Today is launch day for not one but two things of coolness.

Thing #1 is Pirates of the Burning Sea, the MMO I’ve been writing for the past year and a half. Folks who pre-ordered have been able to play for a couple of weeks but today is the officially launch for everybody. Boxes are in stores and as we speak new forces from Britain, France, Spain, and the Brethren of the Coast are gearing up for a battle royale in the Caribbean. If you fancy brutal ship battles and swashbuckling swordplay, check out Pirates of the Burning Sea, mateys.

Thing #2 is the new Wild Cards book, Inside Straight. This “mosaic novel” edited by George R.R. Martin releases today and provides a new starting point for the series. I was lucky enough to get to read a draft of this last year and it’s a thoroughly enjoyable book. As you may or may not know, Green Ronin has licensed Wild Cards and will be releasing a Mutants & Masterminds campaign setting based on the series this summer. The Dabel Brothers are also doing a comic starting in April, so it’s a great year for Wild Cards fans.

Jess, the head of my department at FLS, has procured a 9 liter bottle of beer for the Pirates launch. I don’t know how much work is going to get done on Queen Anne today.