Bundle of Holding - Axes and Anvils

This was one hell of a surprise when I saw it pop up earlier today on Bundle of Holding. Axes and Anvils has one heck of a history, and the fact that it exists at all is a testament to the tenacity of Andrew Shields. Andrew took a steaming pile of poo and turned it into RPG gold, and I salute him for it.

Adventurer! This all-new Axes and Anvils Bundle presents Axes and Anvils: A Game of Dwarves, the dwarf-clan tabletop fantasy roleplaying game from Andrew Shields at Shields Up! Publishing. In the Kingdom of Stoneshadow, your Fellowship of experienced warriors undertakes missions to help your clan. Axes and Anvils character creation is fast and easy, the setting is strong in flavor and atmosphere, and the clan framework easily supports both one-evening adventures and years-long sandbox campaigns in the open-table "West Marches" style. If you like kickass warriors, player-driven action, and battles against undead warbands in the Shadowmines, Axes and Anvils is your Dynastic Prestige toolkit for crafting mithril-grade adventures.

For just US$9.95 you get all six titles (plus one pay-what-you-want)in our Anvil Collection (retail value $43) as DRM-free ebooks, including the complete Axes and Anvils core rulebook (plus the Clan Record Book, Character Pack, and the pay-what-you-want Quickstart Rules); the Gamemaster rulebook Under the Mountain; and the Starter Deck and Lore Deck that make character generation easy.

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Deal of th Day - Axes and Anvils: Under the Mountain

Longtime readers of The Tavern will remember the saga of Axes & Anvils and the Wandering Wizard. I won't recount the drama, but Andrew Shields came in as the savior and did a wonderful job giving the community a complete game. Axes and Anvils: Under the Mountain is that game. Normally 15 bucks in PDF, as the Deal of the Day it is on sale for 6 bucks.

The rulebook is the first half, including the same page numbers for easy coordination with the players. The second half is a collection tools and essays to expand your game. Involve player creativity and decisions to design settlements ruled by the clanhome, neighboring factions, the clan ruler, mountain roads, and more. Descriptions of traditional dwarven practices including naming conventions, sports, relationships, enchanted weapons (as well as more sets of runes). Base plots around character skills, use the mission generator, randomize ideas for what characters were up to while their players weren’t around, use loot generators (for cash, valuables, and magic), add rules for playing elves and humans, and more.

Yep, that's an affiliate link above. Keep the beers cold and the lights on at The Tavern by using our affiliate links. 

Axes & Anvils - Resurrected (again) - Andrew Shields Writing (again) - Will Nystul F@ck it up? (again)

"It's like deja-vu, all over again."

Yogi Berra

It certainly is Yogi. It certainly is.

The Wandering Wizard has put Axes & Anvils in +Andrew Shields capable hands. It's not the first time Mike has done so, and I highly suspect the moment Andrew submits something that is highly improved on Mike's last attempt, Mike will inevitably pull a Nystul and pull the plug on Andrew.

Still, in the realm of things Nystulian, there is now a glimmer of hope.

Here's the latest update from the Axes & Anvils Kickstarter fiasco:

New Designer (Update #76)

It has been a tough couple of years. 

At this time, I am attempting to pull my life together and get to a level of stability with my health and my finances. I am also trying to make good on the Kickstarter projects that I owe my backers. Trying to do all this at once is hard on my focus and my morale. In the end, the only way I will ever be able to complete my Kickstarter obligations is if I get to a point where I have more discretionary time, income, and energy. 

I need to concentrate on getting my own life together. However, I do not want to completely suspend progress with Axes and Anvils until I can give it more attention. I have brought Andrew Shields on to get the Axes and Anvils project to the next level of development. He will take the draft that was developed for playtesting and released in July 2013, and continue work on it with his own design style. The foundational concepts and design goals that inspired my vision of Axes and Anvils will be the base for Andrew’s work on the project, and I will still offer feedback and advice. 

On the project home page, I laid out my plan for the game. These principles will guide Andrew as he continues the work on Axes and Anvils. These are the criteria we will use to judge the game’s success: 

What can you expect? 

Dwarfiness: Everything about the game is intended to put players into the right frame of mind to play dwarves. It is a celebration of all things Dwarf from what a Dwarf's beard says about him to what the deal is with Dwarven women. 

Simplicity: Because this is a niche game many people will turn to for a "pick up and play" experience the system has to be simple and character creation has to be fast and fun. It is possible to create a Dwarven clan and a full party of 4 to 6 player characters in under an hour. 

Cooperation: Whenever possible the game places more value on "we" than "me". Your party works together to solve whatever problems face their clan. The combat system is also structured around team play. Work together and victory shall be yours - fight alone and face an ignominious defeat. 

The design is axiomatic, meaning a few simple rules drive everything instead of having a special case rule for every situation that could arise. Character development is based on the idea that you start simply and add depth as the campaign unfolds, which allows players to get started quickly and learn any complexities they may add as they go along. 

A key concept is that the Dwarven Clan is treated as a character unto itself. As you develop as individuals the Clan for which you fight will gain respect and wealth. Your Clanhome will also expand to suit your needs. This gives an Axes and Anvils campaign a focus that many games lack right out of the gate. 

This decision has not been easy for me. However, I believe that bringing Andrew back on the project is what is best for everyone at this time. 

At this point it is too soon to project out reliable timelines. There will be an update at the end of November that will have a lot more information. 

For now, please join me in welcoming Andrew Shields as designer on Axes and Anvils!

Another Nystulian Sighting - This Time, an Axes & Anvils Update

It seems when Mike get's a spark, it spreads. What confuses me is, A&A was effectively completed, in PDF at least. +Andrew Shields was brought on by Mikey to do so. It was released to backers, then deemed "not worthy" by Mikey, apparently because it lost much of it's Nystulian identity.  The thing is, the torch for Nysul's Infinite Dungeon was passed on to "some other sucker of a company (I forget who right at the moment.) So, why is Mikey messing with something he already washed his hand of, unless it's just to obscure things with new "I'm working on it updates" when in reality, all he is doing is a casting a cheap, 1st level spell.

I am tackling my outstanding Kickstarters methodically so that i can get everything done. The first steps involve figuring out exactly what needs to get done and how to do it. Then I will set about working my way down the list until everything is done. I will also be going in the order the Kickstarters were presented so "Nystul's Infinite Dungeon" is first. I will be generating some material for each of the Kickstarters that will be shared with backers of all three. When I know what you will be getting from the Infinite Dungeon project. I will let you know. At the very least PDFs of some maps and an RPG called "Delve". 

I'll keep you all posted on my progress. 

Thanks as always for your patience and understanding. 

Upwards and onwards!

My Name is "Mike Nystul", and I've Got the Biggest... Balls of Them All!

Earlier today on Facebook

Yesterday on the Axes & Anvils Kickstarter

I'm glad Mike is honest enough to call his latest ideas "schemes". Oh, and he's right. He probably shouldn't share them, as they aren't "unrealistic promises" but further attempts to separate fools from their money.

Still, I will give Mike this much credit - he admits he's a fuck up, that he fucked up and that he can't make due. Oh, and he still posts. And answers posts. If nothing else, that takes a huge set of balls.

Contrast that with Tom from the Myth & Magic Player's Guide Kickstarter - this ass swears he shipped the books 3 weeks ago, promised delivery in "14 business days" which sounds like he's using the Pony Express and now those 14 days have come and gone and not a fucking peep.

Maybe Mike has a right to "The Biggest Balls of them All!" ;)

The Traveling Wizard Goes Dark - No More Social Media for Nystul

So, it looks like Mike Nystul has taken down his blog, his personal Facebook page and the Axes & Anvils Facebook page.

Is there anyone left who truly expects to receive any new version of the rules, let alone ANY physical products?

Mike couldn't pass this project off to others like the other two because the physical rewards owed to backers is simply too high in cost. Anyone picking up the reigns of this project from Mike would be taking on a money pit.

Nuking his social media is yet another sign that Mike is running away from what little responsibilities he had left to his backers.

This is making last year's Dwimmermount fiasco seem absolutely normal in comparison.

His transfer of the other two IPs was simple as neither has the amount of physical product add on like this one did. Here's a list of stuff you could have added on that has little to nothing to do with the core RPG:

Card Set (Add $10)

Runestones (Add $12)

Tankard (Add $16)

Dice (add $6 a pair)

Clan Patches (add $5)

Set of Clan Patches (add $20)

Dwarven Fiction Anthology (add $15)

Signed Anthology (add $30)

TShirt (add $16)

Calendar (add $12)

Giclee Art Print (add $30)

Campaign Integration (add $160) - (including the description of this, as it will NEVER happen)

I have received a lot of questions about, and interest in - the Living Campaign. I have also been asked to provide a way for folks who aren't playing a faction leader to get involved. Here you go -

The Living Campaign will be shaped by the decisions made by the leaders of the various factions involved. This will generate events that can be used by Gamemasters to give color and relevance to their games. At this level, it is a one way system (unless you are playing one of the faction leaders). We generate stuff, you use it or you don't.

With this add on your Campaign becomes part of the Living World. When you set up your Clan I will commission an emblem for you which will be created to your specifications (within reason). I will also work with you to locate you within a Campaign map that will be available to everyone online, along with an online guide to all of the Clans that are involved.

IMPORTANT - you only need one "subscription" per Campaign and it will last at least one full year.

The activities of the Integrated Campaigns will be integrated into the material that will go out to everyone. Your Gamemaster will be asked to submit a monthly questionnaire and may be asked a few followup questions. Will there be the potential for conflict, for alliances, for competition? Yes! Do I know exactly how? Not yet! But I will... : )

It is important to note that because of the amount of work maintaining the Living Campaign will take, I will have to ask everyone to stick to answering the questions I send in the manner I ask. If you feel like offering more there will be Forums where you can share material with other participants. I expect this to be a very lively community!

The Living Campaign begins the 1st of the year. 2013 will be the Year of the Dwarf!

Some Recent Comments by Backers of "The Travelling Wizard"'s Axes & Anvils Kickstarter

We know Mike has no immediate plans to finish Axes & Anarchy - I MEAN Axes & Anvils.

Backers are frustrated but realists as shown below (my favorite line - Mike see's himself as a 'traveling wizard') -

I would link the Big Purple thread myself, but I find the place horrible to navigate.

Of course, it seems like Mike himself doesn't quite grasp the fact that not only hasn't he produced something, but being a "traveling wizard" is about as far from being in a position to produce something that one can be.

I was surprised that Mike's two other projects were signed over to others without any kind of cash changing hands - until you realize Mike probably did less with those two project then he did with A&A. So yes, Mike turned over very little but the concepts themselves.

If this was simple incompetence, I'd have forgiven and forgotten this project long ago. It's the lies, not just to the backers, but folks like +Andrew Shields that stepped up to save this project before being kicked to the curb, that simply piss me off.

Coming to Your Town - Nystul's Castle Traveling Road Show

Maybe you are like me, holding out hope that at some point, Axes & Anvils will not just see a completed manuscript, but may also see print. I mean, the cover is pretty, but ain't worth squat without the words that go behind it.

Don't hold your breath on the print version, as Mike is not going to have a traditional place to call his home -

You know the Kickstarter success stories that go bad? The ones that succeed beyond initial dreams and that very success leads to unfulfilled Kickstarters and folks have lost their homes over such (or so it's been said). Mike went one better and lost (well, i think "left" is more accurate) his employment with the successful Kickstarters, and is now going nomadic, leaving his residence behind.

Without a place to live, there is no place to store physical rewards from the Kickstarter - not that I expected to see any at this point, as Mike no longer has steady employment and the Kickstarter funds have all been spent on non-Kickstarter expenses.

The upside is - Mike may very well be looking for a couch to crash on in your town (at least if you are in the Texas area I guess).

It looks like Mike is going through a soul searching stage in his life - hopefully he finds everyone's Kickstarter rewards during the search.

What is the "Worst" Kickstarter / Indiegogo Project That You Supported?

I know I need to do an updated "Overdue Kickstarters" post (the post is a bit overdue itself) but I figured, in the meantime, I'd ask you, my fine readers, about the worst Kickstarter you supported.

Worst, BTW, is for you to define.

For me, there are a lot of contenders, but only one true wearer of the crown. Quite simply, Axes & Anvils. Worst of the worst. The RPG industry equivalent of Attack From Planet 9, if not in final quality (we don't know yet) but certainly in execution. I've enjoyed on some sick level the sheer amount of horse shit that went into Nystul avoiding responsibility for the project and any sort of accounting for the monies raised.

There you have it. My worst of the worst Kickstarters. What's yours?

A Tale of Two Kickstarters - Axes & Anvils vs Numenera - Of Truth and Lies

Patrick over at the Nerdwerks blog has put together a very enlightening comparison of the Axes & Anvils vs the Numenera Kickstarter. It's very well done, and worth your time for the chuckles it will elicit.

Here's a snippet:

Go on now and read the rest ;)

A Day Late and a Kickstarter Short - Nystul Works the Bait & Switch With Axes & Anvils Update #52

Progress Report

Update #52 · Jul 23, 2013 · 1 comment  

Yesterday I took stick (you beat it with a stick? are you now beating Andrew?) of everything I had on hand and decided what the preview draft should contain, taking into account Andrew's recommendations and your feedback (Our feedback has been "Where the fuck is our shit Mike!" Hey, didn't you owe us an update yesterday?). Many of you have stated concerns about a rushed draft (we are stating concerns that there is NOTHING and you are full of shit). That is not my plan (you have a plan? amazing). You have waited long enough to have something that feels complete unto itself. With that in mind, I am assembling something that has everything so you get a full sense of the feel of the game (WTF does the sentence mean? Confusion is not supposed to be a Nystul spell). The final edition will simply include more (of nothing).

On the art front, I assembled the resources I have from Jeff. I am also working with a couple of freelancers. Another artist who is contributing is David Okum from Okum Arts. He has put together an awesome set of Axes and Anvils standups.

I am back at work today and hope to assemble a draft for Andrew and I that has everything we currently have so that it is very clear what remains to be filled in before we do our edit pass and send it out to all of you (holy shit! is Mike German? because this is a typical run on German sentence. I hope if this project ever gets done Mike isnt self editing) I will try to get you a few pages to look at in the next day or two.

Wait a sec! Mike is already breaking his rules from update 50 (July 20 - 2 days ago):

Here is the plan: Starting Monday I will share what I am doing every day. I will post some pages, some rules and art. I will be completely transparent. As Backers you will also have the opportunity to post feedback if you like. 

If I fail to make progress for 3 consecutive days or 5 days total Andrew gets the go ahead to take what we have, button it up and get it out.

Kickstarter - Axes & Anvils Update - Part Deux (the Nystul Fiasco Never Ends - It Goes on and on my Friends)

Even more from Mike - after he realized he never consulted with Andrew over the previous update (and effectively drove a bus over Andrew in the process)

Project Update #51: Andrew Shields

Posted by Mike Nystul

My last post may have given the wring (erh?) impression about Andrew and the part he plays in all of this. Andrew is a godsend (more than that Mike - he's a gentleman and a lifesaver - the life being your own). When my company went south (you never had a "company" - you had the money from your supporters support you and a few others for a few months with nothing to show for it) and took a lot of my life with it I was floundering - I still am in many ways (truthful statement from Mike - mark it on your calendar) . One of the problems has been that the pressures and related stress have made it very hard to muster the creativity I so badly need to see this through (I thought the old excuse was that you were just the "idea man" and the writing was the responsibility of others). It's like trying to write with a gun to your head. Andrew was a vocal member of the Axes and Anvils community whose posts often contained a lot of really useful insights. He volunteered to help and I took him on (you had little choice - you had nothing in hand). He has helped me get my thoughts together and has drafted a lot of material to help flesh out the working test draft I have been showing around at cons. What he is not is responsible for any of this. This project is my sole responsibili ty. I didn't mean to suggest that should I fail to produce when I set my "get this out" plan into effect on Monday that he is then responsible for picking up the pieces. His only role will be to look at what i have before I collect it up and publish with no further delay no matter what the state of the draft (wait! I thought Andrew was actively writing this - now you say you are and he's not?). One of my motivations to plow through is to avoid the self imposed consequence of having to share a cottage cheese of a draft (in other words - to show how little you actually accomplished after taking the money of your supporters or are you saying what Andrew has written so far isn't publishable? Because I'm fairly sure Andrew could make this "publishable" in a lot less time without your daily meddling). It is also important to note that he will also be looking over everything I generate so that he has the opportunity to feed back to me, so there will be a delay inherent in when I write something and when I can share excerpts from it (again, this is opposite what was said earlier). He has a great grasp on what I'm trying to do and what the system does as a whole so his insights will really help (Andrew, I'd completely understand if you withdrew from this clusterfuck). I look forward to diving in on Monday and showing you all what we have. Thanks.

for the benefit of Mike I'm including the definition of Transparent:

a : free from pretense or deceit : frank
b : easily detected or seen through : obvious
c : readily understood
d : characterized by visibility or accessibility of information especially concerning business practices

Kickstarter - Axes & Anvils Update (the Nystul Fiasco Continues)

I woke up this morning to an Axes & Anvils Kickstarter update. Mike, who has a problem following up on his own promises to update promptly, now promises to update daily. God help us all, each and every one of us...

Hey, somehow I overlooked Nystul's Magical Pigments:

These magic emulsions enable their possessor to create actual, permanent objects simply by depicting their form in two dimensions. The pigments are applied by a stick tipped with bristles, hair, or fur. The emulsion flows from the application to form the desired object as the artist concentrates on the desired image. One pot of marvelous pigments is sufficient to create a 1,000-cubic-foot object by depicting it two-dimensionally over a 100-square-foot surface. 

Only normal, inanimate objects can be created. Creatures can’t be created. The pigments must be applied to a surface. It takes 10 minutes and a DC 15 Craft (painting) check to depict an object with the pigments. Marvelous pigments cannot create magic items. Objects of value depicted by the pigments —precious metals, gems, jewelry, ivory, and so on— appear to be valuable but are really made of tin, lead, paste, brass, bone, and other such inexpensive materials. The user can create normal weapons, armor, and any other mundane item (including foodstuffs) whose value does not exceed 2,000 gp.

Anyhow, here's more of the Nystul misdirection, as I fail to see what good anything he mentions (especially the daily update and included formula) will do. Unless he's stalling for more time so he doesn't have to pay to print the books...

Project Update #50: Getting it out there 

Posted by Mike Nystul 

Hello all. I am still out here and you still don't have your game. (Mike is nothing if not observant) There are reasons why things are what they are but excuses won't help (we know many of the reasons, but cast Nystul's Magic Aura again. We dare you). All that will help is that game.  

I have a tested game - a good game that some Backers have seen and played. I have some art and the seeds of a living game world. I need to bring it together. No delays. (because this hasn't been delayed since forever already)

Andrew, a talented writer and designer I have been working with, has suggested letting him finish this edition just to get it done. I have hesitated because there is material I still want to include and a pass I want to finish (Mike, I suspect the less you have to do with the project at this point, the better for everyone). 

Here is the plan: Starting Monday I will share what I am doing every day. I will post some pages, some rules and art. I will be completely transparent (excellent - so, are you going to tell us the rest of the reasons this doomed project has been delayed? Why all of your recent promises have been for naught? Did the dog steal your homework yet again?). As Backers you will also have the opportunity to post feedback if you like. 

If I fail to make progress for 3 consecutive days or 5 days total Andrew gets the go ahead to take what we have, button it up and get it out. (at this point we get a game within a game? WTF?)

I apologize in advance to the daily spam this method will generate but i think it is called for in this particular case. (God help us all. It may wind up be entertaining in a "rubber necking at the accident on the other side of the highway" sort of way, but I suspect little else)

edit: in case Mike needs an actually definition of Transparent:

a : free from pretense or deceit : frank
b : easily detected or seen through : obvious
c : readily understood
d : characterized by visibility or accessibility of information especially concerning business practices