Ugeek Magazine #2 - Utah Geek Magazine

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I of course played plenty of video games ... keep the peace in the car? Just use your geeky ..... casting classes using
From the Editor What’s your “origin story”? Since we’re celebrating the release of the new Dungeons & Dragons game in this issue, I thought it would be fun to reminisce about our early days with the game and what keeps us playing years, or even decades, later, The My Dungeons & Dragons “origin story” begins in junior high in the early 90’s. I came across my big brother’s D&D Basic rules and got, perhaps, a little too into it (as I am prone to do with new hobbies). My parents were still caught up in the controversy surrounding D&D in the 80’s so they made me stop playing only a few months later. I of course played plenty of video games growing up, and even dabbled in Magic: The Gathering for a while until I realized how incredibly expensive it was, but that short time with the iconic game planted a seed that lay dormant for well over a decade. That seed began to grow when my new neighbor invited me to join his new campaign just after I moved into his neighborhood. That campaign lasted only a few sessions, but the seed had sprouted and I needed more, so I branched out looking for other opportunities. I was able to find the local Living Greyhawk campaign which I played for the last year or so until it ended. After LG and 3.5E we moved on to 4E. Say what you will about the system, but we still had fun. We’ve now made the switch to 5E and I have no reason to believe I’ll ever stop playing. I’ve played other systems as well, and no system is perfect, but that’s not the point. What’s important is getting together with your friends, meeting new ones, having fun, and telling stories. That’s why I game, and that’s why I love it. So who was the neighbor who got be back into D&D, and who was the local LG organizer? Dennis Lundstrom, cofounder of the very magazine you are reading, and Don Brown, who I still game with to this day, and who wrote the Dungeon Master article on page 6. - Adrian Broadhead, Executive Editor

On the Cover: Cover: Shot on location at Game Night Games in Sugar House Utah by Adrian Broadhead and Dennis Lundstrom. Custom painted metal figurines by Bear Putnam.

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Publisher & CEO Dennis Lundstrom

Executive Editor Adrian Broadhead

Contributing Writers Don K. Brown David J. West Carter Reid

Daniel Swenson Deborah Moore Zac Johnson

UGeek Magazine may, or may not, agree with the articles, interviews, ads, or reviews herein. However, we or our contributors, hold the copyright to the content. Reproduction without our expressed permission is prohibited. To advertise in Utah Geek Magazine, visit www.utahgeekmagazine.com or call Dennis at 801.839.4581 Website: www.UGeekMedia.com Email: [email protected] Phone: 801.520.6760 Facebook: facebook.com/ugeekmedia Twitter: twitter.com/ugeekmedia YouTube: youtube.com/ugeektv

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Raising Geeks A parent’s guide to raising children in geek culture

The Road Trip By Deborah Moore The holidays are a time when people travel to see their family and friends. While they may seem like a necessary evil, they can be fun, whether you’re driving to the next town, the next state, or flying to another country. So how, exactly, does a geeky parent keep the peace in the car? Just use your geeky sense of fun and you can have a trip that’s just as memorable as the destination, and in a good way!

Word Games Dragon Words and is geared toward older children and grownups. It is a game I created and involves an average knowledge of spelling and of fantastical characters. You don’t have to be an “Encyclopedia of Things that Never Were,” just use the creatures you are already familiar with. It starts off with you choosing one of the following fantastical creatures: Dragon, Unicorn, Witch or Wizard. You say your creature out loud, and then think of another creature that begins with third letter in your first creature’s name. For example, if you started out with Dragon, your second creature would need to start with the third letter in that word, which is A. Say you choose Aphrodite as your second creature, you could then say aloud “Dragon is the starting word. The clue is ‘the goddess of love’.” No need to say what letter the second creature starts with because spelling is part of the game. Whoever guesses Aphrodite first goes next. The second person now has his starting word, Aphrodite, so his second word would need to begin with an H. If he wanted to use the word Harpy he could then say, “Aphrodite is the word, and the clue is ‘winged female monster’.” Whoever guesses correctly would then choose a creature that begins with the letter R and play continues. The clues don’t have to be that obvious, just adjust the difficulty based on your family. The importance is to have enough challenge to keep everyone interested, but not so hard that everyone gets frustrated. There’s something blissful about the silence that comes from everyone being deep in thought. In the end, who could ask for more than a trip mixed with quiet contemplating, discussion and bouts of silliness? I know I will be using this and my other methods during my family travel this Holiday season, even if our only trips are just to the store or to catch a movie.

For more tips, trick, and games, be sure to read the rest of this article on our website at bit.ly/UGM-TheRoadTrip www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

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By Don K. Brown Running a role playing game can be challenging in any game system. Rules are intricate across systems and they all have layers of complexity. Running the game, whether it is Dungeons & Dragons or Star Wars Edge of the Empire, takes a lot of work. Add to that the challenges of managing the players and the campaign, and any game master can quickly feel overwhelmed. I’ve developed a few ideas to help you, the tireless GM, make the managing of the group easier so you can run the game and allow everyone to have fun. I call them The 7 Attributes of Awesome GMs.

# 1: Regular Game Sessions and Attendance Establishing and keeping a regularly recurring day and time is important to a successful gaming group. This practice literally trains your group to know and expect when the game happens. Choose a day and time and stick with it. Do not try to work around four to six (or more) different schedules by changing play days and times. Choose the day and time and write it in stone. You shall find that your group shall come to expect that cherished gaming time and often plan for it. Bouncing your game sessions from one day to another at irregular times does not allow for your group to establish a habit of being there. And come to grips with the fact that even your most devoted player will miss a session or two. Do not cancel the game. Only cancel when the conflict is yours, or you are missing a critical mass of players. Nothing kills a game quickly like a stream of cancelled games for one or two players. Allow the game to go on.

# 2: Paraphrase and Summarize When it comes to sharing in-game information, take advice from William Shakespeare when he said, “brevity is the soul of wit.” Players gain in-game information by two methods: what you explicitly tell them and what they can pry out of you after you're done telling them what you want them to know. It's best to be concise in your initial descriptions. Highlight what's most important to the scene or encounter, skipping extraneous world- or scene-building descriptions. It is tempting to become a sage on the stage and use eloquent prose to bring an encounter or role playing scene to life. Often that work is www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

wasted on the weary ears of players who are more concerned with the havoc they're about to wreak on the scene than the fine details of the frescos or the origin of the ornate desk that sits in the corner of the room. When GMs are overly descriptive, players take a passive role. Players hate being passive. Their eyes gloss over and they start playing on their phones.

# 3: Let the Players Tell It Invite players to summarize an encounter, discussion with an in-game persona or other story element of the game. Game masters are encouraged to summarize a previous game session. But, ask the players questions to help them dust off their in-game knowledge, engage them with the story and facilitate their involvement in the game. Then, keep that going through the game session. This habit allows for players to tell the story with you. This is the essence of group story telling – getting all players involved by asking relevant in-game questions.

# 4: Know Thy Players Players come in many attitudes and dispositions. You must take the time to understand their motivations, playing styles and reasons for playing. One way to do this is to get them to make and communicate decisions about in-game choices. Engage them with the game’s content and accommodate them in a reasonable manner. Another way is to just ask them, “What can we do to make this campaign more fun for you.”

# 5: Say, “Yes” A game will run into problems when the sense of wonder and surprise is leeched from the game because a GM says “you can’t” or “there’s no rule for that” or just plain “no.” This usually occurs because GMs try to limit rather than expand their game. Keep the sense of wonder Page 6

and flexibility in mind when deciding what you'll allow players to do in-game. The philosophy of saying yes is at its most powerful during actual play. In a world where wizards can cast fireballs, a pilot can fly a ship through interstellar space and where a savage werewolf threatens innocents in a darkened alley, there is very little a GM should say "no" to. Sure, the blatantly impossible might be out (most the time), and a GM is going to have to use some judgment when it comes to the improbable, but everything else should be in the realm of, "sure, and here's what you have to do."

issues is supported, and where house rulings come out of consensus and reason rather than a sense of arbitrary dictation or snap frustration over a debate. The respect that comes through an honest sense of friendship is the glue that keeps a gaming group going. After all, you're playing this game to have fun, not to create more drama.

# 7: Be Fair

Always game with people you like. Not people you tolerate. Not people who tend to annoy you but share your interest and passion for gaming. Nothing will ruin a campaign faster than having to deal with people you don't like.

Keep things fair. This goes for treasure distribution, stage time, and even character death. The fair and right thing to do is make sure that each player has an equal chance to affect the game. The rules go a long way toward doing that, and this is a chief responsibility of the GM. The game is supposed to be fun. You're not creating some tense piece of post-modern performance ritual, and you are not creating a world that actually exists somewhere. You're creating instances of fun. Anything in your game that fights the fun by any means should be discarded immediately.

The most rewarding gaming experiences are long-term campaigns with close relationships. This group of people will be spending a good deal of time together for months, if not years, and conflicts are bound to occur. Even our best friends, significant others, and siblings annoy us from time to time. Don't sweat the small stuff. Don't let petty rules arguments turn into long and pointless debates. Give your friends the benefit of the doubt, and be both patient and generous. Foster an environment where playful ribbing is encouraged, where exploration of rules

When you create a sense of fairness with the players, the players will reciprocate with you and with one another. Player paranoia becomes healthy suspicion, stress becomes dramatic tension, and your gaming sessions become enjoyable without being apprehensive. It might seem like a small thing, but I've seen a number of game groups disintegrate without a moment's notice because a GM discarded the sense of fairness. When the GM is fair, players will trust him or her and are more likely to have fun.

# 6: Love the Ones You’re With

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by David J. West The story so far: In the City of Tolburn, young Kenaz has been using his gift of out of body travel to gain information and sell such to the highest bidder, this has attracted unwanted attention…

Chapter 2. You Can’t Please Everyone When you follow an enchanting woman through a dark and murky wood, you usually have a good reason, especially if you know she’s a witch who just recently drugged you. I however, had no such reason and followed her closer than a knife in a sheath. Aeoni, the witch in question, beautiful as the night is dark, knew exactly where she was leading us. The absence of a footpath suggested that she always took a different route. A small meadow opened, clearing the delirious forest and I could finally see the stars. Raw, chaotic animal calls broke the silence of our trek. “What was that?” I asked, restraining my terror as best I could. Aeoni smiled at my sudden nearness. “Nothing to worry about.” “I’m worried.” Something shook through the brush in the gloom. “A guardian of The Sisterhood.” Shrouded in darkness, a dozen glittering green eyes wavered at the edge of the woods and I pressed closer. No way in the nine hells that was a single guardian. Aeoni whistled and the myriad savage eyes vanished. “We are here,” she said, pointing at an enormous tree large around as any city-watch tower yet separate from the rest of the forest. A crooked almost diagonal slit of a doorway, black as a snuffed lamp wick, beckoned in the dead center. I felt unseen eyes upon us as we entered the darkness.

http://david-j-west.blogspot.com Inside the hollow lair a variety of tokens, fetishes and herbs hung about. What is it with witches and herbs? A small fire coiled in a central pit making shadows dance lasciviously upon ragged walls. Smoky tendrils escaped between exposed branches like a thief. “I have brought Kenaz.” Aeoni proclaimed to the darkness. A soft grunt was the only response. A sextet of honey-comb candles granted weak light. As my eyes adjusted to the dimness I saw a withered crone upon a seat of thatch. Behind and beside her a dozen sisters materialized from the gloom. The lower half of the crones face stuck out from her cowl while the top half remained in shadow. She almost looked dead and for a brief moment I thought she was until the most painful ragged voice this side of a torturers convention crawled its way out of her cavern of a mouth. “Thou art Kenaz, known as the Mind Walker.” “Yes?” Coughing, she stretched forth a gnarled old hand. “I am the Mother Superior of The Sisterhood of Vavath. We wish to employ you.” “If the price is right.” She smirked. Never a good sign. People only smirk when you mention price because they have so much gold it’s meaningless or they have no intention of paying you. Either way, it makes for sour conversation. She continued her offending rasp. “Something was stolen. We wish the Reliliqy returned. Thou knowest where it be?” Not really a question I felt like answering honestly. I have lots of fingers in lots of pies. “No, but I’ve an idea. Perhaps enough to be worth putting me on retainer. I must admit that others are interested in that same article.” I may as well try and round up the asking price on the chance she has too much gold. “There is no time to trifle with the likes of the Sunsari

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warlocks.” How did she know who my clients were? “We need the Reliliqy by tomorrow’s risen moon.” “I already told Aeoni.” I looked at her. Aeoni shook her head violently. “I told her I gather information. I never carry out the task itself. I deal in secrets, not operations.” Whether the old crone coughed, laughed; or gagged I wasn’t sure. My senses screamed as the sisters surrounded me in the gloom, closing in with their prized obsidian knives. They always used natural weapons and tools. To the witches, forging things of metal a vile habit of men and witches don’t particularly like men. “Thou act as if a choice was thine. Thou will accomplish this feat shortly or thou shall not see the day beyond. Give me thy hand.” I backed away but was quickly snatched up by no less than ten of the witches. Aeoni was not among them but did it matter anymore? Held firmly by three sisters on each side, my right arm was extended palm up to the crone. She drew the largest obsidian knife I had ever seen. It may as well have been a short sword. I expected a death blow. I thought to run and my spirit stepped out. My body went limp in their arms as my spirit was floating a dozen paces away. Sometimes my out of body impulse is too strong and I momentarily forget that it doesn’t do much good to run away from yourself. “Vavath, blessed be her name, has told us of thy tricks and deeds. We are quite aware of thy abilities and indeed that thou are likely yet present looking down upon us in thy soul form. Know this! I consecrate to divine Vavath thy body and do hereby make covenant with thou!” She raised the knife and I expected the worst, the loss of a limb but no, she poked a terribly small laceration across my palm. This was nothing, I cut myself worse cooking. Turning my limp hand, she dripped blood into a brazier in the central fire pit. The flames flared to life as if alchemist fuel flowed through my veins. The witches all strained backward as the once tiny flame burst into a pillar of monstrous proportions and something— something crouched within the diabolic burning! Something unscorched and horrid. It looked like a worm, but a worm larger than any man born under heaven or beneath the nine hells. Its jaws unhinged and roared in coagulating silence. The flames instantly died as the monster rapidly shrunk down to the size of a mere slug. If I wasn’t already floating a dozen paces away, I would have been. The demonic worm radiated slick fear. The Mother Superior reached into the now flameless brazier. The fat gross worm writhed in her fingers. It was white and thick yet smaller than a wood grub. She dropped it upon my palm where it swam in the pool of blood, before rearing and diving into my wounded hand. www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

I screamed silently and jumped back in my body, fighting to escape the witches hold. “The worm shall remind thee to complete the task. If thou fail, it will feast upon thy brain in days. Be forewarned, naught but The Sisterhood of Vavath know the proper spells to remove it. Thy only choice is to succeed and have us extract the worm.” “Sounds fair,” I said with a snort. “Laugh now, but thou won’t when it sups. Go and do as Vavath has commanded.” The witches directed me out. Aeoni waited outside on the trail back to the city. “I am sorry Kenaz, but you must do as The Sisterhood ask.” “Anyone ever survive this worm?” She looked away. That’s enough answer for this dead man. I left the woods of Vavath with a terrible itch tugging inside my wrist. Back in the city, I took the long way around the recently burned stables. I put my hand on the rear ladder to my flat when a gravelly voice taunted from the shadows. “You been out awhile.” It was Sharkun, an underboss for The Torch, one of the worst gangsters in Tolburn. Sharkun, and his stupid hat blended with the shadows as if he was born to them. “Been looking for you.” “That makes me feel warm inside.” Sharkun grinned before his face returned to the usual defiling scowl. “Warm huh? Your family is gonna feel a whole lot warmer if you don’t get the Reliliqy for The Torch.” “What? Is your hat on too tight?” “Listen!” he said. “Your brother Casimir, idiot that he is, owes The Torch ten thousand crowns. And you handing over the Reliliqy is what can make things square for everyone.” “Not for me.” “The Torch is a man you pay if you want to see sunrise.” “And if I don’t?” “Ha! The Torch burns your brother, mother, your mother’s brother and every other loving son of your dead father. Got it? He wants the Reliliqy and he wants it shortly!” With that Sharkun and his stupid hat stalked off. The Torch did not get his name for keeping the street lights on in Tolburn at night. This was a problem. If I had an ounce more strength after everything I had already been through tonight I might have—well I might have done something. But for now all I could muster was the strength to crawl up the ladder and fall upon my pallet. I needed at least a few hours’ sleep.

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Awake, after an hour of sleep. Why? Stars shone through my ragged curtains and someone abruptly blocked them as he passed the window. “You’re awake. Sorry, should’ve knocked, I suppose.”

Next time: Chapter 3. The Enemy of My Enemy

“And, who are you?” I asked the polite darkness. “I’ll get a light,” said the stranger. “It’s next to the—” He ignored me and clapped his hands together causing a pomegranate sized amulet hanging from his neck to glow and shine an uncomfortable amount of blue light in my face. “I am Jadair. I will be your handler with the Sunsari clan.” Shielding my eyes I answered, “I’ve already told Cathcart-” “He’s dead. I am the only warlock you will discuss the matter with now.” “Can you turn that light down?” I said, trying to steal any fragment of time. He certainly looked like a warlock, coifed hair, silken cloak and breeches and the type of sharp arrogant face that said he kicked puppies. Any weapon that might have been laying close at hand was not so mysteriously removed.

About the Author David has been writing as long as he can remember, winning a number of secretive awards too prestigious for you to have heard of. He lives in Utah with his wife and children. Among his other published works are Heroes of the Fallen, Bless the Child, Whispers of the Goddess, the sci-fi horror collections of Space Eldritch 1 & 2, and Weird Tales of Horror. You can visit him online at: http://david-j-west.blogspot.com https://twitter.com/David_JWest http://davidjwest.tumblr.com/

“Kenaz, I need you less than you need me.” “I doubt it.” “You very much need to get me the Reliliqy,” he said, taking a parchment and quill from a satchel. Standing to assert myself, I said, “I’m contracted to get information. Not retrieval. How many times do I have to tell collectors, I only deal in information?” “Not much longer at all,” said Jadair carelessly. He struck like a scorpion, piercing me with a writing quill. The scratch burned like frostbite. “That there is all your need in the world.”

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I took a clumsy swing at him but fell to my knees. “That was Y’more extract. You have two days before you will be incapacitated and dead. Cathcart lasted only a day and half. Get me the Reliliqy and I will get you the antidote.” My vision blurred and any words I said came erupted inside out. “Fetch the Reliliqy and I will find you, rest assured Kenaz, you won’t need to find me.” And with that the irritating blue light and smug Jadair himself disappeared. I did not wake until dawn. I had been poisoned, my family threatened with roasting and a terrible itch already in the center of my forearm. There truly is no pleasing everyone, and to even attempt the impossible, I was going to need to call on friends, lovers, and enemies and hope they don’t think this is all a joke.

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Review by: Daniel Swenson I and some other members of the Dungeon Crawlers Radio staff had the opportunity to beta test the new Dungeons & Dragons game. Thousands participated in the worldwide beta test and everyone had an impact on the end result. Now that it’s out, many of us geeks are excited to see what Wizards of the Coast has done with this decades old icon of a game. I had the opportunity to read over a copy of the new Player's Handbook, and for this review, I am going to assume that you all know at least a little bit about D&D, because that’s what the book does, too.

The Look I’ll say it flat out: I love the art in this book. Since it’s a Player’s Handbook, most of the art focuses on the playable characters. It includes character portraits for different races and classes, a small sampling of famous characters (a certain Drow ranger, for instance), and some illustrations that I swear are from existing D&D minis. This book does a much better job than previous editions for representing a wider range of character traits, such as more female characters, more heroes of color, etc. It’s not perfect by any means, but I appreciate that there’s a much wider range of inspirational art for showing truly what the range of characters should be.

proficiency bonus used for attack rolls, skill checks, saving throws, etc. Every class also gets an ability score improvement every few levels, which you can swap out for feats instead. Classes are each built with different abilities at certain levels, similar to the 3E model, and very different from the power-based advancement of 4E. There are a few features that classes share with each other, such as martial-style classes getting options for their fighting style, and spellcasting classes using similar mechanics for preparing their spells. There are no alignment restrictions, multi-classing restrictions by class, or other similar rules that were often house-ruled away. It seems like Wizards developed a basic framework and then used it to design each of the classes. Nearly all the classes start out pretty vanilla, and then get their subclasses with customization options at 3rd level, except for the ones that have a much broader concept shift depending on those options. There’s also patterns to those subclasses themselves.

I like the interior graphic design as well. It has a modern layout and “feel” similar to 4E that uses space and headings well, combined with some of the more “spellbook” background and flourishes prevalent throughout 3E. There is almost no wasted space, right up to the tiny font size used in the index at the end.

Races The available races in the Player’s Handbook are just about what you would have expected: dwarves, halflings, elves, and humans as base classes, each with their own suboptions such as the different flavors of elves. Also included are more uncommon racial options: dragonborn, tieflings, gnomes, half-orcs, and half-elves. (Bonus: non-gross backstory for Half-Orcs.) Most of the uncommon races have fewer options than the core races, since their niche often comes pre-defined. Each of the entries contains snippets from different D&D worlds, a good way to connect each one to the different D&D worlds of possibility.

Classes There are 12 base classes, each one having multiple subclasses, some of which are very different from the main class (e.g. the spell-casting fighter). Each class gets a standard www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

The playable classes are: Barbarian, Bard, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue, Sorcerer, Warlock, and Wizard. A detailed listing of each class and their associated subclasses is available in the full review available online at UtahGeekMagazine.com

Backgrounds & Inspiration Backgrounds are a version of the “3rd pillar” of character creation, giving another foundation beyond race and class. Mechanically, they provide a social benefit, an extra training of two skills, and one or more tools. These aren’t just for color, either. The Inspiration mechanic allows the players to Page 12

gain Advantage on a future role if they role-play one of these in an exceptional way. This seems like D&D is finally embracing bonuses for “role”-playing your. Inspiration is not tied in to any other areas that I can tell, so if you don’t like that kind of thing, it seems pretty easy to remove or tweak. Backgrounds open up a number possible campaign concepts. For instance, you could say that everyone must take the Soldier background, and everyone starts in the military, or everyone takes the Sailor/Pirate background. Or you could just as easily run the all-wizard (academy) or allbard (traveling band) campaign, with backgrounds providing that extra bit of differentiation.

Equipment No surprises here, the “gold-metric system” makes a comeback with its 10:1 exchange rates, except for electrum, which sits in the middle of gold and silver. Some aspects are cleaned up a bit (there is only one kind of shield, for instance) while others use similar tags to describe weapons you’re probably used to by now.

Feats Feats are greatly simplified and expanded, and optionally replace your ability score improvements that you receive every 4 levels. Previous editions required multiple feats in order to be good at particular abilities, such as two-weapon fighting, often overlapping with feats granted by classes. Now you just take a feat called “dual wielder” and it grants you three useful abilities for fighting with two-weapons all at once. There are 30 feats in all, and most are satisfying as character-defining options, but some are still weak.

Combat Combat works on the same basic principles it has for a long time: see bad guys, roll initiative, go in order, and take actions. Your turn consists of a move and an action. During your move, you move your speed, which you can split up (e.g. move, attack, move again). Your action will usually be an attack or a spell, but could also be a dash, disengage, dodge, help [another], hide, ready, search, or use an object. During either your move or your action, you also get one free “interact with something” opportunity, which could be drawing or sheathing a weapon, or opening or closing a door. Finally, you may also have a bonus action during your turn, and a reaction out of turn, either of which can be granted by other abilities or conditions. This mechanic keeps the essence of the standard/move/minor mechanic while being a bit more manageable.

Spellcasting Spellcasters prepare a number of spells at the start of a day as determined by their class. This forms their “menu” of options that they can cast during that day. Some classes just know a smaller set of spells and ignore preparation entirely. www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

Each class has a certain number of spell slots that they can use to cast their spells, but these spell slots are not fixed to a particular spell after a long rest. A 1st level spell takes a 1st level spell slot, and that’s it. No more figuring out how many fireballs to memorize in a given day. You just choose fireball, and as long as you have 3rd level slots or higher, you can keep throwing them as often as you have slots. You can even expend higher level slots on some lower level spells for greater effect. This is almost unbelievable to me because solves so many of my issues with spellcasting in other editions.

Playing it Safe The organization and content of the book will be much more accessible to readers who have already played D&D before. It purposely leaves some gaps and encourages you to fill them in based on your experiences playing the game. It features a wide breadth of choices, which may be great for veteran players, but they may be overwhelming for a new player. The refined spellcasting system definitely takes risks, and is better for it. And Eldritch Knights, Dragonborn, and Wild Mages all push some boundaries of what some consider “base” D&D. There are places I wish it had taken some more chances, such as not using the six saving throws to their fullest, and having the barbarian’s rage at exactly 1 minute long, but those are probably pretty minor. This is supposed to be the D&D Greatest Hits album, and I’d say it succeeds. The front cover of the book stakes the claim as “the world’s greatest roleplaying game.” This book is deceptively packed with generations of D&D melded into one coherent game. It knows its audience: D&D players. It doesn’t push a lot of boundaries, and leaves plenty of room to adapt and cross-pollinate with other game systems to make your best game. It is a game that I am excited to play, and I hope to run a campaign as soon as possible. And for that alone, I recommend it. Wizards of the Coast provided a complimentary copy of the book for review purposes. Be sure to visit our website to see the full version of this review. http://bit.ly/UGM-DandD5e

Special thanks to Daniel Swenson from Dungeon Crawlers Radio. Check out their weekly podcast at www.dungeoncrawlersradio.com. Also, be sure to join in with UGeek on the third Thursday of every month.

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O

ne of my earliest memories as a child was of me running up and down the halls of my father’s work pretending to be Iceman from the Saturday morning cartoon series, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. Though we are not going to be able to run faster than a speeding bullet or throw fire from our hands anytime soon, there is a company based right here in Utah that brings you one step closer to being your favorite superhero.

3DPlusMe brings the personalized platform of 3D printing to a consumer market. Through their innovative technology, fans actually become their favorite superhero, sports star, gaming character, and much more. The company currently has license agreements with entertainment and sports franchises that including: Marvel, Warner Brothers, Disney, Major League Baseball (MLB), Major League Soccer (MLS), and Ubisoft.

Advertise In Utah Geek Magazine. Because Geeks Know How To Do It Better!

www.utahgeekmagazine.com or call Dennis at 801.839.4581

3DPlusMe uses their scanning process to capture a 3D image of your face, allows you to choose one of their available characters, and then generate a preview of your face as that selected character. The entire process takes approximately four minutes, and then it’s sent to the printer. The end product is an exact 3D rendering of your face on a 6-12 inch (depending on the character), one-of-a-kind, full color action figure. Their 3D scanning station recently premiered at San Diego Comic Con and was also available at Salt Lake Comic Con 2014. For more information on 3DPlusMe visit their website at www.3dplus.me or at facebook.com/3dplusme. By Dennis Lundstrom

www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

Page 14

Reprinted with permission

By Zac Johnson

1: In the game Battleship, what is the smallest ship? A) PT boat C) U-Boat

B) Destroyer D) Cruiser

2: What is this device called? A) Degivice B) D-Terminal C) Digi Tamer D) Digital Access

3: Who is the King of all Saiyans? A) Vegeta C) Paragus

B) Broly D) Goku

6: In the show Medabots, who was the main character? A) Metabee C) Hikaru Agata

B) Ikki Tenryō D) Kabuto

7: In Warhammer 40k, who shattered Khain, the Bloody Handed God? A) Slaanesh C) Tzeentch

B) Nurgle D) Khorne

8: Of the following Pokemon, which one is considered "uber" tier? A) Charizard C) Typhlosion

B) Pignite D) Blazekin

4: In Pirates of the Spanish Main, which of the 9: Who tried to wish that the Saiyans were following is not a faction? defeated before they reached Earth? A) Chinese C) French

B) Vikings D) German

5:How many Pokemon are there currently? A) 556 C) 719

B) 691 D) 834 Answers at www.UtahGeekMagazine.com

Submit your own Quiz Questions at www.UtahGeekMagazine.com/Contribute

A) Bulma C) Piccolo

B) Oolong D) Napa

10: What is the true name of the Pharoah in Yugioh known as Yami Yugi? A) Tutankhaman C) Tristan

B) Bakura D) Atem