Another Pinup

Akane in a Torpedo Maillot by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

The next coolest thing about having a girl who is actually in love with you is having a 3D model that resembles her. I didn't have anything to dress in Akane in except school girl outfits, a suit, a couple of swimsuits that cover the bare essentials, and the epic (and free) mechgirl outfit for A3. I decided to do a torpedo maillot to show off this A3.

Akane, with her blonde hair and general body shape, resembles my girl. My girl said that she is petite. I don't care, I told her. I said that because I'm in love with two other women with different body shapes. One of them, that I know of, is legally dead [and she was everything I wanted at the time]. The other might read this blog (smiles). My girl and I met on World of Warcraft was just a fluke. A seemingly unrandom, coincidental encounter. I announced that I wanted to rp a Gorean relationship because I wanted to be different; and suddenly I got a tell. Leafshadow messaged me and goaded me into collaring her as a slave, and I named her character Nòriel. Nòriel is Quenya, or Elvish, for daughter of the land. For a while, I believed it would be a strictly in game thing. Then I disappeared due to wanting to control my money.

A month and 1/2 later I buy a new card and show up again. And there she was, loyal to me and she even stood up for me while I was gone! 1st thought, "My god, she's serious!"

2nd Thought. "She's a keeper."

The point? I've been praying and desiring for a mate whom I can actually husband: a mate that I can actually teach, nurture and grow to make her everything I know she actually is. Nòriel may have her faults, but she is the answer to my prayer. So, what is the moral of this story?

Becareful what you desire, for you will get it.

DAZ Studio Glamour Shots Tutorial

While working on a class project yesterday, I quickly put together a glamour shot. Putting the glamour shot together was quite easily done. Doing glamour in DAZ Studio is easy.

Looking at the elements, I used about three spotlights and two Distant lights (bringing up the total to five). The secret to doing a glamour shot in DAZ Studio is lighting.

The lighting should bring out the face(s) of your subject(s) and make the subject stand out. Here I use a black background (consisting of a black geometric primitive plane), f.ober's foberini (a free Lamborghini model that should be sold on DAZ) blackened, and Victoria 4 in Aery Soul's Ozone outfit. All of these elements do not make a glamour shot.

Of course, the lighting can be improved in spots: changing the lighting model to skin and keeping the glossy render can make your 'model' stand out. But there are times when you don't need the model to stand out and it is still glamour and glitz.

The lighting I used was one yellow-white spotlight, one blue spotlight, and one really yellow spotlight (i.e. gold). I then used two distant lighting lights to represent light scattering, both at 50% intensity. Although instead of using a dark grey scatter from the ground, I used a white light scatter from the ground. This softens shadows and makes your figure stand out more.

I used the usual studio scatter light, white light at 50% directed at Victoria. This stands her out a lot better. Then I set up the spotlights.

Spotlight setup requires some test rendering to see what your model will look like. I used a test render to see how intense the subject will be and I adjust the lighting of my spotlights accordingly.

Using Elite textures from DAZ, or the Elite Human Surface Shader

One of the important things to know is that the Elite textures from DAZ have an annoying habit to have a high specularity when using spotlights. I found this out when doing a horror shot. The specularity was so high that the spotlight at 100% washed out any color from Vicky's skin, creating an unnatural -- overexposed -- look. If you use the Elite textures for your glam shots, and no doubt you will since they are wonderful, beautiful textures; test render your scene and reduce the intensity of your spotlights as needed.

DAGGERFALL

The Largest CRPG in the history of CRPGs has been finally released as a free download! Daggerfall is the third best CRPG in history, not because of its quality; but because of it's QUANTITY!

What makes Daggerfall the best? Daggerfall had the largest land area in any Virtual Reality game designed since Castle Wolfenstien; any CRPG that came after puts so much into quality that they haven't been able to quite . . . surpass . . . the sheer size of Daggerfall. Set in High Rock in the Elder Scrolls-verse, there were many little villages, towns, and big cities in Daggerfall; allowing you to explore all of High Rock. Whats more, Daggerfall is such a big place there is no guarantee that you'll see it all when you play it.

Daggerfall also is one of the last games to use to the Wolfenstein-Doom engine by Id Software (which has been acquired by Zenimax Media -- the parent company behind Besthesda Softworks). Being a 540 MB game, and with a land area of about the size of New York State, it is a prime example of what you can do with the Wolfenstein-engine.

So, what does this have to do with Morrowind and Oblivion? Actually, both games are small, puny places compared to Daggerfall. And there was more they were planning to do with Daggerfall. For instance, it was originally planned that the Main Characters can have sex with NPCs . . .

Daggerfall is the best CRPG available for free. It beats all of the other games that have come out. Including World of Warcraft and other MMORPGs. The shear size of the CRPG is overwhelming. Since then, Bethesda has released Morrowind and Oblivion. Of the two, I believe Morrowind has the best imagery, and Oblivion has a good storyline. Both are capable of expansion by fans due to a construction set.

In fact . . .

Anyhow, I enjoyed Daggerfall. In what other game do you get to play a werewolf? :) Okay, Morrowind, but that is only after you get the Bloodmoon expansion! :D

A Tribute to Ann

A tribute to Ann by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

"But God ceaseth not to be God, and mercy claimeth the penitent, and mercy cometh because of the atonement; and the atonement bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead; and the resurrection of the dead bringeth back men into the presence of God; and thus they are restored into his presence, to be judged according to their works, according to the law and justice."

Alma 42:23


"24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
"25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:"

John 11: 24-25

"And said, 'Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.' "

Job 1:21

My best render yet. This one is a tribute to my dead girlfriend. She's been resurrected and now ascending to the heavens. Ann is my French gal, a very beautiful and vibrant human being before she died in the hospital after a tragic car accident.

Inspiration from Nature to Dungeons and Dragons

The Green River and the Flaming Gorge reservoir, and the Flaming Gorge canyon can make some interesting places for adventures for Dungeons and Dragons (whatever version you prefer).


Rafting on the Green River by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

River rafting on the Green River through the canyon can set off an adventure of dangerous proportions! There's a lot of places on both sides where the enemy can snipe at you! The adventure can start as a river run to run supplies to another town, and the dangerous canyon is held by orcs, bandits, or whatever. Your choice.

The player characters are hired to protect the shipment. Can they survive their enemies? Run the adventure and see what happens . . . :)


Naval Battle Royale by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

Or add a second dimension: the group is competing with a NPC group to run supplies down the river. The competition could get fierce if their competitors attack your group with sword and spell . . .


A Copse of Trees by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

Not an adventure in of itself, but a location or Adventure Site. Here is a copse of trees, where you can put a mountain dwelling culture. Mountain dwarves, gnomes, halflings, orcs? Whatever your imagination can think up it can go here!

Back from Youth Conference

Sometimes, you need a break.

I had gotten that break when I had gone to the Hunter Fourth Ward (in the Utah Hunter West Stake) Conference this year. As young mens' secretary, and by extension the Ward Photojournalist, I had been taking pictures of our journey.

We left the Meeting House at about 4:30 PM, and made our ride to Duschane, Utah. From there, we road on to Red Indian Loop where our camp site was. On the way, I was taken at the beauty of the mountain top and at the copses of trees strewn about. I immediately thought of creating something from that breathtaking idea. It was just inspiring to a creative.

Arriving at the camp site, our camp was already set up and ready to go. We just need to make sleeping arrangements after dinner. I slept soundly, and everyone was excited. The bishop had to tell the boys to shut up.

The next morning, we had eggs and hash browns and the boys had built a fire. But before we got the canopy up, we had our first (and only serious) accident. Jack Allred had punctured his palm with a spike from the canopy. He called it his Jesus Wound and immediately had to treat it. Robby and Lacy then composed us into teams and told us the rules of the game. This year's theme was on Spiritual Treasure; and it had a pirate theme. Then we headed to Flaming Gorge to see the dam, and take the dam tour. With many dam jokes being said along the way.

The tour was informative. They told us how the dam was built, how the canyon of Flaming Gorge got its name, and how many men it took to build the dam working seven days a week. Then they told us how the electricity was generated, and who bought electricity from the dam, even cities as far as Nebraska.

We went river rafting after, and I had gotten a sun burn. Because of this sunburn, I deigned to go swimming the next day. The rafting was fun. Our rafting boat was the "dry" boat and the crew was composed of Robert Parker, a 68 year old convert and his first Youth Conference; Jack Allred, and Stephanie. The rapids weren't too bad, and we only got stuck on one. Jack had fly fished, and we went along at our own pace. I had taken some good shots of the Flaming Gorge canyon and the river itself.

Ah . . . At the final stretch, some girls had helped us get into the river. We had sandwiches for lunch, and then we had chicken, fried chicken, and rice for dinner. Robert Parker had sliced his hand open, while Jack had covered his wounded hand in salt. The salt acts as a reactive agent, cleansing the wound. Salt was used since the Stone Age, and can be still used today. After that, the youth played a little game. But my back was sore and I couldn't concentrate.

The next day, we ate some fruit with our breakfast. After the morning festivities we went to Lake Stienaker to swim. Everyone, except me, Jack, and Brother Parker; did a little swimming and some boating. The best part about the swimming is that Nathan Fairclough had dressed up as Captain Jack Sparrow and rowed to port. All the kids were happy, mezmerized, that Captain Jack Sparrow had arrived! One of the kids was buried in the sand up to his neck. After this, during the evening, we had navajo tacos for dinner and then we headed towards a cave.

The drive was only ten minutes, and we hiked down to a clearing. After another activity, we had to rappel down the cave. We nearly had a very serious injury in our group. One of the group ran down the cave face, tripped, and sommersaulted down the cave. He was miraculously stopped. For if he had not; he would have split his head open. The high point that Madeline had conquered her fear: the fear of dying from falling a long way. She rappelled down to the cave. I've made sure I've got three pictures of her.

After everyone had made it, Nathan Fairclough had rappelled and climbed down the cave's mouth as Captain Jack Sparrow! Then Lacy Densley's sister had given a great devotional on how the World can make something seem attractive: by making black look white. I helped out by pointing that Hollywood manipulates Latter-day Saints on the MPPA ratings issue; PG-13 movies are seen as okay, but I pointed out that the Spirit of the Law is what is really needed when choosing entertainment (i.e. a good example is the movie: The Passion of the Christ vs. say . . . Pirates of the Caribbean). After that everyone was awarded with the treasure for making it down there -- a copy of For the Strength of Youth and some candy. Then we climbed up the mountain, going the way we came.

The night had turned Spiritual, and many had given their testimonies of the Gospel, of Christ, and the Church. Then we went back to camp and I promptly went to sleep. By gum, I'm determined to GO TO SLEEP at a decent time!

This morning, we had pancakes, eggs, bacon, and ham. We ate up, we broke camp, and left for Evanston. We stopped at a dine-in Pizza Hut Pizzaria and had pizza. Then we made the long trek home. It was a good Youth Conference. Especially for myself.

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Public Walkthrough

Teary eyed. That's how I feel tonight, teary eyed.

I don't usually talk Spirituality on this blog, since I don't know how many readers actually understand matters of the Spirit, but . . .

It was wonderful.

For those who want to know what goes on, all I can say is that for Christians, its where the symbols of how to get to Heaven and to Know Who You Really are taught. An LDS Temple, both inside and outside, are the most beautiful buildings built by Man on the face of the Earth.

The best materials available always go into the construction, adornment, and furnishing of the temple. Gold, silver, the best cloth; no expense must be spared in making an LDS Temple beautiful. It is the House of the Lord. It is the place where true liberty, life, and happiness dwell.

The Abuse of the Copyright Law

and why Copyright should be killed.

“If nature has made any one thing less susceptible than all others of exclusive property, it is the action of the thinking power called an idea, which an individual may exclusively possess as long as he keeps it to himself; but the moment it is divulged, it forces itself into the possession of every one, and the receiver cannot dispossess himself of it.”

—Thomas Jefferson

Lately, over the past decade, I have been seeing the Abuse of the Law. The particular law being abused is of course -- Copyright. In our day and age, Copyright has been abused by several companies to suit them, and it has been broken by individuals to suit them. the Law Abiding individual -- honest men and women, are caught between these two sets of Abusers -- the Pirate and the Protector of his rights.

Copyright abuse has come in both forms. Downloading torrents of books belonging to other companies, cryptic software agreements that only protect the protector, and recently; aggressive protection of a game that is designed to promote creativity (Dungeons and Dragons) when a previous version of it was released under a "copyleft" agreement. Both forms of copyright abuse; not to mention Disney's lobbying for extension of Copyright of Mickey Mouse; has caused a powerful investigation into the claims that Copyright Law does no good under the current climate by myself. The debate by libertarians have brought the nature of Property into question, and libertarians are split right down the middle on the issue of Copyright. Some say it should be abolished, others defend it because the Constitution defends it.

In the movie 1776, the Patriot and Loyalist John Dickinson stated that some of our ancestors have come to these shores (America) to secure Rights to Property. And he and his fellow, cool conservative men in the Second Continental Congress also wanted these same Rights to Property protected. If they mean physical property -- in the case of Real Estate, Objects of Value, and Chattel; I agree with them. But now that certain parties have become intellectual thieves and intellectual tyrants I have but no choice but to disagree.

As a patriot, I desire liberty and justice for all in this country. This includes those who are hurt the most by both the Intellectual Property Tyrants and the Intellectual Pirates -- the common citizen of the United States.

I am split down the middle as well, but I'm leaning towards the left of the Right Field.

* A man who produces and publishes a work deserves to be paid for his work he put into his work. It's from his soul, it is his intellectual property since he created it. It is the right of this type that is preyed upon by the Intellectual Pirate.

* A person who buys his work should be able to claim that reproduction as his property and therefore has the right to resell it or give it away (or in the case of Dungeons and Dragons, CREATE A DERIVATIVE WORK based on the nature of Dungeons and Dragons). It is the right of this type that is preyed upon by the Intellectual Tyrant.

The common person does not benefit if he cannot claim ownership of his property from one, or if the property of another is defrauded by the other. The pirate opens the gateway for the tyrant to claim a "monopoly" on the work; and the tyrant punishes the common people for the actions of the pirate who isn't deterred by his work in piracy. The result is a vicious circle: the Pirate takes, the Tyrant does something to protect his rights but does not stop the tyrant. And the common people's claim to his physical property (a copy of the item) dwindles. In fact, the common people's properties are defrauded by the actions of a few.

The Case Against Intellectual Property

While the Constitution defends the right to copy one's intellectual property, it should be able to protect the common people's right to consume and enjoy the labors of that copy. However, the Constitution made no provisions to protect the common people's right to consume Intellectual Property works. I.e., the Constitution did not allow for an expiration date of Copyright either. It was vague in that instance.

Alexander Hamilton proposed something wonderful: Copyright can be kept by an individual or an organization for the maximum of 18 years -- after which it passes into the public domain. This was Copyright Law back in Alexander Hamilton's time. In our time, it's after your death, to a century.

How utterly STUPID!

I give you the ethical argument (the Historical one is easy. Copyright came from Monarchial governments: not a Republican one -- so therefore Copyright is a monopolist license or right granted by a Crown in the Restoration Age).

"Ethically, property rights of any kind have to be justified as extensions of the right of individuals to control their own lives. Thus any alleged property rights that conflict with this moral basis — like the "right" to own slaves — are invalidated.

"To enforce copyright laws and the like is to prevent people from making peaceful use of the information they possess. If you have acquired the information legitimately (say, by buying a book), then on what grounds can you be prevented from using it, reproducing it, trading it? Is this not a violation of the freedom of speech and press?" 1

Twenty to fifteen years ago, I would be a staunch supporter of copyright. Although I had several ideas for derivative works, I could not work on them because I supported copyright. However, in light of what is happening now with companies like Disney, Wizards of the Coast, and Microsoft (to name a few) these questions are full on my mind.

On what grounds can I be prevented from using my copy of Complete Arcane, reproducing it, or trading it? Is it not a violation of my Freedom of Speech for Wizards of the Coast to prevent me from creating a derivative work from Complete Arcane? Likewise, is it not a violation of my freedom of the Press to have an agreement not to trade a copy of Windows 7 with my computer to another person?

While asking these questions, this argument came to mind:
"It may be objected that the person who originated the information deserves ownership rights over it. But information is not a concrete thing an individual can control; it is a universal, existing in other people's minds and other people's property, and over these the originator has no legitimate sovereignty. You cannot own information without owning other people. " q.v.

This is a true argument. Information is not a concrete thing an individual can really control. Once you transmit information to another person, that information exists in that person's mind and in their property. Unless you have true legitimate sovereignty over that person, you cannot own that information.

Then there are economic arguments. I.e. in a world without copyrights, my renders -- which I create -- wouldn't be able to make money for me. That I need these rights to gain the financial incentive to create. I don't think this is credible, since by my nature, I am creative being. I can still render and create 3D works of art, and write and produce, if Copyright Law was repealed (per abuse in this Digital Age).

The case for Economics and ordinary property rights is based on Scarcity thinking. i.e. the idea that there isn't much of one natural resource (i.e. real estate). However, information is always based on Abundance thinking -- there will always be a need to create and distribute information among the people. So when I acquire information (i.e. Complete Arcane for example) that does not decrease Wizards of the Coast's share of the information. 2

So, why is Wizards of the Coast hoarding the information for themselves? WHY should they hoard the information for themselves? And why is Disney putting movies into the Vault, only to release them after a period of time? Why does this justify their right to do so?

Information Based Arguments

The information based argument is coming to the forefront in this Information Age. Before the Information Age, before the personal computer and ArcNet; the Copyright Law, although unjustified, has not done any damage to human progress. But in our Age of the personal computer, integrated optical chips, wireless networks, T1 lines, and Cable Internet (and dialup internet) we have a problem. The Copyright Law has become a shackle to human progress.

Modern communications, through Cable internet and dial-up hookups, have simply made Copyright laws unenforceable. Or at least, unenforceable by any means short of Government takeover of the Internet (which has happened in China). Copyright Laws now are working to restrict the flow of information, not to promote it. And the only way to enforce these Laws in an Internet society, where the Player's Handbook 2 can be sent all over the world after it was "leaked" is horrible to contemplate. The government will have to take over and own the Internet to enforce these laws. 3

Conclusion?

In my mind, Copyright Law is being used to restrict the flow of information and creativity to an extent. It is being abused by companies such as Microsoft, Disney, and Wizards of the Coast to restrict the flow and availability of information. While the Pirate who breaks these same laws are not deterred by the threat of lawsuit; these companies are imposing terrible controls -- in their own way -- on the Common People because of pirates.

It is the common people's liberty that is being taken away here. Not the companies' or the pirates' liberties. Therefore, the Copyright Law of the United States of America does not hold any usefulness in the land where Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness are ideals held sacred. Patriots in this fair country should rise up and fight for their rights over their physical property and their rights to use their property as they see fit.



Works Citied:

The Libertarian Case Against Intellectual Property Rights, Rodrick T. Long.

Adventures in Writing: The Death of Copyright, Marilyn Byerly.

The Death of Copyright, Samizdata Illuminatus.

So Sayeth Soup, the Death of Copyright

Squeaky, my Cat

My cat's dying . . .

My First 4e Character

Elessar Calanor by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

This is my own first 4e character. I'm determined to give it a playtest. While creating him, I found it completely and utterly frustrating that there wasn't any thing I could use for my concept, so I had to make do with what the Character Builder had available (and I had to use windows, WotC is making an assumption that everyone has windows, ugh!).

====== Created Using Wizards of the Coast D&DI Character Builder ======
Elessar Calanor, level 1
Human, Warlord
Build: Inspiring Warlord
Commanding Presence: Inspiring Presence

FINAL ABILITY SCORES
Str 12, Con 16, Dex 16, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 17.

STARTING ABILITY SCORES
Str 12, Con 16, Dex 14, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 17.


AC: 13 Fort: 15 Reflex: 14 Will: 15
HP: 28 Surges: 10 Surge Value: 7

TRAINED SKILLS
Endurance +8, History +8, Athletics +6, Diplomacy +8, Insight +5

UNTRAINED SKILLS
Acrobatics +3, Arcana +3, Bluff +3, Dungeoneering, Heal, Intimidate +3, Nature, Perception, Religion +3, Stealth +3, Streetwise +3, Thievery +3

FEATS
Human: Weapon Proficiency (Rapier)
Level 1: Melee Training (Charisma)

POWERS
Warlord at-will 1: Commander's Strike
Warlord at-will 1: Opening Shove
Warlord encounter 1: Leaf on the Wind
Warlord daily 1: Fearless Rescue
Human: Wolf Pack Tactics

ITEMS
Riding Horse, Rapier, Fine Clothing
====== Created Using Wizards of the Coast D&DI Character Builder ======

Moral Code: A part of his personality is his moral code. Elannar is Directed by his own moral compass, the stirrings in his heart. He follows his gut on principle.

Background: Elessar Calanor is the first son of Lord Earl Farathorn Calanor and the Lady Rowena Calanor. Because the family has distant elven blood from the Elves going back 5 generations, Elessar was given an Elvish name. Because he is first in line, the Lord Earl kept him on a tight leash and sent him to the Academy to be educated. He recently graduated with a Bachelor's degree and have returned home. He's frustrated at home, his home having become a hotbed of intrigue and politics. Although he can deftly maneuver through the intrigue at court as best as he can, he often leaves the family manor to explore the family lands.

Elessar has recently been betrothed in an arranged marriage by his mother, the Lady Rowena. His fiance has so far proven to be kind and considerate. And she seems to be more adroit in maneuvering the courts than he is. He has also fallen in love with her and thus confides in her often. However, she's not around often at night.

[Place Holder for the fiance's render]

During his childhood, Elessar had a childhood friend by the name of Elaine. A commoner she is blonde headed. He had great fun with Elaine before he went to the Academy to be educated. He fell in love with Elaine, seeing as how they had a lot in common. When he returned, Elaine had married a shopkeeper. The marriage is a bad one, but unlike his arranged betrothal Elaine seems to have married for love. Although she loves him and he doesn't love her.

Traits/Demeanor: Elessar is somewhat reserved, holding his anger in check. He's also shy, hiding his shyness with the Pride of the nobility. He is surprisingly confident and loyal to his friends. Persons who betray him soon lose his respect. He is also quite naive, taking most everything said at face value. But he is a natural leader, so its quite possible he will learn discernment.

Elessar is hot-headed. Meaning he feels anger or indignation quite easily. He mostly keeps this in check, but there were times that he does let his anger go. He usually takes it out on a tree or some other object rather than a person. However, he warned Elaine's husband by pushing him against a stone wall and holding him by the neck that if he ever hurt Elaine, he will kill him. Finally, he has a strange way of attracting girls and guys to him that are easily distracted. The girls and guys are easy pickings. He's a bit bored with the girls and he doesn't give the guys any attention.

A study in reflection

Beauty on a Mirror by ~Atlantean6 on deviantART

ditto.

4e AGAIN

Geeze,

Okay to understand my position with D&D 4e:

Dungeons and Dragons 4e is a good game. however, its too cinematic in its emphasis for my tastes; but its a good game. However, in the experience of the eye-witnesses who play it is that the power gamers are completely all over it. I find that I have a hard time playing with them because they put more emphasis on the game mechanics and less emphasis on character.

I would love to play a 4e game where people put more emphasis on roleplay. I don't want to be asked whether I'm playing a striker, a controller, a leader, or a defender. Those are predetermined roles for a style of gaming I don't want to play right now. I want to be asked what kind of character I'm playing, and where the question: "What is your character's name?" is given importance. That is the group I want to play with.