ANTHONY THE POLYMATH

Level 20 Renaissance Man • Chaotic Good

“It is not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is: what are we busy about?” — Henry David Thoreau

Anthony R. Ball in secret character-sheet mode

Click portrait crest for one animation loop.

D20
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Stats, Feats & Spells

Stats

Feats

  • First In, Last Out: Comfortable entering ambiguous situations and staying committed until the job has a working ending.
  • Caffeinated: +2 to skill checks after coffee, especially documentation, file triage, and improbable troubleshooting.
  • Visionary: Sees problems hiding behind the stated problem. +2 to knowledge checks, perception rolls, and assist attempts.
  • Systems Mapper: Can turn a chaotic folder tree, workflow, or business process into something navigable.
  • Translator of Arcana: Converts expert-speak, computer errors, and bureaucratic riddles into human instructions.
  • Guild Builder: Gains advantage when assembling research teams, collaborators, vendors, and advisors.

Spells Memorized

  • Detect Requirements: Divines what the stakeholder actually needs.
  • Summon Working Draft: Conjures a useful first version from scattered notes.
  • Locate File: Finds the document everyone swears existed somewhere.
  • Comprehend Bureaucracy: Temporarily understands forms, portals, and compliance language.
  • Minor Automation: Turns repetitive tasks into scripts, checklists, or workflows.
  • Shield Against Scope Creep: Reduces chaos damage during projects.

Character Notes

This page is deliberately hidden from search and exists as an easter egg for curious humans. It is not the résumé. It is the lore tab.

Inventory

Tabletop & Digital Gaming

Engineering & Technology

  • DIY home electronics and prototyping via maker references like Adafruit and SparkFun.
  • PCs, computers, repair forums, and troubleshooting rabbit holes such as Tom’s Hardware.
  • Antique consumer electronics, old Commodores, Nixie tubes, and beautiful obsolete machines: search the relic market.

Esoteric & Nerd Culture

  • Nerdcore, especially the strange joy of rhyming about deeply specific things.
  • Libraries and repositories, because wandering stacks still counts as a legitimate research method.
  • Conspiracy theories, viewed through the safer lens of archives, documents, and historical curiosity.

Quest Log

Active Quests

  • Acquiring new laboratory and engineering workspaces.
  • Finding like-minded friends.
  • Exploring opportunities to learn and develop skills as a personal passion.
  • New business, proposal projects, and collaborations.

Completed / Archived Quests

  • Fundraising over $100K in under a year to build a new library in my hometown — see Taft Public Library.
  • Serial entrepreneur: multiple companies, proposals, teams, prototypes, and improbable project boards.
  • Textbook co-author — CABI Digital Library reference.

Allies & Enemies

Allies

  • Fellow gamers and technology hobbyists.
  • Makers and prototyping enthusiasts.
  • Anyone who still gets excited about learning at 2 a.m.
  • The 8-bit Dungeon Master maintaining this sheet.

Enemies

  • The myth that serious professionals cannot also be passionate nerds.
  • Joyless optimization that kills exploration and play.
  • Unlabeled folders named “final_final_revised_USE_THIS_ONE.”

The Hidden Library

Arcane Media Vault

Films Worth Finding

  • Wizards (1977), Heavy Metal (1981), Vampire Hunter D (1985), Akira (1988), and The Hobbit (1977 Rankin/Bass).

Music for Late Nights & Long Campaigns

  • Pink Floyd, The Police, Talking Heads, Two-Tone Ska, punk, goth, industrial, and whatever the algorithm reluctantly admits is “for you.”
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Careful… some toolboxes bite back.

Secret archive. Not indexed. Found by those who explore.
Last updated with real drive evidence • 2026

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