deerstalker

https://nerdist.com/article/outstanding-one-page-rpgs-you-can-play-in-a-single-night/

There are some tabletop role-playing game sessions that are absolutely legendary. Dungeons & Dragons campaigns that are played for months, or even years, aren’t unusual. But what if you only have one night to fit in character creation and an epic adventure? That’s where one-page role-playing games come in! Designed to tell a complete and satisfying narrative in just a matter of hours, these micro-RPGs are often light on the rules and big on the fun.

We picked three one-page RPGs with simple rules to introduce you to the amazing universe of one-shot adventures. Play online or in person (one day) for a game night to remember.

Art by Kenny Webb and Maldo Illustration

Mundane Magic

Mundane Magic is a creative indie RPG by Lysa Penrose. A Game Master guides the three players, who take on the roles of the Fates, on a journey through space and time to interfere with the lives of mortals. No dice are needed unless you’re the Game Master. The GM will roll a single d6 to set up the game. Then it’s time to team up with your fellow Fates in some magical mayhem.

The three included scenarios for the Game Master are both mystical and ridiculous, as well as open-ended with a just few rules for managing all that mischief. Hone your inner crone and put on your best hag voice as you dive in to these hilarious adventures.

Super Overtime (The Ultimate Micro-RPG Book)

Adams Media

Have you ever wanted to be a super student in My Hero Academia? This is the one-page RPG for you! Super Overtime, one of the amazing role-playing games in The Ultimate Micro-RPG Book, comes from the brilliant mind of Omari Akil. The unique adventure puts you in the Hero Basketball League as a super-powered sports superstar. Choose your hero name, roll the dice to determine your powers, limitation, and motivation, and get ready for the Game Master to start the game clock.

The GM calls the action as you and your teammates roll to shoot their baskets in the final overtime of the championship game. Use your powers and your wits to describe the epic shots you’re taking. It’s hero vs. hero as you play to win it all!

Tales From the Corner Coven (The Ultimate Micro-RPG Book)

Adams Media

You and your fellow players are bodega cats in Tales from the Corner Coven. You’ll also find this bewitching adventure for four players in the pages of The Ultimate Micro-RPG Book. Jonaya Kemper crafted a compelling role-playing game of bodega cats in Brooklyn and the beasts that plague them. You’re tasked with performing a ritual to vanquish those creatures of the night before they succeed in their nefarious plans. The GM-less adventure begins with giving your kitty a pet name, their real name, an arcane power, and a corner store of their very own.

You’ll all take turns role-playing as the courageous kitties and the supernatural threats until one side emerges victorious. We want to play right meow.

The Ultimate Micro-RPG Book, edited by James D’Amato, has 40 innovative games to choose from. You’re certain to find the right role-playing adventures for you and your friends for unforgettable game nights together.

Kelly Knox is a freelance entertainment writer in Seattle, WA who writes for Star Wars, DC Comics, and more. Her first book, Marvel Monsters, comes out in 2021 from DK Books. 

The post Outstanding One-Page RPGs You Can Play in a Single Night appeared first on Nerdist.

https://www.themarysue.com/wonder-woman-1984-scene/

The virtual premiere for Wonder Woman 1984 hit the internet last night, and with it came fun moments with the cast and an exclusive first look. Showing the opening few minutes of the movie, the clip gives us a look at Lilly Aspell, who’s back as young Diana Prince and fighting in the Amazonian Olympics (an important part of Diana’s history).

The scene also shows Antiope giving a young Diana important advice on how to succeed. The fearsome Amazon tells the future Wonder Woman, “I’ve seen this contest humble even the most seasoned warriors, Diana. Just do your best and remember, greatness is not what you think.” It’s a vital message for all of us to hear right now.

Let’s take a look at the clip:

Anyone else crying? No? Just me and my little Diana Prince loving heart? Okay cool.

Diana has long been a hero, always will be, and this clip shows that she isn’t willing to back down, right from the start. But it also gives us a look into Antiope and her desire to keep Diana on the right path. Strength and power can lead so many into the wrong way of life, but what is inspiring about Diana’s story is that she constantly learning and trying to be the best hero and role model she can be.

I’ll be honest, I’ve seen the movie and while this scene is much longer in the film (and holds an important message) one thing is clear from this clip: Diana has always been a warrior. We saw it in Wonder Woman (2017) and it still rings true from this brief look into Wonder Woman 1984. She’s about to partake in the Amazonian Olympics and she doesn’t let it frighten her.

She is about to fight alongside grown warriors, the fiercest in the world, and she’s ready and she doesn’t care that she’s young. And it’s one of the reasons why Diana Prince is so important to me. She doesn’t give up. It’s why I don’t like Batman V. Superman and why I have a problem with how she’s depicted in Justice League. That Diana gave up. She stopped trying and that’s not who I look up to. That characterization never rang true until director Patty Jenkins began to tell Diana’s story.

Seeing Lilly Aspell bring Diana Prince to life again is also a treat because she brings such power and curiosity to the young hero. Watching just this short first look reminds the Wonder Woman fan in me why I love her so much.

Wonder Woman 1984 is streaming on Christmas Day for fans on HBO Max and it’s truly a perfect Christmas Day 2020 movie. Diana represents a hero who strives for truth and kindness. She’s a warrior, she’s the strongest among them, but she still has a lot to learn about the world—and a lot to show the world in return.

I can’t wait to see Wonder Woman 1984 again. Will you be watching on Christmas?

(image: Warner Bros.)

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The post We Got a Glimpse of Young Diana in a New Scene From Wonder Woman 1984! first appeared on The Mary Sue.

https://www.themarysue.com/hishe-iron-man-2/

Back in 2010, the world was introduced to Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) as she joined forces with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and introduced the idea of the Avengers to fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The problem? 10 years later and we’re still waiting for that Natasha Romanoff movie.

Sure, it is PARTLY to blame on the pandemic, because otherwise we would have had Black Widow already, but it is also … ten years later anyway.

In the new episode of How It Should Have Ended, we get a brief look at Iron Man 2 and how Nat could have stopped all of Ivan Vanko’s attacks because she was IN his computer room. It would have left us without the great Rhodey and Tony fight scene, but it does make the most sense.

Quickly though, the episode turns to the Superhero Cafe, where Superman and Batman are asking Tony and Nick Fury very legitimate questions about Natasha and the future of the MCU.

Honestly? Superman is right. People care, people are interested, and she deserved her time long before. “Sounds like a huge missed opportunity,” Superman says because Nick points out that the first female Avenger movie would go to Captain Marvel, and this is not a diss to Carol Danvers and her first foray into the MCU, but HE’S RIGHT.

It feels like a bit of a “oh, I see, unless they’re important to you and your storyline, you don’t care about the female heroes enough to give them their own movies” punch to the gut. Carol got her own movie because they needed Captain Marvel to take on Thanos. If they didn’t need her? We wouldn’t have even that.

But nearly every other Avenger got their time (with the exception of Clint), and it took Natasha 10 years and dying before she could even get hers. (And Bruce Banner had his chance, and now he’s getting another in She-Hulk, so he’s fine.) I’m glad that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is changing. I’m so excited to watch all these movies that are on the horizon and see where Disney+ takes some of my favorite heroes, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still suck that it took 10 years for Natasha Romanoff to get a movie, and now, it’s not going to get the time it deserves in theaters because of the pandemic (again, out of their control, but still).

Black Widow is a long time coming, and yeah, sure, maybe her time has passed, but I’m excited to finally see it, and I know that if this HISHE video had somehow come out back in 2010, I would have probably been upset but not surprised. Anyway, Nat could have easily stopped Vanko all on her own, and that is something we all know and need to recognize, so thanks, How It Should Have Ended!

(image: HISHE/screengrabbed)

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The post How It Should Have Ended Reminds Us That We Should Have Had a Black Widow Movie After Iron Man 2 first appeared on The Mary Sue.

http://www.thenerdelement.com/2020/12/12/some-more-disney-updates-and-more/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=some-more-disney-updates-and-more

Hi everyone! I have some important information about what you should know or be aware of about Disney. At Walt Disney World, Disney World will no longer digitally add face masks on ride photos. Florida’s Disney World reopened with new COVID-19 restrictions in July, one of which included wearing a face covering at all times except while eating or swimming. Park visitors who chose to not wear a mask while riding on attractions did not receive Photo Pass photos taken on the rides.

However, Walt Disney World News picked up on a private Dec. 6 Facebook group post noting that the theme park had begun digitally adding masks to riders’ faces after the fact.

In a photo posted on Facebook from Animal Kingdom’s Dinosaur ride, there is a group of four people up front and two in the back row. The woman in the back row has a black face mask over her face that appears to have been digitally added on. Since theme park-goers could be on a ride with people outside their group, if someone slipped their mask off covertly on the ride and were captured in the group photo, no one could get that photo. The digitally-added masks allowed for those in the photo properly wearing their face masks to get the photos. In the comments under the digitally imposed mask photo on Facebook, one person said she was glad Disney was adding masks because “it’s not fair to other people that want the picture and can’t get it because of someone else.”

But another member of the group defended the woman who was digitally masked in the photo, saying she might not necessarily be an anti-masker. “In response to guest requests, we tested modifying some ride photos. We are no longer doing this and continue to expect guests to wear face coverings except when actively eating or drinking while stationary,” Disney said in a statement provided by spokesperson Jacquee Wahler. It’s unclear whether photos with mask less riders will still be unavailable for purchase.

Less than two weeks after its Florida parks reopened, Disney World updated its policy to close some mask loopholes.

In addition to face masks, Disney World requires visitors to undergo a temperature check on arrival and observe social distancing guidance. Attractions that involve person-to-person contact or interactive activities remain closed. More frequent cleanings take place throughout the park, and visitors and employees are encouraged to wash their hands.

Coronavirus cases have surged in Florida since Disney World announced its reopening plans in late May. The state had more than 1 million cases as of Friday, according to the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 dashboard, up from 360,000 in July.

Walt Disney World is surveying guests about upcoming reservations, Disney park passes, and returning to “Normal” operations. A new Disney World survey is asking guests about upcoming reservations and what would most likely cause them to cancel their trips. The survey also asked why we chose September 2021 to visit Walt Disney World because they think that people would probably choose “anticipating being able to attend a seasonal Walt Disney World event” for the park’s 50^th anniversary on October 1, 2021. But they chose that we are hoping some Walt Disney World experiences would resume normal operations. The survey then asked what we were most anticipating the return of, with options like Fast Pass +, parades, Extra Magic Hours, and nighttime spectaculars. Finally, it asked which of our selections would most likely cause us to cancel our reservation. Other recent surveys asked about New Year’s Eve celebrations, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, and limited park capacity.

Over at Disneyland Resort, Disneyland has announced that they will be closed on Christmas Day for the first time in decades. The annual tradition of trying to figure out when Disneyland will close its gate because of holiday crowds between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day won’t take place in 2020 because of the global coronavirus pandemic.

Downtown Disney and the partially reopened Disney California Adventure will be closed on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, along with the gates of Disneyland and the doors of Disney’s three Anaheim hotels. Disneyland and Disney’s three Anaheim hotels have been closed for nine months by the COVID-19 pandemic with California theme parks expected to remain shuttered until early 2021 or next summer. Downtown Disney reopened in July and DCA’s Buena Vista Street returned for shopping and dining in November as an extension of the outdoor mall. Disneyland was forced to close outdoor dining restaurants in Downtown Disney and Buena Vista Street and furlough 350 employees because of the Southern California stay-at-home order in early December.

Disneyland resort President Ken Potrock announced the closure of Downtown Disney and Disney California Adventure on Christmas Day in a letter to cast members, Disney parlance for employees.

“For six decades, Christmas Day has always been a special time at the Disneyland Resort, where our cast members have welcomed generations of guests to make cherished memories,” Potrock said in the letter. “But this year is certainly different. Given the continued closure of our theme parks and hotels, and in alignment with typical Christmas operations at other retail locations and shopping centers, we have made the decision to close the Downtown Disney District, including Buena Vista Street, on Christmas Day.” In a normal year, Disneyland, DCA and Downtown Disney would be bustling on Christmas Day with annual passholders dropping by after opening their presents and the Disneyland Hotel, Disney’s Grand Californian and Paradise Pier Hotel filled to near capacity with holiday travelers in town during Christmas break. Of course, this isn’t a normal year. In 2019, Disneyland temporarily shut its gates on Dec. 27 as crowds filled the park and new visitors were directed to Disney California Adventure across the esplanade until attendance levels declined.

“We have temporarily stopped selling tickets to Disneyland Park,” the official Disneyland Today Twitter account said on Dec. 27, 2019. “As of 11:40 am, Disney California Adventure Park tickets remain available. Updates to follow.”

Disneyland closed its gates at 11:40 a.m. that day, less than 4 hours after the park opened. Disneyland diverted visitors to Disney California Adventure until later in the day when crowds were expected to diminish.

“Disneyland Park is currently at capacity,” Disneyland officials said last year. “Visiting the Disneyland resort during the holidays is a tradition for many people and on high demand days like today, we do all we can to welcome as many guests as possible.” Visitors who purchase a “divert ticket” with park-hopping access on Dec. 27, 2019 were able to visit Disneyland later in the day after starting at Disney California Adventure.

Disneyland occasionally halts visitors from entering when the park reaches capacity, which is estimated to be about 75,000 people. Disney doesn’t release attendance figures.

The holiday week between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day is typically one of the busiest times of the year at Disney’s Anaheim theme parks.

Touring Plans, which tracks wait times at theme parks, estimated crowds at Disneyland would be at peak levels during Christmas Week 2019 on Dec. 27-30.

Back on that busy day in 2019, Disney fans determined to visit the “Busiest Place on Earth” were met with longer than usual wait times for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run (125 minutes), Hyperspace Mountain (120 minutes) and Indiana Jones Adventure (110 minutes). This year, Potrock thanked Disneyland cast members for their service during a difficult 2020 as he presented them with an early gift: The day off on Christmas.

“I want to acknowledge all of our cast members for your impassioned dedication and service,” Potrock said in the letter. “We all look forward to next year, when we can again welcome guests back to spend Christmas Day at the Happiest Place on Earth. In the meantime, we wish you and your loved ones a wonderful and safe holiday season.

All of this information came from the Disney news I look at.

So, what do you guys think about all of this Disney information?!

I would like to hear some comments, concerns, thoughts, opinions, or questions down below!

Stay tuned for Disney updates!

The post Some More Disney Updates and More! appeared first on The Nerd Element.