There doesn't seem to be a convenient way to introduce oneself on this site (barring the New Member introductions) without creating a post in a game. So, here it is, a post in this game. I'll try to remember it's here and update it with new information.
Anyway, my name is Aethera (eth-eer-uh). This is not a given name, but a chosen one. It has more meaning to me than a username (I use it here and there as such), though very few people I interact with actually use it in conversation. That may change, but it doesn't really matter to me what people call me as long as I'm aware they mean me. Aethera is a promise I made to myself, a goal for life, and if I'm the only one who uses it, that's all that matters.
I'm disabled, and I fill my time with multiple games on this forum, freelance writing and editing, ghostwriting novels (currently contemporary romance), and I've posted a few of my poems here as well. It's harder to post longer pieces, or I'd try to post those. If I have any hope of a publishing contract, though, I can't make public any of the manuscript(s) I hope to publish. It is what it is. (I've got one finished manuscript, but chapter one needs hack'n'slash revision before I can try to find an agent or progress further. And yes, if you ask me about novel writing I'll gush and go all 'fangirl' on you. )
As a gamer or storyteller I consider myself fairly skilled, but it should be noted that about every three months I've disappeared for a week or so, outside my control. I get migraines that make me too sick to keep my regular medications down, which then means I hit really nasty withdrawal. This will likely happen in the future as well, there's nothing I can do to prevent it, just minimize it. This last time it wasn't a week, and I didn't truly leave, but my posts dropped to next to nothing in-game. I hope this means progress.
My Games:
That Fine Line Between Genius and Insanity (13th Age) Hall of Fame 2020!
Set on a quest to take the princess to a safe haven in the face of many dangers threatening the Empire, the six PCs are going to have a hell of a time figuring out what to do next now that they have woken up realizing they are the main characters in a fantasy adventure novel. They'll have enough facing them to continue on, but sooner or later someone's gotta ask... we're the PCs, right? We can totally [insert dumb idea here]. Right?
>> Our Story So Far...
My Characters:
Puma, in Sassafrass' Tyranny of Dragons (D&D 5e)
The druid who is far more comfortable wandering around in beast form was sent to investigate the upheaval in the natural forces in the area by the Emerald Enclave. They know something is wrong, but not the details, so Puma (as a black cat) wandered around the town of Greenest and found an adventuring party that was going to return to the raiders' camp and try to fight them off again. He offered to go, too.
>> Defenders of Greenest listing
Jackie Halloran, ENP, in kingmonkey's A Long Cold Winter (solo game of Vampire: the Masquerade)
One dark night while out on town for an evening of celebration, something strange happened to Jackie Halloran, the only survivor of a bizarre and brutal multiple homicide. The strange part? She could've sworn the guy was drinking blood. A bad year of psychoanalysis later, her psychiatrist told her a secret—vampires exist. When pressed, the woman arranged a meeting between Jackie and a man named Dakota West, introducing Jackie to the terrifying and intriguing world of the Hunters. It took her some time to get used to the idea, and used some of that time shifting from ER nurse to certified EMT, a more active career that helped distract her from the fears she buried about things that go bump in the night. She's been tasked with surveillance, but you never know how these things might turn out...
Site Moderation
In June 2016, the admins invited me to join the site moderation staff (otherwise known as "the reds"). My duties change periodically, but mostly I keep track of The Library, pinch hit with the multiple Advertisements subforums (including the game approval process), and now I facilitate the Hall of Fame nomination/voting process. Feel free to contact me for anything you need, though, whether it falls into those categories or not! I'm happy to help with whatever I can.
I do have a to-do list in the staff forum, but for obvious reasons, it's only accessible by staff.
Hall of Fame! (yearly)
I'm in charge of watching over the Hall of Fame process each year. Mostly you all go and nominate the best games and then I check through them to make sure each fits the criteria, and so forth. Then nominations become a public poll and there's oversight required to keep it on course. Finally the Community Supporters vote on the favorites from the public poll.
13th Age Resources
I'm a big fan of the new (2013) 13th Age game system. It's streamlined and story-oriented, with just enough mechanics to get by, without getting hung up on minutiae. hippo started collecting resources in one place to try and fuel more community members getting involved. I signed on to help with the resources, as I'd love to see a bigger 13th Age footprint on this site. Likewise, when Outplay could run it, I jumped on the chance.
Writing Prompts and Critique
In the interests of encouraging writing outside of gaming, I've posted two challenges so far to prompt people to write; a 100 Themes Challenge, with (yes) a hundred prompts to respond to, and a Zodiac Cycle Challenge, which challenges a writer to use aspects of the Greek Zodiac to write several pieces of a longer story (for the novelists among us).
Short Story Competition (monthly)
Every month I post a theme and a few challenge elements for anyone to write a short (500- to 3K-word) piece. At the end of the month, popular vote determines the winner. For 2013, I'll be giving away quarterly 3-month subscriptions to the site. I dropped the ball for October, so your next chance to enter is November. Unfortunately due to lack of activity, I've ended the competition for the time being.
Outplay (every summer)
Outplay is an annual player-focused competition that pits groups of players in a double-elimination-style tournament together against common sorts of challenges a player might face. I'm not up to the speed of the competition as a player, so I'd rather help organize it. Starting in 2012 or so I helped write content beforehand, then as of 2016 I went bonkers and decided to try and organize it, as well as GM the 13th Age bracket. Pray for my soul, ye faithful, as I fear it slipping away. This year Bhelogan took it on, but I'll still help him with whatever he needs.
Outplay 2016 (13th Age)
So much for my 'minor role' in Outplay, I went bonkers this year and decided to try and organize it, as well as GM the 13th Age bracket. Pray for my soul, ye faithful, as I fear it slipping away.
Game Tutorials
We already have New Player Solo Games, which introduce new site members to the play-by-post format. What about those people who want to learn a new game system but haven't the opportunity (either in real life, Games Seeking, or other venue)? I posit that there ought to be a similar tutorial style game for existing members (eg. no site how-to involved, unless there are dice roller codes or advanced BBcode that will enhance the game) to dip their toes into a new game. This would require volunteer game masters to run simple/beginner adventures, whether published Adventure Paths (APs) or newly created adventures.
Note: due to site hiatus (October through December 2016), my activity on this project ended abruptly. I'll return to this as soon as I am able. In the meantime, there's a thread in General Discussion for "If someone was offering to teach it, what game system(s) would you want to learn?" with a lot of discussion on the subject.
My Poetry:
Damsel in Distress - a poem about feeling alone and helpless, couched in fantasy
Of Earth and Fire - a somewhat spiritual poem in which I call myself a child of the elements
Sad Tree - inspired by the tree out my window and how similar 2020 makes me feel
If I think of anything worth telling you all, I'll update this.
Last edited by Aethera; Dec 20th, 2020 at 06:31 PM.