Alex: Don't mind Jimmy, he's just an ongoing character of mine. He has apeared off and on in my writing, his first appearance being in Darkarrival X-13 (2002). He has also had bit parts in a variety of my stories, most notably in Murder for the Sword (2002) and Hole in the Wall (2003). He speaks only in questions, which makes him the perfect choice for my interviewer. In this section, Jimmy (referred to now on as JC) will ask me Roleplaying related questions that will serve as a FAQ for Awakening and Opaeras campaigns. So, let's cut to the chase!
JC: When did Awakening start? What changes have there been in the roster of players?
AJ: My Forgotten Realms campaign, Awakening, began in the spring of 2002 under the name of 'Age of Darkness'. The original roster was Ian Houk, Alex Jones, Cory Denious, Jackson Jones and Eric Leibrandt. Ian proved to play in a way that was not beneficial to our group, so we cut him. Consequently, our campaign kind of stopped working due to player/DM absence. In an effort to restart our campaign, we changed the name to 'Awakening', traded Eric for Tim Brenner (so we could get some older players playing) and reformed our goals. Needless to say, the campaign has been a major success thus far and I hope to keep going for quite some time!
JC: Weren't Ian and Eric disappointed? Isn't that unfair and mean?
AJ: Well, Ian couldn't care less since he started up a new group (which no longer exists, I think) and Eric will begin to play as a guest star every now and then. There still wasn't any exchange of hard feelings, he was understanding that we were aiming for an 'older' aged group. I will definitely allow him to play every once and a while, and I'd like to do the same with Ian if my group members would allow me to.
JC: Can I ask Cory any questions?
AJ: Cory will be DMing soon, starting with the Speaker In Dreams acclaimed Wizards of the Coast adventure on March 14. I will Co-DM with him, so he can learn the mechanics. He will be trained extensively, and once the party reaches 7th level, we will run Pandemonium in the Veins together, another WOTC adventure. After this, he will start to build his own adventures and DM more often, allowing me to play!
JC: What are you planning for the website? What about OpAeras?
AJ: The 'Awakening' Section of my Website will grow rapidly in these coming months. I plan to write most of everything their under the pseudonym of Doyle Harrigan. Eventually, the Awakening section will be incredibly large and will contain every piece of the campaign in it. OpAeras has gone under due to lack of support.
JC: Will you be playing as Doyle Harrigan?
AJ: You'll just have to wait and see.
JC: When is my favorite game coming to this site?
AJ: Oh, you mean Darkarrival X-13. This game will be revised and published on my site Summer 2004.
JC: What other games are you excited about?
AJ: Since I'm a big fan of H.P. Lovecraft, I've always wanted to run a Call of Cthulu campaign. I'm also intensely interested in d20 Modern, Dungeons and Dragons: Rokugan (expensive but cool setting), and Armeggedon 2084 (a d20 System Mech game set in a militaristic near-future setting). I'm also excited about Cory Denious' game that is in its early stages now, a nameless card game of sorts. I wonder if he's still planning to publish it, and whether it will be Open Gaming Content. If the answers Yes to both, I'm gonna make a third-party company expansion set no matter what!
JC: Are you planning to publish any short stories in the near future?
AJ: I've been thinking about trying to get published in a magazine of sorts, possibly a fantasy mag. Anything out of my Cape of Chaos series I've been writing in since summer may qualify for a teen magazine, but also Murder for the Sword has a possibility. Oh! My helicopter! Gotta go!
JC: Why does he have to leave in the middle of the interview? Alex? Alex!!?
JIMMY CHONGA'S PORTFOLIO
Darkarrival X-13 (Sci-Fi) 2002- Darkarrival X-13 is an arena battle, card-based roleplaying game for the d20 system. This core book came with 2 stories, both staring Jimmy Chonga and his best friend, Joseph Mamma. I hope to post DAX-13 on my site this Summer, when I have time to revise it.
Murder for the Sword (Fantasy)2002- This stand-alone romantic fantasy short story had a very small role with a character named Jhim. Strangely, this is JC and, if you notice, he only speaks in question!
Hole in the Wall (Drama)2003 (coming April)- This Cheesecake spin-off features Jimmy Chonga and Joseph Mamma in incidental character roles. I hope to put at least a chapter of this novella on my site by April.
Under the Rug (Comedy)2003 (coming February 28th)- This is a story that has been entered in a contest. With Jimmy's backing as an incidental character, I hope it will win!