Kickstarter - Invisible Sun (Full Monte is $539 - Anyone Jump a Shark?)

I've heard lots of talk recently about Monte Cooks new Kickstarter - Invisible Sun. What I've heard ranges from "It's Monte, it's got to be good!" to "What the fuck is he smoking?"

I suspect the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

Monte is a skilled game creator, of that there is little doubt (and no argument from me). Sometimes his presentation is spot on (Not Thank You Evil comes to mind) and at other times it is nigh unreadable (Numenera with it's God horrible watermarking)

Therein lies part of my issue with Monte's latest project - will I be able to read it easily, or will the watermarking be such a distraction that I'll put it down in the first 3 pages, never to pick it up again? Because at a minimum buy in of $197 (where you get the game but not the campaign and the campaign is the thing) there's a lot riding that "what if"?

That's the other huge issue - price. Folks bitch and moan about the cost of Frog God Games KSs, but they come in at half the price (less if you go for the PDF option - which there is none for this box of tricks).

I suspect, like many RPG purchases, this is aimed more to be placed on the shelf with a "look at me, ain't I cool?" attitude and to riffle through the cool pieces more so than actual play, at least for the $197 version. Why is that? Because you don't get the campaign with the initial buy in and without the campaign you're pretty much holding a choksi.

How much is the version with the campaign? $539

Mic drop.

Yeah. If you want the "Full Monte", and really, if you plan on playing Invisible Sun I assume you want the Full Monte, it's $539. Not including shipping costs if you are outside the US.

Anyhow, did I mention stretch goals are NOT included at the basic $197 buy in?

They are at $539

Basically, if you are a fan of Monte without a significant amount of disposable cash to throw at this project, convince your gaming group to chip in. Oh, and Master the Black Cube is $1,475.

Obviously Monte has found a cash cow (as I write this, the project is just short of a quarter of a million dollars in funding). The question will be a long term one - will this project alienate the fans that can't come up with nearly 200 for the crippleware version (or $539 for the Full Monte)? Will it hurt the bottom line more than help? Numenera had over 4,600 backers. Invisible Sun is sitting at just under 900 at the moment. I'm going to guess when all is said and done, Invisible Sun will come in between 1800 and 2000 backers, less than half that of Numenera.

Reminder - Tavern Chat - Tonight - 9 PM Eastern - Learn Who The Tavern Will be Interviewing

Yep, it's another Wednesday which means it's another Tavern Chat.

I should know before the chat which two publishers I'll be interviewing for AetherCon. Well, I know the first now and I'm waiting on the second.

We're 9 members away from 700 members in The Tavern's Facebook Community. Holy crap :)

As an aside, I'm thinking of adding a once a month 2nd Tavern Chat, possibly NOT in the evening so we can get people with other schedules involved.

Let me know what you think here or in tonight's chat...

In Case of Emergency, Break Glass - Wield the Ban Hammer (Rant)

I really pride myself, that, with the exception of a few self identified YDIS trolls, I've yet to ban anyone from The Tavern.

I expect the occasional thread to get heated, and so long as at the end of the day no one is making death threats to others, I'm generally satisfied. I don't take disagreements personally and I expect the community here at The Tavern to call me on my shit on occasion.

Yeah, that sets the bar fairly high to get banned.

However, I've gotten to the point where the negative and generally trollish behavior of a single commenter has gotten me to the point where, if this were a true tavern, I'd have thrown him out on his ass months, if not years ago. Thrown out never to return.

Consider this fair warning. There will not be another. There will be no appeal. You'll need to find some other place to be an endless source of negativity and general miserableness.

This isn't because someone disagrees with me or the community at large. It's because they are being disruptive for the sake of being disruptive and they enjoy the attention that it gets them. I'm done with it. Regular commenter or not, my patience is done.

For the rest of you - carry on. Nothing to see here ;)

Thunder Rift comes to RPGNow (Basic D&D)

I just read +James Spahn 's post over at his blog Halfling's Luck that Thunder Rift was now available in PDF for $4.99 at RPGNow. I had forgotten how much I had enjoyed this little sandbox as a DM and made use of it right up until my hiatus from the hobby we love (damn you Police Academy Graduation and Wed / Thursday as my "weekends")

They fit a lot of gaming potential into those 32 pages. I'm not sure if my copy is in storage or buried in a box in the closet. I may need to pick up the PDF of Thunder Rift simply for nostalgia's sake.

I also read Appelcline's comments that there were some screw ups. I never caught them back in the day, but yeah, they are fairly large:

Whoops! (I): A River Runs Through It. The rivers of "Thunder Rift" rather infamously disobey the laws of gravity, going in all kinds of wacky directions. Fans have suggested underground outflows and magical interference as explanations for some of the Rift's water problems. 

Whoops! (II): AD&Disms. The NPCs of "Thunder Rift" are written using AD&D classes, not D&D — meaning that they have both races and classes, rather than racial classes like "halfling" and "dwarf". McComb says that he thinks the editor incorrectly changed his Basic D&D classes to AD&D 2e classes. Whoever did it, this reflects a general problem at TSR in the early '90s, where most of the in-house designers, developers, and editors weren't that familiar with the Basic D&D game.
 

Bundle of Holding - Fat Dragon Terrain Sets (Print and Play Model Terrain)

There are times I really wish I had a face to face gaming group. I could break out my Dwarven Forge dungeon walls, some Fat Dragon paper terrain and my multitude of unpainted Reaper Bones and just have at it.

Alas, until the lad moves out I won't have the room to even start displaying some of this stuff let alone use it in game, but a man can dream, can't he?

Looking for something less expensive (and less heavy) than Dwarvenite? Fat Dragon has you covered with the Fat Dragon Terrain Sets at Bundle of Holding.

Damn, Ravenfell: Sewers includes rats. I wonder if there is a pile of 2,000 CPs there too?

Roll20 2016 Quarter 2 Report is Out - Lets Compare it to the Market

The Roll20 Orr Report for the 2nd Quarter of 2016 was released on August 15th. Lets look at it shall we:

Things to note:

We pull our data from two locations within Roll20 member profiles. Player numbers are drawn from the “Enjoys Playing” and “Seeks Group For” sections, while Game numbers come from the “My Campaigns” section. Our percentages can total more than 100%, particularly Player numbers, since each player will list their interest in multiple games. The report is meant to be a representative sample, and the game listings are curated by Roll20 staff.

Which means you can take this all with a grain of salt. It may show trends, but the science isn't exact. I have nearly a dozen campaigns listed under "My Campaigns" section but I haven't run campaign in nearly a year. I guess I'm skewing the numbers ;)

The numbers for 5e means that over half the users of Roll20 have an interest in 5e. It doesn't mean over half are playing 5e.

Top 2 in the Market Report are the same, and 4 of the top 5 in the Market Report make the top 9 here. AGE didn't make the top 10.

WTF is Maid RPG? I'm picture bad sexual fantasy shit...

AD&D made the top 10 but the drop off is huge after the top 3.

Basic Fantasy RPG (BFRPG) has a huge showing for an OSR game. Even if you assume the numbers are inflated, it still blows every other clone out of the water. Maybe its active online community has something to do with it.

RPGs Are a 35 Million Dollar Market (out of a 1.19 Billion Dollar Hobby Game Market)

There's an interesting article over at ICv2 about the size of the Hobby Games Market and it's components.

Roleplaying Games make up 35 Million of the 1.19 Billion Hobby Games Market. Which is small, but grew 40% from 2014 to 2015 (from 25 Million). Hobby Games as a whole grew 29% over the same period.

As for the top 5 RPG game lines for the 2nd Quarter of 2016, D&D 5e tops the list. I'm surprised to see Shadowrun in the top 5 myself.

I suspect the drop off after the first 3 is huge.

All this is before Dungeons & Dragons finding it's way back into the public's eye this summer.

Still, the OSR is a niche of a niche.

I'll need to dig out the latest Roll20 report for some further analysis.

When Kickstarter gets Violated by MLM - Smash Fund

When I saw the link to Smash Fund in the Kicksnarker Community on G+, I didn't think much of it.

Watch the video. It's short. Apparently, coffee is 5 bucks a cup...

Look, it wants to be a social media platform, a crowdfunding platform and a multi level marketing platform. How sweet!

Then I dug in a bit more and I realized it was insanely awful. Of the level on can only assume is meant to be a joke but probably isn't.

So, what is your cost and what do your backers get?

Yep, you can lose money on crowdfunding and cut out the middle man.

Holy shit.

Kickstarter - The Buried Zikurat (5e Adventure)

I can never have enough quality adventures for the campaigns I run as I simply lack the time (or is it focus) to write them from scratch on demand. That being said, the rules set the adventure is written in is secondary to me, as I tend to mix and match elements from different adventures and sources (and rule systems) Some of the best sessions I ran were for Swords & Wizardry, using DCC adventures written for 3x, 4e and the DCC RPG. 

Story over crunch in any adventure for me.

The Premise:    

The clay mining operation at Caford has discovered a large step pyramid, or zikurat. This imposing structure was buried completely in the clay sheet they have been mining for decades to make brick and other ceramic products. The local miners see what they think is an obvious entrance, but cannot get past the slab of stone. A call for aid is sent to the capital city of Meawold, and the party is sent to investigate. 

Could this be one of the Nexuses that traded goods from the subterranean Land of Night to the surface world?  

Places where treasures of the subterranean kingdoms, like mithril weapons, were traded for surface goods. Bastions of trade that were lost during the fall of the First Age of Man. Why has it been dormant for almost two millennia? What lies within? Is it a threat to Caford, or the Kingdom of Meawold as a whole?

The Buried Zikurat is written for 5e, but it will probably be run for Swords & Wizardry: Light (I'm working on that this summer) when I get it. And it probably won't survive the transition whole cloth, but that's okay. I'll certainly get my money's worth.

Did I mention I'm a sucker for maps and detachable covers for adventures?

From the KS page:

Saddle-Stitched 32+ page adventure   

        Detached color cover with color maps on the interior (These maps are far too elaborate and gorgeous to produce in monochrome.)   

        8 full color maps  

       4 pages of black and white art (maybe more if we unlock the stretch goals)  

Digital Book of Lore - Contains player handouts of the notes, letters and journal entries found in the zikurat 

Digital Book of Puzzles - Contains 48 puzzles at four levels of difficulty

Now that I'm retired I need to work on a secondary income to pay for all these Kickstarters I find ;)

Deal of the Day - GM's Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing (System Neutral Edition - Print & PDF Versions)

I really do enjoy the GM's Miscellany series of releases from Raging Swan Press. They are simply an excellent tool for the GM that likes to sandbox, as you always have something ready for your players when they "zig" instead of "zag".

GM's Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing (System Neutral Edition) is today's Deal of the Day over at RPGNow. I own it and it is good. Normally $13.99 in PDF you can grab it for the next 23 hours or so for $6.99. Even better, the Print plus PDF is on sale for $10.98. So, for 4 bucks more plus shipping you can get the Print in the mail and the PDF for instant gratification.

From the blurb:

Tired of glossing over the details of your PCs’ overland journey (except for the inevitable, violent random encounters)? Want to add in minor features of interest to their journeys? Want to make their journeys seem more “real”? Then GM’s Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing is for you! A compilation of the Wilderness Dressing line, each installment focuses on a different type of wilderness or a feature therein and gives the harried GM the tools to bring such features to life with interesting and cool noteworthy features. 

GM’s Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing presents loads of great features and details to enliven your PCs’ travel both overland and by sea. Designed to be used both during preparation or actual play, GM’s Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing is an invaluable addition to any GM's armory!  

GM’s Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing presents the material originally appearing in:

• Wilderness Dressing: Bandits
• Wilderness Dressing: Castles
• Wilderness Dressing: Deserts
• Wilderness Dressing: Extreme Weather
• Wilderness Dressing: Hills
• Wilderness Dressing: Mountains
• Wilderness Dressing: Plains
• Wilderness Dressing: Primal Forests
• Wilderness Dressing: Ruins
• Wilderness Dressing: Sea Voyages
• Wilderness Dressing: Snow and Ice
• Wilderness Dressing: Swamps
• Wilderness Dressing: Travellers
• Wilderness Dressing: Woodlands 

New Material: Farmlands, Small Caves, Borderlands, Shipwrecks, Coast and Campsites.
For free samples head over to Raging Swan's website. This product is a Dual Format PDF. The downloadable ZIP file contains two versions, one optimized for printing and use on a normal computer and one optimized for use on a mobile device such as an iPad.

It's a Sign! Cthulhu for President!

Yep. We had a few new members at The Tavern's Facebook Community today.

We hit a new milestone.

I think i need to break out some Iron Maiden ;)

Dyson is now up to 74 Free Commercial Use Maps - Go Patreon!

The latest Free Commercial Use Map, a classic from 2013

+Dyson Logos mentioned this on Facebook, but I thought I'd spread the word. Thanks to Dyson's Patreon supporters, there are now 74 Dyson drawn maps available for free commercial use. Did I mention there are more maps added every month?

Dyson is one of the most skilled and most prolific mappers in the gaming community, and the idea that publishers can use a selection of his creations for free in their commercial projects is nothing short of amazing.

I've already got 2 of Dyson's maps pegged for use in a current project.

Here's the link to the free commercial use maps. If you're just using for personal use, he has hundreds more.

You have no excuse. Stat out a dungeon now!  ;)

Deal of the Day - Skyscrapers & Sorcery White Box Rules Players Guide (OSR)

I almost missed this. Yes, this week has been full of distractions.

The Skyscrapers & Sorcery White Box Rules Players Guide is the player's side of the Skyscapers & Sorcery rules. Lots here to use in your OSR campaign if you enjoy taking your fantasy further afield.

Normally $3.49, on sale for the next 13 hours or so for $1.40

From the blurb:

What if the world ended and no one really noticed? 

What if almost everyone just picked themselves up the next day, dusted themselves off and went back to their routines as if nothing major had happened? 

That is what happened here. Sometime in the late part of the 19th century, something exploded in several places around the world at the same time. 

Scientists say they think it was a number of comets or some other sort of space body hitting the planet. Some people claim that we were being attacked by Martians. Some folks just didn’t really notice. The explosions caused lots of death and destruction and affected every continent in the world. 

Strange things live in the shadows of the world. Other worlds seem to have intruded upon ours and you are one of the few who decided to take notice and take action. Folks have names for people like you, the most polite of which is Adventurer. There is something that makes you want to notice the world and what goes on outside the daily humdrum lives of everyone else, and you have an itch to explore the dark corners and possibly even right some wrongs. 

It’s been several decades since the Event and you have decided that it is time to scratch the itch of Adventure. Welcome to Skyscrapers & Sorcery, may your adventures be many and fruitful and may your lives be valiant and your death be bravely faced. 

An Old School, White Box compatible game system. 

This contains all of the player pertinent information, everything from the core book except the Referee's section and the starting adventure.

Kickstarter - Ultimate Bestiary: Revenge of the Horde - New 5E Monsters

Nord Games (Christopher Haskins) put the excellent Ultimate NPCs: Skulduggery for 5e, Pathfinder and S&W Kickstarter together. I received the S&W version in the mail last week and I can't wait to put it to good use this fall when i get back to gaming. Chris puts together excellent and useful gaming resources.

This time up its Ultimate Bestiary: Revenge of the Horde - New 5E Monsters. While 5e is not my system of choice, I'm tempted to pick this up to see what Chris has done with some classic monsters and adapt it to S&W on my own.

From the blurb:

Ultimate Bestiary: Revenge of the Horde is not another A-Z of monsters. Instead, we have focused on some of the commonly encountered monstrous races like goblins, gnolls, and orcs, detailing their cultures, environments, and attitudes, as well as introducing a wide variety of stat blocks to suit a range of challenge levels, each with their own unique artwork.

Bugbears -  Ruled by augury and ritual superstition, bugbears are lead by a mixture of mystics and warriors. They excel at silently hunting their quarry, be it deer, troll, or man.
Gnolls - Scavengers or hunters, whatever niche gnolls fill, they undertake their role with remorseless savagery. The 3 most common types are the powerful and aggressive plains gnoll, the cowardly and opportunistic gutter gnoll, and the cunning and elusive rock gnoll. 

Goblins - Cowardly and sadistic bullies, goblins are divided into 3 distinct subgroups; forest goblins, stealthy guerrilla hunters and trappers; hill goblins, the most organized and martial variety; and cave goblins, a degenerate and twisted breed living deep underground. 

Hobgoblins - Utterly focused on waging war with other races, hobgoblins are not to be trifled with. Like a plague of insects, their great hosts will consume all a land has to offer, and march its former occupants off in chains.  

Kobolds - Kobolds divide neatly into 2 distinct subtypes. Warren kobolds are kobolds left to their own devices; simple miners and trap builders. When a colony discovers, or seeks out a dragon egg or wyrmling, their society entirely changes to that of the more grandiose and self-important dragon kobolds. ***Content contributor Wolfgang Baur of Kobold Press!*** 

Ogres - Ogres are defined by their violent cruelty, immense strength, and monumental stupidity. They are inordinately proud of all these things. 

Okiti - Usually a mischievous nuisance in port towns, okiti can prove deadly if pushed, with huge numbers at their disposal and a knowledge of deadly poisons.   

Orcs - Orcs revel in chaos and destruction, and their violent warrior culture allows for no weakness.  

Trolls - Immensely adaptable, trolls are shaped by their environment into perfect ambush predators. 

Yeah, there is definitely stuff I can steal for my games ;)

State of The Tavern Tavern Keeper - Update - Time to Trim the Fat

The fatty liver that is. Ultrasound showed no fluids in the abdomen, no tumors (as a cancer survivor, always on your mind) but did show my liver is going through a "fatty process". That and my blood sugar and cholesterol are higher than they should be according to the blood works.

Time to lose a few more pounds, add folic acid and vitamin b1 to my diet and watch what I eat. Maybe I can get the pub to swap out fries for a nice salad instead ;)

The bloat is mostly gone but the side with the liver is still a bit swollen. Time is what I need to heal and I have that in spades.

Tomorrow might still be an off day for me but I should be back in full swing for the weekend.

Huzzah!

Rant - Your Gamebook is NOT a "#1 Amazon Bestseller"

One thing the OSR is usually good about is hype, or lack there of. Even out best selling products do so by word of mouth, not manipulation of truth.

So things like Arena Fighters (Rule Book) from M. R. Mathias really piss me off. Why? Here's the screenshot at DriveThruRPG:

Look Ma! It's a #1 Amazon Bestseller! It must fucking rock!

So, it went up on OBS August 10th, 2016. That's yesterday. When did it go up on Amazon to make the bestseller list?

It went up on August 4th, 2016. Wow, less that a week and it made #1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Humor & Entertainment > Puzzles & Games > Science Fiction & Fantasy Gaming > Dungeons & Dragons. Er? Okay.

And it is #1 in that very specific category. 1 of 1 that is.

That's it. Its the only book in the category.

Its 2 of 2 in Changleing. How it dropped there, no f'n idea.

So no, asshole, Arena Fighters is NOT a #1 bestseller. Its in a category unto itself.

Is the author prolific when it comes to Kindle Fantasy Fiction? Yes. 

Is he awesome? Just read what he has to say about himself:

Eh, might be hard to read as a screenshot:

M.R. Mathias rose from unknown to award-winning, best-selling author at a pace most authors can only dream about. He is a prolific writer of epic fantasy novels, novellas, and short stories. Despite his busy writing, publishing, and promotional schedule Mathias continues to aid his fellow indie authors by posting about their books at Twitter and Facebook etc. 

He shared his considerable knowledge of self-promotion in publishing The First Ten Steps. The book has become an important indie guide for navigating the often murky waters of using social media sites to get your eBook in front of avid readers. 

Mathias has taken cross promotion to a new level in his "Indie Kindy" giveaways where he gives away a FREE Kindle Touch and or Kindle Fire loaded with independently published books. These events create a great deal of interest for the authors involved and to independently published books as a whole.

I can't speak for his fiction, but his first gaming release on OBS is a social media fail.

Adventures in Middle Earth (D&D 5e) Table of Contents Picture

Thanks to +Ray Chapel for pointing me to the Israeli gaming site that posted a pic of the Adventures in Middle Earth Player's Guide table of contents.

Of course, most interesting to be is The Classes. I'm glad I dont see any outright spell casters.

This might actually get me running some D&D 5e...

Tavern Chat - Tonight - 930 PM Eastern

Yep, it's Wednesday which means time for another Tavern Chat tonight.

Where? The chatwing box to the right side of this page.

How? Log in using most social media services.

Why? Because you never know who is going to drop in ;)

Roll20 Article on Slate - Welcome to the Virtual Tabletop (Finally, there’s a good way to play Dungeons & Dragons online)

Roll20 (and Dungeons & Dragons 5e) have a nice article up on Slate.

Yep, the D&D media love just keeps rolling along.

Gail couldn't have timed her licensing of Gary's works better if she had had a crystal ball...

Here's a small piece from the article:

But if technological developments partly supplanted D&D’s appeal, they may yet also contribute to its recent resurgence. The leader here may be Roll20, a web-based system that attempts to re-create the experience of classic pen-and-paper gaming—not just for Dungeons & Dragons, but for other titles as well. The sophisticated application creates a shared platform for many of the game’s fundamental elements, allowing users to simulate dice rolls and move character and monster tokens around maps (drawn by the game master or imported from the community-generated library). 

Though it’s not quite the same as sharing a pizza in someone’s basement while fumbling for your lucky 20-sided die, it comes surprisingly close. Log in and you’ll be given the opportunity to create a new game or join one in progress. Take the former option, and an array of tools in the sidebar will allow you to draw maps, place monsters, and otherwise prepare things for your players. It’s simple enough to draw a crude map on one of the graphing paper–like templates, but members of Roll20’s community also create and distribute more sophisticated art resources through the site’s marketplace. A shareable URL lets others join the game. Once they do, their faces will pop up in video streaming boxes in the lower third of the screen, offering something like face-to-face interaction.

It seems like there is hope for the hobby yet.

Hey, maybe Gail could license some of Gary's work to Roll20...

State of The Tavern Keeper - Oh That Bloated Feeling

Your Tavern Keeper has been under the weather the past few days with a bloated tummy and finally went to his doc this afternoon.

Diagnosis?

I've got fluid in my belly. Blood works taken and sonogram scheduled for Thursday morning.

Joy. No pain, just bloat.

All vitals are normal otherwise.

I've been spending a good amount of my time lying on my side hoping to pass gas... TMI?

So, if I seem distracted or slow to get to something you're waiting on, you now know why.

Good news is I've gotten my weight down to just 5 pounds above my Police Academy weight ;)

Kickstarter - Cthulhu Insanity Dice (RPG Dice)

I'll admit it. I have a bit of a dice fetish. There's just something magical about polyhedral dice, even if they never get used by me these days (except for cons, I game exclusively via Roll20).

Cthulhu Insanity Dice are just what my dice collections needs. Not that I need them, but the collection is whispering...

The first die has ten different Insanity results. You never know what your character is going to do that moment they come face to face with the unspeakable horror and your character's mind snaps. 

The second die has ten different phobia's your character can pick up later, which often gets forgotten and never added to the character.

I wonder if that whispering is linked to an insanity. 1 in 10 chance ;)

There is a MacGyver Remake in the Works and Whitman is in the First Episode

Mark your calendars for Friday, September 23, 2016.

A new MacGyver series in coming to the small screen and Ken is in the first episode.

No, I don't know details, but look at Kenny's friendly little mug...

Kickstarter - Barrowmaze: The Forbidden Caverns of the Archaia (OSR Megadungeon)

Just in case you didn't get enough Barrowmaze, +Greg Gillespie brings us Barrowmaze: The Forbidden Caverns of the Archaia.

Let me start this off by saying I backed this at $100 on the first day of the Kickstarter. Greg does some of the most accessible writing of Megadungeons that I've seen, and Barrowmaze Complete, while huge, is made to be broken down into easily digestible pieces (and if you don't already have BM Complete, you can add it for a mere 50 bucks)

More Barrowmaze is, quite simply, more better :)

Seriously, at a session a week you could probably game for years with Greg's releases, and why wouldn't you? It's a blast (I enjoyed running Barrowmaze with my regular group)

I can't wait for the summer to be over and the return of active gaming...

Just How Excited Were Folks Over the ENnies Winners over on ENWorld?

The ENnies were announced Friday Night.

It is now Sunday Morning.

I hope we can generate more excitement than that when the Old School Recognition Awards kick off.

The Gygax Memorial Fund is a Hive of Activity these Days (Assuming a Small Hive in Winter)

I'm guessing someone pointed out to Gail that a website and proposed memorial devoted to her late husband should actually showcase her late husband and not her posing in a gaudy tunnel.

And look, there's even a link to the Variety Magazine story. That's the first legit update of news on this site since December 8th of 2014.

I may need a drink just to steady my nerves.

Notice the July 28th Written Tribute. That's not July 28, 2016. The last tribute was added on January 25, 2013.

I see why they leave the year off.

I'm going to make a suggestion that I'm sure won't be listened to. Delete the useless Tower of Gygax, FAQ and Online Store tabs. They've been dead links since forever. You can always add them back if they actually link to something aside from "Coming Soon!"

Now about that promised audit...

I Have Met With the Cabal of Oldschool Gaming - Plans are in Motion for Old School Recognition Awards

Last night I sat down with the mysterious Cabal of Oldschool Gaming - henceforth referred to as COGs, and we discussed the idea of a series of Old School Gaming awards.

True, we have the Three Castles Award, but that is a design award and in the end only applies to one release in the 12 month period.

Then there are the ENnies, which prices out most old school products simply based on the expense of mailing physical products worldwide to judges. We are largely comprised of self publishers who aren't making much scratch on their releases in the first place.

Oh, and the Diana Jones Award, which doesn't even seem to follow it's own rules for nominating. But they have a secret cabal, so they're kinda cool.

Discussions covered everything from the name of the award, how to nominate products, selection of judges, prizes, timing and a whole bunch more. It was a very productive use of our time.

It's more than a planning stage and less then set in stone. It will happen. When the rest of the COGs reveal themselves, you will see that we are on solid footing.

Yes, yesterday's post was said in jest (sadly I may need to use a disclaimer in the future) but more so for the unbalanced method that ENnies are chosen than the choices folks have made. It's important to us that the awards are open to all that consider themselves part of the old school gaming movement and they aren't priced out of the process by physical review copies. PDFs for the judges are going to be the main distribution route we aim to take.

The COGs are open to input from The Tavern's Community and beyond. Categories, nomination process, type of awards (we're toying with a few), whatever you think may be of import. They will read your comments as will I.

Recognizing what our community produces is important, not just to the COGs but the community itself. Great products often slip off the radar. The community will be a huge part of the process, as well they should be.

Dungeons & Dragons article in the New York Daily News - Stranger Things brings D&D back into Focus

There is a D&D article in the New York Daily News, talking about how the Netflix series Stranger Things is bringing the game back into the light:

Dungeons & Dragons is rampaging across pop culture like a fearsome Demogorgon.
The quintessential game for geeks is resurging 42 years after it was first published. It’s a central plot device in the Netflix summer hit “Stranger Things.” It plays heavily in “The Dwarvenaut” documentary hitting VOD on Friday, about a Brooklyn artist who crafts dungeon models and figurines. And “Divergent’s” Ansel Elgort is in talks to conjure himself into a live-action D&D film. 

“We’re going through a renaissance here. It’s just so much fun to play,” says Stefan Pokorny, the D&D addict who is ready for his closeup in “The Dwarvenaut.” “The kids in the 80s, the 12 and 13-year-olds who were playing, the outcasts who were told they were nerds — now we’re 40 and 50 years old like, ‘Screw you guys — I still love this game!’”

Which is all fine and good, but it's the next paragraph that I find most interesting:

If you’ve been too cool to crack open a Dungeon Master’s guide or roll a 12-sided die, you’re becoming the odd man out. Or odd woman out, as role-playing games have expanded their gender roles. While Wizards of the Coast, which manages the D&D franchise, won't share sales figures, reps tell the Daily News that Millennials (ages 25 to 34) presently make up the largest group of D&D players, followed closely by those aged 35 to 44 and 18 to 24 — and up to 30% of these gamers are girls.

So, up to 30% of current D&D players are girls. About what I would have pegged it back in High School and College - 20 to 25%, and almost all brought in by their significant others. So, the percentage of female gamers hasn't changed much, but the age group is skewing higher, and older gamers generally have more disposable income, which is good for the market.

It's nice to see The Dwarvenaut also get some attention.

What if there Were Game Industry Awards for What Really Matters to the Old School Gamer?

The ENnies are tonight.

I know, may the excitement never end.

But what if there were gaming awards for stuff that REALLY mattered to the "Old School Gamer"?

After some brainstorming last night with my usual, unnamed partner in crime we came up with The ORC Awards - Old Roleplaying Crap Awards.

So what would WE, your secret cabal of judges award prizes (Pewter and Lead) for?

• Best Kickstarter Drama 
• Most likely to not actually be used
• Most likely to have its OGL content ripped word for word
• Most reused piece of stock art
• Worst layout by a professional
• Most likely to stir dirty thoughts (pre Internet porn era)
• Worst pre ogl D&D ripoff 
• Best Maps with Worst Setting Support
• Worst binding 
• Excellence in Chain mail Bikini Art
• Worst DTRPG product: free and for money
• Most derivative concept
• Most irrelevant commenter (and RPG blog or forum commenter)
• Stupidest dice innovation
• Least necessary PC race Or class
• Most overworked mechanic to solve problem no one has
• Worst con game title
• Most respectful use of 'fuck' in a gaming publication
• Least respectful in same
• Special category: White Knight Comment Enabling Award

So, what say you? Do we request nominations for the ORC Awards?

Edit - We're open to doing legit awards too ;)

Just When You Thought it Was Safe - Dungeons & Dragons Teams Up with My Little Pony - For Realz

Yep, apparently for World Friendship Day (another made up holiday I never heard of prior) My Little Pony's ponies are going on an adventure. Actually, I might grab this shirt for my 5 y/o niece.

Dungeons & Dragons partners with My Little Pony to create an exclusive charity shirt highlighting what is at the heart of both brands: Friendship & Magic.

In celebration of Friendship Day, Dungeons & Dragons has partnered with My Little Pony to create an exclusive charity shirt highlighting what is at the heart of both brands: Friendship & Magic. Hasbro will be donating the net profits from the sale of these shirts to generationOn, so order one for all the My Little Pony and D&D fans in your life! This shirt will be available to order on our campaign page until August 19th. 

Join the adventuring party of Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and of course Pinkie Pie, for the most pony-riffic celebration of friendship this side of the Forgotten Realms!

Just looked up World Friendship Day. It's held on July 30th, my birthday. Nope, doesn't make me feel friendlier...

Deal of the Day - White Star (S&W White Box SciFi RPG)

My love of White Star is well known. If you are a long time reader of The Tavern you've watched me sing it's praises (and that of +James Spahn )

Well, if for some forsaken reason you haven't yet picked up White Star, here's your chance to grab the PDF at 50% off - just $4.99

What are you waiting for, a signed invitation? Go! Get your copy and be one of the cool kids :)

Whether a noble Star Knight protecting the universe from galactic tyranny, a hot shot pilot in the cockpit of the fastest stunt fighter in space, or an enigmatic Alien Mystic, classic science fiction adventure awaits you with White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying. 

Based on Swords & Wizardry WhiteBox, White Star brings all the simple elegance  of WhiteBox out of the dungeon and into the stars! This complete roleplaying game includes seven new classes as well as rules for advanced technology, laser weaponry, space combat, and so much more! 

So ready your star sword and fire up your faster-than-light drive! A galaxy full of thrilling heroics is at your fingertips with White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying.

30 Bucks for Over $325 Worth of Stock Art - Publisher's Choice Premier Collection [BUNDLE - Fat Goblin Games)

+Rick Hershey / Fat Goblin Games is offering a bundle of over $325 worth of Stock Art for 30 bucks. If you are a publisher (or plan to be one) this is hard to beat and impossible to pass up.

Here's a listing of what you get for your 30 bucks:


5th Edition Fantasy Compatible Logo

Publisher's Choice - 15 Hammers, Axes, Maces

Publisher's Choice - 23 Bladed Weapons

Publisher's Choice - 8 Armor & Clothing

Publisher's Choice - 8 Helms and Headwear

Publisher's Choice - Basic Creature Figures (Humanoid Rats)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Fantasy Classes (Barbarian)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Fantasy Classes (Fighter)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Fantasy Classes (Ranger)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Fantasy Classes (Rogue)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Fantasy Figures (Grippli)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Fantasy Figures (Minotaurs)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Racial Portraits (Assorted Portraits)

Publisher's Choice - Basic Racial Portraits (Fantasy Males)

Publisher's Choice - Blood Throne (Page Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - Bloody Psycho (Cover and Interior Page Templates)

Publisher's Choice - Classic Adventure Covers (Multi-Colored Modules)

Publisher's Choice - Classic Horror Portraits

Publisher's Choice - Creature Cover

Publisher's Choice - Darkness (Page Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - Decorative Layout (Page Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - Fantasy Cast & Crew: Male Dwarves

Publisher's Choice - Fantasy Design ( Interior Backgrounds #2)

Publisher's Choice - Fantasy Design ( Interior Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - Fantasy InDesign Template

Publisher's Choice - Felipe Gaona (Desert Kingdom)

Publisher's Choice - Felipe Gaona (Lich Priest)

Publisher's Choice - Felipe Gaona (Old Mercenary)

Publisher's Choice - Felipe Gaona (Trapped Hallway)

Publisher's Choice - Handbook Cover

Publisher's Choice - Invisible Stalker

Publisher's Choice - Jade Master (Page Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - Jeff Cram (Norse Heroes)

Publisher's Choice - Jeffrey Koch (16 Fantasy Portraits)

Publisher's Choice - Joshua Gullion: Fantasy Hero

Publisher's Choice - King's Hunt (Page Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - King's Note (Cover and Interior Page Templates)

Publisher's Choice - LandEscapes: Stock Art Maps #1

Publisher's Choice - LandEscapes: Stock Art Maps #2: Simple Ship

Publisher's Choice - Master Illustrations (Demonic Transformations)

Publisher's Choice - Master Illustrations (Druid, Dryad, Nymph)

Publisher's Choice - Master Illustrations (Elven/Fae Girl)

Publisher's Choice - Master Illustrations (Pirate Collection)

Publisher's Choice - Master Illustrations (Pirate Cover)

Publisher's Choice - Master Illustrations (Warrior Archetypes)

Publisher's Choice - Military Exploits (Cover & Page Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice - Modern Design (Cover & Interior Backgrounds)

Publisher's Choice -Quality Stockart Modern Heroes

Publisher's Choice - Original Game Master

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #1

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #2

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #3

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #4

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #5

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #6

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #7

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #8

Publisher's Choice: Quick Covers #9

Quick Covers- Buckled Cover

Quick Covers- Landscape Edition

Quick Covers- Vol.1: Leather and Brass

Quick Covers- Vol.2: Leather and Brass

Quick Covers- Vol.3: Stitched Hide

Quick Covers- Vol.4: Heavy Metal

Quick Covers- Vol.5: Future Tech

Quick Covers - Vol.6: Stitched Flesh

Standard Stock Art: 9 Fantasy Portraits

Standard Stock Art: Cats

Standard Stock Art: Creature Pack

Standard Stock Art: Goblin Mega-Pack

Standard Stock Art: Issue 1 - Places and Locations

Standard Stock Art: Issue 2 - World War II

Standard Stock Art: Issue 3 - Dwarves

Standard Stock Art: Issue 4 - 20th Century

Standard Stock Art: Issue 5- Orc Fighter

Standard Stock Art: Issue 6 - Vile Beasts

Standard Stock Art: Issue 7 - Humanoids, Vol. 1

Standard Stock Art: Issue 8 - Assorted Items, Vol. 1

Standard Stock Art: Issue 9 - Assorted Items, Vol. 2

Tavern Chat Tonight - 9 PM Eastern - Do or Do Not

It's another Wednesday, which means another Tavern Chat.

Don't ask me what tonight's topic is, I haven't a clue ;)

See y'all in less than 2 hours...

D&D Expert and Companion Rules are Up in PDF at OBS $4.99 Each (BECMI / Mentzer)

For those lacking in dead tree versions or perhaps want copies they can tote around on their tablets and iPads, the Dungeons & Dragons Expert and Companion rules are now up on OneBookShelf.

Can the Master and Immortal Rules be far behind?

The Warlock of Firetop Mountain (For Win / OSX / Linux)

I saw this mentioned over on EnWorld and after watching the video I had to share it here: The Warlock of Firetop Mountain is coming to a computer near you via Steam.

From the Steam page:

The Warlock of Firetop Mountain is a tabletop adventure come to life! This fantasy solo RPG combines unique, simultaneous turn-based combat with a journey that changes based on each figurine you take into Firetop Mountain! Which hero will you take into Zagor's lair THIS time?  

The original 1982 Fighting Fantasy paperback by Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson has been transformed into an epic domain, with new areas to explore, characters to meet, and of course, monsters to slay! Zagor's home builds right before your eyes as you travel deep into the belly of the mountain.  

Each character has their own motivations for being in Firetop Mountain, changing the way the gamebook is written and choices presented. Combat is fought using the digital miniatures in a simultaneous, real-time system called GridBluff, and the game includes over 100 unique hero and monster figurines to discover.  

The Warlock of Firetop Mountain is currently in development. Follow here to keep up to date of upcoming news towards its release.

Minimum Reqs

OS: Windows 7 
Processor: 1.5 GHz
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: Hardware Accelerated Graphics with 1GB memory
Storage: 3 GB available space

OS: Mac OS 10.10.5+ 
Processor: 1.5 GHz
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: Hardware Accelerated Graphics with 1GB memory
Storage: 3 GB available space

OS: SteamOS + Linux
Processor: 1.5 GHz
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: Hardware Accelerated Graphics with 1GB memory
Storage: 3 GB available space

Kickstarter - Fantasy RPG Maps: The Wilderness of the Lost Realms

I've got a ton of Kickstarters to look at still. Slowly catching up, and there are some I've backed but haven't even gotten around to posting about them.

This is one that really caught my eye, and quite literally at that: Fantasy RPG Maps: The Wilderness of the Lost Realms.

The maps are simply gorgeous, with both PDF and POD options.

Heck, you can even support at a level that makes them usable in your commercial products.

Damn, but I'm such a fan of cool maps.

I'll let the maps speak for themselves...

Jon Peterson Comments Upon the Previously Unreleased Syndicated Radio D&D Pilot

You have to give +Jon Peterson a huge amount of credit. When he goes deep into the history of Dungeons & Dragons and into it's dark, forgotten corners he often comes out with D&D Gold. This time, I'd say he hit Platinum.

You can read a bit about the previously unreleased Syndicated Radio D&D Pilot at Jon's Playing at the World blog or even better yet, listen to it and Jon's commentary on Youtube. It's worth the time to listen.

Blood & Treasure 2nd Edition Released in PDF (OSR Ruleset)

Blood & Treasure 2nd Edition was released into the PDF wilds earlier today and there was much rejoicing.

+John Stater , well known for his NOD magazine and Hex Crawls releases under the Frog God Games banner, has completed revising his OSR ruleset, Blood & Treasure, to it's 2nd edition.

Here's what John has to say:

Blood & Treasure is the fantasy role-playing game for people who want to spend less time arguing over rules and more time playing, and the new 2nd Edition continues this tradition. 

Compatible with old school games, it strives to be rules lite and options heavy.
You get ... 

• Thirteen character classes, as well as suggested variations on the existing classes
• The classic fantasy races
• A streamlined and easy optional feats system
• Hundreds of spells and magic items - you can run games for years without running out of new things to try
• Optional scientific treasures for those who like science-fantasy
• Quick and easy rules for exploration, combat, mass combat, naval combat, strongholds and domains and a simple task resolution system
• Guidance on designing dungeons, wilderness, settlements and even the cosmos
• Suggestions on converting to other old school systems and changes between the first and second edition

Blood & Treasure 2nd Edition is designed to give you years of enjoyment in just two volumes, this book and the forthcoming Blood & Treasure 2nd Edition Monster book, which features over 600 monsters to challenge players. 

Blood & Treasure doesn't want to tell you what kind of fantasy game you should enjoy, it just wants to put all the tools in your hands and let you play YOUR GAME, YOUR WAY.

The PDF is 10 bucks with a POD release in the near future.

 

Deal of the Day - Adventure Most Fowl (S&W / OSR Adventure)

I almost missed this one. It's nice to see +Michael Garcia back on the saddle, so to speak ;)

“Curses are like chickens; they always come home to roost”, and if these chickens aren’t found soon, the Village of Kith will be doomed! 

On the edge of the Four Counties, in a backwater village of lost souls, there is a string of robberies that cannot be explained…Farmer Phileas Filson has lost his chickens, or rather he swears that they’ve been pilfered, along with his prize-winning hen Mabel, and no one in town will lift a finger to help. 

You and your adventuring comrades, freshly minted from the forges of fame and fortune, may be his only hope… 

Adventure Most Fowl is a great way to start that new party of low-level adventurers on the path to riches and rewards! With a broad cast of interesting, unusual and perhaps dangerous rural folk, a countryside filled with sheep, squash, and hallucinogenic flora and of course the mystery of missing poultry, your players and their new characters will have a fun-filled romp through this off-color backwater village. 

There’s a terrible force trying to impose itself on the Village of Kith…and it’s up to you to discover its source and put an end to the poultry-pinching party, and the havoc that is destined to follow if your players don’t solve this ADVENTURE MOST FOWL! 

• An OSR Module For 4–6 players level 0–1
• Hand-Drawn maps by DYSON LOGOS!
• 2 All-New Monsters including the Cockalorum!
• Original Artwork by Randy Davis
• For use with Swords & Wizardry, but easily converted and compatible with most OSR systems

edit - this ALMOST got posted to Saturday Knight Special by mistake... heh

Kickstarter - Worldographer: Hexographer 2 - Easy Map/World Creator (Happy Mapping)

I'm way behind on showcasing some of the Kickstarters that really excite me, so bear with mw over the next few posts as I attempt to catch up. Things can move fast when you don't pay attention, and I've been doing my darnedest NOT to find really cool Kickstarters. I need to budget a bit over the next few months.

Then I see that stuff like +Joe Wetzel 's Worldographer Kickstarter, where he takes Hexographer and basically turns it up to 11 (Spinal Tap anyone?)

I've had a lot of success with Hexographer. The learning curve is very small, and for someone like me that has ideas but lacks many of the technical skills to implement them, Hexographer is awesome. I'd like to call it idiot proof, but I'm sure if we look hard enough...

Anyhow, here's some the the new, key features for Worldographer:

• A new architecture allows us to have undo/redo functionality.
• Better "child maps." Create a world map and from that same map create a continent level map as well as a kingdom level map. It will remain one file so most changes to one level map will be reflected in the others.
• Hexographer's rather simple "note" functionality can expand to allow you to detail each location as well as things about your world not tied to a location: religions, cultures, important NPCs, etc. It becomes an interactive Gazetteer!
• We're adding an entirely new, more realistic icon set to the software.
• Polygons, Lines, Ovals, etc. have more options for shadows and textures.
• Easy drag and drop of labels and features: Most apps make this tricky, but we're improving it.
• Icosohedral Maps have been planned into Worldographer from the beginning.
• Configuration of new terrain, features, and textures is much easier. (Just drop files to a specific folder.)
• The new user interface framework gives the software a cleaner look.
• Mini-generators create details for notes about cities, castles, ruins, etc.

What's a "child map" you may ask?

I backed at $50 without giving it a thought. It really was that simple a decision.

Do you need to generate geographical maps for your campaign? Look no further.

Did I mention Joe even hangs out on the Wednesday Night Tavern Chats on occasion? Yep, he's that kinda down to earth guy. Oh, and it launched just over 2 days ago and it's nearly funded. Damn.

Now I need to get back to work ;)