Andhol (Human Expert (Sailor-Retired)/Bard Level 3/6 D&D 3.5 Core Books)

Portrait by L. Agard

Many consider Andhol a permanent fixture down in the Wharf District. He lived on ships for many years before his bad leg made him less and less a candidate to sign on to a ship. Finally he took up residence in a flop house near the wharf and spends his day here doing what he can to make ends meet. He is easily recognized by those who know him.

Andhol has black hair streaked with a lot of gray that he keeps pulled back in a ponytail. His hair hangs down about halfway down his back. He keeps his beard trimmed and always has clean clothes. He walks with a limp because of a stiff leg, so he uses a walking stick that is also considered a way of recognizing him.

Andhol has been living in port because his left leg was damaged during a sea battle and it doesn't bend at the knee anymore. He walks with a bone walking stick that is covered in scrimshaw. It is the only item of any value that he keeps, and he keeps it with him.

Even though he lives in port, Andhol true home is the sea. He has spent more on the water than on the shore. During those earlier years he usually worked as the ship's striker. On occasion he still gets the opportunity to go on short voyages with some of the captains who know him. During his younger days his travels took him many places. Along with the ports of other kingdoms, city, and towns he has visited islands and secreted bays where a ship could make anchorage. His knowledge of the areas up and down the coast still earns him a living from captains and adventures who seek him out along the wharf, or at the friendship house, The Tangled Rigging.

He spends a lot of time at The Rigging, especially when the weather is bad. He is welcomed at the fellowship house. He shares his stories with those who want to listen. He also is willing to hear the stories of those who are in port. Many of the sailors who know Andhol share news with him and he in turn shares the latest news with them. Because of this his knowledge stays current.

When those who doesn't know are looking for information he is happy to help, but a man still has to eat. He doesn't charge a lot, because he doesn't need a lot. And, anymore he doesn't want a lot. He is known to give the extra money he has to the fellowship house so they can help others. At other times when he is short of coin there is always a place he can get a hot meal. He has never spent a night in the friendship house because he has a room.

A short distance from The Tangled Rigging, as you move into a part of the city that is not as nice, is a place known simply as Brown's House. Rooms rent cheaply and Andhol has one that is always paid up. He doesn't keep anything of value there.

Ancient Chinese bone walking stick with scrimshaw

Andhol's walking stick looks like a well done piece of folk art, which it is. It is also magical. His walking stick is a Storytelling Stick. The magical stick has the ability to store knowledge.

Storytelling Stick: This stick helps everyone in one area of knowledge by granting a +3 skill bonus. The area of knowledge is determined at the time of creation (Adhol's stick is geography). When possessed by a bard there is an additional benefit of performance/oratory. An additional +3 competence bonus is granted to the character when relating stories. Faint transmutation; CL 6; Craft Wondrous Item, inspire competence; Price 6,500 gp; Weight 2 lbs.

Andhol (Human expert (sailor)/bard Level 3/6 D&D 3.5 core books)

Str 8, Dex 10, Con 10, Int 14, Wis 10, Chr 18

Alignment: Chaotic Good

HP 33

Initiative: +0

AC 10

Attack base +6

Melee Attack +5/+0 (dagger d4/19x2)

Ranged Attack +6/+1 (dagger d4/19x2)

Fort +3, Reflex +6, Will +8

Feats (5): Alertness, self –sufficient, kill focus (perform), skill focus (survival), track

Class Features: Bardic music, bardic knowledge, countersong, fascinate, inspire competence, inspire courage +1, suggestion

Skills (54/54) (#denotes Expert Skills): #Balance +8 (8), #climb +4 (5), #gather information +16 (12), #jump +4 (5), #knowledge (geography) +17 (12), knowledge (history) +12 (10), knowledge (local) +12 (10), listen +7 (5), perform (oratory) +22 (12), #profession (sailor) +5 (5), #search +8 (6), #spot +9 (7), #survival +11 (6), #use rope +5 (5)

Languages: Common

Bardic Spells Known (6/4/3):

               0 level: Detect magic, light, mending, message, prestidigitation, read magic.

               1^st level: Alarm, comprehend languages, cure light wounds, expeditious retreat,

               2^nd level: blur, sound burst, tongues

Magic: Storytelling Stick

Special mundane items: none.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Ms. Elinoire, Operator of The Tangled Rigging

Medieval Working Woman

About ten years back Elinoire Whitewash became a widow. She had spent much of her adult life on her own because her husband was a sailor which kept him out at sea for long periods of time. And, they were unable to have any children. She is now in her early fifties and spends her time managing the affairs of The Tangle Rigging.

Elinoire knows all of the regular patrons and most of those who come in when their ship is in port. She talks with everyone and has a way with people to get them to relax. She never pushes for information or forces people to talk, she makes herself available for people to talk with her. Although she always seems to be doing what she can to help people she never puts herself, other workers, or the patrons in a position of danger.

The rules at The Rigging were set by Ms. Elinoire and the regular patrons abide by them. Anyone who goes against the rules she will ask to leave. If her request is refuted, or, if she has been threatened in any manner, the person will have to deal with all of the patrons and staff present. There have even been times when it was deemed the person might be more than the patrons could handle and they have called upon others to enforce the rule of the fellowship.

Medieval Meal

Along with providing a place for those needing it at the fellowship hall Ms. Elinoire does what she can to help families that are struggling because of losing a family member to the sea. This is not only those who have lost someone due to death or who are missing. Young families on their own often struggle and she helps the young brides. This is not only in providing food and clothing, but in teaching them how to survive on what they have and learning where to get help as needed.

Ms. Elinoire takes all of these people she helps as part of her personal family. Because of helping other find jobs, ride out the rough times, and helping the sick, a local owner/captain, Emmanuel "Em" Hasworth, had is ship christened Sea Angel in her honor.

Elinoire Whitewash (Ms. Elinoire) (Human commoner/Level 3 D&D 3.5)

Str 8, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 12, Chr 14

Alignment: Neutral Good

HP 17

Initiative: +2

AC 12 (dex +2)

Attack base +1 (She would have to be hard pressed to attack back)

Melee Attack +0

Ranged Attack +3

Fort +3, Reflex +3, Will +2

Feats (2): Skill focus (listen), skill focus (sense motive)

Skills (15): Diplomacy +3 (2cc), heal +4 (4cc), knowledge (local) +2 (4cc), listen +7 (2), profession (cooking) +3 (1), sense motive +6 (2cc)

Languages: Common

Magic: None that she knows of

Special mundane items: A few small trinkets that have been given as tokens of thanks.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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The Tangled Rigging, Sailor's Fellowship House

Guildhall in Leicester

Hanging over the door to this establishment is a section of knotted rope, denoting it as The Tangled Rigging, or The Rigging to those who frequent the place. Sitting off the wharf on a street heading into the depths of the city The Rigging is a sailor's friendship hall. Those who come here, mostly sailors of some type, understand that if you want to go out and drink your wages, then there are taverns along the wharf.

The Tangled Rigging has been used as a sailor's friendship house for many years. It has been ran by a captain's widow, Ms. Elinoire, and is a place for a quiet night, decent food, and a bed. It has some a couple of rules posted on the wall inside the door and everyone who comes here is expected to respect them.

The first rule is that every person in the house is shown respect. This means there is no fighting or thieving. Those who break this rule are turned over to authorities and barred from using the hall. The second rule is there is no gambling.

There are several services provided at The Rigging to patrons. For the most part, patrons are anyone who makes a living from the sea. Others are not turned away; however, they might feel a little uncomfortable if they are not able to be involved in the basic conversations.

The common room has food and drink. It is not the best, but it isn't bad. There is always a cioppino made from contributions left by the local fishermen. The common room also provides a place where people can just sit and relax, talk, meet, and play a game. Usually a quiet conversation is respected, or those who wish to sit alone. There are cards and tiles where they can be used.

For those who want a place to stay for longer periods of time The Rigging has rooms and beds in its upper levels. There is a barracks hall with a number of bunkbeds for those who don't want to spend a lot of money, or can't afford to. Better rooms are available for those who want privacy. Those who are looking for better accommodations or more services provided are directed to one of the several local inns. The Rigging doesn't have room service or baths.

Some people like to have a place to secure personal items while at sea and The Rigging has that service. A sailor can store items for a small, up-front fee. The sailor's name, the duration of the storage, and the name of the ship they are sailing out on are noted. Ms. Elinoire also suggests that information be left of what to do with items stored in case the sailor is unable to return and collect their belongings. If a sailor is lost and no information left, they become the property of The Rigging. Ms. Elinoire doesn't like to take items this way and has been known to hold them for longer periods, in case the person returns, just late.

Letters are also brought through The Tangled Rigging. These are not letters to be forwarded on to residents in the city, but letters left for those coming in on a ship. A letter can be left by anyone. Those who know about this service can check to see if any letters have been left for them. When leaving a letter it is required to leave a name of who gets it. Sometimes the name of the ship or some distinguishing feature of the person is added to help ensure the letter is getting to the right party. When seeing if anything has been left for someone, they need to ask for it. There is no effort to go and find a person a letter is left for. Because letters are left for people by name there are some who use an alias, or special code name to make sure they are getting their own mail from friends and family. The date is usually marked on the letter and if it is not retrieved in a year they are discarded.

There are a number of regulars who stay at the fellowship hall or visit the hall. There are sailors who have family in another port that prefer to stay here than going out on the city. Some locals also use the fellowship hall as a meeting place with captains because of the quieter nature of the place.

Along with Ms. Elinoire there is a regular staff. All of them have some connection with the sea. Some are retired from the life of working the waves, while others have family who are out on a ship.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Crysis Review

Crysis

Publisher: Electronic Arts Developer: Crytek Platform: PC Release: 2007 Players: 1 Genre: First-Person Shooter / Sandbox Rating: 8.9 \ 10.0: Fantastic

Above is a military outpost being completely leveled.

In 2007, Crysis was released on PC and was received excellently. In addition to having solid gameplay that was unlike any FPS before it, the game wowed gamers and critics alike with its stunningly beautiful visuals. However, this meant that only the beefiest gaming rigs were able to run the game, and until it was ported to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2011, PC gamers obsessed over the question "Can it run Crysis?".

These days, more people remember the game more for its technical prowess than its gameplay, which begs the question: Is the game as fun as it is pretty?

Before I address this, let's discuss the plot; The game starts off onboard a plane from the perspective of the protagonist. While learning nothing but the code names of the soldiers surrounding him, Nomad (that's you) is told that the island they're about to infiltrate has been invaded by the North Korean military. Partway through their descent towards the island, Nomad is unexpectedly knocked off course and plummets into a river.

This is a decent setup, but I feel that the weak point of this game are its characters. I wanted badly to be able to care about these characters, and they were unable to prove that they were anything more than generic soldiers before (minor spoiler alert) two of them are killed off. Even Nomad himself is completely forgettable. You could argue that a character Halo's iconic Master Chief, another faceless marines in power armor was no less bland in his debut title, but he was shown to have an interesting backstory and actually displays emotion in more recent games. Nomad, however doesn't even appear in future Crysis games. However, there are likely few other people that feel this way, and the story's shortcomings do little to diminish the game's overall quality.

To answer the question from earlier, Crysis still plays as well as it looks. Progression is linear, but the island setting allows for stealth as well as as explosive battles. Helping to allow for variety is Nomad's nanosuit. This high-tech getup allows him to generate an extra layer of armor to absorb damage, make himself nearly invisible, sprint lightning-fast, jump incredibly high, and have superhuman strength. Using these abilities consume's energy, and managing it is crucial to surviving. While both your health and energy can regenerate, don't think that makes this an easy game. Even on normal difficulty, Nomad can be taken down with a realistically small number of bullets when unarmored, so don't try playing this game like you would Call of Duty. Adding further depth is the ability to customize weapons in real time. There are several sights and attachments that you can apply after collecting them, and you can also add a laser pointer or flashlight, change the firing pattern, or even sometimes swap the ammunition of most weapons. When I first got tired of going into each encounter guns blazing, I thought that I'd be unable to attack from long range. I then had a lightbulb moment and equipped an assault rifle, slapped on a sniper scope, set it to semi-automatic, loaded it with incendiary ammo, and added a tactical attachment that supplied me with an infinite amount of tranquilizer darts, then cloaked and picked off enemies from afar one by one without being detected. That's not to say that the more action-packed approach isn't just as entertaining -- charging towards a group of enemies and grabbing one of them with super strength with one hand and shooting the rest with the other is just as satisfying, and witnessing rubble fly as mounted gunners tore through small buildings was exhilarating. It is a bit disappointing, however, when you're forced to take the action-oriented route in certain setpiece moments. Additionally, the various vehicles you can operate, despite being equipped with powerful turrets, are often nearly destroyed in seconds, which is a real shame since shooters that allow you to use vehicles in unscripted sequences are scarce these days. The controls can also be a bit awkward on console -- I found my self accidentally switching to weapons unintentionally because the weapon wheel and "switch to previous weapon" are both mapped to the same button. This is just a nitpick, and due to the large amount of keys the game uses on PC, I was still very impressed that all of the vital commands were crammed onto a controller (leaning was sadly excluded).

I mentioned how amazing Crysis looked earlier, but the game looks so darn good that it's difficult to overstate. Everything from the water to the foilage to the trees left me in awe, and the mission in which you board an alien ship is just as stunning as the coasts and jungles. I am a firm believer in the idea that gameplay is far more important than graphics, but I have little doubt that you'll be impressed by this game. Crysis obviously has lower texture detail on the 360 and PS3 and the draw distance is a bit short, but it is still easily one of the best looking games on the seventh-generation consoles.

The first two thirds of Crysis are fantastic, but the missions that follow the defeat of the general you came to the island to take out are lackluster by comparison. All the aforementioned freedom is mostly gone, and the enemy soldiers are replaced by the flying tentacled Ceph aliens that are briefly seen effortlessly dispatching troops several times prior. While this isn't necessarily bad, it's a pretty dramatic change in gameplay. The final boss, however, isn't enjoyable at all and lasts for what seems like forever even once you figure out its attack pattern (and some PC player have even reported that the boss was unkillable in their copy).

Crysis may not be a perfect game, but the the majority of it was incredibly enjoyable. Regardless of its issues, I can't recommenced it enough to anyone itching to play a unique FPS.

Ups
Tons of freedom in combat (for the most part)
Nanosuit abilities add strategy
On the fly weapon customization I've rarely seen in other games
Amazing visuals

Downs
Complete lack of character development
Lackluster final few missions
Occasional performance issues
Vehicles are near-useless

The System Difference: Graphics fanatics will obviously want to pick up the PC version of Crysis if they have an able gaming rig. However, if you're more concerned with performance, then you're out of luck, as even high end PC users reportedly have experienced framerate issues, which is the fault of the game and  not hardware. I have a GTX 1070 graphics card with 8 GB of video memory which massively surpasses the game's hardware issues and was able to run the game fine fro the most part. Bizarrely, the vertical sync settings locked my framerate to 50 6PS despite my monitor supporting 60 FPS, but this didn't bother me. What did bother me is that the framerate briefly dropped below 30 FPS in the most intense battle in the game and didn't exceed the low 40s to mid 30s range until the mission was over. As for the console version, I  encountered some bizarre bugs on the 360 such as wreckage of houses floating in midair and soldiers being unable to stop using mounted guns, but there was nothing game-breaking. Last but certainly not least, the mission Ascension in which you control a helicopter is surprisingly absent from the console version, possibly due to it often being regarded as the worst segment of the game.

Also available on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3

ESRB: M (PARENTAL WARNING: This game contains intense violence, strong language, and moderate amounts of realistic blood) Content: Blood, Strong Language, and Violence Price $19.99 (Download)

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Creating Villains, Large and Small

After reading the articles about creating backstory for a location a person asked about how much work should go into creating a villain. I felt like I have been giving the same response to questions like this so I first talked with some other writers I know.

I know everyone is looking for the magical piece of information that makes creation easier. But, they gave the same advice I had at the start—you put in as much as you need.

The problem becomes the question, how much is needed? You can't really ask another person how much is needed while you are working on your creation. You go until you think you have enough to run your encounter, adventure, or campaign. There are some thoughts that can provide guidance.

How big your villain needs to be helps define how much information you need about them.

If this is the villain of the encounter, they don't need a lot of background information. These might be the henchmen of a greater force, or they might be the group of bullies on the space station. These are the bad guys you are throwing into the adventure to move through an encounter.

If you a working on a villain that is manipulating the kingdom the campaign of multiple adventures and months of gaming is based around, you might want a little more about this villain. This one is going to be a driving force, directing all sorts of conflicts with behind-the-scenes maneuvering and manipulations. The depth of their story is going to help drive the adventures and encounters the characters will face. It will therefore also direct how the characters develop.

Villains have personalities.

They are characters in your game. Non-player characters (NPCs) ran by the game master (GM) should be built out as much as needed so they can be played to their best effect. Again this goes back to how often, or how long, the NPC is going to be used. Those expected to have short lifespans in the game shouldn't take you long to put together what's needed. The emissary of the Krogon fleet who keeps interacting with the party over the next half dozen game nights probably should have more work.

The villain is the hero of their own story.

This is a writing tip that works great. The evil king, pirate lord, superhero villain, or even the orc raiding the village are all motivated to action for a cause. Sometimes that cause is to not starve, for others it is bringing order to the universe. No matter who they are, they are doing what they are doing for a specific reason and they see themselves as the main character of action. Sometimes the motivations are noble, other times they're not. Again, larger motivations drive greater action. This means the henchman may not have a great reason for what he is doing, but the queen probably does.

Be willing to advance your villain.

NPCs can and should advance like your player's characters. When creating advanced or leveled encounters I like to start them at the beginning and work them up from that point. This works for creatures that are larger, or those that can gain levels. For those characters who are going to be involved over longer periods of play, I start with what is needed and advance them as needed.

A friend ran a campaign where are nemesis was a mage. We encountered him early on and continued to run into him. He kept thwarting us and slipping away. The wizard started out as a low level encounter and continued to advance as we did. This allowed for a series of encounters with the same character that were always challenging and not over powering. The same can be done for many character types and monsters.

Villains don't have to be absolute evil.

Many villains in a story are only villains to the heroes. This goes back to their motive. When the villain happens to be of a different faith, political faction, foreign government, etc. they are acting in their interests the same way the heroes will be acting in their interest. In our own history many wars have been fought where both sides claimed they were fighting on the side of the same god.

The hardest part is determining if you have enough information to run your villain. You can't ask your party if they think there is enough information, but you can probably find someone else that can look it over. If you can't do that, you have to make your best guess. Of course, you can add to encounter on the fly.

Take notes and be willing to change what is needed to make the encounter, adventure, and campaign work. If they do happen to kill your villain before reach the climax of the storyline, consider their sibling, cousin, close friend, or second in command.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Party and Regular Combats, Using a No Talking Rule

During most of my gaming years the main gaming group I have been involved with has had some type of open, sandbox, campaign world. We started with an open world with gaming club back in the early 80s and we still have one that anyone can run an adventure in. The gaming club had over 30 members so we the open format allowed players to mix and match in the adventures ran by different game masters (GMs). And, with this set up, character clashes were a regular possibility. We knew about party-killers way before the on-line games were around

Character combats can be bad and good.

Some of these encounters left scars on characters, and some emotional scars on players as well. I wouldn't recommend doing this unless you have a group of players who can handle having their character taken out. But, it didn't always go bad for the good characters. Players soon learned to track who their characters knew and trusted, and who were known enemies. This in itself added a new and different element to the campaign world.

The tracking of friends and enemies would sometimes lead to adventures completely off the script the GM had planned. We even had some adventures start and end in the same common room of a tavern as known enemies entered. The two characters would end up squaring off against each other leaving everyone else to figure out not only what was happening, but who's side they were on, or if they should even be on a side.

Other times the adventure would happen, with the unspoken knowledge that at some point there was going to be a party break down. This usually happened right after the last major battle took place and the treasure was in sight. Leading up to that truly final combat of the adventure was usually a lot of role-playing as sides were being recruited. Even then, some people around the table didn't know who was on which side, or if they were being targeted as being on one side or the other. It was during one of these final encounters we came up with an idea that has worked well in figuring out what action people were taking.

We started running what we called a silent combat.

Most groups usually have a rule about table talk, what is said is done or heard. When the party structure dissolved we enforce this rule that whatever is said at the table is heard by everyone. If you wanted to talk to a specific individual, while the party was all in the same area, you had to do it in a note conversation, and others could try to listen in. At first there were some complaints. Eventually people were expressing how they enjoyed what was happening. We also implemented a method for controlling actions.

Before initiative, every player wrote down on a piece of paper what they were planning on doing at that moment. As the round unfolded players revealed their action, but were allowed to make some changes based on what had already occurred. This didn't play a big part how the combat played out, but it did give the players time to think a moment about everything leading up to that moment. With newer systems using one initiative roll per combat there is much change after that. However, in ones that have initiative every round, writing down the action can add some unexpected twists.

The biggest impact to the combat was anything a person said was heard by everyone. There was no hidden planning or bargaining. This same aspect works well in other combat situations as players suggest play, or direct it, for other players. Intelligent encounters who can understand was is being said should be able to react in the same manner as another player's character.

There is one drawback. New players who don't understand what their character is capable of usually can benefit from verbal help. We always work at providing the different options the player has and the benefits/problems of those options. Then, let them make the decision.

But, when you have knowledgeable players and someone speaks up across the table of setting up the thief for a sneak attack, it can change the combat in a hurry.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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An Argument for Daylight Savings

Last night the clocks fell back an hour. People have been arguing about whether or not daylight savings is a good thing or not. How it's an imposition on people for no apparent reason. I don't know how other countries deal with this phenomenon that happens in the United States. Most states follow the rule of daylight savings. A few have fought back. There are reasons presented by both sides. Yes, another two sided debate with a lot of gray area in between.

I am not going into the good, the bad, and the ugly details of the controversy. Instead I am taking a stance of making the best of it. For me this all adds up to one benefit.

The biggest problem I have seen for people in either the spring or fall is time for their religious services. These events take place in sanctified locations where people gather together for mutual support. This usually takes place in a church or a stadium. You don't even have to attend in person, you can watch it on your television or listen to the radio.

Zealots can be dangerous if they miss the opening of their sporting event. There is a ritualistic need many people have and these events help them. I am not saying any of this is wrong, on the contrary. I am saying there are those who can become dangerous when their needs are not met, so, please, help these people by resetting their clocks for them. You will be doing a greater good for our society. You can also help by recording missed events and share them with them later.

It used to be that the clock dictated our viewing schedules. But that is no more. On demand viewing has replaced most television schedules. The only people I know who are tied to a viewing schedule are waiting for the next episode of their particular addiction. That is because they have to be up on the events so they can jump into the chat with friends and strangers. We are safer from these people during changes in the schedule because most of these shows don't compete with the regular Sunday scheduling.

In the spring we push our clocks forward an hour. People who work on the schedule of the sun pay no heed to the time on the clock and most people I know only pay the clock homage when they are at the job, counting down the last hour of the work day, or baking cookies.

In autumn we turn them back. Again, those who schedule themselves by the rising of the sun, or the daughter, don't see a change in their schedule.

One group has learned to take advantage of the both time changes with equal expertise and fulfillment: late-night gamers.

Since my early days of gaming Friday and Saturday nights were the nights for the games that ran long into the night (okay, sometimes into the following afternoon). Those with curfews were disgruntled about having to leave while others continued the adventure. Yet, there were two magical times of the year when extra gaming took place.

In the spring when the time was pushed forward (yeah, it supposed to be at two a.m.), those who had to leave were hit with a confusion that left them not knowing what time it was. The next day when they were confronted about getting home an hour late, the explanation of the confusion in the change in change in time would be used. We even had a person who would push it to two hours. They would then claim how the clocks were moved in the wrong direction.

In autumn the befuddlement would hit us again. Arriving home late because the clocks were moved back earlier in the evening—it was not our fault.

Those were are excuses then. Yet, they still work today. I really meant to get home on time, but I set my watch before leaving. Oh, my smart phone? Yeah, those things can mess up a good gaming session.

If you have a comment, suggestion, or critique please leave a comment here or send an email to guildmastergaming@gmail.com.

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Got Luck by Michael Darling, Book Review

Goethe (Got) Luck is a private detective in Miami who always had a touch with the fantastical elements that most people never know about. He is telling his story about how he finds out more about who, and what he is. Got Luck is not fan fiction of someone else's world. Even though there are similarities to other books (Jim Butcher's Dresden series) Michael Darling creates his own setting and characters. A fun read that left me wanting to know what is going to happen next. 

I decided to pick up Got Luck after sitting in on a panel discussion about poetry at a writing convention where Michael Darling was one of the panelists. It was because he mentioned how he used the Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's poem "Der Erklonig" with the story. Upon reading the title I knew there was going to be a mixture of light heartedness to go along with the detective story. Seriously, with a title of Got Luck who didn't think of the milk ad campaign.

Early in the story I felt like things were moving along a little quickly and too easily accepted by our hero, but I came to understand that even though this is a fantastical twist in his life, it isn't as radical as it would be for us normal humans. Got's backstory is presented in a slow release in a past paced storyline. The slow release of information works well because Got doesn't take himself too seriously. If he did he would either consider himself crazy, or would go that route. What I was thinking would make me crazy was another layer of what he had grown up with. I know some readers are going to have a hard time with how this part of the story unfolds.

There are hints into the other character's histories. But, they can only be revealed as Got finds out about them. This unwinding of information presents kept me looking for the details.

The timeline of the story is quick. In true detective fashion we start when Got takes on a new case and the twists start dropping in. A major event is going to take place soon and Got finds out he is a major player in keeping the mortal realm safe. We know he succeeds because he is telling the story, but how he does it is the crux of the narrative.

I am not a fan of most first person narrative stories. For me they remove an element of risk of what could happen. I know that is one of my own failings because the story isn't about the success, but the how the success is accomplished. Darling does a wonderful job in building the details through his lead character. Got's personality is constantly intermixed, and he never breaks from his reality.

The architecture of the world provides a solid basis for the story. There is a reason for what is happening and how it is happening. Again, this stays consistent throughout. I liked the description of the realms because it gave a reasoning I could go with instead of the just because scenario I have seen used so many times. The use of old world mythologies fits well and ties the story together. It was fun to see how the Goethe poem was used to create a solid backbone.

Got Luck is a good read. It is something you can have your younger readers dig into without concern.

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