Timewaster's Guide Archive

My fiancé is actually from McLean, and we'd like to move back there once we graduate this spring. It's a beautiful area, especially in the spring and fall although I found it a bit too hot and humid in the summer (could be because I'm originally from Upper Michigan...) But as others have said, there's not a lack of things to do in the area. The metro is great for getting in and out of DC if you're near a station, and there are plenty of Cons in the area. If you can get a job that'll let you afford to live there I highly recommend it.

But you have to admit, if they did it (which I personally think would be a bad idea), Weta Workshop would be the people to do it and at least make it look cool.

I'm not sure about how hard it would be to throw a knife as my aim has never been very good... It's something of a joke but when I throw something at one person, everyone else in the room tends to duck.

In my personal experience I've found that knife fighting is a lot more difficult for me than swordfighting, simply because I don't have the weight or skill to pull it off very well. In the "intro to knife fighting" classes, we're told to think of a knife fight basicly as grappling with a sharp pointy object. You're still going to be getting in close and doing throws, breaks, etc as well as stabbing. If you character is petit she may have some difficulty, but good technique can overcome weight differences. (My technique just isn't that good :p) Since it's a story, you can do whatever you want. Oh the brilliance of being a writer.

The plus side of your character learning knife fighting first is that (a) it's cheap. Swords tend to be expensive while knives are easy to come by. (b) If it's for self defense, a knife is often easier to get out in a tight situation and is also less conspicuous. (c) In many societies knives were perfectly acceptable to carry in places where you'd be require to set aside a sword or larger weapon.

Your profile says you're from Utah, and if you're anywhere near Provo I highly recommend visiting the ARMA group here. We study historical knife fighting as well as swordfighting and we've got some people who are really good at it and could show you what a real knife fight would look like as well as some tips on how to make it sound realistic in your writing.

I must have missed that section of the treaties in my civilizations class... hmmm... maybe I shouldn't have read novels through all the lectures.

That doesn't excuse the tasteless name choice, even if it is gener-appropriate.

For the general future reference of all, the nick "Vaj" comes from "Vajrayana" which was a character I started writing six years ago and I've been using the nick on forums ever since. Coincidently (and accidently) it's also a form of Buddhism. Any misinterpretations are completely from your own mind.

But the trick for running a single-location campaign isn't to "not allow" the characters to go out, but to make them not want to go out.

My snotty, politically coniving courtier is not going to want to go outside. There are peasants out there! Heaven forbid one of them has any contact with her. Horses smell, and servants are there to take care of her lands. I don't think she's seen them in a couple years at the very least, and anyone worthwhile to know will come visit her right where she is. The only thing that would inspire her to leave the comforts of her palace would be a royal summons.

Get the idea? As long as the characters are right for the campaign, it can work. If you're the GM, just watch your players carefully during character creation. If it isn't in the character's personality or nature to wander off, why would they?

Vaj--The girl was sitting down, so I don't remember if she was tall or skinny, but she was blond and had her hair in a ponytail.  This was probably a Thursday night a couple weeks ago.  

So very likely me since the other girl that frequents the keep has darker hair. That's hilarious.