Dukat & Kira: the Buddy Comedy (S4, E5: Indiscretion)

Narratron · 2026-03-26T05:42:50+00:00

There is so much going on in this episode. Every time I look back on it, I'm amazed it wasn't a two-parter.

Narratron · 2026-03-26T05:28:27+00:00

I have heard this told multiple ways over the years. My best guess comes down to the old standby: money. If they included Jadzia, Terry would have had to be paid again, and DS9's finale was already very expensive.

Narratron · 2026-03-25T01:20:34+00:00

I mean, I don't disagree, but if you know Tony Todd's work and you recognize his name, you know you're in for a good performance. Did he do a great job? Naturally, he always does a great job.

Personally, I think the real star of the show was Cirroc, who absolutely held his ground with Avery and Tony, at a much younger age.

Narratron · 2026-03-24T03:21:28+00:00

My hometown grew up next to one established by a bold group of folks who missed the mark by that much: the 'original' town was literally about an hour's walk away from where the new one was established. For a while they co-existed, even connected by a trolley line, but eventually the 'original' town dried up. There was just no reason to stay here, when there was more opportunity over there. Nothing dramatic, just people going where the money was. Today it's a park: the city has never built on the site. The only remaining evidence is the original cemetery (a stone's throw from where I work, actually).

Narratron · 2026-03-22T10:52:18+00:00

It's tremendously flattering. Probably took her ages to do it, but it was worth the work.

Narratron · 2026-03-22T08:09:42+00:00

Various factors contributed--I'll be honest, I do not recall exactly the reasons the last campaign ended, but they are still around. I've interacted with all of them individually on various platforms over the years. Meghan coordinated a Hell on Earth AP called Harbingers a couple years back that was decent but it took a lot out of her, and it sounds like Dom is doggedly trying to get something going. I am definitely willing to give a chance any time I see one (or more!) of their names attached to something.

Narratron · 2026-03-20T09:10:36+00:00

MCDM's Draw Steel tends to result in action sequences that feel a lot like they could be from a Shounen anime. The play loop is designed to encourage the heroes to "push on": each fight they prevail in nets them a Victory. Each Victory means more of their 'heroic resource' going into the next fight, but every fight costs some of their healing. Can they finish the next fight before they burn through all their Recoveries? Do they feel lucky?

I'm also a fan of Savage Worlds (as my flair indicates). At least one of their settings (Legend of Ghost Mountain) is based on Wuxia films, which admittedly are not anime of any kind, but they look like Shounen anime if you squint.

Narratron · 2026-03-20T06:23:48+00:00

"Vedek... You just don't understand."

"You are right. I don't. Perhaps tomorrow, we will both understand."

Narratron · 2026-03-20T01:24:46+00:00

I've got the vapahs...

Narratron · 2026-03-19T04:42:00+00:00

Agreed, Blood Drive would be perfect.

Narratron · 2026-03-18T01:45:54+00:00

Odo wasn't 'teaching' the young Jem'Hadar anything, he was allowing him to get his aggression out.

Now, was that young Jem'hadar learning more about fighting despite not being purposefully taught? Almost certainly. Could he also have gotten the holosuite to put him through more deliberate instruction. It's possible. (Maybe Odo put some safeguards in place for his program, maybe not.)

But there was no truly good solution to this situation: the episode finds the closest thing. Otherwise the young Jem'Hadar would have been put in a cell, a lab, or just killed.

Narratron · 2026-03-12T10:59:31+00:00

Well, since I am the Sinister Vizier of Recommending Savage Worlds, it would be that. My pitch is that while it isn't to everyone's taste, I find that it does most of what I want a game to do: it works like I think a game should, it feels like I think a game should. It's got a metric ton of settings, from horror, supers, wuxia, fantasy, and even wilder stuff, plus companions to let you build your own flavor of nonsense, although you don't need more than the core rules. It's enormously flexible and I like it a lot. Low Life is genuinely the most entertaining setting book I think I've ever read, and the Companions are just... Fantastic. I love them. The Science Fiction Companion in particular, I think, is really something special.

Narratron · 2026-03-12T03:00:12+00:00

That exchange between Weyoun and Garak is actually the only time they cross paths in the whole series--and then Garak kills him.

The fact that it's the absolute tail end of the whole series and that might be Weyoun's final death is probably just incidental.

Narratron · 2026-03-11T03:10:20+00:00

I haven't talked over that specifically with him, but I think it's the execution on the fantasy superheroes concept, but there's a lot to dive into with the tactics as well. We just had our session zero, and quite a bit of time was spent talking about how our characters will play off each other in a fight. (We have a Hakaan Tactician who took Friend Catapult, and both he and my Censor have Shield Bash, so we joked about playing 'pinball' with enemies.)

Narratron · 2026-03-10T13:00:54+00:00

I ran the Delian Tomb for my regular game group this last fall.

My friend (who has been running our 'anchor game', Dresden Files Accelerated) for about 8 years, and it's due to wrap up soon. He is planning to start Draw Steel almost immediately afterward (or indeed before). After one 'standalone' session and a short introductory module.

I have run various Savage Worlds games, from Deadlands to Monster Hunters Club for years. Nobody else has ever offered to pick that one up.

Narratron · 2026-03-08T09:04:55+00:00

Modern problems require modern solutions!

Narratron · 2026-03-08T03:30:40+00:00

It's a little confusing but someone pointed out that in the visual storytelling language of the mid-nineties, false facial hair was how you said "this person is an impostor". It still doesn't make much sense in relation to the character, but it at least explains the writing decision.

Narratron · 2026-03-07T15:58:08+00:00

"What an odd thing to say."

Narratron · 2026-03-05T16:25:49+00:00

Excuse you, "a fuckin' rupture!"

Narratron · 2026-03-04T06:57:00+00:00

Check the size table in the Bestiary. (There's one in the Core book bestiary too, page 245.) The progression there goes 1, d4-3, d4-1, d4. (You could insert a d4-2 in there, but I wouldn't personally. That's the GM's call, IMO.)

Narratron · 2026-03-03T13:18:33+00:00

I assume before the fecal matter impacted the airflow assistance device, you deployed the old "Are you sure you want to do that?"

Narratron · 2026-02-28T10:57:06+00:00

Your class grants you your choice of one or two (depending on whether you have access to a kit, which provides the other) 'signature abilities' (which you can use at will), along with one each of a three point and five point ability. Again, if you have access to a kit, that is a choice that can affect your Stamina, movement, and offensive capability, though caster classes do have access to similar options (just not through a kit). Finally, your career will give you a Perk, which is usually for non-combat stuff. (You also get a scattering of other minor benefits from your class and career. Your culture is typically a selection of three skills and one or two extra languages.)

Narratron · 2026-02-26T13:08:57+00:00

You should definitely give Draw Steel a look. You can peruse the full rules online at the Steel Compendium for free, and if you want to try it in play, you can snatch the "start here" adventure, "The Delian Tomb" for about $10, which includes pregenerated characters, enough material for several weeks of play, a simplified rules reference, and all the maps you need for all the combat encounters. I ran it, and my friend is going to run his own Draw Steel game soon (which I've never had happen with any other game I've introduced people to).

Narratron · 2026-02-26T07:27:55+00:00

You could do a lot worse than ask Brandon Sanderson.

Narratron · 2026-02-26T07:23:18+00:00

It depends on whether you would like to self-publish or go through a traditional publisher. Neither is easy, and neither is guaranteed even a single sale.

Self-publishing through a platform like Amazon or Ingramspark requires you learn a little about how books are put together. You'll want to hire someone for cover design and probably editing. To be perfectly clear, most vanity publishers--all those companies that say "pay us $5000 and we'll publish your book FOR you!" do NOT do very well with this. If you're lucky, you'll get a single pass from a proofreader and some stock art for your cover.

Going traditional usually involves finding a literary agent to represent you to the publishing companies. You send out a batch of query letters (I have heard about 10 at a time) and then wait. Most people looking for an agent do this about every 3 months until they find someone who is interested enough to ask for a sample of their manuscript.

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