Rectangular Reckoning: Sentinels Of The Multiverse #1

Love this game! You can get EVERYTHING on Steam for $40, which is one copy of the tabletop version. Makes things really easy to play on your own.

I got my ass beat a lot on this game, but it also has a handy rewind function so you can rethink you past couple moves. Really great game, and worth every penny. 

Status Quo Radio Doesn't Want You To Get It On

PATREON SONGS! ON YOUTUBE!

Slowly, but surely, I'm getting shit together here on this Patreon front. A little writer's block, but nothing too bad. I should have it out by the end of the week.

In the meantime, I'm putting up some of the Patreon songs on YouTube to cover all my bases.

Also, one HUGE bonus for Patrons: I'm starting to work on what songs I want to do/redo for my 10 Year Anniversary Album, and I'm going to let Patrons pick some of the songs that I put on there! There's some "Windmill Slams" on there, but I want to know some of the ones I should prioritize.

FRIDAY NIGHT MYSTERIES PRESENTS: 2064: READ ONLY MEMORIES EPISODE 4

When I do these things, I feel I'm not meant to be a Let's Player, and I realize that I'm really quiet during these streams. But it's OK, because this game has a lot going on, and me jabbering over it would take from the game. Whereas last episode there was a lot of death and mystery going on, this week has it all: personal drama, intrigue, and special guests Dan Ryckert and Xavier Woods.

For a game that's filled with hacker cyberpunk mystery, and aforementioned guest stars, there is a lot of discussion about things like identity and San Francisco tech culture. Some of it can get a little text dumpy, but it's really good world to wrap myself in while I'm playing.

JAM OF THE WEEK: "Genghis Khan" by Miike Snow

That little "Whoo hoo hoo" is now stuck in your head.

There's nothing wrong with that, because it's an insanely catchy song. My historian friend is going to nitpick this to shred, it's pretty straightforward: it's about a guy who's super possessive of his partner. It's calming, it's soft and knows when to kick in.



However, what lends the song its popularity the music video. Typical James Bond scenario, only we see the villain go back to his shitty relationship and is like "Dang, that spy I captured is hella cute, I want him instead." These days a music video needs to have a concept to ride on, and it's entertaining enough.

Rectangular Reckoning- Tempo Rogue #1

RECTANGULAR RECKONING: TEMPO ROGUE #1

Tempo Rogue
Format: Standard

2x (0) Backstab
2x (0) Shadowstep
2x (1) Fire Fly
1x (1) Patches the Pirate
2x (1) Southsea Deckhand
2x (1) Swashburglar
1x (2) Prince Keleseth
1x (3) Edwin VanCleef
2x (3) SI:7 Agent
2x (3) Southsea Captain
2x (4) Elven Minstrel
2x (4) Saronite Chain Gang
2x (5) Cobalt Scalebane
1x (5) Leeroy Jenkins
2x (5) Vilespine Slayer
2x (7) Bonemare
2x (7) Corridor Creeper

AAECAaIHBLICrwSRvAKc4gINtAHtAqgF1AXdCJK2AoHCAuvCApvLAsrLAqbOAvvTAtvjAgA=

This deck is VERY temperamental, and if you can't get anything to stick, then you're going to have a bad time. There's enough 0-cost spells and 1-cosst minions to make the combo stuff effective.

Status Quo Sunday Gets That Vampire Money

MTG: RIVALS OF IXILAN REVIEW

Song is coming out soon for Patrons!

I haven't done a song like this in a while, and it's hard for me to get back into it.

I also attended a prerelease, and went 3-1!

My deck was primarily WB Vampires. splashing Red for 2 Bombards and Angrath. Vona, Butcher of Magan and Tetzimoc were my other good pulls. The major downside was that it lacked an impressive early game, so I fell behind quite a bit.



Tetzimoc works a bit like Doomsayer in Hearthstone, from a strategy standpoint: Really great when you want to discourage playing new creatures, not so much when you want active removal. Your opponent will smell your desperation. But I can see it working in as a Late Game board clear. Limited and Commander.

FRIDAY NIGHT MYSTERIES: 2064: EPISODE 3

UMMMM... THEY WERE DEAD WHEN I GOT- oh Snes games!

Yeah, so I'm REALLY enjoying doing this series. This game is well paced enough that I can make each stream feel like an episode of a series and that, for me, is way more comfortable then what I do with Rectangular Reckoning, which is "do a thing for an hour then quit".

Turing has also REALLY grown on me, and I've compared them to Clementine that we corrupt instead of them making us better. Odd coincidence, that Turing's VO is Mellisa Hutchinson who is Clementine in The Walking Dead and Anna in Deadly Premonition. Also she voices someone in Magic: The Gathering Battlegrounds. Uh... Sure?



Up next after 2064: Read Only Memories is DanganRonpa 1 and 2, another series I've been looking forward to.

JAM OF THE WEEK: "Vampire Money" by My Chemical Romance

I went 3-1 with my Vampire Deck at Prerelease.

No, but this album on the whole is definitely a shock to everyone coming off of Welcome To The Black Parade. Not only that, but it's a song about "Oh, you wanted US to be on the Twilight Soundtrack? HAHAHAHA NO!" Feels like a double heel turn with how much of a slam dunk that would have sounded like in 2006.

But, no The Black Parade is a genius album, and My Chemical Romance do as they please.

Plus it name drops David Bowie!

STATE OF THE BASTARD 2018- I'M 30 NOW!

STATE OF THE BASTARD 2018

HOLY SHIT I'M 30


(artwork by Talez01)

1. 2017 was a goddamn clusterfuck. The rich got richer, the poor have less footholds to climb out of, and a bunch of my fellow white dudes decided that they'd support fascism so they'd no longer have to be inconvenienced with things like "acknowledging other people exist".

And on top of that, I'm 30 now. For some reason, that number makes me feel like I've missed out on SO MANY opportunities. I waver back and forth between "I'm too old for this shit, get real, stop dreaming" and "There are plenty of other people within my niche finding a way to make it happen regardless." I'm always left with a feeling that I could be doing better.

I've been dealing with depression and anxiety for most of my life, and the possibility for autism, which for a while have made it really difficult for me to be out socializing. Ever since I've moved down to Florida, I've been able to join the Magic, convention and nerdcore communities, just feel more comfortable just TALKING to people.

I know it sounds odd, but in its own way, I AM doing better.

Also some of those white dudes faces some measure of comeuppance:
<iframe width="400" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JZj9rvnVd6U" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

2. Also, hey I do music!

MOST RECENT SONG: "Unstable"


This was a fun one to do! I managed to get Tweakbench's Triforce while it was free, and every time I use it, I learn something new. Also I managed to get like 5 people to pretend to be attacked by squirrels, so you know, win for me.

FAVORITE SONG I MADE: "Fire In The Hole"


My first Overwatch song! Also my first song I did an N64 Remix for. It would have been featured on League of Heels's PAXAMANIA III, but sadly they had audio issues. It was featured in the Official PAXAMANIA III video, and was played a shitton during The Great Australian Bash. Appropriate, since it was inspired by an Australian video game character.




3. OTHER COOL SHIT I DID

Music For Suplex Saga


This was fun to do! I caught them at the right time, and while the Kickstarter failed, they're still dedicated to the project, so hopefully you can see all of that come to fruition soon.

Patreon 
Honestly, this has been the best motivation for making new music. People line up to listen to your music, and because of that I want to do nice things for you all!

3000 Brigade
Last but not least, the 3000 Brigade, an insane show that was incredible to see come together and 100% worth it to put on. I can only hope I'm around for next year's show!

3. 29 YEAR OLD RESOLUTIONS? DID MAKE THEM?
-More collabs.
Sort of? I've been working with more people for gang vocals and stuff, but nothing TOO deep. Roborob helped with the bassline for Unstable, but that's about it.

-Album #3. Not quite finish it, but have an idea of where it's going.
I do have three "album" projects lined up:
1. A "Best Of/Road Mix/Introduction To" album I can sell at cons. 

-A proper music video. With like a crew and shit.
ha ha nope. I became unemployed halfway through the year.

-Another game. Maybe it's part of a bigger project, maybe it's another game jam. WHO KNOWS?
Yes! It's called Coastal Chomper!

And I did it with Trace Evans aka Pseg on the internets!

I also was part of a video game show "Arcade Pit" with him, and we got our asses kicked...


-500+ Fans on Facebook.
Yes! And 25 more!

4. 30 YEAR OLD RESOLUTIONS!
1. To participate in a League Of Heels Event.

2. Put one of my Album Projects

3. Hit my first donation goal in Patreon

4. Get on something outside an album. Work on a game, VO work, etc

5. PODCAST STUFF!
ECHO CHAMBER- Music, video games, and More?
I'D RATHER NOT- Bad decisions and how we make them!

5. OK NOW GO OUTSIDE THE BOX
GAME OF THE YEAR-The Metronomicon In The Woods 7: Biohazard

We're doing an Echo Chamber episode on this!

WHY THE FUCK DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME ABOUT THIS BEFORE AWARD?- A Link To The Past

Finally beat it this year. If your game is well designed enough that randomizing it can be not only possible, but another puzzle in and of itself, you did good. Been waiting TOO long on this SNES classic.

BEST MOVIE I SAW THIS YEAR- Get Out

It is the epitome of "fridge brilliance": everything in this movie is so tight and deliberate, and any question I do have is presented with an answer.

The best horror isn't to MAKE some scary. It's to take something we're afraid of and make it tangible.

TOP 40 SONG I HATED THE LEAST- "Feel It Still" by Portugal. The Man.


"Hard Times" by Paramore would have been number one with a bullet but it didn't crack the Billboard Hits. Truth be told, I don't even like this song that much. It's got a good vibe to it, and is technically rock.

TREND I LIKED THE LEAST- "Coddling Bigotry" as an occupation.
Remember kids, you don't need to consider other people AT ALL! You're not being racist/sexist/homophobic/transphobic! It's the marginalized groups you're picking on should have thicker skin!
Also, guys wearing Kekistan Flags at cons, which are modeled after Nazi Battle Flags.

TREND I LIKED THE MOST- Assholes getting what's coming to them.

See above.

OK THAT WAS KIND OF A DOWNER, HERE'S SOMETHING FUN, AKA MY REAL FAVORITE SONG OF 2017.



ANNUAL STUPID REMINDER THAT I SHARE A BIRTHDAY WITH MC BAT COMMANDER

Status Quo Sunday Done Quick

PREPPING FOR STATE OF THE BASTARD LATER THIS WEEK AND AGDQ IS ON SO THIS IS GOING TO BE SHORT

Metal Gear Block!


SNAAAAKE EAAATER!

Yeah, this year's been really good so far. The overall presentation has been top notch, and chat is subscriber only, and it has been a delight to see everyone complaining about "freeing the plebs" in chat.

So, MGS3 just went off, and now they're loading up Halo 5.

FRIDAY NIGHT MYSTERIES: 2064 READ ONLY MEMORIES EPISODE 2:


So, Week 2 of Friday Night Mysteries!

2064 is getting really good, and it's shaping up to be a lot less straight foreward than I though, given the breakdown Turing gives at the end of the video.

JAM OF THE WEEK: "Starman" by David Bowie


Everyone here on Earth says "Hi". Happy 71st.

Rectangular Reckoning: Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links #1

Yeah, Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links was free, so I thought, why not?

Unfortunately, it's a port of a phone game. While that's not necessarily bad, it's not optimized, and it's so bad I was bringing the monitor to my face.

I'm not at the point where I'm either SUPER into it, or the initial skinner box stuff has run out, this was just a one off while Hearthstone's season restarts.

Duel Links, and my return to Yu-Gi-Oh didn't do anything to bring me back, but as I mention in the video, I can appreciate what a good deck does.

In general deck building, you want to have a "goal" for your deck. Do you go in aggressively with smaller creatures and overwhelm your opponent to respond (aggro decks)? Do you go wide on the board with many small threats you build up over time (token decks)? Do you stall until you can unleash larger threats (control)?

And there are also combo decks, which are decks that generate a win state once all the pieces in place.

ALL DECKS IN YUGIOH ARE COMBO DECKS.

For example, there is a deck called the "Exodia Mage" in Hearthstone, named after the creature Exodia in YuGiOh. In YuGiOh, Exodia is a creature that means you win the game after you assemble all 5 pieces. On their own, each piece of Exodia is extremely weak, so you have to build your deck toward getting those pieces on the battlefield ASAP, whether its to draw more cards, or put more creatures on the battlefield.



In Hearthstone, the Exodia Mage deck involves you having 4 copies of a creature that makes your spells cost one less mana to cast,
 
in order to cast a spell that grants you an extra turn for free,

 


then you play a creature that creates a spell called Fireball in your hand whenever you cast a spell.

 



Since you can essentially cast Fireball for free, you can now hurl them at your opponent until they lose.

Status Quo Sunday Refuses To Drop The Ball

PATREON SONG #3: "Unstable", As Inspired By The Magic The Gathering Set

My last Magic The Gathering song, "Find The Immortal Sun", was meant to be a song that is sung by an entire tavern filled with rowdy pirates.

I got maybe 2 people on that track.

Here? Like 7.

As it's made obvious, this track was very influenced by Devo, since it's got the whole "SCIENCE!" angle. A lot of their choruses have backup vocals, but they don't harmonize, they drone. This decision drives home the point that society is devolving (hence Devo) into mindlessness. While my thought process wasn't that complex, I am glad with the song, especially with everyone pretending to be attacked by squirrels.

It's been a while since I broke out my Triforce VST, which is always fun to do!

Also, I want to give a very big THANK YOU to DJ Roborob for working out the bassline for me. This is a song with a lot going on, and he was able give me something great!

RECTANGULAR RECKONING: DUNGEON RUN #1


This has been my favorite thing from the new Kobolds and Catacombs Expansion Pack for Hearthstone. It's the solid single player experience that's great to warm up or blow off steam before I hit the ladder. I wasn't too successful here, but the fun part is that it's like FTL: the runs are long enough that you need to think long term, but short enough that you always feel like you can go for another one.

FRIDAY NIGHT MYSTERIES: 2064 EPISODE 1


This is something new I'm trying out, where I stream a mystery game every week and work my way through it. Another weekly series other than Rectangular Reckoning, trying to blow off steam and do More Content in between songs.

2064 has been interesting so far. It's got an interesting world, with a unique mystery, and as you see in the video, Turing goes from "roll my eyes at them because I've seen this precociuous kid act before" to, "awww, I really wanna help you!"

Speaking of Read Only Memories...

JAM OF THE WEEK: "Main Theme (Neo-SF Streets Mix)" by 2Mello


In the raw video, you heard me say "this is such a banger" many, many times. It hits that right tone of "this COULD be from a 32-bit era game" and "wait, was it?" 2064 is actually a very relaxing, zen game so far. Nothing too complex or out of the ordinary just yet; an adventure game with a calm color pallete, and a soothing soundtrack.

Except for the part at the end where I got tased.

That sucked.