In which we walk the borders

 Scarcity creates conflict.  LOTS of things create scarcity.  Piracy.  Monsters.  Landslides.  Border disputes.  Also plague, production shifts and ... well ... you name it!

So every game-month I "walk the borders."  OK, not that complex, but I DO use Azgaar to reconfigure events on the planet.  This generates all KINDS of fun stuff around the planet.  The current map highlights a handful of light houses and bridges, the destruction of any of which might results in calamity.  The Coclinalian River flooded - lets reduce food production there.  The southern boarder of Invarel is suffering from Bloody Fever and boarder skirmishes have erupted as internal squabbles.  A volcano 200 miles north of Kunduz erupted.  Copper and salt production is increased in multiple wilderness locations between Invarel and Kinduz.  Avalanches have rocked the region west of the high elf homeland and there have been rumblings along the Numundunese fault line, endangering the mountain dwarves.  

Every ONE of those events creates plot hooks.  The news of these events may or may not reach the parties ears and they may or may not choose to investigate.  If/when they do I'll flesh out the nature of the problem and away we'll go.  And NEXT game-month (about three game-weeks away) and I'll let Azgaar create another set.  And I'll figure out how long it'll take word to reach the party, and I'll plant the events in the "rumors" list and the world will wash over them.

And when the year changes?  States, provinces, armies, cultures and diplomacy changes, cities grow (and shrink) and some production is shifted, and the cycle starts anew giving not just the illusion of a living, breathing world, but an ACTUAL living, breathing world.  IF this campaign ends or IF the current players decide to place their secondary characters in a new location or IF a new party wants to play in my world ... I can give them choices.  Wanna be thrust into the middle of the eons long struggle between dwarves, elves and orcs?  Maybe the viking-like culture beset by sea monsters.  Or negotiating trade deals between two countries who recently discovered a mountain pass that could connect them.  It's ALL already there and has been all along.

In which we get three dimensional

 Got my work incentive bonus (although I always think of my salary as a work incentive bonus!) right around Christmas time and have decided to indulge myself.  I'm buying a 3D printer!  Filament.  Three extruders.  Ran it by my tech advisor (The Boy) and he gave an enthusiastic two thumbs up.  

Have been having issues with the seller.  Not sure if it's supply chain or bad faith.  For the time being I'm assuming it's the former.  Got a Geeetech A30T.  Also picked up a bunch of spools (RGYBKW, silver and gray.)  Will add purple, orange, wood and gold next time around.  At around $20 a pop these might make nice Birthday/Christmas list items.

Have also been spending a crap-ton of time online trying to learn what mistakes not to make and how to "slice."  Also how to "color" or "paint." To my dismay it is NOT as easy as I thought it would be - and I was expecting it to be kinda difficult!  But the search continues for the perfect software to ease the task.  A Canadian kickstarter from 2016 looked promising but after it went live the producers walked away.  Hopefully I'll stumble across the right youtube video to penetrate my thick skull and help me unlearn all my priors.

"What are you going to DO with it?" my friends and family ask.  After rattling off a dozen silly pieces I COULD make (personalized chip clips, book marks, tools) I mention D&D.  A family brainstorming session yesterday yielded a handful of ideas as well.  And my niece who I dearly love rolled her eyes and obeserved "now we know what to expect NEXT Christmas."  

The Boy and his sidekick are ecstatic.  Only reason they haven't bought there OWN is because they're afraid it'll swallow their lives whole.  So they'll come over once it's assembled and once I've worked through an hour or so of slicer setup and watch my first prints. And they also know that I'll take their requests.  

So where do I start and where do I go?  I'm thinking I'll start off with a swarm of rats.   One color.  No support needed.  And who DOESN'T need a swarm of rats to throw on their battlemap?  After that?  Once I'm up and running I figure I'll know what creatures I might need for upcoming sessions so I can run a bunch of those.  Currently gnolls, bandits, dretch, quasit ... maybe a vrock or a chasme with night hag's and hezrou right around the corner.  Terrain set pieces?  Haven't really USED terrain but I might run off a throne or a well or a fountain as needed.  Custom weapons!  One of my characters has a sword she's named "Spine Ripper."  Would love to find an interesting model and make her a small version of it.  Cleric has a Mace of Disruption.  A small model would be nice.  So would a token-ized version to use as a spiritual weapon.  Periapt of wound closure?  Spell focus?  Sure.  And minis for NPC or secondary characters.

Side note - I've run a fantasy football league for over 35 years.  We've NEVER had a trophy.  Found a model of the Lombardi Trophy.  Think I can modify the "engraving."  Current league members could be given one for each year they've won - with Stanley Cup style additions over time of the name and franchise of all prior winners.  That'd be fourteen of 'em.  Might be a fun long-term project.