Let's read the entire run

[(un)reason]

Dragon Magazine Issue 214: February 1995


part 7/8


Nasty Tricks: Immediately after the spellfire rules questions comes some more twinkery by the TSR staff. They've figured out ways of exploiting the rules such that they can become almost invulnerable, only very specific methods can counter them. If you don't have those cards, you're screwed. Fortunately, they do point out those solutions with each of the exploits. As we found earlier on in the issue, designer ego does seem to play a big part, with exploits named after the people who first came up with them. Still, at least that means they're actually playing it in the office, which means the rules are getting stress tested, and presumably they're finding the game fun. But that does mean it's taking them away from writing and playing RPG's even more. So once again this is a sign that CCG's are encouraging the designers to be twinky munchkins. Sage advice is all about fixing the game, not exploiting it, and the amount of hard mathematical analysis hasn't been great in recent years. One article could be an exception, but this shows the start of a definite trend. Well, spotting stuff like this is one reason I started this thread. I just wish I felt happier about doing so at this point.


The ecology of the owlbear: A second ecology in the same issue? Guess they're really making up for lost time here. Does this mean they'll be back as a regular thing? For a second time, in the story, the narrators get in serious trouble, only narrowly escaping by luck and wits. And for a second time, they give us plenty of new crunch. Arctic Owlbears, even bigger and scarier than the regular ones, plus better camouflage in their native territories. And something I'm sure many people have wondered about. Flying owlbears. Oh yes. Sure it stretches realism a bit. But frankly, if dragons can fly, the amount of physics-bending it takes for a bear sized creature to fly is considerably less. Another strong one that both entertains and answers questions. Very usable, and indeed, I plan to do so.


Fiction: Hunter under the sun by Brent J Giles. Ah yes, the exploration of alien psychology. If you've been reading this regularly, you'll know that's one of my own great loves, if not as much as it used to be. Standards of morality and compassion can vary widely. Could you expect a race that spawned hundreds of children in a go to care about them individually the way humans do? Could you expect one that flies the vastnesses of space to have the same kind of idea about personal property? Even a basic difference like being adapted to a nocturnal lifestyle could change their psychology quite a bit. But when we all live alongside one-another then it can be a very good idea to learn from each other, preferably the good aspects rather than the bad ones. So it goes, as we combine this kind of study with a supernatural murder mystery. I find this rather appealing, as it does work on two levels. The more depth something has, the more you get rewarded by repeat readings.


Libram X has more relationship angst. You were a tagalong in the first place. He tried to get you safely home, and then you refused. You shouldn't be surprised he's more interested in the book than you. Dragonmirth has lots of demihuman fun. Even Snow White can be made grimdark. Yamara and Joe really ought to get off hard fun before the world is all gone.

 

[Richards]

The ecology of the owlbear: A second ecology in the same issue? Guess they're really making up for lost time here.

It wasn't originally going to be that way. In the "Next Issue" blurb of issue #212, it said that "The Ecology of the Owlbear" would appear in Dragon #213, but when #213 came around, the only appearance of "The Ecology of the Owlbear" was in that issue's "Next Issue" blurb. (It's been too long for me to remember exactly, but the same thing might have also happened back in issue #211 as well. I just remember waiting impatiently for my first "Ecology" article to be published, and having to keep waiting because it kept getting bumped.)

Johnathan

 

[Orius]

I just remember waiting impatiently for my first "Ecology" article to be published, and having to keep waiting because it kept getting bumped.)

Johnathan

Which ecology was that anyway?

 

[Richards]

That would be "The Ecology of the Owlbear," currently under discussion.

Johnathan

 

[(un)reason]

Dragon Magazine Issue 214: February 1995


part 8/8


From the forge: Last time, Ken was all about the accessories. This time, it's landscapes that get the spotlight. Pimpin'. Minis without context are like tea without biscuits. You can live happily without it for years, but adding them just takes the experience to a whole new level. :adjusts monocle:

So, let us take a stroll through these miniature panoramas. Stone mountain miniatures go for both retro and futuristic, with a fireplace, some rather spooky giant stone heads and computer control panels, a weapon array emerging from little domes, and some weird rock outcroppings. Build up the suspense, and then give them the payoff, barrier peaks style. Heartbreaker Hobbies go for something appropriately traditional, a hut and tent inhabited by yer basic orcs. Geo-Hex take on the city blocks and highways, while Terrain Specialities will let you set out the green green hills of home. Tactical Conflict Systems fill an oft-overlooked niche, with modular strips of river that you can assemble into all sorts of shapes, plus a bridge to go over it at any point, and a little cottage that'll look nice nestled into a bend. Finally, Alternative Armies have a wide range of walls for you to shore up your defences with. This seems like a collection that'll get a complete newbie up and running without too much duplication. In addition we have three minis sets, one a holdover from his last column. A spined and heavily armed mecha angel for Legion of Steel. A trio of samurai. And another set of postapocalyptic scavengers. The influence of Mad Max over the cultural landscape lies longer than I remember at the time.


TSR Previews: Planescape releases an adventure that ties in with last month's boxed set. Fires of Dis takes you there, to one of the biggest and hottest cities on the planes. You break the rules, you'd better be ready for trouble.

Dark sun gives us another monstrous compendium. As if this place wasn't harsh enough. More stuff to challenge you right up to epic levels. They also get The darkness before the dawn by Ryan Hughes. A story of gladiators, and their suffering in the arena. Can the protagonist survive and come out tougher. Signs point to positive.

Ravenloft takes us to Sithicus, to face Lord Soth. You know the drill by now. Explore, deal with railroading, probably fail to actually defeat the domain lord.

Lankhmar shows us the Cutthroats of Lankhmar. See the places where you make money, and figure out how to get ever more of it. Muahahaha. The city is not your friend.

The Forgotten realms gets part two of the twilight giants trilogy, The Giants Among Us. As is usual here, things get more complicated than ever, hopefully being set up for the final book to resolve.

The First Quest line gets two novels of it's own. How very odd. Guess it actually sold really well last year. Rogues to Riches by J Robert King and The Unicorn Hunt by Elaine Cunningham show you some more novice adventurers learning essential life lessons the hard way. Lurk Moar. Amateurs.

And finally, we have another non roleplaying, but connected item. The Blood Wars Dueling Decks. Blerg. Trading card games have well and truly arrived. Can you build an optimal deck to beat your enemies?


The ecologies are highly enjoyable in this issue, and a very welcome return indeed as well, but the rest of isn't very good at all. The themed section is twinky froofy crap, the computer section is weird and thoroughly flawed, and there's way too much CCG stuff. Meanwhile the rather good reviews and fiction remind us that there is plenty of of good stuff happening in the wider roleplaying landscape that you might want to check out. It is more than a little frustrating. And makes me want to reread the other books I was buying around that time more than I do this. Bah. Next issue please.

 

[Orius]

That would be "The Ecology of the Owlbear," currently under discussion.

Johnathan

I can't wait to see (un)reason's reactions to the Monster Hunters, but they're still another 13 issues off. Osquip was the first, right? They were probably the most entertaining Ecologies I've ever read in Dragon. The ones with the girl and the gnomes were fun too. Of the ones that weren't in either series, Roper and Sphinx were the most memorable.

The ecologies are highly enjoyable in this issue, and a very welcome return indeed as well, but the rest of isn't very good at all.

Is it just me, or was 1995 a really weak year for Dragon? That was when I started to read the magazine, and while I only have a few issues, they seem to be among the least useful issues I have overall.

 

[(un)reason]

Dragon Magazine Issue 215: March 1995


part 1/8


124 pages. Ahh, what a lovely day for a stroll in the woods. Birds are singing, deer are gambolingITS A TRAP!!!!! Never let your guard down for an instant. You never know what will happen. As this issue has no particular theme, that goes double here. Each article could come out of leftfield, completely throwing your playstyle for a loop. Well, probably not, but the odds aren't completely hopeless. And hope is what keeps us going, isn't it. I don't think we're out of hope just yet, even if it is a struggle at times.


In this issue:


Letters: A letter from a finnish gamer pointing out that gaming is alive and well there. In fact, scandinavian countries seem to have one of the highest proportion of roleplayers. It's interesting to speculate why that might be the case. I suspect the long depressing winter nights staying in. Same reason they produce so many great bands.

A letter asking if they plan to compile all the monsters from issues of Dragon in a book. Sorta. There's not quite enough to do that regularly, but they will be putting them in the monstrous compendium annuals, along with stuff from other sourcebooks. Now a whole new bunch of DM's can inflict Linnorms and Spell Weavers on their players.

A change of address report from Goldtree Enterprises. Please don't send letters or orders to the old one. Please continue to buy our products though.

A letter complaining that the original Athas boxed set is seriously out of date now. We need a new one that takes all the supplements into account! You, sir, are in luck. Major revisions off the port bow! What a lovely co-incidence someone wrote in at just the right time!


Editorial: Dragon goes digital! TSR finally dips a toe into the rapidly growing online world, and Dragon magazine is one of the first parts to join in. Subscribe online! Chat with people from all over the world, including many of the actual game writers. Check out the complete article index. We're giddy with excitement. Shame I can't be nostalgic about that, as it's still a couple of years before I joined the online revolution. But it does seem like genuinely good news for them. I do hope they're not plagued by delays and incompetence. Not every company coped well with the sudden change in how easy it was to communicate and transmit information for negligible cost. Many are still behind even now. And entire industries are suffering as it becomes ridiculously easy to copy their work and give it away for free. Anyway, it looks like this editorial is another pointer of the way things are going in the wider world. We're reaching the point where normal people become aware of the value of the internet and consider signing up. And because of that, everything becomes a lot more accessible. It's really rather neat to finally get this far, after years of jokes about the lack of online access.


First quest: Whatever the game, Bill Slavisek naturally gravitates to being the rules guy. It's a heavy responsibility, and sometimes irritating, but with it comes power and authority. I can quite empathise, since I fall into a pretty similar mould. It's amazing how much you can get by taking on the jobs no-one else wants to do, providing you don't just do it for free and let everyone get accustomed to that. Still, he had fun, starting out with wargaming before moving into RPG's like many a grognard. Maturity and characterisation developed gradually and with many a death, as was often the case back then. And it's mainly because he was a little more driven and knew the rules better that he made a job out of his hobby while the other people in his group went on to normal lives. All matches up with my experiences. I think I'd probably get on with him if I met him.

 

[(un)reason]

Dragon Magazine Issue 215: March 1995


part 2/8


Putting evil to good use: Yay! This is a cool article! A highly amusing bit of rules lawyering, Jonathan M. Richards shows us how to make lemonade out of lemons and turn cursed magic items to your advantage. Many of them are quite advantageous in certain situations, and even the ones that aren't can often be turned against your enemies rather than you if handled carefully. I remember reading this first time round, and it's a pleasure to reach it again. This is a very definite mind expander, while also having lots of highly specific details you can use without having to think yourself. I can't praise this one enough. Taking problems and turning them into opportunities is exactly what players should be doing in their gaming, and this is full of inspiration on how you can do just that.


Gaming with style: Ah yes, dividing gamers into various types, and getting all analytical about the type of games they like to play. Not an unfamiliar topic, even if this kind of analysis has yet to reach maturity. (or at least, GNS theory has yet to be developed ) Thomas Kane picks out 5 categorisations. Power-gamer, immersive roleplayer, puzzle solver, rules lawyer, and gaming as Art. Hmm. Pretty broad divisions really, with plenty of room for overlap between them. The biggest distinction drawn is those who see gaming as art, which is a relatively new categorisation most often shown by White Wolf players & designers, that is proving somewhat contentious and considered pretentious by quite a few established players. There's also the big question of just how much control the DM should have over the course of the game, how much the players should have, and how much should be random, left to the dice to decide. Plenty to think about here, as this is the kind of thing that needs a good debating to really hash out. A good forum flamewar would be amusingly appropriate. With it's eventual conclusion that striking a balance between the various extremes is probably the way to go, it's probably not going to get one though. Still, it did make quite an enjoyable read.


The beginners game: I've been complaining quite a bit recently at articles that are obviously aimed way below my experience level. Ironically, this does not fall into that category, as it's designed for experienced DM's who want to get new players in, but may not be entirely sure how to go about it. After all, if you started with one group, and learned along with them, when that one falls apart and you try to put together a new one, there's going to be a big skill gap that can interfere with the chemistry. Both rules and roleplaying can be introduced in a wrong way that winds up putting many people off. The worst traps to avoid are probably being patronising, and treating them with kid gloves, or overloading them with infodumps (particularly contradictory ones with multiple experienced players talking over each other and elaborating in quick succession to one newbie) and throwing them in the deep end. Start small, and gradually turn up the volume, on the other hand, and things can get pretty epic before you even know it. And then hopefully you can figure out how to break them of the more obscene powergaming tendencies that a lot of new players develop. This jives with my personal experiences. First time, you want to explore the limits of the system, get all the way to the top. Subsequent times, you want to see how much replayability the thing has, what alternate routes there are. Or just move on to something completely different, given many people's boredom thresholds. So this has both advice I approve of, and a goal that's very laudable in the current climate. After all, if you want people to play with, growing the hobby should be your first port of call.


The ecology of the Amphisbaena: After several ecologies in which the person imparting the knowledge is captured and escapes, here we have one with a rather more tragic ending, like the cave fisher one. Captured by Kobolds, and only surviving by a stroke of luck making him exceedingly useful to them, he becomes their technical advisor on the proper handling of a double-headed giant snake. Not the kind of thing you anticipate doing when you grow up. This answers quite a few biological questions, but glosses quickly over the all-important one of how they crap (from the middle, apparently) to focus more on breeding, movement methods, and combat capabilities. It does make them seem both more scary, and less silly, which is a definite plus point in my books. Another excellent little read.

 

[(un)reason]

Dragon Magazine Issue 215: March 1995


part 3/8


Donning a new Masque: Masque of the Red Death has proved to be one of their more popular supplements in recent months. And while it may take nearly a year to produce a follow-up book, the magazine has a rather quicker response time. So here's four more kits, all tradesman ones, to encourage you to play the mundane, well integrated into society roles a bit more. Not something that grabs me hugely at the moment, but I can certainly see it's uses.

Scientists are a blatant geeky stereotype, stuck in the lab all the time. Since most PC's will be forced to do experiments on the fly in decidedly uncontrolled situations, this one seems like more of a liability than a benefit on a mechanical level.

Athletes are a high strung lot, prone to niggling long-term injuries in a manner most aren't under D&D mechanics. But when they're on form, they're one of the closer things to an asskicker you're likely to encounter. Can the players swallow their pride and invite a jock onto the team?

Thespians are one of those roles that seem likely to irritate other players if played badly. They're obviously good at a whole bunch of social skills, but too busy being flamboyant and telegraphed to be great in combat. Can't see them being popular with munchkins, but then the whole of Masque is pretty much powergamer repellent.

Lawyers are of course pontificating twats. But at least they're trained pontificating twats, able to twist words around with great proficiency. You may not like them, but chances are they'll be able to talk you out of more problems than they'll get you into. I'm still rather dubious about whether I'd use them personally though.


The deities of africa: Another bit of african priestly lore from Michael John Wybo. Issues 191 & 209 covered pretty much the same ground, but it is a big continent, so he can completely avoid repeating himself no trouble. This just means that longterm readers get the reward of lots of choices, which I approve of. Like the many prehistoric eras, I'm sure they could manage a few more of these.

Ananse is a complicated god, and they choose to represent him in a benevolent light here. You're still allowed to use poison, and the alignment restrictions are light enough that you can play a trickster without too many worries. It may not please the paladins, but the rest of the party'll be happy to have a cleric like this along.

Asse Ya is the goddess of the earth, in typical loving gaia fashion. This means that they get a lot in common with druids, only a wider sphere list and less powers and alignment restrictions.

Nyame is the god of the sun and moon, and appears as a three faced beholder. As with most beholder variants, they're not as scary as the regular bog standard version, but don't get complacent. Since this squeezes in a new monster along with the avatar and priest stats, I quite approve. Good use of space and plot points.

Cagn is an obnoxious mantis who commands insects and birds. Since part of his job is promoting plagues and insect infestations, he may technically be neutral, but he's certainly closer to evil than good. As a cleric, you'll have a lot of leeway in who you harm or save.

Gauna is the lord of African vampires, who like beholders, are a little different, but still pretty scary, and capable of spawn cascading with truly alarming speed. His priests get rogue abilities and automatically become undead upon death, making them versatile and persistent as big bads. Don't be too surprised if they turn your whole village into vampires as revenge.

Bumba is the god of law, the celestial order, and also the african giver of fire. This interesting portfolio combo means you're quite entitled to burn anyone who breaks the rules at the stake, and the priests can cast wizardly fire spells and ignore burning attacks themselves. One I can see myself enjoying playing.

Khonvum is the great hunter, and also appears to be quite the hero when it comes to slaying tribe threatening monsters too. His clerics are very rangery, and can speak too and order animals around. Well, would you mess with the guy who's job it is to kill and eat you?

So is a god of thunder and lightning, and one of those humourless vindictive sorts who give paladins a bad name. Still, if you've got undead plaguing the place, who ya gonna call? And his servants do have some quite neat quirks.

Leza is the humorously deaf god of the sky, with a tendency to misinterpret prayers. This means any religious ceremonies to him are VERY LOUD! His clerics get wizard air spells, and at name level, grow wings. Whether said wings are beautiful or not is uncertain. It's just a ridiculous amount of fuel for the parodically minded DM. And indeed, this whole article shows just how little clerics have to resemble the preachy christian stereotype. They tend to be rather powerful magically, but have far more restricted armor and weapons, as has become standard for the african priest & wizard kits. Plenty of options good for both PC's and antagonists here.

 

[(un)reason]

Dragon Magazine Issue 215: March 1995


part 4/8


Rumblings: Only a few arrivals and departures this month. Jeff Grubb is leaving TSR and jumping on the CCG bandwagon. He didn't need to leave to do that. TSR is having great fun with this. In fact, it seems demand for the Blood Wars game is considerably higher than anticipated, and they've already sold out. Now, will they overprint the second run, and be stuck with a load of stock from that? Hard to say, isn't it. Other departures and arrivals include Ken Whitman as TSR's convention co-ordinator, Carl Sargent & Tom Baxa being recruited by FASA, and Grenadier's lead sculptor being poached by Heartbreaker Miniatures. Seems like we're losing more people than we're gaining at the moment, which makes sense.


Eye of the monitor: Inferno gets a rather mixed review, with our two reviewers trading off between each other well to cover both the good and bad points. It has good visuals, but tricky controls, and plenty of space combat action once you get the hang of it. Only one of them did though, so only pick this one up if you already like the genre.

Wyatt Earp's Old West has both reviewers yawning. This isn't a proper game, it's an educational multimedia point and click program. The game elements are on the same kind of level as Mario is Missing. No challenge at all, save remembering the information you learned earlier in the game.

Spacekids is also more entertaining for the banter between Jay and Dee than for the actual game, as they go on about the dumbness of trying to make toys "educational" all the time. It may make parents buy them, but kids are generally not fooled by crap like that, and will abandon them for games that are actually fun. This is another one where one ends up liking it, and the other doesn't. What does this say about them? Different maturity levels, perceptions or expectations? It's good to have more than one view, in any case.

Dream Web is another fail result, with buggy interface, confusing graphics, little discernable plot, and a serious lack of clues as to what you're supposed to be doing. Cool atmosphere and music does not a good game make. Seems to be a real problem around this era, as graphics improve so rapidly, and far too many designers fall into the trap of style over substance to get sales. Speaking of which, they also preview Wing Commander III, with it's extravagant budget, full video, starring real actors. Oh boy. Now that's a story for another time. I'll stock up on the large hams in anticipation.


The role of books: The sherwood game by Esther Friesner sets things around a VR robin hood game, and the trials of it's programmer. as first his company tries to shut down development, and then the characters escape into the real world. A theme this ridiculous obviously has a certain degree of comedy, but she still manages to tackle some serious topics and handle them sensitively. It's all pleasingly versatile.

Arena by William R Forstchen is a Magic: the Gathering novel. As the first one, it has a hard job to do figuring out the setting from the cards. And indeed, it sticks to what they know, by focusing on the duelling wizards and fast paced action with a bit of intrigue. It does have rather poor naming conventions, and the characters are worryingly powerful, but hey, you work with what you've got.

Whispering woods by Clayton Emery manages to show a little more of the ground level setting detail of dominiana, but shows that their editorial control on this line isn't great, with details being inconsistent with the other book, and not particularly well justified. As with RPG fiction, this has the flavour of stuff churned out to make a quick buck, with consistency and continuity not great priorities. Future writers'd better improve on this if they want the line to last.

The hallelujah trail by Bill Gullick isn't a new book, but it's just been reprinted, and John seizes the opportunity to recommend it to another generation of readers. Technically, it's a western, but it certainly doesn't fall into the lone desperado cliches, with a large and complex cast, plenty of politics, and a decent helping of wit to leaven the cake. Even if you're not a fan of westerns in general, you might find something to like here.

Merlin's bones by Fred Saberhagen jumps back and forth in time between merlin's young reincarnation, the present day, and other points in time. Thankfully, the plot is presented in a linear, easily understood manner despite the time shifts, and it manages to take the lore and do some rather different things with it. Exactly where they'll go from here is uncertain, but I think John would rather like to find out.

The diamond age by Neal Stephenson defies easy description by the reviewer, but does get plenty of praise. It's sci-fi, but has retro elements, and lots of interesting structural shifts and setting details. Even the flaws make it more worth talking about rather than really detracting from it, which is one of those tricks most authors never manage. This is one I definitely ought to check out, as I've heard good things about it from other sources too.

Dragon Moon by Chris Claremont & Beth Fleisher gets a fail due to lack of substance backing up the basic idea. It's too short, the politics and personalities don't add up, and the supernatural elements are poorly handled. Off to comics land with you. They have lower standards of what counts as decent continuity and world-building over there.

Elminster: The making of a mage finally reveals the early history of our frequent plane-hopper and 4th wall breaker. In the process he's made even more scary, for he now has low level dual-classing as a fighter & thief retconned in. Typical Ed helpings of cheese aside, the plot flows pretty well, and Elminster distinguishes himself from the average archmage in training handily.