Entertainment and Resources for Christian Geeks!
SPIRIT BLADE PRODUCTIONS exists to equip, encourage and inspire Christian Geeks to live in the freedom and purpose Christ offers.
Part 3 of my commentary for "Spirit Blade: Special Edition" is available now!
Is Spirit Blade "preachy"? Why does it present the Gospel so strongly and how do I feel about the potential "preachiness" of Spirit Blade? Plus, a look at how I choose and utilize musical scoring!
Now through July 31st, don't miss out on the big summer download sale happening at spiritblade.net!
Our premiere audio dramas, Spirit Blade and Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual are just $6.99 each!
Pilgrim's Progress: Similitude Of A Dream is only $3.49! You can also get our song bundles for just $3.49 each!
But the sale only lasts until the end of this month, so don't put it off!
This summer I'm taking time to adjust my schedule and leverage my future work hours better. Part of that involves looking for a Producer to take over much of what my role has been in The Spirit Blade Underground Alliance as it pertains to audio dramas.
The role of Producer that I am looking to fill mostly involves being in regular contact with the directors of any audio dramas in production, getting progress reports, encouraging them and asking about how they can help.
This role doesn't require any knowledge of audio mixing. It's primarily about keeping people motivated and moving forward. It requires a weekly e-mail to project directors (there are currently 3 projects in production, which is more than usual) as well as follow-up e-mails to any responses.
The role of Producer is strongly supported by me. A Producer can e-mail, call, or text me with questions any time. Any questions or topics a Producer doesn't feel equipped to address can be forwarded to me.
Again, this isn't a role requiring audio mixing knowledge of any kind. It needs someone who is humble, good with people (via e-mail anyway) and who can be organized and consistent about contacting people in a project, or coordinating connections between people involved in a project. (Such as CCing both a director and a new actor and "introducing them" to each other, or other similar "social/organizational" e-mails.)
For more information, please e-mail me at:
paeter(at)spiritblade(dot)net
I'd love to get this position filled as soon as possible so that the audio dramas in production now (which have slowed a bit due to my time budgeting) can get back on track and out into everyone's ears!
Thanks!
-Paeter
Check out this video made by Jaron Belboda as he works on mixing audio for The Spirit Blade Underground Alliance (a volunteer/hobby production group supported by Spirit Blade Productions) audio drama "Voyages Of The USS Sasquatch"!
Looks like my "Super-size Board Game Episode" of the podcast last weekend was a little too super-sized. I'm all out of server space with Libsyn until the 10th of this month.
The good news is, I'm having my first website design meeting tonight, getting us ever closer to a new website, which will include its own hosting for the podcast! That means no more issues with Libsyn's limited service packages, increased audio quality for the podcast and decreased costs for my overall web hosting needs.
No time estimate on any of that yet, but changing our hosting will be step one, meaning that we can get the podcast switched over and given a face-lift as soon as possible.
Honestly, this little hiccup is a great excuse for me to not have to put a show together this week. I could really use the break right now. But for those who were really looking forward to my Amazing Spider-man review, have no fear! The written version will go up this week, as soon as possible, at The Spirit Blade Undergound! (I'm seeing it with my wife tomorrow!)
Next week, be sure to come back to the podcast for our special Listener Created Episode! I've been really excited about the idea since it was suggested to me, and have gotten even more excited as I've received the content for the episode. Don't miss out! This one is made by and for you guys!
Finally, the weekend of July 20th I plan to be back in the monitor room with a review of The Dark Knight Rises. I also plan to share the audio version of my Amazing Spider-man review on that show and pit the two movies against each other. (Even though in truth, I think The Avengers will remain super-hero king of the summer.)
So stay tuned for my Amazing Spider-man written review, and then have a great 4th of July!
The first round of playtesting for the Spirit Blade adventure card game finished last week, and I want to thank everyone who participated in that, especially since it was probably a pretty rough experience for you.
For those who don't know what I'm talking about, I'm currently developing a non-collectable, self-contained card game based on the characters and world of our Spirit Blade audio drama trilogy. The setting is mostly sci-fi, but with some strong supernatural elements, as the players work together and fight cyborgs, soldiers and demons, while avoiding automated security systems and trying to recover stolen data files.
The card images above give an idea of the game art, even though the layout and info on the cards will be changing as I move forward.
The feedback I got from the first round of playtesting was very helpful. There is a lot to fix in the game, but thankfully, it almost exclusively involves making the game less complicated, which I'm finding easier than I think I would if I needed to add complexity to it.
Even before playtesting ended I began experimenting with some changes and I've really been enjoying the results. The entire experience is being streamlined, and I suspect the rules will be at least 75% shorter, resulting in a game that you can begin playing very quickly without near as much reading beforehand.
Despite this, I've also implemented some changes that increase the tactical options available to each player, and the difference between characters are more clearly defined by their special abilities.
I think the best suggestion I got was to take the various elements of the game that the good guys encounter and put them all in an encounter deck that players draw through as they progress, eliminating the need for an opposing "game master" type of player.
With the game master role removed, I took inspiration from games like Thunderstone that use a victory point system to determine a winner and added something similar to the game. So while players will be working together, they will also individually collect victory points from enemies they defeat and resources they keep until the end of the mission rather than using them. I suspect the end result will have some things in common with a game like Cutthroat Caverns, though far less competitive. And of course with a very different theme.
Once I get the semi-cooperarive rules of the game ironed out, I'm going to also look for alternate co-op rules where the players combine victory points to achieve their goal and have to fight much more intensely for survival than in the normal game.
I'm TERRIBLE with projecting dates and things, and I'm also working on this game mostly outside of my normal work hours so that it doesn't slow progress on the production of Spirit Blade 3 or anything else, which makes seeing the future even more difficult. But my hope right now would be to have another round of playtesting in two or three months and then see what things look like after that.
Stay tuned!
Nathan James NormanJune 30, 2012 at 4:39 PM
I must admit, I printed out everything, cut it up and was really psyched to be a play-tester. But then I read through the rules and felt completely bogged down (confused) and I knew that I didn't really have anyone who would be willing to dive into a complex game like this with me.
So I put the set away and resolved to purchase a set just to support Spirit Blade, and enjoy any auxiliary stories included with the game.
But after reading this post, I'm psyched again! I think the simplification of the rules, and getting rid of the "game master" will greatly improve my odds of roping people into the game.
I love it! Thanks for all the hard work you're putting into this project!
Paeter FrandsenJuly 2, 2012 at 4:31 PM
Thanks, Nathan! I wouldn't be surprised if your story is a common one. I appreciate you giving me the feedback! Further confirmation that I'm heading in the right direction, which is VERY helpful and encouraging to know!
Part 2 of my commentary for "Spirit Blade: Special Edition" is available now!
In this segment, find out which updated scene is possibly my favorite in all of Spirit Blade! And get the details on how one of my LEAST favorite songs from Spirit Blade became one of the songs I now MOST enjoy listening to from the project!
I've just returned from taking Michael Tully back to the airport this morning. I'm now sitting at my laptop in a daze over the tornado of activity we had in my office over the last two days. It's amazing the amount of work we crammed into two days of non-stop activity.
Tully (I've called him by his last name since we were in college together) arrived on Monday morning at 6:40 and we were back at my place and recording before 8am. Although he took a nap later in the day, I used the time to post on the blog and get some more work done. After he woke up again, we continued recording until after 10pm, taking breaks only for meals.
Yesterday, we were back in my office recording by 8am again and continued recording until around 4:30 when Tully officially finished his work as Raan Galvaanik for Spirit Blade 3 (and for the Spirit Blade Trilogy as a whole!). But his work still wasn't finished.
From 4:30 until 8:30, Tully recorded background lines for crowd scenes, etc. (Probably the most fun we both had the entire time he was here!) He also recorded some material for the Spirit Blade Adventure Card Game (more info on the audio components of the game coming soon!) where he reprises his role as Raan Galvaanik.
We finally finished off the day with two recorded interviews (both audio AND video this time!), one without spoilers that I'll release before Spirit Blade 3 is finished, and another with all kinds of spoilers, which I'll release after Spirit Blade 3 is finished and available.
I recorded a lot of audio and video while we recorded and worked, and there is a ton of great material I can't wait to share with you guys. But after two extremely long days of constant mental focus... my brain is fried. So editing and sharing some of that footage will have to be a treat for another time.
Stay tuned for this week's podcast, which I plan to release tomorrow. I plan to share some audio from my time with Tully that I hope you'll enjoy!
-Paeter Frandsen
At 6:50 this morning I picked up Michael Tully, the voice of Raan Galvaanik, from the airport. After a predictable amount of laughing and screwing around, we settled in and started recording his material for Spirit Blade 3. By 11:30am we had already completed all of his singing for the project, which puts us nicely ahead of schedule. (When recording "Dark Ritual", the songs took most of the first day!)
It's almost 3pm now and Tully is napping in the guest room. We've recorded his first scene and will dive into his second after he's up again. (16 more to go!)
So far things are going great and I'm really confident that we'll have plenty of time to record the remaining scenes, with time left over to relax and hang out some while he's here. (We've also had fun making some videos in between recording in my office. I look forward to sharing them with you!)
I'm going to try and squeeze in some time to finish putting the card game playtest kits together while he's napping. They should be online before the end of the week, but only if I keep at it! So bye for now!
-Paeter Frandsen
Part 1 of the Spirit Blade Special Edition Commentary is available now on our Media Page!
In this first part of the commentary I talk a little about what this commentary as a whole will focus on (compared to my commentary for the original edition of Spirit Blade) and describe the various changes made in the first scenes, including the song "Destiny".
Some of the biggest insight is in relationship to casting my wife, Holly, as Ebony. Apart from being my wife, why did she get that part? What concerns did I have about her performance? Find out in this first segment of the commentary!
Over the summer I plan to make some changes that will help to freshen up the podcast and the Spirit Blade community. I'd LOVE to get your thoughts on the podcast! What would you miss if I took it out of the show? What WOULDN'T you miss if it vanished? I'd also love your brainstorming ideas for potential new content.
Your thoughts and suggestions don't need to be thought out or reasonable. I just want a bunch of ideas to throw in a pot and stew over. EVERY idea will be considered. And who knows, your feedback may result in a new facet of the show that becomes a defining attribute attracting new listeners in the future!
A discussion has already begun on our forums. So drop by the topic thread and give me YOUR thoughts, too!
-Paeter Frandsen
AnonymousApril 27, 2012 at 3:38 PM
I'm not on the forum... maybe one day, but too many geek commitments currently. And school.
Still I HAD to make one quick comment. Please, please keep the updates! I love what you're doing at Spiritblade Productions and I love the insight into how you do it (I'm a special features nerd). Sometimes I just listen to the updates on podcasts and catch the rest later.
Just saying.
Dif-tor heh-smusma,
KV
Paeter FrandsenApril 30, 2012 at 7:26 PM
Gotta say, your feedback surprised me! But I'll definitely keep it in mind! Thanks for speaking up!
AnonymousMay 2, 2012 at 4:26 PM
+1 on that! Always cool to hear what your up to! Love all the geeky news to, much of it I don't follow personally but love your outlook on things I still find cool. In fact you even inspired me to find HeroQuest just on some mention of it. Always fun to learn of things I wasn't aware of! Keep up the good work!
AnonymousMay 2, 2012 at 7:09 PM
+1 on that!!! Always enjoy the behind the scenes look at what your up to! Makes you feel more connected to and involved in what your up to.
Paeter FrandsenMay 3, 2012 at 10:08 AM
Thanks, guys! Really appreciate the feedback!
In case you forgot after my announcement at the end of the show last week, there will be no podcast this weekend. I'm recording with two out of state actors and "Thunderstoning" the rest of the weekend away with my gaming buddy, Mark!
See you next week!
-Paeter
Woohoo! Today is a very big day for me!
1. I'm turning 34! (Which means my mental pictures of Jesus as he was on earth will have to start getting strangely younger and younger relative to me.)
2. My wife bought me Thunderstone: Dragonspire as an "expansion" to Thunderstone Advance, which I bought three weeks ago. (Thunderstone rocks! Review coming soon!)
3. Kristen Self is coming over tonight to record for Spirit Blade 3!
That name probably isn't popping out to you even if you are a fan of Spirit Blade and Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual. But Kristen provides the voice for the computer in both audio dramas as well as the intro to the Spirit Blade Underground Podcast. And she'll be doing it one more time for Spirit Blade 3!
Our recording session will likely only last around 30 minutes or so. But even so, it will mark the end of pre-production and the start of production on Spirit Blade 3!
Hard to believe it's here! I've already got four other returning actors scheduled to record and before I know it guys like Randy Hesson and Michael Tully will be stepping up to the microphone to play their characters for what may be the last time ever!
I've decided to delay holding auditions for supporting roles until all of the principle performers have finished recording, but keep one eye here for audition announcements in the coming months.
Well I almost typed "back to work!" as my sign off, but remembered that apart from recording with Kristen I'm taking most of the night off for my birthday. So "back to play"!
-Paeter Frandsen
One of my greatest challenges in running Spirit Blade Productions is keeping a loose grip on the steering wheel. God has changed my course so many times in my adult life. Many times that I've been convinced that I'm going where God wants me, he seems to change my course in ways I never would have expected.
In broad strokes, I'm getting used to this a little. If God made it crystal clear that I was supposed to leave Spirit Blade Productions behind and focus on something else, I would do it and probably not be shattered. (Don't worry. I have never, to my knowledge, received a single indication from God that I should abandon what I'm doing, and have no reason to think I will.)
The harder thing for me is to have my short-term expectations forced to change, which happens very frequently because of my part-time work as a substitute teacher. Any given weekday morning I may get a phone call in the early hours, or even halfway through my day, that forces me to drop everything and run off to a high school.
Prepping for that recording session tomorrow? Answering e-mails? Studying for, writing and then posting the weekly "In Search Of Truth" segment? Nothing is safe.
Although I spend the vast majority of my time in a year working on things for Spirit Blade Productions, my time is not my own. I may want to pursue professional excellence and present a reliable online presence for my company. Yet my part-time job doesn't care, and repeatedly I have to see my plans dashed to pieces without warning. Almost six years in and I still haven't gotten used to it.
There are also seasons of sudden "bursts" in my subbing activity. This will be the third consecutive week in which I have only one day free to work on SBP related tasks. (The rest of this week is already spoken for by Mesa Public Schools.)
I'm so grateful that God continues to provide me with work that is needed to complete our family budget. But the necessity for it remains incredibly difficult for me to cope with emotionally, when I feel so strongly called to serve Christ in reaching out to the forgotten geek community. (Yes, even Paul made tents to pay the rent. But knowing that hasn't made things much easier for me yet.)
Anyway, I'm not sitting here having a pity party. (That was 4 hours ago for about 5-10 minutes.) But I thought I'd share a little "behind the scenes" look at my efforts in running this little company. Still, your prayers are greatly valued, and if you find yourself compelled, you can ask God to help me value HIS idea of "success" and desire only what he has for me on any given day, in any given moment, rather than what I THINK I should be doing.
If God permits, I'll meet you back here Wednesday for "In Search Of Truth"!
-Paeter Frandsen
Spirit Blade Productions is thrilled to announce the release of our latest audio project, "The Golden Knight #1, The Boy Is Summoned", by Steven Clark and Justin Clark.
"The Golden Knight #1, The Boy Is Summoned" is an Enhanced Audio Book, performed by Paeter Frandsen and given cinematic life through the use of numerous exciting sound effects and a rich orchestral score. Discover a world of magic and heroism for your ears and imagination!
In the beginning, the Kingdom was ruled by a wise and just King who ruled by the laws written in the ancient Book. The people were protected by the archangels and the heroic knights. All lived in peace and prospered. Those days are gone...
Flar, the evil fire lord, and his sorceror, Murlox, have banished the King and his angels behind an energy field known as the Great Divide. The Book has been taken. The angels have fallen. The knights are gone. The people suffered. All that remains is the prophecy and a promise of hope.
Join Marsonee the Archangel and Princess Rainna as they embark on a journey to bring an innocent farm boy, Justin, toward his true destiny.
38 minutes
Recommended for ages 10 and older
I'm taking this week off from my normal routine in order to give all of my time to (and hopefully finish!) the primary development of the Spirit Blade card game.
I won't be blogging, posting on the forums, podcasting, processing physical product orders or checking my e-mail at all this week, but will be back to my routine starting on March 20th.
All digital download purchases are processed automatically and instantly without my involvement. So in the meantime, you can still take advantage of the 30% off download sale! (Ongoing through March 18th! Don't miss out!)
Thanks for your patience as I take this time for some focused project development. The game is shaping up really well and I'm looking forward to sharing the results with you very soon!
-Paeter Frandsen
Woohoo! Time for another BIG SALE!!
Many of you will be doing some traveling soon for spring break. Why not spice up the drive or drown out those crying babies on the airplane?
From now through Sunday, March 18th, all of our download products are 30% off at the Spirit Blade Productions Store!
Spirit Blade: Special Edition and Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual can be purchased right now for just $6.99 each! And Pilgrim's Progress: Similitude Of A Dream can be downloaded for just $3.49!
Download all three of our audio dramas for just $17.47! (Tax free! That's all you pay!)
You can also buy the song bundles for "Spirit Blade: Special Edition" and "Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual" for just $3.49 each!
These are some of the biggest savings you'll see all year on our products, so spread the word and don't miss out!
That's the question I've had in mind as I've prepared to reshape this blog.
When I first started this little company, I knew that at some point after the release of a couple of projects, I would want to try and develop a community in connection with Spirit Blade Productions.
This blog was the first step in that direction, followed by the podcast, then The Spirit Blade Underground Alliance, and finally our forums. From the very beginning, the concept of an "Underground" was rooted in "community" for me. And with the changes to the blog, I'm hoping that will be more clear.
Although I will still be including project updates here, they may not be as frequent, as I make room to post my reviews here and other thoughts relevant to combining a love of Geek entertainment with a life lived for Christ.
As of now I have transplanted all of my reviews to this blog, so if you look for them you'll find them, dated just as they were on their old blog home, "Paeter's Brain". I also updated a few of the old reviews to use the category title of "Relevance" instead of "Veracity" in the philosophical portions of the reviews. And I added Quality and Relevance scores to the game and book reviews I transplanted, since my plan is to use both categories for reviews of all types from here on out, for a more consistent reader experience.
I'm also adding some new pages to the blog. One for my Brent Weeks Interview, another with a two part article about Christians enjoying "Questionable" entertainment, and soon I hope to have a page indexing and categorizing all of my reviews, including quick score references, to serve as a resource for truth-seeking Geeks.
I'm doing all of this bit by bit as I have the time, so you'll probably notice some rough edges here and there. But I welcome your feedback as I make changes, so please don't hesitate to comment!
Have a great weekend!
-Paeter Frandsen
Looks like I finally found a new video editor that's easy enough for even ME to use! The video special features should be back on track from this point on. Thanks for your patience!
This month's video is part 2 of the "Pilgrim's Progress: Similitude Of A Dream" script read-through. Hear an entire section of uncut narration and find out why I decided not to have any "magic" in this story!
And as an added bonus, I've also uploaded a video version of the Pilgrim's Progress trailer to Youtube, to make it easier than ever to share it with friends and people on the web!
After some crazy stuff that happened recently with my podcast hosting, the time has never seemed more clear to start working on a redesign of our main website. (The connection between the two being that I will eventually host the podcast on the new site instead of Libsyn.)
I had a phone meeting with my "tech guy" on Friday and he gave me an outline of what we could do to improve everyone's experience with our site and how much it will cost.
He's giving me a fantastic deal, but with Spirit Blade 3 prepping for production and the costs associated with it still not crystal clear, we'll likely need to proceed slowly in phases on the website.
In the next couple of weeks I'll be meeting with my designer to talk about the basics of the new site, so movement is already starting and I'll try to keep you all updated.
In fact, I hope to present some of what we talk about with you guys to get your feedback on the forums! While it won't be possible to please everybody, I'm hoping the new site will be something YOU guys like. (Otherwise, what's the point, right?)
I'm also considering a Kick-starter event and have already started dreaming up some cool and unique rewards for getting involved. More on that soon.
Anyway, I'm planning to use the forums as the main point of interaction with you guys regarding the new website design, so check back there often and leave any thoughts you might have. I know some of you have some great ideas, and I'd love to hear them! (I'd love to hear the bad ideas, too, for that matter!)
Both my tech guy and designer are really excited about working on this project and I'm excited to see it get started! Stay tuned for more soon!
-Paeter Frandsen