Friday Flash Fiction: "HauntFAIL"

Oh, those darn Ghosts of Earth and their shenanigans.

Read "HauntFAIL" at 512 Words or Fewer

Paint and View

Last weekend, we went to GameStorm 14 and had a great time. On Saturday, we brought along our friend Darla (it was her birthday), and also gave her a gaming miniature we'd picked up for the con's mini painting contest on Sunday. She didn't enter the contest, but she did end up painting the mini and gifting it back to DeeAnn.

Before I show you the photos, I want you to understand that the original object was just a tiny hunk of gray plastic. It looked something like this:


(image from halforums.com)

That's not the actual mini (I didn't take a photo, and I couldn't find it online), but it's similar in that the monochrome plastic obscures a lot of the detail that was sculpted into the figure. Also note, that circular base is just one inch across. It's tiny. Painting one of these things is all about tiny brushes and getting the details right.

Now, this is what Darla produced, four days later:



Notice the terrain? She added that. Rocks and grass. The base used to be just a flat circle.

As for the painting, did you notice how the individual buttons and stitches pop, and all the different textures on the clothing, skin, and weapons? Click the image to embiggen:



I'm telling you, that girl got skillz.

SnoutCast #110: Location Location Location

The good news: no lengthy show notes this week! The bad news: that's because we just kind of ramble on for like twenty minutes.


[ Download mp3 - 20 MB ]

00:59 - "regional"
20:14 - The End

Tell us we're wrong on the Internet! E-mail podcast@snout.org or post at snout.org/podcast.

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "Shop Vac" by Jonathan Coulton

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Friday Flash Fiction: "Bridge and Tunnel"

What happens when you mash up Stargate and Lost in Translation? Possibly something like this.

Read "Bridge and Tunnel" at 512 Words or Fewer

SnoutCast #109: We Need to Talk About WARTRON

In which some (but not all) is revealed.


[ Download mp3 - 26 MB ]

00:58 - "computerized"
02:34 - consequences of a geographically divided team
05:29 - the agony and the ecstasy of videoconferencing
12:07 - praeterition
13:45 - building a community with Puzzled Pint
16:58 - lessons learned from DASH
22:23 - the current status of WARTRON
26:18 - The End

Got a comment or question? E-mail podcast@snout.org or post at snout.org/podcast!

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "A Talk with George" by Jonathan Coulton

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Friday Flash Fiction: "So is This a Game or Not"

As a sixteen-year veteran of multiple puzzle hunts (Christ, has it really been that long?), I have heard the various pieces of this particular conversation--in spirit, if not verbatim--more times than I can count.

Read "So is This a Game or Not" at 512 Words or Fewer

SnoutCast #108: Dead Man's Quest? The Puzzles

SPOILER ALERT: We discuss the inner workings of many, if not all, of the JoCo Cruise Crazy II treasure hunt puzzles in this podcast. If you want to try solving the puzzles yourself (they'll be online soon, we promise), DO NOT LISTEN to this episode until later!


[ Download mp3 - 28 MB ]

00:59 - "piratical"
02:04 - Puzzle #0 (sample)
03:52 - Puzzle #1
04:29 - Puzzle #2
05:53 - Puzzle #3
07:08 - Puzzle #4
09:55 - BTW re: puzzle release order
12:17 - Puzzle #5
12:49 - Puzzle #6
16:50 - Puzzle #7
18:05 - Puzzle #8
19:12 - Puzzle #9
20:32 - Puzzle #10
22:43 - Puzzle #11 (meta)
25:02 - closing thoughts
30:37 - The End

Got a comment or question? E-mail podcast@snout.org or post at snout.org/podcast!

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "Tom Cruise Crazy" by Jonathan Coulton

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Friday Flash Fiction: "Nice Day for a Drive"

Herewith, an excerpt from my other Clarion UCSD 2012 application story. And as soon as they reject me (again), this one's going to, I don't know, let's say Asimov's. Because it involves robots and shit.

Read "Nice Day for a Drive" at 512 Words or Fewer

SnoutCast #107: Dead Man's Quest? The Hunt

In which we recall the second time we ran a puzzle hunt... on a boat!


[ Download mp3 - 28 MB ]

00:59 - "nautical"
03:24 - compared to the first JoCo Cruise
05:38 - did someone say WarTron?
09:49 - Game Control after dark
12:39 - you too can be an "executive producer"
16:42 - a crowded entertainment marketplace
18:19 - the burden of fabulous prizes
22:44 - mo' puzzles, mo' problems
30:16 - The End

Got a comment or question? E-mail podcast@snout.org or post at snout.org/podcast!

Music: instrumentals from "Code Monkey" and "I Feel Fantastic" by Jonathan Coulton

[ Subscribe to SnoutCast / iTunes link ]

 

Return of the Food Robot

Attention Portlanders: If you missed my Ignite presentation on "A Homebrew Cat Feeding Robot" (both on February 9th and on a boat), you'll have another chance to see a live performance of it next Thursday, March 15th at Ignite SAO v2. It's a free event; just visit the sao.org web site to register!

Thanks to Ben Sherwood of the Software Association of Oregon for the invitation to speak at their soirée. And if you still can't make it, video from at least one of these events will be online Real Soon Now.

Friday Flash Fiction: "So Then I Met These Aliens"

This is an excerpt from one of my two Clarion UCSD application stories this year, and as soon as they reject me, it's going off to Clarkesworld. Whee!

Read "So Then I Met These Aliens" at 512 Words or Fewer