Inspiration, the giant snakelike tree-vines in old vid game

 Flashback on the Amiga… see al82 retrogaming longplay. 

I want to use descriptions or pictures of those giant vine things. Describe as “looks like the unmoving body of a giant green snake, twisting and turning…. But completely still” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNTnRM77XuE

Beginning but not best part..https://thecompany.pl/res/gra/1289002319-Flashback-2.png

Whole maps: http://www.amiga.lychesis.net/games/Flashback.html

.,.,.,.,.,.,.,

Also see SHADOW OF THE BEAST, 1989 on Amiga. Music great. But beginning, text description / story parts are great. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9BltSvKMlQ

• * idea for entering a tree giant tree with insect theme. Plus maybe some fire salamanders ot things in wall shooting at you.
• Giant snails slugs. Eyestalks on walls. Giant floating eyes bobbing up and down  (puzzle how to pass) . 
• Giant wasps    More dire breathing things (that eat giant  insects)  
• A ghost?
• Giant creepy (bigsby) hands come out of ground to grab you  many  black purple and red, clawed. Make mysterious  .

Here's the original, it has a billion different monsters and cool backgrounds. The animation might be old and clunky, but it has some great visual ideas, too:

Backgrounds look so good. 

The giant hands out of the ground... can do it in D&D with Bigby's Hand, etc. and just change the "look" to this creepy style. 

,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.

NEWER inspired by/similar to Shadow of the Beast game [demo], EON: https://youtu.be/XHWA4swXBG4?t=86 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtUYe1G-1P4

Sidenote, what is the much better looking Castlevania for the Amiga? I never knew: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdT3hj0jReQ

Inspiring visuals, castle, U2 album

 The unforgettable Fire. U2. https://genius.com/albums/U2/The-unforgettable-fire

I love the ancientness of it. Abandoned. Vines growing all over it. But the picture is B&W, giving it a somber tone. Is that a beautiful sunset in the sky above and behind it or an evil fume from Mordor? 

LoTR, artist Alan Lee and John Howe

https://cvltnation.com/john-howes-tolkien-artwork/

https://alan-and-john.tumblr.com/post/53438235994/jrrtolkiennerd-a-long-tilted-valley-a-deep

• Yes, and many more to see  great stuff!
• Winged fell beast with Nazgul..

https://alan-and-john.tumblr.com/image/28699909997

• They helped do concepts for Peter Jacksons lotr movies. 
• See yt by “the art of storytelling” .. “the artwork that imagined middle earth” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjYtOCKIbp4

Reduce PFAS in blood by donating blood regularly

 Firefighters get high PFAS exposure and leading death for firefighters is cancer.  They have found out that donating blood reduces levels a lot.  And while the toxins seem to bind to some proteins in the blood, they say it's still OK to donate b/c ppl who need blood have zero time to spare usually. 

So, us normal ppl who keep getting exposed by doing things like drinking clean water and eating food from anywhere... yeah we better be careful. There was a thing about a milk farmer up north who had PFAS on his land, he didn't know, and the cows/milk got contaminated. The gov't somehow found out and shut him down. But how often does that stuff get to us anyway? 

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8994130/

https://theconversation.com/new-evidence-shows-blood-or-plasma-donations-can-reduce-the-pfas-forever-chemicals-in-our-bodies-178771

https://www.sciencealert.com/regular-blood-donations-can-reduce-the-levels-of-forever-chemicals-in-the-blood

Funny D&D T Shirts

They've got some good ones... ordered a few, why not. 

 https://wizardlytees.store/products/you-can-certainly-try?variant=42580410728536

I like several, like some of these:

The Monty Python reference... yeah. 

Jason and the Argonauts, Clash of the Titans - Cool Shield Designs

Jason and the Argonauts had cool shields - I love the designs on them. 

Trivia, the shields of the skellies in Jason' had some cool ones including the giant octopus and the 20M miles to Earth on 'em:

https://www.ranker.com/list/action-movie-mythological-details-/abeswaves Among the emblems on the skeleton warriors’ shields in Jason and the Argonauts are monsters from two earlier Ray Harryhausen films: the Kraken from It Came From Beneath The Sea and Ymir from 20 Million Miles To Earth.

Clash of the Titans 1981:

Apparently the shield above this text is from 2010. 

Is the one above from the 2010 movie?

The 2010 movie for this one above.

PyroHydra, LevelUp's version is great - RESULTS after fight

 https://a5e.tools/node/1694

Jason and the Argonauts. This hydra's heads are similar to the figure we have. BTW, thx https://monsterzone.org/2021/12/19/posters-for-jason-and-the-argonauts-1963/

This one is perfect for what I'm looking for, after reading up on others. I own the PDF, and it had a few more important tidbits that are left out on the website, funky. CR13. The party is like level 13 still (going to be 14 after this). 

Highlights:

• 15 ft reach
• 30 dmg kills a head, instead of 25. 
• Legendary Actions
• Wrap (grapple), typically one enemy. DC 17
• Rush, DC17 str, can bowl over enemies and get in their space, push them out. 
• Knowledge check tells you to Cauterize the wound of a hydra (oops, pyrohydras not the same, but lore won't tell you)
• Can't flank it (unless only 1 head)
• Reactive Heads. For each head it has, the hydra can take one reaction per round, but not more than one per turn.

UPDATE: The actual run I did with it:

• One weird thing, it wasn't clear after reading like 5 versions of Hydras, if their bodies were always invulnerable or if only sometimes. I played it 50/50, described it as the first attack on the body seemed to halfway heal up, so then he technically just went for heads/necks. 
• Had to up HP to 300ish b/c the party just does too much single target dmg. Fighter, even worse with action surge. Barbarian with 3 attacks during frenzy, and "Amulet of Hacking". Etc. 
• Probably should have let the nearby fire spouts from wall hit the 
• players
• or hydra
• and if hit hydra, shoulda let it "help him" from being hurt by cold, aka, let him regen a pair of heads. 
• Still only lasted 2 rounds. Well a surprise round + 2 rounds... if it could have survived one big hit at the end, would have gotten its turn again. 
• Was pretty fun, though wasn't that scary. Only the fire attack was scary, but 3 outta 4 of the PCs have fire resist. And the kid guessed right and had a dern frost brand to whip out on round 1, plus used all cold spells. So I let it regen two heads (just so we could see it happen) but it never did after that. 
• Legendary RUSH was cool one time to avoid an AOE plus get next to all 4 PCs (woulda been nice if had fire recharged). Nice that no AoO when using (kinda a major deal), b/c you only want to challenge one non-strength character to get a decent chance of it working... certainly don't want to try to rush down 3 guys and have 3 chances for them to stop you. 
• The Wrap Grapple thing seemed cool but was ineffective. Casters can still cast. And soon someone would do 30+ dmg and knock off a head (that head). 

Foo Creatures (Lion/Dog) for D&D

The kid got the Wondrous Figurine, think Gwenhwyvar of Drizzt. It's an oriental east Asian style Foo monster (might be more Thai styled). We'll say he can ride it or just use it for attacks. I'm now realizing the cover of Oriental Adventures shows a Kirin, not a Foo Lion-dog. 

Here's a nice 5e home brew statblock, really nice: https://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/Foo_Lion_(5e_Creature) 

REAL LIFE: 

• Yokai[dot]com says a lot about them being guardians to shrines (mistakenly says temples also) and plenty more: https://yokai.com/komainu/ , wikipedia seems to have more accurate info. 
• The ones in Japan have only been at Shrines. When walking through Torii, you enter another dimension~~~.

Oh, that's a Kirin on the front... just now re-realized. Anyway, funnily enough, the Oriental Adventures doesn't have the foo creatures, but it tells you to go to the MM2.

Torii, gate to another realm. 

Foo Creature, the AD&D 1e MM2 pg. 65 says:

Foo Lion (5e Creature) (via the Homebrew site)

Foo Lion

Large celestial, chaotic good Armor Class 13 (natural armor) Hit Points 52 (8d10 + 8) Speed 50 ft. STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 17 (+3) 15 (+2) 13 (+1) 11 (+0) 12 (+1) 16 (+3) Skills Insight +3, Perception +3, Stealth +4 Senses passive Perception 13 Languages Celestial, Common Challenge 2 (450 XP) Keen Smell. The foo lion has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell. Pack Tactics. The foo lion has advantage on an attack roll against a creature if at least one of the foo lion's allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn't incapacitated. Pounce. If the foo lion moves at least 20 feet straight towards a creature and then hits it with a claw attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If the target is prone, the foo lion can make one bite attack against it as a bonus action. Running Leap. With a 10-foot running start, the foo lion can long jump up to 25 feet. Magic Resistance. The foo lion has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. Magic Weapons. The foo lion's weapon attacks are magical. Divine Fang. The foo lion's weapon attacks deal an extra 1d8 radiant damage against fiends. Innate Spellcasting. The foo lion's innate spellcasting ability is Charisma. It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components: At will: detect evil and good, invisibility 1/day each: etherealness, plane shift (self only) ACTIONS Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 12 (2d8 + 3) piercing damage. Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3) slashing damage. Celestial Summoning (1/Day). The foo lion can begin roaring to summon another foo animal. At the beginning of the foo lion's next turn there is a 40 percent chance that a foo animal of CR 2 or less will be summoned. The summoned foo animal appears in an unoccupied space within 60 feet of its summoner, acts as an ally of its summoner, and can't summon other foo animals. It remains for 1 minute, until it or its summoner dies, or until its summoner dismisses it as an action.

White Plume Moth (real life) vs. White Plume Mountain (D&D)

 Could it be that these crazy moths with impossible wings were the inspiration for the [name of] the White Plume Mountain module in D&D in the 1970s? I saw a white one on the outside of our window the other day, and noticed what crazy a55 wings it has. Looks like some have equally crazy leg spikes. Interesting little dudes. 

Recap - sites w/ a million tv cartoons and comic art picts to review

 http://capnscomics.blogspot.com/2025/08/

https://atomic-chronoscaph.tumblr.com/tagged/cw%20flashing

https://www.wingnuttoons.com/cartoons.html

https://www.blackgate.com/2020/06/02/jetpacks-and-bazookas-jonny-quest/

Mightor (1967-1969) influenced He-Man (1980s)

 Check out this clip of the old cartoon Mightor, that I need to watch... probably saw a clip of it once when I was a kid... where he holds up a magic weapon (club) and turns into a stronger super hero type muscle guy. Exact same pose, flash, and metamorphosis as Adam to He-Man in the cartoon in the 1980s. Also reminds me of Captain Caveman (also made by Hanna-Barbera), with the magic club that lets you fly(?). Speaking of "Barbera"... a lot like Barbarians... no wonder the guy liked Conan and cavemen and such. 

And btw, Mightor's wife was named Sheera. Yeah, kinda just like the She-ra associated with He-Man, so I guess it's no secret.

[side note, see blog https://www.writeups.org/mighty-mightor-cartoon/ ]

https://youtu.be/WaBebziwN5c?t=64  vs He-Man at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zIoElk3r2c

UPDATE: well I wasn't the first to notice. Here's a fun reddit about the whole thing. And they say, as Conan was a big inspiration for He-Man, Thulsa Doom was called "Skull Face" in some old books.  Skull Face as in Skeletor, hah. Forgot that! https://www.reddit.com/r/MastersOfTheUniverse/comments/12hj0kj/is_he_man_a_rip_off_of_mightor/

"The interesting thing about this is that the origin of Mightor ties with both the early minicomics origin of He-Man (here with an old hermit instead of the Goddess) AND the later Prince Adam/transformation version."

UPDATE2: and this guy saw it 

UPDATE3: "Tor's pet dinosaur Tog even transforms into a mighty fire-breathing dragon." https://www.cbr.com/cartoon-characters-he-man-would-be-friends-with/

UPDATE4: get them here??? https://www.wingnuttoons.com/cartoons.html ... ??? I know nothing of this site, though. 

Origins - funny hats on Clerics in old D&D books came from the Jason and the Argonauts movie

 Origins - the funny hats on wizards  clerics in old D&D books came from Jason and the Argonauts movie. Check out funky hat the king dude had when spreading the hydra teeth to make skeletons rise from the ground. There were some good closeups of his face, too, for added effect (I didn't screenshot 'em tho):

Compare to ... let me go find some. Yeah, take a look at the 2nd guy from the left, that hat:

G3 prep firegiants and shields; rakshasas

GIANTS -  Let’s have king send 8 in front… half have double shilds so full cover mostly front on. But attackimg w shields they only do 2d6 and shorter reach.  

LOOT - figurine wondrous power https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Figurine_of_wondrous_power

They like to drink human blood from a skull. Not nice dudes. 

Rakshasas:

• See the 3.5e rakshasas book, pdf free online
• my ideas below.
• Rm is fancy, decorated. Obviously not giants. Silk stuff all over, silver tea pots, etc. A fancy Wardrobe dresser or chest thing x 3. 
• They used Detect Thoughts while party was walking nearby thru walls. 
• In disguise as 
• Kasamir the dusk elf from ravenloft.
• Shopkeeper from way back level 3, name (Dutch). 
• Dwarf rescued from G1, name (Blimmd).
• If see thru disguise, "Oh you saw through my illusions. Watch as these two vanish (((trick lie, friends will just go inviz.)))" And he turns into... ... ... an East Indian-looking woman with a slight accent??? 
• See, the Giant king stole that Wonderful Figurine/Statuette you have. It is from my home far away. 

FIGHTING

• MY IDEA: +1 magic weapons do less dmg, +2 magic weapons full dmg. 
• NORMAL: Takes full dmg from piercing from good char. 
• Two of the Rakshasas have Wands of Magic Missile. 
• Probably fly, CAST SHIELD???, and shoot magic missiles for a while, try to take down a caster (?)... actually try to take down whoever has a Piercing arrows... 
• Note, 3.5e and older I think had magic missile. 
• Player Char. should NOT recognize the MM as MagicMissile... make it mysterious. 
• e.g. "The human woman suddenly morphs into a tiger-person, and with palms facing the wrong direction, crackling orange energy erupts from its hands and shoots out at you!". 
• 
  

Health - the London bus driver vs.bus ticket guy

 Drivers, sedentary, many heart attacks. 

The conductor (ticket guy), always walking up and down … much healthier. 

The kids should learn. 

Physics double slit experiment- good explanation

UPDATE2- even better info at 5:33 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9ub_B71U0E

UPDATE  the ohysics lady has a more accurate description https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fbzHNBT0nl0

—-

 Still a mystery at the end. One comment asks what I want to know… if you turn off power to the measuring devices, what happens? 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7iKebDDs2Pg&t=1520s

It is also super weird that either wih a computer measuring plate or and old school plate you get same results. Or is the plate the same kind of material? 

Part of me still feels like we r not given all the info of how they are doing the experiment.