111.10: Ultraviolet

fictoplasm
fictoplasm
111.10: Ultraviolet
/

Advent calendar day 10: Ultraviolet (TV series, 1998 with Jack Davenport, Idris Elba, Suzannah Harker)

Music

Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // instagram // youtube

WaRP Dark Masquerade

Some time ago I ran Cthulhu Dark Annihilation, and I mashed up the WaRP system with Cthulhu Dark for just a little more granularity in the game. That turned out not to be needed for that system or the scenario; but at the same time I thought about using it for a completely different game, revisiting Vampire: the Masquerade. It struck me that Cthulhu Dark’s ultra-minimalist approach to using Insight for madness could be turned to the rising hunger of the Beast in Vampire.

WaRP Dark Masquerade mashes up Cthulhu Dark with a bit of WaRP (Over the Edge) and applies it to Vampire. This is very much on the 1st edition side of Vampire. At the risk of being really pretentious quoting my own damn self:

something changed between VtM 1st and 2nd editions that the game transitioned from being a game about outsiders to humanity (Near Dark, The Hunger) to one about insiders to a secret society (Underworld, Blade). From there it degenerated to fanged superheroes. This was inevitable given the live action scene being focused around conclaves.

This is a fan project written by a fan of the very first Vampire, before the whole thing got homogenised into one World of Darkness, before the distinctions between games dissolved, before what was known about the World of Darkness exceeded what was not known thanks to the splatbooks.

Here it is on itch.

83: I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

fictoplasm
fictoplasm
83: I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
/

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

Show Notes

Intro 00:07
Synopsis 00:54
Themes and Games 08:45
– Vampire Science 08:55
Blade
The Strain
The X Files
– Proper Vampires 14:39
pretty vs nasty vampires, or how the 90s ruined vampires
Other Media 21:52
– The Films
The Last Man on Earth
The Omega Man
I am Legend
The Vampire in Europe by Montague Summers
Arktos by Joscelyn Godwin
Fevre Dream by George RR Martin
Ultraviolet
Chill RPG
World of Darkness

Music Credits

Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive

Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear // “Another version of you” from Thoughtless

Episode 301: Werewolves

fictoplasm
fictoplasm
Episode 301: Werewolves
/

We open our third season on Halloween with a look at werewolves.

Show Notes

Our analysis of the werewolf in book, film and television, plus roleplaying games.

Becky Annison, Elizabeth Lovegrove, Ralph Lovegrove

  • Introduction and scope 00:15
  • Books section (Becky) starts at 01:35
    • Kelly Armstrong (Women of the Otherworld)
    • Patricia Briggs (Mercy Thompson)
    • Gail Carriger
    • Tanya Huff
    • Angela Carter (The Bloody Chamber)
    • Darker than you think by Jack Williamson
    • Hemlock Grove by Brian McGreevey
    • Anita Blake novels by Laurel K. Hamilton
  • Film section (Ralph) at 11:10
    • Physical effects in The Howling, American Werewolf in London, Teen Wolf, A Company of Wolves, Fright Night
    • CGI in Twilight, Underworld
    • Sean Pertwee in Dog Soldiers
  • Television section (Liz) at 19:40
    • Teen Wolf
    • Bitten
    • Buffy
    • Grimm
    • True Blood
    • Hemlock Grove
  • Themes 32:15
    • Metaphors for sex
    • Social dominance
    • Exiles on the fringes
    • Mythic roles
    • The Village
  • RPGs 40:35
    • Werewolf: The Apocalypse
    • The Werewolf party game
    • The Romance Trilogy by Emily Care Boss
    • You must break up with your werewolf boyfriend by Caitlin Belle
    • Fantasy treatments in D&D and RuneQuest
    • Chill (Mayfair Games)
    • Interviewing Becky about Bite Me! starts 50:25
    • Liz’s RPG idea (police procedural)
    • Ralph’s RPG idea (terrorize them)
  • Last words 69:30
    • Werewolf myth in the ascendant
    • Clive Barker’s Cabal

Pride and Prejudice with Derek and Stiles

Music Credits

“Is That You Or Are You You?” from Reappear by Chris Zabriskie

“But Enough About Me, Bill Paxton” from Direct To Video by Chris Zabriskie

chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive

Episode A.1: Moby Dick by Herman Melville

In this very special episode we decided the best way to treat Herman Melville’s classic was to go back to our analogue roots. We discuss open seas, confined spaces, love among the sailors, Ahab the Eternal Champion, and more.

To get your copy please send a stamped self-addressed envelope together with a 50p cheque or postal order to the address given at the end of the podcast.

Episode 11: The Matter of Seggri and Coppola’s Dracula

fictoplasm
fictoplasm
Episode 11: The Matter of Seggri and Coppola's Dracula
/

This episode Liz and Ralph recommend short stories to each other: The Matter of Seggri by Ursula Le Guin, and Coppola’s Dracula by Kim Newman.

Show Notes

The Matter of Seggri from The Birthday of the World by Ursula Le Guin

Coppola’s Dracula by Kim Newman which you can read online here.

Elizabeth Lovegrove and Ralph Lovegrove

The Matter of Seggri 00:45 // Game ideas 08:40 // Coppola’s Dracula 12:30 // Game ideas 19:05 // The Quiet Year 24:55 // Dream Park 25:40

Music credits

“Is That You Or Are You You?” from Reappear by Chris Zabriskie

“But Enough About Me, Bill Paxton” from Direct To Video by Chris Zabriskie

chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive