Upcoming for life of uZ

 Welcome my son, welcome to the machine.

And, as I inch nearer and nearer to the big Four-Oh, the machine is ready to churn out like never before. Like I said in my last post, lifeofuZ was back and with a bang. Obviously a lot has been going on. With pandemic woes, lockdown, work from home, self isolating, schooling kids, home rearrangements and changes, health and fitness and having to be able to mentally process all of it... well, it's been a rollercoaster ride for 2021.

On the geekery side of things, that rollercoaster has been charging ahead with no signs of slowing down. So, if you're into gaming, board gaming, Dungeons & Dragons, comic books and geek culture, you're in for a treat. Here's a breakdown of what to look forward to in the upcoming months:

1. Weekly blogs

Commitment. It's such an adulty concept that conjures images of polyester-clad mustachioed guidance councilors over enunciating on words that have more than 2 syllables. But, with great power...responsibility (ouch) yadda yadda. That said, I will be committing to blogging a lot more regularly - at least weekly but more often also. They might not all be the usual long-winded essays that I'm so overly fond of giving myself credit for but they will hopefully be relevant. Except the sex stuff. That's probably not relevant. And more than likely not going to end up on this blog. That's for my OnlyFans. Oh wait...my Only Vaccinated Fans (OVF). So yes, if you have a problem with me being pro-vax you can just about fuck off. Kidding! I'm kidding...about the Only Fans and sex stuff. But not about the anti-vaxxers. Seriously.

2. More video content & live playthroughs

I've been meaning to do a lot more video content and a few live playthroughs of some of the board games I own. I received a lot of positive feedback on the D&D video content for all my custom Hero builds but still get a lot of questions around "How do you construct an epic dungeon sprawl for an afternoon of gaming?" and "How do you add custom game mechanics?" and so on. So expect to see some more video content for those type of questions as well as just some solo and live playthroughs as well as new D&D campaigns and adventures. I'm nervously excited for when things return to 'normal' and I can summon my motley crew around my gaming table again. That is going to be one reunion that is definitely worthy of a vlog.

3. Lots more Dungeons & Dragons stuff!

As you know from this blog I am a HUGE fan of the D&D Adventure board games and have loads of custom content housed up over here. Since 2019 I've done 20 custom hero builds from Forgemasters to fire-wielding Clerics to Monks to Mesmerists & Psychics, Pirates, Mages and Vigilantes...I've built the heck out of custom heroes for this format of the game. And...I'm done with the fantasy trope heroes and good guys for now. It's time for a new breed of builds. I'm talking the big bosses, the Don Corleones, the chief kahunas, the criminal, evil, legions of doom masterminds. It's bad boy bitch and I'm bringing it. Expect to see loads of new monsters and villains from reworked versions of Strahd, Acererak, Halaster and Ashardalon to some new forms of villainy with new game mechanics. Note: while I do have a ton of new monster minis to pair with these, you don't need to go out and buy any new stuffs - All you need are the base games with the existing figurines. I will always list alternatives for you to use for your gaming needs. With the new monsters and villains, there are also new adventures to look forward to. I've already published 2 new adventures for the Tomb of Annihilation on this blog and there are 4 more for TOA to come. I'm taking it back and starting with Ravenloft though so expect to see a new adventure popping up weekly as well.

4. And yes, even more Dungeons & Dragons stuff!!!

On top of the existing D&D adventure board games, I'm also doing some custom content stuff based off an existing game I own but have no interest in playing (lol, I know). It's called Alien VS Predator: The Hunt Begins. I bought the game on special, loved how it looked, awesome minis and even more awesome tiles but I have just not really been able to get into the game. the rulebook is clunky and long and well...it's just a LOT to process so...I'm giving the game a D&D makeover. Blasphemy, you say? Ridley Scott should have House of Gucci pay me visit? HR Giger should plant a Xenomorph in my chest? Well, suck it. I own this space and I own this game and if I want to do a custom D&D makeover for Aliens VS Predator with new heroes, monsters in an epic claustrophobic space campaign, then I can damn well do so...with or without Weyland Yutani's permission. So, expect to see some of that content soon!

5. Board game reviews, previews and exclusives

I'm buying less new games these days and playing through more of what I currently own. At the moment, aside from D&D, Hellboy the board game is one of my favorite solo outings. Having played through all of the case files as well as built some of my own, I'm hoping to do some Hellboy gameplay blogs in a sort of mission brief format.

Then, there are the regular gaming reviews that I still need to get out: Marvel Champions LCG and Arkham Horror LCG. I own both base games but have only played through the former. I'm told that Arkham Horror outshines most LCGs so I'm eager to get into that, especially since I'm a huge fan of the whole mythos and investigative type games have always appealed to me. On the LCG front, I'm keen to play through the The Lord of the Rings LCG again, this time through Rohan and Helm's Deep as opposed to Moria (But I do want to visit Moria again!)

Some other games that are on my shelf and I'm still playing:

• Legendary Encounters: Alien (awesome deckbuilder - creepy and oozing with theme).
• Doom: The Board Game: I found a solo variant for this game a while back and have since then tweaked those rules to make the solo version really shine - that will be up on my blog soon.
• Mysterium: This was gift for my daughter's birthday and has been a fun family games night game.

6. Comic book retros and reviews

I purchased a Marvel Comics digital subscription and have been reading a LOT of Marvel digital comics. Will pop some short reviews on what's good as well as some of the more classic graphic novel stuffs. Or maybe a list to tie in with what's on screen (TV or movies!).

7. What I'm watching: Movies & TV

Like with the comic books, I'm not going to be doing looong-winded reviews. Just my 2.5 cents.

8. XBOX Gaming

Okay, this is a biggie for me as I plan on purchasing a next gen (series S) console for my 40th. Since lockdown, my social circle has shrunk to well, basically, my wife, kids, parents, siblings and a rather small handful of people. To keep my sanity during lockdown, I've been spending more time playing through some XBOX 360 classics (I replayed Mass Effect and Amalur again) and am now eager for some proper online gaming. The D&D Dark Alliance game has my interest piqued so I'm ready to step into full time gamer glory!

9. Cybergenysis: My monthly Cyberpunk blog

I did a written piece for this before and my plan was always to expand that into short stories, all linked together to form a sort of cyberpunk omnibus. So, some fiction writing is on the cards for me - and the short stories allow me to expand on the Cybergenysis universe...if writer's block doesn't first claim my soul.

10. What's cooking?

So, if you've been following me on Instagram, then inbetween all the risque model poses, pouting and geekery stuffs, you will undoubtedly know that I enjoy cooking. A lot. Even more than eating as times. So, at the request of everyone in my inner circle, I will be sharing some of my recipes here as well...Just don't be an idiot sandwich and stay polite on the comments ok?