Kindle Books – TBR

Posted in Reading/Books by

I have two Kindles. One is my mom’s older version which she didn’t use anymore, so she gave it to me. The other is my husband’s and he gave it to me because he wasn’t using it. In general, I do prefer reading a physical book versus a Kindle, however, whenever I travel, I always bring my Kindle. I hate carrying around a book that I already finished and a Kindle is perfect to take on a flight. I recently turned on Kindle and wanted to share a few books that I have yet to read on my Kindle.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

[Image is a half figure of a woman. She's wearing a gothic black dress with feathers and scales. She has tattoos on her arm. The book cover says "She Stole a Life Now She Must Pay With Her Heart". The background is a solid red background]

I feel like the book community is going to come for me when I say that I have never read A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. I hear nothing but good things about this book series. This is probably going to be my top priority read for the books that I have on my Kindle.

I don’t know much about this book, but the protagonist, Feyre, kills someone and then is transported to a magical world. This seems like an interesting premise.

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

[Image is an orange background with bookshelves and lab equipment. Two people are kissing. One person has an Organic chemistry tattoo on his forearm]

I love Ali Hazelwood. I love that her books are romances with different protagonists in different scientific fields. I feel like Ali Hazelwood has gotten criticism because her books are very similar, yet here I am buying every single book. I do hope that this book feels different enough from The Love Hypothesis.

Elsie Hannaway is a theoretical physicist. She works as a professor and also is a “Fake Girlfriend” where she pretends to be someone’s partner at weddings, dates, etc. She ends up running into Jack Smith, the older brother of a client of hers. Jack sits on the hiring committee at MIT which is where Elsie wants to apply for a job. Jack also may have ruined her mentor’s career. Elsie and Jack are forced to work together and find that maybe they were both wrong about each other.

A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn

[Image is a book cover. It shows a lot of whimsical flowers. There's a crystal ball with a castle. At the bottom right there is a woman in a Victorian dress holding a butterfly net. The book is called A Curious Beginning A Veronica Speedwell Mystery]

One of the book bloggers I follow loves this series. Our reading tastes are very similar, so if she loves it, chances are I will too.

Veronica Speedwell is ambitious as she is planning on traveling around Europe. She is almost kidnapped and then saved by a German baron. The baron offers her shelter and mentions how he may know more about where Veronica came from. Unfortunately, the baron is murdered and Veronica teams up with Stoker, a historian and friend of the baron. Together, they must work together to figure out who killed the baron.

Easy Bake Coven by Liz Schulte

[Image features an animated woman with a red dress. She is performing spells that are shown as purple and green magical strings. The title says Easy Bake Coven.]

With September quickly approaching, I want to add as many Spooky-themed books to read.

Selene Warren is a witch but doesn’t take herself too seriously. That is until her grandmother is viciously attacked. Selene needs to grow up and figure out who attacked her grandmother.

I’m excited to start going through all the books on my Kindle. The one good thing about eBooks is that they don’t take up space on my already overcrowded book shelf.

Halloween Shopping Haul

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It’s safe to say that Fall is here! Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the changing of the leaves, Halloween, apple orchards, carving pumpkins, and decorating our house with Halloween decorations. Me and my husband went on a shopping trip where we bought two inflatables and a cat wearing a witches hat that’s sitting outside on our doorstep. My husband is not thrilled that we put it out in August, but I couldn’t be happier. Unfortunately, my husband didn’t approve of buying a 12-foot-tall Skeleton, but there is always next year.

[Image is a Home Depot cart. In the cart is a huge kitty wearing a sweater with a skeleton and has a witch hat on. There are two Halloween inflatables in the cart as well]
[Image features the Halloween kitty with the witches hat. Next to the kitty is a lantern and a potted plant]

Jedi: Fallen Order – Review

Posted in Gaming by
[Image is a poster for the video game Jedi Fallen Order. It shows Cal Kestis front and center with his allies behind him. There is an Inquisitor with a double bladed light saber behind him]

The first time I played Jedi: Fallen Order was in 2020 during lockdown. I only played through a small portion of the game before moving on to something else. Whenever I wanted to pick up where I left off, I felt like I couldn’t. I kept being reminded of 2020 and I thought more time needed to pass before I could restart Jedi: Fallen Order. It’s interesting how strong memories can tie us to periods of our lives. This year, I was determined to play Jedi: Fallen Order from start to finish as I felt enough time had passed since 2020. I’m so glad that I gave Jedi: Fallen Order another chance. Jedi: Fallen Order is an essential game to Star Wars lore.

Jedi: Fallen Order takes place five years after Order 66 when the Republic turned into the Empire. Former Padawan, Cal Kestis, is in hiding as he knows if he reveals his connection to The Force, he will be hunted. On a job site, Cal saves his friend Prauf by using the force. Inquisitors show up, and kill Prauf, forcing Cal to retreat. Cal is saved by former Jedi Knight, Cere Junda and pilot Greez Dritus and stows away on their ship. Cal learns that there is a Holocron that entails all the children who are force-sensitive. It becomes a race against time to find the list before the Inquisitors do.

Slight Spoilers Below:

I love the time period that Jedi: Fallen Order takes place in. The Inquisitors are a force to be reckoned with. I finished Clone Wars before playing Fallen Order and that helped me love the game even more. I liked seeing Cal go to Dathomir and meet Merrin, one of the only remaining Nightsisters. I love that Merrin became a part of their crew. Additionally, I loved the final battle with Cal and Cere going after the list. I wasn’t expecting Darth Vader to make an appearance as that wasn’t spoiled for me before playing.

I loved the mechanics of the game. I liked how as Cal gained skills, he did get stronger. I would return to some of the previous planets to collect items and some of the enemies I used to fight, now were a lot easier. It was rewarding to see Cal become more skilled and how those skills benefitted him. Also, it’s worth going back to the planets and gathering the collectibles before doing some of the final story sequences. Some of the planets carry additional stims or health packs for BD1 to carry along with “secrets” which can increase Cal’s force meter and health meter. It’s worth it to spend time going back to previous planets to gather these items before proceeding through the story.

One thing about Jedi: Fallen Order that threw me for a loop the first time I played was the difficulty. In my opinion, Jedi: Fallen Order is a difficult game. I played on the “Jedi Knight” difficulty and I found that was challenging. I ended up dropping the difficulty of certain boss fights. I normally avoid games like Dark Souls as I want to enjoy playing video games, not hate them. For those who do like Dark Souls, Jedi: Fallen Order is probably up your alley.

Another challenging portion of the game is traveling around the planets. There were times when I found it difficult to make it back to the Mantis, or the ship that Cal was traveling on. It’s almost like I had to memorize where I had gone in order to make it back. There were times when I felt I was traveling in circles before I was able to make my way back. In one instance, I ended up using a walkthrough simply to navigate back to the Mantis which was a little aggravating.

I’m glad that I gave Jedi: Fallen Order another shot. While it’s a challenging game experience, it’s satisfying to have finished the game. I can’t wait to play Jedi: Survivor, the sequel to Jedi: Fallen Order which was released this year. Jedi: Fallen Order can be played on Xbox Game Pass, Playstation 4 & Playstation 5, and Windows.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

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[mage is a book cover. It shows a whiteboard with red strings pinned by tacks. It says at the top "A closed case. An A-grade student who won't let it go. . . A Good Girl's Guide to Murder]

I mentioned this before, but I have been regularly using my local library’s app. I love how I can request holds from my phone and pick them up at the library when they’re ready. I had A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson on hold for a while which makes sense since this book series is pretty popular. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is definitely a page-turner, but I have no interest in reading the rest of the series.

CW: Animal Death – I can’t believe none of the other reviews mention this. There’s a family pet that’s taken and is later found dead. There are no specifics about it. I wish I would have known it was coming beforehand. This happens on page 287 (or somewhere in the 280’s) and by page 300, it’s over.

Pippa Fitz-Amobi is a high school senior who needs to pick a Capstone project. She decides to investigate the murder of Andie Bell, a senior who mysteriously disappeared in her small town five years ago. Sal Singh, Andie’s boyfriend, was listed as being the murderer after he committed suicide after Andie’s disappearance. Pippa works with Ravi, Sal’s brother, to review the evidence and determine if Sal is truly guilty.

My reading interests have changed throughout the years and I tend not to read a lot of YA (Young Adult) anymore. With that being said, I did enjoy this book. I found myself captivated from start to finish. I found that whenever I had a break in my day, I would read a chapter or two. I finished this book last Saturday because I simply couldn’t move on to anything else until I finished this book. I have been pretty vocal about my reading slump this year, so it feels nice to find books that I truly can dive into.

As far as the characters, Pippa wasn’t someone I wanted to read about. She is typecast as being the stereotypical “Good Girl” who always finishes her homework, and doesn’t drink with her friends. I find that Pippa is judgemental of her friends at times whether she means to be or not. I have seen this trope in other YA books and I’m over it. I don’t need to read about teenage drinking, but I felt that Pippa had the idea that she was better than everyone else. Ravi was my favorite character throughout the book as I think he supported Pippa throughout her investigations and was there for her. I would have liked to hear more about Ravi as a character because I don’t know much about him other than him being Pippa’s partner.

I think the biggest thing I noticed about this book is the implausibility of it all. In order for Pippa to collect the evidence she needs, she does some questionable things. This book is fictional, so I guess maybe I’m being too critical, but I thought the way things played out was a little too convenient. Additionally, I find that A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder plays into a lot of tropes that I see in other books of this genre. One example includes a teacher sleeping with a student. I have seen this appear in other YA mysteries and again, I’m over it. I’m not expecting new things from every book I read, but for how hyped this series is, I held this book to a higher standard.

I mentioned earlier how I have no interest in continuing on in the series. I was reading spoiler tags for the other books in this series and this series gets really dark. Additionally, it seems like Pippa completely changes into an entirely new character (as long as the spoiler reviews are correct). Since I know this now, I’m going to pretend that this book is the only book in the series. It’s interesting because I don’t see the need for this book to be a series. I feel like A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is a great standalone book, so I’m surprised that this is a series.

I went back and forth on how I wanted to rate A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. I did like the book and I have no regrets about reading it. However, I do think the book is slightly overhyped and I don’t like the way the series continues past the first book. I finally ended up rating A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder three stars on Goodreads.

Nimona (2023)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by
[mage is a movie poster. It shows a knight who looks scared. On his back, it shows a changeling on his back with red dragon wings and a red dragon tail. It looks like arrows are pointed at them. It says A Little Anti A Little Hero and then it says Nimona and Netflix at the bottom]

I have been a big fan of ND Stevenson ever since he guest-starred on the first campaign of Critical Role. I also followed the webcomic series that he was publishing. One of the graphic novels ND is most famous for is Nimona which I haven’t gotten around to reading yet. While at a friend’s house, we were sitting inside and she suggested watching a movie. She recommended Nimona as she watched it for the first time a few weeks ago. Nimona was so good! I’m motivated to go back and read the graphic novel.

Ballister Boldheart (voiced by Riz Ahmed) is about to be knighted in a grand ceremony. Ballister will be the first “commoner” to become a knight as normally knighthood is granted to those who have familial ties. As Ballister begins the ceremony, a mysterious bolt comes out of his weapon and kills Queen Valerin (voiced by Lorraine Toussaint). Ballister knows he never intended to hurt the Queen, however, there is a warrant out for his arrest. Ballister is visited by Nimona (voiced by Chloë Grace Moretz) a shapeshifter, who decides to help him. Together, Ballister and Nimona work together to uncover the real culprit behind Queen Valerin’s demise.

I loved everything about this movie. I liked the voice actors, I thought they really helped bring these characters to life. Riz, Chloë, and Eugene Lee Yang from The Try Guys (who voiced Ballister’s partner, Ambrosius Goldenloin) all were superb. The animation was great especially during all of Nimona’s shapeshifting into different creatures. I liked the world that Nimona takes place in. There’s a lot of lore about the history of the city which plays a big part in how things are revealed later on in the movie. It feels Dungeons & Dragons-esque with all of the fight sequences and backstory that’s introduced.

Nimona was such a fun and heartfelt adaptation. I can’t wait to read the graphic novel. Nimona can be streamed on Netflix.

Seances, The Wild West, and Batman – Cozy Cabin Reading

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Every year, me and my friends do a Girl’s Cabin Weekend at my friend’s cabin. It’s something I always look forward to. It’s a chance for us all to catch up and spend good quality time together. I tend to always bring books and graphic novels with me as there’s usually downtime between going on boat rides and swimming in the lake. While at her cabin, I ended up finishing a book plus three graphic novels. I wanted to share mini-reviews of everything I read.

The London Seance Society by Sarah Penner

[Image is a book cover. There's an oval shape and in that oval are bright flowers. In the center of the oval is a candle. There are mystical whisps in the air. It says The London Seance Society by Sarah Penner on it]

It’s 1873 and The London Seance Society is gaining notoriety by performing seances for people struggling to let go of the ones they loved. Vaudeline D’Allaire is a well-known occultist who is self-trained and trusted. Lenna Wickes partners with Vaudeline after the brutal murder of her sister, Evie. Lenna only wants to perform a seance to solve her sister’s killing. Both Vaudeline and Lenna are
called by Mr. Morley, a prominent figure in the Society. There’s been a murder of a well-known society member, and Mr. Morley wants this crime solved. Vaudeline and Lenna team up to solve these murders and uncover the darker layer within the Society.

I loved the premise of this book. It was intriguing to read, especially with how the Seances are described and performed. I love how Lenna and Vaudeline work together and I liked seeing their story unfold. There’s an interesting twist halfway through the series that I wasn’t quite expecting. I think my only grievance is that the book took a little bit to get into. Once I was halfway, I couldn’t put the book down. I rated The London Seance Society four stars on Goodreads.

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller

[Image is a graphic novel cover. Two thirds of the cover is the mask of Batman with white slits. Below are several characters. They look angry or hurt. It says "Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller"]

This is a graphic novel that I have had on my Goodreads TBR since 2015. I can see why this story is so well-regarded, but I do think it’s a product of its time. There’s a lot of casual sexism, I think it was cool to see a female Robin, but I don’t think it was fleshed out. I’m trying not to be negative, but this wasn’t for me. I rated this two stars on Goodreads.

Cats! Girlfriends and Catfriends by Frédéric Brrémaud, Paola Antista, Cecilia Giumento

[Image is a graphic novel over of a woman sitting on a blanket and having a picnic. The are five cats lounging beside her. The graphic novel says Cats! Girlfriends and Catfriends on it]

This was so cute! It’s a graphic novel series that follows friends with their cats. It reminded me of Calvin & Hobbes as each page had a different story. I rated Cats! three stars on Goodreads.

Plume Volume #2 by K. Lynn Smith

[Image is a graphic novel cover. It shows three people on it. One is carrying a rifle on her back, one has a pistol and the other is a glowing man who looks angry. The title says Plume Vol #2 in a wild west type of font]

Plume is so good! It’s a Wild West-inspired story centered around Vesper, the daughter of an archaeologist. Vesper was given this magical necklace which is connected to a man named Corrick. Corrick must protect the person holding the necklace. Vesper and Corrick team up and get into trouble. I love everything about this series, it’s fun to read. I rated Plume five stars on Goodreads.

This year has been a hit or miss when it comes to reading and I feel like I’m finally finding my stride. I actually read another book that I rented from the library and that review should be posted shortly.

Incognita’s Infamous Adventures (2022)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by
[Image is a woman holding a blue crystal ball. In the middle it says "Incognita's Infamous Adventures"]

While at Gen Con, one of my friends started a conversation with a woman in cosplay. I had no idea where her cosplay was from. She explained that she is dressed as a character from a web series she made called Incognita’s Infamous Adventures. She handed our group flyers and said they were doing a live sing-a-long at Gen Con on Sunday. Me and my friends thought it would be fun, so we did go to the event. It was so fun and I have had the soundtrack on repeat ever since.

Incognita’s Infamous Adventures is a Superhero themed musical. The story focuses on Incognita (played by Sarah Michelle Bailey) as she’s a superhero who hasn’t made it big yet, so she works at a corporate office job in the meantime. She works with her best friend Connie (played by Darci Wantiez) who is also unsurprisingly her sidekick. Incognita meets Adam (played by Christopher Bailey) who is the new employee at the office. Adam also happens to be a supervillain named Baddio who is Incognita’s nemesis. Incognita and Baddio are unaware of each other’s existence in their lives. Eventually, Incognita and Baddio learn about Hilaria, a supervillain who is coming back to wreak havoc on the city which forces Incognita and Baddio to work together.

I’m not normally a big musical theater person, but I love the soundtrack. It’s upbeat and fun to listen to. I find myself singing along on my way to and from work. It’s definitely made my commute more enjoyable. I think the other thing that stuck out to me about Incognita’s is the quips. Since Incognita works an office job, there are one-liners that poke fun at that. Me and my friends found ourselves laughing at some of the humor throughout the show.

After doing the singing live, the cast did a short Q&A about how they created the series. I have a lot of admiration for the cast since they self-funded the project. They talked about the challenge of that and how they are starting to work on season #2.

Incognita’s Infamous Adventures is so fun and catchy. Incognita’s Infamous Adventures can be streamed on Amazon Prime.

Gen Con – Haul

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For every convention, I always set aside a certain amount to spend. For Gen Con, my budget was substantially more than other conventions that I attend. I was fully aware that this would be a more expensive convention due to all the cool things that you can buy at Gen Con. To end my blog post series, I wanted to share my haul from Gen Con this year.

As a side note, I did receive a press badge from Gen Con. This means that I did attend the convention for free. I applied under Twin Cities Geek versus BizarreBrunette when I applied for my press badge. While I did receive a press badge, all my thoughts are my own. Additionally, everything in my haul was purchased with my own money, nothing was given to me for free.

Queen by Midnight – Darrington Press

[Image is a board game. It shows several fantasy femme characters. Lower down it says "Queen by Midnight" and the Q has a backdrop of a clock]

I alluded to this already, but the first thing I bought at Gen Con was a copy of Queen by Midnight by Darrington Press. I wasn’t planning on buying Queen By Midnight, however, by the time I made it to the front of the line, I was intrigued by the concept of the game. I do wish that Darrington Press had more merch to sell. I would have easily bought a Candela Obscura t-shirt or dice set. There were also a lot of fans waiting in line who weren’t able to get a copy of Queen By Midnight, so I think it would have been neat if there was additional merch that fans could buy if they weren’t able to purchase a copy of the game.

Vagrant Song + Malifaux Starter Set – Wyrd Games

[Image shows a board game next to a smaller box with minis. The board game says Vagrant Song and in the O of Song it has a musical note in the center. It shows a train with ghosts projecting from it. The minis box says Malifaux and it shows some menacing figures. There are two scarecrow looking figres with a man smiling creepily. A woman is dressed nicely and she's holding a big fan]

The second purchase I made was at the Wyrd Games booth. Vagrant Song is a board game that reminded me of Bioshock and Cuphead. It’s a cooperative game in which players face off against rogue ghosts on a train. I liked the spooky aesthetic of the game and I look forward to playing this game closer to Halloween.

The second purchase was a Malifaux Starter Set. My brother actually bought me this starter set as a late birthday present. One of the booth employees was explaining the concept of Malifaux to me. I will say, I have struggled to get into miniature games, but what intrigued me about Malifaux was the idea that you could still win the game even if your minis are killed in battle. I played Warhammer once and once my minis died, it felt cumbersome to try and remain invested in the game. Malifaux also has a spooky element as well which I love. I convinced my brother to buy a starter set too, so I would at least have someone I could play the game with.

Trail of Cthulhu – Pelgrane Press

[Image features a hardcover book. It shows men who are going down a staircare in the dark with lanterns. There is a body of water and it shows a tentacle in the water. At the top right it says Trail of Cthulhu"]

I mentioned Trail of Cthulhu in an earlier post. I won’t say much else except that I’m looking forward to paging through the rule book and eventually writing my own story.

Laudna Dice Guardian + DnD Notebooks – Dice Guardians

[Image shows a stack of three notebooks. They all say Adventure Journal with a sword and a feather crossed over each other. On the right, it's a box which says Laudna on it. It shows a woman holding black goo and a d20 is sitting on top of it.]

This was my last purchase at Gen Con. I walked by the Dice Guardians booth on Thursday and made a note to myself that if the Laudna Dice Guardian was still available by Sunday, I would purchase it. Sure enough, I was walking by their booth on Sunday and saw they had some left and I couldn’t resist. I plan on taking it to work with me and setting it on my desk. Besides the Laudna Dice Guardian, I also bought some new notebooks. I tend to take lots of notes in my DnD sessions and I had been using a regular standard notebook to write in. The issue is that it’s bulky to carry, so I like that these are a lot smaller. They had a deal if I bought three at once, so I figured why not, now I will have backups.

Besides gaming stuff, I ended up finding a local comic book store in downtown Indianapolis called Downtown Comics. It was within walking distance of the convention center, so I ended up purchasing a few comics. The final purchase I made was at Sun King, a brewery that’s a sponsor of Gen Con. I purchased a four-pack of their beer, so my husband could try some.

Gen Con will easily be a highlight of 2023. I hope to attend Gen Con next year.

Gen Con – Gaming

Posted in Gaming, Life Lately by

Gen Con is a gaming convention, so there are endless different games being featured and roleplaying sessions to sign up for. It can be overwhelming at times to go through Gen Con’s event catalog and finalize what my event schedule will be. I wanted to share the types of games I played and my honest thoughts about them.

As a side note, I did receive a press badge from Gen Con. This means that I did attend the convention for free. When I applied for my press badge, I applied under Twin Cities Geek versus BizarreBrunette. While I did receive a press badge, all my thoughts are my own.

Board Games

[Image features a board game cover called Beer and Bread. It shows two people cheers (ing) over a pint of beer]
[Image features a game board. It features game tiles in various places. It shows various houses and card placement where the beer and bread cards go]

I was able to demo two board games while at Gen Con. The first game was called Beer & Bread by Capstone Games. Beer & Bread is a two-player board game where players are competing to produce the most beer or bread. Each beer or bread recipe has a list of resources to help produce that type of recipe. Players can gather resources, craft recipes, and play ability cards to help the process. At the end of the game, a score is compiled which reveals who won the game. I thought Beer & Bread was fun and I like that this is a two-player game as I think that can be difficult to find. For me, I didn’t buy Beer & Bread because I wondered how often I would actually play it. I’m sure I could get my husband to play with me, but after a few games, would I get bored of the game itself? Maybe.

The second game I played was Distilled by Paverson Games. Distilled is a strategy game where each player is trying to create a successful distillery. There are recipes for each type of liquor and players are trying to craft certain recipes pertaining to their win conditions. Each round, liquor is made and points are rewarded. The player with the most points wins the game. I felt Distilled was a little too complicated to learn. The person leading our demo didn’t really explain the game, but instead told us to read the rule book. Our group felt awkward because nobody had played the game before, so we all had no idea what to do. I feel certain that our group was playing the game wrong at some point. Eventually, we were able to somewhat figure it out, but I can’t see myself buying a game where I don’t know the rules.

Table Top Roleplaying Sessions

At Gen Con, I played in three different roleplaying sessions. The first was a “Grim Fairy Tale” setting that my friend created. My friend sent a group text and asked if anyone would be interested in this type of game. I was the first person to text back and say yes. The character I chose was Red Riding Hood considering I was already cosplaying as her already. I decided to make Red Riding Hood a Ranger since she spends so much of her time in the forest. To give Red a boost in power, my friend made her hood magical. It had four charge counters on it where if I spent one, it would give me advantage on my next attack. Additionally, at Dawn, I had to roll a D20 and if I rolled a 5 or less, I would be a werewolf instead. Our group ended our session by jumping out of the Beast’s mansion after we stole the rose from Beauty and the Beast. I may have had to heal two of our party since they died by taking fall damage.

The second roleplaying session I played in was Star Wars: Age of Rebellion. This scenario featured Ahsoka leading a pair of Clone Troopers to destroy a Separatist ship leading a blockade on Naboo. I played Star Wars: Age of Rebellion one other time, so I wasn’t fully aware of all the rules and how the dice rolling worked. I would often roll the dice and turn to our DM to see what the role meant. I will say, the group that I was playing with was absolutely hysterical. The player who played as Ahsoka made a comment something along the lines of “Come with us, the Jedi will last forever”. Our group could not stop laughing. If that wasn’t enough, one of the players blew up one of the main bad guys with a rocket launcher much to the DM’s chagrin. This is one of those times where I enjoyed the group I was with versus the game itself.

The final roleplaying session was Trail of Cthulhu by Pelgrane Press. Trail of Cthulhu takes Chaosium’s Cthulhu roleplay rules and makes it even simplier. Trail of Cthulhu utilizes six sided dice and there’s a lot less to keep track of. Our session was about exploring a mythical island where there were dolls on the beach with apparent supernatural abilities. I enjoyed Trail of Cthulhu so much that I bought the core rulebook. I would love to write a scenario and convince my friends to play it with me.

I’m so glad I was able to get so much gaming in at Gen Con! I now have so many board games to play which I will share in my next post!

Gen Con – Takeaways

Posted in Life Lately by

Reflecting back on Gen Con, it was easily the perfect convention vacation. While I had a blast at Gen Con, there are some things that I learned or things that I would do differently if I’m able to attend Gen Con next year. I wanted to share a few takeaways from Gen Con and what I might do differently in the future.

As a side note, I did receive a press badge from Gen Con. This means that I did attend the convention for free. When I applied for my press badge, I applied under Twin Cities Geek versus BizarreBrunette. While I did receive a press badge, all my thoughts are my own.

Sticking to 2 Cosplays Instead of 3

I planned three different cosplays for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Most of my cosplays were comfortable for the most part. Although, I didn’t think about how the Summer heat would impact my comfort in cosplay. By the time Sunday came around, I was ready to wear normal clothes. I’m only going to plan two cosplays going forward.

[Image is a selfie of a woman wearing a red cloak. She's similing at the camera]
[Image is a selfie of a woman smiling. She's wearing a white blond wig.]
[image is a woman posing. She's wearing a masquerade bunny mask, long red vintage dress and white fancy gloves stained red]

My three cosplays this year were: Red Riding Hood, Daenerys, and a Splicer from Bioshock. Oddly enough, the Splicer cosplay was the cosplay I got the most compliments on. This was a cosplay I put together myself including staining my white gloves. I was talking with my friends and we came to the conclusion that the Splicer cosplay was more niche, so the people who understood what my cosplay was were excited to see it. It was cool to see people come up to me and ask me if it was a Splicer cosplay. One person said it was “fan fuckingtastic” and I was thrilled.

Bring Magic: the Gathering Decks to Play

It didn’t cross my mind to bring my Magic decks with me to Gen Con. I figured I would be so busy playing other games that I wouldn’t have time to play Magic. Gen Con runs “Commander Pods” which are events in which four players come together to play Commander or EDH, a type of Magic format. My group ended up playing in a Commander Pod during our downtime. I liked the way that Gen Con handled Commander Pods. Each Pod was made up of four players and each player received 1,300 in prize tickets solely for participating in a Magic event. Those tickets could be redeemed for prizes. I ended up using mine on a booster pack from another Magic set.

The one reason why I didn’t bring my Magic decks is that I’m not a competitive player. My decks are casual, so they aren’t aggressive. I find playing Magic with random people to be a hit-or-a-miss type of experience depending on the other players in a group.

I had way more fun playing Magic than I thought I would. I’m inspired to go through my Magic decks and revamp them by next year.

Booking a Hotel vs. an Air BnB

This year for Gen Con, my group participated in the hotel lottery. Fortunately, our group booked a hotel within walking distance of the Convention Center. This was a game-changer. It was so convenient to be able to walk to and from our hotel to drop off our purchases or to take a breather. Our hotel also had free breakfast which is always a good thing.

I’m sure there are Air BnB in downtown Indianapolis, I just don’t know enough of the area to know where they would be.

Don’t Book Roleplaying Sessions After 8 PM

I was ambitious when I was signing up for events at Gen Con. I had an event on Saturday for Vampire: the Masquerade at 8 PM. The event was five hours meaning it would be done at 1 AM. I had no energy on Saturday and I ended up not going to the event. It’s not great etiquette to skip an event, but I couldn’t motivate myself to go to a roleplaying session for five hours straight. That was a lesson learned and 8 PM will be my new cut-off for signing up for events at Gen Con.

I’m halfway through my Gen Con post series and I’m not sick at all of talking about Gen Con.