The World According to Gurps

A new referee has taken over for now. I've just been a tad too busy with family life to continue GM-ing Gurps FS for now, so Justin has graciously taken over.

The last game rocked! I've never been to an FS game where I got to me Prince Hyram Decados and Alvarex Hawkwood.

Great game Justin!

I won a duel and I did it the DECADOS way :)) (yey!!). I don't know if its actually considered cheating or not, there is nothing about FS dueling ettiquete about Shock weapons, but next time i'll try not to use it. I have to say that this is the first duel this character has won (given his family, i don't he can beat their likes).

Knowing what the al-Malik, I am certain that Abdul Hakim will find a way to embarass me again. Thank god for friends in certain places (like gannon- more for his advice about how this guy is going to possibly screw me) I can possibly do some preventative research about this guy. Learn about him and possibly find a way to anticipate his move against me.

But first a Date :)) with a family who knows my house :D

We finally got to game yesterday. We saw a new cast of characters come in.

The game is moving rather slowly but surely!

Now the plot is getting thicker!

130.5006

Today is the Feast of the Pancreator Navarre.

People will most likely be out doing the usual festivities. People will get drunk. People will have a riot of a time. Meanwhile, having some time of my own mean's I can get on to finishing or continuing some personal projects of mine. In any case, to all those who might not know, enjoy the Pancreator's Day.

Here's a toast and a mighty "Awoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!"

We're not having a game this weekend. I have to rest after my bout of mild food poisoning. We'll be continuing week after next. Surprisingly, I've had two more potential players join in. I guess all that homework consisting of character generation parameters and stuff which I placed in our gaming egroups made an impression after all.

On Wednesday night I went to the wake of the dad of one of my players, Vannie Tan.

She told me our decision to run our game last Sunday, April 23, 2006 did a lot of good insofar as her family was concerned. She says her dad had suffered a heart attack in December 2005. He celebrated his birthday recently and the family was deciding when to hold the party. Vannie arranged to have the party on Saturday, April 22, 2006, partly because of our scheduled game the next day. She said the party pushed through and the whole family, as well as her dad had a great time.

Shortly after that, her dad suffered a heart attack sometime in the wee hours of the Sunday morning. He passed away peacefully the next day.

As I write this, my prayers go out for the repose of the soul of Mr. Vicente J. Tan. I also pray for his family. I know Mr. Tan is now in the presence of our Almighty Father. He's in a better place and having a blast enjoying himself.

Vannie said if the game was not set for Sunday, the party would have probably be set on Sunday night. The way things turned out, if the party was set on Sunday night, her family would not have had a chance to have a great time with their dad.

I guess everything really happens for a reason.

I've been getting feedback from Kurtz. In true Engineer style, he suggests using a pair of webcams and running a game with De Grasse on the other end.

I say its sounds good. We'll give this a shot.

Slightly before 2:00 p.m. last Sunday, I was pulling out of my parking slot and heading towards Doc Ben-g's place to referee our game. My cellphone chimes and I get a text message. It's from Emmanuel, a long time die hard role player who is now based in the United States. Emmanuel's been playing in my games since 1990, when I ran Twilight 2000 for his group from DLSU. Earlier on, Emmanuel's been complaining of the lack of gaming he now experiences in the states. I ran a Gurps Traveller play be email (PBEM) RPG earlier this year but it petered out because of many reasons, amongst others, player fatigue.

Emmanuel texted me from another time zone to ask how the Gurps:Fading Suns (G:FS) game was coming along. It's times like these when I wish we had things like stepping discs from Larry Niven's Ringworld to allow us to teleport instantly into another continent. In this way, Emmanuel could just drop in, game with us, and 'port back to the U.S. in time for supper. Alas, this is only a dream.

Emmanuel was part of my original Fading Suns group, back in 1998 when we started with the FS first edition of rules (I recall it was based on a softback edition by HDI- my copy is still around but almost disintigrating already). Doc Ben-g and JY were also in that original group. He played the Revered Brother Battle Charles de Grasse, an idealistic yet battle-hardened warrior of the faith. I'd describe Rev. de Grasse as being like your favorite spiritual adviser meets the Jedi. Oh, and he always described him as someone who looked like Jeremy Irons in the movie The Mission.

Emmanuel played de Grasse with a passion. I wish he were here in Byz II with the current cast of characters. I'd have liked to see how de Grasse would turn out in Gurps.

HAving all this in mind, I ran the game up to this scene:

Sir Damien Hawkwood strides into the sumptuous dining chamber of the Seabreeze Club along southern the coast of Harmony City and meets up with Sir Arthur Conolly. The two friends exchange pleasantries and admire the view of the Caspian Ocean as the mist lifts slowly. Above, the fading suns glow faintly.

A tall man in a black suit strides in. He is wrapped in a rather worn grey cloak and leans on a short staff. He is seated at a table on the room's far side and is served a heaping plate of the day's special. He has that faraway look, as if he is contemplating something; like he is constantly struggling to ease the burdens weighing heavily upon his soul.

The noblemen glance sideways at the tall man who pays them scant notice. As Sir Damien looks away, his eye falls upon the tall man's pendant, which shines briefly as it catches the light. It is the jumpgate cross with an upright sword blade.

"Ah, he is a church warrior, a Brother Battle."

I recall describing him as someone who looks like Jeremy Irons. I guess Ben-g and JY had their minds set on something else so they failed to make the connection. Ah, well, next time then...

Emmanuel, if you are reading this, rest assured that the Revered Brother Battle Charles de Grasse is alive and well and walks the paths 'twixit the Dark Between the Stars".

5002-267 1947H

Alive! Now I know how those old bikers felt. I'm really glad I got a hold of this old "Rattlesnake". Definitely worth the investment I put into it. And considering it was in poor condition when I first found it. Now it growls like the meanest metaapuma.

Ought to thank Azim for introducing me to Artie. He's really the best when it comes to reconditioning these babies. Nice enough to also teach me his tricks. I hope he can teach me more.

As I drift through this seldom used highways and look at the sun as it settles below the horizon, it really gives one a feeling of what Harmony should truly be or can be. Everyone should get a bike. This is great therapy. With all the crap I have to take in at work, I really need this kind of break. I never knew how much I lost when I left home. Then again, I remember what I did gain when I decided to pack up and leave.

Now at least with Rattler I can have a chance to enjoy the simpler pleasures in life again. To feel the wind and smell the good clean air. To be free, even for just a few hours, of the drury repetitiveness of my work.

We're gonna go places, Rattler.

Vroom vrooooooooom!!!!