Chuck Walton's 2015 POH Highlights
Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 7:15 pm
Chuck's 2015 POH Highlights:
There is always a great vibe when you anticipate a Palladium Books Open House. It is the closest for me to a cool convention with Family and Friends. I am always amped to seeing familiar faces among the Community as well as meeting new ones. There is also that cool element of placing a face behind the poster’s name that you communicate with on the forums. POH provides this and then some. So meeting new faces such as fellow Gamer, Federico Franceschi who traveled from South America to such awesome personality and welcomed back Gamer, Hendrik Harterich who travels from Germany, to the awesome Gamers & Friends that traveled from far away as Canada, Texas, Florida, Las Vegas, Minnesota and Alaska; I simply enjoy the camaraderie, exchanging of new experiences and ideas, and support from the awesome Palladium gaming community. Then when you add the family vibe that comes among the freelance community, it just makes the POH even more special.
Aside from this automatic highlight, this year's 2015 POH had some special highlights that I would simply like to expound on.
1. As a Freelancer Artist, I rarely get to participate in the actual gaming sessions of at the RPG HQ of Palladium Books Open House, (go figure). I hear about the awesome times that people have experiencing them, I see them going on, but I am often adhered to the Artist Alley section, enjoying the support of gamers who honor me with commissions of their characters or concepts. BTW, Commissions and sketches is something I feel humbled and honored to do. Its simply something I enjoy to the extreme. You never know what you may end up illustrating, who you may meet or what you may learn until you have enjoyed a good weekend of commissions.
This year however, I managed to not only enjoy the great Palladium gamer support with an awesome load of commissions (My largest lists thus far and still working on wrapping up the list BTW), but I was also able to sneak away from the table a few times to sit in and listen to Brandon "Galactus Kid" Aten's game of Splicers®: Iron and Blood. This session was designed to test out the Technojacker class expansions that he, Krispy and Guy Ledouche have submitted for the Splicers® game line. Everyone seemed to have a blast and enjoyed the experience.
2. However, My Gaming experience didn't stop there. I left Aten's table fired up and decided to improv a Splicers® game with some of the nearby artists & friends in the Artist alley. I literally drafted the Manning brothers ("Brian" and "Allen") into the session, by describing a nasty, contaminated Splicers Gene pool tank and a dead Engineer slumped over into the Gene pool. They awoke inside the viscous liquid goo, hooked up to umbilical chords. Amy Ashbaugh's fiancé, Juan, was soon drafted for being too close to hearing my game and shortly thereafter, Freelance Artist, Mark Dudley and Freelance Writer, Matthew Clements.
What started off a s a simply joke turned into an actually session. No one knew why they were they (there necks near the base of their skulls were VERY sore, (hint hint to Librarian mind wipes), but the Mannings and Juan soon released that they were prototype Biotic Bio-weapons, that were gestating in the Gene-pool and that they has imputed abilities and bio-enhancements that they were discovering as they were trying to survive the Great House's civil War, in-which much of the underground haven was in anarchy, duress and no one remembered who they were, what they could do or whom they could trust, including themselves.
Seeing Friends who I have always had a good time cracking jokes, sharing drawing techniques or ideas with and drawing along side, actually role play, let alone an intense scenario in SPLICERS was so entertaining!!! From Mark Dudley playing a robust Roughneck in host armor self-named, "Black Dynamite", firing Omega Blaster cannons, actually the Great House revised them into "Void Cannons" instead of the omega blasters(they dimmed nearby light as they charged before firing, and kept firing, which had everyone fearfully befuddled), to seeing Brian Manning's character comically refuse to get back into the contaminated Gene pool (that he awakened in) to help Juan and Allen retrieve several gestating Gorehounds, equipment and weapons, it was hilarious. Side note, there was something else in the bottom of the Gene-pool slithering through the bio-waste and soot that helped reinforce Brian's stance on things.
Certainly wished we could have gamed more, as the Prototype Biotic Trio were on the verge of discovering their new Bio-armored lycanthropic forms and Black Dynamite & Clemens had just got infected Bio-Vampiric slug symbiotes which were about to make things very...interesting. Gaming didn't just stop there however, as I was able to actually play in someone's Splicers game as a Biotic named "Rikki-Tikki" on Sunday. Talk about a barrel of laughs, suspicion, intensity, plenty of player casualties and innovation. All I can say is when you have a wild quartet of Berserker Biotics riding on Gorehounds blazing away at a thundering Sentry Tower, with a field of poppers tucked underneath, you know your in for a treat. It was considered taboo for the higher class OCCs to even touch a Biotic and it actually proved to be true. Everyone touched a Biotic to try and increase the assault and agility of attacks against the Sentry tower unfortunately discovered the unforgiving dice lords that be, that the Machine is not to be trifled with. "Mandar" (Aten's Biotic) and his "temporary" Gorehound steed was swooped up by an Archangel piloting a Zephyr Warmount and they blazed away at this tower and its batteries of missiles. Even shooting down volleys with awesome dice rolls, but the fail rolls did their due as well. We wont forget you Mandar, for you led the way for the Unbridled. Loads of fun, man did I enjoy this POH. That very game birthed incredible ideas that fueled an innovation that Aten and I will try to flush out as a new sourcebook for Splicers. Truly loads of fun and cool ideas await in that book. It sheds a whole new angle and light on SPLICERS, IMHO.
3. Speaking of light and Splicers®, another Highlight was enjoying the SPLICERS® panel talk, its a first and I hope to partake in many more in the future. Was amazed at the questions and how many intrigued/interested Gamers came to join once their games were ended. WE were able to discuss some of our ideas and plans for the future of Splicers® and to answer some of the major questions for the setting or offer innovations and suggestions for those seeking to get their players into the game or how to incorporate it into their RIFTS® campaigns. That panel discussion zipped by, but it was fun.
4. Another major highlight for me was of course, Palladium Book's first POH ROBOTECH® RPG Tactics Tournament!!!! Major KUDOS to everyone who showed up with their squadrons and simply brought their A-Game, rather it was in gaming spirit, tactics, painting, constructions or helping conduct the affairs (Outstanding job, Jake!), I was VERY impressed. I was able to be one of the humbled judges who simply was amazed with the level of details, innovation and craftsmanship that I saw with the RPG Miniatures. You all really took things to the next level and inspired me even more with RRT and miniature wargaming as a whole. Looks like I am gonna have to find some more time and get some paints. Simply outstanding job!!! Your work made me proud!!!!
Sure there were other highlights, such as Amy Ashbaugh's inks on a Palladium Fantasy Wolfen Long Bow-men that I illustrated, that blew my mind away, or seeing Mike Mumah who was the same ol' awesome, spirited and hilarious personality after defying a major stroke, to doing a humbling and fun interview with the insightful and inspirational Matt Lemke of Gamers Goggles on the Youtube channel, etc. However, if I had to list every Highlight, then I would not get any work done nor could I divulge all the goodies as some are brewing into new innovations as we speak, so I am simply going to say, I hope to see and enjoy another POH, and to see all of you awesome Gamers and Friends that are like family once again.
Keep the gaming charged, have fun in life and, indeed, "the Splice must flow".
Cheers,
Chuck
© Copyright June 1, 2015 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.
Rifts®, The Rifter®, RECON®, Splicers®, Palladium Books®, The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Phase World®, Powers Unlimited®, Nightbane®, Megaverse®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Dead Reign®, Chaos Earth®, Coalition Wars® and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. RPG Tactics™, Beyond the Supernatural, Coalition States, Heroes Unlimited, Ninjas & Superspies, Minion War, Mysteries of Magic, SAMAS, Thundercloud Galaxy, Three Galaxies, Vampire Kingdoms, and other published book titles, names, slogans and likenesses are trademarks of Palladium Books Inc., and Kevin Siembieda.
Robotech® and Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles® are Registered Trademarks of Harmony Gold USA, Inc.
There is always a great vibe when you anticipate a Palladium Books Open House. It is the closest for me to a cool convention with Family and Friends. I am always amped to seeing familiar faces among the Community as well as meeting new ones. There is also that cool element of placing a face behind the poster’s name that you communicate with on the forums. POH provides this and then some. So meeting new faces such as fellow Gamer, Federico Franceschi who traveled from South America to such awesome personality and welcomed back Gamer, Hendrik Harterich who travels from Germany, to the awesome Gamers & Friends that traveled from far away as Canada, Texas, Florida, Las Vegas, Minnesota and Alaska; I simply enjoy the camaraderie, exchanging of new experiences and ideas, and support from the awesome Palladium gaming community. Then when you add the family vibe that comes among the freelance community, it just makes the POH even more special.
Aside from this automatic highlight, this year's 2015 POH had some special highlights that I would simply like to expound on.
1. As a Freelancer Artist, I rarely get to participate in the actual gaming sessions of at the RPG HQ of Palladium Books Open House, (go figure). I hear about the awesome times that people have experiencing them, I see them going on, but I am often adhered to the Artist Alley section, enjoying the support of gamers who honor me with commissions of their characters or concepts. BTW, Commissions and sketches is something I feel humbled and honored to do. Its simply something I enjoy to the extreme. You never know what you may end up illustrating, who you may meet or what you may learn until you have enjoyed a good weekend of commissions.
This year however, I managed to not only enjoy the great Palladium gamer support with an awesome load of commissions (My largest lists thus far and still working on wrapping up the list BTW), but I was also able to sneak away from the table a few times to sit in and listen to Brandon "Galactus Kid" Aten's game of Splicers®: Iron and Blood. This session was designed to test out the Technojacker class expansions that he, Krispy and Guy Ledouche have submitted for the Splicers® game line. Everyone seemed to have a blast and enjoyed the experience.
2. However, My Gaming experience didn't stop there. I left Aten's table fired up and decided to improv a Splicers® game with some of the nearby artists & friends in the Artist alley. I literally drafted the Manning brothers ("Brian" and "Allen") into the session, by describing a nasty, contaminated Splicers Gene pool tank and a dead Engineer slumped over into the Gene pool. They awoke inside the viscous liquid goo, hooked up to umbilical chords. Amy Ashbaugh's fiancé, Juan, was soon drafted for being too close to hearing my game and shortly thereafter, Freelance Artist, Mark Dudley and Freelance Writer, Matthew Clements.
What started off a s a simply joke turned into an actually session. No one knew why they were they (there necks near the base of their skulls were VERY sore, (hint hint to Librarian mind wipes), but the Mannings and Juan soon released that they were prototype Biotic Bio-weapons, that were gestating in the Gene-pool and that they has imputed abilities and bio-enhancements that they were discovering as they were trying to survive the Great House's civil War, in-which much of the underground haven was in anarchy, duress and no one remembered who they were, what they could do or whom they could trust, including themselves.
Seeing Friends who I have always had a good time cracking jokes, sharing drawing techniques or ideas with and drawing along side, actually role play, let alone an intense scenario in SPLICERS was so entertaining!!! From Mark Dudley playing a robust Roughneck in host armor self-named, "Black Dynamite", firing Omega Blaster cannons, actually the Great House revised them into "Void Cannons" instead of the omega blasters(they dimmed nearby light as they charged before firing, and kept firing, which had everyone fearfully befuddled), to seeing Brian Manning's character comically refuse to get back into the contaminated Gene pool (that he awakened in) to help Juan and Allen retrieve several gestating Gorehounds, equipment and weapons, it was hilarious. Side note, there was something else in the bottom of the Gene-pool slithering through the bio-waste and soot that helped reinforce Brian's stance on things.
Certainly wished we could have gamed more, as the Prototype Biotic Trio were on the verge of discovering their new Bio-armored lycanthropic forms and Black Dynamite & Clemens had just got infected Bio-Vampiric slug symbiotes which were about to make things very...interesting. Gaming didn't just stop there however, as I was able to actually play in someone's Splicers game as a Biotic named "Rikki-Tikki" on Sunday. Talk about a barrel of laughs, suspicion, intensity, plenty of player casualties and innovation. All I can say is when you have a wild quartet of Berserker Biotics riding on Gorehounds blazing away at a thundering Sentry Tower, with a field of poppers tucked underneath, you know your in for a treat. It was considered taboo for the higher class OCCs to even touch a Biotic and it actually proved to be true. Everyone touched a Biotic to try and increase the assault and agility of attacks against the Sentry tower unfortunately discovered the unforgiving dice lords that be, that the Machine is not to be trifled with. "Mandar" (Aten's Biotic) and his "temporary" Gorehound steed was swooped up by an Archangel piloting a Zephyr Warmount and they blazed away at this tower and its batteries of missiles. Even shooting down volleys with awesome dice rolls, but the fail rolls did their due as well. We wont forget you Mandar, for you led the way for the Unbridled. Loads of fun, man did I enjoy this POH. That very game birthed incredible ideas that fueled an innovation that Aten and I will try to flush out as a new sourcebook for Splicers. Truly loads of fun and cool ideas await in that book. It sheds a whole new angle and light on SPLICERS, IMHO.
3. Speaking of light and Splicers®, another Highlight was enjoying the SPLICERS® panel talk, its a first and I hope to partake in many more in the future. Was amazed at the questions and how many intrigued/interested Gamers came to join once their games were ended. WE were able to discuss some of our ideas and plans for the future of Splicers® and to answer some of the major questions for the setting or offer innovations and suggestions for those seeking to get their players into the game or how to incorporate it into their RIFTS® campaigns. That panel discussion zipped by, but it was fun.
4. Another major highlight for me was of course, Palladium Book's first POH ROBOTECH® RPG Tactics Tournament!!!! Major KUDOS to everyone who showed up with their squadrons and simply brought their A-Game, rather it was in gaming spirit, tactics, painting, constructions or helping conduct the affairs (Outstanding job, Jake!), I was VERY impressed. I was able to be one of the humbled judges who simply was amazed with the level of details, innovation and craftsmanship that I saw with the RPG Miniatures. You all really took things to the next level and inspired me even more with RRT and miniature wargaming as a whole. Looks like I am gonna have to find some more time and get some paints. Simply outstanding job!!! Your work made me proud!!!!
Sure there were other highlights, such as Amy Ashbaugh's inks on a Palladium Fantasy Wolfen Long Bow-men that I illustrated, that blew my mind away, or seeing Mike Mumah who was the same ol' awesome, spirited and hilarious personality after defying a major stroke, to doing a humbling and fun interview with the insightful and inspirational Matt Lemke of Gamers Goggles on the Youtube channel, etc. However, if I had to list every Highlight, then I would not get any work done nor could I divulge all the goodies as some are brewing into new innovations as we speak, so I am simply going to say, I hope to see and enjoy another POH, and to see all of you awesome Gamers and Friends that are like family once again.
Keep the gaming charged, have fun in life and, indeed, "the Splice must flow".
Cheers,
Chuck
© Copyright June 1, 2015 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.
Rifts®, The Rifter®, RECON®, Splicers®, Palladium Books®, The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Phase World®, Powers Unlimited®, Nightbane®, Megaverse®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Dead Reign®, Chaos Earth®, Coalition Wars® and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. RPG Tactics™, Beyond the Supernatural, Coalition States, Heroes Unlimited, Ninjas & Superspies, Minion War, Mysteries of Magic, SAMAS, Thundercloud Galaxy, Three Galaxies, Vampire Kingdoms, and other published book titles, names, slogans and likenesses are trademarks of Palladium Books Inc., and Kevin Siembieda.
Robotech® and Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles® are Registered Trademarks of Harmony Gold USA, Inc.