Christian Hendriks
@cerhendriks.bsky.social
Work & volunteering: arts admin, grant writing, museum collections.
Education: MLIS, English lit MA.
General: Ontarian, Anglican, autistic, leftist, TTRPG hobbyist, he/him/his.
Opinions are never wholly one's own, but I'm responsible for mine.
Education: MLIS, English lit MA.
General: Ontarian, Anglican, autistic, leftist, TTRPG hobbyist, he/him/his.
Opinions are never wholly one's own, but I'm responsible for mine.
Pinned
I have not often been asked what I meant by the things I've written, but you can quote me if you like: I meant all the metaphors I intended and several of the ones I didn't.
If you know of someone who writes about apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic ttrpgs, including games that involve delving into antediluvian ruins, could you please let them know about this? My guess is that various people will be writing on the topic I chose for December without knowing it.
Please join me in discussing the apocalyptic, the post-apocalyptic, and adventure-archaeology in this month's RPG Blog Carnival: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/the-end-time...
If you have a #ttrpg blog or newsletter, I'd love for you to participate.
If you have a #ttrpg blog or newsletter, I'd love for you to participate.
The End Times and After: December 2025 RPG Blog Carnival
"Of what is he singing?" said a queen to a queen. "He is singing of everlasting Zaccarath." — Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany, "In Zaccarath," 1909 The days grow long ...
advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev
December 1, 2025 at 8:08 PM
If you know of someone who writes about apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic ttrpgs, including games that involve delving into antediluvian ruins, could you please let them know about this? My guess is that various people will be writing on the topic I chose for December without knowing it.
Please join me in discussing the apocalyptic, the post-apocalyptic, and adventure-archaeology in this month's RPG Blog Carnival: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/the-end-time...
If you have a #ttrpg blog or newsletter, I'd love for you to participate.
If you have a #ttrpg blog or newsletter, I'd love for you to participate.
The End Times and After: December 2025 RPG Blog Carnival
"Of what is he singing?" said a queen to a queen. "He is singing of everlasting Zaccarath." — Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany, "In Zaccarath," 1909 The days grow long ...
advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev
December 1, 2025 at 5:17 AM
Please join me in discussing the apocalyptic, the post-apocalyptic, and adventure-archaeology in this month's RPG Blog Carnival: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/the-end-time...
If you have a #ttrpg blog or newsletter, I'd love for you to participate.
If you have a #ttrpg blog or newsletter, I'd love for you to participate.
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
✨ A few years back I stood outside Wells Cathedral for a full day and photographed the impact of the light on the front facade. I was amazed at the outcome - at how a single entity could morph and change under the changing light. 🌅 #thread
November 28, 2025 at 7:13 AM
✨ A few years back I stood outside Wells Cathedral for a full day and photographed the impact of the light on the front facade. I was amazed at the outcome - at how a single entity could morph and change under the changing light. 🌅 #thread
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
Danielle Smith uses notwithstanding clause to declare herself premier of B.C.
Danielle Smith uses notwithstanding clause to declare herself premier of B.C.
Prime Minister Mark Carney disagrees with the concept of a premier of one province unilaterally taking over a different province but his hands are tied by his unwillingness to do anything about it.
www.thebeaverton.com
November 28, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Danielle Smith uses notwithstanding clause to declare herself premier of B.C.
My one quibble here is that I don't think that's the *whole* point. There's a lot going on in citation: giving credit where it is due, charting your intellectual genealogy, pointing your readers toward other resources.
The whole point of citations beyond "showing your work" is so it's clear where your evidence is coming from. I'll be the last person to be a stickler about the specifics of a given style other than my deep and abiding hatred for APA but citations matter! They matter so much!
November 30, 2025 at 6:54 AM
My one quibble here is that I don't think that's the *whole* point. There's a lot going on in citation: giving credit where it is due, charting your intellectual genealogy, pointing your readers toward other resources.
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
paintings by edwin austin abbey that live rent-free in my head
November 29, 2025 at 11:50 PM
paintings by edwin austin abbey that live rent-free in my head
Blogs are hard to find but @elmc.at just made it a lot easier with this ttrpg blog network map: bsky.app/profile/elmc...
(I am also, in theory, still working away at compiling everyone's Appendices N. I won't be done until some time in the new year, though.)
(I am also, in theory, still working away at compiling everyone's Appendices N. I won't be done until some time in the new year, though.)
Tiktok is big but requires a specific set of skills
Bsky can be insular if you're not "in the know"
Youtube is cool but specific skills again
Discord can be a walled garden if you're not social
Twitter is fine if you're art-focused
Reddit is more fragmented than ever
Blogs are hard to find
Bsky can be insular if you're not "in the know"
Youtube is cool but specific skills again
Discord can be a walled garden if you're not social
Twitter is fine if you're art-focused
Reddit is more fragmented than ever
Blogs are hard to find
November 29, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Blogs are hard to find but @elmc.at just made it a lot easier with this ttrpg blog network map: bsky.app/profile/elmc...
(I am also, in theory, still working away at compiling everyone's Appendices N. I won't be done until some time in the new year, though.)
(I am also, in theory, still working away at compiling everyone's Appendices N. I won't be done until some time in the new year, though.)
I urgently need confirmation: do non-Canadians not use the phrase "gong show"?
I was today years old when I learned this was specific to Canada.
have lived in the US for 15 years and this is how I learned that “it’s a bit of a gong show” is a Canadian figure of speech
November 26, 2025 at 4:42 PM
I urgently need confirmation: do non-Canadians not use the phrase "gong show"?
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
I'm thinking I might solicit some folks from online (if we know each other IRL that's cool too) to test run my rules light Fallout knockoff ttrpg game. It would probably be something like 2-3 sessions online, on a Fri-Sat evening (EST). Not yet sure when but lemme know if I should reach out.
November 20, 2025 at 8:35 PM
I'm thinking I might solicit some folks from online (if we know each other IRL that's cool too) to test run my rules light Fallout knockoff ttrpg game. It would probably be something like 2-3 sessions online, on a Fri-Sat evening (EST). Not yet sure when but lemme know if I should reach out.
I promise this post eventually has to do with ttrpgs, after I talk for a bit first about Bakhtin: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/festivals-ca...
It's about a particular kind of festival, ones in which many norms are suspended, and a use I propose for those festivals in your tabletop game.
It's about a particular kind of festival, ones in which many norms are suspended, and a use I propose for those festivals in your tabletop game.
Carnival, Festivals, and a Thought on Realism
The Carnivalesque Russian philosopher and literary critic Mikhail Bakthin is perhaps best known for his work on "carnival," often now called "the carnivalesque." Bakhtin wasn't ...
advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev
November 24, 2025 at 9:28 PM
I promise this post eventually has to do with ttrpgs, after I talk for a bit first about Bakhtin: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/festivals-ca...
It's about a particular kind of festival, ones in which many norms are suspended, and a use I propose for those festivals in your tabletop game.
It's about a particular kind of festival, ones in which many norms are suspended, and a use I propose for those festivals in your tabletop game.
I do think that Borges has more to teach us about cosmic horror and weird fiction than any single founder of the genre does. If that genre cluster is something you want to play in, I highly recommend you read "The Book of Sand" and "The Zahir."
more weird fiction needs to involve acknowledging that Borges exists
I have another post up on my ttrpg blog to do with the cosmic horror / post-apocalyptic setting: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/hroumlnir-an...
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
November 24, 2025 at 4:17 AM
I do think that Borges has more to teach us about cosmic horror and weird fiction than any single founder of the genre does. If that genre cluster is something you want to play in, I highly recommend you read "The Book of Sand" and "The Zahir."
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
There was a brief but weird trend at my high school of girls wearing lizards as earrings. Like. Live, unharmed, wild lizards. You just catch one and pick it up and wave a finger a bit and then hold it to your earlobe and they’ll bite and dangle all day. I do not recommend this but. it was a thing
The alligator lizard promptly bit the shit out of my finger.
November 23, 2025 at 8:21 PM
There was a brief but weird trend at my high school of girls wearing lizards as earrings. Like. Live, unharmed, wild lizards. You just catch one and pick it up and wave a finger a bit and then hold it to your earlobe and they’ll bite and dangle all day. I do not recommend this but. it was a thing
Oh no, I used "uncertain" twice in the same sentence, and someone quote-posted before I could catch it. Excuse me while I cringe myself into pretzel.
I have another post up on my ttrpg blog to do with the cosmic horror / post-apocalyptic setting: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/hroumlnir-an...
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Hronir and History
"The time is out of joint."\
— William Shakespeare, , Act I, scene 5
The White Pages Societ...
advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev
November 23, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Oh no, I used "uncertain" twice in the same sentence, and someone quote-posted before I could catch it. Excuse me while I cringe myself into pretzel.
I have another post up on my ttrpg blog to do with the cosmic horror / post-apocalyptic setting: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/hroumlnir-an...
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Hronir and History
"The time is out of joint."\
— William Shakespeare, , Act I, scene 5
The White Pages Societ...
advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev
November 23, 2025 at 7:10 PM
I have another post up on my ttrpg blog to do with the cosmic horror / post-apocalyptic setting: advantageonarcana.bearblog.dev/hroumlnir-an...
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Hrönir are anomalous objects of uncertain origin that suggest false pasts, making history and record-keeping more uncertain than they already are.
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
y'know, if tech companies weren't so fired up to call every single thing "AI" it would be a lot easier to distinguish "ML spam filter that is well-sandboxed and tuned on your emails" from "giant context and IP-eroding foundation model that makes people paranoid and unhappy"
since the "google is now training gemini on your email contents" thing keeps bumping around here: it's _not happening_. I say this not to defend google but because I know a lot of people that have broken their filtering and made their lives much more annoying from sheer misinformation.
The malwarebytes Google opting-your-emails-into-ai-training thing is not true. The post is based on one bad tweet.
I know anti-tech lamenting is a Bluesky core principle, but please use the same judgement you would for any other clickbait.
www.theverge.com/news/826902/...
I know anti-tech lamenting is a Bluesky core principle, but please use the same judgement you would for any other clickbait.
www.theverge.com/news/826902/...
November 23, 2025 at 12:58 PM
y'know, if tech companies weren't so fired up to call every single thing "AI" it would be a lot easier to distinguish "ML spam filter that is well-sandboxed and tuned on your emails" from "giant context and IP-eroding foundation model that makes people paranoid and unhappy"
I was pleased to see @eldritchtheatre.bsky.social's MACBETH this afternoon. The inclusion of stage magic reminded me of what live performance can do: the knowledge that it's a real trick somehow makes it more striking, more potent.
eldritchtheatre.ca/macbeth2025/
eldritchtheatre.ca/macbeth2025/
MacBeth: A Tale Told by an Idiot! ‣ Eldritch Theatre
eldritchtheatre.ca
November 23, 2025 at 4:34 AM
I was pleased to see @eldritchtheatre.bsky.social's MACBETH this afternoon. The inclusion of stage magic reminded me of what live performance can do: the knowledge that it's a real trick somehow makes it more striking, more potent.
eldritchtheatre.ca/macbeth2025/
eldritchtheatre.ca/macbeth2025/
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
since the "google is now training gemini on your email contents" thing keeps bumping around here: it's _not happening_. I say this not to defend google but because I know a lot of people that have broken their filtering and made their lives much more annoying from sheer misinformation.
The malwarebytes Google opting-your-emails-into-ai-training thing is not true. The post is based on one bad tweet.
I know anti-tech lamenting is a Bluesky core principle, but please use the same judgement you would for any other clickbait.
www.theverge.com/news/826902/...
I know anti-tech lamenting is a Bluesky core principle, but please use the same judgement you would for any other clickbait.
www.theverge.com/news/826902/...
Google denies ‘misleading’ reports of Gmail using your emails to train AI
Google says “we do not use your Gmail content for training our Gemini AI model.”
www.theverge.com
November 22, 2025 at 9:30 PM
since the "google is now training gemini on your email contents" thing keeps bumping around here: it's _not happening_. I say this not to defend google but because I know a lot of people that have broken their filtering and made their lives much more annoying from sheer misinformation.
I have lately gotten around to watching TWIN PEAKS at long last, and I enjoy how weird it is. I'm midway though Season 2 and it's genuinely such a pleasure to see something so bizarre.
November 22, 2025 at 5:19 AM
I have lately gotten around to watching TWIN PEAKS at long last, and I enjoy how weird it is. I'm midway though Season 2 and it's genuinely such a pleasure to see something so bizarre.
My go-to joke here is that, with each sequel, the phrase "God's Not Dead" sounds more and more like an update on a terminal patient. The word "yet" lingers.
I get how franchises work, but if they want to keep doing this, they should go the KNIVES OUT route, with each film getting its own title.
I get how franchises work, but if they want to keep doing this, they should go the KNIVES OUT route, with each film getting its own title.
November 17, 2025 at 7:37 PM
My go-to joke here is that, with each sequel, the phrase "God's Not Dead" sounds more and more like an update on a terminal patient. The word "yet" lingers.
I get how franchises work, but if they want to keep doing this, they should go the KNIVES OUT route, with each film getting its own title.
I get how franchises work, but if they want to keep doing this, they should go the KNIVES OUT route, with each film getting its own title.
Your last saved meme is your moral philosophy
November 16, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Your last saved meme is your moral philosophy
But does it make you weigh more than the weight of the tunic?
The beholder was carrying a hide tunic that used to belong to a ghoul. When you wear it you weigh more.
November 16, 2025 at 7:04 PM
But does it make you weigh more than the weight of the tunic?
Being in a Discord with a bunch of youths makes it clear how hard it can be to communicate with the ways the political landscape has been different post-2016 without also losing sight of the ways politics post-2016 has been continuous with politics pre-2016.
November 12, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Being in a Discord with a bunch of youths makes it clear how hard it can be to communicate with the ways the political landscape has been different post-2016 without also losing sight of the ways politics post-2016 has been continuous with politics pre-2016.
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
Brother Gregor never spoke and often spooked the neophytes with his appearance, but he was a gentle soul and a phenomenal cook and knew more ways to prepare a fish than the abbot knew hymns
November 11, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Brother Gregor never spoke and often spooked the neophytes with his appearance, but he was a gentle soul and a phenomenal cook and knew more ways to prepare a fish than the abbot knew hymns
Reposted by Christian Hendriks
Saw a post on Reddit about how a magical girl OSR game could work. I'm not the person to write it but I do like the idea of a game where you play unprepared high school kids becoming emotional wrecks fighting monsters every week as they wrestle with their destinies, with a roll-under system.
November 12, 2025 at 3:37 AM
Saw a post on Reddit about how a magical girl OSR game could work. I'm not the person to write it but I do like the idea of a game where you play unprepared high school kids becoming emotional wrecks fighting monsters every week as they wrestle with their destinies, with a roll-under system.
