The Big Bad Scrapbook[Roscoe/Skarra]

[Roscoe]

So, figured I'd start one of these. Stay tuuuuuuuuuuned

[Roscoe]

I know how I will start this. I will share recipes with you people until actual inspiration comes my way. I'll start with things I've made on the grill. Most of this is plagiarized from something on youtube or close friends, but some is my own boundless capacity for innovation(that was a joke). First recipe will be Grill Smoked Bacon Cheddar Cheese Chicken Wings I picked this one up from BarbecueWeb, one of my most very favorite youtube channels. What you need: 1 lb of bacon, preferably thick cut, because. 4-6 lbs of chicken wings, depending on your available grill space(make sure they're good quality. The grill is a merciless medium for sub par meat). 1/2-1 lb of shredded cheddar cheese, or whatever cheese you like. 12oz of bottles hot sauce. I like Franks, but use your favorite hot sauce. A few applewood chunks, or hickory if you like a stronger smoke flavor. 1/2 Cup of Butter What to do: First, go ahead and get your grill going. You'll want to get your grill to medium-high heat. You can pull this off on a gas grill by only turning on one side of the burners, but I prefer charcoal since it tops out around the temp you want, and it's less of a hassle to use wood. For charcoal users, get your coals nice and hot and arrange them in a pile completely on one side of the grill, leaving at list half your grate space untouched by direct heat. This will allow us to go indirect, and will allow the smoking effect to really be noticeable. Once you've got the grill ready, you'll want to prepare the wings. Make a salt/pepper/garlic mixture, or incorporate more/less spices based on preference, and add it to a large bowl with the chicken, mixing them to get an even coating. It won't take much, maybe a tablespoon of each. You want enough to lend a nice flavor to the meat and bacon, without overpowering anything. This has to be finely tuned for maximum effect. Now that you've done that, go ahead and get your bacon out, and some wood chunks. Three should be plenty. Place the chunks in the midst of the coals so that they will begin to smoke. Now you'll want to bring the bacon and chicken out to the grill. Arrange the wings on the grill, starting opposite the coals/flame. Arrange them very closely, as they'll be serving as a table for the bacon. Once you have all your chicken arranged on the grill, take the bacon strips and lay them across the chicken. Cover as much as possible and keep going til you run out of bacon. Now close up the grill and give it about 35-45 minutes. When you return, the bacon ought to be done. It may look different than you're used to bacon looking- this is normal. The grill cooks it differently. Remove the bacon and bring out the cheese in a bowl. Chop up the bacon and mix it with the cheese. Now spread it on the chicken, and give it about ten minutes. While you wait, get a pot to medium heat and mix the sauce and butter. By the time it finishes melting and mixing, your chicken should be done. Head back out to the grill and pull it off. Add sauce if you like, and dig in. Original Youtube Video. Be ready for hunger pains.

[Roscoe]

Another recipe for y'all today. This is for a bacon stuffed sausage burger. What you need: 1 lb of bacon strips, cut in half 3 lbs of ground italian sausage 2 large rolls Some cheese, either sliced or shredded What to do: First, get your grill going. You'll want medium-high heat on a gas grill, and like last time, get it going on only part of the grill because we're gonna be cooking this indirectly. Now that you've got that done, you'll want to take your halved bacon strips. Lay one across another so you have a +. Now lay two across that in the gaps so you have a star, like an *. you should make 2-4 of these. Sit these on the part of the grill that is not directly over the flame, and let it cook for 45 minutes. Now, you'll want to get your sausage, and divide it into 4 patties, each weighing about 3/4 of a pound, and get them to about the same size/thickness. When your bacon is done, pull it off. You'll want to take these stars and sit them on top of the patties. If you have 2 stars, put them on two patties. Then take the free patties and place them on top of the bacon topped patties. Work the meat so that the outside is closed up and you can't tell that you had two separate patties, or at least get it as close as you can. Now throw those on the grill opposite the coals/flame and leave it for about 25 minutes. After that 25, come back and flip the burgers. Leave them again for about 15 minutes. At the end of that 15, you can put them directly over the flame for a sear, or you can add cheese. If you go the cheese route, leave them on for a few more minutes. After that, pull them off and serve. They go great with steak fries. Original Video.

[Roscoe]

This is my recipe for sweet tea. I don't think I need to clarify what that is for anybody. What you need: 1 Gallon Jug. I like to buy a gallon of water and reuse it for 5-6 batches of tea. Some people buy jugs of tea and reuse them, but know that the plastic will retain some of the other tea flavor. It should go without saying, but you also need 1 gallon of water. 2 Cups of sugar. 6 Individual Sized packets of black tea. I use Luzienne. 1 Cup of Mint Leaves. Some basic equipment, including 1 medium sized bowl(Needs to hold up to 4 cups of water), a strainer that will fit inside that bown, a large pot(big enough to hold a gallon of water) and a small pot(big enough to hold up to 4 cups of water). You will also of course need measuring cups. What to do: Go ahead and get two stovetop burners going on high heat. Okay, now you will want get those leaves chopped up. Don't do it too finely, but enough that they will bleed well. Sit them in the strainer and place it in the empty bowl. Now, fill up your gallon jug with water. Once it has been filled, pour exactly 2 cups into the small pot(your pots should not be on the oven yet). Pour the rest into the large pot and place it on the oven. Now take your 2 cups of sugar and pour it into the small pot, using a spoon to stir until it is mostly unclumped and wet. Place this pot on the oven. What you will want to do now is continuously stir this pot while it heats. Eventually you will see the sugar disappear and the water will take on an almost syrup-y sheen. This should take from 5-10 minutes, at which point you will want to pull it off the heat and pour it over your mint leaves. Allow this to steep for now. Once this is done, check the big pot. If you see a lot of steam getting blown off the surface of the water, it's good to go. Anything from this point up(i.e. if it's boiling) is where you want it. Remove it from the heat and add the tea bags. Cover it and allow it to steep for 15 minutes. Okay. After 15 go ahead and toss the tea bags in the trash. It should go without saying that at this point your oven is turned off, of course. Place your gallon jug in the sink and sit the large pot on a potholder right next to the sink. You'll want to take your measuring cup and scoop out the tea water, pouring it carefully into the jug until you've gotten it all out. Now remove your leaves and strainer from your mint-syrup mixture. Toss the leaves and set the strainer aside. Now you'll want to do a similar process, scooping out the syrup and pouring it into the tea. It's okay if you lose some syrup in the process as it is extremely powerful stuff. Now, I like to let the tea sit for 12-24 hours so it can gradually cool and the flavors can be brought out more effectively(also because I hate using ice), but it's gonna be good no matter how you drink it at this point. Pour and enjoy.

[Roscoe]

Here's a picture of Bulgogi, by the way. Because.

[Roscoe]

So I am thinking through different potential ideas for my new character. I have a few potential concepts but I am unsure what direction I would like to go in. I'm just gonna think out loud on this post and if anybody would like to chime in that would be cool with me. Ideas: Kelvic- The idea would be for the kelvic to be a very short lived species, like a mouse, that would go from birth to death in about a year. I think this would be pretty cool but at the same time it would be in some ways a more substantial investment to play a character who, by their own nature, is going to be progressing at a rate of about a year a week. Naturally if I did this(really if I ever made a kelvic at all) I would want to find some PC's to kind of serve as a family. It would be great character dev for someone serving as a participant or spectator for something like this. But yeah. Reformed Criminal- This idea would be to have an older PC in some sort of a peaceful profession, probably living a generally peaceful life, but they would have an extensive history as a criminal across a different region than the one they are in. History would be left open allowing a vast amount of flashback potential, as well as the distinct possibility of being a storyteller or a teacher of some kind present day. Beatifully Normal- This character would be someone who leads, all things considered, an uneventful life. They would have a job somewhere, maybe be seeking some form of education to advance the craft they ply. They would have normal interactions with others, maybe some hobbies that they enjoy on the side. Maybe get married at some point. Primary occupations I consider are florist, farmer, or philterer. I really, really like this concept, but I also feel that if I don't insert some sort of goal into the midst of things, some sort of conflict or overarching thing they are striving toward, they will be the most utterly boring character ever. But I don't know.

[Roscoe]

So I was brainstorming some RL things and this visualization was birthed of it, and I felt like it was ridiculously applicable for this context so I am sharing it here. This is an illustration of the way I think about character creation, and roleplaying in general. So imagine a giant mountain. At the top of the mountain, instead of a peak, is a huge lake, so deep that you can't measure its depths and, for all you know, it may have no bottom. At one edge of the shore, there is a hole, a gash in the rock, and out of it a mighty river charges down the mountain. As it flows, it separates into smaller and smaller streams until, in the valley at the bottom of the mountain, it collects into many, much smaller pools of water. The location and shape and size of each pool is determined by the geography of that part of the valley, resulting in some pools being lakes in their own right, and some little more than puny marshes. Your character is the water- the bottomless lake, the streams, the pools. The streams represent different and changing motivations. These are like short term goals. Maybe you want to travel to Lhavit from Riverfall but first you have to travel to Syliras. This is the stream- the road to your goal, and the thing that creates the distance. Over time, the streams shift in their paths down the mountain, but there is always a stream. The pools represent everything the character does. You might have one for work- it could be massive for business owners and organization leaders, or small and ordinary for the rest of us doing our 2 job threads a season. You could have one for romance- perhaps many for the players among us, or perhaps one large one for those who've settled down. Or you might not have one at all. Sometimes rainfall causes these ponds to break their boundaries and overflow into one another- the times in life when perhaps romance and business are one and the same, or maybe your characters alcoholism intersects with their reimancy. Any number of things can happen. Now lets consider the function of your waters in this valley. Some of these have proven attractive to the local fauna. Some of them might have quite a few creatures living in and about them. They provide life and purpose to these creatures that wouldn't have it otherwise. These are the parts of your life that churn out plot and attract other characters- maybe you use your job as a knight to place yourself in the paths of dozens of players. Perhaps your position as owner of a local shop sets you up for tons of interesting and unique threads that people clamor to be part of. You provide something they need. Sometimes the waters change the very shape of the valley itself. Maybe a particularly strong surge of waters causes one of these to gradually erode its way through a small hill, changing the very definition of the area, and expanding considerably. Animals who may not have even been aware of the waters now must take notice because you have changed the way things work in the valley forever. This is what happens when your PC is a trailblazer. This is when you decide you'll go where people haven't gone before. Do something that hasn't been done yet. You change the game, in your own small way. You make it better, more interesting, and you serve as a guide to the rest of us. So we understand how things work in the valley, but what's the point? Well, think of where the water is coming from. It comes from the mountain, from the headwaters. From the headwaters everything the character is or does must flow. Your character does everything- everything- in light of this one thing. All the things they do either harken back or look forward to it. They press on toward it or they remember it. It is their greatest goal, their defining moral, their biggest achievement. It impacts not just some or most of their lives but it defines literally everything that they ever do. For some, life means getting revenge on the slavers who took your family. For some, it means finding the one and living happily ever after. For some, it means becoming the ultimate master of a discipline. For some, it means riches. For some, it means becoming the champion of your god. For some, it means giving reverence to their gods in all they do. For some, it means trying their hardest to correct old ways. I could go on and on. To illustrate further, lets go back to our valley. Only this time, imagine each pool has a dam at the stream that can be opened or closed at will(it's a magical dam that keeps water from building up behind it). Let's say you are at one of your pools. Close the dam. What happens? The water starts to stagnate. Eventually it loses its natural beauty, because it is no longer supplied with clean, pristine water. The animals stop coming to it for drink and the fish die. After a while, it just dries up and becomes a dirty hole in the ground. As a character, this is basically what happens when you isolate yourself from your goal or purpose. I'll use Roscoe as an example here. Let's say I close the dam on the pool representing work. So previously, Roscoe was trying to make as much money as possible so he could pay his debts and leave Kenash, in turn so he continue on his ultimate goal of just being an all around bastard(he wants to kill most everyone for some reason). Okay, so his source, his purpose, is killing the weak and(in his eyes) purifying Mizahar. His stream(short term goal) is getting out of Kenash by paying his debts. We have just cut him off from that so now he just has work for works sake. Why is he doing threads to make money? I don't know. To make money I guess. Just, because he wants money. What's he gonna do with it? I don't know. Just, you know, spend it. Maybe he'll buy a sword or something. No, he doesn't have sword points. Why don't people thread with me anymore? You see what I mean? Our characters are doomed to death by boring if we separate them from the source- or worse yet, don't give them one. Our characters all need a source, be that some far off goal, or some event that defines them. I know of one PC who had a bunch of people quit on him after becoming family members, and IC he had them all killed. This defines his character, it's a source for him. I know of another who ran away from home after a fallout with her family and drinks constantly to forget the past. That event defines her, both in the sense of haunting her now, and pushing her to either fix it or become even worse. For the life of me I cannot think of one interesting character that breaks this rule. I know this is one of those things we all think in the back of our minds after a while, but I have been assisting newbies the last few days and I've been trying to concoct good ways to explain these concepts to people who don't have experience writing. I am sure this is somewhat disjointed and ramble-y, but it came to me suddenly and I felt it was important to get it written before I forgot. Thanks for reading.

[Radiant]

I read it all and I do agree with what you said. Basically PCs need a purpose, they need a goal that can drive our muse, even if that goal is living an ordinary life, if that goal can give the writer enjoyment then it is a proper goal, different for each person.

PCs are the ones who drive the story and what keeps the Mizahar universe teeming with life.

What a nice read, thank you, Ros.

[Roscoe]

Thanks. I enjoyed writing it. I think I probably downplayed the idea of being normal or ordinary but you're totally right. The purpose is going to be different for every player and every character. It's not so much a huge deal what that goal is, but everybody needs one.

[Roscoe]

General Information : 1. What is your Name? Roscoe. 2. Do you go by a nickname or pet name? No. 3. How old are you? Not sure when I was born, but I'd say 24 or so. 4. What is your height? Roscoe is 5'10" 5. What is your weight? Roscoe weighs about 160-180 lbs. Aesthetics : 1. Describe yourself as you see yourself. I don't think I come off as much of anything special, physically. I know there are others taller than me, more muscular than me, better kept than me. So yeah, physically I don't see myself as being anything special. 2. Describe yourself as others typically see you. Probably has a lot to do with how they know me. I know for some I may come off a little intimidating, but usually those are the weak ones. Anybody who would allow intimidation to linger or inhibit them in life deserves it. 3. What is your favorite body feature? What, on me? I don't have one. On others, I don't really know. It's going to be different on different people. Some women have remarkable hair, some men have particularly strong hands, you know. 4. How physically fit are you? I'm fairly fit. I've never had the luxury of getting lazy or fat, and for that I am thankful. 5. How do you typically dress and what is your style? I like to wear the most practical things I can. I am not particularly enamored with fashion or style, those things are the preoccupations of men and women with more money than they deserve. Family : 1. Who are your parents and what are they like? Well, I know my mother tried to raise me, but ended up dead when I was still very young. That's when I ended up with Andreas- probably the closest I ever came to having a parent. He didn't raise me as a son, more like as a pupil or an apprentice to his ideals and ethics, but for me that's enough. Love isn't something we really need to have in this life. And it's certainly not for me, you know? I believe it's my duty to lead my Mizaharian brothers and sisters out of the sickness of weakness that plagues us. I can't be distracted with family or love or things like that. Anyways, that's Andreas. Found out recently though that my blood father actually did know about me, and even had other kids on his adventures. Wrote me a petching letter. Well, I don't consider him my father, and I don't truly care if I've got blood somewhere in this world. The strong are my brothers and sisters. That is that. 2. Do you have any brothers or sisters? Apparently, yes. Though I would call those who live with strength- with integrity, conviction, and discipline- my brothers and sisters. 3. What is your extended family like? Don't know. Nor do I truly care. 4. Do you consider close friends as important or more/less important than family? My feelings on what qualifies as family should explain this. 5. Do you treat animals like family? No. Location : 1. Where were you born? Sunberth, I believe. 2. Where do you live now? I've been forced to put down roots in Kenash for a time. Product of my own foolishness. 3. If you could live anywhere in Mizahar where would that be? Where the strong receive proper honor and the weak receive proper punishment. 4. Do you have a favorite place to vacation or spend leisure time? I don't take vacations. I can enjoy any place where I can smoke tobacco and have a good drink. 5. Where do you fear to be? *chuckles* Traits : 1. Do you have any physical weaknesses (disease, scars, and missing limbs?) No, besides maybe being short. 2. Are you right handed or left handed? Right. 3. What languages do you speak? What do you sound like? Do you have an accent? Roscoe speaks common and a little fratava. His voice is imagined by me to be the voice of Matthew McConaughey. Particularly his character in True Detective. Example. Be aware that the video contains profanity and spoilers. 4. Do you have any odd mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics? Some people would refer to my convictions as a defining characteristic. I would say I don't have many defining characteristics, in truth. I'm good at leading, I know that. But that's about it. 5. Do you have (or want to get) any tattoos or piercing? Why do you have them (or will get them)? I've thought about tattoos, but I think they're unbecoming and not beneficial on a man who wants to change the world. Occupations : 1. What is your occupation? 2. Do you like/dislike your work? Why? 3. If you could be anything you wanted to, what would you be? 4. What occupation do you admire the most? Why? 5. What occupation do you lest like? Why? Childhood : 1. What sort of child were you? 2. What is your favorite memory from childhood? 3. What is your worst memory from childhood? 4. What sort of relationship did you have with your parents? 5. Who was your most influential rolemodel? Education : 1. What sort of education do you have? 2. Do you like/dislike learning? 3. Where or how did you learn most of your skills/abilities? 4. How do you learn best? 5. What are your educational goals for the future? Relationships : 1. Do you form close bonds with people? Why? Why not? 2. Do you trust people easily? If not, why not? 3. Do you consider yourself straight, gay, bi, or something else? 4. Have you ever been kissed? If so, describe the first time. 5. Have you ever had sex? If so, describe the first time. Drugs and Alcohol : 1. Have you ever been drunk? If so, describe your first time. 2. Do you like to drink on a regular basis? 3. What sort of alcohol do you prefer? 4. Have you ever tried drugs (mood altering substances)? If so, which kinds and what did you think of them? 5. What do you think of drugs and alcohol? Be specific. Likes and Dislikes : 1. What are your hobbies? 2. Do you like to read? 3. What annoys you more than anything else? 4. What do you find the most relaxing activity to do? 5. What kinds of things embarrass you? Why? Favorites : 1. What is your favorite color or colors? 2. What is your favorite time of day? 3. What is the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen? 4. What do you like to eat? What do you hate to eat? 5. What is your favorite type of weather? Does any kind scare you? Outlook : 1. Are you optimistic or pessimistic? 2. What are your religious views? 3. Would you be able to kill? 4. What are your views on sex? 5. What, in your opinion, makes a successful life? Actions : 1. What is the worst and best thing you’ve ever done? 2. What is your greatest regret? 3. What is your best/worst memory? 4. If you could change one thing about your past, what would it be and why? 5. What are you the most proud of doing in your life? Emotions : 1. How honest are you about your thoughts and feelings with others? 2. Do you have any biases or prejudices? 3. What makes you happy? 4. Who or what, if anything, would you die for? 5. What makes you angry? Relationships : 1. In general, how do you treat others? 2. Who is the most important person in your life, and why? 3. Who is the person you respect the most, and why? 4. Do you have a spouse or significant other? If not, describe an ideal lover. 5. Do you trust anyone to protect you? Who, and why Group Situations : 1. Do you tend to argue with people, or avoid conflict? 2. Do you tend to take on leadership roles in social situations? 3. Do you like interacting with large groups of people? Why or why not? 4. Do you care what others think of you? 5. What do you think of others, in general? Self Image : 1. What is your greatest strength as a person? 2. What is your greatest weakness? 3. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? 4. Are you generally introverted or extroverted? 5. Are you generally organized or messy? Beliefs : 1. What God or Goddess do you find most appealing, if any? 2. Which God or Goddess do you fear, if any? 3. Do you have any Gnosis Marks? If so, how did you receive them? 4. What lengths would you go to to please your deity? 5. Where do you draw the line at pleasing your deity? What is too much? Life & Death : 1. What do you absolutely live for? 2. What is the best part of life? 3. What is the best part of death? 4. If you could choose, how would you want to die? 5. What is the one thing for which you would most like to be remembered after your death?