Welcome to Hishgraphics Games & Training

Hishgraphics Games Training

After carrying out a handful of tabletop role-playing game events for schools, colleagues and such, I believe it is time to offer these services actively instead of sitting down and waiting while I do other stuff. As such, I have created a new YouTube channel. The first video, the intro, has been posted below. I plan on doing interviews with other tabletop gamers concerning education (especially language learning) as well as training and teambuilding. Check out Hishgraphics Games & Training (still not sure about the ampersand). I’ll try my best to upload new (and old) videos about my running tabletop RPGs and other such events. Please subscribe and wish me luck for my future plans.

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USS Östergötland NCC-72227

STA: Orbital Manoeuvres in the Dark

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01E09 “Orbital Manoeuvres in the Dark” Stardate: 58563.9, 26th July 2381. Location: Gondolin Station, Cor Caroli III Previously on Star Trek: Emergency Deep. From Gondolin Station After taking time to recover from Andorian Death Fever, Commander Morpheus Drake returns to the Östergötland as her primary Conn Officer. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Saladin Chau, who tended to Drake, also returns to the ship from Gondolin Station‘s infirmary. In the meantime, Captain Greg Ellison tasks Drake to organise a memorial for Lieutenant JG Velek & Specialist 1st Class Randall Loomis. They were both killed by the Orion whalers along with the shuttle Mälaren in Trychnos orbit. Drake holds the memorial in the hangar bay. After the memorial, Capt Ellison receives a message from Admiral Kathryn Janeway. She informed him that she will look into the Romulan operative Qaenlahr with the Orion whalers, along with his involvement with the […]

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Nasi goreng butter chicken

Emergency Deep Meeting

After a long time of playing Delta Green and Star Trek Adventures remotely with Dan while he was posted in Sudan, I finally had the pleasure of meeting him. An old friend of Ivan, we all planned a dinner meet. Dan picked me up at Aiman & Zara’s house where we would be spending the night, and rendezvoused with Ivan somewhere in the proximity of Kelana Jaya. We talked for some hours about RPGs, Star Trek (specifically “In the Pale Moonlight” and “Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges”) and other miscellanea while having dinner. The nasi goreng butter chicken was delicious, but there was so much of it I was unable to finish it. I would have met Dan earlier as he had planned on taking a vacation in Perlis some weeks ago. Sadly, it was the week I got COVID-19 for the second time.

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USS Östergötland NCC-72227

STA: With a Fine-Toothed Comb

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E08 “With A Fine-Toothed Comb” Stardate: 58552.74, 22nd July 2381 (0720 hours UTC) Location: Gondolin Station, Cor Caroli III. The Norway-class USS Östergötland NCC-72227 is en route back from the ocean world Trychnos to Gondolin Station at Cor Caroli III, a Helios class habitat, with a captured damaged Orion Lightning-type starship in tow. En route, Operations Officer Lieutenant Commander Tosk the Studious requests wormhole traffic data from Starbase Deep Space 9 because of the Gamma Quadrant tech found on Trychnos. Captain Greg Ellison is contacted by Gondolin Station’s commanding officer Lieutenant Commander Ola Piotrowski who requests a meeting with the Captain. Tosk also suggests a memorial service for Lieutenant JG Velek and Specialist Randall Loomis who perished with the shuttle Mälaren. Rest and Repairs Upon arrival at Cor Caroli a day later, Cetacean Ensign Kremzeek docks the ship at Gondolin Station. They all note the […]

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NCC-72227 USS Östergötland

STA: Three On One

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E07 “Three On One” Stardate: 58550.35; 21st July 2381 1020 hrs Location: Trychnos, near Cor Caroli   Suddenly three Orion Lightning-class blockade runners appear in the blue skies of the ocean world Trychnos and destroyed the Type-9 shuttle Mälaren. Captain Greg Ellison orders red alert as the USS Östergötland confronts the Orion vessels. One Lightning nosedives towards them from an altitude of 10,000 metres while the other two peel off elsewhere. With a sensor scan,  Lieutenant Commander Tosk the Studious  easily determines the Orion ships’ shield frequency. On Ellison’s orders, Tactical Officer Lieutenant Libby dos Santos fires a phaser beam at the two other ships that peeled off. The sudden show of force causes one of the two to bank towards them on an intercept course. The dolphin Conn Officer Ensign Kremzeek increases the Östergötland‘s altitude to a position between the two ships bearing down […]

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Doom Agents 2023

Doom Agents: Stealing Crate 037

We had the room at the library for 2 hours. The group activity with my students took only 30 minutes. So, I introduced them to tabletop role-playing games. I thought that using Mini-YZE (with my own mods) would make it simple for them. Easiest setting to run for new students would be the Doom Agents setting. It is contemporary, and I can emulate modern spy and action moviews with it. DRAMATIS PERSONAE Chamice, Engineer – Tey Jack, Medic – Ooi Agent 47, Sniper – Danis Sniper Agent 47, Medic Jack and Engineer Chamice are assigned to a mission near Manaus, Brazil. The Approach The team, in an off-road vehicle, heads south into the jungle in the late afternoon. It is raining heavily and before them river with a strong current block their path. The bridge has been washed away. Chamise and Jack study the waters, then guide 47 to drive […]

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NCC-72227 USS Östergötland

STA: On the Trail of the Unseen

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E06 “On the Trail of the Unseen” Stardate: 58550.35; 21st July 2381 1020 hrs Location: Trychnos, near Cor Caroli The Return to Trychnos On yellow alert, the Norway-class USS Östergötland NCC-72227 returns to Trychnos from Gondolin Station around Cor Caroli III without Commander Morpheus Drake who is infected with an Andorian Death Fever (harmless to humans), deadly to Andorians. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Saladin Chau remains with him on Gondolin Station. In the meantime, river dolphin Cetacean Ensign Kremzeek from Delta shift has been ordered to take his place in Alfa Shift. He gladly takes the Conn station on his grav walker. They debriefed Andorian First Mate T’lath of the SS Takoyaki who confirmed that something invisible collided with them in orbit. Sensor records from the ship itself reveal debris fragment of material manufactured  in the Gamma Quadrant. A detailed orbital scan reveals where the […]

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The chapter begins

RPG Chapter in Book

Once upon a time, before the onset of the plague years, I ran a Laundry RPG campaign at work. You can read about it here. Since then, one of my players Dr. Noriha has been writing research papers about using games in language learning. She has been using our campaign notes! Along with Dr. Ina, I am also the co-author of a chapter in book entitled “Naratif Dalam ‘Gamifikasi Permainan Penglipur Lara’: Menjana Pemikiran Kreatif Dalam Pengajaran Dan Pembelajaran“. Translation: “Narratives in Tabletop Role-playing Games: Generating Creativity in Teaching and Learning.” The title of the book is Wacana Ilmu dan Kemanusiaan (Knowledge & Humanity Discourse). First of all, I am grateful for the writing team for involving my activity in their research. This tracks with my own research of employing RPGs to improve speaking skills. Secondly, I will be pushing using “Permainan Penglipur Lara” as an official translation of “Tabletop […]

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NCC-72227 USS Östergötland

STA: Where the Trychnos Currents Lead

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E05 “Where the Trychnos Currents Lead” Stardate: 58542.09; 18th July 2381 0945 hrs Location: Trychnos, near Cor Caroli Last time on Emergency Deep, the Östergötland undergoes her first First Contact mission… Arrival at Trychnos Assigned to investigate the distress call of the SS Takoyaki NAR-7789 a Federation merchant starship, the USS Östergötland NCC-72227 warps to the uninhabited ocean planet of Trychnos, two light years from Cor Caroli. The Takoyaki reported a violent collision with something invisible in orbit. The collision caused them to fall into the atmosphere and into the ocean below. The Takoyaki is now underwater and needs to be rescued. Upon arrival, Lieutenant Commander Tosk the Studious detects the Takoyaki‘s emergency buoy in stable orbit and downloads information that shows the merchant ship crashing into something invisible, tearing off her port nacelle. Using sensors, they confirm the crash coordinates in the ocean and […]

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The ACS contingent takes one final group shot before leaving

Multi-Reunion at Mando Mayhem

Sometimes, being away from old friends can be an isolating feeling. Not this past weekend though. We travelled to PJ on Gray‘s invitation (with Imeel, another GM) to run Star Wars RPG sessions at the Star Wars Malaysia Fan Club‘s event entitled Mando Mayhem. I did not know what to expect as I have never gamemastered in public for visitors before. How fun would it be? Would I need to explain the rules too much that it detracts from playing? Would there be people who would not enjoy the sessions? The four sessions I GMed have been chronicled in another blog post. Day One at Jaya One Besides the new friends I made like Imeel, Hanna, James and Syed, a whole bunch of old friends also dropped by. For the first time, I had three different circle of friends showing up and interacting with each other. There was the old […]

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NCC-72227 USS Östergötland

STA: Behold, A First Contact

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E04 “Behold, A First Contact” Stardate: 58465.9 Location: Paulson Nebula. In the Paulson Nebula, USS Östergötland NCC-72227 is immobilised by a tractor beam from a 1.2 km-long space creature. It fires a magma missile at them. On Captain Greg Ellison‘s orders, Tactical Officer Lieutenant Libby dos Santos‘ phaser shot disrupts the tractor beam, allowing them to break free. Scanning the creature, Ops Officer Lieutenant Commander Tosk the Studious finds that its tractor beam works on a higher dimension allowing to grab ships through their shields. Part Deltan, Ellison uses empathic abilities on the creature & finds that it’s confused & in great pain. It connects with Ellison telepathically, who convinces it to stand down. Meanwhile, Conn Officer Commander Morpheus Drake easily evades the magma missile. Before going in to investigate, Science Officer Lieutenant Leopold Hill aboard shuttle Hjälmaren at the nebula’s border is ordered to […]

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NCC-72227 USS Östergötland

STA: Juggernaut in the Cloud

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E03 “Juggernaut in the Cloud”   Stardate: 58465.8 20th Jun 2381 1200 hrs UTC. Location: Paulson Nebula. A New Mission It has been three days since the USS Östergötland NCC-72227 was sent to the Paulson Nebula to investigate an anomalous signal detected by the SS Extropia. Admiral Kathryn Janeway – who earlier saw the launching of the vessel – has ordered Captain Greg Ellison to stand down from the investigation of the disappearance of Commander Sally Ellison, his sister who was replaced by a Romulan agent. Ellison meets with the ship’s counselor, the dolphin Temrak. After the session, Temrak is satisfied that Ellison will be able to work unimpaired by his sister’s disappearance. Hours later, they arrive at the nebula. There are intermittent electrical discharges within the cloud. Conn Officer Commander Morpheus Drake pilots the ship to where the Extropia detected the anomalous signal but […]

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Title card Star Trek Adventures Emergency Deep S01E02

STA: Taken

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E02 “Taken” Previously on Star Trek Adventures: Emergency Deep. Here is the second session report from yesterday, once again in the form of a Captain’s Log written by Dan who plays the Captain Ellison. Captain’s Log, Supplemental. USS Östergötland (NCC-72227). Captain Greg Ellison in command. The biggest question is why was Sally abducted? Why wait till she boarded the USS Östergötland unless the abductor(s) were onboard. It makes sense as clearly the ship’s computer had been tampered with. As Cmdr. Drake was leading investigations in the aft torpedo, Initiated a search to search whether there were any missing crew members. Within seconds, the reassuring voice of the ship’s computer replied that all crew members were accounted for. Could it be that the abductor was still onboard? Investigation As if to answer my question, Cmdr. Drake reported that he along with Lt. dos Santos had found […]

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The Saber-class USS Sienkiewicz NCC-88034

STA: Gravity of the Situation

Star Trek: Thine Own Self S02 E05 “Gravity of the Situation” *** Previously… With the flotilla led by the USS Ibn al-Nahfis headed towards the nearest Starbase, the USS Sienkiewicz is left to deal with the last 70 scientists, engineers and admin personnel. A huge asteroid, part of the extreme outer edge of the black hole’s accretion disc slammed onto the planet’s surface over the horizon. The shockwave devastated the planet surface, but the Away Team managed to activate the colony’s shields. Now a shield dome is protecting the city from an extreme atmospheric disruption – dangerous storm with ionized particles in the dust whipping at 200 kph around the city. Communications and transporters are useless outside the city. Stardate: 57995.9. 30th December, 2380. Starfleet Dramatis Personae Capt. Vosgal Toor, Zaranite commanding officer of the Sienkiewicz (NPC) Lt. Cmdr. Kodar Tamat, Cardassian engineering officer and mission commander (PC) Dr. Thomas […]

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Title card Star Trek Adventures Emergency Deep S01E01

STA: Deep End of the Pool

Star Trek: Emergency Deep S01 E01 “The Deep End of the Pool” Here’s a new style of Star Trek Adventures session write-up. A Captain’s Log as written by Dan who plays Captain Ellison. Dramatis Personae and GM’s synopsis is posted after the log. Beginning Captain’s Log. Stardate 58457.8 USS Östergötland (NCC-72227). Captain Greg Ellison in command. Reykjavík Experimental Shipyards, Earth The day started off, well ,normal enough, with me reporting to Admiral Kathryn Janeway at Reykjavík Experimental Shipyards, Faxaflói Bay. A very straightforward encounter, with the usual pleasantries and small talk. She was much smaller than I had imagined. As she was briefing my orders, it was hard not to miss noting that she had her left hand on her hip. Perhaps it was her way of asserting authority or just a quirk of hers. I wonder what my crew would identify me with. Also present at the briefing were […]

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GM and the solo player

Cortex Prime: Missing in the Southern Forest

Cortex Prime: Missing in the Southern Forest Yesterday, I ran another Cortex Prime session for Anya. We were in town overnight and she brought out her Cortex Prime rulebook and asked me to GM for her. Because I did not bring her Agent Walker character sheet, she played a new character. So for the first 15 minutes, we brainstormed a very simple fantasy setting… Dramatis Personae Alexandra “Alex” Purplecat – Mythical Creature Protector The Sunday Morning Crisis It was a Sunday morning at the outskirts of the village of Bluehorn in the realm of Green Home. The two suns Bee and Moth had just risen from the west. Bluehorn was one of the villages that surrounded the city of Green Tiger. The city and its surrounding region was the only place in the real safe from the deadly Mythical Creatures that roamed the land. To the north were icy wastes. […]

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