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Paton, Joseph Noel (1821-1901); The Fairy Raid: Carrying Off a Changeling, Midsummer Eve; Photo Credit: Glasgow Museums

Hello friends!

Luke has been noodling around with a new Middarmark stock. We’re still playtesting and would love your feedback!

The changeling is a special stock. Trolls pick a human family with a new infant, abduct the child and leave one of their own its place. Sometimes the changeling knows what it is, sometimes it only learns the truth later in life. Changeling children are frequently malevolent or destructive and their unwitting adoptive families often come to grief.

To reflect this, Troll Changelings don’t have a class of their own. Instead they choose from the classes available to humans: Cleric, Magician, Thief or Warrior. They cannot be paladins.

If you’re interested, I highly recommend reading Poul Anderson’s The Broken Sword, which also happens to be a great primer for Middarmark gaming in general. In The Broken Sword, the elf lord Imric kidnaps the infant son of Orm the Strong and Aelfrida, leaving the troll changeling Valgard in his place.

Troll Changeling

Nature descriptors: Tricking, Boasting and Breaking

Wises

Troll Changelings choose one wise from the following list to start: Troll-wise, Giant-wise, Changeling-wise, or Folklore-wise.

Trait: Hulder

In addition to their class trait, troll changelings must take a second required trait: Hulder. Hulder are troll changelings left to be raised by human parents, sometimes as punishment, sometimes in exchange for a human child stolen. In their human form, they are beautiful to behold (though most have a telltale tail). In their troll form, they are hideous, long-nosed and misshapen.

Class

Troll Changeling characters may choose from the cleric, magician, thief or warrior classes.

Nature Questions

Do you play cruel tricks on your human parents, frightening them with your trollish ways or do you have mercy on their simple souls and keep to human tradition?

• If you play cruel tricks, increase Nature by one.
• If you have mercy on humans, take the Filial or Compassionate trait at level 1 in place of your home trait.

Do you boast of your wild deeds, even ones you haven’t accomplished yet? Or do you remain secretive about your true nature?

• If you boast of your deeds, increase Nature by one.
• If you remain secretive, take Secrets-wise, Ancient Grievances-wise or Revenge-wise.

Troll strength flows through your blood. Do you rend and snap your way into and out of trouble? Or do you hide your strength and your trollish origins?

• If you break bones and snap locks, increase Nature by one.
• If you hide your trollish origins, increase your Hulder trait to level 2.

From Jason Hardy, Shadowrun Line Developer:

Shadowrun, Sixth World is coming soon!

Wait, Shadowrun, Sixth World isn’t out yet? But I’ve been thinking about it for years! Playing it for more than a year! How are other people not playing it? Development time can be so disorienting.

There was a time—six years ago, to be specific—when I threatened physical violence to anyone who said the words “sixth edition” in my presence. (The threats didn’t work. No one is ever scared of me. But I digress). Fifth Edition took a lot of effort to produce, and I didn’t want to think about starting that whole process again. But then there were a few years where I didn’t have to think about a new edition, and I could recharge. Actually, that’s not entirely true, because every time I play a game—whether it’s one I worked on or not—I’m kind of thinking of a new edition. I’m looking at what works well, what works differently than intended, and what possibilities might open up with a tweak here and there. So when the time came to envision the next edition of Shadowrun, I had a few ideas, as did the excellent roster of Shadowrun writers and gamemasters I could tap into.

All those ideas needed a framework, of course. As we started our work, we decided the sixth edition of Shadowrun needed to possess three main qualities:

Be no more than 300 pages long;
Use D6 dice pools; and
Feel like Shadowrun.

Those last two points are related, because it’s tough for a game to feel like Shadowrun if you’re not rolling a healthy handful of D6s. But there’s more to it than that. Combat specialists, spellcasters, conjurers, adepts, faces, deckers, technomancers, riggers, enchanters, weapon specialists, and more all need to exist, and they all must have different and meaningful ways to contribute to a run.

In this edition, all that had to happen within 300 pages. Which is a trick. Fifth Edition, not counting the index, is 466 pages; the anniversary edition of Fourth Edition was 351 pages, and Third Edition was 325 pages (minus the sample record sheets). Second Edition is a lean 284 pages, but it had no bioware, no technomancers, no alchemy, and no qualities, to name a few things that have changed in the intervening years. The book that started it all is an even leaner 207 pages, but along with the elements Second Edition didn’t have, it lacks things such as adepts and foci, and it offers only twenty guns—heresy! (Fifth Edition has 52, while Shadowrun, Sixth World will offer 53–we didn’t cut back much on those options!) All this is to say that streamlining the core rulebook back to 300 pages was not going to be easy.

It’s important to note that simply making the book shorter doesn’t, by itself, do any good. You can make any book shorter by simply ripping every third page out, but you end up with a book that makes no sense. Making the book shorter only is useful if the game also becomes smoother to play. In other words, we didn’t just want a shorter game—we wanted one that moved faster and was easier to get into, while still offering lots of meaningful options. We also didn’t want this to be Shadowrun: Anarchy for the simple reason that Anarchy already exists. Anarchy represents a more extreme end of the rules-light spectrum than Shadowrun, Sixth World–one way to understand the difference between the two is that the gear rules and listings take up about seven or eight pages in Anarchy, compared to fifty pages in Sixth World. Did I mention we wanted to offer lots of options?

Anyway, this means that if the rules were changed, they needed to be changed with an eye toward enabling players to do the things that they wanted to do more quickly. Combat should be faster. Hacking should be smoother and more intuitive. Magic should adapt to be just what the caster wants it to be. And so on. So what, specifically, did we do? Here’s a sample:

Expanded Edge: Yes, one of the things we did to streamline the game was to make one function much more detailed. But stay with me for a second. The definition of Edge has shifted—rather than being that undefinable something extra you reach for in a tough spot to help put you over the top, Edge now represents the accumulated advantage you get in opposed situations. Whether you’re fighting, spellcasting, hacking, or negotiating, you’ll have a chance to earn and spend bonus Edge. And you should spend it—if you’re not gaining and spending Edge regularly in Shadowrun, Sixth World, it might be time to rethink your tactics. Or find less formidable opposition. Gaining and spending Edge replaces a lot of other functions in the game, like calculating situational modifiers, dealing with recoil and armor piercing, and environmental modifiers. Edge also provides a chance for a character to really have an impact when it’s time to spend it.
Fewer action types: There are two, Minor and Major. That’s it! You get one Minor and one Major per turn, with an additional Minor for various circumstances, such as reaction-enhancing augmentations or spells. One Major Action may be traded for four Minor Actions, or four Minor for one Major.
Simplified initiative: You roll initiative at the start of an encounter and then don’t re-roll it. Certain actions or effects may change your initiative score, though.
No limits: Limits served a valuable function of balancing attributes and providing different opportunities for rule effects, but in a streamlined ruleset, they are not needed. Limits on most tests and Force for spells have all been removed.
Skill list narrowed: Fifth Edition has 80 skills, while Sixth Edition has 19. That’s a big difference. There’s definite streamlining there, but it comes at the risk of characters not being distinct from each other. To deal with that, players can still select specializations but can also upgrade a specialization to an expertise, giving their character +3 bonus dice instead of +2, and once they have an expertise they can select an additional specialization. This will provide characters with chances to become truly distinct.
More intuitive Matrix: This is an ongoing goal, and it’s always fun to try to make Matrix activities happen alongside and in parallel with the other actions. Deckers will have meaningful things to do and ways to get in, make things happen, and get out—all while trying to avoid the watchful eyes of the Grid Overwatch Division, of course.

Those are some of the major changes, but far from the only ones. We haven’t talked about Attack Ratings, the uses of armor, changes to Knowledge skills, revamped spell design, new vehicle stats, cyberjacks, and more. I hope this gives you a taste of the upcoming changes, and I look forward to you all playing Shadowrun, Sixth World as much as I have and will! And look for more information on this blog each Wednesday in May!

May 1: Initial Announcement
May 8: Product Overview
May 15: Developer Overview
May 22: Setting Overview/Fiction Announcement
May 29: Developer Q&A
June 5: Rigger Dossier
June 12: Shadowrun at Origins preview
More to follow – I will nail him down at Origins if it’s the only thing I do this year.

New official D&D Paint Set from Gale Force 9 and The Army Painter
Deep under the crust of the adventurers’ feet, lies a whole world of terror and evil. To some it is best avoided; to others it is a calling; to most, it is death. Welcome adventurer, to the Underdark – the most hostile and dark place imaginable; a place where nightmares are real and aberrations spill forth from the depth of terror.
D&D Underdark is an expansion set to Nolzur’s Marvelous Pigments painting series. 10 high-quality acrylic paints toned specifically to match many monsters and horrors dwelling in this nightmare realm. The Underdark Set includes 8 colours unique to Dungeons and Dragons, and also comes with an exclusive Drizzt Do’Urden miniature included in the set.

D&D OFFICIAL PAINTING SERIES EXPANSION SET
INCLUDES 10 HIGH-QUALITY, NONTOXIC 12 ML WARPAINTS AND EXCLUSIVE DRIZZT DO’URDEN MINIATURE!
INCLUDES 8 COLOURS UNIQUE TO DUNGEONS & DRAGONS

Warpaints are a high–quality acrylic paint range specifically designed to paint detailed miniatures. The paint has a creamy consistency and is extremely rich in pigment, 100% non-toxic, and always delivers a perfect matte finish.

Recommended to use in conjunction with D&D® Adventurer’s Paint Set.

Hello,

Thanks for the all the Kingmaker 10th Anniversary crowdfunding campaign press! The Level-ups keep going… so we’ve decided to extend it to midnight on June 4th (Pacific). That’s one of the advantages of running the campaign on Game On Tabletop.

It is late in the day on Friday, so please consider this a simple courtesy, not a attempt at breaking news.

I’ve copied the announcement here for you:

“When we first launched the Kingmaker 10th Anniversary campaign on Game On Tabletop, we heard from Pathfinder players worldwide wondering why the campaign was only two weeks. For some, the campaign timing didn’t match their paycheck deposits. Others didn’t hear about the campaign until much later. Many others still haven’t heard about it.

With PaizoCon beginning next week and UK Games Expo the week after, Paizo and Game On Tabletop have decided to extend the campaign through those events to allow more time to unlock greater value for backers—and to give everyone more time. The campaign will now end at midnight Pacific on June 4th.

Thanks again for all your feedback and support! Together, we’re going to make the 10th anniversary of Kingmaker a truly epic event!”

The Elder Scrolls: Call to Arms – Tabletop wargaming in the world of Tamriel

LONDON, ENGLAND, May 20th – Modiphius Entertainment is proud to announce a new narrative miniatures game based on The Elder Scrolls®, the legendary videogame franchise by Bethesda Game Studios®.

The Elder Scrolls: Call to Arms builds on the core mechanics of Modiphius’ Fallout: Wasteland Warfare game system, but has been rewritten and reworked by designer Mark Latham (The Walking Dead: All Out War, The Harry Potter Miniatures Adventure Game, Editor White Dwarf Magazine) to suit the world and inhabitants of The Elder Scrolls franchise.

Featuring high quality 32mm resin figures, each with its own unique custom base, the skirmish system sees fan favourite heroes like Hadvar, Ralof, Yrsarald Thrice-Pierced, Marcurio, Mjoll the Lioness, Ulfric Stormcloak, Galmar Stone-Fist, General Tullius and Lydia. The player’s heroes lead groups of followers on adventures inside Dwemer Ruins, Draugr-infested Nord Tombs, and through the frozen wilderness.

As well as controlling their troops, players will also need to manage the stamina and Magicka resources their models bring to the table, all the while watching out for hostile AI driven enemies and narrative events that can change the flow of battle. Players can play against each other or team up (or play solo) to take on all manner of creatures and adversaries driven by Modiphius’ advanced AI system.

The game will feature scenarios ranging from dungeon delves, where you seek out lost treasure, to running battles across the ruined outposts that dot the landscape of Tamriel, all the while fulfilling quests and narrative-driven scenario objectives that will see your band of heroes grow from game to game. Will you claim the ruined fort as yours and build your own settlement, or wander the countryside clearing out foul ruins of the stench of your enemies?

In the first wave, players will raise their banners in the fight for the future of Skyrim as they lead the forces of the Stormcloaks or Imperial Legion in the battles of the civil war. Forces will typically comprise 1-6 heroes and 3-15 troops. The first wave of releases will be a Two Player starter set and reinforcement sets of resin miniatures for both the Stormcloaks and the Imperial Army, a Dragonborn single player set, but more races and characters from across the Elder Scrolls stories are planned. A host of accessories like metal tokens, deluxe dice bags, settlement journals and more will expand your options. Planned releases will expand on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim®, as well as adding releases from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion®, The Elder Scrolls Online®, and more.

Modiphius plans promotional miniature releases in the lead up to the launch, starting with the iconic Dragonborn miniature, available right now in limited quantities from www.modiphius.com/Elder-Scrolls, or pick one up at the UK Games Expo show in June, or GenCon in August. More special editions will be released through the year and will be available again after release.

The Elder Scrolls: Call to Arms will be available from Christmas 2019. For more information and to sign up for news, visit: www.modiphius.com/Elder-Scrolls

For press requests and interviews direct or at UK Games Expo please contact pr@modiphius.com

About Modiphius Entertainment

Modiphius Entertainment is a London, England-based entertainment publisher of tabletop games and related hobby merchandise. The company launched its first game, the Achtung! Cthulhu Roleplaying Game, in 2013, and has since released Conan, Adventures in Age Undreamed of, the official roleplaying game of Robert E Howard’s barbaric universe, Matt Leacock’s Thunderbirds, a cooperative board game based on the classic 60’s show, the official Star Trek Adventures Roleplaying game, and Fallout: Wasteland Warfare miniatures game.

About ZeniMax Media Inc.

ZeniMax Media is a privately owned media organization headquartered outside Washington DC with international publishing offices in London, Paris, Frankfurt, Eindhoven, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Sydney and Moscow. Through its subsidiaries, ZeniMax Media creates and publishes original interactive entertainment content for consoles, PCs, and handheld/wireless devices. ZeniMax Media divisions include Bethesda Softworks, Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, Arkane Studios, Tango Gameworks, MachineGames, ZeniMax Online Studios, ZeniMax Europe Ltd., ZeniMax Asia K.K., ZeniMax Asia Pacific Limited, and ZeniMax Australia Pty Ltd. For more information on ZeniMax Media, visit www.zenimax.com.

About Bethesda Softworks

Bethesda Softworks, part of the ZeniMax Media Inc. family of companies, is a worldwide publisher of interactive entertainment software. Titles featured under the Bethesda label include such blockbuster franchises as The Elder Scrolls®, Fallout®, DOOM®, QUAKE®, Wolfenstein®, Dishonored®, The Evil Within™, Prey® and RAGE®. For more information on Bethesda Softworks’ products, visit www.bethsoft.com.

About Bethesda Game Studios

Bethesda Game Studios is the award-winning development team known around the world for its ground-breaking work on The Elder Scrolls series and the Fallout series. Creators of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion®, the 2006 ‘Game of the Year’; Fallout® 3, the 2008 ‘Game of the Year’; The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim®, the 2011 ‘Game of the Year’; Fallout® 4, the winner of more than 200 “Best Of” awards including the 2016 BAFTA and 2016 D.I.C.E. Game of the Year; and Fallout Shelter™, the award-winning mobile game with more than 100 million users. Bethesda Game Studios has earned its reputation as one of the industry’s most respected and accomplished game development studios. For more information on Bethesda Game Studios, visit www.bethesdagamestudios.com.

Potential vs. Struggle

“Women don’t care about the struggle. They wait at the finish line and fuck the winners.”

Rich Cooper

This is a popular belief in the Manosphere today. Hypergamous stress is so intense that women have turned into mercenaries with respect to vetting the men they’ll accept to plan a future with. I’ll admit, a lot of well-meaning Red Pill men believe women’s Hypergamous Filter is necessarily amoral if not overtly cruel. The ill-informed critics of Hypergamy believe in a binary extreme. They presume that all those Red Pill guys are self-defeated by the idea that all women are prostitutes and only “out to get theirs“. This is simplistic ignorance of the concept of Hypergamy meant to dissuade the curious from Red Pill truths that they refuse to process. But do they kind of have a point though?

Virtually every extreme of MGTOW and the Mens Rights Movement have some open variation of how Hypergamy is a straight jacket and

“Why bother with a woman for anything other than a short term fuck if her Hypergamous nature will just predispose her to jumping ship to the first guy who comes along with a bigger dick or a bigger wallet?”

I covered all of these is detail in Hypergamy – The Misconceptions a while ago in case you’re curious as to why these are unfounded, and more often deliberate, misunderstandings of women’s nature. And no, that doesn’t mean I’m backpedaling on anything I’ve ever written about Hypergamy.

A couple weeks ago I got wrapped up in a Twitter exchange about the conflict between whether women indeed wait for the winners at the finish line or they make calculated bets about a man’s future potential.

Women are not investors when it comes to men. They are not going to waste time with someone “going places”

They are capitalists, they will find a guy who already made it and jump on that band wagon instead

— Wall Street Playboys (@WallStPlayboys) May 12, 2019

From a pragmatic point of view I’m very much inclined to agree with this assessment. Yes, it makes women seem overly mercenary with respect to Hypergamy, but I’ve said it as much myself in any number of prior essays:

Women can only willingly want to please a man whose Frame is the dominant one. You’ve got to have that world established that she wants to enter and become a complementary, supportive (of you) and willing participant in. This world-building takes time. Women evolved to seek competency in men. Hypergamy cannot afford to bet all of a woman’s genetic legacy on a guy who has “potential” – they want the proven commodity. This is one reason women look for men older and taller than they are. More importantly, you need a woman who is playing on your team, not against you. And sadly this is the state of marriage promoted by the Feminine Imperative today. Egalitarianism doesn’t promote complementary cooperation, it promotes an adversarial state of competition between husband and wife.

The Marriage Game

In a purely evolutionary context it’s true; because a woman’s sexual market value – and ultimately her only agency with men – is perishable Hypergamy cannot afford for a woman to waste her time on a ‘good bet‘. This truth is a basic, Darwinistic, rule for women’s sexual strategy.

Despite all the social conventions to make them believe otherwise, women’s hindbrains know that their sexual agency and prime fertility window in life is limited. This creates a degree of urgency in a woman as she gets closer to, or ages past, the Wall. This understanding necessitates tradeoffs, but optimally a woman would prefer not to take chances with her reproductive future – and ultimately her life’s future.

For the more nihilistically inclined men of the ‘sphere, this Darwinistic determinism seems like a reproductive death sentence. If women only fuck the winners at the finish line, and you’re a loser, you may as well give up and go jerk off, right? This defeatism is a core tenet of the Black Pill.

All that said, a lot of people disagree with this assessment:

Jack knows I love him, but he is living with a girl much younger than himself. While I think that’s cool, and proof of Red Pill concept, he is actually living out the point being made here. Statistically, women tend to prefer men who are 5 to 7 years their senior. Another aspect of women’s evolved mental firmware is the natural attraction to older men as prospective long term mates. Women know that it takes men longer to mature into the genuine value that her Hypergamous Filters test for. An older rich man is always more believable than a younger rich man. Women tend to pair with a man their senior because Hypergamy doesn’t need to wait on his potential when he’s already a proven commodity.

Most of the criticism in this thread centers on exaggerating the age of “marriageable men” to the point of absurdity, but women do look for long term security as a prime requisite of the men they hope to pair for life with. There is a root-level presumption in women, correct or not, that an older man will have established the status and resources a woman needs in a long term partner. In fact, our feminine-primary social order shames men for not preparing to assume this role of security provider for women by a certain age (usually 30ish).

Alexander is also a good friend, but I’m going to disagree with half of his assessment. Women don’t readily recognize potential in men. In fact most of them are piss poor at it. This is because they’ve been socially conditioned to focus more on themselves (and exacerbated by their innate solipsism) than be concerned with making a good assessment of men’s potential for future success.

Now, before you think I’m siding with the Hypergamous nihilists, this did give me pause to step back and assess my stance on women reading men’s potentials to provide for their future security. And that last part is the most important because women’s sexual strategy has two parts: Alpha Fucks – short term sexual needs – and Beta Bucks – long term provisioning and security needs. It’s the latter that we’re discussing in this debate.

Women want to fuck the winners in the short term, but they will also assess a man’s potential for the long term.

Hypergamy cannot afford to wait for 100% perfect confirmation of a man’s Alpha status before she has sex with him. This Hypergamic bypass is actually one vulnerability women have with respect to well calibrated Game.

The Epiphany Phase Revisited

In the essay Women’s Existential Fear I also made the following proposition:

The Existential Fear in women is that their innate, Hypergamous Filter, their Feminine Intuition, might be fooled, and by being fooled she may either die or have her reproductive potential compromised for her lifetime by bearing and raising the child of man who is a suboptimal Hypergamous choice for her – a man who exerted his will over her Hypergamous choosing filters.

Making Choices

All of this presumes that a woman is in some way testing for a man’s potential. Even women’s autonomous shit testing is a confirmation of this. So yes, women do look for potential in men. Some better than others. The Hypergamous Filter is an imperfect tool which is exactly why women needed to mystify their feminine intuition in popular understanding. Men had to be kept in the dark as to a woman’s motives because their filters have always been intuitive guesswork. This is a vulnerability that men might exploit – with good Game for instance – if women were ever honest about it.

Not all women can fuck the winners so they have to make calculated bets on men. This is also a reason women rely on social proof and the preselection cues of other women. If other women find a guy to be a ‘good bet’ it provides her a short cut to getting to intimacy. Again, Hypergamy cannot afford to miss out on a socially confirmed ‘good bet’. And yes, this is also a vulnerability in women’s vetting process that men with good Game regularly exploit.

So, the tradeoff is this: when a woman is at her peak sexual market value (SMV) she has the leisure to fuck the winners at the finish line. The more her SMV decays the fewer her options become, and the more likely it is that her necessity requires her to make a ‘bet’ on a man’s future potential. This is the primary reason women opt for the Beta in Waiting around her Epiphany Phase. Necessity forces her to go with good potential.

One of the ways feminism and female-primacy sabotages women’s ability to vet for good potential is in the mythology surrounding their sexual viability as they get older. Social conventions constantly reinforce the false idea that a woman’s SMV is indefinite – and by extension her agency over men should also be indefinite. This is why Blank Slate idealism and Social Constructionism are a preferred mythology for women. Without the Blank Slate a woman would be forced to accept the evolved realities of her sex. The Blank Slate is a prime source of women’s solipsistic denial of her own nature.

Turnkey Men

Do women care about the struggle? Do women ever appreciate the sacrifices a man must make to facilitate their own realities? I explored this topic a long time ago in Appreciation and I’m still going with my old assessment, no.

It may be that a man of Rich Cooper’s age, affluence and status only attracts the ‘finish line girls’ because he’s already a made man. He’s an attractive catch because he’s already a proven commodity. Thus, he tends to attract women who are looking for a ‘Turnkey’ man with an established world into which they want to move.

I should also add that most middle aged women, past their sexual prime and well past any long term potential they may’ve had themselves universally look for the ‘Turnkey’ man – once they’re done playing cougar immediately after their divorce. This is another illustration of women’s sexual strategy from the post-Wall side. Alpha Fucks – Beta Bucks never changes, only the context does. Post divorce women go through a second Epiphany Phase right after the divorce. Play cougar and fuck the fun college guys if they can because it’s easy, but be on the lookout for a ‘Turnkey’ winner who’s still ignorant of his Blue Pill conditioning at 45.

Whether it’s a woman in her late 20s or a post-Wall ‘mature woman‘ a man’s struggles to become her ideal is largely irrelevant to her. WHile women are speculators with respect to men it’s the end result of those struggles that’s the operative for her. Almost every woman who disagreed in the Twitter thread above all had some success story of how their brilliant feminine intuition led to them investing in the man they’re so proud to call a husband now. None of them were about how they made a horrible mistake in betting their future on a losing horse. So it’s important to see how the results skew for women.

Women will readily make claims on Relational Equity as an insurance against his leaving her later, once he’s achieved that potential. His struggle and her bearing through it with him is only important in that it produced the positive results she’d hoped for. That ‘dedication’ of seeing it through is her relationship insurance. It’s why women despise and reinforce the “trophy wife” meme. It’s prime indignation to have a man betray her speculation on him by rewarding a younger, hotter, tighter woman at the finish line.

Your struggle is her burden despite you having to bear it under duress of her abandoning you if you failed. Women will never appreciate the sacrifices a man makes to facilitate a reality, her sexual/life strategy, she believes was always her due. You just did what you were supposed to do as a man. Women believe it is their due to pair with a man who is worthy of her social media inflated ego. If that sounds harsh remember that women regularly bemoan the lack of men who are their “equal partners” in both money and education well after their prime SMV years are past.

Finally, the reason the finish line metaphor is apt is because more women than ever are postponing marriage in the expectation that ‘Turnkey’ made men will be waiting and available when they hit 31-33 years old, rather than investing in men with good potential in their early to mid 20s. Doing so would mean sacrificing their peak SMV Party Years when someone like Sheryl Sandberg convinces them to wait for the ‘Right Guy‘. It’s simple pragmatism for a woman not to bet her reproductive future on an unproven commodity so early in life. If she does, and it works out for the best, she’s practically sainted by the Sisterhood for her prudence and sacrifice for him. Behind every great man is a woman, right?

But if she chooses unwisely and her life goes to hell she’s wasted her own potential on a bad bet. Social conventions can mitigate this of course. Men can always be blamed for her downfall, but she’s still saddled with the consequences of that bad bet. And it is exactly these consequences of a bad Hypergamous choice that the Feminine Imperative will bend all its power to legally and socially insure against for women (i.e. legal abortion, child support laws, #MeToo, the Duluth Model of feminism).

All of this is why women are pushing their decision to marry, if at all, back to older and older ages. The average age of first marriage today is 27-28 for women, and the overall marriage rate has been in free-fall for decades now. This is why. This evolved dynamic is conflicting with our present age’s social imperatives for women and the falsehoods they are conditioned to believe about their sex from the earliest ages.

If you liked this topic you can also listen to my discussion about it with Donovan Sharpe here:

As we head toward summer this round, I’m noticing a trend – corner to corner crochet! It’s been popular for a few years now, but this is the first time I think we’ve had 3 different C2C patterns to share. Get all 5 of these gorgeous patterns below – and then add your own to [...]

The post Hookin On Hump Day #191: A Yarny Link Party! appeared first on moogly. Please visit www.mooglyblog.com for this post. If you are viewing this on another site they have scraped the content from my website without permission. Thank you for your support.

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Sanrio has announced the premier for the second season of Aggretsuko. The new season will premier on Netflix June 14.

Aggretsuko tells the tail of Retsuko, a hard working red panda stuck in her office job overseen by her overbearing supervisors. She is not only conflicted by her job, but also by her attempts to balance a social life.  However Retsuko channels her inner rage through singing/screaming Metal karaoke.

The following preview images were released along with the premier announcement:

I enjoy running Keep on the Borderlands with new players, however I find myself wanting to embellish the area map more and more the more I play it. I believe it is well known at this point that old pulp stories provide a better resource for stocking a wilderness map than either fantasy novels from after 1980 or rpg supplements. For those that are still not convinced, I offer this example.

Rather than start the classic module at the keep where the players can buy equipment and collect rumors, I want to play out part of the travelling that happens before they get there.

On the road to the keep, the players encounter a bedraggled survivor of a caravan that was destined for the keep. He tells of veritable army of bandits that emerged from the forest, ransacking and plundering the goods, killing the troops that were meant to relieve the forces of the keep, and kidnapping the merchants and artisans. And the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the warriors with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.

The players have to decide whether to continue on the road and risk being waylaid by a superior force… or perhaps go around.

Now… to the north of the road, there is a random encounter table loaded up with mostly cannibals. (Give a 1-6 chance for a bear, spider, or wolf– otherwise it’s cannibals!) If the players strike off into the forest they will stumble across this grisly scene:

In a wide clearing, on a rather bold incline stood a grim stake, and to this stake was bound a thing that had once been a man. Kane had rowed, chained to the bench of a Turkish galley, and he had toiled in Barbary vineyards; he had battled red Indians in the New Lands and had languished in the dungeons of Spain’s Inquisition. He knew much of the fiendishness of man’s inhumanity, but now he shuddered and grew sick. Yet it was not so much the ghastliness of the mutilations, horrible as they were, that shook Kane’s soul, but the knowledge that the wretch still lived.

For as he drew near, the gory head that lolled on the butchered breast lifted and tossed from side to side, spattering blood from the stumps of ears, while a bestial, rattling whimper drooled from the shredded lips.

Kane spoke to the ghastly thing and it screamed unbearably, writhing in incredible contortions, while its head jerked up and down with the jerking of mangled nerves, and the empty, gaping eye-sockets seemed striving to see from their emptiness. And moaning low and brain-shatteringly it huddled its outraged self against the stake where it was bound and lifted its head in a grisly attitude of listening, as if it expected something out of the skies.

If the players want to follow this up, they will find the village “Bogonda, ruled by Kuroba the chief and Goru the priest.” They’ll be attacked by harpies on the way there, of course. And have to figure out what to do with a village penned in with harpies exacting an awful tribute on one side and merciless cannibals hemming them in on the other.

Meanwhile, to the southwest lies city of Ib. This is the closest thing to civilization that the players could reasonably get to if they would like to look for reinforcements.

It is told that in the immemorial years when the world was young, before ever the men of Sarnath came to the land of Mnar, another city stood beside the lake; the grey stone city of Ib, which was old as the lake itself, and peopled with beings not pleasing to behold. Very odd and ugly were these beings, as indeed are most beings of a world yet inchoate and rudely fashioned. It is written on the brick cylinders of Kadatheron that the beings of Ib were in hue as green as the lake and the mists that rise above it; that they had bulging eyes, pouting, flabby lips, and curious ears, and were without voice. It is also written that they descended one night from the moon in a mist; they and the vast still lake and grey stone city Ib.

To the south there is a strange mausoleum:

And so they passed through the jungle until they came to a strange clearing among the giant trees—strange because nothing grew there. The trees ringed it in a disquieting symmetrical manner, and no lichen or moss grew on the earth, which seemed to have been blasted and blighted in a strange fashion. And in the midst of the glade stood the mausoleum.

A great brooding mass of stone it was, pregnant with ancient evil. Dead with the dead of a hundred centuries it seemed, yet Kane was aware that the air pulsed about it, as with the slow, unhuman breathing of some gigantic, invisible monster.

To the southeast the players will eventually stumble across the bandit’s camp. The players could attempt to infiltrate it and rescue captives or else try some other insane scheme.

How much should you prep for this scenario…? Eh, D&D is not that complicated. Make something up! You don’t know which way the players will go or if they will bypass most of this altogether. The point is to throw all this at them as the need for it arises and then see what they are most into playing. Read the three pulp stories referenced here before the game. Be prepared to wing it. Do additional prep if any of this strikes a note with the players.

It’s okay if the players ignore all of this and instead make for the keep as quick as they can manage. There’s nothing wrong with looting the Caves of Chaos instead! Of course, if they want to sell certain offbeat magic items, the City of Ib is going to be their best bet. And getting additional gear at the keep is going to be tough until those bandits are dealt with!

Plus, see the cover to Absolute Carnage: Scream #2!

 

New York, NY—May 20, 2019—This summer, everyone is a target in ABSOLUTE CARNAGE, Marvel’s epic summer event!

 

At the Diamond Retailer Summit in Las Vegas this past weekend, Marvel announced upcoming ABSOLUTE CARNAGE tie-in titles debuting this August, including the new limited series SCREAM, featuring the return of a classic symbiote…the daughter of Venom! Check out all the covers for the tie-ins announced below, along with a handy checklist to make sure you don’t miss any of these exciting stories!

 

Don’t miss these thrilling tie-in adventures to the deadliest story in the Marvel Universe, available at your local comic shops this August!

 

VENOM #17

Written by DONNY CATES

Art by IBAN COELLO

Cover by KYLE HOTZ

 

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE VS. DEADPOOL #1 (of 3)

Written by FRANK TIERI

Art by MARCELO FERREIRA

Cover by TYLER KIRKHAM

 

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE: LETHAL PROTECTORS #1 (of 3)

Written by FRANK TIERI

Art by ALBERTO JIMENEZ ALBURQUERQUE

Cover by BENGAL

 

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE: MILES MORALES #1 (of 3)

Written by SALADIN AHMED

Art by FEDERICO VINCENTINI

Cover by CLAYTON CRAIN

 

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE: SCREAM #1 (of 3)

Written by CULLEN BUNN

Art and Cover by GERARDO SANDOVAL

 

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE: SEPARATION ANXIETY #1

Written by CLAY McLEOD CHAPMAN

Art by BRIAN LEVEL

Cover by PHILIP TAN

ARCHIE BY NICK SPENCER VOL. 1 (TR)
Nick Spencer (Amazing Spider-Man), Marguerite Sauvage and Sandy Jarrell (DC Bombshells) begin a brand new era of our flagship series as they take a trip to Riverdale and bring the town along for a wild ride complete with new mysteries, new relationships, and much more! Collects Archie issues #700 – #704 of the ongoing series.
Script: Nick Spencer
Art: Marguerite Sauvage, Sandy Jarrell, Matt Herms, Jack Morelli
Cover: Marguerite Sauvage
978-1-68255-783-9
$17.99 US/$19.99 CAN
6 5/8 x 10 3/16”
TR
144 pp, Full Color
Direct Market On-Sale Date: 8/21

 

ARCHIE: THE MARRIED LIFE – 10th ANNIVERSARY #1 (of 6)
10 years later, a landmark moment in Archie Comics history is being revisited! ARCHIE: THE MARRIED LIFE 10th ANNIVERSARY, is a sequel to the headline-making 2009 “Archie Wedding” storyline. The original storyline written by Michael Uslan answered Riverdale’s longest-running question: will Archie marry Betty or Veronica? Fans were treated to two alternate worlds that explored each possibility and Uslan’s sequel picks up both stories ten years later. See how much life has changed for Archie, his family, and the rest of Riverdale in this new and exciting mini-series.
Script: Michael Uslan
Art: Dan Parent, J. Bone, Glenn Whitmore, Jack Morelli
ARCHIE: TML – 10th #1 CVR A Reg: Dan Parent
ARCHIE: TML – 10th #1 CVR B Var: J. Bone
ARCHIE: TML – 10th #1 CVR C Var: Francesco Francavilla
ARCHIE: TML – 10th #1 CVR D Var: Robert Hack, Kelly Fitzpatrick
ARCHIE: TML – 10th #1 CVR E Var: Aaron Lopresti
Ship Date: 7/24
On Sale Date: 8/7
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.

 

ARCHIE AND ME JUMBO COMICS DIGEST #20
BRAND NEW STORY: “Summer Bucket List” Archie, Betty and Veronica are determined to cross off all the items on their summer bucket list before school starts—no matter how daring and adventurous the tasks may be!
Script: Bill Golliher
Art: Bill Golliher, Jim Amash, Glenn Whitmore, Jack Morelli
Cover: Bill Galvan, Ben Galvan, Rosario “Tito” Peña
Ship Date: 7/31
On Sale Date: 8/14
192-page, full color comic
$6.99 U.S.

 

ARCHIE MILESTONES JUMBO COMICS DIGEST #4
Archie Comics has been around for over 75 years, and we’ve had our finger on the pulse of pop culture the entire time! This fourth issue of the brand new digest series takes Archie and his friends back to school, as well as a look at some of the best pals vs. gals stories and Riverdale’s unending commitment to staying on top of the newest fads and trends!
Script: Various
Art: Various
Cover: Bob Montana
Ship Date: 8/7
On Sale Date: 8/21
192-page, full color comic
$6.99 U.S.

 

ARCHIE 1000 PAGE COMICS JUBILEE (TR)
Get ready for a fun-filled JUBILEE with over 100 of Archie’s most hilarious and entertaining stories!
Script: Various
Art: Various
Cover: Dan Parent
978-1-68255-781-5
$14.99 US/$16.99 CAN
4 7/8 x 6 9/16”
TR
1000 pp, Full Color
Direct Market On-Sale Date: 8/14

 

ARCHIE VS. PREDATOR 2 #2 (of 5)
Our trios (new and old) are getting to know each other better—like Classic Betty and Veronica discovering that the newer versions of themselves actually AREN’T both trying to win over Archie’s affections. There’s a lot to take in in this brave, new world, but they’ve got a more pressing issue to deal with: Predator-Archie is quickly turning back into a Predator, and time is running out. Fortunately, the Riverdale Halloween Dance may be just the cover the gang(s) need.
Script: Alex de Campi
Art: Robert Hack, Kelly Fitzpatrick, Jack Morelli
AVP 2 #2 CVR A Reg: Robert Hack, Kelly Fitzpatrick
AVP 2 #2 CVR B Var: Howard Chaykin, Wil Quintana
AVP 2 #2 CVR C Var: Bill Galvan, Ben Galvan, J.J. Harrison
AVP 2 #2 CVR D Var: Rebekah Isaacs, Matt Herms
AVP 2 #2 CVR E Var: Greg Smallwood
AVP 2 #2 CVR F Var: Michael Walsh
Ship Date: 8/14
On Sale Date: 8/28
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.

 

BETTY & VERONICA JUMBO COMICS DIGEST #276
BRAND NEW STORY: “What if Betty was the Rich One?” This “What If?” scenario features a classic role reversal for the girls—with Betty being a rich socialite, and Veronica as the girl-next-door!
Script: Bill Golliher
Art: Dan Parent, Rich Koslowski, Jack Morelli, Glenn Whitmore
Cover: Jeff Shultz, Rosario “Tito” Peña
Ship Date: 8/14
On Sale Date: 8/28
192-page, full color comic
$6.99 U.S.

 

B&V FRIENDS JUMBO COMICS DIGEST #273
BRAND NEW STORY: “What if Betty and Veronica Had Magical Powers?” This “What If?” scenario sees B&V casting magical spells and making mystical mayhem!
Script: Bill Golliher
Art: Dan Parent, Rich Koslowski, Jack Morelli, Glenn Whitmore
Cover: Jeff Shultz, Rosario “Tito” Peña
Ship Date: 8/7
On Sale Date: 8/21
192-page, full color comic
$6.99 U.S.

 

JUGHEAD THE HUNGER VS. VAMPIRONICA #4 (of 5)
Jughead and Vampironica now know how to set their respective realities right thanks to a most unexpected guest star—and the solution involves the very haunted history of Riverdale itself! The question is, have they bitten off more than they can chew (pun intended) as the newly arrived hordes of vampires try to end them both?
Script: Frank Tieri
Art: Pat and Tim Kennedy, Joe Eisma, Bob Smith, Matt Herms, Jack Morelli
JTH VS. VAMP #4 CVR A Reg: Pat and Tim Kennedy, Bob Smith, Matt Herms
JTH VS. VAMP #4 CVR B Var: Dan Panosian
JTH VS. VAMP #4 CVR C Var: Matthew Taylor
Ship Date: 8/14
On Sale Date: 8/28
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.

 

JUGHEAD’S TIME POLICE #3 (of 5)
Jughead meets Jughead! What does this other, older Jughead want with our crowned hero, and what does January McAndrews know that she’s not telling him? It’s up to present-day Jughead to change courses and journey in the opposite direction—to the past, the distant past!
Script: Sina Grace
Art: Derek Charm, Matt Herms, Jack Morelli
JUGHEAD’S TIME POLICE #3 CVR A Reg: Derek Charm
JUGHEAD’S TIME POLICE #3 CVR B Reg: Ryan Jampole
JUGHEAD’S TIME POLICE #3 CVR C Reg: Darick Robertson, Matt Herms
Ship Date: 8/7
On Sale Date: 8/21
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.

 

KATY KEENE (TR)
Katy Keene, model/actress/singer extraordinaire, has been an inspiration for the fashion-conscious for years! Now, Archie Comics is pleased to bring you a collection of some of Katy’s most wonderful stories! Katy certainly has her hands full with the Hollywood lifestyle she has. Glitz and glamour, famous boyfriends and runway rivals make for quite a balancing act! Can she keep it together and keep her fans wowed?
Script: Various
Art: Various
Cover: Bill Woggon
978-1-68255-785-3
$10.99 US/$11.99 CAN
5 ¼ x 8”
TR
224 pp, Full Color
Direct Market On-Sale Date: 8/28

 

WORLD OF ARCHIE JUMBO COMICS DIGEST #91
BRAND NEW STORY: “Rainy Day Beach Blues!” It has been raining for two weeks straight, and Betty is upset that she hasn’t been able to go to the beach. Archie gets a great idea – he would create an indoor fake beach for her to enjoy during the rainy day! Will this be a fun day away from the sun, or will Archie end up all wet?
Script: Francis Bonnet
Art: Jeff Shultz, Bob Smith, Glenn Whitmore, Jack Morelli
Cover: Pat and Tim Kennedy, Bob Smith, Rosario “Tito” Peña
Ship Date: 7/24
On Sale Date: 8/7
192-page, full color comic
$6.99 U.S.

Wayback in 98 I quit Dungeons & Dragons for a time to run the Stormbringer rpg. The local Dungeon & Dragons player scene had dried up & those that remained wanted something different.White Dwarf Magazine, Issue 80  from 1986 has one of my favorite adventures,Ancient & Modern is the first part of a two-part adventure for AD&D and/or Call of Cthulhu by Graham Staplehurst. This adventure wasNeedleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11243274667834930867noreply@blogger.com0

TITLE: PUNCHLINE #4
PUBLISHER: Antarctic Press
WRITER: Bill Williams
ILLUSTRATOR: Matthew Weldon
COLORS: Tiagp Barsa
LETTERS: Bill Williams
EDITOR: Megan Sloane
COVER: Matthew Weldon
PRICE: $3.99
RATING:
WEBSITE: http://www.antarctic-press.com/index.html
SUMMARY: Unwanted Help
Mel and her friends gather to hold a wake for her career as a costumed crime-fighter. The next day, sporting an epic hangover, Mel dives right into Jessie’s personal life in a misguided attempt to bond with her new partner.
COMMENTS: As always we get to see a little more of Mel and not enough to get a full picture of who she is. Jessie is also beginning to question if Mel is one of the good guys. We get to see a little more of what Jessie’s family drama is all about. The strength of this comic is the panel work and facial expressions. It’s a very decompressed story about training a superhero. So far the trainer is flawed, and the student is coming around slowly. However, I get the feeling we are missing a large part of the puzzle that will become a big revelation as the story goes on.

What Will Napoleon Do to Save Pedro from Being Impeached?
“Whatever He Feels Like He Wants to Do… GOSH!”

SAN DIEGO, CA (May 20, 2019) – Get ready for something more delicious than a pocketful of tots: the breaking news that IDW Publishing will be bringing Napoleon Dynamite, the beloved cult classic, to comic books in September!

Written by the sibling team of Carlos Guzman-Verdugo and Alejandro Verdugo (of the outrageous indie sensation Time Cheetah), with art by Jorge Monlongo (Adventure Time), the new four-issue Napoleon Dynamite series takes us back to Idaho, where Napoleon’s best friend Pedro is student body president. But the good times might not last when a fellow student accuses Pedro of cheating in the election. Can Napoleon and Deb use their special skills to clear their friend before the principal can “Impeach Pedro”?

“Napoleon Dynamite is a pop-culture staple, a coming-of-age cult classic that spoke to the weirdo in all of us,” says Alejandro Verdugo. “It’s an honor to have the chance to expand on the lives of Napoleon, Deb, and Pedro — characters that continue to resonate to this day. I still see people wearing ‘Vote for Pedro’ t-shirts!”

“With this new story, we’re focusing on matching the movie’s unique tone, finding that perfect blend of oddball comedy and charming slice-of-life drama. It’s certainly been a challenge but one we’re sure will pay off for long-time fans. And the best part: we get to rewatch a lot of Napoleon Dynamite!” says Carlos Guzman-Verdugo.

Editor Tom Waltz says, “Fifteen years ago, an unsuspecting world was introduced to the bizarre cinematic world of Napoleon Dynamite… and it was flippin’ sweet! And now we have the freakin’ awesome opportunity to show off our really good comic-book-making skills with a tale that picks up right where Napoleon and his friends left off. It’s almost like we borrowed Uncle Rico’s mail-order time machine… and it actually worked this time!”

Napoleon Dynamite #1 will debut with a cover by Sara Richard (My Little Pony), with special Photo Edition and Jorge Monlongo “Swords and Sorcery and Sci-Fi and Skills” variant covers available, as well.

VAMPLETS: THE UNDEAD PET SOCIETY collects
three VAMPLETS one-shots leading up to
NIGHTMARE NURSERY VOLUME 4!

VAMPLETS: THE UNDEAD PET SOCIETY TPB
Writer(s): Gayle Middleton, Dave Dwonch
Artist Name(s): Amanda Coronado, Dave Dwonch,
Anna Lencioni, Penny Gaylord
Cover Artist(s): Amanda Coronado
96 pgs./ E / FC
$9.99

VAMPLETS: THE UNDEAD PET SOCIETY TPB collects three zany adventures of the Vamplets, vampire babies that love causing mischief! Each adventure reveals more about these beloved creatures in the nightmarishly fun world of Gloomvania. For fans of My Little Pony with a Nightmare Before Christmas flare to it, look no further than VAMPLETS! This is the perfect jumping on point for new readers and a great time for fans looking forward to the fourth hardcover to catch-up with our cuddly Vamplets!

The first story this trade paperback collects is “Legend of the Ghost Pony”. This tale unveils the mysteries of the Ghost Pony and their connection to a vampyre baby named Lily Rose Shadowlyn. In the second story, “Beware the Bitemares,” the Vamplets’ pet Bitemares are reeking havok across Gloomvania and their connection with Cinder the Vampyre Kitten is revealed! And in the final story, “Scary Rottens,” the Vamplets are being watched over by their new babysitter Scary Rottens. Meanwhile, someone is stealing the different Ghost Pony’s all over Gloomvania. Who could it be?!

Explore the mysterious connections across Gloomvania in VAMPLETS: THE UNDEAD PET SOCIETY TPB, available in comic book stores on July 3rd, 2019. Pre-order the trade with the Diamond order code MAY191283.

The Vampire With A Soul Reimagined In Thrilling and Historic New Comic Book Series in July 2019

LOS ANGELES, CA (May 20, 2019) – BOOM! Studios in partnership with 20th Century Fox Consumer Products today revealed the cover of the latest issue of the highly praised reimagining of the brooding vampire – ANGEL #3 by all-star creative team of  acclaimed writer Bryan Edward Hill (Batman, American Carnage) and Gleb Melnikov (Saban’s Go Go Power Rangers), along with visionary writer and director Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Marvel’s The Avengers), available July 31, 2019.

Meet Angel – a vampire cursed with a soul who has spent centuries protecting humanity from the monsters that lurk in the dark…including himself. Now, looking for redemption for the atrocities committed by the monster he was when he was first turned at the age of 18, Angel stumbles upon a new demon uprising and a shocking truth: The restoration of his humanity can only come if he takes one more life: a certain Slayer from Sunnydale who he’s never met…but may now be his greatest enemy.

Darkness has possessed another innocent…and Angel has no choice but to fight them. Trapped in an empty hospital with nowhere to go, Angel needs to find a way to save the host from this deadly and elusive demon, or have yet another life on his conscience. Will his new ally Fred be able to help him…or is she the reason he’s battling this monster in the first place?

ANGEL #3 features a main cover by artist Dan Panosian (Slots) and a variant cover by Scott Buoncristiano (Buffy the Vampire Slayer).

Created by visionary writer and director Joss Whedon (Marvel’s The Avengers film franchise), Angel premiered on the WB Network on October 5th, 1999 and was a spin-off from Buffy The Vampire Slayer. The series ran for five seasons from 1999-2004, starring David Boreanaz as “Angel,” the tortured vampire destined to walk the earth with a soul who moved to LA to set up shop as a supernatural private investigator. Despite Angel’s best efforts to deal with the sins of his past all by himself, Angel Investigations soon became home to other lost souls searching for redemption and willing to fight by his side.

ANGEL is the newest release from BOOM! Studios’ eponymous imprint, home to critically acclaimed original series, including Once & Future by Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora; Faithless by Brian Azzarello and Maria Llovet; Abbott from Saladin Ahmed and Sami Kivelä; Bury The Lede from Gaby Dunn and Claire Roe; Grass Kings from Matt Kindt and Tyler Jenkins; and Klaus from Grant Morrison and Dan Mora. The imprint also publishes popular licensed properties including Joss Whedon’s Firefly from Greg Pak and Dan McDaid; Buffy The Vampire Slayer from Jordie Bellaire and David Lopez; and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers from Ryan Parrott and Danielle Di Nicuolo.

Print copies of ANGEL #3 will be available for sale on July 31, 2019 exclusively at local comic book shops (use comicshoplocator.com to find the nearest one). Digital copies can be purchased from content providers, including comiXology, iBooks, Google Play, and the BOOM! Studios app. Print copies of the surprise drop ANGEL #0 are available now exclusively in comic book shops everywhere.

For continuing news on ANGEL comic books, graphic novels and more from BOOM! Studios, stay tuned to www.boom-studios.com and follow @boomstudios on Twitter. And follow Angel on Facebook.

Battlestar Galactica: Twilight Command #4

writer: Michael Moreci

artist: Breno Tamura, Dijjo Lima

covers: Brent Schoonover (A)

Breno Tamura (B)

Brent Schoonover (RI-B/W)

Breno Tamura (RI-Virg)

Brent Schoonover (RI-Virg)

FC | 32 pages | Sci-Fi | $3.99 | Teen+

Things heat up in the penultimate issue of Twilight Command! One of Flores’s own puts his life on the line for his squad, and the Cylon plot proves to be much more of a threat than anyone imagined!

A desperate mission puts Twilight Command’s back against the wall, and with time running out they may not be able to stop Cavil’s

plan in time!

Elvira Spring Special

writer: Fernando Ruiz, Dan Parent, Scott Bryan Wilson

artist: Fernando Ruiz, Dan Parent, Valentina Pinto, Brittany Pezzillo

cover: Reilly Brown

$4.99

Everyone’s favorite Mistress of the Macabre, Elvira is spinning her wheels hostessing horror film festivals at the local drive-in when she discovers the opportunity to get in good with George Rottmero, producer of the greatest, grittiest, most realistic horror movies ever. The Dark Damsel uses all of her charms to impress the mysterious movie mogul and she is immediately cast in his latest scream-inducing spectacles, his masterpieces of murder and mayhem featuring the most realistic zombies anyone ever saw this side of an open casket! When she discovers the grave secret behind Rottmero’s success, her dreams of super stardom might become deader than her undead co-stars! Will all of her efforts just be one big bust… because Elvira knows all about big busts!

James Bond: Blackbox TP

writer: Benjamin Percy

artists: Rapha Lobosco

cover: Dominic Reardon

FC | 160 pages | Action/Adventure | $19.99 | Teen+

COLLECTING ISSUES 1-6

In the snowbound French Alps, James Bond finds himself in the crosshairs of an assassin who targets other assassins. This is the first puzzle piece in a larger adrenaline-fueled mystery that will send Bond across the globe to infiltrate the underworld, risk everything in high-stakes casino gambling, evade deadly pursuers, and root out a digital breach threatening global security.

The ruins of Unity city are a testament to the incredibly subtle protection the ancients had in place that failed. A wide variety of faux Egyptian obelisks scattered throughout California in the pattern of Orion's belt. These  stood as occult barriers to the other dimensional forces & supernatural horrors that lurked just outside of the local space time in the lower strata of the Needleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11243274667834930867noreply@blogger.com0