Play@YSDC

Posted: **Fri Aug 15, 2008 1:00 pm**

Here's the place where you can waffle on unceasingly about all kinds of weird and wonderful concepts: from gardening, to your favourite television show, to in-depth political criticisms of the comparative psychodynamic structures of families in such shows as The Simpsons and Family Guy. Here is also where you can recover from the game. Use it wisely ... it may be a sanity buffer.

Posted: **Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:57 am**

I'm keen to find out a bit more about your character's life, history and personality, and I figure there are better ways of finding out about it then writing up copious amounts of back story. So I'm going to prompt you ever so often with additional questions OOC such as "Someone's calling you. Who do think it'll probably be as you go (or don't go) to answer the phone?"

So yeah, that's just a head's up.

Posted: **Sun Aug 17, 2008 9:36 pm**

By the way, are we allowed to read the other characters' threads, or just our own?

Posted: **Mon Aug 18, 2008 12:38 am**

I'm going to leave that up to you guys. Reading other people's threads will contain no further spoilers than they usually do (unlike in The Last Express where internal politics matter a lot).

Posted: **Mon Aug 18, 2008 2:54 am**

I probably should warn everyone again that this will be, at times, a fairly full-on game though in the interests of taste (and true, because it's often more horrific that way) I prefer to deal with the intricacies of inference rather than full-blown in-your-face descriptions!

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 12:03 am**

By the way, don't read the Prop posts unless you've been linked to them. The exceptions being any Prop threads that have the Open For All section to them - as they are presumed to be common knowledge.

Also, let's all introduce ourselves!

I am Laraqua, an Australian Psychology Student struggling with my Honours thesis on Burnout and Engagement in PhD students. I'm hoping to do a Clinical Masters and become a counselling psychotherapist. I'm a big fan of horror, long-time poster in this forum, and live with my darling boyfriend (who I'm trying to convince to join the forum).

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 12:40 am**

I'm Brandon, a high school student in Louisiana. My biggest project right now is reading the novels issued out periodically in my AP English class. One of my school friends I keep for will probably join this forum when his computer gets fixed or gets a new one. I have an odd relationship with horror, after I watch/read some piece, I will get put in a position to regret it. Example: The week after I watched Saw 1 and 2, I spent a hour crawling in some pitch black mine shaft replica with mirrors and fake corpses in the most inappropriate places.

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 12:44 am**

Well, my real first name is Shannon. Since you told me yours, I told you mine!

And crawling around mines with fake corpses? Where? Why? How do I get to do the same?

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 12:55 am**

I thought that might have been, if a little odd, your first name.

Mid-American Museum. Because my buttons are easily pushed. Fly to hot springs, AR. It wasn't really that scary, I was on edge when three minutes into it, I ran headfirst into a mirror which was supposed to signal you to turn. I think my friends behind me were more freaked out by me suddenly falling back onto them.

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 12:56 am**

I'm Jonathan, a computer programmer living in Philadelphia. I like roleplaying (obviously), as well as playing and creating games, and reading and writing interactive fiction.

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 2:45 am**

I'm Rod (out of the closet again!), known as Gaffer on the Y-SdC forums and as Big Dutch, Harry Monteagle and (formerly) Lady Diana Rathbone on PbP.

On Friday, my wife and I move to our brand-new house in Ocoee Florida, having moved from Maryland in January. I'm retired (yes, I'm old!), but looking for work.

I enjoy role-playing games from both sides of the screen (since 1973). A highlight every year is the Origins convention where my daughter Justine and I run events for the Rogue Cthulhu group. Justine is currently teaching English in Japan.

I was involved in all aspects of amateur theater for 35 years. I read history, mystery and adventure tales and will greatly miss George MacDonald Fraser's work. Tim Powers is a current favorite author.

That's about enough of me for now.

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 7:51 am**

Here's a point: often I want to give links to other sites to give you information or additional sound effects. Yet the links to those sites, when embedded, look the same as the links to invisible castle. I'm thinking of using the (i) symbol to be the invisible castle links so that all other links can stand out and be a part of the text. Don't worry if you make a mistake, I don't mind correcting it. For example:

"He couldn't quite hear (i) what they were saying, but he sure could see (i) the camera they held."

What do you guys think? Does it work well enough for you?

In the meantime, I'll change all previous posts to this style so you can browse through quickly and detect all the informative or sound-link links you missed before.

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2008 2:31 pm**

It should work. Will you be doing dice rolls for us? That's fine with me.

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 12:33 am**

Welcome, Rod! Out of curiosity, was it you who played Nurse Hammond in Chapter One of Ash last year?

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 1:05 am**

As for italicizing the non-roll links, sounds good.

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 1:16 am**

Actually, I think she meant using "(i)" as the link text, but I like the idea of using italics even better.

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 1:36 am**

Mr. Handy wrote:Welcome, Rod! Out of curiosity, was it you who played Nurse Hammond in Chapter One of Ash last year?

No, not me. My first PbP was "Season of Our Discontent" which wrapped a couple of months ago.

I'm currently in "Shadows over Hollywood" which is on hiatus, as well as "When a NY Baby Says Goodnight" which I jumped into the middle of as Big Dutch, and just getting underway with "Unscripted Terror" an improvised ToC game and this most intriguing scenario with you folk as a bonus.

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 6:42 am**

Good idea. I'll go with italics for props instead.

Also, it'll be a good idea for everyone to post a thread in the Equipment section (that way both you and I can edit it) where you can keep a record of what you're carrying and what you've used up. It won't matter so much now in the Berlin chapter but it'll become a big deal on the hike. You can take a bit of time in doing it - no rush!

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:57 pm**

Hello you may know from such classics as Mcraven in "Beyond the mountains of Madness"
Forum handle "Steerpike" real name James.

I earn my crust as a legal caseworker for the Scottish Land Registry agency...sometimes referred to as the Registers or the "Agency" In other words I am a civil servant...employee of the crown...a dying breed.

I have been roleplaying for a bloody long time and mostly CoC.

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 7:06 pm**

Hi, I'm an ITer and I'm way too paranoid to post my real name.

I'm a SysAdmin providing my services to two SMEs, one of which provides webbased services (lol Web 2.0). Work takes way too much of my time...

My hobbies are computers, Krav Maga, recreative/sport shooting, motorcycles and this place.

I have no idea who I'll be playing in this RP, time will tell...

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2008 11:45 pm**

Welcome aboard! I only started looking at BTMoM recently, and have only read from shortly after the start of Chapter Six onwards. I did read and enjoy all of Season of Our Discontent, and I'm following along with the other games Rod mentioned, and most of the others besides. I'm in something like a dozen games here myself, and of course I'm the primary Keeper for Zombie Apocalypse, along with Welsh.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 1:14 am**

I know who played Nurse Hammond ... it's a well-guarded secret. If you ask it in the Ash Chit-Chat threads ... someone might answer you.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:33 am**

Welcome, SuAside and Steerpike.

I am moving to a new home and will be out of internet connection from tomorrow afternoon until Saturday or Sunday.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:48 am**

That's cool. You've got your own thread anyhow.

So, now that the introductions are over, how about a new question?

Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

To bait you into giving a solid answer, I offer 1 skill point for a well-thought out response to each of the above questions. To be sunk wherever you like! (Yes, it don't sound like much but they DO add up - to 2, currently, if you answer both with a solid response. Two half-hearted responses are worth 1 skill point).

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 10:19 am**

Reclaimer & Mr. Handy, if I'm not back when you arrive, feel free to post your verbal responses in each other's threads. Soon as that door opens, Reclaimer will be joining Mr. Handy's thread.

Just that I know you guys are up before I'm awake and I don't want to inhibit your conversations.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:06 pm**

Laraqua wrote:That's cool. You've got your own thread anyhow.

So, now that the introductions are over, how about a new question?

Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

To bait you into giving a solid answer, I offer 1 skill point for a well-thought out response to each of the above questions. To be sunk wherever you like! (Yes, it don't sound like much but they DO add up - to 2, currently, if you answer both with a solid response. Two half-hearted responses are worth 1 skill point).

1. I expect a trip that from the outset has growing and overwhelming sense of menace that develops into pure horror, giving my character the chills from excess adrenaline and terror.

2. To be confronted by some physical horror for sure but also from the mind. Our nightmares made flesh, our imaginations filling out the creeping shadows with something more subsantial than a feeling of a presence...unholy and malign.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:10 pm**

Surprisingly in-depth for something so succinct. Enjoy your two shiny new skill points!

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2008 7:34 pm**

maybe not worth points, but i'll go with the truth:

Laraqua wrote:Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

what do people expect from a game? to enjoy themself while being pulled away from the drudgery of daily life and experiencing something he could not hope to in real life. or well in this case, something you'd hope never to experience in real life.

personally, i especially like creating a specific persona and then playing that given character true to itself, choosing not to divert from it, even if it means death. watching it interact and perhaps eventually evolve into something you hadn't expected at first.
i like to weave in a few elements of my real life self into each of my characters (though each time different elements), giving me a link to it. a reference, as it were. but at the same time use things vastly different from myself.

Laraqua wrote:Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

what do i hope to explore? the sick, decrepit and vile depths of your twisted soul, my dear.

while i've been here for years now, i still feel like a novice. a kid in a candy store. while the other RPs i've played in were fun and fulfilling, i feel like i'm still missing out on so much.

and i expect you to deliver, Shannon.

not to pressure you or anything...

Posted: **Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:11 am**

Laraqua wrote:That's cool. You've got your own thread anyhow.

So, now that the introductions are over, how about a new question?

Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

To bait you into giving a solid answer, I offer 1 skill point for a well-thought out response to each of the above questions. To be sunk wherever you like! (Yes, it don't sound like much but they DO add up - to 2, currently, if you answer both with a solid response. Two half-hearted responses are worth 1 skill point).

1. I expect most of all to have fun. While I don't expect to be frightened myself, I do expect my character to be scared silly, tormented, and ultimately left a broken shell of a man. Ash certainly delivers on all of the above, and I'd expect nothing less from this game.

2. Most of all, I'm looking for psychological and personal horror, something specifically meaningful to my character. I want to seek out and uncover forbidden mysteries about the true nature of the universe and, in the process of discovering them, have my character shaken to his core.

Posted: **Fri Aug 22, 2008 2:33 am**

1.When I saw your ad, I read a little bit of Ash, so I expecting to have some very mysterious and scary things, and you have yet to disappoint.

2. I'm hoping to lose all my faith in my ability to see things coming. I want to have to double check to see if that really did happen. I want to stretch what I can imagine to happen.

Posted: **Mon Aug 25, 2008 1:44 am**

So in other words, you guys want to feel a little bit disoriented as you struggle to keep the very worst of things from happening to your characters, fighting to understand what's going on, re-evaluating your previous beliefs often and basically feeling really, REALLY glad you're not suffering like your character is?

I pity your PCs that you would ask for that...

But then, this is a horror game.

Posted: **Mon Aug 25, 2008 2:11 am**

Hey, could people remember to give new PCs they meet a description of their appearance? What you look like, basically? Even if it's just "A handsome brunette..." We have two men with APP 16 and a woman with APP 13 so far so it might end up meaning something.

It's funny, the cameraman is better looking than the presenter (don't worry, Milly, you were probably chosen because you straddle the line between "Gosh, she's pretty" 13 and "Like a super-gorgeous thing like that knows anything about science!" 16).

That cameraman, though! Phew-wee! No wonder he's had a lot of interest from the ladies!

Posted: **Mon Aug 25, 2008 2:34 am**

They come in for the body and stay for the science.

Posted: **Mon Aug 25, 2008 2:39 am**

So true, so true...

Highest APP expedition ever. Averages out at around 13. Lowest is average (10) appearance.

Oh yes, there will be prime time!

Posted: **Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:21 pm**

Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

Interaction with a group of creative people to solve subtle problems and challenges, preferably in a novel locale.

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

The gradual accretion of horror, as ordinary people discover terrors they have no more than suspected until now... a situation in which trust is difficult to give or receive, but people have to rely on one another to survive… the gradual loss of personal reference points and certainty as the personality erodes

Posted: **Mon Aug 25, 2008 8:42 pm**

Laraqua wrote:Highest APP expedition ever. Averages out at around 13. Lowest is average (10) appearance.

the shy underdog will win though. it's inevitable.

besides, my char is 10-1 APP, so 9 is the lowest, my dear.

Posted: **Tue Aug 26, 2008 12:42 am**

I wasn't counting your character, he's not in the Character Thread yet! Thus he don't count at this time.

Posted: **Tue Aug 26, 2008 7:56 am**

For future reference, there will be many instances where I will halt NPC dialogues or other such continuous scenes for you to have a chance to interrupt and respond. That doesn't mean you have to. If your character has no reason to interrupt, post as much. "{Name} waits and watches" will do, as will anything else that indicates as much.

If you're stuck for things to do, you can write as much. "{Name} picks up a newspaper to read and wile away the time" will alert me to your lack of motivation, direction or leads.

If, on the other hand, a scene is passing by too quickly and the moment your PC would interrupt disappears, feel free to indicate as such in your post and I'll edit away the overly long post I made to accommodate what your PC wanted to say.

Sound good?

Posted: **Tue Aug 26, 2008 1:24 pm**

Got it.

Posted: **Tue Aug 26, 2008 7:08 pm**

roger that.

Laraqua wrote:I wasn't counting your character, he's not in the Character Thread yet! Thus he don't count at this time.

aw, so poor Alex doesn't count yet.

but no worries, his APP9 is set in stone! unless you decide to burn his face or something. beard do tend to burn well.

Posted: **Wed Aug 27, 2008 2:41 am**

There is always a camp fire ... that could do the trick.

Posted: **Thu Aug 28, 2008 9:38 am**

Sorry about the profuse number of props that you lot will end up being bombarded with!

So far, there's 7 Prop Threads and counting. Luckily, you won't have to deal with them all. Yet.

Anywho, remember no peeking into threads you haven't been assigned. Jot down the ones you have permission to read in your Character Sheets to help you remember which ones you can go over (I've been doing so, but I might forget once or twice).

Posted: **Fri Aug 29, 2008 5:51 am**

Oh yeah, for those of you who aren't much into copious amounts of reading, just PM me and I'll give you the skinny (brief overview). With stuff like the locations of the Liltian Tablets, unless you're dead keen on being an expert on it, simply knowing the locations of where they were found is the most important element.

Posted: **Sun Aug 31, 2008 12:07 am**

Hello one and all,

My name is Gary and I'm a 40 y/o gamer in Chicagoland. I'm a recruiter of accountants and financial people by profession. I've been gaming since I was 12 and these days am mostly into CoC Classic era, D&D 3.5, HARP, Champions and will pretty much try any game once to see if it's fun. Besides gaming and fishing, not really a lot of time for other pursuits right now as I'm the father of a small boy and he (and the Mrs.) keep me pretty busy.

My introduction to PbP was with Handy's Zombie Apocalypse (cuz I looove anyting zombie) and that's been a lot of fun especially since I was the proud killer of one of Laraqua's characters

Er, maybe I shouldn't be so proud seeing as she's running the game

Anyways, my character has the dubious distinction of being the most hideous character (APP 4, baby!) and I look forward to having fun with that.

Q.1: What do you expect from this game? Based on the teaser that Laraqua gifted us with in the form of the diNacy Show, I'm expecting something cerebral, subtle, well written, mysterious and creepy. When all is said and done, I expect to be intellectually challenged and to have had fun.

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed... Just looking for a balanced blend of character building and roleplaying, problem solving and storytelling. Reality warping horror is what I always seek from CoC, where "winning" consists of merely surviving, ideally with most of one's marbles still within one's head and going out in a red viscera of insanity is just as much fun.

Looking forward to participating in a captivating saga...

Posted: **Sun Aug 31, 2008 3:02 am**

All scientists and science geeks get this one for free: The Bizarre Scientific Phenomena that is Better Known about THAT Mountain.

Posted: **Mon Sep 01, 2008 4:05 pm**

So, can i join? Please, please, please? And what characters are available?

Posted: **Mon Sep 01, 2008 7:40 pm**

kabukiman wrote:So, can i join? Please, please, please? And what characters are available?

anything/anyone useful you could bring on an expedition, save for those professions already listed in the char thread.

Posted: **Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:12 pm**

SuAside is right. If you can come up with something you'd like to do, likely a scientist, but also potentially a co-presenter or the Russian Governmental Advisor/Attache, we can work something out! There are all kinds of scientists who might get interested. Check out the two Open For All threads in Props to get an idea of what might inspire you to go along.

It's possible you could be military - there will be a small military escort - but I hesitate to mention it simply because you won't have much to do with anyone for awhile.

Posted: **Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:30 pm**

Oh yeah, and remember to send me your stat line (roll it on Invisiblecastle.com) so I can say yay or nay to it. Thing is, only people who would be selected to go on this expedition are those with largely decent and above average stats. There's still a lot of flexibility, but we'll see how it goes. Also, you get a +3 to your stat line. You can spend it how you wish, i.e. put 2 on Str and 1 on Dex, or 3 on Edu, or 1 on three different stats. Your choice.

Final thing, introduce yourself to all of us on here and then find those two questions I've been asking everybody. Give them a super-helpful answer and you'll get 2 skill points. A decent answer will still net you 1 skill point. You can spend these on whatever skill you like, regardless of it's a hobby, occupation or something you haven't even touched yet.

Posted: **Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:57 pm**

Laraqua wrote:That's cool. You've got your own thread anyhow.

So, now that the introductions are over, how about a new question?

Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

To bait you into giving a solid answer, I offer 1 skill point for a well-thought out response to each of the above questions. To be sunk wherever you like! (Yes, it don't sound like much but they DO add up - to 2, currently, if you answer both with a solid response. Two half-hearted responses are worth 1 skill point).

My name is Fabiano. I'm portuguese and live in Oporto, Portugal. I'm an archivist, and i love everything connected to information sciences and history. I like horror stories (books or movies) and cyberpunk. I'm a keeper in a forum in Portugal.

To question 1: I hope to have fun. I want to immerse myself in the story and see my character change and react to the world.
Question 2: I'm more interested in a psychological game in which the menaces are related to my character (and less with exterior monsters... unless they are somehow related with my character, like in some personnel purgatorium). More like silent hill and less like doom, if you see what i mean...

Posted: **Tue Sep 02, 2008 3:25 pm**

Hi!Laraqua, do you mind to make my rolls? After seven tries, the best result i could get was a 11, in all the other rolls i only getted between 5 and 8...

I am thinking of playing a geneticist.

Posted: **Wed Sep 03, 2008 2:27 am**

This is one choice.

The other is this.

Posted: **Wed Sep 03, 2008 9:10 pm**

Hey folks!

Sorry to be silent for a week. My mother-in-law was hospitalized last Thursday night and we spent most of the weekend at the hospital. On top of which, my brother-in-law "fixed" our wireless network while he was here and it took the Geek Squad to unravel his mischief.

I hope to catch up tonight or tomorrow.

Posted: **Sat Sep 06, 2008 4:54 am**

Sorry about the delays in posting. I've been very ill. I'll have to put off your post for a bit, Mr. Handy, as there may be a bit of something extra I should add to the upcoming post that I may be too ill to remember.

Posted: **Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:12 am**

That's okay, I don't mind waiting. I've been busy all week anyway, and I've got some catching up to do. I hope you feel better!

Posted: **Sat Sep 06, 2008 12:05 pm**

Hope you get better.

Posted: **Sat Sep 06, 2008 1:17 pm**

Sorry to hear you've been feeling poorly. Hope it passes off quickly.

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 3:20 am**

Say, Reclaimer, how old is Charles?

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:08 am**

Hey Laraqua, glad to see you're back. I hope you've made a full recovery.

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:34 am**

*sigh*

Wish I had, I've just lost a week of vital Thesis Work.

Ah well, hopefully I'll catch up.

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 9:17 am**

Okay, there's a post up for everybody now. Some of these threads look to be heading into some very interesting ground. I think our dear geologist is really throwing himself into it feet first.

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 9:29 pm**

As they say: When in Rome... or maybe it's more like Ich bin ein Berliner (and yes, Magnus could also be considered a jelly donut).

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:40 pm**

Am I the only one who is reminded of Fat Bastard from the Austin Powers movies?

Posted: **Wed Sep 10, 2008 12:06 am**

Yeah, you're the only one. Kidding, I thought'd be too obvious to go w/ FB, besides, Magnus is waaaay better looking.

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 12:24 am**

Well, I love how dreams can really set up a bad taste in your mouth. I spent about an hour of in-dream time trying to find out where my sister was - whether she'd been kidnapped, whether she was still at the doctor's clinic - only to wake up by the alarm moments before I would have found out.

*sigh*

So now I get to feel agitated and like crap all day. Yay.

Dreams can really suck sometimes.

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 4:16 am**

A New York Baby dream? Sounds like it would have been great if you had had a chance to finish it. I can't stand when I don't get to finish a good dream either, and I don't like being awakened by the alarm in the first place, especially since I never get enough sleep.

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 4:18 am**

I've never heard the term 'New York Baby' dream before. What's it mean?

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 4:29 am**

It means you had a dream that resembled the plot of the game When a New York Baby Says Goodnight here on Play@Yog-Sothoth, where you play a character whose sister is missing.

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 4:39 am**

Ohhh...

Right...

I knew that.

And yeah, poor Amelia, I have NO idea what's going on there.

What's funny is that my middle name is Amelia!

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 6:25 am**

I'm getting the feeling that John Gaunt's dear Magnus may be the first one to get laid...

Since nothing could possibly go wrong with his plans we'll have to presume he'll win.

I therefore vote we change the name of the game from 465 : 19.375 to...

Magnus: The Lustening.

Y'notice the World of Darkness-like title?

Also, my boyfriend would like to thank Magnus for ruining his character.

He plays Alvin Gruber in the World of Darkness-rules version I'm running, a devilishly handsome presenter of "Hidden Places" who has a face full of well-placed piercings and even implanted devil horns. He has such merits as Sexy, Enchanting Voice, and Flirt. He ALSO has Appearance 4. I like to ignore his pleas that WoD is a different system and simply draw a parallel between his Appearance 4 character and Magnus. True, the scale goes to 5 in WoD, rather than 18 in CoC, but I still think it stands.

And this is why I'm the best Storyteller/Girlfriend ever.

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 3:32 pm**

And without paying for it, either! At least monetarily as I suspect there will be other costs... Not familiar w/ WoD. Your boyfriend's character has nothing on Magnus' Lothario-like charm.

Posted: **Fri Sep 12, 2008 3:53 pm**

Other ... costs?

I mean, come on, she's pure innocence!

She's wearing white and all.

Posted: **Sat Sep 13, 2008 10:47 am**

Mr. Handy wrote:A New York Baby dream? Sounds like it would have been great if you had had a chance to finish it. I can't stand when I don't get to finish a good dream either, and I don't like being awakened by the alarm in the first place, especially since I never get enough sleep.

but if you hadn't been awakened by something, chances of you remembering the dream are pretty slim.

Posted: **Sat Sep 13, 2008 4:05 pm**

I remembered last night's dream, and nothing in particular woke me up this morning. When the alarm wakes me up it means I've gotten less sleep than I need, and when I'm tired I usually forget my dreams very quickly - especially when I have to rush to work.

Posted: **Sat Sep 13, 2008 4:54 pm**

i nearly never remember dreams, unless something wakes me up before it's over.

Posted: **Sat Sep 20, 2008 2:46 am**

Forgive my slow postings. My honours thesis project was well on its way to completion, then I got sick for a fortnight. It's due mid-October so I may slow down and speed up sporadically. I will be sure to post at least twice a week for everybody. Sorry guys!

Posted: **Sat Sep 20, 2008 10:45 am**

no biggy. school & health comes first.

Posted: **Wed Sep 24, 2008 12:33 pm**

Just a point of interest. I'm not showing undue favoritism to Magnus' thread -- it's just that his thread impacts on someone else's and I need to get that up to speed before I can post again for that person.

Posted: **Wed Sep 24, 2008 1:42 pm**

Oh, sure you are! Leather and pvc are irresistible, admit it!

Posted: **Fri Sep 26, 2008 10:03 am**

My character's ready to roll now (I think), but it's cool if other player's take precedence - as of today I'm signed up with three other play-by-post style games.

One of them demands I do much research on the 17th century. So I won't be sitting around idly waiting.

Of course, I'm also supposed to be working, but we're having a slow day...

Posted: **Sun Sep 28, 2008 2:19 pm**

Sorry, was delaying the inevitable "Quest To Discover How To Form A New Sub-Forum!"

We'll start you at the corner shops because there's going to be a mass of clues at your place and I currently don't have the time to fix up all the props. I can give you stuff to do at the corner shop, get some roleplay, character understanding, etc. What country did you want to start in?

Posted: **Mon Sep 29, 2008 10:30 am**

I suppose if you chuck me in at the deep-end, somewhere in Russia, I can start investigating pretty early on. What's the in-game date? Would the professor be on a break from the University?

Posted: **Sun Oct 12, 2008 12:25 pm**

Just a word to the wise, I'll be running Initiative as Dexterity+1d10 to randomize it a little.

Sorry for the slow posts, thesis is due in a week. After that, things'll be back to normal. I will endeavor to at least do one more post before Friday (when it's due) for all of your threads, anyway.

Posted: **Mon Oct 13, 2008 7:52 pm**

Laraqua wrote:Just a word to the wise, I'll be running Initiative as Dexterity+1d10 to randomize it a little.

Sorry for the slow posts, thesis is due in a week.

good luck, kiddo!

Posted: **Mon Nov 03, 2008 4:03 am**

So far each PC is alone ... that will soon change. Hopefully I can buddy some of you guys up soon.

How are y'all enjoying the game so far? Want a faster pace? Slower pace? More leads? More PC / PC interaction? NPC / PC interaction? Know where you're going?

Posted: **Mon Nov 03, 2008 4:32 am**

I'm liking it so far. The pace is fine by me, but I wouldn't object if it got a little faster. I would like to see more interaction between PCs, and it looks like that's coming.

Posted: **Tue Nov 04, 2008 10:16 am**

Same to me, and a bit of fresh air would be welcomed too.

Posted: **Tue Nov 04, 2008 8:51 pm**

it's moving slow, but i don't mind. lots of stuff on my hands lately.

Posted: **Tue Nov 04, 2008 8:56 pm**

I'm enjoying myself, Laraqua, thanks for asking. Meeting up with other characters will be welcome.

Posted: **Thu Nov 06, 2008 4:56 am**

I'd be happy with 2-3 posts a week.

Posted: **Thu Nov 06, 2008 6:11 am**

Sorry about that, John, but you're the one who's just about to ... meet ... another PC. Can't say whether it will be bad or good ... just one or two posts more on their behalf ... and they'll be there.

Posted: **Sat Nov 08, 2008 1:55 am**

Technically, both PCs involved are about to meet another PC.

Posted: **Sat Nov 08, 2008 2:10 am**

Sorry Mr. Handy, those two are dealing with night time stuff. Whereas you're in daytime land. Be so much better when everyone's in the same time zone ... *sighs wistfully*

Posted: **Sat Nov 08, 2008 2:16 am**

I meant that they were about to meet each other. I don't mind the wait, though.

Posted: **Mon Nov 17, 2008 8:00 am**

Well, there are two pairs currently. Unfortunately, the guy I had planned on getting with Carter ... Hubert, hasn't posted in a long time. That's okay, though, he's distinct enough from everyone's thread that - should the player return in a few months time - he could slip right back in.

Posted: **Tue Nov 18, 2008 6:42 am**

Out of curiosity, has anyone managed to figure out the meaning behind the title? It's a mathematical puzzle, really, with a mathematical clue for an answer. Just wondering.

Also, I have an exam tomorrow! First I have to get my thesis in, then I have to get all the paperwork for my application to Masters of Psychology in, now I have an exam and an essay due! Can't wait until the holidays. Though these holidays I'm going to try and get a part-time psychological job-type thing.

How are the rest of you going? What's up all?

Posted: **Wed Nov 19, 2008 2:42 am**

No, I didn't. Well, until you mentioned that it was a mathematical puzzle. Then I figured out that it was

Spoiler:

I need more sleep, but other than that I'm fine. I haven't been able to get much of anything done for a while on the new characters for Chapter 4 of Zombie Apocalypse yet. I've got about 20% of them done, but they were done before I even finished Chapter 3. It looks like we'll start in December, or maybe at the beginning of January. I'm going to Philcon this weekend, which for some reason has been moved to New Jersey this year, so instead of being able to walk back and forth from home I'll have to take a bus there and stay at the hotel. I'm looking to buy the Arkham Horror expansions I'm missing and maybe some other stuff too, and I plan to get in some CoC and other games while I'm there. Then the following week I've got a 4 1/2 day weekend for Thanskgiving, so I should be able to get a lot more done during that time.

Posted: **Wed Nov 19, 2008 2:51 am**

Ooh, Philcon! I've got the King in Yellow expansion to Arkham Horror but I haven't been able to play it out yet. I keep meaning to take it down to Game Quest and get a bunch of people to play it with me.

I'm hoping to introduce my boyfriend to forum gaming through Zombie Apocalypse. Any chance one of the chars I've got can come in a pair? No need for the pair to be 'together' or anything. It could be two privates for all it matters. Or two evil geniuses. That way I can talk him through things and help him understand the game (he knows CoC, but not forum gaming much), without there being a multitude of spoilers.

Also, I had another dream with Zombies in it last night. This time I kept quoting the Zombie Survival Guide. Awesome book.

Posted: **Wed Nov 19, 2008 3:02 am**

Also, exam day today. Theories of Psychotherapy from 6:30 to 8:30. Whoop!

Posted: **Wed Nov 19, 2008 3:19 am**

I have the King in Yellow expansion and haven't played it yet either. I also have the Dunwich Horror expansion, which I have tried. It definitely makes the game harder, especially when you play solo. I haven't played it with others yet, but there may be a chance at Philcon. They were sold out of the Egyptian Exhibition expansion last year, so I'm hoping to get that as well as Kingsport.

Most of the characters are in my head already, it'll just take time to write down all my ideas and stat them out. There will be several potential pairs of characters in Chapter 4. There are some bad guys that will pair up nicely, but one of those pairs did feature in Chapter 1, so he might not want to have to have to go back and read that. There are a couple of possible pairs in a new group of characters that may meet the survivors from Over that are heading west by land, and there are several pairs in Omaha. There's cafeteria worker Tariq al-Tikriti, an Iraqi exile, who would pair quite nicely with either his son Ali or with chef Amelia Delacroix, who left New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina only to find herself in a bigger disaster. Science teacher Chester Johnson would work quite nicely with star pupil Elijah Smith or with one of the CDC characters (who would also work well with each other and with Dr. Hausmann, your only surviving character). School nurse Michelle Marquez would be good with Dr. Hausmann too. Stephanie Bridges works the closest with Dr. Hausmann, but he might not want to go back and read all of the first three chapters to play her. LaTanya Washington, who you expressed interest in playing a long time ago, would go very well with her boyfriend, football player Darnell Jones (that's American football, by the way). There are also a brother-and-sister pair, Doug and Lisa Marley. We've also got a couple of strays: homeless man Alvin Drummond and a mutt named Murray. Not all of the pairs will start out in the same place, however. I'll post starting locations after I get the character sheets up, but you'll probably need to wait for a map to know where most of them are in relation to each other.

Posted: **Wed Nov 19, 2008 1:28 pm**

Your lucky! Now it's completly impossible to find Arkhan horror, they tell me it's sold out. Actually, it's near impossible to find anything that it isn't related to D&D or Magic the gathering, with christmas ...

Posted: **Thu Nov 20, 2008 4:17 am**

There aren't any game stores anywhere near where I live, but the Dealer's Room at Philcon always has an excellent selection. If you can't find Arkham Horror in the stores and they won't order it for you, you can try ordering it online. Shipping might be expensive, though.

Posted: **Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:14 am**

Exams over! Just got another essay to do. Also, today, I've got to pay off $60 worth of library overdue fees (three books being over a fortnight late, golly goodness gosh) and print out and bind all of the addendums for the Domain Storyteller for the Vampire: The Requiem Camarilla LARP I'm involved in.

Yes, I am a LARPer.

*bows*

Posted: **Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:20 am**

I did my share of LARPs in college too, most of them Vampire: the Masquerade. I love being a Malkavian!

Posted: **Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:43 am**

Malkavians are awesome but they no longer exist in nWOD. If you do go play another nWOD LARP, lemme know. I could use inter-state tie-ins ... though apparently America plays a very different game to Australia. More cheese, more broken rules, though that could just be Aussie bias...

Posted: **Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:55 am**

I haven't been in a Vampire LARP for about a decade, and I know very little about the nWOD. That's too bad that they dropped Malkavians. The last LARP I was in was actually at Philcon 2005, and we played a beta version of the 3rd Edition Cthulhu Live rules (which had not been released yet at the time). It was called Six Demon Bag and was set in Philadelphia's Chinatown in 1935. I played a rookie homicide detective who was also the commissioner's son. I didn't encounter any Mythos entities or make any Sanity checks, but I had a great time. I never had to discharge my weapon, though I did need to brandish it a couple of times, and I got to beat the snot out of a cultist who was silly enough to attack me in a room full of witnesses when I wouldn't go with him into an obvious trap.

Posted: **Fri Nov 21, 2008 3:54 pm**

I was trying to avoid using my credit card. Oh well, probably will buy last nigth on the earth too.
They droped the Malkavians? What a pity! They were my favourites with the toreador. But I stoped playing Vampire about 6 years ago to play a pendragon campaign- the boy king. After 3 years our group disbanded and we had only played 1/3 of the book...

Posted: **Fri Nov 21, 2008 8:38 pm**

Laraqua wrote:Out of curiosity, has anyone managed to figure out the meaning behind the title? It's a mathematical puzzle, really, with a mathematical clue for an answer. Just wondering.

probably not correct, but i have to uphold my professional IT status...

465 : 19.375 = 24, or the reverse of 42. 42 is the meaning of life, the universe and everything. the reverse would be the meaning of death, the emptiness between dimensions and nothingness?

(at first i just thought it was the military/geographical designation of the mountain we're going to btw. it's hard for the army to give every goddamn hilltop a name and it's easier to look up a number anyway.)

PS: Tremere, Gangrel & Malk (though in V:tM-B, i've never LARP'ed in my life... or hell, never any real tabletop RP either for that matter)

Posted: **Sun Nov 23, 2008 5:23 pm**

Hello everyone, just wanted to introduce myself. I'll be playing Dr Arnold Crawford, a siesmologist joining the expedition.

Posted: **Mon Nov 24, 2008 4:46 am**

Welcome, ayupduck!

I got back from Philcon tonight. Unfortunately, there was a lot of chaos that went with moving the convention to a new hotel, and many of the things that they used to have were absent this time. On Friday afternoon I managed to miss three buses in a row. The first two I missed was because the website had had the wrong location for the stop, and I missed the third because when I finally found out where a stop was, it turned out to be the beginning of the line. I had to wait half an hour there for the next bus and then another half hour on the bus as it drove through Philadelphia's rush hour traffic. The last stop before the bridge to New Jersey was just a block from where I had originally been waiting. Then the driver went right past my stop and I had to get out at the next one and walk a few blocks back to reach the hotel.

There was no game room this time, just a hall area with tables set up, and the huge library of games that they usually had wasn't there either, but people did bring their own games or buy them from the Dealers Room. I picked up the Arkham Horror expansions I was looking for: Curse of the Dark Pharaoh, Kingsport Horror, and Black Goat of the Woods. I also bought the new version of Talisman. I didn't get a chance to play Arkham Horror, but I did play a bunch of other fun games, many of which were new to me. There were also no rolelplaying games scheduled. I had my Call of Cthulhu rulebook with me and four pregenerated characters I had made a while back, and I had planned to run The Haunting today, but I got very sick this morning and wasn't up to it. I'm doing somewhat better now, though.

Posted: **Mon Nov 24, 2008 6:38 am**

Aww, that sucks. I was hoping it'd be a rockin' convention.

Posted: **Mon Nov 24, 2008 12:27 pm**

Wow, that was really bad luck! Hope that you get better.

Posted: **Tue Nov 25, 2008 2:15 am**

Thanks, I'm feeling better today. The same thing happened when Philcon changed locations in 2006, but it improved greatly in 2007. I think it just takes them time to adjust after they move.

Posted: **Tue Nov 25, 2008 3:25 pm**

Did you played Pandemic? I have played once and even if it is not terror in the traditional way, I think it is quite thriling...

Posted: **Wed Nov 26, 2008 1:46 am**

What's Pandemic? I've never heard of it.

Posted: **Wed Nov 26, 2008 10:11 am**

It's cooperative boardgame, the players must help each others to winn... and even soo, it's very dificult. The players are specialists in differents fields and must contain the outbreaks of several disease in the world and avoid it's growing. You may think that everything is controlled, and suddenly half of a continent is lost... Believe me, it's a very funny game.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/30549

Posted: **Wed Nov 26, 2008 11:57 am**

Ooh, that sounds pretty neat. I need to win the lottery, that way I could get all the forumites together to play these games together.

Posted: **Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:59 am**

Yes, that does sound like a fun game. I love cooperative games. Arkham Horror and Lord of the Rings are both very good ones. I usually only get to play them solo, however, as it is difficult to get together with other players.

Posted: **Thu Nov 27, 2008 10:33 am**

Well, I have convinced my wife to play "Lost cities". It's a themed game about expeditions on ancient cities and the art remembers Indiana Jones, unfortunely the rules are quite basic and you don't "feel" your in a expedition (but they are easy to teach to people who don't like boardgames).

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/50

Usually I go to the annual convention of boardgames in the north of Portugal; we have a group who play once by month several games but for me it's impossible to go to those meetings, so I buy the games and play solo. They only started to join when I stopped to have any free time

You probably don't know any of the games I speaked about, because they are all eurogames (usually that means german), and unless you buy them in the UK amazon, they should be dificult to find outside europe.

Posted: **Thu Nov 27, 2008 6:38 pm**

I also go to Philcon in part to play board games with others that I wouldn't get to play otherwise. I played a bunch of games by Rio Grande Games there (Puerto Rico, Power Grid, Caylus, and similar games), but I've never played Lost Cities before. Their games are very good, and I'm sure that one is no exception.

Posted: **Thu Nov 27, 2008 8:23 pm**

Hi all!
Eons ago, I played a fun board game, Junta, a banana republic game. You had to convince the dictator to fund your cause, only to take over the power in a coupe. Backstabbing and hilarious lying!

*******

Then I´m on board!

Fransesca lands the chopper and lets the rotors wind down.

*Put my feet up on the coffee table and wait*

Posted: **Thu Nov 27, 2008 9:22 pm**

Welcome aboard!

I played Junta back in college once or twice, and I love that game! I've got vague but fond memories of it. The name of the country is "La Republica de los Bananas"! I remember that you have to secretly select your location each turn (I think you could be in your home, your office, the bank, your mistress's place, and one other option). You could send assassins after your rivals by guessing where they'd be. One of them, the "Character Assassin" shoots them with a camera instead of a gun, but it only works if they're with the mistress. I usually ended up as one of the generals, and while that got me more troops, it wasn't as interesting as the other positions. Once I was in charge of the air force - paratroopers are fun! I recall once seizing the Chamber of Deputies with my military units and managing to hold it.

Posted: **Thu Nov 27, 2008 9:27 pm**

I played it on a games convention here on the west-coast, back in -95. (Thought: ... I really miss the old days, with fun games and zombies... Next year- more zombies and chapter FOUR.)

Posted: **Fri Nov 28, 2008 1:05 am**

For those characters who don't speak German, remember to declare to other PCs that you're speaking English, as the default assumption in the Berlin section is that you're speaking German.

Posted: **Fri Nov 28, 2008 10:21 am**

I have played Junta once and it was very funny. But it is actually a version with more humour of the father of all games: Diplomacy.

Posted: **Fri Nov 28, 2008 9:37 pm**

Welcome Syrinx/Francesca. It'll be nice to have another "girl" in the group.

Milly/Gaffer

Posted: **Sat Nov 29, 2008 12:04 am**

Welcome to the group Syrinx!

Posted: **Tue Dec 02, 2008 6:08 am**

By the way, earlier in this Chit-Chat we posted introductions of ourselves and a little bit about us. Just letting the new players know. Feel free to read over who we are, perhaps post a bit about yourselves as well.

We also have a couple of questions for the new players that the old ones have already answered.

Q.1: What do you expect from this game?

Q.2: What angles do you hope to explore? What experience are you after? Tell me a bit about what you're hungering for, about what horrors you wish to have revealed...

To bait you into giving a solid answer, I offer 1 skill point for a well-thought out response to each of the above questions. To be sunk wherever you like! (Yes, it don't sound like much but they DO add up - to 2, currently, if you answer both with a solid response. Two overly short or simple responses are worth 1 skill point).

Posted: **Tue Dec 02, 2008 11:07 pm**

Let´s see, I´m Dave, ICT-teacher. Hosting a game of my own on the list here. I have a bunch of kids and not as much hours to every day to manage real life and this escapistic joy of gaming. The benefit of gaming like this is the asyncronic possibility. Also logistics are MUCH better like this

.
1: What do I expect? A mild dose of the inexpected and possibilities to venture away from a set path. To go slightly mad from the thrill of gaming! To guide my character through whatever is thrown at her. (Oddly I get to pick girlz...) I don´t mind different paces in a game - as long as it´s not dead in the water.

2: The experience should be that of a game that actually flows along by itself. The characters can interact and create situations beyond the obvious lines of thought of our dear ms Keeper.

That about sums it up! Thanks for allowing a dreaming man to participate.

Posted: **Tue Dec 02, 2008 11:09 pm**

And, yes, Molly, I´ll try to balance the cast. Way too many goons there

Posted: **Tue Dec 02, 2008 11:20 pm**

Magnus resembles that remark!

Posted: **Wed Dec 03, 2008 3:42 am**

There are three female NPCs though.

And we all know Magnus wants further femaleness.

Posted: **Wed Dec 03, 2008 5:10 am**

My characters tend to be more or less evenly distributed between male and female. Actually, I think slightly more of them are male than female, though it may seem the opposite since several of the games where I play male characters have fallen apart. It's always good to have at least one female PC in the mix.

Posted: **Wed Dec 03, 2008 11:12 am**

Well, I usually choose to have more males (and a dog-poor Max!), but they have the tendencies of having short lives (by their death or the games are abandoned by the keepers), so only the females survive (like with Agnes and the two Mels).

Posted: **Fri Dec 05, 2008 8:34 pm**

hey Syrinx, at what level do you teach ICT? and if it's higher education, what's your area of expertise?

Posted: **Fri Dec 05, 2008 10:40 pm**

No area of expertise here, I´m teaching 5th graders how to use the computer properly in school. To send emails and use popular science pages on the web. Creating dreamweaver web pages and stuff. Don´t want to let the regular teachers to do that. They let the kids 'play' with their computers.
So you can say I´m learning them to be efficient when working in school and play with the computer when they get home. On my bachelor´s degree in teaching it says ICT-teacher for pre-school and elementary school

Suaside, are you also teaching something?

Posted: **Sun Dec 07, 2008 11:26 am**

nah, i'm a SysAdmin for a SaaS company. though i've thought about teaching at some point in time, but never went through with it.

Posted: **Sun Dec 14, 2008 1:56 pm**

One interview down! One to go! I had to do my Clinical Masters degree interview on Monday (whew!) and now I have an Organizational Psych Masters degree interview. The problem is, there's a presentation I'm meant to put on tomorrow ... and I ... well, I only found out about it last Thursday. That's right, I only heard I was meant to put on a presentation about a piece of research I did, namely the Honours Project, on Thursday. Ain't university a charmer? Ah well, I think I aced the Clinical Masters one and that's the main one I want. The Organizational Psychology degree is my back-up plan. Hopefully I get into one, at least.

Posted: **Sun Dec 14, 2008 2:43 pm**

Just a head's up. I'll be on holiday from the 20th December to around the 21st or 22nd of January. So I won't be able to do any posts in that time.

Posted: **Sun Dec 14, 2008 5:25 pm**

Milly hopes to be home and snug in bed by then.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 7:02 am**

Good luck to her on that!

The Berlin Sandbox mode is difficult to party people up in, but for those scheduled to be on the expedition, there's a lovely banquet being held this evening (tomorrow evening - for Milly). Sure, I think only three people will end up attending, but that's a good start. Don't worry, though, there'll be plenty of opportunities to meet and greet other PCs.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:17 pm**

gl Laraqua! (and try to have some fun in the meantime)

Posted: **Sun Dec 28, 2008 2:38 pm**

Welcome back, Laraqua. I hope your holiday was pleasant.

Posted: **Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:07 am**

Okay, this part of my holidays is the No Internet Part. Soz, no posts for awhile. Not until the 20th.

Posted: **Sat Jan 10, 2009 8:05 pm**

have fun!

Posted: **Sat Jan 24, 2009 1:44 am**

Welcome to the game, Tabs! You're in for quite a ride!

I was looking at your character sheet, and you should have 14 HP, not 13. When your CON+SIZ is divided by 2 to determine your HP, it gets rounded up. Also, since Abbo is going to be a cameraman, he ought to have points in Photography. In modern games, this skill also encompasses the use of video cameras (digital or otherwise). You also didn't spend anywhere near all of your skill points, so you've got plenty left to put into that and other skills. You get EDU x 20 occupational skill points (in your case, that's 360), and INT x 10 hobby skill points that can be used for any skill (in your case, that's 130).

Posted: **Sat Jan 24, 2009 6:33 am**

Thanks, Mr. Handy, haven't had the time to go over the new sheets in detail yet.

Posted: **Sat Jan 24, 2009 6:37 am**

You're welcome!

Posted: **Sat Jan 24, 2009 11:21 am**

Thanks, I'll make the changes shortly. I'm using a 3rd Edition rulebook so any rule mistakes can be blamed upon it!

Posted: **Sat Feb 07, 2009 4:31 am**

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, was somewhat under the weather.

Posted: **Thu Mar 05, 2009 1:00 am**

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. Last month I got elected into the position of Vampire: the Requiem (World of Darkness) LARP (Live Action Role Play) VST (Venue Storyteller) and the 25 player team has me busy working out their politics and its impact on the NPCs and the world around them. I'm also no longer a university student and am now looking for work (sigh). Now I've got all of the bases down, I should be posting more frequently.

Sorry!

Posted: **Fri Mar 06, 2009 1:37 pm**

Best of luck in your job search, Laraqua. Hope you find something very lucrative that leaves lots of free time for play.

Posted: **Sun Mar 15, 2009 2:48 pm**

Man, it's hard adjusting after 18 years of being a student, identifying as a student, and doing student-y things. I feel like I've been fired from a job, I just realized, "made redundant". It's actually a bit of an identity crisis as you figure out who you are and where you're going. Not a bad identity crisis like what would follow if a loved one was hurt or died, just a ... "Whoa, didn't think I'd be impacted so much."

Anyone else went through a similar ordeal?

Posted: **Sun Mar 15, 2009 4:01 pm**

i was always the kind of students who took 11 months off and then for the exams i didn't pass with ease i had to work a fuckton in one month. usually seemed to work.

lets just say that when i actually quit school (after having exhausted pretty much all the sensible 'extra' curriculum i could follow without making my motives overly obvious to future employers), i was pretty much slapped in the face with a lot of hard work and a fuckton of overtime. when you're used to slacking off a whole lot, it is indeed a bit of a crisis. though in my case, i really didn't get the time to take it all in. i suppose i have to 'thank' the huge workload for that...

now, whenever i walk past my old university/college, i'm always confronted with how young these kids look... surely, they're all freshmen, right?

well, no... it only still seems that way because i still identify myself as being "fresh out of uni" (which isn't the entire truth anymore). lets face it, i've become a working class old fart overnight!

it's quite funny really. when still in school, i had fucktons of time and limited money, now i've got a reasonable amount of money and no time to spend it in. (though that will change in time, i'm sure)

anyhow, what kind of prospects do you have, Laraqua? do you have anything lined up, or do you have to start the jobhunt from scratch?

Posted: **Mon Mar 16, 2009 3:03 am**

From scratch. Psychology degrees are never the preferred degree at honors level, not even for government graduate jobs, which is disheartening.

Posted: **Mon Mar 16, 2009 6:08 pm**

You should try to have the same degree as I have (history with a master in medieval history) to see the funny looks people make.

Posted: **Tue Mar 17, 2009 12:45 am**

Good luck with the job search, Laraqua! It's especially rough in these times. That's why I'm glad I have a civil service job, and I have enough seniority that I can't be laid off unless almost my entire unit is laid off with me. I may end up having to do the work of multiple people, but I'll still have a job.

I know exactly what you mean about trading time and no money for money and no time, SuAside. I keep telling myself I'll have the time eventually too, but it's been seven years and it hasn't changed yet.

Posted: **Sun Mar 22, 2009 11:37 am**

I can definitely relate. Having joined these forums and online games while in the midst of a prolonged period of unemployment (nearly 10 months, sheesh!), I'm finally back to work in crappy, dead end job that consists of 10 & 1/2 hour work days. That and being sucked into FallOut 3 for a month and a half have kept me from posting.

Nothing lasts forever and everything changes so I console myself w/ the mindset that a crappy job trumps no job, 'specially in this economic climate.

What is your area of specialization or expertise, Shannon? In a job search (having been a recruiter for 4 years), it's important to be able to differentiate between what you want to do (which may take some time) and what you're able to do: where are your applicable or transferable skills and experiences?

I have a sublimated interest in psychology, btw. That and gamestore owner are two of my alt future paths!

Posted: **Sun Mar 22, 2009 11:43 am**

Hehe. I've an honours in psychology and am looking at the Generalist, Consulting and HR streams, by and large, of the graduate opportunities. Right now I'm doing temp work to get some money and experience under the belt.

Posted: **Sun Mar 22, 2009 12:09 pm**

Yeah, longterm, I'm interested in getting into HR myself. Recruiting offers a strand of that, something to consider if you're looking to build up HR experience. At least here in the States, there are low barriers to entry to the profession. If you're presentable and a good communicator, there's always someone/someplace that will give you a shot. Unfortunately, not a good time to be a recruiter. As far as consulting goes, you'll probably have to build up a greater set of experiences and knowledge before that becomes viable.

A colleague I was friendly w/ at my last recruiting job was Aussie. Good guy.

What does your boyfriend do for work/money?

Posted: **Sun Mar 22, 2009 2:19 pm**

people in HR are all either looney tunes and/or pathological liars. i work with these people every day (i'm more or less in the same sector, but not in HR myself).

needless to say, that eventhough the industry is 75% female, i'd prefer not to date a girl in HR because these girls are simply way too good at lying. i mean, females get a head start at lying at birth, but then some even make a profession out of it & man, that is really just a bridge too far.

Posted: **Sun Mar 22, 2009 6:31 pm**

Umm, oookkkkk. Looking to endear yourself Suaside? Given your dating preferences and sexual stereotyping, I'd guess you were a real ladies' man.

Posted: **Mon Mar 23, 2009 8:10 am**

My beau's a student, now.

As for Consulting, these are graduate opportunities, so they won't be expecting MUCH experience. But most won't be that appreciable of my Psychology qualification.

Posted: **Mon Mar 23, 2009 6:20 pm**

suaside wrote:
it's quite funny really. when still in school, i had fucktons of time and limited money, now i've got a reasonable amount of money and no time to spend it in. (though that will change in time, i'm sure)

SuAside, if you need someone to take one for the team and help you spend your money, I'd be more than happy to oblige.

I'm really just playing nicky nicky nine doors....ding dong ditch or whatever you wanna call it.

*waggles tongue at all of you*

heh heh

Posted: **Mon Mar 23, 2009 8:55 pm**

John Gaunt wrote:Umm, oookkkkk. Looking to endear yourself Suaside? Given your dating preferences and sexual stereotyping, I'd guess you were a real ladies' man.

i was just exaggerating.

but regardless, there's a semblance of truth in my words...

trixie wrote:SuAside, if you need someone to take one for the team and help you spend your money, I'd be more than happy to oblige.
I'm really just playing nicky nicky nine doors....ding dong ditch or whatever you wanna call it.
*waggles tongue at all of you*
heh heh

how kind of you to worry about this money not getting spent properly! but no need, i'll make sure it is all gone in due time, my dear.

maybe an expensive trip to Thailand to meet some shemales would do Gaunt's image of me justice.

Posted: **Mon Mar 23, 2009 9:59 pm**

"Given your dating preferences and sexual stereotyping, I'd guess you were a real ladies' man." What Chit-Chat have I missed?

Posted: **Tue Mar 24, 2009 8:28 pm**

don't know how he jumped from my Looneys & Liars comment to this either, but well, whatever.

Posted: **Wed Mar 25, 2009 1:22 am**

Neither can I.

I mean, that was just honest fact, right?

Posted: **Wed Mar 25, 2009 10:11 pm**

a brazen generalisation at worst, my dear.

Posted: **Fri Apr 03, 2009 1:59 am**

How did I "jump" to this statement? Well maybe when you slagged an entire profession by saying:

people in HR are all either looney tunes and/or pathological liars. i work with these people every day (i'm more or less in the same sector, but not in HR myself).

needless to say, that eventhough the industry is 75% female, i'd prefer not to date a girl in HR because these girls are simply way too good at lying. i mean, females get a head start at lying at birth, but then some even make a profession out of it & man, that is really just a bridge too far

And then followed it up with:

maybe an expensive trip to Thailand to meet some shemales would do Gaunt's image of me justice.

Hey, whatever floats your boat, just don't sink mine.

Posted: **Sat Apr 04, 2009 6:46 am**

I'm going for HR...

Enough said.

Posted: **Sun Apr 05, 2009 6:27 pm**

Laraqua wrote:I'm going for HR...

Enough said.

case in point, indeed...

Posted: **Mon Apr 06, 2009 7:21 am**

Graduate applications are sooooooooo long-winded to write up.

*pant, pant*

So many words ... gives me a head ache ... just procrastinating about it.

Posted: **Fri May 22, 2009 1:47 pm**

You reposted Fransesca's reply in her thread. I think you meant to put it in mine.

Posted: **Fri Jun 19, 2009 1:35 pm**

Sooooo... We're back?

Posted: **Fri Jun 19, 2009 7:20 pm**

/waves

Posted: **Sat Jun 20, 2009 10:32 am**

...but where is Laraqua?

Posted: **Sat Jun 20, 2009 8:55 pm**

She hasn't logged onto the boards since the very beginning of June, a couple of days before the outage. I don't know when she'll be back, but we can't really get anywhere without her.

Posted: **Tue Jun 30, 2009 2:04 pm**

This is very, very true.

Where can she be?

*peers about to the left*

Damnit.

*taps foot.*

Oh wait...

That's me.

Posted: **Tue Jun 30, 2009 3:12 pm**

Madam Darkness is back! And we all die

Posted: **Tue Jun 30, 2009 4:15 pm**

Welcome Laraqua! We missed you!

Posted: **Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:59 pm**

Welcome back, Laraqua! Your Zombie Apocalypse characters are ready for you to take over again once you've caught up (and there isn't too much catching up needed), no worse for the wear. Katarina even got another skill checked while I was running her as an NPC.

Posted: **Wed Jul 01, 2009 3:14 am**

Good to have you back.

Posted: **Wed Jul 08, 2009 8:14 am**

Things have been a little crazy at the moment. Go on the A-List, a government mentoring program (no pay, but good experience hopefully) and doing volunteer work so I can get at the fancier volunteer work which'll hopefully be fancy enough to go on my resume.

Things should settle down shortly though...

Posted: **Sat Jul 18, 2009 2:54 am**

Please excuse my not being around for a very long time. My computer was damaged severely, despite my first look. It worked fine for a day, but then was as useful as a doorstop. Even now I'm typing in the library. But, I have found a new computer, though a bit of a clunker. As soon as I find a good free OS, I should be able to post again, if my character is still playable.

Posted: **Thu Jul 23, 2009 1:41 am**

That's fine, your character still is.

Posted: **Fri Jul 24, 2009 10:33 am**

Hey folks, what is the situation with this game. I see in the Berlin chapter Laraqua hasn't posted there for a few weeks, although Daniel and Milly are chewing the cud (haven't read any of it so may not be aimless).

Do we deep freeze until Laraqua sorts out the important stuff?

Posted: **Fri Jul 24, 2009 2:22 pm**

I don't know. Milly doesn't really have much more to say at this point.

Posted: **Sat Jul 25, 2009 3:49 am**

Yes, I think we've pretty much exhausted our conversation. Laraqua has been on the board, but she's been posting infrequently lately (she hasn't posted in Zombie Apocalypse in some time too). At this point, we're probably best off waiting for her to post again.

Posted: **Tue Aug 18, 2009 9:14 am**

I will be out until 20 of september. See you then.

Posted: **Wed Sep 02, 2009 5:31 pm**

Has anyone heard anything from Laraqua?

Her profile indicates she hasn't visited the sit since Aug 12, which is about the last time she posted anything for this game.

Posted: **Thu Sep 03, 2009 1:48 am**

I've been wondering where she's gone myself. She's been on the board fairly infrequently this summer (winter in Australia), but I don't recall her being gone for this long without at least logging on and checking in.

Posted: **Thu Oct 08, 2009 7:00 am**

Sorry everyone.

I've been sick off and on with various colds and flus. Mum blames it on the damp - there's mold that grows from mid-Autumn to mid-Spring on almost every door, window, and some of the walls in the house. Gotten worse since the new flat mates moved in as its doubled the number of showers. There's been net troubles, new flat mate settling in issues, job hunting, starting up with volunteering, and all kinds of other random stuff that keeps rearing its ugly head.

I'm sure that a few of the players will have dropped out since August. That's fine. I can understand that. Who's still here and still willing to play?

Posted: **Thu Oct 08, 2009 8:03 am**

I´m still here. Keen on continuing. On the flip side of waiting is that one can join other games too!

Welcome back in health and to the board!

Posted: **Thu Oct 08, 2009 4:29 pm**

As I said in the other thread: I'm still here!

Posted: **Fri Oct 09, 2009 2:32 am**

I'm still here too.

Posted: **Thu Oct 22, 2009 12:57 pm**

Here we go here we go here we go.

Posted: **Sat Dec 05, 2009 1:30 pm**

I'm off to see the family so I won't be posting regularly until January.

Posted: **Mon Dec 07, 2009 8:15 pm**

have fun!

Posted: **Sun Jan 10, 2010 2:58 am**

And now I'm back.

By the way, is anyone a little stuck or confused on what to do? I can always push things along at a faster pace if folk would like.

Play@YSDC

Chit-Chat

Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat

Re: Chit-Chat