SilverSheen News

Here we are again with SilverSheen News. It's published in both a printed and web/HTML version. The content is the same; only the formatting is different. The web version can be found by pointing your web browser to http://www.io.com/~girthlin/newsletters.html. If you're reading this online, click on any of the SilverSheen symbols below to return to the top. If you're reading this from a printout, then push really hard on the symbol, close your eyes, and click your heels three times. Let me know what happens.

There was a good turnout by the Legion at ConnCon, one of our staple gaming conventions. It took place in a new venue this year (Waterbury, CT). There's a review in this issue.

As always, the Legion's website is being constantly updated. Check out the latest info at http://www.io.com/~girthlin/legion.html

Characteristics

Elves & Half-Elves

  Eyes
                                                    Modifiers  {Eyes/Hair/Skin }

 1-4    Dark Grey ( 1 Jet Black, 5-6 Black )                    Wild  -6
 5-8    Brown ( 1-2 Light 3-5 Dark 6 Hazel )                    Wood  -4
 9-12   Green ( 1-2 Light 4-6 Bright Emerald )                  High   0
 13-15  Blue ( 1-3 Light 4-5 Bright 6 Deep Violet )             Grey  +4
 16-17  Silver Grey
 18-19  Golden
 20     Changable





  Hair Length                                                      M    F

 1-3    Red ( 1-3 Red Gold 4-5 Copper 6 Auburn )            Ear   1-4   -
 4-5    Brown ( 1-3 Light 4-6 Dark )                   Shoulder   5-9  1-3
 6-7    Grey ( 1-5 Light 6 Dark )                         Waist    0   4-8
 8-12   Black ( 1-2 Dark 3-4 Ash 5-6 Blue Black )        Longer    -   9-0
 13-15  Light Blond ( 1d6 Stawberry )
 16-18  Honey Blond ( 1d6 Dirty Blond )                  Handed  1-4 Right
 19     White ( 1 Metallic Silver 6 Pale Green )                 5-8 Left
 20     Metallic Gold                                            9-0 Ambidx

                                                          
Skin                 Unusual Freatures
 1-2    Pale Green    1 Large/Small Eyes        7 Epicantic Fold
 3-8    Pale          2 Sharp/Soft Features     8 Facial Scare
 9-15   Fair          3 Round/Narrow Face       9 Curly Hair
 16-18  Normal        4 High Forehead          10 Upturned Eyebrows
 19-20  Tanned        5 Large/Small Eyes       11 Round/Narrow Eyes
                      6 Full/Thin Lips         12 Close/Far set eyes

Halflings

 Eyes            Skin                 Hair

    1  Green      1  Fair        1-3  Lt Brown   10-11 Blond
  2-6  Blue     2-5  Normal      4-5  Dk Brown      12 White
  7-9  Grey       6  Tanned      6-7  Grey
10-11  Brown                       8  Black
   12  Black                       9  Red


 Unusual Features

1  Freckles               5  High Forehead        9  Large/Small Nose
2  Curly/Straight Hair    6  Large/Small Eyes    10  Large/Small Mouth
3  Blunt/Sharp Nose       7  Large/Small Ears
4  Jutting Jaw/Overbite   8  Close/Far set eyes

Handedness  1-7 Right 8-10 Left 11-12 Ambidexterous

            Tallfellow  -2   Stout +2   { Eyes/Skin/Hair }


Dwarves & Gnomes

 Eyes           Skin             Hair                  Length

1-4  Grey      1-2 Normal       1    White        Hair             Beard
5-7  Blue      3-7 Tanned       2-7    Blond
8-9  Brown     8-9 Brown        8-9    Red       1-3  Short       1-2  3"-4"
 0   Other      0  Grey         10-13  Grey      5-8  Medium      3-8  Chest
                                14-17  Brown     9-0  Long        9-0  Belt
(1-2 Green 3-5 Black 6 Red)     18-20  Black
                                             Mountain +1 to above only

 Unusual Features                                        Handedness

1  Large/Small Nose    6  Scar                      1-12  Right
2  Large/Small Eyes    7  Gap Toothed          13-19  Left
3  Large/Small Teeth   8  Bushy Eyebrows       20   Ambidexterous
4  Long/Short Ears     9  Sharp/Soft Features
5  Curly Hair          0  Wide/Narrow Eyes           ( Gnomes +2 )


Humans

 Eyes                                         Handedness

  1-3  Blue  ( 1-2 Lt, 3-4 Dk, 5-6 Clear )    1-7 Right
  4-7  Green ( 1-2 Lt, 3-6 Dk )               8-9 Left
 8-12  Brown                                   0  Ambidextrous
13-16  Black
17-18  Grey
19-20  Hazel ( 1d6 Flecked )

Hair                                          Length    M     F

 1-2  Grey ( Salt & Pepper, 6 White )         Short    1-2    1
 3-5  Brown ( 1-2 Lt, 3-4 Dk,  5-6 Sandy )    Ear      3-4    2
 6-8  Black ( 1 Jet, 6 Blue Black )           Long      5    3-4
9-11  Blond ( 1-3 Lt, 4-7 Gold, 8 Platum )    Waist     6    5-6
 12   Red ( 1 Rusty, 6 Auburn )

Skin              Unusual Features

  1-2  Pale        1  Facial Scar           6  Freckles
  3-4  Fair        2  Large/Small Eyes      7  Cleft Chin
  5-8  Normal      3  Large/Small Nose      8  High Cheekbones
 9-10  Tanned      4  Widows Peak           9  Slanted Eyes
11-12  Ruddy       5  Close/Far Set Eyes    0  Sharp/Soft Features

RealmCon 96 - February - Miami, FL

Realmcon is a small convention run by the Game store and is the official SilverSheen yearly convention. Members from throughout the US travel to support this small, but quickly growing con. Set in warm, sunny Miami it is an easy choice bewteen this gathering and Winter Fantasy in Milwakee. Let's see; sunny, warm weather, clear blue water, beautiful, scantilly clad women and ..uh, .uh, oh yeah, a weekend of gaming. Or, brutal winter winds, ice covered streets, snow storms that stagger the most hardy polar bear and women covered in so much clothing as to resemble the afore-mentioned bear. Which line would you be on? I'd be on that loooooong line.

Realmcon is held at the Holiday Inn Jetport, literally minutes from the airport. The convention hosted a Magic:TG head to head contest, several minuature tournaments, Vampire Live Action Role-Playing, RPGA sanctioned Ravenloft and Living City gaming and the second annual RPG competition - "Cutthroat"; Grand Prize was a full-sized replica of the Conan the Barbarian sword.

One of the most noteworthy events was the introduction of the Living City setting to the Miami gaming community. Previous to this, LC was known of only through Polyhedron articles and word of mouth. We expected a fair number of curious players and were prepared to explain and help create new LC characters. Imagine our surprise when experienced players, some from as far away as PA, showed up to partake of the LC bounty. In addition, gamers from the Orlando area, who were introduced to LC by SunQuest, an Orlando based convention, arrived in droves to expand and develop their characters. Combined with the locals, who quickly jumped on the band wagon, the Living City was a hit. In the words of one attendee from NJ - Lee Hayward - " It was nice to play with a group of new LC players, who had yet to be tainted with the munchkinism usually associated with LC, " or some words to that effect ( never take a quote after the fifth beer ). We accepted nearly a dozen RPGA membership requests from players eager to advance their characters ( do I see just a hint of froth? ) and promised to include more LC events next year. I even volunteered to write an LC tournament for Realmcon 97 ( that was sometime after the seventh beer ).

Copyright © 1996 Ramon Delgado

ConnCon 96 - March - Waterbury, CT

This year, ConnCon was forced to move from it's usual location in Danbury. Rising costs forced the move to Waterbury, an extra half-hour drive. The extra driving time was worth it.

The new hotel, the Four Points Sheraton, was a much better location for a gaming convention. Instead of two lone elevators bottlenecked with gamers in between slots, each of the four corners of the rectangular hotel contained elevators and stairs. Rooms either faced outside, or had small balconies overlooking the inner courtyard. In the courtyard was the hotel restaurant, which had good food, decent prices, and fast service. However, at times it was a bit disconcerting to eat with all the balconies (4 floors) looming around us. The rooms were spacious and very clean. I approve of ConnCon's new home.

We were all pre-registered, and picked up our packets with no wait. I must mention that this year there was another convention in the hotel. Besides the obvious nuisance of hordes of little Rainbow Girls swarming underfoot, they had most of the larger facilities in the hotel. Many RPG's were scheduled in actual hotel rooms. The beds were taken apart, and two tables were placed in each room. This made things cozy at best. The ConnCon staff has assured us that they have already signed the contracts for next year, which gives them most of the larger conference rooms. I didn't find conditions this year intolerable, so next year promises to be even better.

There was a wide selection of games, including many RPGA events. I GM'ed two rounds of "Tales Heard at a Miskatonic Reunion," an on-going Call of Cthulhu campaign much like the Living City. With the luxury of only 3 and 4 players per session, I was able to run very intimate sessions. I had a great time. Partial credit must be given to Peggy O'Conel, whose event "Pickman's Mannequins" was terrific.

We also played our very own Ray Delgado's "A Sword in the Hand." Although we played at a Masters table, you would never have known it. We botched things so badly, we almost (were) finished very early. Somehow we pulled through. Ray really put together an excellent tournament. He should be proud!

What's my conclusion for this review? ConnCon is better than ever. It's on the Legion's must-attend list for gaming conventions.

Copyright © 1996 Ramon Guerrero

I-CON 96 - April - Stony Brook, NY

Although, Ray Guerrero and myself could only attend for one day, it was well worth the effort. The latest I-Con has come a long way from years ago. Registration was a breeze - we were signed up and given our badges within five minutes. The dealers room, larger than anything we have experienced anywhere except GenCon, was full to the brim with gaming stuff and Ray was able to find several hard to come by items. The guests and seminars were, as usual, friendly, informative and a pleasure to converse with and listen to, especially the LucasFilms people, who's seminar and info on the forthcoming Star Wars projects is detailed below.

Gaming at I-Con has also become better and more organized. This year the game areas were situated closer together and near the registration area. There was no running from building to building or clear across the campus. Still, the RPGA games and regular games were separated into two buildings, though these were next door to each other. The Collectable Card Games were in a third facility, but no one seemed to mind. The RPGA games were, again, a hit and we filled every table in every slot. I, myself, pitched in and ran an LC game for several newcomers to the system and Ray G. volunteered to man HQ while every available judge was out running events. The organization, professionalism and patience of the RPGA staff proved once more to be the key elements to a good convention role-playing experience. We introduced no less than three dozen new gamers to the LC system and I would not be surprised if at least half of them become RPGA members. The reaction to the LC events was more than positive and RPGA HQ received many thanks from the new players and a good many attendees requested information on other network supported conventions in the area. Ray and I had a blast.

The highlight of the con, at least to us, was the LucasFilms seminar. A good deal of info on current Star Wars projects was released. Here's the majority of them.

Spoiler Alert:

The original Star Wars will be re-released in early 1997, probably around February. Empire Strikes Back comes out eight weeks later and Return of the Jedi eight weeks after that. All three films have been digitally remastered and the sound tracks redone in dolby stereo sound. Additionally, new, never before seen clips have been added to each of the films. Note that these are not editing cuts, but newly filmed sequences and computer enhanced images by the same people who worked on the Jurassic Park special effects. It seems that George Lucas was not pleased with the original three films. The limited technology at the time forced him to compromise his vision of the trilogy. The new releases have been upgraded to meet that vision. So, you might ask. what's new? Here is a partial list.

Star Wars

• The scene where storm troopers inspect R2D2 and C3P0's escape pod on Tatooine has been redone to include stormtroopers riding huge lizard-like mounts (dewbacks) across the background.
• A scene where Jabba the Hut meets Han Solo at the space dock has been added. The original scene was filmed using a rather large actor with a thick Scottish accent ( Scotty anyone?) playing Jabba. It was later cut out completely.
• Luke and Ben's entrance into Mos Eisly has been revised into a scene that shows a crowded town with assorted aliens filling the streets. The original scene made it look like a ghost town. Another large dinosaur-like mount is seen carrying several Jawas.
• The number of X-Wings attacking the Death Star has been greatly increased to resemble a true fleet and not a hand-full of attacking ships.

It started when Eric Berlin, a columnist for Internet World magazine, posted on Usenet asking for players to participate in a demo AD&D IRC game for his column. Nelson Remy, another player, and myself played. There was a fourth, but he had trouble configuring his IRC client. Such is life on the Internet!

We all set up for two IRC channels (i.e. chat rooms, etc.) One was for all game discussion, in-character roleplaying, and the DM's (Eric's) descriptions, etc. The other was for chit-chat, jokes, and questions.

Using two channels works great. I wish I could separate all the out-of-game chatter in real life.

Eric chose to handle all the number-crunching himself. He performed all our rolls, and only told us how many Hit Points of damage we took. This allowed us to really get in character and not worry about THAC0, Armor Class, and all that nonsense. Of course this put a heavy load on Eric. He commented, four hours into the game, that it was strenous. However, he added that he had not run an AD&D game in years.

The adventure was nicely set up. We were all on retainer for a powerful Wizard. When the tower of one of his competitors mysteriously sunk into the ground, he sent us to retrieve certain "things" from the ruins of the tower. Needless to say, the ruined tower of a wizard can be a popular place.

What is good about IRC gaming? The separation of chit-chit. The mood was palpable; I felt the tension as we played cat and mouse with another group within the ruins. IRC gaming also removes geographical between players. Eric was somewhere in the Metro NYC area, I was on Long Island, Nelson in Miami FL, and the other player was from California. Try getting a group like that together for a Saturday gaming session!

What is bad about IRC gaming? There are visual clues and body language that many DM's use to present information. In particular, we totally misunderstood one fact about the layout of the ruins. This fact was required for us to complete our mission. There are ways to pass along files such as maps using IRC, but none of us knew how at the time.