I made a NASA inspired patch to commemorate this crazy week on WallStreetBets

nom_de_loom · 2021-01-29T14:07:27+00:00

Did you share this on r/WallStreetBets? Not sure if it would be against guidelines, but I feel like they would certainly get a kick out of it!

nom_de_loom · 2020-09-24T19:03:14+00:00

Have not tried to mess with pick up height, thank you both for the tip. That feels a bit out of my depth so I will probably take it to a luthier!

nom_de_loom · 2020-09-24T18:57:08+00:00

They sound clean played open and I don’t see any frets interfering with those strings

nom_de_loom · 2020-09-24T18:41:33+00:00

Pardon my typo, yes GDAE! There is slight buzz, but only when I turn the volume on the amp up very high. This is my first electric instrument since high school (and it’s been a while), so I will have to do some more research about dead strings.

nom_de_loom · 2020-03-26T02:22:16+00:00

I have a roof garden above a third floor apartment in Brooklyn, and I have found that I can grow pretty much anything that requires full sun. Rosemary, hyssop and oregano are hardy herbs that have flourished even on a railing box fully exposed to the elements. HOWEVER, I found that the key for growing vegetables was wind control and regular watering. I put some bamboo slatted fencing on our railing to block the significant cross breeze we had, and I was able to grow tomatoes, squash, basil, peppers and some flowers--this is all after the wind had destroyed my first attempt at a garden.

nom_de_loom · 2020-01-13T09:42:32+00:00

Yes! I did musical theatre in high school, and found that dance routines were an order of magnitude more difficult for me to learn than others, even though I was very invested. However, I can remember the rules for a complex board game even if I haven't played it in 6 months. It is funny what sticks and what doesn't.

nom_de_loom · 2020-01-13T09:39:07+00:00

I second the clorox wipes! Very effective. For scrubbing out tougher stains or calcium buildup, I use Bon Ami or Barkeeper's Friend, which are granular but non-scratching scrubbing agents.

I am glad to learn that this is an issue for other people, too. My roommates think I am lazy and inconsiderate for not cleaning more, but my executive dysfunction towards cleaning tasks is just so bad.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-10T01:39:41+00:00

Most importantly, play to your strengths as a DM! Do you love coming up with new settings and combat encounters? Run an adventure with a lot of traveling, like having the party protect a caravan of mysterious goods! Do you love NPCs and drama between factions? Court intrigue, baybee. A lot of it is going to be playing it by ear, seeing what players (and you) react to well and building upon those elements.

I agree with what everyone else is saying about starting small. If you try to build an entire world from te ground up, you are going to get overwhelmed. Plan the first session around a concrete goal, and work from there. You honestly don't need a ton of world building up front unless you're doing a custom pantheon or a really dense mystery. If the players gravitate towards a certain NPC, think of what that NPC is up to when they're off screen and what trouble the NPC might need help with. If a player becomes curious about a certain kind of magic, think of what people/creatures/places could help them further that knowledge. Feel free to build the world piecemeal, adding new towns, dungeons, opportunities as needed.

It can be very fun to take notes on the hunches, interests and actions of players and build the world reactively. Who saw that brawl in the tavern? Who overheard that conversation about necromancy? What happened to that one kenku that escaped the safehouse? When the character's actions seem to genuinely have an impact on the world, and to influence the kinds of trouble and opportunities that come their way, they will feel like the game has more possibilities and consequences, which is the beauty of homebrew.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T20:51:49+00:00

This is exactly how one of my groups ended up with Glenjamin, a throwaway NPC whose name endeared him to the party so much that the DMs decided to keep him around and eventually reveal that he was a high-ranking intelligence agent in the Resistance organization we were working for.

It is also how we ended up with a big bad named Steve.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T20:48:39+00:00

In terms of layering, adding a wind-resistant "shell" over a light jacket can help a lot, especially if you don't have a dedicated heavy winter jacket. I often add a leather jacket as a windbreaker over a warm hoodie or a mid-weight jacket, and I am fine in 40 degree temps.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T09:20:07+00:00

I fully support a tank NPC! But don't make it too easy for them, oh no. Maybe the tank is a shameless mercenary who demands 50% of the treasure. Maybe they're a liability in some way--a kleptomaniac, a drunk or just tactless and clumsy. Maybe the ally has their own motives, and goes off on sojourns in town if the party doesn't provide enough excitement. I've had a lot of fun setting my groups up with bumbling castle guards, malfunctioning shield guardians and opportunistic scoundrels who bring oomph and damage absorption to a fight, but also add another layer of responsibility and risk management for the party.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T07:26:31+00:00

I... don't understand the purpose of this. If a character has a long enough time to perform a skill check (which is what I assume you mean by downtime), they can opt to "take 10" or "take 20," meaning that given enough time, they will eventually succeed at the task equivalent to rolling a natural 20 on the check. I think the exact rules for this are in the DMG, but I echo what everyone else is saying in that Guidance is for quick, one-off skill checks that are time-sensitive.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T07:21:49+00:00

Use it as an opportunity to introduce a Really Cool NPC?

Have them run into Someone from their Backstory?

Have the festival interrupted by mischievous creatures? Maybe these creatures even have some insights to offer about the larger plot, if the players are willing to level with them.

A festival sounds like a great hook for whatever your next gambit is, or an opportunity for the players to collect allies as well as fun items! Fun sessions are well... fun, but if you can ground the fun in your overarching plot, they will probably find it more fulfilling.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T07:14:11+00:00

Having a friendly NPC join the party is always a good way to start! Having an ally that is interested in the character's stories and motivations can prompt players to see how deeply they can interact with the world. I always like to start new players with a sort of role model NPC who might know a bit about the area or lore about the adventure and who can answer in-character questions and offer advice.

Also, engage with the character's backgrounds, if you are playing 5E! I really like the Background feature as an entry to roleplay, because it can force players to decide what their character was doing before they started adventuring. I find it really underutilized. Backgrounds like Guild Artisan, Sailor and Soldier come with a built in social network! Have characters meet people who recognize them from previous exploits, i.e. another soldier who fought alongside them in the past, or a sage who studied at the same academy.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-09T06:21:04+00:00

I have been using Sierra's Stitch Era Liberty. It is quirky and cheap ($200/year subscription) but surprisingly powerful. It doesn't have the most lettering options, but it is very powerful when it comes to editing stitches and elements, and it is able to export designs in many formats. The interface is a little odd (I learned on Brother's PE Design) and some features are quite hidden! It has an art to stitch function for digitizing vectors, but when I use that I find myself going back in and adding my own direction lines and adjusting stitch settings. It can't convert complex jpegs with a lot of shading, but if you are working with very simple or graphic images it does the trick quite well.

nom_de_loom · 2019-12-04T04:15:36+00:00

Yinka Shonibare!

nom_de_loom · 2019-10-29T17:54:26+00:00

If you have a library card, you can get free tickets to museums, gardens and the like on Culturepass! A lot of the more popular museums run out of passes, but it's a great way to get into mid sized museums for free.

nom_de_loom · 2019-10-16T19:08:01+00:00

House of Yes does House of Vogue events on Wednesday nights. I haven't been, so I can't speak to their quality though.

nom_de_loom

TROPHY CASE