As I write this, in early December, I am about to join the rest of the world in celebrating at least one winter holiday and then bidding farewell to 2022 (by playing a new to me RPG!) and welcoming 2023. I hope that 2022, whatever else History might say about it, was a good year to you and yours, fellow Gamer Nation citizens. I’ve enjoyed most of it – books, gaming, new geeky things to stream, and my two doggos (at least one of whom may be another of those alt-Loki’s like in the Disney+ series). And of course my little side gig writing and editing here at D20 Radio.
As you may have noticed, in mid-2022, the featured columns here, including Astral Projections, went to an alternating schedule, with three of us writers showing up one week (Monday/Wednesday/Friday) and the other trio the next. I had mixed feelings about the change. I liked my guaranteed 15 minutes of fame/attention every week and it gave me a little more structure in my semi-retired lifestyle. On the other hand, I was glad to see Ben and Garrett rejoin Wayne, Egg, Kim, and myself. The new schedule also halved the writing workload, while stretching deadlines to two weeks, which was a relief. If you, however, would like to read more than three articles per week, then please support our Patreon. (See below.)
So on to my looks back and forward. There were 40 Astral Projections pieces in 2022, and almost half were – no surprise! – Star Wars. Most of those were Force Wizard “Phase 3,” a look at the various Force Talents in the FFG Force & Destiny SWRPG line. I just realized as I wrote this, that August 2023 marks the 10th Anniversary of the FFG SWRPG! A whole decade of gaming goodness in everyone’s favorite galaxy far, far away.
Runner-up system, with ten articles, was Cyberpunk RED. My favorites were the eateries I created, Classic Sushi and Sorta-Burger, as well as the rockerboys of new music sensation DataKrashD. I’ve always enjoyed writing “fluff” (backgrounds and descriptions for RPGs). Yes, I’ve been having a lot of fun living in R. Talsorian Games’ Dark Future, GMing as well as playing. Why do you ask?
The ones that were the most fun to write this past year were my Genesys Oozes 5 part mini-series. I holistically recreated Black Puddings, Gray and Psychic Gray Oozes, Ochre Jellies, and Gelatinous Cubes. I do love the Xenobiologist persona, who also introduced us to the prehistoric Dog-Bear and Bear-Dog mammals for Mutants & Masterminds 3e and Genesis.
What am I going to do in 2023? Of course I will finish my latest Force Wizard series and have started the next installments. With the end of Phase 3, though, I will retire this series in the coming year. I’ve enjoyed delving into FFGSW’s Force mechanics, but Force Wizard will have had a 5 year run, believe it or not, when the final one goes live and I feel ready to focus on other topics, which will certainly include more Star Wars.
One will be the unofficial 5e Star Wars RPG. My group played a one-shot of this last year and had a great time. I want to explore the system more before writing anything. Especially since our GM told me there have been a lot of changes to this 5e hack since he made the adventure we played. There will be other play experiences, too. My son is currently running The Wild Beyond the Witchlight (D&D 5e) for the group, and we love this more or less lighthearted campaign. And I plan to regale you with my experiences GMing Cyberpunk RED. Yes, folks, I finally found a second system I felt comfortable running!
This year I am going to make sure I include my holiday traditions, as I missed one or two in 2022, due to the schedule shift. First up will be the annual April Fools stats. Will I stick with the Droids and Ewoks cartoons, or do something completely different? I will have at least one Halloween themed article in October, possibly a reprise of Literary Halloween. And of course, my winter holidays articles.
I wish all of you a 2023 filled with all kinds of goodness, not just Good Gaming, Gamer Nation!
Linda Whitson
Latest posts by Linda Whitson (see all)
- Astral Projections – The Ripperdoc Is In - May 8, 2023
