A Weekend in Dundee (United)

It all seems so long ago now, but last weekend was a holiday of sorts. I had a 4 day weekend (granted, 2 of those days were spent on trains, but mustn't grumble, eh?) and was spirited away to the far end of the country and beyond.

Of all the places to end up, I disembarked the train at Dundee. I've been before, and I've got friends there, so it's not like this was a great surprise. What was slightly different (and I will always feel a little guilty about - and equally grateful for) is that I didn't pay for the trip: Garry and Rosa, in the aftermath of Christmas and knowing my somewhat precarious financial footing, basically decided I was going up there for a break and fronted me the tickets.

This trip was unique in another way, too: no hangovers (at least not for me)! Oh, and the cat, Guinness, who G&R are certain I scarred for life but I maintain I did nothing but fail to "cave to the cuteness"; finally there was the indoctrination that is Scottish football as we took in the game between Dundee United and Hibernian. A dire goalless affair in truth (and overpriced for the lack of spectacle), it was an enjoyable experience all the same and I am now forever cursed with the morbid fascination that is following the Tangerines. United had the better of the game against a truly disappointing Hibs side and really ought to have won but alas - perhaps typically I go to watch Scottish football and have all my stereotypes and prejudices confirmed! I kid because I suffer.

The no hangovers line is deceptive; this trip was every bit as alcoholic as the others I've made up to not-so-sunny Scotland, its just that for whatever reason (probably connected to my being so knackered on the Friday night that I crashed out at the reasonable time of 1am) the copious beers didn't get to me as much as on previous occasions. Other nights were as sleepless as ever - on Saturday Garry and I were up until some ridiculous hour shouting at the TV while playing imaginary football and drinking beer, and on Sunday night it was progression in co-op Gears of War. If anything will ever convince me that the financial layout on a next-gen console is, in fact, worth it, then this was it: GoW is simply stunning. Yes, the visuals lack colour but that is a feature, not a bug; the game is so beautifully designed from both gameplay and art direction points of view that even though the TV was not HD it was by some margin the prettiest game I have ever played and the game truly felt like it was designed for two. Unlike many co-op modes where the second player feels tacked on (in the campaign game, at least), in GoW teamwork in videogames hit a new high from my (albeit rather sheltered) perspective. Not least because of the cover mechanics. The old one moves, one covers staple of oh-so-many buddy cop (and other) movies is actually a viable method and this alone made the game fun for me. The banter associated with bailing each other out was a bonus though.

But perhaps the best GoW moment of the weekend was watching the raving Scotsman get decimated by the English lawyer in a 1-on-1 versus via Xbox Live on a lazy Sunday morning before the fitba (oh god, I've started writing Scottish!). Oh how I laughed.

One Day Nightmares, Or Am I Dreaming? A World Cup Preview

The 2007 Cricket World Cup is shaping up nicely.

As recently as a month or so ago it was looking like a foregone conclusion: Australia had swept the Ashes 5-0 and were bullying both New Zealand and a thoroughly demoralised England side in the CB series that followed. How quickly things change. I first started to draft this post in the middle of the triangular series. England had just lost two back to back matches, making a total of 230 runs in both games combined. Truly shocking stuff.

Now, both the aforementioned bullied teams have turned things around and shocked the Aussies - admittedly with the help of some Australian injury nightmares (Symonds, Lee, Hayden, Ponting and Gilchrist all missing games). England woke from their slumber, cantering to 4 back to back wins - 3 against Australia and one against New Zealand - to not only reach the final of the CB series from a hopeless position but walk away from it with the trophy with a game to spare. For their part, New Zealand have grown since their early trip home from the triangular series: when the Aussies arrived for the Chappel-Hadlee series they were on the wrong end of a 3-0 tonking, including their first ever 10 wicket ODI defeat in the opening game. All of which means that now, officially, South Africa have assumed the mantle of the world's best One Day side. Unofficially this is not the case; Australia are going through a slump but are still, when fit and firing, the best side in the world by a margin. Their problem is that they aren't, currently, fit or firing, but they still have time to turn the first around; the minnows in their group for the first stage of the tournament proper (Scotland and Holland) give them the opportunity to reverse the latter.

The return to some sort of form of England and New Zealand gives hope for a good tournament. Ideally all the 8 major Test nations (sorry, Bangladesh) will give good accounts of themselves and create a truly vibrant competition. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka don't generally travel too well, yet all have the kind of players who on their day can rule the roost; Pakistan's inconsistency is the greatest potential for let-down of the three, while arguably the biggest factor working for any of the subcontinental sides is Murali - West Indian conditions might just make his bowling even more dangerous than normal. India's star-studded line-up can never be completely overlooked though and despite their seeding being the lowest of the major nations (on what basis I really cannot think) I would imagine they will perform the best of the Asian sides.

South Africa's lofty ranking is, I think, a bit of a misnomer; yes, they are a very dangerous team and capable of frightening scoring but they lose some of that aura when playing away from home. Their recent demolitions of Pakistan and India were at home in conditions that suit them to the ground and benefit their pace-heavy approach. The team lacks spin options though and, perhaps unfairly, still needs to throw off the tag of "chokers" in pressure situations where silverware is at stake. On slow, low pitches in the Carribean there are major doubts about just how effective the SA pace corps will be, but I do expect them to reach the semi-finals at least.

England and New Zealand are re-awoken and whilst I don't see either side winning the tournament they have proved they can compete - something there were major doubts about just last month. England are probably too beholden to three players - Collingwood, Flintoff and Pietersen - though the CB series win was sealed without the latter. The bowling is too weak, in my view, to really give the team a chance of shining but there is now enough big game experience to help out - and the proof that England's best spinner can play one day cricket. Pietersen's off breaks might be a weapon of sorts on West Indian pitches, too. I feel New Zealand, likewise, are reliant on a few key players: Oram and Vettori to the fore for their all-round talents, but also Shane Bond who on his day is as devastating as anyone, and Fleming's superb captaincy which has long disguised his less than stellar batting.

The hosts are an enigma. The Windies line-up is not one that looks imposing but the conditions will suit them down to the ground and they keep getting results. In Chris Gayle they have a truly underrated all-rounder; everyone knows about his explosive batting at the top of the order but it is easy to forget how much he contributes with his fast, flat off-spin. Dwayne Bravo, too, is a prodigious all-round talent and it will be Brian Lara's last shot at the World Cup... I wouldn't count them out of it, but nor would I tout them as real favourites; dark horses capable of flopping altogether or storming to a grand home-win.

But Australia, for all their recent troubles, must start favourites. A month ago I'd never have logically considered any other winner despite Cricket, and ODIs in particular, being a funny old game; they were clear favourites by a mile and winning games at a canter. Now they've tasted defeat, have doubts about some of their matchwinners and are going in on the back of five or six straight defeats. But any team that contains Gilchrist, Ponting and Hussey with power to add Hayden and Clarke will out-bat most sides in their sleep. The bowling is more of an issue - especially now Brett Lee has been ruled out - but who would bet against Glenn McGrath retiring from cricket on the back of a third successive World Cup?

A glorious month of Cricket awaits before we find out either way, and praise to the sides who knocked Australia out of their stride for injecting new and exciting life into the build up to a competition that was previously looking ominously dull.

"[It's our imagination that] allows us to come up with extremely complicated things like Dundee"

Gods but do I love the humour of Armando Iannucci.

I also quite like Dundee, where I spent the weekend. More to come on this (perhaps) when I've more time; for now I just couldn't resist using this phrase as a title.

Anyone wanting to know the context and origin of the phrase's roots should look up the DVD of Iannucci's 2001 series for Channel 4, The Amando Iannucci Shows. They're really very good.

Work, Work

Today was my first day as a Temp. No job too menial, no post too short-term.

A one-day stint stuffing envelopes began this journey. I wonder what, or where, (and when) next.

Settlers of Catan

This is not a review, but rather a play report and some thoughts after first experience with the game. It will be of little interest or use to people completely unfamiliar with Settlers. Sorry about that!

Last weekend, with my brother and his girlfriend up, no firm ideas and time schedules an idea was posited that I had meant to bring up several times before. I have owned Settlers of Catan for a good few years now, but there has always been something here or there that has prevented me from actually playing: too many people, or too few; or the wrong people; or not enough time or space; or the worst one: forgetting about it.

But this weekend we (collectively) remembered it; on Saturday it was cracked out after lunch and the four of us (me, my brother, his girlfriend and my mother) set up the board with the suggested beginner's starting positions and set about trying to learn the game. It was left to me to read the rules, which I did very slowly (but not very carefully), and tried to explain them to the others. We decided - perhaps self-defeatingly - to play the first game with open hands with regards to resource cards so that everyone could get an idea of how the game worked. In hindsight this was a bad move. While there is no doubt it helped us to grasp the uses of the various resources and their relative worth at different stages of the game, it also took a lot of the strategy, in trading and targeting of the Robber piece, out of the game and, ultimately, directly governed the final winning move. There were other problems, too; the randomness of resource generation coupled to the default starting positions meant that the red player ended up with nothing and thus couldn't build. By the time they got the resources needed to build they got shut in and isolated; unable to build for that reason. This seemed like sheer bad luck though and, combined with the realisations that: a) we would get more out of a closed-hand game and b) we may have missed out on a lot by using the default starting set-up. Random isle-generation and self determination of starting location would make a huge difference, we reasoned, and we'd seen enough to ensure a return to the game, with closed hands and a variable board. My interest was piqued, certainly even if I hadn't enjoyed the first game.

On the Sunday, again after lunch, we settled down to play explicitly by the rules and with, on the whole, a much better understanding of the game. We used variable set-up and placed settlements ourselves; the difference this made to the perception of the game was immense, even if - as is quite possible - the effect it had was small. The red player again got shafted, but this time it was a consequence of poor choices of location and ill-advised road placement in the early phase. The biggest difference was obvious: trading was more prevalent when we didn't know precisely what each other had and use of the robber (through soldier cards and 7s) was more targeted by who was winning, how many cards people were holding and what they'd picked up in recent rounds. I suspect a lot of the strategy for development card usage passed us by; from what little discussion I have had, heard or read from Settlers veterans there are good times to hold onto development cards - even ones that aren't hidden victory points. I can certainly see some situations where holding onto things like a Monopoly might be of benefit, for instance. Despite that I feel I learnt a lot more about good placement and the relative weighting of resources which might serve me well when I play again; I intend to play again, as I enjoyed the game.

There are, however, downsides. The shutting off of the fourth player owed a lot to poor placement on their part in this game, and the worst of the default starting positions in the first game. However it was compounded by randomness that then enforced a lack of resources for that player and if people are being stubborn and unhelpful by not trading then an unlucky sequence of dice rolls can easily rule you out of the game in the early stages. Certainly, too, it is frustrating at stages when you cannot make a significant move on your turn; the randomness behind resource generation means it is quite possible - likely, even, in some circumstances - that you will be able to do no more than roll for resources then pass the dice on to the next player. Between that and (possible) reticence of others to trade it can write people off too early. We also found that it took too long - hence the interest of the game was balanced against a boredom of slow-moving play; this is especially the case if someone does get cut out of any real victory chance. It is definitely the case, however, that gameplay speeds up as you get a better handle on what you are doing and a any future third game should probably run a lot smoother and faster than the first two. This is good, but to my mind it is really a bad game to play with people who are unfamiliar with it: the advantage given to people who know what they're doing and the time factor seem to be disadvantages in this sense.

The randomness? Well it appears that many people have looked to lessen this as streaks of lucky/unlucky or statistically unlikely die rolls can have huge impact. I don't know where I stand yet but I certainly see it as a contributing factor to the unsatisfactory elements of the two games played. Another informed outing with the dice is certainly warranted before looking to house-rule on this score.

All in all, I'm very glad to have played. Settlers is an interesting game and potentially a very fun way of passing the time. There are flaws, but then there are with anything. My interest remains high though and I hope I do not have to wait another 2 years or more to play again!

Isolation

I may have mentioned this before but it is something that really gets to me: I am isolated here in Oxford and this lack of friends around me is a real kicker that compounds the issues stressing me.

Mainly it just means that I can't just call, text or email someone and go out later. Which translates to me having less of an outlet for whinging, moaning and, more importantly, making light of, getting support for or putting my worries into context: worries like job hunting, lack of sleep or so forth. So little can really be done over the phone that distance really is a factor, but less of one than the issue of having to plan meets weeks in advance. There are friends I haven't seen in over a year because it's tough as hell to fix up dates due to differing schedules, finances and transportation issues.

It drives me mad and, on days like today (or even months like this one), when the stresses and strains take their toll and I really feel the need to kick back and go out with some friends... I can't. None around. Thankfully as I was writing this I did get a call and I have spent the last 20 minutes or so chatting with friends but great as that is... it's not quite the "sit it the pub talking shite" category of relaxation and emotional recharging. Life is a stressful business, and one needs ones friends to keep it from getting too much at times. Isolation prevents that; isolation sucks.

Drama and Nostalgia

Saturday night was strange. I say this because what should have just been a family meal out (it was both my brother's and my mother's birthdays in the last week or so) turned into a nostalgic evening and a meeting with people I'd not seen or spoke to for 10 years.

First a not insignificant factor in this is that my dad and stepmother weren't able to be there due to complications travelling over from Greece. Nevertheless, my brother and his girlfriend were up from London and four of us went out for a meal as planned. In the cab on the way back my brother suggested heading down to our local for a drink and although my mother didn't wish to join us we other three set off after dropping her home.

It was in the pub the weirdness began; shortly after taking seats with our drinks (Guinness all round) we noticed a group stood at the bar and got "I'm sure I recognise him" reactions from each other with regards to one of them. It struck us that it was a guy who we'd both been in a youth drama group, the North Oxford Youth Theatre, with 10 years ago. It dawned, too, that he was with his parents who (if I recall) had had active roles behind the scenes with the productions and that that evening was the last night of the annual Winter play. Turned out he recognised us, too and hellos were said, re-introductions made. A very short while later two more of the old crowd appeared: they'd all come up for the last night of the play; not just any play either: this one had been written especially for its cast at the time... 10 years ago when we'd all been in it. The three ex-members who we bumped into that night had all been principle members of that cast who had been integral to the writing whilst my brother and I, a couple of years their junior, had just been general cast members. One of the writers then walked in; he was (again) doing the music and co-producing and hadn't changed a bit either. We'd known the play was on this year (it had been discussed at Christmas), and we'd half talked about going; it had quickly got forgotten and passed out of mind. When we set off to the Plough that night neither my brother nor I had twigged that that night was the last night of the play.

Still, a large group had thus formed and a quick drink and a bit of a natter later we'd been implored to swing by what passed for the aftershow party. It should be noted that this just meant a bit of a wind-down and chin-wag since the cast were all 17 or under, but we figured it'd be good to see some old faces again (as we'd established many of the people running the group were the same as they had been when we were in it). So we drank up, and wandered by. The Wolvercote village hall is exactly as it was when I'd last been there, 10 years ago. The production team, stagehands, make-up and costume staff were as they were 10 years ago. The only difference was the cast: non of them had been there 10 years ago, as even the youngest from my time there would have had to leave by now. It was odd, but nice; it triggered a lot of memories and it was surprising and pleasant to be remembered by people. We stuck around throughout the wind-up, and my brother and I ended up getting involved in the traditional game of Alfie, still played after all these years.

It was a bizarre experience all told, but rewarding and prompted nostalgic conversation when we got home, too. The main feeling though was that however much things changed, some things had stayed so much the same it was scary. We walked in and it was like we'd never been away. People had aged but that was all, and yet it was a not insignificant passage of time: 10 years is more than a third of my life after all, and longer than either of us were involved in the group for. It is the group's 50th anniversary in a couple of years time and at least two of those working backstage in 2007 had been cast members in the early years, such is the strength of feeling for the activities, plays and opportunities it gives the children involved. I know my brother has stronger feeling for the group than I do but I don't share that will to get involved or strength of feeling for the group. The past is the past, and I've lost touch with a staggering amount of mine, but should I still be around Oxford in early 2009 I might just have to attend any 50th anniversary bash.

Assuming, that is, I remember it is on.

The Good, The Bad & The Queen

Damon Albarn has done it again. He is commonly described by the press as Britpop's most significant surviver - after huge success with Blur his work with Gorillaz ensured that his name lived on where others have fallen by the wayside. After deciding to end the Gorillaz project in the wake of Demon Days, and following the Mali Music project, his latest work hit the shops on Tuesday. Albarn teamed up with some high-profile colleagues - Tony Allen, Paul Simonon and Simon Tong along with Gorillaz producer Danger Mouse - and The Good, The Bad & The Queen is the result. The album has been hotly anticipated as the group has been in the public consciousness since October 2006 and the BBC Electric Proms and indeed that was when my interest was piqued. I enjoyed the catalogue produced by Gorillaz and, whilst Blur were not my cup of tea (at least at the time; I've warmed to some of their stuff since) I have long held Damon Albarn in high regard.

Financially I should never have bought the album this week nor would I have done, but for having to order my brother a birthday present: a second purchase was needed to get free shipping and the opportunity was too much to pass up. Music has long appealed to my baser nature and in many ways it is my chief vice - certainly it is my most expensive hobby - and so the album arrived through my mailbox this morning. It's currently getting its third and fourth plays as I type these thoughts.

Overall, this is an album with a dark yet engaging tone. At times both very simple and yet with rich depth and several audible layers it never feels over-complicated, self reverential or beholden to the back-catalogues of those involved. Its melodies, beats and harmonies all strike the listener as deliberate, precise and exactly appropriate: this is music crafted by true artisans. Albarn's voice lends itself perfectly to this type of project too - at times cracked and dry, others warm and engaging, or soft, or distant but always sounding smoke-y, dusky and unique. It shares the properties of the music and lyrics it conveys. What strikes me though is that while the overall tone is fairly dark, the album ends with an uplifting feeling: perhaps it is not as dark as all that. There is fun and funk in the eponymous closing track with its long, upbeat lead out and once you've heard the whole work once you begin to hear similar nuances in the other eleven tracks when you revisit them.

The album opens with an (semi-)acoustic guitar riff and a dark and vaguely threatening tone but one that demands aural attention. History song is a bit of a hotch-potch, an introductory piece, showcasing some of what is to come. When 80's Life kicks in it has a brighter sound, cleaner and lighter with harmonies that remind me a touch of some of Angelo Badalamenti's score to Twin Peaks; the vocals come across somewhat darker and the contrast holds the attention with a pervading sense of wistfulness. The third track, Northern Whale, mixes sporadic electronica with some fine piano chords and then insertions from the other musicians as a complex of overlaid themes, riffs and ideas meshes together to lend an interesting backdrop which - at times - threatens to swallow the vocal, so fully does it hold the ear.

Then come the singles - Kingdom of Doom and Herculean - back to back. The opening of the former reminds me very much of the intro to the Thea Gilmore song Saint Luke's Summer (from Rules for Jokers) which itself makes me think of Tom Waits for some reason. The rest kicks in though and the similarity ends in seconds. The pitch and tone of the song mesh with a fragile, yet old and knowing, vocal and make a fine listen. Herculean follows immediately much warmer than the previous track, a fine contrast: where the vocals on Kingdom of Doom are close and the tone of the track more cold and bleak, Herculean is warm but with distant-sounding vocals. It is the beats that draw the ear though and as the track progresses through the vocal sections it evolves into a rich sound with repeating loops and plenty of sustained interest. This couplet is the heart of the album, without a doubt.

It's not downhill from there, but the pattern is set: elements in each piece evoke similar feelings of warmth or chill, distance or claustrophobia as covered by these two tracks. There are influences or similarities to others to be heard, too; Nature Springs brought to mind the distinctive use of electronica and rhythm-heavy nature that has permeated Radiohead's more recent work (and especially Thom Yorke's album The Eraser) whilst going beyond that and adding more melody over the top of it (especially in vocal comparison). Later, Three Changes opens with a carnival-like sound which immediately brought Tom Waits to mind and Albarn lends his voice in different ways - shorter phrases, more staccato delivery and a snappiness that is foot-tappingly good. There are definite hints of fun here, which go from hint to blaring declaration by the time everything kicks off in the title track.

The Good, The Bad & The Queen is my favourite track on the album. It starts with a stark piano and not much else, vaguely dischordant and somewhat melancholy; that all changes when the vocal and rhythm kick in. There is certainly an edge to the pace and a driving power hidden in the bass. The vocal finishes almost as soon as it starts and then the tempo ratchets up and sends you into aural heaven: pure gold; pure fun; pure happiness.

A fine album to be sure. Not a mind-blowing one in the sense that it leaps into the psyche and will not be budged but one that grabs you at every opportunity and demands listening - demands repeating. It will end as one of the albums of 2007, to be sure - and it's only January. The only shame is that it will probably be a one-off.

The Kiss of Death

Well, it seems like I put the mockers on the U's when I commented last month on Oxford's promising season. The team haven't won in the Conference since November and now lie second, but six points behind new leaders Dagenham and Redbridge.

To be honest I think they're lucky to only be six points behind. Dagenham's results have been kind to Oxford for the most part with the Daggers seemingly failing to take advantage of United's stumbling. Well no more; this week Woking beat the U's, while Dagenham won away at Grays to open up the 6 point gap. With only one going up by rights Oxford need to rediscover their early season form fast or risk the playoffs lottery and the problems of another season outside the Football League.

In not-much brighter news Dundee United aren't doing great either. The Arabs are Garry's team and now my adoptive Scottish side; they've twice been hammered 5-1 by Falkirk this season and got drubbed 5-0 by Rangers recently. I'm heading up to Dundee in February and we're going to a game... I just hope I'm not in for drubbings: at least Oxford are only losing by the odd goal and drawing games they should win, not getting spanked off the park!

Plans, Counter Plans and a Change of Plans

Best session yet, by some margin. There was a lot going on and I'm sure I missed half of it because at any one time the group were generally split: in character conversations, plotting and conniving between PCs were commonly in parallel to others working with the GM elsewhere in game.

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After Zeff had stormed out, the others at the table were treated to Col outlining an outlandish plan to steal the Trebezond, involving flaming swords, dressing up as dead gods, tarring and feathering people and much more. It was enough to drive even Adenaar to drink (with a little prompting from Kelvin) but Col spun his ideas as a weaver works a loom and had both Kelvin and Adenaar - and, indeed, Kasmin - convinced by the time he was done, along with roles assigned for the act itself. Adenaar had too much to drink (it was his first exposure to alcohol) and wandered off, failing to make it home and with no memory of anything that happened after he left the inn and only a hazy recollection of the plan.

Zeff, meanwhile, had been taking Kasmin's words to heart. After storming around the city to work off his rage - being called simple (whilst true) was too much insult for him to take - he decided he had to show everyone that he could think and act for himself. Earlier that day he had, by accident, discovered that his channeling could make him intangible - he had been running from the Sky Cities guards after pilfering the "zapper" when his powers took him through a wall instead of up it - and he figured that this would make getting onto the Trebezond a simple task. If he could walk through walls then how could anyone stop him?

By midnight he'd made his way over to the docks; once there he began his rhythmic "dance" and tried to replicate the feeling he'd had earlier. It worked. Zeff brazenly approached the guards on the walkways around the tent under which the ship was being constructed; when commanded to stop and show ID he just continued on.... through the guard. Convinced now, Zeff moved on and into the tent, then up onto the deck, pausing only to taunt and "scare" - the guards had named him a ghost so he played on it a little. He was attracting a lot of attention, but none of the guards could touch or impede him (equally Zeff could not harm them even had he wanted to); one did wave a doll, wailing about spirits and, in an effort to perhaps lose some attention, Zeff "fell" through the floor onto a lower deck. The aim had been to look around the ship, but no-one was working at this time and below decks no lamps were lit; not being able to see in the blackness Zeff called it a night, resolving to get himself a reliable light source and come back another night.

Next day; Col went to "work" on the Trebezond and found rumours circulating about ghostly presences the night before. Intuitively he talked them up, stirring the pot and encouraging the sense of fear and uncertainty that accompanied the unexplained, serendipitously they fit well with the ideas he had for causing fear and confusion at the launch party, especially as Zeff's rather peasantry appearance had already been exaggerated over the early hours to a likeness of the god encased below - complete with flaming sword. Kelvin spent the day in his workshop, working on a substance to recreate flaming swords in actuality - it was integral to Col's plan, after all. Adenaar turned up late to his teaching appointment: he had committed himself to teaching the squad of widowmakers. Hungover and unsure of his last few hours he bungled through the lesson in constant need of water and a clearer head. It was as the class ended that Zeff happened by - commenting on Adenaar's lack of wellbeing and wondering what had happened the night before. They walked and talked - about plans, Col and what to do about the Trebezond. Zeff told Adenaar about his late-night visit, and the latter counselled against an immediate return or trying to destroy the ship where it was but could sense that caution was not (entirely) sinking in.

They went in search of Kelvin and found him in the pub that evening; Zeff was trying to talk the alchemist into providing him with some of his more explosive or flammable creations but Kelvin was having none of it. He did, however, show the two of them his way of recreating the flaming sword effect - by lighting Adenaar's knife in the middle of the pub. Col happened by by the end of his shift (and a date with Captain Winter, one of the widowmakers to have been with them in the underfaust) and heard from Adenaar about Zeff's escapade the previous night (Zeff himself had nipped out when Col appeared) and was immediately struck with questions. Kelvin, meanwhile had another new idea, utilizing the explosive power of cowshit and ran off to "play" whilst before Col could ask Zeff anything Adenaar's revelations about the speaking stone (he'd just clicked that it was now speaking his language) prompted a more urgent trip. Col and Adenaar headed off to the Opera House to see the priestess who, it turned out, was Col's daughter. Much hypothesizing on Skygarden and dragons followed, but it was determined that the dragons were being sent from the future somehow, the stone could sense the temporal distortions. By the time the conversation had run its course and Adenaar went off to the restaurant to work his shift (sweeping up at the end of the day), Col had returned to the pub as he hoped to catch Zeff to ask him about the previous night, but the latter had retired for the night, heeding Adenaar's advice that a quiet night on the ship would stoke fears and uncertainty more than a repeat appearance.

The day dawned with Col again going to work on the Trebezond, but managing to fit in meetings with sundry others with whom he called in favours in order to prepare his plan for stealing the huge ship. Adenaar was much better prepared for his class this time, and recaptured the faith of those that showed, though he was visited by Whitehands who revealed that the Council of Surtur's Throne did not actually know what the Trebezond was for; Whitehands had apparently argued against working with the Sky Cities to build it, but the other council members had overruled him. Kelvin was again in his workshop, this time working on smoke bombs; Zeff was hanging around him like a bad smell (in the hope of getting the chance to lift something explosive without Kelvin noticing, given the alchemist's refusal to give Zeff anything) and getting in the way. Kelvin sent the boy out to get lunch, and in the time he was gone worked unfettered and perfected the smoke devices.

Zeff returned and showed enough interest in Kelvin's work to convince the older man to show him his explosives; Kelvin demonstrated the power of the "fertilizer bomb" he'd manufactured from manure. Further prodding convinced Kelvin to refine the mixture - it was too liquid to transport easily, and the alchemist worked on a drier form, essentially creating a very powerful bomb in his old leather pack. Kelvin was very edgy about this creation, not at all sure of its safety but Zeff has never seen any of Kelvin's creations fail and with the confidence that can only come from youth and stupidity gladly took possession of his tool - his aim to secrete it on the Trebezond that night and find some way to detonate it; from the scaled down tests Kelvin had demonstrated, the pack contained enough oomph to cripple the ship. Kelvin had run from the scene to the pub and was drinking heavily. Zeff had wandered back and, unconcerned, had just stashed the bomb in his room in the inn; when Kelvin realised this he went white and tried to counteract the "danger" by taking the pack an immersing it in water - but Zeff dogged his every step and his hectic, fidgety nagging combined with Kelvin's worst-case brain working overtime spooked the alchemist who simply handed over the pack and ran off into the night. Zeff shrugged, went to store the pack again, and descended to find Col and then Adenaar in the bar.

Col asked Zeff about his intangibility and whether he could use it on others but Zeff wasn't sure; all his powers are derived from instinct and feeling (as far as he is consciously aware) and he'd never used them on anyone else. Besides, trust in Col was running low and Zeff still did not know the details of the man's plan, having put his efforts into his own. Zeff was waiting for midnight as he planned to pilfer a lantern, take the bomb and load it onto the Trebezond that night, before finding some way to set it off. Adennar, on his arrival, sensed that Zeff would not wait; he also bore news (from the speaking stone) that more temporal incusions had happened beneath the city. Specifically it reported that 24 dragons ( or rather eggs) had appeared in the underfaust. He made a case for advancing the theft: they could no longer afford to wait for the launch party, he said, and somehow he made Col believe him. They would act that night if the ship would fly, and Col estimated that it would.

Final preparations were hastily made: Col dragged Zeff with him to clue in his crew (Col's vessel had a part to play later in the piece) whilst Adenaar went to track down Kelvin and convince him to take part. They would meet back in the pub at midnight and proceed from there.

---

And there we left it, on the verge of major happenings. The combination of rushed and incomplete plans, a (presumed) super-bomb in the hands of an overconfident and headstrong simpleton, the forthcoming theft of a major artifact and the unknown threat of dragons beneath the city is one hell of a setup for next time but, whilst that gives good potential for action and events next session what really made this session for me was the fact the characters really came to life.

It was the second game that all four players had been present and it showed, with a marked improvement in flow compared to the last one and characters tripping off each other now a degree of consistency was there. I think all 6 possible pairings of characters shared moments, and there were moments with groups of 3 whilst one was doing stuff with the GM too. Personalities and outlooks really came to the fore and there was real verve to the interactions and schemes. Adenaar's straight-faced truthfulness showed up Col's flashy untruths and Zeff's unthinking impulse. Zeff's impetuosity and impulsiveness were at stark contrast to Kelvin's caution and I particularly enjoyed the interplays between the two in context of the backpack bomb. Col's exuberance and embellishment won over doubters, yet he was himself implored (by the NPC Kasmin) to look at how he treated Zeff in light of their frosty relationship. All in all this session provided everything: big personal decisions and milestones, provocation of self-examination and whilst there was no overt action there was always something going on and it all felt part of an inevitable crescendo.

In short: the game has started to really fulfill the potential I saw in the group of PCs, and that rocks.

Witch Hunters in the Baronies

Rather than Dogs in the Vineyard.

As I read Dogs I posted to RPGnet about first impressions - generally good with a couple of queries that need be tested in play - and then later there, and here, about how I'd felt a little uneasy with the tones in the game regarding religion. Then, yesterday, I posted a thread about a campaign idea I've been kicking around for a few months: a WFRP game where the PCs are the empowered staff of a minor baron's household, tasked with executing his will and doing what's best for his smallfolk in times of trouble (wars or raids brewing, chaos stirring and so forth). The way it developed and a sleepless night thereafter, gave me and pause and time for thought and I realised as I lay waiting for sleep that Dogs could just as well be about the Witch Hunters in the Cult of Sigmar.

The parallels with the default setting are many, though there are as many differences to be sure. Essentially though it comes down to the same ultimate moral authority, which is a requisite baseline for the premise of Dogs to hold up. Warhammer is a renaissance fantasy, rather than medieval, and Witch Hunters certainly have access to firearms, even if the general populace do not and in essence this means that the rules port across as they are - escalation and all. OK, some of the conflicts that face Witch Hunters are not well represented by the rules in Dogs, things like facing down undead might require slight tinkering to work for example, but by and large the match is a good one and - more importantly from a personal point of view - it doesn't trip my comfort warnings the way the not-mormonism did in Dogs as written. I would still run it with the efficacy of Sigmarite prayers dialed down however: part of the appeal of Warhammer to me is that in many ways Sigmar is portrayed as a false deity (he was just, y'know, this guy who happened to be a hero in his time) but that the powers of magic and chaos are very real. Naked faith (albeit stacked with ritual understanding and black powder weapons) standing against a quantifiable, yet simultaneously subversive and secretive foe.

Either way, I think my campaign pitch has changed now! It'll still be Warhammer, just not WFRP... unless the group prefer that when all is said and done and I cannot persuade them otherwise.

Mayor Clarkson?

Now this is interesting, if by interesting I mean amusing. Jeremy Clarkson, him of Top Gear fame with the big head and big mouth has been suggested as a possible Tory candidate for Mayor of London. OK, so this came out last year - and Clarkson himself wrote a column on it last August - but it only reached my ears on Monday when I was out chatting with a friend.

Actually, it's not interesting: I, frankly, care little for London or who is mayor of it as I avoid that city altogether for the most part and whomever is mayor affects me little-to-none. However I do have time for Clarkson for various reasons, mostly because I find him funny and occasionally pertinent and well observed. Clarkson may give off the air of an ignorant brute and he makes no effort to hide his very un-PC views - paid, as he is, by the Sunday Times to espouse them in print. I don't read the Sunday Times but I have, of late, been reading the first of the books compiled from his column, The World According to Clarkson, as I trundle to and from Bicester on the bus every Wednesday. These columns cover the early years of this decade and while those that were topical are dated most are just Mr Clarkson running his mouth off. And therein lies the charm - he shows wit, humour, astuteness, but also bullheadedness, chauvinism and myopia. In short - he shows humanity; it has dispelled my view of him as ignorant or bigoted.

But most of all the book has made me laugh, even on the bus, and its format makes it a perfect companion in this type of short journey. I shall be seeking later volumes, given the opportunity.

And in other, completely unrelated, news: I walked down to town today in shoes I hadn't worn for a couple of years or so. Gave myself a blasted blister and am currently hobbling about like a one-legged man. Joy of joys!

What is on TV?

Obviously I don't mean right now, and I'm not going to start talking about all the sundry shows I think are just plain awful. No: this is a post about television shows that are currently, were recently, or will shortly be available to watch on free-to-air TV in the UK and that have a level of value or interest for me. I will, however, first mention in passing how woefully bad I consider most TV to be: soaps, docu-soaps, reality shows and game (rather than quiz) shows all have no merits in my mind, and make up an ever larger quantity of the programming available to watch. Good films are few and far between and, on the evidence of recent weeks, are being further marginalised by pushing them largely into graveyard schedules (starting 11pm or later).

True, there are also quality programmes being made and, in many ways, the quality level of modern programmes is way above that of older shows: higher budgets and production values leading to better produced end product. However it is evident that any individual viewer will rate the aired programmes differently in terms of enjoyment and content, and whilst I can recognise the high production values of something like the BBC's recent Doctor Who spin off Torchwood, for instance, the actual content of the programme left me bored.

So what have I found interesting lately? Not a lot. I must admit part of this is that as a general rule I vastly prefer my entertainment interactive to passive, so games and other people over film or TV. I do, however, enjoy the visual media when done well (such as Memento, for example), and the medium of television has some strong points too. In fact (ironically?) the TV show format quite strongly influences my favoured approach to roleplaying, thanks in no small part to Matt Wilson's excellent Primetime Adventures. Whilst most shows just lack that spark of interest there are, however, the odd exceptions: shows that capture my interest when I come across them by accident and do enough not just to keep me watching there and then, but to seek out future episodes.

Currently there is only one show airing on free-to-air TV in the UK that falls into this category; I am enthralled by Vincent D'Onofrio's portrayal of Robert Goren in Law and Order: Criminal Intent. I have no real love for the genre as a whole, and feel no pull to watch any other of the Law and Order iterations, but there is something about the way this one character is written and acted that demands my attention. The actor's mannerisms and detail combined with intelligent writing - the mind games the character uses to get into his suspects' heads or to the bottom of the crime must come from the writing - are just magnetism for my eyes. Certainly without that character I wouldn't watch the show; I suspect I wouldn't watch it with another actor, either.

The last show that I ended up sitting down to watch was when ITV picked up series one of Supernatural. I stumbled across it on a few occasions before I actually decided I would make an effort to watch it if it was on when I was free (and awake). First impressions were bad, but after I got over the whole American Teen vibe given off by the leads I warmed to the show - which has a very strong feel of gaming about it, and actually the relationships between the characters were well written. I'm pleased to hear that the second series is arriving on ITV2 next week, and I'll be looking to watch it.

I'm also periodically catching re-runs of Due South on ITV3 (and Quantum Leap which follows it) but these are both cases of take-it or leave-it nostalgia more than anything else: I enjoyed both when I was much younger and seeing them now is equal parts bemusement and amusement.

But really that's it, at least as far as drama is concerned. There are other things I will watch if they happen to be on and I flick by, though largely as background noise whilst doing other things. I will not sit down and invest wholly in something that doesn't really grab me in some way. There are other things I sit down and watch but they're not dramas: I love University Challenge and get mileage out of shows like QI or Have I Got News For You; watching Football Focus is a Saturday ritual, and Channel 4 News is a staple of most weekdays and as and when I catch episodes of Scrubs that I've not seen before I will sit and giggle.

TV shows make up a good 50% or more of my DVD collection, too, but it is mostly comedy (The Fast Show, Father Ted, etc.). The only dramas I have on DVD are 10 or more years old, and of exceptional quality or quirkiness: Twin Peaks (season 1), Channel 4's Ultraviolet and This Life.

In essence I'm hard to please when it comes to passive forms of visual entertainment and there's very little around that comes close to meeting my exacting standards for seeking return viewings.

A Song of Ice and Fire: the TV Show?

So I learned yesterday that one of the epics of recent fantasy literature is to be made into a television show. George R. R. Martin's dense humanocentric political saga A Song of Ice and Fire has been picked up by HBO with a view to televising the whole work - which has yet to be completed. Four of the (planned) seven books are published to date, with the plots not expected to be wound up finally until 2011; given the fickle nature of TV audiences, the likelihood is that however much the intent is there to serialise the whole work it will get cancelled before it gets that far.

At this point I am currently reading the fourth book. I have, on balance, enjoyed the series to date as it hits enough of my sweet spots to remain interesting: political machinations, humanocentric, actions with consequences and the spotlight on characters more than events. The caveat is that as each book has gone by it seems there is less of interest - not because any of the above have dissolved away but because the original cast of spotlight characters have largely been killed and replaced as protagonists with others of varying degrees of interest and, whilst still being about the characters more than events the books have seemed more and more ponderous. The newer viewpoint characters tend to engender less sympathy or empathy and, having had so many spotlights burn out, I find a reluctance to commit interest in their stories because they are likely to end prematurely. Yes, the series is about events bigger than any one character and the infighting and machinations are what makes the saga interesting on the one hand but lack of investiture in those who serve as a window on the world is an interest killer when it happens on such a grand scale. I also have issues with the age of a number of the protagonists which produces cognitive dissonance with the tone of their "voice" or thoughts in the writing and impairs my suspension of disbelief over some of the happenings.

All of that might suggest I'm underwhelmed by the idea of ASoIaF spawning a visual rendition: I'm not. In fact I'm very interested (else why write this?), and I can certainly see it working well. I am hugely glad that it has been picked up for television and not for film, as the small screen is a far better medium for the level of complexity and scale. The huge cast of significant characters would not lend itself to film, but is little problem in TV where each can have an episode here or there or, because total running time is longer for a series than a motion picture, cutting between them can be done without making it nauseating or underwhelming. The chances are that for TV purposes the characters will all be aged a little, removing a lot of the issues I have with their ages and actions, and the internalised thoughts (often the most jarring reading in the books, IMO) should disappear with (hopefully) good interpretation of the external dialogue and context used to give those insights instead. I also think that given the turnover in protagonists television, which is to me a much less personal medium (inspiring less investiture in the protagonists than literature encourages), will give a better dispassionate depiction of the characters: their dying when having previously been your view on events will be less jarring than I find it in the books.

Of course being, as I am, outside the US and, as it is, that the rights have only just been picked up in the first place it is debatable whether this oeuvre will ever reach my screen. Even if it does it is a long way away and plenty more information will trickle out between now and then which will guide he ultimate decision of whether to watch or not. I am cautiously optimistic, though. My reticence to go back and re-read books of this type (a good memory, short patience and not enough energy to read as many books for the first time as I would like to make re-reading something an exceptional event for me) means that this show, should it arrive will be a fresh insight and not undermined by devotion to the source material, even if my memory might find points of disagreement with the results.

I await with interest; I believe that is the first time I've genuinely felt that about a forthcoming TV show since the first series of 24.

And Then There Were Four!

Last night, for the first time in five sessions, the entire group made it to our Savage Worlds game and, as anticipated, it made a difference. The session was still somewhat disjointed as the various situations from the past four sessions were aligned and two characters that had not met were brought together but as a player in the game I certainly felt more at home (yet, somehow, more of a fifth wheel character-wise in the particular events of the session).

---

Adenaar "woke" to a strange sensation. He had no idea where he was, but was dressed as he had been when he had retired the night following the butchery outside a Free Brigades' safe house. It was just he, his sword and the speaking stone. It took him a while to figure out where he was - whether it was a dream or not was to the forefront of his mind - but the stone spoke up eventually: he had traveled not (just) in space, but in time. He was in Skygarden: the mausoleum of the gods 250 years and more earlier. The stone, or Skygarden itself, informed him that there were 26 gods entombed there, but that the Emperor had "stolen" 13 of them. The inference being that the stolen bodies of the missing gods were the artefacts powering the Sky Cities.

After learning this and sundry less pertinent informations Adenaar was transported back to the present, arriving - with mild confusion - in the hallway in front of the others as they fled the dragon-induced cave-in. Brief introductions followed, for Col had not met Adenaar before, as the Widowmaker captain, Winter, led them flawlessly out of the underfaust. At this point the group split: Kelvin headed for the pub, with Zeff (hoping to find Kasmin there) in tow, whilst Col walked Adenaar back to the restaurant before heading off to catch some shut-eye before his first day at work on the ship being put together amidst the security of the docks. It had been surmised by this point that it was to be powered by one of the missing gods: Trebezond had been a Sky City before it had been crashed as part of the original rebellion.

Next day dawned; Adenaar woke up to find 20 Widowmakers waiting for him, Zeff hadn't slept and went looking for Kasmin whilst Kelvin went to his workshop to work on a flame retardant and Col kept his work appointment. Adenaar's predicament was unnerving but not threatening: the posse of guards had come asking tuition not to arrest, kill or fight: evidently he had made a positive impression after standing toe-to-toe with Chardun Whitehands in the previous brawl. He told them to come back the next day for he had to think about the proposition (of teaching them). Zeff found Kasmin under the Opera House: she had been sleeping in a prop bed and availing herself - and, as it turned out, Zeff - of the prop clothing. A quick rundown of the previous evening's events followed, and Zeff left with word for Adenaar that Kasmin wanted to see him, and "get his size". Col's day as a "keel engineer" on the huge ship brought him into contact with the artefact: a 10" tall "dead" man in a lead coffin, holding a flaming sword. This artefact needed aligning with the hull to permit the ship to fly, and this was Col's remit. He did not get far with that, but did manage to sort out his pay, and score tickets to the launch party and find out about those running the project.

Everyone reconvened in the evening, after variously eventful days. It was then that Col's family ties came into the open: his brother was a Sky City count, and his nephew was revealed as the one running the Trebezond project. Just as tensions were rising following this snippet, Adenaar was warned by the speaking stone that something was coming - and suddenly the group were pulled out of the timeflow and confronted by three 10' tall figures brandishing swords. These temporal assassins, for want of a better descriptor, looked scary, but fell stunningly fast to Adenaar's blade, Kelvin's repeating bow and Col's use of a Sky Cities "zapper" that Zeff had pilfered earlier. Dropping back into time caused a couple to lose their lunches but discussion soon sprung up once more about who Col was, how much trust could be placed in him and how and what the Free Brigades could or would do about the imminent launch of the new Trebezond-class ship. Suggestions of stealing it came to light; Zeff was chastised for questioning if there would be leadership from the Brigades on the issue, told that all were members and should think and act for themselves. Col called Zeff simple, and ended with a blade-tip to his throat, but the situation was backed down before it cut, and Zeff stormed out into the Surtur's Throne evening air...

---

Good set up in the end. Seemed to take a while to get to it but large parts of that were down to the way things were organised and the requirements to tie the various threads together (not least as a result of having the first full group of the campaign). Not quite sure what is going to happen next, but having now been explicitly told to do things for himself, and having learnt some new tricks, Zeff is liable to go and cause serious havoc on the Trebezond. Having also been made aware of Col's ties to the Sky Cities, and especially the information that "nothing the Baileys have ever done has been good for the Lowlanders" IC trust is running very low indeed.