From a late 70's U.K zine. Hat tip to thunderdave via the acaeum.Holmes belt!

Scott Mob wrote:

From a late 70's U.K zine. Hat tip to thunderdave via the acaeum. Holmes belt!

Who knew Avalon Hill produced computer games in the 80s?

Who knew Avalon Hill produced computer games in the 80s? Not I. Some neat box cover art, particularly for the sci-fi games. One is reminiscent of the style of Awful Green Things.

Originally shared by Scott Mob

Cool blog post on old AH computer games. I have not played any of these.
https://web.stanford.edu/group/htgg/cgi-bin/drupal/?q=node/1109

Spectre, a 1979 UK D&D zine with a sharkman on the cover of the firstissue. #wereshark

Spectre, a 1979 UK D&D zine with a sharkman on the cover of the first issue. #wereshark

Originally shared by Allan Grohe

I picked up the first two issues of the UK D&D zine "Spectre" recently, and #1 (August 1979) mentions an upcoming "massive scenario" entitled "Knights Keep"---to be published later that year. The 2nd issue mentions a third issue being in the works in two months (and it includes part 2 of a scenario begun in #2 too).

Do any of UK folks know how many issues were printed in Spectre's run, and whether Knights Keep was ever published?

Uglies

Anybody here familiar with these...?

Originally shared by Chris Holmes

Did any of you get to play with these monsters from the 60s? I think they were called uglies. They were based on Wally Wood and Basil Wolverton drawings for bubble gum cards.

'70s dimestore #bulette that I rescued yesterday from the bottom of abin of plastic dinosaurs at a vintage toy...

'70s dimestore #bulette that I rescued yesterday from the bottom of a bin of plastic dinosaurs at a vintage toy store. This is the Chinese-manufactured toy upon which the D&D monster was based.

'70s dimestore #bulette that I rescued yesterday from the bottom of abin of plastic dinosaurs at a vintage toy...

'70s dimestore #bulette that I rescued yesterday from the bottom of a bin of plastic dinosaurs at a vintage toy store.

Vintage 1963 SI article about Fletcher Pratt's naval wargame of the '30s and '40s. Courtesy Roger Giner-Sorolla

Originally shared by Zenopus Archives

Vintage 1963 SI article about Fletcher Pratt's naval wargame of the '30s and '40s. Courtesy Roger Giner-Sorolla
https://www.si.com/vault/1963/09/23/616528/the-worlds-most-complicated-game
https://www.si.com/vault/1963/09/23/616528/the-worlds-most-complicated-game

Vintage 1963 SI article about Fletcher Pratt's naval wargame of the '30s and '40s. Courtesy Roger Giner-Sorolla

Vintage 1963 SI article about Fletcher Pratt's naval wargame of the '30s and '40s. Courtesy Roger Giner-Sorolla
https://www.si.com/vault/1963/09/23/616528/the-worlds-most-complicated-game
https://www.si.com/vault/1963/09/23/616528/the-worlds-most-complicated-game

Return to the Tower of Zenopus game at North TexasRPG Con 2018

Click on each photo for a larger view

Noah Green wrote:

More photos from the Return to the Tower of Zenopus game at North Texas RPG Con 2018

Presumably this history will include their printing of Holmes Basic in the UK.

Presumably this history will include their printing of Holmes Basic in the UK.

Originally shared by Allan Grohe

A history of Games Workshop is in the process of funding at Unbound; it's 74% funded by stalled, so if you're interested in the founding of Citadel Miniatures, Warhammer, or White Dwarf, this may be for you!
https://unbound.com/books/games-workshop/

DCS letter from the 70s

Sharing here, keep the spirits flowing amigos!

Originally shared by Scott Mob

Old DCS letter from a recent ebay auction. It was included in a beat up EPT box set along with some cool maps etc.

Zenopus Edit --- See here for a link to a full scan of this letter: 
https://holmesbasicgpluscommunity.blogspot.com/2018/08/complete-scan-of-old-dcs-letter-from.html

Fun fact about Chainmail.

Originally shared by Andy C

Fun fact about Chainmail.. as described in Jon Peterson's excellent book "Playing at the World", Jeff Perren's original draft of medieval skirmish rules - which would become the LGTSA medievals rules coauthored with Gary Gygax, which in turn would be published by Guidon Games as the first edition of Chainmail - were inspired by Tony Bath's medieval miniatures rules, most likely the 1966 version.

For those not familiar with that origin story, there's a good discussion of it (and of the development of Tony Bath's medievals rules) here: http://odd74.proboards.com/thread/11838/tony-baths-1966-rules


http://odd74.proboards.com/thread/11838/tony-baths-1966-rules

DMing the Return to the Tower of Zenopus at NTRPGCon

Allan Grohe's pictures of me DMing the Return to the Tower of Zenopus at North Texas on the 9th. With Jonathan Perkel Carl Heyl Chris Holmes Noah Green Keith Sloan

A #skullmountain variant by Darlene, from her 1982 card game Jasmine: The Battle for Mid-Realm.

A #skullmountain variant by Darlene, from her 1982 card game Jasmine: The Battle for Mid-Realm. She has a page about it on her blog: http://darlenetheartist.com/tag/fire-queen-of-ildshoii/

"Ildshoii Castle, carved from shiny black obsidian rock, rose high above a crown of volcanos. The dark castle was the domain of Melantha, the ruler of Medrylthorn ..."

About the game:
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/26275/jasmine-battle-mid-realm

Stuff I was able to get signed at #ntrpgcon by former TSR folks, inorder of signing ---

Stuff I was able to get signed at #ntrpgcon by former TSR folks, in order of signing ---

Players Handbook --- my original copy (!) - signed by the Great Druid himself, Dennis Sustare, next to the Druid entry. He created the original class for OD&D.

Return to the Keep on the Borderlands signed by John Rateliff, the author, on the title page. I told him of two of my favorite additions, the Bee-Man and the Shy Tower.

D&D Expert Rulebook double-signed by Steve Marsh, near his co-editor credit, and by Erol Otus, who left his famous "EO" tag by his art on the cover.

World of Greyhawk Glossography signed by Darlene on the title page. I picked this because part of her beautiful map is shown on the cover, but she relayed that she had also done the graphic design and layout. She stared at it for a few seconds, remembering her work. I also bought a signed copy of her 1982 game The Battle for the Mid-Realm.

Hope to take pics of these when I get some more time!

Back home after a game-filled #ntrpgcon.

Back home after a game-filled #ntrpgcon. I shared many games here as I played them, but didn't have time for my last event --- Saturday night's Return to the Tower of Zenopus. A big thank you to my players for a fantastic game! Going around the table from my left we had an enthusiatic Henry Grohe (Sunna), Allan Grohe (Maximillian the Centaur), Jonathan Perkel (Boinger), Carl Heyl (Bardan the Dwarf), Courtney Heyl (Hortensa the Amazon), Chris Holmes (Olaf & Haldor), Jimm Johnson (Sir Geoffrey), Keith Sloan (Murray the M-U) and Noah Green (Zereth). #brazenheadofzenopus

Playing Boinger the Hobbit

Jonathan Perkel wrote:

Playing Boinger the Hobbit in Zach H ‘s ‘Return to the Tower of Zenopus’ with Chris Holmes and Allan Grohe. A highlight of the NTRPGCon...

Chris Holmes Running D&D in Pellucidar.

Now at #ntrpgcon --- Chris Holmes is running D&D in Pellucidar. We are playing the characters from Mahars of Pellucidar. I'm Zed the Mahar who has befriended the humans. Miniatues sculpted by Chris.

Now at #ntrpgcon --- playing a B/X adventure run by Steve Marsh,co-editor of the original Expert rulebook.

Now at #ntrpgcon --- playing a B/X adventure run by Steve Marsh, co-editor of the original Expert rulebook. The scenario is "99 Barrels of Beer..." We've been hired to safely transport a shipment of beer.

Update: The photo linked below in the comments is no longer at that location since G+ shut down, so I've added the photo above.

Now at #ntrpgcon --- Bunnies & Burrows with the original author, Dennis Sustare, who also created the Druid class...

Now at #ntrpgcon --- Bunnies & Burrows with the original author, Dennis Sustare, who also created the Druid class for OD&D. He has a new version of B&B to be kick-started in the fall.

Happening right now at #ntrpgcon --- our party fighting kobolds in aHolmes game run by Carl Heyl using only 70s...

Now at #ntrpgcon --- our party fighting kobolds in a Holmes game run by Carl Heyl using only 70s resources. Dungeon walls are painted dominoes.

Part of the Black Blade booth at NT RPG Con, with Tales of Peril andthe Fantastic Exciting Imaginative zines at...

Part of the Black Blade booth at NT RPG Con, with Tales of Peril and the Fantastic Exciting Imaginative zines at the front. Allan Grohe Jon Hershberger Jon Wilson #ntrpgcon

Getting prepped for the Middle-earth tabletop gaming room which I'mhelping host at North Texas RPG Con this week.

Originally shared by Stan Shinn

Getting prepped for the Middle-earth tabletop gaming room which I'm helping host at North Texas RPG Con this week. Excited!

FEI #1 and #2 are at the Black Blade booth, if you're at NTRPGCon...

FEI #1 and #2 are at the Black Blade booth, if you're at NTRPGCon...
And the PDFs are on sale this weekend for everyone.

Originally shared by Jon Wilson (bygrinstow)

If you're at North Texas RPG Con this weekend, and are looking for physical copies of my zines, they will be at the Black Blade booth!

And the PDF copies on RPGNow are on sale to go along with that...!
http://www.rpgnow.com/browse/pub/8543/Inner-Ham

OD&D stats for Mordenkainen, as written up by Gygax in 1974. Courtesy Jon Peterson

OD&D stats for Mordenkainen, as written up by Gygax in 1974. Courtesy Jon Peterson

http://playingattheworld.blogspot.com/2018/06/mordenkainen-in-1974-and-today.html

Anyone seen this sheet before? Saw it in a lot on ebay

Anyone seen this sheet before? Saw it in a lot on ebay

Pictures of adventurers meeting their doom are sorely lacking in thenewer rulebooks #dcsIII

Pictures of adventurers meeting their doom are sorely lacking in the newer rulebooks #dcsIII

Originally shared by Scott Mob

Ouch!

Sharing this again, publicly this time.

Sharing this again, publicly this time. Preview of forthcoming D&D art book that will be available in two versions. The Deluxe edition will include a reprint of the original tournament version of Tomb of Horrors - from 1975, so for OD&D.

Originally shared by Allan Grohe

Some new information about the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons: Art & Arcana book: https://io9.gizmodo.com/just-look-at-this-gorgeous-dungeons-dragons-art-book-1826457973

The special edition ($125 vs. $50 for the standard edition) will feature a reproduction of the 1975 Origins 1 Tomb of Horrors tournament, among other goodies.

Thanks to Jon Peterson for the pointer!
https://io9.gizmodo.com/just-look-at-this-gorgeous-dungeons-dragons-art-book-1826457973

A little Gygaxian detail I never put together before: the Guest Chamber (room 60) in the Shrink of Evil Chaos in the...

A little Gygaxian detail I never put together before: the Guest Chamber (room 60) in the Shrink of Evil Chaos in the Caves of Chaos has a "polished mirror" hidden under a "velvet cloth". Gygax presumably placed this here because nearby is the captive medusa (Cell, room 64).