Leap Year Day Sale @ lulu.com

Just a quick note to make sure everyone is aware of the Leap Year Day sale at lulu.com which ends tonight at Midnight.  Check it out!

Star Gazers Leap Day and More

If you've never followed the Star Gazers show over the years, originated as Star Hustler with the late Jack Horkheimer in the Seventies, then you're in for a treat.  It's a layman's guide to looking at the stars with regular updates so you can appreciate the night skies without an advanced degree.  Enjoy this Leap Day (week) episode and "Keep Looking Up!".

Medieval Batman

BeyondHollywood.com has a cool article with pictures on reimagining the Dark Knight as a Medieval Knight.  Enjoy!

New Game of Thrones "First Look"

There's a new Game of Thrones "First Look" video up on YouTube.  Enjoy!

RoboCup

There's a fun video on nationalgrographic's YouTube channel showing some of the limits of robots at the RoboCup tourney.  Check it out!

Top Sword

Ranker.com has a neat article on what they term as the "Top 7 Manliest Swordfights in Film History."  Lots of pics and videos though I'll bet we can all add a few of our own.  Check it out here!

John Carter Trailer - Our World

I mentioned the coolness of the upcoming John Carter movie before, but since that time another trailer has come along that I wanted to share.  Enjoy!

Kanye the Giant (Key and Peele Sketch)

Hilarious D&D send up from Key and Peele on YouTube (perhaps not safe for work).  Enjoy!

Laser Sword Antics

CollegeHumor.com has a funny little video on the ins and outs of laser sword gifting.  Enjoy!

See more at CollegeHumor

Valhalla (1986 Animated Feature)

If you don't mind subtitles, I'm sure you'll enjoy this 76 minute animated feature simply entitled Valhalla from 1986 (in eight parts on YouTube.

The Hobbit, As Rarely Seen

Early last month The Escapist, at escapistmagazine.com, had a cool slice of cinematic history detailed in an article on a rarely seen adaptation of The Hobbit which Rembrandt Films has stashed away on YouTube.  Check out the article and the twelve minute film to be amazed!

March Fo(u)rth for GM's Day!

The annual gamer holiday, GM's Day, is right around the corner.  It takes place on March 4th and has now been celebrated by increasing numbers of gamers for a decade.  I hope everyone will find some way to do something nice for their own GM, whether that is to pick up a little gift for them, make dinner or snacks for your game session closest to the date, or at least to thank them.  You can find out more of the origins of GM's Day in this EN World thread here.  You can also Like the GM's Day Facebook page here.  Whatever you do, have a good time gaming and March Fo(u)rth for GM's Day!

Saturday Strategy & Euro Boardgames Meetup Group

I had a tremndously good time last Saturday with the Saturday Strategy & Euro Boardgames Meetup Group which gathers on the north side of Chicago at Mystic Celt, a restaurant and bar with an excellent meeting space.  I learned how to play Kingdom Builder from Queen Games and also played a round of Stone Age which I had played before though quite some time ago.  Great fun on both counts!  There were about fifty people in attendance but there's plenty of room for more and it's a very friendly gathering with plenty of people willing to teach new players and integrate boardgamers of all stripes into their games.

Chicago Gameday 31 - March 17, 2012 - Planning/GMing

The planning/GMing thread for Chicago Gameday 31, which will take place at Games Plus in Mount Prospect, IL, on March 17, 2012, has begun and there are still a couple of slots available in both the morning and afternoon for those interested in running events.  Please get more information and express your interest here!  We had a great time for the past thirty gamedays and plan to continue for as long as that fun persists.

Giant in the Playground

If you haven't checked it out before, you'll find lots of fun and gaming information on the site and forums of the Giant in the Playground website.  Perhaps most notably in the offing is their Order of the Stick comics.  See for yourself here!

Dice Gauntlet

Over on SparkFun.com, there's a neat article and tutorial on how to create your own electronic dice roller built into a gauntlet.  Looks like a very fun accessory to have for your gaming.  Enjoy!

Blood On The Game Dice

Snowgum Films posted a video on their YouTube channel last October of a short film called "Blood On The Game Dice."  See if you can guess who is playing Ryan without checking IMDb.com..  Enjoy!

Gygaxian Photomosaic

Over on theweem.com, there is a new piece of art being displayed that utilizes the process of photomosaics to present a pretty cool portrait of Gary Gygax.  Download a full-sized version and check the process out here!

1E AD&D Reprint Covers

As reported on the onlinedungeonmaster.com website, the covers for the three 1E AD&D Reprint covers are now up on the Wizards of the Coast website.  I'm sure there will be some grousing and some apathy along with those who think they look just fine *like me) but at least they will be back in print for those who would like a fresh copy.  Enjoy!

The Jeff Freels Transplant Fund

The good folks from FieryDragon.com have been spreading the word about helping a fellow community member in dire need.  Jeff Freels, and artist that maybe is best known for his contributions to Tunnels & Trolls, has been struggling with medical conditions his whole life, particularly with his ever-failing vision.  Through all of this, and even though his wife Racquel has had kidney failure, they have managed  to keep their outlooks positive.  Unfortunately, things have gotten even worse and Jeff's degenerative condition is causing kidney failure for him.  They have been through this with Racquel, so they have a very good idea what they are facing and Jeff needs a transplant.  If you can help them with a donation, you might consider giving a little something to their Jeff Freels Transplant Fund as soon as you are able.

Lulu.com Buy One, Get One @ 50% Off Thru Feb 12th

It's a pretty good deal when Lulu.com has one of it's occasional Buy One, Get One @ 50% Off sales and they are doing so right now thru Feb 12th, so maybe take advantage of it quick.

EN World's The Perturbed Dragon

EN World's YouTube channel has a new teaser trailer for thier upcoming The Perturbed Dragon series which purportedly will have a few laughs over the many gamer foibles we all share from the point of view of a band of animated adventurers.  Enjoy!

Cardboard Weapons and Armor (for Kids?)

YouTube's epicfantasy channel has a bunch of videos on constructing cardboard weapons and armor that you can make for your gamer kids or even for yourself.  Check them all out here!

Good Morn, Biorn!

Here's a cool little video, a short film, called The Saga of Biorn, recounting one Viking's struggle to reach Valhalla.  Enjoy!

New Marvel Avengers Trailer

There's a new Avengers trailer that debuted during the Superbowl.  Enjoy!

Jeff Dee's Norse Gods Kickstarter Project

Jeff Dee has hit his goal (Congrats!) on his Norse Deities & Demigods Re-Creation Kickstarter Project but there's still a few hours to go to get in on the goodies.  Check it out here!

Film of a 1981 D&D Game

Ethan Gilsdorf, author of Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms, a memoire from a former gamer, recently discovered some Super 8 film footage he shot of his gaming group from 1981.  Enjoy!

World's Largest Private Lego Collection

Over on hungeree.com there was a recent article on someone's Lego collection which is said to be the world's largest private collection.  Read more here!

Loviatar Issue #7 has Arrived!

I can't say enough about how wonderful Loviatar is as grassroots zine with all the love and traditional feel that Christian is instilling in it.  The new issue has some very cool cover art and is devoted to Hex 3 of his ongoing Hex Crawl project.  Get more information here!

Crocheted Viking Dwarf Hat with Beard

There's a very cool product available on etsy.com from Legendary Crafts which is a "Crocheted Viking Dwarf Hat with Beard" and they are made to order.  Take a look!