For everyone who piles on Avalanche for their covers, please look

[King_Stannis]

Here's a look at the print version cover of the Demon God's Fane, the excellent adventure by Monte Cook. It also has a little bonus, two females - one showing a very nice derrier and another with a very ample bustline.


http://secure.white-wolf.com/catalog/default.tpl?section=79


will those same people here who snigger and sneer at avalanche's products SOLEY because of their covers hold S&S and Monte to the same standards?

this is why, in my opinion, you have to be careful when you take stances like this. sexy women and fantasy art have been close partners in the last 20 years. i see no problem with that.

 

[SHARK]

King, Do You Ever Feel Like A Voice Calling In The Wilderness?

Greetings!

You don't get it King my friend because some people just like to whine. I say yeah, show lots of gorgeous women, half-naked. Hour-glass figures and everything. It's beautiful. Who in their right mind doesn't like to look at beautiful women?

And well, to be fair, and realistic, show the huge barbarians, too. After all, who wants to see some 150-lb weakling try to lift a sword to fight a Troll? Gimme a break! Make the warrior a real monster. And if he's hot looking for the girls, so what? It's a fantasy *game* we're talking about here. So the men should be hot too. Ripped abs, some big shoulders, something the girls can get butterflies in their tummies over. Show lots of'em, with good artists doing both.

Problem solved, right?

And besides, who wants to see some ugly, bloated toad, with a face that looks like they've been hit one too many times with a bat, male or female? Dress'em up in a nice sharp outfit, or shiny new armour, and either way, they're still *ugly* In either case, rugged, muscular, handsome men, and lush, beautiful, and vibrant women is not only what sells more, but it's also what most people like to see. male or female.

Just some thoughts my friend!

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK

 

[Blood Jester]

DUCK AND COVER!

I agree with what you guys are saying, but I do hope you put up your flame shields?

 

[Kichwas]

It's all about context.

The covers for Avalanche don't fit their claimed subject material.

The anatomy is off; which is common in comic book style art.
The figures have very little to do with the historical context.
In some cases the race, clothes, and gear of the figures is off.


It's not about cheesecake.

It's about using cheesecake and beefcake properly. In a fitting context.

 

[Ashtal]

I'm with Arcady here.

Nothing wrong with it persay - I just wish they publish a pin up book instead of sticking it on an 'historical' reference book in regards to Avalanche's goods.

And they should play fair: hulking naked brute alongside the sizzling naked brunette, ya know? But they rarely do. We women are the ones who have to parade around in the bikinis. (Granted, Eldrich Might has a shirtless guy, but there should still be more skin. I WANNA GUY IN A THONG, DAMMIT!)

Besides - you all are missing a key point: You don't HAVE to be naked to be cool. Those covers do portray an image, a bad one, IMO, and I don't care who's name is on the cover. It screems cheese. But, you know, if cheese is what they want, go for it. As long as they realize that sort of publicity is a two edged sword.

I find it interesting that the PDF version has a cover with a male fully covered up and looking dark and mysterious, while the printed version is the one with the T&A. If I were inclined to buy the product, I'd by the PDF over the print version in a heart beat.

Personally, I like the cover for "If Thoughts Could Kill."

Ashtal

 

[Wolfspider]

Avalanche has made poorly done cheescake their calling card. It's on the covers of their books no matter what the book is about. It's become something that we've learned to expect and come to enjoy despising.

The cover for the print version of The Demon God's Fane shows a larger scene. It does not focus on the scantily clad females. I don't have a thong thrust into my face whenever I look at it. It's much more tasteful, in my opinion.

 

[Sayburr]

Well, this thread prompted me to go to Avalanchepress.com and look at the covers there.

Wow, I think they are wonderful! I am not sure who the artist is but he/she is wonderful.

I see no problem with the covers.

 

[Tsyr]

Problems with the cover?

Uh, let's start with them having nothing to do, historicly, with the content portrayed?

Jade and Steel (Which I own and love for the rules information) is probably the worst offender. A woman that's only BARELY asian in decent if at all, in clothing that isn't aisian in the slightest (much less chinese), with a sword that is _japanese_ instead of chinese, on a landscape that could be chinese perhaps but has nothing intrinsicily so about it.

The covers of avalanche products are the SELLING point, that's what we complain about.

 

[Psion]

There's two sides to this story

On one hand, I have got to agree. A few scantily clad women in a temple are not as gratuitous as:

• A caucasian looking woman
• Wearing non-historical clothing
• Wielding a Japanese looking sword

on the cover of a book specifically about three kingdoms period China.

THAT SAID...

You should really not judge a book by its cover. Despite that fact that I have just slammed Jade & Steel for its cover, the contents are rather good. The adventure is one of the better event based adventures written for the d20 system IMO, and the prestige classes seem both more interesting and more balanced than most of those featured in third party d20 system products.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

Well, as noted in another post, Monte's cover was an action scene with cheesecake. The Avalance covers were so much cheesechake that I'm surprised they just didn't get a photographer and amatur model holding a fairy princess wand or something. It would have been cheaper and every bit as relevant.

Look, it's not just about the half-naked chicks. People cluck like a chicken in RPGs and I'm not really interested in seeing that on an entire product line of covers either.

If I want cheesecake I'll buy a Luis Royo art book. There's a time and place for everything.

Finally, it's a little about the image. Call me stuffy, but I'd rather RPGs not be associated with soft core porn. How many covers have to have this kind of stuff? Right now I think things are under control and there isn't much reason for people to get upset. I'd just rather not see this stuff become standard (which I don't think it currently is).