March Madness OSR Challenge! Part 4

I want to thank Tomb of Tedankhamen for hosting this.

Here is part 4 of my list.  Hope you enjoy!

23 What is the most broken game that you tried and were unable to play?
The Bram Stoker's Dracula RPG.  It's just awful really.  This one is an easy choice.  But the question remains, is it broken or just bad?

24 What is the most broken game that you tried and loved to play, warts and all?
Broken is sometimes a matter of opinion.  I personally think the Skills and Powers books for 2nd Ed AD&D are broken.  The World of Synibarr is broken and bad, and yet there is something appealing about it.  It's just so crazy it went past bad right into crazy ass gonzo.  I have seen people say (and complain) that AD&D is broken.  It might be, but it is still fun.

25 Which game has the sleekest, most modern engine?
Cinematic Unisystem.  There isn't anything that it can't do well. Or maybe more to the point there isn't anything I can't do with it.  I am sure others think the same thing about GURPS, d20 and/or Savage Worlds. For me CineUnisystem is a perfect fit.

26 What RPG based on an IP did you enjoy most? Give details.
At the risk of sounding vain, Ghosts of Albion. Based on Amber Benson and Christopher Golden's novels and animations.  Written by myself. ;)  But seriously those have been some of the most fun games I have ever played.  Outside of that then the Buffy or Angel games.

27 What IP (=Intellectual Property, be it book, movie or comic) that doesn’t have an RPG deserves it? Why?
Charmed. I am dead serious.   I have been wanting to write a Charmed game for years and honestly I think I could not only do it justice but get people to play it that never watched the show.  One of the most fun times I ever had at Gen Con was playing Piper (a witch from Charmed) in a Charmed/Buffy/Supernatural crossover game.  I would love to do it as a Cinematic Unisystem game.  And it would rock.

28 What free RPG or what non-English RPG did you enjoy most? Give details.
For free I would have to say Basic Fantasy.  It really is a great game and really represents what I feel is the best ideals of the OSR.  Plus it is that sweet spot of how I was playing in the early 80s; a mix of Basic and Advanced D&D.

29 What OSR product have you enjoyed most? Explain why.
Wow. There are so many to be honest.  Nearly half of this blog is dedicated to OSR products I enjoy.  One of the things I like most about the OSR are the products that don't give me things I already have, but things I have always wanted or never knew I needed.
Here are some of my favorites.
B/X Companion - it gave me a book I have been waiting nearly 30 years for.  I had left B/X years ago, but I always felt a little longing for the Companion rules (levels 14-36) that we never got.
Labyrinth Lord - The Basic version of D&D that opened up the OSR world to me.  While in some respects I prefer Basic Fantasy, Labyrinth Lord is still one of my favorites.
Adventures Dark and Deep - Joesph Bloch's magnum opus. A "what if" book, so not a "retro-clone" really.  Something new based on history.  This book is AD&D 2nd ed if Gygax had not left TSR.  Is it "exactly" like what Gygax would have done? No. But this is the closest I think we will ever get.  Joe based this one the reading of all Gygax's letters and things he had mentioned in the pages of Dragon magazine and elsewhere.  It is also a perfectly enjoyable game in it's own right.
Spellcraft & Swordplay - Another "what if" game.  This one takes the SRD and uses the original combat mechanic found in OD&D (not the alternate d20 one we all now use).  It also streamlines a number of things and gives you a really nice, very gritty, old-school game.  One of my favorites.
Another favorite is Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea which I have talked about a lot here.

30 Which non-D&D supplemental product should everyone know about? Give details.
Chill Vampires. If you ever want to use vampires in any game then I suggest you get this book. If you can get the Pacesetter, 1st Edition version then do so, otherwise the Mayfair, 2nd Ed. version is good too, it is just missing a couple of the vampires I really found interesting.  It really is a great book on how vampires can go from being just another monster to an enemy that needs to be studied and understood before fighting.

31 What out-of-print RPG would you most like to see back in publication? Why?
Castle Falkenstein.  Not only is it a fun game, but Mike Poundsmith is one of the best game designers out there.  The premise is cool but the game design blew me away. If you have only ever played D&D or it's direct clones/offspring then you owe it to yourself to play this.  It is available in PDF but I would love to have it in print.

Zatannurday: Young Justice Girls Cameo in Scooby Doo

The DC Universe of any sort has always had an odd relationship with the Scooby-Doo one.  Going all the way back to Scooby-doo meets Batman and even recently in Batman Brave and the Bold.

Well the latest Scooby-doo entry was not where I was expecting to see another one.
Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery features cameos of the girls of Young Justice; Wonder Girl (Cassie Sandmark), Artemis, Zatanna and Miss Martian.

Somehow it makes sense that the girls like WWE.  Can't be any stranger than the fact that WWE is on the SyFy channel.

Makes my Zatanna/Hex Girls crossover seem more likely too!

Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery is out March 25, 2014.

An Interesting thing happened in the Theme Reveal

So an interesting thing happened today in the Blogging A to Z Theme Reveal.
I was clicking through some links and noticed that this one blog was doing an A to Z of Vampires, which is what I had been thinking of doing myself.  Her sister is doing A to Z of Ghosts. And another is do Supernatural creatures.

So we all have decided to get together and do a mini-hop inside the larger one of Supernatural A to Z posts.
Really we are not doing anything extra here, but helping increase the attention of like minded blogs.

So here are the links I have now. I'll add more.

Tasha's Thinkings, A to Z of Vampires
Sophie's Thoughts, A to Z of Ghosts
A Creative Mind, A to Z of Supernatural Creatures.

Here are the topics I am planning to cover in my A to Z of Witches.  Links are not live yet. They are set to be posted at 5:00am Central time.

4/1	A	Aradia	a-to-z-of-witches-a.html
4/2	B	Baba Yaga	a-to-z-of-witches-b.html
4/3	C	Coven, Circe	a-to-z-of-witches-c.html
4/4	D	Dianna	a-to-z-of-witches-d.html
4/5	E	Enchantment	a-to-z-of-witches-e.html
4/7	F	Familiar	a-to-z-of-witches-f.html
4/8	G	Gris Gris	a-to-z-of-witches-g.html
4/9	H	Hex	a-to-z-of-witches-h.html
4/10	I	Incantatrix / Imbolc Mage	a-to-z-of-witches-i.html
4/11	J	Ju-ju	a-to-z-of-witches-j.html
4/12	K	Kiki / Kikimora	a-to-z-of-witches-k.html
4/14	L	Lilith	a-to-z-of-witches-l.html
4/15	M	Morgan Le Fey	a-to-z-of-witches-m.html
4/16	N	Nox / Nicks	a-to-z-of-witches-n.html
4/17	O	Obeah	a-to-z-of-witches-o.html
4/18	P	Prue, Piper, Phoebe and Paige	a-to-z-of-witches-p.html
4/19	Q	Queen of Witches	a-to-z-of-witches-q.html
4/21	R	Rachel Morgan	a-to-z-of-witches-r.html
4/22	S	Shaman	a-to-z-of-witches-s.html
4/23	T	Tarot	a-to-z-of-witches-t.html
4/24	U	Underworld	a-to-z-of-witches-u.html
4/25	V	Voodoo	a-to-z-of-witches-v.html
4/26	W	Warlock	a-to-z-of-witches-w.html
4/28	X	Xothia	a-to-z-of-witches-x.html
4/29	Y	Yama-uba	a-to-z-of-witches-y.html
4/30	Z	Zatanna	a-to-z-of-witches-z.html

Here is the Sign-up list for the Supernatural A to Z. Sign up for this only if you are already doing the A to Z Challenge.  Hope to see more!

A to Z Blog challenge Theme Reveal

I am doing the A to Z blog challenge again this year.

Last year I did the theme of Demons A to Z.  This year I thought it would be Vampires, but something happened last week that made me change my mind.  So I ran back to the drawing board (or in this case the spreed sheet in Google Drive) and checked my ideas.

I am going to do the A to Z of Witches.

There are some out there wondering how this is a stretch for me.  Or even how this is different than any other day. Well I am planning to tackle a lot of topics and subjects that I don't otherwise do. I still have tons of ideas and tons of things to say.  This is a good chance for me to do this.

I am rather looking forward to this one.  I have a lot of ideas about what sorts of things I want to write about and I hope I can make interesting for all my audiences.

BTW I am also talking about one of my favorite books, Dracula, over at The Unconventional Librarian.
http://unconventionallibrarian.com/2014/03/21/atozchallenge-bookish-friends-introducing-tim/

Maybe I will do Vampires next year!

Today is the A to Z Blog Theme Reveal so lots of people are letting you know about their themes.

First day of Spring...

Today is the first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere.
Can't tell by looking outside.  Still a lot of ice outside.  So here are some pictures of Ice.


Ice - Justice League International - DC Comics by WhiteLemon on deviantART


Guy Gardner and Ice by JonathanDuran on deviantART


Tora by theEyZmaster on deviantART


Sailor Ice by dirk-geijsbeek on deviantART

Since today is the equinox, give equal time to Fire as well.



Ice and Fire - Justice League International - DC by WhiteLemon on deviantART


Fire and Ice by SebbyWhite on deviantART

Same Class

Random thought this morning between cups of coffee.

Have you ever been in a game where every character was the same class?
If so what class and how did it work out?

At Gen Con a couple years back I played a Castles and Crusades game where everyone played an assassin. Another time I played some 4e where everyone was a dwarf fighter.

The assassin one worked, the fighter one not as well, but A for effort.

How about you all?

Ten Favorite RPG Products of All Time

This started over at Dyvers blog and has now spread to others:
http://dyverscampaign.blogspot.com/2014/03/my-ten-favorite-rpg-products-of-all-time.html
http://realmsofchirak.blogspot.com/2014/03/death-bats-top-ten-favorite-rpg-books.html
http://ongoingcampaign.blogspot.com/2014/03/top-10-gaming-products.html

Not sure if this is a thing yet or not.  And many of us have answered these questions in some form or another over the years I am sure.  But it is still fun to read and do.

In no particular order and sometimes the entries are representative of a larger collection.

10. AD&D Monster Manual
The first RPG product I ever held or read.  It grabbed my attention in such a profound way that it is still, 35 years later, to fully quantify.  It fueled a life-time of fun and adventure.
Special Mention: AD&D Dungeon Master's Guide.
Nearly it's equal in effect but a superior book.  It just didn't get to my hands first.
Read more at: 1st Ed, D&D

9. Moldvay D&D Basic Set
A lot of people talk about "the Red Box". My Red Box was magenta and had Erol Otis on the cover.  For me this was the start of what became "my" D&D. Not someone else's game, but my own. I got my first set of dice in the box. I read and reread that book at least hundred times.
Special Mention: Cook/Marsh D&D Expert Set
Again, it might even superior to the Basic box just for everything it added.  But Basic comes first.
Read more at: D&D, Basic

8. Chill
Chill. I have talked about Chill so much and with good reason. This is the mid-west, monster fighting, "bumping back the things that go bump in the night", game where average Joes and Janes can stand against the darkness and walk away at the end.   While I have a special place in my heart for the Mayfair version, it is the 1st edition Pacesetter version that I think back too.
Special Mention: Chill Vampires
If I can only ever have one vampire hunting book then let it be this one.
Read more at: Chill, Vampires

7. Mage the Sorcerer's Crusade
"The Old Ways are Lost".  I love the the Renaissance; the idea of the world waking up out of darkness and ignorance to bring science and learning to all.  Ok. It didn't happen like that, but it can in a game and this if the best of the lot.  Plus it is old school magic versus new world science.  It takes what is great about Mage and makes so much more cooler.
Special Mention: Vampire the Masquerade
You can't have the Sorcerer's Crusade without Mage and you can't have Mage without Vampire the Masquerade.  VtM changed gaming in the 90s and it's effects can still seen today even far beyond gaming.
Read more at:  World of Darkness

6. Ravenloft Boxed Set
I loved the Ravenloft Module I6.  The boxed set Realms of Terror was just the thing I needed for my 2nd Ed games.  I loved horror, vampires, witches and this seemed like the perfect mix for me.  In fact I played so much Ravenloft that it is difficult for me to tease it apart from 2e.  They are the same for me really.
Special Mention:  Ravenloft Masque of the Red Death
What is the only way to improve Ravenloft?  Stick it on 19th century Earth and throw Dracula at the players.  There are many places where this game doesn't work, but I loved it all the same.
Read more at: Ravenloft, Victorian

5. Nightmares of Mine
This handy little guide is everything you need to run every sort of horror game. Straight up horror, survival horror, personal horror, comedy horror. You name it, this book covers it. It is small, but not cheap.
Special Mention: GURPS Horror
I have often complained that GURPS, as a game, has no soul, but the supplements can't be beat.  GURPS Horror is one of my favorites. Like Nightmares of Mine it covers how to play a number of different types of horror games.
Read more at: Horror

4. Call of Cthulhu
THE horror game.  I have always enjoyed the works of Lovecraft and in many ways CoC is not just the first horror game but also the first RPG based on a property.  The system itself, the Basic-Roleplaying System, also gave such fun games as RuneQuest and Elric/Stormbringer.
Special Mention: Cthulhu by Gaslight
As much as I love the cosmic horror of Lovecraft, Gothic horror is one of my first loves.  This is a great mix of both.
Read more at: Call of Cthulhu, BRP, Lovecraft

3. Role-Aids Witches
How could I not put this one up?  I have always rather liked Mayfair and their Role-Aids books.  The quality varies with some being quite bad.  But this one is great.  I had already been working on my own witch for a number of years when this one came out, but seeing it on the shelves made me happy. I knew I was working on something that at least one company liked.  Witches didn't invent the idea of Traditions, but it did help define it a little bit better.  Though I am still not a fan of the Deryni Witch.  Partly because I didn't think their concept worked as a witch and mostly because I had just left an OD&D game where we played Deryni as a race.  But in any case this is still one of my favorite third-part supplements to D&D.
Special Mention: Dragon #114
Most gamers of my generation remember this as the witch issue.  There is a lot to like about it, but what keeps this one around for me is the witch class.
Read more at: Witch

2. Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea
I have gone on and on (and on) about my love of this game. To me it really is the pinnacle of what the OSR could do.  Plus it has such a great feel to it and honestly it combines every that has been on this list so far.  D&D, horror soaked lands, monsters and things from beyond. All in a red box!
Special Mention: Basic Fantasy
Basic Fantasy to me represents the best DIY spirit of OSR and the community. It also happens to be a gret set of rules and is almost exactly how we played our Basic/Advanced D&D mashups back in the 80s.
Read more at: AS&SH, OSR, Basic

1.  C.J. Carella's WitchCraft
There has only been one game ever that has come close to displacing D&D in my heart and that is C.J. Carella's WitchCraft.  For me this game has everything I wanted in a modern game with a great back story, fantastic art and a magic system that really is second to none.
Special Mention: Ghosts of Albion
I know. Totally cheesy mentioning your own game, but it is true. Ghosts of Albion is not only my favorite Victorian game, but also my 256 page love letter to WitchCraft. 
Read more at: Witch, Unisystem, Ghosts of Albion

Building a Shared World

There are so many cool projects and products out now that fly under the loose banner of OSR.

It occurs to me that there might be enough to fill an entire campaign world.

For locations there is Dolmvay, Gamington, The Shrine of St. Aleena, Dunsmouth (and more from LotFP), Blackmarsh, Castle of the Mad Archmage, Dyson Delves I and II, The Majestic Wilderlands, Verloren, and  Vornheim,

For monsters (important to give the world a nice unique feel) we have, The Big book of Spiders, The Cartographer's Guide to the Creatures of Eira, Realms of Crawling Chaos, Teratic Tome,

There are even campaign worlds with built in rules (visa-versa) like Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea and Adventurer Conqueror King System.

Plus all the material from James Mishler Games and others.

This is just the stuff I know about.  What else is out there?
Has there been enough published "OSR" material to populate an entire campaign guide ala the Forgotten Realms or Greyhawk?

Has anyone tried fitting it all together?

I had wings once...

They were strong


But they were stolen from me.

Yeah I am a geek.  Get off my cloud man.

Fighting Fire the Ernie Gygax Benefit Adventure

Recently Ernie Gygax lost a number of personal items due to a fire in his home.

To make matters worse Ernie was laid up with CHF.

While insurance can replace some items, others were irreplaceable and frankly the shock of loss is a lot.

To help out the gaming community has offered something, this time a system neutral adventure "Fighting Fire".

The idea is simple, a third of the money goes to helping out Ernie.

The adventure itself is 32 pages (minus cover and title pages) with some NPCs.  It is edition agnostic (neutral in their words).  While they could have used something simple like Swords & Wizardry to give it some crunch, there isn't anything here an experienced gamer could run in about hour of prep time.   In fact while typing this I have gone from wanting to run this at as an "Old-school" adventure with something like Basic D&D to maybe running it under 3rd ed. instead.

The adventure is a simple, if tongue in cheek, one.  Defeat the evil fire wizard.

There is a lot of self-referential material here.  So knowing a little bit about the gaming industry and some of the people involved over the years will help you see some of the inside jokes.  But if not the adventure does not suffer for it.

It is described as a fairly simple adventure and it doesn't disappoint on the that regard.  Easily dropped into any game and any campaign.  

A lot of the art and maps come from various sources. I personally think it is kind of cool.  Everyone contributed something to this. 

While I can be accused (and rightly so) of waxing too nostalgic at times, I like the idea of the town of Gamington.  I also like the idea of adding it to my own world as a place where old adventurers go to retire.  They bring their treasure hoards and retire in style.  

In any case, this is a good cause and worth the money spent.

March Madness OSR Challenge! Part 3

I want to thank Tomb of Tedankhamen for hosting this.

Here is part 3 of my list.  Hope you enjoy!

16 Which RPG besides D&D has the best magic system? Give details.
Ghosts of Albion. Which is a total cheat on my part since I wrote it.  But seriously. I love the magic system in it.  I might never top that in my writing but I am sure as heck gonna try.  The system is flexible enough to cover D&D like spells, Mage like powers and even the innate magic of supernatural creatures.
Outside of Ghosts my favorite magic system is the one from Eden's WitchCraft RPG.

17 Which RPG has the best high tech rules? Why?
Doctor Who Adventures in Time and Space.  Mostly because it hand waves the tech rules.  Games run the risk of looking very, very dated when it comes to tech.  Look at Traveller, ShadowRun or even Kult.  Doctor Who plays it simple and therefore it works so much better.

18 What is the crunchiest RPG you have played? Was it enjoyable?
Maybe GURPS or even D&D itself.  I like most games to be honest so to me enjoyment is more a factor of the playing rather than the rules.

19 What is the fluffiest RPG you have played? Was it enjoyable?
Monsterhearts. It is quite fun, but not for every audience.  Also Monster of the Week is in there; similar mechanics.

20 Which setting have you enjoyed most? Why?
Anything in the Victorian age. I love the time period and it is great for all sorts of conflict. You can play class vs. class, modern vs. old world or even magic/supernatural vs. science.  The world was new to explore and people had the means to do it. It was an exciting time for nearly anything you would want in an adventure game.

21 What is the narrowest genre RPG you have ever played? How was it?
70s Black exploration.  The games that suited it best were Solid! and Damnation Decade. I played a hippie witch from Berkeley. Interestingly enough this was an extension of my Chill game from the 80s.  I normally am not a fan of the 70s, but these games were great.

22 What is the most gonzo kitchen sink RPG you ever played? How was it?
Back in the early d20 days I was playing with my son.  We used D&D 3.0, Mutants and Masterminds, BESM d20, Star Wars, Silver Age Sentinels and anything that wasn't nailed down. We had a blast.

Friday Video: Satanism Unmasked Dungeons & Dragons

I am obsessed with the 80s Satanic Panic.  Here is another little turd from that time.

Christians talking about how morally deficient and evil D&D is.

)

Why is that these people get their facts so wrong?
Not just the really wrong shit of satanism in a game, but they can't even get the basic facts right.

...Satanism is not part of Witchcraft and visa versa.
...Those are not the words from "Shout at the Devil"
...NecroNOMicon, not Necro"NOME"icon.
...no suicides due to D&D.
...what the hell is a "training 'prim-er'"?
...interviewing prisoners. Always a good source of "credible" information.

I could go on. But what is the point.  Here is a great podcast from "The Thinking Atheist".

)

And this gem, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jrMoVWl5KA

Ok. How about this.

Shield of Faith
(Basic Era/Labyrinth Lord/Basic Fantasy/S&W)
Level: Cleric 1 to 7
Range: 5' in front of the Cleric
Duration: 1 round per level
By means of this spell the cleric focuses their faith into a tangible shield that will protect them from harm from creatures the cleric can consider "Evil".  Typically this is a creature of Chaotic alignment (or Lawful for a Chaotic cleric) and an "outsider" or supernatural creature. This includes (but not limited to) undead, djinn, effrit, demons, devils and any type of spirit. Sometimes even faerie creatures.
The spell reduces the attacks of these creatures at a number of hp per the spell level.  So a 5th level cleric using a 2nd level Shield of Faith would be able reduce 2 points per attack for 5 rounds.
The cleric must present their holy symbol when casting and they cannot attack.
Material Components: The clerics holy symbol.

A to Z Blogging Chat

I am taking part in today's Blogging A to Z chat.

A to Z Chats are going to be scheduled on Thursdays from 1 PM to 2 PM Eastern U.S. Time and from 8 PM to 9 PM Eastern Time U.S.

Yeah, I know some people are tired of blog hops, challenges, circle jerks, whatever.
But that is not why (or who) I do these for.  Last year I had people outside of our own corner of the web post or email me and had no idea that RPGs, let alone D&D was still "a thing".  One woman even ended up with S&S, Basic Fantasy and some other books on my recommendation for her husband who had played in the 80s but no more.

So join me on Twitter, @timsbrannan with hashtag #AZchat.

Today I am contemplating a theme change for the challenge.
Something that I think will work better for everyone here.

White Dwarf Wednesday Index

Here it is. A link index to every White Dwarf Wednesday I have done.

Issues #1-#100
White Dwarf #1
White Dwarf #2
White Dwarf #3
White Dwarf #4
White Dwarf #5
White Dwarf #6
White Dwarf #7
White Dwarf #8
White Dwarf #9
White Dwarf #10

White Dwarf #11
White Dwarf #12
White Dwarf #13
White Dwarf #14
White Dwarf #15
White Dwarf #16
White Dwarf #17
White Dwarf #18
White Dwarf #19
White Dwarf #20
White Dwarf #21

White Dwarf #24
White Dwarf #22
White Dwarf #23
White Dwarf #25
White Dwarf #26
White Dwarf #27
White Dwarf #28
White Dwarf #29
White Dwarf #30
White Dwarf #31
White Dwarf #32

White Dwarf #33
White Dwarf #34
White Dwarf #35
White Dwarf #36
White Dwarf #37
White Dwarf #38
White Dwarf #39
White Dwarf #40
White Dwarf #41
White Dwarf #42
White Dwarf #43

White Dwarf #44
White Dwarf #45
White Dwarf #46
White Dwarf #47
White Dwarf #48
White Dwarf #49
White Dwarf #50
White Dwarf #51
White Dwarf #52
White Dwarf #53
White Dwarf #54

White Dwarf #55
White Dwarf #56
White Dwarf #57
White Dwarf #58
White Dwarf #59
White Dwarf #60
White Dwarf #61
White Dwarf #62
White Dwarf #63
White Dwarf #64
White Dwarf #65

White Dwarf #66
White Dwarf #67
White Dwarf #68
White Dwarf #69
White Dwarf #70
White Dwarf #71
White Dwarf #72
White Dwarf #73
White Dwarf #74
White Dwarf #75
White Dwarf #76

White Dwarf #77
White Dwarf #78
White Dwarf #79
White Dwarf #80
White Dwarf #81
White Dwarf #82
White Dwarf #83
White Dwarf #84
White Dwarf #85
White Dwarf #86
White Dwarf #87

White Dwarf #88
White Dwarf #89
White Dwarf #90
White Dwarf #91
White Dwarf #92
White Dwarf #93
White Dwarf #94
White Dwarf #95
White Dwarf #96
White Dwarf #97
White Dwarf #98
White Dwarf #99
White Dwarf #100

Two years, two months and 100 issues.  Quite a ride!

Doctor Who: Adventures in Time and Space Limited Edition Hardcover Edition (PDF)

The PDF version of Doctor Who: Adventures in Time and Space Limited Edition Hardcover Edition is now up at DriveThruRPG.

If you have either of the 11th or 10th Doctor version of this game then you have most of the rules and text, though some things look like the are a bit clearer (or I am rereading them for 10th time).  This is one full document as opposed to the multiple PDFs of the "boxed sets".  It also updates the text to reflect the last bits of the Matt Smith seasons and the Day of the Doctor 50th Anniversary special.  So stats for the War Doctor and updated Zygons.

It is an extremely attractive book (256 full color pages).  If you are new to this game then this is the place to start. If you are new to Doctor Who, well then I would say grab the Tenth or Eleventh Doctor version of the rules.  All the same rules, but less emphasis on the the show's own history.   Though there are the story/adventure seeds for all 12 doctors and that is very nice.

I plan on picking this one up in hardback as soon as I can to be honest.  That's how much I enjoy this game.

New Maleficent Poster

This was released yesterday.

Yeah.  I am really looking forward to this!

The Light's Winning: True Detective

Wow.

That is really all I have to say about the season finale of HBO's "True Detective".

I am not going to discuss the finale at all here, there are still people that have not seen it here or overseas.  But honestly this is one of the best things I have seen on American TV in a long, long time.

Not only were Matthew McConaughey (Det. Rustin "Rust" Cohle) and Woody Harrelson (Det. Martin "Marty" Hart) fantastic, they were the best I can ever remember seeing them.

The story pulled you in and kept you in till the end.  Honestly I kinda want to rewatch it just to make sure I caught everything.

It is one of the best "Southern Gothic" stories I have seen in a long time, and I will admit to having a soft spot in my heart for this genre. It was not just Noir-ish cop drama, although it works as that too, there is an undercurrent of pure darkness here that should disturb any rational thinking person.

A lot has been made of the "Lovecraftian" (ok really "Chambersian") uses of "Carcosa" and "The King in Yellow".  The fact that it was all steeped in hard reality and not some mythic world made it even more terrifying.  It certainly makes any other use of Carcosa seem pale and immature in comparison.  Seriously.

This would make such a fantastic Call of Cthlhu adventure it staggers my mind to think about how cool it could be. Horror, even 'Lovecraftian' horror, does not have to be about the monsters from beyond.  Especially if the monsters in the bayou or the local church school work well enough.

If you have not had the chance, check out the companion website, http://darknessbecomesyou.com/

If that is not enough then listen to the title song ("theme song" seems wrong). Haunting.


I am very surprised that something unseated American Horror Story as my favorite show of 2014.

Happy Birthday to The Other Side...sorta

March 10 is the unofficial birthday of The Other Side.

I say that because this is the day I set up my first website, also called the Other Side, back in 1996.  I remember working on it at work during the week and and scribbling down some code in class (I was still getting my Ph.D. then).
I finally got it up and live over the weekend.  I suppose I should say it was 11th. That was when I let people know.  But the 10th was when I uploaded my index.html page to make it all work.

It wasn't much to be honest, but it was mine.

So happy birth to my site which died and then returned as this blog.

March Madness OSR Challenge! Part 2

I want to thank Tomb of Tedankhamen for hosting this.

Here is part 2 of my list.  Hope you enjoy!

9 What superhero RPG have you enjoyed most? Why?
Mutants and Masterminds is one of my favorites. I also enjoyed Villains and Vigilantes and Superbabes.
I just liked the way M&M worked to be honest.
Back in the day we used to take our D&D characters and drop them right into V&V.  It was the 80s things like that were allowed.

10 What science fiction RPG have you enjoyed most? Give details.
Doctor Who Adventures in Time and Space is my current favorite sci-fi game.  I like it's flexibility and it's openness.  Plus being a big fan of Doctor Who doesn't hurt.  But in all seriousness it is just a really fun game and really forces you to think about how to do things other than fighting all the time.

11 What post-apocalyptic RPG have you enjoyed most? Why?
Gamma World or Armageddon. I am not a huge fan of post-apoc games to be honest, but I have had fun with them in the past.  Gamma World is gonzo fun and Armageddon is a nice addition to the WitchCraft line.

12 What humorous RPG have you enjoyed most? Give details.
Army of Darkness. I think counts. It has a solid humor element. Same with Ghostbusters. Witch Girls Adventures also has a humor to it that I like.  I like to inject all my games with a bit of humor. Temper the darkness a bit.

13 What horror RPG have you enjoyed most? Why?
Too many to count really.  Chill, Call of Cthulhu, GURPS, WitchCraft, Buffy, Army of Darkness, Vampire, Mage, Ghosts of Albion, Kult, Monsterhearts, Wraith and lots more. I love horror games. I even run my D&D games as horror games.

14 What historical or cultural RPG have you enjoyed most? Give details.
Not sure what this one is asking. I like anything Victorian.  But outside of that Mage the Sorcerers' Crusade for playing in the Renaissance. For a purely historical RPG, Victoria is one of my favorites.

15 What pseudo or alternate history RPG have you enjoyed most? Why?
Castle Falkenstein is one of my favorite alt-history games.  Victoriana is another good one. And Space: 1899.  Anything in the Victorian period really.

Zatannurday: Zatanna by Stephanie Buscema

I have really been enjoying the Red Sonja covers by Stephanie Buscema of late.  I am posting some over at Red Sonja She-devil With A Sword and Amazon Princess today.  Here is her Zatanna

Links

• Blog, http://stephaniebuscema.blogspot.com/
• Etsy, http://www.etsy.com/shop/wreckinbyrd?ref=em
• Homepage, http://www.stephaniebuscema.com/
• Twitter, https://twitter.com/StephBuscema
• Tumblr, http://stephbuscema.tumblr.com/
• Comic Vine, http://www.comicvine.com/stephanie-buscema/4040-47849/
• Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephanie-Buscema/270727659633788

Dark Dungeons: Reloaded

"Because, as we all know, the path that leads straight to hell is paved with lead miniatures and polyhedral dice!" - Tom Servo

So a number of years ago I made a little thing called "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Dark Dungeons".
An MST3k style send up of the terrible Jack Trick tract "Dark Dungeons".  The original is gone (it was on an older version of the Other Side website) but there are lot of places where you can find it now.

• http://www.rpglibrary.org/inspiration/darkdungeons/intro.html
• http://www.humpin.org/mst3kdd/
• http://www.fecundity.com/darkdung/
• Original, https://web.archive.org/web/20010619152118/http://www.planetadnd.com/humor/DD-MST3K/index.php

Most gamers know about it by now I think.

I love seeing send-ups of this piece of crap.
Here is one from the Escapist that is funny, http://www.theescapist.com/darkdungeons.htm

But this it one that has me laughing the most today.
From Hugo and Jake of "The Bible Reloaded".



There are more I know.  But this one is funny.

"I don't know about you, but Jack Chick taught me that witches rock! They get to fight zombies, wear cool clothes, hang out with Ms. Frost, and engage in mind bondage." - Crow T. Robot.

Don't forget we have a Dark Dungeons movie coming out too.
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/130778-Jack-Chick-Dark-Dungeons-Movie-On-Course-For-Gen-Con

Dark Dungeons the RPG (RC retro-clone) can also be found here: http://www.gratisgames.webspace.virginmedia.com/

What Will $50 get You?

So I am slow at this. Sorry, been sick.

The price point for the first releases of the next edition of Dungeons & Dragons has been leaked by Barnes & Noble.

The Player's Handbook has a MSRP of $49.99. (link now dead)
The "Starter Set" has a MSRP of $19.99. (link also dead)
(the Escapist has commentary and screenshots)

And queue the rounds of people saying it's too expensive.

Let's look at the Player's Handbooks over the years. I have included the price, the number of pages, and the retail price. I am also including the adjusted price for inflation based on the US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics.

AD&D 1st Ed. (1978) 128 pages, $19.95  ($71.68)
AD&D 2nd Ed. (1989) 246 pages, $20.00 ($37.73)
D&D 3.0 (2000) 302 pages, $19.95*  (special intro price, increased to $29.95)  ($27.10, $40.68)
D&D 3.5 (2003) 302 pages, $29.95 ($38.07)
D&D 4th (2008) 320 pages, $34.95 ($37.97)
D&D 5th Ed. (2014) xxx pages, $50.00 ($50.00)

Maybe $40.00 is the sweet spot on this, but $50.00 does not seem too far out to me.
Compare this to a new video game, $60.00.  Ah, but you say, you can't play D&D with just the player's book, you need at least another 100 bucks for the DMG and MM.  Well. You can't play a video game by itself either you need a system (anywhere from $300 to $400).

So really. This is not a huge expense in today's market.  It is also likely to be 300+ pages, full color with, what I have seen so far, great art.

I am planning on buying these at my Favorite Local Game Store.  I believe in keeping game stores in business and supporting my local economy. So yeah, that means I am in for at least $120.00.  I will get the starter set too.

But you know what? I am an adult. I make good money. I can drop that much on my favorite hobby, on my favorite game.

Currently the modules for D&D 5 run from $5.00 (Vault of the Dracolich) to $18.00 (Dreams of the Red Wizards: Scourge of the Sword Coast) to $30 ($18 on sale) (Ghosts of Dragonspear Castle).
I like the art and expect that the rule books will be about the same.

So honestly, this sounds fine to me.