"According to Dr. Jonathan Reed, his encounter with an alien took place sometime during October 1996 in the Cascade Mountain woods of Washington State while hiking with his dog. At one point during the hike, Reed says, his dog became agitated and ran ahead of him barking. Concerned the animal was in danger after hearing it howl like it was 'being mauled,' Reed grabbed a tree branch about the size of a baseball bat and went to investigate. Upon reaching the site, Reed found his dog attacking a humanoid creature. The creature then attacked the dog, 'literally tearing the head off.' The dog was reduced to ashes -- Reed described it as having 'imploded.'
"Reed then claims to have lunged at the alien, striking it in the head with the branch. The alien, after being struck, screamed and fell to the ground.
"An hour after assaulting the alien and trying to regain his composure, Reed heard a humming sound coming from the woods. Seeking the source, he says, he observed a 'large, wedge shaped, black triangle' hovering low to the ground. He also called it an 'obelisk.' Reed, equipped with a 35mm camera and 8mm video camera, proceeded to photograph and film both the 'obelisk' and alien, as he remained at the scene for about three hours. Reed says he then wrapped the alien body in a thermal blanket, took it home and stored it in a freezer. {Two closeup photos of the alien's head, apparently lying on the shiny thermal blanket, and one photo of the alleged 'obelisk' craft, have circulated on the internet. - ed]
"The next day his friend, known only as 'Gary,' came over after Reed contacted him. Reed stated that 'Gary' contacted Peter Davenport of the National UFO Reporting Center and started asking "what if" questions, such as, 'What if we had a dead alien body?' [Peter Davenport has told CNI News that he does not recall speaking to 'Gary' or Dr. Reed at the time of this incident.] Reed also claims that his friend "Gary" has been missing for the last 2 years."
Click Here For the Rest of the Story
Click Here For The Chilling Photos
Click Here For A Transcript of the November 11th appearance of Dr Jonathan Reed, Robert Raith and Whitley Strieber on Art Bell
If it has Whitley Streiber, it has to be true. Enjoy the fun. [Via Jonny]
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
This Dork Is Bound For Origins
Friday after work Colleen and I will be heading South to Columbus for a day at the Origins gaming convention. At least a day at Origins for me. I have meetings scheduled with Steve Kenson and John Snead and I have a mix of excitment and fear.
It should be a fun and interesting day. Maybe I'll even get to game.
It should be a fun and interesting day. Maybe I'll even get to game.
Friday, June 24, 2005
Glastonbury Festival to Hold Silent Disco
Here's a cyberpunk type of image for your upcoming campaigns:
Glastonbury Festival to Hold Silent Disco
"It's a scene familiar to any summer music festival � open fields full of sweaty young bodies writhing in time. But this one appears to be missing a vital element � sound.
"At Britain's famed Glastonbury music festival this weekend, festivalgoers can take part in a "silent disco."
"The music, instead of being pumped out through stacks of speakers, will be streamed to the audience through personal sets of wireless headphones, and it'll look like the dancers are jumping around to a nonexistent beat."
Glastonbury Festival to Hold Silent Disco
"It's a scene familiar to any summer music festival � open fields full of sweaty young bodies writhing in time. But this one appears to be missing a vital element � sound.
"At Britain's famed Glastonbury music festival this weekend, festivalgoers can take part in a "silent disco."
"The music, instead of being pumped out through stacks of speakers, will be streamed to the audience through personal sets of wireless headphones, and it'll look like the dancers are jumping around to a nonexistent beat."
Romania Stunned by Nun's Death in Exorcism
Romania Stunned by Nun's Death in Exorcism
"The whispers started in April in the mind of the 23-year-old nun.
"In the heart of an Orthodox convent in Romania's impoverished northeast, doctors say, Maricica Irina Cornici believed she heard the devil talking to her, telling her she was sinful.
"She was treated for schizophrenia, but when she relapsed, a monk and four nuns tried a different method: exorcism."
"The whispers started in April in the mind of the 23-year-old nun.
"In the heart of an Orthodox convent in Romania's impoverished northeast, doctors say, Maricica Irina Cornici believed she heard the devil talking to her, telling her she was sinful.
"She was treated for schizophrenia, but when she relapsed, a monk and four nuns tried a different method: exorcism."
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Gossip: Prime Directive d20
This blogger has heard that a big part of the delay in Prime Directive d20, produced by Amarillo Design Bureau is in the fact that the publisher has said that he is uninterested in learning the d20 system in order to understand the manuscript turned into him from a respected d20 author. This disinterest has lead to internal strife between the publisher and the author, as the unknowledgeable publisher and playtesters who are just as clueless have forced enormous rewrites of the material, rewrites that in many cases do not fit with the workings of the d20 system. Many of these re-writes wouldn't even make sense to someone with a passing knowledge of how d20 works, such as requirements to spend XP at certain places in character development (which of course would mean that characters would not be able to advance as quickly due to having to use XP for things other than what they are intended for in the system.
This blogger fears that the resulting book may not even be compatible with other d20 products, due to a mistaken understanding of the nature of how d20 works. Hopefully, this will not be the case.
This blogger thought that the days of publishers attempting to exploit the d20 fan base with uninsipred and poorly implemented conversions of their house settings was a thing of the past. While Prime Directive d20 sounded interesting when announced, this blogger can not justify supporting a publisher who has expressed disintrest in learning a system and is only publishing for that system for the money of the fan base.
ADB Discussion Forum
From a posting by Steven Cole of ADB (in the above linked thread): "It is important to remember that SVC will do the production coordination and probably the page layouts but that he doesn't understand the D20 system at all (and doesn't want to)."
This blogger finds this attitude to be very disheartening.
This blogger fears that the resulting book may not even be compatible with other d20 products, due to a mistaken understanding of the nature of how d20 works. Hopefully, this will not be the case.
This blogger thought that the days of publishers attempting to exploit the d20 fan base with uninsipred and poorly implemented conversions of their house settings was a thing of the past. While Prime Directive d20 sounded interesting when announced, this blogger can not justify supporting a publisher who has expressed disintrest in learning a system and is only publishing for that system for the money of the fan base.
ADB Discussion Forum
From a posting by Steven Cole of ADB (in the above linked thread): "It is important to remember that SVC will do the production coordination and probably the page layouts but that he doesn't understand the D20 system at all (and doesn't want to)."
This blogger finds this attitude to be very disheartening.
Sunday, June 19, 2005
Bar of soap sells for $18,000
For your discussion, a campaign seed. The world is always stranger than fiction.
Bar of soap sells for $18,000
"Perhaps the oddest piece of work at Art Basel is a bar of soap, displayed on a square of black velvet, purportedly made from Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's fat, removed during liposuction."
Bar of soap sells for $18,000
"Perhaps the oddest piece of work at Art Basel is a bar of soap, displayed on a square of black velvet, purportedly made from Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's fat, removed during liposuction."
Monday, June 13, 2005
Origins Awards Ceremony Changes
Friends and Colleagues in the Games Industry,
We have taken a careful look at the Origins Awards Ceremony. Despite recent attempts to make the awards more interesting and entertaining (last year's 30th Anniversary show, in particular), Origins Awards ceremonies have been very lightly attended. We have concluded from this, and from the success of previous social events, that both gaming fans and industry professionals would rather celebrate the awards in a party-like atmosphere than sit down to a 2-hour ceremony.
As such, we've chosen to announce the Award Winners to the public on Thursday morning at 9:30 a.m. from the entrance of the Exhibit Hall, where the nominated products will be on display. We've replaced the Awards Ceremony with a celebratory Gala, scheduled from 9:00 PM to 12:00 AM Friday night in the Fusion Room on the Ballroom level of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, across the skywalk from the Convention Center. Origins Award statuettes ('Callies') will be distributed at the party to those winners in attendance.
The party is free for the primary creators of nominated products and Supporting members of the Academy, and $30 for others. Tickets for the party may be purchased at the Special Services desk at Main Registration.
We are confident that this approach is much more in keeping with the spirit of our industry, and we hope you will all take the opportunity to enjoy the celebration.
On the behalf of the GAMA/Origins Staff
Sean Patrick Fannon
Events Coordinator, Origins/GAMA
Events@gama.org
www.originsgames.com
www.gama.org
We have taken a careful look at the Origins Awards Ceremony. Despite recent attempts to make the awards more interesting and entertaining (last year's 30th Anniversary show, in particular), Origins Awards ceremonies have been very lightly attended. We have concluded from this, and from the success of previous social events, that both gaming fans and industry professionals would rather celebrate the awards in a party-like atmosphere than sit down to a 2-hour ceremony.
As such, we've chosen to announce the Award Winners to the public on Thursday morning at 9:30 a.m. from the entrance of the Exhibit Hall, where the nominated products will be on display. We've replaced the Awards Ceremony with a celebratory Gala, scheduled from 9:00 PM to 12:00 AM Friday night in the Fusion Room on the Ballroom level of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, across the skywalk from the Convention Center. Origins Award statuettes ('Callies') will be distributed at the party to those winners in attendance.
The party is free for the primary creators of nominated products and Supporting members of the Academy, and $30 for others. Tickets for the party may be purchased at the Special Services desk at Main Registration.
We are confident that this approach is much more in keeping with the spirit of our industry, and we hope you will all take the opportunity to enjoy the celebration.
On the behalf of the GAMA/Origins Staff
Sean Patrick Fannon
Events Coordinator, Origins/GAMA
Events@gama.org
www.originsgames.com
www.gama.org
Sunday, June 12, 2005
Hasbro Reacquires Game Rights From Infogrames
Hasbro Reacquires Game Rights From Infogrames
"French-headquartered publisher and developer Infogrames, recently in the news over the resignation of CEO Jim Caparro at its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary Atari Inc., has made another major change to its line-up, with the news that Hasbro has reacquired many of its gaming rights from the company, for a sum of $65 million.
"Infogrames, which now publishes its games under the Atari label, originally acquired Hasbro Interactive in 2000 for $100 million, in a deal that included rights to all Microprose games, the Atari hardware and software, the Games.com online gaming site, and electronic rights to all Hasbro properties for a period of 20 years. Infogrames then merged the company with acquired U.S. property GT Interactive under the current Atari Inc. brand."
"French-headquartered publisher and developer Infogrames, recently in the news over the resignation of CEO Jim Caparro at its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary Atari Inc., has made another major change to its line-up, with the news that Hasbro has reacquired many of its gaming rights from the company, for a sum of $65 million.
"Infogrames, which now publishes its games under the Atari label, originally acquired Hasbro Interactive in 2000 for $100 million, in a deal that included rights to all Microprose games, the Atari hardware and software, the Games.com online gaming site, and electronic rights to all Hasbro properties for a period of 20 years. Infogrames then merged the company with acquired U.S. property GT Interactive under the current Atari Inc. brand."
A lexicon of teen speak
Here's a great resource for those "evolved" languages for your near future campaigns. Use the right "teen speak" (this article is from the UK) and your can equal any doublespeak written by Burgess, Womack or even Orwell.
A lexicon of teen speak
"A new campaign aims to persuade people to become teachers because they will learn new words. Teen speak can be confusing for anyone who is not a teen. So here is the E-cyclopedia's first annual guide to youth-speak for the not-so-young."
A lexicon of teen speak
"A new campaign aims to persuade people to become teachers because they will learn new words. Teen speak can be confusing for anyone who is not a teen. So here is the E-cyclopedia's first annual guide to youth-speak for the not-so-young."
Saturday, June 11, 2005
Mike Mearls Hired as Developer at Wizards of the Coast
Mike Mearls Hired as Developer at Wizards of the Coast
"I've received my offer letter, so I guess it's kosher to publicly announce this. I've been hired by Wizards of the Coast as an RPG developer." [via Jeff's Gameblog]
"I've received my offer letter, so I guess it's kosher to publicly announce this. I've been hired by Wizards of the Coast as an RPG developer." [via Jeff's Gameblog]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)