An Hiatus: Death of a Loved One

I am sorry to report that this blog will be on hiatus for a while. A very very good friends of six years has passed. You can read more at http://thelukeshow.blogspot.com/2010/11/patrick-berringer-2004-2010-we-love-you.html for more details.

In memory of Patrick Berringer, Aug 2004- Nov 2010

Final Fantasy

The Final Fantasy series was created by Squaresoft in 1987. The games itself has already gone over 20 titles and several spin offs (Chocobo Racing was my favorite). This includes the flagship Final Fantasy titles, as well as the Crystal Chronicles, Mystic Quest, Lord of Vermillion, DQ vs FF Itadaki Street Special, Kingdom Hearts, Tactics, Dissidia, Blood of Bahamut, Bahamut Lagoon, , and Chocobo Dungeon games, and the party game ! Each game is a unique setting unto itself building on the mythos established in the first game. Some of the iconic features of the franchise are materia, chocobo, moggle, and espers

Final Fantasy: Remnants of the Lufenia civilization fight against Chaos/Garland and his elemental fiends.
Final Fantasy II: Firion and company go up against the Emperor of Palamecia.
Final Fantasy III: Luneth and company go against and entity known as the Cloud of Darkness.
Final Fantasy IV: Cecil Harvey and company most stop the Lunarian, Zemus.
Final Fantasy V: Bartz Klauser and his chocobo, Boko, go up against an evil mage known as Exdeath.

Final Fantasy VI: An esper named Celes Chere goes up against Kefka Palazzo who was driven insane by his magicite addiction.
Final Fantasy VII: Accent Core: Follow Zack Fair as the beginings of the Jenova Project begin.


Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis:  Incidents before FFVII involving the Shinra Power Company, Avalanche terrorists, and Wutai army.


Final Fantasy VII: Cloud Strife a soldier of Migard must stop an alien meteor and its host Sephiroth.
Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerebus: Vincent Valentine history is revealed as goes up against the secret Omega.
Final Fantasy VIII: Squall Lionheart must stop an evil sorceress, Ultimacia, of time in the past, present and future.
Final Fantasy IX: Zidane Tribal, human with simian traits, must clear his name in Alexandria and stop Kuja.

Final Fantasy X: Eons ago Spira was destroyed and the last of their civilization was put into a dreamlike realm to survive. Tidus somehow manages to escape to the real world and must stop Sin who threaten to destroy the world.
Final Fantasy X-2: Yuna, Rikku, and Paine discover the origins of Spira.
Final Fantasy XI: An MMO RPG on the world of Vana'diel heroes fight in aftermath of the Great Crystal War.
Final Fantasy XII: From FF Tactics, the world of Ivalice and its war between nations.


Final Fantasy XIV: An MMO RPG on the world Hydaelyn.


A d20 version of the FF series was done and can be found here from Final Fantasy d20. Although another gaming system called Anima, really captures the feel and gameplay of Japanese RPGs.

Character Profile: Aesedai Wayfinder

"I have found you traveler and you are now safe. No harm will come to pass."
                         -Aesedai Wayfinder, Eclipsed Priest of Malorne

   Just a few centuries before the War of the Ancients, Aesedai was born in western Kalimdor. As a child he was a skilled herbalist and alchemist, and had an aptitude for magic. Like so many others he would have become a mage, but the spirit of exploration of the natural always called him. Before long he finally found his calling within the priesthood of Malorne.
   Then the Burning Legion came and attacked the Kaldorei. When the news came he was far up north, visiting with the Furbolg. Like so many other he headed the call to defend his homeland. However during the height of the war, he was cut of from his powers when his Patron fell. His training as a Wayfinder and skill as an alchemist saved his life as well as many others, as this shock spread throughout his ranks. The Furbolgs likewise suffered a similar fate when one of the bear twins was laid low. When the dust settled, he was cut off from Kalimdor and was in the north.

  For the next few centuries, he stayed with the Furbolg who shared his grief and healed with them. When the rest of the of his people finally searched north for survivors, he traveled back with them. He would wander the breadth of the continent searching for lore and hope that his beloved patron was still alive. It wasn't until he spent time among the Tauren that he realized that the Eternal's power was still their. Like the sun, it will be eclipsed by Elune at times.... but the power is still there hidden. It was then he realized that he could tap into that hidden power, albeit a darker nature than before.

   With his powers restored, he followed the Path of Malorne with a vengeance. He soon became a bane of the Satyr that plague the forests of Ashenvale. After the Third War, he was part of a delegation to befriend Ogrimmar. He along with the Tauran would meet in Thunderbluff to discuss the logging issues within Ashenvale and Azshara. The Kaldorei hoped with the guidance and counsel of the Tauren, the orcs would grow to be peaceful neighbors. Sadly though, the human and their allies were irritants to the situation. Hoping to smooth things over, he became an ambassador to Ironforge. Here he befriended Helmackas. For the younger Earthen seemed to be more sensible than the humans. He was making some progress and he had hoped that full cooperation would come to pass as both the Horde and Alliance joined forces to combat the Silithid invasion and subsequent expedition into the broken realm of Dreanor.  It was during this time he discovered and his great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grand nephew, Aeledai among the Sin'dorei Scryers. Since then he and the others, Aeledai, Helmackas, Kewn, and Duralas have journeyed throughout Azeroth to bring peace.

This is another one of my PC characters. 

Alice in Wonderland

Although originally conceived as a novel by Lewis Carol about a young girl strange journey to a nonsensical world known as Wonderland, this story has been the inspiration to of many spin offs and properties in the gaming and motion picture industry. Since then Wonderland series has made several appearance in the RPG genres. The first attempt to translate this story into a RPG experience was by none other than Gary Gygax himself in 1983 with "Dungeonland" and "The Land Beyond the Magic Mirror". Later on though it influenced the creation of a module known as "Castle Greyhawk" in which many believe the inhabitants pored forth from the Wonderland Realm. From time to time, monsters and race popular to the novel would appear such as the infamous Jabberwocky and and adaption of the chess pieces (Chaturan) Dragon Magazine 358. The world would once again be visited again in the most recent module "Return to Castle Greyhawk".

Beside the interest in RPG, a darker more sinister adaption for the action as Video Game was developed know as "American McGee's Alice" and its sequel "Alice: Madness Returns" in 2011.. It twists the the world into a slightly more darker version of itself which is a welcome change to the whimsical and childlike quality of the world. Since then other RPG companies have attempted to make adaptions as well (Savage Worlds, OGL D20, and Better Mouse Trap Games) .

Rings of Brass

Gary Gygax is one the founding father of modern Roleplaying Games. His name is synonymous with Dungeons & Dragon, Greyhawk, Dangerous Journeys, Lejendary Journey, and Castles & Crusades. Under Troll Lord Games, he uses the C&C system to bring to life the world of Aihrde.

The All father first created world of Aihrde, a hollow world whose inner region is known as Inzaea.
Its is one of three planets in its system, the other two beings Illus and Nexus. Aihrde has only but one moon.

Sometime in this pre-history, Unklar the Dark, was responsible for igniting the Sun and also imprisoning the dragon Inazea within the interior of the planet. Being a divine being, the dragon presence warped the realm a more habitable domain and muck like the overworld. One of the first beings of creation were the dwarves, and they lived deep beneath the earth. They were the one that first fashioned tunnels between the two realms of the planet, they were blessed by the creator with the ability to invent and craft magnificent things. They created many wondrous objects, that are lost to the magical arts of today during their reign of 10,000 years.  Over the centuries though some dwarves became corrupted and were twisted into goblin, and soon began a series of wars that escalated between them. In the 4th Great War, the All Father died as a goblin sorcerer worked a great spell to unmake the dwarves, the spell went awry and cause the death of the All-Father and creating the multi-verse in the process. In this absence, other things came... dark things such as orcs and demons, and elves.

For the next 800 years the Age of Man would be upon the world. First with the Aenochian Empire, and then with various smaller kingdoms. The Age was a golden age for humans, the dwarves and elves kept to themselves. Yet in the end, Unklar the Dark made his move. This time causing the Winterdark Wars. Fpr the next 240 some years, the dark god terrorized the world in black snow and ice. There was countless strife and wars, as mortal and gods alike rose up and attempted to defeat Unklar. The Battle of the Tree marked the end of the Winterdark as Unklar forces were defeated.  New Kingdoms were made, new gods appeared and new religions, and peace would reign upon the world once more. 

Mario World

Nintendo's Flagship series has always been a favorite to play. Originally the franchise all started with his debut in the game Donkey Kong in 1981. In that game he had to save his girlfriend, Pauline,  from and escaped Gorilla, Donkey Kong (aka Crankey Kong). Once he was captured, Mario put Donkey Kong in a circus, but in 1983 Donkey Jr (Donkey Kong) rescues him from Mario. After this defeat, he started a plumbing business with his brother Luigi in the game Mario Bros, in which their was some strange creatures coming up from the sewer.

Then in 1985 the entire Mushroom Kingdom came to be in Super Mario Bros. Bascially the pipes lead them to another world where the Princesses of the Mushroom and Sarasaland where captured by King Bowser Koopa and Tatanga. From their the adventures in the mushroom kingdom exploded, with King Koopa being a recurring villian. Mario has stayed within this world for years, exploring everything, and plus he and his brother are more than juts plumbers here! They are world heroes! Yet other menaces have followed them, such as Mario's long time rival Wario and his brother Waluigi. Since then Mario has appeared in over 20 games, ranging from testris like game to racing games. The world of the mushroom kingdom has contactly grown and we find more and more about it. Most of the inhabitant are anthropomorphic creatures such as mushrooms, beans, turtles, mice, bombs, etc. It is a very odd plus and much like Lewis Carol's Alice in Wonderland series.

 If you are interested to play a Mario D20 game, a fansite has created a PDF which offers some guidelines.

Character Profile: Sun Wu Kong

One of the most interesting individuals of chinese mythology is the Great Monkey, Sage who is Equal to Heaven, Sun Wu Kong.

He was a stone monkey born in ancient china. As he wandered the world he came upon other monkeys and so became their leader. He was saddened by the death of one of his subject and vowed to find a way to prevent death. He promised to travel the world and seek a way.

It was during this time he became a student of a great sage who taught him the 72 Earthly techniques of the Way of Sneaking and Transformation. A path of immortality that Sun Wu Kong was destined to learn. Here he gained great powers and abilities (invisibility, transformation into object and people, flight, teleporting, changing size, breath water, multiply himself, super strength etc). When he finally returned to his home, he had to defeat some demons that conquered his people. They convinced him, as a powerful immortal now, that he should look the part. So as instructed he demanded that the Dragon Kings gift him with magical armor and weapons. He even managed the impossible be gaining the 13,500 lbs Nail of Heaven. The Dragon Kings warned heaven about the Monkey King and he was sentenced to death. Yet even being sent to the Underworld did not quell him. There he defeated the forces of Yama and forced the Judge of the dead to give him the ledgers of Life and Death. The Monkey King simply rewrote his destiny and no longer could die.

During the next few years he became out of control as he was quite powerful and plagued heaven. It wasn;t until he lost a bet with Budha that he forced into submission for at least a 1,000 years. It was during this time that Sun Wu Kong was given a second chance by the goddess Kuan Yin. He was instructed to guard a Taoist priest that was destined to bring forth the Budhist scripture to China. To complete his task and ensure his behavior he was fitted with a headband of subjugation. Although at first he resented being used, he grew to care for his companions and protect them fiercely. During this time he also gained another very powerful item, known as the Gourd of King Silver Horn that could imprison anyone within it if they new there name.

One of the reason why I like Sun Wu Kong, is becuase deep down inside he is a caring and loving individual. He represents the greatness mankind can achieve, and the frailties we possess. Although he has made past mistakes he always tries to overcome them. He never shows fear and has an insatiable curiosity for knowledge and exploration, and in away represent the freedom of man from the divine (In the sense that we control our destiny) 

72 Earthly transformation