EN World News TO SLAY A DRAGON will finally be released... imminently. We're just doing a last proofreading pass. Expect a news article about it soon! 140 pages of goodness! This week in Pretty Darn Fun (a look at new PDFs) we have a wide range of game systems with new PDF products. They include, BRP, Savage Worlds, Shadowrun, Cyberpunk, Pathfinder, the OSR, and a couple of unique...
This week we have a wide range of game systems with new PDF products. They include, BRP, Savage Worlds, Shadowrun, Cyberpunk, Pathfinder, the OSR, and a couple of unique systems. They also run the gamut of genres from Mecha, fantasy, cyberpunk, modern-day, martial arts, westerns to cartoons. BRP Mecha With the huge popularity of Call of Cthulhu, it is sometimes overlooked that the game...
In its simplest form, D&D is a pen-and-paper game. The DM has notes for the adventure, the players have character sheets, and changes are recorded as play progresses. You don’t really need dice, if you trust the DM to arbitrate random outcomes. Heck, the DM doesn’t even need notes, if he or she is brave enough to make the story up as it unfolds. Very few of us, however, play with just pen...
Dungeons & Dragons News Hit My Points by Mike Mearls - Time and again Mike has touched on the topic of healing and hit points in D&D Next. This week, he revisits hit points and goes over some healing options the game could provide. Roleplaying Games News Mekton Zero is a complete anime mecha RPG designed to be compatible with Mekton Zeta and to immerse you in the Archipelago War...
One of the last things we think about when designing a game is the economy of the fictional world. It might be important to know how much wealth a starting character will receive, but the impact of wealth itself on a game is rarely given much thought. Wealth is a mechanical and background element of game-play. It’s like the grease that keeps the engine running smoothly, but which no one wants...
Dungeons & Dragons News Kim Mohan retired yesterday from WotC. He's been with TSR (and then WotC) since 1979! Amongst his jobs at the company, he's been Editor-in-Chief of DRAGON Magazine, and Lead Editor, then managing Editor for D&D 3E. He worked on Unearthed Arcana, and the Wilderness Survival Guide for AD&D 1st Edition, and many other products over the years since. I don't think...
While I do love a good Collectible Card Game (and several poor ones), I can see why they're rarely sustainable as a business model. Aside from the biggies such as Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon, it's hard to build up a rabid fanbase and pull in the kind of money you need in order to keep running. Sure, there are upstarts like Cardfight: Vanguard (ask your kids) but generally it's a...
I stole the idea for this article shamelessly from this post about writing by Brunonia Barry: Why Do You Write? Think about those moments just after your friends leave your house after a game session. For me, it's a matter of trying to shake off that good, emotionally tired feeling long enough to clean up a little, feed the dogs and cats, and even pay a little attention to my wife, who I've...
Dungeons & Dragons News Art and Maps: Dungeon 214 -- "We get to explore one of the first D&D dungeons ever created and experience it in a whole new light, featuring the Dungeon! Fantasy Board Game. Plus, the Elder Elemental Eye. Here now are a full set of illustrations and maps from Dungeon 214!" Into the Pit of Madness #1 by Jason Thompson -- "To help celebrate the conclusion of this...
EN World News Check out our official review of Shadowrun 2050! Neuroglyph says it's "A Magical Blast From the Future’s Past!" Is Dungeons & Dragons a work of art? How about Dogs in the Vineyard? Or Call of Cthulu? Or Marvel Heroic Roleplaying? Going further, what about a game like Settlers of Cattan? Ticket to Ride? Sorry? What about poker, or baseball, or table tennis? Do games belong...
Is Dungeons & Dragons a work of art? How about Dogs in the Vineyard? Or Call of Cthulu? Or Marvel Heroic Roleplaying? Going further, what about a game like Settlers of Cattan? Ticket to Ride? Sorry? What about poker, or baseball, or table tennis? Do games belong in museums? Can rolling a d20 and critting a gnoll be socially relevant? Clearly, I’m speaking to fans, here, so I’m likely to get a...
When I was a much young gamer, I had some pretty stark views on mixing genres in my role-playing games. I preferred Advanced Dungeons & Dragons for my Fantasy RPG, Traveller for my Science-Fiction RPG, and Call of Cthulhu for when I wanted a Horror RPG. There were a few exceptions to genre mixing here and there within my favorite games – Expedition to the Barrier Peaks is still one of my...
Dungeons & Dragons News Epic Campain by Aaron Williams -- In this episode of the season, the Beached Leviathan celebrates our heroes' exploits during "The Night of Madness..." [A quick note - whenever I post one of these, I get emails telling me that I spelt "Campaign" wrong; that spelling's the actual title!] For the Birds by James Wyatt -- We’ve had cats and dogs. Now James provides us...
So there you are, in the cavernous deeps of the Lady Teradyne's slave mines. You've vanquished the Keeper of the Keys, destroyed Slavemaster Grobulus, beaten down the Doors of Penance, and set thousands of slaves free to go back to the cool night air of the surface world. All that lays before you is the final, deepest, darkest pit of the whole mine system. The stench of brimstone and the...
12 PDFs, 4 WotC rereleases, 3 adventures and 1 noteworthy Spotlight PDF. This week's column is stacked with good releases. We have a rerelease from one of my favorite games from the past up to a preorder for one of the most prominent products of today. In between those two we'll look at some supplemnts and a lot of new systems. Again we have an excellent week for PDFs. TORG This rpg was one...