One more

Ok, I can't stop at just one. Click here for the original (by talented artist Ben Lane) and my doctored version.


I'm gonna need to change my site layout if this sort of thing is going to continue.

Lazy

Clearly suffering from prolonged comic-block, I've decided to ease my way back into the world of WoW comics by criticizing other, more talented and motivated, people.

First up is "Tales from Westfall", a recent honorable mention from this month's official Blizzard comic contest.



Nice artwork and good premise, but the writing can be punched up a bit. Pointing out the absurdities of game logic is funny, but not as funny as proposing tortured explanations to them. Here's how I would've done it:

Panel 1. Close-up of bloody dwarf.
[Dwarf]: Dammit! I got another boar with no liver!
[Someone yelling from off screen to the left]: What?
[Dwarf]: No liver!
---
Panel 2. Night Elf entering from the left.
[Elf]: You're just fucking eating those, aren't you?
[Dwarf]: What?! No! It didn't have a liver!
[Elf]: How is that even fucking possible?
---
Panel 3.
[Dwarf]: I dunno. Maybe it's like in that "Schrodinger's Cat" thought experiment: You picture a cat, but you don't know if it has a liver or not until you kill him and open him up.
[Elf]: I'm picturing opening you up and finding all the boar livers cause you FUCKING ATE THEM!
---
Panel 4. Human entering from the right.
[Human]: Maybe if you didn't mash the poo out of everything with that comically large hammer, they'd still have livers. Where'd you get that thing anyway?
[Dwarf]: I found it in a bird.

But why does the night elf have to swear?

I'm here, I'm here

And man, am I embarrassed at the long absence. Thanks much for all the comments and emails! I've been away from WoW and the blog for a bit but am starting up again. New comics as soon as I get my mana refreshed.

I'm alive

Contrary to popular reports, I am indeed still alive. Sorry for the extended and unexpected absence; a heavy workload in RL (I'm one of the justices on the U.S. Supreme Court - can't tell you which one but, hint: the one that likes robes) is making it hard to play. I'll be back to making the strips by this weekend, caseload permitting.

One Shots 14 - Lore

[Update: Ok, this one is a bit obscure. Here's the original big announcement from today.]

Half the Battle - 3 - Will of the Forsaken

What's "Half the Battle" you ask? Why is this one number 3? Did I miss anything?

All is well. I've simply noticed that the "One Shots" category, created to hold miscellaneous strips, was getting a bit crowded and I wanted to do some more "educational" content, so I made this new category and stuffed the previous "Learn 2 Play" Hunter and Mage strips into it. The sidebar on the right has also been expanded with the new navigation options.

Let the learning, err, continue!

Laws

The new comic will be up later today or tomorrow. Meanwhile, since the talking sheep has stirred up some discussion, let me paraphrase C. P. Snow and summarize the

Three Laws of Warcraftdynamics

1. You can't win (because that guild of 14-year-old-kids has all purple gear, poor parenting).

2. You can't break even (because that next upgrade to your pants is gonna cost you a lot more than the increase to your earnings power that you obtained by getting those last shoulders).

3. You can't even quit the game (because hero classes may come out at some point).

In other words, World of Warcraft is going to beget the heat death of the universe, unless the next patch finally breaks it for good.

Let us pray.

One Shots - 13 - Learn 2 PLAY: Mage

Here's the first strip made completly on the Mac. What do you think of the new look-n-feel?



I'm not quite sure yet...

It is done

So I bought Photoshop CS2 for the Mac.




Now I am really committed to this thing - I've gotta make enough comics to pay for the new tools. Oh wait, that might not work.

Drat!

Stick Figure Mac Test

Well, I'm still screwing around with the new Mac and I still haven't gotten around to buying Photoshop for it. I think I'm going to try some other programs first. Anyone have any experience with Manga Studio? Any other recommendations?

Meanwhile, in case anyone needs reminding about why Adventures with Play is a screenshot comic. I present to you the latest hand-drawn masterpiece showcasing the full gamut of my artistic prowess:



This episode was inspired by a real conversation that a friend of mine had on Maelstrom, however the comic is so godawful that he refuses to have his name associated with it in any way. He has chosen wisely.

AwP will resume production on the PC immediately while I get things sorted out.

Blogger is broken

Well, blogger seems to have broken the site. I can't post new images and most of the "closeup" pages don't seem to be working. We'll see how long it lasts.

[Update: Seems the custom template that I'd been using for the "closeup" pages no longer works. I'm trying to fix it now, but you might see craziness for now.

An hour and a half later: More or less fixed. Weeee.]

I'm not dead

But I am trying to deal with something potentially even more debilitating in the short term. You see, I got a Mac. The first Mac I've ever owned. Now I just can't bring myself to go back to my pc-based comics creating environment and I don't have all the tools I need on the Mac yet. Namely Photoshop. Man that thing's expensive.

I will resolve this dilemma soon.

One Shots - 12 - Patchy

One Shots - 11

What's in a name?

In the past, when people used to ask me what my name means, I'd just shrug and tell them that I thought of it while staring at the floor. But yesterday, Maraxxus of Maelstrom forums figured out a much better story.

Quoth he:

"Tile is truly elit."

Very insightful!

In the spirit of subtly alluding to one's true nature by picking a name that's a hidden word spelled backwards, I'm going to name my next character, "Poop."

Vol 6. - "Exposition" - Episode 1

Wherein some things are explained and others are obfuscated.

Season 2

I've just returned from vacation. The next volume of Adventures with Play is in production. Weeeee.

Vol. 5 - "A Trick of the Light" - Episode 5

Exciting? Conclusion

I'm doing a bit of jet setting sitting this week, but am aiming to get thrilling conclusion to the current Adventures with Play story arc up on the site by tomorrow or Thursday. It may blow your mind.

But probably won't.

Vol. 5 - "A Trick of the Light" - Episode 4