WombatZone

• Added support for loading and saving special rules similar to how warbands are loaded and saved, as well as an option to delete all currently defined special rules.
• Added support for adding an image to a warband entry. You will need to select the "Rulebook Style w/ Image" display format under Configure Options for the image to appear in the entry. If you wish to make this the default display format, change the Format variable on line 103 to 6.
• The default location for images is a folder named "warband_images" in the same folder as the warband builder. If you wish to use a different location, simply change the ImagePath variable on line 97. Please note, relative paths do not work in IE6, so those users will need to enter the full path to their images folder.
• The various formats for warband entries now have text descriptions in the options window.
• If multiple warband members have an undefined special rule, only one warning will be issued instead of one warning per member.
• Moved default values closer to the top of the script, improved commenting and clarified some tool tips.

You can get it from the Yahoo! group for the game or from my website

Notable changes include:

• Added support for showing page number references for special rules. If you hold the mouse over a check box in the special rule grid, the rulebook and page reference will appear as a tool tip. The rulebook and page reference for each special rule used in a warband will also appear at the bottom of the printable roster. This feature can be turned off by setting the Warband Footers option to None under Configure Options.


• Creatures can now be given a Combat score of 0.


• The minimum point cost for a creature is now 1.


• The builder now also reports the number of figures in a warband.


• Heavy Armor now correctly shows up as being from the Song of Gold & Darkness rulebook.

I forgot to post about the updates I've made to warband builder for Song of Blades & Heroes since I mentioned it back in July. The current version is now v1.2.6 both here and at the Yahoo! group for the game. Major additions are the inclusion of special rules from the new Song of Wind & Water supplement, and the ability for users to make changes to the special rule list on the fly.

Apparently they have spontaneous fires underneath the ground as well as on top of it.

Scientists puzzle over source of county hot spots

From the article:

King stuck a thermometer 14 inches into the ground and got a reading of 550 degrees. One time, the ground was so hot, the glue holding the sole of his boots melted.

Seriously folks, fess up. Who's been testing a thermo-destructo ray without telling me?

At Origins this year, I picked up a copy of Song of Blades and Heroes, a fantasy miniatures game from Ganesha Games, who are, as the name implies, based in Italy... Er, right, anyway, the wonders of globalization aside, they were nominated for an Origins Award this year for Best Miniatures Game, so I figured I'd give them a look (sadly they were beaten out by Classic Battletech for the award).

I'm quite glad I did. It's an excellent set of skirmish rules with a surprising degree of depth crammed into a small page count. The rules are simple and game play moves quickly, but there a number of troop options and they can interact in interesting ways, which makes for an enjoyable game. Even better, the author has released the point system used to generate unit costs on the game's Yahoo group, so you can stat up any figure in your collection if you'd like.

Which brings us to today's post. Over the weekend, I decided to cobble together a point calculator and warband builder in JavaScript. Why? Because I was bored. Reasonably happy with the end result, I uploaded it to the Yahoo group for the game. Apparently the author of the game liked it enough to submit it to the news queues at The Miniatures Page and Tabletop Gaming News. No, it's not the world peace prize or anything like that, but it's kind of cool to have people think something you wrote was useful.

On this day 39 years ago, men from the planet Earth set foot on another celestial body for the first time in human history.

Somewhat depressingly, that means this December we will mark the 36th anniversary of the last time in human history men from the planet Earth ever set foot on another celestial body.

The Telegraph: 'Have-a-go heroes' get legal right to defend themselves

Home owners and "have-a go-heroes" have for the first time been given the legal right to defend themselves against burglars and muggers free from fear of prosecution.

They will be able to use force against criminals who break into their homes or attack them in the street without worrying that "heat of the moment" misjudgements could see them brought before the courts.

As much crap as I have given the U.K. over such folly as banning swords and fire extinguishers, I figured it was only fair to note when they get something right. So, congratulations. Perhaps they are finally beginning to reverse the erosion of the basic right to self defense that's been taking place for decades over there.