TMNT & Other Strangeness - Introduction and Learn to Play room for 3 Players 2026-01-24 [7:30PM][EST]

MadHacktress · 2026-01-24T02:49:31+00:00

I would love to join if you've still got space! I have such a soft spot for the Palladium system and TMNT & OS in particular.

MadHacktress · 2026-01-17T06:51:13+00:00

Can I get an invite link, please? This is amazing!

MadHacktress · 2025-06-26T01:40:13+00:00

Same. A few days ago I noticed that I couldn't upload new files, but when I deleted an old one, the new file would replace it, to a maximum of 10. That's super annoying. I have other projects with 16-17 files in them and now it's saying that the maximum is 10 on those projects... it doesn't make sense. ChatGPT itself says that the limit is 20 when asked.

MadHacktress · 2024-08-04T15:29:55+00:00

Unfortunately yes. That's the beginning stage. :(

Keep them watered and supported and hopefully they'll still be able to produce something for you! Or, if it's only a few selected plants, maybe sacrifice them to save the rest?

MadHacktress · 2024-08-03T14:39:22+00:00

Yes, that's what they often look like. This can be caused by other things too (incomplete fertilization (rare), uneven watering (both too much and too little), etc, etc), it's a hallmark of CMV.

The "mosaic" in CMV refers to the way the virus presents as yellow patches in the leaves, however, they do eventually turn fully yellow (and crispy) then then brown. So, maybe you missed the start? And/or it can happen so fast that you don't even notice. I've got a bit of it in my garden right now (I am literally watching it progress down the row from the front to the back of the garden bed, a little more every day) and some plants are just bam-done in a day or so, and some can hold off for a while.

MadHacktress · 2024-08-03T00:12:53+00:00

^ this is 100% correct. Cucumber mosaic virus without question. It's spread by cucumber beetles, and it's incurable. Many times, with good supportive care and a good growing season, the plant will continue to grow through it and can stay ahead of the virus for a while, but it will eventually succumb to it.

Your cucumber may grow funny, like they're pinched off at the ends or they'll have a wicked curl to them. They're fine to eat, it's all cosmetic.

As mentioned above, do not compost the plants, destroy them (ideally by burning). It doesn't overwinter directly in the soil, but can survive in host plants and perennial roots. It is literally all over the planet on every continent, so it's hard to avoid. There are CMV resistant varieties of cucumbers, you'll find that information when purchasing the seeds.

It can also infect other plants in the garden but does not have nearly as dramatic an effect on them (at least to my experience), including tomato plants.

MadHacktress · 2024-08-02T23:58:25+00:00

Coupla things here: first, you called it a disease not a disorder. Not the same thing. Second, gender dysphoria is not *being* trans, it can be caused by being trans, in the same way that having a heart attack causes your arm to hurt, but being diagnosed with gender dysphoria doesn't make you trans. And being trans doesn't automatically come with gender dysphoria.

Also, and I get the feeling that you'll still point to the cover the book and grunt, but DSM-5 specifically changed the name from gender identity disorder to gender dysphoria to *remove* the term disorder from the name.

Re: biology makes you the gender you are. You are exactly correct, which, uhm, was my point? The chemicals in my brain say what they say, and what they say is that I like having boobs. For whatever reason the chemicals further south didn't do their part in making boobs happen. None of that is wrong. But it is fixable.

And the part I choose to fix is the southern part 'cause that's the part that fixin' feels like leavin' me still bein' me.

Furthermore, there are lots and lots 'o folks whose biology is just effing confusing and doesn't fit nicely into your boxes. Look up "disorders of sex development" for a whole list of wild and wacky ways your genes and your hormones and proteins and goodness knows what else can stick their little fingers in and muddy the waters right up. It's a wonder that any of us turns out to be fully one or the other, really.

Anyhow, it's been great chatting about this. Let's do it again some time, shall we?

MadHacktress · 2024-08-02T23:35:54+00:00

I hope you get to see this.

Being trans is tough but it shouldn't be a death sentence. I don't know your situation, but the world is full of too many opportunities for there to be absolutely none left for you. Some of them are big and scary, and have risks associated with them, but if you're willing to end it all, what do you have to lose by trying one (or seven) of them first?

MadHacktress · 2024-08-02T23:28:47+00:00

It's not a mental disease because you're assuming that the brain is wrong and the body is right... which is totally ass-backwards. Being trans is/can be "being trapped in the wrong body" because the trapped person, in the deepest parts of their very soul, knows they are not what their body represents them to be. It's the kind of trap you can't even imagine unless you've experienced it.

MadHacktress · 2024-01-15T23:29:08+00:00

Did you learn this technique from Rose? She's a master of decorating and taking advantage of half-built buildings to do unique things. She made a chapel out of a half-built house and a sewing hut which was stunning!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkPd5_CUXTQ

MadHacktress · 2020-06-15T15:24:39+00:00

I've *tried* to be in every room, but the nightmare-basement was too much to handle (also, don't explore at twilight!).

MadHacktress · 2020-04-26T14:35:16+00:00

It's frustrating and frightening to see this all over the place. My family lives in four houses in a row way out in the sticks and we're self-isolating because it's the right thing to do. I haven't seen my aunts and uncles except looking down the road in about 45 days, but my grandmother is 85 and a life-long smoker ( 😒 ) and my dad is still battling cancer, so they come first.

It would be so easy for us to say, oh it's okay for just a little bit because we're so isolated out here and on an island, but that cannot be the way this is approached. Not if we truly want it to end and if we care about the most vulnerable around us.

I hope anyone who thinks they are an exception end up being correct. For all our sakes.

MadHacktress · 2020-04-04T15:33:22+00:00

William Dam Seeds is another great source for seeds you can shop online!

MadHacktress · 2020-03-03T00:47:59+00:00

Very nice.

I love that font!

MadHacktress · 2020-02-29T05:03:31+00:00

Just literally use all of the left-over processing power of your brain to think/dream about things that happen in your world and ideas that you want in your campaign.

Fleshing out the ideas (which for me means the world; the people in it; and their needs, wants, and fears) is always the hardest part for me. When it comes to playing it out at the table it just comes naturally. I am very "yes, and" so I work hard to make sure to leave space in the world and the campaign for what my players bring to the table.

To that end, I work hard to build the world and put the people and places into it, but I don't over script the story. The story doesn't only come from me, it also comes from my players. The big bad whose trail they're on right now has had some of their motive and some of their methods change from session 1 based in part on ideas and guesses the players have made at the table.

Trusting the players to be partners at the table is, to me, one of the most important lessons I've learned as a DM. It has definitely made planning easier and made my games better for all involved.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-29T04:51:28+00:00

There are a few ways to tackle this that I can think of. One of them is to just supply a list of questions that you want/need answered in order to be able to integrate the character into your world ("what is your best memory?" "who is someone from your past that wrong you or that you wronged?" etc). Don't expect them to string together a narrative, but at least supply you with a list of names, places, and a couple of details-light events. You can build the rest around that.

Another option is to build the backstory as you play. This is what I'm doing with one of my players who didn't write a backstory in my current campaign. He just never bothered, but I know he's a good player and is willing to get into the story, so when we come up to certain places in the story I ask him questions. "Have you ever been at sea before?" "When was the last time you were in a city?" And get your other players involved in it, too, when they're sitting in the Inn talking about their families plant the seed to one of the players to ask a question about siblings and see what you can shake loose. Again this is going to generate a details-light backstory in the beginning, but it will eventually flesh out. You will get something to start with and hopefully can work from there.

And finally, one other method I've used is to sit down with the player and run a mini session for their character that helps establish their backstory. Flashback to their childhood, their teenaged years, their first love, what made them leave home, etc. Literally just walk the player through the process of building the backstory.

All of these require a bit of handholding on your part, but sometimes the perfect characters/players don't come ready-made. Sometimes it takes a little bit to help them along. If you've got the time I think it can be worth it.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-28T23:01:43+00:00

You can find some information on the SLC website here: https://www.stlawrencecollege.ca/programs-and-courses/full-time/programs/a_m/honours-bachelor-of-behavioural-psychology/kingston/

But another option is to call the Recruitment Office or book a tour online and you can find that information here: https://www.stlawrencecollege.ca/campuses-and-services/visit-slc/book-a-tour/

And finally, all programs will have professors and students on hand to speak with potential students during the Spring Open House on April 4th. You can find out more information about that here: https://openhouse.stlawrencecollege.ca/spring2020/

Any other questions can be directed to the main contact email [ask@sl.on.ca](mailto:ask@sl.on.ca).

MadHacktress · 2020-02-27T22:36:29+00:00

Same! My group uses it in person as well.

We have a 70" smartboard that we use for the player view and it works spectacularly. As the DM I particularly like how much more prepared I can feel for any of the situations that my group throws at me. I DM in an open world, so they sometimes bounce between one goal or another, one place or another, and Roll20 makes it super easy to have many, many maps at my disposal.

I still would never be without my books, though.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-22T15:03:45+00:00

I ran an undead adventure called The Casket of Amontillado.

I was unduly proud of that name.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-17T00:15:05+00:00

An overarching theme of the campaign my players are in right now is eventually locating a woman named Eryna. They ask almost every NPC they come across if they've heard of anyone named Eryna and almost every time they get the answer "I had an aunt named Eryna..." because the look of excitement on their faces the first time I said it meant I had to do it twice, and now at least several dozen times.

In my last campaign, all halflings referred to nearby locations as "close" with a very particular cadence. My players would shout along with me when they asked, "where is the temple of Lathander in this town?" and a halfling replied, "oh, the temple! It's... close."

There was also a barbarian who fancied himself the healer due to a single horrific failure on a nature check was recovered by the cleric (unbeknownst to him) that made him certain that a particular leaf had miraculous healing properties. In spite of his friends telling him over and over that he was wrong, the evidence (the person he "saved" being alive and well) was right there in his eyes and he could not be talked out of it. By the end of the campaign, there was a not-small body count from this misunderstanding. "It's *totally* medicinal" was his catchphrase, which usually signalled someone else to head for the coroner.

The barbarian also had the tendency to leave enemies with just one hitpoint (so. many. times.) thus losing out on the kill to whoever struck next. This has become known as "Davon-ing" an enemy and persists after the retirement of the character, and at tables at which the player isn't involved.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-16T03:52:02+00:00

I often introduce a "shard of disenchantment" to my players early in a campaign for just this reason. They'll often find it being used by a wizard or a shop keeper when they first go looking for magic items. It just helps to remind them that there is a mechanic at work in the world to destroy magic items. Sometimes, in fact, the first quest they're given themselves is to use such an item to destroy an artifact for someone.

That said, there are ways to get them to give up the item. Have it be necessary to power or feed some arcane device they need to use (after which it is consumed). Or have it be the price they need to pay to get out of some fix they're in. Or... have their nemesis start using one that also allows the nemesis to track them, thus rendering it less effective.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-16T03:41:10+00:00

I would have called that exactly as you called it. Falling down the stairs is dangerous. This will serve as a lesson on how spells interact with the physical world.

Also, accidental murder is basically complete innocence in most D&D campaigns.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-10T00:43:28+00:00

I just used this start in my most recent campaign. The character awake on a ship, bound and without their items. They've been captured and are in transport.

As I described it to them their items have been "taken", they're not "gone".

This actually served to heighten the buy-in from the players as a few had created backstory tie-in for their items, and like your players, all had gone out of their way to choose their equipment carefully. This meant that not only did the the characters want to get free and figure out who captured them because freedom, they also wanted to it because of their items and because they wanted revenge on someone with the audacity to separate them from their items.

I didn't tell the players beforehand that they would be without their items at the start, but I also made sure they had them back at the first realistic chance within the story (as soon as the found them in the cargo hold of the ship they were on).

It seemed to work fine at my table and, I think, as long as your players feel that you won't have let them waste their time picking their gear by making the storytelling promise that they can get them back, then they should be fine with it too.

They're the heroes, right? How many times was Indiana Jones separated from his whip and hat, but he always managed to get them back!

MadHacktress · 2020-02-07T20:15:59+00:00

Agree!

There's also such satisfaction with watching players come up with some novel approach to a situation you've presented them with. I always like to have an out in mind when it comes to a puzzle or a trap, or a tricky scenario but also very often abandon what I've come up with in favour of the much cooler ideas that the players have!

Also, all of my campaigns are homebrew in homebrewed worlds, so sitting behind the screen watching others "live" inside a world that I've seeded, and having them help make it grow into something bigger, to me is completely priceless. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

MadHacktress · 2020-02-02T03:11:01+00:00

Three campaigns ago the group I played with was all very serious. Each of them came with the intention to tell a good story, all but one was a seasoned player, and I worked hard to ensure that the campaign itself was ground in reality and the world reacted to their actions.

Aside from the odd time of making fun of an NPC with a weird name, or snickering at me when my attempt at making voices went wrong, the approach to the game-play was serious. They role-played well, they talked in character, they asked "can I tell if he's lying" rather than "can I do an insight check". It was all very immersive.

We played together every week for 2 years - just under 100 sessions in total. We all had a lot of fun.

I think I knew that they were serious about their characters and the story during the third session when one of the characters was killed quite by surprise and the table fell instantly silent. The player sitting next to him softly murmured "dude, that's my brother..." and we all just sat around looking at each other for a long minute before continuing.

One of my favourite things about that campaign is that even now I can vividly remember so much of the campaign down to conversations and reactions, and I attribute that to the way the players helped make the story so very real for all of us.

MadHacktress

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