• Morrus' Daily News Blog RSS Feed

    RPG News for Monday, 8 April, 2013 


    [top]EN World News

    • Check out our boardgame review of Hasbro's Acquire.
    • Radiating Gnome looks at some ideas for creating interesting. evocative, interesting, and useful scenery for your players to interact with.

    [top]Pathfinder RPG News

    • Paizo reports that April's releases will be shipping April 15th-19th. These include:
      • Pathfinder Adventure Path #69: Maiden, Mother, Crone (Reign of Winter 3 of 6)
      • Pathfinder Modules: Fangwood Keep
      • Pathfinder Map Pack: Army Camp
      • Pathfinder Player Companion: Champions of Purity
      • Pathfinder Tales: Pirate's Honor
      • Pathfinder Cards: Shattered Star Face Cards
      • Pathfinder Comic #6

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • Over the next 24 hours, Malcolm is offering to add a brand new archetype for Pathfinder and 4e class for Mystical: Kingdom of Monsters if his Kickstarter Project can break $1,000. If you want to see even more archetypes for your game, consider joining them. Already backing the project? Get others to join and help break that cap.
    • Artists & Clients is a project which started a couple of years ago and lets people commission artists for custom artwork.
    • The RIFTS Vampire Sourcebook can be previewed for free at DTRPG. It ships next week. The preview contains includes the front cover, credits, contents, the latest on Doc Reid and his plans for war against the Vampire Kingdoms, an updated map of the Vampire Kingdoms and notable human outposts, the new Bone Werejaguars of Palenque, and experience tables for the O.C.C.s and R.C.C.s found in Vampires Sourcebook and Vampire Kingdoms.
    • Herolab is now available for iPad. This first version of Hero Lab for the iPad is an in-play character sheet for Pathfinder, available for free! You can create your character on your desktop or laptop, and then move it to the iPad for use during the game. It's free, so if you're a Pathfinder player, download it!
    • Fat Dragon Games' latest Kickstarter project is a gorgeous dwarven kingdom terrain set in 28mm scale. This Kickstarter project offers four separate terrain sets, Halls of the Mountain King, Dungeons of the Mountain King, Caverns of the Mountain King and Caverns of the Drow.

    [top]Community News

    • Gaming Tonic has an article on rules mishaps - what do you do when you realise too late you got an important rule wrong? Press on, rewind, change something to compensate?
    • This weeks article from The Kyngdoms brings you the second of their three part series into the gangs of Blackfen, taking a look at the Weston gang.
    • Game Knight Reviews takes a look at Appendix N Adventure Toolkit: The Treacherous Cobtraps.
    • Mike Shea wrote a recent Dragon article on Cryonax, Elemental Prince of Ice. Here's an article where he discusses the mechanical design concepts of Cryonax as a high-epic threat designed to challenge a group of level 30 PCs.
    • The Journeyman GM wonders whether you can get some gaming tips from Lego video games.

    [top]Boardgaming News

    • The Sails of Glory campaign on Kickstarter enters in its homestretch with good news for international backers and other people resident outside the US who want to support the project. Ares Games announced three new pledge levels to offer a solution to mitigate the high costs of international shipping, with the publisher absorbing a higher portion of the freight cost.

    [top]Other News

    • The Torment: Tides of Numenera website is continuing to accept Paypal pledges for both Tiers and Add-Ons until the end of April. These pledges will continue to allow stretch goals to be reached in that time (allowing for a possible $4.5 million achievement or greater)! With less than 180k needed for that goal, it is possible that this could occur in 22 days.

    RPG News for Friday, 5 April, 2013 


    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • With 13 days left on their Kickstarter, Northwinter Press is kicking it into high gear on the Pathfinder conversion of Mystical: Kingdom of Monsters. Check out their progress so far, and look forward to regular Pathfinder updates from Malcolm from here on out.

    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    • WotC is holding a character sheet contest on Facebook. "Adventurers, break out those graphic design multiclass skills! We’re pleased to bring you a contest to design a new character sheet for D&D Next. If your character sheet is selected as the winner, it will be made available to thousands of D&D Next playtesters for use in an upcoming D&D publication."
    • In this week's D&D Next Q&A, Rodney talks about sub-classes/class features, spells & bards
    • April: In the Works by Bart Carroll -- "April has arrived, and it’s time to tackle both the foolishness inherent in the 1st, plus dig in to some more serious types of fun. Come take a look at what’s in the works." This article covers:
      • D&D Encounters: Storm over Neverwinter, Search for the Diamond Staff
      • D&D Lair Assault: Into the Pit of Madness
      • Audio Books
      • Comic Books
      • Novels & eBooks: Elminster Enraged: The Sage of Shadowdale, Stone of Tymora, The Sundering
      • 3.5 Premium Spell Compendium
      • 2nd Edition Premium Reprints
      • Against the Slave Lords
      • 3.5 Premium Magic Item Compendium
      • Murder in Baldur's Gate
      • Legacy of the Crystal Shard
      • Lords of Waterdeep: Scoundrels of Skullport boardgame expansion

    • Mines of Madness, Part 2 -- "In Part 2 of the podcast, the crew enters the mines (after last session's brief foray into the outhouse), and confronts a roomful of "chickens" and rescues their new, if somewhat incompetent, dungeon lackey."

    [top]Boardgaming News

    • Fantasy Flight Games has a preview of the revised edition of Letters From Whitechapel. One player takes on the role of Jack the Ripper while the rest play the police trying to track him down.
    • FFG also has a more in-depth look at two new squads for Dust: Tactics. Ubertoten Suicide Squad and Ubertoten Assault Squad both feature the undead but reflect two different degrees of 'comfort' with their newly dead status.
    • A Game For Someone is an art/game project from Jason Rohrer. Revealed during the Game Developers Conference's Game Design Challenge, it is buried somewhere in the Nevada desert and is intended to remain there for the next 2,700 years or so. The game is untested and unplayed even by Rohrer himself, having been designed entirely via computer. You can read more about this game oddity on Polygon.

    [top]Other News

    • Torment: Tides of Numenera Kickstarter finishes today! Looks like it's going to close out at around $4,000,000 (OK, that total is ticking up as I watch it, like some kind of Doomsday clock).
    • The Neverwinter open beta starts on April 30th. There's also another beta weekend on the 12th.

    RPG News for Thursday, 4 April, 2013 


    [top]Free Preview of IDW's D&D: CUTTER

    IDW Publishing is getting ready to release the first issue of a brand new Dungeons & Dragons comic-book miniseries called CUTTER, written by R.A. and Geno Salvatore with art by David Baldeon. And you can download a FREE PREVIEW of it right here! Click on the pretty picture!

    [top]EN World News

    • Progress on the Kickstarter -- lots of progress has been made on both Kickstarter goals and rewards. I'm splitting my time between both - because both are very important. On the reward front, I've fulfilled about a third of backers' rewards now (I took the long Easter weekend off to visit family); on the goals front, lots of things have happened, most of which you probably know about already. The Gamers Seeking Gamers (or Find A Game) system has been running for a few weeks now; O.G.R.E. (the Online Generic Randomizer Engine) officially launched this week and the mobile app for it is underway; and we moved to our new server, I had our database optimized and arranged a year's maintenance contract. So, as you can see, I've been working very hard to make everything on that Kickstarter page happen, and a lot has happened! I do apologise that it takes time, though - there's so much to do, and I'm working my way through it all. I do hope that those of you waiting for a particular feature, or for an individual reward, will be pleased when your patience is rewarded, even if it takes a while!
    • Check out our review of Darklight Interactive's A Night in Seyvoth Manor, a D&D 4E adventure for 6th level characters. "A Night in Seyvoth Manor is not for the faint of heart, and is deadly to heroes when players rely too much on their character’s might instead of their own wits!"
    • Kamikaze Midget discusses Class Warfare --Why do you play a Fighter? Why do you play a Cleric? "The selecting of a class for your character is one of the boldest choices you can make as a player. More than race, more even than ability scores, it defines what you are going to spend the next few months with this character doing. But it’s a choice we often make without much thought as to how or why."
    • Rel asks what sort of increments do you break your to-do list into? Do you like games where turns are fast and simple or longer and more complex?
    • Behold the awesome power of my fully operational Tavern Creator!

    The Viscount of Stanwood is an upper class mansion with 14 waiting staff. It is owned and managed by George "Honest Claw" Bond (one-legged, lots of jewellery). The proprieter is the hero of The Celestial Pits of The Luminous One.

    You'll love our magician!

    Patrons
    Vuronlodh Earthien, hunter, muscular
    Roger Cook, woodworker, hunchbacked
    Lewis Lloyd, miner, immaculate
    And a group of 3 fishers

    Rumours
    The Burgundy Revenge has docked nearby.
    A new book, Abbess Galadril The Draconic's Alabaster Compilation Of Calamitous Music has everybody talking.
    The local masons are planning a strike.

    Drinks Menu
    Good Hawk Lager (6sp)
    Tricky Blade Ale (7sp)
    Proud Lord Beer (6sp)
    Brown John Ale (3sp)
    Bachelor's Dragon Whiskey (5sp)

    Food Menu*
    Our acclaimed snake and pasta broth (9sp)
    Local roasted bullette served with salad (5sp)
    Tasty roasted goat served with beans (9sp)
    Imported shark and fish casserole (8sp)

    Today's Special
    Juicy boiled horse cooked in Fat Claw Lager (15sp)

    *Please note: the establishment does not vouch for the accuracy of these names.

    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News


    • Excerpts: Spell Compendium -- "Spells and spellcasters form a cornerstone of fantasy, and the Spell Compendium builds on that cornerstone by presenting over a thousand spells in one place. In today's excerpt, we look at more sample spells from the book -- of the gooier variety. One spell that can summon a wave of slime, and another that takes control of enemy ooze."
    • The Lone Wizard by Ed Greenwood -- "Looking for a slower or smaller campaign to run? Ed might have something for you to consider this week. Come take a look."
    • D&D Cutter: Preview -- "Dungeons & Dragons: Cutter, written by R.A. and Geno Salvatore, weaves the tale of a family fiercely divided and at odds with itself, with a legendary sword hanging in the balance. Today, IDW has also provided the following preview of the series. Enjoy!"

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • Have a game company? Would you like to be acquired? Steve Jackson Games is looking to acquire some willing great game companies. If you are making great games and want to cash out or become part of SJG, take a look here.
    • Dungeon World in space? Johnstone Metzger’s Adventures on Dungeon Planet is a supplement that adds some science to Dungeon World’s fantasy.
    • Broken Ruler Games is looking for a few dead bodies. "Now before everyone starts dialling 911, check out the Killshot Reloaded Crime Scene Photo Search for details on how you can help us make a truly epic opening video for our upcoming Kickstarter project. All submission will receive a free PDF copy of the game upon its release and one lucky photographer will access the $100 pledge level without having to drop a dime."

    [top]Community News

    • The Chamber of Mazarbul's D&D Next playtest package reports (say that quickly three times) continue with the monk.
    • Kobold Press. You're in the Army Now.
    • Geek's Dream Girl discusses the gaming soundtrack. "Music can do a limited number of things for a game session: make it awesome, have a neutral influence, or make the entire night suck."
    • The Drunks & Dragons podcast is in the last week of its Kickstarter. Support them to get 50 episodes in 2013. "One of the more crazy things is that we had a $1000 reward, where the backer gets to pick one of our characters to permanently kill off. It was a half-joke that we never thought anyone would go for, and it was snapped up the first night. We will be doing a live video feed of our google hangout session for the episode where the character dies (we still don't know which cast member he is going to pick)."

    [top]Boardgaming News


    • The 39th Annual Origins Awards nominees have been announced. Attendees of the Origins Game Fair will be casting votes in 15 different gaming related categories with the winners being announced at the Origins Award ceremony on June 15th.
    • A Game of Thrones LCG moves into the Kingsroad cycle of chapter packs with The Banners Gather. The Kingsroad cycle will revisit earlier themes and mechanics in order to reinforce and reinvigorate them with fresh approaches to how to play the game. The Banners Gather is expected to release in 3rd Quarter 2013.
    • Play Board Games has reviewed Rise of the Zombies. "Rise of the Zombies is a cooperative zombie survival game. You and your comrades must get from the safe house to the helicopter. Of course you are being chased by zombies but you must also race against the clock."

    RPG News for Wednesday, 3 April, 2013 


    [top]EN World News

    • New generators on OGRE: Mundane Treasure Generator, English Name Generator, English Town Name Creator, Pirate Ship Generator.
    • In this week's installment of Fiddleback's Do Not Pass Go column, he talks about the trials of planning and preparing for a board game night!
    • The ENnies Publisher Karaoke Fundraiser is.... well, it's what it says it is. The top three highest grossing publishers will sing the listed song at Gen Con immediately prior to the ENnies ceremony on Friday, August 16.
    • About news scoops: Remember, the best way to send me a news scoop is via email (see the box to the right). That guarantees I'll see it! Unfortunately, I'm not able to keep on top of tweets, Facebook messages, PMs and other things in a timely manner, much as I'd love to be able to! That said, please do send me those scoops - whether they're about your stuff, or just stuff you've seen.

    [top]Pathfinder RPG News

    • As it is wont to do, Paizo announced at about 1am my time this morning (man, I hate time zones - can we abolish them yet?) that Steven Helt of Tulsa, OK is officially 2013's RPG Superstar. His module, Tears at Bitter Manor, will be published in November.
    • Goblinworks is hiring for a 3D character modeler to work on the Pathfinder Online MMO

    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    • Neverwinter: Behind the Curtain, Part 4 by Jon Schindehette -- "Jon talks to Joe Jing, the Lead Artist at Cryptic, about the Dungeons & Dragons Neverwinter massively multiplayer online game. We have a lot of information to share with you and many, many images to show you. This time we learn more about some of the team behind the game, class builds, inside jokes, and more."

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • Modiphus' Achtung! Cthulhu Kickstarter blew the doors off by closing on £177,557 (that's over a quarter of a million in your American Dollars) making it, I think, the 5th biggest tabletop gaming Kickstarter ever. That's astonishing!

    [top]Community News

    • The Kyngdoms has posted the third issue of its Zinedoms magazine.
    • Critical Hits has an article entitled A Campaign About Nothing.
    • OK, I missed this over the weekend, but the Dungeon Bastard had an excellent April Fool's product announcement called "Dungeon Feelings". "...a unique exploration of your character’s vibrant inner life, through the use of therapeutic interaction, extended deep-chakra meditation, and wigs." Definitely worth a giggle.
    • Game Knight Reviews has reviewed The Vile Worm, a 1st level adventure for the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG.
    • Kobold Press discusses "some tricks a DM can use to breathe new life and challenge into our old favorites [monsters] as well as introduce some new templates to revitalize them".
    • Also at Kobold Press - character backgrounds in "From Screenplay to RPG".
    • Also also at Kobold Press (see what happens when I go away for a weekend?) is the second part of "Get Gavin". "In this follow-up to the quick little adventure vignette, we have the trapsmith himself, plus more rooms and traps. If you missed part 1, you should certainly check it out."
    • Also also also at Kobold Press is part two of their Faster Combat, Faster series for 4E.
    • Nothing else at Kobold Press.
    • Sly Flourish has posted a piece looking at Dwarven Forge's mega-Kickstarter.
    • The Chamber of Mazarbul continues its look at the March D&D next playtest packet with the rogue and the exploration rules.
    • Baz Stevens of The Treehouse reports on his D&D Next and his Dungeon Crawl Classics experiences.

    [top]Boardgaming News

    • Plaid Hat Games is offering a $25 pre-order discount on their latest game. "What game," you ask? Only BioShock Infinite: The Siege of Columbia. It is a limited time offer so, better hurry.
    • Fantasy Flight Games has revealed the final installment in the Lord of the Rings LCG's Against the Shadow cycle. Titled The Morgul Vale, this adventure pack sees the players finally reaching the gates of Mordor. They won't be alone though as King Theoden makes an appearance as well. Look for it 3rd Quarter 2013.
    • Not to be outdone, The Hoth Cycle for FFG's Star Wars LCG also comes to an end with Escape from Hoth. It won't be an easy escape for the Rebels though as the Executor makes it's appearance along with a certain batch of Bounty Hunters. You can also expect this release in 3rd Quarter 2013.
    • Some guy named Michael Fox from something called The Little Metal Dog Show and Sprocket Games (he's EN World's boardgames reviewer, too, by the way) has begun a Kickstarter for a more family friendly version of the party game Werewolf called Fox and Chicken. Players take on the roles of chickens trying to survive just one more night in the barnyard while the foxes prowl. Check it out and lend him your support.
    • Play-Board-Games has reviewed Admiral. "Admiral puts you in command of a fleet of sailing ships. You must master the winds and complete the scenario based goals to beat your opponents."

    [top]Author List for Gen Con Writer's Symposium

    The Gen Con Writer's Symposium, one of the largest writing conferences in the world, is pleased to announce its author list for the 2013 Symposium. The list includes more than fifty of the greatest science fiction, fantasy, and media tie-in writers working today, including:

    • Saladin Ahmed
    • Lou Anders
    • Larry Correia
    • Jim C. Hines
    • Mary Robinette Kowal
    • Mercedes Lackey
    • Patrick Rothfuss
    • Michael A. Stackpole
    • David Wolverton

    RPG News for Tuesday, 2 April, 2013 


    [top]EN World News

    • Back after... Easter, April Fool's Day, Tabletop Day - did I miss any other important days? I hope everyone had a good weekend! The good news is that while I was away, plenty of excellent new content was added to EN World!
    • O.G.R.E. has some more generators. Please feel free to create your own - the more people who use it, the more powerful it gets.
      • Sci-fi Corporation Generator -- Create a quick sci-fi corporation, along with a few details about their business. Useful for any sci-fi RPG.
      • House of Ill-Repute Creator -- Creates a quick house of ill-repute; possibly somewhere you'd find someone from the Random Harlot table, located elsewhere in OGRE. Details have been avoided on grounds of ickiness.
      • Tolkien Orc & Uruk-hai Name Generator -- There aren't a lot of individually named orcs in Tolkien's work. This generator takes the ones we have and splits them up, recombining them into new names for orcs and uruk-hai. These orcs can join the ranks of Uglúk, Grishnákh, Gorbag, and Shagrat.
      • Tolkien Elf Name Generator -- Most Elves have only one name in Tolkien's writings, although Tolkien decided late in his life that Elves of the Second Clan who lived in Eldamar bore several names. This generator is designed for the former: elves (and half-elves) with a single name - Amdir, Caranthir, Celeborn, Galadriel, Denethor, and many, many more.
      • Orc or Gobling Tribe Name Creator -- A quick and basic orc/goblin tribe name generator.
      • Dungeon Name Generator -- Generate a dungeon name - and not just dungeons! Calamitous fortresses, resplendent labyrinths, demented cities, and infernal towers!

    • Check out our latest Pretty Darn Fun (a look at new PDFs). We have the usual excellent variety of new and interesting PDFs. Along with those we have some more from Frog God Games, WotC rereleases, adventures and even some April Fool's Day PDFs. The Spotlight: Most Interesting PDF of the Week is from a company that's long been a favorite of rpg fans and they have just released their newest book for their core line, the first one in 4 years, so make sure you check it out.
    • In Call of the Wild, Southern Oracle details the Wildlord prestige class and two NPCs for D&D 3.5.
    • Challenger RPG presents Game Design 103: Holes in the Rules.

    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    Please note that I haven't had chance to check any of the below out, so some of it might be (probably is) April Fool's related.
    • Queen of the Interwebz Pits by Mark Monack Can the players put an end to the devious schemes of the one who calls herself LOLth, demon queen of the Interwebz?
    • What IS That Thing? by James Wyatt Kuo-toas, sahuagins, and bullywugs are this week’s focus. James explores these cold-blooded creatures and asks you to provide your opinion on them.
    • Excerpts: Spell Compendium Spells and spellcasters form a cornerstone of fantasy, and the Spell Compendium builds on that cornerstone by presenting over a thousand spells in one place. In today's excerpt, we look at the contents of the book, including a sample of its spells: Calling Inevitables.
    • This Week in D&D by Mike Mearls So, let’s get this out of the way right now. Yes, it’s April Fool’s Day, but Mike is dead-on serious in today’s Legends & Lore, in which he introduces the Mines of Madness and then discusses the concept of tiers.
    • Walkthrough Map: Tomb of Horrors by Jason Thompson "Acererak congratulates you on your powers of observation. So make of this whatever you wish, for you will be mine in the end no matter what!" In great celebration of the S series of adventures (not to mention today's holiday), we'd like to offer the following cartoon -- considering the Tomb of Horrors!
    • Walkthrough Map: White Plume Mountain by Jason Thompson "Search ye far or search ye near/You’ll find no trace of the three/Unless you follow instructions clear/For the weapons abide with me." On today of all days, we present the following cartoon -- taking you through White Plume Mountain!
    • Mines of Madness, Part 1 by Greg Bilsland, Scott Kurtz, Kris Straub, Molly Lewis, and Stepto In this episode, R&D's Greg Bilsland leads a crew through the Mines of Madness (also available today in the latest playtest packet update: surprise!). Mines of Madness -- written by Scott Kurtz and Chris Perkins -- recently debuted at PAX East, with adventurers hurling themselves into a deadly dungeon in search of the fabled Forever Stone.
    • Lords of Waterdeep: New Lords To help celebrate the forthcoming Scoundrels of Skullport expansion, we've put together the following new Lords. You may be moderately familiar with them within the Forgotten Realms...

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • Green Ronin successfully met its Kickstarter goal for the Pathfinder Freeport book and exceeded it to reach 146% of the original target. It looked likt it would be clsoe a few days ago, but a late surge blasted it through the target.
    • The epic India mythology game Against the Dark Yogi has started its public playtest. "Against the Dark Yogi is a high-action tabletop RPG where the players take on the role of epic heroes, destined to defend the mythological India-inspired world of Bhurloka from the machinations of the Dark Yogi"
    • Pymapper, a map-making tool for use with dungeon tiles or other like images, is online again. It is available for windows, Mac, and Linux.

    [top]Boardgaming News

    RPG News for Saturday, 30 March, 2013 


    [top]EN World News

    • Happy Easter (otherwise known as Doctor Who Day) to those who do Easter! I'll be largely out of contact over the long weekend (thus today's short news update).
    • Check out our boardgame review of Ticket to Ride, the bestselling game from Days of Wonder.
    • Player engagement and the "attention economy" is the subject of Radiating Gnome's column this week.
    • O.G.R.E. has been installed! The Online Generic Randomizer Engine was one of the Rebuilding EN World Kickstarter goals. It's still in the testing phase, but you can check out the following generators I quickly whipped up:
      • Fantasy Library Generator -- Generate a library of fantasy magical and non-magical books and tomes! Until you've read Nori the Dark's Resplendent Creed of Volatile Illusion, Dolin the Accursed's Dangerous Guide of Unknown Magics, and Bili the Umbral's Telestic Manual of Demented Divinity, you haven't lived! That's not to mention The Fine Handbook Of Divination And Husbandry, The Lexicon Of Illuminated Alchemy By Finor The Infernal, and the critically panned Transformation And Gambling: A Tome By Nofur The Numinous. But best of all is The Compendium Of Infernal Foods & Preparation By Bain The Illuminated!
      • Klingon Name Generator -- Generates a single Klingon name in the form of: Godar, son of Kadrya, of House Argan.
      • Technobabble Generator -- Star Trek style technobabble, ready for insertion into your sci-fi games! From auxiliary baryon capacitors to phased gravimetric distortions, it won't make sense - but say it with enough conviction and it will sound like it does!
      • Dwarf Name Creator -- This generator creates a full (first and second) male dwarf name. First names are composed of two parts and inspired by names such as Bruenor, Balin, and Thorin. Second names are also two parts, and are inspired by names such as Battlehammer, Stonefist, and Fireforge.

    RPG News for Friday, 29 March, 2013 


    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    • Art and Maps: Dungeon 212 -- "Storm the abyssal palace of the demon lord Graz'zt in search of a lost angel. See what haunts the ruined moat house near Hommlet. Escape the Twisted Thickets and have your revenge. Here now are a full set of illustrations and maps from Dungeon 212!"
    • The Wizards Did It by Ed Greenwood -- "Add a little awe, wonder, and possibly respect into your game by reading this week’s Forging the Realms by Ed and thinking about how you can use his advice."
    • Epic Campain: Against the Cult of Chaos by Aaron Williams -- "The party has pitted themselves Against the Cult of Chaos—as an ancient evil stirs, chipping away at its prison…. In this episode: "At the Caves of Chaos, our heroes meet Haffron Hommel's ghost…"
    • Art: Dragon 421 -- "Make multiclass characters in a whole new way. Face the cold wrath of Cryonax, the Evil Elemental Prince of Cold. Release the mephits! Plus: Draconian character options and magic items of Krynn. Here now are a full set of the illustrations from Dragon 421."

    [top]EN World News

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • Mark Rein Hagen, co-founder of White Wolf, is back with I AM ZOMBIE, his first new RPG in 20 years. “People think zombies are played out but that’s just lazy storytelling finding its own level,” he explains. “The image of the animated corpse that pursues us endlessly still scares us. It still scares me, and I’ve watched a lot of zombie movies lately while working on I AM ZOMBIE. That’s why even the languid versions still have the power to both terrify us and inform our sense of where society is headed.” It's going to be a Kickstarter project, launching June 20th, and uses playing cards and chips instead of character sheets, with a ton of online support.

    [top]ICv2's Top RPGs: Fall 2012

    ICv2 has released it's Fall 2012 hobby game survey. For board game information, see further below. Here were the top-selling RPGs of Fall 2012:


    1. Pathfinder (Paizo)
    2. Star Wars (FFG)
    3. Dungeons & Dragons (WotC)
    4. Dark Heresy/Rogue Trader/Deathwatch (FFG)
    5. Iron Kingdoms (Privateer Press)

    Pathfinder takes the top spot yet again (for the third time running). WotC has dropped even further this time, though - it's not even at #2 any more, ceding that spot to FFG's Star Wars game. It should be noted that until D&D Next is launched, WotC isn't actually releasing new RPG books, so a drop is to be expected. Paizo, on the other hand, releases books at a rate similar to TSR in the 1980s (see EN World's sidebar for the schedule -->). There's sure to be a correlation between "releasing books" and "selling books". Green Ronin had the #5 spot with the Dragon Age RPG last time; it's gone this time, but maybe it will return in the next chart, spurred on by Wil Wheaton's Tabletop show?

    The report also highlights that this is the fourth concescutuve growth year for hobby gaming (not necessarily RPGs, but tabletop gaming in general), with a 15% growth over 2011. "The best news for the year was that growth was not based on a single game or category, but instead was driven by broad-based growth in the number of people playing hobby games."

    Note - as always - that ICv2s chart is based on interviews with retailers, not actual sales figures.

    [top]Community News

    • Numenera Video Game -- "Welcome to a new episode of Transmissions from the Ninth World, episode 6. In this episode we talk with one of the Torment team, Colin McComb and discuss the Tides of Numenera computer game by inXile."

    [top]Boardgaming News

    • Reaper Miniatures announced, via Facebook, that they have begun shipping out the first of the Bones products from their wildly successful Kickstarter project. With 18,000 backers they expect to be finished sometimes in May. Once those complete the Bones line of miniatures will be made available for purchase both through the Reaper website and your local FLGS.
    • Descent: Journeys in the Dark 2nd Edition gets an expansion in the form of Labyrinth of Ruin. The all new 19 quest Campaign series will take players to previously unexplored locations in the game setting. Labyrinth of Ruin features an overland map, new allies and new abilities. The expansion is expected to release in the Second Quarter of 2013 from Fantasy Flight Games.
    • This is your final reminder that Geek & Sundry's International Tabletop Game Day is this Saturday. With more than 2,800 events scheduled around the world the chances are good that you can find one to attend near you even if you don't have a FLGS in your area. Check the map on the website.
    • ICv2 has just released the results of their Fall 2012 Hobby Game Industry survey. The report, called Internal Correspondence, reports and overall industry sales growth rate of 15%. Among the best selling board games in the top ten are perennial favorites Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride and Small World as well as more recent arrivals Eclipse and The Walking Dead. Collectible Games are about as expected with Magic: The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh taking top spots and no less than three WizKids offerings in the list. The top 10 Non-Collectible / Building games Starts with Munchkin, Dominion and Bang!, but also includes two recent FFG offerings, Netrunner: Android and the Star Wars Living Cards Game. Games Workshop dominated the list of top 5 Non-Collectible Miniature games, but X-Wing and offerings from Privateer Press made the list as well.

    [top]Other News


    • Remember, tomorrow is Doctor Who Day, Easter Saturday, and Tabletop Day... in that order!
    • Thanks to everyone who emailed me this (dozens of you!) -- Ben MacFarland wants to use Google Glass to video the whole of Gen Con this year. He has an IndieGoGo project to fund it.


    I'm Ben McFarland. I'm a freelance RPG designer. I won the 2012 Ennie for Best Adventure for the anthology Streets of Zobeck. But this isn't about me writing an RPG project. I think it's cooler.

    You see, I've been chosen as a Glass Explorer. Why? This is what I told them:

    "If I had Glass, I'd take it to #Gencon to document the whole experience, rotating it through different attendees, cosplayers, and participants to create a diverse, comprehensive 7x24 record of the event and community. I'd want to share the whole gamut of card, board, story, live-action and tabletop games. #ifihadglass"

    And I want to do that. I want to glass the whole thing from the road trip out to the check-in to the industry awards to the dealer room to the gaming tables. Because Gencon is awesome. It is an absolute blast and a wonderful experience, and I think it would be great to share that with folks who can't make it.

    RPG News for Wednesday (it's Wednesday, not Tuesday!), 27 March, 2013 


    [top]Pathfinder RPG News

    • Jon Compton previews the latest Pathfinder Society scenarios on the Paizo blog. Sam Polak's Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Tower of the Ironwood Watch sends the Pathfinders to the edge of the Mierani Forest to explore a lost elven watchtower. Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-18 The Veteran's Vault, written by former Editorial Intern, Savannah Broadway, sends the operatives to recover an ex-Pathfinder's hidden wealth that she secreted away somewhere in Korvosa five years ago.

    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    • Neverwinter: Behind the Curtain, Part 3 by Jon Schindehette -- "Jon talks to Joe Jing, the Lead Artist at Cryptic, about the Dungeons & DragonsNeverwinter massively multiplayer online game. We have a lot of information to share with you and many, many images to show you. The second part of the interview brings you information about animating characters and monsters, adventure areas, and a few other things (such as being a Dungeon Master)."

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • Blackstar Studios has launched a Kickstarter for a new Pathfinder setting geared "toward 30-somethings who grew up on 2nd Edition D&D and who were inspired by the classic Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, Ravenloft, and Planescape settings. We're trying to bring back and update that classic feel for an older generation by focusing on material that is complex, intriguing, and more themed for an adult audience." The big news is that Ed Greenwood (Forgotten Realms) has agreeed to write for the project, and that they are currently talking to Tracy Hickman (Dragonlance)!
    • The FREEPORT Pathfinder Kickstarter from Green Ronin needs your help. With just 5 days to go and another $16K needed, it's going to be a close call. Chris Pramas of Green Ronin has posted a big update explaining the pricing structures. It would be a terrible shame if that project didn't hit its goal, so please at least take a look. It's a gorgeous, full-colour 512 page book! "We’ve got five days left in the Freeport Kickstarter and we are still over $16,000 short of our goal. Throughout these last weeks, I’ve been reading your feedback and adding to or changing the campaign in response. People said they wanted more new content, so I added the Return to Freeport adventure series. I’ve also done things like offer a book-only reward level, and a way for Canadian backers to get more affordable shipping. The most common reason given for not backing the Kickstarter, however, is that the physical book is too expensive. I’d like to take some time to explain why I chose this format for the project and why our initial goal was $50,000."


    [top]Boardgaming News


    • Fantasy Flight Games has a preview of the latest set for Call of Cthulhu: The Card Game. Called The Key and the Gate, players can look forward to facing off against the Great Race of Yith and mechanics focused on the discard deck.
    • Do you enjoy the offerings of On the Lamb Games? Do you have squads/armies for either Brushfire of Endless Fantasy Tactics? If so, On the Lamb would love to have you as part of their new Wardens program. Wardens will be official representatives for the company on the local and convention scenes. You'll find more details on their web site.
    • If you are into cooperative fantasy board gaming with minis (and who isn't?), you should check out the latest Kickstarter project from Mercs Miniatures. Myth promises to be an Epic Dungeon Crawl style game similar in feel to Descent. The project is nearly fully funded with 28 days to go, so we can look forward to some interesting stretch goals.
    • Twilight Creations co-founder, Todd Breitenstein has passed away. Twilight Creations produces, among other things, the Zombies!!! line of games. More information and a way to help out his family can be found in the article.

    RPG News for Tuesday, 26 March, 2013 


    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    • Scum of the (Under) Earth by James Wyatt -- "Strolling through the Underdark with no cares in the world is nigh impossible thanks to drow, drider, duergar, and grimlock inhabitants. See what James has to say about each of these, and weigh in with your opinion on them."
    • Dungeon #212 -- "Storm the abyssal palace of the demon lord Graz'zt in search of a lost angel. See what haunts the ruined moat house near Hommlet. Escape the Twisted Thickets and have your revenge. We proudly present for your gaming pleasure, Dungeon 212!"

    [top]Pathfinder In Spaaaaaaaace..... and other EN World News


    • As a reminder, you are invited to download (for free) our "far future" Pathfinder ruleset, Myths of the Far Future. Myths of the Far Future is the overall title for our “Pathfinder Roleplaying Game in the far future” ruleset. It includes a default setting, but is also designed to allow you to create your own “myths of the far future.” Using the rules presented herein, you should find enough information to play futuristic characters in any far future setting of your own making. We’ve taken an approach of “reskinning” the existing rules, so everything should be familiar—although some of the names have been changed for their own protection!
    • Radiating Gnome discusses player/group organization using social media in The Facebook Effect.
    • Southern Oracle presents Dr. Valran Stonefist, an CR 18 villain for your D&D 3.5 campaigns.
    • Challenger RPG discusses game mechanics in Game Design 102.
    • We have a boardgame review of Iello's (and Richard Garfield's) King of Tokyo.
    • And finally, our weekly look at new PDFs in Pretty Darn Fun! "This week we have some solid PDFs coming out. We have 8 new PDFs, but we packed in this week's WoTC rereleases into last week's Pretty Darn Fun and there were virtually no new Adventures for the week. However, the Spotlight: Most Interesting PDF of the Week is actually a large selection of new PDFs all from one company, spanning two different game systems. A lot of good product this week."

    [top]Community News

    [top]Dice: Friend or Enemy

    The Dungeon Bastard answers the question of what you do when those dice just won't cooperate!

    RPG News for Monday, 25 March, 2013 


    [top]EN World News

    [top]Pathfinder RPG News

    • The Paizo blog has a big roundup of upcoming stuff. By which I mean Mythic Adventures, Demons Revisited, The Worldwound Incurion, Demon Hunter's Handbook, Wardens of the Reborn Forge, plus maps and novels and item cards and the upcoming card game.

    [top]Roleplaying Games News

    • FATE CORE Conversion & Terror's of the Secret War have been announced for the Achtung! Cthulhu Kickstarter. "We have unlocked a full FATE Core conversion of the Investigator's & Keeper's Guides to the Secret War to be written by the FATEmeister Ryan Macklin, allowing the whole FATE community to experience the terror of the Achtung! Cthulhu world!"

    [top]Community News

    • The Kyngdoms brings you the first of their three articles looking at the criminal underbelly of Blackfen and the three gangs caught in a constant and bloody struggle for domination. This weeks takes a look at The Black Bears.

    [top]Dungeons & Dragons News

    • D&D Chronicles of Mystara -- Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara brings reworkings of two of Capcom’s classic arcade hits -- Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom and Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara -- together in one definitive digital package for current generation platforms.

    [top]Dwarven Forge Kickstarter Funds In Less Time Than It Takes Me To Type This

    • Dwarven Forge has today launched the Kickstarter I briefly mentioned last week. They emailed me about it a couple of hours ago, and by the time I read their email they'd made nearly $50,000 (oh, OK, another $6 in the time I typed this out...). It's for game tiles, it's clearly going to be one of those bi-weekly mega blockbuster Kickstarters, and it looks pretty cool. Definitely worth a look.

    [top]Boardgaming News

    • WotC is partnering with Playdek to bring those big box D&D themed board games to iOS devices. The announcement was made at PAX East this weekend.
    • There is an expansion coming for Elder Sign from FFG. Called Unseen Forces, the expansion will include Blessed and Cursed dice and associated cards.
    • Check out this review of Lords of Middle-Earth, the first expansion for the Second Edition of War of the Ring. It adds some of the characters from the books that were only represented by cards in the base game.
    • Football Bones is a new card game -- "All 32 NFL teams are represented in over 2,000 player cards. We have re-imagined and developed a new game built off the highly successful Statis Pro model."
    Page 4 of 14 FirstFirst 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 ... LastLast