@jendefer@dice.camp cover
@jendefer@dice.camp avatar

jendefer

@jendefer@dice.camp

Dicey Stories showrunner. Birder. TTRPG GM/player.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. For a complete list of posts, browse on the original instance.

Jgbird , to random
@Jgbird@mas.to avatar

Bushtits

jendefer ,
@jendefer@dice.camp avatar

@Jgbird What an interesting angle on this shot.

jendefer , to random
@jendefer@dice.camp avatar

My wife and I got married 12 years ago today. A significant amount of our time during the months we dated was spent playing a with some friends of mine. So when it came time to decide on the wedding cake, we went with 3d6. We chose a roll of 4 (a critical success) since that way the dice could also be read as 1+1=2. Many guests at the wedding were confused by the cake. Fortunately, they all had puzzle packets at their tables to keep them occupied.

On a white table, alongside two silver forks and a stack of two plates, sit three cubical cakes. They are coated in green icing, and each side has black pips. The tops of the dice cakes show 1, 1, and 2. Unseen are the delicious layers of chocolate cake inside with creamy chocolate pudding between them.
ALT
  • Reply
    • Jgbird , to random
    @Jgbird@mas.to avatar

    Getting ready to play my first gig since 2019!

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @Jgbird Good luck with the gig. Don't get too distracted by any birds flying by.

    loren , to random
    @loren@flipping.rocks avatar

    "here, catch!"

    two barn swallows sitting across from each other on thin little branches. one in the foreground and one in the back. the one in the foreground has their iridescent blue back to the camera and one glossy blue wing extended to the left as if it has just thrown something. opposite them and facing the camera the other barn swallow has their mouth wide open as if they are trying to catch a bit of food that the other swallow has thrown to them. their mouth and front are light orange and they have a little forked tail extending down off the branch. in reality the swallow in the foreground is preening their shoulder feather and well i don't know what the one in the back is doing. they just open their mouths really wide sometimes, maybe yawning? i don't know haha
    ALT
  • Reply
  • Expand (6)
  • Collapse (6)
    • + loren
    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @loren

    "I'm starving!"

    "The food is right there."

    Jgbird , to random
    @Jgbird@mas.to avatar

    Island scrub-jay

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @Jgbird I believe this is the lesser known sub-species, the island scruffy jay. 😉

    jendefer , to random
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    I need ideas for . Maybe something oriented.

    bryanhowie , to random
    @bryanhowie@dice.camp avatar

    What are the benefits of smaller or larger groups in your game? Does size matter?

    https://characteralchemyrpg.wordpress.com/2024/04/28/size-matters/

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @bryanhowie Personally, I find GMing for large groups (4+) more difficult, as there are more people I have to monitor to make sure they are engaged and they are finding things for their characters to do. In our small group games, it's quite easy to flip back and forth between the two players.

    With just 2 players, we can focus more on the story being about the characters, as was mentioned in the article.

    1/2

    Kokirimuscle , to random
    @Kokirimuscle@woof.group avatar

    When I hear people say in that they like to make up the character’s backstory and personality as they play rather than beforehand or at a session 0, I think they must have players that are far better at improv than the ones I play with.

    In my experience, if a character doesn’t have a backstory at the beginning, they never will have one.

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @Kokirimuscle There's a middle ground. I can start a game knowing roughly what my character's occupation was, some vague idea of his home life, plus one significant event from his youth.

    But then details about the trajectory of his education, the types of con jobs he ran, where his grandparents came from, etc... those are things that come spur of the moment in light of play at the game table.

    So like @SJohnRoss said, a basic backstory that gains depth and detail at the table.

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @SJohnRoss @Kokirimuscle "frontstory" - I like that. Yeah, some TTRPGs build that into the game to ensure players have such touch points. I play a lot of and so my characters always have at the very least a desire, fear, strength, and flaw that can provide hooks.

    deinol , to random
    @deinol@dice.camp avatar

    I saw some @EvlynMoreau art in the wild and had to pick it up.

    Looks like a cozy solo farming game. Looks cute.

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @deinol I picked this up a few months ago but haven't tried it yet. I really liked Beak, Feather, and Bone, so I was excited to find this.

    jendefer , to random
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    I was going to wait until Easter to show off all my eggs, but I'm too excited about how the onion skin ones turned out today. We wrap raw eggs with wet skin from yellow and red onions, secure them in old stockings, and boil them for 15 or so minutes. We like to put leaves or flowers against the egg first so that we can get some extra patterns and color. I love the variety!

    We've also got red cabbage and red wine eggs underway, and this year I'm trying carrot, too.

    On a cookie rack above a dishcloth sit hardboiled eggs. Four eggs on the right are wrapped in stockings tied closed. The onion skins within are barely visible. Five eggs to the left have had their stockings removed. Now the wet onion skins are clearly visible, wrapped around the eggs to varying degrees. The skins vary from yellow to red to dark red. (The bottom right has an almost white egg with touches of orange. It spent half an hour in carrot water.)

    Nine hardboiled eggs died using onion skins. Some eggs are mottled brown (from red skins). Others have patches of yellow or lighter brown (form yellow skins). One egg (top middle) has the white ghost of a cilantro sprout that was placed against the egg before skin wrapping. One egg (top right) has an almost blue patch from some really, really dark red skin. The center right egg shows faintly green mottled leaf shapes from the dandelion leaf place against it before wrapping.
    ALT
  • Reply
    • doersino , to random
    @doersino@mastodon.social avatar

    No idea why great crested grebes sometimes float around with their feet out of the water for a bit, but it's hilarious.

    #birds #birding #birdwatching #birdphotography #wildlifephotography #naturephotography #photography

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @doersino This behavior is called "foot-shipping" and helps the grebes regulate body heat.

    And, yeah, I agree it looks pretty ridiculous. In a lovable sort of grebes-are-awesome way.

    meganpsyd , to random
    @meganpsyd@dice.camp avatar

    What are everyone's favorite boardgames these days? I'm still loving Dominion and Everdell myself though really looking forward to getting the expansion for Merchant's Cove (my kids love that one too!)

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @meganpsyd Lately we've really been enjoying Quacks of Quedlinburg. It's fast-moving, with turns happening simultaneously, and there's some good mix of press-your-luck strategizing.

    pussreboots , to bookstodon group
    @pussreboots@sfba.social avatar

    Five stars: What an Owl Knows: The New Science of the World's Most Enigmatic Birds by Jennifer Ackerman (2023) is a survey of our current understanding of owls. The audiobook is read by the author.

    https://pussreboots.com/blog/2024/comments_03/what_an_owl_knows.html

    @bookstodon

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @pussreboots @bookstodon Oh, fabulous! I didn't know Jennifer Ackerman had another book out. I've really enjoyed her other bird books.

    jendefer , to bookstodon group
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @bookstodon

    Any recommendations for good SFF/speculative books that are written first person? My wife and I are really enjoying reading the Murderbot books aloud to each other. Part of that is the great writing and sparkling personality of the main character, but I think part of it is also the different vibe of first person writing, where the narrator is telling a story to the audience. I'd like to find more books like that.

    jendefer , to bookstodon group
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    This weekend my wife and I both read the graphic novel Us by Sara Soler, which I learned of here on Mastodon. There were so many things in this book we could relate to! (We'd been married for about nine years when my spouse came out to me and started transitioning.) Even if your partner is not trans, there is a lot of value in this little book, to help you understand just a little more about a sliver of trans (and queer) experience.

    @bookstodon

    jendefer , to random
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    I have just been hit with a windfall of like 30 heads of . There is no way we can get through this before it all wilts. My wife's calling her friends, seeing who she can offload some onto. As for me, I'm looking for ideas that are more than just salad.

    I got through one head of romaine by slicing it up and it in a wok with some oil and garlic and a splash of soy sauce, making it into a bok-choy-like side dish.

    Only 29 to go.

    jendefer OP ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @SJohnRoss Oh, that's a good idea, just for dressing variety. I have celery seed in the pantry but seldom use it.

    Jackgiantkiller , to random
    @Jackgiantkiller@dice.camp avatar

    prompt 1/26/24
    Tolkien has athelas, mellorn, and the like. Terry Pratchett has sapient pearwood. Niven has integral trees. DC comics has the Black Mercy. What special rare or magical plants exist in your setting, and what are they used for?

    jendefer , (edited )
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @Jackgiantkiller We tend to keep using mushrooms in our stories. Real mushrooms have wild names, so making up new ones is fun. Our fantasy campaign features dapper inkcap (mood stabilizer), dwarvish fly (healing), springy horsetail (relaxant). Our sci fi campaign has shelftop (building), bluebell (breathing), acornstar (breathing), and checkerboard (unknown... so far).

    mrundkvist , to random
    @mrundkvist@archaeo.social avatar

    If you're providing pre-gen player characters with your the adventure you're publishing, please make sure it's clear & realistic why these people want to a) stick together, b) take on whatever quest or investigation forms the adventure.

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @mrundkvist I particularly like it when pregen characters include bonds or relationship prompts for the other PCs so that there's a quick way to establish rapport in the party.

    Glastomichelle , to random
    @Glastomichelle@c.im avatar

    A very early morning walk today in Glastonbury.

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @Glastomichelle Every time I think you have posted the most wonderous image of this tor, you somehow produce another.

    It is so cool to see the same location in all its many guises. Thank you for sharing your photos.

    KarinWanderer , to random
    @KarinWanderer@mastodon.art avatar

    The world needs more #MiyamotoUsagi #FanArt!

    #mastoArt #Ink #Drawing #InkDrawing #UsagiYojimbo

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @KarinWanderer Now I'm going to have to turn my house upside-down to see if I can find my 35-year-old Usagi Yojimbo drawings from when I played the game on my Commodore 64 as a child...

    jendefer ,
    @jendefer@dice.camp avatar

    @KarinWanderer Okay, it took a while, but I have finally found my stash of childhood drawings. So here is my #UsagiYojimbo as well as an attacking mercenary, inspired by the #Commodore64 computer game.

    #art #drawing #videogames

    Text across top: "The bounty is mine! Quick! It's Usagi Yojimbo!" Colored pencil drawing on crinkly white paper with holes running down the left edge for a dot matrix printer. Anthropomorphic rhino in profile running to the left, arms raised overhead, with a sword in them. Angry eyebrows. Light green shirt, black pants, white socks, sandals. Money pouch and scabbard on belt. Running down a wooden boardwalk with an orange house in the background.

    Colored pencil drawing on crumply white paper with holes on the left side for a dot matrix printer. Titled "Usagi Yojimbo!" in all caps. An anthropomorphic white rabbit is shown in profile facing left. Expression is stern. Blue shirt and blue headband around the base of the ears. Gray sash across chest, black pants, white socks and sandals. Sword at hip and hands held out to the left with coins in them. Standing on yellow-brown ground. Trailed by a green dinosaur-like creature of dog size that I have absolutely no memory of from the Commodore 64 game. Drawn sometime in the late 80s or early 90s.
    ALT
  • Reply
    • + KarinWanderer
  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • random
  • test
  • worldmews
  • mews
  • All magazines
    •