White Dwarf Reflections #18

With it being three years since Star Wars got people talking about sci-fi again, it’s exciting to see Star Trek finally reaching the big screen. But in his editorial, Ian Livingstone is keener to discuss what makes RPGs so popular. He settles on the way they can be different every time you play, and how they offer an immersive trip into another life.

On the Cover​

Celebrating the release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (unaware of the odd number rule as yet) the cover is a photo still of the USS Enterprise in spacedock. This is the first (and I believe the last) photo cover on White Dwarf we’ll see until miniatures grace the cover on occasion many years later. Whether the rights from Paramount were too expensive or they just preferred art I can only guess.

Features​

• The Halls of Tizun Thane (Albie Fiore): An adventure for AD&D with an interesting background. A plot against the local wizard overlord Tizun Thane has resulted in his brain sucking bodyguard killing him and taking his place, much to the consternation of the plotters who set it up hoping to take control. It’s nice to see such a complex backstory in use. However, it’s unfortunate that the PCs can’t do much about the creatures (who nightly threaten a nearby village) they actually came to the place to destroy
• The Magic Brush (Shaun Fuller): In this second part we look at the step-by-step basics of applying paint to models. It details a lot of highlighting and colour which almost makes me think I could try picking up a brush again, but also makes me realise I shouldn’t!
• Star Trek: The Motion Picture (Tony Yates & Steve Jackson): A full system for running miniatures battles with the characters from Star Trek. It’s basically The Black Hack but even simpler, with only two attributes, combat and “everything but combat”. There is a scenario supplied where the crew need to stop a Klingon delegate on a tour stealing files from the computer system. There is a nice option for the other delegates to join the crew, side with the Klingon or just hide too. While it is quite quick and dirty, if you were desperate to play a Star Trek game (but didn’t like Star Fleet Battles) you could expand this into a limited RPG, that would tide you over until FASA brings the first official one out.

Regulars​

• Letters: Still absent, although I can’t believe people have stopped writing in.
• Molten Magic: While officially now alternating issues, absent again this issue too.
• News: Quite a few things on the way, most notably The Fantasy Trip RPG from Steve Jackson which will see a new version in 2024. TSR also releases Top Secret one of the first spy games which will remain popular with another two editions over the years. There is also Awful Green Things from Outer Space which will be a favourite for a few years. There are many more Judges Guild adventures (they have a hell of a production schedule) and Empire of the Petal Throne is to get a new release by Gamescience.
• Treasure Chest: This issue is a collection of odd tables, which I’m a big fan of. We have six in all: one for which handedness your character has, one for deciding on the weather, one for random NPC stats, one for your character’s social class and finally a new ‘table of useless things’ which was already one of my favourites.

Fiend Factory​

A collection of new monsters created by readers. This issue all of them are specifically drawn from existing fantasy settings:

• Couerl (Phil Masters): A cunning and highly dangerous canine creature similar in appearance to a Displacer Beast from A.E. Van Vogt’s short story “Black Destroyer”.
• Hound of Kerenos (Graham Staplehurst): This form of ice bound hell hound should be recognisable to Moorcock fans from “The Bull and the Spear” (from the Corum Silver Hand trilogy).
• Mandrake People (Glen Godard): This species is developed from Thomas Burnett’s “Manor of Roses” and “The Dolphin and the Deep”. They are an interesting culture who are angry with humanity because they steal their young from the forest to use as aphrodisiacs!
• Phung (Simon Tilbrook): An interesting intelligent insect species who enjoy causing pain and suffering from Jack Vance’s “City of the Chasch."

This issue also contains the results of the best and worst of Fiend Factory poll. As you might imagine, most of the best can be later found in Fiend Folio.

The Best

1. Necrophidius (Simon Tilbrook, WD#7) The Best
2. Russian Doll Monster (Mike Ferguson, WD#15)
3. Svart (Cricky Hitchcock, WD#9)
4. Needleman (Trevor Graver, WD#6)
5. Hook Horror (Ian Livingstone, WD#12)
6. Githyanki (Charles Stross, WD#12)
7. Imps (M. Stollery, WD#13)
8. Volt (Johnathan Jones, WD#7)
9. Urchin (Nick Louth, WD#9)
10. Dahdi (Mervyn Lemon, WD#10) The 10th best but…

The Worst

1. Nas Nas (Roger Musson, WD#9) The Worst
2. Dahdi (Mervyn Lemon, WD#10) So it seems opinion is divided on this one!
3. Withra (Don Turnbull, WD#7)
4. Stinwicodech (Eamon Bloomfield , WD#6)
5. Pebble Gnome (William Maddox, WD#15) Seems the game isn’t quite ready for a non-combat monster yet!

So, with all but one of the worst monsters coming from the first 10 issues of the magazine, and the best evenly divided across all the current issues, it’s pretty clear the standard of monsters is either pretty even or has actually improved.

Open Box​

This month’s reviews are:

• Darkover: The Age of Chaos, Board/War Game (Eon Products): This duelling game is based on Marion Zimmer Bradley’s setting of the same name. It does have a lot of odd rules that will either sound fun or annoying depending on your level of game purist.
• Dr’K’Ne Station, Adventure Module for Traveller (Judges Guild): The Judges Guild move from D&D to Traveller. This seems a solid offering with many plans and options for using the station outside the provides adventure.
• Swordquest, Board/War Game (Task Force Games): This is another competitive ‘find stuff on a hex map’ game. It will see a revision in 1981.

 

[GuyBoy]

I enjoyed the Halls of Tizun Thane adventure, and generally liked a lot of the stuff that Albie Fiore did for the game in these early days (to show how early, I was 17 then, I'm 62 now!)

 

[NN]

Tizun Thane :

block the windows with the tapestries from the main hall.

Im running it soon in shadowdark. With a few mods. Wish me luck. Advice welcome.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

While it is quite quick and dirty, if you were desperate to play a Star Trek game (but didn’t like Star Fleet Battles) you could expand this into a limited RPG, that would tide you over until FASA brings the first official one out.

There were a few other options. FGU's Starships & Spacemen had been out since 1978, and was a transparent Trek knockoff at that point. Gamescience's Space Patrol (later Star Patrol) came out in 1977, and attempted to stuff every scifi thing they could think of into the melting pot including quite a lot of Trek stuff. Pretty easy to prune the other stuff away and play a Trek-like RPG with it.

There is also Awful Green Things from Outer Space which will be a favourite for a few years.

Still is. That game's got legs. Classic Tom Wham design.

Darkover: The Age of Chaos, Board/War Game (Eon Products): This duelling game is based on Marion Zimmer Bradley’s setting of the same name. It does have a lot of odd rules that will either sound fun or annoying depending on your level of game purist.

It was strangely performative performative for a board game, and I suspect mostly got played while high as a kite. Given posthumous revelations about what Bradley and her husband were up to in this period I don't like to think about whether they played it with kids as a prelude to abuse.

Swordquest, Board/War Game (Task Force Games): This is another competitive ‘find stuff on a hex map’ game. It will see a revision in 1981.

Noteworthy for attempting to be both a two and three player game as desired. Not convinced it succeeded in keeping its balance during both modes. The Neutral faction felt rather tacked-on, and you could only play Good vs. Evil in two-player - and of course there was the common three-player issue of one faction winding up as kingmaker pretty quickly while having no real chance of winning themselves.

 

[Zaukrie]

I remember that Tizun Thane name/adventure. I remember wanting to run it. But we never did.

 

[Paragon Lost]

@Corone said "News: Quite a few things on the way, most notably The Fantasy Trip RPG from Steve Jackson which will see a new version in 2024. "


I think you mean 2018 on that, not 2024.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sjgames/the-fantasy-trip-old-school-roleplaying/description