From 3/15/2011:
ZEITGEIST Adventure Path Intro
by EN Publishing
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=89418&it=1&SRC=newsletter
Download this FREE short two-page introduction to EN Publishing's upcoming ZEITGEIST adventure path for D&D 4th Edition and PATHFINDER RPG, available here on RPGNow and DriveThruRPG! You can purchase the ZEITGEIST subscription here.
Trophy Case vol. 1, no. 3
by Games by Scott Casper
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=89403&it=1&SRC=newsletter
HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS is back with more goodies, like four new mobsters, addenda to a Supplement I appendix, a review of the book Supermen: The First Wave of Comic Book Heroes, original fiction from blogger Steve Lopez, and tips for H&H players!
Newest Products
Power Pics Villains 12- Timeshift M&M edition
by Mesozoic Press
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=89492&it=1&SRC=newsletter
Price: $0.99
New and improved! Now contains stats to instantly use in your M&M game, all at the same old price! Power Pics are intended to be used in roleplaying games for either PC and NPC portraits or generic stock art in personal or professional...
From 6/29/2011:
A Wanderer's Romance
by Stargazer Games
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=92757&it=1&SRC=newsletter
The world began as nothing but ocean. The Origins raised up a million colourful islands, anything larger than a few dozen miles being swallowed by the envious deep. Some of these immaterial beings chose to take a physical form and live in the varied lands...
The Trophy Case vol. 1, no.4
by Games by Scott Casper
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=92755&it=1&SRC=newsletter
HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS is back with more free goodies, like more fiction, optional rules for Fighters, an in-depth review of Captain America Comics, the Trickster class, and conversion notes for running a classic MSH module in H&H!
Newest Products
0one's Blueprints: Eerie Forest
by 0one Games
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=92786&it=1&SRC=newsletter
Price: $1.95
Are your players going through a spectral and haunted forest? Do unnerving noises and strange apparitions surround them? They are not? Well, they will be... Eerie Forest is a haunted forest you can place anywhere in your own campaign. The forest is...
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Thursday, December 1, 2011
DriveThruRPG Newsletter 1/13/2011
Otherworld Creations
As always, the Drunken Goblin has lots of cool sales going on. Two that bear pointing out, though are Super Genius Games' 25% Off Everything, going on until 1/17.
Hero 5thAt the same time, Hero Games has put ALL Hero System 5th Edition products on sale for 50% OFF!
Bring it to the Table
The Villain Class
By Scott Casper of Games by Scott Casper
The following is a preview of character class debuting in Supplement II: All-American, coming very soon, for HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS!
Villains: If the Editor is amenable to a campaign of non-Heroic activity the players may opt to play this class, though it is best used as a foil for the Heroes under the Editor's control. There are too many examples from comic books to list them all here, but some obvious examples are the Claw, Luthor, the Joker, Dr. Sivana, and (very early in his career) even the Sub-Mariner.
The Editor may, however, wish to use the villain class for mobsters only. Levels in the villain class can be added on to established mobsters, especially those who have survived earlier run-in(s) with the Heroes – for example, a Master Criminal/3rd-level Villain, a Napoleon/2nd-level Villain, or a Fu Manchu/5th-level Mysteryman/4th-level Villain (see Book II for stacking levels onto mobsters).
The Prime Requisite of the villain is Intelligence, which must be 12 or better, though Strength must also be 12 or better. Wisdom cannot be higher than 17. Villains may be of any race, but must always be of Chaotic Alignment. They may wear any armor, use any weapons, and any magic items a Mysteryman can employ.
Saving Throws: Villains make saving throws against science and magic at +1 and against poison and missiles at +2.
XP Bonus for Intelligence: This class bonus is due to a high Intelligence attribute.
Click Here for the Villains Class Level Table
The main special ability of the Villain is the ability to survive events, such as falling a great distance or drowning, that would normally even kill Heroes. If the Villain is reduced to 0 hp by something that should be capable of killing him, but makes a successful survival roll, then the Villain somehow survived. The Editor may have to get creative with an explanation for how the Villain survived (the Villain was caught on a tree branch no one saw in the ravine and was saved from the fall, the Villain found an underwater air-filled cave before drowning, etc.), but may not need the explanation ready until the Villain is next encountered.
Villains also have the ability to disguise themselves. If given enough time and materials to prepare (typically 1d6 days and 1d6x10 dollars) a villain can disguise himself to look like anyone. The disguise does not even need to be particularly clever. Normally, a rubber mask would not fool anyone, but on the face of a villain, a rubber mask is astonishingly realistic until removed. The villain may even be wearing a second mask (or even glasses!) underneath it.
A Villain can “monologue” at any time in the presence of a Hero. So long as the Villain is talking (or the Player playing the Villain is talking), any Heroes wishing to act must successfully save against plot to interrupt. Any pause in the monologue allows the Heroes to act normally.
A Villain may also “attach” himself to a Hero and become his nemesis. When in direct conflict with his nemesis, the Villain is equal level to the Hero. For example, a 3rd level Villain is the nemesis for a 7th level Hero. On the first turn of a combat, the Villain attempts to pistol whip a Supporting Cast Character (SCC), so he attacks as a 3rd level Villain. On the following turn the Hero shows up, so the Villain sprays multiple bullets (two per turn, being an automatic pistol), choosing both the SCC and the Hero as targets. The Villain now can make both attacks as a 7th level Villain, and even has extra HD (additional hp rolled on the spot) for the Hero's counterattack. On the third turn, the Villain fails his morale save and flees. Because the Villain is no longer directly confronting the Hero, he only has his normal HD for when the Hero pounces on him from behind.
A Villain cannot un-attach himself from a living Hero once a nemesis is chosen, even if the Villain becomes higher in level than the Hero. If the Hero actually dies, the Villain may choose a new nemesis after a year of game time has passed.
Villains can invent temporarily-functioning hi-tech items, just as Fighters, Superheroes, Mysterymen, and (non-Hero) mad scientists can, as per Book II: Mobsters and Trophies.
Starting at 8th level, Villains may establish hideouts and attract mobsters to them. When the Villain is being played by a Player, the details of the hideout must be worked out by the Player and approved by the Editor.
A Villain can never kill a Hero directly. If a Villain should defeat a Hero, the Villain must place the Hero into a death trap from which there is a chance (however slim) to escape. No saving throw against plot is allowed to circumvent this rule. If a Villain is being played by a Player, the Player must invent the details of the death trap, including describing how the Hero could possibly escape from it. The Player and Editor together must then agree on how likely the Hero's chance of escaping is (typically between a 1 in 6 or 3 in 6 chance) and the Editor will roll for it.
Villains have difficulty resisting the urge to boast in front of Heroes. Every time a Villain encounters a Hero, he must save against plot or reveal his planned intentions to the Hero(es) present.
Starting at 10th level, Villains must begin competing for territory. There can only be one Villain of 10th level or higher claiming a territory no smaller than 2,500 square miles. If there already is an established Villain claiming the desired territory, the new Villain will have to fight the old one until one of them is forced to leave or is killed.
go to top
Treasures of the Net
Header
Matt Looks Back at 2010 (Flames Rising)
2010 is just about over, where did the time go?
This was a pretty big year for me all around, with my expanded role at OneBookShelf (the company behind DriveThruRPG, DriveThruComics and related sites). If you don’t already know, I’m the Publisher Relations and Marketing Manager for OneBookShelf. I had the chance to work some awesome publishers and travel to quite a few conventions across the country. Recently, we got a print program up and running where folks can order print editions of titles like Descended From Darkness from Apex Book Company, Laws of the Night from White Wolf and King Arthur Pendragon from Nocturnal just to name a few. This has been a busy and detailed process working with some great publishers to get this program up and running and I’m looking forward to seeing it further develop in the new year.
My role managed to cut into my review writing time a lot more than I wanted it too, which meant I only wrote a handful of them for Flames Rising this past year. Still, I did have the chance to do some fun interviews in 2010, including Mouse Guard creator David Petersen as well as Forgotten Realms authors Ed Greenwood and R.A. Salvatore. The most popular interview I did this year was with Shane DeFreest from White Wolf where we discussed The Grand Masquerade. That was a fun show and I’m looking forward to the upcoming Vampire MMO they have in development.
This was the first year we did Theme Weeks at Flames Rising and they were certainly a lot of fun. I don’t think I can pick a favorite, but Cthulhu Week was certainly fun to put together. I’m looking forward to a few new themes we have been discussing behind the scenes for next year.
We also added quite a few awesome design essays from creators of RPGs, comics, games and films this past year. Along with our previews, these articles are among our most popular content and I’ve had a blast working with very talented people to give them a chance to tell us about their creative process. You can find most of these essays in our horror articles category. So check ‘em out, some great material there.
We added some great people to the Flames Rising crew this year as well like Eric Pollarine, Nancy Greene, Decapitated Dan Royer to our list of talented contributors. Our writers have helped increase the quality of content we’re offering including reviews, interviews and articles. Just dig into the archive of your favorite part of the site and you will see some of the excellent material everyone on the team has posted over the course of the year.
What’s new for next year? Stick around and find out.
Matt M McElroy
Flames Rising
As always, the Drunken Goblin has lots of cool sales going on. Two that bear pointing out, though are Super Genius Games' 25% Off Everything, going on until 1/17.
Hero 5thAt the same time, Hero Games has put ALL Hero System 5th Edition products on sale for 50% OFF!
Bring it to the Table
The Villain Class
By Scott Casper of Games by Scott Casper
The following is a preview of character class debuting in Supplement II: All-American, coming very soon, for HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS!
Villains: If the Editor is amenable to a campaign of non-Heroic activity the players may opt to play this class, though it is best used as a foil for the Heroes under the Editor's control. There are too many examples from comic books to list them all here, but some obvious examples are the Claw, Luthor, the Joker, Dr. Sivana, and (very early in his career) even the Sub-Mariner.
The Editor may, however, wish to use the villain class for mobsters only. Levels in the villain class can be added on to established mobsters, especially those who have survived earlier run-in(s) with the Heroes – for example, a Master Criminal/3rd-level Villain, a Napoleon/2nd-level Villain, or a Fu Manchu/5th-level Mysteryman/4th-level Villain (see Book II for stacking levels onto mobsters).
The Prime Requisite of the villain is Intelligence, which must be 12 or better, though Strength must also be 12 or better. Wisdom cannot be higher than 17. Villains may be of any race, but must always be of Chaotic Alignment. They may wear any armor, use any weapons, and any magic items a Mysteryman can employ.
Saving Throws: Villains make saving throws against science and magic at +1 and against poison and missiles at +2.
XP Bonus for Intelligence: This class bonus is due to a high Intelligence attribute.
Click Here for the Villains Class Level Table
The main special ability of the Villain is the ability to survive events, such as falling a great distance or drowning, that would normally even kill Heroes. If the Villain is reduced to 0 hp by something that should be capable of killing him, but makes a successful survival roll, then the Villain somehow survived. The Editor may have to get creative with an explanation for how the Villain survived (the Villain was caught on a tree branch no one saw in the ravine and was saved from the fall, the Villain found an underwater air-filled cave before drowning, etc.), but may not need the explanation ready until the Villain is next encountered.
Villains also have the ability to disguise themselves. If given enough time and materials to prepare (typically 1d6 days and 1d6x10 dollars) a villain can disguise himself to look like anyone. The disguise does not even need to be particularly clever. Normally, a rubber mask would not fool anyone, but on the face of a villain, a rubber mask is astonishingly realistic until removed. The villain may even be wearing a second mask (or even glasses!) underneath it.
A Villain can “monologue” at any time in the presence of a Hero. So long as the Villain is talking (or the Player playing the Villain is talking), any Heroes wishing to act must successfully save against plot to interrupt. Any pause in the monologue allows the Heroes to act normally.
A Villain may also “attach” himself to a Hero and become his nemesis. When in direct conflict with his nemesis, the Villain is equal level to the Hero. For example, a 3rd level Villain is the nemesis for a 7th level Hero. On the first turn of a combat, the Villain attempts to pistol whip a Supporting Cast Character (SCC), so he attacks as a 3rd level Villain. On the following turn the Hero shows up, so the Villain sprays multiple bullets (two per turn, being an automatic pistol), choosing both the SCC and the Hero as targets. The Villain now can make both attacks as a 7th level Villain, and even has extra HD (additional hp rolled on the spot) for the Hero's counterattack. On the third turn, the Villain fails his morale save and flees. Because the Villain is no longer directly confronting the Hero, he only has his normal HD for when the Hero pounces on him from behind.
A Villain cannot un-attach himself from a living Hero once a nemesis is chosen, even if the Villain becomes higher in level than the Hero. If the Hero actually dies, the Villain may choose a new nemesis after a year of game time has passed.
Villains can invent temporarily-functioning hi-tech items, just as Fighters, Superheroes, Mysterymen, and (non-Hero) mad scientists can, as per Book II: Mobsters and Trophies.
Starting at 8th level, Villains may establish hideouts and attract mobsters to them. When the Villain is being played by a Player, the details of the hideout must be worked out by the Player and approved by the Editor.
A Villain can never kill a Hero directly. If a Villain should defeat a Hero, the Villain must place the Hero into a death trap from which there is a chance (however slim) to escape. No saving throw against plot is allowed to circumvent this rule. If a Villain is being played by a Player, the Player must invent the details of the death trap, including describing how the Hero could possibly escape from it. The Player and Editor together must then agree on how likely the Hero's chance of escaping is (typically between a 1 in 6 or 3 in 6 chance) and the Editor will roll for it.
Villains have difficulty resisting the urge to boast in front of Heroes. Every time a Villain encounters a Hero, he must save against plot or reveal his planned intentions to the Hero(es) present.
Starting at 10th level, Villains must begin competing for territory. There can only be one Villain of 10th level or higher claiming a territory no smaller than 2,500 square miles. If there already is an established Villain claiming the desired territory, the new Villain will have to fight the old one until one of them is forced to leave or is killed.
go to top
Treasures of the Net
Header
Matt Looks Back at 2010 (Flames Rising)
2010 is just about over, where did the time go?
This was a pretty big year for me all around, with my expanded role at OneBookShelf (the company behind DriveThruRPG, DriveThruComics and related sites). If you don’t already know, I’m the Publisher Relations and Marketing Manager for OneBookShelf. I had the chance to work some awesome publishers and travel to quite a few conventions across the country. Recently, we got a print program up and running where folks can order print editions of titles like Descended From Darkness from Apex Book Company, Laws of the Night from White Wolf and King Arthur Pendragon from Nocturnal just to name a few. This has been a busy and detailed process working with some great publishers to get this program up and running and I’m looking forward to seeing it further develop in the new year.
My role managed to cut into my review writing time a lot more than I wanted it too, which meant I only wrote a handful of them for Flames Rising this past year. Still, I did have the chance to do some fun interviews in 2010, including Mouse Guard creator David Petersen as well as Forgotten Realms authors Ed Greenwood and R.A. Salvatore. The most popular interview I did this year was with Shane DeFreest from White Wolf where we discussed The Grand Masquerade. That was a fun show and I’m looking forward to the upcoming Vampire MMO they have in development.
This was the first year we did Theme Weeks at Flames Rising and they were certainly a lot of fun. I don’t think I can pick a favorite, but Cthulhu Week was certainly fun to put together. I’m looking forward to a few new themes we have been discussing behind the scenes for next year.
We also added quite a few awesome design essays from creators of RPGs, comics, games and films this past year. Along with our previews, these articles are among our most popular content and I’ve had a blast working with very talented people to give them a chance to tell us about their creative process. You can find most of these essays in our horror articles category. So check ‘em out, some great material there.
We added some great people to the Flames Rising crew this year as well like Eric Pollarine, Nancy Greene, Decapitated Dan Royer to our list of talented contributors. Our writers have helped increase the quality of content we’re offering including reviews, interviews and articles. Just dig into the archive of your favorite part of the site and you will see some of the excellent material everyone on the team has posted over the course of the year.
What’s new for next year? Stick around and find out.
Matt M McElroy
Flames Rising
DriveThruRPG Newsletter free product notices
From 9/2/2010:
Open Game Table: The Anthology of Roleplaying Game Blogs, Vol. 2
by Nevermet Press
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=82976&it=1&discount=39932&SRC=newsletter
Normal Price: $9.95 Discount Price: $8.50
Looking for the best content and commentary from RPG Blogosphere? Loved OGT Volume 1? Well - Open Game Table, Volume 2 was released at GenCon'10 and is now available as a PDF eBook! Inside you'll find interviews with Dave Arneson, Jonathan Roberts, and Robin D. Laws; and inciteful forward about the state of RPGs by White Wolf Designer Justin Achilli, and dozens of amazing articles that will take your game to the next level. As a special discount from this newsletter - you can grab it today to complete your collection for the same 60%-off coverprice discount available through Two-Volume Bundle New to Open Game Table? Grab the Volume 1 & 2 Open Game Table together in our Two-Volume BUNDLE for over 60% OFF THE COVER! Original, vetted 4E D&D content and much more are included in both volumes! Over 120 peer-reviewed and impactful posts from over 50 authors in the RPG blogosphere. LEVEL UP YOUR GAME - AND GET OPEN GAME TABLE TODAY!
Newest Free Products
Trophy Case vol. 1, no. 1
by Games by Scott Casper
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=83857&it=1&SRC=newsletter
Now the HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS campaign has its own support newsletter! The premiere issue features the first part of a review of the Golden Age Flash Archives, Swords & Wizardry-compatible statistics for a new mobster - the evil eye - and a so...
Sartar Clan Questionairre
by Issaries
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=83865&it=1&SRC=newsletter
The Sartar Clan Questionnaire contains all the questions for the Clan Questionnaire from the Sartar: Kingdom of Heroes book (but without the answers) to help your players create their own clan. Players have found just filling out the questionairre shows t...
From 12/2/2010:
Newest Free Products
Trophy Case vol. 1, no. 2
by Games by Scott Casper
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=86389&it=1&SRC=newsletter
HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS is back with more goodies, like a new mobster, a new character class, more golden age comic reviews, and a first -- conversion notes for playing a classic MSH game with H&H!
Shark Bone Podcast - CHUM07
by Shark Bone Games
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=86388&it=1&SRC=newsletter
CHUM episodes are our version of bonus episodes. And this one is super-bonus. It's me (Devon) talking, audio-blog style, about gaming. Practicing our gaming. This is the hobby we love? Why DON'T we practice it to make it/ourselves...
Open Game Table: The Anthology of Roleplaying Game Blogs, Vol. 2
by Nevermet Press
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=82976&it=1&discount=39932&SRC=newsletter
Normal Price: $9.95 Discount Price: $8.50
Looking for the best content and commentary from RPG Blogosphere? Loved OGT Volume 1? Well - Open Game Table, Volume 2 was released at GenCon'10 and is now available as a PDF eBook! Inside you'll find interviews with Dave Arneson, Jonathan Roberts, and Robin D. Laws; and inciteful forward about the state of RPGs by White Wolf Designer Justin Achilli, and dozens of amazing articles that will take your game to the next level. As a special discount from this newsletter - you can grab it today to complete your collection for the same 60%-off coverprice discount available through Two-Volume Bundle New to Open Game Table? Grab the Volume 1 & 2 Open Game Table together in our Two-Volume BUNDLE for over 60% OFF THE COVER! Original, vetted 4E D&D content and much more are included in both volumes! Over 120 peer-reviewed and impactful posts from over 50 authors in the RPG blogosphere. LEVEL UP YOUR GAME - AND GET OPEN GAME TABLE TODAY!
Newest Free Products
Trophy Case vol. 1, no. 1
by Games by Scott Casper
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=83857&it=1&SRC=newsletter
Now the HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS campaign has its own support newsletter! The premiere issue features the first part of a review of the Golden Age Flash Archives, Swords & Wizardry-compatible statistics for a new mobster - the evil eye - and a so...
Sartar Clan Questionairre
by Issaries
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=83865&it=1&SRC=newsletter
The Sartar Clan Questionnaire contains all the questions for the Clan Questionnaire from the Sartar: Kingdom of Heroes book (but without the answers) to help your players create their own clan. Players have found just filling out the questionairre shows t...
From 12/2/2010:
Newest Free Products
Trophy Case vol. 1, no. 2
by Games by Scott Casper
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=86389&it=1&SRC=newsletter
HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS is back with more goodies, like a new mobster, a new character class, more golden age comic reviews, and a first -- conversion notes for playing a classic MSH game with H&H!
Shark Bone Podcast - CHUM07
by Shark Bone Games
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=86388&it=1&SRC=newsletter
CHUM episodes are our version of bonus episodes. And this one is super-bonus. It's me (Devon) talking, audio-blog style, about gaming. Practicing our gaming. This is the hobby we love? Why DON'T we practice it to make it/ourselves...
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
DriveThruRPG.com Weekly Newsletter
If DriveThruRPG has an online archive of their newsletter, it's not easy to find. So I decided to archive my own contributions to their newsletter and, for context, the articles around mine.
From 8/19/2010:
ENNIE AWARD - BEST WRITING!
[SYSTEM: Eclipse Phase]
We here at DriveThruRPG want to extend our heartiest congratulations to Posthuman Studios for their taking of the Gold Award for Best Electronic Book with Eclipse Phase!
~~~~~
Bring It to the Table
Actual game content from our various publishers and fellow readers; stuff for you to use in your games, or perhaps simply to inspire your own creative pursuits.
This week's installment comes from Scott Casper, who's about to release a new support quarterly for his game. I'll let him explain from here -
"The following is a preview from The Trophy Case newsletter for HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS (the SWORDS & WIZARDRY-compatible golden age superhero RPG)."
Evil Eyes
[SYSTEM: Hideouts & Hoodlums/Swords & Wizardry]
Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 7+3
Attacks: 1d3 tentacles (1d10)
Special: see below
Move: 180 (flight)
HDE/XP: 12/2000
While floating eyes observe the world of man to watch justice being meted, evil eyes are there to kill people so they can watch them die. An evil eye appears to be a giant human eyeball floating in a mass of slimy, gray tentacles up to 7 ft. long. Like floating eyes, evil eyes are never surprised and can communicate telepathically, but there the similarities end.
(Image from clip art; not supplied by creator)
When encountered, an evil eye will attempt to grab and constrict up to three people in its tentacles at a time. A constricted foe can be freed by a Superhero wrecking things vs. cars, a Magic-User magically compelling the eye with a spell such as Charm Mobster, or another class of 9th level or higher. Once per turn, the evil eye can turn one of its victims to face into the eye. It is impossible to resist looking into the eye and it can be seen even if the victim closes his eyes. The effect of looking into the eye is based on the Intelligence score of the victim, as follows:
INT / Save against
3-5: Death
6-9: Feeble mindedness (as per the Feeblemind spell)
10-12: Madness for 2d6 weeks
13-14: Comatose for 1d6 days
15-16: Paralyzed for 1d4 hours
17: Stunned and unable to act for 1d6 turns
18: Confused (as per the Confusion spell) for 1d4 turns
The save is further modified by Alignment, with Lawfuls saving at +1 and Chaotics saving at -1. A Magic-User with an active divination spell cast on him receives a +4 bonus to save and the mental feedback forces the evil eye to save against magic or be stunned for 1d3 turns.
A Hero driven mad by an evil eye will be terrified to ever be stared at – anyone spending a whole turn looking at the Hero must make
a morale save or flee for 1 whole turn.
The evil eye is content just to know its victims fail to pass this test, it does not need to observe the effects. So it will still
be trying to kill the victims, even if unconscious in the eye's grasp. This would count as a deathtrap and can be lethal for Heroes.
As if that were not bad enough, evil eyes are also resistant to magic. The spells of 1st-level casters do not affect them, and
against higher-level casters they are 50% immune to all spells (before saving throws).
~~~~~
Treasures of the Net
I've talked a little about this before, but I wanted to go ahead and specifically call out Obsidian Portal as a real Treasure of the Net. In part, this is due to their winning an ENnie Award for Best Web Site for gaming.
In the greater part, however, is that I've been very successfully using the site for managing my own campaigns (including The Unending War).
With an opening tutorial video and omnipresent guidelines in view, the management of a campaign wiki is something I've finally managed to grok. It's also amazingly easy to upload images, post character sheets, and communicate with your players.
In other words, Obsidian Portal is a GM's - and a campaign's - best friend.
~~~~~
From 8/19/2010:
ENNIE AWARD - BEST WRITING!
[SYSTEM: Eclipse Phase]
We here at DriveThruRPG want to extend our heartiest congratulations to Posthuman Studios for their taking of the Gold Award for Best Electronic Book with Eclipse Phase!
~~~~~
Bring It to the Table
Actual game content from our various publishers and fellow readers; stuff for you to use in your games, or perhaps simply to inspire your own creative pursuits.
This week's installment comes from Scott Casper, who's about to release a new support quarterly for his game. I'll let him explain from here -
"The following is a preview from The Trophy Case newsletter for HIDEOUTS & HOODLUMS (the SWORDS & WIZARDRY-compatible golden age superhero RPG)."
Evil Eyes
[SYSTEM: Hideouts & Hoodlums/Swords & Wizardry]
Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 7+3
Attacks: 1d3 tentacles (1d10)
Special: see below
Move: 180 (flight)
HDE/XP: 12/2000
While floating eyes observe the world of man to watch justice being meted, evil eyes are there to kill people so they can watch them die. An evil eye appears to be a giant human eyeball floating in a mass of slimy, gray tentacles up to 7 ft. long. Like floating eyes, evil eyes are never surprised and can communicate telepathically, but there the similarities end.
(Image from clip art; not supplied by creator)
When encountered, an evil eye will attempt to grab and constrict up to three people in its tentacles at a time. A constricted foe can be freed by a Superhero wrecking things vs. cars, a Magic-User magically compelling the eye with a spell such as Charm Mobster, or another class of 9th level or higher. Once per turn, the evil eye can turn one of its victims to face into the eye. It is impossible to resist looking into the eye and it can be seen even if the victim closes his eyes. The effect of looking into the eye is based on the Intelligence score of the victim, as follows:
INT / Save against
3-5: Death
6-9: Feeble mindedness (as per the Feeblemind spell)
10-12: Madness for 2d6 weeks
13-14: Comatose for 1d6 days
15-16: Paralyzed for 1d4 hours
17: Stunned and unable to act for 1d6 turns
18: Confused (as per the Confusion spell) for 1d4 turns
The save is further modified by Alignment, with Lawfuls saving at +1 and Chaotics saving at -1. A Magic-User with an active divination spell cast on him receives a +4 bonus to save and the mental feedback forces the evil eye to save against magic or be stunned for 1d3 turns.
A Hero driven mad by an evil eye will be terrified to ever be stared at – anyone spending a whole turn looking at the Hero must make
a morale save or flee for 1 whole turn.
The evil eye is content just to know its victims fail to pass this test, it does not need to observe the effects. So it will still
be trying to kill the victims, even if unconscious in the eye's grasp. This would count as a deathtrap and can be lethal for Heroes.
As if that were not bad enough, evil eyes are also resistant to magic. The spells of 1st-level casters do not affect them, and
against higher-level casters they are 50% immune to all spells (before saving throws).
~~~~~
Treasures of the Net
I've talked a little about this before, but I wanted to go ahead and specifically call out Obsidian Portal as a real Treasure of the Net. In part, this is due to their winning an ENnie Award for Best Web Site for gaming.
In the greater part, however, is that I've been very successfully using the site for managing my own campaigns (including The Unending War).
With an opening tutorial video and omnipresent guidelines in view, the management of a campaign wiki is something I've finally managed to grok. It's also amazingly easy to upload images, post character sheets, and communicate with your players.
In other words, Obsidian Portal is a GM's - and a campaign's - best friend.
~~~~~
Friday, November 18, 2011
The New Death and others reviewed
It is seldom that anyone acknowledges I have a blog, let alone ask me to review their book on my blog. So, when a correspondent named James Hutchings offered me a review copy of The New Death and others, I could not turn it down.
James cites Lovecraft, Howard, Ashton Smith, and Dunsany as influences on his contents pages (there are two pages of contents, a whopping 63 short short stories and poems for me to review!). It is an impressive collection of names. The biggest influence on the early stories is, appropriately, the earliest of those authors, particularly Dunsany’s own collected works like Gods of Pegana. Indeed, quite a few stories deal with fictional gods and fictional worlds (such as all four authors used) and with an archaic voice of storytelling that sounds very much like Dunsany (more than the others, to my ear), yet with a modern, wry, yet ultimately depreciative twist. Before his first Dunsany-like tale, “The Gods of the Poor”, ends with the fate of the impoverished decided by process of elimination between uncaring gods, James has inserted the jarring anachronism of Fame and Fortune saying, “Darling, I don’t think so.” It is a wink and a nod to the reader, saying, “See? I can do Dunsany and be funny.”
Yet even in this example it is too soon to label the story as trite, for there is interesting depth hidden behind the brevity. When Sky-Father says someone must be the God of the Poor because, “Those with no gods will grow restless and cunning, and in time will cast us down, and we shall be gods no more,” it hints tantalizingly at an entire cosmology in one sentence.
“How the Isle of Cats Got Its Name” is about eight times as long as the first story and at least twice as complex. It deals with a powerful witch, talking cats, gods and their cults, and introduces them all in a curious order that obscures, until the very end, which one of them is the real main point of the story. Along the way, it engages in the same clever, yet tongue-in-cheek word-building that was hidden behind the scenes in the shorter work preceding it, but plays it out to less satisfying effect. The details that work best are the more thought-provoking ones, like the nature of spirits and how their powers function differently by geography, while too much attention is spent on one long, cruel joke about a cat-torturing harp.
“The Enemy Within” is the first story to cast off fantasy elements. It is the first story intentionally hard to place, lacking a defined setting. No doubt it is intended to show the timelessness of bigotry, yet it is to the story’s loss that James engages here in none of his clever world-building, giving us a not-particularly nuanced character sketch instead.
“The End” is a particularly clever one-page satire of slipstream fiction and the preponderance of the supernatural in mainstream media today. Here, the world-building is behind the scenes again, but kept there until the end so as not to spoil the surprise.
“A Date with Destiny” returns us to the style of winking nods to Dunsany’s Pegana, this time making the winking nod the whole joke of the story by updating a Pegana-like goddess to the age of meeting people in online chatrooms.
“Everlasting Fire” is a delightfully clever and often humorous three-pager (complete with puns in endnotes) about how both sinners and devils alike in the afterlife are trapped in an all-too Earth-like bureaucracy. Some of the finer touches are interoffice memos that end in maniacal laughter and adding the act of saying “lol” out loud to the list of deadly sins. Some of the humor, though, is unnecessarily cruel (Oprah as a devil?) and the joke about fanfiction should strike uncomfortably close to home for someone selling self-published short fiction anthologies online, as it does for certain reviewers who also write fanfiction…
“Under the Pyramids” is the first poem in the collection, a 5-page ballad inspired by a Lovecraft story of the same name. It might help to know the original story and I have never read it, so I won’t comment on the content. Indeed, the only reason I mention it is to point out how the ballad is technically proficient, and thank goodness. I personally find free verse to seldom be more than lazy writing and cringe at the sight of it, so you can understand my relief that James knows how to write a proper ballad.
By the time we get to “The Face in the Hill” we have moved on again in style, returning thematically to the terrain of “The Enemy Within”, but with a lighter tone that reminds me of 1950s Marvel Comics (particularly with its O. Henry-esque twist ending). The theme, about people who only hear what they want to hear, is much subtler and hence, for me, more enjoyable than “The Enemy Within”.
“The Prince of the Howling Forest” is a trickier poem to label. That meter is not for a ballad. Twelve syllable lines? Is this a canzone? The form is too obscure for me – perhaps appropriate for the murkiness of the subject matter.
It seems to me that James accomplishes much more in brevity than he ever does in longer pieces, and perhaps there is no better example than “The Uncharted Isle”. In seven sentences we have a wonderful fantasy setting (more behind-the-scenes world-building), charmingly evocative language (I love the “wine-faced sea”), and a clever ending. That the whole story is just one joke hardly matters when done this well.
The antithesis occurs a few stories later, “The Scholar and the Moon”, again proving my point. In over five pages, James stuffs what could have been another fine, seven sentence story with metaphor, explained world-building, asides to the reader, and verbose characters -- though Conwy’s exchange with the gargoyle is well worth the read (I hope to steal the encounter for a D&D game someday).
There are so many more examples left untouched (indeed, I’ve barely covered more than one-sixth of the stories), but I think I have given enough examples to demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of the collection. James is a master world-builder and an economist of words who is most brilliant in brevity. He is witty and literate. But he tries hard, perhaps too hard, to impress the reader. By demonstrating his range, he ranges all over, like a writer suffering from attention deficit disorder.
That said, there is much worth reading here and should please any intelligent fantasy fiction reader with tastes running from Lord Dunsany to 1950s Marvel Comics.
James cites Lovecraft, Howard, Ashton Smith, and Dunsany as influences on his contents pages (there are two pages of contents, a whopping 63 short short stories and poems for me to review!). It is an impressive collection of names. The biggest influence on the early stories is, appropriately, the earliest of those authors, particularly Dunsany’s own collected works like Gods of Pegana. Indeed, quite a few stories deal with fictional gods and fictional worlds (such as all four authors used) and with an archaic voice of storytelling that sounds very much like Dunsany (more than the others, to my ear), yet with a modern, wry, yet ultimately depreciative twist. Before his first Dunsany-like tale, “The Gods of the Poor”, ends with the fate of the impoverished decided by process of elimination between uncaring gods, James has inserted the jarring anachronism of Fame and Fortune saying, “Darling, I don’t think so.” It is a wink and a nod to the reader, saying, “See? I can do Dunsany and be funny.”
Yet even in this example it is too soon to label the story as trite, for there is interesting depth hidden behind the brevity. When Sky-Father says someone must be the God of the Poor because, “Those with no gods will grow restless and cunning, and in time will cast us down, and we shall be gods no more,” it hints tantalizingly at an entire cosmology in one sentence.
“How the Isle of Cats Got Its Name” is about eight times as long as the first story and at least twice as complex. It deals with a powerful witch, talking cats, gods and their cults, and introduces them all in a curious order that obscures, until the very end, which one of them is the real main point of the story. Along the way, it engages in the same clever, yet tongue-in-cheek word-building that was hidden behind the scenes in the shorter work preceding it, but plays it out to less satisfying effect. The details that work best are the more thought-provoking ones, like the nature of spirits and how their powers function differently by geography, while too much attention is spent on one long, cruel joke about a cat-torturing harp.
“The Enemy Within” is the first story to cast off fantasy elements. It is the first story intentionally hard to place, lacking a defined setting. No doubt it is intended to show the timelessness of bigotry, yet it is to the story’s loss that James engages here in none of his clever world-building, giving us a not-particularly nuanced character sketch instead.
“The End” is a particularly clever one-page satire of slipstream fiction and the preponderance of the supernatural in mainstream media today. Here, the world-building is behind the scenes again, but kept there until the end so as not to spoil the surprise.
“A Date with Destiny” returns us to the style of winking nods to Dunsany’s Pegana, this time making the winking nod the whole joke of the story by updating a Pegana-like goddess to the age of meeting people in online chatrooms.
“Everlasting Fire” is a delightfully clever and often humorous three-pager (complete with puns in endnotes) about how both sinners and devils alike in the afterlife are trapped in an all-too Earth-like bureaucracy. Some of the finer touches are interoffice memos that end in maniacal laughter and adding the act of saying “lol” out loud to the list of deadly sins. Some of the humor, though, is unnecessarily cruel (Oprah as a devil?) and the joke about fanfiction should strike uncomfortably close to home for someone selling self-published short fiction anthologies online, as it does for certain reviewers who also write fanfiction…
“Under the Pyramids” is the first poem in the collection, a 5-page ballad inspired by a Lovecraft story of the same name. It might help to know the original story and I have never read it, so I won’t comment on the content. Indeed, the only reason I mention it is to point out how the ballad is technically proficient, and thank goodness. I personally find free verse to seldom be more than lazy writing and cringe at the sight of it, so you can understand my relief that James knows how to write a proper ballad.
By the time we get to “The Face in the Hill” we have moved on again in style, returning thematically to the terrain of “The Enemy Within”, but with a lighter tone that reminds me of 1950s Marvel Comics (particularly with its O. Henry-esque twist ending). The theme, about people who only hear what they want to hear, is much subtler and hence, for me, more enjoyable than “The Enemy Within”.
“The Prince of the Howling Forest” is a trickier poem to label. That meter is not for a ballad. Twelve syllable lines? Is this a canzone? The form is too obscure for me – perhaps appropriate for the murkiness of the subject matter.
It seems to me that James accomplishes much more in brevity than he ever does in longer pieces, and perhaps there is no better example than “The Uncharted Isle”. In seven sentences we have a wonderful fantasy setting (more behind-the-scenes world-building), charmingly evocative language (I love the “wine-faced sea”), and a clever ending. That the whole story is just one joke hardly matters when done this well.
The antithesis occurs a few stories later, “The Scholar and the Moon”, again proving my point. In over five pages, James stuffs what could have been another fine, seven sentence story with metaphor, explained world-building, asides to the reader, and verbose characters -- though Conwy’s exchange with the gargoyle is well worth the read (I hope to steal the encounter for a D&D game someday).
There are so many more examples left untouched (indeed, I’ve barely covered more than one-sixth of the stories), but I think I have given enough examples to demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of the collection. James is a master world-builder and an economist of words who is most brilliant in brevity. He is witty and literate. But he tries hard, perhaps too hard, to impress the reader. By demonstrating his range, he ranges all over, like a writer suffering from attention deficit disorder.
That said, there is much worth reading here and should please any intelligent fantasy fiction reader with tastes running from Lord Dunsany to 1950s Marvel Comics.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
My Marvel 52-Title Relaunch - pt. 1
It seemed like a natural companion to my previous project for the blog. If I could develop a more grandiose restart for DC comics that would celebrate the richness of their history better than they recently had, I wondered, could I do the same for Marvel Comics?
Marvel Comics. A 42-page adventure anthology featuring three 14-page serials set in 1939 and starring the Sub-Mariner, the Angel, and Ka-Zar. The Sub-Mariner is young Prince Namor, an angry young half-merman taking out his issues on a world that is new to him, getting embroiled in world politics, falling for policewoman Betty Dean, and ignoring his loving cousin Dorma. The Angel is a world-traveling man of mystery, master of disguise, with great strength and agility, plus a glider cape. Ka-Zar is a Tarzan-like character in Africa.
Captain America Comics. A 42-page adventure anthology featuring Captain America with three 14-page ongoing serials starting in different times, 1941, 1945, and 1949. The first will feature Bucky as his 12-year old sidekick. The second will start immediately after Bucky’s death. The third will feature Golden Girl (Betsy Ross, who will also be an FBI agent helping Cap in the two earlier serials) who is now Cap’s fiance and partner in adventure. Contrary to previous retcons, these are all Steve Rogers.
Terry-Toons Comics. A 38-page comedy anthology featuring a rotating cast of anthropomorphic animal characters like Gandy Goose, Oscar Pig, Frenchy Rabbit, and Andy Wolf, in a world kind of like our 1943. There will always be four features, the first two being 10 pagers and the second two being 9 pagers.
Human Torch. A 42-page adventure anthology featuring two 14-page installments of the Human Torch and one 14-page installment of the Sub-Mariner. The first Human Torch story will feature him in 1944, the synthetic human still struggling to find his place in human society, but with the help of an 8-year old boy he calls Toro (a mutant who’s immune to fire). The second serial will pick up with the Torch in 1949, now posing as a human, living as a police officer by day, and striking as a vigilante at night. Toro will be 13 now and be able to generate intense heat and start fires. The Torch’s love interest, secretary, and companion calls herself Sun Girl. The Sub-Mariner back-up will follow Prince Namor’s adventures in 1949, bored with life in Atlantis and touring the world with his cousin and love interest Namora as they have adventures together.
Comedy Classics. A 34-page comedy/adventure anthology featuring three stories about Super Rabbit in a world of anthropomorphic animals similar to our 1944, with the superheroics played semi-serious. The first story will always be 12 pages, with two lighter 11 page stories following.
Gay Comics. A 26-page comedy/romance anthology featuring two 13-page independent stories set in 1945. The stories may or may not suggest homosexuality (50/50), while keeping the stories light and PG.
Krazy Komics. A 34-page comedy anthology featuring a rotating cast of anthropomorphic animal characters in a world like our 1946. There will always be four features, two of them 9-pagers and two of them 8-pagers.
Patsy Walker. A 26-page comedy/romance anthology featuring two serials set in 1946 and featuring 18-year old Patsy Walker and her boyfriend Bill Baxter. The main, 14-page feature stars Patsy and Bill, fresh out of high school, looking for work, and choosing a college, while the back-up 12-page focuses on her jealous friend/rival for Bill Hedy Wolfe.
Margie Comics. A 34-page comedy/romance anthology featuring three stories set in 1950 about 19-year old Margie going to college, pursuing boys, getting into hi-jinks, but also finding a life for herself. The lead story will always be 12 pages while the two back-up stories about her will be 11-pagers.
Cindy Comics. A 34-page comedy/romance anthology almost identical to Margie Comics, save that Margie is strictly middle class and Cindy is from a richer family and so is able to do more globe-trotting while she discovers herself.
Captain America’s Weird Tales. A 26-page horror anthology set in 1950 with two 13-page stories. A semi-retired Captain America either introduces or is peripherally involved in each weird tale of the supernatural, or seemingly about the supernatural (about 50/50).
Love Tales. A 26-page romance anthology set in 1950 with different characters each month. The lead story will be 17 pages with a lighter 9-page back-up.
Marvel Tales. A 26-page fantasy/science fiction/horror anthology set chiefly in 1951 with different characters each month. Both features will be 13 pages.
Lovers. A 26-page romance anthology featuring two 13-page, unrelated stories each month with different characters, each set in 1952 and PG-rated.
Miss America, Starring Patsy. A 26-page domestic comedy/light-adventure anthology, featuring 25-year old Patsy Baxter, army wife to Bill Baxter in 1953, who’s I Love Lucy-like schemes tend to get them both into hi-jinks or trouble.
Tales of Justice. A 26-page true crime (well, mostly true) anthology, featuring two unrelated 13-page stories each month set chiefly in 1955 and focusing on the good guys in law enforcement (sort of a cross between Dragnet and Law & Order).
Kid Colt, Outlaw. A 26-page cowboy adventure anthology set in 1879 and featuring Kid Colt in two 13-page serial adventures. Kid Colt rides around, doing good deeds and trying to vindicate himself being accused of murder by being a gunslinger who never kills.
Marvel Mystery Comics. A 42-page adventure anthology set in 1957 featuring three 14-page installments of the Human Torch, Terry Vance, and Electro. The Human Torch is fully integrated into human society by now, living as a police detective and openly using his fire power to help fight crime. Toro, who’s now 21, can do everything the Torch can but fly and is a hero in his own right (but will sometimes still team up with his old partner). The Torch and Sun Girl will be engaged. Terry Vance is a 17-year old genius inventor and private detective with a pet monkey named Watson. Electro is a powerful robot that is partly self-aware, but the rest of the time controlled by his creator, the Secret Operative, Professor Philo Zogolowski.
Strange Tales. A 26-page lite-horror anthology set chiefly in 1958 with three unrelated stories each issue, the first two being 9-pagers and the last being 8 pages. The PG stories are more weird than horrific, though with a strong supernatural focus.
Battle. A 26-page adventure/war anthology set chiefly in 1959, dealing with conflicts spanning the globe in two 13-page unrelated stories each month.
Patsy and Hedy. A 26-page comedy/romance anthology, serializing the 1960 goings-on of Pasty Baxter, now age 32, with one child in school and a baby at home. The main, 14-page serial is always about Patsy and her old, single friend Hedy who keeps luring Patsy out of the home to see more of life, and the unspoken attraction between them as Bill spends most of his time at work managing the security team for a big company. The 12-page back-up focuses more on the domestic hi-jinks of Patsy trying to keep her kids, her marriage, and her home in working order.
Journey into Mystery. A 26-page science fiction anthology set chiefly in 1961, always with two unrelated 13-page stories per month featuring encounters with bizarre aliens.
Tales to Astonish. A 26-page adventure/romance/science fiction mix set in 1963. The 21-page lead serial always stars Ant-Man, a science-based hero who can shrink himself to 18” tall or grow to 7’ tall and control ants, and his partner and love interest, the Wasp, who can also shrink and grow wings. They will battle foes like the Living Eraser and the Human Top. In the 5-page back-up feature, Wasp will narrate a short tale of science fiction.
Tales of Suspense. A 26-page adventure/science fiction/romance mix set in 1968. The 21-page lead serial always stars Iron Man, a wealthy industrialist in a 7’ suit of armor that lets him lift 10 tons. The criminal underworld, including super-science outfits like AIM, will throw robots and hi-tech villains like Whiplash at him while inside the suit, while outside the suit he woos business rival Janice Cord. The 5-page backup feature will be a random, unrelated short tale of science fiction or weird fantasy each month.
Rawhide Kid. A 26-page cowboy adventure anthology set in 1880. Identical set-up to Kid Colt, Outlaw.
Marvel Comics. A 42-page adventure anthology featuring three 14-page serials set in 1939 and starring the Sub-Mariner, the Angel, and Ka-Zar. The Sub-Mariner is young Prince Namor, an angry young half-merman taking out his issues on a world that is new to him, getting embroiled in world politics, falling for policewoman Betty Dean, and ignoring his loving cousin Dorma. The Angel is a world-traveling man of mystery, master of disguise, with great strength and agility, plus a glider cape. Ka-Zar is a Tarzan-like character in Africa.
Captain America Comics. A 42-page adventure anthology featuring Captain America with three 14-page ongoing serials starting in different times, 1941, 1945, and 1949. The first will feature Bucky as his 12-year old sidekick. The second will start immediately after Bucky’s death. The third will feature Golden Girl (Betsy Ross, who will also be an FBI agent helping Cap in the two earlier serials) who is now Cap’s fiance and partner in adventure. Contrary to previous retcons, these are all Steve Rogers.
Terry-Toons Comics. A 38-page comedy anthology featuring a rotating cast of anthropomorphic animal characters like Gandy Goose, Oscar Pig, Frenchy Rabbit, and Andy Wolf, in a world kind of like our 1943. There will always be four features, the first two being 10 pagers and the second two being 9 pagers.
Human Torch. A 42-page adventure anthology featuring two 14-page installments of the Human Torch and one 14-page installment of the Sub-Mariner. The first Human Torch story will feature him in 1944, the synthetic human still struggling to find his place in human society, but with the help of an 8-year old boy he calls Toro (a mutant who’s immune to fire). The second serial will pick up with the Torch in 1949, now posing as a human, living as a police officer by day, and striking as a vigilante at night. Toro will be 13 now and be able to generate intense heat and start fires. The Torch’s love interest, secretary, and companion calls herself Sun Girl. The Sub-Mariner back-up will follow Prince Namor’s adventures in 1949, bored with life in Atlantis and touring the world with his cousin and love interest Namora as they have adventures together.
Comedy Classics. A 34-page comedy/adventure anthology featuring three stories about Super Rabbit in a world of anthropomorphic animals similar to our 1944, with the superheroics played semi-serious. The first story will always be 12 pages, with two lighter 11 page stories following.
Gay Comics. A 26-page comedy/romance anthology featuring two 13-page independent stories set in 1945. The stories may or may not suggest homosexuality (50/50), while keeping the stories light and PG.
Krazy Komics. A 34-page comedy anthology featuring a rotating cast of anthropomorphic animal characters in a world like our 1946. There will always be four features, two of them 9-pagers and two of them 8-pagers.
Patsy Walker. A 26-page comedy/romance anthology featuring two serials set in 1946 and featuring 18-year old Patsy Walker and her boyfriend Bill Baxter. The main, 14-page feature stars Patsy and Bill, fresh out of high school, looking for work, and choosing a college, while the back-up 12-page focuses on her jealous friend/rival for Bill Hedy Wolfe.
Margie Comics. A 34-page comedy/romance anthology featuring three stories set in 1950 about 19-year old Margie going to college, pursuing boys, getting into hi-jinks, but also finding a life for herself. The lead story will always be 12 pages while the two back-up stories about her will be 11-pagers.
Cindy Comics. A 34-page comedy/romance anthology almost identical to Margie Comics, save that Margie is strictly middle class and Cindy is from a richer family and so is able to do more globe-trotting while she discovers herself.
Captain America’s Weird Tales. A 26-page horror anthology set in 1950 with two 13-page stories. A semi-retired Captain America either introduces or is peripherally involved in each weird tale of the supernatural, or seemingly about the supernatural (about 50/50).
Love Tales. A 26-page romance anthology set in 1950 with different characters each month. The lead story will be 17 pages with a lighter 9-page back-up.
Marvel Tales. A 26-page fantasy/science fiction/horror anthology set chiefly in 1951 with different characters each month. Both features will be 13 pages.
Lovers. A 26-page romance anthology featuring two 13-page, unrelated stories each month with different characters, each set in 1952 and PG-rated.
Miss America, Starring Patsy. A 26-page domestic comedy/light-adventure anthology, featuring 25-year old Patsy Baxter, army wife to Bill Baxter in 1953, who’s I Love Lucy-like schemes tend to get them both into hi-jinks or trouble.
Tales of Justice. A 26-page true crime (well, mostly true) anthology, featuring two unrelated 13-page stories each month set chiefly in 1955 and focusing on the good guys in law enforcement (sort of a cross between Dragnet and Law & Order).
Kid Colt, Outlaw. A 26-page cowboy adventure anthology set in 1879 and featuring Kid Colt in two 13-page serial adventures. Kid Colt rides around, doing good deeds and trying to vindicate himself being accused of murder by being a gunslinger who never kills.
Marvel Mystery Comics. A 42-page adventure anthology set in 1957 featuring three 14-page installments of the Human Torch, Terry Vance, and Electro. The Human Torch is fully integrated into human society by now, living as a police detective and openly using his fire power to help fight crime. Toro, who’s now 21, can do everything the Torch can but fly and is a hero in his own right (but will sometimes still team up with his old partner). The Torch and Sun Girl will be engaged. Terry Vance is a 17-year old genius inventor and private detective with a pet monkey named Watson. Electro is a powerful robot that is partly self-aware, but the rest of the time controlled by his creator, the Secret Operative, Professor Philo Zogolowski.
Strange Tales. A 26-page lite-horror anthology set chiefly in 1958 with three unrelated stories each issue, the first two being 9-pagers and the last being 8 pages. The PG stories are more weird than horrific, though with a strong supernatural focus.
Battle. A 26-page adventure/war anthology set chiefly in 1959, dealing with conflicts spanning the globe in two 13-page unrelated stories each month.
Patsy and Hedy. A 26-page comedy/romance anthology, serializing the 1960 goings-on of Pasty Baxter, now age 32, with one child in school and a baby at home. The main, 14-page serial is always about Patsy and her old, single friend Hedy who keeps luring Patsy out of the home to see more of life, and the unspoken attraction between them as Bill spends most of his time at work managing the security team for a big company. The 12-page back-up focuses more on the domestic hi-jinks of Patsy trying to keep her kids, her marriage, and her home in working order.
Journey into Mystery. A 26-page science fiction anthology set chiefly in 1961, always with two unrelated 13-page stories per month featuring encounters with bizarre aliens.
Tales to Astonish. A 26-page adventure/romance/science fiction mix set in 1963. The 21-page lead serial always stars Ant-Man, a science-based hero who can shrink himself to 18” tall or grow to 7’ tall and control ants, and his partner and love interest, the Wasp, who can also shrink and grow wings. They will battle foes like the Living Eraser and the Human Top. In the 5-page back-up feature, Wasp will narrate a short tale of science fiction.
Tales of Suspense. A 26-page adventure/science fiction/romance mix set in 1968. The 21-page lead serial always stars Iron Man, a wealthy industrialist in a 7’ suit of armor that lets him lift 10 tons. The criminal underworld, including super-science outfits like AIM, will throw robots and hi-tech villains like Whiplash at him while inside the suit, while outside the suit he woos business rival Janice Cord. The 5-page backup feature will be a random, unrelated short tale of science fiction or weird fantasy each month.
Rawhide Kid. A 26-page cowboy adventure anthology set in 1880. Identical set-up to Kid Colt, Outlaw.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
My DC 52-Title Relaunch - pt. 4
#43 Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes. A 48-page book with one main, 22-page adventure featuring Superboy and a rotating group of 3-7 Legionnaires tackling cosmic menaces through time and space (but mostly the Legion’s own 30th century), and then two 13-page solo adventures of Legionnaires (any ones who debuted by 1979). Because Superboy/Superman II is time-traveling to work with the Legion, he can show up at any age out of order, but the Legionaires are from 2979 ($3.75 book).
#44 Unknown Soldier. A 30-page book with two 15-page stories in an adventure serial featuring the Unknown Soldier, as he wanders internationally from war to war in 1982 ($3 book).
#45 Brave and the Bold. A 36-page book featuring one 22-page adventure serial starring Jason Todd, the brand new Robin without a Batman, but looking to sidekick himself with a new partner each month, starting in 1983. The back-up feature is a 14-page solo outing of the guest hero, either independent of the main story or somehow tied into the main story, but without Robin ($3.25 book).
#46 Green Lantern. A 36-page book featuring one 22-page sci-fi/adventure serial starring Guy Gardner as the new Green Lantern, being advised by a close-to-retiring Hal Jordan in 1986, battling alien menaces that seek to or have entered our solar system. The back-up feature is a 14-page solo story of Guy going solo, either independent or somehow tied into the main story ($3.25 book).
#47 Jonah Hex. A 30-page book featuring two 15-page adventures of an old, scarred cowboy, Jonah Hex, as he travels through the last of the Old West in 1899 ($3 book).
#48 Warlord. A 30-page book featuring Col. Travis Morgan as he explores a hollow Earth-world called Skartaris in the lead 20-page adventure, with a 10-page back-up of his supporting cast -- Tara, Machiste, Shakira, Mariah, or Jennifer -- having adventures on the same world, all in the year 1988 ($3 book).
#49 DC Comics Presents. A 36-page book featuring one 22-page adventure serial starring Superman II (now 38 and able to lift 100 tons) and one other, random hero in 1986 (or possibly time traveling). The back-up feature is a 14-page solo outing of the guest hero, either independent of the main story or somehow tied into the main story ($3.25 book).
#50 Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes. A 48-page book with three 16-page sci-fi/adventure stories featuring 1-3 of the Legion in each, all set in 2987 ($3.75 book).
#51 Adventures of Superman. A 36-page book featuring 2 18-page adventures of Superman III (age 14, grandson of the original - or is he a clone? - able to lift 9 tons) in 1989, battling modern versions of classic Superman foes ($3.25 book).
#52 Green Lantern Corps. A 36-page book featuring 2 Green Lantern sci-fi/adventure stories. The first 20-page story stars John Stewart, the Green Lantern charged with supervising the Green Lanterns of this sector of the galaxy in 1988 with up to 2 other (possibly alien Green Lanterns), while the 16-page back-up story features 1-3 other Green Lanterns without John Stewart, rotating between all Green Lanterns introduced by 1988.
Once each title starts, it will progress in real time from month to month. Characters will grow, age, and rotate out of the spotlight. Lastly, imagine these titles being created, not by unknown and untested writers, but by true masters like Jerry Ordway, John Byrne, Walt Simonson, Roger Stern, and David Micheline. Unpopular back-up stories (or just to beat a deadline) can always be reprints from DC's glory days.
#44 Unknown Soldier. A 30-page book with two 15-page stories in an adventure serial featuring the Unknown Soldier, as he wanders internationally from war to war in 1982 ($3 book).
#45 Brave and the Bold. A 36-page book featuring one 22-page adventure serial starring Jason Todd, the brand new Robin without a Batman, but looking to sidekick himself with a new partner each month, starting in 1983. The back-up feature is a 14-page solo outing of the guest hero, either independent of the main story or somehow tied into the main story, but without Robin ($3.25 book).
#46 Green Lantern. A 36-page book featuring one 22-page sci-fi/adventure serial starring Guy Gardner as the new Green Lantern, being advised by a close-to-retiring Hal Jordan in 1986, battling alien menaces that seek to or have entered our solar system. The back-up feature is a 14-page solo story of Guy going solo, either independent or somehow tied into the main story ($3.25 book).
#47 Jonah Hex. A 30-page book featuring two 15-page adventures of an old, scarred cowboy, Jonah Hex, as he travels through the last of the Old West in 1899 ($3 book).
#48 Warlord. A 30-page book featuring Col. Travis Morgan as he explores a hollow Earth-world called Skartaris in the lead 20-page adventure, with a 10-page back-up of his supporting cast -- Tara, Machiste, Shakira, Mariah, or Jennifer -- having adventures on the same world, all in the year 1988 ($3 book).
#49 DC Comics Presents. A 36-page book featuring one 22-page adventure serial starring Superman II (now 38 and able to lift 100 tons) and one other, random hero in 1986 (or possibly time traveling). The back-up feature is a 14-page solo outing of the guest hero, either independent of the main story or somehow tied into the main story ($3.25 book).
#50 Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes. A 48-page book with three 16-page sci-fi/adventure stories featuring 1-3 of the Legion in each, all set in 2987 ($3.75 book).
#51 Adventures of Superman. A 36-page book featuring 2 18-page adventures of Superman III (age 14, grandson of the original - or is he a clone? - able to lift 9 tons) in 1989, battling modern versions of classic Superman foes ($3.25 book).
#52 Green Lantern Corps. A 36-page book featuring 2 Green Lantern sci-fi/adventure stories. The first 20-page story stars John Stewart, the Green Lantern charged with supervising the Green Lanterns of this sector of the galaxy in 1988 with up to 2 other (possibly alien Green Lanterns), while the 16-page back-up story features 1-3 other Green Lanterns without John Stewart, rotating between all Green Lanterns introduced by 1988.
Once each title starts, it will progress in real time from month to month. Characters will grow, age, and rotate out of the spotlight. Lastly, imagine these titles being created, not by unknown and untested writers, but by true masters like Jerry Ordway, John Byrne, Walt Simonson, Roger Stern, and David Micheline. Unpopular back-up stories (or just to beat a deadline) can always be reprints from DC's glory days.
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