The MK V is pretty much identical to the previous incarnation, but has clean, fresh molds and a working trigger!!

Here are some pics:

Spulse MK V

Here’s what you get!

Available in the SpatCave Store!

Clean, new Magazine Wells.

LED Counter.

Set to whatever number you want.

Magazine Bottom, Grenade Launcher Barrel, Stock, Trigger, Trigger Spring and Magazine Front and Back Plates.

Grip and Barrel.

Shrouds.

SPAS Cage.

]]> http://spatcave.com/blog/2012/05/11/335/feed/ 0 http://spatcave.com/blog/2012/04/23/who-likes-zombies/ http://spatcave.com/blog/2012/04/23/who-likes-zombies/#comments Tue, 24 Apr 2012 02:10:29 +0000 Spat http://spatcave.com/blog/?p=328 So, after over 10 years of making foam latex zombie appliances for movies, I finally decided to offer them up for sale!

So if you’re into Zombies and have always wanted to get your hands on a high quality, professional grade foam latex appliance, now’s your chance!!

Here’s what the appliance looks like….

And here it is applied and painted.

If you’re interested, check out my new Zombie Page!  I have lots of different styles and items available!

All Star Western #1. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray, art by Moritat.

Had they just kept this comic titled “Jonah Hex”, it would be as if they new DC never happened.

This is one of the few comics in the new batch that has at least some of the same crew working on it as before (but who else can really write Jonah Hex?).

A great comic, set in the wild West, starring a Bounty Hunter named Jonah Hex. What else do you need to know?

If you were a fan before, keep reading! It’s like they never took a break!

Aquaman #1. Written by Geoff Johns, art by Ivan Reis and Joe Prado.

I fully expected this to be a joke comic. A complete throw-away issue of a character that’s just not super interesting.

I was wrong.

The story of Aquaman coming up to Boston to stop into a Diner for Fish and Chips, seems like a skit on SNL, but it is part of the actual plot here! And it works!

There’s a little self-deprecating Aquaman humor, and a little explanation about his powers and motivations. I liked it. A lot. I will be getting issue 2.

Batman: The Dark Knight #1. Written by Paul Jenkins, art by David Finch and Richard Friend.

Is it possible to read too much Batman each month? There’s a lot of Bat-Books in the New Dc!

So, The Dark Knight is the grittier side of Batman (in theory), and this new series ties to push that through with some big blood splatters.

Bruce Wayne is bring investigated for “helping fund Batman”. While at the same time, inmates have escaped from Arkham (the usual suspects). Batman corrals them and we discover that one of his enemies has been hitting the “sauce”.

You’ll have to read it to see the details!

It was good, and I’ll give it one more issue to see where it goes.

Blackhawks #1. Written by Mike Costa, art by Graham Nolan and Ken Lashley.

So… There’s like this team of secret agents or something. And they fly around in planes. And that’s really all I could follow in this issue. No idea what was going on.

Sorry!

The Flash #1. Written by Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato, art by Francis Manapul.

Well, since the Flash did kind of cause the whole “New Universe” thing, it seemed only fitting that he get his own book!

I would have liked this better if it started from the beginning of his origin story, but that was not to be.

So this book follows Barry Allen as he investigates some crazy terrorist attacks by… Clones?

Good stuff, but I’ve never been a big Flash fan.

The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #1. Written by Gail Simone, art by Yildiray Cinar, plotted by Ethan Van Sciver and Gail Simone.

I was a HUGE Firestorm fan back in the 80′s, so I was very happy that they were getting a new series!

And the fact that it opens in Istanbul, and is drawn by a Turk (and I’m also Turkish, in case you didn’t know), gave this one an unfair advantage!

So, a rich jock and a poor nerd get attacked by terrorists and then magically each turn into a Firestorm. Even though that’s not the way it’s supposed to work.

Not bad, but I think I’ll stick with my old issues.

I, Vampire #1. Written by Joshua Hale Fialkov, art by Andrea Sorrentino.

Vampires, Werewolves…. A big war. Blood, blood, blood. No idea what was going on, really.

Gonna skip this one.

Justice League Dark #1. Written by Peter Milligan, art by Mikel Janin.

Basically, this is a combo of Zatanna, Constantine, Madame Xanadu, and a few other former “magical” characters and titles from the former Universe.

There’s even an appearance by some of the members of The Justice League!

Interesting concept, having all the Magic characters in one book.

Sadly, not interesting enough for me to continue with it. But if you were into those other people before the re-boot, go for it!

The Savage Hawkman #1. Written by Tony S. Daniel, art by Philip Tan.

Confession time! I was never into these characters. Even during Blackest Night, I never got the back story. So this was also right over my head.

In the beginning of the comic there’s a flashback showing an explosion where the Nth Metal gets lodged in Carter Hall’s body, but I don’t know if that was before the reboot, or from some other back story, or what.

And then some alien mummy gets dredged up in the ocean, and suddenly Carter can transform into Hawkman from the Nth Metal I his body.

I have no idea. Not my thing. Sorry!

Superman #1. Written by George Perez, art by Jesus Merino.

This new version of Superman has him in a new costume, that kind of looks armored, but that would be silly, wouldn’t it? Supes has been around for a bit in this title, and is balancing his time between saving Metropolis and being Clark Kent, reporter for the Daily Planet, and dork with a crush on Lois Lane!

Lois is now calling the shots at the Planet and Superman has to take on an Alien Fire Elemental.

Good stuff, and I’ll definitely be picking it up again. And not just because it’s Superman!

Teen Titans #1. Written by Scott Lobdell, art by Brett Booth and Norm Rapmund.

I was a big fan of The Teen Titans in a lot of their previous incarnations.

So, Red Robin (not Nightwing) is looking to put together a teen super hero squad, while N.O.W.H.E.R.E. is out to kill or capture them all.

I’m definitely digging Red Robin’s new costume!

Good stuff. Will probably pick up more issues.

Green Lantern: New Guardians #1. Written by Tony Bedard, art by Tyler Kirkham and Batt.

This story starts off with the aftermath of the War of the Green Lanterns (I think), the moves on to the induction of Kyle Rayner into the Green Lantern Corps.

Meanwhile, Lanterns of the other color spectrums are being killed off, or having their rings abandon them and fly back to Earth to try to join up with Kyle as well!

Talk about being in demand!

I’ll definitely be checking this out.

Voodoo #1. Written by Ron Marz, art by Sami Basri.

Initially, based on the cover art, I thought this was some kind of Witchblade comic.

I was very wrong.

From the opening page art in the strip club, I was hooked!

So Voodoo is an “exotic dancer” and seems to be being investigated by the FBI.

Great art, and lots of pages take place on a strip club stage and in the dressing room!

Great twists and a cliffhanger! Gotta check out the next issue and see what happens!

So, all 52 Comics are out and now for the final tally…

Previous to the re-boot, I was reading about 8-10 DC Comics each month (not counting mini series’ and one-shots).

After the re-boot, I’m currently reading 10-12 DC Comics each month.

So it looks like the re-boot was a success, even if it did kill off some story-lines that i was really enjoying.

Batman #1. Written by Scott Snyder, art by Greg Capullo and Jonathan Glapion.

What should have been a re-introduction to the Batman of this new Universe, was instead a drop in on a already established Batman. The Universe of Supers is supposed to only be 5 years old, yet Batman already has a Batcave stocked with 4 Batmobiles, a Batcycle, Batjet, Batcopter, Batglider and his standard set of trophies (Riddler question mark, giant penny, T-Rex, Joker card). He even has an old Robin costume in a case. All in the course of 5 years? Really?

Either way, it’s Batman. And he has a new mystery to solve! Someone wants to kill Bruce Wayne! Shhhh… Bruce Wayne is actually Batman!

It’s Batman. I have to keep reading it!

Birds of Prey #1. Written by Duane Swiercynski, art by Jesus Saiz.

So, Black Canary (in a new costume), teams up with Starling and is putting together a team (the Birds of Prey). But they’re being hunted by some covert ops people.

Seems interesting, and the cover shows Katana and Poison Ivy (so they may be joining at some point), but I think I may pass on this one.

Blue Beetle #1. Written by Tony Bedard, art by Ig Guara and Ruy Jose.

Really great intro to the whole Blue Beetle Universe. It even goes back to ancient Mayan times to explain where the Beetle comes from and what it does. then jumps forward to show the beetle finding it’s new host.

Probably one of the best re-introductions in the new Universe so far!

But sadly, not super into the character, so will probably skip it.

Captain Atom #1. Written by J.T. Krul, art by Freddie Williams II.

Kind of a Dr. Manhattan thing. There are monsters, a volcano in NY, and Captain Atom is losing his powers. All sorts of craziness.

Not really my cup of tea.

Catwoman #1. Written by Judd Winick, art by Guillem March.

So, someone is hunting Catwoman and is blowing up her apartments! So she has to turn the tables and go on the hunt herself.

Oh, yeah. There’s a Batman cameo, and (spoiler alert!) they hook up!

Lots of controversy over this one due to the last page.

Seems like something worth following!

DC Universe Presents: Deadman #1. By Paul Jenkins and Bernard Chang.

Deadman was a classic, yet odd character in the old Universe. Former daredevil was killed and now is basically a ghost that kind of “leaps” into other peoples bodies and takes them over so he can fix something in their lives.

Interesting, but not a keeper for me.

Green Lantern Corps #1. Written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Fernando Pasarin and Scott Hanna.

Guy Gardner is a Green Lantern, but still needs to find an Earthly job to pay his bills with! It’s nice to see the comic showing a bit of unemployment in super heroing!

In the meantime, someone (or something) is going around killing Lanterns and now the team is out to find out the truth!

I think this is one I will pick up again next month!

The Legion of Super-Heroes #1. Written by Paul Levitz, art by Francis Portela.

Set in the 31st Century like before, Legion is a lot like the comic from the former Universe.

If you were a fan before, you’ll probably like this one, but for me, Legion has always just had way too many characters in it for me to follow.

But if that’s what you’re into….

Nightwing #1. Written by Kyle Higgins, art by Eddy Baarows and J.P. Mayer.

Nightwing is all about the former Robin (Dick Grayson) all grown up and out there as his own hero.

Trained by Batman, but with his own distinct style, Nightwing is working to find his own way in Gotham in the shadow of the Bat.

Interesting idea, but I think I have enough comics set in Gotham that I’m reading right now.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #1. Written by Scott Lobdell, art by Kenneth Rocafort.

Lots of controversy on this issue because Starfire mentioned that she likes sex.  Like that was a shock!

So, Jason Todd (former Robin) is now the Red Hood, and apparently has one of those “Total Recall” style fat suits that you can hide in.

So, Red Hood, Speedy, Starfire and Essence are on the run (Outlaws), but go around doing good deeds, but are on vacation in the tropics when some kid snaps a pic of Starfire and uploads it to Facebook blowing their cover.  Or something.

Gonna skip this one.

Supergirl #1.  Written by Michael Green and Mike Johnson, art by Mahmud Asrar and Don Green.

Ok, so Supergirl is Superman’s cousin, and escaped Krypton at about the same time as Supes, but arrives on Earth as a teenager, not a baby.

I like that they’re starting this one off fresh.  Literally, off the boat (as it were).

She crash lands on a strange planet (Earth).  Doesn’t speak the language, and for a bit thinks she’s having a strange dream.

And since she’s new to the effects of the Yellow Sun, she’s just learning that she has powers.

Nice start to the saga, and I always liked the Supergirl character, so I will be checking this out again next month!

Wonder Woman #1.  Written by Brian Azzarello, art by Cliff Chiang.

The new Wonder Woman is a lot different from the old one!

This first issue is very complicated and confusing.

War of the Gods, some mortal woman stuck in the middle.

The Oracles, Hermes, and all sorts of other notable God stuff, and Wonder Woman is stuck right in the middle.

I am curious as to where this is going, but I think I’ll skip this one for now.

Next up is the 4th and final week of the New 52!

]]> http://spatcave.com/blog/2011/10/28/review-dcs-new-52-part-3/feed/ 1 http://spatcave.com/blog/2011/10/11/review-dcs-new-52-part-2/ http://spatcave.com/blog/2011/10/11/review-dcs-new-52-part-2/#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2011 17:25:29 +0000 Spat http://spatcave.com/blog/?p=256 Week 2 of the new Universe launch brought another 13 books to check out!

Batman and Robin #1. Written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray.

I was a big fan of this comic before the reboot, so I was really looking forward to seeing where this one was going to go.

It starts off showing that there was another Batman Franchise in Russia, and then cuts to Gotham and introduces this Batman and Robin. Starts off fresh with a little re-explanation of Batman’s history.

Big fight scene and even a little homage to those classic Batman style “hanging from a chain over a pit of acid” bit, and this is a comic I will pick up again next month!

Batwoman #1. Written by J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman, art by J.H. Williams III.

This is one of those comics in this new reboot that isn’t really a reboot, but is just a continuation with a new number.

If you read the old Detective Comics before, then this will be right up your alley. As far as I can tell, this is a direct continuation from that storyline. And it really doesn’t try at all to fill you in on what you missed if you hadn’t been reading along before.

Something about ghosts, and kids and lesbians. If you were following it before, you’ll know what’s going on. Otherwise, it’s a bit confusing,

I’ll be skipping issue 2 of this one.

Deathstroke #1. Written by Kyle Higgins, art by Joe Bennett and Art Thibert.

I was a little shocked that Deathstroke was getting his own book. He’s always been a villain in DC Comics and I can’t think of any other villain who has their own title.

They don’t really give much history on Slade (Deathstroke) in this, but you get the idea of what he’s about pretty quickly. Soldier for hire, killing machine, mercenary, not a super pleasant guy.

Good stuff, but I may have to pass on issue 2 simply because I can’t go around buying too many issues every month! But I won’t say no, yet.

Demon Knights #1. Written by Paul Cornell, art by Diogenes Neves and Oclair Albert.

Sadly, since this is a comic that takes place in the Dark Ages, and I’m really not into Sword and Sorcery Comics (yet I play D&D every week), so I didn’t give this one much of chance.

Swords, Camelot, Ladies in Lakes, Demon Babies, Monsters, Damsels…. All cool stuff, and if you’re into it, check this out.

It’s just not for me.

Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #1. Written by Jeff Lemire, art by Alberto Ponticelli.

I thought this was a joke when I first saw the title coming out, but no, it’s real.

Frankenstein’s monster, Frankenstein (trapped in the body of an Asian Schoolgirl), the Monster’s wife (a 4 armed demon chick), and a team of…. Monsters (a werewolf, vampire, mummy and an alien) all out to save the world.

If it was a comedy it would have made more sense!

If you’re nostalgic for classic horror icons, pick it up. Not for me.

Green Lantern #1. Written by Geoff Johns, art by Doug Manhke, Christian Alamy and Tom Nguyen.

Here’s one of those “new” comics that’s really not new at all. This should be issue 68, not issue 1! This comic follows right up with the last issue of Green Lantern, and I for one am super happy about that!! I was a huge fan of this comic from the last Universe, and will continue with this one!

Sinestro has a Green Ring again, but he don’t want it at all!!

Hal Jordan is no longer in the GLC, and has to re-adjust to being “normal”. Should be interesting to see where this is going!

Grifter #1. Written by Nathan Edmondson, art by Cafu and Jason Gorder.

This one kind of came out of left field. Demons that hop from body to body, lots of strangeness.

Couldn’t make much sense of this one. It’s a carryover from the merge of DC and Wildstorm.

I’m sure later issues will explain a bit, but I’ll have to live in the dark.

Legion Lost #1. By Fabian Nicieza and Pete Woods.

So, a small group of the Legion of Superheroes get warped away while hunting an escaped “Critter”. Some fights, some time travel.

Interesting, but in the same way that the regular Legion comic has WAY too many characters for me to try to follow, this one has just as many. My brain can’t keep up.

Mister Terrific #1. Written by Eric Wallace, art by Gianluca Gugliotta and Wayne Frucher.

Mister Terrific was a great character as part of the Justice League in the old Universe. I’m still not sure if he’s enough of a character for his own title.

He’s a genius who uses science and technology as his “powers”, and this first issue does a great job of explaining the character and his back story. If you’re into the character, it’s a must read, but I still think he should be part of a team.

Red Lanterns #1. Written by Peter Milligan, art by Ed Benes and Rob Hunter.

Ahhh, the Red Lanterns. So full of RAGE and anger! Yet they’re the only lantern group that has a Kitty Cat as a member! A very angry, rage-filled Kitty Cat at that!

The Red Lanterns are still trying to get revenge on the Green Lanterns (a left over from the “other” Universe), and Atrocitus is the leader. This issue is a great back story on him and some of the other Red Lanterns and on the origin of the rage.

I’m not 100% sure that these guys need their own title, but I will pick up issue 2 and see where it goes.

Resurrection Man #1. Written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, art by Fernando Dagnino.

Ok, guy who resurrects into new bodies and fights demons or something.

Couldn’t really follow it, not going to continue with it.

Suicide Squad #1. Written by Adam Glass, art by Federico Dallocchio, Ransom Getty and Scott Hanna.

So…. They’re starting the squad up again with new characters. Great intro to a group of criminal misfits who are stuck together to go on missions in lieu of a death penalty.

Good stuff, and I will pick up issue 2. But it does have big shoes to fill, because the old Universe’s Squad was really good!

Superboy #1. Written by Scott Lobdell, art by R. B. Silva and Rob Leon.

So, they’re starting the whole Superboy mythos over from scratch, and it’s working. He’s grown up in a vat, has no idea who he is or what his powers are, but when the experiment is about to be scrapped, he escapes… Sort of. And ends up being experimented on in all new ways.

Looking forward to seeing where this is going!

Ok, part 3 coming soon!

I, like many other morons, decided to pick up each of the new 52 comics to check them out. $160 later, here’s what we have:

First up is…

Justice League #1. Written by Geoff Johns, art by Jim Lee and Scott Williams.

Taking place 5 years ago, during a time when Batman was just starting out and was hunted by the Gotham PD, the story covers the meeting of Batman, Green Lantern and Superman.

Great introduction, though my friend Mike says the meeting of GL and the Bat is a rip off from an older comic from the other Universe. But maybe that was the intent?

Will definitely be picking up issue 2.

Action Comics #1. Written by Grant Morrison, art by Rags Morales and Rick Brant.

Taking place in the new, “current” universe, this story covers a jeans wearing Superman as he is just starting out saving people and stopping crimes in Metropolis. He’s still learning about his powers and getting stronger each day, and of course, Lex Luthor is in the picture trying to shut him down.

I’ll be picking up issue 2, and was a regular reader of Action Comics before the re-boot.

Animal Man #1. Written by Jeff Lemire, art by David Foreman, Travel Foreman, and Dan Green.

Most people have never heard of Animal Man, but he was around in the old Universe. Animal Man is a Stunt Man, Superhero, Animal Rights Activist and family man. Animal Man can absorb the strength and powers of animals, and the story follows him as he is just getting back into the world of “heroing” but his powers are going haywire…. Again.

Probably going to skip issue 2, even though the ending was a bit creepy and I am curious as to where it’s going.

Batgirl #1. Written by Gail Simone, art by Ardian Syaf and Vincente Cifuentes.

I was a big fan of Batgirl before the reboot and will definitely be following it now. The new version of Batgirl is actually Barbara Gordon! In the new Universe, she still got shot by the Joker, but instead of ending up in a wheelchair for the rest of her life and becoming Oracle, this Barbara recovered and continued her crime fighting life as Batgirl.

Batwing #1. Written by Judd Winick, art by Ben Oliver.

Batwing is a crime fighter, fighting crime in Africa! He’s kind of a Franchised Batman. Interesting idea, nice art, but not my thing.

Detective Comics #1. Written by Tony S. Daniel, art by Tony S. Daniel and Ryan Winn.

Ahhh… Batman vs the Joker. It’s good to be home!

Unlike the Justice League Batman, this incarnation has the Bats friendly with the local PD and actively hunting a very gruesome Joker. Very gruesome.

Definitely going for issue 2!

Green Arrow #1. Written by JT Krul, art by Dan Jurgens and George Perez.

Green Arrow has always been kind of hit and miss for me. The young version never appealed to me, but I do like him when he’s older and angrier. This story follows the young Oliver Queen who is living the double life of wealthy Corporate Industrialist and Crime Fighter, using a bow and super high-tech arrows to take down his foes.

Interesting, and I may pick up issue 2.

Hawk & Dove #1. Written by Sterling Gates, art by Rob Liefeld.

I only know about these characters from Blackest Night in the old Universe. They’re interesting characters, Hawk being all about fighting, and Dove is all about peace. In this issue they fight Zombies and there’s the subplot about the first Dove.

Nice. But I think I’ll skip future issues.

Justice League International #1. Written by Dan Jurgens, art by Aaron Lopsti and Matt Ryan.

Booster Gold! This comic covers the other Justice League. The one put together in a board room as a PR stunt! Booster is the boss, but Green Lantern Guy Gardener doesn’t want any part of it. The other heroes are kind of new to the whole thing and don’t know what to do. Batman tries to help, but it’s a team of individuals who don’t work well together.

It might be fun to watch them fight and bicker before coming together. I’ll pick up issue 2.

Men of War #1. Written by Ivan Brandon, art by Tom Derenick.

Basically, this is Sgt. Rock, set in the modern day Middle East. If you’re into war stories, go for it. I like my Sgt. Rock in WWII.

O.M.A.C. #1. Written by Keith Giffen and Dan Didio, art by Keith Giffen, Dan Didio and Scott Koblish.

Um…. Yeah. I don’t think anyone ever actually made it all the way through this issue. I couldn’t follow it at all.

Pass.

Static Shock #1. Written by Scott McDaniel and John Rozum, art by Scott McDaniel, Jonathan Glapion and Le Beau Underwood.

Static Shock has always worked well as a part of the Teen Titans. I don’t know that he’s ready for his own book.

Basically, it’s about a high school student with electrical powers going around stopping crimes. Of course, he’s being targeted and hunted by a villain, blah, blah, blah.

When he joins the Teen Titans, I’ll be happy to read more of his stories there.

Stormwatch #1. Written by Paul Cornell, art by Miguel Sepulveda.

I guess this is the first carry over from Jim Lee’s Stormwatch Comics, which is now being absorbed into the DC Universe.

Hard for me to follow it, but Martian Manhunter is mixed in there somewhere.

No issue 2 for me.

Swamp Thing #1. Written by Scott Snyder, art by Yanick Paquette.

How long has it been since Swamp Thing had his own book?

Everyone in the comic (Batman, Superman, Aquaman) all seem to know that Dr. Holland is Swamp Thing, but no one ever says how or why.

Ecology is going crazy. Fish dying, birds dying, bats dying, the world going nuts and apparently, Swamp Thing is the only thing that can save everyone.

I wish there was a little more back story. The last thing I remember about Swamp Thing was that movie in the 80′s, so some info on the background would have been nice.

Good, but I don’t know if I’ll be getting issue 2.

Ok, That’s it for part 1!  Part 2 soon!

When I first started playing D&D back in the early 80′s, all you needed was some dice, a pencil, and some paper.

Nowadays, our gaming table is 12′ long and COVERED with gaming gear.  And cake.  Mike always brings cake.

So here’s a rundown of (gasp!) almost 30 years of gaming tool upgrades, here’s what our gaming group can’t live without!

Combad Pad Initiative Tracker

Combat Pad Initiative Grid

Keeping track of who goes after who is a pain in the ass!  This magnetic pad comes with blank magnet markers that you can write on with a dry erase marker to track who goes when, what round it is, and keep other notes on it as well.

For $20, absolutely worth it!

It makes it super easy to change the order of combat on the fly by just moving the magnet to the right spot, and you can tell who goes next with a glance.

Grid Pad

27″x34″ 1″ Grid Pad

Using the 8.5×11″ grid sheets are a pain.  Using the pre-printed maps are nice, but they rarely have one that’s exactly the way you want it (or that’s big enough for a group of 7 or 8 players), and the roll up dry erase ones are ok, but once Steve brought these to the game, we were hooked.

It’s $60 for 4 pads, each pad with 50 sheets.  That’s a lot of maps!  And you can write notes on these and not worry about them getting wiped off when someone moves their character across it.

Steve recently found a new brand of these that have “Post It” style sticky backs so they don’t move around on the table!

Sheet Protector

Sheet Protectors

One thing that always annoyed me with character sheets was tearing through the paper from constantly writing and erasing on them.  Someone in our group came up with this idea, and I love it!  Slip your character sheet inside the sheet protector and write on it with a dry erase marker!  Makes it sooooo much easier to track conditions and mark off hit points!

Card Sheets

Card Protectors

4th Edition D&D introduced Power Cards, and keeping track of them, keeping them in order, and remembering which ones you’ve used and which ones you haven’t is also a pain!  I had some of these card protectors left over from my Pokemon days (yeah, I used to play in Pokemon tournaments, so what?), and started slipping my Power Cards in them.  Now I can put them in the order that I want them in, and mark them with a Dry Erase when they’re used or active.

Makes tracking your powers so much easier!!

Alea Tools

Alea Tools Markers

I can’t even begin to explain to you how much of a difference these little magnetic markers have made for our group.

We ordered the DM kit, and it comes with all these different colored 1″ disks that have little magnets inside them.  We made the chart to let us know which color represents which condition.

Drow in Trouble!

The Alea Tool set comes with little sticky sided magnets to attach to your minis, so when your character is bloody, or marked, or whatever, you stick the appropriately colored magnet to the bottom of the mini and then everyone can see what’s affecting him.  This way no one can claim they didn’t know what was going on with the different characters!

Since the magnet is attached to the mini, and there are magnets in the disks, you can pick up the mini and the markers move with it!

Again, if you play D&D, these are a must buy.

Dice Boot of Doom!

Dice Boot

Drew was the first one to show up to the game with “Dice Accessories”.  His first was a Dice Cup (think Yahtzee).  But after accidentally pouring soda into his Dice Cup and on his dice, he moved up to a Dice Boot.

A Dice Boot is a device that helps randomize the dice rolls you make by making them move through these ramps inside the device.

I decided to make my own (pictured to the left).  While not a requirement for the game, it does help make sure that your dice don’t go flying all over the place and prevents my dog Belle from stealing the dice for her Cthulhu games with the Squirrels.

Happy gaming!

I just think it’s freaking awesome.

And apparently, so does this guy.  He likes it so much, he made a working (and FIRING) Lego version of the SPAS 12!!

Homefront

I was really looking forward to Homefront when I first heard about it.  It’s a new first person shooter for PC, PS3, and X-Box developed by Kaos Studios and released by THQ.  But the thing that really got me rooting for it was that it was written by John Milius (who co-wrote Red Dawn), and it was all about…. defending suburbia from foreign invasion!

WOLVERINES!!

So, I headed to GameStop to go pick it up and as I went to the counter to pay for it, the salesman actually stopped to remind me about their return policy on games.  I buy a lot of games at GameStop, and no one has ever taken the time to remind me how long I had to return the game if I didn’t like it.

So I asked, “is it that bad”?

“It’s not BAD, it’s just mediocre.” was the reply I got.

And I was OK with that.  I was in the mood for a new shooter, and didn’t really care if it was cutting edge or super awesome.  My trigger finger had a itch that needed to be scratched.

So I headed home, popped the game in, and waited for all the updates to load.

The opening scene of Homefront gives the game a 10 out of 10 right off the bat.  It’s so freaking awesome that it almost makes the game worth picking up just to watch it.

When you start a new game you’re subjected to a (future) history lesson.  It’s all news clips and exposition starting in 2010 and moving all the way to 2027 explaining the rise of North Korea as a World Power and their ultimate firing of an EMP (Electro Magnetic Pulse) on the USA and then invading it.

The opening is so well done, you’ll probably want to watch it a few times, and even show your friends it!

What makes it so good is how scary and real it sounds.  It’s uncomfortably believable.  From there, it was time to actually play the game!

The first thing I noticed once the game itself started was how much it reminded me of Half Life and Half Like 2.  The way the opening is done (you’re heralded onto a bus and get to look out the window to see events and foreshadowing of the game to come) is almost a dead ringer for the opening Tram scene from Half Life.

The more I played the game, the more it felt like Half Life!  The graphics, the missions, the Goliath, the dialogue.  It all made the game almost seem like a Half Life 2 mod, than a whole new game.  I kept looking around to see if “Michael Freeman will die” was scrawled on the wall somewhere.

The game’s story is… well… almost non-existent.  You’re a pilot and the resistance needs a pilot to help strike a blow against the North Korean occupation in California.  Woo hoo.

Yet the whole game, you’re on the ground shooting people.  You’re like an “Infantry Pilot”.  It’s only the final scene that actually requires you to fly a helicopter (best part of the game as far as I’m concerned), and that only lasts for one mission.

So, you spend almost the entirety of the game as part of a small group of nameless (they may have had names, it wasn’t important, so I never paid attention), faceless Resistance fighters making your way through occupied territory to gather supplies and helpers so you can all break out of California.

Whatever.  You get to shoot and blow up a lot of things.  That’s really all that matters.

Ultimately, the game plays like it’s 5 years old.  It’s a bit unforgiving in parts if you don’t go exactly where the game wants you to, the AI is pretty goofy, and your own teammates are ALWAYS in your way.  It’s a pretty formulaic game comprised of all the standard missions (sniper, gunner on vehicle, assault, etc.), and it all feels like you’ve done it all before.

And since the PSN is down, I didn’t get to try any multiplayer.

All in all it’s an OK game.  “Mediocre” really does describe it well.  It’s a fun shooter, with a few memorable scenes, but it’s very dated.

I would say you’re best bet is to wait for it to drop to $29.99 used range, then it’s worth it.

The true crime is that never once does your character get to eat a deer heart or stand on top of a blown up tank and yell “Wolverines!”