#mj's dice making adventures
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I'm currently working on these which are a gift for my partner and I still can't get over how cute these are!
(Also I'm not home so the paper plate is my current sanding/polishing setup)
We like to play minecraft together when we can't physically be together much, and he also just likes blowing things up in the game, so this felt fitting.
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So I tried out dirty pouring dice last night and these beauties popped out of the mold! I have more but these are my favorites.
Those swirls! The color! I love them. I'll have to try to make full sets like this once I get my masters done and molds made...
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Adventure Time!
Summary: During a game of D&D, Peter, Ned, MJ, Harley and Cassie Lang explain to a very curious Loki what a Dungeon Master is. Intrigued by the power a DM holds, and frankly appalled that these Midgardian kids are pretending to have adventures using only a badly drawn map and some dice, Loki decides it is time to give them a real adventure.
Or: The one where the gang is sent to a made up land as their D&D characters and all hell breaks loose.
Chapters: 1/5
Read it on AO3
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Being a superhero wasn’t an easy task. There were bank robbers to stop pretty much every week, crazy villains with even crazier costumes out and about terrorizing the city at least twice a month, and, of course, every year there was a super powerful alien who wanted to destroy the Earth or rule over the people of Earth or destroy the universe or whatever evil plan they’d come up with. In other words, the superhero life was exhausting. Between the crime stopping business, the training sessions and the responsibilities of what Peter liked to call his real life, it was hard to find the time to do something fun with his friends, which was why the young hero and his friends had created Game Night.
Game Night happened once a month, on a Friday. Basically, Harley, Ned, MJ, Cassie and Peter would get together at the penthouse, order lots of junk food, buy a shit ton of candy and play board games until one of them passed out from all the sugar. Lately, though, they had found a new passion: Dungeons and Dragons. Shuri had introduced them to the world of D&D the last time she was in town, helping them create their characters and coming up with the most amazing and intricate adventures to send them to. They had loved it so much that even after the girl was long gone, back to Wakanda, they continued to play every month without fail, using Mr. Stark’s holographic technology for the maps while Shuri did her job as Dungeon Master through a video call.
Everything was ready for yet another Game Night. The twelve boxes of pizza were already in place, accompanied by a huge bowl of M&M’s and a family package of Reese cups. Their phones had been turned off to avoid any distractions and each of them was already seated in their designated places, character sheets already in hand, excited for another adventure to begin.
“What is happening here?” a voice suddenly came from Peter’s right side, causing him to yelp loudly and drop the pizza he was holding on the floor.
Loki had suddenly materialized without any warning, as he usually did, arms behind his back as he looked around the living room with a frown.
“We’re playing Dungeons and Dragons”, MJ replied, taking a big bite out of her pizza, staring at Loki with an unimpressed look.
Loki’s eyes widened slightly at the name of the game. “Interesting. What exactly is that?”
“It’s an RPG”, Cassie replied, and then immediately explained after seeing the trickster’s blank look directed at her, “A Role Playing Game. We each create a character and use these special sheets of paper to write down their relevant characteristics, background story and abilities. Then, the Dungeon Master sends us an adventure on a far away land”.
“The Dungeon Master?”
“A DM is someone who creates the adventure we’re gonna go on. They come up with the plot for the adventure and play every other character in the world”, Ned explained and, seeing Loki’s confused look, quickly added, “They control the narrative”.
“They are your Master, then?” the god inquires with a raised eyebrow and a disbelieving look.
“They don’t control our actions, only the environment. We have these dices, you see”, Peter replied, showing him the very colorful dices on the table, “we roll them to see who goes first, if a spell or an attack works or not, and how much damage we’re inflicting”.
“Let me see if I understand this”, Loki said, curving himself over the table to look at the teens, “you sit around a table with pieces of paper and pretend to be other people in a game of make believe? Is this common practice amongst Midgardians?”
“No. This is common practice amongst nerds. Which we are’, Harley replied, staring dead eyed at Loki and raising his hand for a high five, to which Cassie promptly slapped.
The trickster god, however, merely raised an eyebrow once more. And then, a smile slowly appeared on his lips.
“May I inquire as to who or what each of you is in this fantasy world?”
“I’m Calypso, the human rogue pirate”, Cassie introduced herself with an exaggerated flourish of her hand.
“Lilith, the tiefling warlock”, MJ replied.
Ned smiled at Loki, “I’m Ned, the half-orc bard”.
“Drogon, the dragon born paladin”, Harley said with his mouth full of M&Ms.
“And I am Eldrin, wood-elf druid”, Peter introduced himself with a proud smile.
“Interesting. And this Dungeon Master… He decides what adventures your little band of misfits will go on? And you must do so, without complain?”
“Basically, yes”.
“Wonderful”, Loki replied with a wicked smile, “Well, then, are you ready to embark on a new adventure?”
“Well, we are”, Ned said, looking confused, “We’re just waiting for Shuri. She’s our Dungeon Master”.
“Not tonight. Tonight, I am your master”, the trickster responded, once more putting his hands behind his back, “Are you ready for a real adventure?”
The teenagers suddenly looked up in alarm. Peter quickly got up with wide eyes, waving his hands in front of himself, knowing exactly what was going through the god’s head.
“No no no…”, the chorus of voices filled the room, but it was too late.
The teens suddenly dropped to the ground, unconscious, as Loki smiled over them.
“Shall we begin, then?”
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Leave a comment and/or ask to be tagged // Feed my caffeine addiction
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Farfalle with Pancetta & Sage
Rainy days are the best day to cook; it always was and forever will be! Rainy, fall days are even better. I can turn a few ingredients into a masterpiece as long as Anita Baker or Aretha Franklin are in the background serenading me. It’s been raining for days here and because I had some sage and mushrooms that were near expiration, I decided it was time to make my favorite pasta dish. Rainy days with pasta are epic, y’all.
Back when I was a broke graduate student living on food stamps and a dream, I’d make this dish for my family and friends to get us through to the next payday. It’s amazing what you can do when you’re hungry with a limited amount of groceries. We’d eat this and watch Netflix [back when it was $5 a month] or dance the night away to the MJ Experience on my Wii. I get really nostalgic when I think of this dish… it’s carried us over and through so many times. I’ve tweaked it since the mid-2000s because pancetta wasn’t something I was willing to spend money on back then.
No sunlight means somewhat shitty indoor lighting photos… sorry, not sorry! In my dream kitchen, there’s a window on the roof directly above my stove and island. But, here in present day, y’all get fluorescent lights, bad camera angles and pure imagination. Click the photos to enlarge.
Modifications for those that need them: If you can’t grab pancetta, use bacon. Same pig, different area. Be sure to use fresh sage instead of dried, and if you can’t find shallots, use yellow onion. My only suggestion is to ALWAYS use heavy cream. I’ve tried this with half & half, and I’ve tried this recipe with milk… it’s a no! Other than that, do what you do! I’ll post short clips of the end product to my Instagram page later today.
I hope you in enjoy one of my easiest and most affordable dishes ever. It has to be in my top 3 favorites! You can add a side of salmon, beef or chicken with it. Not shown in the photos are four handsomely baked chicken thighs with herbs de provence and lemon zest. Let me know how you like it and I’m wishing you the best of luck in your kitchen adventures. Enjoy!
THE RECIPE
Serves 4-6
1 lb. farfalle pasta
1 c. cremini mushrooms, sliced
4 c. chicken broth
6 oz. pancetta, diced
½ c. heavy cream
¼ c. asiago cheese
4 cloves garlic, pressed
2 shallots, chopped
2 Tbsp. butter, salted
2 Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped roughly
2 Tbsp. herbs de provence
1 Tbsp. white pepper
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
Salt to taste
Fresh parsley to garnish
Bring 4-6 quarts of water and 3 cups of chicken broth to a rolling boil. Add salt and pasta. Stir to keep from sticking. Cook about 8 minutes. The pasta should be firm and not completely done.
While pasta is boiling, using medium high heat, fry pancetta in butter until browned. Add shallots, mushrooms, garlic and sage. If pancetta mix begins sticking, add some pasta water to pan. Cook until veggies have softened. Remove from pan.
Turn stove to medium low heat. Add the remaining cup of chicken broth and heavy cream. Season with salt, pepper, and herbs. Play with it and season to your satisfaction. Add asiago cheese in and stir. Allow sauce to come to a simmer then add pasta.
Fold in the pancetta-veggie mixture. Toss until the sauce sticks to the pasta.
Top with freshly parsley and grated parmesan or asiago cheese. Serve & Enjoy!
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669414364379480064 Mod MJ, "tabletop roleplay" isn't a board game or anything like that, it's literally roleplaying at a table with characters, dice, etc, in some ways it's more roleplaying than just writing online because you also act it out in a lot of cases. :) Like a lower scale kind of LARPing. In case there was confusion.
Referencing this post.
Don't worry, anon. No serious confusion on my part, just a difference in how I've done tabletop and how others do it, maybe? :) I'm familiar with Critical Role (for example), and I know they REALLY get into the roleplay side of things, and then there's groups like mine where our games feel more like the GM is creating a Choose Your Own Adventure for us to lead our created characters through. We talk about what our characters will say and how they'll act, but we don't usually become our characters. They're more like walking/talking game board pieces, in a way. It also can feel different from written roleplay due to the improv/spontaneous aspects that don't leave a lot of time for thinking things through fully. That's just my opinion, though. And, regardless, both are still valid forms of roleplay.
Because the anon was partially addressing issues with roleplay aspects of their game I wanted to post it for sharing. I'm actually not entirely sure what would compromise a tabletop RPG confession that wouldn't be allowed - sometimes it's hard to say until it happens. Maybe something strictly dealing with game mechanics or something? I’m not sure. Anyway, I commented because I wanted the anon and the rest of our followers to know that it's possible not every tabletop RPG confession that's sent in the future will meet COAR's rules for posting, but that - in general - those confessions are more than welcome. I hope that makes sense. :)
~ Mod MJ ~
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Taako’s Elderflower Macarons
As it may be glaringly obvious now, we started listening to The Adventure Zone on the drive down to Dragon Con. This in turn has inspired us to start D&D ourselves…we may have made a grave mistake. D&D is like that nerdy precipice where - once you go over - there’s no going back. We’re all lost causes once you start rolling those dice and making perception checks.
Recipe is below the cut.
-MJ & K
Makes about 2 dozen filled cookies.
Cookie:
200 g confectioners (powdered) sugar
100 g fine almond flour
120 g room-temperature egg white (3 eggs worth)
1/8 tsp salt
¼ tsp cream of tarter
40 g sifts granulated sugar
pink food coloring
Sift together the almond flour and powdered sugar into a bowl. Set aside.
using an electric or hand-mixer, whisk together the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar until the eggs are foamy, then slowly incorporate the sugar and food coloring. You want this mixture to be a very vibrant color, as the color tones down during baking. Beat on a high speed until the egg whites become glossy and hold a stiff peak, becoming a thicker mass on the inside of the whisk.
Add the dry goods to the stiff egg whites. Using a rubber spatula begin folding the dry goods into the egg whites in a folding pattern. Gently fold until the batter becomes smooth and ribbon-like, where if you scoop some batter onto the spatula it drips off the utensil in one long, solid ribbon.
Transfer the batter into either a piping bag with a ½ inch tip or a plastic bag with the tip cut off, and pipe onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone mat. The cookies should be piped about 1 ½ inches in diameter and about an inch apart. Once they are piped, do not go back and add more batter to smaller cookies, it creates bubbles that crack the cookies while baking. Once piped, firmly tap the baking sheet against your counter to release an air bubbles. Allow these cookies to sit for about an hour, until the shell hardens.
While the cookies are setting, preheat your oven to 325° F (163° C).
Once the batter no longer feels tacky and is firm to the touch, bake the cookies (one pan at a time) for 15 minutes, rotating the pan after 10 minutes. The cookies should have formed a bubbly ‘foot’ on the bottom.
Elder flower Frosting:
½ cup butter, softened
1 ½ cup powdered sugar
1 T. lemon juice
1 T. Elder flower liquor or concentrate
Pinch of salt
Beat the butter and powdered sugar with until they are incorporated, and then add the elder flower, juice, and salt and continue to beat until fluffy. (but be careful, the frosting has the potential to spray a bit).
Once the cookies have cooled, pipe some frosting onto the underside of once cookie with a piping bag, and sandwich with another cookie.,
#the adventure zone#taz#mbmbam#mcelroys#taako#merle highchurch#magnus burnsides#macaron#macarons#recipe#macaron recipe#elderflower#elder flower#elderflower macarons#elder flower macarons#cookie#taz recipe#umbrella#dessert recipe#cookie recipe#the adventure zone food#taz food
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So uh
I know this means nothing to y'all right now but I'm working on a thing and so far everything is turning out cute! ♥
#mj's dice making adventures#and yes this is a dice thing#it has to do with that one weird picture i shared a while back#it is an exciting possibility for me right now#also i know the plastic bits they're in are rough#they're casts of a master that was made of wax and super glue#which i will admit was a bit janky and they all broke coming out of the molds#but technically they should work still#i might pretty them up later on but for now I'm going for usable#and so far they're working for their intended use#I'll keep updating on this because i might be able to finish this first attempt tonight#hopefully early enough for me to make my friend's birthday gift tonight afterwards
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I finally (after starting this like a year ago and then putting it off because I didn't quite have the skill to do this properly) have a set of polished blanks!
I did it as an 11-piece set with the logic that if I wanted to make an 11-piece set I could but if I'm only making a 7-piece set I have extra d6s and an extra d20! Now the next step is making a mold for these!
#mj's dice making adventures#artificer dice#the clear ones are so pretty irl#also they dont match because this started out as a clear set i sanded the numbers off of#which worked okay with the exception of the d12 and d20#the d12 is clear because it was a cast from a mold i made of a 3d printed master and the same goes for the d20s#the d6s were also casts from a mold but from the original d6s from the set l#they could have been all clear but the ones i have here were the closest to the correct shape#I'm just glad I'm done polishing
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I made some molds for the new versions of the d4 shells for the clipped shape and I have to say I missed being able to make molds that weren't safety orange!
Look at that pretty green! That's actually that Papaya pigment but that is not what I intend to use the poll results for.
But this pigment is really a teal base with a gold shimmer and
So much nicer than opaque "warm persimmon" the other silicone comes in. Mind you, I can't get that color to accurately show up on camera.
This does however mean I get to start making the improved liquid core d4s that shouldn't be too small now!
#mj's dice making adventures#artificer dice#mold making#the obnoxious orange is BBDino 15A while the lovely translucent one i can tint is their 20A silicone#They're both cheaper than what i used to use but that orange is a lot#like picture the color of a pylon or the orange vests hunters wear and that's much closer to the true color#it's rough#also since this stuff is so opaque if you wanted to change the color it takes a lot of pigment and barely works at all#which is why some of the ones i have are a slightly different orange#and i had to tattoo label them all since i can't really color code them#at one point i managed to make a small amount of it purple but it took way too much pigment for like 8ml#like I'm pretty sure it's half mica powder but it made a decent little sil mat for me
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D4 update:
So I spent some time today experimenting with different proportions of the crystal shard d4 shape and while I like the proportions of the original, it's not the most reliable when it comes to landing on the correct face.
Like after 200 rolls it landed in a valid way only 63.5% of the time. Not ideal. In the video, this would be the blue version.
So my first thought was shortening the top faces (the green one), which I figured might give those numberless faces less weight to influence how it lands. I could have pushed this further but even as it is, this improved the success rate to 70%, which is a 6.5% improvement.
That being said, I'm also trying to essentially isolate the issue if I can, so on the purple one all I did was elongate the faces that would have numbers. I did this one to a bit more significant amount, but it did further improve to 73.5% successful rolls.
I still have more variations to try, the first of which being a combination of what I did to the purple and green trials, but I'm done with all of that for the day.
I know having a die not landing in a valid position 26.5% of the time still isn't great, but it is an improvement. I can see it correcting itself more and once I get viable proportions I should be able to remake the masters to hopefully get a better final product that doesn't land on an invalid face!
#mj's dice making adventures#artificer dice#alternate d4 shapes#dicey experiments#i will say these are super easy to pick up compared to caltrop or even clipped d4s#I'm a little sad the original shape didn't work out but i am trying to keep the same vibe with the others#i don't want it to be too pointy because then it would better match a shard-style set which I'm not particularly interested in doing#honestly i made the original in tinkercad with no clue how it would roll so the fact I'm getting the improvements i have#as quickly as i have is encouraging
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Guess who gets to move two states away within the next month?
Like I know I've been pretty spotty with posting but I'm hoping once we're out of this waiting mode we seem to be in, and at the latest settled in, I'll hopefully have more motivation to keep y'all updated.
#mj talks#my partner got a nice job in northern indiana and this will mean we'll finally be living on our own together#we scoped out a nice apartment and i found a job to apply to that I'm excited about#i really hope it works out#but it'll be a bit of an adventure and it'll be a huge change of scenery#at least with the timing of it we'll be missing the hottest of southwest Missouri's weather#not dice#if everything works out how we hope we should have space for me to continue making dice#it just might take a bit to get that set up#I'm excited though#at the very least i have some WIPs to finish so at least i have that for now
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Warning: Video contains flashing lights
I did a glitter placement d20 core! This will go into a full mold with some resin to create a shell around it to protect the glitter (I knocked one off when making this video) and make the numbers!
This has 300 individual pieces of glitter, each placed with a toothpick. It took less time than I expected, and the result is so stunning! This idea is actually why I bought this glitter in the first place.
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I finished this one! It's so cute but I'm realizing I might need to pick up more sanding supplies when I get everything else..
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The first successful die cast in the pressure pot! It's a nice space-y shimmer liquid-core d20!
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I'm so happy...
It's cute right? But after some silver ink...
Ace pride d20!
And it glows!
#dice#dnd dice#mj's dice making adventures#polyhedral dice#homemade dice#d20#jumbo d20#30mm d20#ace pride#pride flag#pride dice#I'm ace so this makes me happy!#i can always make other flags as well!#but i got the ratio right for the glow powder! it didnt sink this time!#also the little flag is one i made myself with sharpies and part of a notecard shortly after i figured it out#but if you have any other pride flag suggestions#let me know#some might be harder to do if they have lots of colors#or specific colors#but I can try to get the essence of the colors right#and i cant really make distinct layers of colors this way since the colors spread upwards with this#but usually colors get it across to those who know anyway#and its kinda a subtle pride thing#which I always love tbh#bubble swirl#glowy dice
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I made a solid chonk using an entire foil sheet for a single die! Kinda messy but the result was somehow so much better than I expected. The resin is a pale sky blue with a tiny bit of silver mica, which gave it a nice shimmer. This was also the first cast out of my first pressurized and polished mold!
I'm going to go through and make one for each color of foil, and I'll keep the first of each but I may make versions to put on the shop while I'm working on new liquid-core prototypes!
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