When you have to do it yourself

I want to talk today about the realities of tackling huge projects by yourself. I'm going to compare to some professional advice in my talking points. The general consensus is that you should never do it all yourself. You should employ other professionals who have the skills where you don't (if you don't) to make your project (board game, novel, comic) the best shining example it can be. This is solid advice because the environment you are trying to enter is a no holds barred battlefield of very high expectations.

Now, truth be told, I'm not alone. I never have been. But in getting started, I was the only one to do all the writing, planning, and art. I'm a rare example that I do have artistic skill to tap into on top of my writing abilities. Not many people can be a one man band. There are factors to take into consideration here as well. Factors that most people don't think about.What I do also requires a solid work ethic and never give up attitude.

Why go solo in the first place? It's a fair question. Who in their right mind would want to do all this work on their own? That includes facing the critics of that work. Remember, this is the internet and critics aren't known for playing nice. You will feel like you've been ganged up on in the parking lot. We'll get to dealing with that later. For now, why go solo? The answer is deceptively simple:

Life. The issues of your life may prod you forward or make you decide it's just not worth it. What if you have a dream you want to make reality, but your life has become a ticking clock? Maybe you have terminal cancer? Maybe you have the onset of Alzheimer's? Or maybe, yes maybe, you have multiple sclerosis. My critics don't think MS is very serious. But then, they don't have to struggle with esophageal spasms that make it hard to talk, swallow, or breath. They can walk and will likely still be able to walk tomorrow. MS is a disease that destroys your nervous system. It's definitely a ticking clock. Over 400,000 people have MS in the US alone and it is robbing people of their life skills and indeed their very lives. See life expectancy results HERE.

So what do you do? In board games the experts say not to release your game to the public until it has the very top of the line graphic art and the structure is as perfect as you can make it. It even comes down to a money thing. If you didn't spend thousands on your artwork, you shouldn't release your game. But your own artwork is not stick figures. In fact you've been recognized for your work in the past and you can make a pretty passable product. Maybe not the Picasso of graphic art, but there's another plan for that. What do you do? Just give up and never bother because you can't cough up the funds they expect? Your life is not like theirs. You are on a ticking clock that may well mean you can't get all of your story out.

Turned up noses are frustrating, but you can't let that stop you.

My advice? Build it anyway. That's the path that will require the most courage and guts for sure. Not everyone can do it the way the critics expect or the way that the professionals suggest. Their's is not the only way. That's what I did. I did the very best I was capable of and made the game available. Why? Because at least I did it. It's my accomplishment, not theirs. If MS takes me out next year, I made an accomplishment. I beat MS to the punch. It wasn't about making a million dollars on my games. It was about putting out something fun, and doing it against the clock I have to live with. I would challenge any of my critics to live with what I live with and still manage to publish four books (soon to be five) and two games.

Granted, I've tried a lot of things that just didn't work. But doesn't everyone? The point you have to remember is that it's your accomplishment if your life has the same kind of issues in play. You can try to wait until you can pay your way in, or forge your own path while you still can. Under the circumstances, which way sounds better to you?

Another factor to how I have forged ahead, is that I have a product I can show in much fuller form to those who I may enlist to make it even better in the future. Here's an actual quote I received:

"If your project is so great, you should have no problems getting artists to jump all over it."

Spoken like someone who has never tried it. Don't listen to comments like this.

Everyone has to start somewhere and everyone has to take the factors of their actual lives into consideration. That's whether you dump your life savings into it or just your life. If everyone restricted themselves to only what is the most perfect of perfection to make the critics happy (can't be done), no one would succeed at anything. History proves that. The best of the best, forged their own paths even when told they would fail by onlookers and the "gurus who knew all". There is no reason that you can't do the same if you refuse to give up. That's when you just have to take it on yourself.

Another awesome game preview!

Today I'm going to answer a question that a few have been guessing at and show you some more of what is coming to the expansion set for Galaxy Zento the board game. First, lets start with that question.

Folks have tried to guess what the art meant for this goal and now you can see for yourself. That's right, the goal is to get your character killed twice. That means collecting five damage (or getting assassinated) twice in a row. You see, getting killed in GZ doesn't mean you're out of the game (unless you opt out). It only means you have to start all over again. With all other goals, dying removes all your progress, but not with this one. Playing out this goal will allow you to be the craziest player on the board, bar none.

With the addition of monsters, there are some new effects that may help that goal along! Take the Acid Slime for example. Normal combats only deal one damage to you at the end of combat. Not so with this monster. You get a damage token every time it hits you and then get one for losing the combat (if you lose). It's possible to rack up 4 damage facing this creature and that could kill most players. A definite threat.

The Wraith isn't as thorny a foe as the Acid Slime, but losing a combat with it can still be costly. Powers and artifacts are some of the best character support in the game. Taking an additional damage from combat if you can't pay up with one of them may be expensive.

The instant kill possibilities don't end there when you can play as the Assassin. If your first attack in any combat is a natural 20, you win. If it's against a player, you just killed them. Watch out if you get into a combat with the person playing Glutton for Punishment though. You might inadvertently help them win the game!

With 16 new player character cards there will be lots of possibilities for cool character play. I'll be back with more info soon. Till then, keep up the good fight and game on!

Homage to MORE guest artists!

Today I want to talk about artists, very particular artists who have agreed to jump in and lend their talent to GZ. Mind you, this is even if they don't have work that's in the set for any reason, they either offered or said yes when I approached them. These are artists you need to know. I'm writing this because I'm grateful beyond words either way.

Big Rob Beltran: This is the man who made my hat. A hat that has lasted for a good 3 years through hot sun and rain storms. It's as awesome as the day I paid 40 bucks for it. This guy will put anything you want on a shirt, hat, shoes and even a bicycle! Check out his Deviant Art page HERE. He's well known in his area conventions and heralds his own special artistic style. People know me better for my hat than without it. That's thanks to this guy.

Dave Bain: Keeping the hits rolling, you get the amazing styles of this artist who is also on his own convention routes. I got to meet him at Southern Geekfest and hope to do so again. He has a sharp line style that's hard to miss. Check out his work HERE. I can tell you he already picked what he wants to do from the card list, but I'm not going to reveal that today. You'll just have to be surprised.










Gavin Michelli: Another of my good friends with Southern Geek who I met at the convention and every bit as talented as anyone on this list. Check out his amazing TMNT work right HERE. The colors will blow you away.

Ken Davis: Rounding out a trio from Southern Geek (they are an awesome bunch of people check them out), is this man. He's already contributed and at both cards have been shown off online so far. If you missed them, just check past blog articles or visit the Facebook page via links upper right. Ken also has his own signature style and some bookwork under his belt that you can check out HERE.













Billy Barnette: He was the first to jump in and offer assistance in the art and he's been a great help. He also has his own distinct style and a few of the cards he's helped with have been posted! His work has been freelance of late, but I did do a guest artist spot on him some time ago and his work could be seen HERE.

Kevin Woolfork: Speaking of prior articles, I wrote on on this man too. He did the gridwork for the first game board and now he's back! Just look at what he did for my character, Major Xeroh! And of course you can see his work HERE.  What he's going to do for the game cards coming up; well, you'll see. Kevin is well versed in photoshop and great with his colors too.





Jay Morgan: I've mentioned my fellow local author before and I'll mention him again. Examples of his art will show strong colors. For now, I can only send you to his authors page HERE. But you can be sure he's going to fit on this list just as well as the rest.

Ali Lamkin: Last but not least and newest is this man. He's a great form artist with talents he hasn't shown us yet, but just look. The pic is drawn by him and colored by Kevin Woolfork.

Some people may wonder what I'm doing. Well, over half the art is still being done by yours truly with some new twists and tricks. I'm working hard to get this together so that Galaxy Zento the board game will be as truly customizable as it's meant to be. You can bet there is going to be so much more to show and very soon.

Galaxy Zento Expansion Preview!

Galaxy Zento Expansion Preview!

Now that I’m hard at work on the finishing artwork for the very first expansion set for the Galaxy Zento board game, it’s only fitting that I give you a taste of what’s to come! New goals, beasts, artifacts, traps, and even spells are coming to enhance your gameplay. A new card type is coming as well; monsters! As if all that just weren’t enough, you’ll get 16 new player characters with abilities you have to see to believe. Let’s start with a look at them. *Remember to click on images for better view.

The Superhuman: Player characters represent you on the board and this is a great one for that. When you get him, you get to reveal cards from the main deck until a power is revealed. Then you get to use that power for the whole game. The best part is that you can’t lose that power unless you stop being the superhuman. Better yet, this power doesn’t count for your power limit of three, so you actually could build up to four powers! His stats aren’t too shabby either!

The Minotaur: Several mythical beings are going to be available and the Minotaur might just be the coolest of them. He’s a little clumsy when it comes to things like traps and magic but his charging attack makes him useful in other ways. Could it be fun to run up and slam into your opponents? Yes, yes it could.

But what about those goals? As you might remember a goal is your randomly given mission to win the game. Well, there will be at least 4 new goals to shuffle into your goal deck. That includes:

Ultimate Warrior: Win five combats of any kind. That’s right, attack other players or just keep it to what jumps out of the deck. If your character is strong enough, you’ll be a real threat to take the win on this goal. It still won’t be as easy as it sounds as nothing in this game is.

The Combo Goal: This could be one of the most challenging goals. Or the easiest depending on your luck of the draw. You complete one of each challenge on the list to win the game. It’s only four challenges but note the extra ruling on the card. Since it’s possible to wipe out the game at a focal point because you reveal three cards, you can’t count anything at a focal point for the other three challenges. Otherwise, this would become the most broken goal of them all.

Let’s look at a couple monsters next. Of course there is a monster slaying goal to go with them. That’s too easy to guess.

The Mud Man: He’s ooey and gooey and wants to eat your character! He’s pretty average in combat unless you try to sneak away from him and fail. Items don’t count against him because he’s made of mud. Use powers and magic, especially fire to take him down. Of course you can just beat him into splattery submission.

The Werewolf: Now here’s a monster that can alter the pace of the game. If you lose the combat with this guy, you get to be the next werewolf. If that happens, you forsake your current goal in order to attack other players. If you win a combat against a player, they become the next werewolf and you are cured. The only other way for your character to be cured is to get killed. There are a couple of goals that will count if you are the werewolf. Those are a goal where you have to attack other players and a new one where you actually have to get killed. More on that second one later.

For the last peek of the day we have an item that you have to obtain as if it were an artifact:

Cyber Implants: Of the new items, this is the first one you have to roll dice to get. It’s only fitting with all of that this does for you. Not only does it boost a couple of your stats and your movement; it gives you the ability to peek at the top card of the deck. That’s a strong advantage when you need certain cards to come out for your goal.

That’s all the preview you get for now. Don’t forget to visit the links in the upper right if want to get your hands on the board game or books. Follow the fun on Twitter and Facebook!

Alternative play for the adventure game

Today I want to go over a couple of updates for my adventure board game, Galaxy Zento. These are legal ways to play and one will definitely speed things up for large group play (6 players). So let's get right to it!

SOLO PLAY: Yep, play by yourself. It's really very simple. Choose or random draw your goal and player character (being able to choose is the main change for this scale of play) and go to it will all other set up exactly the same. If you get your goal before you gain 5 damage (and die) you win! Naturally, you have to roll for both sides of combat, but that's not a difficult thing to do. I plan to put together a video of a full play through soon on solo play. All other rules are exactly the same in their application. Alignment is still important so play as good or evil.

COOPERATIVE PLAY: Now here's a mode that will speed up group game play. It's best for 4 or 6 players. What you do split into two even teams (or for 6 you could do three teams of 2). Everyone gets their random player character and a random goal. Each team will look over their goals and pick just one that the whole team will be trying to complete. The rest of the goals are discarded. Alignment is still important, so each team must be either good or evil and should be opposed to each other for the best results out of the deck. All other rules and effects play as normal. Everyone still gets their own turn. Try it out!

CUSTOMIZING YOUR DECK: Another important point of alternative play is customizing the main deck for your game. Right from the first set, you don't have to use all the cards that come with the game. You can set your deck any way you want so long has you have cards that support the goals. With the expansion set (in the works now) you will have 3 new goals that you can play at random. You must have at least 6 goals in play in your game. You can put any others back in the box. The expansion will also have 18 new player characters. You must have at least 6 active for players to play. That brings us to the main deck. You should have no less than 8 cards in relation to the goals you are playing in the deck. Anything else can be as many or as few as you like.

These are considered official and will be added on rule inserts in upcoming expansions. Soon I'll spill the beans on what you're going to get in the big expansion set coming up. It's big, bad and somewhat broken.

If you want to know more about Galaxy Zento, check out the BGG page HERE! If you want to grab it for yourself, see the links in the upper right of this page.

Awesome Gamer Podcasts and More

Today I'm going to talk about some talents that I support in the gaming and creative genres. If you love any form of the talents I'm talking about today, you need to check these guys out! I can't tell you how important independent talent really is. There is so much to see outside of the main media that you really are missing out if you don't check them out. So let us get down to it right away.

Jason L Elliott (PaladinElliott): This man is an up and coming reviewer recently recognized by Board Game Geek's official website. He runs a podcast called Ready to Game (Link will take you to his second posting of the podcast). In that he talks about games he's tried, gaming opinion, how to play, what's coming up and all sorts of gaming related goodness. Catch him at his brand new blogspot HERE.   He did a review of my game, Marshmallow Fight (link takes you to the Boardgame Geek page where you can find the review). Watch this guy because he's going places.

Jason Pierce (Gorebad): He runs the acclaimed Twitch channel, Howreroll. It's amazingly entertaining with decorum and innovative gaming style. You can catch his blog HERE. What to say about this guy? Shoot, when you click on Howreroll, scroll down to Gorebad's intro. He's been gaming since 1979 in DnD and other paper and pencil games. He had his own shop in the UK, ran games at Gencon in Europe. Now he raises funds for St Judes Children's Research Hospital. What's really cool about that is that he's local to me. I can get in my car and go talk to him. If you want to see an innovative way to present DnD to an internet audience you have to see his channel!

Tortured Earth: Speaking of DnD (but this isn't) here's a new class of role playing game created by K.B Kidder and Artice Dowdey. Check out the official web page HERE. These amazing creators are also local to me, but that's not the reason they get to have word here. Their game, a class-less and level-less role player set in an apocolyptic future promises a seamless transition for integrated characters of unique scale. Genres include fantasy, horror and science fiction. It's style shows right away that this is not just another "everything but the kitchen sink" role player. It has it's own established style and form that is bound to put it on the map. As an RPG designer myself, I'm telling you not to miss out on this experience.

J Morgan: A romantic fantasy author with Desert Breeze Publishing with over 20 books under his belt. The link will take you straight to his books. If you want to see a new take on vampires, he's your guy. I particularly like the Scrolls of Eternity series. He has a new age young adult flair that's hard to miss.

Kingdom Death: A recent gaming experience I had showed me that planning to play some games, may mean watching them. I've never died so fast in my life, especially on the first play of a game. That's not to knock the game though. I found the game to be amazing if not incredibly complicated in its build. So what happened? Well, we played as a crew of villagers headed out on a dangerous hunt for a white lion creature. In going on the hunt there are a series of event cards you turn over. The very first card revealed a giant worm creature that sprang from the ground. The card said, anyone carrying an item marked as "noisy" was dead. Well, I had a harp and it was marked as "noisy" so my character's immediate mission for the remainder of the game was indigestion. The other players felt terrible as it was my first time even gaming with them. I laughed it off and told them not to worry about it. I wasn't concerned. I watched the game play out and next time I'm sure I'll last an event or two longer. HERE is the game's website. Be prepared to make a substantial monetary investment for this game.

That's about it for this weeks journey. Don't forget to visit the Facebook page and get in on the free drawing that's going on! The clock is ticking!

Pre-Summer Update! Seriously Good!

There is a ton of stuff going on and it is seriously good. Let's kick things off today with the drawing that is still gathering names for this pile of goodies (plus a sweet black coffee mug!). I've decided there will be runner ups for additional prizes because this has gone pretty well in gaining interest! To spell out what's in the picture (or what you get so far) it's a copy of each of my games; The Galaxy Zento Adventure game and Marshmallow Fight (the links will take you to their Gamecrafter pages), a complimentary bag of marshmallows, a sample card for GZ's first expansion set, a cool magnet, and all four of my books that set the lore for GZ. The edition of Marshmallow Fight is a prototype edition but it still looks and plays great.

HOW TO GET IN ON THE DRAWING: You just visit the GZ Facebook page and follow the instructions in the pinned post. It's really simple. You make sure you hit "like" for the page and share the pinned post. That's it! I'll get an alert and put your name in! Sorry, for US residents only this time.

If you don't want to deal with all that but Marshmallow Fight looks like crazy fun to you, it's on sale NOW for 23.99 on TheGamecrafter. Just hit the link above to order your copy! Of course, I'll be signing everything from the giveaway (wink). You do get an improved game in several ways with ordering though, I must admit. Only in a few small ways though.

So let's talk about Marshmallow Fight for a second. What is this? The name alone sounds like crazy fun. Well it is! It's a game for 3-6 players (but you could feasibly have more than that) ages 6 and up that last for about 15 minutes per game. The win condition is achieving 10 points before anyone else. You do that, by completing stunts with, you guessed it, marshmallows. Each player takes a turn revealing a card from the 36 card stunt deck and doing the stunts that they reveal. It's just that easy! There are two things that the game calls for that don't come with it; a bag of marshmallows and a clean dry coffee cup. But marshmallows are cheap and everyone has at least something like a coffee cup right? Oh, I neglected to mention that you will be throwing them at each other at some point in the game, possibly more than once. Hence it's name!

The game is easy to learn but the stunts may just have you rolling.

In additional news, I'm nearly finished with the first draft of Chessmen book two, The Queen's Gambit where the Chyssian solar system is in greater danger than ever when a plot to kill the Chessmen backfires. If you read the first book and though it was packed with action, book two will positively blow you away.

After that it's time to get to work on the first expansion for GZ the Adventure game to make it even crazier than it already is. That's the awesome thing about making this game customizable. This set is going to add so much to play.

That's it for this update, stay tuned, there is always more on the way!