Generative AI is an interesting tool in concept but unethically trained & has the potential to be mercilessly exploited by the worst kind of capitalists who view “art” as a product rather than the expression of people’s unique perspectives & a meaningful extension of the human experience.

Therefore it’s a tool that encourages blatant theft & soulless cash-grabbing when the user could’ve just reached for a pencil instead. They chose to trust the processor rather than loving the process.

At its worst it grants these nightmare-clients-deluded-into-thinking-they-are-artists the perfect “employee”: an entity that will unquestionably follow every order & apply every asinine correction or tweak, taking care to never upset or challenge their patron’s worldview or tastes, & all without demanding fair pay.

Every since I stopped being religious I freed up so much time! Now I currently spend my days watching hours-long obscure lore videos, discussing alternative interpretations within my community, & pontificating philosophy & moral lessons to my uninterested friends WHICH IS ENTIRELY DIFFERENT

I’ll also be streaming dog/wolf-themed games on my Twitch Channel to raise funds! If donations are too steep of a price, every little BIT and SUB helps too!

Any and all overflow shall be donated to the local humane society, to help other furry, scaly, and feathered critters get healthy and find homes!

Theodore's Surgery | Begging Strangers on the Internet for Money (Part 1)

For the next several months, I'll be streaming games on my Twitch Channel in order to raise funds for my dog's surgery! These include every currently running tabletop campaign along with any video game wherein you control a wolf-like creature (let's keep a theme running) such as...

And if mid-stream donations are too much, every little BIT and SUB helps too! Any and all overflow shall be donated to the local humane society, to help other furry, scaly, and feathered critters get healthy and find homes!

Whenever I hear someone describe themselves with terms along the line of "angry gamer" it triggers that same primitive survival reaction that I get whenever I see red, yellow, and black bands on a snake. 😑 Like, there's a chance you're not gonna be terrible, but I ain't willing to chance it.

And for the record, I am so fucking sick of this played-out and toxic schtick.

Two of my closest friends ARE FINALLY GETTING MARRIED TODAY! I, their humble former DM, will have the privilege of officiating this momentous occasion!

I'll be a Dungeon Master of Ceremonies™, if you will. ;)

Thank you so much for gifting me this shirt. I'll treasure it forever, gais.

#Inktober2017 Day 3: “POISON”

Apologies for the edgelord bad art, but this was the first thing that came to mind when my wife asked me, “What is poison to you?” in order to help get my creative juices flowing.

Sigh…..

If my current job was a game of Dungeons and Dragons

BEHOLD! My current setup for live-streaming IRL Dungeons & Dragons sessions on Twitch!

Large black table, two lights with soft boxes and stands, one webcam for player and DM wide shots and a second ceiling fan-mounted camera for overhead battlemap coverage, Yeti Blue microphone with shock mount and studio boom arm, USB hub and extenders, Macbook Pro with cooling pad running Open Broadcaster Studio, gridded mats with colored wet-erase markers, and a $hitload of dice and Pathfinder minis.

So far, this configuration has served me well, but there is always room for improvement.

Follow me on twitch.tv/diceprophet for more pulse-pounding RPG action, both on the virtual world and on the good old-fashioned tabletop!

Tabletop gaming FTW!

VLOG #5: Freaking Out During My First HTC Vive Demo

Today my coworkers let me play with their HTC Vive and the various Steam demos. At the end I played a demo for the horror game, Sisters. I did not leave with my dignity intact.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/432850/Sisters/

Today I got my first legitimate taste of a complete virtual reality experience when my coworkers let me use their HTC Vive. It was such an incredibly immersive experience. As far as perception is concerned, you forget that you're strapped to a bunch of plastic, and it feels like you're actually inside the game. My mind has been shattered into a million pieces, and I'm itching for more. Mayhaps I'll even buy one by year's end. VR is one hell of a drug, yo.

Another D&D campaign completed...WHEW!

Well, that was a depressing conclusion to my darkest-written storyline ever. The PCs all survived, most NPCs made it out okay, and they technically saved the day in the end, but I think I just destroyed one of the PC’s faith in people.

[above GIF w/o shitty Tumblr compression]

A player character had to kill her last remaining family member in order to save the day. It was such an incredible moment of role-play, but SWEET SCHRODINGER’S PUSSY that was a a really bitter ending to a campaign already steeped in trauma, violence, and morally-questionable decisions.

Both players assured me that they enjoyed the session and loved the adventure overall, but sometimes I wish I could just write a happy ending that was diegetic for once. Somedays, I yearn to tell a story in which the PCs could just ride triumphantly into the sunset, like a classic Western or modern superhero movie. Alas, I think that's just...not the kind of writer I am.

I guess I value engagement over fun if that makes any sense. Was "Saving Private Ryan" conventionally fun? Was "Schindler's List" a barrel of laughs? Of course not, but there’s something about tragedy that makes it meaningful and worth the journey, despite a bittersweet end. If a story makes you feel something more than shallow amusement, it sticks with you longer. And in the end, I love exploring darker themes like the nature of humanity and the folly of black and white morality, even in my escapism.

My Gamemastering style is definitely an acquired taste. It’s probably unmarketable, to be honest. Which is why I'm so grateful that I have so many players from my friendship circle that are still willing to play with me.

You guys are what keep me writing and telling stories. LET'S KEEP GOING ON ADVENTURES TOGETHER!

Playing with Swords | VLOG #4

Passing a boring weekend with ATTEMPTED TAMESHIGIRI! I think I may have stumbled upon a new form of anger management. BAMBOO MATS AND PLASTIC BOTTLES BEWARE!

If you’d like to watch someone else doing this exercise competently in order to wash the taste of cringe from your mouth, check out this video.

A Very Unprofessional VLOG About Swords or Something

While you people were being well-adjusted and contributing members of society, I studied the blade.

LOL No I didn't, I just watched anime. But lately I've been getting into HEMA and other weapons-based martial arts, so I have taken steps to learn how to use and maintain swords and other bladed combat implements.

My Worksharp Knife sharpener recently arrived in the mail, so I figured I'd first test its capabilities and my "technique" with a simple and cheap sword that I wouldn't mind damaging.

Link to the sharpener on Amazon

The reason I chose this item was because a favorite Youtuber, Skallagrim, recommended that it would be a noob-friendly and idiot-proof way to give your equipment an edge. But you know what they say: "Make something idiot proof, and the world will produce a bigger idiot." Let’s hope I’m an exception to this.

Link to Skallagrim's Video

The actual sword I’ll be testing in-depth is a bastard sword that I have engraved for my wedding. Expect it up on the channel soon! ;)

Wedding Gifs: Lords and Ladies

On June 11th 2017, I made the best decision and married the love of my life. The second best decision was to gift all of my groomsmen actual swords. Here’s our Kingsmen and bridesmaids ensemble, together at last (pardon the compression).

The full version of our epic wedding video was provided by Kanauru Productions! Special shout-out to Avery Wong Photography for chronicling our event, and to Strongblade for arming our bridal party!

Adventures in Swordplay #3 - RELAX!

Today, after an extended hiatus of 3-4 weeks, I returned to HEMA class. Thankfully, I’ve been doing flowing cutting drills (Meyer’s Square) on my off-time, so I wasn’t nearly as rusty as I could’ve been when we jumped into some light swordplay against an opponent. Today’s drill was focused on: SWORD BINDS! It’s that thing that happens when a pair of master swordsmen cross blades, draw up close to one another’s faces, and begin an extended dialogue about the weather or something.

[^ Check out Lindybeige’s channel for more neat-o sword stuff.]

During the lesson, we briefly discussed the 3 advantages once can acquire when engaged in a bind.

Devon Boorman wrote some good material on these topics here. I won’t be going into too much details about the technique, since that was not today’s most important lesson. Check the links below, if it interests you.

http://www.academieduello.com/news-blog/finding-advantage/ http://www.academieduello.com/news-blog/gaining-advantage/

The most important lesson today was: RELAX.

Take a moment to think of just flexibility, cut, and thrust (sorry). Anyways, when we were doing binding drills, around the midway point our instructor noticed that I was tensing up over time, favoring brute force over technique with each extended play. For some reason, this issue kept surfacing, much to my mounting frustration.

At the end of the class, after some much-needed reflection, I realized that I have a difficulty relaxing, not just in martial arts, but with life in general. Lately I’ve been so damn tense due to work, life, and million other stressors that it feels like I’m in a constant state of panic. If I don’t do something to change my current lifestyle, I fear it will be detrimental to my mental and physical health in the long run. But what to do? The stressors will be there tomorrow, whether I want it to or not. Thankfully, the solution may be more simple than I initially thought.

The MOST IMPORTANT EXERCISE Many Neglect

[^ JaxBlade is an excellent dude, too!]

I’ll be honest: I never believed in meditation and I’ve always thought it was B.S. mysticism. But perhaps I have been too quick to judge. So, moving forward, I’ll try my hardest to find some time to sit down, breath deeply, and relax. This will be a complimentary exercise, along with eating better and sleeping more. Let’s see if this helps me regain my center (pardon the cliché).

AFK BRB - I shall return in July! ;)

So excited! I’ll be a taking a one-month-long video production, writing, and D&D shit-posting hiatus to get married and visit Japan for my honeymoon!

When I return, the tabletop and general videogame streams will flow again!