The heroes of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Forgotten Realms lines were part of the same adventure in “Jammers,” but they never actually crossed paths. The 1990 Forgotten Realms Annual changes that, as the crew of the Realms Master drops anchor in Waterdeep and runs headlong into the adventures who live at Selûne’s Smile.
Continue reading “Comics & Quests: Waterdhavian Nights”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com March 27, 2013
If you look at popular media from a generation or two ago, you see men who are largely removed from the birthing process. There are images of expectant fathers pacing in the waiting room or, in times long past, chain smoking at the hospital. Maybe it shouldn’t be surprising to us, then, that there are a number of fathers-to-be that don’t plan to be in the delivery room during their child’s birth.
Continue reading “Parenting: Should Dads be in the Delivery Room?”
“So you’re probably wondering about the Gila monster.”
Continue reading “Fiction: Happy Valentine’s Day”
“Sarah!”
Sarah sighed as she snapped out of her imaginary world. She was still in Doctor Goldberg’s office, and only five minutes had passed. She sat up straight in an overstuffed chair and ran her hands across the legs of her blue jeans.
“What is it, Doctor Goldberg?” She batted her eyes innocently as she spoke.
“You weren’t listening to me at all, were you?”
“Of course I was.”
“Then what did I say?”
“Um…that I have problems telling the difference between fantasy and reality?”
Doctor Goldberg’s gray mustache twitched in irritation. “That was a lucky guess.”
The story of Greystone Valley is really the story of Sarah, a twelve year old girl who finds herself trapped in a fantasy realm. In some ways, it’s the ideal situation for Sarah, who has become obsessed with fairy tales and stories about magic. On the other hand, none of the heroes Sarah has read about have ever had to fight armies and hide from cave trolls while in her pajamas.
Continue reading “Greystone Valley: Sarah”
Originally published on BabyCenter.com March 22, 2013
The worst day of my parenting life came about a year ago when my wife and I found out that our son had lead poisoning. All I could think of at the time was, “We just screwed up our son’s life.” Fortunately, that wasn’t true.
Continue reading “Facts About Lead Poisoning and What You Can Do About It”
Here I am. Standing in front of her grave, watching as she sinks into the ground. If I was still a kid then I’d probably stare wide-eyed, wondering what sort of unseen magician’s trick makes the coffin float and what was in the box. Instead I’ve grown up, so I stand around listening to feeble apologies and trying to keep myself from crying.
She’s not coming back. I keep telling that to myself, turning it over in my mind like a mantra, keeping away the disappointment that hides behind naïve hope.
There he is. When all of the mourners are gone and she’s buried deep down so I can never see her again, I look up to see the Devil standing next to me, his head bowed in what I assume is mock respect. Right now he looks like Al Pacino.
Continue reading “Fiction: Sympathy from the Devil”
Our last adventure ended rather abruptly with Jasmine’s kidnapping. The resolution to that story doesn’t happen in the pages of the Forgotten Realms comics, though. Instead, DC tried to introduce a new line of D&D comics, bringing in the brand-new Spelljammer setting.
Released early in 2nd edition AD&D, Spelljammer served as a way to connect other settings. By using a magical form of space travel, characters could leave the Forgotten Realms to journey to Oerth, Krynn, or one of the many other settings that came out as 2nd edition got rolling. For the comic stories, this meant a chance to tie the two existing Forgotten Realms-based lines in with a new cast of characters, creating a grand crossover.
Quite honestly, I’m surprised that Hasbro hasn’t tried to duplicate this effort in the modern day. In an era where every major corporation sees its creative properties as content to iterate upon and where shared universes are all the rage, the many worlds if D&D offer a potential goldmine.
Then again, maybe I shouldn’t give Hasbro any ideas…
Continue reading “Comics & Quests: Jammers”
Originally posted on BabyCenter.com March 8, 2013
You know what can be fun? Taking a 10-hour road trip with a toddler.
No, seriously. It can be…as long as you’re prepared.
Continue reading “7 Steps to Surviving a Road Trip with a Toddler”
Forget about your bleeding toenail. Forget about muscles that want to betray you. Forget about the “you” entirely. Right now, you’re nothing but the dance.
Continue reading “Fiction: Second Position”
In “Triangles,” the Realms Master added a new member of their crew in Jasmine…and I complained that she and Ishi were reduced to one-note romantic interests for Agrivar. But that was only her first story, so where are we now?
Well, the next tale, “Undead Love,” presents a lich seeking a bride…and selecting Jasmine as his wife-to-be. So it seems that the creative team has a very particular direction for this character.
Continue reading “Comics & Quests: Undead Love”
Babbling Brooks 
