Faultline Games is the game company that just recently brought out Natural Selection 2: Combat (NS2: Combat) on Steam in October. They are a small indie studio that formed from the NS2 modding scene in mid-2012.

They were very generous and gave Desert Bus some codes for NS2: Combat on Steam to giveaway over the course of the run through the Desert Bus facebook, twitter, and sometimes we’ll throw them in the twitch chat.

Thank you Faultline Games for your contributions and support of Desert Bus!

Desert Bus 7 Photo Book — Softcover

Bring home all the excitement, fun, and behind-the-scenes insights of Desert Bus 7 with your own softcover copy of the Desert Bus 7 softcover coffee table book, available now at the LRR store for the low, low price of just $35! (NB: profits from all sales are split between Andrew Ferguson, LoadingReadyRun [for Desert Bus admin costs], and Child’s Play Charity.)

Andrew Ferguson, Desert Bus’s official man-behind-the-lens, has compiled 54 full-colour, professionally printed pages of his best snapshots in this highly collectible codex. Act fast because this book has been printed in very limited numbers and will only be available until the end of  (or maybe a day or two after) Desert Bus 8!

Flip through the pages and re-visit Cam’s epic trip to the Gay Bar, Steve and Tally’s Star Trek-style shootout, Al Jazeera’s participation in internet silliness and a whole lot of dance breaks!

Hardcover Auction — Tonight at 11pm!

And later tonight at 11:00pm local time, one of the ultra-rare hardcover editions will be going under the hammer! Featuring exclusive photos not included in the softcover version, this lot is one of only three hardcover copies that will ever be printed! And just to make it that much more special it’s also autographed by the Desert Bus 7 crew!

Matt Fraction will be calling into Desert Bus at 9pm PST on Tuesday, November 18th.

Matt Fritchman, best known by his pen name Matt Fraction, was the Eisner Award-winning brain behind The Invincible Iron Man, The Immortal Iron Fist, Uncanny X-Men, and Hawkeye for Marvel Comics. He also wrote Casanova and Sex Criminals for Image Comics.

His career began with creating comics with small publishers such as IDW Publishing and AiT/Planet Lar. He also became known for the work on his own books, The Five Fists of Science and Casanova, leading to taking on high profile assignments from Marvel.

At Marvel, Matt wrote for Uncanny X-Men, The Immortal Iron Fist, Hawkeye, The Mighty Thor, and The Invincible Iron Man (Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca won the 2009 Eisner Award for “Best New Series” for this one). He consulted on the film Iron Man 2 and wrote the tie-in video game adaptation.

In 2013 he created the series Sex Criminals with Chip Zdarksy for Image Comics. A monthly comic that received the 2014 Harvey Award for “Best New Series”, and the 2014 Eisner Award for “Best New Series”. He can be found posting on his blog and twitter.

Have a question for Matt? Leave them in the comments below!

Wyrmwood Gaming is dedicated to bringing you the finest in tabletop gaming accessories. They are a small company run out of workshop in East Taunton, Massachusetts. They offer elegant deck boxes, dice towers, dice vaults, and more in an array of beautiful natural woods.

They were generous enough to donate this gorgeous gaming lot to Desert Bus. Thank you Wyrmwood Gaming for your contributions and support of Desert Bus!

We’re making spirits bright with a holiday-themed Donation Drive! 

Until 7:00pm local time, donate $9.93, or multiples thereof, for a chance to win the four holiday Magic: The Gathering shiny foil cards! These ultra rare cards are given out in very limited numbers as holiday gifts by Wizards of the Coast at the end of the year, and never released publicly! In other words, you won’t find this anywhere else!

IMPORTANT NOTE: This draw is only for the four holiday cards in the linked prize page: Gifts Given (from 2007), Evil Presents (from 2008), Season’s Beatings (from 2009), and Snow Mercy (from 2010), NOT the other items.

DESERT BUS 8

AUCTIONEERS OF FINE MERCHANDISE & SUNDRY

Let’s talk about some of the fine items we have going for auction now, or in the near future!

Bidding ends on these three silent auction items at 6pm local time (about 2 hours from now). First up is Ch0c0b0 Charlene, a one-of-a-kind, fully-poseable, 10-inch Chocobo, handmade from acrylic yarn! There is also a World of Goo light box: this unique item makes a fine addition to any room and is a sure conversation-starter! Rounding out the selection is the Desert Bus Fleece Wreath, lovingly handcrafted by our own Tally! Say “Happy Holidays” in style this year while giving props to your favourite livestreamed charity event! Makes a great gift!

We also have a live auction coming up at 7:30pm this evening!

 Leonard the Not-Yet-Elder-God is another piece from that Michelangelo of Plush we know as Tally. This 10-pound, 5-foot mega-xeno-cephalopod hopes to one day make a feast of the cosmos, and is a great hugger!

Of course, this is a one-of-a-kind piece, so make sure to get your bids in because you will literally never find another item like this!

Tremble, mortals, for the Nazgûl draw nigh….

for a Donation Drive!

Until 4:45pm local time, donate an amount corresponding to your favourite Ringwraith for a chance to win this exquisite 18″ x 12″ One Ring Inscription Calligraphy poster! We’ll be randomly drawing one Ringwraith at the end of the Drive and those who backed that pony will have a chance to win the prize!

(*Yes, we know these aren’t Canon names. What are we supposed to put, “Officially unnamed Ringwraiths 2 through 9”?)

Paul and Storm will be calling into Desert Bus at 6pm PST Tuesday, November 18th.

“Borrowed”: from the Official Website:

Paul and Storm (Paul Sabourin and Greg “Storm” DiCostanzo) are known internationally and across the Internet for their original comedy music (often with a “nerd-ish” bent).

In addition to their own live performances, they are co-founders of the geek-oriented variety show w00tstock, along with Wil Wheaton and Adam Savage, and co-produce JoCo Cruise Crazy.

The duo’s original webseries musical, “Learning Town“, debuted on Youtube’s Geek & Sundry channel in January 2013. Also in 2013, their song “Another Irish Drinking Song” was featured in the hit movie Despicable Me 2, and in July had their guitar smashed on stage by George R. R. Martin (and deserved it). Their fifth full-length CD, Ball Pit, came out in 2014, and was the central item of the duo’s wildly successful Kickstarter campaign.

Have a question for Paul and Storm? Leave it in the comments below!

Ashton tried to take the hat balancing championship from Paul. We got to 14 before Paul’s wrath struck us down.

The Nekomimi ears continued to provide us with endless entertainment, and a fascination vision into Ashton’s mind.

We go to any length to feed our drivers…

Any….length…

Our Octoplushie Leonard went for a spin

and we had a Straub call in, lucky guy getting a kiss from Jerry!

NoScope Gaming Glasses are used to help gamers and computer users who suffer from eye strain, fatigue, insomnia, and dry eyes caused by those harsh lights in a cost effective way. They are lightweight, comfortable, durable, and even waterproof. For those of you playing those emotional video games, waterproof is a great feature to have.

Thank you NoScope Gaming Glasses for supporting Desert Bus with your contributions!