#opera squad

[operas-phantom]

Erik nodded and leaned to see what they were looking at. “Oh, I remember that one. It was a triumph. I’m very proud of it still. I think it was the first time Meg Giry and Christine Daae performed in the ballet..” he flipped a page. “Oh! And that one was very hard to write. I kept struggling with the instrumental and nearly banged my head against the organ—“

“…Erik, I wanted you to meet some friends of mine..” She’s gonna regret this…

@ask-the-chaos-choir

“More of them?” Erik chuckled, slightly bemused. “Okay then, who are they?”

[devil-takethe-hindmost]

today is for THEM!!!

[everythingisahoax]

Claudia Schiffer photographed by Arthur Elgort for Valentino, 1994.

[operas-phantom]

”I could never forget. I think part of me died when you took my hand.”

Look at your face in the mirror... I am there inside

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

Meeting of Team Avatars

Krew (Korra), Gaang (Aang), Kompany (Kyoshi), Yircle (Yangchen), and Krowd (Kuruk).

Yangchen: *looking at Krew, Gaang, Kompany* Oh my god.... My prayers didn't work. Kyoshi: What? Yangchen: Especially you. You're the worst offender! Kyoshi: What???? Yangchen: Don't worry about it.

Krew: Omg it's the Gaang! Oh you guys are LEGENDARY! Gaang: This is amazing! So everything has been going well since we left you in charge? Krew: Wouldn't say "well" but we're doing what we can.... Gaang: I get it, totally! Yircle: So theses are the famous "team Avatars?" Should we even be called one? We're more like a spy group. Kompany: That. Is. So. COOL! W-we also do jobs too! Breaking and entering and other sabotage! Gaang: And who are you guys? Kompany: We're the Flying Opera Company (plus old people allies). We're Kyoshi's team. Krew: No WAY! I always thought Kyoshi would just have a mini army of Kyoshi Warriors! Kompany: A what of what now? Krowd: Haha! So you're who takes over after us? Well nice to meet you-wait why does your firebender have Hei-Ran's face. Rangi: God....DAMN it..... Krowd: What was that? Rangi/Kompany: I said stay THE FUCK away from us. Krowd: ????? O_O Huh?

Kyoshi: This is going to be a disaster.

[theresattrpgforthat]

The Galaxy Squad Campaign.

Back in September, I posted what I hoped to be the first part of a series in which I blogged about a multiple-game campaign called The Galaxy Squad: a series of inter-connected games all taking place in the same galaxy. The continuous blogging about this series didn’t happen, but the games certainly did! So I’m going to re-cap that series now.

I’ve already talked about our Last Fleet series, so I won’t repeat myself too much, but the biggest piece of that series that we carried forward was the ending: the blowing up of the technology that enabled Faster-Than-Light travel, so as to set up the scene for Starforged. (Last Fleet play-kit)

Starforged was not a game that I ran, or managed to participate in; this series began a trend where I and another GM handed the reins to each-other every month to give both of us a chance to tackle games that were on our to-play list. We also had a higher rate of sign-ups overall for Galaxy Squad, possibly because Monster Squad ended up being a pretty big hit.

Star-Forged can be played with or without a GM, and presents the characters with Vows that they are expected to work towards to try and complete. In Star-Forged, much of the new galaxy that our players fled to was built, because this game has very good tables for setting generation. The group generated a number of planets with different power-structures, resources and danger levels, and established a number of factions with various shady goals. This included a large corporation that was funding a lot of Forge-Spawn research, as well as a cult called the Oracles of Larissa, which dealt quite a bit with the strange space-magic that certain individuals were able to wield. (Stargazer journaling app)

One of the most important contributions from the Star-Forged game involved the creation of Celadon, a wild and lush planet teeming with dangerous life. The players landed on the planet, took one look, and took off again, which meant that it was perfect for the next game in our line-up: Moth-Light.

For Moth-Light, we started with the premise that our characters would be the descendants of one of the ships from Last Fleet, crashed into a planet and reverting back to a pre-space-flight level of technology out of necessity. This is because Celadon (called Beacon by its inhabitants) was populated by gigantic, dangerous insects called Moths. We pushed the timeline forward to a point where our players could not remember how they ended up on this planet, and then put them in a precarious situation where their current settlements were in danger. The solution: to search for another, safer place to call home.

In more abstract terms, this means that we used the Promise Pact from Moth-Light, which takes plenty of inspiration from media such as Legend of Korra, Farscape, Horizon: Zero Dawn and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Moth-Light’s story and tone can vary drastically, depending on the kind of story we want to tell. When creating this game, I briefly entertained the possibility of playing Scavengers, which would be much grittier and harsher, but the group and story seemed to fit the Promise pact better.

Moth-Light is Forged-in-the-Dark and is a phenomenal game. While it’s FitD, the Pacts provided to the group do a lot to help you determine what kind of concept and tone you’re playing in. The typical action ratings and Stress mechanics are also re-worked in a really interesting way, making them slightly modular so that they can change to reflect the Pact you are working with. I really enjoy the prompts left on character sheets that give you just enough information to start brainstorming what these pieces mean exactly for your character. The designer also has a fantastic set of Google-Sheet play-kits that put my character sheets to shame. You need to check this game out.

After Moth-Light, our timeline had a little bit of a stop-and-start. One of the games we were originally planning to include in the lineup didn’t turn out to be easily translatable to our method of play, so we pivoted to another game intstead: Wetrunner. Wetrunner is a FATE - powered game that takes place in an oceanic cyperpunk future, and we weren’t sure where it would fit in our current galaxy.

We decided to put it into the timeline before Last Fleet, on one of the planets that was eventually destroyed by a robot uprising. There, we decided that at one point in this planet’s history, climate change and decreasing oceanic wildlife led to a great profit for folks who managed to steal aquatic life from power-hungry billionaires.

In other words, we were a diver-themed Leverage crew stealing fish from Eelon Mollusc.

This is where our Squad took a turn for the wacky. We were donning secret identities, wrestling with former connections to the Calamari mafia, and coming up with elaborate Seahorse-racing schemes to lure in our marks. It was hilarious, it was goofy, and it was a great tone-shift from our previous drama-heavy games. (Wetrunnner play-kit)

Next up: Scum & Villainy. This is where a lot of the set-up in Starforged really did us a favor. We had a lot folks at this point who were excited about Scum & Villainy, so we ended up running two games on two different days of the week. Both games were set up as bounty-hunting crews on the Cerberus, for reasons that I’ll mention later.

We started by recalling the factions we had created in Starforged and mapping them according to theme and tier. I also ported over some of the planets that had been created in Starforged, and started them out in ways that made sense, giving them levels in Weird, Crime, Wealth and Tech. Then the players created characters, and we added more details to the world based on their interests. (Scum & Villain play-kit)

For group A, this led to an investigation into Obsidian Inc, the shady company introduced in Starforged, where Forge-Spawn research invited plenty of cult-related trade and imperial intrigue. We had one player with a robot character continuing the theme of betrayal, turning on the group in the last scene, leaving us with an open-ended ending hinting towards a future rivalry between her and the rest of the crew.

For group B, we set out on an investigation of a racing circuit that was being fixed against the organizer’s will, with strange artifacts and a very humorous rivalry between the crew’s pilot and an NPC called Flick.

As a game, Scum & Villainy elicited mixed reactions. Some folks really loved the chances to experience a number of dramatic moments and heavy role-play, especially during downtime. Others found the harsh consequences from mixed successes to be a bit jarring, especially since Moth-Light, which uses the same bones, feels much more forgiving. Scum & Villainy is definitely a much closer hack of Blades in the Dark, which is meant to be pretty brutal in dishing out harm and consequences. I know that as a GM, I was expecting the Gambit mechanic to carry much more of the weight than it actually did, and if I run this game in the future, I’ll want to have a much more in-depth talk with my players about how harsh we want the consequences to be.

Last, but certainly not least, is A Complicated Profession. This is a game about bounty hunters experiencing a career change into cruise ship employees - and this is why we all played as bounty hunters in the previous games. This was a chance for anyone to carry forward a character they had already created into a new setting, and two players did exactly that. Hatchet, our Mystic, took up the mantle of the ship’s janitor, and Kalo, our former pilot, took up the role of the ship’s bouncer. (A Complicated Profession play-kit)

Once again, we were provided with a much-needed change in tone. A Complicated Profession has so much room for light-hearted comedy, and we took it and ran. Our ship is in a weekend-at-Bernie’s situation, with a captain that is totally out of commission but we need to maintain the facade that he’s still alive in order to make sure we can still get paid. We had occasional run-ins with junk pirates, organized birthday parties for alien teenagers, and solved many a problem with a food processor.

A Complicated Profession is another game that can be run without a GM, although in this case we still had one person take the role of a facilitator because a) we had too many people show interest and b) not everyone had access to the book. As you play, characters will slowly let go of pieces of their old lives, and pick up new skills to help them with their new job, including choosing a new name at the end. I have laughed so many times while playing this game and I’m so happy that this is how we decided to tie up the Galaxy Squad series.

After this my friends and I are re-organizing how we play our games, so we might not have a thematic timeline in the same way we did for Monster Squad or Galaxy Squad. But these experiences have taught me some really valuable lessons, the primary one of which is this:

Choosing games to play based on a theme will sometimes point you towards games that you may not have otherwise thought to pick up. Those games may end up being something that you absolutely love. In this case, I was very excited to run Scum & Villainy, but it ended up being the biggest let-down on the list. Meanwhile, I had never heard of A Complicated Profession before my co-GM introduced me to it, and it is now going at the top of my list of recommendations.

If you are in a game group and you have access to a number of different games between you and your friends, taking turns to try out the stuff you are all interested in will introduce you to so many games, and while not everything will be a hit, you’ll learn a lot about what you like, and you may find your next favourite game. So try stuff!!

[stormcallart]

new obsession unlocked: Baldurs Gate 3

[2voodoo4u2b]

[operas-phantom]

Opera House MVP Awards— #1

In my attempt to make our old opera house a community— yes, even for loathsome gargoyles who live in the walls —I have introduced a new event, wherein the best singers, dancers, costumers, etc, are honored here on my own Tumblr for their contribution to the art, alongside an official picture taken of them in order to commemorate their glory. If you want this award, remember to keep Box 5 empty and clean, to dance more than you gossip, to sing more than you shriek. My gaze throughout the opera house will one day land on you then.

The #4 award, for a cut above the rest, is the easiest award to get, but the person who won it is not easy to come by. Meg Giry not only is her mother’s daughter, but a talented dancer and loyal friend to my dear Christine, who rounds out the corps and keeps the other ballerinas in check, much like her mother before her.

Meg Giry— A Cut Above the Rest

The #3 award, or third most excellent, is for one who is an engaging opera star in many qualities who keeps the audience engaged. While this person may not be considered the best, she is an incredible dancer and hard worker who deserves more leading roles. Nour Mebarki is incredibly graceful, even during a prank war or while standing on her head. She has a Tumblr too, so she’ll see this post after I announce the winners in-person. @daydreamingofafairytale

Nour Mebarki— Third Most Excellent

The #2 award, one of the hardest ones to achieve, nearly went to a young prop master at my opera house called Dennis Garnier (who is being recognized now for his contributions despite not ultimately winning the award; congratulations, Monsieur, you are a runner-up), but the ange ambassadeur award instead finds itself in the hands of Maggie Carnley, both a singer and dancer with great charm and appeal. When she overcomes her nervousness, Maggie can do just about anything. She has a Tumblr too, so she’ll see this post after I announce the winners in-person. @maggiemelodies09

Maggie Carnley— Ange Ambassaduer or Ambassador of the Angels

The #1 award was actually a tough choice for me to make. I know that some people weren’t very shocked by who got this award, but to tell the truth, there were several others I had my eye on for this as well, who I hope to one day recognize too. But the winner of the la belle muse award is a well-rounded dancer, singer, and forgiving prima donna of opera, Christine Daae. Everyone, go congratulate my dear Christine— @angeliquedaae is where she is found when she is not singing, dancing, or being admittedly silly.

Christine Daae- La Belle Muse or Muse of Beauty

Thank you all for your cooperation in letting me have more creative control over the opera house (I don’t think we’re fully rid of Firmin and André— they haven’t moved out yet, though I could care less). And my dear award winners get not only trophies of their accomplishments but most importantly bragging rights, and a place in opera history as the first winners of these awards.

Your humblest of opera ghosts,

E., the Phantom

[imsparky2002]

Ghoul Squad Reboot: Mylenetasma

Mylene Haprele - Phantom of the Opera

Age - 14

Species - Phantom

Appearance - Short, plus-sized, rainbow dreadlocks, light brown skin, moderate gamboge eyes and pale magenta lips, moderate gamboge eyes, left side of face is scarred and burned which she had since birth

Attire - Black tuxedo, black pants, long black opera cape, white bowtie, black crooked fedora, white gloves, white silk shirt, black boots, rose on her lapel, white porcelain half-mask on left-side of face.

Likes - Acting, protecting the theatre, seeing the students of DuPont succeed, classic works of theatre, rowing the gondola, composing musical pieces, singing, brooding and being dramatic with Juleka, Ivan, her closest friend Jesse

Dislikes - People being selfish, disrespecting her family, bullies, ghost hunters, being seen as evil or scary by nice students, having to scare innocent people, senseless violence, not casting actors based on talent, Vaccuum cleaners, phantoms who use their powers for evil.

FrankenPet - Mullo the Franken Mouse

A lovely young phantom raised in the old Parisian Opera House by her loving parents, Mylene is a girl with a shy demeanor but a passion for performing.

The thespian can ham it up with the best of them, and knows all the tricks of the trade when it comes to ghostly magic and intimidation through theatricality.

The great love of her life is the young Kong, Ivan, who with her beautiful singing, she is able to soothe when he becomes angry enough to assume his massive gorilla form. The two are very affectionate with one another.

The ghost has loads of different secret passageways and trapdoors that she uses to lead people to safety from Akuma attacks. Just listen for the sound of her pipe organ, and you'll be safe.

She adores all her friends, but is especially close to her foster brother Jesse. Mess with him, and you’ll be in for a world of ghostly hurt

Quotes

Girls! Did one of you hide my mask? I need it to complete my dramatic and spooky appearance!

It’s a good thing I am not bound by the laws of gravity. Otherwise I wouldn’t be able to reach the top shelf!

Mwahahaha! Beware the Phantom of the Opera! *Giggling before giving a shy smile* See? I can be scary when I want to.

No need to fear, my fellow thespians of DuPont. The Phantom shall guide you once again.

(Humming a soft song) It’s okay, Ivan, everything is fine. You will never be a beast or frightening to me.

The Phantom of the Opera is there, inside your mind.... so she can give you a pep talk! As always thanks to Weeby for the help. @artzychic27 @msweebyness @nerd-chocolate

[operas-phantom]

Erik’s eyes gleamed. “I do. I’ve picked up techniques from reading books and listening in on the opera singers. Why? What do you want to know?” He leaned forward, now invested.

She wasn’t exactly sure how she got beneath the opera house. All she knew was she was walking down some secret passageway that she found while exploring the opera house, and she ended up down here. What better than to explore? I mean, it certainly seemed like nobody was here.

@operas-phantom

[monowritestoomuch]

Ultimate Fandom Showdown Round 1: Group 22

[atatakawater]

[everythingisahoax]

Claudia Schiffer for Versace Atelier Spring 1995

[exasperatedoctopus]

Have a crackpot theory: the people who enjoy most of the new police procedurals that have been coming out recently just secretly wanna watch soap operas but don’t have the Guts

[probablygayattorneys]

I mean, I knew Sycamore was Descole. I was prepared for that. I was NOT prepared for his little quick change and Juliana, who’s watching me play, saying in the most unimpressed tone. “Oh, God. This Phantom of the Opera looking motherfuker.”