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Message: <blockquote data-quote="(un)reason" data-source="post: 8011246" data-attributes="member: 27780">Polyhedron Issue 16: Jan/Feb 1984part 4/6Research is not a dirty word: Last issue, we had an article on source material for Gangbusters. This article does exactly the same thing, but in a more generic way for both fantasy and sci-fi games. So this is basically Kim Eastland's own personal Appendix N, showing us his particular tastes and influences. They're quite different from Gary's, and a lot more visually oriented, with a large proportion of illustrated books and comic books in there.  You could definitely build a distinctively flavoured setting using these as the primary sources. There's a good topic for a spinoff thread. Photo Session: Our Star Frontiers article this issue also draws heavily on real world research, taking NASA mockups of space vehicles and stations, and extrapolating on them a bit to turn them into adventure hooks. A picture is worth a thousand words, and so this is a pretty high density and fun to read article, that also showcases how much their layout skills and art budget have improved since the first issue. They still might not have the amount of colour Dragon has, but their B&W work has increased in both quality and quantity. That's the kind of trend I hope continues throughout the years. Monty Haul and the German High Command: Our reprint this month is far more deserving than the last two. There's been a lot of people joining gaming since 1978, and many will have heard the term Monty Haul, but not known the context. Wonder no more! Enjoy his ridiculously overpowered crossover adventures where they throw in stuff from every RPG system around (or at least, the TSR-owned ones, for copyright reasons) and the kitchen sink! They may be silly, but they're also a lot of fun. Strange how they discourage that playstyle in new gamers. Oh well. It's a big church. There's room for all sorts of game. Just don't put more elements in than you can keep track of, for without continuity, you don't have a campaign.</blockquote>

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