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Worlds of the Enteague Sector
In 1989, my father bought me two books that started me into Star Wars role playing game: West End Games' Star Wars The Roleplaying Game rulebook and the Star Wars Sourcebook. My first campaign (and the longest I gamemastered) was my "Strikeforce Enteague" campaign. The players were characters of a Rebel Alliance strike team that consisted of mostly fringer types, and it took place in a sector of the galaxy I created I ultimately named the Enteague Sector (thought sometimes their adventures took them as far as Coruscant which at that time was only referred to as Imperial City.)
Here I am 16 years later, and I've finally finished a project I started almost 2 years ago: a pdf mini-sourcebook formatted for the SWRPG called Worlds of the Enteague Sector. It's not extensive as WEG's The Planets Collection or WOTC's Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds. There is a front cover, a back cover, a credits page, 22 pages of actual content and all these pages are in full colour. It's all fitted snugly in a 1.87mb zip file, free for all to download.
Apart from me writing and drawing, I also had plenty of help from my friends. Many thanks to Ryan "Cassed" Lee for designing the Ironfist emblem for the book, Phil "Grimace" Hatfield for editing it and Chris "Chris Curtis" Curtis for proofreading it.
Edit (Apr 20 2006): I've just corrected some layout errors, reworded some sentences that I didn't like and uploaded the new file. Enjoy Worlds of the Enteague Sector Ver 1.1.
You can download the book here.
Keywords: rpg,star_wars
Archive | PermalinkFuture Player's Companion: Tomorrow's Hero
The Hishgraphics Gallery can be found at http://www.hishgraphics.com/gallery.
In the meantime, here are
Keywords: artwork,rpg
Archive | PermalinkIrfan Cuts His Cake and Eats It Too
"I want to eat the Happy Birthday Cake!" Irfan begged for hours after seeing the number three-shaped vanilla cake with the Tigger-esque toon on it. He wasn't getting it until everyone arrived of course. There were, yet to arrive, his Mak Long and Ayah Long, and his Cik Eda and her roommates. So all day long, he staked out the cake box on the dinner table.
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: birthday,food,irfan
Archive | PermalinkHAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY IRFAN!
Three years ago, Irfan Shafiq was born at Kuala Lumpur General Hospital. Within that three years, he's given not just his mother and I a lot of joy, but a lot of other people in our extended family as well. We'll be cutting cake in the next few hours, so we'll have pictures of that soon.
In the meantime, enjoy the announcement of Irfan's birth in the Star Wars Artists' Guild forums from 3 years ago.
Keywords: birthday,irfan
Archive | PermalinkYaaar! Ye Scurvy Swabs!
Since Sep 19th was Talk Like A Pirate Day, something annually celebrated by Star Wars Artists' Guild
as long as we have been online, I'd thought I'd celebrate by
retranslating this entire paragraph in pirate speak, cause you know,
you can never have too much of pirate speak... especially during
boardroom meetings, being rude at traffic jams and at the supermarket
checkout.Translation:
Arrr, since Sep 19th was Talk Like A Pirate Day, somethin' annually celebrated by the sea dogs at Star Wars Artists' Guild as long as we've been sailin' the seven seas, I'd thought I'd celebrate by retranslatin' this entire paragraph in pirate speak, cause you know, you can ne'er have too much o' pirate speak... especially durin' boardroom raids, wavin' yon cutlass at traffic jams and at the scurvy supermarket checkout. Ye'll ne'er get me buried booty!
- Mad Sam Bonney
(Illustrator, SWAG)
P.S. Yaaaarrrggh!!!
Archive | PermalinkNavcomputer.com is ROTS Complete
As far as positions of movie planets are concerned, the incredibly detailed galaxy map of the Star Wars universe is complete. Webmaster Eric Przybylski has also done a great job placing the planets of the EU in the massive map he made, with inserts of the Corellian Sector and the Si'klaata Cluster, among others. Also included are several smaller maps of sectors such as Kuat, Kathol, Brak and Elrood.Check out Navcomputer.com if you want to know how far it is from Hoth to Bespin (the Millennium Falcon's flight in The Empire Strikes Back), and where Polis Massa (where Luke and Leia were born) is located in relation to the volcanic world of Mustafar (where Vader was immolated); or if you're hardcore what route did Quinlan Vos take to relocate his clone army from Saleucami to Boz Pity (as mentioned in passing in Revenge of the Sith); or if you're ultra-hardcore how far Ganath is from Nal Hutta (where the Falcon hid after being attacked by Boba Fett upon Han and Leia's retrieval of the fallen Jedi Vima-Da-Boda in Dark Empire)...
...or maybe you just need to see where the Gree enclave is in relation to the Core Worlds...
Click here to visit Navcomputer.com.
Keywords: star_wars,the_internets
Archive | PermalinkIllustration Friday: Escape
Escape is the topic of this week's Illustration Friday. Two convicts sneak out stealthily of a watery tunnel near a prison from which they've just broken out. All they have to do is make it undetected into the woods. But how will they avoid from being beamed by a searchlight?
Click on the thumbnail to view a larger image.
Keywords: artwork,illustration_friday
Archive | PermalinkIrfan Goes To The Zoo
Last Sunday, Irfan (along with a bunch of family members) went to the zoo! Here's a series of photos that came out of our little zoo trip.
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: critters,family_outings,irfan,kuala_lumpur
Archive | PermalinkThe Unspeakable Cat
Hastur (the Unspeakable One from the depths of the Cthulhu-mythos pantheon of ancient and powerful gods bent on the destruction of the world and mass insanity of its inhabitants) has not only manifested itself as a cat... it has also started blogging.
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: critters,cthulhu_mythos,friends,the_internets
Archive | PermalinkIllustration Friday: Depth
Another Illustration Friday, another illustration. The topic for this week is depth. I'm trying add another layer to the concept of depth in this piece of artwork. Desolation? Fear of the unknown? What are those doing in the bottom of the ocean? How did it come to pass? An illustration somewhat less colourful and more morose than the art I made for the e-book posted previously.
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: artwork,illustration_friday
Archive | PermalinkFirst Hishgraphics e-Book: The Secret Library
I wouldn't have thought it possible a year ago, but here we are with our first e-book product on sale as of today. It's a nice little tale with full colour illustrations throughout, where a young boy who just happens to have the same name as my son, discovers a wonderful library through a doorway in the cellar of his parents' new house.
I hope the public likes it well enough to purchase it. There is a black and white version in the Free Downloads page for a preview. If you know someone who might like it please spread the word.
Thanks to everyone who helped me get the site up, especially my family, and all my friends who gave me moral support. In the meantime, I'll be working on more new e-books.
Keywords: writing
Archive | PermalinkInstinct on Atlantis
Once upon a time I read the premise of Stargate Atlantis before they aired its pilot episode "The Rising". I never would have thought the simple premise of an international team of civilian and military explorers sent to the lost city of Atlantis that happened to be on an uninhabited planet in the Pegasus galaxy without the power to return to Earth can be so engrossing. It's all thanks to its great writing, actors, character interaction and humour, and more than adequate visual effects; and it's held its own as the spinoff from Stargate SG-1.
Last week's episode "Instinct" was notable for two reasons:
Keywords: rpg,stargate,tv
Archive | PermalinkMak & Abah at Dungun, Terengganu
Here we are over 100 posts in this blog and not once did even say that I worked for seven years at the East Coast of the Peninsular Malaysia. I hate talking about the place. No, I don't mean Terengganu is an awful place. Far from it. It has some of the most beautiful beaches in the country. The people there are for the most part cordial and pleasant to be around with. A lot of unpleasantness stained in my mind came from the work. Politics at the workplace, mostly stemming from people from the West Coast.I could go on, but I'll just sum things up: great place to be, wonderful friends there (and still there), terrible job.
So here are some pictures of Mak & Abah visiting me while I was there. (Read more at your own risk)
Keywords: family_outings
Archive | PermalinkAlmost Aidilfitri?
Well not exactly. Another two months. So, for no reason in particular, here's another pic of old ACS Sitiawan buddies; this time gathering at my house for Aidilfitri, and to eat the food as well. We'll be in Sitiawan this year instead of Pasir Mas, so you all are invited for makan-makan at Taman Pegawai.
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: acs_sitiawan,friends,hari_raya
Archive | PermalinkHe Seems To Be Developing A Sense of Style
Yesterday, Irfan and I took a drive to the Ulu Langat district, where it was serene, green and a winding stream shadowed the road for miles. It was just him and I in the car. He was in the back, free to roam. (If he was sitting up front, he'd be belted up and annoyed at the fact.) So there we were driving among the serene greenery, the kampung houses and colourful flowers on the bushes in their yards. I barely heard him grab something from the storage bin behind the parking brake in the centre column.Then he was standing just behind the front seats between them with his elbows resting on either seat. I glanced at him and there he was... wearing a pair of sunglasses I've never seen before, looking all badass.
It was an awesome moment.
Keywords: irfan
Archive | PermalinkJLU Avatars
It's cartoon avatar month on ACS Sitiawan Forums. My current favourite animated series now is Justice League Unlimited. So here are some JLU avatars for anyone's use. No heavy hitters like Clark, Bruce and Diana. The only founding members here are John and Wally. The rest are second stringers, but what colourful second stringers they make, eh?
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: avatars,comics,tv
Archive | PermalinkIllustration Friday: Roots
Here's a quick one using Photoshop, a whole lot of solid layers and brushes, a bit of color dodge. It's nothing profound and nothing I'm trying to say. It's just a graphic tablet exercise without any pre-planned sketches off or on the computer. Click on the thumbnail to view a larger image.
Keywords: artwork,illustration_friday
Archive | PermalinkKatrina's Aftermath
The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina that ravaged the Gulf Coast of the United States.
It's like something out of an apocalypse movie. While the death toll will never reach the numbers achieved by the Indian Ocean Tsunami of Dec 26 2004, the tragedy on the human level is just the same. There are about 16,000 hurricane survivors waiting for relocation in the local stadium known as the Superdome in New Orleans. Some have already been transferred to the Astrodome in Houston, but in the meantime, babies and the elderly are dying and have died of dehydration. There's no where to defecate or urinate. The stench must be indescribable. There have been rapes among the refugees there. MSNBC photojournalist Tony Zumbado reports: "The sanitation was unbelievable. The stench in there... was unbelievable. Dead people around the walls of the convention center, laying in the middle of the street in their dying chairs. ... They were just covered up ... Babies, two babies dehydrated and died. I'm telling you, I couldn't take it."
Keywords: rants
Archive | PermalinkHappy 48th Birthday, or is it?
Yesterday was Aug 31, Malaysia's Independence Day. Once upon a time we were a collection of nations that ruled independently. Then we were swallowed by the Portugese, chewed by the Dutch, digested by the British. (There were the several years under Japanese rule during World War Two - we might have been in the rumen or maybe the reticulum, I couldn't be sure.) Then finally, we were regurgitated as a new single nation in 1957. (If you're waiting for me to say we came out the other way, then SHAME ON YOU, you coprophiliacs!) And now here we are 48 years later. No sign of Gernsbackian flying cars and day trips to the moon. But I digress.
(Read more at your own risk)Keywords: rants