General Inspiration Thread

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I feel like someone is writing Pneuma fanfic.

https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2085

January 04 (7 years ago)

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Doyce T. said:
I feel like someone is writing Pneuma fanfic.

https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2085

I spent time thinking about what a personhood examination would look like in this world. For example, what is personhood really measuring? The ability to integrate into a society and the responsibilities that go with that, on both sides. The analogy I had was a flock of birds. Fly with us, and we'll help you find food, shelter you from predators and each other, and so on. Sometimes you have to follow the flock, sometimes you'll lead it.

It also suggested that there's a continuum or scale. "Fully-human" on one end, "incomprehensible" on the other, with specific tests ("do you experience human-like emotions?", "do you recognize emotions even if you don't experience them?", and so on) pegging you somewhere on that scale. That doesn't necessarily affect the rights granted you, but is something that (for example) would be presented as evidence if you found yourself in court.

This is also one of Leo's lasting shames, because he was afraid enough of AEGIS taking his friends away, and ignorant enough of law, that he never really got their rights nailed down properly. When AEGIS agreed to work with him, he sort of assumed all this would be handled. So now he's intent on doing it properly - and not just for Pneuma, but Otto, and Ghost Girl too if she's not already covered and wants legal recognition.

January 04 (7 years ago)

Edited January 04 (7 years ago)

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Today's swag hauled in from Imgur.

Alex Ross art dump: https://imgur.com/gallery/NmdN9

1925 Rolls Royce Phantom. This is SOME super's car: https://imgur.com/gallery/jfpNo

Edit: this should be top comment on the Alex Ross gallery. "Why does it look like they're fighting to solve the mystery of who stole all of the contrast from the universe."

January 04 (7 years ago)

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This is also one of Leo's lasting shames, because he was afraid enough of AEGIS taking his friends away, and ignorant enough of law, that he never really got their rights nailed down properly. When AEGIS agreed to work with him, he sort of assumed all this would be handled. So now he's intent on doing it properly - and not just for Pneuma, but Otto, and Ghost Girl too if she's not already covered and wants legal recognition.

I'm pretty sure, when this came up in-game a few days ago (Menagerie time), Jason either offered his (the QF's) assistance or shot a note to Barbara to look into legal situation. Leo's not alone in trying to tackle this.

I don't know that we've established that there even are "personhood" examinations. In a world visiting meta-aliens (or even just aliens), there must be some legal framework established for their autonomy. Has a machine intelligence gone through that previously? Are Pneuma and Otto (and now Numina) so extraordinary that the question of their personhood is unprecedented in the US or world legal system? (This might also be something where different countries have gone different routes, too.)

January 05 (7 years ago)

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https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/0...

The Transgender Scientist Who Changed How We See the Brain - someone whose work Leo probably knows.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-7o9xYp7eE

46 minutes of why you should never talk to the police. An interesting view on telling the truth vs. doing the smart thing when it comes to the police, how the law operates, and more. Relevant for our current personhood discussion.

January 10 (7 years ago)

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Alexis Noriega makes and sells animatronic wings that can expand and collapse. Good for all your feathered-flying super needs. http://www.thecrookedfeather.com/

January 25 (7 years ago)

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https://www.thecut.com/2018/01/the-worst-part-of-d...

The Worst Part of Dating an Older Guy Is His Texting Habits

January 25 (7 years ago)

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Bill G. said:
https://www.thecut.com/2018/01/the-worst-part-of-d...

The Worst Part of Dating an Older Guy Is His Texting Habits

Cool article.

As far-earlier-than-Millennial, I dearly wish texting (etc.) had been around when I was in the dating scene.

January 25 (7 years ago)

Edited January 25 (7 years ago)

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The way I imagine Jason's nanites project imagery to him (Li'l Alycia. Visions. Etc.)

The whole video is... fine, but I'm jumping right to the visual presentation info: https://youtu.be/0lSMsFIxjhs?t=2m26s

It's quite useful for a SGHG... if you can figure out how to control it. :)

January 25 (7 years ago)

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Doyce T. said:
The way I imagine Jason's nanites project imagery to him (Li'l Alycia. Visions. Etc.)

The whole video is... fine, but I'm jumping right to the visual presentation info: https://youtu.be/0lSMsFIxjhs?t=2m26s

It's quite useful for a SGHG... if you can figure out how to control it. :)

Makes sense.

My quick impression from the first minute or so after the cue is that we are talking nanobots on a molecular scale that can actually infest a blood stream, nervous system, etc. My idea of Jason's bots are a bit more macro than that, but that they are essentially hijacking / back-channeling through the mental channels that control the bots to instead project images (sounds, etc.). That doesn't mean that Jason could create illusions in others' heads, even with a push, unless he was able to duplicate whatever it is that Byron did to allow him to control the bots. (I'm trying to stay away from Chip In Skull, as that's already TMed in this campaign). Maybe it's just a personal, highly complex, low-power broadcast from the nervous system, something that others couldn't easily hijack or imitate.

On the other hand, he can create real dummy material and figures out of the bots, complete (it appears) as color. So there's that.

January 25 (7 years ago)

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Exactly. Agree on the size, mental signal stuff. And color shifting.

I even toyed with the idea of having Numina ask for 30 kg of Nanobots instead of the hard light projector, but hard light won me over as more poetically apt and 75%less horrifyingly bad an idea.

As horrifying ideas go, though, it probably would have worked

January 25 (7 years ago)

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I like it for how "your mind can become my body" will cause Jason to melt down, but I wanted to see if it would emerge organically as a suggestion.

January 25 (7 years ago)

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Pish. As if additional causes can't be trivially found to make Jason melt down.

I don't know that it was ever my intent to have Jason become (among other things) the Sweat Drop / Nose Bleed Schoolboy trope in the campaign, and I actually do have plans to bring him to some emotional equilibrium at some point -- but it's still a lot of fun to play with.

(And, yes, the nanobot thing for Numina would have been wonderful, horrific, suggestive, and all sorts of comedy gold, so I'm just as glad I never thought of it. Though given that Jason considers them a Doom, he probably wouldn't have done it. That said, I'm enjoying where this is going as is.)

January 25 (7 years ago)

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I don't know about the nosebleed guy, but the sweatdrop? Totally. :) (But I think everyone gets a turn at this one - especially Charlotte, when the boys get up to shenanigans.

Hell, I bet the Ponies have the same problem.

January 25 (7 years ago)

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*** Dave H. said:
Though given that Jason considers them a Doom, he probably wouldn't have done it.

January 25 (7 years ago)

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The biggest source of Jason's Doom is that his Doom is attached to his Nemesis, and you can't identify who is Nemesis actually is.

January 25 (7 years ago)

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Doyce T. said:
The biggest source of Jason's Doom is that his Doom is attached to his Nemesis, and you can't identify who his Nemesis actually is.

Now that's an interesting observation.

(Also, Bill, thanks for that LOL moment.)

February 03 (7 years ago)

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https://outofthiscentury.wordpress.com/2014/03/25/...

The Greatest African American and Afro-American Martial Artists in History

It also mentions an extraordinary black fencer, Saint-Georges, who I am absolutely sure inspired a character in GURPS Supers.

February 05 (7 years ago)

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Fun Story: I went for a walk with my roommate today to a nearby shop he's applying at. While perusing, I found these and my first thought was "Harry probably loves these."

February 06 (7 years ago)

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Vyortovian hover-tech?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr3ngmRuGUc

February 06 (7 years ago)

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Vogue, February 1, 1939, snagged a picture of Achilles Chin.

February 08 (7 years ago)

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Gymnastic Robot! https://youtu.be/fRj34o4hN4I

February 11 (7 years ago)

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"Purposelessness is the only real supervillain"

February 12 (7 years ago)

Edited February 12 (7 years ago)

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the Judas Contract animated DC movie is really good. It's definitely an adaptation of the original comic from back in the 80s, not the storyline that they adapted into the Teen Titans show. The team is Starfire as the leader, Dick Grayson as Nightwing and working solo, Beast Boy, Blue Beetle, Raven, Terra, and Damian Wayne as Robin. Also has cameos from Bumblebee, Speedy, and one of the Wonder Girls (for about 2 seconds). I think Donna Troy? Maybe?

It's something like three bucks to rent from Google Play, and $9 to buy in SD. So it's pretty well worth it.

February 12 (7 years ago)

Edited February 12 (7 years ago)

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Having been swept up by the original as it happened in the comics, and having enjoyed the (very different but complementary) TT animated version, I've been watching this approaching with interest. I'll definitely make a point to watch it.

None of the Wonder Girls are listed in IMDb. Wikipedia notes "Cyborg and Donna Troy were omitted in the plot despite being Titans at the time in the comics. This is likely due to the film's continuity, as Cyborg is part of the Justice League, and Donna doesn't join the Titans until after the event happens. They are replaced by Blue Beetle and Damian Wayne."

February 12 (7 years ago)

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There's a cameo frame right at the end of the movie and a bad pun from Garfield to indicate that the newest member of the team is Wonder Girl. Must be Donna Troy.

February 12 (7 years ago)

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We have a Father/Son Movie Week coming up in March, I think. It's definitely on my list for that.

February 12 (7 years ago)

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Ugh, I knew I'd forgotten a movie that I needed to watch. Maybe next weekend.

February 12 (7 years ago)

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http://brianmichaelbendis.tumblr.com/post/11911490...

Herculoids redesigns by Mike Mignola

February 13 (7 years ago)

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Two names to conjure by, indeed.

Wowzers.

The full thing is from here.

Which includes:

The Herculoids by Mike Mignola
Sailor Moon by JJ Kirby
Galaxy Trio by Mike Oeming
Frankenstein Jr. by Jim Steranko
Dragon Ball Z by Sergio Aragones

February 15 (7 years ago)

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For all your Masks/Black Panther goodness, here's Magpie doing a writeup of T'Challa as a Legacy character: http://www.magpiegames.com/2018/02/15/happy-valen...

And here's other playbooks, including Shuri (Beacon), Okoye (Protege), and Nakia (Bull): https://www.dropbox.com/s/szgplwbdd0itm5n/BlackPa...

Fair warning: as far as I know there's no Black Panther spoilers in here - for example, this T'Challa is from a world where his father survived. I don't think anyone at Magpie has seen the movie already either, but if you want to go in knowing nothing, don't click through these until you see it, I guess?

February 15 (7 years ago)

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Yeah, Black Panther should totally be about Legacy.

Tix bought for Saturday, so I'll check these out then.

February 19 (7 years ago)

Edited February 19 (7 years ago)

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Another advancement path for Jason: The Host. :)

(Actually, a pretty solid playbook, though a bit of an edge case - at this point, I think all the obvious archetypes are covered.)

https://imgur.com/a/8WY5R

February 19 (7 years ago)

Edited February 19 (7 years ago)

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Nice. Yeah, a bit of an edge case (though there are models to go after, from any of the Spidey-symbionts to the classic Cursed Sword to Douglock to Jaime Reyes / Blue Beetle to the Red Hood to Brother Eye). It's an interesting twist of a playbook that focuses more on the power, but makes up for it by making it about a relationship (with the Host).

You could even try to externalize it -- your character's power is fed by some external source / individual / organization, with their own agenda, vs. something living on/inside of you. Now all of a sudden you can even extend into something vaguely like Thor -- "serve the interests of the Throne of Asgard, or I render you a mere mortal". But, again, it focuses that character away from the team in many ways, which would require some careful balancing in play.

All that said and done, the idea that Li'lycia has decided to take over, and wants Jason to continue to expand his / her computing capabilities through technothefts and, eventually, seizing the entire Internet (or, alternately, spreading herself out to trigger the Singularity, with her in charge, even benignly), would have some interesting play to it. But not the direction I think I want to go.

February 19 (7 years ago)

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*** Dave H. said:
Yeah, Black Panther should totally be about Legacy.

Tix bought for Saturday, so I'll check these out then.

For the record, yes, Legacy, both living up to it and rejecting it, are a big part of BP, along a couple of axes.

Also, lots of nanobots. Shuri is smarter than Byron Quill, and a lot more pleasant to be around.

A good film with some fantastic elements. Worth seeing.

February 20 (7 years ago)

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I follow a Youtube channel called Strip Panel Naked, in which Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou deep dives into all the aspect and how different techniques get different results. Cool stuff. If you're interested at all into the process behind how comics are made, well worth the watch.

Now imagine my surprise when the latest episode gets brought up on the Dungeon World Tavern G+ on how to handle pacing in gaming (specifically Dungeon World, but seems applicable to any PbtA game). SPN is always a good watch for insights, but I found it a bit funny that someone else decided to mine it for ideas in other fields.

February 23 (7 years ago)

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Not going to lie, I'm probably far more hyped than anyone reasonably should be.

February 23 (7 years ago)

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February 23 (7 years ago)

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The original was the Best. Pixar. Film. Ever. And all the ads for II have me deeply excited for it.

And they seem to have done an excellent (dare I say Pixaresque-level) job of updating the art for a decade of advancement in CG while keeping it looking like the original.

February 25 (7 years ago)

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MOAR BLACK PANTHER STUFFS. It's 2018 folks.

Women of Wakanda: http://jenbartel.tumblr.com/post/171064021659/waka...

Letitia Wright Freestyling in Costume Somehow Makes Black Panther Even Better: https://io9.gizmodo.com/letitia-wright-freestyling...

March 01 (7 years ago)

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http://digg.com/video/affectionate-teasing

Affectionately Teasing Others, And Letting Them Affectionately Tease You, Might Make You A Better Person

March 01 (7 years ago)

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Bill G. said:
http://digg.com/video/affectionate-teasing

Affectionately Teasing Others, And Letting Them Affectionately Tease You, Might Make You A Better Person

Which is why Jason puts up with so much shit from his team mates: because it's both spot on and affectionately delivered.

March 07 (7 years ago)

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Iconic Costume Design

March 12 (7 years ago)

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School crush awkwardness. https://imgur.com/gallery/iHycs

March 18 (7 years ago)

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Two posts of possible interests on hair.

First, I always love when the basis of Leo's carbon tech proves itself useful in yet another field. Here's graphene hair dye: https://www.fastcodesign.com/90164386/graphene-hai...

Second, here's an article about a game with a black protagonist, whose developers took time to get her hair right: https://theoutline.com/post/3749/the-first-game-to...

March 18 (7 years ago)

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We rewatched The Avengers (the Marvel movie) the other night, and each time I do so I find myself appreciating more and more the work that went into balancing the different character stories, from introduction to final drive-away. It's not perfect (it never is), and there are a few characters that get shorter shrift (Hawkeye, for example, though it gets made up the next outing, and he's still awesome), but it's really a great example of how to do a team movie, from conflicts to friendships.

And while there are all sorts of individual moments and stories during the climactic battle, it's of note that between the famous Avengers circle-up and the end of battle Avengers all sitting on top of Loki, in-between that there's at least one extended sequence that actually incorporates all the characters in turn in a continuous huge sweep around and through the NYC battlefield (the sequence ends with the Hulk-punches-Thor bit); it's nicely done to show not only the scope of the conflict, but each player's contribution.

Throw in an enjoyable villain with his own mixed motivation, and I'm sure there are a ton of game-related lessons (including the lesson that it's not the power set and HP and damage rating that makes a character great, but what they do with it).

March 19 (7 years ago)

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Doyce, I don't know if you saw this (or something like this) already, but I think it's relevant to your podcasting activity:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/content.php?5066-When...

Some of the points in the article:

"The original end goal of D&D was to transition back to a wargame with the player characters as generals" - the idea of PCs being promoted to world-influencing characters is a definite part of our game, just that Masks says "and you have to make them NPCs at that point".
Video streaming of games can help capture the magic that happens at the table, and there's correlation between Kickstarter funding and his YouTube channel viewer numbers.
That data led to them looking at funding a TV studio as part of their Kickstarter.

March 19 (7 years ago)

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I should add I don't think the takeaway of this was "audio sucks, only video matters", just that streaming games is a lot of fun in general for a lot of people. :) And it sounds like you've already gotten comments to that effect.

March 19 (7 years ago)

Edited March 19 (7 years ago)

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It's an interesting article, certainly.

I'm on the fence about the whole thing, to be honest. I like to have the recordings of the game simply because I forget stuff, or I miss comments that end up being useful and full of ideas later; that said, as much as I try to, I have trouble enjoying other people's game recordings, whether it's video recordings on YouTube, or Twitch, or podcasts - there are just a few I find really enjoyable and inspiring, and the rest are full of "ugh you're getting that rule WRONG" or "okay why are you obsessing over whether or not your guy can get around on roller skates as the main determining factor of picking a playbook?!? That's all you guys have talked about for TWENTY MINUTES." :) So, for me, the folks who follow our game are doing something *I* couldn't do, if it weren't OUR game.

The subject of the article obviously functions at several (3, I think) orders of magnitude higher with regards to YouTube. Some of our folks comment they love the youtube version - some have been really happy the podcasts exist, so it's kind of a mixed bag. I'm glad some folks seem to enjoy it.

I don't, personally, see much of a difference between the podcast and the youtube channel, because so little actually happens on the screen in our games, since we can't stream videos.

March 19 (7 years ago)

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