DND Campaign: L.A. Numinous

The Pantheons of the World are not as fantastical or mythical as you might think. They are around us, always hiding in plain sight. They hide from the Mortal Realm, having forgone most of their earthly attachments after the Great War, the World War, the Last War that they would put themselves through.

They hid their World, their mythologies, their fantasies from the Mortal Realm, between the cracks of what can and can't be seen. There in the unperceived, the lives of fantastical creatures, of ogres and fairies, of kitsune and deities, they continue to survive.

It's 2028, just 6 months before the Summer Olympic Games starts anew in the City of Angels, Los Angeles. You scroll through your X feed, look at the current trending topics: Articles about Whales and Dolphins taking over the sea; The Olympic Flame being ignited in Greece; And the death of an Instagram Model with no leads. It's almost banal and boring as you flick through tweets.

Perhaps, just at the corner of your eye, you see a little miracle, a trick of the light or a creep of a shadow. But something/someone tumbles over you, a friend, a loved one, a mentor you've known for some months, weeks, or maybe only a few days. They're blood soaked and their eyes are pleading, worrying, and saddened, as they look at you, clutching at wounds that only look seconds old.

"Aphrodite is dead. This was not how I meant for this to happen but I'm sorry but I must pass my Eidolon to you before it's too late."

Light flashes before you could even ask. You find yourself engulfed with it, bathed in it and then... nothing.

Now there's a dead body in your hands and an ominous feeling in your chest. Your phone beeps and rings to life with a spoken message. You're pretty sure it didn't have that feature before.

"[Player Name] , you are summoned before the Divine Council to be condemned for the Assassination of a Deity and Usurping their Status. Cooperation would be most advised."

ART CREDIT: Tony Sart, Javier Charro

Hi, hello, Name's Kiri or Hex or Vai! I hardly ever post on Tumblr anymore or advertise any campaign ideas here due to school but this one has been nagging me just a little bit more after listening to Stray Gods, watching American Gods, and rewatching the Percy Jackson films, so I needed to just write down the blurb and the pitch in case anyone is wanting to play some DND in a Divine Urban Fantasy kind of setting.

INFO

The game is set in contemporary Los Angeles, a few years into the future, a few months before the Summer Olympic Games. You have been accused for the assassination of a Deity and usurping their power and status, their Eidolon. Through the Eidolon, you gain power and are now able to perceive Los Angeles in its truest form, a City of Mythical Creatures living in secrecy.

During Character Creation, you will choose a Deity from any Pantheon (Japanese, Chinese, Greek, Egyptian, Norse etc) whose Eidolon has been passed down to you.

This is going to be a Human-centric campaign so, despite the advertisement of other races in the game world, physically your character will be Human. Through the power of the Eidolon, they can be reskinned with the capabilities of other DND races.

Gameplay will be roleplay heavy, debating on either PBP semi-live text or just Discord VC with a separate channel for Texting RP. But there will also be combat involved of course.

The DM, me, hi, has a flexible schedule but I am in PST so applicants who are close to that would be preferred.

Current Allowed Resources are PHB, Xanathar's, Tasha's, and Mythic Theros

Depending on interest, around 4-8 rotating players can be taken.

If interested, DM me or like this post for more details so I can get back to you.

ok so we know how i said that stella and bella would play in the olympics for usa softball??

well now that have avery, she does too!

so ethan, dylan, and luke are all softball husbands and spport them in the 2028 olympics together!!!

Do you plan to work as a judge at the Spartakiad?

No, as the girls of 2007-2008 are performing. I won't let myself. These are my pupils, I will be a coach.

You have been coaching the youth team for two years now. At what point did you realize that this is really yours?

Probably in a couple of months. Until I saw a positive result in children, there were doubts. Not even doubt, but uncertainty. It wasn't clear which way we were going. And when the result began to appear and improvements began, it became clear that we were moving in the right direction.

Did you manage to establish relationships with the gymnasts?

Yes, the girls are very nice. We are on very friendly and understanding terms. Not like before, when the coach is evil, horror and nightmare (laughs) . I really like that as we treat them with respect, so they respect us.

It is too early to talk about coaching results, but will the first results be at the 2028 Games?

No. Olympics 2024 (smiles).

🗣 for the WIP ask challenge!

oh wow, thank you! i, like all of us, have way too many WIPs but! my favourite one has got to be the big 3 roadtrip fic.

a bit of backstory: the first time i checked the tennis rpf tag on ao3, i was *sure* there would be plenty of big 3 fics. instead i found [0 works]. i've wanted to write this ever since.

the premise of the fic is that roger, rafa, and novak are all in los angeles as commentators for the 2028 olympics. and once it's over, instead of going home, they take a cross-country roadtrip to new york for the us open.

it's from roger's pov and is mostly centered around post-retirement themes of losing and finding yourself, and tennis, and what it means to you now that you're no longer playing, about running away from endings until you run back into them. and about always being in each others' orbits.

i've talked too much, so i'll leave with a progress update: the first chapter is 6k right now, and will probably end up at 9 or 10k. the whole thing will have 8 chapters. here's a snippet i love:

"Do you want to go as well?"

"Go on the trip?" Novak's voice is high, eyebrows raised as well in disbelief. "You are — you are serious?" He glances at Rafa for confirmation. "He is serious?"

Rafa shrugs. "He invite me two minutes ago, how will I know?"

so, yeah. thanks for the ask, i loved getting to talk about it. if anyone wants to know more please ask! i'm in love with this fic and am always up to talk :)

Schedule for Season 4 of SailGP revealed!

Nice to see Taranto back on the schedule. Yeah 🇮🇹! Perfect place and weather.

Denmark and northern EU event dropped for this go-around, but now that there is a 🇩🇪 team, we can expect an event there in Season 5.

LA - will be interesting - but they can do anything if they put their minds together and excellent prep for 2028 Olympics.

New York - better to watch on TV imho…

🇨🇦 location event still not determined, but central (Kingston, Montreal) or east coast (Halifax) looks most likely. Too bad, too sad Victoria, BC….(I was looking forward to visiting friends if it was out there).

They say that they aren’t announcing the Canadian event until May 2024, which is leaving it VERY LATE for promo and ticket sales. And if the Canadian Team is in $$ trouble…this is not good.

May have to do some independent investigation with the front runner 🇨🇦 cities. Stay tuned!

Here’s the SailGP YouTube teaser, which shows Toronto briefly in the flashes..

21 For Taylor/Philip As Well

21. things you said when we were on top of the world

Philip doesn’t need to look over his shoulder to know that the crowd’s loudest hurrah yet is for Prince, arriving at last. Cameras flash, flags wave, I Love New York signs shake in their bearers’ hands — and Taylor comes down from the doors to stand on the same step as him.

“We found the real party,” Philip says. Taylor glances his way, makes a face that seems to say I guess we did, and looks away.

Someone in the throng shouts “2028!” over the cheers that keep rolling in. The energy on the block couldn’t be more different from that months-ago news footage of the NYC Olympic Commission’s inaugural press conference, transformed into an anti-Olympics protest by AG Rhoades himself thanks to a traffic jam, a bullhorn, and a handful of easily swayed pedestrians. Real shame for him that, in all likelihood, he’s sitting in a dark room somewhere glaring at Channel 1 and choking on sour grapes, rather than sharing in the joy.

Then again, Taylor’s looking more antsy than joyful — shifting from foot to foot, scanning the crowd — and they’re on the winning team. “Having fun yet?”

“No.”

“We’ve most of a decade to go,” Drache says over Philip’s shoulder.

“Just wait,” Scooter says from the step below. He’s too sharp-eared for anyone’s good. “The fun is coming soon enough.” Taylor nods, and looks like they don’t believe a word.

“New York,” Prince calls out, commanding the crowd’s attention. “We did it. 2028’s gonna be an incredible time in this city.” The cheering redoubles, and fireworks erupt over the skyline, washing the crowd in purple, green, and red. No one can deny that the man knows how to punctuate a moment.

The pyrotechnics push awareness of everything else to the periphery. Applause for the show from those around him on the steps. A thread of movement through the crowd — maybe protestors, maybe latecomers desperate to see Prince close up. Behind him, muttering and the shuffle of shoes on concrete.

“Still not having fun,” Taylor says, which grabs his attention a bit more effectively.

“You have something against fireworks?” The sky is thick with lingering smoke. “Let me guess. The pollution.”

“The noise. So, yes, in a way.”

“You don’t know how loud fireworks can get until you’ve set off firecrackers from over the Pennsylvania line at your cousins’ house upstate. Or how much fun the Fourth of July can be.”

“Wow,” Taylor says, unimpressed. “Should I congratulate you on still having all your fingers?”

“Who says they’re all real?” Philip lifts his left hand. If Taylor looked closer in brighter light, they might see the burn scar on his little finger, but he doubts they will, and that was from a Roman candle anyway. “Prosthetics get better every year.”

Taylor looks at his hand and smiles faintly. “Seamless.”

A burst of blue pulls the spectators’ focus, Taylor included. Philip lets his hand drop. They’re something of an enigma to him — much like whatever arrangement gives them their own fund under Prince’s roof — but after the last few months, he appreciates the chance to talk to someone who doesn’t see him as an intruder or a threat. Cracking that serious façade of theirs is just a bonus.

(send me a ship and a prompt and i’ll write a mini fic)

Helsingin Sanomat (siirryt toiseen palveluun) covered the second leg of President Sauli Niinistö's tour of the US as he met with Congressional leaders in Washington DC on Thursday. Niinistö said that during the day he discussed issues such as Finland's membership in Nato and Russia.

Niinistö is currently on a week-long visit to the United States, and earlier in the week he addressed the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.

Niinistö announced the meetings on Twitte (siirryt toiseen palveluun)r.

"Work continues in Washington DC. A series of good meetings today at the Capitol Hill. Discussions on transatlantic security, Finland's Nato membership, Russia and Finland's bilateral relations with the US," the tweet read.

Niinistö met with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senator Jim Risch.

McConnell, in particular, has been an advocate of Finnish membership of NATO in the United States. For example, during a Helsinki meeting with Niinistö in May, he assured him that the United States would quickly ratify Finland's application for membership.

Generational gut in farming

Agriculturally-minded Maaseuduntulevaisuus (siirryt toiseen palveluun) carried a piece underscoring a trend among Finland's small farms.

The number of farms passing down to subsequent generations is declining at a brisk rate.

While there are no exact statistics on handing down the career from generation to generation, the paper wrote that in the year 2018, 447 farms had applied for generational start-up support. In 2020 that figure was roughly 300 and in 2021 the number was 250.

The paper predicted that the number could fall below 200 for this year.

Farms can apply for generational start-up support if the person taking on responsibility for the farm is below 41 years of age and if the farm's annual income is less than 15,000 euros.

The Finnish Food Authority's special researcher Aulis Kuusela shared her concern over the current situation.

"This is already starting to scare me. Having only 200 farms change hands is not a sufficient number. Will production start to decline too much? Will we no longer be self-sufficient?" Kuusela told MST.

Kuusela has twenty years of experience studying generational change in the agricultural industry as a civil servant, and MST wrote that others should take her warnings seriously.

Kuusela attributed the decline partially to the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, saying that it has weakened economic prospects and reduced the desire of young people to continue farming.

Finland's scooter mogul

Seeing Finnish children and youths on non-electric scooters is nothing new these days, but apparently it's also big business.

Ilta-Sanomat (siirryt toiseen palveluun) ran a feature on an scooter enthusiast who turned his hobby into a way to make a living.

IS claimed that Helmeri Pirinen, is Finland's only professional scooter rider. His store FinScooter Oy located in Helsinki's Kalasatama district had a turnover of 1.1 million euros last year.

Along with his store, the former Big Brother Finland star organises scooter competitions all over Finland and tries encouraging new enthusiasts to take up the sport.

Scootering has grown in popularity and Pirinen estimated that there are roughly 80,000 people who enjoy the hobby in Finland today.

Pirinen is also quite involved with the international competition side of the sport. Last year, he served as the head judge at the world championships in Barcelona.

Following the inclusion of skateboarding in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Pirinen said he would next like to see scootering added to the 2028 Olympics. He noted that no new venues would be required to be built as the sport uses the same parks as skateboarding.

"Over the next few years, we need to show that we are really ready for the Olympics," Pirinen told IS.

"When?" via text was the response

"When? I mean, I always want to play video games... but I can't just say 'immediately.' For one, that sounds too desperate, for another, I'm in Downtown Fullerton*, CA right now... that's 26 miles from the nearest warp pipe, so I should definitely mention that. But where is he? The warp pipe in Los Angeles (for the 1984 & 2028 Olympics) exits pretty much right between his house and Peach's caste. If he's at home, I could easily be there in under thirty minutes.

Oh... but we're also doing some sort of minimalist thingy right now, so I should condense the message into as few words as possible... like I was sending a telegram or something.

I'm DTF, you? ETA 30min

Oh, 33, just missed the 32 character limit... if I technically had a limit. That's kinda short, I could probably take the comma out, but that would change the meaning. Plus I already took out the word 'in,' ah well, I'll just send it the way it is. The worst case scenario is that we aren't talking about Waluigi's Taco Stand, and he thinks I want to go to Taco Bell. And to be honest, I'd be down for that too." She hops in her airship and makes a beeline for LA.

*This is an incredibly local joke, only a fraction of the zoomers in Fullerton call that part of the town 'DTF' and it's mostly as a cover, or to try and get out of touch millennials/gen X/boomers to repeat them.

JUNGELI FT. IMEN ES, ALONZO, ABOU DEBEING & LOSSA - "PETIT GÉNIE"

Unlike our past two songs, no relation to murder...

[6.69]

Nortey Dowuona: "C'est pas avec amour qu'on achète vêtements." It's a very cutting lyric once I found a translation of it ("It's not with love that we buy clothes"), and it's true. Jungeli, as a singer and as a presence (in the video at least), is a sweet, light-hearted kid who radiates joy in any room he enters. His voice is light and silken, and threads through the song even when he's not leading a verse. But it doesn't have gravity or weight, so everything he sings floats, including a Lingala verse close to the end of the track. His interplay with Abou Debeing, who also has a light tenor with a bit of bass, allows for a comfortable hand-off between the two. The lilting guitar melody that Jungeli mimics is light as well: it sidewinds through the drum pattern built by DJ Wills, who's produced for the likes of MHD, Bramsito, and Alrima. Imen Es brings a weightier heft to the chorus when she sings it. Her voice is the highest on the track but feels substantial and firm, a comfortable interpretation of the notes placed in the front of the mix. Lossa's deeper tenor can't do the same, simply dragging as the echoes placed below him fill the track to an uncomfortable and unengaging degree. (Imen Es's return is a blessing.) Alonzo has the deepest voice, the sharpest and most distinct flow, but it's such a short, sharp shock that Jungeli's looping verse lulls you back out of the abrupt switch in intensity. "Petit Génie" is so short that you think there's nothing more there for you, it won't put a career on Jungeli's back. But you listen again. And again. And once more. It's still at #1 — he deserves it.  [8]

Mark Sinker: Such voices. Everyone in the room seems to be making a gently scuffed, breathily perfect pop noise, high or low — but honestly I wonder if Imen Es hasn’t the most beautiful delivery I’ve ever heard, with a kind of folded shiver in it. I hurried off to hear what else she’s recorded — an LP last year called Train de vie – but I came back again, because I think this company is bringing out the best in her.  [10]

Joshua Minsoo Kim: That first warbled vocal sounds like something you’d hear in a Burial track. And really, this is a song about the pleasure of hearing vocals. Each new singer enters the track to revitalize. Best of all is Imen Es; she sounds like water, so pure and clear. [6]

Kat Stevens: It always amazes me when people release summer jams in winter. I can imagine Jungeli is hoping to get this track established well before the Paris Olympics to ensure some tasty beach volleyball montage royalties, but unfortunately it's way too late for a rhythmic gymnastics routine (that shiz needs at least a year of prep). The highlight is Imen Es piercing through the breezy beats like a territorial blackbird — a perfect accompaniment for a fluttering ribbon. Maybe LA 2028? [7]

Kayla Beardslee: “Petit Génie” mixes the frantic whistles and percussion stutters of gqom with sunny guitar and relaxed vocals that feel much more Afrobeats — but it’s all in French, with features from various hip-hop artists (and R&B singer Imen Es, who absolutely eats the men up). The result is pleasant, though the mix of influences feels less like stitching together a tapestry and more like throwing it all in a blender. [6]

Katherine St. Asaph: Groove is OK, but every vocalist here is about 66% as good as they needed to be. [5]

Taylor Alatorre: Am I wrong for thinking that this sounds like a Francophone nightcore remix of "Am I Wrong"? And am I wrong for thinking Nico & Vinz deserve a better one? [3]

Jessica Doyle: If I squint I can see something interesting in the tension between the stated text, pointedly superficial and unsentimental, and the musical atmosphere of friends hanging out and taking turns. I can see why this got popular: it provides a nice backdrop for an outdoor party. But I’m alone right now, so: [4]

Jacob Sujin Kuppermann: I really do love posse cuts. "Petit Génie" serves as a helpful reminder of their benefits – take a collection of middling hooks and verses, staple them together over a pretty but anonymous beat, and achieve something much greater than the sum of its parts. [7]

Thomas Inskeep: A lovely, breezy blend of Afrobeats, hip-hop and R&B, the epitome of ear candy. [7]

Ian Mathers: My French is nowhere near fluent (or remembered; it's been years) enough to keep up with all the different speakers and accents here, but there's a lightness of touch and group-level joy that comes through here, whatever the text actually is. Posse cuts like this can suffer from a lack of consistent quality on the one hand (cf. how annoying I found ArrDee on "Body (Remix)") and not having distinctive enough personalities on the other, but "Petit Génie" doesn't break a sweat threading that particular needle. [7]

Isabel Cole: Feels bigger than it is, in a good way — a sense of richness, lushness even, achieved not through maximalism but through the careful deployment of each component part. I was surprised when I looked at the length by how short it was, also in a good way, as if the song had created such a complete sonic world that time ran differently there. I like how each vocalist brings a slightly different emotional shading, even when they’re singing the same melody. [9]

Leah Isobel: Damn, life is pain. [8]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox ]

» German gymnastics hopeful died suddenly at just 16 years old. […] Her goal was the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles - but now she died far too early: the gymnastics family mourns the loss of Mia Sophie Lietke. «

Was it BioNTech, Moderna or perhaps AstraZeneca?

Top lacrosse video today: Hunter Metz IDX GoPro Highlights | McDonogh, Crabs 2026

Top lacrosse news

„USA Athletes Eager to Participate in 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles” – laxmagazine

„It’s never too early: District 1, PIAA schedule of key dates for 2024 HS season” – phillylacrosse

Best tweets – 2023. 10. 27.

Los Angeles has already ceded too much power to the Olympic machine | LA Olympic Games 2028

When the International Olympic Committee handed the 2028 Olympics to Los Angeles back in 2017, the Games floated fuzzily in a futuristic fairyland. Eric Garcetti, then mayor of LA, promised everything but free kittens and unicorns, vowing the Olympics “will lift up every community in Los Angeles”. Today, five years before the Games, the freshly elected mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, is sliding…

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for players welfare I kinda wish that they'd make the Olympics U23 like the men's. I understand why it isn't now but as club football goes from strength to strength having too many summer tournaments tires players out

I think it could be something to think about in 2028/2032 but I don't think it's a problem for now. I also personally wouldn't want to lose the olympics because it is a special tournament (and I appreciate that most people who watch men's football and don't consider it important might have a different opinion)

With no place at the 2028 Olympic Games, what will become of amateur boxing?

With no place at the 2028 Olympic Games, what will become of amateur boxing?

There’s so much to admire about boxing. But there’s plenty to worry about too when it comes to the sport’s Olympic future, writes John Dennen BOXING NEWS is the oldest and greatest sports magazine in the world. I can say that now without accusations of bias because after 12 years or three whole Olympic cycles working here I will be leaving. To write for Boxing News is like nothing else. It’s…

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LA city council passed a secretly-developed, violent ordinance last minute that criminalizes homelessness.

The ordinance criminalizes sitting basically anywhere in order to give police full discretion for any violence they deem necessary to arrest or otherwise displace unhoused residents.

This is happening while the housing crisis and oncoming evictions are so severe that L.A. county extended the COVID-19 eviction moratorium thru the end of September.

In California, about 1,900,000 homes are behind on rent.

57% of residents in LA county are rent-burdened

This is not a solution to homelessness, this is violent displacement that will funnel the poor into prisons and recapture released prisoners back into prisons.

All of this is done in the name of development and white supremacy.

So I'm thinking... he was like-

"Oi, I want sumthin' like this jersey. Yeah yeah, but make it greener and just plain white. I actually like that it's from Plymouth Argyle because they have a fookin' boat on their logo, yeah yeah. Luv boats! I got me a compass ta-oo, have you seen it? Anyway, sumthin' special might have happened there too, in Plymouth, on January 5 2012, after the tour bus got in a car crash the night before, but I'm not telling you any more, ha-ha-ha-ha.

Right, now... *cracks knuckles* I want to add the Yorkshire rose on me right, because I'm from Doncaster, OBVIOUSLY, but also when people google Yorkshire rose + football, they'll get the Leeds football team, yknowotimean, ha-ha-ha-ha. They'll fookin' luv it, because Leeds anniversary is 2 days before the festival. Wot? Oh, no, don't ask me to explain Leeds anniversary, read a tumblr masterpost or sumthin'.

Now on me left, right on me heart, I want to add a bouquet of roses... Six? Seven? Doesn't ma-er, it means I'm in luv with the other lil shit, they'll get it, that's an easy one. Wot? No, no, I swear there's no more meaning to the roses.

Right. Now... I have to bring some sort of attention to where Home is, y'know being the theme of the festival and all. And I want it right underneath the roses. So Home's not here, Home's in LA right now. Yeah yeah, you're catching on, right? Ha-ha-ha! So what could be a very cryptic clue to LA...? GOTIT! The Olympic games will be there in 2028, right, that's perfect! Ha-ha-ha, 2028, that's proper funny, right! Now, how to make it cryptic as fuck? I'm thinkin' maybe "L2A8"? They might think it's a football thing, it always is, yknowotimean, ha-ha. Nah, they'll clown right away. It's gotta be more cryptic... *sees an official programme for a past football match on a table that's been there the whole time* GOTIT! Alright yeah *gestures with hands in front of him as if seeing something in the horizon*, "28 official programme", because these programmes are where the info for the events are, right? *brandishing the programme* There's only one big event in 2028 so far and it happens to be in LA, I luv these coincidences! They'll go crazy, ha-ha-ha.

Oh. And of course, I want a big ass 28 on me back, fanks!"