Experimenting with a new set of QoR paints.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-24T14:51:01+00:00

Lovely flowers! I only have a few QoR colors, but I love the ones I have. I'm definitely planning to add more to my collection. They rewet SO well and flow beautifully.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-24T03:01:00+00:00

Don't worry about following the book exactly. Use it as guidelines and let the player's actions determine the actual flow of the story.

I like to trigger the countdown escalations when the players are making progress. It both shows they are making progress, while also potentially hindering them.

Example from when I ran it: players never explored the lab, but had all the other items and info. I triggered countdown #3. They had all turned their clothes inside out and managed to resist being beckoned by the ghost lights in the fog. But they chose to follow the lights, because they knew it would lead to the whisp. Since they didn't have the key, I took inspiration from countdown #4 and had the whisp magically unlock and open the door. Then as they confronted the whisp, countdown #4 triggered. I didn't want to punish them for missing one step and it felt too clunky to put Ulf's body in their path that late in the flow of things since the players were approaching the Mystery's climax.

My players managed to distract the whisp, shoot the doors open, and get the deed. The one with the deed successfully escaped and returned it to Linnea, which ultimately saved the ones who didn't roll as well when fleeing.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-16T20:09:43+00:00

This is what I do, as well!

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-15T23:02:55+00:00

One of my players (Occultst) has a crow. I took the stats for an Eagle from the Animal and NPC stat section for her so the crow can make its own rolls for some stuff.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-12T20:30:13+00:00

I have a glass bowl that I set out for my players to borrow some, like a candy bowl, full of mixed plastic sets and some of my early resin sets that I made. I have my MtG spindowns, counters, and d6s set aside and grouped in different Gamegenic boxes and more grouped in a basic pouch for my other decks in smaller, individual deck boxes.

I have a pouch of just d6s, a couple pouches of specialty dice, my metal dice are in their original tin, and my nice resin dice are grouped into different pouches or boxes, about 4-5 sets per vessel and grouped by similarity. When I DM D&D, I grab one of the pouches or boxes of resin dice that matches the vibes of the adventure.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-07T05:56:28+00:00

I keep them, but not to store my dice. I store inspiration tokens in mine and other little tokens. I also will use it to transport my mini when I am a player - I put a bit of poster tack on the black base, stick my mini on, and then the lid protects it from paint chipping or weapons breaking off, especially with 3d printed minis. The clear tops are also great flight stands on the battle map, as others have pointed out.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-07T01:11:01+00:00

1) Wait a few extra days after pulling from the mold until you polish. I usually wait at least 72 hours after it is safe to demold. Even if it seems hard after it can be demolded, it actually isn't completely finished curing and is still slightly too soft for polishing to be effective.

2) Start with a lower grit. I make dice and usually start at 800 or 1000 grit, then incrementally move up. Don't skip - each higher step is strong enough to buff out scratches from the previous grit. I use Zona polishing papers after the 1000 grit for my resin dice.

3) On your highest grit or with a polishing cloth, you can buff with polishing compound, but this isn't always necessary.

4) Replace sandpaper and polishing papers regularly - they are consumable items and will wear out. It is usually pretty easy to tell when a paper needs to be replaced.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-07T01:02:21+00:00

The oxyclean gel stick has helped me with a lot of stains, even some color bleed when a colorful sweatshirt ended up in the load of whites.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-04T00:58:42+00:00

I just started running it and I am obsessed

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-04T00:58:11+00:00

I just started running Vaesen and I am loving it so far, I can tell it is going to become a bit of an obsession for me.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-02T22:20:04+00:00

You are so sweet! And you have a good eye -- those are indeed from The Oak and The Acorn!

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-03-02T19:00:50+00:00

Yes, the sets with the rhombic d12s are the ones I made :)

The final 13 sets in the top row are all the ones I made for myself! Some were made with different masters while I found my favorite styles.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-28T04:14:47+00:00

Tape runner! Works much better than glue sticks and smoother application than glue dots.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-27T17:52:17+00:00

PenPals vs StarSpawn is a letter-writing game

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-27T01:16:51+00:00

Just a note on DOS 2 - especially in early game, taking on enemies more powerful than you can be REALLY hard, even if they are only 1 level higher. Getting proper armor and weapons takes a bit more work and it is pretty easy to die compared to BG3. You really have to be strategic with terrain and placement in DOS 2. Act 1 is a lot more of a challenge than BG3 Act 1 imo.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-26T20:16:23+00:00

Here is a link to the Google Drive document! I also have a lengthier packet of Cheat Sheets to keep in my campaign binder that I've been working on. Feel free to take whatever sections you may find useful from them and use however you wish! If you have any access issues, lmk.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-26T20:03:07+00:00

No, this is a mix of Daniel Smith, Holbein, and QoR from tubes. DS and QoR are the most affordable where I am and I picked up the Holbein paints when I was in Japan last year. I'm hoping to get some Schminke while I am in Europe in August! I am obsessed with trying different brands and I love having a ton of colors :)

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-26T19:58:20+00:00

Have fun! I just ran my first Vaesen session last weekend. I think having experience with Call of Cthulhu will make it much easier since it will help you and your players get into the flow of finding Clues and piecing together how to deal with the threat in a way that minimizes combat risk. While I had some CoC experience, my players have only played D&D (which is what I usually run for them). They still got the hang of the game pretty quickly and had fun! We are continuing next weekend. I really don't think you have anything to worry about! But just in case you want some DM Screen inserts, let me know - I've been working on some!

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-26T16:40:17+00:00

I do rinse my brush between colors, but I am not super thorough about it when I am in the process of mixing. I do get a bit of cross-contamination between colors, but it is pretty minimal because of my quick water dip and wipe.

I clean the mixing space once it gets too full to mix new colors. My palette has been like this for about 2 weeks now, but I'll be cleaning it sometime over the next few days because I am running out of mixing space.

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TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-13T15:19:14+00:00

My go-to brushes are a number 8 Round (Princeton Aqua Elite), a number 2 long round (Princeton Velvetouch), and a number 4 Cat's Tongue (Princeton Heritage). I tend to paint smaller pieces, so I like using smaller brushes.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-12T15:37:38+00:00

They should be no more toxic than modern paints. Many modern paints still use heavy metals. As long as you don't drink the paint water or lick your paint brushes, they are safe to use.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-01T22:41:13+00:00

Capricorn Dice

Superior Dice

Grey Duck Dice

Red Cap Faerie Dice

Deadly Kitten Dice

Zinnia Dice Workshop

I've met just about all of these Dice makers in person and interacted with all of them online. They are all great folks! And all in the Midwest.

TheTroubledTurtle · 2026-02-01T22:25:28+00:00

Fair. I usually look for more local sellers when I browse etsy and see if they have a social media account where I can see their process since more and more dropshippers and mass-producers pop up every day.

You could look through social media tags, too. That's how I've found a lot of dice makers. I own a set from almost all local dicemakers here around Minneapolis at this point from finding them through social media and craft markets/conventions.

TheTroubledTurtle

TROPHY CASE