Guest Blog: Black By Association

By Nino Malong, DHS Chief Artist Officer

It's taken me a minute to process everything that went on at Baltimore Comic Con 2015. Overall I had a great time. I had a chance to once again share a table with my fellow artists and to share my artwork with the public. During the three days of the Con, I also had the privilege to speak to legendary artists such as Bernie Wrightson, Stan Sakai, and Neal Adams. I even struck up the nerve (albeit with a little nudge from my friend Kevin Hunt) to show my work to Stan Sakai. I was hesitant at first because of a very bad experience I had years ago when I showed my work to an artist I respected and thought of very highly. That person ripped my work to shreds and it had taken years to build back my confidence. So fast forward to Baltimore, and I asked Mr. Sakai if he wouldn't mind taking a look at my work. He agreed and he began to look over the four prints I'd given him. I was looking at his portfolio, hoping he'd at least find one thing he liked. I wasn't prepared for the words that came out of his mouth.

"Oh my God, this is beautiful!" 

My day was made. I thanked him profusely and walked back to my table in a daze. My friends asked me how it went. "Stan Sakai looked at my work. He said it was beautiful," I said as I had that thousand yard stare still etched on my face. I barely remember the high fives that were exchanged but I was floating on clouds.

Then it crashed. Hard.

BBA... Say What?

Near the end of the day, a young White woman in her late twenties comes up to our table. She is friends with one of the other artists and she says something to the effect of possibly having a job/commission for him. I wasn't really paying that much attention except when she said something about coming up to our table because it was a table full of Black artists and the commission would be perfect for Black artists. My friend asked her, "Well what about him?", pointing at me. Without even looking my way she says, "Oh he's BBA. Black by association," and continues to talk as if nothing happened. My three other friends were stunned. "WTF?!" was my response and my anger was rising. I figured the best thing to do was walk away.

Even that angered me. The act of walking away and letting her White privilege run free and unchecked pissed me off. I was off to another table trying to cool down when she walked by me and out of her mouth came this little nugget:

"It's alright dude, I'm BBA too."
Yelled it. She actually yelled it.

That was it. I stopped her and said, "WTF did you say?!" and proceeded to lay into her. I asked her how did she think that that was in any way acceptable? She didn't know me. Didn't even bother to look my way. What, because I'm Asian, I'm passive and would let that slide? Am I one of those Michelle Malkin Asians that worship everything about White Supremacy and hate everything about my own people?

My culture? I'm Filipino. I was brought up in DC where I was the only Filipino in a predominantly African American school. It was through the love and support I received from the Black community that I was able to forge my own identity as a Filipino and as a person of color.  Being a person of color isn't a club you can join in just because you take up a cause as so many White hipsters so often do. It definitely does not give you license to disrespect any of us. She was surprised as hell that her words were even challenged and offered an empty apology. She extended her hand. I looked at that hand. I looked at her. "You apologized. I accept it, but you're not forgiven. Walk away." 

The last image I have of her was of her hurriedly walking down the center aisle into the darkness. That was Baltimore for me. Floating on a cloud one minute, checking Hipster White privilege the next. 

>> Interested in seeing Nino's beautiful work? We have a few of his pieces to share.

RPG Fridays: Do You Want to Build a Hero?

(Yes, I've made a Frozen/Big Hero 6 reference. Aiming for that parents-with-kids audience, I suppose.) 

I recently made my Shadowrun character for a group that I have yet to play with, and it was a blast. (Herolab, I love you!) OK. Geek moment... I made an elven gunslinger-adept in honor of my love of 80s - 90s John Woo films (A Better Tomorrow, Just Heroes, The Killer and Hard Boiled), and his runner name is from my favorite superhero character, Shadowstorm. Maybe I will post his bio next week? If you're lucky.

Here are my ideas for creating a truly awesome character:

#1 Eureka!

The basic element of creating a great character for any setting is to have a great idea (commence eye-rolling here). The idea does not need to be complete or complex; it can even be just a line of dialogue or a picture of what the character should look like..

For Shadowstorm, once I heard the game was based in Boston, I imagined an image of a black elf with mirrored shades leaping through the air, pulling off a Chow Yun Fat move against a room full of mobsters, Everything spiraled from there, and soon (very soon) he will see have his first in-character run!

#2 Gotta Have a Gimmick

This one is my favorite. It is a little bit of meta-gaming but will pay dividends in the end and make you a party crutch. The easiest example is: nearly 99% of all RPGs will have combat. It is the nature of the beast given gaming’s origins in war gaming. Combat does not necessarily mean a physical fight; combat could be witty banter for that Shakespearean Drama RPG (Trademark!, and this just became our fourth project…#2018!) you are playing in.

For a Changeling game back in college, where I played Wilder Sidhe, who was a TV star on a second-rate science fiction show called  Abyss, his prop gun was actually his fae lighting pistol. It was his only real combat ability (other than outwitting bad guys), but it was incredible to describe when he used it and very effective. It also had a level of versatility that made it effective outside of combat.

Even if you are playing a pacifist, you don’t need to sit out during combats. That drags down the game for everyone, sucking the energy out of the room, and generally includes people suddenly checking their Facebook or the GM getting frustrated that this dramatic moment has been sullied. The character could easily have learned a defensive fighting style that flips people onto their butts without causing any damage, or mastering dodging from a lifetime of avoiding fights.

In a near-future setting, your team of four investigators are jumped by six cyber-enhanced gangsters. Every time one swings a hydraulic-powered punch your way, you easily step under it and loop behind them, smiling. You ask them politely to stop, while your team fights them off. That aids the party by having one of the enemies attack you; they don’t have to protect you and it's fun to employ the swagger it takes to be in a deadly fight while smiling and diplomatically trying to ease the situation. As a GM, after a round or two, the gangsters would be freaked out enough to talk or just run away.

The most important part of this is having something that is fun and worthy of descriptions. This works for NPCs also. During my Star Wars game, the players ran into a race of bird-like women that were mentioned once before, and I had two of them as Hutt's body guards. The description of their combat prowess with vibrostaves was so great that two of the players asked for multiple sessions if they could play one of them. 

#3 The Crunch

The crunch is different for every system, most campaigns, and GMs, be it a standard Pathfinder campaign build with 15 points for stats or an EPIC Wild Talents game with 750 point characters (standard is around 200-300) that would crush the Avengers single-handedly.

This is where the skeleton of the character comes into play. What can they do? What are they good at? Are you Batman or Superman? A Street Samurai or Mage? A Mac or a PC?

This is the most important part of the character and needs to be tailored based on game.

#4 Tell Us About Yourself

Another fun part, bios should be short (less than a page and include #5 below). These are usually a little hard, as you don’t know how the game will play out but you'll also have incredible leeway. If your character rolled low for wealth and barely has any gear, it does not tie you to being poor. The back story could have you as a wealthy noble from a family in a different land, whose ship sank during a storm (or Kraken attack) and you washed ashore. Your measly possessions are all you found, which changes your entire character outlook. Or you could have simply been a farmer whose family died during the winter and you decide to make a better life for yourself. Both have the same issue of being poor but very different motivations and likely add to interactions with PCs and NPCs.

#5 A Healthy Dose of Plot-onium

This should be rolled into #4 and possibly #7, depending on the GM. This is where you, as a player, can help shape the campaign before it even starts. It also lets the GM know what kind of gaming experience you want and gives them the option to weave it into the story, if they so choose. 

Some GM’s use the 3 Questions, thanks to Chris and Order 66 podcast. This was a Star Wars staple for me, as some players did not really feel comfortable writing up bios. This tool is a great short cut and one that should be considered for new gamers or people unfamiliar with the setting:

1. What does your character Love? With a capital L. Even the most reviled, evil despot has something, somewhere they care about a great deal, and would give of themselves to protect - perhaps even sacrificing their life to protect and care for. This could be a friend, family member, or lover. Perhaps a homeworld, a group of people, or a village that once sheltered you. Maybe you have a soft-spot for kittens.

2. What does your character Hate? With a capital H. Even the most benevolent and well meaning character has something, somewhere they hate, would go out of their way to harm, or would irrationally distrust. This could be an individual in the character's past, or a group of people. Even a planet. Perhaps the character has a prejudice against Twi'leks, or has sworn to destroy the bounty hunter clan that destroyed his village as a child.

3. Why is your character willingly (and eagerly) working for the budding rebellion? Why is your character an active participant in what this group does, and willing to work with the rest of the party? Are they devoted to a cause? Do they have a simple love of credits? Are they devoted to stamping out a threat?

#6 Check Twice, Cut Once

Once you have completed your character and have all of the steps done, put it away and go do something else for at least a couple of hours, or go watch one of my top 10 movies.  Then come back and review what you have. That break allows a fresh look when you come back. Sometimes, some of those great ideas you have written aren’t something you would want to play for a campaign or maybe the character is too broadly drawn. Or you could have a better idea.

#7 Sharing is Caring

Provide a bit of description for your GM about your character or ask for feedback. For instance, with Shadowstorm, the last time I ran Shadowrun was around 2nd-3rd edition and that limited my knowledge of the Sixth world for my character history. I included that info for the GMs and asked for them to let me know if I needed to change anything. 

These are just the basic steps I take and obviously, thousands of others exist. Let me know what steps you take in the comments. 

Game on!

Sleepy Hollow *Was* a Good Show

Sleepy, sleepy, Sleepy Hollow. Let me start by saying that I loved the first season of Sleepy Hollow. I remember my friends telling me, "This is crap! Bleh! We love Supernatural, Vampire Diaries, etc..." But those did not speak to me. I watched Supernatural and enjoyed it from a distance, and think it should have ended after five seasons and not morphed into whatever it is now.

But Sleepy Hollow... It was a creepy Halloween show that was over the top, incredibly silly at moments, but draped in accessible horror. The show flipped the legend of Ichabod Crane on its head by casting him as an action hero, and it did the same with the cop drama by having the chief trust his detective (even with the crazy supernatural events).

Season 1 was AWESOME! I remember watching the pilot and seeing the Witnesses (what Abby and Ichabod will be called) have to outsmart or keep one step ahead of the Headless Horseman, who, akin to a Lovecraftian mythos creature or Dalek, was resistant to mundane weaponry. The only reprieve from the Horseman's wrath was the light of day. Due to the likely limited expectations, the show moved at a fast clip with the episodes and they threw real punches with plots. The chemistry between Beharie and Mison was electric. 

The most riveting part of the show was the casting. The incredibly diverse cast that was the core of the show and gave it its greatest strength. Featured are two strong, courageous and intelligent black female characters with a deep and complex relationship. They were friends, enemies and always sisters. The two women of color were coupled with the time-displaced action hero Ichabod, the only white member of the team, and rounded out with the determined, clever, family-man Captain. Even the supporting cast was diverse in terms of both race and gender.

It was television written to my demographic, or at least felt like that, as I watched it. Maybe it had the flexibility to be so diverse because Fox figured it was a one-off that no one would watch. I can envision the board members of suits right now: "Come on, Chad! It's a Halloween show. Let the cast be whoever." Unless of course Matt Damon is reading this and wants to tell me otherwise...

But it was a hit and they got another season.

When I read they wanted them to add four more episodes, my heart sank. That would mean watering down what worked on the show and the executives taking a more active role in the show, which rarely turns out well. But that did not dissuade me from the second season; so I watched it. By the third episode, I knew this was not my show anymore. I remember my friends saying how much they loved the show now, how it had gotten better. In my mind, it occurred to me all of that change happened when the cast whitened. I am not saying they consciously understood, as I do, that executives have subtly trained viewers as to what to expect, that anything that goes against that "norm" needs to be on a special network or at a dedicated time for "those" shows. But their praise grew for the show as did my disdain for it. 

Where was Frank? His family? Why is Abby a backseat character in her own show? What happen to my bad ass Jenny that was a double edged sword? Why do I care about this blond-haired second-rate Nathan Drake clone (I love the Uncharted Games and can't wait for the next game)? And WTF! Can we please lose Ichabod's "dead" wife.  Everyone is hoping for Abbey and Ichabod to get together . . . why the constant and frustrating romance roadblocks? (I won't lie, when they put Jenny and Frank together, I liked it. I liked it a lot and thought what a great pair that would have made. ) Don't say, "Because when TV couples get together it is boring." It is not boring; it just requires good writing and it is something that has been done countless times before. 

I suffered through Season 2 of the show, hoping beyond hope that they would pull it together. I hate what they did to Frank; Frank was my guy. I love Orlando Jones and was pleased to see him playing a serious role and killing it! At the end of Season 2, I turned to my lovely wife that listened to me moan throughout most of that season and said, "One more episode and then I am done." She kind of nodded with that "we will see" look, that I have become to which I have become accustomed.

This brings us to today. I watched Season 3, Episode 1: I, Witness, and that was my last episode. You know why if you have read this entire post, but for clarity's sake, let's do this. Let's start with the fact that Frank is totally off of the show; this mostly killed it for me but I had to try. All of the awesomeness has been sucked out of Jenny. It was nice to see Abby, Ichabod and Jenny interact and joke. But the moment that sexy swashbuckler Betty Ross appeared, I have to assume it is yet another stalling tactic against the Abby and Ichabod romance. I won't go into detail for fear of spoiling it for anyone that wants to watch it, but just know that you have one less geek to talk to about the show

I will be watching iZombie and loving it.

RPG Fridays: Top 3 Systems

I am currently working on a DHS-exclusive RPG and have been creating a new system mechanic. This is the toughest part so far. I have a great idea, and the words are kind of flowing out of me to create the setting and the three scenarios that will be included. I have even given Nino (our Chief Artist Officer) some basics about the general concept, but the system mechanic is taking some serious time and effort.

Last weekend, I pulled nearly every RPG I own off of the shelf and surrounded myself (thank you to my wife for not disturbing this epic fort of books in our living room).

I only wish my living room looked this cool.

For inspiration through osmosis, I flipped through each one to refresh myself on things I liked in other systems and was reminded about the joy of reading an RPG. Some of my friends and fellow gamer even got an email asking about their top 3 systems.   

So I asked myself the same question, and here's what I came up with:

#3: Vampire (White Wolf)

One word: AWESOME! The game of my youth, the system that I ran my epic six-year World of Darkness campaign (using all of the White Wolf supplements), and simultaneously ran a three-year Vampire: Dark Ages campaign.  The system is easy to learn for players; just add your stats and skills together to generate a die pool of d10s. Then roll against a set difficulty. Beautiful. Each additional setting book (Werewolf, Mage, etc.) added additional depth. Power sets built on that mechanic and they were mostly compatible with things like Rage for Werewolves and Blood Pool for Vampires. 

Yes, it was easy to break, but it really supported actual roleplaying. 

#2: Shadowrun

This will not come as a surprise for anyone that has been reading my blog, talked to me, or seen my gaming shelf.  I love sci-fi over fantasy--dark gritty futures and people operating on their own moral codes. So the setting instantly won me over. I played 2nd edition when it first came out and loved it.

That visceral thrill of rolling a hand full of d6s, and when you roll a 6, you get to reroll! It's much like the D6 (West End) Star Wars from back in the day, but Shadowrun wins for me due to a better health system, a more inclusive world, more character balance, and the skill matrix.  I am currently reading 5th edition and loving it. 

#1: Marvel Superheroes

My number one is more about nostalgia than anything else, but I would still run it today if I had the time and a group. But it would have to be the old school Marvel Superheroes (TSR).  Let's put the one less-than-stellar aspect of the game up front: character creation! Randomly rolling everything leads to superheroes like Spam (Resistance to Acid, Super Digging and Speed Reading!) with typical stats in everything else. So, in many cases we house ruled character creation. The general house rule was each person has four rerolls for character creation, a set number of points to build a character (like 300 - 400), and two free contacts. For instance, one of my favorite characters today:

Shadowstorm (Alec Winters) was a brilliant (near-Black Panther-level intellect) mutant whose main powers were weather control, regeneration and limited phasing. He was the son of Marcus Winters, the CEO of a multinational weapons manufacturing corporation. After the school for the gifted, and following graduation from college, Alec was placed as head of the special division to "toughen" him up. His father did not know he was a mutant. If he did, he would have turned him over to the government. This leads to a number of interesting stories with tough moral choices. 

The system itself was sooooo simple. All you need are percentile dice and the colorful chart that has all the info required. It is still the greatest superhero RPG to date and my favorite system. Even with my love of crunch, dice and skill trees.

Bonus Systems-of-Interest

Delta Green (there's still time to jump on the Kickstarter for the new edition) and Call of Cthulhu. Both of these are amazing systems with great settings. The new editions will soon be readily available and include incredible advancements that have streamlined a number of issues. I am proud to have been a Delta Green playtester. 

The Fate system is another great system. The use of aspects is empowering for the players and adds incredible roleplaying value. Why it did not make my top three? Character advancement is a real issue for the system. Heroes start strong but they don't really seem to get better. This can be great for short-term gaming but I am a campaign man, and I have to consider if my players want to be doing this in 6 months, 16 months or even 60 months. The first game I ever ran to introduce my wife into the wonderful world of gaming was a Fate game, Dresden Files DC. The character and city creation was intense and fun. 

Our System

For the moment, I am sitting in front of the proverbial drawing board. Does DHS make 1d13 (trademarked) its core die for the system? What about it stands out from all of the other amazing systems? So many choices and they are all good. Stay tuned and keep an eye out for our Kickstarter hopefully to launch in late 2015 or early 2016!

Have a favorite RPG system? Send me ideas!

My Perfect Justice League

It is a well-known fact (and when I say "well known," I mean well known to the entire world, clearly) that I am a Marvel and not a DC. But there's no reason not to give DC a little love. This one will be a bit harder with my relatively-limited knowledge of DC of compared to Marvel.  The Justice League of America is the premiere DC team and should reflect that status. The Marvel equivalent is, of course, the Avengers but they are more of a global team that deals with extraterrestrial threats, while the JLA is more of galactic-level force that deals with global and universal issues. A lot of these ideas demonstrate how DC and Marvel are different. 

DC characters, for the longest time, lacked the level of humanity and vulnerability that Marvel characters had. This is definitely what appealed to me more about Marvel. But DC characters have their charms too. 

The Team

Batman (Dick Grayson): The Leader
Why Dick? Dick takes all of the best parts of Batman (his detective skills, fighting and genius) and adds a layer of comradeship and humanity that Bruce never has. Dick may not be feared how Bruce is, but he would have the members of the team wanting to help him and listen because they are friends. Dick is the leader of my JLA because he has lead multiple teams, lived his life as a hero and grown into the mantel. The fact that he is not Bruce would also add a level of drama, as he would have to live up the man who came before him. 

Green Lantern (John Steward): The Projector
Part of the Green Lantern Corps . . . 'Nuff said.

Powergirl (Kara Zor-L): Powerhouse
Powergirl is Superman's equal, owns a massive corporation bringing in billions, is dating Mr. Terrific for some great subplots, and does not have a boy scout complex that frequently rubs teammates the wrong way. Not only is she the team powerhouse, but she could also be the face of the team based on her corporate experience. 

Mr. Terrific (Michael Holt): The Brains
Third smartest person on Earth and billionaire, with super science, medical training, and a master of Kung Fu. He is also dating Powergirl, which would add a nice romance subplot for the book. Michael's genius will be key for the a number of "issues" that would occur in the comic. 

Zatanna (Zatanna Zatara): Mystic
Zatanna is a mystic powerhouse. She is the premiere go-to mystic for any issue. 

Martian Manhunter (J'onn J'onzz): Backbone
Simply put, J'onn is the backbone of the JLA. He has been on most incarnations of the team, with near-Superman-level-strength, a master shapeshifter with an array of psychic powers. O . . . did I forget to  mention he can also phase? Pretty much a one-martian team. 

BONUS MEMBER:
Starman (Jack Knight): Fan Favorite
I love Jack and read the Starman comics when they came out, and would love to write the character. It would be interesting to write an older Jack Knight that has a kid back on Earth that is concerned that he is falling into his father's footsteps by disappearing for an extended period of time and no one knowing why. His story would be heartbreaking as he constantly tries to do anything to get home.

The Story (Short Version)

My vision for the recently-formed JLA? They are Zeta-beamed (teleported) without consent to Rann by Adam Strange. He believes that his world is about to have another Rann-Thanagar Holy War but there may still be time to stop it. He put out a call but no one responded and he needs to act quickly. The end of the first issue would involve the Zeta beam being destroyed and the heroes coming to the conclusion that they are stranded.

Over the course of the first story arc (roughly seven issues), they become embroiled in a political battle for leadership of a now-unstable Rann and piece the clues together that it is not the Thanagar, but an ancient evil race of aliens masquerading as them to cause the Rann people to start a war and fight on two fronts. The end of the first arc would detail that section of space being sealed off somehow by the ancient evil aliens.

The comic would run for three years in "real" time, meaning none of those characters could have crossovers or be on Earth until the end of the comic. This would give other DC comics a chance to take advantage of the absence of those heroes; the All-Star JLA would have to deal with the aftermath if and when they return to Earth. 

And then the question for the follow up series becomes: 
What happens to your life, loved ones and identity after you've vanished for three years?