Long Overdue Update On The Halls

I hope y'all are having a great holiday season. Things are good in the Punverse. Mentally, emotionally, and physically I've doing better than I've been in years. Creatively been lacking a bit. I've decided to get back to what I love and stop overthinking posts (which typically leads to me not posting at all). I think I'm also going to start doing 5e supers posts again. I always enjoy doing them. One change though is I'm going to make sure they are all in D&D 2024 format. I also still plan on doing another DCC Punch a Nazi week. Maybe that's how I'll start out 2026.

Crisis In Infinite Zines #1 is still coming out. Things slowed down because of Dave's day job, but that's not an issue anymore. All of the content is done and has been submitted to Goodman Games for approval. Layout is 98% done. Dave has given the zine comic book dimensions. We'll see how it it looks when he orders test prints.

In other gaming and blogging news I want to give a long overdue shoutout to my friend Tim Knight and his new blog! If you haven't aleady you need to check out Cowboys, Capes, and Claws!

Dave and I talked about the zine 

when we hung out this past week.

Spooky Season Has Begun

I don't care what this Slate article says, I love the term Spooky Season and will not stop using it. As far as I'm concerned any time is a good time to be spooky season, but for me it officially commences the day after Independence Day. I've been diving deeply into horror video games, movies, and literature. The cats at my local library see me a few times a week for new books and flicks. Currently rewatching all the Saw films (including Spiral) and playing the crap out of Dead By Daylight (put over 90 hours in the game in little over a month).

Most of the content I post on the Halls is horror or supers related. I thought I'd share some of the upcoming horror content heading your way. I have three gorgeous hardcover Dark Places & Demogorgons books to review. I'm almost done with my first Dead by Daylight killer conversion. I've also started thinking about the October Horror Movie Challenge and am contemplating trying to do a theme this year. 

On a more personal level, I've been on a journey of self-improvement and am looking forward to figuring out my Halloween costume. I'm down at least a 130 pounds since the beginning of 2024 so I feel like my options have expanded.

What horror content have you consumed recently? Anything you're looking forward to or I need to check out?

Origins 2025 and 15 Years At The Halls

The 50th Origins Game Fair is currently happening. While I was unable to do the whole con, I was able to attend yesterday. I thought I'd share some pics and highlights.

I was able to attend this year because of the Andy and Mike from Limitless Adventures.  I spent most of the day hanging out at their booth and laughing. I also had dinner with them and Eric Bloat and his delightful wife, Jaime. After dinner I ran the DCC adventure The Arwhich Grinder. It was fun and ended with a stupid TPK. 

It was fantastic to see Justin from Severed Books. It's been 3 or 4 years since I saw him last. While I didn't buy too much at the con, all of my money was spent on Justin's art and the wooden minis Severed Books has released. I've wanted some of these minis for a while and now that I have them, I need more. 

I always have to give a shout out to my fam at Wet Ink Games. Brandon and Matt are fantastic dudes. They are intelligent, creative, and kind. I truly appreciate the "No Nazis At The Table" sticker. These cats have never been afraid of offending folks that need to be offended. Plus, they had my friend Edwin working their booth and running games for them. 

Also as you probably guess from the title, my first post was 15 years ago today. There have been many times when posting has been sparse and best, but I'm happy that I still create and share on here. 

Nevermind

While focusing on regular themes and stuff typically helps me I've decided I'm not going to do the A-Z this year. I know my posts are sporadic at best. That will eventually change, but for now it just is what it is.

 

Update From The Halls

Thought I'd give a little update on what's up at the Halls. I still don't have a computer yet, but that will change in the next day or two. My friend Lindsey got a new computer and is passing on her old laptop to me. That means I will be blog more regularly (instead of just when I head to the library). This means I'll start on my review of the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game.

I'm still looking for a new job and have plenty of free time. I've decided I want to start working on some new projects to release as The Lone Bards (though since Josh had given up writing for now it's the Lone Bard).  I've been on a TMNT kick recently. Started reading the comics again which has been fun. Thinking about sitting down and watching all of the major series (1987, 2003, 2012, and Rise of the the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles). What does this have to do with The Lone Bards? Well, one of the projects I want to do is an original game that's an homage to TMNT (and the series it spawned like Street Sharks and Toxic Crusaders). I haven't fully decided if I'm going to go full Saturday Morning Cartoon camp, classic gritty, or somewhere in between... though I'm leaning towards somewhere in between. It will probably never get finished like most of the ideas I have, but sometimes I think just having a goal helps my mental state out, even if I never get to the point of achieving it. 

Quick Update

I injured my wrist the 14th of December. It still hasn't healed and something might be torn. That's why my posts have been light as of late. Typing with one hands frustrates me to know end. Expect low effort stuff for a bit longer.

It's Almost Time!

Happy October's Eve everyone. Just a reminder that you can celebrate the Halloween season with me by taking part in my October Horror Movie Challenge. If you do feel free to link your posts in the comments on mine or post them over on Facebook in the I'd Rather Be Killing Monsters group.

31 Days of Halloween Movie Challenge

Now that we're just about a month away from October I want to reveal the banner image for this year's October Horror Challenge. 

Another Update From The Halls

Today I started my new job as manager of library services for a regional Ohio library. While I'm still unpacking I'm getting settled in to my new apartment, I'm back. I am going to have regular access to a computer so I will start blogging again really soon. 

October Horror Movie Challenge Recap

Another challenge has come and gone. I think I did pretty good this year. I watched 21 new to me horror flicks and 37 total. The new to me flicks are bolded and in purple. I also created several bits of gaming content, so that's a win too. Going to slow down a little bit, while I decided my next theme/project to work on. I hope everyone had a great Halloween.

1. Studio 666 (2022)
2. Fright Night (2011)
3. Glorious (2022)
4. Evil Dead (2013)
5. Return of the Living Dead (1985)
6. The Sadness (2021)
7. The Barge People (2018)
8. Don't Breathe 2 (2021)
9. Daybreakers (2009)
10. Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight (1995)
11. Cockneys vs Zombies (2012)
12. We're All Going To The World's Fair (2021)
13. Piñata Survival Island (2022)
14. Let The Wrong One In (2021)
15. Terrifier (2016)
16. Terrifier 2 (2022)
17. Unfriended (2014)
18. Blacula (1972)
19. Scream, Blacula, Scream (1973)
20. The People Under The Stairs (1991)
21. Tales of Halloween (2015)
22. Coven (2020)
23. Wyrmwood: Apocalypse (2022)
24. Alucarda (1977)
25. Don't Fuck In The Woods (2016)
26. Don't Fuck In The Woods 2 (2022)
27. Werewolf By Night (2022)
28. Stay Alive (2006)
29. Dead Silence (2007)
30. Hellraiser (2022)
31. Halloween Ends (2022)
32. Lumberjack Man (2015)
33. Ernest Scared Stupid (1991)
34. Barbarian (2022)
35. V/H/S/99 (2022)
36. Gerald's Game (2017)
37. The Retaliators (2022)

67 Days Of Halloween Isn’t Bad

When I decided to do the 100 Days Of Halloween  my plan was to post public domain comic pics and gaming material/ideas. I’ve done that some, but with how hectic things are and my current mental state, it’s mostly been just pics.  Not that there’s anything inherently wrong with that, but it’s not what I wanted and it is burning me out. 

I am definitely going to still do the movie challenge for Halloween, but I think I am bowing out of 100 Days Of Halloween. You can still see many awesome game reviews for Tim’s take on it over at The Other Side blog.

October Horror Movie Challenge Question

I watched all the movies I needed to to finish the October Horror Movie Challenge but because of work and illness in the family was unable to complete all the reviews. Here's my question for y'all? October is over, but should I still complete the posts?

#RPGaDay2021 - Taking the L

While I like some of the topics, work and life had just made committing to this year's #RPGaDay rough. I was doing good for a bit, then I got behind and tried to play catch up. Then I got behind again. I'm tapping out. Maybe next year I'll be in a better place to do it.

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 17

Day 17 is a trap!

Traps are funny to me. I know they are an iconic part of dungeon delving, but when I design things, I almost never think to include them. If you are playing in a game I'm running and there is a trap, it's probably because I'm running a module. It's not that I don't like traps, I'm just not a rogue and constantly alert for them. 

That being said, as I've got older I've become a fan of the ridiculousness that is Grimtooth and his traps. He's just a fun, ridiculously overpowered character. I still think making him the new landlord of Undermountain would be fun as hell. 

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 16

 Today's topic is fiend. 

As I've mentioned over the years on this blog, I love Graz'zt. He's dark and sexy. He surrounds himself with marriliths and succubi. He's been romantically involved with Iggwilv. What's not to love?

I feel like, in many ways, Graz'zt is the most devilish of the demon princes. He seems more methodical in his corruptions and plans. Demon princes aren't known for their strategy, but Graz'zt is. I remember reading some theories in a D&D book somewhere that he may have actually originally been a Lord of Hell. 

Who is your favorite fiend?

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 15

 Day 15 is supplement.

What is your favorite supplement? There have been quite a few supplements I've really enjoyed, but I think my all time favorite is Libris Mortis. If you are unfamiliar with the book, it was the official 3.5 guide to undead things. It gave a great overview of undead, their creation, and motivation. It presented rules to customize and even play as the foul necromantic creatures. Additionally it had all the classic 3.5 things: feats, prestige classes, spells, monsters, and monster templates.

Was this the greatest supplement of all time. Not really. However, I love undead things and the book was entertaining to read. 

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 14

 Today's topic is safety. 

I'm going to rehash some of what I posted for Day 12 - Consensus. Everyone at the table should feel safe. Everyone at the table should feel like they can experience the game an not have to worry about feeling uncomfortable or have traumatic experiences coming back because something was mentioned. There are different ways to do this. You can use X-Cards, you can have a gaming contract for your table, or you can just discuss the topic with players before they start and ask them if they have any hard passes when it comes to subjects. I really don't know why this is such a hot topic. To me, it seems like common sense and basic decency. So I'll say it again, if you have issues with this, then you are a dick.

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 13

Dooooooooooooom! is the topic of the day. I know I used this for another post today, but I really want to post the Crazy Ralph "You're Doomed" gif again. Instead, I'm going to take this as an oppurtunity to share some 5e content I posted a few years ago. There are multiple skins for Doom Slayer in Doom Eternal. One of the more wicked looking ones is the Zombie Doom Slayer. If you want to add the Zombie Doom Slayer to your Descent Into Avernus games, here's your chance.

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 12

Today's rolled topic is consensus.

In my opinion, for a gaming group to be successful, you have to have a consensus. You have to have set expectations, that in general, all players and the gm agree to. I'm not saying everyone has to agree on everything, but the best games I've played in were with groups that everyone is on the same page. This bleeds into the hot topic of safety in gaming. My groups don't use things like X-Cards, but that's because I play with folks that I've known for years and I typically know what they are comfortable with. It's important to set mutually agreed upon boundaries in gaming. You don't want to make anyone to uncomfortable and if that's not you consider, then you're a dick. 

#RPGaDay2021 - Day 11

Today's rolled topic is despair. 

I honestly don't have a whole lot to say about this topic in gaming. While I do like dread and scares in my games, despair is a feeling I stay away from. For that reason I'm going to share some artwork and it's accompanying flavor text. Maybe you can get some inspiration from it. 

Requiem Angel by Eric Deschamps

When angels despair, what hope can remain for mortals?