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I’ve been a tabletop gamer for most of my life.  My parents kept eternal stalwarts like Monopoly and Scrabble in the house for as long as I can remember.  After my first D&D game at 10 years old, gaming became a lifelong hobby.  Games help me and countless others learn valuable lessons that are applicable at the table and in the real world.  This is the beginning of a series of articles on lessons I learned from marathon nights killing dragons and stealing from cyber-orcs.  Today, I write about one of the more important and difficult for me to learn: expected value. Quick EV LessonRead More →

Calvin and Hobbes sledding

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The internet has given us a great many things since its advent. Videos of furry animals, convenient online shopping mediums, and plenty of games that produce enough salt to stock the shelves of every major and minor grocer this side of the prime meridian. However, the medium of comic books and stories has flourished since we first connected to the information superhighway, spawning countless tales and ‘toons that have persisted for several years thanks to adoring fanbases. For some of these long-running works, it’s a sense of humor or endearing characters or engaging storyline that fastens its claws into readers. For others, it’s a realismRead More →

raven

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Greetings Adventurers! We return again to the depths of the Vastwood and find our characters traveling back toward civilization. Nictis Loath travels with our merry band of adventurers. As you’ll remember from episode 8, we discovered Nictis the only living person among a community of powerful mage ghosts. Nictis berates our characters with questions about every living thing. Having not been around other living people, his excitement is understandable even if a little on the annoying side. The group also discovers that Nictis might be a little more powerful than they originally expected. Will this help or hinder their experience? Check out the episode andRead More →

why

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Recently I attended an event with Ph.D.s from around the country. As we shared our research interests I said, “Wonder Woman.” Some snickered. Some nodded. Some turned away. Wonder Woman? How is that a research interest? Some of them share my enthusiasm and ask me questions including, “Why doesn’t she ever get her own movie!?” To which I must awkwardly reply, “She did. It came out two months ago…” Fast forward five days where I stood in a comic shop behind a stack of Wonder Woman issues that I could barely see over. I rent a subscription from the man behind the counter, and IRead More →

thrones

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It’s finally that time of year again: Game of Thrones has returned to HBO! Regina, Isabela, join Nicole Tanner from Gaming with the Moms to discuss season 7 of everyone’s favorite fantasy drama. Official Game of Thrones Description Summers span decades. Winters can last a lifetime. And the struggle for the Iron Throne continues. It stretches from the south, where heat breeds plots, lusts and intrigues, to the vast and savage eastern lands, where a young queen raises an army. All the while, in the frozen north, an 800-foot wall of ice precariously protects the war-ravaged kingdom from the dark forces that lie beyond. KingsRead More →

commander

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This past June, I had the chance to attend a huge Magic: the Gathering tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada. This event hosts thousands of the greatest players gathered to sling spells in the 1v1 Main Event. Blood, sweat, tears, tireless days and sleepless nights, all lead up to this point for many of them.  As for me? I was over at the round tables off to the side, laughing and eating overpriced convention hall food. I sat patiently waiting for my turn as five other players were chatting, joking, and quietly planning their next move with every change to the board. There was no pressureRead More →

default

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Default Line In case you didn’t hear, the Doctor gets a new face this December.  The BBC introduced English actress Jodie Whittaker as the next Doctor and almost immediately came under fire. I have so many problems with all of this that even Jay-Z feels bad for me.  This isn’t about Jodie Whittaker or Doctor Who.  This isn’t even about science fiction.  It is about the implications of people complaining about non-straight, non-white, non-male actors/characters cast in lead roles.  Specifically, folks moaning about those lead roles that traditionally featured straight, white men.  And frankly, it needs to stop. The Base Settings Phenomenon It all stems fromRead More →

homecoming

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We’re back and talking about the next movie in our summer series: Spider-Man Homecoming! From the Official Site A young Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland), who made his sensational debut in Captain America: Civil War, begins to navigate his newfound identity as the web-slinging super hero in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Thrilled by his experience with the Avengers, Peter returns home, where he lives with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei). Under the watchful eye of his new mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.). Peter tries to fall back into his normal daily routine. He finds himself distracted by thoughts of proving himself to be more than just your friendly neighborhoodRead More →

america

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Wonder Woman in America & Abroad Wonder Woman has been a hit of the early summer and while she has met with challenges in other countries, she has been America’s darling (again) for the last month. Wonder Woman has always had great popularity in the United States. She was created here, and her comics and stories are widely read here. Her creator, William Moulton Marston, created her to save America. In “The Origin of Wonder Woman” Athena tells Queen of the Amazons, Queen Hippolyte that, “American liberty and freedom must be preserved. … America, the last citadel of democracy, and of equal rights for women,Read More →