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The bulk of this journal is Friends-only. You may add me to your Friends list if you like, but this does not oblige me to reciprocate. If I don't know you, or have any basis to trust you, I will not add you to my Friends list.
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Sep. 17th, 2008 @ 11:11 pm Wait, I'm not Tremere?
Tags:

Your result for Which Vampire the Masquerade Clan Are You?...

The Necromancers {Giovanni}

6 Assamite, 11 Brujah, 7 Gangrel, 5 Malkavian, 3 Nosferatu, 7 Toreador, 12 Tremere, 8 Ventrue, 7 Lasombra, 7 Tzimisce, 6 Setites, 14 Giovanni and 9 Ravnos!

The ever genteel Giovanni clan have the dark ability to control the dead. They are not reviled by the other clans but they are given plenty of room in which to operate. All Giovanni clan members are members of an old Italian family that, over the years, has only turned family members. They behave much like the modern day mob, raising the interest that the 20's and 30's mafia gained. The Giovanni are one of the wealthiest and most powerful clans during modern nights. They are interested in knoweldge and not just that of the arcane. The Giovanni are not involved in the wars the other clans wage on one another. They are quietly waiting in the wings, amassing their assets.


For you to be a Giovanni means that you come naturally to power. You have a few rough edges but you are very presentable and respectible. You enjoy controlling others and controlling every aspect of your life. You are loyal to your family and your clan. You possess "good old fashioned Italian mafioso" values. In laymen's terms, if anyone gets in your way, they may have an accident which is fine by you because they are worth as much to you dead as they are undead.

Take Which Vampire the Masquerade Clan Are You? at HelloQuizzy

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Da Capo
Sep. 11th, 2008 @ 10:29 am From the Republican political playbook.
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Normally I don't post about politics here, nor do I talk about it in daily life, but after seeing this article, I thought it was worth noting.

http://www.michiganmessenger.com/4076/lose-your-house-lose-your-vote
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Ancestral Hamster
Aug. 5th, 2008 @ 07:55 pm If you see this, post a Doctor Who quote to your LJ
"Exterminate exterminate exterminate!"
Read more )
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Ancestral Hamster
Jul. 2nd, 2008 @ 11:16 pm The New Number Two
Current Mood: tired
McKellen to star in Prisoner remake

Of course, there's only one TRUE New Number Two, and he's in my avatar.

*****
Historical trivia: 3 July 2008 is the 145th anniversary of the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg.
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Da Capo
Jul. 1st, 2008 @ 06:53 pm "Family Tradition"
Current Mood: amused
Tags:
Random thing I found on teh internet:

"Beekeepers, yes… They've gotta want to be - "I want to be a beekeeper! I wanna keep bees! Don't wanna let them get away; I wanna keep them! They have too much freedom … I want bees on elastic, so when they get pollen, they come back here! My father was a beekeeper before me, his father was a beekeeper before him; I wanna walk in their footsteps … and their footsteps were like this: *runs around in circles* 'Aaargh! I'm covered in bees! Aah! Covered in bees!'"
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Smackdown
Jun. 2nd, 2008 @ 08:17 am Doviello Girls
Current Mood: calm
Haven't filked for a long time, but while reading the Fall from Heaven Lore subforum, I was inspired by the thread title "Oh, those Erebusian Women!" It seemed an obvious call for a "California Girls" filk, thus my first filk in several years: Doviello Girls

Some FfH background )

If you've an interest in dark fantasy strategy games, I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend this mod. It is based on the Civ IV game engine, so it is has the civ-building aspect that has worked so well, but with a fantasy take. It is also a much richer game with many game play options. For me, it is even more addictive than standard Civ. So if this does interest you, I would recommend getting Civ IV and the Beyond the Sword (BtS) expansion. (There may be a Civ complete/Gold set). Patch BtS to 3.13, then download the current version of Fall from Heaven II. For further background and strategy tips, here's the Official forum.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've a pack of unruly vampires to nuture. "Come, my children of the night."
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Smackdown
Feb. 28th, 2008 @ 10:39 am A Request for Recommendations
Current Mood: lethargic
Now that the allure of Civ 4 is beginning to wear off, I think it may be time for a change of pace. What computer games would you recommend, and why?

Incidentally, I prefer Turn-based Strategy (TBS) to Real-time Strategy (RTS). Builder/Sim type games are also of interest. As I have not played a CRPG since Ultima IV, I'd like to play one again. Also, I'm looking for a good 4x (Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate) space game along the lines of Master of Orion 2 (MOO2).

While I list my preferences to give you some idea where to start, please do not feel bound by them. If there is a game you consider worthwhile, mention it, and if I think it sounds interesting I will look it up and make up my mind to buy it. (The only genre I have absolutely zero interest in and will ignore completely are sports games.)
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Ancestral Hamster
Dec. 13th, 2007 @ 10:53 pm Damnit
Current Mood: tired
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Terry Pratchett diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's {Entry for 11th Dec 2007}
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Ancestral Hamster
Nov. 20th, 2006 @ 07:32 pm RPG Meme
Current Mood: calm
Current Music: "Life is a Caberet" {In my head}
Tags: ,
This is a surprise ... Tactician was what I expected.

You scored as Storyteller. The Storyteller is in it for the plot: the sense of mystery and the fun of participating in a narrative that has the satisfying arc of a good book or movie. He enjoys interacting with well-defined NPCs, even preferring antagonists who have genuine motivations and personality to mere monsters. To the Storyteller, the greatest reward of the game is participating in a compelling story with interesting and unpredictable plot threads, in which his actions and those of his fellow characters determine the resolution.

With apologies to Robin Laws.

</td>

Storyteller

80%

Tactician

70%

Character Player

65%

Power Gamer

45%

Casual Gamer

40%

Specialist

15%

Weekend Warrior

15%

What RPG Player (Not Character) Type Are You?
created with QuizFarm.com
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Pokemob
Nov. 19th, 2006 @ 06:04 pm "Life is a Cabernet"
Current Mood: full
Current Music: "Hello Dolly" -- {In my head}
Tags:
Just saw "The Musical of Musicals: The Musical!", a parody of the composing styles of five well known composers or partnerships.
Read more... )
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Ancestral Hamster
Nov. 18th, 2006 @ 11:09 pm A few books I've read this year
Current Mood: chipper
Current Music: Symphony No. 40 in G Minor - Mozart
Tags: ,
This is not everything I've read this year, but rather the more memorable books (for good or ill). It also doesn't include manga or graphic novels, which I may cover in a separate post.
Read more... )
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Ancestral Hamster
Nov. 16th, 2006 @ 08:42 pm SciFi/Fantasy Book Meme
Tags: ,
Borrowed from [info]yunatwilight

This is a list of someone's 50 most significant SF/fantasy novels. Ones I've read are bold; ones I hated are struck out; ones I started but never finished are italicized; ones I loved are underlined.
Read more... )
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Ancestral Hamster
Nov. 11th, 2006 @ 07:24 am WW II Meme
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This result is probably due to my strategic and tactical thought being influenced by Sun Tzu.

You scored as Finland. Your army is the army of Finland. You prefer to win your enemy by your wit rather than superior weapons. Enemies will have a hard time against your small but effective force.

</td>

Finland

88%

Poland

75%

Germany

69%

British and the Commonwealth

63%

Soviet Union

56%

France, Free French and the Resistance

56%

Italy

50%

United States

50%

Japan

38%

In which World War 2 army you should have fought?
created with QuizFarm.com


Edit: It's odd that the test creator omitted China. Both the Nationalists and the Communists fought the Japanese (and each other) during the war.
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Pokemob
Nov. 11th, 2006 @ 06:46 am The War to End all Wars
Current Mood: exhausted
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"And on the eleventh hour of the eleventh month of the fourth year, the guns of August finally fell silent." Today marks the 88th anniversary of the end of the Great War, the War to End all Wars, or as it is more commonly known, World War I.
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Ancestral Hamster
Oct. 30th, 2006 @ 11:27 pm All Hallows Eve Links
Current Mood: calm
Tags: ,
http://home.tiac.net/~cri/1996/hamstur.html

http://www.hello-cthulhu.com/?date=2006-10-24

http://www.macguff.fr/goomi/unspeakable/home.html

Cthulhu humor -- Author unattributed. )
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Smackdown
Aug. 6th, 2006 @ 01:14 pm Through a Glass Darkly: The Isles of Greece
Current Mood: tired
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The isles of Greece, the Isles of Greece!
Where burning Sappho loved and sung,
Where grew the arts of war and peace,
Where Delos rose, and Phoebus sprung!
Eternal summer gilds them yet,
But all, except their sun, is set.


Lord Byron, Don Juan, Canto III

Voyage to the Isles of Greece. )
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Ancestral Hamster
Apr. 22nd, 2006 @ 06:11 pm Latest installment in the 1632 series
Current Mood: tired
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... is out in hardcover. 1634: The Ram Rebellion by Eric Flint and Virginia DeMarco. (Baen Books, 2006, ISBN 1-4165-2060-0).
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Da Capo
Oct. 27th, 2005 @ 11:28 am Attention on deck! Admiral on the bridge!
Tags: ,
For those of you following the Honor Harrington series, the latest novel, At All Costs, has been released. {The link will take you to the Baen books web-page where the first few chapters are available as a sample.}

Also, the first two books in the Honor Harrington series are available in their entirety in the Baen Free Library. While you're there, you may wish to read some of the other offerings; after all, it is free.
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Ancestral Hamster
Oct. 11th, 2005 @ 08:45 pm Transtemporal Cultural Shock
Current Mood: tired
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"The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there."

- Lesley Poles Hartley, The Go-Between

Read more... )
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Ancestral Hamster
Aug. 17th, 2005 @ 01:15 am Through a glass darkly: Feudal Japan.
Current Mood: awake
Tags: ,
summer grasses
all that remains
of soldiers' dreams

-- Basho

Finished reading the Tales of the Otori trilogy by Liam Hearn. It is fiction inspired by Japanese history and culture, and not set in feudal Japan proper. The first book started strongly, and promised well for the series, but the subsequent books failed of their promise. The second and the third book especially, felt rushed, as if the author was trying to complete an unwanted chore quickly and move on to a pleasant pastime. The writing is decent, with some sense of the proper atmosphere conveyed, but that is not enough to save the series from the forced pace of the plot and limited character development.

The Tales of the Otori
1. Across the Nightingale Floor
2. Grass for his Pillow
3. Brilliance of the Moon

The Initiate Brother duology by Sean Russell also draws upon Japanese history and culture to create its fictional pseudoJapanese world. While the writing is less polished, and the atmosphere of a feudal Japanese setting not as well conveyed, this series is the stronger of the two. Both the plot and the characters are involving enough to keep the reader engrossed. A good read.

The Initiate Brother
1. The Initiate Brother (1991)
2. Gatherer of Clouds (1992)

The Sano Ichiro mystery series by Laura Joh Rowland is set in the Edo period of Japan, during the reign of the fifth Tokugawa shogun. The series started well, being innovative, well written, and with good plot pacing. Unfortunately, the author started writing to formula after the fourth book, and so I find the later books stale compared to the early ones.

The Sano Ichiro series
1. Shinju (1994)
2. Bundori (1996)
3. The Way of the Traitor (1997)
4. The Concubine's Tattoo (1998)
5. The Samurai's Wife (2000)
6. Black Lotus (2001)
7. The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria (2002)
8. The Dragon King's Palace (2003)
9. The Perfumed Sleeve (2004)
10. The Assassin's Touch (2005)
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Da Capo