8 Hardness/90 HP/35 Break DC my ass!

Well, in non gaming good news we just had our 28 year old heater replaced and central air installed! In non gaming bad news we discovered that part of our chimney is collapsed and it will be very expensive to replace. In the words of my elderly friend Jeff, "weak-nessss!"

You can't spell 'slaughter' without 'laughter'!

Money pit issues aside. I am still hoping to run my first game of PARANOIA this weekend. If you've never heard of it [click here] to learn a bit about it. To add to the fun I've decided to use a text to speech program on a laptop for the voice of Friend Computer. I've also created plenty of handy-dandy handouts for use in the game because lets face it: Everyone LOVES handouts!

Paranoia is a tabletop rpg which takes place in a futuristic city(?) deep below the earth known as Alpha Complex. The entire place is run by a maniacal and totalitarian benevolent and super-friendly entity known only as 'The Computer.' When trouble brews in Alpha Complex the Computer calls upon the players who are known as 'Troubleshooters.' Hapless, ill-equipped and most of all expendable; Troubleshooters have one primary function: to find the source of the trouble and shoot it.

While the premise seems simple, it quickly becomes a complicated and bloody mess. You see, Alpha Complex is infested with all manner of enemies who have their own agendas (typically trying to avoid or even destroy the Computer and it's systems). These enemies include secret societies, genetic mutants and worst of all - the dreaded commies. It is the responsibility of a Troubleshooter team to weed out and eliminate these threats and to secure the dominance of the ever vigilant Computer.

In a perfect world, crack teams of players would descend upon treasonous citizens, secret society members and super-powered mutants with extreme prejudice, using lasers and plasma guns to transform them into little more than clouds of fine red mist. Unfortunately for the players, Alpha Complex is not a perfect world. In addition to being a Troubleshooter, just about every player also happens to be a member of a secret society, a mutant, a double agent or (in most cases) all of the above!

Friends, enemies, passers-by: Every one of em is a stinkin commie!

The constant drive for promotion fame and wealth drives most Troubleshooters to backstab each other through whatever means possible. Be it through accusations of treason, unfortunate 'accidents' or flat out murder! Paranoia is a game where every player shares the same goal: complete the mission and be the last one alive to claim the spoils!

I look forward to giving this game a shot as a change of pace from the regular fantasy settings we play. Don't get me wrong here, traditional sword and sorcery is still my bread and butter, but a game like Paranoia can be an excellent dessert.