Tales of Peril is in print at #ntrpgcon !

Tales of Peril is in print at #ntrpgcon !

Originally shared by Allan Grohe

Tales of Peril: The Complete Boinger and Zereth Stories of John Eric Holmes has arrived! :D

Holmes Art Prompt #3

Jon Wilson wrote:

Plenty of time to jump in with an entry for F.E.I. Volume Two.

Points of inspiration, the next:

This Wereshark keeps strange company..

Scott Mob wrote:

This Wereshark keeps strange company..

Prepping to run Call of Cthulhu for my local group tomorrow night.

Prepping to run Call of Cthulhu for my local group tomorrow night. Not only will it be my first time running the game, it will be my first time playing it any form as well! Using 3rd edition - I have the Games Workshop hardback - and running the Haunting (aka the Haunted House), which I gather is the Sample Dungeon (or Keep on the Borderlands) of CoC.

Holmes Art Prompt #2

Jon Wilson wrote:

The Next Prompt:

If you haven't seen the announcement: F.E.I. Volume Two needs YOU!

Anyone can contribute!

We're looking for 80 to 160 word entries (or near to that). Any detail in either image that fires your imagination about a new tidbit for a game — magic item, spell, monster stats, plot twist, lore, location — let your imagination take the reins!

Send your submissions to wilson 4681220 at gmail

Any questions, just reply to this topic.

Larry Elmore's original idea for the cover art of Mentzer Basic has more elements in common with Sutherland's for...

Larry Elmore's original idea for the cover art of Mentzer Basic has more elements in common with Sutherland's for Holmes Basic. Elmore is now offering a limited edition print of this art.

http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/mentzer-basic-cover-art-prototype.html
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/mentzer-basic-cover-art-prototype.html

Paul Fini with an update on his long-running S&W campaign that started "Beneath the Tower of Zenopus".

Paul Fini with an update on his long-running S&W campaign that started "Beneath the Tower of Zenopus". He's been a player for a spell.

Holmes Art Prompt #1

Jon Wilson wrote:

What else would be the first prompt...?

If you haven't seen the announcement: F.E.I. Volume Two needs YOU!

Send your submissions to wilson 4681220 at gmail

Remember, we're looking for 80 to 160 word entries (or near to that). Any detail in the image that fires your imagination about a new tidbit for a game, let your imagination take the reins!

Any questions, just reply to this topic.

I turned last year's Portown Rumors into a 3-page pdf, available for download:

I turned last year's Portown Rumors into a 3-page pdf, available for download:
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/portown-rumors-pdf.html
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/portown-rumors-pdf.html

Any suggestions or preferences from my Holmesian friends on where to place portown on the outdoor survival map?

Save or Die #136: Michael Thomas interview

Michael Thomas talks about Blueholme on the Save or Die podcast:
http://saveordie.info/?p=1589
http://saveordie.info/?p=1589

Alright, folks — it’s time to get the party together again!

Alright, folks — it’s time to get the party together again!

FANTASTIC! EXCITING! IMAGINATIVE! Volume Two BEGINS NOW!

We’re looking for more! More ideas, more of that ol’ magic, and most of all: MORE CONTRIBUTORS...

This time around I will be paying contributors for the entries used in the final product. Volume Two will be a for-sale item (whereas Volume One is available for free [http://www.rpgnow.com/product/206310/FANTASTIC-EXCITING-IMAGINATIVE-Volume-One], and as such I will be compensating you for the submissions you write that go on to appear in the final product. That rate is 3 cents per word.

I’m hoping to cram as many entries as possible from as many different contributors as possible into the zine, and as such I ask that you keep your submissions concise (like the stuff in the original rules), somewhere in the ballpark of from 80 to 160 words.

I will be posting prompts again this time around. These are for the sake of getting your creativity into action, if you need direction. Feel free to “skip ahead” if you are so inspired.

As before, we’re focusing on the art from the Holmes edition. Grab any little detail or feature and make something new from it! Refer to Volume One if you need examples of how a tiny detail or aspect can go on to inspire entries. We aren’t slavishly adhering to the art, but using it as a spring-board for creating something new for all our games.

Tell your friends! Tell your neighbors! Tell your enemies! Tell your neurologist! Let them know what’s happening and that they can join in!

I’ll post the first prompt soon.

Thanks for reading.


EVEN MORE STUFF, BUT MORE BUSINESS-Y BORING-TYPE STUFF:

I plan to pay contributors via PayPal, once the zine’s contents are finalized. If we need to work out an alternative, I’m open to that. Contributors will receive PDF copies of F.E.I. Volume Two; we may be able to work out your payment in the form of also getting a physical copy of the zine, if you prefer, for example.

If I get multiple entries with similar or identical features, I will choose the one that is more inventive, better written, provides more variety of voice, came in first, or for any other reason, as I see fit.

Submitting an idea does not guarantee it will appear in the finished zine. Only items in the finished zine will earn payment.

There may be other business-y details that will come up as we go along — I will answer them as I get them, and amend this post to include that information, as needed.

Batteries not included.

Thanks for reading even more.

grodog previews the back cover art by Ian Baggley for Tales of Peril!

grodog previews the back cover art by Ian Baggley for Tales of Peril!

https://grodog.blogspot.com/2017/05/tales-of-peril-fourth-preview-back-cover-art.html

Big news! #ntrpgcon

Big news! #ntrpgcon

Originally shared by Allan Grohe

I forgot to mention it earlier today---Black Blade Publishing's Tales of Peril: The Complete Boinger and Zereth Stories of John Eric Holmes went to press this morning! :D

If everything goes according to plan at the printer, it will debut at the North Texas RPG Con in three weeks!

Repost for the new collection: You can play Adventure (aka Colossal Cave) - the original text adventure game - on...

Repost for the new collection: You can play Adventure (aka Colossal Cave) - the original text adventure game - on the website for the AMC show Halt and Catch Fire (I've seen the first two seasons). The game play is on a "simulated PC screen circa 1983" with green text on a dark background, and artwork accompanying certain rooms. No save but it seems to remember where you are if you leave the page. #colossalcave

http://www.amc.com/shows/halt-and-catch-fire/colossal-cave-adventure/landing
http://www.amc.com/shows/halt-and-catch-fire/colossal-cave-adventure/landing

This is a new public collection for an old interest, text adventure games like Adventure aka Colossal Cave, Zork and...

This is a new public collection for an old interest, text adventure games like Adventure aka Colossal Cave, Zork and other Infocom games. Also DikuMUDs.

Discussion of Gary's drink preferences, inc a recipe for Zagyg's Summer Cooler:

Discussion of Gary's drink preferences, inc a recipe for Zagyg's Summer Cooler:
http://knights-n-knaves.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=14645
http://knights-n-knaves.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=14645

Rise of the Dungeonmaster is out today.

Rise of the Dungeonmaster is out today. Here's a review I found with some samples of the art. I don't understand the criticism at the end about today's adventures being more open-ended; modern Adventure Paths and organized play are exactly the opposite.

http://kotaku.com/graphic-novel-about-d-ds-creator-is-enchanting-but-fal-1795058665
http://kotaku.com/graphic-novel-about-d-ds-creator-is-enchanting-but-fal-1795058665

Chapel of silence. Too beefy for a fledgling Holmes campaign?

A color study for the cover of B2 just sold for over $10K on Ebay.

A color study for the cover of B2 just sold for over $10K on Ebay. The Caves of Chaos in the background are more prominent in this study:
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/keep-on-borderlands-cover-study.html
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/keep-on-borderlands-cover-study.html

Ernie Gygax on the new graphic novel bio Rise of the Dungeonmaster.

Ernie Gygax on the new graphic novel bio Rise of the Dungeonmaster.

Originally shared by Ernie Gygax

Well I just received a treat in today's mail the graphic novel: Rise of the Dungeon Master. Well 90 minutes later with the story read and an overall good feeling it is time to share something about this. David Kushner interviewed both my father and Dave Arneson in the twilight of both of them when they had both mostly moved on from perhaps the greatest game creation after the advent of Monopoly. The quality of the art is fantastic as done by a true professional Koren Shadmi. As a member of the family and someone who was involved in all levels of the activities described in this work, you can feel the stories as they were told to David come to the fore. As many of the players in the story have passed and the rest of us are aging, stories such as this based on memories of the day are golden. This is an easy read and quite entertaining while based on fact. Of course I have a few qualms with some of the details but overall this is a must have for those interested in the History of the RPG. A few minor things that jumped out at me was the original D20 being numbered 1-20 instead of 0-9 twice, the Chaimail game was released by Guidon Games first, not TSR and certainly without the spiral binding. 1980 was the year TSR quaded not 1982 and other such nitpicking that occur to me BUT those are nothing to the overall storytelling and detail that this beautifully illustrated work bring to the table. I personally place this book as my 2nd favorite work on my families life right behind Empire of Imagination.
http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/david-kushner/rise-of-the-dungeon-master/9781568585598/

Greyhawk gumshoe Timrod finds a real world inspiration for the shield device of the Hold of Stonefist!

Greyhawk gumshoe Timrod finds a real world inspiration for the shield device of the Hold of Stonefist! unfrozencavemandicechucker.blogspot.com/2017/05/iron-rangers-of-stone-fist-hockey-in.html?m=1
http://unfrozencavemandicechucker.blogspot.com/2017/05/iron-rangers-of-stone-fist-hockey-in.html?m=1

Trent​ fills in a gap in encounters in the Astral Plane as described by Gygax (PHB/DMG) and Deities & Demigods.

Trent​ fills in a gap in encounters in the Astral Plane as described by Gygax (PHB/DMG) and Deities & Demigods. https://mystical-trash-heap.blogspot.com/2017/05/d-encounters-on-astral-plane.html?m=1
https://mystical-trash-heap.blogspot.com/2017/05/d-encounters-on-astral-plane.html?m=1

Reposting this look at Gygax's Orc Tribes of Greyhawk, from last fall:

Reposting this look at Gygax's Orc Tribes of Greyhawk, from last fall:
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2016/10/gygaxian-orc-tribes.html
Related discussions:
http://knights-n-knaves.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=14297
http://doomsdaygames.proboards.com/thread/1389/orc-hobgoblin-tribes-flanaess?page=1&scrollTo=19991
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2016/10/gygaxian-orc-tribes.html

John Rateliff - author of the History of the Hobbit and former TSR employee - talks about his early D&D experiences,...

John Rateliff - author of the History of the Hobbit and former TSR employee - talks about his early D&D experiences, including use of the Caltech Rules aka Warlock on his blog Sacnoth's Scriptorium

https://sacnoths.blogspot.com/2017/05/my-first-edition-players-handbook.html

He mentioned this once previously, back in 2011 in the comments to a post where I asked him about his early D&D experiences:

http://sacnoths.blogspot.com/2011/12/1st-edition.html

Trent​ reviews Gygax's 1987 collection of Gord the Rogue short stories, set in Greyhawk.

Trent​ reviews Gygax's 1987 collection of Gord the Rogue short stories, set in Greyhawk. I read this when it came out, stupidly later sold it. Need to reacquire.

https://mystical-trash-heap.blogspot.com/2017/04/books-night-arrant.html?m=1
https://mystical-trash-heap.blogspot.com/2017/04/books-night-arrant.html?m=1

Last day for the Blueholme Kickstarter:

Last day for the Blueholme Kickstarter:
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2017/05/blueholme-kickstarter-final-day.html

The Nightmares Underneath, the Upside-Down, and Social Class in Labyrinth Lord

Originally shared by Christian Kolbe

The Nightmares Underneath, the Upside-Down, and Social Class in Labyrinth Lord
I have been wrestling with how to import the concepts of social class and background into character generation. My goal has been to have them be interesting and descriptive. I also want their implementation to be simple: only involving an extra die roll or ...
http://aerden-dnd.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-nightmares-underneath-upside-down.html

The Nightmares Underneath, the Upside-Down, and Social Class in Labyrinth Lord

Originally shared by Christian Kolbe

The Nightmares Underneath, the Upside-Down, and Social Class in Labyrinth Lord
I have been wrestling with how to import the concepts of social class and background into character generation. My goal has been to have them be interesting and descriptive. I also want their implementation to be simple: only involving an extra die roll or ...
http://aerden-dnd.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-nightmares-underneath-upside-down.html

Second preview for the forthcoming collection of J.

Second preview for the forthcoming collection of J. Eric Holmes fiction. Allan Grohe​, the editor, has posted the contents on his new blog. (Disclaimer: the book will include my Holmes Bibliography and an article I wrote to go with it)

Originally shared by Allan Grohe

The second preview for Tales of Peril: The Complete Boinger and Zereth Stories of John Eric Holmes is now live @ https://grodog.blogspot.com/2017/05/tales-of-peril-second-preview.html