years, I would have relegated the notion to another poorly written Science Fiction plotline-- the kind of second-rate rehash of NEUROMANCER that plagued the genre for a decade after that book's release. Second Life and other Virtual Worlds have undeniably demonstrated that technology has advanced to the point where we can interact with a 2D representation of a 3D world on our home computers.
Accessing a world where almost anything you can envision can be created is a heady concept. Barsoom, Middle Earth, Victorian Science Fiction.. they're all in there, in various degrees. One of my personal favorites is a virtual 'place' called "Caledon", which punctiliously recreates a genteel Victorian world with heavy gothic and VSF subthemes, a place where a man can kiss a lady's hand, bow, make outrageous, flowery compliments to the female company and retire for port and cigars, b'Gad! (that's your intrepid reporter dancing at the Caledon Winter Ball, top right) This modern REAL world being a poor reflection of our real world's genteel past, it's amusing that we can recreate bygone days as a fantasy, although it feels a tad bittersweet. 
Of course, there's a flip side to all this fantasy, as you may well imagine. There are plenty of "sims" (lands rented to create a theme based reality, not the popular computer game) that are not so pleasant or PG13 rated as the ones I have mentioned. Every tawdry aspect of the human mind can be played out in Second Life, after a fashion. I was astounded at the amount of "Gorean" sims based upon the work of the late John Norman, for instance-- but then again, should I really be this naive? "Virtuality" is the ultimate safe environment. There's no injury, no disease, no consequences. Developments such as these are bound to happen in an open environment. Give the kids a big enough sandbox, and the inevitable results. 
One hopes that the boundaries between the more mature content and impressionable minds are more rigorous than clicking "I certify I am over 18" in a box somewhere-- though I can't imagine a young man connecting to second life for a porn fix when the real stuff is so abundantly available elsewhere (I wish that was a joke!). With all the pitfalls that lurk within a virtual world, one quickly learns how to navigate between the tawdry and the worthwhile. An entire lexicon has been built up around the tension between the folks who are trying to have a good time and the folks that wish to intrude with their own sick notions. For instance, an avatar (usually male) that persistently bothers a female avatar is a "Griefer".. and griefers are fair game for abuse in turn. Fortunately, the griefers tend to cluster (remember that phrase from last time?) in areas where female avatars will respond to them.The virtual world can be highly seductive, since it promises much. What it can actually deliver is a shadow play of reality. It would be best to remember that-- beware the landmines of the Id and libido.
11:02 AM
Version 1.1 Released
My IGA colleague, Allan Poulter, runs Web-Grognards. This is a fact which would come as a surprise to none of you if you are a fan of board wargaming. Every year Alan does is thing to support the vetting process for the Iggy Awards, and that's to compile the list actual published wargames in a given year. The process of narrowing down the list for the Iggy consideration may prove interesting for people who are curious about the processes involved. This version, 1.1, probably represents the start of the winnowing down process rather than the end of it. Games like Battle Lore (fantasy! eek!) or Storm of Swords (more fantasy! eeek) or DG's Battlestations (miniatures! eek!) or Blue Guidon's SS Abyss (reprints! Eeek!) have caused arguments in the past. So expect the list to narrow a bit more before the final IGA candidate list is published.
http://grognard.com/info1/game06.html
1:43 PM
First Joe Barbara and now this...
From BBC Online:
Iwao Takamoto, the US animator who created cartoon dogs Scooby-Doo and Muttley, has died aged 81.
He was responsible for characters from The Flintstones and The Jetsons when he worked for the Hanna-Barbera studio.
And he assisted in the design of films including Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians and Cinderella, during a career spanning more than six decades.
Mr Takamoto was a vice-president at Warner Bros Animation at the time of his death, caused by heart failure.
He said he created Scooby-Doo after talking to someone who looked after Great Danes.
Informal training
The dog breeder showed him pictures and "talked about the important points of a Great Dane, like a straight back, straight legs, small chin and such", Mr Takamoto explained.
"I decided to go the opposite [way] and gave him a hump back, bowed legs, big chin and such. Even his colour is wrong."
Mr Takamoto also created Fred, Velma, Shaggy and Daphne
The character was named after a scat-style phrase at the end of Frank Sinatra's song Strangers in the Night, which contained the phrase "dooby-doo".
Mr Takamoto - who also co-directed the 1973 film Charlotte's Web - was born in Los Angeles in 1925.
He received informal training in illustration techniques from fellow Japanese-Americans in a prison camp, where he spent part of World War II.
His death occurred less than a month after that of Hanna-Barbera co-founder Joseph Barbera, who was 95.
Mr Barbera's business partner, William Hanna, died in 2001.
9:28 AM
Caveat Emptor and Read the #@$*!% label..
The current issue January 2007 talks about AIRBORNE cold relief medicine in an article called "AIRBORNE BALONEY". The reporter did an investigation into the effectiveness of the claims that AIRBORNE prevents colds. He got tipped off by the wording on the package ("take at the first symptom of a cold..")
Turns out that the company that makes Airborne is called Knight-McDowell Labs. Knight is a schoolteacher and McDowell is a scriptwriter (a fact that they reveal on their website in an effort to turn a negative into a positive, marketing wise). It also turns out that the group that conducted a pharmaceutical 'study" on the product in 2003 was GNG Pharmaceutical services, a two-man team which it appears was set up just to conduct the study,and didn't contain anyone who appeared to be certified, much less competent, to conduct said trials. The author then consulted a board-certified US Air Force flight surgeon and famiily physician with a strong backgrouond in homeopathy. The physician checked the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database; There was very little in the ingredients of AIRBORNE, beyond Vitamin C, that could be considered effective in fighting colds. Furthermore, each tablet of AIRBORNE contains 5000 units of Vitamin A, which is said to be harmful in doses over 10000 units. All well and good until you realize the folks at AIRBORNE are asking you to take five pills a day!I've got no objections to homeopathy. I think there's sufficient evidence that homeopathic meds have beneficial effects. And I applaud the efforts of groups like the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database to classify the effects of homeopathic meds and their benefits and risks.
What's important, no critical, is for the industry to be responsible about dosage levels and combination effects with more traditional meds. I was a bit hacked off to read that "Knight-McDowell Labs" were prescribing 25000 units of Vitamin A (which is a toxic at large dosage levels that can really f*ck up your liver).
This little snippet caught my interest because it illustrates how it's so easy to pick up something that could be potentially harmful with the correct sexy packaging.
Feynman's first Principle: "The first principle is that you must not fool yourself—and you are the easiest person to fool."
1:48 PM
Check out IFC's response to TMC's UNDERGROUND series..
Bubba Ho-Tep
Jan. 5 at midnight ET
Bruce Campbell plays Elvis, who, it turns out, is not dead but has been living out his embittered days in a Texas nursing home until he finds a new reason to live – fighting an evil mummy.
Coffin Joe: At Midnight I'll Take Your Soul
Jan. 12 at midnight ET
The first of the Coffin Joe films introduces the titlular top hat-sporting Brazilian horror icon, a sadistic undertaker obsessed with finding the "ideal" woman to bear his child.
Coffin Joe: This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse
Jan. 19 at midnight ET
Joe, with the help of crazed assitant Bruno, continues to search for a woman "immune" to terror, testing potential fiances by planting tarantulas on them.
Coffin Joe: Awakening of the Beast
Jan. 26 at midnight ET
Four drug addicts are chosen from out of a debaucherous group to take part in an LSD experiment – but are they under the influence of LSD or Coffin Joe?
Click on the banner ad to hyperlink there...
3:37 PM
Virtual World Madness
After hearing a short report about Virtual Worlds on NPR (This American Life, I think), I decided to check out the much touted SECOND LIFE virtual world system by Linden Labs, since it's free. Well, most of them are free, come to think on it, but they were pimping this one heavily, so that was where I went first.
What impressed me was that outside world (what the Second Life community calls "First Life") entities are starting to wake up to the real world profit potential of the booming virtual economy that is for-real taking place in virtual space. Corey Doctrow recently gave a lecture there (not for profit; he's too cool for that-- but that's the subject of another posting). Circuit City has opened up a virtual Outlet in Second Life. Some Asian guy is now a real world millionaire based upon money made in virtual space on Second Life. That sounded intriguing to me. So I downloaded the client (for free), set up a Basic Account (for free), and 'jacked in'.What's it like?
Pretty amazing. For one thing, you, the user, are in control of your own destiny. There is no "game" there, no end-game strategy, no rules (beyond the obvious ones dictated by group dynamics and the limits of technology). You're not "playing" anything in Second Life. You just exist. And you can be almost anything you want to be, within the limits of technology. Want to fly around on Angel or Demon wings? You can, very easily. Want to dress like a cowboy? A hobo? A Koala Bear? Anything you can envision, it can be done. You can edit your respresentation in Second Life, called an Avatar, to look like pretty much anything you like.
Two things amaze me about Second Life... the clustering effect, where all the avatars come together to socialize and interact together (2L is not an environment for loners). The virtual environment has the same mores, foibles, gaffes and pitfalls as the "Meatworld". I found myself just as shy and unobtrusive in Second Life as I am in real life.. ain't that a bitch? The other element that is astonishing is the breadth of the virtual economies floating around 2L. It's free, sure... but much of what you might want to have for day to day use comes with a cost.. people create things that are useful and then they have the option of selling them. And sell them they do, all over the place in virtually every little subsection of the vast virtual world (called the Grid in 2L parlance). You can just guess what element of our nature this kind of economy might pander too, if you think on it for a second. Virtual Guns, lap dances, even genitalia, are all "extras"...Now, much of 2L is free, don't get me wrong. There are even groups within the world that celebrate a possesionless lifestyle by making stuff and giving it away. You might, if you decide to try this out and visit, find me in there, as "Hotspur", living among a tribe of the virtual anarchists, called "The Hobos". My Top Hat with feathers, hornrim glasses, and bicycle zeppelin built out of rags is distintive and (dare I say it) eye catching. Drop on by and say hello. My "Avatar" is always travelling, but the Hobos are my home. One of my favorite things to do is to take my "extraction belt", fly up to 5000 feet, and deploy a parachute, drifting along for miles and miles and ending up... somewhere, in this vast virtual landscape. I'm not sure what the future holds for this technology, nor am I clever enough to become a virtual millionaire, but for the nonce, this thing is great fun and as addictive as black tar heroin....
3:33 PM
Wowsa! A neat step in the direction of wargaming by Z-Man
Z-Man games is about to release a game on one of my favorite subjects, the bomber campaign in WW2. Not much is known except some snapshots of the prototype. Man, I hope it plays as nice as the components seem to look:
12:21 PM
Replay, Russo-Polish War Project, Four Man Battle Part One
As I've mentioned on this blog before, I'm working on building up a revolutionary Red army for RCW and Russo-Polish War games. We are using 20mm soldiers, mostly plastics but some IT figures and FAA as well. My friend John Kuprowski is working diligently on building up a Polish army from this period and the Markley brothers (David and Bruce) have been cajoled into building some Interventionist forces, so that will probably be the next phase of this project.
Last time John and I tried RED ACTIONS, we ended up a tad confused but we definitely found it playable. We decided to give RA another try with a slightly more realistic terrain set and four players. The resulting battle was chaotic, hugely diverting and tons of fun. Red Actions is definitely beginning to grow on me.
I forgot to pick up AA batteries for my camera, so had to resort taking these pictures with my dinky 1.3 megapixel camera on my Palm Pilot. They are not the greatest. I have adjusted the color somewhat and brightened them here and there, but also will include this handy map and key so the amorphous blobs in the pictures make a little more sense.
Map
I see that Blogger has cut the right side of that map image off a bit, so you can click on this thumbnail to see the big kahuna.
To Conserve space and bandwidth, I've put the disposition of the forces pictures in slideshows. Someone commented that this reminds them of Ken Burns' Civil War, so hum along to the tune of Ashokan Farewell when you view these, if it makes you feel good.
The Red Army side, run by Walt on the left and Bruce on the right:
The Polish Army side, run by Dave on the right and John on the left:
How one keeps track of activations when you are too lazy to cut out cards
John won the initiative and started the Polish center moving forward, and prolonging his artillery piece. I countered by advancing my Naval Infantry to the edge of the Corn Field.
Deploying in skirmish order... John fires his artillery piece, sending my stalwart Naval Infantry falling back. A simple "retire" result
The Haller Legion (H2) advances! I had misread this one based on the terrain. I had expected them to shove their best up the center so had placed MY best (the naval inf or N1 and N2 on the map) there. We're not so lucky. This is going to be a battle with a strong right flanking action by the Poles. In response to the Hallers, I lead one of my best units, the Konarmiya cavalary, out to meet them head on. This would prove to be a mistake. Dave saw the advantage of my unit "moving, in open" for his fire modifiers and shot one of his mortars at me. I got a couple of terror markers and a PIN for my troubles.
I counterfired a mortar back at him and gave his mortar stand a terror marker all its own. Since fire resolution in Red Actions states that if you get one more terror marker than you have stands in the unit, your unit flees off the table, all it will take will be another hit on the mortar to make it bunker off. I'm tempted!
So Dave counters by bringing up more Haller Infantry (H1) and opening up on my poor exposed Konarmiya cavalry (KA2 on the map). I get another terror marker. Not something to panic about quite yet, really, as I haven't lost any stands, but I do feel as if I should try to rally from Terror next turn. Instead, I get convinced to take another pot shot at the mortar, which earns it another terror marker, destroying the stand. I try to move the Conscripts (CN1) up to cover the Konarmiya, but they will get hit with a mortar shell, causing a Retire result.
John responds by taking a pot shot at my artillery stand and though it isn't a DIRECT HIT (which is pretty devastating, it does effectively cause the crew to bunker off. This would be a good time to ask if Red Actions mentions anything about re-crewing a gun after the crew splits? We couldn't find anything on it. This pretty much sucks for me. Artillery was the big killer in the first game John and I played, and it was my most expensive single unit.
Dave gets cocky and moves out the Haller unit H3 in advance. My regulars shoulder past the conscripts with contempt and move up to the treeline to engage these guys. As you can barely make out in this picture, the regulars (RR1) have leapfrogged past the Conscripts (CN1) who had the retire result last time.
All the action was NOT on the left, by any means! Bruce moves the MG stand up to take post in one of the huts, and sprays the Polish Regular (Red Hat or PR) unit with fire. He gets a retire result. John fires on Bruce's Naval Infantry (NI2), causing it to fall back just like mine (NI1) did. Our NI is in the wheat fields, but the only benefit that gives is that we aren't "Moving, in the Open" as targets.
At some point, I did a rally from terror (but not pin) for KA2, succesfully. I saw the opportunity from Dave moving H3 out in the open like this, and decide to cavalry charge him with KA2, having to pass a morale check twice (one time to remove the pin, one time to steel our nerves to do the deed). Fortunately the Konarmiya are a pretty motivated unit of Reds. They charge in! The effect is pretty serious. Haller Unit 3 (H3) gets a thorough spanking in the melee, and retires with terror markers. I could certainly do better..
It's not all beer and skittles on the Right and Center flanks, either. John has regrouped his Polish Regulars (red hats or PR) and is moving them forward. Both Bruce and I move our Naval infantry through the wheat and blast away at them. This time THEY are moving in the open, and see how you like it! We provide some vigorous exercise for the Polish regulars, who get a fair sprinkling of Terror markers.
As for the Left Flank, I'm going Cavalry Charge crazy... I eyeball the distance to Haller unit 1 and decide to risk it. We can juuust make it, and the charge goes home. THIS charge would be devastating, causing H1 to literally cease to exist. I take two prisoners! Urrrah! For the Rodina!!!!
I know Dave's not going to stand for this, and he does what I would have tried to do: charge right back with the Poles, and pepper me with Infantry fire. The infantry fire from H2 is desultory and ineffective, but the charge from PC1 is succesful. I retreat, with 1 terror marker, leaving the prisoners behind.
At the end of all that melee and firing, this was the left flank. I'm not in a bad position, but it could be better... I'm a tad exposed so I bring the conscripts (CN) around in a left wheel to protect the extreme left, and bring the regulars (RR) through the woods to cover the retreat of KA2 if neccesary.
In the center, the PR polish regulars are still out in the field, and the somewhat pristine Naval Infantry (two units of them) are in great shape.
On the right flank, Bruce is hardly touched. His best troops on that flank, the Regulars, have hardly been under fire, and the Conscripts behave reasonably well. The Cossacks have done wonders for their size, though they have a few terror markers.
And that's where we ended PART ONE of this battle. We enjoyed ourselves immensely, so much so that we are going to complete the battle with a PART TWO sometime in the next week or two. So stand by! Hopefully the pictures will not be quite so murky for the next battle report.
